I grew up on a small ranch in East Sarasota adjacent to Myakka State Park, said Beakley. I spent most my youth outside working with the animals, fishing or just exploring the woods. Im looking forward to spending time outside again, meeting new people, and helping our customers."

Monster Tree Service, the nations first and fastest-growing tree service franchise, is expanding in Florida. Recently featured by SUCCESS magazine, Thrive Global, and Franchise Times, the Monster Tree Service franchise continues to build on its rapid three-year franchise system growth.

Business entrepreneur Brasington Beakley has purchased the rights to a Monster Tree Service Territory in Pinellas County, Florida, which includes St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Safety Harbor, Dunedin and surrounding areas. Beakley is excited to pursue his dream of building his own business after a successful 30-year career in the beverage manufacturing industry. Beakley has lived all over the country during his career, but he and his wife, Pattie, grew up in Florida. Both of their children were born in Fort Myers and they are all excited to return to their roots.

I grew up on a small ranch in East Sarasota adjacent to Myakka State Park, said Beakley. I spent most my youth outside working with the animals, fishing or just exploring the woods. Im looking forward to spending time outside again, meeting new people, and helping our customers. Monster Tree Service is the perfect opportunity for us to make this change and return to the Florida Suncoast. This business model is very operational driven and thats my forte. Numbers and operations are my background, so Im ready to hit the ground running. Im also looking forward to the flexibility of not having to report to an office every day.

Josh Skolnick, CEO and Founder of Monster Tree Service, is confident Beakley will be a tremendous asset to the Monster Tree Service franchise.

Brasington is an ideal Monster Tree Service franchisee, says Skolnick. He has a solid business background and an incredible work ethic. He has a knack for understanding the needs of his community, and I am confident he will thrive as the newest member of the Monster family. We could not be more excited to have him on our team.

Monster Tree Service is the only franchise tree company capitalizing on the under-served $17 billion tree service industry. Monster Tree Service has achieved consistent year-over-year, 5 percent growth since 2009, resulting in a $10+ million business. Because its a high-upside opportunity, and a recession-proof business, Monster Tree Service expects to achieve $100 million in sales by 2021.

Im thrilled to bring Monster Tree Service to the Pinellas County area, says Beakley. Florida is an ideal location for this business because were able to work all year round to help homeowners improve their properties. Were also excited to offer the community our wide array of services, including tree removal, tree trimming, storm damage preparation and more.

For more information about Monster Tree Service, please visit http://www.whymonster.com/.

For more information about Monster Tree Service franchise opportunities, please visit http://www.monsterfranchising.com/.

To learn more about CEO Josh Skolnicks vision for Monster Tree Service, please visit https://www.monsterfranchising.com/vision-story.

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About Monster Tree Service

Founded in 2008 in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, by Founder and CEO Josh Skolnick, Monster Tree Service is the nations first and fastest-growing franchise brand serving the $21 billion tree care industry. Over the past decade, Skolnick has aggressively built Monster Tree Service into a thriving national franchise system, working day and night to build the company into a multi-million-dollar business with more than 62 franchise partners and 166 territories sold in 28 states.

With dozens of fantastic franchise partners doing great work in their respective communities, Monster Tree Service expects to exceed $35 million in systemwide revenue in 2019. Each Monster Tree Service franchised outlet offers full-scale tree pruning and removal services, including tree pruning and trimming, tree removal, stump grinding, shrub maintenance, emergency services, plant health care, and various secondary services.

Monster Tree Service franchise owners possess high levels of business acumen and business-building skills that bring a rare level of professionalism to the tree care industry. Fully invested in this industry - both personally and professionally - Monster Tree Service owners provide wonderful opportunities to other professionals who have a shared vision of continuing to legitimize the tree care industry as a skilled trade. These industry professionals will have the tools, training, and respect to excel in providing unparalleled service to their clients and Make the World a More Beautiful Place, One Tree at a Time.

Monster Tree Service is committed to educating all customers on the natural conditions, diseases and infestations that impact the health of their plants/trees and treating all issues with an environmentally friendly, Do Not Harm approach. Its all part of the Monster Tree Service vision to partner with homeowners across the country to make their trees healthy, strong, and vital.

For more information about Monster Tree Service, please visit https://www.whymonster.com/.
Fiber optic cables, it turns out, can be incredibly useful scientific sensors. Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have studied them for use in carbon sequestration, groundwater mapping, earthquake detection, and monitoring of Arctic permafrost thaw. Now they have been awarded new grants to develop fiber optics for two novel uses: monitoring offshore wind operations and underground natural gas storage.

"A fiber cable has a glass core that allows you to send an optical signal down at the speed of light; when there is any vibration, strains, or stresses or changes in temperature of the material that is being monitored, that information will be carried in the light signal that is scattered back," said Berkeley Lab scientist Yuxin Wu, who is leading both projects.

The California Energy Commission has awarded Berkeley Lab $2 million for the offshore wind project and $1.5 million for the natural gas project. Both projects are in collaboration with UC Berkeley, and for the natural gas project, Berkeley Lab will also collaborate with PG&E, Schlumberger, and C-FER Technologies (a Canadian company), to carry out the tests.

From gearbox failure to humpback whale movements

Europe is at the forefront of offshore wind development. Other parts of the world are only in the early stages of commercialization, but it is growing quickly, including in the U.S., where the Department of Energy (DOE) has been supporting development of the technology. Offshore wind resources in the U.S. are abundant and have the potential to provide nearly double the total amount of electricity currently generated in the U.S., according to a 2016 DOE report.

One of the advantages of offshore wind for the U.S. is that the resource is close to dense coastal populations. Therefore, energy transmission is a lesser challenge compared to other renewable energy sources such as onshore wind and solar farms, which are typically located farther away from population centers due to the availability and cost of real estate.

Off the California coast, the ocean floor drops off steeply, making floating wind turbines - which are tethered to the ocean floor by mooring chains, unlike conventional "fixed bottom" offshore wind turbines - the only viable option. But this technology faces several obstacles, including how to do maintenance and operations on remote installations in the ocean economically and how to monitor if hazards such as earthquakes or extreme weather conditions disrupt operations.

This is where the fiber optic cables come in.

"One of the most expensive components of a wind turbine is the gearbox; they also tend to be the part that's most vulnerable to failure," said Wu, who is also head of Berkeley Lab's Geophysics Department. "Often before they fail they produce abnormal vibrations or excessive heat due to increased or irregular friction. We intend to use fiber optic cables to monitor the vibrational, strain, and temperature signal of the gearbox, in order to pinpoint where problems are happening."

Wrapping fiber optic cables around the entire gearbox can provide a 3D map of changes with resolution at the millimeter scale. "It could help identify problems with the gearbox at an early stage, which would trigger emergency management, before a catastrophic failure causing loss of the whole turbine," Wu said.

What's more, Wu said the project intends to explore how the fiber optic cables can be used to detect marine mammal activity. The sensitivity of the fiber signal could allow for differentiation between, say, crashing waves and a pod of whales swimming by.

"Environmentally sustainable development of offshore wind is critical," he said. "With a large offshore wind farm, there would be many of these mooring lines securing the turbine structures to the ocean floor. If a humpback whale swims by, what are the impacts of these mooring lines on their activities? Will the whales generate unique vibrational signals that can be picked up by the fiber optic sensors? If we can track the signals of a whale swimming by, it will allow us to evaluate whether and how the offshore wind turbine impacts marine mammals."

Wu added that he is looking to learn more about whales and other marine mammals from marine biologists and also seeking a partner to collaborate with to test the sensors in the ocean.

Making underground gas reservoirs safer

Similarly, Wu and his research partners hope to use fiber optic cables to monitor the boreholes of underground natural gas storage reservoirs. The borehole is used to inject and withdraw gas from vast underground storage reservoirs. Like any pipe, these boreholes degrade and corrode over time. The massive gas leak at Aliso Canyon in 2016, in which thousands of families had to evacuate their homes, was concluded to be caused by corrosion damage of the borehole.

Thus, borehole integrity is of paramount importance to safe storage of natural gas in the subsurface. It is currently monitored mostly using tools that are intrusive, expensive, and incapable of providing frequent, real-time data. "It is difficult to predict borehole degradation trajectory with the sparse data generated by traditional methods. Having higher frequency datasets covering the entire borehole is key to provide an early warning of potential borehole failures," Wu said.

In the new CEC-funded project, Berkeley Lab will work with UC Berkeley, PG&E, Schlumberger, and C-FER to test a novel suite of technologies for autonomous real-time monitoring using two methods, one based on distributed strain, vibration, and temperature sensing in fiber optic cables and the other using electromagnetic wave reflectometry.

EM-TDR (or electromagnetic time domain reflectometry) is similar to the fiber optic technology except that it uses longer wavelength electromagnetic waves instead of visible light (also an electromagnetic wave but at much short wavelength) as signals. "EM-TDR sends electromagnetic waves into an electronically conductive material, and when there is a change due to damage, such as corrosion, you get an EM signal back which can help you identify corrosion or other degradations," Wu said.

And because the borehole is made of steel, which is electrically conductive, no downhole equipment will need to be installed. Thus, EM-TDR is very easy to deploy and can be used under many circumstances that prevent the use of other types of sensors. On the other hand, EM-TDR is still an early-stage technology; this new project will allow further testing and development.

For both the offshore wind and natural gas projects, the scientific challenge, Wu said, is optimizing the technology design and sensitivity and developing real-time edge computing technologies. "In addition to using commercial systems, our team is developing new fiber interrogators that will allow us to not only get to the original raw data but also play with the physics to better design a system that can give us the most sensitive signal we want," he said. "In addition, we will be developing machine learning-based edge computing methods to turn raw data into actionable intelligence quickly. This is key for real-time monitoring."

###

Founded in 1931 on the belief that the biggest scientific challenges are best addressed by teams, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and its scientists have been recognized with 13 Nobel Prizes. Today, Berkeley Lab researchers develop sustainable energy and environmental solutions, create useful new materials, advance the frontiers of computing, and probe the mysteries of life, matter, and the universe. Scientists from around the world rely on the Lab's facilities for their own discovery science. Berkeley Lab is a multiprogram national laboratory, managed by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.

DOE's Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit energy.gov/science.
Engagements with government agencies, healthcare organizations and academic institutions around the world including in Arkansas, California, Georgia, New York, Texas, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Spain and UK

ARMONK, N.Y., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- With COVID-19 affecting 206 countries, areas and territories, IBM (NYSE: IBM) is helping government agencies, healthcare organizations and academic institutions throughout the world use AI to put critical data and information into the hands of their citizens.

The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences deployed a virtual agent using Watson Assistant for Citizens in 9 days so citizens can get their questions answered quickly about COVID-19 testing, symptoms or resources. (Credit: University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences) Watson Assistant for Citizens automates responses to frequently asked questions about COVID-19 on topics such as symptoms, testing and protective measures. (Credit: IBM) With Watson Assistant for Citizens, IBM is helping government agencies, healthcare organizations and academic institutions use AI to put trusted data and information into the hands of their citizens. Citizens can quickly obtain reliable information about COVID-19, including guidance from the CDC and local sources such as links to school closings, news and documents on a state website -- online or by phone. (Credit: IBM)

With a flood of information requests from citizens, wait times in many areas to receive answers can exceed two hours. Available for no charge for at least 90 days and available to our client's citizens online or by phone, IBM Watson Assistant for Citizens on the IBM public cloud brings together Watson Assistant, Natural Language Processing capabilities from IBM Research, and state-of-art enterprise AI search capabilities with Watson Discovery, to understand and respond to common questions about COVID-19.

"While helping government agencies and healthcare institutions use AI to get critical information out to their citizens remains a high priority right now, the current environment has made it clear that every business in every industry should find ways to digitally engage with their clients and employees," said Rob Thomas, general manager, IBM Data & AI. "With today's news, IBM is taking years of experience in helping thousands of global businesses and institutions use Natural Language Processing and other advanced AI technologies to better meet the demands of their constituents, and now applying it to the COVID-19 crisis. AI has the power to be your assistant during this uncertain time."

Watson Assistant for Citizens leverages currently available data from external sources, including guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and local sources such as links to school closings, news and documents on a state website. IBM already is delivering this service across the United States, as well as engaging with organizations globally in Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Italy, Poland, Spain, UK and more.

Here are examples where IBM is engaging with government and healthcare agencies on Watson Assistant for Citizens:

ARKANSAS : University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences  In 9 days, deployed a virtual agent so citizens can get their questions answered quickly about testing, symptoms or resources. Information is automatically sent to a mobile COVID-19 triage clinic electronically to help speed response. Average registration time has been reduced by fifty percent for those using the agent.

 In 9 days, deployed a virtual agent so citizens can get their questions answered quickly about testing, symptoms or resources. Information is automatically sent to a mobile COVID-19 triage clinic electronically to help speed response. Average registration time has been reduced by fifty percent for those using the agent. CALIFORNIA : City of Lancaster in Los Angeles County  COVID-19 information for citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection.

 COVID-19 information for citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection. GEORGIA : Children's Healthcare of Atlanta  The "COVID-19 Pediatric Assessment Tool" walks parents through a series of questions and results in suggested next steps that a parent should take. Recommendations on next steps are made according to the healthcare system's established protocols.

 The "COVID-19 Pediatric Assessment Tool" walks parents through a series of questions and results in suggested next steps that a parent should take. Recommendations on next steps are made according to the healthcare system's established protocols. NEW YORK: County of Otsego  COVID-19-related information will be available within the next few days for citizens to help them quickly get their health and non-health related questions answered regarding the pandemic. Otsego County's COVID-19 virtual agent will be able to answer citizen's questions like: "How do I apply for unemployment?"

 COVID-19-related information will be available within the next few days for citizens to help them quickly get their health and non-health related questions answered regarding the pandemic. COVID-19 virtual agent will be able to answer citizen's questions like: "How do I apply for unemployment?" TEXAS : City of Austin  COVID-19-related information will soon be available for citizens with interactive conversation on where to get testing and other information.

 COVID-19-related information will soon be available for citizens with interactive conversation on where to get testing and other information. CZECH REPUBLIC : Czech Ministry of Health  COVID-19 virtual agent called "Anezka" advises citizens about prevention, treatment and other related topics on the coronavirus.

 COVID-19 virtual agent called "Anezka" advises citizens about prevention, treatment and other related topics on the coronavirus. GREECE : Hellenic Ministry of Digital Governance  COVID-19-related information for citizens and interactive conversation on preventive and precautionary measures issued by the Greek Government.

 COVID-19-related information for citizens and interactive conversation on preventive and precautionary measures issued by the Greek Government. POLAND : Polish Ministry of Health  COVID-19 information for Polish citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection.

 COVID-19 information for Polish citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection. SPAIN : Andalusian Government  A virtual agent to help respond to citizen's queries about COVID-19 is available through the app "Salud Responde" and the Public Agency for Health Emergencies (EPES) website, built also in collaboration with the Andalusian Health Service (SAS).

 A virtual agent to help respond to citizen's queries about COVID-19 is available through the app "Salud Responde" and the website, built also in collaboration with the Andalusian Health Service (SAS). UK: National Health Service Wales: Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board  CERi, an English and Welsh speaking virtual assistant, will soon go live to support healthcare workers and the general public in Wales who need information or have questions on the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 along with general information about the virus.

"Austin residents are counting on us to provide timely updates on COVID-19 response," said Tauseef Khan, Chief Technology Officer, City of Austin, Texas. "The City is pleased to use artificial intelligence technology to respond to that need, with a tool that quickly and easily helps residents find the information they need 24/7."

"The AI solution from IBM will be a great resource for the county's residents and will help alleviate call center volume to allow county employees to dedicate efforts elsewhere," said Brian Pokorny, Director of Information Technologies, County of Otsego, New York.

Using information provided by clients, Watson Assistant for Citizens automates responses to frequently asked questions about COVID-19 that come in via phone call or text, such as "What are symptoms?", "How do I clean my home properly?" and "How do I protect myself?"

State and local government agencies, hospitals or other healthcare organizations can choose to customize the solution to address questions specific to their area or region, including "What are cases in my neighborhood?", "How long are schools shut down?" and "Where can I get tested?"

IBM is offering Watson Assistant for Citizens for no charge for at least 90 days and will assist with initial set up, which can typically be done in a few days. The initial solution is available in English and Spanish and can be tailored to 13 languages.

The offer includes access to 15 pre-trained COVID-19 "intents" or queries. "Intents" are purposes or goals that are expressed in a customer's input, such as answering a question. By recognizing the intent expressed in a customer's input, the Watson Assistant service can choose the correct dialog flow for responding to it.

Clients can also work with IBM to customize the offering on top of the base model and intents to include information related specifically to a city or region for specific information that is pertinent to those citizens or constituents, as well as integrate with client's back-end ERP systems.

IBM is also working with global businesses in other industries to apply AI to help them respond to COVID-19 and reimagine the way work will get done in this new operating environment.

For more information about IBM efforts around COVID-19, visit https://www.ibm.com/covid19 and https://newsroom.ibm.com/covid-19.

For more information about Watson Assistant for Citizens, visit https://www.ibm.com/watson/covid-response.

For more information about how businesses in any industry can use Watson Assistant, visit: https://www.ibm.com/cloud/watson-assistant/.

Media Contact:

Hanna Smigala

IBM Media Relations

1-203-512-5497

[email protected]

SOURCE IBM
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 00:11:35|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Thursday expressed strong disapproval of and firm opposition to the irresponsible remarks about China's countermeasures against U.S. restrictions on Chinese media agencies by an anti-China activist and a British politician.

Benedict Rogers, a die-hard anti-China activist anxious to sow trouble in Hong Kong and founder of Hong Kong Watch, and a certain British politician made such remarks in their letters recently.

The spokesperson of the office pointed out that the announcement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China that the relevant journalists of U.S. citizenship will not be allowed to continue working as journalists in China, including its Hong Kong and Macao SARs, is a necessary and reciprocal countermeasure China is compelled to take in response to the U.S. oppression of Chinese media organizations there.

The decision falls within the Chinese central government's purview over foreign affairs in accordance with the "one country, two systems" and the Basic Law, and is completely legitimate, fair and reasonable, the spokesperson said.

By turning a blind eye to the discrimination, unwarranted restrictions and exclusion Chinese media agencies and journalists are subject to in the United States, and instead distorting the truth and accusing China of undermining the freedom of the press and the high level of autonomy in Hong Kong, the British politicians have again revealed their hypocrisy and double standards, the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson reiterated that Hong Kong is part of China and urged the British politicians to respect the facts, correct their mistakes, and immediately stop meddling with Hong Kong affairs and China's internal affairs at large under any pretext and in any way.
It started last Monday, March 23, with a dragging fatigue and a low-grade fever he just couldnt shake. The emergency room nurse at HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest had worked nine days straight, testing patients with symptoms of the new coronavirus.

He told his wife he only was allowed to test the really sick ones, based on his hospitals interpretation of Centers for Disease Control and Protection guidelines. And almost always, he said, the deep thrust of the throat swab made patients cough or gag, spewing spit and mucus on him.

The 39-year-old, whose name is being withheld to protect his privacy and that of his family, stands 6-feet tall and weighs 350 pounds. The hospital couldnt find a specialized N-95 protective mask that fit. He was told to wear a looser-fitting, thinner surgical mask instead, his wife said.

By last Tuesday his fever started to rise. The next day it spiked at 102.8 degrees. On Thursday, after calling in sick for the third day, he was told he might want to get tested because some of the patients he had screened had come back positive, his wife said. By Saturday night, March 28, he was barely able to lift his head, coughing up blood, staining the pillowcases.

CORONAVIRUS UPDATES: Stay informed with accurate reporting you can trust

Even as a physician I was scared to death, said his wife, who works at another hospital. She knew what was happening. Most everyone in Houstons health care community had been bracing for the deadly virus that had already circled the globe. Now she was looking it in the face.

Yet for weeks, health care workers in Houston and elsewhere in Texas say they have been locked in a second battle, this one with some hospital administrators to get better equipment to protect themselves against a virus that spreads rapidly and in stealth. They worried the virus would not only infect them, but also fellow staff members, patients, and then follow them home at shifts end.

Those pleas, though, have been met with inconsistent and delayed responses, and in some instances, even with hostility. In one Texas case, for instance, an El Paso doctor was suspended for wearing a mask to protect himself without his hospitals permission. The Chronicle interviewed a half-dozen doctors at four hospitals for this story as well as obtaining internal hospital emails.

Hospital administrations have previously said they were merely following CDC guidelines that allowed restricted use of personal protective equipment to better conserve supplies against the gathering storm.

In recent days, though, hospital systems across Houston began revising policies so in most cases anyone involved in patient care or who works in patient areas now are to wear masks. Some institutions, though, continue to restrict the use of certain protective gear.

RELATED: As protective supplies dwindle, health care workers in Houston begin a scrounge for safety

For some Houston health care workers, the plight of one of their own, now near death, has only widened the divide between the front lines and the front office.

They are slow to act. They dont listen until its too late, said an obstetrician-gynecologist at Womens Hospital of Texas, also part of the HCA network. She asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal. I feel so horrible for this nurse. He doesnt deserve this.

A plea for prayers

On March 29, as his wife helped him into the car for the short drive to Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital, the stricken nurses breath had become so ragged he could barely speak, she said. Almost immediately he was whisked from the emergency room to the intensive care unit. A healthy amount of oxygen in a patients blood should register at about 95 percent. His level was 60, he posted on Facebook.

(Expletive) me, he wrote, for now all I can do is ask for a few prayers.

Doctors wanted to put him on a ventilator, a machine that pumps air into a patients lungs when their own body can no longer do so. The couple resisted, desperate for another solution. Both knew the statistics: most people put on a ventilator do not survive. By nightfall there was no other option.

HCA Houston Healthcare, a for-profit health system that operates 13 hospitals in the Houston region, declined to comment on the nurses case, citing patient privacy laws. But in an emailed statement the company said, we take any reports of (personal protection equipment) shortage, improper use or failure to follow CDC guidelines seriously.

If anyone at HCA Houston Healthcare contracts an infectious disease, our team immediately begins the rigorous process of identifying everyone that that individual may have come in contact with while at the hospital. This includes all healthcare providers, staff and other patients, the statement said.

But most of the nurses co-workers had no idea he was sick until his family began posting on social media, said a doctor in that department who is speaking anonymously out of fear of losing his job. He said most doctors and nurses are now afraid to speak out about conditions.

Also, in the days surrounding the nurse falling ill, a second person - a physician -in the same HCA Houston Healthcare Northwest emergency room also tested positive for the virus, according to two internal emails obtained by the Chronicle.

ER doc at HNW tested positive for COVID (hes doing fine) said the first email. Its date is unclear. A second one, dated March 24, said the doctor is doing well, and added, the health department was consulted by the hospital. They responded that we do not need to test/furlow (sic) staff because he developed symptoms more than 24 hours after the end of his last shift. That said if you want to wear a mask for the next 14 days, as many staff already are, that is fine.

The CDC has said symptoms may not develop in someone who has been infected for up to 14 days.

HCA also declined to comment on the doctors positive test result because of patient privacy laws. Nor did it explain why two employees who worked in the same unit were unaware the other had tested positive. The nurses wife said she only learned of the doctor on Tuesday, hearing about it for the first time from the Chronicle.

Policy change

On Monday, HCA announced a shift in policy, adopting what is known as universal masking. All staff and providers in all patient care areas will now wear masks, expanding their use beyond suspected or positive COVID cases, the press release said, adding that masks were optional for those without patient contact as long as social distancing of at least 6 feet could be achieved.

We are taking this step now because of evidence we see that, while social distancing is a key strategy for interrupting the spread of coronavirus, it is difficult to maintain in the busy patient care environment, according to the statement. HCA also said its analysis showed it would be able to meet the demand of additional use of masks but would continue to preserve personal protection equipment by reuse and reprocessing PPE where appropriate.

The move came as other Houston institutions adopted new guidelines in recent days. Memorial Hermann Health System announced that beginning March 28 anyone entering its facilities will be provided with a surgical mask once they have cleared pre-screening. Houston Methodist employees and physicians who have patient contact are also now asked to wear a mask.

Employees will receive their daily mask and a paper bag to store it in when they check in with their unit, the Houston Methodist directive said, adding that clinical staff should wear one mask all day.

Harris Health System, which operates the citys two safety net hospitals, similarly announced it was strongly encouraging its employees to wear masks while in its patient care facilities. It said a surgical or procedural mask would be provided once an employee had been screened. N-95 masks would be issued for certain procedures and cannot be brought from home, the announcement said.

Texas Childrens Hospital said it was implementing a voluntary program for employees who had patient contact, adding we respect the choice of each employee to decide whether or not to wear a mask. The hospital said protective gear would be used in procedures where it was required.

Still, some doctors are not sure the new policies are enough, especially as the equipment that offers the most protection is still being rationed at some institutions. But mostly they worry the changes comes too late. It is unknown how far the virus has already spread undetected since some infected patients can be without symptoms and testing remains spotty, they said.

RELATED: Houston doctors frustrated by lack of coronavirus test kits

That leaves health care workers with a terrible choice. Hospitals have to give providers the right personal protection or they will walk off the job. And thats the last thing you need, said Dr. Cedric Dark, an assistant professor of emergency medicine at Houstons Baylor College of Medicine. Every single person is having to make that personal calculation. It tells you how serious this is for us, that we are willing to lose our jobs to save our lives.

Punished for protection

Dr. Henry Nikicicz, an anesthesiologist at University Medical Center in El Paso, made a choice. And he paid for it.

In the early morning of March 18, Nikicicz, 60, had just finished intubating a patient in respiratory distress and had his N-95 mask in his hand as he walked down the hall. As a group of people approached, he said he instinctively raised the mask to his face, not only for his own protection but also for theirs. Among those in the group was Jacob Cintron, hospital CEO, who Nikicicz said became furious and wanted him fired.

The doctor said in an interview with the Chronicle he was told the administration was angry because wearing such a mask could lead to public panic. U R WEARING IT WALKING DOWN A PUBLIC HALL. THERES NO MORE WUHAN VIRUS IN THE HALLS OF THE HOSPITAL THAN WALMART. MAYBE LESS, came a text message in all caps from Nikiciczs supervisor.

In addition, Nikicicz said he was told his wife, Irma Nikicicz, must remove her Facebook post about the situation. She refused. Although the doctor said Sunday he was initially off the schedule for April, he was reinstated on Monday after a meeting between his supervisor, his physician group and hospital administration. But he said he remains forbidden from wearing a N-95 mask in hallways or patient rooms unless he is performing specific treatments.

RELATED: Texas doctor on pandemic's 'front line' wages harrowing, 8-hour battle to get tested for COVID-19

University Medical Center confirmed in a statement that Nikicicz was briefly removed from the rotation for insubordination. The hospital said the doctor had been told on numerous occasions by his supervisor to not wear the N95 surgical mask while not in the operating room area or while not treating patients with infectious disease.

We have always welcomed anyone wearing masks, primarily simple masks when in common areas of the hospital. However, for the safety of our patients and healthcare providers, we are trying to conserve N95 masks for patient care, the hospital statement said, adding that the CDC did not require masks for health professionals if they were not treating infected patients or in surgical areas.

For now Nikicicz plans to return to work but doesnt know if his job will last. The last few days have left him shaken.

I should be able to protect myself, he said, in the middle of a pandemic this is just wrong.

A mothers dilemma

Mixed into the terror and exhaustion of the past few days, the wife of the infected Houston nurse said she is now feeling the beginnings of something else - anger. She is horrified that any employee on the front lines facing a deadly virus could be left so underprotected.

Its like sending a soldier into a fight with a BB gun, she said.

Her husband remains in critical but stable condition. His doctor sees glimmers of improvement, she said, but it is still touch and go. The hardest part, she said, is knowing what to tell their children, ages 9, 7 and 6.

I couldnt promise them that Daddy was going to get better, she said, her voice catching. I couldnt promise them that Daddy was going to come home.

jenny.deam@chron.com

@Jenny_Deam
The Daily Beast

Fox News White House correspondent and perpetual nemesis of Jen Psaki thought he had Joe Bidens press secretary cornered on Monday when he asked her why the president is still referring to COVID-19 as a pandemic of the unvaccinated when so many people are getting breakthrough infections. He was wrong.I understand that the science says that vaccines prevent death, Doocy began, before undercutting that basic truth. But Im triple-vaxxed, still got COVID. Youre triple-vaxxed, still got COVI
Building work at Primary Health Properties' (PHP) site in Rialto, Dublin, as well as its facility in Bray, Co Wicklow, is continuing, having received special permission to remain open during the coronavirus pandemic.

Most construction work across the country has been shut down following Government guidelines issued last Friday in order to limit the spread of the deadly disease. However, work at sites for essential medical facilities is allowed.

Yesterday, PHP said the HSE was "keen for the sites at Bray and Rialto to be completed as soon as possible". The two facilities are due to be finished later this month. PHP currently has 16 healthcare facilities in the Republic of Ireland worth 180m.

Harry Hyman, managing director of PHP, said some of the company's facilities in Ireland will be used as part of the battle against the virus. "The HSE is interested in developing community hubs in a number of primary care centres to take the pressure off hospitals," he said.

"Our portfolio of properties stands on the front line of delivering vital services for the NHS and HSE in the UK and Ireland, and we are working closely with our occupiers to help them better-utilise our assets."

Going forward, PHP anticipates that it will spend a further 120m on assets in Ireland. The company only funds developments that have a contract with the HSE or general practitioners.

Currently, 90pc of its rental income in Ireland comes either directly or indirectly from the Government, with the remainder from pharmacies co-located at its properties. As of March 31, the group's net debt stood at 1.1bn (1.2bn).
The UNFPA has launched prevention and hygiene kits to support the Moroccan governments response to the Coronavirus pandemic, which has so far killed 37 people in the country and infected 654, while 26 others recovered.

To protect the most vulnerable people to several or fatal covid-19 infection in rural and urban areas, UN population agency and Moroccan authorities will supply, in a first phase, Salama Kits to pregnant women and health professionals, especially midwives.

Later on, the kits will be given to women victims of violence, migrants, inmates (especially pregnant women), people with disabilities and the elderly.

The move has been launched in close coordination with the Moroccan Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Solidarity & Social development, the Penitentiary Administration, National Association of Midwives, family planning association, the African Organization for the Fight against AIDS (OPALS), Anaruz Network, Initiatives for the Protection of Womens Rights and Y-PEER Association.

Nationwide awareness campaigns through TV, radio, social mediawill also be launched to protect older people and pregnant women who are particularly at higher risk for severe illness from Covid-19 due to the weakening of their immune system.
Bir Lehlu (Liberated Territories), April 1, 2020 (SPS) -The Government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic has decreed seven-day official mourning following the physical loss of the member of the National Secretariat Frente POLISARIO (head of international relations) and coordinator with the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), Mhamad Jadad, who died on Wednesday after a hard battle with a terminal illness.

The Saharawi Government has announced the sad news, stating that "the Saharawi people, without a doubt, lose one of their most loyal and honorable men", highlighting his figure as "one of the fighters and leaders of POLISARIO who accompanied the Saharawi struggle from its beginnings with sincerity, sacrifice and generosity.

Mhamad Jadad, born in 1954, abandoned his studies in Public Works engineering, in Algeria, to join the Saharawi revolution at a very young age. Since that, he has occupied important positions and functions in the national liberation movement and the Saharawi Government.

A prominent militant of the POLISARIO, in 1978 he was part of the Saharawi delegation in the first direct negotiations with Morocco, held in 1978 in Bamako, Mali. He has also served as RASD ambassador in Algeria, on two occasions, responsible for the European department in the foreign committee of POLISARIO and governor of the Wilaya de Smara, among other responsibilities.

After the signing of the ceasefire between the POLISARIO and Morocco in 1991, Jadad played a crucial role in the census work to determine the list of legitimate voters in the self-determination referendum in Western Sahara.

Mhamad Jadad has led the legal battle of POLISARIO in the European courts, achieving historical successes of the Saharawi people against Morocco and the illegal exploitation of natural resources in the occupied areas of Western Sahara.SPSP

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WASHINGTON  President Donald Trump warned Iran on Wednesday against using its proxy forces to attack U.S. troops, vowing to retaliate by going up the food chain, a hint that the American military was considering a more direct strike on Iranian forces.

But senior Democrats cautioned Trump against attacking Iran without consulting Congress, a step he chose to forgo before the January killing of a top Iranian commander that pushed the countries to the brink of war. In a letter on March 27, Democratic leaders wrote that Trump must discuss with lawmakers any potential military actions overseas and noted that recent attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq highlighted threats that could require a military response.

Trump strongly hinted on Wednesday that he was considering striking Iran if its proxy forces again attacked U.S. troops and said his administration had very good information that Iran-backed militias were planning more assaults.

Noting that the United States had retaliated after a strike in March by Kataib Hezbollah, an Iraqi militia with ties to Iran, Trump suggested that if proxy groups struck again, the United States was considering directly attacking Iranian forces.

If it happens again, that would go up the food chain, Trump said. This response will be bigger if they do something.

Earlier on Wednesday, the president warned Iran against a sneak attack on American forces and hinted at reprisal. Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq, Trump wrote on Twitter. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!

Trumps comments were the latest indication that the White House was considering escalating action against Iran or its proxy forces.

Tensions with Iran have deepened since the start of the year when Trump ordered the killing of the top Iranian military and intelligence commander, Gen. Qassem Soleimani, who was plotting operations around the Middle East. Though both sides pulled back before a wider war broke out, a deadly tit-for-tat has unfolded inside Iraq in the weeks since.

But the lawmakers noted that the Constitution and U.S. law require the president to consult with Congress before engaging in military action or actions likely to lead to war, outside of narrow situations of self-defense.

This administration has largely failed to fulfill this legal obligation, the lawmakers continued, mentioning the January drone strike that killed Soleimani.

The letter was signed by the Democratic members of the so-called Gang of Eight, who are regularly briefed by intelligence agencies on sensitive national security developments: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee; Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the Senate minority leader; and Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee.

The letter cited media reports about the administrations consideration of direct action against Iran in response to attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq by Iranian-sponsored militias. It was sent on the same day that The New York Times reported that the Pentagon was planning for a potential escalation in operations against Iranian militias.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other officials have privately pushed for more direct attacks on Iranian forces, as part of an effort to force Tehran to the bargaining table.

Trump had resisted Pompeos proposal for tougher action, noting in the deliberations with his national security team that with Iran reeling from the coronavirus, a direct attack would appear inappropriate.

But Pompeo and some other senior administration officials have become frustrated with the violence in Iraq and near-daily U.S. intelligence reports that Irans proxy forces are plotting against the United States. Pompeo, along with Robert C. OBrien, the national security adviser, and Richard Grenell, the acting director of national intelligence, have argued that bolder action against Iranian forces could break the current cycle of violence and give new life to efforts to restart negotiations with Tehran.

Administration officials have maintained for nearly a year that a harsh approach toward Iran, including a campaign of financial warfare, would hurt Irans economy to the point of forcing its government to negotiate over its nuclear program and its military operations throughout the Middle East. Instead, Iran has lashed out with attacks for months against U.S. forces and allied countries.

Trump held out hope on Wednesday that his tougher stance on Iran would restart negotiations. He said that he believed Tehran was dying to make a deal and that if Iran gave up its ambitions for nuclear weapons, it could get negotiations settled quickly.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper said the Iranian government had refused an American offer of medical supplies and had done too little to help its people fight the pandemic, instead continuing to support its proxy forces.

I feel deep concern for the Iranian people, Esper said. The important thing is that the Iranian government should focus on them and stop this malign behavior that theyve been conducting now for over 40 years.

Senior military officers have been more skeptical of a stepped-up campaign against Iran or Iranian-backed militias in Iraq. In a memo, Lt. Gen. Robert P. White, the top American commander in Iraq, wrote that a new military campaign against the militias would require that thousands more U.S. troops be sent to Iraq and divert resources from the training mission.

At his news conference, Trump said he was watching the situation in Iraq closely and had been in touch with the Iraqi government about the threats against U.S. forces. He said his public comments were a message to Tehran to reconsider its attacks.

Its not a heads-up about an attack, Trump said. Im giving them a warning. Theres a big difference. Im saying if you do anything to hurt our troops, theyre going to pay a price.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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The global digital experience platform market size is projected to reach USD 15.80 billion by 2025, expanding at a CAGR of 10.9% from 2019 to 2025, based on a new study conducted by Grand View Research, Inc. The growing inclination of companies for developing customer centric strategies to deliver superior customer interaction is expected to drive the growth. Furthermore, the adoption of digital platforms by large Multi-national Companies (MNCs) and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) as the primary channel for customer service and engagement is also anticipated to propel the adoption Digital Experience Platforms (DXPs).

The digital experience platform enables companies to design and deliver personalized user experiences across multiple channels, touchpoints, and devices throughout the customer interaction and engagement process. DXP can be a single offering, however, in most of the cases, it usually consists of integrated set of technologies such as digital Content Management System (CMS), Web Experience Management (WEM), and related services. The capability of the DXPs to provide an architecture for companies to deliver connected customer experiences, digitize business operations, and gather actionable customer insight is expected to drive its adoption over the forecast period.

Due to the confluence of factors, such as digital transformation and disruption, many companies are now radically reengineering their business practices to be extremely customer oriented. Hence, the companies focus on digital experience platforms due to their omnichannel orchestrations and superior content customization and management capability. They leverage these capabilities to provide an integrated multi-channel experience spanning across applications, portals, websites, and devices. Due to the growing demand for DXPs across multiple end-use industries, the key solution providers in the digital experience platform market are aggressively focusing on acquisitions and new product development to establish a strong presence in the fragmented market.

Further key findings from the study suggest :

Platform segment dominated the digital experience platform (DXP) market in 2018 and is also anticipated to emerge as the fastest-growing segment over the forecast period owing to increasing adoption of the component by organizations to deliver superior customer interaction and engagement

The cloud segment is expected to gain traction over the forecast period owing to the growing preference for cloud based DXPs due to the rapid deployment capability and reduced investments in physical infrastructure

Business-to-Consumer (B2C) application is anticipated to witness the fastest CAGR over the forecast period due to the increasing demand for content personalization to enable superior customer engagement

The retail segment is anticipated to witness significant growth over the next six years owing to the rapid growth of online B2C and B2B e-tailers and the increased focus on omnichannel marketing

Asia Pacific is expected to expand at the fastest CAGR from 2019 to 2025 owing to the growing consumer preference coupled with high adoption of web and mobile shopping applications in developing countries such as India and China

Key players operating in the market includes Acquia Inc .; Adobe; CoreMedia AG; EPiServer; IBM Corporation; Liferay Inc .; Oracle Corporation; Microsoft Corporation; SAP SE; Open Text Corporation; Salesforce.com, Inc .; and Sitecore among others

Request a Sample Copy of the Global Digital Experience Platform Market Research Report @ www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/digital-experience-platform-market/request/rs1

Grand View Research has segmented the global digital experience platform market on the basis of component, deployment, application, end use, and region:

Digital Experience Platform Component Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2025)

Platform

Services

Digital Experience Platform Deployment Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2025)

On-premise

Cloud

Digital Experience Platform Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2025)

Business-to-Consumer

Business-to-Business

Others

Digital Experience Platform End Use Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2025)

BFSI

Healthcare

IT & Telecom

Manufacturing

Retail

Others

Digital Experience Platform Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2025)

North America

o US

o Canada

europe

o UK

o Germany

Asia Pacific

o China

o India

o Japan

Latin America

o Brazil

Middle East & Africa

Access full research report on global digital experience platform market: www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/digital-experience-platform-market
President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian continues to hold discussions on the prevention and treatment of the novel coronavirus pandemic with international counterparts, as well as Armenian and foreign specialists and scientists, as reported the news service of the Staff of the President of Armenia today.

The head of state had a telephone conversation with renowned Armenian American doctor, co-chair of the David Geffen Medical Center at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Dr. Eric Esrailian.

Eric Esrailian is also an active public figure, a member of the Central Board of Directors of the Armenian General Benevolent Union, and the producer of the Hollywood film Promise about the Armenian Genocide.

President Sarkissian and Dr. Esrailian touched upon the issues of the novel coronavirus pandemic and the opportunities for cooperation in combating it in Armenia. The President attached importance to joint efforts, exchange of experience and mutual assistance to overcome the current situation. In this context, the parties discussed issues related to more effective use of the opportunities created through charity programs in Armenia and the Diaspora.

Eric Esrailian said that since March, one of the new projects of The Promise Armenian Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles, led by Professor Alina Doryan, has launched cooperation aimed at preventing coronavirus outbreak between the California School of Health at the Los Angeles School of Health and the Armenian Ministry of Health.

The team of Professor Doryan includes experts from the University of California, Los Angeles and other reputable institutions who, thanks to the efforts of The Promise Armenian Institute, support Armenia in developing a public health strategy.
Gyang William and Nura Jibrin are being celebrated for their contribution towards the fight against COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria.

Blowing the whistle on their contribution to fixing faulty ventilators at the Jos University Teaching Hospital, social media user, Gatiri pointed out that the duo fixed a total of three faulty ventilators.

Gatiri also pointed out that Gyang and Nura didnt charge anyone for their services.

READ ALSO  Japan Begins Clinical Trials For Coronavirus Drug

Another social media user, best_amaza urged other people to do their best like Gyang and Nura in the fight against the deadly disease.

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Identity and access management in 2022 - what will the future look like?

As we enter into 2022, there is still a level of uncertainty in place. Its unclear what the future holds, as companies around the world still contend with the COVID-19 pandemic. Remote working has been encouraged by most organisations and the move to a hybrid working system has become business as usual, for the majority of businesses. Some have reduced their office space or done away with their locations altogether. Following best security practices With all this change in place, there are problems to deal with. According to research, 32.7% of IT admins say they are concerned about employees using unsecured networks to carry out that work. Alongside this, 74% of IT admins thought that remote work makes it harder for employees to follow best security practices. This need to manage security around remote work is no longer temporary. Instead, companies have to build permanent strategies around remote work and security. The coming year will also create a different landscape for small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). Here are some key predictions for next year and what to start preparing for in 2022: The reality of SMB spending around security will hit home SMBs had to undertake significant investments to adapt to remote working SMBs had to undertake significant investments to adapt to remote working, especially in comparison to their size. They had to undertake significant digital transformation projects that made it possible to deliver services remotely, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Weve seen a shift in mindset for these companies, which are now more tech-focused in their approach to problem solving. According to our research, 45% of SMBs plan to increase their spending towards IT services in 2022. Around half of all organisations think their IT budgets are adequate for their needs, while 14.5% of those surveyed believe they will need more, to cover all that needs to be done. Identity management spending to support remote work For others, the COVID-19 pandemic led to over-spending, just to get ahead of things and they will spend in 2022, looking at what they should keep and what they can reduce their spending on. Areas like identity management will stay in place, as companies struggle to support remote work and security, without this in place. However, on-premise IT spending will be reduced or cut, as those solutions are not relevant for the new work model. Services that rely on on-premise IT will be cut or replaced. The device will lead the way for security We rely on our phones to work and to communicate. In 2022, they will become central to how we manage access, to all our assets and locations, IT and physical. When employees can use company devices and their own phones for work, security is more difficult. IT teams have to ensure that theyre prepared for this, by making sure that these devices can be trusted. Wide use of digital certificates and strong MFA factors Rather than requiring a separate smart card or fingerprint reader, devices can be used for access using push authentication There are multiple ways that companies can achieve this, for example - By using digital certificates to identify company devices as trusted, an agent, or strong MFA factors, like a FIDO security key or mobile push authentication. Whichever approach you choose, this can prevent unauthorised access to IT assets and applications, and these same devices can be used for authentication into physical locations too. Rather than requiring a separate smart card or fingerprint reader, devices can be used for access using push authentication. Understanding human behaviour Alongside this, it is important to understand human behaviour. Anything that introduces an extra step for authentication can lead to employees taking workarounds. To stop this, it is important to put an employee education process in place, in order to emphasize on the importance of security. The next step is to think about adopting passwordless security, to further reduce friction and increase adoption. Lastly, as devices become the starting point for security and trust, remote device management will be needed too. More companies will need to manage devices remotely, from wiping an asset remotely if it gets lost or stolen, through to de-provisioning users easily and removing their access rights, when they leave the company. Identity will be a layer cake Zero Trust approaches to security Identity management relies on being able to trust that someone is who they say they are. Zero Trust approaches to security can support this effectively, particularly when aligned with least privilege access models. In order to turn theory into practical easy-to-deploy steps, companies need to use contextual access, as part of their identity management strategy. This involves looking at the context that employees will work in and putting together the right management approach for those circumstances. For typical employee behaviour, using two factor authentication might be enough to help them work, without security getting in the way. How enterprises manage, access and store identity data There will also be a shift in how enterprises manage, access, and store that identity data over time For areas where security is more important, additional security policies can be put over the top, to ensure that only the right people have access. A step-up in authentication can be added, based on the sensitivity of resources or risk-based adaptive authentication policies might be needed. There will also be a shift in how enterprises manage, access, and store that identity data over time, so that it aligns more closely with those use cases. Identity management critical to secure assets in 2022 There are bigger conversations taking place around digital identity for citizenship, as more services move online as well. Any moves that take place in this arena will affect how businesses think about their identity management processes too, encouraging them to look at their requirements in more detail. Overall, 2022 will be the year when identity will be critical to how companies keep their assets secure and their employees productive. With employees working remotely and businesses becoming decentralised, identity strategies will have to take the same approach. This will put the emphasis on strong identity management as the starting point for all security planning.
The usual suspects among House Republicans have already begun casting scorn on lead impeachment investigator Adam Schiff for drafting a bill that would establish an independent, nonpartisan investigative commission for the Trump administrations coronavirus response.

Representatives Devin Nunes of California and Jim Jordan of Ohio, the top Republicans on the House Intelligence and Judiciary Committees, respectively, have variably called Mr Schiffs proposal a stunt and lampooned him for politicizing the coronavirus pandemic, Fox News reported.

And on Thursday, GOP Representative Doug Collins of Georgia, the former top Republican on the Judiciary panel who stepped down to run for Georgias open Senate seat, added to the pile-on.

[Schiff] just cant help himself. This is a man who for over a year has done nothing but attack this president, Mr Collins said on Fox & Friends, highlighting the fact that Mr Trump has emerged relatively politically unscathed from congressional Democrats investigations into Russian election interference and the administrations pressure campaign against Ukraine in 2019 to interfere in the 2020 election.

But the proposal from Mr Schiff, the chairman of the House intelligence panel, appeared to make clear he and other Democrats in the current Congress would not be involved in any of an investigative commissions work.

The investigative commission formed after the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks in the US was led by former New Jersey Republican Governor Thomas H Kean and included retired members of Congress such as Lee H Hamilton of Indiana, the former Democratic chairman of the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs Committees.

No contemporaneous members of Congress sat on that investigative panel.

After Pearl Harbor and 9/11, we looked at what went wrong to learn from our mistakes. Once we've recovered, we need a nonpartisan commission to review our response and how we can better prepare for the next pandemic, Mr Schiff tweeted Wednesday. Im working on a bill to do that, the California Democrat added.

A spokesman for the chairman could not immediately be reached for comment on the exact contours of the bill Mr Schiff says Intelligence Committee staff is drafting.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi has urged members to focus publicly on what Congress can do to alleviate more immediate concerns, such as deploying medical resources and aid to states as well as enacting economic recovery mechanisms.

Lets put an after action review down the road, Ms Pelosi told CNN Wednesday.
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The campaign will help all readers understand the future of technology across industries including business, agriculture, education and more.

Mediaplanet launched its cross-platform campaign covering topics including the Internet of Things and Public Safety. The campaign will help all readers understand the future of technology across industries including business, agriculture, education and more. It discusses the need to secure connected devices in these verticals as well as advocate for readers to incorporate these technologies into their businesses.

Mediaplanet partnered with Paige Wireless to provide industry insight for this campaign. Paige Wireless showcases how people in the agriculture industry can see benefits in their businesses through the use of IoT technology. Julie Bushell, President of Paige Wireless, a company that improves efficiencies with unique IoT solutions, discusses how theyve met challenges for their clients in farming. Farmers can make real-time decisions that mean the difference between abundant yield or lost crop, effectively identifying sick livestock, and intentionally utilizing data to increase sustainable practices, Bushell says. These technologies place important data directly in the hands of farmers, allowing them to control outcomes as much as mother nature allows. Check out the full article here.

About Mediaplanet

Mediaplanet specializes in the creation of content marketing campaigns covering a variety of industries. We tell meaningful stories that educate our audience and position our clients as solution providers. Our unique ability to pair the right leaders with the right readers, through the right platforms, has made Mediaplanet a global content marketing powerhouse. Our award-winning stories have won the hearts of countless readers while serving as a valuable platform for brands and their missions. Just call us storytellers with a purpose. Please visit http://www.mediaplanet.com for more on who we are and what we do.

About Paige Wireless

Paige Wireless is the new innovative arm of Paige Electric Co, L.P., with a focus on bringing connectivity solutions to a variety of industrial verticals, for the purpose of remote data collection, automating tasks, security and asset management, resource control, observation, installations, and much more. Paige Wireless drastically expands Paige's offering of connected solutions, untethering the constraints of wired connectivity. By delivering fully-integrated solutions, the company allows rapid adoption of the latest technological advances and the realization of its benefits. Spanning 30 unique markets and all seven continents, Paige and Paige Wireless are together, leading the world in innovative cable and wireless solutions. To find out more, please visit: http://paigewireless.com

Press Contact:

Danica Feuz

Danica.feuz@mediaplanet.com


Lahore, April 2 : After some of its members tested positive for the coronavirus, the leadership of Tablighi Jamaat in Pakistan has announced it will accept the government's guidelines and halt operations.

Now all the tablighi groups who have gone out to preach have been asked to return to the Jamaat centres (Markaz). These returning groups are a cause of great concern to the health authorities. All these people are being kept in isolation.

Meanwhile, 14 more Jamaaties at Tabligh's headquarter in Raiwind tested positive for the COVID-19 on Wednesday. Now a total of 41 Jamaaties are suffering from the disease.

On the request of the Punjab government, the Central Shura (Supreme Council) meeting of the institution was held at Tablig headquarters in Raiwind. In the meeting, a decision was taken to halt all activities of the Jamaat across the country. The Shura has asked the people of the Jamaat to stay put where they are and cooperate with the government officials.

After this decision, groups of Jamaaties spread across the country are now returning to the Markazes. A spokesman for the Punjab government said that all the returning groups would be kept in isolation.

The worst outbreak of coronavirus in Pakistan is seen in Punjab. The highest number of cases have been reported here. So far nine people have died due to this in the province and more than 700 people are infected with the disease.
We have nothing. We dont have that kind of money they are asking for.

Those were the words of one of the nephews of couple Narine Maraj, 62, and Mattie Maraj, 52, who were kidnapped on Saturday evening after leaving their Madras, St Helena, home to tend to their animals at a family-owned farm in Piarco.
MADISON, Wis. -- In the future, treating a concussion could be as simple as cooling the brain.

That's according to research conducted by University of Wisconsin-Madison engineers, whose findings support the treatment approach at the cellular level.

"There are currently no effective medical treatments for concussions and other types of traumatic brain injuries," says Christian Franck, the UW-Madison associate professor of mechanical engineering who led the study. "We're very excited about our findings because they could potentially pave the way for treatments we can offer patients."

The process is a bit more finicky than just applying an ice pack to the head.

Conducting experiments on brain cells in a dish, Franck and his team discovered several key parameters that determined the effectiveness of therapeutic cooling for mitigating damage to the injured cells.

"We found that, for this treatment to be successful, there's a sweet spot," he says. "You can't cool too little; you can't cool too much; and you can't wait too long following an injury to start treatment."

And when the researchers identified that sweet spot, the results were striking.

"I was amazed at how well the cooling worked," Franck says. "We actually went back and repeated the experiments multiple times because I didn't believe it at first."

The researchers published their findings in the journal PLOS ONE.

The high occurrence of concussions underscores the pressing need for treatments. Every year in the United States, there are an estimated 1.7 million new cases of traumatic brain injury assessed in emergency rooms, and the incidence of sports-related concussions may approach 3.8 million annually.

A traumatic impact to the brain can turn on biochemical pathways that lead to neurodegeneration, the progressive deterioration and loss of function in brain cells. Neurodegeneration causes long-lasting and potentially devastating health issues for patients.

"These pathways are like flipping on a bad molecular switch in your brain," says Franck.

In their experiments, the researchers looked at two of those biochemical pathways.

First, they created a network of neurons in a dish and delivered a mechanical stimulus that simulates the kind of injury and cell damage that people experience with a concussion.

Then they cooled the injured cells separately to four different temperatures. They found that 33 degrees Celsius (91.4 degrees Fahrenheit) provided the most protective benefit for the cells after 24 and 48 hours post-injury. Notably, cooling to 31 degrees Celsius had a detrimental effect.

"So there's such a thing as cooling too much," Franck says.

Time also is a factor. For the best outcome, the team determined that cooling needed to begin within four hours of the injury and continue for at least six hours, although Franck says cooling for even 30 minutes still showed some benefits.

When they adhered to those parameters, the researchers discovered they could keep the cells' damaging biochemical pathways switched off. In other words, the cells remained healthy and functioning normally--even though they had just suffered a traumatic injury.

After six hours of cooling, the researchers brought the concussed brain cells back up to normal body temperature, curious about whether warming would cause the damaging biochemical pathways to turn on.

"The biggest surprise was that the molecular switches actually stayed off -- permanently -- through the duration of the lab experiment," Franck says. "That was huge."

He and his students compared their results with previous animal studies and randomized human trials that investigated cooling as a treatment for traumatic brain injuries.

"We found really good agreement between the studies when we dialed in to those specific parameters, so that's a very encouraging sign," Franck says. "But this isn't the end of the story. We think this warrants further investigation in animal studies."

Franck says there's more to learn before cooling the brain could be a practical treatment for patients at a clinic. For example, it's not as easy as simply lowering the temperature of a person's whole body, which taxes the heart and can have a strong negative effect on the immune system.

Rather, isolating cooling to the brain is crucial. "We hope our paper will spawn renewed motivation and interest in solving the technical challenges for getting this type of treatment to patients in the future," Franck says. "For a long time, the scientific literature was inconclusive on whether this would be a successful treatment. What we showed in our study was that, yes, as far as the cell biology is concerned, this is effective. And so now it's really worth thinking about how we might implement this in practice."

###

Researchers from Brown University collaborated on this research through the U.S. Office of Naval Research-sponsored PANTHER interdisciplinary research program at UW-Madison for studying traumatic brain injuries. Franck is the Grainger Institute for Engineering Associate Professor and PANTHER director.

DOWNLOAD IMAGES: https://uwmadison.box.com/v/cooling-concussions

--Adam Malecek, acmalecek@wisc.edu
business Bill Gates calls for a 10-week shutdown in US, says any confusion 'will only extend economic pain' Gates explained that businesses need to remain shut until the numbers of reported cases start to go down across the country, which, according to him, could take at least 10 weeks.
The blame game for the coronavirus testing fiasco is in full swing today amid mounting fury at the failure to ramp up screening.

In the face of an outcry about the government response, Public Health England England effectively passed the buck saying it had 'done our part' to ensure checks were available for patients.

The intervention left fingers pointing at chief medical officer Chris Whitty and top science adviser Patrick Vallance over the lack of wide-scale community testing.

The UK is carrying out barely 10,000 a day compared to up to 100,00 in Germany, despite Boris Johnson admitting last night that mass screening is the way to ease the lockdown crippling the economy.

Downing Street admitted today that just 2,800 NHS staff have been checked at drive-through 'swab sites', despite claims tens of thousands are off work self-isolating for no reason.

Up until now the government has relied on PHE and NHS labs to conduct 'antigen' tests for who currently has the virus, apparently over concerns about reliability and standardisation.

However, Health Secretary Matt Hancock finally appealed for help from the wider industry last night, as numbers remained stubbornly low amid shortages of chemicals and swabs.

Business groups say firms have 'furloughed' half of their staff with concerns the government's bailout will need to be massively bigger than thought;

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator;

The ONS has revealed costs of cough and cold medication have risen by nearly 11 per cent over the last fortnight, amid fears of profiteering;

Fingers are pointing at chief medical officer Chris Whitty (right) and top science adviser Patrick Vallance (left) over the lack of wide-scale community testing

How the UK's testing shambles developed January 31: First confirmed cases in the UK are two Chinese nationals staying in York. February 21: Government experts conclude at a meeting that the disease is still only a 'moderate' threat to the UK. March 12: The UK shelves efforts to test and 'contact trace' everyone with symptoms on March 12, as the government's response moves from 'containment' into a 'delay' phase. Instead people who think they have the illness are urged to self-isolate unless their conditions became so severe they need medical help. March 16: Boris Johnson urges Britons to follow 'social distancing' guidelines as well as isolating when they have symptoms, in a change of policy after modelling found the death toll could be much higher than previously estimated. March 18: Amid growing criticism, the PM declares that there will be a big expansion of tests from under 5,000 a day to 25,000. March 21: Downing Street sends an email to research institutions begging for machines needed to process testing samples. No10 denies this was the first time it had raised the idea. March 28: Cabinet ministers Matt Hancock and Michael Gove hail news that the UK is now carrying out 10,000 tests a day. April 1: The UK finally hits 10,000 tests in a day. Ministers admit the target of 25,000 tests a day might not be reached for weeks. April 2: Ministers urge labs outside PHE and the NHS to get involved in ramping up test numbers. The Francis Crick Institute says there must be a 'small ships' approach emulating Dunkirk. PHE appears to pass the buck for the failings saying it has 'played our part'. Advertisement

Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, urged the PM to summon the Dunkirk spirit and let 'small ship' labs start screening for the killer disease.

Delivering a damning verdict on government's strategy and lack of 'preparation', he warned the country was 'running out of time' to get on top of the outbreak and capacity at research facilities was 'agile' enough to get round shortages of materials hampering the official effort.

Prof Whitty - who has not been seen for a week after going into self-isolation with symptoms - and Prof Vallance have repeatedly insisted the 'only thing worse than no test is a bad test'.

And one of Prof Whitty's deputy, Professor Jonathan Van Tam, risked stoking anger last night by dismissing testing as a 'side issue'.

'What matters is slowing the rate of new infections,' he told ITV's Peston.

'And the only way you can slow the rate of new infections, irrespective of whether they're tested or not, it's a bit of a side issue to be truthful with you, what's important is the social distancing, stopping people coming into contact, so that the rate of new cases slows.'

In a video released from his self-isolation in Downing Street last night, Mr Johnson admitted mass testing was the solution to the 'puzzle'. 'This is how we will defeat it in the end,' he said.

The Prime Minister's spokesman said today that in all, 10,412 coronavirus tests were carried out across the UK in NHS and Public Health England laboratories on Tuesday.

'We acknowledge that more needs to be done in relation to testing. We need to be testing more people and we need to be making progress very quickly,' he said.

The spokesman said that work was ongoing with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test which would show whether people have had the virus, but he said it was essential they were accurate.

'We are working as quickly as we can on that and as soon as a test is approved then we will announce it publicly,' he said.

He said the Government had previously been offered tests which had not met the required levels of accuracy 'and therefore would not have been safe to use'.

But Health minister Nadine Dorries - the first MP confirmed with the virus but now recovered - risked mixing the PM's message, tweeting: 'Testing, is not a cure, it won't cut the number of deaths, it won't make people feel better or stop them catching #coronavirus. it will only tell you if you have or have had it There is no cure.

Boris Johnson sits at the top of a complex chain of experts who have shaped crucial decisions on the coronavirus crisis. As chair of Cobra and the Cabinet, the PM has the final say on the UKs approach  but ministers insist they have faithfully followed the scientific advice at all times. The governments Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty and Chief Scientific Officer Patrick Vallance are the main gateways through which expertise is channelled to the PM from a variety of scientific committees and groups

So who IS to blame for testing fiasco? Boris Johnson sits at the top of a complex chain of experts who have shaped crucial decisions on the coronavirus crisis. As chair of Cobra and the Cabinet, the PM has the final say on the UKs approach  but ministers insist they have faithfully followed the scientific advice at all times. The governments Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty and Chief Scientific Officer Patrick Vallance are the main gateways through which expertise is channelled to the PM. Meanwhile, NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens and senior figures in Public Health England (PHE) such as Duncan Selbie and Yvonne Doyle have also been playing key roles, although they technically report in to Health Secretary Matt Hancock. PHE is an independent agency of the Department of Health, and has responsibility for dealing with the outbreak of communicable diseases, including organising testing facilities. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own senior officials and agencies, who are represented at Cobra meetings. The Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (SAGE) and its subcommittees, overseen by the Chief Scientific Officer, draw on external experts such as Professor Neil Ferguson, who has been involved in modelling the potential course of the outbreak. Their views are also fed into Cobra. Advertisement

'Tests will allow us to know who has antibodies and is immune/non contagious, but we don't yet know how long those anti bodies will last for. The best we can hope for is that it will allow workers to get back to work if they know they have had it and have antibodies to protect them.'

One senior MP told MailOnline that Mr Johnson was 'going to have to find someone to blame' for abandoning community testing, with public anger growing.

'It really is the wrong decision. A bad decision,' they said. The MP said too often in PHE it was a case of 'nice title, get a gong, and move on'.

But Professor Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of PHE, appeared to pass the buck.

He said the organisation had 'played our part' by ensuring there were tests for people in hospital.

'We've played our part,' he said, 'which is to make absolutely certain that that testing is spread throughout Public Health England's laboratories, throughout NHS laboratories, is available to support the clinical treatment of patients who need it.'

He also told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Our role has always been to - and I speak from Public Health England - make sure our labs are doing what they need to do and we're rolling tests out to the NHS for clinical treatment of patients.

'There is some capacity that is available within that in order to start testing NHS staff and that's being done.

'You've heard about the 2,000 yesterday - nowhere near where we need to get to but it's a good start - and then there's the drive-through systems that are beginning.'

Asked why other testing facilities were not being used, Professor Cosford said PHE is most closely involved in NHS testing before adding: 'The second (strand) is how we can use all of those laboratories, all of that capacity, to boost up at least 100,000 tests a day, hopefully more.'

Professor Cosford said he would expect this work to be in place 'over the coming days and a small number of weeks'.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock (pictured right with chief medical officer Chris Whitty last monht) has finished quarantine after contracting coronavirus himself

Questions were raised about the government's testing organisation after a 'swab station' for NHS staff in Chessington was almost deserted yesterday

By contrast another testing station 13 miles away in in Wembley, west London, was packed

The number of coronavirus tests being done in the UK has been rising but only to around 10,000 per day - and the number of people being tested is about half as high because individuals are tested more than once. The Government is a long way off its 25,000-per-day target

In a video released from his self-isolation in Downing Street last night, Boris Johnson said mass testing was the solution to the 'puzzle'

Downing Street had promised on March 16 that testing NHS workers was a 'key focus', yet a pilot scheme did not begin until last Friday, two weeks later.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Sir Paul said the Francis Crick Institute had realised 'two or three weeks ago' that 'testing of COVID-19 would be absolutely critical if the country was to successfully handle the crisis - particularly testing of NHS staff'.

He said the institute had 're-purposed' its laboratory for coronavirus tests, and was expecting to do up to 2,000 tests a day, with results available in less than 24 hours.

'We have been working around then clock over the last fortnight working with UCL Hospital and health service laboratories to produce a testing centre to be able to do that,' he said.

'We have created the testing centre. we now know we can operate at a national standard.

'Just after the weekend we expect to be at 500 a day, or 3,000 a week and we hope over the coming weeks to expand that to 2,000 a day.

'We hope that we can roll this out to other research institutes. Cancer Research UK... they are contacting their institutes so they can adopt the way we are operating.'

Sir Paul said there were a range of labs in the public sector - but outside PHE - that could be used.

Referring to the famous Second World War evacuation of UK forces from the French coast, he said: 'A metaphor here is Dunkirk, to be honest. We are a lot of little boats and the little boats can be effective.

'The government has put some bigger boats - destroyers - in place. that is a bit more cumbersome to get working and we wish them all the luck to do that. But we little boats can contribute as well.'

Sir Paul said the smaller labs were 'more agile' to deal with global shortages of reagents. 'We can make pipelines of reagents and chemicals,' he said.

'We can move faster to deal with issues. Of course we have supply chain problems but we can reduce them by being small and agile.'

Sir Paul said he did not want to be too critical of the government at this stage, but made clear that there would need to be a reckoning later.

Troops wade out to boats at Dunkirk as British forces were rescued from disaster at Dunkirk in the Second World War

Rescue boats makes their way across the Channel during the dramatic evacuation of Dunkirk

'We did our thing. We got going. They were focusing on what only they could do with the big ships. We just got on with it,' he said.

'The government may need to think more about its strategy but we are running out a bit of time.'

He added: 'We will need to think in the future, when we are through crisis, how best to manage things.., we were not sufficiently prepared. But now is the time to get our shoulder behind the wheel.'

Mr Hancock said he used a virtual meeting to launch a new challenge for industry to develop innovative solutions to overcome some of the main obstacles to scaling up capacity.

'Miracle of Dunkirk' saved Britain from disaster in 1940 In the spring of 1940, UK, French and Belgian forces were cut off and surrounded by the German military. Winston Churchill warned in the Commons that the 'root and core' of the British Army was trapped. But between May 26 and June 4, a huge flotilla of vessels, including fishing trawlers and merchant ships, helped ferry more than 330,000 personnel to the safety of UK shores. The 'Miracle of Dunkirk' sparked Churchill's stirring 'fight them on the beaches' speech. But although the scale and success of the rescue was epic, the then-PM was clear that it had not been a victory. Some 68,000 British soldiers were lost during the French campaign, and nearly all tanks, vehicles, and equipment were abandoned. Advertisement

'Testing is a crucial aspect of our coronavirus battleplan, and we are working day and night to increase our national testing capacity,' he said.

'I'm determined we must rise to this challenge as a country.

'So I've called together our pharmaceutical giants and testing specialists to call on them to build a scale of diagnostic capability never before seen in this country.

'It is a huge task but they know they have the have the full support of this Government as we work towards this common goal in the national interest, as part of our national effort to tackle coronavirus.

'Many companies are already working urgently to assist us in this and I'm delighted that so many more are looking to step up to this challenge.'

A warehouse at a Milton Keynes lab could be converted to process coronavirus swabs after days of delays.

The National Bioample Centre site could be the key to fixing Britain's testing fiasco after the Prime Minister pledged to massively increase swabbing. The centre - which was built for 24million in 2015 - would face a massive overhaul.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma told the daily Downing Street press briefing last night that the UK was looking to create lab-based testing which was the medical equivalent of building a car factory.

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is proposing a range of temporary 'stop gap' measures to offer quick support to users of some consumer credit products.

The proposed measures will be subject to a brief consultation ending at 9am on Monday April 6. If confirmed, they will be in place by Thursday April 9.

The plans include ensuring that for customers who have been hit financially by the coronavirus crisis and already have an arranged overdraft in place on their main personal current account, they will be charged zero interest on up to 500 of it for three months.

Alongside this, customers without an overdraft on their main personal current account can request this facility.
Masoud Molavi Vardanjani was shot dead on an Istanbul street last November.

The United States believes Irans Ministry of Intelligence and Security was directly involved in the killing of an Iranian dissident last November in Turkey, a senior administration official told Reuters news agency on Wednesday.

Masoud Molavi Vardanjani was shot dead on an Istanbul street on November 14, 2019. Citing Turkish officials, Reuters last week reported that two intelligence officers in Irans consulate in Istanbul had instigated his killing.

Given Irans history of targeted assassinations of Iranian dissidents and the methods used in Turkey, the United States government believes that Iranas Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) was directly involved in Vardanjanis killing, a senior administration official told Reuters.

The US had not previously disclosed its assessment on who might have been behind the incident.

A week after Vardanjani was killed, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described it as another tragic example in a long string of suspected Iran-backed assassination attempts of Iranian dissidents.

Late on Wednesday, Pompeo in a tweet said he found disturbing the reports that Iranian diplomats were involved in the killing of the dissident, but that they were fully consistent with their assignments.

Irans diplomats are agents of terror and have conducted multiple assassinations and bomb plots in Europe over the past decade, Pompeo said.

A police report by the Turkish authorities into the killing, published two weeks ago, said Vardanjani had an unusual profile. It said he had worked in cybersecurity at Irans Defence Ministry and had become a vocal critic of the Iranian authorities.

Turkish authorities did not publicly accuse the Iranian government of involvement at the time, but the Turkish officials last week told Reuters that Ankara would now raise Vardanjanis killing with Iran.

The US assessment comes amid its maximum pressure campaign against Tehran, through which President Donald Trump aims to force Iran to limit its missile programme and curb its use of proxy forces in Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon.

Tensions between the US and Iran have remained high since Trump in 2018 unilaterally pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal to control Irans nuclear programme.

In recent weeks, the US has repeatedly tightened sanctions on Iran, despite calls from Iranian authorities, the United Nations and China asking it to ease restrictions as the country battles the coronavirus pandemic.
DUBAI/MOSCOW/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S President Donald Trump said on Thursday he had brokered a deal with top crude producers Russia and Saudi Arabia to cut output and arrest an oil price rout amid the global coronavirus pandemic, though details of how the cut would work were unclear.

Trump said the two nations could cut output by 10 to 15 million barrels per day (bpd) - an unprecedented amount representing 10% to 15% of global supply, and one that would require the participation of nations outside of OPEC and its allies.

A senior U.S. administration official familiar with the matter said Trump would not formally ask U.S. oil companies to contribute to the production cuts, a move forbidden by U.S. antitrust legislation.

Russia and Saudi Arabia have been at odds since early March, when the two nations failed to agree on a deal curbing output as the coronavirus spread around the globe. The pandemic has worsened since, freezing economic activity and sending oil prices into a tailspin as producers confronted the prospect of a dramatic fall in demand with a flood of unwanted oil supply.

Saudi Arabia, the de facto head of OPEC, called on Thursday for an emergency meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers, an informal grouping known as OPEC+, state media reported, saying it aimed to reach a fair agreement to stabilize oil markets. Trump is separately set to meet with U.S. oil industry executives on Friday.

Trump said he spoke with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Thursday. I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry! Trump wrote.

Trumps call to Putin has changed everything, one OPEC+ source said, adding that initial talk among the group was about how other large producers such as Canada and Brazil would need to join in any coordinated output cuts.

Global oil demand is expected to fall by about 30 million bpd in April, or about one-third of daily consumption. Some 3 billion people have been put on lockdown to slow the spread of coronavirus, which has sickened 1 million people worldwide and killed nearly 50,000.

The immense decline in demand sent oil prices to their lowest levels since 2002, close to $20 per barrel, hitting budgets of oil producing nations and dealing a huge blow to the U.S. shale oil industry, which cannot compete at low prices.

The downward pressure has been exacerbated by the battle for market share between Russia and Saudi Arabia. Russia rejected the Saudi proposal to take supply off the market in part because it has cut its own output for years while U.S. production grew to a record 13 million bpd, gobbling up more market share.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday that Moscow was no longer planning to raise output and was ready to cooperate with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and other producers to stabilize the market.

It was not clear when Saudi Arabias proposed emergency OPEC meeting could be held.

A meeting could represent a thaw in Saudi-Russia tensions. A senior Gulf source familiar with Saudi thinking told Reuters that Russias opposition to its proposal to deepen output cuts was the cause of market turmoil.

At the time of the deals collapse, OPEC and its allies were collectively cutting output by about 1.7 million bpd - making a 10-to-15 million-bpd cut a big hurdle unless it brought in other major worldwide producers.

The swift and aggressive Saudi response to the collapse of the OPEC+ deal shocked the oil industry. The kingdom slashed export prices, opened the taps to pump at maximum production and tried to sell cheaper oil to refiners that buy Russian crude.

OUTPUT CUTS

Major global oil producers including Chevron Corp (CVX.N), Brazils Petrobras and BP Plc (BP.L), have already scaled back production estimates as fuel demand has dropped precipitously and storage is rapidly filling. Storage is expected to be full by May, analysts said, which would force oil producers to cut output anyway.

I dont think this does anything in the near term. Our pipelines have told us they dont have room for our barrels, said Bob Watson, chief executive of U.S. shale producer Abraxas Petroleum, based in San Antonio, Texas.

The free-fall in prices has spurred regulators in the U.S. state of Texas, the heart of the countrys oil production, to consider regulating output for the first time in nearly 50 years.

Ryan Sitton, one of three elected oil-and-gas regulators in Texas, tweeted on Thursday that he had spoken with Russias Novak about a cut of 10 million bpd in global supply.

While we normally compete, we agreed that #COVID19 requires unprecedented level of intl cooperation, Sitton wrote.

Brent oil prices rose 21% to $29.94 per barrel, having earlier risen to as high as $36.29. U.S. benchmark WTI crude settled up 25% to $25.32 a barrel.

Even with Thursdays surge, Brent is still less than half its $66 closing level at the end of 2019.
RICHMOND HEIGHTS, Ohio

Domestic violence: Steven Boulevard

A woman reported around 11 p.m. March 30 that her live-in boyfriend had taken her cell phone and she did not feel safe. She told officers that he had grabbed her arm when she tried to retrieve the phone and that he took it because he wanted to watch pornography, but did not want to use his phone for fear of getting a virus on it.

There were no signs of injuries and they both agreed to stay in separate rooms for the night.

Attempted felonious assault: Whiteway Drive

Officers responded to Loganberry apartments at 4:37 p.m. March 28 for a report of two gunshots fired from a passing vehicle. They did not locate the vehicle, but found a bullet hole through the glass of a front door.

A woman said the shots were fired toward her and her daughter. The incident is under investigation.

Welfare check: Loganberry Drive

Police received a call from an unknown person March 29 stating that a woman at the Loganberry apartments was about to put a baby into an oven.

Responding officers spoke with a woman at the apartment, who told them that the father of her child, who is currently incarcerated, likely made the call. She said he had called her earlier and threatened to call the police on her.

Officers confirmed her child was OK and contacted the prison in South Carolina to advise of the incident. They later advised that the man may have made the call from a cell phone that was snuck into the facility.

Simple assault: Ruth Ellen Drive

A woman said March 30 that she had been assaulted in the Dorchester apartments parking lot by her boyfriends sister. Her boyfriend corroborated the story. A warrant was subsequently issued for the arrest of the sister.

Suspicion: Ruth Ellen Drive

Around 2 p.m. March 29, a man, 20, reported that he had been jumped by five male suspects and was in the hospital. He told officers that he was thrown to the ground and kicked repeatedly.

The only signs of injury to his body were scratch marks on his chest, which hospital staff said he made to himself while he was hyperventilating.

He said the only suspect he recognized was the previous boyfriend of his childs mother. He added that his phone was taken during the incident.

Officers spoke to his childs mother, who had the mans phone. She said he has fabricated stories in the past about her ex-boyfriend. When officers told him that surveillance video would be reviewed, he said he no longer wanted the incident investigated.

Theft: Karen Isle Drive

A resident reported March 30 that a package delivered from a home shopping network purchase had been left at a neighbors home. She said that the neighbor denied receiving any packages, but she said she saw her daughter wearing a sweater that looked like one that was supposed to be in the package. A report was filed so she could make a claim with UPS.

Fraud: Geraldine Avenue

A resident reported March 30 that she had been the victim of fraud. She said she applied online for a job and was given three checks, totaling $10,640, to pay for vendors and equipment to work from home. The checks subsequently bounced and her bank accounts were closed. The incident is under investigation.

Read more news from the Sun Messenger.
An aircraft from Hindon Air Force Station carried vegetables and essential commodities to Leh in Ladakh amid the country-wide lockdown imposed in the wake of coronavirus, an Aviation Ministry official said on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Indian Air Force said that it has also airlifted essential medical equipment and supplies from Delhi, Surat, Chandigarh to Manipur, Nagaland, Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh in the last three to four days.

This comes as the country is under a 21-day lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1,965 on Thursday after 131 people tested positive in the last 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
With theatres around the country forced to close their doors indefinitely, you'd think someone would turn off the lights on the way out.

But an ancient, spooky tradition means some theatres are leaving one light on while shut due to the ban on public gatherings in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

For the first time in at least 30 years, the Sydney Opera House has installed ghost lights inside its main theatre spaces during the venue's historic shutdown. The city's Capitol, Belvoir and Griffin theatres will also leave their lights on throughout the closure. However, in Melbourne, major venues have chosen to part with tradition and leave their theatres shrouded in darkness.

Last one out, leave the lights on: the Sydney Opera House is marking the unprecedented shutdown by reviving an ancient tradition. Credit:Daniel Boud

The concept of a ghost light is part superstition, part safety measure. Keeping a light on inside dark theatres is said to either appease or scare away the ghost that many believe roams when theatres are empty. But it also helps prevent clumsy crew members from falling off stage into the orchestra pit.
Anaerobic Digestion Market: Global Size, Trends, Competitive, Historical & Forecast Analysis, 2019-2025- Increasing demand for renewable energy resources, rising energy costs and stringent government regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are the key factors fuelling the growth of the Anaerobic Digestion Market

Anaerobic Digestion Market is valued at USD 7.54 Billion in 2018 and expected to reach USD 15.28 Billion by 2025 with the CAGR of 10.62% over the forecast period.

Anaerobic digestion is the biological process in which microorganisms break down into biodegradable material without oxygen. Anaerobic digestion contains well-established technology for conversion of various organic wastes into bioenergy. Generally, sources of organic wastes suitable for anaerobic digestion is mainly come from municipal, agricultural and industrial producers. This digestion is a renewable energy technology that produces biogas which is used in the production of generating electricity or heat. In anaerobic digestion, biochemical reaction is conducted that produces biogas which is composed of methane and CO2. Anaerobic digestion has number of potential advantages than the aerobic method, where aerobic treatment is less efficient and requires more energy for oxygenation. On the other hand, anaerobic digestion yields a combustible gas which makes the treatment plant self sufficient and does not need any energy requirements.

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Anaerobic digestion market is segmented on the basis of product type, application and by region. Based on product type the market is segmented into Biogas and Digestate. On the basis of end user type the market is divided into agriculture, municipal, industrial and others.

The regions covered in this anaerobic digestion market report are North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World. On the basis of country level, market of Anaerobic Digestion market is sub divided into U.S., Mexico, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Italy, China, Japan, India, South East Asia, GCC, Africa, etc.

Key Players for Anaerobic Digestion Market Reports

Key players of the anaerobic digestion market are ADNAMS PLC, Clarke Energy, WELTEC BIOPOWER GMBH, SP Renewable Energy Sources Pvt. Ltd., EnviTec Biogas AG, Northern Biogas, Bioenergy DevCo and AAT Abwasser-und Abfalltechnik GmbH and others.

Bioenergy DevCo bought BTS Biogas to Expand Anaerobic Digestion Technology Globally

Bioenergy DevCo bought BTS Biogas to Expand Anaerobic Digestion Technology. BTS Biogas and Bioenergy DevCo combined together a proprietary natural anaerobic digestion process to increase its facilities in North America that will transform organic waste into clean, renewable natural gas. This acquisition helps Bioenergy DevCo to increase BTS Biogas technology footprint in North America by working with municipalities and companies to assist them cleanly and affordably dispose of organic waste.

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Increasing demand for renewable energy resources, rising energy costs and stringent government regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are the key factors driving the growth of the Anaerobic Digestion Market.

Increasing demand for renewable energy resources, rising energy costs and stringent government regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are the key factors supporting the growth of anaerobic digestion market within the forecast period. Biogas is the gaseous product of anaerobic digestion increasingly utilized to generate electricity and in the production of heat or it can be added to natural gas pipelines. Significant increase in biogas sector coupled with the favorable energy and environmental policies is another driving factor of this market. For example; the market in United Kingdom has experienced a growth of about 622 % with the opening of 100 anaerobic digestion plants in 2014. However, anaerobic digestion is a complex biochemical reaction carried out in a multiple steps may hamper the growth of this market. Anaerobic digestion is the most popular sludge stabilization technology currently and these advanced technologies will discover more opportunities for this market in the coming years.

North America is expected to dominate the Anaerobic Digestion Market

North American is expected to dominate the anaerobic digestion market due to the increasing need for producing renewable energy and bio-based chemicals from diverse organic feedstock and favorable government initiatives to protect the natural resources. For example; The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is working on protecting the Nations land, air, and water resources by adopting anaerobic digestion. In January 2015, EPAs AgSTAR program predicted that there were around 247 anaerobic digester systems functioning at commercial livestock farms in the United States. In addition to this, regulatory compliance of national environmental laws strives to formulate and implement natural systems such as anaerobic digestion. Asia pacific is emerging as the fastest growing region owing to increasing greenhouse gas emissions and technological advancements in aerobic digestion that are beneficial to generate electricity and transportation of fuels.

Key Benefits for Anaerobic Digestion Market Reports 

Global market report covers in depth historical and forecast analysis.

Global market research report provides detail information about Market Introduction, Market Summary, Global market Revenue (Revenue USD), Market Drivers, Market Restraints, Market opportunities, Competitive Analysis, Regional and Country Level.

Global market report helps to identify opportunities in market place.

Global market report covers extensive analysis of emerging trends and competitive landscape.

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Anaerobic Digestion Market Segmentation 

By Product:

Biogas

Digestate

By Application:

Agriculture

Municipal

Industrial

Others

By Regional & Country Analysis:

North America

U.S.

Canada

Europe

U.K.

France

Germany

Italy

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

Southeast Asia

Latin America

Brazil

Mexico

Middle East and Africa

GCC

Africa

Rest of Middle East and Africa

Continued..

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Madrid (Spain), April 01, 2020 (SPS) - The Saharawi representative to Spain, Abdulah Arabi, has expressed the maximum opposition of the Frente POLISARIO to the unilateral approval or publication of Moroccan new laws of territorial waters in its official, directly transgressing the borders of Western Sahara and Spain.

Abdulah Arabi has warned that "the unilateral approval or publication in its official bulletin by Morocco does not change the political and legal nature of Western Sahara."

In line, the Sahrawi Diplomat has once again recalled that "Western Sahara continues to be a territory pending decolonization, illegally occupied by Morocco, as established by the resolutions of the international organizations and acknowledging the judgments of the Justica court of the European Union, which determine that Western Sahara is a distinct and separate territory from Morocco. "

In the midst of an international health crisis caused by the rapid spread of the coronavirus, Morocco has taken advantage of the state of alarm in neighboring countries to take a new step in its expansionist adventure in the region. The choice of time to make the news public, adds the Sahrawi official, "shows that they do not know how current Morocco is on the international stage."SPS

125/090/TRA
[April 02, 2020] APEIRON Biologics Initiates Phase II Clinical Trial of APN01 for Treatment of COVID-19

Regulatory approvals obtained for the treatment of 200 COVID-19 patients in Austria, Germany and Denmark; Austrian government to provide significant financial support



APN01 has the potential to block the infection of cells by the novel COVID-19 virus and reduce lung injury



APN01 was previously proven to be safe and well tolerated in Phase I and Phase II clinical trials



First patient expected to be dosed shortly VIENNA, Austria, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- APEIRON Biologics AG today announced that it has received regulatory approvals in Austria, Germany and Denmark to initiate a Phase II clinical trial of APN01 to treat COVID-19. APN01 is the recombinant form of the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (rhACE2), and has the potential to block the infection of cells by the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19), and reduce lung injury. The Phase II trial aims to treat 200 severely infected COVID-19 patients, and the first patients are expected to be dosed shortly. APN01 has a unique dual mode of action. APN01 imitates the human enzyme ACE2, which is used by the virus to enter cells. The virus binds to soluble ACE2/APN01, instead of ACE2 on the cell surface, which means that the virus can no longer infect the cells. At the same time, APN01 reduces the harmful inflammatory reactions in the lungs and protects against acute lung injury (ALI/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Based on its unique dual mechanism of action, APN01 has the potential to be the first drug approved to treat COVID-19 that specifically targets the new SARS-CoV-2 virus, said Peter Llewellyn-Davies, Chief Executive Officer of APEIRON Biologics AG. We look forward to dosing the first patient in our Phase II trial shortly, with the goal of providing a safe and effective treatment option for severely infected COVID-19 patients in urgent need of help. We are grateful to the regulatory authorities in Austria, Germany and Denmark for rapidly approving this study, and for the commitment of the Austrian Government, which has agreed to fund a significant portion of this trial. The randomized, double-blind Phase II trial will compare APN01 to placebo in up to 200 patients at 10 sites in Austria, Denmark and Germany. The primary objective of the trial is to assess the clinical efficacy and safety of APN01 in severe COVID-19 patients using, among other criteria, the need for invasive mechanical ventilation. Secondary objectives include the evaluation of measurable biological biomarker changes following treatment with APN01. APN01 has been shown to be safe and well-tolerated in a total of 89 healthy volunteers and patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and ALI/ARDS in previously completed Phase I and Phase II clinical trials. The product candidate is currently in Phase II development by APEIRON Biologics for the treatment of PAH and ALI/ARDS, which is a significant cause of COVID-19-related mortalities. Importantly, the novel coronavirus strain SARS-CoV-2 is a very close relative of the first SARS-CoV virus, which emerged gloally in 2002, as it critically relies on the ACE2 receptor to infect the human cell, explained Prof. Josef Penninger, MD, co-inventor of APN01, founder of APEIRON Biologics AG, member of its supervisory board and Professor at the University of British Columbia. There is significant scientific evidence suggesting that treatment with the dual action recombinant human ACE2 can be used to treat patients with COVID-19. We are blocking the door for the virus and, at the same time, protecting tissues, which is what ACE2 normally does.



We are eager to participate in this very promising and critical study. APN01 is an advanced drug candidate with a very strong dual rationale that may provide an important therapeutic contribution to fight the COVID-19 pandemic," said Prof. Henning Bundgaard, principal investigator of the study and professor at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen. The following centers, among others, will participate in the clinical trial: in Germany, the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf and the Klinikum rechts der Isar of the Technical University of Munich; in Austria, the Medical University of Vienna, the Kaiser Franz-Josef-Spital, Vienna, the Medical University of Innsbruck and the University Medical Center Salzburg; in Denmark, the National University Hospital, Rigshospitalet (Copenhagen), the Herlev Gentofte Hospital, the Hvidovre Hospital, and the Nordsjllands Hospital (Hillerd).

CTC North GmbH & Co. KG, a medical contract research organization at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, will be responsible for the study-specific organization of the clinical trial. About APN01

APN01 is a recombinant human Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (rhACE2) and was developed by APEIRON biologics for the treatment of acute lung injury (ALI), acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). After licensing from APEIRON in February 2010, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) conducted several clinical trials from 2014 to 2017 to treat ALI/ARDS and PAH patients, lung injury being the major source of Covid-2019 mortalities, the disease caused by the new corona virus SARS-CoV-2. In 2019, APEIRON obtained the APN01 licenses back from GSK for further clinical development, after a their strategic refocusing of GSK to oncology. The ACE2 receptor is expressed in human airway epithelia as well as lung parenchyma and was previously identified as the essential gateway used by the first SARS-CoV virus to infect human cells. ACE2 is also the critical receptor for the new virus SARS-CoV-2 to enter human cells. Thus, treatment with recombinant human ACE2 could be used to not only block viremia but also protect lungs and other organs from injury. The drug candidate is administered intravenously as an infusion and has already shown safety and tolerability in 89 patients and volunteers. About APEIRON Biologics AG

APEIRON Biologics is a privately-held European biotech company based in Vienna, Austria, focused on the discovery and development of novel cancer immunotherapies and respiratory diseases. APEIRON received EU marketing approval for APN311 (Dinutuximab beta, Qarziba) in 2017 for the treatment of pediatric neuroblastoma patients and out-licensed global, exclusive rights for this product to EUSA Pharma Ltd. APEIRON now leverages its proprietary master checkpoint blockade mechanism to enable the human bodys natural defense mechanisms to fight the tumor. APEIRONs clinical program APN401 is a first-in-class autologous cellular therapy to strengthen immune reactivity via an intracellular master checkpoint, Cbl-b. APEIRONs APN01 (rhACE2) is starting a Phase II trial in Europe to treat COVID-19. APEIRONs projects and technologies are bolstered by a strong patent portfolio. APEIRONs development expertise is validated through partnerships with leading pharmaceutical companies and academic institutions. For further information please contact: APEIRON Biologics AG

Peter Llewellyn-Davies

CEO

Email: [email protected]

www.apeiron-biologics.com Media and Investor Relations

MC Services AG

Julia Hofmann

T +49 89 210 228 0

Email: [email protected] FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Information set forth in this press release contains forward-looking statements, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgement of APEIRON as of the date of this press release. Such forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statements to reflect any change in our expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. Contacts: Laurie Doyle

MC Services, Inc.

mobile: +1 339 832 0752

email: [email protected] Brian Ritchie

LifeSci Advisors, LLC

[email protected]

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Such sad news today to hear the great Richard Casavant has passed away. He was a mountain of wisdom, patience, and good counsel in so many areas of our lives.

My wife and I first met Richard through his first wife, Wendy after we moved to Signal Mountain in 1997 when he was serving on the Signal Mountain Town Council and Wendy was leading the Signal Mountain Elementary School PTA. The two of them were great examples of selfless giving to the community.

After replacing Paul Nolan, another great former Signal Mountain county commissioner, who had the vision to set aside the land on Shackleford Ridge for a future Signal Mountain High School, Richard helped to pave the way for the funding and construction of Nolan Elementary, replacing the beloved, but outdated and outgrown Signal Mountain Elementary and Bachman Schools. The county required the mountain top community to fund much of Nolans furniture, playground equipment, and other items. We all came through to make Nolan Elementary a vibrant part of our community.

Perhaps Richards most significant contribution to the community were his efforts to make Signal Mountain High School a reality. A dream of some in the community for decades, the effort really got moving in the mid-90s. Richard guided the County Commission and influenced the School Board through rancorous politics, delicate funding requirements, and often petty arguments as several grass roots community groups supported the efforts to create a high school on the mountain and complete our community. Richard worked endless hours advising us to the best path toward making the school become a reality. After the school board created a two-year delay in the approval of the school by extending our controversial school superintendents contract, in 2005 we got back on track. An agreement by the towns of Walden and Signal Mountain to provide $10 million in additional funding to the High School construction passed in a referendum vote and we were on our way. The funding was approved in 2005 and the school opened in 2008. While the building of the high school was truly a community effort, if there was one person who could be credited with making it happen and being the champion of the school, it was Richard Casavant. I hope the families who enjoy the benefits of Signal Mountain High School appreciate Richards role in their familys education.

I stayed friends with Richard after those times; he and his beautiful wife Jane continued to be a key part of the community after his service on the County Commission and before he moved to Atlanta. Richard advised my oldest daughter to study accounting at the business school at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga  a decision that proved to be valuable to her as she works in Chattanoogas foremost accounting firm. Okay, I almost got through this tribute almost without saying anything about his role leading UTCs business school for so many years.

Rest in peace Richard Casavant. You truly were a great man and we are all better as a result of your life.

Bob Linehart








Industry body COAI has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking urgent relief measures, including lowering of levies with immediate effect, for the telecom operators on account of the "adverse impact" of COVID-19.

The industry association said that despite the outbreak and spread of the coronavirus pandemic across the country, operators are playing a "critical role" in addressing the challenges faced by individuals, corporates, governance services, emergency and utility services.

COAI asserted that ensuring continuity of these services is of utmost importance in these challenging times.

In a letter dated March 28 to the finance minister, the Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI) made a plea for rationalisation of "high burden of the regulatory levies" on the telecom service providers with immediate effect.

The industry body -- whose members include Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea -- has sought cut in spectrum Usage Charge (SUC) by 3 per cent for all the operators. It further said licence fee contribution (USOF contribution) should be immediately brought down to 3 per cent from 8 per cent.

Highlighting the issue of liquidity, COAI sought refund of the unutilised input tax credit immediately, or else grant of soft loan at MCLR (Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate) to companies, using the GST input credit as collateral.

It also urged the government to exempt the levy of GST on licence fees, Spectrum Usage Charges and payment of spectrum acquired in auctions.

COAI said service tax should be exempt on amount of licence fee and spectrum usage charges payable by telecom operators, in compliance with the Supreme Court order.

"Considering the sensitivity of this matter, we are hopeful that our submissions will merit your consideration and urgent support," COAI Director General Rajan Mathews said in the letter.

COAI said there has been a "severe disruptive impact" on the global supply chain, demand and supply elements as well as cash flows of the companies due to the slowing economic activities.

"This downturn will have an impact on all payments including those of employees, interest, loan repayments and taxes," COAI said.

Given the situation and its adverse impact on the economy and operations of the digital communication industry, it urged the government to provide relief measures "in the wake of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 pandemic".

COAI said the impact of COVID-19 is expected to be far-reaching on the economy.

"IMF's outlook for global growth in 2020 is negative and it estimates a recession as bad as during the global financial crisis (of 2008-09) or worse. We believe that India will also be severely impacted as a consequence of restrictive measures necessary for preventing the spread of this pandemic," it said.

COAI added that operators have invested and will continue to invest significantly in the telecom infrastructure (both capex and opex) and it is enabled to meet the increased demand for telecom services.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Governments say coronavirus emergency laws must be temporary.

Thirteen EU countries on Wednesday issued a joint statement calling for coronavirus emergency measures to be temporary and in line with rule of law principles.

The move comes after Hungary's parliament on Monday voted by a two-thirds majority to allow the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban to rule by decree without a set time limit. Under the new law, individuals who publicize what are viewed as untrue or distorted facts face several years in jail, POLITICO reported.

"In this unprecedented situation, it is legitimate that Member States adopt extraordinary measures to protect their citizens and overcome the crisis," the 13 countries wrote. "We are however deeply concerned about the risk of violations of the principles of rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights arising from the adoption of certain emergency measures."

Read alsoPublic health vs personal digital privacy amid Covid-19 spread

While not naming Hungary, the statement indirectly addressed the controversial provisions of the country's new law.

"Emergency measures should be limited to what is strictly necessary, should be proportionate and temporary in nature, subject to regular scrutiny, and respect the aforementioned principles and international law obligations. They should not restrict the freedom of expression or the freedom of the press," the countries wrote.

Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden signed up to the statement.

The countries said they "support the European Commission initiative to monitor the emergency measures and their application" and invite the General Affairs Council meeting of European ministers "to take up the matter when appropriate."
New Delhi: The government on Thursday (April 2) took strong action against Tablighi Jamaat, Nizamuddin, and blacklisted 960 foreigners and canceled their tourist visas after they were found involved in activities related to the Jamat, according to Office of the Home Minister.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has also directed the Delhi Police and the DGPs of other concerned states to take necessary legal action against these 960 foreigners for violating the provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946, and the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

The MHA action comes after the Tablighi Jamaat's congregation at south Delhi's Nizamuddin, which has emerged into one of the coronavirus hotspots in the country.

Earlier in the day, a senior home ministry official said that about 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat members and their primary contacts have been quarantined till now in the country after the government undertook "massive efforts" as part of steps to check the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Punya Salila Srivastava, a joint secretary in the Union Home Ministry, told reporters during a daily briefing that out of about 2,000 such Tablighi Jamaat members in Delhi, 1,804 have been shifted to quarantine centres while 334 symptomatic persons admitted to hospitals.

She said among the ones in Delhi, 250 are foreigners, adding "The home ministry along with states and union territories launched a massive effort and about 9,000 Tablighi Jammat workers and their primary contacts were identified and quarantined. Among these, 1,306 people are foreigners."

She said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is constantly reviewing the ongoing lockdown in the country and added that the home secretary (Ajay Bhalla) has written to states and union territories that "the lockdown measures should be implemented in letter and spirit".

Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a 21-day lockdown from March 25 to prevent the spread of the coronavirus that has claimed live and infected people.
WASHINGTON  Social Security beneficiaries will now automatically receive their coronavirus stimulus checks after a change made by the Trump administration late Wednesday night.

Lawmakers on Wednesday decried a policy enacted by the Internal Revenue Service earlier this week that would have required Social Security beneficiaries to file a simple tax return to receive the benefit although many of the beneficiaries  mostly seniors and the disabled  are not normally required to pay taxes.

Now, Social Security recipients will receive these payments as a direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their benefits.

U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Schuylerville, whose district has one of the highest populations of seniors in the country, applauded the change Thursday.

"Thousands of seniors across my district do not file tax returns because their main source of income is Social Security," Stefanik said. "Im grateful to U.S. Treasury for reversing this policy, as filing tax returns is an often confusing and intensive process. Its important that North Country seniors know they will soon be receiving their stimulus checks during this challenging and unprecedented crisis.

The $1,200 payments will be automatically sent to most taxpayers in the next few weeks. But about 15 million Americans do not file taxes each year, according to IRS estimates.

The change made Wednesday ensures that a portion of those 15 million Americans will now get an automatic stimulus check like taxpayers. But chair of the House tax-writing committeee, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., said Wednesday night the administration still needs to do more.

Now, Treasury should build on this progress and make the same automatic payment to some veterans and those who receive Supplemental Security Income, Neal said. I urge the Trump Administration to make it easier for all individuals eligible for aid to access this new, vital support during the coronavirus pandemic.

Thirty-nine Democratic senators  including New York's Charles E. Schumer, the Senate Democratic Leader, and Kirsten Gillibrand  and two independents wrote to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Social Security Administration Andrew Commissioner on Wednesday urging them to resolve the situation.

We strongly urge you to ensure that economic stimulus payments are automatically sent to vulnerable seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, without these individuals needing to file a tax return, the senators wrote.

Thirty-three other House Democrats sent a similar letter to Mnuchin and IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig sent a similar letter Wednesday.

Normally, free in-person tax services funded by the federal government are available to assist low and moderate-income individuals, as well as seniors with their tax needs. But the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program had to cancel appointments in March and April due to the coronavirus.

The coronavirus payments are $1,200 for individuals making $75,000 or less a year, plus $500 per child. People making more than $75,000 will receive less, while people making over $99,000 a year will get nothing.
Amid a country-wide manhunt by police for participants of last month's Tablighi Jamaat meet at Nizamuddin in New Delhi, jamaat leader Maulana Saad Kandhalvi on Thursday said he has quarantined himself on doctors' advice.



"We should help and support our government in dealing with this crisis. I have also quarantined myself in Delhi under instructions from doctors. This precautionary measure is not against the principle of faith so it's important to adopt such steps," he said in an audio clip.

"I appeal to all my jamaat to follow the instruction of our government," Saad said in the clip.

The authorities across states have identified more than 6,000 people who attended the Nizamuddin Tablighi Jamaat congregation.

The mid-March Islamic religious discourse was attended by thousands of Jamaat members, along with hundreds of foreigners -- many of them suspected to be coronavirus positive -- and has triggered a nationwide scare of community spread of the virus.

"There's no doubt that this pandemic is the result of sins we humans have been committing. We should pray to Allah for forgiveness while staying at home. This way, we will be able to please our lord to show mercy on humankind and save them from this pandemic," Saad said.

Instructions of ulemas, government, and doctors need to be followed and no one should stray out of home and organise gatherings, he said.
As much of the world moves online amid the social-distancing measures put in place to stop the spread of the coronavirus, students and teachers are faced with a strange new reality. Many educators who have never been trained on remote teaching  or even, in some cases, on how to use platforms like Zoom and Google Classroom  are now grappling with the possibility of having to finish out the school year that way. Children are dealing with the emotional fallout of upended routines, canceled activities, and diminished social lives, while their parents try to figure out how to adapt their homes and schedules to make room for online learning. Unfortunately, for many less privileged kids, this will likely exacerbate the inequality theyre already facing.



To get a better idea of what teachers are dealing with right now, we spoke to a fourth-grade teacher from New York City, where schools shut down on March 15, at the end of her first day of remote learning. While she remains positive about her students ability to adapt to life in this unprecedented time, she worries about some of them falling behind  not to mention how fellow teachers with children of their own at home are expected to balance life and work.



What year and subject do you teach, and how long have you been teaching for?

I teach fourth grade. I teach the dual-language class for my grade, which means we normally have a Spanish day and an English day, alternating. All the subjects are taught in both languages. Its really fun. It also means I have a good amount of newcomers in my class  this year I have four  which means kids who have come to the U.S. within the last couple of years. We have about half native Spanish speakers. And this is my seventh year of teaching!



So today was your first day of remote learning. How did it go?

Honestly, it went better than I expected! I actually had 19 out of 22 of my students on our morning meeting, and it was awesome to see their faces. It was awesome for them to see each other for the first few minutes. I let them all talk at the same time, and then I muted them, which I cant do in real life, and that was amazing. They started writing on little notepaper: Unmute me! That was really funny. Then we all went around and said how we were feeling. I felt like we were able to preserve some of what classroom life is like  I still hand-wrote the morning message. In terms of the assignments, Id say were all still learning Google Classroom. A lot of the stuff is just like, download this text and read it, but kids are kids, so theyre clicking turned in. It seems like less than half of the kids did the work on the page for today. There was definitely some confusion, and I made a bunch of mistakes in terms of what I assigned.



Story continues

I had parents send me really nice messages saying, Thank you for working so hard on that. But just an hour ago, I had a parent email me photos of her daughter sobbing in front of a laptop, and she said, This is what broke her. Social studies broke her! And its hard to explain to this mom, Im just filling in a schedule that my boss gave me, and theyre saying we need this amount of work, but theyre also saying kids should only be working for four hours a day, which is less than a normal school day. Im noticing a lot of parents are taking whatever I put on the Google Classroom very seriously, and trying to do it all. And I mean, the social studies thing was just supposed to be fun. I had forgotten there even was a quiz attached to it. Its been hard to send the message to parents  well, you want to send two messages. You want to send a message that this is our schedule, and these are our expectations, so that parents can lean on that if their kid is being defiant. But you also want to share the secret message to parents that, come on, this is up to you. You have to figure out what works for your family.



When you think about having to teach remotely for three months, or six months, or a year, does that seem sustainable to you?

I think I could do it. I would get pretty bummed out, but I just think it would widen the opportunity gap way more than it already is. Just because giving a kid a device is not the same as providing them with field trips and support, as more affluent kids have, and having kids [from different socioeconomic backgrounds] in integrated schools, where they get to know each other. My kids who are already struggling or have parents who arent able to support them with technology or language, I think those kids are going to get further and further behind. I mean, theres also social development, and so many things theyre learning as they develop friendships, and physical development, getting to run around. I could do it, and they could do it, but I dont think it would be good for either of us.

What kinds of directives and resources have you been given by the school? Do you feel like its been enough?

I think they are doing their absolute best, because this is new for them, too. Honestly, I think that some people, especially teachers and parents, have felt like its been too much or too many directives. My school is very structured, which I like, because thats just the sort of person I am. I like getting a lot of instruction and guidance. But I think a lot of people who have their own children that theyre trying to guide through remote learning, or little young children who need full-time attention, are really struggling with that and felt like it was a lot.



Theres also been a lot of concerns about screen time, because its just really hard to modify this stuff to where it doesnt involve a screen, especially if a kid doesnt have a lot of books at home and the best solution is for them to read books and other extracurricular material online. I think theres been frustration from a lot of folks, myself included, that were asking a lot of families, and some of it were not comfortable asking, because its not developmentally appropriate, or its just too much.



I think, considering how sudden this was, and how my administration is not super technologically well-versed, I think they tried to gather Google Classroom tutorials and pull ideas from the teachers who know what theyre doing as quickly as they could. I feel like they have been really supportive of us as long as were working to accomplish what they want us to do. But I think there definitely have been people who have felt like, in their effort to be as calm and reassuring as possible, they havent really left space for the human side of it. We wrote a letter from some union members to our administration, asking for more flexibility and understanding.



Can you share more about that letter?

It came from a conversation that we had, where a lot of teachers were expressing that they felt like we were being told to do this one-size-fits-all sort of teaching that wasnt the best thing for their students, and that we werent being trusted to do what we thought was best. Its just specifying that were not in an academic emergency, were in a public health emergency. So were asking to be given the flexibility, trust, and support we need to do our jobs and maintain our own safety and well-being over the coming months. Its kind of just pushing back against these rigid expectations and asking the administration to trust us, to [allow us to] create schedules that work for our families. I mean, I dont envy their position. I think that they were trying to just make it as simple for us as possible by giving us the schedule. But then, of course, its not the best for every person, for every kid. Its more about tone  like just lets remember that were people first. It felt like the academic applications were rushing before, like, talking about whether our families were safe and taken care of in terms of food and resources, and whether we felt supported.



If youre a parent who is also a teacher and now your kids are home, has there been any guidance given to those people on what theyre supposed to do?

No. They basically just said, your work hours are the same, and you should be available during that time to parents and students. But they also said, we know you have to eat, we know you have to take care of your kids. I feel like the administration is not legally allowed to tell teachers, its okay if youre not around. But I took it as a winking, you-do-what-you-need-to-do, dont-ask-dont-tell type of thing. They emphasized a lot that we should be recording stuff [ahead of time] when we can, and coordinating as a grade. Thats a great way to make the workload easier, but it also makes it less differentiated for individual students. Theres only so much you can do right now.



Have you been given any information about how youre supposed to be grading your students, or what this period of time counts as?

Not yet. I think they just announced that tests were suspended, which is such a weird word. Like when presidents suspend their campaign, it means its canceled. Now, I dont know if that means the kids are gonna take two rounds of standardized testing next year or what, but we know tests arent happening. But I have no idea what the grading for the third trimester will look like. If I started assigning grades, I would just feel really uncomfortable, for the same reason I dont grade homework beyond Did you try or not. Because there are some kids who have parents sitting there with them the whole time, and other kids who dont, or who are in a really distracting environment with a bunch of siblings, and it doesnt feel fair to grade any of their work.



How has all of this impacted your personal life as a professional?

I have finally had to face my technological fears, which is a good thing. I knew nothing about Google Classroom, and theres still a lot I dont know. Its really cool to learn how to use this tool, and I feel like next year, I can use it strategically in my classroom. Year seven is a year where Ive gotten pretty comfortable  this is my second year in this grade, at this school, and I was starting to feel like I had it pretty under control, like Im in a groove. I think you do teaching sometimes if youre somewhat of a control freak, and Ive had to completely let go of that. I cant make sure that kids finish their work. I cant. One kid, I still havent even talked to her, to get her to log on. Kids are gonna do what theyre gonna do. And the mandates from up above are gonna change. Its forced me to be really flexible, and also to get in touch with myself outside of my profession. We all have more time now, so Im like, oh, what other hobbies do I have? What books do I want to read? Who do I want to connect to? Whats important to me?



Is there anything else you want to add?

I guess I would say that, even though my job has been changed immensely by this, I still feel so fortunate to have a job and have a salary. And, honestly, the fact that there is still a way to connect with my students, even though it is hard to figure out, having something to work on has been really nice.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.



The coronavirus pandemic, and resulting economic downturn, has disproportionately affected some professions  doctors, nurses, teachers, small business owners, cashiers, and food industry workers are just some of the folks on the front lines. Checking In is an ongoing series where we pass the microphone to workers in industries most impacted, and ask them what they want us to know about their hopes, fears, and needs right now. Click here if you want to participate.



COVID-19 has been declared a global pandemic. Go to the CDC website for the latest information on symptoms, prevention, and other resources.

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Good Friday marks the day on which Christians around the world commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

The religious observance takes place during Holy Week, a couple of days before Easter Sunday.

Heres everything you need to know about Good Friday:

When is it?

This year, Good Friday falls on Friday 10 April on the Gregorian calendar.

Its date coincides with the middle of the Jewish festival of Passover.

According to the Julian calendar, which is still used in parts of the eastern Orthodox church, Good Friday will take place this year on Friday 17 April.

2016 Easter celebrations around the world Show all 20 1 /20 2016 Easter celebrations around the world 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Willy Salvador, 59, hangs from a cross as part of his penitence during a reenactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan, Pampanga Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines articipants lie on the ground after whipping their bloodied backs with bamboo as part of their penitence during a ceremony reenacting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines articipants whip their bloodied backs with bamboo as part of their penitence during the re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Hungary Dancers of 'Matyo Folklor Art Association' in traditional clothes, react as boys throw water in Mezokovesd, some 130 km east of Budapest. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines A resident carries a statue of Jesus Christ to the church in preparation for the Good Friday procession during Holy Week celebration in Gasan, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Ruben Enaje, who is portraying Jesus Christ for the 30th time, screams while a resident acting as a Roman soldier pulls up a nail on his palm Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitent Ruben Enaje, who is portraying Jesus Christ for the 30th time, is carried on a stretcher by rescuers after he was nailed on a wooden cross during a Good Friday crucifixion reenactment in Cutud town, Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Mexico A man holding a rabbit looks at men dressed as ancient Romans as they take part in a procession, during Holy Week celebrations, in Taxco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world South Africa Nuns carry a cross during a silent march celebrating Good Friday in Durban. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Mexico Masked penitents prepare before the start of a procession, a part of Holy Week celebrations, in Taxco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitents locally called "Morions" wear masks and centurion garbs as they take part in a Good Friday procession as part of Holy Week celebration in Gasan, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world El Salvador Members of the El Jesus Nazareno brotherhood participate in the Los Cristos Procession as part of Holy Week celebrations in the town of Izalco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Paraguay Actors take part in a re-enactment during a Holy Week procession to prepare for Good Friday celebration in Luque city. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Paraguay Actors take part in a re-enactment during a Holy Week procession to prepare for Good Friday celebration in Luque city. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Peru Local and foreign inmates participate in a performance of the play Jesus Christ Superstar to celebrate Holy Week at Sarita Colonia prison in Callao. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitents wearing masks, known locally as "Morions" take a selfie during the start of Holy Week celebrations in Mogpog, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Hungary Hungary Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Resident portraying Roman soldier pulls up a nail on a foot of penitent Ruben Enaje in Pampanga, Philippines. Reuters

Good Friday marks the sixth day of Holy Week, an annual Christian observance leading up to Easter Sunday.

It follows Maundy Thursday, and precedes Holy Saturday and Easter Day.

What is Good Friday?

Good Friday is the day on which Christians commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, prior to when he was believed to have been resurrected.

While the name Good Friday isnt mentioned in the Bible, the religious text tells the story of how Christ was beaten and mocked by Roman soldiers before being made to carry a cross to the site of his subsequent crucifixion.

Due to the events commemorated on the holy day, some might question why its known as Good Friday.

Rather than indicating that the day is a joyous occasion, the good in Good Friday actually comes from the antiquated definition of the word, meaning pious or holy.

While its widely believed that Christ was crucified on a Friday, the day of the week of the crucifixion is not mentioned in the Bible.

Some speculate that the crucifixion may have taken place on a Wednesday or Thursday, due to a line in the Gospel of Matthew in which Christ states that he would be dead for three days and three nights.

Its commonly understood that Christ was resurrected on a Sunday morning.

How is it observed?

In several sectors of Christianity, including eastern Orthodox, Anglican and Catholic, Good Friday is observed by some Christians by attending church services and by fasting.

However, this will not be possible this year amid the coronavirus pandemic, with places of worship being closed.

The holy day is also traditionally commemorated by carrying out reenactments of the events which led to Christs crucifixion, known as the Passion of Jesus.

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MILWAUKEE, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As coronavirus cases continue to rise across the country and the world, Versiti, Inc., a national leader in blood health innovation, will begin collecting plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients to help treat others diagnosed with the virus.

This blood-related treatment  approved by the FDA as an Emergency Investigational New Drug (EIND)  could offer hope to the hundreds of patients who continue to be diagnosed. This treatment would be used by hospitals for the most severely affected patients.

Versiti blood centers, among the first in the U.S. to begin collecting convalescent plasma, is working with its partner hospitals to identify recovered patients. As per the guidelines, hospitals must request FDA approval and work within the EIND guidelines, or other approved IND, in order to treat coronavirus patients with plasma. Donors would be referred to Versiti through hospitals, or the recovered patients' physicians.

"The potential donors must first be proven to have had a COVID-19 diagnosis through a positive lab test result, and must then have a negative test result 14 days after recovering from symptoms," said Versiti Senior Medical Director Dan A. Waxman, M.D. "It's a very collaborative effort with our hospital partners who will be working to identify and verify the donors."

Versiti hopes to implement the coronavirus plasma collection program in early April. The donated plasma will be provided directly to the hospitals with whom Versiti is partnering.

"Many of our hospital partners have already requested the donations," said Dr. Waxman. "They are anxious to begin the program."

The plasma treatment would transfer the antibodies that the recovered patient created, into critically ill patients currently receiving care. Because of the investigational nature of this treatment, it is difficult to know just how many plasma infusions a COVID-19 patient may require, according to Dr. Waxman.

The plasma donations, which take 30-40 minutes, will be collected at Versiti donor centers in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin.

The donation process is the same as with other plasma donations, and will be performed using an apheresis machine, which separates the blood components.

Though blood group AB is the universal plasma donor, any blood type donor who has recovered from the virus is eligible to donate as part of the program.

Versiti advances coronavirus research

Versiti is working with Froedtert Hospital and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), under the direction of Gilbert White, M.D., Versiti EVP for research and chief science officer and professor at MCW, who is serving as the primary investigator, and Mary Beth Graham, M.D.,FIDSA, FACP, Medical Director, Infection Prevention & Control Froedtert Hospital Associate Chief, Division of Infectious Disease, Medical College of Wisconsin, to support a research study related to plasma infusion.

"This is a very important joint effort that we are undertaking which will benefit every hospital system in the state of Wisconsin and beyond," said Dr. White. "This research will not only help patients now, but inform us for future interventions."

The research project involves a clinical trial component with recovered coronavirus patients, who will be referred by hospitals.

ABOUT VERSITI

Versiti, a national leader in blood health innovation, was formed with the mission to improve the health of patients and enable the success of our health care partners nationally. We provide innovative, value added solutions in the fields of transfusion medicine, transplantation, and blood-related diseases to meet the needs of each of our customers. The collective efforts across Versiti result in improved patient outcomes, expanded access to care and cost efficiencies for health care systems nationwide. For more information, visit versiti.org.

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Gas transit via Ukraine in Jan-March shrinks by 53% to 11.1 bcm

14:40, 02.04.20 1162

Despite this, since the beginning of 2020, the capacities for Russian gas transit have been fully paid for by Russia's Gazprom under a new gas transit deal.
What happens to the dynamics of war when a pandemic is thrown into the mix?

It has been called the third army. Disease, that is. And when it becomes global in scale, it adds to the madness and destruction of wartime by ravaging military forces, decimating civilian populations, and confounding and sometimes even killing leaders.

The most dangerous part of this invisible contingent is its indiscriminate nature  it kills without regard and takes no sides.

The coronavirus, for its already extensive international reach, has been and will continue to intervene in many of the ongoing armed conflicts and destabilised regions around the world  from Afghanistan to Syria, to the protracted struggles between the Mexican government and that nations various drug cartels.

Can we glean any lessons from history about what happens in wars when pandemics strike?

We know that no one is safe, not even politicians and generals.

During the outbreak of what some believe was Typhus, a plague that swept through Athens during the Peloponnesian War back in the fifth century BC killed Pericles, the famed general and statesman.

The disease did not stop there. It would go on to kill one-third of the population of Athens and demoralise the city-states people. Overall, it would tilt the balance of power in the war towards Sparta, which went on to defeat Athens years later.

When people think about pandemics and war, it is most likely the case of influenza that swept the globe during World War I that comes to mind.

Influenza, or the H1N1 virus which reappeared as a new strain during the 2009 swine flu pandemic, was labelled the Spanish flu at the time of World War I  the reason being that of all the countries that were hit, Spain was the first to actually report on the illness due to war-time censorship elsewhere.

Regardless of its name, this pandemic wiped out armies, civilians and leaders alike. US President Woodrow Wilson, according to some, contracted the illness. When it came to the armistice of 1918, the president made little attempt to negotiate for US interests principally because of his 103 degrees Fahrenheit (39.4 degrees Celsius) fever and debilitated physical state.

Influenza also hastened World War I to its end. The US military machine was essentially paralysed as soldiers required care and fell victim to the illness in greater numbers than they did in actual combat.

The virus was particularly effective in halting the USs largest campaign of the war  the Meuse-Argonne Offensive along the Western Front from September to November of 2018.

Yet, the pandemics real destruction came after, as it would infect more than 500 million people worldwide and claim more than 50 million lives.

In some conflicts, outbreaks have ended wars, but in others, they have prolonged them.

For instance, some believe that the US Civil War, which ran from 1861 to 1865, was extended by two years due to the spread of infectious disease.

That time, it was malaria that showed no allegiance and took no prisoners, taking aim at everyone that crossed its path.

In particular, the numerically and technologically superior Northern forces of the Union army ran into significant difficulties with the disease when it entered the hot and humid south. Malaria turned out to be just as formidable a foe to the southern Confederates as they were, in turn, decimated by the illness after the Union Forces naval blockade cut the supply of anti-malarial medication.

Right now, with so many conflicts raging around the world in so many different places, we are already seeing how the coronavirus is affecting military forces and armed struggles.

The war in Yemen, for instance, has apparently entered a ceasefire due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, in Mexico, cartels are running short on necessary Chinese imports to produce methamphetamine and fentanyl  the latter substance being necessary for the production of heroin. The virus has slowed trade around the world, and international drug trafficking is no exception.

While this has led to a price rise for drug users in the US, it could also portend more violence in a country that has already been torn by years of conflict between different cartels.

Think about it: will groups engage in conflict with one another over scarce resources? If so, then will we see even greater numbers of internally displaced people in a country where thousands have been uprooted over the many decades of the drug war?

Similarly, Syrians with the virus face significant challenges after years of civil war have depleted the countrys infrastructure. Syrian refugees could also bring a second wave of the pandemic into an already devastated Europe.

And what of our leaders? Some have already been infected, such as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. But what about those engaged in the ongoing struggle in Afghanistan? What could happen to peace talks there, especially if some of the key individuals who are involved fall ill?

Does history provide illumination at times like these, especially concerning the impact of pandemics on war? If anything, it shows that the chaos and uncertainty that already resides in warfare is only compounded with diseases that have neither nationality, nor loyalty.

Not even leaders are immune.

Pandemics only raise the stakes, for everyone, in times of war.

It is hard to find hope during times like this, as diseases such as the coronavirus bring us all to recognise their power. Yet, if there is any, perhaps it is in forcing leaders and the rest of us to ask, is the violence ever really worth it?

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
COVID-19 cases in Vietnam increase to 218 (Photo: VNA)

They include two employees of the Truong Sinh Co. Ltd, which provides services for the Hanoi-based Bach Mai Hospital, a patient who used to visit Bach Mai hospital for medical check-up, and three returning Vietnam from overseas.

Patient 213 is a female, 40, living in the Thanh Ha Urban Area, Cu Khe commune, Thanh Oai district, Hanoi. After experiencing a fever of 38.6 degrees Celsius, the patient went to the Tropical Centre of Bach Mai Hospital with her husband. After the examination, she returned to the Thanh Ha Urban Area and quarantined herself at home.|

Every day, the patient still went out to take out the trash while wearing a mask, though she did not have contact with other people. The Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2 test found her positive for SARS-CoV-2. The patient is currently quarantined at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases No. 2 in stable condition.

Patient 214 is a 45-year-old female and Patient 215 is a 31-year-old male, both employees of Truong Sinh Company. The man lives on Truong Chinh street, Phuong Mai ward, Dong Da district, Hanoi. He was quarantined from March 30 to 31 and then sent to the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases.

Patient 216 is a woman, 48, from Quang Ninh province. She was in Germany and transited Russia on her return to Vietnam on Aeroflot flight SU290 on March 23. After entry, she was quarantined at the FPT University in Lang-Hoa Lac, Hanoi.

On March 31, she had a sore throat and on the same day, tested positive for SARS-COV-2. She was sent to the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2 for treatment.

Patient 217 is a female, 25, Vietnamese nationality, with her address in Khanh Son 2, Nam Dan district, Nghe An province. She returned from Japan on March 25 on All Nippon Airways flight NH857 (seat 31K). After entry, she was quarantined at the FPT University. From March 31, she was treated at the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2.

Patient 218 is a 43-year-old woman of Vietnamese nationality, with her address in Phu Xa district, Thai Nguyen province. The patient returned home on Aeroflot flight SU290 (seat number 46G) from Russia on March 25. After entry, she was quarantined at the FPT University. From March 31, she was quarantined and treated at the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2.

To date, 63 COVID-19 patients have recovered, 54 have tested negative once and 43 have tested negative twice.
SPRINGFIELD  Trinity Health Of New England says it will provide masks for patient-facing colleagues beginning Friday to help protect against the coronavirus.

The statement came as the Massachusetts Nurses Association called for N95 masks for all frontline nurses and health care workers at Mercy Medical Center in Springfield and Providence Behavioral Health Hospital in Holyoke, which are part of Trinity, as well as at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton.

We will be interested to see how that newly announced policy is implemented, said union spokesman Joe Markman. The safest standard of universal masking for staff caring for patients is N95 masking.

Trinity spokesperson Amy Ashford said surgical masks will be used for universal masking, with more sophisticated N95 respirators used during certain procedures where risk of transmission of the virus is higher.

Safety is a core value for Mercy Medical Center and its affiliates and Trinity Health Of New England, and we are deeply committed to following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines and providing the appropriate level of personal protective equipment (PPE) for all of our colleagues, Trinity said in a statement.

According to CDC guidelines, N95 respirators are only to be used during an aerosol generating procedure on a positive or suspected COVID-19 patient, and can be reused if they are properly stored and not soiled, Trinity said. As we recognize this is an essential part of patient care amidst this pandemic, multiple resources regarding appropriate PPE use are available to our colleagues, including ongoing individual education.

It added that Trinity continues to work daily with suppliers worldwide and with government agencies to secure additional PPE and that in an effort to mitigate future PPE shortages, we are employing well-established conservation strategies consistent with the CDC guidelines.

The unions N95 universal masking demand appears in an ad in The Republican on Friday addressed to Baystate Health CEO Dr. Mark Keroack, Trinity Health Of New England CEO Dr. Reginald Eadie and Cooley Dickinson Health Care CEO Joanne Marqusee.

The Massachusetts Nurses Association made a similar demand Wednesday to Baystate Health, which has union nurses at its hospitals in Westfield and Greenfield. It is based on the fact the coronavirus can be present in patients without symptoms.

The union said Trinity is limiting nurses access to existing N95 masks and issuing inconsistent orders on whether they can bring their own personal protective equipment if needed.

Nurses are not being supported by Trinity and it is putting us and everyone else at risk, said Alex Wright, a registered nurse and co-chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee at Mercy. Healthcare professionals are being thanked on TV every day, but behind the scenes we are being bullied to put our lives on the line without the protection we need.

The union also criticized plans to close beds at Providence, something that Trinity said remains on schedule.

The decision to discontinue inpatient psychiatric services at Providence Hospital was made because of critical psychiatric provider shortage that will prevent our future ability to provide safe, quality care to our patients, Trinity said in its statement Thursday.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, this critical shortage has not changed and therefore, these services will be discontinued on June 30, 2020.

The union said nurses at Mercy and Providence, working in areas impacted by Gov. Charlie Bakers public emergency order canceling all nonessential medical procedures, are having their shifts canceled, and as a result are working reduced hours.

Nurses who are able should have the option of redeploying to another unit rather than being cancelled so they can help prepare for the coming surge, said Markman, referencing the expect peak in COVID-19 cases in the coming weeks.

Jaime Dorunda, a registered nurse and co-chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee at Mercy, added, Our communities need more healthcare services, and Trinity is cancelling nurses when the hospital really needs all hands-on deck during this crisis."

In its statement, Trinity said, We have encouraged and are engaging with our nurses and all colleagues, including members of the medical staff, to be cross-trained and redeployed to the areas the community will need us to provide care. In all cases, we are ensuring that redeployed colleagues receive the proper training and oversight to ensure we are providing safe patient care.

Parent company Trinity Health, a 22-state Catholic health care system based in Michigan, offers a generous paid time off policy and pays quarantined employees for up to 14 days with no use of paid time off, the statement said.

The union listed the following complaints in its stament:

Lack of protective equipment. Nurses and healthcare professionals at Mercy Medical Center and Providence Behavioral Health Hospital are not being provided sufficient personal protective equipment to guard against COVID-19 infection and safely care for patients. Nurses are being told one N95 mask is OK for multiple use all day. This was not accepted practice a month ago. This has been proven to spread infection from patient to worker, which would then spread to other patients, expanding the infection.

Trinity Health told staff it would no longer provide N95 masks to those caring for patients in an intermediate care unit that has had positive and suspected COVID-19 patients

Nurses were initially told by management not to wear masks if they were not taking care of isolation patients. Trinity enforced this by needing to call the nursing manager to obtain masks as opposed to the storeroom clerk. Hospitals are the epicenter for COVID- 19. Nurses have resorted to making/disinfecting their our own masks to bring to work

Inconsistent guidance on outside PPE . Nurses and healthcare professionals are being told by Trinity management in some cases that they cannot wear PPE that they bring in on their own. We need a clear message from Trinity that with PPE in such short supply, they will work with nurses and other healthcare workers to ensure that any appropriate PPE, whether hospital provided or not, can be used to protect against exposure.

Cancellations during a crisis . Nurses and healthcare professionals are being canceled during this unprecedented crisis at Mercy and Providence.Trinity is also violating MNA contracts by cancelling nurses. The MNA has encouraged all nurses to cross-train to other units if they are willing and able.

Lack of support for frontline staff . Any nurse who is furloughed because of this crisis must be provided regular pay by the hospital and not have to use their own (paid) time. Trinity has threatened to fire staff who do not comply with its terms during this crisis, deny unemployment and refuse to allow nurses to use paid time off.

Closures of Essential Services. Trinity is moving ahead with its plans to close 74 child and adult mental health beds at Providence and a detox unit in Springfield. No healthcare services should close during this public health crisis. These beds are a critical resource amid an ongoing behavioral health crisis. In addition, there are patients languishing in emergency departments and hallways waiting for mental health beds. That is terrible at any time, and especially now when the current outbreak means we need EDs and other hospital units available for the surge in COVID-19 patients. Mental health is public health and Trinity should immediately halt these closures.

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Remember the last time you voted? If youre like many Texans, you queued outside your polling place, maybe chatted with fellow voters while you waited. As you reached the end of the line, poll workers stood nearby to answer any questions and you handed over your ID. You then stepped over to use an electronic voting machine, just like hundreds of other voters before you that day and hundreds more afterward.

Imagine if you had to do that now.

The coronavirus outbreak has upended our way of life, and our elections are not immune. Gov. Greg Abbott has postponed the primary runoffs until July 14, hoping that the current crisis will have abated, but according to experts, even if the virus is seasonal and we can anticipate relative safety in the summer, it is expected to return in the fall  just in time for Election Day.

No one should be expected to choose between protecting their health and exercising their right to vote. Abbott has resisted calls to explore other options beyond delaying the runoffs, so it falls to Secretary of State Ruth Hughs  as the chief elections officer in Texas  to take the lead, making sure we are prepared and have the needed resources.

Yet so far, she has remained silent. Shes not returned calls from this editorial board and has not yet offered any help for local elections officials seeking guidance.

In a letter sent to the secretary recently and signed by more than 30 national, state and local organizations  including Houston in Action, Texas Civil Rights Project and Rice Universitys Center for Local Elections in America  the groups urged Hughs to act quickly and issue instructions so counties can act in concert.

Among their suggestions are making vote-by-mail available to all Texans; increasing curbside voting; ensuring that polling places have protective supplies; assisting with recruiting and training more poll workers; and improving signature verification to limit rejected mail-in ballots.

All these measures merit consideration, but it is the expansion of vote-by-mail that could keep the largest number of voters out of harms way. Texas is one of just 16 states that requires an excuse to request an absentee ballot  and several are easing those restrictions now. Eligibility is limited to those 65 or older, the disabled, people out of the county during the election and those in jail but otherwise eligible.

Opening up vote-by-mail makes sense and may already be under the secretarys power. Texas law allowing those who are disabled to vote by mail makes anyone whose condition would pose a threat to their own health or that of others eligible to vote by mail. This is the argument at the heart of a lawsuit filed in March by the Texas Democratic Party, which is asking a judge to allow all voters to be able to request a mail-in ballot. As long as the novel coronavirus is loose in the land without a widely available vaccine, we are all in a condition that justifies casting a ballot by mail.

We urge Hughs to be proactive and make this determination herself  the sooner, the better. Experts believe that to properly prepare for the November election, action needs to be taken by April 15.

If vote-by-mail is expanded, additional funding will be required. In Harris County alone  which has 2.4 million registered voters  the most mail-in ballots received were 112,000 during the 2016 presidential election, at a cost $4 million for printing, postage and staff, says Harris County Clerk Diane Trautman. Congress approved $400 million in the recent stimulus bill to help states with elections, but more may be needed.

Election officials will not only have to deal with increased mail-in ballots, they also need to prepare to keep in-person voters safe.

You just dont change a culture of voting because you snap your fingers and say, OK, vote by mail, Trautman told the editorial board. There will always be voting in person and we must be ready.

For the July election, Harris County will likely enforce social distancing guidelines and have hand sanitizer available, officials said. They are also encouraging people to apply for a mail-in-ballot if they qualify, especially older voters. The runoff election is easy, though, given its traditionally low turnout. All bets are off for the much-higher-profile races this fall.

The election we see in November will look like nothing weve seen before, Trautman predicts.

Absent clear action by the governor, it is imperative that the secretary of state does her duty and provides the leadership voters need. Our democracy need not be another victim of the coronavirus.
On the evening of March 22, the entire country came out to cheer and show their appreciation for the frontline workers, including doctors, nurses, sanitation workers and other essential service providers who are putting themselves at high risk due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

BCCL

But the tokenism apart, those at the frontline of the battle against COVID-19 has been, fighting a battle of their own - to get adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep themselves safe.



REUTERS

So far in Delhi alone, seven doctors working in different hospitals have tested positive for the disease. This includes two resident doctors at Safdarjung hospital, one each in Delhi State Cancer Institute and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Chest hospital, two mohalla clinic doctors and a doctor working in a private clinic.



Doctors and nurses have been complaining for long about the lack of basic protective gear including N95 masks.

AFP

It had reached a point where four contractual doctors at Hindu Rao Hospital resigned after their demand for PPEs were not met. The hospital administration, however, clarified on Wednesday that no resignation would be accepted and necessary action taken against the doctors and nurses.

In view of COVID 19 pandemic outbreak, resignations of the doctors or nurses will not be accepted and their names will be sent to Delhi Medical Council office and Nursing Council of India for disciplinary action, read the office order signed by CMO, administration, Hindu Rao Hospital.

(1) This order was issued against directions of DHA and without the knowledge of Additional Commissioner abd Commissioner. Disciplinary action will be taken for this disobedience.

(2) From my side, ANY unwilling worker is MORE than welcome to resign. Especially in a pandemic. https://t.co/GEiPaPOOhD  Varsha Joshi (@suraiya95) April 1, 2020

(4) The only remotely covid related activity presently going on in HRH is screening, for which more than enough PPE kits are available. More PPE kits are being procured directly from the manufacturers. We will evidently never undertake any activity which risks our staff.  Varsha Joshi (@suraiya95) April 1, 2020

Other than doctors, 15 medical staff members from Delhi's Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital have been quarantined after they got exposed to a COVID-19 patient. None of them have been declared positive so far. On Monday, the Centre had said that it was trying to procure bulk quantities PPEs domestically and from South Korea and China.

On Wednesday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said that Rs 1 crore will be given to the family of a health care professional if he or she died while dealing with coronavirus patients. Kejriwal made the announcement while addressing the concerns of city doctors through video-conferencing and lauded them by saying that they were no less than soldiers fighting on the borders.

AFP

He said that just as his government is giving Rs 1 crore to the family of security personnel who die on duty, families of doctors, nurses, paramedical staff and sanitation workers will also be given an equal amount if they died while dealing with corona patients.



The amount is nothing compared with the efforts you are putting in. But this will be the countrys way of thanking you for your services and showing that we respect your efforts, Kejriwal said, adding even Rs 100 crore is nothing before the efforts made by the medical professionals.

Whether they are from private or government sector - it doesnt matter. Their families will be provided Rs 1 crore each as a mark of respect for their services, he said.
Carole Baskin scorched the Netflix original documentary Tiger King in a post on her Big Cat Rescue site from Tuesday.

The 58-year-old animal rights activist was particularly upset that the seven-part series raises the possibility that she was involved in the disappearance of her husband Jack 'Don' Lewis.

Her post suggests the late businessman was suffering from dementia and behaving erratically in the weeks leading up to his disappearance, and she attributes many of the conspiracy theories to his friends and contacts of Joe Exotic.

Carole Baskin, 58, penned an impassioned critique of Netflix's new docuseries Tiger King on her website on Tuesday, which disputed rumors that she killed her husband Don Lewis

Carole opened her lengthy post with a video featuring her current husband Howard Baskin, which was posted to YouTube on Saturday.

He claimed in the clip that the filmmakers originally proposed a documentary in the mold of the hit film Blackfish, about the treatment of Orcas at aquatic theme parks.

'When the directors of the Netflix documentary Tiger King came to us five years ago they said they wanted to make the big cat version of Blackfish (the documentary that exposed abuse at SeaWorld) that would expose the misery caused by the rampant breeding of big cat cubs for cub petting exploitation and the awful life the cats lead in roadside zoos and back yards if they survive,' Carole wrote.

But she said the series that was ultimately produced had 'the sole goal of being as salacious and sensational as possible to draw viewers.'

Misleading: Carole's post opened with a video of her current husband Howard Baskin claim the documentarians presented their movie as an update on Blackfish

Not buying it: Instead, she claimed the film was full of 'lies and innuendos from people who are not credible.' The subject, Joe Exotic, is in federal prison for trying to hire someone to murder Carole

The film follows the exploits of Joe Exotic (real name: Joseph Maldonado-Passage) who was America's most prolific tiger breeder, before he went to federal prison for numerous animal rights violations and for trying to hire someone to murder Carole.

She went on to deride the 'lies and innuendos from people who are not credible' who claimed she was involved in the 1997 disappearance of her husband Don Lewis.

Carole claimed that he was gradually showing signs of 'mental deterioration' for years leading up to his disappearance.

According to her, he began hoarding junk and started dumpster diving. During one trip he got stuck in a dumpster and had to call her for help after he couldn't remember where he was.

Don was allegedly to be tested for Alzheimer's disease, but after a change in doctors he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which Carole claimed not to have known about until after he disappeared.

He began defecating in the yard and started inviting homeless men into their home, though he disappeared before a scheduled appointment with a specialist about his deterioration.

Falling apart: She claims Don suffered from behavior changes in the years before his 1997 disappearance and may have suffered from Alzheimer's in addition to bipolar disorder

Troubling signs: Don began hoarding junk, defecating in the yard and welcoming homeless men into the house, she alleges

In order to counter those who thought Don's wealth might have been an incentive to do him harm, Carole said that he was far from a millionaire when they met, and she claimed it was only with her help in real estate deals that he became a multimillionaire.

Those who cast a shadow on the big cat rescuer in the documentary also came in for criticism.

She took Don's former wife Gladys Lewis Cross and her daughters to task for painting her as a homewrecker, despite statement they made in print in 1998 suggesting he was a serial philanderer and a sex addict.

Changed their tune: Carole took Don's ex-wife and daughters to task for calling her a homewrecker despite calling him a sex addict and serial philanderer in print in 1998

As for the more salacious claim that Don had been killed and put into a meat grinder and fed to the rescue cats, Carole flatly denied it.

One of the more suspicious elements was a restraining order that Don filed (that was not approved) in which he claimed Carole had a weapon and had threatened to kill him months before his disappearance.

She claims he was upset that she tried to dispose of the junk he collected when he would fly to Costa Rica for a week at a time, and the restraining order was an exaggerated document to stop her.

Though Baskin clearly wanted to clear her name, she ended her post with a link to a Longreads piece on big cat collectors in America.
[April 02, 2020] Phantom AI Raises $22 Million in Series A Funding to Democratize Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) for all Types of Vehicles

BURLINGAME, Calif., April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Phantom AI , developer of a vehicle-agnostic autonomous driving platform, today announced it has raised $22 million in Series A financing led by Celeres Investments and joined by Ford Motor Company and KT (Koreas largest telco). Existing investors Millennium Technology Value Partners and DSC Investment also participated in the round. The company previously raised $5 million in seed funding, bringing the total capital raised to date to $27 million.

Founded in 2016 by lead engineers from Teslas and Hyundais ADAS teams, Phantom AI is on a mission to democratize the use of driver assistance and safety technologies to reduce crashes, save lives and make driving more enjoyable. The company is working with several automakers, a truck OEM and multiple European and Asian tier 1 suppliers, and will use the new financing to accelerate product development while scaling operations in Europe and Asia. With over 1.3 million fatalities resulting from traffic accidents every year, we believe a lot more can be done with computer vision and ADAS technologies to help protect drivers, pedestrians and cyclists, and property, said Ray Cheng, partner at Millennium, an investment firm that has also backed Aurora Innovation, Blackmore Sensor & Analytics and May Mobility. Phantom AIs deep domain expertise in AI and mission-critical automotive systems has led them to build an advanced computer vision sensing platform with industry-leading performance. Phantom AI is able to commercialize its platform at compelling price points that can drive mass market adoption as OEMs look to add new safety features to their new designs. Analysts are predicting the ADAS market will reach USD $134.9 billion by 2027, up from USD $30 billion in 2019. McKinsey anticipates demand for ADAS features that help with monitoring, warning, braking and steering will increase through 2026, fueled by consumer and regulatory interest in modern safety applications that reduce accidents and protect human life. New regulations in the European Union and the United States require vehicles to be equipped with Automatic Emergency Braking systems and forward-warning systems. By delivering ADAS features for cars at all price points, Phantom AI is filling a big void in the market as car manufacturers are looking to add Level 1 - Level 3 automation capabilities to their new designs now.



We founded Phantom AI to fundamentally change the economics of ADAS by developing modern software-based solutions that are high performing, cost effective, and infinitely flexible and customizable, said Hyunggi Cho, co-founder and CEO of Phantom AI. To the automakers frustrated with the lack of options in computer vision technologiesPhantom AI is here to help. We are thrilled to bring our AI-based perception technology, including computer vision, sensor fusion and control capabilities to market, and to have the support of our new investors to help us accelerate production globally. About Phantom AI

Phantom AI is democratizing the use of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) to reduce accidents, save lives and make driving more enjoyable, while delivering tomorrows self-driving technology. The company provides a comprehensive autonomous driving platform featuring computer vision, sensor fusion and control capabilities.

Phantom AI has created the most accurate and highest-performing AI solutions available today that meet car manufacturer requirements, at a much lower price than existing solutions. Delivered through a modular, software-based vehicle stack, OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers can select the components they wish to integrate and customize the configuration for unparalleled flexibility. To learn more about Phantom AI, please visit: https://www.phantom.ai/ . Media Contacts:

Jill Reed or Jessica Jaffe

Sift Communications for Phantom AI

[email protected]

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Presidents Donald Trump and Jair Bolsonaro on April 2 discussed cooperation between the two countries in the fight against coronavirus, as Brazil's health minister warned that infection rates and lack of medical supplies were a big concern.

The two presidents discussed medical and logistical cooperation on a telephone call but steered clear of confinement and quarantine policies, according to Brazil's Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo. Both leaders have stirred controversy for their positions on the latter.

The White House said they discussed the importance of working together through the Group of 20 nations, cooperating on vaccine development and restoring global economic growth.

Criticism has grown over Bolsonaro's handling of the crisis. The right-wing populist has attacked state governors for lockdowns that are causing job losses, played down the threat of what he calls "a little flu" and contradicted his own health minister's position on self-isolation and social distancing.

Brazil's Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta said the latest coronavirus figures were very worrying and expressed concern about the lack of protective equipment, medical equipment and ventilators.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

The Health Ministry said on April 2 that the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Brazil rose by 1,119 to 6,836 and the death toll by 39 to 240.

A 20-year-old indigenous woman in a village deep in the Amazon rainforest was the first case reported among Brazil's more than 300 tribes. Mandetta said monitoring indigenous people is a challenge, and their lifestyle could facilitate the spread of the virus.

He told reporters that Brazil was having difficulty importing urgent medical equipment because the United States sent 23 planes to China to be filled up, and Brazil's share was slashed as a result.

Mandetta said on March 30 that 200 million personal protective equipment items would arrive from China this month.

Meanwhile, Bolsonaro repeated his insistence that jobs and the economy cannot be forgotten in the coronavirus fight and warned that imports of food were already falling.

Figures on April 2 showed that Brazilian manufacturing activity in March shrank at its fastest rate in three years, while the real sank to a record low of 5.27 per dollar.

The government pledged billions more to help the poor but was criticized for fraying ties with congress that could delay aid reaching those most in need.

Economy Minister Paulo Guedes said the government will spend about 98 billion reais ($18 billion) to help 54 million informal workers affected by nationwide lockdowns, part of an overall 800 billion reais government aid package.
Arunachal Pradesh became the fourth state in the northeast to record a case of coronavirus on Thursday morning with a 31-year-old man from Wakro in Lohit district, who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event at Nizamuddin in Delhi, testing positive.

The northeast region now has a total of 20 Covid-19 patients18 of them linked to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation.

Seven people from Arunachal Pradesh had attended the Nizamuddin event. Test result for one of them, which was carried out at ICMR lab in Dibrugarh, Assam, has come positive for Covid-19, state health minister Alo Libang told HT.

Of the seven suspects, one is from Lohit district and the rest are from Namsai. All of them had returned to Arunachal Pradesh on March 19 after attending the congregation held between March 13 and March 15.

The person found positive is a 31-year-old from Wakro in Lohit district. The patient, as well as 6 others who travelled with him, are in quarantine at present. Test results of the six others are awaited, Libang said.

Arunachal Pradesh doesnt have a testing facility for Covid-19 at present and samples from the state are tested at ICMR, Dibrugarh in Assam. Till Wednesday, 58 samples had been collected in the state and sent for testing.

The first Covid-19 positive case in the northeast was detected in Manipur, when a 23-year-old student who returned from UK was found positive. It was followed by a 50-year-old pastor from Mizoram who had returned from the Netherlands last month.

Assam with 16 positive cases has the highest number of patients in the region. All of them had attended the Tablighi Jamaat gathering last month. On Wednesday, Manipur reported its second positive casea person who had attended the Delhi congregation.

No positive case has been recorded in Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya yet.

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Tata Sons Ltd and Shapoorji Pallonji Group seem reluctant to bury the hatchet, with the former now challenging Pallonji's plan to raise funds by pledging shares in the Tata group. Pallonji Group plans to raise $1 billion by pledging its shares in Tata Group, though the talks are in early stages. The Shapoorji Pallonji family family owns 18.37 per cent stake in Tata Sons.

Tatas plan to invoke Article 75 of Tata Sons' Article of Association, according to which it has the first right to buy shares if any of its shareholders sell them via a special resolution, Mint reported. The real estate group facing fund crunch believes the Article of Association doesn't stop it from pledging shares, the daily reported.

However, official statements from both the companies are yet to come. The Mistry group, during their court battle, had also termed Tata Sons' Article 75 as draconian and confiscatory. The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, in its December 18 judgement, had, however, told the Tata group not to exercise it "oppressively".

The NCLT order also restored Cyrus Mistry as the executive chairman of the Tata Group, which opened another bitter chapter between the two business houses. The judgement also rendered N Chandrasekaran's appointment as executive chairman of the company "illegal". Cyrus Mistry, a member of the Shapoorji Pallonji family, had been engaged in a bitter legal battle with Tata Sons since his ouster from the board back in October 2016.

On January 25, a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Arvind Bobde stayed the NCLAT order. The stay came on an appeal filed by Tata Group. Later, Cyrus Mistry moved the apex court seeking removal of many anomalies in the NCLAT order, saying his family deserved more relief from the tribunal.

Also Read: Tata vs Mistry case: SC to hear Tata Sons' petition challenging NCLAT order today
As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ
Lets join with compassion and thoughtful actions to soften the blows of coronavirus. Working together to overcome this catastrophe requires understanding how we got here.

Last year, the Trump administration conducted an important exercise to understand how our country would respond to a respiratory virus pandemic. The resulting October report showed the essential changes required to avoid the very kind of preventable chaos we are now witnessing.

In December, troubling virus reports emerged from Wuhan, China. In January, confidential intelligence reports exposed the lurking pandemic danger to America. Facts were ignored; a Feb. 5 offer to seek emergency funds was rejected, as Trump instead sought to cut funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and declared the virus no big deal  only a Democratic hoax. He has embraced the fire department only after the disease wildfire spread widely. This tragedy was largely preventable or, at least, could have been greatly reduced.

Failure became apparent when the administration brought the first evacuees to Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland without properly notifying local authorities and refusing to keep them on base for testing and treatment, eventually permitting one who tested positive after release to go to North Star Mall.

As additional evacuees arrived, the administrations inability to indicate how many, when and why these individuals had not already been tested in California, and where those belatedly tested would go, displayed further amazing indifference. To date, we have never received the CDC personnel requested by Mayor Ron Nirenberg nor an answer to most of his other very reasonable requests.

The giant credibility gap Trump created with his lie that anybody can get a beautiful test has been compounded by the testing that remains unavailable. Our per capita testing rate is only about one-sixth that of South Korea. Without broad testing, we cannot adequately protect against a virus whose attack method is not fully understood.

Nirenbergs postponement of Fiesta shielded us from becoming a hot spot like New Orleans after Mardi Gras. Shuttering businesses, enduring layoffs and remaining at home represent a poor substitute for the comprehensive testing that should have occurred.

Our initial congressional response assured that necessary tests would be free to everyone and provided the funding Trump would not. But even with that effort, many will not have access until midsummer. Though it included hard-won successes over administration resistance, the most recent $2 trillion legislation unfortunately yielded much to Republican senators. It encompasses multiple inequities, inadequate taxpayer bailout and price-gouging protections, and included none of the help for patients that I sought. Ultimately, I reluctantly supported this flawed bill to urgently help small businesses stay afloat and sustain the newly unemployed. Careful congressional monitoring and additional legislation are needed.

Meanwhile, health care professionals lack equipment to protect themselves and us. Of 200 cities, 85 percent reported an inadequate ventilator supply; 91 percent reported an inadequate face-mask supply. Only a month ago, the Trump administration was encouraging export of such equipment. As shortages mounted, Trump tried shifting responsibility to governors to compete for limited supplies and has has been slow to fully utilize his authority to increase production.

Now, millions of Americans are predicted to contract COVID-19, with 100,000 to 200,000 U.S. deaths. Because so many will face substantial bills, insurance is important. With Texas having the most uninsured residents in the nation, I have been pushing to open Affordable Health Care enrollment. The newly unemployed already qualify to obtain such coverage, which often involves low or no-cost premiums. Contact EnrollSA at enrollsa.com or 210-977-7997.

Our local public health officials and health care professionals have done an outstanding job. For a safer future, we must follow these doctors advice, not politicians who doctor the truth.

Hard times lie ahead. We have no choice but to hunker down, enduring many more days homebound with businesses and schools closed. Our efforts to slow spread of disease can prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed. While closures cost our economy dearly, until we resolve this health crisis we cannot resolve our economic crisis. People of all ages should reject the bizarre claim of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick that advancing the economy requires sacrificing our grandparents.

Lets learn from the multiple failures and not be misled by ongoing misrepresentations.

We must all do our part. Encourage those working to protect us, assist those most vulnerable, support small businesses still operating. Remember: Stay 6 feet apart from one another, or more Texans will be 6 feet under.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett represents San Antonio.
Israel's military and other security services undergo largest rearmament in years

Spain PM calls for a debate to consider COVID-19 endemic disease

Flyone Armenia and Pegasus receive permission for Yerevan-Istanbul-Yerevan flights

Pope condemns "baseless" ideological misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines

Arab foreign ministers to visit Beijing

Azerbaijanis stoned an Armenian car on the Stepanakert-Goris road

Armenian FM has a phone call with his Polish counterpart

Macron travels to French Riviera to discuss internal security issues

Artsakh Foreign Ministry: Azerbaijan's aggressive behavior aims to disrupt Russian peacekeepers' activities

US COVID-19 cases reach 60 million

European Parliament President hospitalized due to immune system dysfunction

Washington and Ankara discuss normalization of relations between Armenia and Turkey

WHO excludes emergence of deltacron strain

In Karabakh Azerbaijanis shelled tractor

Indian Defense Minister tests positive for COVID-19

US-Russia talks on security guarantees lasting for seven hours already

NEWS.am daily digest: 10.01.22

Pashinyan appoints Hayk Mkrtchyan as Deputy Governor of Kotayk province

Blast in eastern Afghanistan kills nine children

Pashinyan: One of key priorities of Armenia presidency at CSTO is strengthening of crisis response mechanisms

Internet cut off in Kazakhstan

Armenia, Kazakhstan ombudspersons confer on Armenian communitys rights

Armenia, Russia defense ministers discuss Kazakhstan

Turkey defense minister meets with their envoy in process of normalization of Armenia relations

Iranian Foreign Ministry reports progress in Vienna negotiations

Dollar continues going up in Armenia

New attempt by migrants in Belarus to storm Poland border

Skat Airlines resumes Yerevan-Aktau and Aktau-Yerevan flights

New Covid-related restrictions to be introduced in Armenia

Karabakh police: Firefighters also targeted by Azerbaijan shooting (PHOTOS)

Artsakh Defense Army has not fired on Azerbaijan positions

Azerbaijani military are protesting amid military awards deprivation

Azerbaijanis open fire in Nagorno-Karabakh

Karabakh MFA: Events in Kazakhstan are result of actions planned by Turkey

Armenia army General Staff has new deputy chief

Australia to buy US $ 2.5 billion of armored vehicles

Artsakh emergency service: Search for soldiers remains continued during holidays

Kazakh Colonel Nazanov dies after heart attack

Australia begins to vaccinate children aged 5-11 with COVID-19 vaccine

Putin: Peacekeeping contingent to stay in Kazakhstan for a limited period

Armenia 2nd-President Kocharyan v. premier Pashinyan lawsuit court session is closed

Azerbaijan commandos conduct military exercises

Part of the Great Wall of China collapsed due to earthquake

Armenia MP: Turkey, Azerbaijans regional calculations have mixed up

Copper prices decline

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan v. PM Pashinyan lawsuit trial resumes

Gold is getting cheaper

EU is ready to support in addressing Karabakh crisis

126 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Fire in residential building in New York leaves 19 people killed

National Center for Infectious Diseases Yerevan branch employees protesting outside center

Karabakh President: Radical Pan-Turkic circles are actively involved in process in Kazakhstan

Oil is getting more expensive

Mars helicopter Ingenuity preparing for difficult 19th flight

Interior ministry: About 8,000 people detained in Kazakhstan

Earthquake hits Armenia-Azerbaijan border zone

Researchers create substitute for egg whites from fungus

Kazakhstan official information channel removes message about 164 casualties

EC says construction of new nuclear power plants in Europe will require  500 billion in investment

Ghost ship that sank 343 years ago discovered in US

Post-COVID-19 antibodies may attack healthy cells, scientists say

Pope says he was praying for Kazakhstan

Media: 164 people die in Kazakhstan during riots

Peskov: CSTO session does not plan to sign documents yet

Criminal cases launched after bomb threat in Armenian, Belarus embassies in Moscow

Norwegian military surrender panties before demobilization

Iranian MFA says Tehran is ready for talks on downed plane of UIA Ukraine

Russian defense minister says information war is on all fronts

Several strategic objects in Kazakhstan transferred to CSTO contingent under protection

David Minasyan elected head of Armenia's Parakar community

Bloomberg: US is considering issue of limiting supply of high-tech products to Russia

Armenia reports 142 COVID-19 new cases

Council of Elders meeting continues in Armenia's Parakar

White House speaks on Blinken statement on Russian peacekeeping troops

Armed people detained at border in Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan talks stabilization of situation in all regions of country

Azerbaijanis demand Armenian soldier change his faith by taking away his cross, Ombudsman says

Armenian painter Mher Mansurian dies in France

At least 17 killed in Egypt road accident

NATO chief announces Russia forces continued buildup in Ukraine

Armenian militarys transfer to Kazakhstan is completed

Azerbaijan opens fire on military positions near Armenia village

Unidentified persons report threat of explosion at Armenia, Belarus embassies in Moscow

Putin confers with Pashinyan, Lukashenko on situation in Kazakhstan

Zakharova: OSCE has not provided real assistance to reporters who were attacked in Kazakhstan

Lukashenko, Putin discuss situation in CSTO member countries

Russia's Putin has telephonic conversation with Kazakhstan's Tokayev

Quake hits waters off Chile

President Tokayev declares national mourning in Kazakhstan on January 10

US diplomats do not leave Kazakhstans Almaty yet

1 more person dies of coronavirus in Karabakh

Artsakh resident, 91 found dead near village

Russia MFA reacts to Blinken's words about Russian military in Kazakhstan

195 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Kazakhstan security committee ex-chief detained

Kazakhstan interior ministry: There are foreigners among those detained in Almaty region

Russia continues transporting its peacekeepers to Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan launches investigation into 180 retailers of liquefied petroleum gas

BMW introduces concept vehicle that can change colors

Shootings continue in Kazakhstans Almaty
The supply of pulses is likely to ease over the next one week, with the government taking steps to smoothen the process across the entire value chain.

Nafed, the Centres commodity procurement agency, has tied up with dal mills to supply whole grain (raw material) for processing, and to get processed dal for the governments planned distribution through public distribution system (PDS), according to people in the know. Both the Centre and state governments have decided to supply 1kg per beneficiary of processed dal to millions of consumers over the next three ...
Digital communication matters  maybe now more than ever. Thats why the Michigan Technological University tutors who teach folks how to clear technological obstacles are getting back to BASIC Saturdays.

BASIC, the Building Adult Skills in Computing program, is offering online sessions from 10-11 a.m. every Saturday from April 4-25. The program, now in its 10th year, welcomes technological newcomers as well as anyone looking to expand their digital skills.

The use of video chat and video conferencing surged recently due to the COVID-19 outbreak and Michigans Stay Safe, Stay Home executive order; for many, the only way to safely touch base with friends, family, and co-workers is online. BASIC tutors  both students and faculty  are uniquely equipped to ease people into these technologies. Among several video communication options, BASIC will introduce people to a platform called Zoom, which is used extensively at Michigan Tech.

How to Connect to a Michigan Tech BASIC Tutor



All it takes is a phone call. Heres the process for adults who want help with videoconferencing or other tasks ranging from those annoying storage full messages to setting up their new tablets:

1) At 10 a.m., call Zoom from your phone at 1-312-626-6799.

2) Youll be prompted to enter the meeting ID number, which is 8191378642. Then enter the # sign.

3) Youll be prompted for a participant ID. Just press the # sign.

4) Let the BASIC tutors take it from there.

Michigan Tech BASIC tutors have set up a general meeting on Zoom and will route community members to their individual tutors from there.

Charles Wallace, associate professor of computer science, co-leads the program with Kelly Steelman, associate professor of human factors and psychology. Wallace said hell serve as switchboard operator for the Saturday call-in, getting everyone assembled then directing tutors and students to their individual meetings.

Tutor and computer science graduate student Ann Ciesla said she was thrilled to hear the BASIC program would continue through spring semester. We have a lot of people come to our sessions who are afraid to do something on their computer, she said. Just a reminder: You will not blow up your computer. You may make some mistakes, but you can recover from them.

"This is a great learning opportunity for you, since it will teach you how to video chat with your friends and family, which is a good skill to have during these times." Ann Ciesla, Computer Science, 2020

Researchers have found that one-on-one sessions are most effective. Normally those take place at Portage Lake District Library in Houghton.

Before social distancing and stay-at-home: Tutors and learners meet at a December 2019 Saturday session at Portage Lake District Library, which has been hosting BASIC sessions for a decade.

The library is our friend, and a trusted source for a lot of people. Even though were not there, we feel like we are in spirit, Wallace said, adding that he initially worried that not meeting in person would be an obstacle. I had this barrier in my head  what if people cant get online to get in touch with us? But Kelly (Steelman) wisely said, Why not give it a shot? We can still do a lot using video conferencing  we can even share screens and see what is happening as we help people. And learning how to use Zoom is a useful skill in itself  you can use it to stay in touch with friends and family.

"COVID-19 has temporarily isolated us, but digital technology can step in to help keep us together. Our BASIC tutors can get people started and help them feel comfortable and connected online." Charles Wallace, BASIC

Ciesla said tutors benefit from the program, too. I really enjoy meeting with people who come in for help on Saturdays. We always have good conversation, not just about technology, but also about Houghton, Michigan Tech, the weather, or whatever else is going on at the time, she said. It is very rewarding, since people are so excited about their newfound knowledge. We have many people who come back regularly, and it's fun to see them progress in their understanding.

She hopes both regular and new learners will take advantage of this opportunity.

I was sad to think about the people I met with before spring break who were so excited to come back and learn more, and how we would have to put their learning on pause until next fall. Moving the program online offers people the chance to continue (or start) their learning, which is really exciting.

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, the University offers more than 125 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.
The pregnant woman swore that her husband was healthy and should be at the hospital for the birth of their child. But soon after she welcomed their baby into the world, she started to exhibit symptoms linked to the novel coronavirus.

With the woman ill and doctors scrambling to contain any potential spread inside the maternity wing of Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, New York, the husband recently acknowledged to the hospital staff that there was something he had not disclosed: He had been exposed to the coronavirus and was showing symptoms.

NY DEATHS DOUBLE: Expert says virus could kill up to 240,000

On Tuesday, the University of Rochester Medical Center announced the couple and the newborn baby "were asked to quarantine, pending test results, to protect the community" sometime within the past week.

The family, who has yet to be identified, has been discharged from the hospital, UR Medicine said.

"After the mother exhibited symptoms, and the OB team learned that the partner had been exposed to COVID-19 and was symptomatic, the patient was tested and all staff who had been in contact were informed of their possible exposure," UR Medicine said in a statement.

DEBUNKED: The worst myths and misinformation about coronavirus

Due to privacy laws, it remains unclear whether the couple or the baby had tested positive for covid-19, according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, which first reported the story. UR Medicine said no staff members who worked with the couple inside their private maternity room had tested positive.

UR Medicine did not immediately respond to a request for comment late Tuesday, but Chip Partner, a spokesman for the medical center, told the Democrat and Chronicle he would not speculate as to why the symptomatic man did not tell the hospital he had been exposed to the coronavirus.

The potential exposure inside a maternity ward in Rochester comes as some hospitals nationwide have started to adopt no-visitor policies for women giving birth, The Washington Post reported.

The practice of banning visitors from labor and delivery rooms to prevent the spread of covid-19 had been accelerated in some private hospitals in New York, the epicenter of the outbreak in the United States with more than 76,000 confirmed cases and 1,550 deaths as of early Wednesday.

But after two major New York City hospital systems banned partners and family during labor and delivery, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D, ordered on Saturday that all hospitals in the state allow women to have a partner present during birth.

Compared to some of its peers, Strong Memorial took a similar but somewhat lenient approach to visitors. Upon entry, visitors were asked two questions, according to the Democrat and Chronicle. The first was if they were in good health. The other was whether they been exposed to anyone with the coronavirus.

"It was purely an honor system before," Partner said to the newspaper.

In response to the incident, however, Partner said the hospital is now requiring a temperature check for visitors upon entry, as well as every 12 hours that the person is still there.

Under existing policy, staff members are allowed to work as long as they are checked for covid-19 symptoms throughout the course of the day. While the couple was at the hospital, officials said staff members were allowed to continue working while masked, monitored for symptoms, and had their temperatures checked twice daily.

While no staff members who worked with the couple tested positive for covid-19, Barbara Ficarra, a UR Medicine spokesperson, told NBC News that a nurse did experience respiratory illness after being around the family. However, she ended up testing negative for the coronavirus.

The medical center emphasized the adjusted visitor restrictions reflect the urgency of the pandemic.

"Our health care team understands how important it is to pregnant patients to have a support person with them during labor, and therefore, additional safeguards have been added to allow this to continue safely," UR Medicine said in a statement. "We will continue to weigh all the medical evidence available to continue to make the best possible decision for all our patients, visitors, and staff."
Madrid (Spain), April 02, 2020 (SPS) - The Communist Party of Spain has expressed its sincere condolences to all the Sahrawi people following the physical loss of Mhamad Jadad, prominent leader of Frente POLISARIO

Like many of his compatriots, his fight against the disease has not prevented him from continuing to work tirelessly in defending the cause of his people until his last breath. Only a few weeks ago we were able to listen to their statements, denouncing, together with Algeria, once again, Morocco's claim to extend its territorial waters also to the coast of the occupied SADR territory; or reminding Spain of its obligations and responsibilities with respect to Western Sahara, "said the PCE in its message of condolences.

"Mhamed Jaddad, a fighter from a young age for self-determination and against the Moroccan invasion, belonging to the group of brilliant first-time Saharawi diplomats, was a living testimony to the tragic history of ignominy against his people," he adds.

"In these difficult moments when the Sahrawi people face important decisions in the face of the passivity of international organizations, the leadership of the Communist Party of Spain and all our militancy we want to accompany the relatives of Mhamed Jaddad, his colleagues and the leadership of the Frente POLISARIO and all the Saharawi people, with our deepest regret for their loss. "

With its clear position confirmed, the PCE stresses that the best way to honor his memory is our unwavering commitment in support of his fight to reach a liberated and independent Western Sahara. His memory will remain among all of us as an example of the great fighter. SPS

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The U.S. has evacuated its citizen who tested positive for COVID-19 in Nigeria and was being treated at the Infectious Disease Centre in Lagos, an official has said.

Akin Abayomi, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, provided the information on his Twitter handle on Wednesday.

Mr Abayomi said eight patients out of the 82 confirmed cases in Lagos have been discharged from the isolation facility following their full recovery while an American has been evacuated.

One of the confirmed case who is an American citizen has been evacuated to USA, Mr Abayomi, a professor, who coordinates the Lagos governments COVID-19 response, said.

The U.S. government had earlier said it was preparing evacuation flights for its citizens in Nigeria due to COVID-19.

In a notice released last Friday by the U.S. Consulate tagged Health Alert, U.S. citizens were told to prepare to join the arranged flights that would evacuate them from Nigeria, PUNCH newspaper reported.

U.S. citizens in different states of Nigeria were enjoined to find their way to Abuja and Lagos for the evacuation process.

We will email US citizens immediately once we have flights details, routes, and costs, the notice read.

Mr Abayomi has now confirmed that the U.S. citizen in the Lagos government facility has been evacuated.

Lagos state commissioner of health, Prof Akin Abayomi

The U.S., like Nigeria and the rest of the world, is currently battling the COVID-19 pandemic. The situation is, however, worse in the U.S. where over 200,000 people have been infected and over 5,000 dead.

U.S. deaths from the virus are projected to rise to over 100,000 in the next few weeks as various American states battle with insufficient equipment to treat patients.

#COVID19 Lagos Update!

*Lagos records a new case of #COVID19, 31st March, 2020.

*Total #COVID19Lagos cases is now 82.

*8 patients have so far been discharged following their full recovery.

*One of the confirmed case who is an American citizen has been evacuated to USA pic.twitter.com/UbqOqvAu3v  Prof. Akin Abayomi (@ProfAkinAbayomi) April 1, 2020

In Nigeria, 174 people have tested positive for the virus including two deaths.

Lagos is still the state with the highest confirmed cases of coronavirus in the country with 91 cases out of the total 174 cases nationwide, followed by Abuja which has 35 cases.

Twelve states and Abuja have confirmed cases of coronavirus out of the 36 states in Nigeria. The health authorities have also said more cases will be recorded as contact tracing continues nationwide.
LANSING, MI -- Before hosting her morning press conference Thursday, April 2, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer received text messages from her own children asking about the future of the 2019-20 school year.

Whitmer knew the questions she was fielding from her 18- and 16-year-old daughters were going to echo across the state as news of her decision to close Michigans K-12 schools for the rest of the academic year spread.

I know there is a lot of anxiety about how were going to move forward and meet the needs of our kids," she said. "I feel it too. As a parent of two high schoolers, both of whom are going to miss out on prom this year and a senior who is asking the same questions about graduation, we feel it in our own household.

While the extended closure is expected to produce challenges for parents, students and educators, the governor said its in the communitys best interest as the state works to slow the spread of coronavirus COVID-19.

This is the best thing we can do for the health of our children, for the tens of thousands of educators in Michigan who work in our schools," she said. "This will ensure more kids and educators will return to school happy and healthy at the start of next school year. And will protect more families from the spread of COVID-19 and it will help us return to life sooner.

The Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and the Michigan Council of Charter School Authorizers are developing resources for teachers to offer online learning.

Whitmer said each school district must develop and alternate learning plan for students to continue their education through the end of the academic year. Each district will come up with a plan that meets its students needs.

This does not mean our kids will stop learning, she said.

The governor suggested creative ways of teacher instruction including by phone, mail and online, as well as project-based learning and paper packets.

If a districts plan relies on online instruction, Whitmer said the district should ensure that every student has access to an appropriate device with an ability to connect to the internet.

Students and families should not be punished if theyre unable to participate in their alternate learning plan, she said.

The governor highlighted a handful of creative efforts by educators across the state. Examples included daily video lessons and zoom calls, writing letters to students, and hosting virtual band class for students to collaborate with professional musicians.

Some teachers have even provided meals for families, or driven through neighborhoods waiving to their students to let them know theyre there for them.

Our teachers No. 1 priority from Detroit to Holland to the Upper Peninsula is ensuring a great education and a healthy learning environment for our kids," Whitmer said. "I know this will be tough and it will require creativity and hard work and problem solving, but in my time in public service Ive met educators across our state who I know are eager to rise to this challenge.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

More on MLive:

Whitmer orders all Michigan schools to remain closed through academic year as coronavirus cases surge

Michigan unemployment claims spike as coronavirus cases continue rapid growth

Michigan closes in on 10,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with largest single-day jump

Fitness coach turns to baking bread as coronavirus changes life in almost every way
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)  A clarification on the previous story we reported.

Wabash National in Lafayette closed the cafeteria at its North Plant but before being notified that an employee of its cafeteria contractor tested positive for COVID-19.

Spokesman Dana Stelsel said AVI notified Wabash National that medical professionals believe its employee's exposure occurred outside of Wabash National. Stelsel said that the cafeteria worker had not returned to Wabash National since the expected exposure date because the plant was on a scheduled shutdown.

The cafeteria was not re-opened when employees returned on March 29. Stelsel said, "any suggestion the cafeteria was closed because of the AVI case is completely false."

The company closed the cafeteria to mitigate the risk of community spread. Stelsel also referred us to Wabash National's website for questions about why the company remains open during the state-wide stay-at-home order.

The website says, in part, that the company qualifies as an "essential business" under several critical categories, including transportation and logistics, healthcare and public health, and food and agriculture.
An Egg Harbor Township man has become Atlantic Countys first COVID-19 related death, officials said Thursday.

The man, in his late 50s, had a history of underlying health conditions that put him at greater risk for complications from the coronavirus, county Public Health Officer Patricia Diamond said.

There were also 11 additional cases of the new coronavirus confirmed in the county, bringing the overall total to 52. The new cases include five men, ranging in age from 15 to 70, and six women, ranging in age from 25 to 76, according to a news release from county spokeswoman Linda Gilmore.

The number of positive cases of COVID-19 in the state has increased by 3,489, bringing the total to 25,590, officials said during Gov. Phil Murphys daily briefing. There have been 182 additional deaths, bringing the total to 537.

You should not assume that 182 people passed since yesterdays press conference, Murphy said. There is a lag here in terms of confirming cause of death in particular.  You need to think of this over a span of days, particularly given the stress right now we have on the system. That is more true than ever.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe might have proved irresistible to many actors, but its been revealed one Oscar-nominee turned down a chance to sign up.

Everyone from Anthony Hopkins to Sylvester Stallone and Annette Bening has shown up in the MCU, but this didnt stop Jessica Chastain from rejecting an offer to star opposite Benedict Cumberbatch in Doctor Strange.

The films writer C Robert Cargill appeared on Stitchers Junkfood Cinema podcast and divulged the intriguing detail that Chastain was offered the role of Christine Palmer before Rachel McAdams.

However, her reasoning for turning down the opportunity was due to the fact she would rather wait for the chance to play a superhero.

Shes like, Hey, look, this project sounds awesome, and I would love to do it. But Im only going to get one shot at being in a Marvel film and becoming a Marvel character; and I trained in ballet, and I really want to wear a cape, Cargill said.

He called it the coolest rejection ever, adding: She wanted to be in a Marvel movie, but she wanted to be the superhero, not the badass doctor Night Nurse.

Chastain went on to play a villainous shape-shifter in X-Men: Dark Phoenix. Following Disneys merger with Fox, could the door be open for Chastain to join the MCU?

Just last week, Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson  who recently stepped down from its sequel  said he fought hard to get McAdams for the role of Christine Palmer.

I knew that we would believe her reactions to such fantastical things, he said during ComicBook.com writer Brandon Davis #QuarantineWatchParty.

Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up

Avengers characters - ranked Show all 27 1 /27 Avengers characters - ranked Avengers characters - ranked 27. War Machine Played by: Don Cheadle Don Cheadle Imagine Iron Man but without a backstory or humour. That's War Machine. Terrence Howard saw that the character would be underwritten and dropped out after filming the first Iron Man. Still, it's hard to dislike Don Cheadle, even when he's shortchanged. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 26. Mantis Played by: Pom Klementieff Pom Klementieff The forgettable Mantis is purely there to make up the numbers. It doesn't help that she was introduced in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, one of the MCU's weakest films to date, as the servant to Kurt Russell's tedious villain, Ego. In a crowded ensemble, Mantis is drowned out by the larger personalities. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 25. Hawkeye Played by: Jeremy Renner Jeremy Renner "Oh no! It's a man with no superpowers and a bow and arrow! I, an alien with futuristic technology who has travelled through the galaxy to invade Earth, am terrified!"  Thanos's army of Outriders, probably. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 24. Doctor Strange Played by: Benedict Cumberbatch Benedict Cumberbatch Oh, Doctor Strange. Perhaps there's a good character there, but Benedict Cumberbatch wasn't the man to play him. He's probably the least likeable presence in the MCU, even if a few kick-ass moments in Avengers: Endgame almost pull him back from the brink. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 23. Gamora Played by: Zoe Saldana Zoe Saldana Although the father-daughter relationship between Gamora and Thanos is interesting, it's completely overshadowed by the dynamic between her half-sister Nebula and the Mad Titan. And now she's AWOL. Perhaps. No one really knows. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 22. Star-Lord Played by: Chris Pratt Chris Pratt Star-Lord  the half-man, half-Celestial  remains one of the funniest Marvel characters to date. Yet, the Avengers would have saved the universe the first time around if it weren't for his (quite understandable) temper tantrum over the death of Gamora in Infinity War. For that, the leader of Guardian of the Galaxy falls many places. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 21. Nebula Played by: Karen Gillan Karen Gillan Nebula has all the makings of being a vintage Marvel character, but the feeling that she's been slightly short-changed by her appearances to date cannot be escaped. Going forward, she'll undoubtedly have an elevated role in the MCU, so here's hoping she's handed the justice she deserves. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 20. The Winter Soldier Played by: Sebastian Stan Sebastian Stan Sebastian Stan's Bucky was a bit of a non-entity in the otherwise underrated Captain America: The First Avenger, which is why his do-over as the villainous Winter Soldier in the sequel three years later injected the character with some much-needed intrigue. His shift back to being a good guy, though, has dampened the interest around him once again. Still, that teased romance with Shuri (Letitia Wright) is sure to do him some favours. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 19. Vision Played by: Paul Bettany Paul Bettany Vision is the purple embodiment of Tony Stark's AI butler JARVIS, brought to life by the Mind Stone. One of the only other characters capable of wielding Thor's hammer (oi oi, Cap!), Vision is overpowered to the point of being boring. Still, he doesn't know his paprika from his cayenne. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 18. The Wasp Played by: Evangeline Lilly Evangeline Lilly Sidelined during the first Ant-Man, The Wasp finally became a headline name in Ant-Man and the Wasp. Not only is she smarter, quicker and a better fighter than Ant-Man, she can also fly thanks to a set of wings. Fingers crossed we'll be getting more Wasp post-Endgame. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 17. Falcon Played by: Anthony Mackie Anthony Mackie There's no two ways about it: if Falcon wasn't played by Anthony Mackie, he'd be far lower down this list. His character remains memorable solely due to the vibrancy the ever-entertaining actor brings to the role. Falcon might be a lesser Avenger, but no appearance since his debut in Captain America: The Winter Soldier has left fans wanting more. For that, Falcon should be celebrated. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 16. Captain Marvel Played by: Brie Larson Brie Larson There's no doubt that Captain Marvel could become one of the best characters in the MCU. Fresh off her billion dollar-grossing debut  the series's first female-led superhero film  the character returned to save the day (well, help the crew out) in Avengers: Endgame. Now her origin story is out of the way, the sky's the limit for her; it'll be exciting to see which planets her story scales next. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 15. Groot Played by: Vin Diesel Vin Diesel To be quite honest, it's hard to screw up a character who is literally a tree that's able to speak just one word (his name). There's no denying that Vin Diesel's Groot was one of the best things about the first Guardians of the Galaxy film, and his camaraderie with Rocket Raccoon a highlight. Sadly, being turned into a baby for the entirety of the sequel made his character slightly more annoying. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 14. Valkyrie Played by: Tessa Thompson Tessa Thompson Introduced in Thor: Ragnarok, Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie has the swagger of Han Solo and the powers of Wonder Woman. The result is probably the coolest and smoothest Avenger yet, and someone we very much look forward to seeing again in Thor: Love and Thunder. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 13. Hulk Played by: Mark Ruffalo Mark Ruffalo The Hulk was originally played by Edward Norton, but Mark Ruffalo took over for the Avengers films. The actor brought out a manic unpredictability to the character, who remains a skittish presence in every film. Since the first Avengers outing, though, Bruce Banner/Hulk has been less integral to the team. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 12. Black Widow Played by: Scarlett Johansson Scarlett Johansson Black Widow has had a rough ride. Introduced during Iron Man 2, Scarlett Johansson's agent was a fierce fighter with an intriguing back story. However, this has rarely been explored since, with the Avengers films focusing on the lads rather than the one female character in the team. Almost 20 Marvel films on and the character is finally getting a solo film  but it's a prequel film arriving after her death in Endgame that's been delayed because of coronavirus. Ouch. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 11. Shuri Played by: Letitia Wright Letitia Wright One of Black Panther's biggest revelations was Shuri, T'Challa's kid sister who might just be the cleverest character in the entire MCU. She's brought to life by British actor Letitia Wright, who capitalised on the several opportunities she had to steal the film from under her co-stars' noses. Great, another broken white boy for us to fix," she says as Martin Freeman's Everett Ross is carted into her workshop  and thus, a star was born. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 10. Scarlet Witch Played by: Elizabeth Olsen Elizabeth Olsen Scarlet Witch doesn't really do much save for wave her hands around while looking concerned about the well-being of her love, Vision (Paul Bettany)  but it doesn't matter considered she's played by the the extremely talented Elizabeth Olsen who, as ever, gives it an admirable stab. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 9. Captain America Played by: Chris Evans Chris Evans On paper, Captain America should be the most boring Avenger. Yet, with Chris Evans at the wheel, the patriotic super-strong OAP who fought in the Second World War has been enjoyable company in every film he's been in, his righteous values never being too overbearing. Captain America, with his pure heart, really is one of the ultimate superheroes. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 8. Iron Man Played by: Robert Downey Jr Robert Downey Jr The leader of the MCU used to be its greatest character. But with the influx of newer additions, Tony Stark has been pushed down that list  which isn't to say he isn't still a reason why the series has been such a success. No Marvel actor has thrown themselves into a role more than Robert Downey Jr, whose larger-than-life personality made him the only candidate to have brought the billionaire industrialist and former playboy to screen. Among the big-budget explosions, he's a breath of fresh air and without him, the MCU would have run out of steam long ago. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 7. Ant-Man Played by: Paul Rudd Paul Rudd A man who presses a button and takes on the powers of an ant: not exactly a thrilling premise for a superhero. Thankfully, Marvel accepted that Ant-Man's power are a bit of a joke and cast the ever-delightful comic actor Paul Rudd as the mini-hero. And despite his stature, Ant-Man stole the show in Captain America: Civil War when he reversed his powers and became Giant Man. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 6. Rocket Played by: Bradley Cooper Bradley Cooper In many ways, the success of Guardians of the Galaxy  Marvel's first true move away from the cleaner cut Avengers (see: Captan America, Thor)  rested on the shoulders of Rocket Raccoon. Many questioned whether it'd work, but thanks to impressive effects, Bradley Cooper's terrific voice work  and not to mention James Gunn's knockout screenplay  Rocket found himself with more range than most characters on this list. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 5. Black Panther Played by: Chadwick Boseman Chadwick Boseman Few characters have had the cultural impact of Boseman's Black Panther. First appearing in Captain America: Civil War, T'Challa's measured demeanour was a counter to the quip-making norm of the other Avengers. Come the character's solo film, the noble leader finally accepted his role as King of Wakanda and, in the process, unleashed the inner Panther. It's no wonder that the film became a box-office sensation, even out-grossing Avengers: Infinity War (2018) in the United States. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 4. Drax Played by: Dave Bautista Dave Bautista Drax is proof that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. His burly appearance suggests he should be fighting for the bad guys, but the opposite couldn't be truer  thanks to Dave Bautista, the character is given a cuddly sheen that belies his full name (Drax the Destroyer). The only thing Drax, who first appeared in Guardians of the Galaxy, truly destroys is your rib cage  he's one of the MCU's funniest characters. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 3. Spider-Man Played by: Tom Holland Tom Holland Spider-Man's back. Again again. Where Tobey Maguire's webslinger was an out-and-out dork, and Andrew Garfield's version was arguably too slick to really be Peter Parker, Tom Holland has found the perfect middle ground: still obsessed with making Star Wars references yet also capable of talking coherently with members of the opposite sex. It's a miracle that Marvel Studios managed to bring Spider-Man into their cinematic universe  and a miracle they managed to make him feel this fresh third time around. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 2. Okoye Played by: Danai Gurira Danai Gurira Black Panther was a landmark moment for cinema, let alone Marvel. It was a film filled with selling points  the lustrous visuals of Wakanda; a villain you actually cared about  but sitting at the top of the heap was Okoye. The Walking Dead star Danai Gurira swapped the katana for a vibranium spear and showed audiences that not only was she more than just television character Michonne, she could translate a comic book character into one of the very best characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Avengers characters - ranked 1. Thor Played by: Chris Hemsworth Chris Hemsworth Thor was not a great film. Thor: The Dark World was even worse. Yet, against all odds, the God of Thunder has established himself as the greatest Avenger. How? It's namely thanks to Taika Waititi's revisioning of the character in Thor: Ragnarok. Rather than making Hemsworth deliver sub-par Shakespearean prose, the filmmaker enthused Thor with a sense of humour  something that played to Hemsworth's strength as an actor. The result was a charismatic, short-haired, smouldering superhero who was finally able to charm Marvel fans. If only Thor had been this way all along. Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

The next film selected is Spider-Man: Homecoming, which will take place at 9pm ET Thursday (2am Friday in the UK). Follow along here.
Twelve people and one business owner have been slapped with fines for breaching tough new coronavirus restrictions.

NSW Police handed out 13 fines for flouting social distancing laws in a 24-hour period, including a man who told officers he was on his way to see his drug dealer.

People can't leave their home unless it is for an essential reasons including seeing a doctor, travelling to work and school or buying groceries and medical supplies.

Anyone who breaches the social distancing guidelines in NSW faces a maximum fine of $11,000, six months in jail or a $1,000 on-the-spot fine or $5,000 for businesses.

Twelve people in the state were fined on April 1 - including a 51-year-old man in Albury, on the NSW and Victorian border, who bizarrely told police he was on his way to visit his drug dealer.

Twelve Australians and one business owner have been slapped with fines for leaving their home without a valid reason amid the coronavirus pandemic. Pictured: People being cautioned in Cronulla, NSW

A remedial massage business owner was the only commercial operator to be fined on Wednesday.

A 19-year-old and a 24-year-old man were seen standing on the Princes Highway in Artarmon, on Sydney's North Shore.

One man tried to run from the police, but he was caught.

They gave different versions of why they were outside, but police didn't find either of their reasons acceptable and they were fined.

At 1.30am a woman, aged 34, was pulled over in Moree, northern NSW, for a breath test.

She couldn't justify why she was out of her home to police and she was fined.

At the same time police pulled over a car in Coonamble, 418km north-west of Sydney, with five people inside.

They were given a warning about non-essential gatherings - however police saw one of the women walking down a street at 8.45am.

The 21-year-old didn't have a legitimate reason for being out and was handed a $1,000 fine.

People can't leave their home unless it is for an essential reason such as work, school or buying groceries. Pictured: A police officer at Brisbane airport

A 23-year-old man in Dubbo was fined after being caught leaving his home without a valid excuse for the second time.

A 28-year-old man was fined in Gundagai after police went to his home to ensure he was self-quarantining after arriving from New Zealand on March 20.

He was not at his home when police arrived and he was later found driving down the road.

Two men were found drinking in a park in Batehaven, on the NSW South Coast, at 4pm.

One of the men, aged 41, was charged with an unrelated offence and breaching the public health act.

Anyone who breaches the social distancing guidelines in NSW faces a maximum fine of $11,000, six months in jail or a $1,000 on-the-spot fine or $5,000 for businesses. Pictured: Police cautioning people in Rushcutters Bay

The other man, 44, was also fined.

A 51-year-old man in Albury, on the NSW and Victorian border, was spoken to by police after he crashed his car.

He was arrested and taken to hospital where he claimed he was going to visit his drug dealer at the time.

He was charged with driving without a licence and fined for being out without an essential reason.

A man, 27, and woman, 32, were seen sitting in a car in the Upper Hunter Region of New South Wales on April 1.

They were both fined.

Meanwhile a 21-year-old man who ignored two warnings not to eat a kebab on a bench in Newcastle.

Twelve Australians were fined on April 1 - including a 51-year-old man in Albury, on the NSW and Victorian border, who claimed he was going to visit his drug dealer. Pictured: People being cautioned on the Gold Coast

He was hit with a $1,000 fine.

A 57-year-old business owner in Cardiff was given a $5,000 fine after police saw customers enter and leave the business.

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said he will personally review every fine issued during a press conference on Thursday.

'If I think it's unreasonable, it will be withdrawn immediately and we'll make personal contact with the individual,' he said.
Filmmaker Moses Inwang has taken to social media to share some of the important lessons he has learned since the coronavirus pandemic started.

Moses listed out 23 ways the virus has affected us all.

Read Also: Filmmaker, Moses Inwang Shares Experience At Lagos Computer Village (Video)

In his words;



Verified

Few important lessons learnt in the past few days: 1. United States is no longer the worlds leading country.

2. China won the 3rd World War without firing a missile and no one could handle it.

3. Europeans are not as educated as they appear.

4. We can survive vacations without trips to Europe and USA.

5. Rich people are in fact less immune to diseases than the poor.

6. Human beings are opportunistic and despicable no matter their socioeconomic position when prices are rising.

7. No Pastor, Rabai, Mullah, Alfa or Pandit saved patients. Doctors and healthcare workers did.

8. Human beings are the real viruses on the planet.

9. We sure can spend Billions of Dollars on the poor without red- tapism.

10. Health professionals are worth more than sports persons and entertainers.

11. Oil is worthless in a society without consumption.

12. How animals feel in the zoo.

13. The planet regenerates quickly without humans at play.

14. Majority of people can work from home.

15. We and the kids can survive without junk food.

16. Prisoners in jail for petty crimes can be released.

17. Living a hygienic life is not difficult.

18. Only women should not know how to cook.

19. There are a lot of good people in the World.

20. If you build more schools and make them free, you will have to construct less hospitals and probably prisons.

21.Media is just manipulative and opportunistic.

22. Fame, wealth and position are vanity.

23. Health is indeed wealth.
White House senior adviser Jared Kushner has put together a group of private-sector friends, including his former roommate, to aid the administration's response to the coronavirus.

But his move has caused tension and confusion among officials who are unclear about the exact role Kushner's 'shadow' response team plays and how it fits in with the official task force led by Vice President Mike Pence.

Kushner, the son-in-law to President Donald Trump, has not been a public face to the response. But while he's not at the podium during any of the daily White House briefings, behind-the scenes he's become a power player in combatting the virus.

His team includes a slew of McKinsey consultants plus his former roommate and current U.S. foreign investment czar Adam Boehler, and Brad Smith, the head of Medicare's innovation center.

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner has put together a group of private-sector friends to respond to the coronavirus

Kushner's group includes his former roommate, U.S. foreign investment czar Adam Boehler

Jared Kushner had his own brush with the coronavirus when his wife Ivanka Trump had to be tested after she met with an Australian official who later tested positive for the disease

Despite the confusion, officials have described a line of distinction in operations. Kushner's group leads the 'all-of-private' sector response while Pence leads the 'all-of-government' effort is how sources described it to Politico.

President Trump originally asked for Kushner's participation, a senior administration official told DailyMail.com earlier this month.

'The president asked Jared to get involved in and he has been doing so,' the person said.

At that point, the Trump administration was struggling to play catchup in its response to the pandemic, including making sure there were enough tests available to detect the disease.

The official described to DailyMail.com an all-hands on deck effort by Kushner's office that consisted of round-the-clock work by his team, including Hope Hicks, the former communications director who returned to the administration.

Kushner has been spotted leaving his Washington D.C. home early - around 7:30 a.m. most mornings - to head to his office in the West Wing, which is just down the hall from the Oval Office.

His presence has been seen and felt. He's in White House meetings with private sector officials on responding to the virus, he joined President Trump's call with governors at FEMA and was with the president on Capitol Hill when Trump went there to rally Republicans around an aid package.

Kushner had his own brush with the coronavirus when his wife Ivanka Trump had to be tested after she met with an Australian official who later tested positive for the disease. Ivanka Trump's test result was negative.

But Kushner's involvement in the response effort has also led to criticism.

The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington - a government watchdog group - charged Kushner's 'shadow coronavirus task force' with violating the Presidential Records Act by using private email instead of their government accounts, which makes an automatic record of the correspondence.

That 'leaves the public in the dark about the work the shadow task force has done and the influence of private industries on the administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic,' the group charged.

His group also has also duplicated existing efforts and teams, Politico reported after talking to multiple officials involved in the response effort, and its focus on rapid, short-term decisions has created concern among some health-agency officials.

One official told The Washington Post earlier this month they're getting emails from private industry employees on Kushner's team but have no idea what role these people play.

'We don't know who these people are,' a senior official said. 'Who is this? We're all getting these emails.'

There is concern about a lack of coordination - causing confusion about who is doing what - and there has been limited vetting of the private sector officials involved, raising questions about possible conflicts of interest.

Jared Kushner has been spotted leaving his Washington D.C. home early - around 7:30 a.m. most mornings - to head to his office in the West Wing

Jared Kushner attends a teleconference with governors at the Federal Emergency Management Agency on March 19

An official told Politico that the proper ethical precautions are being taken.

'There have been two rules: People signed voluntary service agreements that were vetted by career legal professionals  and that there is no one doing procurement, outside of government officials,' the senior administration official said.

There's also the usual bickering about who's territory is whose since Kushner's group has gotten involved in all areas of the government's response, including at Health and Human Services and at FEMA.

And he's had his missteps. Kushner helped write the Oval Office address the president gave earlier this month - a speech that was widely panned and saw the stock market tank the next morning.

The criticism has been muted, however, Kushner is seen by many officials as 'untouchable' within the administration given his closeness to the president, to whom he speaks many times a day.

Both Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump have frustrated chiefs of staff who have tried to impose order on the unruly White House when they go outside the command structure by simply walking into the Oval Office to speak to the president.

A senior administration official told DailyMail.com that Kushner's and Pence's teams are working together and described Kushner's group as working to support government agencies in their work.

White House adviser Jared Kushner listens as President Donald Trump talks to reporters on Capitol Hill on March 10

Jared Kushner attends a meeting with President Donald Trump and several CEOs of major banks to discuss the coronavirus response in the Cabinet Room at the White House on March 11

Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump, seen with President Trump and first lady Melania Trump at a December Hanukkah reception, are seen as untouchable within the White House

Kushner also has his defenders, who say the presidential son-in-law has plugged gaps in helping move supplies and helped arranged flights to bring medical supplies in from overseas instead of the usual method of using ships.

And Kushner himself defended his work to The Washington Post earlier this month.

'We're getting things done in record speeds and are doing everything possible to avoid damage and mitigate the negative impacts,' he told the newspaper. 'In America, some of our best resources are in our private sector. The federal government is not designed to solve all our problems; a lot of the muscle is in the private sector and there's also a lot of smart people.'
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Israel Health Minister Ya'akov Litzman and his wife tested positive for the novel Coronavirus on late Wednesday. In a statement, the 71-year-old Minister informed that he was feeling unwell and that they will remain under isolation. The Jerusalem Post confirmed that Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu has been informed about the development.

Reportedly, Israel's Health Minister will continue to serve his post from home, in accordance with the medical needs. Benjamin Netanyahu self-isolated himself after an aide tested positive for the novel coronavirus on March 30. Israeli Prime Ministers office said that Netanyahu had undergone the test for COVID-19. However, according to media reports, the doctors have advised Netanyahu to maintain social distancing and remain in quarantine for 14-days, to keep a check on the symptoms.

READ| Israeli PM Netanyahu enters quarantine after aide tests positive for coronavirus

Along with the Israeli Prime Minister, his family and close advisors were also tested for COVID-19, but all of them were declared negative, Netanyahu's spokesperson told the media on Monday. According to media reports, the aide was present at a parliament session attended by Netanyahu and opposition lawmakers last week. On Wednesday, Israel confirmed 6,092 cases of Coronavirus and 26 deaths, the country's health ministry announced.

Spying On The Virus

The head of Israel's shadowy Shin Bet internal security service said on Tuesday that his agency received Cabinet approval overnight to start deploying its counter-terrorism tech measures to help curb the spread of the new coronavirus in Israel. Netanyahu acknowledged the technology had never been used before on civilians and would involve a certain degree of violation of privacy. But he said the unprecedented health threat posed by the virus justified its use.

These means will help us greatly in locating the ill and thus stopping the spread of the virus, he said in a televised announcement late Monday. We will approve these digital tools for a limited period of 30 days. Israel is a democracy and we have to balance individual rights with the greater needs of all. Among various other measures, Israeli health officials have put out public advisories ordering tens of thousands of people into protective home quarantine.

READ| Pakistan PM Imran Khan tests positive for Coronavirus?

READ| Israel thanks Air India for rescuing its stranded nationals
Greece on Thursday sealed off a migrant camp near Athens after 21 of its residents tested positive for the coronavirus.

The outbreak was first detected after a pregnant woman, believed to be of African origin, being held at the Ritsona camp gave birth in a hospital in Athens.

Sixty three people were subsequently tested for the virus at the camp, of which 20 tests came back positive though the infected were not showing symptoms.

The Ritsona migrant camp, north of Athens, has been placed under 'sanitary isolation' for two weeks after 21 cases of coronavirus were confirmed there (file image)

The outbreak was first detected after a migrant woman who gave birth at an Athens hospital tested positive. 63 people at the camp were subsequently tested, of whom another 20 were positive (file image, migrants at the camp)

No staff were found to be carrying the virus.

'From today the facility is placed under sanitary isolation for two weeks,' the migration ministry said in a statement.

Hours before the new cases were announced, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had praised health safeguards at Greek camps.

'I think we're pretty good at contact tracing, and you can actually do contact tracing at the very beginning of an outbreak,' Mitsotakis told CNN.

'I think we have a very good track record of dealing with this problem in a very humane manner,' the PM said, referring to dire camp overcrowding.

'We will continue to keep a very, very close eye on what is happening in our camps... We're ramping up medical facilities,' he said.

The new mother's case was the first among asylum-seekers living in a Greek camp.

The state has run several vaccination campaigns in past years, but no screening had been done for the present virus.

Greece has so far confirmed 1,415 cases of coronavirus - a low level compared to some of its European neighbours but ordered the entire country into lockdown last month

Officials carry out disinfection works at National Library of Greece and its surroundings in Athens on April 1

All access to Ritsona camp has been restricted and food will be delivered to the residents, the migration ministry said.

Additional medical staff will be sent to the area and all residents will be screened, it added.

As of 1600 GMT on Wednesday, Greece's population of 11 million had recorded 50 deaths and 1,415 cases of novel coronavirus.

In camps on the Greek mainland and islands, where tens of thousands of asylum seekers live in overcrowded and unhygienic conditions, regulations have been announced to keep residents as far from the local population as possible.

The migration ministry on Thursday said that another asylum-seeker living in a flat in the northern city of Kilkis had tested positive after giving birth at a local clinic.
Bangladesh is planning to release 3,000 prisoners, who are facing trials in different cases, amid fears of coronavirus outbreak in crowded jails, according to a media report.

The jail authority has sent a proposal regarding the matter to the Home Ministry along with a list of the inmates, bdnews24.com reported.

The proposal was sent as per the home ministry's order in light of the coronavirus outbreak. We are considering whether those who await trials for bailable offences can be released on bail, Additional Inspector General (IG) of Prisons Abrar Hossain told bdnews24.com on Wednesday.

There are about 3,000 people who are in jail for minor offences and we have sent their names to the ministry, he said. If approved by the Home Ministry, the proposal will then be forwarded to the law ministry. Finally, it will be placed before the courts if the law ministry does not have any objection, the report said.

On Thursday, Bangladesh confirmed two more cases of the novel coronavirus, raising the tally of infections to 56. The death toll from the virus remains unchanged at six, Habibur Rahman, a director of the health directorate, said.

A total of 141 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, out which two returned positive results, according to the health directorate. Both the patients are men, one of whom is aged between 30 and 40 while the other is between 70 and 80.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Research from MIT prof. suggests coronavirus could travel 27 feet; Fauci calls it misleading

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Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force led by Vice President Mike Pence, called recent research by an MIT professor suggesting the new coronavirus could travel up to 27 feet misleading.

Im sorry, but I was disturbed by that report because thats misleading, Fauci said Tuesday, according to the New York Post.

In the research paper, titled "Turbulent Gas Clouds and Respiratory Pathogen Emissions," which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on March 26, MIT associate professor Lydia Bourouiba suggested that social distancing recommendations of six feet might not be enough to prevent people from spreading the deadly new coronavirus because they were developed using an outdated understanding of diseases transmission.

In 1897, Carl Flugge showed that pathogens were present in expiratory droplets large enough to settle around an infected individual. Droplet transmission by contact with the ejected and infected fluid phase of droplets was thought to be the primary route for respiratory transmission of diseases. This view prevailed until William F. Wells focused on tuberculosis transmission in the 1930s and dichotomized respiratory droplet emissions into large and small droplets, Bourouiba wrote.

Infection control strategies were developed based on whether a respiratory infectious disease is primarily transmitted via the large or the small droplet route, she continued.

The dichotomy of large vs small droplets remains at the core of the classification systems of routes of respiratory disease transmission adopted by the World Health Organization and other agencies, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These classification systems employ various arbitrary droplet diameter cutoffs, from 5 to 10 m, to categorize host-to-host transmission as droplets or aerosol routes. Such dichotomies continue to underlie current risk management, major recommendations, and allocation of resources for response management associated with infection control, including for COVID-19, she said.

As the world struggles to contain the new coronavirus, Bourouiba suggested that this could be because of new research that suggests that exhalations, sneezes and coughs consist of not just droplets but are primarily made of a multiphase turbulent gas (a puff) cloud that entrains ambient air and traps and carries within it clusters of droplets with a continuum of droplet sizes.

She explained that in a turbulent gas cloud, droplets can live for much longer than when they are isolated.

Under these conditions, the lifetime of a droplet could be considerably extended by a factor of up to 1000, from a fraction of a second to minutes. Owing to the forward momentum of the cloud, pathogen bearing droplets are propelled much farther than if they were emitted in isolation without a turbulent puff cloud trapping and carrying them forward, she said.

How far these turbulent gas cloud droplets travel, Bourouiba explained, is impacted by a persons physiology as well as environmental conditions such as humidity.

Given various combinations of an individual patients physiology and environmental conditions, such as humidity and temperature, the gas cloud and its payload of pathogen bearing droplets of all sizes can travel 23 to 27 feet, she said.

Fauci said at a White House press briefing, however, that it would take a very, very robust, vigorous, achoo sneeze for droplets to even come close to traveling such a distance.

Bourouiba noted in her paper: A 2020 report from China demonstrated that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus particles could be found in the ventilation systems in hospital rooms of patients with COVID-19. Finding virus particles in these systems is more consistent with the turbulent gas cloud hypothesis of disease transmission than the dichotomous model because it explains how viable virus particles can travel long distances from patients. Whether these data have clinical implications with respect to COVID-19 is unknown.

As a result of this unknown, she suggested that it could generate an underappreciated potential exposure range for a health care worker and recommended that they wear appropriate personal protection equipment, which would also need to be improved beyond the current standard of PPEs like N95 masks.

The protective efficacy of N95 masks depends on their ability to filter incoming air from aerosolized droplet nuclei. However, these masks are only designed for a certain range of environmental and local conditions and a limited duration of usage. Mask efficacy as source control depends on the ability of the mask to trap or alter the high-momentum gas cloud emission with its pathogenic payload, she said. Currently used surgical and N95 masks are not tested for these potential characteristics of respiratory emissions.

She added: There is a need to understand the biophysics of host-to-host respiratory disease transmission accounting for in-host physiology, pathogenesis, and epidemiological spread of disease. The rapid spread of COVID-19 highlights the need to better understand the dynamics of respiratory disease transmission by better characterizing transmission routes, the role of patient physiology in shaping them, and best approaches for source control to potentially improve protection of front-line workers and prevent disease from spreading to the most vulnerable members of the population.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / First Mining Gold Corp. ("First Mining" or the "Company") (FF.TO);(FFMGF);(FMG.F) is pleased to announce the appointment of two new Directors - Mr. Richard Lock and Ms. Aoife McGrath to its Board of Directors (the "Board") effective immediately. In addition, the Company announces the retirement of Dr. David Shaw and Mr. Michel Bouchard from its Board. Dr. Shaw has served as Director of the Company since its inception in March 2015, and Mr. Bouchard joined as a Director in April 2016 post First Mining's acquisition of Clifton Star Resources Inc.

Keith Neumeyer, Chairman of First Mining, stated "On behalf of First Mining's Board of Directors, we are delighted to welcome Richard and Aoife to the Company. Richard brings corporate experience and technical expertise gained from developing some of the largest mining projects in the world. Aoife brings significant public mining company experience on both the technical and corporate development fronts from her many years working on a vast number of global gold assets. Both bring complementary skill sets to our Board as we advance our portfolio of development-stage gold assets in Canada. I would also like to thank David and Michel for their extensive contributions to the Board and the Company over the last several years. We wish them both great success in all their future endeavors."

First Mining is also pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Spiros Cacos as Vice President, Investor Relations and the transition of Mal Karwowska to Vice President, Corporate Development. Dan Wilton, CEO of First Mining, stated "We are excited to welcome Spiros to the First Mining team and to have Mal focus on First Mining's corporate development activities. Spiros brings 20 years of experience and relationships in investor relations to the role, which will help us broaden our investor base and marketing reach. We continue to focus on value-enhancing opportunities for our broader portfolio of gold assets, including finding partners to fund and advance some of our assets as evidenced by our recent earn-in transaction with Auteco Minerals on our Pickle Crow Gold Project. This transition of responsibilities better aligns our resources with our corporate objectives."

Story continues

Board Additions

Richard Lock is a veteran mining executive with more than 30 years of experience in project management, development and operations for major mining companies including Rio Tinto, Western Potash, DeBeers and Anglo American. Richard is currently serving as the Senior Vice President and Project Director for the NorthMet mining project in Minnesota being developed by PolyMet Mining Corp. His most recent prior roles include Construction Director for KAZ Minerals' Peschanka open-pit copper mine in Russia and executive and project director roles at Arizona Mining's Hermosa Zinc Project in the U.S. (acquired by South32 Limited in 2018 for $2.1 billion). He has been involved with numerous projects including Yara International's Dallol potash project in Ethiopia, Western Potash's Milestone potash project in Canada, and several of Rio Tinto's projects including the Resolution and Keystone copper assets in the U.S. and the Diavik diamond mine in Canada's Northwest Territories. Mr. Lock holds a Bachelor of Science in Mining Engineering from Cardiff University in the U.K.

Aoife McGrath is a geologist with more than 20 years of experience in the international mining sector, predominantly in gold exploration. Throughout her career she has worked and led teams in Africa, North America, South America and Europe, with her experience spanning the full spectrum of company size and stages of exploration. She has been involved in a number of exploration discoveries including at the Geita gold mine in Tanzania, at the Chirano Project in Ghana and at the Mulatos Project in Mexico. She most recently served as the Head of Exploration and Geology for Beadell Resources Ltd, an ASX-listed gold producer acquired by Great Panther Mining Limited in 2019. Immediately before that, Aoife spent more than five years with Alamos Gold, serving as Vice President, Exploration and prior to that as Director of Exploration and Corporate Development. During her tenure she was a member of the corporate team that assessed global business opportunities, reviewing approximately 50 opportunities annually, both project and corporate. Additional previous roles include Executive Director of Exploration at Carbine Resources Ltd and Exploration Manager at the Chirano Mine for Red Back Mining Inc. She also served on the Board of Directors of the Peru-based, private exploration company Pucara Resource Corp. Ms. McGrath holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology from University College Dublin, a Master of Science in Mineral Exploration from the University of Leicester, and a Master of Science in Engineering Geology from Imperial College London.

Investor Relations Addition

Spiros Cacos has 20 years of investor relations experience working with public mining companies, ranging from early-stage exploration and development to production. Over the last two years, Mr. Cacos served as Vice President, Investor Relations for Group Eleven Resources Corp., a mineral exploration company listed on the TSXV and OTC, focused on advanced stage zinc exploration in Ireland. His prior roles include serving as Director of Investor Relations for Great Panther Mining Limited (formerly Great Panther Silver Limited), a primary silver mining company listed on the TSX and the NYSE with two mining operations in Mexico, and serving as Corporate Development and Communications Director for International Enexco Limited, a North American exploration and development company. Mr. Cacos has an M.A. in International Relations and Diplomacy from the Schiller International University in Paris, France and a B.A. from Simon Fraser University in Canada.

About First Mining Gold Corp.

First Mining Gold Corp. is a Canadian-focused gold exploration and development company advancing a large resource base of 7.4 million ounces of gold in the Measured and Indicated categories and 3.8 million ounces of gold in the Inferred category. First Mining's primary focus is the development and permitting of its Springpole Gold Project and the advanced exploration of its Goldlund Gold Project, both located in northwestern Ontario. Springpole is one of the largest undeveloped gold assets in Canada, with permitting and a Pre-Feasibility Study underway. Goldlund is an advanced exploration stage asset where drilling in 2020 is planned to define both the extension of the existing resource area and to better define the regional scale potential. First Mining's eastern Canadian property portfolio also includes Cameron, Pickle Crow, Hope Brook, Duparquet, Duquesne, and Pitt.

First Mining was created in 2015 by Mr. Keith Neumeyer, founding President and CEO of First Majestic Silver Corp.

ON BEHALF OF FIRST MINING GOLD CORP.

Daniel W. Wilton

Chief Executive Officer and Director

For further information, please contact:

Spiros Cacos | Vice President, Investor Relations

Toll-Free: 1.844.306.8827 | Email: info@firstmininggold.com

www.firstmininggold.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and the United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "intends", "estimates", "envisages", "potential", "possible", "strategy", "goals", "objectives", or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions.

Forward-looking statements in this news release relate to future events or future performance and reflect current estimates, predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future events and include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: (i) the Company's focus on advancing its assets towards production; and (ii) realizing the value of the Company's gold projects for the Company's shareholders. All forward-looking statements are based on First Mining's or its consultants' current beliefs as well as various assumptions made by them and information currently available to them. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the respective parties, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and the parties have made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: failure to obtain regulatory approval; demand for the Units and FT Units; fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold, silver, base metals or certain other commodities; fluctuations in the currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar); changes in national and local government, legislation, taxation, controls, regulations and political or economic developments; risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining (including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins and flooding); the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions on mining; employee relations; relationships with and claims by local communities, indigenous populations and other stakeholders; availability and increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development; title to properties.; and the additional risks described in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2019 filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com, and in the Company's Annual Report on Form 40-F filed with the SEC on EDGAR.

First Mining cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. When relying on our forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to First Mining, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. First Mining does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by the Company or on our behalf, except as required by law.

Cautionary Note to United States Investors

This news release has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the securities laws in effect in Canada, which differ from the requirements of U.S. securities laws. Unless otherwise indicated, all resource and reserve estimates included in this news release have been prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum 2014 Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves. NI 43-101 is a rule developed by the Canadian Securities Administrators which establishes standards for all public disclosure an issuer makes of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects. Canadian standards, including NI 43-101, differ significantly from the requirements of the SEC, and mineral resource and reserve information contained herein may not be comparable to similar information disclosed by U.S. companies. In particular, and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the term "resource" does not equate to the term "reserves". Under U.S. standards, mineralization may not be classified as a "reserve" unless the determination has been made that the mineralization could be economically and legally produced or extracted at the time the reserve determination is made. The SEC's disclosure standards normally do not permit the inclusion of information concerning "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" or "inferred mineral resources" or other descriptions of the amount of mineralization in mineral deposits that do not constitute "reserves" by U.S. standards in documents filed with the SEC. Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted into reserves. U.S. investors should also understand that "inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an "inferred mineral resource" will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian rules, estimated "inferred mineral resources" may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies except in rare cases. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an "inferred mineral resource" exists or is economically or legally mineable. Disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in-place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures. The requirements of NI 43-101 for identification of "reserves" are also not the same as those of the SEC, and reserves reported by the Company in compliance with NI 43-101 may not qualify as "reserves" under SEC standards. Accordingly, information concerning mineral deposits set forth herein may not be comparable with information made public by companies that report in accordance with U.S. standards.

SOURCE: First Mining Gold Corp.





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At 11am, the numbers in receipt of unemployment benefit in March will be published. They are likely to show a historic increase in the hundreds of thousands.

The on-going and utterly unprecedented surge in job losses is best illustrated by comparison with the property crash more than a decade ago. The worst single monthly increase in the Live Register took place in January 2009. Then, the economy was in freefall and dole queues swelled by 36,000 people in just one month. Today's increase will put that in the ha'penny place. I'll be tweeting details of the figures at @danobrien20 from 11am.

As with the case of deaths arising from the new virus, the loss of livelihoods will increase before it begins to abate. The extent to which people lose their jobs and businesses will depend to a large extent on the time it takes to contain the spread of the virus. This timeframe is highly uncertain.

Human ingenuity and innovation will be central to addressing the emergency. We are all - alone, with our families, with our colleagues and at national and international level - finding new ways of living, working and co-operating.

Scientists and doctors are working on a vaccine, on new drugs to fight the effects of the virus and on better treatments to improve survivability.

They offer the world its greatest hope of getting through this emergency as rapidly as possible.

But it is not just scientists and medics who are innovating and adapting. This newspaper is put together with all its journalists, editors and contributors working from home. The think-tank I work for is holding meetings online and collaborating on research projects without any face-to-face meetings.

Businesses and organisations of all kinds are finding new ways of doing things. We are all learning fast. I remain convinced that if the virus can be contained, we can get back to work within four to six weeks and that a rapid economic recovery can take place in Ireland, Europe and the rest of the world.

If, however, it goes on much longer than that, the outcome could be very different, and the scale of business failures could be cataclysmic. Although governments everywhere are correctly introducing massively costly measures to address the health emergency and cushion the economic blow, the laws of economic gravity cannot simply be suspended.

Businesses will go to the wall if they have no revenue. The restaurant sector is a good example. The issue of rent has arisen in recent days. If restaurants pay their rent while closed they will either burn through whatever cash reserves they have or they will rack up ever bigger loses. If they don't pay their rent the businesses which own the properties will see their revenues dry up and they will move towards bankruptcy.

If there has been anything approaching good economic news over the past week it has been an OECD study which estimates that of the 40-odd economies that organisation analyses, Ireland could experience the smallest economic contraction as a result of the virus emergency.

Although the short study looked at the global picture, and the individual country forecasts were not fleshed out, Ireland's position is most likely explained by the importance of two of its most successful sectors - pharmaceuticals and computer services - which could weather the storm better than most.

Irish exports of medicines last year touched 50bn. Almost as much again was earned from chemicals of various kinds which mostly go into medicines made elsewhere. It is often said pharma is a recession-proof industry because people take meds no matter how bad things get economically. In a global pandemic Ireland is likely to continue to be an important cog in making the drugs which keep people healthy.

Ireland's technology sector has clocked spectacular growth in recent years, as is plainly visible in Dublin in times more normal than this. Even if some of the figures are inflated by too-clever accounting practices, they are gargantuan - exports of computer services last year surpassed 100bn.

With so many people globally consuming more computer services in recent weeks, this industry is clearly at the other end of the spectrum from hospitality and non-grocery retail.

Let me conclude today with an effort to provide some clarity on what is known and not known about the prevalence and, in particular, the deadliness of the conronavirus.

Having spoken to experts, the simple answer is that nobody knows the answer to either question yet. There simply has not been enough testing done - anywhere - to answer those questions with any certainty.

Given the small scale of testing to date, the virus is almost certainly many times more prevalent than the number of confirmed cases suggest.

Even the reported deaths from the disease around the world raise almost as many questions as they answer. That the disease appears to be so much more lethal in some regions - most particularly Lombardy in Italy - than in others has the experts in the area puzzled.

One avenue that has not received much attention in the English-speaking world (to my knowledge) is the total number of deaths from all causes that take place at any one time. There are some worrying reports from Italy that the total number of deaths in some places is up sharply on previous years. That could mean that this virus is more lethal than initial estimates suggest.

The EU's statistics agency provides data on monthly deaths in each of its member countries. The figures for Ireland in February and March each over the past decade are shown in the accompanying graphic.

On average, over the past decade, there were 87 deaths a day in the Republic in the month of March, with considerable variation from year to year. Last year March was lower than usual, while 2018 was the highest on record.

These figures are published with a six-month time lag. If the total number of deaths in the country could be established on a much more timely basis, it may be the best way to get a handle on how widespread the virus has become, and how deadly it is.
The Madhya Pradesh police arrested seven people on Thursday for allegedly attacking health workers in Indores Tatt Patti Bakhal area on Wednesday, as several such incidents of attacks on health workers were reported from different parts of the country.

After the incidents, the Central government asked the state police to ensure security of health workers.

The residents of a locality in Indore pelted stones at healthcare workers who went there to screen people in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak. Two female doctors reportedly sustained injuries in the incident.

We have been visiting the locality for the past three days for the screening of residents. We had information about a person coming in contact with a Covid-19 patientWe were talking to the person (the elderly woman) when, all of a sudden, residents got agitated and attacked us, said one of the doctors.

Health department officials said that the incident happened when the workers sought to take an elderly woman to hospital for her medical examination as she was said to have come in contact with a Covid-19 positive patient.

The locality where this incident took place was Tatt Patti Bakhal area in Indore.

In Bihar, police and medical personnel were attacked by locals in Munger town when they visited a locality to collect samples from people suspected to have contracted coronavirus. Stones were thrown at the quick response team (QRT), comprising policemen and an ambulance carrying medical personnel, when they visited the Hazratganj locality late on Wednesday, said the SHO of Qasim Bazar police station Shailesh Kumar.

Relatives of a 49-year-old coronavirus patient who died at a government hospital in Hyderabad assaulted the duty doctor and the staff alleging negligence, police said. Telangana Director General of Police M Mahendar Reddy asserted that strong action will be taken against the culprits and necessary measures will be put in place to provide protection to all the doctors and paramedics treating Covid-19 patients.

In Maharashtra, a man was assaulted by a group in Solapur district for allegedly informing a village official about those who attended the Tablighi gathering in Delhi. The 56-year-old man had informed the gramsevak of Pimpri village about seven locals who attended the Tablighi meet and also insisted that they be tested for coronavirus, police said.

In Bangalore, a group of ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers were allegedly assaulted at Sadiq layout near Hegdenagar on Wednesday by some youth belonging to the minority community when they had gone to collect information and create awareness about coronavirus.

Krishnaveni, one of the ASHA workers apparently assaulted, said, We were instructed to go to houses and collect data on who has cough, fever or any other symptoms. I have been in this field for five years, but inspite of explaining who we were, they heckled us, snatched our belongings and we couldnt call anybody. We are here for their health and look how they treat us.

Some of the ASHA workers threatened that they would not continue the work if they were not provided protection, after which deputy CM Ashwath Narayan visited the house of Krishnaveni and said action would be taken against those who hinder the work of government servants.

In West Bengal, there were clashes between police and locals at a few locations when the latter prevented health workers from collecting Covid-19 data. Nobody sustained major injuries.

Police had a hard time enforcing social distancing norms in the wake of a large number of people coming out on the occasion of Ram Navami. Seven people were injured when police tried to enforce lockdown in North 24 Parganas district. This is not the time to play carom or engage in chitchat with your friends at street corners. These can wait. If you do not adhere to social distancing, the consequences can be severe, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had said on Thursday afternoon.

(With agency inputs)
A youth leader Joseph Pessu was shot dead today by a soldier at Ada Val Arenyenka street, along the Ugbuwangue axis of the NPA Expressway, Warri, Delta state for disobeying the lockdown order. The incident happened at about 9:40am on Thursday, April 2, while the victim was riding his power bike. Recall that the Delta State Government had declared a lockdown across the state for 14 days, which started on Wednesday. However, only those on essential duties are exempted from the directive, as stated by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, who warned that security operatives will be deployed across the state to enforce the directive. Joseph Pessu, who was out of his home during the lockdown, was flagged down by a team of security operatives but he allegedly refused to stop for proper identification and this resulted in a chase. Sources around the scene of the incident said the officers fired gunshots at Pessus bike tyres during the chase before one officer shot the father-of-two dead. The victim, pictured wearing a white shirt and red trousers, was drenched in blood as locals flocked the scene before taking him to the Police Area Command, Warri. The mans death angered youths in the area and they took to the streets to protest in spite of the 14-days stay-at-home order. The chairman of Warri South council area, Dr. Michael Tidi, alongside a political leader in the locality, Chief Vincent Okudolor, intervened during their visit to the area and revealed that the officer responsible for shooting the father has been arrested. They called for calm in the area.

Pessus friends have taken to Facebook to mourn his death. See their posts and more photos of the deceased below.

Post Views: 5
YANTAI, China, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- RemeGen recently announced the closing of approximately USD $100 million in a private financing co-led by Lilly Asia Ventures and Lake Bleu Capital. This round of investment is supported by well-known global institutional investors such as Vivo Capital, Janchor Partners, OrbiMed, Hudson Bay Capital and the company's existing investors. Loyal Valley Capital and China Reform Conson Soochow Overseas Fund also invested through the purchase from existing shareholders.

RemeGen is a leading biopharmaceutical company with fully integrated capabilities in research and discovery, clinical development, manufacturing and commercialization of biologic drugs. Founded in 2008, RemeGen is focused on the research and development of innovative biologics in the therapeutic areas of autoimmune, cancer and ophthalmology diseases. In 12 years, the company has built a prolific pipeline of over 10 innovative molecules with 2 molecules, spanning 5 disease indications, in Phase III or pivotal trials in China. RemeGen currently has one new drug application filed in China.

"It is a great honor to receive the recognition and support from the top investment institutions in the biomedical space," said Jianmin Fang, Ph.D., founder and CEO of RemeGen. "Reaching this funding milestone will allow us to further pursue our vision of developing biologics of the future. Through research, development, manufacturing and commercialization of novel biologics  most notably monoclonal antibodies (mAb) and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs)  RemeGen aims to fulfill the unmet medical needs of patients everywhere facing conditions such as autoimmune diseases and cancer, bringing us one step closer to the future of medicine."

This funding will support RemeGen's early stage drug discovery platform, continued development of the company's R&D pipeline and the expansion of its manufacturing facilities. The proceeds of the financing will also advance the commercialization efforts of RemeGen's two lead molecules, RC18 (telitacicept) and RC48. Telitacicept is a fusion protein with a new drug application filed in China for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). It is also currently in Phase II or Phase III trials for 6 other autoimmune disease indications. RC48, a HER2 ADC for the treatment of various solid tumors, is currently in pivotal clinical trials for gastric and urothelial cancers.

"We are honored to lead this round of funding," says Dr. Fei Chen, Managing Partner of Lilly Asia Ventures. "As a long-term investor, we look forward to partnering with RemeGen to become a leading global biopharmaceutical. We believe that the biologic drugs innovated by RemeGen will continue to benefit patients at home and abroad."

About RemeGen

RemeGen, Ltd. ("RemeGen") is a leading biopharmaceutical company in China dedicated to fulfilling unmet medical needs for patients with life-threatening conditions. RemeGen's main focus is research and development, manufacturing and commercialization of novel biologics, most notably monoclonal antibodies (mAb) and antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). Headquartered in Yantai, Shandong Province, China, RemeGen has labs/offices in Beijing and California. Since its inception in 2008, RemeGen has created more than 10 novel drug molecules that are in various stages of clinical development. Currently, there are two products in late stage clinical development to treat autoimmune and oncology indications.

For more information about RemeGen, please visit: www.remegen.com

About Lilly Ventures Asia

Lilly Asia Ventures (LAV) is a leading biomedical venture capital firm founded in 2008, with offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Palo Alto. Our vision is to become the trusted partner for exceptional entrepreneurs seeking smart capital and to build great companies developing breakthrough products that can treat diseases and improve human health.

About Lake Bleu Capital

Lake Bleu Capital is an investment platform that specializes in healthcare in Asia/Greater China. As one of the largest healthcare public equity funds in Asia, the USD public equity fund under Lake Bleu Capital has won multiple industry-leading performance awards for the region of Asia ex-Japan. Meanwhile, Lake Bleu Capital has also focused on private equity investments in the Chinese healthcare industry, successfully completing multiple investments in flagship innovative companies across different healthcare subsectors.

About Vivo Capital

Founded in 1996, Vivo Capital is a healthcare investment firm focused on investing in and building high quality companies. Vivo employs a unique multi-dimensional strategy to identify companies with great potential or work with companies with promising products or with commercial stage products. Since inception, the firm has raised over $4 billion in capital and backed over 200 private and public portfolio companies. Vivo Capital is headquartered in Palo Alto, California, with offices in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Taipei.

Janchor Partners

Established in 2009, Janchor Partners is a long-term industrialist investor with over US$5 billion in assets under management, partnering with companies that have superior business models, favorable growth prospects and the potential to be part of long term positive structural dynamics of Asian countries and economies. As a genuine thought partner with its investee companies, Janchor Partners helps to increase long-term corporate value and builds strong long-term relationships with investee companies. Janchor Partners' mission as an Industrialist Investor is anchored by its purpose to have a lasting impact through deep relationships by building insight and trust. This virtuous cycle of impact, insight and trust can produce win-win-win holistic outcomes that create long-term sustained value.

About OrbiMed

Founded in 1989, OrbiMed has been investing globally for over 20 years across the healthcare industry: from early-stage private companies to large multinational corporations. Our team of over 80 distinguished scientific, medical, investment and other professionals manages over $13 billion across public and private company investments worldwide. OrbiMed invests across the global healthcare industry, from seed-stage venture capital to large publicly traded companies. Investments are made in one of three strategies: public equity, private equity, and private credit/royalty.

About Hudson Bay Capital

Hudson Bay Capital "HBC" is a multi-billion-dollar asset management firm operating in New York and London. With over 80 employees, HBC has been managing assets on behalf of outside investors since 2006. The firm invests across multiple strategies by utilizing rigorous fundamental analysis and seeks to identify value and growth opportunities that are uncorrelated to each other and market indices.

HBC promotes an integrated team culture emphasizing collaboration and cross-pollination of ideas across sectors and strategies. Our dedicated investment team seeks to achieve outstanding performance by investing in companies that are poised for growth or are undervalued while maintaining a focus on risk management.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain of the statements made in this press release are forward-looking, such as those, among others, relating to the possible utility or application of the Company's technologies to develop therapeutic agents, therapeutic potential of investigational agents, and future development activities including clinical trials. Actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected or implied in these forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such a difference include the difficulty and uncertainty of pharmaceutical product development, including the risks that RemeGen, Ltd. may experience delays in its planned clinical trial initiations or otherwise experience failures or setbacks in its preclinical and clinical development programs due to the potential lack of efficacy or risk of adverse events as RemeGen, Ltd.'s product candidates advance in development or other factors. These factors include those discussed in RemeGen, Ltd.'s public reports are available by contacting Dan Ross at [email protected]. RemeGen, Ltd. disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE RemeGen, Ltd.

Related Links

http://www.remegen.com


Care and Feeding is Slates parenting advice column. In addition to our traditional advice, every Thursday we feature an assortment of teachers from across the country answering your education questions. Have a question for our teachers? Email askateacher@slate.com or post it in the Slate Parenting Facebook group.

My childs elementary school teacher is having trouble controlling her students via the Zoom lessons being required by our school district right now. Do you have any tips or best practices for teaching on Zoom that might be helpful for other teachers who might be in the same position?

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Not Learning With Distance Learning

Dear NLWDL,

I think the first thing that teachers need to accept is the fact that its not going to be possible to manage students remotely in the same way teachers can manage them in person. Almost all of the tools that we have to manage classrooms of students are removed in the virtual environment, beginning with our eyes and ears. Teachers see their class in a way others cannot. We can detect, deflect, and extinguish problematic behaviors before they even start. This is exceptionally evident when I watch a student-teacher work with students for the first time. Its almost as if they dont have eyes.

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Students using a program like Zoom are obviously also on a computer while listening to the teacher, which affords students unfettered access to the internet. Have you ever been in a meeting where attendees have laptops open? Adults can barely focus in these conditions. Children will be impossible at times. Add to this a teachers inability to impose consequences and the students need to connect with classmates who they have not seen in weeks, and online classes like this become exceptionally challenging.

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This is why the most effective forms of instruction in this era of distance learning are largely self-guided, with frequent contact from the teacher to assist, motivate, and reduce anxiety. In my district, this amounts to a learning plan that students engage with on their own, coupled with at least two individual meetings each week, teacher-created videos to accommodate asynchronous learning, and the implementation of online resources like Khan Academy in order to facilitate instruction.

The meetings I have with my class throughout the week focus much less on instruction and instead on using that time to help my students collaborate with peers, continue to socialize, and find ways to connect while remaining socially distant.

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Despite all of this, there are some strategies that I have found effective. They include:

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1. All student should mute microphones during instruction. When a question is asked, the teacher chooses which student should answer, at which point that students microphone is unmuted. Teachers cant teach effectively with multiple microphones on at once.

2. Combine visual elements with the presentation. If students only have a teachers face to watch, their attention will quickly waver. When text, images, and the like are made a part of the presentation, attention and engagement will increase.

3. Rather than one 45-minute class, consider doing three 15-minutes classes with a third of the class each time. When instruction is delivered this way, the rate of student participation greatly increases. Plus, groups can be designed to keep certain personalities apart. While there is considerably less time to cover content, the content that is covered is at least taught with a greater degree of efficacy.

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4. Invite parents to join the class when possible. The presence of an authoritative adult is sometimes enough to keep students engaged and attentive. This might be exceptionally difficult for many parents given the present circumstances of our country, but sometimes teachers only need to extinguish the behaviors of one or two students in order to regain control.

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Best of luck in these trying times. Every single teacher who I know is working longer and harder than ever before, so supporting your childs teacher in any way is an enormous help.

Be well and stay safe.

Mr. Dicks (fifth grade teacher, Connecticut)

What obligations do public school teachers have to their students during extended school closures?

I have three children, two of whom are in the local public schools (one in middle school and the other in elementary school). Like kids across the country, they have been at home as part of our countrys efforts to limit the spread of the coronavirus. Its been a struggle to keep them on a routine, but were trying.

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The schools have done very little to help. The district provided a link to download third-party worksheets  and not much else. Our oldest kids math teacher has been a rock star, posting instructional videos on Google Classroom and answering questions online. Hes done so on his own accord without any support or guidance from the school. I have a lot of respect for what hes been doing to keep his students engaged.

But, the other teachers havent really done anything. While we are just beginning this process, Im skeptical things will change. That has left us to fend for ourselves, using whatever tools we can.

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Our society is facing big challenges right now, and my concerns may be low-stakes by comparison, but I wonder: Should our local schools be doing more? Should they be embracing technology to reach kids at home? Or do issues of equality and fairness prevent them from doing so? Could they issue Chromebooks to kids who dont have access to computers?

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Sheltering in Place

Dear Sheltering in Place,

What schools should be doing and what they have the resources to do are two different things. I teach eighth grade English, and Im pretty much doing what your kids math teacher does. I post QuickTime or YouTube videos on Google Classroom. I link online resources. I respond to questions by email. I meet with my students on Zoom once a day to answer questions about assignments.

But, first of all, I teach at a charter school, and my school is what they call a one-to-one school, i.e., every kid brings a laptop, and if they dont have one, we give them a Chromebook. Naturally, I did my lessons in the classroom before, but pretty much all my assignments were already online.

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Second, the kids I teach are more sophisticated and independent than elementary schoolers. What Id be doing if kids didnt have access to technology, or if I were still teaching third, fourth, or sixth grades, would be very different and probably a lot less.

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Third, my own children are old enough that I can tell them to buzz off for a bit so Mommy can talk to her students and theyll mostly do it. (Both boys made brief appearances in this mornings Zoom.) Teachers who have younger kids or disabled kids at home might not be able to swing something like that.

U.S. public schools are expected to provide students a free and appropriate public education. Whats appropriate right now? Who can say?

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Ive told some parents and students who are worried about getting behind that spring 2020 is going to have an asterisk next to it for everybody. Accommodations will be made. Poor performances will be forgiven. Forgotten content will be retaught.

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I think what you should expect is nothing, and then you leave yourself the space to be pleasantly surprised.

Ms. Scott (eighth grade teacher, North Carolina)

I have a 15-year-old freshman who was diagnosed with ADD. He is very respectful, caring, and well-mannered. He isnt hyperin fact, he is the most chill kid Ive ever seen. He hates school, and he always has. Hes very disorganized. When he is disinterested in something, he tunes out and zones out. He doesnt complete his homework. He often loses schoolwork. He has an IEP and all the help that comes with that. Hes currently unmedicated because hes been unresponsive to ADD meds. (I feel like hes tried all of them.)

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Hes failing multiple classes. Hes currently retaking one class online after school, and hes taking another class over at school in place of an elective. (Bear in mind hes only been in high school for half a year!) Hes definitely smart, and he understands that he cant keep failing classes. But having said that, he doesnt seem to be making any effort at all.

I dont know how to help him. I dont know what else to do. I talk to his teachers and advisers. Ive taken away all of his electronics. We dont have any money to spare, so programs like Neurocore are not an option for us. Hes been to counseling, and hes not depressed. He just wants to play video games with his friends.

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Im feeling like the Worst Mom Ever, because I dont know how to get through to him, and I dont know how to help. Any suggestions?

Helpless, but Dont Want to Be Hopeless

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Dear Helpless Not Hopeless,

You are not the Worst Mom Ever. Im so sorry youre dealing with thisI know its very stressful. Ninth grade can be an incredibly difficult year, and it sounds like youre trying everything in your power to help him.

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Apparently, right now, his passion is for video games. Perhaps he can earn back some video game time (you say you took away all electronics) each night by doing homework, studying, or making progress in his online course. Its tempting to keep all electronics away until hes passing, but immediate rewards tend to work better for kids with ADD. Youll have to work with him to determine what is a reasonable goal: If you set the bar too high (you need straight As), hell feel defeated before he starts. However, continue to raise the bar as appropriate. Be sure to make note of his honest efforts and praise the progress, no matter how small, that he makes toward improvement. WebMD has some better study habits for kids with ADHD that might help the two of you structure this time.

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If video game bribery doesnt work, then he may have to experience the natural consequences of his choices. Im not suggesting you give up on himcontinue to support him as best you can, whether thats helping him organize his backpack or just continuing to enforce your rules. But ultimately this is up to him, not you. If he finds himself spending his summer retaking classes or, even worse, still a freshman a year from now, that will be the result of his own decisions. I know thats a scary prospect, but it doesnt mean hell never get it. I have taught many students who climbed out of a hole they dug themselves. Some kids take longer to mature.

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In the meantime, I encourage you to find a community of parents with similar issues. Some PTA members at my daughters school started a group for parents of children with learning and attention issues. Online community can be helpful as well. Understood is a website with a wealth of resources to support kids with learning difficulties, including discussion groups, and of course they are on Facebook. I think you would benefit from knowing youre not alone in this; many parents are experiencing these same challenges right now.

Hang in there, Mama.

Ms. Holbrook (high school teacher, Texas)

I have a 4-year-old daughter in preschool who wont go to kindergarten until shes nearly 6 because of her birthday relative to local cutoff dates. The teachers are kind, but whenever Im there, they are always busy with classroom tasks like putting snacks together, or preparing future or completed craft projects, and theyre rarely talking to the kids. Granted, Im only there for pickup and drop-off, but the work I see being sent home doesnt impress me much, either. The artwork sent home every day, for example, seems to be mostly created by teachers (highly elaborate paper plate forest animals, for example) and not normal, 4-year-old scribbles.

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We recently moved to the area, and I cant stop comparing this preschool with our former one. Our old preschool was a dreamthe teachers were always child-focused, and the work my daughter brought home was much more interesting.

My question is: How can I evaluate if this preschool is any good? Besides the artwork of a 4-year-old, I dont feel like I have a lot of tools at my disposal to assess this schools quality. And if you think I should change schools, what should I look for in a future school?

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Concerned Mama

Dear Concerned Mama,

Its very hard for parents to evaluate preschools. Elementary schools and beyond have easy metricsyou can meet the teachers for conferences, and you can compare the rigor of the academic work to the standards for your childs grade to make sure they match up. But most states dont have standards for preschools, and those that do are less concrete because the skills we teach are difficult to measure. There are still a few things you can do.

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Does your current schools mission statement or philosophy align with your own? You said the teachers are nice, but what does the day look like? At my school, we send home a weekly lesson plan with what I plan on teaching/doing each dayfrom crafts, to snacks, to larger lessons well be learning about things like the weather, sharing, or counting. Does your childs teacher communicate anything about what types of activities your child is doing, or does she provide parents with a review that says what the class has done? You can look at these materials and bring the teacher specific questions to try to get to the root of what skills are being taught and how.

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Depending on what the teacher says, you could ask to visit the classroom. My school has an open door policy where the administration insists parents can come into the classroom at any time for any reason. Ultimately, regardless of what sort of intel youre able to collect, I wouldnt dismiss what your gut is telling you. If you feel like this school isnt quite the right fit for you, it probably isnt.

As for how to evaluate new preschools? Take a tour or ask to drop in and see what the school looks like in action (bearing in mind that every work place is on its best behavior when a prospective new client is touring, and a school is no different). Read up online to see what other parents say about the school, whether on local message boards or review sites (bearing in mind that these can often tend toward the negative, at least in my experience). When youre at library story time, or your childs dance or music class, talk to other parents and ask them about the schools their children attend. And look at the schools philosophy. My personal preference is for play-based programs, versus programs like Montessori and Waldorf where I feel like theyre overpriced for what you get, but ultimately (and obviously), its a matter of your personal preference. Good luck!

Ms. Sarnell (preschool special education, New York)

More Advice From Slate

My 5-year-old son is in kindergarten, and things are going very well overall, except for one thing: My son loves to sing and hum all day long, and his teacher has rules about singing and humming at school that are very difficult for him to follow. What should I do?
Following a surge in calls to a state-funded phone line by people in crisis and needing emotional support, the state Department of Public Health and Human Services said it's expanding mental health services.

We continue to monitor and make adjustments as necessary to meet the needs of Montanans during this challenging time, said department director Sheila Hogan in a press release Wednesday. While we are focused on limiting the spread of COVID-19 in our state, we must also not forget the mental health needs of our friends and neighbors. Please help us connect people to resources that are available.

The Montana Warmline will now operate from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Friday and noon to 9 p.m. on weekends. The service, which is free and confidential, can be reached by calling 1-877-688-3377 or going to http://montanawarmline.org.

The service is operated by Mental Health America of Montana, and those who reach out are connected to people who have lived through navigating behavioral health challenges. The line is not a crisis line but will connect people to appropriate services. The health department has also boosted its funding by $20,000 to increase staffing.

This has been a valuable service over the years, and now Montanans are finding it very helpful as they work through their mental health needs, Hogan said in the release.

Zoe Barnard, the administrator of the Addictive and Mental Disorders Division of the state health department, said Wednesday the Warmline normally sees between 250-320 calls in a month, but has had about that many since March 24.

There are other services for people who need them. The Montana Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) is also available. This line operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is also free and confidential. The health department is adding $75,000 to increase capacity there. The line had already seen a 43% increase in calls between 2018-2019.

We know the Lifeline has been used more and more by Montanans, and its important that people are aware of it, Hogan said.

Barnard said in 2019 the suicide hotline got about 18 calls a day, but from March 13-31 averaged about 39 daily.

"It is a normal thing during a crisis like this for people to feel anxious, uncertain, scared, sad, angry, and if someone needs help we want to make sure that they have a way to get it," Barnard said.

People can also text the Montana Crisis Text Line, by texting MT to 741741. Counselors respond to these texts and can help in a behavioral health crisis. Use of this program has also gone up 105% over the last two years.

Additionally, the department is directing $25,000 to Thrive, which is online cognitive behavioral therapy operated by Waypoint Health. The program is meant to help people navigate anxiety and stress.

The cognitive behavioral skills can be an incredibly effective tool to reduce long-term anxiety and depression, said Matt Kuntz, of the Center for Mental Health Research and Recovery at Montana State University, in a press release.

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U.S. border authorities have held onto a trove of illegal substance covered up in a complex cross-border burrow underneath the California-Mexico border, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement declared Tuesday.

Tunnel for drug transport

The tunnel, outfitted with ventilation, lighting and an underground rail framework, associated distribution centers in Tijuana and San Diego, reaching out around 2,000 feet with a normal profundity of 31 feet and width of 3 feet, as per the San Diego Tunnel Task Force.

In a takeoff from prior disclosures that comprised for the most part marijuana, authorities held onto multiple huge amounts of an assortment of drugs, including narcotics, methamphetamine and cocaine. The revelation of the passage on March 19 got around 1,300 pounds of cocaine, 86 pounds of methamphetamine, 17 pounds of heroin, 3,000 pounds of cannabis and multiple pounds of fentanyl.

The passage was worked close to a vaunted twofold layered border divider developed during Donald Trump's administration, featuring the restrictions of such hindrances against medicate pirating associations.

While border dividers working under Trump go underground to deflect burrowing, they are not profound enough at times to stop the most developed mystery ways.

U.S. authorities said they alarmed Mexican partners about their examination for help finding the section point in Tijuana and later executed a court order in San Diego's Otay Mesa mechanical distribution center area.

"The Sheriff's Department stays carried out to ensure the residents of San Diego County from the perils related with the importation, deals, and utilization of illicit drugs, just as the brutal violations related with them," said San Diego Sheriff William Gore. "By working cooperatively with organizations ... we work eagerly to accomplish this strategy."

Related Articles:

Longest Illicit Cross-border Tunnel

In January, authorities reported the disclosure of the longest illicit tunnel at any point found on the U.S.- Mexico border, extending more than 75% of a mile from a little modern structure in Tijuana into San Diego. The close by burrow had a broad rail-truck framework, constrained air ventilation, high voltage electrical links and boards, a lift at the passage entrance, and a perplexing seepage framework.

The passage was revealed a little more than two months after the longest unlawful cross-border tunnel at any point seen was found in a similar territory along the southwestern border.

U.S. Lawyer Robert Brewer said this was the most important single-day tunnel seizure in ongoing memory and the biggest seizure of numerous drugs in a single passage.

"On the off chance that cartels continue burning through a large number of dollars building burrows, we will continue finding and filling them," Brewer said in a news discharge. "This time, we held onto a stunning $30 million worth of hazardous medications that won't arrive at the lanes."

There were no captures, which authorities said was a piece of a continuous examination including U.S. Migration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Border Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Attorney's Office.
ABRAHAM John (23), a second year student at one of the Universities in Dar es Salaam city is at home in Mtwara, Southern part of Tanzania. It is not break time for college students.

He is forced that way because of what is happening in Tanzania and the entire world right now...Covid- 19 caused by the novel corona virus and efforts to fight it. Abraham is not alone.

Thousands are affected in Tanzania and education sector is one that is being hit hard. Hundreds of thousands are equally being affected in Africa. As the disease continues ravaging Africa, the real cost on education will be known at a later stage.

However, at this point one thing is clearthere is huge disruption of the continents education system. As a measure to contain the spread of Covid-19, Tanzania announced a temporary closure of all schools, colleges and universities in the East African country of close to 60 million people.

The measure was in a response of scientific community warnings. It is not unique to the country. This measure will certainly affect the countrys education system in terms of delays of syllabuses and budgeting, among other effects. Thousands of students are at home not undertaking their studies according to earlier set plans.

At home and without proper management, many will kill time in unproductive ventures and end up lagging behind the curriculum when schools and colleges open. Resuming studies on 17th April for Tanzania will depend on how things will stabilize in view of fighting the invisible enemy, Corona virus.

How could technology help us in minimizing the effects of this disease on our education? What lessons are we taking as Tanzania and Africa? Mahadia Tunga, Assistant Lecturer and a data scientist at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) believes that technology could have been of help in hard times like these.

The University, according to her, is fully equipped to deliver distance or online learning through the UDSMs Centre for Virtual Learning at the College of Information, Communication and Technology (CoICT). The only challenge is our students who come from different parts of Tanzania where ICT infrastructure is poor, she says.

Mahadia commends ongoing government efforts through Rural Electrification Agency (REA) to bring electricity to most parts of Tanzania and having in place of the National Fibre Optic Broadband Backbone throughout the country because those efforts lay the ground for having in place required ICT infrastructure.

Africa is not prepared; we have to increase the pace in ICT infrastructure investment and be able to work online. That is where the world is heading, Mahadia advises. However, Dr Bill Kiwia, a lecturer at the Dar es Salaam based Institute of Finance Management (IFM) notes that Tanzania and Africa should optimally utilize available technologies.

According to Kiwia, radio frequencies in most radio stations are not properly used for the benefit of the public and countrys development. Instead of playing music all day long, radio stations that reach most parts of our rural areas should start having lessons for students who are at home, he notes.

Kiwia also advises teachers throughout the country to record video clips of tutorials and share them via mobile phones for the benefit of thousands of students sent home as part of measures to contain Covid-19. Our phones can be put into good use during these trying moments and serve our students, he emphasizes.

Denish Otieno is a Research and Development Manager at Shule Direct, an online platform that provides educational learning content for students and teachers in secondary schools. He strongly believes that digital platforms can greatly help bringing subject contents to students.

The platform has a website, an app that can be accessed through IOS and Android as well as a learning management system that can be installed in a computer and used without internet connection.

Governments in Africa should think of officially incorporating such platforms in education systems. In cooperation with governments, the private sector can contribute a lot in reaching out to students by way of technology, he says.

Asteria Johnson who is a student at the Open University of Tanzania says this is time for colleges and universities in Africa to embrace the distance learning approach. They should be ready anytime to roll out distance learning when needed, she advises.

Traditionally, Open University runs programmes by distance learning. It is crystal clear. Covid- 19 is teaching us a hard lesson in our education setup and other sectors as well. Investment in ICT infrastructure is crucial.

According to the World Bank, ICT has a positive effect on a countrys economy, with a 10 per cent increase in broadband penetration being associated with a 1.4 per cent increase in gross domestic product (GDP) growth in countries such as Tanzania.

Huge ICT investment will lead to digitalization and enable Africa take advantage of connecting citizens and help vulnerable young people such as Abraham continue with their education in situations like these we are going through.

However, because of conflicting priorities and low capacity, governments in Africa need private sector players with new thinking and innovations to reach out to approximately 53 per cent of the worlds population that are still not connected.

On average, according to GSMA statistics, 69 per cent of people on the African continent do not have access to internet, with many of those unconnected living in rural areas. There is optimism. A good thing is that mobile phone penetration is rapidly increasing throughout Sub Saharan Africa.

This helps technology to become more widespread and less expensive and hence more people in this area to have access to technology that was previously inaccessible. According to GSMA Mobile Economy Report Series, 84 per cent of the African population (1 billion people) will have access to a SIM connection by 2025, a 3.7 per cent increase from 2017.

With good connectivity, it is such developments that will help a teacher in Dar es Salaam to easily connect with her students throughout the country during emergency situations in the future and save our economies from crumbling as it is happening now.

*Emmanuel Rubagumya writes about science, technology and innovation: innovationstz@ gmail.com
An 11-year-old boy (C) is discharged from a medical center in Hai Duong Province, northern Vietnam, after recovering from Covid-19, April 1, 2020. Photo by the Government Portal.

An 11-year-old Vietnamese boy was released from Hai Duong Province's Thanh Mien District medical center Tuesday night.

"Patient 73" had tested negative for the novel coronavirus three times since March 24.

The boy will be placed under medical monitoring at his home in Tieu Son Village, Thanh Giang Commune, Thanh Mien District in the northern province for at least 14 more days.

He had landed March 9 in Hanoi on Vietnam Airlines flight VN54 from London. He went home and was quarantined at the Thanh Mien medical center, before being confirmed Covid-19 positive on March 18.

Truong Mau Nghien, director of Thanh Mien Districts medical center, said: "The district has only treated one Covid-19 patient, this boy, and this success belongs to all our staff."

Doctors focused on symptomatic treatment and boosting the immune system, with the staff treating him like a family member and keeping him motivated during the treatment process, he said.

This boy is one of the seven child Covid-19 patients recorded so far in Vietnam, with the youngest being a three-month-old girl who was released from hospital in February.

The other five are all active patients, a two-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy who contracted the virus from their grandmother who was found infected after returning from a trip to the U.S., and a nine-year-old girl and two 10-year-old boys, all returning from abroad and testing positive while in quarantine.

As of Thursday morning, Vietnam had recorded 222 infections. The latest discharge raises the number of Covid-19 patients released from hospitals in Vietnam to 64.

To date, the Covid-19 pandemic has killed more than 47,000 people as it spread to 203 countries and territories.
TORONTO, April 2, 2020 - Women academics are less likely than men to comment on published research, limiting scholarly debate, a new study co-authored by York University sociologist Professor Cary Wu, shows. According to the study, women are also relatively less likely to comment on their male counterparts, published research.

"Gendered patterns in academic commenting could impede scholarly exchange between men and women and further marginalize women within the scientific community," cautioned Wu, of the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies. "And gender inequality is still deeply felt, despite the welcoming atmosphere today for women in academia."

Wu and his co-authors Professors Sylvia Fuller (University of British Columbia); Zhilei Shi (Zhongnan University of Economics and Law in Beijing, China); and Rima Wilkes (University of British Columbia), reviewed comments in two major scientific journals for this study.

They collected and hand coded author information from all comment letters and corresponding science and social science research articles published over the past 16 years in reputable scientific journals - Science and Proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS.)

"Though time-consuming, this method allows for more accurate coding of gender information for the authors," said Wu, adding that the team also searched authors' profiles online to obtain images for the gender variable.

Published in PLOS ONE, the study supports the theory that women are disadvantaged across the stages of academic publishing, including collaboration, peer-reviewing, readership, citation and in media coverage.

York University champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. York students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world's most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. York U is an internationally recognized research university - our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, York is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni.

###

York U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.

Media Contact: Gloria Suhasini, York University Media Relations, 647-463-4354, suhasini@yorku.ca
Police officers across the country have been ordered to shave off any facial hair to ensure that masks can be worn properly to protect them from coronavirus.

The new rule will impact officers in Western Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory until the pandemic is over.

Western Australia Police Commissioner Chris Dawson said in a notice to his over 6,000 staff that facial hair would not be allowed.

Mr Dawson brought in the ban as facial hair can make masks useless as they stop the material from forming a seal on the skin, The West Australian reported.

Police officers across Australia are being asked to shave their facial hair off so masks can be worn that will protect them against coronavirus. Pictured is Acting Sergeant Josh Walker from Tasmania Police

The move comes after Mr Dawson sent a notice to police last month saying the coronavirus pandemic was the most serious issue the country had faced since WW1.

'This is a rapidly evolving situation and things may change. In coming months, the challenge confronting our community will grow,' he wrote.

'People will fall ill, the economy will suffer and thousands of people may lose their jobs.'

He noted that protective medical equipment such as eye protection, gowns and gloves were being rushed through to protect officers.

Clean-shaven faces allow masks to effectively seal and protect officers from COVID-19

SA, Queensland and Victoria Police said they were not aware of any existing ban on facial hair related to the coronavirus. Pictured: A NSW Police officer with a beard

In Tasmania, Acting Sergeant Josh Walker shared a before and after photo as he removed his facial hair to help stop the spread of coronavirus.

'Police officers are not only out on the frontline keeping Tasmanians safe, the boys in blue have shaved off their beards and facial hair to make sure they can wear their protective face masks safely,' police said on social media.

'It may seem like a small thing but it will make a real difference to everyones safety.'

Tasmanian officers are now holding a 'top ten shave off' among themselves to compare the best before and after makeovers.

Police in the Northern Territory have also introduced a similar ban on facial hair.

South Australia, Queensland and Victoria Police said they were not aware of any existing ban on facial hair related to the coronavirus.

NSW Police said some officers have been advised to shave their faces but not the entire force.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 09:20:02|Editor: huaxia

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TRIPOLI, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Libya on Wednesday called for an end to the ongoing armed conflict in Libya in order to allow authorities to fight COVID-19.

"Two new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Libya now brings up the total number to 10. Ongoing fighting must stop immediately to allow health authorities and aid agencies contain further spread of the outbreak," the Office tweeted.

For almost a year, the eastern-based army has been leading a military campaign in and around Tripoli, trying to take the city from the rival UN-backed government.

The armed conflict claimed thousands of lives and injured many others, and also displaced more than 150,000.

The violence continues in Libya, despite international calls for a humanitarian truce to allow authorities to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
New Delhi [India], Apr 1 (ANI): Congress MP Manish Tewari on Wednesday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi stating that India is supplying medical protective equipment to Serbia while the country's workers are struggling for the same.



"What is this happening Mr Prime Minister Narendra Modi? While Frontline Indian Health workers are struggling for protective equipment we are supplying Serbia. Air India to fly out Germans and 90 tonnes of Protective Medical Equipment to Serbia. Are we nuts? This is CRIMINAL," Tewari tweeted.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry on Tuesday said that the Ministry of External Affairs has identified suppliers from South Korea, Turkey and Vietnam to increase the availability of logistic items needed in the battle against coronavirus.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation on Monday said that it is coordinating with the state governments for the supply of medical equipment and essential items needed for the protection against the disease.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1397 on Tuesday after 146 new infections were reported in the past 24 hours across the country.

The death toll due to the COVID-19 rose to 35 while 123 cases were cured or discharged after treatment, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said. (ANI)


Praising India's efforts in combating Covid-19, the Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday, said that the country's USD 22.6 billion economic stimulus plan will benefit millions of poor who have been affected by 21-day countrywide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus.

"What India is doing now, as I said in my statement, is very very important. During an economic shutdown, there will economic consequences on the country at large," WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the organisation's headquarters in Geneva.

Noting that the lockdown has triggered supply constraints for essential items and panic buying, leaving the poor and daily labourers most vulnerable, Ghebreyesus also told reporters that India's USD 22.6 billion economic stimulus plan - announced two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the lockdown - will provide free food rations to at least 800 million disadvantaged people, cash transfers to 204 million poor women and free cooking gas for 80 million households for the next three months.

The government, under the scheme, aims to distribute 5kg of wheat or rice for each person free of cost every month, with 1kg of pulses for every low-income family, helping to feed about 800 million poor people over the next three months.

It also intends to hand out free cooking gas cylinders to 83 million poor families, a one-time cash transfer of USD 13.31 to 30 million senior citizens and USD 6.65 a month to about 200 million poor women for next three months.

"But more importantly, individuals who live on daily subsistence who give their labour for their daily bread have been affected the most due to the lockdown. And that's why India is taking measures like package which will cover few million individuals during the difficult times," the Director-General added.

"And that's the kind of support, we say, should be given," he stressed.

"Many developing countries will struggle to implement social welfare programmes of this nature," he said.

Ghebreyesus further urged that the people should not see from the public's part alone, instead, the consequences of these measures on the individual communities are an important factor.

"These measures are undertaken trying our best to support and protect our citizens. That is how we can get the best impact. But cooperation from our communities is also necessity at the same time," he stated.

The agency also appealed to consider the social and economic factors during shut down as many developing countries cannot really support their societies especially during lockdowns.

"For those countries, debt relief is essential to enable them to take care of their people and avoid economic collapse. This is a call from the WHO, the Bank and IMF - debt relief for developing countries," he said.

But debt relief processes are lengthy, Tedros said.

"What we are proposing together with the Bank and IMF is an expedited process to support countries so their economies will not be getting into crisis and their communities will not be really getting into crisis," he said.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1965 on Thursday after 131 people confirmed positive in the past 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Globally, more than 44,000 people have died, about 900,000 have been diagnosed with the virus, and some 190,000 have recovered, according to data collected by Johns Hopkins University.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Civil society organisations say it could cause lasting damage to people's rights

The world is sleepwalking into a surveillance state during the coronavirus pandemic, rights groups have claimed.

Digital surveillance rolled out to curb coronavirus should be limited in time and scope, more than 100 rights groups said on Thursday, warning governments not to use the crisis as cover for pervasive snooping.

From facial recognition to phone tracking, governments are turning to technology to trace infections and keep tabs on the population as they enforce lockdowns, curfews and quarantines.

National police conduct drone surveillance to see if people respect lockdown on March 31, in Avignon, France. The world is sleepwalking into a surveillance state during the coronavirus pandemic, rights groups have claimed

But without appropriate safeguards in place, tools deployed to save lives could cause lasting harm to people's rights, leading civil society organisations, including Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Privacy International, said in a statement.

'An increase in state digital surveillance powers, such as obtaining access to mobile phone location data, threatens privacy, freedom of expression and freedom of association,' the groups said.

More than 935,000 people have been infected with coronavirus and some 47,000 have died since December, according to a Reuters tally, leading government to impose lockdowns, travel bans and tighter border controls - often with heightened surveillance.

'Governments risk compounding the harms of this outbreak by running roughshod over our privacy and dignity,' Peter Micek, general counsel at digital rights group Access Now said in a statement.

Israeli police stop a vehicle at a checkpoint in Bnei Barak, a city east of Tel Aviv with a significant ultra-Orthodox Jewish population, on April 2. Israel's counter-terrorism agency can monitor phone location data to alert those who come close to infected people

An Israeli police officer speaks to an ultra-Orthodox Jewish student at a Yeshiva (Talmudic school) in Bnei Barak, as part of measures imposed by Israeli authorities against the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Some 24 countries were using telecommunications for location tracking and 14 were using applications for contact tracing or quarantine enforcement, according to HRW.

China has introduced a traffic-light system that uses smartphone software to rate individuals red, yellow or green and determine whether they can move about or meet.

Israel's counter-terrorism agency can monitor phone location data to alert those who come close to infected people, while Singapore's TraceTogether app allows authorities to identify people who have been exposed to others with the virus.

A couple hugs under a closed circuit television (CCTV) surveillance camera in Marina Bay in Singapore on April 2

To ensure such measures do not trample on people's freedoms, they should be provided for by law, justified by legitimate public health goals and subject to independent oversight with clear time limits, the human rights groups said.

'The recent past has shown governments are reluctant to relinquish temporary surveillance powers,' said Rasha Abdul Rahim, deputy director of Amnesty International's tech division.

'We must not sleepwalk into a permanent expanded surveillance state now.'

Georgian military paramedics wearing face masks and protective suits to protect against coronavirus, check a car passengers at a checkpoint in Tbilisi on March 31

Governments should also ensure that all personal data collected is safely stored and not used for commercial or other purposes besides responding to the pandemic, the groups added.

Earlier this week, the United Nations special rapporteur on the right to privacy warned some countries risked sliding into authoritarianism if new emergency powers were left unchecked.

'There will be an aftermath to the COVID-19 outbreak. We must ensure that the measures governments are taking right now do not transform this health crisis into a global human rights crisis,' said Access Now senior policy analyst Estelle Masse.
BELGRADE -- Influential former UN and European envoy to the Balkans Carl Bildt has unloaded a torrent of concern over Serbian political signals amid the coronavirus pandemic.

In a far-ranging interview with RFE/RL's Balkan Service on March 30, the former Swedish foreign minister acknowledged European failures in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic but warned that Serbian leaders' reliance on "the China card" could prove "counterproductive from the Serbian point of view."

He has seen a similar "political pattern" in EU member Hungary, he said, whose government has sought to stifle criticism of Beijing since the Chinese government seemingly bungled containment efforts after the coronavirus moved from animals to humans in November (not December).

Bildt was asked about Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic's very public criticism of the EU when he said in a televised address on March 15 that "European solidarity" was just "a fairy tale," adding that only China "can help us in this difficult situation."

Bildt said he saw Serbia "playing the China card much stronger."

But he asked "What's the political strategy behind that? I don't understand it. I think it is counterproductive from the Serbian point of view."

Days later, with Beijing's conspicuous efforts to overshadow criticism of its steps early in the COVID-19 crisis gaining steam, Vucic welcomed a Chinese delegation and a planeload of medical equipment at the airport.

Bildt cited tens of millions of euros in immediate EU aid to help Serbia's health sector battle the pandemic, which had killed 31 of the 1,171 people there confirmed as infected with the coronavirus by April 2.

"These are very significant funds of support, far in excess of a couple of more symbolic things that have arrived from other countries," Bildt said. "If the reward for that is that the president thanks everyone else, complaining about Europe, then I think long-term the incentive for Europe to give support will decline."

Serbia is an EU candidate country, and the new European Commission government under President Ursula von der Leyen has signaled a new will for expansion that had waned under her predecessor, Jean-Claude Juncker, amid disputes over immigration, budget priorities, and Brexit.

EU Enlargement Negotiations Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi said in February after meeting with Vucic that he wanted by 2024 "to have at least one country" from the Western Balkans be ready for EU membership.

And the Western Balkans received a boost last week when the European Council decided to open accession talks with Albania and North Macedonia, signaling a return to enlargement once the current political storms blow past.

Holding A Grudge?

Belgrade's relations with the West have been complicated by a lingering dispute over the independence of Serbia's former province, Kosovo, weapons purchases and other aspects of Belgrade's relationship with Russia, and perceived backsliding on free media and democracy issues.

"I noted the fact that [the Serbian government] made the big splash, whatever, out of the fairly limited Chinese aid," Bildt said. "President Vucic was there at the airport, and I see they have posters up in Belgrade saying, 'Thank you to China,' while I havent seen any corresponding 'Thank you' for the far more substantial help [that came] from the European Union. And that, I think, has been noted throughout the [EU]."

The European Union has allocated at least 93 million euros ($102 million) in support for health care and social and economic recovery in Serbia, and hundreds of millions more in the other five of the so-called Western Balkans Six: Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, and North Macedonia.

Yet Serbia's government has gone to considerable lengths to publicly praise Beijing, including the aforementioned billboards.

Bildt called the actions by Belgrade officials "a very divergent reaction," adding that he failed "to see the political wisdom of it."

China has funneled loans and investment into the Balkans in an effort to boost its own influence, much of it bound for regional economic leader Serbia.

The value of its support for Serbia related to the pandemic is unknown, but it appears to have been limited to Chinese medical materiel including ventilators, drugs and medicines, protective masks and gloves, and a visit from a six-member team of public-health advisers.

Bildt at one point tweeted what he suggested to RFE/RL were double standards by Serbian officials regarding aid from the EU and help from China.

Serbia's prime minister, Ana Brnabic, tweeted back, accusing Bildt of "spreading fake news to send strong political messages." She further chided Bildt at a joint press conference where she and Vucic repeated the "fake news" allegation.

'Propaganda Exercise'

Bildt suggested to RFE/RL that the European Union had made mistakes in its coronavirus response but said it had not spread the word enough about its own aid efforts.

"We have seen that, I think, the Chinese have been hurt by the fact that it all started with them and they [made] significant mistakes in the beginning trying to cover up," Bildt said. "And now they are trying to do a sort of a goodwill exercise with sending flights and whatever to different countries in order to make good, to a certain extent."

He added that "all help should be welcome, but there is undoubtedly an element of...[a propaganda exercise] going on."

Bildt said he had seen a similar scenario play out in Hungary, where entrenched Prime Minister Viktor Orban has courted closer relations with Moscow and Beijing amid EU-wide concern at his nationalism-fueled populism and restrictions on media and the opposition.

"It's early days -- but I think there is a tendency towards a political pattern here," Bildt said. "Hungary has been very supportive of China in every single respect -- we've seen the Hungarians blocking statements inside the European Union that have been critical of China, the human rights record and things like that, and also on the South China Sea. So Hungary has been acting as a close ally of China within the European Union. And it might be that this is some sort of reward."

Bildt was the EU's special envoy to the former Yugoslavia and co-chaired the Dayton Peace Conference in 1995. He also served as the international community's high representative for Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1995-97 and as the UN secretary-general's special envoy for the Balkans in 1999-2001. He was Swedish prime minister in 1991-94 and foreign minister in 2006-14.
Fear has gripped the residents of Worli Koliwada in south central Mumbai after it was discovered that 11 of their neighbours have tested positive for the coronavirus.

Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com speaks to residents to find out how life has been for them after the entire area was sealed by the Mumbai police.

IMAGE: Policemen screen people at Worli in south central Mumbai. Photograph: ANI Photo

Dhanaji Mhatre is a worried man, and rightly so.

Below his 10 by 10 sq foot room stays a man who returned from Dubai and has since been home quarantined by the Mumbai police, fearing that he may be infected with the coronavirus.

Mhatre hasn't seen his neighbour after his return from the UAE and the door to the neighbour's house is always shut.

He has no idea what his neigbour's family is up to and he can't muster up the courage to knock on their door to find out, fearing that he might get infected too -- though his neighbour isn't even a confirmed patient.

"The only thing I see from my home is his slippers outside the house. And I fear to see those slippers, worrying what if they too are carrying the virus," ponders Mhatre.

Mhatre's neighbour is only one of the reasons for him to be worried. A lane away from his house, another seven people tested positive for the virus, due to which the entire Worli Koliwada area in south central Mumbai, with a population of 100,000 people, has been sealed by the Mumbai police.

On Wednesday it was reported that Mumbai municipal authorities and the city police had sealed at least 46 buildings/areas in the city for being suspected coronavirus hotspots. Of them Worli Koliwada, located at the southern end of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link, has been locked down after officials found 11 residents who tested positive.

The BrihanMmumbai Municipal Corporation is now carrying out an extensive door-to-door screening in the area.

"These seven people didn't travel abroad. They didn't meet anyone who had come from abroad and yet they are infected with coronavirus. All of us are worried how these people got the virus," wonders Mhatre.

Photograph: Sahil Salvi for Rediff.com IMAGE: Policemen stand guard at the entrance to Mumbai's Worli Koliwada area.

Speaking of one of the people who has been infected, Mhatre says, "This lady used to sell cooked food to the people of Worli Koliwada. She never stepped out of our area. I am surprised how this coronavirus reached Worli Koliwada among all the places in Mumbai."

To make matters worse, Mhatre's next door neighbour, an elderly woman, passed away recently.

Fear has gripped the entire neighbourhood, with many wondering if coronavirus had claimed her life. However, soon it was revealed that the woman had passed away due to age-related problems, making them heave a sigh of relief.

Though the Maharashtra government has stated that the virus has not reached stage 3 -- community transmission -- the fear among Worli Koliwada residents is palpable that they, in fact, are very close to the the dreaded stage 3 level.

The Mumbai police has posted personnel outside the Worli Koliwada area whose legislator is Aditya Thackeray, Maharashtra's tourism minister and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's son. Aditya had in fact tweeted the information about the Koliwada being kept in quarantine.

Santosh Kir, who too stays in Worli Koliwada, says, "I fail to understand why the government doesn't declare the names of the patients. By not disclosing their names and their whereabouts, I have started to believe that each and every neighbour of mine is infected."

Justifying his point, he adds, "If you get infected by coronavirus it is not a sin. It is not like a sexually transmitted disease which one has to be ashamed of. If you get infected with coronavirus, you get infected. Take medicines and rest. Get well and come back to do your work."

"Why is the government creating fear among one lakh residents of Worli Koliwada by not declaring the names of patients? This would help all of us. We will keep away from the family members of coronavirus patients as they too can be infected. This will help the public."

At present no one knows who the infected people are, and residents feel that all those who contracted the virus should be shifted to the Kasturba Hospital, which is the main treatment centre in the city.

Photograph: Sahil Salvi for Rediff.com IMAGE: Mumbai's civic officials rushed to Worli Koliwada to screen every resident in order to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

When pointed out that the identities of patients are kept confidential to ensure their safety as well to respect their right to privacy, Kir argues, "But I fear for my 78-year-old mother. She met many people in Worli Koliwada in the last one week. It will be better if I know the names of the patients so that I can figure out if my mother has been exposed to the virus."

"If she has been exposed, then timely treatment to her or better quarantine facility can help save her life. I am not worried about my life as I am young, but I am very worried about my mother's life," says Kir.

"Why is the government treating the names of coronavirus patients a State secret?"

Meanwhile, fumigation has become a regular feature at Worli Koliwada and in this cluster of tiny homes, municipal authorities are ensuring that every common toilet is kept extra clean.

There is a single narrow lane through which one can enter Worli Koliwada which is now being patrolled by the Mumbai police who ensure that no one enters or exits the area.

The rules are very clear: Once you enter the area you will not be allowed to come out until the entire area is free of the virus.

If you want to exit the area then you will be stamped and quarantined at another place only to be told that you can never go back to Worli Koliwada, says a resident.

This has led to a lot of inconvenience for the area's residents -- especially those who find it difficult to find their favourite food -- fish.

"I have not eaten fish for the past one week. I thought I would die if I don't eat fish, but I have survived. I am missing my fish and there is no way I can get it," says 53-year-old Shashi Panchal.

Worli Koliwada is where Mumbai's original inhabitants -- the Kolis, the traditional fishing community -- live.

Kashinath Lad, another resident of Worli Koliwada, says, "If not fish, we eat eggs. And if no eggs, we eat dal-rice."

"Be happy you are alive to see the next day. This is what I have learnt about life in the last three days."
CHICAGO  The largest convention center in North America is being converted into a 3,000-bed alternate care facility for COVID-19 patients, and photos released by the U.S. Air Force show how the conversion is unfolding.

The 2.6-million-square-foot McCormick Place Convention Center in downtown Chicago is expected to host patients with mild symptoms who dont require intensive care, freeing up hospital beds for more severe coronavirus cases. The build-out of three areas of the campus was expected to take place in phases over the next few weeks, with up to 500 beds assembled by the end of the week.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has activated 30 Airmen from the Illinois National Guard to assist with the build-out, which was being supported by $15 million in federal funding from FEMA.

Here's what the conversion looks like inside McCormick Place.

Members of the Illinois Air National Guard assemble medical equipment at the McCormick Place Convention Center in response to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic in Chicago on March 30, 2020.

About 30 members of the Guard were activated to support the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to temporarily convert part of the convention center into an Alternate Care Facility for virus patients with mild symptoms who do not require intensive care in the Chicago area.

Illinois is seeing a surge of coronavirus cases, particularly in Cook County, where Chicago is located.

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Members of the Illinois Air National Guard assemble medical equipment at the McCormick Place Convention Center in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Chicago on March 30, 2020.

Members of the Illinois Air National Guard assemble medical equipment at the McCormick Place Convention Center in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Chicago on March 30, 2020.

Members of the Illinois Air National Guard assemble medical equipment at the McCormick Place Convention Center in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Chicago on March 30, 2020.

Members of the Illinois Air National Guard assemble medical equipment at the McCormick Place Convention Center in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Chicago on March 30, 2020.

Illinois originally announced a stay-at-home order on March 20, but Gov. JB Pritzker has extended that order through the end of April.

McCormick Place convention center in Chicago. Saturday, March 28, 2020.

The United States Army Corps of Engineers expected to complete the 3,000-bed hospital by April 24.

To staff the new alternate care facility, Illinois is working with partners at existing medical centers that have additional staff capacity and is requesting volunteers with medical experience.

Follow Grace Hauck on Twitter @grace_hauck

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus cases: Illinois convention center transforms into hospital
With 17 new coronavirus cases



coming to light in the city, the number of cases rose to 235 on Thursday while three COVID-19 patients died, Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar said.

Earlier, state health officials had put the number of new cases in Mumbai at 57, but according to a civic official, 40 of these cases had already come to light through testing at private labs and were only confirmed by the government on Thursday.

The number of demarcated containment areas in the city, meanwhile, was increased to 212.

"Today, 317 people were tested in the city and 105 were admitted to hospitals as suspected patients. Seventeen persons tested positive for coronavirus while three patients died," Pednekar said.

She also said the police had traced 127 persons in the city who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin in Delhi with the help of mobile phone records.

"Of these, 105 are already quarantined," she said.

A senior civic official, meanwhile, said as many as 212 containment zones have been set up and "sealed" in the city.

A release from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation said the administrationn is using CCTV camera network in the city for surveillance of movement in these areas.

"For the first time, computerized automatic video analytics system is being used for effective surveillance of the containment zones and it will allow timely action against violators," said the BMC release.

If one or more persons are found roaming in the containment zone or going in or out violating lockdown, the system will immediately alert the local police station through SMS.

"Mumbai has a network of 5,000 CCTVs, which can capture smalldetails from far," said a BMC officer.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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OTTAWAOntario is willing to show you what the federal government is not.

After refusing to release projections for how the COVID-19 pandemic could play out in the coming weeks, Premier Doug Ford is promising full disclosure while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada wont release any potential scenarios until its clearer which path the virus is likely to take.

At Queens Park, Ford promised there will be a full public briefing by medical officials on Friday, with projections for the pandemic in the province that he warned will be hard to hear.

It was an abrupt change of heart from one day earlier, when the premier declined to release projections and warned overestimating possible scenarios could create a panic. But on Thursday, Ford said the government will share its projections in the name of transparency.

I do not believe in holding back figures in this crisis, Ford told his daily news conference Thursday.

I cant sleep at night thinking I have something and Im not being transparent, he said.

Meanwhile, in Ottawa, Trudeau and federal officials stuck by the decision to keep national projections from the public until they are considered more accurate. Speaking outside Rideau Cottage, the prime minister said there is a range of scenarios for the pandemic in Canada, the worst of which he has previously described as fairly dire.

But Trudeau said Thursday these projections need to be refined and clarified so that Canada has more realistic models. He said the next step is to analyze raw numbers reported by health authorities every day and promised to release federal projections at an unspecified time in the coming days or weeks.

People can imagine a range of scenarios that shows everything from everyone just suddenly gets better within the next few weeks, to the situation just keeps getting worse, Trudeau said.

There is a range out there, and just highlighting that range is not as useful or important and being able to get clearer numbers and clearer analyses of what we are likely to face.

Trudeau added that the key variable in what trajectory Canada faces is whether people obey orders to stay at home and avoid close contact with others to slow the virus.

Everything that we are going to face will be directly linked to how people behave today, he said.

Isaac Bogoch, an infectious diseases scientist at the University of Toronto, said there is no reason the government should rush out incomplete data when officials are working on models based on a fuller picture of the virus in Canada.

He said modelling the trajectory of diseases is a very complicated science that is essentially a field of its own, and that there are several different models the government could use to project the spread of the disease.

But the key thing is transparency and openness, and it sounds like theyre headed in that direction, he said, referring to Trudeaus pledge to release the governments models soon.

Its important to have transparency and honesty about what direction Canada is headed in, and look at the various trajectories, including the ones where were doing OK, but also the ones where were not doing OK  especially those ones because that might help drive more helpful behaviour by Canadians, Bogoch said.

This week, officials in the United States detailed stark projections for the number of Americans that could die from the pandemic in the coming months. U.S. government scientists estimated the virus could kill 100,000 to 240,000 people in the country, as President Donald Trump said he wants every American to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead.

New Zealand has published the models for the pandemic that it is using to plan its response, noting that each projection comes with its own degree of uncertainty.

And in British Columbia, officials presented a detailed range of projections for the virus on March 27. The projections included a likely scenario for the pandemic in B.C., as well as statistics on the number of critical-care beds and ventilators, with caveats about how the curve for the provinces health-care needs will become clearer with time.

At the federal level, health officials said Thursday that they arent prepared to release models for national pandemic scenarios because they need more data for projections and are still working on how to interpret the information they have.

Its still actually early days, said Theresa Tam, Canadas chief public health officer, pointing to the need for more information about the testing strategy in B.C., and to figure out how to compare data from different jurisdictions.

What were doing is fine-tuning the interpretation of our information, she said.

Deputy Chief Public Health Officer Howard Njoo added that the holdup for the federal government is about the speed at which data is being gathered at the local level and filtered up through the provinces to national health authorities.

In Ontario, there was still a testing backlog of just over 2,000 cases Thursday, which could be cleared by the weekend. There are also discrepancies between the tally for deaths from COVID-19 at the provincial level and those published by regional health authorities, the Star reported this week.

The federal government also has an incomplete picture of the pandemic in this country. The governments daily reportage of the disease on Thursday had hospitalization data  which shows how many people are in critical care  for 57 per cent of the confirmed cases in Canada. It also showed gender and age information for just 62 per cent of cases.

At the Ontario level, officials were cautioning just one day before Fords pledge of transparency that the province is still in the early phase of the pandemic, and that small changes to the number of infections can have huge impacts on the models that project future scenarios for the virus. Chief medical officer Dr. David Williams said his epidemiologists have been working late crunching the latest numbers to come out with a range of scenarios from best to worst case depending on how closely people follow physical distancing and other measures to slow the spread.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 2

Trend:

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic of Moldova considers the so-called "presidential and parliamentary elections" in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan on March 31, 2020 illegal, contrary to the UN Charter and the fundamental norms and principles of international law enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act, Trend reports.

Considering that under the auspices of the OSCE, a negotiation process is underway to determine the special status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region in order to peacefully resolve the conflict, the Republic of Moldova does not recognize the so-called "elections".

In this context, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Integration into Europe reaffirms the readiness of the Republic of Moldova to support the efforts of the international community, in particular the Minsk Group and the OSCE co-chairs, which can make a significant contribution to strengthening peace and security in the South Caucasus towards a peaceful and comprehensive political settlement.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
(Alliance News) - The government is coming under increasing pressure over Covid-19 testing as the UK experienced its biggest day-on-day rise in deaths so far.

Some 2,352 patients had died in hospital after testing positive for the virus as of 5pm on Tuesday, the Department of Health said, up by 563 from 1,789 the day before.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a video posted on Twitter that it was a "sad, sad day" and that his "thoughts go out to the families of the victims".

It comes as Downing Street said more than 2,000 NHS staff have been tested for coronavirus as the government faces intense scrutiny over its policy on testing.

Professor Yvonne Doyle, medical director of Public Health England, told the Number 10 daily press briefing that 10,000 tests per day were now being carried out and the aim was to get to 25,000 tests by mid-April.

She said the intention was to "get from thousands to hundreds of thousands" of tests for frontline workers in the coming weeks.

Public Health England has also come under fire over wider testing of members of the public with Covid-19.

It has said repeatedly that most adults who develop symptoms will fully recover and do not need to be tested.

However, many scientists disagree and say it is only through widespread community testing that the UK will be able to track the virus and emerge from lockdown.

Prof Doyle told reporters there was an intention to scale up this sort of testing.

She said: "In terms of mass testing, the testing strategy is to increase the amount of testing done not just in healthcare workers but in the population.

"The rate-limiting step there is not us, it is really whether the tests are valid and then to get that out and about, and aided by technology.

"I think that will change as the phases of this epidemic change. We will perhaps use different techniques."

Until now, the focus has been on testing patients in hospital to see if they have coronavirus, with NHS trusts told earlier in the week they should use up to 15% of any spare testing capacity for NHS staff.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has now scrapped that cap, telling NHS hospital labs to use all spare capacity to test their frontline workers.

A letter from NHS England tells trusts to "max out" lab capacity to test staff, adding this "means immediate action please to 'industrialise' staff swabbing processes".

Prof Doyle said there is currently capacity for around 3,000 tests for frontline NHS staff, which will increase.

Asked how many frontline workers are being tested, she said: "The number of tests undertaken in the NHS and Public Health England combined testing capacity is just increasing at the moment.

"So that will be a relatively small number but there is capacity, for example, today for almost 3,000 and that will increase as we get to 25,000, that capacity.

"But the important capacity is in the second strand where we have five centres where people can drive through and get their testing done in order of priority.

"NHS chief executives are identifying that priority and the intention here is to get from thousands to hundreds of thousands within the coming weeks."

source: PA

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
by Sumon Corraya

Police threaten an electrician for violating the quarantine. The epidemic hits daily labourers the hardest. The government does nothing to help the jobless. Catholic students donate food parcels to the poor who cannot work because of the lockdown of economic activities.

Khulna (AsiaNews)  Daily labourers and those employed in small businesses are the most affected by the bans imposed by the Bangladeshi government to curb the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Currently, Bangladesh has 54 confirmed cases of infection with six deaths.

One of those unemployed workers is Michael Sarker, a 45-year-old electrician who lives in Khulna, south-eastern Bangladesh.

I ventured out of the house to look for work but the police tried to beat me for violating the coronavirus quarantine, he said.

Sarker was left without a job after factories in Khulna closed. He used to earn 350 taka (about US.10) a day; too little already to meet the needs of his family. Now, it is even harder for him to feed his wife and two children.

We are out of money. If any of my loved ones gets sick, I couldn't afford a doctor, "Sarker told AsiaNews. He hopes local factories will reopen soon, so he can go back to work.

Usha Mazumdar, a 50-year-old widow, is in the same condition. The construction company where I work had to close for the quarantine, she said. I was earning 300 taka per day (around US.50). It was little, but at least I could give my son something to eat.

She had to ask her neighbours for some rice to survive. She accuses the government of doing nothing to help people left without work.

Like others in Khulna who cannot work because of the restrictions imposed by the authorities, Sarker and Mazumdar have been helped by a group of Catholic students from the local branch of the Catholic Student Movement of Bangladesh, which is associated with the Catholic Bishops Conference of Bangladesh.

The aid consists of a food parcel with 5 kilos of rice, a kilo of legumes and potatoes, oil, salt, and a piece of soap.

For us, this gift is a great help, Sarker said. I have to thank the generosity of these young people. The package Mazumdar received from the students will help her and her son for a week.

In addition to Catholic students in Khulna, many local Catholics are also helping out by contributing money to pay for the food parcels. Raising more funds and helping more people remain the goal.

We work to improve living conditions in our city, said Sourov Saha, president of the student group. This can be achieved with a fundraiser for the neediest, an educational campaign, or an initiative to clean and repair city streets.
The presidential vote planned for next month may be neither free nor fair, say critics.

Warsaw, Poland  Despite mounting concerns about public safety, Polands elections scheduled for May 10 are set to go ahead. The Polish government insists that postponing the presidential vote would be premature, despite most other European countries exercising more caution in lieu of the coronavirus pandemic.

If there are conditions to go to a shop, then there are also conditions to go to a polling station, said President Andrzej Duda, the incumbent and the clear favourite to win.

Yet many worry that such a vote would be neither free nor fair. More than 77 percent of Poles think it would be good for the presidential elections to be postponed for a year, according to pollster IBRiS.

An online petition to postpone the elections now has more than 270,000 signatures. Its author, Marcin Skubiszewski of the Election Observatory association, told Al Jazeera: We want to put pressure on the government to change its decision.

A free vote?

Its hard to speak of free elections, when voters are faced with a choice between their health and their vote, lawyer and social activist Sylwia Gregorczyk-Abram told Al Jazeera.





As it stands, only one-fifth of Poles would vote in the May elections, according to recent polls. On Tuesday evening, the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party submitted legislation to Parliament to introduce universal postal voting.

The changes follow an amendment to extend postal voting to some categories of people, proposed during a late-night session on Friday. But amendments to the electoral code must be made at least six months before any elections, and the opposition has said the move violates electoral procedures and could invalidate the vote.

If the legislation passes, the 200,000 Polish voters living abroad  who worry that local restrictions and closed consular offices could exclude them from the vote  will be included in the postal scheme.

Anna, a 30-year-old Pole living in the United Kingdom, said that without the option of a postal vote, she would not be willing to risk infecting others at a polling station. If the election goes ahead as planned, I will be effectively prevented from voting, she said.

Meanwhile in France, Malgorzata Kanicka, a 27-year-old superyacht stewardess, worries that this time there is no news about voting arrangements for us.

Our consulate in Nice is closed, she told Al Jazeera. Normally there are only a few places in the south of France where we can vote in elections, but given the lockdown in Nice, we are restricted in how far we can move from our house.

We had regional elections in France not so long ago, and the number of COVID-19 cases doubled because of it. I don't want this to happen in Poland. Malgorzata Kanicka, Polish expatriate living in France

Asked if shell be voting, Kanicka said she would like to, but noted that other members of her family may be unable to do so. As a doctor, my dad probably wont be able to go, as he is one of the essential personnel needed in hospitals, she said.

Kanicka is critical of the decision to hold the vote. We had regional elections in France not so long ago, and the number of COVID-19 cases doubled because of it, she said. I dont want this to happen in Poland.

Monika Sikora in Belgium shares her concerns. Getting to polling stations on election day will be a challenge, especially for people travelling between cities. It is also difficult to predict how Belgian police will react to long queues outside polling stations.

Move the elections reads a sign fluttering from a balcony in Warsaw. Zyc in dark red means to live. The banner was put up by opposition candidate Szymon Holownia [Maria Wilczek/Al Jazeera]

A fair fight?

The official campaign period, which runs from February to May and usually involves candidates travelling the country, has this year mostly overlapped with the lockdown.

All candidates have moved their campaigns online, attracting limited media attention. On Sunday, the main opposition candidate Malgorzata Kidawa-Blonska called on the public to boycott the vote, and suspended her campaign.

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In contrast, however, President Duda has been prominent on the front lines of the state emergency, with televised addresses to the nation and much-publicised hospital visits. A recent inspection at a factory producing hand sanitiser gathered criticism for looking like a campaign stunt.

We have the classic problem of disjoining a campaigning candidate from a figure in public office. Andrzej Duda does not separate these two things, said Skubiszewski.

Public media are pursuing a very active propaganda campaign for Andrzej Duda, with the state administration also campaigning on his behalf, he added.

Meanwhile, advocates of keeping the elections as scheduled argue any such advantage is overstated. I would not say that the incumbent president is privileged by the suspension of campaigning, said Bartlomiej Wroblewski, a Law and Justice (PiS) member of parliament.

President Duda has been known to lead a very active campaign, and he is a generation younger than his main opponent, Wroblewski told Al Jazeera.

Moreover, the upcoming presidential elections are the fourth contest in the past year and a half, he added. In each election familiar arguments have been presented by all sides.





Constitutional conundrum?

The current electoral set-up breaches the Constitution for a number of reasons, said Ryszard Piotrowski, a constitutional law professor at the University of Warsaw.

For one, the current government lockdown has several characteristics of a state of emergency, without one officially being declared. According to the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, such a declaration would automatically lead to the postponement of elections to at least 90 days after it had been recalled.

For these elections to take place, many thousands of people will be drafted into electoral commissions, which voters will also attend  which will lead to the virus spreading on an unprecedented scale, said Piotrowski.

According to Piotrowski, the Constitution requires the government to tackle epidemics  and that includes prevention. Gregorczyk-Abram agrees: Article 68 of the Constitution is very clear on this: citizens are entitled to protection of health.

Many local authorities, on whom it falls to organise the elections, are pushing for postponement over public health concerns. Last week, Jacek Sutryk, mayor of Wroclaw, Polands fourth-largest city, said he would not be training members of electoral commissions.

Szymon Chojnowski, deputy mayor of Swidnica, a city in southwestern Poland, told Al Jazeera that there is trouble assembling electoral commissions, as well as managing proper work conditions for them.

On Monday, a senior figure from the ruling party, Ryszard Terlecki, responded by calling such local government actions idiotic and anti-democratic, and warned that national authorities would nominate replacements.

Full steam ahead

The Polish governments refusal to delay elections has been all the more surprising given how it oversaw one of the toughest and speediest national shutdowns in Europe.

If in late April the situation improves - children go back to school - then there is no reason to postpone the elections. Bartlomiej Wroblewski, Law and Justice MP

On Tuesday, further restrictions were announced, including the closure of public recreation spaces, a requirement for children to be supervised by a guardian when leaving the house, and two-metre distancing rules for pedestrians.

Yet the government insists that cancelling the election would be premature. In two weeks we will be able to realistically assess the situation, Wroblewski told Al Jazeera. If in late April the situation improves  children go back to school  then there is no reason to postpone the elections.

Some, however, suspect the government is seeking to benefit politically from the shutdown, which analysts say has contributed to the incumbents lead in the polls.

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The latest figures predict Duda winning in the first round with 54.6 percent of the vote. Given the edge, perhaps politicians from his circles believe that it is better to hold elections now, rather than in the uncertain future, said Piotrowski.

Until the recent changes to the electoral code, I thought that the vote would not take place. That it was all a tug-of-war. But now, I am no longer certain, concluded Gregorczyk-Abram.

According to official data, Poland now has 2,420 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 36 related deaths. The country, however, also has one of Europes lowest testing rates.
State-run Bank of Baroda on Wednesday said it is offering retail customers the option of getting a refund of the EMI that already has been deducted in March to meet any liquidity need during the disruption caused by COVID-19 pandemic

Mumbai: State-run Bank of Baroda on Wednesday said it is offering retail customers the option of getting a refund of the EMI that already has been deducted in March to meet any liquidity need during the disruption caused by COVID-19 pandemic.

This option is for home and auto loan borrowers only and is given under the three-month moratorium announced by the Reserve Bank of India last week, on payment of all instalments of all term loans falling due between 1 March, 2020, and 31 May, 2020.

The RBI has offered this dispensation to mitigate the burden of debt servicing brought about by disruptions on account of COVID 19 pandemic and to ensure the continuity of viable businesses.

The bank's managing director and CEO Sanjiv Chadha said there are some cases where instalments have already been deducted because the RBI instructions came in over the last few days while the applicable period is from 1 March, 2020.

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In those cases, we are giving our borrowers (home loan and auto loan borrowers) the option that they can make a request to us and we will be making sure that we refund that amount, reverse the transaction and the amount can be credited back to their account because we do recognise that these are special circumstances and the borrowers might want to preserve that liquidity, Chadha told PTI in an interaction.

I would believe that this is what the spirit of RBI's instruction is and we would want to make sure that when it comes to benefiting our customers we follow both the letter and the spirit of the instructions.

He said the bank would refund the entire EMI amount- principal and interest, which has already been deducted, to its borrowers.

The lender will not raise any demand from its borrowers for repayment of loans during the moratorium.

For borrowers, where standing instructions to debit EMIs are there, the bank is reaching out to them, asking if they would like to suspend the standing instructions.

We are sending SMSes to borrowers and they can give a reply and we will suspend that, he said.

Explaining about the RBI moratorium, he said for business loans, the interest on outstanding loans would become payable at the end of the moratorium period.

But in case of home and car loans, we are extending the maturity of loans. So, the period of loan would be the current maturity plus three months. So, to that extent the borrower does not have to bother about these three instalments, he said.

The RBI moratorium is applicable on all term loans, including agricultural term loans, retail, crop loans and loans under pool purchases and cash credit/overdraft. This is available to all such accounts, which are standard assets as on 1 March, 2020.

The overdue payments post-1 March, 2020, will not be reported to credit bureaus/ CRILC for three months and no penal interest or charges will be payable to the banks, Indian Banks's Association (IBA) said in a frequently asked questions (FAQ) released on Tuesday.

Credit Rating Agencies (CRAs) may not consider the delay as default by listed companies if the same is owing to lockdown conditions arising due to COVID-19, it said.
Georgia gets another crack at 'Bama for college football title
A high school has evacuated all its staff and students after a pupil tested positive for coronavirus.

Henley High School in Adelaide was closed for on Thursday after South Australia Health confirmed a student was diagnosed with COVID-19.

The school will remain closed for a minimum of 24 hours as part of strict protocol by the Department of Education.

School administration alerted staff and students to evacuate at 1.15pm by ringing the school bell eight times, according to Adelaide Now.

Henley High School in Adelaide was closed for on Thursday after South Australia Health confirmed a student was diagnosed with COVID-19

A message was also posted to the school's Facebook Page on Thursday urging parents to 'check their emails' prompting alarm from some wanting to know the identity of the student with coronavirus.

Public health officials are carrying out contact tracing and the Department for Education and SA Health will inform anyone who needs to self-isolate.

Authorities will clean and disinfect relevant areas during the temporary closure to prevent further transmission of coronavirus when the school is reopened.

A message was also posted to the school's Facebook Page on Thursday urging parents to 'check their phones' prompting alarm from some wanting to know the identity of the student with coronavirus

Henley High school is the fourth school to close its doors in South Australia because of coronavirus since Monday

The site will not reopen until public health officials indicate it is safe to do so.

Henley High school is the fourth school to close its doors in South Australia because of coronavirus since Monday.

Health authorities also detected COVID-19 cases at Kingston Community School, Renmark North Primary School, Pennington School R-7 and Pennington Children's Centre, triggering their closures earlier this week.

The federal government has stood strong on its decision to keep schools open despite sweeping closures of business and workplaces across the nation.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said any decision to close schools down would limit learning opportunities for students during the announcement of stage two restrictions on March 2.

'Health advice has been clear and they have remained open and this is important because I want to stress this, I do not want to see our children lose an entire year of their education.'

Each state government is approaching the operation of school openings differently, with New South Wales and Victoria already closed for the school term.

In New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania and the Northern Territory schools will reopen after holidays but it's up to parents to decide whether or not to send their children.

Schools will be pupil-free in the Australian Capital Territory and laws have been relaxed in Western Australia so school attendance will no longer be compulsory.

As of 4pm on Wednesday South Australia has 367 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with eight cases in ICU.
Coronavirus - COVID-19 - A man reads a poster carrying messages on symptoms of coronavirus disease inside hospital premises in Kolkata, India March 5, 2020 (Reuters)

Roni Caryn Rabin

Neurologists around the world say that a small subset of patients with COVID-19 are developing serious impairments of the brain.

Although fever, cough and difficulty breathing are the typical hallmarks of infection with the new coronavirus, some patients exhibit altered mental status, or encephalopathy, a catchall term for brain disease or dysfunction that can have many underlying causes, as well as other serious conditions. These neurological syndromes join other unusual symptoms, such as diminished sense of smell and taste as well as heart ailments.

In early March, a 74-year-old man came to the emergency room in Boca Raton, Florida, with a cough and a fever, but an X-ray ruled out pneumonia and he was sent home. The next day, when his fever spiked, family members brought him back. He was short of breath, and could not tell doctors his name or explain what was wrong  he had lost the ability to speak.

The patient, who had chronic lung disease and Parkinsons, was flailing his arms and legs in jerky movements, and appeared to be having a seizure. Doctors suspected he had COVID-19, and were eventually proven right when he was finally tested.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

On Tuesday, doctors in Detroit reported another disturbing case involving a female airline worker in her late 50s with COVID-19. She was confused, and complained of a headache; she could tell the physicians her name but little else, and became less responsive over time. Brain scans showed abnormal swelling and inflammation in several regions, with smaller areas where some cells had died.

Physicians diagnosed a dangerous condition called acute necrotizing encephalopathy, a rare complication of influenza and other viral infections.

The pattern of involvement, and the way that it rapidly progressed over days, is consistent with viral inflammation of the brain, Dr Elissa Fory, a neurologist with Henry Ford Health System, said through an email. This may indicate the virus can invade the brain directly in rare circumstances. The patient is in critical condition.

These domestic reports follow similar observations by doctors in Italy and other parts of the world, of COVID-19 patients having strokes, seizures, encephalitis like symptoms and blood clots, as well as tingling or numbness in the extremities, called acroparesthesia. In some cases, patients were delirious even before developing fever or respiratory illness, according to Dr Alessandro Padovani, whose hospital at University of Brescia in Italy opened a separate NeuroCovid unit to care for patients with neurological conditions.

The patients who come in with encephalopathy are confused and lethargic and may appear dazed, exhibiting strange behavior or staring off into space. They may be having seizures that require immediate medical care, and experts are warning health care providers who treat such patients to recognize that they may have COVID-19 and to take precautions to protect themselves from infection.

Much is still unknown about the neurological symptoms, but efforts are underway to study the phenomena, said Dr. Sherry H-Y. Chou, a neurologist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, who is leading a team of investigators for the Neurocritical Care Society.

We absolutely need to have an information finding mission, otherwise were flying blind, Chou said. Theres no ventilator for the brain. If the lungs are broken we can put the patient on a ventilator and hope for recovery. We dont have that luxury with the brain.

Experts have emphasized that most COVID-19 patients appear to be normal neurologically.

Most people are showing up awake and alert, and neurologically appear to be normal, said Dr. Robert Stevens, a neurologist at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore who is tracking neurological observations.

Neurological specialists also say that it is too early to make definitive statements or identify the specific mechanisms by which the new coronavirus is affecting the neurological system.

In one recent paper, Chinese scientists noted that there was some evidence that other coronaviruses were not confined to the respiratory tract and invaded the central nervous system, and the authors speculated that this may potentially play a role in acute respiratory failure in COVID-19.

Stevens emphasized that all mechanistic explanations at this point are hypotheses because so little is known: It could be as simple as low levels of oxygen in the bloodstream, resulting from respiratory failure, along with an increase in carbon dioxide, which can have significant impact on the function of the brain, and lead to states of confusion and lethargy, he said.

We are still in the early days of this, and we dont really know for sure.

Neurologists in Wuhan, China, where the outbreak started, were among the first to report the symptoms in a preliminary paper published online in February.

Since that report, specialists observed similar symptoms in Germany, France, Austria, Italy and Holland as well as the United States, including among patients under 60, Stevens said.

Some doctors have reported cases of patients who were brought in for treatment because of their altered mental state, and who ultimately tested positive for COVID-19, although they had none of the classic symptoms like fever or cough.

Four elderly patients who came into Danbury Hospital in Connecticut with encephalopathy ultimately tested positive for COVID-19, although they had no other symptoms, said Dr. Paul Nee, an infectious disease specialist at the hospital. Two of the four went on to develop low grade fevers and needed oxygen briefly, but two did not, he said.

While it is not unusual for elderly people to experience confusion when they develop other infections, the striking thing is we have not seen any real respiratory illness in these patients, Nee said. They have continued to test positive and cannot be discharged, even though they are not really ill, he said.

But earlier reports had indicated that severely ill individuals with more typical symptoms were more likely to exhibit the rare neurological conditions, which ranged from dizziness and headaches to impaired consciousness, stroke and musculoskeletal injury. The Chinese study in February said that about 15 percent of those patients with severe illness experienced a change in mental status, compared with 2.4 percent of those who did not have severe illness, according to that study.

Another study, published in the British Medical Journal in late March, found that of 113 patients from Wuhan who died of COVID-19, 22% had experienced disorders of consciousness, ranging from somnolence to deep coma, compared with only 1% of another group of patients who recovered from the illness.

For potential COVID-19 patients and the people caring for them, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention includes new confusion or inability to rouse among the warning signs that should prompt a decision to seek immediate medical care.

Patients who have encephalopathy and seem confused or incoherent are prone to having seizures, and should receive treatment as soon as possible, said Dr. Jennifer Frontera, a neurologist at NYU Langone Health who is working with Chou. She added that seizures can manifest in more subtle ways than the dramatic presentations often depicted in movies and television shows.

Seizures are not always big things where people fall down and are shaking on the ground, Frontera said. Some could be just veering off, not paying attention, making repetitive nonpurposeful movements, or just mental status changes where people are just not themselves.

But even if seizures are not observed, people who are sick should be aware of other potential mental symptoms.

You dont feel your best when you have a fever, but you should be able to interact normally, Frontera said. You should be able to answer questions and converse in a normal fashion.

She added: I dont want everyone calling 911 because theyre overly concerned. We just dont have the capacity. But if someone is really out of it, they probably need medical attention.

c.2020 The New York Times Company
Kolkata, April 2 : West Bengal's Mamata Banerjee government on Thursday entangled itself in a mess about the coronavirus death toll, with health officials and the Chief Secretary coming up with contradictory figures.

A Health Department official - member of the experts committed formed by Chief Minister Banerjee to tackle the disease - in an afternoon media conference gave the total death count as seven, that incuded four people who passed away in the last 24 hours.

According to him, 16 more persons tested positive for the coronavirus infection in the last 24 hours, taking the disease tally to 53 in the state.

Three persons have so far been cured in the state from the deadly disease.

"Four more persons expired over the last 24 hours. The death figure now stands at 7. There were 16 positive cases in the last 24 hours, and the total number of infected has now gone up to 53," the official told the media.

About three hours after the expert committee's media briefing, Chief Secretary Rajiv Sinha held a second round of video conference with journalists.

He claimed the number of deaths was three, contending that four of the deceased had comorbidity, a medical term to denote the presence of one or more additional conditions co-occurring with a primary condition.

As per Sinha's logic, while three were Covid-19 related deaths, the other four had history of heart ailments or kidney failure and it could not be established they perished due to the specific viral disease.

He also came up with some statistical jugglery to project a lower figure for the viral infection in the state, by highlighting the number of active cases at present, rather than the total number of persons testing positive.

"I would like to explain to you certain things. Of the 53 positive cases, three have been cured. So the number goes down to 50. Again, the second or confirmatory test results of nine people were negative. So the number further dwindles to 41.

"While three have died of Covid-19, four others who passed away Ahad co-morbidity. Therefore, at present there are 34 active Covid 19 cases in the state," he said.

On Wednesday, hospitals and health officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, had by early afternoon confirmed six deaths due to Covid-19.

However, at 5 p.m., the Chief Minister held a presser, halving the death figure to three, as she brought up the logic of comorbidity to deny that the other deceased had died of the disease.

Lashing out at the media for claiming that the death toll was soaring in the state, Banerjee said one of the deceased had pneumonia while the other had kidney failure.

"Some nursing homes, just to gain publicity, are claiming that their patients have coronavirus. The media should crosscheck with the government. This is a time of disaster. So don't play with fire. Your reports may create panic in the society. So please don't do all this to raise your TRPs," she said.

A couple of hours after Banerjee's media meet, the daily Covid-19 bulleting issued by the Health Department gave the death count as three but added a footnote.

"Two male persons, both aged 57 years, and one male person aged 62 years, all having Severe Acute Respiratory Illness expired. One of them had Chronic Renal Failure, another had Respiratory Failure and the third one had hypertension and other co-morbid conditions. They had all reportedly tested positive, which is subject to confirmation," the bulletin said.

The government's flip-flop on the death and affected figures drew sharp criticism from doctors and opposition parties.

Taking a dig at the Banerjee government, state BJP president Dilip Ghosh referred to the old criticism about the regime "trying to pass off" dengue deaths as those due to "unknown fever".

"In Paschim Banga, Dengue is unknown figure, and Covid 19 is kidney failure and pneumonia," Ghosh tweeted.

In a tweet, state CPI-M Secretary Surjya Kanta Mishra, himself a doctor, said coronavirus related deaths happen due to pneumonia and kidney failure. "If this is not accepted, then that is dangerous.

"The doctor writes the cause of death, not the Chief Minister. This is illegal interference. If you hide the disease, it only gets more intense. In one stroke, the number of casualties have been halved," he said.

A doctor, speaking on anonymity, said such attitude of the state government is a cause for concern. "One cannot contain such a disease in this way. Because the disease has to be identified, and all measures taken fr treatment. If you deny its existence, it will lead to a catastrophe," he added.
WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI  Washtenaw Community College and Ypsilantis uniteSTEM lab are joining efforts to produce 3D-printed face masks and visors to help limit the spread of the new coronavirus. Both educational institutions will donate protective equipment to hospitals in Washtenaw County.

WCC Advanced Manufacturing Technology Department Chair Tom Penird was originally making 3D-printed masks with his own printer at home when he realized he could be making a larger impact. Once he contacted Washtenaw Community College, the school reached out to the state to give Penird permission to access the 3D printers.

Without their lab, none of this would be happening, Penird said. Right now, Im able to run 22 of them at a time. In a day, I can produce 20 or 30.

Penird has donated 85 of WCCs 3D-printed N95 masks to St. Joesph Mercy Ann Arbor, just across the street from the community college. He plans to donate 60 to St. Joesph Mercy Chelsea, along with other donations to Michigan Medicine.

Washtenaw Community College has 33 three-dimensional printers, the largest such lab in the state.

What Tom Penird has done with manufacturing the facemasks is just one example, said Dr. Rose B. Bellanca, president of WCC, in an email. Our Health Sciences Division donated a wide array of medical supplies to three hospitals across the area.

Additionally, our Entrepreneurship Center and Career Transitions Departments are offering free counseling to people who need advice on issues facing small business owners and are sharing resources for people who are now unemployed.

Bellanca said WCC will continue to provide resources during this time of uncertainty at no cost to our valued community members.

10 years later, closed school houses 13 nonprofits, businesses and churches

The uniteSTEM educational program, focused on science and engineering, has several 3D printers that students in the community use for learning. After the Michigans stay home order went into effect, students could no longer utilize the program at the Chapelle Business Center in Ypsilanti Township.

Andrea Pisani and Frank Norton, Cofounders of uniteSTEM stand in front of several different robots at Chapelle Business Center which used to be an elementary school in Ypsilanti Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2020. There are 3 different courses for the uniteSTEM class where students can learn about 3D printing and modeling, 3 for coding and 3 for robotics. Nicole Hester/Mlive.comNicole Hester/Mlive.com

We were feeling a little stuck on the educational side of the things and we felt maybe we could help on the manufacturing side, said Andrea Pisani, president of uniteSTEM. We care about the folks in our community who are working as health-care providers and first-responders right now, and they need personal protective equipment and we can help.

Pisani said Michigan Medicine will be accepting their donated 3D-printed visors. So far, there have been over 100 visors produced, with plans to create a few hundred this week. Once uniteSTEM receives supplies for the shields, they will drop off their first donation.

In order to keep production going, uniteSTEM is accepting donations on its website for the purchasing of plastic sheets and materials for the visors.

We will keep making these as long as there is a need and as long as we can keep buying the supplies, Pisani said.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.
As the coronavirus pandemic deepens, resulting in more and more fatalities with each passing day, the race to develop treatments to combat this contagious disease intensifies.

The outbreak has created a havoc worldwide. There are more than 200,000 people infected in the United States and the death toll has gone up to 5,000.

Currently, there are no FDA-approved treatments for the severe illness caused by SARS-CoV-2. The pharma/biotech companies are running a race against time to successfully develop vaccines to combat this disease. Given the alarming levels of spread and severity, some approved drugs or pipeline candidates are being tested to see if they are effective in treating the infected patients.

While the need to cure the large numbers of infected patients is evident, there is an equal urgency to develop a vaccine for the prevention of the spread. President Trump reportedly wants to speed up the approvals of vaccines and treatments to fight the pandemic.

Moreover, the efforts to develop a vaccine to combat this deadly virus have accelerated in the last couple of weeks.





Here, we take a look at companies, which are currently leading the race of developing vaccines for this highly infectious disease.

Pharma giant Johnson & Johnson JNJ has given some hope to people worldwide as it recently announced that it has selected a lead vaccine candidate for COVID-19. It expects to initiate a phase I study on the candidate in September 2020 under an accelerated timeline. Safety and efficacy data from the study are expected by the end of the year, based on which the company expects a vaccine to be available for emergency use in early 2021. The company initiated the process to identify compounds with antiviral activity against 2019-nCoV in January. Meanwhile, the company has also identified two backup candidates, apart from the lead COVID-19 candidate. J&J is using its subsidiary, Janssens technologies, which will help it rapidly upscale production of the vaccine candidate. The company is also rapidly upscaling its manufacturing facilities with the goal of supplying more than a billion doses of the COVID-19 vaccine globally.

Story continues

Sanofi SNY has recently collaborated with Translate Bio TBIO to jointly develop a novel messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine for COVID-19. The companies will jointly investigate multiple candidates with the goal of advancing an efficacious and safe SARS-CoV-2 vaccine to clinical development. This is the second collaboration by the company in its efforts to develop a COVID-19 vaccine candidate. Earlier, Sanofi announced a collaboration with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) to advance a novel COVID-19 vaccine candidate. The agreement calls for the development of a recombinant, protein-based vaccine candidate against COVID-19.

Last month, clinical-stage biotechnology company, Moderna, Inc., MRNA, announced that the first participant has been dosed in the phase I study of its mRNA vaccine (mRNA-1273) against SARS-CoV-2. This phase I study is being conducted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) under its own Investigational New Drug (IND) application. Moderna is actively preparing for a potential phase II study under the IND to build on data from the ongoing phase 1 study being conducted by the NIH.

Moderna currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Apart from these companies, many other companies have joined the bandwagon. Ology Bioservices Inc. and Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc. are working together to manufacture Inovio's DNA vaccine for prevention from COVID-19. The Department of Defense (DOD) has awarded Ology Bioservices with a contract, valued at $11.9 million. Quite a few others like Novavax, Inc. NVAX are developing vaccines to address the disease.

While the vaccines will need some time to be tested, investors will keep an eye on these companies as the pandemic is unlikely to die out soon.

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Top Congress leaders on Thursday discussed the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak, with party chief Sonia Gandhi criticising the Centre for "unplanned" implementation of the lockdown and calling for "solidarity" in meeting the challenge posed by the pandemic.

Besides Sonia Gandhi, former prime minister Manmohan Singh, former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and other senior leaders discussed the health crisis at a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) held through video conferencing.

Addressing the meeting, Sonia Gandhi said the country is in the midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis that has caused "untold suffering" across the world but also "reaffirmed the bonds of brotherhood" that unite humanity.

"The magnitude of the challenge before us is daunting but our resolve to overcome it must be greater," she said.

She said in India, the poor and disadvantaged have been most vulnerable to the consequences of the pandemic. "We must come together for their sake and do all we can to support them through the difficult days that lie ahead," she said.

Describing as "heartbreaking" the sight of lakhs of people walking for hundreds of kilometres without food or shelter, she criticised the government for its "unplanned" implementation of the nationwide lockdown and causing hardships to the poor.

"The 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India," she noted.

"It is the duty of us all to do our utmost to lessen their suffering," she said.

The Congress chief said to fight the COVID-19 virus, there is no alternative to constant and reliable testing.

"Our doctors, nurses, and health workers need all the support. Personal Protection Equipment such as hazmat suits, N-95 masks must be provided to them on a war footing," she said.

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh said the Congress Party stands as one with the nation to take on the challenge of the pandemic.

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi criticised the Centre for its alleged lack of assistance to the poor especially migrant workers.

"No country in the world has attempted a lockdown with huge migrant labour without arranging for their stay, food and ration and pushing them back home," party chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said quoting Rahul Gandhi.

Calling for an "India-specific strategy and consultation" with regard to COVID-19, Rahul said the party has looked at the situation caused by the pandemic for the past two months and has spoken to experts.

"India needs to prepare for the economic devastation," he said.

Rahul called upon Congress workers to help people and assist them in every manner possible.

"Congress needs to act as a watchdog. We need to ensure that the most vulnerable and the poor are protected comprehensively. Also, let's take the message that we need to take special care of our senior citizens and elders," he said.

He further said COVID-19 particularly attacks aged persons, people with lung disease, diabetics, persons with heart disease, making them most vulnerable and "all state governments need to issue special advisories for these categories and take care of them".

AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra claimed Uttar Pradesh had faced the "maximum burnt" of "heart-rending" scenes of migrant labour returning home.

"People are now being quarantined in inhuman conditions and sprayed with insecticides," she alleged, adding that instead of supporting those returning home, the police and administration in UP was "beating and roughing them up".

"Our workers have assisted the labour with food and medicines," she said.

Priyanka also said testing for COVID-19 remains the key to prevent it.

Former finance minister P Chidambaram said the government had not understood the "enormity" of the crisis completely.

"Congress should engage the government constantly, support it but point out the shortcomings," he noted.

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Choudhary and senior party leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and AK Antony also addressed the CWC meet through video conferencing.

Senior party leader Ahmed Patel said the Congress does support the government but must point out its shortcomings. "This is imperative to fight COVID-19. It's a fact that media refuses to show suggestions but we can't shed our responsibility," he said.

Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh, addressing the meeting, informed the CWC about the preparations and steps taken to fight COVID-19 including availability of food, medication and preventive steps. He also praised the efforts of several organisations and Punjab Police.

He said the non-release of the state's share of Rs 5,000 crore by the Centre was a hindrance in the fight against COVID-19 and that he will take up the issue with the Union finance minister.

Chhattisgrah chief minister Bhupesh Baghel said the Congress government in the state has given 10 kgs of ration free to every family under the PDS system. All children in Anganwadis are being sent their food home, he said.

"However, GST share of over Rs 2,000 crore not released by Government of India," he noted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Japanese baby has been diagnosed with the coronavirus despite the fact that both of her parents tested negative for the deadly disease.

The girl was rushed to the University of Yamanashi Hospital near Tokyo on Tuesday after her parents found her stop breathing at home.

Local government is investigating how the baby contracted the virus as her parents are not infected with the killer bug, authorities said in a press conference yesterday.

The seriously ill girl, who is less than one year old, is being treated in Intensive Care Units after being revived by the doctors, according to the Japanese press.

A Japanese infant has been diagnosed with the coronavirus despite both of her parents tested negative for the deadly disease. A medical staff attends to a baby who is infected with the coronavirus at the Wuhan Children's Hospital on March 6

Local government is investigating how the baby contracted the virus as her parents are not infected with the killer bug, authorities said in a press conference yesterday. New employees of Japan's Education Ministry stand apart for social distancing due to coronavirus

The infant was first given a CT scan after she arrived at the hospital. The doctors then tested her for the coronavirus after the CT result suggested that she had pneumonia.

The baby underwent two tests and both results came back positive.

Medics were unable to explain why the girl stopped breathing. They suspected it had little to do with the coronavirus because she showed very mild symptoms of the coronavirus, according to the press.

It is reported that the hospital staff didnt wear protective gears initially as they didnt realise the baby was infected with the coronavirus. 44 medical workers who had close contact with the infant are under quarantine for 14 days.

The Yamanashi prefectural government is attempting to trace all the people who had recent contact with her to identify the viruss transmission route.

The coronavirus has infected 2,178 people in Japan and claimed 57 lives. Worldwide, there are more than 937,000 people infected with the deadly disease and 47,260 people have died.

The coronavirus has infected 2,178 people in Japan and claimed 57 lives. Two women wearing kimono are pictured chatting on a train in Kyoto, Japan amid coronavirus pandemic

A nurse takes the temperature of a baby outside the main bus terminal in Bogota, Colombia

Experts believe that the killer bug has a generally milder effect on children compared to elderly and people with underlying health conditions. But they still can be infected even if they have no symptoms.

And they warn the life-threatening illness may cause unusual symptoms in children, such as stomach aches. The tell-tale symptoms are a cough and fever.

A study in China, where the outbreak began in December, found that almost one in ten patients in the country were under the age of 30.

Half of all pregnant women infected with the novel coronavirus deliver their babies early and they may even pass the disease to their newborns, two other studies find.

In one study, researchers from China examined 33 newborns whose mothers had COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, while pregnant.

Nearly 10 percent of the babies - three of them - were found to have the virus - including one that needed to be put on mechanical ventilation.

In the second study, looking at 32 pregnant women from China and Hong Kong, researchers found that 47 percent delivered their babies prematurely.

World Health Organization chiefs have said young people are 'not invincible' and could end up in hospital 'for weeks'.
The commander of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt has sent a four-page letter to his superiors appealing for the Navy to move nearly his entire crew into quarantine on the US Pacific island territory of Guam, where the vessel has docked since coronavirus infections were detected on board.

All 4,000 sailors are being tested for coronavirusafter several days of delay when only those showing symptoms were testedand at least 100 positives were reportedly found. Sailors began reporting sick about two weeks after the aircraft carrier made a port call at Da Nang, Vietnam. At the time, there were about 100 cases of coronavirus reported in Vietnam, most of them in the Hanoi area, well north of Da Nang.

Captain Brett Crozier made an unusually emotional appeal to save the lives of his sailors, according to the text made public by the San Francisco Chronicle. Decisive action is required. Removing the majority of personnel from a deployed U.S. nuclear aircraft carrier and isolating them for two weeks may seem like an extraordinary measure, he told the Navy command. We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted assetour sailors.

The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (Credit: U.S. Navy, Anthony J. Rivera)

The March 30 letter proposed that 90 percent of the ships crew be moved into isolation on Guam, with only a few hundred left on board to monitor the carriers nuclear power plant, safeguard its weapons systems and perform other core functions, while the giant aircraft carrier was given a thorough and professional cleaning.

Crozier pointed out that it was impossible to practice social distancing and isolation on board the carrier. Due to a warships inherent limitations of space, we are not doing this. The spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating, he wrote. Among these limitations were shared sleeping quarters, meal areas and bathrooms, constant movement up and down ladders and through narrow passageways, and complex work operations that require close cooperation.

He also noted that about 20 percent of those now diagnosed with the virus had initially tested negative, only to become infected and show symptoms later.

Pentagon officials confirmed that Croziers letter was under review and that they agreed that sailors needed to leave the ship. Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly told the press, The problem is that Guam doesnt have enough beds right now, and so were having to talk to the government there to see if we can get some hotel space or create some tentlike facilities there.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper told CBS News Tuesday night that he had not yet read Croziers letterwhich was dated Mondaybut claimed I dont think were at that point in terms of actually evacuating the ship.

The uniformed officer in overall charge, Admiral John C. Aquilino, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, said on a conference call with reporters that his top priority was the health of the sailors, but he added that no sailor had yet required hospitalization, and most were suffering only mild symptoms.

Major General Jeff Taliaferro, the vice director for operations of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declared, amazingly, that the Roosevelt could perform its missions even with a raging pandemic aboard. If asked to sail immediately because of a national security crisis, he told the press, the ship was ready to sail.

The crisis on the Roosevelt is only the most acute indication of the serious impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the operations of the American military machine. While the admirals and generals have a cavalier attitude to the lives of the rank-and-filearguing that because they are mostly young and physically fit, they are in less dangerthe virus thrives on the close quarters and constant interaction of military life on land and sea.

As of Friday, March 27, the Pentagon had tallied 613 coronavirus cases among US military personnel and stopped giving any details of the locations of outbreaks, on the grounds that this would give vital information to potential adversaries about weak spots. Numbers of people in isolation, quarantine, or possibly infected will not be released, read a Department of Defense memo seen by CNN.

Several urgent orders were issued, including a halt to all overseas port calls by US Navy ships, confining the 28,000 US soldiers stationed in South Korea to their barracks or homes, and halting most troop movements worldwide for 60 days, except for planned rotation of soldiers out of Afghanistan.

The US role in NATO military exercises on the Russian border of the Baltic states and Poland was scaled back to include only the 6,000 troops already dispatched to Europe, leaving 19,000 soldiers at their bases in the US.

The Department of Defense also ordered many of the 25,000 who work at the Pentagon to work from home instead. The headquarters of the Northern Command in Colorado Springs, which controls troop deployments within the United States itself, was engaged in distributed operations, in which command units are strictly separated and key command personnel isolated. The same regimen was being observed in NORAD, which controls the airspace over the United States and Canada.

CNN reported Monday, Some of the most critical US senior military commanders and nuclear and special operations forces are now operating under extraordinary protection measures to ensure that in the event of a sudden security crisis, including any potential nuclear mission, there will be enough healthy troops and leaders to carry out orders as the coronavirus pandemic grows.

The report cited specifically intercontinental ballistic missile crews, the crews of submarines carrying nuclear missiles, and the crews of B-52 bombers, the soldiers who operate the three components of the so-called nuclear triad.

Meanwhile, with none of the fanfare that accompanied the dispatch of the USNS Comfort to New York harbor, Trump on March 28 signed an order authorizing the Pentagon to activate as many as one million former service members, now enrolled in the ready reserves, for up to two years, to be called up as necessary in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Humanitarianism deals with actively working to improve the happiness and welfare of others. The concepts of humanitarianism and advocacy are actually integral to the workers compensation industry, as were in the unique position to offer solutions that are truly win-win by using needs-based analysis and negotiation methods within the realm of structured settlements.

Showing Empathy Is Key

After being injured on the job, many people suffer from anxiety in addition to their physical wounds and ailments. As we see today during the COVID-19 crisis, anxieties stem from the unknowns surrounding physical health, financial security and the future in general. Serious injuries are catastrophic and emotionally challenging; an injured persons life has been radically altered due to their injuries, so our compassion and respect are paramount.

Firstly, its vital that we as claim professionals recognize that while we deal with these cases daily, the injured person probably has no prior experience to draw upon. Theyve possibly heard claim horror stories from their friends, neighbors, colleagues and television ads. Its therefore no wonder that injured people fear theyll lack the money necessary to pay for their medical needs and care for their families. This fear is compounded by difficulties associated with complying to complex laws and regulations, including Medicare.

In order to address these fears, its vital that we build a relationship of trust, respect and empathy with the injured person from day one. Communication is the most important tool we have. People have a right to feel anger and fear during this trying time. Saying you have a right to feel the way you do, or, its ok to be fearful or apprehensive Im here to help you work through this can foster real connections which make settlement discussions more productive.

Be an advocate for the injured person. Eliminate jargon and speak simply to avoid confusion. Anticipate needs of the injured worker and determine means to solve problems before they start. Advocating for injured persons works best when the employer does too. Remember: empathy is at the center of everything we do.

Motivation to Resolve

Money is not the only thing motivating an injured worker to resolve their claim. We need to focus on their issues and needs: housing, medical care, income, self-esteem and sense of worth. These issues can be better defined as interests.

Interests vs. Positions

Interests  what people want to have satisfied.

Positions  ways parties believe that their interests will be satisfied.

Every interest may have many creative ways of being satisfied. Even when positions are opposed, interests may be aligned. Injured workers have common interests: security, independence, healthcare and sustenance. Money is the means to achieve these interests. The amount of money a person believes theyll need to achieve these interests is their position. An injured persons needs can be creatively met by discovering their core interests and satisfying them cost-effectively.

Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

In order to better understand the motivations behind our decision-making, we can study Maslows Hierarchy of Needs. This model is frequently used in psychology, sociology and anthropology but is pertinent to our work as well.

Maslows pyramid features our most fundamental human needs at the bottom of a pyramid, and our more abstract needs at the top. In other words, the theory is that our most basic needs (food, shelter and physical safety) must be met before we can be motivated to achieve higher level needs. As settlement professionals we can first assuage concerns over basic needs, but its important that we also ask the right questions and help injured people plan for a future that addresses their desire for acceptance, self-respect and capacity to reach their full potential.

Each case has settlement components specific to the injured person and their injuries. Get all the facts before determining the best course of action.

Questions to ask the injured person to determine needs:

How can I help you?

What do you need?

What are your biggest concerns?

The answers to the above open-ended questions will help you conduct a needs analysis. Claims professionals and structured settlement consultants should explore:

Indemnity payments

Future medical needs

Life care plan assessment

Rehabilitation needs

Housing modifications

Family education needs

Life insurance needs of care givers

Medicare set aside

Special needs trust

We can also successfully navigate state, government, and medical resources, reaching settlements that are fair to both parties while protecting injured workers current and future external benefits.

Below are two real examples of the humanitarian settlement approach, which provided injured workers with additional support and resources for post-settlement success.

Antonias Case

Antonia is a 31-year-old foreign national. She was involved in a 25-foot fall resulting in serious head injury and brain surgery resulting in diminished everyday function. She spent two years in a rehabilitation facility and has since spent the past four years in a nursing facility. She has permanent neurocognitive deficits requiring lifelong supervision and an independent guardian. Antonia has a half-sister in the United States who was granted limited guardianship.

In meetings with her nurse case manager, Antonia continually expressed her wishes to live with relatives in Mexico. Her immediate family there consists of parents aged 60 and 69, as well as two brothers and one sister all in their 20s and 30s.

A thorough review was completed by a life care planner for her ongoing physical and emotional needs. Needs included:

Health care, both WC-related and other.

Housing needs in Mexico since the family home was very small.

Transportation.

A settlement was reached consisting of funds for:

Housing: home in Mexico $120,000

Transportation via accessible vehicle: $80,000

Healthcare and attendant care: $7,143/month

Lost wages (indemnity): $1,000/month

A guardianship settlement trust was established for the home, plus receipt and distribution of medical and attendant care funds. The trustee will get Antonia on Mexican government-provided health insurance (or private insurance if necessary), and work with a trust benefit advisor in Mexico who will assist the family.

The settlement offer made by the WC insurer was designed to meet Antonias specific needs and give her a better quality of life as determined by her explicit wishes. The present value of future WC exposure exceeded $5.0 million, and the case was resolved for just under $3 million. The WC judge and surrogate judge both approved the structured settlement, which is expected to pay approximately $5.3 million to provide for Antonia for the remainder of her life. This case was a win-win scenario that came about through the use of humanitarianism and advocacy.

Harolds Case

Harold was involved in a one-vehicle auto accident in 1996 and sustained severe head trauma. His only child was born the same year. After the injury he began living in nursing facilities, and his wife was named the guardian of his person and the estate.

Present value of WC exposure: $6.5 million.

Harold and his wife were divorced, but she remained the guardian of person and estate. At the time of settlement, his brothers became joint guardians and a trust was established for a Medicare Set-Aside Allocation and nursing home costs (negotiated price for life) with a trigger to preserve eligibility for Medicaid if needed.

The total structured settlement and cash totaled $2.7 million, with a total expected lifetime payout of $5.2 million. The terms included immediate cash payment of $370,000, covering:

Cash to Harold.

Child support.

Medicare set-aside seed money.

First year costs of nursing facility.

Lifetime income for Harolds income replacement.

Professionally administered Medicare set-aside to continue eligibility.

Annual costs of Harolds nursing facility care.

As a bonus, Harolds child was awarded with a scholarship from Kids Chance of America, which provided a four-year scholarship to a state university.

Harolds case was unrepresented, leading to extra scrutiny by the WC court. With the establishment of a settlement based on Harolds needs, the case was approved and the judge commented: You are the most humane adjusters I have ever had the pleasure to work with in my years on the bench. Your compassion will be returned to you.

Again, this was a win-win settlement reached with empathy. Harold and his loved ones were extremely grateful to the claim professionals for their handling of the case to benefit the entire family.

Benefits of Structured Settlements
Married At First Sight's Stacey Hampton has sold the $5,500 Louis Vuitton handbag her millionaire ex-'husband', Michael Goonan, gifted her during the experiment.

The 26-year-old law graduate donated the proceeds of the sale ($3,000) to a suicide prevention charity - proving once and for all that she doesn't need Michael's money.

She provided Daily Mail Australia with a screenshot of the funds leaving her bank account on Wednesday, after she was falsely accused of faking her donation.

For a good cause: Married At First Sight's Stacey Hampton has sold the $5,500 Louis Vuitton handbag her millionaire ex-'husband', Michael Goonan, gifted her during the experiment. She has donated the proceeds of the sale ($3,000) to a suicide prevention charity

When she debuted on MAFS in February, Stacey was branded a 'gold digger' by fans.

She was unfairly edited to only appear interested in Michael on their wedding day after discovering he was a wealthy company director.

The mother-of-two has slammed her portrayal, insisting she is financially secure herself and doesn't need anybody else's money.

Her generous charity donation confirms that Stacey doesn't need Michael's money. If she did need the cash, she would have kept the $3,000 for herself.

Genuine: She provided Daily Mail Australia with a screenshot of the funds leaving her bank account on Wednesday (left), after she was falsely accused of faking her donation. Stacey donated the money to On The Line, a suicide call-back service (right: the confirmation letter)

She's no gold digger! Stacey's charity donation confirms she doesn't need Michael's money. If she did need the cash, she would have kept the $3,000 for herself. Pictured: the handbag

Stacey's personal wealth was apparent during homestays, when Michael visited the Adelaide home where she lives with her two children, Kosta and Kruz.

She drives a $90,000 Range Rover Velar, boasts a $20,000 shoe collection and has more designer handbags than some department stores.

Many viewers were left wondering how the single mother could afford such luxuries - but Daily Mail Australia later revealed the heartbreaking truth behind her fortune.

Stacey inherited a significant sum of money from her father and brother's estates following their deaths several years ago. She put the money into a family trust, which she later used to start several business ventures in South Australia.

'I had my own financial stability [before MAFS] with more than Michael could have provided,' Stacey said recently, hitting back at claims she's a 'gold digger'.

Bad edit: After debuting on MAFS, Stacey was branded a 'gold digger' after she was unfairly edited to appear only interested in Michael for his money. Pictured together on October 23

Financially stable: Stacey actually inherited a significant sum of money from her father and brother's estates following their deaths several years ago

Stacey previously joked that her ex-fiance, Rebels Adelaide boss Shane Michael Smith, who is the father of her two children, was funding her lavish lifestyle.

During her MAFS audition, executive producer Tara McWilliams asked her: 'You've got a Rolex and a Givenchy bag. I'm gonna be really honest, how do you afford that?'

'You might have to ask my ex,' Stacey laughed in response.

Her audition tape was played on the show before her final vows with Michael, leading him to doubt whether she was only interested in his money.

Stacey later clarified that her 'ask my ex' comment was in response to another question, but producers had edited the footage to make her look bad.

Flash! The law graduate drives a $90,000 Range Rover Velar (pictured), boasts a $20,000 shoe collection and has more designer handbags than some department stores

Stunned! Michael was stunned by Stacey's designer shoe collection during homestay week
When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's decision to step down as senior members of the royal family hit the headlines, people are furious and were left wondering why.

While some said that it is only a matter of time for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to quit the royal life, some are still puzzled about why a born and trained Prince would take such extreme measures for a woman who is not even born with the same privileges.

Much has been said and done about the royal plot twist of the year. Even during their last few days as working royals, Meghan and Harry have been badly scrutinized by the public who are angered with their decision to drop their responsibilities and cut ties with the royal family.

While the duo may look like a total villain, in the real and romantic world, we must say that these two have just conquered a major hurdle in their relationship.

As everybody is still fuming with fire with the so-called "Megxit," why do not we look at the positive side and understand why Meghan and Harry had to take this extreme measure to protect each other and their little family.

Leave and Cleave

The idea of leave and cleave is being practiced by families all over the world. Although Meghan and Harry are technically not living under the same roof with the rest of the royal family, they are still tied with them due to duties and responsibilities.

So flying to Canada or California to find their own identity and live a private and independent life is a bold move for two people who wanted to create a family of their own.

Prioritize Mental Health

Even before tying the knot, Prince Harry has been an advocate of prioritizing mental health. In an emotional statement in October 2019, the 35-year-old Duke said that he had been a silent witness to Meghan's suffering from the media scrutiny.

"To stand back and do nothing would be contrary to everything we believe in," Harry said.

So by stepping back from all the things causing Meghan's breakdown is merely setting a good example for men to be mindful of their wife's mental health.

It's Okay To Stay Away From Toxic People

One thing that "Megxit" taught us is that it is totally fine to cut ties with toxic people, be it a family member, a friend, colleague, or simply the people around you.

Staying connected with people causing your misery will take a toll on your health in the future, so might as well do you and prioritize your welfare.

Making Princess Diana proud

Harry's royal biographer Angela Levin once said that even at a young age, the Duke thinks that he failed to protect his mother, Diana -- Princess of Wales. This is maybe the reason why he is doing everything he can now to shield his wife and 10-month-old son from the media.

I bet Princess Diana is smiling up from where she is right now and proud of the man her son has become.
BrainTale, a French innovative company specialized in the development of software as a medical device for the quantitative measurement of the brain microstructure and the prognostication of the recovery outcome announces today its ISO 13485 :2016 certification and the CE marking of its first product, brainQuant.

The company received ISO 13485:2016 certification, an international standard governing the requirements of a quality management system for medical devices and related company services. The CE marking Conformite Europeenne certifies that the product meets European Union (EU) requirements for marketing in Europe.

BrainTale develops and commercializes accessible, effective and clinically-validated measurement and prognosis tools for brain injured patients. The solutions are based on standardized magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements with systematic quality checks, artificial intelligence algorithms derived from prospective clinical trials with large patient cohorts over several years led by AP-HP (Assistance Publique Hopitaux de Paris), prognosis performances addressing clinical needs and delivered in clear, understandable reports for physicians and patient's families. The solutions deployed by BrainTale were developed based on the work of the clinical teams of AP-HP and resulted in the filing of patent and proprietary-software applications.

BrainQuant is a SaaS solution providing regional quantitative measurement of the white matter microstructure from diffusion MRI after brain injuries, such as traumatic brain injury, cardiac arrest, stroke or neurological diseases. Its unique value proposition is based on its ability to provide standardized quantification of white matter injuries within the brain that is impossible with standard medical imaging, hence providing healthcare professionals with certified, quantitative and qualitative analysis of patients' brain. BrainQuant will be available within certified hospital centers, after professionals training and MRI calibration.

This news is a major achievement allowing healthcare professionals to use our first product in compliance with EU requirements. We are very excited about this new era of providing professionals with CE-cleared, clinically-demonstrated and efficient digital tools to provide relevant information to allow appropriate patient's journeycomments Vincent Perlbarg, the company's president.

The company's second product in development is brainScore, a SaaS solution combining brainQuant and artificial intelligence algorithms for predicting coma emergence for patients in intensive care units after severe traumatic brain injuries or cardiac arrest.

About BrainTale

BrainTale is an innovative company opening a new era in medicine providing physicians with clinically-validated prognosis solutions for the management of brain injured patient through sensitive and reliable measurements of brain microstructure alterations. BrainTale's products are based on medical needs understanding, fulfilling healthcare professionals and patients' expectations and is built upon more than 15 years of clinical development. Since its inception in 2018, the company has set up a full quality management system and is now ISO :13485 :2016 certified, while launching in Q1 2020 its first product, brainQuant.

For more information, please visit www.braintale.fr

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005028/en/

Contacts:

Vincent Perlbarg, vincent.perlbarg@braintale.fr, 0611655478

Julie Rachline, julie.rachline@braintale.fr, 0662420358
Rana Dagubbati had rightly said that doctors are no less than superheros, remember? They save lives. While you all sit at home in an attempt to ensure your safety, they are working tirelessly to save lives of coronavirus patients. The least we can do at the moment is be respectful to them and appreciate how they are risking their own lives for all of us.

But what happened in Indore recently is horrible, disturbing and shameful in equal measures.

Healthcare workers and civic officials were attacked and pelted with stones by angry locals. The doctors were reportedly trying to trace a person who had come in contact with a COVID-19 patient earlier, or let's just say they were doing their job.



The video showing these healthcare personnel in personal protective equipment (PPE) has gone viral on social media. The staff is seen running away from the angry mob which is shouting abuses, throwing sticks and stones and chasing them.



#WATCH Madhya Pradesh: Locals of Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore pelt stones at health workers who were there to screen people, in wake of #Coronavirus outbreak. A case has been registered. (Note-Abusive language) (1.04.2020) pic.twitter.com/vkfOwYrfxK  ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

Expressing grief and anger on the situation, Bollywood celebrities called it "most disturbing".

Shameful attack on health workers who are risking their lives for us . These people should be punished . https://t.co/Z1T7MUboUJ  Onir (@IamOnir) April 2, 2020

The most disturbing thing I saw this morning.. is this how we treat our doctors??? Health care workers??? Matlab, What are we???? #COVIDIOTS #shameful pic.twitter.com/QPeHOqLiri  divyenndu (@divyenndu) April 2, 2020

The enemys greatest weapon is fear. Nothing serves the enemy more than fear mistrust and disharmony amongst ourselves



People abusing and harming our brave health workers that are our soldiers on the front line, only helps the enemy. Let the media give us information, not fear.  Shekhar Kapur (@shekharkapur) April 2, 2020

Shameful attack on health workers who are risking their lives for us . These people should be punished . https://t.co/Z1T7MUboUJ  Onir (@IamOnir) April 2, 2020

If reports are to be believed, a case of rioting has been registered against the unknown mob. This wasn't the first attack in India against healthcare workers. Earlier, similar cases were reported in Telangana and Gujarat.

Two women doctors out of the team of five healthcare workers have reportedly suffered injuries on their legs.






Auburn Community Hospital is in dire need of federal funding as revenue declines and expenses soar due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The $2.2 trillion stimulus package, which was signed last week by President Donald Trump, includes $100 billion for hospitals and healthcare facilities. However, it's not known when the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will distribute the funds to the hospitals.

Matthew Chadderdon, vice president of marketing and public affairs at Auburn Community Hospital, said Thursday that revenues associated with outpatient surgeries will drop 85%. That's due to an executive order issued by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to cancel elective surgeries in New York to ensure hospitals have enough beds to treat COVID-19 patients.

Elective surgeries are a major revenue source for hospitals. Other hospitals across New York, including Syracuse, have reported significant revenue losses due to the cancellation of elective surgeries.

Chadderdon explained that Auburn Community Hospital's outpatient ambulatory visits decreased 20% and nursing home volume is down 16%. Primary care offices, many of which are owned by the hospital, have seen visits drop by 45%. That's despite the health care providers being able to use telemedicine for consults.

"These practices are experiencing significant losses on a daily basis," Chadderdon said. "Those losses aren't sustainable."

The revenue losses aren't the only challenge for the hospital. To prepare for a COVID-19 outbreak in Cayuga County, the hospital has spent at least hundreds of thousands of dollars. More than $240,000 was spent on extra hospital beds to expand capacity. The hospital just placed a $229,000 order for personal protective equipment. And there's a bill for nearly $200,000 on computer equipment and software so some staff could work remotely.

There have been discussions between the hospital and federal representatives about the immediate need for funding. U.S. Rep. John Katko, whose district includes all of Cayuga County, has weekly conversations with the hospital's leadership. U.S. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, through their central New York representatives, remain in contact with the hospital.

Chadderdon said the county's federal delegation has been "doing whatever they can to get creative and try and get the funding to us as soon as possible."

On a conference call with reporters Thursday, Katko acknowledged that central New York hospitals are struggling. He mentioned a recent story on Syracuse.com about Crouse Hospital in Syracuse losing $300,000 a day.

Katko echoed what Chadderdon said about the loss of elective surgeries. The procedures are "the financial lifeblood of the hospitals in our region," Katko said.

Katko and U.S. Rep. Anthony Brindisi sent a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services urging the agency to distribute the funding for hospitals. Schumer, D-N.Y., said he spoke with Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar on Wednesday and requested the immediate release of the funding.

"This is a problem nationwide," Katko added. "They don't need the money from this (stimulus bill) in three weeks. They need it now."

Politics reporter Robert Harding can be reached at (315) 282-2220 or robert.harding@lee.net. Follow him on Twitter @robertharding.

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(Natural News) The onslaught brought on by the coronavirus in America has stretched its healthcare system to the limit and ground the economy to a halt. Economic managers are warning that unemployment will continue to increase. Meanwhile, health officials are warning that hundreds of thousands of Americans could die before the end of the year.

According to a survey by Challenger, Gray & Christmas conducted from March 20 to March 26, almost half of all U.S. companies say that they will be laying off more people in the following months. Meanwhile, federal public health officials have told the White House have called the outbreak one of the nations worst public health crises, stating that up to 240,000 Americans could succumb to the coronavirus.

People are losing jobs and wont get them back soon

Since the global coronavirus pandemic hit U.S. shores, 27 states have enforced stay-at-home orders to slow down the spread of the coronavirus. However, the move, along with extended social distancing measures, has effectively sent the economy to a halt, with people unable to people go out and spend.

The economic standstill has caused these businesses to either lay off or furlough their employees. Of the 250 companies surveyed, 50 percent stated that they were at least somewhat likely to start laying off people within the next three months. In addition, 37 percent of the companies surveyed had already decided to implement a hiring freeze.

Millions of Americans filed for unemployment last week, so it is clear companies across the country are instituting very real and difficult cuts. Employers are wary of letting their workers go right now after fighting so hard to find and retain them during one of the tightest labor markets in recent history, said senior vice president Andrew Challenger.

At the time when the survey was conducted, the U.S. only had 18,000 cases of coronavirus and states such as California, New Jersey, Connecticut and New York were just beginning to implement stay-at-home orders. Now, over a week later, the country has over 200,000 cases of the coronavirus and over 5,000 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

People are turning to desperate measures

As the coronavirus continues to spread, people are starting to turn to desperate measures to try to secure necessities during this time of crisis. In some places in the U.S., people unable to pay for food and supplies are now turning to barter to get by. Social media networks Facebook and Nextdoor are being flooded with posts from people asking to trade goods such as toilet paper for food.

The situation has gotten some business owners nervous. Across the U.S., businesses are boarding up their storefronts fearing that the current situation may soon lead to social unrest and riots.

In Philadelphia, a man who lost his job to the pandemic shot his girlfriend in the back, before taking his own life.

240,000 Americans may lose their lives from the coronavirus

The biggest threat to American lives right now is still the coronavirus. In a White House briefing on Tuesday, the presidents top advisers for the coronavirus projected that between 100,000 and 240,000 Americans can still die from the coronavirus outbreak, even with social distancing measures. However, White House coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx said that this number could have been as high as 2.2 million had these measures not been set in place.

Following these projections, President Donald Trump announced that social distancing guidelines will be extended to April 30. These guidelines were originally meant to end on Easter, April 12, in a bid to reopen the economy as soon as possible.

Our country is in the midst of a great national trial, President Donald Trump said Tuesday in response to the numbers. Were going to go through a very tough two weeks.

The presidents advisers, including Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, stated that the predictions could still change as they are influenced by how seriously Americans took social distancing and other measures meant to slow the spread of the virus.

As part of this, Fauci stated that they were seriously considering guidance that Americans wear masks to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. However, he admitted that there would be issues with this as the nation is currently facing a shortage of masks and other personal protective equipment. This situation is already putting the many health care workers at the front line of the pandemic at risk. (Related: Doctors, nurses report dire shortage of protective gear  its like going to war with no weapons.)

The idea of getting a much more broad, community-wide use of masks outside of the health care setting is under very active discussion at the task force. The CDC group is looking at that very carefully, he added.

The thing that has inhibited that a bit is to make sure that we dont take away the supply of masks from the health care workers who need them, Fauci continued. But once we get in a situation where we have enough masks, I believe there will be some very serious consideration about more broadening this recommendation of using masks.

Sources include:

TheEconomicCollapseBlog.com

CNBC.com

USAToday.com

BloombergQuint.com

TMZ.com

Politico.com
By Steffie Bartley and Bolivar Flores

The prophet Isaiah commanded us to share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not turn away from relatives who need your help (Isaiah 58:7).

During this time of trouble in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, were each called to be responsible for ourselves and our family, but also to reflect upon the needs of those less fortunate, particularly the poor, the incarcerated, and those living on our streets.

Individuals are being released from county correctional centers and state prisons every day. In addition to those with an expedited release, there are 100,000 persons traveling each year through county correctional facilities and approximately 8,500 being released from state prisons.

Presently, to stop the spread of COVID-19, the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) is closed, so those released are unable to secure either an MVC identification or drivers license, both being primary photographic identification in New Jersey.

Without identification, those released cant get their applications processed for SNAP (Food Stamps), General Assistance/Temporary Emergency Housing Assistance or and Medicaid (medical and pharmacy). Without that identification, our program participants are literally without food, shelter and health care in the middle of a worldwide pandemic.

It is our hope that the state of New Jersey would help ameliorate this situation by permitting facilities to issue a photo ID to the individuals they are releasing. In addition, we would request that these facilities process the SNAP (food stamps), Work First New Jersey and Medicaid applications upon a persons entry. These benefits are currently awarded after a person is released.

Again, without enrollment in these assistance programs, the person released wont have any food, shelter or access to healthcare.

There is also a serious housing issue. Typically, those released are directed to a shelter but New Jersey Executive Order 108, which requires New Jerseyans to stay at home and self-quarantine, has filled many of the shelters making it difficult for this marginalized reentry population to comply with public health orders. This not only poses a threat to an individuals health but threatens the spread of COVID-19 in the greater community.

In addition, many shelters are currently administering temperature testing, and individuals with temperatures of 100.4 are being turned away for the overall wellbeing of the shelter.

To meet this growing and acute need for housing, New Jersey needs to increase its emergency shelter bed capacity on an urgent basis and can do so if the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) authorizes the operation of temporary emergency shelters at churches willing to offer assistance to formerly incarcerated persons and individuals who are homeless and/or unsheltered. To accomplish this, the state can build on the waiver of housing code and other licensure regulations put in place in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.

The potential impact on formerly incarcerated individuals is stark: there are collectively an estimated 9,000 individuals released from state prisons and county jails every month. Any governmental orders for expanding release from county jails and state prisons would appreciably exacerbate the individual and community impact.

We are most grateful for the leadership of Gov. Phil Murphy and the State Legislature to continue to provide basic services for individuals in prison, reentry persons and the homeless. Yet we are each called to do more. As the National Action Network and the New Jersey Reentry Corporation are serving thousands daily with basic meals, we recognize the potential contribution that the faith-based and non-profit community can continue to serve.

It is also incumbent that the government is entrepreneurial, responsive and agile in anticipating, improving and executing thoughtful action, which will best ensure that the most vulnerable of our fellow New Jerseyans are prepared and able to weather this crisis.

Rev. Steffie Bartley of New Hope Memorial Baptist Church in Elizabeth is the Northeast Regional Director of National Action Network, founded by Rev. Al Sharpton.

Rev. Bolivar Flores is vice president of the Coalition of Latino Pastors and Ministers, an independent group of Christian leaders committed to empowering Latinos and communities that are economically, socially, politically, and spiritually disenfranchised.

The Star-Ledger/NJ.com encourages submissions of opinion. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow us on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and on Facebook at NJ.com Opinion. Get the latest news updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
Inside Dr. Clark, an unassuming New York eatery that specializes in Hokkaido cuisine.

Yudai Kanayama opens new bars and restaurants faster than most people find a spot to park their car. In the last decade alone, hes unveiled two sister Izakaya restaurants in lower Manhattan, a cozy sake bar on the lower level of Essex Market, and Nowadays, a hot spot in Ridgewood. And while many in his position would be taking a well-deserved holiday by now, Kanayama carries on, recently opening the doors to Dr. Clark in a building where the highly touted karaoke bars Winnies and Lalito both enjoyed a good run.

Bringing the Dream to Life

Inside Dr. Clark, an unassuming New York eatery that specializes in Hokkaido cuisine.

When Kanayama visited the Bode store on Hester Street in late 2019, he was instantly struck by the space. The constructive aspects appealed to him, but what really awed him was the coffee-stained natural plywood that seemed to dominate the interiors. He realized he would require similar skills to make what he affectionately called his dream project a reality, and proceeded to seek out the designers who created the store, Aaron Aujla and Benjamin Bloomstein of Green River Project. He pitched his vision for Dr. Clark to them, describing an evocative and engaging gathering place reminiscent of his home in Hokkaido, the second biggest island in Japan notorious for its jingisukan (Genghis Khan lamb BBQ) and healthy agricultural history.

Inside Dr. Clark, an unassuming New York eatery that specializes in Hokkaido cuisine.

Once they were on board, the dream mingled with nightmarish moments as the details of the projects one-month timeline began to take shape. We had about four weeks to make 60 pieces of furniture, Aujla explains. This included 14 handsewn African mahogany barstools, eight aluminum barbecue tables, and 25 linen-upholstered table stools. Then there were the extensive ornamental embellishments: homemade aluminum sconces, a Kubrickian rectangular bar surrounded by soft illumination, and a miniature clay sculpture of the eminent Japanese agriculturist Dr. William C. Clark himself (a life-sized duplicate of which still stands in Hokkaido). But the most painstaking details in Dr. Clark are the Japanese characters carved into the floor and exterior facade that, when translated, convey little details about the restaurant, including booth numbers, hours of operation, and so on.

Story continues

The Menu

Kanayama will offer Genghis Khan lamb BBQ, also known as Mongolian barbecue, as Dr. Clarks signature dish. The complex entree is a dish local to Hokkaido comprised of grilled mutton, lamb (a younger and less gamey tasting sheep), and vegetables prepared on a special grill with a raised mound in the center. The dish is served in restaurants and outdoor barbecues alike, with the meat either being seasoned ahead of time or grilled unseasoned and dipped in a seasoned sauce before eating. For Dr. Clark, the lamb will be sourced from upstate New Yorks own KinderHook farms. Kanayama believes it will be a bigger hit in the Big Apple than his hometown as Japanese people dont understand the flavor.

The interiors of Dr. Clark are dominated by coffee-stained plywood and traditional Hokkaido accent pieces.

Another specialty dish offered at Dr. Clark will star sea urchin, a favorite of chef Mumetake Ogata, a former fisherman whos personally caught a ton of the spiky critters off the northernmost tip of Japan. Kanayama adds that the unique eatery will also feature a late-night milk parfait that he playfully calls Hokkaidos drunk food.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

Turkmenistan and Georgia discussed the possible use of a land plot in the port of Poti in Georgia, Trend reports with reference to Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

The discussions were held during a videoconference between representatives of Turkmenistan and Georgia arranged by the Ministry of foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.

A videoconference meeting chaired by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Georgia Alexander Khvtisiashvili was held on April 1, 2020. High-rank officials of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development, Ministry of Finance, agencies and companies of Georgia also participated in the videoconference. Turkmenistan was represented by top officials of Turkmen Ministry of Finance and Economics, Ministry of Trade and Foreign Economic Relations, several agencies and transport and logistics centers.

The parties discussed operations of the Caspian-Black Sea international transport corridor and bilateral relations in the transport and transit sphere.

Georgias experience in washing and disinfecting railway trains arriving from abroad was also discussed. The parties exchanged their opinions about the prices of cargo transportation, customs duties and trade benefits within cooperation between relevant agencies.
A man was arrested in Tripura's



Sipahijala district for allegedly raping his 11-year-old daughter for months, police said on Thursday.

The man used to sexually abuse and rape his daughter regularly for the past seven months at their house, they said.

The father also threatened her of dire consequences if she told about the torture to anyone, police said, adding that when she told her mother she did not believe her.

However, on Tuesday night when the man was again trying to sexually abuse the daughter, his wife caught him.

She raised an alarm and villagers informed the police and handed over the man.

We received a complaint from the rape survivor's mother against her husband. On the basis of the complaint the accused father was arrested. Medical examinations have been done and it was found to be positive," officer-in-charge of Bishalgarh womens police station Shiuli Das told PTI.

Further investigations are underway, she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dozens of Orthodox Jewish mourners wearing surgical masks held a funeral on a Brooklyn street corner for a 96-year-old rabbi on Wednesday in violation of the citys social distancing orders aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus.

Video circulating on social media on Thursday shows the men carrying a wooden coffin near Avenue N and East 9th Street in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn on Wednesday morning.

Several of the men in the funeral procession could be seen not wearing any facial covering.

The video also showed members of Shmira, a civilian nonprofit patrol group in Brooklyn, who were guiding the mourners.

A funeral procession attended by scores of Orthodox Jewish men is seen above near the corner of Avenue N and East 9th Street in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn on Wednesday morning

The pallbearers are seen above carrying a wooden coffin of a 96-year-old rabbi

Several of the men were seen wearing surgical masks while others were not wearing any face-coverings

The funeral was held for Yosef Leifer, who was the rabbi of Congregation Karnei Reim on Avenue N, according to the New York Post.

Leifer was a Holocaust survivor who became a rabbi of the Ukrainian Hassidic dynasty known as Nadvorna, which is named after the city in Ukraine in which the dynasty originated.

New York City is the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States. As of Thursday, more than 47,000 residents of the city were confirmed to have contracted the coronavirus.

The citys death toll, meanwhile, approached 1,400.

The New York Police Department told the Post on Thursday that it received no notifications about the presence of a large crowd.

By the time the police learned of the incident, the crowd was dispersed, the department said.

No arrests or summonses were issued.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said earlier this week that those who defy social distancing orders could potentially be fined up to $500.

Menashe Shapiro, a political consultant with ties to the Orthodox Jewish community, told the Post: Theres no excuse for violating social distancing, not even for a funeral, given the current state of affairs.

A lot of people have said, and I agree, that funerals have to be done at a bare minimum  people have to be buried, period.

He added: Despite the fact that escorting someone to their final resting place is considered the ultimate kindness, what took place yesterday in that video is utterly despicable under current circumstances since its self-defeating and risks many more funerals.

Cops charge 15 people - including a 100-year-old man - with breaking social distancing order after they gathered for a funeral in New Jersey Orthodox Jewish neighborhood

Police in New Jersey broke up a funeral attended by up to 70 people and issued summonses to 15 of them, including a 100-year-old man, in the predominantly Orthodox Jewish town of Lakewood on Wednesday.

It was the fourth consecutive day in which police were called to Lakewood to cite members of the secluded religious community who were found to be flouting stay-at-home orders aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus.

Police on Wednesday said they broke up a funeral attended by up to 70 people on the corner of Eighth Street and Madison Avenue in Lakewood, New Jersey (above)

Officers in Lakewood needed to call backup on Wednesday after receiving reports of a large gathering that took place at around 6:30pm.

Officials said that about 60 to 70 individuals gathered for a funeral on the corner of Eighth Street and Madison Avenue.

The street corner is very close to a Jewish synagogue and a cemetery.

This gathering was in violation of (Gov. Phil Murphys executive order), which bans gatherings of individuals, whether they be at weddings, parties, celebrations, or other social events including funerals, read a statement from Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Police Chief Gregory Meyer.

As officers tried to disperse the crowd, the crowd became unruly and argumentative.

So police had to ask for assistance from the Ocean County Sheriffs Office and the Ocean County Prosecutors Office.

Officers charged 15 men, including 100-year-old Nossom Strulovic, of violating the state ban on public gatherings.

Police in Lakewood broke up an engagement party on Tuesday attended by 16 people, including a 99-year-old man, at this residence on Spruce Street

One of the men refused to give police his correct name and social security number, according to NJ Advance Media.

That individual has been identified as Samuel Manheim, 27, of Brooklyn.

He was charged with hindering his own apprehension and violating the governors executive order during a state of emergency.

The men who received summonses have been identified as Joel Jakubowitz, 36, of Brooklyn; Shimon Hus, 18, of Brooklyn; Marcus Strulovic, 43, of Lakewood; David Kaf, 37, of Lakewood; Moshe Friedman, 20, of Lakewood; Solomon Strulovic, 21, of Lakewood; Joel Strulovic, 39, of Lakewood; Yosef Kohn, 35, of Lakewood; Mitchell Strulovic, 24, of Lakewood; Alexander Ellison, 64, of Lakewood; Mordechi Strulovic, 18, of Lakewood; Shimon Cardozo, 25, of Lakewood; and Bernard Strulovic, 45, of Lakewood.

Billhimer pleaded with Lakewood residents to stay at home.

This ban applies to everyone, Billhimer said.

To be blunt, ignoring the governors order places lives at risk - not just the lives of everyday citizens, but the lives of our brave men and women in law enforcement who are required to respond in order to break up these unlawful gatherings.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy banned weddings and social events to curb the COVID-19

The governor continues to warn people over Twitter and in press conferences not to have parties

As of Thursday, New Jersey officials said 25,590 cases of coronavirus were confirmed.

So far, 537 people have died.

Lakewood has emerged as the epicenter of coronavirus cases in Ocean County.

As of Thursday, Ocean County has reported more than 1,200 cases  40 per cent of which are in Lakewood.

The day before the funeral was broken up on Wednesday, police in Lakewood broke up an engagement party attended by 16 people.

Ten of those in attendance, including a 99-year-old man, received summonses.

On Monday, police charged two people after 35 men were found studying at a Jewish school in the town despite both public and private schools being mandated to shut down during the crisis.

On Sunday, police were called once again - this time to break up a bar mitzvah with around 50 guests. Eliezer Silber, 37, and Miriam Silber, 34, were charged with one child endangerment count for each of their five children.

At the engagement party, Yaakov Kaufman, 47, and Eti Kaufman, 45, were charged with six counts of child endangerment for each of the six kids who were present at the party.

The Kaufmans were also charged with violating the governor's emergency order.

Joshua Lichtenstein, 54; Brocha Lichtenstein, 22; Tzipora Wolfe, 24; Shmuel Kaufman, 23; Syril Lichtenstein, 54; Samuel Wolfe, 27; Michael Zimmerman, 99; and Ruky Zimmerman, 21 were also charged with violating the order for attending the party.

Murphy has said that while the vast majority of people are observing the stay-at-home order to slow the spread of the virus, he is frustrated that some parties still appear to be taking place.

'We're not happy,' Murphy said during a news conference. 'I assume there's some amount of ignorance. The more swift, visible action that is taken the more quickly we can bring this non-compliant behavior to zero.'

Police are warning that they are going to become more aggressive in issuing summons for people found to be breaching the order.

'Everybody at that gathering is now going to be cited,' Col. Patrick Callahan, acting superintendent of the State Police, said.

Earlier in March, police broke up celebrations at a event space in the town and two weddings as well.

The recent sightings of public gatherings have already exacerbated long-running tensions in Lakewood, where a large Orthodox Jewish population has relocated in recent years.

As wedding halls were ordered to shut down, residents simply moved the ceremonies to backyards on their residential properties.

Orthodox community leaders in Lakewood said that all 200 local synagogues and 130 yeshivas in the area have either shut down completely or limited prayer to small groups.
Five cities in the 1st Congressional District represented by U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal are getting $4.8 million under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed last week in Washington.

Neal, D-Springfield, announced the local grants and recipients. The program is rolling out nationwide under the $2.2 trillion federal economic stimulus plan.

The money comes through the familiar Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program cities use already to obtain federal funding.

These grants can fund things like manufacturing medical supplies, job training for health care workers, and constructing or rehabilitating public facilities for testing, diagnosing and treating COVID-19 and other uses.

The grant amounts are:

Springfield :$2,301,793

Pittsfield: $789,328

Holyoke: $744,265

Chicopee: $706,467

Westfield: $216,737

With each assistance and stimulus effort, we seek to provide practical, impactful benefits to help people who need it most. We do not yet know the full scale of the economic impact of this pandemic, but these are the steps we can take immediately to help flatten the curve, save lives, and address the immediate needs before us, Neal said.

Western Massachusetts has been hard-hit by COVID-19 and this CDBG money will go directly to local needs. As Chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, I will do whatever it takes to protect the health and financial security of our residents. Our work in Congress is far from over.

Neal, was one of the authors of the $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package passed and signed into law March 27.

The law also provides for direct payment of $1,200 each to Americans  $2,400 for those who file taxes jointly, with $500 for each dependent child and an additional $600 a week in unemployment benefits.

Neal has said he and his congressional colleagues are working on another round of stimulus, one that would include spending on infrastructure projects like roads, bridges, airports, rail expansion, ports, water and sewer, and broadband internet.

The CDBG grants announced today can be used for projects in the following categories.

Buildings and improvements, including public facilities

Construct a facility for testing, diagnosis or treatment.

Rehabilitate a community facility to establish an infectious disease treatment clinic.

Acquire and rehabilitate, or construct, a group living facility that may be used to centralize patients undergoing treatment.

Rehabilitate a commercial building or closed school building to establish an infectious disease treatment clinic, for example, by replacing the heating, air conditioning and ventilation system.

Acquire and rehabilitate a motel or hotel building to expand capacity to accommodate isolation of patients during recovery.

Make interim improvements to private properties to enable an individual patient to remain quarantined on a temporary basis.

Assistance to businesses, including special economic development assistance

Provide grants or loans to support new businesses or business expansion to create jobs and manufacture medical supplies necessary to respond to infectious disease.

Avoid job loss caused by business closures related to social distancing by providing short-term working capital assistance to small businesses to enable retention of jobs held by low- and moderate-income persons.

Provide technical assistance, grants, loans and other financial assistance to establish, stabilize and expand microenterprises that provide medical, food delivery, cleaning, and other services to support home health and quarantine.

Public services

Carry out job training to expand the pool of health care workers and technicians that are available to treat disease within a community.

Provide testing, diagnosis or other services at a fixed or mobile location.

Increase the capacity and availability of targeted health services for infectious disease response within existing health facilities.

Provide equipment, supplies and materials necessary to carry out a public service.

Deliver meals to quarantined people or individuals that need to maintain social distancing due to medical vulnerabilities.

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New Delhi, April 2 : The Indian Chemical Council has sought the Centre's support, including policy formulation and government investment, for increase in domestic raw material production.

In a statement, the industry body said that India's dependency on China for chemicals across the value chain for broad categories ranges between 10 to 40 per cent. With the rapid Covid-19 outbreak, there has been a significant void in the supply and demand chain in India which is impacting India's growth story at a larger extend, it added The ICC said that the Indian chemical sector needs to be future-ready for situations like these and there is a need to strengthen India's domestic chemical production base, which is the backbone of India's industrial and agricultural development.

"The chemical industry needs to better its feedstock allocation policy, government investments in chemical clusters across the country, easier access to capital due to its capital intensive nature, and simpler pollution compliance laws," the council said in a statement.

Policies favoring the chemical sector will give a fillip to all industries dependent on this industry, from LED lights to electronics, from EVs to apparels, thereby giving a boost to the entire Indian economy, it said.

The statement said that there is a wide range of opportunities for domestic manufacturers to explore along with the government's support to make India least dependent on other countries.
Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State has issued Executive Orders in the state following the prevalence of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) infections in neighbouring Benue and Akwa Ibom.

The orders are contained in a statement issued on Thursday in Calabar by Mr Christian Ita, Special Adviser, Media and Publicity to the governor.

Starting from midnight on April 3, no person will be allowed in public without a nose or face mask.

The Cross River Garment Factory is directed to work round the clock to produce masks, while observing industrial safe distancing and the state government will distribute masks for free to residents of the state

The Ministry of Humanitarian and Welfare Services, in conjunction with the state Food Bank, to deliver free food to the vulnerable in the state.

All exit and entry routes into the state are now completely shut against all human and vehicular movements.

All commissioners, Special Advisers, Chairmen, Directors General, Directors and Members of Boards and Commissions as well as Special Assistants, are hereby co-opted to assist the COVID-19 task force, in ensuring the enforcement and compliance with the guidelines aimed at keeping the state free of the pandemic, the statement said.

The statement directed all appointees to report at the U.J. Esuene Stadium on April 3, to receive their kits and commence full enforcement along with the Nigerian Police, Military, the Homeland Security Services and the Border Patrol Agency.

According to the statement, all Commissioners from local governments that border neighbouring states, are directed to retire back home and take charge of enforcement.

The state power company operating the 23MW power plant is directed to power street lights from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily.

Public spirited individuals and organisations willing to serve as volunteers to support enforcement of COVID-19 guidelines should register by sending their names and addresses to telephone no: 08039302693.

The statement said that residents willing to get nose masks should call 08099911011, while those for free food supply, should call 08037210284.

Cross River States neighbours, Benue and Akwa Ibom, have recorded one and five cases of coronavirus respectively.

(NAN)
Even the largest restaurant and cafe chains in the service sector are feeling the pinch of COVID-19

After five years of working at a restaurant, this is the first time T.N. cries. He has been working at the restaurant since graduation, and has been climbing the ladder steadily. I used to carry enough charcoal tablets to burn my hands, waited on patrons who scolded me so many times. Not one of the numerous difficulties in this job discouraged me for a second, but today, the day I have to let employees go, even if only indefinitely, I cried.

Talking about the situation of the restaurants employees amid the COVID-19 health crisis in Vietnam, he said that some had left to stay at hometown and avoid the epidemic, while others have been working fewer shifts at reduced wages. Those who decided to continue working now have to do everything, including cooking, serving meals, tending the bar, and washing dishes.

The restaurant was fighting for over a month despite the gloomy business and decreased revenues, until today when we had to officially close, he expressed a great deal of worry for the other employees, including the two cooks, one security, and three waiters who all bring major income to their family. The restaurant used to create jobs for tens of employees but will now close and all our employees will become unemployed.

Rowing in the same boat, most shops in the catering areas of international airports have closed following the halting of international flights into Vietnam. The managers of these shops advised staff to leave and receive financial assistance of VND1 million ($43.48). T.L., a staff at one of these shops said that her salary was VND4.8 million ($210) in addition to benefits, so she usually received VND7 million ($300) a month. Therefore, with the $43.5 assistance, she was at a loss about how to make rent and feed her two children.

With the novel coronavirus spreading across the country, the government called for the nation to go into self-isolation for 15 days from today (April 1, 2020), while several days ago, all non-essential businesses like shopping malls, restaurant dining, bars, and other non-essential businesses were ordered to close for at least two weeks in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.

This is expected to cause large losses for shops and service chains which will have to maintain all their shops and keep paying rental without being able to operate. For example, the rental fee of each shop of The Coffee House is around VND100 million ($4,350) per month, which means the chain spends around VND16 billion ($695,650) per month for 160 shops across the country. The chain has already closed 160 shops and keeps 30 locations open to serve takeaway customers. The Coffee Bike chain, which hasnine shops remaining open, spends about VND450 million ($19,500) on rent.

In a discussion with media, Vo Duy Phu, marketing manager of The Coffee House chain, said: If the pandemic is not brought under control soon, we are considering to permanentlyclose some shops and reduce land lease expenses. This decision would put hundreds of employees out of their jobs.

These concerns are shared by other restaurant and coffee chains like Golden Gate, Highland, and Starbucks. This would mean thousands of employees being sent on temporary leave or fired, which will put many families in financial distress.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, if the crisis continues to grow in scale, around 440,000-880,000 employees will see fewer working hours or unemployment. If the outbreak reaches the scale of a true pandemic in Vietnam as well, the number could rise to 880,000-1.32 million. The industries of processing and manufacturing, transport and logistics, as well as tourism will be impacted the most by COVID-19, making up 75-86 per cent of the above-mentioned figure.

On the other hand, the International Labour Organization (ILO) also gave an initial assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on the global world of work, saying that the effects will be far-reaching, pushing millions of people into unemployment, underemployment, and working poverty, and proposed measures for a decisive, co-ordinated, and immediate response.

Based on the different scenarios for the impact of COVID-19 on global GDP growth, the ILO estimates indicate a rise in global unemployment of between 5.3 million (low scenario) and 24.7 million (high scenario) from a base level of 188 million in 2019. By comparison, the 2008-2009 global financial crisis increased global unemployment by 22 million.
Since the Governors order on March 16th for all restaurants in New Jersey to close, our companys mission has been to assist the restaurant community in any way we can.

As the state-wide shutdown looms on for restaurants and non-essential businesses, in hopes to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic that has plagued the country in recent weeks, restaurateurs are feeling the stress of being unable to operate business as usual. While there is no end in sight for when restaurant owners will be able to open their doors again to patrons, New Jersey-based food and beverage-related real estate firm, Bielat Santore & Company is providing timely information to restaurateurs and their employees in their daily Restaurant Industry Alert email blasts.

The Restaurant Industry Alert is a daily email bulletin compiled with the latest updates, information and technical tools to support small businesses owners and their employees during state-wide closures. Since the Governors order on March 16th for all restaurants in New Jersey to close, our companys mission has been to assist the restaurant community in any way we can, said Richard Santore, Vice President and Broker of Bielat Santore & Company, Allenhurst, New Jersey. We have gotten a lot of positive feedback so far from restaurateurs, investors and small business owners, and we plan to continue the daily emails until businesses are able to open again. If you would like to receive these daily bulletins, email courtney@123bsc.com .

About Bielat Santore & Company

Bielat Santore & Company is an established commercial real estate firm. The companys expertise lies chiefly within the restaurant and hospitality industry, specializing in the sale of restaurants and other food and beverage real estate businesses. Since 1978, the principals of Bielat Santore & Company, Barry Bielat and Richard Santore, have sold more restaurants and similar type properties in New Jersey than any other real estate company. Furthermore, the firm has secured in excess of $500,000,000 in financing to facilitate these transactions. Visit the companys website, http://www.123bsc.com for the latest in new listings, property searches, available land, market data, financing trends, RSS feeds, press releases and more.
Namita Bajpai By

Express News Service

LUCKNOW: A complaint was lodged by Chief Medical Superintendent (CMS) of MMG District hospital of Ghaziabad against a group of five suspected coronavirus accusing them of obscenity on late

Thursday night.

The CMS Dr. Ravindra Singh, in his complaint, accused the group of five persons quarantined at the isolation ward of the hospital of indulging in obscenity and harassing the women staff.

All the five persons are attendees of Tablighi Jamaat conference at Nizamuddin.

MMG District Hospital of Ghaziabad is one of the five centers where the attendees of Jamaat are quarantined.

In his complaint, Dr Singh has claimed that the medical staff at the hospital, especially the women, were traumatised by the behaviour of those five persons.

"They refuse to follow the isolation rules and misbehave with the staff. When confronted, they use expletives and laugh off the instructions for maintaining social distancing, said Dr. Singh.

In fact, a group of four-five nurses had submitted a written complaint to the CMS regarding the behaviour of the persons under isolation.

FOLLOW CORONAVIRUS LIVE UPDATES HERE

The nurses had claimed that they were roaming around semi-naked and harassing female staffers. They are also humming filthy songs and doing obscene gestures refusing to take the medicines

Only with the help of cops they had to be quarantined with the help, they added.

According to Ghaziabad SP (Crime) Prakash Kumar, soon after receiving the complaint from the CMS of the hospital, the Station House Officer of the local police station concerned was asked to initiate strict action against the persons.

However, SHO Vishnu Kaushik claimed that he along with ADM City were at the spot conducting a probe into the matter.

Ghaziabad CMO Dr NK Gupta said that FIRs against such unruly elements would be lodged if they would not mend their ways and cooperate with the hospital staff.

So far Ghaziabad police have tracked down 170 persons associated with Tablighi Jamaat.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Coronavirus patients who require treatment in an intensive care unit could suffer from post-intensive care syndrome (PICS), experts say.

In general, patients who require intensive care are at risk for mental health issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression when their treatment is over, according to Weill Cornell Medicine at Cornell University. They also can suffer cognitive impairment and physical limitations.

These patients include those who experience severe respiratory failure requiring them to be put on a ventilator, along with those diagnosed with septic shock, among other things.

It's unclear what causes PICS, but a number of "stressors" can lead to it, including the use of ventilators and other "life-sustaining equipment," and the use of pain or sedative medications that can have "mind-altering" effects, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Although little is known about the long-term physical effects of coronavirus, some patients who become seriously ill with COVID-19 could be at a high risk for PICS, experts say.

Most people who are infected with COVID-19 will have mild symptoms, health experts have said. But of the 20% who are hospitalized with the virus, 13.8% have "severe disease" and 6.1% had respiratory failure or another "critical" illness, McClatchy News reports.

Dr. Daniela J. Lamas, a critical care doctor at Brigham and Women's Hospital, wrote in The New York Times that although long-term studies on coronavirus survivors don't exist yet, experts know recovery is possible for survivors of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). But it can take a while.

"We also understand that ARDS survivors can face a constellation of issuesanxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, even cognitive dysfunctionafter they recover from their critical illness," Lamas wrote in The New York Times. "As we see more survivors of ARDS from COVID-19, these are questions and issues that we as doctors will need to address."

Most coronavirus patients put on a ventilator will need to stay on it for one or two weeks, McClatchy News reports.

And the longer a patient stays in the ICU, the more likely they are to suffer long-term effects, experts tell NBC.

Additionally, one of the best ways to avoid post-ICU stress isn't possible for coronavirus patients.

ICU patients need "to have humans around to orient them, to calibrate them, to touch them, to look in their eyes, and make them understand what's happening," Dr. E. Wesley Ely, professor of medicine and critical care at Vanderbilt University, told NBC. "But that's exactly what the COVID patients won't get because they're all being isolated."

Ely told NBC that doctors are learning more about how COVID-19 specifically impacts post-ICU disorder from countries where case counts have been high.

"We've had reports from places where COVID cases are high, like China and Italy, that there is a boatload of delirium experienced by these patients," Ely told NBC.

But there are still things that can be done to help coronavirus patients in intensive care.

"Tell us about your loved one," Lamas tells family members of ICU patients via The New York Times. "Tell us what they like to be called. Tell us about favorite foods and activities, likes and dislikes. If your loved one is not awake, we can play their favorite musicwhich has also been shown to decrease anxiety in the ICU. When they are awake, we will make sure to give you time to chat remotely."

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

2020 The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Governor of Lori Province of Armenia Andrey Ghukasyan today wrote on his Facebook that there are now five coronavirus cases in the province and stated that all those who have had contact with the infected people have been isolated, reports hetq.am.

A couple of days ago, it became clear that one of the people infected with the coronavirus is a 70-year-old resident of Stepanavan who had recently returned from Moscow. She is currently at Nork Infection Clinical Hospital. During a phone conversation with hetq.am, epidemiologist at the medical center in Stepanavan Karen Maghakyan stated that there are currently 18 people who are isolated, 6 of which are ambulance doctors, and they are all isolated.

According to the source, there are people who are self-isolated in Stepanavan and the nearby villages, and the doctors of the medical center in Stepanavan check and examine them on a regular basis.

They are currently 23 in number, and some of them have just returned from Russia and Turkey. There is a total of about 80 people who have been isolated and self-isolated since the establishment of the state of emergency.

Hetq.am tried to contact the Commandants Office to specify the news, but all attempts were in vain since none of the operators answered the phone.
TORONTO, April 1 (Reuters) - Canada's financial system has the capacity to respond to further stresses and the regulator will continue to assess if additional changes to banks' capital buffers are needed, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) said on Wednesday.

OSFI reduced the domestic stability buffer for banks in March to free up C$300 billion ($211.3 billion) of additional lending capacity.

While banks can treat loans subject to six-month payment deferrals as performing loans, they must meet higher capital requirements if they become non-performing beyond that period, OSFI officials said on a media call.

($1 = 1.4198 Canadian dollars) (Reporting By Nichola Saminather Editing by Denny Thomas and Chizu Nomiyama)
While he lost 15 pounds, Louisiana transportation chief Shawn Wilson is back at work after weathering a two-week ordeal with the coronavirus.

"Over the weekend the energy levels really jumped," Wilson said Wednesday.

"It made it easy to get back here on Tuesday," he said. "It seemed like forever and a day. It was absolutely wonderful."

Wilson, 50, announced on March 20 that he had tested positive for the coronavirus after he started to feel bad the weekend before  around March 14-15.

He was the first and so far only member of Gov. John Bel Edwards' cabinet to disclose he had contracted the virus.

+2 Louisiana's DOTD chief Shawn Wilson tests positive for coronavirus Shawn Wilson, secretary for the state Department of Transportation and Development, has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, Wilson said

Wilson said at various times he had a sore throat, chills, fever and a mild cough but no respiratory issues.

"Toward the end it was not a shortness of breath. It was more a weak breath. If I would walk around the yard and sit down it would take me a while to regain my composure."

"I was taking three or four naps per day because I was tired," said Wilson, who is secretary for the state Department of Transportation and Development.

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He said last Thursday was his last day of taking medicine and that he has since met the standard of days minus any symptoms and without a fever.

Wilson said Wednesday he worked a full day at his DOTD office in Baton Rouge on Tuesday without any problems and feels fine.

About half of the agency's employees are working remotely because of Edwards' order that limits the labor ranks to essential personnel.

Wilson, who was never hospitalized, said his lack of any underlying health condition likely helped speed his recovery.

+3 Baton Rouge lawmaker hospitalized with coronavirus; Harvey rep hospitalized briefly State Rep. Ted James, a Baton Rouge Democrat and one of the most influential voices in the area legislative delegation, said he has tested pos

The Louisiana Department of Health announced Wednesday that the state has 6,424 coronavirus cases, with 1,498 patients hospitalized and 273 deaths.

Wilson said he was struck by the latest update on coronavirus deaths. "I very easily could have been one of those numbers," he said.

"The one thing that folks should be prepared for, and I wouldn't call it guilt, but there is a tremendous burden and pressure you feel when you have recovered and so many haven't."
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Apr. 02, 2020 | PADUCAH

By West Kentucky Star Staff Apr. 02, 2020 | 11:19 AM | PADUCAH

A McCracken County official who recently participated in a conference call with federal government officials about the coronavirus response is sharing some of what he has learned, and what he thinks may be in store for local residents as the pandemic continues to spread.



McCracken County Commissioner Bill Bartleman spoke to the Greg Dunker Show Thursday morning about the call Wednesday with Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci and several other high-level government officials to discuss the government's coronavirus response.



Bartleman said one of the main topics of discussion was the relief money coming for local businesses and residents who have been affected by the pandemic. He said officials are doing everything they can to expedite the process of getting money into the hands of those who need it during this difficult time.



"Normally the federal government works real slow, and they're very bureaucratic in what they do. It appears that they're really working hard to get all of these things put together really quickly," Bartleman said. "Hopefully within a week they start offering the incentives for local businesses, and for individuals the checks should be here within a couple of weeks. The real take away for me was that the bureaucrats down below the presidential level are working really hard to get it done pretty quickly."



Many area jails are also making efforts to get ready for the virus by trying to alleviate some of their overcrowding issues. Bartleman said some non-violent inmates who have completed most of their sentence, or those who have health issues are being released on a case-by-case basis to help free up space inside the jail to allow for increased social distancing. He said McCracken County Jailer David Knight has already taken several actions to prepare for what may be coming.



"Fortunately in McCracken County we've got a really good jailer. He began immediately to limit visitation, and everybody that's in the jail is tested medically for temperature and symptoms. Nothing has hit our county jail yet. Also, with the cooperation of judges and others, they've reduced the population of the county jail by about 120. It was close to 600, now it's about 450 I believe." Bartleman said.



Bartleman said the situation we are in right now is so unique that there really isn't anything in recent history to compare it to, adding that he thinks this will be a long-term event that will require everyone to make sacrifices.



"This is just an unprecedented situation we're in right now. This isn't a snow storm that came through, it's not a tornado or an ice storm that affected a small area. This affects everybody, from newborn babies to senior citizens in nursing homes. It's not something you can see the end to. When we saw the ice storm, we got up the next morning and saw the damage. They began immediately to make repairs. But here, we're just sitting at home waiting to see what happens next. I don't think this is gonna end anytime soon. I think we'll be locked up most of the summer." He said.
Photo: Nan Palmero/Flickr

Here's the most recent top news you may have missed in San Antonio. Toilet paper headed to San Antonio burns in Dallas County big rig fire Read the full story on KPRC2 / Click2Houston. Deadline for San Antonio's Corona Art Relief Program moved up due to overwhelming response Read the full story on San Antonio Current. Texas A&M-San Antonio will hold spring commencement in September Read the full story on Graham Media: KSAT 12 . Second SAPD officer tests positive for coronavirus, city officials say Read the full story on Graham Media: KSAT 12 . US Marshals searching for San Antonio man who escaped Texas prison facility Read the full story on Graham Media: KSAT 12 . This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.

The driver and his dog were not injured, but the truck did catch fire, burning the thousands of rolls toilet paper along with it.

The fund launched last week by the Luminaria Foundation and San Antonio's Department of Arts and Culture to offer relief for local artists has yielded an overwhelming response.

Postponed due to the novel coronavirus, Texas A&M University-San Antonio will now hold its spring commencement in September.

A second officer with the San Antonio Police Department has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, city officials said Wednesday.
Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy on Thursday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to release Rs 995 crore to the Union Territory to carry out relief works related to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

"The (COVID-19) situation is under control in Puducherry," he said.

The prime minister should immediately release Rs 995 crore as there are three positive cases who are under medical treatment and another 3,075 persons under home quarantine, Narayanasamy said.

Besides, the Centre should also release Goods and Services Tax arrears of Rs 400 crore to Puducherry, he said.

Narayanasamy said all the three coronavirus positive cases are those who returned from the last month Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi.

Three other persons who attended the conference tested negative of COVID-19, he said.

The positive cases belong to Ariyankuppam, Thirubhuvanam and Katterikuppam, the chief minister said, adding that people who were in contact with them have been quarantined.

People from 1,000 families who had come in contact with the three persons who tested COVID-19 positive and the areas where these families reside have been cordoned and declared sterile areas, Narayanasamy said.

Intensive medical check up is being carried out and the government is now trying to identify other persons who were in contact with the positive cases, he said.

The Congress CM reiterated that the Centre should provide more assistance to Puducherry in the form of finance as well as medical equipment like monitors, testing kits, medicines, ventilators and personal protection equipment.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Mumbai, April 2 : In a major relief for developers, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) on Thursday extended the completion deadline for all registered projects by three months.

Further, the authority also extended the time limits of all statutory compliances in accordance with the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 and the rules and regulations which were due in March, April or AMay are till June 30, 2020.

"For all MahaRERA registered projects where completion date, revised completion date or extended completion date expires on or after 15th March 2020, the period of validity for registration of such projects shall be extended by three months. MahaRERA shall accordingly issue project registration certificates, with revised timelines for such projects, at the earliest," said the order.

It said that in view of the partial lockdown in the state earlier and the eventual nation-wide lockdown, the construction work in MahaRERA-registered projects has been severely affected and the supply chains for obtaining construction material have been disrupted and labour work force may have migrated back to their home states.

"Due to these circumstances, real estate projects across Maharashtra will take some time to restart work. Recognising this, RBI has also allowed banks to provide a three month moratorium on fixed term loans and EMI payments. Therefore, in order to aid government efforts in controlling the damage of COVID-19 and ensure that completion of MahaRERA registered projects does not get adversely affected, it has been decided to issue this order," it said.

Developers welcomed the relief from the authority. Ashok Mohanani, Chairman EKTA World said that at a time when there is "mental, social and economic unrest globally, this move brings relief".

He noted that the lockdown brought all work to standstill, hence a deadline extension for under construction projects was definitely the need of the hour.

Farshid Cooper, MD, Spenta Corporation was of the view that with the country under a 21-day lockdown, there will be several real estate projects which will get delayed because of the pandemic.

"We are happy that MahaRERA has extended the timeline for completion of projects by three months, which has given developers time to deal with the situation," Cooper said.

President of the National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) Niranjan Hiranandani described the decision as a "proactive" step by Maharashtra RERA.

"Even after the lockdown is lifted, it is anyone's guess how long it will take for things to return to normalcy," Hiranandani said.

Welcoming the MahaRERA's decision, Nahar Group's Vice Chairperson, Manju Yagnik said that this extension of the deadline for projects in Maharashtra is in sync with RBI's announcement of granting a 3-month moratorium for payment of home loan EMIs and other working capital loans.

"We welcome this move in the wake of supply chain disruption, migration of workers and other related issues, as it will take some time for the real estate industry to be on track. A much-appreciated step when the country is under total lock-down to counter the impact of pandemic COVID-19 leading to construction work coming at grinding halt," she said.
The National Health Commission reports over 1500 cases on 30 March. Domestic and foreign pressure changes the regime's approach. WHO calls for all positive patients to be counted. Between 18% and 31% of infected patients in China are healthy carriers of the virus; 60% in Wuhan. Sino-American study: asymptomatic cases could increase the calculation of coronavirus-positive cases by 59%.

Beijing (AsiaNews) - The new asymptomatic cases of coronavirus registered in China today are 130, bringing the total to 1367. On March 30 there were 1541, according to the first ever communication of this nature by the National Health Commission. In the past two days, 302 infected people have been removed from the list because they are no longer under medical observation.

In February, the Chinese health authorities had established that asymptomatic positive cases should not be calculated in the number of infected, and therefore not reported. On the contrary, the World Health Organization demands that all positive patients be counted.

This is the model followed by South Korea. However, the United States, Italy and the United Kingdom - among the most affected countries - do not carry out diagnostic tests for people without symptoms, unless they are medical personnel exposed for a long time to Covid-19.

Internal and international public pressure has pushed Beijing to change its approach. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has asked several times to monitor positive patients who show no symptoms of infection, and can be dangerous carriers of the disease.

At present, the number of people infected in China is 83189; there are 3312 deaths. According to a Sino-American study released in early March, asymptomatic cases could increase the calculation of coronavirus-positive cases by 59%.

Last month, a team of researchers from Tongji Medical College, Fudan University and Harvard calculated that 60% of Covid-19 patients in Wuhan, the epicenter of the epidemic crisis, were asymptomatic.

Zhang Wenhong, director of the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Huashan Hospital in Shanghai, estimates that between 18% and 31% of infected patients in China are healthy carriers of the virus. However, he argues that the greatest danger comes from asymptomatic cases imported from abroad.
Regulatory News:

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) ("PSH") today announced that it has purchased, through PSH's agent, Jefferies International Limited ("Jefferies"), the following number of PSH's Public Shares of no par value (ISIN Code: GG00BPFJTF46) (the "Shares"):

Trading Venue: London Stock Exchange Ticker: PSH Date of Purchase: 2 April 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 79,222 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 1,432 pence 17.77 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 1,386 pence 17.19 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 1,407 pence 17.46 USD Ticker: PSHD Date of Purchase: 2 April 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 76,921 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 17.48 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 17.18 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 17.27 USD Trading Venue: Euronext Amsterdam Ticker: PSH Date of Purchase: 2 April 2020 Number of Public Shares purchased: 130,900 Shares Highest Price Paid Per Share: 17.76 USD Lowest Price Paid Per Share: 17.14 USD Average Price Paid Per Share: 17.34 USD

PSH will hold these Public Shares in Treasury. The net asset value per Public Share related to this buyback is 27.72 USD 22.32 GBP which was calculated as of 31 March 2020 (the "Relevant NAV"). After giving effect to the above buyback, PSH has 200,751,498 Public Shares outstanding, or 206,460,749 Public Shares calculated on a fully diluted basis (assuming that all Management Shares had been converted into Public Shares at the Relevant NAV). Excluded from the shares outstanding are 10,205,252 Public Shares held in Treasury. The prices per Public Share were calculated by Jefferies.

The number of PSH Management Shares and the one special voting share (held by PS Holdings Independent Voting Company Limited) have not been affected.

About Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd.

Pershing Square Holdings, Ltd. (LN:PSH) (LN:PSHD) (NA:PSH) is an investment holding company structured as a closed-ended fund that makes concentrated investments principally in North American companies.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005723/en/

Contacts:

Camarco

Ed Gascoigne-Pees Hazel Stevenson +44 020 3757 4989, media-pershingsquareholdings@camarco.co.uk
Relatives of Americans who are wrongfully imprisoned abroad or held hostage by militant groups say in a report issued Thursday that the U.S. government still must do better in communicating with them, though improvements have been made over the last five years.

Several of those interviewed for the report say they don't feel their loved one's cases have the attention of the highest levels of government.

In particular, family members of Americans who are detained by foreign governments on trumped-up charges say they feel those cases are less of a priority to the U.S. government than cases involving hostage-taking by militant or criminal groups.

The report from the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation is based on interviews with 25 former hostages and detainees as well as their relatives and advocates.

It cites improvements in the government's response since the government overhauled its hostage policy five years ago, but says relatives still want more complete and accurate information and clarity about which agency is supposed to help them.

Some, for instance, want the government to declassify more information so that it can be more easily shared, or to provide limited security clearances.

The report is the latest outside effort to scrutinize how the government interacts with hostages and detainees and their families back home. It examines the changes to hostage policy that were instituted by the Obama administration in 2015 and that largely remain intact under President Donald Trump. Those include the creation of an FBI-led hostage rescue fusion cell and the appointment of a State Department envoy for hostage affairs.

The policy revamp followed the beheadings of Westerners, including Foley, a freelance journalist, at the hands of the Islamic State group in Syria. Relatives of hostages demanded changes after they said U.S. officials threatened prosecution if they tried to pay ransom, kept them out of the loop on rescue attempts and didn't clearly communicate government policy.

Foley's mother, Diane, established the foundation to raise attention for hostage issues and to advocate for Americans held overseas.

The report says the policy improvements have been effective and durable, resulting in better government access for hostage families as well as more resources. But it also says that families of other detainees don't feel like their cases are prioritized in the same way.

The U.S. government distinguishes hostages who are captured by overseas criminal organizations or by militant groups designated as terrorists from detainees who are held by foreign governments, often arbitrarily or on exaggerated or fabricated charges.

The distinction matters in terms of which government agency is responsible for the case.

Hostage cases are worked by the interagency FBI-led Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell and the State Department through its presidential envoy for hostage affairs. Detainee cases are run through the State Department, largely through its consular affairs office but also its hostage office if the detention is seen as for illegitimate purposes.

Though the hostage policy overhaul sought to establish lanes of responsibility within the government's response, several of the report's participants expressed confusion about which agency was supposed to be their primary point of contact.

Most relatives of hostages who were interviewed said they felt they had reliable access to the government, but relatives of detainees did not feel the same, with one family advocate saying they had to work way too hard to get the State Department's attention and help.

The State Department did not respond to a request for comment, and the FBI had no immediate comment.

There is a notable disparity in the treatment of hostage and wrongful detainee families by the US government, with the latter receiving less attention, information, and access," the report said.

It said the U.S. government can do more to support the families of those Americans wrongfully detained abroad." Several interviewees said they were concerned about having less access to the State Department's hostage affairs office because of recent turnover there. Robert O'Brien, the official who used to hold the position, is now Trump's national security adviser.

The Trump administration has made the return of hostages and detainees a priority. Officials have eagerly touted the release of multiple high-profile Americans as validation of those efforts. Danny Burch, an American held for 18 months in Yemen, was freed last year, and Kevin King, an American professor, was released by the Taliban in a prisoner swap last November.

Still, other cases remain unresolved or have not had positive outcomes.

American journalist Austin Tice remains missing after vanishing in Syria in 2012. Trump recently mentioned Tice by name in saying that the government was working to bring him home.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban is backpedaling to stanch the sell-off of his virus-battered currency and respond to a rare rebuke from the European Union's most powerful members.

After he took total control of his country this week, he's now scrambling to respond to a backlash against what's perceived as a power grab made under the cover of the coronavirus crisis. Half of the EU governments urged Orban to respect the rule-of-law while the EU's largest political group again revived calls to expel his party.

In less than 24 hours, Hungary's central bank swung from monetary easing to tightening to arrest the forint's free fall. The government in Budapest rescinded a plan to strip power from mayors during the coronavirus. And the cabinet postponed a weekly briefing Thursday without explanation.

The moves come as some investors believe that Orban is laying the groundwork for a dictatorial regime, Viktor Zsiday, a fund manager at Hold in Budapest, said in a blog post.

"And if they're scared, they're going to pack up and leave," he said.

After testing the bloc's fortitude in defending its democratic values by eliminating checks and balances against him for more than a decade, Orban won parliamentary approval Monday to rule by decree for as long as he sees fit.

In a joint statement that mentioned neither Hungary nor Orban, Germany, France and more than a dozen other EU nations said they were "deeply concerned" about the erosion of the rule-of-law. European Commission Vice President Vera Jourova said the bloc's executive will analyze the new Hungarian measure as well as other member states' emergency laws and closely monitor their application.

"By killing the virus we should not kill democracy," Jourova said in an emailed response to questions. "Next to the need to gain immunity against corona, we must strengthen our collective immunity against the virus of absolute power."

Since winning the power to rule by decree Monday, the government filed a raft of legislation that, aside targeting mayors, moved to expand control over theaters, unblock a large Orban-backed construction project and classify contracts tied to a $2 billion, Chinese-funded rail project for a decade.

That appeared to vindicate those who have long warned that a feckless response from EU leaders would embolden Orban and give other nationalist governments, such as Poland's, a model in rebelling against the bloc's values.

Hungary is already in the midst of a so-called Article 7 probe, which technically can lead to the suspension of EU voting rights but can be vetoed by any member. Discussions about cutting the billions of euros Budapest receives under the EU's budget has also so far required unanimity.

Orban has said he won't threaten democracy and that he'd hand his indefinite lock on decision-making back to lawmakers when the pandemic passes.

"We deeply regret that the statement was not open for all Member States to join," his government said in a statement, adding that the EU's values are "common to all of us."

European People's Party President Donald Tusk called for Europe's biggest umbrella political group to reassess whether to expel Orban's Fidesz, calling his indefinite decree-rule "politically dangerous and morally unacceptable." The EPP, which includes German Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union, suspended Fidesz last year.

On Thursday, 13 EPP member parties called for the expulsion of Orban's Fidesz in an open letter. But most were ones that had already called for Fidesz to be kicked out and who failed to carry a majority in the EPP. Notably absent was Merkel's CDU, which has had a policy of keeping Orban inside the EPP in a bid to retain some influence over the renegade leader.

But Orban has shored up his defenses at home. Having won three consecutive elections, he has stacked the Constitutional Court with loyalists, appointed allied to head formerly independent institutions, cracked down on civil society and built the EU's biggest propaganda machine.

"Orban didn't expect a market and political backlash of this magnitude," said Andras Biro-Nagy, director of Policy Solutions, a Budapest-based think-tank. "They had to move fast to defuse the situation."
A slowing rate of hospitalisations requiring intensive care may mean the peak of Italys crisis is within sight.

Turin, Italy  Initial signs of a slowdown in Italys coronavirus epidemic, the worlds deadliest, have started appearing across the country in recent days, say officials, providing a beacon of cautious hope to other Western nations where authorities are implementing similar containment strategies  but where the infection rate is still growing fast.

Following a national lockdown that began on March 10, Italy has become an international litmus test to understand the dynamics of the viruss spread, and the relative success of strict measures to stem the contagion. Though statistics vary, many hard-hit countries could be around three weeks behind Italy in their domestic infection spread.

On Thursday, Italy announced that the number of deaths here had risen by 760 in 24 hours, to 13,915, as new cases grew at a steady rate by 4,668, against the previous days 4,782, to a total of 115,242.

Similar rates of growth in total cases have been recorded in Italy over the past five days, shifting between a maximum of 5.6 percent and a minimum of four percent, showing a tentative steadying of the contagion curve.

Silvio Brusaferro, president of the National Institute of Health, told a press conference on Tuesday that the country seemed to be arriving at a plateau, showing that the movement restrictions were working. He also hinted at the possibility of having reached a peak in the contagion.

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Although experts mostly agree there are some initial signs of improvement, they still warn that official numbers could be failing to provide a clear picture of the overall situation.

Technically, the peak is the day when the highest number of daily infections is reached, Nino Cartabellotta, a leading Italian public health expert, told Al Jazeera.

After March 21, when Italy had a high of 6,500 cases, we witnessed a decrease. We are now in a sort of a plateau, where numbers still go up and down, since they also depend on the number of tests conducted on a daily basis. This might last up to three weeks, when a [decrease] should begin.

But based on the different virus transmission rates seen across Italys varied regions, and with discrepancies in testing policies, Cartabellotta says discussing a contagion peak in Italy was like talking about a fabled phoenix.

The number of infected patients [announced] depends on the daily changes in the number of tests, meaning this figure cannot be taken as an objective measure. [It is like] looking through a keyhole that keeps constantly changing in size, he says.

Experts say the number of infected people in the country is certainly higher than has been announced, as the vast majority of tests have only been conducted on people who have been hospitalised, leaving infected citizens with no or few symptoms uncounted.

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Meanwhile, officials said on Tuesday the number of deaths could have also been underestimated, since their data did not include the deaths of people who died at home or in nursing homes. In Bergamo, the city in Italy most badly affected by the infection, fatalities in the first three weeks of March increased more than four times compared with the same period in 2019.

But more positive signs have also emerged this week, with the rate of hospital admissions starting to slow, alongside a decline in the number of patients in need of intensive care in some of the countrys worst-hit areas.

A doctor working in a COVID-19 ward at a hospital in Cremona, one of the provinces most affected by the crisis, told Al Jazeera that the number of patients who were hospitalised with serious infections had slightly decreased since the weekend, along with the number of ambulance service interventions.

Virologist and University of Florida Professor Ilaria Capua, a former Italian MP, told Al Jazeera she felt cautiously optimistic, although she also acknowledged that an overall statement about the course of the epidemic was difficult to issue in light of the different sampling procedures carried out in different Italian regions.

I am beginning to feel optimistic because recent data are showing that there is no significant increase in the number of deaths or in severe clinical forms that require hospitalisation, she told Al Jazeera. The biggest problem of this pandemic is the overload of the healthcare services. The number of hospitalisations is not significantly increasing, meaning that the restriction measures that were put in place are actually working. Therefore, we are hopefully stabilising before the epidemic curve starts decreasing.

200330090728352

Capua said the epidemic curve might also be impacted by the growing presence of antibodies across society. Those people who have been affected by an asymptomatic or mild form of COVID-19 should have in fact produced antibodies, which are one of the likely barriers to the transmission of the virus, contributing to the effects of the restriction measures.

But if Italy relaxed now, it could still witness new peaks.

Officials say a full lockdown will continue until at least Easter (April 12), while many are already expecting further extensions.

Cartabellotta warns that it could be potentially very dangerous if politicians start discussing what to do next and ways to reopen the country while basing their assumptions on the way their numbers are currently being recorded.

He also urged more clarity concerning the category of people authorities define as recovered/discharged. As of Thursday, 18,278 individuals fall into this category.

It was not specified whether all those in this category underwent the double testing the World Health Organization requires for a case to be declared closed. The Italian health agency considers a case closed when someone heals and ceases to be contagious. Often, people who were discharged were not tested twice, meaning they could still be potentially contagious, or active cases.

We are at risk here of letting people out who shouldnt go around, Cartabellotta says.

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At the same time, more guidelines from European officials are needed to standardise metrics in measuring the contagion, thus helping scientists research and plan for the next steps to be rooted in scientific analysis.

In order to study it we need to be speaking the same language, Capua says. But we need to do it now. We cannot go back in time and generate data that we didnt collect in the right way. Because everything that we didnt collect is then gone, we dont have it anymore.

Male individuals also appear more likely to develop severe clinical cases of COVID-19 in Italy, and preliminary data suggest a similar scenario in other countries, though that requires more data and standardised methods to confirm.

Researchers arent sure whats behind this apparent trend, but Capua says this preliminary evidence could represent a stepping stone as we head towards the new normal, knowing it could represent a criterion to enact measures for the next phase of the emergency.

If these data are confirmed, it would seem wise to start repopulating the workforce with a higher number of women than men initially, she said. Because if women are more resistant, theyll have a tendency to get less seriously affected, and therefore they wont be another burden on the healthcare system.
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LONDON  For the second year running, most of the shortlisted novels for the International Booker Prize are by women. The contenders for the award, arguably the most significant prize for literature translated into English, were announced in London on Thursday.

Among the books in the running are the Japanese author Yoko Ogawas The Memory Police, as well as novels originally written in Dutch, Persian and Spanish.

Daniel Kehlmanns Tyll is perhaps the most high-profile, having sold over 600,000 copies in the authors native Germany. Netflix is currently adapting it.
Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Robin Alli Gallite

Last month when the World Health Organization dubbed the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, State Department officials gave Robin Gallite and her husband Alli, both 41, a choice: Return to the U.S. from Lagos, Nigeria, quickly before the countrys airports closed and the health-care system deteriorated, or stay with their 16-month-old daughter, Nike, and risk getting stuck in the country.

After applying for her adoption in 2018, Robin and Alli took home Adenike-RaeNike for shortin August from Cross River, a Nigerian state bordering Cameroon. The couple planned to stay with Allis family in Lagos for several months while they waited for Nikes adoption to be finalized by local officials and until they received a U.S. visa for their daughter. They had wanted to spend time with Allis family before returning home to the U.S. so Robin could introduce Nike to her own mother. The couple had heard from other parents that obtaining a visa for adopted Nigerian children took months, but they were optimistic about being able to fly back to the U.S. with their daughter in the spring of 2020.

That confidence quickly faded. In February, President Donald Trump placed Nigeria on his travel ban list along with other countries with predominantly large Muslim populations. Weeks later, the coronavirus epidemic ballooned, causing the closure of borders around the world and forcing Americans like Alli and Robin to scramble to find a way out on evacuation flights. The dual events left the couple with a harrowing choice: Even if they were to get on one of the few flights out of Lagos, officials told them that they would not be able to bring their daughter with them.

Robin Alli Gallite

Alli and Robins story may be uniquely traumatic. But it highlights the emotional and logistical difficulties many Americans are facing in trying to get back to the U.S.difficulties that include trying to book evacuation flights, having to uproot professional and familial structures, and being forced to deal with inconsistent communication with U.S. consulate representatives. The couples situation exposes the real-life limitations Americans face in trying to repatriate from a country under Trumps travel ban and raises questions about how the State Department is handling already in-process visa applications during the coronavirus outbreak.

Story continues

When the pandemic hit, we were like OK, we really need to get home to our families. And [the consulates] communication was well you can get home to your families. But we couldnt. We didnt have the visa, Robin said. The latest communication the couple received was in an email from the State Department. It was something along the lines of Yes, were very much aware of Robins case and its still processing, Robin said.

The State Department did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

As of Thursday, Robin, Alli, and Nike are still in Lagos. From their home there, the couple told The Daily Beast about their months-long struggle to try to get their daughter home to Colorado. Since the presidents February proclamation, Robin and Alli said they have continuously tried to seek guidance from State Department officials about why their childs visa was held up and how the travel ban could affect her case. They have asked U.S. representativesincluding Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), a prominent advocate for adoptionto help get the family home in one unit.

Im a Full Nomad: The Americans Fighting to Get Home

Robin, a deputy executive director of nonprofit art center Redline in Denver, and her husband Adebambo Alli, who goes by Alli, had for years thought about adopting a child. Nigeria was a natural place for them to look. Alli was born in the U.S. but spent his adolescence in Nigeria and still has dozens of family members living there. When we decided we were going to adopt, Nigeria was the clear choice, Robin said. So we decided to go down the adoption path and I have to say things were really brilliant for us.

The adoption process can be grueling for some parents. At times it can take years for agencies to match individuals with children in need of a home. But for Robin and Allison, the process of adopting Nike went smoothly. They found out within one year that they would be able to adopt her from Cross River State because of Allis descent. (Its more difficult for couples without Nigerian passports to adopt outside of Lagos.)

Robin and Alli said they flew to Nigeria in August to meet Nike but they were not sure how long it would take to hold their daughter in their arms. Usually, Robin said, parents have to wait to gain custody of their children and even longer to legally adopt them.

That whole situation for us was like magic that we were able to find our daughter, who at the time was only 9 months old, Robin said. We were able to take custody of her on the same day.

Nikes adoption was finalized in October and Robin and Alli applied for Nikes visa in November, thinking it would only take them a few months to collect the necessary paperwork and fly back to Colorado.

For months, the plans appeared to be on track. Robin and Alli bonded with their daughter, taking her to the beach and introducing her to their family and friends in the country. In photos sent to The Daily Beast, Nike is smiling, leaning on her mother and fathers shoulders, dressed in delicate flower dresses. From those snapshots, it looks as if the three have been together forever. Its clear Nike knows who her parents are.

Robin Alli Gallite

Alli and Robin never anticipated that a day would come where theyd have to think about going a day without Nike by their side, they said. But as the months rolled on and the State Department continued to dodge questions about Nikes visa, worry set in.

We thought by January, OK this is getting a lot longer than we expected, Alli said.

Soon, fairly commonplace bureaucratic holdups turned into major geopolitical complications. On Feb. 21, the Trump administration announced a travel ban on Nigeria that barred Nigerian nationals from entering the U.S. because, among other rationales, the government does not adequately share public-safety and terrorism-related information, which is necessary for the protection of the national security and public safety of the United States.

Robin Alli Gallite

The ban came as a shock for many Nigerians, including Allis family members, who had for more than 10 years tried to move to the U.S. For Allis family, the ban was personal. And it wouldnt just take a toll on his brothers and sisters. It was set to take a toll on his daughter, too.

A lot of these people put on hold because of the travel ban are highly educated folks and go-getters and they wouldnt be a burden on the system. If anything, theyd be an add, Alli said. It just seems like for whatever reason everyone has flagged Nigeria as non-productive or a Muslim country. They worry about security, which is very biased if you ask me.

There was a small glimmer of hope, however. Trumps announcement said the U.S. would ban Nigerians from entering the country, but it did not say anything about visa applications that were already in process before the ban went into place. Nevertheless, by February, Alli said, they were beginning to get a little worried. It was then that they decided to reach out to their contacts in the U.S., including staffers for Gillibrand and Sen. Michael Bennett (D-CO), for answers.

We found out that the consulate was handing out visas on a case-by-case basis, Robin said. But there were no clear answers from the State Department. It was really vague on how the travel ban was going to impact adoptees. Officials in the department were telling us Oh, dont worry this isnt going to affect you. But there wasnt clear language in the proclamation that said that.

Soon, another global event would alter their plans. The outbreak of the novel coronavirus was initially disrupting travel only between the U.S. and China. But as the pandemic worsened, the administration began to put restrictions on other countries as well. As the borders closed, Trump officials, via U.S. consulates, began sending messages to Americans traveling overseas encouraging them to come back home. Nigeria has so far only reported about 170 cases, with two deaths, but there is a wide-scale lack of testing.

Initially, when the State Department started emailing residents about evacuation flights last month, Robin and Alli thought theyd finally found a way out.

We really believed wed be OK. My husband was already talking about what it would be like to take a 16-month-old on the plane. I was like Ah I dont care we just need to get on a plane and get home, Robin said. I dont think we had much trust in the U.S. government at this point but at the same time we didnt see any reason they wouldnt just issue the visa.

But Robin and Alli didnt get the visa for Nike. They were offered seats on an evacuation flight from Lagos this week, but no ticket for their child. The choice to stay or go wasnt one Robin and Alli were willing to entertain. Nike was theirs. Period. And there was not a chance Robin and Alli were going to leave their daughter on the hope that she would one day receive a visa, they said. The mere fact that officials at the U.S. consulate in Lagos offered the option to leave her behind was unworldly.

We dont have any other children and this will probably be our only child, Robin said. Shes so easy and great. Were really lucky.

Robin Alli Gallite

Robin said the consulate in Lagos last month finished conducting interviews with the orphanage in Cross River State, which is usually the last step before a visa is issued. Its still unclear exactly when the couple will be able to return home to Colorado and if the travel ban will limit them from doing so. Over the last few weeks, Robin has been in touch with her family and friends back home in the U.S., providing them with daily updates about their plans to get home and with photos of Nike.

The travel ban it really is a Muslim travel ban in my opinion. Its a racist, bigoted policy put in place by the president, Robin said. The whole time after it was put in place I was thinking: But they certainly wouldnt do this to a child. But in my mind, they dont care who it is. As long as its a Nigerian citizen.

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As the coronavirus (COVID-19) has spread throughout Staten Island, many have been affected.

Experts say that senior citizens and those with underlying medical conditions are at higher risk of having a potentially-deadly outcome once contracting the virus.

The New York City Department of Health considers nine underlying illnesses that fall into that category.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

These illnesses are:

Diabetes

lung disease

cancer

immunodeficiency

heart disease

hypertension

asthma

kidney disease

GI/liver disease

Those conditions represent a real threat for many Staten Islanders, as in several instances, the rates in our borough for such illnesses are higher than anywhere in New York City.

The heart disease death rate on Staten Island is higher than anywhere in the five boroughs, with 229 deaths per 100,000 residents, according to the latest data from 2014.

However, that rate has been declining consistently since 2008, the data shows.

Nationwide, there were 167 heart disease-related deaths per 100,000 residents in 2014, the data shows.

The same year, more than 25% of Staten Islanders also reported having high blood pressure, which is also known as hypertension. The same percentage was reported in New York City overall.

Staten Island also had the highest cancer incidence rate in 2013, data shows.

Staten Islanders had a higher rate in all four of the most common cancers among New Yorkers: Female breast, colorectal, lung and bronchus, and prostate, according to the data.

When it comes to asthma diagnoses, our borough has the highest rate as well.

Overall, 5% of adults have asthma on Staten Island. The Bronx ranks second with 4.7% and Manhattan third with 4.1%.

The borough also has the highest death rate for chronic lower respiratory diseases (CLRD) with 28 fatalities per 100,000 residents.

In New York City overall, the rate for CLRD deaths is 20 fatalities per 100,000 residents.

Staten Island seems to do better with diabetes, where we hold the second-lowest percentage among the five boroughs with 8.6% of the residents being diagnosed with the disease.

HOW MANY COVID-19 DEATHS SHOW UNDERLYING CONDITIONS?

Of the 67 coronavirus-related deaths the New York City Department of Health has investigated on Staten Island, 44 had underlying conditions.

The other 23 fatalities still have an underlying condition determination pending, the data shows.

However, a more accurate count of fatalities released Wednesday from both Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC) and Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH) shows a total of 91 deaths on Staten Island.

Of the 91, 68 were at SIUH and 23 at RUMC, according to information from the boroughs two hospital systems.

Both the city and the hospitals data do not indicate the breakdown of each underlying condition.

A spokesman from RUMC told the Advance that that data is not currently publicly available due to privacy laws.

Christian Preston, a spokesman from SIUH, said that at this point it is too early to breakdown which underlying conditions are affecting people more.

Like in any case, we document all patient data for valuable insights and analytics for all conditions, including COVID-19, Preston said. At this point, its too early to pinpoint any condition-specific trends in COVID-19, and even though were seeing a range of ages for treatment, the population being greatly affected is still the elderly and medically fragile.

Preston added that once the hospital will compile that data, the city and state Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will have to review it.

ARE OUR 9/11 HEROES AT HIGHER RISK?

After responding to the terrorist attack on Sept. 11, many first responders developed life-threatening illnesses that often resulted in respiratory conditions.

For firefighters and EMS workers who are still in the FDNY after developing those conditions, responding to emergencies like the coronavirus becomes especially risky.

Fighting this invisible enemy that seems to attack the respiratory system with reckless abandon, these [members], normally heroes anyway, are really risking their lives," said Former FDNY Deputy Chief Richie Alles, director of 9/11 community affairs at Barasch McGarry, a law firm that focuses on settlements for 9/11 first responders.

Alles said that many firefighters are working 24 hours shifts, something that hadnt happened since the first month in the aftermath of 9/11. After that, he said, the Fire Department created a detailed and organized scheduled for its members.

Additionally, the possibility of running out of protective gear is a threat that is hanging over their head, Alles added.

A shortage of materials is not just limited to masks but it also extends to ambulances.

This week in fact, Mayor Bill de Blasio, FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro, NYC Emergency Management Commissioner Deanne Criswell and FEMA Region II Administrator Tom Van Essen announced a partnership between FEMA and New York City, which will bring more than 250 ambulances and approximately 500 more EMTs to the city.

Alles, who also responded to Ground Zero, said of the long shifts and the possible lack of protective material, its a big issue.

They are getting tired and out in the front lines and under a lot stress --we havent quite learned the lessons from 9/11, he said. "We need a more coordinated response at all levels of government and the private sector and have access to that safety gear and protect the lungs of our first responders. That was a problem back in the early days of Sept. 11 and consequently we are still dealing with aftermath of that.

Police officers who responded to Ground Zero are also at high risk should they contract the coronavirus and many of them sacrificed their health the last time our city was in crisis," Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Lynch said in a statement to the Advance/SILive.com.

"We have been working with the NYPD to ensure that they and other police officers with special health concerns - as well as our pregnant members - receive accommodations that minimize their exposure, including the ability to work from home, said Lynch. "Cops will continue to do our job, protecting our city on the front lines. We are simply asking the city to uphold its own obligation to protect our health and safety to the greatest extent possible.

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WASHINGTON (AP)  More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week  doubling a record high set just one week earlier  a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus.

The stunning report Thursday from the Labor Department showed that job cuts are mounting against the backdrop of economies in the United States and abroad that have almost certainly sunk into a severe recession as businesses close across the world.

The figure for last week is much higher than the previous record of 3.3 million reported for the previous week. The surging layoffs have led many economists to envision as many as 20 million lost jobs by the end of April. The unemployment rate could spike to as high as 15% this month, above the previous record of 10.8% set during a deep recession in 1982.

Oregon will release detailed data for last week later Thursday. Last week, initial claims in the state jumped nearly 1,500% to a new one-week high that was more than three times the prior record.

Many employers are slashing their payrolls to try to stay afloat because their revenue has collapsed, especially at restaurants, hotels, gyms, movie theaters and other venues that depend on face-to-face interaction. Auto sales have sunk, and factories have closed.

Stay-at-home orders, imposed by most U.S. states, have intensified pressure on businesses, most of which face rent, loans and other bills that must be paid.

Congress significantly expanded the unemployment benefits system in last week's $2.2 trillion economic rescue package. That legislation added $600 a week in jobless aid, on top of what recipients receive from their states. This will enable many lower-income workers to manage their expenses and even increase their purchasing power and support the economy.

It also makes many more people eligible for jobless aid, including the self-employed, contractors, and so-called "gig economy" workers such as Uber and Lyft drivers.

Kathryn Lickteig, a cook in Kansas City, signed up for unemployment compensation last week after the city shut down dine-in restaurants. She is hopeful that the extra $600 will help her ride out the shutdown instead of having to look for an interim job.

"It has eased my mind so much," she said. "I do not have to actively go out and expose myself to the public and possibly get sick. I can stay home now and do my part in social distancing."

The legislation will also help fund unemployment benefits for workers whose hours have been cut. That would enable these people to replace some of their lost income with unemployment aid even as they keep their jobs.

About 26 states allow workers with reduced hours to claim benefits. Most economists support doing so because it encourages companies to cut back on hours rather than lay off workers. Any program that encourages companies to maintain connections with their workers can help the economy rebound faster after the virus outbreak is contained.

Typically, people who receive jobless aid are required to actively look for a new job and to document their searches. But Congress has passed other legislation that encourages states to drop that requirement, given that so many businesses are closed, and most Americans have been ordered to stay mostly at home.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, said this week that just 6% of companies surveyed by Moody's say they're hiring -- down dramatically from 40% in the weeks preceding the coronavirus outbreak. The plunge in hiring underscores the difficulty that anyone out of work would have finding a new job.

On Friday, the government will issue the March jobs report, which economists forecast will show a loss of 145,000 jobs. That report is based on data gathered mostly before the spike in layoffs began two weeks ago. Though relatively small, that loss would still end a record-long 113-month streak of job growth.

Numerous state unemployment agencies have struggled to keep up with the flood of applications for jobless benefits. New Yorks Labor Department asks people to file on different days depending on their last names. Monday, for example, is reserved for those last names that start with A through F.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said his country "only acts in self-defense" after U.S. President Donald Trump warned Tehran of a "heavy price" if it or its allies attack U.S. troops or assets in Iraq.

The war of words comes amid renewed tensions between the two arch-foes despite the coronavirus pandemic.

"Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq," Trump tweeted on April 1.

"If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!" he added.

In response, Zarif wrote in a tweet on April 2 that "Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of 'proxies.'"

"Unlike the U.S. -- which surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinates -- Iran only acts in self-defense," he added.

Iran and the United States are in a tense battle for influence in Iraq, where Tehran has powerful allies and Washington has close ties to the government.

Over the past year, Washington has accused Iranian-backed militias of attacks on Iraqi military bases hosting coalition forces and on foreign embassies, particularly the U.S. mission.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington have risen sharply since Trump in 2018 withdrew the United States from a landmark 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers and reimposed sweeping sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

Tehran has repeatedly called on Washington to lift the sanctions, particularly since the start of the coronavirus epidemic.

Medicines and medical equipment are technically exempt from the U.S. sanctions but purchases are frequently blocked by the unwillingness of banks to process transactions for fear of incurring large penalties in the United States.

Iran is one of the countries worst hit by the coronavirus, which has infected 50,468 people in the country, according to the Health Ministry.

Ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur on April 2 announced 124 more fatalities, raising the death toll to 3,136.

Meanwhile, parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani tested positive for coronavirus and is receiving treatment in quarantine. Larijani is the latest high-ranking Iranian official to test positive for the COVID-19 illness caused by the virus.

Experts have been skeptical about the veracity of official figures released by the Iranian authorities, who keep a tight lid on local and foreign media.

The pandemic has also hit the United States hard, with almost 217,000 infections and more than 5,100 deaths.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
By Tina Bellon

April 2 (Reuters) - Uber and Lyft drivers are hitting a wall in their efforts to apply for the coronavirus jobless benefits promised by Congress as state agencies say they are not ready to handle a class of workers who are totally new to the U.S. unemployment system.

Gig workers classified as independent contractors by platforms such as Uber Technologies Inc, Lyft Inc , Doordash or Instacart were included in the federal government's coronavirus stimulus bill to receive unemployment benefits generally reserved for full-time employees.

But a week after the bill was signed into law by President Donald Trump, it is still unclear what documentation gig workers, who do not receive wage and tax forms, need to submit to prove their income. This at a time when Uber and Lyft drivers are suffering from a near-total collapse in ride-hailing demand as large parts of the United States shut down to combat the spread of the highly infectious virus.

Gail Nappier, a 63-year-old Lyft driver from Boston, said her income has dropped to around $20 per day, from roughly $180 before the crisis, with only one or two rides per day. She has to worry about her own safety, too.

"I feel like going out and driving is a dangerous game of roulette," Nappier said. "But there really is no other option right now."

Nappier is now waiting for Massachusetts to accept gig workers' unemployment claims.

Drivers voiced frustration over an intransparent and confusing process, saying they spend hours on the phone with state unemployment offices, hoping to find someone to explain their options.

More than a dozen U.S. states contacted by Reuters said they could not provide answers until federal guidelines were published.

State agencies are being overwhelmed by applications for unemployment pay, with a record number of 10 million Americans filing for assistance in the past two weeks.

Several states said that it would take them weeks to process claims even after the federal government provides more clarity. The U.S. Department of Labor did not respond to a request for comment but senior officials on Wednesday said the agency would likely publish unemployment guidelines next week.

Story continues

The situation highlights the lack of a safety net for people who work for gig economy platforms such as Uber and Lyft. These companies never offered benefits including sick pay, unemployment and workers compensation.

Uber Chief Executive Officer Dara Khosrowshahi had urged Trump to include contract workers for unemployment benefits in the historic $2.3 trillion package.

Uber on Wednesday said it has been talking to the Labor Department and will work with states as they establish unemployment application procedures.

"We are committed to helping drivers with any info they need to secure this support," the company said in a statement.

Lyft said it was working to make it easy for its drivers to get the information they need to receive benefits, including through conference calls, text messages and blog posts. Lyft said it would continue to provide information as it becomes available from the government.

The federal coronavirus program offers up to 39 weeks of unemployment benefits calculated on the basis of the most recent tax return, with payout levels varying state to state. Workers receive an additional $600 per week for up to four months.

Uber and Lyft for years rejected requests by states to provide wage information that would allow them to determine benefits, according to legal experts and state officials in California, which has passed a law to limit the use of contractors and which is where the two companies are based.

The companies have argued that the majority of drivers did not want to be traditional employees, cherishing the flexibility that came with on-demand work, and the companies themselves never paid into unemployment insurance funds.

Some legal experts said Uber's current involvement has strengthened arguments in court cases that it is indeed an employer, however.

"That Uber and Lyft are now asking all of us (taxpayers) to pay for what they should have been doing all along is an absolute farce," said Ronald Zambrano, a California lawyer who represents drivers in lawsuits against the companies. (Reporting by Tina Bellon in New York Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)
I said to him that my third-grade teacher told me that the biological definition of survival was the ability to adapt to change, Moore said in an interview Thursday. We are going to be re-envisioning different kind of spaces. For example, the convening of the Rules Committee  that might have to be a much bigger venue so that people can space themselves appropriately. There might have to be rules around microphones so that everyone will be clean.
A publication on the anniversary of April 2016 victory of Azerbaijani army has been posted on Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyevs official Facebook page, Trend reports.

The April battles demonstrated the power of our state, the army, the unity and patriotism of our people, reads the publication.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Dividents (Photo : Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay )

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay



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After heeding a request from the Bank of England, several of the largest banks in the U.K. have agreed to suspend dividend payments to shareholders in order to preserve cash that might be needed during the coronavirus pandemic.



Banks, including National Westminster Bank, or NatWest, Barclays (BCS), the U.K. arm of Santander (SAN), Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), HSBC (HSBC) and Standard Chartered, typically pay out billions each year to their shareholders - but now have agreed to cancel or postpone such dividend payments.



Reuters reported that HSBC was the biggest dividend payer in 2019 at $4.2 billion.



Bloomberg said the U.K.'s five largest banks had planned to pay out about $9.3 billion in dividends over the next two months



But now these banks will keep these funds until the end of the year, a step that "should help the banks support the economy through 2020," Bank of England said.



Barclays' shareholders were expecting to receive a payment of more than 1 billion ($1.24 billion) on Friday.



"The bank has a strong capital base, but we think it is right and prudent, for the many businesses and people that we support, to take these steps now, and ensure that Barclays is well placed to continue doing what we can to help through this crisis," said Barclays chairman Nigel Higgins.



He added that scrapping the dividend was a "difficult decision."



In mid-day trading in London on Wednesday, shares of these big banks rang up sharp losses, as much as 9%.



The Prudential Regulation Authority, a unit of the Bank of England, hailed the banks' moves. "Although the decisions... will result in shareholders not receiving dividends, they are a sensible precautionary step given the unique role that banks need to play in supporting the wider economy through a period of economic disruption," the PRA stated.



Stephen Jones, chief executive for U.K. Finance, the trade body for banks and finance companies, and a former chief financial officer at Santander U.K., said banks were mulling the suspension of dividends even before the Bank of England's request.



"It's very prudent for banks to be retaining capital rather than distributing it in the current environment," he said. "It's important that the banks are given as much firepower as they can to support the economy."



Banks face the strong likelihood that many of their loans outstanding will not be paid back, hence the need for a large cash buffer.



However, the PRA assured that banks have a strong enough capital position to weather even a severe recession in the U.K.



Many analysts expect the U.K. to enter into recession this year due to the shutdown of tens of thousands of businesses. Capital Economics forecast a 15% reduction in the U.K.'s economy in the second quarter.



During the 2008 financial crisis, most banks were still paying out dividends before they received huge government bailouts, engendering much criticism and bitterness from the public.



"It makes sense in a time like this to shut off your dividends and preserve your capital. In six months time we'll have a much better idea of what capital looks like," said John Cronin, a banks analyst at Goodbody Stockbrokers of Dublin, Ireland.



Cronin added that dividends and other forms of shareholder payouts will be "socially unacceptable" during the crisis.



The Bank of England also asked banks to refrain from paying bonuses to senior executives, although it's unclear if the banks will obey that request.



Faisal Islam, economics editor at BBC, wrote this was a "significant move" by the commercial banks.



"With some of the payments due to be made in just days, the impact will be felt almost immediately by some shareholders," he wrote. "The logic here is to preserve cash for where it is needed, but the regulator has also been making the point that this crisis is a moment of potential redemption for the sector. The banks have the opportunity to distance themselves from the financial crisis, which they created, to become the economic saviors of the coronavirus crisis. But that depends on them preserving cashflow, overdrafts and funding lines to businesses that will become viable again once the pandemic passes."



But analysts at Jefferies said the decision to scrap dividends has "structurally bearish ramifications" for the banking sector as a whole, including an increase in the cost of equity.



"It is not beyond the wit of man that some banks might need rights issues and all of this uncertainty in our view ultimately weakens prospective investment propositions," Jefferies stated.



Dividends and share buybacks had fueled huge growth in banks in recent years.



On the continent, the European Central Bank already asked European lenders to stop dividend payments and share buybacks until at least October in order to prop up local economies.



A few European banks, including UniCredit of Italy, Societe Generale of France and Dutch banks ING Groep (ING) and ABN AMRO Group, have announced they will temporarily suspend dividends.



But Swiss banks UBS (UBS) and Credit Suisse (CS) both said they will pay out scheduled dividends - defying calls from Switzerland's financial regulator to curb such payouts.



Goldman Sachs analysts said on Tuesday that European banks would preserve 45 billion ($50 billion) in capital if they chose to retain 2019 dividends that have not been paid out yet.



Moreover, some analysts contend that scrapping dividends could actually hurt the economy.



"We note that euro area bank market capitalization fell on [Monday] by the same [amount] as the 30 billion euros 'saved' by its dividend ban on Friday," analysts at Bank of America Merrill Lynch said in a note, referring to the ECB's proposal.



The European Union's banking watchdog, the European Banking Authority, also said banks should be "conservative" in paying executive bonuses but they did not ask to ban such payments entirely.



UniCredit and Spain's BBVA (BBVA) both said their senior management will waive their bonuses for this year.


Longest-serving president stepped down a year ago after months of demonstrations against his 20-year rule.

Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Algerias longest-serving president, stepped down from power a year ago following months of relentless protests against his 20-year rule.

The ailing octogenarian resigned on April 2, 2019 after the powerful army chief, the late General Ahmed Gaid Salah, asked him to stand down.

Protesters began staging weekly demonstrations in February 2019 after the ruling National Liberation Front (FLN) announced that Bouteflika, a wheelchair-bound 82-year-old rarely seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013, would seek a fifth term in office.

My intention  is to contribute to calming down the souls and minds of the citizens so that they can collectively take Algeria to the better future they aspire to, Bouteflika said in his resignation letter to the president of the Constitutional Council.

I have made this decision to avoid and prevent the arguments which distort, unfortunately, the current situation, and avoid its turning into serious skirmishes, to ensure the protection of persons and property, he added.

The announcement sparked celebrations in the capital, Algiers, with hundreds of people singing songs and waving flags in front of the citys central post office.

But Bouteflikas removal did not end the countrys political impasse.

While crowds cheered his departure, they again filled the streets on April 5 to keep pushing for the total dismantling of the system in place since independence from France in 1962.

Former army Chief of Staff Ahmed Gaid Salah emerged as the most powerful power broker after Bouteflikas exit [Ramzi Boudina/Reuters]

On April 9, 2019, Abdelkader Bensalah, speaker of the Upper House, was named interim president, but opposition parties refused to confirm his nomination.

General Gaid Salah emerged as the key power broker and on May 20 rejected protesters key demands that an election planned for July 4 be postponed and that ruling elite stalwarts depart.

On June 2, however, the Constitutional Council cancelled the election due to a lack of candidates.

Citizens carried on with protests in central Algiers, joining the weekly demonstrations of the movement dubbed Hirak.

The military toughened its line on September 18, ordering police to block demonstrators from outside Algiers from entering the capital for the weekly marches.

On September 25, a military court sentenced Bouteflikas brother Said and two former intelligence chiefs to 15 years in prison for conspiring against the state. Their sentences were confirmed on appeal in February 2020.

In December, former prime ministers Ahmed Ouyahia and Abdelmalek Sellal, who were both close to Bouteflika, were jailed 15 years and 12 years respectively in corruption trials. Other political and business leaders in Bouteflikas circle were also prosecuted.

New political era

On December 12, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, a one-time prime minister under Bouteflika, was declared winner on an official voter turnout of less than 40 percent.

The 74-year-old came first in the five-man presidential race, garnering 58.15 percent of the vote, according to official results.

The next day Tebboune called for dialogue with protesters, who nevertheless remained on the streets to protest against the election, denouncing it as a sham because of the links of all candidates to the former president and the ruling elite.

On December 23, Algerian government radio announced that Gaid Salah had died in an Algiers military hospital after a heart attack. He was 79.

Salah was seen as the countrys de facto leader since Bouteflika was forced out of power.

On December 28, Tebboune appointed little-known academic and retired diplomat Abdelaziz Djerad as the countrys new prime minister, who promised to win back peoples trust after months of street protests.

On February 21, several thousand people converged in central Algiers to mark one year of unprecedented protests that led to the downfall of the former longtime ruler.

A month later, on March 20, the streets of Algiers were empty on a Friday for the first time since the start of the protest movement.

Gatherings were banned due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the Hirak protest movement had in any case independently suspended its demonstrations.

Human rights groups say that dozens of protest figures are still in detention.
Two airplanes have departed for North America to retrieve 257 Hungarians stranded in five cities in the United States and Canada, Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto announced on Tuesday.

The minister said that the largest repatriation operation in Hungarian history is currently under way. The return of more than 5,500 Hungarians has been achieved so far, he said.



In addition to the 257 Hungarians to be returned from North America, 18 Slovak nationals will also be brought home as part of Central European and Visegrad co-operation, Szijjarto said. One of the planes will land in Toronto where it will receive a donation of 4,000 masks which will be provided to healthcare workers in Hungary. The planes are expected to arrive in Budapest on April 2.



Szijjarto stressed that thousands of Hungarians are still stranded abroad through no fault of their own, so we will continue working.



Socialist MEP Istvan Ujhelyi told a press conference on Tuesday that many Hungarians are among the thousands of EU citizens that the European Union has helped bring home in recent weeks. Ujhelyi criticized the Orban governments position that Brussels and European institutions have provided no help in returning Hungarian citizens.



According to official information from the European Commission, the EU has financed the return of 101 Hungarian citizens, he said, adding that it is inconceivable why the foreign minister has refused to acknowledge the assistance. It is increasingly obvious that Fidesz is trying to scapegoat the domestic opposition and the EU for its own errors, Ujhelyi said.



Data uploaded to the website of the EU between January 31 and March 25 show that 50 Hungarians were transported home with EU assistance. Seven were taken from Wuhan, China on February 1, 42 from Morocco on February 17 and one person from the Philippines on March 20.



EC spokesman Balazs Ujvar announced on Tuesday that the number of Hungarians rescued by the EU has risen to 101.



MTI Photo: Matyas Borsos
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Once he heard about the rapid spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in New York, Luke Adams, a 35-year-old nurse from Bloomsburg, Pa., sought a place where he could help out.

Northwell Health put out the bat signal [for nurses], said Adams, who lives over three hours from Staten Island. They are relying on people to come help out because this situation is only going to get worse.

So the critical care nurse left his wife and young children, rented a Nissan Rouge that would fit a small mattress in the back, and headed for Staten Island University Hospital (SIUH), Ocean Breeze.

Im not a stranger to roughing it. Im a country boy at heart, said Adams. I have two small kids back home, and I want to be able to say to them if you have the ability to help people in need, you have to do it. ...We are asking all Americans to sacrifice -- whether its their income, their security or not seeing their families. Im going to miss my daughters first birthday,

After arriving on Staten Island, he worked 12-hour shifts, eight days straight; all the time, sleeping in the back of his rented SUV.

Adams said he doesnt know anyone he can bunk with in the area, and hotel prices he was quoted werent affordable for his situation.

The critical care nurse is pictured here with his wife Abbi, son Jack, 8, and his daughter Remy, 9 months. (Courtesy of Luke Adams)

I have been seeing stuff online about free housing for doctors and nurses who come here from out of town to help with the coronavirus, said Adams.

Im not looking for a straight-up handout. Its just we are giving up a lot, and theres going to be an influx of people like me coming in. ..The only way we are going to get through this is by kindness toward each other, he added.

An SIUH spokesperson confirmed Northwell Health is reaching out to staffing agencies for per diem nurses, like Adams, and other healthcare professionals.

BIG ON SERVICE

Adams is no stranger to offering his nursing skills in times of need.

Im big on service. ...I volunteer a lot. Ive worked in third world countries, he said. This was something that is brand new and something healthcare has never faced before. ... We are learning so much every day about what works and what doesnt work because its a brand new situation; theres no manual for it.

And while supplies and equipment, like ventilators, are greatly needed, so are healthcare professionals, he said.

Im planning to stay through June. No one really knows what the course of this is going to be, said Adams.

I think the greatest need the hospitals are going to face moving forward is staff. You are going to need people to come. You can remove a hurdle for somebody if you say, When you come, this is where youll be able to stay,' he added.

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US Lawmaker Calls Out Beijing for Lying About Chinas Virus Infections, Death Toll

In response to a classified U.S. intelligence report about Chinas coverup of the virus outbreak, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) condemned the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for deceiving the world in order to protect its rule.

Although the CCP has a long history of lying to their own people and the global community, I still find it shocking the lengths their regime will go to in order to protect their power, McCaul said in a statement issued on April 1.

Even before news of this report was released it was clear that the Chinese Communist Party is not a trustworthy partner in the fight against COVID-19, he added.

The classified report, first reported by Bloomberg citing three unnamed U.S. officials, was submitted to the White House last week, according to the outlet. The report said that Chinas reporting on confirmed cases of the CCP virus and death toll figures are intentionally incomplete.

Two of the three officials said the report made the conclusion that Chinas numbers are fake.

But during a daily press briefing of the White House Coronavirus Task Force on April 1 evening, President Donald Trump denied having received this intelligence report. However, he said the Chinese regimes figures seem to be a little bit on the light side.

The Epoch Times refers to the novel coronavirus as the CCP virus because the Partys coverup and mismanagement allowed the virus to spread throughout China and create a global pandemic.

The escalating pandemic began in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei province. The CCP virus has since spread to over 200 countries and territories, and killed over 43,000 people outside of mainland China.

McCaul noted that Beijing was not forthright about the nature of the virus. They lied to the world about the human to human transmission of the virus, silenced doctors and journalists who tried to report the truth, and are now apparently hiding the accurate number of people impacted by this disease, he said.

The Chinese regime did not openly acknowledge that the virus could be passed between people until Jan. 20, despite the fact that its Asian neighbor Taiwan had warned the World Health Organization (WHO) about the risk of human-to-human transmission on Dec. 31.

Taiwan subsequently sent two health experts to Wuhan to investigate. After their return, they held a press conference in Taipei on Jan. 16, saying that they could not rule out the possibility of human transmission.

The WHO also initially repeated Beijings claim that there was no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission for the virus.

The Chinese regime also silenced eight doctors, among them ophthalmologist Li Wenliang, after they posted on Chinese social media about a pneumonia spreading in Wuhan.

Li, who has passed away after contracting the virus from a patient, was summoned to a local police station in Wuhan in early January for rumor-mongering, and ordered to sign a confession statement.

Last week, McCaul wrote a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, calling for a global investigation into the CCPs coverup. He also asked the CEOs of Amazon, Facebook, Google, and Twitter to ban Chinese-state-run media outlets from spreading disinformation about the CCP virus on those internet platforms.

In early March, Beijing began aggressively pushing a global propaganda campaign to deflect attention from its mishandling of the outbreak.

We must stop the CCP from causing further damage amid this pandemic that they allowed to fester and then spill out into the world, McCaul concluded in his recent statement.

Dr. Deborah Birx, response coordinator of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, stated that the United States initial response to the outbreak was slow due to Chinas inaccurate data.

I think the medical community interpreted the Chinese data as, this was serious, but smaller than anyone expected. Because I think probably we were missing a significant amount of the data, Birx said at a March 31 briefing.

Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.), in a statement on April 1, also questioned Chinas virus data.

The Chinese Communist Party has lied, is lying, and will continue to lie about coronavirus to protect the regime, Sasse said.

He added, Beijings garbage propaganda shouldnt be taken seriously by the World Health Organization, by independent journalists, or by the American epidemiologists who are going to beat this terrible virus.
Senate minority leader Jennifer Shilling announced Thursday she will not seek reelection this year, after 20 years in state politics.

I know it is time to put my family first and look to a future where I can put away my little red suitcase that has accompanied me on my weekly travels to Madison for the past 20 years, the La Crosse Democrat said in a release.

She was first elected to the state Senate in 2011 and represents the 32nd Senate District, which includes La Crosse, Vernon and Crawford counties, along with part of Monroe County.

Shilling is an Oshkosh native, but started her political career locally, after being elected to the La Crosse County Board in 1990, where she served for two years. She was then an aide to Rep. Mark Meyer and Congressman Ron Kind.

She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse with a bachelors degree in public administration in 1992.

She has said she was inspired by her parents Lynn and Richard Ehlenfeldt to get involved in public service. Her dad was an aide to Wisconsin Gov. Marty Schreiber, and both parents were active in civil rights issues.

Her parents were both slain along with five employees at their restaurant in suburban Chicago on Jan. 8, 1993. Two men were convicted for the murders.

Shilling did not speak often about the family tragedy, but she referred to it in her passionate discussion of gun control.

Shilling first jumped into state politics when she was elected as La Crosses representative for the Assembly in 2000.

She served as a representative until 2011, when she was elected to the Senate after then-incumbent Dan Kapanke was recalled during the controversial Act 10 legislation. They met again in 2016 when Kapanke tried for the seat another time and lost by just 56 votes.

Kapanke announced in February that he was once again running for the 32nd District seat on the Senate. At the time, Shilling had filed her re-election papers.

Kapanke issued a statement Thursday saying Shilling leaves a legacy of a distinguished career representing the people of western Wisconsin. I wish her and her family the best in the years ahead.

Fellow area lawmakers reacted to Shillings announcement on Thursday.

She has been a strong voice, leader and representative for all of us, Rep. Jill Billings, D-La Crosse, said in a statement thanking Shilling on Thursday.

According to a release, Shilling has been Wisconsins longest-serving female leader in Wisconsin legislative history.

She bridged the bipartisan gap with a clear vision of her priorities but always did so with a great sense of humor, Kind said in a statement.

It was an honor to call her my colleague and mentor, and it will always be an honor to call her my friend, said Rep. Steve Doyle, D-Onalaska, who said Shilling was a model of public service statewide and locally.

Assembly Democratic Leader Gordon Hintz of Oshkosh also commented on the senators decision not to seek reelection.

I appreciate that Jen has not let the job change who she is as a person, Hintz said. She has done it all in her time in office.

During her tenure in state politics, Shilling has served as a ranking member on the Joint Committee on Finance, where she has worked to be an effective voice on behalf of working families throughout all of Wisconsin, Hintz said.

Shes also served as the Senate Democratic leader since 2015, and has been on the committees of Government Operations, Public Works and Telecommunications, and was the ranking Democrat on the Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges.

Lawmakers on the other side of the aisle weighed-in on the senators announcement as well.

While we have countless policy differences, I have a ton of respect for Jen and her efforts to make Wisconsin a better place, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said in a statement.

In politics these days, its not often that you can call someone who supports the wrong side of almost every issue, a friend, he added.

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Australia's latest cluster of coronavirus sufferers has appeared in Far North Queensland.

Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said that 'very early signs' of community transmission had been identified in Cairns.

'Here in Cairns, yes there is one cluster, very early signs that there might be some community transmission,' Dr Young told reporters on Thursday.

Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young (pictured) told reporters on Thursday that there was a new coronavirus cluster emerging in Cairns that was linked to community transmissions

At least three people who attended a wrestling event at the Edmonton Police Citizens' Youth Club have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the Courier Mail reported.

Queensland Health sent out an alert earlier this week that urged people who attended the March 14 event to seek medical advice if they felt unwell.

The Cairns and Hinterland region now has 24 cases of confirmed coronavirus.

Dr Young said: 'I'm very confident that Cairns will get on top of that and manager that.'

Dr Young also voiced her confidence in Queensland's health professionals and their ability to deal with the pandemic.

'This is their job, they're extremely good at it and they're getting enormous support from members of the community.'

The Chief Health Officer said the health workers were swiftly dealing with the emerging cluster.

Three people tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a wrestling event at the Edmonton Police Citizens' Youth Club (pictured) in Cairns

Pictured: Nursing staff at a COVID-19 testing clinic for Bondi residents in Sydney

'They'll be working out who's at risk from that cluster and asking them to go into quarantine,' Dr Young explained.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Dr Young also noted that the Gold Coast region had been able to manage 'a number of clusters' during the pandemic.

She explained that they tackled transmissions related to a tour group who came from the epicentre of the virus, Wuhan, in China.

Oscar winner Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson were also treated for COVID-19 after catching the virus while Hanks was filming an Elvis Presly biopic on the Gold Coast.

Dr Young assured the public that: 'There was some clusters going on there with some transmission and that all got managed.'

The number of coronavirus cases in Queensland rose by 57 overnight.

The state's total number of positive cases currently sits at 835.

The Member for Cairns, Michael Healy, also praised healthcare workers in Cairns for handling the virus outbreak.

Mr Healy said: 'I would like to thank the staff at Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service for their ongoing dedication to protecting their fellow Queenslanders.'

Across the nation, 5,108 people have been infected with coronavirus.
General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff announced this week that the US is deploying thousands of troops, special operations forces, naval and coast guard fleets, reconnaissance aircraft, and other counter-narcotics operations off the coast of Venezuela. This, after intelligence officials apparently learned that drug cartels were looking to move narcotics into the US during the coronavirus pandemic.

The announcement to send military personnel and vehicles to the South American nation comes after Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was charged with drug trafficking by the Justice Department last week. But dont be fooled  Trump isnt worried about more Americans doing drugs, just like he isnt worried about migrant children in cages. Hes looking to win over Florida constituents, including Venezuelans and Cubans, who want Maduro out.

The real threat facing America right now isnt shipments of cocaine. The president is looking for a victory on the battlefield to distract from his sensational mismanagement of the pandemic. A US-led coup detat is looming.

Experts agree that the so-called War on Drugs is a four decade-long failed endeavor that has only served to divert billions of dollars annually from more necessary public spending, like public healthcare. But politicians and the military dont want you to hear that  theyre trying to keep themselves in business.

Were the United States military and we will defend our country, regardless of the cost, Milley said in yesterdays press conference. And hes right  for the most part, US taxpayers have grown accustomed to helping to fund trillion-dollar military bills, such as Trumps Space Force project which is set to cost $2 billion in the first five years. But this time, asking the American people to fund the militarys unnecessary pet projects is a game of entirely different stakes.

The 2020 National Defense Authorization Acts budget totaled $735.2 billion dollars  thats by far the most military spending by any country in the world, with Chinas military spending coming in at a distant second. We also spend the most per person on healthcare, but Americans clearly arent seeing returns on that investment. According to research by the Peter G Peterson Foundation, thats thanks to a range of inefficiencies and the privatization of the US healthcare system  a tragic list of errors that has critically complicated responses to Covid-19.

Just as America is number one worldwide for the amount we spend on our military, were also right at the top when it comes to the number of cases of coronavirus. Thats an astonishing accomplishment for the richest nation in the world, especially after our president boasted just weeks ago about how much better the US had done at containing it compared to everybody else. This is not what being a global leader is supposed to look like.

It gets worse: As the number of Covid-19 cases and deaths continue to grow, so do unemployment claims. Our federal governments top priority should be mobilizing all of its resources to ameliorate the effects of a pandemic that is spiraling out of control. That should include seizing any additional military personnel and financial resources available and putting them to use to control the spread of the pandemic and its economic consequences.

It's outrageous to think about spending hundreds of millions of dollars on counter-narcotics operations when we don't have personal protective equipment for doctors, or ventilators for patients, and are sending a single check for $1200 to some Americans who might be out of work for months  with no federally issued moratorium on people having to pay their growing bills or credit card debt. As the father of the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Franklin, once wrote, Time lost is never found again.

Its not the fault of our service members; they have no say when they are sent on senseless missions that only serve to line the pockets of private defense contractors and members of Congress who reap the collateral benefits of those contracts made in backroom deals. Like in many wars, invasions and intimidation operations in the past, those service members are mere pawns in the hands of politicians  mainly Republicans who played with too many GI Joes and not enough dolls growing up. Yet again, working-class folks are the ones that will shoulder the economic and health-related consequences from an over-inflated military budget that serves the over-inflated ego of our president and his cronies.

I, like many other Americans, feel overwhelmed at the state of affairs of our nation. I worry about the financial stability and health of my family, friends and community. And I linger on the questions: Where is the outrage? Where is the compassion?
Are you looking for an Easter egg that isn't Cadbury, Mars or Nestle? If so, there are many luxury chocolate offerings to choose from.

While you might not be able to get to some of these shops in person, you can still purchase from brands' online stores.

From Hotel Chocolat and Lindt to Fortnum & Mason and Selfridges, here you'll find eight of the finest luxury Easter Eggs to spoil a loved one or treat yourself this April.

Fortnum's master chocolatiers in Wales have exclusively crafted this stunning hand-painted Chicken Easter Egg. A very indulgent gift for a loved one or for you to enjoy when you're feeling a little peckish this Easter.

The luxurious egg is made with highly aromatic Fine Flavour Columbian chocolate with 45 per cent minimum cocoa solids, while the vibrant 'paint' is made using natural pigments.

Buy now on Fortnum & Mason

Not everyone is a fan of the old fruit and nut chocolate combination, but this Harrods Easter egg may just change your mind.

It is made with exquisite Belgian dark chocolate and beautifully decorated with fruity raisins and delightfully crunchy hazelnuts, pistachio nuts, almonds and pecans.

The Harrods Fruit and Nut Easter Egg is normally a rather steep 30 but it is now half price, making it a more affordable luxury treat.

Buy now on Harrods

Exquisite Italian-made tempered white chocolate boasts a stunning flavour to satisfy even the most die-hard of chocoholics.

The gourmet Venchi Allegro egg is made with a white chocolate and toffee shell lined with a layer of bright red raspberry granules and cocoa nibs for a pleasurable crunch. The Venchi Easter egg is wrapped in gold-tone paper and housed in a fancy cylindrical tin, perfect for gifting a loved one this Easter.

Buy now on Harvey Nichols

Spoil someone rotten this Easter with this Hotel Chocolat Easter Egg. It is the same size as an Ostrich's - the largest egg of any living bird.

One half of the egg is made with smooth and rich 50 per cent milk chocolate and the other half is made with 40 per cent milk chocolate, crunchy cookies and puffed rice for a fun pop in your mouth sensation.

This chocoholic feast is accompanied by a tray of 20 delicious filled milk chocolates, from salted caramel to Eton mess. A truly indulgent offering for chocolate connoisseurs.

Buy now on Hotel Chocolat

Crack open a guilt-free treat this Easter as British brand Booja-Booja spreads joy with its decorative Easter Egg filled with organic chocolate champagne truffles.

The dairy and gluten free delights are hidden inside a beautifully egg hand-painted by traditional artists in Kashmir. The delectable vegan truffles contain alcohol and are made with luxuriously rich dark chocolate containing 55 per cent cocoa solids.

Buy now on Selfridges

A giant two kilogram milk chocolate Easter egg from Cocoba would make any recipient egg-static. The show-stopping Easter egg is made from pure Belgian milk chocolate and beautifully hand-decorated with an elegant dark and white chocolate drizzle for extra indulgence.

The Cocoba Easter egg sits in a gold-tone base and is presented in cellophane gift wrap finished with red ribbon tied into a bow. You could share with family or housemates... but if you're a true chocolate lover like us, who are you kidding?

Buy now on NotontheHighstreet.co.uk

Celebrated ceramic designer Mary Rose Young has created this surreal Wonderland-inspired 'Egg with Ears'. Crafted and painted by hand, each ceramic Easter egg decorated with colourful roses and cute bunny ears is completely unique.

With only 30 produced in Mary's Forest of Dean-based workshop, you better crack on if you want this eclectic Faberge-style egg this Easter. The ornate Easter egg is also filled with luxurious milk chocolate truffles.

Buy now on Harvey Nichols

Since 1952, the classic Lindt Gold Bunny has become one of the most recognisable symbols of Easter. The luxurious Swiss chocolate is also absolutely delicious. This Lindt Bunny weighs a whopping one kilogram so should provide you with plenty of chocolate to tide you over Easter weekend.

Presented in a clear box with red braided string handle, the chocolate bunny is wrapped in signature gold foil and topped with the famous red ribbon and shiny bell around its neck.

Buy now on Selfridges

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday told chief ministers to focus on COVID-19 containment measures -- testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine -- in the next few weeks with a common goal to ensure minimum loss of life, and pitched for formulating a 'staggered' exit strategy from the ongoing lockdown.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds meeting with all state chief ministers via video conferencing over Coronavirus in New Delhi. Photograph: ANI Photo

As the country witnessed a spike in coronavirus infections and deaths in the past few days, the prime minister held a meeting with chief ministers via video-conferencing, and said it was imperative to work on war footing, identify hotspots, encircle them and ensure that coronavirus does not spread out.

According to an official statement, Modi also pitched for formulating a common exit strategy to ensure "staggered re-emergence of the population" once the 21-day nationwide lockdown ends on April 14.

Reiterating the importance of social distancing in preventing the spread of the virus, which has infected over 1,950 people and caused at least 50 deaths, Modi asked the states to brainstorm and send suggestions on the lockdown exit strategy.

"The prime minister outlined that the common goal for the country is to ensure minimum loss of life. In the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the areas of focus," the statement said.

The states spoke about the importance of mobilising resources, financial as well as medical, to mitigate the crisis, the statement said.

Union Health Secretary Preeti Sudan spoke about the rise in number of cases in India, spread of cases from the Nizamuddin headquarters of Tablighi Jamaat, preparations to tackle medical cases arising out of further spread of the virus, and need to break the transmission chain in the districts with high number of confirmed cases.



During the interaction, the prime minister forewarned that the global situation remains far from satisfactory.



He informed the participants about speculations of a "possible second wave" of spread of the virus in some countries.

He highlighted the necessity of maintaining supply of essential medical products, availability of raw material for manufacture of medicines and medical equipment.



Modi said it is necessary to ensure availability of separate, dedicated hospital facilities for COVID-19 patients.



He said that it is pertinent to maintain peace, and law and order across the country.



He said COVID-19 has attacked 'our faith and belief and is threatening our way of life'.

He appealed to the leaders to reach out to community leaders and social welfare organisations at state, district, town and block levels to build up a united front based on community-approach in the battle against the pandemic.



To increase the availability of doctors, he asked the states to tap into the resource pool of AYUSH doctors, organise online training and utilise para-medical staff, National Cadet Corps and National Social Service volunteers.

Modi also thanked the states for supporting the decision of the lockdown due to which India has achieved some success in limiting the spread of COVID-19.



He praised how all the states have worked together as a team to check the spread of the virus.



Underscoring the importance of coordinated action and the need to avoid overlaps in efforts of stakeholders, the prime minister talked about the need of setting up "Crisis Management Groups" at district level and appointment of District Surveillance Officers.



He was of the view that data must be taken from the accredited labs for testing -- "this will ensure congruence in data of district, state and centre," the statement said.



He said it is necessary to ensure staggered release of funds to the beneficiaries under PM Garib Kalyan Yojana to avoid crowding at banks. Considering that this is the time of harvesting, the government has given some relaxation from lockdown.



But it is necessary to continuously monitor and maintain social distancing as much as possible, he pointed out.

He asked the states to think of other platforms for procuring grains apart from Agricultural Produce Market Committees, and explore the possibility of creating pooling platforms for rural areas. He gave the example of ride-sharing apps, which he said can be used for this purpose.



The chief ministers thanked the prime minister for his leadership, continuous guidance and support in this time of crisis.



They appreciated him for taking the bold and timely decision of lockdown which has helped check the spread of the virus in the country, the statement said.

The chief ministers referred to their efforts of maintaining social distancing, tracking suspect cases, identifying and quarantining suspect cases arising from Nizamuddin Markaz, containing community transmission and boosting of medical infrastructure.



They also spoke about strengthening medical workforce, provision of tele-medicine, provision of mental health counselling, distribution of food and other essentials to those in need and taking care of migrant workers.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah were also present at the interaction.



Shah talked about the need to implement lockdown more strictly in some states and the importance of effective district-level implementation of the guidelines issued by the Centre.
Susanna Reid fought back tears on Thursday morning as she paid an emotional tribute to the frontline NHS workers who have lost their lives in the battle against coronavirus COVID-19.

Five medical professionals have tragically died while working to stop the deadly spread of the disease across the United Kingdom, among them retired doctor Alfa Saadu, who fell ill after returning to work specifically to help overstretched essential workers.

Thomas Harvey, a father of seven, also passed away after contracting the virus while assisting a patient, while organ transplant specialist Adil El Tayar is the first NHS surgeon to lose his life to the virus.

Moving: Susanna Reid fought back tears on Thursday morning as she paid an emotional tribute to the frontline NHS workers who have lost their lives in the battle against coronavirus COVID-19

Ear, nose and throat consultant Amged El-Hawrani and doctor Habib Zaidi have also died of the airborne respiratory disease, which has so far claimed 2,352 lives across Britain.

And reflecting on their loss, Susanna, 49, was visibly moved as she read out their names while presenting the latest edition of GMB alongside co-host Ben Shepherd and resident doctor Hilary Jones.

Attempting to regain her composure, she added: 'We thank you for your service.'

Devastating: Five medical professionals have tragically died while working to stop the deadly spread of the disease across the United Kingdom

Difficult: Reflecting on their loss, Susanna, 49, was visibly moved as she read out their names while presenting the latest edition of GMB

Susanna, who returned to work this week after spending two weeks in self-isolation, also revealed she was appalled after someone coughed in her direction while flouting government mandated guidelines regarding social distancing.

She recalled: 'When I went out walking the other day, a runner ran past me and then coughed and then spat'

Asking for advice from Doctor Hilary, she added: 'It is normal for runners to do that in normal situations. It is not particularly pleasant. Surely right now, it is spreading the virus?'

Never forgotten: Attempting to regain her composure, she added, 'We thank you for your service'

Side by side: Susanna presented Thursday's edition of Good Morning Britain alongside co-host Ben Shepherd

Actively discouraging the practice of spitting while jogging, he advised: 'When you are running you produce more saliva and you do see runners spit the saliva away.

'Of course it is coming from the mouth and throat and potentially if you are carrying the virus the virus would exist on the ground or wherever for unto a few hours.

'It is not a nice habit and something to be discouraged but it is not a major threat.'

Stay away: On a lighter note, the presenter admitted her three son, Sam, 18, Finn, 16, and Jack, 15 have banned her from embracing the current celebrity craze for Tik Tok videos

On a lighter note, the presenter admitted her three son, Sam, 18, Finn, 16, and Jack, 15, have banned her from embracing the current celebrity craze for Tik Tok videos.

The social media platform has become an increasingly popular pastime as people come terms with life behind closed doors, but Susanna admitted she children are aghast whenever she attempts to use it.

'I'm not allowed to do any Tik Toks - that's a law,' she said. ' And every time I look at a Tik Tok and go, "look at this, this is hilarious", they go, "get away from the Tik Tok".'
NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant on Wednesday said there is a need to build a manufacturing base for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and ventilators not only for the Covid-19 outbreak but for the future as well

New Delhi: NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant on Wednesday said there is a need to build a manufacturing base for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and ventilators not only for the Covid-19 outbreak but for the future as well.

Kant, who heads the empowered group on coordinating with private sector NGOs and international organisations for the Covid-19 pandemic, was chairing the second meeting with representatives of industry.

"There is a need to build a manufacturing base for PPEs & ventilators not only for #COVID19 response but for the future as well, in line with our objective of accelerating the #MakeInIndia resolve," the Niti Aayog said in a tweet quoting Kant.

The group headed by Kant is one of the 11 empowered groups of officers constituted by Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla for planning and ensuring implementation of Covid-19 response activities.

Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak

Kant brought to notice of the Empowered Committee 6 for Covid-19 that augmenting supply of oxygen is the need of the hour and will be key, hand in hand with manufacturing ventilators during this period, it added.

CII Director General Chandrajit Bannerjee updated the committee on the various Covid-19 response measures being taken, including healthcare product augmentation, policy inputs, relief and information dissemination taken up by industry body CII and its affiliated industry leaders.

Chairman and Managing Director of Medanta - The Medicity, Naresh Trehan informed the committee on the important safety protocols and features required in ventilators for efficient management of Covid -19 patients, it added.
Desperate times call for desperate measures and so it comes as no surprise that various police personnel are adopting innovative ways to spread awareness about the deadly coronavirus.

The Andhra Pradesh police too went a step ahead and brought Yamraj with Chitragupta, in order to spread the message of staying home.

As per a video shared by a Twitter user, one can hear Yamraj advising people to stay indoors in the local language. In the 24-seconds-long video, a man is seen dressed as Yamraj sitting on the bonnet of a police car. Along with him, there are two other men dressed in black clothes and make-up, portraying death.

Yamaraj has an advice for you !! Sudhakar Reddy CI Dhone Rural of Kurnool Dist took the help of drama artist to create #COVID19 awareness. Artists Balija, Sankar and Drama Sekhar gave an impressive performance. #AndhraPradesh #AndhraFightsCorona #Lockdown21 pic.twitter.com/F6v92BAJBm Aashish (@Ashi_IndiaToday) April 1, 2020

In the clip, one can see the Yamraj and the police catching a man on the streets. Yamraj holds the man by his collar and asks the other person, apparently Chitragupta about the sins that the person has done.

Answering Yamrajs question, Chitragupta says that the guy was "roaming the streets and not listening to authorities". Yamraj after this reaches the conclusion that the person should be fried in oil and thrown to crows and vultures.

Sudhakar Reddy, circle inspector of Dhone rural police station told India Today, "This time, we have taken up a unique concept. We brought artists in the form of Yamraj, Chitragupta and coronavirus. This is to give message that 'if anybody comes out to streets, Yamraj is keeping a watch and he'll take them away".
The moment that sparked the Arms Crisis came at 8pm on May 5, 1970, when the leader of the Opposition, Liam Cosgrave, arrived at the office of Taoiseach Jack Lynch in Government Buildings in Dublin.

He carried with him a note typed on Garda-headed notepaper, containing disturbing information. "A plot to bring in arms has been discovered," it warned.

Signed simply 'Garda', it informed Cosgrave that three members of Lynch's cabinet - Minister for Finance Charles Haughey, Minister for Agriculture Neil Blaney and Minister for Defence James Gibbons - plus several others, including an Irish army officer Captain James Kelly, were involved in a secret, and seemingly criminal, attempt to import guns for the use of republicans in the North.

The involvement of the Minister for Defence, alongside a senior army officer, suggested that the gunrunning might have official State backing. Cosgrave's arrival at Lynch's door caused several remarkable things to happen. The most obvious of these was the sacking from the cabinet of Haughey and Blaney within hours.

Expand Close Hidden policy: Taoiseach Jack Lynch in 1970 / Facebook

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But less conspicuous was the way Lynch, demonstrating a political agility that would serve him well over the coming months, persuaded Cosgrave on the spot that, while parts of his information were valid, other parts were not.

The valid elements concerned Haughey and Blaney; their involvement Lynch appeared not to contest. The inclusion of Gibbons among the supposed conspirators was a different matter.

Cosgrave's note said that Gibbons was involved in the gunrunning, but, as with the rest of the note's contents, the Fine Gael leader had no additional information to back up its contents, and Lynch persuaded him that the note was mistaken about Gibbons. Their conversation was private, so how Lynch persuaded Cosgrave to exclude the Minister for Defence is not known.

But that was the outcome: first came the sacking, within hours, of Haughey and Blaney.

During this period, Charles Haughey, as Minister for Finance, had already been a dominant voice within Lynch's Fianna Fail Cabinet. Unaccountably wealthy, his swaggering lifestyle had already brought him notoriety, but there had been not the slightest public hint of disagreement by him with the Taoiseach over Northern Ireland.

Haughey's sudden sacking, alongside another Cabinet strongman, by Lynch at 2am on May 6, 1970 shocked the world of politics. An already glittering political career appeared destined to end in disgrace.

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On the day after the sackings, as Cosgrave explained to the Dail what had happened, he somehow dropped the name of the third minister Gibbons from the list of conspirators he had given to Lynch. In a strangely misleading account, he told the Dail that he had presented to the Taoiseach the names of just two ministers, Haughey and Blaney.

Nor was this failure to mention Gibbons the only omission by Cosgrave. There was another significant name, apparently, on the list he showed Lynch, which the Dail was not told about: this was that of Captain Kelly's boss, Colonel Michael Hefferon, the army's Director of Military Intelligence. The note had said that Hefferon too was part of the plot.

Cosgrave never mentioned Hefferon to the Dail; effectively, both the army intelligence chief and the minister, Gibbons, were written out of the story.

Neither Cosgrave nor Lynch ever divulged any details of what they had talked about on May 5 and Cosgrave, despite his role as leader of the Opposition, for the duration of his life declined all invitations to clarify the matter.

This was despite the gradual emergence at the 1970 arms trials of clear evidence that both Gibbons and Hefferon had known of and tolerated the gunrunning attempt.

Hefferon never made the slightest attempt to deny that he was personally involved. Gibbons attempted to deny it, but was never convincing in his denials.

As we shall see later, the evidence suggests that Lynch as Taoiseach had a hidden policy on Northern Ireland which involved the provision of guns to Northern nationalists. He never admitted this and while he was Taoiseach, he was engaged in a cover-up.

The outcome of the key meeting between Lynch and Cosgrave directly precipitated the Arms Crisis, yet the refusal by both leaders to reveal details of their discussion caused obfuscation to set in almost immediately.

Cosgrave made a Dail statement that was essentially false, while Lynch simply maintained silence on the matter.

The result was a fog of uncertainty over a pivotal moment. The importance of the issue cannot have escaped Cosgrave. It was whether or not Gibbons as Minister for Defence had a hand in the attempted gunrunning.

The garda note said that he had, but Cosgrave, after talking to Lynch, appears to have decided otherwise. What assurances did Lynch give him, and why were they so readily accepted?

The confusion around Cosgrave's meeting with Lynch on May 5 quickly extended over the full Arms Crisis narrative, which came to be characterised on all sides by a persistent strain of false testimony, silence, evasion and various forms of subterfuge.

On the basis of the State files, plus much hitherto unexplored documentary evidence, one can only conclude that the Arms Crisis has produced an exceptional set of historical myths.

Chief among the myths of 1970 is that of Lynch as hero, the gentle, honest leader who asserted himself at the last moment to surprise those who, in the mythology, were plotting his downfall.

The dominant, though far from universal, perception has been that the plot in 1970 involved plans that would have undermined the State's democratic institutions and brought the island close to a bloody civil war. At least partly on the back of defeating such evil intentions, Lynch acquired an immense status in later years as a strong and charismatic leader.

The other myth is of Charles Haughey and Neil Blaney as conspirators and fellow travellers with the IRA: the perception that, at the time, they believed in using force to break partition and were prepared to subvert the democratic institutions of the State in order to seize power from a Taoiseach they held in contempt.

This second myth is essential to the first, as Lynch could avoid responsibility for the uncovered gunrunning plan only if others could be identified and blamed. Without Haughey and Blaney as culprits, the government would have been left naked before some uncomfortable facts. Chief among these, as the Garda note that Cosgrave brought to Lynch implied, was the apparent entanglement in the gunrunning scheme of Gibbons and Hefferon.

There were two linked myths, therefore, arising out of the events of 1970: Lynch as hero, and Haughey and Blaney as sinister plotters.

Until now, it has never been satisfactorily established whether the gunrunning was the result of a plot by Lynch's two sacked cabinet colleagues, or whether it was an authorised project, at least unofficially.

There has long been a dominant view that Lynch was the aggrieved party.

Having looked at the most comprehensive array of source material yet assembled, I have concluded that Lynch scapegoated his two ministers, after having done much to create a crisis that historians and journalists, perversely, have given him credit for resolving.

Question marks will be placed here against theories that Haughey and Blaney were operating a disloyal "government within a government", or were plotting to unseat Lynch as Taoiseach.

As I have suggested, the evidence suggests that Lynch had an effectively hidden policy on Northern Ireland, which in part involved the provision of guns - in emergencies - to Northern nationalists.

Lynch never admitted this. While he was Taoiseach, and thereafter, Jack Lynch engaged in a long-term cover-up of the contents of a directive given to the Defence Forces in February 1970. The directive largely encapsulated the hidden policy.

The directive was issued orally by the Minister for Defence James Gibbons, to the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Sean MacEoin, in the minister's office on February 6, 1970. Top-secret documents in the Military Archive offer a verbatim record: "At a meeting of the Government held this morning, I was instructed to direct you to prepare the army for incursions into Northern Ireland. The Taoiseach and other ministers have met delegations from the North. At these meetings, urgent demands were made for respirators, weapons and ammunition, the provision of which the Government agreed. Accordingly, truck-loads of these items will be put at readiness so that they may be available in a matter of hours."

Overall, there should be a reassessment of the historical significance of the Arms Crisis and a recasting of the roles played by the two dominant figures of the period, Lynch and Haughey, as well as other central players such as Blaney.

The two army officers involved, Kelly and Hefferon, were essentially collateral damage in a larger conflict being played out substantially within Fianna Fail. Their treatment, it is argued, has been unjust.

Unreliable claims

The untruths that litter the evidence are so persistent that it is not possible to develop a clear Arms Crisis narrative without first distinguishing between those witnesses whose evidence appears broadly credible, and those whose evidence, generally speaking, is questionable.

This exercise quickly establishes the value of testimony from public servants such as Anthony Fagan of the Department of Finance and Hefferon; their broadly trustworthy testimony proved a sharp contrast to the frequently unreliable claims from almost all the senior politicians.

All attempts to pierce through the contradictions and dead ends of the dominant narrative have to contend with a further suffocating reality: the Arms Crisis, in significant part, was internal Fianna Fail business, and the sectional interest of the party has never been in full disclosure.

This is illustrated in the elaborate subterfuges of James Gibbons, Jack Lynch and Charles Haughey. Silence and reticence alone were never going to be enough to protect Fianna Fail's hold on office, and complete truth-telling, it seems, was never an option.

While Haughey's capacity for twisting the record is one of the worst-kept secrets of the Arms Crisis, less conspicuous is the fact that throughout 1970 and beyond, extending even to November 1980, Lynch and Gibbons were responsible for a large number of false statements to the Dail and, in Gibbons' case, for false and misleading statements to garda investigators.

Gibbons' struggles with veracity caused him to suffer humiliation at the hands of senior counsel in the arms trials, but the extent to which Lynch's public statements, to the Dail and otherwise, fail to stand up, may surprise many. As the British ambassador remarked in the aftermath of the trials, the entire episode reflected poorly on nearly everyone involved, with Fianna Fail, in his view, "putting party and power above principles".

It was a view with which Peter Berry, the formidable Secretary of the Department of Justice, from a very different vantage-point, completely concurred.

In his diaries, published posthumously in 1980, Berry reached an acid conclusion: "The necessity to keep the Fianna Fail government in power at all costs was the overriding consideration".

'The Arms Crisis of 1970' is published by Head of Zeus
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Travel will be restricted in an urban center in Mindanao effective Saturday in light of efforts to counter the spread of the coronavirus disease, according to a local directive.

Mayor Sara Duterte declared Davao City under enhanced community quarantine after the number of COVID-19 cases jumped to over 40 from only two in the previous week.

She issued Executive Order 23 on Thursday that outlined stricter guidelines for the movement of people. Mass transportation will be suspended beginning Friday, except for vehicles hired by the city government. Duterte has also imposed curfew hours, and limited the sale and consumption of liquor.

Only employees with "essential" roles will be allowed to work, and will be fetched from their homes to their workplaces and back. These include disaster response personnel, as well as health, security, and social service workers.

Residents will still be allowed to "go out into the sun or get some fresh air," as long as they observe social distancing.

If not extended or withdrawn sooner, the enhanced community quarantine will be in place until April 19.

Earlier this week, health officials announced that five doctors and three nurses were infected and confined at the Southern Philippine Medical Center in the city.

There are now 61 COVID-19 cases with nine deaths in the entire Davao region. All fatalities were from Davao City. 18 patients have so far recovered.

To date, the Philippines has 2,633 COVID-19 cases, including 107 deaths and 51 recoveries.
The Magic Bag theater is pictured closed due to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's measures to stop the spread of the CCP virus in Ferndale, Mich., on March 26, 2020. (Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images)

Michigan Declares State of Disaster As Virus Deaths Reach 337

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order on April 1 extending the state of emergency and formally declaring a state of disaster due to the outbreak of the CCP virus.

Whitmer had initially signed a state of emergency on March 10, when Michigan had confirmed two cases of the CCP virus. As of April 2, the state has 9,334 confirmed cases of the virus, while 337 deaths have been attributed to the disease. The state of emergency allowed the state to purchase health-related items without a bid and was in place until the end of March before its extension.

The governor said Wednesdays disaster declaration recognizes an expanded scope of economic, educational, and civic dislocation caused by the CCP virus and equips the administration to address adequately the devastation caused by it.

Since Michigan announced our first confirmed cases of COVID-19 three weeks ago, we have taken some of the most aggressive measures in the country to mitigate the spread of the virus and protect Michigan families, said Whitmer in a press release. Todays action will allow my administration to respond more effectively to every facet of this crisis. During this time, its crucial that Michiganders continue to stay home and keep their distance from others. We will get through this together.

As the number of confirmed cases across the state continues to rise, Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, Chief Medical Executive, and Chief Deputy Director for Health for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) urged people to do everything we can to slow the spread.

The governor has taken a number of critical steps to protect Michigan families, and this order today will allow that work to continue. I will keep working closely with the governor and our partners across state government to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, she added.

In addition to issuing the Executive Order, the governor also sent a letter (pdf) to Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey (R-Mich.) and House Speaker Lee Chatfield (R-Mich.) requesting a concurrent resolution extending the declared state of emergency and disaster by 70 days from the date of the resolution. State law only allows a State of Emergency to last for 28 days unless the State House and Senate pass a resolution making it longer.

To meet the steep, varied, and ongoing demands created by the COVID-19 pandemic, my administration must continue to use the full range of tools available to protect the health, safety, and welfare of our state and its residents. I welcome you and your colleagues continued partnership in fighting this pandemic, Whitmer wrote in her letter.

Whitmer had previously signed the Stay Home, Stay Safe, order directing non-essential businesses, including restaurants, clubs, gyms, and movie theaters to temporarily suspend operations and directing all Michiganders to stay in their homes unless they are part of the critical workforce. However, essential services, such as grocery stores, banks, and pharmacies, were able to continue operating.
Storyful

Supporters of world No.1 Novak Djokovic gathered outside a courthouse in Melbourne on January 10 as the player appealed against his deportation from Australia in the hope of staying to play in the Australian Open.According to court filings, Djokovics lawyers say he was granted a visa on November 18. An exemption certificate was issued by Tennis Australias chief medical officer on December 30, they said.The hearing on Monday was due to start at the Federal Circuit and Family Court at 10am but was delayed multiple times due to technical issues. According to local reports, Judge Anthony Kelly said a professor and an eminently qualified physician have produced and provided to the applicant a medical exemption.Further to that, that medical exemption and the basis on which it was given was separately given by a further independent expert specialist panel, established by the Victorian state government. And that document was in the hands of the delegate.And the point Im somewhat agitated about is, was what more could this man have done? Judge Kelly asked.Footage by Slobodan Bendjo shows fans waving Serbian flags and dancing outside the Federal Circuit and Family Court in Melbourne. Credit: Slobodan Bendjo via Storyful
New Delhi, April 2 : A student of Jawaharlal Nehru University has accused the security guards of the varsity of physically assaulting him after he tried to go out of university campus amid the nationwide lockdown.

In a viral video, the student identified as Pranav can be seen sitting near the JNU gate, arguing with security guards, saying he needs to go outside the campus for an important work.

In support of his argument, Pranav claims that he had a written permission from the hostel warden.

"I have written permission to move out of campus, I will not move from here at any cost, you want to move me than come touch me. I will cough on you, I will spread corona," the student is seen saying in video.

While the guards argued that the letter lacked stamp of the hostel warden and hence could not be verified for authenticity.

"How can I accept this letter, what is the credibility of letter without a stamp," the guard said as he tried to convenience the student to go back to campus.

The student has now claimed that he was "beaten black and blue by the guards" and referred to AIIMS trauma centre.
ALBANY  The Capital Region saw deaths linked to coronavirus rise to 11 on Thursday as Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state could see the diseases peak sooner than the 21-day projection he previously predicted.

Those estimates are largely based on how effective New Yorkers are at the social distancing measures that have been in place for nearly a month.

"It's anywhere from seven to 21 to 30 days," the governor said. "We believe it is close to the shorter end of the range with our in-house people looking at the professional modeling that's being done."

Locally, a 68-year-old Sand Lake man and a Columbia County resident became the pandemic's latest Capital Region victims.

The governor on Thursday said the state may still need may between 70,000 to 110,000 hospital beds to handle COVID-19 patients. Under that projection, the number of new hospitalizations for the virus in New York would top 100,000 in the next two to three weeks. The number of new hospitalizations declined Thursday, from 1,297 to 1,157.

Cuomo's hospitalization projection has lowered compared to his March 25 statement that said: "Right now what we're looking at is about 140,000 cases coming into the hospitals. The hospital capacity is 53,000 beds. That's a problem."

Cuomo also said Thursday that the state has enough ventilators in a stockpile for up to six days if the flow of intensive care unit patients continues.

"They all basically say you come down from the apex quickly and then some models have it flattening out ... and continuing through the summer, he said.

Cuomo said the state has purchased 3,000 ventilators from Philips in Pittsburgh and is "in fairly good shape" in terms of having enough ventilators to treat patients in intensive care units. But he said the state is continuing to try and purchase ventilators, including from China. Still, Cuomo has cautioned that the projections vary and New York, as well as all other states, need to prepare for the worst and plan for any potential shortage of ventilators, hospital beds and medical supplies. Cuomo said rural areas will also not be immune to a possible heavy impact.

The total confirmed cases in New York since the COVID-19 outbreak began reached 92,381 on Thursday, although that figure includes people who have recovered from the flu-like illness. More than 13,380 people are hospitalized and 7,434 patients have been discharged from hospitals after treatment for the respiratory illness.

Public health officials have said the number of confirmed cases is likely only a fraction of the true number of COVID-19 infections because without widespread testing, medical providers cant detect people who are asymptomatic or only presenting with mild symptoms.

On Thursday, Albany County Executive Dan McCoy and County Health Commissioner Elizabeth Whalen said they hope to re-open community testing to those who are showing some symptoms within the next few days. Expanded testing will give a clearer picture of the pandemic's spread and ensure that more people know they have it and need to stay away from others.

We know we dont have a true representation of whats going on in the community, Whalen said.

And in a sign that the arrival of downstate patients are having an impact on local hospitals, McCoy indicated Albany Medical Center now has more than 40 COVID-19 patients from the New York City area, a jump from 14 such patients yesterday. St. Marys Hospital in Amsterdam also confirmed on Thursday that it had accepted patients from downstate hospitals.

Speaking at a morning news conference, McCoy threatened to impose a curfew, as well as issue fines, to deter people from holding parties and other gatherings that violate social distancing directives.

McCoy says he still sees people  many of them young  failing to adhere to rules that require people to avoid casual contact with others.

LOCAL CASES UPDATE

Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin said the death of the county's first resident linked to the pandemic was not unexpected but still jarring.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

"This is a sad day for all of us at Rensselaer County, and we mourn the loss of one of our residents to the coronavirus outbreak," he said.

The county currently has 18 residents hospitalized, and 360 people in quarantine. So far, 14 people have recovered.

Still small numbers overall, but theyre growing, McLaughlin said.

Columbia County health officials reported Thursday that two people who had tested positive for COVID-19 have since died. But it's unclear when the second death occurred. On Saturday, Columbia County reported its first confirmed death who was a resident of Pine Haven nursing home in Philmont.

Schenectady County leads the region with five deaths from the disease. There are 98 confirmed cases, with 17 people hospitalized and 321 people under quarantine.

Saratoga County has had 139 confirmed cases with 19 people hospitalized. A 95-year-old county resident died at Glens Falls Hospital last week.

Albany County has had two deaths, and the most confirmed cases in the region. The county reported having 238 confirmed cases Thursday, an increase of 10 new confirmations from Wednesday. There are 27 patients hospitalized, 12 patients in intensive care and 401 people under mandatory quarantine.

Two of the new cases in the past two days are Albany firefighters. Chief Joseph Gregory said the department now has five members who have tested positive and 19 who are in quarantine.

Warren County has 19 cases, Washington County has 13 cases, Montgomery County nine cases with 25 people quarantined and Greene County has 25 cases confirmed.

Staff writers Bethany Bump, Kenneth Crowe II, and Wendy Liberatore contributed to this report.
AUSTIN, Texas, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- COVID-19 has done immense damage to Austin's economy, much of it acutely felt by food businesses and their underlying supply chain. These businesses have seen revenues drop quickly, and it is incumbent upon members of the community to hold them high in this low time.

It was this thinking that prompted Cision, a global leader in public relations software and services, to reach out to their national corporate catering partner, Cater2.me, to engage with the latter's recently-launched Vendor Assistance & Community Support Program. Cision and Cater2.me then worked with local food vendor Two Spoons to deliver around 200 meals to food recovery outfit, Keep Austin Fed.

"Our mission since day one at Cater2.me has been to develop community at the office through locally-sourced food," said Zach Yungst, co-founder of Cater2.me. "The current public health crisis has not changed the core of that mission, but it has shifted the beneficiaries of our service. It has always been our goal to ensure that our local vendors, and the communities we serve, are taken care of, and we want to double down on that during this difficult time."

Cision initially donated a pre-planned team meal, but as the economic freeze deepened, so too did ongoing corporate catering budgets. To overcome this, the Cision team organized an internal fundraiser to continue the food donation and to support local vendors. Within two days Cision employees had raised thousands of dollars.

"Cision teams around the world are finding ways to give back to their local communities to address the fallout from COVID-19," said Hayes Davis, SVP of Revenue Operations at Cision. "These are challenging times for everyone, but they're especially hard for people facing food insecurity. Here in Austin, our team is thankful for the opportunity to partner with Cater2.me to help our neighbors in need get through this incredibly difficult time."

As part of Cater2.me's nationwide Vendor Assistance & Community Support Program, clients like Cision can sponsor a set of meals that are delivered to local food banks and food recovery programs; with all the work performed by a local food vendor. The vendor is paid just as they would be for a normal office catering delivery with Cater2.me donating its commission.

"We have been so gratified to see many of our clients sponsoring meal donations on behalf of their employees," said Cater2.me co-founder Alex Lorton. "Cision has been a great partner in this, and their meal donation is one of the largest we've seen yet. People may not realize it, but a meal delivery like this not only keeps hungry people fed, it can keep a food vendor's employees on payroll longer during uncertain times."

Justin Owen, the co-owner of Two Spoons in Austin, said, "Cater2.me has been a great partner over the years, and we were very excited when they approached us with this idea. It's programs like this that will hopefully allow us, and companies like us, to survive these very uncertain times."

Keep Austin Fed is also relying on corporate meal donations like this one, as food rescue opportunities have evaporated during the shelter-in-place order and broader economic shutdown.

"Keep Austin Fed's primary focus is on rescuing surplus food and getting it to those in need. Unfortunately, as businesses close their doors and people shelter at home, the availability of surplus food has dropped, while the need has become even greater," said Lisa Barden, Keep Austin Fed's Executive Director.

"A partnership with Cater2.me has been so helpful filling in those gaps, providing individual meals to those with limited access to nutritious food. We are thrilled that Cision and Cater2.me are assisting this process and keeping the caterers and their employees engaged."

In a joint statement, Cater2.me, co-founders Yungst and Lorton, and Cision's Davis, said, "We are glad to have found a productive and helpful partnership during these tough times that could do some good in the Austin community. We wish everyone a return to health and prosperity shortly."

Cision and Cater2.me plan to continue their partnership in Austin, and Cision aims to keep their employee-led fundraiser open until city mandates are lifted. Cater2.me is already working on further client-donated community assistance programs in Atlanta, New York, San Francisco, and other key markets affected by COVID-19.

To contact Cater2.me about setting up a local, vendor-supplied donation to an organization in your community, please contact:

[email protected]

About Cater2.me

Cater2.me provides customized corporate catering. Whether you need a one-time catering delivery or recurring meals, we bring delicious food from the best local chefs and restaurants to your table.From planning to on-site setup and feedback collection, we'll manage every aspect of your catering program.

Contact: Neil St. Clair, Director of Marketing

[email protected] / (732) 319-6074

www.cater2.me

About Cision

Cision Ltd. is a leading global provider of earned media software and services to public relations and marketing communications professionals. Cision's software allows users to identify key influencers, craft and distribute strategic content, and measure meaningful impact. Cision has over 4,800 employees with offices in 24 countries throughout the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. For more information about its award-winning products and services, including the Cision Communications Cloud, visit www.Cision.com and follow Cision on Twitter @Cision .

Media Contact:

Rebecca Dersh

PR Manager

[email protected]

About Keep Austin Fed

Keep Austin Fed is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that gathers wholesome and nutritious surplus food from commercial kitchens and distributes it to area nonprofits that serve people in need. The organization's mission is to reduce hunger and help the environment by connecting surplus food with our neighbors in need.

Contact: Lisa Barden/Executive Director

[email protected] / 512-831-3654

www.keepaustinfed.org

About Two Spoons

Two Spoons is a grab-and-go wholesaler and caterer serving all of Austin and beyond.

Contact: Justin Owen/Co-Owner

[email protected] / 832-671-9767

www.twospoonsfood.com

SOURCE Cater2.me

Related Links

https://cater2.me/


I wholeheartedly agree with The Hours recent editorial on no excuse absentee voting for the June 2 presidential primary. We need to guarantee that voters remain safe during what has become an international health crisis. And the best way to do that is for Gov. Lamont to use his emergency powers to implement no excuse absentee voting, which would allow any voter to vote by mail. Secretary of State Denise Merrill has already called for the governor to make this move.

But long term, I believe its time for Connecticut to modernize its election rules, even though weve been well ahead of the curve nationally: In 2013, we implemented Election Day registration. In 2014, we began using online voter registration. In 2016, we implemented electronic registration at Department of Motor Vehicle offices.

Fortunately, we now have an opportunity to not only expand the voter rolls by roughly 245,000 in Connecticut alone, but also increase the accuracy of voter lists, enhance the security of elections, and possibly save around $3.54 in labor costs per registration.

There is a bill in Hartford, S.B. No. 233: An Act Concerning Elections, which would establish automatic voter registration (AVR) in the state. At least 19 states and the District of Columbia have authorized automatic voter registration and the list is growing. The U.S. Election Assistance Commission has noted that Oregon added 375,000 new voters to its rolls in just 18 months after implementation of AVR. And in Vermont, registration increased by 12,300 in the first six months after the law was enacted.

Norwalk residents have probably heard or read about the low turnout levels in our local, state and national elections. Its something we may even take for granted. But consider this: There are almost 50,000 active registered voters in the city, even though the citys old-enough-to-vote population is above 70,000. Of course, there are a variety of reasons as to why folks dont register. Of course, we can debate the merits of those reasons. But any opportunity to increase the voter rolls is an opportunity to expand the democratic process and should not be missed.

AVR is an expansion of whats often called motor voter registration, which grew out of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. The current law provides residents the opportunity to register (to opt-in and choose a party) when applying for or renewing a drivers license. AVR would require every eligible resident who interacts with certain state agencies to register. These agencies include the DMV, the Department of Social Services, Access Health Ct. & Medicaid, UConn, and other state campuses.

Unlike our motor voter system, AVR is an opt-out system. Passage of S.B. No. 233 would transform our opt-in system to an opt-out system, while providing automatic registration updates, such as address changes, each time a resident interacts with a state agency.

This last point is important. I was an elected official in Norwalk for 20 years, and I spent Election Day around polls talking to voters in parking lots. I often found myself in discussions with voters who complained that the registrar had inaccurate information. Addresses and contact information seemed to comprise most of the problems. AVR, in Oregon alone, updated 265,000 incorrect addresses. Voter security and the integrity of elections would also increase with AVR, as Connecticut would become part of other state and federal databases, making it easier to identify and possibly remove ineligible voters from the lists.

Holding elections is not cheap. Each year, part of Norwalks operating budget is devoted to the office of the Registrar of Voters. I recall occasions when our citys two registrars asked city officials for additional funds for primaries, to deal with larger-than-expected turnouts, to update voter lists, etc. Any system, such AVR, that can reduce the amount of labor-intensive data entry will save taxpayers money. As indicated above, on average it appears that full implementation of AVR saves about $3.54 in labor costs per registration.

It should be noted that AVR would streamline same-day registration because fewer people would need to use it. The number of time-consuming phone calls to other municipalities would diminish drastically under the new system.

A major expansion of the voter rolls. Increased accuracy and election security. Taxpayer savings. A quicker and smoother experience for voters. Thats a lot of good stuff for a single piece of legislation. I certainly hope candidates in the upcoming state elections pledge to support and work hard for this important piece of legislation.

But for now, we need to move quickly to implement no excuse absentee voting for the coming primaries.

Bruce Kimmel, a Norwalk resident, is a former member of the Board of Education and the Common Council.
FAIRFIELD  Police are asking residents to keep their eyes out for a census scam during the coronarius pandemic, according to a press release from the Fairfield Police Department.

Residents should not respond to any fraudulent emails, text messages or social media posts stating that they need to respond to the 2020 U.S. Census in order to receive a COVID-19 stimulus check from the federal government, the release said. Scammers may use fraudulent census websites to retrieve personal information in exchange for false stimulus checks.

The release said responses to the 2020 Census are not tied to COVID-19 stimulus checks in any way. It also said the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau will never ask for a social security number, bank account or credit card numbers, or for money or donations, and will never threaten jail time for not responding to the census.

It will also never send unsolicited emails requesting participation in the census,the release said. Chief Lyddy warns that residents should never give personal information, money or home access to any solicitor. If a false census is sent to you, you should not fill it out and alert local authorities immediately.

The release said the American Association of Retired Persons had several recommendations to help identify if a census or census worker is legitimate. They included asking to see a census workers badge and checking the staff directory for it on census.gov, contacting the national processing center or regional office to verify that a survey is real and checking that a census mailing has a return address of Jeffersonville, Indiana, the site of the National Processing Center.

"It's unfortunate how common it is to see scammers trying to take advantage of people during uncertain times," said Chief Christopher Lyddy. "We would like to remind everyone to be aware of your surroundings and not accept any offers from people posing as census workers. The COVID-19 stimulus checks are not related to your 2020 U.S. Census information. Anyone claiming otherwise is a scammer."

The release also reminded that Fairfield residents should not partake in any coronavirus testing from door-to-door solicitors, people who approach them at grocery stores or other community venues or solicitors who call requesting financial information in return for a test or mail COVID-19 test offerings.

These fake tests are being sold for $200 to $500 and often allege immediate results, the release said. Real tests must be completed by a trained professional and require lab analysis. Results take 1-5 days depending on the test being utilized. Anyone offering immediate results are partaking in a scam.

If anyone has questions or feels like they have been victimized, they are encouraged to call the Fairfield Police Department at 203-254-4800 (Option 0). Connecticut residents who believe they are victims of fraud or other criminal activity related to the pandemic should contact the United States Attorney's Office at USAMA.victimassistance@usdoj.gov or call 1-888-221-6023 and leave a message. Members of the public can also contact the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) by visiting www.IC3.gov.
Of course it was a different Donald Trump  its a different Donald Trump every night, which means its always the same Donald Trump. He never fundamentally changes who he is as a person, he just swings wildly back and forth from one extreme to the other. Hes like a werewolf, but for the sun instead of the moon.  SETH MEYERS

And if hes taking it seriously, then we should be really scared. Cause I mean this guy takes nothing seriously. This is the same dude who stared at an eclipse like it was a Magic Eye painting.  TREVOR NOAH

President Trump was warned about coronavirus by his advisers as early as Jan. 18  and he dismissed it for months. So as much as Trump wants to blame China for downplaying the virus, he himself ignored all the messages that his experts were giving him. And he didnt ignore them once, he didnt ignore them twice, he ignored them countless times. Like if we were back in Bible times, Trump would have heard the burning bush and then just thrown water on it. [imitating Trump] Ah, finally! That bush was so annoying.  TREVOR NOAH

And of course, it went unheeded. Trump doesnt heed. He doesnt heed the law, he doesnt heed advice, and he especially doesnt heed studies.  SETH MEYERS
President Xi Jinping on Wednesday said that China-India relations have now arrived at a new starting point with new opportunities for both the countries.

The statement was issued when President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang exchanged messages of felicitations respectively with President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 70th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China.



In his message, President Xi noted that the bilateral relations "have traveled a remarkable journey in the last seven decades." India and China, he said, "have established a strategic and cooperative partnership for peace and prosperity and are working to build a closer developmental partnership."





President Xi said the two countries are enjoying deeper exchanges and cooperation across the board and growing coordination in major international and regional affairs. "China-India relations have now reached a new starting point with new opportunities to be grasped," he said.



"I place great importance on China-India partnership and am ready to work with President Kovind to take it to a new level. A stronger bilateral relationship will bring more benefits to our countries and peoples, contribute more positive energy to ASia and the world at large," he conveyed it through his ambassador in New Delhi, Sun Weidong.



In the same spirit, Premier Li Keqiang in his address said that a relationship defined by friendship, cooperation and mutual benefit will serve the fundamental interests of both countries and peoples and benefit Asia and the world at large.



China, he said, is ready to join hands with India to build on the momentum created by this 70th anniversary to work for new progress in our strategic and cooperative partnership.



President Kovind in his message to China pointed out that the two ancient civilisations were neighbouring countries as well as large emerging economies. Good relations between India and China are not only in our mutual interest but also important for peace and prosperity of the world at large, he said.



"India looks forward to furthering our relationship with China and working together to broaden and deepen our closer development partnership," President Kovind said.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared similar views. "Over the past 70 years, India-China political, economic and cultural relations have expanded steadily. India and China should strengthen coordination and mutual solidarity and jointly tackle the challenges faced by the world."



The felicitations of diplomatic ties come at a time when the whole world is battling covid-19 pandemic which originated in Wuhan city of Hubei province of China a few months ago.



On Tuesday, Chinese envoy to India, Sun Weidong said both the countries are sailing in the same boat as regards the battle against the novel coronavirus outbreak.



"We are confident that we can handle and win the battle with solidarity. It highlights spirit of mutual assistance & working together through thick and thin," he tweeted.



Incidentally, the second batch of donation from Chinese charity organizations Jack Ma and Alibaba Foundations arrived in Delhi on Tuesday. The donation includes protective clothes, masks, respirators and ventilators.



"Chinese state-owned companies also provide assistance to their Indian partners. The Chinese people will stand firmly with the Indian people in the fight against COVID19 and we'll get through hard times together," Weidong said.
One photographer is changing the way she does business by giving away free video shoots to local restaurants and companies to help boost their business.

Amid the casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses and entrepreneurs across the nation have had to shut their doors and halt their services like Gabriela Gonzales of Photos by Gabriela.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: H-E-B taps 3 Houston restaurants to create dishes for select area stores

"Being in business for over 25 years, my agenda had never been empty, never, never, never. With Harvey I was probably down 2 weeks or less but, never like today," said Gonzales.

"I will never forget the restaurant owner sitting alone on a dining room table with her head down," Gonzales said. "You could see the fear, the worry on her face, my heart broke for her."

That look is what gave Gonzales the idea of using her skills and services to help Houston businesses in her area.

We feel Blessed to have Gabrielas expertise with photo shoots and video commercials. What an amazing opportunity to be able to let Customers know we are open for business," shared Jesse Canas owner of Cattle Drive BBQ.

FAMILY-SIZED MEALS TO GO: Houston restaurants offering family-sized feasts to-go during coronavirus pandemic

Meeting these business owners and encouraging them to hang on has given Gonzales a new perspective. "I believe in giving, especially when I can, and during a time of need."

Gary LaFave of FitChef Foods Texas said it was a blessing to benefit from Gonzales' services. "I put the business in God's hands, God works in mysterious ways," said LaFave.

"Gaby is such a giving and caring person in her efforts to help boost our economy in a new reality of the virtual world," said Mary E. Ramos of Ramos Law Group, PLLC. "This exposure only helps us adjust to the not so future norm of Zoom and electronic-only courtroom participation."

"Photography isn't just my way of life, but it's my passion so why not go help?" Gonzales said.

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The United States is prepared to end sanctions on Venezuela if its political leaders agree to support a proposal to form a temporary government.

U.S. officials say the proposal would require both Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and opposition leader Juan Guaido to step aside. Instead, a five-person council would govern the country.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the proposal earlier this week. It is similar to a plan offered last weekend by Guaido. About 60 countries recognize him as Venezuelas rightful leader.

The proposal shows how growing concerns about the coronavirus and its spread threaten to overpower the South American nation. Venezuelas healthcare system and economy are already weak, U.S. officials say.

"This framework can provide a path that ends the suffering and opens the path to a brighter future for Venezuela," said Pompeo on Tuesday. He spoke to reporters in Washington.

Under the proposal, both Maduro and Guaido would step aside and give power to a five-member council of state, which would govern the country. The group would rule until presidential and parliamentary elections can be held within six to 12 months.

The military high command is the traditional arbiter of political disputes in Venezuela. It has been providing support to Maduro. Under the proposal, the military command would remain in place while the temporary government is in power.

Four of the councils members would be appointed by the opposition-controlled National Assembly that Guaido leads. To gain support from the ruling socialist party, a two-thirds majority would be required. The fifth member would serve as acting president until elections are held. That person would be named by the councils other members. Neither Maduro nor Guaido would serve on the council. However, Pompeo told reporters that under the plan, Guaido would be free to run for president when elections are held.

"The hope is that this setup promotes the selection of people who are very broadly respected and known as people who can work with the other side," said Elliott Abrams. He spoke to The Associated Press.

Abrams is the U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela.

The plan also describes for the first time U.S. requirements for lifting sanctions against Maduro, his top aides and the countrys oil industry. That industry now provides nearly all of Venezuela's foreign income.

The U.S. sanctions would stay in place against people accused of serious human rights abuses and drug trafficking. However, individuals who face restrictions because of their positions inside the Maduro government would be helped. These include members of the supreme court, electoral council and constitutional assembly members.

However, for sanctions to end, Abrams said, the council would need to work well and all foreign military forces  from Cuba or Russia  would need to leave Venezuela.

For months, the U.S. government has used economic and diplomatic pressure to try to break the military's support for Maduro. Last week, U.S. government lawyers brought charges of drug trafficking and money laundering against Maduro and other government officials. They include the defense minister and head of the supreme court.

Yet a power-sharing agreement is unlikely to win Maduro's support unless his future includes protection from the U.S. justice system, David Smilde said. He is with the Washington Office on Latin America, a research group.

"It's a little hard to see how this is going to be convincing to the major players in the government," he said. It also would require the support of Cuba, China or Russia -- all of which support Maduro.

A top Trump administration official said Monday that the United States is willing to negotiate with Maduro about terms for his leaving.

Last September, Guaido proposed a similar transitional government in talks with Maduro officials. But the plan failed to win much acceptance.

Im Anna Mateo.

The Associated Press reported this story. Mario Ritter Jr. adapted this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

_________________________________________________

Words in This Story

sanction  n. threatened punishment for disobeying a rule or law

framework  n. a set of ideas meant to be developed into a more complete plan

arbiter  n. a person who can settle arguments

selection  n. the act of choosing something or someone from a group

aide  n. a person who acts as an assistant

promote  v. to support

income  n. earnings; wages

money laundering  n. the illegal process of hiding money passed to an individual or organization through a complex series of financial activities

convince  v. to persuade; to cause someone to accept or believe something
The Texas city of Laredo, on the Mexican border, has ordered its residents to wear face masks when entering any building other than their home  and decreed that should they fail to comply, they will be fined $1,000.

The city council has also extended a 10pm-5am curfew that originally covered children to include all residents. Violators will face the same four-figure penalty.

Laredos embrace of masks as a key method of controlling the spread of coronavirus puts it ahead of the US government, which has only lately revisited the question of whether wearing them in public is useful.

The CDCs advice has so far been that masks are only necessary where someone is sick or caring for someone else who is; however, CDC director Robert Redfield recently told NPR that the advice is being reviewed aggressively.

Some cities, like Laredo, have taken the initiative themselves. Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti has told Angelenos that wearing masks in public should now be considered necessary. Donning a mask himself at a press briefing, he said: Were going to have to get used to seeing each other like this. This will be the look.

Texas has so far confirmed more than 4,000 cases of Covid-19, with deaths topping 60. The state capital of Austin recently saw 28 people test positive after returning from a spring break vacation.

Governor Greg Abbott recently issued an executive order bringing Texass coronavirus strategy closer in line with the stay at home model adopted by most other US states, telling residents that if youre not engaged in an essential service or activity, then you need to be at home for the purpose of slowing the spread of Covid-19. The order will last until 30 April; Texas schools are set to remain closed until 4 May.

Mr Abbott has also drawn heavy criticism for signing an order on 22 March that banned abortions during the outbreak by ruling out all procedures not immediately medically necessary to save a life.

And on the matter of survival, the states lieutenant governor, Dan Patrick, recently told Fox News that older Americans should accept that it is more important to save the economy from the effects of the pandemic than it is to protect them from getting infected.
Thuraya, the Mobile Satellite Services (MSS) subsidiary of the UAE-based global satellite company, Yahsat, has welcomed the launch of the Covid-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) announced by the United Nations Secretary-General on March 25.

The company will use its expertise and apply lessons learned from the 2014-2016 Ebola outbreak, to help the global community implement the HRP and save lives during the Covid-19 pandemic, it said in a statement.

The Global HRP is a co-ordinated $2 billion humanitarian response to fight Covid-19 in 51 of the worlds poorest countries across, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and South America. It is led by UN agencies with support from other international organizations and NGOs with a humanitarian mandate.

Sulaiman Al Ali, Deputy CEO of Thuraya, said: We fully support the Covid-19 Humanitarian Response Plan. Successful operations during emergencies depend on timely and proper communication among relief workers, donors and affected communities. In over 20 years of operation, and as a signatory of UN Crisis Connectivity Charter, Thuraya has always stood by the international community during crises. We work closely with organizations such as International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) to provide first responders and health missions a reliable satellite communications platform that is independent of terrestrial systems and available at all times.

Providing ubiquitous coverage in more than 160 countries, Thuraya will enable always-on voice and internet connections for Covid-19 relief missions, especially in regions where telecommunications infrastructure is likely to be weak or unavailable, the statement said.

The company had a similar arrangement with ETC during the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak, when it supplied voice and broadband links for the World Health Organization, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NetHope and other NGOs in the severely affected areas of Sierra Leone.

Wireless connections were essential for health workers and relief agencies in different locations to stay connected and share instant updates, including emerging hotspots and rates of death and recovery. However, cellular networks could not handle the surge of user traffic. Only widespread use of satellite communications kept vital information flowing.

Thuraya also has a standing agreement with ITU to deploy its terminals for immediate assistance during emergencies and natural disasters. Its mobile satellite phones and broadband devices enable solutions that can help relief workers achieve maximum impact, while limiting their exposure to Covid-19. Devices such as Thuraya X5-Touch and Thuraya IP+ support telemedicine applications that offer timely advice and support to caregivers treating affected communities in remote locations.

Thuraya can augment coronavirus relief work in remote locations through telemedicine solutions such as teleconferencing kits and connected ambulances. The ambulance-to-hospital telemedicine system works over Thurayas IP broadband terminals and satellite network, connecting onboard wired and wireless medical devices to hospitals and diagnosing physicians. It transmits patients vital signs data in real time, enabling remote diagnosis and primary care that could greatly improve survival chances and levels of future health for patients.

Moreover, relief agencies can use the solution to collect data on the spread of virus and visualize the pandemic, trace contacts and collect information to support health surveillance. It can also assist in coordinated efforts to deliver necessities such as vaccines and other medical supplies, or even satellite communications equipment.

Reliable communications are urgently required where the threat from Covid-19 is greatest. The social distancing strategies introduced by governments across whole populations are expected to place severe strain on cellular networks and internet traffic. By increasing capacity over hotspots, Thuraya will ensure service continuity, even when there is a sudden surge in demand from remote medical setups, healthcare institutions and NGOs, it added. TradeArabia News Service
B&M Bargains will temporarily shut 49 of its stores until further notice amid the UK's growing coronavirus crisis.

The discount store announced today that a number of smaller outlets and stores inside shopping centres will close 'in light of current trading conditions affecting those locations'.

Staff at these stores will be furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and will receive up to 80 per cent of their wage through a three-month government grant available to employers.

Workers at distribution sites and stores which remain open will be paid 10 per cent more to reflect the additional workload that government coronavirus measures impose.

B&M Bargains will temporarily shut 49 of its stores until further notice amid the UK's growing coronavirus crisis (Pictured: Shoppers leave a B&M store in Cumbernauld, Scotland today)

B&M Bargains, which claims to attract more than three million shoppers per week at its 656 stores, had been allowed to remain trading amid the nationwide lockdown under government guidelines.

The firm, for whom the stores represent 3 per cent and 2 per cent of the company's annual revenue and store contribution core earnings, said the decision to close 49 locations had been made after reviewing its finances for the past quarter.

A spokesperson for B&M told the Mirror: 'We will review the trading patterns on an ongoing basis and intend to re-open those stores as soon as normal shopping patterns resume.'

The discount store announced today that a number of smaller outlets and stores inside shopping centres will close 'in light of current trading conditions affecting those locations' (Pictured: A shopper leaves a B&M store in Southampton)

Staff at these stores will be furloughed under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and will receive up to 80 per cent of their wage

B&M Bargains declined to comment further when contacted by MailOnline.

The closures come as another 569 coronavirus deaths were declared in the UK today, meaning Britain's death toll has quadrupled in six days.

There are currently 2,921 confirmed victims of the deadly infection, with 33,718 cases reported.
Austin: Two weeks ago, amid the coronavirus pandemic, about 70 students from the University of Texas at Austin partied in Mexico on spring break. The students, all in their 20s, flew on a chartered plane to Cabo San Lucas, and some returned on separate commercial flights to Texas.

Now, 28 of them have tested positive for the virus and are self-isolating. Dozens more are under quarantine and are being monitored and tested, university officials said Wednesday.

Spring break revellers party together, ignoring restrictions, in Florida last month. Credit:AP

The Austin outbreak is the latest to result from a group of college students who ignored social-distancing guidelines, went on traditional spring break trips and have now tested positive for the coronavirus. Many of them appeared to be under the mistaken impression that young people are not as likely to get the coronavirus as older people are. Students at the University of Tampa, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and other colleges have tested positive after returning from spring break trips to Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and elsewhere.

The defiant attitude, at a time when millions of Americans were hunkered down at home and staying away from school, work and relatives, was embodied by Brady Sluder, a young man on spring break in Miami who declared from a packed beach: "If I get corona, I get corona. At the end of the day, I'm not going to let it stop me from partying." Sluder, whose television interview was shared widely, later apologised on Instagram.
Due to the coronavirus outbreak,



Maharashtra is likely face a tricky political situation soon as Uddhav Thackeray, who took oath as the state chief minister in November last year, has to get elected to either House of the state legislature by the end of May.

Thackeray, who is still not a member of either the state Legislative Assembly or Council, was sworn in as the chief minister on November 28, 2019 following an unprecedented month-long political drama after the assembly poll results.

As per Article 164 (4) of the Constitution, a minister, who for any period of six consecutive months is not a member of the legislature shall at the expiration of that period ceases to be a minister. The six-month period in Thackeray's case will end on May 28.

However, due to the coronavirus outbreak and the ongoing lockdown, the political activity in the state has come to a standstill.

The gram panchayat elections scheduled to be held in March were also deferred.

Nine legislative council seats are falling vacant on April 24 and Thackeray was set to be elected as an MLC during the biennial elections to these nine seats.

However, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has still not announced the election schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The ECI had earlier deferred the Rajya Sabha polls in view of COVID- 19 and said that the fresh date would be announced later.

Similarly, the by-election to the Maharashtra Legislative Council from the Dhule Nandurbar local authorities constituency scheduled on March 24 was also postponed.

According to sources, if the dates for the biennial elections to nine legislative council seats are not announced after the lockdown period ends on April 14, the state may head for a political logjam.

Thackeray may have to resign from his post and cannot be sworn in till he becomes a member of either house of the legislature.

Sources in the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), however, said the situation will not go that extent.

Sources said that in the past, NCP leader Fauzia Khan and Shiv Sena's Deepak Sawant, who were members of the legislative council, had continued as ministers after their term as MLC ended.

"But both- Fauzia Khan, who was school education minister in the Prithivraj Chavan government, and Deepak Sawant, who was health minister in the Devendra Fadnavis government- resigned later," sources said.

According to sources, Khan and Sawant were already members of the legislature and ministers so they could continue for another six months.

"But in Thackeray's case, he is not a member of the legislature and within six months, he has to become an MLA or an MLC. The six-month time-frame is not extended as per constitutional provisions," they said.

"The minister, in this case the chief minister, has to get elected in six months, failing which he ceases to be in the post," sources said.

This is a peculiar political situation for which Thackeray may have to step aside and make way for other Sena leaders like Eknath Shinde or Subhash Desai, who are ministers in his cabinet.

Sources, however, said that Thackeray would have the option of getting elected as one of the 12 Governor appointees. Vacancies for the 12 seats will be in June.

When asked about it, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut told PTI, "We haven't given a thought to this issue as yet. But a solution would be found. A situation will not arise that the state may have to face a political crisis, I can say this with confidence."



In the past, Sushilkumar Shinde and Prithviraj Chavan had become chief ministers when they were not member of either house of the state legislature. But within six months, Shinde was elected to the Assembly, while Chavan chose the Council route.

Sources said a Supreme Court judgement ruled that Article 164 (4) places a restriction on a non-member to continue as minister or chief minister unless he can get himself elected to the legislature within a period of six months from the date of his appointment.

The supreme court order was in respect to a case in Punjab where Tej Parkash Singh was made a minister in 1995 when he was not member of the legislature. He failed to get himself elected in six months and resigned.

Talking to PTI, former state legislature principal secretary Anant Kalse said the court judgements in such cases are about misuse of Article 164 (4).

"In this (Thackeray's) case, there is no misuse. There is an unprecedented situation due to which elections could not be held. If the elections to the legislative council are not announced till May end, then the chief minister can resign and the entire council of ministers can take oath again," he said.

"Or else, he can become a member of the Legislative Council as a Governor appointee for the time being," he said.

A senior NCP minister said at present there are two governor appointee vacancies from the party quota.

Rahul Narvekar and Ram Wadkute, both NCP MLCs from the governor appointee category resigned as members to join the BJP before the assembly elections.

Narvekar is now a BJP MLA from Colaba in Mumbai.

"Everybody is now busy with coronavirus eradication. We have not given a thought to this issue as yet. But the matter would be resolved," a Congress minister said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Insurers are increasingly worried about shareholders, employees or customers bringing coronavirus-related claims against company executives and are considering excluding the virus from policies which protect the bosses, industry sources say.

Two cases have been filed in the United States in recent weeks accusing companies of making misleading statements about the coronavirus or their coronavirus plans in order to sell products and boost their share price, while cruise operators, for example, are bracing for claims from passengers stuck on ships hit by the virus.

More such cases may follow in the U.S. and other parts of the world where class action suits can be filed, such as Britain, continental Europe, Australia and Canada, the sources said.

Lloyds Faces COVID-19 Claims from Multiple Insurance Lines D&O Insurers Urged to Adjust Rates, Underwriting for Risky Environment

An uptick in litigation targeting directors and officers across industry sectors is one likely, and unwelcome, consequence of the coronavirus pandemic, said James Whitaker, partner at law firm Mayer Brown.

Companies who face legal action use directors & officers (D&O) insurance to pay their executives defense costs and any penalties awarded by the courts.

The global market for D&O insurance in London, the U.S. and Bermuda, provides for around $600-700 million in cover, said Christine Williams, Chief Operating Officer for broker Aons Financial Services Group.

But recent years have proved challenging as legal cases and awards mounted, pushing up premiums and reducing the amount of cover offered, and the coronavirus outbreak would likely exacerbate this, she said.

While many classes of insurance, such as business interruption and event cancellation, exclude epidemics, D&O insurance usually provides cover and brokers said this could be a rare avenue for companies to recoup costs triggered by the pandemic.

CLASS ACTIONS

A shareholder of Inovio Pharmaceuticals filed a class action complaint on March 16 against the company and its chief executive, citing misstatements that the company had developed a coronavirus vaccine in three hours.

An Inovio spokesman told Reuters that the firm developed a vaccine construct for its coronavirus vaccine within three hours from the viral sequence being publicly available, manufactured the vaccine and was in preclinical trials in January.

Meanwhile, a securities fraud class action was filed against Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, its chief executive and chief financial officer on March 18, claiming the company made misleading statements about the virus to encourage customers to book cruises.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings did not respond to request for comment.

Carnival Corp. also said this week that it had received, and expected to continue to receive, lawsuits from passengers aboard the coronavirus-stricken Princess cruises and additional lawsuits stemming from COVID-19.

The pressure on insurers will be significant, while the legal costswill also be huge, said AFL Insurance Brokers Chairman Toby Esser.

That pressure means insurers are seeking to avoid covering such claims in future.

We are starting to see insurers looking at the potential for specific COVID-19 exclusions going forward, said Beth Thurston, head of management liability, UK & Ireland, for broker Marsh.

Ian Roberts, managing partner of law firm Clyde & Co. Clasis Singapore, said D&O policies could exclude claims arising from bodily injury or illness, and insurers may be considering this.

Lloyds and other London commercial insurers account for the bulk of D&O business, brokers say.

D&O insurers in London are trying to have a very broad exclusion of anything related to coronavirus, a fourth broker said.

However, the International Underwriting Association, the trade body for London commercial insurers outside Lloyds, said feedback from its members showed few were applying exclusions so far.

This is a developing situation and things may change in the future, but currently the market appears to be evaluating exposures by asking more questions rather than simply excluding, an IUA spokesman said by email.

The Lloyds Market Association declined to comment.

(Additional reporting by Suzanne Barlyn in New York; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)

Topics Lawsuits Carriers COVID-19 Agencies Claims USA Lloyd's London
The Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has cautioned police personnel deployed for the enforcement of the lockdown and social restriction orders against human rights abuse.

Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Frank Mba, a deputy commissioner of police, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.

Mr Adamu urged the police to ensure that persons on essential duty were duly exempted from the restriction orders and accorded due courtesy and unfettered access to and from their duty posts.

He said the world is currently in an extraordinary moment, with lockdown taking its tolls on every aspect of human existence.

Therefore, all police officers deployed for the enforcement of these restriction orders must be professional, humane, and tactful and must show utmost respect to the citizenry.

To this end, Command Commissioners of Police (CP) are therefore directed to immediately commence conduct monitoring of officers deployed on enforcement duties in their areas of responsibilities.

READ ALSO:

Zonal Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs) across the nation are to ensure adequate supervision of personnel under their watch, as well as due compliance with the Standard Operating Procedure guiding this special task.

The AIGs and CPs are also to ensure robust anti-crime patrols and surveillance around vulnerable targets, he said.

He said the vulnerable targets include medical facilities, shops and markets, residential areas, financial institutions and Automated Teller Machine (ATM) points.

Mr Adamu said anti-crime patrols and surveillance would deny criminals the opportunity of taking undue advantage of the current COVID-19 challenge to perpetrate crime against the citizenry.

The IGP expressed profound gratitude to Nigerians for their resilience and voluntary compliance with the social restriction orders and cooperation with the police at all times.

He urged citizens to continue to observe all precautionary instructions issued by relevant health authorities for the country to be able to wipe out the coronavirus pandemic.

(NAN)
Most Americans have little awareness and understanding of the utilization of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and how the technology can solve some of society's most challenging issues, often seen as mundane. The segment is often referred to as the RPA industry. RPA is growing leaps and bounds as the federal government and the private sector look to keep their employees safe, and for every way to rid their employees of less important work so citizens can focus on increased higher-value work for mission achievement and resulting greater customer satisfaction.

I, Dr. Rehr, for example, had little knowledge of this industry until the George Mason University Business School received a generous in-kind $16.4 million in software license support contribution from UiPath, one of the leading companies in the RPA industry. UiPath's donation is aimed to help GMU Business School graduates accomplish two things: first, to become better equipped technologically and build on the possibilities of A.I. and RPA to increase business processes' efficiencies, and second, to free future employees from repetitive tasks so the workers can focus on higher-value priorities in the workplace.

COVID-19's ubiquitous impact has motivated many of these companies to help fight the virus directly or aid institutions that are changing their traditional business practices because of the danger posed to human life by the virus.

UiPath is not the only RPA company in the space. There are many others, including Automation Anywhere, Blue Prism, Pegasystems, and Kofax, just to name a few. But we are struck by the interesting work UiPath is doing, combining machine learning and RPA technology into a single deployable model to shorten hospital backlogs and compressing the COVID-19 diagnosis timeline by 50% or more, while also improving accuracy and patient care.

Joining UiPath is Pegasystems Inc., a Mass.-based computer software company, empowering digital transformation at the world's leading enterprises, announcing on March 20, 2020, the launch of a free app to help its clients track the spread of COVID-19 among employees and maintain business continuity in the face of the global pandemic. These data help the private sector make more informed decisions to keep employees safe and businesses moving forward. Employees self-report their COVID-19 status via a short set of risk assessment questions. Their answers feed into the status dashboards and trigger a series of automated actions that guide affected employees, their managers, and human resources with instructions on how manage their situation.

Because of the outbreak of the COVID-19, online education has also exploded with students returning home for the spring semester. To continue their courses, these schools and universities are transitioning from in-person to online courses  which also means that I.T. resources might be scarce. While most students have access to laptops or desktops, supervision can prove difficult due to a lack of proctoring hardware. TypingDNA, another company in the AI sector backed by Google's Gradient Ventures, offers identity and access management (IAM) solutions. TypingDNA has stepped in to help with exam proctoring and students' remote authentication and started giving schools and universities a pro bono typing biometrics authentication API service within the schools' learning management platforms. The technology allows students to prove their identities by simply typing a short text on their keyboards while protecting them from cyber-trolls.

A.I. technologies has offered business and enterprises RPA and IAM best practices so companies unaware of the advantages of automation and keystroke dynamics can prepare for the post COVID-19 world. The RPA industry could dramatically help the underlying economic conditions of the private sector, expanding and assisting business to become more efficient as resources will start out being limited because of the pandemic.

America is focused on what the federal, state, and local governments are doing to fight this pandemic. But our private-sector innovators and RPA creators are using advanced tools to fight the virus while helping American companies to improve their operations when the pandemic passes, as it will.

Dr. David K. Rehr is a professor and director of the Center for Business Civic Engagement at the Schar School of Politics and Government at George Mason University. He is also the host of the podcast Advocacy and Influence, available on all podcast platforms.

Dorin Munteanu is principal of Transilvania Group, a Washington, D.C.based business management and policy advisory firm. His work focuses on emerging technologies and their impact on people.
JACKSON COUNTY, Mississippi -- When local governments began putting restrictions into place in response to the growing COVID-19 coronavirus epidemic, including the closure of parks and recreation facilities, beaches in Ocean Springs and Pascagoula were left open, with county officials hopeful people would use the beaches while following social distancing guidelines.

Unfortunately, that has not been the case -- particularly in Ocean Springs, where officials have been faced with larger groups of people -- mainly younger people -- congregating on popular Front Beach.

Now, supervisors said, they are left with little choice but to close the beaches -- even before Gov. Tate Reeves issued his shelter-in-place executive order Wednesday afternoon. Under state law, public beaches are owned by the state, but county governments are charged with their supervision and maintenance.

Ive been on the phone most of the day talking about closing the beaches, said supervisor Troy Ross Wednesday, whose district encompasses most of Ocean Springs Front Beach. I think with the governor declaring a shelter-in-place, it makes sense for us as a county to shut down the beaches.

Keeping the beaches open tells people its ok to go out and, if were under a shelter-in-place, its on us to do whatever we can as far as enforcement and closure of the beaches.

Ocean Springs alderman Rob Blackman said last weekend a large group of young people had gathered on Front Beach. Fellow alderman Bobby Cox was on the scene and asked the group to disperse, but they refused. Law enforcement had to be called in to assist.

Its been a real issue, Blackman said. I hate to see the beach closed, because it is an outlet for people to get out if its done correctly, but being that its an issue with some people not wanting to follow the guidelines, its time to really look at closing the beaches, in my opinion.

Supervisor Randy Bosarge agreed.

I think we are at that point, he said. At this point, with all the phone calls and emails Ive received, Im in favor of closing them. Plus, if we keep the beaches open, we also stand a chance of having people from other areas come here to the beach.

I had been hopeful people would police themselves, follow the social distancing rules. Ive never been one to try and legislate common sense, but it looks like at this point were going to have to step in and do it.

Bosarge said he expected supervisors to hold a special call meeting either Thursday or Friday to address and governors executive order and take any action deemed necessary.

Reeves executive order calls for residents to remain in their homes, but also notes that individual outdoor recreation is encouraged, but not group recreation.

However, the order also mandates that all places of amusement and recreation, whether indoors or outdoors shall be closed and beaches are specifically included in that section of the order. The order goes into effect at 5 p.m. Friday.

Ross, however, said his understanding is sidewalks and walkways along the beach would remain open, provided people follow the social distancing guidelines.

But this is one of those times were all going to have to suffer through this together, Ross said, "get ready to hunker down for two weeks or three weeks  whatever it takes for this curve to be flattened and get through the worst of this epidemic.

Everyone in the entire state could stay in their homes for the next two weeks and the numbers could keep rising, Ross continued, "because we just dont know who all has it and because its stayed for so long.

At the end of two weeks, we should have an idea where we are.
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Linkedin Guy Ryder (The Jakarta Post) Geneva  Thu, April 2, 2020 17:26 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f484aa 3 Opinion economics,COVID-19,coronavirus,labour Free

The human dimensions of the COVID-19 pandemic reach far beyond the critical health response. All aspects of our future will be affected  economic, social and developmental. Our response must be urgent, coordinated and on a global scale, and should immediately deliver help to those most in need.

From workplaces and enterprises to the national and global economy, getting this right is predicated on social dialogue between governments and those on the front line  the employers and workers. So that the 2020s dont become a re-run of the 1930s.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that as many as 25 million people could become unemployed with a loss of workers income amounting to as much as US$3.4 trillion. However, it is already becoming clear that these numbers may underestimate the magnitude of the impact.

This pandemic has mercilessly exposed the deep fault lines in our labor markets. Enterprises of all sizes have already stopped operations, cut working hours and laid off staff. Many are teetering on the brink of collapse as shops and restaurants close, flights and hotel bookings are cancelled and businesses shift to remote working. Often the first to lose their jobs are those whose employment was already precarious  sales clerks, waiters, kitchen staff, baggage handlers and cleaners.

In a world where only one in five people are eligible for unemployment benefits, layoffs spell catastrophe for millions of families. Because paid sick leave is not available to many carers and delivery workers  those we all now rely on  they are often under pressure to continue working even if they are ill. In the developing world, piece-rate workers, day laborers and informal traders may be similarly pressured by the need to put food on the table. We will all suffer because of this. It will not only increase the spread of the virus but in the longer term dramatically amplify cycles of poverty and inequality.

We have a chance to save millions of jobs and enterprises, if governments act decisively to ensure business continuity, prevent layoffs and protect vulnerable workers. We should have no doubt that the decisions they take today will determine the health of our societies and economies for years to come.

Unprecedented, expansionary fiscal and monetary policies are essential to prevent the current headlong downturn from becoming a prolonged recession. We must make sure that people have enough money in their pockets to make it to the end of the week  and the next. This means ensuring that enterprises -- the source of income for millions of workers -- can remain afloat during the sharp downturn and so are positioned to restart as soon as conditions allow. In particular, tailored measures will be needed for the most vulnerable workers, including the self-employed, part-time workers and those in temporary employment, who may not qualify for unemployment or health insurance and who are harder to reach.

As governments try to flatten the upward curve of infection, we need special measures to protect the millions of health and care workers (most of them women) who risk their own health for us every day. Truckers and seafarers, who deliver medical equipment and other essentials, must be adequately protected. Teleworking offers new opportunities for workers to keep working and employers to continue their businesses through the crisis. However, workers must be able to negotiate these arrangements so that they retain balance with other responsibilities, such as caring for children, the sick or the elderly, and of course themselves.

Many countries have already introduced unprecedented stimulus packages to protect their societies and economies and keep cash flowing to workers and businesses. To maximize the effectiveness of those measures it is essential for governments to work with employers organizations and trade unions to come up with practical solutions that keep people safe and protect jobs.

These measures include income support, wage subsidies and temporary layoff grants for those in more formal jobs, tax credits for the self-employed and financial support for businesses.

But as well as strong domestic measures, decisive multilateral action must be a keystone of a global response to a global enemy. The G20s virtual Extraordinary Summit on the COVID-19 response on March 26 is an opportunity to get this coordinated response going.

In these most difficult of times, I recall a principle set out in the ILOs Constitution: Poverty anywhere remains a threat to prosperity everywhere. It reminds us that, in years to come, the effectiveness of our response to this existential threat may be judged not just by the scale and speed of the cash injections, or whether the recovery curve is flat or steep, but by what we did for the most vulnerable among us.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
The 45-year-old Tulsa man was killed in the wreck. Another driver, a 34-year-old man from Owasso, was also involved in the collision but refused medical treatment at the scene.
The ministers also formally launched the Reflection Process to further strengthen NATO's political role.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has announced that NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs have approved a new package of support for Ukraine and Georgia.

"We decided to deepen our partnerships with Ukraine and Georgia even further. Including with exercises in the strategic Black Sea region. As well as joint work to counter hybrid warfare. And efforts to share more air traffic radar data, making the skies safer for all," he said following a ministerial meeting on April 2.

Read alsoU.S. committed to Ukraine and Georgia to become future members of NATO

"We also agreed to increase NATO's cooperation with the United Nations. With a package of measures to help with UN peacekeeper training. This includes medical care, countering improvised explosive devices, and communications," he said.

The ministers also formally launched the Reflection Process to further strengthen NATO's political role, he said.

"I will lead this process with the support of a group of experts," he added.

As UNIAN reported earlier, the United States said it was committed that Ukraine and Georgia to become the future members of NATO.
WINDSOR  Teachers Ryann Ibanez and Denise Sentel miss seeing their students. The statewide school closure caused by the coronavirus pandemic means educators and pupils are now separated.

"We were talking about how we would like to be able to wave at our kids," said Sentel, a second-grade teacher at Windsor Elementary School.

An idea was born.

They pitched a teacher parade to Windsor school district administration  and this idea became a reality Thursday afternoon. A caravan of more than 30 teachers, paraprofessionals and other district staff in personal vehicles, led by school buses and fire trucks, drove by the homes of students throughout Windsor and Gays.

Teachers waved and shouted greetings to students from vehicles decorated with a variety of messages, including "Consider yourself hugged and missed," "Air hugs," and "You are loved and missed so much." Sentel, who drove alongside her 3-year-old Golden Doodle, Gauge, said she was pleasantly surprised by how many educators and other community members took part in the parade.

"I am just so proud of our little community coming together," Sentel said as the convoy prepared to roll. She noted with a smile, "I already saw a lot of our kids out along the way."

School districts across the country are adapting to classes being cancelled because of the pandemic. In Illinois, 7,695 cases and 157 deaths have been attributed to COVID-19.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday extended the stay-at-home order and kept schools closed through April 30.

Sentel said she has been staying in touch with her 20 students during the closure and nearly all of them have sent her photos. She said each of her students received Chromebook laptops before the closure and they have been using their experience with these devices to work on assignments at home via Google Classroom.

Kindergarten teacher Ryann Ibanez, who drove alongside her 4-year-old daughter, Aisla, said she has been staying in touch with her students by sending them handwritten letters and by placing messages around their neighborhoods for them to find during a scavenger hunt. Ibanez said she was really looking forward to seeing them out in front of their homes during the parade.

"I don't think I will be able to make it to the first student before I start crying," Ibanez said. The teacher added that she was glad to see all her colleagues as they lined up their vehicles in the elementary school parking lot, but it did feel strange not being able able to interact with them directly because of social distancing recommendations.

Christie Storm, who is president of the Windsor Parent-Teacher Organization, watched the procession with her sons  third-grader Parker and second-grader Carter. Storm said her sons miss their teachers, so it was nice to see them in the parade.

Storm, who works from home, said she has been juggling the requirements of her job with spending time with her children and helping them with their school work.

"It's been a learning exercise for all of us," Storm said.

Kevin and Lisa Doss watched the parade with their kindergartner, Abby, who held a sign saying, "I miss you, Mrs. Mast" for teacher Hana Mast to see. Lisa Doss said Abby "misses her so much."

Lisa Doss said the school district and individual teachers have been "awesome through all this" by keeping in contact with students and keeping their families informed and by offering a free sack lunch program, with elementary school Principal April Drake personally handing out many of the lunches. She said the district also sent home assignments for the students to work on while they are not in the classroom.

"We sit down and we do homework with Abby. She loves it," Kevin Doss said. His wife added, "It's a change, but we are getting used to it."
A $4 million advertising campaign spruiking Brisbane to ratepayers for months before the election will not return in the immediate future.

The BrisBetter television and digital advertising campaign was announced in October last year by lord mayor Adrian Schrinner to advertise key aspects of the council's budget such as rates discounts for first home owners.

A screenshot from Brisbane City Council's 'Brisbetter' campaign.

At the time, the campaign was criticised by Labor as a promotional exercise for the LNP administration in the lead-up to the March 28 council elections.

No councillors were featured in the ads and the LNP said it was "non-political" advertising that Labor also used in ward newsletters.
Spain has lost an unprecedented total of nearly 900,000 jobs since it went into lockdown to fight the coronavirus outbreak, as analysts predicted the crisis could plunge the country into a depression.

With the worlds second highest death toll after Italy, Spains left-wing government has banned almost all outings since 14 March.

Tougher restrictions were brought in this week, banning all but essential workers from leaving their homes.

Health authorities said on Thursday that the number of people who have died rose to 10,003 after a new daily record of 950 fatalities. The total of confirmed cases increased to 110,238 and 26,743 have been cured.

Since the state of emergency was declared, 898,822 Spaniards have now lost their jobs, including about 550,000 temporary workers, according to government data also released on Thursday.

It is the biggest single rise in unemployment in Spains history, exceeding those after the 2008 financial crisis and during the Great Depression in the 1930s.

The number of people registered as unemployed rose to 3.5 million in March, the highest level since 2017. However, this figure does not include all the new job losses because not all unemployed workers have registered with the authorities.

In addition, the figures do not include 620,000 workers who have been temporarily laid off in many key industries, such as the car trade, tourism and construction.

It is always a big problem and it is the double challenge we have: to fight the epidemic and to avoid the economic activity being swept away. We will have to work on relaunching the economy once we have control of the epidemic, Jose Luis Abalos, the Spanish transport minister, told RNE radio.

March is normally a good month for employment in Spain as it is the start of the holiday season in a country where tourism accounts for 12 per cent of the GDP and 13 per cent of employment.

However, Kate Preston, a British businesswoman who runs nine restaurants with her husband in Barcelona, is very worried about what the future holds.

I wake up in the night because of this and I am in a happy reality for a few seconds  and then I remember what is happening, Preston told The Independent. She said the outbreak could not have come at a worse time.

Kate Preston is originally from London but moved to Spain in 1992 (Graham Keeley/The Independent) (Graham Keeley/ The Independent)

All her restaurants have had to shut and she has had to temporarily lay off 150 staff.

The winter months are not good in the restaurant trade, so you are waiting for things to improve from March onwards. The summer months are the best, when you make the money, but that looks uncertain, she added.

She said Barcelonas restaurant trade, which depends partly on tourism, has been hit by a series of setbacks, from rioting in October over the jailing of nine Catalan separatist leaders to the cancelling of the World Mobile Congress in February  an event that usually attracts about 100,000 people to the city.

I wake up in the night because of this and I am in a happy reality for a few seconds... and then I remember what is happening Kate Preston

The Spanish prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, has announced that when staff who have been laid off return to work, they cannot be sacked for six months.

However, Preston believes this measure could threaten businesses that have been weakened by the crisis.

If you have not made any money, then you are forced to make adjustments, which unfortunately can involve sacking people. We dont want to do that, but if you are not allowed to do so then that can mean businesses go under, she said.

This government needs to understand that supporting businesses means supporting workers. They must take some of the fiscal pressure off business.

Maritza Lopez is a cleaner and her husband, Javier Garcia, is a machinery technician who has just lost his job.

Maritza Lopez with her 3-year-old daughter Angela (Graham Keeley/The Independent) (Graham Keeley/ The Independent)

The couple, who live in Barcelona with their three-year-old daughter, Angela, are among those who are most vulnerable to the effects of the lockdown.

Unable to leave their home, Lopez cannot work, which means they will soon have to depend on Garcias unemployment benefit.

We are OK at the moment. I am only worried about our health right now, and we are OK financially because we have Javiers unemployment benefit, said Lopez, who is Peruvian and has Spanish nationality.

But I have a friend with a child who just does occasional cleaning work and she is in a desperate situation. Her husband is in London and cannot send money back to her.

Spains social security minister, Jose Luis Escriva, said at a news conference on Thursday that the countrys budget deficit is expected to widen significantly but temporarily because of the coronavirus.

Speaking at the same conference, the labour minister, Yolanda Diaz, said 2.3 million people are currently receiving unemployment benefits, costing the state about 1.22bn (1.07bn) a month.

William Chislett, a senior analyst at the Elcano Royal Institute, a think tank in Madrid, said the Spanish economy was slowing down even before the coronavirus outbreak.

What you have to remember is that we were in a weak position before this. The deficit stood at 1.8 per cent of GDP for this year, but now it could hit about 10 per cent, he told The Independent.

Public debt is 100 per cent of GDP, but with all the government money being splashed around at the moment, that is sure to rise. Unemployment is at 14 per cent  double the EU average. Now we can expect a recession or even a depression.

Chislett believes businesses will be harmed if companies are forced to retain staff six months after they return to work.
The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Bexar County hit 231 as the number of deaths stayed flat at nine, officials said Wednesday.

The jump in cases came as city officials reported the regions first hotspot of local infection  a nursing home on the citys Southeast Side.

Eight residents and six employees at the Southeast Nursing and Rehabilitation Center have contracted the virus.

One resident, a man in his 80s who had underlying health conditions, died from the disease.

Mayor Ron Nirenberg called for a citywide moment of silence at 9:20 a.m. Thursday in honor of the citys nine COVID-19 victims as well as healthcare workers and first responders.

I invite everyone in the city to join us as we remember those we have lost and those who have continued to fight, Nirenberg said during a daily media briefing.

Nirenberg and Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff on Wednesday toured an expo hall at Freeman Coliseum thats being retrofitted into a field hospital to house a potential overflow of COVID-19 patients from area hospitals.

The hall currently has 250 beds but has enough room for up to 500, Wolff said.

Were hoping we dont have to use it, Wolff said. But if our hospital system gets overloaded, were prepared for that and ready to go.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio nursing home at center of coronavirus outbreak recently cited for infection control problems

At Wednesdays daily briefing, Nirenberg initally reported there were 229 cases, up from 207 Tuesday. But after the briefing, he said the test results of two more nursing home residents had come in late in the day and both were positive.

Seventy-two patients who contracted COVID-19 have been hospitalized. Of those, 31 were put in intensive care. Twenty-six people with severe symptoms have been hooked up to ventilators to help them breathe.

Forty-five patients diagnosed with the virus have made a full recovery.

So far, nearly 3,000 people in San Antonio have been tested for COVID-19.

The older a person gets, the more at-risk they are for complications if they contract COVID-19.

That doesnt mean that young people in San Antonio arent getting the virus. Nearly a fifth of the citys coronavirus patients are younger than 30, Metro Health data shows. About three-quarters are younger than 60.

Those who have died from COVID-19 in San Antonio were all older than 40. Of the nine victims, six were women and three were men. Eight of them had previous underlying health issues.

So far, the area of town with the highest number of confirmed residents who have caught the disease is ZIP code 78209, which has seen between 13 and 16 cases. Metro Health is only releasing ZIP code data in terms of ranges of numbers, not the numbers themselves.

On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases

Also Wednesday, officials announced a San Antonio police detective has tested positive for COVID-19. The detective, who has been with the department for 15 years, is recovering at home.

The case does not appear to have any connection to the first officer who tested positive for the disease earlier this week. That officer got the virus through travel.

In Comal County, officials announced they now have a dozen COVID-19 cases. The latest person to contract the virus did so while traveling. So far, two Comal residents have died from the disease.

Kendall County officials warned residents that a local who later tested positive for the virus visited a UPS Store in Boerne on Saturday. Seven Kendall residents have contracted the disease.

Staff writers Lauren Caruba and Mark Dunphy contributed to this report.

Joshua Fechter is a staff writer covering San Antonio government and politics. To read more from Joshua, become a subscriber. jfechter@express-news.net | Twitter: @JFReports
Maharashtra Congress leader



Mohammed Arif Naseem Khan on Thursday asked the state government to earmark space in existing Muslim burial grounds for patients of the community dying of COVID-19 or allot new sites to accommodate them.

The former minister said the government should allot new grounds in eastern and western suburbs of Mumbai and other parts of the state for the burial of the mortal remains of people from the minority community succumbing to the virus.

In a letter to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Khan said as per WHO guidelines, coronavirus-infected bodies can be buried.

"Yesterday, a Muslim, who died due to coronavirus in Mumbai, was not buried (the man was cremated) and there is anger in the community over the issue," the Congress leader said.

He demanded that one side of existing 'kabristaans' in Mumbai be earmarked, as per medical specifications, for people who have died of COVID-19.

However, if there is any input on spread of the coronavirus (from such sites), the government should allot designated burial grounds in eastern and western suburbs of Mumbai and also in all districts of thestate, Khan said.

He also asked for same facility for other communities who bury their dead.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Suspects are using the Covid-19 pandemic 'as a weapon' against officers, a police chief has said.

The warning comes amid a surge in vile coughing and spitting attacks on emergency workers, with one victim now having to self-isolate away from his ill mother as a result.

Adam Lewis was one of the first to be jailed for a coronavirus-related attack on Wednesday after he told a Met Police officer: 'I am Covid and I am going to cough in your face and you will get it.'

Officers on patrol, pictured, are increasingly being targeted by suspects using coronavirus 'as a weapon', a police chief has said

The 55-year-old had been approached in Westminster on Tuesday afternoon after a member of the public spotted a man trying the handles of car doors.

Lewis issued the verbal threat, then coughed on the officer - who was trying to keep him at arm's length - making no attempt to shield his mouth, and fell to the floor.

The officer bent down to restrain him, while holding his head away from Lewis, who attempted to cough up phlegm, before trying to spit in his face.

Lewis also threatened to bite the officer shortly after telling the him he had a 'bad disease' and he was going to give it to him.

Adam Lewis, pictured, told officers: 'I am Covid and I am going to cough in your face and you will get it'

Police said Lewis was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm and taken into custody at a central London police station before being jailed for six months the following day.

Callum Heaton was also jailed this week for spitting at officers after claiming he had the deadly virus.

Police were called to a report of a disturbance on Cog Lane in Burnley, Lancs, in the early hours of Saturday (March 28), where they arrested the 23-year-old for being drunk and disorderly.

Callum Heaton, pictured, spat at two officers, claiming he was infected with the virus, and continued to do so while he was taken into custody

However, during the arrest Heaton spat at two officers claiming he was infected with Covid-19, and continued to do so while he was taken to custody.

On Monday he pleaded guilty to two counts of assault on an emergency worker and one of criminal damage before being sentenced to 12 months in prison.

In another similar incident, two more yobs who spat at officers have appeared in court.

Scott Sanders, 36, was arrested last Friday night over a disturbance at an address in Bournemouth.

While being detained at the local police station Sanders spat at the custody sergeant.

Sanders, who was also in breach of a previous suspended prison sentence, admitted to assaulting an emergency worker and was jailed for six months by magistrates in Poole.

Adam Power, 37, was arrested last Sunday for stealing a bottle of wine from a Co-op store in Bournemouth.

While in a holding cell he attempted to spit at a police officer and kick them in the ankle.

Power admitted charges of assaulting an emergency worker, theft and criminal damage and was jailed for five months.

Adam Power, pictured left, and Scott Sanders, pictured right, both tried to spit at officers while in custody

Officers in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex were also kicked, coughed at and spat on over the weekend.

Andrew Tilley, 28, of Pall Mall, Leigh-on-Sea, appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court on Monday, where he pleaded guilty to two counts of assault by beating of an emergency worker and one count of common assault on an emergency worker, assault by beating, drink driving, criminal damage, driving with no insurance or a licence and failing to stop.

He is due to be sentenced on Tuesday, April 21.

Also on Saturday, Essex officers were coughed at and bitten while arresting a 25-year-old man from Ongar.

The suspect, who was held on suspicion of theft, common assault on an emergency worker, common assault, criminal damage, failing to stop and possession of cannabis has been released on bail until Wednesday, April 8.

The spate of attacks has forced a number of senior officers from forces around the country to speak out.

Police chiefs have spoken out after a surge in vile attacks on officers since the coronavirus outbreak

Northamptonshire Police Chief Constable Nick Adderley wrote on Twitter after an incident: 'So a reality check: One of my officers was spat at and coughed over last night by a male claiming to have Covid-19.

'The officer is a primary carer for his mother who has cancer. He will now need to self isolate and will no longer be able to care for his mum.

'Full welfare support put in place and we will support his mum where we can. We are working with the CPS to expedite such cases and to ensure that the maximum penalties and sanctions are imposed.

'Disgusting, demeaning and potentially life threatening assault on our colleague.'

Essex Police's Assistant Chief Constable Paul Wells said: 'Unbelievably, this weekend we have seen suspects using the Covid-19 virus as a weapon against officers  who, in these incredibly challenging times continue in their duty to keep the community safe.

'In just a 12-hour period, we had officers who had been kicked, spat and coughed at after responding to emergency calls from shop workers, who were also just doing their job.

Essex Police's Assistant Chief Constable Paul Wells, pictured, said anyone who assaults an emergency worker, by any means, will be brought to justice

'Fortunately incidents like these remain rare but anyone who decides to assault an emergency worker, by any means, will be arrested, will be brought into custody and will be put before a court.

'I'm pleased to say that the majority of people we have spoken to  be it on patrol, engaging with the community or responding to calls for help  have welcomed, thanked and embraced us and recognised the fact that we all need to work together.

'It's everyone's job to stay at home to keep our communities safe, protect the NHS and save lives.

'We will continue, as always, to keep you safe, to help you and to catch anyone determined in breaking the law.'

Sergeant Stephen Taylor, Essex Police Federation chairman, added: 'Our role is to help people and keep them safe and there are simply no excuses for assaulting officers.

'To be spat and coughed at during these unprecedented times is not acceptable.

'This week a man has found himself in court for assaulting emergency responders and he faces a likely custodial sentence at court next month.'
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Retinal biologics market value surpassed US$ 14.6 billion in 2018 and projected to grow at 10.7% y-o-y in 2019, as per a new FMI study. The projected growth of the market can be attributed to,

Increasing prevalence of diabetic eye diseases and age-related macular degeneration (AMD)

Significant R&D investments engaged in developing biologics for infectious and non-infectious retinal diseases

Growing application of specific biologic molecules as a promising drug target

Development of gene therapy as retinal biologics in the wake of large number of monogenic retinal disorders

"Higher specificity of retinal biologics as compared to other traditional therapies has escalated R&D efforts in the retinal drug delivery field. Rising burden of diseases as well as treatment on the back of ageing population and spread of diabetes epidemic have increased efforts in finding the cure of untreatable diseases. Greater strides to develop long-acting therapeutics in a bid to reduce disease burden is set to augur well for the retinal biologics market and generation of US$ 16.2 billion market value is projected in 2019," says FMI report.

Promising Treatment of VEGF-A Antagonist Drug Translates to Hefty Revenue Generation

The FMI study estimates that adoption of VEGF-A antagonist class of drugs remains higher as compared to TNF- inhibitor. In 2018, VEGF-A antagonist drugs witnessed significant penetration while accounting for a hefty 93% revenues of the retinal biologics market. Significant advances in developing biologics for VEGF-A antagonist therapy and their delivery to posterior ocular tissues are underway.

Ubiquitous acceptance of VEGF-A antagonist therapy has led manufacturers to invest in the development of retinal biologics in a similar area. For instance, Eylea by Regeneron and Lucentis by Roche are VEGF-A antagonist drugs available in the market.

The study finds that despite lower revenues, penetration of TNF- inhibitor drugs is likely to increase at a rapid pace in the coming years. In 2019, annual revenues of TNF- inhibitor drug class are expected to grow at an impressive rate of 11.6%.

Retinal Biologics Find Prominent Use in Macular Degeneration Treatment

The study opines that over 35% of the retinal biologics revenues were consolidated in the treatment of macular degeneration. Highest revenue growth of 12.3% is also expected in macular degeneration as compared to other indications where retinal biologics are used in 2019.

Macular degeneration (MD) remains the leading cause of vision loss wherein it affects over 10 million Americans, the prevalence is higher than the combined incidences of cataract and glaucoma, as per the American Macular Degeneration Foundation (AMDF). As macular degeneration mainly affect people of age 50 years or more, with the ageing population, the prevalence of MD continues to rise despite improved treatment options.

Diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema treatments also significantly include retinal biologics in therapy. FMI shows that collectively both the disorders accounted for over 43% of the retinal biologics market revenues in 2018. Annual revenue growth in these two disorders is estimated to remain above 10% in 2019. Increasing incidences of diabetes complications on the back of growing epidemic of diabetes will continue to increase cases of diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema, thereby generating demand for retinal biologics in the coming years.

Retinal Biologics Distribution in Specialty Clinics and Hospitals Prominent

Manufacturers in the retinal biologics market distribute the products through institutional and retail distribution channels. The FMI study finds that institutional sales will garner higher revenues in the retinal biologics market wherein retinal biologics are distributed in specialty clinics and hospitals. Sales in hospitals accounted for over 35% of the market revenues in 2018.

The study estimates that retail sales of retinal biologics will garner similar revenues as that of hospitals and grow at 11.9% in 2019. Retail distribution occurs through retail pharmacies and mail order pharmacies of which retail pharmacies will register higher revenues as compared to its counterparts in the coming years.

Penetration in North America Higher, APEJ's Attractiveness to Increase

North America continues to hold leading revenues in the retinal biologics market. According to FMI valuation, North America held over 46% of the global retinal biologics market revenues in 2018. Revenues in North America are expected to grow at 10.4% y-o-y in 2019 on the back of increasing prevalence of retinal disorders, steady growth of the healthcare infrastructure and favorable reimbursement scenario.

Europe garnered nearly one-fourth revenues in the retinal biologics market, wherein a bulk of demand penetration was observed in Western European countries such as Germany, the UK, France, Italy, Spain and others. The attractiveness of the APEJ retinal biologics market is expected to rise at the rate of 11% in 2019, wherein China and India remain the most lucrative markets.

The FMI report tracks the retinal biologics market for the period 2018-2028. According to the report, the retinal biologics market is projected to grow at 11.1% CAGR through 2028.

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A grandfather and his six-year-old granddaughter have come up with a creative way of spending time together during the coronavirus lockdown by doing daily dance-offs across the street from each other.

Little Kira Neely is used to seeing her grandfather, 80-year-old Marvin Neely, every day, so when the two families from Nashville, Tennessee began to stay at home earlier this month, they had to find new ways of playing together.

The pair live across the street from each other and usually play together and take walks, mum Sherrie Neely said.

Upset about not being able to hug her grandfather, Kira came up with the idea of a dance-off with him on the street that separates her house with his house.

"She was very much up for the challenge and had her game face on and my dad of course immediately embraced it," Ms Neely told Good Morning America.

"My dad would do anything she asked him to do. Dancing had not been one of those things but I was surprised at how good he was."

Posting the video of the pair dancing to Jackson 5's ABC on Facebook, Ms Neely said: "Kira loves her 'Papa' so much and they've now started daily 'dance offs' since the virus is keeping them separated.

"My dad is turning 81 years old next month and I've never seen him dance, but he's really putting forth great effort and has some special moves."

The sweet video has now been viewed more than 920,000 times and shared almost 26,000 times.

The World on Coronavirus lockdown 1 /60 The World on Coronavirus lockdown Getty Images A UK government public health campaign is displayed in Piccadilly Circus Reuters Chinese paramilitary police and security officers wear face masks to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus as they stand guard outside an entrance to the Forbidden City in Beijing AP A usually busy 42nd Street is seen nearly empty in New York AFP via Getty Images Bondi Beach, Australia Getty Images Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images View of the illuminated statue of Christ the Redeemer that reads "Thank you" as Archbishop of the city of Rio de Janeiro Dom Orani Tempesta performs a mass in honor of Act of Consecration of Brazil and tribute to medical workers amidst the Coronavirus (COVID - 19) pandemic Getty Images Rome AFP via Getty Images An Indian man paddles his bicycle in front of a mural depicting the globe covered in a mask, as India remains under an unprecedented lockdown over the highly contagious coronavirus Getty Images Aerial view of the empty 9 de Julio avenue in Buenos Aires in Argentina AFP via Getty Images A view of an empty Grand Canal Reuters Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Central cemetery in Bogota, Columbia AFP via Getty Images The facade of the Palacio de Lopez (seat of the government palace) AFP via Getty Images Miami, Florida AFP via Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Simon Bolivar park in Bogota AFP via Getty Images An LAPD patrol car drives through Venice Beach Boardwalk AP Venice Beach, California Getty Images Los Angeles, California Getty Images Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images Many shops stand shuttered on the Venice Beach boardwalk Getty Images Empty escalators are seen at a deserted train station during morning rush hour after New South Wales began shutting down non-essential businesses Reuters A nearly empty Times Square in New York AFP via Getty Images Caracas AFP via Getty Images Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador AFP via Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Midland Park in Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Civic Square at lunchtimein Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A policeman rides his motorcycle wearing a face mask in front of a closed shopping mall in Buenos Aires, Argentina AFP via Getty Images Florida Keys AP The historic Channel 2 Bridge closed to fishermen, bikers and pedestrians in Florida Keys AP The Beach on Scenic Gulf Drive near Seascape Resort in south Walton County, Florida sits empty of tourists AP Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images A deserted Rajpath leading to India Gate in New Delhi AFP via Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images Empty roads are pictured following the lockdown by the government amid concerns about the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Kathmandu, Nepal Reuters An empty New York Subway car i AFP via Getty Images The empty pedestrian zone is seen in the city of Cologne, western Germany, AFP via Getty Images Place de la Comedie in the city of Montpellier , southern France AFP via Getty Images An empty street in Kuwait city AFP via Getty Images A building is covered by the Portuguese message: "Coronavirus: take precaution" over empty streets in downtown Sao Paulo, Brazil, AP A general view shows an empty street after a curfew was imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters Parliament of Canada is pictured with empty street during morning rush hour AFP via Getty Images A near empty beach on Southend seafront in England PA Near empty Keswick town centre in Cumbria, England PA

Ms Neely said her parents moved across the street when Kira was born and grandfather Mr Neely attends all of her activities, including father-daughter events at her school.

"Its been a really special relationship because otherwise it would just be the two of us," she said.

"Having mum and dad next door, its been such a wonderful thing for Kira because our family is larger."

Ms Neely said Kira has been upset about not being able to hug her grandparents or bake a cake for her grandfather's upcoming 81st birthday.

"We did FaceTime once but its easier to just go outside and talk to them," she said.

"My dad sits outside in a chair and just watches her play and sometimes they kick a ball back and forth and shes been able to draw pictures and hang them up for them to see.

"Sometimes we just sit out there and talk with the distance between us."
On the day Terry A. Carmona had time to speak with me, she wasnt quite done dealing with a plumbing crisis that had fans pointed at her floors and furniture piled up in the living room.

Though inconvenient and expensive, it was by no means first, second or even third on her list of concerns, even in a pandemic.

Her three priorities remain the same as before the world screeched to a halt, and their names are Milan, Amilla and Dario, ages 21, 11 and 3, respectively.

At 71, the San Antonio grandmother has raised all three, so this isnt new. She and her late husband, Fred, began parenting their oldest grandchild decades ago. Her husband died in 2011.

Even before that traumatic loss, Carmona served as the familys main breadwinner. Eight months ago, the self-employed marketing and public relations expert effectively retired.

The pressures of caring for a toddler ended her full-time contract work in event marketing. She works even harder now to keep her family together.

Carmona didnt have a lot of time to be angry at Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patricks repugnant remarks suggesting the lives of senior citizens, considered at higher risk of the coronavirus, were expendable.

Patrick said their lives could be sacrificed for the sake of reopening the economy, despite clear evidence such a move would endanger people of all ages.

At the time, he was on the same page as President Donald Trump, who was touting Easter Sunday as the date to resume business as usual. Since then, he has set a new potential date of April 30.

This as experts debate how many months will pass before we can return to anything resembling normal life, or when a majority of the population might become resistant to COVID-19, or a vaccine is developed.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday couldnt manage a straightforward stay-at-home order but did shut down schools until May 4 and restricted non-essential business. He pandered to religious conservatives by leaving open the possibility of some Easter services. Its a dangerous promise.

Patrick hasnt backed off, which garnered a question about whod play his version of the Hunger Games. I havent seen any takers.

Carmona texted me late one evening, after the baby was in bed.

Does he not realize how many grandparents are raising grandchildren? He puts no value on our lives, yet we are the ones that hold this country together because we do what is necessary for family and country.

In Bexar County, more than 32,000 grandparents are responsible for raising grandchildren, another 3,000, like Carmona, are raising grandchildren without parental involvement.

Data was updated this week by Lily Casura, a graduate student of demography at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She and UTSA professor Rogelio Saenz produced the city of San Antonios Status of Women report.

Casura ran the numbers to see the potential toll the Coronavirus might make on such multi-generational families.

Grandparents may be one of the most underrated bonuses to the state and national economy. Even those who are paid are surely underpaid and, as a whole, provide essential services that allow the rest of the economy to work.

Some dont show up in data charts. Before the shutdown, they filled in voids from daycare to after-school care.

They drove or walked grandchildren to and from school and extracurricular activities and took them to doctors appointments. They played games with them, got them to do chores and made meals. Only an abuelita knows how to make tortillas in just the right size for little ones.

Grandparents support their children and grandchildren in other ways, including financially, and some of them still have time to give to others.

One of the countrys leading figures during this pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci, may not be a grandparent as far as I detect from online biographies, but at 79 falls into Patricks sacrificial category.

But like Carmona, Fauci is indispensable.

Carmonas oldest is taking classes at Northwest Vista College and insists on doing all the grocery shopping. Amilla, the middle-schooler, studies remotely and knows more about technology that Carmona does.

She produced a PowerPoint presentation Wednesday to show why the family needs to adopt another dog.

The baby is in his terrible twos times 10, Carmona says, and rides a little tricycle around the house.

Carmona turns 72 in a few weeks.

What made me mad about Patrick is how dare he, as if we are expendable. He doesnt know whats going on. Maybe hes not worried if he dies. No one is depending on him.

Her family is different in many ways, she says.

They need me.

eayala@express-news.net
Two radiation therapists at one of Sydney's biggest hospitals have tested positive to coronavirus.

The staff members, who work at the Crown Princess Mary Cancer Centre at Westmead Hospital, returned positive results last week.

Two cancer patients and about 20 radiation oncology staff at are now required to go into quarantine.

It comes as the number of COVID-19 cases in reached 2,389 in NSW on Friday morning, with 10 deaths.

Two radiation therapists at Westmead Hospital (pictured) have tested positive to coronavirus

Health authorities tracked down the patients and other healthcare workers who were in proximity with the infected radiation therapists.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, it is not known how the pair contracted the illness.

In a statement Western Sydney Local Health District said: 'Contingency plans are in place to manage both patients and staff in the event of a positive COVID-19 diagnosis that impacts our workforce.'

'WSLHD is following the NSW Health and Clinical Excellence Commission advice on infection control and prioritising vulnerable populations,' the statement said.

'WSLHD acknowledges the extraordinary efforts of all our staff, who are continuing to provide world-class patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic,' it said.

Immune-compromised cancer patients who contract coronavirus are at heightened risk of suffering severe illness.

The number of COVID-19 cases in reached 2,189 in NSW on Friday morning, with 10 deaths. Pictured: 'Pop up' coronavirus clinic in Bondi

NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said on Friday there were an additional 91 cases in the state.

'That's pleasing to see a sustained reduction. That's in the presence of reasonably high testing rates,' she said.

There are 42 patients in ICU and 22 required ventilators, she added.

There are 336 cases of locally acquired infection, where authorities are not sure of the source of infection.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said NSW will be living in the thick of the coronavirus crisis for 'at least six months' despite new infections stabilising.

'We're in it for at least six months. Until there is a cure, a vaccine, this crisis is something we need to deal with,' she said on Friday.
LAS CRUCES  This years District 3-5A wrestling champion helped stop a kidnapping and assault near Las Cruces last week by pinning a man to the ground until deputies arrived, authorities said.

Mayfield High School student Canaan Bower, 16, was being lauded as a hero after controlling suspect Daniel Arroyo Beltran, 22, of Phoenix, the Las Cruces Sun-News reported.

Dona Ana County deputies arrested Beltran last Wednesday after witnesses told authorities he tried to kidnap three children at a gas station.

The mother told authorities that she got off at a bus stop with her children, ages 9, 2 and 1, and was waiting for an Uber driver to arrive when a man grabbed her 2-year-old and demanded the woman turn over her children.

Witnesses told authorities the man punched the woman and others who tried to intervene before the woman was able to rush inside the store with her children. Witnesses said the attacker followed, continuing his demands.

Punches were being thrown and (Cannaan could hear) screams of terror, so he jumped in his truck and went across the street, Canaan Bowers dad, Troy Bower, told the Sun-News. By the time he got there, they had gone inside and so he got out of his truck and went inside.

Troy Bower added that his son told him he body-slammed the man and got him in a chokehold until deputies arrived.

Canaan Bower won the District 3-5A championship in the 285-pound (129-kilogram) heavyweight division on Feb. 16, and later competed at the state tournament.

You fear for your own childs safety in that situation, Troy Bower said. You dont know if this guys maybe got a gun or a knife  you dont know what this guys capable of.

However, he said he was confident his son would do the right thing and succeed.

Theres no indication in police reports that the man knew the mother or her children.

Beltran was charged with battery, assault, child abuse and kidnapping and remained jailed Friday. Online court records did not list an attorney for Beltran who could comment on his behalf.
The Centre's decision to



accept contributions from abroad to PM-CARES fund for fighting COVID-19 has prompted social media users to take potshots at it as Kerala was not allowed to receive foreign aid after the devastating floods in 2018.

Senior Congress leader Sashi Tharoor said accepting relief for coronavirus pandemic does not affect "one's ego", while other reactions varied from taking a dig saying 'Vikas has reached new heights" to asking where is the country's pride.

Government sources have said a decision had been taken to accept contributions from abroad to the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES) to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

The Narendra Modi government had earlier turned away foreign aid, including a reported Rs 700 crore donation from the UAE, to help Kerala during the floods that devastated the southern state, while "deeply appreciating" the offers from various nations then.

Over 480 people were killed, several had gone missing during the worst floods in a century that also rendered lakhs homeless and dealt a severe blow to the state's economy.

"Flood relief for Kerala hurts ones ego. Pandemic relief doesnt. Go figure! #PMCARES!" tweeted Tharoor, who represents Thiruvananthapuram in Lok Sabha.

Another twiterratti reacted to the Centre's latest move, saying: "Wow.. a nation that built 3,000 crore statue is B3GG!NG now? Sad!



"Vikas has reached new heights... Where are the proud Modi Bhakts?" another wrote.

"Thanks but no, says India to foreign aid for Kerala", another social media user tweeted, tagging a 2018 report on MEA Spokesperson saying the government was committed to meeting the requirements for relief and rehabilitation in Kerala through domestic efforts.

"Pandemic is unprecedented, India has taken a decision to accept foreign donations to the PM fund. But....", "5 Trillion begging bowl", "Where did the 'National Pride' go now?" another tweet asked.

The Centre's present decision marks a shift from its earlier position of not accepting foreign donations to deal with domestic crisis.

"In view of the interest expressed to contribute to Government's efforts, as well as keeping in mind the unprecedented nature of the pandemic, contributions to the Trust can be done by individuals and organisations, both in India and abroad," a government source has said.

It said the fund was set up following spontaneous requests from India and abroad for making generous contributions to support the government in its fight against COVID-19.

On Saturday, Modi had announced setting up of the PM CARES fund.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A couple days ago, Democrats and their media allies had a full-blown Victorian gentlemanstyle cow when President Trump merely raised the question of whether New York hospitals, which are short on personal protective equipment, might be victims of medical equipment "going out the back door."

Perfectly legitimate question, and doubly so in light of the anecdote he spoke of from a hospital executive.

They all harrumphed umbrage, in unison. A sample:

Oh, spare us. Here's the latest news from WNBF in upstate New York affirming exactly what Trump was saying:

One Cooperstown hospital employee has been charged and more arrests are possible in connection with the theft of medical supplies during the coronavirus pandemic. Authorities say 33-year-old Josie Wright of Morris has been accused of stealing face masks and alcohol prep pads from Bassett Medical Center. According to the Otsego County Sheriff's Office, Wright was a contracted employee at the hospital. She was arrested Monday morning and ordered to appear in Otsego town court.

Human nature being what it is, it's not ridiculous to ask whether some people will attempt to monetize desperate situations for their own personal gain. That's why corruption exists; that's why a black market is there. It happens everywhere; there is no reason not to think hospitals are not exempt, even as we generally praise medical staff right now, and even as most really are heroic. To say one profession is exempt from bad guys is ridiculous, and now we know that yes, there are mask thieves taking supplies "out the back door" and causing tremendous havoc and distress.

Trump's statement sounds exactly like the kind of wariness that a hotel executive steeped in real-world realities would have by raising questions about internal theft, which can have steep consequences for a business even without a crisis. It's not unreasonable to think his own experience drew his curiosity about missing equipment in that direction, given that hospitals should have equipment after his swift actions. The left is trying not only to throw mud on Trump for asking, but also to push a narrative about Trump being incompetent and unprepared, which isn't true. Long ago, I used to work as a private detective in San Francisco for clients exactly like Trump, and my exact job was to find what was going "out the back door" at places like hotels, airports, and hospitals, working undercover.

Trump, it turns out, was right all along.

And it's worth noting that Cuomo in particular, who was one of Trump's loudest critics in this, less than a month earlier was openly complaining about thieving hospital personnel for exactly the same thing. Here's what he was saying on March 6.

People are stealing masks and other medical equipment from hospitals, New York Gov. Cuomo says CNBC

So Cuomo knew about this stuff all along before he put on his outrage mask? Can you say "hypocrite"?

Image credit: YouTube screen shot, Guardian News.
Update: This post has been corrected to fix an error in the property tax item.

We asked for your questions about coronavirus, and you sent in a bunch. As we work through them, were posting answers as soon as we have them.

Q: Will an extension be granted for land (property) taxes?  C.S.

A: No. Jan. 31 was the deadline to pay property taxes in Onondaga County, said Justin Sayles, spokesman for County Executive Ryan McMahon. Property owners had until March 31 to pay their taxes, with penalties added on. After April 1, unpaid property tax bills go to the county for collection, Sayles said. At a news conference earlier this week, McMahon said the deadline would not be extended. County tax bills went out at the end of December.

An earlier version of this post incorrectly said the deadline to pay property taxes was April 1.

Q: When will schools in Upstate NY go back? Aiden H.

A: Aiden, the latest update from Gov. Cuomo says schools in New York state will be closed until April 15 and the state will reassess at that time.

Cuomo had previously waived the states requirement that schools hold at least 180 days of instruction.

It was also recently announced that spring break in New York state is cancelled and online learning and meal programs at schools must continue during that time.

Q: Why is it okay to order takeout? What if a worker coughed in the air around the food or didnt wash their hands as often as they should? -Rachel F.

A: Rachel, its a fair question because there is a certain level of trust that a restaurant followed proper procedure when preparing your food.

That said, the risk of contracting coronavirus through food is incredibly low, and theres currently no evidence that COVID-19 can spread through food, the FDA says.

Dr. John Torres of NBC News offers some good advice about how to handle takeout food safely in the video below.

Here is a list of restaurants in Central New York that are offering takeout.

Q: What exactly does the stay at home order entail? If we are supposed to be staying home why are there articles promoting parks visitation and outdoor activities? -Karen M.N.

A: Karen, Gov. Cuomos New York on Pause executive order says individuals should limit outdoor recreational activities to non-contact and avoid activities where they come in close contact with other people. State parks and outdoor trails provide an environment where it is easier to stay at the recommended six feet apart from others per social distancing requirements.

Q: Florida is requiring people flying in from New York self-isolate for 14 days. Should that be true for snow birds returning from Central New York from Florida and other winter homes?

A: Dr. Stephen Thomas, chief of the Infectious Disease Division at SUNY Upstate University Hospital, addressed this question in a live Q&A on Tuesday. Earlier in the conversation, he had mentioned COVID-19 hotspots like Florida. Here is his advice:

All people, whether they are traveling or not, should be practicing very strict physical distancing. Assuming that youre coming back to your family, then this is probably a discussion you should have with your family. Certainly, if you have been in contact with someone, [and] there is a suspicion that they might be COVID-positive, or [they are] definitely COVID-positive, then I would absolutely self-isolate in my home, and monitor myself for symptoms, and if I got sick I would go to the doctor to get tested, and I would do that for 14 days.

But lets just say that you didnt have contact with anyone who is sick, would I still self-isolate within my home? I probably would. We are seeing a number of people who have traveled from these hot spots back here. They feel fine, they come back, they dont feel fine, they get tested and theyre positive, and now theyve exposed people in their family unit. So for me, I personally would do that if I were returning from a hot spot like Florida, or New York, or Detroit, or these other areas.

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Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said that he spoke to Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) corporators of all Municipal Corporations via audio bridge and reviewed various work being undertaken in the state during the ongoing nationwide lockdown.

"Spoke to all @BJP4Maharashtra corporators of all Municipal Corporations via audio bridge and reviewed various works in Maharashtra during #CoronavirusOutbreak #lockdown. Before that all prominent leaders also reviewed #BJP4Seva works to help the needy," Fadanavis tweeted.

In a series of tweets, Fadnavis highlighted the efforts made by his party in tackling the COVID-19 outbreak.

"Total #BJP4Seva reach so far: 587 Mandals, 550 community kitchens, 32,800 Karyakartas are active in various works, 13 lakh people getting food or food grains, around 1 lakh people getting vegetables & fruits. 3500 unit blood donations, 3000 corporators did sanitisation works in their areas, In the rural area, sanitisation done in 4000 villages, 3000 medical kits distributed to doctors and healthcare workers," Fadnavis tweeted.

He also requested the state government to resolve difficulties faced by people in getting ration from ration shops

"From many cities, people are complaining about the difficulties in getting ration from ration shops. It is my sincere request to GoM to look into this issue. Requirement of ventilators in district hospitals is one of the many issues discussed," he posted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Countries caught up in the coronavirus pandemic are using their military forces with various degrees of caution (among democracies) and abandon (among dictatorships). Israel, uniquely, deployed its armed forces early and as part of a whole-of-government approach to dealing with the crisiswith mixed results, so far. Although the Israeli Defense Forces have demonstrated remarkable speed and efficiency in their response, the use of military technology, especially snooping software, is proving controversial.

Its hard to know if Israels experience can be replicated elsewhere. Its system of compulsory military service for men and women is rare. The, IDF with 170,000 active-service personnel and 465,000 reserves, has a high degree of identification with, and popularity among, ordinary Israelis. But equally, the military is loathed by the Palestinian population it polices and blockadesa population the IDF may be required to assist in the event of a major virus outbreak in the West Bank and Gaza.

Few military forces anywhere operate under such conditions. Even so, there may be lessons, both salutary and cautionary, for other countries to glean from the IDFs role in Israels war against the virus.

Israel closed schools on March 12 amid growing concern over rising numbers of cases and travelers returning from abroad who might be carrying the virus. Two days later, the country was under partial lockdown. The IDF had already begun checking soldiers for symptoms, conductive blood drives and distributing protective gear, such as facemasks for those preparing food. On March 19, the defense ministry called up 2,000 reservists.

By then, the defense ministry had announced its Home Front Command would take over the management of several hotels where the health ministry would treat patients with light symptoms. By the end of March, 1,000 patients were housed in six hotels in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Tiberias.

In the meantime, hundreds of soldiers were assigned to patrol civilian neighborhoods, supplementing police efforts at enforcing increasingly stringent lockdown rules. The defense ministry of defense spent $14 million to buy 2,500 ventilators, 1,000 of them manufactured in Israel. A missile-production line was repurposed for Israel Aerospace Industries and medical-device maker Inovytec to produce ventilators for the health ministry.

Story continues

The Military Intelligence Directorates research division and the elite Unit 8200 signal-intelligence team was ordered to help the health ministry track coronavirus cases. A new unit was created to identify and develop other tech solutions: by the end of March, it had come up with a new mask design, a radar system with electro-optics to measure body temperatures remotely, and a voice test to identify those infected. (With artificial intelligence, it may be able to identify the unique vocal fingerprint of the virus through voice recordings on a mobile app.)

Even Israels spooks were deployed in the fight: Mossad sourced hundreds of thousands of test kits from suppliers abroad. This unconventional procurement method is typically used when dealing with countries that dont have official relations with Israel.

Like military forces everywhere, the IDF has also had to deal with the challenge of keeping its troops healthy. Service personnel, by the nature of their work and deployment, are at heightened risk for epidemicconsider the example of the USS Theodore Roosevelt. At the end of March there were 62 cases of infected soldiers and 2,900 in isolation. That is a lower incidence of infection than in the general population.

Inevitably, the IDF and intelligence services expansive role in the crises has aroused anxieties, among some members of the Knesset and in sections of the media, about military overreach. Right groups worry that emergency provisions allow the use of security techniques and toolssuch as Internal Security Services phone tracking anti-terror softwareon civilians without the usual civil-liberties protections. Two groups have petitioned the courts to freeze the surveillance, but a Knesset intelligence subcommittee has approved most aspects of the new initiative.

There are also questions about who should be leading the governments crisis-management efforts. At the moment, that role belongs the ministry of health, but Defense Minister Naftali Bennet believes his department should be in charge, arguing, We are in a war, the IDF is a bulldozer and thats what we need to fight. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, himself under quarantine in the middle of the delicate political task of forming a new coalition government, has left the health ministry in charge, but the argument will almost certainly come up again, especially if the crisis deepens.

The numbers are scary enough already. As April 1, Israel had 6,092 cases and 25 deaths. In the Middle East, Israel has among the highest proportions of confirmed infections: 646 per million, compared with 333 per million in Bahrain and 160 per million in Turkey. (The reliability of statistics from some of the regions most populous countries, like Egypt and Iran, is questionable.)

But it could get a lot worse if the virus begins to rampage through the Palestinian population. Since the Palestinian Authority doesnt have the infrastructure or resources to manage such a crisis, it may fall to the IDF to facilitate the delivery of medical and humanitarian assistance to a community with which it has historically hostile relations.

So far, 12 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Gaza, and 107 in the West Banks; there has been one death in the West Bank. IDF spokesperson Jonathan Conricus says Israel is in close communication with the PA to help educate its employees about the virus. Some test kits and protective gear have been transferred and joint training conducted. But the IDF and Hamas are still trading rockets and missiles, and Bennett has linked any virus-related assistance for Gaza to the recovery of Israeli soldiers captured in 2014.

For the IDF, the war against the virus is certain to present more complexities than those confronting most military forces.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Seth J. Frantzman covers Middle East affairs for the Jerusalem Post. He is the author of "After ISIS: America, Iran and the Struggle for the Middle East" and executive director of the Middle East Center for Reporting and Analysis.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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The pear season was well underway in the Hood River valley when the coronavirus pandemic hit Oregon and Washington.

The initial impact was fear and uncertainty, said Doug Gibson vice president of Mount Adams Fruit, a family-owned packing and shipping operation that began in 1917.

The company in Bingen, Wash., just across the Hood River Bridge, has 350 employees and ships pears, cherries and apples across the United States and the world.

Management wasnt sure how the coronavirus would affect the company. The initial outlook was good as orders soared with grocery stores rushing to stock up on pears, and business has remained steady with consumers continuing to want fruit.

Then schools closed and people in high-risk categories were advised to stay home. Having enough workers at the plant was critical for area farmers. If their products arent shipped, they dont make money on their crops.

We encouraged all employees in the risk category to stay home, said Gibson. We let them know the company would take care of them going forward as we figured it out ourselves.

Other employees could work, but many of them worried about leaving their children home alone all day.

In the meantime, the plant needed to be constantly disinfected and run at capacity.

To build up its work force, the company applied to Washington state for minor work permits, required by law because the plant is considered a factory. Once approved, the company offered to hire high school kids from families who worked at the plant. They could have hired students as young as 15, but thought it best each student be at least 16.

Lets say a grandmother worked as a sorter and was in the risk category and stayed home, said Gibson. Her grandson could come in and work for her, getting paid exactly what she earned. The family would not take a financial hit. Parents could also have their children come to work so they werent home alone.

Gibson said 32 minors now work at the plant.

The first thing we did was structure everything to be an educational experience, he said.

He said the young workers are learning about quality control, sorting, cleaning and safety and communicating directly with growers.

We want to help them understand what the fruit industry is all about, he said. This isnt just a factory.

Growers normally come into the plant to watch their fruit be graded, sorted and packed. But the company is now restricting access.

We have some of the kids going around, taking videos of fruit when it is delivered, Gibson said. A grower can literally see their fruit go through the packing line.

Gibson said the young workers easily picked up the new technology.

Dorothy Carrillo, a 17-year-old senior at Columbia High School in White Salmon, is a sorter and one of the videographers. She takes pride in showing growers how their pears are being graded for the market.

Her schools student body president, Carrillo plans to use the money shes making to help pay for college next year. She is not yet sure where she will go, but her long-range goal is to be an agricultural teacher.

Im getting real-life experience here that will help me, she said.

Almost as important, she said, is talking with older workers, learning about their lives and dreams.

Im having fun, she said, fun while I am working.

The company turned a room into a study hall, Gibson said, where students can take time during the day for online high school instruction.

Gibson said the company increased space in the lunchroom to make sure everyone sits 6 feet from each other and built barricades in all production areas to allow social distancing. All public areas are cleaned multiple times a day. He said no one has come down with coronavirus. Employees who do feel sick, receive sick leave and must be checked at a clinic before getting permission to return to work.

Its a workday for these kids, said Gibson. But were mindful theyre kids who would normally be in school. They are getting paid for a full work week, but they are studying and doing other things too. When this virus ends, we want these students to come way saying they not only made money, but they learned something.

Leonel Orozco, a 16-year-old junior at Columbia High School, has worked several jobs at the plant. With school expected to be out the rest of academic year, he figures he will keep working at the plant.

He said it was strange, those first few days, to be working and seeing his parents.

There was a little too much closeness.

But I enjoy it now, he said. I feel everyones looking out for us kids.

--Tom Hallman Jr; thallman@oregonian.com; 503-221-8224; @thallmanjr

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Germany has recorded more than 6,000 coronavirus cases in a day for only the second time while another 140 people have died, the latest figures revealed today.

The 6,156 new infections bring Germany's tally from 67,366 to 73,522, a jump of 9.1 per cent which is slightly higher than in recent days.

The 140 latest deaths mark Germany's second-deadliest day - behind only yesterday's 149 - and take the overall toll from 732 to 872.

Germany's mortality rate has also ticked up again, reaching 1.2 per cent - still lower than its major European neighbours, but up from 0.5 per cent a week ago.

This graph shows the number of coronavirus cases added to Germany's tally each day. Today's figure of 6,156 is just the second time the figure has been more than 6,000

This chart shows the daily number of new deaths. Today's figure of 140 was down slightly on yesterday's 149, but is still the second-highest on record

The southern states of Bavaria and Baden-Wuerttemberg - the two closest to Italy - have been especially hard hit, piling up 509 of the 872 deaths between them.

The city of Munich alone - the capital of Bavaria - has recorded nearly 2,900 cases of the disease, according to the Robert Koch Institute which gathers the figures.

There have also been nearly 3,000 cases in Berlin, including 19 deaths, and more than 2,400 infections with 14 deaths in Hamburg.

Today's jump of 6,156 cases is second only to the 6,294 infections which were added to the tally on March 28.

Germany's death rate of 1.2 per cent - around one in every 83 patients - is lower than in the UK (8.0 per cent), Italy (11.9 per cent), Spain (8.9 per cent) or France (6.8 per cent).

However, it has increased every day for nearly two weeks, rising from 0.5 per cent just seven days ago.

The low rate is thought to be linked to Germany's mass testing, which means many people with mild symptoms have been added to the overall count who are likely to have been missed elsewhere.

Germany is already carrying out up to 500,000 tests a week and wants to screen every suspected case of the disease.

By contrast, only 153,000 people have been tested in the UK altogether.

There is also hope that antibody tests which show whether someone has become immune to the disease will be rolled out within weeks.

A nurse takes care of a coronavirus patient in an isolation ward at Essen university hospital in western Germany yesterday

A medical team transports a patient from a helicopter to an ambulance upon arrival from France at the Muelheim-Essen airport in Germany yesterday

In the meantime, Germany's current lockdown restrictions will be extended by two weeks until April 19.

'We assessed the situation today and confirmed that the restrictions... will be valid up to and including April 19,' chancellor Angela Merkel said yesterday.

'We will reassess the situation on the Tuesday after Easter,' Merkel said following a video conference with state premiers.

Merkel acknowledged that the extended lockdown may prevent families from visiting each other over Easter.

But she warned that a 'pandemic does not recognise holidays'.

The government has repeatedly rejected calls to relax the measures in recent days, with Merkel calling on the public to 'be patient' in a podcast last weekend.

On Wednesday, the chancellor reiterated that it was 'much too early to think about loosening the restrictions'.

'It would be much worse to do it too early, and we are still very far away from what we need to achieve,' she said.

Merkel herself has repeatedly tested negative for the virus after going into quarantine when a doctor who recently vaccinated her was found to be infected.

Meanwhile, some officials are looking to South Korea as a model for how to use phone tracking as a tool against the epidemic.

Privacy and surveillance are a sensitive subject in Germany, in a country still traumatised by the memory of the Nazis and more recently the East German Stasi.

An initial proposal to require mobile phone operators to hand over data was dropped after a public outcry.

Nonetheless, even Merkel - who grew up in East Germany - said that if a smartphone app helped to track the virus then 'I would of course be willing to use it for myself'.

Nurses wearing protective gear work in an isolation ward at a hospital in Essen where two newly-arrived French patients were treated

Medical workers take samples from motorists at a coronavirus drive-in centre on Hannover's exhibition grounds in Germany

Health minister Jens Spahn said 'we need to be able to identify and reach anyone who has had contact with an infected person very quickly' before lockdown measures can be lifted.

Officials will come up with a new plan 'in the coming days', according to Spahn, who says 'the use of mobile phone data will be a key factor against the spread'.

Under the new plans, data will be shared 'on a voluntary basis', according to justice minister Christine Lambrecht.

The proposed app would track and record people's interactions via Bluetooth for two weeks, without tracking their location and with a promise that data will be securely protected.

If a person becomes infected, the app will automatically send a notification to anyone they have crossed paths with in the past two weeks, to warn them of the risk.

Only those who have downloaded the app will receive the infection warnings, and the identity of infected people will be kept secret.

The app was developed by Germany's Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI) telecommunications research institute, in collaboration with the Robert Koch Institute disease control centre.

'HHI is working on an application that will make it possible to record the proximity and duration of contacts between people on mobile phones over the past two weeks, completely anonymously and without the need to record their location,' a spokeswoman for the company said.

The firsts tests were carried out at an army barracks in Berlin on Wednesday, according to media reports.

Using people's data in this way also has the approval of Germany's federal commissioner for data protection, with certain conditions.

'The collection and evaluation of personal data to interrupt chains of infection can only be carried out with the consent of citizens,' commissioner Ulrich Kelber said.

'This data should be stored only for a limited and clearly defined period, and with the sole aim of fighting the pandemic. After that, it should be deleted,' he said, predicting a 'strong willingness to participate' if these conditions are met.
BURLINGTON, Vt., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- For the third consecutive year, Dealer.com has earned a TAG Certified Against Fraud Seal from the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG), the leading global certification program fighting criminal activity and increasing trust in the digital advertising industry. Dealer.com is the only automotive-specific digital advertising company to carry this coveted designation. Since 2016, Dealer.com, a premiere automotive industry end-to-end marketing solution, has been devoted to combating fraudulent advertising activity to ensure the utmost protection for its dealership partners.

With the complexity of ad buying, Dealer.com works closely with dealers and provides access to an integrated platform for advertising. Dealers should be building a plan to counteract digital ad fraud to ensure each dollar spent is reaching a real consumer.

"Advertising fraud remains a threat to dealership budgetsespecially in our current environment with online media consumption increasingand with our third TAG certification, we at Dealer.com are proud to remain a leader in the automotive industry's fight against malicious digital activity," said Wayne Pastore, general manager of Dealer.com. "Every ad dollar needs to be spent efficiently and this recertification allows us to provide our dealer and OEM clients with preventative solutions that help detect and disrupt harmful display fraud."

Today's U.S. digital advertising market is worth more than $100 billion, making it a significant target for fraudulent activity. In 2018 alone, brands lost an estimated $35 billion to invalid traffic, often perpetuated by deceptive marketing bots and fraudulent impressions1.

According to a study released by TAG, the use of TAG Certified distribution channels for digital advertising reduced the level of fraud by more than 88% from the broader industry average. Through its certification from TAG, Dealer.com delivers on its promise to provide cost-efficient and effective ads to its dealers while taking steps to limit and prevent display fraud.

"By achieving this certification for the third consecutive year, Dealer.com has demonstrated its long-term commitment to ending digital advertising fraud in the automotive industry," said Mike Zaneis, CEO of TAG. "We commend Dealer.com for setting the high standards necessary to fight fraud across the supply chain, and we look forward to continuing to work to raise our industry's standards against fraud and other criminal activity."

About Dealer.com

Dealer.com is the premier digital marketing solution for the automotive industry. Providing an integrated platform of Websites, Advertising, Digital Retailing and Managed Services, Dealer.com allows OEMs, dealer groups, retailers and agencies to leverage advanced digital technology, data and insights to deliver the shortest, fastest and most personalized path to customer engagement. The company practices a deep commitment to its culture of progress, with a focus on community, health, and wellness. Based in Burlington, Vermont, Dealer.com is a Cox Automotive brand. For more information, visit www.dealer.com.

About Cox Automotive

Cox Automotive Inc. makes buying, selling, owning and using cars easier for everyone. The global company's 34,000-plus team members and family of brands, including Autotrader, Clutch Technologies, Dealer.com, Dealertrack, Kelley Blue Book, Manheim, NextGear Capital, VinSolutions, vAuto and Xtime, are passionate about helping millions of car shoppers, 40,000 auto dealer clients across five continents and many others throughout the automotive industry thrive for generations to come. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., a privately-owned, Atlanta-based company with revenues exceeding $21 billion. www.coxautoinc.com

About the Trustworthy Accountability Group

The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) is the leading global certification program fighting criminal activity and increasing trust in the digital advertising industry. Created by the industry's top trade organizations, TAG's mission is to eliminate fraudulent traffic, combat malware, prevent Internet piracy, and promote greater transparency in digital advertising. TAG advances those initiatives by bringing companies across the digital advertising supply chain together to set the highest standards. TAG is the first and only registered Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (ISAO) for the digital advertising industry. For more information on TAG, please visit www.tagtoday.net.

1 2019 Juniper Research, Future Digital Advertising: Artificial Intelligence & Advertising Fraud 2019-2023

SOURCE Dealer.com

Related Links

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Banks to commence remitting Rs 500 per month to women PMJDY (Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana) account holders from tomorrow

Banks to commence remitting Rs 500 per month to women PMJDY (Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana) account holders from tomorrow.

Under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana Package, a sum of Rs 500 per month is being deposited into the accounts of Women Jan Dhan Yojana beneficiaries by all banks. This is the first of the 3 monthly installments.

Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak

In order to maintain social distancing and orderly withdrawal of money by the beneficiaries, the following schedule of disbursement will be followed by all banks for the month of April 2020.

And after 9th April, the beneficiaries may withdraw on any day at their convenience.

As this money is being deposited into the respective bank accounts, the beneficiaries need not rush for withdrawal; money can be drawn at their convenience at any later date.

The beneficiaries can use the neighborhood ATMs with RuPay cards, Bank Mitras, CSPs as much as possible to avoid crowding at the branches. There will be no charges for withdrawing money from other bank ATMs, at present, as per Govt of India directives.

While announcing the relief package for the poor affected by the 21-day nationwide lockdown on 26 March, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said 20.4 crore women having Jan Dhan bank accounts would get one-time cash help of Rs 1,500 spread over three months.

"You are requested to ensure that the said amount is transferred smoothly to the targeted accounts, so that the beneficiaries can get access to the funds during this time to carry on their livelihood without facing any hardship," the department of financial services had written in a letter addressed to head of public and major private sector banks.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - SLANG Worldwide Inc. (CSE: SLNG), (FSE: 84S), ("SLANG" or the "Company"), a leading global cannabis consumer packaged goods (CPG) company with a diversified portfolio of popular brands, today announced that its District Edibles brand is now available to licensed retailers across Oregon. The initial launch includes the flagship District Gummies product line in Blue Raspberry, Watermelon, and Strawberry flavors, to be sold in discreet, child-resistant, 10-piece blister packs containing a total of 50mg of THC.

The District Edibles launch will establish a new revenue stream for SLANG in Oregon, where the Company currently competes successfully in the concentrates category. SLANG has also signed an exclusive licensing and distribution agreement to bring California-based cannabis and lifestyle brand Cookies to the Oregon market. SLANG's network partner in Oregon is manufacturing the District Edibles line and selling the products through its statewide distribution channels.

"We continue to execute on our strategy of portfolio diversification by entering the edibles category in Oregon," said SLANG CEO Peter Miller. "As one of our core markets, this launch leverages existing SLANG network assets in a market where we already have a presence. With many of our brands like O.penVAPE Craft Reserve and the Bakked Dabaratus already on the leaderboard in Oregon, we look forward to bringing high-quality edibles to an established market."





Image: Popular cannabis brand District Edibles is now available to licensed retailers in Oregon.



To view an enhanced version of this image, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6983/54054_district2.jpg

The Oregon market had retail cannabis sales of $810 million USD in 2019, according to BDS Analytics. More than $10 million USD of cannabis ingestibles were sold in Oregon in February 2020, a 15% year-over-year growth rate, with candy representing more than half of the category's sales. After competing in Oregon primarily in the concentrates segment, SLANG's recent transactions position the Company to address all of the major categories including flower in 2020.

Story continues

District Edibles is a popular cannabis edibles brand first launched in 2017 and now sold in multiple U.S. states. According to BDS Analytics 2019 sales data, District Edibles was a Top 10 performing brand in the gummies category in Nevada, Colorado, and California.

All District Edibles products are hand-mixed in small batches to ensure a consistent flavor and dose in every batch. High-quality ingredients result in a low-fat, low-sugar and gluten-free product containing less than 10 calories per serving. The use of fully-activated cannabis oil ensures that your body is able to fully absorb the active cannabinoids without any after-taste.

In addition to its gummies line, District Edibles also manufactures and distributes THC-infused chocolate in three flavors: Orange Chocolate, Cookies & Cream and Roasted Espresso. The Company anticipates launching further District Edibles products in Oregon in the future.

Media inquiries

Media@SLANGworldwide.co

Investor inquiries

Investors@SLANGworldwide.co

About SLANG Worldwide Inc.

SLANG Worldwide Inc. is a global leader in the cannabis CPG sector with a diversified portfolio of popular brands distributed across the United States. The Company specializes in acquiring and developing market-proven regional brands as well as launching innovative new brands to seize global market opportunities. SLANG is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the ticker symbol SLNG and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the trading symbol 84S. For more information, please visit www.slangww.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains statements that constitute "forward-looking statements." Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements, or developments in the industry to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the financial impact to SLANG of the launch of the District Edibles brand in Oregon and the distribution the District Edibles and Cookies brands in Oregon.

Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management of SLANG at this time, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive risks, uncertainties and contingencies that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Applicable risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to regulatory risks, risks related to the COVID-19 global pandemic, changes in laws, resolutions and guidelines, market risks, concentration risks, operating history, competition, the risks associated with international and foreign operations and the other risks identified under the headings "Risk Factors" in SLANG's final long form prospectus dated January 17, 2019 and "Risks and Uncertainties" in the management discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2018, each as filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. SLANG is not under any obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the content of this news release.

###

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54054
New Delhi, Apr 2 (UNI) Lambasting the principal opposition party, the BJP on Thursday said when Indias efforts to fight Coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally and 130 crore Indians were united to defeat the pandemic, the Congress was playing petty politics.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah said, 'Under PM Narendra Modis leadership, Indias efforts to fight Coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. One hundred and thirty crore Indians are united to defeat COVID-19. Yet, Congress is playing petty politics. High time they think of national interest and stop misleading people'.

BJP president J P Nadda said the efforts of the Government under the leadership of Mr Modi are being appreciated by the whole world and at a time when the Prime Minister is fighting the battle along with all the State Governments as 'Team India', the Congress should function as a responsible political party.
Prominent Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Farangi Mahal on Thursday issued a 'fatwa' against concealing COVID-19, saying it was a crime as it puts the life of people in danger.

The Lucknow seminary issued the decree after a large number of people who had attended a religious gathering organised by the Tablighi Jammat in New Delhi last month tested positive for coronavirus.

"Getting tested and treated for coronavirus is important for all and concealing this disease is a crime. Putting one's own or others' lives in danger is forbidden in Islam," Maulana Khalid Rasheed Farangi Mahal said in the fatwa.

Those suspected of suffering from coronavirus should undergo testing, he said.

Saving the life of a human being is as important as savingthe lives of many, he said, adding that if people do not get themselves tested it was against Islam.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The COP26 UN climate change conference scheduled to take place in Glasgow in November has been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic after a decision was taken during a virtual meeting on Wednesday evening attended by UN climate chief Patricia Espinosa.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was one of the leaders due to attend the meeting that will now take place in 2021, which will be hosted in Glasgow by the UK in partnership with Italy. The COP26 president-designate is business secretary Alok Sharma.

The Scottish government announced this week that the SEC Arena, where COP26 was due to take place, will be turned into a field hospital to cope with coronavirus cases.

Sharma said: The world is currently facing an unprecedented global challenge and countries are rightly focusing their efforts on saving lives and fighting Covid-19. That is why we have decided to reschedule COP26.

We will continue working tirelessly with our partners to deliver the ambition needed to tackle the climate crisis and I look forward to agreeing a new date for the conference.

Espinosa added: Covid-19 is the most urgent threat facing humanity today, but we cannot forget that climate change is the biggest threat facing humanity over the long term. Soon, economies will restart.

This is a chance for nations to recover better, to include the most vulnerable in those plans, and a chance to shape the 21st century economy in ways that are clean, green, healthy, just, safe and more resilient.

Several experts and officials involved with the Paris Agreement endorsed the postponement.

Ajay Mathur, director-general of The Energy and Resource Institute, said: The momentum for climate action has accelerated considerably, and we will have to ensure that this momentum is sustained even as CoP26 is moved to 2021.

However, this postponement was the right decision - it highlights the centrality of the individual citizens of the world, and of their safety, security, and well-being. We need to keep this centrality in mind as we move to maintain and enhance momentum on climate action, while building a safer, healthier and more resilient global economy.

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: A constable in Wanaparthy



district was placed under suspension on Thursday a day after he allegedly manhandled a man during the ongoing coronavirus lockdown following an argument, police said.

A video of the incident that went viral on social media shows the constable in mufti (in plain clothes) "manhandling" the man in front of his son, who is heard screaming "uncle, stop" near a police vehicle.

A group of policemen are also seen "forcibly" putting the man and his son in the vehicle, but police said they were later let off.

However, according to a senior police official, the incident was triggered after the man allegedly slapped the constable when he was stopped by the police personnel while he was moving around on his vehicle during the lockdown, resulting in heated argument between him and the police.

"When he was asked to move away from the place leaving behind the vehicle the man allegedly slapped the constable," the official said.

Taking a serious note of the incident, Telangana IT and Industries Minister K T Rama Rao said this attitude of police is unacceptable in any circumstances.

Rama Rao tweeted: "...@TelanganaDGP Garu, this attitude of police is unacceptable in ANY circumstances Request you to take the strictest action on incidents such as this All the exceptionally good work of thousands of policemen is undone by erratic behaviour of a few."



Responding to the tweet, Wanaparthy District Superintendent of Police Apoorva Rao tweeted "Sir, We apologise to the public for such behaviour by an on-duty constable. This incident has been enquired into and strict disciplinary action has been initiated on the person responsible. We will ensure that such incidents do not repeat".

Police said the constable has been placed under suspension even as a case was also registered against the man under IPC sections 186 (Obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions) and 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Arthur I. Cyr





"So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself."



This quotation is from the first inaugural address of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The speech capped the ceremony in which he took the oath as chief executive of the United States, on March 4, 1933.



The American economy was in a state of collapse, and much of the world gripped in depression. Overseas, many people embraced dictatorship. The new president immediately launched an unprecedented effort to use government to address our problems.



In the crisis of the Great Depression, as in other major challenges, leadership was central. FDR's struggle to overcome paralysis of his legs from polio is relevant. The speech went on to describe "nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed action."



Today, we expect government to provide leadership, and a lot more. Until the twentieth century, catastrophes were regarded as unavoidable "Acts of God." People addressed the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic with stoicism.



The mass media have played a steadily more important role in characterizing terrible events. Photography transformed newspapers by adding sometimes-shocking pictures to text.



Radio and television greatly expanded this impact of information. The Internet and cell phones carry the process further.



Simultaneously, Americans have steadily raised the bar regarding expectations of government. President George W. Bush suffered serious political damage from public perception that he was both ineffective and uncaring in handling Hurricane Katrina devastation in 2005.



A century earlier, another President Roosevelt, Theodore, established the precedent of direct White House involvement to mitigate major disasters. This occurred immediately after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. His initiatives included a quick Congressional appropriation of $2.5 million, a radical move as well as a substantial sum for that time.



Teddy Roosevelt also involved the military in humanitarian relief. The USS Chicago rescued 20,000 people, still one of the largest amphibious evacuations in history. Soldiers distributed food, water and medical supplies.



Military methods also restored order. An estimated five hundred looters were shot by soldiers and police, including 34 men who attempted to rob U.S. Mint and Treasury buildings that contained $239 million in bullion and cash.



There was no FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) at the time, the agency would not be created until the Carter administration in the 1970s. Roosevelt instead stressed the role of the Red Cross.



During relief efforts after the 2010 Haiti earthquake and Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the Obama White House web site linked to the Red Cross. Various volunteer agencies are heavily engaged in current anti-coronavirus efforts.



Herbert Hoover further developed U.S. disaster relief capabilities and involvement, including overseas humanitarian efforts. During and after the First World War, he led the substantial U.S. Food Administration and American Relief Administration, credited with preventing mass starvation in Europe.



In 1927, Commerce Secretary Hoover spearheaded an enormous humanitarian effort after a huge Mississippi River flooding. Hoover was confirmed  temporarily  as a great American hero, securing a lock on the 1928 Republican nomination and election to the White House.



In 1965, Hurricane Betsy became the first Gulf Coast storm creating more than $1 billion in damage. President Lyndon Johnson immediately flew to New Orleans and relentlessly, endlessly visited storm victims, slogging through water to isolated shacks, anxious Secret Service agents and local politicians in tow. Follow-up federal relief was comprehensive.



Today, we assume government is central in dealing with the coronavirus.



In facing this public threat, as in the past, mature, insightful leadership is crucial.





Arthur I. Cyr (acyr@carthage.edu) is Clausen distinguished professor at Carthage College and author of "After the Cold War."


MELBOURNE, April 1 (Reuters) - An Australian human rights group has called on Rio Tinto Ltd to fund a review of health and safety issues it says plagues people near a huge copper mine in Papua New Guinea that the company ran for nearly two decades.

The review would be a starting point for talks around compensation and rehabilitation of the Panguna site that was run by Rio Tinto unit Bougainville Copper (BCL) from the early 1970s to 1990, the Human Rights Law Centre in Melbourne said.

Rio Tinto said it acknowledged the concerns of some civil society groups alleging past and current environmental and human rights issues. It said it had not had access to the mine since 1990 after it called back staff due to rising civil unrest and that it had complied with regulations up to that time.

"We believe the best means of addressing any current issues is through the owners of the mine working directly with the people of Bougainville," Rio Tinto said in a statement.

Rio handed its controlling 53.8 per cent shareholding to national and local governments in 2016.

Miners have come under pressure from investors to act in the best interest of all stakeholders, including local communities.

So far, miners have not been forced to account for mines they operated in the past, or those they inherited, but growing access to the internet in remote areas has allowed civil society groups to gather material to challenge them.

The rights group report said the Bougainville mine and its waste dumps contaminated the Jaba-Kawerong valley rivers, restricting access to clean water for 12,000 to 14,000 people who live downstream and denuding 40 km to the coast.

"Polluted water from the mine pit flows unabated into local rivers, turning the riverbed and surrounding rocks an unnatural blue," it said.

Tensions over how the mine's profits should be shared forced Rio Tinto to abandon the mine amid an escalation into civil war. At the time, it was Papua New Guinea's largest source of export revenue and accounted for about 7% of global copper production.

Bougainville voted to become independent from Papua New Guinea in December and there has been talk of resuming mining as a form of income. (Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by David Clarke)
Oil company executives reeling from a massive drop in prices were set to meet with President Donald Trump on Friday as the administration seeks ways to help the beleaguered industry.

The meeting, which was confirmed by the American Petroleum Institute comes just as Saudi Arabia unleashes a record volume of crude into the already-glutted global oil market, escalating a price war with Russia. Trump, who once hailed the unprecedented plunge in oil prices as a tax cut for American consumers, has stepped up efforts in recent days to intervene as the rout threatens to wipe out tens of thousands of jobs in Americas shale patch.

We dont want to lose our great oil companies, Trump said Wednesday during a briefing at the White House.

The president said he expects the two countries to settle their differences. He also said hes planning to meet with independent oil producers in addition to the majors.

Theyre negotiating, theyre talking, and I think theyll come up with something, Trump said. I do believe theres a way that that can be solved or pretty well solved.

Executives from companies such as Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., Occidental Petroleum Corp. and Continental Resources Inc. are expected to attend, according to people familiar with the meeting who asked not to be named to discuss non-public matters.

Among the topics expected to be discussed are possible tariffs on oil imports into the U.S. from Saudi Arabia, and relief from the Jones Act that requires ships that transport goods between U.S. ports to be American flagged, according to one of the people familiar.

Representatives of the White House did not immediately comment.

Attendees represent companies across the oil industry, including independent producers such as Continental and Devon Energy Corp., at least one midstream pipeline operator, Energy Transfer Partners, and one refiner, Phillips 66, according to another person familiar with the meeting. Representatives of the American Petroleum Institute are also attending the meeting.

No independent offshore oil producers were invited to the summit. And no European oil majors, even those with substantial U.S. operations are invited, so Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BP Plc, Equinor ASA and others are left out.

The companies have advanced widely varying prescriptions for dealing with the glut of crude fed by the Russia-Saudi oil price war and collapsing demand from the coronavirus.

Oil majors such as Exxon and Chevron for instance have typically opposed any kind of government intervention in crude markets including tariffs and mandated production cuts. With better access to capital and diversification of businesses, theyre more resilient than smaller operators to ride out the rout.

But some U.S. independent explorers, whose tenacity and technological innovation began the shale oil revolution, argue that such low crude prices risk killing the Americas domestic industry, leaving the country dependent on foreign producers once again.

Continental Resources Chairman Harold Hamm has urged the U.S. impose tariffs on Saudi and Russian crude, while several oil industry trade groups and refiners have warned against that step. The American Petroleum Institute has asked the White House to find a diplomatic solution. The American Exploration and Production Council previously floated the Jones Act waiver.

Natural gas and oil will be critical to our nations economic recovery, and the industrys message to the administration is sharing actions it is taking during this challenging time and highlighting that history has proven that markets work, the American Petroleum Institute said in an emailed statement. We are not seeking any government subsidies or industry-specific intervention to address the recent market downturn at this time.

Texas Railroad Commissioner Ryan Sitton, one of three regulators in the largest oil-producing state, says Trump should offer that the U.S. cut production at home for matching reductions from Saudi Arabia and Russia.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The government on Thursday allowed transit arrangements for stranded foreign nationals and also the evacuation of those foreigners, who arrived in India post-February 15 after their quarantine period and tested coronavirus negative, officials said.

It said only those foreign nationals would be allowed to leave, who are asymptomatic for COVID-19.

In order, the Home Ministry said the decisions have been taken exercising the powers conferred under the Disaster Management Act.

According to the order, the home ministry allowed transit arrangements for foreign nationals, who are currently in India, and release of quarantined persons, who have arrived in India after February 15, after expiry of their quarantine period and tested COVID-19 negative.

The home ministry said it has been brought to its notice that a number of foreign nationals are stranded in different parts of the country due to the lockdown measures.

Some foreign countries have approached the government for the evacuation of their nationals.

In view of these, it has now been decided that requests received from foreign governments, for the evacuation of their nationals from India, would be examined by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on case to case basis, the order said.

ALSO READ | MHA exempts agricultural produce, Anganwadi, AYUSH services delivery from lockdown

In cases where such requests are endorsed by MEA, the following protocol would be observed: the chartered flight would be arranged by the foreign government concerned in consultation with the Ministry of Civil Aviation, prior to departure, the foreign nationals would be screened for COVID-19 symptoms according to standard health protocol.

In case of symptomatic persons, the future course of treatment would be followed, as per the standard health protocol, the home ministry said.

It said local transportation arrangements from the place of stay of the foreign nationals to the point of embarkation would be arranged by the local embassy/consulate of the respective foreign government.

The transit pass for movement of the vehicle deployed for the foreign nationals would be issued by the government of the state/ union territory where the foreign nationals are staying.

The transit pass, as issued above, would be honoured/ allowed by the authorities of the state/union territories along the transit route.

The ministry also issued a Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for the release of quarantined persons after expiry of quarantine period and tested COVID-19 negative.

With a view to preventing spread of COVID-19 and as a measure of abundant precaution, persons returning from foreign locations after February 15 had been quarantined in government/ government-arranged facilities.

In respect of these persons, the following protocol would be observed after completion of the specified mandatory quarantine period.

People testing negative for COVID-19, and as per standard health protocol, would be released from the said quarantine facility(ies).

However, this will not apply to a group, where even one person tests positive for COVID-19.

These persons are expected to return to their homes, or to the homes of their families/ relatives/ friends or to other places of shelter like hotels, etc., by making their own transport arrangements.

The transit pass for movement of vehicles, being used by such persons, would be issued by the government of the state/ union territory where they have been quarantined.

The transit pass will be issued for fixed-route and with specified validity and such persons shall follow the same.

The transit pass, as issued above, would be honoured/ allowed by the authorities of the state/ union territories along the transit route.

As a measure of abundant caution, upon returning to their destination, such persons would home quarantine themselves for a further period of 14 days as per standard protocol on the matter.

Details of persons released from quarantine, along with their destination, will be shared with the state/UT government concerned for necessary follow up.

The 21-day lockdown was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24 in a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
Muong Thanh continues to fly high

Than, part of the first generation of Vietnamese entrepreneurs after the renovation period, started his business in the early 1990s and is currently managing two large enterprises with more than 25,000 employees. One of them, Muong Thanh Group JSC, provides tourist accommodation services across the nation, with nearly 60 hotels and more than 11,500 rooms in all segments from three to five stars, featuring the unique ethnic Thai style of the north-western mountains.

Thans breakthrough began in 2013 when he appointed his daughter Le Thi Hoang Yen, at the tender age of 26, to the position of CEO of what is now Vietnams largest private hotel chain.

Yen studied for seven years in the United Kingdom and holds a degree in accounting and finance from Birmingham University. Upon coming to Muong Thanh Hanoi Hotel for an internship, she fell in love with the service sector and became especially aware of her fathers development orientation.

In 2016, Muong Thanh Hospitality opened the Muong Thanh Luxury Vientiane 5-star hotel right in the capital of Laos. The opening was a launching pad for the Vietnamese hotel brand to expand overseas.

Yens father took six years to create the second hotel  Muong Thanh Linh Dam. Since then, Yen has increased the number of Muong Thanh hotels to over 60 with coverage throughout Vietnam. With Yen onboard, the group followed its original orientation, flying high as represented in the companys logo, a pair of eagle wings.

When transferring the hotel management rights to his daughter, Than said, I have to transfer sooner or later because I have reached the retirement age. This needs to be done as soon as possible.

However, like many family business transfers, things did not work out without overcoming some hurdles.

When becoming a CEO of 10 Muong Thanh hotels operating on a non-standard basis, Yen was worried. At that time, I was completely inexperienced and my father was not the type of person who would handle the work, he was more interested in the outcome. So I had to find my way independently, she said.

Sharing the same ideals with her father, the female CEO of Muong Thanh Hospitality continues to develop an increasingly modern and integrated corporation while not neglecting the traditional cultural identity of her nation.

One of the first measures Yen accomplished in her new position was the establishment of a centralised management office for all of Muong Thanhs local activities and further investment in IT systems.

Without experience of her own, she met people in the industry and persuaded them to work for her, establishing the foundation for the operation and management of Muong Thanh.

In reality, there are more challenges than I imagined. But when I think of the responsibilities of the next generation, I have more motivation to gradually adapt, manage, and formulate development strategies, Yen said.

The competence of the young female CEO is demonstrated through the rapid development of Muong Thanh Hospitality brand and one of her award titles, Vietnam Hotelier of the Year 2019, which she received at the Best Hotels & Resorts Awards in South Korea.

When asked about the gap between the two generations, Than admitted, There are many differences. I belong to the old generation already. My child catches many new things but her weakness was her inexperience. But I will be in the background to support her with my experience.

Yen also shared that the biggest thing she learnt from her father was the spiritual element. When facing difficulties, my father firmly refused to give up. Dad taught me many valuable lessons. So far, my father always accompanies me and has been a great teacher and colleague.
As the coronavirus tears through the Bay Area, small businesses are closing, workers are getting laid off and food security concerns are rising. But a series of temporary policy changes are making it easier for low-income people to sign up for CalFresh, the states food stamps program.

The changes come at a time of unprecedented demand for the CalFresh program, with record sign-ups week after week since shelter in place.

The goal, said Liz Gomez, the Alameda County Community Food Banks client services director, is making the program easier to access and helping people stay on the program.

An executive order from Gov. Gavin Newsom waives certain reporting requirements, so beneficiaries wont have to prove how much money they earn to continue getting food stamps.

Meanwhile, the USDA recently informed states they can disregard the usual interview requirement when someone applies for food stamps. Now, California county officials are currently awaiting guidance on how to implement the change.

Itll be a significant weight lifted for applicants, who can sign up at www.getcalfresh.org in about 10 minutes, said Meg Davidson, the San Francisco-Marin Food Banks director of policy and advocacy.

Administratively, (the interview) is a huge barrier. Its the place where most people fall out of the process, Davidson said.

Food security advocates had been anticipating a rule change the Trump administration issued in December to place more strict work requirements on people ages 18 to 49 without children. The rule would have effectively cut off 700,000 from receiving food stamps through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), according to the nonprofit Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. It was set to kick in April 1, but a federal judge blocked it last month, noting that food stamps are particularly important during a pandemic.

That is huge because that was a real threat to people who would be required to register for work and may not have been able to, Gomez said.

Similar waivers are in effect for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) in California. People can now apply over the phone instead of in person and defer health screenings. If someone is already enrolled in WIC, benefits will automatically load.

Those are all very critical in allowing us to provide uninterrupted services to our WIC families, said Priti Rane, director of nutrition services at the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

More changes are expected to come to CalFresh and WIC, too. Among them: California is asking the federal government for permission to allow CalFresh beneficiaries to use their food stamps for groceries purchased online, given many people want to avoid physically going to stores during the coronavirus pandemic.

With shelter in places shifting timelines, its unclear how long some of these measures will last. The CalFresh interview waiver, for example, currently runs through May. The CalFresh reporting waiver expires in mid-June. Rane said the WIC waivers were recently extended until May 31, and she wouldnt be surprised if they get extended again.

Yalonda M. James / The Chronicle

Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

Concerns about food access  coupled with concerns about crowded grocery stores  have made a social media post about SNAP and WIC go viral. The post urges people to avoid grocery stores April 1-3 because thats when peoples benefits kick in, then instructs people to not buy items with a WIC logo on the price tag.

Experts said the post isnt exactly accurate in California. CalFresh benefits are staggered between the first and the 10th of every month and WIC benefits are timed with ones enrollment date, so there wouldnt necessarily be a dramatic rush of people at stores in the first three days.

But the note about the WIC logo holds weight. Davidson said the list of items people can use WIC benefits for is extremely narrow. Those who may be concerned about those in the WIC program getting access to those foods might avoid buying products with that label.

You have to get a specific weight and kind of bread, a specific weight and kind of milk, she said. The fear is that because of the hoarding people were doing, those specific items would be gone by the time WIC recipients would be able to go and use those benefits.

But that could change, too. Rane said the state applied for a waiver that would allow for more food substitutions. Other states that have received them, for example, now enable WIC beneficiaries to buy any kind of milk instead of just low-fat milk. She said she hopes Californias waiver comes through by the end of next week.

Janelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: janelle.bitker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @janellebitker
WOLF CREEK, Ore.  Oregon State Police says that a deadly shooting near the Josephine County community of Wolf Creek was a case of self-defense.

Shortly after noon on Thursday, the Wolf Creek Rural Fire Protection District posted on Facebook  saying that law enforcement was responding to a "shots fired" report in the 2700-block of Speaker Road.

"Man dead at the scene. Please avoid this area with an alternate route for your destination," the fire agency said.

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office later confirmed that deputies found an adult man dead at the scene. The original call came in just before 11 a.m. on Thursday.

The Sheriff's Office requested that the Oregon State Police crime lab take over the investigation.

OSP said that detectives interviewed the property owner, finding that he had called 911 to report that he'd confronted a man in a vehicle who had been shooting a gun on his property.

"The man in the vehicle shot at the property owner who then returned fire," OSP said in a brief statement on Friday. "The male in the vehicle was pronounced deceased."

The state police agency said it worked with the Josephine County District Attorney's office and determined this to be a case of self-defense. No criminal charges are expected in the case.

The statement from OSP did not identify either the dead man or the property owner involved in the shooting.
Experts in Cambodia have welcomed the government's recent halt on hydropower development on the Mekong River until 2030, but called on the government to focus on renewable energies.

The spokesman for the Ministry of Mines and Energy's General Department, Victor Jona, told VOA on Tuesday that no further hydropower dams were needed on the Mekong River main stream for the next 10 years to meet energy demand.

"From 2020 to 2030, there will not be any developments of hydropower on the main river," he said.

The announcement effectively pauses the development of the two planned dams, Sambor and Stung Treng.

Other tributaries, however, are excluded from this halt. For example, an 80 megawatt plant in Stung Pursat Province was still on the table, Victor Jona said. The government also did not exclude the possibility of further hydropower projects on the river after 2030.

Environmentalists warn that hydropower dams have disastrous consequences for rivers' ecological systems. The Mekong River is one of the biggest rivers in the region and thousands of families depend on it for livelihoods.

The decision to pause the dams' development has given the government time to invest in other energy sources, experts said.

"This announcement is excellent news for people in Cambodia, Vietnam and the wider region," said Maureen Harris, Director of Programs at International Rivers. "The proposed Sambor and Stung Treng dams are predicted to have devastating impacts on Mekong fisheries and floodplains, and would likely deliver a death blow to the Mekong delta, which is already under immense pressure from the combined impacts of climate change and existing dams upstream in China and Laos."

'Risks outweigh benefits'

The electricity generated by existing dams, she added, had raised questions of whether hydropower dams were able to produce the energy they had promised.

Brian Eyler, Southeast Asia program director at the Stimson Center, echoed the assessment.

"The announcement  is a clear signal that mainstream Mekong dams are becoming outdated and under-performing options for power generation," he told VOA via email.

He said this sent a message to Laos and investors in the neighboring state "that Mekong mainstream dams make poor economic, environmental, and political sense."

Most prominently, Laos is expected to begin construction of the Luang Prabang dam later this year. This, observers say, threatens the ecosystem of downstream Mekong.

Eyler said that record low river levels over the last two years had caused electricity blackouts in the country for several months as there was not enough water to turn the turbines.

"Clearly the risks to mainstream Mekong dams outweigh the benefits in the eyes of Cambodia's leaders," he said.

One of those risks, he said, was the threat it posed to the fish stock. "The two mainstream dams at Stung Treng and Sambor would have  effectively killed the Mekong's fish population," he said.

Energy needs

But Victor Jona said the government had re-evaluated their energy master plan based on research that they had commissioned in 2019 that did not include environmental factors. Finalized in February, the research looked at population-, industrial-, and demand growth, and found that energy demands were largely covered by other sources, he said. One new source included increased energy imports from Laos: While previously Cambodia had bought less than 50 megawatts from Laos' recently opened Dor Sahong dam, it now had ordered 195 additional megawatts, he said.

A study currently conducted by Asia Development Bank is analyzing Cambodia's energy needs for the next 20 years. While it included additional factors such as changes in energy efficiency in the country, the study also did not look at environmental factors, he said. The study is expected to be finalized next year.

To cover electricity needs, the Cambodian government would also extend its coal-fired electricity production, he said.

The National Assembly last week approved two new coal-fired electricity plants amounting to 900 megawatts combined.

But Courtney Weatherby, a research analyst at the Stimson Center who focuses on energy, sustainability and water, said that coal was not an immediate answer to Cambodia's electricity needs, as it often took years to build the plants.

Compared to hydropower, she said, it did have advantages: New hydropower and coal plants both sold electricity at about 7 cents per kilowatt-hour, she said, but because coal is not as vulnerable to drought as hydropower, it is more reliable.

Yet, this could have long-term negative effects.

"Coal has environmental impacts," she said. "In the long-term, coal generates carbon emissions that contribute to climate change."

Thus, instead of focusing on coal or hydropower, the government should focus more extensively on renewable energies, Weatherby said.

Victor Jona agreed that Cambodia had the potential to develop solar energy further. Going forward, Jona said, Cambodia would increase its capacity for solar energy. Currently it constituted less than 10 percent of Cambodia's energy mix, and hydropower 36 percent, but the government had already approved plans for 300 additional megawatts. And from 2021 onward, an additional 200 megawatts would be integrated into Cambodia's electricity net every year.

Weatherby said Cambodia had an estimated potential of 8,000 megawatts generated by solar energy, and 6,500 megawatts by wind turbines. Although the full potential was unlikely to be reached, she said solar projects could be built more quickly to address electricity shortages.

"Solar energy in particular is a very viable option for Cambodia's future electricity generation," she said.


This administration has largely failed to fulfill this legal obligation, the lawmakers continued, mentioning the January drone strike that killed General Suleimani.

The letter was signed by the Democratic members of the so-called Gang of Eight, who are regularly briefed by intelligence agencies on sensitive national security developments: Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Representative Adam B. Schiff of California, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee; Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the minority leader; and Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee.

The letter cited media reports about the administrations consideration of direct action against Iran in response to attacks on American forces in Iraq by Iranian-sponsored militias. It was sent on the same day that The New York Times reported that the Pentagon was planning for a potential escalation in operations against Iranian militias.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other officials have privately pushed for more direct attacks on Iranian forces, as part of an effort to force Tehran to the bargaining table.

Mr. Trump had resisted Mr. Pompeos proposal for tougher action, noting in the deliberations with his national security team that with Iran reeling from the coronavirus, a direct attack would appear inappropriate.

But Mr. Pompeo and some other senior administration officials have become frustrated with the violence in Iraq and near-daily American intelligence reports that Irans proxy forces are plotting against the United States. Mr. Pompeo, along with Robert C. OBrien, the national security adviser, and Richard Grenell, the acting director of national intelligence, have argued that bolder action against Iranian forces could break the current cycle of violence and give new life to efforts to restart negotiations with Tehran.

Administration officials have maintained for nearly a year that a harsh approach toward Iran, including a campaign of financial warfare, would hurt Irans economy to the point of forcing its government to negotiate over its nuclear program and its military operations throughout the Middle East. Instead, Iran has lashed out with attacks for months against American forces and allied countries.
The Trump administration has refused a request to lift a ban on blood donations from gay and bisexual men.

The nation's blood supply is facing a severe shortage as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

But it appears the Food and Drug Administration are not looking to lift a decades-old restriction that forbids donations from the gay community.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a letter to the FDA asking antiquated restrictions be lifted

Currently blood centers turn away gay men who have sex with other men in the past year (file photo)

One FDA official told the Daily News that the administration is aware of 'a dramatic reduction in blood and plasma donations.'

'We are actively considering the situation as the outbreak progresses,' the official said.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Carolyn Maloney have written to FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn asking him to revise the 'antiquated policy'.

It's estimated that by barring the gay people from giving blood, more than 4.5 million people are prevented from doing so leading to an estimated loss of 615,000 pints of blood every year.

Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) joined Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in her plea to see restrictions on gay men giving blood, lifted

'This antiquated policy is not based on current science ... and undermines crucial efforts to increase the nation's blood supply as the United States grapples with the coronavirus crisis,' Ocasio-Cortez and Maloney wrote.

'We urge FDA to act swiftly in revising its policy so every person who can safely donate blood in the United States has the opportunity to do so,' they wrote.

The restrictions date back to the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the early 1980s that suggested blood banks not accept donations from men who had been sexually active with other men in the past year.

Last month, New York State Senator Brad Hoylman, who is openly gay, also wrote to Hahn asking for the 'outdated, discriminatory, and  in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis  detrimental to public health,' restrictions to be lifted.

Hoylman told the Daily News that he has yet to receive any kind of response.

Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams has called on Americans to donate blood if they can, however the virus has lead to many blood drives being cancelled.

It's estimated the outbreak has seen around 130,000 fewer donations.
Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, a man who coughed at a police officer in the United Kingdom and threatened to infect him with coronavirus has been sentenced to six months in jail. According to reports, the incident occurred on April 1 and the man was sentenced under a law that was introduced in 2018 and deals with assault against emergency workers.

According to reports, Adam Lewis, 55, was stopped by officers when he was seen trying door handles of cars in central London on March 31. After being stopped, Lewis allegedly turned violent and smashed a bottle of wine he was carrying on the floor. Then the accused proceeded to verbally threaten the police officers by admitting that he was COVID-19 positive and that he would cough on the officers.

According to reports, London's Metropolitan Police in a statement have said that Lewis in addition to coughing on the police officer tried to spit on the officers, as well as bite them. Lewis was promptly arrested and appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on April 1.

Read: UK Woman Jailed For 12 Weeks After She Coughed At Police Officer

Read: Britain's Horticultural Industry In Peril Due To Coronavirus Lockdown

Deliberately coughed

In a similar incident, a woman in Norwich, England has been jailed for 12 weeks after she deliberately coughed on an officers face. During the act, the woman claimed that she has been tested positive for coronavirus. According to reports, Joanne Turner, 35, became abusive and argumentative when she was confronted by officers for kicking and damaging a car parked outside the Norwich train station.

As per reports, the incident took place on March 25 and on March 26 Turner plead guilty in court to assaulting an officer. Turner also admitted to being drunk and disorderly during the exchange. For her actions, she was jailed for 12 weeks. According to reports, Chief Superintendent Dave Marshall has claimed that assaulting emergency workers at any time is a serious offence but the 12-week sentence handed out to Turner is a reflection of the seriousness of the threat posed by the coronavirus and the threats or action of deliberately coughing in someones direction.

Read: England Face HUGE $372 Million Loss If No Cricket Is Held At Home This Summer: Report

Read: Jos Buttler Asks Virat Kohli To Retweet Post On Auctioning England World Cup 2019 Jersey

Marshall further added that hopefully, this harsh sentence serves as a clear warning to anyone that chooses to behave in this manner during a crisis.
By Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: At least seven African nationals, including six from Sudan, who had recently returned from the Nizammudin Markaz event in New Delhi were traced to a place in Sundargarh district and immediately shifted to a Government quarantine facility on Wednesday.

The seven foreigners are reportedly part of a 10-member team of preachers from Sudan and Djibouti who had also spent a few days in Rourkela before leaving for Delhi earlier this month to attend the Markaz. They had again returned to the district a few days back. The dates of their participation in the event and travel details are being ascertained.

After the matter came to the fore, the core COVID-19 monitoring unit and the Sundargarh district administration swung into action and shifted them to quarantine facility. A massive exercise has been launched to find out their travels and trace all their contacts.



COVID-19 LIVE | Rajasthan confirms 9 new cases, tally nears 2100

The foreign preachers have been isolated and their health is being examined properly. Their blood and swab samples have been sent for tests. There is no reason to panic as contract tracing is on, said an official. The Markaz event has sparked fear in the state as the government scrambles to trace the participants across districts. Apart from the Africans, the state tracing cell has so far identified around 43 persons from Odisha who had attended the congregation. While 13 persons have returned to the State, 15 are at New Delhi and the rest are in Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar and Gujarat.

The persons so far traced belong to Khurda, Cuttack, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Ganjam, Balasore, Puri, Koraput and Sundargarh districts. Those who have returned have been kept in quarantine along with their family members. The number is likely to go up as more than 100 monitoring teams have been engaged to trace the Tablighi participants, the official added.

Since there is no specific information on the number of persons from the State who attended the congregation, the monitoring cell faces a herculean task to track them down. The State Government has urged people to inform the control room at the 104 helpline if they come to know about any Tablighi participant.

The condition of 15 people from the State now under quarantine at New Delhi is stated to be stable. Of the 20 persons including the seven Africans, who had returned after attending the Markaz, 15 have turned out to be negative. Results of five are awaited.

5th positive case



A-60-year-old man of Surya Nagar here tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday. He was admitted to AIIMS-Bhubaneswar. With this, the number of positive cases in the State rose to five. Similarly, a man from Cuttack tested positive for coronavirus at New Delhi. He had been to the national capital on March 6 to attend the Tablighi Jamaat event. He has been put in the isolation ward of a hospital there.
In view of the coronavirus



outbreak, a court in Mumbai has granted interim bail to three trustees of a South Mumbai building, which collapsed last year killing over a dozen people.

The building trustees, Safdar Karmali, Barkat Unea and Shabbir Mukadam, booked for culpable homicide, had sought bail on the ground that they were vulnerable to coronavirus due to their age.

Their lawyer submitted that the accused are in the age group of 64 to 72 years.

The trio has medical history of diabetes and hypertension, their plea stated.

Judge R M Sadrani said in the order passed on Wednesday that the court was allowing temporary bail to the accused considering their age, the coronavirus outbreak and the ongoing lockdown.

Thirteen persons were killed after a four-storey residential building collapsed in south Mumbai's congested Dongri area in July 2019.

Almost seven months after the incident, four persons, including the three trustees were arrested. They have been booked under Section 304 (II) (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), which carries a maximum punishment of 10 years.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
TICKERS: UGE; UGEIF

Source: Streetwise Reports (4/2/20)

This project, along with two other new projects, increases the company's order backlog by 65%.



UGE International Ltd. (UGE:TSX.V; UGEIF:OTCQB) announced the signing of an agreement for its largest U.S. project ever, a 6.6 MW project in Westchester County, New York. Located on a corporate campus, the project will feed energy into the grid while providing energy credits to community solar subscribers at a discounted rate.

"The project is approximately 12-15 times the size of UGE's average project and, when completed, will produce power for an estimated 1,000 homes for the duration of the system's lifetime," the company stated. The company also has the option of installing battery storage, "which would provide a further boost to project revenue and returns."

The company also announced two additional projects, the first a 1.7 MW, nine-site portfolio in New York City using leased building rooftops. It is also a community solar subscription program and gives residents the "opportunity to save on electric bills through solar energy."

The third project is to develop, build and finance a community solar project in Maine. The 1.1 MW project will have its electricity feed directly into the grid. "In the past six months, Maine has become a top community solar market and UGE has affirmed itself as a leading market participant, with a pipeline of opportunities throughout the state," the company stated.

The three projects provide a total capacity of 9.4 MW, "with an estimated present value of almost USD$20 million across the portfolios." The projects should be completed by the end of 2021, the company asserted.

The company also announced a 250 kW project in Westchester County, N.Y., just one day before the above announcement of the 6.6 MW project.

"UGE continues to see growing demand, even in the face of the sudden downturn in the economy," said UGE's CEO Nick Blitterswyk. "Community solar allows real estate owners to boost revenue by receiving lease payments for their empty rooftops and open land, which is especially attractive during a time when their revenue may otherwise be decreasing."

UGE has been in the commercial and community solar space for over a decade, and as the industry has changed, UGE has changed with it.

The company develops, builds and finances commercial and community photovoltaic solar systems and is active in the U.S., the Philippines and Canada. The company began by engineering and constructing projects for solar developers but came to the realization that it could achieve higher margins by developing, building and financing the projects, so in early 2019, UGE stopped building projects for other solar developers.

The model that UGE has developed in the U.S. and the Philippines, Blitterswyk told Streetwise Reports, "has three pillars. We originate and develop the projectin our industry business development is like the secret saucethen we build the project and the third part is we finance the project, retaining ownership. Doing this gives us the highest gross margins as well as recurring revenues." The company can issue green bonds to fund a project and then reap the revenue over the lifetime of the project. About half of UGE's 2020 projects fall under this model and provide gross margins in excess of 23%.

"We are actually playing the role of the financier here, and structuring the finance to capture as much as we can out of the projects, including recurring revenue," Blitterswyk explained. "We started playing that role at the end of 2019 and now we are the financiers for a good majority of our projects."

Some of UGE's 2020 projects use the develop, build, sell model, where UGE develops, constructs and sells the project, either to an investment fund or to the client. This type of project returns gross margins in the 2025% range.

In many cases, UGE is setting up community solar projects, where the company rents a location, often rooftops, constructs a solar system, and then sells the electricity to local community members. It currently has about 30 such projects in its backlog.

On April 2, UGE announced that it closed financing and commenced project deployment on two community solar programs in New York City, one in Queens and one Staten Island. "Together, the projects are expected to generate approximately US$120,000 in revenue for UGE in year one, and over US$3.3 million over their lifetime. The projects are primarily funded by project-level debt in the amount of approximately US$0.5 million," the company stated. Both are expected to reach commercial operation in 2020, "further adding to UGE's base of recurring revenue."

"We've rapidly scaled up. 20182019 was a transition period to a development-driven model, where we focused on securing self-developed projects with higher margins, decreased our overhead by more than 30%, and cleaned up our balance sheet, including converting US$5.25 million debt to equity," Blitterswyk explained. "The debt holders took long-term equity positions in the company in the process, taking equity at what amounts to a CA$1.00 share price."

"In 2020, we are focused on driving profitable growth, increasing our gross margins, growing recurring revenue through project ownership, and keeping our overhead low," he added.

With the recent wins, the company has a current project backlog valued at approximately $50 million, spread out over more than 40 projects, and a pipeline in excess of $250 million.

The latest projects follow a series of new contracts UGE announced in February. One is with Wildflower, a repeat client, to construct a 100 kW system on the roof of a storage facility in Holbrook, N.Y. The construction of the system provides additional revenue to the building owner while complying with the Climate Mobilization Act, which requires new construction in New York City to "adopt prescribed sustainability measures."

Two additional projects are in the Philippines, where the high price of electricity makes solar projects very cost effective. UGE will construct a 100 kW system for the Cebu Institute of Technology and a 200 kW project for Lite Properties, to offset the electrical load of Lite Port Center, "eliminating its exposure to the high electricity rates on Bohol Island."

"Looking ahead, we've done the hard work necessary to transition to the development model, and we expect our margins and recurring revenue to really increase as we play the role of financier," Blitterswyk explained.

"Of our $50 million backlog, we expect about one-quarter will be fulfilled in 2020 and the remainder in 2021, so we are looking at 80 to 100% growth in both 2020 and 2021," he stated.

Selective Asset Management has taken a position in UGE International and Robert McWhirter, F.C.S.I., CFA, Selective Asset Management's president and portfolio manager, explained why he has invested in UGE. "The Philippines, which does not have any solar subsidies, comprises about one-third of UGE's revenue, and even without government subsidies, installations in that country make economic sense."

"In New York City (NYC) new buildings that are over 25,000 square feet must have solar or a green roof. UGE estimates that NYC is a $1 billion sales opportunity," McWhirter stated. "In addition, UGE typically leases the rooftop and sells the solar at 20 to 21 cents US with prices fixed for the first 10 years of a 25 year offtake agreement. A median sized installation is 50,000 square feet with an NPV of $1 million. UGE is working with the New York City's Economic Development Corporation and Con Ed."

"Sales are estimated at CA$8.4 million in CY 2019, growing over 50% in 2020 and 2021 to CA$13 million and CA$20 million, respectively. With an enterprise value of CA$6.0 million, an estimated backlog that is almost 5X trailing twelve months sales, EBITDA profitability expected in 2020 and 50% estimated sales growth this year and next, UGE's shares appear very attractive," McWhirter concluded.

[NLINSERT]

Disclosure:

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100 Years Ago  1920: A deal was closed this afternoon for sale of the properties at 504 and 506 Market Street for $90,000. Lillian H. Levey, who conducts a jewelry store in 504, is the new owner. The property was sold by Kingsley Montgomery and William S. Blakely, Jr. The building is better known to the citizens of Chester as American Hall, a number of lodges meeting on the third floor. The store at 506 is occupied by the Colonial Restaurant.

75 Years Ago  1945: Six hundred gathered Sunday morning at 6:45 a.m. on the lawn of the home of Katherine M. Stevenson, 2507 Chestnut St., overlooking the quiet running waters of Ridley Creek for the third Easter sunrise service held there. At the same time a large number of people  an estimated 500 or 600  gathered at the Lawn Croft Cemetery for a sunrise service there, one of the only two out-door services held in the Chester area.

50 Years Ago  1970: About 3,500 commuters of Short Line Inc., West Chester-based bus line, had to find other means of transportation again today as a drivers strike entered its second day with no negotiations planned. The bus line services Delaware County commuters from Philadelphia to Wilmington and from Chester to West Chester, while making stops in Aston, Concord and Bethel. Warren Cash, president of Lodge 1009, United Transportation Union, said that the 39 drivers would remain off the job until their $1.10 an hour wage increase demands are met. Drivers now make $2.51 an hour.

25 Years Ago  1995: Throughout her young life, Kendra Abdulwali had been told work hard and you will succeed. Last fall, it seemed her hard work and persistence had paid off. Kendra had earned recognition as one of the top high school students in the nation  along with a full four-year college scholarship to Howard University. But the Chester teen may never get the chance to get to go to college because Chester Upland School District personnel bungled the simple task of filling out and returning required scholarship information.

10 Years Ago  2010: U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, D-Pa., picked up a major labor endorsement from the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO in his re-election bid against U.S. Rep. Joseph Sestak, D-7. Specter now has the backing of about two dozen state and local labor organizations, including the Pennsylvania State Education Association, United Auto Workers and Service Employees International Union. Sestak has also picked up some notable organizations, including the National Organization for Women and United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1776.

 COLIN AINSWORTH
APRIL 2, 2020  With the help of the virtual realm a group of Roadrunners is connecting not just with each other but with their fellow San Antonians to show what compassion means during the age of COVID-19.

The Civic Leadership Integrative Seminar class, an undergraduate course in UTSAs College for Health, Community & Policy, is partnering with SA2020 and Compassionate San Antonio to host the event Compassion in the Time of COVID-19: San Antonio Community Conversations from April 2 to 18.

The students are hosting a series of virtual conversations to allow community members an hour to connect, reflect on our experiences during this public health crisis, and consider what compassion means to us as a community in a time of social distance, said Gina Amatangelo, a lecturer in the Department of Public Administration.

The Roadrunners plan to lead groups of eight to 10 people in discussions about their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic and what everyone hopes to learn from this experience as a community.

During this time of vital self-isolation, people have been coming up with all numbers of ways to remotely stay in touch.

These conversations are open to anyone in the San Antonio community. Weve reached out to several high schools that are offering this to their students as a service-learning opportunity, Amatangelo said. The conversations will be hosted on Zoom.

The civic leadership class is a capstone course for students minoring in civic engagement. It offers students service-learning opportunities where students lead small group discussions, serve as scribes, assist with outreach and tech support.

When the university shifted to remote learning on March 23, the class also saw the need to shift quickly as well.

This spring we were planning for students in the class to lead breakout sessions for high school students at the Up Partnership Youth Summit and to serve as small group discussion leaders for SA2020s community outreach efforts, Amatangelo said. We had to pivot and quickly create a new service project when those events were postponed. This conversation project allows students to put their leadership skills to use and to bring community members together in a meaningful way.

With UTSA being a community-engaged university, it was natural to open these conversations to the broader San Antonio community, Amatangelo said.

During this time of vital self-isolation, people have been coming up with all numbers of ways to remotely stay in touch with their family and friends, said Cassandra Perez, a junior environmental science major at UTSA. The caveat, though, is that with diminishing interaction with other members of the community, people can start to care almost exclusively about their inner circles and become quite literally out of touch with the whole of society, abandoning all civility and losing sight of the bigger picture in the process. But having this forum for members all across the San Antonio community to engage in allows for constructive or even cathartic dialog between people coming from different backgrounds and bringing in different perspectives. These connections and budding relationships, in turn, better allow for compassion and adapting with grace.

Senior criminal justice major Quin Reinish agreed that the project will be very beneficial to the community.

Reaching out to folks to check on their well-being as well as being there for relaxed conversation will help advance our social communication during these hard times, Reinish said. I hope people take away the importance of communication from this project. We take social interactions for granted in our everyday lives, and I believe this project will open our eyes to appreciate our surroundings.

 Learn more and register to participate with SignUpGenius.

Following each session, students plan to document themes from the conversation, which they plan to share in a report to SA2020, Compassion San Antonio and the City of San Antonios faith liaison.

One of the things that I love most about San Antonio is the way that people come together to share their ideas about our community vision, plans for a local park or other local policies, Amatangelo said. This conversation gives participants a moment to think about what we want to learn from this challenging situation and who we want to be as a community. My students and I are building on the work of Compassionate San Antonio and SA2020, and well share what we learn from these conversations with the broader community.

If theres sufficient interest from the community, Amatangelo said they hope to continue hosting them throughout the remainder of the semester.
New Delhi, April 2 : Financial services conglomerate HDFC Group on Thursday committed Rs 150 crore to the PM CARES Fund to support the fight against coronavirus pandemic.

Deepak Parekh, Chairman, HDFC Ltd, said: "These are uncertain and trying times for all of us. The HDFC Group's support to the PM CARES Fund is to commend the exemplary efforts of the Central, State governments, armed & paramilitary forces, local police, healthcare professionals and sanitation workers across the country, who are working tirelessly to fight the pandemic." He hoped that in the aftermath of coronavirus, the country will emerge stronger, more conscious and as a compassionate nation.

An HDFC statement said its management and all employees across the group appreciate the steadfast efforts of all and wish for India to emerge stronger and more resilient at the end of this crisis.

Several corporate houses and businessmen have come forward with donations to the PM CARES Fund and state funds, along with initiatives to combat the deadly virus and provide relief to vulnerable communities.

The Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund' (PM-CARES Fund) has been set up for providing relief to the persons affected by the outbreak of coronavirus.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Rouhani terms US sanctions as false, cruel, illegal

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, April 1, IRNA -- Iranian President Hassan Rouhani referred to the US' everlasting malignity, saying their sanctions are false, cruel and illegal.

Americans are aware of the fact that coronavirus is not related to one country, he said Speaking during a cabinet session adding that all countries in the world are connected and fighting COVID19 as a global issue.

Unfortunately, Americans did not learn from this difficult situation in the world, President Rouhani noted.

He went on to say that the current situation was the best historic opportunity for the US officials to return from their false path and to say that they are not against Iranians.

"Americans have always been against Iranians, but the current situation revealed their animosity more than ever," the Iranian president added.

President Rouhani appreciated people for their cooperation in observing social distancing plan, saying fortunately coronavirus outbreak is falling down in all provinces.

Rouhani thanked Iranians for observing all health instructions during Nowruz holiday.

He stressed the importance of social distancing plan, saying "we started the second phase of social distancing stricter and had 30% decrease with regard to trips".

All experts and doctors believe that social distancing plan has been useful and necessary, President Rouhani noted.

Rouhani went on to say that Iran has taken advantage of other countries' experiences in fighting coronavirus.

He noted that Chinese quarantine was only implemented in Wuhan.

Iranian President said that all hospital beds provided by armed forces, including ordinary and ICU ones are still empty, adding that we have 13,000 empty beds.

"We have no problem with regard to N95 mask and ventilator in Iran," he said.

9376**2050

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:52:16|Editor: Yurou

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VIENTIANE, April 2 (Xinhua) -- No new COVID-19 cases were reported in Laos on Thursday, with its total number remaining at 10, according to Lao health official.

Director General of Department of Communicable Disease Control under the Lao Ministry of Health, Rattanaxay Phetsavanh, told a press conference on Thursday that the total number of COVID-19 cases in Laos remained at 10, as no new cases were confirmed.

The confirmed cases included seven in the Lao capital Vientiane and three cases in Luang Prabang province.

All of the patients were not in serious condition and the treatment was going well, according to Lao official.

Laos detected the first two COVID-19 cases on March 24.
Greg Gutfeld outside Fox News headquarters in New York in November. (Bryan Anselm for The Post)

The caustic comic has gone from irreverent cable news oddity to a ratings champ who seems right at home on the network.
A man died after being



attacked by a tiger at a village in Madhya Pradesh's Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR) on Thursday, a forest official said.

Chintamani Baiga (40) was mauled to death by a tiger when he stepped out to relieve himself in the early hours of Thursday at Gohani village, BTR's sub-divisional Officer (SDO) Anil Shukla said.

Baiga was posted as a watchman at the Gohani village camp of the forest patrolling party, he said.

When villagers raised an alarm, the big cat left Baiga at a distance and fled the scene, the SDO said, adding that the victim had already died of severe injuries by then.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
China has accused the White House of controlling the reports on the coronavirus outbreak in America after US Vice President Mike Pence blamed Washington's delayed response to the crisis partially on Beijing.

The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned: 'Why the White House demanded American officials and health experts seek approval from Vice President Pence's office before releasing information and commenting on the epidemic?'

A spokesperson from the Ministry did not explain the source of her information while voicing the criticism.

She also claimed that the US government prevented a Seattle doctor from 'blowing her whistles', citing a report by The New York Times, whose correspondents China recently expelled in perceived retaliation against foreign media.

Hua Chunying (pictured), a spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned 'those who are in charge of the US', labelling their action as 'shameless'

Hua's criticism comes after US Vice President Pence yesterday blamed China and the US CDC for Washington's slow reaction to the global crisis, which has killed more than 5,130 in the US

The United States has the most coronavirus cases in the world, with more than 216,000 cases

Hua Chunying, the spokesperson, accused: 'There is an American doctor, Helen Chu, who started to blow the whistle of the epidemic in the United States and gave warnings as early as January.

'She gave the results of the tests she had conducted to the US authority in February but was ordered to stop testing or talking.'

The article she referred to, published by The New York Time's on March 10, detailed some of the missteps by the US federal government in detecting the outbreak.

Chu reportedly spent weeks trying to get permission for conducting coronavirus tests, and eventually carried them out without government approval.

Members of the medical staff listen as Montefiore Medical Center nurses call for N95 masks and other critical PPE to handle the coronavirus pandemic on April 1 in New York

Cashiers wearing protective masks work in a grocery store in Bushwick, Brooklyn, on April

Beijing's representative Hua blasted Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today at a press briefing.

She called Washington's leaders 'shameless' and 'immoral' after they accused Beijing of covering up the extent of the coronavirus outbreak.

She claimed that it was the American politicians who were lying during the pandemic.

The official criticised US politicians for dodging their responsibilities by denouncing China for its handling of the crisis.

She questioned whether or not the US would have taken equally effective measures had the pandemic begun there, instead of China.

'Would the US side have done better than the Chinese government?' she queried.

A woman wearing a face mask has her temperature checked by a volunteer in Wuhan on April 2

A vendor wearing a face mask sells eggs at a market in Wuhan as life slowly returns to normal

Hua demanded US officials explain what they had done since February 2 when they closed the border to foreign travellers who had been to China within 14 days.

She added: 'A few American politicians' actions and comments are simply shameless and immoral.

'We have said repeatedly that smearing and shifting responsibilities cannot make up for lost time, and to continue lying will only waste more time and cause more loss of lives.'

She praised Chinese health officials for giving updates about the country's epidemic 'publicly', 'transparently' and 'responsibility'.

Protective masks bearing the names of medical workers are pictured pinned to a wall on April 2 at a field hospital for coronavirus patients outside the Cremona hospital, Lombardy, Italy

Pence on Wednesday blamed China, as well as the US Centers for the Disease Control and Prevention, for the United States' slow response to the global crisis.

He told CNN's Wolf Blitzer: 'I will be very candid with you and say that in mid-January the CDC was still assessing that the risk of the coronavirus to the American people was low.

'The very first case which was someone who had been in China, I believe took place in late January around the 20th day of January.'

Pence told CNN on Wednesday: 'The reality is that we could have been better off if China had been more forthcoming. I mean the reality is that China's been more transparent with regard to the coronavirus than certainly they were for other infectious diseases over the last 15 years.'

He added: 'The reality is that we could have been better off if China had been more forthcoming.

'I mean the reality is that China's been more transparent with regard to the coronavirus than certainly they were for other infectious diseases over the last 15 years.

'But what appears evident now is that long before the world learned in December that China was dealing with this, and maybe as much as a month earlier than that, that the outbreak was real in China.'

He also warned the United States could see conditions that are as bad as those in Italy, which has had over 110,000 cases and more than 13,000 deaths. Italy is also on a nationwide lockdown.

The United States now has the most coronavirus cases in the world. It has registered more than 216,000 infections and over 5,130 deaths, with the state of New York being the epicentre.

The pandemic has killed nearly 50,000 people and infected more than 965,000 worldwide.
China willing to share virus experience, equipment with India: FM

Global Times

Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/1 21:21:51

China said it is willing to share with India its own experience on fighting COVID-19 and to provide possible aid in its fight against the virus, a spokesperson of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Wednesday, which marked the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Hua Chunying said that leaders of the two countries already sent each other congratulatory messages over the phone on this special day.

China-India relations are standing at a new starting point and facing new opportunities, Chinese President Xi Jinping said Wednesday in a congratulatory message to his Indian counterpart, Ram Nath Kovind, on the 70th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between the two countries, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Wednesday.

Some celebration activities for the anniversary may be hindered by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the two countries' exchange will be further enhanced once the pandemic recedes, said Hua.

Hua said that the Indian people are fighting the virus under the leadership of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, China is willing to share with India China's experience on fighting the pandemic.

When asked if China will aid India with ventilators which India is planning to purchase in bulk, Hua said that there's a large demand for ventilators worldwide. China, which is facing the risk of a rebound in infections, is also in urgent need of the equipment.

Chinese companies are racing against time to produce medical products such as ventilators and masks to satisfy its domestic needs, as well as the demands of other countries, including India. "One more ventilator may save one more person's life," said Hua.

She also explained that a ventilator needs thousands of components, which are not only produced in China, but also made in other countries, including some European countries. So it is not easy to promote mass production of the products, and it is unrealistic to accommodate all the orders immediately, Hua said.

"We hope countries can work together to make sure of the openness, stability and security of the global supply chain. In a nutshell, China is willing to help India within its capacity. We will do what we can," Hua said.

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WASHINGTON  Social Security beneficiaries will now automatically receive their coronavirus stimulus checks after a change made by the Trump administration late Wednesday night.

Lawmakers on Wednesday decried a policy enacted by the Internal Revenue Service earlier this week that would have required Social Security beneficiaries to file a simple tax return to receive the benefit although many of the beneficiaries  mostly seniors and the disabled  are not normally required to pay taxes.

Now, these Social Security recipients will receive their payments as a direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their benefits.

Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return do not need to take an action, and will receive their payment directly to their bank account, Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin announced.

The $1,200 payments will be automatically sent to most taxpayers in the next few weeks. But about 15 million Americans do not file taxes each year, according to IRS estimates.

The change made Wednesday ensures that a portion of those 15 million Americans will now get an automatic stimulus check like taxpayers. But chairman of the House tax-writing committee, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., said Wednesday night the administration still needs to do more.

Now, Treasury should build on this progress and make the same automatic payment to some veterans and those who receive Supplemental Security Income, Neal said. I urge the Trump Administration to make it easier for all individuals eligible for aid to access this new, vital support during the coronavirus pandemic.

Thirty-nine Democratic senators  including Connecticuts Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy  and two Independents wrote to Mnuchin and Social Security Administration Andrew Commissioner on Wednesday urging them to resolve the situation.

We strongly urge you to ensure that economic stimulus payments are automatically sent to vulnerable seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, without these individuals needing to file a tax return, the senators wrote.

Rep. John Larson, D-1, and 32 other House Democrats sent a similar letter to Mnuchin and IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig sent a similar letter Wednesday.

These people havent filled out taxes in forever and the very organizations that would normally assist with something like this are prevented from doing so because they are shut down due to the COVID-19 virus, Larson said. The SSA has all this information.

Normally, free tax in-person tax services funded by the federal government are available to assist low and moderate-income individuals, as well as seniors with their tax needs. But the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program had to cancel appointments in March and April due to the coronavirus.

The coronavirus payments are $1,200 for individuals making $75,000 or less a year, plus $500 per child. People making more than $75,000 will receive less, while people making over $99,000 a year will get nothing.

emilie.munson@hearstdc.com; Twitter: @emiliemunson
One of the most important festivals in the Christian faith, Easter celebrates the period during which Christians believe Jesus Christ was resurrected following the crucifixion.

For people who are not Christian, it is also a time to come together as a family.

Unlike Christmas, the date of Easter is subject to change, as its date is determined by a lunisolar calendar.

So when is Easter, why does its date vary and how is it celebrated? Heres everything you need to know:

When is it?

Easter marks the end of the 40-day period of Lent, during which those who observe the festival abstain from everyday luxuries such as rich foods.

The week before Easter is widely referred to by Christians as Holy Week, as it recalls the events surrounding the passion, crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

2016 Easter celebrations around the world Show all 20 1 /20 2016 Easter celebrations around the world 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Willy Salvador, 59, hangs from a cross as part of his penitence during a reenactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan, Pampanga Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines articipants lie on the ground after whipping their bloodied backs with bamboo as part of their penitence during a ceremony reenacting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines articipants whip their bloodied backs with bamboo as part of their penitence during the re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Hungary Dancers of 'Matyo Folklor Art Association' in traditional clothes, react as boys throw water in Mezokovesd, some 130 km east of Budapest. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines A resident carries a statue of Jesus Christ to the church in preparation for the Good Friday procession during Holy Week celebration in Gasan, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Ruben Enaje, who is portraying Jesus Christ for the 30th time, screams while a resident acting as a Roman soldier pulls up a nail on his palm Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitent Ruben Enaje, who is portraying Jesus Christ for the 30th time, is carried on a stretcher by rescuers after he was nailed on a wooden cross during a Good Friday crucifixion reenactment in Cutud town, Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Mexico A man holding a rabbit looks at men dressed as ancient Romans as they take part in a procession, during Holy Week celebrations, in Taxco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world South Africa Nuns carry a cross during a silent march celebrating Good Friday in Durban. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Mexico Masked penitents prepare before the start of a procession, a part of Holy Week celebrations, in Taxco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitents locally called "Morions" wear masks and centurion garbs as they take part in a Good Friday procession as part of Holy Week celebration in Gasan, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world El Salvador Members of the El Jesus Nazareno brotherhood participate in the Los Cristos Procession as part of Holy Week celebrations in the town of Izalco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Paraguay Actors take part in a re-enactment during a Holy Week procession to prepare for Good Friday celebration in Luque city. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Paraguay Actors take part in a re-enactment during a Holy Week procession to prepare for Good Friday celebration in Luque city. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Peru Local and foreign inmates participate in a performance of the play Jesus Christ Superstar to celebrate Holy Week at Sarita Colonia prison in Callao. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitents wearing masks, known locally as "Morions" take a selfie during the start of Holy Week celebrations in Mogpog, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Hungary Hungary Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Resident portraying Roman soldier pulls up a nail on a foot of penitent Ruben Enaje in Pampanga, Philippines. Reuters

This year, Easter Sunday is taking place on Sunday 4 April.

Some sectors of Christianity celebrate Easter on a different date in accordance with the Julian Calendar, a Roman calendar first proposed by Julius Caesar in 46 BC.

Orthodox Christianity will celebrate Easter on Sunday 2 May this year, almost a month after Western Christianity.

Why does the date change every year?

Much like other religious events such as the Hindu celebration of Diwali and the Jewish festival of Rosh Hashanah, Easter is a moveable feast.

This means its date on the Gregorian calendar can vary every year.

The date of Easter Sunday falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the vernal equinox in March.

By taking into account the date of the vernal equinox (which this year fell on Saturday 20 March) and the next following full moon (Sunday 28 March), it was therefore calculated that Easter Sunday would take place on Sunday 4 April in 2021.

What does Easter commemorate?

Those who observe the Christian festival of Easter celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ three days after he was crucified, as outlined in the New Testament.

Easter has strong links with the Jewish festival of Passover, another moveable feast which is taking place this year between Saturday 27 March and Sunday 4 April.

How is it celebrated?

The first church service that some Christians attend in celebration of Easter is held on Holy Saturday, the day before Easter Sunday and the last day of Holy Week.

However, church services will not be able to talk place this year amid the coronavirus pandemic, with places of worship being closed as a safeguarding measure.

In addition to church services, its tradition for Christians to commemorate Easter with music, candles, flowers and the ringing of church bells.

While Easter is a religious festival, it is also celebrated by a variety of communities of different faiths across the globe.

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Many mark the occasion by exchanging chocolate eggs, which are traditionally symbolic of rebirth and new life.

Lots of children also take part in the festivities by participating in Easter egg hunts.
LA's mayor yesterday told all four million of the city's residents that they must wear masks at all times to slow the spread of coronavirus, despite contrary advice from their governor.

'This will be the look,' Eric Garcetti told a press conference while donning a black surgical mask. 'I know this looks surreal. We're going to have to get used to seeing each other like this.'

This is at odds with the advice of California Governor Gavin Newsom who has urged people not to rush out an buy masks which are in short supply and desperately needed by first responders.

Garcetti's non-binding recommendation comes as the number of coronavirus deaths rose to 215 last night, with more than 9,800 infected.

'This will be the look,' Eric Garcetti told a press conference while donning a black surgical mask. 'I know this looks surreal. We're going to have to get used to seeing each other like this.'

Garcetti's non-binding recommendation comes as the number of coronavirus deaths rose to 215 last night, with more than 9,800 infected.

The mayor added that even homemade cloth masks or 'tucked-in bandannas,' will help reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus in the nation's second-largest city and remind people to practice safe social distancing.

Garcetti also said people should only use masks when they are going out to shop for food or perform other essential tasks.

'This isn't an excuse to suddenly all go out,' Garcetti said.

California's public health officials released guidance Wednesday on the use of cloth masks that specifically didn't require their use.

While the non-medical face coverings might provide some additional protection, 'Californians should not have a false sense of security if they choose to wear them,' Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said. 'Make sure you're also staying 6 feet (1.8 meters) away from other people if you have to leave your home to get groceries or prescriptions.'

'Face coverings are not a substitute for physical distancing or frequent hand washing, which we know are amongst the most effective ways to reduce the spread of COVID-19,' Dr. Sonia Angell, state public health director, said in a statement.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has urged people not to rush out an buy masks which are in short supply and desperately needed by first responders

Earlier in the day, Angell said cloth masks could be a pitfall because if handled or worn incorrectly they might lead to infection and also might make people feel 'somewhat immune' and relax their social distance.

Mask recommendations have been issued in some countries but they're by no means universal. The World Health Organization has recommended people caring for a sick relative wear a mask. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention agreed - as long as the person who was ill was not able to wear a mask.

But there has been some conflicting direction. Austria said this week it would require masks for grocery shoppers. President Donald Trump suggested people who are worried should wear a scarf.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.p

California's 40 million people are under state and local orders to stay at home except when performing essential tasks.

Customers wear protective masks while shopping for groceries in the Sherman Oaks section of Los Angeles

A man wears a mask as he takes a selfie in front of a near-empty downtown district Wednesday

Health experts have said that is the best way to slow the spread of the virus, which as of Wednesday had infected nearly 10,000 Californians and caused 215 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University, which is keeping a global tally.

Newsom has said the number of COVID-19 cases in California is expected to peak in late May.

The spread of the virus statewide has, so far, been slow enough to give the state time to prepare for an expected spike in cases that could overwhelm hospitals if extreme measures aren't taken to keep most people home and away from others.

Los Angeles County reported more than 500 new cases on Wednesday, a 17% hike over the previous day.
The electoral commission in Guinea has announced the party of President Alpha Conde as a winner of last months parliamentary elections, which the opposition boycotted.

Condes ruling Rally of the Guinean People (RPG) won 79 of 114 seats in the National Assembly, the commission said Wednesday evening.

The government had already declared victory in a referendum held the same day about changing the constitution, which would allow Mr Conde to seek a third term in office.

Conde, first elected in 2010, is barred from running for a third term under the constitution. While the amended constitution would keep a two-term limit and increase terms from five years to seven, Conde has implied that his previous terms would not count.

Conde, who is 82, has argued that constitutional changes are needed to usher in social reforms, especially to benefit women.

At least 30 people have died in protests since October against the proposed changes. The vote could be a bellwether for a presidential election expected before the years end.

The worlds biggest bauxite exporter has a history of authoritarian rule. Its first two presidents, Sekou Toure and Lansana Conte, died in office after clinging to power for 26 and 24 years respectively. At Contes death in 2008, military junta leader Dadis Camara ruled for a year until he was incapacitated by an assassination attempt.

While Conde has not explicitly said whether he plans to seek a third term, the European Parliament has urged him to preserve current presidential term limits, and nations from the U.S. to France have reiterated the need for a democratic transition of power.
Tekashi Photo: Shareif Ziyadat/WireImage

Tekashi 6ix9ine was released from federal lockup early because of coronavirus concerns, and will serve the rest of his sentence on home confinement, a new court filing has revealed. The Court grants the defendants motion for compassionate release, Manhattan Federal Court Judge Paul Engelmayer said in a ruling released Thursday. An official with knowledge of the situation said he has left jail. Court documents reveal that Engelmayer had reached his decision on Wednesday. Prosecutors asked Engelmayer not to post his decision until 4 p.m. today, however, saying that a delay will allow law enforcement agents to ensure that Mr. Hernandez is transported safely and securely from the facility where he is currently housed to a residential address previously approved by the Probation Department, court filings reveal.

The road to his early release was winding.

The rapper, real name Daniel Hernandez, was initially set to get out of jail around early August. Last week, however, his lawyer Lance Lazzaro asked Engelmayer to release him early, claiming Hernandezs asthma made him particularly susceptible to COVID-19, which spreads through the kind of close contact thats inherent in jails and prisons.

Engelmayer had initially denied Hernandezs petition, saying he lacks the legal authority to green light early release at that time. The judge further said he was constrained and couldnt act on Hernandezs request, writing that early release was up to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

At the same time, Engelmayer expressed concern for Hernandez, writing that he did not know and could not have known that the final four months of Mr. Hernandezs sentence would be served at a time of a worldwide pandemic to which persons with asthma, like Mr. Hernandez, have heightened vulnerability

Had the Court known that sentencing Mr. Hernandez to serve the final four months of his term in a federal prison would have exposed him to a heightened health risk, the Court would have directed that these four months be served instead in home confinement, Engelmayer said in his ruling.

So what changed in the course of a week?

Lazzarro had asked the Bureau of Prisons for compassionate release. Court papers revealed that the Bureau of Prisons denied this request. Bureau of Prisons authorities said that because Hernandez was actually in another agencys custody, at a private facility in Queens, they couldnt evaluate his request.

As a result, Lazzaro took the matter up with Engelmayer again.

Engelmayer said Wednesday that the Bureau of Prisons denial enabled him to step in, prompting his intervention. Hernandezs home confinement will be enforced by GPS monitoring, Engelmayer also said in his decision.

In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the defendant must remain at his residence except to seek any necessary medical treatment or to visit his attorney, in each instance with prior notice and approval by the Probation Department, the judge also noted.

After Hernandezs sentence is up, he still has another five years of supervised release, Lazzaro said. This means that Hernandez has to follow the law to stay out of jail.

Were very happy with the judges decision to let him go home, Lazzaro told Vulture.

Hernandez isnt the only celebrity inmate who cited coronavirus in a move to get out of jail: R. Kelly, whos behind bars as his sex abuse and racketeering case winds through the courts, has asked for bail because of coronavirus.

Lawyers for Kelly, 53, claimed he was within the group of people the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  has categorized as most-at-risk for contracting COVID-19, a dangerous illness spreading rapidly across the world. (The CDC claims that risk is heightened for adults that are 65 and over.)

This is a developing story and will be updated accordingly.
Manila, Philippines  Joaquin Sapul, Jr started getting the frantic calls a few hours after the health department announced the first coronavirus case in Iloilo City in the central Philippines on March 21.

In response, The Medical City-Iloilo, the hospital where Sapul works and where the unnamed patient was confined, issued a statement to assure the public that stringent measures were in place to ensure the safety of the patient and their staff.

At least six nurses were messaging and calling me, crying. Their landlords were evicting them. Some were being prevented from leaving their homes by their village captains, said Sapul, a nurse and chief patient services officer at the hospital.

It was evening by the time Sapul had finished arranging temporary sleeping arrangements for the displaced workers. He was preparing to go home when he read a message from his own landlord, asking him to look for another place to live.

Sapul worked it out with his landlord after a lengthy explanation about rigid infection-control protocols and his own safety practices, but it still hurt, he said.

We healthcare workers have always enjoyed the trust of our community. I underestimated how hysteria could make them turn on us so quickly, said Sapul.

In the days that followed, hospital staff, including cleaners were told to vacate their homes, denied public transport or refused service in nearby eateries. One street stall hung up a sign saying that they would not serve hospital workers.





As of April 1, the Philippines had 2,311 cases of coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, the second-highest number in Southeast Asia. There have been 96 deaths, 17 of whom were doctors. On Tuesday, the health department reported 538 new cases, the highest in a single day.

Amid the rising number of coronavirus cases and mounting fears of infection, healthcare workers are caught in the middle, facing harassment and discrimination.

Violence cannot be tolerated

Last Friday, two men on a motorcycle threw chlorine on a nurse as he made his way home through Cebu, in the central Philippines.

The next day, a healthcare worker in Sultan Kudarat in the island of Mindanao reported being attacked by a group of five men who threw bleach on his face as he was crossing the street on his way to the hospital where he worked.

These acts of violence cannot be tolerated, the health department said, condemning the incidents in a statement.





National police chief Archie Gamboa issued a directive to the police to protect health workers from attacks.

According to the World Health Organization, healthcare workers may become targets of violence during disaster and conflict situations. As many as 38 percent of healthcare workers are likely to experience violence at one point in their professional life, with nurses and those involved in direct patient care most at risk.

Healthcare workers are exhausted and frustrated by the lack of support from the government in providing them even basic protective gear. If we do not put a stop to this harassment, nurses may resign, said Reigner Antiquera, president of Alliance of Young Nurse Leaders and Advocates.

Photos of nurses and hospital staff resorting to using rubbish bags and motorcycle helmets as protective gear went viral on social media, prompting an outpouring of donations of cash and protective gear from citizens and private corporations.

A health worker sleeps inside a free shuttle service for medical practitioners following the suspension of public transport in Metro Manila to contain the spread of coronavirus disease [Eloisa Lopez/Reuters]

Long-standing neglect

On March 17, President Rodrigo Duterte implemented a one-month period of enhanced community quarantine on the main island of Luzon to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Public transport was suspended, commercial establishments closed and checkpoints manned by police and military set up along city borders to ensure compliance.

Other provinces have since instituted their own version of the community quarantine, effectively putting the whole of the Philippines  a nation of about 104 million people  on lockdown.

The coronavirus is stretching an already burdened and crumbling healthcare system and has exposed the under-staffing and dire working conditions in the health sector, particularly for nurses.





A study on the countrys health system shows the Philippines has about 187,540 healthcare workers, almost half of them nurses. Nurse-to-patient ratios are at a low of 12.6 nurses per 10,000 people. In rural areas, the number goes down to 4.2 nurses.

The average salary for a nurse in a government hospital is about $250 to $350 per month. In private hospitals, it ranges from $200 to $250 per month. In October last year, the Supreme Court set a minimum monthly salary for nurses in public hospitals of $600 per month but the decision has still to be implemented.

I can tell you that no nurse is making that amount, said Robert Mendoza president of the union group Alliance of Health Workers.

Valued more abroad

The health department made an urgent call for healthcare volunteers to assist in the coronavirus response, offering 500 Philippine pesos ($10) a day for a one-month commitment.

The health department said it would review its compensation package after the plea triggered a social media backlash as netizens and health workers alike expressed widespread indignation.

Despite the criticism, almost 700 healthcare workers had signed up as volunteers as of Sunday, the department said.

The health department said it will not tolerate violence directed against Filipino healthcare workers who are in the front line against the coronavirus pandemic [Mark Cristino/EPA]

While undervalued at home, Filipino nurses are in demand in other countries looking for qualified people to staff hospitals and care facilities for the elderly.

Government data shows that an average of 19,000 nurses a year left the Philippines to work abroad between 2012 to 2016.

The Philippine Labour Departments website acknowledges that the overseas pay scale is way above local rates and cites the average salary in the countries where most of the nurses choose to go. In the US, nurses can make an average of $3,800 per month.

The nurses are not ours

The recent announcement of at least 75 nurses going to Germany on a special recruitment flight to assist in the countrys coronavirus response was met with mixed feelings  of anger that they were leaving and a sad acknowledgement that the conditions in the Philippines made their departure inevitable.

But Silvestre Bello, the labour secretary, said the deployment was now on hold until further notice. Our nurses are needed more at home.

That may be so but until their working conditions are improved, they will continue to go abroad, critics say.





On social media, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teddy Locsin Jr put it bluntly.

We do not SEND our nurses abroad. Our nurses are not ours. We especially we f*****g public servants do not deserve to call them ours. We never helped them. They have to flee our F*****G country for lands that value them.

You cannot blame nurses for wanting to leave a country that does not value our profession, said Alvin Dakis, a nursing practitioner and consultant.

Most nurses come from low- to middle-income families. Their families influence them to study nursing as a stepping stone to go abroad. Its an investment in a future breadwinner, Dakis explained.

Union president Mendoza said given a choice most nurses would want to stay, especially during a crisis like the coronavirus.

We know our country needs us. All we are asking for us is a living wage. We need to give our nurses a reason to stay.

Unsung heroes

A nurse at a government hospital in Manila was saddened when she heard the news about the harassment of healthcare workers. In her 21 years of being a nurse, she said she had never seen anything like that until the coronavirus crisis happened.

During the early onset of the pandemic, she had already noticed passengers looking at her from head to toe and then moving away from her when she boarded the bus for her two-hour journey home.

The years of long hours and low pay were a wound that she had long nursed in restrained silence, but the virus outbreak and the governments handling of the crisis added to her pain.





She has a long list of grievances  from the lack of protective gear to the reluctance of the health ministry to have healthcare workers tested despite legislators apparently being able to use their influence to get tested quickly, and now the harassment.

We are at the front lines, taking care of patients and it is us who they want to hurt and shame? What if we decided to mount a mass boycott, what would they do without us? the nurse said, asking that she not be named.

This week, the health ministry announced that it had revised its policy and would now test medical workers showing symptoms of the disease.

Addressing the nation on Monday, Duterte called health workers heroes who were lucky to die for their country.

The nurse found the statement insensitive and offensive.

Oh, so now, were heroes because we might die. We were heroes long before COVID19.
Researchers in Australia have begun testing two potential coronavirus vaccines in what they described as a critical milestone in efforts to bring the pandemic under control.

The countrys national science agency has commenced the first stage of pre-clinical trials of vaccines developed by the University of Oxford and US company Inovio Pharmaceuticals.

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is carrying out the trials at high-containment biosecurity labs near Melbourne. The tests involve injecting the vaccines into ferrets, which have been shown to be susceptible to Covid-19.

Scientists around the world are involved in fast-paced efforts to develop a coronavirus vaccine, with the first human trial taking place in the US last month after skipping a stage of animal testing.

However, CSIRO said its tests would be the first comprehensive pre-clinical trials on animals, and it emphasised that these tests are very important if the vaccine is to be rolled out.

The first phase of the trials is expected to take about three months, with human trials of Oxfords vaccine candidate also set to begin in the UK in the next few weeks.

CSIROs testing will cover both efficacy and an evaluation of the best way to administer the vaccine for better protection, including an intra-muscular injection and a nasal spray.

The University of Oxford said its tests, involving up to 510 volunteers in the Thames Valley region, would provide valuable information on the safety aspects of the vaccine, as well as its ability to generate an immune response against the virus.

CSIROs director of health, Rob Grenfell, said any resulting vaccine would not be available to the public before late next year.

Were still sticking to the optimistic 18 months for delivery of vaccine to the general consumers, he said. Now this, of course, may change. Theres a lot of technical challenges that were having to go through.

Dr Grenfell said scientists are working at a remarkable pace, reaching the pre-clinical testing stage in about eight weeks. The process usually takes one to two years.

CSIROs chief executive, Larry Marshall, said: Beginning vaccine candidate testing at CSIRO is a critical milestone in the fight against Covid-19, made possible by collaboration both within Australia and across the globe.

The Australian agency was the first research organisation outside China to successfully develop a lab-grown version of the virus, enabling pre-clinical studies on Covid-19 as a result.

In February, its scientists confirmed that ferrets reacted to the coronavirus because they share with humans a particular receptor on their respiratory cells to which the virus binds itself.

If we can stop that virus binding to the ferret receptors in the respiratory system, theres a very good chance [the vaccine] will work in humans, Dr Grenfell said.

The first human trial of a vaccine against the coronavirus began last month in Seattle, where 45 young and healthy volunteers are to receive different doses of jabs co-developed by the US National Institutes of Health and drug firm Moderna. Officials said it will take between a year and 18 months to know if the vaccine will work.

The European Medicines Agency, which licenses medication in the European Union, said it has had discussions with developers of 12 potential Covid-19 vaccines. Two have already entered phase-one clinical trials.

Israel has also begun testing a coronavirus vaccine prototype on rodents at its biochemical defence laboratory, according to Reuters.

Other scientists are trialling existing drugs used to treat conditions such as Ebola, HIV, malaria and tuberculosis in order to establish if they could be used against the coronavirus.
Saudi Arabia calls for emergency meeting of OPEC and its allies led by Russia to balance oil markets.

Saudi Arabia on Thursday called for an emergency meeting between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, following mounting pressure from United States President Donald Trump to declare a truce in an oil price war that has sent crude prices plummeting and threatened higher-cost US shale oil producers.

Trump took to Twitter on Thursday to say that he had spoken to Saudi Arabias de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), and was hopeful that Riyadh and Moscow were working towards an agreement to cut production.

Just spoke to my friend MBS (Crown Prince) of Saudi Arabia, who spoke with President Putin of Russia, & I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry! Trump tweeted.

..Could be as high as 15 Million Barrels. Good (GREAT) news for everyone! Trump also tweeted.

Prices of global benchmark Brent crude vaulted more than 40 percent on the news to $36.29 a barrel, before settling back below $30 a barrel. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude prices jumped more than 30 percent to $27.39 a barrel before settling back below $25.

While the markets reacted positively, some energy analysts remain sceptical that a deal is truly in the cards.

Taking 10 or 15 million barrels off the market could be way beyond the kind of deal OPEC is capable of making, Gregory Gause, head of the International Affairs Department at the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University, told Al Jazeera.

Gause added that the scale of cuts put forward by Trump would make it difficult to ensure compliance by all players. It requires getting a lot of other people on board. Everybody taking drastic cuts sets up a circumstance where lots of people have incentive to cheat on whatever quotas they accepted in the deal.

Oil prices have plummeted some 70 percent since the start of the year as coronavirus containment measures gut crude demand. That shock was exacerbated after the market alliance between Saudi Arabia and Russia collapsed in acrimony last month, when Riyadh failed to convince Moscow to back deep oil output cuts.

The resulting Saudi-initiated price war has seen the kingdom ramp up production, flooding markets already awash in crude.

While both Saudi Arabia and Russia have taken a hit financially during the price war, some higher-cost US shale producers face collapse.

Trump will meet with US energy executives on Friday to discuss ways to help out the countrys struggling shale oil and gas producers, including the possibility of imposing tariffs on imports of Saudi crude, the Wall Street Journal first reported on Wednesday.

I dont think tariffs on Saudi oil will do a lot of good. People who are suggesting this are just grabbing at straws, Samantha Gross, an energy security fellow at the Brookings Institution, told Al Jazeera.

We have this idea that we can get the Saudis to cooperate, but they have no incentive to do that, she added. US shale producers are their competitors. Theres no way the Saudis want to cooperate to save the US market.
Karnataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa has credited his governments proactive strategy for the relatively fewer number of coronavirus (Covid-19) cases and deaths in the state after it reported the first fatality in the pandemic in the country on March 13. Yediyurappa spoke to Sunetra Choudhury about how his government was responding to the crisis. Edited excerpts:

What did Prime Minister Narendra Modi convey to chief ministers in Thursdays video conference?

The PM suggested several measures [to check spread of coronavirus] such as utilisation of AYUSH staff and doctors services and popularisation of AYUSH-suggested food items for strengthening the immune system. Karnataka has already implemented or is in the process of implementing most of the steps suggested by the PM.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

What are you doing to trace 45 people from Karnataka who were at the headquarters of a religious organisation in Delhi where some people have been found to be Covid-19 positive?

We have tracked many of them and they will be quarantined. One of the three dead in Karnataka, who hailed from Sira town in Tumkur district, is suspected to have been among the 45. The whole town is being monitored. We are tracing them. We will track them .

Karnataka has fewer Covid-19 cases compared to states like Kerala. What are you doing to keep the number down?

Karnataka was the first state to announce a lockdown [on March 22] much before other states did so. When we reported the first Covid-19 death, we initiated various measures to contain the pandemic spread. We created a 1,500-bed facility at the Victoria hospital [Bengaluru] for exclusive treatment of Covid-19 cases. Immediately, we summoned experts and doctors and sought their opinions on how to check the disease. We went according to their suggestions... Many private hospitals announced they will offer ventilators and other facilities. Though the first death of a religious man, who had returned from abroad, was reported from Kalaburagi, we succeeded in controlling the spread.

Also Read: Government may borrow Rs 40k crore as cash-strapped states seek funds

Bengaluru has reported no new cases for three days? What will you attribute it to?

All the precautions taken including setting up of war room with various apps to track and monitor the movement of the quarantined and those isolated. A Geo-fencing app has proved very fruitful as it provides accurate movements of the Covid-19 patients and quarantined people. This will help in disallowing suspects from mingling or roaming freely.

Are you going to increase testing like Kerala, which has introduced rapid testing? Many say that the more we test, the better it is.

More you isolate and distance the people from mingling, more we will be able to control the disease.. The first case was reported in Karnataka on March 6. Today, we have only 91 positive cases and this itself indicates how effective our measures are. Karnataka, which was the third worst-hit state all these days, has slid to 5th place, indicating we are on the right path in controlling the disease.

Are your five testing labs enough?

We are increasing the testing facilities. We now have seven testing centres. We are buying more than one lakh rapid testing kits from abroad. Isolation, quarantining and social and physical distancing will do wonders and not the testing centres.

How are you dealing with the difficult situation that migrant workers are facing because of the 21-day national lockdown imposed to check the Covid-19 spread?

It is wrong to say that the migrants are harassed. Suddenly, we decided to lock down and they were taken aback. We have created all the facilities for them. We decided to serve them food . We are compensating for the losses of their livelihood. All construction workers are being given food, advance ration for two months and monthly Rs 1,000 . All this is in addition to the Centres relief measures.

You have brought back people from places like Maharashtra. What measures have you adopted for them?

All the labourers living in Karnataka, irrespective of which state they belong to, are being treated equally and given all the facilities being given to the people of the state . Even our party representatives are looking after the camps where the labourers are sheltered . We are also keeping a watch on their health.

Is there a case of cluster spread at a Mysuru pharma company?

In Mysuru, the disease was first detected among two workers at the pharma company. We have quarantined all the thousand-odd workers . Yesterday [Monday], six more workers tested positive. We are tracing their relatives and friends they may have mingled or been in contact with. It cannot be described as a cluster case. The pharma company had to be kept open.

How is your government helping people from the northeast facing racism because of Covid-19?

No incident of such discrimination has been reported from our state. People of Karnataka are known for tolerance and humanity... There are over 2 lakh people from the northeastern states and north India in Karnataka. Do not compare the situation elsewhere with Karnataka. We are peace loving.

How would you react to criticism regarding breach of privacy over Karnatakas move to publish addresses of those who have travelled internationally since March 8?

It is a false news that we have published the addresses. However, we have made a list of the people, who arrived here from abroad, to keep a watch on their health. In some suspected cases, we have subjected them to quarantine. How can you say that it is violation of privacy. People coming from abroad are carriers. For instance, first Covid-19 death was from Kalaburagi and the man had come from a pilgrimage. In the larger interest of the society and to keep the disease from spreading, some measures have been initiated and there is nothing wrong.

Do you think the lockdown should go beyond 21 days and how will you offset its economic impact?

It is too premature to predict anything on the lockdown issue. If the disease subsides , there is no question of extending the curfew. The Centre will take the decision. Our state has a robust economy and we are going to bounce back soon. I am sure the lockdown impact on the economy will be minimal and we can overcome this economic crisis in a couple of months.

A large number of people from Karnataka attended the religious congregation held in Delhis Nizamuddin, which has emerged as a hot spot for infection in India. Is that situation under control?

We have already tracked many of them and they will be quarantined. One of the three dead, who hails from Sira town in Tumkur district, is one of these 45 suspects. Whole town has been under surveillance. Officially, they are suspecting 600 cases, of these 391 have been identified. So far, 11 have tested positive.

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A city in China has been forced to ban its residents from eating dogs, snakes, frogs, turtles, and cats as meat in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The legislation was yesterday passed by lawmakers in Shenzhen, a city of around 13 million people, and will take effect on May 1, according to a government notice.

The news comes after China banned all trade and consumption of wild animals, a practice that scientists believe is responsible for the deadly virus infecting and killing people globally.

READ ALSO  Coronavirus: 14% Recovered Patients In China Test Positive Again

The officials described the new regulation as the universal civilization requirement for a modern society and said the aim is to further satisfy the daily needs of the people.

According to the document, nine types of livestock are suitable for people to eat. They are pigs, cows, sheep, donkeys, rabbits, chickens, ducks, geese and pigeons.

Residents are also allowed to dine on aquatic animals permitted by law.

In China, coronavirus has claimed 3,312 lives and infected more than 81,500 people since the outbreak started in Wuhan.
Many small retailers and other businesses are getting a three-month rates holiday, amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis. But elsewhere in the UK, a 12-month freeze has been introduced.

Rates can account for around 20-30% of many business monthly outgoings, and it has been warned the failure to bring Northern Ireland in line with Great Britain could be "exponential" and see "hundreds if not thousands" of companies "not coming out of the crisis".

Glyn Roberts, chief executive of Retail NI, said: "Given rates is the only tax power Stormont has, it is vital they use the rating system to get as much relief out to support businesses.

"Why are we only getting three months, while everyone else is getting 12 months?

"They are dealing with the same problems (as businesses elsewhere).

"We should be doing as much as possible to support businesses through this to ensure they can return. In the short-term we need to be using everything to support (firms)."

In his budget this week, Finance Minister Conor Murphy announced the Small Business Rates Relief scheme providing almost 20m of relief to 27,000 small businesses, while rates would also see a 12.5% cut.

Asked whether the Executive would be re-examining the 12-month business rates freeze, a spokesman for the Department of Finance said: "So far the Executive has provided significant support to businesses with over half of all available Covid-19 funding (470m) being used for business support measures.

"This includes the 100m rates support package which will provide a three-month rates holiday to help all businesses here, unlike GB where the rates holiday is only for certain businesses.

"In addition to the rates holiday, as announced yesterday in the Budget the non-domestic regional rate will also be reduced by 18% - benefiting all businesses. This is being funded from the Executive's existing resources on top of the Covid-19 funding.

"Rates bills will also be delayed until the last possible moment, with the first bills to be issued in June. These measures will be kept under review and we will take further steps should we deem it necessary."

But Mr Roberts said: "The price will be hundreds if not thousands of businesses not coming out of this crisis, and being able to reopen.

"The cost is exponential. We are dealing with the same crisis."

He said businesses from across the sectors would be impacted, including those such as small retailers, hospitality and the wider manufacturing industry.

"We pay the highest business rates in the UK. Before this, it was a huge burden, and now it's even more of a colossal burden."
The Minority in Parliament has challenged Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to demonstrate how the Government intends to raise the remaining US$65 million of the US$100 million allocated to fight COVID-19.



Parliament on Wednesday approved US$35 million of the US$ 100 directed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, which was to be sourced from a World Bank loan to finance the Ghana COVID-19 Emergency Preparedness and Response Project.



But the Minority, at a press conference at the Parliament House on Thursday, called on the Government to inform Parliament of the source of funding for the US$65 million and how it would be disbursed.



As we speak, where the government is going to raise that US$65 million we all dont know, the Deputy Minority Leader and Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Dr James Klutse Avedzi, said in Accra.



As representatives of the people.. We want to know how the Government is going to raise the US$65 million to fight the pandemic, Mr Avedzi said.



He said it was important for the Government to raise the money to be able to fight the COVID-19.



Dr Avedzi expressed concern about Governments delay in bringing to the House the one billion Ghana cedis Coronavirus Alleviation Programme (CAP), which would be taken from the Ghana Stabilization Fund.



He said four days after the Minister of Finance had briefed the Legislature on the programme he had not yet given details on how the one billion cedis would be disbursed.



Dr Avedzi gave the assurance that despite the concerns of the members of the Minority on the deal, they would support the Finance Ministers request to lower the cap on the Ghana Stabilization Fund (GSF) from the current US$300 million to US$100 million.



He explained that the US$200 million would be made available for the CAP to support other sectors of the economy as well as address economic, fiscal and social impact of the COVID-19.

Source: GNA









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It was allegedly used for illegal movement of alcohol from Transnistria to Ukraine

On the Ukrainian- Moldovan border, the border guards discovered a pipeline that was allegedly used for the illegal movement of alcohol. The press center of the State Border Guard Service reported this.

Yesterday, in the Odesa region, border guards of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovsky detachment, upon operative information, in cooperation with a diving group of the special operations department of the Odesa Maritime Guard detachment found a pipeline, the message said.

The Border Guard Service noted that the pipeline was allegedly used for the illegal movement of alcohol from Transnistria to Ukraine.

500 meters of polyethylene pipe was laid from the state borderline under the water and land in the direction of Pervomaisk (Moldova) - Kuchurhan (Ukraine) to a private house in Ukraine.

The pipeline was dismantled. Law enforcement agencies were notified of this fact.

Measures to find the persons involved in illegal activities continue.

Earlier, Ukraine's State Security Service prevents case of illegal arms traffic from Donbas.
In an effort to further curb any community spread of novel coronavirus, Laredo City Council has mandated that anyone who enters a building that is not their home must cover their mouth and nose with a mask, bandana, scarf or any fabric, or else face of a fine of up to $1,000. This includes offices. The order begins April 2 and continues through April 30.

Council had originally voted that anyone who goes outside at all must cover their nose and mouth, but later refined the rule because it was so broad. Now if anyone enters a building, public transit or outdoor gas station, they must cover their nose and mouth.

Council also voted to extend the curfew that originally pertained only to juveniles to all Laredo citizens. Now only people who are working or out for essential services may leave the house between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. or else face a fine of $50 to $1,000. This is an arrestable offense, and will also go into effect from April 2 to April 30.

According to Gov. Greg Abbotts order, Texans can continue to exercise and walk pets on the sidewalk. The citys curfew does not supersede that order, so Laredoans can walk outdoors after 10 p.m. as long as theyre not in a group, according to the city spokesperson.

The citys Stay at Home Work Safe order, which has closed a range of non-essential businesses, was also extended another 30 days.

There was concern that in these tough times people may not be able to afford the fines attached to the new aspects of the order.

Id rather bury them in debt than bury them in a coffin, Councilman George Altgelt responded.

He also noted that Laredo is next door to a country that is not taking this pandemic seriously, so the city is compelled to take extra precaution.

Council also voted to give $10,000 to the Laredo Regional Food Bank, $10,000 to Josephs Pantry and $100,000 to the South Texas Food Bank, anticipating that they will be reimbursed by FEMA up to 75%.

City Manager Robert Eads said this reimbursement is not guaranteed, and noted that the citys budget is already under strain due to this crisis.

But Councilman Dr. Marte Martinez said it is their responsibility to feed the community in times of crisis and to not let people starve.

Council members and city staff were separated between several rooms during the meeting, and wore masks and gloves. This caused some audio issues, which made much of the meeting difficult to decipher over the live stream on the citys website.

Julia Wallace may be reached at 956-728-2543 or jwallace@lmtonline.com
An international team led by University of British Columbia researcher Dr. Josef Penninger has found a trial drug that effectively blocks the cellular door SARS-CoV-2 uses to infect its hosts.

The findings, published today in Cell, hold promise as a treatment capable of stopping early infection of the novel coronavirus that, as of April 2, has affected more than 981,000 people and claimed the lives of 50,000 people worldwide.

The study provides new insights into key aspects of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and its interactions on a cellular level, as well as how the virus can infect blood vessels and kidneys.

"We are hopeful our results have implications for the development of a novel drug for the treatment of this unprecedented pandemic," says Penninger, professor in UBC's faculty of medicine, director of the Life Sciences Institute and the Canada 150 Research Chair in Functional Genetics at UBC.

"This work stems from an amazing collaboration among academic researchers and companies, including Dr. Ryan Conder's gastrointestinal group at STEMCELL Technologies in Vancouver, Nuria Montserrat in Spain, Drs. Haibo Zhang and Art Slutsky from Toronto and especially Ali Mirazimi's infectious biology team in Sweden, who have been working tirelessly day and night for weeks to better understand the pathology of this disease and to provide breakthrough therapeutic options."

ACE2 -- a protein on the surface of the cell membrane -- is now at centre-stage in this outbreak as the key receptor for the spike glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2. In earlier work, Penninger and colleagues at the University of Toronto and the Institute of Molecular Biology in Vienna first identified ACE2, and found that in living organisms, ACE2 is the key receptor for SARS, the viral respiratory illness recognized as a global threat in 2003. His laboratory also went on to link the protein to both cardiovascular disease and lung failure.

While the COVID-19 outbreak continues to spread around the globe, the absence of a clinically proven antiviral therapy or a treatment specifically targeting the critical SARS-CoV-2 receptor ACE2 on a molecular level has meant an empty arsenal for health care providers struggling to treat severe cases of COVID-19.

"Our new study provides very much needed direct evidence that a drug -- called APN01 (human recombinant soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 - hrsACE2) -- soon to be tested in clinical trials by the European biotech company Apeiron Biologics, is useful as an antiviral therapy for COVID-19," says Dr. Art Slutsky, a scientist at the Keenan Research Centre for Biomedical Science of St. Michael's Hospital and professor at the University of Toronto who is a collaborator on the study.

In cell cultures analyzed in the current study, hrsACE2 inhibited the coronavirus load by a factor of 1,000-5,000. In engineered replicas of human blood vessel and kidneys -- organoids grown from human stem cells -- the researchers demonstrated that the virus can directly infect and duplicate itself in these tissues. This provides important information on the development of the disease and the fact that severe cases of COVID-19 present with multi-organ failure and evidence of cardiovascular damage. Clinical grade hrsACE2 also reduced the SARS-CoV-2 infection in these engineered human tissues.

"Using organoids allows us to test in a very agile way treatments that are already being used for other diseases, or that are close to being validated. In these moments in which time is short, human organoids save the time that we would spend to test a new drug in the human setting," says Nuria Montserrat, ICREA professor at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia in Spain.

"The virus causing COVID-19 is a close sibling to the first SARS virus," adds Penninger. "Our previous work has helped to rapidly identify ACE2 as the entry gate for SARS-CoV-2, which explains a lot about the disease. Now we know that a soluble form of ACE2 that catches the virus away, could be indeed a very rational therapy that specifically targets the gate the virus must take to infect us. There is hope for this horrible pandemic."

###

This research was supported in part by the Canadian federal government through emergency funding focused on accelerating the development, testing, and implementation of measures to deal with the COVID-19 outbreak.

About LSI

The Life Sciences Institute (LSI) at the University of British Columbia conducts basic research aimed at improving human and planetary health. Home to 17 prestigious Canada Research Chairs, the LSI hosts multidisciplinary teams working to develop a comprehensive understanding of living organisms and systems. Members of our nine research groups conduct world-class research in diabetes, cardiovascular disease, immune response, infectious disease, cancer biology, developmental disorders, bacterial regulation, neuroscience, structural biology, environmental microbiology and molecular epigenetics.

Launched in 2005 in association with the UBC Faculties of Science and Medicine, LSI houses the vibrant research labs of 87 investigators drawn from 15 departments across five faculties. We collaborate in the 270,000 s.f. Life Sciences Centre, where seven state-of-the-art core facilities - ranging from flow cytometry to cryo-electron microscopy and bioformatics - support discoveries that hold promise of direct health benefits for Canadians and Canada.

About UBC

The University of British Columbia is a global centre for research and teaching, consistently ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world. Since 1915, UBC's entrepreneurial spirit has embraced innovation and challenged the status quo. UBC encourages its students, staff and faculty to challenge convention, lead discovery and explore new ways of learning. At UBC, bold thinking is given a place to develop into ideas that can change the world.

About St. Michael's

St. Michael's Hospital provides compassionate care to all who enter its doors. The hospital also provides outstanding medical education to future health care professionals in more than 27 academic disciplines. Critical care and trauma, heart disease, neurosurgery, diabetes, cancer care, care of the homeless and global health are among the Hospital's recognized areas of expertise. Through the Keenan Research Centre and the Li Ka Shing International Healthcare Education Centre, which make up the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, research and education at St. Michael's Hospital are recognized and make an impact around the world. Founded in 1892, the hospital is fully affiliated with the University of Toronto.

About STEMCELL Technologies

STEMCELL Technologies is Canada's largest biotechnology company, with over 1,500 employees and year-on-year growth of approximately 20% for the last 26 years. Based in Vancouver, STEMCELL supports life sciences research around the world with more than 2,500 specialized reagents, tools, and services. STEMCELL offers high-quality cell culture media, cell separation technologies, instruments, accessory products, and educational resources that are used by scientists advancing the stem cell, immunology, cancer, regenerative medicine, microbiology and cellular therapy fields. Find more information at http://www.stemcell.com.

About the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia

The Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) is a leading-edge multidisciplinary research centre based in Barcelona that conducts research at the frontiers of basic and life sciences linked with engineering to generate new knowledge and applications that helps to enhance health and quality of life. IBEC create wealth by putting together biophysics, cell engineering, nanomedicine, biomaterials, tissue engineering and the applications of information technology to health. IBEC is a non-profit-making foundation set up in 2005 by the Departments of Health and Innovation, Universities and Enterprise of the Government of Catalonia, the University of Barcelona and the Technical University of Catalonia. http://www.ibecbarcelona.eu/
The coronavirus outbreak has thrown 10 million Americans out of work in just two weeks, the swiftest, most stunning collapse the U.S. job market has ever witnessed, and economists warn unemployment could reach levels not seen since the Great Depression.

Half of working Americans say they or a household member have lost income due to the coronavirus, according to a new AP-NORC poll.

The bleak economic news Thursday  6.6 million new unemployment claims on top of 3.3 million last week  came as the mounting economic fallout almost certainly signals the onset of a global recession.

With over 230,000 people infected in the U.S. and the death toll topping 5,600, sobering preparations were under way.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency asked the Pentagon for 100,000 body bags because of the possibility funeral homes will be overwhelmed, the military said.

NEW YORK

State could exhaust ventilators in days

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned Thursday that the states supply of breathing machines could be exhausted in six days, as the statewide death count took its largest daily jump yet, from 1,941 to 2,373. The breathing machines have become the crucial piece of equipment sought by state and city officials as hundreds of patients a day are admitted to intensive care units. There were over 13,300 people hospitalized statewide Thursday, with about 3,400 in intensive care.

WASHINGTON STATE

Hefty fine for nursing home

Federal authorities have proposed a $611,000 fine for a Seattle-area nursing home connected to at least 40 coronavirus deaths. State regulators and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services conducted an inspection of the Life Care Center of Kirkland on March 16, finding serious infractions that they said placed residents in immediate danger. Authorities said Life Care had at least partially fixed the most serious problems by the time they conducted follow-up inspection last weekend. In a letter to Life Care on Wednesday, CMS proposed a fine of $611,000, but said that could be adjusted up or down based on how Life Care continues to correct remaining problems.

ALABAMA

National stockpile masks had dry rot

More than 5,000 medical masks that an Alabama county received from the national stockpile were rotted, the local emergency management director said. States and cities are receiving shipments from the National Strategic Stockpile to try to relieve shortages in medical equipment because of the COVID-19 outbreak. Christi Thornton, director of the Montgomery City/County Emergency Management Agency, said the shipment of 5,880 procedure masks was unusable because of dry rot. Alabama has more than 1,100 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 19 deaths, according to the state health department.

LOUISIANA

Deaths spike as test results pour in

Louisianas confirmed number of coronavirus cases spiked 42% higher Thursday as a backlog of test results poured in. The spike in cases confirmed Gov. John Bel Edwards message that the viruss footprint across the state is much wider than limited testing has been able to document so far. Nearly 9,200 people have tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19, according to the latest figures released by the Louisiana Department of Health. Thats a jump of more than 2,700 confirmed cases from a day earlier and the largest single-day increase reported so far. Louisianas death toll grew to 310 in Thursdays figures, 14% higher than the day before.

FLORIDA

Ill-fated cruise ships can dock

Passengers aboard two cruise ships that have had coronavirus cases and deaths have been given the green light to disembark at a Florida port, an official said Thursday. An agreement was reached between local, state and federal officials and Carnival Corp., which owns the Zaandam and the Rotterdam, said Broward County Commissioner Michael Udine. For nearly three weeks, passengers have been unable to step on dry land. Four elderly have died on the Zaandam, at least two from the virus. Nine tested positive.

Chronicle News Services
April 01, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - According to the parable, the ungrateful son takes out a life insurance policy on his parents, murders them to collect, and is caught and found guilty. At his sentencing, the judge asks if he has anything to say on his behalf. The son replies: Have mercy upon me because I am an orphan. Thats chutzpah.

U.S. Attorney General Barrs indictments on March 26 against the government of Venezuela for narcoterrorism go beyond chutzpah. For starters, William P. Barr was chief counsel for the CIA airline, Southern Air Transport, implicated in the 1980s for running illicit drugs and related narco-terrorism during Iran-Contra.

The U.S. charges of drug trafficking against Venezuela are the height of hypocrisy. The worlds leading source of heroin is U.S.-occupied Afghanistan and the U.S. is the worlds largest cocaine market.

The president of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernandez (JOH), is the latest in a line of corrupt presidents since the 2009 U.S.-backed coup there. JOH was identified as an unindicted co-conspirator in October by a US federal court for smuggling millions of dollars worth of cocaine into the U.S.

Colombia is the chief regional U.S. client state, distinguished by being the largest recipient of U.S. military aid in the hemisphere. Hillary Clinton called Plan Colombia a model for Latin America. Yet this model is the planets largest supplier of illicit cocaine. And thats only scratching the surface of U.S. history of complicity in international narcotrafficking.

The false criminal charges by the U.S. government against fourteen high-ranking Venezuelan officials are for alleged involvement in international drug trafficking. The U.S. government has, in effect, put a $15 million bounty on Venezuelan President Maduro and bounties of $10 million each for the head of the National Constituent Assembly and other leading officials and former officials.

Thirty years ago, the U.S. posted a $1 million reward on the head of Manuel Noriega, then president of Panama, on charges of narcotrafficking. Noriega had long been a U.S. security asset assisting in the CIAs dirty Contra war against the Sandinista government in Nicaragua.

Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter

Noriega had also used his U.S. patronage to consolidate his rule in Panama as well as his ties with Colombian drug cartels. However, toward the end of his tenure, Noriega did not demonstrate a sufficient level of servility to his U.S. handlers and was deposed in the U.S. invasion of Panama in 1989, taking the lives of many uncounted civilians.

As RT warns: The US indictment of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his subordinates on narcotrafficking charges echoes the rationale used to invade Panama and kidnap its leader. Unlike the Noriega case, where the Panamanian president was convicted of massive drug trafficking with the knowledge and full protection of the CIA and other security agencies, the U.S. lacks evidence against the Venezuelans.

The U.S. claims that Venezuelan officials are conspiring to flood the United States with cocaine are thoroughly groundless. Even the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), a Washington-based think tank that supports regime change in Venezuela, found in a recent detailed report using the U.S. governments own data that the facts do not support such bogus claims.

The authoritative U.S. interagency Consolidated Counterdrug Database reports, in fact, that 93 percent of U.S.-bound cocaine is trafficked through western Caribbean and eastern Pacific routes, not through Venezuelas eastern Caribbean coast. Over six times as much cocaine flowed through the U.S.-allied Guatemala than Venezuela in 2018.

Yes, some illicit drugs do flow through Venezuela  a minor amount compared to those emanating from U.S. client states  but the culprits are criminal gangs that the very indicted officials are fighting. The coca is grown and manufactured into cocaine in neighboring Colombia, not Venezuela. While supporting U.S. government actions to undermine Venezuelan state institutions, WOLA recognizes: Venezuelas state institutions have deterioratedIn this environment, armed groups and organized criminal structures, including drug trafficking groups, have thrived.

Yet WOLAs conclusion is: US government data suggests that, despite these challenges, Venezuela is not a primary transit country for US-bound cocaine. US policy toward Venezuela should be predicated on a realistic understanding of the transnational drug trade.

The indictments against the government of Venezuela are a ramping up of a policy of regime change. Ever since Hugo Chavez was elected president of Venezuela in 1998 and launched the Bolivarian Revolution, the hostile U.S. government has floated consistently unsubstantiated accusations of narcotrafficking.

More recently the Trump administration has sought to replace the democratically elected president of Venezuela with a U.S.-chosen and groomed security asset. Juan Guaido, the man anointed by Trump to be president of Venezuela, had never run for the presidency, nor served as president. He was unknown to 81 percent of the Venezuelan population at the time of his self-declaration as president. Besides these dubious qualifications, Guaido collaborated with the right-wing Colombian drug cartel and paramilitary group known as Los Rastrojos and even posed for pictures with some of their operatives, which were posted on Twitter.

The ever-tightening unilateral coercive measures on Venezuela by the U.S. have created a blockade, costing Venezuela over 100,000 lives. Sanctions are not an alternative to war but an economic form of warfare and just as deadly. As such, unilateral economic sanctions are an explicit violation of international law under the charters of the United Nations and the Organization of American States and even under U.S. law.

Unfortunately, Venezuela is not alone. The rogue empires sanctions now blight a third of the worlds population in 39 countries.

This latest escalation of the U.S. hybrid war against Venezuela takes place within the context of the global coronavirus pandemic, which the U.S. empire sees as an opportunity to further attack the Venezuelan people made more vulnerable by the health crisis. Indeed, the State Department has declared Maximum-pressure March against Venezuela. In service of the empire, Twitter has closed the accounts of the Venezuelan ministries of health, science, education, and housing.

Meanwhile, Cuba, Russia, and China are all materially supporting the Maduro governments successful efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 in Venezuela. In contrast to this internationalist solidarity, the U.S. is in the midst of the largest war games in 25 years, Defend Europe 20, in contravention of World Health Organization quarantine protocols.

Words cannot sufficiently describe the inhumane perfidy of the U.S. empires response to the pandemic. This should be a time for the U.S. government to drop the unsupported indictments against President Maduro and other Venezuelan officials, to lift the inhumane and illegal sanctions on Venezuela so that Venezuela can purchase medicines and equipment to better fight the coronavirus pandemic and to restore normal relations with Venezuela based on respect for national sovereignty.

Roger D. Harris is with the Task Force on the Americas, a human rights group working in solidarity with the social justice movements in Latin America and the Caribbean since 1985. " Source "
Published on 2020/04/01 | Source

Actor Dong Hyun-bae has been cast for the OCN drama "Rugal".

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"Rugal" is a human action hero drama about a former elite police officer who ends up losing not only his beloved wife, but also his eyes, and is accused of being a murderer. The drama follows his fight against criminal organizations after he obtains artificial eyes with special abilities crafted by the biotechnology organization "Rugal".

Based on a popular webtoon of the same name, "Rugal" is led by Choi Jin-hyuk, Park Sung-woong and Jo Dong-hyuk. It raises expectations in that OCN is introducing a new sci-fi action hero that is totally different from the previous genres.

Dong Hyun-bae takes on the role of Lee Jae-han, a Jazz team leader. He gets involved with a case and provides an overwhelming sense of immersion.

___________

"Rugal" is directed by Kang Cheol-woo, written by Do Hyun-I, and features Choi Jin-hyuk, Park Sung-woong, Jo Dong-hyuk, Jung Hye-in, Kim Min-sang, Han Ji-wan. Broadcasting information in Korea: 2020/03/28~Now airing, Sat, Sun 22:50 on OCN.
(Photo : REUTERS/Thilo Schmuelgen) Medical staff transfer patients to ambulances after a World War II bomb was found on the grounds of the University Hospital and a partial evacuation was ordered, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Bonn, Germany, April 2, 2020.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, many people are now overthinking things they never used to consider at all. Can you go outside? What if you're walking downwind of another person? What if you're 'unknowingly' infected at a crosswalk and someone is there? Suddenly, daily mundanities seem to call for strategy.

Much of this confusion stems from the shifting discussion across the pandemic. News reports have recommended that the coronavirus can spread through the air. After 60 choir participants in Washington State rehearsed together, 45 fell sick, even though no one seemed symptomatic at the time.

Staying indoors, however, is just the most practical and most easily resolved part of a broader and more vexing set of questions: Does the coronavirus really travel through the air? If so, how can we avoid it? Should we all be wearing surgical masks? The information about life-and-death hinges on the answers. And the solutions are intricate.

ALSO READ: Quicker Than A Ray of Light! Coronavirus Is Now 1,000 Times More Infectious Than SARS! - Study

Claim: Face mask doesn't work?

Several studies claim wearing a face mask is really not an iron-clad assurance that you won't get sick. Viruses, according to studies, could transmit through the eyes and tiny viral particles, called aerosols, that can penetrate masks.

Health officials jumped in to deter the public, worried approximately the limited supply of masks for health care personnel. "Seriously, people-STOP BUYING MASKS!" U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams wrote on his Twitter account.





They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching

https://t.co/UxZRwxxKL9 Seriously people- STOP BUYING MASKS!They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus , but if healthcare providers cant get them to care for sick patients, it puts them and our communities at risk!  U.S. Surgeon General (@Surgeon_General) February 29, 2020

The World Health Organization (WHO) and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have both said that only those with COVID-19 symptoms and those worrying for them must wear a mask.

A JAMA research this month argued that people without symptoms should not wear a surgical mask, because there isn't enough evidence it will protect them from contamination. Although the study clarified masks could protect people who are coughing and sneezing from infecting others.

Reality: Not wearing a mask is a mistake

Health experts, including the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, say not wearing a surgical mask is a mistake. Health authorities in select parts of Asia have told all citizens to wear a mask in public to save you the unfold of the virus, irrespective of whether they have symptoms.

An Australian information scientist says the claims are incorrect, and he is leading a push for western governments to prioritize using face masks to prevent the unfold of COVID-19.

ALSO READ: Federally Funded Tests Now Suggest Coronavirus Is Airborne: How Long Can It Survive in the air?

Jeremy Howard, Founder of Masks4All and University of San Francisco researcher, claimed there's enough evidence suggesting wearing masks can prevent coronavirus.

He said the WHO advice that masks are only worn when one is showing symptoms of illness is flawed.

"About 50 percent of people with this virus don't have any symptoms," Mr. Howard told Australian Radio Station 3AW's. He noted WHO's reminder to wear a mask since no one knows if they're already infected.

The time a person is most infectious, according to Howard, is in the early days when almost nobody has symptoms.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
San Miguel Mountain Ventures LLC, which does business as Telluride Express in Montrose, Colo., has been sued by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for refusing to hire a job applicant because of his age.

According to the EEOCs lawsuit, Charles Webber was over the age of 75 with more than five decades of commercial driving experience when he sent Telluride Express an application for a shuttle driver position. The next day, Telluride Express denied Webbers application because it had purchased a commercial auto insurance policy that provided no coverage for shuttle drivers age 75 and older.

The EEOC further charged that Webber met all the qualifications required of younger drivers, having passed a recent Department of Transportation medical exam and having no traffic violations or accidents in the last three years.

In the years since Telluride Express refused to hire him, Webber has worked as a driver with no accidents or citations. The EEOC charges in its lawsuit that Telluride Express knew of, agreed to, and enforced the discriminatory treatment of older applicants in its commercial auto insurance policy, and that the company did nothing to find alternative methods of insuring qualified candidates like Webber.

The EEOC alleges such conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The EEOC sued in U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado (EEOC v. San Miguel Mountain Ventures, LLC, Civil Action No. 1:20-cv-00881) after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

The lawsuit seeks monetary damages for Webber as well as injunctive relief prohibiting Telluride Express from discriminating based on age in the future.

Source: EEOC

Topics Lawsuits Colorado
The military will be sending 540 more troops to the southern border to help prevent crossings by migrants potentially infected with coronavirus, U.S. Northern Command generals said Wednesday.

The upcoming deployment to the border will take place "very soon" to guard against the spread of COVID-19, said Lt. Gen. Laura Richardson, commander of U.S. Army North.

Air Force Gen. Terrence O'Shaughnessy, commander of U.S. Northern Command, said the troops would assist the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Patrol "to secure against potential COVID-positive migrants coming over the border."

In a telephone conference with reporters at the Pentagon, O'Shaughnessy and Richardson were asked whether the military was considering withdrawing some of the 5,000 active-duty and National Guard troops already on the border to assist in combating coronavirus elsewhere.

O'Shaughnessy said that wasn't the case, and added that the additional troops would be deploying to assist CBP agents under new authorities allowing the immediate return of migrants potentially infected with COVID-19.

Related: Military Shifts Troops on Southern Border to Support 2 Entry Points

CBP and Homeland were asking for more assistance, he said, although the number of migrants taken into custody at the border has been declining in recent months.

In January, CBP reported that the number of people apprehended or deemed "inadmissible" at the border fell to 40,620 in December, down 72% from May 2019 following the Trump administration's policy of immediate return.

"Specifically to the border, as we try to seal off the external potential for COVID exposure to our U.S. citizens, there's actually an increased demand signal, not a decreased demand signal, for security on our southern border," O'Shaughnessy said.

However, Hina Shamsi, director of the national security project at the American Civil Liberties Union, said the deployment of additional troops to the border on "speculative grounds" that migrants might have coronavirus was misguided.

"This health crisis must not be employed in ways that cause more harm," she said. "What we've urgently sought was immediate clarification on the military's limits in its authorities at the border. We have received no answers."

-- Richard Sisk can be reached at Richard.Sisk@Military.com.

Read More: The Naval War College Ran a Pandemic War Game in 2019. The Results Were Eerie
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Linkedin Jing Xuan Teng (Agence France-Presse) Wuhan, China  Thu, April 2, 2020 16:46 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f44698 2 World Wuhan-coronavirus,Wuhan-lockdown,coronavirus,epidemic,COVID-19,pandemic,health,death-toll,SARS-CoV-2 Free

Zhang took his elderly father to a Wuhan hospital for a surgical procedure in January, just as coronavirus was consuming the central Chinese city. Within days, his father was dead of the contagion.

Devastated and angry, Zhang is now demanding answers from a government that he accuses of incompetence and lying about the extent of the virus.

He is not alone.

Zhang says he has linked online with dozens of other people whose grief over lost loved ones is paired with anger.

Zhang, in his 50s, declined to give his full name in an interview with AFP, fearing government retaliation for speaking to foreign media.

But he won't back down in his push for answers.

"I'm not afraid any more," said Zhang, who has contacted Wuhan's government for an explanation, but has received none.

"I'm just looking for the truth."

As fear of the virus eases, and Wuhan gradually re-opens after a more than two-month quarantine lockdown, some traumatized citizens are venting their bitterness.

Their stories, some poured out in emotional accounts online, are emerging as suspicions grow that China's Communist Party government -- already accused of bungling its initial virus response and concealing the outbreak's scale -- continues to intentionally underestimate the number of deaths and infections.

Zhang brought his father from another province to their hometown Wuhan in mid-January for medical-insurance reasons, unaware a health catastrophe was erupting.

A mystery illness had been emanating from a food market that reportedly sold a range of exotic wildlife -- including species linked to previous deadly viral outbreaks.

Downplaying the risks

But local officials downplayed the risks, going ahead with mass celebrations for the Lunar New Year holiday and letting millions to leave the city, allowing the virus to spread nationwide and around the world.

Soon after his surgery, Zhangs father developed a fever and loss of appetite.

"He withered," said Zhang.

He was transferred to a quarantine ward, dying hours later. Official cause of death: COVID-19, the pneumonia-like illness caused by coronavirus.

"I feel extreme regret and extreme remorse. Sending him here [Wuhan] meant sending him to his death," said Zhang, who believes his father contracted the virus in hospital.

By then, authorities had shut down the city of 11 million and tens of millions more people throughout Hubei province, isolating it from the rest of China.

Residents were homebound until last week, when authorities said it was safe to begin relaxing the lockdown.

The central government says its aggressive measures helped slow the virus, but there is bitterness in Wuhan, where most of China's deaths occurred.

"How many families have been shattered because of a plague that could have been stopped?" one Wuhan woman, who says the virus took her husband, wrote on leading Chinese social media platform Weibo."

How many unlucky common people lost their lives? No warning, no way to say good-bye. Someone who was fine, suddenly gone!" she wrote, referring to local authorities as "criminals."

Government surveillance

China faces growing questioning overseas as well, including from President Donald Trump and US lawmakers who on Wednesday cited a US intelligence report alleging Beijing is deliberately concealing the true picture.

China claims more than 82,000 confirmed cases and over 3,300 deaths -- including more than 2,500 dead in Wuhan.

That compares to over 200,000 cases and some 4,542 deaths in the United States, the country with the world's largest reported outbreak.

Local dissatisfaction was made clear in early March, when videos emerged showing Vice Premier Sun Chunlan being jeered by occupants of a Wuhan apartment block during an inspection tour.

The government has vaguely acknowledged shortcomings, and several top Wuhan and Hubei officials have been sacked.

There has been no indication of a wider government investigation to reveal what went wrong, however.

Zhang found comfort in an online group of anguished next-of-kin.

"Every family's loss was different. In some families as many as three people died," he said.

But this comes with deep risks in China.

The group was broken up this week after local police infiltrated it and summoned the moderator for questioning, Zhang said.

It is unclear if or how the loose group will remain in contact.

'Man-made disaster'

Authorities swiftly cremated his father's body, further upsetting Zhang, who was under lockdown along with the rest of the city.

Thin, nervous, and wearing an N95 mask during the interview, he is now resisting government pressure to collect and bury the ashes because of new rules requiring mourners to register for cemetery access and be accompanied by government minders.

"I feel this is a kind of surveillance," Zhang told AFP.

Authorities say the measures are meant to prevent large gatherings and to facilitate transport of next-of-kin in a city where some restrictions on movement remain.

Zhang said he and other grieving families want to see an investigation and criminal punishments.

"The misconduct of Wuhan officials caused this disaster, this man-made disaster," he said.

"The officials covered up the truth and the experts lied, which victimized so many people including my father."

"Hes dead, but Im still alive. I need an explanation."
The U.S. government is trying to convince Russia and Saudi Arabia to end the price war, but the Trump administration has few tools at its disposal. Saudi Arabia has already hired additional supertankers and a wave of additional supply is about to set sail, according to Bloomberg. In the last week of March, exports rose to 9 million barrels per day (mb/d), up from a rate of 7 mb/d earlier in the month.

Saudi Aramco has also apparently funneled a lot of oil into storage in Egypt, a stepping stone to the European market, Javier Blas and Brian Wingfield write for Bloomberg. Aramco is aiming to produce 12.3 million barrels per day (mb/d) in April.

It may not be all smooth sailing. The Wall Street Journal reports that Aramco is struggling to find a home for all the additional supply. Some ships are departing from Saudi shores with oil but have no destination. There are loadings [from Saudi ports in the Persian Gulf] with no destination on them because we dont have buyers, a Saudi official told the WSJ.

The Trump administration is pursuing several avenues to convince Riyadh and Moscow to back down from the price war. On Monday, Trump spoke with Vladimir Putin, where they agreed that current oil prices arent in the interest of our countries, according to a readout from Moscow.

Trump also spoke with Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, after which Trump said that the three leaders would get together.

I never thought I would be saying this: Maybe we do have to have an oil increase," Trump said on Fox News. Because we do. The price is so low now.

Related: Russias Plan To Bankrupt U.S. Shale Could Send Oil To $60 Meanwhile, some U.S. shale drillers and Texas regulators have raised the prospect of participating. Pioneer Natural Resources and Parsley Energy have called for some sort of global negotiated settlement, which would include Texas regulators instituting mandatory production cuts.

For now, there is little sign that the U.S. will be able to convince Saudi Arabia or Russia to change course.

OPEC has been unable to agree to hold an emergency meeting, suggesting that the group has no intention to cut production anytime soon.

Saudi Arabia likely sees little benefit to backing off its new strategy of flooding the market. In fact, Riyadh may now view additional volumes as critical to its budget with prices so low. Saudi Arabia now needs to produce 13m bl/day and export 10-11m bl/day which, together with government spending cuts of 20-30%, will bring down its social break-even towards $50/bl, Bjarne Schieldrop, chief commodities analyst at SEB, said in a report. Lifting Saudi Aramcos production capacity to 13m bl/day is not a threat, it is a need.

The market is hoping for too much if it is now expecting Saudi Arabia to cut production aggressively again once we are on the other side of the Q2 2020 oil market disaster and price trough, Schieldrop said.

On April 5, Aramco will publish its prices for May, which will offer a major signal regarding Riyadhs intentions.

The thrashing around by the U.S. government, oil regulators and even some shale companies reveals their lack of leverage. They are throwing a lot at the wall and trying to see what sticks. As Liam Denning put it in Bloomberg Opinion: The long arc of the American dream of energy independence, having recently soared Icarus-like toward energy dominance, has finally crashed ignominiously into energy incoherence.

At the same time, Russia and Saudi Arabia wont escape unscathed. Goldman Sachs says that Russia may also face shut-ins. Russia will likely be required to shut-in production given the inland nature of its production and the decline in refinery runs happening in its European pipeline export market, the investment bank said. Moscow may want to get ahead of this problem and use it as a carrot to entice cuts from elsewhere.

Related: The Shadow War Playing Out Behind The COVID-19 Crisis

Riyadh also has immense budgetary pressure from low prices. For now, the Saudi government is targeting volumes over price, but that may not last forever. Perhaps the one piece of leverage the U.S. has is threatening other parts of the American-Saudi relationship. North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer has proposed pulling U.S. troops out of the Middle East as a way of applying pressure on Riyadh.

Because of these dynamics, some see a slight possibility of an international arrangement. [W]hile coming to such an agreement remains difficult, signs of policy discussions are multiplying and we believe such an outcome should no longer be dismissed, Goldman concluded.

But given the size of the demand shock, the attempts to negotiate are likely too little too late for the oil market, Goldman concluded.

By Nick Cunningham for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
[April 02, 2020] 58.com Announces Receipt of a Preliminary Non-Binding Proposal to Acquire the Company

BEIJING, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- 58.com Inc. (NYSE: WUBA) ("58.com" or the "Company"), China's largest online classifieds marketplace, today announced that its Board of Directors (the "Board") has received a preliminary non-binding proposal letter dated Apr 2, 2020 (the "Proposal Letter") from Ocean Link Partners Limited (the "Proposing Buyer") to acquire all of the outstanding ordinary shares of the Company, including Class A ordinary shares represented by American depositary shares (the "ADSs", each representing two Class A ordinary shares), for US$27.5 in cash per Class A or Class B ordinary share, or US$55.0 in cash per ADS. A copy of the proposal letter is attached hereto as Exhibit A. According to the Proposal Letter, the Proposing Buyer intends to fund the consideration payable in the Transaction primarily with equity capital from the Proposing Buyer and any additional members the Proposing Buyer accepts into a consortium of buyers, and possibly debt capital. The Board plans to evaluate the Proposed Transaction. The Board cautions the Company's shareholders and others considering trading the Company's securities that the Board has just received the proposal letter and has not had an opportunity to carefully review and evaluate the proposal or make any decision with respect to the Company's response to the proposal. There can be no assurance that any definitive offer will be made, that any definitive agreement will be executed relating to the proposed transaction or that this or any other transaction will be approved or consummated. The Company does not undertake any obligation to provide any updates with respect to this or any other transaction, except as required under applicable law. About 58.com Inc. 58.com Inc. (NYSE: WUBA) operates China's largest online classifieds marketplace, as measured by monthly unique visitors on both its www.58.com website and mobile applications. The Company's online marketplace enables local business users and consumer users to connect, share information and conduct business. 58.com's broad, in-depth and high-quality local information, combined with its easy-to-use website and mobile applications, has made it a trusted marketplace for consumers. 58.com's strong brand recognition, large and growing user base, merchant network and massive database of local information create a powerful network effect. For more information on 58.com, please visit http://www.58.com. Safe Harbor Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "confident" and similar statements. 58.com may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its reports filed with or furnished to the U.S. ecurities and Exchange Commission, in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Any statements that are not historical facts, including statements about 58.com's beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements that involve factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Such factors and risks include, but not limited to the following: 58.com's goals and strategies; its future business development, financial condition and results of operations; its ability to retain and grow its user base and network of local merchants for its online marketplace; the growth of, and trends in, the markets for its services in China; the outbreak of COVID-19 or other health epidemics in China or globally; the demand for and market acceptance of its brand and services; competition in its industry in China; its ability to maintain the network infrastructure necessary to operate its website and mobile applications; relevant government policies and regulations relating to the corporate structure, business and industry; and its ability to protect its users' information and adequately address privacy concerns. Further information regarding these and other risks, uncertainties or factors is included in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All information provided in this press release is current as of the date of the press release, and 58.com does not undertake any obligation to update such information, except as required under applicable law.



For more information, please contact: 58.com Inc.

[email protected]

Christensen In China

Mr. Christian Arnell

Phone: +86-10-5900-1548

E-mail: [email protected] In US

Ms. Linda Bergkamp

Phone: +1-480-614-3004

Email: [email protected] Exhibit A

Preliminary Non-Binding Proposal

to Acquire All Outstanding Shares in 58.com Inc. April 2, 2020 The Board of Directors 58.com Inc.

Building 105, 10 JiuXianQiao North Road Jia

Chaoyang District, Beijing 100015

The People's Republic of China Dear Board Members, Ocean Link Partners Limited, a China-based private equity firm ("Ocean Link" as the "Proposing Buyer"), hereby submits this preliminary non-binding proposal (the "Proposal") to acquire all outstanding shares (the proposed "Transaction") in 58.com Inc. (the "Company"). We believe that our Proposal provides an attractive opportunity for the Company's shareholders, especially during a time of persisting operating difficulty and ongoing COVID-19 uncertainty. The Proposal represents a premium of 17.8% to the Company's last closing price on April 1, 2020 and a premium of approximately 17.1% to the volume-weighted average closing price during the last 15 days. Set forth below are the primary terms of our Proposal: Purchase Price. We propose to acquire all of the outstanding ordinary shares of the Company and the American Depositary Share of the Company ("ADS", each representing two Class A ordinary shares of the Company). The consideration payable for each ADS to be acquired will be US$55.00 in cash, or US$27.50 in cash per ordinary share (in each case other than those ADSs or ordinary shares held by shareholders). Funding. We intend to finance the Transaction primarily with equity capital, and possibly debt capital. Equity financing will be provided from us as the Proposing Buyer and any additional members we accept into a consortium of buyers. Due Diligence. We believe that we will be in a position to complete customary due diligence for the Transaction in a timely manner and in parallel with discussions of corresponding definitive agreements. Definitive Agreements. We are prepared to promptly negotiate and finalize definitive agreements ("Definitive Agreements") for the Transaction. These documents will provide for representations, warranties, covenants and conditions which are typical, customary and appropriate for transactions of this type. Process. We believe that the Transaction will provide superior value to the Company's shareholders. We recognize that the Company's Board of Directors (the "Board") will likely need to evaluate the Transaction independently before the Company can make any determinations. No Binding Commitment. This letter constitutes only a preliminary indication of our interest, and does not constitute any binding commitment with respect to the Transaction. A binding commitment will result only from the execution of Definitive Agreements, and then will be on terms and conditions provided in such documentation. We would like to express our commitment to working collaboratively with the Company to bring this Transaction to a successful and timely conclusion. Should you have any questions regarding this proposal, please do not hesitate to contact us. Sincerely, Ocean Link Partners Limited

By: Tony Tianyi Jiang, Partner View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/58com-announces-receipt-of-a-preliminary-non-binding-proposal-to-acquire-the-company-301034185.html SOURCE 58.com Inc

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
ASHA workers, deployed to spread awareness about coronavirus and identify suspected cases, were allegedly attacked by a group of locals in Byatarayanapura area of Karnataka's Bengaluru on Wednesday.

The ASHA workers said that the locals did not allow them to work.

"We are deployed to spread awareness and look for the people with symptoms of coronavirus like dry cough, fever, etc. But when we went to the Byatarayanapura area, some locals did not let us work," said Krishnavenu, who has been working as an ASHA worker for over five years.

She said that around 100 people gathered on the spot and started harassing them.

"Someone made an announcement in the nearby mosque, following which some more people gathered around and started attacking us. We are working for their welfare and this is what they are doing to us. Action should be taken against them," Krishnavenu said.

The police were later called to bring the situation under control.

ASHA workers have been working in groups in localities across the state to spread awareness about the COVID-19, which has claimed at least 50 lives across the country so far.

This comes even as the country is under a 21-day lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1965 on Thursday after 131 people confirmed positive in the past 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:11:27|Editor: Yurou

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MAHMOUD-E-RAQI, Afghanistan, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Two pro-government militiamen were killed and 11 others wounded as a clash erupted in Afghanistan's eastern Kapisa province on Thursday, provincial police spokesman Abdul Shaeq Shurash said.

According to the official, the clash flared up after a group of Taliban militants stormed a security checkpoint in Shahtor Nawa area of the restive Tagab district early Thursday, triggering a gun battle which left two pro-government militiamen dead and 11 others wounded.

However, Shurash said the militants fled away after suffering casualties but could not give an exact figure.

Taliban militants, who are active in parts of Kapisa province with Mahmoud-e-Raqi as its capital 65 km north of Kabul, have yet to make comment on the clash.
Photograph: Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images

New York has confirmed 92,381 cases of coronavirus, Governor Andrew Cuomo said at his daily briefing, while warning that the state only has enough ventilators in its stockpile for six more days.

Related: New Yorkers fleeing city face fear and hostility from upstate neighbors

Cuomo said he did not think the federal government is in a position to provide ventilators across the US to the extent that they are going to be needed in the coming days and weeks.

As coronavirus cases continue to rise, New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio asked New Yorkers to wear a homemade face covering when they go outside to prevent the spread of the virus.

When you put on that face covering, youre protecting everyone else, he said.

The mayor said it could be a scarf or a bandanna or anything homemade, but it should not be a surgical mask needed by frontline medical workers.

The move was prompted by a recent study by researchers in Singapore, which became the latest to estimate that somewhere around 10% of new infections may be sparked by people who carry the virus but have not yet suffered its flu-like symptoms.

In response to that study and others, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed how it defined the risk of infection for Americans. The mayor of Los Angeles also told everyone in the city to start wearing masks on Wednesday.

US cases of the virus have exceeded 215,000 and the death toll is approaching 5,000.

Cuomo noted the state released 400 ventilators to New York City on Wednesday night and would distribute ventilators based on need in the weeks to come.

The state has 2,200 in its stockpile and Cuomo said 350 people severely afflicted by the virus are coming into hospitals every night needing such breathing assistance.

The state has also seen 2,373 deaths linked to the virus, up from 1,941 yesterday. New York accounts for nearly half of the coronavirus deaths from the entire country.

Global deaths confirmed from coronavirus exceeded 50,000 for the first time on Thursday, according to Johns Hopkins University, while global cases were approaching 1 million.

Story continues

Cuomo said the number of people discharged from the hospital is way up, marking some rare good news since cases started to surge.

But Cuomo warned the state still needs more hospital beds to prepare for the peak of the crisis. The state is constructing temporary hospitals at places such as the Javits center and Brooklyn cruise terminal to add beds for coronavirus patients.

The governor said he was more concerned about ensuring the state has enough medical professionals and equipment to deal with the peak of the crisis. Beds we can find, Cuomo said. The harder component is the staff and the supplies.

Cuomo added that it was the cruelest irony that the country was now dependent on China for the production of crucial medical equipment.

Patricia Armand, an anesthesia nurse at Montefiore medical center, calls for N95s and other personal protective equipment on Thursday. Photograph: Bebeto Matthews/AP

The governor implored businesses to pivot to producing medical equipment like gowns. We will pay a premium, Cuomo assured business owners.

The retired New York police department commissioner James ONeill is returning to help the city administration as a senior adviser overseeing distribution of essential medical equipment to hospitals throughout the city of 8.4 million.

Its the responsibility of all New Yorkers to do their part, ONeill said. I always felt that way and I continue to feel that way.

Tens of thousands of retired medical workers have come forward to help New York and extra help is arriving from far and wide, including from the federal government after weeks of a mix of angry and desperate pleas from New York leaders.

Related: 'It's all Covid': New York medical staff brace for a surge of coronavirus patients



The cavalry keeps coming, the New York City mayor, Bill de Blasio, said on Thursday as 250 ambulances and 500 EMTs and paramedics arrived from around the country, based on reinforcements from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema).

In a video on Thursday morning, De Blasio told the story of two men from Kalamazoo, Michigan, who drove their ambulance all the way to New York City to be of service.

There are heroes among us!@NYCMayor visited Fort Totten in Bayside to thank New York Citys courageous EMTs and paramedics  and welcome some much needed reinforcements. From Kalamazoo to Florida, ambulances and EMS workers are arriving to support our teams and save lives. pic.twitter.com/8yAWUZpj9m  NYC Mayor's Office (@NYCMayorsOffice) April 2, 2020

This surge in federal aid comes even as De Blasio warns the city is still lacking 3.3m N95 masks, 2.1m surgeon masks and 100,000 isolation gowns for a Sunday deadline, numbers he called big but reachable.

Related: 'Its what was happening in Italy': the hospital at the center of New York's Covid-19 crisis

Data released late on Wednesday by city health officials shows that residents in the immigrant-rich Jackson Heights, Elmhurst and Corona sections of the New York City borough of Queens have tested positive for the virus in far greater numbers and at higher rates per capita than in wealthy, mostly white parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn.

People living in one Queens zip code just south of LaGuardia airport were roughly four times as likely to have tested positive as people in the gentrified section of Brooklyn that De Blasio calls home.

The numbers back something that has, for days, seemed obvious at Elmhurst hospital, the only major medical center serving that part of Queens where infections are most prevalent.

Long lines of people waiting for testing and treatment outside the hospital have been one of the defining images of the pandemic, as have stories of multiple deaths in Elmhursts overburdened wards.

Asked about the disparities, Mitchell Katz, chief executive of the city-run hospital system, said crowded housing could be playing a role.

We know that in Queens, many families, because of poverty, live together in very close quarters. So that while we are practicing as a city social distancing, you may have multiple families living together in a very small apartment. And so its easy to understand why theres a lot of transmission of Covid-19 occurring, he said.
When Vladimir Putin was given a dire forecast of the economy under the cloud of a crippling coronavirus pandemic and a sharp fall in global demand for petroleum, the Russian president was much less bullish about his country's prospects in a price war with oil-producing rival Saudi Arabia.



"For our economy, yes definitely, this is a very serious challenge," Putin told Audit Chamber head Aleksei Kudrin on April 1, adding that the United States, which recently surpassed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world's largest oil producer, would also suffer.



It was a big step back from the line being floated just two weeks ago when, despite Russia's economic dependence on natural resources, Moscow engaged in a bit of chest-thumping about its chances in a price war, arguing that Russia was in a stronger position than its main competitors to ride it out.



But that was before the true impact of the coronavirus on the global economy was understood, and before Kudrin -- a former finance minister and trusted ally -- told Putin in a government meeting held by video that the Russian economy could decline this year by between 3 and 5 percent.



And that was a moderate outlook, according to Kudrin, who went on to warn that the situation could be as bad as the nearly 8 percent decline the country suffered in 2009 during the financial crisis.

When faced with slumping oil demand as the global economy suffered from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, Riyadh's demands for output cuts were refused by fellow OPEC+ member Moscow. After walking away from the table, the Saudis instead took the surprising route of increasing oil output, causing the largest one-day drop in prices in nearly three decades.



Putin's comment is one sign that Russia, which always expressed openness to continue negotiations with Riyadh, may be keen on coming to an agreement. "Today's acknowledgement by Putin shows Russia is interested in the dialogue process and wants to go ahead with it," Rauf Mammadov, an energy analyst at the Middle East Institute in Washington, told RFE/RL on April 1.

High-Stakes Game



From the beginning, the price war has raised questions about who would cave first: Moscow, Riyadh, or U.S. production, which depends on shale-oil producers that have gained market share at the expense of Russia and Saudi Arabia but require higher oil prices to stay in business.



Russia is now preparing to ramp up spending to support millions of citizens and thousands of companies affected by quarantines and shutdowns. The Kremlin has thus far announced an increase of spending by $17.5 billion to counter the outbreak.



But according to Kudrin, the country may need to spend 5 percent of gross domestic product -- or about $70 billion -- to combat the impact of the coronavirus, which Russia has officially said has infected more than 3,500 people, but which skeptics suggest is a low-ball figure.



Those costs will be difficult to cover if oil prices are low -- but on April 2, the price of Russia's Urals crude blend fell below $11 a barrel, the lowest since Putin came to power two decades ago. The international benchmark Brent crude, meanwhile, was going for just over $26 a barrel on April 2, whereas Russia depends on a price of about $40 a barrel to balance its budget.



Russia as of March 20 had $551 billion in foreign-currency reserves at its disposal, although economists suggested that Putin would prefer not to tap into them. In just one week, however, those reserves had already fallen by $30 billion.

Even before Putin's government meeting, there were signs that Russia was having second thoughts about engaging in a price war with Riyadh, with Energy Minister Aleksandr Novak saying earlier on April 1 that Russia would not increase oil production in April, a reversal of earlier comments by officials.



Analysts have said that Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman's surprise decision to increase oil production was intended to get Putin back to the negotiating table.



And there is reason to believe that the Saudis might not want to keep the price war going either. Like Russia, the sharp decline in the price and volume of oil threatens Saudi Arabia's aggressive spending programs aimed at lifting living standards and diversifying its economy.



But Riyadh needs a much higher Brent crude price to balance its budget, nearly $80 per barrel, analysts have said. And while Saudi Arabia has $480 billion in foreign-currency reserves to lean on, it has already announced $13 billion in spending to deal with the lower budget revenue.



"Despite the bravado that we have been hearing on both sides, this is not about who has the lowest cost of production and higher profitability. This is about funding budgets, and for both Russia and Saudi budget expansion has been significant in recent years," Chris Weafer, the co-founder of Macro Advisory in Moscow, told RFE/RL on March 28. "The reality is that both of them need a deal to put a better price support in place."
1.3 million in business rates support claims processed in a week by Wrexham Council

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Apr 2nd, 2020

Wrexham Council have moved quickly to process claims for economic support, many from small local businesses.

As part of a range of pandemic economic support measures from UK and Welsh Government businesses could be eligible for grants of 10k or 25k based off their business rates  with entities that currently pay no rates, due to getting small business rate relief, also eligible.

Wrexham Council opened the scheme a week ago, well ahead of some nearby local authorities, and many businesses have seen the cash hit their bank accounts already.

We are told the councils finance department have been working long and hard to ensure payments are validated and processed as quickly as possible after the deluge of claims lodged over the last week.

In the announced measures business are eligible for:

 A grant of 25,000 for occupied businesses in the retail, leisure and hospitality sector with a rateable value of between 12,001 and 51,000, or

 A grant of 10,000 to businesses eligible for Small Business Rates Relief with a rateable value of 12,000 or less.

Both grants are only available to firms on the business rates register as of March 20th, 2020.

So far Wrexham Council say they have paid out 845,000 to cafes, shops, hairdressers and other types of businesses in Wrexham as of yesterday, with a further 525,000 due to be paid out by tomorrow.

Wrexham Council said, This financial assistance is vital in helping to safeguard our local economy and jobs, and were continuing to process grants on a daily basis.

If you run a business  please make sure youre aware of the different help thats available. It could make a huge difference in helping your business survive this emergency.

The online form where people can apply can be found via https://beta.wrexham.gov.uk/service/covid-19-help-businesses.

Wrexham.com is aware of numerous businesses where the claims have been submitted, remittance confirmation sent, and payment cleared already. Others have been in touch thinking there has been no progress, querying if they need to re-apply and some noting they did not get any email confirmation on submission, however they should sit tight.

We are aware of applications completing the process with payment that did not get any email confirmations on submission of the claim (and we dont believe any were sent at the point of submission). Before payments are made directly to the bank account for which details have been provided, a remittance will be emailed to the applicant, so it is worthwhile them keeping an eye out for that.

For those looking up their current rateable value or similar details as held by the Valuation Office you can find their search form here.

The Councils page also contains a summary of the new 100% relief for businesses as well as the qualifying criteria for the 2 grants.

People are urged to read the guidance before completing the form, with it also clearly stated any erroneous or incorrect claims will have to paid back in full.

Wrexham Council added, If you need more information, or want to know about other support packages, contact our Business and Investment team on 01978 667300 or business@wrexham.gov.uk .
Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, and Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin, will hold virtual events on Thursday to provide information about the novel coronavirus crisis to their constituents.

At 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Swalwell will host a Facebook Live question-and-answer session with Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, chief of the division of pediatric infectious diseases at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

Swalwell's office said participants are encouraged to submit questions before the event. People can participate in the event at www.facebook.com/CongressmanEricSwalwell.

Lee said she will host a tele-town hall meeting from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday to share resources available to her constituents during the COVID-19 crisis and to update them on the work she's doing in Congress to mitigate the effects of the ongoing pandemic.

People can access the tele-town hall by calling (866) 757-0660. No access code is required.

Approximately 15 people have been displaced following a fire in San Jose's Horace Mann neighborhood early Thursday morning, according to fire officials.

The two-alarm blaze was first reported at 11:43 p.m. Wednesday at a home in the 200 block of 7th Street, San Jose Fire Department Public Information Manager Erica Ray said.

The fire started in an RV next to a home, spread to the structure at that address and charred a neighboring home, according to Ray.

Firefighters at the scene got the fire under control at about 12:20 a.m. Approximately 15 people, including 3 children, were displaced from the two homes. The American Red Cross has been dispatched to assist them, per Ray.

At least one resident was transported to a hospital for treatment of injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

National Census Day in America is April 1 and despite an unprecedented investment and organizational effort, California's initial response rate is coming in below the national average.

Every ten years, the U.S. Census Bureau is charged with taking a snapshot of America by attempting to count every person living in the country on April 1.

The data will be used to determine how trillions of dollars of taxpayer money is allocated over the next decade, as well as to establish the number of congressional representatives apportioned to each state, making the census one of the largest and most important of all the federal government's constitutionally mandated functions.

The census is considered so important that every person living in the United States, regardless of citizenship status, is required by law to fill it out.

"It's about power, it's about money and it's about data," said Ditas Katague, director of the California Complete Count - Census 2020 Office.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed discussed the city's latest efforts to help vulnerable populations, including the elderly and homeless, as the city grapples with 434 novel coronavirus cases, including seven deaths as of Wednesday.

To help disabled and elderly San Franciscans, Breed announced a citywide volunteer network to assist people with errands like groceries, medications and other essential goods during the shelter-in-place order, which has been extended in the Bay Area through at least May 3.

The program also aims to provide a sense of community for those living in isolation and who can't leave their home.

"We know people have been doing this around the city informally," Breed said. "We appreciate you and are grateful for you. So, I want to take that to the next level."

Through a partnership with San Francisco-based organization Shanti Project, the city has created a centralized volunteer page for people helping seniors and adults with disabilities at https://sf.gov/be-emergency-volunteer.

Schools in the Oakland Unified School District will remain closed for the rest of the school year following a statement Wednesday by Alameda County's superintendent of schools, Oakland Unified Superintendent Kyla Johnson Trammell said Wednesday.

In the statement, Superintendent L. Karen Monroe said, "Following the Governor's press conference earlier today, it is now clear that California's schools will be engaged in distance learning for the remainder of the school year."

Gov. Gavin Newsom, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and state Board of Education President Linda Darling-Hammond said schools should remain closed through the end of the year because of the pandemic.

Trammel said, "We are working to determine the full impact" of the school closure decision.

School leaders will be exploring alternatives for graduation, promotions to higher grades, whether summer school will be held, and other impacts. Meanwhile, school leaders are working to complete plans to bring learning to students in their homes.

Following comments earlier in the day by Gov. Gavin Newsom and two state education leaders, schools in Oakland and now Santa Clara County will move to distance learning for the remainder of the school year because of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, leaders of the two districts said Wednesday evening.

Newsom, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and state Board of Education President Linda Darling-Hammond said schools should remain closed through the end of the year because of the pandemic.

Santa Clara County Superintendent Mary Ann Dewan said in a statement, "We will work through this pandemic locally with the guidance of Dr. Sara Cody and the Santa Clara County Public Health Department so that we can ensure the health and safety of our students and their families as well as for our staff."

District officials in the weeks ahead will provide information to families about grades, graduation, transcripts, scholarships, summer school and how distance learning will take place.

Students in Santa Rosa City Schools will learn from home during the rest of the school year, school officials said Wednesday.

The decision extends the at-home learning already taking place in the midst of the world's novel coronavirus pandemic.

Officials with Santa Rosa City Schools said the decision was made in consultation with the Sonoma County health officer and follows guidance Wednesday from California education leaders and Gov. Gavin Newsom who all said in-person classes should not resume in California this school year.

Santa Rosa City Schools officials said the decision to keep schools closed supports the effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

"Our community's health and safety is our greatest concern," Diann Kitamura, superintendent of Santa Rosa City Schools, said in a statement.

Thursday will be sunny. Highs will be near 60. Northwest winds will be 10 to 20 mph.

Thursday night will be clear and breezy. Lows will be in the mid 40s to lower 50s. Northwest winds will be 20 to 30 mph, decreasing to 10 to 20 mph after midnight.

Friday will be sunny and breezy. Highs will be in the mid 50s to lower 60s. Northwest winds of 10 to 20 mph will increase to west winds at 20 to 30 mph in the afternoon.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
China imported more than two billion masks and 25 million pieces of protective clothing from overseas before the coronavirus outbreak reached pandemic levels, it has been revealed.

On Thursday a Chinese government report emerged detailing its foreign trade for the first two months of the year, when the country was at the peak of its virus crisis.

As COVID-19 infections began to spread across the globe in January and February, China saw a 'rapid growth in imports of commodities and key consumer goods'.

More than 2.46billion pieces of medical materials, including masks and protective equipment, were inspected by National Customs in China between January 24 and February 29, according to the report.

Tonnes of medical supplies (pictured) were shipped from Sydney to China at the request of a Beijing-backed property giant Risland

Chinese property giant Greenland shipped Australian medical supplies to Wuhan in January and February (pictured)

Risland Australia last month declared their support for Wuhan and showed workers inside a warehouse packed with thousands of boxes of protective clothing (pictured)

The report states the agency had expedited the entry of supplies by introducing 'zero-delay customs clearance of epidemic prevention and control materials.'

It comes days after Chinese organisations operating in Australia were reported to have sent bulk medical supplies to China at the height of the crisis.

Chinese-owned property developer Risland Australia was reported to have flown 80 tonnes of medical supplies on a corporate jet to Wuhan in late February.

Video footage emerged showing boxes of surgical masks stacked up at Perth airport before being sent to Wuhan on February 8 - when there were 15 cases of coronavirus in Australia.

Another Chinese property company, Greenland Group, retasked its employees to purchase face masks, hand sanitisers, antibacterial wipes, thermometers, Panadol and other medical items in bulk for shipment to China.

Greenland bought up three million surgical masks, 500,000 pairs of gloves and bulk supplies of sanitiser and antibacterial wipes in Australia and other countries where the company operates.

The goods were hoarded at Greenland's Sydney headquarters and were sent to China in January and February.

Greenland sent HR and management staff out to buy the medical supplies before hoarding them at its Sydney headquarters

Pictured: Australian-based Chinese property company Risland shipped 90 tonnes worth of vital medical supplies to Wuhan from Perth on February 8

Australian hospitals are now struggling to cope with a shortage masks and other protective gear as the number of coronavirus cases in the country continue to soar.

As of Thursday, there are more than 5,108 confirmed cases in Australia, with 23 deaths.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Doctors and nurses have been turning to hardware giant Bunnings for supplies - and even purchasing full-faced snorkelling kits from other retailers.

Medical experts are worried a potential shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) will leave frontline medical staff exposed to infection and unable to care for patients.

ANU College of Health and Medicine Professor Shane Thomas told Daily Mail Australia the country did not have enough masks, gowns and eye shields.

'It's something personally I have a lot of concern about,' he said.

'The fact we don't have enough on hand is a problem. We have two big shortages: PPE and (coronavirus) testing kids.'

The shortage is so dire the Australian Army has pitched in to make more face masks at the Med-Con factory near Shepparton.

As countries around the world battle the pandemic, people from the United States to the Czech Republic are sewing their own masks.

Studies show that while improvised masks are not as effective as surgical masks, they are better than nothing.

A Federal Health Department spokesperson said on March 24 that the government had contracted suppliers to provide 54 million surgical masks and P2 respirators for the national medical stockpile.

'A significant supply of P2 and surgical masks remain in the National Medical Stockpile, and will be directed to areas of greatest need while additional PPE arrives,' the spokesperson said.

The Federal Government on Wednesday announced it has banned the exports of masks, hand sanitiser, gloves, gowns, goggles and visors.

Customs can now seize the goods and add them to the national stockpile for healthcare workers to use, as long as they are not defective.

'These measures have become necessary because we have seen a small number of individuals engaging in the bulk purchasing of essential goods from retail outlets in Australia, with the intent of profiteering from exploitative exporting and price gouging,' Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said.
Bishop, Eugene Cooper, pastor of the St. James House of Prayer of the Apostolic Faith Church leads Sunday service during the corona pandemic. The St. James House of Prayer of the Apostolic Faith Church held Sunday services outdoors in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19.- PHOTOGRAPH BY Paul Hennessy / Echoes Wire/ Barcroft Studios / Future Publishing (Photo credit should read Paul Hennessy / Echoes Wire/Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

Churches and other religious facilities will be allowed to remain open in more than half of the states that are the most vulnerable to coronavirus, often with special exemptions to mandated closures of nonessential businesses.

Of the 15 states in the nation home to the highest percentage of especially at-risk individuals, at least 11 were not barring religious gatherings as of Thursday morning, a nationwide CNBC review of emergency orders found.

It is not clear how many individuals are continuing to attend religious services or how many facilities have closed voluntarily or under city and local orders. The White House is urging Americans to avoid all public gatherings of 10 or more until the end of April.

But the exemptions for religious institutions provide some obstacles to mitigation efforts such as social distancing that public health officials have said will save possibly 2 million lives if carried out "perfectly."

Some religious organizations, including the Mormon church and the leaders of Christianity Today, an influential evangelical magazine, have come out in support of suspending religious gatherings.

In the 15 most vulnerable states identified by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a national nonprofit that studies health issues, more than four in 10 adult residents are 65 or older or have an underlying medical condition.

While most cases of COVID-19 are mild, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have said people who fall into those two categories are more at risk of serious illness from the disease, with the most critical cases requiring intensive care and the use of medical ventilators, which are now in short supply.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis became the latest state leader to allow for religious exemptions to a shelter-in-place order on Wednesday.

DeSantis's order listed "religious services conducted in churches, synagogues and houses of worship" among the "essential activities" that are allowed to stay open.

Other particularly vulnerable states with special exemptions for religious activities include Louisiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Delaware, Michigan and Mississippi. In Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas, there are no statewide orders closing nonessential businesses.

The vulnerable population of those 11 states totals more than 8.4 million adults, according to a CNBC calculation using KFF data.

In some of the states, the rules are not especially clear. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, for instance, signed an order that barred "all public and private gatherings of any number of people occurring among persons not part of a single household." But places of worship are "not subject to penalty," the order stipulates.

Some governors, including South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, signed orders closing down nonessential businesses that, instead of listing exceptions to the rule, provided a list of entities that would have to close. Those lists did not specifically mention religious facilities. The South Carolina Department of Commerce and Ivey's office did not immediately respond to emails requesting comment.

A few of the vulnerable states with exemptions that allow church services to continue explicitly order them to follow social distancing rules.

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, for instance, provided an exemption to "any church, synagogue, mosque, or other house of worship," in his order, so long as they comply with an earlier regulation barring gatherings of 10 or more people. Mississippi Gov. Tata Reeves also provided an exemption for "religious gatherings," as long as they adhere to state and CDC guidelines.

In contrast, the orders signed by the governors of only two of the 15 states, Kentucky and Maine, do not seem to provide any sort of leeway for religious institutions.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear specifically barred "faith-based" mass gatherings in a letter issued before his statewide shelter-in-place order. Citing state health officials, Beshear said on Wednesday that a church revival in mid-March contributed to the spread of coronavirus in the state.

In Maine, Gov. Janet Mills signed an order that specifically defined essential businesses and activities and did not include religious institutions. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland suspended all of its religious services in the state last month.
No social events like the



religious congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area should be organised in Maharashtra and the government will not give permission for such programmes in view of the coronavirus outbreak, Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said on Thursday.

He also asked people to voluntarily observe home quarantine to protect their own families, instead of getting "hospital quarantined" due to coronavirus infection, and warned that those defying the rules during the ongoing lockdown will have to go to jail, an official statement said.

Delhi's Nizamuddin area has emerged as one of the hotspots for coronavirus outbreak since the gathering of Tablighi Jamaat was held there, prompting many states to launch a massive search for the attendees to check the spread of transmission.

Urging people to avoid gathering in big numbers to contain the spread of coronavirus, Pawar said, Taking cue from Delhis 'markaz' incident, no social events be organised. Permission will not be granted for such events.

He also thanked the people for celebrating Ram Navmi in a low-key manner on Thursday.

The state Finance Minister further said that there are only two options available to save oneself from coronavirus- to observe home quarantine or get quarantined at a hospital.

"Instead of getting hospital quarantined due to the coronavirus infection, get home quarantined voluntarily to save youself and your family," Pawar said, as he pressed for staying inside home during the ongoing lockdown, which will be in force till April 14.

He said the number of COVID-19 patients is increasing due to "irresponsible" behaviour of "some people".

People thronging vegetable markets in big numbers has the possibility of coronavirus reaching their doorsteps, Pawar added.

There is adequate stock of food grains, edible oils, vegetables, medicines and fuel in the state, the NCP leader said, and appealed to people not to venture out in big numbers.

The minister said the government has taken "serious" note of some goons attacking police during the lockdown period.

"Those who violate the rules regarding coronavirus will have to go to jail and the action has begun since yesterday," Pawar said, without specifying details.

He also said action will be taken against private doctors who have not yet opened their hospitals and clinics despite the appeal from the government.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Donald Trump is leaving the decision to order stay-at-home mandates to the governors of individual states, even as his own administration acknowledges tens of thousands could die during the coronavirus pandemic.

Yet, he's still called on Americans to stay at home as much as possible, even as he hands off responsibility to the states.

There are some states that are different, Trump said during a press conference. There are some states that dont have much of a problem.

Currently, 30 states and Washington, D.C. are under stay-at-home orders.

Police in New York City stand on guard in the streets to enforce the state's shelter-in-place order issued by Governor Andrew Cuomo

Coronavirus has emptied the streets of New York, the largest city by population in the country

Technically, only states have the authority to order quarantines within states. So the federal government can't issue blanket nationwide quarantines.

However, the federal government can restrict state-to-state travel or quarantine international travelers who may be carrying deadly diseases.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams on Wednesday said he agreed with President Trump to defer decisions to each state's governor.

We trust the governors and the mayors to understand their people and understand whether or not they feel like they can trust the people in their states to make the right decisions, Adams said during a Good Morning America interview.

The ritzy streets of Beverly Hills are barren as California remains locked down due to the coronavirus pandemic

A lonely pedestrian walks down the Las Vegas strip as casinos and other businesses have closed

An empty Metro train vooms through Bethesda, Maryland as the Washington, D.C. area remains under stay-at-home order

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis only on Wednesday decided to issue a stay-in-place order

A poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that 78 percent of adults want stay-at-home orders in place.

Until an about-face today, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had only issued stay-at-home orders for south Florida, and pushed back against issuing a lockdown for the whole state.

He relented and put a stay-at-home order in place, after receiving pressure from federal and local government officials to help curb the spread of coronavirus through the country's third largest state.

Currently, more than 285 million in 40 states after locked down under their governors' orders. Other states, such as Iowa and Nebraska, haven't issued state-wide shelter-in-place mandates yet

But some communities within those states have ordered stay-at-home measures.

Still, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts has held firm in resisting a state lockdown, based on advice from public health experts at University of Nebraska Medical Center, which once was used to quarantine Ebola patients.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has also stopped short of issuing a mandatory stay-at-home order. She says the information she consults with doesn't warrant the measure.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has all-but issued a shelter-in-place order for his state. He has closed all schools through at least May and put in place other restrictions that some say essentially feel like a lockdown.

But Abbott disagrees.

'This is not a stay-at-home strategy. A stay-at-home strategy would mean that you have to stay home,' Abbott said. 'This is a standard based upon essential services and essential activities.'
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The contest for the Democratic presidential nomination has been effectively shut down as the two remaining candidates, former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders, have been compelled to stop all in-person campaign activities and 14 states have postponed scheduled primaries or turned them into mail ballot-only events.

The states that have delayed primaries include New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Georgia, four of the largest in terms of convention delegates, as well as Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Rhode Island and Wyoming, as well as the US territory of Puerto Rico.

As a result, Biden and Sanders remain with the roughly same number of convention delegates that they had as a result of voting through March 17, 1,217 for Biden and 914 for Sanders, with 1,991 required for the Democratic presidential nomination. Based on the revised schedule of primariesassuming that holds, which is in grave doubtBiden would not be able to clinch the nomination before June 2, unless Sanders drops out and endorses him.

The only state scheduled to vote in April which is still pushing ahead with a primary is Wisconsin, where voting is to take place on Tuesday, April 7, under conditions where 1,550 people have already contracted coronavirus and 25 have died. Tens of thousands of voters have asked for mail ballots, overwhelming state election offices, while thousands of poll workers have indicated they will not staff polling stations on election day.

While the states Democratic governor, Tony Evers, belatedly asked for the conversion of the primary to a mail-only vote, as the extent of the coronavirus epidemic has become apparent, the Republican-controlled state legislature refused. It also rejected requests to lift photo ID requirements for mail-in voters, extend early in-person voting, and extend the deadline for returning absentee ballots.

The apparent political motivation was the Republican Partys desire to insure the reelection of a Republican justice of the state supreme court, Daniel Kelly, in what is certain to be a low-turnout election, with voting particularly low in Milwaukee and Madison, where the coronavirus outbreak is concentrated in the state.

They have cynically calculated that lower turnout will help the conservative candidate, Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin told the Washington Post. This is a criminally stupid reason for endangering the lives of potentially hundreds of thousands of people.

It is not certain that the primary will actually be held, as there are multiple lawsuits seeking to force a postponement on public health grounds. Wisconsin is the only one of 11 states with primaries or caucuses set for April which has not either postponed the vote or turned it into a mail-only contest.

Hawaiis scheduled April 4 primary has been converted to mail-only. Alaska and Wyoming will vote the same way on April 10 and April 17 respectively. All the states scheduled to vote on April 28, in what was described as a northeast primaryConnecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Islandhave postponed their primaries until June.

June 2 is now being described as a slightly smaller edition of Super Tuesday, with Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut all scheduled to hold elections, and nearly 700 convention delegates to be chosen. But there is little certainty that these contests will take place, given the expected impact of the COVID-19 epidemic.

Primaries March 17 in Arizona, Florida and Illinois gave a glimpse into the potential impact of the coronavirus on the election. Florida and Arizona are among states where a significant share of voters participate in early voting. According to the most recent data, that percentage has increased from last year along with overall turnout in the two states. Illinois, which has lower rates of mail voting and early voting, experienced a 25 percent decrease in turnout, the worst of any state this year compared to 2016.

Election officials stated the trio of primaries demonstrated the need to expand alternative balloting. They said conducting the majority of balloting through the mail would be the most effective measure states could take. Currently, only Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Utah, and Hawaii hold elections entirely by mail.

An additional 28 states and the District of Columbia offer no-excuse voting by mail, which allows any voter to request an absentee ballot. States with stricter laws require voters to provide an excuse for being unable to vote in person, in order to get an absentee ballot.

There have been suggestions that the general election in November would have to be conducted entirely by mail ballot, but the $2.2 trillion congressional bailout for corporate America, enacted by a near-unanimous bipartisan vote, provided only a down payment for such an effort, about $400 million to assist states which decide to switch to mail-in voting. The cost of such an effort nationwide is estimated at $2 billion.

The primary postponements now threaten a conflict between some of the hardest-hit states and the Democratic National Committee, whose chairman Tom Perez has insisted that the June 9 deadline for selecting convention delegates cannot be altered, even though New York state and the District of Columbia have already postponed their primary dates to June 23.

Perez has pushed back against states moving their primary dates past June 9. In a statement he said that states should focus on expanding no-excuse absentee voting and vote by mail instead of moving primaries to later in the cycle, when timing around the virus remains unpredictable.

Based on current DNC rules, New Yorks decision to hold its primary after the election could result in the states number of delegates being reduced by 50 percent.

On Tuesday, however, Biden seemed to pull the rug out from under Perez, by suggesting, in an interview on MSNBC, that the Democratic National Convention itself was unlikely to be held on the dates set, July 13-16, and in the traditional form, as a gathering of thousands of delegates and tens of thousands of media, party operatives, lobbyists and onlookers.

When asked whether the convention could go ahead on the schedule set by the DNC last year, Biden said, Its hard to envision that. He pointed out that the original date was decided on in relation to the Summer Olympic Games, set for July 24, which have now been canceled, indicating that the convention could be put back as long as a month.

The Democratic frontrunner flatly rejected any suggestion that the pandemic could interfere substantially with the 2020 election calendar. We ought to be able to do what we were able to do in the middle of the Civil War all the way through to World War IIhave Democratic and Republican conventions and primaries and elections, and still have public safety, he said. Were able to do both.

As in previous interviews and statements, Biden declined to hold Trump responsible for the mass deaths which the coronavirus threatens in America, saying only that if he were president he would be cooperating more with the state governors and mobilizing the military and private industry, rather than using press conferences to bait his political opponents and praise himself.
Affectionately known as 'our eye on the Universe', the Hubble Space Telescope (pictured inset) was launched on April 24, 1990, via the space shuttle Discovery from Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. It marked the most significant advance in astronomy since Galileo's telescope and thanks to five servicing missions and more than 25 years of operation, our view of the universe and our place within it has never been the same. But now, after 31 years orbiting Earth and following a trying year that has seen it drop offline for a multitude of reasons, Hubble has been succeeded by the James Webb Space Telescope. To celebrate more than three decades of unlocking the secrets of our solar system, MailOnline has delved into the archives to pull out some of Hubble's most mesmerising images. They include the famous Pillars of Creation (main), Small Magellanic Cloud (top right), Twin JetNebula (middle right) and an enormous bubble being blown into space by a super-hot, massive star (bottom right).
Over fears of a Covid-19 patient triggering community transmission, the Odisha government on Thursday broke its own norms of not revealing the identity of coronavirus patients as it named the fifth person in the state who tested positive.

Bhubaneswar Municipal Commissioner Prem Chandra Chaudhury identified the patient who hails from the posh Surya Nagar area of the city and appealed to the people to quarantine themselves if they had come in contact with the person after March 1.

The man is mentally retarded and for last 3 months he has not gone anywhere except to some local hospitals for treatment. He is diabetic and has other co-morbidity conditions like hypertension when he was admitted to AIIMS Bhubaneswar on March 31 following problems in respiration. He has no records of travel. As there is no other known way of finding out how he contacted the virus, we have issued an appeal to people to inform us and go on quarantine, said Chaudhury.

Health and family welfare department of Odisha said the 60-year-old man first consulted a doctor in a private clinic in Bhubaneswar on March 5 and again consulted him on March 12. On March 27, he consulted a doctor in the OPD of a major private hospital after he experienced problems in breathing. The next day he went to OPD of AIIMS Bhubaneswar over same issues. As his respiratory problems persisted, he got admitted to casualty of AIIMS on March 31 where doctors suspected him to be suffering from Coronavirus.

After his sample came positive on April 1, the the municipal authorities this evening sealed the area where the person lived with 13 others in his family. All his family members have been isolated. Apart from his 13 family members, 8 others the person came in contact with have been asked to go on quarantine for the next 14 days. The officials, however, allayed fears of community transmission of coronavirus beginning in Odisha as the patient had no record of travel.

AIIMS Bhubaneswar acting medical superintendent, Jawahar Pillay said the patient is on ventilator.

State government spokesperson on Covid-19, Subroto Bagchi also appealed people that if they have symptoms of the disease, they need not hide it. Bagchi said that many people were hiding the fact though they know that they have coronavirus symptoms.

And they are doing it out of fear. The person who avoided our phone call for 48 times did it out of fear. Tell your family and neighbours that if you feel you have coronavirus symptoms, do not hide it. Come out bold, your candidness will save you; your family, the society, the race will remain ever grateful to you, said Bagchi.

The revelation of the identity of the patient has come at a time when the state government has lodged cases against people for trying to reveal the identity of the infected persons. In Bhadrak district, police on Wednesday arrested 3 persons for revealing the identity of a 29-year-old chef working in Dubai who tested positive on March 31.

Officials have identified 33 people who came in contact with the youth after he landed in Kolkata by an Emirates flight from Dubai and then took a train ride to Bhadrak on March 19. Though the man had quarantined himself after arrival at home, he is believed to have come in close contact with at least 25 people in train apart from 6 in his family and neighbourhood. Though the youth did not show any symptoms of the disease, he was tested as per government protocol of testing of all 4300 people who have returned from abroad after March 4.

In a related development on Thursday, Odishas second coronavirus patient, a 19-year-old youth who had returned from UK and tested positive on March 20 was discharged from AIIMS Bhubaneswar. The second Covid-19 positive case has completely recovered and tested negative for the virus, said a health department official.

Also on Thursday, two standalone Covid-19 speciality hospitals with a total capacity of 650 started functioning in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. The first one is a 500 isolation bed facility in KIMS Bhubaneswar and the second one is at Ashwini Hospital in Cuttack with a 150 isolation beds. The State government earlier announced that patients would get free treatment along with free food and rent-free stay in these hospitals. The next Covid-19 hospital in SUM Hospital would have 500 isolation beds.

While the state raced to build more isolation facilties for Covid-19 patients, Odisha has urged the centre to immediately send personal protective equipment (PPE) like Hazmat suits and masks as well as coronavirus testing kits.

In a letter to Union health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, Odisha health minister Naba Kishore Das said there is acute shortage of testing kits in the State which are essential for detection and treatment of the deadly virus.

Adequate ventilators, PPEs, masks, sanitisers may kindly be provided to important district headquarter hospitals including Rourkela General Hospital for better treatment of Coronavirus patients. The testing facilities may be extended to MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Berhampur and VIMSAR, Burla for testing more and more suspected patients of other parts of the State, Das wrote in his letter on April 1. Due to lack of adequate testing kits, till April 2, Odisha has been able to test only 1113 samples.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) said that it mobilised its C-130J aircraft on Thursday to airlift 6.2 tonnes of essential medical supplies for Male in the Maldives as this consignment could not be transported through usual channels due to the 21-day lockdown imposed in India for curbing the coronavirus pandemic.

"IAF airlifted critical medical supplies to Male 'Operation Sanjeevani'. Maldives has faced a shortage of essential medical supplies - after COVID-19 lockdown," it said on Twitter



"Operation Sanjeevani was successfully conducted with meticulous planning, coordination and execution of MEA (Ministry of External Affair), MoD (Ministry of Defence), HQ IDS (Headquarters - Integrated Defence Staff), MOH&FW (Ministry of Health and Family Welfare) and other government agencies. The success of the mission is testimony to synergy amongst multiple agencies," the IAF stated.

India has imposed a 21-day lockdown from March 25 to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. Consequently, no international and domestic passenger flight has been permitted to fly during this period.

However, cargo flights have been permitted to fly during the flight ban.

The High Commission of India in the Maldives, in a press statement, said, "6.2 tonnes of essential medicines and hospital consumables were airlifted by an Indian Air Force (IAF) C-130J aircraft from India to Male through Operation Sanjeevani."



These medicines and consumables were procured by the Maldives' State Trading Organisation (STO) from eight different suppliers in India, the High Commission said.

"However, due to the 21-day lockdown imposed in India to contain COVID-19, these medicines could not be transported to the Maldives by the suppliers through any other means," it noted.

At the request of the Government of the Maldives, the IAF aircraft lifted these medicines from airports in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Madurai before flying to the Maldives.

"The Indian Army facilitated the transport of these medicines and consumables from warehouses across India to the respective airports," the High Commission said.

Among other things, these medicines include influenza vaccines, anti-viral drugs such as Lopthavir arid Ritonavir -- which have been used to treat patients with COVID-19 in other countries -- medicines for cardiac conditions, kidney ailments, hypertension, high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis, allergies and cancer treatment.

The consignment also had medical consumables such as catheters, nebulisers, urine bags and infant feeding tubes.

The High Commission also said that India had gifted 5.5 tonnes of essential medicines to the Maldives on March 14.

"India had also sent a 14-member COVID-19 Rapid Response Team of doctors and specialists enhanced preparedness. The team worked closely with health authorities in Male and outlying islands," it mentioned.

In India, 2,069 confirmed coronavirus cases have been reported till now while 53 COVID-19 patients have died, according to the Union Health Ministry.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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Local merchants, first responders and volunteer groups have stepped up to feed health care workers treating coronavirus patients in areas of the state hardest hit by the deadly pandemic.

Officers with the Bogota police union bought and delivered 20 pizzas from Master Pizza and two trays of chicken fingers from Angelos Pizza to intensive care unit and emergency room staffers at Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, at the epicenter of the outbreak in the state.

We thank them for all of their hard work, dedication and care they are giving during this extremely rough time, the police department said in a social media post.

A Little Ferry Starbucks store also donated coffee to the healthcare workers. In interviews with NJ Advance Media, doctors at Holy Name said the hospital looked like a war zone as staff risked their own health to treat scores of COVID-19 patients.

Bogota Police Officers from the Bogota FOP Lodge 161, safely purchased and safely dropped off 20 pizzas from Master... Posted by Bogota Police Department on Wednesday, April 1, 2020

The hospital last week issued a public plea for donations of protective equipment as supplies dwindled. A Ridgefield Park Girl Scouts troop contributed by donating 10,000 gloves bought with money from cookie sales to the medical center.

The girls are truly dedicated and committed to continue to help the [hospitals] in their community, a hospital statement said. They appreciate the front lines and their families and the sacrifices they are all making to help people in our community.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

There were at least 3,708 cases of the virus in Bergen County, with 373 in Teaneck as of Wednesday night, according to the county executives office.

Elsewhere in New Jersey, businesses have contributed to keep medical workers fed. A group of Point Pleasant-area merchants treated Ocean Medical Center staffers to lunch and dinner from Oakwoods Point Pizza.

Saint Peters University Hospital in New Brunswick health workers received a similar delivery of pizzas as part of a charity effort there.

Donors said they hoped the food would show support for medical staffers. Health officials said the state was preparing for a surge in coronavirus patients, and hospitals in northern New Jersey were already facing surge conditions this week.

If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

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Zelenko, who learned two years ago that he had a rare form of cancer, was not the first doctor to recommend treating the coronavirus with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, although he was among the first to recommend that they be given to patients with only mild symptoms. He said that while he was optimistic, it was too early to tell whether the drugs would ultimately work.
By Gabriela Baczynska and Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission told Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Thursday that emergency powers he has assumed to combat the coronavirus outbreak risk upending democracy and must be subject to proper parliamentary and media scrutiny.

On Monday, Orban secured an open-ended right to rule by executive decree. Also, under a new law anybody deemed to be hindering measures to curb the spread of the virus or spreading false information about it faces up to five years in jail.

More than a dozen EU member states including Germany, Italy, Spain and France have expressed concern that the new law could be used to muzzle journalists critical of Orban.

"This is the time to kill coronavirus - not the time to kill democracy," said Vera Jourova, the Czech member of the executive Commission who is responsible for upholding EU values and transparency.

"When governments gain more powers to manage a crisis, they should be under democratic control. This is normally done by the parliaments and independent media," she told Reuters.

"These are the safeguards that should be present when member states start emergency regimes."

The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, also said Orban's powers may be excessive.

"These emergency measures have to be limited to what is necessary, they have to be strictly proportionate... They should not last indefinitely and very importantly they should be subject to regular scrutiny," she told a news conference.

EU UNITY TESTED

Donald Tusk, the leader of the centre-right European People's Party in the European Parliament, said in a letter to members of the grouping that they should consider once again expelling Orban's Fidesz party once the coronavirus crisis ends.

However, previous attempts to expel Fidesz have failed and some want to tread cautiously with Orban, mindful that the coronavirus crisis is already testing EU unity. Member states disagree over the scale of support needed for their battered economies, over supplies of medical equipment and emergency checks on what are normally Europe's open internal borders.

Story continues

Since taking power in 2010, Orban has used legal levers, ownership changes and advertising revenues to boost state control of the media. The EU has taken Hungary to court for its muzzling of non-governmental organisations, media and academics, but has had little success in forcing Orban to change tack.

Jourova said "the risk that some states or governments could use the corona crisis to accumulate more power" meant Brussels would push even harder to make access to EU funds in its next joint budget for 2021-27 conditional on upholding democracy.

Speaking by phone from her home in Brussels, where like most Europeans she is in lockdown, Jourova said: "The Hungarian parliament should continue doing its job of parliamentary control and the media should be free to do their job."

"Democracy is not an obstacle to solving the crisis. Democracy must be present and fundamental rights of people must not be put aside."

(Additional reporting by Jan Strupczewski, Marine Strauss and Philip Blenkinsop, Writing by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Gareth Jones)
South Jacksonville village trustees are scheduled to meet in special session at 7 p.m. today in Village Hall, 301 Dewey Drive.

Among the items on the agenda are:
THE Deputy Minister for Livestock and Fisheries, Mr Abdallah Ulega has nullified the order by Monduli District Commissioner (DC), to ban cattle auction market at Meserani.

Mr Ulega who toured the area, called for immediate and effective resumption of the business, but with enough caution over the COVID-19 as it has otherwise been advised by President John Magufuli.

The minister said that most of Monduli people rely on livestock for a living so it was not right to ban such markets. He said that other sectors are operating normally in the country so it was illogical to ban the market that attracts a huge number of traders from within and outside the district.

Monduli DC, Mr Iddy Kimanta ordered indefinite closure of the market last week as a measure to control spread of the deadly coronavirus.

Livestock market stakeholders had arrived in huge numbers at the main livestock market in the district, some to buy and other for selling purposes, only to be interrupted by police officers, who declared that no more livestock auction would be taking place in Monduli.

Monduli District authorities took the move as a means to ensure that the district that so far has not registered any case of Covid-19 disease remains free of it.

The auction always attracts huge number of people over 1,000 per day from within and outside the district. The decision was reached by Monduli District Defense and Security Committee under the District Commissioner (DC), Mr Iddy Kimanta said yesterday that the verdict was arrived due to the fact that the government has banned mass gatherings as they are partly a means for Covid-19 patients to infect others.

He was of the opinion that the market attracts cattle sellers and buyers, traders in other businessespecially services such as food, drinks and other goods, hence those who attend the same are vulnerable to the deadly disease that started in Wuhan, where China is due to lift the lockdown after successful efforts to fight the virus.

Monduli, located at the northeastern section of the country is bordered to the north by Longido District, the latter bordering Kenya.

Most of Longido residents are livestock keepers. The population is estimated at 185,237. DC Kimanta said everybody is duty-bound to safeguard themselves, their families and the public as a whole.

Many livestock traders did not take kindly to the decision, were astonished and saddened that they were not given notice, so they were shocked when they arrived, some to buy while others were selling, having come from far-off areas.

Speaking on behalf of others, Mr Andaskoi Saluni and Zacharia Mollel claimed that the action taken by district authorities was not fair.

They said what they know is that President John Magufuli said on Sunday that people should carry on with economic activities but cautiously.

Mr Andaskoi said he is encountering a huge loss as he had transported his cows to the market and has to take them back home at his own cost.

He said he is perplexed and does not know how he will be making both ends meet for the unknown period the market is closed.
Bhopal, April 3 : A tough-sounding tweet from Madhya Pradesh Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and the threat of invoking the National Security Act (NSA) against Md Mustafa, Md Gulrez, Shoaib and Majeed who were arrested on Thursday for pelting stones on health workers in Indore's Tatpatti Bakhal area on Wednesday may have sent the desired message to anti-social elements.

The chief minister tweeted to say, "the human rights are for humans." Troublemakers will be dealt with firmly. "This is not just a tweet. It is a warning", Chouhan said.

"All my doctors, nurses, paramedical staff, ANM, ASHA workers, Anganwadi workers and urban body workers fighting the war against COVID-19, you continue your fight against Corona, your complete security. The responsibility is mine! I bow to your devotion," he said.

But the new DIG Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Harinarayanchari Mishra tried to clear the perception about a communal angle to the action. He said, "Based on the video footage, seven people responsible for the incident have been arrested after identification." Such elements can not be allowed to provoke innocent people for violence.

The DIG said that patients of the corona virus who are found in the city, their relatives and the people in contact with them are being searched by the Health Department by intensive campaign and they are being separated as a precaution so that the spread of this disease can be stopped.

Collector and District Magistrate Indore, Manish Singh has issued orders to send the four persons to jail under sub-section two of Section 3 of the National Security Act 1980. Singh has ordered the detained convicts to be kept in the Central Jail, Rewa.

"Rumours were spread against this campaign on social media before the stone pelting incident on the health workers. The message was against the anti-social elements and not a particular community, as was being made out in the media," the police said.

The government's claims about participants in the Tablighi Markaz in Delhi were proved wrong. While the government claimed 107 persons who had participated have been found to have to come back to Madhya Pradesh. Police sources said the figures have been grossly inflated and none of them have been able to return to the state after the restrictions were enforced. All of them have stayed put in Delhi and have been quarantined. The reports about 36 persons having returned to Bhopal were wrong. The claim was made before the chief minister in a meeting.

Meanwhile the former health minister of the state Tulsiram Silawat who has resigned to join the BJP after the fall of the Congress government met Chouhan to suggest ways to deal with the situation. Tulsiram also is potential candidate for Indore assembly seat during the upcoming by elections.

The Chief Minister removed Health Commissioner Prateek Hajela. IAS Faiz Ahmed Kidwai has been appointed as the new Health Commissioner.
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The number of people confirmed to have the coronavirus in Ohio climbed to 2,902, and 81 people have died from COVID-19, the illness caused by the infection, according to numbers released by the Ohio Department of Health on Thursday afternoon.

This is up from Wednesday, when 2,547 people had tested positive and 65 people had died from COVID-19.

Were going to continue to see these numbers go up, Gov. Mike DeWine said at his daily briefing Thursday.

The health department on Thursday said 802 people have been hospitalized for COVID-19 and 260 have been admitted into the intensive-care unit. Thats around 28% of all positive tests, Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton said.

The age range remained from below 1 year to 99, with a median age of 53. By sex, 49% of the infected were males and 51% were females.

The state continues to not provide information on how many have recovered, but Acton said officials are working on it.

Young people are being affected by this," Acton said. "As the weather is getting better, weve talked about young people taking the time to take this very, very seriously. Young people are being hospitalized. Young people are dying from this.

Worldwide, just under 1 million people were confirmed to have the coronavirus - 981,000 - and 50,000 people have died, according to data tracked by Johns Hopkins University on Thursday afternoon.

In the U.S. over 226,000 people are confirmed to have coronavirus and 5,300 people are dead.

DeWine thanked Ohio for the collective sacrifices being made, saying he knows its not easy.

The peak will hit Ohio between April 15-May 15, he said, based on different models and experts.

Thank you for the sacrifices youre making," he said. "Youre making financial sacrifices, youre making personal sacrifices.

New stay-at-home order

Acton signed a new order Thursday afternoon, which kicks in Monday night, extending the stay-at-home order until May 1, DeWine said.

DeWine said its unlikely Ohio will be out of the woods by May 1.

The order is similar to the current order, except for some suggestions based on public feedback:

Creates a dispute resolution panel for cases where similar businesses are being treated differently in different counties. The decisions will have the force of law and be final, and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted said he expects the decisions to be in writing.

To address complaints of overcrowded stores, retail businesses will have to establish a number of people to be in the business at one time. Were not telling them what number to set, DeWine said, explaining that each retailer is set up differently.

When queueing to the store, people must be 6 feet apart.

Travelers into Ohio must quarantine for 14 days, with the exception of people who regularly travel across state borders -- Detroit workers who live in Toledo or Kentucky residents who work in Cincinnati.

Weddings wont be regulated. But wedding receptions are limited to 10 people, within the Ohio mass gathering order.

Fishing is allowed. Most anglers dont want to get close to others. But remember to stay far apart.

We are not closing state parks. But if the director or people feel we have a state park with too many people in it... the director has the option to take whatever action she needs," DeWine said.

Can I wear a mask?

DeWine said that hes received questions from people whose loved ones work in essential retail about whether they can wear masks.

We would encourage employers to allow your employees to wear that mask, DeWine said.

The respiratory N95 masks used in the health care industry are not available. But people can wear homemade cloth masks, which will at least contain some droplets of the wearer from spreading.

Many people with the coronavirus are asymptomatic.

Battelle Memorial Institute can sterilize 160,000 N95 masks a day. DeWine told Ohio hospitals to contact the company to get their masks sterilized by Columbus-based Battelle.

Unemployment update

Nearly a half million people have filed jobless claims in the last two weeks.

About 300 new employees have been added to the Ohio unemployment phone system, Husted said, addressing widespread complaints by Ohioans who continue to wait for benefits to arrive.

The number is 877-644-6562.

People can file complaints online and bypass long wait times: https://unemployment.ohio.gov/.

The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services expects to add 1,000 new workers for the phones by the end of next week, he said.

Theyre bringing this on line as fast as they can," Husted said.

It sometimes takes two weeks for people to get an unemployment check. How are they to pay their bills?

DeWine acknowledged it is hard.

I would not make these decisions if it was not a matter of life and death, DeWine said. I am convinced it is saving lives."

Husted added that the bill recently passed by Congress provides extra money for taxpayers. The state has ordered water utilities to not disconnect, he said.

Coronavirus can travel in the air -- but exposure is also dependent on length of time

Acton said that people shouldnt be concerned if theyre taking walks outside. Just keep six feet or more space.

She said that news that coronavirus can travel through the air shouldnt make people too concerned. They need to remember infections are also dependent on the length of time of exposure, she said.

Economic advisory board

DeWine said he was creating a board to give him insights, similar to his health care board made up of physicians and hospital system executives.

Were also looking to experts as we move forward and as we will come out of this and as we focus on our economic recovery, he said.

Other coronavirus coverage:

Gov. Mike DeWine gives Thursdays coronavirus update: Watch live

Whats the unemployment application rejection rate? Ohio doesnt yet know.

Ohioans are now in 1 of 3 hospital zones for coronavirus treatment, Gov. DeWine announces

Confirmed Ohio coronavirus cases increase to 2,547 and 65 deaths: Gov. Mike DeWines Wednesday April 1 briefing

Ohios Dr. Amy Acton looks forward to new CDC coronavirus guidelines that could call for face coverings in public

Columbus-based Battelle is at the forefront of battling the coronavirus: 5 facts about the nonprofit firm
Long lines formed outside budget supermarkets in Los Angeles as food stamp recipients rushed to stock up on groceries on Wednesday  a sign of growing economic despair in a time of coronavirus.

The number of people receiving food stamps in California has already doubled in a month, with LA doubling within a week, as the number is set to go higher. Grim new unemployment figures Thursday show 6.6 million new jobless claims nationwide.

DailyMail.com photographed hundreds of people waiting outside a branch of Costco in the city's Inglewood neighborhood while a Trader Joe's in nearby Westchester was also swamped with shoppers.

In Culver City, a slow-moving line could be seen outside low-cost Mexican retailer Northgate Market.

Long lines formed outside budget supermarkets in Los Angeles as food stamp recipients rushed to stock up on groceries on Wednesday  a sign of growing economic despair in a time of coronavirus

Many had come wearing protective gear, such as gloves and face masks

The number of people receiving food stamps in California has already doubled in a month, and is set to go higher, with grim new unemployment figures Thursday showing 6.6 million new jobless claims nationwide

Now, thanks to the coronavirus emergency, demand for the service has shot up  doubling last week in Los Angeles alone. According to the Department of Public Health, 17,532 people applied in LA last week, compared with 9,060 in the same week last year

DailyMail.com photographed hundreds of people waiting outside a branch of Costco in the city's Inglewood neighborhood while a Trader Joe's in nearby Westchester was also swamped with shoppers

One shopper told DailyMail.com: 'The lines have been huge everywhere. This is the fourth grocery store I've been to today  everywhere has lines because people get their food stamps today'

One shopper told DailyMail.com: 'The lines have been huge everywhere. This is the fourth grocery store I've been to today  everywhere has lines because people get their food stamps today.'

Many had come wearing protective gear  with one man seen loading his shopping while dressed in a hazmat suit and wearing a full-face mask.

On Tuesday, President Trump told people to wear scarfs as well as masks, saying: 'You could get a mask, but you could also - but most people have scarves and scarves are very good and they can use a scarf and we're only talking about a limited period of time.'

Many of the shoppers appeared to have taken his advice, with one man purchasing supplies with what looked like a small towel wrapped around his face.

Los Angeles is home to more than a million people eligible for the California food stamps program which is known as CalFresh.

Many live in the city's poorer neighborhoods, among them Inglewood, South Central and Boyle Heights.

According to LA Chamber figures, 89 percent of Angelenos living below the Federal poverty line reside in districts south of Downtown such as Watts.

On Tuesday, President Trump told people to wear scarfs as well as masks, saying: 'You could get a mask, but you could also - but most people have scarves and scarves are very good and they can use a scarf and we're only talking about a limited period of time'

Los Angeles is home to more than a million people eligible for the California food stamps program which is known as CalFresh. Many live in the city's poorer neighborhoods, among them Inglewood, South Central and Boyle Heights

Many of the shoppers appeared to have taken his advice, with one man purchasing supplies with what looked like a small towel wrapped around his face

According to the Department of Public Health, 17,532 people applied in LA last week, compared with 9,060 in the same week last year. Statewide, 55,624 people applied for CalFresh  up from 34,882 in March 2019

The Bronx in New York saw similar lines on Thursday, with several wearing face masks

New York City has been deemed of the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis in the US

Many require food stamps  prior to the Covid-19 crisis, the city was giving nutritional assistance to 1,176,924 people at a cost of more than $149 million.

To be eligible for assistance, single person households must have income below $2,000 a month while a four-person family must have a monthly income of no more than $4,292.

Monthly payments of $174 for a single person or $646 for a family of four are paid on the first day of the month via a government debit card called an Electronic Benefits [EBT] card.

Now, thanks to the coronavirus emergency, demand for the service has shot up  doubling last week in Los Angeles alone.

According to the Department of Public Health, 17,532 people applied in LA last week, compared with 9,060 in the same week last year.

Statewide, 55,624 people applied for CalFresh  up from 34,882 in March 2019.

In California as a whole, more than four million people receive food stamps according to the most recent CalFresh figures, that date from February.

In response to the crisis, California governor Gavin Newsom (pictured) has allocated another $24 million to providing food assistance via CalFresh

Newsom has also issued an executive order to ease the application process  both to CalFresh and other social assistance programs  and has asked the Federal government to review rules that prevent recipients from shopping online

To be eligible for assistance, single person households must have income below $2,000 a month while a four-person family must have a monthly income of no more than $4,292

In California as a whole, more than four million people receive food stamps according to the most recent CalFresh figures, that date from February

Speaking in his daily press conference on Tuesday, Newsom said: 'These social safety net programs are so important for families  especially during this crisis. We don't want Californians who rely on these services to lose them'

In response to the crisis, California governor Gavin Newsom has allocated another $24 million to providing food assistance via CalFresh.

He has also issued an executive order to ease the application process  both to CalFresh and other social assistance programs  and has asked the Federal government to review rules that prevent recipients from shopping online.

The same order also waived waiting times to access Medi-Cal healthcare and extended cash assistance for immigrants.

Speaking in his daily press conference on Tuesday, Newsom said: 'These social safety net programs are so important for families  especially during this crisis.

'We don't want Californians who rely on these services to lose them.'
Houston liquefied natural gas company Cheniere Energy marked an important benchmark in January  its 1,000th LNG export shipment. It placed Cheniere among the ranks of global exporters such as QatarGas, Total, Shell, BP, Petronas and Chevron, whose cargoes each number in the thousands.

Cheniere hit the mark four years after its first shipment in February 2016, opening a new era of LNG exports in the lower 48 states with that shipment from its Sabine Pass LNG plant in Cameron Parish, La., to Brazil.

Cheniere also made a small piece of state history when it sent the first LNG shipment from Texas with a cargo bound for Greece from its Corpus Christi LNG plant in December 2018.

Chief Executive Jack Fusco spoke with Texas Inc. during a Jan. 27 sit-down interview about the future of the LNG industry, the Permian Basin and the companys evolving business model thas has 40 percent of its shipments going to Asia, 25 percent to Europe, 25 percent to Latin American and the remainder to the Middle East and Africa.

Since that interview, coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on global oil and natural gas markets. With offices around the world, Cheniere has enacted several measures to keep its employees safe but is not commenting beyond that at this time.

More Information Jack Fusco At-A-Glance Title: CEO of Cheniere Energy Age: 57 Hometown: Modesto, Calif. Undergraduate: California State University at Sacramento (Mechanical Engineering) Previous Career Highlights: CEO at Calpine Corporation Vice President at Goldman Sachs Source: Cheniere Energy Cheniere Energy At-A-Glance Headquarters: Houston Global Offices: Beijing, London, Singapore, Tokyo and Washington D.C. Annual Revenue: $9.7 billion Number of Employees: 1,530 Export Terminals: Sabine Pass LNG in Cameron Parish, Louisiana Corpus Christi LNG in Gregory, Texas Source: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission See More Collapse

Q: When we first spoke, the coronavirus had not yet reshaped how people interact and how business is conducted. What steps is Cheniere taking to protect its employees from the pandemic?

A: Like many Houston companies, weve upped our game on crisis situations following Harvey. We also have a Beijing office, so we were already on alert as to how this might impact employees, and we did advanced scenario planning that enabled us to take action as the virus spread to the United States and other locations where we have offices.

Weve instituted work from home protocols, limited large gatherings, and have stood up our business support team to ensure our entire workforce are doing their part to contain this virus. So far, we havent seen impacts to our production, and were doing our best to support our people and their families in this difficult time for everyone.

Q: As far as production goes, why is that 1,000th shipment regarded as an important milestone?

A: In the LNG production industry, a thousand cargo is really special. Thats a milestone. Were the first LNG producer in the world to hit that mark in less than four years. Were very pleased with our folks and their performance  hitting it reliably and safely through a pretty tough four-year period. Weve had a lot of hurricanes, a lot of freezing events, some rough seas, some winds and some fog. Weve had a little bit of everything. But weve made it look easy.

We sold those cargoes to 35 different countries. Its really special for this organization to get through this 1,000th cargo. We just feel like were now just getting started. This validates that were the real deal. Were now a force to reckon with.

Q: So how much natural gas does that 1,000 cargoes represent?

A: A thousand cargoes is enough energy to basically power the 7.4 million homes in the State of Texas for close to five years. That is a lot of energy. What were most proud of is our vision is providing clean energy sources to the world thats affordable and reliable. Weve been able to do that with these thousand cargoes. Weve been able to effectively reduce carbon by displacing coal worldwide with these thousand cargoes upwards with over 50 million tons of carbon dioxide were not emitted worldwide, because of our engineers and their ability to deliver those cargoes.

Q: Any updates about the construction for the expansion projects at Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi?

A: We had three more trains start up last year, so Train 5 at Sabine Pass and Trains 1 and 2  both at Corpus Christi. We have seven trains up and running. Our engineering, procurement and construction partner Bechtel has done such a fantastic job with getting those trains built ahead of schedule and on budget. The analogy for us is that it takes 7 million man hours to build one of our liquefaction trains and it took 7 million man hours to build the Empire State Building. So weve effectively built seven Empire State Buildings in record-breaking time. Im humbled by our performance and set the stage and the standard for LNG producers.

Q: Those trains were built with the support of long-term contracts with utility companies overseas. Can you explain your new business model in the supply deals with EOG Resources and Apache Corp.?

A: We sell one product  liquefied natural gas. So, we have to be able to be a little more creative and innovative on the customer side. Both EOG and Apache have been longtime customers of Cheniere. We have a very strong relationship with those teams. They wanted to get some exposure to LNG prices. And we were able to formulate a transaction between the parties that we call greater production marketing. We get a fee for liquefaction. We get a fee for marketing and shipping. And in exchange for that, they get the index price of whatever index that theyve chosen.

Q: That sounds good for the producers, who can cash in on overseas prices differences, but what about the customers?

A: We all talk about U.S. LNG as if its all the same, but its not. Its a different business proposition for the customers. If they go to Cameron or to Freeport, then the customer has to buy the gas, the customer has to have the ship to pick it up FOB (once it leaves the shippers dock), the customer has to come up with equity upfront and then they have to buy into the exploration and production side of the business.

Weve been extremely successful with PGNiG, the Polish gas cmopany, CPC in Taiwan and with PetroChina in China. They dont want to worry about buying gas in America. And they dont want to worry about going through the Panama Canal, so we do everything for them. We only get paid when we deliver to their dock. Were the only full service LNG provider in America. If youre an international utility, you dont want to worry. You just need your LNG, then youre coming to us. If you have a massive portfolio and youre trader like Total or Shell or BP or Chevron or Exxon, then youre probably looking for the cheapest liquefaction.

Q: Forty percent of your shipments go Asia but a growing number are being sent to Europe. Do you see a point when Europe overtakes Asia?

A: I think Asia is going to remain king of demand for the foreseeable future. We have some very strong foundation with customers in France in with EDF and Total, but at the end of the day the Asian demand is growing so rapidly.

Q: Cheniere has been described as the largest single buyer of natural gas in the United States. Just how much gas is the company buying?

A: Were buying close to 10 percent every day. U.S. natural gas production is around 70 billion cubic feet per day and were taking 6 billion ourselves. Thats gonna grow with our other two trains coming online. So thats going to be at 7.5 billion. But today, we buy 6 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day thats delivered to two single points  Corpus Christi and Sabine Pass. We buy that gas from over 70 producers on 25 different pipelines.

Q: Most analysts believe global LNG demand will be at 500 million tons per year by 2030. Do you agree with that figure? And how much of that will the U.S. LNG industry capture?

A: Well, you saw it grow dramatically. When I started with Cheniere, almost four years ago, it was around 270 million tons. That demand is now over 380 million tons. And its forecast to continue to grow dramatically. The 500 number is achievable but its a worldwide number. When we look at it, we dont say its all of it going to come from the United States, because youre competing with the Russians and projects like Mozambique LNG, LNG Canada and the QatarGas expansions. Its very hard for a greenfield project to compete with expansion projects because there is a lot of infrastructure that has to be built. So that when youre expanding, an already existing site is cheaper and faster.

Q: A lot of the new natural gas pipelines being built in the Permian Basin of West Texas are pointed to the Gulf Coast. Will that alleviate flaring? And how does Cheniere fit into that?

A: Were on the right side of all the debates. As I mentioned earlier, we helped to offset 50 million tons of carbon dioxide worldwide. When were here in America, we forget that most of the world still uses solid fuels and oil for energy. The impact that we can have  a positive impact  by exporting our excess gas to the rest of the world is amazing. We want to prove it.
(Newser)  "Just don't be hugging everybody," a correctional officer advised Joe Bryan shortly before the 79-year-old walked out of Texas State Penitentiary for the first time in 32 years on Tuesday. It was well-meaning advice in the midst of a pandemic. But "that is like telling a dog to stay out of the meat house," Bryan put it to the Waco Tribune-Herald, which reports he was soon rushed and hugged by his nieces. There were more than two dozen family members and supporters waiting for Bryan, a former high school principal convicted of the 1985 shooting death of his wife in their Clifton homethe subject of a two-part investigation by ProPublica and New York Times Magazine in 2018. The investigation cast doubt on the bloodstain-pattern analysis used to convict him and pointed to a deceased police officer blamed for another murder four months earlier.

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Bryan, who was attending a conference 120 miles away in Austin, per ProPublica, has always maintained his innocence. His initial conviction was overturned. But he was convicted again in 1989 and sentenced to 99 years. "I think if I had admitted to it, I would have been out years ago," he told the Tribune-Herald, noting he was first eligible for parole in 1996. "But I didn't do it." Write lawyer Jessi Freud said "what we were hoping for was to exonerate Joe," but "the most important thing was him not dying in a place where he never should have been." Bryan, who suffers congestive heart failure, will be on parole for the rest of his life. Fitted with an ankle monitor, he may also be on house arrest in Houston, at least initially. "Whatever it takes to do this, I will do it," he said. "This is a very good day, and I am so thankful." (Read more prison release stories.)




The Nelson Foundation supports communities at home and abroad during COVID-19

The Nelson Foundation, the philanthropic organisation of the Nelson family, which privately owns and operates Kemin Industries, announced April 1a US$50,000 donation to the Food Bank of Iowa to assist with feeding food insecure Iowans during the coronavirus pandemic.



In addition to what The Nelson Foundation has done to support those facing food insecurity in Iowa, Kemin continues to assist communities around the world, including a donation of nearly 10,000 items of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to the Iowa Department of Public Health. Kemin teams in Italy and Belgium have donated PPE to their local hospitals, including homemade masks for healthcare workers, and a recent internal fundraiser collected more than 13,000, which will be matched by Kemin, for the Ospedale Mater Salutis di Legnago in Verona, Italy, where Kemin operates.



"As a family company that produces ingredients to protect the world's food supply, when a global crisis arrives in our backyard, it is our responsibility to lend support to those most in need," said Mary Nelson, co-founder of Kemin. "We hope this donation encourages other companies and foundations to continue to support their local communities and those most vulnerable due to COVID-19."



Driven by servant leadership and a motivation to help their community, R.W. and Mary Nelson, the founders of Kemin, established The Nelson Foundation in 1983 to support in-state efforts to enhance science, education and assist children in need. Mary Nelson has always been passionate about food security issues and lending support to vulnerable populations.



The Nelson Foundation's gift has been designated to go directly toward meal programmes. According to the Food Bank of Iowa, for every US$1,000 the nonprofit receives, it can feed up to 4,000 people. With this donation, about 200,000 meals will be provided to food-insecure Iowans.



"This generous gift from the Nelson Foundation will have an immediate impact on the increased demand for food assistance as a result of COVID-19," said Michelle Book, president and CEO, Food Bank of Iowa. "In this time of crisis, we are incredibly grateful to the Nelson family for standing with Food Bank of Iowa and those in need."



"The more we can all work together to help those in need during this turbulent time, the better and stronger our community will be," said Mary Katherine Nelson, chair of the Nelson Family Council. "With a family business focused on food production and transforming the quality of life, the Nelson family immediately recognised the need to support an organisation in our community that works tirelessly to provide food for those who have been severely impacted by this pandemic."



The Nelson Foundation is comprised of Nelson family members, including the third generation. Kemin founders R.W. and Mary Nelson, who are both in their early-90s, are still actively engaged in the business and The Nelson Foundation. Their son, Dr. Chris Nelson, president and CEO of Kemin, and the entire Nelson family continue R.W. and Mary's philanthropic legacy within the company, in Iowa and around the world.
The US has begun repatriation of its stranded nationals, who want to return home, from India which is undergoing a 21-day lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic, a senior American diplomat has said, praising the Indian government for extending full support to undertake this "important mission".

The repatriation from India is part of the massive effort being undertaken by the US for its citizens from across the world. So far, the US has repatriated over 30,000 citizens from over 60 countries on more than 350 flights. "We began our repatriation efforts ...
WABASHA  So much for a flood-free spring.

Rainfall expected Thursday and Friday will likely bring flooding to towns along the Mississippi River by Sunday or Monday, according to the National Weather Service in La Crosse, Wis.

Brenda Tomlinson, the Winona County Emergency Management Director, said right now a boat ramp located east of Kellogg and just south of where the Zumbro River empties into the Mississippi is seeing some high water, but otherwise, the county has not been affected yet.

"It's not causing any issues right now," Tomlinson said. "It'll rise up close to the moderate flooding stage by Tuesday. That still isn't terrible, but (Minnesota) Highway 60 coming into Wabasha will probably start getting water into it. That'll be the biggest thing at that point."

The city of Red Wing has issued a warning to residents to watch out for high water at some common low spots along the river. For example, access to the public boat launch at Frazier Street is closed, and Colvill Park's boat ramp will close Friday.

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Other spots to watch next week in Red Wing include Levee Road west of the roundabout to Pottery Pond, Bay Point Park and boat ramp, and East Fifth Street at Barn Bluff.

The weather service predicts less than an inch of rain will fall Thursday and Friday around the region, with as much as a 90 percent chance of rain Thursday night. After a brief pause Saturday, there will be a 50 percent chance of more rain Sunday night and 40 percent chance of rain Monday.

By Monday or Tuesday, every gauge along the Mississippi River from Lock and Dam 3 at Prairie Island to Lock and Dam 8 at Genoa, Wis., will be in the minor flooding range except Winona, La Crosse and Red Wing, which will all be at moderate flood stage. The river is expected to reach 14 feet at Wabasha, which is the point between minor and moderate flooding.

Lock and Dam 4 at Alma, Wis., will remain in the near flood stage level through early next week.
Hyderabad, April 2 : From remote villages to cities, they are seen everywhere. Clad in long white kurtas over pyjamas and wearing skull caps, they move around in groups doing 'gasht' or going door to door to personally meet Muslims, invite them to namaz and emphasizing the need to follow the true path for success in life after death.

Tablighi Jamaat has been active in undivided Andhra Pradesh for decades. Working with a simple objective of helping Muslims revive their faith, Tablighis or members of the organisation have been carrying out their activities in almost every town and village.

After inviting Muslims to 'namaz' followed by 'ijtema' or gathering at the neighbourhood mosques, they exhort them to introspect and remind them of their responsibilities as Muslims and their duty to work for propagation of the faith. The participants in 'ijtema' are urged to devote their time to join 'jamaat' for going to another place for a similar preaching mission. Thus the chain of missionary mission continues.

The jamaats or group of preachers from one city or state go to the other city or state. They stay in mosques and in some places cook the food in the mosque premises. The announcements of the visit by 'Jamaat' from outside are often made in mosques.

While the organization has no formal structure, every 'Jamaat' or group of preachers will have an 'Ameer' or leader who guides through the tour, interact with people and address 'ijtema'.

The uninitiated are exhorted to leave homes, remain away from families for a certain period and sacrifice their time and money in the path of Allah. Some people spend 24 hours in Jamaat while others join the groups for 3 days, 10 days or more.

Jamatis are told to give 40 days in a year and at least one year in their lifetime for preaching.

Unlike some other leading Muslim organizations working to spread the message of Islam among non-Muslims, Tablighi Jamaat works only among Muslims. They stay away from politics and controversies and confine themselves to the single point agenda of inviting ordinary Muslims to namaz and Tabligh or preaching.

Though in existence for over 90 years, the organization was never in the limelight as publicity or media is a big no no for the organization.

Tablighis often face criticism for being cut-off from the world. Despite the differences other Muslim sects or groups have with Tablighi Jamaat for its style of functioning, the general perception is that they are non-controversial people purely dedicated to preaching.

Muslims from a cross section of the society are associated with Tablighi Jamaat. Floated by Islamic scholar Maulana Muhammad Ilyas in 1926 in then Mewat province, Tablighi Jamaat is believed to have millions of active members in more than 150 countries.

"It is their sincerity which attracts people. It activates an individual's mind and makes him realize the purpose of life and understand how he can achieve success in the hereafter by becoming a true Muslim," senior journalist and a Jamaat sympathizer J.S. Iftikhar told IANS.

He pointed out that Jamaat brought transformation in the lives of many people who were earlier drinking liquor, gambling or indulging in other vices.

"One comes to know many things after coming closer to Jamaat. It inculcates discipline among its members and teaches them to become practicing Muslims by regularly offering namaz, serving their parents and respecting others," he said.

The fact that more than 2,000 people from the Telugu states travelled to Delhi to attend the congregation shows how wide is the organisation's network in both the states.

Hyderabad is one of their key hubs in India. Operating from Mallepally mosque in the city, the organization runs its activities across Telangana and neighbouring Andhra Pradesh. Jamaats from various parts of the country and even abroad stay at the mosque throughout the year.

The 'jamaats' coming from abroad first reach Tablighi headquarters in Delhi, from where the organization Asends them to different parts of the country.

One such group of 10 Indonesians visiting Karimnagar town tested positive for COVID-19. Another group of eight Indonesians and 12 nationals from Kyrgyzstan were found in Mallepally mosque but none of them showed any symptoms of COVID-19. As a precautionary measure they were all sent into quarantine.

Another group of 12 preachers from Tablighi Jamaat from Vietnam were traced in Nalgonda town. They too were quarantined but showed no symptoms.
The Brooklyn Nets battle with COVID-19, at least for now, has come to an end.

Nets general manager Sean Marks confirmed on Wednesday that their entire roster is now symptom-free, more than two weeks after four players tested positive for the coronavirus.

The team and its traveling party completed the two-week quarantine, too.

[ Coronavirus: How the sports world is responding to the pandemic ]

Kevin Durant revealed that he was one of the four players who tested positive for the coronavirus shortly after the news broke. The other three players did not identify themselves. Only one of the four players who tested positive ever showed symptoms.

There were more than 206,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the United States as of Wednesday afternoon, the most among any country in the world, according to The New York Times.

[Create a bracket today for the NBA 2K Players tournament on BetMGM. The best bracket will win the $20K grand prize. Sign up now. 21+. Terms apply.]

New York has seen the most cases by far, with nearly 84,000 confirmed cases and nearly 2,000 deaths by Wednesday afternoon alone. The city has essentially been shut down in recent days while field hospitals, including one inside Central Park, are being set up to help care for the surging number of patients.

Marks said that team owner Joe Tsai and the Alibaba group are working to help provide personal protective equipment to New York-area hospitals, which are dealing with an extreme shortage of the necessary gear, according to ESPN.

As it pertains to the team, I sense  like all of us, like the rest of New York and really the rest of the globe  we're trying to deal with this as best we can, Marks said Wednesday, via ESPN. We know we have a long way to go here, and its gonna take every single person, every staff member, every player.

Coronavirus in the NBA

The Nets were one of several teams to have players or staff members test positive for the coronavirus since the NBA suspended operations on March 11.

Story continues

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert was the first positive case in the league, which prompted it to suspend the season, and his teammate Donovan Mitchell also tested positive. Two unnamed Los Angeles Lakers players had tested positive, though were cleared on Tuesday. Pistons forward Christian Wood had fully recovered after his diagnosis last week.

Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart also tested positive and quickly went on CNN to urge people to take the virus seriously.

The New York Knicks also announced that owner James Dolan tested positive on Saturday.

Multiple teams, including the Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets, have announced that people within their organizations had tested positive, though did not specify who.

Will Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant play this season, should the league resume?

While its certainly not how they had hoped, the NBAs prolonged hiatus has provided both Kyrie Irving and Durant extra time to recover from their respective injuries.

Irving underwent shoulder surgery early last month, and was expected to miss the rest of the season. Durant is still recovering from an Achilles tendon injury he suffered during the Finals last year with the Golden State Warriors, and was ruled out for the whole year.

Now, the break may not necessarily benefit them. They are both continuing their respective rehabilitations, Marks said, but the Nets training facility  like every other training facility  was closed by the NBA amid the pandemic, leaving both Durant and Irving to find other locations to rehab. And, at this point, its still unclear whether the NBA will return at all.

The hiatus has undoubtedly altered their return dates. Until Marks knows more in the coming weeks, both about their progress and the leagues plans to return as a whole, he isnt willing to put a specific date on it.

I couldnt give an answer on when theyll play this season, Marks said, via ESPN. I dont think its fair to those athletes nor the performance team to put a timeline on it. I think everyone is dealing with bigger, far more pressing things.

More from Yahoo Sports:
Interview Myanmar Govts Crackdown on Journalists Angers Media and Legal Insiders

Journalists, writers and lawyers denounce the recent crackdown of the journalists who interviewed the Arakan Army.

The governments crackdown on journalists under the Counter-Terrorism Law this week has attracted public condemnation.

Since Monday, the editor-in-chief of the Mandalay-based Voice of Myanmar (VOM) news agency has been jailed for publishing an interview with the Arakan Army (AA) spokesman. The government recently designated the rebel army as a terrorist group.

The editor of Yangon-based Khit Thit Media has been on the run since Tuesday after the police raided his home for republishing the VOMs story.

Another three journalists from the Rakhine-based Narinjara news outlet were interrogated by police but later released.

However, the editor-in-chief of Narinjara, who is still at large, faces charges under the Counter-Terrorism Law  the same repressive law that the Special Branch used to arrest the VOM editor-in-chief  for the media groups interview with the AA in a report on fighting in Rakhine State. Here are comments from journalists, lawyers and a writer on the crackdown, condemning the governments action.

Vox Pop

U Thein Than Oo

Lawyer

I could not understand why they did that. It is about reporters doing their job. In that case, action must be taken under the media law first. Only after that and only when the government thinks that it is not enough and [the reports] violate other laws, lawsuits should be filed under other laws. As a lawyer, I do not agree that lawsuits are filed [under the Counter-Terrorism Law] but not media law. As the Special Branch has filed the lawsuits, we can say that the lawsuits are filed by the [military-controlled] Ministry of Home Affairs. I want to see restraint exercised. We do not know what will happen to the country. As the whole world is overwhelmed by concerns about the pandemic, it is better to exercise restraint in such cases.

Nyi Pu Lay

Writer

I do not like action taken against journalists. I dont like it at all. It is totally unacceptable to take action against journalists who are doing their jobs. The complaints are filed by the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is not the time for such action. I want them released.

U Than Zaw Aung

Lawyer

Previously, Articles 17 (1) and 17 (2) [of the Unlawful Association Act] were frequently used to file lawsuits against journalists who contacted ethnic armed organizations. But now the authorities use the Counter-Terrorism Law, which carries harsher penalties. This harms the peoples right to information and press freedom. The media law states that journalists are allowed to report on executive and judicial affairs in line with the law. Filing lawsuits against journalists who have contacted organizations that [the government] does not like means the authorities will only allow them to report what they say. Journalists have to contact both sides for accuracy, credibility and impartiality. Media law clearly states that journalists cannot provide one-sided coverage. It is the right of journalists to contact both sides. Filing lawsuits under tough articles, but not media law, hampers not only journalists but also the peoples right to information.

U Ye Naing Moe

Founder, Yangon Journalism School

That lawsuits are filed against journalists under the Counter-Terrorism Law reflects how [the Ministry of Home Affairs] appreciates society. Their appreciation of democracy is zero. Yangon Journalism School firmly believes in the important role of independent journalists in society. Unless they can do their job freely, the country will not follow the right path. These punitive actions indicate that Myanmars press freedom is declining. Journalists have been attacked at a time when they are needed most. The Counter-Terrorism Law was wrongfully used. This shows their attitude towards the media. This will be recorded in history. Those who suppress journalists are never remembered well in the history books.

Ko Kyaw Swa Min

Secretary, Myanmar Press Council

We always told to follow the media law if any action to be taken against media personnel. The first procedure under the law is to file an initial complaint with the council. Besides the cases under the media law, the council denounces all lawsuits using other criminal charges against journalists, including under the Counter-Terrorism law.

For the journalists, they must remain unbiased in their coverage and seek comments from both sides, including the AA [Arakan Army] and the military. It is unacceptable to sue journalists for reporting on both sides.

Ko Zayar Hlaing

Editor, Mawkun Magazine

Journalists are oppressed by the repressive laws. I expected this would happen after the government declared [the AA a terrorist group] but I did not think it would happen so quickly. The Counter-Terrorism Law used by [the special branch] carries harsh sentences. It will lead to self-censorship and make unbiased reporting impossible.

We have media law to take action against journalists. But suing them under such harsh laws clearly shows their attitude towards the media.

Ma Mon Mon Myat

Political analyst, freelance journalist

The arrests could force a split between the government and military and the media when we need to fight COVID-19 together. It would not be good for the country. It seems [the authorities] would like to totally silence the AA. Reporters face great risks if they try to cover both sides, including Myanmars army and the ethnic armed group. Some reporters could take official statements released by the armed groups [instead of directly contacting them for interviews] to reduce the risk but there will be others who wont avoid the risk to cover both sides. Whenever there is a dispute between the government or military and journalists, the first step should be a complaint to the council and to hold discussions about compliance with the media law.

Aung Thu Nyein

Director of Communications at the Institute for Strategy and Policy (ISP) Myanmar

It shouldnt happen. There are two points. First, the government declared the AA as a terrorist group to try to control the group. But when it comes to repressing journalists who report on the group, it creates a problem for press freedom. Second, we are facing COVID-19 so there are more difficulties for journalists, for example, when attending court hearings. Arresting journalists for speaking to terrorist groups depends on the country. Many journalists meet Muslim organizations which many countries designate as terrorist groups. But those countries have freedom of speech. The arrests are deeply damaging for freedom of the press.

You may also like these stories:

Myanmar Journalists Furious as Govt Blocks Over 200 Websites Including News Pages

Two Civilians Killed in Myanmars Rakhine State During Alleged Military Airstrike

Ex-Rakhine State Security Minister Appointed Peace Adviser to Myanmar President
FREMONT, California, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- LifeSignals Group Inc., today announced that a single use, wireless biosensor patch for the early detection and monitoring of coronavirus symptoms is being fast tracked for introduction within weeks. Based on a proven cardiovascular monitoring platform, the Biosensor Patch 1AX, simply affixed on the chest, will record temperature, respiration rate, ECG trace, heart rate and movement - in real time. The data is sent wirelessly from the Patch and displayed in real time on an app on the user's phone. If symptoms develop, the data can be sent to a secure cloud platform enabling healthcare authorities to introduce effective general population remote screening for groups including those in quarantine, patients in care home facilities and vulnerable high risk people in their own homes.

LifeSignals is also targeting June for the Biosensor Patch 2A which captures, stores and streams clinical-grade vital signs data including SpO 2 . This will allow recovering coronavirus patients in intensive care units to be moved to lower dependency wards, off-site medical facilities and back to their own homes confident their vital sign data is being continually monitored in real-time. Allowing patients to be monitored in their own homes, will also optimize use of scarce medical resources and free up hospital beds.

This new-to-market biosensor technology is the first of its kind to overcome the restrictions of using wireless devices within a hospital environment. The patches can be worn for up to 5 days and safely disposed, reducing the risk of cross-contamination.

"As soon as the serious nature of the COVID-19 outbreak became apparent, we started investigating where our wireless biosensor technology could help. We identified two key areas where healthcare systems are choked - consumers calling in about symptoms they are experiencing and lack of critical care hospital beds - and have designed these two biosensor patches which are suited for mass production," says Surendar Magar, co-founder and CEO of LifeSignals.

"To ensure the new biosensor patches become widely available, LifeSignals have created a fully interoperable technology that can easily be integrated into most health monitoring platforms, apps and healthcare systems. We are actively seeking companies and organizations to partner with to bring clinical-grade remote monitoring to a much wider patient base, helping reduce the burden on healthcare systems," continues Magar.

For more information: www.lifesignals.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1140296/LifeSignals_Medical_Biosensor.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1140295/LifeSignals_Logo.jpg

Contacts:

LifeSignals

Kim Ramessa

Marketing and Communications Director

LifeSignals Europe Ltd

M: +44-(0)7425-316305

E: kim.ramessa@renewgroup.eu

Media

Richard Hayhurst

RHApr

M: +44-(0)7711-821527

E: richard@rhapr.eu
Allison Langdon has clashed with a mother who said she wanted to take her sons outside for some fresh air during their 14-day hotel quarantine.

Sarah Greig and her two sons returned from a trip to Jakarta on Sunday, and were immediately shuttled to the Novotel hotel in Brisbane.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison introduced the mandatory hotel quarantines amid concerns arrivals were not completing their self-isolation periods at home.

The mother told Thursday's Today Show she had no qualms with the accommodation or food - despite others describing it as 'worse than prison food', but said she would appreciate some fresh air.

'I think the best thing for us right now is for the Australian public to understand that nobody is complaining about conditions of the hotel,' she said.

Sarah Greig and her two sons (pictured) returned from a trip to Jakarta on Sunday, and were immediately shuttled to the Novotel hotel in Brisbane

'We've got fresh, clean sheets, we've got running water, all of those things are fantastic but we don't have access to fresh air.'

Ms Greig said people in her situation just wanted to be able to get access to sunlight and fresh air.

'I certainly don't think that makes us whingers,' she said.

But Langdon quickly interrupted Ms Greig to say most Australian cases of the virus have been brought in from overseas.

'We've got to think about the wider good here,' the Today Show host said.

'This is the price you and the boys, unfortunately, have to pay, which is two weeks in self-isolation, but in the grand scheme of things, if this means keeping everyone healthy, is it not a price worth paying?' the Today show host asked.

Ms Greig told Langdon she preferred to talk about finding solutions to the issue and did not wish to 'whinge about any of the things Ms Langdon said to her'.

Langdon's comments were slammed on social media by people claiming the morning show host was rude to Ms Greig.

'Ally, you were horrible to this lady, a bully. She came onto your show not to whinge, but discuss her circumstances, the need for people to have access to a balcony, fresh air, something those that are isolating in their homes have access to,' one woman wrote.

Ms Langdon (pictured with co-host Karl Stefanovic) quickly interrupted Ms Greig to say most Australian cases of the virus have been brought in from overseas

Ms Greig and her sons are at the Novotel Brisbane (pictured) for their mandatory 14-day quarantine

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

'The woman/mother showed dignity and class amid a barrage from the hosts.'

'Easy solution here - make sure these people are in rooms with a balcony - that way they can get some fresh air. It must be tough for them & it must be hard for the kids to understand,' another user wrote.

'I feel for them also, it cant be easy, especially where theres small kids involved,' one person said.

Meanwhile other viewers claimed Ms Greig should deal with the accommodation as she chose to go overseas during a pandemic.

'These people made choices to leave the country and now they have to live with the consequences to return,' one person tweeted.

'This is what happens when you decide to go on a holiday during a pandemic,' another wrote.
[April 02, 2020] Overall Parts Solutions Eases Today's Parts Procurement Challenges with TraxMobile

GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Overall Parts Solutions (OPS) announces the launch of TraxMobile, bringing its powerful OPSTrax parts procurement solution to iOS and Android devices. As the collision repair industry faces new workflow management challenges, OPS has accelerated the release of its TraxMobile app to quickly support industry needs. The new TraxMobile app allows suppliers to manage their businesses efficiently and cost-effectively from any location. TraxMobile allows collision repair shop managers to access business critical OPSTrax parts procurement features remotely from their phones and tablet devices. Shop managers can use TraxMobile's Electronic Ordering to receive up-front "Buy Now" pricing on ncentive parts from the vast network of OPS suppliers. A Photo Ordering feature allows shops to send parts orders and turn hardcopy jobs into electronic data. TraxMobile sends instant Push Notifications regarding supplier responses, shipment and delivery confirmations. Streamlined Parts Return features allow users to send fast electronic parts return requests to suppliers, as well as schedule, track and receive return credits.



"TraxMobile puts the power of OPSTrax in the palm of the shop managers' hands, allowing them to conduct all aspects of parts procurement remotely while standardizing shop workflow," said Nick Bossinakis, CEO and co-founder of OPS. "The OPS team is dedicated to continued innovation to support the evolving needs of our industry. In a time when working remotely has become the new normal, TraxMobile enables shops to manage procurement efficiently without being tethered to a desk and computer." TraxMobile is the mobile companion to OPSTrax, the universal standard for parts procurement and management that allows shops to easily access estimate information and place multiple parts orders to their selected parts suppliers. To download TraxMobile app, visit the Apple App Store for iOS or Google Play for Android applications.

ABOUT OVERALL PARTS SOLUTIONS

Overall Parts Solutions (OPS) is headquartered in Grand Prairie, TX and has been the national category leader in automotive repair parts solutions for the past 20 years. The company provides customized, innovative technology to enhance performance, productivity and profitability in the auto collision repair sector. Its state-of-the-art OPSTrax parts management and delivery system has been adopted by the majority of MSOs and parts suppliers throughout North America. Contact: Suzan Fairchild

Tel: +1 310.418.9941

E-mail: [email protected]

www.opstrax.com/opsportal/#/benefits View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/overall-parts-solutions-eases-todays-parts-procurement-challenges-with-traxmobile-301033701.html SOURCE Overall Parts Solutions

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By Allison Proffitt

April 2, 2020 Last week, several groups released COVID-19 screening tools or symptom checkers to help track the spread of the virus, help people make decisions about when to receive care, and track trends. Apple and Seqster both launched symptom trackers in the United States. Covidaware.me launched internationally to track symptoms and share data, and the TwinsUK study launched a COVID-19 symptom tracker and research study using a cohort of twins.

Seqster launched its COVID-19 Compass module last Thursday. The Seqster interoperability platform is a SaaS healthcare platform that enables organizations to drive efficient healthcare via comprehensive medical records, individual genomic profiles, and personal health device data.

Through the COVID-19 Compass module, patients on the Seqster platform can share key health metrics related to COVID-19, such as body temperature, heart rate and pulse oximetry, already synced with devices connected to their Seqster profile, and can self-report on symptoms of COVID-19 like shortness of breath, fatigue, and coughing.

Interoperability has always been a core value of Seqster, Ardy Arianpour, CEO and co-founder told Bio-IT World. And he believes the big picture, longitudinal view will be essential to advancing research for COVID-19.

A symptom checker is not enough, he says. A symptom checker doesnt do anything for you. But when you use a symptom checker and youre able to collect all of your health data in one place and then share that data with a provider, with a researcher, with a family member, thats when you make change happen. For all of us.

The module is now the first thing that pops up when anyone uses the Seqster platform, Arianpour says. Through a series of questions based on CDCs guidelines, COVID-19 Compass assesses responses against four levels of illness severity: life threatening, severe, non-life threatening, minor symptoms typically correlated with COVID-19 and symptoms occasionally associated with COVID-19, he explains. Because the COVID-19 Compass exists within the Seqster system, it also factors in age, gender, location and potential exposures, and pre-existing health conditions.

Necessary actions are delivered directly to the user, and aggregate data are collected as well. Seqster logs the answer to every question on each run of COVID-19 Compass and uses the answers to generate statistical tables and graphs to help patients, members, and the research community better understand the trends nationally and within their geographic region, Arianpour says.

You have to be able to not only geolocate the people that are having these symptoms or are testing positive, but with the Seqster interoperability technology, people can collect their electronic health record data and combine it with the COVID-19 Compass symptom checker and thats where its really powerful for researchers or any providers that are looking to see what correlation in data look like, Arianpour explains.

The module is now a part of all Seqster deployments, and Arianpour says the company has fielded requests from academic centers, pharmaceutical companies conducting clinical trials, researchers, private employers, and even the CDC since last weeks launch. The Seqster platform is not available directly to consumers.

Apples COVID-19 App

Widely available, but without medical records, is Apples new COVID-19 website and app created in partnership with the CDC, the White House Coronavirus Task Force, and FEMA and announced last Friday.

Both the Apple COVID-19 app and website allow users to answer a series of questions around risk factors, recent exposure, and symptoms for themselves or a loved one. They receive CDC recommendations on next steps, including guidance on social distancing and self-isolating, how to closely monitor symptoms, whether or not a test is recommended at this time, and when to contact a medical provider.

Users will receive answers to frequently asked questions about COVID-19, including who is most at risk and how to recognize symptoms. In addition, they will learn the most up-to-date information from the CDC like best practices for washing hands, disinfecting surfaces and monitoring symptoms.

Along with the new COVID-19 app and website, customers across the US may also ask Siri, How do I know if I have coronavirus? to access guidance and resources from the CDC and a curated collection of telehealth apps available on the App Store. This week, travelers landing at select international airports throughout the US started receiving notifications on their iPhone to remind them of current CDC guidance to stay home and monitor their health.

Global Pandemic, Global Effort

International groups have also launched trackers and studies. A precision medicine team out of Sydney, Australia, has launched Covidaware.me, an anonymous symptom tracker that helps patients distinguish between COVID-19, the flu, and a cold, compare their symptoms to others and to guidance issued by the World Health Organization and CDC, and share their data for research

The site was developed by Pryzm Health in conjunction with the Monarch Institute, developer of the Human Phenotype Ontology. We could see a really big gap in the marketplace and what people have been given as far as the overall pandemic control, Robert Love, Pryzms CEO, told Bio-IT World. We could see that there was a real need to give people something they could engage with and do themselves, something that empowered them with information and then enable them to make some informed decisions.

Covidaware.me was built on the back of the Pryzm Health electronic patient data capture platform, TackHeath, a HIPPA-complaint, trials-grade solution to support patient self-generated data for research and clinical management.

Globally, individuals can sign up for covidaware.me as anonymously as theyd likeAny kind of crazy email is fine! Love says. The consent process offers three options: participants can choose to, help protect everyone by publicly sharing your data anonymously, help other users see trends by sharing your data anonymously with other covidaware.me users, or keep your data private.

Participants can download their data as a Phenopacket, a Global Alliance for Genomics & Health approved standard, or delete their data at anytime

To start a seven-day observation period, users enter relevant health history, and the system delivers an encrypted link to their mobile phone each day via SMS. Links take users to a daily questionnaire specific to COVID-19 symptoms.

Each enrollment period lasts seven days, and you can enlist again for additional seven-day periods. Our initial intent was to pick up on the people who are self-isolating because they think they may have had a history of exposure, theyre compromised or have chronic diseases, or people who are immunocompromised, Love says.

Love says more than 12,000 users began participating in the first few days: 60% were in the UK, about 30% from the US, and the remainder from the rest of the world.

Pryzm Health is an AI company that spun out of the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in Sydney about a year ago, Love explains. The companys primary mission is to combine our expertise and use the power of AI, big health data, and genomics through our partner BGI to really solve the diagnosis issues facing rare disease patients worldwide.

The company uses its natural language processing prowess to do what Love calls, patient self-phenotyping for rare disease patients, and is in the final stages of a real world proof-of-concept integrating its AI engine into a leading primary care EMR to enable population-level screening and analytics for rare disease delivered straight into the point of care.

Since the pandemic, the company has turned its tools to the literature published on the novel coronavirus and COVID-19 from PubMed since October and is publishing annotation updates to GitHub.

Its almost a live dataset, Love says. There have been 17,000 abstracts put up on PubMed since March 17. This is really live, really fresh, and evolving. Weve been using our NLP engine and weve characterized a set of symptoms. Theres about 2,200 terms that are popping up COVID when you look at whats being reported by physicians in the case notes and the abstracts Its a very diverse set of symptoms when you look at the tails of what people are experiencing.

Twin Impacts

Finally, in the United Kingdom, a COVID-19 symptom tracker has been launched by doctors and scientists at King's College London, Guys and St Thomas Hospitals working in partnership with ZOE Global. The tracker is available to anyone but will also be used in a special COVID-19 research study held in conjunction with the TwinsUK project.

Tim Spector, professor of genetic epidemiology at Kings College London and director of TwinsUK, is leading the effort. The TwinsUK project has been studying 15,000 identical and non-identical twins for nearly three decades. Most already have taken part in comprehensive genetic analysis and immune profiling, as well as detailed gut microbiome profiling.

Around 5,000 twins and their families across the UK have been recruited from the TwinsUK cohort study to trial the app, which tracks in real-time how the disease progresses. The participating twins can use the COVID-19 app to record information about their health on a daily basis, including temperature, tiredness and symptoms such as coughing, breathing problems or headaches. Any participants showing signs of COVID-19 will be sent a home testing kit to better understand what symptoms truly correspond to the coronavirus infection.

The general public will also have access to the study app, but they will not have access to the home testing kits.

As many companies seek ways to be involved in solutions for our current situation, more innovative efforts like these will arise.
For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME.

Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire.

Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III.





to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever.





Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation.





View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union.

Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history.

Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words.




Allcargo Logistics on Thursday announced contribution of Rs 1 crore to Chief Minister's Relief Fund in Maharashtra besides initiating other measures to bolster India's fight against coronavirus.

It said it is also supporting food distribution to migrant workers and daily wage earners besides contributing to the PM-CARES Fund.

"Allcargo Logistics... joined the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic by contributing to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund in Maharashtra and supporting various initiatives to help migrant labourers, daily-wage earners as well as doctors and paramedics who are on duty," the company said in a statement.

Allcargo, which recently acquired a strategic stake in Gati, said it motivated its employees to generously donate from their salaries and a contribution of Rs 1 crore was made to the CM's Relief Fund in Maharashtra.

A donation was also made to the PM-CARES Fund through support from the senior leadership and management.

"As an integral part of society and as responsible citizens committed to our duty towards the nation, the time to act is right now. It is unprecedented challenges like these that bring society's vulnerabilities to the fore and call on us to show care, compassion and generosity," said Allcargo Logistics Chairman Shashi Kiran Shetty.

The company said that in an effort to help some of the most vulnerable sections of society like migrant labourers and daily-wage earners who have lost their means of sustenance owing to the lockdown, Allcargo has collaborated with Khushiyaan Foundation for distribution of food in Bhiwandi, Thane and Navi Mumbai.

Being industrial hubs, these are catchment areas for underprivileged workers who would require help during these trying times, it said.

The organisation has also supported a similar initiative in Delhi, which is experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases, it said and added that a monetary contribution has been made to the Hare Krishna Temple of the ISCKON Foundation for food distribution to migrant labourers from various locations outside Delhi.

Avashya Foundation, the CSR arm of Allcargo Logistics, is collaborating with the Dean's Office and Head of Social Work Department, Sion Hospital, to provide assistance to doctors and paramedics discharging their duties at Sion Hospital and Seven Hills Hospital, it said.

Avashya Foundation will gather financial support to procure medical material and equipment for the treatment of COVID-19 patients, it added.

"We will continue our efforts and I would urge all the corporates and individuals to come together and contribute to the cause of COVID-19 relief. I wish health and safety for everyone and hope we emerge stronger from this crisis," said Shetty.

The organisation said it has also implemented innovative operational measures in strict adherence to requisite health and safety regulations to keep all its facilities functional, so that trade, commerce and customers' businesses continue uninterrupted even in these trying times.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The San Rafael is the tallest waterfall in Ecuador and now it has run dry. The cause of the same has been traced to a mysterious sinkhole that opened underneath the river that fed the falls.

The falls are located in Cayambe Coca Park, part of the Ecuadorian Amazon near the border with Colombia, and were the tallest in the country at more than 500 feet.

Daily Mail

The government has meanwhile restricted access to the site of the falls and surrounding area as a team investigates what caused the sinkhole,' according to one report. Some think that a hydroelectric plant 12 miles upstream could be the cause.

"A waterfall that has been there for thousands of years does not collapse, coincidentally, a few years after opening a hydroelectric project. These are processes that are in scientific papers and there is sufficient evidence that a dam can cause effects of this type on a river," Mongabay quoted Emilio Cobo, coordinator at the South America Water Program with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as saying.

The plant, was built by the Chinese company SinoHydro and it opened in 2016. It isn't directly on the river, but it has a diversion reservoir that's designed to remove between 90 and 100 per cent of the sediment from the river before its waters reach the plant.

The sediment is supposed to act as a protective layer in riverbeds. It helps insulate the ground below from water erosion. If there is no steady flow of new sediment from upstream, the older sediment eventually gets washed away, which leaves the riverbed susceptible to erosion, researchers describe this as 'hungry waters.'

However, geologist and former secretary of Natural Capital at Ecuador's Ministry of Environment Alfredo Carrasco argues that seismic activity in the region could also be the cause of 'hungry waters' phenomenon.

Daily Mail

There are many quite intense earthquakes here. In March 1987, a very strong one appeared that caused tremendous damage to the trans-Ecuadorian oil pipeline that passes right through it. For me, the phenomenon is eminently of natural origin, Carrasco reportedly said.

No matter what the cause, researchers agree that the sinkhole will reshape the region as one river has now split into three smaller streams. This creates the added risk of landslides, and it could also potentially threaten the well-being of fish and other invertebrates part of the river's ecosystem.
Four days after Gov. Kate Brown urged Oregonians to stay home to the maximum extent possible to slow the COVID-19 pandemic, 44 rodeo competitors traveled with their horses to an arena outside Redmond for a barrel racing event called Corona Can 360.

Organizer Austin Hogue said in planning the event, which was held Friday and Saturday, he sought to comply with Browns stay-home executive order and received guidance on social distancing from the Deschutes County Sheriffs Office.

But Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel said Monday the event clearly violates the spirit of the governors order, and the sheriffs office should not have assisted Hogue.

Hes reckless, and he put our community at risk, Hummel said of Hogue. And I dont know why anyone bent over backwards to help him.

The event was created to replace the High Desert Stampede, which was canceled March 12 due to the governors social distancing orders in place at the time  gatherings of 250 people or more were prohibited.

A Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association event, the stampede is a major draw for Redmond, and this year was to be the biggest yet, with more than 10,000 competitors, spectators, volunteers and vendors from around the country expected, according to board chairman Denis Fast.

In early March, the board briefly considered a fanless rodeo as an alternative to canceling, but decided there was no way to host the event while encouraging social distancing, Fast said.

Its just something that doesnt work for a rodeo, Fast said.

Hogue said his barrel racing event started as a joke on Facebook, with a parody flyer advertising a beer vendor, Chinese food and overnight parking. HIT 3 BARRELS WIN FREE CASE OF CORONA.

The flyer elicited so much support Hogue said he decided to stage the event for real.

The original thought behind it was to give a chance to these people who were coming from out of town, who had already scheduled it and spent the money to prepare for it, to give them a place to come and compete, Hogue told The Bulletin.

Hogue said he wanted the event to comply with the governors public health orders so he reached out to the Deschutes County Sheriffs Office and met several times with the offices lawyer. They devised an unusual racing format for the event  a competition where the athletes competed alone in an empty arena with a flagger standing outside.

Parking spaces in the area behind the arena would be separated by 100 feet. A volunteer stood near the entrance to make sure no more than 22 people were on the property at a time, including staff. Two security guards would patrol and hand out informational flyers about COVID-19 from the Deschutes County Sheriffs Office.

Everyone followed the rules to a T, Hogue said.

It was safer to come to our event than it was to go to Walmart or Petco or Home Depot, or a park, he said. Our event was held with the utmost safety and health concerns in mind.

A deputy spent time at the event but did not write any citations, Hogue said.

They came out, spent 15 minutes walking around and told us, Youre doing a great job, he said.

CORONAVIRUS IN OREGON: THE LATEST NEWS

Speaking for the sheriffs office, Capt. Paul Garrison said several sources were consulted while trying to interpret the governors executive order, including the countys legal department and the sheriffs office lawyer.

We took this information to determine the best law enforcement response and approached it with a focus on education and voluntary compliance to work with the cooperative event organizer, Garrison wrote in an email to The Bulletin. We do not have the authority to shut these events down. In the case event organizers do not comply with the Governors Executive Order then enforcement action can be taken as a last resort.

A spokeswoman for the governors office said unnecessary travel risks spreading COVID-19 to new communities across the state, particularly to rural areas where hospital capacity is very limited.

We are asking all Oregonians to abide by the spirit of the order, which is to stay home to the maximum extent possible, which will also allow local law enforcement officials to focus on true public health and safety emergencies, said interim press secretary Liz Merah.

On Thursday, the day before the barrel racing event, the Oregon Health Authority said the state was at a critical moment in the fight against the disease, but that social distancing could have a large effect on the rising number of cases.

Health officials also released projections on the pace of the pandemic, noting Thursday that a return to business as usual would result in a total of 15,000 infections by May 8. Conversely, if the state maintained the governors stay-at-home order, there would be 1,000 cases by May 8.

Since the stay-home order was issued March 23, some Oregonians have expressed confusion with its provisions.

A day after it was issued, Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson made waves with a video stating the sheriffs office wont arrest or ticket those who violate the stay-home order.

The short clip earned praise on social media, but it put the sheriffs office in a position opposed by other Oregon law enforcement agencies, which have said they will arrest people for violating the governors order, though as a last resort after educating people about the order.

Bend Police Chief Jim Porter said sending mixed messages can weaken a public health response and possibly make Central Oregon more attractive to those who want to defy the governors order.

Hummel said he was consulted about the barrel racing event by the sheriffs office and he advised the agency that deputies should be stationed outside to warn attendees theyd be ticketed if they entered.

Look, we know where this guys coming from. Hes sticking up a big middle finger to every Oregonian whos complying with the spirit of this order, Hummel said. And, you know, people have died. People will die. First responders and medical professionals are risking their lives for the safety of our community, and this idiot is putting peoples lives at risk because he wants to have a fun little party on the weekend. Well, you know what, to hell with him. He thinks he found a cutesy little legal loophole  good for him. The guy is an embarrassment to our community.

Though Hogue doesnt appear to have violated the orders social distancing provisions, Hummel said the event appears to violate Provision 22 of the order, which directs Oregonians to minimize nonessential travel around the state.

For his part, Hogue said the event was never intended to insult the governor.

Weve had a gigantic amount of positive praise about this, he said. The girls felt safe. They felt like they mattered.

Hogue expressed surprise when told the local DA believes the people who came to his event could be charged with a crime.

Thats not what I was told, Hogue said. I was told everything we were doing was legal.

-- Garrett Andrews, Bend Bulletin
ALBANY  Lawmakers are expected to include changes to the state's controversial criminal justice reform laws in the state budget, as legislators continue negotiating policy issues as part of the annual spending plan that had been due Tuesday.

The proposed changes have met fierce opposition in the state Assembly, especially from New York City members, and the vote in that chamber is expected Thursday.

The criminal justice reforms that were passed in last year's budget and went into effect Jan. 1 eliminated the use of pre-trial detention and cash bail for most misdemeanors and non-violent felonies. The changes garnered swift backlash as critics  including Republicans, law enforcement leaders and a handful of moderate Democrats, including Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo  have insisted the changes went too far and put dangerous criminals back on the streets.

The state's district attorneys association also had lobbied lawmakers to reconsider the measures, which they said created onerous pre-trial discovery deadlines and have triggered backlogs at state crime labs.

Under a proposal included in the education, labor and family assistance budget bill released Thursday morning, the proposed changes under consideration as part of this year's budget negotiations would expand the criminal offenses for which judges can set bail, including:

Sex trafficking and sex trafficking of a child

Money laundering in support of terrorism

Promoting obscene sexual performance by a child

Domestic violence charges of criminal obstruction of breathing, strangulation and unlawful imprisonment

Aggravated vehicular assault and vehicular assault

Criminal possession of a weapon on school grounds

Bail by Cayla Harris on Scribd

The changes have been debated for weeks, and Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie repeatedly defended the law and asserted that it helped balance a criminal justice system that had long disproportionately affected black and brown people.

The governor, alongside Senate Democrats, had proposed scrapping cash bail altogether in favor of a remand system in which judges could decide whether a person was a flight risk and detain them before trial. That judicial discretion was the top concern for many Assembly Democrats, who claimed that any leeway would open the door for racial bias.

The bail reforms were just part of a sweeping criminal justice overhaul approved in the budget last year, which had also included new requirements for pre-trial discovery, including a new 15-day deadline to provide evidence to defense attorneys. Under the law, that evidence also includes a slew of new "discoverable" material, including the names and contact information of any person with information about a case and all electronic recordings related to an incident.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

Prosecutors have argued that turning over the names of witnesses to defendants when investigations are still unfolding could endanger those individuals.

But under the budget proposal released Thursday, prosecutors would have 20 days to provide initial discovery when a defendant is in custody and 35 days when they are not.

The bill also makes copies of 911 calls and certain witness and victim information "presumptively confidential" and only released if requested by the defendant, who shows a "need." Traffic violations and other low-level crimes would also no longer be immediately subject to the increased discovery requirements.

The budget also includes $40 million, taken from the Manhattan District Attorneys office, to aid prosecutors and local law enforcement officials with the discovery mandates.
(Photo : REUTERS/Brendan Mcdermid) A healthcare worker walks past empty stretchers after wheeling the bodies of deceased people from the Wyckoff Heights Medical Center during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, New York, U.S., April 2, 2020.

The spread of fake and real coronavirus data is being tracked by scientists to peer stories that are getting the most attention on social media.

The coronavirus outbreak has sparked what the World Health Organization (WHO) is looking for an "infodemic" - an overwhelming amount of data on social media and websites. Some of it is accurate. And some are downright untrue.

The fake reports range from conspiracy theories that the virus is a synthetic bioweapon to the claim that more than 100,000 people have died from the disease.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus isn't a Chinese Bioweapon! Here Are The Most Popular Coronavirus Youtube Hoaxes, Rumors, and Lies You Should Ignore

Researchers from the Open University will evaluate COVID-19 posts on Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit towards fact-checked articles from established sources.

Social media giants have said they're actively operating to screen and eliminate incorrect information about COVID-19 and are promoting legitimate information sources.

Misinformation causes harm, says expert

Professor Harith Alani from the OU said his studies should assist governments, scientists, and health establishments forestall the expose of terrible rumors.

He told DailyMail they could additionally examine ways to immediately alert people on Twitter and Reddit if a post they are sharing is from a fake source or incorporates incorrect information.

OU researchers would debunk myths, which include COVID-19 is an artificial virus; participants of the public can wash the virus away with water and that taking a hot tub will prevent you from catching COVID-19.

Researchers say misinformation and 'fake recommendation'' may be dangerous because it could lead to people 'taking more risks' than if they had been following respectable guidance.

Alani said they'll provide information to policymakers and health officials about the spread of faux news on the coronavirus.

It might additionally then be used to alert social media users about the quantity to which they may be spreading false facts - with possible warnings approximately a fake post.

They will amplify existing gear and algorithms already in use for tracking generic faux news as a part of a challenge known as CO-INFORM.

'We will extend and use such algorithms to find the claims that are being made approximately COVID-19,' said Alani, a professor of internet technology at the OU.

He stated they would 'test them in opposition to facts from relied on and authoritative sources, and produce understanding and graphs for policymakers and health officials.'

Alani said they might look at which geographic areas, by way of what age and cultural groups, and so on the articles are maximum quick spread.

"This could hopefully help governments, scientists, media, and health firms understand what misinformation needs to be addressed urgently," he added.

Political agenda might be the cause of fake news

Fake information can unfold speedily online. A 2018 study from Massachusetts Institute of Technology said: "false news spreads much quickly on [social media] than actual news does."

There could be a political agenda in the back of the fake coronavirus news as well, researchers claim. Countries that are unfriendly toward China could hijack the conversation in hopes of building chaos and disintegrating trust in the authorities, says Dr. Margaret Bourdeaux of Harvard Belfer Center's Security and Global Health Project.

"Disinformation that specifically targets your health system or your leaders who are trying to manage an emergency is a way of destroying, undermining, disrupting your health system," she told NPR.

Bourdeaux said tracking the fake and real coronavirus news is a "clever move." She compared the approach to the "advertising techniques from the 1950s.

"They're establishing the narrative before everybody else can,'" Bordeaux explained.

ALSO READ: Will Silicon Valley Help White House Eradicate Coronavirus? Several Tech Companies Lent A Hand to End The Pandemic

WHO is also collaborating with tech giants like Google, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and TikTok to restrict the spread of harmful rumors. The organization is also pursuing a similar tactic with Chinese digital corporations - including Weibo, Tencent, and Baidu.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. sank after executives said sales have started to decline at its drugstores as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, though the full impact on its business won't be known for months.

U.S. consumers had raced early last month to stock up on drugs, cleaning supplies and toilet paper as they prepared to stay at home to avoid getting or spreading covid-19. Now, that rush appears to be ebbing.

In the first three weeks of March, Walgreens' comparable sales rose about 26%, Chief Financial Officer James Kehoe said on a call Thursday with Wall Street analysts, adding that health and grocery sales surged while discretionary categories like beauty slumped. However, sales began to fall in the last 10 days of March, declining at a mid-teens percentage rate.

"Obviously, if this trend continues for an extended period, it will quickly offset the sales uplift seen in the first 21 days of March," Kehoe said.

Kehoe said the pharmacy business experienced similar trends, though less pronounced, with patients refilling prescriptions early.

Shares fell 7% to $40.01 at 10:27 a.m. in New York. Since the beginning of 2020, the stock had declined 27% through the close of trading Wednesday.

Earlier Thursday, Walgreens posted better-than-expected results for its second quarter but cautioned that the Covid-19 pandemic makes the future uncertain. The Deerfield, Illinois-based company said it would update its financial guidance in its next quarterly report. Previously, it had projected roughly flat growth in adjusted earnings per share.

Chief Executive Officer Stefano Pessina said while the company's second-quarter results were better than expectations, "it is too early to know what the net impact of the Covid-19 pandemic will be on our performance for the year."

The comments from Walgreens offer an early look at how businesses have been faring since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. While the company's quarter ended on Feb. 29, before the worst of the covid-19 outbreak in the U.S. and the most ambitious of the social-distancing efforts to contain it, executives indicated on the call with analysts that recent weeks have become more challenging.

Walgreens executives stressed they think the situation is temporary, but Pessina said if the pandemic lasts more than a month its effects will be longer-lasting.

"The world will be different later on," he said. "Many things will have changed, their habits will be different."

Walgreens had already been trying to bolster its digital strategy before the outbreak. It has since made delivery free on its website and expanded a partnership with delivery service Postmates, among other efforts.

In its second-quarter report, Walgreens said comparable sales at its U.S. stores rose 2.7% from a year earlier. At the pharmacy counter, sales rose 5.3%, which the company attributed to more expensive prescription drugs, more prescriptions filled and growth in its specialty business.

Walgreens removed e-cigarettes from its U.S. stores last fall and has said it will de-emphasize tobacco. Those decisions weighed on results, as comparable retail sales rose 0.6% in the quarter, or 1.9% when excluding these products.

Second-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.52, down from $1.64 a year earlier but better than the $1.46 Wall Street analysts expected, on average.
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Centrica, the UK energy and power utility which owns Bord Gais Energy here, is to cut costs further  including cancelling its shareholder dividend payment  as it braces for British customers to stop paying their electricity bills and a drop in usage of its services amongst business clients due to the coronavirus shut-down.

Centrica said it expects to see an increase in customer bad debt as certain customer segments defer payments due to the reduction of household incomes and business revenues.

However, here Bord Gais Energy has said it remains too early to say how much of an effect Covid-19 is having on its business.

Regarding residential customers, it said it has halted its credit and collections process, so that customers in temporary arrears will not get reminder notices, and is not disconnecting customers for non-payments.

We know some customers are concerned about paying their bills, and weve been doing our best to help them, a spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, A4E  the representative group for Europes top-five airlines  has hailed as a much-needed first step towards easing liquidity constraints the postponement of air traffic control charges until the end of the year.

However, one of its members  Aer Lingus owner IAG - has further reduced its capacity from 75% to 90%. British Airways  also owned by IAG  has also scrapped dividend plans and is in talks with unions over suspending 32,000 employees.

Recruitment giant Hays has raised around 200m (226m) via a share placing to prop up its finances as it braces for a collapse in income. Hays said the crisis has prompted a very material deceleration in client and candidate activity and warned that net fees could fall by 35% this year.

Meanwhile, Boots owner Walgreen Boots Alliance said second quarter sales rose nearly 4%, but warned of an uncertain impact from Covid-19.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2) - Complaints against 21 protesters arrested at a rally to demand food and other assistance were filed electronically with the Quezon City (QC) Prosecutors Office, police said Thursday.

The QC Police District in a statement said the complaints, filed Wednesday, were for violation of the Public Assembly Act of 1985, Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of Public Health Concern Act and Resistance and Disobedience to a Person in Authority.

The suspects were identified as a certain Epifania Villarmero and twenty others. Another suspect identified as Analiza Panalangin is at large, police said.

QCPD said the complaints are pending and awaiting the approval of the chief prosecutor.

The protesters are residents of Sitio San Roque who were arrested Wednesday in Barangay Bagong Pag-asa for staging a rally without a permit. They claimed that they havent received any aid from the city government.

The city government said the left-leaning group Kadamay instigated the residents to conduct a protest.

READ: DILG to leftist groups: Don't take advantage of COVID-19 crisis

Despite the incident, QC Mayor Joy Bemonte called on authorities to release the protesters for 'humanitarian reasons.

The rally apparently irked President Rodrigo Duterte, who on Wednesday night warned government forces will shoot anyone who violates the COVID-19 quarantine if the protests prove to be a threat to law enforcers lives.
Police have arrested a group of British, American and Australian tourists at a 'drug-fuelled' party with Thai girls in defiance of coronavirus lockdown.

The British men, George Oliver Hoskins, 23, Saul Alan Jones, 22, and Stuart Alexander McDonogh, 29, were among nine foreigners and five Thai women partying in Phuket, Thailand, on Wednesday night.

It was in defiance of a strict curfew and lockdown on the coronavirus-ravaged island, which is one of the worst hit Covid-19 areas of Thailand.

The British men were among nine foreigners and five Thai women partying in Phuket, Thailand, on Wednesday night. It was in defiance of a strict curfew and lockdown on the coronavirus-ravaged island, which is one of the worst hit Covid-19 areas of Thailand

This is the moment police busted a party where three British tourists were among a group of foreigners enjoying a drug-fuelled half-naked party with Thai girls, in defiance of the country's coronavirus lock down

Pictures show how the women were clad in skimpy bikinis while the men wore swimming shorts in a small, hot room.

Officers stormed the apartment and allegedly found cocaine and cannabis at the sordid roof-top party, which was in violation of an 8pm curfew on the island.

Police said they raided the party after furious locals complained that they were being disturbed by the noise. It was also in violation of an emergency government act banning crowds due to the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus.

The arrested foreigners were raided after furious locals complained they were being disturbed by the noise coming from the flat. Pictured: Foreigners and semi-clad Thai women after the roof-top party was raided by police

Pictured: The drugs discovered by Thai police after they raided the rooftop party in Phuket last night

Pictured: Thai police inspect one of the rooms in the Phuket property after they were called to the flat amid coronavirus lockdown

Fourteen drunk party goers were arrested including three British men, an Australian man, one American man, one Ukrainian man, three Ukrainian women and five Thai women.

The Australian national was Al-Mouzafar Mohamad, 22 and the American was Russell Robertson, 32. The Ukrainians were Zakharov Andrii, 27, Petriv Tetiana, 22, Chala Anasiia, 22, and Semko Iana, 31.

Officers also reported finding six bottles of liquor, one bottle of energy drink and two bottles of soda drink and also confiscated 4.04grams of marijuana and 0.94 grams of cocaine.

Police Colonel Aekanit Danpitaksars said the 14 revellers were remanded in custody while the case is processed and they can be sent to court.

The police chief said: 'Initially, they will be charged for violating the royal state of emergency act by gathering in a crowd in a small space and possessing schedule II and V drug.'

Officers can be seen putting an end to the 'drug-fuelled' party in Phuket last night

An officer wearing a protective face mask can be seen speaking to the partygoers after they flouted the lockdown in the tourist town of Pattaya, Thailand

Police also found and confiscated a bucket-full of alcohol and energy drinks from the Phuket party (pictured)

The five Thai women were Nida Usen, 31, Boonchanok Roongruang, 36, Supika Kitdee, 28, Narumon Thuadao, 23, and Wararin Jaidee, 33.

Phuket - one of the world's most popular tourist resorts - is now ranked the fourth most infected province in Thailand with 71 confirmed, behind only Bangkok and its two metropolitan areas.

Phuket has taken strict measure to contain Covid-19 and announced a lockdown and curfew from 8pm until 3am on Monday.

Land and sea travel to and from the island has been banned until April 31 and flights will stop from April 10 onwards.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Hongqi, the premium auto brand of FAW Group, sold over 25,000 vehicles during the first quarter of 2020, achieving a remarkable surge of 88%, according to Hongqi Sales Company.

Deducting the sales volume of Jan. (12,630 units, +142.7%) and Feb. (3,752 units, +32.5%), we can get the volume for March aloneover 8,618 units, soaring 129% month on month.

(Photo source: FAW Hongqi's WeChat account)



This is an extremely uplifting performance as the whole market was significantly hit by the novel coronavirus. It is estimated that Chinas PV retail sales (referring to locally-produced cars, SUVs and MPVs) would plunge roughly 40% from the prior-year period, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).



(Photo source: FAW Hongqi's WeChat account)

The brand has six models on sales to-day, namely, the H5, the H7, the L5, the HS5, the HS7 and the E-HS3 BEV, including both SUVs and sedans, and is ambitious to form a massive product matrix composed of 21 models by 2025, of which 18 will be NEVs. The Hongqi H9 full-sized sedan made its world's debut in early January and the presale has kicked off a few days ago. The all-new model is set to hit the market in June 2020.

(Photo source: FAW Group)



Hongqi is ambitious to sell 200,000 vehicles in 2020. To achieve that goal, the automaker endeavors to lift its production capacity. On March 2, the revamped projected was completed and put into production, six days ahead of schedule. The retrofitting makes Hongqi's annual capacity grow to 150,000 units from 100,000 units.

Disturbed by the epidemic, most automakers and dealers were compelled to extend business shutdown after the Spring Festival. Leveraging digital channels, Hongqing Sales Company resumed works on Feb. 3 through the online platform FAW Easy, making each employee fitting into its place without one day break.

Starting Feb. 10, the online work resumption took place across Hongqi's 209 experience centers, From live-streaming platforms like Douyin and Kuaishou to e-commerce platforms such as Tmall and WeChat group-buying group, Hongqi puts forth great efforts to develop its digital marketing business. As of March 20, there have been 200 dealerships resuming full operation.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Ohio Gov. Mike Dewine said its fine for retail workers to wear homemade masks to protect against coronavirus, but the state is still considering whether to recommend everyone wear one.

"Ive received texts, calls from people who are concerned they might have a child who is working in retail, they might be working in retail, and one of the questions is if they can wear a mask if they want to, DeWine said. "I just want to use this opportunity to  say that is just fine and we would encourage employees to allow your employees to wear that mask.

Retail workers, including at grocery stores and pharmacies, are considered employees at essential businesses, which remain open under Ohios stay-at-home order.

The statement is the latest update in an ongoing debate on whether the public should wear masks to protect against the spread of coronavirus. DeWine said he had spoken with Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton and that the masks could be helpful for those looking to prevent the spread of coronavirus by containing germs.

"Dr. Acton has explained to me (these masks) really protect other people as much as they do us.

This advice did not apply to surgical or N-95 masks. Hospital workers need those masks to complete their jobs safely, DeWine said.

The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention are reportedly reconsidering guidelines on wearing the public wearing masks. Acton said she would look forward to a change. Many cases are proving to be asymptomatic.

"Again, Ive been saying this all long: Assume you have it. Assume each other has it, Acton said

Michigan Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun said Thursday residents should strongly consider wearing homemade masks in public to protect themselves and their community from the coronavirus.

Initially, health experts recommended members of the public should not be wearing masks. Some experts now claim the public should have been wearing masks from the beginning of the illnesss spread, with others claiming the masks could give people a false sense of security and that the coverings wouldnt be used correctly.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Catholic bishops of Ohio jointly announced that all Mass and other liturgies are canceled through Sunday, May, 3, due to the coronavirus. The move comes after Gov. Mike DeWines extension of the stay-at-home order through May 1.

This decision has not been taken lightly and, as your bishops, together with you, we recognize the sacrifice we are called to make by being physically distanced from the Holy Eucharist and from one another, the bishops wrote in the statement. As your bishops, we continue to encourage you to keep holy the Lords Day by participating in Sunday Mass by way of televised, live-streamed, or radio broadcast options and making a spiritual communion.

The Catholic Church is excusing all Catholic Ohioans of the obligation of attending Mass. The Church canceled public Mass and other services through Easter on March 16.

Read the full letter below:

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Today (April 2, 2020) Governor Mike DeWine extended the executive Stay at Home Order to continue to curb the spread of the Coronavirus in the State of Ohio. Out of deep concern for the common good, as well as the physical and spiritual well-being of all the people of Ohio, the Catholic Bishops of Ohio have agreed once again to cooperate with the governors direction.

To that end, the Catholic Bishops of Ohio extend the temporary suspension of all publicly celebrated Masses/liturgies at least through and including Sunday May 3rd. The Bishops of Ohio dispense the Catholic faithful who reside in their respective dioceses and all other Catholics currently in Ohio from the obligation of attending Sunday Mass during this time period.

This decision has not been taken lightly and, as your bishops, together with you, we recognize the sacrifice we are called to make by being physically distanced from the Holy Eucharist and from one another.

Trusting in the graces flowing from the celebration of the passion, death and resurrection of Our Lord, we remain mindful of the hope that does not disappoint. As your bishops, we continue to encourage you to keep holy the Lords Day by participating in Sunday Mass by way of televised, live-streamed, or radio broadcast options and making a spiritual communion. Keeping in mind the gift of plenary indulgences offered to us by the Church, we encourage all the faithful to turn to the Churchs treasury of prayer, praying as a family or individually the rosary, divine mercy chaplet, the Liturgy of the Hours and Stations of the Cross, etc.

Please join us in praying for all who are suffering from the Coronavirus, for all health care workers and first responders, and for an easing of the anxiety and tension caused by this pandemic. Relying on the Motherly care of Our Lady, Health of the Sick, we unite our sufferings to those of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and we trust in the glorious hope of His resurrection.

Most Rev. Dennis M. Schnurr, Archbishop of Cincinnati

Most Rev. Joseph R. Binzer, Auxiliary Bishop of Cincinnati

Most Rev. Robert J. Brennan, Bishop of Columbus

Most Rev. Jeffrey M. Monforton, Bishop of Steubenville

Most Rev. George V. Murry, S.J., Bishop of Youngstown

Rev. Donald P. Oleksiak, Diocesan Administrator of Cleveland

Most Rev. Daniel E. Thomas, Bishop of Toledo

Most Rev. J. Michael Botean, Romanian Eparchy of Canton

Most Rev. Bohdan J. Danylo, Ukrainian Eparchy of St. Josaphat

Most Rev. Milan Lach, SJ Byzantine Eparchy of Parma
China rejected the American intelligence community's conclusion that Beijing concealed the extent of the coronavirus epidemic, and accused the U.S. of seeking to shift the blame for its own handling of the outbreak.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying on Thursday defended as "open and transparent" China's response to the virus first identified in December in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. She was responding to a Bloomberg News report saying that the U.S. intelligence community had concluded in a classified report to the White House that Beijing under-reported both total cases and deaths from the disease.

"Some U.S. officials just want to shift the blame," Hua told a regular briefing in Beijing. "Actually we don't want to fall into an argument with them, but faced with such repeated moral slander by them, I feel compelled to take some time and clarify the truth again."

Hua questioned the speed of the U.S.'s response to the virus after banning arrivals from China on Feb. 2. "Can anyone tell us what the U.S. has done in the following two months?" she said.

China's public reporting on cases and deaths is intentionally incomplete, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing three officials, who asked not to be identified because the report is secret. Two of the officials said the report concludes that China's numbers are fake. The report was received by the White House last week, one of the officials said.

Since China first disclosed a new form of pneumonia on Dec. 31, the country has publicly reported about 82,000 cases and 3,300 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. That compares with more than 189,000 cases and more than 4,000 deaths in the U.S., which has the largest publicly reported outbreak in the world.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he hadn't received an intelligence report saying Beijing had concealed the outbreak, but that their statistics appeared low. "Their numbers seem to be a little bit on the light side, and I'm being nice when I say that," he said at a daily coronavirus briefing at the White House.

Trump added that the U.S. and China were in constant communication and that Beijing would spend $250 billion to purchase American products. "We'd like to keep it, they'd like to keep it" he said of the U.S.-China trade deal.

Communications staff at the White House and the Chinese embassy in Washington didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

"The reality is that we could have been better off if China had been more forthcoming," Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday on CNN. "What appears evident now is that long before the world learned in December that China was dealing with this, and maybe as much as a month earlier than that, that the outbreak was real in China."

While China eventually imposed lockdowns and mass quarantines, and set up fever clinics to slow the virus's spread, skepticism toward its numbers has lingered. The Chinese government has repeatedly revised its methodology for counting cases and for weeks excluded people without symptoms entirely. Only on Tuesday it added more than 1,500 asymptomatic cases to its total.

Stacks of thousands of urns outside funeral homes in Hubei province have driven public doubt in Beijing's reporting.

"The claim that the United States has more coronavirus deaths than China is false," Sen. Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican, said in a statement after Bloomberg News published its report. "Without commenting on any classified information, this much is painfully obvious: The Chinese Communist Party has lied, is lying, and will continue to lie about coronavirus to protect the regime."

Republican lawmakers in the U.S. have been particularly harsh about China's role in the outbreak. Emphasizing Beijing's responsibility for the pandemic could be politically helpful to Trump, who has sought to shift blame for the U.S. outbreak away from his administration's delays in achieving widespread testing for the virus and mobilizing greater production of supplies such as face masks and hospital ventilators.

In her remarks Thursday, Hua lashed out at U.S. politicians who keep attacking China.

"We'd like to provide support and help to them as our capacity allows," Hua said. "However, these comments by those U.S. politicians are just shameless and morally repulsive, and these slanders, smears and blame games cannot make up for the lost time, but will only cost more lost time and lives."

Deborah Birx, the State Department immunologist advising the White House on its response to the outbreak, said Tuesday that China's public reporting influenced assumptions elsewhere in the world about the nature of the virus.

"The medical community made -- interpreted the Chinese data as: This was serious, but smaller than anyone expected," she said at a news conference on Tuesday. "Because I think probably we were missing a significant amount of the data, now that what we see happened to Italy and see what happened to Spain."

Secretary of State Michael Pompeo has publicly urged China and other nations to be transparent about their outbreaks. He has repeatedly accused China of covering up the extent of the problem and being slow to share information, especially in the weeks after the virus first emerged, and blocking offers of help from American experts.

"This data set matters," he said at a news conference in Washington on Tuesday. The development of medical therapies and public-health measures to combat the virus "so that we can save lives depends on the ability to have confidence and information about what has actually transpired," Pompeo said.
Myanmar & COVID-19 Ambassadors Call for End to Conflict in Myanmar Amid COVID-19

Internally displaced people at Upper Myat Lays Mro Camp in Ponnagyun Township, Rakhine State in September 2019. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy

Ambassadors from 18 foreign missions in Myanmar have called for ending armed conflicts between the Myanmar military and non-state armed organizations amid the COVID-19 pandemic, urging both sides to focus on protecting the most vulnerable communities from the devastating impacts of COVID-19.

In their joint statement on Wednesday, the ambassadors said, We are deeply concerned about the high level of fighting, casualties and civilian displacement occurring in Rakhine and Chin States, and the threat of further conflict in other areas.

The statement was jointly issued by the ambassadors of Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union.

For the sake of families across Myanmar we support all calls for a cessation of hostilities between Myanmar military and armed organizations, resolution of grievances through dialogue, and a lifting of any internet and media restrictions as well, it said.

Myanmar has joined the global fight against the coronavirus pandemic since the first confirmed cases in the country were reported ten days ago. The country has had one fatality from COVID-19 as of Thursday. The number of fatalities due to the ongoing armed conflict between the military and the Arakan Army (AA) in western Myanmar has not declined.

The fighting in western Myanmar, which began in 2015 but intensified in November 2018, has left nearly 130,000 people displaced in 10 townships in Rakhine State, according to figures from the Rakhine Ethnic Congress (REC) at the end of February.

Tens of thousands more are also affected by the fighting in Paletwa Township, Chin State. Paletwa and four townships in northern Rakhine state are under an internet shutdown as the government restricts the spread of local news.

The ambassadors statement also cited the UN Secretary Generals call on March 23 for armed groups across the world to implement a global ceasefire while the world is fighting against the coronavirus disease.

The ambassadors statement also said the conflict impedes humanitarian response and prevents further assistance from reaching vulnerable groups affected by the fighting, including women, children and those who are disabled, marginalized and displaced.

On the same day, the Brotherhood Alliance of armed groupscomprised of the AA, the Taang National Liberation Army and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Armysaid in a statement that they will extend their unilateral ceasefire until April 30, with the aim to build stability and security on shared borders and to avoid public panic due to COVID-19.

The AA, TNLA and MNDAA are active ethnic armed groups based in the countrys northeast, though the AA is also trying to establish bases in Rakhine and Chin states in western Myanmar.

The Brotherhood Alliance statement said that the groups will refrain from engaging in clashes with the Myanmar army in order not to hinder the planning and prevention activities to combat this global pandemic and to actively cooperate with neighboring countries along their borders.

The government designated the AA as a terrorist group and an unlawful association on March 23.

The Myanmar police began a crackdown on the media this week, attempting to persecute journalists under the Counterterrorism Law for communicating with the AA and publishing interviews with members of the armed group. Mandalay-based Voice of Myanmar, Rakhine-based Narinjara, Yangon-based Khit Thit News and others all face lawsuits.

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NEW DELHI  The Media One anchorman Vinesh Kunhiraman went on air as usual on March 6, ready to tell the stations five million viewers in Indias Kerala State about the death anniversary of a beloved comedian and the latest news on the coronavirus pandemic.

Just a few minutes into the broadcast, he saw the managing editor rush to the studio floor, gesturing wildly. I realized something was not right, Mr. Kunhiraman recalled.

The stations uplink suddenly went dead. Mr. Kunhiramans image dissolved into a blue screen. A bland message told viewers there was no signal. We regret the inconvenience, it said.

But this was no technical difficulty. The station had been cut off by an order from Indias Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The government decided to block the channel for 48 hours because it had covered Februarys biggest news story  the mob attacks on Muslims in New Delhi that flared into broader unrest  in a way that seemed critical toward Delhi Police and R.S.S., the order said.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Hundreds of Ohioans are making fabric masks to prevent the spread of coronavirus while buying groceries or going to the pharmacy. And hundreds of Ohioans want home-sewn masks but cant make them themselves. So how can we bring them together?

Cleveland.com reached out to hospitals requesting homemade masks, and to nonprofits providing help to people affected by the coronavirus.

No one had a ready-made solution. So were asking you for suggestions.

Related:

12 simple steps to make a fabric mask to protect from the coronavirus: See the video

Frequently asked questions for mask wearing

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says homemade fabric masks are a last resort for healthcare workers caring for coronavirus patients. But with masks in such short supply, the CDC says handmade masks, bandanas or scarves can be used if there is no other option.

Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton said she looks forward to new guidance that could come from the CDC, which is considering recommending that everyone wear masks. Many people could be carrying the virus and not know it because theyre asymptomatic, Actor has said.

"Again, Ive been saying this all long: Assume you have it. Assume each other has it, she said.

If these asymptomatic people wear masks when running essential errands, they could work to help slow the spread of the disease.

In Hudson, volunteers have made hundreds of masks for Mercy Hospital in Canton.

The Cleveland Clinic is collecting masks. At this time, the focus is on collecting the donated masks. Once we have more information to share about distribution, we will provide an update, spokeswoman Caroline Auger said.

Joann stores are giving away mask-making kits. Cleveland sewing store chain Pins & Needles has collection bins for masks.

Lets figure out how to get the masks in the hands of people who want them, to protect themselves and their community.
Vietnam confirmed nine new patients of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Thursday while reporting a total of 12 more recovered cases, including a British boy, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has thus recorded 227 cases, including 183 Vietnamese and 44 foreigners.

Seventy-five patients have fully recovered and been discharged from the hospital.

No death related to the disease has been reported so far.

Among them, a UK citizen, 11, was released from a medical center in Thanh Mien District, Hai Duong Province, located in northern Vietnam, the central government said on its verified Facebook account on Thursday afternoon.

The boy started his treatment in the infectious disease ward of the medical center on March 15 and tested negative for the virus twice, on March 24 and 28.

His health is stable and he will be isolated at another facility for 14 more days, as per the ministrys regulations.

Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are considered the epicenters of the country.

The capital has successfully treated 38 of its 99 cases while 15 of the 50 patients have recovered in the southern city.

The Ministry of Health advises people not to leave their home except for essential trips for food, medicine or emergency care.

Everyone should wear a face mask when outdoors and keep a minimum distance of two meters in social interaction.

Citizens are recommended to wash hands frequently with soap or antiseptic solutions, regularly clean houses and keep the doors and windows open, and disinfect surfaces.

All should declare their health status at https://tokhaiyte.vn or on NCOVI apps for smartphones.

Vietnam began nationwide social distancing on Wednesday, which will last until the end of April 15.

The country is doing its best to keep the number of patients under 1,000 for as long as it can.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
IRL Notice on convocation of the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders

The Annual General Meeting of Shareholders of AB INTER RAO Lietuva, code 1261 19913, registered address at A. Tumeno g. 4, Vilnius, the Republic of Lithuania (hereinafter referred to as the Company), is convened by initiative of the board and following the decision of the board adopted on 27 March 2020 (hereinafter referred to as the Meeting).

The Meeting will be held at at A. Tumeno str. 4 (Block B, 9 floor), LT-01109 Vilnius, the Republic of Lithuania, at 10.00 am on 27 April 2020. Registration will take place from 09.00 am till 09.40 am. The agenda of the Meeting approved by the Board: 1. Regarding the Consolidated Annual Report of the Company for the year 2019; 2. Approval of the Audited Annual Financial Statements of the Company for the year 2019 and the Audited Consolidated Annual Financial Statements of the Group for the year 2019; 3. Distribution of profit (loss) of the Company for the year 2019; 4. Selection of the audit firm and approval of conditions of payment for audit services; 5. Revokation of the members of Supervisory Council and lection of members of Supervisory Council. Draft decisions of the Meeting: 1. To take note of the Consolidated Annual Report of the Company for the year 2019, which has been approved by the Board and has been analysed by the Supervisory Council of the Company; 2. To approve the Audited Annual Financial Statements of the Company for the year 2019 and the Audited Consolidated Annual Financial Statements of the Group for the year 2019; 3. To distribute the profit (loss) of the Company for the year 2019 according to the draft distribution of profit (loss); 4. To select UAB Ernst & Young Baltic, legal entitys code 110878442, address Subaciaus str. 7, Vilnius, as the audit firm to perform the audit of the financial statements of the Company for the year 2020 and to establish conditions on payment as follows: not exceeding EUR 23,000 (without VAT) for the audit services; 5. To revoke before term all members of Supervisory Council of the Company and to elect the following persons as the members of the Supervisory Council for an office term of four years: Evgeniya Popova Vasily Kulikov Victor Kolotievskiy Valerian Goncharov Jonas Garbaravicius Rytis Davidovicius The Meeting record day, i.e. the fifth business day before the Meeting, is 20 April 2020. Shareholders who at the end of the Meeting record day, i.e. at the end of 20 April 2020, will be shareholders of the Company have a right to participate and vote at the Meeting. Persons, who at the end of the tenth business day following the Meeting that will adopt a respective decision, i.e. on 12 May 2020, (rights accounting day) will be shareholders of the Company, shall have proprietary rights (to get dividends). Shareholders who at the end of the Meeting record day will be shareholders of the Company have a right to participate and vote at the General Meeting of Shareholders personally or by proxy, or to be represented by the person with whom an agreement on the transfer of voting rights is concluded. Shareholders of the Company that will hold the shares through securities accounts maintained by the participants of the National Depositary for Securities in Poland will be given the opportunity to participate in and vote at the Meeting either by proxy or personally, by requesting the participant of the National Depositary for Securities (i.e. brokerage firm where the shareholder holds its shares), to register him/her for the Meeting. This request should be submitted before or on the Meeting record date. A person attending the Meeting must present a persons identification document. A person who is not a shareholder must additionally present a document confirming his/her right to vote at the Meeting. Each shareholder shall have a right to authorise another (natural or legal) person on his/her behalf to attend and vote at the Meeting. At the Meeting an authorised person shall have the same rights as would be held by the shareholder represented by him/her, unless the authorized person's rights are limited by the power of attorney. The authorised person must provide a power of attorney or a copy certified in the manner established by the laws. The Company does not establish special form of power of attorney. We hereby draw your attention to the fact that on the day of this notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic a quarantine has been imposed in the territory of the Republic of Lithuania by a decision of the Government (hereinafter referred to as the Quarantine), which includes a ban on organizing all events and gatherings in open and closed spaces. Currently the Quarantine is imposed until 24:00 (end of day) of 13 April 2020. It has been declared publicly, that the Quarantine can be prolonged. If on the day of the Meeting, i.e. on 27 April 2020, the Quarantine and abovementioned ban on organizing all events and gatherings is still in place, shareholders and their proxies will not have the possibility to attend and participate in the Meeting in person. In such case shareholders and their proxies will have the possibility to participate and vote at the Meeting by the only way, which is mandatory under the laws and allowed under such circumstances  to vote in writing in advance by filling in the General Voting Ballot and submitting it to the Company before the day of the Meeting. If on the day of the Meeting, i.e. on 27 April 2020, the Quarantine and the abovementioned ban on organizing all events and gatherings will no longer be in place, the shareholders and their proxies will have the possibility to attend and participate in the Meeting in person. However, considering the threat posed by the COVID-19 coronavirus, in such case the Company strongly recommends that the shareholders and their proxies do not attend the Meeting in person, but vote in writing in advance by filling in the General Voting Ballot. A shareholder or a person authorised by him/her shall have a right to vote in writing in advance by filling in the General Voting Ballot. The sample of General Voting Ballot together with instructions is provided hereby and on the Companys website at www.interrao.lt under the heading For Investors. The General Voting Ballot, duly filled in and signed by the shareholder or an authorized person, and the document confirming the voting right (if any) must be submitted to the Company at A. Tumeno g. 4, Vilnius, the Republic of Lithuania in writing before the Meeting. If the shareholder so requests, the Company, no later than 10 days before the Meeting, must dispatch a General Voting Ballot by registered mail or present this against signature free of charge for a shareholder. The Company is not providing the possibility to attend and vote at the Meeting through electronic means of communication. Shareholders holding shares that grant at least 1/20 of all votes shall have the right of proposing to supplement the agenda of the Meeting. Proposal to supplement the agenda must be presented in writing by sending it to A.Tumeno g. 4, LT-01109 Vilnius, the Republic of Lithuania. The agenda will be supplemented if the proposal is received not later than 14 days before the Meeting. Together with the proposal to supplement the agenda of the Meeting draft decisions must be presented to the Company. Shareholder holding shares that grant at least 1/20 of all votes shall have the right at any time before the Meeting or at the Meeting (the latter option does not apply, if the person participates in the Meeting by filling in the General Voting Ballot in advance) to propose in writing draft resolutions on the issues already included or to be included in the agenda of the Meeting, to nominate candidates to the bodies of the Company, the audit company. The proposed draft decisions must be presented to the Company at A.Tumeno g. 4, Vilnius, the Republic of Lithuania. The shareholders shall have the right to present questions related to the agenda issues of the Meeting in advance at A.Tumeno g. 4, Vilnius, the Republic of Lithuania by not later than 3 days before the Meeting. Responses of a general character shall be posted on the Companys website www.interrao.lt under the heading For Investors. The Company will not respond personally to the shareholder if the respective information is posted on the Company's website. The shareholders could get familiarized with the documents possessed by the Company related to the agenda of the Meeting, including draft resolutions, and other documents to be submitted to the Meeting as well as to get information regarding execution of the shareholders rights at the registered address of the Company at A.Tumeno g. 4, Vilnius, the Republic of Lithuania or on the Companys website at www.interrao.lt under the heading For Investors. The total number of the Companys shares of 0,29 Euro par value each and the number of shares granting voting rights during the Meeting is the same and amounts to 20,000,000. ISIN code of the Companys shares is LT0000128621. Annexes: 1. Example of General Voting Ballot; 2. Draft distribution of profit (loss) of the Company for the year 2019. Legal grounds: Article 17.1 of the EU Regulation on market abuse No 596/2014.
Australias medical watchdog has mobilised an unprecedented pandemic sub-register to get more than 40,000 retired doctors, nurses, midwives and pharmacists back into the healthcare system to join the coronavirus resistance.

The scheme comes as medical school graduates apply for their practitioner registration in droves and final-year students have been asked to express interest in entering hospitals early.

The pandemic sub-register will enable recently retired and non-practising healthcare workers to return to hospitals treating increasingly numbers of COVID-19 patients. Credit:Jason South

From Monday, 4800 medicos, 13,000 nurses, 2400 midwives and 2200 pharmacists who retired or moved to a non-practising registration in the past three years will be automatically listed on the sub-register and able to return to the healthcare system.

Physiotherapists, radiographers and other allied health workers are expected to join the cavalry in the near future to help care for COVID-19 patients, or work in other sections of the sector to free up their colleagues who can.
Summertown Interiors, a leading UAE-based fit-out contractor specialising in green interiors, said it has received the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industrys Advanced Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Label for the second time.

It was one of the seven companies to be awarded the advanced level CSR label for its achievements in 2019, and it is the ninth consecutive year the company has been receiving this award.

Across these seven impact areas, Summertown received an average score of 75.8% (+9.3% vs last year) for the advanced level; compared to the overall company average for the advanced level of 72.4% (+10.2% vs last year), said a statement from Summertown Interiors.

During the first quarter, the Emirati group had completed many exciting fit-out projects including Blue Yonder, Endress+Hauser, Sanofi, Smart Dubai Enterprise, and The Government of Dubai Media Office.

"We are currently working on a fit-out project for global pharmaceutical company Takeda, designed by Roar Studio, as well a high tech fit-out for Alef Education and working to help our healthcare clients and partners," said a company spokesman.

"In the first quarter of 2020 Marcos Bish joined an industry expert panel hosted by Love That Design on material transparency," he stated.

The panel delved into the importance of standards and the new Health Product Declaration (HPD) collaborative, the real costs of materials, commercial interior certifications, and the impacts on human health and well-being in workplaces, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowobi, the Executive Director of StandtoEndRape, who contracted COVID-19 during a post-Commonwealth event in the United Kingdom, has recounted her experience in the isolation ward.

Recowacerao - Abidjan, Ivory Coast

Speaking to the West African Catholic Church agency, Recowacerao, Osowobi briefly recounted her experience and battle with the disease in Lagos Infectious Disease Hospital, Yaba.

Seriously ill

Osowobi said that days after her return from the Commonwealth event she fell sick during self-isolation at home and was taken to hospital. Later she tested positive for COVID-19. While in the Isolation ward, she lost appetite, had nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

In her own words: Life finds ways of throwing Lemons at me. I have struggled with coming forward, but I want to inspire hope. I returned to Nigeria from the UK post-Commonwealth event and fell ill. As a responsible person, I self-isolated. Days after, I tested positive for COVID-19. The next days were tough. No appetite. Nausea, vomit and stooling were unbearable. Im a blood type A and COVID19 dealt with me, Osowobi told Sodiq Oyeleke of Punch newspaper.

I thought I was going to die

I thought I was going to die and contemplated a succession plan for StandtoEndRape. I was on drugs daily. Sometimes, I had taken eight tablets in the morning, thirteen tablets in the afternoon, ten at night. My system threw everything out! Water, food, soap and all disgusted me. But I had to look at the wall and force myself to stay hydrated. I fought to live! I fought!!

The coronavirus survivor encouraged the younger generation to desist from smoking and live a healthy lifestyle. To every young person out there, please give your lungs a chance to beat this. Can I encourage you to stop smoking and live a healthy life at this time? A healthy lung is key!

Need for more testing capacity

Osowobi added that there was a need for the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control to improve the countrys testing capacity. NCDCgov and State Governments need to improve their testing capacity. Test mild/asymptomatic cases too. Sending strength to everyone who is fighting to beat COVID19. Osowobi continued: Some stigmatised me based on an article in (the) national daily with subtle messages like why did she come back to Nigeria? (Today) I am faced with tears of joy. Nigeria is my home. Coronavirus is not a death sentence. People can survive, and I have!

Now discharged from hospital, Osowobi is encouraging people to follow the advice of health practitioners and government authorities.
Claim: Helicopters will be used to spray disinfectants to eradicate coronavirus

Rating: False

What is the rumour about?

Helicopters would be used to disinfectant various locations at night. So no person should be on the streets during this time.

It is also being said that 5 helicopters would be used to spray the disinfectants. Although the location is not mentioned in the viral social media post.

ALSO READ| Fact Check: Is Sharing Messages About Coronavirus Illegal Under Disaster Management Act?

Who started the rumour?

Social media users

On April 1, the message about helicopters being used to curb the coronavirus pandemic spread on a social media platform called WeChat.

The rumour was spread all over the web; however, it did not mention which areas the helicopters are deputed to disinfect. So, people from Richmond in America, Calgary in Canada, the UK, Mexico, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Switzerland, and various other places were reported to have received the maximum number of such messages.

Image courtesy: Facebook

Image courtesy: Twitter

Image courtesy: Facebook

ALSO READ| Fact Check: Did Donald Trump Send 18 Tonnes Of PPE To China?

Google Trends

After an analysis of the Google Trends with respect to the helicopters used to spray disinfectants rumour, one can see that people have been hugely interested to know whether helicopters are being deputed to disinfect areas. The maximum number of searches have been done on March 29, 2020.

Image courtesy: Google Trends

The maximum searches regarding the rumour have been done in countries like Ireland, UK, Philippines, Canada, and then India. The data are shown in the percentile form.

Image courtesy: Google Trends

ALSO READ| Fact Check: Did Italy Seek War Damages From China Due To The Coronavirus Outbreak?

Republic World did a fact check on the "helicopters used to spray disinfectants" rumour

Republic World did a fact check on the "helicopters used to spray disinfectants" rumour and it is a completely false statement.

The officials from various parts of the country have come forward and refuted all such claims in various countries. This news has been spreading throughout the web ever since the Coronavirus pandemic started.

New York officials refuted the claims with regards to Brooklyn being sprayed with disinfectants.

Even the Sri Lankan Government's Information Department refuted such claims via a public statement published on social media handles on March 24, 2020.

Image courtesy: Original Sinhala media release

The Department of Health of the Philippines urged people to verify the news from official social media handles of government authorities before spreading such messages.

In the UAE, the NCEMA recently refuted such claims two weeks ago.

ALSO READ| Fact Check: Are People Really Stuck In The Pilgrimage Centre Of Vaishno Devi?

Is there any rumour you want Republic World to do a fact check on? Do you have facts about a rumour? Share your pictures or videos with Republic World on contact@republicworld.com or comment on this story itself.

ALSO READ| Fact Check: Is The Video Of A Man Smearing Sweat On An Elevator, From Hong Kong?
SAN DIEGO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC: MJNA) (the "Company"), the first-ever publicly traded cannabis company in the United States that launched the world's first-ever cannabis-derived nutraceutical products, brands and supply chain, announced today that the Company's CEO Dr. Stuart Titus was featured in global financial news outlet U.S. News and World Report discussing his expertise in penny stocks.

The March 27, 2020, U.S. News and World Report article entitled " What to Know About Trading Penny Stocks " quoted Titus as saying: "The SEC requires public companies to report earnings and maintain current investor filings. These public documents allow investors to get an idea of company business, key personnel, operations, revenue or other information that may lead to future investor value."

Titus, a former Wall Street bond trader and veteran of the investment banking industry, explains that investors should be looking into a company's future potential when examining a penny stock rather than only assessing its current earnings.

"Many are looking at the recent economic downturn and trying to decide if now is their time to invest in penny stocks. For those who do choose to invest during this time, it is important to know what you are looking for to ensure the best chances of return on investment," Titus said.

About Medical Marijuana, Inc.

We are a company of firsts . Medical Marijuana, Inc. ( MJNA ) is a cannabis company with three distinct business units in the non-psychoactive cannabinoid space: a global portfolio of cannabinoid-based nutraceutical brands led by Kannaway and HempMeds ; a pioneer in sourcing the highest-quality legal non-psychoactive cannabis products derived from industrial hemp; and a cannabinoid-based clinical research and botanical drug development sector led by its pharmaceutical investment companies and partners including AXIM Biotechnologies, Inc. and Kannalife, Inc . Medical Marijuana, Inc. was named a top CBD producer by CNBC . Medical Marijuana, Inc. was also the first company to receive historic import permits for CBD products from the governments of Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, and Paraguay and is a leader in the development of international markets. The company's flagship product Real Scientific Hemp Oil has been used in several successful clinical studies throughout Mexico and Brazil to understand its safety and efficacy.

Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s headquarters is in San Diego, California, and additional information is available at OTCMarkets.com or by visiting www.medicalmarijuanainc.com . To see Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s corporate video, click here .

Shareholders and consumers are also encouraged to buy CBD oil and other products at Medical Marijuana, Inc.'s shop.

FORWARD-LOOKING DISCLAIMER

This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Medical Marijuana, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein.

FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA) DISCLOSURE

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

LEGAL DISCLOSURE

Medical Marijuana, Inc. does not sell or distribute any products that are in violation of the United States Controlled Substances Act.

CONTACT:

Public Relations Contact:

Andrew Hard

Chief Executive Officer

CMW Media

P. 858-264-6600

[email protected]

www.cmwmedia.com

Investor Relations Contact:

P. (858) 283-4016

[email protected]

SOURCE Medical Marijuana, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.medicalmarijuanainc.com


National Green Tribunal Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel has donated Rs 50,000 to the PM-CARES fund to aid the nation's fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

The NGT in an office order, said the chairperson has decided to contribute a sum of Rs 50,000 and has expressed his desire that all the members of tribunal as well as the officers/officials of registry/staff should come forward and generously contribute voluntarily towards the cause.

"There is an extraordinary situation faced by the world on account of spread of corona pandemic (COVID-19). Steps are being taken by the government of India to contain the spread of deadly virus which has tendency to pose serious health and economic crisis," an official release said.

"To tackle the situation of emergency or distress and to provide relief to those adversely affected, the government has set up Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES Fund)," it added.

According to an order issued by the Registrar General, to facilitate the contribution from NGT staff, it has been decided that all Gazetted Officers will donate 3 days' salary while all non-Gazetted employee will give two days' salary and all Group-C non-clerical employees will pay one day's salary for the cause.

"It is clarified that the contribution is on voluntary basis. If any officer/official does not wish to contribute, he/she may intimate the DDO, NGT, through email invariably mentioning his/her name and designation, latest by 10 am on April 15... The contribution is exempted under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act," the order said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
T oilet paper was left strewn across a highway in Texas after a truck carrying a huge load of rolls crashed and caught fire.

The driver of the 18-wheeler tractor-trailer lost control of the truck on the Interstate 20 near Dallas, Texas, at 4.15am on Wednesday morning.

The crash caused the vehicle and its load to catch fire, and police closed all westbound lanes of the interstate for several hours.

The industry-sized toilet rolls "burned extensively" in the blaze, the Texas Department of Transportation told Dallas TV station WFAA.

The driver was not seriously injured in the crash, authorities said.

Toilet paper has been in high demand across the world since the start of the coronavirus outbreak.

The truck carrying industry-sized toilet rolls crashed and caught fire near Dallas, Texas / KDFW-FOX 4 NEWS

The demand for toilet paper sparked the trending hashtags #toiletpapergate and #toiletpapercrisis on Twitter, along with photographs of shopping trolleys piled high with rolls, and calls for calm from baffled officials.

Loo rolls were even chained to the walls inside public toilets in Hackney to stop park users stealing them.

With shoppers stripping the supermarket shelves last month, a store manager at a Tesco Extra superstore in north London told customers: If you want loo roll, come and queue at 4.30am for our opening at 5am.
Days before her death, she knew the end was near and told her four children and husband, Denis, that it was time to let her go. Along with coming to terms with that loss, they had to adjust to the fact that her death coincided with the largest social shutdown the world has seen.
Indonesia has released some 18,000 inmates in a desperate bid to stop coronavirus from rampaging through its notoriously overcrowded prison system, authorities said Thursday. The mass release comes days after the Southeast Asian nation said it would free more than 30,000 inmates to take pressure off prisons and jails beset by unsanitary conditions and long at risk of infectious diseases. The UN has called on countries to release vulnerable inmates, with Afghanistan last week announcing it would set free some 10,000 prisoners. "Our target is to release 30,000 inmates in total, but it could end up being more," said Rika Aprianti, a spokeswoman for the Corrections Directorate General. "This is part of the plan to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in prisons." She offered few details, but a government release order included juvenile offenders and adult prisoners who had served at least two-thirds of their sentences. Prisoners were advised to self quarantine at home after release. Among them was Firdaus, a fishermen jailed in 2017 on Sulawesi island for stealing a gold ring. "I was scared of being infected in prison, not to mention that the guards come and go so we don't know who they've had contact with," said the 33-year-old, who was set for release in November. But his relief was tempered by the thought of others still inside. "I'm not that happy because I left my friends behind," he said. Indonesia's creaking prison system has just 522 institutions for some 270,000 inmates. It suffers from regular jailbreaks and criticism for its often deplorable conditions. Amnesty International welcomed the release, but called on the government to make sure "prisoners of conscience" and older inmates with health problems were set free. "They're vulnerable to COVID-19 and, in the name of humanity, they must be released," said Amnesty Indonesia Executive Director Usman Hamid. "Conditions including a lack of access to clean water and severe overcrowding will be exacerbated by the outbreak."
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has donated two ventilators to the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada and one to the principal hospital, Abuja.

The board also urged all prospective tertiary institutions intakes, students, parents and, the entire country to support the government by adhering to every instruction in curbing the spread of the pandemic.

In a statement issued by Fabian Benjamin, the boards Head of Public Affaires, it said the Board appreciates the support and donations from corporate bodies and individuals towards complementing governments efforts aimed at containing the spread of the pandemic as well as treating those already infected with the virus.

In the Boards own little way of ensuring that government strategies and preemptive measures yield fruitful dividends, the Board has donated two ventilators to the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagwalada and one to the principal hospital in the Boards host community, the Bwari General Hospital, in preparation for any eventuality.

Read Also: Russian President In Isolation After Shaking Hands With Doctor Who Has Covid-19

This proactiveness was borne out of the Boards desire to plan in line with the Federal Governments determination to ensure that no Nigerian succumbed to the virus. 

The donation of these ventilators which cost several millions is to strategically place these Hospitals in good stead to give necessary treatment to COVID-19 patients whether in Bwari or any other part of Abuja. However, this gesture was in addition to the several other interventions aimed at aiding the fight against the virus.

The Board will continue to support the fight against the pandemic within its limited means and by so doing, protect our teeming candidates who are the hopes of tomorrow.
Swathes of pub tenants have warned that grassroots workers running pubs face an 'existential threat' if rental fees are not scrapped completely for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking to This is Money, Ed Anderson, 45, a publican with three pubs in Cheltenham and 25 years of experience in the industry, said it was 'absurd' that some landlord pub holding groups had failed to cancel rental fees during the pandemic.

Typically, a pub tenant's rental fees are derived from the pub's finances. But, with no cash coming in, publicans like Ed face a huge financial hurdle, particularly if rental costs are simply deferred rather than temporarily scrapped altogether.

An online social media campaign called #NoPubNoRent is calling on major pub groups like Star Pubs and Bars, Stonegate (Ei Group) and Greene King to cancel rents for tenants while the pandemic rages.

In trouble: Experienced publican Ed Anderson (pictured far right) has branded the behaviour of some pubcos on the rent issue 'absurd'

#NoPubNoRent! The British Pubs Confederation are naming and shaming pubcos it believes aren't doing enough for its renting tenants

Mr Anderson runs The Vine, The Railway and The Swan, which are all located in Cheltenham. He operates under two big names in the pub group sector, namely Marston's and the Ei Group. The Ei Group is now part of the Stonegate pub group.

He says that the pubcos he deals with have said that 'they will not collect rent now but they will continue to charge for it'.

'I'M REALLY WORRIED ABOUT THE FUTURE OF MY PUB' Concerned: Carol Ross runs the Roscoe Head pub in Liverpool Carol Ross, 60, runs the Roscoe Head pub in Liverpool and has been involved in the pubs industry for 45 years. The Roscoe Head has been run by Ms Ross' family for 40 years and her parents retired in the 1990s. She dealt with a pubco previously known as Punch Taverns, which was then snapped up by NewRiver REIT in 2015. She's now under a company called Hawthorn Leisure. 'My family wanted to buy the freehold but they wanted to charge me for my own good will - far too high. I have been sold again to Hawthorn Leisure, apparently, without my knowledge', Ms Ross told This is Money. Hawthorn Leisure has opted to defer rather than scrap rental fees for its pub tenants, Ms Ross said. Ms Ross thinks a cancellation of her rental fees by her pubco would enable her 'to stay in business and open up with our staff when this is all over.' She added: 'The pub is about people and my staff and customers are the most important part of our pub life. We need to protect what we have. 'Our staff have the same bills to pay, they need security of a job. At the end of this pandemic the staff need to earn to keep the roof over their heads too.' Ms Ross said she remains 'really worried' about her pub's future, adding that a lot of pubs, including hers, may not make it through to the end of the pandemic if pubcos don't up their game. Committed to her staff, Carol is paying workers at her pub holiday pay until she has fully considered the Government help available. This is Money has contacted Hawthorn Leisure for comment.

'Its absurd, I save up every month to pay the rent from the income the pub takes. I cannot save up 70k in the next six months with no income.'

Mr Anderson thinks that if the pubcos he's involved with scrapped their rental fees for the duration of the pandemic then 'we could reopen the pub and continue doing what we love in our communities when this is over.'

Pubs: A jargon-buster For most people, the act of going to the pub and getting a drink is straightforward. But the industry is quite complex - and there's some curious jargon to get to grips with. Beer tie - A contract between a pub owning company, often known as a 'pubco' and a tenant. Tenants can run a pub without needing to buy the freehold of the property. The tenant pays rent and part of its profits to the parent company. The 'tied' tenants are also contractually bound to buy most of their beer, soft drinks and services from the pubco, which often means they can't shop around for more competitive prices. Free-of-tie - A pub in which the tenants can buy whatever beer they like from anyone they like and pay an independently assessed market rent. Market Rent Only - As part of the Pubs Code, tenants are meant to get greater powers to achieve a better deal with their pubco, including options to break free from the beer tie and pay 'Market Rent Only.' MRO is the right of a tied-pub tenant to go free-of-tie. The request can only be made after certain trigger-points crop up, like a rent review and to go free of tie, a tied-pub tenant must give notice to their landlord. Pubco - When we talk about a 'pubco' in this article, it refers to the parent holding company of many of the UK's pubs. Some are also brewers and include well known names like Greene King and Marston's; while others are effectively property companies that rent their pubs out to tenants, like Ei Group/Stonegate and Punch.

'This is an existential threat to all publicans who are getting charged rent for a pub that does not exist,' he added.

All of Mr Anderson's staff have been furloughed and he says that if he is forced to pay rent and his pubs fold, everyone in his teams will have to apply for the Universal Credit benefit.

The risks are clear. Mr Anderson and his team face losing their jobs and their livelihoods, while Cheltenham risks losing some of its best pubs.

Commenting on its pandemic policy for renting tenants, an Ei Group spokesperson told This is Money: 'We are and will continue working in partnership with our tied publicans throughout this unprecedented pandemic, ensuring they are kept up to date with Government and practical support available for their businesses as well as deferring collection of rent and fees, which we will keep under constant review.

'In the small percentage of our commercial properties, we are liaising with our tenants and taking measures to assist with their business cash flow.'

Meanwhile, Marston's said: 'We are highly aware of  and sympathetic to - the challenges facing our tenants currently and have suspended all rent payments until further notice.

'We are also providing additional support through our field team to ensure tenants are making full use of the additional Government-assisted financial support open to them.

'The vast majority are eligible for the Governments Self Employed/Small Business support scheme and Marstons has also committed to credit our tenants for all opened keg and cask supplies when pubs reopen. We will continue to work with our pub tenants to support them over this challenging period.'

A sector in disarray

The pub sector has been thrown into chaos, with thousands of establishments at risk of cutting jobs and shutting up shop for good once the pandemic ceases.

On the evening of Friday 20 March, Prime Minister Boris Johnson took the extraordinary step of ordering all pubs and restaurants, with the exception of takeaway outlets, to close by the end of the night.

He's gutted: Pint loving Boris Johnson forced pubs to close late last month

The Government stepped in with a package of measures, including agreeing to pay 80 per cent of people's pay packets up to 2,500 a month, to protect pubs and their staff from the financial bloodbath and tsunami of job losses looked set to ensue. But, many still face financial ruin.

Pubs might also be able to get a Government grant of up to 25,000 if their pub has a rateable value of between 15,000 and 51,000.

The magnitude of the decision to close pubs was not lost on the Prime Minister, who admitted the move went against the 'inalienable free-born right of people born in England to go to the pub'.

What is the #NoPubNoRent campaign?

Greg Mulholland, the chairman at the British Pubs Confederation, told This is Money that the #NoPubNoRent online campaign was a 'grassroots' cause aimed at getting pubcos to take notice of their stricken tenants' plight.

Cheltenham-based publican Ed Anderson said the campaign was founded by a group of publicans who were in contact with each other on Facebook trying to figure out how they would continue paying rent with no cash coming in.

Mr Anderson said: 'The aim is to unite publicans in one voice, with some public support, so that the pubcos hear our message, do the right thing and cancel the rent.'

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'It's a scandal that some pub owners, including some of the largest pubcos are still charging rent to pub tenants during the forced closure as a result of the Covid-19 crisis', the British Pub Confederations' Greg Mulholland told This is Money.

Mr Mulholland said the British Pub Confederation would 'name and shame' all pub groups who are refusing to cancel rents during the closure, but also praise those taking positive steps to help their tenants.

He said: 'So we call on pub-owning companies with tenants to do the right thing and support licensees during this crisis and their complete loss if income which must mean no rent.

'If they do not, they will create hardship for thousands of publicans and will be directly responsible for the failure of many pubs and will not be forgiven by the British public. We ask all pub lovers to support their local pubs and publicans and tell the pubcos and Government, #NoPubNoRent.'

Hint of good news

The British Pub Confederation's 'naming and shaming' table containing the names of pubcos it claims aren't doing enough for their tenants also includes companies it suggests are going the extra mile during these turbulent times.

Admiral Taverns, which features on the upbeat side of the organisation's table, told This is Money it had scrapped rental fees for its pub tenants from 21 March to 30 April and will keep this end date under review.

According to the Campaign for Real Ale, Fullers has also cancelled rental fees for pubs on its books.

Adnams told This is Money it has cancelled rental costs for its tenants for an 'unspecified period.'

'I'M NOT SURE WE CAN SURVIVE THE NEXT SIX MONTHS' Tough times: Publican Dave Law - pictured here with his family - runs the Eagle in Battersea with his busines partner Simon Clarke. Dave Law, 49, runs The Eagle Ale House in Clapham, London, with his business partner Simon Clarke. He operates under Stonegate (Ei Group). Speaking to This is Money, Mr Law said his pubco had, to date, not offered a rental fee cancellation amid the pandemic. Instead, it, according to Mr Law, started off launching a four week deferral period, and have since offered a month in arrears. Asked why he thought his pubco hadn't gone further to help its tenants, Mr Law said: 'It's not in their DNA. 'A large part of the sector have been bought by overseas Hedge Funds or Global Brewers. The smaller independent family brewers have had to follow the same aggressive behaviours of risk being swallowed up.' Mr Law argues that a rental holiday, rather than a cancellation, will simply saddle pubs like his with an ever increasing mountain of debt. Conversely, if a rental cancellation took place, he thinks 'we stand a chance', adding 'there can be no confidence that we will return to normal afterwards, as people will inevitably have to re-assess their lives and priorities.' Even with a strong income stream before the end of last month and a possible Government grant of up to 25,000, Mr Law is not sure his business can last once the next six months are up. He plans to pay his full time staff 100 per cent of their pay during the pandemic, but those working just a few shifts may have to be furloughed.

National Chairman of CAMRA Nik Antona said: 'CAMRA welcomes the move by businesses such as Admiral Taverns and Fullers to cancel rent for their pub tenants in recognition of the unique circumstances we are in.

'We are now calling on other pub owning businesses to follow those examples and listen to the concerns of tenants, and of pubgoers who want their locals to survive this crisis'.

The British Pub Confederation has written to Martson's demanding it cancels tenant rents
Musharraf Ali Khan, advocate of Tablighi Jamaat chief Maulana Muhammad Saad, urged people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi to come forward and report to the authorities.

"People who visited Tablighi Jamaat (Delhi) should come forward and tell the authorities about themselves. As responsible citizens it's our duty to help the administration and follow their orders," Musharraf Ali Khan said.

The Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi has emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after several positive cases across India were linked to the gathering, including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana.

An FIR was earlier registered against Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad and others under the Epidemic Disease Act 1897 in Delhi.

A total of 2,361 people were brought out from the Markaz in a joint operation by authorities which lasted for over 36 hours, following which the South Delhi Municipal Corporation had carried out a sanitisation of the premises and nearby area.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Just breathing and talking can spread coronavirus, a renowned medical group warned the White House Wednesday night.

A leading member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and former Harvard School of Public Health dean, Dr Harvey Fineberg, told CNN that while surgical masks should be reserved for health care workers, he himself is going to be wearing a bandanna or other face covering.

Dr Anthony Fauci, a White House coronavirus task force member and leading infectious disease expert said that the subject of having Americans cover their faces in public is a 'very active discussion' among the committee.

Research remains mixed on whether surgical masks work as well as N95 respirators and whether cloth face coverings do much at all to prevent infection, but Dr Fauci noted that they might be protective, and certainly wont do harm - as long as medical workers have enough.

More Americans may need to cover their faces as experts warn breathing and talking may spread coronavirus

'From what I've seen...I think that if we do not have the problem of taking away masks from healthcare workers who need them, I would lean towards it because I think that it - I mean, what - what harm can it do if you have enough masks?' Dr Fauci told CNN.

Like most respiratory illnesses, coronavirus is spread in tiny droplets of moisture that carry virus particles.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that are expelled when sick people cough or sneeze.

However, talking can send the droplets into the air too, Dr Fineberg told CNN. Even the breathe of a person with coronavirus could be dangerous.

Dr Harvey Fineberg said he's going to start wearing a mask in public (left). Dr Anthony Fauci (right) said that US officials are having 'very active discussions' about telling Americans to wear face coverings in public

'While the current [coronavirus] specific research is limited, the results of available studies are consistent with aerosolization of virus from normal breathing,' Dr Fineberg said.

The NAS letter to the White House noted research conducted in a Chinese hospital that found the virus can sent into the air and linger there when health care workers take of their protective gear and possibly as result of cleaning jostling the particles free, or even of movements.

Americans are now advised to stay more than six feet apart from one another to slow the spread of coronavirus, but studies from the University of Nebraska and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) found that the virus can travel much further.

'If you generate an aerosol of the virus with no circulation in a room, it's conceivable that if you walk through later, you could inhale the virus,' Dr Fineberg said.

'But if you're outside, the breeze will likely disperse it.'

Dr Fineberg said he himself will begin wearing a mask in public as a precaution against contracting the virus, especially in relatively closed spaces like grocery stores.

'I'm not going to wear a surgical mask, because clinicians need those,' said Dr Fineberg, who is former dean of the Harvard School of Public Health.

'But I have a nice western-style bandana I might wear. Or I have a balaclava. I have some pretty nice options.'

Reports have emerged that the CDC - and the White House, as Dr Fauci disclosed - are considering
New Delhi, April 2 : Domestic airlines are free to accept ticket bookings for flights that will be operated post the current lockdown deadline, Civil Aviation Secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola said on Thursday.

The current lockdown period is till the midnight of April 14 and if this is not extended then these bookings will be honoured, he said at an online press conference.

Presently, domestic airlines have started to accept bookings for flights which are expected to commence from April 15, if the lockdown period is not extended.

At present, no foreign or domestic passenger flight operations are allowed but cargo operations are still underway.

On cargo operations, Kharola said the regulator DGCA has allowed passenger jets of private airlines to be used to transport cargo.

This move, he said, will complement the existing capacity of cargo being handled throughout the country.

Till now under the Centre's 'Lifeline Udan' initiative 85 flights have transported 75 tonnes across the country from March 26-April 1.

Furthermore, Kharola said that private airlines are transporting essential medical supplies for free.

In addition, he added that advisories have been issued to airlines not to charge cancellation or other levies from passengers during this period.

He elaborated that airlines are being encouraged to go in for a credit system, whereby credits are given to the passengers in lieu of their booking amounts.

These credits can then be used to book tickets at a later stage, when the situation normalises.
Portable shielded stilt lamps offer doctors and patients additional protection. Credit: University of Michigan

Despite COVID-19-related lockdowns, face-to-face eye examinations continue to be a necessity for manya situation that has forced doctors and engineers at the University of Michigan to get creative.

Together they've developed an expanded breath shield that can provide greater protection to both patients and doctors during eye exams. U-M engineers moved quickly to design an acrylic plexiglass panel that would fit and work with slit lamp biomicroscopes, a staple of eye examinations. They've been installed at the Kellogg Eye Center, where Michigan Medicine is providing urgent eye care to all patients.

If you've been for an eye exam, you can imagine the problem. The equipment requires patients to place their chins into a tray, and press their foreheads against a stabilizing piece so their doctor can look closely at the structures of the eye. It also requires the person administering the exam to get up close and personalwithin two feet of the patient's face.

Slit lamp biomicroscopes currently on the market feature breath shields that are, at most, eight inches on any side. At the request of doctors at the Kellogg Eye Center, a U-M team led by Lauro Ojeda, an associate research scientist in mechanical engineering, designed and prototyped a larger shield that is 12 inches by 15 inches.

Before U-M moved to limit campus operations, Ojeda and his team were able to work with a local company to produce 200 shields. Those have been dispersed throughout facilities in the Michigan Medicine system.

Lockdown conditions have relegated many medical visits and procedures to non-essential, but for ophthalmologists, there remain plenty of patients who still need to be seen, said Paul Lee, the Bruce Fralick Professor and Chair of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the Kellogg Eye Center.

"We have patients who still need injections to prevent blindness in cases of macular degeneration," Lee said. "Others are dealing with retinal detachments and still others have uncontrolled glaucoma. And then there are people who experience sudden vision loss and need to be seen immediately."

Lee said the initial responses from doctors using the new shield shows it's working well, and called the project "a wonderful collaboration with engineering to quickly meet a need of high importance to our patients and our health care teams."

To design the expanded shield, Ojeda started out by replicating what was already on the market.

"We brought it to the hospital and said how should we modify this?"

Patients and doctors both benefit from the new protective shield. Credit: Lauro Ojeda

Lee and his doctors wanted the shield expanded in every direction. So, Ojeda's team utilized machine shops that were still open on North Campus to remake another shield with expanded dimensions. Once engineers had the specs they wanted, they searched online for companies that could manufacture the pieces.

It provided a lesson in the benefits of buying local.

"There are many sites online where you can simply upload your model and they will give you a quote immediately," Ojeda said. "Others will respond within an hour or so. For an order of 200, some of the quotes were as high as $23,000, and the lower range was $6,000 to $10,000.

"The next day we started getting feedback from the local shops. On average their quotes were around $1,200 and they were able to turn the orders around much more quickly. So we've been working with them since."

Lee was responsible for kicking the project into gear early in March after watching events unfold overseas.

"The data out of China indicated that opthamologists and ENT doctors were at the greatest risk of contracting coronavirus before the country really knew about it," he said. "The cumulative exposure and the numbers of patients we are exposed to are quite high. We sit face-to-face with patients and breathe, without the breath shields, the same air."

Lee is quick to point out other research institutions have done similar work in recent weeksa sign of how great the need is for improved protections. Ojeda and his team are making the design specs for their shields available to the public.

And they are currently designing shields for portable slit lamp biomicroscpes, devices that require even closer proximity for doctor and patient. The work is somewhat slower without access to U-M's workshops, but it continues by hand where team engineers can find the equipment.

Lee said he believes the shields will be of benefit long after COVID-19 has run its course.

"It helps us deal with the normal occurrence of people with colds, flus or things like that," Lee said. "Everything that we can do to help reduce the transmission of various respiratory infections would be very useful."
If arguing for the free expression of doctors within China seems surprising, it's only because the CCP has been so successful at setting the terms of discussion about the nation, both at home and abroad. Loading An ophthalmologist at a hospital in Wuhan named Li Wenliang was one of eight people warned by police in January for "spreading rumours" about the emergence of the coronavirus. The next month, the 34-year-old died of the COVID-19 setting off outrage and mourning by the public, which itself was censored on the nation's social media networks. The Party is doing what it has done from its inception: used information not to inform but to condition a public. It continues. You can see the trend in the language the WHO has used to praise Chinas system in the aftermath of the outbreak.

"The US hoped bringing Beijing into international organisations would change it for the better, but the opposite is happening," a recent Bloomberg editorial noted. WHO officials' willingness to toe the CCP line, prompted Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso to ask rhetorically if the organisation should be renamed the Chinese Health Organization. As the virus spread, the CCP's vast international communications network now aims to shape the global views of the outbreak. The majority of this effort isn't the negative disinformation around the events on the ground in Wuhan, but positive images that portray the CCP as a benevolent organisation. China has the scale and the party has the will to make this story stick. This is how propaganda works. It has consequences for our political system as well.

As ANU national security adviser Katherine Mansted wrote: "Foreign manipulation of public opinion undermines the rights of Australian citizens to determine their own political future." Australia's media, government, business and the public are going to have to think big about this topic. No longer can we simply claim this is an internal matter for China of no interest to us. In the years leading up to coronavirus, we have learnt how Beijings long game of interference in democracies aims to divide us internally, while capturing a cadre of local elites who will advocate  sometimes for pay - the CCPs position on core issues. The reality of the CCPs coronavirus response, nowhere to be seen in photos of medical aid delivery planes on tarmacs, is that China's ruling party is trying to bend the will of the world to suit Beijing.

Rather than fact-check CCP propaganda, Australia needs to set out the value of free, rational speech for the world to hear. So far Australia has been able to react rapidly to the outbreak because our medical profession doesn't fear repercussions for speaking up. Under the law, no one should fear expressing themselves. For this reason, the concern remains that current laws give too much power to government and not enough to genuine whistleblowers and journalists. To prepare Australia for the challenges in the 21st century, we as a society must stand firmly behind free expression. Not only is free speech right and natural for doctors within Australia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, it's a right for doctors within mainland China, too.

If the medical professionals there dont have it, the world remains at risk. Whether Chinas government would agree to this expanded right for its doctors may not matter as much as the position, firmly held by Australia, to support the non-coercive, free exchange of information in the world. This new reality is being acknowledging elsewhere already. "During the current, unprecedented coronavirus outbreak, our health depends not just on the openness of our own society but the honesty of others, said Britain's Foreign Affairs Committee chair Tom Tugendhat. Media freedom anywhere affects our health everywhere," he said.
Police have today been accused of using 'powers they don't have' to arrest a woman at a railway station as 'overzealous' enforcement of new coronavirus laws came under the microscope again today.

Marie Dinou, 41, from York, was fined 800 after allegedly failing to tell police her name and why she was at Newcastle Central station - and is believed to be Britain's first prosecution for breaching the lockdown.

British Transport Police, who carried out the arrest, said she was detained because she 'refused to speak' to officers after being seen 'loitering between platforms' on Saturday.

On Monday she was fined at North Tyneside magistrates' court after she was found guilty of 'failing to provide identity or reasons for travel to police, and failing to comply with requirements under the Coronavirus Act'.

But legal experts say this is the 'wrong law' and Ms Dinou should not have been taken to magistrates' court and handed a criminal record.

Kirsty Brimelow QC, one of Britain's leading human rights lawyers, told The Times: 'Powers under the Coronavirus Act [do not] relate to a direction to provide identity or reason for a journey. So it seems that she has been prosecuted and convicted for an offence which does not exist under this act. She has an option of appeal.'

Marie Dinou, 41, from York, was prosecuted and fined 800 after allegedly failing to tell police her name and why she was at Newcastle Central station - but experts say her prosecution appears to have been unlawful

Ms Dinou's charge sheet shows she was prosecuted under new powers relating to potentially infectious persons in Schedule 21 of the Coronavirus Act - but police said she was prosecuted for failing to identify herself

Leading QC Kirsty Brimelow says that Ms Dinou, who has a criminal record, has the right to appeal

Police powers to tackle people flouting the coronavirus lockdown Up to two years in prison if you cough deliberately on someone after spate of attacks on police and emergency service workers

People who continue to flout coronavirus lockdown rules will be breaking the law and can be arrested as part of new enforcement powers announced by the Home Office.

Officers can also tell them to go home, leave or disperse an area and ensure parents are taking necessary steps to stop their children breaking the law.

Those who refuse to comply could be issued with a fixed penalty notice of 60, which will be lowered to 30 if paid within 14 days.

Second-time offenders could be issued a fixed penalty notice of 120, doubling on each further repeat offence.

Those who do not pay the penalty can be taken to court, with magistrates able to impose fines up to 1,000 or more; Advertisement

In a series of tweets this morning she added: 'The police seem to have applied powers they don't have. Whatever the investigation, the prosecution has to be right under the act'.

'Theres a mixing up here of the Coronavirus Act & the Emergency Regulations. It looks like the police, prosecution & magistrates did the same thing resulting in a wrongful prosecution & conviction'.

A British Transport Police spokesman said the force was aware of the claims and 'speaking with our partners in the Crown Prosecution Service'.

She added that their policy is enforcement as a last resort.

According to the charge sheet presented in court, Dinou was prosecuted under Schedule 21 of the Coronavirus Act.

This clause is meant to force people to self-isolate or be tested for coronavirus, if they are suspected to have it and are endangering the public by being out of the house.

But British Transport Police confirmed they didn't believe she was ill - nor did they ask her to self-isolate or be screened.

More damning is guidance issued by the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), which is clear that under the act officers have no power to 'stop and account', or force someone to explain themselves.

Ms Brimelow, QC, the first chairwoman of the Bar Human Rights Committee, highlighted the case and other lawyers agree with her summary.

Marie Dinou, 41, from York, was seen 'loitering between platforms' at Newcastle Central station (pictured last week) and charged with failing to comply with requirements imposed under the Coronavirus Act

Others have claimed that Ms Dinou's case suggests police could now treat suspects as 'potentially infectious' to perform arrests.

Drunk, 55, jailed for six months after coughing in policeman's face and saying: 'I've git Covid - you're going to get it' A drinker who coughed in a policeman's face and claiming to have coronavirus has been jailed for six months. Adam Lewis, 55, pictured, was sentenced at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Wednesday after being convicted of an assault on an emergency worker, the Metropolitan Police said. The case is believed to be the first jail sentence in London for a Covid-19-related assault involving a police officer. The Met said the officer had been flagged down by a member of the public while he was on cycle patrol in Westminster at around 3.40pm on Tuesday. The officer was told that a man had been seen trying the handles of car doors in the area. He subsequently approached Lewis and attempted to detain him for a search, at which point Lewis tried to resist and smashed a bottle of wine he was holding on the floor. Police said Lewis then verbally threatened the officer, telling him: "I am Covid and I am going to cough in your face and you will get it." He then coughed on the officer - who was trying to keep him at arm's length - making no attempt to shield his mouth, and fell to the floor. The officer bent down to restrain him, while holding his head away from Lewis, who attempted to cough up phlegm, before trying to spit in his face. Lewis also threatened to bite the officer shortly after telling the him he had a "bad disease" and he was going to give it to him. Advertisement

This is only meant to be used when someone who should be in self-isolation refuse to go home or to be screened.

Big Brother Watch, who have accused UK forces of going to far, said today: ;Police need to be trusted with these extreme powers - but they've fallen at the first hurdle'.

Director Silkie Carlo said: 'The Coronavirus Act gives police huge powers to police to arbitrarily fine, detain and punish potentially anyone in this country.

'The new law defines 'potentially infectious persons' so loosely as to be meaningless and capture the entire British public.

'It seems here that someone who declined to give police their personal details has been classed as 'potentially infectious' and criminalised as a result.

'It's so important that people follow the government guidance to protect themselves and others. Extraordinary powers are needed in these circumstances to protect public health.

'However, these emergency powers are the most draconian ever seen in peacetime Britain.

'These breathtaking powers can even be used to detain and isolate our children. If the police are to maintain credibility and public trust in their handling of these extreme emergency powers, they will need to use them proportionately and in accordance with the law'.

Following Dinou's arrest, BTP insisted said enforcement action like this was always 'a last resort' and officers would always try to engage with passengers and convince them of the need to follow the advice before taking matters further.

Assistant Chief Constable Sean O'Callaghan said: 'Enforcement of any sort under the new regulations really is a last resort, especially arrest.

'In this case, officers tried their upmost best to engage with Dinou. I can assure you we would much rather not have to take such action.'

'We strongly urge the public to do the right thing and help us save lives by staying at home and slowing the spread of the virus.'

Police will be able to use force on children if they flout the coronavirus lockdown.

Guidance from the College of Policing says 'reasonable force' can be used if a youngster is believed to be 'outside of their premises without reasonable excuse'.

Officers also have the power to fine parents 60 for failing to stop a child from going out.

The guidance spells out that officers can remove a youngster from the streets and anyone with them if they refuse to go home. The briefing drawn up by the National Police Chiefs' Council urges officers to make sensible decisions and use enforcement as a last resort.

It also says checks on every vehicle are 'disproportionate' and the public should not be punished for travelling a reasonable distance to exercise. Forces including North Yorkshire and Devon and Cornwall have put road blocks into place or deployed high visibility patrols to quiz motorists about their plans.

Derbyshire Police also faced a backlash after using drones to film walkers who had driven to the Peak District. The guidance states: 'Use your judgment and common sense  the police will apply the law in a system that is flexible, discretionary and pragmatic. If you believe anyone is outside of their premises without reasonable excuse, including a child, you can use reasonable force in the exercise of the power.'

Derbyshire Police sent up their drone and filmed people on 'not essential' trips to the Peak District including people posing for an 'Instagram snap'

The guidelines advise officers to maintain a distance of at least 6ft from members of the public.

Bill Skelly, Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Police, said officers had to stop some motorists: 'Caravans heading down the M5  they are clearly not travelling for essential reasons.' Yesterday the chairman of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, Katy Bourne, urged forces not to be 'overzealous'. She said: 'In order for these measures to be truly effective, the police will need to maintain public confidence.'

The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) Regulations 2020, which were enacted last week to give police the power to enforce rules with fines and even arrests, says: During the emergency period, no person may leave the place where they are living without reasonable excuse. Reasonable excuses include buying food and exercising.

The legislation does not specify  or limit  how many times a day someone can leave their house.

It came as police chiefs hit back at claims the lockdown had turned Britain into a police state amid anger at drones, helicopters and roadblocks being deployed to force people to stay indoors.

Former Supreme Court judge Lord Sumption said officers had shamed our policing traditions after Derbyshire Police used a drone to spy on dog walkers at an isolated beauty spot. Some forces such as Lancashire have issued 123 fines for breaches of the rules. But a survey found around a quarter had not issued any fines or made any arrests so far.

Former Greater Manchester police chief Sir Peter Fahy said comparisons to George Orwells vision of a totalitarian state were not true. He told the BBCs World At One: I would suggest its a bit closer to Keystone Cops rather than 1984 and overall I think its a bit disappointing if people are trying to make judgments on a series of tweets rather than for instance what the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has said about her approach.

Englands most senior officer, Met Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick, has told her force to use enforcement only as a last resort. Derbyshire Chief Constable Peter Goodman also defended tactics used by his force, including filming walkers with drones to deter visitors to the Peak District. Speaking on BBC Radio 2, he said of Lord Sumptions comments: I think theres a misinterpretation by him about whats going on.

We had many, many members of the Derbyshire community contacting the police very concerned because villages that are largely filled by elderly residents who were self-isolating were inundated by thousands of visitors. We put the footage out to start a conversation with the public, to say... we believe the sensible thing is not to come to come walking because of the risk you are posing to the elderly.
[April 02, 2020] Patton Appoints ALLNET USA as Certified Channel Partner

Europe's foremost telecom and unified communications distributor, ALLNET, selected Patton's (News - Alert) world-renowned ALL-IP, UC, and IoT enabling products to spearhead its expansion into the USA







GAITHERSBURG, MARYLAND: Patton Electronics-US-manufacturer and multi-national marketer of telecom solutions since 1981-has appointed ALLNET USA as a certified sales & distribution channel partner, the companies announced today.



ALLNET-well-known throughout the EU and Asia as a distributor of future-oriented network-monitoring, communications, and security solutions-when deciding to expand operations into North America, chose the Patton product set as its first equipment manufacturer to sell into the US market.





Patton and ALLNET USA have partnered to address the challenges companies and service providers face by delivering Patton's suite of cloud-native, hosted, and hardware-based UC and IoT enabling solutions in the North American marketplace.



ALLNET USA now markets and distributes Patton's award-winning CopperLink connectivity, SmartNode UC and Patton Cloud edge-orchestration products throughout North America.



ALLNET USA is currently seeking new resellers (apply here).



"We are proud to represent Patton in the North American marketplace as we expand our operations into the USA," said Nicholas Wagner, CEO at ALLNET USA. "SmartNode VoIP equipment is the ideal customer-premise solution for delivering SIP trunking and ALL-IP communications to our partners and business customers. US-based manufacturing and local support were key factors in our decision to partner with Patton."



With the convergence of voice, data, video, and data networking, resellers and SMB customers are increasingly challenged to find a partner that offers the unique set of competencies and capabilities that can bring their Unified communications (UC) dreams into reality.



Manufactured in the USA, Patton products are designed to deliver IP security, legacy telephony integration (analog and ISDN), network demarcation, cloud-native architecture (CNA), universal connectivity, network extension, IP end-point enablement, and many other networking capabilities.



Patton's SmartNode solutions interoperate seamlessly with every telephony manufacturer in the business. The stability of SmartNode is world-renowned.



"Patton is excited and honored to partner with a company like ALLNET USA," said Burt Patton, Executive Vice President. "ALLNET USA prides itself on its product knowledge and working with best-of-breed product manufacturers.



In related news, Patton recently announced the industry's most flexible high-density FXS VoIP gateway, boasting up to 128 analog lines that can reach handsets up to six miles away.



About ALLNET USA

ALLNET USA provides comprehensive IT solutions to our customers based in the United States of America and worldwide. ALLNET USA was founded with the objective of catering to the needs of our customers by offering a competitively priced, high-quality product line with emphasis on networking, communication, security, and software solutions.



About Patton

Patton is all about connections. In today's fast-moving All-IP market, Patton has been diligently innovating, leading the future of communication. It is our joy to connect with our customers and business partners in this mission of network transformation, building on more than four decades of technology expertise in Unified Communications, Network Access, and Network Connectivity. Incorporated 1984, Patton designs and manufactures high-quality, right-priced products and services that connect you to the cloud and the Internet of Things, leveraging virtualization, SDN, NFV, and SD-WAN. Patton is uniquely qualified to help connect carrier, enterprise and industrial networks to these advanced new-generation technologies, while preserving investments in legacy TDM and serial communications equipment. Patton's world-class customer and technical support is eager and able to help you get your solution connected and running smoothly. Headquartered in Gaithersburg, MD, USA, Patton is connected with an ever-growing network of technology, business, and sales-channel partners. To connect with local-market requirements, Patton operates training and support centers in locations spanning the globe.



Patton Let's Connect!



Media Contact: Glendon Flowers | +1 301 975 1000 | [email protected]





Edited by Erik Linask



[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Windham Drives Innovative Interior Design at GMs Cadillac

Comfort is key to enjoying a luxury vehicle, but its not the only aspect that concerns Crystal Windham. As director of Design, Cadillac Interiors, she incorporates every creative element possible to give customers an innovative and unforgettable experience.

Windham has realized several unique milestones herself since joining General Motors  home of Cadillac Buick, GMC and Chevrolet  in 1994. In fact, she became the first African American female director in GM Designs history in 2008 and spearheaded many award-winning interiors, including the 2016 Chevrolet Malibu and 2014 Chevrolet Impala.

In 2016, Windham was appointed to head the division, and in the last four years, shes led the team that designed all aspects inside of the brands CT5, CT4, XT6 and the 2021 Cadillac Escalade. This demanding, high-tech role requires that she look beyond comfort to address the wide-ranging needs of the customer.

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When it comes to interior design, its important to understand the customer to the core, Windham explained. Every part and piece is designed and put together in harmony where a person has to sit. Things have to be in the right spot; they have to be in reach its a wonderful challenge.

In addition to attractiveness, she said, Some of the things that we deal with include technology integration with an iPhone or Samsung and what do these things look like and how they integrate with the overall instrument panel thats in front of you.

Safety is another huge aspect, she noted. How many air bags you have, how to contain them in the surface and not take up too much room. Thats a big factor, she said. Also, the layout and usability of everything  temperature controller, screens, touch-points, etc.

Since the brand is sold around the world, Windham said, Were not only satisfying customers in North America, but in China and Korea, and we have to know how they use their vehicle and how we can accommodate them with the right amenities, including storage.

Finding answers to those questions keeps Windham excited about her job and the ongoing possibilities it presents. The assignment also melds seamlessly with her lifelong love of art and provides the perfect outlet to express her creativity in her profession.

A native of Detroit, Michigan, Windham began drawing as a youngster, doodling faces and hairstyles, she recalled. During high school, she enrolled in art classes where a teacher noticed her potential and persuaded her to pursue her talent. He exposed Windham to still life and sculpture as well.

Following graduation, she attended Detroits College for Creative Studies (CCS) and had opportunities to intern at Ford and General Motors and take advantage of the guidance of two mentors at each firm, a husband and wife who worked at Ford and GM, respectively.

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That was so important to me  to have someone that I could connect with that was actually in the job. That gave me a lot more confidence that I could do it, Windham said.

Also, it was there that I could take my love of art and drawing and apply it to car design. Just getting deeper into my love of automotive design and being creative and the aspect of problem-solving and just shaping the future for cars that would impact millions of lives  that really intrigued me, said Windham.

Clearly, GM was impressed by Windham. Shortly before she matriculated with an industrial design degree, the company made her a job offer, which she accepted. The relationship has been mutually beneficial and resulted in Windham being honored as Urban Wheel Designer of the Year, the Emerging Leader Award from the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, Automotive News 100 Leading Women in the North American Auto Industry and National Newspaper Publishers Association Leadership Award.

Not only has she excelled at GM over the last 26 years, but Windham also reaches back to encourage younger African Americans to consider careers in the automotive industry. She is actively involved in GM Designs You Make a Difference program that connects with youth interested in art and design.

It is always been important to me to spread the word about this field because I think we (Blacks) are some of the most creative individuals on this planet. Through the You Make A Difference program, we go out to middle and high school students, really tapping them early, so that they know this is a real option for a career, especially to those already in art classes and have math skills, too, because you need math to understand how things are measured, said Windham, who also earned an MBA from the University of Detroit-Mercy.

Cadillac also lends support to other initiatives in the African American community. For the last 10 years, Cadillac has served as a major sponsor of the American Black Film Festival, which showcases talented actors and filmmakers of color.

Looking back over her career, Windham credits her success to her parents, who she credits with inspiring her and her brother to achieve at the highest level of whatever profession they were involved in. She also believes in having a winning spirit.

I have this mindset of being positive, proactive and having a winning spirit. It has a lot to do with my upbringing, she said.

Its really about pursuing your goals with determination and not looking back  staying focused  and doing it with humble confidence. You have to be able to humble yourself in all of it because it keeps you growing and it keeps your team fueled as well.
Here are the latest developments in Asia related to the novel coronavirus pandemic: - Trump casts doubt on China virus figures - President Donald Trump cast doubt on the accuracy of official Chinese figures on its coronavirus outbreak after US lawmakers, citing an intelligence report, accused Beijing of a cover-up. The controversy around Beijing's transparency has strained ties, adding to tensions triggered by a conspiracy theory in China that the US military was to blame for the virus. At a press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying didn't directly address Trump's comments but said that politicians who accused China of concealing information were "shameless and without morality". - Australia seeks to end cruise standoffs - Australian police and military will soon begin taking doctors on helicopters to several cruise ships stranded near Sydney to assess nearly 9,000 crew for COVID-19, officials said. The military-style operation, due to begin by the weekend, is aimed at resolving a standoff between cruise line operators and authorities who fear a wave of new imported coronavirus cases would overwhelm local hospitals. - China county shut down as fears grow of second wave - Jia county in China's central Henan province, home to about 600,000 people, has gone into lockdown after a woman who visited the area tested positive for the virus, underscoring concerns over a second wave of domestic infections. China, where the virus emerged late last year, has largely managed to bring its outbreak under control and is now reporting only a small number of new infections a day. - Fiji's capital ordered into lockdown - The Fijian capital Suva was ordered into lockdown from Friday after two people from one of the city's crowded squatter settlements tested positive, bringing the Pacific nation's confirmed cases to seven. "There is a high risk these patients have infected others," Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama warned. - Australian scientists test vaccines - Tests have begun in Australia of two potential vaccines on ferrets, as scientists worldwide race to develop one at record speed. One from the University of Oxford would deliver a bit of defective virus that is unable to replicate, but would be enough to provoke an immune response. Another from drugmaker Inovio would be an injection of genetic material from the virus. Results from the tests are expected within two to three months, although it is expected to take much longer to develop a proven vaccine. - North Korea insists it is coronavirus-free - North Korea remains totally free of the coronavirus, a senior health official in Pyongyang has insisted, despite mounting scepticism overseas as confirmed global infections near one million. The already isolated, nuclear-armed North quickly shut down its borders in January after the virus was first detected in neighbouring China, and imposed strict containment measures. Experts have said North Korea is particularly vulnerable to the virus because of its weak medical system, and defectors have accused Pyongyang of covering up an outbreak. - Duterte tells Philippine police to shoot dead troublemakers - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has told security forces they should shoot dead anyone causing "trouble" in areas locked down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Hours earlier, nearly two dozen people from a slum community in the capital Manila were arrested for holding a protest that accused the government of failing to provide food aid to the poor. - Indonesia releases prisoners - Indonesia has released some 18,000 inmates in a desperate bid to stop coronavirus from rampaging through its notoriously overcrowded prison system, authorities said. - Oil soars - Oil prices soared 10 percent on hopes for a US intervention to end a Saudi-Russia price war, with President Donald Trump saying he expected the two to resolve the row, while dealers were also cheered after China called on authorities to buy up the battered commodity. - Japan's two-mask pledge ridiculed online - A pledge by Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to send two reusable cloth face masks to every household as the country battles the coronavirus outbreak has been met online with derision and humour. Within hours of the announcement, the hashtag "Abenomasks", a play on the prime minister's signature "Abenomics" economic policy, was trending on Japanese Twitter. burs-sr/kaf
A view into the Grand Canyon from the South Rim, Arizona, on July 10, 2003. (Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images)

Grand Canyon Park Closes Indefinitely as CCP Virus Cases Surge

Grand Canyon National Park announced on April 1 it would remain closed indefinitely due to the CCP virus pandemic, as COVID-19 cases across the United States rose to at least 215,000 Wednesday.

The National Park Services (NPS) decision to close the Grand Canyon National Park until further notice follows mounting pressure from members of Congress and local officials over public health concerns.

The health and safety of park visitors, employees, residents, volunteers, and partners at Grand Canyon National Park is the Services number one priority, the NPS said in a statement.

The Health and Human Services Director and Chief Health Officer for Coconino County sent the NPS a letter of Wednesday and recommended the closure of the popular tourist destination, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said.

As soon as we received the letter from the Health and Human Services Director and Chief Health Officer for Coconino County recommending the closure of Grand Canyon National Park, we closed the park, Bernhardt said in a statement.

The NPS has consistently assessed its park units and made modifications to its operations in accordance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, state and local public health guidance, and the NPS will continue to follow the guidance of public health officials in making determinations about our operations to address this pandemic, a news release from NPS read.

The move also comes after 10 Congress members, in a letter this week, voiced their concerns over keeping the Grand Canyon National Park open.

Tourists take photos from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon on May 18, 2015. (Mladen Antonov/AFP/Getty Images)

Why expose both the public and the workforce of the park to the situation of this virus? House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) told The Hill. Youre putting their health in danger and I think it needs to be closed.

The Grand Canyon National Park is the latest major national park to close due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while Yosemite, Yellowstone, and Great Smoky Mountains shut last month, amid fears large crowds could escalate the growing pandemic. It came as CCP virus cases in Coconino County, where the Grand Canyon is located, rose to 85 by Wednesday morning.

A CCP virus case was reported at the Grand Canyon on Tuesday.

In response to news of the closure, the National Parks Conservation Association said it a statement in supported the sensible decision as it would protect the health of local communities, park staff, and visitors at this time.

While the Grand Canyon is a huge park, in practice many visitors congregate at the same viewpoints, parking lots and trails which increases the likelihood of transmitting coronavirus, Kevin Dahl, the associations senior Arizona program manager, said in a statement.

However we remain concerned that it took so long to authorize the closure after concerns were first raised by the park managers, local communities, tribal communities, and local emergency services, he added. The Department of Interior must make it easier for park managers to make these common-sense decisions that can save lives.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The Congress Working Committee (CWC) on Thursday lashed out at the Centre for unplanned 21-day lockdown, causing trouble to thousands of workers across the country and implementing it without carrying out more tests. The CWC, at its first video-conferencing meet, said most state governments had complained of inadequate financial resources to fight Covid-19 as the Centre had not released states share in the GST. Addressing the meeting, Congress president Sonia Gandhi said the nationwide lockdown may have been necessary, but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain to millions of migrant workers across India.

Former party chief Rahul Gandhi criticised the Centre for alleged lack of assistance to the poor, especially migrant workers, and said no country in the world had attempted a lockdown with huge migrant labour without arranging for their stay and food. On containment and treatment, the CWC said the government had erred in adopting a strategy of limited testing.

On the mass exodus of migrant workers, the party said government has miserably failed to provide adequate livelihood support to the poor. The Financial Action Plan I announced on March 25 was inadequate and left out several vulnerable sections of people, the CWC said. It also demanded immediate announcement of Financial Action Plan II for support to farmers, landless agricultural workers, MGNREGA workers, laid-off industrial workers and Jan Dhan account holders .

Left questions PM Cares

The CPI(M) slammed the government over the creation of PM Cares fund for those affected by the corona outbreak, and questioned its requirement when there is Prime Ministers National Relief Fund. The motive for setting up this new fund remains suspect. In any case, it should have been named India Cares and not PM Cares, it said.
These days, every corner of the oil market is unprecedentedfrom the demand destruction to the supply surge and the resulting glut. The oil futures curve is no exception and is also in a state never seen before. This is the super contango, the market situation in which front-month prices are much lower than prices in future months, pointing to a crude oil oversupply and making storing oil for future sales profitable.

The last time a super contango appeared on the market was during the previous glut of 2015. During the peak of the 2008-2009 financial crisis, the super contango hit a recordthe discount at which front-month futures traded compared to longer-dated futures was at its highest ever.

The double supply-demand shock of the past month threw the oil futures market into another super contango. And this super contango is already beating previous records.

The super contango is representative of the state of the oil market right now: the growing glut with shrinking storage capacity as oil demand craters, OPECs leader and the worlds top exporter, Saudi Arabia, intent on further cratering the market with a supply surge beginning this month. Storage costs are surging, and so are costs for chartering tankers to store oil at sea for future sales when traders expect demand to recover from the pandemic-hit plunge.

The market structure flipped into contango in early February, when the Chinese oil demand slump in the coronavirus outbreak led to lower estimates for oil consumption. A month and a half later, oil consumption is set to plunge by 20 million bpd, or 20 percent, this month. Add to this the Saudi supply surge, and here we have what analysts expect to be the largest glut the oil market has ever seen.

Earlier this week, the oversupply and fast-filling storage capacity sent the discount of the May futures of Brent to the November futures contract to the widest contango spread ever$13.95 a barrel, higher than even the super contango at the peak of the 2008-2009 financial crisis.

With the rollover of the front-month futures contract in April, the June Brent futures traded early on Wednesday at a discount of $10.30 a barrel to the November futures, while the June 2020 futures spread to the June 2021 futures was $13.59.

One of the hottest commodities in the market right now is storagebe it onshore or offshoreas commodity traders and oil majors are increasingly looking to profit from the super contango in several months time.

Apart from the traders who manage to secure storage for stashing crude for sale in a few months, the other big winners of the super contango market structure are set to be tanker owners and operators, as rates for chartering tankers for storage are soaring.

Related: Russias Plan To Bankrupt U.S. Shale Could Send Oil To $60

Over the next few months, the tanker companies will be the biggest winners from the double market shock as traders rush to secure whats left of available crude carriers for storage in the super contango structure.

The inventory buildup around the world will be so high that it will force up to 10 million bpd of global oil production to be cut or shut-in from April to June 2020 as oil storage fills up and output from financially strapped companies begins to fall, IHS Markit said on Tuesday.

Under current conditions second-quarter global demand for oil is expected to be 16.4 million barrels per day less than a year ago. That is more than six times the record drop experienced during first quarter 2009 during the Great Recession. In April the drop will be even bigger, said Aaron Brady, vice president, IHS Markit.

A combination of rapidly increasing crude supply and a buoyant market for crude storage is underpinning a very robust tanker freight market and strong cash generation presently, tanker operator Euronav said in the outlook in its 2019 results release. However, it warned this would be a temporary event.

The second quarter of 2020 now looks like it will be one of the greatest quarters in history for large crude carriers, and while there will be a hangover at some point, this party is totally worth it, Eirik Haavaldsen, head of research at Pareto Securities, told Financial Times this week.

After the crude tanker operators, the next in line to profit from the super contango are the traders who will have stored oil to sell at higher prices several months or a year from now.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
A man in the United States recently visited his wife in the maternity ward of a New York hospital after she gave birth to a baby. After the visit, however, the woman started to exhibit symptoms of coronavirus.

As authorities at the hospital scrambled to test the potential victim and ensure the virus had not spread to others in the ward, the husband came forward with an outrageous revelation - he had been exposed to coronavirus and had been showing symptoms prior to his visit to the hospital. It turned out that he lied about it before visiting his wife and child.

The heartbreaking incident occurred in Storm Memorial Hospital in New York's Rochester where the woman had been admitted. Both husband and wife have been tested for COVID-19 and have been sent to self-quarantine along with the baby, The Democrat and Chronicle reported.

On Tuesday, the University of Rochester Medical Center confirmed that the family, which remains anonymous, had been asked to quarantine while awaiting the test results.

The incident came in wake of rising cases of COVID-19 in the US which currently has 215,344 active cases. Over 5,000 people have died due to the disease.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The High Court overturned Cardinal George Pell's conviction for historic child sex offences in a judgment handed down April 7, 2020. In a unanimous decision all seven High Court judges found Victoria's Court of Appeal should not have upheld Pell's conviction. It found the evidence could not support a guilty verdict.

The High Courts swift judgment in the case of George Pell has fuelled expectations that Australias most senior Catholic cleric could walk free from jail before Easter.

The full bench of the court will hand down its judgment in Brisbane at 10am Tuesday, just 26 days after it finished hearing arguments in the case.

Whatever the court decides, its findings will be momentous; bringing to an end a five-year legal saga which began when a former choirboy first told Victoria Police that Pell raped and sexually abused him and a friend nearly 20 years earlier.
Seven state oil and gas industry associations and approximately 40 Texas-based producing companies announced Tuesday the formation of a new coalition to address flaring and methane emissions.

The industry is always innovating, said Todd Staples, president of the Texas Oil and Gas Association, in a telephone call with the media to discuss the new Texas Methane and Flaring Coalition. The best way to advance is to invest in innovation and technology.

Staples said it is always important for the energy industry to demonstrate its commitment to improving the environment, even amid todays economic woes.

This issue has been developing even before the downturn, and energy companies and our members want to demonstrate, even in a down cycle, a strong commitment to environmental progress and that theyre not backing away from seeking solutions to flaring and methane emissions, he said.

The Permian Basin Petroleum Association is among those that joined TXOGA in the coalition. While we know these are unprecedented times in the Permian Basin, the PBPA continues to work on a broad range of issues important to industry, Ben Shepperd, president of the PBPA, told the Reporter-Telegram by email. While we are all working through conference calls at the moment like everyone else, PBPA remains committed to addressing all important issues and supporting our industry however we can.

Staples said that the approximately 40 producers that are part of the new coalition are responsible for some 80 percent of the states oil production.

One of those 40 is EOG Resources, which has worked to mitigate or reduce flaring by installing natural gas gathering lines early and contract sufficient takeaway capacity to provide flow assurance. Its marketing and midstream infrastructure planning is done well in advance of an expected increase in activity and production growth. EOG also uses vapor recovery units that direct tank vapors into a natural gas sales line.

We are proud of our efforts to minimize flaring, Creighton Welch, EOGs manager, government relations and communications, told the Reporter-Telegram by email.

We have a long history of using technology and innovation to improve our company, and though we already have one of the lowest flaring rates in Texas, we continue to look for solutions to reduce flaring even further,

Also signing onto the coalition is the Texas Pipeline Association.

We are very pleased to be part of the Texas Methane & Flaring Coalition, which is working hard to assess the issues of methane emissions and flaring and to develop industry-led solutions, President Thure Cannon told the Reporter-Telegram by email. The Coalition shows how innovative and proactive the oil and gas industry is when it concerns issues such as climate change.

Although not ideal, the Texas flaring rate is among the lowest in the world, Canon said. Flaring is often needed because there is an excess of produced natural gas and not enough pipeline capacity to carry the fuel to market. A sufficient pipeline infrastructure is the most effective way to reduce flaring. We encourage regulators and policymakers to support policies that allow and expedite the building of additional pipeline infrastructure. Pipelines are the primary transportation mechanism that safely provides businesses and consumers with dependable, low-cost sources of energy and industry and with the raw materials used in the production of a myriad of common household products. As part of the Coalition, we look forward to finding fact-based, practical solutions to the issues of methane and flaring, as we continue to deliver the crucial products that Texans need to run their homes and businesses.

Ed Longanecker, president of the Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners Association  which also is a member of the coalition -- issued a statement saying, This new industry-led coalition reaffirms the commitment of domestic oil and gas producers who are proactively taking action, on a voluntary basis, to further decrease energy-related emissions. The TMFC joins other important industry-led initiatives designed to advance sustainability and environmental stewardship and provides a platform for collaboration amongst energy producers in Texas and across America.

The other associations that have joined the coalition are the Panhandle Producers & Royalty Owners Association, South Texas Energy & Economic Roundtable and the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers.

To address flaring and methane emissions, Staples said the coalition is divided into four subgroups. The focus of each will be on data quality, he said. One group will identify, assess, and recommend opportunities and best practices to minimize methane emissions and flaring. A second will look at flaring and infrastructure, why and when flaring is necessary and communicating why and when it is necessary. The third group will evaluate existing studies and summarize those findings to identify opportunities to implement best practices and, again, analyze ways to improve data for more accuracy and consistency. The fourth group will focus on communicating the coalitions work with all stakeholders, from industry to legislators and regulators to the general public through its new website, www.texasmethaneflaringcoalition.org.
She's been getting out for a walk or bike ride most days during California's 'safer at home' order due to the coronavirus pandemic.

And on Wednesday, Maria Shriver, 64, was joined for a stroll by her second eldest child, daughter Christina, 28.

The pair took a turn around Shriver's leafy LA neighborhood of Brentwood.

Getting some air: Maria Shriver, 64, was joined for a stroll around her leafy Brentwood neighborhood in LA on Wednesday by her second eldest child, daughter Christina, 28

Shriver wore a white zipper jacket and black leggings with black trainers for the outing.

She added a patterned scarf knotted around her neck and sported sunglasses.

Christina went for an all-black ensemble of hooded jacket, leggings and trainers and wore sunglasses with her hair tied back into a ponytail.

Shriver shares Christina as well as daughter Katherine, 30, and sons Patrick, 26, and Christopher, 22, with her ex-husband Arnold Schwarzenegger. The celebrity couple split in 2011.

Casual: Shriver wore a white zipper jacket and black leggings with black trainers for the outing. She added a patterned scarf knotted around her neck and sported sunglasses

Exercise: Meanwhile, Shriver's ex-husband Arnold Schwarzenegger posted video to Twitter in which he encouraged fans to 'stay fit' and showed himself lifting weights in the great outdoors

Schwarzenegger is also making sure to keep up an exercise routine while self-isolating in Los Angeles.

The former bodybuilder, 72, posted a video to Twitter in which he encouraged his fans to 'stay fit' and showed himself lifting weights in the great outdoors.

He also posted another video of his donkey Lulu who has become something of an Internet sensation during the COVID-19 lockdown.

'Trying to teach Lulu social distancing,' he captioned the clip which showed the donkey trying to get into the house through some glass French doors.

Viral hit: The Hollywood star, 72, also posted another video of his donkey Lulu who has become something of an Internet sensation during the COVID-19 lockdown
OTTAWA - The longer it takes for all Canadians to follow the rules and stay home to curb the spread of COVID-19, the longer it will be before life can return to normal, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Minister of Finance Bill Morneau responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa, Friday, March 27, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - The longer it takes for all Canadians to follow the rules and stay home to curb the spread of COVID-19, the longer it will be before life can return to normal, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday.

Canadians are nearing the end of their third week in physical isolation with the prospect of at least another month, and likely much longer than that, before restrictions on businesses and public gatherings might start to loosen.

Government financial aid packages right now are set to last at least until the end of June, including the new 75 per cent wage subsidy which Finance Minister Bill Morneau estimated Wednesday will cost $71 billion.

Trudeau is asking for Parliament to be recalled to pass the legislation required to implement the new subsidy, which will apply to large and small businesses, including charities and non-profits, which have seen revenues drop at least 30 per cent because of the pandemic.

Morneau said he would be open to extending the program past the end of June if necessary but nobody in the federal government was willing to say when they think the public health threat from COVID-19 will allow a return to normal activities.

Health Minister Patty Hajdu and Dr. Theresa Tam, the chief public health officer, both said there is a lot of work underway trying to determine various scenarios but the planning isn't easy because it is so dependent on the behaviour of individual Canadians. Hajdu was terse when she said every Canadian is responsible for how long "we are stuck" inside.

"If we all stopped moving for two weeks and nobody talked to anybody for two weeks and we all just stayed put, in fact we would see this virus would die," she said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addresses Canadians on the COVID-19 pandemic from Rideau Cottage in Ottawa on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Trudeau said Canadians have a "duty" to listen to the advice, which includes staying home as much as possible, limiting trips to get essentials to one store, once a week, and making sure if you are allowed to go out for a walk, that you stay at least two metres away from people you don't live with.

Anyone arriving in Canada from abroad is required by law to quarantine themselves for 14 days, and anyone with symptoms or who has been exposed to someone with COVID-19 must also stay home and not go outside for any reason, said Trudeau.

"Everything depends on how Canadians behave," he said.

Tam said this is a critical week in Canada's understanding of the effect social-distancing measures are having on the spread of the virus. Most provinces began slowing things down in mid-March, and there can be about a two-week lag in data on positive tests because it takes several days after exposure for symptoms to appear and several days after that for a test to yield results.

Canada is reporting more than 9,000 positive tests and more than 100 deaths now, but Tam said what matters more than the overall numbers is the epidemic curve that shows when the people who test positive actually got sick. The current curve suggests the number of people first showing symptoms began to peak in the third week of March, but there is still a lot of data missing for positive cases detected in the last week or so.

Tam said she won't know when Canada has hit its peak for COVID-19 until that peak is behind us.

Ontario reported Wednesday its biggest single daily jump in positive cases thus far, with 426 additional positive tests, but information on those people's likely method of exposure  through travel or community spread, for example  as well as when symptoms began is not clear yet.

The jump is particularly concerning for Toronto public health chief Dr. Eileen de Villa, who asked Wednesday for stricter measures to force people who are sick, and anyone who has come into contact with them, to stay home for 14 days.

She asked other Torontonians to limit trips to the store and stay away from other people as much as possible. She wants the measures in place for at least 12 weeks, though she too said how long they are needed will depend on how well people comply.

Tam said most of the big outbreaks in Canada are concentrated in long-term care facilities, and while younger people can and are getting very sick from this virus, older Canadians are at higher risk for serious complications. Current data shows people over the age of 60 account for 60 per cent of hospitalizations and 93 per cent of deaths, said Tam.

Trudeau also said Wednesday that shipments of protective equipment, including face masks, for front-line health workers are expected to arrive in Canada in the next couple of days.

Canada has a national emergency stockpile but Hajdu said Wednesday it is clear the number of masks and other protective equipment in that stockpile was not enough. She said governments around the world have been underfunding public health for decades and it has now come back to haunt them all.

Jen Zoratti | Next A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

"We are pulling out all of the stops" to get masks and equipment into the hands of people that need them, she said.

Canada is still not recommending members of the general public use face coverings, but Tam acknowledged Wednesday while the effectiveness of using homemade fabric masks is unproven, there "may not be any harm" in doing so.

Other countries have made stronger recommendations. Late Wednesday night, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti recommended that the city's 4 million people wear masks when going outside.

Although the government's direct financial aid package to respond to COVID-19 is now well above $100 billion, Freeland and Morneau both said more will come if it is needed.

Some organizations and the NDP are asking for rent relief to help people who can't pay their rent right now. Freeland said in many places it is currently illegal to evict someone, but added even in places where that isn't the case, "it would be a heartless act indeed to evict someone" right now.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2020.
Tunisia: man sets himself on fire in front of police station Youth rescued by officers is now stable

(ANSAmed) - TUNIS, APRIL 2 - A young man set himself on fire in front of the police station of the city of Makthar in Tunisia's central governorate, the Tap news agency reported on Thursday, quoting a security source. The source said that police officers rescued the young man who is now hospitalized in stable condition. He has third-degree burns and he is being treated at the specialized hospital of Ben Arous.



The security source said it is still unclear why the youth set himself on fire, Tap reports.(ANSAmed).




MEXICO CITY, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE: ASR; BMV: ASUR) ASUR a leading international airport group with operations in Mexico, the U.S. and Colombia, today announced that total passenger traffic for March 2020 decreased 35.9% when compared to March 2019. Passenger traffic decreased 35.8% in Mexico, 35.9% in Puerto Rico and 36.2% in Colombia impacted by the Covid-19 outbreak.

As announced on March 23, 2020, neither Mexico nor Puerto Rico have issued flight restrictions to-date. In Puerto Rico, the FAA has accepted a request from the Governor of Puerto Rico that all flights bound to Puerto Rico land at LMM Airport, which is operated by ASUR's subsidiary Aerostar, and that all passengers be screened by representatives of the Puerto Rico Health Department. As a result, the LMM airport remains open and operating, albeit with substantially reduced flight and passenger volumes. Mexico and/or the United States may issue flight restrictions similar to those issued in other parts of the world, which would cause a significant further reduction in our operations.

In addition, in Colombia, Decree 439, issued by the Government on March 20, 2020, suspended all incoming international flights, including connecting flights, for 30 days, starting at 12:01 a.m. Monday, March 23, 2020. Moreover, Decree 457, issued on March 22, 2020, mandated preventive isolation as well as the suspension of domestic air travel between March 25 and April 13, 2020, with the exception of humanitarian emergencies, transportation of cargo and goods, and fortuitous events or force majeure.

This announcement reflects comparisons between March 1 through March 31, 2020, and from March 1 through March 31, 2019. Transit and general aviation passengers are excluded for Mexico and Colombia.

Passenger Traffic Summary













March % Chg

Year to date % Chg 2019 2020

2019 2020 Mexico 3,187,543 2,046,183 (35.8)

8,723,229 8,019,902 (8.1) Domestic Traffic 1,273,239 946,322 (25.7)

3,610,761 3,537,359 (2.0) International Traffic 1,914,304 1,099,861 (42.5)

5,112,468 4,482,543 (12.3) San Juan, Puerto Rico 821,110 526,181 (35.9)

2,300,508 2,206,510 (4.1) Domestic Traffic 740,334 481,726 (34.9)

2,072,825 2,002,686 (3.4) International Traffic 80,776 44,455 (45.0)

227,683 203,824 (10.5) Colombia 913,634 583,116 (36.2)

2,746,037 2,669,633 (2.8) Domestic Traffic 786,130 500,028 (36.4)

2,344,772 2,271,673 (3.1) International Traffic 127,504 83,088 (34.8)

401,265 397,960 (0.8) Total Traffic 4,922,287 3,155,480 (35.9)

13,769,774 12,896,045 (6.3) Domestic Traffic 2,799,703 1,928,076 (31.1)

8,028,358 7,811,718 (2.7) International Traffic 2,122,584 1,227,404 (42.2)

5,741,416 5,084,327 (11.4)

Mexico Passenger Traffic

March % Chg

Year to date % Chg 2019 2020

2019 2020 Domestic Traffic 1,273,239 946,322 (25.7)

3,610,761 3,537,359 (2.0) CUN Cancun 662,386 487,448 (26.4)

1,899,183 1,802,860 (5.1) CZM Cozumel 15,138 9,480 (37.4)

39,988 37,461 (6.3) HUX Huatulco 56,913 39,388 (30.8)

167,564 147,088 (12.2) MID Merida 204,139 149,221 (26.9)

570,684 587,166 2.9 MTT Minatitlan 11,657 7,461 (36.0)

33,835 29,222 (13.6) OAX Oaxaca 82,314 67,657 (17.8)

219,593 263,332 19.9 TAP Tapachula 29,443 31,383 6.6

85,681 97,179 13.4 VER Veracruz 113,363 81,083 (28.5)

315,362 303,012 (3.9) VSA Villahermosa 97,886 73,201 (25.2)

278,871 270,039 (3.2) International Traffic 1,914,304 1,099,861 (42.5)

5,112,468 4,482,543 (12.3) CUN Cancun 1,783,841 1,014,810 (43.1)

4,760,221 4,150,778 (12.8) CZM Cozumel 62,087 37,348 (39.8)

148,659 128,428 (13.6) HUX Huatulco 27,162 17,637 (35.1)

82,612 77,267 (6.5) MID Merida 21,116 14,875 (29.6)

59,574 60,752 2.0 MTT Minatitlan 525 352 (33.0)

1,774 1,643 (7.4) OAX Oaxaca 12,081 9,354 (22.6)

35,855 39,887 11.2 TAP Tapachula 732 973 32.9

3,138 3,081 (1.8) VER Veracruz 5,240 3,355 (36.0)

15,965 15,457 (3.2) VSA Villahermosa 1,520 1,157 (23.9)

4,670 5,250 12.4 Traffic Total Mexico 3,187,543 2,046,183 (35.8)

8,723,229 8,019,902 (8.1) CUN Cancun 2,446,227 1,502,258 (38.6)

6,659,404 5,953,638 (10.6) CZM Cozumel 77,225 46,828 (39.4)

188,647 165,889 (12.1) HUX Huatulco 84,075 57,025 (32.2)

250,176 224,355 (10.3) MID Merida 225,255 164,096 (27.2)

630,258 647,918 2.8 MTT Minatitlan 12,182 7,813 (35.9)

35,609 30,865 (13.3) OAX Oaxaca 94,395 77,011 (18.4)

255,448 303,219 18.7 TAP Tapachula 30,175 32,356 7.2

88,819 100,260 12.9 VER Veracruz 118,603 84,438 (28.8)

331,327 318,469 (3.9) VSA Villahermosa 99,406 74,358 (25.2)

283,541 275,289 (2.9)

















Us Passenger Traffic, San Juan Airport (LMM)











March % Chg

Year to date % Chg 2019 2020

2019 2020 SJU Total 821,110 526,181 (35.9)

2,300,508 2,206,510 (4.1) Domestic Traffic 740,334 481,726 (34.9)

2,072,825 2,002,686 (3.4) International Traffic 80,776 44,455 (45.0)

227,683 203,824 (10.5)

















Colombia Passenger Traffic Airplan











March % Chg

Year to date % Chg 2019 2020

2019 2020 Domestic Traffic 786,130 500,028 (36.4)

2,344,772 2,271,673 (3.1) MDE Rionegro 568,627 348,829 (38.7)

1,692,587 1,623,152 (4.1) EOH Medellin 87,492 57,726 (34.0)

257,559 242,148 (6.0) MTR Monteria 74,310 57,402 (22.8)

234,111 259,261 10.7 APO Carepa 18,519 12,529 (32.3)

49,439 50,399 1.9 UIB Quibdo 29,618 20,453 (30.9)

87,065 83,457 (4.1) CZU Corozal 7,564 3,089 (59.2)

24,011 13,256 (44.8) International Traffic 127,504 83,088 (34.8)

401,265 397,960 (0.8) MDE Rionegro 127,504 83,088 (34.8)

401,265 397,960 (0.8) EOH Medellin - -



- -

MTR Monteria - -



- -

APO Carepa - -



- -

UIB Quibdo - -



- -

CZU Corozal - -



- -

Traffic Total Colombia 913,634 583,116 (36.2)

2,746,037 2,669,633 (2.8) MDE Rionegro 696,131 431,917 (38.0)

2,093,852 2,021,112 (3.5) EOH Medellin 87,492 57,726 (34.0)

257,559 242,148 (6.0) MTR Monteria 74,310 57,402 (22.8)

234,111 259,261 10.7 APO Carepa 18,519 12,529 (32.3)

49,439 50,399 1.9 UIB Quibdo 29,618 20,453 (30.9)

87,065 83,457 (4.1) CZU Corozal 7,564 3,089 (59.2)

24,011 13,256 (44.8)

About ASUR

Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S.A.B. de C.V. (ASUR) is a leading international airport operator with a portfolio of concessions to operate, maintain and develop 16 airports in the Americas. This comprises nine airports in southeast Mexico, including Cancun Airport, the most important tourist destination in Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America, and six airports in northern Colombia, including Medellin international airport (Rio Negro), the second busiest in Colombia. ASUR is also a 60% JV partner in Aerostar Airport Holdings, LLC, operator of the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport serving the capital of Puerto Rico, San Juan. San Juan's Airport is the island's primary gateway for international and mainland-US destinations and was the first, and currently the only major airport in the US to have successfully completed a publicprivate partnership under the FAA Pilot Program. Headquartered in Mexico, ASUR is listed both on the Mexican Bolsa, where it trades under the symbol ASUR, and on the NYSE in the U.S., where it trades under the symbol ASR. One ADS represents ten (10) series B shares. For more information, visit www.asur.com.mx

Forward Looking Statement

Some of the statements contained in this press release discuss future expectations or state other forward-looking information. Those statements are subject to risks identified in this press release and in ASUR's filings with the SEC. Actual developments could differ significantly from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. In particular, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global economic conditions and the travel industry, as well as on the business and results of operations of the Company in particular, is expected to be material, and, as conditions are changing rapidly, is difficult to predict. The forward-looking information is based on various factors and was derived using numerous assumptions. Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made and, except as may be required by applicable law, we do not have an obligation to update or revise them, whether as a result of new information, future or otherwise.

SOURCE Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, S.A.B. de C.V.
By Trend

Russian and Turkish Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan have had a phone call to exchange opinions on the issues of Syrian settlement, including implementation of Russian-Turkish agreements to stabilize situation in Syrias Idlib, the Kremlin press service said Wednesday, Trend reports citing TASS.

"Substantive exchange of opinions on issues of the Syrian settlement was carried out, including implementation of the Russian-Turkish agreements reached on March 5, 2020 to stabilize the situation in the Idlib zone. Libyan issues were also touched upon," the statement says.

The Turkish leaders office issued a communique, saying, "the negotiations discussed <> bilateral ties and regional issues."

Putin and Erdogan held talks in Moscow on March 5 and agreed a ceasefire and other measures to settle the situation in Idlib. The agreements reached stipulate that hostilities in this region should stop along the whole line of contact as the ceasefire comes into effect on March 6. Moscow and Ankara reaffirmed commitment to preserving Syrias sovereignty and agreed to continue fighting terrorism.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Mark Manley, 35, was jailed for six months at Croydon Magistrates Court for stealing from an ambulance amid the Covid-19 crisis

A man has been jailed for stealing personal protective equipment (PPE) from an ambulance amid Britain's ongoing and rapidly escalating coronavirus crisis.

Mark Manley, 35, of no fixed address, was jailed for six months at Croydon Magistrates Court for stealing equipment from a stationary ambulance and assaulting a security guard, the Metropolitan Police said.

The force said he pleaded guilty to the offences.

Officers said they were called at 9.19pm on Saturday to reports of a male having stolen from an ambulance at near Guy's Hospital, on St Thomas Street, south-east London.

When challenged by security staff, police said the suspect assaulted one security worker and racially abused another.

He had taken a bag containing PPE from the vehicle, police said.

Items taken included masks, paper suits and hand gel, with some of the items rendered no longer usable due to contamination.

The man was detained by the security guards and patrolling British Transport Police.

Items taken from the ambulance included masks, paper suits and hand gel and were rendered no longer usable due to contamination

Police said he was arrested on suspicion of theft, actual bodily harm and a racially-aggravated public order offence.

He was taken to a south London police station where he was charged with theft from a motor vehicle, a section 4 Public Order Act offence (causing fear or provocation of violence) and a racially aggravated Public Order Act offence.

Manley was jailed at Croydon Magistrates Court on Monday, according to Scotland Yard.

Police said he was also charged with assault against an emergency worker in relation to the security guard, who sustained facial injuries which were not life-threatening.

Emergency workers are doing all they can right now as the coronavirus crisis shows no signs of halting across the country.

Manley was jailed at Croydon Magistrates Court on Monday, according to Scotland Yard

The UK recorded another 563 coronavirus deaths on Wednesday, making it the worst day so far in the devastating COVID-19 crisis.

The increase took the country's total death toll to 2,352 - Wednesday's surge was 48 per cent larger than the previous day's increase of 381 fatalities and pushed the total up by 31 per cent in a day.

And 29,474 people have now tested positive for COVID-19. The UK is the fifth hardest-hit nation in Europe and eighth in the world.
SAO PAULO, April 2 (Reuters) - Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro signed a decree that excludes Eletropar, controlled by the country's largest power company known as Eletrobras, from the national privatization program.

The withdrawal of Eletropar from the program, published in Thursday's official gazette, comes after a recommendation from the national privatization council.

The recommendation came as Eletrobras has been reorganizing its operations. The timeline for a potential privatization of Eletrobras, scheduled for this year, remained unclear.

Eletropar owns stakes in electricity transmission company Cteep, in the Sao Paulo power generator Emae, in EDP Energias do Brasil, and in Light (Reporting by Luciano Costa Writing by Ana Mano; Editing by David Gregorio)
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Linkedin Shafiah F. Muhibat (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 11:25 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f19d8c 3 Opinion COVID-19,coronavirus,G20,G20-coronavirus-pledge,Jokowi Free

Speaking at the G20 Summit that was hosted virtually on 27 March, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo called for international cooperation to fight COVID-19. On the same day, Indonesia and five other countries drafted a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution calling for global solidarity in the fight against the outbreak.

Similar calls for cooperation have been made internationally. The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) co-signed a letter with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) on 20 March, which called on political leaders to commit to bold coordinated action that leaves no one behind in response to the pandemic. The World Trade Organization (WTO), through its deputy director general, has made a remark that the COVID-19 crisis calls for an unprecedented level of international cooperation. Meanwhile, the United Nations secretary-general in an interview on 27 March decries a lack of global cooperation to beat the pandemic.

Are these calls for cooperation being answered? In a chaotic situation where every country seems to outdo the next in terms of being the worst responder to the pandemic, what do countries still have to offer for international cooperation? What is still at their disposal to make such an effort, when all resources are supposed to be exhausted domestically?

Schwartz and Yen (2017), in analyzing the whole-of society approach to pandemic preparedness, argues that Although international cooperation remains fundamental to pandemic preparedness and response efforts, the inevitable arrival of an outbreak within the borders of a country requires that states prepare domestic plans to manage these outbreaks. At the point the outbreak becomes a domestic affair, the burden of control falls to the pandemic preparedness and response infrastructure and institutions established by the country.

Experiences with pandemics (SARS, Ebola, Zika to name a few) show that no country facing an outbreak has proven itself to possess a fully effective response system.

Working together should mean everyone has something to offer. The big challenge is, at a time when all countries are scraping for available resources to deal with the issue, what can be offered is very limited. This is the biggest reason why, albeit the agreement during the G20 virtual summit showing that an effort to address the pandemic collectively is beginning to take shape, we are yet to see significant movement.

An agreement on what must be done is one issue; doing it is another issue. The G20 leaders promised to inject $5 trillion into the global economy to counteract the impact of the pandemic, while measures in public health, technology, global supply chains, and assistance to developing countries have been outlined; nonetheless, without leadership in directing these efforts, an agreement can only do so much.

This is not an argument against international cooperation. The author is a keen supporter of multilateralism, and will continue to argue for it. Yet declarations and agreements to work together that are not being followed up will create unrealistic hope and a false picture of the global situation. What is worse, states feel pressured into joining such calls, and deliberately make a commitment without the intention of actually implementing it to avoid being the odd one out. For those living in Southeast Asia, we are already too familiar with such regional commitments, arent we?

This is also not an accusation that Indonesia has nothing to offer in working together with other countries. Data sharing and transparency are part of working together, and these are things that Indonesia indeed has to offer. Nonetheless, for pandemics like COVID-19, the biggest part of working together is ensuring that the crisis is well-handled domestically to contribute to stopping further spreading. For this, a countrys pandemic preparedness and response infrastructure and institutions are the top priority, not creating a resolution for global solidarity.

C. Raja Mohan in his article in The Straits Times (March 28, 2020) likens the decision-making during crises  including pandemics  to war, which holds the potential to disturb multiple equations within and across national borders. He suggests that leaders must make difficult decisions in the fog of crises, with limited information and the inability to predict, let alone control, all the variables involved and the consequences of one's actions.

It must be emphasized that the main obligation of national governments is to their own people. In crises, it is natural for governments to maintain that internal considerations must prevail over the international. In other words: taking care of ones self comes before assisting others. In pandemics like COVID-19 where being healthy is the main ammunition, this approach prevails even more.

As with all global crises, the poorer countries are hit the most. Their health centers cannot manage basic infection control, while financial obstacles affect the ability to pay health workers. What the developing world needs is assistance, and this is not new information. Summary of a Workshop on Financing Pandemic Preparedness and Response (part of the Global Health Risk Framework initiative) in 2016 acknowledges these existing issues, plus the existing problems with assistance from developed countries. The delay between pledges of assistance and funding received results in inefficiency into development, obliging businesses in aid-recipient countries to use credit to meet their operating expenses. These are among the problems listed in the report.

International cooperation in a time of crisis is the norm, but can only be done if the major powers are keen to take leadership. Experience also shows that international assistance to developing countries is also the norm in a time of pandemic, but can only happen when there are countries with more resources at their disposal to provide assistance. Even then, we are back to the adage that taking care of ones self comes before assisting others. When the major powers are busy with their own domestic problems due to the pandemic, there is less on offer for the rest of the world. For countries like Indonesia, the best (or only?) thing we can offer in this pandemic is to manage the outbreak and keep it under control. If we manage to slow down the outbreak within Indonesia, we are contributing immensely to the international fight against COVID-19. For this, we need all the assistance available, both from within and outside of the country.

On that last note, I propose one question to ponder: Jokowis call for cooperation at the G20 virtual summit, Indonesias efforts through the UNGA, and even pieces written by Indonesian scholars who point out the importance of international cooperation  were those really a call for international cooperation, or a cry for help? Lets differentiate between the two, and get our terminology correct.

---

Head, Department of International Relations, CSIS Indonesia

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
3D print of a spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19--in front of a 3D print of a SARS-CoV-2 virus particle. The spike protein (foreground) enables the virus to enter and infect human cells. On the virus model, the virus surface (blue) is covered with spike proteins (red) that enable the virus to enter and infect human cells. Credit: NIH

More than 20,000 cases of COVID-19 were registered in Latin America and the Caribbean by Wednesdaydouble the figure from five days ago, according to an AFP tally.

As infections spread across the region, a Guatemalan migrant died and more than 20 were wounded in a riot over coronavirus fears at a holding facility for Central American migrants in Mexico, officials said.

A protest by mostly Honduran migrants at the facility in southeastern Tabasco state turned violent late Tuesday after those inside set bedding ablaze.

Authorities had registered 537 deaths and 20,081 cases across Latin America by Wednesday afternoon.

Ecuador said Wednesday the bodies of 150 people were retrieved from homes in the port city of Guayaquil after the coronavirus crisis put a strain on resources.

A joint military and police task force created to deal with the emergency removed the bodies in the past three days, government spokesman Jorge Wated said.

Authorities have not confirmed how many COVID-19 victims were among the 150 dead.

Brazil recorded Latin America's first infection on February 26. With a population of 210 million, the South American giant is now the most affected country with 5,717 cases, including 201 deaths.

President Jair Bolsonarowho has repeatedly railed against social distancing measures he says are needlessly hurting the economyfound himself at the center of a row over spreading misinformation.

Bolsonaro posed a video online of a market supposedly hit by shortages caused by the pandemic, but he was forced to remove it hours later after journalists found it well stocked.

Bolsonaro has compared the coronavirus to a "little flu," and condemned the reaction to it as "hysteria," statements which have left him increasingly isolated, in Brazil and beyond.

Another leader criticized for taking the pandemic lightly, President Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua, replaced his health minister.

Nicaragua's government has yet to enforce preventive measures common in other countries, including closing borders or prohibiting crowds.

It has reported five infections, with one death.

The minister, Carolina Davila, will remain as an advisor to the presidency however, the government said.

More than 300 Bolivians and dozens of Peruvians were stranded at a makeshift camp at Huara in Chile on Wednesday, after their countries' borders were shut due to the coronavirus.

Chile's Interior Minister Gonzalo Blumel pleaded for understanding, saying "all countries have to face this from a humanitarian perspective, especially with regard to the return of people who are in a position to return."

The pandemic has compounded an already desperate situation facing millions of refugees and migrants who fled Venezuela's economic collapse, said Eduardo Stein, the UN special representative for Venezuelan migrants and refugees.

The UN refugee agency and the International Organization of Migration jointly called on the international community to boost aid for millions of Venezuelan migrants threatened by the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

Nearly five million people have left since 2015, most ending up in Colombia and other neighboring South American countries, overwhelming healthcare systems.

Mexico adjusted its economic forecast for 2020 on Wednesday due to the negative effects of the epidemic, in line with other pessimistic estimates by analysts.

The finance ministry said in a statement that the performance of the economy will be in a range of between minus 3.9 and 0.1 percent, well down from its previous estimate of growth, ranging between 1.5 and 2.5 percent.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2020 AFP
Neha Pendse On Being Trolled For Husband Shardul Bayas Two Divorces: I Even Came Out Of Bigg Boss With A Clean Chit
A much-loved mother has died in her sleep at home after developing coronavirus symptoms - and today her youngest son is fighting for his life in hospital after being exposed.

Linda Tuppen, from Greater Manchester, was found lifeless by her eldest son Rob, 28, last Saturday - five days after she began to feel unwell.

The 66-year-old had been caring for her son Rob, who contracted coronavirus after returning from Krakow earlier in the month, before falling ill herself.

Linda's youngest son James, 23, was admitted to hospital with coronavirus on Sunday, where he is still fighting the killer bug.

Linda Tuppen, from Greater Manchester, was found dead in her bed by one of her children last Saturday - five days after she began to feel unwell. Her son James 23, (pictured together), is now in hospital fighting coronavirus too

Linda Tuppen's death comes as:

UK saw its biggest increase in coronavirus deaths today with 569 confirmed

The total number of deaths in Britain is 2,921 with 33,718 confirmed cases

British Airways temporarily laid of 36,000 staff with most flights grounded

Questions raised over Cheltenham Festival after celebrities picked up virus

The FCA has urged banks to give those struggling a 500 interest-free overdraft

There were 950,000 new claims for Universal Credit in the past two weeks

Linda began complaining of a chest infection on March 23, the day the Prime Minister imposed a lockdown, and her symptoms escalated to pain in her sinuses, causing her to stay in bed all day the following Thursday and Friday.

Her son, software engineer Rob, of Bolton, pictured together, found his mother dead in bed

Her son, software engineer Rob, of Bolton, was so concerned for his mother he called 111.

But Linda, a much-loved former teacher and nursery nurse, refused to speak to them and said she just wanted to sleep.

Tragically, he went to check on her the next morning and found that she had passed away.

Rob, 28, said: 'I was in a panic, she was just lay there, and I shouted 'mum, mum,' but she didn't answer.

'I was doing chest compressions until the ambulance came. I was still in the room when he came over and said she was gone.

'It's devastating, we lost our father in 2008, so we're pretty much on our own now.

'She was a kind, loving lady who adored me and James and would have done anything for us. She always used to say that we are were her lives. She would do anything for anyone.'

Rob revealed his mother had suffered with asthma before she passed away.

He said: 'This is serious. This is not a joke, this could happen to anyone. They were fine when I came back, but then I got ill, and they've picked it up off me because my mum was looking after me while I was ill. She was putting a cloth over her mouth but it obviously didn't work.'

Linda Tuppen, 66, of Astley Bridge, Manchester, tragically passed away just days after complaining of coronavirus symptom. She died in her sleep

At its peak, Rob described feeling so exhausted by coronavirus he would almost black out walking from his bed to his door.

He said: 'Your temperature is sky high, so you're constantly freezing cold and shivering, then other times you're basically roasting hot and you have to take your coat off.

'You have a really high fever and I was constantly freezing cold in bed or roasting to the point where I just had to take all my clothes off because I was that hot.

'The cough is really bad, when you're coughing you feel like you can't stop. Your body aches and even the smallest of tasks, like going to the toilet, is one of the hardest things you can do.

'It got to the point where I was really dehydrated and I couldn't eat for a week. And because I wasn't eating, when I stood up I felt like I was going to pass out.

'I would have to run from the toilet to my room, which is about five steps, because I felt like I was going to black out.'

Pooja Sharma, pictured left, died of coronavirus just 24 hours after her father Sudhir, pictured right, also lost his life to the disease

The UK saw 569 more deaths today, with the number of confirmed cases rising to 2,921.

Co-op worker Clare Hill was today fighting for her life after catching coronavirus from a customer at a store in Keynsham, Somerset.

She fell ill on March 24 and was taken to the Royal United Hospital in Bath, where she has been in an induced coma for five days.

Caroline Saunby, a mother of six-year-old twin boys, succumbed to the virus despite having no underlying health conditions.

The 48-year-old collapsed at home before being taken to James Cook University hospital in Middlesbrough by air ambulance. She died on Sunday.

Steve Hill with his wife Clare, who is fighting for her life after being diagnosed with coronavirus following shifts at Co-op in Keynsham, Somerset

Caroline Saunby, mother of six-year-old twin boys, has tragically lost her life to coronavirus, succumbing to the deadly illness after struggling to breath and being rushed to hospital

Heartbreaking stories of people dying in hospital alone, with their families banned from visiting them over fears of spreading the virus further, are continuing to emerge across the country.

This week, a 13-year-old boy called Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab, from Brixton, South London, became the youngest person to die after testing positive for COVID-19.

Last week it emerged a Heathrow immigration officer died just one day after his pharmacist daughter.

Sudhir Sharma, 61 who worked at Terminal 3, passed away on March 22 before pharmacist Pooja, 32, suffered the same tragic fate the following day, The Sun reported.

Tributes were also paid to Wendy Jacobs, the headteacher at Roose Primary School in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, who died the same day as Pooja. She was 58 and not believed to have any underlying health conditions.

A fundraising page has been set up to help Rob and James through this devastating time. You can donate HERE.
PCA to Take Economic Downtime at its Jackson, Alabama Uncoated Freesheet Mill The temporary idling of both paper machines at the Jackson mill is expected to reduce paper production by approximately 70,000 tons, and the mill is expected to restart on July 6, 2020. April 1, 2020 - Packaging Corporation of America ("PCA") today announced plans to temporarily idle both paper machines and the sheet-converting operation at its Jackson Mill in Jackson, Alabama for the months of May and June 2020. This is expected to reduce paper production by approximately 70,000 tons, and the mill is expected to restart on July 6, 2020. PCA's paper mill in International Falls, Minnesota will continue to operate at capacity during this period. The Company anticipates inventory to be at appropriate levels after this downtime. "Due to the effects of the COVID-19 virus pandemic on paper consumption in schools, offices and businesses it's critical that we balance the supply of our Boise Paper products with our customers' demand for them," said Paul LeBlanc Vice-President Boise Paper. "Unprecedented market conditions brought about by the measures required to help control the spread of the COVID-19 virus have made this business decision necessary to manage our paper business during these challenging times," LeBlanc said. "This is especially difficult for the employees and their families who are directly affected. PCA is committed to treating all impacted employees with fairness and respect and to communicating openly and honestly with each individual about how this decision will affect him or her. The idling of operations will result in the temporary layoff of about 340 employees and our Human Resources team has begun meeting with our affected employees." "We remain committed to our customers' needs. We have more than sufficient inventories and production planned to support all of our customers' paper needs during this time," LeBlanc added. "Our team will begin contacting customers and supply chain partners immediately to ensure we make this period as seamless as possible." PCA is the third largest producer of containerboard products and the third largest producer of uncoated freesheet paper in North America. PCA operates eight mills and 95 corrugated products plants and related facilities. For further information, visit: www.packagingcorp.com . SOURCE: Packaging Corporation of America
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The South Korean military has urgently deployed a Patriot missile battery at an air base in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province to defend it against North Korea's new ballistic missiles and super-large multiple rockets.

The base is home to a fleet of F-35 stealth fighter jets and therefore a prime target for North Korea, which fears the South's superior air power.

Currently, Patriot batteries are deployed at fewer than a half out of 10 air bases in Korea. They fall significantly short of the required number to deal with an emergency in the new circumstances.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 15:21 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f3a869 1 News coronavirus,APINDO,COVID-19,PHRI,pandemic,Hotel,travel,tourism Free

The Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) says the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected tourism and the hotel industry.

Apindo chairman Hariyadi Sukamdani told tempo.co that the industry has been hit hard by the virus, with 698 hotels announcing they have shut down.

Hariyadi added that he believed the focus for now should be on how to recover from the pandemic. If the virus cannot be controlled, we cant do anything either, he said.

He predicted that in the second quarter of 2020, the industry would experience its peak pressure. He also expressed regret about how the government seemed to be in discord over the pandemic.

Read also: List of Greater Jakarta malls, restaurants affected by COVID-19 outbreak

On Monday, the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) said the countrys overall hotel occupancy rates had fallen to 30 to 40 percent since the outbreak started in January.

PHRI regional head in Batam Muhammad Mansur told The Jakarta Post that nine hotels in Batam had shut down between March 23 and 26, as their occupancy rates had plunged to below 5 percent.

Amid the crisis, a number of hotels in the country are providing a delivery service of dishes from their restaurants. They include Hotel Mulia Senayan, the Westin Jakarta, the Dharmawangsa Jakarta, the Ritz-Carlton Jakarta at Pacific Place, Hotel Tugu Malang in East Java, Horison Samarinda in East Kalimantan and Pesonna Hotel in Pekanbaru, Riau. (wng)
Inaugural Advertising Week Africa postponed due to Covid-19

Advertising Week (AW) has announced that the first edition of the Advertising Week Africa (AWAFRICA) has been postponed due to the global coronavirus pandemic. This is the third time an Advertising Week event is being pushed back over the last three years, with AWLATAM in Mexico City postponed to February 2018 due to an earthquake and the Advertising Week Europe postponed to September 2020 due to coronavirus. A new date for AWAFRICA is yet to be announced.



AWAFRICA advisory council chairman Tunji Adeyinka commented: "Africa is at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic and it is just too early for us to make any reasonable forecast as to when the crisis will have been fully addressed and definitively over. As soon as conditions allow, we will be back and remain committed to bringing the sharpest minds from across the African continent together with their global contemporaries for an outstanding showcase of innovation and creativity."
What are the options before the government to contain coronavirus, once the lockout is lifted? According to healthcare experts, government should consider some of the containment models successfully experimented in other parts of the world.

For instance China locked down Wuhan, the epicentre of coronavirus, completely for forty days. China also implemented intense selective lockdown in areas with rising cases. Similarly, Vietnam was able to contain coronavirus right from the beginning with lockdown of hot spots, where the disease was found spreading.

Also read: India to adopt best practices, tech from China, South Korea, Germany in fight against coronavirus

Germany and Japan implemented selective lockdown for the elderly and people with co-morbid conditions (like high blood pressure, cardiac issues and diabetes). They avoided a complete lockdown that leads to severe economic and social stalemate.

South Korea carried out the most number of tests, especially among high risk group individuals, to contain the virus. But health experts believe that is not a practical solution for a country like India with over a billion population.

The number of coronavirus cases have escalated in the past few days in India. In Maharashtra, the first 100 cases were detected in 15 days, 200 in 6 days and the number rose to 300 in just two days. Similarly, the number of cases in Tamil Nadu have doubled within a day from 67 to 124.

Dr KK Aggarwal, president of Southeast Asian Medical Confederation (CMAAO) and former National President of the Indian Medical Asociation (IMA), says that after the Nizamuddin incidence, where thousands congregated and led to widespread disease spreading, the government should consider imposing a National Health Emergency or pass a National Ordinance like what Kerala did.

Kerala government a week ago promulgated an ordinance to update the Epidemic Act. This allows the state to ban religious functions and seal borders, if required. Dr. Aggarwal points out that when Zika virus was ravaging Brazil, army was deployed to successfully contain local transmission.

Already, the Nizamuddin West incidence is linked to 9 deaths (6 in Telangana and one each in Srinagar, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka), 9 confirmed cases in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and 18 confirmed cases in Delhi. All of them had attended the religious congregation hosted by Tabligh-e-Jamaat in Nizamuddin.

Also read: Coronavirus outbreak: Here's all need to know about Tablighi Jamaat

Similarly, in Rajasthan's Bhilwara, 25 cases and two deaths have been reported. Kerala's northern district of Kasargod, where hundreds of expatriates have returned from the Middle East, more than 30 people are found to have the disease.
By Diane Bartz and Chris Kirkham

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday it had filed a complaint aimed at forcing Marlboro maker Altria Group to sell its investment in e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc.

The FTC has probed Altria's decision to buy a 35% stake in Juul, announced in December 2018, for $12.8 billion. The value of the investment has dwindled to $4.2 billion, following a series of writedowns last year, as Juul faced litigation and heightened regulatory scrutiny over its contribution to a surge in teenage vaping.

Altria and Juul were once competitors in the e-cigarette market. The FTC alleges that once Juul skyrocketed to become the market-leading e-cigarette maker in 2018, Altria dealt with the competition by "agreeing not to compete in return for a substantial ownership interest in Juul."

"Altria and Juul turned from competitors to collaborators by eliminating competition and sharing in Juul's profits," said Ian Conner, director of the FTC's Bureau of Competition.

Juul did not respond to a request for comment. Altria said it planned to "vigorously defend our investment."

"We believe that our investment in Juul does not harm competition and that the FTC misunderstood the facts," said Murray Garnick, Altria's executive vice president and general counsel.

Altria's MarkTen was at one point the second most popular e-cigarette maker, the FTC said. The FTC said Altria responded to Juul's threat to its business by agreeing not to compete in exchange for Altria's investment in the company.

Altria announced it would discontinue its MarkTen brand a few weeks before formally announcing the Juul investment in December 2018.

The FTC announcement is the beginning of what is likely to be a lengthy process and adds to a relentless series of regulatory headaches for Juul over the past year. The company stopped selling popular flavors such as mango and mint in the United States amid pressure from regulators and lawmakers, and shed hundreds of workers as it retooled under new management.

Story continues

The company is facing a critical regulatory deadline later this year to prove that its products provide a net benefit to public health, meaning they aid smokers in quitting more than they lure teenagers or non-users into nicotine addiction.

Altria is Juulas largest investor, and a forced divestiture would raise substantial questions for the e-cigarette maker's future.

Although the Juul investment has become a disappointing one for Altria, the cigarette maker would be left searching for alternative products. Altria initially believed Juul could play a major role in offsetting declining cigarette sales. In January, the company projected U.S. cigarette sales would decline 4% to 6% this year.

Altria said in late March that Chief Executive Officer Howard Willard has contracted the coronavirus and is taking temporary medical leave. Chief Financial Officer William Gifford Jr is taking over in his absence, the company disclosed on Friday.

In October, Altria had acknowledged that U.S. antitrust enforcers were also looking into allegations that it had potentially exerted influence over Juul before winning approval for the big share buy.

Prior to antitrust approval, it is illegal for companies involved in mergers or similar transactions to coordinate in many areas.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Leslie Adler)
By Trend

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the Republic of Moldova considers the so-called "presidential and parliamentary elections" in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan on March 31, 2020 illegal, contrary to the UN Charter and the fundamental norms and principles of international law enshrined in the Helsinki Final Act, Trend reports.

Considering that under the auspices of the OSCE, a negotiation process is underway to determine the special status of the Nagorno-Karabakh region in order to peacefully resolve the conflict, the Republic of Moldova does not recognize the so-called "elections".

In this context, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Integration into Europe reaffirms the readiness of the Republic of Moldova to support the efforts of the international community, in particular the Minsk Group and the OSCE co-chairs, which can make a significant contribution to strengthening peace and security in the South Caucasus towards a peaceful and comprehensive political settlement.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding regions.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding regions.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
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Americans wont likely see direct payments from the coronavirus stimulus bill until April 13, and the Trump administration says it could take 20 weeks for all the checks to be mailed. The news comes via a Democratic memo from the House Ways and Means Committee obtained by CNN.

The IRS expects to make 60 million payments likely by the week of April 13, for taxpayers whose direct deposit information was provided on their 2018 or 2019 tax returns. Paper checks should be issued the week of May 4 for those whose banking information is not on file. The memo notes that the agency will process about 5 million payments a week, which means it would take IRS up to 20 weeks to issue all the checks.

The memo points out that the IRS envisions having an online system in place by late April or early May to allow taxpayers to update their direct deposit information and to track the status of their payments, according to CNN.

About 150 million Americans will be eligible for payments, but the IRS only has the data of about 70 million Americans on file, meaning about 80 million will have to wait for checks to be mailed.

On Sunday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Americans could expect to see payments from the stimulus bill within three weeks.

We expect that within three weeks, that people who have direct deposit with information with us will see those direct deposits into their bank accounts, and we will create a web-based system for people where we dont have their direct deposit, they can upload it so that they can get the money immediately as opposed to checks in the mail, Mnuchin said on Face the Nation.

Mnuchin also pushed back against the assertion that the stimulus package is a bailout for large corporations.

Were not bailing out any companies or any industries, he said. Any loans that we make, the taxpayer will be fully compensated for. As the president said, well look at each one of these situations. Some of them are very good companies that just need liquidity and will get loans. Some of these companies may need more significant help and we may be taking warrants or equity as well as that.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Local government units (LGUs) may use their 20% development fund for the implementation of measures against COVID-19 in their areas, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) said.

The DILG signed a joint memorandum circular with the Department of Budget and Management allowing the LGUs to replenish their depleted budgets.

We are giving LGUs more flexibility in using their development fund for disaster preparedness and response efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus and to continue to provide basic services to their constituents who are severely affected by the enhanced community quarantine, DILG Secretary Eduardo Ano said.

The 20% development fund is sourced from the annual internal revenue allotment of LGUs. It is originally used in local government projects concerning social and economic development and environmental management.

Under the circular, local governments may use the development fund in procuring personal protective equipment (PPE), hospital equipment and supplies, testing kits, reagents and equipment. Disinfectants, sprayers, and disinfection tents may also be purchased.

Expenses on food, transportation, and accommodations for medical and LGU personnel involved in COVID-19 relief efforts may also be charged to the development fund. LGUs may also use the fund in providing relief goods to affected households.

The amount may also cover the construction or rental of additional spaces for persons under investigation (PUIs) and persons under monitoring (PUMs). LGUs may also use the fund in operating testing laboratories.

The development fund may also be utilized in acquiring temporary shelters for the homeless.

LGUs may also charge to the fund trainings for personnel in COVID-19 testing, along with other programs and activities related to the containment of COVID-19.

DILG Undersecretary and Spokesperson Jonathan Malaya clarified the limitations in using the development fund.

"Hindi ito puwedeng gamitin para bumili ng furniture, fixture[s], appliances at motor vehicles, said Malaya.

[Translation: It can't be used to buy furniture, fixture[s], appliances and motor vehicles.]

According to the circular, the fund does not cover salaries, wages, overtime pay, and other personnel benefits.

Administrative expenses such as supplies, meetings, communication, water and electricity, and petroleum products cannot be charged to the development fund.
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The COVID-19 virus is wreaking havoc on schools, stores, businesses -- and events. As in-person concerts, talks and big gatherings are cancelled and people spend more time at home, LAist is temporarily switching our events column to a "nonevents" column to help us through this time of social distancing.

Until it's safe to go out again, please consider contributing to your local arts organizations, or to individual artists during this difficult time.

Here are a few online offerings from L.A.'s local performing and visual arts organizations and spaces, including opera at home, family art workshops and a pop culture art opening. Plus, films and a festival that were displaced because of COVID-19.

Arts and Culture





LA Phil at Home

Although the concerts at Walt Disney Concert Hall have stopped for now, members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic are still practicing and creating music. Watch performances of the musicians from their living rooms, dens and studios in a new series, available on the L.A. Phil's website. Also: Tune in Tuesdays through Fridays at 6 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. to hear Gustavo Dudamel's new radio broadcast on KUSC and KDFC, both on air and online. He'll chat with Brian Lauritzen to talk about some of his favorite recordings. Some shows are in English and some in Spanish.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO





LACO at Home

The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO) presents streaming performances that feature concertmaster Margaret Batjer playing a selection of Bach solo violin works, and assistant concertmaster Teresa Stanislav and violist Robert Brophy, who are married, performing a Mozart violin and viola duo. The program will be streamed on Thursday, April 2, with an encore screening on Friday, April 3, at 7:30 p.m., and later available on demand. A live Q&A takes place both nights at 8:30 p.m.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO





Paley@Home

TV fans were disappointed when this year's PaleyFest was postponed, so the Paley Center for Media is releasing never-before-seen videos of past PaleyFest events on YouTube. Watch conversations with the cast and creatives from shows including black-ish, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and Schitt's Creek. On Fridays at 8 p.m., take advantage of Paley Date Night with presentations about television shows that highlight love and relationships.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO





Lips Together, Teeth Apart

L.A. Theatre Works honors the late playwright Terrance McNally, who passed away on March 24 from complications of COVID-19. LATW offers an audio presentation of McNally's dark comedy that was recorded before a live audience at UCLA in 2012. Directed by Bart DeLorenzo, the production stars Kristen Johnston, Steven Weber, Missy Yager and Hugo Armstrong. McNally's play follows two heterosexual couples surrounded by gay vacationers at Fire Island on the Fourth of July.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Gallery 1988 opens Golden Hour: the art of George Townley online Friday at noon. (George Townley, courtesy of the artist and gallery)





Gallery1988's Art Openings

The gallery debuts two new collections online on Friday at noon. Golden Hour: The Art of George Townley celebrates the beauty of Los Angeles and takes viewers to places that are off-limits right now. Dave Pollot's Passengers puts famous pop culture vehicles painted into thrift shop finds.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO





Art Share LA's Virtual Gallery & Performances

Every weekday at 2 p.m., the arts organization presents 20-minute performances of featured dancers, spoken-word artists and musicians live on their Zoom channel. On Friday, trumpeter and performance artist Ethan Marks presents "Unstable Connection." Art Share is also turning its Instagram into a virtual gallery. Look for the daily prompt each Monday through Friday at 10 a.m., then create a piece inspired by the theme and tag @artshare_la in a post or story. New shows will be curated.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO





The Broad Stage at Home

The Santa Monica performance space launches a new weekly series of livestreamed performances, interviews and archival footage. On Saturday at 8 p.m., tune into Red Hen Press Poetry Hour on Facebook Live and YouTube Live , hosted by Sandra Tsing Loh and featuring the poetry of Major Jackson. On Sunday morning at 11 a.m., tune into the same channels to hear cellist Lynn Harrell perform a living room recital, followed by a conversation with artistic and executive director Rob Bailis. Listen to other performances by SOL-LA Music Academy and other artists.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO





Barnsdall Art Park Foundation's Family Art Workshops

The foundation teams with the Junior Arts Center to offer free Zoom art workshops every Sunday from 10 a.m. to noon. Families, adults and children are welcome to join. The projects explore patterns from different cultures and are adaptable to simple materials. The projects and materials are posted weekly. When class begins, the teaching artist can answer questions throughout the session.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Enjoy performances from LA Opera from the comfort of your home with LAO's new online programming. (Cory Weaver)





LAO at Home

Every weekday, the L.A. Opera presents online programming on its website that includes Living Room Recitals, rebroadcasts of old performances, sing-a-longs (for kids) and workshops (for adults). On Friday at 4 p.m., tune into a recital with tenor Ben Bliss and bassoonist Dana Jackson.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO





Wallis Streaming

The Beverly Hills space presents virtual performances and also shares links to art happenings around the web from its collaborators. On Sunday at noon, choreographer Micaela Taylor holds a two-hour dance workshop while Debbie Allen offers virtual dance classes through her Instagram Live.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Uncancelled Music Festival



The Hotel Cafe partners with the UnCancelled Music Festival for a virtual concert experience from April 2 through 9. Watch music from more than 75 artists via StageIt, all while raising funds for Hotel Cafe staff, artists, and the Recording Academy's MusiCares program. Tune in to the Hotel Cafe Stage where you can tip individual artists or pay what you want for the show.

COST: PAY WHAT YOU CAN; MORE INFO

Film Picks

Sidney Flanigan and Talia Ryder start in Eliza Hittman's poignant drama 'Never Rarely Sometimes Always.' (Angal Field/Focus Features)





Never Rarely Sometimes Always

The critically acclaimed drama from director Eliza Hittman (Beach Rats) is being re-released on premium VOD after being pulled from theaters after the coronavirus breakout. The writer-director's film follows teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania who face an unintended pregnancy and a lack of local support. Watch performances by Sidney Flanigan and Talia Ryder, as their characters must cross state lines to access reproductive health services.

COST: $19.99; MORE INFO





Aspen Film: Shortsfest 2020

The Oscar-qualifying film festival moves entirely online, screening shorts through April 5. Watch films by veteran directors and emerging talent featuring Steve Zahn, Casey Wilson, June Diane Raphael and Michael McKean. Viewers can buy festival passes or tickets to individual curated programs. Festival-goers will be sent access codes after purchase.

COST: $10 - $75; MORE INFO





Bacurau

This dystopian film opened briefly in theaters. In the near future, the village of Bacurau in Brazil mourns the loss of its matriarch, who has died at age 94. A few days later, the village has disappeared from most maps and a drone flies overhead. A band of mercenaries arrives to eliminate the town and its residents. In a genre-bending twist, the community comes together to protect itself. Kino Lorber supports art houses by partnering with local California theaters for these virtual screenings including Alamo Drafthouse, Frida Cinema and Laemmle Theatres. In English and Portuguese with English subtitles.

COST: $12; MORE INFO
The Golden Age of Hollywood, known for its glitz, glamour, and classic movies, was an industry rife with severe gender inequity, according to a study which assessed a century of data on the representation of women across various roles in film projects.

According to the researchers, including those from the Northwestern University in the US, women participation dropped across job roles in film from 1920 to 1950.

The study, published in the journal PLOS One, assessed 26,000 movies from 1910 to 2010 based on data in the American Film Institute Archive and the Internet Movie Database (IMDb).

It found that female representation in the film industry hit an all-time low during the so-called Golden Age as women representation in the industry still is struggling to recover today.

"A lot of people view this era through rose-coloured glasses because Hollywood was producing so many great movies," said study co-author Luis Amaral from Northwestern University.

"They argue that types of movies being made -- such as Westerns, action and crime -- caused the decrease in female representation. But we found the decrease occurred across all genres, including musicals, comedy, fantasy and romance," Amaral said.

The researchers looked across all genres including action, adventure, biography, comedy, and crime to measure how many women worked as actors, screenwriters, directors and producers.

They said the roles for women increased from 1910 to 1920, and then sharply dropped, steadily increasing again around 1950 until 2010.

Across all genres and all four job types, the study noted that the resulting graphs form the exact same "U-shape" pattern.

"In general, we found that the percentage of women compared to men in any role was consistently below 50 per cent for all years from 1912 until now," said study co-author Murielle Dunand, a former intern in Amaral's laboratory and current student at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Before Hollywood's Golden Age, the study noted that the industry was fuelled by independent filmmakers, with women participation steadily increasing.

From 1910 to 1920, according to the data, women actors comprised roughly 40 per cent of casts.

During this period, the researchers said, women wrote 20 per cent of movies, produced 12 per cent and directed 5 per cent.

However, they said, acting roles for women were cut in half by 1930 with producing and directing roles dipping close to zero.

Based on the data, Amaral and Dunand suggested that the studio system, which emerged between 1915 and 1920, is most likely responsible for this shift.

They said the industry condensed from a somewhat diverse collection of independent filmmakers scattered across the country to just five studios -- Warner Bros., Paramount, MGM, Fox and RKO Pictures -- which controlled everything.

"As the studio system falls under the control of a small group of men, women are receiving fewer and fewer jobs," Amaral said.

"It looks like male producers hire male directors and male writers. This is association, not causation, but the data is very suggestive," he said.

Following this period, the study said, two groundbreaking lawsuits caused the studio system to break apart.

Oscar-nominated actor Olivia de Havilland, who had an exclusive contract with Warner Bros., sued the studio in 1943 to be freed from her contract and won, the researchers noted in a statement.

Then in 1948, they said the US federal government sued Paramount Pictures in an antitrust case.

At the time, the researchers said movie studios owned their own theaters and distributed their own movies.

When Paramount lost, they said, studios could no longer exclusively produce, distribute and exhibit their films.

"These legal changes took the power away from a handful of men and gave more people the power to start changing the industry," Amaral said.

"There is a connection between increased concentration of power and decreased participation of women," he added.

Based on the data, Amaral said women producers also tend to hire greater proportions of women to work in their films.

"Producers affect the gender of the director. Women with power in Hollywood are making conditions better for other women," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The head of the European Commission apologised to Italy on Thursday for a lack of solidarity from Europe in tackling its coronavirus crisis, but promised greater help in dealing with the economic fallout.

There has been widespread dismay in Italy over Europe's response to the pandemic, starting with an initial failure to send medical aid, followed by a refusal amongst northern nations to endorse joint bonds to mitigate the cost of recovery.

The far-right League party has jumped on the discontent to call into question Italy's continued membership of the 27-nation bloc, while even staunch pro-Europeans have expressed consternation at the lack of empathy and support.

Italy, which has recorded more coronavirus deaths than any other country, said on Thursday its toll had risen by 760 over the last 24 hours to 13,915, slightly up on a day earlier. The number of new cases was steady, growing by 4,668 to 115,242.

In a letter published in the Italian daily La Repubblica, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said too many EU countries had initially focused on their own problems.

"They did not realise that we can only defeat this pandemic together, as a Union. This was harmful and could have been avoided," she wrote, adding: "Today Europe is rallying to Italy's side."

The main bone of contention is a request by Italy and eight other countries to issue "recovery bonds" on behalf of all euro zone countries to help fund efforts to rebuild national economies that are expected to dive deep into recession.

Conservative leaders in wealthy states such as Germany, the Netherlands and Austria have so far recoiled at the idea of issuing bonds with highly indebted nations, such as Italy.

Attacking Germany

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte urged a rethink.

"I believe that everyone will eventually realise even in those countries that a shared, orderly, strong and rapid European response is the only solution," he told Spain's La Sexta television. "A slow response would be a useless response."

The opposition League, Italy's most popular party, has struggled to gain much attention during the coronavirus crisis, and has leapt on the EU debate to gain greater traction.

"Commission president von der Leyen has apologised today to Italy and Italians. She could have thought of this sooner. From Europe, all we are getting are words and smoke: zero substance," League leader Matteo Salvini wrote on Twitter.

The party's economic adviser, Claudio Borghi, posted on Twitter a fascist-era poster from World War Two of a smiling Nazi soldier with the slogan "Germany really is your friend".

"Time passes but the tactics are always the same," Borghi wrote.

Von der Leyen told La Repubblica that the European Union would allocate up to 100 billion euros ($109.62 billion) to the hardest-hit countries, starting with Italy, to help cover the cost of lost wages and to preserve jobs.

She said the commission also wanted to make sure that "every euro still available in the EU's annual budget" is spent on tackling the coronavirus crisis.

However, she did not mention the euro bonds sought by Rome.

Underscoring the scale of the epidemic in Italy, the crematorium in the country's financial capital Milan announced on Thursday that it would not take in any more bodies for the rest of April to allow it to clear its backlog of coffins.

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YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. The foreign ministry of Armenia issued a statement on the presidential and parliamentary elections that we held in the Republic of Artsakh on March 31.

Armenpress presents the MFAs full statement:

We congratulate the authorities and the people of Artsakh on holding free and fair elections on March 31, which were in line with high democratic standards.

The people of Artsakh have indeed earned the right to live free in dignity, to shape together a democratic and modern society. In this regard, these nationwide elections, which were held in an environment of free competition and civil solidarity, have been case in point.

Those elections once again demonstrated that human rights, particularly the right to vote and to take part in a government, are inalienable and universal. The fundamental human rights instruments, in particular the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenants on Human Rights, clearly establish that in exercising human rights no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of any territory and that all peoples can freely determine their political status by virtue of their right to self-determination and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development.

The right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination is the foundation for the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. This reality has been fully reflected in the principles and elements of settlement presented by the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, which envisage the determination of the final legal status of Nagorno Karabakh through a legally binding expression of will.

It is noteworthy that in their statement on the Artsakh elections, the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs once again reiterated the role of the population of Artsakh in determining their future, in the context of principles and elements of the settlement of the conflict.

The incoming authorities of Artsakh - those who have already received the mandate of the people of Artsakh at the parliamentary elections and those who will receive that very mandate at the second round of the presidential elections, have a special responsibility and role in the Nagorno Karabakh peace process.

Active engagement of the elected authorities of Artsakh as a main party of the resolution of the conflict will significantly increase the effectiveness of the negotiation process and will ensure progress in the key issues of the conflict resolution.

Elections in Artsakh are also important in terms of strengthening democracy, human rights and civil society in the region. It once again emphasizes that the conflict cannot serve as an insurmountable impediment for building democratic society.

On these days, we also pay tribute to the memory of the victims of the military aggression and atrocities committed by Azerbaijan against the people of Artsakh four years ago. In this context, it should be underlined that the democratic development of all countries in the region and accountability of authorities before their own peoples is a prerequisite for the regional security and peaceful resolution of the conflict.
TDT | Manama

The Ministry of Finance and National Economy announced yesterday that it had repaid an international $1.25billion bond that reached maturity on March 31.

The ministry said that the successful repayment demonstrates the strength and robustness of the Kingdoms Fiscal Balance Programme, particularly in light of current market conditions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The programme incorporates plans to enable the Kingdom to service its funding requirements whilst balancing fiscal consolidation with continued economic growth.

The Finance Ministry added that the long-term fiscal plan, launched in October 2018, had intentionally built-in backstops and necessary resilience to service Bahrains financing needs over the course of the programme, including in times of challenging market conditions and economic volatility.

The Kingdoms planned funding needs over the course of the programme are serviced through market access twice yearly, and through funds received from Saudi Arabia, the UAE and the State of Kuwait, as part of the Financial Support Agreement.

The Finance Ministry added that the Kingdoms funding strategy is calibrated to efficiently tap financial markets at optimal times. Meanwhile, Finance and National Economy Minister Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa yesterday held a video conference with Minister of Labour and Social Development Jameel bin Mohammed Ali Humaidan and members of the Shura Council Services Committee.

Among the issues discussed was the draft-law to withdraw BD215million from the unemployment fund to pay for the salaries of Bahrainis in the private sector for three months (April to June).

Shaikh Salman underlined the importance of the draft law, which has been referred to the Shura Council, in supporting citizens in the private sector.

It is a part of measures accompanying the BD4.3billion stimulus package approved in accordance with Royal directives to unify national efforts to confront the effects of COVID-19, and to protect the health and safety of the citizens and residents.
Nearly 100 prisoners are in isolation in a bid to prevent an outbreak of Covid-19 in the countrys jails.

So far, all tests conducted on the inmates have come back negative  but sources said it is a big ask to believe the virus wont get into at least some prisons.

Sources are particularly concerned with the most overcrowded prisons, where mattresses are commonly used instead of actual beds, including Cork, Limerick and Midlands.

Sources have also confirmed reports that two prison officers  one in Cork and one in Portlaoise  have tested positive for Covid-19.

Cork Prison is thought to have five prisoners in isolation, down from eight prisoners two weeks ago.

A total of 18 staff at the prison are believed to be self-isolating at the moment, up from four two weeks ago.

Across the prison estate, official figures show that 98 prisoners have been isolated.

We have no prisoner testing positive, yet, said one prison source.

Im not sure how long that can go on for, it is a big ask, but so far we have been lucky.

The Irish Prison Service is adopting HSE procedures for inmates who present symptoms, by isolating them and moving them into single cells in isolation areas, now set up in each jail. Generally, their cells are opened only twice a day for food, once for breakfast, then at lunchtime when they get a hot meal and their tea.

Across all prisons restrictions are in place, severely limiting numbers taking recreation breaks at the one time and enforcing social distancing for those that do. With visits stopped, prisoners can have video phone calls with loved ones.

In planning for an outbreak, consideration has been given to moving those infected to a unit in Cloverhill Prison, Dublin.

The F Block can take up to 24 prisoners, but it is thought that current IPS thinking is to keep prisoners in the isolation areas in each of the prisons, rather than run the risks of transporting them from one prison to another.

Regarding measures to ease numbers in prisons under emergency measures to prevent Covid-19 spreading into prisons, sources said they have nearly exhausted possibilities of temporary release of inmates serving under 12 months.

Some 292 prisoners have been given temporary release since March 11 and sources said that they can only release those who dont pose a risk to the public.

The Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice said 1,200 prisoners need to be released in order to have one person per cell.
MOSCOW -- A Russian historian who was jailed on disputed pedophilia charges last year has died in a prison hospital after an appeal from prosecutors delayed his release on health grounds.

Sergei Koltyrin, 67, passed away overnight into April 2 after a long battle with cancer that predated his arrest in October 2018 and continued throughout his confinement at a prison in Medvezhegorsk, a town in Russias northern Karelia region where Koltyrin had worked as the local museum director.

Vladimir Koltyrin, his brother, told RFE/RL that a funeral was planned for April 6, but the body may be taken directly for burial since the region -- like others across Russia -- is in lockdown in connection with the coronavirus outbreak.

They dont allow us to assemble in the street, he said in a telephone interview. Were thinking about what we can do.

On March 6, a court in Medvezhegorsk ordered Koltyrins release on humanitarian grounds, noting a deterioration in his health and arguing that he should be allowed to see relatives before he dies. But prosecutors filed an appeal against the judges decision and Koltyrin died before that appeal could be overturned.

Vladimir Koltyrin would visit him once every two months, and saw him most recently just over a month before his death. He told RFE/RL that Koltyrin appeared upbeat and was looking forward to leaving prison, and asked Vladimir to pick him up on his release day. But conditions in custody may have accelerated his physical decline.

When a person is used to living in freedom, its hard to get accustomed to such conditions, he said.

Sergei Koltyrin was arrested in October 2018 and sentenced the following May to 9 years in prison on charges of sexually abusing an underage boy, which he pled guilty to after initially denying. Another man, Evgeny Nosov, was given 11 years for allegedly acting as Koltyrins accomplice.

The case drew national attention because Koltyrin had been a vocal critic of plans by authorities to exhume Sandarmokh, a Stalin-era execution site in Karelia that is believed to holds the bodies of several thousand inmates of forced labor camps who were murdered there in the 1930s. Koltyrins supporters alleged that he had been pressured to confess.

Tamara Polyakova, a Karelia-based historian who regularly exchanged letters with Koltyrin during his time in custody, told RFE/RL that he did not complain of bad treatment by prison guards.

My impression was that he was mostly depressed for other reasons, and was okay with the prison conditions, she said. Of course he might have not mentioned bad treatment even if it did occur.

But he was expecting to get out alive, she added.

Anatoly Razumov, a friend of Koltyrins, said the prisoner had undergone an operation in January and may have suffered complications from it. In a letter he received in mid-March, Razumov said Koltyrin struck a depressing tone.

I think he was essentially saying goodbye, Razumov wrote in a text message.

Yury Dmitriyev, another local gulag researcher who helped discover Sandarmokh in 1997, was arrested in 2016 on pedophilia charges similar to those for which Koltyrin was convicted. His trial has been continuing since 2016, and Dmitriyev has continued to publicize Sandarmokh from custody by contributing to publications about its history.

On March 23, after Dmitriyev had spent 3 years behind bars, a court in the regional capital, Petrozavodsk, extended his pretrial detention for another three months, despite reports earlier this year that judges were preparing to issue a verdict in his case by late February.

Several thousand people have signed a petition calling for the 64-year-old Dmitriyev to be placed under house arrest for the duration of the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that his age, his smoking habit, and an immune system weakened by years in custody leave him particularly vulnerable if he contracts the pathogen.

The very peak of the growing coronavirus pandemic will find him in a prison cell, the petition reads. [Dmitriyev] does not represent any threat to society, and in current conditions his health is in serious danger."
New Delhi, April 2 : Flag carrier Air India has entered into commercial charter flight agreements with four countries to repatriate their citizens.

According to Air India CMD Rajiv Bansal, the airline has entered into agreements with France, Canada, Germany and Ireland to ferry their citizens back home. The airline will operate 18 flights under these agreements.

"We were approached by these countries' embassies for charter flights to repatriate their citizens back home. These agreements are on commercial basis," Bansal said in an online press conference of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Bansal added that after ferrying the passengers, the aircraft will return without any passengers on-board.
After opening forcefully in Glorias perspective, Wetmores kaleidoscopic narration rotates among several other area women, revealing the town and its tensions from an array of perspectives. First, theres Mary Rose, the 26-year-old ranchers wife whose farmhouse is the one Gloria comes to in the wake of her assault, and who becomes a key witness in the prosecution of Strickland. Next, theres Corinne Shephard, a tough old ex-schoolteacher whose beloved husband, Potter, has just taken his own life in the face of his terminal diagnosis with a rare form of cancer. Having taught countless young women like Gloria and Mary Rose, Corinne observes, gazing at the Bunny Club, a strip club sharing a parking lot with the mobile library that it is a damned miracle () that any girl in Odessa makes it out alive.
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President Donald Trump said he expects Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut oil production by about 10 million barrels after he spoke by phone with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman on Thursday.

Trump didn't specify in a tweet whether the production cut would be per day. He said Prince Mohammed had spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin about their oil price war. "Could be as high as 15 Million Barrels," Trump added in a subsequent tweet.
40,000 35,000 30,000 25,000 25,000 By March 21, the U.S. had nearly 25,000 reported coronavirus cases. But at least 39,000 people were already sick. 20,000 20,000 15,000 15,000 10,000 10,000 5,000 5,000 0 0 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 Cumulative coronavirus cases by reported date Cumulative coronavirus cases by symptom start date 40,000 35,000 30,000 25,000 25,000 By March 21, the U.S. had reported nearly 25,000 coronavirus cases. But at least 39,000 people were already sick. 20,000 20,000 15,000 15,000 10,000 10,000 5,000 5,000 0 0 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 Cumulative coronavirus cases by reported date Cumulative coronavirus cases by symptom start date 25,000 By March 21, the U.S. had reported nearly 25,000 coronavirus cases. 20,000 15,000 10,000 Cumulative coronavirus cases by reported date 5,000 0 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 40,000 35,000 30,000 25,000 But at least 39,000 people were already sick. 20,000 15,000 10,000 Cumulative coronavirus cases by symptom start date 5,000 0 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 25,000 By March 21, the U.S. had reported nearly 25,000 coronavirus cases. 20,000 15,000 10,000 Cumulative coronavirus cases by reported date 5,000 0 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 40,000 35,000 30,000 25,000 But at least 39,000 people were already sick. 20,000 15,000 10,000 Cumulative coronavirus cases by symptom start date 5,000 0 Feb. 23 Mar. 1 Mar. 8 Mar. 15 The chart shows data from Feb. 18, when fewer than 100 symptomatic cases were reported, through March 21, after which the onset data is less reliable, according to the C.D.C.

When there were just over a dozen official recorded cases of the new coronavirus in America, at least 50 people who later tested positive were already feeling ill. By the time 50 cases were officially confirmed, at least 1,200 people had already started showing symptoms of Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus.

This new picture of the U.S. coronavirus outbreak is based on data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that estimates the date on which people who were later tested and confirmed positive for Covid-19 said they first started to experience symptoms.

The data helps show just how far behind the virus we are, said Justin Bahl, an associate professor of infectious disease and epidemiology at the University of Georgia, and, potentially, how much more transmission is happening in the community before we can identify and isolate those people.

Looking at the date patients symptoms started tells epidemiologists more about the true progression of an outbreak than confirmed case numbers alone. Thats because there are often lags between the moment someone is infected, when they fall ill and when they receive a positive test result.

Ideally you would have a curve that shows when everyone got infected, but thats often impossible to know, said Cecile Viboud, an epidemiologist at the National Institutes of Healths Fogarty International Center.

People dont know when they got infected; they dont suddenly light up with a sign that says, You got infected, she said. So the closest we can get is symptom onset, and since we know the incubation period, we can then estimate when they got infected.

The date a person became ill is usually determined from a patients medical history or interviews by public health professionals. In some instances, the C.D.C. has estimated onset dates for coronavirus cases.

There is the whole time people are sick before they seek medical help, Dr. Bahl said. All the time beforehand, thats potential transmission time.

A separate study that examined the case history of the first Covid-19 patient in the United States offers a real-world example of the gap between when symptoms start and a case is identified. (The C.D.C. did not publish individual case timelines.)

Case study: Symptoms reported by the first person to test positive for Covid-19 in the U.S. He tested positive and was hospitalized He started feeling ill Fever Cough Runny nose Fatigue Nausea Nausea Vomiting Diarrhea Stomach ache Symptoms reported by the first person to test positive for Covid-19 in the U.S. He tested positive and was hospitalized He started feeling ill Fever Cough Runny nose Fatigue Nausea Nausea Vomiting Diarrhea Stomach ache Symptoms reported by the first person to test positive for Covid-19 in the U.S. Started feeling ill Cough Fatigue Fever Tested positive and hospitalized Vomiting Nausea Stomach ache Diarrhea Nausea Runny nose Source: The New England Journal of Medicine

The first reported U.S. case was a 35-year-old man in Washington State who had recently traveled to Wuhan, China, where the virus was first detected. He reported seeking medical help because he had seen an alert from the C.D.C. about the new coronavirus outbreak in China that matched his symptoms. Most new infections in the United States today come from local contacts.

The time between the start of illness and case identification tends to be greater at the beginning of an outbreak, when people are less aware of the symptoms, but it decreases over time. The current average lag from symptom onset to positive test is four days, according to the C.D.C.

Narrowing the gap is crucial to combating the virus, Dr. Bahl said: The ultimate goal is to identify and isolate. If we can shorten the time frame, then we can control the epidemic.

Symptom onset data is not available for every reported Covid-19 case in the United States, but even the subset published by the C.D.C., which includes more than 40,000 cases, shows a substantially higher number of infections in late February and early March compared to confirmed case tallies from the same period.

This data shifts public understanding of the U.S. epidemic curve days to weeks earlier, but it still does not reflect the true scale of Covid-19 cases in the country. The symptom onset data is based on patients who tested positive and misses cases that are treated at home and others that may not receive testing.

By some estimates, the United States has reported only a fraction of the coronavirus cases currently circulating in the country. The C.D.C also estimates that as many as 25 percent of people infected may not show symptoms at all.

The data also does not reflect the real timeline of infections  what Dr. Viboud called the ideal epidemic curve. The viruss incubation period is estimated to be five days on average following exposure, but can last up to 14 days. That means people reporting symptoms today may have been infected up to two weeks ago.

Efforts are under way to trace the true beginning of the U.S. outbreak, including genetic sequencing methods that track the viruss spread.
Jennifer Garner took her three delighted children out for some fresh air amid the coronavirus lockdown in Los Angeles this Wednesday.

The 47-year-old shares her daughters Violet, 14, Seraphina, 11, and Samuel, eight, with her amicable ex-husband Ben Affleck.

Sweeping her hair back into a ponytail, Jennifer kept warm in a cozy-looking sweater with a broken heart print on the front.

Quality time: Jennifer Garner took her three delighted children out for some fresh air amid the coronavirus lockdown in Los Angeles this Wednesday

Violet threw an arm affectionately around their mother, while Seraphina climbed up onto the curb and bounded gleefully off it onto the road.

At one point Jennifer could be spotted wrapping her arms around both her daughters and holding them close to her.

The same day Jennifer enjoyed a walk with the children Ben stepped out with his new flame Ana De Armas, who at 31 is 16 years his senior.

Ben and Ana co-starred in the film Deep River then became an item, and were seen frolicking on the beach during a Costa Rican holiday shortly before the lockdowns.

Off they go: The 47-year-old shares her daughters Violet, 14, Seraphina, 11, and Samuel, eight, with her amicable ex-husband Ben Affleck

Warding off the chill: Sweeping her hair back into a ponytail, Jennifer kept warm in a cozy-looking sweater with a broken heart print on the front

Since then they have been seen multiple times stepping out together in Los Angeles and cuddling up to one another.

Jennifer apparently thinks it is too early in their romance for Ben to introduce Ana to the children, an Us Weekly source gossiped.

The insider added that 'Ben is understanding' and 'said he would work with Jennifer to prepare the kids for meeting' the Knives Out star.

Having a ball: Violet threw an arm affectionately around their mother, while Seraphina climbed up onto the curb and bounded gleefully off it onto the road

Her babies: At one point Jennifer could be spotted wrapping her arms around both her daughters and holding them close to her

Jennifer is copacetic with Ben dating Ana, according to an Us Weekly source who clarified: 'Jen has completely moved on from Ben in a romantic sense.'

The insider dished: 'She considers him a friend, thinks he is a good dad to their children and respects him. She is happy in her own life and supportive of him and happy for him and his relationship.'

Jennifer and Amy Adams recently announced on social they would read children's books on Insta Stories to raise money.

Meanwhile: The same day Jennifer enjoyed a walk with the children Ben stepped out with his new flame Ana De Armas, who at 31 is 16 years his senior

Blessing: Jennifer is copacetic with Ben dating Ana, according to an Us Weekly source who clarified: 'Jen has completely moved on from Ben in a romantic sense'

The duo launched this Save With Stories venture to encourage donations to Save The Children and No Kid Hungry.

Their aim is to help underprivileged children whose access to school lunches has been cut off by the widespread school closures due to the pandemic.

They have attracted help from a string of other celebrities including Hilary Duff, Camila Cabello, Lupita Nyong'o, Brie Larson, Noah Centineo and Beanie Feldstein.

Lovebirds: Meanwhile Jen's ex Ben Affleck looked completely infatuated by his current flame Ana de Armas, 31, on a stroll in LA on Wednesday
T he family of a British nurse who died after catching suspected coronavirus have slammed the Government over the lack of testing and personal protective equipment (PPE) given to NHS staff.

Father of seven Thomas Harvey, 57, collapsed at his family home in east London on Sunday after complaining of weakness, pains and breathing issues over nearly three weeks.

He had been a nurse at Goodmayes Hospital in Ilford for 20 years and went into isolation on March 11 after symptoms began.

His son, also called Thomas, said that efforts to test staff were much too slow and that there wasn't enough PPE.

Thomas Harvey (second from right) with his family / PA Media

Mr Harvey, 24, said: Why has it taken so long? Why have we had to lose my dad, and similar situations, for you [the Government] to take action?

It is frustrating to think that a situation like this could have been prevented with the correct care from the Government.

Mr Harvey said that his father's condition had got worse a week before his death. Paramedics came to the family home but decided he wasn't sick enough to go to hospital.

Mr Harvey added: At that point he wasnt eating for eight days, he wasnt breathing properly, which you could hear.

"He was very weak and was complaining about pains but they had told us that his case was mild so he wouldnt be taken into hospital for treatment.

We were like If thats a mild case, then whats the worst case?"

A coronavirus testing laboratory / PA

Mr Harvey said that coronavirus testing for NHS staff should have increased fast when it became clear the outbreak was serious.

He added: If youre supposed to be helping other people you should know that you are also well enough to do that and youre not going to be passing stuff onto other people, because it works both ways.

Its sad that he had to get it but also his role, and what he loved to do, was ensuring the protection and safety of other people and he wasnt given the opportunity to do that as he wasnt tested.

NHS staff wearing protective equipment / REUTERS

Mr Harvey said he wasn't happy with the protective equipment his father was given at work, describing it as "gloves and a flimsy apron".

But he stressed that the family didn't blame the NHS for his father's death and are still waiting for confirmation that he had Covid-19.

Goodmayes Hospital said: "At the time Thomas went off sick and self-isolated there were no symptomatic patients on the ward.

"We are following national PPE guidance."

Boris Johnson gives update on testing from self-isolation

Four NHS medics have died with coronavirus, with many more testing positive for the virus.

Seventy-three workers at Great Ormond Street hospital in London have tested positive, with a total of 318 self-isolating with symptoms.

Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast:

The Government is coming under growing pressure to boost testing rates, both for NHS staff and the general population.
Putin introduces fines for pharma drugs overpricing

 flickr.com/ Debs

10:40 02/04/2020

MOSCOW, April 2 (RAPSI)  President of Russia Vladimir Putin has signed a law on fines for overpricing of medicine, according to the official website of legal information.

The law is to amend the Code on Administrative Offenses.

Drug overpricing, according to the draft law, is to result in fines from 250,000 to 500,000 rubles ($3,200  6,400) for officials, and twice the amount of excessively received proceeds from the sale of medicines as a result of the unlawful overstatement of state-regulated prices for the entire period during which the offense was committed, but not more than one year, for legal entities and individual entrepreneurs.

The State Duma and the Federation Council approved the initiative on March 31.

Earlier, the President signed a bill on fixing maximum allowed prices of certain medicine during emergencies or outbreaks of infections into law. The document empowers the government to set maximum allowed prices of drugs and medical products not on the official list of vital medicines, but becoming vitally important in certain situations, for up to 90 days in case of emergencies or outbreaks of infections.
When New Zealand went on a lockdown last month, Nuwanthie Samarakone and her staff did not grapple with the technical and cultural nuances of working from home. They had already been working remotely for more than three weeks.

Samarakone is a director at ICE (Inspire, Create, Engage), a firm that designs and delivers graduate and mentoring programmes across the Asia Pacific region. She decided in February that all her staff in Auckland, Wellington, and Singapore would work from home. She had been travelling across the Asia Pacific and saw how the coronavirus pandemic was impacting all businesses in the region.

Look, if this thing is escalating, we need to be prepared if we go into shutdown for this country, she told her business partners. If we dont get ready now, we will struggle to help our clients.

She says most of their systems were cloud-based, so the shift was not too onerous. However for some companies, including their customers, moving staff to remote work would be a challenge.

Her team has already transformed one of their new programmes, The Growth Project  Whakaahu Whakamua, to become fully online. The programme mentors Maori graduates and helps them move into leadership positions in New Zealand businesses.

Inspire, Create, Engage Consultancy Nuwanthie Samarakone (right) with Erene Punefu, a graduate student mentee

It kicked off in October 2019 and it was only during the last two to three weeks that we pushed everything online, she shares. This was our reaction to what was going on. If we dont react now, it will be too late in March and April. So, by February, we pushed everything online and the students and employers welcomed it.

Prior to this, the graduates only had face-to-face meetings with their mentors, and with their peers. An exception was a student in Auckland whose mentor was based in Christchurch. We geared the whole team to be able to push all the meetings online, says Samarakone. The move also opened the programme to Maori students in the regions, such as New Plymouth.

Samarakone says they are now helping the companies that have signed up for their programmes to redesign their projects and shift online. This whole situation is forcing us to work differently, she states. It is going to change how we are going to work forever.

As her experience shows, thinking differently and pivoting fast are critical skills for organisations as they grapple with the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic that has disrupted all sectors.

Cut out waste, improve flow: a lesson from COVID-19

This is a good time to do a few things that you wont ever have the time again, says Richard Raj, former head of digital and mobility at healthAlliance.

For instance, You can spend more time on R&D and creating innovative ideas, says Raj, now an independent digital strategy consultant at Knights Move Consulting.

The reality is some of your staff, who are always very busy doing the work and always struggle to find free time for these, now have time to think about new ideas, he says on some key themes he discusses with his clients. This is now a good time to go back and think if I have to restart our business, what should I do?

This applies for every organisation, including charities, small and big companies. Business and finance analysts can start to map out end-to-end processes and then think about new automation, digital, and innovative ideas that can be applied to improve these processes, improve the flow and take costs out, he explains.

A lot of times when companies try to improve a system, they think of taking people out to reduce costs. That is not the answer because eventually when the upswing happens, and it will, you need the people and you need the experts. What you want is to take the waste out and improve the flow of work.

CIO New Zealand Richard Raj

Raj observes: A lot of New Zealand businesses that grow from small to medium sized rapidly do not do this well, because they did not have the time to sit back and say, This person B is doing too much. So maybe, to improve the flow, we will need two person Bs and half of a person A, which will improve the product and develop it faster.

An area organisations can also look at is upskilling. A lot of the things needed to train people are already online. I advise people to go and do an online course, he says. An organisation, for instance, can organise a video conferencing session with a trainer for people who are working from home. 

One of the things that will be practical and very much in demand post-COVID-19 is new ways-of-working, which is agile, notes Raj. Agile, and an agile mindset may become just a normal way of working. So, teach your organisation how they can build agile teams, how to be more effective and do things in small increments and drive business value rapidly.

He observes how COVID-19 has impacted larger projects that have bigger teams and vendors. The projects that would have likely survived will be those with small agile sprints that can deliver benefits in weeks and not in six months.

In the case of an organisation like healthAlliance, he says some of the teams he has worked on have not stopped at all and are in fact prioritising some COVID-19-related work. There are things that technology can help overcome as organisations are in full lockdown mode, he stresses.

The COVID-19 situation prompted teams to think differently, for instance, in holding daily stand-up meetings remotely. There is a challenge of working and keeping in touch with each other, as all team members work remotely.

In his previous team, the teams hold stand-up meetings via Zoom and combine it with Jira, a defect and agile project management tool from Atlassian. This is good for the whole team as all of them can participate continuously in the meetings and chats, tracking progress, rather than depending on email, says Raj.

He believes organisations should prepare for three months at least of working this way, before they can go back and have a full complement of people working at the office.

At the same time, with the COVID-19 crisis proving more people can work more effectively from home, organisations may ask later, can this not continue and if they can cut costs for accommodation or office space, and plough the money towards driving the business?

According to Raj, this thinking is needed as organisations work through the crisis and plan to re-emerge. Corporates, meanwhile, can do charity work, help SMBs with budget management services. We should all try to highlight how the company can help those who are not so well off. Now is a good time to build goodwill.

How to become a customer-centred business

Dan Cornwall, chief of design at Clearpoint, says with the fallback of in store or in branch taken away, there is definitely an opportunity for businesses to focus on how they can prioritise their digital channels to make them usable and enjoyable for all customers.

If there are organisations with digital teams who are a bit more quiet at the moment, they could use the time to look at their existing digital channels and do a review from an accessibility standpoint.

Firstly, he notes, We have to get away from the binary paradigm of people being abled and disabled, and more towards what is the level of difficulty that people have in using things?

Some of these are simple, but developers can miss it in the heat of the moment when there are other priorities in the business, says Cornwall. One step they can take is to download screen reader tools and put their websites and apps through these.

Use the time to look at your existing digital channels and review them from an accessibility standpoint

Two years ago, they did this with a bank and because it has never been done, no one knew their app could not be viewed using a screen reader. This, he says, is part of being a customer-centred business. Businesses that have embraced inclusive design have found that the outcomes of what they create tend to benefit all of their customers.

As Forrester analyst Tom Champion points out in an earlier research on customer-centric firms, shifting towards more mature components of customer diversity and inclusion is more than a social good. Its a strategic pillar.

Leading organisations will embrace diversity to win the next billion customers  those who are in untapped geographies or have been traditionally underserved, he says. This is making organisations reset their thinking and revisit the customer experiences they deliver.

Leading organisations also do not view these as one-off initiatives. While events and campaigns to improve inclusion are helpful, the most successful projects are part of broader initiatives to embed new ways of working and shift mindsets, notes Champion. They will be guided by a belief that higher-quality CX for underserved customers leads to a competitive edge in a disrupted world where all customers have never been more empowered.
Pakistan on Thursday said that coronavirus pandemic would not impact USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and its projects would be completed on time.

Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui was asked at her weekly briefing about the impact of the pandemic on the CPEC. China has committed to invest over USD 60 billion in Pakistan as part of the CPEC under which it planned to build a number of special economic zones.

She said CPEC comprised long-term projects whose completion, in many cases, was spread over many years.

We are quite confident that we will be able to complete the CPEC projects in time and, going forward, the short-term impact of coronavirus will be counterbalanced by effective and swift mobilisation of resources for timely completion of CPEC, she said.

To a question that about 10,000 Chinese workers were to come back from China after the Chinese New Year, she said the Chinese government was following a double-quarantine policy for the officials of Chinese companies working on CPEC projects in Pakistan.

Those officials travelling to Pakistan spend fourteen days in quarantine in China before travelling to Pakistan and after reaching Pakistan, they remain in quarantine for fourteen more days, she said and added that established medical procedures were also followed during the process.

CPEC connecting China's Xinjiang with Pakistan's Gwadar port is regarded as the flagship project of the multi-billion dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) which is aimed at furthering China's global influence with infrastructure projects funded by Chinese investments all over the world.

India has objected to the CPEC as it is being laid through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Farooqi said China had extended significant relief assistance to Pakistan to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and on March 28, a special aircraft from China brought relief assistance to Pakistan including 12,000 test kits, 300,000 masks and 10,000 protective suits.

In addition to this, an eight-member medical expert team also arrived in Pakistan from China.

Moreover, the Chinese government has also provided support worth USD 4 million for a separate hospital for Coronavirus patients, she said.

The spokesperson said that private organisations in China such as the Alibaba Foundation and Jack Ma foundation donated 50,000 test kits and 50 million face masks.

She said another special flight reached Islamabad on April 2 from Beijing, and brought in relief assistance worth USD 3 million from various Chinese organisations, that included PPE, ventilators, face masks and essential testing kits.

Farooqui said in addition to the assistance received from China, private donors in Singapore, Japan, and UAE have also sent relief assistance.

She said the US has identified Pakistan as a priority country for its international assistance efforts to deal with the COVID-19 challenges and earmarked USD 1 million for capacity building of health sector staff of Pakistan as well as for better identification and investigation of COVID-19 cases.

Another USD 1 million from existing funds of USAID have been redirected to help Pakistan fight against COVID-19 pandemic, she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ALBANY  More COVID-19 patients from the New York City area are on their way to the Capital Region.

St. Mary's Healthcare in Amsterdam said it was preparing Thursday night to receive two patients from downstate hospitals, while Albany Medical Center announced it and other area hospitals had agreed to take a "regional approach" to caring for transfers who arrive in from the city.

Fred Venditti, hospital general director at Albany Med, said the hospital received another call Thursday morning from Jamaica and Flushing hospitals in Queens asking if they could take more patients. Those hospitals sent 14 confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients to Albany Med late Tuesday night, marking the first known transfers of downstate patients to the area.

"Weve been talking with our colleagues in the community and weve decided to do a regional approach to this," Venditti said. "And so well be taking some additional patients today to the region, not just to Albany Medical Center."

St. Mary's Healthcare in Amsterdam said Thursday that it had been asked and is planning to accept a "small number" of patients from hospitals downstate. Staff are prepared to receive them and will exercise "the highest level of care and precaution," said spokesman Rick Hyde.

The transfers will not impact the hospital's ability to care for the local community, he said.

St. Mary's can typically handle 50 to 60 patients and can get up to "about 180" under its surge plan, medical director William Mayor said at a news conference last week. By redeploying staff, the hospital could increase its ICU bed capacity from about eight currently to more than 20, he said.

On Thursday, Hyde said the hospital has implemented its surge plan and has "sufficient" beds remaining.

"Our mission statement calls on us to serve all persons, with special attention to those who are poor and vulnerable," Hyde said in a statement. "And today it's hard to imagine any group of patients more vulnerable than those afflicted with COVID-19."

Albany Medical Center, meanwhile, typically cares for 700 to 750 patients a day, Venditti said. On Thursday, the hospital had only 448 patients, he said  a likely sign of called-off surgeries and other non-essential procedures.

"We can care for easily 750 patients in this facility, and were about 300 under that," he said. "So we have lots of capacity. Im very confident that we can take a few patients from New York City and still have the ability to care for our region."

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As of Thursday evening, the hospital was treating 44 patients for COVID-19. Nineteen of them were in intensive care, and 14 of those were on ventilator support.

Hospitals in New York City and surrounding counties, meanwhile, are quickly becoming overwhelmed by a surge of COVID-19 patients. On Thursday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that the federal government had approved the city's use of the Javits Center for COVID-19 patients. The facility has been converted into a temporary 2,500-bed hospital.

"The original plan for Javits was that it be used to take non-COVID patients from hospitals to open up hospital beds," Cuomo said. "However, the number of COVID-positive patients has increased so dramatically that it would be beneficial to the state if Javits could accept COVID positive patients."

Hospitals across the Capital Region said Wednesday they are "ready and willing" to accept transfers from hard-hit New York City. Cuomo said all such transfers will be coordinated by the state Department of Health.

"St. Marys, with every other hospital in New York state, stands ready to accept this challenge and to assist facilities who are currently overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of patients undergoing treatment," said Hyde. "The New York City hospitals are overburdened and we have an obligation along with hospitals throughout New York state to assist in this time of crisis."

Are you working the front lines in the fight against COVID-19 in the Capital Region? The Times Union wants to hear from you. Contact reporter Bethany Bump at bbump@timesunion.com with comments or concerns.
The industries exempted from his order, including landscaping and boating in addition to food service and others, resembled the catalogue of essential services requested by the Florida Chamber of Commerce, which sent a letter to DeSantis outlining its view of an appropriate government response on March 22. While slowing the outbreak was the foremost priority, wrote the Chambers president and chief executive, Mark Wilson, we must be mindful that the policies intended to protect human health and curb the pandemic do not also cause an even worse effect on the economy and jobs.
New Delhi/Islamabad, April 2 : People suffering acute shortages in food and essential supplies during the coronavirus lockdown in Pakistan have appealed to the Army to help them.

Aarti Tikoo Singh New Delhi/Islamabad, April 2 (IANS) People suffering acute shortages in food and essential supplies during the coronavirus lockdown in Pakistan have appealed to the Army to help them.

Over 30 people have died and around 2,200 tested positive for the Covid-19 infection in Pakistan so far. Though the Imran Khan government did not go for a countrywide lockdown, most parts of Pakistan have imposed restrictions on the movement of people.

A Pakistani newspaper on Thursday reported that dozens of starving women with their children and hundreds of poor men could be seen sitting along roads waiting for the government to distribute rations in Rawalpindi, Punjab. While slamming the Imran Khan government's inaction and apathy, people recalled the Army with admiration for the help it provided during floods, earthquakes and other natural calamities.

"Army, Rangers and local managements performed very well in difficult times even in the days of flood, earthquakes and other natural calamities. The government should have at least provided relief to the poor and needy through relief organisations or armed forces of Pakistan who have always stood by people in need," people waiting for their daily meals told the News.

They appealed to Prime Minister Imran Khan to provide them food on emergency basis within 24-hours through army, rangers and local management.

Punjab has become the worst-hit province in Pakistan with 845 cases followed by 743 in Sindh, 276 in Kyber Pakhtunkhwa, 169 in Balochistan, 187 in Gilgit Baltistan, 62 in Islamabad and nine in Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

Opposition leader and president of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), PML-N, Shehbaz Sharif lashed out at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's government for "wasting crucial time on thinking" instead of acting immediately to fight the coronavirus outbreak. He said that the number of coronavirus cases increased rapidly in Punjab due to delayed response by the government.

Incidentally, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has appealed to people especially overseas Pakistanis to donate to acorona relief fund' for the destitute. Those who donate in the relief fund are not being asked the source of donations and are being given tax incentives. The fund started receiving donations on Wednesday.
New Delhi, April 2 : A day after a JNU student claimed to have been thrashed by security guards for attempting to go out of the campus during the lockdown, the university administration here on Thursday asked campus residents to follow Covid-19 guidelines or face disciplinary action.

"It's highly unsafe and deplorable that a handful of JNU students have repeatedly been violating the guidelines issued by the government and the administration to protect them from the coronavirus pandemic," the JNU administration said.

Without naming the student involved in the incident, it said repetition of such attempts (to flout lockdown guidelines) would call for action.

"Those indulging in activities endangering the safety and health of JNU campus residents are cautioned not to repeat such acts. Strict action will be taken against violators of 21-day lockdown guidelines," it said.

It also flayed 'a section of teachers' who on Thursday morning issued a release supporting the student and criticising the JNU administration.

"These students have been directly and indirectly encouraged/supported by a few faculty members while the entire JNU campus community is cooperative and adhering to the Covid-19 guidelines," it said.

The JNU Teachers' Association had said, "The JNUTA would like to caution the JNU administration and the Cyclops Security personnel to not assume that they can get away with anything just because the lockdown conditions impose a responsibility on everyone to eschew for some time actions that otherwise could and would have been taken in response to what has happened." In the video, gone viral, a student, identified as Pranav, can be seen sitting near the JNU gate, arguing with security guards, saying he needed to go out for an important work. He also claimed to have written permission from the hostel warden.

"I have written permission. I will not move from here. You want to remove me than come and touch me. I will cough on you, I will spread corona," the student is seen saying in video.
Justice Leondra Kruger was appointed by Gov. Jerry Brown to the California Supreme Court. (David Butow / For The Times)

Former Vice President Joe Biden has promised that if elected in November, he will appoint the first black woman to the Supreme Court  a step he called long overdue.

One of the leading candidates is 43-year-old California Supreme Court Justice Leondra R. Kruger. A former Justice Department lawyer who argued a dozen cases before the high court in Washington before returning to California, she is a favorite of former Obama administration lawyers and Democratic Senate advisors.

She should be on anyones short list for the Supreme Court, said Christopher Kang, a deputy counsel to Obama who oversaw the selection and vetting of 220 appointees to the federal court.

Leondra Kruger is one of the handful of the most brilliant attorneys with whom Ive ever worked, said Washington attorney Neal Katyal, who was acting solicitor general during Obamas first term. I asked her to be my principal deputy solicitor general because I knew the advice shed give me would be meticulous and deeply thought out, and most of all, honest: I cannot imagine a better justice.

Kruger grew up in South Pasadena, the daughter of two pediatricians. She attended the Polytechnic School in Pasadena and earned an undergraduate degree at Harvard University and a law degree from Yale, where she served as editor in chief of the Yale Law Journal.

She moved to Washington, where she was a law clerk for Judge David Tatel, a prominent liberal on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, and for Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens. She later worked for a private law firm in Washington, taught for a year at the University of Chicago and worked as lawyer in the U.S. solicitor generals office in both the Bush and Obama administrations.

She was only 38 when Gov. Jerry Brown appointed her in 2014 to Californias high court. There she has emerged as a moderate on a liberal-leaning court. In 2018, she spoke for the court in a 4-3 ruling that upheld a voter initiative on DNA fingerprints that calls for taking a DNA swab of people who are arrested for felony crimes.

Story continues

Kruger said that swabs did not violate Californias constitutional protection for privacy, and that the courts should do all they can to respects voters wishes.

We have often said that it is our solemn duty to jealously guard the initiative power secured by the California Constitution and that we accordingly may not strike down voter measures unless their unconstitutionality clearly, positively, and unmistakably appears, she wrote in People vs. Buza.

Kruger is soft-spoken and modest, and she has been a cautious judge, which could make her an especially appealing candidate if Republicans keep control of the Senate.

I know her well, and I think she would be a superb choice, said former Obama Solicitor Gen. Donald Verrilli Jr.. She has a powerful intellect and shes a careful thinker. She is not rigidly ideological, but fair, open-minded and prudent. And those are the qualities you want in a justice of the Supreme Court.

Biden is not the first presidential candidate to pledge to diversify the high court. In 1980, Ronald Reagan pledged to select the first woman, and did so a year later when he appointed Justice Sandra Day OConnor.

A decade later, White House lawyers for President George H.W. Bush were in search of a conservative African American who could be appointed to replace the aging Justice Thurgood Marshall, a civil rights legend and the courts first black justice. There were no obvious candidates on the federal bench.

So they turned to Clarence Thomas, then the outspoken 41-year-old director of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and appointed him in 1990 to the U.S. appeals court for the District of Columbia. A year later, when Marshall retired, Thomas was chosen for the Supreme Court.

All of the Supreme Court justices, with the exception of Elena Kagan, came from a federal appeals court. But there are only four black women now serving on federal appellate courts, and all of them are over 65.

There are many outstanding African American women who would make terrific Supreme Court justices, said Nan Aron, president of the Alliance for Justice, a coalition of progressive groups. But she said the search should not be confined to federal appeals courts because Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) blocked action on several of Obamas black nominees to those benches.

The other oft-mentioned candidate if Biden wins the presidency is U.S. District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.

She is a 49-year-old U.S. district court judge in Washington, D.C., who was considered by the Obama White House for the Supreme Court nomination in 2016 that went to Judge Merrick Garland. She too has backers among the lawyers who worked for Obama and for Senate Democrats.

Jackson grew up in Miami, the daughter of a lawyer and a school principal. She has undergraduate and law degrees from Harvard University and clerked for three federal judges, including Justice Stephen G. Breyer. Before President Obama appointed her as a federal judge in 2013, she worked in a private law firm, was a federal public defender and served as vice chair of the U.S. Sentencing Commission.

In November, she issued a 120-page opinion that rejected President Trumps claim of absolute immunity to prevent former White House counsel Donald McGahn from testifying before a House committee. She said the claimed immunity appears to be a fiction that has been fastidiously maintained over time by White House lawyers, even though it has not been accepted by the courts.

Because compulsory appearance by dint of a subpoena is a legal construct, not a political one, and per the Constitution, no one is above the law, McGahn may not refuse to testify, she wrote. Trumps lawyers appealed, and the full D.C. Court is reconsidering her decision.




ALBANY  The parent company of St. Peter's Health Partners, which has 12,000 local employees at its Capital Region hospitals and doctors offices, is making executives take pay cuts and plans to furlough other workers as a way to stay solvent during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an email sent Wednesday to employees at St. Peter's Hospital in Albany and other Trinity Health locations across the country, Trinity Health CEO Mike Slubowski announced the cuts, which he blamed on the impact on the nonprofit's finances that already have the thinnest of margins.

"Outpatient and home care services represent more than 50 percent of our revenues, and they are decreasing significantly," Slubowski wrote, noting that that figure includes elective surgeries that have been put on hold by the Cuomo administration to make room for the surge in COVID-19 cases.

Slubowski said that even with additional telehealth visits and the increase in in-patient traffic from COVID-19, local health systems like St. Peter's won't be able to cover their costs in the coming months.

"We expect we will lose millions of dollars throughout this pandemic," Slubowski wrote in the email, obtained by the Times Union.

St. Peter's Health Partners confirmed that temporary furloughs could be coming, although no exact figures were given. St. Peter's is also actively recruiting clinical staff that can work directly on COVID-19 cases, so it is hiring at the same time.

"These efforts will enable us to focus our resources on the functions directly related to essential COVID-19 patient care needs," a St. Peter's spokeswoman said. "Temporarily furloughed colleagues will retain benefits such as health, dental and basic life insurance."

Hospitals across the country are experiencing similar reductions in important revenue streams as home visits and outpatient care and surgeries are reduced to conserve resources for COVID-19.

And the Healthcare Association of New York State says hospitals in New York will also be dealing with having to make similar decisions, according to association spokeswoman Janae Quackenbush.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has put hospitals statewide in very difficult financial situations," Quackenbush said. "HANYS will continue to work with our members to ensure they have the resources they need to deal with this pandemic."

Slubowski from Trinity Health added that the federal relief package would not cover the system's expected deficits. Trinity Health, as a non-profit, already has only a 0.5 percent margin on its services, so any reduction in revenue without reductions in spending would lead to problems paying bills. The Michigan-based system is already cutting all discretionary spending and all capital expenditures that do not directly impact the crisis.

It is unclear how many furloughs  if any  would happen in the Capital Region yet.

Trinity Health said some workers would be deployed into new roles and others would be made part-time.

"Over the coming weeks, your managers will discuss the details of how this might affect you," Slubowski said in his email.

Managers, those at the vice president level and above, are "taking pay reductions, effective next week."

Trinity Health is a Catholic hospital system with nearly 100 hospitals across more than 20 states. In the Capital Region it also operates Samaritan Hospital in Troy, Albany Memorial Hospital, and Sunnyview Rehabilitation Hospital in Schenectady. Those locations join with St. Peter's Hospital to create St. Peter's Healthcare Partners.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

In a separate media statement released Thursday, Trinity Health said that executives would take pay cuts of 15 to 25 percent and CEO Slubowski would take a 50 percent cut. That combined with furloughs would ensure the system would be able to adequately respond to the COVID-19 crisis with as many financial resources as possible.

Outpatient and home care services represent a large portion of (the) health system's revenues and they are decreasing significantly," Slubowski said in the statement. "This is understandable because of orders by state and federal governments to stop elective surgeries  and because many healthy patients are unable to visit the doctor at this time. However, more needs to be implemented in order to be fully prepared to meet the needs of communities during this pandemic."

Albany Medical Center did not immediately respond to a request for comment on potential layoffs or staff reorganization.

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Ellis Medicine spokesman Philip Schwartz told the Times Union that there are no layoffs planned at this time at the Schenectady-based hospital and medical network, although staff in departments that have slowed to a halt like primary care offices and elective surgery centers would be moved to the main hospitals to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, five people have died in Schenectady County of COVID-19.

Schwartz said that Ellis is not immune to the financial impact of coronavirus, however, so future cost-savings measures could not be ruled out, although none are planned at this time. Ellis Medicine runs Ellis Hospital and Bellevue Woman's Center, along with other health centers across the region.

"It (the pandemic) is impacting nearly every industry as we know," Schwartz said. "Hospitals are not immune to the challenges."
Angola, IN (46703)

Today

Snow showers this evening. Breaks in the overcast later. Low 7F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph, becoming ENE and decreasing to less than 5 mph. Chance of snow 50%..

Tonight

Snow showers this evening. Breaks in the overcast later. Low 7F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph, becoming ENE and decreasing to less than 5 mph. Chance of snow 50%.
This is the moment police arrested three British tourists at a drug-fuelled party during the coronavirus lockdown on Wednesday (April 1) The men, named by police as George Oliver Hoskins, 23, Saul Alan Jones, 22, and Stuart Alexander McDonogh, 29, were among nine foreigners and five Thai women partying in Phuket, Thailand. It was in defiance of a strict curfew and lockdown on the coronavirus-ravaged island, which is one of the worst hit Covid-19 areas of Thailand. Pictures show how the women were wearing skimpy bikinis and the lads were in swimming shorts in a small, hot room. Officers stormed in and also allegedly found cocaine and cannabis at the sordid roof-top party, which was in violation of an 8pm curfew on the island. Police said they raided the party after furious locals complained that they were being disturbed by the noise. It was also in violation of an emergency government act banning crowds due to the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. Fourteen partygoers were arrested including three British men, an Australian man, one American man, one Ukrainian man, three Ukrainian women and five Thai women. The Australian national was Al-Mouzafar Mohamad, 22 and the American man was Russell Robertson, 32. The Ukrainians were Zakharov Andrii, 27, Petriv Tetiana, 22, Chala Anasiia, 22, and Semko Iana, 31. Officers also allegedly found six bottles of liquor, one bottle of energy drink and two bottles of soda drink and also confiscated 4.04grams of marijuana and 0.94 grams of cocaine. Police Colonel Aekanit Danpitaksars said said the 14 revellers were remanded in custody while the case is processed and they can be sent to court. The police chief said: "Initially, they will be charged for violating the royal state of emergency act by gathering in a crowd in a small space and possessing schedule II and V drug." The five Thai women were Nida Usen, 31, Boonchanok Roongruang, 36, Supika Kitdee, 28, Narumon Thuadao, 23, and Wararin Jaidee, 33. Phuket - one of the world's most popular tourist resorts - is now ranked the fourth most infected province in Thailand with 71 confirmed, behind only Bangkok and its two metropolitan areas. Phuket has taken strict measure to contain Covid-19 and announced a lockdown and curfew from 8pm until 3am on Monday (30/03). Land and sea travel to and from the island has been banned until April 31 and flights will stop from April 10 onwards.
Gardai are investigating a vicious attack in which a young man was seriously injured during a row between a group of young men in Co. Laois.

It is understood that a man in his 20s was found in an unresponsive state at Fr Breen Park in Abbeyleix this evening.
And when they crunched numbers on the association between step intensity and risk of death, the researchers, who also hailed from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found no link at all.

Light and Easy Does It



The study is one of a growing number showing the major benefits of simply moving more throughout the day, even absent anything that resembles a moderate-intensity workout.

"Some of the studies are showing that light-intensity activity is for sure more beneficial than being inactive and that it has a dose-response relationship with mortality in older folks, explains Libby Richards, an associate professor at the Purdue University School of Nursing, whose primary research focus is physical activity in older adulthood.

When it comes to walking, part of the magic may be in how such light-intensity activity ups gait speed, which, in turn, Richards says, has a direct relationship with cardiovascular outcomes and premature mortality and disability and frailty.

If fear of injury or reinjury is holding you back, the new federal exercise guidelines are very clear that participating in physical activity reduces your risk of falls, she says. Exercise improves balance. It also reduces the risk of injury if you do sustain a fall, because being active increases your muscular health and your bone health. So it's a win."

Sorry, Weekend Warriors



Adding years to your life for every easy stroll around the block has its pluses, but weekend warriors  proud of their ability to cram the government-recommended 150 minutes a week of exercise into 48 hours  may have to adjust their thinking.
Shelley Davies waits for her delivery at Plants and Friends./Douglas Zimmerman/SFGate

LATEST, April 2, 8:15 p.m. The city of Fremont is opening a new free drive-thru coronavirus testing center Friday.

The testing site is located at the Fremont Fire Tactical Training Center on Stevenson Boulevard, and will help test sick individuals as well as health care workers with recent exposures to the virus.

In order to receive a test, an individual must have a fever over 100 degrees and be symptomatic for COVID-19. Referral from a doctor is not required, and the tests are free to all.

Fremonts new COVID-19 Testing Center is important to our city to ensure that our first responders, public safety personnel, and healthcare and essential service workers are protected when theyre on the frontlines serving our community; they need our support, Mayor Lily Mei said.

April 2, 8:05 p.m. Marin County reported 10 new cases of COVID-10 on Thursday, bringing the county's total up to 118.

No new fatalities were reported and the county's death toll stands at six.

April 2, 7:50 p.m. The San Mateo County Fair will be canceled for the first time since World War II due to the spread of coronavirus in the Bay Area.

The event was scheduled to run from June 13-21, and county officials said the fairgrounds will likely be used as part of the county's coronavirus response.

April 2, 5 p.m. All nine Bay Area counties have now reported deaths due to coronavirus after Solano County reported its first fatality Thursday night.

County health officials said the victim was over the age of 85, traveled out of the country recently and had multiple underlying conditions.

As of 5 p.m. Thursday, a total of 74 people have died across the Bay Area, 36 of which are from Santa Clara County. The county reporting the second-most deaths is San Mateo County at 10.

April 2, 4:05 p.m. In a press conference at the White House Thursday, Vice President Mike Pence stated the United States would be issuing an advisory "in the next several days" for all Americans to wear face masks in public.

Dr. Deborah Birx, however, noted that the advisory would be an "additive piece" to current guidelines, and that it should not be considered a replacement for washing hands and staying 6 feet away from others.

"We don't want people to get an artificial sense of protection there behind a mask," she said. "We don't want people to feel like, 'I'm wearing a mask, I'm protected and I'm protecting others.' ... It is not a substitute for the presidential guidelines that have come out."

On Wednesday, California issued a guidance stating that cloth face coverings could be useful for all residents in addition to frequent and thorough hand-washing and 6 feet of social distancing.

"There may be a benefit to reducing asymptomatic transmission and reinforcing physical distancing from the use of face coverings," the guidance read. "However, face coverings may increase risk if users reduce their use of strong defenses, such as physical distancing and frequent hand washing, when using face coverings."

April 2, 4 p.m. With the announcement of 63 new cases of coronavirus and four more deaths on Thursday afternoon, Santa Clara County passed the 1,000 case mark. There are now 1,019 cases in the county, and 36 total deaths.

April 2, 3:50 p.m. Outside Lands Music Festival released an update on the status of the 2020 event due to take place in San Francisco in August, saying " if Outside Lands happens, it will happen in the safest environment possible." More details here.

April 2, 3:30 p.m. In a White House press conference Thursday afternoon, Defense Production Act Policy coordinator Peter Navarro spoke to a pattern of bidders driving up costs for PPE and other medical supplies in the United States.

"We're having people coming in driving the price up," he said.

"We're going to crack down unmercifully," he continued, adding that Customs and Border Protection would be addressing the issue. "I would say to the hoarders out there, the brokers trying to profit off the misery of people in this county, that's got to stop."

April 2, 3:30 p.m. On Thursday afternoon, the Department of Homelessness and Public Housing issued a statement regarding a Division Circle Navigation Center shelter guest who tested positive for COVID-19. The guest is currently recovering at a hotel.

Immediately after being made aware of the case, the DPH supplied the center with masks and "initiated the contact tracing process." Then, a physician and health workers were deployed to the center.

We have been preparing for this situation for weeks, and HSH and DPH are wrapping around the patient with health care and support. The wellbeing of our homeless neighbors is our top priority, and we will continue to work in partnership with our nonprofit service providers, DPH, and the entire City to aggressively contain the virus and protect our community, said Abigail Stewart-Kahn, Interim Director of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. To the Division Circle Navigation Center community, I am here for you, HSH and DPH are here for you as is the entire City.

The city of San Francisco is also sending a professional cleaning crew to disinfect the space, per the DHPH.

April 2, 2:50 p.m. In a White House press conference Thursday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin commented on stimulus packages for small businesses, and restaurants in particular. When asked about a current practice in the industry, wherein restaurant and bar owners lay off staff so they can collect unemployment, Mnuchin stated the loan program is meant to "incentivize" owners to keep employees.

"These are loans that turn into grants," he said. "You can hire your people back, you can get money for medical  you keep them on the medical plan  you get money for rent, electricity. You're motivated. We want you to have a business you can reopen quickly, when it's appropriate. It doesn't cost the business owners anything. I cant imagine any American worker who had a job, is offered to keep their job, isn't going to want to have it. ... You can only get unemployment if you don't have a job."

The small-business loan initative, called the Payment Protection Program, will begin Friday.

April 2, 2:40 p.m. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a press conference Thursday that stimulus checks will begin being distributed to Americans "within two weeks," despite earlier projections that some may not receive checks until much later, in August.

Mnuchin noted that quicker distribution of the money will rely on direct deposits rather than mail.

"If we have your [direct deposit] information, youll have it within two weeks," he said. "We can process a lot of checks, but in this environment, we dont want to send checks. We want to [get it right] into accounts.

April 2, 1:40 p.m. Contra Costa County announced 26 additional cases on Thursday afternoon, bringing the total to 276, with three deaths. Santa Cruz County also announced three new cases, bringing the total there to 57, with one death.

April 2, 1:30 p.m. There are now more than 1,000,000 cases of coronavirus across the world, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The death toll across the world has also now surpassed 50,000.

The United States has reported the most cases so far, at 234,462 across the country.

April 2, 1:15 p.m. San Francisco General Hospital opened a drive-thru and walk-up testing area Thursday, giving potential coronavirus cases a way to streamline the testing process. Appointments for the tests, conducted in the parking lot at 23rd Street and Potrero Avenue, will be made available in 15-minute intervals on Monday through Friday between 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Two cars can be tested at a time in the drive-thru area, and one at the walk-up table, though all who want to be tested must be given a referral from their doctor.

UCSF similarly set up a drive-thru testing site on California Street last week, able to provide testing for up to 25-30 people a day.

April 2, noon. In a press conference Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said more than 1.9 million Californians have filed for unemployment since March 12. On average, 111,009 residents have filed for unemployment insurance per day in the past week.

"The economic consequences are profound," he said.

Newsom said small businesses will be able to defer sending their sales tax revenue  up to $50,000  to the state government. It's interest and penalty-free for a year and applies to businesses with less than $5 million in taxable sales. "This program starts tomorrow," he said. "April 3 is the first day to start drawing down those applications."

"We need to be able to get the federal dollars into the state, we need people to apply for the federal programs," he said.

Newsom said additional information will be posted here.

The governor also announced a new website  created in partnership between Bitwise, Salesforce and LinkedIn  to connect Californians with new jobs. As of Thursday, OnwardCA.org featured 70,000 job listings. Employment opportunities are mainly in the agriculture, grocery, logistics and transportation industries.

April 2, 11:15 a.m. Santa Cruz County is asking owners of vacation rentals to cancel non-essential rentals through May 2.

Vacation rentals can only be used to provide housing for traveling emergency and public safety personnel, healthcare workers, essential workers or families attending to critical medical needs of relatives.

April 2, 11 a.m. A resident of the Navigation Center in San Francisco's Mission District tested positive, according to the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. The infected patient is in isolation in a hotel.

April 2, 10:45 a.m. Alameda County announced 34 new cases and one additional death Thursday. The county's case total is now 373 and the death toll nine. A week ago, the county had 164 cases and four deaths.

April 2, 10:30 a.m. California Gov. Gavin Newsom shared two graphs on Twitter Thursday morning. One shows the hospital bed occupancy if no interventions are made. The other shows what happens if residents continue to shelter in place.

Newsom tweeted, "Im going to REPEAT. REPEAT. REPEAT. The most important thing we can do is STAY HOME and practice physical distancing. Thats how we flatten the curve."

April 2, 9:30 a.m. Cases of COVID-19 climbed to 450 in San Francisco County, according to the S.F. Department of Public Health. The county reported 16 new cases in the last 24 hours. The number of deaths remains at seven. A week ago, the county had 223 cases and two deaths.

San Mateo County announced 65 new infected patients, bringing the county total to 453. The number of deaths remains 10.

April 2, 8:07 a.m. California now has 9,907 cases and 216 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. The nine-county Bay Area has more than 2,500 cases.

Contra Costa County Health Officer Dr. Chris Farnitano addressed his Board of Supervisors Tuesday and said if the mandates are lifted too early, the result could be brutal  with models showing up to 5,000 deaths a week in California at the peak, according to the Los Angeles Times. The model showed 600 deaths a week in the San Francisco Bay Area alone.

Cumulative cases in the greater Bay Area:

ALAMEDA COUNTY: 373 confirmed cases, 9 deaths*

For more information on Alameda County cases, visit the public health department website.

*Number excludes infected patients in City of Berkeley, which has its own health department and 23 cases.

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY: 276 confirmed cases, 3 deaths

For more information on Contra Costa County cases, visit the public health department website.

LAKE COUNTY: 0 confirmed cases

For information on Lake County and coronavirus, visit the public health department website.

MARIN COUNTY: 118 confirmed cases, 6 deaths

Fore more information on Marin County cases, visit the public health department website.

MONTEREY COUNTY: 53 confirmed cases, 2 deaths

For more information on Monterey County cases, visit the public health department website.

NAPA COUNTY: 18 cases, 1 death

For more information on Napa County cases, visit the public health department website.

SAN BENITO COUNTY: 23 confirmed cases, 1 death

For more information on San Benito County cases, visit the public health department website.

SAN FRANCISCO COUNTY: 450 confirmed cases, 7 deaths

For more information on San Francisco County cases, visit the public health department website.

SAN MATEO COUNTY: 453 confirmed cases, 10 deaths

For more information on San Mateo County cases, visit the public health department website.

SANTA CLARA COUNTY: 1019 confirmed cases, 36 deaths

Fore more information on Santa Clara County cases, visit the public health department website.

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY: 57 confirmed cases, 1 death

For more information on Santa Cruz County cases, visit the public health department website.

SOLANO COUNTY: 61 confirmed cases, 1 death

For more information on Solano County cases, visit the public health department website.

SONOMA COUNTY: 95 confirmed cases, 1 death

For more information on Sonoma County cases, visit the public health department website.

In California, 216 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported, according to Johns Hopkins University.

MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE:

Sign up for 'The Daily' newsletter for the latest on coronavirus here.

Amy Graff is a digital editor with SFGATE. Email her: agraff@sfgate.com.
Good Morning, welcome to Information Nigerias Newspaper headlines for today, 2nd April 2020.

Here are the major headlines.

I Didnt Donate N1bn To Fight Coronavirus  Peter Obi

Vice Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last Presidential elections, Peter Obi, says he did not donate N1billion for the fight against coronavirus in the country.

Coronavirus: NCDC Confirms 23 More Cases In Nigeria

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, has confirmed twenty-three new cases of Coronavirus in the country, bringing the total to 174.

Lagos, Abuja, Ogun Markets To Open Between 10am-2pm  FG

The Federal Government has made a partial u-turn on the lockdown of markets in Lagos, Ogun and the Federal Capital Territory.

COVID-19: Buhari Approves Release Of 70,000MT Grains

As a way of ameliorating Nigerians struggle during the lock down of some part of the nation over novel coronavirus, President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the released of 70,000 metric tons of grains to the masses.

Taraba State Government Orders Closure Of Markets

Governor Darius Ishaku of Taraba State has directed the immediate closure of all markets, shops and other related public gatherings in the state. The governor gave the directives while addressing the people of the state on the update of the coronavirus pandemic.

COVID-19: Buharis Lockdown Order Is Legal  VP Osibanjo

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo says the lockdown order by President Muhammadu Buhari on the federal capital territory (FCT), Lagos and Ogun is legal.

Coronavirus: FG Suspends Reconstruction Of Enugu International Airport

The Federal Government has ordered the suspension of the ongoing reconstruction work at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu. Recall that in December 2019, President Muhammadu Buhari approved N10billion for the reconstruction of the airport.

IGP Adamu Tests Negative To Coronavirus

The Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, has tested negative for coronavirus. In a statement, the Force Public Relations Officer, DCP Frank Mba revealed that the IGP received his test result on Tuesday morning, having submitted samples on Friday, 27th March 2020.

Benue State Governor Orders Immediate Closure Of All Borders

The Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom has ordered the closure of all the borders of the State to curtail the spread of Coronavirus.

Coronavirus: Sultan Slams Clerics For Misleading Followers

Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Saad Abubakar, has slammed some Islamic clerics over their non-adherence to instructions by experts on how to prevent the spread of Coronavirus.
South Africa: Labour clarifies reports on North West official

The Department of Employment and Labour is not aware of any of its officials in its North West provincial office having tested positive for the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

The Department of Employment and Labour in North West wishes to put it on record that until today, the department is not aware of any official from the provincial office who has tested positive for the virus, it said in a statement on Thursday.

This comes after the Public Servants Association (PSA) released a statement alleging that one of the departments officials had tested positive and that the department acted recklessly in handling the matter.

However, the department can confirm that it was approached by the Department of Health during its track and trace [process] following a confirmed case of an auditor, who was deployed at the provincial office tested positive to the virus. Following the alert, a list of all the officials who made contact with the auditor was shared with the Department of Health for further medical assessment as required, said the department.

The department said it had acted accordingly and cooperated fully with the Department of Health.

 Therefore, any accusations that the department acted recklessly in handling the matter are unfounded and untrue. The department is a responsible employer and will never compromise the health of its officials.

Meanwhile around 10 000 field workers will be visiting homes in villages, towns and cities to screen residents for COVID-19 symptoms.

Additionally, provinces will provide grocery and essentials packs for the most vulnerable.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: The state police chief reiterated the stern warning that vehicles on roads - except those plying with regard to essential services - will be seized. Since Monday, Bengaluru city police have seized over 6,200 vehicles under the National Disaster Management Act and have warned that this would continue until April 14. The warning was first issued on Sunday with police seizing vehicles as a warning and releasing them later in the day.

Meanwhile, Director General and Inspector General of Police Praveen Sood tweeted on Wednesday, This is not an April Fools prank. Two/ four wheelers are banned from use till the 14th of April. We will SEIZE your vehicle if you CEASE to ignore this lockdown regulation. Police have repeatedly appealed to the public to stay indoors. But many people, especially youngsters, roaming around on their two-wheelers is still a common scene.

Sood told The New Indian Express that the move was an appeal to the public to make the lockdown effective. The central government has ordered the lockdown and we are facilitating it. I appeal to the public not to use their vehicles unless there is emergency, Sood said. Reiterating that groceries and other essential goods were available, Sood said that people can walk to stores in their neighbourhood to buy essentials. Bengaluru Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao said Seized vehicles will be released only after April 14 and it may not happen in one day. It also depends on the number of vehicles seized.

Even police in Mysuru, Hubballi-Dharwad, Mangaluru and Belagavi commissionerates are seizing vehicles to ensure people stay indoors. The police are also fed up with public, who come up with different incredulous reasons every time. It is surprising that people are not ready to stay indoors even for their own good. Despite requesting them not to venture out, people find new reasons to come out, a traffic police inspector said.There have been several allegations about police excesses since the lockdown began. Many residents took to social media to complain about police assaulting people.
COLOMBO: The Sri Lankan Navy intercepted a vessel carrying a large consignment of narcotics, which is estimated to be worth USD 65 million and arrested nine Pakistani nationals in an operation on Wednesday. According to a statement issued by the Sri Lankan Navy, the seized vessel was carrying USD 65 million worth of crystal methamphetamine and ketamine in the country's biggest drugs bust.

Acting on a tip-off, authorities raided a flagless vessel in the country's southern waters and arrested nine Pakistani men suspected of smuggling the drugs.

Navy personnel, wearing special protective clothing in case the suspects had COVID-19, found 605 kilogrammes of crystal meth, also known as ice, and 579 kilogrammes of ketamine, said Navy Commander Piyal de Silva.

"This is the first time we have found ketamine and it is likely that the smugglers were trying to take this cargo to some East Asian destination," de Silva told reporters in the capital Colombo.

Sri Lanka's Defence Ministry said the drugs had an estimated street value in Colombo of about 12,500 million rupees ($65 million), making it the country's biggest single seizure of drugs.

Last month, the Navy seized two foreign trawlers carrying more than USD 33 million worth of heroin and ice.

Authorities said initial investigations suggested the Iran-Pakistan coast was the point of origin.
ITV will pause its programming on Thursday night to Clap for our Carers.

The nation will pay tribute to the enduring efforts of the NHS and other key workers across the country with the second Clap for our Carers at 8pm.

Ahead of The Martin Lewis Money Show, ITV will switch off the channel as the broadcaster urges members of the public to stand on their doorsteps and balconies and applaud key health care workers.

Thanks: ITV will pause its programming on Thursday night to Clap for our Carers for a second week in a row, thanking the nation's key health care workers fighting against coronavirus

While the nation comes together in a display of gratitude, ITV's regular programming will be replaced by idents specially created by ITV Creative, encouraging viewers to donate to NHS Charities Together (www.nhscharitiestogether.co.uk).

Last Thursday Daniel Craig and his wife Rachel Weisz and the Beckham family joined a slew of stars in the first nationwide applause in honour of NHS workers.

Rachel and Daniel appeared in a applause video posted to the official James Bond social media account, along with Rory Kinnear, Ben Whishaw and Naomie Harris.

Victoria Beckham also shared a video of husband David leading the applause along with their sons Romeo, 17, and Cruz, 15, and their daughter Harper, eight.

Applause: Last week's firs Clap For Our Carers saw millions take part, including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's three children Princess Charlotte, Prince louis and Prince George

Also among the stars was Katie Price, who posted a video alongside her oldest son Harvey, thanking the NHS for their help and still taking care of her son during the epidemic.

Meanwhile Amanda Holden took to her doorstep with daughters Lexi, 14, and Hollie, eight and Stacey Solomon proudly applauded from her front window.

ITV has also urged the public to share messages of support and love amongst one another, and check on neighbours at this time of isolation, through their landmark mental wellness campaign, Britain Get Talking, which continues throughout the month.

We support you! Daniel Craig and his wife Rachel Weisz (left) and The Beckham family (right) joined a slew of stars in a nationwide applause in honour of NHS workers last week

Carolyn McCall, Chief Executive at ITV, said 'ITV is joining the rest of the country in thanking everyone in the NHS and carers who are doing such a vital and fantastic role.'

'We will pause our programming at 8pm to applaud the heroes within the NHS for the remarkable efforts they are making, and raise as much money for NHS charities as we can thanks to our viewers' generosity.'

Annemarie Plas, the creator of the #ClapforourCarers movement in the UK, said 'I am really delighted that ITV is backing the initiative to clap for all who there are out there taking care of us, and helping keep that Thursday 8pm moment alive.'

Happy: Also among the stars was Katie Price, who posted a video alongside her oldest son Harvey, and Frankie Bridge who stood on her doorstep to applaud the health workers

Paying tribute: Meanwhile Amanda Holden took to her doorstep with daughters Lexi, 14, and Hollie, eight

NHS Charities Together Chief Executive Ellie Orton said: 'Joining the wonderful wave of support for the NHS to say a massive thank you together with Clap for our Carers is already making such a difference and today, and because of the brilliant British people, we have already raised nearly 17 million for our Covid-19 Urgent Appeal.

Now with ITV's generosity to give free air time to remind everyone of the opportunity to express their love and thanks and to also give back, we are even more grateful so thank you.

We are distributing funds to over 140 NHS charities who are the legal way that the NHS receives, holds and spends charitable funds. These funds are above and beyond the funds that the government has provided and together we help provide the very best care for NHS patients.'

To donate to NHS Charities Together Covid 19 campaign go to virg.in/ClapForOurCarers
Gulf country Oman will on Friday



evacuate its citizens stranded in Kochi due to outbreak of novel coronavirus.

Oman Air will operate a special passenger relief flight on Friday to evacuate 53 Oman citizens who were undergoing treatments in various alopathic/ayurveda hospitals in Ernakulam and adjoining districts, a CIAL spokesman said here on Thursday.

Most of them were landed in Cochin International Airport on March 3. They have completed the treatment and quarantine compliance, official sources said here.

The flight will arrive directly from Muscat at Cochin International Airport at 2 pm to evacuate Omani citizens here.

After taking the Omani citizens from Kochi the flight will head to Bengaluru and Chennai to evacuate citizens stranded in these cities. The flight will go back to Muscat from Chennai after completing the evacuation, sources said.

A joint meeting of all stakeholders was convened at CIAL and instructions were given to observe strict COVID-19 protocols when dealing with the passengers, the CIAL spokesman said.

Oman embassy in India will oversee the passenger transition, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Police in Ocean County on Wednesday night broke up a funeral in Lakewood and issued summonses to 15 people accusing them of violating the states ban on public gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic, authorities said.

The funeral marked the fourth consecutive day police have been called to gatherings in Lakewood in violation of the emergency order set in place in March to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Previous incidents have included a bar mitzvah, an engagement party and a religious school for adults that continued to operate.

Officers responding to a report of a large crowd on Wednesday found 60-70 people gathered for a funeral on the corner of Eighth Street and Madison Avenue, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Police Chief Gregory Meyer. The area is near a Jewish temple and a cemetery.

This gathering was in violation of (Gov. Phil Murphys executive order), which bans gatherings of individuals, whether they be at weddings, parties, celebrations, or other social events including funerals, Billhimer and Meyer said in a statement.

As officers tried to disperse the crowd, the crowd became unruly and argumentative, the statement said. Backup officers were called to help from the county sheriffs office and prosecutors office, Billhimer and Meyer said.

One man who refused to give police his correct name and Social Security number was arrested. He was later identified as Samuel Manheim, 27, of Brooklyn, New York. Manheim was charged with hindering his own apprehension and violating the governors executive order during a state of emergency.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Also charged with violating the order were Joel Jakubowitz, 36, of Brooklyn, New York; Shimon Hus, 18, of Brooklyn, New York; and the following Lakewood residents: Marcus Strulovic, 43; David Kaf, 37; Moshe Friedman, 20; Nossom Strulovic, 25; Solomon Strulovic, 21; Joel Strulovic, 39; Yosef Kohn, 35; Mitchell Strulovic, 24; Alexander Ellison, 64; Mordechi Strulovic, 18; Shimon Cardozo, 25; and Bernard Strulovic, 45.

In a statement, Billhimer implored people to stay at home and emphasized that anyone who violates Murphys order will be charged.

This ban applies to everyone, Billhimer said. To be blunt, ignoring the governors order places lives at risk  not just the lives of everyday citizens, but the lives of our brave men and women in law enforcement who are required to respond in order to break up these unlawful gatherings.

On Sunday, police dispersed a crowd of about 50 people gathered for a Bat Mitzvah in Lakewood. On Monday morning, Lakewood police broke up a group of 35 men gathered at a yeshiva on Madison Avenue. Then Tuesday night, cops ended an engagement party with at least 16 people in attendance and charged 10, including a 99-year-old man.

Editors note: This post has been edited to correct Nossom Strulovics age.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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A majority of people in the UK believe Boris Johnson imposed the coronavirus lockdown 'too late' while more than a third do not think current restrictions go far enough.

An exclusive poll for MailOnline has revealed the scale of public anger at the government's approach to the crisis with ministers now under pressure to go further to combat the spread of the deadly disease.

The survey of 1,500 people, conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies yesterday, showed 55 per cent believe the decision to implement the nationwide lockdown should have been taken earlier.

Just 34 per cent believe the decision was taken 'at about the right time'.

Regardless of the timing issue, many people want the government to now go further with 38 per cent of the belief that the current measures have 'fallen short'.

Some 81 per cent of respondents said they believe all commercial flights into and out of the UK should be stopped for the duration of the lockdown.

The government is adamant such a move is not necessary because there is 'no evidence' that closing borders or implementing a travel ban 'would have any effect on the spread of infection' given it is already prevalent in the UK.

A majority of Briton believe Boris Johnson's decision to lockdown the UK was taken 'too late'

An overwhelming majority of people believe the government should introduce a ban on all commercial flights into and out of the UK during the lockdown

Meanwhile, people are receptive to the idea of honouring NHS staff, with 41 per cent backing plans to award frontline workers a special coronavirus medal.

Almost nine in ten people believe the government should recognise in some way the efforts of NHS workers with 46 per cent backing a permanent pay rise.



The survey found there is overwhelming backing for the nationwide lockdown with almost nine in 10 people supporting the move.

The poll suggests the nation is braced for long term disruption with almost two thirds of adults - 58 per cent - believing the lockdown will still be in place at the end of May.

However, the numbers suggest some people are not anticipating lockdown being imposed much beyond that with just 13 per cent saying it could still be in place by the middle of June and 15 per cent beyond the end of June.

Downing Street said lockdown will be reviewed after three weeks but the direction of travel suggests measures could be kept in place for longer than that.

Mr Johnson has repeatedly said the situation in the UK will get worse before it gets better and a majority of people agreed with that assessment.

Just shy of two thirds of the nation said they expected the situation to deteriorate before it improves with 48 per cent believing a majority of the UK population will inevitably contract coronavirus.

Almost one fifth of the nation believes they have already had the disease and seven per cent 'think I have the coronavirus now'.

Just over half of people believe coronavirus will have a 'negative impact' on their personal finances.

The nation is seemingly divided on the police approach to enforcing the lockdown amid criticism of some forces being heavy-handed.

The nation is split on how long they believe the lockdown will last but 58 per cent think restrictions will still be in place at the end of May

The nation is also split on Mr Johnson's response to the crisis with just over 50 per cent backing the PM as 'adequate' but more than 30 per cent saying he had fallen short

Seven per cent of the nation believes they currently have coronavirus

Some 40 per cent believe the police measures have been 'about right' but 33 per cent say they have 'not been enough'.

Just 18 per cent said the police had been 'excessive' in their use of the powers to break up gatherings and stop people making non-essential journeys.

The current crisis also appears to have harmed many people's view of the Chinese government.

Almost two thirds of respondents said they believe 'the Chinese government is dishonestly reporting the number of coronavirus cases and deaths in China' where coronavirus originated.
Mandi Bateman had been teaching yoga and pilates for about 15 years when she and her co-founder David Schreck started LubbDubb, a Bay Area-based booking platform for fitness instructors, in 2017. Bootstrapped from the start, the platform let yoga, pilates, dance, and boot camp instructors connect directly to students and set up classes outside the usual studio system, which traditionally takes a large cut of the booking price. It was also a way to help lesser-known instructors build a loyal audience and ensure fuller classes when they did teach in studios.

That was, until Covid-19 and California's shelter-in-place measures changed everything for companies dedicated to bringing people together in a physical space. LubbDubb had to reposition, and do it quickly.

Bateman had already been hosting online webinars for instructors, which got her thinking. "I was like, 'OK, we've got to get these instructors paid--that's the mission here,'" she says. Almost overnight, LubbDubb became a directory for online classes taught via Zoom. Other sites like Seattle's Namastream and Los Angeles-based Glo have been offering online yoga and meditation classes for several years, so students are already acclimated to the idea. Of LubbDubb's 130 instructors, 68 have begun teaching online.

One benefit, according to Bateman: Some instructors are finding that even though they're charging less for classes, they are teaching more and pocketing more of the money than they could working with studios--a lucky stroke for solopreneurs hard hit by the lockdown.

Hannah Muse, a yoga instructor based in Santa Cruz, California, says she normally teaches in-person classes for about 40 to 50 students. The first time she taught an online course booked through LubbDubb, 140 people signed up. Muse charged $8 per person, but shared the Zoom link as a "scholarship" to anyone who said they couldn't afford it. She's now teaching three to four courses a week online. While she declined to discuss how much she was earning, Muse says LubbDubb has helped her earn money during a time when she expected to have none. "I went from being like, 'Oh, I have zero income' to being like, 'Oh, my gosh! I have really great income!'"

LubbDubb does not charge instructors to list their classes and only collects fees--which are set by the instructor and average about $3 per booking--if the platform sells the ticket. If the instructor sells the ticket on their own, they keep the full sale. If another LubbDubb community member makes the sale, they can collect the fee as well, encouraging members to cross-promote one another's classes.

Shruthi Reddy, who teaches a form of Bollywood-inspired dance workout called BollyX, says she's been teaching five classes a week from home, charging $8 for instruction that normally goes for $18 per class. She says these unprecedented times are inspiring fitness instructors, like other solopreneurs and founders, to rethink their approaches to stay afloat: "Every time there's a curve ball like this or a recession, something new emerges." Recently, she began teaching online marketing seminars to other instructors, showing them how to grow their followings even as studios are on hiatus.
Dow Inc. DOW announced that its production sites in Auburn, MI; South Charleston, WV; Seneffe, Belgium; and Hortolandia, Brazil, have the requisite raw material handling, mixing and packaging capabilities to manufacture hand sanitizers. Notably, at each site, the company collaborated with officials to understand their needs and requirements. The sites will join Dow's site in Stade, Germany, which is already producing hand sanitizers.

The company usually does not manufacture hand sanitizers, although a significant majority of the necessary raw materials are readily accessible at its sites. Moreover, the flexibility of Dow's assets enables a meaningful volume of sanitizer to be generated, with minimal or little effect to normal operations.

Dow's Auburn facility can manufacture around 15,000 pounds (7 metric tons) of hand sanitizer each week, which is equivalent to 30,000 eight-ounce bottles. The other sites are projected to produce equivalent or greater quantities. Notably, Dow's total capacity is projected to surpass 440,000 pounds (200 metric tons) or the equivalent of more than 880,000 eight-ounce bottles, when all of the sites are at full production.

Production of hand sanitizer will take place in the four sites for approximately four weeks, after which time the company will assess extending production, depending on the availability of raw material and market needs. Notably, the first delivery of hand sanitizers will commence this week.

The majority of hand sanitizers produced at the sites will be given to health systems and government agencies for distribution. Also, hand sanitizer will be distributed to better protect employees, who are on the frontline, to ensure that Dows manufacturing facilities continue to operate safely.

Per management, the combined efforts of the companys five sites across the world allow it to manufacture and distribute enormous amounts of hand sanitizers to help protect human health and safety. Notably, this effort was made possible by Dows rapid actions in collaboration with the suppliers of raw material, state, and federal regulatory officials and volunteers. The company also stated that it will continue to manufacture hand sanitizers as long as raw materials are available and supply is short.

Story continues

Dow's current manufacturing facilities are crucial to supply many of the most important sanitation, and medical products and technologies such as disinfectants, sanitizers, cleansers, and plastics to better tackle the coronavirus pandemic.

The companys shares have moved down 48% in the past year compared with the industrys decline of 41.9%.

On the fourth-quarter 2019 earnings call, Dow stated that it will continue to focus on advancing its investments in higher-return growth projects, especially in sectors where it is seeing favorable demand conditions. The company also expects to retain its competitive cost position by leveraging its unique feedstock capabilities.

Dow also expects to further reduce cost structure in 2020 as it completes the stranded cost removal. The company also intends to direct its free cash flows toward debt reduction and boost shareholders returns.

Dow Inc. Price and Consensus

Dow Inc. Price and Consensus

Dow Inc. price-consensus-chart | Dow Inc. Quote

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Dow currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

Some better-ranked stocks in the basic materials space are NovaGold Resources Inc. NG, Franco-Nevada Corporation FNV and Barrick Gold Corporation GOLD.

NovaGold has a projected earnings growth rate of 11.1% for 2020. The companys shares have surged 77.4% in a year. It currently flaunts a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Franco-Nevada has a projected earnings growth rate of 24.7% for 2020. It currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The companys shares have rallied 33.9% in a year.

Barrick Gold currently has a Zacks Rank #2 and a projected earnings growth rate of 43.1% for 2020. The companys shares have gained 36.1% in a year.

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Tuesday night, just hours after Chris Cuomo announced his coronavirus diagnosis, Fox News Tucker Carlson vowed not to attack the CNN anchor and offered praise instead. Later, Sean Hannity sent his own well wishes.

No show on television, I think its fair to say, has mocked CNN anchor Chris Cuomo more often or more gleefully than this one has, Carlson told the primetime audience for Tucker Carlson Tonight.

But tonight, he continued, were going to take a break from that. This morning, Cuomo announced that like so many thousands of other people in New York, hes been infected by the coronavirus. Cuomo said hes had a fever and shortness of breath but his main worry was infected his wife and children. Those are the right priorities. Cuomo said hell continue to do his show for as long as he can isolation from his basement and we respect that, too. So, godspeed to the Cuomo family. We are rooting for you.

Also Read: CNN's Chris Cuomo Announces He Tested Positive for Coronavirus

During CNNs own primetime programming Tuesday night, anchor Don Lemon wiped away tears as he talked about what good friends he and Cuomo are and what an adjustment its been now that hes just not here.

Carlson isnt the first Fox News primetime host to be in Cuomos corner when the CNN journalist has made headlines, either. Last August, when a video hit the internet that showed Cuomo berating someone for calling him Fredo, Hannity leapt to his defense.

I say good for @ChrisCuomo, Hannity tweeted. Hes out with his 9 year old daughter, and his wife, and this guy is being a jackass in front of his family. Imho Chris Cuomo has zero to apologize for. He deserves the apology.

On Tuesdays Hannity, the host again went to bat for Cuomo and joined Carlson in delivering well wishes: Chris Cuomo was our colleague for a long time. Chris is a great guy, like, a wonderful person.

Hannity went on to say that his political differences with the CNN journalists brother, New York governor Andrew Cuomo, had nothing to do with how he felt about the competing networks anchor.

Story continues

On a personal level, were praying for Chris. Were praying for his family and everyone else that gets this, he concluded.

Tucker Carlson says he's going to "take a break" from "lethally" mocking Chris Cuomo in order to wish him "godspeed" as the CNN anchor recovers from his coronavirus infection.

"We are rooting for you." pic.twitter.com/xyMAkAc3L5

 Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) April 1, 2020

Read original story Fox News Tucker Carlson Takes Break From Attacking CNNs Chris Cuomo: We Are Rooting For You Against Coronavirus (Video) At TheWrap
RIDGEFIELD  Three more deaths due to complications from coronavirus have been reported among residents of an assisted living home off Route 7, bringing the death toll there to nine.

It is with great sadness that we report three more losses from one of our assisted care facilities, First Selectman Rudy Marconi said in his daily press release. We know all of Ridgefield joins in sending our deepest condolences.
As Cairenes try to cope with a curfew, one Egyptian man decided to uplift spirits in his neighbourhood by serenading them with his violin.

University student Mohamed Aly played the string instrument from his balcony on Tuesday, while neighbours watched.

The Middle East's most populous country, Egypt, has imposed nightly a curfew in an effort to stop the spread of the new coronavirus.

So Aly put on the show to help people overcome the boredom from being locked at home.

"I wanted to lessen that boredom for others and for myself," he said.

Egypt has 779 confirmed cases of the new coronavirus and 52 fatalities.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough.

But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the virus can cause severe symptoms like pneumonia and can be fatal.
The Libyan authorities are currently discussing a solution on returning the country's residents stranded in Egypt because of the precautionary measures taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19, a local security source told Sputnik on Thursday

BENGHAZI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd April, 2020) The Libyan authorities are currently discussing a solution on returning the country's residents stranded in Egypt because of the precautionary measures taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19, a local security source told Sputnik on Thursday.

"As for the issue of the Libyan families stranded in Egypt, it will be soon over," the source in the eastern town of Musaid, which borders with Egypt, said, adding that the security authorities were holding talks on the matter.

Earlier this week, former Health Minister and Libyan delegate to the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr.

Reida El Oakley, told Sputnik that Libya was not able to fight the COVID-19 outbreak, as the country lacked the necessary equipment to conduct tests and protect medical personnel, stressing the importance of stopping the transmission of coronavirus disease.

As of Thursday, Libya has confirmed 10 coronavirus cases in the country. Meanwhile, neighboring Egypt has registered 779 cases, with 52 patients having died and 179 having recovered, according to Johns Hopkins University.
The virus, Cabanas said, is putting pressure not just on the health of our citizens but also on the health of our democracies. . . . Sometimes the decision-making process in our democracies might be perceived as slow an inefficient, he said, but it is a small price to pay to make sure that citizens can be fully involved.
Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy made a desperte appeal to prime minister Narendra Modi to extend urgent financial assistance to his government to overcome the "grave crisis" brought on by the COVID-19 epidemic and the consequent lockdown.

In a videoconference the prime minister had with chief ministers, Jagan Mohan Reddy hinted Andhra Pradesh's revenue has fallen to less than Rs 2 crore per day.

"We are facing a grave financial crisis, so much so that we could not even pay full salaries for the month of March to our officers and employees. Our revenues have fallen to negligible levels," the chief minister told Modi.

"We have promised Rs 1,000 to each BPL family as relief because of the lockdown and we immediately need Rs 1,500 crore for this by April 4," the chief minister said.

He urged the central government to extend liberal financial assistance to overcome the pathetic situation and bail out the state.

Officials who took part in the videoconference said the chief minister also requested that the Centre to supply coronavirus testing kits and personal protection equipment in view of the spurt in cases seen in Andhra Pradesh in the last three days.

Andhra Pradesh has recorded 132 coronavirus positive cases so far, 111 of them were related to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi.

Jagan Mohan Reddy said the patients and suspects were being kept in home isolation and quarantine facilities and provided all necessary medical help.

"We require a lot of PPEs and also test kits. Kindly ensure their supply to AP," the chief minister said.

He also explained about the door-to-door survey being undertaken in both rural and urban areas to check on coronavirus patients and also identify possible carriers.
Amid the nationwide lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic, the Defence Ministry announced on Thursday that it is mobilising ex-servicemen (ESM) to assist the state and district administrations wherever required

New Delhi: Amid the nationwide lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic, the Defence Ministry announced on Thursday that it is mobilising ex-servicemen (ESM) to assist the state and district administrations wherever required.

"Rajya Sainik Boards, Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ESM volunteers to assist the state and district administration in performing public outreach activities such as contact tracing, community surveillance, management of quarantine facilities or any such tasks assigned to them," the ministry said in a press release.

Click here to follow LIVE updates on Coronavirus Outbreak here

Till now, 1,965 people have been infected with the novel coronavirus and 50 people have died due to it in India, according to the Union health ministry.

In Punjab, an organisation called 'Guardians of Governance' comprising 4,200 ESM is assisting in data collection from all villages, the ministry noted.

"The Chhattisgarh government has employed some ESM to assist the police. Similarly, in Andhra Pradesh, all the district Collectors have asked for ESM volunteers," the ministry said.

The defence ministry said that in Uttar Pradesh, all 'Zila Sainik Kalyan Adhikaris' are in touch with district control rooms and retired Army Medical Corps personnel have been identified and kept ready.

"In addition, Sainik rest houses are being readied in Uttarakhand to act as isolation/quarantine centres if need arises. In Goa, a control room has been established and ESM have been asked to remain on standby for any assistance to the local administration," the ministry noted.

India imposed a 21-day lockdown on 25 March to combat the spread of the virus that has killed more than 45,000 people worldwide till now.
President Donald Trump is weighing travel restrictions for people trying to visit places where the CCP virus is spreading.

Some states have issued limitations on travelers from other states, particularly against New York and surrounding states. New York has the most cases and deaths from the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

Emerging in China last year, the virus has since spread to countries around the world. It causes COVID-19, a disease that proves deadly in a small percentage of patients.

Asked on Wednesday if his administration is considering travel restrictions, Trump said officials were.

Were looking at it very strongly, Trump said.

Were looking at the whole thing. Were now in a position that we want to do thatwe have to do that.

Officials are weighing the impact on the airline industry and how difficult it would be to restart airline travel if its curbed.

To start these airlines and to start this whole thing over again is very tough, Trump said.

There are flights still carrying passengers to and from New York, New Jersey, Louisiana, and other states with a high number of cases.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Thursday morning that officials look at domestic travel restrictions literally every day.

It really depends on what city youre talking about and from where you are coming. So this is something that youre absolutely correct is on the table and is discussed, he said during an appearance on CBS This Morning.

Governors Take Action

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said last month that thousands of New Yorkers flew to Florida after New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a stay-at-home order. Florida announced it would hold travelers from the New York area in a mandatory two-week quarantine, prompting other states, including Texas, to implement similar measures.

Rhode Island implemented the strictest measures, deploying National Guard troops to bus and train stations to intercept passengers from New York as police officers monitored arriving vehicles for New York license plates, leading to a lawsuit threat from Cuomo.

Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo then broadened the order to apply to all travelers arriving from other states.

Trump considered imposing a quarantine on New York and parts of surrounding states last week but ultimately refrained. A federal health agency instead advised those living in the states to not travel from them.

Trump agreed not to announce a quarantine after very intensive discussions, Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on Sunday.

After discussions with the president we made it clear and he agreed, it would be much better to do whats called a strong advisory. The reason for that is you dont want to get to the point that youre enforcing things that would create a bigger difficulty, morale and otherwise, when you could probably accomplish the same goal, Fauci said during an appearance on CNNs State of the Union.

What you dont want is people traveling from that area to other areas of the country and inadvertently and innocently infecting other individuals, Fauci added. We felt the better way to do this would be an advisory as opposed to a very strict quarantine. And the president agreed, and thats why he made that determination last night.

From The Epoch Times
In a joint operation conducted by Delhi Police Special Crime Branch and Delhi government, 275 foreign nationals who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi have been identified and sent into quarantine

New Delhi: In a joint operation conducted by Delhi Police Special Crime Branch and Delhi government, 275 foreign nationals who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi have been identified and sent into quarantine.

The foreign nationals include 172 from Indonesia, 36 from Kyrgyzstan and 21 from Bangladesh.

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the gathering. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

"104 persons who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi were picked from various mosques yesterday. They have been lodged at a resort and their samples will be collected," Dr Mukesh Vats, Chief Medical Officer of Agra said.

The people are associated with the Tablighi Jamaat were staying at various mosques and other places in Delhi.

Meanwhile, Lucknow Police said, "FIR has been registered against some Muslim clerics for allegedly hiding 23 foreign nationals. FIR has been registered on the grounds of violation of rules under Lockdown, hiding information about the foreign nationals, and religious preaching upon arrival on a tourist visa."

Police have informed the Embassy for the purpose of deporting such foreign nationals, police added.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.
South African Deputy President David Mabuza has called on the world to honour the death of internationally-renowned Indian-origin virologist Gita Ramjee by intensifying the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mabuza was reacting to the death of the 64-year-old multiple-award winning South African scientists due to COVID-19 complications after returning from London, where her two sons live.

In (Ramjee's) honour, we should heed the call to flatten the curve by strengthening our responses to this global pandemic as well as continue the fight to achieve zero new HIV infections, Mabuza said in a statement.

Mabuza has described Ramjee's death as a huge blow to the entirety of the health care sector and the global fight against HIV/Aids. In her, we have indeed lost a champion in the fight against the HIV epidemic, ironically at the hands of this global pandemic, Mabuza said.

Ramjee had been highly-acclaimed for her role in research into fighting the HIV virus, particularly among women in South Africa.

Prof Ramjee was renowned for her work on finding HIV prevention methods that were conducive to the lifestyles, circumstances and perceived risk factors that SA women face as well as in the attempts to find an effective HIV vaccine, the deputy president said.

She had received many international accolades including a lifetime achievement award for HIV prevention and was honoured with the Outstanding Female Scientist Award by the European Development Clinical Trials Partnerships for her life's work focused on finding new HIV prevention methods, Mabuza said.

Ramjee was one of the first women research directors at the Medical Research Council (MRC) in the late 1990s, a few years after the release of Nelson Mandela to become the country's first democratically-elected president.

At the time of her death, Ramjee was the chief specialist scientist and director of the SA Medical Research Council's (SAMRC's) HIV Prevention Research Unit.

Gita conducted innovative and ground-breaking research to develop a gel that women could use to protect themselves from HIV infection a method that would be completely in their power and not dependent on the cooperation or permission of their male partners.

Her distinguished research career resulted in over 170 research publications and numerous accolades, said Dr Anthony Mbewu, former president of the MRC.

It is no exaggeration to say that Gita's work in HIV prevention is likely to save millions of young women's lives in the future.

Originally from Uganda, Ramjee went into exile to India when dictator Idi Amin expelled all Asians from the county in the 1970's.

She later studied in the United Kingdom where she met her husband and settled in South Africa.

Ramjee was also an Honorary Professor at the University of Tamil Nadu, India, and at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Ramjee was cremated on Tuesday in her hometown of Durban, highlighting further the challenges of funerals in the Hindu and Muslim communities in South Africa as the national lockdown in South Africa restricts attendance at cremations and burials to just five people.

It was a particularly traumatic experience for the family, as Gita's husband Pravin (a pharmacist) is in quarantine and her sons could not travel from London due to the lockdown not allowing any foreign flights into the country, so the last rites as per Hindu custom could not be performed by a close relative, Ashwin Trikamjee, President of the South African Hindu Maha Sabha, told PTI.

Kishore Badal, Chairperson of the Hindu Coordinating Council in Johannesburg, said that families were having difficulty accepting the funeral restrictions but generally understood the need for it to avoid spreading the COVID-19 virus.

Sad as that may be, the current crisis has also renewed the focus among all communities on the ancient and hygienic Hindu tradition of cremation rather burial as the country's municipalities run out of burial space at cemeteries, Badal said.

The Muslim community, which traditionally buries deceased members on the same day of the death, even late at night at times, is also having to adjust to both delays in releasing bodies after post mortems and the restrictions on numbers at funerals.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Once the application of the Penetron products was completed, the dry surfaces of the treated concrete structures stopped any groundwater penetration  and they continue to be dry today, months after our work was done.

Completed in December 2019, renovation work at the IRCCS Policlinico San Martino Hospital in Genoa, Italy, needed a seamless waterproofing solution to address various challenges. The Penetron System based on a proprietary crystalline technology  allowed the contractor to complete the project on schedule.

The Policlinico San Martino Hospital is an extensive healthcare facility comprising about 5,000 employees housed in dozens of specialized diagnosis and treatment buildings (pavilions) that dominate the San Martino d'Albaro district of the city.

The Policlinico is one of the largest and most important hospital complexes in Europe, explains Enricomaria Brac, General Manager of Penetron Italy. It serves the health needs of the citizens of the Genoa metropolitan area and the surrounding province of Liguria.

The Policlinico recently completed an internal reorganization, which also included a comprehensive renovation program to modernize many of the Policlinicos pavilions and upgrade the technical facilities to meet new healthcare requirements. Part of the upgrade program was the construction of a 90 m (300-foot) long subterranean tunnel for pedestrians and hospital stretchers connecting Pavilion 12 and Pavilion 40 to the newly completed Specialita Pavilion and a new elevator shaft connecting the Medical Pavilions (12 & 40).

Different Structures, Different Requirements

The Penetron Italy team was approached to provide a waterproofing solution for an underground pedestrian tunnel, elevator shafts, and different concrete structures now part of the new construction, adds Enricomaria Brac. Each building had different requirements for waterproofing and concrete durability.

The elevator shaft was cast in situ using PENETRON ADMIX-treated concrete and PENEBAR SW swellable waterstop strips to seal the resulting construction joints. PENECRETE MORTAR was also used to complete repairs required in the concrete structure.

Advantages of Treated Shotcrete

The subterranean tunnel required a preliminary application of PENETRON ADMIX-treated shotcrete. Shotcrete, or sprayed concrete, is applied at high pressure on vertical or horizontal surfaces without sagging. The PENETRON ADMIX-enhanced shotcrete mixture is especially well-suited for application on curved or thin concrete structures with an internal reinforced shell. Once set, the resulting structure is completely waterproof and much more durable than untreated concrete. A final concrete form was then cast against this initial PENETRON ADMIX-treated shotcrete tunnel structure.

Once the application of the Penetron products was completed, the dry surfaces of the treated concrete structures stopped any groundwater penetration  and they continue to be dry today, months after our work was done, concludes Enricomaria Brac.

The Penetron Group is a leading manufacturer of specialty construction products for concrete waterproofing, concrete repairs and floor preparation systems. The Group operates through a global network, offering support to the design and construction community through its regional offices, representatives and distribution channels.

For more information on PENETRON waterproofing solutions, please visit penetron(dot)com or Facebook(dot)com/ThePenetronGroup, email CRDept(at)penetron(dot)com, or contact the Corporate Relations Department at 631-941-9700.
A Dorchester man accused of stabbing a person death two years ago has been placed on house arrest to wait out the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Boston Herald.

William Jason Utley, 40, was released on Tuesday despite objections from Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins, the newspaper reports. Utley is accused of killing Anthony Young, 33, in Uphams Corner on March 25, 2018, and was supposed to go on trial next week.

Utley was released due to an apparent medical issue that would have put him at higher risk for coronavirus. The Herald reports that Rollinss office stated they believed his medical issues did not outweigh the public safety concerns we had regarding his release.

The mans release comes as the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court weighed in on an emergency petition filed last week thats looking to reduce the number of incarcerated people in jails and prisons across the state amid the pandemic.

The petition, brought by ACLU of Massachusetts, the Committee for Public Counsel Services and the Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers calls for the release of sentenced inmates as well as individuals held on pretrial detention. Rollinss office issued a statement on Tuesday backing the petition.

Related Content:
Anna Marie Dunn was scheduled to have her adrenal gland removed due to kidney cancer on April 1, but the procedure has been moved to June. Read more

AnnaMarie Dunn thought her cancer-fighting days were behind her  shed already lost one kidney in 2018. But in January, a routine scan found that her kidney cancer had spread to her adrenal gland, so her doctor scheduled surgery to have that removed, too.

Dunn, a 68-year-old early-childhood teacher from Manahawkin, N.J., was eager to get the procedure over with and get back to normal. Then, a week and a half before her April 6 appointment at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, her doctor called to cancel.

Hundreds of elective and nonurgent medical procedures have been postponed, as hospitals prepare for a surge of coronavirus patients. Rescheduling all but the most urgent procedures limits the likelihood of spreading the virus by reducing the number of patients coming to the hospital, and preserves medical resources, such as personal protective equipment, for treating critically ill patients. Even at specialty hospitals that arent caring for COVID-19 patients, every appointment brings patients in close proximity with multiple providers and support staff, which goes against the recommended social distancing.

 READ MORE: Philadelphia brings in tent hospitals and extra staff for the coming coronavirus surge

But although some procedures, such as voluntary cosmetic surgery, can be delayed with little consequence, patients with serious medical conditions, such as cancer, are also finding that they will have to wait for treatment  and cope with the anxiety of living with their illness a little longer.

I was concerned about the outcomes of waiting another two months. I was worried about whether the cancer could grow in the meantime, Dunn said. Its scary not knowing whats going on.

The decision is one that requires doctors to weigh the urgency of a patients medical needs and the danger of delaying care against the risk of becoming severely ill if the patient is exposed to the coronavirus while in the hospital. New data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that COVID-19 patients with underlying medical conditions, such as diabetes, heart failure, or kidney disease, were at greater risk of needing intensive care.

 READ MORE: How much diabetes, smoking, and other risk factors worsen your coronavirus odds

All of our decisions in life pivot on a balance of risk, and right now, the greatest risk many [patients] face is not these low-risk cancers  its exposure to the virus, said Alexander Kutikov, a surgical oncologist and head of Fox Chases division of urology and urologic oncology.

Delaying treatment by even a few months for slow-growing cancers, such as some skin cancers and low-risk prostate cancer, is unlikely to change peoples destiny, he said.

Other, more aggressive cancers, such as those of the liver, lungs, and pancreas, could spread quickly if not treated immediately. In these cases, doctors and patients must decide whether the risk of potential exposure to the coronavirus is worthwhile. Patients brought in for treatment are screened for signs of illness and asked questions about possible exposure to the virus, and typically are not allowed to bring anyone with them.

There is definitely anxiety on both sides, where those patients who do have aggressive cancers need to proceed despite the risks; there are also anxieties for patients who are delayed and live with illness uncertainty, Kutikov said.

Thomas Nixon, who was diagnosed with kidney cancer in February, was worried that his surgery scheduled for March 27 would be canceled.

But doctors explained that the 7-centimeter mass theyd discovered was at risk of spreading to his other kidney and vital arteries if it wasnt removed immediately, so the 61-year-old Bucks County resident went ahead with the procedure at Fox Chase Cancer Center.

You have nobody there with you  its a little bit nerve-wracking, said Nixon, who is now recovering at home in New Hope. His wife was not allowed to accompany him, but the surgeon called her immediately after the procedure.

At Rothman Orthopaedic Institute, patients have mostly been understanding and accepting of the need to postpone procedures that arent urgent, said Alexander Vaccaro, a spine surgeon and the institutes president.

Were all in this together  everyone gets it, he said. I havent seen anyone act like a jerk about it.

Patients he has spoken with have said they are fine with having their procedures delayed because they dont want to risk exposing themselves to the virus, he said.

But even procedures that are safe to delay will need to be done eventually. As the number of coronavirus cases continues to grow, and social distancing recommendations are stretched into another month, doctors are having to reevaluate whether cases they postponed can continue to wait.

Wills Eye Hospital initially pushed back many non-urgent glaucoma procedures by about two weeks, said Jonathan Myers, chief of glaucoma service at Wills Eye.

Now, that sounds hopelessly naive, he said. Were just at that point now where were starting to have a second round of triaging and evaluating.

In the meantime, the scheduling uncertainty adds to patients medical anxiety  even when they understand the severity of the situation hospitals are facing and agree with their doctors decisions.

Dunns doctor reassured her that her cancer would not cause additional harm if the surgery were postponed for two months, but she was still disappointed  the anticipation of getting rid of the cancer had been building since January.

Her new surgery date, June 1, feels tentative. But she is choosing to be optimistic and added the appointment to her planner in pen, not pencil.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Thursday announced that it is mobilising thousands of ex-servicemen (ESM) to assist state governments and district administrations wherever required to supplement the countrys efforts to fight the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.

An MoD spokesperson said the department of ex-servicemen welfare has taken the initiative to mobilise the services of veterans as part of an overall plan to increase the available workforce to assist the civil administration across the country.

Rajya Sainik Boards and Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ESM volunteers to assist the state and district administration in performing public outreach activities such as contact tracing, community surveillance, management of quarantine facilities or any such tasks assigned to them, the ministry said in a statement.

Also read: PM, in video call with CMs, bats for staggered relaxations after lockdown ends

Over 8,500 military doctors and support staff are ready to help the government in its fight against Covid-19 pandemic, apart from 9,000 hospital beds that have been prepared to meet emergency requirements, the armed forces told the government on Wednesday.

The MoD said on Thursday it is heartening that veterans across the country have risen to the occasion in keeping with the motto ofservice before self to fight the Covid-19 outbreak.

ESM are disciplined, motivated and well trained to operate in adverse situations and they have a pan-India presence in all the districts and villages across the country, the statement said.

ESM are assisting the state governments across the country. They include over 4, 200 ESM collecting data from villages in Punjab, helping police in Chhattisgarh, assisting district collectors in Andhra Pradesh and being on standby for any emergency in Uttar Pradesh.

In addition, Sainik rest houses are being readied in Uttarakhand to act as isolation/quarantine centres if the need arises. In Goa, a control room has been established and ESM have been asked to remain on standby for any assistance to the local administration, the release added.

The ministry also said the National Cadet Corps (NCC) has issued guidelines for temporary employment of its cadets to increase relief efforts and the functioning of various agencies involved in battling the pandemic under Exercise NCC Yogdan.

The tasks envisaged for NCC cadets include manning of helpline/call centres, distribution of relief material/medicines/ food/essential commodities, community assistance, data management and queue and traffic management, the ministry said in another statement.

Cadets should not be employed in the handling of law and order situations or for active military duties or at hot spots, it added.

Only senior division volunteer cadets above 18 years will be employed.

They should be employed in small cohesive groups of eight to 20 under the supervision of permanent instructor staff or and an associate NCC officer, the MoD said.

The ministry said on Wednesday that around 25,000 cadets are being mobilised to provide necessary local assistance.
New Multimode Digital Gateway for the West of Ireland

A new Multi-mode Digital Gateway, EI2BED, was placed on air from Roscommon Town in the West of Ireland on the 23rd of March 2020.

Following a week on air a few minor fine tweaks have been made to perfect the transmitted audio levels.

The Gateway is operating on 144.8625 and currently running DMR and C4FM. The DMR is connected to the Irish Brandmeister Server and has a static Talk Group TG2722 which is the Irish Calling channel, C4FM is connected to YSF Ireland and D-Star will default to DCS 049 I .

As there are no D-Star operators in the area, D-Star is not fully operational but can be connected when an interest arises. Paul, EI9HQB is the Sysop of the Gateway which is located at his home QTH. Steve EI5DD and John MI0AAZ, from the Galway Digital Radio Group assisted with the set up of the project.

If you are within the coverage area of this Gateway please give a call through the system as reports are always welcomed.

More information may be found at

https://galwayvhfgroup.blogspot.com/2020/01/ei2bed-multi-mode-digital-gateway-for.html

The Galway Digital Radio Group are on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/groups/745516459124467/
By Ofeliya Afandiyeva

The limit of preferential use of electricity for the population will be increased to 400 kWh, local media reported citing the Azerbaijani Ministry of Economy on April 1.

The Ministry of Economy has developed a program to support utility payments for electricity consumption for the population. According to the program, it is proposed to increase the limit of preferential use of electricity to 100 kWh, the statement said.

Currently, the limit of electricity consumption at a preferential rate for the population is 300 kWh. The price of one kilowatt-hour of electricity up to 300 kWh is $0.04. If this limit is exceeded for every kilowatt-hour above the limit, the tariff is $0.6.

Thus, the preferential limited amount of electricity for the population will be 400 kWh.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  A telecommunication company said there has been a surge in internet traffic following the implementation of the enhanced community quarantine throughout Luzon.

Globe Telecom, Inc. has recorded up to over 40% spike in residential data traffic over the past three weeks, the companys chief commercial officer Albert de Larrazabal said in an interview with CNN Philippines.

The declaration of the enhanced community quarantine and the consequent announcement of lockdown in other parts of the country have resulted in a stay-at-home order for the public, with the exception of certain individuals. This, in turn, translated into a vast demand for internet services.

However, Larrazabal said they are not yet experiencing congestion issues.

Weve had excess capacities in the systemthats been part of the plan, he said, adding that the company has put in place a very large traffic program for 2020."

The chief officer also said they continue to roll out their expansive programs to accommodate the sudden growth. He added that they have sufficient manpower to keep the communications system running.

Globe further assured that they have the necessary cyber security protocols to ensure their operations are not hampered.

Earlier, the Department of Information and Communications Technology urged hospitals to implement emergency backup systems to guard against cyber attacks. This is following reports of hackers targeting hospitals and other health care facilities worldwide amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Allowing DACAs termination would undermine the extraordinary measures being applied by states, universities, hospitals and private institutions across the nation to address the critical shortage of health care workers. New York, Connecticut and California, for example, have issued orders allowing the authorization of professionals with out-of-state licenses to practice; California and New York have asked retirees to return to service; and New York has authorized graduates of foreign medical schools with at least one year of graduate medical education to provide patient care in hospitals.

Medical schools in New York and Massachusetts are accelerating the graduation of medical students to speed more doctors to the front lines of the pandemic. Field hospitals have been set up in Central Park and the Javits Center in New York and in the Yale University gymnasium, among other sites. Naval ships have arrived in New York, the pandemics epicenter, and Los Angeles to further increase health care capacity. All of those places need to be staffed. At the federal level, the administration is actively seeking medical professionals from abroad to help with Covid-19 treatment.

But hospitals and communities have already invested in the training and education of DACA health care workers  investments that would be lost if the Supreme Court eliminates their ability to work in the United States. These providers cannot be quickly replaced upon the announcement of an affirmative Supreme Court decision  it takes over a decade to fully train a new physician and years to train nurses and other critically needed health care workers.

Moreover, it is not just the DACA health care workers who are contributing to our fight against the coronavirus. More than 150,000 other DACA recipients work in other industries that we depend on right now, including grocery stores, drugstores, transportation and warehousing, manufacturing, and custodial and food service. Our doctors and nurses rely on scientists and pharmacists to develop and administer testing and treatment for Covid-19. Many of those essential workers are DACA recipients, too.

A brief recently filed with the Supreme Court by lawyers representing DACA recipients asks the court to take account of the current crisis as it weighs their fate. The brief correctly asserts the enormity of the need for health care professionals in this crisis and that the Trump administration did not adequately consider the interests of employers, civil society, state and local governments, and communities across the country, among many others, when it made the decision to end the program.

Nor would a temporary fix be acceptable. Our workers cannot be asked to serve in this crisis for now, only to be deported later. That would be inhumane and shortsighted. Just as we rely on these essential workers today, we will rely on them and be grateful for them tomorrow.

If the Supreme Court allows the termination of DACA during this pandemic, the work of our hospitals will suffer a critical blow at exactly the moment when we can least afford it. At a time when the importance  and scarcity  of our medical resources has never been clearer, neither our institutions nor the nation can afford a disruption to the health care work force. We desperately need all hands on deck for this fight.
Addressing a press briefing on Thursday, Air India CMD Rajiv Bansal revealed that the national carrier had entered into a contract with 4 countries- Germany, Canada, France, and Ireland. According to this agreement, a total of 18 one-way flights will be operated on a commercial basis to these countries whereby foreign nationals can leave India. The flights will come back to the country with no passengers on board. Currently, all the domestic and international flight operations have been suspended till April 14.

This decision was taken after a few countries requested assistance in repatriating their citizens from India. Moreover, he mentioned that China had given the approval to operate freight flights to Shanghai on April 4 and 5. At this juncture, Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri added that Indians stuck abroad will have to wait for the end of the lockdown.

Air India CMD: Entered into contract with Germany, France, Ireland and Canada to repatriate their citizens on commercial charter flights  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 2, 2020

Read: DGCA Permits Passenger Category Aircraft To Be Used For Cargo Operations; Lists Conditions

The Air India CMD also mentioned that complete protection had been provided to their cockpit crew, cabin crew and ground staff. Additionally, he hailed the role of the medical team. While acknowledging that some members of the ground staff fell ill, he stressed that they had tested negative for the novel Coronavirus.

Read: 'Coronavirus Lockdown To End On April 15': Arunachal CM Khandu's Big Claim After PM Meet

DGCA grants special permission

On Wednesday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) granted permission for the passenger category aircraft to be used for cargo operations. There has been a demand for transporting essential commodities and medical equipment in the wake of the nationwide lockdown imposed to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this permission is subject to conditions specified by the DGCA.

For instance, requisite approval from Flight Standards and Airworthiness directorate must be sought. Dangerous items, such as lithium batteries and oxygen canister will not be allowed on board. Cargo will be permitted only in the approved stowage locations such as closets and overhead stowage bins. Also, the cargo should neither interfere with the closing and latching of the compartment nor should it prevent impede an emergency evacuation.

Read: Air India Crew Complains About Substandard Protection Gear Provided During Rescue Flights

Read: COVID-19: Air India Says 'insurmountable' Dip In Revenues, Issues Various Cost-cutting Measures
OTTAWA - The Royal Canadian Navy is pulling ships back from missions abroad and imposing new rules on physical distancing while at sea as the military prepares to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Minister of National Defence Harjit Sajjan speaks during a news conference in Ottawa, Monday March 30, 2020. The Royal Canadian Navy is pulling a number of ships back from overseas missions and imposing strict rules around social-distancing on board ship as the military prepares to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - The Royal Canadian Navy is pulling ships back from missions abroad and imposing new rules on physical distancing while at sea as the military prepares to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The danger COVID-19 poses to the tightly packed crews of warships was illustrated this week by an outbreak aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier, which has so far seen at least 93 of its 4,800 sailors test positive for the virus while hundreds more wait for their results.

The outbreak prompted the USS Theodore Roosevelt's commander, Capt. Brett Crozier, to pen a letter to his superiors pleading for assistance to prevent possible deaths. The Roosevelt is now being evacuated at its base in Guam, with no word on when it will return to service.

Crozier was fired on Thursday by Navy leaders who said he created panic and showed poor judgment in a crisis by sending his memo asking for help to too many people.

To prevent a similar crisis, Royal Canadian Navy commander Vice-Admiral Art McDonald told his sailors this week that a number of "mitigation strategies" are being adopted to limit potential exposure to COVID-19.

Those include restricting shore leave in foreign ports, making special arrangements for eating on board ships and practising physical distancing "to extent possible" on shore and at sea by limiting traditional practices such as musters.

Four Canadian warships are also being recalled, two each from the Caribbean and West Africa, due to COVID-19 while McDonald said all but the most critical sailing plans are being cancelled for the next two months.

"While the trajectory of COVID-19 cannot be predicted with certainty, we are doing everything possible to ensure the health and safety of our sailors at-sea, cognizant that this is essential to our ability to remain operationally deployed," he wrote in a letter to sailors.

Even as Canadian navy commanders work to prevent outbreaks on board their ships, military planners are also looking at ways to keep service members from transmitting COVID-19 to communities where they are asked to respond.

This is particularly worrying for remote northern and Indigenous communities, which Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan has identified as a particular focus for the Armed Forces should the military be called upon to help with the pandemic.

That is one reason the navy has ordered two warships  HMCS Regina and HMCS Brandon  to loiter off Canada's west coast, where McDonald says they "remain isolated from infection" and ready "to act as a vanguard naval response to short-notice tasks."

The navy is also preparing to sequester the crews of HMCS Ville de Quebec and HMCS Moncton in a Halifax hotel for two weeks before sending them out to sea, where they will similarly wait off Canada's east coast.

The Canadian Armed Forces has refused to say how many of its members have contracted COVID-19, citing operational security. But more than 700 U.S. troops have tested positive for the illness, a number that continues to grow exponentially along with the general population.

Retired lieutenant-general Guy Thibault, who previously served as the Canadian Armed Forces' second-in-command, says protecting troops from contagious diseases has been a long-standing concern for military commanders. Yet the nature of COVID-19 makes such efforts difficult.

"It's clear that the social distancing that has been put into place in society in general just isn't doable in our operational context," he said. "The Canadian Forces is a team sport and all of our activities necessitate face-to-face working in close contact with each other."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2020.

 with files from The Associated Press
Its hard to overstate just how bad the jobs news of the last eight days is. With Thursdays epic report that 6.6 million Americans filed claims for unemployment insurance last week, doubling the 3.3 million the week before that were reported last Thursday, weve likely lost as many jobs in three weeks as we lost during the entire Great Recession of 2007-09.

And its going to get worse. A lot worse.

With the March jobs report due out Friday, the headline number wont begin to capture the damage. The unemployment rate, and estimate of monthly job creation, is based on two surveys done the week of the 12th of the month  in this case, the week before the hammer dropped and most of America shut down to combat the spread of coronavirus.

But the 10 million jobs lost, plus the 6 million people the Labor Department said were unemployed in February, divided by the 165 million Americans in the work force, mean the unemployment rate for April is likely to be about 9.9 per cent or 10 per cent. Give or take the jobs being added at supermarkets and delivery services, and people who lost jobs but arent filing for unemployment, those are the numbers were looking at.

One more week like the last two  say, halfway between 3.3 million and 6.6 million  pushes the April unemployment rate to 12.1 per cent, or 13 per cent if its closer to this weeks number. In 2009, it never topped 10 per cent, and the 8.7 million net jobs lost took almost two years. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics website has data back to 1948, and the unemployment rate has never topped 10.8 per cent, which it was in 1982. Even during the Depression, the unemployment rate didnt hit double digits until 1931.

This chart is a portrait of disaster, Economic Policy Institute policy director Heidi Shierholtz wrote on Twitter. I have spent the last twenty years studying the labor market and have never seen anything like it. Unemployment insurance claims for the last two weeks are mind-blowing.

Were going to hear a lot about the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s as Donald Trump runs for re-election, and not only because the president and Democratic presumptive-nominee Joe Biden were born in the 40s. Were going to hear a lot of analogies between Trump and Herbert Hoover, for sure.

But more to the point, well hear a lot about the US and South Korea, and how each handled the emergence of the coronavirus. None of it will be good for the president.

The US and South Korea each discovered its first local case of the coronavirus on the same day: January 20th. Their responses, and their results, could hardly be more different.

 Trump suggests impeachment stopped him concentrating on coronavirus

In Korea, Reuters reports, the government summoned every maker of medical tests in the country to a January 27 meeting and told them to develop a test for the virus right away. The winning design was approved by government regulators on February 4 and shipped within days. That became the linchpin of an aggressive program of testing, as well as tracing the contacts of people who came up positive in the early days of the pandemic so they could be isolated before infecting their friends, family, neighbors and random passersby.

In the US, the Centers for Disease Control developed its own test  which didnt work, leaving us with no effective or comprehensive strategy for testing until mid-March. By then, the forest fire was on, and even now testing in the US is sporadic.

I would know. Im writing this from isolation, because Im presumed to be positive for Covid-19 based on my symptoms  a fever that broke on Saturday, with the classic chest congestion and shortness of breath. All of these symptoms are mild in my case  which is why I didnt get a test. That and my doctors assessment that my guest room is safer than her waiting room.

In the meantime, Trump spent two months downplaying the problem, saying it was a stock market problem or a Democratic hoax. Warm weather will fix it. A miracle will fix it.

No. Tests would have fixed it if they were ready on time, as they were in Korea. Ventilators and masks would at least help manage it. But America didnt have those on hand, either.

Now, lets compare the results of aggressive reaction versus passivity and blaming everyone else.

In Korea, the pandemic was limited to 9,976 cases and 169 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. In the US, whose population is about six times bigger, the case count is approaching 225,000 and grew by 25,000 on Wednesday. About 5,100 Americans have died, up by nearly six times Koreas total deaths in the last day alone.

And its going to get tons worse in America, as Trump now admits. He grudgingly signed on this week to his advisers estimates that 100,000 to 240,000 Americans will die from the very problem that has claimed fewer than 200 Koreans. Thats more, even at the low end, than died in Americas wars defending Vietnam and, yes, South Korea in the early 1950s.

This part is familiar enough. But what goes less remarked upon is how little economic damage the coronavirus caused in Korea.

In fact, the KOSPI stock index in Seoul only declined by 8 per cent between January 20 and March 5, when Korea was finding and reporting most of its cases. (Its discovering fewer than 100 a day lately). Koreas unemployment rate is 3.3 per cent  because early testing and containment meant Korea didnt shut the country down to keep people safe, as big-state US governors did while Trump fiddled and watched TV.

The real-time data for Korea isnt all rosy  retail sales and consumer confidence are off, and businesses are restructuring to recoup lost profits  but its nothing like Americas. And that will be part of the story Biden hits Trump with all fall, too.

By October, the basic facts about Koreas economy and its coronavirus will be as well-known in America as kimchi  and theyll give the president indigestion.
Nearly 3,000 sailors aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier where the coronavirus has spread will be taken off the ship by Friday, Navy officials said as they struggle to quarantine crew members in the face of an outbreak.

So far, fewer than 100 of the nearly 5,000 sailors assigned to the USS Theodore Roosevelt, now docked in Guam, have tested positive for the virus, but the Navy is moving sailors into various facilities and probably will begin using hotel rooms in the coming days. Navy leaders are talking with government officials in the US territory to identify rooms for the crew members.

Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly, however, made it clear Wednesday that while several thousand will leave the ship, other sailors will remain on board in order to continue to protect the ship and run critical systems.

We cannot and will not remove all sailors from the ship, Modly told Pentagon reporters. He said officials will send as many sailors off the ship as possible while still maintaining safety. He said about 1,000 have gone ashore, and that number will grow to at least 2,700 in a couple of days.

Modly and Adm. Michael Gilday, the chief of naval operations, declined to say how long the ship will be sidelined. But if crew members are required to be quarantined for 14 days, on a rotational basis, the Roosevelt could be out of duty for weeks.

The Navy leaders said that they are trying to track down any sailors who came in contact with those now ill and place them in quarantine. They said almost 1,300 sailors have been tested, and as of Wednesday, nearly 600 of those tests came back negative. Officials are awaiting more results and more testing.

The long pole in the tent, said Gilday, is getting results more quickly. At this point, no sailors with the virus are hospitalized.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.

Navy Capt. Brett Crozier, the carrier's commander, raised warnings this week in a memo to his leaders. He said the ship was facing a growing outbreak of the coronavirus and he asked permission to isolate the bulk of his crew members on shore, an extraordinary move to take a carrier out of duty in an effort to save lives.

The carrier, like other Navy ships, is vulnerable to infectious disease spread given its close quarters. The ship is more than 1,000 feet (305 meters) long. Sailors are spread out across a labyrinth of decks linked by steep ladder-like stairs and narrow corridors.

Enlisted sailors and officers have separate living areas, but most share rooms with multiple people, work in close quarters with other sailors, routinely grab their food from crowded buffet lines and eat at tables joined end to end.

A descendant of the ship's namesake also urged for the crew to be quickly removed from the ship.

Members of the Roosevelt family and I are extremely concerned about the plight of the sailors and captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, Tweed Roosevelt, a great-grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt and chairman of the Theodore Roosevelt Institute at Long Island University, wrote in an email Wednesday.

We must get these brave men and women off at once to protect their lives and the future viability of the ship. In a memo to Navy leaders over the weekend, Crozier said the spread of the disease was accelerating and that removing all but 10% of the crew would be a necessary risk in order to stop the spread of the virus.

We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset our sailors," said Crozier. Navy leaders were quick to praise the captain for bringing the dire nature of the matter to their attention. They brushed away suggestions that he could be punished because the issue became public so quickly.

In Asia, a carrier presence is central to what the Pentagon has identified as a fundamental shift from fighting insurgent and extremist conflicts in the Middle East to a return to great power competition."



That means, principally, a bigger focus on China, including its militarization of disputed areas of the South China Sea.

Navy leaders faced persistent questions about the origin of the virus on the ship, but said it may be impossible to identify where it started.

The Roosevelt made a port call in Vietnam last month. Modly said the stop, where thousands of sailors likely went off the ship into Danang, was done when there was fewer than 20 cases of the illness in Hanoi and sailors were screened when they returned to the ship.

He said two sailors fell ill near the end of the required 14-day period between port calls, and they were flown off the ship. As the days went by, however, the problem worsened.

Modly said there are 94 Navy ships deployed at sea around the world, and the Roosevelt is the only one with sailors who have tested positive for the virus. Some other sailors have tested positive, but those have been in other jobs or on ships that are at their home bases and are not out at sea.

As of Tuesday morning, the Navy said that a total of 334 personnel had tested positive for the virus, including 243 sailors. Of the 334, 19 have been hospitalized and 15 have recovered. None has died.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Toronto police say that a man admitted himself to hospital with serious injuries after a series of gunshots were heard near Yorkdale Mall late Wednesday night.

Police got the call shortly before 11:30 p.m., according to Const. Alex Li. There were reports of multiple gunshots heard in the area, as well as people and a black SUV fleeing the area.

Initially, no injuries were reported. But before midnight, police were alerted that a man had walked into a local hospital with serious gunshot wounds related to the incident, according to Li.

Toronto police said on Twitter that shell casings had been located at the scene of the shooting with windows of a residential building smashed and possibly shot out as well. Li said that there are no suspects at this time.
Its being dubbed as a miracle. A 93-year-old from Pathanamthitta district in Kerala recovered after contracting the deadly coronavirus disease Covid-19.

Thomas Abraham and his 88-year-old wife Mariyamma have been fully cured after days of life-and-death battle against the deadly virus which they contracted from their son, daughter-in-law and grandson who returned from Italy last month.

The secret behind their recovery seems to be the healthy lifestyle they have been leading, said Rijo Moncy, their grandson. He said Thomas, a farmer in Ranni sub-division of Pathanamthitta district, is a very healthy person being a teetotaller and non-smoker. Even without going to the gym, he had a six-pack body.

More on Covid-19:

 Covid-19: Your guide to staying safe

 Covid-19: What you need to know today

 Can Covid-19 spread after symptoms end?

 How coronavirus is different from seasonal flu and common cold

Also Watch | Coronavirus: Kerala polices dance video to encourage hand washing goes viral

Abraham loves Pazhankanji, Keralas own super food made of rice gruel, and tapioca or jackfruit snacks. And thats what he insisted on eating while confined in the isolation ward of the Kottayam Medical College Hospital. Coronavirus is known to be especially deadly for elderly people.

Its a miracle that they survived the pandemic and the doctors and the health officials have put in their all efforts to save them, said Rijo who works in Italy in the radiology field.

He and his parents, who also have been living in Italy for many years, praised the state government.

We were planning to come to Kerala in August but advanced the journey as my grandfather insisted that we should visit him soon. However, now we feel that it was a blessing or else we would have been in Italy right now, Rijo said.

Italy is the hardest hit country in the world with more than 11,500 fatalities and over 1,00,000 infections, as per the latest reports.

The couple have three children, seven grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. Besides his parents and grandparents, Rijos sister and brother-in-law and his fathers elder brother were among those infected by the virus in the family.

Grandparents had age related complications. But the nurses and the doctors of Kottayam Medical College considered them as their own family and took care of them. We are really thankful to the government, health minister and the chief minister for the care we got, Rijo said.

Rijos sister and brother-in-law, both nurses, had arrived from Italy eight months ago.

Along with the seven-member team of doctors who led the treatment, 40 medical staff including 25 nurses actively took part in various stages of treatment.
Photo credit: texasroadhouse - Instagram

From Delish

Its a tough time for restaurants right now, and many of them are trying to come up with creative solutions to try to feed fans in a totally different way. Texas Roadhouse just figured out a genius way to get its delicious steaks to more people while also filling in where grocery stores may be out of stock.

The steak chain is selling ready-to-grill steaks directly to the public at select locations, according to Indianas 16 News Now. Texas Roundhouse is offering the service to try to help out areas where there are grocery store shortages of meat.

The decision to sell steaks was based on demand from guests. Restaurants are a vital part of our nations food supply and were stepping in where we can to help fill the gaps, Texas Roadhouse vice president of communications Travis Doster told 16 News Now.

The chain is offering a slew of its different steaks, including its ribeyes, strip, sirloin, and filet, ready for you to cook at home. If youre interested and want to place an order, call your local Texas Roadhouse and see if theyre offering the deal.

Thats not all Texas Roadhouse has going on right now. Theyre also offering "Family Packs" you can order online. Each Family Pack serves four and lets you choose from a range of different entrees like New York Strip, pulled pork, and ribs. Once you select your four entrees, youll also get a large salad, four side dishes, fresh-baked rolls, and honey cinnamon butter. Mmm. Prices vary, depending on what you select, but they start at $39.99.

So, if you've been struggling to find good steak in your area, Texas Roadhouse has got your back.

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(Natural News) In a sure sign that New York is bracing for a massive number of coronavirus deaths, the city is offering prisoners in the Rikers Island jail $6 per hour to help dig mass graves on Hart Island. That might not sound like a lot of money to most of us, but its considered very high pay as far as prison labor goes.

A spokesperson for Mayor Bill de Blasios office confirmed the arrangement but claimed it was not COVID-specific, pointing out that prisoners have been tasked with digging graves for years on Hart Island. However, the fact that theyre now being offered personal protective equipment to wear while theyre digging the graves would indicate otherwise.

New York City is the owner and operator of a public cemetery situated on Hart Island, and theyve long used prison labor to maintain it. In 2008, for example, prisoners from Rikers were burying around 25 bodies per week at the site, on average. The island was chosen as a final resting spot for bodies in a pandemic plan that was put together in 2008 by the citys Office of Chief Medical Examiner. However, that report noted at the time that Hart Islands limited burial space may not be able to accommodate a large influx of decedents requiring burial.

Right now, New York City is the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in America, with 38,000 people infected and deaths approaching 1,000 as of March 31.

Coronavirus concerns growing at Rikers Island

Some experts believe that the prisoners would be smart to accept the offer and take advantage of the chance to spend time in the fresh air on Hart Island as the conditions within the prison continue to deteriorate. Rikers is overcrowded, and coronavirus infections are rampant there.

Bronx Defenders Executive Director Justine Olderman told The Intercept that CDC coronavirus safety protocols cannot be carried out at the prison. Theres a lack of hand sanitizer, she says, and people dont have access to soap. Even if they did, many sinks are broken, not to mention the fact that its difficult to practice social distancing when there are as many as 100 people sleeping in a room.

Data from the Legal Aid Society shows that the prisons population of 4,600 people has an infection rate of 3.6 percent. The New York Post reports that nearly 800 inmates are already in quarantine and there are 200 confirmed cases within in citys jail system. Meanwhile, de Blasio has said that roughly 650 inmates have been released so far out of coronavirus concerns.

Reports have emerged that some prisoners are mixing shampoo with water in hopes of cleaning surfaces as concern grows that not enough is being done to stop the outbreak there, while inmates are also starting disturbances. The 88-bed contagious disease unit is already completely full there.

One former inmate who was recently released said that people are on top of one another no matter what they do there. He added that a lack of ventilation means that when any type of sickness is floating around, everyone gets it.

Its not just inmates who are suffering; 114 corrections officers and 23 jail health workers have also tested positive for the disease. The situation in the prison is said to be increasingly tense. Prison staff are complaining about a lack of instruction on handling the situation, and they also say they havent been given the right protective equipment.

In recent days, New York City has released hundreds of non-violent inmates from Rikers Island. All were people who had been convicted of misdemeanors or certain nonviolent crimes and had less than a year left in their sentences.

Its clear that New York City is preparing for the worst, but if the situation at Rikers continues, there may not be enough people to dig all the graves the city could potentially need by the end of this devastating pandemic.

Sources for this article include:

TheIntercept.com

NYPost.com

FoxNews.com
Nepal on Thursday reported the sixth positive case of coronavirus according to the Himalayan nation's Health Ministry.

The Himalayan Times, citing Madhav Prasad Tiwari, press coordinator of the Health Minister, said the sixth patient is a female from Baglung.

She arrived in Kathmandu on the QR 652 flight of Qatar Airlines from Doha on March 17.

She shared the flight with two persons who had been infected with the coronavirus.

Out of six people tested positive, five are active cases while one person who had contracted the disease in January has already recovered.

The lockdown imposed in Nepal in the backdrop of COVID-19 had been extended till April 7.

The decision was taken in the cabinet meeting held on Sunday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
State Superintendent Tony Thurmond announced new guidelines Wednesday for high school seniors who now have to finish the school year at home, while anxiously checking their mailboxes for college acceptance letters.

Many of them can now breathe easier. Colleges have agreed to accept pass/fail or credit/no credit grading for courses that would normally require a letter grade. The state has also made testing requirements, financial aid applications and transcript submission more flexible, on the understanding that shelter-in-place orders have slowed down all educational bureaucracies.

We are thinking of our seniors and the impact that the current COVID-19 public health emergency and subsequent physical closure of schools has had on them, and we hope that this guidance will help relieve some stress and anxiety, Thurmond said in a statement released Wednesday night. We are doing everything we can to support all our schools and students, and will continue to address seniors needs going forward.

The new guidelines put together by the California Department of Education and the California State Board of Education can be found here.

Thurmond said Tuesday that California schools should stay closed for the rest of the year, given the states emphasis on social distancing and concerns about spreading the coronavirus.

Seniors like Jackson Tam have already adjusted to school in their bedrooms. Tam attends Carlmont High School in Belmont where he participates in the student government and a mock trial team. He got accepted to UCLA but is also eyeing UC Berkeley. He hopes to study math and economics, and hopes hell start the year in-person.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Flexible grading appeals to Tam, though he said his teachers have already been pretty lax. But he finds other aspects of sheltering-in-place dispiriting. The prom will probably be canceled, he cant see his friends, and graduation might have to happen online  possibly via a massive Zoom call.

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan
KRAKOW, Poland, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Comarch, a global provider of software-defined IT solutions for improving business efficiency, announced that it is tolaunch a new version of its technologically advanced, cloud-based platform for driving customer loyalty and engagement. Comarch Loyalty Cloud allows users to build and execute immersive loyalty programs with minimal effort, no license fees, and no implementation costs by incorporating advanced promotion and rewards strategies.

Set to be released on April 4, Comarch Loyalty Cloud gives companies the chance to bypass the time-consuming implementation process and get instant access to a user-friendly interface for developing and managing personalized loyalty programs, which will also allow them to monitor their customer engagement performance in real-time. The product will be available in both fixed-term subscription and pay-as-you-go models. Users will also have access to Comarch loyalty specialists for standard and optional business & technical support.

"With more than 20 years of experience carrying out both simple and complex loyalty projects all around the world, at Comarch, we were drawn to the possibility of providing our systems and services on a much larger scale. This is why we decided to create a highly intuitive solution that offers great opportunities for setting up promotional campaigns and removes all entry barriers thanks to the pay-as-you-go billing model.

"What has been impossible in the past - specifically, launching a pilot loyalty program without vast resources and long-term commitments - has become a reality. Now, the ability to define advanced promotions with a few mouse clicks is within reach. We believe that our customers will appreciate this combination of ease-of-use with advanced business logic." - says Lukasz Sloniewski, Consulting Director at Comarch.

Although CLC will be hitting the market this April, Comarch intends to incorporate evenmore cutting-edge features in the form of free upgrades. The company also indicates that there will also be additional, payable extensions of the basic CLC modules that will expand the functionality of the Comarch Loyalty Cloud platform. These add-ons will include gamification, in-store applications, OCR, chatbot, AI/ML algorithms, location-based services, and more.

Visit Comarch's official website to learn more about Comarch Loyalty Cloud and sign up for a FREE CLC Demo.

Image: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1140763/Comarch_Loyalty_Cloud.jpg

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1139881/Comarch_Logo.jpg
Government has so far identified about 25,000 vulnerable people to provide for their health, nutritional and safety needs during the two-week restriction of movement of persons in the Greater Accra and Greater Kumasi Metropolitan areas.



About 15,000 of them are head porters, with the rest being mentally ill and other persons with disabilities.



They are benefitting from the provision of temporary accommodation, food, water, stipends, medical assistance, grooming, and basic training in personal hygiene.



Madam Cynthia Morrison, the Minister of Gender Children and Social Protection, who announced this on Wednesday morning at a media briefing, said a Census was conducted to identify such vulnerable people in Accra, considering the homeless, their ages and other variables.



In Accra, food and will be sent to them in areas such as Tema Station, the Central Business District, Mallam Atta, Kwame Nkrumah Circle, Agbogbloshie, Nima and Maamobi, she said.



After the COVID-19 crisis, those in the school-going age group would be sent back home to continue their education, adding that, We will ensure that no underage person engages in the Kayaye business.



Mrs Morrison said the measures were being implemented with philanthropic organisations, with some cooking for about 6,000 people.



They were also caring for some 20 mentally ill persons on the streets by cleaning and giving them medical assistance.



The briefing was to give an update on the national status of COVID-19, with regard to preventive behaviour, testing and case management, security, among others.



Ghana has since Thursday, March 12, confirmed a total of 195 cases; after testing 4,650 presumptive cases. Five of the patients, who had underlying chronic conditions, have passed on. However, there are three full recoveries, while 49 have been discharged to continue their care at home.



The rest are responding well to treatment, the Health Minister has said.



Under an Executive Instrument Order by the President, effective 0100 hours on Monday, March 30, persons in 40 localities in the Greater and Greater Kumasi Metropolitan areas and contiguous districts are under a two-week restriction of movement measure to limit the spread of COVID-19.



There are, however, exemptions to cater for access to food and water, medicine, healthcare and other essential services.



The tracing of people who have been exposed to the disease for testing is also being intensified during the period

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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True to its Austin roots, Alamo Drafthouse is keeping it weird.

The Drafthouse, which has a Laredo location, is now part of the Virtual Cinema initiative, a collaboration between independent movie theaters and film distributors nationwide.

Patrons can buy tickets through their local theater to watch one of a growing slate of movies, and part of the purchase price will go to that theater. Links to the movies, which can be streamed on a variety of devices, are on the Drafthouse website.

Alamo Drafthouses virtual movie schedule includes a continuation of the theater chains Terror Tuesday and Weird Wednesday series as well as a slate of independent features and documentaries.

The first Terror Tuesday offering, Centipede Horror, is available now. The first Weird Wednesday flick, Godmonster of Indian Flats, will be available April 8. Those movies are renting for $7.75.

Virtual Cinema movies will rent for $12 and can be streamed on computers, tablets or smartphone or cast to a TV using Apple TV or Google Chrome.

The Alamo Drafthouses current schedule, posted on the Alamo-at-Home Page on the chains website, includes the following movies. All are available now.

Bacurau, a Cannes Film Festival prize-winner about Brazilian villagers who must defend themselves against outsiders who may be extraterrestrial and who definitely want them dead.

Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and the Band, a documentary about the Canadian bar band that became Bob Dylans backing band and then a force on its own with classics such as The Weight and The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.

And Corpus Christi, a Polish film about a young ex-con who found God in prison and, with no prospects outside, pretends to be a priest. It was nominated for an Oscar for best international film.

To watch a movie, click on the link at the end of the movies description, then choose Laredo from the list of markets.

Future screenings will be announced on the Drafthouses Twitter and Facbook accounts.

jkiest@express-news.net | Twitter: @jimik64
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The governor of Georgia said he only recently discovered that coronavirus patients could transmit the virus before they showed any symptoms, as he announced plans for a belated shelter-in-place order across the state.

Governor Brian Kemp had earlier urged Georgia residents to stay in their homes to prevent the spread of the virus, but resisted tougher measures seen in other states until Wednesday, when he made the discovery that had been in the public domain for some months.

"The reason I'm taking this action, like I've continued to tell people, I'm following the data, I'm following the advice of Dr. [Kathleen] Toomey," Mr Kemp said, referring to Georgias public health commissioner.

Georgia governor Brian Kemp (Jessica McGowan/Getty Images)

"Finding out that this virus is now transmitting before people see signs, so what we've been telling people from directives from the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] for weeks now that if you start feeling bad, stay home... those individuals could've been infecting people before they ever felt bad. But we didn't know that until the last 24 hours, he said at a press conference. This is a game-changer for us," he added.

Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Show all 25 1 /25 Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A view of empty Bourbon street in the French Quarter amid the coronavirus pandemic in New Orleans, Louisiana Getty Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Nyla Clark, 3, accompanied by her mother, Chavonne Clark, sits in a baby stroller at a corner in New Orleans, hoping to get a few dollars from an occasional passerby. Clark was a phlebotomist with a local company until she lost her job because of the coronavirus pandemic. She is waiting for unemployment The Advocate via AP Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A man boards a streetcar Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Jackson Square, normally bustling with tourists, is seen deserted AP Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Words from Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" are painted onto plywood covering the window of a closed business AFP via Getty Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Street performer Eddie Webb looks around the nearly deserted French Quarter looking to make money AP Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Boarded up businesses Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans The normally bustling tourist mecca of Bourbon Street lies deserted in the early afternoon Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A sign along I-10 informing persons who travel from Louisiana to quarantine AP Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A man cycles along Jackson Square AFP via Getty Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans Elena Likaj, prevention department manager at Odyssey House Louisiana (OHL) which runs a drive-through testing site, takes the temperature of New Orleans resident Peyton Gill Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A man walks his dog past a boarded up business on Frenchmen Street Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans An empty Bourbon street Getty Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A meal is distributed at the Lantern Light Ministry at the Rebuild Center Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A woman walks in the French Quarter Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans People practice social distancing as they queue up for a meal at the Lantern Light Ministry at the Rebuild Center Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans French Quarter Getty Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A sign is pictured in the French Quarter amid the outbreak Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A view of Bourbon Street Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans National Guard members walk down Rampart Street AFP via Getty Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A man rides his bicycle in front of a boarded up French Quarter restaurant Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A shuttered business is pictured on Decatur Street AFP via Getty Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans The normally bustling tourist mecca of Bourbon Street lies deserted Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A view of Canal Street Reuters Impact coronavirus is having on Louisiana and New Orleans A New Orleans firefighter works to contain an early morning fire Reuters

Public health officials have long warned that the virus was spreading between humans before symptoms appeared. On January 31, America's top infectious disease doctor said there was "no doubt" that asymptomatic transmission was occurring after the publication of a study by German researchers. "This study lays the question to rest," said Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

A number of scientific studies conducted in the US have since supported that claim. The current guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say that some spread might be possible before people show symptoms, but that this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.

Georgia currently has 4,638 confirmed cases of Covid-19, with 139 deaths as of Wednesday, Mr Kemp said.

Mr Kemp said his stay-at-home order will go into effect on Thursday and last until April 13. All of the states public schools would remain closed for the rest of the year, he added.
In what is likely to set alarm bells ringing for the health authorities, the Haryana government on Thursday said five people who came to the state after attending the Tablighi Jamaat's congregation in New Delhi' last month have tested positive for coronavirus.

Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij said two of the infected patients were traced to Ambala while three in Palwal tested positive for coronavirus.

Later in the day, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar told Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a videoconferencing that the count of those who attended the Tablighi Jamaat's congregation and came to Haryana afterwards has shot up to 1,277.

He said the number also included 107 foreigners and the jamaat returnees were traced to five districts in the state.

About the foreigners, Khattar said their passports have been confiscated and FIRs registered for various violations, a state government statement said.

He said samples of all 107 foreigners have been sent for testing and reports were awaited.

Vij said these foreigners were from Bangladesh, Malaysia, South Africa, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

He said a majority were on tourist visas. All had concealed information regarding their travel details within the country and action as per law is being contemplated against them, he said.

Asked if the foreigners will be deported, Vij, who is also Haryana's Home Minister, replied, "We cannot do so till they test negative."



All those who had been traced to the state so far are from outside Haryana, he said.

"We do not exactly know who all they have met. There is a possibility that some of them may have infected others who in turn unknowingly may be carriers," he said.

Asked how many of these could have entered the state after the lockdown, Vij said, "This information is being gathered. In every district, they have an in-charge and we are trying to gather more details."



Health teams are at their job after the Haryana Police traced the congregation attendees in several districts such as Ambala, Palwal, Gurgaon and Faridabad.

All 107 foreigners had been kept in isolation while samples of several others suspected cases have so far been sent for testing and all are being quarantined, Vij said.

When asked about the purpose of this group entering Haryana, Vij said after attending the congregation, they are assigned duties and sent to different places across India to preach.

"They stay in mosques, go to people's homes and hold meetings," the minister said.

The Tabligh-e-Jamaat's markaz (headquarters) in Nizamuddin West has emerged as a hotspot of coronavirus, following which a major area has been sealed and an FIR lodged against its cleric for violating government orders.

The Telangana government had said on Monday that six people who attended the religious congregation between March 13 and 15 died due to coronavirus.

Subsequently, authorities across the country swung into action to trace the contacts of those who went to the gathering, attended by hundreds of people, including from Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia.

The Delhi Police registered an FIR against Maulana Saad of the Nizamuddin centre under sections of Epidemic Disease Act and other sections of the Indian Penal Code for violating government orders on management of the markaz in relation to social, political or religious gathering.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday slammed the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh over the FIR against a senior journalist for his comments on Twitter against Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, saying it is a 'deplorable' act intended to suppress media freedom.

New Delhi: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday slammed the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh over the FIR against a senior journalist for his comments on Twitter against Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, saying it is a "deplorable" act intended to suppress media freedom.

The former home minister demanded that the FIR be immediately withdrawn.

The Uttar Pradesh police on Wednesday booked The Wire editor Siddharth Varadarajan over comments on Twitter claiming that the day Tablighi Jamaat held its event in Delhi, Chief Minister Adityanath had insisted that a Ram Navami fair will take place as usual.

The FIR against Varadarajan also mentioned his remark, questioning Adityanath's participation in a religious ceremony at the Ramjanmabhoomi site in Ayodhya during the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus.

Chidambaram, in a series of tweets, said, "The UP government has filed an FIR against @thewire_in for carrying a story containing facts and only facts. No fact is wrong or even alleged to be wrong. Where is the crime?"

The FIR is a deplorable act intended to suppress freedom of the media. The FIR must be withdrawn immediately.@narendramodi @PMOIndia @myogiadityanath @CMOfficeUP  P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) April 2, 2020

"The FIR is a deplorable act intended to suppress freedom of the media. The FIR must be withdrawn immediately," he said.

The FIR referred to a tweet by Varadarajan which said, "On the day the Tablighi Jamaat event was held, Adityanath insisted a large Ram Navami fair planned for Ayodhya from March 25 to April 2 would proceed as usual and that 'Lord Ram would protect devotees from the coronavirus'.

Later, the journalist tweeted, "I should clarify that it was Acharya Paramhans, Hindutva stalwart and head of the official Ayodhya temple trust, who said Ram would protect devotees from coronavirus, and not Adityanath, though he allowed a public event on 25/3 in defiance of the lockdown and took part himself."

In his statement, Varadarajan called the FIR "politically motivated".
[April 01, 2020] Points Technology Raised Multi-million Dollar Series A from K2VC

BEIJING, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Recently, Points Technology, a blockchain and AI startup announced multi-million US dollar worth Series A financing. The investment was made by K2 Venture Partners, a leading venture capital firm in China. Points technology will use the newly injected capital for continuous product research and development and further commercialization. Founded in 2017, Points Technology is a Series A startup backed by top VCs including K2VC, Cherubic Venture, Ceyuan & NestBio. The company also received strategic investment from China's leading credit tech company, China ChengXin Credit, which has decades of experience in serving China's major banks and insurance companies. Points Technology provides a high performance and configurable blockchain-based confidential computing framework. The platform enables governments, financial service firms and Internet companies to jointly develop machine learning model and perform analysis without exposing the original data to each other. Meanwhile, the platform leverages blockchain for data traceability and audits. Points Technology is a leader in the field of DLT & private AI with product deployment with a number of major financial institutions. The company also serves as a core member in global and national technical standard committees. In July 2019, Points Technology won the "Technology Pioneer Award" from the World Economic Forum, which was previously awarded to Google, Wikipedia, Palantir and Ripple back in their startup days. Sarah Zhang, Founder and CEO of Points Technology, received a Master degree in Business Administration from Harvard Business School and Master in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School of Government. Before starting Points Technology, she previously worked as senior product manager at Amazon and COO of Segway Robotics, leading teams to build and launch multiple AI & robotics products. The core team members of Points Technology graduated from Carnegie Mellon University, Tsinghua University, Peking University and other to universities. They have worked in Microsoft, Google, Amazon, CITIC Bank, China Merchants Bank and other world-renowned technology companies and financial institutions. The team has rich experiences in developing and commercializing cutting-edge technology.



With the rapid development of digital transformation, IoT, artificial intelligence, big data and cloud computing at a global scale, the amount of data generated is also growing at exponential rate. According to IDC, the total volume of global data will increase from 16.1zb in 2016 to 163zb (about 180 trillion GB) in 2025, with a compound growth rate of 26%. At the same time, with the digital infrastructure upgrades in different industries, the computing environment of data is becoming increasingly complex. In order to ensure that data can be obtained and used in a standard and secured way, many countries are accelerating the development of data security-related laws and regulations. For instance, the EU introduced the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018; China officially released regulations on the protection of network security level 2.0 this May, and Draft for Comment on the Data Security Management Measures and the Provisions for the Protection of Children's Personal Information Network were released in the same period. In June, the Draft for Comment of the Measures for the Evaluation of Outbound Security of Personal Information in China was also issued to public.

At the same time, on the enterprise side, due to the factors such as data security, trade secret protection and lack of unified data standards, various data owners cannot form an effective work flow, resulting in data silos that hinder data aggregation for greater value. Sarah Zhang, founder and CEO of Points Technology, believes that digital economy is the new driver for economic growth and data is becoming a new asset class. How to break the data silos and help data owners to reach full potential of data under the premise of protecting data privacy? This has become a new problem to solve. Currently, Points Technology assists different data owners to share data and models without exposing raw data to each other. This new generation of core technology and data collaboration paradigm has received great attention from the global industries. Points Confidential Computing is based on Trusted Execution Environment and other encryption technologies. By running joint computing in the chip-based trusted execution environment, the framework makes data usable but not visible to any party involved. This greatly improves data privacy, security and compliance. At the same time, the history and records of data sharing are documented by blockchain. In terms of use cases, large financial institutions can maximize data value without exposing original data. This framework can manage multiple data sources both inside and outside the bank in an open banking scenario. Points Technology helps large financial institutions build data collaboration alliance and integrate multiple data sources such as tax, logistics, and more. The data usage log can be traced and audited, while the data and model resources are protected by encryption algorithm and secure computing environment in the whole process. Points Technology has operations in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen while it is also looking to work with international clients and partners. Upon closing of this round of financing, Points Technology will continue invest into R&D while opening up its offerings to more clients in financial service sectors and beyond. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/points-technology-raised-multi-million-dollar-series-a-from-k2vc-301033794.html SOURCE Points Technology

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Actor Karisma Kapoor on Thursday announced that she, along with children, Samaira and Kiaan, has extended financial support to the PM CARES Fund and Maharashtra CM's Relief Fund.

The actor took to Instagram to share the update and also urged her followers and others to at least make a small contribution to help the government fight the coronavirus outbreak.

"Every life matters, which is why my children Samaira and Kiaan and I pledge our support to the PM CARES Fund and The Chief Minister's Relief Fund (Maharashtra). A small contribution can go a long way. Do your bit... for our country, for humanity," read a post by 'Dil To Pagal Hai' actor.

However, the amount of donation was not revealed in the post.

The 'Judwaa' actor has joined her sister Kareena Kapoor who, on Thursday, along with her husband Saif Ali Khan and son Taimur Ali Khan, pledged her support to the PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra CM's Relief Fund.

The sisters have joined celebrities like Akshay Kumar, Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, and Vicky Kaushal who have extended support to the PM CARES Fund as well.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

By Elnur Baghishov - Trend:

More than 2,875 people infected with the coronavirus (COVID 19) over the past day in Iran, said Kiyanush Jahanpur, spokesman for Iran's Ministry of Health and Medical Education, Trend reports citing Ministry.

According to Jahanpur, as many as 124 people have died from the coronavirus in the past 24 hours.

Jahanpur said that currently 3,956 people are in critical condition.

The official said that about 69 million people have been tested for coronavirus in Iran so far (April 2).

Iran is one of the countries heavily affected by the rapidly-spreading coronavirus. According to recent reports from the Iranian officials, over 50,400 people have been infected, 3,160 people have already died. Meanwhile, over 16,700 have reportedly recovered from the disease.

The country continues to apply strict measures to contain the further spread. Reportedly, the disease was brought to Iran by a businessman from Iran's Qom city, who went on a business trip to China, despite official warnings. The man died later from the disease.

The Islamic Republic only announced its first infections and deaths from the coronavirus on Feb. 19.
Coronavirus Chronicles 009  Alabama Department of Education

I am talking with schools to see how theyre responding in the wake of this global pandemic. I invite you to join me for the Coronavirus Chronicles, a series of 10-minute check-ins with educators all over.

Episode 009 is below. Thank you, Amanda Dykes, for sharing how the Alabama Department of Education is adapting to our new challenges and opportunities.

[Amanda wanted to be clear that shes not speaking for the entire State Department of Education! We are grateful for her willingness to share whats happening in her corner of the overall work]

If you and your school(s) would like to be featured in the Coronavirus Chronicles series, get in touch!

See the complete list of episodes, which also are available on the Coronavirus Chronicles podcast channel.

FYI, my co-author, Dean Shareski, has started a similar podcast, Whats Happening?, focused a little more on instructional issues than leadership. Check it out!
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Linkedin Riska Rahman, Made Anthony Iswara and Yunindita Prasidya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 16:01 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f3ef8c 1 Business staple-food,mask,hand-sanitizer,market,supermarket,retailer,consumer-behaviour,panic-buying,alfamart,Hero-Supermarket,foodhall,Aprindo,Agriculture-Ministry Free

Amanda, a 33-year-old creative consultant, has bought a month's worth of groceries in advance so she can stay home, as advised by the government, without having to worry about her familys basic needs.

I used to buy food supplies every one or two weeks. Now I buy one month's stock, said the mother of one. I bought three bags of 5 kilogram rice, whereas I normally only buy one bag, so I dont go back and forth shopping. Plus, now that we are staying home, we are using up more food.

Apart from rice, Amanda, who lives in South Jakarta, also stocks up on cooking oil, chicken, chili, vegetables, as well as hygiene products, more than ever. Now I shop extra for hygiene products, such as anti-bacterial soap. Normally I would buy any soap. I stock up extra on hand soap as well so it is available at all washing stations at home. Tissue, detergents, cleaning liquid  I buy more than normal.

Amandas story mirrors the shift in Indonesian consumers' behavior as markets across Indonesia see an uptick in demand for hygiene products, although staple food availability remains safe as people purchase supplies to last a longer period to follow the universal health advise of staying home.

Indonesia declared a public health emergency over COVID-19 on Tuesday, imposing large-scale social restrictions, as COVID-19 cases soared within a month from zero to 1,677, with 157 dead, the largest death toll in Southeast Asia and among the highest death rates in the world.

Publicly listed retailer PT Sumber Alfaria Trijaya  which operates 14,310 Alfamart stores across Indonesia  and PT Mitra Adiperkasa (MAP)  the operator of FoodHall  said the companies were having difficulty stocking up on certain items such as masks and hand sanitizer. However, both assured they had enough stock of primary items such as staple foods.

We think this will last for quite some time before getting back to normal as people are rushing to buy these items, Sumber Alfaria director S. Peter Suryadi said in a company statement. Alfamart stores are prepared for a lockdown scenario that could limit its business operations, he added.

Read also: Massive face mask, hand sanitizer shortage hit regions

We met with [staple needs] producers and suppliers a few days ago, and they are committed to producing their products at full speed for the market, MAP spokesperson Ratih Gianda told The Jakarta Post.

The Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) has called on vendors to limit purchases especially for products in shortage but highly needed, especially masks. Panic buying has hit supermarkets across Indonesia which could hurt stockpiles and inflate prices, with most purchases of masks, hygiene products and food.

Since early February consumer complaints have been flooding in, especially on masks, YLKI chairman Tulus Abadi said. The organization has reported the matter to the Trade Ministry and the National Police. The ministry has banned mask exports to ensure domestic supply and the police have been cracking down on hoarders and price-gouging shops to tackle the problem.

Indonesia Retailers Association (Aprindo) secretary-general Solihin told the Post that all of its members had enough supplies of staple food for the next few months leading up to the festive Ramadhan fasting month and Idul Fitri.

In anticipation of increased demand for staple foods during the festive period, Aprindo members decided to delay shipment of seasonal products such as crackers and syrups, which normally see a spike in demand during Ramadhan, and opted for staple foods instead.

Shipments of festive products will be sent out gradually by our suppliers because were prioritizing our warehouses to store staple foods first, said Solihin.

Read also: Indonesia not ready to impose lockdown, says Sri Mulyani

Agriculture Ministry data indicates that there is a large enough supply of basic commodities until Ramadhan, despite concerns over supply disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Rice supply is expected to be 8.35 million tons by May, while the figure stands at 263,851 tons for garlic, 584,709 tons for sugar and 68,904 tons for birds eye chili.

Agriculture observers, however, are skeptical about these figures. University of Lampung (Unila) agricultural economics professor Bustanul Arifin said peoples stockpiling behavior as a response to stricter social restriction combined with the real supply figure in the field would soon push up prices.

Dont play around with the staple food supply. Dont let it be empty, he warned.

Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS) researcher Felippa Ann Amanta also calls the data very optimistic, considering how COVID-19 has disrupted the agriculture sector. She added that the current large-scale restrictions could potentially disrupt logistics for distribution, threatening food availability.

If we dont control the coronavirus spread immediately, it is also possible to have labor shortages in the supply chain, which would then hamper food security, she said.

PT Hero Supermarket head of communications and government relations Diky Risbianto said the supermarket was running low on several staple food products due to unnecessarily large purchases from its customers. Hero operates around 445 stores across Indonesia, consisting of Giant markets, Hero, Guardian and Ikea.

Our team is working hard with our suppliers to fulfill our customers needs while also advising them to stay calm and not buy goods in huge amounts, said Diky.

Esther Samboh contributed to this story
As of April 1, the French side has 21 cases; 17 of those are residents and 5 are tourists who likely brought the virus with them. Some are already cured. Two died, one was an 81-year-old resident and the other had the virus but died in a scooter accident. Guadeloupe has 114 cases.

The Dutch side has 18 cases and 1 death, although there's been less testing on the Dutch side, as tests are scarce.

The Dutch side has constructed a tent extension to their hospital if needed.

On March 17 French side ordered all non-essential businesses closed and if driving, you needed a self-filled in a certificate stating the necessity. Dutch side followed suit a week later and initiated a curfew at 8 pm.
N etflix's gripping new docu-series How to Fix a Drug Scandal delves deep into one of the biggest justice scandals in the history of Massachusetts.

In four hour-long episodes, director Erin Lee Carr explores the downfall of Sonja Farak, a chemist who in 2013 was found to have been using the drugs that she was supposed to be testing at the US state's drug lab in Amherst.

Her actions eventually resulted in thousands of criminal convictions being overturned, costing the state millions in payouts and opening up major questions about the fragility of the justice system.

Here is everything you need to know about the new show...

Netflix's new limited series has the world gripped / Netflix

How was Farak caught?

Farak was arrested in January 2013 for stealing drugs from her workplace.

It subsequently emerged that she had had begun using meth, amphetamines, LSD, and other drugs while in the Massachusetts state lab, including from the control substances used for testing, and even the evidence itself.

She under the influence of drugs while at the laboratory for about nine years, admitting in the show to smocking crack several times a day and taking liquid meth to stay alert.

"I was smoking in the lab, I was smoking at home. I actually smoked in the evidence room," she says. "I was totally controlled by my addiction."

How long was she jailed for?

Farak was sentenced to 18 months in jail plus five years of probation. She was found to be under the influence when she took the stand during her trial.

Remarkably, it was the second such case to rock Massachusetts in less that a year - coming just months after Boston chemist Annie Dookhan was arrested for stealing drug samples and tampering with results.

Farak was sentenced to 18 months in jail plus five years probation / Netflix

What was the fallout of her case?

Farak and Dookhan's actions sent ripples through Massachusetts justice system.

Judges were pressed into overturning tens of thousands of drug convictions, with prosecutors also forced to dump reams of drug cases.

Farak's case also exposed instances of serious administrative oversight and, scandalous cover-ups from district attorneys' offices.

And where is she now?

Farak, who has a history of suffering with depression, was released from prison in 2015.

She has largely managed to avoid the spotlight in the years since.
Councilman Wesson and Good+Foundation Donate 200k Diapers to Families in Need

Despite the global COVID-19 pandemic, several community leaders gathered to collect and donate 200K diapers to families across Los Angeles during a time of great need.

Friday, March 26, 2020, L.A. City Council President Emeritus Herb Wesson, Jr. teamed up with the Good+Foundation to distribute a massive amount of diapers to families experiencing hardship due to COVID-19 shutdowns. Councilmember Wesson was joined by Council President Nury Martinez, Councilmember Curren Price and Good+Foundation Director of National Programs, Dr. Alan-Michael Graves to announce and distribute the diapers and wipes.

With supplies flying off the shelves at stores, The Good+Foundation reached out to Councilmember Wesson to partner on the project. Were extremely proud to be partnering with the entire City Council, but specifically District 10, Dr. Graves stated. Im happy and its taken two days, but weve come up with a system thats not only safe but also a strong way to make sure that these families get the things that they need.

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The partnership that weve created today with the City Council; we hope that it will continue and spread across the county, Dr. Graves added.

There are moments like this, the biggest public health-crisis that weve ever gone through. Moments like this that bring out the worst in people, but it also brings out the best in people, Councilmember Wesson stated. During times like this, you want to do everything and anything that you can to help people. If we can help a young mother stay away from the store by delivering diapers to them to get through the next few days, we want to do that.

The four practiced social distance, standing six feet away from each other during the very small press gathering. Together, they greeted trucks and vans to fill with supplies to go out into Los Angeles homes. Councilmember Wesson continued, Im so proud to stand here today, with individuals that will do whatever they can to try to make life easier for the people that we represent.

The most important thing that we want to show here is that we want to inspire other people to give. If youre a business owner, and youve got hand sanitizers, give it to us, Councilmember Wesson said as they intend to continue their philanthropic efforts. Whenever [Dr. Graves] gets materials, were going to give him the infrastructure to distribute it.

Councilmember also asked the City Council President Nury Martinez, to speak on behalf of Los Angeles, There is no doubt about it, we will come together and get through this crisis, but when this crisis is over, the people who that will take the hardest blow are going to be the working poor. The family that can barely afford their rent. The families that can barely afford groceries once a week. The family that can barely afford diapers for their children are going to be the folks who are going to suffer the most, She said

This is exactly how we become better people during a crisis. This too shall pass, but we have to remember we have to step up collectively as a community and as a city to ensure that children and families are being taken care of.

Councilman Price also added thanks and gratitude to Dr. Graves and the entire operation. The thing that my colleagues and I have in common is that we all represent the areas where there are pockets of poor, pockets of poverty and pockets of need. So, to be able to coordinate and collaborate with nonprofit organizations in our communities to get these products out is really going to be a blessing.

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Closing out the announcement, he continued, We have an opportunity to show how strong we are. How resilient we are and how we can come together. And thats what were doing today.
A total of 190 people from Himachal, who attended an Islamic discourse at a Nizamuddin mosque in New Delhi along with thousands others including hundreds of foreigners, many of them suspected corona-positive, last month have been traced and quarantined in the state, said police chief on Thursday.

HP Director General of Police Sitaram Mardi also appealed to Muslims not to visit mosques to offer namaz and do it at their homes.

Mardi said a total of 190 people who returned to the state after attending the Tablighi Jamaat meet in Nizamuddin have been traced so far and quarantined.

A total of 167 such people were traced and quarantined in the state earlier on Wednesday.

The DGP said they were identified and quarantined in different districts of the state.

The highest number of 73 people were quarantined in Baddi, followed by 35 each in Una and Sirmaur, 23 in Shimla, 10 each in Kangra and Chamba and four in Mandi.

Besides seventeen persons from HP who attended the congregation have been quarantined in Delhi itself.

The DGP urged the Muslims to hold Friday prayers in their homes instead of in mosques.

"It is our fundamental duty under Article 51 (a) (h) of our Constitution to develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform," he said.

The DGP added that the 11 Tablighi Jamaat members against whom a first information report was registered at Nerwa police station in Shimla district on Wednesday had not attended the congregation at Nizamuddin.

They had come from Misarwala village located in Paonta Sahib Tehsil of Sirmaur district, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In the early hours of April 2, 2016, the Azerbaijani side launched a large-scale offensive against the Artsakh Republic, and using almost all possible types of military equipment in its arsenal.

A ceasefire was established on April 5 at around noon.

According to the final data, 110 soldiers and volunteers were killed and 121 others were injured from the Armenian side as a result of these military actions.

As for Azerbaijan's losses, the country's ministry of defense released a false report of 31 casualties, whereas OSTKRAFT analytical center quoted sources at the Azerbaijani General Staff and reported that the actual casualties were around 800.

In addition to the large manpower, the Azerbaijani army also lost a considerable amount of military equipment.

During four days of intense fighting, however, the Azerbaijani army occupied 19 positions, or about 500 hectares.
In the midst of the coronavirus market crash of 2020, oil stocks have cratered. Crude oil prices have fallen almost 70% since early January. At recent prices, both Brent and West Texas futures haven't been this low in 20 years. Simply put, the 2020 oil crash is unprecedented in both its swiftness and severity.

But oil is still the black blood that flows in the veins of the global economy. Even as renewable energy supplants gasoline, diesel, and other refined hydrocarbons, they will remain important fuels to power transportation and generate electricity for many years to come.

So, with oil prices at record lows, and essentially every stock in the oil and gas sector now trading at massive discounts to their prices only a couple of months ago, should investors be buying? This is the very moment when we should heed Warren Buffett's advice to be greedy when others are fearful, right? After all, some of the most diversified and best-known oil companies have seen their stocks get crushed over the past couple of months. Shares of Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS.A)(NYSE:RDS.B), ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM), and Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) have lost between 40% and 56% of their value.

There will undoubtedly be some oil stocks that turn out to be massive winners from recent prices, and companies like these three should have the balance-sheet strength to ride out even the worst of it. Eventually, oil prices will rise, and the best-capitalized, best-run companies will reward investors who buy during this terrible downturn.

But there will also be a lot of oil companies that don't make it, and tens of billions of dollars in investor wealth will evaporate. As much as oil will remain relevant for years to come, there are factors at play right now that the average investor may overlook. And this could result in permanent losses that you could avoid.

A double-edged sword

Oil prices aren't just falling on global coronavirus fears and the risk of recession. Those would ordinarily be enough reason for oil prices to fall, as global oil demand is set to decline sharply in the weeks and months ahead. But the situation is far, far worse in the global oil market than just a coming massive recession that's set to send oil demand down by some of the biggest declines in history.

Over the past several weeks, Saudi Arabia has gone from a market-stabilizing force, having cut oil output multiple times over the past several years, to launching an all-out effort to upend the global oil market. Since the early March announcement that it would crank up oil output as soon as the current OPEC+ production deal expires on April 1, Saudi Arabia has been joined by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in boosting output. And it added more fuel to the fire with plans to use more natural gas to further free up oil to export.

Add it all up, and Saudi Arabia says it will export more than 10 million barrels per day in April, a 43% increase from January and February. And it plans to pour another 600,000 barrels on top of that in May.

So we are headed toward a record collapse in oil demand that adds up to all of Russia's and Saudi Arabia's average production combined. And instead of reducing production to stabilize the market, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Russia are increasing their ultra-cheap oil production to drown American shale out of the market.

The biggest immediate problem isn't price

One of the biggest problems oil producers are already starting to face is a lack of demand coupled with a lack of storage. As much as you'd think buyers would be moving quickly to purchase as much crude as possible for $20 per barrel, demand has already fallen so sharply that pipeline and storage facility operators are running out of places to put what they are getting.

As my Motley Fool colleague Matt DiLallo pointed out in the article linked above, Plains All American Pipeline and Enterprise Products Partners have started asking oil producers that have contracts with them to provide proof that the oil they are sending into their pipelines has a buyer already lined up.

As a result, oil producers could be facing an even bigger problem. Crashing demand and overflowing storage facilities could force some producers to reduce the output of existing wells, further cutting off cash flows from wells they have already sunk cash into.

In other words, we could see many of the most cash-strapped oil producers face a worst-case scenario of cratering oil prices and collapsing demand (paired with record recent production) that's keeping them from selling oil they've already spent much of their cash to bring on line.

The first shoe just dropped

Before I could even finish writing this article, the first casualty emerged. Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday, having reached a deal with key holders of much of its senior and convertible debt. This deal, if approved by bankruptcy courts, would result in common shareholders retaining only 3% of the company, with the remaining equity being exchanged for approximately $2.2 billion of the company's debt. In other words, common investors will lose 97% of their investment, while Whiting will be able to emerge from bankruptcy with substantially less debt.

Chesapeake Energy (OTC:CHKA.Q) is another producer that may already have one foot in the grave. The company hired lawyers from a firm with expertise in bankruptcy and restructuring in mid-March. Oil prices have fallen 21% since.

It won't be the last

It's almost a certainty that Whiting will prove to be only one of many independent oil producers to go bankrupt in the next few months. Some will be able to follow its model and reach agreements to remain a going business, while others will simply have to cease operations and have their assets liquidated.

In either case, rest assured that shareholders will be lucky to get anything more than the 3% of their original stake that Whiting's common investors could end up with.

It's also not a stretch to expect we will see some of the typically "safer" oil investments (pipelines) be at risk as well. After all, these companies face a painful realty of falling demand on one end of their pipelines, and insolvent producers on the other end. If you make a living moving oil, a worst-case environment of pipelines full of oil you can't get rid of, and producers who can't pay you to ship it, could upend even this typically safe subsector of the oil industry.

Some of the financially weakest midstreamers have already cut dividends, and another half-dozen seem destined to follow. A spate of bankruptcies in the producer space could put significant pressure on any one of these, particularly if they have large exposure to one or just a few of the weakest oil producers.

What's an investor to do? Step lightly or just shop in another aisle for now

The oil and gas industry is in a painfully dangerous place right now. Saudi Arabia and some of its cohorts have some of the planet's cheapest oil to produce, and it seems like that country is firmly committed to drowning out a large portion of U.S. shale production. It's really an unsurprising turn of events, considering that Saudi Arabia, along with Russia, has taken the brunt of global production cuts in recent years to prop up prices while the U.S. has issued forth a growing gusher of new oil:

Even if Saudi Arabia were to reverse course from its plan to reestablish the world order in crude oil, the horse is already out of the barn. Oil markets are oversaturated, and that's not going to change overnight. This downturn is going to be painful and prolonged, barring massive cuts by all of the world's major oil producers. And the cards read like the only cuts we will see anytime soon will be from U.S. producers that don't have any choice.

For that reason, investors would do well to step very carefully in the oil patch. The pure plays are the most at-risk, particularly oil producers in the short term, but also the companies they contract to do the drilling or other fieldwork, or the ones that sell materials like frack sand, drilling pipes, and other components.

How many dominoes we see fall depends on a lot of factors, but right now, the best tack is probably one of observation. After all, as much as oil stocks have cratered, there are plenty of other bargains to be had, and most with far less risk than the oil stocks.

If you're dead-set on investing in the oil patch right now, look to the diversified giants of the industry, including Shell and Phillips 66, with their strong balance sheets and diverse operations that should continue generating cash flows during the downturn. You just have to be willing to accept that it could get really ugly before it gets better, and even these best-of-breed oil stocks could face very tough times ahead.
A European-renowned show jumping horse who escaped a stud farm was saved from drowning after it got stuck in a river.

Crown's Ace of Pearl, a 60,000 stallion, jumped over a fence before falling 6ft into the River Lugg in Herefordshire.

The rare cremello stallion, a breed of horse which has two copies of the 'creme' gene, was rescued by firefighters yesterday morning.

After swimming upstream, Ace became stuck in the river bed mud when trying to get out the river.

A 60,000 show jumping horse was saved from drowning in the River Lugg in Herefordshire following a freak accident which saw the animal escape from a stud farm

The horse, named Crown's Ace of Pearl, was in the river for 90 minutes before being rescued

Passers-by helped to keep his head above water while waiting for officers from Hereford and Worcestershire Fire and Rescue Service to arrive.

Ace was stuck in the water for 90 minutes in total and owner Ben Thomas-Cook was worried the horse would suffer hypothermia.

Show jumper Mr Thomas-Cook said: 'Times are different as we all know right now but what happened with Ace is every horse owner's nightmare.

'Ace is not only our special stallion but he is part of our family and he means the world to all of us at the stud. He really is our number one boy.

'Everyone including passers-by all worked together to do their bit in a bid to try and get him out alive.

'They were fantastic and we cannot thank them enough for their quick thinking in what was an extremely difficult situation to get him out of.'

The rare cremello stallion, a breed of horse which has two copies of the 'creme' gene, is considered to be one of the best show jumping horses across Europe

Firefighters dragged Ace to safety with pure manpower as they were unable to use machinery because of the position he was in.

Vets gave him a brief examination and he is expected to make a full recovery despite suffering minor cuts and bruises.

Ace has jumped and won international classes in Ireland and UK. As a four-year-old he was the dressage champion in Ireland in 2010.
BRIDGEPORT  Mayor Joseph Ganim Thursday called for the nation to shut down as the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. continues into its fourth week.

These are going to be some of the worst weeks coming up, the mayor said referring to an expected spike in COVID-19 infections because of the citys closeness to Manhattan.

He called for a stronger safe at home policy to be enacted nationally, now, not in two weeks, not after Easter, not next month, not after more people die, not after more communities are affected, not after the remains of an economic impact becomes beyond the point that we are able to recover from in a reasonable period of time. That action needs to take place now, Ganim told listeners Thursday during his daily 12:30 p.m. Town Hall Live meeting on the citys Facebook site.

The mayor, who since Wednesday has done his daily updates in mask and gloves, said, I think thats the call that needs to be echoed and if it has to come from local leaders, from mayors, Ill be one of the first to say thats what we need across the country, he said.

The mayor offered no specifics on what should or shouldnt be closed across the country but said the current patchwork of actions being taken could be devastating.

People have to understand that they need to minimize their actions... go to the grocery store, pick up your take-out from restaurants but then go home and hunker down, Ganim advised. People need to understand that its important to stay at home and shelter in place for now.

Bridgeports mayor was not the only local leader calling for stricter measures in keeping people safe.

Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo, in speaking with local media on Thursday afternoon, said Ganim was speaking from the heart.

Thats not a foreign thought at this point, Camillo said. Its been discussed by almost everybody. I dont know if were there yet, but lets look at it this way: If we had shut down for two weeks as a nation two weeks ago, how much further along would we be in flattening the curve?

Ganim also said said the city would be passing out 2,000 masks with the free school meals as early as this week, and advised residents to start wearing masks, scarves or bandanas when they were out in public.

If it hasnt hit or reached you or impacted your life yet, it will in some way, some form, Ganim said.

Ganim urged religious congregations and families to avoid get-togethers during the upcoming Holy Days: Ramadan, Palm Sunday, Passover, Good Friday and Easter. Most houses of worship are offering virtual gatherings or services that he said people should use.

The mayor also urged anyone who feels they need to be tested and is denied by their doctors to contact his office.

If you think you need to be tested and are having a problem, I want to hear from you, he said. Testing is important.

He added that a nurse has been assigned to the police departments roll call to take each officers temperature. He said a fever is a good gauge of whether theres an infection.

Ganim told listeners he took proactive steps to close down city parks and playgrounds to prevent gatherings. He said basketball courts have been chained shut and certain parks have strategically placed barricades.

I was told about a gathering in Seaside Park yesterday so I went out, the mayor said. I didnt see a gathering but I did see people walking and keeping their social distance. Thats okay.

As of Thursday noon, Ganim said Bridgeport had 105 confirmed cases, less than Stamfords 437, Norwalks 315, New Havens 135 and Westports 122.

The mayor said Bridgeport Hospital has 501 total beds and St. Vincents has 473 total beds, and that both hospitals were about 50 percent of capacity with current patients.
NHS Wales Chief Executive discusses ethical decision making during these very difficult circumstances

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Apr 2nd, 2020

The Chief Executive of NHS Wales has stated the importance of understanding what your own thoughts and needs are, as well as talking to your family about how they would wish the health service to respond on behalf of yourself and your family members.

On Tuesday we put forward two questions to the Health Minister, the first revolving around how treatment may or may not be prioritised , with our second question being answered. Due to that we reasked the question, also noting that there had since been publication of a letter sent to some residents in Maesteg asking them to sign a do not resuscitate form. The letter referred to a range of conditions and said those with them would certainly will not be offered a ventilator bed. Cwm Taf health board apologised for the letter, and also noted the recommendation that vulnerable patients completed such forms was not a health board requirement.

Today we asked Andrew Goodall , Chief Executive of NHS Wales, A surgery in Maesteg wrote to patients with significant life-limiting illnesses noting possible limited treatment if they had Covid-19. Is there a COVID-19 ethical decision making framework for Wales, and does it rule out defined age based decisions on care, and does it ensure that those with learning disabilities are not disadvantaged ?

The Q&A is on the below video at 13 minutes in.

Mr Goodall paraphrased the question as wanting to know about concerns about letters and information that was passed to patients at the Maesteg surgery earlier this week, and about decision making around patients.

Mr Goodall answered,  I just wanted to say in response to that, that I was really concerned to see the nature of the correspondence that happened, and I wouldnt wish to defend at all the manner in which that was done. I know the practice itself has apologised for that communication. It certainly wasnt under any guidance from either the Health Board locally or from a Welsh Government perspective.

I think what the coronavirus that makes us all reflect on however, is the importance of being able to talk to our families about what is happening around us at this stage and understanding what our own thoughts and needs are, as we all go through these very difficult circumstances.

I hope that as were able to focus on ethical decision making and the nature of the demand into our system over the course of the next few weeks, that we will have people whove been able to think through their concerns and actually how they would wish us to respond on behalf of themselves and their families.

The full briefing and Q&A sessions can be viewed below
The expedition ship had departed Australia for the Antarctic on March 13

The Greg Mortimer cruise ship is still stranded off the coast of Montevideo

An Australian man fighting for life with coronavirus has been filmed leaping on to a rescue boat from a cruise ship stranded off the coast of Montevideo in Uruguay.

The passenger, in his 60s, had been stuck on the Greg Mortimer since March 23 when the ship was refused entry to Uruguay due to COVID-19 fears.

He fell gravely ill on board and was evacuated on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, cruise operator Aurora Expeditions confirmed the Australian tested positive to the deadly bug - the first confirmed case from the vessel.

Rowena Hamilton, a fellow Australian passenger, on Tuesday captured dramatic footage of Dr Clifford leaping on to a rescue boat.

The video, filmed from Ms Hamilton's cabin balcony, showed the rescue boat pulling up alongside the vessel with all crew on board dressed in personal protective equipment.

The crew members stretched their arms out to the man, who was also dressed in PPE clothing.

The crew members of the rescue boat stretched their arms out to the man, who leaped over a metre-wide gap over the ocean onto the boat

At least nine people onboard the expedition vessel are believed to have become ill with COVID-19 symptoms, including the ship's doctor

He then leapt over a metre-wide gap over the ocean on to the rescue boat.

He is now in a critical condition at a private British Hospital in Montevideo, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Passengers said they believed the man had pneumonia.

There are 90 passengers still trapped on the cruise ship, which had departed Australia for the Antarctic on March 13.

Rowena Hamilton (right), a fellow Australian passenger, captured dramatic footage of Dr Clifford leaping for his life onto a rescue boat from her cabin's balcony

At least nine people onboard the expedition vessel are believed to have become ill with COVID-19 symptoms, including the ship's doctor.

Passenger Dr John Clifford, 71, who is an orthopedic surgeon from NSW that suffers from asthma, was asked to carry out COVID-19 tests on his fellow passengers after the on board doctor fell ill.

'One of the two doctors employed onboard for that purpose is too ill to do his duties and the other doctor has requested help from the passengers,' Dr Clifford's wife Margaret Zacharin told Daily Mail Australia.

Passenger Dr John Clifford (pictured), 71, who is an orthopedic surgeon from NSW that suffers from asthma, had been asked to carry out COVID-19 tests on his fellow passengers after the ship's doctor became ill

Prof Zacharin said she cannot understand why her husband was asked to carry out the tests when Aurora Expeditions claims to have two expedition doctors on the vessel.

The cruise operator said it is in the process of organising a back-up medic.

In a letter to passengers, Aurora said it escalated its request to the Uruguay Ministry of Health 'to allow us to bring the Greg Mortimer dockside and to urgently map a path to get you on the path to disembarkation and back to your home countries'.

'If that's the case, I'm unsure why the doctor working is requesting passengers to help,' she said.

Prof Zacharin said many of the passengers onboard the trapped vessel were Australian doctors.

'He's 71 years of age, he's an orthopedic surgeon - he deals with bones, not respiratory illness and he has asthma himself. The mortality rate for 70-80 years olds is up to 20 per cent,' she said.

'What do you think is going to happen if he starts dealing with sick patients? But it is very foolish to be looking at that rather than looking at urgent evacuation of that ship.'

Prof Zacharin said she believed the Uruguayan government had provided a berth for the ship but would not let it dock until the ship's doctor provided a report.

'Well he's too sick to write it,' she said.

At least nine people onboard the expedition vessel are believed to have become ill with COVID-19 symptoms, including the ship's doctor

Passengers have begged the Australian Government to bring them home after the ship was banned from docking due to the risk of spreading coronavirus.

On Wednesday, passengers of the Greg Mortimer were forced to watch from the isolation of their cabins as a charter flight they were blocked from joining lifted into the sky to repatriate 134 Australians.

It remains unclear how long they will have to wait before they too are rescued.

'There isn't another charter flight being organised at this moment,' Prof Zacharin said.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

The family has been in contact with everyone the opposition to the Deputy Prime Minister to try and secure safe passage for the passengers off the doomed ship.

'It needs to be everywhere,' Prof Zacharin said.

'It is personally unsafe and I'll certainly go to bat for my family, but it's also very foolish to be putting what is almost certainly a whole ship with COVID-positive - just like every other cruise or small ship - (together).

'You stick people in a Petri dish and they'll all get the infection. If they went home now, most of them would have little or no illness.'

Prof Zacharin's daughter Vanessa Clifford, who is an infectious disease doctor herself, said her father had remained composed despite the looming threat.

Her father is able to communicate with loved ones about once a day via WhatsApp.

'He's reasonably calm and he's in a room with another anesthetist from Western Australia and they both seem to be managing okay, but obviously they're stressed by the idea of having to do medical work when they're in a high-risk age group,' she said.

Hundreds of Australians remain stranded on cruise ships across the globe, which are being monitored by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

When the Morrison government announced a 30-day ban on the arrival of ships on March 15, at least 37 were in Australian waters and 90,000 passengers remained at sea worldwide.
Furious customers have slammed Woolworths for its $80 'essentials' box, which doesn't even include bread or eggs, with some calling it a 'rip off'.

The entire contents of the box, which is delivered to customers' doors to help them get everyday items during the coronavirus pandemic, would cost a shopper $66.93 if the items were purchased individually.

Shoppers said you 'couldn't even make a meal' from the box, which doesn't have a single piece of fresh fruit, vegetables or any meat.

Instead, customers get a single bar of soap - worth 48 cents - and a solitary can of baked beans, which sell for $1.55.

Crackers are included, worth $2, but no cheese, butter or even bread.

A picture of the Woolworths Basics Box (pictured) posted on Facebook by a disgruntled customer, who said it was 'absolutely ridiculous'

One commenter said she felt sorry for older people who bought the box, saying she thought they were being 'ripped off'

Posting a picture of the box on Facebook, a woman called it 'absolutely ridiculous', while others worried elderly and vulnerable customers.

'This is so sad,' one woman wrote. 'Think of all the elderly ordering these boxes and getting ripped off'.

'Can't even make a meal out of it,' another shopper commented, while others called it 'overpriced', 'horrid' and 'disgusting'.

When Daily Mail Australia totted up the cost of the items in a box, it came to just $66.93, based on the items delivered to an example customer and the current prices listed on Woolworths' website.

Many potential customers were outraged by the box's content, calling it 'overpriced' and questioning its lacklustre contents

Two more commenters called it 'disgusting' and accused Woolworths of making it too expensive

This may vary, Woolworths explained, based on which specific brands of items are delivered to customers, as this will change store-to-store.

It also insisted that it would be making 'no profit' from the box, and had developed it to 'meet an essential community need' - calling it a 'good value offer'.

The box was launched earlier this week at Woolworths stores in New South Wales, Victoria and Australian Capital Territory.

Other shoppers shared pictures of the first of two boxes of Woolworths' Basics Box, showing essentials such as toilet paper, milk and oats

The rest of the shopper's box is pictured, showing some Weet-Bix and tins of tomato soup. Brands and types of product will vary according to the store's stock level

The $80 price includes contactless doorstep delivery by Australia Post, with Woolworths claiming it won't be making a profit from the service.

Woolworths has been offering priority assistance home deliveries since March 13, to help the elderly, those with disabilities, and those in mandatory isolation.

A spokesman for Woolworth's said: 'The price includes delivery to the door and covers the costs associated with the picking, packing and transport of goods.

'By streamlining the mix of products and partnering with Australia Post and DHL, we're able to get more food to more vulnerable customers much faster.

Another customer questioned its contents, surprised that it didn't include a single loaf of bread

More shoppers called the box 'a rip off' and said it wasn't good value for money, despite its being delivered to a customer's door

'While it's a far cry from a fully customised home delivery, it's a good value offer covering the basics.

We continue to work hard behind the scenes to ramp up our home delivery capacity for our Priority Assist customers.'

It comes after the government urged Australians over the age of 70 to stay at home for their own protection as the nation's coronavirus tally reaches more than 5,000 cases, with 24 deaths.

Since Australia's first case on January 25, panic-buyers have stockpiled essential goods in supermarkets across the country, leaving shelves bare.

An unprecedented demand for pasta, rice and mince meat has left supermarket shelves bare across the country, including at this Coles in Sydney's Macquarie Park

Empty shelves at a Bondi Junction Woolworths store in Sydney on March 20 (pictured)

Many worried they would not have enough household staples - particularly toilet paper - to see out two weeks in self-isolation if they were to develop symptoms.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison begged people to stop stockpiling, calling the behaviour 'un-Australian'.

Supermarkets were forced to impose purchase limits limited purchases on toilet paper, hand sanitiser and various food items as the pandemic prompted panic buying in recent weeks.

The prime minister said the government was already in the process of making it illegal to buy large quantities of certain supplies and then export them overseas.
Safety Warranty prevails

US Supreme Court rules that owners can rely on absolute warranty in frequently used safe berth clauses.

BIMCO, INTERCARGO and INTERTANKO welcome the ruling by the highest court in the United States on 30 March 2020 concluding that the plain meaning of the safe-berth clause in the Athos I dispute includes an unambiguous warranty of safety. The US Supreme Court has made a sound and robust decision consistent with the shipping industrys long held understanding of risk allocation in safe port and safe berth clauses. A different result would have compromised the essential clarity and certainty provided by standard charter parties on which our industry depends, said Sren Larsen, Deputy Secretary General of BIMCO. Michele White, General Counsel at INTERTANKO added: This has been a remarkable case that INTERTANKO has charted throughout, supporting the Athos I owners in their lengthy legal journey. The US Supreme Court has given us a clear ruling that supports the industry view. A contractual unconditional safe port warranty is just that  no contest. No amount of due diligence from charterers can change that. Background and legacy The Athos I case raises an important issue for the industry, since the verdict establishes who takes the responsibility for the safety of a visiting ship to a berth. Shipowners should be able to rely on those conversant with local conditions in ports, including charterers who provide contractual warranties of safety. This is particularly so where there is a threat of pollution as vessels approach their loading or discharge place. At the heart of the dispute is the following safe berth clause under the widely used ASBATANKVOY charterparty form: the vessel shall load and discharge at any safe place or wharf which shall be designated and procured by the Charterer, provided the Vessel can proceed thereto, lie at, and depart therefrom always safely afloat, any lighterage being at the expense, risk and peril of the Charterer. This is commonly understood to be an absolute warranty. Similar provisions appear in other forms used in the dry bulk trades, including the NYPE form, so this issue goes beyond the tanker trade. With that in mind, INTERTANKO, BIMCO and INTERCARGO filed an Amicus Curiae brief in the Supreme Court, following on from a similar brief filed by the industry at the Appellate Court in 2011. The purpose of having standard industry forms is to create certainty for owners and charterers alike. The courts ruling today relies heavily on the parties having selected a safe berth clause that was based on a standard industry form contract. Just as important, while the Supreme Court recognised that the ASBA safe berth clause in Athos I is warranty, it provided a silver lining for future charterer concerns. It referenced a charterer-friendly selection of a berth clause found in the INTERTANKVOY form which specifies that [c]harterers shall exercise due diligence to ascertain that any places to which they order the vessel are safe for the vessel and that she will lie there always afloat. For our members worldwide, the Supreme Courts statement that the majority ruling interpretation provides a clear background rule for the maritime industry to contract against, is crucial for the industry. The purpose of the Associations joint Amicus Brief was to support certainty and clarity on safe berth and safe port issues. Members can now revisit agreed contracts or enter into new contracts with more certainty than they had before this landmark verdict.








U.S. Navy ships are reportedly heading towards Venezuela as the administration beefed-up counter-narcotics operations after a drug indictment against Nicolas Maduro.

President Donald Trump made the announcement on Wednesday at the start of his daily press briefing on the COVID-19 pandemic.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper said the South American country is now suffering from Maduro's criminal control over the nation.

The goal, Esper said, is to double the counter-narcotics capacity in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific---a goal supported by 22 partner nations.

The mission has been on the table for months. It took a greater urgency after Venezuela's socialist leader, along with members of his inner circle, were accused of leading a narcoterrorist conspiracy. The group allegedly smuggled more than 250 metric tons of cocaine into the United States.

Jorge Rodriguez, Maduro's communications minister, hit back at the claim. He said the United States' cocaine supply mostly comes from Colombia, a known US ally.

Maduro also blasted the Trump administration's $15 million rewards for his arrest. He claims the government only aims to take control of Venezuela's vast oil reserve.

The Trump administration recently proposed to lift sanctions on the country if current-Venezuelan President Maduro and his opponent, Juan Guaido, step back and allow an interim government made up of five members to run the country.

Under the proposed framework, political prisoners will be released and foreign forces with be forced to leave the country. The council would be made up of four members chosen by the opposition and Maduro, with the last member chosen by the chosen four.

Should the democratic transition framework push through, the United States will lift sanctions placed on Venezuela's oil business.

The Trump administration imposed sanctions against seven Venezuelan politicians on January 13, 2020. The sanctions froze any U.S. assets owned by the seven lawmakers and effectively preventing them from engaging in business transactions with companies located in the United States.

In 2019, President Trump signed an executive order that prevented the government of Venezuela from transferring, paying, exporting and withdrawing from its properties and interests in the United States.

The proposal came after Maduro's regime failed to properly prepare and address the coronavirus crisis currently sweeping across the globe.

Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, said the plan is designed to help the Venezuelan people find a solution to the manmade crisis in the country---including fixing its crippled health system to ensure Venezuela's full recovery.

The recent military operation is one of the largest since the 1989 invasion of Panama where the United States removed General Manuel Noriega from power and brought him to the country to face drug-smuggling and money-laundering charges.

"Operation Just Cause," which was ordered by former President George H. Bush, deployed more than 9,000 US soldiers to join the U.S. military personnel in Panama which was 12,000 strong. The operation involved different military assets like Navy warships and on-ground special forces.

Catch up on the latest US news here:
A Frenchman (L) and other Covid-19 patients pose with doctors and nurses at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases in Hanoi as they are discharged, April 2, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy.

The National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanoi on Thursday helped raise the number of patients cured of the novel coronavirus in Vietnam to 75.

Each of the 11 discharged had tested negative two to four times, meeting the Ministry of Healths requirement to be released, said Pham Ngoc Thach, the hospital director.

The discharged were previously numbered as patients 19, 63, 76, 78, 107, 129, 131, 132, 138, 179 and 198.

Of them, "Patient 19" is the personal chauffeur of "Patient 17" Nguyen Hong Nhung, the first infection confirmed in Hanoi who was discharged from the same hospital on Monday.

"Patient 107" is the daughter of an infected nurse at Hanois Bach Mai Hospital, now the nations largest Covid-19 hotspot after at least 40 patients were traced back to it.

"Patient 198" is a staff member in Bach Mais canteen.

The rest are those coming from abroad, one Frenchman and Vietnamese returning home.

The Frenchman Davios Claude, 56, was touring Vietnam when he heard about the Covid-19 developments and went to a medical center for check-up himself.

"I was so lucky, I was saved by Vietnamese doctors," Claude said upon leaving the hospital.

"I thank them a lot. I feel so grateful for the devotion of Vietnamese doctors and people."

Doctor Thach said 80 percent of this new batch had suffered damage to their lungs when admitted to hospital, which required stronger methods of treatment.

He said the time of treatment and recovery would depend on the health of each patient. Those having no chronic diseases and stable health would recover sooner.

"Patient 19," for example, needed almost a month of treatment while "Patient 198" recovered in several days.

All 11 patients will be monitored for at least 14 more days.

On Monday, the hospital discharged 27 Covid-19 patients, marking the largest batch of released at one time since the epidemic broke out in Vietnam in late January.

Vietnam now has 222 Covid-19 infections, including 147 active cases.

To date, the Covid-19 pandemic has killed over 47,200 people as it spread to 203 countries and territories.
First complete German shepherd DNA offers new tool to fight disease

Scientists have mapped the genome of the German shepherd, one of the world's most popular canine breeds, after using a blood sample from 'Nala,' a healthy five-year-old German shepherd living in Sydney.

In a paper published today in respected 'big data' journal GigaScience, a global team of researchers from institutions including UNSW Sydney detailed the mammoth task of unravelling the 38 pairs of dog chromosomes to decode the 19,000 genes and 2.8 billion base pairs of DNA, using advanced genetic sequencing technology.

The new genome not only provides science with a more complete biological snapshot of the dog species (Canis lupus familiaris) in general, but also offers a reference for future studies of the typical diseases that afflict this much-loved breed.

Popular choice

UNSW Science's Professor Bill Ballard, an evolutionary biologist who sequenced the genome of the Australian dingo in 2017, says German shepherds are popular choices in the home and the workplace because of their natural intelligence, balanced temperament and protective nature. But after more than a century of breeding for desired physical characteristics, they are particularly vulnerable to genetic diseases.

"One of the most common health problems affecting German shepherds is canine hip dysplasia, which is a painful condition that can restrict their mobility," says Professor Ballard.

"Because German shepherds make such good working dogs, there has been a lot of money spent looking into the causes and predictors of this problem. When working dogs - such as those trained to work with police or to help people with disabilities - end up getting hip dysplasia, then that's a lot of lost time and money that has gone into the training of that dog.

"Now that we have the genome, we can determine much earlier in life whether the dog is likely to develop the condition. And over time, it will enable us to develop a breeding program to reduce hip dysplasia in future generations."

Top dog

Nala, who was described in the paper as "an easy going and approachable 5.5 year old," was selected because she was free of all known genetic diseases, including no sign of hip dysplasia. She was located by well-known TV and radio vet Dr Robert Zammit - credited as an author of this paper - who Professor Ballard says has amassed X-rays and blood samples of more than 600 German shepherds.

"Now we'll be able to look at those hip x-rays and all the DNA of those dogs and compare them back to this healthy reference female," Professor Ballard says.

Nala isn't the first domestic dog to provide a sample for the mapping of the dog genome. In 2003 a poodle called Shadow provided a sample that resulted in a genome that was 80 per cent complete, followed two years later by the first complete mapping of the genome of 'Tasha' the Boxer.

Gene machines

But in the decade and a half since, technology has vastly improved to the point that the number of gaps - or regions of DNA bases that are unreadable - has fallen dramatically, making the mapping of Nala's genes the most complete yet.

"The biggest difference between the mapping today and in 2005 is that we now use long read sequencing," says Professor Ballard.

"The Boxer's genome was put together with 'Sanger' sequencing, which can read about 1000 bases in length at a time, while the technology that is available today - Next Generation sequencing - can read up to 15,000 bases.

"What this means is if you've got a region of genes that is duplicated and running more than 1000 bases, Sanger sequencing will not be able to tell you which part of the genes that particular sequence comes from. So whereas there were about 23,000 gaps in Sanger's Boxer genome, the Next Gen sequencer had just over 300."

Bred for success

The German shepherd genome is also an advance on 2005's Boxer genome because of the breed itself. As Boxers are more specialised, with more inbreeding in their genetic history, the German shepherd's genome is therefore more generic. The authors believe that this will provide better understanding of the evolution of dog breeds in general.

Professor Ballard reckons this will not be the last time a domestic dog breed's genome is sequenced.

"I would expect that as the costs come down, all the major breeds will have a genome mapped within 10 years, because this will help identify specific diseases, and lots of breeds have known specific diseases."

###

The German shepherd genome project was funded by Australian Canine Research Foundation as well as a crowd funding campaign called Hip to Fit.

This story has been published on: 2020-04-01. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Some are weighing whether to live apart from their children; many said they were watching the exploding cases in New York City, and hearing from colleagues and friends there. Some knew people staying in hotels to separate from their families. Yee said one colleague treating COVID-19 patients had not been home in days, trying to protect his pregnant wife.
02.04.2020 LISTEN

The Director of Public Relations Officer for the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), Colonel Eric Aggrey Quarshie, has admitted that a viral video that shows a civilian hitting a military officer at Tafo in the Old Tafo municipality in the Ashanti region happened during lockdown duties on Tuesday.

This was in sharp contrast in an earlier statement he issued on Tuesday denying the said video is an old video that has no relation to the lockdown operations being carried out by military and police currently to control the spread of the coronavirus disease.

In the video, the military officer had ordered the civilian to sit-ups as a punishment for defying the lockdown directives, but the civilian took an offense, punched the military officer and ran away.

But, however, in an interview on Otec FMs morning shows Nyansapo, hosted by Captain Koda, on Wednesday, April 2, 2020, Col Quarshie described the incident as unfortunate and said the military officers conduct did not send a good picture about the image of the respected Ghana Armed Forces.

Our men were not sent out to brutalize the civilians. The provoked officer wouldnt have crocked the weapon, whether in an attempt to scare the civilian or not. The bullet could have gone off and killed someone. He should have handed him to the next senior person to handle the matter. But whatever it is, it didnt send a good picture, he added.

The public has condemned some brutalities melted on them by the joint military/police patrol deployed in the Greater Accra, Greater Kumasi, and Tema during the two weeks lockdown aimed at controlling the spread of CONVID-19.

There have been a series of incidents at those places where the security is captured on videotapes purportedly abusing some individuals who refused to comply with the Presidents directives on two weeks partial lockdown.

---OtecfmGhana.com/Francis Appiah
As states around the country issue "stay-at-home" orders amid the coronavirus pandemic, firearm and ammunition retailers have been designated an "essential service," according to updated guidance from the federal government.

Christopher Krebs, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, identified "firearm and ammunition product manufacturers, retailers, importers, distributors, and shooting ranges" as critical infrastructure in the updated "Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce" advisory, which was issued over the weekend.

The list is intended to be advisory and not to be considered "the exclusive list of critical infrastructure sectors, workers, and functions that should continue during the Covid-19 response across all jurisdictions."

"Individual jurisdictions should add or subtract essential workforce categories based on their own requirements and discretion," the advisory states.

The Covid-19 health crisis has prompted at least 30 states and the District of Columbia to issue stay-at-home orders that force the closure of "non-essential services." Firearm retailers haven't been specifically mentioned in some states' lists of essential businesses, so they're assumed to be non-essential.

The new guidance is being hailed as a victory by leading national gun rights groups like the Second Amendment Foundation and the Firearms Policy Coalition, who had already filed a series of lawsuits in places like New Jersey and California challenging stay-at-home orders that didn't specifically designate firearm retailers as an "essential service."

"The president and his administration have done the right thing," SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb said in a press release. "They are dealing with a national emergency while remembering that no malady, however severe, can nullify or even temporarily suspend the exercise of a constitutionally delineated fundamental right."

The new guidance led to New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, announcing on Monday an updated list of permitted businesses during the stay-at-home order to include firearms retailers by appointment only and during limited hours. Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva issued a similar order Monday, the second time he has deemed gun stores as an essential business after ordering them closed last week.

Gottlieb told CNN that SAF is still looking at Vermont, New Mexico and New York as possible "targets" for lawsuits if they don't update their essential business list.

"We don't have a problem with governor's stay-at-home orders in any of these states and we are for measures like social distancing...but we are not happy and what we won't put up with, is the closing of gun manufacturers and gun retailers," Gottlieb told CNN.

The National Rifle Association is now keeping track of all the emergency orders and their possible effect on gun rights. In a Twitter post last week, the NRA said "gun-grabbing politicians are exploiting this pandemic to strip you of your rights."

Gun sales surging as virus case count grows

As of the first week of April, there were more than 200,000 cases of coronavirus in the United States across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. Deaths from Covid-19 have topped 4,400 in the country, as the US struggles to contain the virus's reach.

As the pandemic is unfolding, gun sellers across the country are reporting a surge in firearm and bullet purchases.

These purchases have been tracked to an increase in the search term "coronavirus" according to the ammunition website Ammo.com which said it has recorded an unprecedented surge in bullet sales since February 23 when the term gained traction online.

Administrators for the site, which ships ammunition to all but four states across the nation, released sales figures on Friday showing a 350% increase in website visits between Feb. 23 to March 26 compared to the previous 32 day time period.

Meanwhile, revenue has increased 777%, according to the site, which said coronavirus fears are fueling the sales surge.

Read CNN's Chris Cillizza analysis on the growing gun sales across the country

"We know certain things impact ammo sales, mostly political events or economic instability when people feel their rights may end up infringed, but this is our first experience with a virus leading to such a boost in sales," said Alex Horsman, spokesman for Ammo.com in an email to CNN. "It makes sense. A lot of our customers like to be prepared. And for many of them, it's not just facemasks and TheraFlu. It's knowing that no matter what happens, they can keep themselves and their families safe," Horsman added.
New Delhi, April 2 : Indian Navy rescued of 10 fishermen stranded onboard fishing boat, of Tamil Nadu origin, off Kochi coast, the force said Thursday.

"Indian Navy Ship Nireekshak, a diving support vessel of Southern Naval Command, based at Kochi, on mission patrol along the Kerala Coast came to the rescue of 10 fishermen stranded onboard Fishing Boat Saint Nicholas, of Tamil Nadu origin on Wednesday off Kochi," the force said.

The boat with 10 crew, did not have sufficient fuel, water and provision to reach home port Kolachel in Tamil Nadu and was found stranded off Kochi.

INS Nireekshak, realising that the boat was in distress provided assistance to the fishing boat by transferring 300 litres of fuel, water and provision to sustain them till they reach their home port.

In view of the existing health advisories on COVID-19 it was ensured that all transfer was done without any physical contact with the boat or crew. The fuel water and provisions were transferred using ship's crane.

The boat had left Kochi on March 12 for fishing in Arabian Sea and has not touched any other port since then. It was to enter Kochi for re-fuelling and ration but was unable to do so view ongoing lockdown due to coronavirus.

"Naval ships continue to remain mission deployed during COVID-19 crisis and the deployments are being planned without any port visit to the extent possible or with at least a gap of 14 days at sea from the last port visit prior return," the force said.
The coronavirus pandemic is especially dangerous for abuse victims quarantining with their abuser.

AP photo

Domestic violence victims in France are encouraged to use a safe word at drugstores to seek safety.

Being isolated with abusers during a lockdown can be especially dangerous.

Those in France who can't safely get to a phone to call police can say "Mask 19" to a pharmacist.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Domestic violence victims who are in lockdown with their abusers have few places to turn for help.

In some countries, individuals who are unable or too afraid to call police in front of their abuser can seek out help by sharing a safe word with pharmacists at their local drugstore, CNN reported.

The word is"Mask 19."

"I know that when I was with my abuser and leaving my abuser  obviously there wasn't any type of pandemic going on  my work was who I turned to when I was ready to leave," Cape Cod survivor Gabbe Rowland recently told Insider. "If I was in quarantine, I wouldn't be able to do that. I would have been stuck in a house with him."

Lockdowns in place to slow the spread of coronavirus serve a public benefit, but can be especially dangerous for domestic violence victims trapped at home with their abuser.

Social service agencies around the world are preparing for a spike in abuse incidents.

With drugstores being among the few businesses still open, the French government has launched the "Mask 19" safe word initiative last week.

On Sunday, a woman in the city of Nancy told the code to a pharmacist. Her spouse was arrested later after police determined he had abused her, according to CNN.

She was the first victim in the country partake in the initiative, Marlene Schiappa, the French minister for equality, told CNN.

In addition to encouraging pharmacists to play a roll in the protection of victims, the government also announced it will pay for up to 20,000 nights in hotel rooms for domestic violence victims and open pop-up counseling centers at supermarkets, according to CNN.

Spain has launched a similar initiative, according to CNN.

Read the original article on Insider
A 84-year-old woman from the north-central Vietnamese province of Thanh Hoa who last year asked authorities to stop classifying her household as poor has donated her lifes savings to the governments cause of battling the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic.

The Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) chapter in Luong Son Commune, located in Thanh Hoas Thuong Xuan District, on Wednesday said that Do Thi Mo, a local woman, had made a donation of VND2 million (US$85) to support the government in its campaign to combat the epidemic.

Mo said she had been moved after watching Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phucs televised message calling on every Vietnamese citizen and resident to join hands in the nations fight against COVID-19.

The donation, although not a sizable amount, was her lifes savings comprising her meager income from selling homegrown vegetables and eggs, together with the pocket money she had received from her children and grandchildren over time.

While not a deep-pocketed person  she is classified as a poor household as per the government's definition  Mo doesnt quite like feeding off financial support from the state.

A rural household is classified as poor in Vietnam if it has a monthly per capita income of VND700,000 ($30) or lower, or up to VND1 million ($42) but it lacks access to three out of five basic social services including healthcare, education, housing, clean water and hygiene, and information, according to a 2015 government decision.

Poor households are eligible for financial and housing support as well as low-interest loans to invest in their livelihoods, among other forms of support provided by the Vietnamese government to lift them out of poverty.

In 2019, Mo voluntarily applied for her household to be rid of the poverty status, saying there are people out there who are in more need of government support.

Authorities are still considering her request.

Despite her old age, Mo still grows vegetables and raises poultry to earn income and cover daily expenses, being financially independent of her children.

She was awarded the certificate of merit from the provincial chairman in October 2019 for setting a good example to the local poor.

In the same spirit as Mos, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper together with the Ho Chi Minh City Young Business Association (YBA) has initiated a program calling for donations to support Vietnams COVID-19 cause.

The program, named Fight COVID-19 with Tuoi Tre, had received nearly VND17.5 billion ($635,401) in donations as of Wednesday afternoon.

People can make donations in person at Tuoi Tres headquarters at 60A Hoang Van Thu Street, Ward 9, Phu Nhuan District, Ho Chi Minh City, or at its representative offices in other provinces and cities.

Alternatively, readers in Vietnam can wire a bank transfer to the following account:

Account number: 113000006100 Account name: Bao Tuoi Tre (Tuoi Tre Newspaper) Bank: Vietcombank, Chi Nhanh 3, Ho Chi Minh City Or: Account number: 060123456789 Account name: Hoi Doanh nhan tre TP.HCM (Ho Chi Minh City Young Business Association) Bank: Sacombank, Ho Chi Minh City

Readers outside of Vietnam can make a donation by international bank transfer to:

Account name: Bao Tuoi Tre (Tuoi Tre Newspaper) Bank: Vietcombank, Ho Chi Minh City Swift code: BFTVVNVX007 Account Number (in USD): 007.137.0195.845 Account Number (in EUR): 007.114.0373.054

For more information on our campaign and instructions on how to donate, please reach phone numbers (028) 39973838 and 0913.999.009.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
What if you get stuck on the highway in a storm? Here are some tips
FILE PHOTO: British-born Islamic militant Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh is surrounded by armed police as he arrives at a court in Karachi

By Syed Raza Hassan and Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam

KARACHI/ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A Pakistani court on Thursday commuted the death sentence of the main person accused in the 2002 kidnapping and murder of an American Wall Street Journal reporter, Daniel Pearl, and acquitted three other co-accused in the matter.

All four had been convicted in connection with Pearl's kidnapping and murder, including British-born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was sentenced to death in 2002 for masterminding the murder. He has been in jail for 18 years awaiting the outcome of an appeal.

Pearl, 38, was investigating Islamist militants in Karachi after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States when he was kidnapped in January 2002. His case grabbed headlines globally, after a video of his beheading emerged weeks after Pearl was abducted.

"No evidence has been brought on record by the prosecution to link any of the appellants to the murder of Pearl and as such all the appellants are acquitted of murder," said a two-member bench of the Sindh High Court, in a ruling seen by Reuters.

The United States slammed the ruling, with the top U.S. diplomat for South Asia writing on Twitter that the verdict "is an affront to victims of terrorism everywhere."

The court also acquitted all four of charges of kidnapping the American for ransom too, and found Sheikh guilty only on the charge of abduction.

Sheikh was sentenced to seven years on the abduction charge, but he is expected to be freed soon given time already served.

"Omar has already served 18 years, so his release orders will be issued sometime today. He will be out in a few days," Khawaja Naveed, a defence lawyer in the case, told Reuters.

A senior Pakistani government law officer told Reuters via phone that the state would appeal against the Sindh High Court's verdict.

"We welcome Pakistan's decision to appeal the verdict," acting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Alice Wells said. "Those responsible for Daniel's heinous kidnapping and murder must face the full measure of justice."

Story continues

Pakistan's Foreign Office said the issue pertains to the Ministry of Interior "who will be looking at the judgment in detail." The Ministry of Interior did not respond to a request for comment.

The convictions in Pearl's murder case had been brought into question after another defendant, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, one of the alleged masterminds of the Sept. 11 attacks, told a U.S. military tribunal in 2007 that he beheaded Pearl.

In a statement, the Wall Street Journal said it continues to seek justice for the murder of Pearl.

His widow, Mariane Pearl, was not immediately reachable for comment.

'CAN'T STOP RELEASE'

Another lawyer not involved in the case told Reuters that Pakistan would likely have to release all of the accused while any appeal was filed.

"The prosecution cannot stop their release in this case, unless they produce a Supreme Court interim order," Muhammad Farooq, a lawyer at the Sindh High Court, said, adding that the government could also seek to keep them detained by using a law related to the maintenance of public order.

"Legally they cannot stop their release in this particular case," Farooq said.

Sheikh was born in Britain and enjoyed a privileged upbringing before going to study at the London School of Economics.

He was arrested in India in the 1990s for his involvement in the kidnapping of Western tourists in 1994 as part of Sheikh's support of Muslim separatists battling Indian security forces in the disputed Kashmir region.

He was one of three men released from an Indian prison after militants hijacked an Indian airliner in late 1999 and flew it to Afghanistan, where the then-ruling Taliban government helped negotiate an exchange.

The Indian foreign ministry did not respond to requests for comment on the matter by Reuters.

Indian police later linked Sheikh to the Sept. 11 attacks, accusing him of involvement in transferring $100,000 to Mohammad Atta, one of the militants who flew airliners into New York's World Trade Center.

Pakistan is currently under close scrutiny by a global watchdog on terror financing, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), where the country's inability to prosecute terrorism cases has been highlighted.

"The FATF situation is quite serious. I think pressure will come on Pakistan (after this verdict)," said Amir Rana, director of the Pak Institute for Peace Studies, an Islamabad-based think tank that monitors anti-terrorism policies in Pakistan. He added that Pearl's case was high-profile and bound to get global attention.

(Reporting by Syed Raza Hassan in Karachi and Gibran Naiyyar Pehsimam in Islamabad; Additional reporting by Asif Shahzad in Islamabad; Writing by Euan Rocha; Editing by Robert Birsel, Matthew Lewis and Alistair Bell)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 2

By Ilkin Seyfaddini  Trend:

Uzbekistan has sent medical supplies to Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan as humanitarian aid, Trend reports citing the National News Agency of Uzbekistan.

Trains loaded with various food products, as well as disposable coveralls, respirators, gloves, goggles, pyrometers and test systems used to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection, were sent to Kyrgyzstan from the railway station in Kurgantepa district, Andijan region, the message said.

Also, representatives of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, JSC Uzbekistan Railways and other agencies sent the cargo from Tashkent to Afghanistan.

Uzbekistan's assistance to the Afghan people includes basic necessities for the fight against coronavirus: medical masks, protective gear, thermal imaging cameras to detect disease, pyrometers, flour, oil, rice, household soap, and clothing for children. The cargo was sent by train on the Angren - Tashkent - Termez - Mazar-i-Sharif route.

The outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan - which is an international transport hub - began at a fish market in late December 2019. The number of people killed by the disease has surpassed 48,500. Over 956,000 people have been confirmed as infected. Meanwhile, over 200,000 people have reportedly recovered.

Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11.

---

Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini
From Allah will save you to follow governments guidelines: Maulana Saad does a flip-flop

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 02: After telling his followers that Allah will create peace if Muslims stayed back in Mosques, the missing Maulana Saad has now urged his followers to follow the guidelines issued to prevent COVID-19.

In the first audio message that he had posted on Markaz YouTube channel, he said, "if we stay in Mosques, Allah will create peace in the world. The Maulana who is the head of the Nizamuddin Markaz of the Tablighi Jamaat told his followers not to follow the government orders. Stay in the Mosque, and if you think you will die, then there is no better place to die, he also says.

I feel sad for those persons who say that at this time people should not go to Mosques and pray. This is in fact the time we should stay in the Mosques as Allah will create peace in the world, the Maulana also says.

Allah will create peace, stay back in the Mosque, Maulana Saad told his followers

However in a turn around now, the Maulana has in another audio clip appealed to the members of the Tablighi to follow the guidelines issued by the government. He also urges them to avoid large gathering and says that what is happening today is thanks to crimes by humanity. We should stay at home as that is the only way to calm God's anger.

Quarantine yourself and it is not against Islam or shariyat. He further says that he is self-isolating based on doctor's advise.

Meanwhile the Delhi Police has launched a man-hunt for him. He is accused of not heeding to the requests by the police to get people to clear the venue. The head of the Nizamuddin Markaz, Maulana Saad had refused to budge despite pleas by the Delhi police.

The Delhi police had urged the Maulana to vacate the Banglewali Masjid. The situation was critical and with the Maulana refusing to budge, the Union Home Ministry had to step in. National Security Advisor, Ajit Doval visited the markaz on March 29 at 2 am and convinced the Maulana to get the occupants tested.

Finally the markaz allowed 167 Tablighi workers to be hospitalised after the intervention of the NSA.

When Maulana Saad refused to budge, MHA ordered a mid-night clean up action at Nizamuddin

The first time the connection between the Tablighi Jamaat and coronavirus emerged was on March 17 2020. It was at this time that a case was detected in Telangana and by March 21, the Ministry of Home Affairs had drawn up a list of 800 foreigners associated with the Tablighi Jamaat.

It was learnt that an Indonesian, who attended the conference at Nizamuddin and travelled to Telangana had tested positive on March 17. Home Ministry sources tell OneIndia that nearly 1,000 Tablighi workers from abroad were in India. Of this around 200 were staying in Nizamuddin, the source also said.
A father with terminal cancer is urging Britons to take the lockdown more seriously - so that he can spend quality time with his wife and family before he dies.

Simon Cowls, 52, from Yelverton, Devon, is currently on antibody treatment and is in the highest risk group from coronavirus complications due to his terminal cancer.

He and his wife Ali know their time together is limited and they planned to set off this month on a last big adventure together in a camper van - until COVID-19 put an end to their plans.

The severity of Mr Cowls' condition means that he has now been forced to self-isolate even from his own wife. They online kiss each other goodnight by Skype.

Simon Cowls, 52, from Yelverton, Devon, is currently on antibody treatment and is in the highest risk group from coronavirus complications due to his terminal cancer (he is pictured with his wife Ali)

Mr Cowls and his wife Ali know their time together is limited and they planned to set off this month on a last big adventure together in a camper van - until COVID-19 put an end to their plans (Mr Cowls is pictured outside his camper van)

He is now living in the van outside their home on the edge of Dartmoor while Ali - who is also his carer - is in the middle of two weeks' strict isolation in the house before they are allowed to see each other again. After that the couple will have to remain in isolation for three months at least.

All Mr Cowls wants is for the pandemic to end as quickly as possible so that he can have some normal life, see his children again and for the couple to fulfil their dream of travelling in their van.

The couple are both frustrated that people are not taking the guidelines seriously enough and Ali was shocked when she saw hundreds of day-trippers parked in cars near their Dartmoor home on her last day out to buy essential supplies before lockdown.

One of Mr Cowls' sons lives in Belgium and flew home to see his father - but because Mr Cowls has been classed as high risk during COVID-19 he is not allowed to see anybody who has not been in total isolation for 14 days.

Now his son is grounded and unable to fly back to Belgium.

Despite the horrendous situation, Mr Cowls has amazed people with his upbeat attitude throughout four years of struggling to beat cancer (he is pictured in hospital receiving treatment)

Another 569 deaths have been declared in the UK today, taking the total death toll to 2,921

Despite the horrendous situation, Mr Cowls has amazed people with his upbeat attitude throughout four years of struggling to beat cancer.

He is still making funny videos on Facebook to make others laugh in the face of the coronavirus pandemic: 'It's my way of dealing with life despite all the adversity I'm facing.'

And he admitted that his whole outlook on life has changed: 'I hear other people saying 'This time next year'. There is no this time next year for me.

'Every single day is precious. I literally live one day at a time.

'When you are faced with your own mortality the most simple things are the most meaningful - to hear the birds in the morning. That's worth more than any amount of money in the bank.

'Having time with my wife, my children, my cats: that's everything. I cherish every single second.'

All Mr Cowls (pictured with his wife Ali) wants is for the pandemic to end as quickly as possible so that he can have some normal life, see his children again and for the couple to fulfil their dream of travelling in their van

Now the couple are counting every moment until Ali's two week isolation is over and they can be together again.

'We've got one week to go now. That's going to be amazing,' Simon said.

Even the ordinary practicalities of life are difficult for the couple who cannot get out to buy food or for vital prescriptions.

Mr Cowls says: 'Despite being on the government's extremely vulnerable list we are still struggling. It's not about money. We are not poor.

We cannot get an online delivery. We have received one of Boris' food parcels - but if the online shopping system was working we wouldn't need that.

'Our GP tells us that people are stockpiling their prescriptions. It all adds to the anxiety.

'I don't know if people think they are putting two fingers up to the system or the government - but they are actually putting two fingers up to the NHS, to their parents, their grandparents and people like me.'

Mr Cowls said: 'It's terrible instead of travelling around making memories in our van I am living in it and it's bloody freezing which is obviously a worry as I'm not exactly in the best of health.'

Ali has recently retired from her career working at Plymouth's Derriford Hospital to be Mr Cowl's carer. The two still hope to go on their trip once the pandemic is over (pictured, their camper van)

The pandemic has amplified the stress of being terminally ill, stripping away the line of support the NHS provided as surgeries close, resources stretch and supplies run low.

'Suddenly you feel vulnerable, you feel isolated,' he said.

Mr Cowls had been undergoing chemotherapy but reacted badly to the treatment.

He said: 'I had a choice to go back on chemo or not to have the treatment and let the cancer grow.

'I can't win. I'm going to die either way. So we decided to take a break and go travelling - but then this coronavirus pandemic started.'

Ali made a video of herself on Facebook saying: 'I just wish you lot would get off the Moors.

Ali said: 'I am social isolating for one reason - to protect my husband. He's got stage four bowel cancer that has spread and that we know is going to kill him and I am trying to protect him as much as I can.

'In what could be his last year of living, we were going to do things, and now we are not able to because of this virus.

'How are people not getting this message?

'We plan to go away and make memories and see the kids.'

Ali has recently retired from her career working at Plymouth's Derriford Hospital to be Mr Cowl's carer.
144 transactions worth 385.6 million in March 2020 under Trade Facilitation Programme

Provision of trade finance is key to mitigate economic impact of Covid-19 crisis

Guarantees for import of essential goods into EBRD countries of operations

The EBRD provided a record level of support for trade activity in March as demand rose in response to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic across the emerging countries where it invests.

The Bank responded to the economic crisis caused by Covid-19 with the launch of an initial 1 billion Solidarity Package in support of its partners.

The provision of trade finance is vital to keep up global trade under extremely challenging circumstances. With its Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) the EBRD is well-positioned to lend its support.

Under the TFP, there were a 144 transactions worth 385.6 million in March, the highest turnover ever recorded in a single month.

So far this year, the EBRD has issued 424 TFP transactions for 682 million, compared with 445 transactions worth for 559 million in the same 2019 period.

The EBRD extended tenors of its guarantees in support of imports of equipment from China into Albania and export of services from Greece into Spain, where shipments had been delayed or projects have been put on hold.

The EBRD also supported imports of ambulances from Portugal into Morocco and of medicines from Switzerland into Jordan and from Turkey into Georgia.

The Bank also provided an extension to a trade-related cash advance where a bank in Armenia granted a repayment holiday to their small business client, a manufacturer of confectionery.

The coronavirus pandemic is having a serious impact on trade flows and supply chains across the world, increasing the demand for trade finance as importers and exporters juggles with new and sometimes more complex supply routes.

Under the coronavirus response package, the EBRD is also reaching out to existing clients with support to meet short-term working capital and liquidity needs.

The 1 billion financing package is just an initial step and the Banks stands ready to do more in response to the needs of its recipient countries.

The Banks Trade Facilitation Programme has been running since 1999 with the aim of promoting foreign trade to, from and amongst the EBRD countries of operations and offers a range of products to facilitate this trade.
A total of 46 persons have been identified to have made contact with the 42-year-old man who tested positive for COVID-19 in the Upper West Region.



Blood samples of some of the traced contacts had already been taken and sent to Kumasi and Accra for testing.



Dr Hafiz Bin Salih, the Upper West Regional Minister disclosed this in an interview with the media after supervising the fumigation exercise of the markets in Region.



In all, 110 market places including lorry stations have been fumigated in the Region.



The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development engaged Zoomlion Ghana Limited to carry out the mass spraying exercise as part of governments effort to contain the spread of the virus in the country.



Dr. Bin Salih thanked the Traditional rulers and traders for their co-operation, which he said led to the success of the exercise in the Region.



He urged all to continue to observe the regular handwashing with soap under running water and the social distancing protocols among others in order to stay safe and also stop any possible spread of the virus.





Source: GNA









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The U.S. Navy is trying to round up support from the other services, to staff and finance another non-combat cruise of the hospital ship Mercy. Earlier this year, the Mercy spent six months in Indonesia, treating 61,000 patients. Most of the Indonesians received some medicine, or some dental work. But about two percent involved some surgery. As a result of the Mercy's visit, favorable attitudes towards the U.S. by Indonesians doubled (to 30 percent, so more work is needed.) The Indonesians were getting American quality medicine, which explains the average cost for treating each patient; $280.

The U.S. Navy has two hospital ships; Mercy and Comfort. They were built as tankers in the 1970s, and converted to hospital ships in the 1980s. They displace 70,000 tons and are 894 feet long.. Each ship has 12 operating rooms, fifty emergency room beds, a thousand patient beds and a crew of 61 civilians and 225 sailors, plus 956 medical personnel. Fully air conditioned, and stocked with medical supplies and the latest medical equipment, they bring the highest level of medical care to parts of the world that have rarely seen any modern medicine at all.

The navy's pitch is that one six month deployment by one of these ships has an enormous impact on the health of the people treated, and on their attitude towards the United States. The United States armed forces actually has little use for hospital ships at the moment. Casualty rates in Iraq and Afghanistan are already much lower than expected, and army medical units actually spend a lot of their time treating Iraqis.




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<! Zainab Ahmed: Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning >

Nigerias government has apologised to Nigerians for begging South African billionaire businessman, Elon Musk for ventilators.

The government had come under severe criticism for the undignified manner it publicly begged for 100-500 ventilators.

Reacting, the Federal Ministry of Finance from whose twitter account the plea for ventilators was made said: an unauthorised post was made on the verified Twitter handle of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning.

Special Adviser, Media and Communications, to the Minister of Finance Budget and National Planning, Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, said that the fact of the post is regrettable because of which it is brought down.

According to him, they have made sure our internal processes are strengthened that such doesnt happen again. The error is highly regrettable.

The ministry had twitted that dear @elonmusk @Tesla federal government of Nigeria needs support with 100-500 ventilators to assist with #covid19 cases arising everyday in Nigeria.

The ministry said it will issue a statement after the Minister comes out of the Villa, The Nation reports.
Hospital systems that are accepting homemade masks from the public are requesting certain criteria be met: wash the fabric in hot water before and after making the masks (both to shrink and clean); pack the cleaned masks in either a clean plastic bin or a clean bag (no boxes); and if elastic is not available for the masks ear loops, cloth ties can be used. Instructions can be viewed in this video from Deaconess Hospital.
To get an unemployment check, you first have to apply. And that's a problem for many people right now.

Across the country, Americans are struggling just to start the process as overwhelmed state computer and phone systems have been under siege by an unprecedented 10 million Americans  and counting  seeking assistance all at once after losing their jobs during the coronavirus pandemic.

Kathy Mooradian, 65, of Livonia, Michigan, logged on to her state's website to apply for unemployment benefits just fine. But she ran into an error in the automated system, prompting her to call in her claim. That's when things went wrong.

Sometimes she gets a busy signal. Sometimes she's told the call can't be completed. When an automated voice has her "press 1," the call abruptly hangs up.

"This has happened over 100 times," Mooradian said this week, pinning blame on Michigan Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. "Our governor doesn't give a hoot about any of us."

More: Michiganders to Gov. Whitmer: Fix the damn unemployment website

Keith Reeves Sr. walked out of the Kentucky Career Center at 600 Cedar St. Wednesday, March 18, 2020. The office was shut down, but he received information on how to apply for unemployment benefits online.

The uphill battle to get approved for benefits is the result of a record 6.65 million Americans who filed first-time jobless claims last week, according to the U.S. Labor Department. It's yet another bleak sign of the severe economic ramifications of social distancing requirements that have shuttered businesses and forced people home.

The latest round of unemployment filings is on top of the previous week's claims tally of 3.3 million, exceeding in just two weeks the nearly 9 million who lost jobs from 2008 to 2010 amid the Great Recession.

The $2 trillion stimulus package, approved last week by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump, offers a boost of $600 per week to recipients of unemployment benefits for four months. It's in addition to up to $1,200 in one-time stimulus checks. But the $600 is dependent on filing for unemployment in the state of residence of the recipients.

Story continues

More: Kentucky scrambles to keep up with unemployment claims after loosening rules

Charles Warner, 37, lost his factory job at the auto-parts maker Mubea in Kentucky last Friday.

He spent all day trying to sign up for unemployment benefits by phone. By the afternoon, he was still unable to get anything more than a pre-recorded message saying he should try again later.

Im going to have to keep trying, said Warner, who lives paycheck to paycheck and supports his wife and 9-year-old son. Theres nothing I can do. I cant go three or four weeks without a check.

The U.S. Department of Labor did not immediately respond to questions USA TODAY posed on the struggles to file unemployment.

During a Thursday news conference, Whitmer  who has gained a national spotlight during the coronavirus crisis  said her stay-at-home order for Michigan has "weighed heavily" on her and acknowledged the system is overwhelmed.

Visitors to the Department of Labor are turned away at the door by personnel due to closures over coronavirus concerns, Wednesday, March 18, 2020, in New York. Applications for jobless benefits are surging in some states as coronavirus concerns shake the U.S. economy. The sharp increase comes as governments have ordered millions of workers, students and shoppers to stay home as a precaution against spreading the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

Michigan's unemployment claims ending March 28 topped 311,000, more than doubling from 128,000 the week before.

"My encouragement for folks is, keep attempting to get that application in," Whitmer said. "But, know that we understand the incredible strain on the system, the incredible number of people that have been impacted and we are going to work to make sure people get the unemployment that they need to get through this crisis."

More: Kentucky scrambles to keep up with unemployment claims after loosening rules

In Kentucky, officials of the state's Education and Workforce Development Cabinet, which processes unemployment insurance applications, said its racing to keep up with demand.

We know that phones are backed up, Josh Benton, the cabinets deputy secretary told attendees of a teleconference hosted by business group Greater Louisville Inc. last week. We are adding capacity.

Benton said the cabinet added 50 people last Friday to answer calls and was expected to add more earlier this week. He also urged callers to try the cabinets new online chat function.

Were trying to give as many avenues as possible for folks, Benton said.

More: As unemployment claims surge, how Indiana's benefits compare to neighboring states

In Florida, Ken Lawson, the director of the state's Department of Economic Opportunity, which manages its unemployment website, apologized Thursday for the system's failures and the anguish it's caused by preventing thousands of Floridians to get unemployment benefits.

Florida is now reverting to applications through the mail, The Tampa Bay Times reported, because of the repeated glitches with the only system.

From my heart, I apologize for what youre going through, Lawson said during a video teleconference hosted by two Democratic state lawmakers. He said his office received 1.5 million calls in just the last week as 227,000 Floridians initiated unemployment claims, up from 74,313 the previous week.

Americans have relayed their concerns to members of Congress during a series of virtual town halls in recent days where they've sounded off about delayed unemployment checks and rent deadlines they can't meet.

"You are not in a fundamentally different position than thousands of other people in Connecticut," U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., told a single mother who said shes been out of work for a week and has applied for unemployment insurance but has no savings and is getting worried. He told her his office would walk her through what assistance is available and give a best guess on when she would get help.

But for many families, the need is now.

When Jose Diaz, 27, of Indianapolis, lost his job as a line service specialist in the aviation industry because of the COVID-19 outbreak, his employer handed him a paper that explained how to file for unemployment insurance.

Diaz had been on the job for three months and he's the sole provider of a family that includes his wife, a 6-year-old and a 6-month-old had been on the job for three months.

But he's felt defeated by Indiana's unemployment system.

"When I call their landline, it's constantly busy, and when I do get through, it just leaves me on hold and forgets about me almost as if it's an answering machine," Diaz said, adding that he has sent emails to the agency and tried to reach the agency online. Diaz said he has about $13 now and will receive one more check from his former job.

He said the family needs food.

"I'm living day-to-day right now," he said. "I need to figure out how to feed my family."

When he finally got a reply Tuesday, it wasn't the news he was looking for.

"I just received a reply back from them saying I don't qualify for insurance, which doesn't make sense to me," Diaz said. He is convinced a mistake was made, though his short term of employment may have played a role.

Indiana Department of Workforce Development officials said its online system is able to handle the influx applications last week better than other states, but they admit the agency's call center is overwhelmed by the influx of calls. More than 61,000 Hoosiers filed for unemployment two weeks ago and an additional 146,243 last week.

"Weve seen the claims go up dramatically, and its going to stress us a little bit," Josh Richardson, the department's chief of staff, said. "Our call center is really overwhelmed."

More: The coronavirus pandemic is hitting landlords and small-business owners. Now rent is due.

Chasity Waters, of Otisco, Indiana, is among those who was able to apply but is out of luck.

The state's recent stay-at-home order put an abrupt halt to the hair salon she opened just weeks ago on March 2 because it's considered a "nonessential business."

Waters closed her business and filed a claim for unemployment insurance in hopes of making up some of her lost income. But she was told she didn't pay enough into the system  a reason she finds hard to believe as a taxpayer. She's appealing.

"I did what I was supposed to do. I got my denial," Waters said. "We have bills. There's some bills we're just naturally behind on, and we can't fall too far behind. We can't."

Waters is married with five children. Most are young adults in their teens or early 20s. One is 9 years old. She said her husband's income can cover the household basics, but it's not enough, and the family will have no new income for at least two weeks.

"To be just quite honest with you," Waters said, "As soon as our mortgage goes through, we're going to decide whose checking account is going to bounce so we can go buy groceries."

USA TODAY staff writer Maureen Groppe contributed to this report, as well as the Associated Press

Reach Joey Garrison on Twitter @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus causing mounting issues for people filing for unemployment
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Linkedin Matt Day and Josh Eidelson (Bloomberg) New York, United States  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:42 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f36616 2 Business Amazon,COVID-19,New-York-City,labor-union Free

Amazon.coms firing of a walkout organizer has spurred criticism and calls for reinstatement by the largest labor groups in the US. Labor leaders and dozens of New York state and city elected officials urged Amazon to reinstate Chris Smalls, the leader of a walkout Monday over health and safety conditions at the companys Staten Island, New York warehouse.

Smalls was fired after the protest, in which workers asked Amazon to close the facility for cleaning after cases of Covid-19 were confirmed within its ranks. Amazon said Smalls was dismissed for violating a company-ordered quarantine after coming into contact with someone infected with the disease. Smalls said he was fired for his activism.

We write to you today shocked at reports that Amazon warehouses are not practicing the protocols necessary to protect the well-being of your workers and of the public, said the letter, addressed to Amazon Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos and other executives, and signed by the leaders of the AFL-CIO, United Food & Commercial Workers International Union and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, among others.

Amazon didnt immediately comment on the letter. The unions also called for independent monitors to investigate whether Amazon facilities adhered to guidelines from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for social distancing during the pandemic.

As coronavirus cases pop up in Amazons 800,000-strong workforce, some employees in warehouses across the country have expressed concerns about the companys commitment to their safety. Workers at sites in Chicago and near Detroit walked off the job after the Staten Island protest.

Amazon has said it ramped up cleaning in its facilities and is sending home, with pay, people diagnosed with Covid-19 and those who they came into close contact with. It has also temporarily boosted wages and overtime payments, and said employees can take unpaid time off without penalty through the end of April.

The firing of Smalls had already drawn responses from other New York officials. On Monday, New York State Attorney General Letitia James said her office is considering all legal options in response to the termination, which she called immoral and inhumane, and is urging the National Labor Relations Board to investigate.

On Tuesday, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said he had ordered the citys Commission on Human Rights to investigate Amazon immediately to determine if Smalls was retaliated against.

The AFL-CIO is the main US labor federation, with 55 unions that together represent 12.5 million people. The letter is also signed by presidents of five of the largest US unions, including the Teamsters and the Service Employees International Union.

Those two unions, which arent part of the AFL-CIO, together represent about 3 million more workers. The document is a sign of union leaders increasing focus on Amazon as a key target and reflects greater cooperation within the labor movement as they take on the behemoth firm.

Amazon and labor groups have a frosty relationship. The retailer has managed to avoid organized labor in its ranks in the US, even as it grew into the countrys second-largest private employer in the US. A similar group of unions in February asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Amazons market power.
Married At First Sight star Aleks Markovic has revealed she believes co-star Stacey Hampton didn't have sex with Mikey Pembroke.

Speaking to Daily Mail Australia on Thursday, the 26-year-old said she backed the blonde law graduate - who most of the cast think is lying.

'I can't say she did because I didn't see it with my own eyes,' Aleks said, adding she is willing to give Stacey the benefit of the doubt.

EXCLUSIVE: Married At First Sight star Aleks Markovic, 26, has revealed why she believes Stacey Hampton (L) is telling the truth, after her alleged cheating was exposed on Tuesday. Here: Michael Goonan (R)

The Perth beauty added that Stacey has been 'adamant' the pair did not engage in a romp, with her also willing to take a lie detector test.

Aleks' confession she believes Stacey to be telling the truth is a turnaround for the star.

On Tuesday night's reunion episode of the show, Stacey was forced to publicly confront allegations of an affair with Mikey.

'I can't say she did because I didn't see it with my own eyes,' Aleks (R) said, adding she is willing to give Stacey the benefit of the doubt. Picture: Natasha Spencer (L)

'Look, it wasn't the best decision I've ever made...' Mikey told the group of the alleged romp, supported by his ex wife, Natasha Spencer.

'I had a few drinks with Ivan [Sarakula] and Aleks [Markovic] and Stacey, and one thing led to another. We had a one-night stand. That was it.'

Aleks and then husband Ivan confirmed Mikey's clothes had been dropped off in a Mecca bag, which was a smoking gun for the operations manager's story.

Who knows? Aleks (pictured) believes Stacey is telling the truth

Stacey, however, has repeatedly denied the allegations.

It has been said that Mikey did have a motive to lie about having sex with Stacey.

Firstly, he wanted to redeem himself after being mocked for his sexual performance on the show. Secondly, he wanted to get back at Michael for making fun of him.

Mikey and Stacey are said to have allegedly slept together during filming in early October, after she briefly split with her 'husband' Michael Goonan because of his kiss with Hayley Vernon.

Bombshell allegation: 'I had a few drinks with Ivan [Sarakula] and Aleks [Markovic] and Stacey, and one thing led to another. We had a one-night stand. That was it,' Mikey said. Pictured: Mikey Pembroke

Drama: Aleks (R) and then husband Ivan (L) confirmed Mikey's clothes had been dropped off in a Mecca bag, which was a huge reason the story was widely believed at the dinner party

Stacey later reunited with Michael and they decided to stay together at their final vows in December.

It's believed they split after the reunion in the wake of Mikey's allegations.

Stacey has repeatedly denied sleeping with Mikey and claims there is no definitive evidence that proves they spent the night together.

Married At First Sight continues Sunday at 7pm on Channel Nine
A ntarctica once housed swampy rainforests and had an average temperature of around 12C, according to a new study.

Researchers said they have discovered evidence that the South Pole had a temperate climate around 90 million years ago when dinosaurs roamed the earth.

The findings, published in the journal Nature, are based on soil samples believed to be from the mid-Cretaceous period (115-80 million years ago).

The team, which included scientists from the UK and Germany, said analysis of preserved roots and other plant remains in the soil suggests the world at that time was warmer than previously thought.

Professor Tina van de Flierdt with colleague Dr Johann Klages working on a sample of ancient soil / PA

Professor Tina van de Flierdt, from the department of earth science and engineering at Imperial College London, and one of the study authors, said: The preservation of this 90 million-year-old forest is exceptional, but even more surprising is the world it reveals.

Even during months of darkness, swampy temperate rainforests were able to grow close to the South Pole, revealing an even warmer climate than we expected.

After analysing an ice core extracted from the seabed near the Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers in West Antarctica, the team discovered well-preserved forest soil, including the remains of flowering plants.

Germany's polar research vessel which brought back core samples from West Antarctica / PA

The study also suggests there were higher levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere during the age of the dinosaurs.

Professor Ulrich Salzmann, a paleoecologist at Northumbria University and one of the study authors, said: The numerous plant remains indicate that 93 to 83 million years ago the coast of West Antarctica was a swampy landscape in which temperate rainforests grew  similar to the forests that can still be found, say, on New Zealands South Island.

The researchers also assessed the conditions that would have been suitable for the plants found in the soil sample, to get a better idea of what the climate was like at that time.

A map showing the drill site in West Antarctica from where the sediment core was extracted and how the continents were arranged 90 million years ago / PA

Simulations revealed summer temperatures would have been around 19C while water temperatures in the rivers and swamps would have reached up to 20C.

The amount and intensity of rainfall in West Antarctica would have been similar to that seen in todays Wales, the researchers said.

Before our study, the general assumption was that the global carbon dioxide concentration in the Cretaceous was roughly 1,000 ppm (parts per million)," said Professor Gerrit Lohmann, a climate modeller at the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research in Germany and study co-author.

Germany's polar research vessel, operated by the Alfred Wegener Institute, which brought back core samples from West Antarctica / PA

But in our model-based experiments, it took concentration levels of 1,120 to 1,680 ppm to reach the average temperatures back then in the Antarctic.

The researchers are yet to figure out what caused the climate to eventually cool to form ice sheets in Antarctica.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - Tippecanoe County Prosecutor Patrick Harrington said they are doing their best to only hold essential court hearings right now.

"I think it's important for the public to understand that the rule of law still exists and we are still going to perform our duties on the emergency basis," he said.

Most of his staff is working remotely. A small number of staff are physically in the office and available to appear for any emergency court hearings. They are available 24/7 to law enforcement, which is normal procedure.

Harrington said a judge in a county south of Indianapolis has tested positive for coronavirus. He couldn't specify which county, but said that judge and their staff are all in quarantine.

He said they are working to make sure that doesn't happen here.

"We are filing cases we are tremendously appreciative of the courts and the judges for the leadership they have given in reducing the number to only emergency hearings," he said.

Right now, no visitors are allowed inside the Tippecanoe County Courthouse. You can call the courthouse or check online to get updates on the status of your hearing.
Last week, you might have seen that China Southern Airlines Company Limited (HKG:1055) released its full-year result to the market. The early response was not positive, with shares down 2.9% to HK$3.32 in the past week. It looks like a pretty bad result, all things considered. Although revenues of CN154b were in line with analyst predictions, statutory earnings fell badly short, missing estimates by 37% to hit CN0.22 per share. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. We've gathered the most recent statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their earnings models, following these results.

View our latest analysis for China Southern Airlines

SEHK:1055 Past and Future Earnings April 2nd 2020

Following the recent earnings report, the consensus from 13 analysts covering China Southern Airlines is for revenues of CN106.6b in 2020, implying a stressful 31% decline in sales compared to the last 12 months. Earnings are expected to tip over into lossmaking territory, with the analysts forecasting statutory losses of -CN0.095 per share in 2020. Before this latest report, the consensus had been expecting revenues of CN133.6b and CN0.15 per share in losses. So there's been quite a change-up of views after the recent consensus updates, withthe analysts making a serious cut to their revenue forecasts while also reducing the estimated losses the business will incur.

The analysts have cut their price target 8.3% to CN4.56 per share, suggesting that the declining revenue was a more crucial indicator than the forecast reduction in losses. The consensus price target is just an average of individual analyst targets, so - it could be handy to see how wide the range of underlying estimates is. The most optimistic China Southern Airlines analyst has a price target of CN6.13 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at CN3.29. This is a fairly broad spread of estimates, suggesting that analysts are forecasting a wide range of possible outcomes for the business.

Story continues

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. These estimates imply that sales are expected to slow, with a forecast revenue decline of 31%, a significant reduction from annual growth of 7.8% over the last five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the same industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 6.9% annually for the foreseeable future. It's pretty clear that China Southern Airlines' revenues are expected to perform substantially worse than the wider industry.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that the analysts reconfirmed their loss per share estimates for next year. Unfortunately, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and our data indicates revenues are expected to perform worse than the wider industry. Even so, earnings per share are more important to the intrinsic value of the business. Even so, earnings per share are more important to the intrinsic value of the business. The consensus price target fell measurably, with the analysts seemingly not reassured by the latest results, leading to a lower estimate of China Southern Airlines' future valuation.

Keeping that in mind, we still think that the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for investors to consider. We have forecasts for China Southern Airlines going out to 2022, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Before you take the next step you should know about the 2 warning signs for China Southern Airlines that we have uncovered.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-02 07:05:04

VIVATs life and asset management businesses are now part of Athora, a leading life insurance and reinsurance group in Europe

Athora has sold 100% of the shares of VIVAT Non-life to NN Group, via a back-to-back transaction

Successful completion of the transaction establishes Athora as the leading consolidator in the European life insurance market

Athora fully supports VIVATs efforts to better fulfil customer needs through its leading brands Zwitserleven, Reaal and ACTIAM

All current and future insurance policies from VIVATs subsidiaries will stay in the Netherlands and remain under Dutch regulation

Broad set of measures introduced to strengthen VIVATs capital position, including a 400 million injection of new equity capital

To reduce VIVATs leverage, Athora is supportive of VIVATs tender for its senior debt as announced today

Athora will ensure VIVAT operates in compliance with the full version of the Dutch Large Company Regime

Combined, Athora group will have approximately 70 billion of consolidated assets and approximately 3 million customers

Athora has 4 billion of total equity capital following its capital raises in 2017 and 2020

Following closing and the injection of capital into VIVAT, Athora will have close to 1 billion of committed equity available to support Athora, VIVAT and existing subsidiaries

Athora Completes Acquisition of VIVAT and Provides a Capital Injection of 400 Million

Athora Media

The Netherlands:

Confidant Partners

Sabine Post-de Jong: +31 6 39 57 63 67

sabine.post@confidantpartners.com

Other Markets:

Kate Campbell

Group Head of Corporate Affairs: +353 86 406 2472

kate.campbell@athora.com

Sean Carolan

Director of Communications: +353 1 588 0748

sean.carolan@athora.com

Athora Holding Ltd. (Athora) announces today the closing of the transaction to acquire VIVAT N.V. (VIVAT) from Anbang Group Holdings Co Limited. VIVAT is now part of Athoras European group of life insurance companies. Athora and NN Group (NN) have also closed the follow-on sale of VIVAT Schadeverzekeringen N.V. (VIVAT Non-life) to NN. The finalisation of this transaction results in stronger companies in the Dutch life and non-life markets and enhanced customer offerings. It also confirms Athoras position as the leading insurance consolidator in Europe with approximately 3 million customers, approximately 70 billion in assets, operations in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and Ireland, and an unrivalled regulatory track record relating to large, complex and innovative transactions.

Athoras strategy is to leverage VIVATs strong capabilities, robust operations and well-invested infrastructure across the group. With Athoras incremental capital and resources, VIVAT is best placed to grow through delivering value to existing and new clients via enhanced customer offerings, continued focus on customer centricity, and a strong commitment to sustainability. Athora will support VIVAT to better fulfil customers needs by building further upon its leading market positions in life & pensions via VIVATs Reaal and Zwitserleven brands. The combination of VIVAT and Athora results in a strong and diversified insurance group in Europe with a stronger financial position and business outlook to the benefit of VIVATs customers, employees and partners.

As part of Athoras approved DNO application, Athora will implement measures aimed at ensuring that VIVATs customers safety and security are strengthened as a result of VIVATs transition to Athora. These capital management measures, which will follow after Closing, include:

strengthening VIVATs capital position through a 400 million injection of new equity capital which will support VIVATs path to enhanced capital generation;

principles guiding VIVATs dividend policy to ensure VIVATs profits are primarily used to support VIVATs capital position and its customers security. To this extent, Athora does not expect any dividend distribution from VIVAT in the near-term and, on top of the normal regulatory assessment by DNB, the payment of any future dividends will be based on the long-term sustainable capital generation of the company and the satisfaction of certain risk appetite metrics;

a commitment to maintain the ongoing capitalisation of VIVAT at levels which ensure the long-term interests of customers, also in case of adverse circumstances;

the effect of the combined capital measures provides customers, clients, business partners and employees reassurance that VIVATs repositioning to financial strength and sustainable capital generation is well underway.

In addition, VIVAT has announced today the launch of a tender of its senior notes. This liability management exercise further shows that Athora is supportive of reducing VIVATs leverage and enhancing its financial strength, thereby bringing even more security to VIVATs customers.

Athora recently announced that it had secured a further 1.8 billion in permanent equity capital from new and existing shareholders bringing its total dedicated equity capital commitment from global institutional investors to 4 billion. The new capital raise included a meaningful additional commitment of 500 million from shareholders, Athene and Apollo. Part of the capital will be used to fund the purchase of VIVAT and to strengthen VIVATs balance sheet. Following Closing, Athora will have close to 1bn of committed equity available to support Athora, VIVAT and existing subsidiaries going forward.

Commenting on the conclusion of the transaction Athora Group CEO Michele Bareggi states: We are delighted to welcome VIVAT to the Athora family. We have a long-term vision and strategic commitment in the Dutch insurance market and VIVAT is the perfect local business for achieving our goals. Under the leadership of VIVATs CEO Tom Kliphuis, I am confident that VIVAT is set up to be the leading player in Dutch life & pension markets.

Chairman of VIVATs Supervisory Board, Maarten Dijkshoorn states: With the additional financial resources committed to VIVAT and the combined capabilities of VIVAT and Athora, we will be best placed to fulfil our customers needs and to build further upon our already strong market positions. We believe that this transaction is highly beneficial to our valued customers. Together with the dedication and efforts of our employees and business partners, I am confident that VIVAT is well-positioned for the future and will continue to deliver the high service level towards our customers going forward. Additionally, together with Athora and NN Group, VIVAT will work towards a smooth integration of VIVAT Non-life into NN in the coming period.

After Closing, VIVAT will remain a Dutch-regulated entity, its insurance policies will stay in the Netherlands. The use of reinsurance constructions whereby Dutch policies are removed from the Netherlands will not be implemented at VIVAT as this is never part of Athoras policy. VIVAT will operate in compliance with the full version of the Dutch Large Company Regime. VIVAT will be rebranded to Athora Netherlands prior to the end of 2020.

VIVATs core customer brands Zwitserleven, Reaal and ACTIAM will be maintained in the Dutch market and customers will continue to be served accordingly with a consistent focus on financial security, customer centricity and quality of services. Zwitserleven and Reaal are guaranteeing full continuity for their life customers whose contracts will continue unchanged. Additionally, Athora is supportive of Zwitserleven and Reaals current strategy for their life portfolios.

COVID-19

Athora continues to closely monitor the development of the coronavirus outbreak and its impact on financial and operational conditions. Its employees and customers are its top priorities at this time. Athora relied on its flexible infrastructure and comprehensive business continuity plans to transition its employees across five countries to a remote working arrangement within days. Minimal operational disruptions have been experienced to date and customer service levels are being met. At the same time, Athora continues to monitor closely its financial position collectively as a group and at the individual operating subsidiary level. Thanks to Athoras risk-driven asset and capital management approach, the capital positions of each of Athoras insurance subsidiaries have strengthened over the past few weeks and increased their surplus in excess of the levels required by regulation. This demonstrates Athoras commitment and ability to ensure its customers long-term financial security even in unprecedented times like these.

About Athora Holding Ltd.

Athora is a specialised insurance and reinsurance group fully focused on the European market. Athora dedicates its focus, capital, time and technical insights to offering its customers a stable, long-term performance on its products. Athora's principal subsidiaries are VIVAT N.V. (Amstelveen, Netherlands), Athora Belgium N.V./S.A. (Brussels), Athora Lebensversicherung AG (Wiesbaden, Germany), Athora Ireland plc (Dublin) and Athora Life Re Ltd. (Bermuda). The Athora group employs some 2,400 staff and has approximately 3 million policyholders for total consolidated assets of approximately 70 billion. For further information, go to: www.athora.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005
But many of the people who cause problems are likely the ones who could benefit from a long-term city partnership with a mental health service provider.
Jenny McCarthy and husband Donnie Wahlberg put their enforced quarantine to good use on Wednesday by shooting a Netflix parody in the grounds of their palatial LA home.

The couple are currently adhering to government mandated rules by remaining behind closed doors as the United States tackles the growing spread of deadly coronavirus COVID-19.

And with time on their hands, they embraced a rapidly developing trend by parodying a scene from Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, the new documentary series taking Netflix by storm.

Time on our hands: Jenny McCarthy and husband Donnie Wahlberg put their enforced quarantine to good use on Wednesday by shooting a Netflix parody in the grounds of their palatial LA home

Taking to their respective Instagram accounts, the pair shared a light-hearted Tik Tok video of themselves reenacting the homemade music video for Joe Exotic track Because You Love Me.

Sporting a blonde mullet wig and black muscle top, Donnie, 50, is dressed in character as flamboyant, charismatic zookeeper and musician Joe - the key player around which the seven part series unfolds.

Meanwhile Jenny, 47, plays one of Joe's beloved wild tigers, and she vies for Donnie's attention as he makes a poor attempt at miming the country track.

Here we go: With time on their hands, the couple embraced a rapidly developing trend by parodying a scene from Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, the new documentary series taking Netflix by storm

Sporting a blonde mullet wig and black muscle top, Donnie is dressed in character as flamboyant, charismatic zookeeper and musician Joe - the key player around which the seven part series unfolds.

Hilarious: Meanwhile Jenny, 47, plays one of Joe's beloved wild tigers, and she vies for Donnie's attention as he makes a poor attempt at miming Joe's country track Because You Love Me

Playing the scene for laughs, Donnie is seen attacking his wife, who is dressed in a full tiger costume, with an acoustic guitar as they sit close to their sprawling outdoor pool.

Captioning the video, Jenny wrote: #JoeExotic and his meow kitty versus @donniewahlberg and his meow meow kitty! #Quarantine Craziness!'

The couple are the latest celebrities to pay tribute to the Netflix series, which has become essential viewing as people across the world adjust to life behind closed doors.

Take that: Playing the scene for laughs, Donnie is seen attacking his wife, who is dressed in a full tiger costume, with an acoustic guitar as they sit close to their sprawling outdoor pool

Funny: The couple are the latest celebrities to pay tribute to the Netflix series, which has become essential viewing as people across the world adjust to life behind closed doors

On Tuesday Sylvester Stalone, 73, wife Jennifer Flavin and daughters Sistine, Sophia, and Scarlet decided to waste some quarantine time by playing dress up, each transforming into one of the unbelievable characters from the Netflix docuseries for Instagram followers.

While Stallone played Vegas villain Jeff Lowe, his wife Jennifer took the role of Carole Baskin, maybe-murderer and founder of Florida animal sanctuary Big Cat Rescue.

Daughter Sophia took the role of Tiger King Joe Exotic, throwing on a fringed jacket and painting on some facial hair to achieve the perfect look.

The cat's meow! Sylvester Stallone and family dressed up like the characters from the hit Netflix documentary on Tuesday

Purr-fect: Sly played Vegas villain Jeff Lowe while daughter Sophia was the Tiger King Joe Exotic

The real deal: The real Joe is seen on the left while Jeff is seen to the right

Hey cool cats and kittens! The Rocky actor's wife Jennifer took the role of Carole Baskin, maybe-murderer and founder of Florida animal sanctuary Big Cat Rescue

The actor's other girls Sistine and Scarlet played Joe's dentally-challenged ex-husband John Finlay and Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park employee Erik Cowie.

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness tells the stranger-than-fiction story of some of America's most eccentric big cat enthusiasts.

The series is streaming on Netflix now.

Queen of the cats: Above is the real Carole with one of her beloved cats
This company article has been removed.
As the number of confirmed Coronavirus (COVID-19) cases increase steadily both in Ghana and elsewhere, corporate organisations and individuals are showing the humanity in them by donating generously towards the fight against the spread of the disease.



Many governments across the world are overwhelmed by the sheer scale of resources needed to fight the pandemic which has claimed 5 lives locally and more than 44,000 globally.



To fill the yawning gap between what governments are able to provide and what is needed, some corporate institutions and individuals are digging into their pockets to provide the needed help.



One of such organisations is electronic security systems provider, Virtual Security Africa and its sister company, Virtual InfoSec Africa, which donated GHS100,000 worth of Sanitizers to the Ghana Health Service.



The hand sanitizers were procured from local manufacturers, Kasapreko Company Limited in Accra. Sales and Marketing Manager of Virtual Security Africa, Ms Yvonne Nimoh, who presented the items, said as a good corporate citizen, the company felt obliged to contribute resources to the fight.



She said the 700 boxes of hand sanitizers was the companys token in support of governments tireless efforts at curbing the spread of the virus.



The Chief Executive of VSA, Mr Emmanuel Asiedu Sekyere, said the company recognized that government alone cannot shoulder the cost of fighting the pandemic.



We made the presentation to the Ghana Health Service because as frontliners, we believe they need all the protection they can get. They cant protect us while they and their families are exposed to fatal risks, he said.



Mr Asiedu advised Ghanaians to observe religiously, the restrictions and guidance given to prevent further spread of the virus.



This is a national duty for every Ghanaian. We must act responsibly because that is who we are, a responsible sensitive people determined to save our nation collectively, he admonished.



He is convinced that procuring the sanitizers from a local manufacturer itself empowers the local business and create opportunity for growth.



The Director General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, who received the donation, expressed gratitude to VSA for the support. Also present during the donation was the Deputy Director, Dr Anthony Adofo Ofosu.



He echoed Mr Asiedus sentiment about the urgent need for all citizens to join the fight against the spread of the virus.



According to data from the GHS, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ghana now stands at 195, with five deaths and 38 recoveries.



Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

By Elnur Baghishov - Trend:

The inclusion of Iran in the FATF's black list on February 21, 2020 has had some effect, a member of Iranian parliament Masoumeh Aghapour Alishahi told Trend.

According to Alishahi, this issue has led to 15-20 percent increase in foreign exchange in Iran.

Alishahi added that it also had a negative impact on the return of Iranian funds to the country.

The Iranian MP said that however, the fact that three European countries (the UK, France and Germany) in the Comprehensive Joint Action Plan launched the first operation under the INSTEX financial mechanism has reduced the FATF's influence.

Alishahi said that in addition, the effects of FATF are less severe in the current state of coronavirus spread.

The Iranian MP said that The Expediency Council of Iran may re-examine the FATF's projects, given the economic situation in Iran.

The objectives of FATF are to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.

During the recent FATF meeting, Iran has been warned that it may be added to the list of non-cooperative countries within three months if it does not completely fulfill the FATF requirements. Iran fulfilled 37 of 41 FATF requirements. The remaining four requirements refer to the legislative field.

The amendments to Counter-Terrorist Financing Act, Anti-Money Laundering Act, Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (Palermo) and International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) were prepared by the Iranian government and sent to the parliament.

Although the four conventions have been approved and sent to the Expediency Council of Iran, the CFT and Palermo conventions have not yet been ratified by the Council.

FATF was established in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 Group to combat money laundering. FATF has 37 members and its secretariat is in Paris.

Iran was included in the FATF blacklist in 2007. The anti-Tehran steps have been taken since 2009. Thus, the countries were cautious in their financial and banking transactions with Iran.

Taking of reciprocal steps against Iran through diplomatic steps has been postponed since 2016. FATF included Iran into the black list again on Feb. 21, 2020.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark Calabria told CNBC that the government was counting on borrowers to be honest.

Were operating on the honor system. Calabria said in an interview Wednesday. We are asking and were putting together a script for servicers. This is supposed to be limited to if youve lost your job, youve lost income. Please, if you havent lost your job, continue paying. If you can pay your mortgage, please do so  because we really need to focus on the people who cant.

Calabria said that up to 2 million borrowers could apply for loan forbearance by May. He warned that servicers could begin to feel the strain if the forbearance has to last more than a few months, CNBC reported.

If this goes beyond two or three months and we start to get worse than that, then thats going to be a lot of strain, and certainly were going to start to see some firms get into a lot of liquidity trouble, Calabria said.
The first of three new units the Marine Corps will design to fight in hotly contested maritime spaces will operate in the Asia-Pacific region, the service's top leader said this week.

Leaders are working through plans this year to stand up a new Marine littoral regiment, Commandant Gen. David Berger told reporters Wednesday. The MLR, as Berger calls it, will be a new naval expeditionary force formation based in Hawaii and will fall under the Japan-based III Marine Expeditionary Force.

"We are already convinced, based on war games and modeling so far, that we have a fairly good idea of what an MLR with [III Marine Expeditionary Force] ... could look like," Berger said.

The commandant's plan for the new regiment is part of a months-long force design, which was unveiled last month. The Marine Corps will not only stand up the new units, which will be organized, trained and equipped to accomplish sea denial and control, according to planning documents, but will also pivot away from longstanding missions.

Related: Commandant Says He Won't Force Out Marines as the Service Shrinks

By 2030, the Marine Corps will get rid of its tank battalions, scale back the number of infantry units it has, and cut tiltrotor, rotary and fixed-wing squadrons. The number of Marines on active duty will also fall by about 16,000 in the next decade.

The goal: To reinvest that money in areas that will help the Marine Corps take on China or other sophisticated adversaries in a naval environment.

In the last year, Berger said, the service has held experiments in which a new Marine littoral regiment lands somewhere with a Multiple Launch Rocket System. They've tested how the units can get firing data on targets it needs to engage before moving on somewhere else.

"We have to experiment ... to find out what the best way to build those forces are and what kinds of equipment they need," he said. "[That's] all in the mindset of they have to be capable, but they also have to be able to displace -- to be able to move.

"We can't make them so big and heavy that they can't get out of their own way."

As those experiments continue, Berger declined to provide specifics about when the first one will be activated, what types of Marines will be assigned to it, or what equipment they'll operate.

He said only that it will be a "a phased approach" -- first the formation will be built and then "capabilities flowed in."

In a 15-page memo on the Marine Corps' new force design, Berger called transforming the service's current formations essential. The first Marine littoral regiment will serve as an "initial formation" to new concepts," he wrote.

"Before we undertake an ambitious force wide transformation, we must validate our assumptions, wargame rigorously, pursue the necessary modeling, and ensure that our primary warfighting partner -- [Navy] Fleet Commanders -- share our conclusions."

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to clarify the unit's planned headquarters and basing arrangement.

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

Read more: Marines to Shut Down All Tank Units, Cut Infantry Battalions in Major Overhaul
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Linkedin Tri Indah Oktavianti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 18:47 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f4d86c 1 City psychologist,COVID-19,medical-workers,COVID-19-Jakarta,Jakarta-administration,COVID-19-in-Indonesia Free

The Jakarta administration, through city-owned enterprise PT Jakarta Tourisindo (Jaktour), has started recruiting psychologists willing to voluntarily provide counseling sessions for medical staff on the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19 in Jaka

Jaktour president director Novita Dewi said that 150 people had volunteered so far, but only 10 applicants met the requirements, while the remaining applicants were university students.

We will only accept those with official certification, Novita told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.

The city-owned company, which manages several hotels across the capital, is currently hosting hundreds of medical staff dealing with COVID-19 in four of its hotels, namely Grand Cempaka Business Hotel and d'Arcici Alhijra Hotel in Central Jakarta, as well as d'Arcici Plumpang Hotel and d'Arcici Sunter Hotel in North Jakarta.

[The medical workers] have been working very hard to treat COVID-19 patients so they might get stressed out," Novita said as quoted by kompas.com.

She said that the counseling would be done both online and offline, adding that face-to-face sessions would follow social-distancing measures and health and safety standards.

The application form can be accessed through https://tinyurl.com/Relawanpsikologjkt and applicants must attach their official certification in psychology.

As of Thursday, Indonesia had announced 1,790 confirmed COVID-19 cases, 897 of which were in Jakarta.
Slate's Who Counts? series is made possible by the support of Slate Plus members and readers like you.

Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial.

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly believes that affirmative action and slavery spring from the same taproot, declaring: Morally, and as a matter of law, they are the same. Progressives have a shot at ousting him from the state Supreme Court on Tuesday. But Republican lawmakers are doing everything they can to ensure that the coronavirus depresses turnout in Democratic strongholds.

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Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers has issued an executive order directing residents to stay at home in an effort to combat COVID-19, which has already killed 33 people in the state. Yet Wisconsin is still scheduled to hold elections next week.

Besides the presidential primary, there are more than 3,800 seats on the ballot in Wisconsin next Tuesday, including 1,596 county supervisors and officers, and 565 school district board positions. But the most important contest, by far, is the race between Kelly and Jill Karofsky for the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Kelly, the incumbent, is an arch-conservative who has opposed same-sex marriage in overtly homophobic terms. (He has also attacked abortion, welfare, Islam, and Obamacare; naturally, he is a member of the Federalist Society.) Karofsky, his challenger, is a circuit court judge and former prosecutor running as a moderate liberal. If Karofsky ousts Kelly, she will whittle down the courts conservative majority, creating a 43 split. Liberals would then have a shot at flipping the court if they can oust another conservative justice in 2023.

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There are many reasons why Wisconsin Democrats want to loosen conservatives grip on the state Supreme Court. Wisconsin Republicans have ruthlessly gerrymandered the state Legislature, permanently entrenching their majority. Once they consolidated their power, Republican lawmakers cracked down on voting rights through stringent voter ID laws while repeatedly seeking to slash early voting. Until liberals gain a majority on the state Supreme Courtand therefore the ability to strike down Republicans discriminatory redistricting and disenfranchisement measuresDemocrats have no hope of winning the Legislature. And so long as Republicans hold the Legislature, they will deny Democrats legitimate right to govern.

Both Evers, a Democrat, and the Legislature agreed that this dramatic move would throw the state into disarray because a large number of officeholders terms would expire, with nobody to replace them, and no legal guidance on their continued authority to serve. But Evers wants to relax strict absentee voting laws to ensure that everyone can vote by mail, and Republican lawmakers refuse. There are several restrictions complicating efforts to conduct the entire election by mail. Thanks to Wisconsin Republicans partisan voter ID crusade, voters must submit proof of residence and photo ID to register and apply for an absentee ballot. Wisconsins rules dictate that a fellow U.S. citizen must serve as witness and sign the ballot; that voters request a ballot by April 2; and that their ballot must arrive at the polling place by 8 p.m. on April 7.

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On Thursday, U.S. District Judge William Conley, a Barack Obama appointee, extended these deadlines and loosened the witness requirement. His order, if upheld, will not aid voters struggling to fulfill the voter ID requirement. But it will somewhat alleviate Wisconsins biggest challenge, which is processing an unprecedented number of absentee ballots. Because of the coronavirus, there has been a massive surge in requests for these ballots; there will be well over 1 million more ballots sent out this year than in 2019s spring elections. This rush to apply has coincided with dramatic reductions in polling places, particularly in urban areas that are largely Democratic. As hundreds of poll workers drop out for fear of infection, Green Bay may reduce its 31 polling places down to just four, while Milwaukee slashed its polling places from 180 to fewer than 12. At least 60 percent of Wisconsins cities report a shortage of poll workers, and 100 jurisdictions lack enough workers to staff just one polling site.

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Meanwhile, election officials are scrambling to process hundreds of thousands of absentee ballot requests. They report working 1217 hours a day with no end in sight to get through a huge backlog, with no real chance of success. By law, these officials must send an absentee ballot to a voter within 48 hours of receiving their applicationbut the turnaround time in some offices has reached a full week.

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In light of these snags, Democrats pleaded with Republican legislators to ease the rigid requirements that govern absentee balloting in Wisconsin. They refused. So a group of voting rights organizations filed a federal lawsuit on March 26 asking Conley to block the harshest rules. The witness-signature requirement, they pointed out, creates an insurmountable hurdle for many eligible Wisconsin voters under quarantine or in isolation. The proof-of-residency and photo ID requirements are challenging for elderly or low-income residents, who must upload their documentation onlinebut they may lack the requisite technology, and libraries are closed. Many citizens who traditionally vote in person may not remember to request an absentee ballot by April 2. Because of the backlog, those who do request a ballot in time may not be able to return it by the April 7 deadline.

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Evers has recommended very simple solutions to these hitchesnamely, suspend the documentation requirements for those who cant satisfy them and extend the deadlines so absentee voters have more time to register and return their ballots. But the GOP-controlled Legislature rushed to court to oppose all these fixes. It declared that voters can simply go to open UPS stores to upload their documentation, even though doing so would violate Evers social distancing guidelines. Senior citizens, the Legislature insists, should simply ask a neighbor to observe through a window, slide the ballot to the witness under the door for his signature, then pick up the ballot once the witness is six feet away. And with regard to the deadlines, the Legislature shrugs that the court may simply wait until after election day to determine whether any remedy is necessary or appropriate. In other words, instead of forestalling a crisis, the court should wait until the crisis arrives to take action.

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In his Thursday order, Conley refused to move the election or halt the photo ID requirement, noting that the elections commission has already granted an exception for the indefinitely confined. But he did give voters an extra day to request absentee ballots and force the state to count ballots that arrive by 4 p.m. on April 13. Conley also suspended the witness requirement for voters who submit a written affirmation that they could not safely satisfy it.

Given Republicans staunch opposition to these measures, there is a good chance they will appeal Conleys order to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. If the appeals court lifts his injunction, it will permit the virus to depress voter turnout in Democratic bastions like Milwaukee, where the mayorwho is on the ballothas urged residents not to go to the polls for their own safety. A substantial number of voters wont be able to return their ballots in time and will not risk in-person voting during a public health emergency. Even if they tried, many residents wont have the time or resources to visit one of the few polls still open in their city.

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In the 2019 Wisconsin Supreme Court race, conservative Brian Hagedorn defeated liberal Lisa Neubauer by fewer than 6,000 votes out of more than 1.2 million cast. The state is closely divided, and even if COVID-19 has only a minor effect, it could suppress enough votes in blue urban centers to secure Kellys victory next Tuesday. If Republicans believed Kelly could win on his own merits, they would not let a pandemic prevent thousands of Wisconsinites from casting a ballot. Their obstinacy is incredibly cynical but in line with their broader approach to governance. Wisconsin Republicans have already rigged elections through gerrymandering and seized authority from Evers under the apparent belief that the GOP has a divine right to rule the state. After all that, letting a pandemic swing a state Supreme Court race probably seems like childs play.
A growing number of workers who are crucial to supplying the world with meat are demanding that their companies do more to keep them safe from the coronavirus.

Labor unions are starting to speak out as their members fall ill, there are reports of increased absenteeism and some front line workers have even walked off the job. That's raising the specter of mass protests that could threaten global meat supplies just as supply chains unravel and grocery stores struggle to keep food on their shelves.

It's part of the balancing act facing meat and agricultural producers in a pandemic: how to keep the world fed while safeguarding employees. Slaughterhouses and processing plants are sanitizing their operations more, staggering lunch breaks and checking people's temperatures, but unions say they're still falling short.

"They're scared to make that decision that you guys need to be six feet apart because the production is going to plummet," said Paula Schelling, acting national joint council chairwoman of food-inspector locals for the American Federation of Government Employees.

The first case of a worker at a major U.S. meat producer testing positive for the virus was reported last week at poultry giant Sanderson Farms Inc. Since then, infections have cropped up everywhere from JBS plants in Iowa to Harmony Beef in Alberta.

While scattered factories have closed temporarily or cut output, generally companies are keeping plants running when workers get sick. Rather than shutting entire plants, they've focused on identifying areas where infected people have had direct contact.

In Brazil, a labor judge granted a petition in mid-March by workers at two JBS facilities in Santa Catarina state, a chicken-production hub, to halt or reduce operations because of safety concerns. The next day, JBS won a decision to overturn the ruling because food processing is considered essential.

Workers still feel unsafe, Celso Elias, a director at the union, said in a telephone interview.

JBS cited its strict measures to guarantee the health and safety of employees, including steps to reduce crowding. "The company proved to the federal court through documents, photos, videos and elements attached to the lawsuit, that it is adopting all the recommendations" of the World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health, JBS said in a statement.

In Uruguay, workers at some of the country's largest meat exporters started an eight-day strike Wednesday to reduce the risk of contracting the virus. About 11 plants, including subsidiaries of Brazil's Marfrig Global Foods and Japan's NH Foods, halted operations, said Martin Cardozo, chairman of the main chapter of meatpackers union Foica.

In the U.S, social distancing is not possible in processing facilities where workers are side by side, and the Department of Agriculture is not equipping its consumer-safety or food inspectors with protective masks or hand sanitizer, Schelling of the American Federation said.

Dozens of inspectors who are at high risk of coronavirus complications due to health issues are on safety leave, and one consumer safety inspector died of coronavirus in New York City, she said.

While food safety inspectors follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "there are times when the physical layout of the plants they work in make social distancing a challenge," the USDA said in a statement. "Unlike doctors and nurses in hospitals, there is no data to suggest that slaughter establishments are at higher risk of exposure."

Inspectors may wear their own face masks to plants if they choose to, the agency said.

The League of United Latin American Citizens, the largest Latino civil-rights organization in the U.S., said workers are being exposed "with little recourse." The group is asking the Department of Labor to provide clear guidelines on proper safety equipment, paid sick days and regular health checks for workers.

Workers further along the food chain are also starting to organize themselves in a coordinated action to demand more protection for employees working through the pandemic.

An employee at Amazon.com said he was fired for leading a strike at a warehouse in New York, while workers at Whole Foods Market went on a sickout strike in an effort to extract protections and better working conditions from their managers. The city of San Diego also urged Instacart Inc. to treat its shoppers as employees and provide paid sick leave.

For processing workers, a Canadian union representing them has asked employers to increase the space between each employee's work area, even if line speeds drop.

"We're calling on all these employers to look themselves in the mirror and say no matter what happens we did everything we could to keep food on the table and everyone safe," said Thomas Hesse, president of United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 401, the largest private-sector union in Western Canada with 32,000 members in Alberta, mostly in food processing and retailing.

Just as hospitals have reached out to staff with previous critical-care experience, some companies are working to create a relief pool of workers to keep plants running.

Chicken giant BRF in Sao Paulo is hiring more than 2,000 people in Brazil and other countries to replace those who may be unable to work because of the pandemic, Chief Executive Officer Lorival Luz said.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency plans to redeploy internal staff and use emergency measures, including contacting recent retirees, to address potential inspector shortages related to absenteeism.

JBS USA is paying a bonus to retain staff while hiring more people to make sure it will be able to run plants if absenteeism increases.

"There's a risk, but we have to balance that as we have a responsibility to continue to produce food," Andre Nogueira, who heads U.S. operations, said on a conference call last week. "We cannot stop. Otherwise, you call it a big, big issue for the whole nation."
Israel's health minister, Yaakov Litzman and his wife Chava have both tested positive for Coronavirus.



The country's Health Ministry which confirmed the development in a statement released on Thursday April 2, said Litzman and Chava have been in isolation after feeling unwell. The statement further revealed that those who have been in contact with the health minister and his wife in the past two weeks, would be notified and ordered into self-quarantine.



It was further gathered that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been made aware of the diagnosis, and it is expected that Litzman "will continue to maintain a regular agenda from his home, in line with medical recommendations."



Before testing positive for the virus, the Minister held meetings alongside Netanyahu and other top officials in the government and health sector. The Prime Minister re-entered quarantine again after emerging from a previous one he got into after his adviser, Rivka Paluch tested positive.



Litzman who is also a member of the ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism, has been frequently criticized for his handling of the virus outbreak in Israel. He was accused of pushing to delay stringent restrictions on public gatherings that would have affected observance of the Purim festival last month, and fought bitterly against last weeks closing of synagogues.



Israel has 6,211 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 33 deaths from the disease.













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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 12:27:55|Editor: huaxia

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A stadium is seen empty in Bologna, Italy, on April 1, 2020. Italy registered a total of 110,574 COVID-19 cases as of Wednesday, and the death toll stood at 13,155, according to fresh figures released by the country's Civil Protection Department managing the national emergency response. (Photo by Gianni Schicchi/Xinhua)

BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The coronavirus pandemic is raging around the world, posing a thorny test for countries and regions, as the global tally of cases surpassed 900,000 on Wednesday.

So far, nations and regions have together reported more than 932,000 cases, with over 46,000 deaths, an interactive map maintained by Johns Hopkins University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering showed.

The numbers came only a day after global COVID-19 diagnoses hit 800,000 mark.

"In the next few days we will reach 1 million confirmed cases, and 50,000 deaths," World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a daily briefing on Wednesday.

"RAPID ESCALATION"

The pandemic is showing no sign of abating in Europe, where the confirmed cases were approaching 500,000 and the death toll swelled to 30,000 on Wednesday.

Spain became the third country that had more than 100,000 infections on Wednesday, after the United States and Italy.

In Italy, a further 727 deaths from COVID-19 were reported in the 24 hours from Tuesday to Wednesday, taking the death toll to 13,155. But that was the lowest daily tally of fatalities since March 26.

In France, 509 more COVID-19 patients have died in the past 24 hours, bringing the death tally to 4,032 on Wednesday, said General Director of Health Jerome Salomon. The cumulative number of infection cases in the country rose to 56,989.

Across the Atlantic, the United States became the first nation with more than 200,000 COVID-19 infections on Wednesday, according to a new tally from Johns Hopkins University.

As of Wednesday afternoon, a total of 203,608 cases have been reported in the United States, with 4,476 deaths, showed the tally updated by the university's Center for Systems Science and Engineering.

"As we enter the fourth month since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am deeply concerned about the rapid escalation and global spread of infection," the WHO chief said.

ECONOMIC MEDICINE

The pandemic has posed a grave threat to the market's poise, as the United Nations (UN) Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) warned that the global economy could shrink by 1 percent this year.

The DESA said in a report that economic anxiety and inequality will increase as the pandemic worsens.

The World Bank announced on Monday that it projected growth in developing economies in East Asia and the Pacific region to slow to 2.1 percent in the baseline scenario amid the COVID-19 pandemic, from an estimated 5.8 percent in 2019.

UN agencies continued to help countries contain the virus and limit its social-economic impact.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said it has provided 78.8 million U.S. dollars in responses to the pandemic. It includes 75 million dollars from the UN's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), with the rest coming from country-based, pooled funds.

Programs in 15 countries have been supported through these funds and additional countries are being identified under the global CERF allocation of 60 million dollars -- one of the largest ever made. It is being used to kick-start the 2-billion-dollar COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan appeal.

So far, according to the OCHA, close to 374 million dollars in donor funds have been made available for the global plan.

SUSTAINED MEASURES

Italy will remain under a nationwide anti-coronavirus lockdown until April 13, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Wednesday evening.

The current lockdown, which started on March 10, was due to end on April 3.

"We are not in a condition to relax our restrictive measures yet ... and this is why I just signed a new decree that extends the current measures to April 13," Conte said.

Germany will also extend the restrictions on social contacts to April 19 at the earliest, in a bid to contain the spreading coronavirus, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said.

The restrictions were initially due to end on April 5.

Citizens are asked to "refrain from private trips and visits from relatives too," Merkel added.

Also on Wednesday, Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa said he will request the extension of the current state of emergency for another 15 days, which was declared on March 18 and will end on Thursday.

"It is not yet time to see the light at the end of the tunnel. We know that at the bottom of the tunnel there is a light, but it is not yet in sight," Costa said.

While many European countries like Italy have adopted nationwide lockdown, U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he will not issue a national stay-at-home order.

Governor of the U.S. state of Florida Ron DeSantis issued an order Wednesday directing residents statewide to stay at home. Georgia, Mississippi and Nevada followed suit later in the day.
UTICA, N.Y.  The Boilermaker Road Race is planning a possible alternative course of action in case the race has to be postponed this year.

President Mark Donovan says theyre hoping to move forward on July 12 as scheduled, but with the evolving coronavirus crisis, theyve had to develop a contingency plan.

Keith Hunt // WKTV Keith Hunt // WKTV

Donovan released the following statement Wednesday, April 1:

Earle Reed started the Boilermaker back in 1978 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Utica Radiators and to give back to our community. During the ensuing 42 years, it has served to bring our community together and we would love to be able to host the 43rd running of the Boilermaker to help celebrate our overcoming this public health pandemic caused by COVID-19 which continues to wreak havoc in New York and across the US.

However, we must all recognize that we are facing a situation that is changing by the minute and we are, in many ways, at its mercy. The one thing we can never do, is put the safety and well-being of Boilermaker Nation at risk. To that end, we are running parallel planning paths; one that will have us ready for July if appropriate and a contingency plan should July prove to be too much of a risk to proceed.

As we go forward, we will be hoping for the best while preparing for a potential alternative. Our commitment is to pursue the best interests of Boilermaker Nation at all times and communicate any updates as soon as possible.

The Boilermaker has never been canceled or postponed past its scheduled date.

Registration is still open for the event at: boilermaker.com.
The Sindh High Court on Thursday reduced the death sentence awarded to the main accused in the 2002 kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, and acquitted three others co-accused in the matter.

At least four people were convicted in connection with Pearl's murder, including Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was sentenced to death in 2002 for masterminding the murder, Dawn reported.

Since Sheikh has been in prison for the past 18 years, his seven-year sentence will be counted from the time served and is expected to be released, said Defence lawyer Khawja Naveed.

While the other three convicts, Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil-- who were earlier handed life sentences -- were set free by the court.

However, the court had not yet issued an order regarding the matter.

After hearing arguments and examining the record and proceedings of the case, a two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha had announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the convicts 18 years ago.

But this time, the Sindh High Court further dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of the other three co-accused in the case.

Pearl, 38, was the South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal when he was abducted in Karachi in January 2002 while researching a story about religious extremists in Karachi.

A graphic video showing his decapitation was delivered to the US consulate in the city nearly a month later. Omar Sheikh was arrested in 2002 and sentenced to death by an anti-terror court.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University following an investigation into his death made chilling revelations, claiming that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.

The investigation, led by Pearl's friend and former Wall Street Journal colleague Asra Nomani and a Georgetown University professor, claimed the reporter was murdered by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of September 11, 2001, attacks, not Omar Sheikh.

Mohammed, better known as KSM, was arrested in Pakistan in 2003 and is being held in Guantanamo Bay. A US psychologist who interviewed KSM said the prisoner had told him that he had beheaded Pearl.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
"The fact that the Cuban Government has taken so long to start taking measures to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic is not only a reproachable attitude, but has put citizens at risk," said Rosa Maria Paya, a promoter of the Cuba Decide project, who, together with several leaders from independent civil society on the island, assessed the delicate situation that the country is facing in the face of the expansion of the new coronavirus.

Paya pointed out, in statements to DIARIO DE CUBA, that the island features "aggravating conditions: those in which citizens live. For most Cubans it is practically impossible to practice social isolation."

In this regard Berta Soler, leader of the Ladies in White human rights group, noted that "the Cuban regime is reassuring people that nothing is going to happen. This is not a question of whether public health is good or bad. People are on the streets, unnecessarily; Coppelia, full to buy ice cream; with lines everywhere, because people have to go out and buy food."

"The regime has not devised a strategy to feed Cubans. The situation is very worrisome. They are not thinking about the people, but rather about making money by sending doctors abroad. Those are violations of the human rights of the Cuban people," Soler said.

Artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara also criticized the authorities sluggish reaction: "They've been lax because they don't have many options in terms of movement. The government knows that if it imposes a quarantine the country will collapse in a matter of hours. The regime suffers from too many systemic economic errors. Many of the actions its has taken are more political in nature. All the children and adolescents who are not at school are not going to be at home. Here there are families with 20 or 30 people living in one house, so many will be on the streets. They are doing what they are supposed to, but it is showing that the Cuban system is faulty, on an economic, social, and medical level."

Meanwhile, Eduardo Cardet, a former political prisoner and leader of the Christian Liberation Movement, as well as a doctor by profession, pointed out that the situation in which this health crisis finds the island could have very serious consequences for Cubans.

"The Cuban people have been suffering for many years from a difficult, systemic economic crisis. All this will worsen our reality. We do not expect there to be effective measures, not only in terms of health care, but in terms of basic needs, like soap, detergent, antiseptic and food, which are all very compromised," he said.

"Poverty is one of the cruelest mechanisms of oppression that the regime uses, to keep the people in a state of precariousness and daily survival, so that they cannot struggle. No one is fully prepared to face a major epidemic. We lack all kinds of drugs at pharmacies, like pain relievers, antibiotics, all the groups of drugs are lacking."

"Totalitarian regimes misrepresent everything. For years in Cuba we have suffered from a major dengue epidemic that is not even talked about. Now the authorities claim that everything is under control, but there are no masks at pharmacies, they are asking people to make them, and toiletries are missing."

Tourism and "medical missions" as sources of income

Regarding the government's decision to close the borders after several weeks, stating that Cuba was a safe destination for tourism, Cardet pointed out that "they waited as long as they could, until the last second, because this cuts off tourism revenue."

Cardet pointed out that the Cuban health system, which the regime cites as one of its strengths," is one of the most ailing at the national level, at least the one that treats ordinary Cubans. Let no one forget that in Cuba there is a duality: the system that serves the people, and the one they put in the showcase to boast of a great health system, but which is not really for the Cuban people, but rather for foreigners, with the services they offer. Our reality is a lack of all kinds of supplies, and facilities in terrible condition, although there are indeed well-intentioned people who want to help people in those hospitals. We have to stand in solidarity with each other."

Rosa Maria Paya also recalled that in these kinds of situations the regime exploits doctors as political pawns. "There is a lot of confusion in the rest of the world, with people saying that 'Cuban doctors are arriving.' It is very important to remember that Cuban medical missions constitute forced labor, according to the United Nations Rapporteur on Human Trafficking."

"The fact that they use the forced labor of Cuban professionals to profit by putting them at risk is a crime, not an exercise in solidarity. This may have repercussions in our country, where the health system is currently in a deplorable state," she stated.

Political prisoners and human rights activists in the face of the pandemic

Paya underscored the role that civil society has played in confronting the pandemic in Cuba. "The measures that the regime took had been demanded by the population long beforehand," she pointed out.

"Cuba's civil society has already embraced the protest role that it must play. We in the Cuban opposition, which is not composed of partisan political blocks operating in a political arena, as this does not exist in Cuba, but rather defenders of human rights, regardless of our political positions, have a responsibility to use our voices to defend Cuba's citizens. At this time this means condemning the irresponsibility, the arbitrariness, the crimes that the regime is committing in its dysfunctional handling of this pandemic, and the danger that this means for Cubans."

In Paya's view the abrupt incarceration of Lady in White Aimara Nieto clearly reveals how the regime could use the situation to cover up repression. "They decided to transfer a woman who is unjustly imprisoned, and send her more than 700 km from her family, to another prison where we know that the conditions, the overcrowding, and humidity, are terrible. This case allows us to appreciate what the Cuban prison population is experiencing, and what this health crisis in Cuba, also being used as a repressive instrument, could mean. No action has been taken to protect political prisoners, as the Aimara case demonstrates."

Several activists who frequently carry out street actions said that they have decided to put protecting the people first, preventing contagion.

The Ladies in White, for example, have decided to temporarily suspend their actions, Berta Soler confirmed.

Otero Alcantara, meanwhile, thinks it is a good time to set an example of civic conduct. "In Cuba there is no notion of how serious the coronavirus can be. Neither the intellectuals nor the activists have realized it. People are waiting for the regime to impose a curfew. If we go out on the street, or to a protest, what we will probably do is exacerbate the pandemic."

The leader of the San Isidro Movement observed that an imprisoned activist who becomes ill, or dies, could be a thorny problem for the regime. "I was at Valle Grande, in the midst of subhuman conditions. If the virus spreads there, we are talking about 2,000 people infected."

"The regime, whether we like it or not, has the most power, as it has controlled everything in Cuba. It is the one that can buy a boat full of medicines, for example. But the virus is not going to distinguish between people's different political leanings. It will affect everyone equally. I think you have to take care of yourself," he advised.
Chemical companies across the globe have ramped up efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic that continues to spread with no signs of abating. The global chemical industry is scaling up the supply of essential products  from raw materials for hand sanitizers to personal protective equipment (PPE) materials  in response to this health predicament.



Demand for Health & Safety Products at a Fever Pitch



With the number of coronavirus cases around the world continuing to climb, demand for preventive products has skyrocketed. Critical items such as hand sanitizers, masks and gloves are flying off the shelves as people continue to stock up amid the worsening scenario.



Medical, health and safety products are currently in short supply amid the pandemic that has so far claimed more than 42,000 lives and infected more than 850,000 people globally. Notably, outbreak in the United States, Italy, Spain, Germany and France has worsened over the past several days. It has rattled global stock markets on concerns over broader economic impacts.

Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, an infectious disease epidemiologist with the World Health Organization (WHO), recently said that the world is facing a significant shortage of PPE including masks, respirators, gloves, gowns and face shields for frontline health workers.



The WHO, last month, had called on manufacturers to increase production of PPE by 40% to meet the rising global demand. The WHO is concerned that limited access to PPE supplies has left frontline workers dangerously ill-equipped to care for COVID-19 patients. It has urged governments to provide incentives to the industry for ramping up production of PPE and other medical supplies.



While demand for PPE first spiked in China, where the outbreak originated, it rapidly surged across the world to an unprecedented level with the spread of the lethal virus.



Chemical Industry Playing a Critical Role



The chemical industry is playing an important role in these testing times. The industry provides the basic raw materials to the producers of health, hygiene and safety products such as PPE, sanitizers, disinfectants and other cleaning products.



For instance, the industry supplies two active ingredients for hand sanitizers  ethanol (ethyl alcohol) and isopropanol (isopropyl alcohol). According to the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC), a hand sanitizer with an alcohol concentration between 60-95% is more effective in killing germs.



The chemical industry also provides polypropylene, a polymer used to make PPE, as well as plastic products such as polyethylene that help prevent contamination of food, personal care and medical products. Moreover, it supplies polymethyl methacrylate and polycarbonate for making protective screens that are being installed across supermarkets globally in a bid to safeguard their checkout staff from the virus. A wide range of chemicals are also used to make medicines.

The American Chemistry Council (ACC), a leading chemical industry trade group, last month said that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has identified the U.S. chemical industry as Essential Critical Infrastructure, an industry sector critical to public health and safety, economic and national security.



Chemical Makers Crank Up Supplies to Meet Demand



A number of chemical companies are ramping up production to address the surging demand for health, hygiene and safety products. Some of them are even adjusting their production to make finished products including hand sanitizers.



Dow Inc. DOW recently said that it is expanding production of hand sanitizers at additional sites in North America, Europe and Latin America. These sites join the companys site in Stade, Germany, which is already producing hand sanitizers. The company expects these sites to produce more than 200 metric tons (equivalent to more than 880,000 eight-ounce bottles) of hand sanitizers. Dow, which does not typically make hand sanitizers, has taken this initiative to address the shortage of these essential products.



DuPont de Nemours, Inc. DD is also stepping up efforts to help protect the frontline fighters. The companys manufacturing facilities are working round the clock to boost capacity of protective garments amid soaring demand. DuPonts Spruance manufacturing plant is boosting the production of Tyvek, a material (made from high-density polyethylene) which is used to make protective garments that shield frontline medical personnel from contracting the virus. Notably, the company is ramping up the production of Tyvek hazmat suits, a product critical to protecting U.S. doctors and nurses.



Meanwhile, Eastman Chemical Company EMN is expediting the production of a material required to produce protective face shields for medical personnel battling the outbreak. The company is supplying PETG film, a copolyester, to support the production of face shields. It is also providing resins to customers that are making hand sanitizers.



Huntsman Corporation HUN has also scaled up the production of chemical products needed for making surgical face masks and protective suits. The company is also making hand sanitizers for hospitals and pharmacies in Switzerland that are facing increasing shortages and constrained supply due to the pandemic. It has also provided methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) and other essential materials to help China combat the outbreak.



Moreover, Arkema S.A. ARKAY has repurposed a production line to manufacture alcohol-based solution for distribution to hospitals in France. The solutions are being supplied to the French health authorities and will be earmarked for the mass restocking of public hospitals.



Chemical giant, BASF SE BASFY is also taking steps to make hand sanitizers at its Ludwigshafen, Germany, site in an effort to ease the supply constraints. The company has reallocated several metric tons of raw materials, especially isopropanol, for the production of hand sanitizers. It has been producing certain raw materials at the Ludwigshafen site that are required to make disinfectant products.



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An entrepreneur from Dublin has established a Covid-19 community response team to help vulnerable people in south Dublin.

James McCann, founder of PR agency ClearStory International, has organised the team to help people in Sallynoggin.

Mr McCann first set up his team three weeks ago and has seen more than 25 volunteers join him.

Together, the Community Response Team has been checking in on around 1,300 homes.

One of the first priorities for the team has been to get food to vulnerable residents.

Many of the supermarkets' phone systems are jamming up and delivery slots have become scarce meaning a lot of older people in the community are struggling to get necessities so the first priority is ensuring we can get them food deliveries, James told us.

In order to keep our volunteers safe and out of the supermarkets themselves, we've liaised with our local Supervalu in Killiney to have a call back service for vulnerable people here in Sallynoggin.

If they are having trouble securing orders, they can get in touch with one of our local volunteers and we liaise with the team in Supervalu to add that person to their call back service that guarantees their order and delivery.

They have also been helping with other things, even ones that may seem small.

We had a 91-year-old man last week whose TV went out, said James.

It was his only company and his service provider couldn't get out to him for a week so we arranged for a volunteer to give him a call and troubleshoot the problem with him.

It took 30 minutes but the problem was fixed and he got his TV back.

It sounds silly, but when its the only thing you have and you can't leave the house and nobody can come in, it can make a big difference, just having the company of the TV.

We also had a woman who suffered from MS having computer issues. Again, it was the only thing she had in the house to keep her sane so we got a volunteer who was an IT expert to give her a call and got the problem fixed.

James said the team are doing what they can to comply with government restrictions and social distancing rules.

We're doing our best to ensure we don't have to come in direct contact with anyone.

Any shopping requests go directly to our local Supervalu through our point of contact for callbacks and they take care of the deliveries.

If we need to organise anything to be picked up and delivered we ensure we keep social distancing measures in mind.

While we haven't had to do many housecalls so far our volunteers have been equipped with masks, hand sanitiser, and disinfectant wipes.

We want to reduce the possibility of contact as much as possible with our approach.

James said the response has been brilliant with the team of volunteers having a variety of skill sets.

He said that different skills helps us respond to whatever requests and problems we get.

He said they distributed leaflets with contact numbers as many vulnerable people in the community don't have access to the internet.

James said that a lot of the volunteers are recently out of work and he says having something to focus on helps the volunteers.

A lot of those who've volunteered with us have been temporarily laid off which is horrible to hear but I think it certainly helps with their mindset that they can do something practical to help people in isolation during all of this.

James added: We think the volume of queries will go up over the coming weeks and in some cases, it could be just to keep people company over the phone for a few minutes a day.

It's a different type of fight that most crises bring about but it helps knowing that we're doing something proactive to keep people safe and well during all of this.

He said they cant predict what people are going to need through isolation.

But James said: We're doing what we can and just letting people know we are here to help if they need it.

[snippet1]987600[/snippet1]

Meanwhile, the Government

Read More:

The scheme aims to link local and national government with the community and voluntary sectors.

The purpose of the Call is to coordinate community activity, direct community assistance to where it is needed, and marshal the volunteering energy of the country.

The immediate focus of the scheme will be the elderly and most vulnerable to make sure everyone is looked after.

Speaking at the launch, Mr Coveney said: We are all finding it very strange to be home and to be keeping away from our family and community.

But those that are vulnerable or in need of a bit of help need to know that they are not alone.

The government is tapping into the reach of our local authorities in every corner of Ireland as well as the extraordinary dedication of a legion of voluntary groups and charities.

For those who need some help, it is there for you.
/ -- Solan-based Shoolini University has donated Rs. five lakh to the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister's Relief Fund for those adversely affected by the outbreak of coronavirus.

The entire faculty/staff of the University and Shoolini Institute of Lifesciences & Business Management, barring the daily paid workers, have contributed one day's salary towards the Rs. five lakh fund. The balance of the amount would be contributed by the Foundation for Life Sciences and Business Management (FLSBM), the Trust which runs the University.

Vice Chancellor Prof. P K Khosla, while announcing the contribution, said that the University was open for any support that the state government may desire during these difficult times.

Prof. Khosla said the University was already taking care of all the labour and daily paid workers who were employed on various projects and was providing them food and lodging free of cost.

In addition, he said, the University is taking care of about 200 students, including foreign students and those from far off states, who are staying back in hostels. Special measures like yoga classes and skill development classes are being organised for them keeping social distancing in view.

Meanwhile, the University has introduced virtual classrooms for students and regular classes are being taken online with the help of University's own e-Univ system as well as other social media platforms.

About Shoolini University:



Set up in 2009, Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences is a research-driven private university with full-recognition from the UGC. A leading university of India, it is recognised for its focus on innovation, quality placements, and world-class faculty. Nestled in the lower Himalayas, the university has received accreditation from NAAC and it is ranked by the NIRF.

For further information, please visit: https:hooliniuniversity.com/



Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1087576/Shoolini_10_year_logo_Logo.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
HOW TO DRINK

by Vincent Obsopoeus, ed Michael Fontaine (Princeton 13.99, 320pp)

Wine without moderation, wrote the German poet Vincent Obsopoeus, has no steering wheel. Thats as may be. But you cant help responding with another quote, this one from Oscar Wilde: Everything in moderation, including moderation.

Obsopoeuss advice came in his 1536 extended Latin poem The Art Of Drinking, now translated into English prose by American professor of classics Michael Fontaine.

The original was a response to the excessive drinking culture of Obsopoeuss own time, which made a traditional Friday night out in Newcastle look like a pensioners whist drive.

American professor Michael Fontaine, has translated Vincent Obsopoeus's Latin poem The Art Of Drinking in 1536 into English

Knights returning home from the crusades were constantly on the lash. Hospital patients were each allowed seven litres (12 pints) of wine per day, as were their doctors. Even monks indulged in obscene binges.

Many of the tips make perfect sense. Avoid gossips: The person downing drinks with you . . . should keep what they hear a secret.

Conversation should be light: If a serious disagreement about politics breaks out, dont stubbornly defend your point of view.

Some of the advice is curiously specific: drink with Catholics (they fill cups generously), and powerful people: By drinking with them often . . . youll attain great wealth and high public appointments. (The Bullingdon Clubs history bears this out.)

And its a stroke of either fantastic or abysmal luck, I cant decide, that this book is being published while Britain is in lockdown.

Nowhere beats the advantage of staying home, he says. The male reader is urged to drink in his house, with his wife: She alone will be all the company you want or need. Ill leave you  and, indeed, your spouse  to pronounce on how true that is.

HOW TO DRINK by Vincent Obsopoeus, ed Michael Fontaine (Princeton 13.99, 320pp)

On some issues, Obsopoeus is just wrong. He urges you to sing when drunk. Music is medicine for the soul, he argues. One word, mate: karaoke. And he advises against talking about sex: Waiters are all around you. Theyre young and arent ready for that.

Well, I can think of several women Ive drunk with who would love to have shocked the waiter. Several men, too, come to that.

Having spent most of the book arguing against binge-drinking, Obsopoeus finishes by telling you how to do it. Theres so much social pressure to join in, he says, that sooner or later youll have to comply: drink plenty of water, build up tolerance, make sure your opponent in any contest matches you round for round.

And line your stomach. A nimble cows roasted lung is said to be particularly good at combating drunkenness, should you happen to have one to hand.

And consider getting an amethyst. Methe is Greek for drunkenness; a means not. So the precious stone can supposedly keep hangovers at bay. Whether or not it actually does, the research should still be fun.
ALTON  Wisper ISP, Inc. is working with Microsoft to extend broadband access to rural America.

Wisper provides internet service to residents of Madison and Jersey counties. Company officials this week announced its agreement as part of the Microsoft Airband Initiative affecting rural communities in Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Indiana, Kansas and Oklahoma.

We understand bridging the gap between broadband internet and rural communities cannot be done efficiently on our own and will require strategic partnerships, said Wisper CEO Nathan Stooke. The Microsoft Airband Initiatives vision is closely aligned with ours, and we look forward to working with them to make our similar visions a reality.

Stooke founded Wisper in 2003 when a neighboring business could not receive a high-speed internet connection even though Stooke could at his home. After six months of research, Stooke was able to provide that connection and Wisper was born.

The internet service provider based in Mascoutah now has 16,000 subscribers in Illinois, Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Through their partnership, Wisper and Microsoft expect to serve two million residents across the six states over a span of six years. The Federal Communications Commission currently lists 980,000 of those residents as underserved. The project will affect 621,666 people in Illinois, 283,415 considered underserved.

According to the FCC, 21 million Americans lack broadband access.

Everyone deserves the same opportunity to succeed, said Shelley McKinley, Microsoft Vice President of Technology and Corporate Responsibility. Unfortunately, the broadband gap is holding back rural families, children, farmers, businesses, and whole communities, preventing them from fully taking advantage of the social and economic benefits that come with access to the internet.

Were glad to work with Wisper to connect rural communities across the American heartland and help them thrive in the 21st century and beyond, McKinley said.
Chandigarh, April 2 : Taking a tough stand in the light of Delhi's Nizamuddin incident, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Thursday prohibited all gatherings, including religious, and said the state would impose a total ban on all congregations, irrespective of the religion involved.

He would personally talk to the acting Jathedar of the Akal Takht, said the Chief Minister, while directing the Chief Secretary to discuss the matter with the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) in view of the upcoming Baisakhi festival.

The Chief Minister also ordered 21 days of quarantine for all those who had returned to the state from Nizamuddin in Delhi since January and asked the police and administrative officials to move aggressively to track, trace and isolate all such people.

He directed the police and health department to constitute special teams to track and follow up on those who had returned to Punjab from Nizamuddin.

Amarinder Singh was discussing and reviewing the current situation through a video conference with Deputy Commissioners and other senior officials of the civil administration and police department.

According to Director General of Police Dinkar Gupta, some 200 persons from Punjab had visited Nizamuddin and returned here, at different times, with 12 districts believed to be affected.

They were being tracked, along with some from others states who had arrived in Punjab for Tabligh Jamaat work.

The Health Department was debriefing and contact-tracing them, though, so far, no corona confirmed cases had come to light.

Principal Secretary Health and Family Welfare Anurag Aggarwal informed the Chief Minister that the department had so far received a list of 125 of these persons, of whom 73 had been tracked and samples collected in 25 cases some of whom had come to Mansa as on March 19.

As a precautionary measure, all of them had been placed in quarantine, he added.

The Deputy Commissioner of Kapurthala told the Chief Minister that 31 people who had returned from Nizamuddin had been quarantined though they had been found to be asymptomatic so far.

In Patiala, too, 29 of them had been quarantined but there were no symptoms shown by them.

On a suggestion from the DGP, Amarinder Singh ordered quarantining of the Pakistani nationals who were in Amritsar, saying the state could not afford to take any chances at this critical juncture.

The Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar said Pakistan had given permission to allow entry of four of its citizens who had come from Delhi, of whom three had tested positive.

The BSF and immigration staff who handled them had been quarantined, he said, but added that there were a few more Pakistanis still stuck in Amritsar.

The Chief Minister inquired about the steps being taken to protect and provide for the migrants who are stranded in Punjab due to the sealing of the borders and other restrictions.

In the worst affected Mohali district, the Jagatpura area near Chandigarh has been totally sealed off after confirmation of Covid-19 outbreak, with mass sampling being done in this and Nayagaon area, according to the Civil Surgeon.
United States has begun repatriation of its stranded nationals, who want to return home, from India which is undergoing a 21-day lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic

Washington DC: The United States has begun repatriation of its stranded nationals, who want to return home, from India which is undergoing a 21-day lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic, a senior American diplomat has said.

"We began our repatriation efforts from India yesterday with a flight that brought in some 170-some US citizens," said Ian G Brownlee, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, US State Department.

"We will begin a steadier flow of flights out of New Delhi and Mumbai in the coming days, really beginning toward the end of this week and into the weekend. I am reluctant to get into specific numbers because these remain highly dynamic," he added.

The repatriation from India is part of the massive effort being undertaken by the US for its citizens from across the world.

The Trump administration had last month said that it is coordinating with the Indian government to evacuate stranded American citizens from the country, who have expressed interest to return to the US.

Follow LIVE Updates on Coronavirus Outbreak here

India has suspended all international flights from landing at any airport in the country in view to curb the further spread of the contagious virus that has infected 1,834 people in the country.

Meanwhile, the death toll from COVID-19 in the United States jumped by 884 over the past 24 hours, setting a new one-day record for the country, and taking the tally to 4757, as per the data compiled by the Johns Hopkins University on Wednesday evening (local time).
NEW YORK, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Three type of plans are generally available in the private healthcare insurance market  medical insurance, income protection, and disease insurance. Disease insurance provides coverage and benefits for certain types of diseases and conditions, including cancer, heart attack, multiple sclerosis, paralysis, coma, and renal failure. Such plans reimburse patients for every medical expense incurred and every day spent at a hospital. These benefits can be availed upon the disease occurrence, after diagnosis, or during treatment.







Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05879087/?utm_source=PRN







Similarly, the medical insurance plans offered by the private healthcare insurance industry players reimburse a part of the several costs incurred, such as those for hospital beds, ambulatory patient services, and emergency services. Such plans offer cover for prescription drugs, hospitalization, laboratory services, substance use and mental health disorder services, and pediatric services. Different from both these types of coverages, income protection offers policyholders regular financial assistance, if they are unable to work due to a disease or injury and suffer loss of income.



The private healthcare insurance market in Germany, the U.S., Italy, France, the U.K., Spain, China, Switzerland, India, Japan, Brazil, Australia, and Mexico is characterized by the presence of players such as AXA Group, Allianz SE, Cigna Corporation, Aetna Inc., British United Provident Association Limited, Aviva plc, Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A., Zurich Insurance Group, Continentale Krankenversicherung a.G., and GIE BNP Paribas Cardif, though not every player operates in each of these countries.



In the U.S., the demand for private healthcare insurance is increasing on account of the rise in the geriatric population, surging medical expenses, growing incidence of chronic diseases, and government funding for such policies. As per the Aging in the United States report published by the Population Reference Bureau, the number of people in the country above the age of 65 will cross 98 million by 2060. As the elderly are hospitalized quite often, due to their susceptibility to various diseases and physical injuries, the demand for insurance is rising.



Similarly, in Europe, the private healthcare insurance industry is growing on account of the increasing pool of patients with chronic diseases. For instance, the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), within the University of Washington, says that cardiac diseases are the major cause of human death in France. Such conditions drastically raise the financial burden of patients, which is why they are opting for insurance to mitigate healthcare expenses. Additionally, most private healthcare insurance firms offer separate plans for chronic diseases, which is another reason behind their rapid popularity.



In the coming years, the growth of the private healthcare insurance market would be the most rapid in Asia-Pacific (APAC). This progress will be especially robust in Japan, China, Australia, and India, owing to the growing medical insurance industry, surging awareness of people about healthcare, and rising number of people suffering from chronic diseases. Other reasons for the prosperity of the players in the regional industry are the rise in the medical tourism activities, increase in the healthcare expenditure, and enhancements in the medical infrastructure.



Additionally, several private and public companies are hosting seminars, conferences, and training sessions, which are leading to the rising awareness of the populace in the regional countries about medical insurance and its importance in today's scenario. For instance, a healthcare insurance conference was organized in Hong Kong in November 2018 by Insurinnovator Connect. It was attended by a large number of insurance providers, primarily those with customers in the APAC region.



Hence, with the growing geriatric population, prevalence of chronic diseases, and healthcare costs, an increasing number of people are opting for private insurance.



Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05879087/?utm_source=PRN



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Ukraines president on Wednesday likened the coronavirus pandemic with the Chernobyl nuclear disaster as he urged citizens to stay home.

A reactor exploded at Chernobyl nuclear power plant in then-Soviet Ukraine in 1986, spewing radiation across vast territories in the worlds worst nuclear catastrophe.

Soviet authorities initially tried to hide the explosion from the public and many people remained unaware of the radiation hazard for several days.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a video address that no one was afraid because the radiation is invisible - just as the coronavirus.

He chastised Ukrainians from flouting government calls to stay home, saying Im asking you all to grow up.

Ukraine so far has registered 669 coronavirus cases and 17 deaths.
The Delaware Water Gap on Thursday announced it was closing additional trails to help slow the spread of the coronavirus.

All the trails on the Pocono Environmental Education Center campus will be closed starting Thursday, and all winter closures have been extended until May 22, the U.S. National Park Service announced.

The nearly 70,000-acre national park sits in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

In New Jersey, the extended closures include Mountain Road, Blue Mountain Lakes Road/Crater Lake Area, Watergate, Namanock, Rivers Bend Group Campground, and the dirt section of Old Mine Road.

In Pennsylvania, the extended closures include Dingmans Access, Dingmans Falls Visitor Center and Parking Area, Hialeah Picnic Area, and Valley View Group Campground.

There is a silver lining. With the roads closed to vehicle traffic, areas like Mountain Road, Blue Mountain Lakes Road, the dirt section of Old Mine Road, and the Dingmans Falls access road provide areas where visitors can safely maintain social distancing.

Most of parks outdoor spaces, including more than 150 miles of trails, remain open to the public.

Public restrooms, volunteer and partner-operated buildings and the visitor information desk at Bushkill Meeting Center were closed on March 17. The Kittatinny Point area in New Jersey was closed Saturday.

The park service urges visitors to continue to practice Leave No Trace principles, including pack-in and pack-out, to keep outdoor spaces safe and healthy.

Updates on Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area can be found on the website here and on its Facebook page.

While nothing seems normal anymore, the rhythms of life continue in our natural word. Spring is here and Bald Eagles... Posted by Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area on Thursday, April 2, 2020

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. If theres anything about this story that needs attention, please email her. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
As grocery store workers keep Pennsylvanians supplied and fed during the coronavirus pandemic, one Pittsburgh-area manager is fearful for her wellbeing.

Its not because of the potential exposure Aisha Mariner faces from working so closely with the public in this essential business. Its because she said an irate customer spit in her face, WPXI is reporting.

With whats going on right now, how can you do that? she asked. He has no idea what hes done to my life.

Mariner is a manager at the Giant Eagle grocery store in the Edgewood Towne Center in Swissvale, where on Tuesday, store officials say a man spit on her.

Giant Eagle is hoping the police can find this man, WTAE is reporting. Giant Eagle provided this statement to WTAE Wednesday:

"We support the efforts of local law enforcement to take every action to ensure that this individual answers for his careless and disrespectful behavior, and are working closely with our affected team member to provide the care she needs and deserves.

Mariner told WPXI the incident occurred when she was trying to help a customer who was arguing with a clerk over a transaction.

She tried to calm him down, but he wouldnt stop yelling and cursing, she said. When she told him she would have to call the police if he didnt top yelling, she said the man stuck his head and shoulders under the protective plexiglass barrier between clerks and shoppers and spit in her face, reports indicate.

The customer got away, and she wiped her face with hand sanitizer and tissue and immediately started to pray.

With the coronavirus outbreak, she is fearful for her safety and the safety of her family, particularly her mother and husband, who are both diabetic and more vulnerable to COVID-19.

Edgewood Police Chief Robert Payne told WPXI that to spit in someones face now is putting them in jeopardy with a potentially deadly outcome.

Police are searching for the suspect and will be reviewing Giant Eagle surveillance video.

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
(TNS)  While most Marin cities and towns already broadcast or livestream their council meetings, Belvedere and Tiburon are launching video and audio streaming capability amid the coronavirus crisis.Local governments have been authorized to provide virtual public access to essential meetings as of March 4, when Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order in response to the coronavirus.Like other governments in Marin, Belvedere closed its City Hall, canceled non-essential meetings and provides only essential functions. One essential function is public access to council meetings  which requires the city to upgrade its technology infrastructure, said Craig Middleton, city manager.Before the shelter-in-place order, Belvederes City Council did not livestream meetings and only posted minutes and audio.People in the community were comfortable with that so we didnt feel the need to install other technology to video stream, Middleton said. We may have to after this virus. It may be a reason to do that, but so far we havent had an issue with it and no one has asked for it.On Thursday, the council will stream its next meeting via Zoom with a live public comment section. Middleton said the city staff is working to install large monitors and wiring into the conference room so the clerk and city manager can follow along with public comment.The upgrade will cost the city about $10,000.Just like larger cities and towns in Marin, Belvedere is determined to abide by the shelter-in-place order and the states open meeting laws, said Marty Winter, a city councilman.Changes will have to be made, Winter said. Its either that or we come out this thing the other end and hope we come back to a semblance of normal. Right now, I would not attend a public meeting.Winter is also on the board of the Richardsons Bay Regional Agency. It held a meeting in early March, and he did not attend in person.As a 72-year-old cancer survivor  Im in one of the more sensitive, vulnerable groups if I get infected,  he said. So I attended the meeting remotely using someones cellphone.In Tiburon, the town staff also faces the challenge of updating technology to provide virtual public access to council meetings.Greg Chanis, the town manager, said the staff has some capability through Granicus software. The town did not livestream before the order. Staff posted audio recordings of meetings within 24 hours after meetings adjourned.Ideally, there will be a way for the public to comment in real time, he said. This can be through email or calling in, we are trying to figure out a way.For the special council meeting at 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 1, a livestream audio link will be available at bit.ly/2xC9EDt This is the first time the council is doing a livestream on Skype with council members joining from home, said Holli Thier, vice mayor. She said the board is committed to providing public access to meetings during these times.Chanis said all business items that are not time sensitive will be pushed until the council can reconvene in person after the shelter-in-place order is lifted. It has been extended to May 3.The council members will join the meeting by teleconference from their homes. Chanis and the town clerk will be in Town Hall to process public comment emails 500 words or less sent to comments@townoftiburon.org I wish I could tell you public comment will be real time, he said. But we will have the meeting streaming in some way.
Hundreds of Australians who were trapped in Nepal amid the coronavirus lockdown have been rescued.

The stranded tourists boarded a chartered flight out of Nepal at Tribhuval International Airport in Kathmandu on Wednesday.

The 222 Australian citizens and 28 New Zealand nationals and permanent residents are scheduled to arrive in Brisbane on Thursday.

Stranded Australian citizens wearing face masks as a preventive measure, wave to journalists as they get ready to move to Tribhuvan International Airport during the ninth day of the nationwide lockdown

A stranded Australian woman sits in a bus on her way to take a rescue flight from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Stranded Australian citizens load their luggage onto a bus on their way to take a rescue flight from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, April 1, 2020

They will be taken to city hotels where they will face a 14-day quarantine upon arrival and be monitored.

The group appeared to be in joyful spirits as they boarded the bus knowing they were on their way home.

The flight was organised by the Australian government at $5,000 a ticket, Sky News reported.

'This apparently is the only flight that will get back to Australia in whoever knows how long,' one passenger said.

'I just had to take what I can get.'

'We don't know how long the shutdown is going to last and this is our opportunity to go back home and we're taking it,' another passenger said.

A young Australian girl waits inside a bus to go to Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, April 1, 2020

The flight is due to arrive at Brisbane International Airport on Thursday where all passengers will face a 14-day quarantine

A stranded Australian citizen arrives to catch a bus on his way to take a rescue flight from Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal, Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Nepal is now in lockdown and governments around the world have been working to get their citizens out amid fears the small country's health system will not cope.

The Nepalese government have halted flights, ordered vehicles off the road and shut down businesses and major markets until April 7 under the lockdown.

Nepal has reported five confirmed cases of coronavirus, while 5,049 Australians have tested positive as of Thursday at 11am.

Twenty-three Australians have so far died of the deadly virus.

Almost 30,000 Australians travel to Nepal every year during March and April for trekking and climbing mountains.

Stranded tourists from Australia and New Zealand boarded a chartered flight out of Nepal Wednesday
Two of the Poison Dart frogs seized (Photo: NParks)

SINGAPORE  An owner of a wildlife habitat-scoping service was fined $6,600 on Wednesday (1 April) for importing six Poison Dart frogs from Johor Bahru into Singapore without permit.

Jonathan Wong Kai Kit, 32, had ordered 13 such frogs  brightly-coloured frogs which produces toxin in its body and are native to tropical Central and South America  and made arrangements for a co-accused, Mitchell Edberg Li Heyi, to deliver the frogs to him on 10 November last year.

Li, however, was caught as he attempted to enter Woodlands Checkpoint in his car. Apart from 18 Poison Dart frogs of three different species, he was also found with two Leopard Geckos, 1 sugar glider, and an Argentine Tegu, which is a small type of lizard.

Poison Dart frogs and the Argentine Tegu are listed as endangered and require a permit to be issued before they can be imported into Singapore. Neither Li nor Wong had the required permits to import the animals in.

In the State Courts on Tuesday, Li pleaded guilty to instigating Li to import six live Poison Dart frogs to Singapore without a permit issued by the director-general of Wildlife Trade Control, with another two charges of nature taken into consideration for sentencing.

Intrigued by the species during research

Wong owns a firm which creates suitable natural habitants or environments for pets and animals, using man-made materials.

According to his lawyer Tania Chin, he became interested in amphibians when he bought a few white tree frogs from a local aquarium shop in 2016.

The white tree frogs rekindled his passion for wildlife and he started exploring creating naturalistic environments for animals and pets, she said. He was inspired by the disappointment he felt each time he visited local pet shops and observed pet owners keeping animals in bare tanks and enclosures that were not suitable habitats for them.

Wong chanced upon the Poison Dart frog while researching for more information on animal habitats, and was intrigued by the species.

Story continues

He first met Li a few months before November last year while looking for roaches to feed his fish. He chanced upon Li again during a Johor Bahru trip with his girlfriend, and Li told him about a pet carnival which sold the frogs.

Upon seeing them, he fell in love with frogs and bought them impulsively. (Li) agreed to send to (Wong the frogs) later in the day, said Chin.

Wong pre-ordered five Poison Dart frogs from Li and paid him the full amount of fees, including transportation.

He also ordered an additional eight Poison Dart frogs and paid RM3,050 (S$999.64) to an owner of a pet shop in Kuala Lumpur.

Since Li was assisting Wong to bring the five frogs into Singapore, Wong asked him to bring the eight additional frogs for him as well.

Li agreed, on the condition that Wong would pay him a $30 transport fee for each animal. Wong paid him $100 and agreed to pay the remaining $140 after the frogs were delivered to Singapore.

Did not know that the frogs were an endangered species

According to Chin, Wong had not known that the Poison Dart frogs were an endangered species.

Nowhere in his research into frogs did he come across information or articles suggesting or clearly stating that these dart frogs were an endangered species, Chin told the court, adding that he bought the frogs as pets and for his research thesis.

Considering that the value of frogs was low  at about $100 per frog  Chin asked for a fine of $1,000 as Wong had learned his lesson and was unlikely to reoffend.

NParks Prosecutor Wendy Tan, however, sought a fine of $7,200, pointing out that the species was endangered and that there was a need to deter illegal smuggling of protected species.

These type of offences are difficult to detect and (the animals are) easily hidden in luggage or vehicles, and the detection depends on the alertness of staff and volume of traffic, said the prosecutor.

The district judge noted that Wong was a first offender and that there was no evidence that he was part of a syndicate. He placed on weight on the fact that Wong ran a terrarium business or that the importation of the frogs was related to his firm.

While a $1,000 fine was too low, the prosecutions sentence was on the high side, said the judge, who pointed out that it was not wrong for NParks to submit for a deterrent sentence.

Lis case is still pending before the courts.

For importing a scheduled species without a permit, Wong could have been jailed up to two years or fined up to $50,000 for each such scheduled species, or both.



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More Singapore stories:

Coffeeshop supervisor tied subordinate to bed and sexually assaulted her

Police investigating duo for taking part in public assemblies without permits

Ex-NTU undergrad jailed 10 months for modifying stored-value cards to cheat Kopitiam of $80,812.41
Before the ships docked, company officials had said that dozens of people had recovered, but 45 people were not well enough to travel and would remain on board.

The Coast Guard issued a notice this week that all foreign-flagged cruise ships carrying more than 50 people must be prepared to care for any sick passengers and crew members at sea for an indefinite period of time or to seek medical assistance from other countries during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement Thursday, Mr. Udine, the county commissioner, said he tried but failed to have the passengers quarantined on a Navy base or one of the companys private islands, or at a port outside Floridas coronavirus hot zone.

The cruise company wanted to just drop people off and let them fly home, he said.

Senator Rick Scott of Florida also said that all the passengers should be held in quarantine and tested. But federal health officials stressed that they would no longer be holding cruise ship passengers in quarantine.

That was earlier in the pandemic, Dr. Cindy Friedman, a member of the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions cruise ship task force, told Broward County commissioners earlier this week. What asymptomatic passengers need, she said, is a mask and to go straight home.
RAMALLAH, West Bank  The town of Biddou 10 kilometers (6 miles) northwest of Jerusalem has become the new coronavirus epicenter in the Palestinian territories after the death of a 60-year-old woman due to COVID-19 on March 25. Her son, who works in Israel, had transmitted the virus to her. Meanwhile, 21 cases have so far been recorded in the town, prompting Jerusalem Gov. Adnan Ghaith to announce the complete isolation of Biddou on March 26.

The virus quickly spread to the nearby village of Qatanna, which recorded 20 cases of the coronavirus on April 1, with the total tally of infections in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip reaching 134, including one death and 18 recoveries.

Palestinian workers in Israel represent the loophole that threatens to foil all of the Palestinian governments measures to prevent the spread of the virus. A man from the village of Artas working in a petrol station in the Gush Etzion settlement north of Bethlehem contracted the virus and later transmitted it to his mother and three other people in the village.

On April 1, Palestinian government Spokesman Ibrahim Melhem announced the infection of 15 Palestinians working at a poultry factory in the Atarot settlement area; the workers hail from villages in Ramallah. Those infected had mixed with other Palestinians inside a number of nearby villages, Melhem said.

The first death from COVID-19 in the West Bank sounded the alarm among Palestinians, especially when it comes to workers, prompting Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh on March 24 to call on all Palestinian workers in Israel to return to their homes for their safety.

Addressing the heads of the Palestinian security services, Shtayyeh stressed that all workers returning from Israel must undergo a 14-day home quarantine, calling on workers to communicate with the nearest health center should they experience any symptoms and threatening everyone who violates the instructions with legal accountability.

Melhem said at a press conference on March 26 that Palestinian workers inside the 1948 borders constitute a loophole for the outbreak of the disease, noting that Shtayyeh will issue instructions to tighten measures to protect villages near Israeli crossings and that more severe decisions will be taken to limit movement as the number of cases increases.

Thousands of Palestinian workers responded to Shtayyeh's call and decided to leave work and return to their villages and cities in the West Bank. The Palestinian security services and medical staff were waiting for them at the Israeli checkpoints, where they underwent preliminary checkups, had their temperatures checked and their clothes sterilized before they had to go into compulsory home quarantine.

On March 29, Shtayyeh said an agreement had been reached with the General Union of Palestinian Workers to allocate 10 million shekels ($2.8 million), with a similar amount to be provided by the government, to be distributed to workers and the unemployed as per a mechanism the union will announce later on.

Shtayyeh said the next two weeks will be crucial as more than 35,000 Palestinian workers are expected to return from Israel, adding that necessary measures have been taken to help them.

Many factors prompted Palestinian workers to return to the West Bank, the most important of which is Israeli forces inhumane treatment of workers suspected of being infected with the virus. A March 23 video showed Israeli soldiers dumping a worker at the Beit Sira checkpoint near Ramallah because he had a fever, without informing Palestinian authorities. The worker lay on the ground for three hours before the ambulances arrived to take him to the hospital, where he tested negative for COVID-19.

Palestinian workers were further urged to return to their homes because they have no suitable places to stay overnight inside Israel and are afraid of transmitting the virus to their families  as happened in Biddou  should they keep going back and forth.

Adel Ghaidan, 27, from Qibya, a village west of Ramallah, had been working at an aluminum factory in the Kanot Israeli industrial zone for seven months. He is married and has a child. On March 26, he decided to return to his village after remaining at his workplace for 10 days.

Ghaidan, who made his wife and child leave the house in order to protect them while he is home quarantined, told Al-Monitor, I quit work for many reasons, most importantly because Israeli employers do not provide suitable places for workers to stay overnight; over 12 workers sleep in two small rooms that lack basic health requirements. He said workers have to buy their own food and drinks, which means they have to be in contact with Israelis and foreigners in an area that has reported several coronavirus cases.

Banan Saqr, 28, from the village of Kafr al-Labad in Tulkarm, married with two children, returned to his village on March 26 through al-Taybah crossing after working in construction in Netanya for seven years. When I came back, I contacted the local emergency committee in my village to tell them about my return so I could get tested, he told Al-Monitor.

Saqr spent the first day of his return in his brother's unfinished house while he waited for his home to be prepared for quarantine. He noted that his wife and children managed to leave the house and stay elsewhere, and he had to quit work in Israel after many cases were recorded in Netanya and given the Israelis' negligence and lack of concern for the safety of workers, which terrified him.

Mohammed Imad, 26, from the city of Jenin, has been working in a fast-food restaurant in the Arab city of Kafr Qara for four years. We work with the utmost caution; we do not make contact with others, and we only make meals based on orders, he told Al-Monitor, adding, We try to benefit from still being able to work because we might need the money later to cover our financial needs, especially in light of reports of Israel's intention to completely shut down [restaurants], which means I will be out of work.

Imad pointed out that the conditions of the place he stays at are very good, but he admits that the increasing number of cases in Israel really scares him, in addition to being pressured by his family to return home.

Speaking to Al-Monitor, Palestinian Deputy Minister of Labor Samer Salameh described the workers in Israel as a ticking time bomb because Israel did not apply health and safety standards to workers, pointing out that Israel has indicated its willingness to provide suitable accommodation for workers, but it later became clear that overnight accommodations are in miserable condition, which prompted workers to return home.

On March 17, Israel formally decided to allow thousands of Palestinian workers to stay beginning March 18 for a period of one or two months without returning to the West Bank, provided that overnight accommodations are made available by employers. But as more infections were recorded among the workers, Palestinian official calls for their return increased  although thousands of them remain in Israel.

Salameh said the places provided for overnight accommodation were overcrowded, which increases the possibility of the virus spreading among workers; the proof is the infected workers from Biddou and Artas.

He noted that the Ministry of Labor, in cooperation with trade unions and the Ministry of Health, began deploying on March 25 crews and volunteers to 11 West Bank entrances used by workers coming from Israel in order to conduct preliminary checkups for incoming workers and to stress the need for their commitment to home quarantine.

Salameh explained that the next 14 days  the home quarantine period  is very crucial to know the extent of infection among workers.
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. As a group of direct contacts of coronavirus cases were being released from a 14-day precautionary quarantine, the healthcare authorities in charge of the isolation facility in Aghavnadzor decided to surprise the group, namely the women, with flowers.

Healthcare manager Narek Vanesyan, who is in charge of the facility, said the group of citizens have tested negative and were being released. He posted a video online showing the health workers applauding and gifting flowers to those being discharged.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
Wrapped coffins sit in the back of a pickup truck outside a hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador, on April 1, 2020, seen in an image taken from video. (Enrique Ortiz / AFP TV/Getty Images)

The corpses have been overwhelming Guayaquil, a port city of 2.8 million at the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis in Ecuador.

Over the last few days, several were wrapped in plastic and left on the streets. Others have lain unclaimed in hospitals and clinics that have been overwhelmed by infections. The city morgue is full.

The majority of the dead are believed to be victims of the virus, but nobody can say for sure how many. There has been little testing.

The country has confirmed 2,700 infections and 93 deaths  60 of them in Guayaquil and its immediate surroundings. But municipal officials there said they have recovered at least 400 bodies in recent days.

Mayor Cynthia Viteri, who announced that she has tested positive for the virus, said the national government should be responsible for collecting the corpses.

They're leaving them in the villages, they fall in front of hospitals, she said in a Twitter video message to residents last week. No one wants to recover them.

The majority of those whose bodies have been found on the street were probably indigent, said Hector Galarza, a publicist in Guayaquil. "But it is generating panic."

On Monday, a former mayor announced the formation of a crisis committee of business, government and academic leaders whose goals include resolving the transport and burial of the huge quantity of cadavers accumulating in the clinics and hospitals attending the pandemic.

Juan Carlos Freire, an attorney in the city, said public frustration is growing.

"People are asking that some authority takes charge of the dead, but the lack of response means they are being left in central streets of Guayaquil," he said.

The mayor said Tuesday that unclaimed bodies were now being placed in three refrigerated cargo containers while authorities pursue plans for a new cemetery. The city government is denying news reports that the new cemetery will be a common grave with all victims buried together, saying in a news release that all would receive a "Christian burial."

Story continues





Between 500 and 1,000 patients per day are showing up with respiratory complaints at Guayaquil's largest hospital, Los Ceibos, officials there said. Many are false alarms, but the high volume has stressed the medical center to the breaking point.

The national nurses association said up to 370 nurses across the country are believed to have been infected and that five have died.

The country's first known coronavirus case  confirmed on Feb. 29  was a 70-year-old woman who had arrived two weeks earlier from Italy and resided outside of Guayaquil.

She died two weeks later, by which time President Lenin Moreno had placed strict restrictions on international and domestic travel. Ecuador's borders were sealed on March 16.

But residents of Guayaquil, a bustling port city filled with open markets, were slow to take seriously restrictions imposed by the national and local governments.

Two weeks ago, the mayor used city vehicles to block the runways at the Guayaquil's international airport to prevent the landing of a KLM flight sponsored by European governments to collect citizens stranded in Ecuador by travel restrictions. The fear was that the air crew might infect local citizens.

The airplane finally landed in Quito, the capital, where 170 foreigners boarded for a return flight to Amsterdam.

Viteri said on Twitter that she will continue working as long as she can to protect Guayaquilenos in a moment as difficult as this one.

I will be where I am and how I am, she wrote. Dont leave your houses, protect the elderly and the weakest, and take care of each other.

Special correspondents Jaramillo Viteri and Kraul reported from Quito, Ecuador, and Bogota, Colombia, respectively.
BEIJING, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- GCL System Integration Technology Co., Ltd. (GCL-SI) (002506.SZ), a leading PV company in China, recently announced a plan to build a 60GW module factory in Hefei, capital of east China'sAnhui Province.

According to the agreement it signed with the Government of Feidong County recently, GCL-SI will invest a total of 18 billion yuan in the project which will be built in four phases, each with a production capacity of 15GW, from 2020 to 2023. The first phase requires a total investment of 5 billion yuan and is expected to start operation this year.

Upon completion of the project, GCL-SI will have the world's largest module production capacity, said the company.

"This is another solid step in the dual-main business operation strategy (namely, PV+ energy storage)," said Eric Luo, chairman of the listed company, "GCL-SI welcomes upstream and downstream companies in the industrial chain to come to Feidong and build a super PV intelligent manufacturing base together."

The new factory will focus on producing 210mm high efficiency modules and is also capable of manufacturing 166mm and 158.75mm modules. Automatic and intelligent production technology will be fully applied in the factory, with the big data support, according to Luo.

Feidong, a county of Hefei City, stated that it aims to create a super PV intelligent manufacturing base which is expected to accommodate cells, backsheet, glass and other supporting supply chain companies.

Cooperation between GCL-SI and Feidong County is based on their consensus on the promising development of the semiconductor and PV industries. GCL-SI has a faith on the PV development in the context of the global energy transition, Luo added.

GCL-SI's optimistic outlook on the PV market has been echoed by the forecast made by the International Energy Agency (IEA) which expects the global cumulative installed capacity of PV to reach 1,721GW by 2030 and 4,670GW by 2050.

At present, GCL-SI's module production capacity is 7.2GW, with its products covering both monocrystalline and polycrystalline.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1140844/GCL_SI_Hefei.jpg
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 04:09:33|Editor: huaxia

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ALGIERS, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Algeria on Wednesday extended the measures of partial lockdown to 15 provinces in a move to stop the spread of the COVID-19, APS news agency quoted a statement of the Prime Minister Office as saying.

The partial lockdown begins on Thursday, as individuals and vehicles are banned from movement from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. for 17 days, said APS.

The government reiterated its call for public vigilance and strict compliance with the rules of hygiene and social distancing, as recommended by health authorities.

A total of 14 new deaths and 131 confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported over the last 24 hours.

Head of the COVID-19 Detection and Follow-up Commission Djamel Fourar told reporters that the total death toll has soared to 58, while the overall cases hit 847.

Fourar noted that 61 patients were cured as they left hospital and returned home. Enditem
LOMMEL, Belgium, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sungrow, the global leading inverter solution supplier for renewables, announced that the Company's 1500V central inverter solutions have been operational stably for several months at a 100 MW Kristal Solar Park in Lommel, Belgium, which is the largest solar park in the Benelux region. The project illustrates the rapid growth of Sungrow in the country's emerging market and demonstrates another milestone that Sungrow contributed to in Europe.

Covering 92 hectares, the solar park has been completely grid-connected since Q4 2019 with an expected annual generation of 85 MWh. It supplies the initial electricity to a zinc smelting manufacturer Nyrstar near the project, making the off-taker's production process greener by utilizing renewable energy.

The project consists of nine different plots, spreading across a wide geographical area, while Sungrow's flexible turnkey solutions including SG3125HV-MV ideally cope with the complexity. The solutions integrate central inverters, medium-voltage transformers and auxiliary devices in a 20-ft container, enabling easy transportation, installation and O&M. The three-level topology design contributes to the inverter maximum efficiency of 99% and Europe efficiency of 98.7%, guaranteeing premium yields for the solar park. The solutions also comply with challenging regulations from generators that are now applied to the European market.

The 100 MW Kristal Park Project was constructed by the energy giant Engie Fabricom, "The flexible turnkey solutions from Sungrow boost innovations on complicated utility-scale solar installations and do benefit us more. The dedicated service and competitive solutions fit the core of what we want to do and are paramount to our long-lasting partnership," said Bram Clays, Business Development Manager from Engie Fabricom.

The rise of solar as a renewable source of electricity in Belgium was striking. As a part of Europe Union, the Belgian government has enacted incentive schemes to accelerate their renewable energy adoption rate. While at the same time, the industry players have been pioneering the right ways to avoid over-subsidization.

"Sungrow is delighted to supply the tailor-made solutions for the landmark project. We use three different inverters sizes which show the depth we have in terms of the product portfolio. With the support from Sungrow responsive team, the customers will secure reliable and considerable yields," said Lewis Li, General Manager of Sungrow Europe. Li also mentioned that the Company has over six branches in Europe and comprehensive local team to meet growing demands.

About Sungrow

Sungrow Power Supply Co., Ltd ("Sungrow") is the world's most bankable inverter brand with over 100 GW installed worldwide as of December 2019. Founded in 1997 by University Professor Cao Renxian, Sungrow is a leader in the research and development of solar inverters, with the largest dedicated R&D team in the industry and a broad product portfolio offering PV inverter solutions and energy storage systems for utility-scale, commercial, and residential applications, as well as internationally recognized floating PV plant solutions. With a strong 23-year track record in the PV space, Sungrow products power installations in over 60 countries, maintaining a worldwide market share of over 15%. Learn more about Sungrow by visiting www.sungrowpower.com.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1139017/Benelux_s_Largest_Solar_Park_with_Sungrow_1500V_Central_Inverter_Solutions.jpg
U.S. Virus Cases Are Off The Scale - But Its People Can Build A Movement From This

By Moon Of Alabama April 01, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - The latest Financial Times graphic for covid-19 cases per country shows that the U.S. case numbers are now literally off the scale.

When John Burn-Murdoch created that daily updated chart he did not anticipate that any country would have more than a 100,000 total cases. That was a reasonable assumption as China, with 1.4 billion inhabitants, stopped the epidemic with less than 85.000 total cases even when it was surprised by the outbreak.

As of now the U.S. has 164.435 known cases. It will reach a total number of several dozens of millions and will have several hundreds of thousands of dead caused by the covid-19 disease.

Most but not all of those who will die from it will have one or more co-morbid diseases. The number of death in the U.S. will likely be higher than elsewhere because obesity, diabetes and heart problems are more prevalent in the U.S. than in most other countries.

Another reason why the U.S. will have a larger than necessary outbreak is wide mistrust in the authority of the state. A significant number of people will reject stay at home orders or other measures the authorities will have to take.

Then there is this:

Pouya Alimagham    @iPouya - 0:48 UTC  Mar 31, 2020 The regime doesnt want to antagonize the religious classes. Thus, it isnt doing anything about the fact that some religious sites remain open & clerics are encouraging worshippers to come & pray. These gatherings risk exploding #COVID19. Im talking about the US, not #Iran.

The U.S. also has many people without health insurance. The many newly laid off people will additionally lose theirs. These people will avoid seeing a doctor or to go to a hospital as the enormous costs would ruin them. The for-profit health system will reject sick persons who are unlikely to be able to pay their bills. The cases of people who die from such circumstance should be put into the death by lack of money category instead of being blamed on something else.

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Congress has failed to take the necessary measures and to give everyone access to free tests and free care. This will come back to bite everyone as it makes sure that the disease will circulate longer and stronger than in other rich countries. Even the rich, who will gain most of the money Congress passed out, will be affected by this.

The reasons that the U.S. will have very high numbers are obvious and they have nothing to do with China.

When the SARS virus broke out the world united in defeating it. It did that by isolating all cases and by aggressively tracing anyone who had come into contact with them. The fight was successful. The SARS virus no longer exists outside of high security laboratories.

But when the SARS-CoV-2 evolved there was no united response. China did its very best to defeat the virus. It won the fight against the virus within its country but other states did not join in the effort to eradicate it. SARS-CoV-2 is more infective than SARS and we will never know if an eradication attempt could have been successful. There is no glory in prevention. But it is sad that we did not even try.

The Center of Disease Control botched its creation of a test for the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes the disease. The German designed test model the World Health Organization recommended was rejected by the CDC. It wanted to do its own test and failed. U.S. testing started too late and it then tested too few to get a grip on the size of the emerging epidemic.

U.S. President Donald Trump did not believe that the virus would be a problem. U.S. media likewise played down the danger. Most of its reporting from China had a racist undertone. The nativist freakout only helps to hide the real origin of the crisis. Other conservative leaders in other countries, Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, Boris Johnson in the UK, Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus and others, similarly ignored the predictable consequences of outbreaks in their countries.

It is now guaranteed that the virus will stay with humanity until someone finds a vaccine that is effective, safe to use and cheap. The task now is to reduce the speed of new infections so we do not overwhelm our healthcare systems.

A lot has been learned about the virus and how it behaves. SARS-CoV-2 is three to four times more infectious than the flu. The virus is transmitted by droplets which are then inhaled by other people. It then attacks cells in the upper throat and starts to replicate there. Two days later the infected person is infectious. Each time s/he speaks, coughs or sneezes s/he will release fine droplets which carry a high load of viruses. Symptoms, which only 75% of all infected persons will feel, usually start on day 5 or 6 after the infection. The main symptoms are a dry cough and general weakness. In some patents the symptoms may look like a heart attack. A person stays infectious until day 8 to 10.

The virus can be detected after it started to replicate. A swab test is taken (it feels like it looks) and processed. If the result is positive the person must be quarantined to protect others.

The way the disease develops is the reason for my repeated urging to wear a masks. You have no real way to know if you already carry and spread the disease. The mask may not help to prevent you from getting infected but it can definitely help to prevent you from infecting others. Wear a mask out of courtesy towards the people around you.

In many Asian countries wearing a mask is a social rule that everyone follows. These countries, light blue in the above chart, had way less ravaging covid-19 epidemics than 'western' societies where wearing a mask is seen as suspicious or as a sign of weakness. This attitude will now surely have to change.

After replicating in the throat for a few days the virus migrates from the throat into the lower lungs where it replicates more rapidly and begins to create real havoc. The immune system of most healthy people will defeat the virus after some 10 to 18 days. But the fight is often difficult. Some of the symptoms during that phase are not from the virus but from the way our immune system reacts to it.

It destroys the many cells that are infected by the virus and thereby rips holes into the lung tissue. The body then starts an inflammatory response to repair the destroyed cells. The whole process can cause pneumonia. Artificial breathing support will then be needed for people who have already other conditions that cause breathing or circulation problems. Some patients may also develop heart problems. If their lungs become unable to provide enough oxygen to the circulating blood the person will die.

Survivors of covid-19 will have developed immunity for at least a year. While the SARS-CoV-2 virus has developed into several strains it has not mutated into a different form as some common flu viruses often do. That increases the likelihood that a once acquired immunity will continue to protect against a reinfection.

Every crisis is also a chance. Congress has used it to again loot the people and to push more money to the rich. At the same time the powers that be have denied universal healthcare and paid sick leave to those who need it. The covid-19 epidemic is a chance to change that.

There are already a number of strikes at Amazon and similar companies over work safety, health care and pay. Rent strikes must now follow. When the bills come in for families with covid-19 cases many more people will get more interested in medicare for all. A movement can be build from these issues. The Sanders campaign should provide a (virtual) platform for it.

The U.S. has enough money to pay for the security of its people. Security is not a military issue. A hugely expensive aircraft carrier with sick sailors is worth nothing. Pandemics are a real security issues and the U.S. has left its people defenseless against them. Cut the aircraft carriers and other insane military spending and invest it in the health of the people.

That message will soon be widely understood. We can all help to reinforce it.

"

Source

"
820 Tamil fishermen trapped in Iran, send SOS videos begging GOI to rescue them

by Karuna John

April 02,2020 | Source: Sabrang India

We have no water, we are boiling sea water to drink, we have no food, we are going to die, says the young man in Tamil, in a desperate tone that you can sense, coming from a parched throat. He looks like he has not had a proper meal in days, his friend sitting beside him looks the same. The young fisherman is now stuck on his boat, on the coast of Iran. He is just one of the 820 Tamil fishermen now sending SOS videos to India, hoping that someone in the government takes notice and rescues them.



With each passing day, they run low on food, medication, and will power. The SOS videos sent by these overseas Indians do not seem to have moved the authorities yet. After all they are not the typical NRIs often feted at various Pravasi Bharatiya events, nor are they from families who can afford to send chartered flights to rescue and bring them home in the face of the coronavirus pandemic sweeping across the globe. The coronavirus has not made any exceptions and has so far infected thousands irrespective of age, gender, immunity level, or the amount of money in their pockets.



The only people who seem to have heard the fishermens pleas are their families waiting back home in various parts of Tamil Nadu. Understandably the families have seen and have begun to fear the worse for their boys. They too, have begun appealing to the governments, hoping someone takes notice of their cries before it is too late.



I sent my son to Iran around nine months ago. He went there to earn a living, so he could marry his sisters off. Only now we learnt about the coronavirus situation in Iran. Our boys hope that helicopters rescue them, said Vijayalakshmi, sending a video message from Samba Thottam in Nagore. She fears that her son, and the other fishermen are also vulnerable to Coronavirus as they do not have shelter or access to proper medical care. If these boys get infected with a virus in Iran, can the government bring back their life? Will they be able to give our sons back to us? They do not have food, water and proper shelter. They cry everyday, are dying, and are losing hope, she added.



According to Dr Kumarvelu, vice chairperson of the National Fishworkers Forum (NFF), there may be more than 820 Tamil fishermen now stuck in Iran and all of them are facing a life-or-death situation with little access to food and water, and no health facilities. They are almost imprisoned in the very boats they went fishing in. The locals, including the contractors and middle men have also left the fishermen to their fate. Theyre not being allowed to even step out of the boats. This is nothing but a violation of basic human rights, said Dr Kumarvelu.



What wrong have we done? We are ordinary fisherfolk, where else can we go?, said a brother of one of the fishermen still in Iran, how can our boys survive on eating just once a day? According to him fishermen are always vulnerable when at sea and many have lost their lives when natural disasters such as cyclones, or are caught in the crossfires of Naval forces. The coronavirus pandemic has now made the fishermen even more aware of their fragile existence. We are losing our people almost on a daily basis. We should not lose anymore of our youth. Our boys in Iran are in mortal fear with the virus all around them there. They are facing acute food shortage, and with no help from anyone. They dont even have a room, and are trapped in the fishing boats, and eating whatever fish they can find. We plead with the central and state governments to take action. The government may be acting, but we must act faster since lives are at stake.



We have sent over 20 videos to our homes to save us from this, said the fisherman in his video, adding that he feared that the situation was unlikely to improve now that all flight services have been stopped. He and his colleagues are now desperate, and are, urging the Indian government to rescue them. According to the fishermen it has been over 25 days since they have been asking for help but they have not heard anything from the Union Government of India, nor the state government of Tamil Nadu. Seeing our plight, the government is only being a spectator, and not feeling our pain. Our families in Kanyakumari are crying. What answers can you give to those tears? We are 1500 of us here in dire conditions, said the fisherman trapped in Iran.



Dr Kumarvelu said the Indian government must remember that the fishermen were Indian citizens. Indian government must think of its citizens as its own children, and do all it takes to bring our boys back home. The state government must also apply the required pressure on the Union government to ensure this happens. The NFF has reached out to the Indian authorities at all levels. We shall continue speaking to all MPs, MLAs to place this demand, and also urge the district collector to take up this issue with the authorities. On behalf of the National Fishworkers Forum, we urge the government to save our people and bring them back as soon as possible, he said.



The fishermen say that they have not got any humanitarian help or support from the locals. If we ask the locals here for food, they dismiss us saying food is only if we go to sea and catch fish. These humiliations are being borne by us, said the fishermen. According to him his family assured him that officials from the Indian Embassy would get in touch. But no one has met them yet. They also have been hearing about Indian nationals being rescued from Tehran, we heard that a C-17 military flight was used to evacuate 50 Indian tourists and pilgrims from Tehran. If they can send a military aircraft for 50 people, why did they not consider us as worthy of rescuing? he asked.



In fact, he is right, 53 Indians were the fourth batch to be rescued by the Government of India in March 2020. According to news reports the Government of India had rescued a total of around 389 Indians from the Iranian cities of Tehran and Shiraz. They were all back in India by March 16 and were quarantined in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.



Two weeks have passed and the Tamil fishermen continue to wait to be contacted, it is us fishermen to contribute over Rs 60,000 crore to Indias earnings. It seems like the government only wants our earnings, and not our people. We urge with folded hands that we be rescued and brought back to our homeland, said the fisherman. So far those cries have failed to move those in power. The NFF office bearers say they were made to wait an entire day at the collectors office but will not give up till all the fishermen are back. When that will happen is not known.



The fishermens mothers fear the worst. They say that the fishermen will not survive the ordeal and will die at sea because the authorities do not care enough to rescue them and bring them safely home to India, to their waiting families. We never anticipated this when they decided to go to Iran, but our boys now think well only get to see their dead bodies! Perhaps the mother felt this when she heard the son say, It has been almost 4 days since we ate properly. Can you not feel the pain of our hunger?
Drivers who phoned into the South Jersey Transportation Authoritys two live streamed public hearings on Wednesday about proposed 37% toll hikes on the Atlantic City Expressway did not hold back outrage about holding them as the coronavirus outbreak surged across the state.

Im disappointed you are doing this when a pandemic is going on and people are losing their jobs, said Tom Pendergast of Egg Harbor Township. I think its disgrace that when people are out of work, you want to raise their tolls.

Because of the coronavirus outbreak, the first two of three hearings were live streamed so commenters could call in instead of attending hearings in person. But some commented they felt the hearings shouldnt have been held at all because of the pandemic.

I thought it was an April Fools joke. It is totally inappropriate, said Bob Dailyda of Egg Harbor Township.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Others took issue with the short notice of the hearings and the amount of the proposed toll hike.

I happened to come across this in the newspaper on line, said Marvin Askins. Why is the hearing being held now during a pandemic? The hearings should be suspended and enough notice be sent out to the public.

Holding hearings during the coronavirus outbreak was criticized by seven state legislators who asked Gov. Phil Murphy to postpone the process until the crisis was over. U.S. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-NJ called April 1 and 2 hearings an unbelievably tone-deaf move.

This is a terrible time to conduct hearings, said Alan Maddox of Pleasantville. A 40% toll hike is not a modest hike, its a big jump.

The comments came despite an explanation by Transportation Commissioner Diane Gutierrez-Scaccetti the projects in the $500 million capital plan were planned before the coronavirus outbreak. The last toll increase was in 2008.

The need for the projects outlined in this proposal began many years ago and that need will increase, she said. Despite the challenges we are facing, it is important we move forward and this is a key component on how this region will recover from COVID-19.

She called the toll increase and $500 million capital plan a stimulus package.

It will allow South Jersey to recover from COVID-19, she said. This is about bolstering the economy.

That explanation did not convince Rhyan Grech Pinelands Preservation Alliance policy advocate, who reminded officials that the nation is shut down because of COVID-19

Everyone else has adjusted based on what happened, this requires an equivalent level of flexibility, she said. This should have been postponed.

The proposed 13-mile Expressway widening would go through the environmentally sensitive Pinelands forest and have a long term and incredibly destructive impact, she said.

Steve Carrellas, National Motorists Association state policy director, warned officials that pushing through toll increases could have political fallout.

It seems the Authority caught the same virus that the NJ Turnpike Authority was infected with, that spawns public hearings on toll increases out of the blue with minimal notification and lack of timely and adequate information, he said. If the Authority doesnt think the public doesnt recognize something is going on, that is contrary to trust and transparency, then you deserve the political consequences that will come your way.

The effects of building more lanes was criticized by Jeff Tittel, NJ Sierra Club director.

Widening the Expressway would take away open space and create more air and water pollution, he said. The planned connector to Atlantic City airport would destroy parts of the Pinelands, while the need for either project has not been demonstrated, Tittel said.

There already is a way to get there (to the airport), he said. We cannot pave our way out of traffic congestion, we have to think smarter.

Among supporters of the capital plan was Jerry Kiernan, Alliance for Action executive director, who cited the New Jersey Turnpike widening between exits 6 to 9 that eased an infamous bottleneck.

I drive it daily to Exit 8, you bet we paved our way out of congestion there, he said. This (capital plan) is more important than ever.

Other speakers had issues with the cost of the toll increase.

I use Exit 17. If I want to go to Exit 12, it will be $5.50, thats quite a sum for a five mile ride, said Gary Jerue, who said something should be done to ease the burden on residents who take short trips on the Expressway.

Two drivers said they supported the capital plan.

I know its well maintained, I know it costs money to maintain things like my house and my car, said Frank Feney. I am for it.

The next hearing is Thursday, April 2, from 7 to 9 p.m. Comments can be made by calling 888-747-5272, and entering this conference code: 493192. Email comments will also be taken at publiccomment@sjta.com until April 20.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

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By Express News Service

BENGALURU: esearchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) are finalising the prototype of an indigenous electro- mechanical ventilator, required to treat Covid-19 patients, at a time when domestic manufacturers rely on imported components. The prototype will be finalised by mid-April and handed over to manufacturers by the month-end, said TV Prabhakar, principal re - search scientist at IIScs Department of Electronic Systems Engineering ( D E S E ) a n d founder of the project. Once ready, it will be made available free of cost.

Ventilators are crucial to treating COVID-19 patients who may develop acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS). According to a release from the union ministry of health dated March 30, less than 20 patients are on ventilators. Scientists at IISc see their machine as a ready response should India see a spike in cases. Similar attempts are underway elsewhere in the country too. IISc researchers began to build the ventilator from the scratch 10 days ago according to a release from the institute.

Once finalised, the nanofabrication facility at the Centre for Nano Science and Engineering (also a part of IISc) will be roped in to scale up production of oxygen and pressure sensors required for the ventilator. The prototypes design is based on the guidelines issued by the UK governments Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency. Researchers are collaborating with potential manufacturers to ascertain which components are available with them before they finalise the design. The research team built some components and repurposed others, the release said.

For instance, they modified sedimentation tanks used in reverse osmosis water purifiers to store and mix air and oxygen. To check pressure levels, the team used sensors similar to those used to detect air pressure in car tyres. The team is also developing from the scratch a flow rate sensor (which shows exactly how much air is flowing into the patients lungs). They are also getting input from doctors to simplify the interface for ventilators, to allow even untrained technicians or nurses to use it in case of an emergency. Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has expressed interest in supporting mass production.
HDFC Group on Thursday said that it has committed Rs 150 crore to the PM CARES Fund to support the government fight coronavirus. The fund was set up on March 28 to raise money for fighting COVID-19 outbreak and provide relief and rehabilitation measures to the affected. "These are uncertain and trying times for all of us. The HDFC Group's support to the PM Cares Fund is to commend the exemplary efforts of the Central & State governments, armed and paramilitary forces, local police, healthcare professionals and sanitation workers across the country, who are working tirelessly day in and out to fight the pandemic," HDFC Group chairman Deepak Parekh said in a statement. India is currently under a 21-day lockdown till April 14.

"The HDFC management and all employees across the Group appreciate the steadfast efforts of all, and wish for India to emerge stronger and more resilient at the end of this crisis," Parekh added. The other major corporate houses to contribute towards the PM Cares Fund include Reliance (Rs 500 crore), ONGC and IOC over Rs 1,000 crore, BPCL Rs 175 crore, HPCL Rs 120 crore, among others. The employees of SBI also donated Rs 100 crore to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman last month unveiled a Rs 1.7 lakh-crore fiscal stimulus package to help the poor and migrants tackle the financial difficulties arising from the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and the 21-day nationwide lockdown. The relief measures included direct cash transfers (under the DBT or Direct Benefit Transfer scheme) and food security-related steps aimed at giving relief to the poor workers hit by the countrywide lockdown.

Also Read: Coronavirus Cases in India Live Updates: First COVID-19 case in Arunachal; man attended Nizamuddin event

Also Read: Coronavirus in Pakistan: Imran Khan promises protective gear to medical staff as cases cross 2,000
Prominent politicians have warned that China has lied about the total number of infected people and the total number of deaths from the coronavirus. This is after the locals in Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus, suggest that the true numbers could be ten times higher. They also suggested that the country covered up important information during every stage of the coronavirus response, from the outbreak to the total number of deaths.

Beijing tried to cover up the seriousness of the virus by punishing the front liners who tried to talk about it on social media platforms, they also denied that it could spread through human interaction and they delayed the lockdown of affected regions. This means that the virus could have been controlled if the regime did not try to downplay the situation.

The Communist Party began censoring public information once the virus began spreading in China. Instead, they spread disinformation and went as far as blaming the US troops as the initial carries of the virus.

China covering the truth

Li Wenliang, a doctor in China, reported the existence of the virus in December 2019 and stated that it was similar to SARS. But instead of warning the public, Chinese police arrested Wenliang and eight of his colleagues who had been posting about the virus online.

Wenliang later died from the virus, but before he passed away he was forced to sign a document admitting that the information that he posted and shared was false. While China has been praised by numerous countries worldwide for their alleged quick response to the virus and imposing a lockdown on Wuhan and other parts of China, evidence shows that the country could have acted sooner to prevent the spread of the virus around the world.

On December 26, samples were analyzed and the virus was already spreading, according to the Washington Post. However, Wuhan was not locked down until January 22, which means around 5 million people were able to travel around the country and abroad in a span of a month.

The Chinese government also won't release any information on "patient zero", the country's first person to have contracted the virus, scientists can't have any clear study on the disease that allegedly made a leap from bats to humans.

Initially, the Chinese authorities reported that the virus could not spread through human interaction, but evidence shows that it was spreading fast through the city of Wuhan including doctors being infected by patients. Many believe that it was an excuse to keep Wuhan open and operating and to allow the locals to travel.

It was only late January when China confirmed that the virus can be contracted through human interaction, but that was after a massive part of Hubei province, including Wuhan, were put into lockdown. Wuhan's local newspaper did not mention about the virus until January 20, 2020, which means no safety precautions were done to stop the spread of the virus. The authorities in Beijing also did not immediately report the deaths of two doctors from the virus, which could have raised awareness.

Also read: Trump Says 'We Will Come Back Strong' As He Plans to End U.S. Lockdowns

Origin of the virus

There are a lot of theories about the origin of the virus. Lijian Zhao, an officer within the Chinese Foreign Ministry, tweeted on March 12 and said "When did patient zero begin in the US? How many people are infected? What are the names of the hospitals? It might be the US army that brought the epidemic to Wuhan. Be transparent! Make public your data! US owe us an explanation!."

However, he did not have any evidence to support his claim. According to the CDC, America's "patient zero" was a man who traveled from China to Washington State on January 15, 2020.

The Chinese have also tried to claim that the virus started in Italy, the country with the most deaths aside from China. They distorted a quote from an Italian doctor who said that Italy's first cases could occur earlier than they thought. Dr. Giuseppe Remuzzi said that months before the virus has spread, he was already investigating strange cases of pneumonia. Dr. Remuzzi said that the virus started in Wuhan, but may have spread out of the country and across the world earlier than what is recorded.

Infection total

China reported a total of 82,000 infections from the virus and stated that the country has an infection rate of zero for several days. However, China admitted that the virus is still spreading through people who have few or no symptoms.

Foreign governments have expressed their concern over China's questionable reports. Marco Rubio, a Republican senator and former presidential candidate from the U.S tweeted "'We have NO IDEA how many cases China really has' after the US infection total passed Beijing's official figure. Without any doubt, it's significantly more than what they admit to."

Meanwhile, in the UK, a conservative minister and former Prime Ministerial candidate Michael Gove claimed that the Communist Party can't be trusted. He told BBC "Some of the reporting from China was not clear about the scale, the nature, the infectiousness of this [virus]."

Death total

Government officials from around the world are also skeptical about China's reported death toll from the virus, which currently stands at around 3,300. Locals from Wuhan have been keeping an eye on funeral homes since the lockdown restrictions in the province were partly lifted and they claimed that they have been working 24/7 to dispose of the bodies.

According to the social media platforms in China, around 2,500 urns were being handed out by crematoriums every day, while one funeral home placed an order for 5,000 urns. The locals believe that the efforts to dispose of the bodies began on March 23 and the authorities have said the process will end on April 5. That means around 42,000 urns will be handed out, which is ten times the reported figure.



Related article:COVID-19 Vaccine: Johnson & Johnson Conducts Clinical Studies, Trials May Begin September 2020

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Much of red America is finally going on lockdown.

After resisting the pleas of public health experts for days, the governors of Florida, Georgia and Mississippi  all states won by President Trump in 2016  announced yesterday that they will be ordering their residents to stay home, effective Friday.

The turnabout from Floridas governor, Ron DeSantis, was especially stark. DeSantis had previously allowed spring break vacationers to socialize on Florida's beaches, where they likely spread the virus. Florida, of course, also has one of the nations largest populations of people over 65, who are especially threatened by the virus.

The new lockdowns are welcome, because they will help slow the virus. But theyre also coming much later than they should have. A big reason that the virus has recently been spreading more rapidly in the United States than in Europe or Asia is the slow response from many American political leaders.
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic



planted its feet firmly in Madhya Pradesh, political parties have moved away from their blame games and are reaching out to those affected by the nationwide lockdown.

While the Madhya Pradesh Congress is using its headquarters here as the base for its food distribution programme, the BJP is also providing meals with the help of its workers and local leaders.

The Rajiv Gandhi Hall at Madhya Pradesh Congress office here has been converted into a community kitchen, to provide meals to those affected by the COVID-19 lockdown.

Located in the ground floor of Indira Bhawan, the state Congress headquarters in Bhopal, Rajiv Gandhi Hall is full of vessels.

"We have set up a kitchen here to provide meals to daily wagers and those who have no access to essential commodities during the lockdown," state Congress treasurer Govind Goyal told PTI.

Food packets are being distributed by party workers and representatives of social organisations.

"Our target at present is to run the kitchen till April 15. We are able to provide 25,000 food packets every day," he added.

Meanwhile, the BJP has assigned the work of food distribution to its vast network of local leaders and workers across the state.

"We have made multi-layered arrangements to reach out the poor in the state. Our workers are sending out meals from their homes," BJP's state president Rajnish Agarwal said.

Apart from this, community kitchens were also set up by leaders soon after the lockdown was announced, he said.

The party plans to engage nine lakh of its workers in the food distribution chain and related works during the lockdown, he said.

"In addition to meals, our workers also send out packages containing lentils, rice, flour, oil and other essentials, " Agarwal said.

BJP workers have been reaching out to 25-30 lakh people every day and hope to help out 45 lakh people daily, he added.

"We are distributing food packets with the help of local administration, police and social organisations, who are in touch with people in need," he said.

The work is being monitored constantly by a committee of leaders at the state level, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Firefighters saved a family dog after battling a house fire in Loachapoka on Thursday morning.

Fire crews from Southwest Lee County Fire Department were dispatched to a report of a structure fire in the 6000 block of Stage Road in downtown Loachapoka about 8:50 a.m. Thursday, fire officials said.

The male and female occupants, along with their infant child, escaped the fire unharmed. However, the family dog did not escape the house, officials said.

This was a fire that could have gotten out of control were it not for the quick response of the first-responding Southwest units, said SWFD Lt. Tom Peavy. Our first-on-scene crews made an aggressive attack and prevented this fire from getting further into the house.

The dog was later found during a search, and was resuscitated using a pet oxygen mask.

We were also notified that one of the familys dogs did not escape, so a crew made a second-story search and found the dog barely breathing and unresponsive, Peavy said. Our crews used an oxygen mask designed for small animals that we keep on our trucks. After several minutes, the dog became responsive and we were eventually able to hand him back over to the owners.
A 31-year-old man, who attended a congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin West, tested positive for COVID-19 in Lohit district on Thursday, making it the first case of coronavirus in Arunachal Pradesh, health officials said.

The swab sample of the man, a resident of Medo area in the district, was sent for testing to the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) at Dibrugarh in Assam and the report came back as positive, Health Secretary P Prathiban said.

The man attended the congregation in Nizamuddin on March 13, officials said.

The district health authority has kept the patient at a special isolation room in the Tezu Zonel Hospital and all his family members are also in a quarantine facility, Prathiban said.

The swab samples of the family members would be collected and sent for testing, he added.

Six more persons who attended the congregation were located in Namsai district and have tested negative for COVID-19, State Surveillance Officer (Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme) L Jampa said.

The patient reached Medo on March 18 after attending the congregation. He left Nizamuddin on March 16 and since March 24 he was under home quarantine and did not show any symptom of coronavirus infection even after 16 days, officials said.

The police are on job to trace all the persons who came in contact with the infected man, Lohit district SP Wangdi Thungon said.

A total of 58 samples were sent from the state for testing and 38 were found negative till Wednesday, Jampa said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Press Release

April 2, 2020 COMMENTS ON THE 30 MARCH 2020 REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT

TO CONGRESS BY SEN. FRANKLIN M. DRILON With the enactment of R.A. 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act, the government, in the words of Executive Secretary Medialdea, "now has greater means to supplement and intensify COVID-19 responses to further mitigate its impact on all Filipinos." Pursuant to Sec. 5 of R.A. 11469, which requires the President to submit a weekly report to Congress including the amount and corresponding utilization of the funds used, augmented, reprogrammed, reallocated and realigned, the President transmitted his Report to Congress on 30 March 2020. The lack of sufficient funds will undermine government interventions to fight COVID-19. With the passage of R.A. 11469, Congress has removed all impediments to the President's ability to access and realign available funds within the Executive department by allowing him to cancel existing projects to create savings. The President's first report however states that as of 27 March 2020, no special purpose funds (SPFs) have been utilized for COVID-19 measures except for the P500 million replenishment of the DOH's Quick Response Fund. We urge the Executive to come up with a comprehensive COVID financial package that will cover both the health and economic aspects. This is lacking in the report. We regret that the government has not crafted any new interventions or programs that could help the poor and keep the economy afloat while we are on lockdown. FUNDING The President's report contained neither assurance that the DOH has enough existing funds to address the crisis nor a statement on how much funds will be realigned to augment the DOH budget, save for the P500 Million replenishment of its Quick Response Fund. As of 4 March 2020, the DBM Secretary has told the DOH that it only had close to P530 Million available budget for utilization, out of its total budget of P101.2B. During the hearing on the supplemental budget to address COVID-19, the Bureau of Treasury admitted that it did not have P2.4B excess income available - the amount initially requested by DOH to be used primarily to procure personnel protective equipment for health workers. The Bureau of Treasury revealed that it only had P1.65 billion in excess funds available for realignment to the DOH. For 2019, the Bureau of Internal Revenue has collected 2.176 trillion, which is lower than the agency's revenue target of P2.271 trillion. Similarly, the Bureau of Customs also fell short by 30.7B of the 661B target for the year. With the pandemic and the lockdown, revenue collections are greatly affected and government disbursements, which account for roughly 20 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, are expected to slow down. Our tight fiscal space seriously affects the government's capability to address COVID-19. This would make the government dependent on loan and aid to address the pandemic, which would lead to slow responses. The Department of Finance has appealed to taxpayers to pay their taxes early despite the one-month extension, to fund programs with the least amount of borrowing. This, despite the fact that businesses are at a standstill and are expected to incur vast losses due to the Luzon-wide Enhanced Community Quarantine. SOCIAL PROTECTION Sec. 4(cc) of the law authorizes the President to introduce an Expanded and Enhanced Pantawid Pamilya Program to be implemented for two months. It also authorizes the DSWD or the DOLE to transfer cash, cash vouchers or goods to LGUs or directly to households including those working in the informal economy and are not currently recipients of the current Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program in an amount adequate to restore capacity to purchase food and other essential items during quarantine. We urge the DSWD to act with more dispatch in distributing the assistance to the affected families. The entire Luzon was placed on Enhanced Community Quarantine or an effective lockdown on 16 March 2020 and fifteen days later, majority of the population has not yet received the help needed. Without any income or assistance, poor families cannot meet the basic food needs to satisfy the nutritional requirements set by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI). In NCR, the food threshold per family per month, based on 2018 figures of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) is pegged at P8,345; in Regions 1 to Region IV it is at P7,200 to P7,900; in MIMAROPA it is at P6,713. According to the Report, however, DSWD has so far distributed food and non-food items to only 4,753 clients from March 13 to 29 amounting to P22Million, and has procured 69,200 family food packs to benefit 69,200 families or 346,00 individuals for two to three days. According to the PSA, 81.1% of all workers in the Philippines are employed in the informal sector. In Metro Manila alone, there are 12.8 Million people living in poverty. In the entire Luzon, 47.52 Million live in poverty. The DSWD must urgently accelerate its efforts to ensure that these 47.52 Million people are reached in order for them to survive on zero income. The DOLE has paid P5,000 to 8,461 beneficiaries of financial assistance under the CAMP or the Covid-19 Adjustment Measures Program and has engaged 51,293 as part of the TUPAD or the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers Program. While the quick action by DOLE in implementing the CAMP even prior to the enactment of the law should be recognized, we again urge them to act quickly to ensure that the assistance is able to reach a bigger part of the population at the soonest possible time. We note that as of 27 March 2020, the DOLE-NCR alone has received 46,213 CAMP applications. RESOURCES FOR THE HEALTH SECTOR PPEs Seventeen out of the total COVID fatalities are doctors. We are sending our physicians to war without the proper battle gear. The DOH must act with haste in delivering the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to the various hospitals in all parts of the country, to ensure that the healthcare workers are adequately protected. As early as 4 February 2020, during the hearing conducted by the Committee on Health, Secretary Duque has already identified the need to procure PPEs for at least 5,000 healthcare workers, the total of which would amount to P2 Billion. However, the acquisition by the DOH of P1.8 Billion worth of PPEs was only made recently and the Department is said to be awaiting the delivery of around 1 million PPE sets. We reiterate the urgency of the need to distribute these PPEs to the healthcare workers all over the country. Increasing Capacity and Resources Sec. 4(a) provides the President the power to adopt and implement measures to suppress further transmission of the virus, following World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines and best practices. The President is also empowered to expedite and streamline the accreditation of testing kits and facilitate prompt testing by both public and designated private institutions of PUIs and PUMs. Dr. Bruce Aylward of the World Health Organization, has said in an interview that "if you simply rely on big shut down measures without finding every case, then every time you take the brakes off, it could come back in waves." Dr. Aylward has said that we have bought some time by putting in place these shut downs but that time should be used well to "get the testing in place, to get the systems in place, so that you can actually manage the individual level cases that are going to be fundamental to stopping this." We call for the immediate release of funds for programs identified in the law, including the hiring of doctors, nurses, and other health workers; purchase of beds, medical supplies and equipment like testing kids, PPEs, mechanical ventilators; and establishment of isolation units and quarantine facilities; increasing the operational budget of the Philippine General Hospital and other DOH hospitals; among others. According to the WHO, "the availability of timely and accurate results can be threatened when testing demands outstrip capacity, such as when "there is a backlog for testing and it is no longer possible to turn around results within 24 to 48 hours, or when the laboratory staff are exhausted, or when critical staff become infected or are placed in quarantine". While the DOH has identified more government hospitals accredited for testing in the country, the efforts of LGUs and private hospitals to develop their own testing centers should also be encouraged. The DOH must hasten its accreditation of LGU facilities and private hospitals as testing centers. Our bureaucracy has the mindset of a regulator instead of an emergency and crisis manager. Some private hospitals have disclosed that they have had the platform for testing but are unable to use it because of the initial insistence to centralize the testing at the RITM. It was only when the quarantine was already in place that the DOH has agreed to assess private hospitals as testing centers. Some hospitals have even been prevented from getting their testing kits from the Bureau of Customs. Had the private hospitals been allowed to do conduct tests earlier, more people could have been tested with faster turnaround times. The DOH must do the accreditation with extreme urgency. This way, the resources and personnel of the government will not be overburdened and the private hospitals can attend to more patients, casting a wider net on the population that can be tested and isolated. The DOH must also look at innovative ways to reduce contact between healthcare worker and patient during testing and look to other countries for best practices that can be applied in the local setting. Aside from funds that may be sourced from realignments and augmentations in the budget, we note the existence of the following items in the Budget of the DOH: - Epidemiology and surveillance P115,501,000 - Purchase of government health care facilities P8, 350,610,000 - Operation of DOH Hospitals in Manila: P10,320,094,000 (P10B) - Operation of DOH Regional Hospitals and Other Health Facilities P29,583,796,000 - Prevention and Control of Other Infectious Diseases P2,021,089,000 LGUs The national government should enhance its collaboration with the local government units. This is the best time to harness the local governments as partners of the national government. LGUs are at the forefront of service delivery and social protection efforts in this pandemic. The national government through the DILG and other agencies should capacitate the LGUs and enable them to respond to the needs of their constituents. The Report shows very limited assistance to LGUs. The Report states that LGUs have been authorized to utilize more than 5% of their calamity fund subject to additional support from the National Government. It further cites JMC No. 1 which contains guidelines on the utilization of the Internal Revenue allotment for development projects. Among the powers of the President under Section 4(g) of the law is to ensure that all Local Government Units (LGUs) are acting within the letter and spirit of all the rules, regulations and directives issued by the National Government pursuant to the Bayanihan Lawm while allowing LGUs to continue exercising their autonomy in matters undefined by the National Government. This Section of the law must be viewed in light of Article X of the Constitution which provides for the autonomy of territorial and political subdivisions. Section 4 Article X of the Constitution provides that the President shall exercise general supervision over local governments, although jurisprudence clarifies that supervision should not amount to control. Innovative practices should be encouraged. The government must take the perspective of crisis managers, who employ innovation and quick action rather than extreme regulation. RED TAPE Section 4(ee) of the law authorizes the President to undertake measures reasonable and necessary to carry out the policy under the law. The Report states that ARTA has issued an advisory to government agencies to fast track and simplify procedures in government agencies. We have yet to see this bearing fruit. In one city, the Mayor has lamented having to evacuate the PUMs and PUIs from the public school which they are occupying and transferring them to a private school because the Deped and the DILG are requiring a MOA with the City Government to use the school. While some measures have been cited in the Report which are adopted by the Bureau of Customs and other agencies, we emphasize the need to further streamline these measures. Red tape should be removed and abhorred, if we are to address the crisis effectively. The punitive and regulatory tendencies of the bureaucracy should be avoided. Innovation in place of extreme regulation can help save lives. We cannot overemphasize the urgency of the situation. In the coming weeks, we expect more details on actions taken by the various departments that go beyond the issuance of guidelines or the conduct of studies. We are dealing with an emergency and our actions and mindset should be shifted accordingly.
Cook County Chief Financial Officer Ammar Rizki said, during a news conference last week, the measures will temporarily free up at least $30 million in cash flow for businesses during the public health crisis. Business owners can use money that they otherwise would have owed in home rule taxes to cover payroll, rent, or just to keep the lights on.
Hundreds of Northern Ireland businesses could go to the wall if a rates relief scheme rolled out elsewhere in the UK is not introduced here, it has been claimed.

Many small retailers and other businesses are getting a three-month rates holiday, amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis. But elsewhere in the UK, a 12-month freeze has been introduced.

Rates can account for around 20-30% of many business monthly outgoings, and it has been warned the failure to bring Northern Ireland in line with Great Britain could be "exponential" and see "hundreds if not thousands" of companies "not coming out of the crisis".

Glyn Roberts, chief executive of Retail NI, said: "Given rates is the only tax power Stormont has, it is vital they use the rating system to get as much relief out to support businesses.

"Why are we only getting three months, while everyone else is getting 12 months?

"They are dealing with the same problems (as businesses elsewhere).

"We should be doing as much as possible to support businesses through this to ensure they can return. In the short-term we need to be using everything to support (firms)."

In his budget this week, Finance Minister Conor Murphy announced the Small Business Rates Relief scheme providing almost 20m of relief to 27,000 small businesses, while rates would also see a 12.5% cut.

Asked whether the Executive would be re-examining the 12-month business rates freeze, a spokesman for the Department of Finance said: "So far the Executive has provided significant support to businesses with over half of all available Covid-19 funding (470m) being used for business support measures.

"This includes the 100m rates support package which will provide a three-month rates holiday to help all businesses here, unlike GB where the rates holiday is only for certain businesses.

"In addition to the rates holiday, as announced yesterday in the Budget the non-domestic regional rate will also be reduced by 18% - benefiting all businesses. This is being funded from the Executive's existing resources on top of the Covid-19 funding.

"Rates bills will also be delayed until the last possible moment, with the first bills to be issued in June. These measures will be kept under review and we will take further steps should we deem it necessary."

But Mr Roberts said: "The price will be hundreds if not thousands of businesses not coming out of this crisis, and being able to reopen.

"The cost is exponential. We are dealing with the same crisis."

He said businesses from across the sectors would be impacted, including those such as small retailers, hospitality and the wider manufacturing industry.

"We pay the highest business rates in the UK. Before this, it was a huge burden, and now it's even more of a colossal burden."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 18:32:24|Editor: xuxin

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MOGADISHU, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Somali President Mohamed Farmajo on Thursday pardoned 148 prisoners as part of measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the country.

Farmajo said the release of the prisoners with petty crimes follows a report submitted to him by the country's attorney general on the conditions of the prisoners in the country in the wake of COVID-19.

The president also directed prison authorities and the ministry of health to take adequate measures to prevent health risks for the remaining inmates.

Farmajo said he invoked Article 90 of the Provisional Constitution which grants him powers to pardon prisoners who are not serving sentences for serious crimes.

The Horn of Africa nation has so far confirmed five COVID-19 cases involving three Somali nationals and two foreigners.

Somalia has banned both domestic and international flights and public gatherings, among other measures, to contain the spread of the pandemic.
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Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) Stockport, England  Thu, April 2, 2020 17:51 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f49aa3 2 People Spider-Man,superhero,England,lockdown,coronavirus,stay-at-home,COVID-19 Free

The northern English town of Stockport has a new hero in the battle to keep kids entertained during the coronavirus lockdown: Spider-Man!

Jason Baird, a local 34-year-old martial arts teacher, has taken to dressing up as the Marvel superhero for his daily jog, replete with acrobatic jumps and somersaults.

Swapping the towering skyline of New York for suburban Stockport, a town known for its hat-making heritage, Baird stopped by a primary school on Wednesday and adopted Spider-Man's iconic crouching pose for waving children.

"It's just Co-op, and then I'll be back," Baird said of his route, referring to the local grocery store.

Following his visit to the school, Baird posed for a selfie with a policeman - contrasting with his opposite number in New York who sometimes had a strained relationship with the authorities
While overall air cargo volumes carried last month fell significantly, demand for all-cargo capacity remains strong as the market tries to compensate for the loss of bellyhold space

While overall air cargo volumes carried last month fell significantly, year on year, demand for freighter capacity remains strong as the market has turned to freighter charters to compensate for the loss of bellyhold space due to the mass cancellation of scheduled passenger services in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, air freight sources confirm.

That increasing reliance on freighter aircraft has also translated into strong demand for road feeder services (RFS) in Europe, according to Wallenborn Transports, which recorded solid growth in volumes on its pan-European network.

Our year-on-year volumes were up by approximately 9% in March due mainly to extra flights from the Asia Pacific (APAC) region and extra RFS from and to freighter hubs due to the drop in pax flights, the Luxembourg-based companys commercial director, Jason Breakwell, told Lloyd's Loading List. Demand for the transportation of fresh food, pharmaceuticals and other medical equipment from and to airports is rising.

He highlighted continued strong demand for freighter charters on all major routes.

In Europe, that means more freighters from and to APAC and on transatlantic corridors, Breakwell observed. In the past ten days, Amsterdam Schiphol became busier as they lifted freighter slot restrictions and as some of the larger hubs were very busy, weve serviced more charters at Basel, Frankfurt Hahn, Maastricht and Ostend.

Breakwell also noted the growing trend of pax aircraft being used in cargo-only mode, mainly for mail, medical goods and military shipments.

Asked to comment on the impact of land border closures in Europe on truck movements, he said: Apart from some delays at Hungary and Switzerland borders, we are not experiencing anything that is seriously disruptive.

In its latest air freight update on the impact of COVID-19 published today, Agility continues to highlight significant capacity constraints and surge in rates on Europe-China routes while on the Europe- US trade lane, the main features of the current market are capacity shortages and considerable increases to spot price rates. Space is nonetheless available but with constraints.

Forwarder charter programmes

Meanwhile, Bollore Logistics has extended its programme of freighter charter flights between Europe and China into April and May as a part of its coronavirus impact contingency plans.

The first of five round trips linking Luxembourg and Shanghai Pudong Airport is planned for early next week. The freighter charter programme also includes three westbound flights between Zhengzhou and Luxembourg and four westbound flights between Zhengzhou and Frankfurt Hahn.

In its latest operational update on the impact of the pandemic published yesterday, the French company said the flights were part of a robust alternative transport plan, to ensure continuity of service and to adapt needs to capacities, maximizing operations through our air cargo hubs.

In a separate development, Geodis has been commissioned by the French government to organise the emergency supply of millions of masks from China to France.

In order to respond to requests from the national authorities, it is planning 16 flights over the coming weeks, representing in volume terms approximately 2,400 cubic metres of capacity weekly. If necessary, this schedule could be extended into May.

For this operation, the French forwarding and logistics group has chartered two Antonov 124 aircraft from Russian carrier Volga Dnepr Airlines which will operate in rotation between France and China.

The first flight from Shenzhen Airport in China containing 8.5 million masks arrived in France earlier this week via Paris-Vatry airport. A second flight was scheduled for this week carrying 13 million more masks.

Frances health minister said that the airbridge was part of the expected delivery to France of one billion masks over the next 14 weeks. Geodis told Lloyd's Loading List that it was only transporting part of the order of one billion masks but declined to comment on what its share was.
A Department of Justice memo instructs prosecutors to consider coronavirus a "biological agent," opening the way for cases of transmission to be considered acts of terrorism. (Alex Brandon / Associated Press)

The Department of Justice sent out a memo last week with this arresting detail: Prosecutors around the country should consider coronavirus as a biological agent, and therefore charge certain acts related to COVID-19 as federal crimes of terrorism.

As a former U.S. prosecutor, I have no quarrel with the departments being able to make a federal crime of the worst conduct that we may see with the virus. Among other things, it gives the country a hook to bring federal resources to bear on cases that for whatever reason may be difficult for states to bring.

But the general idea of viewing the coronavirus as a biological agent akin to anthrax or botulism, and its possession or transmission as a crime of terrorism, is as novel as the virus and it carries its own exponential dangers.

Until now, the core concept of a biological agent in terrorism law is an engineered or synthesized toxin, like anthrax. Shifting that definition to a naturally occurring virus we all can catch and carry, and one we so far know so little about, is not just inapt, its overkill. We should confine terrorism crimes to offenses involving violence and intimidation against a large body of civilians in pursuit of political aims.

There are legitimate applications of the DOJs definition. The paradigm for federal jurisdiction would be cases weve recently heard about that the FBI is investigating: Neo-Nazi and white supremacists encouraging members who become infected to spread the disease to police officers and to Jews, whom they view, in the time-honored irrational fashion of anti-Semites, as responsible for the virus.

Life in prison  the sentence for federal crimes of terrorism  seems like fitting punishment for such heinous conduct. But for many other potential coronavirus crimes or civil offenses, what could follow from the "biological agent" rubric is just not right.

There already have been reported instances of people threatening others with the virus. A New Jersey man breathed on someone and then said he had the virus. A woman in a supermarket in Pennsylvania coughed on fresh produce and announced: I have coronavirus and you are all going to get sick. She next tried to shoplift a 12-pack of Coors Light. State authorities charged her with two felony counts of terrorist threats and, perhaps with the DOJ in mind, one count of threats to use a biological agent.

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Antisocial, sad sack criminal conduct? Yes. But domestic terrorism akin to building a bomb and trying to set it off in Times Square?

Or imagine what lawyers would consider the potential "reckless" transmission of the disease. On Monday, Florida authorities arrested the pastor of a local church who held services in contravention of stay-at-home orders.

He was charged with unlawful assembly and violation of public health emergency rules, both second-degree misdemeanors. But combine his recalcitrance with the DOJs definition of the virus as a biological agent, and the possible end result is a range of federal felony charges, including, if a parishioner contracts the disease and dies, reckless homicide.

Most panoramically, there could be "negligent" transmission of the virus, not with the intent to harm or even done recklessly, but done without taking proper care nonetheless. This kind of transmission will most certainly occur, tragically, in thousands of cases.

For example, The Times recently reported on a choral group in Washington state that decided to go forward with practice notwithstanding the then-rapid spread of the virus in Seattle. Today, 45 members are infected, three have been hospitalized and two have died. The DOJs definition increases the prospects for recovery in a civil case associated with such conduct, along with the likely amounts. It might also push local authorities, who are eager to appear aggressive in combating the coronavirus, toward a charge of criminal liability.

The memorandum from the department doesnt quite seal the deal on how the law will view coronavirus, but because the department is the agency tasked with administering the criminal code, the courts usually defer to its interpretations. Unfortunately, the memo may serve as a giant step toward making transmission of a disease into chemical warfare and suicide bombs.

There will have to be some reckoning down the line related to COVID-19, some assignment of fault for at least the most culpable transmitters of the disease. The courts might attempt to look to normal principles of everyday liability, including for negligence, as they have done (with notably inconsistent results), in cases of transmission of AIDs. More likely, the immensity and unprecedented nature of the coronavirus threat will require a legislative solution from Congress, involving partial compensation and rough justice.

But it would be a mistake to rely generally on a body of law developed for acts of terrorism to account for the spread of the coronavirus. Confronting the legion problems of the pandemic is daunting enough without reconceptualizing disease as a massive terrorist attack from within.

Harry Litman is a former U.S. attorney and host of the podcast "Talking Feds." @harrylitman




Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor has come out in support of doctors and other frontline workers fighting the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and urged everyone to avoid getting violent. An appeal to all brothers and sisters from all social status and faiths. Please dont resort to violence,stone throwing or lynching. Doctors,Nurses,Medics, Policemen etc..are endangering their lives to save you. We have to win this Coronavirus war together. Please. Jai Hind! he wrote on Twitter.

Also read: Malaika Arora shared details of night before divorce from Arbaaz Khan: Everyones first response was dont do it

The tweet comes hours after news came that a doctor was attacked in Telangana. A person who tested positive for Covid-19 attacked the doctors at Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad on Wednesday evening. The man attacked the doctor after the doctors confirmed that his brother died due to coronavirus.

As per ANI, locals of Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore pelted stones at health workers who had arrived to screen people, in wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

Earlier this week, Rishi had suggested imposing emergency on the country as the coronavirus cases rose. Rishi tweeted, Aaj ye hua kal kya kya hona hai? (This happened today, now what will happen tomorrow?)That is why I said we need the military out. Emergency. He was, perhaps, responding to the news that thousands of people are at risk of being infected with the novel coronavirus after they attended the Markaz at the headquarters of a religious group in Delhis Nizamuddin area. The congregation is said to have led to eight deaths and 117 confirmed cases till now.

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Note: Seasonally adjusted. Source: Department of Labor, analysis of Google Trends data from Paul Goldsmith-Pinkham and Aaron Sojourner

The Department of Labor reported last week that more than three million people filed for unemployment from March 15 to March 21, the largest single-week increase in American history.

But this Thursdays number, which reflects claims filed last week, could rise to 5.6 million, according to an analysis of Google search data by the economists Paul Goldsmith-Pinkham of Yale and Aaron Sojourner of the University of Minnesota.

Morgan Stanley estimates that claims will rise to 4.5 million in tomorrows report; Goldman Sachss estimate is 5.5 million.

If these forecasts are accurate, there will be as many claims in two weeks as in the first six months of the Great Recession.

The search data is helpful because it reflects daily interest in unemployment claims. A few weeks ago, state agencies were releasing their own counts of jobless claims ahead of the federal government, but as those numbers reached record levels, the Trump administration asked them to withhold their counts before the official national release. (Some states, like Pennsylvania, are ignoring that request.)

Last week, searches for File for unemployment grew significantly nationwide, up 62 percent from the week before. Michigan, in particular, had a huge surge (up 160 percent) in unemployment searches as businesses closed after a stay-at-home order was issued by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on March 24.

Daily Google search intensity for File for unemployment Notes: Google Trends are an index. Source: Google Trends

The researchers say their analysis is imperfect. It accounts for the interest in jobless claims, but does not necessarily correspond to the number of people who can actually get through to the unemployment office. State resources have been severely strained with astronomical levels of interest from recently laid-off workers, leading to long wait times, nonworking websites and jammed phone lines. This suggests the true numbers are higher than what the Department of Labor will report Thursday.

This effect appeared evident last week in the researchers state-level predictions for California, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. For instance, in California, the researchers predicted that claims would reach 639,000. The reported number came out to be 186,809. They say this discrepancy reflects how inundated the state was with requests. Mr. Goldsmith-Pinkham and Mr. Sojourner expect the previous numbers to be revised upward with the release of the new numbers Thursday.

In the past, statistical exercises to forecast unemployment claims and the unemployment rate have performed poorly. In normal times and even during typical recessions, so many people are being hired and fired daily that its hard to predict how many people will end up filing for unemployment.

The difference this time is that there is very little hiring to replace the losses, and the researchers thought their forecasts could be more accurate. So far, Mr. Goldsmith-Pinkham and Mr. Sojourner have found the relationship between searches and claims to be relatively stable.
Egypts Doctors Syndicate has demanded the health ministry provide it with information on all doctors who have contracted the coronavirus during their work.

Due to the infection of several doctors while doing their job combating the coronavirus, the syndicate requests the regular disclosure of data on infected doctors and their health status, in order to communicate with their families and provide the necessary syndicate assistance, reads a letter from the medical body to the ministry.

The health ministry has not released any information on whether doctors or other medical staff have been infected due to work with coronavirus-positive patients.

The ministry did announce the death of Ahmed El-Lawah from the virus, a laboratory physician at Al-Azhar University, but he was not among those on the front line, nor did he work at an isolation hospital.

According to a tracking investigation carried out by a local health department in Port Said, the doctor was in direct contact with someone who had tested positive, and he was self-isolating at his home before he was taken to hospital.

The number of coronavirus cases in Egypt increased to 850 on Thursday, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said in a televised statement.

There have been 52 fatalities.

The first positive case in the country was announced in February.

Madbouly said that Egypt has not reached the dangerous third phase of the virus spread yet, and called for more vigilance in following precautionary measures.

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(Newser)  "Can't believe I have to say this at all, let alone for the second time. But here we are. NO CORONA PARTIES," New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy tweeted Saturday. His state is not abiding by his words. A sampling:

A day earlier, police in Ewing Township broke up a gathering of 47 people in a 550-square-foot apartment and cited the organizer for violating Murphy's ban on social gatherings, issued a week earlier, per NBC News.

A day after his reminder tweet, Lakewood police laid charges against a couple who'd hosted 40 to 50 people for a bar mitzvah on their front lawn, per NJ.com. Eliezer Silber, 37, and Miriam Silber, 34, were charged with one child endangerment count for each of their five children in attendance, with Eliezer also charged with violating Murphy's order, reports NBC News.

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On Monday, Lakewood police charged David Gluck, 42, and Abraham Haberfeld, 32, with maintaining a nuisance after finding 35 people inside a building that houses an Orthodox school and banquet hall, per NJ.com.

A day later, Lakewood police crashed an afternoon engagement party, charging 10 adultsincluding a 99-year-oldwith violating Murphy's order. Hosts Yaakov Kaufman, 47, and Eti Kaufman, 45, were additionally charged with six counts of child endangerment, police said.

Murphy had warned that such gatherings were "illegal, dangerous, and stupid." "We will crash your party. You will pay a big fine. And we will name & shame you until EVERYONE gets this message into their heads," he wrote.

As of Wednesday, New Jersey had 22,255 cases of COVID-19 and 355 deaths91 of which were new, per WCAU.

(Read more New Jersey stories.)
Dozens of University of Texas Austin students tested positive for the coronavirus after returning to the U.S. from a spring break trip to Mexico, officials announced this week.

Going against advice from federal officials to avoid large gatherings and non-essential air travel, roughly 70 people in their 20s took a chartered plane in late March to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, according to a statement from the Austin Public Health Department.

Some of the group returned on separate commercial flights, the statement said. Currently, 44 of the individuals have been diagnosed with COVID-19, CNN reported. All of them are students at the university.

Austin Public Health and UT Health Austin and University Health Services have made contact with every spring breaker onboard the plane using flight manifests from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the Austin Public Health Department said in its statement.

The confirmed patients are self-isolating at this time. Others remain under quarantine as they are being monitored and tested, according to the statement.

Mexico was not under a federal travel advisory during the time of the students trip, according to the Austin Public Health Department, but the CDC had recommended that people avoid all non-essential international travel.

A leisure vacation of any kind is not considered essential, the department said.

The department also noted that nearly half of people who have tested positive for the coronavirus in Austin-Travis County are between the ages of 20 and 40.

While the viral respiratory infection has largely not been causing severe symptoms among young adults, officials are asking everyone to practice social distancing and stay at home. The virus is highly transmissive and has proven deadly for elderly individuals as well as patients with underlying health issues.

In the U.S., people aged 65 and over make up roughly 45% of hospitalizations and 80% of deaths due to COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For people who are young and healthy, the chief public health concern is the risk that they will spread the virus to others, the Austins department of public health said in its statement. In Austin-Travis County, the number of people 65 and over is estimated to be 132,000  about 10% of the population.

The case of the students in Austin is not the first of college-age individuals apparently ignoring officials guidelines in order to vacation.

A Springfield College student was banned from his family home in Nanuet, New York after traveling to South Padre Island, Texas, The New York Post first reported. The students parents apparently warned him numerous times to come home during his spring break trip.

The virus often hides in the healthy and is given to those who are at grave risk of being hospitalized or dying, Austin-Travis County Interim Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott said in a statement. While younger people have less risk for complications, they are not immune from severe illness and death from COVID-19.

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The US Government has provided about 18.3 million USD in emergency medical and humanitarian assistance for ASEAN member countries, including Vietnam, since the COVID-19 outbreak, said the US Embassy in Vietnam on April 1.

This funding aims to support the preparation of large-scale laboratories for SARS-CoV-2 testing; infection prevention and control; risk communication; the implementation of emergency public health plans for entry points at the border; and the launch of case detection and event-based surveillance for influenza-like diseases. It also help train quick response teams and update training materials for health workers.

For Vietnam, nearly 3 million USD in medical assistance will help the Government prepare a laboratory system, launch case detection and event-based surveillance, assist technical experts in response and preparation, boost risk communication; and prevent and control infection, among others.

Over the past 20 years, the US has provided more than 706 million USD for the health sector and over 1.8 billion USD of total assistance for other areas in Vietnam.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has collaborated with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in providing training for 15 hospitals and supporting 63 provinces and cities across Vietnam in supervising, reporting and collecting SARS-CoV-2 testing samples. They have also assisted Vietnam in developing national guidelines for coronavirus infection prevention and control.

In the region, through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the US is actively supporting research in key ASEAN countries to combat the pandemic, including treatment methods, vaccines and medical countermeasures. The NIH has worked with ASEAN partners on malaria treatment and prevention, studies on cases of coronavirus transmission from bats and others on public health benefits.

Through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the CDC, the US has launched regional programmes to enhance the ASEAN nations capacity in preparing for disease outbreaks and building diagnosis capacity in the laboratory./. VNA
He started doing research online, found a pattern, figured out how to get the medical-grade filament and started production, Anderson said. Jordan is a really creative person and always has different engineering projects going. Im really impressed he did all of this on his own. It gives me hope for the future.
A top state public health official has resigned in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, citing alleged racial discrimination in the states Department of Public Health.

Former Deputy Commissioner Susan Roman wrote in her resignation letter on March 5 for the past 4 months, I have been subjected to racial discrimination (referred to as the white deputy commissioner and the great white hope, accused of ingratiating myself to the white employees at DPH), subjected to abusive behavior, accused of lying, and placing the Office of the Commissioner at Risk, as well as, the Department of Public Health.

Her responsibilities at the department, according to a DPH organizational chart from October, included the Community, Family, Health and Prevention Section, Environmental Health, Health Statistics and Surveillance and the Public Health Laboratory.

In her letter to Gov. Ned Lamonts Chief of Staff Paul Mounds and Chief Operating Officer Josh Geballe, Roman wrote that working for Commissioner Coleman-Mitchell has been an incredible disappointment for me. But I will say that it has been an absolute pleasure to work with the team members at DPH.

According to a copy of the letter provided by DPH, Geballe forwarded the letter to Chief Human Resources Officer Nicholas Hermes, writing please ensure DPH HR is moving on the separation. Hermes then forwarded to the email to DPH Human Resources Associate Ewa Heppner.

Romans attorney, Irene Bassock, said in a statement Wednesday that Ms. Roman is weighing her options at this time, including whether to purse claims of illegal discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. She declined to comment further.

Roman joined the department in October 2019, according to her LinkedIn profile. She previously worked at Connecticut Childrens Medical Center, in roles including program director for the Center for Care Coordination and for the Special Kids Support Center.

In my over 35 yrs. of employment, I have always had the respect of my leadership and my team members, she wrote in her letter. I have been seen as a leader that has brought value to the organization, and I have enjoyed many leadership and programmatic accolades. I am trusted and well liked in this public health community.

We will not comment on anything related to these claims or any Personnel matters, DPH spokesman Av Harris said in a statement. He said the departments response to the coronavirus pandemic has been unaffected by her departure.

At the time that she resigned, the department had tested 12 people for the virus, all of which came back negative. The same day, the governor requested additional test kits to allow for broader testing to comply with federal guidelines, and in anticipation of increasing demands for responding to the virus.

Liz.teitz@hearstmediact.com
(The countys deceleration) is following the guidance from the federal government and the State of Illinois, Repay said, adding he was surprised Holcomb didnt extend Indianas stay-at-home order on Thursday through the end of April, like the federal government and Illinois have done.
Ukraine-made tests will be supplied to laboratories that conduct polymerase chain reaction testing.

Ukraine next week plans to start mass production of coronavirus tests, says Deputy Minister of Health Viktor Liashko.

"We've been working with the Institute of Molecular Biology and other national manufacturers of tests," Liashko told a Kyiv briefing on Thursday, according to an UNIAN correspondent.

Read alsoZelensky: Over 100 perpetrators spinning coronavirus disinformation exposed

"And I think that next week we will see serial production of tests, and we will deliver domestic tests to the PCR laboratories," he said.

As UNIAN reported earlier, in Ukraine, as of 10:00 on April 2, a total of 804 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19 were recorded in Ukraine, including 20 deaths and 13 recoveries.
In a tweet on Wednesday the U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said disturbing reports about involvement of Iranian diplomats in the assassination of a dissident in Turkey are "fully consistent with their assignments" and called them "agents of terror".

"[They] have conducted multiple assassinations and bomb plots in Europe over the past decade," Pompeo wrote.

Reuters' on Wednesday said a senior U.S. official had confirmed that the United States believes Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security was directly involved in the killing of an Iranian dissident last November in Turkey.

Masoud Molavi Vardanjani, an Iranian dissident, was shot dead in Istanbul on November 14, 2019. Citing Turkish officials, Reuters last week reported that two intelligence officers in Iran's consulate in Istanbul had instigated his killing.

"Given Iran's history of targeted assassinations of Iranian dissidents and the methods used in Turkey, the United States government believes that Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) was directly involved in Vardanjani's killing," the senior administration official told Reuters.

In March two Turkish intelligence officials told Reuters Iranian diplomats were involved in the killing.

Other sources quoted earlier by Reuters said Vardanjani had dealings with Iranian cyber authorities and intelligence organs had warned him not to release confidential information he had on Iran's activities.

According to some Iranian media the 32-year-old Vardanjani was an artificial intelligence expert. There are also reports that he had been a former intelligence operative at some point.

While living in Turkey Vardanjani had launched a campaign of exposing the financial and moral corruption of Iranian authorities including the notorious Judge Salavati. Salavati is responsible for the imprisonment and execution of hundreds of ordinary and political prisoners.

A police report by the Turkish authorities about the killing of Vardanjani which was published two weeks ago said he had an unusual profile.
Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, the Queen of Malaysia has decided to utilize her cooking skills to help frontline workers. According to reports, the Queen has been posting the images of the dishes that she cooks on her Instagram account. Her endeavour was met with praise for the monarch.

Cooking for the frontline workers

As per reports, the Queen of Malaysia was already a cooking enthusiast before the coronavirus pandemic and had an Instagram feed that consisted of a lot of cakes and recipes for other dishes. She has reportedly sent dishes to a number of hospitals in Malaysia such as Sungai Buloh Hospital, University Malaya Medical Center, and the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC).

Take a look at some of the dishes cooked by her below.

The Queen, Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah, who is the wife of Al-Sultan Abdullah Al-Haj of Pahang uploaded a picture on Instagram with a caption that detailed the food items that would be delivered to as Sungai Buloh Hospital and the Crisis Preparedness and Response Centre (CPRC).

Read: COVID-19: Malaysian Govt Issues Sexist Advisories, Apologises After Outrage

Read: Malaysia Asks Women To Stop 'nagging' Husbands In Coronavirus Advisory

She also uploaded a post where she claimed that cooking for the health workers who were risking their lives on the frontline was the least that she could do. Malaysia has so far reported 2,908 positive coronavirus cases and 45 deaths.

King and Queen Quarantined

Malaysias king and queen have reportedly been placed under quarantine after seven palace employees tested positive for COVID-19. In a statement on March 26, the Istana Negara told the state press that all seven staff members were isolated and were under medical supervision at the Kuala Lumpur Hospital, however, King Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah and Queen Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah had to be isolated. The palace staff is in stable condition, it added.

Read: Malaysia's King, Queen Quarantined After 7 Palace Staff Members Test Positive For COVID-19

Read: 'Home Bound And Relieved': 113 Indians Evacuated From Malaysia Amid COVID-19 Outbreak
While the COVID-19 health crisis has gripped the global headlines, one isolated Central Asian country--Turkmenistan has ordered to ban the usage of 'Coronavirus', with officials reportedly arresting those using the word. In a report published by media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, the authorities of Turkmenistan have resorted to this move to blacken any information around the pandemic.

With the motive to suppress information around the pandemic, Turkmenistan has barred its citizens from using 'Coronavirus' on the streets and even on official documents. The heavily policed state is dealing with the crisis by living in denial and refusing the acknowledge it. Reportedly, the monitored state media is avoiding news about the virus and depriving the citizens of relevant information around it. The media watchdog also said that those wearing face masks or talking about COVID-19 could even face arrests by the Police.

READ| Putin visits hospital as Russia steps up virus response

The country led by "Father Protector" Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov was one of the foremost countries to shut its borders early in February and is reportedly disinfecting public spaces in the country. Turkmenistan, the secretive country that ranked at the bottommost of the World Press Freedom Index in 2019 beating even North Korea to it, has reported zero cases of COVID-19 in the country and removed the word from public information sources. However, numerous cases have already been reported in neighbouring Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Iran.

In March, the Turkmenistan President reported ordered the government to fumigate the country with a herb that is known to have psychedelic effects on ingestion. He claimed that the smoke would annihilate the virus that is "invisible to the naked eye", as per international media.

Coronavirus across globe

Over 900,000 cases of Coronavirus have been officially detected worldwide. At least 905,589 cases including 45,719 deaths have been recorded in 187 countries and territories across the globe. 203,608 cases and 4,476 deaths are recorded in the United States, followed by Italy with 110,574 detected cases and the highest death toll with 13,155 cases. Meanwhile, Spain confirmed 102,136 cases including 9,053 deaths.

READ| Taliban's Health Commission holds Coronavirus session as Afghanistan cases soar to 110
Moscow, April 2 : Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a bill into law which will grant the cabinet additional powers, including declaring a state of emergency for the entire country.

The law published on the official legal information portal is aimed at dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, reports Xinhua news agency.

The President also signed other bills into laws, increasing the liabilities for the breaches of sanitary-epidemiological rules and quarantine.

Russia has registered a total of 2,777 cases of COVID-19 in 75 regions of the country as of Wednesday.
Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne responds to a question during a news conference in Ottawa on March 9, 2020. (Adrian Wyld/ The Canadian Press)

Canada, NATO Allies Discuss World Security Issues in Face of COVID-19 Pandemic

Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne is meeting his NATO counterparts this morning to discuss the alliances response to the COVID-19 crisis while it continues to face daunting global security challenges.

Canada is leading NATOs military training mission in Iraq and has troops in Latvia as part of the alliances deterrence efforts against Russia, which breached Europes border by annexing part of Ukraine in 2014.

Champagnes office said in a statement the ministers will be talking on a secure video link about transatlantic security implications of the COVID-19 crisis and making a co-ordinated response.

SecretaryGeneral Jens Stoltenberg said on April 1 the alliance has made the necessary adjustments to address Russian military manoeuvres close to NATOs borders.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks to Slovenian soldiers during a visit to Adazi Military Base in Kadaga, Latvia, on July 10, 2018. (AP Photo/Roman Koksarov)

Stoltenberg and NATOs Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Gen. Tod D. Wolters, are also taking part in the meeting that will look at ways to further support the non-NATO countries of Ukraine and Georgia.

They will also be looking stepping up the NATO training mission in Iraq and strengthening the alliances partnerships in the Middle East, North Africa and Afghanistan, the alliance says in a statement today.

NATOs ability to conduct military operations has not been undermined by the pandemic, it says.

Allies continue to stand together and support each other in the pandemic, through different NATO arrangements, as well as bilaterally.

The meeting is the first for the alliances newest member, North Macedonia, which joined last Friday, expanding NATOs ranks to 30 countries.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a test for all of us and highlights the crucial role NATO continues to play, Champagne says in a statement.
Next week, Daryl and Kathy Storment will be moving about 300 miles west from their home in Eastern Washington, a rural area known for rolling hills and big fieldstoward the center of the country's first outbreak of the new coronavirus.

The couple, both 74, decided on the move before COVID-19 became a household name. They wanted to be closer to their daughter and her family. So they navigated the tricky balance of selling their current home while trying to buy another.

Amazingly, it all came together: They accepted an offer on their home in Pullman in February and found a three-bed, two-bath, 1,950-square-foot home in Gig Harbor, a suburb of Tacoma. They plan to close on both the sale of their existing home and the purchase of their new one on April 7.

"We had an offer [on our house] and accepted it. That's why we went ahead with" the move, says Kathy, a retired teacher. "Don't think we knew much about the coronavirus at the time."

Daryl and Kathy Storment outside of the home they recently sold in Pullman, WA Provided by the Storments

By any standards, the moving industry, like so many others right now, is substantially down in numbers, even if it is considered an essential business. More than 71% of the independent moving companies (not including the big companies) reported a decrease in business since the pandemic spread across the U.S., according to a survey of 300 firms conducted by Hire A Helper, an online market for moving services. More than 35% of the respondents said half or more of their orders were cancelled due to the viral outbreak, according to the survey released on March 24.

And yet, despite widespread fears about catching the highly contagious coronavirus, and stay-at-home orders in many states, including Washington, some Americans are still moving. Some had committed to a move before the public health crisis escalated. Others are somewhat undaunted by it. But the process of moving in the age of the coronavirus has changed dramatically.

Moving companies have been updating their policies and procedures to adhere to guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and to address their customers growing concerns.

The new normal of moving during a pandemic

Artisan Movers in Rockville, MD Provided by Artisan Movers

Employees' temperatures are taken every morning at Movher, an independent moving company based in Spokane, WA. If workers have a fever or cough, feel weak or achy, they're told to go home.

Youre not feeling well? asks Movher owner Sabrina Jones. Goodbye. I dont want you here."

Jones is also a board member of the Washington Trucking Association, an industry group of independent movers with 20 members.

To ensure employees stay healthy and can keep working, Jones provides them with homemade hand sanitizer made with aloe vera gel and rubbing alcohol, with a drop of tea tree oil to make it smell good."

When the company started running low on disinfecting wipes, she soaked paper towel squares in a bleach solution and packed them into plastic bags. The workers, who use disposable gloves, wipe down the trucks high-touch surfaces like steering wheels, gas caps, and locks. Everything they touch is wiped down in the morning and again at days end.

But even so, Jones says most customers over 60 and those with underlying health conditions, who health experts say are at greater risk if they contract COVID-19, postponed their moves weeks ago. Business is down about 15%, as many movers are no longer allowed to work in assisted-living communities or retirement homes. On the other hand, the movers were able to make up some of that decline with parents hiring movers to ship home or store the belongings of their college-student children, whose schools and dorms have closed due to the virus.

"We have enough home sales in the process to carry us through the next 60 days," says Jones. "But after that we expect a slowdown."

Maryland has been hard-hit by the coronavirus, but Marc Lewandowski, owner of Artisan Movers in Rockville, has not noticed a slowdown as yet. Most of Artisan Movers customers are in the Washington, DC, metro area.

No one has canceled, he says. Our customers are more concerned with us actually showing up.

However, he says his company hasnt received any requests to pack homeowners belongings since social distancing guidelines went into effect this month. He asks his movers to take sanitary precautions at home and on the job.

Elsewhere, the picture is more grim. Slidell Moving and Storage, a family-owned business near hard-hit New Orleans, has lost half of its business within the past week, says third-generation owner Steven Fisk.

"It gets worse every day," says Fisk. "We are looking at April being a complete nightmare."

To stay afloat, he's laid off employees and reduced hours. Other employees, worried about contracting COVID-19, have stopped coming to work.

When moving isn't a choicebut it's complicated

Michelle Anderson, 32, still plans to move to Washington this summer with her husband. Anderson, a veterinarian, is in the Army Reserve. Her husband, Nick Anderson, 32, is on active duty in the Army at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. Earlier this year, Nick received a hoped-for change of station order to Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, WA.

But Michelle doesn't know when they'll be able to move, since the Department of Defense issued travel restrictions on March 13 to curb the spread of the virus.

"I'm hoping that when we want to move, a lot of this will have calmed down," she says. "I'm not too worried about it."

Like the Andersons, the Storments say they are not overly worried about being exposed to the virus during the process of moving. However, they do plan to wipe down and disinfect all the hard surfaces of their new home.

"We probably won't meet our neighbors right away," says Kathy. "They're not going to be bringing over cookies for us, for sure."

The post Americans Are Still MovingWith Hand Sanitizer, Gloves, and Thermometers appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com.
CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, NV, UNITED STATES 03.25.2020 - An MQ-9 Reaper aircrew participates in an early morning training mission at Creech Air Force Base, NV, Mar. 25, 2020. MQ-9 aircrew provide dominant, persistent attack and reconnaissance 24/7/365. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Lauren Silverthorne)

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An Upstate New York man has died of COVID-19 before getting tested for coronavirus.

The Livingston County Department of Health announced Monday that a Caledonia, N.Y., resident was the first in the county to die from coronavirus. LCDOH officials said that he died suddenly on Saturday, March 28, and tested positive for COVID-19 two days after his death.

Spectrum News reports the man was identified Tuesday as 27-year-old Vinnie Coons by his family. His brother, Pat, said Vinnie called a doctor when he became symptomatic about nine days before he died; Pat said the doctor told Vinnie not to get tested, and to stay home and self-isolate.

Their mother, Marjorie Coons, told WHAM that Vinnie was overweight, but otherwise healthy. He first started to feel funny a few days after St. Patricks Day, and his condition declined quickly; on Saturday, he started having trouble breathing.

He was like on fire. His body was so hot," she said. The ambulance came in and did everything they possibly could. They did CPR, and my son passed away.

Pat Coons told Spectrum News that he thinks his brother should have been tested sooner, and raised concerns about the limited recommendations from his doctor.

Im just broken, he said. Im a little angry in a way too. I think that some people have failed in stepping in to save my brothers life. I think some steps should have been taken.

Marjorie Coons told WHAM that she has tested negative for COVID-19, but she and her family are remaining quarantined while they grieve.

The Livingston County Department of Health told Spectrum that they were not alerted to Vinnie Coons illness until he died. Health officials say people should get tested once they show symptoms, which include fever, cough or trouble breathing.

We know this virus is deadly and now that reality has hit home in a terrible, tragic way. We are sending our deepest condolences to this mans family and friends, Livingston County Public Health Director Jennifer Rodriguez said in a statement. To our residents, stay home and stay safe. We must work together to protect the health and safety of all community members."

Friends and family set up a memorial page for Vinnie Coons on Facebook. A GoFundMe has also been set up to help pay for medical expenses, including the autopsy, and a funeral.

More than 86,000 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in New York state, including at least 18 in Livingston County, located south of Rochester. Over 216,000 have been infected nationwide, and over 5,000 have died in the U.S.

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Coronavirus: Its not just the elderly who are at risk of severe illness

Parents make heart-wrenching decision to not visit newborn until coronavirus scare passes

When will the peak of the coronavirus pandemic hit CNY? What to watch for
The county did not release the names of the two nursing homes whose residents deaths were reported Wednesday. The health departments policy is not to disclose the names of the facilities where the cases are reported, in keeping with Illinois Department of Health policy and prior practice, DuPage health department spokesman Kevin Sur said. The names of some homes are revealed through other means.
This is the horrifying moment an angry mob pelted doctors and health officials with stones as they searched for Covid-19 infected patients in India.

Two health workers, wearing full protective equipment, were filmed fleeing for their lives as the mob chased them down a narrow lane in the Tattpatti Bakhal district of Indore, on Wednesday.

The angry residents hurled rocks and even poles at the health workers. Two female doctors were injured in the attack and had to be rescued by police.

Angry locals pelted stones at doctors and health officials who were searching for COVID-19 infected patients in India

One of doctors said: 'We went searching for a local suspect which then enraged the locals from the area and they started chasing us by pelting stones.'

Local sources said the attack was due to a misunderstanding about the spread and treatment of coronavirus.

Officers at the Chhatripura police station said four people have since been arrested.

Indore is the worst affected city for Covid-19 in the province of Madhya Pradesh.

There have been 99 cases across the state, of whom six have been reported dead. Seventy six of the cases are from Indore, reports India Today.

Two female doctors sustained injuries and were later rescued by police, according to local sources

On Wednesday, India reported the biggest rise in coronavirus cases since the outbreak began.

There was an increase of 386 cases, with the total number now at 2,032, with 58 deaths.

The jump in number of cases has been linked to a Muslim convention on March 13, where people from across the country gathered in south Delhi, now the country's coronavirus hotspot.

It is not known why the locals were angered by the medics, but a local source said it was due to a misunderstanding about the spread and treatment of coronavirus

This is not the first time locals have attacked medics trying to help patients during the coronavirus pandemic in India.

Doctors in Hyderabad's Gandhi Hospital claim they were attacked after a patient died of the virus.

Medical staff have also reported being accosted while returning home by residents who fear they are bringing the virus with them, while panicked landlords and housing associations have evicted health workers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged Indians to not mistreat the people who are trying to save lives during this crisis, saying: 'In this hour of crisis, those in white coats are the incarnation of God. Today they are saving lives, putting their own lives in danger.'

He said those who attacked doctors would face police action.
As every investor would know, not every swing hits the sweet spot. But really big losses can really drag down an overall portfolio. So spare a thought for the long term shareholders of Australian Pacific Coal Limited (ASX:AQC); the share price is down a whopping 88% in the last three years. That might cause some serious doubts about the merits of the initial decision to buy the stock, to put it mildly. The more recent news is of little comfort, with the share price down 75% in a year. Even worse, it's down 32% in about a month, which isn't fun at all. However, we note the price may have been impacted by the broader market, which is down 21% in the same time period.

We really hope anyone holding through that price crash has a diversified portfolio. Even when you lose money, you don't have to lose the lesson.

Check out our latest analysis for Australian Pacific Coal

With just AU$2,950,647 worth of revenue in twelve months, we don't think the market considers Australian Pacific Coal to have proven its business plan. You have to wonder why venture capitalists aren't funding it. So it seems shareholders are too busy dreaming about the progress to come than dwelling on the current (lack of) revenue. For example, investors may be hoping that Australian Pacific Coal finds some valuable resources, before it runs out of money.

We think companies that have neither significant revenues nor profits are pretty high risk. There is almost always a chance they will need to raise more capital, and their progress - and share price - will dictate how dilutive that is to current holders. While some such companies go on to make revenue, profits, and generate value, others get hyped up by hopeful naifs before eventually going bankrupt. It certainly is a dangerous place to invest, as Australian Pacific Coal investors might realise.

Australian Pacific Coal had liabilities exceeding cash by AU$94m when it last reported in December 2019, according to our data. That makes it extremely high risk, in our view. But since the share price has dived -51% per year, over 3 years , it looks like some investors think it's time to abandon ship, so to speak. You can see in the image below, how Australian Pacific Coal's cash levels have changed over time (click to see the values).

Story continues

ASX:AQC Historical Debt April 1st 2020

Of course, the truth is that it is hard to value companies without much revenue or profit. Would it bother you if insiders were selling the stock? I'd like that just about as much as I like to drink milk and fruit juice mixed together. You can click here to see if there are insiders selling.

What about the Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We'd be remiss not to mention the difference between Australian Pacific Coal's total shareholder return (TSR) and its share price return. The TSR attempts to capture the value of dividends (as if they were reinvested) as well as any spin-offs or discounted capital raisings offered to shareholders. We note that Australian Pacific Coal's TSR, at -88% is higher than its share price return of -88%. When you consider it hasn't been paying a dividend, this data suggests shareholders have benefitted from a spin-off, or had the opportunity to acquire attractively priced shares in a discounted capital raising.

A Different Perspective

We regret to report that Australian Pacific Coal shareholders are down 75% for the year. Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 16%. Having said that, it's inevitable that some stocks will be oversold in a falling market. The key is to keep your eyes on the fundamental developments. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 20% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should "buy when there is blood on the streets", but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. To that end, you should learn about the 6 warning signs we've spotted with Australian Pacific Coal (including 4 which is are potentially serious) .

There are plenty of other companies that have insiders buying up shares. You probably do not want to miss this free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on AU exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Li Li has been the CEO of China Wood Optimization (Holding) Limited (HKG:1885) since 2013. This report will, first, examine the CEO compensation levels in comparison to CEO compensation at companies of similar size. Then we'll look at a snap shot of the business growth. And finally we will reflect on how common stockholders have fared in the last few years, as a secondary measure of performance. This method should give us information to assess how appropriately the company pays the CEO.

Check out our latest analysis for China Wood Optimization (Holding)

How Does Li Li's Compensation Compare With Similar Sized Companies?

Our data indicates that China Wood Optimization (Holding) Limited is worth HK$2.0b, and total annual CEO compensation was reported as CN711k for the year to December 2018. As part of our analysis we looked at companies in the same jurisdiction, with market capitalizations of CN708m to CN2.8b. The median total CEO compensation was CN2.1m.

Next, let's break down remuneration compositions to understand how the industry and company compare with each other. Speaking on an industry level, we can see that nearly 23% of total compensation represents salary, while the remainder of 77% is other remuneration. Readers will want to know that China Wood Optimization (Holding) pays a modest slice of remuneration through salary, as compared to the wider sector.

Most shareholders would consider it a positive that Li Li takes less total compensation than the CEOs of most similar size companies, leaving more for shareholders. Though positive, it's important we delve into the performance of the actual business. The graphic below shows how CEO compensation at China Wood Optimization (Holding) has changed from year to year.

SEHK:1885 CEO Compensation April 2nd 2020

Is China Wood Optimization (Holding) Limited Growing?

On average over the last three years, China Wood Optimization (Holding) Limited has seen earnings per share (EPS) move in a favourable direction by 5.8% each year (using a line of best fit). Its revenue is down 15% over last year.

Story continues

I generally like to see a little revenue growth, but it is good to see EPS growth. These two metric are moving in different directions, so while it's hard to be confident judging performance, we think the stock is worth watching. We don't have analyst forecasts, but you could get a better understanding of its growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

Has China Wood Optimization (Holding) Limited Been A Good Investment?

With a three year total loss of 9.5%, China Wood Optimization (Holding) Limited would certainly have some dissatisfied shareholders. So shareholders would probably think the company shouldn't be too generous with CEO compensation.

In Summary...

China Wood Optimization (Holding) Limited is currently paying its CEO below what is normal for companies of its size.

It's well worth noting that while Li Li is paid less than most company leaders (at similar sized companies), performance has been somewhat uninspiring, and total returns have been lacking. Many shareholders would probably like to see improvements, but our analysis does not suggest that CEO compensation is too generous. Looking into other areas, we've picked out 1 warning sign for China Wood Optimization (Holding) that investors should think about before committing capital to this stock.

If you want to buy a stock that is better than China Wood Optimization (Holding), this free list of high return, low debt companies is a great place to look.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
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Navy officials have insisted that the coronavirus-stricken USS Roosevelt is still war-ready as they work to evacuate half of its 5,000-person crew following an unprecedented plea for help from the ship's captain.

At least 93 sailors on the nuclear aircraft carrier have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Wednesday and around 1,300 have been screened for the disease, with about half of those results still pending, officials said.

About 1,000 sailors, or 20 percent, have already been removed from the ship, which docked in Guam a week ago when the COVID-19 outbreak was first reported.

Plans are in place to remove a total of 2,700 sailors from the USS Roosevelt by the weekend as officials scramble to secure enough hotel rooms to house them near US Naval Base Guam.

At a briefing on the island on Thursday, Rear Admiral John Menoni, the region's US Navy commander, insisted that the vessel, despite the outbreak, 'is not incapacitated' and 'could go to sea tomorrow if conditions required'.

A news conference hours earlier on Wednesday marked the first time the Navy had disclosed specific numbers on the outbreak since the ship's commander, Captain Brett Crozier, took the extraordinary step of pleading for help in protecting his sailors.

In a leaked letter to Navy top brass that came to light on Tuesday, Crozier called for the immediate evacuation and isolation of 90 percent of the USS Roosevelt crew.

'We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our Sailors,' Crozier wrote.

The letter put the Pentagon on the defensive about whether it was doing enough to keep the USS Roosevelt's crew safe as lawmakers and families of military members express concerns that other ships could be vulnerable to outbreaks.

Acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said Crozier would 'absolutely not' face retaliation for writing the letter but indicated that he would be punished if officials found that he was the one who leaked it.

The USS Roosevelt was forced to dock in Guam last week after 25 sailors on board tested positive for coronavirus. As of Wednesday, 93 crew members have tested positive and about 1,000 have been evacuated from the ship (seen in port Friday)

Around 1,300 sailors on the USS Roosevelt have been tested for COVID-19 as of Wednesday. About half of those results are still pending. Pictured: Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Adrian Noceda takes a sample for testing on March 27

Plans are in place to remove a total of 2,700 sailors from the USS Roosevelt by the weekend as officials scramble to secure enough hotel rooms to house them near US Naval Base Guam

Acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly disclosed specific numbers on the outbreak at a news conference on Wednesday (pictured), hours after a letter from the ship's commander, Captain Brett Crozier, was leaked to the media

Modly said he disagreed with Crozier's assertion that all but 10 percent of the ship's crew could be removed from the vessel if necessary.

'This ship has weapons on it. It has munitions on it... It requires a certain number of people on that ship to maintain the safety and security of the ship,' Modly said.

He and other Navy leaders have insisted that around 1,000 crew members need to remain on the ship to keep critical functions running.

In a four-page letter to Navy leaders, Captain Brett Crozier (pictured) warned that the outbreak aboard the USS Roosevelt is accelerating and asked that over 4,000 sailors be removed and put in isolation

Crozier had also insisted that every single member of the crew needs to be tested for COVID-19 given the tight quarters on the ship.

But as of Wednesday, only about a quarter - 1,273 - had received tests.

Officials said 93 of those tests had come back positive, 593 were negative and the rest still being processed.

Modly said testing has 'accelerated', noting that only 200 sailors could be tested each day. A sailor told the San Francisco Chronicle the tests are being processed at a lab in South Korea.

Out of the 93 infected sailors, seven did not show symptoms, officials said.

Asked whether Crozier would face discipline for his blunt letter, Modly told reporters: 'The fact that he wrote the letter up to his chain of command to express his concerns would absolutely not result in any type of retaliation.'

However, he suggested that discipline would be warranted if officials found that Crozier was the one who leaked the letter to the media.

'I don't know who leaked the letter to the media,' Modly said.

'That would be something that would violate the principles of good order and discipline, if he were responsible for that. But I don't know that.'

Tugboats and other maritime vessels assist the USS Roosevelt as it docks at the Kilo Wharf of Naval Base Guam in Sumay on Friday. Officials are scrambling to secure hotel rooms for 2,700 sailors being evacuated from the aircraft carrier

CAPTAIN BRETT CROZIER'S FULL MEMO TO NAVY LEADERS Advertisement

The USS Roosevelt was in the middle of a deployment to the Philippine and South China Seas when the Navy ordered it to cease sail on March 26 after at least 25 crew members tested positive.

In his four-page memo to Navy top brass dated March 30, Crozier warned that the outbreak was 'ongoing and accelerating' due to the ship's 'inherent limitations of space'.

'Removing the majority of personnel from a deployed US nuclear aircraft carrier and isolating them for two weeks may seem like an extraordinary measure,' he wrote.

'This is a necessary risk.'

The massive aircraft carrier, like other Navy ships, is vulnerable to infectious disease spread given its close quarters.

The ship is more than 1,000 feet long; sailors are spread out across a labyrinth of decks linked by steep ladder-like stairs and narrow corridors.

Enlisted sailors and officers have separate living quarters, but they routinely grab their food from crowded buffet lines and eat at tables joined end-to-end.

'None of the berthing aboard a warship is appropriate for quarantine or isolation,' Crozier wrote in the memo.

He said that any infected crew members need to be removed from the ship and isolated for at least two weeks while the vessel is disinfected.

After the memo was made public on Tuesday, Navy officials said they had acknowledged Crozier's request and were working as hard as they could to protect the ship's crew.

Crozier had insisted that every single member of the crew needs to be tested for COVID-19 given the tight quarters on the ship. But as of Wednesday, only about a quarter - 1,273 - had received tests. Pictured: Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Reis McCarthy takes a sailor's temperature aboard the aircraft carrier on March 27

Modly said testing is 'accelerating' but noted that only 200 sailors can be screened per day. Pictured: Hospital Corpsman 1st Class Ernesto Santa Ana prepares a sample for investigational analysis in the Naval Medical Research Center mobile laboratory aboard the aircraft carrier USS Roosevelt on March 27

At Wednesday's press conference, Modly provided the most detailed timeline yet of the outbreak.

He said the first two positive cases were identified and flown out to a Guam hospital last week.

Anyone suspected of being in close contact with the infected sailors were then quarantined. When the ship docked, infected sailors were removed and isolated as the crew continued to track potential cases.

In his letter Crozier said it was impossible to quarantine and isolate crew members on the ship because of space limitations.

The captain and the ship's medical team flagged their concerns about the speed and extent of the response for the first time on Sunday, Modly said.

'Let me emphasize that this is exactly what we want our commanding officers, our medical teams to do,' he said at the press conference.

'We need a lot of transparency in this process, and we want that information to flow up through the chain of command.'

Modly said his chief of staff had been in contact with the captain prior to the letter being published in full by the Chronicle in a move that Chief of Naval Operations Adm Michael Gilday called a 'communications breakdown'.

The USS Roosevelt was in the middle of a deployment to the Philippine and South China Seas when it was ordered it to cease sail on March 26 after 25 crew members tested positive. The ship docked at US Naval Base Guam (above in a file photo)

The USS Roosevelt, like other Navy ships, is vulnerable to infectious disease spread given its close quarters (file photo)

Navy secures 3,000 rooms at hotels near US Naval Base Guam to house sailors who have tested negative for COVID-19

An initial group of 1,000 sailors were evacuated from the USS Roosevelt onto the US Naval Base Guam on Wednesday.

Speaking at a press conference by the base on Thursday, Rear Admiral John Menoni said the sailors who tested positive or were showing flu-like symptoms have been placed in isolation for treatment while the rest of the evacuated sailors were quarantined.

Those who remain asymptomatic and test negative will be transported to vacant hotel space with about 3,000 rooms some eight miles away in Guam's commercial Tumon district, where they will remain quarantined for two weeks, territorial Governor Lourdes Leon Guerrero told Reuters.

The quarantined sailors will be moved to hotel quarters in the next 12 to 24 hours in an operation that will be run entirely by the US military, Menoni said.

Leon Guerrero said some residents of the island, whose tourist-based economy has been devastated by the coronavirus pandemic, had been 'pushing back' against welcoming the stricken aircraft carrier to shore.

But she was assured the sailors would be kept completely isolated from Guam's population.

'These are our sailors who go out in harm's way to protect our security in this part of the world,' she said.

'I feel I have the moral obligation to reciprocate if I could.'

As of Thursday, Leon Guerrero said, Guam had 77 known cases of coronavirus, including three deaths.

The island territory is home to about 160,00 people.

Democratic lawmakers demand answers from Navy leaders as they criticize slow response to the USS Roosevelt outbreak

A number of Democratic lawmakers in the House and Senate have confronted Navy leaders about the handling of the USS Roosevelt outbreak - criticizing how the branch didn't begin large-scale evacuations until after Crozier's letter was leaked.

Virginia Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine penned a letter to Navy officials on Wednesday detailing questions about the service's preparedness for additional outbreaks, including how many COVID-19 tests it has and how much space there is to house crew members on vessels that need to be decontaminated.

More than two dozen Democratic members of the House sent a similar letter to Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly and Chief of Naval Operations Michael M Gilday.

They condemned the speed of the Navy's response to the outbreak on the USS Roosevelt and questioned how much worse the situation would be had Crozier's letter not forced them to intensify containment efforts.

California Rep Jackie Speier, chair of the House Subcommittee on Military Personnel, is one of several Democratic lawmakers who have confronted Navy leaders about the handling of the USS Roosevelt outbreak

The lawmakers also demanded information on steps the Navy is taking to prevent similar incidents from taking place on other Navy vessels, which are vulnerable to outbreaks due to their close quarters.

'Shipboard life, with limited space for social distancing or quarantine, presents unique challenges that exacerbate the infection rate of this virus,' the letter said.

'Unfortunately, we are concerned that current guidance from the Department of Defense has allowed for inconsistent response to the spread of the virus on our ships and submarines.

'With further spread of the virus expected in the coming weeks, it is critical that the Navy, like our states and communities across the nation, take additional steps now to prepare.'

The House Democrats who signed that letter included Reps John Garamendi of Walnut Grove (Sacramento County), Jared Huffman of San Rafael, Navy Reserves veteran Jimmy Panetta of Carmel Valley and Jackie Speier of San Mateo, according to the Chronicle.

As chair of the House Subcommittee on Military Personnel, Speier has requested permission to speak directly with Crozier. Her office said the Pentagon has yet to comply with that request.

Speier expressed concern that the military has been more focused on protocol that fully responding to the pandemic.

'I'm very concerned about the entire population of service members  they all are in close quarters,' Speier told The Chronicle on Wednesday.

'It's a powder keg. If we don't get this right, we are going to have dead service people.'

Huffman addressed the situation in a Facebook Live briefing on Wednesday, confirming that two sailors from his district are on the Roosevelt.

He said he and others have been pressing the Pentagon to be 'more forthcoming' with information.

'What you're hearing about in the media is one aircraft carrier, but we have 70 naval vessels under way around the world, and it is very foreseeable and almost certain that we're going to have COVID-19 outbreaks in many of these ships,' Huffman said. 'So we have got to be far more proactive.'

Crozier called for all infected crew members to be removed from the USS Roosevelt and isolated for at least two weeks while the vessel is disinfected. Pictured: A US Navy crewman monitors on the deck of the warship in international waters off South China Sea in 2018

WHERE ARE AMERICA'S AIRCRAFT CARRIERS? The US has 11 aircraft carriers at present. Sailors on three of those ships have tested positive to coronavirus, raising fears the Navy could become crippled by COVID-19. USS Theodore Roosevelt - In port Currently in port in Guam. More than 100 of its sailors have coronavirus USS Ronald Reagan - In port Currently in Tokyo, Japan. At least two of its sailors have coronavirus USS Carl Vinson - In port Currently in dry dock in Washington state, USA. At least one of its sailors has tested positive to COVID-19 USS Nimitz - In port Docked in Washington state. Working up to its next deployment USS Abraham Lincoln -In port Currently docked in San Diego, following a mission to the Middle East USS Dwight D. Eisenhower - Deployed Currently on deployment in the Middle East USS George Washington - In port Docked in Newport, Viriginia for a scheduled four-year Refueling and Complex Overhaul, due to be completed in 2021 USS John C. Stennis - In port Docked in Norfolk, Virginia for a Refueling and Complex Overhaul, due to be completed in the mid 2020s USS Harry S. Truman - Deployed Currently deployed in the Middle East to support maritime security USS George H.W. Bush - In port In Northfolk, Virginia for a planned 28-month docking USS Gerald R. Ford - In port Commissioned by President Trump in 2017, and expected to be deployed for the first time in 2022 Advertisement

The Roosevelt's docking in Guam left both of the Pentagon's western Pacific aircraft carriers in port, with the USS Ronald Reagan berthed in Japan, also reportedly suffering an unknown number of coronavirus cases.

Modly admitted it was a challenge for US forces' defense readiness.

'Right now the Teddy Roosevelt is a frontline theater in this new battle,' he said.

However, he added, 'If the ship needs to go, if there's a crisis, the ship can go.'

He stressed that the Roosevelt was the only US Navy ship out of 94 deployed at sea that had active Covid-19 cases.

There were scattered cases in vessels that are not deployed, he added, but in each case only in the single digits.

Defense Secretary Mark Esper said that while the military was following guidance on social distancing and sanitation, the Roosevelt's plight and the broader pandemic was not eroding the US military's war-fighting abilities.

'There seems to be this narrative out there that we should just shut down the entire United States military and address the problem that way. That's not feasible,' he said in the White House.

'We have a mission: our mission is to protect the United States of America and our people. And so we live and work in cramped quarters, whether it's an aircraft carrier, a submarine, a tank, a bomber - it's the nature of our business.'

In Asia, a carrier presence is central to what the Pentagon has identified as a fundamental shift from fighting insurgent and extremist conflicts in the Middle East to a return to 'great power competition'.

That means, principally, a bigger focus on China, including its militarization of disputed areas of the South China Sea.

Both the Roosevelt and the Reagan could be out of action for several weeks as sailors are tested and quarantined, effectively giving China free rein in the region.

The country has two of their own aircraft carriers, including the recently-completed Shandong, rumored to have cost $9billion and stationed at Hainan Island, the country's southernmost point.

The US has 11 aircraft carriers - but two are deployed to the Middle East, and five are in US ports undergoing long-term services and overhauls.

The remaining two are separately docked at ports on the US West Coast following the completion of recent deployments.

The potential crippling of the US Navy in the Pacific is alarming news given escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The USS Ronald Reagan (pictured) is currently in port in Tokyo after at least two of its sailors tested positive for COVID-19 last week
The Seattle Seahawks are reuniting with another former pass rusher after agreeing to terms on a deal with defensive end Benson Mayowa.

Mayowa is the second former Seahawks pass rusher being brought back for another opportunity. The Seahawks agreed to a deal with former first-round pick Bruce Irvin in the opening days of free agency.

Mayowa didn't get much of an opportunity in his one season with the Seahawks in 2013, appearing in just two regular-season games. Over the last four seasons, he's developed into a solid pass rusher off the edge. Mayowa had six sacks in 13 games in 2016 with Dallas. In 2018 with Arizona, Mayowa had four sacks and a career-high 38 tackles.

And last year with the Raiders, Mayowa had a career-best seven sacks and three forced fumbles.

Mayowa, who will turn 29 in August, was an undrafted free agent out of Idaho when he entered the league with the Seahawks.
Appointment

2 April 2020

HRS Hospitality and Retail Systems, Oracle Hospitality's largest global Platinum Partner, has announced the promotion of Steven Lee to the position of Managing Director, HRS Asia Pacific. Steven will lead HRS in this region with the remit to develop, maintain, and expand our product and service portfolio, especially in China.

Steven has more than 20 years of experience in the Hospitality Industry, having previously worked for MICROS-Fidelio and Oracle. He joined HRS in 2017 as APAC Regional Director of Operations and has demonstrated outstanding commitment and leadership.
Gold is majestically postured now, because Americas government and central bank continues to borrow, spend, and print money with surreal intensity.

The light at the end of the tunnel is a stagflationary freight train.

A beautiful inverse H&S bull continuation pattern is in play, with a target of $1975!

The red hats waved joyously in the air have been replaced with hand pump respirators from the stone age.

The hospital ships will be filled beyond capacity almost as soon as they open and social distancing is a farce.

The sad fact is that America is still walking the streets in close contact and Corona is spreading faster than a wildfire.

There is some good news though. As I predicted, Chinas economy is making a V-bottom!

Double-click to enlarge this Chinese stock market ETF chart. I own it and I like it. China feels quite stable now, and America feels highly unstable. I like being invested in stability.

Will Corona infect US police departments, and if so, is a breakdown of law and order in the cards? Unfortunately, Im predicting that is what lies ahead.

The US stock market can rise in this mayhem, but the nation is in a depression. Because the government and citizens failed to take quick action, there wont be any V-bottom for the US economy.

The Fed predicts 30% unemployment is coming to America. Whats their plan of action to help? Well, in an act of pure insanity, the Fed is printing money and using it to buy ETFs on the stock exchange!

This, while exhausted nurses work shifts on ridiculous hand pump respirators trying to keep patients alive. The bottom line: Socialism for the rich, while Corona ravages the nation.

Americas central bankers are beginning to look psychotic.

Double-click to enlarge this GDXJ chart. Its important to follow the rules.

The rules Im talking about are the rules of HSR. Horizontal support and resistance. It doesnt matter if you are bullion-oriented or miners-oriented. What matters is buying silver and the miners only when gold is at major support, and selling when you have a big profit with gold at resistance.

Investors who followed the rules bought GDXJ when gold traded near $1450. They sold when gold surged to $1700. Thats how to make 40% in a week while sitting in a bunker!

Double-click to enlarge. Investors who followed the HSR rules also did well with the GOAU ETF.

There is often a lot of time between HSR events. It takes patience to follow the rules. The big zones to focus on now are at $1400 and $1700.

Nobody, including me, wants to see gold trade at $1400. It can happen, and unlike the pathetic preparation the US government did for the Corona war, I want gold bugs preparing all the time, to fight price wars on the gold, silver, and mining stock gridlines. Price wars they can win!

If gold can move above $1700, then $1700 becomes a significant support zone, aka buy-side HSR. $1800 is the sell-side HSR zone of importance above there.

What about the short term? Well, for that, investors can look at my https://guswinger.com trading service. We shorted gold yesterday via DGLD, and the trade looks good.

NUGT and DUST are being revamped as double-leveraged trading vehicles instead of triple-leveraged. Because the price is calculated daily, they should never be used as long term investments. Theres far too much slippage.

Double-click to enlarge this SIL ETF chart. Theres a bear wedge in play and volume is a bit negative.

None of that should bother anyone following the HSR rules. Some analysts are looking for a test of the lows, but my focus is getting investors prepared to buy SIL, GDX, GOAU, GDXJ and individual miners at gold $1400 while cheering that a mighty blast over $1700 will be the next major move for gold. In my professional opinion, the odds of $1400 happening are 30%. The odds that $1700 comes next are 70%! By Stewart Thomson Contributing to kitco.com Follow @KitcoNewsNOW www.gracelandupdates.com

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
But he said, "Let us remember that we are only as strong as the weakest health system in our interconnected world. He warned that if the coronavirus was left unchecked in the developing world, it would soon spread again across the globe.

He called for the world's wealthier nations to expand the lending capacity of the International Monetary Fund to assist poorer countries as they confront the spread of the virus. Guterres acknowledged that developed countries like the United States were facing grave concerns in dealing with the virus.

"It is a combination, on one hand, of a disease that represents a threat to everybody in the world and, second, because it has an economic impact that will bring a recession that probably has no parallel in the recent past," he said at a virtual news conference late Tuesday.

 Later, a Major Change

He said that when the crisis ends, the global socioeconomic order needs to change. "Everything we do during and after this crisis must be with a strong focus on building more equal, inclusive and sustainable economies and societies that are more resilient in the face of pandemics, climate change and the many other global challenges we face," he said.

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday that he was "deeply concerned about the rapid escalation and global spread of infection."

He said there had been "near exponential growth" in the pandemic in the last five weeks. Tedros said the number of deaths had more than doubled in the past week, and he predicted that the number of confirmed cases soon would reach 1 million and the death toll would hit 50,000.

Italy, with the world's highest coronavirus toll, reported an additional 727 deaths Wednesday, although the rate of deaths slowed. Its overall toll was at 13,155. Spain announced that it had surpassed 100,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and 9,000 deaths. One of the world's coronavirus hot spots, Spain trails only the United States and Italy in terms of the number of cases.

 Advice to Pilgrims

A senior Saudi official urged people planning to make the hajj pilgrimage to hold off on deciding for now. Muslim pilgrims are due to descend on Saudi Arabia from all over the world in late July to perform the once-in-a-lifetime religious duty. But with the virus pandemic, and Saudi Arabia already banning entry to Mecca and Medina, Saudi Hajj and Umrah Minister Muhammad Saleh bin Taher Banten told state television that people should wait for more clarity on the situation.

In the United States, officials have said Americans should be prepared for a potential 100,000 to 240,000 deaths from the coronavirus, while stressing the need to keep social distancing measures in place to give the best chance of lessening the toll.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said he hoped the number would not go that high, but that realistically people should be ready. "People are suffering. People are dying," he said. "It's inconvenient from a societal standpoint, from an economic standpoint, to go through this. But this is going to be the answer to our problems. So let's all pull together and make sure, as we look forward to the next 30 days, we do it with all the intensity and force that we can."

The U.S. death toll was above 4,600 as of Wednesday afternoon, a figure increasing by the hour. The nation had more than 206,000 confirmed infections.

 Lockdowns Worldwide

Countries all over the world have locked down cities, regions and even their entire nations to try to stop the virus from spreading. One of the latest to put in place a two-week ban on all but essential activities was Vietnam, which started Wednesday.

Last week, New Zealand shut down restaurants, bars, offices and schools. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Wednesday that it was too early to tell how much those measures had helped so far and advocated more testing to track down infections and stop new transmissions.

Her government reported 61 new cases to push New Zealand's total to 708. "If the virus is in the community in this way... then the worst thing we can do is to relax and be complacent, and allow the silent spread," Ardern said.

In Korea, where mass testing has helped level off local transmission rates, officials reported 101 new cases Wednesday. The country also started enforcing new 14-day quarantines for anyone entering the country.

The risks of imported cases undermining successes in controlling community spread of COVID-19 have prompted similar measures in China, which for several months was by far the world leader in coronavirus cases but now has become a sign of hope with a gradual lifting of lockdown restrictions.

German health officials reported about 5,500 new cases, putting the country on track to soon become the next to surpass China.

Meanwhile, in keeping with a plea from UN chief Guterres for parties in the world's conflicts to take this opportunity to halt their fighting, the UN Security Council on Tuesday urged Afghanistan's warring sides to implement a cease-fire. The council "called on the political leadership of Afghanistan to put aside their differences and put the interest of the country first."
A Padma Shri awardee and former "Hazuri Raagi" at the Golden Temple who was undergoing treatment for coronavirus infection here died early Thursday morning, taking the COVID-19 death toll in the state to five, a health official said.

Nirmal Singh, the 62-year-old "Gurbani" exponent, had returned from abroad recently and was tested positive for the coronavirus infection on Wednesday, the official said.

Government Medical College Principal Sujata Sharma said his condition started deteriorating on Wednesday evening and he was put on ventilator support. He died at 4.30 am on Thursday.

The man was admitted to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital here for chest infection after he had complained of breathlessness and dizziness, she said.

Meanwhile, Singh's mortal remains were consigned to flames at village Shukarchak on the outskirts of the city at around 8 pm, amid presence of police force and officials from the district administration.

The last rites of the body were performed by the administration including officials of the health department as family members were not allowed to attend the cremation.

No family member was allowed for'Antim Darshan'(paying last respects), officials said.

Earlier, the administration was not allowed to cremate the body by people at cremation grounds first at city and then at Verka village, fearing spread of the infection.

Despite curfew restrictions, a large number of villagers assembled at the cremation ground at Verka village and stopped officials from cremating the body.

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal took strong notice of not allowing Singh's cremation by villagers at Verka and sought action against those who prevented the last rites.

A clear directive should be issued by the government that no COVID -19 victim will be discriminated against and denied last rites in this manner, said Badal.

According to officials, Singh had held a large ''sammelan'' (religious gathering) in Delhi and some other places after he returned from abroad.

He had also performed a ''kirtan'' at a house in Chandigarh on March 19 along with his family members and other relatives.

The samples of his two daughters, son, wife, a driver and six others, who went along with him to Chandigarh, would be taken for testing for the virus, officials said.

The Chandigarh administration has also been informed about the religious gathering at sector 27 in Chandigarh to take necessary steps in this regard, they said.

The man was awarded Padma Shri in 2009. He had the knowledge of all 31 ''Raags'' in the Gurbani of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of Sikhism.

With his death, the total count of COVID-19-related deaths rose to five in the state.

Earlier, a 65-year-old man from Mohali, a 42-year woman from Ludhiana, a 62-year-old man from Hoshiarpur and 70-year-old man from Nawanshahr had succumbed to the infection.

Punjab has so far reported a total 47 coronavirus cases -- 19 from Nawanshahr, 10 from Mohali, seven from Hoshiarpur, five from Jalandhar, three from Ludhiana, two from Amritsar and one from Patiala.

Of them, one patient was discharged from hospital after his second test results came to be negative.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Passengers arriving back to the UK from abroad have taken fire at the lack of testing and medical advice being issued by airport staff amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Some Britons arriving to London's Heathrow Airport said they were left 'shocked' by the very few health checks being carried out and the lack of medical advice available which left them unsure about whether to go into quarantine.

Despite a surge in the number of coronavirus cases across the country, travellers claimed they were left breezing through security as though it was 'a normal working day'.

One passenger Mete Coban, a 27-year-old charity pioneer and Hackney councillor, who returned to Heathrow Airport from the U.S. on March 16, said: 'Considering just how seriously authorities were treating Covid-19 in the US, I was shocked at just how little the UK authorities seemed to care when arriving at Heathrow.

Passengers returning to London's Heathrow Airport have taken fire at the lack of testing and medical advice being issued amid the coronavirus outbreak. (Stock image)

One passenger Mete Coban (left), 27, who returned to Heathrow Airport from the U.S. on March 16, said it was 'completely irresponsible that we're not at least providing guidance to people about social distancing'

'I think it's completely irresponsible that we're not at least providing guidance to people about social distancing and giving medical advice.'

While Chloe Sloggett, a 24-year-old aesthetics practitioner from north London, who arrived at Heathrow on Saturday with her fiance Toby Hastie, said there were far more medical checks in place in Cambodia and Malaysia than upon her arrival in the UK.

Ms Sloggett, who has been self-isolating since returning home, said: 'As we walked through Heathrow there were posters to explain dos/don'ts and signs to keep two metres' distance, but no-one there was enforcing it.

'We had our temperature checked in Phnom Penh (Cambodia) twice and then again in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), but nothing when we landed in the UK.'

Meanwhile Marc Wilson, a 33-year-old postman from Southampton, said he was similarly confused by a lack of advice on what to do upon his arrival from Guatemala via Mexico and the US.

Mr Wilson, who landed at Heathrow on Sunday morning, said: 'In the Americas, I was checked at every land border, every flight, I had doctors asking me questions.

'I landed at Heathrow and there was no advice or anything. I couldn't see any answers online whether I had to go in quarantine or not.'

The Department of Health said the advice for all Britons, whether returning to the UK or not, was the same - to stay at home and only leave if essential.

However, other countries have introduced strict quarantine measures for those entering the country.

Meanwhile Marc Wilson, 33, from Southampton, said he was not issued with any advice about whether he needed to go into quarantine when he arrived at Heathrow

This includes in the US and New Zealand, where travellers must isolate themselves for 14 days upon arrival.

Nick Russell, who is due to return to the UK from Auckland in the coming days, said confusion reigned over whether he and his wife would be subject to quarantine.

Mr Russell, from Berkshire, said: 'We have very little idea what happens when we arrive at Heathrow.

'Will we be escorted to some compulsory 14-days quarantine facility? Can we be met by a friend to take us home? What can we do when we arrive home?

'There are simply no written answers we can find on the Government website.'

MailOnline has contacted Heathrow Airport for comment.
WASHINGTON  The coronavirus pandemic has set off an unprecedented decline in oil demand, setting off a chain reaction that is threatening to bring much of the world oil sector to collapse.

As stay-at-home orders go out around the globe in a bid to slow the viruss spread, gasoline stations are left with few if any customers, jet planes sit idle on runways and truckers watch their routes cut. In response, refineries, like those that line the Texas Gulf Coast, are slashing their output, which means the crude oil they would have turned into fuel is going into storage tanks.

Only at the current rate of production, those tanks could be full by the end of April, prompting some pipeline companies to begin asking oil and gas producers in West Texas  the center of the U.S. oil boom  to cut production because they are running out of places to send the crude.

That left Abilene oil man Cactus Schroeder, the owner of Chisolm Exploration, little choice but to call off his drilling projects and start contemplating when he might shut down those wells already in production.

I was getting ready to drill a well southwest of Abilene, and I called my partners and said no way, after we heard oil was going into the single digits in May, he said. Somewhere between 50 and 60 people were going to be working on that well and thats just one well. And when everyone else shuts down they dont have anyone else to go work for. Theyre on their hands.

FUEL CRASH: Why social distancing could send fuel demand to record decline

Oil prices rallied Friday on President Donald Trump's overtures to Saudi Arabia and Russia on the hope of cutting production by up to 15 million barrels a day. Crude jumped 12 percent to settle in New York at $28.34 a barrel, well above recent lows near $20 a barrel, but still down more than 50 percent from the beginning of the year.

The ramifications for Houston, considered the oil capital of the world, and the wider Texas economy are profound.

More than 200,000 people across Texas are employed in the oil sector itself, not to mention the nearly 1 million workers in the states manufacturing sector, much of which is devoted to making parts and equipment for the oil and gas industry.

Over the month of April, analysts are projecting global oil demand will drop from 20 to 30 million barrels per day, a 30 percent decline that is unlike almost anything in the history of the oil industry. For context, during the 2008 financial crisis, when the worlds financial institutions came close to collapsing, oil demand declined 2 percent.

Nothing like this

Daniel Yergin, the oil historian whose annual CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference in Houston draws CEOs, sheikhs and oil tycoons from around the globe, said the only comparable period was the early 1930s, when the discovery of massive oil fields in East Texas, combined with the Great Depression, caused a collapse in prices that had never been repeated  up until now.

TRAVEL SHUTDOWN: Houstons OTC oil & gas conference canceled

When storage tanks hit capacity, analysts say, oil prices in many markets could go negative, a terrifying scenario for oil companies that is already beginning. Last week an obscure grade of crude produced in Wyoming was selling for negative 19 cents a barrel, meaning producers had to pay someone to take their oil.

In the Permian Basin, some grades of oil were trading below $6 a barrel.

There never been anything like this. Basically, most of the world is standing still, Yergin said. And when the world stands still, it uses a lot less oil.

Only weeks into the crisis, many within the oil industry have started cutting staff, with oil field services giant Halliburton furloughing 3,500 workers, pipe maker Tenaris laying off 900 workers across the country and Apache Corp. laying off 85 workers in Midland.

Mike Cahill, of Houston, was laid off last month from his job as a recruiter for Houston-based U.S. Well Services, along with 200 other workers. Now hes trying to file for unemployment benefits but cant get through the states website or phone lines, which are backed up with hundreds of thousands of Texans trying to do the same.

The bottom fell out, said Cahill. It all hit us as a perfect storm.

Triumph Fabrication in San Antonio, which makes equipment for oil wells and pipelines, is considering layoffs after the crash in oil prices lost the company an almost $800,000 deal with a local pipeline company, said Joseph Dorn, Triumphs president of sales. The company only has enough work to last it through Wednesday; if no other contracts materialize, it might have to let go at least some of its 25 workers.

That would have gotten us down the road three months, he said. (The pipeline company) said they were going to do it themselves.

And this is just the beginning, economists say.

Seeking a truce

The combination of coronavirus-related shutdowns combined and the oil price collapse is expected to result in the loss of at least 150,000 jobs  about one in 20  in the Houston area this year, said Patrick Jankowski, economist for the Greater Houston Partnership, an economic development group.

What we are seeing is energy prices are trading lower than they were in the lowest point of the energy downturn (of the 1980s), Jankowski said. This is going to be somewhere between the Great Recession and the oil bust we had in the 80s.

BUSINESS DOWN: Texas jobless claims nearly double

In Washington, Trump is scrambling to respond, meeting Friday with CEOs from oil companies including Exxon Mobil and Occidental Petroleum a day after tweeting that he has spoken with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about a truce with Russia in the oil price war that spurred crudes collapse in global markets.

The severe drop in oil prices even prompted Ryan Sitton, a member of the Texas Railroad Commission, to call on the commission to set limits on production in Texas, something the oil and gas regulator has not done since the 1970s.

Right now, as a globe, we have a common enemy and its COVID-19, Sitton said last weekend. Weve got to do things that weve never done before because were facing a problem that weve never faced before.

The great unknown, which is causing so much panic, is how long this downturn in demand will last.

In typical times, a collapse in oil prices would result in a corresponding rise in demand, as businesses and consumers take advantage of lower energy prices, to run more trucks or take that extra drive to the beach. In time, oil prices rise.

But with much of the world stuck at home, that same rebound is unlikely to happen this time, said Pearce Hammond Jr., a senior research analyst at Simmons Energy, an investment bank in Houston.

As we get past the virus and people start moving around again (demand) should come back up, but how quickly? How soon are people going to get back on planes, he said. The (oil) system has never had to deal with a stop like this before.

Top hits: Get Houston Chronicle stories sent directly to your inbox

For now, expectations are that oil demand will continue to decline until governments start to loosen social distancing measures. When that will come is anybodys guess, but the belief is it will happen in the next few months.

Dire situation

For instance, Yergin said he was hopeful Mays oil figures would not be as bad as April and predicted that by January 2021, U.S oil demand would be down 3 million barrels per day, year-over-year.

But for now, the situation in U.S. oil fields is dire, with some oil companies in the Permian Basin not only struggling to find open pipelines, but also trucking companies able to take crude to refineries, said Larry Oldham, a Midland oil veteran who sold his firm, Parallel Petroleum, in 2009.

You cant move (oil) unless you truck it and you can find a market for it, and now even some of the companies that are trucking are saying their storage is full, he said. Ive never seen anything like this, not it in my career, and Ive been in the business since 1975.

With expectations that crude prices wont rebound for a while, companies face tough questions from investors in the months ahead.

Lutz Kilian, a senior economic policy adviser at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, said as long as crude stays below $30 a barrel, most companies will be unable to attract capital to continue operating, eventually forcing many to declare bankruptcy.

That should mean plenty of work for people like Drew McManigle, who advises energy companies during bankruptcy proceedings.

Only strong survive

McManigle got into the business after his familys own oil company in Odessa declared bankruptcy during the 1980s oil crash. And while he likes to talk about the oil industry being one of optimists, he admits that this crisis could be the end for many of them.

I can promise you that banks and private equity firms are looking at their balance sheets right now, he said. There will still be an energy industry, but it will look very different. There will only be the oil majors and a few well-capitalized and well-run independents.

james.osborne@chron.com,

sergio.chapa@chron.com,

erin.douglas@chron.com
The number of suspected modern slavery victims in the UK has hit a record of more than 10,000 - up 52 per cent in a year, figures show.

Some 10,627 potential victims of trafficking, slavery and forced labour were identified last year, compared with 6,986 in 2018, the Home Office data found.

The figures have been rising each year and are now the highest in a decade, after 546 were recorded in 2009.

Some 10,627 potential victims of trafficking, slavery and forced labour were identified last year, compared with 6,986 in 2018, according to the Home Office data. Pictured: An example of the squalid conditions lived in by victims of a modern slavery gang in the Midlands

The figures have been rising each year and are now the highest in a decade, after 546 were recorded in 2009. Pictured: An example of the squalid conditions lived in by victims of a modern slavery gang in the Midlands

Britain's largest ever UK modern slavery ring Mariusz Rykaczewski Mariusz Rykaczewski was among 400 people held captive by the UK's largest modern slavery gang. In the West Midlands the gang forced them to work for a pittance while their masters earned 2m. The ring lured and trafficked vulnerable victims from Poland to the UK with the promise of good money, but instead housed them in squalor. Victims were paid just 50p for a day's labour and in one case a worker was given coffee and chicken as payment. Victims, aged 17 to over 60, were housed across nine different houses in West Bromwich, Walsall, Sandwell and Smethwick, crammed up to four to a room. A three-year police probe uncovered a criminal gang led by the Brzezinski family  which preyed on the homeless, ex-prisoners and alcoholics. Five members of the gang, including Marek Brzezinski, 50, and Julianna Chodakowicz, 24, were jailed for a total of 35 years. Five gang members were caged in February. Julianna Chodakowicz, 24, Marek Brzezinski, 50, Marek Chowaniec, 30, Justyna Parczewska, 48, and Natalia Zmuda, 29, were jailed for a total of 35 years - a record for a human trafficking case. A further three - Ignacy Brzezinski, 53, Wojciech Nowakowski, 42, and Jan Sadowski, 28 - were later jailed for 11 years, six and a half years and three years respectively. Advertisement

The data published on Thursday looked at the number of potential victims of modern slavery who were identified and referred for support under the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).

The 'upward trend in referrals' is thought to be 'partly as a result of increased awareness of modern slavery and the NRM process', the Home Office report said.

The majority (6,564) claimed they were exploited in the UK only, and a quarter (2,762) said it had been only overseas.

A third were women or girls (3,391), who were most commonly referred for sexual exploitation.

Some 43 per cent of referrals (4,550) were for children - where criminal exploitation was the most common form, driven by a rise in the identification of so-called county lines drugs gangs.

According to the figures, 27 per cent of people referred were UK nationals (2,836) with Albanians (1,705) and Vietnamese (887) being the second and third most common nationalities.

To access support and have recognition of their circumstances in the UK, victims of slavery and human trafficking have to be assessed under the NRM.

This determines whether, on the balance of probabilities, they have 'reasonable grounds' for statutory access to medical, psychological and legal support - meaning they are considered potential victims.

They are then assessed again and, if considered to be a confirmed victim, given a 'positive conclusive grounds' decision.

The majority of referrals in 2019 (8,429) are still awaiting a final decision on their status, according to the report.

Campaigners have previously raised concerns about the number of suspected victims held in detention centres while their case is assessed and the length of time it can take.

The number of slavery crimes reported to police in England and Wales shot up by almost 50 per cent to 5,059 offences in the year to March 2019, last year's annual report on modern slavery in the UK found.
China has no intention to compare with other countries on COVID-19 aid

Global Times

Source:Global Times Published: 2020/4/1 18:08:40

China has been offering assistance to other countries while combating COVID-19 at home, and China has no intention to compare with other countries in doing this, China's Foreign Ministry said following US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's claim that the US' contribution to the World Health Organization (WHO) is 10 times that of China.

As the world's largest economy and the developed country with the strongest comprehensive strength, the US is certainly welcome to offer more assistance to developing countries, and the more the better, Hua Chunying, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, said at Wednesday's media briefing.

This is also the responsibility and obligation of the US as the world's largest developed country, and also a commitment that developed countries should make to developing countries, Hua said.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at a press conference on Tuesday that the US remains by far the largest contributor to the World Health Organization since 1948. "Our contributions exceeded $400 million last year, 10 times that of China."

"Our generosity, our pragmatism aimed at saving American lives now and in the future is also exemplified through our work with multilateral organizations," Pompeo said.

"Pompeo mentioned the US' international aid started in 1948. I was wondering why he counted it from 1948, and I found it very interesting," Hua said.

As the largest developing country, China has been providing assistance to other developing countries without any political conditions under the framework of South-South cooperation.

China has been offering support and assistance to other countries in dire need while combating the COVID-19 at home. This is out of a humanitarian spirit, but also in return for other countries' previous support to China, Hua said.

"We are doing this with our best efforts, and we have no intention to compare with any other country," she said.

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Linkedin Arya Dipa (The Jakarta Post) Bandung  Thu, April 2, 2020 15:56 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f3e0df 1 National COVID-19,coronavirus,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia,outbreak,rapid-testing,West-Java,PCR-test,sukabumi,ridwan-kamil Free

The West Java Health Agency has found 409 new cases of COVID-19 across the province after a week of mass rapid testing. Blood samples from more than 10,000 people have been tested so far.

People who tested positive for the illness will undergo regular polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests to confirm the diagnosis as soon as the test kits are ready.

The PCR tests, which use swab samples, are considered more accurate, although they take some time.

The agency's head, Berli Hamdani, said the kits were being prepared by Padjadjaran University in Bandung, Hasan Sadikin Hospital and the province's Health Research and Development Agency.

Read also: People with COVID-19 symptoms still need to perform full tests: Health Ministry

"The swab test results will be forwarded to the West Java health laboratory for confirmation," Berli explained in a written statement on Wednesday.

He added that authorities were tracing people who had been in contact with the 409 patients.

The majority of the cases were found at a police academy in Sukabumi. National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Argo Yuwono said that 300 of the 1,550 students had tested positive for the disease.

He said the day before that only seven students had tested positive for COVID-19.

West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said he was awaiting the results of follow-up testing before confirming the cases. (vny)
The number of Covid-19 patients in West Bengal jumped from 27 on Tuesday to 37 on Wednesday, with three more people reportedly testing positive for the disease posthumously, the states daily bulletin on coronavirus revealed on Wednesday.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee escalated preparations for a worsening of the situation in the coming days. In addition to the three people who previously died of Covid 19, three more who died on Tuesday night and Monday morning are suspected to have been infected with the coronavirus.

Two male persons both aged 57 years and one male person aged 62 years all having Severe Acute Respiratory illness expired. One of them had chronic renal failure, another had respiratory failure and the third one had hypertension and other co-morbid conditions. They had all reportedly tested positive, which is subject to confirmation, the bulletin issued on Wednesday night said.

In the evening, a worried Banerjee held a meeting with the health task force comprising senior doctors to chalk out elaborate treatment plans. She also wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday, seeking a grant of Rs 25,000 crore, release of dues and relaxation of debt management.

In her letter to the prime minister, Banerjee wrote, I earnestly urge you to sanction a grant of a minimum of Rs 25,000 crore for the state of West Bengal and release the funds still due to us from the Government of India, as per my earlier letter to you. To uphold the spirit of cooperative federalism, we need this minimum help from the central government to cope with the unprecedented impasse at this hour to fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, Banerjee wrote in her letter.

Addressing the media, Banerjee insisted that a complete lockdown had become absolutely necessary to prevent the infection from entering stage 3, which is community transmission of the disease. She expressed dissatisfaction over a section of people who were not abiding by the lockdown and loitering on the streets.

We are still in stage two. The coming two weeks are going to be very very critical and sensitive. We must ensure we do not reach the third phase. Lockdown must be made completely successful. I can see people still roaming around, chatting together. I plead before you like a sister, please do not do this. Youll get enough time in life to play carom, she said.

In a warning to those violating the lockdown, she said, Do not play with fire.
Bengaluru, April 2 : Ram Navami, the birthday of Hindu deity Ram, was celebrated without devotees in hundreds of temples across Karnataka due to the 21-day lockdown enforced to prevent the spread of coronavirus pandemic, an official said on Thursday.

"It's first time ever the devotees were unable to visit Ram temples to celebrate the lord's birthday, as the lockdown is being strictly observed across the southern state," an official of the state muzrai (endowment) department told IANS here.

Priests, however, offered prayers and worshipped the lord's idol amid the chanting of hymns in the temples even in the absence of devotees.

"The temples were advised to keep their gates closed since March 25 when the lockdown was imposed up to April 14. The celebrations, which normally lasts for 10 days, will be muted this year due to the Covid-19 outbreak fallout," said the official.

Though priests and a couple of their assistants were allowed to perform the rituals for invoking the lord in the sanctum sanctorum, they have been advised to maintain physical distancing and keep the temples clean with the help of servants.

"The curfew-like situation has kept hundreds of devotees, including women and children away from our temple. The vicinity, which is usually teemed with people, vehicular traffic and shops open for buying ritual items is deserted," a priest of the Ram temple at Rajajinagar in the city's northwest suburb, told a local news channel.

With police patrolling and barricades to block vehicular movement, the priests also did not make in large quantity a sweet dish offered to the lord as "prasad" for distribution to the devotee.

"It is also the first time that we are not able to offer the lord's 'prasadam' to the devotees as they are unable to visit the temple. We advised them to perform the rituals and offer 'prasad' to the lord at home and part take it," the priest added, The 10-day Ram Navami celebrations, consisting of cultural events, rendering of the epic Ramayana and lyrics (bhajan) in praise of the lord have also been differed and will be held after complete normalcy is restored," the official added.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
4. NASA

For the first time since the final space shuttle mission in 2011, NASA says astronauts will launch into space aboard an American rocket and spacecraft from American soil. The agency is partnering with SpaceX for a manned SpaceX Demo-2 flight test in May from Kennedy Space Center. Of course, this launch date could be postponed depending on the state of the coronavirus crisis. This is a big step for NASA's Commercial Crew Program. By facilitating commercial spaceflights, the agency says it's providing another way for astronauts to get to and from the International Space Station. And it looks like a lot of people are interested in blasting off: More than 12,000 people applied to be part of NASA's next class of astronauts.
Despite being one of the most famous people in America, Tyler Perry is a pretty reserved person who isnt too keen on talking about personal things, like his romances.

Although hes been in a committed relationship with model Gelila Bekele for over a decade, we havent heard him say too much about her. However, Perry recently did an interview where he spoke about their romance. While he didnt say much, he did offer up some information about their life together and his plans for the future.

Tyler Perry at an event in January 2020 | Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

First, who is Gelila Bekele?

Bekele, 33, has had quite the career as a model, having appeared in campaigns for popular brands such as Michael Kors, LOreal, Tory Burch, and Pantene.

Aside from modeling, Bekele is an activist and a documentary filmmaker. Her website shows that she has worked on at least three documentaries, which highlight various aspects of life in her homeland of Ethiopia.

She began dating Perry, 53, in 2009 after meeting him at a Prince concert in 2007, per Heavy. The pair quietly welcomed its first child together, a son named Aman, in 2014. They have never revealed their son to the general public, with Perry explaining that he wants to protect Amans privacy and allow him to have a regular childhood.

I know there are no pictures of him, but thats not something we do, Perry said in a 2016 interview on The Rickey Smiley Morning Show. Were not the kind of parents  my sons not famous. Were trying very hard to keep him protected so that he can know who he is before he gets into the crazy bull crap of this social media world.

Tyler Perrys comments on Gelila Bekele

Perry spoke about his relationship with Bekele in a March 20 appearance on T.I.s ExpediTIously podcast. Asked to share why he hasnt tied the knot and when he would get someone he could share his wealth with, Perry said: I have someone whos wonderful and shes getting her share of all of it.

Perry didnt say much more than that, noting that it is really important for him to keep his personal life private.

Even my son, being in the public  She and I are really good about that, making sure at five years old, hes protected, hes clear about who he is before people start telling him who he is. Im good with that, he continued.

Its unclear whether Perry ever plans on marrying Bekele. But he said in a 2013 appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno that he doesnt know if marriage would suit him, given how busy he is.

Im not so sure, with this kind of work ethic, what kind of husband I will be, Perry said (via The Huffington Post). I dont know about marriage as much as I do know that I would be a great father.

Whatever happens, it appears that these two are totally committed to each other and in it for the long haul, regardless.

Who else has Tyler Perry dated?

Aside from Bekele, Perry hasnt had many known romances. In 2010, he told Oprah Winfrey that he had been in a love a few years ago but he did not name the person he was dating.

I was [in love], a few years ago, with the wrong woman. And it was really bad for me and hurtful, he explained. Maybe Im still dealing with that. Cause I never cried in a relationship before.

Fortunately, he bounced back and found love with Bekele.

Read more: What is Tyler Perrys Net Worth?
WASHINGTON  Two years ago, some of the nations top public health officials gathered in an auditorium at Emory University in Atlanta to commemorate the 1918 influenza pandemic  also known as the Spanish flu  which had killed as many as 40 million people as it swept the globe.

Hosted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the daylong conference on May 7, 2018, was supposed to mine a calamity from the past for lessons on the present and warnings for the future. There were sessions titled Nature Against Man and Innovations for Pandemic Countermeasures. Implicit was the understanding that while the 1918 pandemic was a singular catastrophe, conditions in the 21st century were ideal for another outbreak.

And since there are six billion more people on the planet today than there were in 1918, when the global population was only 1.8 billion, a pathogen that is a less efficient killer than the Spanish flu could nevertheless prove more deadly in absolute terms.

Long before the coronavirus emerged in Wuhan, China, and then soon spread to nearly every country on Earth, the 2018 conference offered proof that epidemiologists at the CDC and other institutions were aware that a new pandemic was poised to strike. They discussed troubling developments. They pointed to obvious gaps in the nations defenses. They braced themselves for what they feared was coming.

Are we ready to respond to a pandemic? asked Dr. Luciana Borio, who was head of the since dissolved global health section of the National Security Council.

Dr. Borio answered her own question: I fear the answer is no. She was discussing the influenza but could have just as easily been referencing the coronavirus, given the similarities between the two infections.

Among the organizers of the conference was Dr. Daniel Jernigan, who heads the CDCs flu division. He later hosted a webinar entitled 100 Years Since 1918: Are We Ready for the Next Pandemic? Viewed today, that presentation comes across as a disturbing preview of what the entire world is facing in 2020, with close to a million people infected with the coronavirus and more than 44,000 dead.

Story continues

Dr. Daniel Jernigan. (Courtesy of the CDC)

Aside from Jernigans chillingly prophetic presentation, there were plenty of warnings during the May 7 symposium that federal and state authorities were not taking pandemic response seriously enough.

Top government officials gave these warnings mere steps from the nations public health headquarters, raising questions about why that warning was not heeded, given how unambiguous it was. Our angst is getting higher and higher, Jernigan said as the conference came to a close, adding that our leadership is getting a lot of concerns. (Neither the CDC nor Jernigan responded to requests for comment.)

Other public health officials at the event worried that even after outbreaks of SARS (2003), the swine flu (2009) and Ebola (2014), a cavalier attitude towards infectious disease pervaded. There often is a feeling on the part of policymakers were talking to in Washington  but also in other states  that something magical will happen when an emergency risk occurs, that well just be able to flip a switch and well be able to respond as best we could, said former CDC associate director John Auerbach, who now heads the Trust for Americas Health, a nonprofit organization focused on medical preparedness.

Auerbach said that based on the organizations latest report, it was clear that we have some vulnerability to a pandemic on the state level. Among the concerns the trust found was that only eight states and the District of Columbia had a paid sick leave law, meaning that millions of Americans were bound to continue working even after having fallen ill.

The continuing lack of a coherent federal paid sick leave policy has been underscored by the coronavirus outbreak.

Patients wait in line for a COVID-19 test at Elmhurst Hospital Center in New York City, March 25, 2020. (John Minchillo/AP)

Auerbach described conversations hed had on Capitol Hill about pandemic preparedness, and the diminishing funds devoted to that end. You know, dont worry about that, lawmakers were apparently telling him. If were not funding that at the federal level, the governors and the local officials will increase the funding and compensate for federal cuts, he was apparently assured.

Except that wasnt true, Auerbach said, pointing to statistics that showed both states and local governments cutting public health funding, potentially leaving the nation without the necessary defenses at any level of government.

Two years later, cities and states are begging Washington for help, and Americans are wondering how a nation fond of touting its health system as one without equal could have found itself so poorly prepared for a deadly plague.

President Trump has called the current coronavirus outbreak an unforeseen enemy that came out of nowhere. He is correct in the narrow sense that SARS-CoV-2, as the pathogen is formally known, is a novel coronavirus, which means that its precise genomic sequence  the blueprint for its proteins that batter the human body  have not been glimpsed before. Existing armor in the form of vaccines could therefore not protect against the assault.

But the coronavirus was hardly unforeseen. In fact, experts like Jernigan have been warning about a new pandemic for years.

Jernigans webinar  which was not delivered during the May 7 seminar, but on an unspecified later date  was co-hosted by Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. She is a member of Trumps coronavirus task force, but her role was minimized after she made dire warnings about the pandemic.

Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

Despite his hesitations about the seriousness of the coronavirus threat, Trump has now largely conformed to Messonniers concerns about the coronavirus, which causes a disease called COVID-19. That disease has killed about 4,000 Americans.

The coronavirus attacks the lungs directly; the flu is an infection of the upper respiratory tract. But while the viruses act differently, they spread from body to body with similar quickness, largely through close contact with sickened individuals, often by sneezing and coughing.

In recent weeks, interest in the 1918 influenza has understandably spiked, with people eager to understand what can be learned from that catastrophic outbreak.

Dr. Jernigan was making those very warnings two years ago, as is apparent from the 34-slide presentation he delivered in 2018 on the 1918 pandemic.

That presentation is readily available online, and has been for the last two years. It is not clear, however, if anyone from the White House has viewed the presentation. If they did, they would glimpse a reality that has become all too familiar to many Americans.

One slide warns that human-adapted viruses that originated in animals can cause efficient and sustained transmission. Though he was speaking specifically of influenza viruses, the same is true of the coronavirus, which was also zoogenic, and is believed to have originated in a wet market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.

Jernigans presentation then includes a discussion of how the 1918 spread, summarizing various well-known aspects of that era that exacerbated the pandemic: World War I, crowded cities and a lack of understanding of how viruses work.

The St. Louis Red Cross Motor Corps during the influenza epidemic of 1918. (Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

The most relevant portions of Jernigans presentation come near the end, in a section presciently titled The Next Pandemic: Are We Ready?

Jernigan came to a conclusion that has become common wisdom in recent weeks: that the nation was primed but not prepared for a pandemic. He describes factors that make a pandemic more likely, including a more crowded, more connected world. Two years later, the ease of commercial aviation would lead the coronavirus to spread from East Asia across the world.

Another concern for Jernigan was that the worlds of humans and animals are increasingly converging, especially as population growth results in deforestation, which makes zoogenic transmission more likely. Chinas animal markets have also come under increased scrutiny, with some wanting them closed.

The presentation warned of potential disruption in supply chains of food, energy and medical supplies, as well as of the health care system itself. Those predictions appear to have been borne out in the United States, with governors pleading for respirators and hospital overcrowding leading to the construction of a coronavirus treatment facility in the middle of Central Park. There have also been runs on supermarkets, though wide-scale food shortages have not been reported.

Even more specific warnings follow, and seem especially haunting given the harrowing images that have emerged from hospitals in New York. Need reusable respiratory protective devices, Jernigan writes, in an apparent reference to the N95 masks that have become a treasured commodity for their role as a prophylactic against airborne viral droplets. Jernigan also recommends better ventilator access, anticipating what would be a major problem for cities like New York and states like Washington.

A body wrapped in plastic is unloaded from a refrigerated truck and handled by medical workers at the Brooklyn Hospital Center in New York City. (John Minchillo/AP)

Healthcare system could get overwhelmed in a severe pandemic, Jernigan writes, once again predicting accurately what has become the grim reality of the coronavirus pandemic.

And while he praises the advent of new vaccine technologies, he notes that it takes too long to have vaccines available for pandemic response. Trump initially promised that both vaccines and therapeutics would be quickly available, while public health officials pointed out that both are many months away.

Moving to a more global view, Jernigan argued that most countries do not have robust pandemic plans and very few exercise response efforts. That became clear when the coronavirus attacked nations like Italy and Iran, where the health systems became overwhelmed and thousands died.

A concluding slide summarized Jernigans main argument: Efforts to improve pandemic readiness and response are underway, however, many gaps remain.

The prevalent finding at the May 7 symposium on the 1918 pandemic was that it would be far more costly to ignore the lessons of that catastrophe than to institute the necessary measures to keep a new outbreak at bay.

We know what to do, said former CDC director Dr. Julie Gerberding. We just have to do it.

This story has augmented reality! Tap the video above to see how it looks and download the Yahoo News app to launch the full experience. Augmented reality is currently available to iPhone users (iPhone 8 and later) with the latest version of iOS.

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Click here for the latest coronavirus news and updates. According to experts, people over 60 and those who are immunocompromised continue to be the most at risk. If you have questions, please reference the CDC and WHOs resource guides.

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[April 02, 2020] KontrolFreek to Donate up to 100 Percent of Sales to COVID-19 Relief Efforts

Performance Gaming GearTM creator, KontrolFreek, is helping combat the COVID-19 outbreak by donating revenue generated on KontrolFreek.com on April 3, 2020 to organizations actively involved in global relief efforts. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005420/en/ Performance Gaming Gear creator, KontrolFreek, is helping combat the COVID-19 outbreak by donating revenue generated on KontrolFreek.com on April 3, 2020 to organizations actively involved in global relief efforts. (Graphic: Business Wire) "We're very proud to be a part of a community that is coming together to help fight this crisis and we encourage everyone, whether they're gamers or not, to join us," said president and CEO of KontrolFreek, Ashish Mistry. "While many of us in our FreekNation community are making individual efforts to reduce the impact of the virus by practicing safe social distancing habits through gaming, we must also rally collectively to support the medical caregivers who are on the front lines of this pandemic." People across the world can participate in this response effort by making a purchase at KontrolFreek.com on April 3, 2020. KontrolFreek will donate up to 100 percent of its sales made that day to support organizations responding to the novel coronavirus pandemic. For example, donations may be used to provide medical care for patients, offer additional protective gear for healthcare providers, or education initiatives to help prevent the further spread of the disease. To make the most immediate impact possible, KontrolFreek will donate the resulting revenue by the end of April 2020. Learn more at kontrolfreek.com/pages/kontrolfreeks-covid-19-giveback.



KontrolFreek combines the latest in ergonomics and advanced materials to create innovative gaming accessories that enhance the overall gaming experience by maximizing comfort and player performance. There's truly something for everyone as KontrolFreek offers a breadth of PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch Performance Gaming Gear, which includes its hallmark line of FPS Freek? Performance ThumbsticksTM, Performance GripsTM, Gaming CablesTM, Gaming LightsTM and more. It has partnered with a collective of industry powerhouses like Activision (News - Alert), 2K, Gearbox Studios and Sony to launch a variety of Call of Duty, Borderlands and PlayStation-licensed gaming gear.

Additionally, KontrolFreek has implemented accommodating shopping options on its website. This includes an extended 90-day return window and flexible payment options through QuadPay, which allows consumers to split their purchase amount into four interest free payments over six weeks. To stay up to date on everything KontrolFreek related, follow the company on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and KontrolFreek.com. About KontrolFreek KontrolFreek is the creator of Performance Gaming Gear and the leader of FreekNation, a global community of more than four million gamers. By combining the latest in ergonomics and advanced materials, the company's lines of Performance Thumbsticks, Performance Grips, Gaming Cables, and other high-quality products enhance the player experience by maximizing comfort and precision. KontrolFreek's products for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC are available in more than 9,000 stores across 40 countries. KontrolFreek is headquartered in Atlanta. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005420/en/

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Kenya will receive $50m (40m) from the World Bank to fund efforts intended to prevent the spread of coronavirus.



Health Minister Mutahi Kagwe has said the amount will be used to procure protective gear for health workers, hand sanitizers as well as increasing bed capacity in hospitals.



Health workers have complained of a lack of adequate protective gear in hospitals, Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper reports.



The health ministry has confirmed that one health worker has tested positive - with local media reporting it had happened after the person came into contact with an infected patient.



Health workers union leaders have said medics need more protective gear and urged the government to supplement local production by waving import duty on materials needed to do so.



Kenyas first coronavirus patient, who has since recovered, lauded health workers who handled her, saying they did well despite the challenges.

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The community is taking this seriously, and so are we.

All individuals experiencing coronavirus symptoms can receive COVID-19 testing at Village Health Partners in Plano at a drive-through testing center beginning March 30.

Village Health Partners was one of the first testing centers in Texas and began public testing for first responders, medical workers and high-risk residents on March 16. As of March 27, they tested more than 400 patients and discovered more than 30 positive tests, a significant percentage of the total cases in Collin County.

Plano is being hit particularly hard right now because of how integrated the community and businesses are throughout North Texas, said Keith Eppich, Village Health Partners vice president and physician. We have a strong relationship with the City of Plano and have provided testing to their first responders through a concierge level of care, including prioritization of appointments. We see them virtually to triage their symptoms, evaluate them, and test them the same day, making the process seamless. Healthcare workers and first responders dont have the luxury of staying at home. We have to have these individuals to run the city and to assist us all during this pandemic.

Village Health Partners is also supporting the city of Plano on its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, by advising on the city of Planos response to employees that test positive for COVID-19. Together, Village Health Partners and the city developed protocols and thresholds for testing and devised a return-to-work strategy.

The city of Planos response to this has been extraordinary in not only helping to flatten the curve, but also in helping keep our community safe, Chief Administrative Officer Patrick Figures said. We are honored to serve our local municipality, their front-line team and Planos residents through our partnership.

Village Health Partners also extended an offer for pandemic management advising to other nearby cities. In early April, Village Health Partners will expand the number of testing locations to further support the demand of testing in North Texas.

Village Health Partners is proud to serve our community by providing testing to those who really need it, Figures said. We are fortunate to be able to provide peace of mind to people who are especially impacted.

To qualify for a test, individuals must be screened through a telehealth visit and receive orders from a physician. Tests are currently conducted at a drive-through clinic on site at the Independence Medical Village location, located at 8080 Independence Parkway in Plano. All testing is completed outdoors to minimize exposure and to limit the spread of COIVD-19.

The community is taking this seriously, and so are we, Eppich said. We want to ensure that everyone is safe  from the patients in their cars to our team members and other patients. As always, health and safety are our top priorities.
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Aurobindo Pharma on Thursday said the USD 900 million deal to acquire Sandoz Inc's US-based generic oral solids and dermatology businesses has been mutually called off.

Holzkirchen-based Sandoz is a leading player in generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars and a division of Swiss drug major Novartis.

"This decision was taken as approval from the US Federal Trade Commission for the transaction was not obtained within anticipated timelines," Aurobindo Pharma said in a regulatory filing.

In September 2018, Aurobindo Pharma had said that its US subsidiary has entered into an agreement to acquire commercial operations and three manufacturing facilities in America from Sandoz Inc, USA, a Novartis Division, for USD 900 million.

The acquisition was to be made through its wholly-owned subsidiary Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc.

The deal was expected to close in 2019 following the completion of customary closing conditions, including US Federal Trade Commission clearances. Repeated delays, however, led to it being mutually terminated.

The transaction if completed would have positioned the Hyderabad- based firm as the second largest dermatology player and the second-largest generics company in the US by prescriptions.

The acquisition would have added around 300 products, including projects in development as well as commercial and manufacturing capabilities in the US, complementing and expanding Aurobindo's portfolio and pipeline.

The termination leaves hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug that Novartis believes as a potential coronavirus treatment, in Sandoz's generic drug portfolio.

The drugmaker's portfolio comprises around 1,000 molecules, covering all major therapeutic areas.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

Czech Republic does not recognize so-called elections in Nagorno-Karabakh, Trend reports citing the statement issued by the Czech Foreign Ministry.

On March 31, 2020, the so called presidential and parliamentary elections took place in Nagorno-Karabakh, reads the statement.

In this context, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic underlines that the Czech Republic does not recognize the constitutional and legal framework within which these so-called elections were being held.

The Czech Republic fully supports the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group and its co-chairs and calls on parties involved in the conflict for further peace processes, and supports the statement of UN Secretary-General of March 23, 2020, calling for an immediate global ceasefire in all corners of the world, reads the document.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
While many people already started working from home a few weeks ago, the current lockdown in Accra and Kumasi is now challenging all professionals living in these areas. They need to set up a good ICT workplace at home for themselves as well as their family members.

Set up a proper work place

Normally, you may work a bit on your laptop in the evening, sitting on your sofa, but this is a new situation. To be productive during the whole day, it is recommended to make arrangements for a separate room, or to dedicate a corner in the house where a good table and office chair can be set up, preferably on a height that allows for an ergonomically healthy posture while typing on a keyboard. The chair should equally be comfortable to support your back for long hours. You need at least one electrical outlet and good Wi-Fi or internet connection. Get yourself an additional keyboard and mouse and eventually a large monitor to avoid headaches or neck pains after a long day.

Stay concentrated to get things done

When your working routine is to leave home in the morning, spend time in traffic and go to the office, it may be difficult to keep disciplined at home and actually sit and get things done. It is therefore good to develop a new daily routine where you create time slots for yourself to concentrate on your work. When you spend too many hours behind a computer screen, your concentration and production inevitably will go down. So set a timer and take a break at regular intervals where you do some physical exercise, a domestic job, or go for a drink to stay hydrated. Having good daylight at your desk boosts productivity, and when the room is quiet, it will help you to concentrate even more.

Family life

Professionals who are blessed with a working spouse and children at the schooling age will need to adapt considerably more. For them in particular, it is important to organize fixed working lhours and home schooling. A long dining table is ideal to install the whole family for joint work and schooling sessions. Both parents may take shifts spending time with the children while having specific hours in the day where they can work in a concentrated manner on their own job. Arranging rosters for this, including regular breaks, fun and exercise for the whole family, will avoid a lot of stress and frustration.

A safe Wi-Fi network and passwords for your mobile devices

While many people work from home, cyber criminals are driving around to look for vulnerable Wi-Fi networks to hack. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is recommended to provide your home with online protection by means of encryption. If VPN is not feasible for you right now, at least protect your mobile devices against unwanted access with strong passwords. Here are some good practices:

Set complex and lengthy passwords, which contain upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters. Avoid common phrases, famous quotations, and song lyrics. Avoid passwords reuse. After setting up a strong, memorable password, reusing it endangers ones accounts. So change them frequently. Set different passwords on different systems and accounts. Avoid the use of passwords that are based on personal information that can be easily guessed or words that can be found in any dictionary of any language. Choose a password that is easy to remember but difficult for others to guess. Avoid writing your password but rather develop mnemonics to remember them.

Cyber criminals are extra active now

Unfortunately, Cyber criminals have been reported to abuse the current situation for fraud. Fake emails, text and WhatsApp messages as well as fraudulent websites are being used to trick people.

Expect to receive emails from fake government agencies, businesses or employers. This is a typical form of phishing linked to the pandemic. Receivers of these messages think it makes sense that a message is being sent by either their bank, or their own ICT department, with specific information about the lock down, or extraordinary measures from the government as announced on television. You need to be extra vigilant these days!

Of course, it is key to never open these messages or click on any hyperlink, but remove them immediately. In case of any doubt, call your employer, the ICT department, your bank or anyone who would normally be expected to send you a mail to check or verify if it is from them .

Fake web shops

While we are all at home and urged not to go out to shop unnecessarily, e-commerce is an excellent alternative. Reliable web shops will deliver the goods at your home and you will not have to go outside. At the same time, a completely new category of fake web shops are popping up where people try to sell all kinds of Corona related items such as facemasks. Of course, you will have to pay for these items but they will never be delivered!

Tricks to get your information

Never reply to anyone who is asking  either via an electronic device or in person  for your confidential information like your pin code or credit card credentials. In particular, elderly people should be warned. People may contact them to offer shopping services during lockdown, offer medical test kits for Corona virus and so on.

Author: Diana van der Stelt, Sales Director at Trinity Software Center, Kumasi and director at Maxim Nyansa IT Solutions Foundation in Tantra Hills, Accra, a training center for ICT professionals. Member, Institute of ICT Professionals, Ghana.
'Be realistic. This too shall pass.'

'Continue working from home.'

'If you adapt quickly, you may be able to work from home even after the disease has gone.'

Under normal circumstances, a sniffle would not bother someone in India.

Nor would someone coughing or sneezing.

In fact, we are so inured to spitting that paan stains and phlegm are part of our public property decor.

But these are unusual times. And any of these actions make people extremely anxious, even angry.

COVID-19, a rapidly spreading disease, without any cure or vaccination yet, has resulted in 21-day countrywide lockdown, a circumstance that even Indians in their eighties can't recall ever happening.

The enforced isolation, fear about whether essential products will be available, of being forced to stay within the four walls of the house, has led to a huge increase in anxiety levels.

In an e-mail interview, Savera R Someshwar/Rediff.com posed questions about some of these fears to Dr Rajesh Parikh, one of India's foremost psychiatrists and co-author of The Coronavirus: What You Need To Know About The Global Pandemic.

Dr Parikh is the director of medical research and honorary neuropsychiatrist at Mumbai's Jaslok Hospital and Research Centre. He has extensive research experience and is a distinguished contributor to over 150 medical publications across the world.

And he has some very sensible, practical advice to offer.

IMAGE: A police officer, wearing a helmet depicting coronavirus, requests a commuter to stay at home. Photograph: PTI Photo

A fast spreading deadly virus and an unexpected, enforced lockdown... These are unprecedented situations. What are the mental problems that you expect people will face?

Loneliness. which is not a disease. but is a precursor to diseases like anxiety, depression, heart disease and autoimmune diseases.

Yes, loneliness kills.

Do people underestimate the impact of loneliness? Could you explain how it affects mental heath and what one can do to protect oneself?

Yes. Those who do not experience it underestimate it until they do so themselves.

Several studies have demonstrated the impact of loneliness on depression, medical disorders and even on reduction of life expectancy.

If you are feeling especially anxious, angry, frustrated, scared or confused given the current situation, how can you handle it?

Accept that it is to be expected.

Follow reliable sources for information.

Call up your family and friends.

Rekindle your hobbies and interests.

Meditate.

If necessary, take the help of online counsellors and help lines.

What advice would you have for people who are in quarantine or have just been released from quarantine?

In Quarantine: Understand the importance and your contribution to halting the spread of the disease.

Value the time that you get to yourself which is almost impossible in today's world.

Reflect, introspect, read, listen to music, connect with old friends, enjoy your hobbles.

Meditate.

Out of quarantine: Enjoy the freedom without going overboard.

Maintain social isolation and hand washing.

Be of support to others in quarantine.

Continue with the activities that you enjoyed in quarantine.

IMAGE: Fire fighters spray disinfectant to sanitise the road in Bengaluru. Photograph: Shailendra Bhojak/PTI Photo

If someone has heard that the building down the road has a positive coronavirus case and is petrified, how do they handle this fear?

Seek reliable information.

Unless you are less than six feet away from an infected person or touch your face after touching something that person touched, you have nothing to be worried about.

There are many who feel panicky at the thought that they might run out of supplies and die of hunger, especially when they see images of people crowding to buy essentials. Should they stop watching the news? What do they do?

Again, seek reliable information.

Talk to someone in a support group.

Stock up enough groceries for three weeks.

The lack of clarity in terms of the availability of essentials, the unavailability of sanitisers, the unavailability of tests, the lack of a vaccine to what extent can the anxiety surrounding all this impact mental health?

It can only aggravate pre-existing anxiety which needs to be treated in its own right.

IMAGE: A worker sprays disinfectant on ATM machines in Chennai. Photograph: PTI Photo

Even looking out of the window to see an empty street, or maybe even seeing too many people around, can cause anxiety in these times. How does one cope?

Such a person has an underlying disorder which needs to be addressed regardless of the lockdown.

To what extent will the lockdown affect pre-existing mental conditions?

It depends on the condition.

Many will remain unaffected. Those with anxiety, panic, phobias and depression will need more attention.

The lockdown is impacting the economy and many people worry if they will have a job when things go back to normal, especially when they are not skilled to do anything else. How do they calm themselves?

Be realistic. This too shall pass.

Your job is not running away.

Continue working from home.

If you adapt quickly, you may be able to work from home even after the disease has gone.

How does one retain perspective during these trying times?

By seeing the larger picture.

Worse disasters -- both natural and man-made -- have come and gone in our country. We are here because our ancestors and we survived.

Would you recommend cutting back on the news and on social media?

Not unless you are addicted to them to the exclusion of all else.

WhatsApp forwards add to people's anxiety. What recommendations would you have for people who tend to believe and forward whatever they receive on WhatsApp?

Just stop doing it.

To what extent does having a regular routine help?

It depends on people. Some do great with a routine, others without it.

What problems might people working from home face and how can they cope with it?

Learn a new skillset.

Having no one to chat with or talk to in case of difficulty (can be a problem). The solution is to work in online groups and seek online support.

Also, one can take online courses, including courses about how to take online courses!

IMAGE: Dr Rajesh Parikh, left, with Maherra Desai, centre, and Dr Swapneil Parikh, authors of The Coronavirus: What You Need To Know About The Global Pandemic. Photograph: Kind courtesy The Coronavirus: What You Need To Know About The Global Pandemic

In addition to their regular duties, housewives are facing the problem of increased workload, irritable family members and energetic housebound children. What tips would you suggest for them?

Request everybody's help in distributing the workload.

Play family games together. Recollect the best family memories. Laugh together.

How does one ensure that this enforced isolation does not harm family and marital relationships?

Please do what I suggested above.

Taking care of aged and unwell senior members of the family, especially if they already have mental health issues, can be an added strain on those family members who take care of them. What would you suggest in such a situation for the latter?

Seek help from mental health professionals who are already treating them.

Alternatively, locate good counsellors and/or psychiatrists.

People who have to go for regular treatments like dialysis, transfusions, chemotherapy or radiation for example, and well as family members who have to arrange for the appointments and transportation are facing high levels of anxiety. What advice would you have in such a situation?

Focus on the treatment.

There is a lot we know and a lot we dont. It is important to deal with the 'here and now'.

Many people live alone; this will be a difficult time for them.

Not necessarily; at least they are used to living alone.

They should talk to family and friends.

They should not hesitate to ask for help.

In a country where mental heath is not high on the agenda, do you think the government has adequately considered the mental health aspect of the lockdown and is adequately prepared for it?

I am not privy to what the government has considered or not. They do have a major crisis on hand.

What advice do you have for the government?

Nothing other than learning from the experience of other counties and listening to experts, especially if their views are not aligned with those of the officials.
What do you see in the picture above (Figure 1)? Merely a precisely-drawn three-dimensional picture of nanoparticles? Far more than that, nanotechnologists will say, due to a new study published in the journal Science. Whether a material catalyzes chemical reactions or impedes any molecular response is all about how its atoms are arranged. The ultimate goal of nanotechnology is centered around the ability to design and build materials atom by atom, thus allowing scientists to control their properties in any given scenario. However, atomic imaging techniques have not been sufficient to determine the precise three-dimensional atomic arrangements of materials in liquid solution, which would tell scientists how materials behave in everyday life, such as in water or blood plasma.

Researchers at the Center for Nanoparticle Research within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS, South Korea), in collaboration with Dr. Hans Elmlund at Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute in Australia and Dr. Peter Ercius at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's Molecular Foundry in the USA, have reported a new analytic methodology that can resolve the 3D structure of individual nanoparticles with atomic-level resolution. The 3D atomic positions of individual nanoparticles can be extracted with a precision of 0.02 nm--six times smaller than the smallest atom: hydrogen. In other words, this high-resolution method detects individual atoms and how they are arranged within a nanoparticle.

The researchers call their development 3D SINGLE (Structure Identification of Nanoparticles by Graphene Liquid cell Electron microscopy) and utilize mathematical algorithms to derive 3D structures from a set of 2D imaging data acquired by one of the most powerful microscopes on Earth. First, a nanocrystal solution is sandwiched in-between two graphene sheets which are each just a single atom thick (Figure 2.1). "If a fish bowl were made of a thick material, it would be hard to see through it. Since graphene is the thinnest and strongest material in the world, we created graphene pockets that allow the electron beam of the microscope to shine through the material while simultaneously sealing the liquid sample," explains PARK Jungwon, one of the corresponding authors of the study (assistant professor at the School of Chemical and Biological Engineering in Seoul National University).

The researchers obtain movies at 400 images per second of each nanoparticle freely rotating in liquid using a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (TEM). The team then applies their reconstruction methodology to combine the 2D images into a 3D map showing the atomic arrangement. Locating the precise position of each atom tells researchers how the nanoparticle was created and how it will interact in chemical reactions.

The study defined the atomic structures of eight platinum nanoparticles - platinum is the most valuable of the precious metals, used in a number of applications such as catalytic materials for energy storage in fuel cells and petroleum refinement. Even though all of the particles were synthesized in the same batch, they displayed important differences in their atomic structures which affect their performance.

"Now it is possible to experimentally determine the precise 3D structures of nanomaterials that had only been theoretically speculated. The methodology we developed will contribute to fields where nanomaterials are used, such as fuel cells, hydrogen vehicles, and petrochemical synthesis," says Dr. KIM Byung Hyo, the first author of the study. Notably, this methodology can measure the atomic displacement and strain on the surface atoms of individual nanoparticles. The strain analysis from the 3D reconstruction facilitates characterization of the active sites of nanocatalysts at the atomic scale, which will enable structure-based design to improve the catalytic activities. The methodology can also contribute more generally to the enhancement of nanomaterials' performance.

"We have developed a groundbreaking methodology for determining the structures that govern the physical and chemical properties of nanoparticles at the atomic level in their native environment. The methodology will provide important clues in the synthesis of nanomaterials. The algorithm we introduced is related to new drug development through structure analysis of proteins and big data analysis, so we are expecting further application to new convergence research," notes Director HYEON Taeghwan of the IBS Center for Nanoparticle Research.

###

This study is jointly supported by the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), Samsung Science and Technology Foundation (SSTF), and the Molecular Foundry (U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science User Facility).
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China appropriated 24.5 billion yuan (around 3.45 billion U.S. dollars) in medical assistance subsidies in 2019, including 4 billion yuan allocated for beefing up medical security in areas of deep poverty, the National Healthcare Security Administration said.

In 2019, more than 77 million people funded by the subsidies signed up for basic medical insurance, according to a statistics report released by the administration.

China has built a system of basic medical insurance, major disease insurance and medical assistance to alleviate poverty through healthcare.

By the end of 2019, 200 million impoverished people had benefited from such programs, and 4.18 million people who fell into poverty due to illness have been lifted out.

Basic medical insurance had covered more than 99.9 percent of the poverty-stricken population in rural areas by the end of 2019, the report said.
How do communities who feel targeted by state security believe that soldiers are now coming out to protect them?

There is a sketch doing the rounds on Twitter: Two people standing in the centre of a hallway, back towards one another, each struggling to push a different door closed. On the right, a health worker in a hazmat suit closes the door on the coronavirus, while on the left a police officer in a medical mask pushes back a horde of people.

The romanticised implication is that in the space between COVID-19 and its potential victims, it is medics and security services who push back together to save lives.

A similar theory is at the root of the growing trend where the military and police enforce government lockdowns to contain the spread of coronavirus. But the reality in many countries  especially where security forces traditionally have a less than friendly reputation  is not as picture-perfect.

As the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to shift fast, and continues to overwhelm health systems in the global north, it is clear for many countries in the global south that their best bet to limit the impact is prevention. It is no surprise that they try to be creative and use whatever means available to them to try and control the pandemic.

For most, the solutions have been isolation, quarantine and lockdown. And everywhere from India to South Africa to the Philippines, states have deployed police forces and even the army to enforce them.

Military enforced lockdowns

Last week, South Africa began a 21-day lockdown with the army out in the streets to enforce it. For many communities, especially in townships and high-density suburbs, the deployment of security forces means trouble. Memories of the military-enforced State of Emergency during apartheid are still fresh for many people. More recently, memories of 2012s Marikana massacre bring up more anxiety when officers with guns appear in an already heightened atmosphere.

So far, hundreds have been arrested by police for flouting isolation regulations; many more, including the homeless, have been assaulted and harassed by security forces for failure to observe the order. Police went as far as firing rubber bullets at people who were going to the supermarkets  something deemed permissible as per the governments regulations. Although, to its credit, the government is also communicating with citizens regularly, the use of force has not helped build trust. It has reportedly turned deadly in at least three cases.

Similar stories have been reported across the continent. In Kenya, a 13-year-old boy was shot and killed by police while standing on his balcony in Nairobi during curfew. Riot police previously fired tear gas at civilians heading for a ferry in Mombasa as they attempted to enforce a curfew.

In Uganda, motorbike drivers were hospitalised after being shot by police for violating movement restrictions.

In Zimbabwe, a 21-day army-enforced lockdown began this week. Last January, when the government raised the price of fuel by 150 percent, protests quickly turned violent as civilians and security forces clashed. Today, the same military is expected to come in defence of the population against the pandemic. The fact that the government-created COVID-19 Taskforce is led by the retired general responsible for the military coup in 2017 is enough to send chills up the spines of many.

Historic trust deficit

As with institutions, the security forces are not a problem per se. They have done phenomenal work in many parts of the world as peacekeepers in protection of civilian sites and in response to natural disasters.

We cannot, however, pretend that the military  not only in the countries mentioned above  has a good reputation if they have clamped down on communities numerous times in the past.

In India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a lockdown of the whole country, an estimated 1.3 billion people, and authorities have said civilians risk being shot at if they do not comply with the lockdown order.

For Indian-administered Kashmir, which has been under lockdown for political reasons since August 2019, what does this mean? Is it possible to explain to people, and to expect them to understand, that suddenly the lockdown is meant to protect them and the rest of the country from a pandemic?

In many countries, there is an historic trust deficit between the military and communities.

In Nigeria in 2017 for instance, a reported vaccination drive that was to be conducted by the army led to pandemonium as students fled and boycotted classes, fearing the military was using the campaign as a ploy to infect schoolchildren with monkeypox. Attempts by the army to dispel the rumours fell on deaf ears.

The situation could be even worse if todays coronavirus lockdowns are enforced in countries experiencing active or protracted conflicts, like the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Central African Republic and South Sudan  where security forces have often been accused of committing atrocities.

What have we learned from previous epidemics?

While it is true that we are dealing with an unprecedented pandemic in COVID-19, this is also not the first time the world has had to deal with a disease outbreak. And we must not forget the lessons from past pandemics.

In the DRC, an Ebola outbreak has been going on for almost 20 months, and what has been particularly notable is how militarised the response was.

On multiple occasions, medical staff had to be evacuated as their colleagues were killed in mob or civilian attacks against Ebola responders. As an observer noted, the deployment of security forces has an adverse effect by raising the levels of mistrust between the responders and the community. As the levels of mistrust increase, the need to deploy more forces increases.

In both the West Africa and the DRC Ebola outbreaks, we learned that gaining public trust and acceptance of measures is key to controlling the spread of diseases. When we put communities at the centre of the response, the need to enforce the lockdowns through military means also decreases.

At times like these  with speed of the essence  deployment of troops, where done, should be bolstered by, and probably play second fiddle to community engagement and health promotion aimed at turning communities into allies.

Only when communities understand what is at stake and what they need to do to protect themselves will they cooperate with responders. It is true that this approach takes time  but if this is not done, we risk getting rejected by communities and losing even more time in the end. The length of time it took to control the two latest Ebola outbreaks is telling in this regard.

Communities are not enemies

Building the confidence and trust of those affected and those at risk is inextricably intertwined with a public health approach. If we expect people to voluntarily come out when they have symptoms of COVID-19, and to expose their travel history for contact tracing  this can only work where the community is an ally in the control of the pandemic, and not a source of a problem whose solution is a lockdown.

As the WHO chief, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, explained, lockdowns and movement restrictions only buy us time by slowing the pandemic, but they are only useful if accompanied by rigorous testing, contact tracing and isolation of those infected.

At this stage, the security forces can be repurposed as a useful asset for many states who find themselves having to throw the kitchen sink at the pandemic. But this repurposing cannot be separated from a public health approach that puts communities at the centre of the response.

We must act fast. Or the window of opportunity may soon evade us.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
The death toll from the ongoing Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria has risen to 185, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said on Thursday.

Amidst the global coronavirus outbreak, Nigeria has also been battling a Lassa fever outbreak since the beginning of the year with 951 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection.

As of last week, the number of deaths from the fever was 176, meaning nine people died from it within the week.

NCDC said there was a decline in the number of cases reported for the reporting week 13 as to the four consecutive weeks.

The public health agency said 19 cases were reported for week 13, compared to 28 reported last week. These cases were reported from eight states  Edo, Ondo, Ebonyi, Bauchi, Taraba, Plateau, Kogi, and Delta.

The decline in new cases might be explained by the beginning of rainfall in some parts of the country.

Lassa Fever has become an endemic disease in Nigeria and is now being diagnosed all year round. The outbreak peaks in the dry season from November to May.

Details

According to the NCDC weekly report, three states, Edo, Ondo and Ebonyi, still have the highest number of cases from the outbreak.

Of the confirmed cases, 72 per cent are from the three states: Edo, 32 per cent; Ondo 32, per cent, and Ebonyi eight per cent.

The five states with the highest number of confirmed cases are Edo with 309 confirmed cases and 39 deaths; Ondo, 305 confirmed cases and 43 deaths; Ebonyi with 72 cases and 15 deaths; Taraba with 55 cases and 21 deaths and Bauchi with 42 cases and 18 deaths.

For the reporting week, there was a decline in the number of new confirmed cases as it decreased from 28 cases in week 12 to 19 cases.

In total for 2020, 27 states have recorded at least one confirmed case across 126 local government areas

Cumulatively, from week 1 to week 13, 185 deaths have been reported with a case fatality rate (CFR) of 19.5 per cent.

Also, there has been a significant increase in the figures when compared to the same period in 2019.

According to the statistics, cumulatively between weeks one and 13 in 2020, there were 4194 suspected cases, 951 confirmed, 14 probable and 185 deaths. In the same period in 2019, there were 2034 suspected cases, 526 confirmed, 15 probable and 121 deaths.

The number of suspected cases has significantly increased compared to that reported for the same period in 2019.

Also, the predominant age-group affected is 21-30 years and the male to female ratio for confirmed cases is 1:1.2.

However, the was good news for health professionals as no healthcare worker was affected this week.

Every year, health workers are also affected by the disease, sometimes leading to fatalities. So far, a total of 34 health workers have been infected with the virus.

Health workers are often in the first line of call in the treatment of Lassa fever patients, which makes them susceptible to contracting the disease.

Response

In response to the outbreak, NCDC has been coordinating a National Emergency Operations Centre (EOC).

The agency said it has been working to support every state in Nigeria to identify one treatment centre while supporting existing ones with care, treatment and IPC commodities

Lassa Fever

Lassa Fever is a hemorrhagic disease transmitted by a vector called the multimammate rat. The virus is transmitted from the excreta or urine of the vector to humans, and from humans to humans.

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Anyone suspected of being in contact with a Lassa patient needs to be presented to the health facilities within 21 days.

Symptoms of the disease at early stages are similar to febrile illness such as malaria.

General symptoms include fever, headache, sore throat, general body weakness, cough, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle pains, chest pain, and in severe cases, unexplainable bleeding from ears, eyes, nose, mouth, vagina, anus and other body orifices. It could also present persistent bleeding from sites of intravenous cannulation.

Early diagnosis and treatment increase a patients chances of survival.
CNN host Chris Cuomo revealed the terrifying symptoms he is suffering through as he battles coronavirus, saying he feels like he is being beaten like a pinata, is shivering so badly that he has chipped a tooth and at times is so ill that he feels like he wont make it through.

Cuomo announced Tuesday that he had tested positive for coronavirus but is continuing to host his nightly show from his basement as he recovers.

On Wednesday evening, he spoke at length about the intensity of his illness saying that his fever has reached such heights that he is hallucinating about speaking to his dead father, Mario Cuomo, the former New York governor.

During his show, Cuomo also spoke to the husband of a New Jersey doctor who died of coronavirus Tuesday in a heartbreaking interview about how the two-time cancer survivor lost his life after putting himself on the front line despite knowing that he was in an at-risk group.

Scroll down for video

Chris Cuomo is suffering from a fever so severe that he has hallucinated a conversation with his death father, former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, as a result of coronavirus

During Wednesday's show, Cuomo also spoke with the husband of doctor Frank Garbin, a two-time cancer survivor who died of coronavirus Tuesday after putting himself at risk to help

Heartbroken widower Arnold Vargas was unable to hold back tears as he spoke about Garbin

Andrew Cuomo, current governor of New York, and his father Mario Coumo, former governor of New York. Andrew has revealed his worries for his brother Chris, who has spoken about hallucinating conversations with their dead father because of his intense coronavirus fever

Chris Cuomo first announced on Tuesday that he tested positive for COVID-19 and suffered symptoms of a fever, shortness of breath and chills.

'Sooooo in these difficult times that seem to get more difficult and complicated by the day, I just found out that I am positive for coronavirus. I have been exposed to people in recent days who have subsequently tested positive and I had fever, chills and shortness of breath,' he said.

'I just hope I didnt give it to the kids and Cristina. That would make me feel worse than this illness!

But Cuomo assured his followers, 'we will all beat this by being smart and tough and united!'

The chilling extent of the effect of the virus on his body was only heard on Wednesday when he spoke about the sleepless night he suffered as symptoms ravaged his body.

I want you to be thinking about everybody who is not as lucky as I am who are dealing with the same that I am and 10 times worse, especially after what I learned last night, he said of his illness.

This virus came at me -- I've never seen anything like it, okay? So I've had a fever. You've had a fever, 102, 103-plus that wouldn't quit. It was like somebody was beating me like a pinata. I was shivering so much  I chipped my tooth.

Chris Cuomo revealed the shocking details of his coronavirus symptoms which have left him feeling like he was being hit by a pinata and has him shivering so severely he chipped a tooth

.@ChrisCuomo: "Care enough to not just to stay home but to stay on our leaders to make sure that they are doing everything they can to limit this."



"How do you want to be remembered during this time?" pic.twitter.com/zKnIndUGwn  Cuomo Prime Time (@CuomoPrimeTime) April 2, 2020

'So the sun comes up. I was up all night. I was hallucinating,' he added.

'My dad was talking to me.

'I was seeing people from college, people I havent seen in forever. It was freaky what I lived through last night.'

Cuomo added that while his fever was intense, he was not yet suffering major problems with his chest or trouble breathing but said he can imagine the worry that is caused by patients who begin to feel this.

I get it now. If you match that with chest constrictions and people who cant breath, he said.

Speaking to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Cuomo added that he would have panicked if at any stage he felt like he couldnt breathe because his fever was already so intense that he thought the shivering was never going to end.

Some people think they have a lower grade flu, some people think they have a sinus infection. I've got this thing that presents like the pain and the tremors, what they call the rigors, those things, he told Murphy.

And I'll tell you, if I couldn't breathe well, last night, I would have definitely freaked out and thought about having to call for help. If I couldn't have breathed through the shivering and that I thought was never going to end and the fever.

I totally get why people are sent into a panic here, because you think you may not make it.

The TV personality has said that he expects to be feeling this ill for another eight to 10 days before he hopes that symptoms will begin to dissipate, speaking of the exhaustion of having a fever so high and the dehydration that comes with it.

'This is going to be hard and I know now, I have to be looking at an eight, 10-day fight,' he revealed.

'I'm ready for it now. It is maddening to have a fever all the time. Right now, I think I was at 101 1/2 or something like that. To have that all day long, I totally get why it is making people dehydrated and making them really very upset. I totally get it.'

During his Wednesday evening show, Cuomo also spoke to the husband of emergency room doctor Frank Gabrin who died of coronavirus Tuesday.

Gabrin, 60, died in his husband's arms at their New York City home, just days after he began developing symptoms related to COVID-19.

His heartbroken widower, Arnold Vargas, said that the couple spent half an hour on hold waiting for an ambulance to arrive while Gabrin struggled to breathe. He died before help arrived.

Dr Frank Gabrin, 60, is pictured in a recent photo with his husband Arnold Vargas

Gabrin worked at two New Jersey hospitals and continued treating patients despite the fact he had survived cancer on two separate occasions, making him high-risk.

In a heartbreaking interview in which Vargas battled through his tears, he spoke about the bravery of his husband in putting himself at risk because he wanted to help others.

'He was a person, he loved to help people, he just wanted to help people,' Vargas said before struggling to continue.

Vargas, left, could only speak for a few seconds about his husband leaving friend Deborah, right, to detail the doctor's dedication to his patients and his coworkers despite the crisis

Dr. Frank Gabrin had been treating coronavirus patients on the front lines. He died in his husbands arms just days after showing symptoms.



His heartbroken husband honors his memory tonight on the show as a hero who loved to help people." pic.twitter.com/SKAHH9txlt  Cuomo Prime Time (@CuomoPrimeTime) April 2, 2020

As Vargas continued to struggle with his heartbreak, Cuomo turned to the doctor's friend Deborah who spoke more about Gabrin's dedication to treat his patients as best he could despite the pandemic.

'Frank put people first, whether it was his coworkers or the patients. He felt that if he became a health care worker, if he were a doctor or a nurse, you did it because you cared and you wanted to make a difference,' she said.

'You were there for a reason. Up had made that decision long before. So, he always worked to make the lives of the people he worked with as good as he could.

'He made sure that they felt good. He taught them how to get satisfaction with compassion. And even as this was coming on, he was finding ways to make it work.

'And he was still, the last post that he had actually made was talking about how important it was for us to have compassion, kindness and care for each other.

'He didn't expect this to happen.'

Cuomo's coronavirus case has hit his coworkers at CNN hard and has prompted words of praise from his brother New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.

CNN anchor Don Lemon broke down in tears on Tuesday night while talking about Cuomo.

The 54-year-old host was interviewing his colleague Bianna Golodryga on CNN Tonight with Don Lemon Tuesday night on how Americans are unable to pay their mortgages due to the pandemic, and his eyes turned red and started to tear.

'Sorry, I said I wasnt going to do this... Hes probably at home laughing at me,' Lemon said before detailing his close friendship with Cuomo.

'Chris and I are really good friends, we live near each other,' he continued.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo provides a coronavirus update during a press conference Wednesday in which he spoke about he fears for his brother Chris who has coronavirus

Gov. Cuomo spoke of his fears for his younger brother during his Wednesday press conference in which he said he felt 'out of control' at not being able to protect him.

'I couldn't protect my own brother. With all he knows and as smart as he is, he couldn't protect himself,' the older Cuomo brother said.

'When he told me he had the coronavirus, it scared me. It frightened me. Why? Because we still don't know. You're talking about my little brother. This is my best friend.

'I'm out of control and there is nobody who can tell me and doctors can't tell me anything, and Tony Fauci can't tell me anything because nobody really knows.'
Inside Hook

As we continue down the calendar in self isolation, you may find a home improvement project here and there. Maybe youre beefing up your home cinema? But there is one area, no matter if youre sitting pretty on some rural acreage or cooped up in an apartment, that has been found wanting: your kitchen.

Youre cooking more, which means youre discovering all the holes in your cookware arsenal. Lucky for the collective sanity of home chefs everywhere, Le Creuset is throwing one of its rare factory-to-table sales where the French brand is up to 50% off.
Exposure of truth about Corona among Tablighi Jamaat has created an atmosphere of terror in whole country. The Union and all State Governments have been trying their best to curb spread of Corona but Tablighi Jamaat has foiled their sincere efforts. Now, the country faces new challenge of protecting people of this country from such big danger. On one hand, when the country is on the threshold of entering third stage of Corona epidemic, it wouldnt be surprising that the anti-people activities of this Jamaat would force India reach that stage. A religious program held at Super Church in France was the cause of Europe and America getting so vastly affected by Corona as people attending that program spread this virus when they reached their respective places. The same thing can now happen in India due to Tablighi. Similar Tablighi program was also held in Pakistan and Malaysia in March which has led to increase in spread of Corona on large scale in those countries. India will therefore, have to be more alert. The participants attending program in Delhi have gone back to their respective 19 States. Ten of them have died due to Corona so far and how many have been affected has not yet been found out. Now, every State is trying to find out these Tablighi participants and quarantine them. While all these things are happening, information on Tablighi Jamaat is coming forth. This organization has been banned in countries like Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan due to its furtive connections with terrorism. It has been earlier accused that the said organization had connections even with Al-Qaeda. It has been found that many jihadi terrorists have been extended assistance by the main office of Jamaats Markaz mosque in Delhi for going to Pakistan. This organization was also named in terrorist attack at Glasgow airport in UK. Kafil Ahmad, of Indian origin, arrested in this context had connections with this organization. This organization was also found to be involved in attack at Bosnia. After terrorist attack in Karachi in the year 2011, Pakistan had imposed ban on this organization. Our National Security Advisor Ajit Doval too had stated earlier that activities of this organization were quite mysterious. Shri. Doval had discussions with the Chief of Markaz mosque in the night of 28th March and asked him to get tested for Corona. Such test was then carried out when such shocking details have come forth. How 2000 people were staying in Markaz mosque when Section 144 was imposed all over the country including Delhi. Why did police take no action despite knowing the facts, are the questions. The Jamaat has also made accusation that the Administration was asked to make arrangement for sending people staying in mosque to their homes but no arrangement was made. If this accusation was true, why did Administration ignore the demand, is a question. An audio of Maulana Mohammad Saad, the Convener of the program has become viral in which he has advised people to come and stay in mosque since there wouldnt be a better thing to happen than dying in mosque. It shows the mentality of Jamaat. Members of Jamaat went all over the country after attending this program and they have been the cause of spreading Corona in their area.

Ban should be imposed on Tablighi Jamaat !

Tablighi Jamaat doesnt have any association with any government, political parties or other organizations. This organization doesnt participate in any public programs but carries on activities on its own; therefore, many people dont have much information on this organization. This organization is of Sunni Sectarians and is accused of being an extremist organization. Islamic State organization is also founded by followers of Sunni Sect; therefore, there is a need to conduct inquiry into this organizations connection with Islamic State. Vasim Rizvi, the President of Shia Muslim Wakf Board of Uttar Pradesh has alleged that the said organization was involved in making human bombs. The main purpose of establishing this organization is to spread Islam. It has so far converted people from other religion, mainly Hindus, and trained them in Islamic religious matters and it is spread in 150 countries. The Union Government should find out what kind of Islamic education it is imparting; besides finding out how many of them have turned to terrorism. Now, when people have started criticizing Jamaat on this issue, few Muslim leaders and maulanas are accusing that Muslims were purposely targeted. In fact, due to lock-down, Hindus temples are closed. Why no explanation is given for people going to mosques and Tablighi Jamaats Markaz mosque in such large number or staying there? When people of Jamaat were being brought out from mosque, why were they spitting on road ? Why their leaders are not answering these questions? Will people be wrong if they say that despite knowing Corona can be spread through spitting, people of Jamaat deliberately did it? It is therefore, felt that considering the history and present activities of Tablighi Jamaat, it would be right to impose ban on this organization, for protection of this country !

Source : Dainik Sanatan Prabhat
The United States is starting to experience the effects of COVID-19 on society. Italy is the country with the highest number of deaths in the world and second-highest number of active coronavirus cases after the U.S.

As an Italian now in America, I worry about my grandparents in Lombardy, the epicenter of the virus outbreak in Italy. I believe it is essential to focus on what we can learn from the current situation in my home country.

It is not just a matter of numbers and statistics, as it is difficult to interpret them, and there are so many different variables. What is crucial for Americans to comprehend from the Italian experience, is the determinant role of awareness and solidarity that can save lives.

As the Italian government failed to recognize in time the threat of this invisible enemy, and to take the proper precautions, the population remained for several days indifferent to how severe the emergency was. The lack of awareness resulted in the number of infected people soaring in just a few days.

This indifference changed when Italian media transmitted reports that showed patients attached to intensive therapy machines, and military trucks carrying away dozens of coffins as the local cemetery had no room available. The previous indifference of Italians turned into high awareness.

Initiatives by institutions, associations, and individuals to support the ill and to express solidarity around the nation are having an immense role in fighting this crisis. The activities of these groups are creating a bridge between the state and citizens. Companies are changing their methods of distributing products and inventing new ways to facilitate the availability of resources. Furthermore, volunteers are working up to 12 hours a day to help doctors, and many parish associations are donating their space to house patients since the availability of hospital rooms is limited.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

To fight the invisible enemy, people are called on to work hard in unity. We should learn from the experience of the Italian people, to spread awareness and solidarity to end the coronavirus pandemic as soon as possible.

Tommaso Vato, a native of Genoa, Italy, is an 11th-grader at Niskayuna High School.
Knowing how the coronavirus lockdown is ravaging our country, if you have a roof over your head and a couple of meals lined up, very few people can currently feel sorry for themselves  except of course for the archetype of the man in the Wife Joke | Nisha Susan writes

Some people can feel self-pity anytime of the day. Many years ago, I came out of a meeting of activists in Bengaluru and three older women lingered outside to share updates about a dying friend in Delhi. Hovering inconspicuously, I learnt that their friend had cancer, and no family. However, another friend had moved across the country and in with her, determined to make her final months easier.

A young male activist was standing beside me as I eavesdropped. He and I were sort of friends at the time friendly but not close. He was rapidly turning into someone who preferred followers to friends, so our friendship wasnt deepening. As we were listening to the bittersweet situation, the man turned to me sharply, hissing angrily: See, this is how you are supposed to take care of your friends. In his state of youth and mostly good health (except for the bumps and bruises of his hard rural life) he had  with the speed of lightning  turned the story about the woman with terminal cancer to one about him being neglected by his friends. I backed away slowly from him and his hallucination.

Even for that former friend of mine, however, this must be a difficult time to feel self-pity. If you have a roof above your head and a couple of meals lined up, very few people can currently feel sorry for themselves, knowing how the coronavirus lockdown is ravaging our country.

No one can feel sorry for themselves except for the archetype of the man in the wife joke.

The man in the Wife Joke is, under pre-corona circumstances, always oppressed but alive only due to his own cheerful nature. His wife may be horrible to him but he always lives to laugh another day. The Wife Joke is understandably flourishing in our current state of social distancing and enforced familial intimacy. So in corona isolation, the jokes inform us, husbands are suffering even more than usual. Suffering but gamely laughing. The nagging has become worse, bro. Without her kaamwali to torture, she is torturing me double, bro. She wants me to teach the kids and wash dishes while she cooks, bro.

While I dont disbelieve the rumours that Indian private companies have piled on the load on their Work From Home employees, I also wonder if some of the rumours have been fuelled by the Work From Home class of men who know that free time might now involve doing some housework and childcare.

The wife joke has superpowers in the self-pity department. And this explains what happened last week in Malaysia in the midst of the most disorienting global crisis of our lifetimes. According to a Reuters report, the Womens Affairs ministry issued advice on how to avoid domestic conflicts during the partial lockdown, which began on 18 March, with a series of online posters with the hashtag translating as #WomenPreventCOVID19. One of the campaign posters depicted a man sitting on a sofa and asked women to refrain from being sarcastic if they needed help with household chores. Avoid nagging your husband, another poster said, but use humour or imitate the infantile voice of Doraemon, a blue robot cat from Japan that is hugely popular across Asia. The ministry also urged women to dress up and wear makeup while working from home. When the world had a fit of rage, the Womens Affairs Ministry (Womens Affairs, bro) apologised. In the same week, Malaysian men had also shot to fame for being utterly befuddled while grocery shopping because the government had declared that only the head of the family can leave the house to shop. These two incidents have obviously, nothing to do with each other.

The coronavirus outbreak has reminded us how little control we have over our lives. But perhaps we can deal with the particular form of misogyny that is the Wife Joke?

If you hate the Wife Jokes that flood your social media, you could do what reasonable people do: leave the WhatsApp groups in a huff and report it with an air of triumph on Facebook and/or Twitter. These are the wins we are willing to take these days.

But for a moment let us be unreasonable. What will end the jokes about the shrewish, nagging wife? Not the lockdown. Not consciousness-raising. Not improved parity in income or assets. In Kerala where the government is being almost comically heroic and admirable during this dehumanising crisis, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had this to say yesterday: Women seem to be doing all the household work during the lockdown. Men should share the work a little. A little.

What can we really do to get away from the Wife Joke? For a moment, let us invoke the spirit of Wendy Cope who wrote 

Two Cures for Love

1. Dont see him. Dont phone or write a letter.

2. The easy way: get to know him better.

In that spirit, I write 

Two Cures for the Wife Joke

1.Widespread, easy access to divorce.

Choose to be unmarried, of course.

With my proposed cure we can look forward to a whole new kind of WhatsApp forward in the years to come. It may not be particularly funny but then, neither is marriage.
Amid a 21-day lockdown imposed in the country to combat the coronavirus pandemic, Air India has got approval from Indian and Chinese authorities for operating cargo flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong to get medical supplies, its Chairman and Managing Director Rajiv Bansal said on Thursday.

"We have applied to the Chinese authorities to commence freighter operations to two destinations -- Shanghai and Hong Kong -- from Delhi. There have been a few regulatory challenges from the Chinese side," said Bansal.

He added that the cargo coming from China would be medical supplies.

"I am happy to announce that an hour back, we got the approval for launching the freighter operations to Shanghai from Delhi for two dates - 4th April and 5th April. We have applied for subsequent dates also for 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th. We hope to get those approvals also within a day," Bansal told a press conference around 4 pm.

He said Air India has also got the approval for carrying cargo flight operations to Hong Kong.

"Approval for Hong Kong came faster. We already have approval in place to launch cargo flight operations between Delhi and Hong Kong," he said.

Bansal said that they have a group of freight forwarders and consignees and they have been informed about the flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong. He added that they have been asked to book their consignment on these flights that the national carrier would be operating.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Cambodia Halts Hydropower Construction on Mekong River Until 2030

By Leonie Kijewski April 01, 2020

Experts in Cambodia have welcomed the government's recent halt on hydropower development on the Mekong River until 2030, but called on the government to focus on renewable energies.

The spokesman for the Ministry of Mines and Energy's General Department, Victor Jona, told VOA on Tuesday that no further hydropower dams were needed on the Mekong River main stream for the next 10 years to meet energy demand.

"From 2020 to 2030, there will not be any developments of hydropower on the main river," he said.

The announcement effectively pauses the development of the two planned dams, Sambor and Stung Treng.

Other tributaries, however, are excluded from this halt. For example, an 80 megawatt plant in Stung Pursat Province was still on the table, Victor Jona said. The government also did not exclude the possibility of further hydropower projects on the river after 2030.

Environmentalists warn that hydropower dams have disastrous consequences for rivers' ecological systems. The Mekong River is one of the biggest rivers in the region and thousands of families depend on it for livelihoods.

The decision to pause the dams' development has given the government time to invest in other energy sources, experts said.

"This announcement is excellent news for people in Cambodia, Vietnam and the wider region," said Maureen Harris, Director of Programs at International Rivers. "The proposed Sambor and Stung Treng dams are predicted to have devastating impacts on Mekong fisheries and floodplains, and would likely deliver a death blow to the Mekong delta, which is already under immense pressure from the combined impacts of climate change and existing dams upstream in China and Laos."

'Risks outweigh benefits'

The electricity generated by existing dams, she added, had raised questions of whether hydropower dams were able to produce the energy they had promised.

Brian Eyler, Southeast Asia program director at the Stimson Center, echoed the assessment.

"The announcement  is a clear signal that mainstream Mekong dams are becoming outdated and under-performing options for power generation," he told VOA via email.

He said this sent a message to Laos and investors in the neighboring state "that Mekong mainstream dams make poor economic, environmental, and political sense."

Most prominently, Laos is expected to begin construction of the Luang Prabang dam later this year. This, observers say, threatens the ecosystem of downstream Mekong.

Eyler said that record low river levels over the last two years had caused electricity blackouts in the country for several months as there was not enough water to turn the turbines.

"Clearly the risks to mainstream Mekong dams outweigh the benefits in the eyes of Cambodia's leaders," he said.

One of those risks, he said, was the threat it posed to the fish stock. "The two mainstream dams at Stung Treng and Sambor would have  effectively killed the Mekong's fish population," he said.

Energy needs

But Victor Jona said the government had re-evaluated their energy master plan based on research that they had commissioned in 2019 that did not include environmental factors. Finalized in February, the research looked at population-, industrial-, and demand growth, and found that energy demands were largely covered by other sources, he said. One new source included increased energy imports from Laos: While previously Cambodia had bought less than 50 megawatts from Laos' recently opened Dor Sahong dam, it now had ordered 195 additional megawatts, he said.

A study currently conducted by Asia Development Bank is analyzing Cambodia's energy needs for the next 20 years. While it included additional factors such as changes in energy efficiency in the country, the study also did not look at environmental factors, he said. The study is expected to be finalized next year.

To cover electricity needs, the Cambodian government would also extend its coal-fired electricity production, he said.

The National Assembly last week approved two new coal-fired electricity plants amounting to 900 megawatts combined.

But Courtney Weatherby, a research analyst at the Stimson Center who focuses on energy, sustainability and water, said that coal was not an immediate answer to Cambodia's electricity needs, as it often took years to build the plants.

Compared to hydropower, she said, it did have advantages: New hydropower and coal plants both sold electricity at about 7 cents per kilowatt-hour, she said, but because coal is not as vulnerable to drought as hydropower, it is more reliable.

Yet, this could have long-term negative effects.

"Coal has environmental impacts," she said. "In the long-term, coal generates carbon emissions that contribute to climate change."

Thus, instead of focusing on coal or hydropower, the government should focus more extensively on renewable energies, Weatherby said.

Victor Jona agreed that Cambodia had the potential to develop solar energy further. Going forward, Jona said, Cambodia would increase its capacity for solar energy. Currently it constituted less than 10 percent of Cambodia's energy mix, and hydropower 36 percent, but the government had already approved plans for 300 additional megawatts. And from 2021 onward, an additional 200 megawatts would be integrated into Cambodia's electricity net every year.

Weatherby said Cambodia had an estimated potential of 8,000 megawatts generated by solar energy, and 6,500 megawatts by wind turbines. Although the full potential was unlikely to be reached, she said solar projects could be built more quickly to address electricity shortages.

"Solar energy in particular is a very viable option for Cambodia's future electricity generation," she said.

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Pelosi Announces Creation of Panel to Oversee Trillions Approved for Virus Response

A new bipartisan oversight panel will ensure funds dispersed by Congress during the CCP virus pandemic are spent effectively, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced on Thursday.

The House panel, chaired by Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), will be dedicated to examining all aspects of the federal response to coronavirus, Pelosi told reporters in a conference call.

As part of the effort, the panel will oversee the $2.2 trillion Congress recently approved for virus-related spending and any future funds approved for virus-related efforts are spent wisely and effectively, she added, including making sure each state and hospital receives the resources it needs.

The panel will root out waste, fraud, and abuse, she said.

The California Democrat said the panel is modeled on the Truman Committee, which oversaw federal funds dispersed during Wold War II.

The $2.2 trillion bill signed by President Donald Trump last week included the establishment of a congressional oversight commission appointed by Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and the top Republicans in Congress.

Other oversight mechanisms include having the Pentagons top watchdog overseeing distribution of the funds.

Pelosi also expressed support for a commission recommended by House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) that would review the Trump administrations early response to the the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

Schiff said that the United States reviewed what went wrong after Pearl Harbor and the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) speaks to members of the media at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on March 13, 2020. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Once weve recovered, we need a nonpartisan commission to review our response and how we can better prepare for the next pandemic, he said. Im working on a bill to do that.

Some have dismissed the idea, including Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), ranking member of Schiffs committee.

Schiff and other Democrats impeached Republican President Donald Trump late last year as the virus was first emerging in China and took their arguments for why the president should have been removed from office to the Senate.

Senators in February voted to acquit Trump.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said this week that impeachment distracted the government from focusing on the threat of the CCP virus.

Trump told reporters at the White House that he doesnt like to think that impeachment distracted the attention of him, Vice President Mike Pence, or administration officials.

I think I handled it very well, but I guess it probably did. I mean, I got impeached. I think, you know, I certainly devoted a little time to thinking about it, right? he said.

Pelosi on the phone call said lawmakers are still working on a phase four virus bill following passage of phase three last week, an effort opposed by House Republicans.

I dont think thats appropriate at this time. We just passed three bills, the largest in the history. Weve got to make sure this is implemented correctly, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told reporters on a separate phone call.
Karachi: In a development which is likely to raise questions about Pakistans commitment to fight terrorism, a court in Karachi on Thursday overturned the death sentence of British-born top al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002.

On Thursday, the Sindh High Court commuted the death sentence of Sheikh, 46, to seven years in prison. Sheikh has been in jail for the past 18 years. A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha also acquitted the three others - Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil- serving life sentences in the case, the Dawn newspaper reported.

The bench announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the four convicts 18 years ago. It also dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of the three co-accused, the paper said. According to the report, Sheikh's seven-year prison will be counted from the time served in jail.

While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon.

They had further contended that Naseem and Adil's confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary. They also argued that the recovery of the laptop from Naseem was shown to have been made on February 11, 2002, while computer expert Ronald Joseph had deposed that he was given the computer for verification on February 4 and he examined the laptop for six days.

Deputy Prosecutor General Saleem Akhtar had supported the trial court's verdict and submitted that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellants beyond a shadow of doubt and had requested the court to dismiss the appeals, the report said.

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story on the alleged links between the country's powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda. Sheikh was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

The incident came three years after Sheikh, along with Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, was released by India in 1999 and given safe passage to Afghanistan in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814.
* Chinese health authority said Wednesday (April 1) it received reports of 36 new confirmed COVID-19 cases on the Chinese mainland on Tuesday, of which 35 were imported. The overall confirmed cases on the mainland had reached 81,554 by Tuesday, including 2,004 patients who were still being treated, 76,238 patients who had been discharged after recovery, and 3,312 people who died of the disease.

* The Cambodian government has approved a draft law on state of emergency amid the spread of COVID-19, according to a statement released late Tuesday. Cambodia has so far recorded 109 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 25 people cured, according to the Ministry of Health.

* Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Tuesday announced a US$24.75 billion spending to curb the COVID-19 outbreak. The president said he had inked an emergency government regulation in lieu of law, which will allow the government to edge up development budget deficit, and increase the spending for efforts to curb the COVID-19 spread.

* Singapore's Ministry of Health reported here Tuesday 47 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total confirmed cases in the city state to 926. Among the new cases, 16 are imported cases with recent travel history abroad and 31 are local cases without travel history.

* Cuba on Tuesday announced the decision to suspend the arrival of international passenger flights and withdraw all foreign boats from the Carribean island as part of the measures to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. The decision came as the Cuban Ministry of Public Health reported 16 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 earlier in the day, bringing the total in the country to 186.

* U.S. officials and researchers have been urging people to follow social distancing guidelines as a total of 189,035 COVID-19 cases and 3,900 deaths were reported in the United States as of Tuesday night.

* Italy on Tuesday observed a minute of silence for the victims of the coronavirus pandemic as their numbers rose above 12,000. Speaking during a nightly televised press conference, Civil Protection Department Chief Angelo Borrelli confirmed that there were 2,107 new active coronavirus infections compared to Monday, bringing the nationwide total to 77,635 cases.

* "We have to rebuild our national and European sovereignty" amid the coronavirus crisis and achieve "full independence" in the production of protective face masks by the end of this year, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday while visiting a surgical mask factory near Angers in western France.

* The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Britain reached 25,150 as of Tuesday morning, an increase of 3,009 in 24 hours, according to the Department of Health and Social Care. As of Monday afternoon, 1,789 patients who tested positive for COVID-19 have died, up 381 over the same time on the previous day, the latest figures from the department showed.

* The chief doctor of Russia's major coronavirus treatment hospital in the outskirts of Moscow, who recently met President Vladimir Putin, has tested positive for COVID-19. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday that Putin is undergoing regular coronavirus tests and "everything is fine."

* The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan rose to 2,039, with 26 deaths reported across the country, according to the newest data released on the website of the Health Ministry on Wednesday.

* Australia Health Minister Greg Hunt described anyone violating self-isolation rules as a "disgrace," as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases is about to surpass 5,000 to in the country.

* New Zealand reported 47 new confirmed and 14 probable cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, bringing the total number of confirmed and probable infections to 708 in the country.

* The Republic of Korea reported 101 more cases of the COVID-19 compared to 24 hours ago as of midnight Wednesday local time, raising the total number of infections to 9,887. Three more deaths were confirmed, lifting the death toll to 165. The total fatality rate stood at 1.67 percent.

* The death toll of COVID-19 in India Tuesday evening rose to 35 as the number of confirmed cases in the country reached 1,397, the federal health ministry said. According to ministry officials, so far 124 people have been discharged from hospitals after showing improvement.

* Nepali government has decided to cancel the Visit Nepal Year-2020 campaign as international travels have been badly affected due to novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, a senior official of Nepal's Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said Tuesday. Nepal has five confirmed cases of COVID-19 so far.

* Japan's parliament on Tuesday enacted legislation encouraging companies to allow employees to continue to work until the age of 70. The move is aimed at addressing part of the country's growing demographic crisis that sees the population rapidly aging and simultaneously shrinking amid a falling birthrate.

* Brunei reported two new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the country's total to 129 cases. The ministry also stated that so far, a total of 854 individuals are undergoing quarantine, 1,424 people have completed the quarantine period and 6,421 laboratory tests for COVID-19 have been conducted, leading to a ratio of 1 in 67 people in the country has been examined.

* The number of deaths caused by the novel coronavirus in Brazil has hit 201 with a rise of 42 in 24 hours, the country's health ministry announced on Tuesday. The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases increased 1,138 on Monday to 5,717.

* Ecuador and Colombia have witnessed a surge in infections and deaths from COVID-19, registering 274 and 108 daily new cases on Tuesday respectively. As of Tuesday, the number of confirmed cases reached 2,240, including 75 deaths, in Ecuador, one of the South American nations hardest-hit by COVID-19.

* The Syrian air defenses responded to an Israeli missile strike in the central province of Homs on Tuesday evening, state TV reported. The Israeli warplanes fired missiles from inside the Lebanese airspace, said the report, adding that a number of missiles were intercepted.

* The Iraqi Health Ministry on Tuesday confirmed four more deaths from COVID-19 and 65 new cases, bringing the total number of the infections to 694. Meanwhile, the Iraqi government decided to extend the nationwide curfew until April 11 to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

* Saudi Arabia reported on Tuesday 110 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the kingdom's total confirmed cases to 1,563.

* Israel reported two new death cases from the novel coronavirus, bringing the death toll to 20, the state's Ministry of Health said on Tuesday. A total of 663 people in Israel tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 5,358, the ministry said.

* The Omani Ministry of Health on Tuesday announced one death case of the novel coronavirus. Oman decided earlier Tuesday to deploy military and security services in the streets to reduce people's movement, as the country's total cases hit 192 so far.

* The National Center for Disease Control of Libya's UN-backed government on Tuesday announced two new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 10.

* South Africa on Tuesday recorded 27 new cases of COVID-19, bringing its total confirmed cases to 1,353.

* The first two cases of the novel coronavirus have been reported in Burundi, Health Minister Thaddee Ndikumana said at a press conference Tuesday evening. The remaining east African nation where the COVID-19 has not been reported is South Sudan.

*Egypt's Health Ministry confirmed on Tuesday 54 new cases of COVID-19, raising the tally of infections in the country to 710. The death toll from the novel coronavirus rose to 46, after five more fatalities were confirmed, the ministry's spokesman Khaled Megahed announced in a statement.

* An earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale jolted the Southern area in the U.S. state of Idaho on Tuesday. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake took place at 23:52:31 UTC on Tuesday, and the epicenter, at a depth of about 10 km, was located at about 72 km west of Challis. No casualties were reported yet.
So, she ventured to her basement and found one of her late fathers shirts  he died from cancer in 2013  and brought it upstairs.

James Reynolds, Buhmanns father, was a farmer and a kind, humble man, Buhmann said. Jaime is named after him, and the two are cut from the same cloth, in that they both have an ability to be kind  no matter the circumstance. Buhmann said her father was proud of Jaime for becoming a nurse.

I just had thought someday, I'll make my own kids a little quilt out of those (shirts) or do something with them, but I never quite had the heart and the emotional capacity to open that box," Buhmann said. "I thought that night, I'm not going to make any more masks until I make one for my daughter from one of Dad's shirts, and thats what I did."

Jaime said it was a sweet gift.

I already knew she was making masks, which I loved the idea of, Jaime said. I had no idea that she was going to drop that off on my porch yesterday, but it is really special to think about him and how proud he was of me being a nurse.

A sustainable response
Nuclear envoys of South Korea and the United States held phone talks Thursday over the Korean Peninsula issues, according to South Korean foreign ministry.



Lee Do-hoon, South Korea's special representative for Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs, talked over phone with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun at the request of Biegun, the ministry said in a statement.



Lee and Biegun shared views over the recent peninsula situations, discussing ways to cooperate to make substantive progress in the peninsula's complete denuclearization and the permanent peace settlement.



They agreed to closely cooperate and communicate over the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) issues as they had done before, while making active efforts to contain the COVID-19 spread, Xinhua reported.
The Lagos State Ministry of Health discharged 11 patients from the Infectious Disease Centre, Yaba, on Thursday, following their recovery from Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Lagos State Governor and Incident Commander for COVID-19 in the state, gave the update via Twitter.

Mr Sanwo-Olu said the discharged patients are two females and nine males, all of whom tested negative twice to confirm they had fully recovered.

I am happy to break to you, my good people of Lagos, the news of the release today of 11 more patients from our facility in Yaba.

They have fully recovered and have tested negative to COVID19 and have been allowed to return home to their families. The patients include two females and nine males. Their results came out negative in two rounds of tests, Mr Sanwo-Olu tweeted.

This brings the total number of discharged patients in Lagos to 19, with one patient evacuated to the United States.

As of 8 p.m on Wednesday, Nigeria had 174 confirmed cases of coronavirus and two deaths.

The breakdown of the confirmed cases is as follow; Lagos  91, FCT  35, Osun  14, Oyo  8, Akwa Ibom  5, Ogun  4, Edo  4, Kaduna  4, Bauchi  3, Enugu  2, Ekiti  2, Rivers  1 and Benue  1.

Meanwhile, Mr Sanwo-Olu commended the efforts of the Lagos State health workers over the recovery of the patients through professional delivery of service.

READ ALSO:

The governor said although the state had begun to record community infection, it would remain vigilant.

He assured Lagosians that the rage of the virus will soon be put behind and normalcy will return to the state.

Lagos has been on lock down since Monday to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
By Gabriela Mello

SAO PAULO, April 1 (Reuters) - Brazil's largest wireless carrier Telefonica Brasil SA will provide cellphone data to help authorities slow the spread of coronavirus in Sao Paulo state, the epicenter of the disease's outbreak in Latin America's largest country.

As part of the cooperation agreement announced on Wednesday, the company operating under the brand Vivo will provide the Sao Paulo government with data on people's movement and concentration of groups to check whether its quarantine rules are being followed, as well as anticipate potential contagion trends.

"We've been investing heavily in big data and artificial intelligence in the past five years and when the coronavirus pandemic started we built applications to help fighting it," Vivo's Chief Data Officer, Luiz Medici, told Reuters in a phone interview.

"We have plenty of antennas scattered across the region that allow us aggregate data on mobile lines without identifying our customers," he added, playing down concerns on privacy issues.

The initiative is similar to one rolled out earlier this month by telecom operators in Italy, Germany and Austria, which in turn followed more invasive tracking activities in countries like China, Taiwan and South Korea.

In 2019, Vivo had a mobile customer base of 74.6 million in Brazil, a market share of 32.9%, according to its latest earnings report.

"It's a statistically relevant base and updated in real-time," said Patricia Ellen, Sao Paulo state secretary of economic development, science and technology. She noted that the cooperation agreement was backed by state of emergency decrees issued by federal and state governments.

The tie-up with Vivo, she added, could last up to a year and is one of the projects supported by a crisis contingency task-force created by Sao Paulo state Governor Joao Doria.

"We're also talking to other carriers to develop other working fronts," Ellen said without elaborating.

Doria, who defends social isolation measures to contain the virus, has openly criticized President Jair Bolsonaro for his handling of the outbreak, which had killed 201 people out of 5,717 confirmed cases as of Tuesday, according to Brazil's Health Ministry.

About a week ago, Vivo rival TIM Participacoes SA struck a similar partnership with Rio de Janeiro's city hall to monitor people's movement throughout the city. (Reporting by Gabriela Mello; Editing by Christian Plumb and Tom Brown)
By Akbar Mammadov

Armenia is artificially changing the demographic composition of occupied Kalbajar and is illegally exploiting its mineral resources, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a statement published on April 2 that marks the 27th anniversary of Kalbajars occupation by Armenian forces.

Kalbajars was occupied by Armenian forces on April 2, 1993. The offensive for the occupation of Kalbajar, located outside the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, was carried out mainly from the territory of Armenia, and Armenian heavy artillery, Mi-24 helicopters and military planes were used during the occupation.

Kalbajars occupation was followed by the UN Security Council Resolution 822 that stressed the inadmissibility of the use of force to gain territory and demanded the immediate withdrawal of the occupying forces from the occupied Kalbajar and other regions. Following the adoption of this resolution, the OSCE Minsk Group prepared a "timetable for emergency measures" for the withdrawal of Armenian troops from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan. However, Armenia has refused to comply with the requirements of UN Security Council resolutions.

As a result of the occupation, about 60,000 residents of Kalbajar were subjected to ethnic cleansing, expelled from their native lands, 511 civilians were killed, 321 people were taken prisoner and went missing. Currently, more than 70,000 Kalbajar residents live as IDPs in various regions of Azerbaijan.

The ministry reminded that the Armenian occupation destroyed the ancient and rich material and cultural heritage of Kalbajar, and the original architectural features of the monasteries located in the region and belonging to the ancient Albanian Christian heritage of Azerbaijan were changed and Armenianized.

The ministry also commented on the April 2, 2016 clashes on the line of contact between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops, saying that the shelling of civilians by Armenian forces once again showed that the presence of Armenian armed forces in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is a major threat to peace and security in the region.

In response to the Armenian attacks, as a result of the counter-offensive measures of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, the security of the Azerbaijani civilian population was ensured and strategically important Azerbaijani territories were liberated from occupation, the ministry's statement reads.

The MFA emphasized that the occupation of Azerbaijani territories by Armenia, including Kalbajar, is temporary. Armenia is responsible for all illegal activities in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, and will eventually be held accountable for these illegal actions.

The Armenian side must put an end to the policy of aggression and ethnic cleansing, comply with its international obligations, as well as UN resolutions and decisions of other international organizations demanding the liberation of Azerbaijani territories.

The only way to achieve lasting peace is the unconditional and complete withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, ensuring the inalienable rights of IDPs to return to their native lands," the statement concludes.

---

Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
WASHINGTON  The C.I.A. has been warning the White House since at least early February that China has vastly understated its coronavirus infections and that its count could not be relied upon as the United States compiles predictive models to fight the virus, according to current and former intelligence officials.

The intelligence briefings in recent weeks, based at least in part on information from C.I.A. assets in China, played an important role in President Trumps negotiation on Thursday of an apparent detente with President Xi Jinping of China. Since then, both countries have ratcheted back criticism of each other.

Obtaining a more accurate count of the Chinese rate of infection and deaths from the virus has worldwide public health implications at a time of grave uncertainty over the virus, its speed of transmission and other fundamental questions. For American officials, the totals are critical to getting a better understanding of how Covid-19 will affect the United States in the months to come and of the effectiveness of countermeasures like social distancing, according to American intelligence agencies and White House officials.

So far, to the frustration of both the White House and the intelligence community, the agencies have been unable to glean more accurate numbers through their collection efforts.
A reverse migration is taking place in the Detroit of Gibraltar as coronavirus wreaks havoc in Spain. Dozens of Moroccan youth had to pay traffickers up to $6000 to take them to Moroccan coast, local papers reported.

Moroccan security services are on alert to bring assistance to the Moroccans who are fleeing Spain on inflatable boats, Arabic speaking daily Ahdath Maghribia reported.

The coronavirus pandemic death toll in Spain passed 10,000 on Thursday, as the country reported its highest number of deaths in a single day since the outbreak began, with the total rising by 950 to 10,003 among 110,238 infections.

The pandemic, unemployment, and lack of prospects in Spain pushed nearly 100 Moroccan migrants to flee Spain on board an inflatable boat that was stuck in the waters due to heavy waves for a day before reaching Larache on the Atlantic coast.

Authorities have been looking for them in order to test them for coronavirus.
God Had A Better Plan: a brilliant revelation in a life of struggle, misdirection, and failure that eventually found redirection, hope, and triumph with the help of faith and hard work. God Had A Better Plan is the creation of published authors Stephen Hower & Robert Hillard. Stephen Hower is a freelance writer who resides with his wife, Carol, in St. Louis, Missouri. He has previously published three books and several articles on a wide range of issues.

Hower & Hillard share, God Had A Better Plan is a true-to-life account of how God took the son of a Midwest farmer (without an acre of land to his name) and guided him though the twists and turns of life to establish a successful career as a financial advisor and establish the multimillion-dollar Eliezer Fund to assist elderly Christian leaders.

The reader will soon realize God Had A Better Plan is more than a rags-to-riches story. Its the story of Gods faithfulness and a young boys commitment to make a difference in ways that matter. The reader will be blessed to learn the six nonnegotiable values that carried Bob through failure to ultimate success. God Had A Better Plan is a true and living story that will help the faithful rediscover the ability of God to rescue and prosper his children.

If you grew up believing God had a special purpose for your life but you have not yet fully achieved your dream, God Had A Better Plan will rekindle your belief in Gods ability to help. Bob learned to trust Gods direction in the day-to-day practical decisions he had to make in times of crippling failure and seasons of blessing.

You will be inspired to give God glory and recommit yourself to trust in the Lords promises. Like the psalmist David, Bob learned the truth of the statement Gods word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path has practical and powerful implications for yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Stephen Hower & Robert Hillards new book is a beautiful story of finding significance, woven with biblical inspiration from the Scriptures that led this man to strengthening his own faith.

Here, one sees what happens when they let go and let God.

View a synopsis of God Had A Better Plan on YouTube.

Consumers can purchaseGod Had A Better Plan at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about God Had A Better Plan, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.


House Democrats also want to authorise a bipartisan commission to review how the pandemic caught the US by surprise.

Washington, DC, United States  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday announced the formation of a special committee of the US House of Representatives to oversee more than $2.2 trillion in spending that Congress has authorised to respond to the coronavirus.

The special oversight panel will ensure that the more than $2 trillion  and any additional funds Congress may provide  are spent wisely and effectively, Pelosi said in a conference call with reporters.

To be chaired by Representative Jim Clyburn, the third-highest-ranking Democrat in the House, the panel will protect against price gouging, profiteering and political favouritism, Pelosi said.

It will press to ensure that the federal response is based on the best possible science and guided by the nations best health experts, Pelosi said.

The committee will have the authority to issue subpoenas to examine all aspects of the federal response to coronavirus, and to assure taxpayers dollars are being wisely and efficiently spent, she said.

Congress passed an historic $2.2 trillion rescue package last week, the third bill passed in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Two earlier pieces of legislation provided emergency $8.3bn funding for healthcare providers and open-ended funding for expanded unemployment and welfare benefits for workers.

More than 280 million Americans are presently living under stay-at-home orders, effectively shutting down much of the nations economy.

Unemployment has surged, with nearly 10 million workers filing jobless claims in the past two weeks. That already exceeds the 8.7 million jobs lost during the 2007-2008 financial crisis.

Our nation faces an historic health and economic emergency as we confront the coronavirus epidemic, Pelosi said, outlining education and housing priorities for an infrastructure bill to help the US recover. We need more for a strong recovery, she said.





President Donald Trump has indicated he supports an infrastructure spending bill of up to another $2 trillion, but Republicans in the House and Senate have signalled a reluctance to move on it.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said on Tuesday that he wants to take a wait-and-see approach to gauge how the spending Congress has already authorised works its way into the economy.

House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters in a conference call on Thursday that its too soon to start talking about a fourth emergency spending bill.

The Speaker is trying to talk about a fourth bill. I dont think thats appropriate right now, McCarthy said.

The focus of the House right now should be, how do we implement it, how do we get it right, McCarthy said.

In addition to the special oversight committee for the emergency spending, some House Democrats are talking about authorising a commission to review how the pandemic caught the US by surprise.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff is proposing legislation that would set up a bipartisan commission to review how the virus outbreak got started and how the Trump administration responded.

The commission would be similar to the 9/11 Commission established by Congress after the September 11, 2001 attacks to investigate the intelligence failures and other lapses that left the US unprepared.

To make the review as bipartisan as possible, it would be comprised of people from both political parties who are not currently in government and would probably start work early next year, after the November election.

Obviously they were very ill-prepared for this pandemic, Schiff said in a US television interview on Wednesday.

In this image from video, US House impeachment manager Adam Schiff speaks during debate ahead of a vote on calling witnesses during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate [File: Senate Television via AP]

When it became publicly known, which was as early as late December, and then reports started coming in in January, of this new respiratory virus in China, we lost precious weeks in getting the testing ramped up, Schiff said on MSNBC.

We werent really prepared before this crisis hit. When it did hit, the administration moved very slowly. The president, even into March, was downplaying the significance of this and comparing it to the ordinary flu and talking about people being back in church by Easter [April 12], he said.

Trump has been holding daily press briefings at the White House to inform the public of steps the administration is taking to address the crisis.

Government scientists warned at a White House briefing on Tuesday that the US could be facing between 100,000 to 240,000 deaths from the coronavirus.

More than 5,600 US deaths have been recorded from the coronavirus as of Thursday, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University.
Mumbai, April 2 : Actress Kriti Sanon is utilising the nationwide lockdown to declutter her wardrobe.

Kriti took to Instagram, where she posted a photograph of herself cleaning her wardrobe, although her puppy Phoebe won't give up playing with her clothes.

"And while i was trying to declutter my wardrobe, Phoebe found some playtime!" Kriti captioned the image.

The picture currently has 1 million likes on the photo-sharing application.

On the work front, Kriti will next be seen "Mimi", directed by Laxman Utekar.

The film is a remake of the National Award-winning 2011 Marathi film "Mala Aai Vhhaychay!". Kriti stars in the film in the lead role of a surrogate mother alongside Pankaj Tripathi, Manoj Pahwa, Supriya Pathak and Sai Tamhankar.

The film is slated to be released in July.

Latest updates on Lockdown diaries

-- Syndicated from IANS
A woman wears a mask as she walks on Ocean Drive in South Beach, Florida, on March 31, 2020. (Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images)

Texas Town Orders Residents to Wear Masks or Face $1,000 Fine

Authorities in a South Texas border town said that anyone aged 5 and above not wearing a mask in a range of settings like pumping gas or going into a store could be fined up to $1,000.

The Laredo City Council said in a press release Wednesday that, starting Thursday, people entering into or inside of any building open to the public; when using public transportation, taxis, or ride shares; or when pumping gas, would have to don masks.

Authorities said people would be required to wear some form of covering over their nose and mouth, with homemade masks, scarfs, bandanas, or handkerchiefs all considered acceptable.

Violation of the new rule will be considered a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000.

The move comes as another 26,000 Americans tested positive for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, increasing confirmed U.S. cases to 214,000, according to a Reuters tally of official data.

The governors of Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Nevada each instituted the strict policies on a day when the death toll from COVID-19, the disease the CCP virus causes, shot up by 925 to more than 4,800 nationwide.

Seeking to stop the spread of the respiratory disease, the Laredo council has taken a range of emergency actions, including shelter-in-place orders, a curfew, and the new mask-wearing requirement.

Laredo authorities said mask-wearing exceptions would apply to people engaging in a permissible outside physical activity, when theyre riding in a personal vehicle, or when alone in a separate single space.

Also, people do not have to don masks when with their own shelter group (household members); when doing so poses a greater health, safety or security risk; or for consumption purposes.

There is no legal requirement to go out and buy masks, Laredo City Manager Robert Eads told reporters during a video conference call Wednesday. We are requiring you cover yourself with a scarf or bandana or with a mask if you have it, great. Were begging you to not search out and seek N95 masks from our medical community. Those should be reserved only for them.

Laredos approach to mask-wearing comes as countries, cities, and health authorities worldwide are reconsidering advice that wearing a mask is not necessary for people without COVID-19 symptoms, or who dont work in a job that involves caring for the infected.

A panel of advisors to the World Health Organization (WHO) are now reevaluating whether the virus can spread further than previously thought through the air.

Panel chair professor David Heymann told the BBC that the findings could change their guidance.

The WHO is opening up its discussion again looking at the new evidence to see whether or not there should be a change in the way its recommending masks should be used, Heymann told the outlet.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Robert Redfield told WABE Atlanta that the agency was reviewing its guidelines on who should wear masks.

Referring to new data about people without symptoms shedding the virus at a high rate, Redfield said the CDCs advice was being critically re-reviewed, to see if theres potential additional value for individuals that are infected or individuals that may be asymptomatically infected.

University of San Francisco scientist Jeremy Howard argued in a Washington Post op-ed that there are good reasons to believe DIY masks would help a lot.

Look at Hong Kong, Mongolia, South Korea and Taiwan, all of which have covid-19 largely under control. They are all near the original epicenter of the pandemic in mainland China, and they have economic ties to China. Yet none has resorted to a lockdown, such as in Chinas Wuhan province. In all of these countries, all of which were hit hard by the SARS respiratory virus outbreak in 2002 and 2003, everyone is wearing masks in public, he wrote.
Health official: 'Regardless of variant, the protective measures are the same'

local
The Thane police on Thursday



registered cases against trustees of a madrasa and a mosque in Mumbra area which allegedly gave shelter to Bangladeshi and Malaysian nationals who had visited congregation of the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi.

The trustees of the two institutions violated prohibitory orders during lockdown and many other laws by giving shelter to these persons, the police said.

The madrasa had given shelter to eight Malaysian nationals and two persons from outside Maharashtra since March 23.

The mosque was found to have given shelter to 13 Bangladeshi nationals and two from other states.

The police raided both the places on March 31 after it came to light that the Tablighi gathering in Delhi's Nizamuddin area had been a coronavirus hotspot, and other states started tracing those who had returned from the gathering.

Cases were registered under the Foreigners' Act, Disaster Management Act, Epidemic Diseases Act and relevant IPC sections, a police official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress Working Committee (CWC) blamed the government on Thursday for "erring" on coronavirus testing and demanded more COVID-19 examinations even as it sought setting up of a task force comprising global experts for measures to revive the country's economy.

At a meeting of the CWC, the highest decision-making body of the Congress, held through video-conferencing, it was also suggested that the government immediately come up with "financial action plan 2" to help those affected due to the ongoing 21-day countrywide lockdown.

The CWC accused the Centre of not giving any serious thought to the deteriorating economic situation in the country, even as it said the government had erred in adopting the policy of limited testing for COVID-19.

It called for more tests for coronavirus and said extensive testing in many countries had led to containment of the spread of the deadly virus.

Suggesting various measures, the CWC said the government should focus on containment of the virus by extensive testing, medical treatment to the infected people and substantial enhancement of the capacity, infrastructure and human resources to fight the epidemic.

It said the government should focus on livelihood support to the poor, especially daily wage earners, migrant workers, casual and temporary workers, laid-off workers, self-employed people, farmers, tenant farmers and landless agricultural workers.

Besides, it said the government had to ensure maintenance of supply of goods and services.

The CWC called upon the government to take steps to re-start the engines of economic growth.

It also called for making adequate and comprehensive preparations for immediate harvesting and procurement of wheat and other rabi crops at the minimum support price.

"The CWC is of the opinion that the government has not given any thought whatsoever to the deteriorating economic situation. This does not brook any delay.

"The CWC demands that the government should immediately appoint an Economic Task Force consisting of world renowned economists to suggest three plans: an emergency plan within one week; a short to medium term plan within one month; and a medium to long term plan within three months in order to protect and revive the economy," a statement read out by All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary KC Venugopal said.

AICC chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, "On containment and treatment, the government has erred in adopting a strategy of limited testing. A lockdown or any other kind of restriction is futile unless it is accompanied by extensive testing."



"The flawed strategy must be revised and testing must be scaled up urgently," he added.

Surjewala said the CWC came to the conclusion that the government had "miserably failed to provide adequate livelihood support to the poor" as its financial action plan 1 was "miserly, hopelessly inadequate and left out several vulnerable sections".

"Financial Action Plan I failed to instill confidence in the poor and, as a result, we witnessed the tragic spectacle of thousands of migrant workers desperately trying to go back to their villages by any means whatsoever, including on foot. That spectacle will forever remain a blot on the Modi government.

"The CWC demands that the government should immediately announce Financial Action Plan II that will reassure the poor people and also provide adequate financial support to the sections that were left out," a resolution adopted by the committee said, adding that the NYAY scheme put forward by the Congress offered a useful model that could be adopted and implemented.

It also said the onus was on the Centre to gear up procurement through the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and other agencies and ensure remunerative prices for farmers.

If people had to survive during a lockdown, the supply chains must immediately be restored and maintained throughout the period of restrictions, the CWC said.

It also called for cutting the GST rates for three months on goods of mass consumption, mandatorily postponing tax-payment deadlines and EMI dates to June 30 and beyond.

"We urge the central government to make arrangements for the return to India of thousands of students stranded abroad after appropriate COVID-19 testing," the committee said.

It also noted that most of the state governments had complained of inadequate financial resources as the Centre had not released their share in the GST.

"We call upon the Union government to forthwith release the states' share in GST to enable them to fight COVID-19 more effectively," the CWC said after the four-hour meeting.

The Congress said it would require massive resources, amounting to Rs 5-6 lakh crore, and anything less would be insufficient and might actually exacerbate the situation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Federal officials reported last month that Life Care had failed to notify state officials about the increasing rate of respiratory infections among residents, failed to rapidly identify and manage ill residents and failed to have a backup plan after the facilitys primary clinician fell ill. C.M.S. said that those urgent issues have since been resolved, but that Life Care would also need to demonstrate compliance on other issues, including record-keeping and its handling of safety and quality strategies.

If L.C.C. of Kirkland does not correct all deficiencies and return to full compliance by September 16, 2020, then C.M.S. will terminate your facility from participating in the Medicare/Medicaid program, wrote Patrick Thrift, a C.M.S. enforcement official in Seattle.

A spokesman for Life Care did not immediately return a message seeking comment. The company can appeal findings from both the federal and state reports.

Life Care emerged a month ago as an early center of the coronavirus outbreak in the United States. Two-thirds of the facilitys residents and dozens of staff members have tested positive for the coronavirus. Officials have identified 37 people linked to the facility who have died.
The London Times reports from France. Even if we discount a bit for the fact that the British have often taken a jaundiced view of the French, the report is troubling:

The wartime appetite for la delation  reporting wrongdoers to the authorities  has reappeared. In country towns, people are denouncing neighbours to the gendarmerie for breaching le confinement and leaving their homes too often.  Tempers are fraying in supermarkets, with unsmiling shoppers in the Paris suburbs treating others with suspicion. Angry locals in coastal areas are seething over the 400,000 Parisians who are estimated to have fled the capital to spend the lockdown in their holiday homes. Some have been refused service and Parisian cars have been vandalised in Brittany and the southwest.

Thats bad, and I dont think we have seen anything like it in the U.S. This is worse:

Nurses are being threatened by people who see them as carriers of infection.

Lots of old prejudices are bubbling to the surface:

Conspiracy theories, long popular in France and a fixture of the yellow vest movement, blame the capitalist elite and also Jewish people for starting the epidemic or encouraging it. Many of the claims, shared millions of times on social media, talk of a military virus deliberately spread with the aim, variously, of boosting drug company profits, killing the elderly or delivering the country into the hands of multi-nationals or the secret illuminati. One popular belief is that the virus was invented by the Paris Institut Pasteur.

We have our nutters too, of course, but I am not aware of such theories gaining credence here.

The Times says that both left-wing and right-wing politicians are demagoguing the COVID-19 epidemic, while centrists are more or less paralyzed. President Macron is trying to catch up:

Attempting to reassure the country, Mr Macron no longer disguises his anger over the populists and the self-proclaimed experts who are attacking his handling of the crisis and undermining the unity that he is preaching. Unpopular before the crisis began, he enjoyed a surge of public support at the outset but only 44 per cent now say he has responded well; an 11-point drop over a month.

The viruss impact on French political attitudes has been, from my perspective, mostly appalling:

A big majority of the country wants a more powerful protective state to emerge from the crisis. More than 70 per cent want the state to curb capitalism and nationalise key sectors, according to a Viavoice poll for todays Liberation newspaper. A similar reflex led Charles de Gaulle to nationalise big industries after the German occupation. Over half the country wants to impose tight curbs on foreign goods, whether from Europe or beyond, the poll found.

I cant explain what curbing capitalism has to do with the COVID-19 virus. The predominant French reaction seems to be, The government is corrupt, it lies about everything and betrays its citizens, lets give it more power!

In tune with the public, Mr Macron proclaimed this week that the pandemic has changed the world and signalled the return of the protective state in the face of globalisation. We must produce more in France and reduce our dependence on imported goods, he said. In his declaration of war against the virus on March 12, he promised a break with the past. There are goods and services that must be placed beyond the laws of the market place.

Notice he is talking about producing in France, not the EU. The coronavirus might bring about the demise of the European Union, or at least its diminutionif so, one of its few happy effects.

Mr Macrons new gospel marks a U-turn from the liberal pro-market doctrines that won him the election: his aides are already signalling that reconstruction after this war effort means the end of the programme of pro-market reforms that he waged against public resistance since 2017.

Freedom is fragile. When people are frightened, it tends to be the first casualty.
SAN FRANCISCO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, leading workforce management software company Deputy debuts its Workforce Management Toolkit, a tool suite comprised of an initial four products built to support today's workforce and management with communication, efficiency and health and safety measures in these uncertain times. The products include: Touchless Clock-In (a market-first), Video for Newsfeed (video communication to staff), Labour Optimisation (real-time wage cost tracking) and Pay by Area (pay rates based on skills, capabilities and roles).

When enabled, the Deputy Kiosk (iPad app) uses facial recognition and voice commands to enable employees to clock in and out of work, as well as start and end breaks, without touching a screen.

As the coronavirus disease (COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2 ) rapidly spreads across the United States and worldwide, demand for workers in several critical industries, most notably healthcare, call centers, large-scale retail and shipping and delivery, have surged exponentially to meet consumer needs. Alongside this shift, many food, beverage and apparel companies - including many Deputy customers - have also pivoted from their product focus to provide critical items like hand sanitizer, masks and scrubs to healthcare providers on the front line.

"We are facing unprecedented times as a human race," said Ashik Ahmed, Co-founder and CEO of Deputy. "In the face of such difficult circumstances, we at Deputy recognize now more than ever the need for smart and agile products to help the global business community, industry-wide, navigate the crisis effectively, communicate with their teams and emerge from this plight stronger than ever."

"We are proud to introduce this new suite of products to support our customer base and, in particular, shift workers, in critical, timely areas of hygiene (touchless clock in), staff communication (video-based workplace feed), survivability (real-time wage cost tracker) and workforce flexibility (pay by area of work)," said Deepesh Banerji, Head of Product. "We expect these new capabilities to enable shift-based workforces to run more effective operations during difficult times -- with workforces under immense pressure to keep our cities functioning, communities moving and economy running in these dire times."

"Deputy's Touchless Clock In is really convenient; the crew and manager save an average of 2-3 seconds each, searching for their name, and now they don't need to remember their pin," said Jarred Lokietz, Goodman McDonalds Group, operators of 15 key McDonald's locations in Manhattan, New York. "The whole process is now more hygienic, which is a huge benefit to our staff, as part of the strict precautions they are implementing, such as frequent hand washing."

For a full summary on the Workforce Management Toolkit, see below:

Touchless Clock-In: When enabled, the Deputy Kiosk (iPad app) uses facial recognition and voice commands to enable employees to clock in and out of work, as well as start and end breaks, without touching a screen.

Employees experience a faster and simpler clock-in process, while also limiting exposure between employees during clock-in procedure and contamination of the device.

Removes the worry and stress of verifying employees on-site and recording accurate timesheet data during a time of a lot of changes in shifts and rostering.

Ties in with Deputy's built-in compliance, accounting for overtime, breaks and stress profiles.

Video in News Feed: Allows managers and employees to record short videos on their phone or desktop device and post directly to the News Feed. Videos can be viewed and confirmed on all devices.

Video allows rapid, more personal communication between employers and team members.

Can be used for important visual walk-throughs of new procedures (such as stricter hygiene practices) or situations within the workplace.

Introduce new team members remotely during times of social distancing and working remotely.

Labor Optimization: An easy-to-interpret dashboard on how businesses are performing. With the right demand metrics, owners can make informed decisions when scheduling their teams and stay within budget.

Includes daily summaries at a glance, so customers can instantly see daily summaries of wage costs and sales vs. wage percentage.

A daily snapshot of the variance between required staff vs. scheduled staff is also included.

The design suite got an upgrade, including an improved graphs library (for better readability and option to visually illustrate relationships in the customer's data), enhanced legends and improved accessibility of graphs and colors.

Pay by Area: This tool enables companies - namely restaurants, food and beverage makers - who have had to shuffle roles to meet government regulations and consumer demand, to offer different pay rates based on skills, capabilities and roles.

Allows Premium customers to set different rates for specific areas of work.

Adding Pay by Area to the default pay rate will allow two different rates to be applied to the same employee. If a company has a default rate but needs to pay an employee a different base rate for other jobs or for working in other areas, they now can.

Can be used with any of Deputy's existing pay rates (excluding salary).

All four products are now available on the Deputy App, visit the App Store or Google Play to download and www.deputy.com to learn more.

Media Contact

Maya Varma | PR Manager, AMER | [email protected]

Related Images

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Deputy Touchless Timeclock

When enabled, the Deputy Kiosk (iPad app) uses facial recognition and voice commands to enable employees to clock in and out of work, as well as start and end breaks, without touching a screen.

SOURCE Deputy

Related Links

http://www.deputy.com


Photo: Ian Sane/Flickr

Read on for the most recent top news you may have missed in Seattle. Fire analyst: Washington to experience calm fire season, most fire activity expected in Columbia Basin Read the full story on www.ifiberone.com. 10 big pieces of good news for Seattle in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic Read the full story on Houston Chronicle. With animal shelters closed to the public, Seattle rescues launch appointment-based adoption systems Read the full story on Houston Chronicle. Port of Seattle Commissioners bar evictions of tenants Read the full story on Q13FOX. This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.

With coronavirus "spreading like wildfire," it's good to know that we won't see that many literal wildfires this spring and summer, according to one expert.

In the midst of the novel coronavirus, a handful of worrisome headlines across the globe have called attention to Seattle and Washington entirely. Yet, there's also a multiplicity of happier headlines spreading throughout the city and state.

As many in the area seek companionship among weeks of isolation, rescue groups have started rolling out virtual adoptions systems to ensure workplace safety and keep up with the high demand for adoptions.
Photo for illustration image (Source: VNA)



Amid COVID-19 outbreak, the agency has actively connected with industry associations of the host country and those in Vietnam in order to support Vietnamese firms in taking advantage of opportunities to boost their exports to Singapore.



Apart from organising field trips for Singaporean fruit and vegetable importers to Vietnam to seek supply sources in February, the office has also continued to collect information related to the public procurement demand of the Singapore Government, and actively implemented trade promotion and business matching activities.

According to statistics of the Singapore Enterprise Department, Vietnam's export value to the country in February increased 49 percent compared to a month earlier, and up 102.78 percent compared to the same period in 2019.

The office proposed to the representative office of Vietnam Airlines in Singapore to join hands in supporting Vietnamese exporters, and the carrier has maintained cargo flights from Singapore to Hanoi and HCM City and vice versa.

Particularly, the national flag carrier has also offered preferential shipping rates lower than the market price for Vietnamese firms exports to Singapore./.
From the plagues of medieval Europe to the influenza pandemic of 1918, the specter of the next public health disaster has gripped the minds of scientists, captivated the imaginations of writers and vexed conspiracy theorists.

Now, a new coronavirus is engulfing the world, and the long-foretold once-in-a-century pandemic has become a reality.

New insights are accumulating rapidly, but many things about the virus, SARS-CoV-2, and the disease that it causes, COVID-19, remain unknown. One thing, however, is certain, experts say: This pandemic will not be the last.

The newly formed Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness aims to address both the immediate and long-term implications of the crisis. The effort, led by Harvard Medical School, will work to stem the tide of COVID-19 but, more importantly, to lay the groundwork for dealing with future pandemics.

This is a historic moment. It reminds us why we have dedicated our lives and careers to science and medicine. The novel corona virus is a public health crisis of cataclysmic proportions. It compels us to forge new levels of collaboration across Boston, Cambridge and beyond to address both the immediate challenges of this pandemic and to create a rapid-response system to deal with future crises." George Q. Daley, Dean, HMS

The initiative, formalized at a March 2 meeting at HMS, was sparked by a collaborative research grant from the China Evergrande Group. Under the research agreement, $115 million will be shared equally between Boston-based researchers and colleagues at the Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Health.

The Boston-based consortium, spearheaded by Daley and faculty co-leads Arlene Sharpe and Bruce Walker, already involves more than 100 scientists across five area universities, and institutes, as well as Harvard-affiliated hospitals. More scientists are joining the ranks daily.

"This is an extraordinary, collaborative effort which brings together scientists and clinicians from across Boston's research community to tackle this crisis and prepare for potential future outbreaks," said Sharpe, chair of the Department of Immunology in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS. "The response to COVID-19 is unprecedented and truly inspiring."

Walker, a virologist and HIV expert, describes the new coronavirus as an existential threat that demands pan-institutional and transnational alliances.

"This is not business as usual," said Walker,the Phillip T. and Susan M. Ragon Professor of Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and professor of immunology at HMS. "There's a huge amount of knowledge that can be applied collectively and collaboratively. There is a phenomenal sense of energy and commitment from everyone involved, and the important thing is that we sustain it. We are now moving beyond institutional allegiances and allying with each other to try to solve this critical problem."

Evidence about the new virus--its biology, its behavior, its effects on the body--is growing by the day, with papers posted on preprint servers for the global scientific community to dissect and pull from before the research has undergone standard peer review. Across the globe, there are multiple vaccine trials and a growing number of clinical trials testing experimental treatments for COVID-19.

As scientists forge ahead to piece together a comprehensive profile of the virus fueling this historic pandemic, researchers are focusing their efforts on six areas: epidemiology, diagnostics, pathogenesis, clinical disease management, treatment and vaccines.

Epidemiology

During pandemics, epidemiologists work as profilers. They trace, monitor and predict the movement and behavior of a pathogen in an effort to create a detailed portrait of an invisible foe that inflicts damage that is all too real. Key epidemiological questions include: What is the spectrum of disease severity? How transmissible is the virus and who is most likely to spread it? What are the risk factors for severe illness and death? How does the behavior of the infection vary by location, and does it change over time?Answers to these questions can inform key decisions about what public health measures should be implemented and what resources should be allocated--choices that can profoundly reshape outcomes.

Moreover, epidemiologic trends can provide telltale clues for more focused areas of study. For example, if a certain group appears to be at high risk for severe complications (elderly people with cardiovascular illness or cancer) or seemingly resistant to disease (children), then clinical researchers and basic scientists could try to untangle the biologic factors and physiology of infection that underlie these observations.

To glean answers, epidemiologists rely on two tools: sophisticated disease modeling and old-fashioned raw data collection.

Megan Murray and Michael Mina, who co-lead the epidemiology working group of the new consortium, say that estimating the true spread of the virus is critical to answer both immediate and long-term questions about COVID-19. Understanding the true spread would not only reveal critical clues about the movement and transmissibility across different communities, but can also inform anticipatory decision-making.

Murray, professor of Global Health and Social Medicine in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS, is director of research for Partners in Health, an organization that helps create sustainable medical care and delivery in 10 nations with severely under-resourced health care systems. One of Murray's recent projects is developing models to predict the movement of the new coronavirus across each of those nations and forecast the impact of the pandemic based on country-specific dynamics. These analyses can inform precision-targeted allocation of materials and human resources based on each region's anticipated need.

Murray, working with Marc Lipsitch, professor of epidemiology, immunology and infectious diseases at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, has also developed a model that predicts how many intensive-care beds would be needed in different parts of the United States. In partnership with a group in Malawi, Murray is modifying the model to estimate the number of intensive-care beds and hospital beds that will be needed in that country.

Lipsitch, who directs the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics at the Harvard Chan School, underscores the value of granular raw data to inform best practices. To achieve predictive accuracy in computational modeling, he said, it is critical to gather surveillance data both on the macro and micro levels--at country, state, province, town, neighborhood, workplace, and even household levels.

The ability to gather large amounts of data rapidly has made disease modeling increasingly accurate and reliable. Raw data combined with sophisticated modeling can yield insights such as whether social distancing regulations are being followed and whether they are making a dent in the epidemic.

So are current measures changing the course of the disease?

"We need sustained interventions like social distancing for long enough to ensure we're going to see a decline in cases," Murray said. "Short of that, we're not going to see it go away by the miracle of spring. If I were the government, I would take that very seriously."

Murray's best prediction for the trajectory of the pandemic is that we're in it for the long haul.

"Is there a magic drug that will suddenly fix everything? I doubt that there will be an overnight cure," Murray said. "We'll make steady incremental progress, but we're going to do it much faster than in the past."

Lipsitch says he is concerned that containment measures in the United States have been patchy and social distancing has not been practiced universally. He predicts that even if all necessary measures are implemented, there may be no true end in sight any time soon. The best outcome, he added, would be to have one bad wave of infections, contained by social distancing, followed by a level of controllable spread.

"There will be a world of COVID-19 transmission throwing sparks back at us," Lipsitch wrote in a recent tweet. "Like China today, we will be in a long-term effort to prevent these sparks from starting new chains of transmission."

Diagnostics

Testing for the novel coronavirus had a halting start in the United States, mostly due an initial test from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that contained a problematic reagent leading to faulty readings. Since then, new, more accurate assays have been deployed, and testing has become more widely available. Yet, large-scale testing remains woefully behind, particularly in some areas of the country, and has yet to ramp up to needed levels. And new testing modalities are sorely needed, including:

Ultra-sensitive assays that capture very low levels of viral proteins and enable rapid point-of-care testing

Tests that detect biomarkers that herald the onset of an aberrant immune response, which has been linked to the development of critical complications

Antibody-based testing that identifies individuals who have recovered from infections with the new coronavirus and have developed immunity to the pathogen.

Some of these next-generation platforms are already in development.

Ultrasensitive point-of-care tests: Bioengineer David Walt, who co-leads the diagnostics arm of the consortium together with computational geneticist Pardis Sabeti, is exploring three different approaches.

Walt's labs, at the Wyss Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital, have already developed an ultra-sensitive method to detect proteins with around up to a 1,000 times greater sensitivity than conventional methods. Now, Walt and team are adapting this method (Single Molecule Arrays, or SiMoA), to design an assay that detects SARS-CoV-2 proteins at ultralow levels, including protein fragments that have splintered from the virus. Such a test could detect minimal viral presence not only in standard throat swabs but also in saliva, which is not currently possible. Besides vastly enhancing the detection capacity of current tests, this method would also allow clinicians to perform rapid, point-of-care testing while the patient is in the clinic or in the physician's office, yielding results in as little as 30 minutes, said Walt, the Hansjorg Wyss Professor of Biologically Inspired Engineering and of pathology at HMS and Brigham and Women's Hospital. Current turnaround time on test results varies, but it can take anywhere from a few hours to a few days.

Critical disease biomarkers: Walt and colleague Galit Alter, HMS professor of Medicine at Mass General, are working with samples from patients who developed acute respiratory distress syndrome, one of the hallmarks of severe COVID-19 disease. The condition often requires mechanically-assisted breathing in intensive care.

A critical area of uncertainty remains whether this complication is fueled by an exuberant immune system response that damages the lung tissue or whether the lung damage is inflicted directly by the virus itself. Could it be both? This uncertainty raises another question: If immune over-reactivity is at play, are certain people more prone to developing an exuberant immune reaction known as a cytokine storm, the widespread release of immune-signaling proteins that can cause cellular demise, tissue injury and organ damage? And if some people are more likely to develop such critical complications, are there early indicators that might herald the impending immune vortex? If such chemical biomarkers can be detected early enough, could this be a clue for physicians to treat preemptively patients on the brink of cytokine storms? Walt's team is working on a new generation of tests to detect, early on, even the subtlest of upticks in levels of inflammatory molecules that portend cytokine storm. In theory, Walt said, this early detection would allow patients who are on the cusp of such life-threatening complications to be treated early and more aggressively to stave off the worst complications.

Antibody tests would be invaluable, experts agree, in several ways. They would identify people who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2--either with symptoms or silently--and have built up immunity against the virus. This knowledge could provide more realistic estimates of the virus's spread, yield more accurate calculations of fatality rate and help inform vaccine development and treatments. Such work is already starting in the lab of HMS geneticist Stephen Elledge, the Gregor Mendel Professor of Genetics and of Medicine at HMS and Brigham and Women's, who is adapting his VirScan tool to study antibody response following corona virus infections.

Walt's lab is developing ultrasensitive tests to detect seroconversion--the process during which an infected person's immune system produces neutralizing antibodies against the virus. Such a test could be used to identify people who have mounted an immune response to the virus and may be safe to return to work and a normal lifestyle, Walt said.

Antibody-based testing would also allow a more accurate understanding of how the immune system behaves after infection and how a person's natural immunity might wane over time. Duane Wesemann, HMS associate professor of medicine and an immunologist at Brigham and Women's, recently launched a study to explore this question. The research will compare immune responses in healthcare workers and the general public to determine whether the presence of symptoms during initial infection may be related to how robust the body's immune response is. The study will also estimate the number of people who develop antibodies without symptoms and will isolate and characterize the most protective antibodies in an effort to inform reverse-engineering approaches to vaccine development.

To avoid testing delays, as well as other challenges, in future pandemics, experts say a better centralized response, both domestically and globally, is critical.

"The scientific, regulatory and public health communities have learned a lot and are continuing to learn a lot from this crisis," Walt said. "While the tools individually work extremely well, frankly, we could do a lot better if we had a concerted collaborative mobilized effort that was positioned to anticipate and respond to these kinds of things."

Pathogenesis: Understanding the disease, from protein to person

One of the central questions about the new coronavirus and the disease that it causes revolves around the host-pathogen interaction: What type of immune response does the virus induce inside infected cells, tissues and organs?

To understand the inflammatory host response at all those levels, scientists are seeking insights into the basic signaling mechanisms that go awry during infection.

"One of the big unknowns with this virus is how it induces such a strong inflammatory response in the airway," said David Knipe, the professor of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS. "We need to understand the mechanisms of this disease because that knowledge informs everything else."

Lab-dish experiments have shown that the virus induces certain innate signaling pathways in infected human cells, explained Knipe who leads the pathogenesis part of arm of the consortium with Galit Alter. However, he said, it remains unknown what immune signaling pathways are induced in tissues or in different cell types to trigger an aberrant immune response and the subsequent massive inflammation that can lead to tissue and organ damage, a hallmark of severe COVID-19 disease. Such understanding would be critical in illuminating some of the severe complications of the disease.

Knipe, a leading authority on herpes simplex virus (HSV), has used his knowledge of HSV to study a wide range of infectious pathogens, including HIV, the West Nile virus and the SARS virus, another coronavirus that emerged in 2003. His lab developed recombinant models of HSV that express spike proteins--the molecular projections that pepper the surfaces of SARS coronavirus, MERS coronavirus and the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, and enable them to invade human cells. He and his team are now adapting this model to study the immune response induced by SARS-CoV-2. Knipe is also exploring the use of herpes virus as a possible delivery vehicle--or a vector--in vaccines for COVID-19 and other diseases.

Understanding how the new coronavirus induces immune signaling inside cells--and ultimately how it does so in tissues and organs--can inform the use of existing treatments or the design of new drugs that block inflammation induced by SARS-CoV-2, Knipe said.

"To be optimally prepared for the next pandemic, we have to have a basic, in-depth understanding of microbes and how they work," Knipe said. "The immediate priority is of course to take care of all the patients, but we need to understand the virus and how it mounts an immune response in order to develop long-term strategies for prevention and treatment."

Another key question related to the host-pathogen interaction is whether individual immune response is related to the severity of symptoms and disease transmissibility.

One of the most striking differences between the SARS-CoV-2 and its older cousins--SARS and MERS--is the ability of the new virus to cause silent infections early on. The disease can range from silent and barely symptomatic infections to critical illness.

Jonathan Abraham, assistant professor of microbiology in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS who studies emerging pathogens, said he would like to know whether the intensity of symptoms is in some way linked to the amount of virus in a person's throat and airways. In other words, is there a subset of infected, but minimally symptomatic people, unaware of their infections, unwittingly spreading the virus, emitting infectious particles with their sneezes and coughs and leaving trails of virus behind them. This quiescent, yet highly infectious phase makes the new virus a wilier pathogen than its predecessors allowing it to propagate more effectively and spread more widely.

"Are there people who have high levels of virus but are otherwise fine?" Abraham wondered. "This is a critical unanswered question, and the answer will become clearer in the coming weeks and months as various places across the globe ramp up their ability to diagnose infection, both serologically, with antibody testing, and by looking for viral RNA."

Whether infection with the virus induces long-lasting immune response is another area of uncertainty. Non-peer reviewed research conducted in macaques and posted on the pre-print server bioRxiv suggests that it may. The work, however, remains to be validated through peer review and then replicated in humans. If it turns out that the virus does not create long-term immune memory and that previously infected people could be re-infected upon subsequent encounters, the challenges for vaccine design would be serious.

Reinfection might occur, for example, if the virus mutates enough to evade immune recognition, essentially appearing as a new virus to the immune system upon second encounter--much as new strains of the flu virus crop up each season. Just how prone to mutations this virus is remains to be seen, experts say.

Older patients are vulnerable to worse outcomes, so another question for immunologists is elucidating precisely how the aging immune system renders older patients more susceptible to severe disease. The immune system may be weaker in older people, as well as in people with underlying health problems, and this may delay immune responses, rendering these individuals more vulnerable to severe disease.

"We are witnessing firsthand the jumping of a virus from an animal reservoir to humans, and the emergence of a new disease," Sharpe said. "And it's not going to be the last time this happens. Establishing the new consortium is an important first step towards building a sustainable framework to rapidly mobilize the medical and scientific expertise of our community. By developing a durable, integrated, collaborative response to SARS-CoV-2 we will be better prepared to face the next pandemic."

Antiviral therapies and antibody-based treatments

In the absence of a vaccine--which remains at least a year away--antiviral therapies would be essential in two ways. First, these treatments could be used to alleviate symptoms and avert complications among those already infected. Second, they could be given as prophylaxis to those deemed at high risk for infection or for critical illness.

Such therapeutic efforts are being pursued on two main fronts: antiviral medications and antibody-based treatments.

The search for antiviral medications involves the repurposing of agents already approved for other uses and the design of small-molecule antiviral drugs from scratch.

Mark Namchuk, who co-leads the therapeutics working group with Abraham, said developing antiviral drugs for COVID-19 is at its core an exercise in therapeutic translation.

"Something that's haunted the field of infectious diseases is the sheer economics of it. It's a difficult business for the for-profit sector," said Namchuk, who is the executive director of therapeutic translation at HMS and brings extensive experience in infectious diseases, inflammation biology and virology from his previous work in the pharmaceutical industry.

"It can be very difficult to make a business case to pursue this line of work. Adding a therapeutic translation piece to what we, at HMS, are doing with the consortium around SARS-CoV-2 makes a lot of sense. Most importantly, it's 100 percent aligned with the mission of the medical school."

This pandemic offers a striking example of how mapping the architecture of a virus and understanding its basic biology can inform the development of new treatments. Scientists already have a good idea about the structure of the virus and the part they need to go after in order to block its mischief. The SARS-CoV-2 is shaped like a ball with spike proteins that form its crown-like halo. The spike protein is what the virus uses to invade human cells. To make its way inside cells, the virus attaches to the ACE2 receptor, which is found on epithelial tissue, such as the lining of the airways and lungs and, according to newly published research, in the tongue and mouth. The viral spike protein could be disabled either with a vaccine or therapeutic antibodies.

In the meantime, repurposing existing drugs may offer the easiest, most pragmatic route to rapid identification of antiviral treatments.

Two favorites right now are the Ebola drug remdesivir and the antimalarial drug chloroquine, both of which have shown some promise.

Remdesivir's mechanism of action is especially intriguing, Namchuk said. The drug works not by inhibiting the production of viral proteins but rather by incorporating itself into the structure of the viral RNA and interfering with RNA's ability to make more protein or replicate its genome.

"Think of it as a string of Lego blocks connected to each other to make a long chain and then inserting a block that has none of the parts that would allow the next piece to attach,"

Namchuk said. "If the virus has done all this hard work to make a string of RNA that's three, four, five hundred bases long, you incorporate one of these, well, that's the end of it."

Clinical trials of remdesivir have launched in several countries, including trials at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and at Brigham and Women's Hospital looking at outcomes among patients with severe and moderate COVID-19 disease. The Brigham and Women's trials are sponsored by Gilead Sciences, the manufacturer of remdesivir. An NIH-led study is under way at Mass General.

Besides their immediate availability, existing drugs have other appeals. Their safety profiles are relatively well-known as are their effective dosages and possible side effects. This is especially true in the case of the antimalarial drug chloroquine, which has been around since the 1930s and has recently shown promise in a small clinical trial of patients with COVID-19. The treatment is now being tested as part of a larger clinical trial at the University of Minnesota. Elsewhere, researchers will try to determine whether giving the drug as a prophylactic treatment reduces infection rates among those at high risk for acquiring one.

But how does one screen a drug for antiviral effects outside of an actual clinical trial involving sick patients? To do so, researchers place human cells in a dish and infect them with SARS-CoV-2 virus. As the microbe's machinery cranks out new copies of its genome, the virus multiplies, eventually causing the infected cells to burst and die. If a drug or a chemical added to the lab dish keeps the infected cells alive, it's a sign that the drug is halting viral replication. This is an indicator of therapeutic potential. But, Namchuk cautions, this approach currently requires level 3 biologic safety containment, which is only available in a handful of facilities. This limits the broad utility of the approach. Thus, Namchuk said, it is important to develop a testing method that doesn't require such a high level of biosafety containment. This could be done by identifying proteins critical for viral replication and cloning them. Once isolated, these individual viral proteins can be safely tested for drug interaction in a standard laboratory benchtop outside of the confines of designated biosafety labs. In addition to screening for existing drugs, Namchuk said, this approach would enable the design of new molecules from scratch.

Another approach could be the use of virtual, or in-silico, screening to comb through billions of molecules that might bind to the target protein. In-silico, or computer-based, screening combined with X-ray crystallography played a critical role in the design of protease inhibitor drugs for HIV and hepatitis C. Yet, Namchuk cautioned, this approach took years to design effective molecules. So this type of drug development, while tremendously valuable, is not likely to yield insights rapidly enough to control the current pandemic.

"Our current efforts are focused on what we can do now, but I think we want to keep an eye on what we can build so the next time this happens we're in a place where we can react more rapidly," Namchuk said. "The long-term vision for this work would be to use our resources and the collaborative that we're building now to have the staying power to keep an effort on the emerging disease front even if it's not a top-of-mind outbreak."

In yet another example of repurposing, Megan Murray, who co-leads the epidemiology arm of the new consortium, will explore whether the BCG vaccine, currently used in many countries to vaccine children against TB, might have protective effects against coronavirus infection.

The hypothesis is based on data suggesting that babies who received BCG vaccine have survival advantages over babies who didn't, an observation attributed to the vaccine's nonspecific effects against a whole range of infections that it wasn't designed to protect against.

"Presumably, it triggers some aspect of innate or acquired immune response, or both, which is not specific to the antigens presented in vaccine, but instead is generic," Murray said.

She points to a study conducted in South Africa, in which adolescents were given BCG revaccinations. The results suggested that BCG revaccination also reduced other respiratory infections, most of them viral.

Murray, an infectious disease modeler whose decades-long work has focused on TB, is now designing a clinical trial to determine whether giving the BCG vaccine could offer some protection against the new coronavirus. The trial would involve vaccinating healthcare workers in the United States and in Peru to determine whether the vaccine--either as a first-time vaccine or revaccination--could offer protection against infection with SARS-CoV-2 in these high-risk frontline workers.

"While we wait for a vaccine specifically designed for COVID-19, we ought to explore whether BCG might help protect people who are in close contact with infected patients," Murray said. "We think it's really important to examine whether BCG could be of benefit early to frontline health care workers."

Antibody-based treatments

Broadly, antibody-based treatments fall in two categories: antibodies from the blood of individuals who have recovered from COVID-19 and lab-made antibodies. Jonathan Abraham, who co-leads the therapeutic group, is part of an effort to identify such treatments. He will conduct research that involves isolating antibodies from convalescing individuals to determine how these antibodies work against the SARS-CoV-2's spike protein. The group will use imaging resources at the new Harvard Cryo-EM Center for Structural Biology to pinpoint the exact sites where their antibodies bind to the viral spike protein to disable the virus.

Researchers at HMS, and elsewhere, will harvest antibodies from patients' memory B cells, the immune cells that form and retain memory of a microbe following infection. The antibodies would then be tested in lab dishes and in animals, including mice with humanized immune systems, to confirm they are capable of recognizing and neutralizing SARS-CoV-2.

Therapeutic antibodies could be given to infected people and used prophylactically to prevent infection in individuals at high risk for acquiring one, such as health care workers. This form of protection is known as passive immunization because it delivers ready-made antibodies instead of inducing the immune system to actively make them.

Treating sick people with immune serum from convalescing patients has been used for at least a century but it is labor-intensive, expensive work that requires deriving and purifying blood plasma, testing it for infections and transfusing it into critically ill patients. So researchers are aiming to develop a scalable, faster alternative.

The expertise and infrastructure to develop antibody therapies on a large scale already exists, Abraham said, since antibody treatments are already being used in immune therapies for cancer and in certain autoimmune diseases. Identifying the neutralizing antibodies that can disable the novel coronavirus is what's currently missing, Abraham said.

"The work of this consortium will be truly a case of joining forces, working together, and comparing notes, whether it involves studying antibodies from infected patients or antibodies made in the lab, the idea is to move this as quickly as possible from the bedside to the bench and then back to the clinic," Abraham said.

Designer antibodies

Wayne Marasco knows corona viruses. Marasco, professor of Medicine at HMS and an immunologist-oncologist with training in infectious diseases, was actively involved in the SARS outbreaks of 2003 and 2004 and in the MERS outbreak of 2012.

An inherent challenge in novel diseases is that early in the emergence of a pathogen, researchers are often unable to obtain blood samples from infected patients quickly enough. This lag curtails their ability to begin work on treatments that rely on materials harvested from the blood of infected patients, such as antibodies. To bypass that hurdle, about 20 years ago, Marasco built a library of human antibodies--27 billion of them and growing.

When the immune system encounters a pathogen--whether a microbe or a cancer cell--it produces antibodies, Y-shaped protein structures that react only to a specific antigen. The part of the antibody that changes in response to each new antigen is the pair of heavy and light chains that form the two upper arms of the Y.

Marasco has created a deep well of antibodies by separating naturally occurring light and heavy chain pairs and mixing them in countless new combinations.

"When you make these libraries, you take blood from healthy individuals and randomly mix them into a tube so you end up creating new antibody specificities that were not in the original ones," Marasco said. "Basically, the library becomes a bottomless resource of antibody genes to highly infectious agents, to which the population had not been exposed."

The SARS virus appeared in 2002, causing an initial outbreak in early 2003. As soon as the genetic sequence of the virus was released, Marasco and team turned to their antibody library and designed a recombinant antibody against the SARS spike protein, in effect creating the first lab-made SARS antibodies. These antibodies successfully blocked the SARS virus in lab cells, in animal models and in human blood, but failed to neutralize the SARS virus strain that emerged in the 2003-2004 season. That pathogen was markedly different because it was the product of a different evolutionary leap. The latter virus had jumped from its natural habitat--a bat--to a human, through a different intermediary host, Marasco said. That middle step altered the viral genome and resulted in a modified spike protein.

"The 2003 SARS antibodies performed poorly against the 2004 strain because the virus had evolved, so we had to find another cocktail," Marasco said. "We learned that not all neutralizing antibodies are made the same way, and we tweaked our approach. Eventually, we found a pair of antibodies the virus could not escape from."

What became clear, he added, is that designing an antibody therapy with a long shelf life requires designing agents that can act broadly enough to prevent the virus from escaping before it's neutralized--preferably agents with a back-up antibody that ensures neutralization if the first one fails.

"You basically have to study the virus's evolution to anticipate viral escape and preemptively design a therapy that that forces the virus into an evolutionary dead-end path from where it can't escape," he said.

Lack of broad neutralization can have deleterious effects beyond failing to stop the virus in its tracks. An antibody that fails to disable the virus might render the pathogen more virulent by allowing the virus to sneak into cells that it would otherwise not infect.

"Microbes evolve to stay alive," Marasco said. "That's why they're still here. And you've got to be very careful about developing therapies that really have durability and don't cause a gain of function to make the virus more infectious."

It's an approach Marasco is working to replicate with the novel coronavirus.

Antibody-based therapies are not cheap, he cautioned, and they can take time to develop.

A vaccine would be the best way to contain the pandemic, he said, but there is a subset of people--anywhere between 10 million and 20 million in the United States in his estimates--who may not be good candidates for a vaccine or would not respond to a vaccine. These include people with active cancer, immunocompromised people, pregnant women and older people whose immune systems are too weak to build vaccine-induced immunity.

"These people remain at risk and need to be treated with something--small-molecule drugs or biologic agents such as antibodies," Marasco said. "One of the advantages of the antibody therapy is that done right, it can last a whole season."

Marasco sees the new coronavirus as a harbinger of things to come. The fact that two corona viruses using the exact same cell protein to invade the human body--ACE2--jumped species in a relatively short time span means it's only a matter of time before another such viral jump occurs.

Bats are the natural reservoirs for coronaviruses. There are more than 1,400 bat species in the world--nearly a quarter of the roughly 5,400 mammalian species on Earth. Intermediary hosts can vary--civet cats for SARS coronaviruses, camels and ungulates for MERS coronavirus--so it would be prudent for people, when possible, to amend their activities around these viral sources and carriers.

"There are precursor viruses that are sitting out there," Marasco said. "These viruses have the ability to jump species by just an accidental mutation and, given the vector and the right exposure, that could be enough. We have to be proactive and assume that there are continuous zoonotic transfers. They just don't always make it successfully. This new one did."

Marasco said he hopes this time around, the lesson will stick.

"We have to study these pathogens in their natural reservoirs to look at the likelihood of transfer to humans," Marasco said. "We have to ask 'What would it take for a zoonotic jump to occur?' If we can do that, I think we can get a lot further in being able to recognize the potential threats and how we might mitigate against them."

VACCINE: The ultimate quest

The most reliable, tried-and-true way to end a pandemic is a vaccine.

"The stunning epidemiology and clinical features of COVID-19, particularly the potential for explosive and asymptomatic spread, increase the chance that a vaccine may actually be required to end this epidemic," said Dan H. Barouch, co-leader of the consortium's vaccine development arm, during a recent Covid-19 grand rounds presentation.

Thus far, the behavior of SARS-CoV-2 has shown encouraging signs that a vaccine may be feasible, said Barouch, HMS professor of immunology and of medicine, director of the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and steering committee member of the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard.

First, most people infected with SARS-CoV-2 recover. This suggests that the pathogen may induce natural immunity, which will need to be confirmed in thorough studies. Second, scientists do not know whether the virus will mutate substantially over time, but thus far it has not, which suggests that a single vaccine may be effective. Third, there is a clear target for the vaccine: The spike protein, which the virus uses to enter and infect human cells.

There are more than two dozen vaccine candidates around the world in various stages of development, including two in Barouch's lab. These include DNA-based vaccines, RNA-based vaccines, protein-based vaccines, inactivated-virus vaccines, and vector-based vaccines. The latter type uses weakened virus as a carrier to transport pieces of a pathogen to trigger an immune response.

Up until January, Barouch had never worked on coronaviruses--his previous work includes seminal studies on HIV and Zika, but when he and colleagues first started hearing reports of this new virus, they knew they had to get involved.

"With the experience that we had with HIV and Zika, we felt that we had an obligation to help with vaccine development for this global crisis," Barouch said. "Since January, that feeling has only intensified."

The SARS-CoV-2 sequence was released on Jan. 10. By Jan. 13, Barouch's lab had ordered synthetic viral genes for two vaccine platforms. On Jan. 31, they entered a collaboration with the pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson to develop a COVID-19 vaccine using recombinant adenovirus vectors. By Feb. 6, they had immunized the first mice. The work continues in a broad range of animal models now with the hope that clinical trials in humans will begin in the fall.

While the race to a COVID-19 vaccine has moved at unprecedented speed, a widely deployable vaccine is at least a year away and perhaps longer, Barouch cautioned.

"What we need is to deploy hundreds of millions of doses of a safe and effective vaccine for the general population," Barouch said. "This is the only relevant timeline, and so a vaccine for clinical use is still a long way off."

Moreover, Barcouch emphasized, multiple vaccines should be pursued in parallel to have multiple shots on the goal to determine the safest, most effective and most widely deployable vaccine.

Lessons from TB

Once of the fundamental mechanisms of a new disease are understood, there are different levels of translation--from basic research in the lab to diagnosis and treatment in the clinic, from clinic to practice and, ultimately, from clinical practice to population care. The final frontier of translation--and arguably the most important--is the actual delivery of screening, testing and treatment to those who need them. That is the focus of the Center for Global Health Delivery in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at HMS.

Lessons learned from the field of TB could be valuable in the context of coronavirus, according to center director Salmaan Keshavjee, professor global health and social medicine in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS.

On average, TB continues to kill some 4,000 people a day worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. On March 30, COVID-19 killed 3,398 people in a single day.

The way to stop TB, Keshavjee said, is to go to communities, screen, test and treat--in place--an approach that holds lessons for the treatment of COVID-19.

"Hundreds of papers and studies in the field have shown this is the right approach, it's just that it's not deployed universally," Keshavjee said. "Where it has been deployed, it has stopped transmission and largely stopped the epidemic."

Just like TB, he added, COVID-19 should be tested for and treated in the community to the extent possible, and hospital care reserved for the very sick. Classic TB studies from the 1930, 1940s and 1950s support that very notion.

Early work showed that if you brought everyone in the hospital for treatment, you put them and their families at greater risk for TB, but if you treated them in the community, they fared just as well, if not better. Do you want to put people in hospitals if they don't need to be there? No." Salmaan Keshavjee, professor global health and social medicine in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS

The data from China and elsewhere shows that hospitals are hotspots of transmission. In one study from China, up to 40 percent of infections may have occurred in the hospital.

"To prevent this, you want to deliver as much care as possible where people live and work," Keshavjee said. "This epidemic requires that we think about robust community-centered screening and care in addition to what we are doing in hospitals."

Moreover, he added, workers must be deployed where the infection is and screen in neighborhoods, test people before they get sick and give them prophylactic therapy, if and once it becomes available. Those who get sick should receive care--in their homes--unless they become severely ill.

"Our current approach to quarantine is not in itself a solution to contain the spread of corona virus in communities. It's a way to buy time to do testing and tracing, and isolate carriers of the virus and their contacts so that we can stop the epidemic," Keshavjee said. "We are doing little of that currently in the United States. Most of our activities are focused around hospitals. This is obviously necessary, but not enough."

Any insights gleaned in the lab, Keshavjee said, need to be translated into the clinic and then, perhaps more importantly, to the communities where people live and work.

"The response to the pandemic has got to include community-wide diagnosis and the creation of "virtual hospitals"--community based care--in the patient's home," Keshavjee said. "It's the only way we are going to be able to emerge from our period of physical isolation better than we went into it."

Community-wide diagnosis and community-based care will be easier for countries with universal healthcare. Epidemics have a way of exposing the vulnerabilities of health care systems. The U.S. healthcare system is beginning to grapple with questions such as who pays for testing and who pays for imaging and treatment. Even though some insurance companies have waived payments for testing, this is a Band-Aid approach that doesn't solve the issue of treatment, Keshavjee said.

"What if you don't have health insurance? And if you do have insurance, what if your emergency room copay is $150? Hopefully new legislation will address some of these issues."

This pandemic should be an opportunity for hospitals to adopt a true hub-and-spokes model of diagnosis and care, Keshavjee said, to think about what it takes to deliver care in the communities where patients live. This approach is important for coronavirus, he says, but also for diabetes, heart disease, disorders of mental health, and many of the other conditions that affect the lives of people worldwide.

"These are the least sexy systemic and policy issues," Keshavjee said. "We can have all the great science and effective drugs, but if people are not getting diagnosed and treated, the human, social and economic toll on the system and, collectively, on all of us will be staggering."
SALT LAKE CITY, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Woodside Homes has joined Leading Builders of America's urgent, national call to collect unused, excess masks and eye protection equipment from its trade partners. These are being collected at Woodside Homes' Corporate Office, 460 West 50 North, Suite 200, Salt Lake City. Cash donations are also being accepted at https://www.directrelief.org/ . The public can follow the effort on social media at #BuildersCare.

"This is an opportunity for the homebuilding industry to step up to aid in the coronavirus public health crisis and protect our essential healthcare workers," says Woodside Homes CEO Joel Shine. "As a company that cares deeply about our communities, our homebuyers, and employees, Woodside Homes is calling on all of our trade partners to act with a sense of urgency to respond to our nation's shortage of protective equipment. Together, we can fight this pandemic and come out stronger than ever as an industry and as a country."

As Woodside helps to fulfill this need in the healthcare community, it also is implementing measures to help keep employees and customers safe as the construction and sales of new homes continues. Woodside Homes' sales offices, model homes, and Inspiration Gallery design centers have enacted screening policies for anyone entering these venues. Visitors are asked to affirm that they and all members of their households are in good health and not under quarantine, have not been in contact with someone who may have COVID-19, and are not high risk for COVID-19 such as recent travel. In accordance with recommended CDC guidelines, Woodside employees will maintain appropriate social distance, refrain from handshakes, visit homes in separate cars, and limit group sizes to 10 or less (this number may be further reduced). High touch points, such as door handles, chairs, desks, and phones are regularly sanitized.

"We have consulted with experts to implement best practices designed to protect our community, employees, homebuyers, and trade partners while we continue construction and sales to meet the housing demand in the markets where we build," Shine explains.

About Woodside Homes

Woodside Homes, one of the top 30 homebuilders in the U.S., is celebrating its 43rd year in the business of designing and building single-family homes for move-up and entry-level buyers. Woodside Homes is dedicated to being "Better by Design," delivering an exceptional experience to every customer and acting as a trustworthy, knowledgeable guide throughout the home buying process.

In 2017, Woodside Homes was acquired by SEKISUI HOUSE, one of the world's largest homebuilders. The two companies joined forces with their shared philosophies in creating sustainable communities that grow and adapt to the needs of today's homebuyers.

Media Contact:

Hilary Reiter

Redhead Marketing & PR

[email protected] | 435.901.2071

www.woodsidehomes.com

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Craig Morris, his wife, two kids and three grandchildren are no longer booked on a seven-day holiday in hell.

But they were fought by the cruise operator, Carnival, every step of the way.

Morris, 71, and his family were booked into three cabins on the Carnival Panorama, which was scheduled to set sail from Long Beach on April 11.

Until Monday, Carnival had insisted the Riverside, Calif., resident was out of luck if he wanted his $7,500 ticket cost refunded. Instead, the company said he and his family could book a different cruise at any time over the next 12 months.

Needless to say, that wasn't a very appealing option.

"We're not going to take any cruise over the next 12 months," Morris told me. "At my age, I can't risk it."

Carnival announced Monday that it will extend to May 11 a voluntary suspension of voyages and will offer refunds to passengers whose trips have been canceled.

The fact that Morris had to spend weeks battling the world's biggest cruise operator over a refund illustrates the frustration many travelers have experienced recently with cruise ships, airlines, hotels and other businesses that didn't want to forgo profits, regardless of the circumstances.

"It's ridiculous," he said. "I'm amazed it took them this long to act."

Recent horror stories about people being trapped on cruise ships as the coronavirus raged from deck to deck would make any pending holiday at sea appear more like a death wish than a restful vacation.

On Friday, the Carnival-owned Holland America Zaandam reported that four people had died on the vessel and dozens more were exhibiting coronavirus symptoms.

Yet Morris, who figures he and his wife have taken about a dozen cruises over the years, told me he couldn't get Carnival to listen to reason.

"I paid $7,500 last July for this trip," he said. "But no matter how much I explained how dangerous this is, Carnival kept saying they wouldn't refund my money."

Carnival's intransigence over the past few weeks mirrors that of many other cruise operators and leading airlines. Yes, you can reschedule. But, no, in most cases you can't have your money back.

Meanwhile, cruise operators, airlines, hotel companies and others in the hospitality trade haven't hesitated to seek taxpayer cash to keep them financially afloat during the pandemic.

There's a case to be made for bailing out ailing U.S. airlines, although, as I've written, it should come with strings attached. Cruise lines are a tougher sell, bailout-wise.

Like airlines, these companies lavished the multibillion-dollar windfall of President Trump's tax cuts on themselves, indulging in stock buybacks aimed at padding the pockets of shareholders.

That's bad enough. Even worse is the fact that most major cruise operators are incorporated outside the United States and don't pay federal income taxes.

Carnival's headquarters is in Miami but the company is incorporated in Panama. Most of its ships, including the Carnival Panorama, fly the Panamanian flag.

Foreign flags allow cruise ships to skirt stricter U.S. regulations, including safety rules, and to take advantage of home ports' more advantageous tax benefits.

The $2-trillion aid package signed into law Friday appears to leave the cruise industry out in the cold. It limits financial assistance to U.S.-incorporated companies with a majority of workers based in the country.

But the industry may still receive its slice of bailout pie. Trump said last week that aid for cruise lines remains in the cards.

"We are going to work very hard on the cruise-line business, and we are going to try to work something out," he said, singling out Carnival as "a great company."

Carnival announced in February 2018 that it would spend up to $1 billion repurchasing its own shares as part of a plan for "increasing shareholder returns."

Over the span of three years, the company said, it had allocated $3.5 billion for stock buybacks and doubled quarterly dividends paid to shareholders.

Morris started rethinking his upcoming family cruise to Mexico while watching the drama of the Diamond Princess play out last month off the coast of Japan.

More than 3,700 passengers and crew members were stuck on board the Diamond Princess as the coronavirus tore through the vessel. Over 700 people tested positive. At least 10 have died.

A second Princess ship, the Grand Princess, docked in Oakland this month after a trip to Hawaii. At least 103 passengers tested positive for the coronavirus. Two have died.

Princess Cruises is a Carnival subsidiary.

"When I saw all this happening, I was petrified," Morris said. "There was no way I was taking my family out on a cruise."

He didn't have travel insurance, but that might not have helped. As I've previously reported, epidemics are routinely listed among exclusions in most travel policies.

"I called Carnival and explained our situation and asked for a refund," Morris said. "All they were willing to offer was a credit for a future cruise."

Vance Gulliksen, a Carnival spokesman, told me last week that rules are rules. This was before Monday's announcement that Morris' cruise had been called off.

"Please understand that this is a special circumstance, and normally guests like Mr. Morris and his traveling companions who did not purchase travel insurance would be subject to our cancellation guidelines," Gulliksen said.

Those guidelines require that passengers forfeit 75% of their fare for any cancellation made between 29 and 15 days before a cruise.

Cancellations made 14 days or fewer before a cruise require passengers to give up 100% of their booking cost.

Gulliksen told me Monday that Morris now "can opt for a full refund."

"We remain committed to our return to service and will use this time to continue to build additional processes, protocols and resources to protect the health and safety of our guests, crew and the destinations we serve," Carnival said in a statement.

"We thank our guests for their understanding and look forward to welcoming them on a future Carnival cruise."

I asked Morris if that was in the cards.

"No," he replied without hesitation. "Maybe a Disney cruise. We'll never go with Carnival again."

Carnivals shareholders might want to put that long-term customer feedback alongside the short-term gain of all those stock buybacks.

ABOUT THE WRITER: David Lazarus, a Los Angeles Times columnist, writes on consumer issues. He can be reached at david.lazarus@latimes.com.

MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE

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An area at the SSE Arena car park in Belfast city centre where it is believed a Covid-19 testing centre is being erected

A virology expert has defended Northern Ireland's response to the coronavirus pandemic which could kill up to 3,000 people in its first wave.

Dr Connor Bamford, a virologist from Queen's University in Belfast, said social distancing measures appear to be helping to slow the spread of the virus but said anyone showing signs of the disease should isolate for a fortnight instead of the recommended seven days.

"I think there has been a lot of talk about the differences between the way Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland are responding to the virus and I'm not sure the criticisms are fair, I think it is just inflaming things," he said.

"Both the Republic and Northern Ireland are doing pretty good, no-one is doing perfectly, but I do think something they are doing in the Republic, where people with the virus are isolating for 14 days, is something we should be replicating here.

"This is because there is evidence that the virus is still present in people's nostrils after 10 days.

"However, in Northern Ireland, we are quite fortunate that the lockdown came in relatively early and I think the possibility of 3,000 people dying in the first wave is a good figure to aim for," he added.

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Dr Bamford was speaking after Health Minister Robin Swann revealed the key findings of an expert modelling study looking at the virus in Northern Ireland, which is being used to inform preparations for the impending surge of coronavirus here.

Mr Swann said experts now believe that up to 3,000 people may lose their lives after a drastic lockdown was put in place across Northern Ireland and that the health service has "a realistic prospect of coping in this initial period".

I think we are looking at the possibility of a third and fourth wave and it will keep coming back, so social distancing measures will be an important tool until a vaccine is developed and everyone can be vaccinated Dr Connor Bamford

However, he stressed that this will only be possible if people continue to follow the advice over staying at home and only leave when absolutely essential.

"I would emphasise that it provides no grounds whatsoever for dropping our guard," he explained.

"On the contrary, the projections underline that the continuation of rigorous social distancing will save many lives and protect our health service from collapse.

"Even then, a reasonable worst case scenario would involve significant loss of life In Northern Ireland.

"In addition, the absence of a vaccine means we will have to plan for a potential second wave of Covid-19 cases later in the year."

Dr Bamford said officials will only be able to look at lifting restrictions on movement when the number of cases and deaths begin to drop considerably.

Expand Close Forthill Cemetery in Cookstown, where additional graves are being dug Photopress Belfast / Facebook

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"It wouldn't really make sense for them to look at removing the measures until the figures drop below the levels when the lockdown was put in place," he added.

"It would have to be done very carefully to make sure that the second wave, when it happens, is kept under control as much as possible.

"I think we are looking at the possibility of a third and fourth wave and it will keep coming back, so social distancing measures will be an important tool until a vaccine is developed and everyone can be vaccinated."

Mr Swann revealed the findings of the expert study on Wednesday, which sets out a reasonable worst case scenario, based on a number of assumptions, including social distancing measures producing a 66% reduction in contacts outside the home and workplace.

In addition, 70% of symptomatic cases would adhere to case isolation.

The modelling team's best judgment is that this would lead to a peak number of 180 Covid-19 patients requiring ventilation and critical care beds during the first wave of the epidemic. The peak number of Covid-19 hospital admissions would be 500 per week.

Under this reasonable worst case scenario, the projected number of cumulative Covid-19 deaths in Northern Ireland over 20 weeks of the epidemic would be 3,000.

The modelling indicates that the peak of the first wave of the epidemic will begin next Monday and run until April 20.

The authors of the report said the work is not a prediction or forecast, rather a model for planning purposes.

They continued: "It is assumed that current restrictions remain in place for the foreseeable future. When the current restrictions are relaxed, there will be a second wave. Future modelling will focus on the size and shape of this depending on how and when restrictions are relaxed or re-introduced.

"This will remain the case until there is substantial population immunity either as a result of recovery from infection or successful vaccination," they said.

Meanwhile, Northern Ireland's chief medical officer Dr Michael McBride has said there are already more than 150 ventilators in place and he is confident that additional ventilators will arrive soon. "It would be wrong to communicate a message that we will not be prepared or ready for this," he said.
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World Bank approves USD 1-billion emergency funds for India to tackle coronavirus outbreak

International

pti-PTI

Washington, Apr 02: The World Bank on Thursday approved USD 1-billion emergency financing for India to tackle the coronavirus outbreak, which has claimed 76 lives and infected 2,500 others in the country.

The World Bank's first set of aid projects, amounting to USD 1.9 billion, will assist 25 countries, and new operations are moving forward in over 40 nations using the fast-track process, the bank said.

The largest chunk of the emergency financial assistance has gone to India -- USD 1 billion. "In India, USD 1 billion emergency financing will support better screening, contact tracing, and laboratory diagnostics; procure personal protective equipment; and set up new isolation wards," the World Bank said after its Board of Executive Directors approved the first set of emergency support operations for developing countries around the world, using a dedicated, fast-track facility for COVID-19 response.

In South Asia, the World Bank also approved USD 200 million for Pakistan, USD 100 million for Afghanistan, USD 7.3 million for Maldives and USD 128.6 million for Sri Lanka.

The World Bank said it is now working to grant up to USD 160 billion over the next 15 months to support measures to tackle the pandemic which will focus on the immediate health consequences and bolster economic recovery.

The broader economic program will aim to shorten the time to recovery, create conditions for growth, support small and medium enterprises, and help protect the poor and vulnerable.

There will be a strong poverty focus in these operations, with an emphasis on policy-based financing, and protecting the poorest households and the environment, it said. "The World Bank Group is taking broad, fast action to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and we already have health response operations moving forward in over 65 countries," said World Bank Group President David Malpass.

"We are working to strengthen (the) developing nations' ability to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and shorten the time to economic and social recovery.

The poorest and most vulnerable countries will likely be hit the hardest, and our teams around the world remain focused on country-level and regional solutions to address the ongoing crisis," Malpass said.

According to the bank, USD 100 million will support Afghanistan to slow and limit the spread of COVID-19 through enhanced detection, surveillance, and laboratory systems, as well as strengthen essential health care delivery and intensive care.

In Pakistan, USD 200 million will support preparedness and emergency response in the health sector and include social protection and education measures to help the poor and vulnerable cope with the immediate impacts of the pandemic, the bank said.

Responding to widespread supply chain disruptions, the World Bank is helping countries access critically needed medical supplies by reaching out to suppliers on behalf of the governments.

The World Bank is encouraging others to provide financial support to developing countries for the COVID-19 health response, said the media statement.
<! The worshippers who attacked government officials >

The Lagos State COVID-19 Taskforce, mandated by the State Government to monitor and enforce compliance against public gatherings exceeding 25 people, was on Tuesday attacked by some Muslim worshippers at the Agege Central Mosque.

Speaking on the incident, the General Manager, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA) and leader of the Taskforce, Dr. Dolapo Fasawe condemned the attack and described it as barbaric and uncalled for, saying our people are out to protect the residents of the State and yet were attacked for doing their jobs.

She stated that the State Government will not hesitate to sanction violators to serve as a deterrent to others, adding that it was obvious the gathering did not comply with the directive of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on public gathering and social distancing.

According to her, Taskforce team COVID-19, comprising of Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), Lagos Safety Commission and the Rapid Response Squad, saw the Muslim faithful observing their evening prayer (Solatul Eshai) in a large congregation, contrary to the directive on total lockdown to stem the tide of the COVID-19 pandemic in the State.

However, a drama ensued when some of the Muslim youths sighted the team and became aggressive, unruly and started to attack the team. Others in the mosque, numbering about 300 rushed out chanting ALLAHU AKBAR and joined them in the attack by throwing stones at the vehicles. All entreaties to talk to the Imam failed as the youth were persistent. But the Police escort rose to the occasion by curbing further attacks and ensuring the safety of the team, she disclosed.

Fasawe revealed that the Agency has been enjoying support and compliance from religious houses and was surprised that the congregation of a mosque that was visited last week could default and also attack government officials trying to enforce compliance.

In her words, The team has visited several places of worship and have been able to enlighten them and advocate the social distancing approach in all gatherings. But in this instance, the mosque was filled to capacity. The essence of social distancing is to curtail the spread of Coronavirus. The people are endangering their lives and those of their neighbours.

While noting that the State Government remains committed to protecting all residents, Dr. Fasawe promised to escalate the matter to appropriate quarters because such gathering should not be allowed to continue in the interest of all.

In his own remark, the Director-General, Lagos State Safety Commission and Co-Leader of the Taskforce, Mr. Lanre Mojola observed that the leadership of the two prominent religious organisations in the State had been adequately sensitised and carried along in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

But we wont relent, we will continue to appeal to our people to heed advice. Prayers can be observed at home, businesses can be resuscitated but this deadly virus is dangerous if not well managed and timely controlled. If not for us, but for our families, friends and neighbours, let us do the needful and observe safety measures at all times, he added.

Majola, therefore, implored all Lagosians to comply fully with the directive as the present administration will not hesitate to apply the law when necessary.

Recall that the Lagos State Special Taskforce on COVID-19 was recently inaugurated by the State Government to enforce the executive orders toward curtailing the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic.

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BETHESDA (dpa-AFX) - Marriott International announced a security data breach at its property system that hit up to approximately 5.2 million guests. The breached information is believed to exclude Marriott Bonvoy account passwords or PINs, payment card information, passport information, national IDs, or driver's license numbers. The latest incident, however, is less severe compared to the hotel chain's 2018 data breach that contained information of up to 500 million guests including passport numbers and credit card information. The hotel chain, which operates more than 7,300 properties, noted that Marriott's brands of hotels, both operated and franchised, use an application to attend its guests. An unexpected amount of guest information was likely accessed using the login credentials of two employees at a franchise property. The company said the hackers possibly collected information such as contact details including name and phone number, birth dates, loyalty account information, and preferences of stay, among others. Marriott identified the issue at the end of February 2020, but believes that the activity started in mid-January 2020. The company initiated an investigation soon after confirming that the login credentials were disabled. Following this, the company notified relevant authorities, and has now implemented heightened monitoring, and arranged resources to inform and assist guests. Marriott is also sending emails to guests involved in the data breach. The hotel chain does not expect the costs related to the incident to be significant, and it carries insurance, including cyber insurance. In early February, casino operator MGM Resorts International said it was the victim of a data breach in 2019 after a report claimed that the details of more than 10.6 million hotel guests were exposed. Last year, food delivery company DoorDash also announced that around 4.9 million of its consumers, Dashers, and merchants were hit by a data security breach. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
False: MCI has not said MBBS students will be recruited to fight COVID-19

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 02: An advisory is being circuited in the name of the Medical Council of India that MBBS students will be recruited to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The circular which is attributed to the MCI says that due to the fast spreading virus, medical colleges are advised to recruit all MBBS undergraduates, interns and students-Part-II of 3rd MBBS starting from April 3. It is said that other UG courses shall remain suspended. The state governments and universities must take full responsibility in transporting and also training the students.

However the MCI has not issued any such circular. The government has not issued any such directive. Please do not trust this message as it is fake.

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Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 15:37 [IST]
10 Indonesians who tested positive met scores of people after Tablighi meet

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 03: Alarm bells are ringing in Telangana after 10 religious preachers from Indonesia tested positive for the novel coronavirus. These persons had taken part in the Tablighi Jamaat meet at Nizamuddin and reached Ramagundem in Telangana on March 13 by the AP Sampark Kranti Express before testing positive.

All of them were shifted a hospital in Hyderabad by the rapid response team on March 16. By this time they had visited a Mosque in Karimnagar and met with 100s of people.

Though the 10 had tested positive by March 20, it was only on March 30 that the state government asked the public to come forward and inform the health department if they had taken part in the meet at Nizamuddin.

The first time the connection between the Tablighi Jamaat and coronavirus emerged was on March 17 2020. It was at this time that a case was detected in Telangana and by March 21, the Ministry of Home Affairs had drawn up a list of 800 foreigners associated with the Tablighi Jamaat.

First link between Tablighi Jamaat congregation and COVID-19 was spotted on March 17

It was learnt that an Indonesian, who attended the conference at Nizamuddin and travelled to Telangana had tested positive on March 17. Home Ministry sources tell OneIndia that nearly 1,000 Tablighi workers from abroad were in India. Of this around 200 were staying in Nizamuddin, the source also said.

The source also said that once they had identified the 800 foreign nationals, an advisory was sent to all the states to track them and medically screen them. The MHA says that nationals of Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Kyrgyzstan had come for proselytising activities.

The MHA says that so far 1,203 Tablighi Jamaat workers had been screened of which 303 had symptoms of COVID-19. The MHA in a statement said that the Bureau of Immigration has been sharing since February 1 with State authorities, details of all international arrivals from affected countries based on Self Declaration Form filled in by them. In addition, since March 6, Bureau of Immigration had also been sharing details of all the international arrivals (both Indians and foreigners) at all the international airports in the country.

What is the Tablighi Jamaat and how does it function

Meanwhile the government has decided to blacklist all the foreigners who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event at Nizamuddin for violation of visa rules. Nearly 800 will be blacklisted, government sources have confirmed. Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said that all those who travelled to India on tourist visas recently and violated visa conditions will be proceeded against legally. This would include being blacklisted as well, he said.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 8:23 [IST]
An IS newsletter has urged followers to launch attacks amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A new editorial in the latest al-Naba newsletter has called for members to continue their globe-spanning terror, even as the virus spreads, and provides a list of directives to deal with epidemics.

The commentary added that coronavirus was a punishment for non-Muslims and that no mercy should be shown.

ISIS has called on God to increase the coronavirus torment of non-believers (file photo)

While the list included 'stay away from sick people', 'wash your hands before eating' and 'avoid travel to affected areas', it also included directive to 'put your faith in God and seek refuge in him'.

The news comes as The International Crisis Group warned the coronavirus pandemic was threatening the global solidarity that is integral to fighting extremists.

A statement issued this week said: 'It is almost certainly correct that Covid-19 will handicap domestic security efforts and international counter-ISIS cooperation, allowing the jihadists to better prepare spectacular terror attacks.'

Although it it too soon to say which attacks can be blamed on militants exploiting Covid-19, Islamist extremists carried out their deadliest assault yet in late March against the Chad military - a significant contributor to Africa's growing counter terrorism efforts.

US army soldiers, part of the Combined Joint Take Force Operation Inherent Resolve, walk around the K1 Air base in northern Iraq before a planned pull US pullout earlier this week

Two military officials in Egypt recorded a spike in IS attacks in March in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula while security forces foiled another three major assaults.

The virus has spread to Syria and Iraq, with the coronavirus pandemic prompting the US-led coalition to halt training activities in Iraq amid a planned pullout from several bases.

There are signs elsewhere that other militaries, including the US and British, are pulling back because of the virus which could leave a possible opening for extremists to attack.

Medical workers oversee the disinfection of streets in Syria in an attempt to halt the spread of coronavirus

That is a danger in Africas hot spots of the Sahel, the Lake Chad region and Somalia, where the US military already worried allies in recent months by contemplating cuts to focus on threats from China and Russia.

Clionadh Raleigh, executive director of the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which tracks extremists activities worldwide, said: 'Any state that was interested in pulling back in Africa will take the opportunity to do so. That will be unbelievably bad.'

The British army mission in Kenya, which provides counterterrorism training and other skills, also announced this week that all army families will return to the UK because of the virus.

But The French Defence Ministry said it is keeping its 5,100 troops in its largest overseas military mission in West Africas sprawling Sahel region.

A pro-Al-Qaida French organisation issued a statement this week urging French forces to stay home and save lives instead. Al-Qaida itself suggested in a statement that non-Muslims use their time in quarantine to learn about Islam.

Antonio Guterres (pictured) issued a plea in March calling for an immediate global ceasefire of war in a bid to tackle coronavirus

African military units, already stretched thin and under attack, are likely to take protective measures as the virus threatens their ranks.

A leaked memo signed by a Nigerian armys policy chief says vehicles may have to be used for mass burials or transferring the sick to hospitals as the virus spreads.

Under-guarded prisons could also be targets as well as security forces, according to counterterrorism advisor Laith Alkhouri. Both IS and al-Qaida-linked fighters have turned the Sahel into Africas most urgent extremism crisis.

He said their fighters are likely to exploit the pandemic by accusing governments of mismanaging the crisis in an attempt to win popular support.

Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the UN, issued a plea in March in which he said: 'I am calling for an immediate global ceasefire in all corners of the world. It is is time to put armed conflict on lockdown and focus together on the true fight of our lives.'

He added: 'Let us take inspiration from coalitions and dialogue slowly taking shape among rival parties to enable joint approaches to Covid-19. But we need much more. End the sickness of war and fight the disease that is ravaging out world. It starts by stopping the fighting everywhere. Now.'

Some extremist groups are showing signs that they are trying to understand and respond to coronavirus. In Somalia, the Al-Qaida-linked group Al-Shabab held a rare five-day meeting of its leaders in March where they discussed the virus.

An Al-Shabab spokesman said it was too soon to comment though on whether the group would listen to Guterres' plea, or whether it would allow health workers access to areas it controls.
YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan -- Some sailors were ordered out of the barracks here and onto their assigned ships to make room for quarantined sailors as the base battles a coronavirus outbreak, a base spokesman confirmed Wednesday.

The goal is to "free up space to create separation from quarantined or restriction-of-movement sailors," Randall Baucom told Stars and Stripes.

"Some barracks on base are being used to quarantine and isolate sailors that are being tested for or have tested positive for COVID-19," he said, using the official name of the new coronavirus.

Yokosuka has been under a shelter-at-home order since March 27, a day after the base became the first U.S. installation in Japan to have a service member test positive for coronavirus.

Two more cases were reported at Yokosuka on March 27, but the Navy has since declined to release the number of additional cases at specific installations.

Sailors assigned to the guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville were ordered out of their barracks rooms Sunday "for [their] protection and to assist with Yokosuka preventative measures," their commander, Capt. Marc Boran, said in a post on the ship's official Facebook post Saturday. Sailors assigned to warships such as cruisers and destroyers often live in barracks while those ships are in their homeports.

"We are not operating business as usual and our number one priority is to fight COVID-19 while executing our daily responsibilities," Boran said in the post.

Additionally, some Yokosuka-based sailors undergoing restriction of movement were taken to Naval Air Facility Atsugi to wait out their 14 days of limited movement, Baucom said.

Restriction of movement is an observation period that the Navy last month required for all personnel coming to Japan from other countries.

While not naming Yokosuka specifically, "Navy personnel from other bases in Japan" came to Atsugi late Tuesday to wait out their 14-day restricted movement, Atsugi commander Capt. Lloyd Mack said in a post on the base's official Facebook page Wednesday.

"These personnel are asymptomatic and have not tested positive for COVID-19," he said. "There is no intent to move COVID-19 connected personnel to this installation as we have yet to have a confirmed case."

The Navy uses the term "isolation" for those who test positive or are "reasonably believed to be infected" with coronavirus, and "quarantine" for those who have been exposed to the disease but are not yet ill, 7th Fleet spokesman Lt. Joe Keiley told Stars and Stripes last month.

Other installations across Japan have also designated isolation areas for personnel awaiting coronavirus test results. Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni furnished a barracks for that purpose, according to a Facebook post Tuesday by base commander Col. Lance Lewis.

At Iwakuni, some people may be allowed to isolate at their residences while medical experts trace personal contacts and a team of trained personnel clean up any potential hot spots the individual visited, Lewis said in his post.

Stars and Stripes reporter James Bolinger contributed to this report.

Read more: Commandant Says He Wont Force Out Marines as the Service Shrinks
An Indonesian security officer waves to inmates in Depok, near Jakarta, as they were released to avoid a surge in coronavirus infections in overcrowded prisons, April 2, 2020.

Indonesia, with 170 fatalities, surpassed South Korea on Thursday as the Asian country with the second highest death toll from COVID-19 as Indonesian President Joko Jokowi Widodo said his government would not prevent people from traveling to their hometowns to celebrate Eid al-Fitr amid the pandemic.

Jokowis statement came as prison authorities announced on Thursday that 18,000 inmates had been released to curtail the spread of coronavirus in the nations overcrowded prison system.

I want to encourage participation at the community level  so that revellers who come from greater Jakarta can self-isolate (in their hometowns), Jokowi said at a cabinet meeting.

The government was considering granting more holidays in the future to compensate for peoples inability to celebrate Eid, he said.

Eid al-Fitr, a Muslim festival marking the end of the Ramadan, Islams holy month of fasting, is expected to fall on May 24, subject to the sighting of the new moon. Last year, almost 15 million people traveled from the greater Jakarta region to their hometowns across the worlds largest Muslim-majority country.

COVID-19 cases

Indonesia recorded 13 new deaths on Thursday to bring the total to 170 and 113 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the national tally to 1,790, according to the Health Ministry.

One child aged 11 died of dengue shock syndrome and COVID-19 in East Java, ministry spokesman Achmad Yurianto told BenarNews.

The number of confirmed deaths in Indonesia is the highest in Asia outside China. South Korea has recorded 169 fatalities so far, according to the latest data compiled by disease experts at Johns Hopkins University in the United States.

Globally, 51,485 people have died and more than 1,002,159 have been infected, the JHUs Coronavirus Resource Center said.

Despite the increasing number of COVID-19 cases, Luhut Pandjaitan, coordinating minister for maritime affairs and investment, said that the decision to allow Eid travel was intended to keep the economy alive.

He appealed to Eid revellers to stay put, saying that the government would provide compensation for those who comply. He did not elaborate.

Please realize that that if you go home, you may bring the disease, Luhut said.

Holiday travelers will be subjected to rapid coronavirus tests to minimize infections, he said, adding that details were being worked out.

Juvenile offenders among inmates released

Rika Aprianti, a spokeswoman for the Corrections Directorate General, said among the 18,000 inmates released so far were juvenile offenders and adult prisoners who had served at least two-thirds of their sentences.

Our target is to release 30,000 inmates in total, but it could end up being more, she told AFP news service. This is part of the plan to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in prisons.

Previously, Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly said corruption convicts should be among inmates eligible for early release to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Prisoners who would have served two-thirds of their sentences by December 2020 were to be freed under assimilation and reintegration schemes, according to a decree signed by Yasonna.

But under a 2012 government regulation, corruption convicts are exempt from the program.

Yassona argued that the regulation should be revised to allow 300 graft inmates who are older than 60, many of them former high-ranking government officials and wealthy businessmen, to be released early.

We will propose the emergency revisions to the president, he told lawmakers on Wednesday.

But the proposal drew criticism from anti-corruption activists.

This is an opportunistic and shady move to change the rules under the pretext of coronavirus, Donal Fariz, a campaigner at Indonesia Corruption Watch, told a news conference.

He said Yassona had sought to have the regulation revised since 2015.

Andreas Harsono, an Indonesian researcher at Human Rights Watch, had urged the government to release political prisoners as well to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. These include pro-independence activists from Papua province and people who pose a relatively small security threat, he said.

The countrys prisons and detention centers hold almost 270,000 inmates, more than double the total capacity, he told BenarNews.

Islamic State update

Meanwhile, a Jakarta-based think-tank said it had monitored a reduced level of pro-Islamic State activity in Indonesia as a result of the pandemic.

The number of arrests under Indonesias counter-terrorism law fell in the first three months of 2020, the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC) said in a report released Thursday.

It said 23 suspects were arrested across the country during that period, compared with 68 arrested and indicted in the previous three months (October to December 2019).

IPAC warned that Indonesian authorities need to monitor fund-raising efforts in connection with the virus, including appeals for protective equipment for health workers.

Most of the private fund-raising efforts taking place in connection with the pandemic are going to be legitimate, but the history of Indonesia over the last two decades has been that whenever disasters occur, extremists seek to benefit, the report said.
(Photo : REUTERS/Eddie Keogh) A woman working from her computer at home is seen as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, Oxford, Britain, March 31, 2020.

While people worldwide are stuck at home due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Ookla Speedtest claims broadband speeds are catching up as much as the challenge.

Ookla, known for its Speedtest app, released numbers on the trends they observed during the outage. Here's a data on what the figures show.

The United States and net speeds as COVID-19 cases rise

The U.S. is among the worst-hit country in the list of those impacted by the pandemic, with cities like New York, San Francisco declaring lockdowns early on. Now, these have been extended to the entire country of California, New York, Connecticut, and Illinois.

Fixed broadband speeds in the U.S. flattened out after a moderate dip between Mar. 15 and 22, Ookla's results show, while speeds in Canada are continuing with a slow decline. According to the results, Both countries still have considerably better broadband than Mexico or those of Europe with average speeds between 110 and 140Mbps.

Mashable said mobile broadband speeds in the U.S. are barely down week over the week; however, it is not a pointy decline.





ALSO READ: Internet Surge is the New Normal! U.S. Officials to Allocate Funds to Boost Internet Access to Help Broadband Users Survive Coronavirus!





Internet speeds in Europe





After the U.S., Europe has tallied most of the infections. Speedtest said the average download speed over fixed broadband showed declines in Italy, France, Spain, and Switzerland between Mar. 23 to 29. Austria and Spain noticed a very mild increase in mobile download velocity all through the week of Mar. 23, even as France and Germany saw little exchange week over week.





Overall worldwide mobile volume





Speedtest noted a weekly speed degradation for its global data. The world average mobile download speed, for example, landed between 31.61 Mbps and 75.41 Mbps for fixed broadband in February 2020, according to the Speedtest Global IndexTM.

However, the Internet volume continued to grow internationally for both mobile and fixed broadband between Mar. 23 and 29 compared to the average 12 weeks prior. While these will increase were seen, fixed broadband saw the most significant change so far.





ALSO READ: Internet Is Getting Slower Worldwide; Will Coronavirus Break The Internet Connection?





Your Broadband May Still Have Problems





So if broadband speeds are not generally declining, why are you having trouble along with your video calls?

Mashable said you are using your home broadband more heavily than you have before. While the net backbones are doing fine, your home Wi-Fi network won't be, or you'll be hitting the bandwidth cap on your provider plan, or the server you're seeking to contact may be overwhelmed.

Several stories showed how conventional household electronics like microwave ovens can affect the 2.4GHz band on which many Wi-Fi networks rely.

Ofcom, the United Kingdom's media regulator, revealed there are common devices in our houses that can make your internet speed even slower than today.

Experts suggested pulling out kitchen appliances such as microwaves while making video calls, watching H.D. videos, or downloading files if you want to make things a little faster.





 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will reduce the time gay and bisexual men must be celibate in order to donate blood or plasma, a change that comes amid a national blood shortage brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

FDA officials said Thursday that gay and bisexual men will be eligible to donate if they have not had sex with another man for three months. The change takes effect immediately.

Under the agencys previous rules, male donors had to defer giving blood or plasma for a year after having sex with another man. In 2015, the agency lifted an outright ban on donations from gay and bisexual men.

Based on recently completed studies and epidemiologic data, the FDA has concluded that current policies regarding certain donor eligibility criteria can be modified without compromising the safety of the blood supply, the agency said in a statement.

Democratic lawmakers and advocacy groups had already been pushing the agency to lift what they call a homophobic vestige of the AIDS crisis. Those calls have amplified amid the coronavirus outbreak.

State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said that while the FDAs new three-month celibacy requirement is an improvement from the one-year ban, the policy is still irrational and discriminatory.

My blood could save someones life, Wiener told The Chronicle. The FDA is stuck in 1985. The FDA is not looking at the actual science and knowledge we have about HIV.

Wiener will host a #GiveForAGay blood drive on Tuesday, asking eligible donors to make an appointment to give on behalf of their gay friends. San Francisco Mayor London Breed has volunteered to donate on Wieners behalf.

Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDAs Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said the change would add tens of thousands of eligible donors.

Marks said the new policy will remain in effect after the pandemic, and that the FDA will evaluate whether to eliminate the ban entirely. He said the agency is studying whether it could replace the ban with an HIV risk assessment based on a questionnaire for potential donors.

This is not the final resting place, Marks said. But we do need a little bit more science to get there.

The FDA said its policy change comes as the coronavirus poses unprecedented challenges to the U.S. blood supply because social distancing measures and canceled blood drives have reduced donations needed to treat a host of conditions unrelated to the virus.

Eligible donors can still give blood and plasma through the Red Cross by scheduling an appointment. Blood banks have imposed extra sanitation and staff-screening measures.

Wiener said the FDAs revised policy for gay and bisexual donors still reinforces fact-free discrimination, noting that sexually active heterosexuals are not subject to celibacy requirements. He pointed out that all blood donations are screened for HIV, and fragments of the virus can be detected in blood within 10 to 14 days of infection.

Why treat gay and bi men differently than straight people? Wiener asked.

Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California, the LGBTQ advocacy group, said the FDAs change is a step forward but does not go far enough.

Zbur said the policy has prevented many gay and bisexual men from helping family members in need of blood. About three years ago, his sister needed a transfusion for surgery, but Zbur said he wasnt allowed to donate even though they share a rare blood type.

Theres no real reason why I couldnt give blood, he said, adding that the celibacy rule is based purely on fear and discrimination.

The FDAs new policy also reduces the waiting period from one year to three months for two other groups: women who have had sex with a man who has had sex with another man, and people who have gotten a tattoo or body piercing.

Dustin Gardiner is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dustin.gardiner@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @dustingardiner
Boris Johnson ignored expert evidence on preventing a pandemic when he failed to crack down early enough on coronavirus, a former chief scientific adviser says.

In a devastating attack, David King also warned that underfunding of the NHS by the Tories had undermined efforts to fight back against the outbreak and save lives.

Highlighting planning he did more than a decade ago, Sir David said: We did all the work that needed to be done  we did prepare the ground.

The prime minister delayed introducing the near-lockdown for crucial weeks, even as other countries imposed tough restrictions as the crisis unfolded in China.

But Sir David said: We did, for example, a calculation to show that  wherever this virus appeared in world  within 3 to 6 months it would be in every country of the world.

Well, we have just seen that play out. This began in China in December  it is now virtually everywhere.

Speaking to Sky News, the chief scientific adviser between 2000 and 2008 added: We know that what we should have done, early on, is take all sorts of precautionary measures to see that the virus did not get to the level it is now in this country, once we had seen what was happening in China.

But the response has been slow and, I think, because our National Health Service has suffered from underfunding from that 2010 period.

The comments come amid the first signs of public concern about the governments handling of the crisis, despite the prime ministers sky-high poll ratings.

According to the survey by Ipsos MORI, 56 per cent believe the social distancing measures were imposed too late, while just four per cent believed they were brought in too soon.

It came as the latest official figures showed that 2,921 people have died after contracting the virus in the UK while over 33,000 have tested positive.

It was only 10 days ago that Mr Johnson said people should only leave their homes to buy groceries, to exercise once a day or to travel to work if absolutely necessary.

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

Three days earlier, he ordered pubs, bars, restaurants, theatres, cafes and leisure centres to close  having earlier stepped back from doing so.

Throughout, ministers have insisted they have followed the advice of their scientists, but that disguises the U-turn when the strategy of aiming for so-called herd immunity in the population was abandoned.

The apparent plan to allow the disease to spread among healthier people is blamed for the delays in ordering sufficient testing.

Critics say the government ignored public health experts and doctors in favour of behavioural scientists and mathematical modellers.

Sir David highlighted the very different approach when the SARS outbreak hit Taiwan, in 2003, when an Imperial College expert was sent immediately to view its impact.
YEREVAN.  Forecasting the peak is not possible; the peak can be any time. Health Minister Arsen Torosyan said this during a press conference Thursday, answering a journalist's question as to whether the ministry can already know when the peak of coronavirus spread will be in Armenia.

"We cannot predict that day, but we must do everything so that that day gets closer," the minister added, in particular. Today there was more cases than yesterday. This is due to two factors: Of course, there is a spread of the infection that no one can deny; there are new centers, especially brought [from abroad], as well as the emergence of new centers from former centers, as well as with the increase in tests we do every day."

Torosyan also noted that there are very few children and pregnant women among those infected with the coronavirus in Armenia. "There are the elderly, who are at the risk group," he added. About 80 percent of patients are almost asymptomatic; that is, or is running a very low fever."
US Mint begins shipping quarters honoring Maya Angelou AP - 3 minutes ago WASHINGTON (AP)  The United States Mint said Monday it has begun shipping quarters featuring the image of poet Maya Angelou, the first coins in its American Women Quarters Program. $SPX : 4,670.29 (-0.14%) $DOWI : 36,068.87 (-0.45%) $IUXX : 15,614.43 (+0.14%)

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Shootin' the Bull Swift Trading Company - 1 hour ago Cattle were soft starting the week off. I am unsure why, but some of the excuses today have been employment issues related to Covid, and the varying stance on what to do about it.

Sugar Prices Under Pressure on Signs of Stronger Global Output Barchart - Mon Jan 10, 1:46PM CST March NY world sugar #11 (SBH22 ) on Monday closed down -0.22 (-1.22%), and March London white sugar #5 (SWH22 ) closed down -4.50 (-0.93%). Sugar prices on Monday extended their 3-week long decline, with... SBH22 : 17.83s (-1.22%) SWH22 : 481.30s (-0.93%)

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Sentiment Speaks: Are We Ready To Drop To 4400SPX? ElliottWaveTrader.net - Mon Jan 10, 1:31PM CST The market will likely be revisiting the 4400SPX region over the coming months, with the only question being if we can stretch to one more higher all-time high before we begin the pullback to 4400SPX.
File photo of the Port of Melbourne in Melbourne, Australia on Feb. 24, 2017. (Scott Barbour/Getty Images)

Australian Dockworkers Stood Down For Refusing to Unload Chinese Ship, Citing Covid-19 Risk

More than 60 Melbourne dockworkers have been stood down for refusing to unload a container ship carrying medical supplies from China.

The Xin Da Lian docked at the DP World terminal at the Port of Melbourne on Tuesday night after leaving Shanghai on March 17.

The Maritime Union of Australia says the vessel is in breach of the federal governments 14-day coronavirus quarantine period after visiting a Taiwanese port on March 19.

Dockworkers say shaving two days off the quarantine period is a risk to workers and the community. The unions members who refused to unload the vessel over concerns about the risk of the coronavirus were stood down.

DP World Australia chief operating officer Andrew Adam says the ship was cleared to berth by the Australian Border Force.

Any crew members aboard a vessel that has been to mainland China must have been at sea for 14 days before they are allowed to dock in Australia, he said in a statement on Wednesday. The union is not allowed to unilaterally declare a vessel unsafe. They are not allowed to create their own set of rules.

The company said it is following the strict rules, including advice from the ABF on March 20 that crew on commercial vessels must wear personal protective equipment in public spaces on the ship while non-crew members are on board.

The vessel is believed to be carrying toilet rolls, surgical masks, shoe coverings, chemicals for the manufacture of soap and detergent, surgical gowns, laboratory coats, hair nets, tinned food and white goods.

After 22 dockworkers refused and were stood down on Tuesday night, another 40 followed suit on Wednesday morning, DP World said. Its prompted the state opposition to ask the state government to intervene to get the goods off the vessel.

MUA national assistant secretary Warren Smith said it didnt want to see a repeat of Sydneys Ruby Princess cruise ship debacle.

The largest cluster of COVID-19 cases in Australia  was the result of inadequate measures put in place for the arrival of ships, he said in a statement. Whats the difference with this ship?

A large number of the coronavirus cases in NSW involved passengers who were on the Ruby Princess and disembarked on March 19 without adequate checks.

The union has been demanding improvements to biosecurity measures at Australian ports since January.

The Department of Home Affairs, in a statement on Wednesday afternoon, said the ships crew had to stay on board until their isolation period ends on Thursday.

The period maritime crew spend at sea prior to their arrival in Australia counts towards the 14-day period of self-isolation, the statement added. The cargo is not subject to the same restriction.

The cargo terminal operator, in this case DP World, is responsible for the movement of cargo on and off the vessel and the way that is undertaken.

It said health and biosecurity arrangements for vessels are the responsibility of state health authorities and the Department of Agriculture.

By Christine McGinn
Indias cryptocurrency businesses are eager to see the restrictions on cryptocurrencies lifted in an apex court ruling  but many are anticipating strict regulation for the sector in the coming months.

In a March 5 ruling, the Supreme Court of India decided that a 2018 Reserve Bank of India (RBI) circular that banned banks from dealing with any cryptocurrency businesses is unconstitutional and imposes disproportionate restrictions. The RBI has 30 days from the date of the ruling to file a review petition.

The 2018 circular resulted in a shutdown of cryptocurrency services in the country, but sources say that many will return to the market with this ruling.

Kunal Barchha, founder at cryptocurrency exchange CoinRecoil said: We are a startup actively looking for funding to achieve the growth we are seeking. The last two years of legal uncertainty made a lot of investors pass on our offer, but now we are very optimistic about getting in touch with angel investors and obtaining funding.

He continued: The sentiment has changed completely in the last couple of weeks. Investors are approaching us, rather than us pitching them. Things are becoming more positive.

Banks are slow to embrace crypto and blockchain

Tashish RaiSinghani, a blockchain and cryptocurrency consultant said: The established trading exchanges will now be freely operational. A large number of people had continued trading even with the prevailing ban, and they will now be trading in a legitimate manner, freed from scams.

Although the RBI is unlikely to impose an outright ban, as proposed by its draft bill in 2019, strict regulations on the burgeoning sector can be expected soon.

Vinod Kashyap, co-founder at accounting and audit firm NextGen Knowledge Solutions Private, said that comprehensive legislation to regulate cryptocurrency in India is needed as investment in exchanges and crypto companies increases. There are currently no standards on accounting, financial reporting, taxation or auditing of cryptocurrency businesses.

Rashmi Deshpande, partner at Khaitan & Co, said: Itll be interesting to see the grounds on which the RBI might petition the court decision. But as this is a ruling made by Indias highest court, the decision is unlikely to be reversed.

She said that the ruling has created a positive atmosphere for cryptocurrency businesses, and that strict restrictions like the 2018 circular are unlikely to be introduced. However, she expects regulatory developments to move fairly quickly going forward.

The judgment is open-ended as there is no discussion regarding the legality of virtual cryptoassets, said Amrit Subhadarsi, assistant professor at Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology. Permitting the holder of rights to have the fundamental right to freedom of profession without lack of clarity on the object of right itself could be a body blow to Indias nascent cryptoasset industry, as there is always regulatory room to transcend the judicial precedent.

Barchha said that if regulations do come in, they are likely to be tough. He expects high capital requirements, strict anti-money laundering (AML) policies, and compliance reports to be filed regularly with different authorities.

If a capital clause is introduced, similar to the one required for getting a stockbroker licence, then it will likely kill budding startups in the crypto industry, said Barchha. Startups usually have very limited funds and a lot to achieve. This will serve as a major roadblock.

However, he added that strict AML and other compliance rules will help the industry by introducing accountability for everyone. Additionally, with proper regulations in place, crypto businesses can avail other facilities like insurance and seamless banking services.

Sumit Gupta, co-founder and CEO at cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX, said: We would welcome some clarity on taxation as well as how to deal with cybercrimes, which are small in number but can have a significant impact on an economy as young as ours.

RaiSinghani said that in addition to strict AML guidelines, there should be stringent background checks on the promoters of cryptocurrency firms to ensure transparency of fund flow, IT security compliance requirements, and the creation of an autonomous regulatory authority to create and ensure best practices in the industry.

Beginning of the end for crypto?

 2021 Euromoney Institutional Investor PLC. For help please see our FAQs.

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Local residents wear masks as they shop at a market in Beijing on Feb. 27, 2020. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

Panic-Buying Erupts Across China, Prompting Food Shortage Concerns

In multiple cities across China, locals have emptied store shelves, stockpiling rice and cooking oil as fears of food shortages accelerate.

Mr. Li, a resident of Ezhou, a city in Hubei Province, told the Chinese-language Epoch Times that locals have been rushing to buy rice for the past two days. Its the same scene in other cities in Hubei, including Wuhan, Huanggang, and Yichang, according to social media and Chinese media reports.

Officials have stepped in to try to ease the panic. On March 31, the market regulation bureau of the municipal government in Ezhou urged, in a statement on its Weibo account, that people shouldnt frantically buy up supplies, and assured that the city has abundant rice and oil for all its residents for a year. Weibo is a Twitter-like social media platform.

The municipal government of Huanggang also released a statement on Weibo, telling people on March 31 to stop buying up rice and oil, and saying that any information about the city facing a food shortage were rumors.

Outside of Hubei, residents of Chinas Shandong and Gansu provinces also cleared store shelves of rice and oil.

A resident surnamed Chen living in Changyi city, Shandong, told the Chinese-language Epoch Times that locals have been snapping up bags of rice from stores.

A video circulating on social media showed people making large purchases of rice, noodles, and cooking oil at stores located in the Linxia Hui region of Gansu.

The panic-buying was fueled by posts on Chinese social media claiming that some countries may soon ban food exports due to the current pandemic. Thats led to a large increase in the prices of rice and cooking oil in China.

Food security is a sensitive topic for the Chinese regime. State-run companies maintain a system of grain reserves for emergencies. Chinas domestic production also cant keep up with demand, so it imports much of its grain, including from the United States.

According to data from Chinas Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, China imported 1.91 million tons of rice in the first 10 months of 2019.

Global Supplies

Some experts have warned about a possible global food shortage amid widespread disruptions due to the pandemic. The CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, first emerged in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, and has since spread to more than 200 countries and territories. More than 45,000 people outside of mainland China have died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.

Last week, Maximo Torero Cullen, chief economist at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, stated that disruption to food supply chains could occur during April and May due to the spread of the virus.

Uncertainty about food availability can spark a wave of export restrictions, creating a shortage on the global market, according to a joint statement by directors-generals of the FAO, World Health Organization, and World Trade Organization on March 31.

In the midst of the COVID-19 lockdowns, every effort must be made to ensure that trade flows as freely as possible, especially to avoid food shortage.

In late March, Vietnam, the worlds third-largest rice exporter, halted the signing of new rice export contracts, according to Vietnamese newspaper Tuoi Tre, in order to ensure it had enough domestic supply.

As of press time, India and Thailand, the worlds largest and second-largest rice exporters, havent announced any restrictions on rice exports.

On April 2, Pimchanok Vonkorpon, director-general of Thailands Trade Policy and Strategy Office under the Commerce Ministry, said there was no plan to limit rice exports, given that domestic demand accounted for just 50 percent of the countrys total production, according to Thai newspaper The Bangkok Post.

Shortage in China?

While Chinese authorities have come out publicly to appease fears of food shortages, netizens arent convinced, after a leaked government document began circulating online. The Epoch Times couldnt independently verify the veracity of the document.

A document labeled classified secret that was issued by the Linxia Hui regional government on March 28 stated that municipal and county governments must pull out all the stops to secure supplies of beef, lamb, cooking oil, salt, and other basic necessities, according to a Radio Free Asia report.

The document also stated that regional authorities must guide the public to consciously stock up, and make sure that each household has enough food for 3 to 6 months, in case of unexpected circumstances.
Two doctors suffered injuries in stone-pelting in Madhya Pradeshs Indore during a drive to screen and identify possible Covid-19 patients in the city, according to state officials.

A group of health officials involving the doctors was attacked in an Indore neighbourhood on Wednesday after an elderly woman, suspected to have come in contact with a coronavirus disease patient, was asked to accompany the team to a hospital for diagnostic tests.

Indore has recorded over 60 Covid-19 patients. The alleged attack took place in Tatt Patti Bakhal area.

Watch | COVID-19: Locals in MPs Indore pelt stones at a health department team

A video purportedly showing the doctors and health workers being attacked was widely shared on social media. It showed people wearing personal protective equipment being heckled, chased and pelted with stones in a narrow lane. HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.

We have been visiting the locality for the past three days for the screening of residents. We had information about a person coming in contact with a Covid-19 patientWe were talking to the person (the elderly woman) when, all of a sudden, residents got agitated and attacked us, said one of the doctors.

She said the police had to intervene and save the members of the team.

Two female doctors suffered injuries. They managed to save themselves by hiding behind the jeep of a tehsildar, Praveen Jadia, chief medical and health officer, Indore. Said.

Additional collector Dinesh Jain said: The police are trying to identify as to who are the persons who indulged in the attack. Action will be taken.
A woman who caught coronavirus has spent her time in isolation setting up a service to help other COVID-19 victims.

Gold Coast woman Tara O'Kane, 24, was holidaying in Peru last month with her mother Caryn, 56, when the South American nation announced it was shutting its borders.

The pair quickly embarked on a 70-hour journey home through six countries, with Ms O'Kane picking up the illness somewhere along the way.

After being diagnosed at Robina hospital and sent into home quarantine for two weeks in Mermaid Beach, Ms O'Kane became inspired to assist people in her situation during the pandemic crisis.

Tara O'Kane (pictured), 24, has become the Australian co-founder of a free delivery service for in

Now, she is the co-founder of Shopping Angels Australia - a free delivery service for individuals at risk of contracting COVID-19 or those in self-isolation.

The service allows those aged over 60, in self-isolation, or with compromised immunity to order groceries or medical supplies from retailers that are picked up and dropped to their home by volunteers.

'I had seen the US version advertised, so when I knew I had some time on my hands I reached out to Jayde Powell from the US branch,' Ms OKane told the Gold Coast Bulletin.

To sign up to the community program, clients fill out a form online with their contact details.

Shopping Angels Australia call them to discuss their needs and assign them an 'angel' then they can start receiving services.

Ms O'Kane is operating the charity with fellow Gold Coast woman, Julian Gorvin, who was also assigned as a co-founder after reaching out to Ms Powell.

The associates are yet to meet face-to face, but have been busy recruiting volunteers online since Tuesday when Ms O'Kane's isolation ended.

While she said the testing process is uncomfortable, Ms O'Kane, who showed minimal symptoms, urged anyone who suspects they have COVID-19 to get checked.

'Ive been very lucky and only had a mild case of coronavirus. I only had a sore throat,' she said.

'But I recommend getting tested if you fit the criteria, even if youre worried about the test think about how you may hurt someone in the community if you dont get tested.'
There may be tension between brothers Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex right now but despite their current situation theyve had plenty of fun times together.

While Harry adjusts to life in Los Angeles, Calif., with his wife, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and their son, Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor, following the couples decision to step down as senior members of the British royal family, were reminiscing on some silly moments Harry and William have shared in the past.

Prince Harry said he and Prince William were on different paths

Two years apart in the age, William and Harry have always had a close relationship. In 1997, following the death of their mother, Diana, Princess of Wales when they were just 15 and 12 years old respectively, the brothers developed an even stronger bond. As theyve grown up and started families of their own, William and Harry have experienced ups and downs in their relationship with each other.

During the Oct. 2019 documentary, Harry & Meghan: An African Journey, Harry admitted things havent always been great between him and William. He also added they dont talk as much as they once did. Inevitably stuff happens. But were brothers, well always be brothers. Were certainly on different paths at the moment, he said.

Hopefully William and Harry will repair their relationship sooner rather than later but in the meantime, heres a collection of their silliest photographs.

They goofed around with lightsabers

They played with lightsabers while visiting the set of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in April 2016. William and Harry also were filmed a cameo as stormtroopers in the film but it got cut. At least well always have this moment of them being silly with lightsabers.

Prince Harry and Prince William visit the Star Wars film set on April 19, 2016 | Adrian Dennis-WPA Pool/Getty Images

Prince Harry and Prince William cast spells on each other

Another one of their silliest moments also came during an event related to an iconic movie franchise; Harry Potter. In April 2013, Harry, William, and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge visited the Warner Bros. Studios in London, England, for its inauguration. They can be seen standing on the Diagon Alley featured in the Harry Potter films. All three are holding wands with Harry raising his to cast a spell on his brother.

Prince Harry, Kate Middleton, and Prince William attend the inauguration of Warner Bros. Studios in London, England, on April 26, 2013 | Chris Jackson  WPA Pool/Getty Images

They had very different reactions to holding a snake

In June 2010, Harry and William got up close and personal with an African rock python during a visit to an educational center in Botswana during a joint tour of Africa. Judging by their faces, Harry had a much more enjoyable experience with the snake than William.

Prince Harry and Prince William holding a snake during a visit to Botswana in 2010 | Samir Hussein/WireImage

Prince William and Prince Harry laughed with their dad at the Invictus Games

While attending the first Invictus Games in 2014, Harry and William had a silly moment with their father, Charles, Prince of Wales. Were not sure what they were laughing about on Williams phone. Maybe a humorous snapshot of Prince George of Cambridge, William and Catherines oldest son, whom they welcomed in July 2013.

Prince William, Prince Charles, and Prince Harry at the Invictus Games in 2014 | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Harry, who founded the Invictus Games, later attended the same event in 2017 holding hands with his future wife.

They played with Princess Diana on the beach as kids

While on a family vacation at the beach, young Harry and William covered their mother in sand. Not pictured are Dianas sisters and mother who were also on the trip.

Princess Diana gets buried in sand by her sons, Prince Harry and Prince William, while on vacation | Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images

Heres hoping we see more silly moments from William and Harry in 2020!
A tearful coronavirus patient who now has sepsis pneumonia has urged the public to 'stay at home' in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19.

In her appeal, Sharon Cook, from Cherry Willingham, Lincolnshire, who was hospitalised with coronavirus on March 23, described the 'horrendous' symptoms the virus had left her with and explained it was 'not worth going out even if you miss your friends'.

Ms Cook took to Facebook from her hospital bed to tell the public: 'I thought I'd do a quick Vlog. I've been in hospital since March 23 with COVID-19. I was tested as positive but now that's getting better.

'Now I have sepsis pneumonia which is why I can't talk very well. I'm a bit breathless but I have oxygen so that's good.

Sharon Cook, from Cherry Willingham, Lincolnshire, who was hospitalised with coronavirus on March 23, urged the public to 'stay at home' amid the COVID-19 outbreak

'I just want people to know how important it is to stay at home, it's not worth going out even if you miss your friends.

'I'm on the mend and I'm in my own room on two lots of antibiotics. I'm just struggling really to breath but apart from that I feel so much better than I did.

'I had a temperature and felt so ill for over two weeks. If someone would have given me an injection to put me down I would've taken it, it was awful.

'The COVID-19 is horrendous compared to this. This is awful because I can't move or do anything because I have no breath - but at least I don't feel like I did.'

During the emotionally-charged footage, Ms Cook went on to explain that she missed her family and was still in her own room at hospital.

She continued: 'I'm really missing home and everybody. I feel sorry for myself. My main warning is for people to not go out because it's horrible.

'At least we can get over this and we'll have ages to do what we want to do. Hopefully I'll be home soon and it will all be okay.

'I thought I'd just let you know it's not like a little flu and although I know you can get milder cases it's still not nice.

'Anyway hopefully next time I'll be okay and by the way I haven't washed my hair for over two weeks.

'Even if I had the stuff now I don't have the energy.'

The emotional scene comes just a week after the Prime Minster Boris Johnson announced new UK lockdown rules stopping people from leaving their home except for food, medical treatment, one exercise per day or 'essential' work.

Last week Mr Johnson urged people across the country to remain indoors and said they could be met with fines or even arrest if they do not 'stay at home'.

In an unprecedented move, the country's leader ordered the immediate closure of all non-essential shops and announced that gatherings of more than two people would be banned in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19.

In his address to the country Mr Johnson said: 'Without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope; because there won't be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors and nurses'.

He added: 'Though huge numbers are complying  and I thank you all - the time has now come for us all to do more.

'From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction - you must stay at home.

'Because the critical thing we must do is stop the disease spreading between households.'

Yesterday it was revealed that the UK had recorded another 563 coronavirus deaths, taking the nation's total death toll to 2,352.

Health officials also confirmed that 29,474 people in the country have now tested positive for COVID-19.
Kosovo Lifts 100 Percent Tariff On Serbia; Belgrade Calls It 'Fake News'

By RFE/RL's Balkan Service April 01, 2020

PRISTINA -- Kosovo says it is lifting a 100 percent tariff on goods from neighboring Serbia, but Belgrade called it "fake news" and claims Pristina has actually increased punitive measures.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti told a news conference on March 31 that, starting on April 1, all goods imported from Serbia will need only documentation that "must comply with the constitution of the Republic of Kosovo and the applicable legislation."

He said the documentation matches Belgrade's requirements for Kosovar goods going to Serbia. That could, however, require the words "Republic of Kosovo" on the documents, which would represent a de facto recognition of Kosovo's independence by Serbia.

Kurti also demanded "reciprocity" in all matters dealing with Serbia.

"We want equality because we feel discriminated against," he said, while threatening to reinstate the import fees depending on Serbia's actions.

The imposition of the 100 percent tariff on Serbia stems from Pristina's demand that Belgrade recognize its sovereignty and end its diplomatic campaign to encourage some of the 110-plus countries that have recognized Kosovo since it declared independence from Serbia in 2008 to reverse their position.

The tariff, imposed in November 2018, has been divisive internally, leading to the collapse of Kurti's government, and has angered Kosovo's backers in the West, especially close allies the United States and the European Union.

Since taking power, Kurti has resisted removing the tariff and instead has suggested a partial lifting -- something rejected by Kosovar President Hashim Thaci, a rival of Kurti's.

In his March 31 news conference, Kurti said Serbia should lift all barriers, such as the banning of vehicles with Kosovar license plates and the blocking of foreign travelers coming from Kosovo, or face the return of the 100 percent tariff.

"This decision shall remain in force until June 15, and after that we will make a comprehensive assessment of how well this decision has progressed in terms of implementation," Kurti said.

"Periodically, but at least once a month, this decision will be reviewed by collecting data from our customs officials in terms of how reciprocity is functioning."

But Serbia did not accept the move of its bitter rival and former province.

"Kurti did not abolish fees. Don't get caught up in fake news," government spokesman Marko Djuric said.

The actions announced by Kurti, he said, was only a suspension of taxes and was conditional, "while introducing new punitive measures for our citizens and the economy, which he calls reciprocity."

"This does not de-escalate the situation and does not return to the situation before the introduction" of the taxes," Djuric added. "Pristina continues to play with this issue and...this decision is a play intended for the international community."

The U.S. government has opposed a partial or conditional lifting of the tariff and has demanded it be dropped entirely. In a statement last week, it linked the battle against the coronavirus with the tariffs.

"We believe the tariffs are harming the people of Kosovo by hindering regional cooperation against COVID-19 -- including by delaying the entry into Kosovo of needed supplies -- and hindering economic growth," it said.

Meanwhile, Kurti also said that similar import fees will be lifted on goods from Bosnia-Herzegovina and that "there will be a complete removal of tariffs" from that neighboring country.

"We do not want to treat Bosnia-Herzegovina in the same manner as we do Serbia," Kurti said, although he called on the Bosnian leadership to lift the visa regime for Kosovar citizens. He added that Bosnia had also been a "victim" of Serbia.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/kosovo-lifts- serbia-tariffs-belgrade/30521305.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Judge told Daniel Quearney this is a very serious matter

A man spat at a garda and told him he had Covid-19 after he was arrested on suspicion of causing damage at his parents' house, it has been alleged.

Daniel Quearney (25) is accused of spitting, making the threat and becoming violent at a garda station in the west of the capital.

Mr Quearney maintained he was coughing and telling officers he had the virus while he was being restrained, but denied spitting.

Judge Gerard Jones "reluctantly" granted him bail and adjourned the case at Blanchardstown District Court.

Mr Quearney, of no fixed address, is charged with criminal damage to plasterboard at his parents' house; threatening, abusive and insulting behaviour; obstructing Garda Daragh Cullen; and violent behaviour at Blanchardstown Garda Station.

Hole

Gda Cullen said he arrested the accused at Hartstown Road, Blanchardstown, on March 27 and later charged him with the offences.

He replied "he didn't do it", the garda said.

Asked to outline the circumstances, Gda Cullen told Judge Jones he was called to the accused's parents' home at Castlewood, Huntstown, where he observed a hole in the wall and spoke to Mr Quearney's father.

The accused was not present at that time and the garda saw him walking down the road.

"After he was arrested, he spat at me and said he had Covid-19," Gda Cullen said.

Applying for bail, defence barrister Simon Fleming said the garda had not been present at the time of the alleged offences in the house.

Judge Jones asked what the accused had to say about spitting at a garda. This was just an allegation at this stage and Mr Quearney was presumed innocent, Mr Fleming said.

"He is, but it's a very serious matter," the judge said.

The accused said: "I was coughing, I told him I had Covid-19. I never spit at any garda."

He said there were six gardai holding his legs and arms and he was not resisting.

Judge Jones said he was "reluctantly" granting bail in the accused's own 100 bond, with no cash lodgment required.

Conditions are that he stays away from the alleged victims and out of the Dublin 15 area, commits no crime and consumes no alcohol or drugs.

He must also sign on at the Bridewell Garda Station.

"I'm not impressed with this carry on," the judge said.

He adjourned the case to a date in June.
Virginia Republicans on Tuesday challenged the length of the stay-at-home order Gov. Ralph Northam issued, arguing that it will hamper some of the partys June primaries.

Northams order, which went into effect Monday, seeks to further restrict public activity amid the COVID-19 pandemic by ordering people to stay home except for essentials. The order will remain in effect through June 10, one day past the states June 9 primaries.

Republican Party of Virginia Chairman Jack Wilson said in an interview Tuesday that Northam should be more clear publicly so that voters know they are permitted to go vote on June 9.

In a letter to Northam, Wilson said that the June 10 date was arbitrary, and conflicts with the Republican U.S. Senate primary, in which a handful of GOP candidates are vying to take on Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va.

Parties have until Tuesday night to certify candidates for the states June 9 primaries. Wilson said four candidates filed to qualify for the ballot to challenge Warner: Alissa Baldwin, Daniel Gade, Omari Faulkner and Thomas Speciale.

In congressional House races, Republicans will likely have two primary contests, Wilson said; Democrats will likely have four, Democratic Party of Virginia spokesman Grant Fox said.

In these challenging times, we want to give the governor the freedom to make necessary decisions without partisan rancor, but the timeline seems all too convenient, Wilson said, adding that an explanation as to why the date was chosen would help to mitigate any concerns that Northam is trying to engage in voter suppression.

The state Senate Republican Caucus in a Tuesday letter to Northam expressed similar skepticism.

Your choice has struck us as curious, wrote caucus leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Tommy Norment of James City County.

A spokeswoman for Northam, Alena Yarmosky, said the order doesnt apply to the operation of government, which she said includes operating and participating in elections.

Wilson said in response: I would encourage the governor to be more clear publicly.

Yarmosky said the administration is encouraging Virginians to vote absentee by mail, as we continue to evaluate options for the May and June elections.

Id remind folks that this is not the time for partisan politics, Yarmosky said. The governor looks forward to continuing to work with his colleagues on both sides of the aisle to protect the health and safety of Virginians.

The Northam administration earlier this month encouraged all Virginians to vote absentee in the states May 5 municipal elections.

In the greater Richmond area, the town of Ashland is electing three council members, as is the town of Louisa.

Voting absentee in the coming local May elections is strongly encouraged, a memo on the state Department of Elections website reads. All voters can list disability or illness as the reason they are voting absentee.

The deadline to register to vote in that election is April 13. The deadline to request an absentee ballot is April 28.

Asked about the impact of his order on the states coming elections, Northam said his office would release further guidelines, I would say, in the next few days.
The first case of coronavirus has been confirmed on Los Angeles' Skid Row, the location of one of the largest stable populations of homeless people in the U.S. with over 5,000 inhabitants, 3,000 of which sleep in tents or on the sidewalk.

The lack of access to washing facilities and high population density has sparked fears that the coronavirus could spread like wildfire through the homeless community of LA.

The first case is that of an employee of the Union Rescue Mission, according to the Los Angeles Times, and is being treated at the Los Angeles County + USC Medical Center.

A man rides his bike down Skid Row past other homeless people sitting on the sidewalk. The first case of coronavirus has been confirmed among the homeless community here

Homeless people queue to receive their free meal at the Union Rescue Mission, where an employee has been quarantined after contracting the coronavirus

Reverend Andy Biles, CEO of the Union Rescue Mission and described as a 'strong advocate for people who are devastated by homelessness' has said that 95 residents and several of his employees have quarantined of the mission's third floor.

The mission provides a live-in recovery program, which is where the employee lives.

'We put the entire third floor in isolation, delivering meals in full protective gear, hoping they don't come down with symptoms,' Bales said. 'Everybody that who came in contact with him has been put in quarantine,'

'We gave a map to the Department of Public Health on his whereabouts for the last few days he was working. They know where he's been. Most places weren't highly occupied with people.'

According to Bales, the man is currently on a ventilator, and a spokesman for the LA County Department of Public Health said two other people who had come into contact with him are also in isolation.

A man waits with his trolley full of belongings in Skid Row. LA officials have warned that not being able to get people of the streets will hinder their efforts to slow the spread of Covid-19

A man wheels his trolley down the middle of the street in Skid Row which is lined with tents that shelter homeless people

California has over 150,000 homeless people, some living in tents with others only with blankets to cover themselves. Without proper hygiene facilities, the virus will likely spread quickly through the community and further strain hospitals in the state

Officials in LA have warned that failing to be able to get homeless people indoors during the coronavirus outbreak could be a major drawback in efforts to get the virus under control in the city.

California has tens of thousands of people living on the streets, most without access to facilities where they can wash, at a time when people washing their hands is imperative to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

A study has estimated that 2,600 homeless people could need hospitalization during the pandemic in LA alone, with homeless people often being elderly or having underlying health conditions which make the disease more deadly.

The number of homeless people visiting crisis kitchens in skid row has nearly tripped since Los Angeles implemented a lockdown in the city to slow the spread of the coronavirus

California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered the state's 40 million residents to stay at home indefinitely, but for people without homes, they are forced to congregate to get food

A police car patrols the Skid Row streets, and is flaked by tens lining the sidewalks where homeless people sleep in close proximity, making transmission of the virus more likely

California has seen a total of 8,579 cases of the coronavirus, and 183 deaths as of the 31 March, which was the deadliest day in the state so far.

California has seen 8,579 confirmed coronavirus cases as of 31 March. The state has been under a 'shelter in place' order from Governor Gavin Newsom since 19 March

As of the 31 March, a total of 183 people have died from the coronavirus

Number of people visiting Skid row kitchens has tripled since lockdown

Over the weekend, Ruth Styles reported from Los Angeles for the DailyMail.com that the number of people visiting Skid Row's crisis kitchen has tripled since the city went into lockdown on the 19 March.

LA Mayor Eric Garcetti said the city would add thousands of temporary shelter beds to get the population off the streets to protect them from coronavirus on March 19.

But photos taken exclusively by DailyMail.com reveal there has been no decline in the number of rough sleepers in the area, while local charities say they are being overwhelmed by the extra demand  which comes as donations decline.

Photos taken by the DailyMail.com show that there is no sign of the number of homeless people in Skid Row living on the streets declining

Despite promises made by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti to help the homeless population during the Covid19 pandemic, the situation in Downtown Los Angeles is now more desperate than ever

Georgia Berkovich, of which provides three meals a day to the area's homeless, says the crisis has seen the numbers coming to them for food shoot up.

She said: 'Around this time of the month, we would normally see 400 to 600 a meal, sometimes as it gets closer to the end of the month, we might go as high as 1.000 a meal.

'This week, we've been seeing 1,700 a meal. We're still serving three meals a day but we're seeing three times the number of people.'

Large crowds could also be seen outside other Skid Row non-profits, including The Weingart Center and Fred Jordan Missions, at mealtimes when DailyMail.com visited last Wednesday and Thursday.

The Midnight Mission claims that the number of people lining up for meals has tripled

The streets where overflowing with large groups of people lining up for a chance to pick up a meal

Governor Gavin Newsom said last week that 1 million unemployment benefit claims were made in California alone

The spike in demand for free meals came as it was announced that 3.3 million people had signed up for unemployment benefits nationwide last week.

Governor Gavin Newsom said last week that 1 million of those claims were made in California alone  parts of which have been shut down for weeks.

But for California's 151,000 homeless community, life has continued as normal despite the lockdown - and in spite of official attempts to help.

In Los Angeles, which is home to 60,000 homeless people, Mayor Eric Garcetti has announced plans to spend $20 million on 1,600 extra shelter beds, with a further 6,000 to be delivered by the American Red Cross.

Garcetti has also said he plans to put santizer stations around the city and increase the number of Porta Potty units available for the homeless to use.

Los Angeles Mayor Garcetti wears a face mask while promoting the 'safer at home' initiative', which is advice particularly difficult for homeless people to follow. He has said that LA is taking action to help those who are experiencing homelessness during the crisis

In a statement released on March 18, he said: 'We are taking immediate, urgent action to slow the spread of COVID-19 by helping people who are experiencing homelessness come indoors.'

But when DailyMail.com visited Skid Row, hundreds of homeless people could be seen out on the street  virtually all with little or no protective equipment.

Some were clustered chatting together in groups, while others were slumped over in doorways or passed out under quilts on the sidewalk.

Most shocking of all were the crowds that gathered at mealtimes outside the missions, crammed in on the sidewalk and far less than the recommended six feet apart.

The homeless are one of the most vulnerable groups in Los Angeles to the coronavirus, with many suffering from underlying health conditions, putting them at serious risk

Reporting from the scene, TheDailyMail.com said people were slumped over in doorways or passed out under quilts on the sidewalk

The homeless are among the most vulnerable people in Los Angeles with many suffering from underlying health conditions, as well as drink and drug addiction.

According to a report released last year by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, heart disease is the third biggest cause of death among the homeless.

It is also one of the serious underlying conditions that can produce a worse outcome in those who are infected with COVID-19.

Overdoses are a regular occurrence on Skid Row, with EMTs seen arriving three times in one hour on Wednesday.

Other hazards of life on Skid Row include low-level crime, traffic danger and violence  the same LA County report noted that murder accounts for six percent of deaths among residents every year.

As a result, coronavirus could prove especially deadly if it is allowed to run rampant among California's homeless community.

Homeless people in LA don't have proper facilities to keep themselves clean, which is vital for everyone in order to slow the spread of the virus

A woman can be seen cleaning the streets of Skid Row, which will prove futile if something isn't done to slow the spread of the virus among the homeless community

In Skid Row, people live virtually on top of one-another. Health organisations recommend a distance of at least 6-feet is kept between people to prevent transmission of the virus

Berkovich thinks it may already be too late to stop it, telling DailyMail.com: 'There have not been any cases in the homeless community [officially] but I don't know

'There hasn't been enough testing done to have a number and I suspect that there may be some who do test positive but we won't know because there are not enough tests right now.'

Berkovich added: 'It's impossible to keep six feet apart in Skid Row. If you look at the homeless encampments, the tents are side by side.

'If it hits the community, there's going to be no way from stopping it from spreading.'

Berkovich: 'It's impossible to keep six feet apart in Skid Row. If you look at the homeless encampments, the tents are side by side.'

The residents of Skid Row cannot ride out the storm at home because  despite Garcetti's pledge of more beds  they have nowhere to go

A row of tents all linked together can be seen set up under an overpass. People living this close together will increase the chances that if one person gets the virus, it will spread fast

But unlike the rest of Los Angeles, the residents of Skid Row cannot ride out the storm at home because  despite Garcetti's pledge of more beds  they have nowhere to go.

Charities working in the area are attempting to stem the tide by insisting that all volunteers and staff have their temperatures checked before arriving for work each day.

Cleaning has been stepped up, both in the missions and on the street itself where gaggles of street cleaners have been seen attempting to disinfect the area.

And the hand sanitizer stations and extra Porta Potty units promised by Garcetti have materialized in small numbers.

But there was little sign of any efforts to inform the homeless of the situation, with Berkovich saying they are more isolated than ever after being stripped of their usual opportunities to see the news in restaurants or cafes.

The one tent on Skid Row that had a red cross on it was being used for religious rather than medical purposes, with lists of Bible reading times written on the side.

A tent with a red cross with it was being used for religious rather than medical purposes, and lists Bible reading times for the community

Like Garcetti, Newsom has also pledged help and said last week that he plans to spend $150 million on housing the homeless in hotels and trailers for the duration of the crisis.

On March 18, he said the state has already purchased 1,309 trailers and leased two hotels.

He said: 'California is deploying massive resources to get these vulnerable residents safely into shelter, removing regulatory barriers and securing trailers and hotels to provide immediate housing options for those most at risk.

'Helping these residents is critical to protecting public health, flattening the curve and slowing the spread of COVID-19.'

But with 151,000 homeless people living in California, the extra beds already in place are far from being enough.

Berkovich said: 'There is no Safer At Home for the people who have no home. This Safer At Home initiative just seems especially cruel for them.'
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his administration are using the coronavirus crisis to spread conspiracy theories in a bid to subvert the West and create a new world order, a new report has alleged.

In an article published Wednesday by The University of Calgarys School of Public Policy, its claimed Russia has been churning out propaganda that blames the West for creating the virus. The reports author, Sergey Sukhankin, said the state was propagating disinformation and conspiracy theories via social media accounts, fake news outlets, state-controlled media, pseudo-scientists and Russians living in the West. The Kremlin has previously denied such claims.

Putins larger goal in spreading propaganda and conspiracy theories is to subvert the West, Sukhankin said.

Russia seeks to seriously damage the solidarity among EU members and capitalize on any internal European weaknesses to promote broader conflicts. COVID-19 is seen as an ideal way for Russia to deal a powerful blow not only to the EU, but to inflict damage on the ties between Europe and its North American allies.
Solid 30m cash position at year end and runway increased to beginning of Q3 2021

PhII trial with SENS-401 in SSNHL started, it will include patients from the French Armed Forces; SENS-401 received an IND in the US

Two preclinical Gene Therapy programs targeting Otoferlin and Usher Type 1 were initiated as part of the framework agreement signed with Institut Pasteur

Executive and scientific teams have been significantly strengthened in 2019 and early 2020 with the arrival of key renowned talents

Significant financing milestones were achieved with 38m raised with leading biotech investors and Chinese healthcare companies; 5.6m non-dilutive funding staged over five years was awarded from the French Government to Sensorion for the clinical development of SENS-401 and up to 9.7m to the "AUDINNOVE" consortium for development of Otoferlin gene therapy

Cash position was 30.4m at end of 2019 with a runway extended until beginning of Q3 2021 to adapt to the current environment

Regulatory News:

Sensorion (FR0012596468 ALSEN) a pioneering clinical-stage and gene therapy biotech company which specializes in the development of novel therapies to treat, prevent and restore within the field of hearing loss disorders, announces its full-year 2019 financial results and provides an update on its business activities and outlook for 2020.

"Sensorion made significant progress in 2019 as we expanded our efforts in gene therapy development to treat monogenic forms of hearing loss. We are very proud to have established an exclusive collaboration with the world-leading experts of Institut Pasteur, led by Professor Christine Petit, in the genetics of hearing. Together we have the potential to develop treatments that could revolutionize patients' lives" says Nawal Ouzren, CEO of Sensorion.

"We were awarded non-dilutive funding from the French government for the clinical development of SENS-401 and the ongoing Phase 2 clinical trial will be further supported by the participation of the French military personnel. A successful capital increase, featuring leading long-term biotech investors, Invus and Sofinnova Partners, has validated our strategy, management and assets, while also reinforcing our financial position; we are well positioned to execute on our strategy. In addition, to navigate the current COVID-19 epidemic context, actions have been taken to save costs and extend our cash runway which is now until beginning of Q3 2021."

2019 financial results

The annual accounts at December 31, 2019, drawn up according to IFRS standards and approved by the Board of Directors on April 1, 2020, have been duly reviewed by statutory auditors and the certification report is being issued.

The simplified income statement at December 31, 2019 is as follows:

In Euros IFRS standards 31.12.2019 31.12.2018 Operating revenue 2,522,717 2,309,859 Research Development expenses 10,208,520 11,907,943 General Administrative expenses 3,128,236 2,627,684 Total operating expenses 13,336,756 14,535,677 Operating profit/loss -10,814,039 -12,225,767 Financial charges -1,282,141 -124,254 Net profit/loss -12,096,181 -12,350,021

At December 31, 2019, Sensorion operating revenue, mainly the research tax credit, amounted to 2.5m, i.e. +9.2% compared with December 31, 2018.

Operating expenses declined by8.2%, moving down from 14.5m at December 31, 2018 to 13.3m at December 31, 2019 due to costs containment measures.

G&A expenses are up 19.0%; they amounted to some 3.1m at December 31, 2019 compared with 2.6m at December 31, 2018 in relation to the corporate support costs related to the three financial operations (lawyers, issuance fees and advisors).

Operating loss at December 31, 2019 thus came to -10.8 m, compared with -12.2m at December 31, 2018.

The net financial charges which increased significantly to 1.3m are mainly due to the fees related to the convertible bond operations that occurred during 2019. The costs related to setting up debts recognized at fair value (convertibles bonds) are recognized as charges in the income statement.

Net loss came to -12.1m at December 31, 2019 quite similar level compared to last year (-12.4m at December 31, 2018).

At December 31, 2019, the company employed 20 persons.

Financial structure

The simplified balance sheet at December 31, 2019 is as follows:

In Euros IFRS standards 31.12.2019 31.12.2018 Non-current Assets 1,724,348 1,165,840 Other Current Assets 5,946,864 5,590,201 Cash cash equivalent 30,428,319 2,711,217 Total Assets 38,099,532 9,467,258 Equity capital 13,218,525 3,510,317 Non-current Liabilities 2,036,933 1,616,803 Current Liabilities (including convertible bonds) 22,844,074 4,340,139 Total Liabilities 38,099,532 9,467,258

Total equity capital amounted to 13.2m at December 31, 2019 compared with 3.5m at December 31, 2018.

On March 2019, Sensorion undertook a bond issue of a nominal amount of 4.7m with European financial investors and management, consisting of (i) a convertible bond issue for a nominal 3.4m underwritten by several new European investors, plus (ii) a simple bond issue of a nominal 1.3m. 4,516,133 bonds have been converted into 4,482,048 shares during the year.

Sensorion opened then its capital to two leading institutional biotech investors, Invus and Sofinnova Partners, which invested in Sensorion as long-term partners in June 2019 via a mandatory convertible bond issue for a nominal amount of 20 million. They have taken three seats on the board of directors (two for Invus, one for Sofinnova Partners) and are subject to a lock-up until June 30, 2020.

Sensorion completed a capital increase of 18.1 million in September 2019, with Invus and Sofinnova Partners participation as well as Wuxi AppTec and 3SBio. All investors who participated in this capital raise are subject to a lock-up until June 30, 2020.

Current liabilities at 22.8m include 20m of convertible bonds at December 31, 2019. Those bonds were fully converted by Invus and Sofinnova partners into Sensorion shares in February 2020.

At December 31, 2019, cash and cash equivalents amounted to 30.4m compared with 2.7m at December 31, 2018, thanks to the injection of funds stemming from the convertible bond issues and the subsequent capital increase.

Capital Breakdown

The company's capital breakdown at December 31, 2019 is described in the table below. The next two columns include the impact of the conversion in February 2020 of all the convertible bonds issued in June 2019. The two last columns include the impact of the dilution of all BSPCE (stock options) attributed to employees and management.

December 31, 2019 After conversion of Sofinnova Partners and Invus convertible bonds On a fully diluted basis Number of shares Capital Ownership Number of shares Capital Ownership Number of shares Capital Ownership Inserm Transfert Initiative 982,911 3.05% 982,911 1.68% 982,911 1.61% Innobio (Bpifrance) 3,499,874 10.85% 3,499,874 5.98% 3,499,874 5.74% Management, employees, directors(1)(3)(4) 221,582 0.69% 221,582 0.38% 1,817,493 2.98% Cochlear 533,755 1.66% 533,755 0.91% 533,755 0.88% Invus (OC 0624)(2) 4,121,599 12.78% 20,608,063 35.19% 20,608,063 33.82% Sofinnova Partners (OC 0624)(2) 1,953,837 6.06% 11,822,258 20.19% 11,822,258 19.40% New Investors (september 2019 capital raise) 9,489,051 29,43% 9,489,051 16.20% 9,489,051 15.57% Free Float (including former officers)(4) 11,444,654 35.49% 11,405,558 19.48% 12,175,937 19.98% Total 32,247,263 100.00% 58,563,052 100.00% 60,929,342 100.0% Assumptions at December 31, 2019:

(1): Including 160,000 free shares granted on May 29, 2018

Assumptions after conversion of Sofinnova Partners and Invus convertible bonds:

(2): Based on a conversion of (OC 0624) at a price of 0.76

Assumptions on a fully diluted basis:

(3): Based on a conversion of (OC 0321) owned by an officer at a price of 1.30

(4): Including existing 2,030,109 BSPCE, BSA and free shares (including the 160,000 free shares granted on May 29,2018) issued by the company 1 BSA 1 share

Key developments in 2019 and beyond

R&D

Launch of preclinical gene therapy programs

After initiating the strategic collaboration with Institut Pasteur, Sensorion launched the first two preclinical programs, aiming at developing gene therapies that can correct hereditary monogenic forms of deafness, specifically deafness caused by a mutation of the gene encoding for Otoferlin (OTOF) and Usher syndrome Type 1 (USH1). Sensorion selected these projects under its exclusive agreement with the Genetics and Physiology Hearing Unit at Institut Pasteur, led by Professor Christine Petit, whose laboratory has developed world-class expertise over the last 25 years in the molecular physiology and physiopathology of the hearing system and generated data supporting the development of potential gene therapies.

In addition, the French government awarded up to 9.7 million to the "AUDINNOVE" consortium, notably including Necker Hospital, Institut Pasteur and Sensorion, to support the development of the OTOF program up to the first patient inclusion in the clinical trial.

Non-dilutive funding for clinical development of SENS-401

The French government awarded non-dilutive funding to the "PATRIOT" consortium for the clinical development of SENS-401, including work by Institut Pasteur to identify response biomarkers. The consortium includes the French Army Biomedical Research Center (IRBA), Institut Pasteur and Electronique du Mazet and the study will be the largest military trial ever conducted in France. As part of this consortium, Sensorion will receive up to 5.6 million over the duration of the project contingent on milestones completion.

US IND approval for SENS-401

Sensorion received Investigational New Drug (IND) approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to proceed with SENS-401 based on the preclinical data and clinical development plan package.

European Pediatric Investigation Plan approval for SENS-401

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) accepted a Pediatric Investigation Plan (PIP) for development of SENS-401 in the treatment of SSNHL and for prevention of ototoxicity caused by cisplatin (CIO) in the pediatric population.

Positive safety board review of ongoing SENS-401 Phase 2 trial

An independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB)reviewed safety datafor the patients who were included in the Phase 2 trial for the treatment of SSNHL and confirmed the absence of any concern as to the safety of SENS-401 and has recommended continuing the study.

Results from SENS-111 Phase 2b trial in acute unilateral vestibulopathy

SENS-111 (Seliforant) was safe and well tolerated in a Phase 2 proof-of-concept study for the treatment of acute unilateral vestibulopathy (AUV). However, it did not meet the primary endpoint of vertigo intensity and Sensorion stopped all development activities for SENS-111.

Technological platform

Our unique R&D technological platform allows us to expand our understanding of the pathophysiology and etiology of inner ear related diseases, enabling us to select the best targets and modalities for drug candidates. We have also identified a biomarker to improve diagnosis of these underserved illnesses.

Appointment of John Furey to the Board of Directors

John Furey, former COO of Spark Therapeutics, was appointed to the Board of Directorsas independent board member. While at Spark Therapeutics, John led the successful launch of the first gene therapy in the US (LUXTURNA).

Scientific communication

Sensorion made presentations at a number of high-profile scientific congresses, including:

Two posters at the ARO MidWinter Meeting, showing proof of efficacy for SENS-401 in preclinical models with a lasting SENS-401 protection of Cochlear Hair Cells in Organ Explant Cultures following Gentamicin ototoxic insult in vitro as well as data showing high nanomolar SENS-401 concentrations achieved in both perilymph and inner ear tissue after oral administration in three species, with some species differences.

A poster presentation at the 2019 Annual Meeting of the Society for Neuroscience (SFN 2019), outlining studies that investigated the potential effects of animal model specificity on systemic and local SENS-401 exposure using an acoustic trauma model in Wistar rats. It was found in those studies that the noise trauma did not affect the pharmacokinetics and local exposure of SENS-401.

Three presentations at the 56th Workshop on Inner Ear Biology (IEB 2019), including a review of the development of the clinical stage oral SENS-401 with evidence supporting otoprotective efficacy in preclinical models of severe acoustic trauma and cisplatin-induced ototoxicity.

2020 announcements

Conversion of Invus and Sofinnova Partners convertible bonds into ordinary shares

On the 10th of February Invus Public Equities LP converted into ordinary shares of the company all of the 12,500,000 convertible bonds it had subscribed for in June 2019. The conversion was undertaken on a price basis of 0.76 per share resulting in Invus owning 20,591,259 ordinary shares right after conversion and 35.2% of the share capital and voting rights of Sensorion (after conversion of Sofinnova Partners convertible bonds).

On the 13th of February, Sofinnova Crossover I SLP converted into ordinary shares of the company all of the 7,500,000 convertible bonds it had subscribed for in June 2019. The conversion was undertaken on a price basis of 0.76 per share resulting in Sofinnova Crossover I SLP holding 11,822,258 ordinary shares right after conversion and 20.2% of the share capital and voting rights of Sensorion.

Ethics Committee approval to include new military sites in SENS-401 Phase 2 study

Sensorion has received approval from the Independent Ethics Committee of Strasbourg (France) to include new military sites in the ongoing Phase 2 study of SENS-401 in SSNHL. The new centers will recruit volunteer military personnel exposed to impulse noise during their professional activities and suffering from hearing loss. Inclusion of voluntary military patients on these new sites will start after final administrative steps are carried out.

Appointment of new Chief Medical Officer

Sensorion appointed gene therapy expert Geraldine Honnet MD, as Chief Medical Officer (CMO). Geraldine Honnet is a medical doctor and joins from Genethon, where she spent nine years as Chief Medical Officer, overseeing international gene therapy clinical trials in multiple rare diseases. Geraldine was responsible for the development of Genethon pipeline from pre-clinical to registration, managing Medical Affairs, Clinical Development, Clinical Operations and Regulatory affairs departments.

Update on SENS-401 Phase 2 trial enrollment

On the 13th of March, Sensorion made an update on timelines for the ongoing Phase 2 study of SENS-401 to treat Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSNHL). Patient recruitment rates from this trial now indicate the data will be available by mid-year 2021, which is later than previously announced. The AUDIBLE-S trial is progressing but at a slower pace than our original expectations. An important factor also impacting recruitment in our trial is the repriorization of emergency room resources due to the current COVID-19 situation.

Upcoming clinical and preclinical milestones

Interim preclinical data on SENS-401 to preserve hearing after cochlear implantation by mid-year 2020; full preclinical data package by year end 2020

Preclinical milestones for OTOF and USH1 by mid-year 2020

Phase 2 data for SENS-401 in Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss (SSNHL) by mid-year 2021

Outlook for 2020 and COVID-19 situation update

Sensorion will keep advancing development of SENS-401 which is at clinical stage as well as pursuing research work using its R&D platform. Results from the Phase 2 of SENS-401 in Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss are expected by mid-year 2021. Preclinical data of SENS-401 in collaboration with Cochlear for preservation of hearing after cochlear implantation as well as preclinical milestones from the two gene therapy programs are expected this year.

Sensorion is closely monitoring the COVID-19 epidemic situation as well as its potential impact on activities of the company.

At this stage we are observing an impact on the SENS-401 phase 2 trial due to the repriorization of emergency room resources and confinement of populations. In order to avoid overload of healthcare facilities, to ensure safety of new potential patients, to prevent major protocol deviations due to non-respect of follow-up visits as planned in the protocol and to minimize contact between patients and investigational staff, the recruitment of new patients in the study has been temporarily suspended.

Regarding patients being in the study, there is a risk that it might be impossible for some of them to complete the follow-up visits as planned in the protocol of the study. Follow-up visits are being planned through teleconference or videoconference with the clinical sites with help from the clinical research organization working with Sensorion on this study. The current situation also poses a risk of delay in the opening of the new military sites that will recruit patients in the ongoing phase 2 trial of SENS-401 for sudden sensorineural hearing loss.

It's difficult to determine the evolution of the epidemic situation but there is a risk that it might cause delay in the realization of preclinical gene therapy studies carried out within the collaboration with Institut Pasteur. This would delay the preclinical results expected for the two ongoing programs.

As recommended by the French government, all the employees at Sensorion for which remote working is possible are effectively remotely working. For ethical reasons, an ongoing animal study with SENS-401 is continued with involvement of 3 employees alternating presence on site. This study is scheduled to end in April 2020 and no further animal study will be initiated before a favorable evolution of the epidemic context.

About Sensorion

Sensorion is a pioneering clinical-stage biotech company, which specializes in the development of novel therapies to restore, treat and prevent within the field of hearing loss disorders. Its clinical-stage portfolio includes one Phase 2 product: SENS-401 (Arazasetron) for sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL). Sensorion has built a unique R&D technology platform to expand its understanding of the pathophysiology and etiology of inner ear related diseases enabling it to select the best targets and modalities for drug candidates. The Company is also working on the identification of biomarkers to improve diagnosis of these underserved illnesses. Sensorion has launched in the second half of 2019 two preclinical gene therapy programs aiming at correcting hereditary monogenic forms of deafness including Usher Type 1 and deafness caused by a mutation of the gene encoding for Otoferlin. The Company is uniquely placed through its platforms and pipeline of potential therapeutics to make a lasting positive impact on hundreds of thousands of people with inner ear related disorders; a significant global unmet medical need.

www.sensorion-pharma.com

Label: SENSORION

ISIN: FR0012596468

Mnemonic: ALSEN

Disclaimer

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements concerning Sensorion and its business. Such forward looking statements are based on assumptions that Sensorion considers to be reasonable. However, there can be no assurance that such forward-looking statements will be verified, which statements are subject to numerous risks, including the risks set forth in the 'Document de reference' registration document filed with the 'Autorite des Marches Financiers' (AMF French Financial Market Authority) on September 7th, 2017 under nR.17-062 and to the development of economic conditions, financial markets and the markets in which Sensorion operates. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are also subject to risks not yet known to Sensorion or not currently considered material by Sensorion. The occurrence of all or part of such risks could cause actual results, financial conditions, performance or achievements of Sensorion to be materially different from such forward-looking statements.

This press release and the information that it contains do not constitute an offer to sell or subscribe for, or a solicitation of an offer to purchase or subscribe for, Sensorion shares in any country. The communication of this press release in certain countries may constitute a violation of local laws and regulations. Any recipient of this press release must inform oneself of any such local restrictions and comply therewith.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005699/en/

Contacts:

CEO

Nawal Ouzren

contact@sensorion-pharma.com

+33 4 67 20 77 30

Financial Communication

LifeSci Advisors Sophie Baumont

sophie@lifesciadvisors.com

+33 6 27 74 74 49
The US has begun repatriation of its stranded nationals, who want to return home, from India which is undergoing a 21-day lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic, a senior American diplomat has said, praising the Indian government for extending full support to undertake this "important mission".

The repatriation from India is part of the massive effort being undertaken by the US for its citizens from across the world. So far, the US has repatriated over 30,000 citizens from over 60 countries on more than 350 flights.

"We began our repatriation efforts from India yesterday with a flight that brought in some 170 US citizens," Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Ian Brownlee told reporters during a conference call on Wednesday.

"We will begin a steadier flow of flights out of New Delhi and Mumbai in the coming days, really beginning toward the end of this week and into the weekend," he said in response to a question.

There are more than 80 flights scheduled or in the planning stages from various locations, he added.

Reluctant to share the specific numbers which remain highly dynamic, Brownlee said the number from India is in the multiple thousands, who have indicated a possible interest in being repatriated to the US.

"We have found the Government of India has been very cooperative and very helpful with us in arranging these repatriation flights. We are thankful to them for their assistance and their support as we undertake this important mission," Brownlee said.

The US has run into some complications with regard to its efforts in Africa because of the closures in airspaces there, he added.

In Africa, out of the 57 international airports on the continent, over 30 of them are either at restricted or no operations, and every repatriation flight is being negotiated by the country team on the ground on a case-by-case, flight-by-flight basis in a great number of the countries involved, said William Walters, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Operations, Bureau of Medical Services in the State Department.

The United States has some 20 million people living overseas.

Walters said the Department of State was making every effort to assist US citizens overseas who wish to return to the country.

"But as the COVID-19 situation develops, our ability to provide such assistance, whether working with commercial airlines or arranging for evacuation flights, may become more limited or even unavailable," he said.

Brownlee said that if US citizens wished to return to America, they should make arrangements to do so now, and contact the nearest embassy or consulate for assistance.

"There's no guarantee the Department of State will be able to continue to provide repatriation assistance, and transportation options from many countries to the United States may become unavailable in the future, even in a few weeks' time," he warned.

Those who choose to remain overseas should be prepared to remain there for the foreseeable future, he asserted, in an indication of the gravity of the situation.

"If you were on the beach when an earthquake struck, you wouldn't just stand there waiting for the coming tsunami. You would head for higher ground immediately. Well, in this case, the earthquake has happened. It's time to seek higher ground now, and not hope for rescue later," Brownlee said.

A nationwide 21-day lockdown was enforced on March 24 in India to check the spread of coronavirus as social distancing is possibly the only way to prevent people from infecting the deadly virus.

A total of 932,605 COVID-19 cases have been reported across more than 175 countries and territories with 16,809 deaths reported so far, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

The US has reported 213,372 COVID-19 cases, the highest in the world, and over 5,000 people have died due to the disease.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The live viewing of daily mass on RTE has averaged a television audience of 34,600 during the current Covid-19 shutdown.

The daily broadcast by RTE is facilitating a spiritual communion of worshippers who, while not physically present within the church, are digitally united in faith," Bishop Alan McGuckian said.

Bishop McGuckian SJ, Bishop of Raphoe, has encouraged viewers to participate in the daily mass broadcast by RTE News Now at 10.30am, Monday to Friday.

Bishop McGuckian said, As people throughout Ireland are complying with the restrictions that are required to arrest and reverse the spread of Covid-19, the broadcasting of mass is even more important at this time.

On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of people who would love to attend daily mass, but who cant get to Mass these days and who dont have access to the internet, I wish to thank RTE News Now for broadcasting Mass. May I ask people to spread the word to those not aware of this special broadcast but who would love to participate at Mass on television. Do tell them that Mass is broadcast at 10.30am Monday to Friday, Bishop McGuckian said.

According to Nielsen, the independent audience measuring service, since the first broadcast of Mass on RTE News Now on March 19, and up to and including March 31, there was an average audience of 34,600 television viewers. This figure is in addition to the circa 2,300 live streams for mass each day on the cathedral`s own webcam.

Currently, this RTE broadcast of mass is taking place from the Cathedral of Saint Eunan & Saint Columba in Letterkenny, Co Donegal, but the venue may change. The broadcast is a response to the Covid-19 related restrictions on public gatherings.

Bishop McGuckian, the cathedral administrator Monsignor Kevin Gillespie, and other members of the cathedral clergy are the celebrants.
The Latest on the coronavirus pandemic. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death.

TOP OF THE HOUR:

 Indias PM urges citizens to light candles Sunday night to boost morale, spirit

 South Korea says more than 27,000 people are under self-quarantine

 South Korea reports 86 new cases of coronavirus, bringing total above 10,000.

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NEW DELHI  To bolster morale and spirit, Indias prime minister urges the countrys 1.3 billion people to switch off lights of their home for nine minutes Sunday night and light candles, lamps and even use mobile torches standing in their balconies.

In a video message broadcast Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said such a gesture will dispel the darkness created by the coronavirus and show that people are together in their fight against the epidemic.

He said social distancing was the only way to break the chain of coronavirus, which has so far claimed 53 lives in India with 1,860 positive cases.

Modi ordered a three-week lockdown across the country on March 24 to stop a massive outbreak of coronavirus infections.

On Friday, he acknowledged the hardships caused by the worlds biggest shutdown to millions of people who have been left jobless and forced tens of thousands of migrants workers to flee to their villages for food and shelter.

Indian officials have repeatedly insisted there is no evidence yet of community spread, but have conducted relatively scant testing for the disease in a country where tens of millions live in dense urban areas with irregular access to clean water.

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SEOUL, South Korea  South Korea says more than 27,000 people are under self-quarantine in the county after it strengthened border controls to slow coronavirus infections linked to international arrivals.

Park Jong-hyun, an official from the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, said Friday that 19,567 of those under self-quarantine have recently returned from overseas while another 7,499 were isolated after contacting virus carriers.

South Korea has been enforcing 14-day quarantines on all passengers arriving from overseas since Wednesday, expanding measures that had already been applied to South Korean nationals and long-term stay foreigners coming from Europe and the United States.

Health Ministry official Koh Deuk-young said 266 short-term visitors have so far been quarantined at designated facilities after the quarantines were expanded Wednesday.

Authorities are isolating and testing passengers arriving with symptoms at airports while denying entry of anyone refusing to accept quarantines or download an app that requires users to report their daily health conditions and alerts officials when they leave their homes or facilities.

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SEOUL, South Korea  South Korea has reported 86 new cases of the coronavirus, bringing its caseload above 10,000.

South Koreas Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday said about half of the new cases came from the densely populous Seoul metropolitan area, where infections linked to international arrivals have been rising.

Another 22 infections were detected at airports where workers have been isolating and testing passengers arriving with fever or respiratory symptoms.

South Korea has been enforcing two-week quarantines on all passengers arriving from overseas since Wednesday to stem a rise in imported infections.

Seoul on Friday opened a huge coronavirus testing station in a sports complex built for the 1988 Summer Olympics to test hundreds of people returning to the capital each day amid broadening outbreaks in Europe and the United States.

The KCDC says at least 647 of the countrys 10,062 cases have been linked to passengers arriving from abroad, with most of the cases detected over the past three weeks in the Seoul metropolitan area.

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BEIJING  China on Friday reported 31 new confirmed virus cases, 29 of them from overseas, and four new deaths.

The National Health Commission says just 1,727 confirmed cases are now in treatment, while 12 suspected cases are under observation and 1,027 asymptomatic cases are being isolated and monitored. No new or suspected cases were reported in the city of Wuhan, where the virus was first detected in December.

China now has recorded a total of 81,620 cases and 3,322 deaths, although some speculate those figures may be too low because of a lack of testing and official candor during the worst of the outbreak in January.

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SEOUL, South Korea  North Korea says only around 500 people remain under coronavirus quarantine in the country after authorities in recent weeks released thousands of others who supposedly had no symptoms.

The Norths official Korean Central News Agency said Friday the country will continue to strengthen its anti-virus campaign amid the global spread of COVID-19.

The agency says officials during a recent national emergency meeting shared criticism over unspecified areas where quarantine controls had become passive.

The report didnt say whether any of those remain under quarantine were foreigners.

The North had initially placed 380 foreigners under what it described as medical isolation, but KCNA said last week that only two of them remained quarantined. The North last month arranged a special government flight to fly out dozens of diplomats to Vladivostok, Russia.

The impoverished country has not publicly confirmed a single case of the COVID-19 illness, but state media has described anti-virus efforts as a matter of national existence. It has banned foreign tourists, shut down nearly all cross-border traffic with China, intensified screening at entry points and mobilized health workers to monitor residents and isolate those with symptoms.

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WASHINGTON  Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Thursday extended orders to keep non-essential businesses closed and most of the states more than 7 million residents home through May 4, saying that social distancing measures must remain in place an additional month in order to minimize the spread of COVID-19.

In recent days, Inslee had been signaling that his initial stay-at-home orders from March 23  which were set to expire next week  would be extended. The new proclamation extends the original order from two weeks to six. Under previous actions taken by Inslee in response to the coronavirus outbreak, all bars, dine-in restaurants, entertainment and recreation facilities have been closed even longer, since March 17.

He said the states efforts to date have been robust but we have an obligation to ourselves and to our loved ones to recognize this is a hard road ahead of us.

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UNITED NATIONS  The U.N. General Assembly has unanimously approved a resolution recognizing the unprecedented effects of the coronavirus pandemic and calling for intensified international cooperation to contain, mitigate and defeat COVID-19.

The 193-member world body did not approve a rival resolution sponsored by Russia calling for U.N. solidarity in the face of the challenges posed by COVID-19 and urging countries not to apply unilateral sanctions without U.N. Security Council approval in order to tackle the virus.

Under new voting rules instituted because the General Assembly isnt holding meetings, if a single country objects a resolution is defeated.

Diplomats said the European Union, United Kingdom, United States and Ukraine objected to the Russian draft, and the General Assembly was extending the deadline for objections until 6 p.m. EDT on Tuesday. It wasnt clear if Russia would make changes to try to win approval.

General Assembly President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande sent a letter to all U.N. member nations Thursday night informing them that there were no objections to the resolution entitled Global Solidarity to fight the coronavirus disease sponsored by Ghana, Indonesia, Liechtenstein, Norway, Singapore and Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. He said the resolution was approved and is in effect.

The resolution also recognizes COVID-19s severe disruption to societies and economies, as well as to global travel and commerce, and the devastating impact on the livelihood of people, and that the poorest and most vulnerable are the hardest hit.

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BOSTON  The New England Patriots private team plane returned to Boston from China carrying most of an order of 1 million masks critical to health care providers fighting to control the spread of the coronavirus.

This shipment comes at a critical time as we prepare for an anticipated surge in the coming weeks ahead, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said. What we were able to accomplish with this particular mission will go a long way forward in this fight.

Baker secured the N95 masks from Chinese manufacturers, but had no way of getting them to the U.S. Baker said Thursday an earlier order for 3 million masks had been confiscated at the Port of New York and this time he wanted a direct humanitarian delivery to the state.

In an interview with Patriots.com radio Thursday, Kraft Sports and Entertainment chief operating officer Jim Nolan said the Chinese government didnt sign off on the trip until March 27. He said the hurdles included legal logistics that were only cleared thanks to cooperation involving multiple state, U.S. and international entities. Nolan said the Patriots received permission to land in China and got a waiver of a 14-day quarantine because the pilots didnt get off the plane.

Baker said some masks will go to New York and Rhode island. The story was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

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WASHINGTON  President Donald Trump is considering intervening to stop the release of some prisoners amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Correctional facilities in states such as California, Michigan and Pennsylvania have begun releasing certain inmates as the prisons face a shortage of medical supplies.

Trump said Thursday that we dont like it.

The president added that were looking to see if I have the right to stop it in some cases.

He did not elaborate what measures, or under what legal authority, he would take to stop or reverse the releases.

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DETROIT  A Detroit bus driver who had expressed anger on Facebook about a coughing passenger has died from COVID-19, officials said Thursday.

Jason Hargrove felt ill about four days after posting a passionate video on social media on March 21. He died Wednesday, said Glenn Tolbert, the head of the drivers union.

Hargrove posted a profanity-laced video complaining about a woman whom he said had repeatedly coughed while on his bus. The coronavirus can spread through coughs. The woman was not in the video.

Hargrove said drivers are public workers doing our job, trying to make a honest living, take care of our families.

For you to get on the bus  and cough several times without covering up your mouth and you know (were) in the middle of a pandemic  that lets me know that some folks dont care, Hargrove said. At some point in time, weve got to draw the line and say enough is enough. I feel violated.

On March 17, the city eliminated fares, promised more cleaning and told bus riders to enter and exit from the rear door only. The changes occurred after drivers declined to work that day to protest conditions.

Mayor Mike Duggan said everybody in America should watch Hargroves video.

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WASHINGTON  White House coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx says incoming infection data suggests not enough Americans are abiding by guidelines in the national call to action to stem the spread of the virus.

Administration officials say the United States infection and death rate from the virus is akin to what hard-hit Italy is facing. Italy has a population of about 60 million and has recorded nearly 14,000 deaths and 115,000 infections. The United States, with a population of about 327 million, has recorded more than 5,800 deaths and more than 240,000 infections.

Birx noted that Spain, Italy, France, and Germany have begun to bend their curves. But she says Americans will need to do a better job abiding by social distancing guidelines issued by the White House so the U.S. can do the same.

The White House issued its social distancing guidelines on March 16. Americans were advised to work from home when possible, cancel onsite learning and frequently wash hands.

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WASHINGTON  President Donald Trumps administration is looking to crack down on a growing black market of medical supplies.

The national Defense Production Act policy coordinator, Peter Navarro, says there is a black market springing up to drive up prices of protective gear.

He said the federal government would step in to stop the practice.

But Trump added that states would remain the primary purchaser of medical supplies and that the federal government would remain in a backup role.

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Follow AP news coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
As if going to work every day in a global pandemic wasnt difficult enough, TTC drivers say theyre now facing an additional hardship: not being allowed to go to the washroom.

In pre-COVID-19 days, Torontos bus and streetcar operators had informal arrangements with coffee shops, gas stations and other businesses along their routes that allowed them to park their vehicles and sprint inside to use the facilities when nature called.

But since the outbreak began, drivers say businesses have stopped letting them in. Transit workers say that can be more than a mild inconvenience.

One bus driver who works in Torontos east end said that before the pandemic, operators on Steeles Avenue routes would regularly stop at a fast-food restaurant at Middlefield Road.

Everyone knows us in there, but because of (the pandemic) now theyve completely locked us out, said the driver, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because TTC management hadnt authorized her to speak to media.

Gas stations  theyve shut their doors to us as well. When we walk in theyre like, no, sorry, no, its not happening.

The TTC driver said shed been refused access to washrooms three times since the city began to go into lockdown over the outbreak about two-and-a-half weeks ago. As a result, shes tried to be more conscious about using the washroom at the subway station before she starts her route.

Then I just cross my legs and kind of hope nothing happens. Its a health concern at this point, she said.

Her message to store owners is, have a heart, were all human. Were moving the city for you guys, she said.

While thousands of public and private sector workers have been asked to stay home during the pandemic, TTC operators are still on duty. City and TTC officials say they need to keep the transit system running so residents employed in health care and other indispensable sectors can continue to get to work.

Roland Beaudet, an executive board member with Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113, which represents about 12,000 TTC employees, said he understands business owners are concerned about the spread of COVID-19. But in some cases, TTC drivers have no choice but to take mid-route bathroom breaks.

Most routes connect with subway stations, which have facilities for employees. But longer routes can take an hour or more to drive each way, meaning a bus operator might have to wait more than two hours to get back to the station.

What are they supposed to do? Soil themselves? Wear Depends? Its getting a little ridiculous, Beaudet said.

He said not being able to access a washroom in a timely manner could pose health risks for drivers, and passengers could be endangered as well if operators are distracted or racing to get to the end of their route.

TTC spokesperson Stuart Green said the agency is aware of the problem, which he noted has also affected workers like delivery drivers. He said some establishments that used to allow transit employees washroom access have closed or moved to drive-thru-only service since COVID-19 forced a shutdown of all but essential businesses.

Green said the TTC was addressing the issue by placing portable toilets at strategic locations that had been identified in consultation with employees.

That is a work in progress, he said.

On Monday, Mayor John Tory made a direct plea to business owners along TTC routes to show some compassion to transit workers.

He said bus and streetcar drivers are serving us at a time when we need them to serve us, and we need to help them as they carry out their duties.

I would ask that if you are one of these businesses that are still open that you accommodate these employees, these public servants, who are doing tremendous work for us to keep the city moving, he said.
President Donald Trump suggested on Wednesday (US time) that he had brokered a deal that would have Saudi Arabia and Russia dramatically ratcheting down their oil production. The news sent oil prices surging but was immediately met with scepticism.

Trump, who had been working the phones over the past two days after oil prices plunged to a near 20-year low, said on Twitter that he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut output by as much as 15 million barrels. Although Trump didn't say the cut would be per day, markets interpreted the tweet as such.

US president Donald Trump's oil tweets send prices surging, but have been met with scepticism. Credit:Bloomberg

Immediately following Trump's tweet, Saudi Arabia came out to say it had called an "urgent meeting" of the OPEC+ alliance that includes Russia and some other unnamed nations to discuss a "fair agreement," signalling it would only cut output if others do so.

One person familiar with the Trump administration's discussions with the Saudis said there was widespread internal confusion about what the president was referring to in his tweet and that the figures he posted may not be reliable. Trump's conflicting messages about low oil prices and cheap petrol being good for American consumers have also worked to undermine the US government's leverage in pressing for oil production cuts abroad, the person said, asking not to be identified because the talks are private.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Radio station DZMM has temporarily suspended all of its programs after its employees were exposed to two persons under investigation for COVID-19.

"We have suspended the regular programming of DZMM temporarily after asking all concerned on-duty personnel to go on self-quarantine for 14 days following their exposure to two Persons Under Investigation," DZMM said in a statement issued Wednesday night.

The radio station, owned by broadcasting giant ABS-CBN, said its studio and facilities have already been vacated for immediate disinfection.

"Those who have not been exposed shall work from home," the management added.

It said that its programs had to be suspended starting 10 p.m. on Wednesday, and will instead be replaced by shows from the ABS-CBN News Channel until they resume operations.

The country's COVID-19 cases have already reached 2,311, with 96 fatalities and 50 recoveries to date.
A Derry taxi driver has spoken of the current challenges facing the industry and how he goes to bed every night praying he hasnt infected his family.

His comments come after Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon penned an open letter to taxi drivers saying she is working with other government departments to protect drivers at this time.

Legislation is being drafted so that within the coming days an extension to the Public Service Vehicle (PSV) testing period can be granted. "This will be one less thing for you to worry about as you continue to work," she says.

Department for Infrastructure (DfI) officials are also working hard to find solutions to licensing and other regulation related challenges arising from this crisis.

Separately, the Department for the Economy is said to be working on social distancing guidance to help keep drivers and passengers safe.

Another government department, that for communities, is examining the possibility of utilising taxis in emergency efforts to deliver food.

However, some Derry taxi drivers are sceptical and believe that more should have been done when the crisis first emerged.

One driver, who did not want to be named, told the Derry News he prays every night that he doesnt pass the deadly virus on to his family and because there is no testing he will never know.

I have been a taxi driver for over 20 years, what is going on now is something that I could never have imagined, but the people in power knew about this for months, he said.

I am told I'm a key worker, but every day I work I pray that I don't get infected and pass on the virus to my family, and I can't be tested because there is no testing.

With regard to the DVA, they closed the test centre without any notice and therefore left drivers high and dry with no explanation.

Like many other workers, drivers are struggling to access financial support, he explained: It took over a week for the DVA to send out a letter to tell us we're doing a great job and that they are still discussing what to do for us.

We can't even apply to get our cars tested as it can't be done online, and any driver who decided to stop working gets nothing, can't even get through to universal credit to try and get something.

While he welcomed the extension of PSV testing, he stressed the need for clarity in the case of drivers who were in the process of getting their car tested and are now left in limbo.

Social distancing can't be done, in his view, and drivers are being forced to source their own Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

On some occasions customers are actually insulted when drivers arrive wearing a mask and gloves and have even refused to sit in the back of the car when asked to do so.

More hurdles have to be overcome when it comes to the prospect of delivering food and other essential goods - which has been suggested as a way of getting drivers back to work - as taxi insurance does not allow drivers to carry food.

Drivers can individually call their insurance companies and do this, but some have said no, so we would need that clarified, he added.

However, he did suggest that drivers could support supermarkets which are being overwhelmed by orders and now have delivery backlogs. All drivers are vetted by both the police and DVA and also carry ID.

VITAL SUPPLIES

In her letter to drivers, DfI Minister Mallon made clear that her responsibility for taxis only extends to the regulation of the industry,

I am very aware of the increasing financial hardships this crisis is creating; with my Executive colleagues I pushed hard to secure the self-employed financial package announced by the British Government last week.

While its not perfect, it will go some way to helping self-employed people, like those within the taxi industry, to help put food on the table and pay bills. With Executive colleagues, I will continue to press for more assistance.

She added: With the numbers of taxi journeys greatly reducing, there is also now a real opportunity for taxi drivers to explore how they can play their part in taking the pressure off our vital services by helping the most vulnerable in our communities.

To look at, for example, opportunities for delivering food and vital supplies or to get patients to essential appointments.

To help progress this, I have raised this with Executive colleagues to examine how taxis can be re-purposed to support the emergency efforts.

I am pleased to tell you that my officials are already working together with the Department for Communities and, through them, local government to explore how this can be done.
MPs could sit in a 'virtual' House of Commons if the coronavirus pandemic means it is not safe for them to return to Westminster.

Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle last night urged the Government to investigate ways of allowing Parliament to sit remotely using online technology when it returns later this month.

He became the most senior figure to demand new measures be taken to allow ministers to face scrutiny of their decisions during the pandemic if the nationwide lockdown remains in effect.

MPs are currently on an extended recess and are due back in the Commons on April 21.

Select committees have continued to sit remotely during the break under new rules introduced last week. And the Prime Minister used the Zoom conferencing technology to hold a digital Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

In a letter to Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg last night, Sir Lindsay urged the Government to look at using video-conferencing technology to allow the green benches to remain empty.

In response Mr Rees-Mogg said: 'Parliament's role of scrutinising government, authorising spending and making laws must be fulfilled and in these unprecedented times that means considering every technological solution available.

'We are exploring options with the parliamentary authorities in readiness for Parliament's return.'

Select committees have continued to sit remotely during the break under new rules introduced last week. And the Prime Minister used the Zoom conferencing technology to hold a digital Cabinet meeting on Tuesday

Sir Lindsay is keen to avoid scenes like these in a busy House of Commons while still allowing MPs to question ministers on vital subjects like the coronavirus pandemic

Sir Lindsay wrote that MPs should still be able to take part in Prime Minister's Questions, oral questions to Government departments, to ask urgent questions and to hear statements being made, especially if it is 'not appropriate' for them to be present in the House of Commons.

In his letter he said: 'The House Service has already trialled some virtual select committee evidence sessions with witnesses and I have asked officials to investigate how they would apply similar technology to the types of business listed above.

'It would be extremely helpful in the planning of the running of the House if you could give myself and the Clerk of the House an indication, as early as feasibly possible, on whether or not the House will return on April 21 or whether the recess will be extended.

'I should add that the Clerk of the House has voiced his concern to me that it may be very difficult to support some key functions given the growing scale of staff absence whether through social isolation or illness.'

Yesterday the Welsh Assembly became the UK's first major democratic institution to meet remotely as members heard statements from the First Minister and other ministers.

They were then able to ask questions and scrutinise the Welsh government's outbreak action plan, with each party having agreed to limit the number of its representatives to ensure smooth running of proceedings.

But Westminster MPs are increasingly frustrated at their inability to hold the government to account due to the fact Parliament is currently in recess and is not scheduled to return until April 21.

The Welsh Assembly would normally be in recess at the present time but has decided to keep its democratic functions up and running, raising the question of why Parliament cannot do the same.

Sir Ed Davey, pictured in the House of Commons in December 2019, said decision-makers need to 'get things cracking and get an online virtual parliament to serve the nation'

Sir Ed Davey said in any other major emergency Parliament would have been recalled as he demanded democracy go digital.

The acting leader of the Liberal Democrats wants Boris Johnson to commit to holding PMQs every week via video conference and for MPs to be able to ask written questions of government departments during recess.

He is also pushing for Parliament to set up a new select committee solely tasked with scrutinising the government's coronavirus response.

Meanwhile, some 100 Labour and SNP MPs have written to Parliament decision makers pushing for a digital House of Commons to be set up.
Indian doctors, best known for their excellence and compassion around the world, are earning a lot of plaudits for fighting a one-sided battle against COVID-19 at home - but very little else.

As TV images of blue-clad medics being chased by stone-throwing mobs in MP and Bihar have shocked the country, these may well be among the lesser of the life-threatening troubles doctors, nurses and health workers face.

Shortage of protective health gear in India has forced some doctors to use raincoats and motorbike helmets while fighting the coronavirus, exposing the fragile state of the public health system ahead of an anticipated surge in COVID-19 cases.

Sources say that the Ministry of Health has a sizeable quota of N-95 masks considered mandatory to battle coronavirus, but for some unexplained reason, it is not willing to part with such critical equipment. One Central Government Health Services (CGHS) doctor confided that when a requisition was sent to the `higher-ups in the ministry, they were told that such masks were meant for immigration authorities to scan at airports. In another similar instance, no reply was forthcoming from senior officials.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

It is mandatory for doctors and the attendant staff, including nurses, who are looking at suspected patients closely, to be clad with personal protective equipment or PPE. This includes a full kit  masks, anti-virus shoes, eyewear, gloves and a throat cover. There are enough PPEs with the ministry of health. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, they are being saved for a rainy day, putting thousands of doctors at life-threatening risk. The Director General of Health Services, who is the only technical man in a government manned by rank generalists and whose views should count in such a situation, has kept an unusually low profile in this hour of crisis.

Trying times

The medics are really up against it and can hardly be blamed if they are worried. A Guwahati-based doctor, who reportedly took anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine amid the COVID-19 outbreak, died at a private hospital earlier this week. Last week, a health worker in Kashmir lost his life after attending to suspected coronavirus cases. On Wednesday, five more doctors tested positive for COVID-19, taking the toll of such virus-suspected doctors in the national capital to seven. Last week, 14 medical staffers at New Delhis Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, including doctors and nurses, have been sent into home quarantine. They were part of a team treating COVID-19 patients at the hospital. Their samples are being tested.

The worst-hit are CGHS, mohalla clinics and government health facilities like primary health centres, where doctors and health workers are operating in the most perilous circumstances.

The situation is headed towards a breakdown. In Uttar Pradesh, Indias politically most powerful state, drivers of around 4,700 ambulances that mainly serve government hospitals, went on a strike last week demanding proper safety gear and health insurance to fight a virus that is threatening to careen out of control, if not tacked with a degree of urgency.

In Bihars government-run hospitals, doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers are examining suspects without any basic safety gear. The lack of PPE has led to healthcare workers threatening to resign and putting in increased requests that they be sent to quarantine as a precautionary measure. We are given HIV kits instead of PPEs. It is suicide that we have chosen to doOnce we are infected, we could be infecting others too, said a resident doctor at Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH), Bihars largest medical college and healthcare centre, in a Facebook post.

Public hospitals in India are working overtime and according to some doctors, they have been forced to work for 24-hour shifts, screening innumerable cases. People are waiting up to seven hours to get tested, and quarantine areas are overcrowded. Pictures of a hospital handling such cases shared on Twitter showed a wash basin filled with what looked like vomit and rusted cot frames.

In advanced countries with much sounder public health systems, doctors and health workers are using hazmat suits or hazardous material suit, also known as decontamination suits. It is a piece of personal protective equipment that consists of an impermeable whole-body garment worn as protection against hazardous materials. They are combined with self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) to ensure a supply of breathable air and are most effective in a toxic environment, something that is close to the Indian situation today. With even basic gloves and masks missing, hazmat suits remain a pipedream in the countrys context today.

As for the PPE kits available, Air India pilots who flew back COVID-19 patients from various parts of the world recently, have written to the health minister saying that the quality of the PPE kits used on the flights were decidedly below par. Obviously, someone has made a killing on their purchases.

Under the trying circumstances, there is a strong case for allotting more funds and personal benefits to those at the vanguard of the anti-COVID battle like doctors, nurses and para-medics. It could also include policemen and others at the frontline. That would be at least one way to provide some incentive to those risking their lives because a long battle lies ahead. If largesse is being rightly distributed to those in need, there is no need to keep out the most vital cog in the health machine.

Ranjit Bhushan is an independent journalist and former Nehru Fellow at Jamia Millia University. In a career spanning more than three decades, he has worked with Outlook, The Times of India, The Indian Express, the Press Trust of India, Associated Press, Financial Chronicle, and DNA.
Joy Ranch reopens under new ownership

Joy Ranch near Watertown has reopened under new ownership.
Re: Profile Evaluation for 2+2 MBA [ #permalink

Hi everyone, I am a third year Computer Science undergraduate from one of the top-ranked NITs of India. I recently came across the MBA 2+2 programs in US and hence would like to know where my profile stands for universities like Harvard, MIT Sloan, Stanford, Yale's Silver Scholars, Wharton and so on. It would be great if you could also give me any pointers on where my profile is lacking and what I can do to overcome these in the few months left before college application process starts.



1. CGPA : 9.61/10

2. I am a core member of the coding club of my college and have led teams of students on various projects. Some of them get more than 500 users from across the country.

3. I have interned in Google India in my second year as a software developer.

4. I am the head of the guest lectures team of the cultural festival of my college, where we host talks by eminent world famous personalities free of cost.

5. I have also worked on building a website for NGO TeachForIndia and I am leading the development right now.

6. I paint and sing too, but not have been active in these in college. I took exams for these in school though.

7. I try taking steps for more representation of girls in technology too.

8. I also took the GRE recently and had 167 in quant and 163 in Verbal.





I would be really grateful for an honest evaluation of my profile and thanks a lot in advance !
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 13:23:44|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The average yield for China's enterprise annuity funds stood at 8.3 percent last year, with the aggregate investment return reaching 125.8 billion yuan (17.7 billion U.S. dollars), Shanghai Securities News reported Thursday.

The figure outperformed that in 2018, which stood at 42 billion yuan with an average yield of 3.01 percent, the report said, quoting data from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

By the end of last year, the total amount of the enterprise annuity funds neared 1.8 trillion yuan, covering around 25.48 million employees.

China Life Pension Company, Pingan Pension and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China ranked the top three in terms of the assents under their management.

Having logged remarkable growth since 2013, annuity funds have become an important force in China's old-age security system, said the report.

China launched the enterprise annuity program in 2004, a supplemental occupational pension insurance offered through employers, in a bid to improve its social security system.
The Delhi government has written to Police Commissioner SN Shrivastava, seeking deployment of the adequate police force at hospitals and quarantine centres.

"It is to bring to your notice that in a massive exercise held from 30/3/2020 to 1/4/2020, around 2346 people congregated inside Alami Markaz Banglewali Masjid, Nizamuddin, Delhi, were screened for COVID and around 536 symptomatic persons were shifted to designated COVID hospitals and around 1,810 asymptomatic persons were housed in various institutional quarantine facilities across Delhi," reads the letter of Delhi government.

"Yesterday, it was reported by the RGSSH that one of the inmates, admitted from the Markaz, attempted suicide but was timely rescued by the hospital staff. In another incident two inmates quarantined in Narela DDA quarantine facility escaped and were later tracked down in Patparganj," adds the letter.

One of the persons, who had attended an event at Markaz Nizamuddin and was admitted to at the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital (RGSSH) tried to commit suicide on Wednesday.

The government said that Medical Superintendents of the designated hospitals for COVID-19 patients reported that the patients, particularly those transferred from Markaz, are creating a law and order problem and commotion in the hospitals, which is becoming very difficult for the hospital staff to handle.

"It may be seen that it is very crucial to ensure that COVID affected persons remain in isolation quarantine for a prescribed period as per laid down Protocol in order to avoid further transmission of the infection. In view of the above I am directed to request you to deploy adequate police force in all the quarantine facilities and hospitals as per the list enclosed with this letter," the letter said.

Some attendees at Tablighi Jamaat, who were quarantined, misbehaved with the staff and spat on persons working or attending them at a quarantine centre in Tughalakabad.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Coronavirus: 24-jour curfew in Makkah, Medina, Saudi Arabia

(ANSAmed) - RIYADH, APRIL 2 - Saudi Arabia has imposed a 24-hour curfew in the two holy cities of Makkah and Medina to contain the spread of coronavirus after the death toll climbed to 21. ''The curfew for 24 hours a day in Makkah and Medina starts today until further notice'', said the official news agency, quoting an interior ministry source. Authorities had already sealed off the two holy cities of Islam, together with Riyadh and Jeddah, prohibiting anyone from entering or leaving and prohibiting travel between provinces.(ANSAmed).




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Linkedin Carey L. Biron (Thomson Reuters Foundation) Washington, United States  Thu, April 2, 2020 18:05 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f4a531 2 Lifestyle American,survival,retreat,coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic,health,SARS-CoV-2,stay-at-home,physical-distancing Free

As Americans stockpile basic supplies, pet food and school items amid coronavirus-related closures and "shelter-in-place" orders, many are turning to another strategy to protect their families: fleeing to remote areas.

With branches in multiple US states, Fortitude Ranch dubs itself a "survival community" and offers paying members access to remote, secure grounds and residences under the motto "Prepare for the worst, enjoy the present".

The ranch has seen a "huge surge" of interest in joining its survival retreats amid the pandemic, said chief executive Drew Miller, who estimated inquiries have increase tenfold.

"People are concerned that if this virus mutates to be more lethal ... or if these short periods of quarantine don't work, the economy collapses, food distribution gets disrupted, then law and order can break down," Miller told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Underground bunkers offer protection from nuclear blasts, surrounded by a concrete wall "easily manned by defenders", according to the company's website, and shelters are stocked and furnished by members.

The business is designed to keep members safe "when society breaks down, there is widespread looting, marauding, lawlessness, and it's not safe to be in cities or suburbs," said Miller.

The United States has the largest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the world  about 215,000 on Thursday morning, according to John Hopkins University.

So far, cities have seen the most infections, although infectious-disease specialists warn that rural communities could eventually prove to be the most vulnerable to the pandemic, in part due to difficulties in accessing healthcare.

Real estate

The real estate market is seeing the effects of residents' concerns.

On March 7, Internet searches for rural properties spiked by 364% over the previous year, according to data provided to the Thomson Reuters Foundation by Redfin, a national real estate broker.

Overall, daily searches for rural properties recorded by Redfin were up by an average of more than 125% during the first three weeks of March, far more than searches for other types of property.

"This thing [coronavirus] has people realizing they needed a bugout property long ago," said John E. Haynes, president of a North Carolina realty company that specializes in rural land, using a term derived from military slang for a retreat.

His Retreat Realty has seen a "big uptick" as news of the outbreak has grown, Haynes said, noting that through mid-March he had already sold about half of the properties he did for all of 2019  which had already been a record year for him.

Most of those sales came in the previous 45 days, he said.

"Most had been contemplating such a move for months to years, but the virus has caused them to make the decision," Haynes said.

Interest in survivalist properties predates the current pandemic, however, and exists beyond US borders.

New Zealand has been a focus of such sales, while current online listings for "survival properties" include tracts in Central America, Canada and Europe.

Local concerns

Still, the surging interest in US rural areas has some worried: local residents.

The popular recreation area of Door County, Wisconsin, urged people to stay away in an advisory last week, particularly those who "have a seasonal or second home" in the area.

Half of the county's population is elderly, and the area is served by asmall, 25-bed hospital, said Dave Lienau, chairman of the county board.

Out-of-state residents own over 60% of the property and second homes in the county, he said in a phone interview, and now "they're looking to get away from where they, thinking it's safer here".

The county is not enforcing the guidance, however, and Lienau estimated hundreds of people have arrived in the last 10 days.

"We're still seeing a lot of people show up here, a lot of license plates from California, Iowa, Missouri  all over the place," he said.

That influx is putting a strain on other resources, as well: Lienau pointed to a grocery store in the small town of Sister Bay that has gone through 10 times its normal weekly supplies.

Other rural areas have taken steps to enforce such restrictions.

Dare County, a popular tourist area on barrier islands along the North Carolina coast, has prohibited all entry to both visitors and "non-resident property owners", confirmed county public information officer Dorothy Hester.

The restrictions are about protecting "the public health and safety of our community", she said.
A Boeing 747-8i at the Paris Air Show.

Pascal Rossignol/Reuters

The Boeing 747 is facing retirement at many of the world's airlines but is seeing a resurgence in the air cargo industry.

The four-engine aircraft's capacity and range make it ideal for cargo carriers looking to carry as much freight in a single trip as possible.

The spread of novel coronavirus has seen these aircraft provide a vital lifeline in transporting supplies and materials to the front lines.

Boeing recently donated three 747-400LCF Dreamlifters to aid in supply distribution, the White House announced on Friday.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The COVID-19 pandemic affecting the airline industry has advanced the retirement of the iconic Boeing 747, with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines officially retiring the type at the end of March and Qantas grounding its 747 with little hope for a return to scheduled service.

Boeing's Queen of the Skies began flying passengers in 1970 boasting unmatched amenities in terms of range and capacity, as well as being a status symbol for airlines at the time.

Despite a 50-year run, airlines are abandoning the four-engine bird in favor of more efficient twin-engines to save on operating costs, especially as regulators continue to ease engine requirements for overwater flights.

United Airlines and Delta Air Lines have already abandoned their 747 fleets in favor of Boeing and Airbus' newest twin-engine offerings, leaving only foreign passenger airlines to operate what remains of American aerospace royalty.

On the other hand, cargo airlines can't get enough. A veritable flying tractor-trailer, the 747 boasts one of the largest cargo capacities of any aircraft flying and can carry it further than most of its counterparts.

While Boeing's latest four-engine product, the 747-8, didn't fare too well in the passenger market only being picked up by a handful of airlines, the freighter variant saw success with cargo carriers across the world.

Story continues

With the US in desperate need of supplies, take a look at how Boeing 747s are once again saving the day.

The Boeing 747 made its debut in novel coronavirus assistance when the US government evacuated Americans from Wuhan, China at the start of the outbreak.

An airplane that was used to evacuated Americans out of China is seen on January 29, 2020, at an air base in Riverside, California.

Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP

Read More: Nearly 200 Americans evacuated from China are under a mandatory 14-day quarantine after a person tried to leave isolation

A Kalitta Air Boeing 747 freighter was stocked with passenger seats and flown to Wuhan, returning with evacuees to Air Force bases in California for two-week quarantine. The route then became common as more evacuation flights were required.

A Kalitta Air Boeing 747

Tim Boyle/Getty

With the coronavirus spread growing in severity, passenger air traffic quickly dwindled and countries shut their borders to all but essential traffic, leaving freighters to freely roam the skies.

Cargo aircraft

Ilya Naymushin/Reuters

Pilots flying to Asian countries affected by the virus were instructed to take special precautions and were even given hazard pay for flying the missions.

Pilots preparing for evacuation flight

PASCAL GUYOT/AFP/Getty

Unlike passenger airlines who were canceling service to Asia, cargo airlines armed with 747s and other aircraft were operating as usual into freight hubs including Hong Kong, Seoul, and Shenzhen.

A Korean Air Cargo Boeing 747-8 freighter.

EQRoy / Shutterstock.com

Airlines still flying 747s between the US and Asia include UPS Airlines

A UPS Airlines Boeing 747-8F aircraft.

Thiago B Trevisan / Shutterstock.com

Kalita Air

A Kalitta Air Boeing 747-400F aircraft.

Eliyahu Yosef Parypa / Shutterstock.com

Atlas Air

An Atlas Air Boeing 747 cargo aircraft.

Michael Sohn / AP Images

Asiana Airlines

An Asiana Airlines Boeing 747 cargo aircraft.

Philip Pilosian / Shutterstock.com

China Airlines

A China Airlines Boeing 747-400 freighter aircraft.

Louis Nastro/Reuters

Cathay Pacific

A Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-8F cargo aircraft.

Bobby Yip/Reuters

Cargolux

A Cargolux Boeing 747-400F.

Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters

Polar Air Cargo...

A Polar Air Cargo Boeing 747-400 freighter.

w_p_o / Shutterstock.com

Nippon Cargo

A Nippon Cargo Boeing 747-8F aircraft.

Mike Fuchslocher / Shutterstock.com

SkyLease Cargo

A Sky Lease Cargo Boeing 747-400 freighter.

Carlos Yudica / Shutterstock.com

Suparna Airlines...

A Suparna Airlines Boeing 747-400 freighter.

StudioPortoSabbia / Shutterstock.com

And EVA Air Cargo.

An EVA Air Cargo Boeing 747-400F aircraft.

TIM CHONG/Reuters

That's compared to the few remaining passenger airlines operating 747s including Lufthansa

A Lufthansa Boeing 747-8i.

Larry Downing/Reuters

Source: Planespotters.net

Air China

Air China Boeing 747

WOLFGANG KUMM/AFP/Getty Images)

Source: Planespotters.net

British Airways

A British Airways Boeing 747-400 at JFK Airport.

Thomas Pallini/Business Insider

Source: Planespotters.net

Corsair...

Corsair Boeing 747-400

Charles Platiau/Reuters

Source: Planespotters.net

Korean Air

Korean Air 747

Shutterstock

Source: Planespotters.net

Thai International Airways

A Thai Airways Boeing 747-400.

Thiago B Trevisan / Shutterstock.com

Source: Planespotters.net

And Virgin Atlantic Airways.

A Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747-400 aircraft.

Virgin Atlantic Airways

Source: Planespotters.net

Even the oldest 747 models, including the -200, are still flying freight with cargo airlines around the world.

A Boeing 747-200 freighter.

Fasttailwind / Shutterstock.com

The most prevalent 747 freighter flying is the -400F, the type also most flown by the remaining 747 airlines.

A China Airlines Boeing 747-400 freighter and United Airlines 747-400.

Louis Nastro/Reuters

Source: Planespotters.net

The latest 747 to come from Boeing, the 747-8i, gave cargo airlines increased cargo capacity.

A Boeing 747-8i at the Paris Air Show.

Pascal Rossignol/Reuters

The largest 747 variant also provides cargo operators with new fuel-efficient General Electric GEnx engines to reduce operating costs.

A Qatar Airways Boeing 747-8F.

Elaine Thompson/AP

Boeing also recently announced it would be giving the US government a new fighter in the war against COVID-19, three 747-400LCF Dreamlifter aircraft on loan.

Boeing 747 Dreamlifter

cpaulfell / Shutterstock.com

Read More: Boeing is donating 3 massive oversized cargo planes to distribute coronavirus-related supplies. Take a look at the 'Dreamlifter'.

With 65,000 cubic feet of cargo capacity, the oversized aircraft is capable of flying large amounts of freight to the frontlines, aiding in sorely-needed supply distribution.

Boeing 747 Dreamlifter

The Asahi Shimbun via Getty

While the 747 is quietly being removed from the world's passenger fleets, it's serving a higher purpose in the fight against a global pandemic and will live on in cargo fleets for years to come.

Boeing 747 8i

Boeing

Read the original article on Business Insider
Caitlyn Russo is 17, and thousands of kilometres from her parents. She cannot go back to her home in Townsville because the Queensland border is closed, and she is afraid of bringing COVID-19 back to infect her elderly grandmother.

But the Kamilaroi woman is also worried about losing her home away from home, Women's College at Sydney University, if the government decides to close residential colleges.

Students Caitlyn Russo and Heidi Crookes are staying on at the Womens College at the University of Sydney. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

"As much as I'd love to go back to [my family], I wouldn't want to put them at risk," she said.

Of the 290-odd students who usually live at the college, just 50 remain. They cannot go home, for different reasons; some are international students, some are estranged from their families, some are the daughters of doctors on the COVID-19 front line.
The United Nations Security Council is now all set to discuss the crisis caused by coronavirus pandemic, following the Dominican Republic assuming the rotating presidency for the month of April. Earlier, China blocked the move to discuss novel coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak in the United Nations Security Council on Friday, March 27. The Coronavirus source nation had held the presidency for March.

The UNSC has five permanent members  China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The other 10 non-permanent members are Germany, Dominican Republic, Belgium, Estonia, Indonesia, Niger, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, South Africa, Tunisia and Vietnam.

READ | 10% Of All Of India's Coronavirus Positive Cases Now Have Direct Link To Nizamuddin Event

The coronavirus was first reported in China's Wuhan province which then let to the worldwide outbreak. and it has killed over 47,000 people globally and infected over 9 lakh. Chinas presidency of the UNSC ended on 31 March. The monthly chair of the UNSC decides what is on the agenda and guides the body.

According to reports, China had blocked the draft on coronavirus and is not allowing the global issue to be discussed in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Meanwhile, many countries wanted to pass a proposal on the global issue but China is constantly putting obstructions, with involved and knowledgable persons hitting out online.

READ | 'No Coronavirus Cases At Isha Yoga Center,' Says Spiritual Leader Sadhguru

'Coronavirus not on UNSC's agenda'

Earlier on March 3, China's UN Ambassador has said there is no need to panic over the coronavirus epidemic and that Beijing does not plan to discuss the situation in the Security Council during its Presidency this month. Beijing's UN envoy Zhang Jun said that there was no plan to have a "specific discussion" on COVID-19.

"With regard to the Security Council, at this moment, is the general feeling of member states, while we watch closely the situation, especially the new development, we do not need to go panicky about that epidemic," Zhang said during a press conference on the occasion of China assuming Presidency of the Council.

READ | United Nations Not Interested In Discussing Coronavirus Because UNSC March Chair Is China?

READ | China Blocks COVID-19 Discussion In UNSC Stating Pandemic Not Linked With Global Security
(Bloomberg) -- When it comes to social distancing, some authorities are resorting to unprecedented tactics to try and slow the spread of Covid-19.

In India, baton-wielding police have beaten those who flout the curfew-like restrictions or fail to maintain physical distancing, while others have publicly shamed violators by forcing them do squats, push-ups, crawl or roll around on the streets. A video of a police officer writing I have violated lockdown restrictions, keep away from me on a mans forehead, went viral in the South Asian nation. Action has been taken against the officer, Vivek Raj Singh, a senior police official in the state of Madhya Pradesh said.

Police in South Africa also forced people to roll along the road, kicking others as they performed squats for extended periods of time. After enforcing a 21-day nationwide lockdown on Friday, officers in Johannesburg were seen indiscriminately using water cannons on civilians and firing rubber bullets in the citys poorest neighborhoods. Heavily armed officers stormed apartment buildings to check residents werent violating a shutdown in which the sale of alcohol and cigarettes are prohibited. South Africas police spokeswoman was not immediately available for comment.

In the Philippines, police and local officials have been accused by Human Rights Watch of arresting hundreds of people who broke curfew, social distancing and quarantine rules. In some cases, offenders were subject to public shaming and abuse as punishment for their crimes, including placing young people in dog cages and forcing others to sit in the scorching sun.

No Excuse

The current state of public health emergency is no excuse for violating due process and the basic rights of the people, Edgar San Luis, the mayor of Laguna provinces Santa Cruz municipality wrote in a Facebook post on March 20 in response to the dog cage detentions.

While most cases of over-zealous policing have been condemned by local authorities, who in some instances have called for the investigation of the officers involved, there remains growing concern over the harsh punishment meted out to vulnerable populations unable to socially distance due to overcrowded living conditions.

Story continues

The authorities will tend to default to using whatever means they have previously routinely applied to maintain political and social order, said Tim Huxley, the executive director at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Asia. In these circumstances where mass compliance will be necessary for a protracted period it seems to me highly unlikely that coercive measures alone can work.

Covid-19 cases have now topped 861,000 cases globally, and killed more than 42,000 people, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Hefty Fines

Still while some countries have resorted to violence in an attempt to force social distancing, others are taking a different route.

In Mexicos southern state of Yucatan people diagnosed with the virus or showing symptoms may be forced to serve up to three years in prison if they dont quarantine themselves, local newspaper El Financiero reported. The Peruvian government has announced fines of about $600 for those who prank call its coronavirus hotline after it found 74% of calls were impertinent or malicious, according to the Lima-based newspaper Peru 21.

Battling a resurgence in imported coronavirus cases, Hong Kong on Tuesday warned residents to abide by home quarantine orders and social distancing regulations or face criminal prosecution and fines. The city has already caught more than 70 people violating some of the more than 50,000 home quarantine orders, sending them to government isolation centers. Authorities would pursue criminal charges against them, Chief Executive Carrie Lam told reporters at a weekly briefing.

This is no time to let down our guard, Lam said, adding that her government has a zero tolerance approach to people breaking quarantine. Violating quarantine orders can lead to fines of up to HK$25,000 ($3,225) and jail terms of up to six months, while businesses refusing to comply face fines of up to HK$50,000.

Singapore has also imposed severe penalties for flouting social distancing regulations. The government last week announced it is a criminal offense to have gatherings of more than 10 people outside of work or school. People must also exercise physical distancing of at least one meter in settings where interactions are non-transient, such as queuing or sitting. The maximum penalty for either offense is a fine of S$10,000 ($7,000) and six months imprisonment.

Civic Consciousness

Theres a real consciousness about issues of public health and safety, and over the years also a growing sense of civic consciousness -- it didnt come about on its own, said Gillian Koh, senior research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies at the National University of Singapore, citing the city-statess stringent rules against public littering and spitting that could cost repeat offenders up to S$10,000 in fines.

Police attempting to enforce social distancing restrictions in Australia have issued fines on a Victoria state massage parlor following a visit from the Sex Industry Coordination Unit, while in neighboring New South Wales, state police have been patrolling Sydneys parks to ensure protocols are being enforced. Penalties can reach A$11,000 in fines and six months in jail.

But it is in India, with its population of 1.3 billion people, where the most extreme examples are emerging. The country imposed a three-week long nationwide lockdown on March 24 in some of the most far-reaching social distancing measures undertaken by any government. Earlier this week, authorities were filmed spraying a group of migrant workers with a chemical solution containing bleach after they returned to Uttar Pradesh in northern India, in an effort to disinfect them. The incident is now under investigation by the district magistrate.

Niranjan Sahoo, a senior fellow at the New Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation said drastic measures were needed in a country with such a massive population. Whether they will work is another matter.

Enforcing social distancing in a country with huge rural society and urban poor would be next to impossible, Sahoo said.

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Police personnel were attacked and at least nine of them were injured in various parts of West Bengal while enforcing the ongoing lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic, senior officers said on Thursday.

Stones were thrown at quick response teams in South 24 Parganas and West Midnapore districts when they stopped people from assembling, they added.

An incident was reported from the Bhangore area of South 24 Parganas on Wednesday night, when a patrolling team stopped youngsters from gathering, a senior officer said.

"The youngsters pushed the police personnel and hurled stones at them when they were asked to go home. A sub-inspector and four constables were injured in the clash. A police vehicle was also damaged. We have arrested five persons," he added.

In another incident, a police team was attacked, resulting in injuries to two assistant sub-inspectors and two constables, in the Goaltore area of West Midnapore district, when they asked a group of people not to gather at a tea stall.

"We are trying to trace those behind the attack. The injured police personnel are being treated at a hospital," a district police official said.

The Birbhum district police has not been physically assaulted, but abuses were hurled at policemen while they were enforcing the lockdown.

As the 21-day nationwide lockdown entered its ninth day on Thursday, people in various parts of the state were seen jostling at markets and ration shops to buy essential items.

In several parts of the state, especially in Burdwan, Purulia, Bankura, West Midnapore and Birbhum districts, people were seen standing outside shops in close proximity, despite requests from the local administrations to maintain social distancing.

The civic bodies in Uttarpara and Konnagar in Hooghly district are using drones to identify the places where people are out on the streets and necessary action is being taken, an official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An 11-year-old British boy has fully recovered from novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and been discharged from a hospital in Vietnam, becoming the 64th patient to be free of the virus in the country.

The boy had been treated at a medical center in Thanh Mien District, Hai Duong Province, located in northern Vietnam, the central government said on its verified Facebook account on Thursday afternoon.

He will have his health monitored at another facility following his discharge.

Doctors provided mental support for the boy during his treatment, with health workers acting as if they were his parents to encourage him when he was in isolation, the government said.

The boy started his treatment in the infectious disease ward of the medical center on March 15, Vu Manh Cuong, a senior official in charge of media information at the Ministry of Health, said on his Facebook account. Cuong regularly provides updates on COVID-19 on social media.

The boy tested negative for the virus twice, on March 24 and 28, Cuong elaborated.

His health is stable and he will be quarantined for another 14 days, as per the ministrys regulations.

Vietnam has confirmed 222 cases, including 179 Vietnamese and 43 foreigners, according to data collected by Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

Sixty-four have fully recovered from disease.

Fifty-four patients have tested negative at least once.

Four critical cases have been showing positive signs.

No fatality related to COVID-19 has been recorded in Vietnam to date.

Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are the countrys epicenters, with the capital having reported 95 cases and the southern city 49 patients.

The Southeast Asian country began going into nationwide social distancing that will last until April 15 on Wednesday.

The government wants to contain the virus by keeping the case count under 1,000 for as long as possible.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
As many as 13 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi were on Wednesday picked from a mosque in Barwalan area in Uttar Pradeshs Moradabad. The people who attended the event are being aggressively pursued after reports that many of them are the likely carriers of the coronavirus disease Covid-19.

Amit Kumar Anand, Meerut Superintendent of Police, said,They are all from Assam. They will be placed under quarantine.

A man from Manipur, who attended the congregation last month, has tested positive for Covid-19, taking the total number of coronavirus cases in the state to two, Chief Minister N Biren Singh said on Thursday.

Also Watch | How Ajit Doval cleared Nizamuddin Markaz. Now for contact tracing

More on Covid-19:

 Covid-19: Your guide to staying safe

 Covid-19: What you need to know today

 Can Covid-19 spread after symptoms end?

 How coronavirus is different from seasonal flu and common cold

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the gathering. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Wednesday that a social media campaign has been launched by the state government to identify all those who participated in the Jamaat gathering.

The situation is under control and there is no need for any concern. A purposeful campaign is being run particularly on social media targeting those who attended Nizamuddin Markaz gathering in Delhi and their community, Vijayan said.

The number of Covid-19 cases in India soared over 2,000 on Wednesday, fuelled largely by infections linked to the March event of the Jamaat that emerged this week as the biggest domestic source of the disease in the country.

According to a tally of numbers released by 25 states and union territories, close to 8,500 people have been identified as having been to the groups headquarters in the Nizamuddin area, prompting authorities to intensify efforts to trace them.

Health workers from the integrated diseases surveillance programme have decided to launch aggressive testing; these workers will start going door-to-door from Thursday.

As part of the testing, everyone within a 3 kilometre radius (focal area) of the building and in the buffer area (5 kilometre radius) will be screened for symptoms. Those who are symptomatic - a cough will do - will be tested.

Thus far, the congregation has been identified as being responsible for 358 infections and nine deaths.
This opinion article is from the Washington Post. To read an opinion or editorial from the Houston Chronicle, go to HoustonChronicle.com.

After resisting a statewide stay-at-home order for days, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp succumbed to the pressure and issued one on Wednesday. Part of the reason, he said, was that he had just learned some new information.

Kemp, a Republican, said he was "finding out that this virus is now transmitting before people see signs."

DEATH THREATS: Virus expert Dr. Fauci has security increased

"Those individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad, but we didn't know that until the last 24 hours," he said. He added that the state's top doctor told him "this is a game-changer."

It may have been a game-changer, but it was a game-changer weeks or even months ago. That's when health officials started emphasizing that asymptomatic people are transmitting the coronavirus. The idea that Kemp didn't know this is striking. But he's merely the latest top politician to indicate he's unfamiliar with the science even as he's making life-or-death decisions for his constituents.

Anthony Fauci, a lead member of the White House coronavirus task force, was talking about asymptomatic transmission more than two months ago.

SHORTAGE: Home Depot halts mask sales to free them up for medical workers

"You know that in the beginning, we were not sure if there were asymptomatic infection, which would make it a much broader outbreak than what we're saying here; now we know for sure that there are," Fauci said at a Jan. 31 task force briefing. "It was not clear whether an asymptomatic person could transmit it to someone while they were asymptomatic. Now, we know from a recent report from Germany that that is absolutely the case."

Fauci added on Feb. 4: "We had been getting reports from highly reliable people in China - scientists, investigators and public health people who we've known over the years - and they've been telling us, 'There's asymptomatic disease, for sure, and we are seeing asymptomatic transmission.'"

The CDC issued guidance stating as early as March 1, stating that asymptomatic people could indeed spread the coronavirus, even as it emphasized that people with symptoms were more likely to be contagious.

"Some spread might be possible before people show symptoms," the CDC said, adding that "there have been reports of this occurring with this new coronavirus, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads."

By March 14, White House task force member Deborah Birx indicated asymptomatic transmission was an increasing concern.

"Until you really understand how many people are asymptomatic and asymptomatically passing the virus on, we think it's better for the entire American public to know that the risk of serious illness may be low, but they could be potentially spreading the virus to others," Birx said, adding: "That's why we're asking every American to take personal responsibility to prevent that spread."

Studies of the spread in other countries from earlier in the outbreak indicated about half of the transmissions in Singapore were from asymptomatic people, and as much as 62 percent were in a study of China's Tianjin province.

By March 22, Fauci was more directly warning young people that they could transmit the virus asymptomatically.

"You're going to get people you care for sick if you are asymptomatic," Fauci told young people who were still going out. "So you may not think that you have it and you very well might. And you especially might if you continue to go out and live life as usual."

Ten days after that and more than two months after Fauci first said there was strong evidence of asymptomatic transmission, Kemp is saying he learned this only in the last 24 hours.

Kemp appears to have been citing a new number that the CDC placed on asymptomatic cases. CDC Director Robert Redfield said Monday on NPR that the number of people who have the coronavirus but are asymptomatic may be as high as 25 percent. But the idea that those people were transmitting the virus isn't news at all.

And to be clear: This isn't trivial. The fact that it is transmitted asymptomatically is a tremendously important fact, because it speaks to the difficulty in combating the virus and the need to keep even people who don't appear sick indoors. Did Kemp really not process that before the middle of this week?

Kemp isn't the first top official to make comments suggesting they weren't exactly up to speed on the particulars here. President Donald Trump said Sunday that he had just learned about a projection that 2.2 million people could have died in the United States if nothing was done to mitigate its spread. Trump said that when he was given the number that day it was the "first time I've heard that number." In fact, that number had been part of a projection issued nearly two weeks earlier by an Imperial College London model that formed the basis of more aggressive responses in the United States and Great Britain.

Kemp's neighboring governor, Alabama's Kay Ivey, has also said some strange things about the data in her state. She said Tuesday of the infections in her state: "Y'all, we are not Louisiana, we are not New York state, we are not California." As The Washington Post's Philip Bump noted, though, the rate of the spread in Alabama was actually similar to the early days of New York and worse than California.

Ivey, like Kemp, has resisted pressure for a statewide stay-at-home order. And in both cases, it seems fair to ask just how much of their holding out was actually driven by the data and what health officials were saying.
An Arizona man says he is now trapped in a Moscow airport after Russia shut its borders over coronavirus - and his life saving asthma medication is running out.

Trenton Thurber, 26, had been trying to make it home to Tucson via New Yorks JFK from Sheremetyevo International Airport on March 30 when his flight was canceled.

Russia announced it would be closing its borders starting on March 30 in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

In Russia, the official tally is 2,337 coronavirus cases with 17 deaths, although the accuracy of that data has come into question.

Thurber told Buzzfeed the US embassy told him to 'get to the land border with Finland', which is 700 miles away.

He added: 'Theres no way to get out.'

Trenton Thurber, pictured, says he is now trapped in Moscow airport after Russia shut its borders over coronavirus - and his life saving asthma medication is running out

Trenton Thurber, 26, had been trying to make it home to Tucson via New Yorks JFK from Sheremetyevo International Airport, pictured, on March 30 when his flight was canceled

Russia took early steps to counter the outbreak, closing the borders with China and then barring access to Chinese citizens last month when China was still the worlds hottest coronavirus spot.

Authorities followed up by screening arrivals from Italy, France, Spain and other countries worst-affected by the outbreak, and obliging them to self-quarantine.

At the end of March Russia cut all international commercial flights and finally fully closed its borders, with the exception of diplomats, truck drivers and a few other categories.

Thurber, who moved to Russia in 2018 and later married a citizen, added: 'Its one of the reasons Im leaving Russia. The climate is not suitable for my asthma.

'Ive had minor respiratory problems since I moved [to Russia] but it definitely compounds my concerns. Especially with COVID in mind.'

His twin sister, Madison, told Buzzfeed: 'Our familys greatest desire is his speedy return to American soil...for the sake of his health.'

Aeroflot is scheduled to fly to New York City on Friday. Thurber added: 'I've got a ticket for it so I'm just going to lay low until Friday.'

Russia sent 60 tons of medical supplies to the United States to help combat the coronavirus after Russian President Vladimir Putin offered them to President Donald Trump when the two spoke on Monday, a senior administration official told DailyMail.com

Russia sent 60 tons of medical supplies to the US to help combat the coronavirus after Putin offered them to Trump when the two spoke on Monday

The supplies landed at John F. Kennedy airport in New York on Wednesday

The supplies landed at John F. Kennedy airport in New York on Wednesday and were criticized on both sides of the Atlantic. American officials questioned Putin's motives in making the offer and Russian health officials described their own needs for such equipment.

Putin made the offer of help to Trump, who accepted it.

'President Putin offered President Trump during their conversation Monday,' a senior Administration official told DailyMail.com.

'As an act of goodwill, yesterday, Russia delivered a planeload of equipment and supplies at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. Likewise, the United States is sending equipment and supplies to many other countries, and will continue to do more as we are able,' the official said.

The cargo plane carried 60 tons of ventilators, masks, respirators and protective equipment at a time when the United States is struggling to meet the demands of health care workers who are on the frontline.

'Russia sent us a very, very large planeload of things, medical equipment, which was very nice,' President Trump told reporters at the White House Monday during his daily press briefing.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed that the U.S. paid for the supplies, but did not disclose the amount.

But the assistance from Russia was also met with criticism from some American diplomats, who asked whether President Trump is ignoring Putin's motivation in sending the supplies.

Russia is under U.S. sanctions for its interference in the 2016 presidential election and its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.

'Nothing to see here. Just a Russian military aircraft landing at JFK with 60 tons of medical supplies to support America's #COVID19 response. A propaganda bonanza as our own government shrinks from America's leadership role in a global crisis,' Brett McGurk, a former diplomat for Trump and former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, wrote on Twitter.
This last pivotal trial (REVERSE-IT), has been designed jointly with Nestle Health Science's teams and will be entirely funded by the partnership agreement;

This international trial will include 600 participants and should be launched before mid-2020;

Its first objective is to confirm the positive results of the Phase II clinical trial on fasting blood sugar levels, a well-established risk factor for developing Type 2 Diabetes, to obtain strong health claims;

The trial aims to include a broad population with altered glucose metabolism, spanning from elevated fasting glucose to early (yet untreated) Type 2 Diabetes.

Regulatory News:

VALBIOTIS (Paris:ALVAL) (FR0013254851 ALVAL PEA/SME eligible), a Research Development company committed to scientific innovation for preventing and combating metabolic diseases, announces today, that as part of its global partnership with Nestle Health Science, it is launching the pivotal late stage development phase of TOTUM-63, a plant-derived active substance with clinically demonstrated metabolic health benefits on people with prediabetes.

This last phase of the clinical development was co-designed with Nestle Health Science's medical and regulatory teams and consists of one pivotal Phase II/III clinical study, called REVERSE-IT. This clinical trial will include people with prediabetes and with early stage untreated Type 2 Diabetes. It will pursue two main strategic objectives:

Replicate the previous Phase II positive result on fasting blood sugar levels, a well-established risk factor for developing Type 2 Diabetes;

Extend the evaluation of TOTUM-63 to patients with early stage untreated Type 2 Diabetes, to enlarge the final target population.

The launch of the REVERSE-IT trial is planned for the first half of 2020. In order to rapidly complete the recruitment, the trial will be led in more than 30 international clinical centers. It will be entirely funded by the partnership signed in February 2020 with Nestle Health Science.

Murielle CAZAUBIEL, Head of Development and Medical Affairs, states: "The REVERSE-IT study results from the combined expertise of VALBIOTIS and Nestle Health Science. We have strong ambitions for this last regulatory clinical phase, that are based on the very good results we obtained in the previous Phase II clinical trial. Considering the resources we mobilize, we can reasonably expect the topline data to be released before mid-2022. We feel enthusiastic for this final step of our innovative R&D process and we are confident in the fact that it will get TOTUM-63 to wide and successful commercialization, which may take place before obtaining health claims."

Hans-Juergen WOERLE, Chief Scientific Medical Officer of Nestle Health Science, adds: "The scope and conditions of this clinical trial are significant: it is being led in 30 international clinical settings with 600 participants. The thoroughness of this trial will provide results that are extremely useful in demonstrating a safe and effective opportunity to help patients who have prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes."

The REVERSE-IT trial will be randomized and placebo-controlled, with the same primary objective (reduction in fasting glycemia), the same duration of supplementation (6 months) and the same tested dose (5g/day) and regimen (three times per day) than the previous Phase II study, which positive results were published in 2019 (Press releases, 3rd July 2019 and 2nd September 2019).

The study population will include 600 subjects with abnormally elevated fasting blood glucose (dysglycemia) and abdominal obesity, two frequently associated conditions. The number of subjects included will guarantee the robustness of this pivotal trial.

Led in a wider population, this trial will also pursue larger clinical objectives, with a three-arm design. The regimen of three doses per day, for a total daily dose of 5g, will be tested against placebo (200 subjects receiving TOTUM-63 in one arm and 200 subjects receiving a placebo in the second arm). The primary criterion is the reduction in fasting blood glucose against placebo, with this three doses per day regimen. A third open label arm will test a regimen of two doses per day, for the same total daily dose of 5g, on 200 subjects.

The trial will evaluate several other metabolic criteria of high interest for people with prediabetes or early stage untreated Type 2 Diabetes.

The partnership with Nestle Health Science also plans an adjunct clinical study to obtain exploratory data on TOTUM-63 mode of action in humans.

VALBIOTIS will provide details on its other products in a subsequent communication.

ABOUT TOTUM-63

TOTUM-63 is a unique and patented combination of 5 plant extracts, with high potential to target the physiopathological mechanisms of Type 2 Diabetes.

TOTUM-63 has already been proven safe and effective in healthy human volunteers during a Phase I/II clinical study. The results of the international randomized, placebo-controlled Phase II study showed that TOTUM-63 reduced fasting and 2-hour blood sugar levels, two risk factors for Type 2 Diabetes, in prediabetics compared to placebo. In these subjects, who also had abdominal obesity, TOTUM-63 significantly reduced body weight and waist circumference.

TOTUM-63 benefits from intellectual property granted in the main markets worldwide: Europe (covering 39 countries), the United States, Russia and national phases are underway in more than 20 countries including China, Japan, Brazil, Australia. The ability to produce TOTUM-63 industrially, in compliance to North American and European standards, has been validated. TOTUM-63 already has marketing authorizations related to its status in Europe.

In 2020, VALBIOTIS has signed a global and long-term partnership with Nestle Health Science for the development and worldwide commercialization of TOTUM-63. This unique partnership in the field of Nutrition Health plans that TOTUM-63 will be put on the market by Nestle Health Science at a global level, possibly before obtaining a health claim, depending on the areas. It will also provide funding for the latest clinical development stages of TOTUM-63.

ABOUT NESTLE HEALTH SCIENCE

Nestle Health Science (NHSc), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nestle, is a globally recognized leader in the field of nutritional science. At NHSc we are committed to empowering healthier lives through nutrition for consumers, patients and their healthcare partners. We offer an extensive consumer health portfolio of industry-leading medical nutrition, consumer and VMS brands that are science-based solutions covering all facets of health from prevention, to maintenance, all the way through to treatment. Headquartered in Switzerland, NHSc employs over 5'000 people around the world, who are committed to making a difference in people's lives, for a healthier today and tomorrow.

For more information, please visit: www.nestlehealthscience.com

ABOUT VALBIOTIS

VALBIOTIS is a Research Development company committed to scientific innovation for preventing and combating metabolic diseases in response to unmet medical needs.

VALBIOTIS has adopted an innovative approach, aiming to revolutionize healthcare by developing a new class of nutritional health solutions designed to reduce the risk of major metabolic diseases, based on a multi-target approach and made possible by the use of plant-based ingredients.

Its products are intended to be licensed to players in the health world.

VALBIOTIS was founded in La Rochelle in early 2014 and has formed numerous partnerships with top academic centers. The Company has established three sites in France Perigny, La Rochelle (17) and Riom (63).

VALBIOTIS is a member of the "BPI Excellence" network and received the "Innovative Company" status accorded by BPI France. Valbiotis has also been awarded "Young Innovative Company" status and has received major financial support from the European Union for its research programs by obtaining support from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). VALBIOTIS is a PEA-SME eligible company.

Find out more about VALBIOTIS: www.valbiotis.com

Name: Valbiotis

ISIN code: FR0013254851

Mnemonic code: ALVAL

Disclaimer

This press release contains forward-looking statements about VALBIOTIS' objectives, based on rational hypotheses and the information available to the company at the present time. However, in no way does this constitute a guarantee of future performance, and these projections can be reconsidered based on changes in economic conditions and financial markets, as well as a certain number of risks and doubts, including those described in the VALBIOTIS core document, filed with the French Financial Markets Regulator (AMF) on 31 July 2019 (application number R19-030) as well in its supplement approved by the AMF on Octobre 9, 2019. These documents being available on the Company's website (www.valbiotis.com). This press release, as well as the information contained herein, does not constitute an offer to sell or subscribe to, or a solicitation to purchase or subscribe to, VALBIOTIS' shares or securities in any country.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005658/en/

Contacts:

CORPORATE COMMUNICATION VALBIOTIS

Carole ROCHER Marc DELAUNAY

+33 5 46 28 62 58

media@valbiotis.com



FINANCIAL COMMUNICATION ACTIFIN

Stephane RUIZ

+33 1 56 88 11 14

sruiz@actifin.fr



MEDIA RELATIONS MADIS PHILEO

Guillaume DE CHAMISSO

+33 6 85 91 32 56

guillaume.dechamisso@madisphileo.com
The San Rafael waterfall in Ecuador has run dry.

Local officials have traced the cause to a large sinkhole that opened beneath the river that once fed the falls.

Located in Cayambe Coca Park, part of the Ecuadorian Amazon near the border with Colombia, the falls ranked as the tallest in the country at more than 500 feet.

Scroll down for video

This picture released by Ecuador's government shows the San Rafael waterfall after it had nearly run dry, apparently as a result of a sinkhole shortly before the drop

The San Rafael waterfall (pictured above) was the tallest waterfall in Ecuador, at over 500 feet, before a sinkhole formed underneath the river that feeds it, causing the falls to run dry

The waterfall had previously attracted tens of thousands of visitors a year, and was hailed by the government as a 'symbol of eco-tourism in Ecuador'.

The government has restricted access to the site of the falls and surrounding area as a team investigates what caused the sinkhole, according to a report in Mongabay.

Ecuador's environment ministry said park rangers had noticed a 'possible undermining of the river's path prior to the waterfall' which had 'caused the water to take a new course'.

The once-impressive waterfall stopped flowing on February 2, according to NASA's Earth Observatory.

Some have pointed to a hydroelectric plant 12 miles upstream as a possible cause.

'A waterfall that has been there for thousands of years does not collapse, coincidentally, a few years after opening a hydroelectric project,' Emilio Cobo, coordinator at the South America Water Program with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, told Mongabay.

'These are processes that are in scientific papers and there is sufficient evidence that a dam can cause effects of this type on a river.'

The plant, which was built by the Chinese company SinoHydro and opened in 2016, isn't directly on the river, but it has a diversion reservoir that's designed to remove between 90 and 100 percent of the sediment from the river before its waters reach the plant.

Sediment acts as a protective layer in riverbeds, helping to insulate the ground below from water erosion.

Without a steady flow of new sediment from upstream, the older sediment is eventually washed away, leaving more of the riverbed susceptible to erosion, a condition researchers describe as 'hungry waters.'

Geologist and former secretary of Natural Capital at Ecuador's Ministry of Environment Alfredo Carrasco argues that the 'hungry waters' phenomenon could also have been caused by seismic activity in the region.

'There are many quite intense earthquakes here. In March 1987, a very strong one appeared that caused tremendous damage to the trans-Ecuadorian oil pipeline that passes right through it,' Carrasco said.

'For me, the phenomenon is eminently of natural origin.'

Researchers are still unsure what caused the sinkhole to form, but everyone agrees the diversion of the waters to three new, smaller waterfalls will reshape the region, something already visible in satellite imagery showing the falls in 2014 (left) and 2020 (right)

In Carrasco's theory, sediment from upstream could have been blocked by a natural dam that was formed after an earthquake, which over time would have limited the amount of sediment flowing downstream, potentially causing erosion sufficient to create the sinkhole.

Whatever the cause, researchers agree the sinkhole will radically reshape the region as the once unitary river has now been split into three smaller streams, each of which have formed their own small waterfalls along the jungle ridge.

The three new waterfalls cannot be seen from the viewing platforms which were located around the original landmark.

These newer and smaller waterfalls, will bring added risk of landslides and potentially threaten the wellbeing of fish and other invertebrates that had been a part of the river's ecosystem for years.

'In the scientific world, many do not see rivers as ecosystems, when in reality it is a reduced surface that ends up absorbing many of the environmental impacts,' Cobo said.

Ecuador's government does not plan to perform the reconstruction on the riverbed which would be necessary to restore the waterfall.

Visitors had previously been encouraged to take a half-hour walk from a nearby road and see the butterflies who lived near the waterfall.

'The waterfall is now part of history,' the NASA Earth Observatory says.
The Infosys Foundation has sent



critical medical supplies worth Rs 54 lakh to Udupi district for tackling coronavirus infection.

Udupi Deputy Commissioner G Jagadeesha said in a release that essential medical equipment was donated towards the ongoing crisis due to the spread of the virus.

The kit includes N95 masks, hand sanitizers, triple layer masks, surgical gloves and 1,000 personal protection equipment (PPE).

As many as 4,000 N95 masks, 4,000 sanitizers, 25,000 triple layer masks, 10,000 surgical gloves, and 1,500 PPEs were handed over to the district administration on Wednesday.

Jagadeesha thanked Foundation chairperson Sudha Murty and the Infosys team for the swift response to the request from the district for medical supplies.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Muhammed Babandede, in a video said coronavirus infection is a humbling experience.

According to The Punch newspaper, Mr Babandede, spoke from isolation for the first time since he tested positive for COVID-19.

I thank Allah for giving me the opportunity to be sick because it gives me the opportunity to humble myself, to also know that I am loved by such a large number of people.

He tested positive for the virus on March 22.

I tested positive for COVID-19, said Mr Babandede in a message sent to this newspaper.

I have been in self-isolation since my return from the UK on Sunday on Sunday 22nd of this month with British Airways in Lagos, he said.

In the video he released on Wednesday night, he appreciated Nigerians for their generosity in prayers and love.

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I will like to thank all my friends, loved ones, officers and men, Muslims and Christians in Nigeria and abroad for the enormous prayers for my quick recovery. I am very grateful for your prayers. In reality, your prayers are helping me recover very quickly, he said.

Today, the 1st of April, I am sending this short video to you to tell you Im doing well and recovering gradually.

He added that people should take care always, wash their hands and maintain social distance.

Mr Babandede said there is a need to continue to pray that Nigeria does not head towards any disaster. He said the numbers are still small but the nation should continue to pray that it does not grow.

I send my love to you, especially people from my village  people from Kano, Lagos, Abuja, everywhere I cant even mention. Thank you for your love. Maa Salam.

Nigeria has recorded 174 cases of COVID-19 and two deaths as of April 1.

Lagos and Abuja, the two cities with the highest number of patients, are currently observing a 14-day lockdown while Ogun State would commence its own effective Friday as part of measures to curb the community transmission of the virus which has infected over 900,000 people globally.
"We have it totally under control," Donald Trump said about the coronavirus in late January, adding, "It's just one person from China." In a call with Republican senators, he said confidently, "Just stay calm. It will go away." At a February news conference, he predicted, "One day, its like a miracle, it will disappear." At a rally in New Hampshire, Trump was even more precise, saying, "Looks like by April, you know, in theory, when it gets a little warmer, it miraculously goes away." The president occasionally tempered his placid attitude with some real-world action, like when he ordered travel restrictions after coronavirus was already established in several statesa move that some public health experts have called "remarkably pointless."

As of the first day of April, the outbreak has not "miraculously gone away." According to Johns Hopkins, the U.S. has 189,000 confirmed coronavirus cases, on track to double the number of cases in the second worst hit country, Italy. There have been 4,081 confirmed deaths, with 850 of those coming on Tuesday, the biggest single day death toll yet for America. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said the pandemic is "the most challenging crisis" the world has faced since World War II.

When Trump delivered his Tuesday press briefing on the outbreak, he was unusually serious. "I want every American to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead," he said, adding, "This could be a hell of a bad two weeks. This is going to be three weeks like weve never seen before." He produced charts showing an estimated 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the U.S. "We lose more here potentially than you lose in world wars as a country," Trump said.

Anthony Fauci, an infectious disease expert and member of the White House's coronavirus task force, warned that the number of deaths will keep increasing for some time, even if social distancing is working: "In the next several days to a week or so, were going to continue to see things go up. We cannot be discouraged by that. Because the mitigation is actually working, and will work." The New York Times noted that Trump showed "none of the carefree dismissiveness that characterized his reaction to the virus in February and early March."

Story continues

But Trump is also working a PR angle. At a briefing on Sunday, he admitted for the first time that the U.S. was facing at least 100,000 deaths, but he did it with a slightly more upbeat spin. "So youre talking about 2.2 million deaths, 2.2 million people from this. And so if we could hold that down, as were saying, to 100,000. Its a horrible number, maybe even less but to 100,000. So we have between 100,000 and 200,000, and we altogether have done a very good job," he said.

He repeated that figure, 2.2 million people dead, 16 times in that one Sunday briefing. That's the total death toll that the U.S. would be facing if absolutely no mitigation efforts were in place, according to a mid-March report from the U.K.'s Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team. While Trump is trying to pitch 100,000 deaths as "a very good job," he's comparing it to the 2.2 million estimated deaths that would come from the U.S. doing nothingnot exactly a high bar.

Trump isn't the only Republican trying to downplay the severity of 100,000 to 200,000 deaths. In a Sunday op-ed for USA Today, Wisconsin senator Ron Johnson wrote that while dying a preventable death from COVID-19 is scary, it's important "to put things into perspective." That perspective is, we're all going to die anyway: "Every premature death is a tragedy, but death is an unavoidable part of life."

But the problem facing the country isn't a philosophical acceptance of the concept of mortalityit's that Trump seems more concerned with saving face than saving lives. While many states are struggling to meet the demand for both tests and life-saving equipment like ventilators, Trump has alternated between blaming the shortages on others and pretending the shortages don't exist. And when the federal government has tried to get supplies to states, it's badly botched the deliveriesOklahoma, for example, requested 16,000 face shields and received 120,000; North Carolina requested 500,000 medical coveralls and received 306. According to the Associated Press, many hospitals are reviewing their own guidelines to know which patients to prioritize when, not if, it becomes impossible to save them allthe kinds of decisions Italian doctors were making weeks before.

Since the pandemic reached the U.S., Trump has claimed often that "nobody" could have predicted the outbreak could be this bad, and that it "came out of nowhere." But infectious diseases experts have been warning about pandemic preparedness for years, and the American response to it has been particularly disastrous and negligent, from disbanding the White House global health outbreak unit in 2018 to not having a backup plan for testing kits (which failed at first). Trump was warned repeatedly by his own public health officials that the coronavirus threat was serious. Ignoring the problem has failed, so now the president wants credit for responding to it at all.

The Infuriating Story of How the Government Stalled Coronavirus Testing

How one young doctor at a Seattle lab tried to get out in front of the coronavirus crisis by inventing his own test. And why the absurdity of his struggle should make us all afraid.

Originally Appeared on GQ
Mohawk Industries and Fabric Sources International are combining resources to address urgent medical supply needs at Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton and Emory Healthcare in Atlanta during the COVID-19 outbreak.Using fabric provided by FSI, Mohawk Homes Dalton-based rug manufacturing facility is providing industrial sewing equipment for their employees to produce needed medical protective gear for doctors, nurses and other care providers.During the developing COVID-19 crisis, we came together as a team to look at our current capabilities and see if there was any way that we could help the medical groups in our communities, Bart Hill, senior vice president, product development and operations, said.When the team at FSI reached out to Hamilton Medical Center to learn about their needs, they found out that Hamilton was in short supply of medical gowns worn by care providers. Thats when FSI asked us if we could combine our resources and skills to produce these items.Healthcare providers wear these gowns in non-surgical settings to prevent their clothing from being contaminated by patient body fluids. The gowns are worn when a patients symptoms are consistent with COVID-19 or other infectious diseases and contact precautions must be taken. The Mohawk Home team developed a process for cutting the fabric pattern and sewing together the gown components.When we were made aware that our local hospital was out of these gowns, we were asked, Do you think you can do this? Darlene Pasley, sewing department manager, said. Our quick answer was yes, even though we didnt yet know how to do it and had never done anything like this before. We just knew we had to do what we could to help.Ms. Pasley explained how the team disassembled a medical isolation gown, measured it, copied the size, cut out a pattern by hand and sewed it back together. Earl Nichols, Mohawk Home senior engineer, and the team broke down every step into a separate process for the team and set up a small assembly line in a day.I have family members that are in the medical field, and all of them were telling me the same thing were hearing on the news, that they were running low on supplies, Jesus Naranjo, cutting department manager, said. So, I was ready to jump in immediately to try to help. We cut out the first design by hand with the intention of taking that shape and mass producing it on our equipment. We had never designed anything other than a rug on our equipment before, but using our software and going through several revisions, we created an approved design.Officials said the sewing team adapted quickly to the new product and material. Production has now expanded over the past two weeks from a handful of gowns to 1,200 per day, with plans to continue speeding up the process.Im so happy that were able to help our doctors and nurses, Wanda Rowe, lead sample rug sewing machine operator, said. I think we sometimes take for granted that the supplies we need to do our jobs will always be there. The first gown was very tedious to put together, but when the rest of the gown sewing team worked together to each do their part, things came together like clockwork.About 1,000 of these medical gowns are being donated to Hamilton Medical Center, and the groups have also begun supplying gowns to Emorys hospital system.Amazing things can happen when the community and local businesses come together to solve real-world community challenges, Chris Simuro, president of FSI, said. I could not be prouder of the team here at Fabric Sources International for its efforts to step up and help find ways to supply the medical personal protective equipment (PPE) our community hospitals need as they battle every day to care for our community. Our team has been working day and night for the past 10 days to create solutions the medical community desperately needs, and they all would say they feel blessed to have such a unique opportunity to step up and help our community in such a direct way.As much as possible, the teams plan to expand production to meet the needs of other area hospitals facing supply shortages.Im really proud to work for a company like Mohawk that immediately wanted to help out the community, Mr. Nichols said. In a matter of two days, we were able to engineer, create and sort out the supply chain to manufacture these much-needed supplies for the hospitals. We just wanted to help in any way we could.The group has also begun the process of creating plastic face shields, another item needed by healthcare providers for protection when they treat patients. The face shield design has been approved by the hospitals, and the group is refining its manufacturing process to determine its capacity.Our team here has been so enthusiastic and helpful with taking on this challenge of learning to manufacture different items in such a short amount of time, Mr. Hill said. Everyone has the attitude that were all in this together with our teams and our community, and they want to do whatever they can to help. Were very proud of these team members and their eagerness to use their skills to support our medical professionals.Officials said, "Mohawk has a history of providing support in times of need. During World War II, the company converted woven carpet looms to produce more than five million blankets for use by U.S. soldiers on the European and Pacific fronts. Mohawk also manufactured millions of square yards of cotton canvas cloth that the military used for tents, sandbags, tarpaulins, duffle bags and more."Along with manufacturing surgical gowns and plastic face shields, the Mohawk team is also working to identify sources for certified, protective face masks for AdventHealth to help ensure that the providers in their Calhoun and Chatsworth, Ga. hospitals have the protective gear they need to keep themselves and others safe. Mohawk is offering their logistical and supply chain resources and expertise to help with the sourcing of these items."
Honda Cars India has discreetly launched the petrol-powered BS6 CR-V, with prices starting at Rs 28.27 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The move is a part of the companys revised product range in the Indian market.

Honda recently discontinued the diesel variants of the CR-V as they did not comply with the BS6 norms, although we expect the upgraded versions to make a comeback soon. The company is also working on the BS6 Jazz.

Offered in a single trim, the BS6 Honda CR-V petrol is powered by a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder i-VTEC engine that produces 152bhp and 189Nm of torque. This engine is available only with a CVT unit paired to a 2WD system.

Honda CR-V  N/A Onwards

CR-V | Honda CR-V | Honda
Maulana Saad Khandhlawi, the chief of Tablighi Jamaat, has urged the followers to cooperate with the government and follow the prescribed procedures to check the spread of coronavirus disease Covid-19.

We should follow the instructions given by the authorities, and listen to the doctors. For example, we should avoid gathering at places and provide support and help to the government in these times, Khandhlawi said in an audio message posted on the groups YouTube channel.

We should not go against the law, it is against our principles, he further said in the audio message.

The message from the Jamaat chief came amid the ongoing raids by the police in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. Khandhlawi is believed to be hiding at an undisclosed location and had earlier released an audio clip in which he had said that he is under self-quarantine.

One of his lawyers too released a video message in which he said that this Covid-19 crisis should be taken seriously. This is a serious thing. We should not indulge in any discussion on this, as to who is responsible for this disease. With folded hands, I urge all the countrymen to unite in fight against this disease, said the lawyer Musharraf Ali Khan.

Some 9,000 people were exposed to the countrys biggest infection cluster at the gathering organised by the group at its global headquarters in Delhis Nizamuddin area last month. The number of Covid-19 positive cases jumped by more than half to 1,965 on Wednesday, fuelled by infections among people who either attended prayers and lectures at the Jamaats headquarters or came into contact with them later.

Khandhlawi claims to have over 100 crore followers in nearly 200 countries. The Nizamuddin markaz serves as the global headquarters of the Jamaat.

His family comes from Kandhla, a place near Shamli district of western Uttar Pradesh, around 80 kilometres away from Delhi.
An Alabama hospital in one of the areas hardest hit by the coronavirus is urging people to shelter in place.

East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika said while no official mandate requires people to shelter in place, the hospital encourages it as the best way to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Community leaders, city officials and the media have shared this important message but there are still reports of groups gathering, children playing in neighborhood parks, dinner parties, Bible studies and other events, EAMC said in a statement. These gatherings are part of our everyday life, and may seem harmless, but continuing to participate in such events will allow COVID-19 to spread further throughout our community and infect the most vulnerable among us.

Please stay at home with immediate family members only and do not leave your home except for essential activities such as food, medical care, or work. When you do venture out, you should maintain a 6-foot distance from other people, wash your hands frequently for at least 20 seconds each time, and frequently disinfect high-touch surfaces," the hospital added.

EAMC said there are 30 patients currently hospitalized with confirmed cases of COVID-19 and another 12 who are suspected of having the virus. Sixteen coronavirus patients have been discharged.

Chamber and Lee counties, both served by EAMC, are among the hardest-hit areas in the coronavirus pandemic that has shuttered schools and businesses and forced everyday life to grind to a halt. According to the Alabama Department of Public Health, Chambers has 65 coronavirus cases with four deaths. Lee has 89 cases with three deaths under investigation.

While non-essential businesses in Alabama are closed, the state is not under a shelter-in-place or stay-at-home order and Gov. Kay Ivey has indicated shes not in favor of enacting either.

The governors priority is protecting the health, safety and well-being of all Alabamians, and their well-being also relies on being able to have a job and provide for themselves and their families," Ivey spokeswoman Gina Maiola said. Many factors surround a statewide shelter-in-place, and Alabama is not at a place where we are ready to make this call.
GOIL has reduced its petrol price by a margin of 10 percent.

The reduction comes as the two weeks partial lockdown of Kumasi, Accra, Tema, due to the outbreak of coronavirus enters its fourth day.

The reduction is taking effect at all its pumps with Diesel XP now selling at GHC4.32 and Super XP at GHC4.32, respectively.

Petrol consumers who are facing tough times economically due to the virus situation, stand to save some money for other essential expenses at this critical time.

The price of gas has also recorded a significant reduction.

The reduction is happening at a time when the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has introduced a Ghp13.5 Cylinder investment Margin, to help the LPGMCs offset aspects of the cost involved in procuring and branding cylinders for the new energy policy (the Cylinder Recirculation Model) Our checks also indicate that the Fuel Marking Margin remains at Ghp3.

Duncan Amoah, Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers Ghana (COPEC Ghana), has hailed the 10 percent reduction.

Giving his reaction to the reduction in prices in an interview with DGN Online, Mr Amoah says the Chamber least expected a 10 percent reduction, saying 10 is just good enough.

He said COPEC was looking at a five percent reduction.

He therefore urged other Oil Marketing Companies to follow suit.

He also encouraged GOIL and other players in the industry to sustain the reduction after the coronavirus pandemic so consumers can really benefit.

Meanwhile, he encouraged OMCs to ensure the protection of their consumers by providing them personal protective equipment to prevent them from contracting coronavirus.

---Daily Guide
The great parliaments of the world have often shown their mettle by continuing to conduct business during a crisis. During the Blitz of World War II, after German bombs put a hole in the House of Commons, British MPs found a new home within two days.

The Morrison government should take the British example to heart in the debate over whether the federal Parliament of Australia will continue to sit through the coronavirus pandemic.

The government has taken the view that Parliament should sit as little as possible in order to reduce the risk of transmission of the virus to MPs and their staff.

On that basis, the Coalition adjourned Parliament two weeks ago until August 11, a recess of four months. It has been forced to recall a scaled-back group of MPs next week to pass its $130 billion third stimulus package but only for one day. MPs will be sent back home after that.

It is true there are practical problems in convening a normal sitting of Parliament during a pandemic. At least four MPs, including Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, have already contracted the disease.
Food courier Matthew Lyn has spent the past few weeks adapting to working amidst a pandemic  figuring out how to get hungry Torontonians meals without putting himself or customers at risk.

For most gig workers, its uncharted territory  in Lyns case, never more so than earlier this week, when he logged on with delivery app Foodora and was directed to an unusual pickup point: the pharmacy.

Nasal inhaler, nasal spray, throat spray, Buckleys lozenges, Advil  it seemed to me like somebody was sick, he says, noting the order details.

For Lyn, it was a significant change: hed gone from delivering not just to people who are self isolating, but to people who are actually symptomatic, who have flu-like symptoms. And hed be doing so without a mask or gloves, which Foodora  and many other apps  are not providing couriers.

Were not medical personnel, said Lyn. I just think its a bit like I think its a bit bold for a company like Foodora to talk about how we should be providing our own equipment.

In a statement to the Star, Foodora spokesperson Sadie Weinstein said the app had expanded its platform in November to include a shops feature that includes delivery from pharmacies for over-the-counter medication.

We take the health and safety of our restaurant partners, riders, customers and employees very seriously, she said.

Right away, we advised all riders of Health Canadas guidelines and how they can apply them in their work, including frequent handwashing, disinfecting their vehicle and delivery bag, and self-isolating at the first sign of symptoms.

Weinstein said the company had been in discussions with global suppliers about personal protective equipment options.

At this time, we unfortunately dont have the supply or infrastructure to quickly and safely procure and distribute materials to riders across Canada, she said.

Lyn says he had picked up some grocery orders for Foodora in recent weeks, but never medication. They never communicated that. They never asked our permission. Especially without protective gear, he said.

While Foodora couriers can decline orders with no penalty, their access to shifts is determined in part by how active they are on the app. And declining orders means losing out on income.

Foodora, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, is now offering contactless delivery as an option for customers. But Lyn said a minority still want deliveries right to their door, adding some people are not tipping at all.

Concerns over safety and unpredictable wages have long been a flashpoint between Foodora couriers and the app company, fuelling a unionization drive with the Canadian Union of Postal Workers that is now before Ontarios labour board.

Now, confronted with a pandemic, couriers are coming in and out of buildings and coming up with their own safety precautions, said Liisa Schofield, an organizer with CUPW.

Courier Umar Asghar said he worries for his own safety  and that of his family.

We are putting ourselves into danger and then we are returning home, he said. I do use my hand sanitizer, but I still think, I am touching my baby.

Foodora has restricted the number of weekly work hours available to 30 per courier, in an effort to ensure equal access to shifts during the pandemic. Asghar, the sole wage-earner for his family at the moment, says hes making around $200 a week.

That financial uncertainty is combined with fears over whether new relief programs for gig workers impacted by the virus will be accessible and sufficient. One Foodora courier, who spoke to the Star on condition of anonymity, made regular deliveries at the start of the COVID-19 crisis.

I was trying to take precautions, like when I was grabbing door handles, I was trying to remember to use my jacket, he said.

I came home (one) night and I said, I cant do this anymore. It doesnt feel safe.

Three days later, he got sick  developing a fever, cough, and headaches.

According to medical documentation he provided to the Star, he went to a COVID-19 testing centre and was identified as having mild symptoms. But because he had not travelled outside of Canada, he did not qualify for testing. He was advised to self-isolate for at least seven days, until symptom free.

Foodora has established an emergency fund for couriers who are diagnosed with COVID-19 or are individually ordered to self-quarantine by a licensed medical provider or public health authority. Those couriers will receive two weeks pay, calculated based on their average earnings over the past month.

Foodora told the Star it has not received any applications yet.

The sick courier interviewed by the Star said he initially applied for the fund  but then withdrew it because he was worried it would disqualify him from applying for the new Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) now available to gig workers.

But he has questions about the new benefit: will workers be eligible if they still take the occasional gig? What if they are able to work, but feel unsafe?

Those issues are now being raised by CUPW vice-president Jean-Phillippe Grenier in a letter expected to be sent Thursday to federal finance minister Bill Morneau.

The letter seen by the Star says CERB fails to take into consideration the realities of many workers, particularly gig-economy workers.

Of particular concern, the letter says, is the requirement that a worker not receive compensation for 14 consecutive days to be eligible for the benefit.

If a workers schedule has been reduced to one shift every 13 days as a result of COVID-19, they would be ineligible to receive the CERB, the letter notes.

For those couriers with little in the way of work opportunities, they struggle to cobble together enough work to live, those one or two shifts with Foodora are integral to their survival.

These workers already lack basic protections, and almost never have access to benefits like paid sick leave, the letter adds.

Their vulnerable status forces them to work, even if doing so poses a health risk to them or the public. This is unacceptable.

In response to questions from the Star, a spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada said the government would be announcing more details about CERB in the coming days.

We are working urgently to develop and implement the various new measures during these extraordinary and rapidly changing times, the spokesperson said.

For now, Lyn wants to see Foodora take responsibility for couriers safety. He decided to deliver the medication orders he received because they were destined for houses, where he could leave the items on doorsteps, rather than entering a condo building.

But he decided to tell management about his concerns, noting that couriers are at the front line to make sure people who are in self isolation and quarantine are able to eat.

Therefore you should be providing us with the protective gear necessary. So that we can continue doing our jobs until this pandemic is over, he said.
Yesterday CNBC reported that Citigroup is one of the banks selected by the Small Business Administration to handle billions of dollars earmarked in last weeks stimulus bill to help small businesses get back on their feet and keep their employees paid during the coronavirus crisis. Citigroups Citicorp subsidiary was charged with, and pleaded guilty to, a criminal felony count brought by the U.S. Department of Justice on May 20, 2015 for its role in rigging foreign currency trading. Its rap sheet for a long series of abuses to its customers and investors since 2008 is nothing short of breathtaking. (See its rap sheet at the end of this article.)

During the financial crash of 2007 to 2010, Citigroup received the largest bailout in global banking history after its former top executives had walked away with hundreds of millions of dollars that they cashed out of stock options. Citigroup received over $2.5 trillion in secret Federal Reserve loans; $45 billion in capital infusions from the U.S. Treasury; a government guarantee of over $300 billion on its dubious assets; a government guarantee of $5.75 billion on its senior unsecured debt and $26 billion on its commercial paper and interbank deposits by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Sandy Weill was the Chairman and CEO of Citigroup as it built up its toxic footprint and off-balance-sheet vehicles that blew up the bank. Weill was also the man who engineered the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act, the depression-era legislation that had safeguarded the U.S. banking system for 66 years before its repeal in 1999. Weill needed the Glass-Steagall legislation to vanish so that he could merge his hodgepodge of Wall Street trading firms (Salomon Brothers and Smith Barney, et al) with a federally-insured bank full of deposits. Weill told his merger partner, John Reed of Citibank, that his motivation for the deal was: We could be so rich, according to Reed in an interview with Bill Moyers.

The repeal of Glass-Steagall meant that the casino-style investment banks and trading houses across Wall Street could now own federally-insured commercial banks and use those mom and pop deposits in a heads we win, tails you lose strategy. Every major Wall Street trading house either bought a federally-insured bank or created one. (See the co-author of this article testifying before the Federal Reserve on June 26, 1998 against the Citigroup merger and the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act in this video.)
Netflixs latest binge-worthy docuseries, Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, has renewed interest in a cold case related to the disappearance of Carole Baskins husband. Baskin, who plays a central role in the series, has long been accused of murdering her multi-millionaire husband, Jack Don Lewis, who went missing in 1997. While evidence to convict Baskin remains scarce, a local sheriff hopes the Tiger King will uncover new leads.

Tiger King star Carole Baskin | Netflix

Tiger King renews interest in the Carole Baskin missing husband case

Netflixs major hit Tiger King follows the story of a flamboyant zookeeper named Joseph Maldonado-Passage, aka Joe Exotic, whom authorities sent to prison for trying to kill Baskin, a popular leader in the animal rights community and the creator of Tampa Bays Big Cat Rescue.

Baskin is one of Maldonado-Passages main enemies throughout the series, though a sheriff in Florida is hoping that the show puts a spotlight on her dark past.

O.J. Simpson Convinced Carole Baskin Killed Her Husband, 'Tiger Sashimi' https://t.co/z9osotpCBC  TMZ (@TMZ) April 1, 2020

In 1997, Baskins husband mysteriously disappeared after leaving his vehicle at an airport in Pasco County. Authorities did not find any trace of Lewis and declared him deceased in 2002. According to the New York Post, several theories have surfaced to explain what really happened to him.

One theory argues that somebody pushed Lewis out of a plane, while another says that Baskin fed her husband to her tigers. Whatever happened, a sheriff in Florida is using the popularity of Tiger King to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Sheriff searches for new leads

In response to the popularity of Tiger King, Chad Chronister, a sheriff in Hillsborough County, asked fans for any information that might break the cold case wide open.

Since @netflix and #Covid19 #Quarantine has made #TigerKing all the rage, I figured it was a good time to ask for new leads, he tweeted.

Despite what everyone thinks really happened, Baskin has continuously denied involvement in Lewis disappearance. In a recent blog post, Baskin admitted that she and Lewis had our moments but assured readers that she did not threaten him.

Me:I can't stop thinking about, talking about, or reading about the caronavirus.



Netflix : let me introduce you to Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin. #TigerKing pic.twitter.com/agiTzrqvHr  Esmeralda Snoek (@EssySnoek) April 2, 2020

Regardless of who you believe, we can only hope that somebody comes forward with some new information about Lewis disappearance.

Until that happens, Baskin is doing her best to get ahead of the drama. To that end, she heavily criticized Tiger King directors Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin for sensationalizing the events in the series.

Baskin starts a feud with Tiger King directors

Following the popularity of the documentary, Baskin opened up about her thoughts on the series. According to Indie Wire, Baskin blasted the Tiger King directors for telling her they were making a documentary in a similar vein as Blackfish.

Baskin says she was stunned when she discovered that the show focused more on her husbands disappearance than the mistreatment of big cats.

In response to Baskins criticisms, Goode and Chaiklin assured Tiger King viewers that they did not coerce Baskin into appearing in front of the cameras. They also revealed that Baskin was not shy about discussing her personal life, her childhood, her abuse from her first and second husband, and the disappearance of her ex, Don Lewis.

Carole Baskins Big Cat Rescue / Barcroft USA via Getty Images)

She knew that this was not just about [big cats], its not a Blackfish because of the things she spoke about, Goode shared. She certainly wasnt coerced.

Chaiklin added that they were completely forthright with everyone they interviewed for Tiger King. She also admitted that the project evolved over the course of five years, which is something that happens during an extended project.

Inside Lewis disappearance

Baskin may be dismissive about her role in Lewis disappearance, but his family members are convinced she played a role. A year after Lewis vanished, one of his daughters confessed that Baskins tiger sanctuary would have been the perfect spot to hide a body.

It [the animal sanctuary] is a perfect scenario to dispose of someone. We were upset that the cops didnt test the DNA on the meat grinder. Much of Dons family were also angered when Carole received control of most of his estate after his disappearance, Lewis daughter explained.

To add another twist to the story, Lewis children revealed in Tiger King that he was about to end his marriage to Baskin before he disappeared. Lewis did not file for divorce, but he did seek an injunction against his wife for domestic violence two months before he left for Costa Rica.

Nobody:



Carole Baskin: If I were gonna, you know, if someone wanted to kill you then they would like, put sardine oil all over you. Something that the cat wants to eat. #TigerKing pic.twitter.com/Q7y2j1KT8X  Diamond (@diamondwalker_) March 28, 2020

The court documents reveal that Lewis accused Baskin of threats of violence. A judge reviewed the case and rejected the application for an injunction.

Baskin claims that she has no idea what happened to Lewis and believes he may be hiding out in Costa Rica. Unfortunately, there is no way to clear her name unless they find more evidence.

Fans can watch Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness on Netflix.
ORLANDO, Fla., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Tupperware Brands Corporation (NYSE: TUP) will release its first quarter 2020 results on Wednesday, April 29, 2020, prior to the opening of the market, followed by a conference call at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (7:30 a.m. Central Time).

This call will be webcast by Intrado Digital Media and can be accessed at www.tupperwarebrands.com.

Tupperware Brands Corporation, through an independent sales force of 2.9 million, is the leading global manufacturer and marketer of innovative, premium household, beauty and personal care products across multiple brands utilizing social selling. Product brands and categories include design-centric preparation, storage and serving solutions for the kitchen and home through the Tupperware brand and beauty and personal care products through the Avroy Shlain, Fuller Cosmetics, NaturCare, Nutrimetics, and Nuvo brands. The Company's stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: TUP).

SOURCE Tupperware Brands Corporation

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British nationals stranded in Pakistan have criticised the UK governments appalling behaviour after it failed to organise rescue flights to bring them home.

A campaign has been launched demanding the Foreign Office (FCO) take urgent action, such as chartering subsidised flights.

#BritsStrandedinPakistan said in a statement: Were outraged our government is not getting us home on subsidised flights. Many travelled before the wide spread of Covid-19, before the UK asked us to return.

Pakistan is expected to be among the hardest hit of the developing nations, according to the UN.

The campaign claims the FCO waited for commercial flights run by state-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to materialise, when it should have put on a charter flight for at-risk travellers.

It adds: As British citizens, we ask: has any of the 75m been spent on getting us home like those in Peru? Many wonder if were being treated as second-class citizens.

Those with relatives stuck in Pakistan say that airlines are making money from the crisis, charging above the odds for a flight that then gets cancelled.

My mother (a British national on bereavement leave there from her frontline health and social care job in the UK), has two rare blood and immunity conditions, TV presenter Waseem Mirza told The Independent.

Weve been trying to fly her back since 15 March, but airlines take our money and cancel the flights within hours, leaving us out of pocket.

Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Show all 15 1 /15 Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A rose is delivered by drone to a woman on Mother's Day in Jounieh, Lebanon AFP/Getty Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Women dance on their balcony as a radio station plays music for a flash mob to raise spirits in Rome Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A skeleton stands on a balcony in Frankfurt, Germany AP Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies The film Le ragazze di Piazza di Spagna is projected on a building in Rome AP Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A woman uses a basket tied to a rope to pull a delivery of groceries up to her balcony in Naples, Italy EPA Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies DJ Francesco Cellini plays for his neighbours from the rooftop terrace of his flat block in Rome Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A woman gestures from her balcony in Barcelona EPA Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Cellist Karina Nunez performs for her neighbours at the balcony of her flat in Panama City Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies DJ Nash Petrovic live streams a set from his roof in Brooklyn Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies People applaud medical workers from their balconies in Modiin, Israel Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A Brooklyn resident relaxes in a hammock hung on their balcony Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Residents toast during a "safe distance" aperitif time between neighbours in Anderlecht, Belgium Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Musician Adam Moser plays for neighbours from his balcony in Budapest, Hungary Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A man and his son on their balcony in Brooklyn Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A man sits alone on a roof terrace in Rome Reuters

Refunds are not expected  if at all  until the end of April/May. Our travel insurance has also been a waste of money and time as they have yet to make any decision to reimburse us due to backlogs.

So now, after five flight bookings (many more than 2,000 one-way), weve run out of cash and need urgent repatriation like Peru.

Airlines including British Airways have changed their systems during the coronavirus pandemic, requiring customers to ring up to claim a refund rather than being able to fill in a claim online. Many are heavily encouraging passengers to rebook or accept a credit voucher instead of their money back, with wait times for a refund expected to far exceed the one-week stipulation in EU regulations.

According to an email sent from the British High Commission in Islamabad to stranded British nationals, there are no plans for a government-subsidised repatriation flight; the only option is to try to book on to a PIA flight.

The government of Pakistan has announced there will be a number of international PIA flights. We understand that some of the flights will go to the UK. If you are interested in booking a flight, please regularly check the PIA website, reads the message.

Although PIA has said it will resume limited operations between Islamabad and the UK from 4 April, The Independent could find no available flights from 4-11 April when checking on the airlines website.

Meanwhile, #BritsStrandedinPakistan says other nations, including Germany, have already bypassed restrictions imposed by Pakistani authorities to send repatriation services for their citizens.

Its an appalling and shocking way to treat us British nationals stranded in Pakistan, and we demand URGENT action to ensure the most vulnerable are not left to market forces, which have only sought to capitalise on a crisis by outrageously raising prices, concludes the campaigns statement.

The FCO told The Independent that High Commissions are able to offer financial assistance to British nationals, including emergency loans, if they are struggling financially and have no other options. The High Commissioner to Pakistan has tweeted that those needing assistance should email returnfrompakistan@fco.gov.uk.

We recognise British tourists abroad are finding it difficult to return to the UK because of the unprecedented international travel and domestic restrictions that are being introduced around the world  often with very little or no notice, said an FCO spokesperson.

The government has partnered with a number of airlines who have committed to work together to get Brits back to the UK and up to 75 million has been made available for charter flights were commercial options are no longer available.

Well continue working around the clock to bring people home.
I am not a big fan of Dr. Fauci. As I previously wrote, the 79-year-old has no operational role in the federal response efforts and should be working at home. Instead, he is desperate for as many media appearances as possible, and each time he shows up, he has a different take on things. In the latest New England Journal of Medicine, he writes that the Wuhan flu may be no worse than a typical bad flu season, in stark contrast to the panicky predictions he made earlier. Then he started hiking the numbers later in March but sort of backed down at the next day's presidential news conference. The sad thing is, he is not a medical numbers or stats expert, but he remains the leading voice keeping the "national lockdown" strategy going, with no end in sight and no ideas to offer.

There is a better way. We can get the country going back to work and back to school this April by having everyone start wearing masks. Universal masking is the centerpiece of former FDA chief Scott Gottlieb's strategy, and the best part is most people don't need a medical-grade N95 mask. Those are in short supply and need to go hospitals anyway. But an easily made, DIY, multi-ply cotton mask would be just the ticket for most people. If we can get the millions of people who may have the virus but are asymptomatic, to make and use their own masks, that will quickly stop the spread.

We can see these results in Hong Kong, where everybody has a mask and the virus is well contained.

No, homemade masks are not as good as N95, and people will need to follow proper instructions on making them, cleaning them, and even taking them off. But if they just reduce the virus spread by 50% (a very easily obtainable level for DIY masks ) for someone who would not otherwise be wearing one, that is a huge accomplishment.

As a medical researcher recently pointed out, we are not doing DIY masks not because they don't work  over two dozen studies show they help a lot  but because the surgeon general has made a specious case against them, abetted by the WHO. They are afraid that more regular folks with masks will cheat hospitals of their N95s. Well, obviously not if they are DIY. They also assert, without evidence, that masks make people feel invulnerable and more sloppy. Sorry, but if you have a mask, you are most likely to be very serious about your behavior. And third, they claim that DIY and N95 masks don't offer much protection for people not yet infected by the virus. Somewhat true, but they do offer a huge amount of reduction in virus shedding for people who already have the virus, the most important people to contain.

Making your own mask is something everybody can do. YouTube is already filling up with DIY mask videos for anybody who cares to try. And it's not as though the country has anything better to do while we are on lock down. We would likely see the good results by the end of this month if we all got on this. People in low-outbreak places  most of the country  or on work sites that are not normally crowded, like factory floors, warehouses, and box stores, could be back in operation once again with everyone masked up.

Even the CDC, if not the surgeon general, is now reported to be reconsidering its recommendation against general mask use. Hopefully, this will be another instance of common sense overwhelming the federal edifice.

And who knows? In parts of East Asia. they have a culture that encourages mask-wearing for anyone who has even a mild case of the sniffles. These places are also inhabited by the most polite people in the world. If we bring a medical mask culture to America, I wonder if we also become more polite. Yet another good reason to bring on the masks, starting with the White House press corps.

Frank Friday is an attorney in Louisville, Kentucky.
A town in the Damascus countryside has been isolated after a women with coronavirus, who continued having contact with the wider public, died reports Alsouria Net.

On Wednesday, the Syrian regime isolated the town of Menin, in Damascus countryside, after a female passed away raising fears that the coronavirus pandemic could spread in the town.

The relevant authorities have been asked to isolate the town of Menin after a woman who was infected with the virus passed away. The deceased was one of ten other cases recorded in Syria, official regime media quoted Minister of Health Nizar Yazigi as saying.

Yazigi said the decision to isolate the town aims to protect citizens and to stem the spread of the virus, given that the womans family did not commit to self-isolation and resumed selling products to people.

The woman, her husband and their children own a shop and none of them adhered to the self-isolation instructions, on the contrary they were contacting other citizens, he noted.

Samples were taken from the husband, his son and other relatives, and random samples will be taken from several citizens in the area, said Yazigi, warning that there was a great deal of risk involved, especially considering that many of the towns residents had travelled illegally from Lebanon.

The results will be announced once theyre out, he added.

The decision to isolate the town which falls almost 14 kilometres north of central Damascus is the first of its kind in the country. No other town has been isolated since the spread of the virus was declared to be a pandemic, whether in regime-run areas, opposition areas, or in the Self-Administration region.

Menin, also known as Ayn Menin, administratively falls within the al-Tal area, in the northern countryside of Damascus, and is only 3.5 kilometres south of the infamous Sednaya prison.

Before 2011, the population of the town was almost 30,000 people, but the number has changed as waves of displacement flowed into the area, which remained relatively safe compared to its surroundings in the countryside of Damascus.

As of Wednesday, only 10 infections were officially announced in areas under the regimes control, meanwhile, no infections have been reported in northwestern Syria, where Syrian factions have influence, nor in northeastern Syria which is controlled by the Self-Administration.

The regimes Ministry of Health announced two deaths caused by the pandemic that is currently sweeping across the world.

The Assad regime has imposed a curfew in areas under its control effective between 6pm and 6am.

Earlier, the regime took precautionary measures to prevent any form of gatherings, including the decision to close schools and markets. The regime also issued a decree granting amnesty for a segment of prisoners, including the elderly and those suffering from chronic diseases.

For its part, the World Health Organization warned of the consequences if coronavirus spreads in Syria, which lacks the proper medical system needed to fight the pandemic.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
TDT | Manama

Chief Prosecutor Mohammed Jamal Sultan said the High Criminal Court issued yesterday its verdict in five money laundering cases, in which three officials from Future Bank and three Iranian banks were implicated.

The court held the suspects guilty and sentenced the Future Bank officials to five years in jail and fined each one of them BD100,000. It also fined the implicated banks the same amount and ordered the confiscation of the remitted money, the subject of the crime.

The Public Prosecution revealed previously that its investigation had uncovered a plan that permitted Iranian entities, including those implicated in funding terrorism or which are under international sanctions, to carry out international transactions while avoiding organisational auditing.

It has been found out that Future Bank, which is operating under the supervision of Bank Melli Iran and the Export Development Bank of Iran, has carried out thousands of international financial transactions while providing covers for the Iranian entities there through deliberate concealment or removal of basic information while remitting money via the SWIFT network.

The Public Prosecution referred the Future Bank officials and the other implicated banks to the High Criminal Court for trial as per the anti-money laundering and combating funding terrorism law. The court heard the case because of the breach of the Kingdoms banking laws and regulations.

The Public Prosecution is completing its investigation into the execution of a number of international transactions by Future Bank and the Iranian banks for the same purpose, while infringing the anti-money laundering and combating the funding of terrorism law, as well as the banking regulations in the Kingdom of Bahrain, in preparation for the referral of those cases to the Criminal Court.
One of Britains top health officials has said the number of people admitted to hospital with coronavirus could plateau in the next two to three weeks, as he conceded to frustration that not enough people in the UK were being tested.

Professor Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of Public Health England, could not rule out the possibility the UK was on course for 1,000 deaths a day by the weekend.

My expectation  is that we will continue to see an increase in the numbers of people being infected and admitted to hospital over the next two to three weeks, he told BBC Radio 4s Today programme on Thursday. But we should hit a plateau, if all the social distancing measures are working, in about two to three weeks time.

Downing Street revealed on Wednesday that just 2,000 NHS frontline staff forced to stay at home during the pandemic have been tested.

Everybody involved is frustrated that we havent got to the position yet [on testing] that we need to get to, said Professor Cosford. Youve heard about the 2,000 yesterday  nowhere near where we need to get to but its a good start.

Boris Johnson has pledged to ramp up testing for coronavirus after his government comes under fire for being slower than some European peers to roll out checks for frontline health workers.

The prime minister said mass testing would unlock the puzzle in his latest Twitter video, after No 10 admitted fewer than one in 50 NHS frontline staff forced to stay home due to coronavirus have been tested to see if they can return to work.

Professor Cosford admitted testing numbers in England appear low but insisted they will increase rapidly and said there was more capacity available to start testing more NHS staff.

Asked why more testing facilities were not being used, the Public Health England official said there was a plan to use all of those laboratories, all of that capacity, to boost up at least 100,000 tests a day, hopefully more.

Professor Cosford said he would expect this work to be in place over the coming days and a small number of weeks.

He added: I know 2,000 doesnt sound a lot compared with the many hundreds of thousands of NHS staff that weve got but that is now ramping up quickly  This is an incredibly complex operation to put in place in a very short period of time.

The medical director also said social distancing would need to stay in place until spread of the disease becomes minimal. Professor Cosford said lockdown measures would be reviewed and in due course perhaps lightened a little  but were nowhere near being able to say that.

At Wednesdays Downing Street coronavirus briefing, Dr Yvonne Doyle, Public Health Englands medical director, said that it was the intention for hundreds of thousands of staff to be tested within the coming weeks.

Chris Hopson, the chief executive of NHS Providers, said a reagent and swab shortage is currently limiting the amount of testing done, but there was enough test machine capacity to do 100,000 tests a day.
Newsfrom Japan

Tokyo, April 2 (Jiji Press)--The start of this year's visa-free exchange program between Japan and Russia is set to be postponed amid the coronavirus crisis, Japanese government sources said Thursday.

The Russian side is concerned that the new coronavirus could be brought to Russian-held northwestern Pacific islands covered by the exchange program at a time when infections are growing in Japan, the sources said.

The Japanese side aims to begin this year's program in July. It normally starts in May. The islands are at the center of the two countries' decades-old territorial dispute.

The Japanese and Russian governments planned to hold talks in Sakhalin in Russia's Far East region on March 12 to decide this year's schedules for the program. But Russia refused to hold the talks following a surge in the number of coronavirus cases in the northernmost Japan prefecture of Hokkaido, which is close to Sakhalin, the sources said.

Although the two sides have since been continuing coordination mainly through email, no major progress has been made reflecting strong concerns in Russia over the virus situation in Japan, the sources said.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 14:14:26|Editor: huaxia

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BISHKEK, April 2 (Xinhua) -- A new vice prime minister and a new health minister have been appointed in Kyrgyzstan, according to the decrees signed by President Sooronbai Jeenbekov on Wednesday.

Aida Ismailova will hold the post of vice prime minister for social affairs, and Sabirzhan Abdikarimov will serve as the health minister, the president's press service said.

Earlier, the Kyrgyz Parliament approved the two nominees recommended by Prime Minister Mukhammedkalyi Abylgaziev.

Aida Ismailova is the current deputy of the parliament, and Sabirzhan Abdikarimov previously held the position of director of the Republican Center for Quarantine and Highly Infectious Infections.

The new appointees were also members of the Republican headquarters on coronavirus infection, which was established on Jan. 25.

Earlier Wednesday, Jeenbekov signed decrees removing the country's vice prime minister Altynai Omurbekova and health minister Kosmosbek Cholponbaev from office.

According to the health ministry, at least 116 COVID-19 cases have been recorded in Kyrgyzstan so far.
NEW YORK, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, announces it has filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of purchasers of the securities of Golden Star Resources Ltd. (NYSE: GSS) between February 20, 2019 and July 30, 2019, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit seeks to recover damages for Golden Star investors under the federal securities laws.

To join the Golden Star class action, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-1828.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email [email protected] or [email protected] for information on the class action.

NO CLASS HAS YET BEEN CERTIFIED IN THE ABOVE ACTION. UNTIL A CLASS IS CERTIFIED, YOU ARE NOT REPRESENTED BY COUNSEL UNLESS YOU RETAIN ONE. YOU MAY RETAIN COUNSEL OF YOUR CHOICE. YOU MAY ALSO REMAIN AN ABSENT CLASS MEMBER AND DO NOTHING AT THIS POINT. AN INVESTOR'S ABILITY TO SHARE IN ANY POTENTIAL FUTURE RECOVERY IS NOT DEPENDENT UPON SERVING AS LEAD PLAINTIFF.

According to the lawsuit, defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the Company had insufficient geological and geotechnical data in its Prestea mine; (2) the Company had experienced deficiencies in its operating practices and mining methods including inaccurate long hole drilling and blasting in its Prestea mine; (3) the Company did not have the mining flexibility and more measured resources to ensure higher reserve grade; (4) the Company had experienced increased tonnage at much lower grade where it had to supplement some of the production with oxide material; (5) the Company had excessive dilution which drove lower mining rates at the Prestea mine; and (6) as a result, defendants' public statements were materially false and/or misleading at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.

A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than June 1, 2020. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. If you wish to join the litigation, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-1828.html or to discuss your rights or interests regarding this class action, please contact Phillip Kim, Esq. of Rosen Law Firm toll free at 866-767-3653 or via e-mail at [email protected] or [email protected].

Follow us for updates on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm or on Twitter: https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm.

Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 3 each year since 2013. Rosen Law Firm has secured hundreds of millions of dollars for investors.

Contact Information:

Laurence Rosen, Esq.

Phillip Kim, Esq.

The Rosen Law Firm, P.A.

275 Madison Avenue, 40th Floor

New York, NY 10016

Tel: (212) 686-1060

Toll Free: (866) 767-3653

Fax: (212) 202-3827

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

www.rosenlegal.com

SOURCE Rosen Law Firm, P.A.

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One of the new norms in America since November 2016 is that everything bad is Donald Trump's fault. The other new norm is that even good things  such as the formerly roaring economy  are bad, no matter the contortions Democrats, both inside and outside of the media, must do to make such silly claims.

With COVID-19 moving through America, and with Democrat enclaves hardest hit, Democrats have doubled down on blaming Trump for the virus. Here's just a random sampling of leftist media headlines from the past six weeks  with no links, because none of these sites deserve the traffic:

Foreign Policy, 1/31/20: "Trump has sabotaged America's coronavirus response" (an exceptionally egregious article which was among the first to push the lie that Trump shut down the pandemic response team)

CNN, 2/24/20: "Donald Trump seems to know very little about the coronavirus"

NBC News, 2/28/20: "Trump calls coronavirus is Democrats' 'new hoax'"

CNN, 3/11/20: "Fact check: A list of 28 ways Trump and his team have been dishonest about the coronavirus"

CNBC, 3/17/20: "Trump dismissed coronavirus pandemic worry in January  now claims he long warned about it"

Vox, 3/25/20: "The Trump administration's botched coronavirus response, explained"

And then there are the idiot political pronouncements from Democrat politicians blaming Trump:

Sara Carter, 3/11/20: "Gov. Cuomo blames Trump's Admin on coronavirus: 'This is the public health version of Hurricane Katrina'"

HuffPost, 3/12/20: "Joe Biden rips trump over coronavirus 'xenophobia,' unveils his own plan" (a plan that called for "science!" as well as public testing, which Trump has done; more hospital beds, which Trump has done; and emergency paid leave, which Trump finally got the Democrats to do).

The Political Insider, 3/29/20: "Nancy Pelosi: 'As the president fiddles, people are dying.'"

In leftist land, thanks to its media dominance, it's always Orwell's 1984, a time and place in which your minions work ceaselessly to erase historical facts and replace them with all new facts that suit present purposes. "The past was alterable. The past never had been altered. Oceania was at war with Eastasia. Oceania had always been at war with Eastasia."

Well, this 1984 world used to be the case because, thanks to its media dominance, leftists could keep tight control over the narrative. Had this pandemic happened in a pre-internet era, people would have been nodding sagely at pronouncements about Eastasia, Oceania, and Trump's endless wrongdoing. None would have remembered that Trump

convened a coronavirus task force in January;

went against political headwinds to close the doors to both China and Europe;

dealt with China's consistent lies about coronavirus; and

has been entirely responsive to advice from his team of top scientists, advice that changes as data from the outside world changes.

But as noted, things are different now. On Wednesday, Dan Bongino tweeted out a viral poster showing exactly what leftist media outlets were saying as Trump was convening his task force and closing borders:

Media Hacks  Trump downplayed the Coronavirus



Reality  pic.twitter.com/gD0q4OuQxA  Dan Bongino (@dbongino) April 1, 2020

Also on Wednesday, Grabien's Tom Elliott put together a nice supercut of politicians downplaying the coronavirus long after Trump trusted his gut and closed the border to China:

SUPERCUT!



Dems give really terrible Coronavirus advice pic.twitter.com/j9pTJr5Lw5  Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) April 1, 2020

One of these days, reality will catch up with the left. Until then, expect to see more lies  and more mainstream media outlets trying to hide Trump press conferences from their viewers, as all media outlets but for Fox have chosen to do.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized the first blood test that would determine whether or not someone has been infected with coronavirus.

This type of test, which is known as a serology test, would look for antibodies in the blood.

Manufacturer Cellex Inc, a medical device company based in North Carolina, says the test could help scientists understand how widespread the virus is and how long patients remain immune after they recover.

This is important because it could allow immune people to leave their homes and return to work to 'jump start the economy' as well as help healthcare workers determine if they are immune.

The FDA has issued an Emergency Use Authorization for the first coronavirus antibody test. Pictured: A medical worker holds a coronavirus test at a drive-thru testing site for children age 22 and under at Trinity University in Washington, DC on April 2

The test, developed by medical device company Cellex Inc, requires drawing blood and is analyzed in a certified laboratory. Pictured: A person is wheeled to an ambulance outside a hospital in New York City, April 2

Scientists can use the tests to understand how widespread the virus is and how long patients remain immune after they recover. Pictured: A patient suspected to have coronavirus is wheeled into Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, April 1

The FDA had previously advised against using antibody tests to diagnose coronavirus because it takes times for antibodies to develop.

But by issuing an Emergency Use Authorization, the agency indicates that it believes the benefits outweigh any risks.

'Based on the totality of scientific evidence available to FDA, it is reasonable to believe that your product may be effective in diagnosing COVID-19,' FDA chief scientist Denise Hinton wrote in a letter to James Li, the CEO of Cellex.

'The known and potential benefits of your product when used for diagnosing COVID-19, outweigh the known and potential risks of your product.'

The tests used presently involve a nasal or throat swab, and try to identify the virus's genetic material to see if someone is currently infected.

This new test requires blood to be collected through a vein, and can only be analyzed in a certified laboratory. It looks to see if someone has ever been exposed and is now immune.

According to the FDA, the antibodies against the novel coronavirus are 'generally detectable in blood several days after initial infection.'

But the agency warned in its letter that 'levels over the course of infection are not well characterized.'

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it is working on its own serology test, which could detect antibodies in people who have mild or even no symptoms.

It comes on the heels of news of a company called Bodysphere falsely saying on Tuesday that the FDA has issued an Emergency Use Authorization for its antibody test.

The alleged test could detect coronavirus antibodies in just two minutes from a pinprick of blood from a finger.

he FDA later said it had not authorized the test. On Wednesday, the company backtracked and admitted that it had never received authorization.

In the US, there are currently more than 236,000 confirmed cases of the virus and more than 5,000 deaths.
By PTI

WASHINGTON: A Russian cargo plane carrying 60 tonnes of medical supplies, including ventilators, masks and other protection gear, needed to treat the patients with COVID-19 landed in the US as the country wrestles with the coronavirus pandemic that the White House has warned could kill up to two lakh people during the next fortnight.

The Permanent Mission of Russia to NATO on Thursday tweeted a video of the Russian Ministry of Defence cargo aircraft Ruslan AN-124-100 arriving at the John F Kennedy airport in New York.

MoD cargo aircraft Ruslan AN-124-100 arrived in NY JFK airport with 60 tons of medical equipment, ventilators, masks & other protection gear to assist in fighting real common adversary - #COVID19.

politics, just saving lives! pic.twitter.com/whFk03F0Jd  Russians at NATO (@natomission_ru) April 1, 2020

"MoD cargo aircraft Ruslan AN-124-100 arrived in Flag of United States NY JFK airport with 60 tons of medical equipment, ventilators, masks & other protection gear to assist in fighting real common adversary- COVID19," the mission said in the tweet.

The move to buy medical equipment from Russia comes after a telephonic conversation between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on March 30.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a tweet said that it was a time to work together to overcome a common enemy that threatens the lives of all. "We have to work together to defeat COVID-19. This is why the US agreed to purchase urgently needed personal protective equipment from Russia to help FEMA respond in New York City," he said.

Earlier, State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said on Wednesday, "as a follow-up to the March 30 phone call between President Trump and President Putin, the United States has agreed to purchase needed medical supplies, including ventilators and personal protection equipment, from Russia, which were handed over to FEMA on April 1 in New York City".

ALSO READ| Trump proposes USD 2 trillion infrastructure fund to stimulate economy amid COVID-19 pandemic

She said that both the countries have provided humanitarian assistance to each other in times of crisis in the past and will no doubt do so again in the future. "This is a time to work together to overcome a common enemy that threatens the lives of all of us," she added.

"The countries of the G20 agreed last week to work together to defeat the coronavirus, and we are working closely with these countries and others to ensure that critically needed supplies get to those in need," Ortagus said.

The United States is committed to the global fight against COVID-19, she said, adding that the US is a generous and reliable contributor to crisis response and humanitarian action across the world. "But we cannot do it alone," Ortagus noted.

President Trump told reporters on Tuesday that the US was headed for a "very tough two weeks", advising people to be prepared for the "hard days" ahead, as the country is at war with the deadly coronavirus pandemic that the White House projects could claim one to two lakh lives during the next fortnight.

Deborah Birx, a member of White House Task Force on coronavirus, based on a model from actual data from the ground, said the death toll in the US could be between 100,000 to 200,000, with the strict implementation of the existing mitigation measures including social distancing till April 30.

Across the United States, hospitals are facing shortages of ventilators. Some medical device makers have agreed to ramp up supplies. But because patients diagnosed with or suspected to have COVID-19 often require breathing support, there is widespread concern that these devices won't be developed and shipped quickly enough.

A total of 932,605 COVID-19 cases have been reported across more than 175 countries and territories with 16,809 deaths reported so far, according to Johns Hopkins University data. The US has reported 213,372 COVID-19 cases, the highest in the world, and over 5,000 people have died due to the disease.
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Matt Hancock's five-point plan to increase coronavirus testing to 100,000 per day Heath secretary Matt Hancock today unveiled a five-point plan to boost the UK's coronavirus testing tenfold in a matter of weeks. But he faces a series of obstacles as he orders an abrupt change of course to put the UK on a par with countries like Germany, which are already carrying out six-figure test numbers per day. The five points he unveiled were: Increase the number of swab tests being carried out by Public Health England labs and the NHS to 25,000 per day by the end of the month Efforts to increase the capacity at Public Health England have enjoyed limited success so far. Shortages of chemicals and swabs have been blamed for stalling progress. Downing Street had previously pledged that this level will be reached by mid-April anyway, so in some ways this is a longer timetable than expected. Potentially PHE and NHS labs are thought to have the scope to carry out 100,000 tests a day by themselves. Vastly expand the swab testing network using universities and research institutions and private sector retailers like Boots and Amazon The key move by the Health Secretary tonight was to give the green light for universities, institutes and private firms to get involved in testing. Up to now there have been complaints of control freakery in government, relying on their own facilities to avoid getting unreliable results. The Francis Crick Institute has suggested it will be able to process 2,000 tests a day by itself, likening the new strategy to 'small ships' evacuating the army from Dunkirk on the Second World War. Introduce antibody blood tests which would tell people if they had had the virus and recovered This is the game-changing test that would tell who is able to leave the constraints of lockdown and get the economy running again. Mr Hancock stressed that there are as yet no proven versions of this test, and the science of what immunity people have after the disease is still developing.] But he confirmed that the government is looking at issuing 'immunity certificates' to people who pass such tests, so they can get back to 'normal life'. Boost community surveillance to determine the rate of infection and the spread across the country The abandonment of community testing when the government moved from the contain phase to 'delaying' the outbreak was highly controversial last month. The government wanted to focus resources on patients in hospital as number rose. However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that without such mass testing in the community the government is 'trying to fight a fire blindfolded'. Boost the size of the UK diagnostics industry Mr Hancock addressed head-on criticism that the UK was lagging far behind Germany in terms of test numbers. He bluntly admitted that the UK did not have the same scale of biotech industry as Germany, where many firsm already manufacture screening equipment at scale. But Mr Hancock committed to developing that infrastructure - which will not be a quick task. Advertisement

Matt Hancock tonight declared the UK will be conducting 100,000 coronavirus tests a day by the end of the month as finally signalled a U-turn on the UK screening regime.

Emerging for the first time since being struck down by the disease himself, the Health Secretary said he 'gets' why there has been criticism as he abandoned the previous centralised approach and urged the wider science industry to help boost capacity.

Defending the government's response, a querulous and at times emotional Mr Hancock said that Public Health England had been 'working round the clock' and could be 'proud' of what it had done.

Taking the press briefing in No10 this evening after a week in isolation recovering from the virus, he listed five 'pillars' for the new strategy.

Swab tests at PHE labs will be increased dramatically to 25,000 a day; research institutions and private sector firms like Boots and Amazon will be brought into the screening system; antibody tests will be introduced if they can be proved effective; community testing will be bolstered; and the overall UK diagnostics industry will be enlarged.

Mr Hancock rejected comparisons with huge testing numbers in Germany, saying the UK was building from a 'lower base' when it came to biotech capacity.

He said some of the prototype tests he was being urged to buy had failed trials. One missed three out of four cases, he said.

But he admitted that even with his new 'five point plan' testing capacity will not hit 100,000 per day until the end of the month - by which point he guaranteed that all frontline NHS staff will have access to checks.

He said the longer-term goal was to have capacity for 250,000 checks every day.

That numbers will include any antibody tests - to show who previously had the virus - if they can be shown to be effective.

'Our ultimate goal is that anyone who needs a test can have one,' he said.

'The new national effort for testing will ensure that we can get tests for everyone who needs them and I am delighted that the pharmaceutical industry is rising to this challenge, putting unprecedented resources into testing,' he said.

'We took the right decisions at the rights times on the very best scientific advice.'

'Taken together, I am now setting the goal of 100,000 tests per day by the end of this month. That is the goal and I am determined that we will get there.'

Mr Hancock said he was 'delighted to be back' after his spell in isolation, adding: 'I come back redoubled in my determination to fight this virus with everything we have got.'

The previous approach on swab tests was meant to ensure checks are conducted properly, but the 10,000 per day level achieved so far contrasts sharply with the decentralised tactics deployed successfully in countries like Germany, which is carrying out up to 100,000.

Mr Hancock revealed that 5,000 NHS workers have now been tested, amid fears tens of thousands are off work unnecessarily.

Explaining the sluggishness in hiking test numbers, Mr Hancock said approving faulty tests would put people at risk.

'I understand why NHS staff want tests, so they can get back to the frontline. Of course I do,' he said.

'But I took the decision that the first priority has to be the patients for whom the result of a test could be the difference in treatment that is the difference between life and death

'I believe anybody in my shoes would have taken the same decision.'

On another tumultuous day of coronavirus developments:

Another 569 deaths have been declared in the UK today, taking the total death toll to 2,921;

Business groups say firms have 'furloughed' half of their staff with concerns the government's bailout will need to be massively bigger than thought;

A poll for MailOnline has found more than half the public think Boris Johnson imposed lockdown too late, and some 40 per cent want a special medal to be awarded to NHS staff;

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator;

The ONS has revealed costs of cough and cold medication have risen by nearly 11 per cent over the last fortnight, amid fears of profiteering;

British Airways will put 36,000 employees - 80% of its workforce - on leave after grounding thousands of flights as it attempts to weather the coronavirus storm;

Almost a million people in the UK have applied for Universal Credit benefits since March 16 and officials are facing calls to allow people to claim it even if they have up to 16,000 in savings;

British Medical Association guidelines have revealed elderly patients should be lower priority than otherwise- healthy younger ones when it comes to rationing ventilators in intensive care.

Matt Hancock said he was 'delighted to be back' after being diagnosed with coronavirus and having a week of self-isolation

Charts show the number of new cases have jumped sharply in the latest information released by the government today

A member of the public is transported to an ambulance in Euston, London, by ambulance workers wearing personal protective clothing and medical face masks

The tests for who currently has the virus are viewed as critical for keeping health workers on the frontline, and tracking the outbreak could allow lockdown to be calibrated in 'hotspots'.

But experts say screening for if people have already been through the disease - antibody testing - will be the biggest breakthrough in getting the country back on its feet.

In a video released from his self-isolation in Downing Street last night, Boris Johnson admitted mass testing was the solution to the 'puzzle'. 'This is how we will defeat it in the end,' he said.

At the press briefing this evening, Mr Hancock said the UK lacked a large diagnostics industry so was having to build from a 'lower base' than the likes of Germany, which is testing at greater levels for coronavirus.

He said a country-wide shortage of swabs had been 'resolved' but that there remained a 'global challenge' around sourcing the reagent chemicals needed for the tests.

'I'm proud that every single patient who needed a test for life-saving treatment has had access to a test. But of course NHS staff need access to testing too.

'And I'm delighted that at the weekend we could roll out this access for the first time.

'And there is a challenge too of making sure that the public can have confidence in tests.

'Seven of the tests we are currently checking have failed. In one case, a test that I am being urged to buy missed three out of four positive cases of coronavirus.

'That means in three-quarters of cases that test would have given the false comfort of sending someone with coronavirus back on the wards.

'Approving tests that don't work is dangerous and I will not do it.'

Mr Hancock confirmed that the government is looking at issuing 'immunity certificates' to those who have recovered from the disease to get the economy up and running again, if reliable antibody tests can be produced.

'That is an important thing that we will be doing and are looking at but it is too early in the science of the immunity that comes from having the disease.. to be able to get clarity about that.'

Mr Hancock paid an emotional tribute to NHS staff who have lost their lives, and expressed his 'deepest condolences' to the friends and families of all coronavirus victims.

'If the past few weeks have shown us anything, it's that we are steadfast as a country in our resolve to defeat this invisible killer,' he said.

'I am profoundly moved by the compassion and the commitment that we are seeing from people right across the country, and in the health and care system we have lost colleagues too.

'Doctors, nurses, mental health professionals: they have paid the ultimate price for their service - working to care for others.

'I just want to say this on behalf of all my colleagues in health and social care: I am awed by the dedication of colleagues on the frontline, every single person, who contributes to the running of this diverse and caring institution that our nation holds so dear.

The number of coronavirus tests being done in the UK has been rising but only to around 10,000 per day - and the number of people being tested is about half as high because individuals are tested more than once. The Government is a long way off its 25,000-per-day target

'Many of those who have died who are from the NHS were people who came to this country to make a difference, and they did, and they've given their lives in sacrifice, and we salute them.'

He also declared that more than 13billion of historic NHS debt will be written off to place trusts in a 'stronger position' to respond to the coronavirus crisis.

Downing Street said earlier: 'We acknowledge that more needs to be done in relation to testing. We need to be testing more people and we need to be making progress very quickly.'

Yesterday a report by the Adam Smith Institute ranked the UK as being 26th out of 34 countries in the Western world for coronavirus testing.

Mr Hancocks announcement follows tensions between the Government and Public Health England (PHE), which has been in charge of the testing programme to date. Privately, ministers complain that PHE has guarded its role too jealously, preventing a more widespread use of private testing labs until now.

One senior source said that it was about time Public Health England got some proper scrutiny.

Mr Hancock tried to calm tensions by paying tribute to PHE and appointing its director of health improvement John Newton to lead the drive on testing.

Matt Hancock pledges to write off 13.4billion of NHS debt to help strengthen health service during coronavirus crisis Matt Hancock has written off 13.4billion of historic NHS debt in a bid to strengthen the health system amid the raging coronavirus pandemic. The Health Secretary also made 300million available to fund community pharmacies as 569 people who tested positive for Covid-19 died today. Mr Hancock broke Government rules on self-isolation to unveil his decision at today's No 10 press briefing after displaying flu-like symptoms last week. He said: 'These are unprecedented times for our healthcare system and I want to make sure every part of it is supported. 'Today, to help NHS trusts to deliver what's needed without worrying about past finances, I can announce that I am writing off 13.4billion of historic NHS debt. 'This landmark step will not only put the NHS in a strong position to be able to respond to this global coronavirus pandemic, but it will ensure that our NHS has stronger foundations for our future too.' Advertisement

Mr Hancock also said the number of doctors self-isolating was 5.7 per cent of the total  far lower than the 25 per cent estimated by the Royal College of Physicians.

The Francis Crick institute today announced it has started testing NHS staff from University College London Hospitals and aims to ramp up to 500 per day by next week and expand to other hospitals in the capital.

Other smaller laboratories say they have volunteered to help with testing, too, among them the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University and Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon, which is testing local GP staff already. Cancer Research UK said it is also providing equipment and expert staff to help with testing.

However, there is already a blame game under way within government over the failure to scale up the testing regime - with the PHE insisting it has 'played our part'.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Francis Crick Institute chief Sir Paul Nurse said it had realised 'two or three weeks ago' that 'testing of COVID-19 would be absolutely critical if the country was to successfully handle the crisis - particularly testing of NHS staff'.

He said the institute had 're-purposed' its laboratory for coronavirus tests, and was expecting to do up to 2,000 tests a day, with results available in less than 24 hours.

'We have been working around then clock over the last fortnight working with UCL Hospital and health service laboratories to produce a testing centre to be able to do that,' he said.

'We have created the testing centre. we now know we can operate at a national standard.

'Just after the weekend we expect to be at 500 a day, or 3,000 a week and we hope over the coming weeks to expand that to 2,000 a day.

'We hope that we can roll this out to other research institutes. Cancer Research UK... they are contacting their institutes so they can adopt the way we are operating.'

Sir Paul said there were a range of labs in the public sector - but outside PHE - that could be used.

Referring to the famous Second World War evacuation of UK forces from the French coast, he said: 'A metaphor here is Dunkirk, to be honest. We are a lot of little boats and the little boats can be effective.

'The government has put some bigger boats - destroyers - in place. that is a bit more cumbersome to get working and we wish them all the luck to do that. But we little boats can contribute as well.'

Sir Paul said the smaller labs were 'more agile' to deal with global shortages of reagents. 'We can make pipelines of reagents and chemicals,' he said.

'We can move faster to deal with issues. Of course we have supply chain problems but we can reduce them by being small and agile.'

Britain could roll out coronavirus 'immunity certificates' for people who have already fought off the deadly infection under antibody testing scheme Britons who have already have fought off the coronavirus could be given 'immunity certificates', ministers today confirmed. Health Secretary Matt Hancock admitted Number 10 was looking at the move at a Downing Street press conference tonight. German scientists have already announced they will roll out the certificates, to try and ease the country out of its draconian lockdown. Discussing the prospect of introducing certificates, Mr Hancock said the evidence about the truth on immunity is not yet clear enough. Fears have been raised that people can be struck down twice after reports in China and Japan of patients being reinfected. Other scientists believe the evidence for immunity is convincing and even claim that it could be life-long. Antibody tests are the only ones that can tell if someone has ever caught the deadly infection, which has struck almost 1million people worldwide. When someone gets infected with a virus their immune system must work out how to fight it off - it does so by producing substances called antibodies. Patients who catch COVID-19 develop and store COVID-19 antibodies for their body to use to battle the life-threatening virus in future. But Number 10 has yet to approve any antibody tests in the UK, despite promises the DIY kits would be ready for use by mid-April. In the press conference tonight, Mr Hancock revealed nine firms were in the running to produce the 17.5million blood tests it had ordered. Experts say screening for if people have already fought off COVID-19 - antibody testing - will be the biggest breakthrough in getting the country back on its feet. Advertisement

Chief executive at University College London Hospitals, Marcel Levi, said: 'The Crick have been a fantastic partner. They have rapidly set up the laboratory processes needed for our staff COVID-19 testing service. This will enable us to gradually ramp up access to testing for UCLH staff.'

Cancer Research UK is working in conjunction with the London institute. Its executive director or research, Iain Foulkes, said: 'As well as the Crick, many Cancer Research UK laboratories throughout the country are providing vital testing kit and skills. And we are proud of our scientists, some of the best in the world, who are turning their focus to COVID-19 during this global pandemic.'

The Crick Institute's Sir Paul said he did not want to be too critical of the government at this stage, but made clear that there would need to be a reckoning later.

'We did our thing. We got going. They were focusing on what only they could do with the big ships. We just got on with it,' he said.

'The government may need to think more about its strategy but we are running out a bit of time.'

He added: 'We will need to think in the future, when we are through crisis, how best to manage things.., we were not sufficiently prepared. But now is the time to get our shoulder behind the wheel.'

As pressure intensified over the government's response, Professor Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of Public Health England, appeared to pass the buck.

He said the organisation had 'played our part' by ensuring there were tests for people in hospital.

Fingers have been pointed at the government's top health experts for holding back the use of wider testing facilities. Chief medical officer Chris Whitty has repeatedly stressed that 'the only thing worse than no test is a bad test'.

Professor Cosford said 'everybody involved is frustrated' about not reaching the required testing output.

'We've played our part,' he said, 'which is to make absolutely certain that that testing is spread throughout Public Health England's laboratories, throughout NHS laboratories, is available to support the clinical treatment of patients who need it.'

He also told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Our role has always been to - and I speak from Public Health England - make sure our labs are doing what they need to do and we're rolling tests out to the NHS for clinical treatment of patients.

'There is some capacity that is available within that in order to start testing NHS staff and that's being done.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock (pictured right with chief medical officer Chris Whitty last monht) has finished quarantine after contracting coronavirus himself. Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, one of the UK's leading science labs, said the Government must allow private and academic laboratories to help with COVID-19 testing

'You've heard about the 2,000 yesterday - nowhere near where we need to get to but it's a good start - and then there's the drive-through systems that are beginning.'

Asked why other testing facilities were not being used, Professor Cosford said PHE is most closely involved in NHS testing before adding: 'The second (strand) is how we can use all of those laboratories, all of that capacity, to boost up at least 100,000 tests a day, hopefully more.'

'They came to this country to make a differ and they did. They made the ultimate sacrifice': Matt Hancock hails NHS staff killed by coronavirus - as he stands by decision HE took to test patients before medical staff Matt Hancock hailed NHS medics killed helping to save lives during the coronavirus pandemic today as he took responsibility for a shortage of tests for health workers. The Health Secretary praised the 'ultimate sacrifice' made after doctors from minority communities died this week while working tirelessly for the NHS as the number of patients grew. Ear, nose and throat consultant Amged El-Hawrani, 55, became the first doctor to be recognised by the NHS as having died after contracting coronavirus in Leicester last weekend. And Dr Alfa Saadu, 68, is said to have contracted Covid-19 before his death earlier this week while working part-time in Welwyn, Hertfordshire. At the news conference today Mr Hancock said it had been his decision to prioritise coronavisus tests for patients rather than NHS staff. But he paid an emotional tribute to NHS workers, whose work will again be marked by a co-ordinated clap across the nation tonight at 8pm. 'If the past few weeks have shown us anything, it's that we are steadfast as a country in our resolve to defeat this invisible killer,' he said. Advertisement

Professor Cosford said he would expect this work to be in place 'over the coming days and a small number of weeks'.

A spokesman for the the Prime Minister revealed yesterday that 'more than' 2,000 staff had been tested since testing of health workers began at the weekend.

That is equivalent to fewer than 700 a day and a fraction of the 550,000 frontline in the NHS, or indeed the 1.3million total workforce.

Downing Street had promised on March 16 that testing NHS workers was a 'key focus', yet a pilot scheme did not begin until last Friday, two weeks later.

Mr Hancock used a virtual meeting last night to launch a new challenge for industry to develop innovative solutions to overcome some of the main obstacles to scaling up capacity.

'I've called together our pharmaceutical giants and testing specialists to call on them to build a scale of diagnostic capability never before seen in this country,' he said.

'It is a huge task but they know they have the have the full support of this Government as we work towards this common goal in the national interest, as part of our national effort to tackle coronavirus.

'Many companies are already working urgently to assist us in this and I'm delighted that so many more are looking to step up to this challenge.'

The PM's spokesman said that work was ongoing with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test which would show whether people have had the virus, but he said it was essential they were accurate.

'We are working as quickly as we can on that and as soon as a test is approved then we will announce it publicly,' he said.

He said the Government had previously been offered tests which had not met the required levels of accuracy 'and therefore would not have been safe to use'.

One company which has stepped up to help the coronavirus effort already is Diagnostics for the Real World, which was founded in 2003 at Cambridge University.

Mr Hancock confirmed that the government is looking at issuing 'immunity certificates' to those who have recovered from the disease to get the economy up and running again

DRW says it has developed a coronavirus testing machine that can produce results in less than 90 minutes and is being rolled out at NHS hospitals in the city and across the UK.

Scientists there invented the portable Samba II machine and had it approved by Public Health England.

The man with the poisoned chalice: Prof John Newton will oversee the government's plan to carry out 100,000 coronavirus tests a day by end April Professor John Newton, director of public health improvement for Public Health England, has been appointed by the government to try and hit ambitious new coronavirus testing targets. Speaking this afternoon at the daily government press conference, Health Secretary Matt Hancock pledged to carry out 100,000 tests every day by the end of the month. To meet these ambitious targets, and reverse criticism of UK testing, Professor Newton has been tasked with co-ordinating a national effort with global manufacturers to try and expand manufacturing capacity in the UK. He will also be working with the NHS, universities and the government to raise UK testing capabilities as soon as possible. In his role as Director of Health Improvement, he is responsible for advances in screening, alcohol, tobacco and drugs and diet and obesity. He was appointed to the role in October 2012 and is also the chairman of the WHO European Burden of Disease Network. The former Regional Director of Public Health for NHS South Central, he was also Director of Research and Development in two large NHS teaching hospitals, Southampton and Oxford. Professor Newton also served as the Chief Executive of the charity UK Biobank and led England's contribution to the Global Burden of Disease project, a study into the impacts of diseases on the world. But his role in the battle against the coronavirus pandemic is sure to be his toughest yet. Advertisement

Ten of them are being used at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge this week before they are put to use nationwide.

The scientists say the machine is 98.7 per cent accurate.

CEO Helen Lee said: 'The Samba machine can be placed literally anywhere and operated by anyone with minimum training.'

Nasal and throat swabs must be collected from patients then put into the machines which will scan them for tiny traces of genetic material (RNA) from the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus.

Current tests which work in the same way can take 24 hours or more.

The machines will be used to test healthcare workers as well as other patients suspected of having Covid-19 across the country.

Businessman and philanthropist Sir Chris Hohn is helping make the test more widely available with a 2.3million donation to purchase 100 of the machines for NHS use.

And a warehouse at a Milton Keynes lab could soon be converted to process coronavirus swabs after days of delays.

The National Bioample Centre site could be the key to fixing Britain's testing fiasco after the Prime Minister pledged to massively increase swabbing. The centre - which was built for 24million in 2015 - would face a massive overhaul.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma told the daily Downing Street press briefing last night that the UK was looking to create lab-based testing which was the medical equivalent of building a car factory.

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is proposing a range of temporary 'stop gap' measures to offer quick support to users of some consumer credit products.

The proposed measures will be subject to a brief consultation ending at 9am on Monday April 6. If confirmed, they will be in place by Thursday April 9.

The plans include ensuring that for customers who have been hit financially by the coronavirus crisis and already have an arranged overdraft in place on their main personal current account, they will be charged zero interest on up to 500 of it for three months.

Alongside this, customers without an overdraft on their main personal current account can request this facility.

University and research institute labs in the UK 'have thousands of machines that could be used for coronavirus testing'

There are dozens of laboratories in the UK that already have the equipment needed to process coronavirus tests, according to scientists.

Experts calling for testing to be done more widely have offered their services and say research institutes, universities and private science companies have thousands of the DNA testing machines that are needed to look for COVID-19.

The PCR machines examine DNA taken from a nose or throat swab to look for signs of viral genetic material (RNA) left behind by the coronavirus. This is the kind of testing currently being used by Public Health England, which has eight of its own laboratories and access to 40 in NHS hospitals around the country.

'Every self-respecting medical or bioscience laboratory in the UK will have the necessary equipment to conduct hundreds if not thousands of these tests every day,' said Professor Colin Garner, who runs a charity called Antibiotic Research UK in York Science Park.

'So why has the government not asked/commandeered/enlisted facilities and people to do these tests?'

One scientist told Sky News that there are thousands of PCR machines all over the UK.

Professor Julian Peto, from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: 'These PCR machines are in every university and commercial lab in Britain so I'm sure you've got 14,000 of them.

'If the people who are already operating those machines turned over to testing to the virus, you'd be able to test everyone in Britain once a week, and you'd be able to test every other day people who come into contact with patients - nurses, doctors, the NHS in particular.'

The 'small ship' labs include:

Francis Crick Institute, London

The Francis Crick Institute in King's Cross, London, has already started testing NHS staff from local hospitals and said it hopes to scale up to 2,000 tests per day

The Francis Crick Institute, a leading biomedical science lab in London, has already started using its facilities to test NHS staff from local hospitals that are part of the University College London Hospitals NHS Trust.

It hopes to scale up to 500 tests per day by early next week with the ultimate aim of doing 2,000 every day.

Cancer Research UK has scientists at the Crick Institute who are involved with carrying out the tests and is also using its staff and equipment around the country to help test medical workers so they can continue working on the frontline without fears they are spreading the infection.

Executive director of research at the charity, Iain Foulkes, said: 'They are providing desperately needed capacity at a time of national crisis, and testing NHS staff quickly so they can decide if they can return to their life-saving work.

'As a scientific research community, we need to beat the pandemic together  the sooner we do that the sooner our researchers can get back to beating cancer.'

Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford

The Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at the University of Oxford, which usually studies human diseases, said it has offered help to the Government but not been commissioned

Some scientists with the right facilities have already volunteered to help the government effort but not had their offers taken up.

Matthew Freeman, at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University said in a tweet: 'We have many people experienced in PCR.

'We'd love to help and have been trying to volunteer for weeks. Must be many university departments and institutes in similar position.

'I'd love to know more about why we can't be used. Would be interested to hear if others have been more successful in offering services.

'I understand how complex it is: quality control, biosafety, ethics... But can't help feeling that in an emergency these could have been sorted. Less complex than constructing a 5,000 bed hospital in 2 weeks.'

The department would normally use its machines to examine the minute workings of human infections and diseases.

Another lab at Oxford - the Butt Group, which studies genetics - added on Twitter: 'I echo this sense of frustration: we volunteered on day 1 and beyond being asked 3 times to list our expertise, have heard nothing.'

Marc Dionne, a researcher at Imperial College London, replied: 'Many from Imperial in the same position. I've heard that one of the personnel shortages now is not people capable of running PCR but people capable of directing them'.

Systems Biology Laboratory, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, is already testing staff at local GP surgeries

Systems Biology Laboratory, a not-for-profit science company, has taken local matters into its own hands and is already testing staff at 14 GP surgeries in Oxfordshire twice a week.

The tests - it is doing around 100 per day, according to The Times - mean staff can continue to work safe in the knowledge that they don't have the coronavirus so aren't passing it on to patients.

Director of the lab, Mike Fischer, said he started buying the testing kits online around two weeks ago and they cost about 10 per time. He hopes to scale up to be able to do 800 tests every day.

'We just ordered another 15,000 tests. I pledged a million pounds towards other people's costs and I'll be delighted when that runs out,' he told The Times.

Although Mr Fischer doesn't have official approval as a testing centre he said the Government was aware of what he was doing and was 'supportive'.
Renan Koen first sat at a piano in Theresienstadt in 2018. For seven years prior, she played compositions written by internees at the hybrid concentration camp and ghetto near Terezin, the Czech fortress town that was occupied by Germans in World War II.

After 2018, she began making annual pilgrimages from Istanbul to this ghostly Czech town to hear its trees whisper between silences before performing lecture concerts from her 2015 album Holocaust Remembrance / Before Sleep.

I really understood better, more deeply, said Koen, an award-winning classical pianist and music therapist from Istanbul who started to honor her Jewish heritage with her 2014 album of Ladino songs, Lost Traces, Hidden Memories.

She advocates for Holocaust awareness in Turkey and beyond by performing the works of Jewish composers Gideon Klein, Viktor Ullman, Zikmund Schul and Pavel Haas, none of whom survived Nazi rule. "I understood the tempos more, the pace of life, where they walked.

To commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day on Jan. 27, Koen flew to New York to perform her Holocaust Remembrance / Before Sleep lecture concert under the auspices of the Permanent Mission of Turkey to the United Nations.

Before performing, her speech at the UN headquarters referred to the brave Turkish diplomats who have saved the lives of many Jews, just after Turkeys permanent representative to the UN Feridun Sinirlioglu said, Many righteous Turkish diplomats didnt hesitate to risk their lives to save thousands of Jews.

Sinirlioglu, a former ambassador of Turkey to Israel, likely knew that Yad Vashem - The World Holocaust Remembrance Center has only named one Turkish national as a member of the Righteous Among the Nations, Israels official list of non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. The only Turkish citizen named is Selahattin Ulkumen, who served as consul-general of Rhodes under German occupation.

Sinirlioglu and Koen left out a darker side to Turkeys history with the Holocaust. While multiple Turkish diplomats leveraged their power to save Jewish lives, reportedly less than a hundred at a time, they were exceptions when Nazism, anti-Semitism and even Aryanism overwhelmingly influenced Turkish public policy and foreign affairs during World War II.

According to academic Corry Guttstadt, author of the Turkey, the Jews and the Holocaust, waves of legislation that passed in Turkey in 1938 followed Nazi anti-Jewish measures, particularly Secret Decree No. 2/9498.

Beginning around the time the secret decree was issued, Turkey began to reject Jewish refugees even if they had passports. Turkish consulates demanded proof of Aryan descent before granting an entry visa to Turkey, Guttstadt wrote in the second volume of a book series published in 2016 by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), Bystanders, Rescuers or Perpetrators? The Neutral Countries and the Shoah.

For another academic, Rifat Bali, the statements by Koen and Sinirlioglu at the UN are emblematic of a tradition of miseducation about the Holocaust in Turkey.

These are sweeping generalizations and exaggerations. This is part of the propaganda, where you repeat one false story thousands of times, said Bali, publisher of Libra Books and the author of Holocaust Consumption in Turkey: 1989-2017, where he openly critiques Koen and her Holocaust Remembrance / Before Sleep project.

Since the 1980s, the government line of Holocaust reconciliation in Turkey is essentially a rescue myth, beginning in 1492, when Sultan Bayezid II invited Jews expelled from Spain to settle in the Ottoman Empire. History skews with the two points that follow, when praising Turkey for protecting Jewish refugees from the Nuremberg Laws, enacted by the Nazis to exclude German Jews from intermarriage and Reich citizenship, and the Final Solution, a policy of annihilation that resulted in the murder of 6 million Jews in Europe.

The refusal of Albert Einsteins 1933 letter to Turkey, asking the Turkish Republic to accept 40 Jewish academics from Germany who would forgo remunerations for the first year, is a famous example of Turkeys noncompliant neutrality.

For researchers Guttstadt, I. Izzet Bahar and Ilker Ayturk, the reality was grimmer.

In the IHRA volume, Bystanders, Rescuers or Perpetrators? Guttstadt and Bahar, along with colleagues Pinar Dost-Niyego and Nora Seni provide ample evidence for Turkeys revocation of citizenship from Turkish Jews in Europe during Hitlers rise.

The examination of Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs documents reveals that during World War II, the Turkish government did not have any intention or make any attempts to protect the Jews of Turkish origin living in German-occupied Western Europe, wrote Bahar, whose analysis of diplomatic correspondence also concluded that Ankara was aware of the lethal conditions of the ongoing deportations to Eastern Europe.

A slew of legislation had barred Turkish Jews from returning to Turkey, starting with the Turkish Citizenship Law of 1928, which effectively labeled about half of some 20,000 Turkish Jews in Europe as irregular, therefore illegible for repatriation. And for the approximately 75,000 Jews in Turkey, the socio-economic horizon had never been dimmer.

Despite the fact that certain Jewish academics did work in Turkey after 1933  such as literary scholar Eric Auerbach and Assyriology expert Benno Landsberger  the 1932 Law on Activities and Professions in Turkey Reserved for Turkish Citizens made it hard for non-Turkish citizens to work in Turkey.

Still, as Guttstadt pointed out in the opening paragraphs of her chapter in the IHRA book  titled, Turkey - Welcoming Jewish Refugees?  Turkey accepted some 600 Jewish exiles from Germany between 1933 and 1939. The rise of Nazism coincided with Turkeys push to modernize its universities, which required employing specialists from abroad, including 130 scholars the Nazis discriminated against for being Jewish.

In her 2020 paper, Rescue or Rejection: Turkeys Policies Towards Jews During the Holocaust, published with the University of Sofia, Guttstadt outlined how the Settlement Law of 1934, passed that June, preceded pogroms in Thrace that raged until July, as some 15,000 Jews fled vandalization, rape and humiliation. The Wealth Tax of 1942, she argued, led to the expulsion of 1,870 mostly non-Muslim laborers to Askale, where 21 people died under the harsh conditions near the Russian border.

Turkish Jews were particularly harshly hit by the tax, which impoverished many middle-class Jews, while those who could not pay the tax were sent to labor camps in eastern Turkey, agree Ilker Ayturk and Dost-Niyego in their 2016 paper, Holocaust Education in Turkey: Past, Present and Future.

While it is clear that Koen is not a historian by discipline, she remains a prominent educator in the field of Holocaust awareness in Turkey, prompting initiatives with the Jewish Museum of Turkey and nongovernmental organizations like Civil and Ecological Rights Association (SEHAK).

If youre asking me what its like to work with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, theyre very respectful about this issue [of Holocaust remembrance], Koen said firmly, speaking at an Istanbul cafe not far from where she went to secondary school. They dont instrumentalize the issue. This is very important for me.

As an independent artist, Koen collaborates with the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and such state sponsors as Turkish Airlines willingly, to the bafflement of critics like Bali, who has spent much of his career in letters exposing the persistence of anti-Semitism in Turkey. Yet looking back on his prolific body of work, which includes nearly 50 books and countless academic references, he determines that it has all amounted to nothing.

If Koen is making positive headlines occasionally, I think that's great, Ayturk told Al-Monitor in an email. There is no doubt that Turkey's newly found interest in the Holocaust and desperate attempts to become a full member of IHRA are motivated by Turkey's past with the Armenians and to curry favor with international public opinion by showcasing how (very few) Turkish diplomats helped Jews during the Holocaust.

In their paper, Holocaust Education in Turkey," Ayturk and Dost-Niyego analyze Turkeys bid for IHRA membership as a pivot to influence public opinion and international lobbyists by paying lip service to anti-Semitism and the Holocaust.

I never play without an explanation. I start from the Holocaust, Koen told Al-Monitor, about her Holocaust Remembrance / Before Sleep lecture concerts, which she also brings to students ages 11-17 in Turkey, and abroad, having traveled from the favelas of Brazil to Turkish schools in Germany. The non-Jewish kids are more important for me because the Jewish schools can reach the source of history. The other doesnt know.

Koen teaches Holocaust awareness through music therapy. After playing compositions written in Theresienstadt, she asks her students to dialogue. She takes youth groups to Theresienstadt annually to compose music, write and make art in response to their experience, an initiative she calls March of the Music," to enact Positive Resistance, a concept she coined.

My daughter goes to an Italian school. One of her subjects was the Holocaust in 5th grade. But with [Turkish] schools here this is really hard because it is not part of the curricula. When we talk about the Holocaust most of the time it is their first time, Nisya Isman Allovi, director of the Jewish Museum of Turkey, told Al-Monitor.

The Jewish Museum of Turkey hosts schools, mostly imam-hatip religious students who have never encountered Jews or their history.

At the Holocaust section [of the Jewish Museum of Turkey] we exhibit stories of diplomats who saved Turkish Jews, their passports, train tickets, the 1934 Thrace pogroms, and also prepare special exhibits, said Allovi, who noted the museums display on the 1942 Struma disaster, referring to the Soviets sinking a ship carrying nearly 800 Jewish refugees after Istanbul refused it to port.

Koen plans to release an album with the Italian label Sheva Collection, featuring the students she has brought with her to Theresienstadt. They have prepared a new arrangement of a Gideon Klein string trio. The composers microtonal approach is also reflected in the music of Turkish composer Necil Kazm Akses, who studied with Alois Haba alongside Klein.

If a person is not at peace individually, the community cant be at peace. Thats why its very important to tell this history very transparently, said Koen, who is currently performing a series of online concerts broadcast by the Turkish Jewish Communitys social media.
The company usually makes about 400 million masks a year. It is unclear what set off President Trump, but his trade adviser, Peter Navarro, made an oblique reference to 3M at the briefing, mentioning that weve had some issues making sure that all of the production that 3M does around the world, ends up being sent to the right places.

Even as the U.S. grapples with a mask shortage, 3M has continued to sell the critical safety equipment abroad, according to someone with direct knowledge of the matter. It is not illegal for the company to sell its masks to foreign countries. And the U.S. has been slow to respond in a coordinated way or to marshal federal resources, health officials said. That sluggish response has meant that other governments put in orders ahead of the United States.

The investor Mark Cuban, who is advising Project N95, a new nonprofit group that aims to help American hospitals connect with vetted mask suppliers, speculated that the administration may be upset over a perceived lack of transparency from 3M.

Its obvious that theres not enough supply to meet the demand, and its obvious that 3M has manufacturing overseas, Mr. Cuban said. Whats not obvious is what percentage of their production overseas 3M has been willing to supply.

Hospitals report some critical medicines are beginning to run low.

Across the country, as hospitals confront a harrowing surge in coronavirus cases, they are also beginning to report shortages of critical medications  especially those desperately needed to ease the diseases assault on patients respiratory systems.

The most commonly reported shortages include drugs that are used to keep patients airways open, antibiotics, antivirals and sedatives. They are all part of a standard cocktail of medications that help patients on mechanical ventilators, control secondary lung infections, reduce fevers, manage pain and resuscitate those who go into cardiac arrest.

Demand for these drugs significantly increased in March as the pandemic took hold. Orders for antibiotics like azithromycin and antiviral medicines like ribavirin nearly tripled. Requests for medicines used for sedation and pain management, including fentanyl, midazolam and propofol, increased by 100 percent, 70 percent and 60 percent respectively.
By PTI

MUMBAI: Bollywood couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan on Thursday announced that they will be donating money to the PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra Chief Minister's Relief Fund to help combat coronavirus pandemic in the country.

Kareena posted a statement on Instagram, saying that she, along with Saif and their son Taimur, have extended support to the two relief funds.

"We extend our support to the PM-CARES and Chief Minister's Fund (Maharashtra). In times like these, every helping hand and every rupee raised, matters. Do help wherever possible," the statement read.

According to the Union Health Ministry, the number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,965 in the country on Thursday while the death toll rose to 50.

The star couple had recently pledged support to UNICEF, GIVE INDIA and the International Association for Human Values (IAHV).

At the time, the couple was criticized by social media users for not donating to the PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra Chief Minister's Relief Fund, unlike their Bollywood counterparts.

Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations or the PM-CARES Fund was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to combat health contingencies like the coronavirus.

In the last week, the relief funds have received donations from a number of Bollywood celebrities, including Akshay Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar, Varun Dhawan, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Katrina Kaif, Alia Bhatt and others.
Some 35% of all coronavirus tests administered in New York and New Jersey have been positive, indicating a serious outbreak in both states, White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Deborah Birx said Thursday.

"That confirms very clearly that that's a very clear and important hot zone," she said at a White House press conference.

As states ramp up testing, U.S. officials are keeping a close watch on which areas of the country might follow New York where 38% of the country's more than 242,100 cases are concentrated.

She said Louisiana, where 26% of all tests come back positive, concerns U.S. health officials. Michigan, Connecticut, Indiana, Georgia and Illinois all test positive about 15% of the time.

"So that should tell you where the next hot spots are coming," she said.

White House officials are projecting between 100,000 and 240,000 deaths in the U.S. with coronavirus fatalities peaking over the next two or so weeks.

President Donald Trump again criticized New York leaders for not taking steps sooner to contain the outbreak there, saying "people knew some bad things were going on and they got off to a late start."

Trump said coronavirus cases in several states "started low and slow" before shooting up.

"Louisiana is an example. It was low and slow and it was looking great ... after Mardis Gras it was low and then all of a sudden it went up very rapidly and now it's one of our true hot spots," he said. "Detroit looked like it was doing pretty good and then it went up too."
By Marwa Rashad

RIYADH, April 2 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's digital marketplace Sary, which connects small businesses with merchant wholesalers, has secured $6.6 million in financing to boost expansion as coronavirus-driven demand for essential goods boosts appetite for its services.

Under an ambitious reform drive led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to diversify the economy away from oil, Riyadh plans to boost small and medium enterprises' (SMEs) contribution to GDP to 35% by 2030, from a current 20%.

Young Saudis have rushed to start small businesses, backed by new technologies and digital infrastructure and many of these are now flourishing as people rely heavily on online apps with curfews and lockdowns imposed in many cities.

Sary has two hubs in Dammam and Jeddah and plans to use the "Series A" funding, led by early-stage venture capital fund Raed Ventures, to open a third in Riyadh, allowing it to distribute to 25 cities across the kingdom, said the startup's chief executive Mohammed Aldossary.

"We mainly focus on the micro and small enterprises, but because of coronavirus a lot of medium-sized enterprises and supermarket chains have decided to adopt our technology," Aldossary told Reuters in a phone interview.

"In March we made sales equal to 50% of what we did in 2019. There is a huge surge in retail sales, and we are on track to do sales worth 1 billion riyals this year," he said.

Saudi Arabia has ordered the closure of malls, restaurants, coffee shops and other public spaces to combat the virus, boosting online business opportunities for large retailers.

Danube online, one of Saudi Arabia's biggest supermarket chains, told Reuters last week that average daily sales in the 10 days to March 26 were up over 200% and average order value was up 50%.

Meanwhile, grocery and commodities delivery firm Nana said it had raised $18 million to bolster growth.

While big businesses are cash-abundant and well-equipped to seize growth potentials, micro and small businesses -- including hotels, restaurants and cafes -- have shifted to Sary's platform to secure purchases after seeing huge declines in demand and being forced to cut jobs, including procurement, Aldossary said.

(Reporting by Marwa Rashad; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
[April 02, 2020] WILLIAMS-SONOMA, INC. BRANDS AND NO KID HUNGRY WORK TO FEED KIDS DURING COVID-19 OUTBREAK AND ALL YEAR LONG

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE: WSM) announced the activation of the company's entire portfolio of brands today to assist with the relief and recovery efforts of No Kid Hungry, a national campaign to end childhood hunger in America. As the coronavirus closes schools nationwide, millions of children across the U.S. are losing access to the school meals they depend on. Williams Sonoma, West Elm, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Teen, Pottery Barn Kids, Rejuvenation and Mark & Graham are now soliciting donations online and raising awareness for No Kid Hungry to help ensure that millions of kids get the meals they need during school closures and all year long. "Williams Sonoma has worked with No Kid Hungry for almost ten years, driven by a shared belief that no child in America should go hungry," said Laura Alber, president and CEO of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. "We are proud to now have our entire family of brands join a coalition of devoted teachers, chefs, community leaders, parents, lawmakers and like-minded corporations that are dedicated to ending childhood hunger in America." "Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has been a dedicated, steadfast partner for a decade. So, it's no surprise that when America's kids and families need them most, they are stepping up. Their company-wide suppor helps ensure kids get the critical food they need during this unprecedented crisis and after," said Billy Shore, Executive Chair, Share Our Strength, the organization behind the No Kid Hungry campaign.



For more information about No Kid Hungry or to make a donation, please visit: www.williams-sonoma.com/nokidhungry. Customers can also make a donation by texting 'WSI' (News - Alert) to 877877.

ABOUT WILLIAMS-SONOMA, INC. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. is a specialty retailer of high-quality products for the home. These products, representing distinct merchandise strategies - Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, West Elm, Pottery Barn Teen, Williams Sonoma Home, Rejuvenation, and Mark and Graham - are marketed through e-commerce websites, direct-mail catalogs and retail stores. These brands are also part of The Key Rewards, our free-to-join loyalty program that offers members exclusive benefits across the Williams-Sonoma family of brands. We operate in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, offer international shipping to customers worldwide, and have unaffiliated franchisees that operate stores in the Middle East, the Philippines, Mexico and South Korea, as well as e-commerce websites in certain locations. In 2017, we acquired Outward, Inc., a 3-D imaging and augmented reality platform for the home furnishings and decor industry. ABOUT NO KID HUNGRY No child should go hungry in America. But 1 in 7 kids will face hunger this year. No Kid Hungry is ending childhood hunger through effective programs that provide kids with the food they need. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization working to end hunger and poverty. Join us at NoKidHungry.org. WSM-PR View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005676/en/

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But the propaganda victory was bittersweet as the spread of the coronavirus gathered pace in Russia, perhaps explaining why the planes landing in New York received only cursory treatment on Thursdays main Russian state television news broadcasts. While the pandemic does not yet appear to have reached the scale seen in Western Europe and the United States, in Russia, opposition politicians and medical workers have warned of a potential shortage of equipment in the coming weeks.

In the Perm region in the Ural Mountains, the authorities on Wednesday urged residents to start sewing their own masks.

Doctors and nurses in the whole country are sitting without masks and getting each other sick, the opposition activist Aleksei A. Navalny posted on Twitter. This is monstrous. Putin is crazy.

Mr. Putin did not mention the aid delivery in an address to the nation about coronavirus on Thursday. Instead, he warned that some regions, including Moscow, had not yet brought the pandemic under control.

Virology specialists believe that the epidemic is not yet past its peak globally, and the same goes for our country, a stern Mr. Putin said Thursday, addressing Russians from his country home outside Moscow, where he has been working remotely in recent days.

Mr. Putin said a nationwide paid holiday to fight the pandemic would be extended until the end of the month, but he left it to regional authorities to decree their own social distancing measures. Russias two biggest and hardest hit cities, Moscow and St. Petersburg, went into lockdown this week with residents forbidden to leave their homes except to buy food and medicine, and to walk their dogs within a hundred yards of their residence.
BELGRADE -- Serbian police detained a journalist who wrote a critical text on the handling of the coronavirus epidemic and released her on April 2 after interrogating her overnight.

The Nova.rs news site journalist Ana Lalic was detained at her home late on April 1, hours after she published an article that said medical staff at a hospital in the northern city of Novi Sad was lacking adequate protective gear.

The article, which quoted unnamed medical staff, also said that several nurses may have become infected and that the clinic lacked medication.

The hospital issued a denial and reported Lalic to police.

Lalic said "there are witnesses for everything I wrote" and that neither the hospital, nor the regional health authority responded to her questions before the publication of the article.

Her lawyer, Srdjan Kovacevic, said she was accused of disseminating false information and causing panic.

Her laptop and mobile phones were seized and were not returned upon her release, Kovacevic told RFE/RL.

It was not immediately clear whether she will be charged.

The OSCE representative on freedom of the media, Harlem Desir, said he was alarmed that Lalic was detained over her reporting.

Despite being released today, it is very problematic that police seized her laptop and mobile phones. Journalists need to be able to do their job freely, Desir tweeted.

Serbia has 1,060 confirmed coronavirus cases, with 28 fatalities, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University in the United States.

On April 2, Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said the government would repeal a March 28 decree which allowed information related to the coronavirus outbreak to be published only if it comes from the national crisis-management task force.

The task force announces developments and plans during daily news conferences, while Brnabic and President Aleksandar Vucic make the important announcements such as extending lockdown measures.

Brnabic said the decree intended to "protect citizens from unverified information," but acknowledged that it may "cast doubts on what we are trying to accomplish."

Upon hearing the news, Lalic said, "If the decree was indeed repealed, it was worth the night in custody."

Vucic announced an open-ended state of emergency on March 15 and parliament has been sidelined.

Vucic has assumed full power, prompting an outcry from opponents who say he has seized control of the state in an unconstitutional manner.

With reporting by nova.rs and dpa
As the deadly coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage people across the world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a telephone conversation with Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel. The two leaders discussed the ongoing pandemic, the situation in their respective countries, and the importance of international collaboration for fighting the health crisis.

The two leaders shared views on the inadequate availability of medicines and medical equipment required during the pandemic and agreed to explore avenues of cooperation in this regard.

The German Chancellor agreed with PM Modi that the COVID-19 pandemic is an important turning point in modern history, and offers an opportunity to forge a new vision of globalisation focused on the shared interests of humanity as a whole.

The Prime Minister informed Merkel about the recent Indian initiatives to disseminate simple yoga exercises and immunity-enhancing Ayurvedic remedies for people of the world. The Chancellor agreed that such practices could be very beneficial for enhancing psychological and physical health, especially under the present lockdown conditions.
President Trump ignored Thursday's devastating jobs numbers and instead launched an attack on unnamed states as 'insatiable complainers' about vital equipment - hinting heavily that he meant New York.

Minutes after the Labor Department disclosed that there were 6.6 million new unemployment claims last week, Trump went after people 'complaining,' singling out New York senator - and Democratic minority leader - Chuck Schumer.

'Massive amounts of medical supplies, even hospitals and medical centers, are being delivered directly to states and hospitals by the Federal Government,' Trump tweeted.

'Some have insatiable appetites & are never satisfied (politics?). Remember, we are a backup for them. The complainers should have been stocked up and ready long before this crisis hit.

'Other states are thrilled with the job we have done. Sending many Ventilators today, with thousands being built. 51 large cargo planes coming in with medical supplies. Prefer sending directly to hospitals.'

Those tweets came after a direct attack on Schumer and more criticism of New York.

President Trump blasted Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Senate's most powerful Democrat, for 'complaining' about supply shortages in New York - and asking Trump to appoint a military commander to be in charge of getting supplies to states

In two tweets Thursday morning, Trump went after Schumer and blamed New York, the current epicenter of the virus in the United States, as getting 'off to a late start'

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits last week has shot to a record 6.6 million, according to figures released by the Department of Labor on Thursday

'Somebody please explain to Cryin' Chuck Schumer that we do have a military man in charge of distributing goods, a very talented, Admiral, in fact,' Trump tweeted Thursday morning. 'New York has gotten far more than any other State, including hospitals & a hospital chip, but no matter what always complaining.

'It wouldn't matter if you got ten times what was needed, it would never be good enough. Unlike other states, New York unfortunately got off to a late start. You should have pushed harder. Stop complaining & find out where all of these supplies are going. Cuomo working hard!'

The tweets continued with Trump's attempt to shift responsibility for the handling of the crisis to states, and paint the federal government as a rescue service.

It also hinted at his repeated claim that vital medical equipment is 'going out the back door' of New York hospitals, which has been dismissed by state and city authorities.

In New York Andrew Cuomo, the governor, was asked to square Trump's attack on Schumer with praise for him. 'I don't know if you can square those two statements,' he said at his daily press briefing.

Then he added - apparently sarcastically: 'I think him for his good words that he thinks I am doing a good job.'

Schumer has been doing the media rounds arguing that Trump needs to put a military commander in charge of manufacturing and distributing much needed medical supplies under the Defense Production Act

Schumer also laid out his point in a Thursday evening tweet, noting that Trump's presidential appointees 'are not up to the job'

Schumer, the top Democrat in the Senate, had been doing the media rounds - and also made the point on Twitter - saying that he believed Trump needed to appoint a czar 'like a military or logistics expert' in order to produce and distribute much needed medical supplies more quickly.

'His presidential appointees are not up to the job,' Schumer argued in a Wednesday night tweet.

Also on CNN Wednesday night, Schumer said that Trump's trade adviser Peter Navarro, whom the president tapped to be in charge of the Defense Production Act's execution was 'not up to the job.'

'He is a very nice man but he has no experience doing things like this,' the New York Democrat said. 'And they have no one that I can best tell in charge of the distribution.'

Schumer repeated many of the same points on 'Morning Joe' Thursday morning. And his appearance on the show was followed by Trump's tweets.

'It wouldn't matter if you got ten times what was needed, it would never be good enough,' Trump wrote.

'Unlike other states, New York unfortunately got off to a late start,' the president stated. 'You should have pushed harder. Stop complaining & find out where all of these supplies are going.'

Trump concluded the two tweets by complimenting New York's Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat like Schumer.

'Cuomo working hard!' Trump wrote.

The president's comments came as new job numbers showed an astounding 10 million Americans became out of work in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

While 3.3 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week an additional 6.6 million filed for those benefits this week, wrapping up the month of March.

Trump has yet to mention the unemployment numbers.

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits last week has shot to a record 6.6 million - as layoffs increased amid the coronavirus pandemic and more states enforced stay-at-home orders.

New claims for unemployment benefits rose to 6.65 million in the week ending March 28, according to figures released by the Department of Labor on Thursday.

The number of first-time applications for jobless benefits was double the previous record of 3.3 million new claims filed for the week ending March 21.

It means that roughly 10 million Americans have lost their jobs and filed for unemployment in the two weeks that the coronavirus started rapidly spreading across the country.

The new unemployment claims account for the week in which states like New York shuttered non-essential businesses and enforced stay-at-home orders.

More than 80 percent of Americans are now under some form of lockdown - up from less than 50 percent just a few weeks ago - as the death toll rose to 5,139 as more than 216,000 Americans have tested positive for the virus.

All 50 states reported rises in new unemployment claims, according to the new report. Pennsylvania (up 362,012), Ohio (up 189,263) and Massachusetts (up 141,003) reported the largest increases.

In the same week of last year, only 211,000 people requested benefits for the first time.

New claims for unemployment benefits rose to 6.65 million in the latest week from the 3.3 million the previous week. It means that 10 million Americans have filed for unemployment in the two weeks that the coronavirus started rapidly spreading across the country

Some of last week's jobless claims could be delayed filings from the previous week when state offices that handle unemployment benefits were overwhelmed by a surge of online and telephone claims.

There is anecdotal evidence that people who have tried to file claims online have not been able to with some forced to wait five hours to log onto the website and others calling hundreds of times just to get through.

Numerous state unemployment agencies have struggled to keep up with the flood of applications for jobless benefits.

New York's Labor Department is asking people to file on different days depending on their last names, for example: Monday is reserved for those last names that start with A through F.

The government's weekly report, the most timely data on the economy's health, offered the clearest evidence yet that the longest employment boom in US history likely ended in March.

Before the virus hit, unemployment in the US was at its lowest in 60 years and the economy was stronger than it had ever been.

The surging layoffs have led some economists to predict the worst job losses since World War II.

Many employers are continuing to slash their payrolls to try to stay afloat during the pandemic because their revenue has collapsed, especially at restaurants, hotels, gyms, movie theaters and other venues that depend on face-to-face interaction.

Stay-at-home orders, imposed by most US states, have intensified pressure on businesses, most of which face rent, loans and other bills that must be paid.

The result far surpassed even the highest of estimates by economists with analysts who had expected grim figures left stunned.

'No words for this,' said Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics.

'We're hoping today's reading will be the peak, but we can't be sure,' he said in an analysis. 'In any event, total layoffs between the March and April payroll surveys look destined to reach perhaps 16 to 20 million, consistent with the unemployment rate leaping to 13 to 16 percent. In one month.'

More than 3.3 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, according to new figures released by the Department of Labor on Thursday. About 50 people lined up (above) outside an Arkansas unemployment office on Monday

The outbreak has spurred an unprecedented surge in Americans seeking government assistance.

They have already outstripped applications for unemployment benefits that peaked at 665,000 during the 2007-2009 recession, during which 8.7 million jobs were lost.

Economists say the country should brace for jobless claims to continue escalating, partly citing generous provisions of a historic $2.2 trillion fiscal package signed by President Donald Trump last week and the federal government's easing of requirements for workers to seek benefits.

The expanded unemployment benefits system added $600 a week in jobless aid, on top of what recipients receive from their states. The unemployed eligible for up to $600 per week for up to four months, which is equivalent to $15 per hour for a 40-hour week.

By comparison, the government-mandated minimum wage is about $7.25 per hour and the average jobless benefits payment was roughly $385 per person per month at the start of this year.

It also makes many more people eligible for unemployment benefits, including the self-employed, contractors, and so-called 'gig economy' workers such as Uber and Lyft drivers.

The legislation will help to fund unemployment benefits for workers whose hours have been cut. That would enable these people to replace some of their lost income with unemployment aid even as they keep their jobs. About 26 states allow workers with reduced hours to claim benefits.

Last week's claims data has no bearing on the closely watched employment report for March, which is scheduled for release on Friday.

For the employment report, the government surveyed businesses and households in the middle of the month, when just a handful of states were enforcing 'stay-at-home' or 'shelter-in-place' orders.

It is, however, a preview of the carnage that awaits as the coronavirus pandemic worsens.

Retailers including Macy's, Kohl's Corp and Gap Inc said on Monday they would furlough tens of thousands of employees as they prepare to keep stores shut for longer.

People gather at the entrance for the New York State Department of Labor offices. New Yorkers have reported issues filing for unemployment benefits

Connecticut governor says people will have to wait FIVE WEEKS for their unemployment checks and laid off workers in New York say they still can't get through to apply

The governor of Connecticut has said that unemployment checks will be delayed at least five weeks, adding to the woes of laid off workers struggling to pay bills in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Governor Ned Lamont said on Tuesday that Connecticut Department of Labor staff were being overwhelmed by processing applications while working remotely on outdated computer systems.

'I'm sad to report that there's a five-week lag time,' Lamont said. 'Everything is retroactive, so even if it's slow for us to get it back to you - it's not that our heart's not there, it's because the technology is 40 years old. And we're loading in more (staff) every day to help catch up with that backlog.'

Lamont said the labor department was in the midst of updating the antiquated mainframe used to process claims, but that the update would not be complete for at least a year.

In New York, the epicenter of the outbreak, Governor Andrew Cuomo said that the state normally processes about 50,000 claims a week but that on Monday the state's Department of Labor had received 1.2 million claims.

Yet many New Yorkers who have been out of work for several weeks say they are still unable to file unemployment claims due to crashed websites and flooded call lines.

'We can't get thru to FILE A CLAIM' tweeted one New York resident on Tuesday. 'System Overload. Continues to freeze up & crash. Restricted days/hours. We realize this is an unprecedented crisis but it must be fixed ASAP.'

'NYS Unemployment completely down,' another wrote with a screen shot of an error message on the New York Department of Labor website. 'Good luck getting paid.'

In response to the unprecedented claim volume, New York has instituted restrictions on which days people can apply based on the first letters of their last names - but laid off workers still say it is impossible to file.

A spokeswoman for the New York Department of Labor told DailyMail.com that the department had dedicated 700 staff members to the state's unemployment insurance hotline and was currently training hundreds more.

'We have added over 20 additional servers to support the website's capacity,' spokeswoman Deanna Cohen said in a statement. 'We will continue to double down on all of these efforts to serve every New Yorker who is filing for unemployment insurance.'

A lone passenger checks in with a TSA agent at Denver International Airport on Wednesday as a statewide stay-at-home order remains in effect in an effort to reduce the spread of the new coronavirus

Workers at the Transportation Security Administration, or TSA, are still on the job, despite a slow down in work. Less than a dozen passengers are seen waiting in a TSA line at John F. Kennedy Airport on Tuesday

Private sector employees feel pain of coronavirus job cuts as public sector workers like TSA agents are paid their full hours despite a drastic drop in travel

Private sector employees are enduring the worst of the job cuts as a result of the coronavirus outbreak with more than a quarter of American saying they've lost wages and about 16 percent already being furloughed or laid off, according to a poll released Wednesday.

Retailers including Macy's, Gap, JCPenney and Neiman Marcus, as well as mall owner Simon Properties, among others from the private sector are enacting furloughs because of the outbreak.

Companies like iHeart Media representing 800 stations, outdoor recreational craft maker Polaris, and even hospital operators are also sending employees home.

Meanwhile, government employees, including those who work for the TSA, have remained employed full time despite travel restrictions resulting in a slow down in work.

Jasmine, a 21-year-old TSA agent at Los Angeles International Airport, told Vox that her job was easy for the first time ever because airlines are operating significantly fewer flights.

'I'm just hanging out with my friends at this point,' a TSA worker at Los Angeles International Airport told Vox.

'Things have been really slow for about two weeks now.

'Our numbers have just been slowly decreasing. It's super weird because we're so used to constant rush. Now it's literally, like, 10 people an hour, it's crazy.'

Southwest Airlines, for example, are currently flying at about 20 percent capacity.

While the government-run TSA continues to operate, other airport services like restaurants, bars and retails shops have been shuttered because of the virus.
A person shops in front of the empty shelves in the deli section of Walmart Supercenter as concerns grow over the spread of CCP virus in Nashville, Tenn., on March 14, 2020. (Jason Kempin/Getty Images)

Tennessee Residents Must Remain at Home Under New Order: Governor

Tennessee residents are the latest to be told to stay at home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as Gov. Bill Lee issued an executive order against all but essential trips.

COVID-19 is the disease from China caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

Dozens of governors have issued stay-at-home orders, including Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis this week.

Lee on Thursday said that data from the State Department of Transportation and Unacast, a company that tracks cell phones, showed that movement across the state has risen in recent days after decreasing last month.

While many Tennesseans have made good faith efforts to remain at home, theres clear evidence that some citizens are beginning to disregard safer at home measures. Its dangerous, its unacceptable, and its a threat to lives in our community, Lee said at a press conference.

The governor updated his previous executive order to clearly require that Tennesseans stay at home unless they are carrying out essential activities, such as getting groceries or picking up medicine.

April stands to be a very tough month for our state. COVID-19 is an imminent threat. And we need you to understand that staying at home isnt an option. Its a requirement for the swift defeat of COVID-19 in Tennessee, Lee said.

The order will remain in effect until April 14 at 11:59 p.m. It previously ordered the closure of some businesses.

Business owners who decline to close down after being deemed non-essential could face legal measures after receiving warnings, according to state officials.

Tennessee has 2,845 confirmed cases out of the 34,611 tests performed. Thirty two patients have died.

Transmission electron micrograph of the CCP virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus or SARS-CoV-2, isolated from a patient. Photo published March 10, 2020. (NIAID)

CCP Virus

The virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet) through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes.

These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Touching surfaces with the virus on it and then touching ones nose, eyes, or mouth could be a source of transmission.

Ways to avoid becoming infected include frequently washing hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after being in a public place, or after blowing ones nose, coughing, or sneezing; avoiding crowds and sick people, and wearing a mask and gloves when leaving ones home.

Symptoms of the CCP virus include fever, cough, shortness of breath, fatigue, aches and pains, diarrhea, and pink eye.

Over 236,000 people in America have been infected, according to Johns Hopkins University, though a number of patients have recovered. About half of the approximately 5,648 deaths in the country are in New York state.

Around four in five patients dont require hospitalization and will recover at home with rest and symptom treatment. COVID-19 affects the elderly and those with underlying health conditions the most.
A 52-year-old person who had tested positive for coronavirus disease Covid-19 patient died in Gujarats Vadodara on Thursday morning.

Vadodara district collector S Agarwal said that the person had a history of travel to Sri Lanka and was admitted to SSG Hospital on March 19. Four members of his family have also tested positive for the virus and are undergoing treatment, said Agarwal.

With 13 new cases, the number of Covid-19 positive cases in Gujarat rose to 87 on Wednesday, a senior health department official said. Out of these, 66 people are stable while three are on ventilator support.

On Wednesday, 13 new Covid-19 cases were reported in the state - eight from Ahmedabad, two from Porbandar and Surat each, and one from Panchmahal district, Principal Secretary (Health) Jayanti Ravi said.

A 57-year-old Covid-19 patient was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday after recovery, taking the count of such patients to seven.

The number of locally transmitted cases rose to 46, while the number of patients with history of travel abroad went up to 33.

Till now, 1,726 samples have been tested in Gujarat, of which 87 have been found to be COVID-19 positive, 1,628 turned negative, while the results of 11 others are awaited, Ravi told reporters.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.
To everyone in the community deemed essential who continues to work and provide essential services -- thank you! We will get through this together, he said.
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Linkedin Mike Stone (Reuters) Washington, United States  Thu, April 2, 2020 10:53 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f16d27 2 World Pentagon,pandemic,health,coronavirus,SARS-CoV-2,COVID-19,death-toll,death-rate Free

The Pentagon is looking to provide up to 100,000 body bags for use by civilian authorities as the coronavirus outbreak worsens in the United States with a high death toll expected in coming weeks.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has requested 100,000 such bags to the US Department of Defense, a Pentagon official told Reuters on Wednesday.

The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) is working with the current contractor on additional capacity, the official said.

The initial delivery will come from DLA stocks as the contractor ramps up production, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The DLA does not yet have a specific delivery date request from FEMA, but the agency wants the bags as soon as they are ready.

Bloomberg had reported earlier that the Pentagon was looking at buying more body bags and that it will draw some initially from a stockpile of 50,000 that it maintains.

A FEMA spokesman cited by Bloomberg said that the agency was making "prudent" plans for future needs, which included preparations for "mortuary contingencies" from US states.

The Troop Support unit of DLA is responsible for managing the Pentagon's stockpile of the green nylon, 94-inch by 38-inch body bags, which are normally used in war zones.

The development comes as the United States is looking at an increasing number of deaths from the coronavirus outbreak, with Reuters' tally showing more than 4,500 deaths and over 200,000 infections in the country.

President Donald Trump and his top healthcare advisers urged Americans to follow strict social distancing measures ahead of a "tough two weeks" that could see at least 100,000 deaths from the coronavirus.
Desperate shoppers were forced to wait in a queue stretching over 100 metres outside a supermarket before it had even opened its doors.

Customers were seen waiting in a long line in the car park and around the block of a Pak'nSave supermarket in Mangere, South Auckland on Thursday morning.

New Zealand is currently on day eight of its strict level four restrictions as the nation battles to contain the spread of coronavirus.

Essential services including doctors, banking and supermarkets are still open in New Zealand, but Jacinda Ardern has urged residents to only go shopping if there are 'immediate needs'.

Customers were seen waiting in a long line in the car park and around the block of Pak'nSave (pictured) in Mangere, South Auckland on Thursday morning

Clendon and Papakura also saw similar queues of shoppers outside their supermarkets, NZ Herald reported.

Antoinette Laird, Head of Corporate Affairs for Pak'nSave operator Foodstuffs NZ confessed that there were days the supermarkets were packed, but said people were adhering to the social distancing rule.

'At some stores the queues can be long  which is why we remind people to only visit the supermarket for essential items when absolutely necessary,' she said.

Ms Laird suggested that before heading out, everyone checks their fridge and pantry.

'Then ask the question - do I have enough in my cupboard to makes the meals for today? If the answer is yes, then don't go to the supermarket,' Laird said.

'If the answer of no, then by all means venture out, with a list and shop swiftly while adhering to the physical distancing requirements.'

Shoppers lined up outside the supermarket before its doors had even opened to get their hands on items during the coronavirus lockdown

The New Zealand government has been looking at price gouging as prices for popular items soared.

They launched a website which allows members of the public to report on any items that have had their prices dramatically increased.

The most common complaint is the price of cauliflower which sits at a staggering $13.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said there has been 1,000 complaints and they are working on making the process easier.

'The process for dealing with complaints is being worked through... and we will involve traders so they have a chance to respond,' she said.
With 2021 concluded and the 20th anniversary of the ModDB's Mod of the Year Awards wrapped up, we take a stroll down history lane and look back at all the winners over the last two decades.
A security man administers sanitiser to a visitor to a state hospital in Lagos, on February 28, 2020. PIUS UTOMI EKPEI | AFP via Getty Images

As of Thursday morning, there were around 6,400 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the whole of Africa, and governments across the continent are implementing robust measures in an effort to get out ahead of the pandemic. However, experts are calling for a more coordinated continental response in order to avoid a profoundly damaging outbreak of the kind sweeping through Europe and the U.S. in recent weeks. In cooperation with the African Union Commission (AUC) and the WHO, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) established the Africa Taskforce for Coronavirus (AFCOR) as early as February 5, before the continent had reported a single case. The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have this week called for debt relief for IDA (International Development Association) countries, including 39 African nations, in order to enable them to focus on "ghting the pandemic and its economic and social consequences."

National responses

On Monday, Nigeria, Africa's largest economy, announced 14-day lockdowns of the states of Lagos, Abuja and Ogun and has deployed a 15 billion naira ($38.5 million) relief package to help mobilize public services to prevent the spread in areas with poor living conditions. As of Thursday morning, there were 174 confirmed cases in the country, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. Ghana's two most populous cities, Accra and Kumasi, also went into lockdown on Monday, while some form of restriction to movement or dusk-till-dawn curfew is in place in almost every country in the subcontinent. Ghana has confirmed 195 cases so far. Just a day after recording its first three cases, Botswana announced a state of emergency and a lockdown of 28 days, starting at midnight on Thursday. The small landlocked state of Lesotho, an enclave within South Africa, on Monday implemented a nationwide lockdown despite having zero reported cases so far. The only other states yet to confirm cases are South Sudan, Comoros, Malawi and Sao Tome & Principe, though experts have suggested that a lack of reporting capacity could be a factor here.

NAIROBI, KENYA - 2020/03/18: Commuters make their way into the Nairobi Train Station as a security personnel stands on guard while wearing a face mask as a preventive measure against COVID-19. Kenya has so far recorded seven case of Coronavirus. Dennis Sigwe/SOPA Images

South Africa remains by far the hardest hit, reporting more than 1,300 cases. The country is already under a three-week nationwide lockdown, but President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday announced the deployment of 10,000 field workers to conduct door-to-door screening and contact tracing. However, Burundi and Sierra Leone both announced their first cases on Tuesday but have yet to deploy strict lockdown measures. Although restrictions are in place to control an inflow of people and cargo into Burundi, sporting events have continued unabated in the tiny Central African state. Meanwhile Tanzanian President John Magufuli has come under fire for refusing to shut down places of worship. In many cases, lockdowns are being enforced by armed police and military personnel, which has led to instances of police brutality. On Tuesday, a 13-year-old boy was reportedly shot and killed by Kenyan police in the Mathare area of Nairobi. Videos have circulated this week of abuses of civilians by the South African National Defence Force, and police in Uganda have been accused of using their new powers to target LGBTQ people.

Coordinated governance

The strength and speed of measures deployed by most African governments reflects concern about the potential damage the virus could inflict if allowed to proliferate in high-density urban areas. While demography is on the side of the subcontinent, with a median age of less than 20 and only 3% of the population aged 65 and above, nearly 43.0% of Africa's population live in densely-packed urban areas, including in mega cities such as Lagos, where resources are already scarce or overburdened, and social distancing is not as readily attainable. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus cautioned on Tuesday that the "developing world" will likely be hit hardest by the pandemic unless it can successfully contain the spread early on. "At this critical moment in history, broad agreement on debt relief will be key to allowing nations with fragile health systems & economies to channel their resources into saving lives," Ghebreyesus, who is from Ethiopia, said in a tweet. Tweet 1 Sub-Saharan Africa undoubtedly learned from the Ebola outbreak in 2014 and subsequently formed the Africa CDC, while many nations established National Public Health Institutes. However, the region averaged around 2.1 physicians per 10,000 people between 2010 and 2018, the lowest in the world by some distance, according to WHO data aggregated by the Mo Ibrahim Foundation (MIF). The MIF on Tuesday launched a report calling for coordinated governance, improved health structures and better data across the African subcontinent to mitigate this crisis.

Commuters wearing a protective face masks walk on the street of Lagos, as a preventive measure against the spread of the new corona virus, COVIC-19, in Lagos, on March 26, 2020. NurPhoto
Determining the molecular weight of polymers or plastics is one of your routines? Then this application notebook will be of great help to you. It gives you numerous application examples of how to analyze a large variety of polymers at ambient or high temperature using GPC/SEC. In this GPC application notebook, experts from Tosoh will vividly show you on 58 pages how to use gel permeation chromatography (GPC) to analyze typical plastics and polymers efficiently with as little solvent consumption as possible.



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The GPC application notebook shows you how to analyze various polymer classes efficiently, how to save solvents and increase sample throughput, which GPC columns are best suited for your applications and what to consider when performing high-temperature analysis of polymers. Download your free copy of the GPC application notebook now and expand your practical know-how of polymer analysis.



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SYDNEY, Australia  With much of the globe under stay-at-home orders, police officers are becoming the enforcers of a new coronavirus code that demands what humans naturally resist: complete isolation and obedience.

Empowered by tough new laws and public pressure, police forces are testing how far to go in punishing behavior that is ordinarily routine. In Australia, the authorities have threatened people sitting alone drinking coffee with six months in jail. In Britain, the police came under fire for using a drone to film and shame a couple walking their dog on a secluded path.

But in other countries, enforcement has been much more aggressive and escalated into serious violence. In Kenya, officers are under investigation in multiple cases, including the death of a teenager shot while standing on a balcony during a dusk-to-dawn curfew. The police also used tear gas and batons on passengers at a ferry terminal and are being investigated in at least two other deaths, leading President Uhuru Kenyatta to say he regretted the violence.

In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday ordered the police and the military to shoot anyone who causes commotion, after 20 protesters were arrested as they demanded food during the countrys lockdown.
COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- MedicareNewsWatch.com is leveraging the first-hand experience of HealthMetrix Research Inc. president Alan Mittermaier to assist other Medicare Advantage plan enrollees during the coronavirus (COVID-19) emergency. Nearly 80% of the 22 million Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans have access to free over-the-counter (OTC) benefits that may include various personal protection items  e.g., disposable gloves, hand sanitizer, over-the-ear masks and antiseptic wipes.

OTC allowances are a relatively new "extra benefit" now offered by over 80 Medicare Advantage plans including AARP-United Healthcare, Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, Cigna, Kaiser Permanente and WellCare. Typically, OTC allowances range from $25-$50 each quarter and may be used for ordering selected drug store personal products from online catalogs or by phone for home delivery. Some plans allow members to use their OTC benefit allowance for in-store purchases. Unused OTC allowance balances usually expire at the end of each quarter and do not rollover.

According to HealthMetrix Research Inc. president Alan Mittermaier:

"This time of national uncertainty prompted my own order of disposable gloves and hand sanitizer recently using my Aetna Medicare Solutions OTC quarterly allowance. I was pleased to see these personal protection items available in the OTC catalog and was motivated to share what I found with other Medicare Advantage enrollees. Now that most OTC allowances are renewed for the April 1-June 30 quarter, I encourage informed enrollees to visit the user-friendly Medicare Advantage OTC Personal Protection Finder feature to see whether free personal protection products are included as a Medicare Advantage OTC benefit."

HealthMetrix Research Inc. sponsors the MedicareNewsWatch.com website featuring the annual Medicare Advantage CostShare Report cost-sharing comparisons, recognized as a trusted decision-support resource for Medicare beneficiaries, caregivers, and healthcare professionals since 1999.

Source: HealthMetrix Research Inc. www.MedicareNewsWatch.com

Contact: Alan Mittermaier, President - HealthMetrix Research Inc. 614-236-8345

SOURCE HealthMetrix Research Inc.

Related Links

http://www.hmos4seniors.com


Childcare centres across the country are battling a civil war amid claims dodgy operators are rorting the government to stay afloat during the coronavirus crisis.

Daily Mail Australia has been told desperate childcare centres are waving gap fee payments for worried parents and then claiming back the full child care subsidy from the Commonwealth Government.

The practice could see legitimate centres that continue to follow the rules and charge parents the required fee run out of business.

Childcare centres across the country are empty due to parents deciding to keep them home amid fears they could catch the coronavirus

Childcare operators are urging the Commonwealth to change the way it pays child care subsidies in order for them to survive the COVID-19 outbreak

Many parents have decided to keep their children at home. They still need to pay their childcare gap fee while absent. (pictured: People entering Banksia Collage Childcare Centre wearing face masks)

The issue was set to be among a range of issues discussed between the states and federal government on Friday, with the prime minister expected to address the nation about it on Thursday.

As it stands, child care services are able to claim a subsidy of up to 85 per cent of the daily cost of a childs care.

But the remainder must be paid for by the parent whether the child attends childcare that day or not.

Last week, the government increased the number of claimable subsidy days for parents by 20 extra absences per child - bringing the number to 62 absences a year.

Under the new rules, childcare centres will still be paid the subsidy for children on their books without having to charge parents the gap fee only if the service is forced to close.

Childcare centres have been thrown into crisis due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Although deemed an essential service by the government, many centres have been forced to close because they have no children to care for.

Reports suggest one in three children have stopped attending child care nationally, which reduces the amount operators receive from the government, while overheads like rent and wages remain an outgoing cost.

Many centres have been reduced to caring for just a handful of kids, with some parents pulling their children out altogether after refusing to pay the gap fee required by absent children.

Daily Mail Australia has been told significant numbers of childcare centres are flouting the rules by waiving the fee and then claiming the full subsidy.

'It's not right,' one childcare operator, who wished to remain anonymous, said.

'The only operators who are going to survive this are the dodgy ones.'

Daily Mail Australia has been told desperate childcare centres are waving gap fee payments for worried parents and then claiming back the full child care subsidy from the Commonwealth Government.

Childcare operators are having a tough time remaining open due to the coronavirus outbreak. Many have taken to social media to explain their situation

The source said while every operator would like to waive the fee to struggling parents, it was illegal to do so if they continued to claim the subsidy back from the government.

'We're being punished for doing the right thing,' she said. 'It's not an equal playing field and when it's all over, those who obeyed the rules will not have survived.'

A spokesperson for the Department of Education, Skills and Employment told Daily Mail Australia it was continuing to crack down on operators doing the wrong thing.

'Fraud is still fraud and the government continues to conduct its financial integrity program to ensure tax payers dollars are not misused.

'The Australian Governments crackdown on dodgy child care providers has already saved the taxpayer more than $3 billion,' she said.

'More than 380 services have now been listed on the Child Care Enforcement Register since its introduction two years ago.'

Daily Mail Australia has been told investigators will struggle to keep up with the number of alleged rorts.

The government hopes that the introduction of wage subsidies may avert the mass closure of Australian businesses.

On Tuesday, it was announced businesses would receive a fortnightly wage subsidy up to $1,500 per employee as part of a bid to prevent millions of people from losing their jobs to the coronavirus pandemic.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he expected 6 million Australians would access a so-called JobKeeper payment for the next six months.

Part-time workers and casuals with at least one year in their job can receive the payment, which is slated to start flowing in early May.

But Labor's early childhood spokeswoman Amanda Rishworth said even that delay of a few days could be too long.

'They need some urgency around this, there will be centres closing their doors potentially permanently this week because of income issues not because they've been forced to shut down for health reasons,' she said.

The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia has stated more than 80 per cent of Australias early learning and care services are facing closure.

Childcare centres have already reported significant staff stand-downs in order to keep them open.

'As a not-for-profit business, we simply dont have the capital to sustain employment without children for our educators to care for,' one operator posted online this week.

'We sincerely apologise for any impact this has had on your family, but please know that as soon as our attendance numbers increase we will be reinstating staff immediately.'

Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA) Queensland manager Brent Stokes told ABC there had been anywhere between 15 and 50 per cent drop in occupancy.

'In isolated cases I've had members that have dropped by 90 per cent occupancy,' he said.

'By Monday morning next week  if that's how soon it is  providers are going to have to make some very difficult decisions about if they will be remaining open.'

An empty classroom is seen at a primary school in Brisbane on Monday. Children are being kept home over fears they could catch coronavirus

A petition on Change.org had been signed by almost 25,000 people on Thursday

Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan released a statement saying he was working with the sector to minimise the impact.

'Grants ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 are available for childcare providers through the Community Child Care Special Circumstances Fund to help cover business costs, including wages, to ensure services impacted by COVID-19 can continue to operate,' he said.

Operators are urging families not to cancel their childs enrolment, but instead consider the alternatives.

These include reducing the number of days a child attends and using absent days and only pay the gap.

Parents are also able to apply for an additional child care subsidy in the instance of job loss or financial hardship.

A petition on Change.org calling on the federal government to allow childcare providers to offer families gap free fees had just about reached its 25,000 target on Thursday.

'By temporary lifting this law child care providers can offer families gap free fees should families choose or be forced to not send their child to care,' the petition states.

'This is an incentive for families to STAY HOME like our health authorities suggest but allows us to STAY OPEN for our front line workers.

'It alleviates the financial burden for families and will help keep childcare centres afloat by continuing to claim Child Care Subsidy.'

Childcare operators have endured a flurry of criticism from parents for continuing to charge the gap payments, despite the situation being out of their control.

Social media is awash with complaints from desperate parents, many of which have lost their own jobs due to the outbreak.

'So if we have done the right thing to take our children out to slow the spread and create social distancing for the kids that must attend due to their parents being an essential service - you are going to charge us the ccs on top of the money we are spending when our children are not attending?' one person wrote.

'There are many other centres to attend once this is all over - remember to stand out from the crowd you should value your customers.'

But some communities continue to rally around their childcare centres and continue to willingly pay the fees despite pulling out their children.

'We are happy to pay regardless of whether we choose to isolate or not - because Australia needs more early learning centres like (you)!' one parent wrote.

'You have our full support x.'
WATERLOO  Geof Grimes will be remembered for years through the blueprints he designed for local schools and the fingerprints he left on community organizations across the Cedar Valley.

The retired architect and dedicated volunteer died Tuesday at MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center after battling a long illness. He was 74.

I truly cant say enough good about this man, said longtime friend Sharon Juon. He was so committed to the community that he lived in. A lot of organizations sought out his leadership, and when he joined an organization he didnt just join it; he participated.

That was always his goal: What can I do to make things better, and he did that in so many ways, she added. The world is a little less beautiful without him in it.

Grimes was an architect by trade who moved to the Cedar Valley in 1969, later becoming a partner in Struxture Architecture, where he specialized in designing educational buildings.

One of his first projects involved plans for Central High School in the 1970s. But Struxture later worked on new buildings at the Hawkeye Community College campus, throughout the region, and several Waterloo elementary schools.

I think Waterloo has gone from having some of the worst schools in the state to have some of the best, Grimes told the Courier when he retired in 2010.

This firm made a decision a long time ago that schools are more than just shelves for education, he added. We think the building itself can be a part of the education process.

Grimes was also very active in the community, serving on a long list of nonprofit boards such as the Greater Cedar Valley Alliance and Chamber, Black Hawk County Gaming Association, Waterloo Community Playhouse, Hawkeye Community College Foundation Board, Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area, Iowa State University Alumni Board, Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center and Waterloo Lions Club.

He was named the Iowa Northland Regional Council of Governments Regional Citizen of the Year in 2011 and named Adult Citizen of Character in 2018 by the Cedar Valley Character Counts Committee.

He also co-chaired two of the annual Cedar Valley United Way campaigns, the second in 2013 with Joe Vich.

The list is long of community organizations that Geof was part of, but Geof wasnt building his resume, Vich said. If Geof committed he was really committed. He didnt miss meetings. He was active. He was leading the efforts of the organizations.

Grimes was also a founding member and current president of the Waterloo Community Foundation.

Michelle Temeyer, the foundations executive director, said Grimes was spearheading the organizations efforts to earn accreditation even as he struggled recently with health issues.

He was at the meeting when we adopted the resolution on Feb. 13 authorizing submission of our application for accreditation, Temeyer said. That was a really great day for him, a proud day for him, because it put the cap on everything he had done. Thats something hell have his mark on for a long time.

Temeyer said her last correspondence with Grimes was March 20, when he authorized the foundation donating $10,000 to the Black Hawk County Disaster Relief Fund for the COVID-19 response.

Vich said Grimes and his wife, Vicki, were also active at Westminster Presbyterian Church. He had a strong faith, a strong servant of God and just a great family man too, he said.

But really the story about Geof is all the different places hes touched the community, Vich said. Heres a guy that truly did leave a living legacy  for kids that are enjoying the schools that he designed and all the other pieces and many different places hes been involved in the community.

Locke Funeral Home is handling arrangements and indicated a celebration of life will be scheduled at a later date.

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Syracuse, N.Y.  A second Centro employee  a bus driver  who last worked Saturday has tested positive for COVID-19, the Central New York Regional Transportation Authority announced Thursday.

Centro officials said they are working with the Onondaga County Health Department on the investigation and, at their direction, have notified Centro employees of the positive test.

On Wednesday, Centro reported a driver has tested positive for the driver. This is the second one.

Friday, March 27: From 4:15pm to 7:40 pm Route 254 Midland Ave and Route 52 Court Street.

Wednesday, March 25 : From 5:15 to 7:10 p.m. Route 252X Fayetteville-Manlius and Route 162 Fayetteville-Manlius

Friday, March 27: From 4:15 to 7:40 p.m .Route 254 Midland Ave and Route 52 Court Street.

Centro is disinfecting each of its buses daily, and many of its buses more than once a day using a germicidal disinfectant. Drivers also have access to gloves and hand sanitizer before their shift begins, officials said.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

New York City hospitals begin transferring patients to Upstate NY (report)
Israel has begun testing a COVID-19 vaccine prototype on rodents at its bio-chemical defense laboratory, a source said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the Israel Institute for Biological Research (IIBR), in rural Ness Ziona, to join the fight against the coronavirus pandemic on Feb. 1, prompting an easing of its secrecy as it cooperates with civilian scientists and private firms.

In a statement, Netanyahus office said IIBR director Shmuel Shapira had informed him of significant progress in designing a vaccine prototype and that the institute is now preparing a model for commencing an animal trial.

A source familiar with IIBR activities told Reuters that trials were already under way on rodents. The source declined to identify the kind of rodent.

The IIBR is widely assumed to have worked on biological and chemical arms projects. Israel neither confirms nor denies this.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

In rare public comments, IIBR chief innovation officer Eran Zahavy said last week that the institute had shifted its entire focus to the new coronavirus, with three groups trying to develop a vaccine against the COVID-19 disease it causes, and others researching potential treatments.

We are trying as much as we can to collaborate and have other ideas of other people, he said at last weeks English-language online conference hosted by Jerusalem Venture Partners.

But the facility of the lab is very crowded and very busy and very dangerous so it has to be very slow and very cautious.

Israel has reported 4,473 cases of COVID-19 and 17 fatalities. Having tightened restrictions on public movement, Netanyahu is weighing a lockdown of parts of the country.

Both Netanyahu and the chief of Israels military, Lieutenant-General Aviv Kohavi, went into self-isolation this week after being exposed to coronavirus carriers. Netanyahu tested negative for the virus on Monday. Test results for Kohavi are pending, the military said.

Zahavy described arranging an animal test-subject as a very big challenge because this disease is not affecting animals.

Its not enough only to detect neutralizing antibodies in the animal. You really want to see them getting sick and getting better by this vaccine, he said.

The IIBR has a unique animal for such tests, he said, as well as a very unique technology to detect animals - even if they are not really sick - to follow them and see their interaction with the disease. He did not elaborate.

The IIBR is also involved in plasma collection from people who have recovered from infection with the new coronavirus, in the hope that this might help research.

Israeli Defense Minister Naftali Bennett said the IIBR was sampling several COVID-19 testing kits on offer before the country orders them en masse.
FILE PHOTO: Protests against Germany's "Dieselgate" in front of Germany's Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure in Berlin

By Kate Abnett

(Reuters) - EU consumers should be able to sue carmakers in their national courts if they have bought cars with emission cheat devices installed, an adviser to the Court of Justice of the European Union said on Thursday.

The opinion, if followed by Europe's top court, raises the possibility of legal complaints from consumers across the European Union.

Volkswagen <VOWG_p.DE> told Reuters it does not agree with the legal opinion, adding it "remains to be seen" how the court will decide.

The court typically rules within two to four months of an adviser's opinion. Judges follow them in the majority of cases, but are not bound to do so.

The case followed a request from an Austrian court handling a claim by the Austrian consumer association VKI on behalf of 574 owners of manipulated vehicles. The court wanted to know if it had jurisdiction to hear the case.

"The question of jurisdiction has arisen primarily in Austria. Therefore, even if the Court of Justice of the European Union were to follow the advocate general, hardly anything would change for plaintiffs, defendants and courts in other countries," VW said in an emailed comment.

Advocate general Campos Sanchez-Bordona said the general rule was that applicants should sue in courts where the defendant is domiciled. However, in cases of tort there was also the possibility of suing in the courts where the alleged harm occurred.

The VKI wants compensation for the difference between the price consumers paid for vehicles, and the value of a manipulated vehicle. It also wants coverage for future damages, such as a drop in the value caused by driving bans.

The advocate general concluded the place where the damage occurred was the place where the car was bought.

"A company can be sued by the purchasers of vehicles that it manipulated before the courts of the member state where the vehicles were purchased," the court said in a statement.

Story continues

VW fitted 360,000 vehicles in Austria with defeat devices, according to a report by the European Commission.

The company admitted in 2015 to using illegal software to cheat U.S. diesel engine tests, a scandal that has cost it more than $30 billion in vehicle refits, fines and provisions.

Nearly all U.S. owners of affected cars agreed to take part in a $25 billion settlement in 2016 in the United States.

The carmaker is in talks with Germany's consumer protection organisation to seek a deal in a class action lawsuit there.

(Reporting by Kate Abnett; additional reporting by Jan Schwartz in Hamburg; editing by Philip Blenkinsop and Barbara Lewis)
- Coronavirus diseases patient zero was on Wednesday, April 1, identified as Brenda Cherotich who contracted it after returning from the US

- She has been in quarantine for over three weeks before she was finally declared free of the virus after making a full recovery

- The bubbly girl is a beauty queen who competed under Miss Tourism

Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

When Kenya recorded its first case of the COVID-19 on March 13, 2020, majority of Kenyans went into a panic since nobody knew how many people had come into contact with the patient.

Only identified as patient zero, Kenyans endlessly urged the government to reveal the identity of the patient who was reported to be the first importer of the disease into the country.

READ ALSO: COVID-19: Jackie Appiah donates Veronica buckets, wipes, rice, others to market women

The Ministry of Health revealed patient zero was identified as Brenda Cherotich when she made her first public appearance. Photo: Brenda Cherotich

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Ghana Meteorological Agency predicts heavy rainfall today

The government was, however, reluctant to let the country know who patient zero's was with the purpose of respecting her privacy and to avoid victimization from the public.

Three weeks later, the patient was declared free from the disease after making a full recovery and is yet to be discharged from the Mbagathi hospital.

On Wednesday, April 1, The Ministry of Health revealed patient zero was identified as Brenda Cherotich when she made her first public appearance.

READ ALSO: COVID-19: Gov't to monitor and test stranded Kayayei for coronavirus

Brenda was in the company of the second patient Brian Orinda to be declared free from the virus who revealed he contracted the virus from Brenda.

The bubbly girl is a beauty queen who competed under Miss Tourism and is the reigning Miss Tourism Kenya Hospitality 2018 to 2020.

Well as Kenyans breathe a sigh of relief in knowing the two are doing well, let us have a look at some of Brenda's lovely photos.

READ ALSO: COVID-19: 49 people discharged for home treatment

Brenda Cherotich is a former Miss Tourism Kericho County. Photo: Brenda Cherotich.

Source: Facebook

Brenda Cherotich was the first coronavirus patient in Kenya. Photo: Brenda Cherotich.

Source: Facebook

Brenda Cherotich believes she contracted the coronavirus in London while returning to Kenya from the United States.Photo: Brenda Cherotich

Source: Facebook

Brenda has been in quarantine for the last 23 days. Photo: Brenda Cherotich

Source: Facebook

Brenda thanked the government for its swift response in quarantining her and offering her medical care. Photo: Brenda Cherotich

Source: Facebook

Brenda assured Kenyans that the coronavirus was manageable. Photo: Brenda Cherotich.

Source: Facebook

According to Brenda, people might have mild symptoms like a cough and a slight headache. Photo: Brenda Cherotich

Source: Facebook

The former beauty queen urged Kenyan to follow the government directives noting that coronavirus is real. Photo: Brenda Cherotich.

Source: Facebook

Brenda was prompted to report to the Mbagathi hospital after experiencing coronavirus-like symptoms. Photo: Brenda Cherotich.

Source: Facebook

The beauty queen explained that she had read about the Mbagathi Hospital Isolation centre while still in Ohio. Photo: Brenda Cherotich

Source: Facebook

Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Enjoyed reading our story? Download YEN's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Ghana news!

Source: YEN.com.gh
HASAKAH, Syria  Syrian Kurds have been concerned for some time that Turkey's plans include much more than acquiring oil fields in their region. According to some observers, Ankara's strategic goal is to completely eliminate the autonomously administered area of northeast Syria, known as Rojava or Syrian Kurdistan.

Amed Sido  a liaison between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the international coalition against the Islamic State (IS)  believes this is true. Sido recently told Al-Monitor that Ankara plans to take over more areas that SDF liberated from IS. This is evidenced by Turkeys continuous bombardment of the countryside of Tell Abyad, Manbij, Ain Issa, Tell Tamr, and other areas," Sido said.

The SDF-affiliated Tell Tamr Military Council on March 24 circumvented artillery shelling by the Turkish army and Syrian opposition armed factions targeting the villages of al-Arisha, Umm al-Keif and Aneek al-Hawa in the Tell Tamr countryside, a predominantly Christian area. No casualties were reported. Also, military sources reported to local media outlets that a civilian and a Syrian government soldier were injured during heavy shelling carried out March 15-16 by Syrian opposition forces on villages in the countrysides of Tell Tamr and Tell Abyad, north of Raqqa. No casualties were reported.

Violent clashes also broke out March 23 near Tell Abyad between the SDF and Syrian opposition factions. This followed attacks the factions launched on SDF military bases that killed 15 fighters and a prominent leader from the opposition. According to the same military sources, the Turkish army and opposition fighters also shelled the villages of Ain Issa and Tell Abyad as well as the M4 highway.

On March 27, reports circulated in the media about new understandings expected to be reached soon between the autonomous administration and Damascus, under Russian sponsorship. According to the reports, Russian officials had met March 25 with SDF commander Mazlum Kobane in Qamishli for that purpose.

Author and journalist Naline Boutan told Al-Monitor, The initiative is not new, but Kurds don't trust the Russian side or the Syrian regime. Russia has proposed similar initiatives in the past. On Feb. 3 and 4, a delegation from the autonomous administration ... met with the Russian ministers of defense and foreign affairs at Khmeimim air base in Latakia."

Boutan added, "The delegation and ministers then headed to Damascus, where they met with the head of the Syrian National Security Bureau, Maj. Gen. Ali Mamlouk. Back then, the Russian side promised [the Kurds] support and guarantees for a comprehensive deal between the autonomous administration and Damascus. But this didn't happen and after [the meeting], the Syrian president even denied the Kurds [historical] presence and cause in Syria in statements that drew sharp criticism on social media. Kurds responded by showing documents that prove their historical presence in Syria. Thus, Kurds trust neither the Russian side nor the Damascus government."

Regarding the SDFs relations with Moscow and Washington, Sido told Al-Monitor, There are no reliable guarantees from the Russian and US sides. We had our share of bitter experiences with them. The Russians played a dangerous role in allowing Turkey to occupy Afrin two years ago, while the US had an ambiguous position that led to the occupation of Ras al-Ain and Tell Abyad and the rest of the villages and towns that IS had previously occupied and were later liberated by SDF.

He continued, The SDF made great sacrifices during the battles to liberate those areas, but today they are occupied by Turkey and the Syrian armed groups affiliated with it.

On March 5, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights website said, 6,000 fighters from Syrian factions affiliated with Ankara were deployed to rural areas around Tell Abyad. Sarheldan Kobani, an SDF fighter from Kobani, told Al-Monitor by phone that Turkey sometimes recruits armed militants from the Syrian opposition factions.

Kobani did not rule out a Turkish military operation against any or all of the cities and towns on the Syrian-Turkish border strip and reaching down to the oil fields of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor. But he added, The SDF forces are always prepared to protect the cities of Rojava from any Turkish attack to occupy Kobani, Manbij, Tal Rifaat" and areas east of the Euphrates.

Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said March 10 he proposed to Russian President Vladimir Putin joint management of the oil fields in Deir ez-Zor. He said Putin was assessing the proposal. Erdogan told reporters he made a similar request of US President Donald Trump.

Abu Omar al-Idlibi, commander of the Northern Democratic Brigade, told Al-Monitor, Turkey has its eyes set on Syrian oil and gas, including in Deir ez-Zor, which has one of the largest Syrian oil fields. Turkey is seeking to nibble more Syrian lands under the pretext of protecting its national security. The Turkish government seeks to obtain the energy resources it previously received from IS. Ankara lost those supplies when the SDF eliminated IS.

He added, The Astana and Sochi conferences aimed to conclude and implement deals between Moscow and Ankara. Russia wants complete military power for the Syrian regime over Idlib and over the entire Syrian territories. This goes against UN resolutions related to the Syrian crisis, most notably Resolution 2254 providing for a comprehensive, complete and just political solution for all Syrians. This resolution is a priority for us, and Turkey exploited this as a golden opportunity to nibble and annex new regions in northern Syria, invoking its national security. This time, Turkey plans to seize Syrian oil through a deal with Russia.
After a long day as an ER nurse at Kaiser Richmond, Chad Baker goes home to a hotel.

He cant risk exposing his husband, Tom Baker, who has respiratory issues and a compromised immune system, to the coronavirus. So the couple are staying apart.

Chad Baker is paying $2,000 a month for a room at Extended Stay America. His requests to Kaiser to be reimbursed were denied. Instead, he said he was told to self-quarantine at home, but their house is too small for that to work.

Kaiser said it is working on a comprehensive employee assistance program.

During the pandemic, hotel costs may be covered for medical professionals who must isolate because they have come down with COVID-19 or have been ordered to quarantine because theyve been exposed. But there is no universal policy to cover a situation where a doctor or nurse voluntarily separates from loved ones who are particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus.

Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

For Baker, the hotel cost  which is more than his mortgage payment  is a financial hit to his savings, but its the emotional toll of being alone thats hardest.

My husband is my rock, he said. Im lucky I have a husband whos very intuitive as to whether I need silence or a diversion or just a really good home-cooked meal.

They phone and FaceTime often, but its not the same as curling up together on the couch.

And rather than home-cooked meals, hes subsisting on microwaved ramen, mac and cheese and takeout.

Its like being back in college, he said.

Like many medical professionals, Baker, who is clocking in about 15 hours a week of overtime on top of his regular hours, sprang for his own protective gear, buying goggles at Home Depot and reusing masks even though thats not recommended.

Now Playing: Jessica Boykin, 32, had stuck plenty of people with needles by the time she graduated from the nursing school at Los Medanos College in 2018, but nothing prepared her for the coronavirus pandemic. Now she's an ER nurse on the front lines, where equipment and staff are short. Many nursing students who are just inches away from graduation are hoping to join her, and begging the state to bend its licensing rules so they can work. Video: SFGATE

We know there is a huge shortage of (personal protective equipment), but it is our employers responsibility to keep employees safe and equipped, he said.

Likewise, he feels that his employer should cover his housing while hes displaced.

My hope is that Kaiser Permanente and other health care systems across the nation will help those of us that are the front lines of this battle against the coronavirus to stay healthy and help us protect our families, he said.

Kaiser said in a statement that it is grateful to employees and committed to giving them help and resources based on their individual situations.

We are presently evaluating the scope of what these needs are and how to best respond, and we expect to communicate details directly to our employees in the next week, Lawrence Hamilton, medical group administrator for Kaiser Permanente Oakland and Richmond Medical Centers, said in a statement.

While Kaiser is not currently covering hotel expenses for employees, it is establishing an employee discount program with Marriott, a spokesman said. It also is creating a fund where people can make financial contributions to assist our health care workers with their needs arising from the pandemic, Hamilton said.

Wendy Musell, a San Francisco attorney who is consulting with Baker, said she hopes Kaiser will address such needs for all its workers.

It is emotionally difficult to be separated from your family doing grueling work under such circumstances and then have to foot the bill to boot, she said.

The California Nurses Association, the state nurses union, said hospitals should step up to accommodate health care workers in cases like this.

Nurses increasingly fear infecting their families, it said.

If a family member in the household is immuno-compromised, the risk of infection increases as does the potential to cause permanent injury, including death, the nurses group said in a statement. If employers are not providing the necessary protections, one presumes a nurse is vulnerable to the virus, and if isolating from family members is necessary to preserve the health of their family members, employers should be responsible for that.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Around the state, some hospitals and cities are starting to offer accommodations for nurses and other health care workers battling the pandemic.

UCSF, UCLA Health and UC San Diego Health are housing nurses during the crisis at the urging of the nurses union, it said.

UCSF, which has rooms at the JW Marriott Union Square, lets its health care workers stay free for up to three nights; it reviews requests for longer stays on a case-by-case basis, according to an FAQ on the program. Workers can stay for a variety of reasons, including their choice to self-isolate.

Some Airbnb hosts offer free or subsidized housing for health care workers through the short-term rental website.

Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

San Francisco is in negotiations with many hotels to rent rooms for health care workers. It will offer them to workers who need to isolate or quarantine themselves, or are traveling from elsewhere.

Correction In an earlier version of this story, the name of lawyer Wendy Musell, who is consulting with Chad Baker, was misspelled. See More Collapse

Workers like Baker who want to avoid infecting family members will also be able to use the lodgings. In fact, they will be by far the largest category of those taking the rooms, Trent Rhorer, head of the citys Human Services Agency, said in an email.

Public health departments in Alameda and Contra Costa counties did not immediately respond to questions about whether they would offer accommodations for health care workers.

Were pleased that they are offering housing that we can use so we wont go home and infect the people we live with, said Valerie Ewald, an ICU nurse at UCLA. We nurses and all health care workers are feeling stressed.

Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
A former Savoy head chef who reportedly cooked Prince Charless stag do meal before he married Princess Diana has died following a coronavirus outbreak at his care home.

Giuseppe Casciello died on Monday just two days after his 95th birthday after testing positive for Covid-19 at Oaklands Nursing Home, in Hove, East Sussex.

Hove MP Peter Kyle said Mr Casciello had to wait 10 days to be tested, during which time 14 of the homes 20 residents and seven members of staff developed symptoms.

One worker had to be admitted to an intensive care unit and several residents are still extremely sick, he said.

Mr Casciello, who worked at The Savoy hotel in London during the 1970s, last spoke to his family during a video call on Saturday, The Argus reports.

Speaking on behalf of Mr Casciellos family, Mr Kyle said they were particularly upset about not being able to be by his side during his final moments because of the risk of infection.

Mr Casciellos daughter is said to have held his hand every day for the last seven years up until that point.

Mr Kyle is now calling for all care workers to be tested for coronavirus and for urgent protective equipment (PPE) to be delivered to frontline staff.

The prime minister promised PPE would arrive for every single person working in Britains care homes by the end of last week.

But Mr Kyle claimed he had spoken to MPs across the country as well as the 30 care homes in his constituency and only about half appear to have received new deliveries of equipment.

The politician has now written to Boris Johnson, urging the prime minister to deliver on his commitment.

He wrote: Bluntly speaking, when Covid-19 enters a care home with residents living into extreme old age it will likely kill those it infects.

There is only one strategy therefore to protect residents and thats to stop the virus entering care homes at all.

Testing social care workers must become a priority for government without delay and before contagion spreads throughout our residential care network.

Mr Kyle said all of the workers who became ill at Oaklands were agency staff who also work in other care homes.

Another care home in the area has since also had an outbreak of four confirmed cases  although the number could be higher as more are displaying symptoms but tests were rationed to five per care home, he said.

Mr Casciello, who had four grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, was described by his family as the most gentle, kindest man ever.

The Independent has contacted Downing Street for comment.
A day after he announced the largest single-day increase in coronavirus cases and deaths since the pandemic began last month, Gov. Phil Murphy will on Thursday offer another update at his regular afternoon briefing.

The 1 p.m. press conference can seen on the governors YouTube channel. NJ Advance Media will add the live stream to this post when it becomes available.

State Health Commissioner Judith M. Persichilli, state epidemiologist Dr. Christina Tan, and State Police Superintendent Col. Patrick Callahan and Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness Director Jared Maples have been regulars at the press conferences over the past several weeks.

On Wednesday morning, Murphy will tour a pop-up field hospital being built by the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers at the site of the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus. That will also be streamed live around 10 a.m.

The hospital, which should open sometime next week, will not be used for patients who have the coronavirus. Instead it will be available for patients with less serious ailments who can be safely transferred there. That would free up more space at existing hospitals for coronavirus patients.

Other field hospitals will be built at Edison, Atlantic City, and a site to be determined. Each will have 250 beds.

At least 22,255 people have tested positive for coronavirus since the first case was announced March 4. Persichilli said about in about 80% of the cases, people exhibit mild or moderate symptoms and can recover at home.

If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Chennai, April 2 : Tamil Nadu on Thursday announced 75 new coronavirus cases, taking the infected count to 309.

Addressing to reporters Health Secretary Beela Rajesh said, 75 new cases tested coronavirus positive and the total number of COVID-19 patients have gone up to 309 across 20 districts.

Rajesh said all the 1,103 persons who had returned after attending the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi have been tested for the virus.

Out of the total Covid-19 patient tally in Tamil Nadu, 264 persons had attended the Islamic religious event organised by Tablighi Jamaat.

Rajesh said the Containment Zone plan is being implemented stringently.

According to her, the throat swab and blood samples are tested in 17 labs in the state and it takes at an average 24 hours to get the results.

She also added the number of test labs will be increased and 12,000 test kits are there for use.

Rajesh also said considering the spread of coronavirus in other countries, the state is also making projections as to the likely virus spread numbers and area.

Seven persons have been discharged in the state after getting fully cured of Covid-19, she added.
When Jonathan Leitschuh found a catastrophic security vulnerability in Zoom, the popular videoconferencing platform, the company offered him money to keep quiet in the form of a bug bounty and a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) through Bugcrowd.

The security flaw affected millions of Zoom users on Mac, and Leitschuh wanted to see the issue fixed. He declined the bounty payment because of the NDA, gave Zoom an industry-standard 90-day embargo to ship a patch, and when the company failed to do so, he published his research.

Cue fireworks. Zoom got a lot of negative media attention and fixed the security flaw. Leitschuh's struggle to hold organizations accountable for their poor security posture is more common than you may think, and some security researchers feel the bug bounty platforms  HackerOne, Bugcrowd and Synack  have become marketplaces where their silence is being bought and sold to prevent public exposure of insecure practices.

Used properly, bug bounty platforms connect security researchers with organizations wanting extra scrutiny. In exchange for reporting a security flaw, the researcher receives payment (a bounty) as a thank you for doing the right thing. However, CSO's investigation shows that the bug bounty platforms have turned bug reporting and disclosure on its head, what multiple expert sources, including HackerOne's former chief policy officer, Katie Moussouris, call a "perversion."

Key takeaways from CSOs bug bounty investigation  Bug bounty platforms use NDAs to trade bounty hunter silence for the possibility of a payout.  All organizations need a vulnerability disclosure program (VDP); few need a bug bounty program.  Bug bounty platforms may violate California and federal labor law, and the EUs General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).  You can't outsource a VDP entirely, only very tiny pieces, per ISO standards.  Bug bounty platforms and their use of NDAs contribute to a public safety issue due to unpatched security flaws.

Bug bounty vs. VDP

A vulnerability disclosure program (VDP) is a welcome mat for concerned citizens to report security vulnerabilities. Every organization should have a VDP. In fact, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) considers a VDP a best practice, and has fined companies for poor security practices, including failing to deploy a VDP as part of their security due diligence. The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a draft order in 2019 mandating all federal civilian agencies deploy a VDP.

Regulators often view deploying a VDP as minimal due diligence, but running a VDP is a pain. A VDP looks like this: Good-faith security researchers tell you your stuff is broken, give you 90 days max to fix it, and when the time is up they call their favorite journalist and publish the complete details on Twitter, plus a talk at Black Hat or DEF CON if it's a really juicy bug.

"Getting ready for a VDP is technically straightforward but politically is a harder challenge," HackerOne's co-founder and CTO Alex Rice tells CSO in defense of the practice of providing private bug bounty programs to companies that lack a VDP, citing legal, regulatory, policy and risk management concerns inside customer organizations. "Today we have people launching private bounty programs before VDPs, and that's a model that's worked well to start building that researcher relationship with a small number of hackers in a private engagement," he adds. "We could debate all day whether thats right or not. Our conclusion is that it's right for some organizations."

The delicate balance of running a VDP and working with good-faith researchers is a win-win-win for society, for the impacted organization, and for the security researcher, but some enterprises more worried about their stock price might prefer to pay money to make that pain point go away.

Bug bounty platforms offer organizations a tempting alternative. Researchers report security flaws under NDA and are paid to keep quiet. Maybe we'll fix the issues you reported. When we get around to it.

But there are no regulatory  or even normative  requirements to deploy a bug bounty, and for many companies unprepared to process a deluge of bug reports, a bug bounty is the wrong decision.

VC-powered marketing hype

Venture capitalist-fueled dreams of building a billion-dollar unicorn cybersecurity gig economy are largely to blame for where we are now, Moussouris tells CSO.

I want to get to 1,000,000 hackers [on our platform]  thats really where I want us to be in the future, HackerOne CEO Marten Mickos told CyberScoop in July 2017. The company's February 2020 report "details the efforts and motivations of more than 600,000 individuals who represent our hacker community."

Except that 600,000 number is at least somewhat inflated. This reporter has two of those accounts, including one created, and forgotten, in 2017. Anyone can sign up for as many HackerOne or Bugcrowd accounts as they like. (Synack requires applicants to apply with a resume before giving them access to bug bounty programs.) The real question: How many competent security researchers are finding and reporting bugs?

According to HackerOne's Rice, 9,650 HackerOne users submitted valid bug bounty vulnerability reports in 2019, with 3,150 of them sufficiently motivated and engaged to respond to the company's questionnaire.

The number of people making more than $100,000 over their entire time working on the platform is in the low hundreds.  Katie Moussouris

That number of active users is far short of Mickos's lofty one million hacker goal. And as for the quality of those valid vulnerability reports. "I've seen some quote unquote valid vulnerability reports," Laurens ("lvh") Van Houtven, principal at Latacora, a secops and cryptography expert, tells CSO. "If someone asked me 'should I put this in my appsec report?', I'd say 'you can put it in there, but I will never let you live it down.'"

Moussouris, now founder and CEO of bug bounty consultancy Luta Security, questions how much of HackerOne is real. "Their latest report shows most registered users are basically either fake or unskilled," she says. "The number of people making more than $100,000 over their entire time working on the platform is in the low hundreds. That number of relatively skilled researchers hasn't changed significantly at all, making their claim to have the largest number of hackers pretty misleading."

"These commercial bug bounty platforms ... are perverting the entire ecosystem, and I want to see this stop, even if it costs me personally," Moussouris adds. As a former HackerOne exec, she would profit handsomely from any successful HackerOne public stock offering. "I am speaking to you in the opposite direction of my own personal financial gain."

HackerOne also makes a lot of noise about its "hacker millionaires," who have made more than a cumulative million dollars each since the platform launched in 2012. What was the median income of a HackerOne bug finder in 2019? What about the average? How many vulnerability reports does the median/mean hacker submit? HackerOne declined to answer these questions.

Likewise, Bugcrowd tells CSO that it has "20,000-plus active researchers on the platform with an estimate of 2 to 3 million potential whitehat hackers available around the world."

How does Bugcrowd define an "active researcher"? Is that a calendar year 2019 figure, or a cumulative number since Bugcrowd first launched in 2011? Where does the 2 to 3 million whitehat hackers number come from? "At this time, we do not publicly disclose those details," a Bugcrowd public-relations rep tells CSO.

Covering up security issues

Silence is the commodity the market appears to be demanding, and the bug bounty platforms have pivoted to sell what willing buyers want to pay for.

"Bug bounties are best when transparent and open. The more you try to close them down and place NDAs on them, the less effective they are, the more they become about marketing rather than security," Robert Graham of Errata Security tells CSO.

Leitschuh, the Zoom bug finder, agrees. "This is part of the problem with the bug bounty platforms as they are right now. They aren't holding companies to a 90-day disclosure deadline," he says. "A lot of these programs are structured on this idea of non-disclosure. What I end up feeling like is that they are trying to buy researcher silence."

The bug bounty platforms' NDAs prohibit even mentioning the existence of a private bug bounty. Tweeting something like "Company X has a private bounty program over at Bugcrowd" would be enough to get a hacker kicked off their platform.

The carrot for researcher silence is the money  bounties can range from a few hundred to tens of thousands of dollars  but the stick to enforce silence is "safe harbor," an organizations public promise not to sue or criminally prosecute a security researcher attempting to report a bug in good faith.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) published guidelines in 2017 on how to make a promise of safe harbor. Severe penalties for illegal hacking should not apply to a concerned citizen trying to do the right thing, they reasoned.

Want safe harbor? Sign this NDA

Sign this NDA to report a security issue or we reserve the right to prosecute you under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) and put you in jail for a decade or more. That's the message some organizations are sending with their private bug bounty programs.

Take PayPal. The VDP on its website tells all bug finders to create an account on HackerOne and agree to the terms and conditions of their private bug bounty program, including the NDA. If you report a bug any other way, PayPal explicitly refuses to offer safe harbor to bug hunters.

"You won't find VDPs on HackerOne that don't permit any type of disclosure," Rice tells CSO, which at least in the case of PayPal appears not to be true. PayPal's VDP shoehorns every bug reporter into its private bounty program on HackerOne, and the only way to report a bug in good faith with zero expectation of a bounty is to agree to that private program's NDA. (HackerOne's website may label the program a "private bug bounty" instead of a "VDP," but it remains the sole published way to report a security flaw to PayPal at the time of this writing.)

The PayPal terms, published and facilitated by HackerOne, turn the idea of a VDP with safe harbor on its head. The company "commits that, if we conclude, in our sole discretion, [emphasis ours] that a disclosure respects and meets all the guidelines of these Program Terms and the PayPal Agreements, PayPal will not bring a private action against you or refer a matter for public inquiry."

The only way to meet their "sole discretion" decision of safe harbor is if you agree to their NDA. "By providing a Submission or agreeing to the Program Terms, you agree that you may not publicly disclose your findings or the contents of your Submission to any third parties in any way without PayPals prior written approval."

HackerOne underscores that safe harbor can be contingent on agreeing to program terms, including signing an NDA, in their disclosure guidelines. Bug finders who don't wish to sign an NDA to report a security flaw may contact the affected organization directly, but without safe harbor protections.

"Submit directly to the Security Team outside of the Program," they write. "In this situation, Finders are advised to exercise good judgement as any safe harbor afforded by the Program Policy may not be available."

Rice says HackerOne discourages such conduct from customers and will kick companies off the platform if they take "unreasonable punitive action against finders," such as making legal threats or referring a finder to law enforcement. He points out that earlier this week HackerOne removed online voting vendor Voatz from the platform, the first time HackerOne has removed a customer from the platform. PayPal did not respond to our request for comment.

However, security researchers concerned about safe harbor protection should not rest easy with most safe harbor language, Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) Senior Staff Attorney Andrew Crocker tells CSO. "The terms of many bug bounty programs are often written to give the company leeway to determine 'in its sole discretion' whether a researcher has met the criteria for a safe harbor," Crocker says. "That obviously limits how much comfort researchers can take from the offer of a safe harbor."

"EFF strongly believes that security researchers have a First Amendment right to report their research and that disclosure of vulnerabilities is highly beneficial," Crocker adds. In fact, many top security researchers refuse to participate on bug bounty platforms because of required NDAs.

Fed up with bug bounty NDAs

Tavis Ormandy, the well-respected security researcher at Google Project Zero, declined to be interviewed for this article, but has previously taken a strong public stance against NDAs. In 2019 he tweeted, "I refuse to agree to terms before reporting a vulnerability," adding in a follow-up tweet, "It's like saying you're going to make a truthful, verifiable and reproducible claim about a product, but willing to give the vendor a short window to make changes first if they wish to do so. No requirement to act if they don't want to or don't care."

He's not the only security researcher who refuses to be muzzled. Varun Kakumani, recently in the news for trying to report a security flaw to Netflix that Bugcrowd triagers marked as out of scope, tells CSO that, despite being a veteran bug finder listed in the Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Adobe and eBay halls of fame, he will never work for the bug bounty platforms and only submitted via Bugcrowd because Netflix outsources its VDP to that platform.

"There is no use of bug bounties these days," Kakumani tells CSO. "It's like a game for many people. Just follow their stupid rules and get paid. There is no value for true hacker's work these days."

Kevin Finisterre (@d0tslash), the DJI drone bug finder who famously walked away from a $30,000 bounty because the vendor demanded an NDA to cover up a data breach, doesn't mince his words about bug bounties. "Enticing me to participate in bounties at this phase in my career is a hard sell," he tells CSO. "The economy of doing bounty work makes zero sense for me in most cases."

Labor law violations

After getting burned by DJI, Finisterre now works full time doing security for an autonomous vehicle division of a large auto manufacturer and suggests bug bounties are more for younger, less established people looking to get noticed. He says that bug bounty platforms are exploiting hackers. "Most egregious to me is many of us are some form of on [the autism] spectrum and we will literally work ourselves to death hunting bugs ultimately for little return on immediate efforts," he says, adding, "No one ever mentions the lack of health insurance...."

Health insurance in the US is typically provided by employers to employees, and not to independent contractors. However, legal experts tell CSO that the bug bounty platforms violate both California and US federal labor law.

California AB 5, the Golden State's new law to protect "gig economy" workers that came into effect in January 2020, clearly applies to bug bounty hunters working for HackerOne, Bugcrowd and Synack, Leanna Katz, an LLM candidate at Harvard Law School researching legal tests that distinguish between independent contractors and employees, tells CSO.

AB 5 uses a human-readable "ABC test" to determine if a worker is an employee or independent contractor under California law. "It is unlikely that all three elements [of the ABC test] of control, work outside the usual course of business, and independently performing the same work are met," Katz says. "Thus...hackers are likely employees under California's laws."

Veena Dubal, a law professor at University of California, Hastings, and an expert on labor law who researches the gig economy, agrees with Katz's analysis. She says that the bug bounty platforms also violate the US Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA) that requires employers to pay a minimum wage.

Under federal law it is conceivable that not just HackerOne but the client is a joint employer [of bug finders]. There might be liability for companies that use [bug bounty platform] services.  Veena Dubal

Consider a finder who spends weeks or months of unpaid work to discover and document a security flaw. Someone else independently discovers, documents and submits that same bug five minutes before the first finder. Under the rules of most HackerOne and Bugcrowd bounty programs, the first submitter gets all the money, the second finder gets nothing.

"My legal analysis suggests those workers [on bug bounty platforms] should at least be getting minimum wage, overtime compensation, and unemployment insurance," Dubal tells CSO. "That is so exploitative and illegal," she adds, saying that "under federal law it is conceivable that not just HackerOne but the client is a joint employer [of bug finders]. There might be liability for companies that use [bug bounty platform] services."

"Finders are not employees," Rice says, a sentiment echoed by Bugcrowd founder Ellis and Synack founder Jay Kaplan. Synack's response is representative of all three platforms: "Like many companies in California, we're closely monitoring how the state will apply AB 5, but we have a limited number of security researchers based in California and they represent only a fractional percentage of overall testing time," a Synack representative tells CSO.

Using gig economy platform workers to discover and report security flaws may also have serious GDPR consequences when a security researcher discovers a data breach.

Bug bounty platforms may violate GDPR

When is a data breach not a data breach?

When a penetration testing consultancy with vetted employees discover the exposed data.

A standard penetrating testing engagement contract includes language that protects the penetration testers  in short, it's not a crime if someone asks you to break into their building or corporate network on purpose, and signs a contract indemnifying you.

This includes data breaches discovered by penetration testers. Since the pen testers are brought under the umbrella of the client, say "Company X," any publicly exposed Company X data discovered is not considered publicly exposed, since that would legally be the same as a Company X employee discovering a data breach, and GDPR's data breach notification rules don't come into play.

What about unvetted bug bounty hunters who discover a data breach as part of a bug bounty program? According to Joan Antokol, a GDPR expert, the EU's data breach notification regulation applies to bug bounty platforms. Antokol is partner at Park Legal LLC and a longstanding member of the International Working Group on Data Protection in Technology (IWGDPT), which is chaired by the Berlin Data Protection Commissioner. She works closely with GDPR regulators.

"If a free agent hacker who signed up for a project via bug bounty companies to try to find vulnerabilities in the electronic systems of a bug bounty client (often a multinational company), was, in fact, able to access company personal data of the multinational via successful hacking into their systems," she tells CSO, "the multinational (data controller) would have a breach notification obligation under the GDPR and similar laws of other countries."

The lack of vetting of bug bounty hunters, where anyone, including this reporter, can sign up for a HackerOne or Bugcrowd account with any email address, is the key sticking point, Antokol says. "There is really no way around it when the bug bounty companies collect little more than a name (and perhaps a fictitious one at that) of the presumably ethical hacker, along with their wire transfer information or an address for the bug bounty company to send them a payment," Antokol says. "Even if the bug bounty company or multinational was able to obtain a certification from the successful hacker about no misuse of the personal data, full and irreversible erasure of the data, no sharing, of the data, etc., they would not be able to ensure credibility or accountability of the hacker, so it would essentially be a sham."

With proper GDPR compliance in place, though, Antokol says, the notification obligation could perhaps be avoided.

However, all three bug bounty platforms downplayed this risk, and none of the three acknowledged any instance where a bug bounty program led to GDPR breach notification. "I don't have data on how often bounty program activity triggered a breach notification in 2019," HackerOne's Rice says. "It's quite rare, so I'd guess a handful, if there were any at all."

Bugcrowd pointed out that 90% of its bug bounty programs are invite-only private programs, meaning NDA required. "All researchers participating in private bug bounty programs," they write, "must be pre-vetted through our internal vetting process. In order to be invited to private programs, researchers must prove their abilities and trustworthiness via public programs."

Bugcrowd declined to elaborate on what the process of pre-vetting researchers actually looks like. So, this reporter signed up for an account and had immediate access to all public programs without any additional steps.

To be eligible for private programs, Bugcrowd invites researchers to fill out this Google form, which asks researchers for their LinkedIn, GitHub and Twitter accounts, "Name or Pseudonym", plus "any relevant certifications or qualifications that validate your testing credentials." The form also asks, "Would you be willing to be background checked?" noting that, "Specific customers require researchers to be background checked in order to participate in their private programs." The form warns that "if you dont provide detailed information you will not be considered for private program invites."

Synack, which runs only private bug bounty programs, vets all its independent researchers (the "Synack Red Team"), including a criminal background check, and accepts only around 20% of applicants, a Synack representative tells CSO.

What this really highlights is that companies can augment but not replace a traditional pen testing engagement with bug bounties. Further, only a small portion of bug reporting can be outsourced, and convoluted attempts to do so might backfire.

Some things your security team has to do in house.

NDAs are not ISO compliant

Good security people are scarce, and at a time of zero unemployment among information security professionals, it can be tempting to outsource anything you can. But a VDP is not something you can fully outsource.

HackerOne's marketing strongly implies that its platform can help companies outsource ISO 29147 and ISO 30111, the standards that define best practices on receiving security bug reports, fixing those bugs, and publishing advisories. However, the co-author of both of those standards, Moussouris, says this is flat out not possible.

ISO 29147 standardizes how to receive security bug reports from an outside reporter for the first time and how to disseminate security advisories to the public.

ISO 30111 documents internal digestion of bug reports and remediation within an affected software maker. ISO provided CSO with a review copy of both standards, and the language is unambiguous.

These standards make clear that private bug bounty NDAs are not ISO compliant. "When non-disclosure is a required term or condition of reporting bugs via a bug bounty platform, that fundamentally breaks the process of vulnerability disclosure as outlined in ISO 29147," Moussouris says. "The purpose of the standard is to allow for incoming vulnerability reports and [her emphasis] release of guidance to affected parties."

ISO 29147 lists four major goals, including "providing users with sufficient information to evaluate risk due to vulnerabilities," and lists eight different reasons why publishing security advisories is a standardized requirement, including "informing public policy decisions" and "transparency and accountability." Further, 29147 says that public disclosure makes us all more secure in the long term. "The theory supporting vulnerability disclosure holds that the short-term risk caused by public disclosure is outweighed by longer-term benefits from fixed vulnerabilities, better informed defenders, and systemic defensive improvements."

Contrast this with HackerOne's "5 critical components of a vulnerability disclosure policy" that lets organizations muzzle security researchers. "Set non-binding expectations for how reports will be evaluated," the company recommends. "This section can include the duration between submission and response, confirmation of vulnerability, follow-on communications, expectation of recognition, and if or when finders have permission to publicly disclose their findings." [emphasis ours]

Rice disputes the accusation that HackerOne is unable to offer ISO compliance, saying that "H1 Response [their VDP offering] allows organizations to comply with all guidance from 29147 and 30111 in its default configuration." That's like saying Monster Sugar O'Cereal is a part of a balanced breakfast. Technically true, but it doesn't add much nutrition.

"For bug bounty companies to claim they help at all with ISO 30111 shows they don't actually understand these standards or how to comply with them. It's false advertising at best, and outright lies at worst," Moussouris says. "None of what the bug bounty platforms provide has anything to do with this part of the process [ISO 30111]. They can only help with a small part of ISO 29147, which is intake and initial triage."

Triage. Welcome to a world of pain.

HackerOne "weaponized triage"

Running a VDP typically results in a trickle of reports, as only good-faith researchers expecting zero payout will contact you. Start paying a bug bounty, though, and every wannabe script kiddie looking for a quick payout will flood your inbox with garbage reports.

"When people run their own bug bounty programs, they quickly live to regret it," Latacoras Van Houtven says. "They get thousands of reports, mostly bad reports. There's a massive incentive [for low-skilled bug finders] to spam everyone with complete bullshit."

That's not an argument to outsource bug bounties to one of the platforms, but rather to question whether your organization needs a bug bounty at all. A tsunami of bad bug reports is a problem that the bug bounty platforms both create and solve, Van Houtven says.

"HackerOne has weaponized this. They make a ton of money off triage. The problem is HackerOne has a terrible perverse incentive. They want to preserve the status quo of people submitting bullshit scanner findings," Van Houtven says. "HackerOne's job is to make bug bounties as bad as possible for everyone because they make more money that way. I think HackerOne should not exist. Their business model is misery."

Rice denies this charge. "HackerOne has every incentive to make triage a pleasant experience for hackers, our customers and our staff," he says. "We are constantly working to improve the triage process for everyone."

Responsible use of bug bounties

A company with an existing VDP and a mature bug triage and remediation team can and, in some cases, should augment their existing, robust red team with a bug bounty. But the bug bounty is the cherry on top of the cybersecurity sundae. It's nice to have, looks pretty, and adds a bit of flavor oomph.

There are layers: The foundation is a published VDP, at CompanyX.com/security, with a security@ email address, a PGP key (that works), and clear safe harbor language that permits researcher disclosure. The second is to employ a proper penetration testing consultancy and, if organizational size and budget warrants it, an in-house red team. Once those planks of due diligence have been laid, a bug bounty can help find issues everyone else has missed.

Mature organizations can and should run their own VDP in house. If they are ready for an avalanche of dubious bug reports, they might optionally choose to run a bug bounty.

To the extent that bug bounty platforms need to exist, they are a modest value-add. "I told them before I left," Moussouris says, "If you guys can continue to reduce friction between researchers and vendors, that's a good thing. If you try to sell control, you're in the wrong space."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:46:33|Editor: huaxia

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TAIYUAN, April 2 (Xinhua) -- North China's Shanxi Province has donated a batch of medical supplies to aid Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK) to fight COVID-19, according to the provincial foreign affairs office Thursday.

The supplies, including 55,000 masks and 2,000 protective suits, is the second batch of medical supplies Shanxi has donated after 1,500 protective suits and 200 goggles were shipped to its international friendship cities in Germany and Italy.

The province has donated 1.1 million yuan (about 155,000 U.S. dollars) of medical supplies to all its friendship cities and friendly cooperative partners to date.

Meanwhile, 40,000 masks and 13,200 doses of traditional Chinese medicine have been donated to aid overseas Chinese students and groups.
Jerry Lara, Staff / San Antonio Express-News

The Railroad Commission of Texas on Thursday said it would meet this month to consider using its authority to implement statewide oil production cuts at a time when crude prices are at 20-year lows.

The agency said it will hold a virtual hearing on the topic at 9:30 a.m. April 14. The meeting will be simulcast on the Railroad Commission and AdminMonitor websites with an audio only option available by telephone.
Canada's trade deficit narrowed in February due largely to a strong rise in exports of private jets, the state statistics agency said Thursday, noting that the coronavirus pandemic had yet to be felt in a big way.

Looking forward, it said production halts by North American automakers "could have a significant impact" on Canada's trade in March, while sharp drops in oil prices also would affect trade.

"When looking at international merchandise trade as a whole, COVID-19 did not appear to have a major impact in February, though trade with China was once again affected," Statistics Canada said.

The deficit contracted from Canadian dollar 1.7 billion in January to Canadian dollar 983 million (USD 691 million) in February, with an 0.5 per cent rise in exports and a 0.8 per cent fall in imports, notably crude oil, Statistics Canada said.

Exports totalled Canadian dollar 48.3 billion, including a 47 per cent increase in aircraft deliveries -- the strongest showing in five years -- led by private jets, the agency said. In terms of volume, exports rose 2.7 per cent.

Auto exports rebounded in February after plunging in January, but oil exports declined. Canada is the world's fourth ranked exporter.

Imports eased to Canadian dollar 49.3 billion, the lowest level in two years, with a 1.2 per cent drop in volume, mainly crude oil.

Although it is one of the world's biggest oil producers, Canada nevertheless imports oil to supply its eastern regions that are far from its western production centers.

Imports from China, South Korea, and Peru declined the most, while exports to Britain, Hong Kong and China were also down.

Canada's trade surplus with the United States, its biggest trading partner, grew in February to Canadian dollar 3.7 billion.

With the rest of the world, Canada saw its deficit swell to Can$4.7 billion, its weakest performance since November 2018.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The most important new policy the government can implement to contain the spread of Covid-19 is to immediately recommend that everyone wear masks or face-coverings in public  #masksforall.

Health officials have already encouraged people to wear masks if they are showing symptoms of the disease. Particularly since 25 to 50 percent of people with the virus are asymptomatic, it would be best for everyone to be wearing a mask or face-covering when in public to protect others.

Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Monday that the agency was reconsidering its position that ordinary healthy citizens did not need to wear masks. The mayor of Los Angeles recommended on Wednesday night that all people wear face coverings in public. These are welcome, if belated, moves.

Medical professionals, epidemiologists and concerned citizens across the country need to tell their mayors, governors and congressional representatives that wearing masks or face coverings should be government policy now.
An Australian adviser to the World Health Organisation has called on the federal government to publicise the number of recovered COVID-19 patients, saying that tally is just as important" as the daily infection toll.

The Department of Health this week told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age it would not publicly reveal recovery data because it was "not able to provide a reliable, nation-wide number" of patients who have cleared their infection.

The federal government said it was 'not able to provide a reliable, nation-wide number' of coronavirus recoveries. Credit:Alex Elllinghaisen

Professor Mary-Louise McLaws, an epidemiologist at the University of New South Wales and adviser to the World Health Organisation on coronavirus, said infection and recovery numbers "tell two different stories, and you need both stories".

"I'm surprised they wouldn't keep a tally, because it's so important to know how fast we can get people out there in the workforce or society," she said.
Plans are afoot to enable MPs to question the Boris Johnson government virtually when parliament resumes after the Easter break on April 21, after speaker Lindsay Hoyle and several MPs pushed for using technology to continue parliamentary work.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, leader of the House of Commons, said in a statement on Wednesday evening that the government and parliament hoped appropriate technology would be in place by April 21, when MPs may or may not be able to be physically present in the House.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

He said: Parliaments role of scrutinising government, authorising spending and making laws must be fulfilled and in these unprecedented times that means considering every technological solution available. We are exploring options with the parliamentary authorities in readiness for parliaments return.

Hoyle insisted in a letter to Rees-Mogg that MPs should be able to take part in Prime Ministers questions, oral questions to government departments, to ask urgent questions and to hear statements being made  especially if it is not appropriate for them to be present.

Several select committee meetings have already been held virtually, which encouraged Hoyle and others to push to expanding technologys use to cover the main chamber.

Once the House returns, if we are still in the grip of the crisis where the physical presence of Members, or too many Members, in the Palace is not appropriate, I am keen that they should be able to participate in key parliamentary proceedings virtually, for example, oral questions, urgent questions, statements, Hoyle wrote to Rees-Mogg.

The House Service has already trialled some virtual select committee evidence sessions with witnesses  and I have asked officials to investigate how they would apply similar technology to the types of business listed above.

Hoyle also asked if it would be possible for the Government to set up a forum of MPs during this recess, possibly via select committee chairs, who could quiz senior Government representatives at set times on different days.

MPs are being swamped right now with questions and case work from distressed constituents who need answers. Responses cannot wait for the House to sit again, he said.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Prasun Sonwalkar Prasun Sonwalkar was Editor (UK & Europe), Hindustan Times. During more than three decades, he held senior positions on the Desk, besides reporting from Indias north-east and other states, including a decade covering politics from New Delhi. He has been reporting from UK and Europe since 1999. ...view detail
Nuclear waste repository the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant gradually reduced the amount of nuclear waste received and emplaced for disposal in its underground salt deposit during the last three months as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to spread throughout the country and world leading to the disruption of operations at government facilities.

As of March 22, WIPP received four shipments during that month.

Shipments were also interrupted by a maintenance outage from Feb. 16 to March 14.

Ten shipments were received during February, and 191 containers of waste were emplaced.

In January, 24 shipments were received, and 283 containers were emplaced.

Donavan Mager, spokesman for Nuclear Waste Partnership  the Department of Energy-hired contractor to oversee the facilitys day-to-day operations  said the reduction in operations was in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

He said a ramp down of activities at the site would be complete by April 1 but was unsure how long it would last as the virus continued to spread, and public officials called for social distancing and on workers to work from home when possible.

Waste was being accepted and emplaced on a limited basis, Mager said, in support the DOEs mission to clean up nuclear waste from national laboratories throughout the U.S.

It was unclear if WIPPs mining operations continued during the ramp down, as the eighth and final panel was being mined in the underground.

As of March 30, the New Mexico Department of Health reported 44 new positive cases of COVID-19, bringing the total to 281.

There were four total cases in Eddy County, including New Mexicos first death from the disease, and two cases in Lea County.

WIPP is located about 30 miles east of Carlsbad, near the Eddy-Lea county line.

In response to the current situation regarding COVID-19, the U.S. Department of Energys Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) continues a safe and orderly ramp down of operations to a level that will still ensure continuity of essential mission critical operations, Mager said.

This direction aligns with reductions that have already been planned and implemented over the past week.

Employees able to work remotely were sent home to do so, with some essential staff remaining at the WIPP site, Mager said, to perform mission-critical activities.

This action is being taken out of an abundance of caution for the safety of employees and the community, he said.

All activities that can be performed remotely are being conducted through telework. Employees at the site are performing essential mission-critical activities are working in compliance with CDC, DOE and New Mexico Department of Health guidelines.

The Carlsbad Field Office and its primary contractor, Nuclear Waste Partnership, will continue to monitor the situation and respond accordingly.

Amid the outbreak, the DOE said it was working closely with the White House and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to ensure the safety of its workers across the nation.

DOE is coordinating closely with the White House and our interagency partners in the unified response to the Coronavirus. We have been in communication with our employees across the country throughout this event and have encouraged them to take appropriate precautions and follow CDC guidance, read a statement from the DOE.

DOE leadership will be issuing further guidance as the situation evolves.

In New Mexico, Sandia National Laboratories closed two buildings in Albuquerque after employees tested positive for the virus.

The buildings were to be disinfected and the workers who tested positive were quarantined, before reopening.

Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich called on President Donald Trump to work with New Mexicos national laboratories, Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories on solutions to the pandemic.

He pointed to Sandias efforts to track anthrax spores after mail attacks were reported in 2001, and its work to map the Ebola outbreak in 2014 in West Africa.

Los Alamos, Heinrich said, ran disease models to predict the 2003 spread of SARS, and already began mapping the spread of coronavirus during the recent health crisis.

Our national labs employ some of the best and brightest minds on Earth, and they have played a leading role in finding solutions to past public health crises, Heinrich said in a statement.

I urge President Trump to put our national labs to work once again in helping us better understand the challenges we are facing and engineering lifesaving solutions.

Adrian Hedden can be reached at 575-628-5516, achedden@currentargus.com or @AdrianHedden on Twitter.



2020 the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.)

Visit the Carlsbad Current-Argus (Carlsbad, N.M.) at www.currentargus.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Teachers manning schools for the children of key workers during the pandemic have called for urgent clarity on how to keep themselves and pupils safe.

Jacquie White, general secretary of the Ulster Teachers' Union, said she was growing increasingly concerned about how to ensure schools do not become a "breeding ground for the virus".

"We understand that the Department of Education is working on a safety strategy and we would urge them to bring this forward as soon as possible to stem the rising tide of anxiety among teachers who fear for their health and that of the pupils and their parents," she said.

"Schools are playing a vital role in ensuring that as many key workers as possible can remain at work, but if teachers are afraid to work because they fear their health is being risked, that will be counter-productive.

"What we don't want to see is a rise in the number of infected teachers, who in turn could infect the children of key workers, who in turn may pass the virus onto parents, who we need to remain at work as we approach the predicted spike in infections. There is too much uncertainty and no formalised guidelines."

The Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO) is also concerned about the issue.

INTO northern secretary Gerry Murphy said: "Given the vital role that teachers are performing in providing a supervised, safe environment for the children of those key workers who are unable to find a viable alternative option to care for their children at home, the INTO is concerned that its members are being left exposed without the reassurance of Covid-19 testing or personal protective equipment."

The Department of Education said it had issued "the most up-to-date" guidance to schools which were providing supervision of children of key workers and vulnerable children.

A spokesman for the department said further advice and guidance would be issued soon.

"We are committed to ensuring that schools are able to operate in a safe and sustainable way, to enable the education sector to provide this vital service," he said.

The Department would like to reiterate the Ministerial guidance that all schools should be open, where it is safe for them to do so, to accommodate the children of key workers and vulnerable children. We would like to thank all those schools which remain open and are supporting our key workers. We speak to all of the trade unions very regularly and will ensure that we discuss this issue and any other concerns the unions may have going forward.
The coronavirus has once again brought to the forefront the problems facing East Jerusalem's 350,000 residents, who are caught between Israeli apathy and the inability of the Palestinian government to provide assistance, as Israel is preventing the Palestinian government from engaging.

Abdel Qader Husseini, the president of the East Jerusalem Hospitals Network, told Al-Monitor that Jerusalems hospitals will face a huge problem if the number of coronavirus patients increases. Only two hospitals in Jerusalem are equipped to deal with coronavirus patients," he said. "The Makassed Hospital, which has 22 beds isolated for coronavirus cases, and the Saint Joseph Hospital, which closed its surgery department and converted 28 beds for coronavirus cases.

Established in 1997 with support from late Palestinian politician Faisal Husseini, the East Jerusalem Hospitals Network includes six medical facilities: Makassed Islamic Charitable Hospital, Augusta Victoria Hospital, St. John Eye Hospital, St. Joseph Hospital, Red Crescent Society Hospital and the Jerusalem Princess Basma Center for Disabled Children.

Abdel Qader Husseini, the son of Faisal Husseini, said the hospitals face a range of problems. We only have 19 ventilators that are available for use in case of coronavirus emergencies, and we are trying to acquire or rent more in case things worsen," he said. "We are also worried about shortages in medical equipment and protective gear.

Husseini said that Israel, as an occupying power, is responsible for the health of Palestinians. Yet Israeli health officials have done little to help.

Jamil Kousa, head of the St. Joseph Hospital, told Palestinian TV that the Israelis informed him March 25 to prepare the hospital to take patients from East Jerusalem. We were hospital number 23, the last hospital to be asked by the Israeli Health Ministry to prepare for dealing with the coronavirus," he said. "Within 72 hours, we did as much as we could to create a 28-bed isolation section, which will be able to handle regular cases, as well as room for three patients to be treated in the intensive care unit.

A voluntary coalition of 81 Palestinian nongovernmental organizations and Jerusalem-based UN agencies, dubbed al-Tajamu al-Maqdisi, or the Jerusalem Alliance, is helping hospitals prepare for an onslaught of patients.

The alliance's coordinator, Ahmad Budeiri, told Al-Monitor that volunteers erected two large tents at St. Joseph Hospital, one for visitors and medical personnel to have their temperatures taken to avoid further infections in the hospital, and the other for potential coronavirus patients, who "are asked to wait for three hours until the results come back."

The Jerusalem Alliance has also worked to ease the burdens on doctors, nurses and other medical staff. More than 800 medical staff must cross through Israeli checkpoints from the West Bank every day, according to Husseini. Local hotel owners came through to help. We are grateful to Musa Jarjui, who contributed the entire Christmas Hotel to be used by doctors so that they dont have to travel across the checkpoints daily, Budeiri said.

Both Husseini and Budeiri said Israel is shirking its responsibilities. They [Israelis] contacted local East Jerusalem hospitals and told them you are on your own to deal with patients from East Jerusalem, Budeiri said. They threw at them 2 million shekels [$500,000] and said, 'You manage with that money.' This is peanuts compared to what is needed.

An Israeli Health Ministry spokesman directed Al-Monitor's questions on the issue to Asher Salmon, the director of foreign relations at the ministry. Salmon did not respond to inquiries.

Husseini said that Jerusalem hospitals would be in better shape if the United States had not cut aid for Palestinian patients treated at their hospitals. Since 2012, the US and the EU were helping our hospitals take care of the bills of the thousands of Palestinians from all over the occupied territories, Husseini said.

In 2018, the Donald Trump administration cut the United States' annual $25 million to Jerusalem hospitals in an attempt to pressure Palestinian leadership.

Husseini welcomed calls from US senators to reactivate US support for Palestine to combat coronavirus. If the coronavirus does not convince the US to rescind its decision, I dont know what will, Husseini said. We are in the hole for $75 million in unpaid bills for Palestinian patients that we have provided care for. All these patients arrived by ambulance after Israel gave them security approval. This is a humanitarian issue, not a political one.

The Jerusalem Alliance created a map of doctors and medical services to ensure access to backup teams, if needed. If present expectations materialize, we will have a huge problem that will peak in June," Budeiri said. "We are not sure we can handle it.

One way to relieve local hospitals is to encourage Jerusalem families to give birth at home. We are calling on midwives to take over the issue of giving birth at home so that we can save pregnant women from having to travel and occupy hospital beds and also help avoid them from getting the disease in the process, Budeiri said.

To avoid the predicted high rates of coronavirus infections in Jerusalem, the alliance has dedicated its efforts to prevention and awareness. We want as many people as possible to stay at home, Buderi said. Yet self-quarantine in Jerusalem is difficult.

When you have very densely populated areas like the Old City of Jerusalem and neighborhoods like Silwan and Abu Tor  where sometimes an entire family lives in one or two rooms  you cant apply self-quarantine," he said. "To deal with this problem the Jerusalem Alliance has been seeking support from local hoteliers as well as voluntary medical staff so that mildly infected cases can be quarantined in hotels.

At the end of march, East Jerusalem had 12 documented cases of coronavirus, despite the dearth of testing. Many East Jerusalemites work on the west side of the city and other locations in Israel, where infections reached 5,358 at the end of March, with 21 fatalities.

As Palestinians in Jerusalem brace for the possibility of a coronavirus outbreak, the virus has caused an unintentional redrawing of the 1967 green line. Volunteer efforts have become a de facto shadow Palestinian government, sending the message that despite unilateral Israeli annexations and the moving of the US Embassy to Jerusalem, East Jerusalem is still an occupied city.
Punjab Chief Secretary Karan Avtar Singh on Thursday told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the state's health machinery was prepared to fight the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak.

Singh and Punjab DGP Dinkar Gupta attended a meeting held by the prime minister with all chief ministers via video-conferencing which Amarinder Singh could not attend due to a Congress Working Committee meet, an official statement said here.

The chief secretary also pointed out that strict enforcement of the curfew was being ensured by the civil and the police administration, it said.

He informed the prime minister that the Punjab chief minister was personally monitoring the situation and all deputy commissioners had been directed to ensure supply of essential commodities and services.

He told the PM that a Group of Ministers was taking stock of the situation on a daily basis and a state control room was set up to review the preparedness and address all issues related to COVID-19, the statement said.

The chief secretary also informed Modi that the state government had roped in tertiary care centres and hospitals to provide healthcare facilities to the suspected as well as infected patients, it said.

As many as 1,380 beds and 101 ventilators have been demarcated in government hospitals in Faridkot, Amritsar and Patiala for COVID-19 patients, the prime minister was told.

Karan Avtar Singh also informed the prime minister that 51 private labs had been allowed to test for coronavirus infection, the statement added.

In view of the prevailing situation, the state government was contemplating using a cab aggregator-like platform for transport of foodgrain harvested by farmers, the chief secretary informed the prime minister.

Meanwhile, PM Modi asked the state administration to give special attention to testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine of suspected cases, the statement said.

He also directed the CS to ensure uninterrupted supply of medicines, medical equipment and movement of raw material for medicines, it said.

Emphasising the need for special care for doctors and healthcare providers, Modi said all of them should be provided personal protective equipment, gloves and masks, the statement further said.

The prime minister stated that immunity guidelines sent by the department Of Ayush should be shared with all citizens and widely publicised.

Retired defence personnel/GOG, NGOs, NCC, NSS and volunteers should be involved at the local level for better management of COVID-19, he said.

Data regarding testing from authorised labs should be shared on a daily basis with the central government, Modi said, adding that district surveillance officers should be recruited to further strengthen the existing system.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
02.04.2020 LISTEN

South Africa has a relatively high insurance penetration rate when compared to its emerging market counterparts and in relation to the sizes of their economies.

This emerged following the release of investment firm RisCura's latest Bright Africa research.

Insurance penetration, which comprises life insurance and non-life insurance products, is calculated as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP). It enables the comparison of different sizes of economies.

Insurance firms are an important source of capital for investment on the continent as they invest the premiums they receive from policyholders into capital markets to ensure they can cover claims. As such, they are key institutional investors alongside pension funds, development finance institutions (DFIs) and banks, says Gilbert Anyetei, Alternative Investment Associate at RisCura.

South Africa measures up quite well and has the fourth largest insurance industry in the emerging markets group. The South African insurance market is supported by a sound regulatory environment, diversified multi-channel distribution and high level of local competition, Anyetei says.

South Africa, at 12.89% has the highest insurance penetration of the emerging markets under review, far exceeding China at 4.2%, which came in second on this measure. India's rate is 3.9% and Brazil's is 3.9%. Russia and Turkey are at the bottom end of the scale with rates of 1.53% and 1.33% respectively. Of the frontier markets Namibia is the standout country, with a penetration rate of 7.25%, while Morocco's rate is 3.88%, and Tunisia's is 2.14%.

Russia has experienced the highest total premium growth in 2018, at 12.5%. Anyetei says this is mostly driven by increased demand for loans and mortgages that drove demand for life insurance products. Mexico, India and China experienced positive total premiums growth in 2018, which was mostly driven by the Non-Life premium increase. In general, the growth in Non-life premiums is correlated to the macroeconomic environment, and thus positive economic growth generally supports non-life premium growth. Egypt is a clear exception in this regard. However, the reduction in total premiums is mostly due to the gross underdevelopment of the industry in that country.

South Africa experienced stagnant growth in its total premiums, but this is in line with the stagnant economic growth and high unemployment rates.

In Africa, Morocco, Nigeria and Zimbabwe experienced positive total premium growth in 2018 overall. For Morocco and Nigeria, this was mostly driven by an increase in life premiums.

The boost in life insurance in Nigeria is due to an increase in savings and protection-related financial products in that country. Kenya experienced low premium growth mostly due to the country's low insurance penetration levels (0.63%); which also stems from its low levels of urbanisation. Just over half of the populations of the 37 African countries that form a part of the Bright Africa research live in rural areas.

When comparing the insurance industries of different markets around the globe, investment analysts also look at the gross insurance premiums written (GPW). Africa's GPW accounts for 1.56% of global GPW, according to the report. South Africa is the leader on the continent, with its GPW accounting for 0.93% of global GPW. China is the insurance market leader in emerging markets, accounting for 11.07% of global GPW.
If I Should Die (ID at 9) The true-crime series examines murders that can be solved only with help from the victims themselves through clues they left that guide investigators to their killers.
Coronavirus Outbreak LIVE Updates: The total number of coronavirus positive cases in India rose to 2,547 on Friday (including 2,322 active cases, 162 cured/discharged and 62 deaths), the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.

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In his first video address since the 24 March nationwide lockdown, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to address the nation on Friday at 9 am. Modi directed the chief miisters of states to ensure a staggered exit from the 21-day shutdown as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases spiked by at least 500 on Thursday.

According to the Union Health ministry, 235 more people were confirmed positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours while three more  one from Gujarat and two from Delhi  died because of virus.

The confirmed COVID-19 cases in India climbed to 2,069 and toll increased to 53 on Thursday. As many as 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat attendees and their primary contacts have been quarantined across the country.

This figure has added significantly to India's total number of confirmed cases and can go further up as the states continue to trace and test those who attended various events at Markaz between 1-15 March.

A Union health ministry official said that 400 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat Markaz event in south Delhi's Nizammudin area last month have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The number of cases have risen to 53 in West Bengal. Punjab has reported 46 COVID-19 cases and Haryana 43.

Uttar Pradesh has reported 113 positive cases so far, while the COVID-19 cases in Karnataka have risen to 110 and in Telengana to 107. Rajasthan has reported 108 cases, Madhya Pradesh 99, Gujarat 87, Andhra Pradesh 86. Jammu and Kashmir has 62 positive patients so far.

The number of cases in Delhi has gone up to 219.

The highest number of coronavirus confirmed cases have been reported from Maharashtra at 335 so far, followed by Kerala at 265 and Tamil Nadu at 234.

As many as 88 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the state on Thursday, taking the tally to 423, while the death toll rose to 21, said health officials.dhara

On Thursday late evening, one more positive case emerged from Dharavi after a general practitioner was found positive by a suburban lab.

The death of a COVID-19 patient from Mumbai's Dharavi, one of the biggest slums in Asia, sparked fear of its spread in highly congested area. The Union Health Ministry said contact tracing and testing as per protocol is being conducted in the area. Several small-scale industries and workshops of leather goods, pottery and textiles operate from the slum colony spread over 613 acres.

Several cases were reported on Thursday where the health care workers were attacked. In one case nurses at a UP hospital reported indecent behaviour by the isolated suspected patients.

The new additions to positive COVID-19 cases included several healthcare workers and those who came in contact with the virus through the local transmission. The novel coronavirus outbreak has also taken a toll on the medical staff in terms of security.

The global tally of confirmed coronavirus cases surpassed 1 million-mark on Thursday as the pandemic explodes in the United States and death toll continues to climb in Italy and Spain, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

"This morning, the President was tested again for COVID-19, utilising a new, rapid-point-of-care test capability. He is healthy and without symptoms. Sample collection took just one minute and results were reported back in 15 minutes," Conley said.

"The President tested negative for COVID-19," Conley, said on Thursday in a memorandum to the White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham.

Sean Conley, Trump's physician, did not provide any context for the second test. The doctor, however, said the president had been tested by a new rapid-point-of-care test that delivered results in 15 minutes.

US President Donald Trump has tested negative for the novel coronavirus for a second time and is "healthy" and not displaying any symptoms for the deadly disease, the White House physician has said.

The arrests were made by the Kolkata Police during naka-checking and patrolling across the metropolis, he said

its attempt to contain the spread of COVID-19, a senior police officer here said.

A total of 980 people have been arrested in Kolkata in a span of 24 hours since Wednesday 5 pm for defying the lockdown order imposed by the government in

According to an official statement, Modi also pitched for formulating a common exit strategy to ensure "staggered re-emergence of the population" once the 21-day nationwide lockdown ends on 14 April.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will share a video message with people on Friday at 9 am, in the meantime interacted with chief ministers through a video conference and told them to focus on COVID-19 containment measures - testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine - and said it was imperative to work on a war footing, identify hotspots, encircle them and ensure that the infection does not spread out.

On Friday, five close contacts of COVID-19 patients who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi, tested positive in Tonk, taking total number of confirmed cases to 138 in Rajasthan.

The resolution said the 193-member General Assembly notes "with great concern" the threat to human health, safety and well-being caused by the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, which continues to spread globally.

The UN Security Council is yet to discuss the coronavirus outbreak, even as the total number of coronavirus cases across the world crossed one million.

The resolution titled 'Global solidarity to fight the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)' was the first such document on the global pandemic to be adopted by the world organization.

The United Nations General Assembly has unanimously adopted a resolution, co-sponsored by 188 nations including India, on COVID-19, calling for intensified international cooperation to defeat the pandemic that is causing severe disruption to societies and economies.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday thanked the nation for the unprecedented discipline and sense of service by people during coronavirus lockdown. "We are not alone in the fight against the novel coronavirus," said Modi.

Janata curfew and ringing of bells/clanging utensils, made the country aware of its unity amid this challenging time, the prime minister.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the citizens for setting a 'model' on 22 March while paying gratitude to those in the frontline battling the novel coronavirus. "The way you paid gratitude to people fighting against coronavirus on 22 March has become a model that is being emulated by other countries," Modi said.

"Today when crores of people are inside homes, then some of us may think how will they fight this battle against COVID-19 alone. Such questions might come up in your mind? But please remember, none of us is alone. The strength of 130 crores of Indians is with each one of us," he said.

Narendra Modi also cautioned the citizens to maintain social distancing while observing candle-light vigil on 5 April (Sunday). "On 5 April, switch off all lights for nine minutes and light up lamps or torch or cellphone flashlights," said Modi.

Two nursing officers at Delhi State Cancer Institution have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, ANI reported. According to sources, both of them have had contact history with the doctor of the institution who tested positive on 1 April.

The government has created a digital platform, wherein citizens can assess their symptoms from the comfort of their homes and later contact authorities if they have any doubts about their condition, an official release stated.

With over 400 people testing positive for coronavirus in Maharashtra, the state government has now taken the fight against the pandemic online, by launching a COVID-19 self-assessment tool.

Uttar Pradesh government on Friday issued orders that strict action will be taken under the National Security Act (NSA) against those who attack police personnel anywhere in the state during the 21-day nationwide lockdown.

The patient who was brought to Vadodara on Tuesday night had tested positive of the novel coronavirus on Wednesday. His family had claimed that he had no travel history.

A 78-year-old man from Godhra, who was the first COVID-19 patient of Panchmahals district, passed away at a private hospital in Vadodara late on Thursday night.

Kotak Bank was the top loser in the Sensex pack, cracking up to 7 percent, followed by IndusInd Bank, Hero MotoCorp, Asian Paints, Titan, and ICICI Bank.

After hitting a low of 27,800.07, the 30-share BSE barometer was trading 375.34 points or 1.33 percent lower at 27,889.97. Similarly, the NSE Nifty fell 105.35 points, or 1.28 percent, to 8,148.45.

Equity benchmark Sensex tumbled over 400 points in early trade on Friday led by losses in banking and auto stocks as investor sentiment continued to be weighed down by the uncertainty over the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact.

Forex markets in India were closed on April 1 for the annual closing of banks and on 2 April on account of Ram Navami.

The rupee opened weak at 75.97 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 76.08, down 48 paise over its last close. The rupee had settled at 75.60 against the US dollar on Tuesday.

The Indian rupee fell 48 paise to 76.08 against the US dollar in opening trade on Friday, as investors braced for a prolonged period of uncertainty as coronavirus cases witnessed a sharp rise across the world and in India.

Rane said the patient has been shifted to a special hospital set up for COVID-19 patients in south Goa.

The person came back to Goa on 19 March and contacted the Goa Medical College and Hospital after he developed symptoms related to COVID-19, he said.

The man, a resident of Mandrem in North Goa who had travelled to Mozambique recently, tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Thursday night, he said.

A man with international travel history has tested positive for COVID-19 in Goa, taking the number of infections in the state to six, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said on Friday.

"At-home solutions will now be worldwide for test takers who have been affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Both TOEFL and GRE will be taken at home till the situation is conducive for tests to be conducted at centres," Srikant Gopal, Executive Director of the TOEFL Program, told PTI.

The tests had been suspended across the globe following coronavirus outbreak.

Global exams like TOEFL and GRE will be taken at home except in mainland China and Iran in view of the COVID-19 situation across the globe, according to the Educational Testing Service (ETS).

At 10:00 a.m. Saturday, Chinese people nationwide will observe three minutes of silence to mourn the deceased, while air raid sirens and horns of automobiles, trains and ships will wail in grief.

During the commemoration, national flags will fly at half-mast across the country and in all Chinese embassies and consulates abroad, and public recreational activities will be suspended across the country, official media reported on Friday.

China will observe a national day of mourning on Saturday for martyrs, including the "whistleblower" doctor Li Wenliang, who sacrificed their lives in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak and the over 3,300 people who died of the COVID-19 in the country.

The total number of COVID19 positive cases rises to 2301 in India, which includes 156 cured/discharged patients, 56 deaths and 1 migrated patient, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The Kolkata police also asked priests of the Ram temples to adhere to social distancing and not to allow the assembling of devotees outside the temples.

Police, in several districts, asked devotees to return home immediately after offering pujas and instructed them to avoid gatherings and strictly follow social distancing norms, a senior officer said. Large gatherings were seen outside many temples in Beliaghata and Maniktala area in the eastern metropolis.

People in large numbers were seen scrambling outside temples in various districts and sought blessings from the ''Lord Ram'' to get relief from the coronavirus pandemic sooner than later.

Long queues of devotees were seen outside temples across the state, while the annual Ram Navami rallies were not held this year as the VHP and other saffron groups have called off the programmes due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Amid chant of 'Jai Sri Ram', thousands of devotees assembled in temples in various parts of West Bengal on the occasion of Ram Navami on Thursday, giving a thumbs down to social distancing norms prescribed by the government during the ongoing nationwide lockdown period.

SPS Nellore district saw a significant jump in the number of cases as 21 were reported overnight. The district now has an overall 24 coronavirus positive cases, topping the state list.

All the fresh cases too were related to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi, from where Covid-19 has been fast spreading.

Coronavirus positive cases continued to maintain an upward curve in Andhra Pradesh with a total of 38 additions in the last 24 hours, taking the aggregate in the state to 149 on Thursday. With just two of the patients shown by the government as recovered, the number of 'active' cases remains at 147.

He works in a government department in Indore and came to Chhindwara on March 19 before the lockdown, in force since March 25 to stem the spread of the deadly virus, he said.

The Chhindwara patient is a 36-year-old man who became the first coronavirus positive case in the district, Sub- Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Atul Singh said.

Of the fresh cases, seven were recorded in Indore, the worst coronavirus-affected city in the state, and one in Chhindwara, he said.

Eight new cases of COVID-19, one of them a government employee, were reported from Madhya Pradesh since Thursday night, taking the state's tally to 119, a senior health official said on Friday.

The "Mo Prativa" (My talent) programme is for children in the age group of 5 to 18 years.

Children can participate in competitions of painting, writing of slogans, short stories and poems and poster making, winning entries will get certificates, said Odisha government's COVID spokesman Subroto Bagchi.

The Odisha government in collaboration with the UNICEF has launched an online cultural competition among children to keep them engaged at home during the lockdown period.

The price range of each kit is expected to be in the range of Rs 500-1000.

The medical-device maker plans to supply 50,000 tests a day starting 1 April, said John Frels, vice president of research and development at Abbott Diagnostics.

The batch samples are expected to be evaluated by ICMR by mid-April.

The coronavirus test kits launched by Abbott Laboratories, which helps one to identify the infected in not more than five minutes, is likely to reach India by third week of April, CNBC-TV18 reported.

Fourteen Group of Ministers (GoM) including Home Minister Amit Shah, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, Cabinet Minister Prahlad Joshi and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan were among those present.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh chaired a crucial meet on Friday regarding the preparedness to deal with the novel coronavirus as the total confirmed cases surpassed 2000-mark.

The woman had returned from Dubai and had concealed information about the infection.

On 28 March, the Kangra district administration had registered an FIR against the woman for concealing information of her infection as she was tested positive at Dr RPGMC Tanda for coronavirus.

The 63-year-old woman from Solan district in Himachal Pradesh who had tested positive for the novel coronavirus, died on Friday in Chandigarh hospital, PTI reported.

One week of virtual masterclasses will be spread across the entire journey of building high quality YouTube videos and all experts will cover all important aspects of creating content along with marketing it.

Redmi Creator Academy kickstarts its first phase with virtual YouTube Video masterclasses with several media, YouTube and in-house experts from Xiaomi India. All sessions start from Monday, 6 April 2020 across Redmi India YouTube channel and will be conducted daily throughout the week absolutely free of cost.

Xiaomi, smartphone and smart TV brand, announced Redmi Creator Academy (RCA) for aspiring content creators. RCA is Xiaomis first series of virtual masterclasses aimed at providing industrys best learning practices to aspiring content creators.

Maharashtra government and BMC will mobilise support by using its available infrastructure, communication channels and social media platforms to propagate the 'BMC-Mpower 1on1' helpline and appeal to people of Maharashtra to avail this free service.

Available free of cost for people across cities of Maharashtra, the helpline has experienced and trained mental health counsellors, who are clinical psychologists and psychiatrists from Mpower  The Centre, Mpower  The Foundation and Mpower  The Cell to provide much needed mental healthcare counsel and suppo, according to a press statement. The service is available in Marathi, Hindi and English to address any mental health concerns faced by citizens of Maharashtra during these trying times.

Mpower, in the Indian mental healthcare space, has partnered with Government of Maharashtra and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to launch a toll-free helpline number  1800-120-820050 called 'BMC-Mpower 1on1' . This will be available to citizens 24x7.

The new case reported on Friday took the state's COVID-19 tally to 125 with three deaths. So far, 11 individuals have been cured or discharged.

A 75-year-old man, resident of Bagalkote district in Karnataka, with no travel or local transmission history, tested positive with the novel coronavirus on Friday. With this Bagalkote became the 14th district in the state to get affected with the deadly pandemic virus.

The deceased came in contact with his son, who travelled to Delhi and returned to Andhra on 17 March. Till Friday morning, the state registered a total of 161 positive cases.

Andhra Pradesh on Friday registered first death due to COVID-19 after a 55-year old man tested positive for the infection. He was admitted to a hospital on 30 on March after suffering from Hypertension Diabetes.

It is ensured through regular surveillance by way of physical verification and technical monitoring, he said.

Delhi's Dwarka district has strictly enforced the home-quarantine guidelines during the ongoing lockdown for public safety and health, a senior police official said.

Twenty-one FIRs have been registered against people in Dwarka for flouting home-quarantine rules, police said on Friday. The violators have been booked under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3 of Epidemic Diseases Act, they said.

The top court, which had also asked the Centre to take the assistance of trained counsellors and religious leaders of all faiths to help the migrants overcome their panic, had observed that "panic will destroy more lives than the virus".

On 31 March, a bench headed by Chief Justice SA Bobde, had directed the Centre to ensure that migrant workers kept in shelter homes are given food and adequate medical aid.

The apex court is already seized of petitions which have raised the issue related to the migration of daily wagers from cities to their native places amid the lockdown.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, raised objections on the application and said that state governments have already taken over buildings like schools and others to use them as a shelter for migrants.

A bench comprising Justices L Nageswara Rao and Deepak Gupta, which heard the matter through video-conferencing, observed that the court cannot force the government to listen to all the ideas as people may come up with millions of ideas.

The Supreme Court Friday dismissed a plea seeking direction for using resorts and hotels for migrant workers walking back to their native places after being rendered jobless following 21-day lockdown due to coronavirus pandemic as shelter homes where they are kept allegedly lack adequate sanitation facilities.

The petitioner claimed that due to the rise in demand for these commodities, as a result of the coronavirus threat, chemists and medical shops were selling them at a price much higher than the maximum retail price (MRP) as well as the price prescribed by the government.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday had issued a notice to the central government and Delhi government in a plea by the NGO, Justice for Rights Foundation highlighting price gouging of masks and hand sanitisers.

The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Centre to take all necessary steps to ensure effective implementation of notification on price control of masks and sanitizers. The apex court asked the government to publish and publicize helpline numbers for the effective implementation of notifications on controlling their prices reports Bar and Bench.

The number of cases from the virus has reached one million worldwide and more than 51,000 deaths have been reported across more than 175 countries and territories, according to the Johns Hopkins University tally.

A wet market in the central Chinese city of Wuhan is believed to be the source of the coronavirus pandemic that began in December last year, crossing from animals to humans.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday urged the WHO and the UN to act against China's wet markets, like the one where the deadly coronavirus is thought to have originated, as they pose "great risks" to the health and wellbeing of the rest of the world.

Of the five COVID-19 cases detected in Odisha so far, four are in Bhubaneswar and one in Bhadrak.

All shops selling essential commodities will remain closed during the period, Chief Secretary AK Tripathy said. Only select medicine stores will be open.

Intensifying its battle against COVID-19, the Odisha government announced a 48-hour total shutdown, akin to curfew, in the state capital Bhubaneswar and Bhadrak town from 8 pm on Friday, the state's top official said.

"He was shifted to the isolation ward as he was arrested from Kasaragod, a hotspot of covid19 in the state. We suspect that he escaped in the night. We noticed his absence this morning," he told PTI.

The inmate, suspected to have fled the prison ward on Thursday night, was identified as Ajay Babu, a native of Aamirpur in Uttar Pradesh. An accused in a bank burglary case in neighbouring Kasaragod district, Babu had been lodged at the isolation ward within the prison since 25 March, a senior jail official said.

An under trial prisoner, who was admitted to the coronavirus isolation ward at the central prison in Kannur, managed to escape after jumping the compound wall, jail authorities said on Friday.

"Food establishments, markets and supermarkets, utilities, clinics, hospitals, transport and key banking service will be functional," said Loong.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Friday imposed a one-month shutdown, in effect from 7 April, saying that most work places will remain shut, except for essential services and key economic sectors.

"This is first such action related to COVID-19 pandemic in Madhya Pradesh," an official said.

The Indore district administration on Friday invoked the National Security Act (NSA) against four men involved in the alleged attack on health workers in Taatpatti Bakhal area of the city.

This is the first time that TV homes (DTH) in India will have direct access to globally-renowned content from CuriosityStream, which was launched by John Hendricks, the visionary founder of Discovery Channel. CuriosityStream lets viewers explore their passions and discover new ones with thousands of films and series covering space, art, volcanoes, history, travel, cars, architecture, dinosaurs and so much more.

The CuriosityStream TV channel (419) will be available to all the 16.5 million plus customers of Airtel Digital TV and offer massive distribution reach to CuriosityStream.

Airtel Digital TV, the DTH unit of Airtel, has launched an exclusive Free to Airtel channel with the full catalogue of CuriosityStreams award-winning factual entertainment films and series.

Bharti Airtel ("Airtel") and CuriosityStream Friday announced that they have deepened their groundbreaking content partnership to bring premium content from CuriosityStream to TV homes in India.

Two fresh deaths due to Covid-19 were reported on Thursday and both victims were male, a senior official of the Health department said. With this, the death toll has now risen to four.

The total number of 293 cases includes 182 people who took part in a religious congregation in the Nizamuddin area in March. Till Wednesday night, the number of cases of the deadly virus in the city stood at 152, including two deaths.

The number of coronavirus cases went up to nearly 300 in the national capital on Thursday, with 141 fresh cases and two deaths reported in a day, according to the Delhi Health Department.

A Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus employee has tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Mumbai on Friday. According to media reports, the bus employee is a resident of Tilaknagar in Wadala.

The out-patient department (OPD) services at the LNJP and GB Pant hospitals in Delhi will be closed from Saturday, 4 Aprirl, authorities were quoted as saying by PTI.

"Efforts will be made to ensure testing facilities in all 24 government medical colleges," the statement added.

The Uttar Pradesh government on Friday said that it was planning to set up a Rs 1,000 crore fund which will include enhancing testing lab facilities and procurement of ventilators, masks, sanitisers. Apart from the government, the contribution of others, including industrial houses, will also be sought, the statement said.

The Rahul Tarun Mitra Mandal Association on Friday distributed food to over 250 migrant workers living under a flyover in Mumbai amid COVID-19 lockdown. A worker said, "I came in search of work.We sleep here and get food like this (through distribution). I request government to help us."

The Rajasthan public health department said that the total number of coronavirus cases in the state till now are 161, including 21 evacuees from Iran and 24 Tableeghi Jamaat attendees in Delhi's Nizammudin.

The trading hours for various markets have been revised from 10 am to 2 pm.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday revised the trading hours for various markets to minimise the risks and to ensure that market participants maintain adequate checks and supervisory controls while optimising thin resources and ensuring safety of personnel, ANI reported.

The Delhi Police said that in addition to FIRs filed against those violating the lockdown in the Dwarka district of the National Capital, 12 more cases  eight in the South district, two in the North district and one each in the North West and Central districts have also been registered against those found violating home quarantine rules and conditions.

Krishnaveni, an ASHA worker in Bengaluru, who was attacked on Wednesday while on duty in coronavirus research, said, "I am happy that five people have been arrested for attacking me while I was conducting a survey in view of COVID19 in Sadiq layout area in Bengaluru on 1 April. We serve the people and work for the betterment of the society."

"Health Minister Harsh Vardhan has appealed to patients and their families not to create any obstacle in the path of doctors while they discharge their duties. He also expressed concerns over misbehavior with doctors and medical staff," the statement said.

The Union health ministry, in the daily briefing on Friday said that 336 new coronavirus cases and 12 new deaths have been reported across the country in the last 24 hours. The total number of confirmed cases is now 2,301 and the total deaths are 56.

"If we look at cases related to Tableeghi Jamaat, in the last two days around 647 confirmed cases related to it have been found in 14 states  Andaman and Nicobar, Assam, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh," said Lav Aggarwal, health ministry joint secretary.

The health ministry on Friday said that 647 confirmed cases from 14 states are related to the Tablighi Jamaat in the last two days.

Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for people to light diyas or torches in appreciation of people engaged in anti-COVID-19 measures.

"There were seven helpline numbers in the control room of the Union Home Ministry. Now, we have introduced two more helpline numbers - 1930 (all India tollfree number) and 1944 (dedicated to Northeast)," she said.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Friday wrote to state governments to take strict action in cases of attack on healthcare and frontline workers and ensure the security to medical fraternity, said Punya Salila Srivastava, Joint Secretary, Home Ministry.

Prasar Bharati in Ladakh said that Gyalwang Drukpa, resident of Leh, is feeding stray animals in the city during the lockdown over coronavirus.

Coronavirus cases on Friday rose to 51 in Punjab, the state health department said. The bulletin added that five people have succumbed to the disease while one was cured/discharged.

Masks and hand sanitisers are being made available to all staff coming on duty. These are also being ensured for contract labourers," the statement said.

The Ministry of Railways said that till 1 April, the Indian Railways has produced total 2,87,704 masks and 25,806 liters of sanitiser.

The Jammu and Kashmir government said that the Srinagar Municipal Corporation gas installed the first decontamination and sanitizing tunnel at the Chest Disease (CD) Hospital in the city on Thursday.

"Three of these are from Nalbari, and one is from South Salmara, taking total number in Assam to 20. All these 4 people are also associated with the Tablighi Jamaat event," he said.

Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that four more coronavirus patients have been reported in the state.

Of the five new cases, four were reported in Kashmir and one was reported in Jammu. Out of 75, 70 are active cases.

The Jammu and Kashmir government said that five new coronavirus cases were reported in the union territory on Friday, taking the total number of cases to 75.

"This month's ration will be doubled and will reach every household before 5 April," he said,

Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar said that every family under the Antyodaya scheme will get 70 kilograms of ration and families under the Below Poverty Line will get 10 kilograms of ration per person with additional sugar and mustard oil.

"A total of 1,200 people, who participated in Delhi's Tableeghi Jamaat event, have been traced in the state. All of them have been placed under quarantine," she added.

Tamil Nadu health secretary Beela Rajesh said that 100 of 102 COVID-19 cases reported in the state on Friday had participated in the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizammudin. Total number of positive cases in the state stand at 411, out of which 364 had participated in the event.

The government's earlier financial package was not adequate. A lot of people felt left out and marginalized. PM Modi has not addressed their needs. He has not dealt with lack of personal protective equipment and of rapid testing kits. Photo ops will not solve COVID-19 problem," he added.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said that while he'll join in the diya exercise on Sunday in solidarity with people of India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech on Friday morning.

"Five people have died in Delhi so far due to coronavirus. Four had died earlier and one death was reported in the last 24 hours. He was also from Markaz. Only 38 cases of local transmission. Situation is still under control in Delhi," he added.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the government has set up 328 relief centres that can acommodate 57,000 people.

"Many of them are not from Delhi but were quarantined here in Delhi. 259 people, out of them, had attended Markaz event. The 58 people who have a history of foreign travel, further infected 38 members of their families," he added.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that of the total 384 cases of coronavirus in the National Capital, 58 patients have a history of foreign travel.

Two of the coronavirus patients in Delhi are on ventilator support, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said. He also said that the Delhi government has launched WhatsApp helpline  8800007722  for people to enquire about the COVID-19 situation.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) said, "...handed over 2,000 N-95 masks, 100 body protection suits and 400 small hand sanitiser bottles to doctors and nurses in AIIMS, Ram Manohar Lohia and New Delhi Air Force hospital."

The Karnataka government said that on Friday 13 attendees of Delhi's Tablighi Jamaat event tested for coronavirus in the state. The statement also said that 187 were found negative and reports of 88 attendees are yet to be received:.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday approved the release of Rs 11,092 crore to all states under the State Disaster Risk Management Fund (SDRMF) for setting up quarantine facilities and arranging other facilities for checking the spread of coronavirus, PTI reported.

"The highest ever spike of 478 coronavirus positive cases has been recorded in the last 24 hours. The total positive cases in the country stand at 2,547," ANI reported.

The total number of coronavirus positive cases in India rose to 2,547 on Friday (including 2,322 active cases, 162 cured/discharged and 62 deaths), the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.

The ICSE wrote to the principals of all schools affiliated to the board asking them to follow the directives of the state government where in they have issued directives regarding the promotion of all students of classes 1-8.

The Election Commission on Friday further postponed the Rajya Sabha election in view of the coronavirus pandemic. Fresh dates will be announced later, reports said.

"These states are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Punjab, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttarakhand and West Benal. Remaining Rs 11,092 crore is to all states as advance payment of central share of first instalment of SDRMF," says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was quoted as saying.

The Finance ministry on Friday released Rs 17,287 crore to various states to "enhance their financial resources during coronavirus", India Today reported. The report also said that Rs 6,195 crore on "account of revenue deficit grant under 15th Finance Commission recommendations to 14 states."

Six new COVID-19 cases were reported on Friday in Uttarakhand. Out of these, five were reported in Dehradun and one in US Nagar. There are a total of 16 cases so far in Uttarakhand, 11 of which are in Dehradun. Two have recovered so far.

Coronavirus cases in Delhi rose to 386 and two more deaths were recorded on Friday, the staet health department said. Of total cases, 259 are from Nizamuddin Markaz.

The government has put Britain into a virtual lockdown, closing pubs, restaurants and nearly all shops, while banning social gatherings and ordering Britons to stay at home unless it is absolutely essential to venture out.

Queen Elizabeth will make an extremely rare address to the nation on Sunday as Britain grapples with the increasingly deadly coronavirus outbreak, Reuters reported.

Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said, "Three more COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed, one each from Kamrup (metro), Kamrup and Marigaon taking the total number in Assam to 23. Two out of these three cases are of patients who are related to Nizamuddin Markaz event."

The Maharashtra government on Friday announced a compensation worth Rs 50 lakh to the next of the kin of any police officer who may die while on duty during coronavirus pandemic and lockdown, News18 reported.

PTI on Friday quoted officials as saying that 217 Indians were evacuated from Italy and housed at ITBP quarantine centre test negative for coronavirus after a fortnight.

Kerala: A couple in Kottayam, 93-year-old Thomas and 88-year-old Thresyamma, who were #COVID19 positive were discharged from Medical College Kottayam today after they recovered. pic.twitter.com/4PNOWDvu8w

A couple in Kottayam, 93-year-old Thomas and 88-year-old Thresyamma, who were COVID-19 positive were discharged from Medical College Kottayam on Friday after they recovered.

The coronavirus cases in Madhya Pradesh rose to 154 on Friday. Indore has the most amount of cases with 112, and eight deaths have been reported in the state.

The government has put Britain into a virtual lockdown, closing pubs, restaurants and nearly all shops, while banning social gatherings and ordering Britons to stay at home unless it is absolutely essential to venture out.

Queen Elizabeth will make an extremely rare address to the nation on Sunday as Britain grapples with the increasingly deadly coronavirus outbreak, Reuters reported.

Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said, "Three more COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed, one each from Kamrup (metro), Kamrup and Marigaon taking the total number in Assam to 23. Two out of these three cases are of patients who are related to Nizamuddin Markaz event."

Uber will initially facilitate provision of 150 cars free of cost to support medical facilities in Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Lucknow, Prayagraj, Patna via UberMedic service. All such cars supplied to NHA to be equipped with roof-to-floor plastic sheeting enclosing drivers seat.

National Health Authority has announced its partnership with Uber India to provide transport for Indias frontline healthcare workers engaged in the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

Maharashtra: Cowsheds in Mumbai's Aaray have been hit by a shortage of fodder supply amid lockdown in the state due to #COVID19 . Ameen, caretaker of a stable says, "There are 600 cows in my stable. Suppliers don't come even after offering double money. It is difficult to sustain" pic.twitter.com/AG07FncKC0

Cowsheds in Mumbai's Aarey have been hit by a shortage of fodder supply amid lockdown in the state due to COVID-19. Ameen, caretaker of a stable said, "There are 600 cows in my stable. Suppliers don't come even after offering double money. It is difficult to sustain."

Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates: The total number of coronavirus positive cases in India rose to 2,547 on Friday (including 2,322 active cases, 162 cured/discharged and 62 deaths), the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.

"The highest ever spike of 478 coronavirus positive cases has been recorded in the last 24 hours. The total positive cases in the country stand at 2,547," ANI reported.

Eleven CISF jawans posted at the Mumbai airport have tested positive for coronavirus, a statement said on Friday. A total of 142 jawans were under quarantine for the last few days, out of which four were tested positive on Thursday and others were tested positive on Friday.

The Jammu and Kashmir government said that five new coronavirus cases were reported in the union territory on Friday, taking the total number of cases to 75.

Of the five new cases, four were reported in Kashmir and one was reported in Jammu. Out of 75, 70 are active cases.

The Ministry of Railways said that till 1 April, the Indian Railways has produced total 2,87,704 masks and 25,806 liters of sanitiser.

Masks and hand sanitisers are being made available to all staff coming on duty. These are also being ensured for contract labourers," the statement said.

The health ministry on Friday said that 647 confirmed cases from 14 states are related to the Tablighi Jamaat in the last two days.

"If we look at cases related to Tableeghi Jamaat, in the last two days around 647 confirmed cases related to it have been found in 14 states  Andaman and Nicobar, Assam, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh," said Lav Aggarwal, health ministry joint secretary.

A Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) bus employee has tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Mumbai on Friday. According to media reports, the bus employee is a resident of Tilaknagar in Wadala.

The sixth COVID-19 positive case has been detected in Cuttack, Odisha. The patient had a recent travel history to Delhi. "Sixth COVID positive case of the State detected in Cuttack with recent travel history to Delhi, tweeted the Health department.

In view of the incident, a shutdown call for 48 hours will be effective in Cuttack from Friday at 8 pm onwards till Sunday 8 pm.

"We will use the time for aggressive contact tracing," said Asit Tripathy, Chief Secretary of Odisha.

Andhra Pradesh on Friday registered first death due to COVID-19 after a 55-year old man tested positive for the infection. He was admitted to a hospital on 30 on March after suffering from Hypertension Diabetes.

The deceased came in contact with his son, who travelled to Delhi and returned to Andhra on 17 March. Till Friday morning, the state registered a total of 161 positive cases.

A 75-year-old man, resident of Bagalkote district in Karnataka, with no travel or local transmission history, tested positive with the novel coronavirus on Friday. With this Bagalkote became the 14th district in the state to get affected with the deadly pandemic virus.

The new case reported on Friday took the state's COVID-19 tally to 125 with three deaths. So far, 11 individuals have been cured or discharged.

The first COVID-19 positive case, belonging to Bhubaneswar who was being treated at Capital hospital has recovered completely and will be discharged, conveyed the Health and Family Welfare Department via a tweet.

Active COVID-19 cases in Odisha now stand at 3, the health department further said.

The total number of COVID19 positive cases rises to 2301 in India, which includes 156 cured/discharged patients, 56 deaths and 1 migrated patient, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his address to the nation concluded on Friday for not discussing 'vision of the future' or weighing in the concerning issues post-lockdown.

Uttar Pradesh government on Friday issued orders that strict action will be taken under the National Security Act (NSA) against those who attack police personnel anywhere in the state during the 21-day nationwide lockdown.

Addressing the nation via video conference on Friday, Narendra Modi asked the citizens on 5 April (Sunday) to stand in their balconies or in any corner of their house for 9 minutes with candles, lamps or mobile flash lights to mark the march from darkness to light.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he would share a video message on Friday morning, but gave no indication on the subjcet of his address. "At 9 am tomorrow morning, I'll share a small video message with my fellow Indians," Modi tweeted on Thursday.

Many believe his message could be related to the coronavirus crisis. Modi has addressed the nation twice since the pandemic became a cause for serious concern in India.

Another COVID-19 case emerged in Dharavi in Mumbai after a 35-year-old doctor tested positive for the novel coronavirus on Friday. His family has been quarantined and will get tested on Friday.

The global tally of confirmed coronavirus cases surpassed 1 million-mark on Thursday as the pandemic explodes in the United States and death toll continues to climb in Italy and Spain, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hinted at a "staggered" exit from the ongoing lockdown after the 21-day period ends on 14 April even as confirmed coronavirus cases in India climbed to 2,069 and toll increased to 53 on Thursday and over 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat attendees and their primary contacts quarantined across the country.

According to the Union Health ministry, 235 more people were confirmed positive for COVID-19 in the last 24 hours while three more  one from Gujarat and two from Delhi  died because of virus.

The numbers include 1,860 active cases, 155 people who have been either cured or discharged and one had migrated, it said.

However, the figures announced by various states, including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi, showed more than 400 positive cases getting detected on Thursday itself -- taking the total to 2,360, PTI said.

Data from states also show that at least 14 people died during the day due to the virus.

A majority of the new cases are linked to the congregation, officials said.

In the total tally, about 400 COVID-19 positive cases have been found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster, said the Union Health Ministry, which asserted there was no evidence to widespread community transmission and 20 existing and 22 potential hotspots have been identified across the country.

Thursday also saw the government toughening its stand against foreigners who were part of the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Nizamuddin West, with the MHA saying that it has blacklisted 960 foreigners and cancelled their visas after finding that they were involved in Tablighi Jamaat activities violating their visa conditions.

The Home Minister's Office asked Delhi Police and police chiefs of other states where these foreigners are currently living, to take legal action against them under the Foreigners Act and the Disaster Management Act.

A Home Ministry official said while 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat members and their primary contacts have been quarantined till now across the country due to "massive efforts" to check the outbreak, the Centre has written to all states and union territories that "the lockdown measures should be implemented in letter and spirit".

States report over 400 new cases

According to the Union health ministry's website, the 2,069 confirmed cases in India include 55 foreign nationals.

The highest number of coronavirus confirmed cases have been reported from Maharashtra at 335 so far, followed by Kerala at 265 and Tamil Nadu at 234.

The number of cases in Delhi has gone up to 219.

Uttar Pradesh has reported 113 positive cases so far, while the COVID-19 cases in Karnataka have risen to 110 and in Telengana to 107. Rajasthan has reported 108 cases, Madhya Pradesh 99, Gujarat 87, Andhra Pradesh 86. Jammu and Kashmir has 62 positive patients so far.

The number of cases have risen to 53 in West Bengal. Punjab has reported 46 COVID-19 cases and Haryana 43.

Bihar has 24, while Chandigarh has 16 and Ladakh has reported 13 cases.

Ten cases have been reported from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Chhattisgarh has nine positive patients while Uttarakhand has reported seven cases so far.

Goa and Assam have reported five coronavirus cases each. Odisha has four cases while Puducherry and Himachal Pradesh have reported three cases each. Jhakhand, Mizoram and Manipur have reported a case each, according to the ministry.

Several states, however, reported higher figures, which have not yet been updated in the health ministry's website.

The death of a COVID-19 patient from Mumbai's Dharavi, one of the biggest slums in Asia, sparked fear of its spread in highly congested area. The Union Health Ministry said contact tracing and testing as per protocol is being conducted in the area. Several small-scale industries and workshops of leather goods, pottery and textiles operate from the slum colony spread over 613 acres.

On Thursday late evening, one more positive case emerged from Dharavi after a general practitioner was found positive by a suburban lab.

As many as 88 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the state on Thursday, taking the tally to 423, while the death toll rose to 21, said health officials.

Officials in the state also said around 1,400 persons from Maharashtra attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi and 1,300 of them have been traced.

Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar said no social events including religious congregations would be allowed in the state.

The state was also allowed by the Centre to roll out rapid COVID-19 testing on a mass scale.

In Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said there are 208 COVID-19 patients in the national capital, of which 108 were evacuated from the Nizamuddin Markaz (centre) of the Tablighi Jamaat.

He said two people who had attended the congregation died due to COVID-19 on Thursday and cautioned that the number of positive cases may shoot up in the national capital in coming days.

According to Andhra Pradesh officials, coronavirus positive cases continued to maintain an upward curve in the state too on Thursday with a total of 38 additions in the last 24 hours, taking the aggregate in the state to 149.

Karnataka reported 14 new positive cases of coronavirus, taking the total number of the affected to 124. Among 14 new positive cases reported in the state include - ten men, who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi, and are currently isolated at a designated hospital in Bidar; while one woman from Kalaburagi is the contact of a person who has attended the congregation.

Nearly 1,000 people from Karnataka, who are linked to Tablighi-Jamaat congregation in New Delhi, have been screened so far, the government said on Thursday

Modi calls for 'staggered' exit from lockdown

Prime Minister Modi, who will share a video message with people on Friday morning, in the meantime interacted with chief ministers through a video conference and told them to focus on COVID-19 containment measures -- testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine -- and said it was imperative to work on a war footing, identify hotspots, encircle them and ensure that the infection does not spread out.

According to an official statement, Modi also pitched for formulating a common exit strategy to ensure "staggered re-emergence of the population" once the 21-day nationwide lockdown ends on 14 April.

Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said the prime minister has urged states to manage the coronavirus crisis at the district level.

Action against violators, sporadic attack on doctors

In the meantime, sporadic attacks on doctors, social workers and police personnel also came to the fore raising concerns over their safety and prompting warnings by authorities.

Seven persons were arrested for the alleged attack on health workers in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city, who had gone there to quarantine relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient but were attacked with stones by an unruly mob leaving two women doctors injured. A video of the attack went viral on social media.

Authorities also continued to take action against those violating the lockdown, which entered its ninth day on Thursday.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to all chief secretaries of the states and union territories to action against those violating the lockdown or making false claims under the Indian Penal Code and the Disaster Management Act.

Bhalla said those violating these laws can be punished with jail term of up to two years and fine.

The Health Ministry said domestic indigenous manufacturing of N-95 masks has been stepped up, while orders have been placed for over 1.5 crore personal protective equipment (PPEs) and supply has begun too.

Congress, BJP slam each other over coronavirus; PM to address nation tomorrow at 9 am

The Congress on Thursday came down heavily on the government accusing it of low coronavirus testing, with party president Sonia Gandhi alleging that its "unplanned" implementation of countrywide lockdown caused "chaos and pain" to millions of migrant workers.

Blaming the government for not giving any thought to the deteriorating economic situation, the party demanded setting up of a task force of world experts for measures to revive the economy.

Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday alleged that the government is "under-funding" the fight against the coronavirus pandemic and asked the Modi dispensation to announce that it will fund the battle with Rs 5-6 lakh crore.

"Government is hopelessly under-funding the fight against the epidemic. Under-funding will exacerbate the situation and the money spent may turn out to be a waste. Dr Jahangir Aziz has already warned the government in this regard," the former finance minister asserted.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah hit back at the Congress accusing the party of weakening the country's fight against the coronavirus by doing "petty politics" and asked when will it give priority to national interest over its own.

"Under PM @narendramodi's leadership, India's efforts to fight coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. 130-crore Indians are united to defeat COVID-19," the minister said in a tweet.

"Yet, the Congress is playing petty politics. High time they think of national interest and stop misleading people," Shah said.

Airlines can allow bookings after 14 April, says aviation minister



Hopes of the lockdown getting removed, at least partially, after its 21-day period rose further after aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri said airlines are free to allow ticket booking for flights after 14 April. He also said the resumption of international flights will be considered on a case-by-case basis, depending on which countries they are coming from after the 21-day lockdown ends.

Separately, Air India also said it has got approvals from Indian and Chinese authorities to operate cargo flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong to get medical supplies.

A few other positives that came to light on Thursday included defence research institution DRDO developing a "bio-suit" to protect doctors and paramedics engaged in treating coronavirus-affected people from the infection.

The "bio-suit" which will act as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the healthcare personnel, officials told PTI.

They said considering the high demand of PPEs across the country, steps are being taken to produce at least 15,000 suits per day.

India is currently reeling under increasing shortage of PPE for doctors and paramedics involved in taking care of coronavirus patients. The government is also scouting global markets to procure PPE, ventilators and N95 masks.

Globally, more than 9,40,000 people have tested positive since the deadly virus outbreak in China in December 2019, while more than 47,000 have lost their lives.

World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said there had been a "near exponential growth" in new cases over the past five weeks and a doubling of deaths in the past week alone.

"In the next few days we will reach one million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths," he said, while asking Africa and Latin America to be ready for a wider impact.

With inputs from agencies
On the same day Gov. Tom Wolf expanded his stay-at-home order to the entire state to slow the spread of the coronavirus, a majority of Pennsylvania senators sent him a letter calling on him to expedite opening as many businesses as possible at this time.

The letter signed by 29 senators commends Wolf and his team for their efforts to contain COVID-19 but calls that a short-term plan.

As each day passes and more counties are placed under stay at home orders, it becomes crucial that we also look to the future and plan for the day when Pennsylvania can return to a state of normalcy, states the letter signed by every member of the GOP-controlled chambers Republican Caucus as well as independent Sen. John Yudichak of Luzerne County.

The letter touches on the concerns and frustrations that have arisen from the states business community owners over Wolfs now indefinite closure of non-life-sustaining businesses as part of the states coronavirus mitigation efforts.

A small business with two employees and a handful of customers in their store at a time is less risky to public health than big box stores with a hundred employees and numerous customers shopping for lawn furniture. We need common sense with compassion and sound guidelines for employers to follow, the letter states.

It goes on to encourage the governor to work with business leaders to develop guidelines to help establish more stability for the states workforce. Many business leaders said they were blindsided by the governors closure order issued on March 19 and took effect just hours later at 8 p.m. that night.

When the governor issued the business closure order, he said it was a necessary step to protect Pennsylvanians health and safety. On Wednesday when he extended the stay-at-home order Wolf reiterated the point, saying, we need to have fewer people coming into contact with other people.

The senators acknowledge the likelihood of more dark days ahead but along with preparing for them, they say its crucial to focus attention on stabilizing the economy and they look forward to working with Wolf on a plan for business recovery.

We no longer can ignore the economic impact of this virus, they wrote. "We have stood with you to protect Pennsylvanians from COVID-19, and we ask that you stand with us to expedite opening as many businesses as possible at this time. Just as your administration planned for ways to combat this virus, it is imperative that we also plan for business recovery."

The March revenue report issued by the state Department of Revenue on Wednesday told the beginning of the story of the pandemics impact on Pennsylvanias economy.

It showed state tax collections for the month totaling $4.4 billion which was $295 million  or 6% short  of the estimate for the month. Revenue Secretary C. Dan Hassell stated that is only the tip of the iceberg of the pandemics impact on collections and told Spotlight PA that some major adjustments to the budget will be required.

Already, Wolf has imposed a freeze on state government hiring and non-essential purchases. He also laid off roughly 2,500 part-time and seasonal state workers.

Jan Murphy may be reached at jmurphy@pennlive.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JanMurphy.

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Jostling for rations in the Moghalpura locality of Hyderabad. How will the state governments manage to fight the Covid-19 pandemic if the Union government does not release funds to the states? (DC Photo: Deepak Deshpande)

State governments are in the forefront of the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. They are putting in all their resources to implement the national lockdown, treat the sick, quarantine those under observation, and take care of the destitute.

Most states, however, are under severe financial stress. The budgets of several state governments, presented in February and March, had complained of the same, saying many of their programmes hinge on the timely disbursement of their share of GST revenues to them. The Centre, which has turned a deaf ear to the plea of the states, has not yet eased its purse strings. The pandemic has come as a bolt from the blue, and most states have little clue as to how to raise resources to meet the contingency.

Some have deprived their own staff: the Maharashtra and Telangana governments have announced deferment of employees' salaries while Kerala has asked them to donate a months salary to the Chief Ministers Distress Relief Fund.

The nationwide lockdown has virtually ground the economy to a halt; nobody knows when it will be back on its feet. This means the coffers of states will continue to remain empty for the foreseeable future. This could translate into lethargy on the part of states and their workmen in the fight against Covid-19, which could further endanger the very existence of our nation.

The Union government must step in now and stop the states from slipping into a vicious cycle. It must immediately release the share of tax revenue as per the law and come up with a package to help the states effectively implement measures to prevent the spread of the virus. The government should not take refuge in fiscal conservatism and cite the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act. Instead, it must help the states, with proactive steps, join forces in the national cause.
A residents from St. Joseph's Senior Home is loaded into a bus in Woodbridge, N.J., Wednesday, March 25, 2020. More than 90 residents of the nursing home in Woodbridge are being transferred to a facility in Whippany after 24 tested positive for COVID-19, according to a spokeswoman for CareOne, which operates the Whippany facility. The facility has moved its residents to other facilities to accommodate the new arrivals. (AP Photo)

New Jersey: Nursing homes across the country have been in lockdown for weeks under federal orders to protect their frail, elderly residents from coronavirus, but a wave of deadly outbreaks nearly every day since suggests that the measures including a ban on visits and daily health screenings of staffers either came too late or were not rigorous enough.

Recent outbreaks in Tennessee, New Jersey, Ohio, West Virginia and Maryland have pushed the death toll at the nations nursing homes to at least 450 and highlight the biggest gap: Screenings of doctors, nurses, aides and other workers do not involve actual testing but the taking of temperatures or asking health questions that still allow infected, asymptomatic people to slip through.

Its still been like Swiss cheese with people coming in and out of there, and thus youve got these explosions in senior facilities, said John BaRoss of Long Valley, New Jersey, who recently pulled his 85-year-old mother out of an assisted-living center out of fear of infection.

After an outbreak of 100 infections and four deaths at the Gallatin Center for Rehabilitation and Healing outside Nashville, Tennessee where the National Guard was called in to help evacuate the facility Sumner County Mayor Anthony Holt blamed staff members who came to work despite showing symptoms for COVID-19 and exposed a lot of patients.

Things got out of hand, Holt told the Associated Press. Once employees became symptomatic, they should have asked them to go home immediately and called the health department. I dont think that occurred.

After an outbreak near Dayton, Ohio, killed six people and infected nearly 50 at a pair of nursing homes less than 10 miles apart, health officials began scrutinizing medical specialists such as phlebotomists and respiratory therapists who work in multiple facilities a day. One such health worker who visited both homes tested positive for COVID-19.
(Natural News) By now, regular readers know from our reporting that the Communist Chinese government has been anything but transparent in providing factual details about the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), how it spreads, how it infects, and  importantly  how lethal and widespread the virus has been.

As early as March 1, Natural News reported that Chinas response to the virus was merely the latest in a string of cover-ups and suppression.

The latest lie from the regime is that things are much better now  infection and death rates have plummeted and the people are back to work singing happy songs about Xi Jinping and how its wonderful to be alive in a Communist system.

As noted by Zero Hedge on Wednesday, the government lifted its quarantine and ordered people back to work too soon; now the Communist government apparently has a second virus outbreak on its hands:

Having lied for the past two months about the severity and the extent of [the] coronavirus pandemic which its virologists started in Wuhan, eager to convey the message that the crisis [is] under control just so people return to work, full of hope and enthusiasm, rejoicing at the surge in Chinas just as fabricated PMI numbers  earlier today the US finally cracked down on the relentless barrage of Chinese lies, when US intelligence accused China of deliberately lying about its coronavirus figures.

No sooner than the accusation was made public, Reuters reported that a county in central Chinas Henan province coincidentally announced that it had virtually banned outbound movement of people, following several cases of coronavirus infection in the area.

You dont say?

According to a post on its social media site, Jia county, home to about 600,000 people, announced that no one was permitted to travel out of the county without the proper authorization. Also, residents are not permitted to leave their places of residence for work unless they are cleared to do so by government officials.

Needless to say, this is a problem

Zero Hedge noted that local media reports said that Henan Province broke its 30-day streak of reporting no new COVID-19 cases on March 29, announcing that one person tested positive following a trip to Pingdingshan, where Jia County is located.

On Saturday, provincial officials reported a single confirmed case in Luohe city, where local authorities said that the victim was in contact with two doctors from Jia county who also later tested positive for the virus though they were not demonstrating any symptoms.

As a result, according to Bloomberg News, cited by Zero Hedge, beginning April 1 all residential complexes would be under closed-off management and everyone needed to wear masks and have their temperature taken while entering or exiting the compounds.

And thus, the coronavirus remains alive and well in China, though Beijing has reported that the government had everything under control, undermining the countrys Communists and their lackey apologists at the World Health Organization.

Needless to say this is a problem, because the risk of stop-start restrictions on peoples movements mean that any calls for a V-shaped rebound in global economies and stocks can now be ignored as China will soon be forced to go through the entire shut down exercise all over again, Zero Hedge reported.

Bloombergs Simon Flint noted overnight Tuesday that as Chinas economy restarts, there is every risk infection rates [will] tick higher once again, requiring renewed control measures and potentially the beginning of a stop-start pattern of lockdowns followed by easing of restrictions.

Now, multiply that over the number of countries dealing with this Chinese-made virus and you can quickly understand how utterly devastating this is going to be on the world for some time to come.

Sources include:

ZeroHedge.com

NaturalNews.com
While Bonnie Castle has served Dark Islands Spirits hand crafted cocktails to bar and restaurant guests for years, visitors can now find a new, HIGHLY DEMANDED Dark Island product with their bathroom amenities: hand sanitizer.



(TRAVPR.COM) USA - March 31st, 2020 - Alexandria Bay, NY  March 30, 2020

While travel has been significantly reduced in the 1000 Islands area and beyond, the

management team at Bonnie Castle has remained busy supporting guests and seeking ways

to keep them and employees as safe as possible.

Though the property has continued toexceed mandatory sanitary conditions throughout, General Manager, Mike Nadeau and Sr.Sales and Marketing Manager, Adam Taylor, recently took it a step further and orderedindividual bottles of hand sanitizer from their neighbor and local distiller, Dark Island Spirits, making them the first hotel in the area to take on the additional expense for their guests.

Its always been important to us to have craft cocktails and beers from our local distilleries

and breweries, so it was a no-brainer to continue our support while providing a critically

important amenity for our guests and team members too. Nadeau emphasized; we know

our traveling guests will most likely not find what they need at local convenience stores, so

were going to make every effort to provide a safe and welcoming environment while staying

with us.

Dark Island recently shifted production of their spirits to full strength, 160 Proof hand

sanitizers with Glycerin and Hydrogen Peroxide for both Virus and Bacteria protection at a

time when the community was without many options. Since the recent production they have

also supplied first responders and government entities with the sanitizers and continue to

work tirelessly to keep up with demand.

The hand sanitizers have been a perfect complement to Bonnie Castles stance on ensuring

guest safety while thinking outside the box to also provide a warm and relaxed experience.

And while other properties understandably decided to stop taking reservations at this time,

Bonnie Castle opted to remain available as a resource for those needing accommodations in

the less dense 1000 Islands area.

Theres no denying this is a challenging time for our industry, however we made the

decision early on to help our guests and the community find positives through it all., Mr.

Taylor noted, for instance, were fortunate to be around the corner from amazing state

parks, and well gladly point guests to our favorite trails. Our local, family owned restaurants

and breweries are still serving great food and bottling excellent beer; and were encouraging

our guests to take advantage of those while supporting local businesses. Weve accepted the responsibility to safely provide some semblance of normalcy while guests are staying with us. The environment is continuing to change and fortunately were in a position to pivot and adapt on the spot whereas some larger brands can not.

Nadeau and Taylor are confident these items are what guests will remember for years to come and will be important factors when travel eventually picks back up to the area.

Bonnie Castle is also supporting the community with specials rates now through April 30th to assist those needing accommodations in the 1000 Islands area. While not all onsite activities are open to ensure social distancing and guest safety, the Bonnie Castle Operations team is prepared to help guests make the most of their stay.

For more information and availability for special rates, call the Front Desk directly, (315) 482-4511 or visit bonniecastle.com

CONTACT:

Bonnie Castle Resort & Marina

31 Holland St

Alexandria Bay, NY 13607

Adam Taylor: ataylor@bonniecastle.com

www.Bonniecastle.com

###
The Naval Dockyard, Mumbai, has designed and developed a hand-held infrared temperature sensor and it has the capacity to scale up production if agencies require these instruments in large numbers to screen people for fever amid the Covid-19 outbreak, the navy said in a statement on Thursday.

The navy said the instrument had been developed to overcome the scarcity of temperature guns in the market where these were being sold at a very high cost.

The instrument has been manufactured for under Rs 1,000 using in-house resources. The cost is a fraction of the price of the temperature guns in the market, the statement said, adding that the countrys medical infrastructure was being tested by the surge in the count of Covid-19 cases.

The dockyards temperature sensor has an accuracy of 0.02 degree Celsius, it said.

The temperature guns will be used for screening the 20,000 personnel who visit the dockyard daily and this will reduce the workload of the sentries at the gates, the navy said.

In view of Covid-19, initial screening of these personnel entering the dockyard was essential to prevent the spread of the disease within the yard and the navys Western Fleet. The most preliminary method to screen a probable patient is to check for body temperature by non-contact means, the statement said.

As the country prepares to handle a rising number of cases and meet its need for ventilators, which about 5% of the Covid-19 patients may require, the navy has also pitched in with an innovative ventilator design that can cater to six patients simultaneously.

The Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam, has manufactured this portable multi-feed oxygen manifold ventilator.

To cater to the requirement of oxygen supply for multiple patients during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, personnel from Naval Dockyard Visakhapatnam have designed an innovative Portable Multi-feed Oxygen Manifold(MOM) using a 6-way radial header fitted to a single cylinder. This innovation will enable one oxygen bottle to supply six patients concurrently thus enabling critical care management to a larger number of Covid patients with the existing limited resources, the navy said in a statement earlier this week.
Parliament has adopted a report of the Finance Committee on the financing agreement between the Government of the Republic of Ghana and the International Development Association, a subsidiary of World Bank, for an amount of twenty-five million, five hundred thousand special drawing rights equivalent to (35 million US dollars) to finance the Ghana COVID-19 emergency preparedness and response project.



The agreement comes after Ghana recorded its first 2 cases on March 12, 2020. Currently, the curve of the confirmed cases has risen to 195, with 5 deaths.



The report in accordance with article 181 of the 1992 constitution of the Republic of Ghana was respectfully submitted to the house by the chairman of the committee, Mark Assibey Yeboah, reports Power FMs, Princess Arita Anim.



The project was laid before the House Saturday, 28 March 2020, by the Deputy Minister for Finance, Mrs Abena Osei-Asare, on behalf of the sector Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta.



Despite the absence of the Minority in the chamber, the Speaker, Professor Aaron Michael Oquaye, referred it to the Finance Committee of Parliament for consideration and approval.



Expected Outcome of the Project



The approval of the project by Parliament is to prevent, detect and respond to the threat posed by the Coronavirus pandemic and strengthen national systems for public health preparedness in Ghana.



It is also expected to enhance control measures to halt further infections, loss of lives and mitigate the negative impact the outbreak may have on the countrys economy.



Also, for an upgraded national response capacity by improving access to health services, safeguarding disease surveillance and anchoring other public health interventions.



Furthermore, the Ghana COVID-19 Emergency Preparedness and Response Project is expected to yield improved national forecasting, prevention and preparedness requirements of infrastructure (reference labs, clinical capacity), equipment, reagents and commodities, with trained local capacities embedded in national human and animal systems; improved monitoring and evaluation prevention and preparedness, built capacity for clinical and public health research, and joint- learning across the country.



Ghanas COVID-19 Breakdown



Health Minister Kwaku Agyemang-Manu (MP) announced Wednesday morning that out of the almost 200 cases confirmed in the country were from routine surveillance while cases from those on mandatory quarantine remain 89.



Majority of the cases (174), he noted, were recorded in the Greater Accra Region with



The Northern Region has the second highest with 10 cases, slightly surpassing the Ashanti Region which is currently on lockdown with 9 cases.



The Upper West Region and the Eastern both have recorded one case each.



According to the Health Minister, 38 people have recovered and discharged while some 49 are receiving treatment from home.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-02 09:02:01

(2020-04-02) The Annual General Meeting of Kitron will be held on Thursday 23 April 2020 at 10:00 a.m. CEST at the head office of Kitron ASA, Olav Brunborgs vei 4, 1396 Billingstad, Norway.

Due to the corona pandemic, shareholders are encouraged to avoid meeting in person at the Annual General Meeting. Instead, shareholders are invited to cast their votes electronically in advance or provide the Deputy Chair of the Board an authorization to vote with or without voting instructions.

As previously announced, due to the corona pandemic, the Board will not propose the planned dividend of NOK 0.50 at the Annual General Meeting. Instead, it is proposed that the general meeting grants an authorization to the board to resolve dividends on the basis of the annual accounts. The authorization may be used if the company is in a position to pay dividends at a later stage. With such authorization the board seeks to safeguard the company's financial position, and at the same time maintain the option to evidence shareholder value by paying dividends.

Further information on the matters on the agenda and the Board of Directors' proposed resolutions are set out in the attached notice.

For further information, please contact:

Cathrin Nylander, CFO, tel: +47 900 43 284

E-mail: investorrelations@kitron.com

Kitron is a leading Scandinavian electronics manufacturing services company for the Defence/Aerospace, Energy/Telecoms, Industry, Medical devices and Offshore/Marine sectors. The company is located in Norway, Sweden, Lithuania, Germany, Poland, China and the United States. Kitron had revenues of about NOK 3.3 billion in 2019 and has about 1 700 employees. www.kitron.com

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

Attachment
Putin Signs Law Enabling Cabinet to Declare State of Emergency

Sputnik News

16:22 GMT 01.04.2020(updated 17:12 GMT 01.04.2020)

Last week, Putin addressed the nation to announce a set of measures aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus. Currently, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Europe has exceeded 300,000, while in Russia the total number of registered infections stands at 2,777, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed on Wednesday into federal law a bill enabling the cabinet to declare a nationwide state of emergency in the country.

The document was published on the official legal information portal.

The president also signed into laws bills on fines for people violating quarantine amid the coronavirus pandemic, fines for spreading false information about COVID-19, as well as a bill facilitating the allocation of budget funds for the coronavirus fight in 2020. The new law enables such allocations without any need to introduce amendments to the budget.

"The situation in our country is becoming more complicated. And in the world the situation with the coronavirus is very complicated  850,000 people are already sick," Putin said during a video call with the cabinet on Wednesday, as aired by Russia-24 broadcaster.

Vladimir Putin noted on Wednesday that the coronavirus pandemic was creating significant challenges for the employment market, stressing that the government "understands everything."

"The situation is really tough. We are suffering from a double blow. The coronavirus infection implies consequences for the economy, including the reduction in business activity. This is a serious challenge for the employment market, we understand this, we see everything," Putin told the Russian cabinet, as quoted by the Kremlin.

The oil prices drop is another challenge, the Russian president added.

Also, Mr Putin discussed with the Cabinet the situation concerning thousands of Russian citizens currently stranded abroad due to air travel restrictions.

Over 825,000 people have arrived in Russia from abroad since March 11, and 20,000 more persons are expected to arrive since they face difficulties with receiving medical assistance abroad, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday.

"You have just said that almost all the cases, with only very rare exceptions, are either imported or contact  due to contacts with people who have arrived from abroad. Since Mach 11, 2020, 825,031 persons have arrived in the country. This is a high number," Putin told the Russian cabinet.

Over 20,000 people are expected to arrive in Russia, he added.

"According to the reports that I have, many of our citizens who are residing abroad are returning to their motherland. It seems it is not so easy for them to receive medical assistance in the places of their permanent residence outside the Russian Federation. But this means a certain burden for us," the president said.

Last week, Putin delivered a televised address to the nation, outlining a set of measures the government would take in order to stop the spread of the new coronavirus infection in the country. These include a nationwide week-off, a delay on the vote on constitutional amendments, financial support for workers, families with children and veterans, as well as tax breaks for businesses.

A Sputnik

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UK reports 22 Northern Cyprus citizens die from corona

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus plans to bring its citizens back home on two chartered flights next week.

Twenty-two citizens of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) have died of the novel coronavirus in the UK, an official said Wednesday.

TRNC WILL ATTEMPT TO BRING ITS CITIZENS BACK FROM THE UK

"In the UK, 22 TRNC citizens have died from coronavirus so far," TRNC Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Kudret Ozersay told Anadolu Agency.

He said the TRNC government has not received any information about its citizens who were exposed to an outbreak of the virus or have died from it in any other countries.

The TRNC will attempt to bring its citizens back from the UK on two chartered flights early next week after receiving the necessary permits from the U.K. authorities, Ozersay said.

As of March 23, a partial curfew in the TRNC has entered into force.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:02:24|Editor: huaxia

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RIYADH, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia imposed on Thursday a 24-hour curfew in Mecca and Medina as part of precautionary measures against the coronavirus, Saudi Press Agency said.

The curfew would be effective in all parts of the two cities, with continuing ban of entry into and exit from them, said the report, quoting an official from the Interior Ministry.

The ban of entry and exit does not include employees from vital sectors in government and private sectors, whose works require continued performance during the ban period.

Residents of the neighborhoods of the two cities are allowed to leave their homes to meet only necessary needs such as health care and food supplies, within neighborhoods from 6 a.m. until 3 p.m. every day.

Meanwhile, the Health Ministry tweeted on Thursday the registration of 165 new coronavirus cases, five deaths and 64 recoveries.
Medical workers wearing hazmat suits as a preventive measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus are seen at a fever clinic in Huanggang Zhongxin Hospital in Huanggang, in Chinas central Hubei province on March 26, 2020. (Noel Celis/AFP via Getty Images)

Missing: Wuhan Whistleblower Doctor Who Alerted Colleagues Over CCP Virus

A Wuhan doctor who claimed she first alerted colleagues about the CCP virus outbreak in the region has reportedly disappeared, just weeks after publicly criticizing the Chinese regime for its coverup and mismanagement of what has now escalated into a global pandemic.

Doctor Ai Fen, the head of Emergency at Wuhan Central Hospital, has been missing for days, according to a March 31 report by 60 Minutes Australia. Her disappearance comes just two weeks after she said authorities had prevented her and her colleagues from warning the world about the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

She has now disappeared, her whereabouts unknown, the flagship investigative show reported, amid fears the doctor could have been detained for speaking out.

The emergency surgeon this month revealed that she was the whistle provider who gave a diagnosis report of the virus to her colleague Li Wenliang, a 34-year-old ophthalmologist, who was among the first people to publicize information about the outbreak in Wuhan.

Seven SARS-like cases from the Huanan seafood market have been confirmed, Li wrote on Dec. 30, 2019, on Chinese social media app WeChat, in a chat group with hundreds of his former medical school classmates, attaching a screenshot of a diagnosis report. Li revealed the information a day before Wuhans health officials acknowledged that there was a mysterious viral pneumonia outbreak.

Despite Lis reminder to not spread it externally, screenshots of the conversation showing his full name proliferated on the internet very quickly. On Jan. 3, police reprimanded him along with seven other medical professionals for spreading rumors online. The police statement said he had violated the law.

Days later, Li contracted the virus while operating on an asymptomatic patient for glaucoma, and died on Feb. 7.

Before her alleged disappearance, Ai said police didnt go after her, but that she received an unprecedented, very harsh admonition from her superiors.

Many, many times, I thought how nice it would be if we could turn back the clock, she told Chinese magazine Portrait, adding that she regretted not telling more doctors about the danger.

If I knew what it would be like today, no matter if I got criticized or not, I would have spread it all around, she said. Someone has to stand up and tell the truth.  There has to be different voices in this world, right?

Shortly after the 60 Minutes Australia show aired, a cryptic post was published on Ais Weibo accountthe first since March 16, when a message had been posted saying that she was at work, as usual, reported Radio Free Asia.

The mysterious post on Sunday appeared to show a photograph taken from Wuhans Jianghan Road, and a caption read: A river. A bridge. A road. A clock chime.

The Epoch Times has not been able to verify Ais disappearance or whereabouts independently, however, several citizensincluding citizen journalists, scholars, and business peoplehave been muzzled and suppressed by the regime for attempting to reveal the actual situation of the CCP virus outbreak that originated in Wuhan.

Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), in a letter dated Tuesday, called on the State Department to push China to probe the disappearance of Chinese citizen journalists, Fang Bin, Chen Qiushi and Li Zehua, who all vanished after taking and publishing images and videos which revealed the real impact of the CCP virus.

Banks told The Epoch Times last week the Beijing regime should pay a severe price for covering up the deadly CCP virus pandemic.

We have got to hold China accountable and make them pay, he said on The Epoch Times American Thought Leaders program.

Cathy He and Eva Fu contributed to this report.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 10:27:12|Editor: huaxia

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HAVANA, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The Cuban Communist Party (PCC) announced the cancelation of the upcoming May Day celebration marking the International Workers' Day in light of the spread of COVID-19 on the island, local media reported Wednesday.

The decision was made at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the PCC, presided over by First Secretary of the PCC Raul Castro.

Cuba earlier in March announced cancelation of massive political gatherings as a preventive measure against the coronavirus.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel asked Cuba's Workers Trade Union (CTC) to make proposals to mark May Day in line with current situation of the epidemic across the country.

Massive gatherings on the occasion of the International Workers' Day are customary all over the country since the socialist revolution victory in 1959.

Maria Romero, 52, a nurse at a polyclinic in Havana, said the best way to celebrate May Day is through helping combat the coronavirus, adding she will "hang a Cuban flag from the balcony as a symbol of national unity."

Every year, May Day parade at Havana's Revolution Square gathers hundreds of thousands of Cuban nationals as well as social activists and trade union leaders from across the world.

According to the Cuban Ministry of Labor and Social Security, the Latin American nation has nearly 4.4 million workers, 1.4 million of whom are working in the private sector.
As referenced on the COSA TV interview on Wednesday night, driver Ron Waples had a knack for engineering upsets in big races during his long and illustrious career. One of those upsets came in the 1992 Breeders Crown courtesy Village Jiffy.

Born 30 years ago today (April 2, 1990) Village Jiffy (Cam Fella - Village Jig) made 85 career starts and amassed a summary of 22-17-13. He banked $1,527,683 and took his mark of 1:50 as a five-year-old.

From those 22 career wins, he was never a longer shot than in that 1992 Breeders Crown Final. Trainer Bill Wellwood handed the lines over to Ron Waples for that stakes event, with the five-time winner sent off at odds of nearly 30-1. Not surprisingly, the entry of Presidential Ball and Riyadh were sent off at 4-5, with Bonnie And Clyde and Life Sign also receiving respect and support.

The race involved those four horses taking shots and turns at the lead. Riyadh (Brett Robinson) made the front first before yielding to Bonnie And Clyde (John Campbell) through a :27 opening quarter. Presidential Ball (Jack Moiseyev) was next to forge to the front, with Campbell and Bonnie And Clyde not yielding and forcing Presidential Ball to sit the pocket and prompt a :54.3 half.

Life Sign (Bill Fahy) popped off the rail to take a shot at the pacesetter with Riyadh also moving to second-over striking position down the backstretch. Village Jiffy was positioned third over. After a sharp 1:23.3 flashed up at the three-quarter mark, Waples tipped Village Jiffy three-wide around the final turn looking to take advantage of those hot early fractions. Life Sign finally overcame Bonnie And Clyde turning for home but his lead was short-lived as Village Jiffy powered past in the Pompano stretch to win the Breeders Crown by open lengths in 1:53.3.

The win was Waples' ninth in the Breeders Crown series and fourth at odds of 25-1 or greater.

"Maybe I should look for the 25-1 shots instead of the favourites, I guess," said Waples to Gary Seibel after the race in his typical style.

"Everything went real well, the pace was real strong on the front end and he was nice and relaxed, this colt, and I never had to ask him anywhere except where I went three-wide around the last turn with him. He won handy, really."

Village Jiffy battled this deep group of colts again in 1993, but only mustered three wins in 21 starts. As a four-year-old, Village Jiffy enjoyed his best season on the racetrack with a 8-6-5 summary from 28 starts and more than $578,000 in earnings en route to O'Brien Award honours as Canada's Older Pacer of the Year. His biggest win of that year was once again a Breeders Crown upset, once again involved Riyadh, but on this occasion Village Jiffy was guided by another driver who had a knack for Breeders Crown upsets, Paul MacDonell.

Village Jiffy passed away in June 2018 in British Columbia. Prior to his stallion stint in B.C. for JCS Veterinary Reproductive Services, Village Jiffy produced a long list of stars in Ontario including millionaires Tigerama (1:49.1 - $1,670,946), Dreamfair Vogel (1:49.3 - $1,179,514) and Village Blitz (1:50.4 - $1,004,477).
A U.S. cargo craft is being packed for its return to Earth next week while robotics controllers get ready to install a new European science platform on the International Space Station.

The Expedition 62 crew also continued its ongoing human research activities.

The reusable SpaceX Dragon space freighter is being loaded this week with thousands of pounds of science experiments and station hardware. Robotics controllers will command the Canadarm2 robotic arm to remove Dragon from the Harmony module after its hatch is closed early Monday. Dragon will be released back into Earth orbit Monday at 9:52 a.m. EDT for a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean a few hours later.

NASA Flight Engineers Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan will wrap up the science packing late Sunday. The duo will be transferring live mice, plant cells and other time-critical research samples into Dragon so scientists can understand how genetic expression changes in space.

Human research continued on board the station today as Meir examined and captured imagery of Morgan's eyes with a fundoscope to learn how space-caused upward fluid shifts affect vision. Commander Oleg Skripochka of Roscosmos measured the station's radiation environment then explored how future crews could pilot spaceships and robotic rovers on planetary expeditions.

Bartolomeo, an external science payload from the European Space Agency (ESA), will soon be installed on the outside of the Columbus laboratory. The complex installation work is being choreographed from the ground as flight controllers remotely command the Canadarm2 and the Dextre fine-tuned robotic hand. The ESA science device will enable the command and control of numerous external investigations on Columbus.

Back on Earth in Kazakhstan, the Expedition 63 crew continued reviewing its mission procedures today then took a break for traditional pre-launch activities. NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and Roscosmos cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner will launch to the station April 9 aboard the Soyuz MS-16 crew ship. After a six-hour ride to their new home in space, the trio will begin a 195-day mission aboard the orbital lab.

On-Orbit Status Report

Fluid Shifts: The crew performed the setup for baselining eye Fundoscope images. Fluid Shifts is a NASA investigation, divided into Dilution Measurements, Baseline Imaging, and Imaging with Chibis. The Chibis hardware is used to perform the Lower Body Negative Pressure (LBNP) part of the experiment. The Fluid Shifts experiment investigates the causes for severe and lasting physical changes to astronaut's eyes. Because the head-ward fluid shift is a hypothesized contributor to these changes, reversing this fluid shift with a LBNP device is being evaluated as a possible intervention. Results from this study may help to develop preventative measures against lasting changes in vision and prevention of eye damage.

NanoRacks Module-51: The crew performed and photo documented the second Vitamin C flask experiment status check. This completes the operation objectives for Module-51. These sub experiments are the Vitamin-C Flask with syringe, Waxworm flask, Adipic acid and Venom flex plates, Yeast and amylase mixture tubes, and Flask with Flatworms. Inspections of the experiments went well and the hardware was stowed. NanoRacks Mod-51 itself is an aluminum module with a Velcro lid that can accommodate various sub-experiments.

NanoRacks Module-9: The crew performed the operations on the NanoRacks Module-9 tube which involves the mixture of Tube #2, which studies the ability of Quinoa (a type of grain) growth in microgravity. NanoRacks-National Center for Earth and Space Science Education-Gemini includes 41 microgravity experiments designed by students in grades 5 through 12 and college. The experiments range from examinations of water filtration and purification to synthetic soil production, rust formation, antibiotic effectiveness, growth and development of micro-aquatic organisms, and growth of plant, fungi, and bacteria. Each was chosen from more than 3,000 entries submitted by more than 23,000 U.S., Canadian, and Brazilian students. The experiments use NanoRacks MixStix, miniature laboratories activated by the ISS crew and are eventually returned to the student teams on Earth for analysis.

Systems

Mobil Servicing System (MSS) Operations: Tonight, robotics ground controllers (ROBO) will power up the MSS and maneuver the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) and the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) to install the newly arrived Bartolomeo Science Platform. Installation is expected to be completed on Thursday morning at ~1:00 am CT. Once installed, ROBO will finish deploying the remaining platform booms Thursday evening at ~9:00 pm CT.

The European external platform 'Bartolomeo' is an enhancement of the ISS European Columbus Module and its infrastructure. Designed to meet user requirements from the commercial and institutional sector, Bartolomeo is a new external payload hosting facility on the ram side of Columbus that is mechanically attached to the ram-facing primary and secondary trunnions, and uses the Columbus Parking Position Interface (PAPOS) for electrical and data interfacing.

SpaceX-20 (SpX-20) Dragon Cargo Operations: Today, the crew continued to perform Dragon cargo operations in preparations for Dragon departure on April 6, 2020.

Water Processor Assembly (WPA) Multi-filtration (MF) Bed Sample Collection: Today, the crew performed a Life Support Rack (LSR) hose reconfiguration in preparation for a WPA MF Bed return sample collection. The crew previously experienced an issue with connecting a hose normally used to take MF bed samples; and as a result, ground teams had the crew reconfigure the LSR hoses to free up a like hose to re-attempt return sampling. The hose taken from the LSR was connected to the WPA nominally and the WPA MF Bed SpX-20 return sample was collected.

Systems Operations Data File (SODF) DEPLOY: Today, the crew replaced their Medical Checklists and EVA wrist Cuff Checklists with updated documentation delivered on SpX-20. The retired EVA Cuff Checklists will be returned on SpX-20.

Completed Task List Activities:

SpX-20 Cargo Operations (ongoing)

Today's Ground Activities:

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

Water Processing Assembly (WPA) Multi Filtration (MF) Sample Support (SPT)

Mobile Servicing System (MSS) SpaceX-20 External Cargo Operations to Install Bartolomeo on Columbus

Secondary Power Systems Remote Power Controller Firmware Update

T2 Ground Power Cycle

SDMS Activation

Look Ahead Plan

Thursday, 4/2 (GMT 093)

Payloads:

Engineered Heart Tissue Media Change and Fixation (NASA)

Food Physiology Briefing (NASA)

MUSES Server Vent Cleaning (NASA)

Mobile SpaceLab Stow (NASA)

Food Acceptability Survey (NASA)

Express locker into Dragon installation (NASA)

VEGGIE PONDS-Germination Cap removal (NASA)

Systems:

Crew Departure Preparations for Return to Earth

Dragon LiOH Filter Bag Installation

Dragon Release and Departure Review OBT

COL1D2/Bay R&O Ops

SSC SP Queso R&O Ops

Friday, 4/3 (GMT 094)

Payloads:

POLAR sample transfer to CS (NASA)

Systems:

ISS Crew Departure Preparation

Inventory Management System Conference

61S Stowage Operations

Saturday, 4/4 (GMT 093)

Payloads:

MHU-5 Transfer Familiarization (JAXA)

NanoRacks Module-09 Ops 5 (NASA)

PCG10 MELFI insert (NASA)

NR Science Box removal (NASA)

MVP2 Cell-03 removals (NASA)

Systems:

Dragon Payload Cable Routing

Transfer of POLARS 5, 6 and 8 from Dragon to ISS

Dragon DCB Packing

CUCU Checkout

MHU5 Xfer FAM

Today's Planned Activities:

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

UF-ATMOSFERA. PL Deactivation

Probiotics Saliva Operations

Probiotics Salive Sample MELFI Insertion

Probiotics Question

Nanoracks adidas Shoes Imagery

Collecting atmospheric condensate samples [] from [-2] up to Gas-Liquid Mixture Filter () to Russian Samplers, terminate

JAXA Mouse Mission Item Gathering

Cargo Transfer to Dragon

Life Support Rack Hose Reconfiguration

Collecting condensate water samples [] up to -2 , equipment setup, sampler installation

Water Processor Assembly Multi-filtration Bed Sample Bag Creation

UF-ATMOSFERA. Closeout Ops

JAXA Mouse Mission 5 Transportation Cage Unit Spare Cage Installation

Collecting condensate water samples [] up to [-2] , sampler replacement

Glacier to Polar Sample Transfer

Audio Conference with Retro FM Radio Station Hosts. Video recording of conference

Commercial Generic Bioprocessing Apparatus 4 Status Check and Maintenance

Transfer of thermal jackets [] from [] to Soyuz 744 

Food Acceptability Survey

Conference with Search and Rescue Team ()

Water Processor Assembly Multi-filtration Bed Sample Collection

Water Recovery System (WRS) Waste Tank Sample

MATRYOSHKA-R. Monitoring Tritel Readings

Sampling condensate water [] up to -2 , removing sampler, equipment disassembly

Nanoracks Module-9 Ops Session 4

Nanoracks Module-51 Status 4

PILOT-T. Experiment Setup

PILOT-T. Experiment Ops

PILOT-T. Closeout Ops

ISS Experience Solid State Drive Changeout

Systems Operations Data File (SODF) Deploy

Fluid Shifts Fundoscope Baseline Imaging Setup

Fluid Shifts Fundoscope Baseline Imaging Preparation

Health Maintenance System (HMS) ISS Food Intake Tracker (ISS FIT)

Fluid Shifts Fundoscope Baseline Imaging Exam and Stow

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Five sarpanches (village heads) were suspended after failing to notify authorities about the presence of individuals who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi and returned to their villages, Palwal District Collector, Naresh Narwal said on Thursday.

The five suspended village heads belonged to Hunchpuri, Mahluka, Durenchi, Mathepur and Chhainsa respectively.

This comes when three individuals in Hunchpuri village were tested COVID-19 positive.

Furthermore, show-cause notices have been issued to the village heads of all the five villages and they have been accused of hiding information about people coming from outside these villages.

The Tablighi Jamaat event has emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after several positive cases across India were linked to the gathering, including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Although President Trump has called for extending strict anti-coronavirus measures until at least the end of the month, some California Republicans have different ideas.

In a Fox News interview Tuesday, Tulare Rep. Devin Nunes, long one of Trumps most vocal supporters, called Californias school closures way overkill, and said people need to quickly start going back to work to save the national economy.

We have to focus on keeping people employed, he told Fox News host Laura Ingraham. If we dont start to get people back to work in this country over the next week to two weeks, I dont believe we can wait until the end of April.

Nunes timeline matches one set last month by Trump, who said he would love to have the country opened up and just raring to go by Easter, which is April 12.

But on Tuesday, a grim-faced Trump said public health experts had warned him that the Easter deadline to begin easing the coronavirus restrictions could endanger millions of Americans and warned the country to brace for a hell of a bad two weeks, which would extend past Easter.

Trumps downbeat message, which also warned of a projected 100,000 or more coronavirus deaths in the country, had some immediate effects.

In Florida, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who had previously downplayed the seriousness of the coronavirus outbreak in his state, announced a 30-day stay-at-home order Wednesday. The decision came just a day after DeSantis said he had no plans to issue a statewide order.

But Nunes, speaking after Trumps announcement, argued that schoolchildren need to get back to campuses. He said Tuesdays recommendation by Tony Thurmond, the state superintendent of public instruction, that all California schools should close until fall was premature.

Its possible that kids could have gone back to school in two weeks to four weeks, but they just canceled the rest of school, Nunes said.

Nunes interview brought a rash of criticism that the advice could cost lives if people follow it.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin, tweeted that Nunes is a dangerous fool, and said his call for a swift end to the current restrictions was in direct contradiction to every public health expert in America.

Nunes office did not respond to a request for comment, but the congressman told Ingraham that his concerns were based on his worries about the countrys economic future.

Similar economic worries are behind an article Harmeet Dhillon, an attorney and former state GOP official, and John Yoo, a UC Berkeley law professor and Justice Department attorney in the George W. Bush administration, wrote for the Hoover Institutions Defining Ideas journal Tuesday.

The attorneys argued that though Trump is making only recommendations about the actions he wants people to take, governors like Californias Gavin Newsom and New Yorks Andrew Cuomo are making draconian moves that violate the Constitution and threaten the economies of not just their states but of the nation.

Those efforts may impede the spread of the disease, but we cannot tell if this comes at an acceptable cost, because the governors havent explained how they made the cost-benefit trade-off involved, the authors said.

Our state officials should explain whether they could have implemented other policies that could have reduced the spread of the disease without incurring such massive economic destruction, Dhillon and Yoo wrote.

Restaurants and other businesses that have been closed by state and local regulations should be allowed to sue the government for the money they lost and the costs they incurred, the attorneys argue.

In an interview, Dhillon complained about what she said were the states bans on peoples rights to congregate or gather together to worship.

People should not forget the Constitution just because someone says virus, she said.

John Wildermuth is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jwildermuth@sfchronicle.com
Joe Exotic with one of his tiger pals in Tiger King. Photo: NETFLIX/Courtesy of NETFLIX

In a time of global pandemic, when people are shut in their homes and more vulnerable than ever to the siren song of Netflix, everyone in America has simultaneously become obsessed with Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.

At least it feels that way. The docuseries  part work of true crime, part graphic nature documentary, and part trashy reality show  has become must-see television for anyone who wants to remain pop-culturally conversant, or at least have something to talk about besides the coronavirus. I understand why. Its an extreme, flawed example of the types of docuseries and documentaries that have generated the most attention over the past five years. Lets call them WTF docs.

As that title would suggest, WTF docs are documentary series or films with so many jaw-dropping twists that they make you blurt out, What the f- - -? at least once, and usually multiple times. A lot of true-crime shows fit into this category. Certain revisitations of historical events or scandals  Wild Wild Country, Leaving Neverland  do, too. Even documentaries that tackle comparatively lighter subjects, like McMillions or last years two Fyre Festival movies, fit into this subgenre because they also are rife with unexpected, outlandish moments. Youve gotta see this, we tell our friends after watching one of these documentaries. Its crazy.

Tiger King is definitely a WTF doc. Its got lions, and tigers, and bears  already an oh my!  but also chimpanzees, a monkey that appears to live exclusively inside the shirt of Wildlife in Need owner Tim Stark, and tons of expired meat from Walmart that is fed to many of these animals. The protagonist, roadside zoo owner Joe Exotic, is, to quote a description of him from the docuseries, a redneck, gun-toting, mullet-sporting, tiger-tackling, gay polygamist. He winds up in jail for his involvement in a murder-for-hire plot to kill Carole Baskin, an animal-rights advocate who shares his passion for large jungle cats and has been accused, with no definitive evidence, of killing her second husband and feeding his remains to her tigers. Before going to jail, Joe mounts two failed political campaigns, one for president and one for governor of Oklahoma. Joe Exotic is basically what the acronym WTF would look like if it were turned into a person.

I havent even scratched the surface of the abundance of bizarro in Tiger King, but if youve seen it, you already know about it, and if you havent, well, you get the idea. Its a wild, wild story, and the filmmakers embraced that. It had all the ingredients that one finds salacious, Eric Goode, who co-directed Tiger King with Rebecca Chaiklin, told the New York Times. So we knew that there would be an appetite for it. They were right. But theres something about Tiger King that doesnt sit well, that feels ookier than other recent WTF docs, and I think it comes down to this: Tiger King is very aware of its own WTF-ness.

Where other docuseries and documentaries come upon their jaw-dropping plot twists in a manner that feels organic, the storytelling in Tiger King seems to be guided by them. Goode, a businessman and conservationist, says he originally intended to focus the docuseries on the exploitation of exotic animals, but the final product suggests that the insane drama and quirky people in this world superseded that plan. The WTF-ery became Tiger Kings entire reason for being. Its WTF-ness provides its oxygen.

Tiger King is an attempt to make a documentary about a guy who, as we learn from the seven episodes, has always wanted to be a reality star. For that reason, the series inevitably ends up with a bit of a lowbrow reality vibe: a hint of Honey Boo Boo and a faint whisper of Duck Dynasty. Joe is a volatile, flamboyant narcissist who does things that are patently ridiculous. Its impossible to watch what he does  and what some of the other interviewees do and say  without laughing. I laughed several times while watching it. (Personal favorite line, from Joshua Dial, the libertarian who worked as Exotics campaign manager: I already knew he was batshit crazy from our conversations at Walmart.)

The figures who appear on-camera provide plenty of laughs simply by being themselves. But the filmmakers sometimes give in to the urge to push things further toward mockery. The lengthy clips from Exotics music videos are overused. We get that hes an attention whore and that he is not a talented pop star, but at a certain point, the videos arent serving any function other than to make the audience cackle at Joes expense. Another example: After James Garretson, who was tangentially involved in the murder-for-hire scheme and testified against Joe Exotic during his trial, says he may have incriminating evidence about other people in the private-zoo realm, the show cuts to a shot of Garretson riding a jet ski while Survivors Eye of the Tiger plays on the soundtrack. It hammers home the idea that Garretson is full of himself, but it also seems cheap and unnecessary, like a ploy to inspire memes. Which, of course, totally worked.

Its worth noting that other WTF docs have zeroed in on people who are ridiculous and/or maddening without resorting to such tactics. One of the WTF-iest docs I have ever seen is Abducted in Plain Sight, about a girl who was kidnapped in the 1970s  more than once, mind you  and sexually abused by a family friend while her parents sat on their hands and each became sexually involved with the kidnapper. Unlike the people in Tiger King, Jan Broberg, the victim, and her parents look relatively normal on the surface, but the situations they describe are bonkers. On more than one occasion, Im sure director Skye Borgman wanted to shout What the hell were you people thinking?? She didnt, or at least doesnt on film. Instead she takes a restrained approach, trusting that the audience will grasp how outrageous this story is with no need for embellishment.

Hulus Fyre Fraud doesnt shy away from having some fun with its subjects  Billy McFarland, JaRule, and everyone involved in planning the disastrous Fyre Festival. McFarland is often described in snarky terms by former colleagues and journalists who covered the fiasco. But when Fyre Fraud pokes fun, it mostly does it at the decisions made by McFarland and co. Because hes wealthy and acted out of a sense of such privilege and hubris, any pot shots at his expense feel pretty justified. Fyre Fraud punches up, where Tiger King, populated largely by people who are poor and living on societys margins, skates really close to punching down and making the audience feel complicit in the jabs.

There is also a lack of depth to Tiger King that turns it into an increasingly empty exercise. Docuseries dont have to change the world, but the best ones have a sense of purpose. The Jinx examined how a wealthy psychopath, Robert Durst, could manage to get away with murder for decades, and in the process, played a key role in putting him behind bars. Making a Murderer raised questions about the handling of a murder case and highlighted broader problems within the justice system. Fyre Fraud and its Netflix cousin, Fyre, while allowing us to relish in the many layers of screw-ups involved in completely ruining a luxury retreat for the Instagram set, also raise questions about influencer culture and the hunger for status, or at least the appearance of it.

Though it touches on the abuse of exotic animals and the problematic aspects of owning them, Tiger King doesnt dig as deeply into those issues as it could have. The point of Tiger King, at its core, is look at all this weird shit that happened. But a docuseries, or any work of journalism or pseudo-journalism, should have a broader sense of purpose that makes its story relevant. Its possible to mix surprising twists that will become Twitter fodder with that kind of purpose. But Tiger King cant figure out how.

The major players in this show, with a few notable exceptions, are awful individuals who cant be trusted. Even Baskin, who is an oddball in her own way but seems more in control of herself than Joe, has those murder rumors hanging over her head. As the docuseries progresses, we learn new details about all of these people, but we dont learn things that widen our understanding of them. Contrast that with a truly great WTF doc, Wild Wild Country, about the clash between members of the Rajneeshpuram commune and residents of a small Oregon town where the commune settled in the 1980s. Throughout the six episodes of that Netflix original, directors Chapman and MacLain Way changed my mind repeatedly about how to perceive the tensions between the residents of the town and those who followed the teachings of the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, in some cases to the point of committing crimes. The Bhagwans right-hand woman, Ma Anand Sheela, does horrible, horrible things  I dont want to spoil this for others, but lets say some mass poisoning is involved  and yet I found her gutsy and kind of a badass at the same time. Nothing is fully black and white in Wild Wild Country, and thats what makes it thought-provoking in addition to being a nonfictional roller-coaster ride.

Tiger King, though, is primarily colored in black and white, and not just because of all the animal prints. At the end of the series, some may feel a certain measure of sympathy for Joe Exotic, who is in prison and clearly in a bad place. But our understanding of who he is and what motivates him hasnt deepened much since the first couple of episodes. In the last installment, right after we hear audio of Joe on the phone from prison, tearfully talking about how he shouldnt be there, the show immediately cuts to footage of Baskin and her husband drinking Champagne after learning that Exotic, who repeatedly threatened to kill her over the years, has been convicted. Its an abrupt and manipulative piece of editing that casts Exotic as a victim and Baskin as the heartless rich lady celebrating his bad fortune. The reality is much more nuanced than that.

Whats missing in Tiger King is nuance, but also a greater sense of humanity and more journalistic  or at least journalistic-adjacent  integrity. The series can certainly be exciting. WTF docs are always exciting. But the really good ones are more than that. At one point in Tiger King, a TV reporter in Oklahoma describes Joe Exotics appeal this way: Even if its a train wreck, you cant help but look. Thats what Tiger King is. A train wreck you cant help but look at  nothing more, nothing less. Maybe thats why Americans are responding to it with such enthusiasm. When the whole world has become a massive, deeply distressing train wreck, the only thing that can fully distract us is another, less alarming train wreck.
President Reagan in 1987, near the end of his second term.

Joe Biden took another step toward locking up the Democratic nomination on Tuesday. His lead in delegates has begun to look insurmountable.

But now the presidential race enters uncharted territory due to the coronavirus crisis. Tuesday's three primaries may be the last large campaign gatherings for a month or more; at least five other states are postponing their primaries.

The normal rituals of a campaign  giant rallies, town meetings, barnstorming tours  have been canceled. The Democratic and Republican political conventions, scheduled for July and August, may be next.

So what should Biden do? Here's my advice.

One: Be presidential.

Biden is best when he contrasts himself with President Trump. His strong suit is his eight years as President Obama's vice president  but he has to answer for old votes from his 36 years in the Senate before that.

His strongest moment in his one-on-one debate with Bernie Sanders on Sunday was his crisp answer on how he would address the coronavirus crisis as president.

First of all, I have to take care of those who, in fact, are exposed or likely to be exposed to the virus, and that means we have to do testing, he said. Secondly, I would make sure that every state in the union had at least 10 places where they had drive-through testing arrangements. I would also, at this point, deal with the need to begin to plan for the need for additional hospital beds. But we have to deal with the economic fallout quickly, and that means making sure the people who in fact lose their job, don't get a paycheck, can't pay their mortgage, are able to pay it.

David Axelrod, Obamas former political strategist, has often been critical of Bidens campaign, but he pronounced that answer sensational.

He sounded like a guy who knew how to handle it, Axelrod said.

In the weeks ahead, expect Biden to praise the Trump administrations actions to stem the epidemic when they work, but draw clear differences on Trumps economic response.

Story continues

Two: Reach out to Sanders and his voters.

The race for the nomination isnt over unless Sanders drops out. The Vermont senator has every right to compete for votes, especially with primaries on hold in New York, Ohio, Georgia and other states.

But that shouldn't stop Biden and Sanders from reconciling. In Sundays debate, Sanders was uncharacteristically restrained in his critiques of Bidens positions. At one point, he even said Bidens heart is in the right place.

Biden, on the other hand, criticized Sanders Medicare for All healthcare plan and pointed out that a single-payer system in Italy hasn't coped well with the coronavirus epidemic.

He might have been better served by emphasizing what he and Sanders have in common  a commitment to universal healthcare, for example.

Bidens aides argue that even though hes a moderate Democrat, his platform is more progressive than any previous Democratic nominees, including Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Like Sanders, Biden wants to impose big tax increases on the wealthy  although not as big. Like Sanders, he wants to make college tuition-free for most families, although Bidens plan has an income cap of $125,000.

Sanders healthcare plan would go further than Bidens by abolishing private insurance. Biden would allow private plans to continue, but launch a federal plan that anyone could join.

Those differences are deep, but not unbridgeable. Each candidate has said he will support whoever wins the nomination.

Three: Even without rallies, a candidate can make news.

In Sundays debate, Biden grabbed headlines by promising to choose a woman as his running mate.

The betting among political strategists is that Biden is most likely to choose Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, who ran strongly in New Hampshire, dropped out of the race after South Carolina, and endorsed the former vice president quickly enough to help him win in Minnesota. Her positions are close to Bidens, and shes thought to have some appeal to white voters in the swing states of the Upper Midwest.

Finally, get plenty of rest.

This year's campaign has produced the mystery of the two Joe Bidens.

Hes long been a gaffe machine, prone to stumble over his words or make an impolitic remark. Hes been especially tongue-tied in debates with lots of candidates shouting to be heard  but there wont be any more of those.

But he also can be forceful and crisp. He can even be eloquent, as he was in his victory speeches after South Carolina and Super Tuesday. He rarely stumbles in interviews or impromptu exchanges with reporters  as I found when I watched him campaign in Iowa.

At 77, hes undeniably lost a step from the Biden who first ran for president in 1988 or for vice president in 2008. But claims by President Trump and his supporters that Biden suffers from some form of dementia are malicious and don't stand up.

And any voter who watches a highlight reel of Bidens flubs should compare it to Trumps stumbles and lies, which are at least as alarming  and the president is only 74.

Besides, Biden readily admits that hes gaffe-prone. As long as they compare me to Donald Trump, its a good thing, he said in Iowa.

Still, any candidate in his 70s should know his limits. In 1984, President Ronald Reagan, then 73, trimmed his reelection campaign appearances to one a day, and mostly read set-piece speeches.

Reagan won 49 states.
Later, because nearly all states must balance their budgets, they couldnt use deficit spending for bailouts. They cant print money as the Federal Reserve can. And they still dont have the resources to protect their residents  which makes it risky for them to anger Mr. Trump as they seek to fulfill their institutional role as a check against federal abuses.

Federalisms limits have been apparent since the first reports of the virus emerged from Wuhan, China. In January, U.S. intelligence agencies warned that the Chinese government was minimizing the outbreak, but state and local officials didnt have that information and so could not counter the president when he waved off the threat. In February, when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pledged but failed to put in place a system of widespread testing, states and counties didnt have the capacity to act on their own. They had neither the centralized apparatus to conduct blanket testing nor the authority to waive regulations over such testing enforced by the Food and Drug Administration, another source of federal power.

The next task was undertaking the vast production and allocation of masks, other protective gear and ventilators. Instead of centralizing this task, President Trump said from the White House lectern, Governors are supposed to be doing a lot of this work. He added, You know, were not a shipping clerk.

But governors cant invoke the Defense Production Act, which allows the federal government to order businesses to manufacture necessary medical equipment. Nor can they enlist the Federal Emergency Management Agency to manage the giant project of distributing the equipment. The vacuum left by the federal government forced states to compete for scarce equipment like ventilators, driving up their price and benefiting shady middlemen while causing fatal delays.

Mr. Trump has, characteristically, revealed and exploited defects in the federal system. Unwilling to take the blame for shutting down the economy when he thought there was little public support for the move, he sparred with governors like Mr. Cuomo and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan while also hiding behind them.
When Congress doles out massive amounts of taxpayer money at breakneck speed, safeguards against abuse, waste and graft aren't always airtight.

So when Congress raced to pass an 880-page, $2 trillion rescue package for an American economy collapsing amid the coronavirus pandemic, lawmakers added a series of protections against corruption.

But despite provisions meant to ensure a robust check on President Donald Trump  and to avoid a backlash like the one that that accompanied the 2008 Wall Street bailout  the law also afforded his administration wide latitude to implement it quickly, with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin set to unleash a gusher of cash to shore up the hemorrhaging economy.

Here is how those protections are supposed to work:

1) The Congressional Oversight Commission

Whos in charge

Congress' main oversight tool is a new, five-member panel that is charged with monitoring a $500 billion fund for distressed industries operated by Mnuchin, in partnership with the Federal Reserve. The four top congressional leaders each get an appointee, with the chair picked by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Though there's no timeline for the leaders to make their selections, they've indicated that their choices will come quickly. Part of that is by necessity: The law requires that the commission issue reports within 30 days of any funding flowing from Treasury and the Fed as part of the rescue effort  and then issue additional reports every 30 days. Behind-the-scenes lobbying for appointments has intensified since the bill passed.

What money will be watched

The bulk of Mnuchin's fund is intended to help the Fed infuse cash into the economy through a mix of loans, loan guarantees and investments to troubled companies, sectors and state or local governments. But there's also little guidance so far as to how this money will be distributed and to whom, with Mnuchin yet to publish all of his planned procedures. The congressional commission is likely to home in on how these decisions are made.

Story continues

Mnuchin has, however, already issued guidelines for the airline industry  $25 billion for commercial airlines and $4 billion for cargo carriers. The 11-page guidance recommends that eligible recipients submit applications by April 3 and no later than April 27 to be considered. Those selected for awards are eligible to receive up to the total amount spent to compensate employees between April and September of 2019.

What scrutiny is coming

Federal agencies are required to turn over any data requested by the commission's chair, but this could run into roadblocks if Trump continues his broad rejection of congressional oversight on the Executive Branch.

Though the commission has a similar mandate to some of the other mechanisms in the law, this is the main channel through which Congress can apply a real-time check on the Trump administration. The panel is authorized to hold public hearings, tap experts for insight and spotlight the effectiveness of Mnuchin's decisions.

The Trump clause

The new law, at Democrats' urging, includes a provision prohibiting any funds authorized under the law from going to any entity in which "the President, the Vice President, the head of an Executive department, or a Member of Congress" or "the spouse, child, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law" of any of those officials have a controlling interest. House Democrats are particularly concerned that any oversight mechanisms closely watch this provision or any loopholes. Congressional Democrats are eager to avoid letting any funds benefit Trump businesses or properties.

2) The Special Inspector General for Pandemic Recovery

Whos in charge

The law also establishes a new watchdog housed in the Treasury Department to specifically monitor Mnuchins deployment of the $500 billion in economic rescue funds for distressed industries. This is the same fund that the Congressional Oversight Commission will oversee; Democrats insisted on a two-pronged oversight effort for the fund to ensure Mnuchin's decisions received adequate scrutiny. The special inspector general will be nominated by Trump and confirmed by the Senate, which could produce its own partisan fight.

FILIE - This June 6, 2019, file photo shows the U.S. Treasury Department building at dusk in Washington. Multiple published reports say that the U.S. government has launched a national-security review of the China-owned video app TikTok, popular with millions of U.S. teens and young adults. Several senators have recently noted concerns about censorship and data collection on TikTok. The Treasury Department, which houses CFIUS, says it does not comment on specific cases. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

What money will be watched

Under the law, the new inspector general is required to conduct audits and investigations of loans and other investments made by the Treasurt secretary. The inspector general is also responsible for compiling a list of all funding decisions made by Mnuchin, the rationale behind each one and details about any person hired to help manage the loans and investments.

What scrutiny is coming

The new inspector general is required to issue an initial report 60 days after being confirmed and subsequent reports every quarter thereafter. But Trump has indicated he may intervene in requirements that the new watchdog share some information with Congress. The inspector general is an Executive Branch official, Trump noted in a signing statement, and therefore shouldn't be compelled to provide reports to Congress without the president's approval. In particular, the law requires the inspector general to tell Congress if he or she is "unreasonably" blocked from receiving information necessary to investigate or audit any of Treasury's choices. This has raised alarm among Democrats that Trump could prevent Congress from learning, say, whether any of his properties do in fact benefit from the new law.

3) The Pandemic Response Accountability Committee

Whos in charge

Perhaps the most potent oversight tool in the new law is this panel of nearly two-dozen inspectors general with broad authority to investigate, audit and probe the implementation of the entire $2 trillion coronavirus rescue package. The chairman, Pentagon watchdog Glenn Fine, was picked by his fellow inspectors general earlier this week. He'll command an $80 million budget and select a staff to help run investigations.

Eight other inspectors general were required to be part of his panel  including the watchdogs of the Justice Department, Health and Human Services Department and Small Business Administration  but Fine on Wednesday added another dozen, including the inspectors general of the Federal Reserve, the Department of Transportation, NASA and the special inspector general for pandemic recovery who will be appointed by Trump.

Here, too, Trump indicated he disagrees with an aspect of the law requiring Fine to coordinate his top staff picks with key congressional committees. Though Trump said he expected Fine to consult with lawmakers, the president argued forcing him to do so would be unconstitutional.

What money will be watched

The committee's purview is broad and touches on every aspect of the relief measure. It includes rooting out waste, fraud and abuse or mismanagement; auditing and reviewing federal contracts authorized by the new law; reviewing the administration of the new funding and loan programs; serving as a liaison between federal agencies responsible for implementing aspects of the law; and referring any potential crimes for prosecution by the Justice Department.

What scrutiny is coming

The new law requires the committee to establish a "user-friendly" website within 30 days, meant to provide regular updates on the implementation of the law. The site is meant to be a publicly accessible portal to review the funding decisions made by Treasury, as well as other agencies. It's also required to include any findings and reports from the inspectors general.

"The website shall provide detailed data on any Federal Government awards that expend covered funds, including a unique trackable identification number for each project, information about the process that was used to award the covered funds, and for any covered funds over $150,000, a detailed explanation of any associated agreement, where applicable," according to the law. The site must also break down the funds obligated by congressional district.

4) General congressional oversight

Whos in charge

It's the wild, wild, west.

The new coronavirus law contemplates an extensive role for congressional committees. Lawmakers are required to receive regular updates and reports from federal agencies and inspectors general, provide input on some hiring decisions as well as hear about any time an inspector general runs into roadblocks investigating funding decisions.

Committees across Congress all want a piece of investigating aspects of the new law. House Democrats, in particular, are promising to be aggressive in their scrutiny of the Trump administration's implementation. For example, House Financial Services Committee Chairwoman Maxine Waters vowed Wednesday to watch Mnuchin closely and urged him to impose stricter requirements on companies who receive funding than the law requires  such as limiting executive compensation.

The House Oversight Committee has also pledged to be heavily involved, and the law touches on areas that fall under a slew of other committees' jurisdictions, from Homeland Security to Judiciary to Armed Services. Some House Democrats are already discussing the establishment of a coronavirus commission akin to the 9/11 Commission to review the origins of the outbreak and government failures that might have helped foment the crisis in the United States.

But huge questions remain about how effective or transparent any of this new oversight will be. Trump's signing statement, if applied broadly could sharply limit what any Executive Branch officials share with Congress. And the Trump administration has already restricted Congress' access to senior officials handling pandemic response. That limitation was due to lift Tuesday, and it's unclear if it has been extended.

Zachary Warmbrodt contributed to this article.
Design trends tend to be cyclical, and interior designers and tastemakers have been predicting the styles resurgence for the past couple of years. With todays headlines eerily echoing those of the past, its not surprising that references to art deco style seem to be everywhere: Theyre in the sophisticated interiors and furnishings of designers Ken Fulk, India Mahdavi, Joseph Dirand and Dimore Studio. The period has influenced home furnishings from mass retailers, such as Restoration Hardware, West Elm and Anthropologie. The style has even breached Congress: In January, the Twitterati were agog when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez announced via Instagram story that she named her French bulldog puppy Deco, after the design style, which she described as one of her favorites. She wrote that the movement is inspired by the themes of optimism & social and technological progress, and is a fixture in iconic NYC architecture.
Bruno Fernandes has enjoyed an impressive start to life at Manchester United but not everyone in the Premier League have been pleased to see him.

Fernandes has been in good form since joining United from Sporting Lisbon for 68million in January.

But his creative qualities and trickery on the ball have left opposition defenders struggling to cope.

Bruno Fernandes has been in impressive form since joining Manchester United in January

Fernandes scored United's opening goal in the 3-0 win over Watford at Old Trafford this year

Watford's Craig Cathcart is no different and he has revealed how tough it was to keep track of Fernandes when the two sides met in February.

United beat Watford 3-0 at Old Trafford with Fernandes scoring the opener before he set up Anthony Martial for the second and Mason Greenwood got the third 15 minutes before time.

Asked what Cathcart made of Fernandes's ability, the Northern Ireland international told the Manchester Evening News: 'I think we were all very impressed.

Watford's Craig Cathcart has commented on how tough it was to defend against Fernandes

'The thing that impressed me most was that he always looks forward.

'He always gets the ball and his first thought is to pass forward and create chances, which maybe they [United] were missing before.

'He's brought that bit of quality and cutting edge to the final third and since he's come in their performances have been much better, from what I've seen.'
New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

Islamic cleric issues 'fatwa' asking Muslims to get tested for coronavirus

India

pti-PTI

Lucknow, Apr 02: A leading Islamic cleric on Thursday issued a fatwa (religious edict) asking Muslims to get tested for coronavirus if they show symptoms of the disease and undergo treatment.

"It is not permissible to hide it (disease). If people do not get their treatment and tests done...it is absolutely against Sharia law," according to the fatwa issued by Maulana Khalid Rashid Farangi Mahali of the Darul Uloom Farangi Mahal.

Stressing that saving the life of one human being in Islam is like saving the lives of many, the fatwa said that people who show coronavirus symptoms should get tested.

The fatwa comes amid a 21-day nationwide lockdown enforced to prevent the spread of the virus that has killed at least 50 people in India and thousands worldwide.

Fight corona better: Know about India's testing strategy

Several leading clerics have asked people to avoid congregation in mosques and offer prayers, including the weekly Friday prayers, at home in the present situation to avoid spread of the disease.
Ukraine Says It Uncovered Spy Channel Between Naval Officer, Russia's FSB

By RFE/RL April 01, 2020

Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) says it has breached an espionage communication channel between a high-ranking Ukrainian naval officer and staff from Russia's main spy agency, the FSB, in the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula.

Procedures have begun to remove the officer's access to confidential information and strip him of his rank, the SBU said in a statement on March 31.

It did not give the officer's name, former rank, or current status.

According to the statement, the officer maintained his loyalty to Kyiv while he was in service in Crimea when Russia took over the peninsula in 2014.

It said the officer refused to assist Russian security forces in occupying a naval academy in the port city of Sevastopol.

However, upon transferring to mainland Ukraine after the Russian invasion, the officer continued to "maintain constant contacts with existing personnel of the FSB," the SBU said.

Among them were "former SBU servicemen Andrey Gaponenko, Petro Zima, Dmitry Pylypchenko, who moved to the enemy's side during the annexation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea in 2014."

After moving to mainland Ukraine, the officer visited his native Crimea and allegedly had personal meetings with the former SBU officers, according to the statement.

It said the navy officer had "access to confidential information that is of a particularly important nature related to defense."

The SBU published a video on social media allegedly showing the man making confessions.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-says-it- uncovered-spy-channel-between-naval-officer -russia-s-fsb/30521455.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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New Jersey schools remain closed because of the coronavirus pandemic, but class is still very much in session  yes, even on your TV.

The state Department of Education announced Thursday that local teachers will appear on a new show, NJTV Learning Live, with daily lessons for grades 3-6, beginning April 6. Each hourlong segment will have a lesson recorded by a teacher from his or her home.

This is a great example of how New Jerseyans are coming together, from educators to broadcasters, to help improve student learning throughout the state, Education Commissioner Lamont Repollet said.

All New Jersey schools are closed for the foreseeable future to prevent the spread of COVID-19, but students are participating in distance learning  either through a virtual program or a series of worksheets, depending on their district. But many educators are concerned about the lack of internet access in low-income communities and how that might affect the equity of remote learning.

The new TV program could help close that gap by offering lessons to any student with access to public broadcast television. The show is a partnership between the state, NJTV and the New Jersey Education Association, the states largest teachers union.

These lessons will provide valuable enrichment and supplement what students are already getting from their own teachers," said NJEA President Marie Blistan. "They will also showcase the amazing work that our educators continue to do every day, even in the middle of a pandemic.

More than 200 teachers have already volunteered to participate, according to the state. The Department of Education will select the teachers, and NJTV will produce and broadcast the shows (locate your local channel on NJTVs Where to Watch webpage).

Gov. Phil Murphy praised the show in his daily media briefing, calling New Jersey teachers best in the nation, best in the world.

Kimberly Dickstein Hughes, New Jerseys current Teacher of The Year, will host the segments.

I am truly inspired by collaborating with such extraordinary educators, who are not only meeting the needs of their own students and families, but are going above and beyond to reach all students during this unprecedented time for our schools, she said.

The show is scheduled to run until May and could be extended, if necessary.

Adam Clark may be reached at adam_clark@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on twitter at @realAdamClark. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Ari Ben-Avram and Esther Gutierrez, both 32, planned to host their dream wedding on March 21, 2020, in Brooklyn, New York. But on March 11  just 10 days before the big day  Ben-Avram, who's a screenwriter, and Gutierrez, who's a special needs teacher, made the difficult decision to call off the wedding due to the coronavirus pandemic. Gutierrez felt it "in her gut" that canceling was the right thing to do, she says. Still, it was a heart-wrenching decision for the couple. "We cried, hugged, sat in silence, drank beers and cried some more," Gutierrez tells CNBC Make It. "We went to bed that night heartbroken." Although the couple lives in Los Angeles, they wanted to tie the knot in New York City, a location close to their hearts. "My entire family still lives there, as well as some of Ari's, and it's where we met and lived for our first six years of dating," Gutierrez says. Here's what it was like for Ben-Avram and Gutierrez to have to cancel their wedding at the last minute due to the coronavirus pandemic. The interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

How did you come to the decision to cancel your wedding?

Gutierrez: Even now, when I think about everything that happened the week that we decided to cancel, it still feels unreal how everything changed and happened so quickly. I began my work week (the week of March 9) making sure I went down my to-do list, since the following week I would have been gone from work. Ben-Avram: In the matter of a week, the situation changed dramatically. The number of cases ballooned and we started to get nervous at the prospect of having older relatives travel from abroad to a state that was quickly becoming the epicenter of the coronavirus. On March 11, Esther met me after work to talk things over. We got dinner, had a drink and tried to think things over objectively, which is, of course, impossible to do under the circumstances. But we agreed that the most responsible thing to do was to postpone or cancel the wedding. There were tears, but we tried to put our mini tragedy into perspective. At this point, the death toll in Italy was starting to skyrocket, people closer to home were losing their businesses and hate-crimes were rampant. Still, it was an incredibly painful decision for us to make.

What has been the most disappointing part of having to cancel?

Ben-Avram: When you have a year or more to think about what a party might be like, you build up a lot of expectations. I was constantly reminding myself to manage my expectations because no event turns out exactly as you anticipated. Still, it's impossible not to be excited about the prospect of everyone you love and care about coming together to celebrate. To wake up one morning with those expectations not only falling short, but not coming to pass at all, is heart-wrenching. Gutierrez: The day I spoke to my parents and told them my gut was telling me to cancel, I asked my dad what his gut was saying and he said in a broken voice, 'There's nothing more that I want than to have our father-daughter dance and get to celebrate you and Ari, but I think you're making the right choice.' My dad doesn't often show when he is sad  he's usually a very jolly and cheerful man  so hearing how emotional he got while saying that really hit me hard. It's those specific moments  the father-daughter dance, or having my old principal officiate our wedding or having a full mariachi band play "Hava Nagila" because we wanted to blend our two traditions  that make me feel the most sad and disappointed.

How have you been coping?

Ben-Avram: The very next week, our sadness was pushed aside because of the logistical nightmare of negotiating refunds from vendors. Gutierrez: As Ari said, we got straight to work. We began looking over our contracts, drafting an email to our friends and family letting them know about our decision, called the airline to cancel our flight, contacted Airbnb since we had to cancel the place we had booked for the week we'd be in NYC and called specific family members and friends who were meant to fly to let them that they should look into whether their flights could be refunded. We were both so emotionally and physically drained. My eyes were puffy from the tears and Ari, who's a comedian, didn't even have it in him to try to make us laugh. We were both so, so tired and sad.

Is there anything that's helping you remain optimistic?

Ben-Avram: Going through this together has been one more experience that we share as a couple. On the day of our would-be wedding, we went for a mini-hike and exchanged our vows and rings. Even though we were alone, on a muddy hill that overlooks an L.A. highway, it was beautiful. Bittersweet. Friends and family have been amazingly supportive of our decision, and many have reached out to offer emotional support and guidance.

Will you reschedule your wedding?

Gutierrez: Although not entirely confirmed, we'll most likely still get married at our original venue sometime in February 2021.

Do you have any advice for other couples who may be going through something similar?
A postal worker heads down Chestnut street in Center City on Tuesday, March 24, 2020. Non-essential businesses are closed and a stay-at-home order has been issued by the city, with the exception of those working for life-sustaining businesses, due to the spread of the coronavirus. Read more

As cities and states around the globe have taken unprecedented social distancing measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, much of the worlds economy has suddenly halted, causing some to worry about what comes next.

President Donald Trump has pushed for a quick ease of the restrictions, tweeting WE CANNOT LET THE CURE BE WORSE THAN THE PROBLEM ITSELF." New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman outlined a plan to get America back to work motivated by the questions: Wait a minute! What the hell are we doing to ourselves? To our economy?" On Fox News, Texas Lt. Gov Dan Patrick took this argument to the extreme, arguing that people older than 70 should sacrifice themselves to COVID-19 for the sake of the economy that they leave their children and grandchildren.

All of these arguments are based on the same premise  that there is a tradeoff between saving the economy and saving lives. But that may not be the case, according to a new study.

Emil Verner, professor of finance at the MIT Sloan School of Management, and his colleagues looked to see how social distancing measures implemented by cities to mitigate the impact of the 1918 flu pandemic  efforts that are nearly identical to what is being done today such as shutting down businesses and closing school  impacted both mortality and the economy after the pandemic was over. He talked to The Inquirer about what they found. Responses were edited lightly.

What was the impact of social distancing measures on the spread of disease and the economy during the Spanish flu?

What we find comparing cities that intervene more versus less aggressively in their use of these non-pharmaceutical interventions is that cities that were more aggressive at first were able to reduce overall cumulative mortality.

But at the same time, they do not perform worse economically than cities that intervened less aggressively. If anything, cities that intervened more aggressively come out of the pandemic stronger, with a stronger economy in 1919.

 READ MORE: The world has suffered through other deadly pandemics. But the response to coronavirus is unprecedented.

Can you give examples?

Philadelphia put social distancing measures in place slowly  8 days after deaths started to rise dramatically  and for a limited duration 51 days compared to an average of 88 days. In response, the city experienced a high mortality rate (about 900 deaths per 100,000 residents) and a weak economy after the pandemic was over. In comparison, Cleveland acted quickly  2 days before deaths started accelerating  and aggressively  putting measures in place for 99 days. Clevelands mortality rate was lower (600 deaths per 100,000 residents) and the economy in 1919 was about average.

For the some , this probably sounds counterintuitive since businesses shut down sooner and for a longer stretch of time. Explain why it makes sense.

In a normal economy, if you implement social distancing and other interventions that limit mobility and business activity thats going to be bad for the economy. But the pandemic itself is very bad for the economy. During a pandemic people dont want to shop and consume, go to large public gatherings, and they dont necessarily want to work as much because they are afraid of contracting the virus. The pandemic itself causes massive economic disruption that reduces demand, reduces labor supply, and reduces business investment  because businesses become more cautious in the uncertain times brought about by the pandemic. Because the pandemic itself is so destructive, any policy that you can use, that directly targets the severity of the pandemic, will ultimately end up being good for the economy.

In your research, you looked at when cities enacted social distancing and for how long. Was one more important than the other?

Being timely is important but actually the duration is just as important and probably more important.

The world changed a lot in the century since 1918. How does that change the impact of social distancing on the economy in 2020?

We dont want to just naively extrapolate the direct results from then. The 1918 pandemic was just so much more severe and more deadly than the current coronavirus based on the estimates that we have. The 1918 flu was particularly deadly for prime aged individuals. Healthy adults between 18 and 45 were much more likely to die in 1918 from that flu than the coronavirus today.

The structure of the economy is also different. Back then it was more agricultural and manufacturing based economy; today its more service based based economy. Some of these services were able to do remotely and that should mitigate the adverse consequences of the shock. But theres lots of other services that cant be done remotely, lots of interpersonal services from dentists to restaurants and other service workers. If you think about the service sector, the implications are that todays pandemic could be more or less severe on the economy.

 READ MORE: Gov. Tom Wolfs coronavirus business-closure order hobbles manufacturing supply chains in Pennsylvania

Global supply chains today are obviously much deeper and a much more important source of ultimate production.The disruptions in supply chains that were seeing today are exacerbating the economic impact of the of the pandemic. The analysis that we have isnt well suited to thinking about those question.

Whats the takeaway from 1918 for the policy discussion around coronavirus today?

The cure is not worse than the disease. It actually casts doubt on this notion that there is a tradeoff between saving lives through non pharmaceutical interventions on the one hand, and keeping the economy going on the other hand. In 1918 it was not the case. And that gives us reason to believe both conceptually and also empirically that its likely not the case today.
New Delhi, April 2 : The Congress on Thursday extended its support in containing the coronavirus outbreak but said that the government should have called all party meet to discuss measures to contain the pandemic spread.

Congress General Secretary K.C. said: "We extend our support to the Central government as well as all the state governments in fighting the deadly pandemic outbreak but the government should have initiated an all party meet, held a dialogue with the Opposition parties and other parties so as to discuss about measures to be taken to contain the outbreak." "Prime Minister talked to the Chief Ministers over a video conference today. Why did he not had a similar video conferencing with the Opposition," he said.

Earlier in the day the Congress Working Committee (CWC) met via video conferencing and said in its resolution that "India and the whole world is facing an unprecedented crisis in face of the rapid spread of coronavirus. It has the potential to claim hundreds of thousands of lives and devastate the global economy." "From the day the first case tested positive in India, the Congress has extended its full support to the Central and state governments in their efforts to deal with the grave and unfolding circumstances. The Congress pledges to continue its unstinted support," the resolution said.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday announced to roll out telemedicine services besides stressing the need to augment testing facilities during a videoconference over the coronavirus outbreak with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Khattar said in a bid provide to healthcare services to those unable to visit hospitals due to the nationwide lockdown, the state government has decided to begin the telemedicine services with immediate effect.

Under the telemedicine services, patients are treated and diagnosed with the help of the telecommunications technology.

He also stressed the need for rapid testing and suggested that the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) should augment the testing facilities to effectively combat the infection.

The CM said the state government has already designated hospitals with an accumulated capacity of 3,000 beds at 14 places for COVID-19 patients.

Thirty-three people have tested positive for coronavirus so far with one death in the state.

Khattar also listed listed out the steps taken for the safety of the medical staff involved in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak.

Though at present the state government has adequate personal protection equipment (PPE) kits for them, an order has been placed for around 2.5 lakh such protective gear, he said.

He, however, suggested that the option of importing such kits should also be considered.

He also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Rs 1.70 lakh relief package announced by the Centre in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, adding that the state has already spent Rs 3,000 crore on providing relief and a provision of additional Rs 1,500 crore has been made for the current month.

The state government has ensured the continuity in the supply chain of all essential commodities, including medicines, he said, claiming that Haryana has so far been successful in controlling the community transmission of the disease.

On the issue of migrant workers, Khattar said relief camps have been set up in the state with basic facilities.

At present, around 13,000 migrant workers have taken shelter in these camps, wherein counselling services have also been provided, Khattar claimed.

Each of the 13.50 lakh construction workers is being provided a financial assistance of Rs 1,000 per week, the chief minister added.

Television has also been provided at a few camps, he said, adding that people in the camps are also being encouraged to practise yoga, meditation and take part in recreational activities.

Apart from this, state government employees have contributed over Rs 100 crore for the fight against the virus, he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday told chief ministers through the videoconference that to check the spread of the novel coronavirus, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the focus in the next few weeks.

He said it is necessary to ensure the availability of separate and dedicated hospital facilities for COVID-19 patients.

Modi told the chief ministers that it is important to formulate a common strategy to ensure the staggered re-emergence of the population once the lockdown ends.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
U.S. Social Security recipients will not have to file a tax return to receive their $1,200 check as part of the $2.3 trillion economic relief package, the Department of the Treasury announced Wednesday.

It marks a reversal on guidance issued by the Internal Revenue Service Monday which said that seniors and others on social security would have to file a 'simple' tax return before they would receive the money.

'Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return need to take no action, and will receive their payment directly to their bank account,' Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a u-turn statement Wednesday.

The payments, up to $1,200 for individuals, are part of a roughly $2.3 trillion economic relief package signed into law by President Donald Trump last Friday.

The money from the federal government is hoped to help offset the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a bill signing ceremony for H.R. 748, the CARES Act in the Oval Office of the White House on Friday. According to a Treasury Department statement, seniors will not need to file a tax return to receive their $1,200 checks

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin reversed guidance from the IRS on Wednesday, announcing that U.S. Social Security recipients will not have to file a tax return to receive their $1,200 check as part of the $2.3 trillion economic relief package signed on Friday

Details in the package had laid out that Social Security recipients who are normally not required to file a tax return, such as seniors, would not have to file a tax return in order to receive the money.

It stated that the IRS would look at Social Security benefit statements in order to give people their rebate checks if they haven't filed 2018 or 2019 tax returns.

On Monday, the IRS announced a conflicting statement saying that seniors and other social security recipients would need to file a very simplified 'abbreviated' tax return to receive their government stimulus check.

Advocates for seniors called out the move, stating that it would cause needless delays in issuing checks to a section of the population most in need, as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle placed pressure on the IRS to keep with the process outlined in the bill.

Concerns centered around the difficulties that seniors would have in filing a tax return during the current pandemic with some lacking internet access and many sites that provide tax assistance being closed.

Social security beneficiaries will not have to file a tax return, despite a claim by the IRS that they would need to do so in order to receive money from the economic stimulus package

US Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin speaks during a press conference on the COVID-19. He reversed IRS guidance on Wednesday after pressure from Democrats and Republicans

'We strongly urge you to ensure that economic stimulus payments are automatically sent to vulnerable seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, without these individuals needing to file a tax return,' more than three dozen Democratic senators, led by Sens. Maggie Hassan (N.H.) and Sherrod Brown (Ohio), wrote in a letter Wednesday to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul.

Republicans were just as concerned with Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) stating: 'Despite language Congress passed in #COVID19 relief bill to ensure Social Security beneficiaries would NOT have to file taxes to receive direct relief, IRS issued guidance saying seniors DO have to file taxes. That's ridiculous.'

'During this unprecedented time of need, requiring seniors to go through the confusing and laborious tax return filing process before receiving desperately-needed stimulus checks is unacceptable,' added Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) in a statement.

Sen. Maggie Hassan, Democrat from New Hampshire, led the effort to change an IRS rule that seniors on Social Security had to file a tax return in order to get their stimulus dollars

Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio co-signed a letter to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and IRS Commissioner Andrew Saul arguing the filing requirement would 'place a significant burden on retired seniors and individuals who experience disabilities'

Trump was also questioned about the payments during a press conference Wednesday when he said that they were looking into it.

'It's a process that they're working on. We'll get back to you as soon as we find out,' he said.

Hours later, the position was reversed.

The Treasury Department said Wednesday evening that the IRS will use the information on the Form SSA-1099 and Form RRB-1099 to generate the $1,200 checks to Social Security recipients who did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019.

'Social Security beneficiaries who are not typically required to file tax returns will not need to file an abbreviated tax return to receive an Economic Impact Payment,' the Treasury statement said.

'Instead, payments will be automatically deposited into their bank accounts.'

The IRS also provided an update on the change but added that some people may still be needed to file a tax return.

'However, some people who typically do not file returns will need to submit a simple tax return to receive the stimulus payment,' the IRS website reads.

'When more specific details become available, we will update this page.'

The reversal was praised by advocate group Social Security Works who were among those who harshly criticized the need to file a return.

They claimed it was a massive roadblock for seniors, the disabled and veterans from receiving their $1,200.

'We will keep fighting for this to apply to recipients of SSI and veterans' pensions as well,' the group said of Wednesday's announcement.

'This is outrageous. The $1200 payments could easily be added automatically to the benefits these people already receive every month. The CARES Act specifically gives the Treasury Department the authority to do so,' added Nancy Altman, President of Social Security Works.

'Instead, the Trump Administration is throwing up an unnecessary barrier that will make it harder for seniors, people with disabilities, and veterans to get the payments they desperately need. In the middle of a pandemic to which they are most vulnerable, the groups can't afford any delay.

'Millions of people who need these payments won't get them. At best, the payments will be delayed  even though the federal government pays these people benefits right now, each and every month.

'The Trump Administration must reverse course immediately and make a clear public statement that all Social Security beneficiaries, SSI recipients, and veterans receiving pensions will get their $1200 payments without filing a tax return. And then the government should pay  without delay  what it owes.'

On Sunday, Treasury Secretary Mnuchin confirmed eligible Americans will see direct-deposit payments of $1,200 'within three weeks' as part of the $2 trillion rescue package signed by President Donald Trump on Friday.

Mnuchin said he is directing all of his focus on supporting individuals and businesses reeling from the crisis.

He told CBS News: 'We expect that within three weeks, that people who have direct deposit with information with us will see those direct deposits into their bank accounts, and we will create a web-based system for people where we don't have their direct deposit, they can upload it so that they can get the money immediately as opposed to checks in the mail.'

Taxpayers earning less than $75,000 a year will be handed $1,200 checks and $500 per dependent child as part of the package.
She recently broke social distancing rules to help out her sister Kim Kardashian.

But Kylie Jenner was staying safe in luxury on Thursday.

The billionaire, 22, kicked back by the pool at her home as she did her part to help slow the spread of coronavirus.

Luxury lockdown: Kylie Jenner kicked back at the pool Thursday as she remained at her home, as part of a larger effort to help slow the spread of coronavirus

Staying safe: Kylie has been remaining indoors much like the rest of the world as part of the battle against coronavirus (file picture)

Kylie posted video of her sunbathing session onto her Instagram stories on Thursday.

Digital clouds floated up towards the sky as she kicked her legs out, taking in her green, picturesque view.

She also shared pictures of her lunch - cheeseburgers and fries, writing 'my burgers are cute'.

Isolation in luxury: Inside Kylie's magnificent yet solitary mansion (file pictures)

That Jenner life: Kylie lacks for nothing at her stunning home

And selfies, seen via a butterfly filter, revealed Kylie had ditched her wigs and extensions to go au naturel, with short hair tied up in a messy ponytail.

Kylie has been remaining indoors much like the rest of the world as part of the battle against coronavirus, but did break social-distancing rules in order to do her sister Kim's makeup on Wednesday.

California governor Gavin Newsom announced a Safer At Home order effective from March 20, that asked state residents to stay home unless absolutely necessary.

Stunning: Meanwhile, Jenner also showed off her short hair and makeup-free complexion on Instagram

Hello gorgeous: Jenner's sandy blonde hair was pulled up with a pink scrunchie

But Kim revealed on Tuesday that she had left the home she shares with husband Kanye West and their children, to visit her mother Kris Jenner's house where she met up with her sister Kylie to have her makeup done.

Kim was making an appearance on Jimmy Fallon's at home edition of The Tonight Show, and admitted she asked her makeup mogul sister to help her in the absence of her glam squad.

Speaking on the show, she said: 'I'm in my mom's glam room. Kylie did my makeup and my hair. I don't have anyone to do it and I'm not that good so she like did all my makeup.'

Kim added that it was the first time she had seen her family, explaining: 'And that's the first time I've seen her cause the whole family is distancing. We haven't even seen each other.'

Cooking up: Kylie made burgers on Thursday

'My burgers are cute': Kylie shared pictures of her lunch

She explained that Kris' glam room has a separate entrance which she used. 'So I snuck out and I am at my mom's house in her glam room cause there's a door from the outside so this is all she will let us in.'

The star who shares four children North, six, Saint, four, Chicago, two, and 10-month-old Psalm with Kanye, then added: 'And I had to get away from my kids. I'm hiding from them.'

The number of coronavirus cases in Los Angeles County rose Wednesday as officials reported more than 500 new cases, bringing the total number of people infected by the virus in the region to 3,518.

Glam squad: Kim Kardashian has admitted she has seen her family during the LA coronavirus lockdown, breaking social distancing rules to get her makeup done by sister Kylie Jenner

Expert: Kim revealed on Tuesday that she had left her home to visit her mother Kris Jenner's house where she met up with her sister Kylie (pictured in January)

Elsewhere in the chat with Fallon, Kim revealed she was running out of ideas to entertain her brood.

She admitted asking her fans for tips on social media hasn't worked, revealing: 'Everyone was like 'you have everything at your house, they shouldn't be bored'. But we've done everything, even edible slime'

'To be the teacher to four young kids, well two are in school, is insanity. I'm hiding from them.'

'They have to stop for PE and go run up and down in the backyard or they do this yoga, Pokemon yoga,' she continued.

She added that the four kids have been building forts in 'every room of the house,' and watching movies from Kim's childhood.

'I have tried to get the kids to watch other movies other than just cartoons,' she explained. 'We watched Harry and the Hendersons, like old '80s movies that I grew up on.'

Out: Kim was making an appearance on Jimmy Fallon's at home edition of The Tonight Show, and admitted she asked her makeup mogul sister to help her before conducting her interview in her mom's glam room

Not at home: 'I'm in my mom's glam room. Kylie did my makeup and my hair. I don't have anyone to do it,' Kim told Jimmy
Immunologist Professor Paul Moynagh has said that Ireland should be striving to increase testing for Covid-19 to 15,000 a day, a target he believes is achievable.

Every positive case that can be identified will help reduce the rate of transmission, he told RTE radios Morning Ireland.

Prof. Moynagh, who is also head of the Kathleen Lonsdale Institute for Human Health at NUI Maynooth, added that because so much of the infection and transmission comes from people who are asymptotic, it was really important to try to capture the level of infection in the community.

Ways to bypass the current bottleneck need to be examined, he said. It should also be investigated if the pharmaceutical sector can provide support, so testing can be scaled up

Meanwhile Paddy Mallon, an infectious disease physician at St Vincents hospital and Professor of Microbial Diseases at UCD school of medicine has called for a slowing down of community testing for Covid-19 and a ramping up of testing for healthcare workers.

It would be more beneficial to keep more healthcare staff at work, he told Newstalk Breakfast.

While a huge amount of work is going on into seeking out alternative options for testing, for the moment we need to accept we cannot do it right, so for the next week or two the focus should be on healthcare workers.

Prof Mallon said that at the moment the rate of increase of admission to intensive care units was steady and Ireland had so far managed to avoid the tidal wave of cases currently being experienced in London and New York.

So far weve avoided that. If we avoid the tidal wave we can slow the creep of cases in intensive care, the rate at which were putting stress on ICUs.

Prof Mallon said that if the rate of admission to intensive care continues to increase then that would not be sustainable.

We are now on a knife edge and the only thing that is going to protect the health system is the measures were taking.

He said that if by next week the situation is the same then the country will have to look at starting to push back which will mean ramping up community testing and to avoid new infection coming into the country.

There are very few countries not taking measures to protect their borders, he said. The longer we do nothing the more concerned Id be.

Also speaking this morning, professor Ruairi Brugha, head of the Department of Public Health and Epidemiology at the Royal College of Surgeons has said increased and earlier contact tracing of people who develop early symptoms of Covid-19 could work more effectively than waiting for tests to confirm the presence of Covid-19.

We don't need to lose anything in the effectiveness of response by moving from relying on tests to relying on presumptive diagnoses from GPs, he told RTE radios Morning Ireland.

Instead of having delays of up to 10 days, we can move in when people have symptoms and start contact tracing at that point.

Detection programmes are showing that most transmission of Covid-19 happens in the asymptomatic phase (when someone has no symptoms of illness) - up to one or two days before the symptoms show, he said.

Prof Brugha added that carrying out contact tracing as early as possible would improve the overall outcomes by getting people to self-isolate as soon as they have been identified.
The hardworking National Organiser of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr. Sammi Awuku today, Wednesday April 1, 2020 joined managers of the COVID-19 Private Sector Fund as they embarked on the Feed a Kayayei Project.



The project is a special one organized by the COVID-19 Private Sector Fund Managers and aimed at feeding some 8,000 head potters, popularly known in the local parlance as Kayayei in Accra and Kumasi.



The move is part of the groups efforts to help alleviate the plight of the less privileged in the midst of the lockdown announced by government, following the outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic.



Senyo Hosi, a trustee of the fund in a statement said The project aims to provide a meal a day to head-porters at various locations in areas impacted by the directive to restrict movements. The feeding arrangements are being organized in conjunction with the leaders of various head-porter groups. The meals will be provided by existing caterers of the Ghana School Feeding Programme.



The iconic and charismatic NPP National Organiser who is also the Board Chairman of the Youth Employment Agency as expressing hope that the country will overcome the pandemic.



According to Mr. Awuku, the exercise afforded them the opportunity to interact with and educate the head potters on the pandemic and the measures they can take to protect themselves and their loved ones.







He took to his social media page and wrote:



Today I joined the officials of Ghana Covid 19 Private Sector fund Managers on their FEED A KAYAYO Project.. We had the opportunity to interact, educate and feed thousands of kayayos across the Greater Accra whiles observing all the Health Protocols in response to Governments call for well meaning Ghanaians to get on board.



#ThisTooShallPass



#SpreadCalmNotFear



#StayHome



#iPledgeToStayHome



#Weareinthisfighttogether









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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As expected, Laredo officials noted Wednesday during their daily coronavirus media briefing that the Easter holiday will have to be celebrated at home this year as no public gatherings are allowed.

READ MORE: Laredo sustainable farm prospers despite coronavirus pandemic

Due to the city enacting an extension to the stay-at-home order and curfew until April 30, locals will not be able to celebrate the Easter holiday in public areas such as Casa Blanca and other local parks, where Laredoans commonly go.

No social gatherings allowed including Easter, said City of Laredo City Manager Robert Eads. No new ordinance will be done for any specific holiday or celebration.

The decision falls in line with current guidelines that prevent many from even attending local mass in efforts to promote ongoing social distancing guidelines and help stop the spread of the coronavirus pandemic nationwide.

The statement is also prudent as several other local municipalities in Webb County had canceled Easter-related events in recent days and weeks such as El Cenizos Spring Festival that celebrated the holiday in its local municipal park.

For several Laredoans, the idea of celebrating getting back to the roots of the holiday is something good amid the crisis.

I think it is a good thing to point out this early on as many people, including the president, believed that by Easter everything would be solved, when in reality I think things will just be as bad or even worse by the middle of the month as experts and news say, said local Judith Marquez.

Although she occasionally does not go out to a local park to celebrate the holiday, Marquez does usually attend large family gatherings, which she points out she will not do any time soon until the crisis is over.

Someone also taking similar precautions is local Fernando Saucedo, who noted that he will simply do a small cookout on that day with his nuclear family at home and not interact as much with neighbors.

We usually go to the lake, but right now I feel it is better to just stay home and truly celebrate what Easter is about, Saucedo said. It is not about cracking eggs, finding eggs with money or even Easter bunnies but rather thanking God that we are alive and for his sacrifices, which I think we will do more than ever in this society that we live in.

Although Saucedo noted that he will just stay home, he does hope things get better as the year progresses and other holidays and special days do not have to be canceled due to the situation.

Meanwhile, Laredoan Mari Lee Paez stated that she and her family will simply stay at home and do a good dinner a few Easter eggs to keep it simple at home.

Clearly, this is a route that many Laredoans are taking, not just because they are forced to under the current policy of the city but also for their own safety and that of others as well.

Others, however, have a much harder thinking of what to do for Easter in efforts to remain safe with their families as they prefer to just skip the celebration.

We just wont celebrate it at all, said local George Ruiz.

City officials, and especially the city manager, expressed the importance of value of staying at home in efforts to help limit the virus spread, as it can instead be celebrated in a different way at home as opposed to going out in public. That is, as long as there is a group of 10 people or less in your residence.

READ MORE: Laredo appears to be one of the first US cities to mandate people cover their nose, mouth

Celebrate at home, only with your household family members, Eads said. Stay home, stay safe.


remaining of

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The top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee this week criticized closing schools in his home state, California, as way overkill  even as President Trump came to a reckoning over the number of people who could die during the coronavirus pandemic.

The lawmaker, Representative Devin G. Nunes, played down the gravity of the outbreak during a Tuesday night appearance on Fox News.

Look, the schools were just canceled out here in California, which is way overkill, Mr. Nunes said. Its possible kids could have went back to school in two weeks to four weeks, but they just canceled the rest of the schools.

On Wednesday, Mr. Nunes, 46, who represents parts of Tulare and Fresno Counties, started trending on Twitter because of his comments, which were widely condemned.
The minister for housing Michael Sukkar's has clarified what the six month moratorium on evictions means .

The ABC's Patricia Karvelas asked if people can stop paying rent if there's a moratorium.

"The short answer to your question is of course not", Sukkar said.

"There is a moratorium on evictions, but there's not a moratorium on the requirement to pay rents", Sukkar added.

The housing minister said it's useful to separate commercial and residential.

"From a commercial perspective, I know that our national cabinet will have more to say further to their principles that were outlined last week on how, particularly states and territories, are going to deal with it.

"As the PM has said, we need landlords and tenants to come together, and there must be an element of sharing the pain."

Sukkar said it's not in any landlords interest to lose a great tenant who may be going through short term difficulty.

"We are seeing a lot of landlords and tenants working closely together but we need to put in some minimum standards and that's what I'm confident the national cabinet will do."

Sukkar's clarification has been welcomed by the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

A moratorium on evictions doesnt mean rent is not payable, it is", REIA president Adrian Kelly said.

"If circumstances mean that payment in full is not possible it is a holding off from payments, not a cancellation.

It is for people who cannot pay at this time not for those that can.

If you can pay your rent now, you pay it.

If you cant pay your rent now, you have been given grace for six months, but will have to catch up when you are able to pay it again.
Japan has banned arrivals from 49 countries including Korea, the U.S. and China to stem the spread of coronavirus.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced the additional bans in a meeting on Wednesday.

Koreans are now banned from visiting Japan starting Friday, provisionally until the end of the month. This will affect both businesspeople and students who were planning to go to Japan. Until now Japan had banned only visitors from Daegu and parts of North Gyeongsang Province.


The current COVID-19 outbreak affecting 180 countries and territories across six continents is taking its toll on healthcare systems globally. In particular, there is growing pressure on and concern for triage and palliative care departments. Now, researchers from the University of Toronto, Universite Laval, Quebec, and the University of Ottawa have published a new study titled, Pandemic palliative care: beyond ventilators and saving lives, in the latest issue of the journal Canadian Medical Association Journal that looks to address the challenges in providing palliative care during a viral pandemic.

With COVID-19 disease, over forty-six thousand individuals have lost their lives. Most of the severe disease and its complications are seen among the elderly who often require intensive care and assisted ventilation. Palliative care physicians have readied plans to offer care to the severely and critically ill patients and help to manage the scarce supplies during the pandemic in the most effective and judicious way.

Image Credit: Numstocker / Shutterstock

What was this study about?

The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic is likely to stretch healthcare systems to the seams, especially as intensive care units and ventilator systems are in short supply.

End-of-life decision making and planning can be a shared process between clinicians and patients, say the researchers. In a pandemic situation where many patients are critically ill, there are choices to be made, such as life-prolonging measures and others such as triage. Triage involves the utilization of the available resources to save an optimum number of lives and often involves making tough decisions.

The authors of the study write, Failing to deliver palliative care in this context would compound the tragedy of the pandemic and would arguably be a more substantial failure of the health care system.

The team wrote that palliative care during a pandemic focusses on three major areas;

Management of the symptoms in the patient. Discussion with the patient regarding their wishes, expectations, and values. Using these advance care planning, as well as ultimately, the aims of patient care is to be determined. Supporting the bereaved families and families of those who are suffering from critical illness or life-limiting illness.

Critical elements

The focus was on eight critical elements such as  stuff, staff, space, systems, sedation, separation, communication and equity.

Dr. James Downar, the head of the Division of Palliative Care at the University of Ottawa and a palliative care physician at The Ottawa Hospital and Bruyere Continuing Care, explained, The current COVID-19 pandemic will likely strain our palliative services beyond capacity. We advise acting now to stockpile medications and supplies used in palliative care, train staff to meet palliative care needs, optimize our space, refine our systems, alleviate the effects of separation, have critical conversations, and focus on marginalized populations to ensure that all patients who require palliative care receive it.

The authors of the study wrote, Many people already have advance care plans that stipulate that comfort measures are to be used if they become seriously ill. Other patients who are intubated and receiving mechanical ventilation but are not improving clinically will be extubated. One-third group of patients may be denied ventilation because of resource scarcity.

Their plan and recommendations

The US Task Force on Mass Casualty Critical Care has a plan in place for the casualties that are in large numbers with approaches such as sedation, communication, and equity.

This team expanded the approach using other additions such as stuff, staff, space, systems, sedation, separation, communication and equity.

Stock  they advise on stocking medicines such as morphine, haloperidol, midazolam, and scopolamine. These would provide comfort to critically ill patients. They also advise stocking personal protective equipment for the palliative health care providers for long term care. They call for a suspension of the regulations that bind the availability of the injectable opioids etc.

Adequate staffing with clinicians who have experience in palliative care. All front line care providers also need a brief training in palliative care, management of acute respiratory symptoms and also ensure their safety. Allied healthcare staff could be trained to provide support to patients and bereaved family members.

Optimum utilization of the hospital space and resources. Separate wards need to be earmarked for COVID-19 patients. Palliative care units for dying COVID-19 patients are needed.

A triage system needs to be adopted to determine which patients require specialist palliative care consultation and which patients can be seen virtually. Telemedicine can be used effectively and would also reduce infection risk. Palliative care provider groups can be formed for support and coverage.

Palliative sedation plans need to be in place for those who are refractory to common comfort medications.

Video calling could be initiated to connect dying and critically ill patients with their family members, especially if they are separated because of infection risks.

Communication is the key to palliative care; the authors write. The team says that communication and the need to uphold the patients wishes are paramount.

Equity in care is vital. All patients irrespective of their groups, disabilities, trauma, socioeconomic status, and access to palliative care need to be cared for.

Conclusion

The authors write in conclusion, Any triage system that does not integrate palliative care principles is unethical. Patients who are not expected to survive should not be abandoned but must receive palliative care as a human right.
Following comments earlier in the day by Gov. Gavin Newsom and two state education leaders, schools in Oakland and now Santa Clara County will move to distance learning for the remainder of the school year because of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, leaders of the two districts said Wednesday evening.

Newsom, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and state Board of Education President Linda Darling-Hammond said schools should remain closed through the end of the year because of the pandemic.
Have you been briefed by the C.D.C.? I have. Are there worries about a pandemic at this point? No, were not at all, and we have it totally under control. Its one person coming in from China, and we have it under control. Its going to be just fine. Ive always known this is a real  this is a pandemic. I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called a pandemic. Now the Democrats are politicizing the coronavirus. We did one of the great jobs. You say, Hows President Trump doing? They go, Oh, not good, not good. They have no clue. They dont have any clue. And this is their new hoax. Ive always viewed it as very serious. There was no difference yesterday from days before. I feel the tone is similar, but some people said it wasnt. Were  what do you have, a very small number of people in the country right now with it? Its like around 12. Many of them are getting better. Some are fully recovered already. So were in very good shape. Were going to be pretty soon at only five people. And we could be at just one or two people over the next short period of time. So youre talking about 2.2 million deaths  2.2 million people from this. And so if we could hold that down, as were saying, to 100,000  its a horrible number, maybe even less, but to 100,000, so we have between 100,000 and 200,000. We all together have done a very good job. The flu in our country kills from 25,000 people to 69,000 people a year. That was shocking to me. But thats a little bit like the flu. Its a little like the regular flu that we have flu shots for. And well essentially have a flu shot for this in a fairly quick manner. View this the same as the flu. This is not the flu. Its vicious. It is so contagious. Flu has never been like that, and there is  flu is contagious, but nothing like weve ever seen here. Anybody that wants a test can get a test. Thats what  the bottom line. Anybody right now and yesterday, anybody that needs a test gets a test. Theyre there. They have the tests. And the tests are beautiful. And in some cases, theyre in California where we have too many. And then in other cases, the distribution could be a little bit better for certain areas, but weve done a good job on testing.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI -- This time last year Gerald R. Ford International Airport was closing out its busiest month in recorded history.

Now, Ford Airport is closing the books on one of its slowest months, with daily passenger traffic decreasing by roughly 90 percent because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to airport officials.

"This is the slowest I've seen (any airport) in seven years, said Melissa Slates, a Transportation Security Administration agent who has worked at Ford Airport for about a year and the agency for about seven.

The normal hustle and bustle of Michigans second-busiest airport was absent Wednesday afternoon, April 1.

The curbs, usually busy with passengers unloading and loading from their vehicles, were almost empty. Only a handful of non-employees lingered in the abnormally quiet arrival lobby.

The arrivals and departures boards had numerous red-highlighted cancellations.

Its tough to see right now, said Tara Hernandez, spokesperson for Ford Airport. Were not seeing spring break travel like we normally would. These are typically our busiest times.

But, Hernandez said, Ford Airport officials understand Gov. Gretchen Whitmers order for residents to stay home and travel only when necessary to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

We do ask people if they dont have an essential need to travel that they revisit their travel plans and join us on a future trip, Hernandez said. And thats tough to say. Its tough to tell people not to come visit us.

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As of Wednesday, state health officials reported a total 9,334 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 337 deaths in Michigan. The number of cases is expected to peak in the state in late April or early May.

Of that tally, 118 cases and two deaths have been reported in Kent County.

The pandemics exact toll on passenger numbers for March wont be available until early-to-mid April. Hernandez said passenger numbers were slowing even before Whitmers stay-at-home order.

At present, Hernandez estimates that daily passenger traffic is about 90 percent less than normal. Traffic is mostly military and other essential workers or people traveling for family emergencies or to get home.

Industry officials estimate enplanements, or passenger boardings, could be down by about 73 percent through June, Hernandez said.

The downturn could slow the airports $90 million project to add eight more passenger gates. That project was announced last year as an effort to accommodate the year-over-year record passenger growth. Concourse construction is slated to start this spring.

As of right now, the project is still going forward as planned.

Right now, were hoping to keep it on pace as the traffic forecast allows, she said. We know were going to at some point, hopefully in a year or two, be on pace where were back with those record passenger numbers and a lot of people flying through and needing the space for them.

Related: Grand Rapids airport plans $90 million expansion to accommodate growth

The pandemic has delayed another project, the construction portion of the Gateway Transformation Projects second phase. That second phase is designed to improve airline ticket counters and baggage service offices, as well as the baggage claim, curbside and front-of-house areas.

Construction was planned to start in April, but the construction company put a pause on it to protect their workers from potential infection, Hernandez said.

None of the Ford Airport Authoritys 115 employees have been laid off or furloughed, but that may not be the case for airport vendors and contractors, like those who work at now-closed dine-in options.

The fall in passenger traffic cuts into the airports revenue in a couple different ways.

A little more than half of the airports income is through parking fees. Rental vehicle and ground transportation charges, landing fees from airlines and a percentage of concession sales are also ways the airport generates revenue.

Those streams have all diminished.

Right now, were doing OK, Hernandez said. In a couple months, check in and well see. Hopefully well be through this and able to get through with what we have in the bank.

Some consulting positions and contracts have been cut to diminish expenditures.

The $2 trillion stimulus package passed last week by Congress and President Donald Trump will provide some relief to Ford Airport and other airports. The amount that Ford Airport will receive is still being calculated.

Its going to help, Hernandez said. We just dont know on what level yet.

Even with the financial struggle, people shouldnt expect Ford Airport to close. Hernandez said the airport is considered critical.

We dont expect to close. I dont think people should worry about that," she said. Its just a matter of buckling down and getting through this and then hopefully we come back bigger and better than ever and everybody takes vacations and business travel is up again.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus.

Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible.

Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more:

Michigan closes in on 10,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with largest single-day jump

Michigan unemployment claims spike as coronavirus cases continue rapid growth

Automotive company laying off more than 1,000 in West Michigan

Thursday, April 2: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan
Samaritans Purse opened an emergency field hospital in New York City this week to serve COVID-19 patients, but one prominent member of the city council says the Christian ministry isnt welcome.

New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson released a statement Tuesday criticizing Samaritans Purse, which set up a 14-tent, 68-bed respiratory care unit in Central Park. It is working in partnership with the Mount Sinai Health System.

Franklin Graham is CEO and president of Samaritans Purse.

Franklin Graham has a long history of spewing anti-LGBTQ hate speech and I find it extremely troubling that he and his organization are involved in our relief efforts in any way, Johnson said in the statement. New York City is known around the world for our embrace of diversity and Franklin Graham has spent his career standing against these values. I will be monitoring this situation closely and making sure that our citys values are being represented at all times.

Franklin Graham has a long history of spewing anti-LGBTQ hate speech and I find it extremely troubling that he and his organization are involved in our relief efforts in any way. I will be monitoring this situation closely.



My full statement: pic.twitter.com/2cg6dHYHwA  NYC Council Speaker Corey Johnson (@NYCSpeakerCoJo) April 1, 2020

The state of New York has the most coronavirus cases and deaths in the U.S.

New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio, too, expressed concern but didnt go as far as Johnson in his comments.

We're going to send people over from the mayor's office to monitor, de Blasio said, according to New York Public Radios Gothamist website. I am very concerned that this is done right. But if it is done right, we need all the help we can get.

New York media has focused on Grahams traditional Christian beliefs but also the Samaritans Purse requirement that doctors and nurses be Christian.

Graham told Newsmax TVs Spicer & Co he hasnt had any problems with the New Yorkers hes met.

They were just excited that we were there  and that we're coming to help the people in New York, Graham said. We don't discriminate. Anybody who comes to our doors, regardless of their faith, their sexual orientation, their religion  it doesn't matter, we help everybody the same. And we love everybody the same. And I want everyone to know that God loves them, too.

"We're coming to help the people of New York, and of course we don't discriminate," @Franklin_Graham tells @seanspicer on his COVID-19 relief efforts.



"We love everybody the same, and I want everyone to know that God loves them too." https://t.co/VlT7z8drtO pic.twitter.com/T2AtJlZJWt  Newsmax (@newsmax) April 1, 2020

Earlier this week, Graham urged people to come together and work together to save lives.

Johnsons statement  also posted on Twitter  received plenty of pushback.

As a gay New Yorker, Id like to sit down with them over a cup of coffee and thank them for putting themselves in harms way, one person wrote. Thats how change of heart happens. They are risking their lives. We should be grateful.

Christians build a free hospital to help New Yorkers survive this crisis and you complain? Despicable, another person wrote.

Denny Burk, a professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and Boyce College, tweeted that every branch of Christianity throughout history would agree with Samaritans Purses beliefs on sexuality.

This is simply what Xtians have always believed. To fault Samaritans Purse for believing these things is to fault them for being Xtian, Burk wrote.

Again, every branch of Christianity throughout history would agree with this statementRoman Catholic, Protestant, Eastern Orthodox, etc. This is simply what Xtians have always believed. To fault Samaritans Purse for believing these things is to fault them for being Xtian.



/5  Denny Burk (@DennyBurk) April 1, 2020

Related:

Trump Applauds Franklin Graham for Fighting Coronavirus: He Loves Jesus

Trump Urges Americans to Pray: With Gods Help, We Will Overcome this Threat

Photo courtesy: Samaritan's Purse

Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
19422020

James enjoyed spending time with his family and his friends. Every Wednesday, he met his lady friends at the Froedtert Hospital atrium for free coffee, camaraderie and lunch. Every Sunday, he had breakfast with one or more of his three brothers at Gateway Cafe. He loved movies, plays and books. His book collection was a prized possession to him. He participated in a book club for the last several years where he got to do two of his most favorite things in life: reading and speaking. He loved seeing plays at American Players Theater in Spring Green, WI. He especially enjoyed Shakespearean plays and other classical performances. Not only was he a caregiver for his own mother prior to her death in 2010, he was currently a caregiver for his Aunt Cynthia Grissom whom he had a special relationship with. They traveled to Europe, enjoyed theater and dining out. He had compassion for all creatures great and small, as evidenced by his taking care of several cats during his lifetime and becoming a vegetarian. James will be remembered for his kindness, expertise on all subjects, sense of humor, caring, and dignity and respect for all people at all times. He took care of a special friend, by paying for her meals and taking her grocery shopping. She never asked him to do this; he did it because it was the right thing to do. He embraced equality and social responsibility and was always eager to discuss his beliefs with his brothers. Whenever he was asked How are you feeling? his response was either With my fingers or Everyday above ground is a good day, Ohayo gozaimus (Good day in Japanese)!
US President Donald Trump speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on March 16, 2020. Brendan Smialowski | AFP | Getty Images

Dow Jones Industrial Average rises 469 points

The Dow gained 469.93 points, or 2.24%, to close at 21,413.44. The S&P 500 rose 2.28% to 2,526.90. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.72% to 7,487.31. Stocks traded in a wide range Thursday as investors weighed a record jump in unemployment claims and a sharp r ally in oil prices.

6.6 million jobless claims

The Labor Department said a record 6.6 million people filed for unemployment benefits the week of March 27. That's more than double the previous week's total of 3.28 million. "The news is terrible and I'm not sure why the estimates the past two weeks have been so far off but we all know how rough things are," said Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer at Bleakley Advisory Group. The grim data initially dampened market sentiment, but a rally in oil gave stocks a boost. U.S. crude had its best day ever, soaring 24% after President Donald Trump told CNBC he expects Saudi Arabia and Russia to reach a deal on a production cut.

Chevron and Exxon rise, Boeing falls again

Chevron and Exxon Mobil led energy stocks higher, surging 11.03% and 7.65%, respectively. Boeing shares were a drag on the Dow once again, however, closing 5.68% lower.

What happens next?
The Delhi Police on Thursday arrested a student of Jamia Milia Islamia for allegedly hatching a conspiracy to incite communal riots in northeast Delhi, officials said.

Meeran Haider (35), a PhD student at Jamia, is the president of RJD youth wing's Delhi unit, sources said.

On Wednesday at 10 am, Haider was called for interrogation by the Special Cell at their Lodhi Colony office and was subsequently arrested, the officials said.

Rajya Sabha MP and RJD leader Manoj Jha tweeted, "Delhi Police called him for investigation and then received orders from above and arrested Meeran Haider, who has been helping people during the time of coronavirus outbreak."



Chhatra RJD unit of JNU also demanded the release of Haider and said the police should become 'people-friendly' and not scare people.

The Jamia Coordination Committee (JCC), a group comprising students and alumni from the varsity, condemned the arrest and demanded his immediate release.

"The country is facing a massive health crisis, however, the state machinery is busy harassing and framing student activists in false cases to suppress voices of dissent," they said.

The JCC said Haider was diligently working to provide ration to the needy during the lockdown.

"The JCC demands that he must be immediately released as all charges against him are baseless," they said.

In February, the northeast part of the national capital was rocked with violence which claimed at least 53 lives and several got injured.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Models show coronavirus could claim 100,000 lives in U.S even with containment efforts: experts

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 09:04, April 01, 2020

WASHINGTON, March 31 (Xinhua) -- Health experts on the White House Coronavirus Task Force said Tuesday that even with the Trump administration's national social distancing guidelines in place, Americans still should be prepared for the prospect of the coronavirus causing 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the country.

Presenting the models before reporters at a White House press briefing, Deborah Birx, the task force's response coordinator, said as many as 1.5 million to 2.2 million people will succumb to COVID-19 if no mitigation measures whatsoever are taken to contain the virus.

"There's no magic bullet, there's no magic vaccine or therapy. It's just behaviors," Birx said, urging people to act according to the administration's social distancing strategy, which has been extended to April 30. Those behaviors, Birx added, could change "the course of the viral pandemic."

"As sobering as that number is, we should be prepared for it. Is it going to be that much? I hope not and I think the more we push back on mitigation, the less likelihood it would that number," said Anthony Fauci, another leading expert on the task force team.

"But as being realistic, we need to prepare ourselves that that is a possibility that that's what we'll see," added Fauci, also director of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

Earlier during the briefing, President Donald Trump warned the American people that "we're going to go through a very tough two weeks."

"And then hopefully, as the experts are predicting, as I think a lot of us are predicting, after having studied it so hard, we're going to start seeing some real light at the end of the tunnel, but this is going to be a very painful, very, very painful two weeks," Trump added.

There were more than 700 new coronavirus-driven fatalities Tuesday in the United States, the most one-day increase.

Total deaths reached 3,810 and total confirmed cases stood at 186,265 in the country, according to latest data from Johns Hopkins University, updated at 6:05 p.m. ET.

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THE rollout of Manitobas COVID-19 testing has been slow. So far, relatively few have been diagnosed with the virus. However, Manitoba has largely limited testing to those whove travelled, been in contact with someone who has travelled or already been diagnosed with COVID-19, and health-care workers.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

THE rollout of Manitobas COVID-19 testing has been slow. So far, relatively few have been diagnosed with the virus. However, Manitoba has largely limited testing to those whove travelled, been in contact with someone who has travelled or already been diagnosed with COVID-19, and health-care workers.

Only those being referred by a Health Links nurse or another medical professional can get the test. If youve not travelled anywhere recently, arent sick enough to be hospitalized for a respiratory illness, and arent in any of the other eligible categories, you might have the virus and be walking around, infecting others without knowing it.

The World Health Organization recommends early widespread testing as a way to identify infected people. Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitobas chief public health officer, indicated that the Cadham Laboratory has technicians working 24-7 to process tests as soon as possible. The implication here is that all the qualified technicians are working flat-out on all the available equipment.

Even so, with fewer than 1,000 tests processed each day in Manitoba, patients may wait days to get their test results. These delays in diagnosis and COVID-19 patient isolation will amplify the spread of the virus. If we wait too long, dont test enough and fail to isolate infected people quickly, Manitoba will make the same mistakes that have been made in China, Iran, Italy, Spain and New York, with disastrous results.

To avoid this, Manitoba must immediately increase its speed and testing capacity. But what will happen when some of the technicians who are working 24-7 get sick and cannot do their jobs? Testing capacity, as it currently exists, would go down instead of up.

The University of Manitoba has already loaned equipment to extract RNA (ribonucleic acid, which is present in all living cells) to the National Microbiology Laboratory for its COVID-19 testing, but additional devices could be loaned to Cadham Laboratory. One PCR machine (thermal cycler) can run a maximum of about 400 samples a day of the type used for COVID-19 testing. Our provincial testing capacity is currently equivalent to the output of less than three machines.

Many life-sciences researchers in our provinces universities have these expensive pieces of equipment. These researchers use them on a regular basis for many experiments; its time now to call on these research labs, and ask them to loan their PCR machines to boost the provinces virus-testing capacity. This would drastically increase the number of tests that can be run at once.

Also, while the training for these professors, technicians and graduate students may not be exactly the same as that of the Cadham technicians, they have extensive experience running this specialized equipment safely and correctly.

Many have already collected disposable gloves, other personal protective equipment and appropriate research chemicals from their labs. These researchers have sent the necessary items to the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority and the Public Health Agency of Canada, and if asked, many of Manitobas researchers would step forward again to be trained by the Cadham laboratory to do the specific COVID-19 testing protocol.

This would also boost testing capacity and reduce the time it takes to get test results.

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More importantly, it would create a "second string" of qualified technicians who can step in to help if those on the front lines get sick with the virus. As our COVID-19 experience in Manitoba stretches from weeks into months, these highly trained PhDs and their students can create reagents, run the machines and offer the hard-working Cadham laboratory technicians some relief.

When this crisis abates, the PCR machines and the scientists who use them can all return to their university laboratories; but for now, there is a crucial component of Manitobas brain-power missing from this equation. Our health-care system is under siege. Its only going to get worse. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary collaboration.

Tired front-line clinical professionals may not like asking their science colleagues for help but now is the time to make this leap, before it is too late to make a difference. Once we have widespread community transmission, additional testing capacity will be of little help. Universities should immediately make inventories of the relevant equipment, qualified personnel ready to volunteer and reagent stocks. Then, these resources should be deployed as quickly as possible.

Those who suggest this isnt feasible should look toward the examples of the University of Washington, University of California-Berkeley, University of North Carolina and others, who have already led the charge in COVID-19 testing in recent weeks. This isnt just possible; its necessary.

Its time for Dr. Roussin to ask for help. With most university labs shut down, our basic science researchers and their idle equipment await the call.

Jeffrey Marcus is a professor in the department of biological sciences at the University of Manitoba. Joanne Seiff is a Winnipeg-based freelance writer and the author of three books.
It was nice that so many people reached out and wanted to help find this baby book a home, Myszewski said. Any time you go on Facebook anymore, its about all the horrors in the world. Anything about family right now is welcome.
Midland County added three new positive cases of coronavirus on Thursday, bringing the total to 15 cases, according to a state report released Thursday afternoon.

Bay County recorded six new cases, bringing its total to 16. Isabella County added one case and now is at 8, with Saginaw County adding 11 new cases, bringing its total to 82. Gladwin County did not record any new cases.

Midland County Public Health Director/Health Officer Fred Yanoski told the Daily News on Wednesday that federal health officials expect the pandemic to continue to worsen in the next few weeks and said "the behaviors of our society will impact the severity of disease."

The state added 1,457 new cases, down from Wednesday's high of 1,719. The state reported 80 deaths Thursday and 78 on Wednesday.

Overall, Michigan stands at 10,791 positive coronavirus cases, with 417 deaths.

Southeast Michigan remains the hot spot with Detroit City reporting 2,858 cases with 101 deaths; Wayne County, 2, 211 at 93 deaths; Oakland County, 2183 at 119 deaths and Macomb County at 1,332 at 58 deaths.

The state is reporting, as of April 1, a total of 29,324 specimens have been tested, and that includes those that were negative, positive and inconclusive. Of the 29,324 specimens tested, 22,054 were negative, and 7,158 were positive, the state reports. Counts represent the total specimens tested, not total patients tested,

The state has categorized in percentages the ages of people who are testing positive. People age 50 to 59 make up 20% of the cases, with people ages 60-69, 18%; people 40-49, 17%; people 70-79, 13%; people 30 to 39, 13%; people 20 to 29, 10%; people 80-plus, 8%, and people 0-19, 1%.

The positive cases involve male and female equally, with 49% men, 50% women and 1% unknown.

State statistics show 64% of coronavirus deaths are male and 36% are female. Those who have died range in age from xx to 107, with the average age 71.

We cannot stress enough how important it is for our community to be diligent in their community mitigation efforts," Yanoski has said. "We know that COVID-19 is in our community, and our residents can make a huge impact on slowing the spread of disease by following the recommended precautions."

Midland County Department of Public Health continues to encourage residents to take precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19:

 Continue to practice social distancing as recommended by Federal, State and Local Officials

 Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth

 Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash

 Disinfect commonly touched surfaces

 Stay home when you are sick

 Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.

If you think you've been exposed to COVID-19 and develop a fever and symptoms such as cough or difficulty breathing, call your health care provider for medical advice. If he/she isn't available call MidMichigan Urgent Care in Midland at 989- 633-1350 or MidMichigan Medical Center's Emergency Department in Midland at 989-839-3100.

MidMichigan Health has a COVID-19 informational hotline with a reminder of CDC guidelines and recommendations. The hotline can be reached toll-free at 800-445-7356 or 989-794-7600. Michigan Department of Health and Human Services also has a hotline number for Michigan residents for questions about COVID-19. The number is 1-888-535-6136 and is available seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Residents can also send an e-mail to: COVID19@michigan.gov. E-mails will be answered seven days a week between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

If you are feeling anxious, stressed, depressed and feel you need to talk to someone, reach out to Community Mental Health for Central Michigan by calling 800-317-0708.
An emergency room doctor who worked at an Essex County hospital died Tuesday, a week after developing coronavirus symptoms, his husband told NJ Advance Media.

Dr. Frank Gabrin, 60, who worked at East Orange General Hospital, woke up March 24 with chest pain and other symptoms, according to his husband, Arnold Vargas of New York.

He had a lot of coughing and two days ago he was very sick, Vargas said through tears on Wednesday. On Tuesday, Gabrin woke up saying, Baby, I cant breathe, Vargas said.

Though Gabrin had not been tested for COVID-19, the two were sure hed come down with the virus because he had treated the same symptoms in other patients.

Gabrin, who lived in New York City, began working at the East Orange hospital nine months ago and divided his time between New Jersey and a hospital on Long Island, New York, Vargas said.

A two-time cancer survivor, Gabrin thought he had the coronavirus under control and would recover at home, his husband said.

He told me, I can handle this. I survived cancer and this is just the coronavirus, Vargas said.

As Gabrins condition worsened on Tuesday, Vargas said he called the NYPD and was placed on hold. It took 30 minutes for help to arrive, he said.

He died in my hands, Vargas said.

Vargas said he also has mild symptoms of the virus and has seen a doctor who prescribed medication. Vargas said he expects to recover at home.

Dr. Frank Gabrin, friend and emergency medicine colleague for many years and most importantly a good soul, posted this... Posted by J.d. Polk on Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Vargas said Gabrin often used the same N-95 masks and gowns at the hospitals where he worked, but continued helping as long as he could because the emergency rooms are short-staffed.

He never complained about anything, he just wanted to work and help people, Vargas said.

Dr. Alvaro Alban, the chairman of the Emergency Department at East Orange General Hospital, told NBC News Gabrin was delightful, caring and wonderful to work with.

He had every intention to help. He was eager to keep working in the E.D. and was disappointed when he started to get symptoms, Alban said. His intention was that his fever would break. Dr. Gabrin was motivated, on a mission and wanted to keep working."

In New Jersey as of Tuesday, there were 18,696 cases of coronavirus and 267 deaths.

I lost my best friend to Covid19 a few hours ago. @DrFrankGabrin was an ER Doctor in NYC. He planned to go back to work when he recovered. It took only five days from the first sign of symptoms. He leaves a husband of less than one year behind. We are devastated. #PPENow pic.twitter.com/LVOSe9XXG6  Debra Vasalech Lyons (@DebVasalech) March 31, 2020

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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The Chief Inspector of Criminal Justice in Northern Ireland has called on the PSNI and Police Ombudsman's office to put in the hard work necessary to restore public confidence.

It follows a review into the police's failure to hand over files on the 1992 UDA attack on a Belfast bookmakers in which five people were murdered.
The union representing TTC drivers has unilaterally told its members to limit the number of passengers allowed on city buses, in what it says is a bid to prevent crowding that could spread COVID-19.

The directive, announced by Amalgamated Transit Union Local 113 Thursday afternoon, wasnt sanctioned by TTC management.

In a message sent to media and posted online, Local 113 president Carlos Santos advised drivers to allow no more than 10 riders on regular buses, and no more than 15 on the longer articulated, or bendy, buses.

ATU Local 113s recommendation comes after ongoing overcrowding on some TTC bus routes, which goes against the guidelines coming from public health officials and political leaders, Santos said in the statement.

We apologize for any inconvenience to the public. However, limiting the number of passengers on TTC buses will help ensure riders are practicing physical distancing by staying two metres away from each other.

Other transit agencies in the GTA, including those in Durham Region and Brampton, have put caps on the number of passengers allowed on buses to avoid crowding. TTC spokesperson Stuart Green said in an email Thursday the TTC had not put limits on passengers in order to ensure our operators are able to focus on the safe operation of their vehicle and to avoid conflict with customers.

While we agree 10-15 customers is a reasonable number, we would rather operators continue to focus on moving our customers safely than on counting heads, Green said.

Green didnt explicitly say whether the TTC would permit its drivers to limit the number of passengers on its buses, or whether the agency considers the unions directive a form of job action that would violate the TTCs collective agreement with employees.

Operators are asked to, as they always do, maintain the balance between safe operations and delivery of service, he said.

We have a good relationship with our operators and the union  and we look forward to that relationship continuing.

TTC ridership has declined by as much as 80 per cent since the COVID-19 pandemic shut down much of the city, but the drop on bus routes hasnt been as sharp as on subway and streetcar lines. The latest figures provided by the TTC indicate that as of March 20 bus ridership had fallen by about 62 per cent.

Photos have continued to circulate on social media this week showing buses far too crowded for riders to observe public health recommendations to keep at least two metres away from other people.

The TTC announced this week it was adding buses to 15 busy routes to ease the crowding. The agency has also agreed to allow employees to wear masks on the job, and instituted rear door boarding on buses to keep passengers at a distance from drivers.

In an interview, Santos said the TTC had been slower than other agencies to institute policies to protect employees and passengers against COVID-19 and a lot of our members are scared.

Im getting bombarded with my members concerns about overcrowding and I cant sit around for the TTC to make the decision, he said.

He said the unions unsanctioned directive doesnt represent a breakdown in its relationship with TTC management.

Were still working with them every day, he said.

This is not job action, this is health-and-safety action.

TTC and city officials have said its important to keep transit operating in order to allow health care workers, grocery store employees, and others in essential sectors to get to their jobs during the pandemic. Santos said he didnt expect limiting the number of riders on buses would prevent essential employees from getting to work.

If they miss a bus, theyre just going to have to catch the next one. There isnt a lack of buses out there, he said.

Local 113 represents about 12,000 transit agency employees.

Ben Spurr is a Toronto-based reporter covering transportation. Reach him by email at bspurr@thestar.ca or follow him on Twitter: @BenSpurr
: Chennai-based the Sundaram



Finance Group on Thursday said along with its associate companies it has contributed Rs 20 crore to the Prime Minister's CARES Fund and to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Public Relief Fund.

The Sundaram Finance group comprises Sundaram Finance, Home Finance, Royal Sundaram and Sundaram Mutual.

Its associate companies (of the TVS Group) include Brakes India, Wheels India, Turbo Energy, Axles India and Impal and have contributed Rs 20 crore towards COVID19 relief, a press release said.

The amount is equally distributed between PM CARES Fund and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Finian Cunningham

April 01, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - Dozens of U.S. government-chartered flights have begun to airlift vital medical equipment and supplies from China to the U.S. as the latter becomes the worlds biggest case load of infections from the novel coronavirus. There are grim forecasts for the number of deaths in the U.S. as the pandemic is weeks from peaking there.

China is cooperating with the U.S. in organizing the massive medical transfer, naturally of course, given the humanitarian crisis. You would think therefore that a little reciprocation would be in order from Washington. After all, China is one of those foreign countries that the U.S. has imposed sanctions on over alleged human rights violations. Would it not behove the U.S. to show a bit of solidarity and gratitude by dropping its sanctions regime against China?

And not just China. There are are some 30 countries and territories that currently sit on a U.S. sanctions list, mostly due to Washingtons accusations of human rights violations. Some of the targeted nations have been under sanctions for decades, such as Cuba, North Korea and Iran. Others have joined the dubious club more recently, such as Russia, Yemen and Venezuela.

Surely at this unprecedented time of a global pandemic threatening millions of human beings regardless of nationality, it is time to show genuine solidarity and compassion for others. The very idea of imposing sanctions on other countries is not only anachronistic. It is utterly barbaric.

In any case, U.S. sanctions imposed unilaterally without the mandate of the UN Security Council are arguably illegal. Even before the coronavirus outbreak and its accompanying disease, Covid-19, the American deployment of embargoes to disrupt commerce and trade of other countries could be seen as reprehensible. Such measures are rightly judged to be collective punishment of civilians which violates international law and the UN Charter.

But now as countries battle against an existential threat posed by the virus, the existing U.S. sanctions can be seen as an abomination.

Iran is a particularly poignant case. It has one of the highest infection rates in the world with thousands of deaths in a matter of weeks. Yet the Trump administration sees fit to not only maintain harsh sanctions on Tehran, it has actually added three more rounds of sanctions against Iran since the epidemic occurred. The deaths in Iran are being multiplied by American policy.

The Trump administration cynically claims that U.S. sanctions do not impede humanitarian aid to Iran. The claim is beneath contempt. The crippling sanctions imposed by Trumps maximum pressure policy virtually precludes Iran from making international financial transactions, including for medicines. Moreover, the effect of secondary sanctions means that many countries are intimidated from doing business with Iran out of fear of U.S. reprisals.

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Washington has blood on its hands where any country is finding the fight against Covid-19 in any way more difficult. It already had blood on its hands from its illegal sanctions. But what we have now is the grotesque picture of a ghoulish, sadistic American government shamelessly showing its ugly face at a time of global suffering.

At the G20 summit last week  held by teleconference to avoid spreading coronavirus infection  Russian President Vladimir Putin called on the world to drop sanctions at this critical juncture. He said it was imperative for all nations to have access to medicines and equipment without financial restrictions. It is a question of whether people live or die, he added.

Putins call for discarding sanctions was backed by UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres and other world leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping.

In the end, however, the G20 final joint statement omitted any unanimous mention of sanctions. One suspects that the U.S.  the worlds number-one serial abuser of sanctions  pulled strings behind the scenes to pre-empt any move to banish such measures of financial coercion. Not surprisingly, because financial coercion (less politely, terrorism) is an instrumental weapon for U.S. foreign policy, as much as its military intimidation of other nations is.

Instead, what came out of the G20 conference was a joint statement of vapid, disingenuous rhetoric.

It opined: Global action, solidarity and international cooperation are more than ever necessary to address this pandemic. We are confident that, working closely together, we will overcome this. We will protect

human life, restore global economic stability, and lay out solid foundations for strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth.

Just how does global solidarity and working closer together to protect human life translate into practical remedial action when Washington continues to wield a veto over some of the poorest and weakest nations gaining life-saving supplies?

If there were any compassion or morality in Washington, it would immediately rescind all its sanctions against other nations in recognition of common humanity. But the hard-heartedness of Washington is unrelenting even at a time of crisis and death. It is based on a self-righteousness that is frightening in the scale of its hubris and hypocrisy.

A certain natural correction is due for this endemic criminal mentality of Americas ruling class. And one senses that the correction for its systematic evildoing against fellow human beings is not going to pass lightly.

Finian Cunningham

"

Source

"
China has stepped in to help the West tackle the coronavirus crisis after managing to quell its own outbreak. But critics view the aid, though indispensible, as part of a cynical ploy to project Chinese influence. As European and American healthcare systems creak under the strain, China has offered millions of face masks and teams of medical experts. As well as seeking to deflect criticism over initial Chinese missteps in handling the epidemic, analysts say, the campaign is a public relations opportunity in China's great power rivalry with the West and especially the United States. COVID-19 first emerged in a wild animal market late last year in the Chinese city of Wuhan, but Beijing says the situation in China is now under control with domestic cases dwindling to zero. By contrast, Europe and the United States have become hotspots of the pandemic with much of the West now in lockdown to curtail the spread of the virus and limit the burden on health systems. As governments scramble to cope, China is showering nations across the globe -- including in the EU -- with masks, experts and equipment. Austria, Belgium, France, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain have all received assistance. China asked for discretion when the EU sent help in January but is conversely trumpeting its own support in a "PR campaign without precedent," according to political science expert Antoine Bondaz from the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS) in Paris. The ideological battle around COVID-19 represents the latest flare-up of tensions between China and the West, after spats over Beijingas military build-up in the South China Sea and over the expansion of tech giant Huawei. "(Beijing) seizes every national or international opportunity to show the supposed 'superiority' of its system," Alice Ekman from the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) told AFP. - 'Battle of narratives' - EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen initially expressed gratitude on March 18 for Beijing's support. But the warm tone has turned sour. The bloc's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell last week called on Europe to stand ready for a "struggle for influence" in a "global battle of narratives". "We must be aware there is a geopolitical component including a struggle for influence through spinning and the 'politics of generositya," the newly-appointed Spanish diplomat said. Borrell accused Beijing of initially covering up the outbreak, saying this paved the way for its rapid, global spread. "Armed with facts, we need to defend Europe against its detractors," Borrell said. French Secretary of State for European Affairs Amelie de Montchalin told French radio Sunday: "It's sometimes easier to spread propaganda, pretty images and sometimes to exploit what is happening." And French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday pointed to a massive order of much-needed face masks from China as a wake-up call for boosting domestic "independence". "This crisis has taught us that the strategic nature of certain goods, certain products, certain materials require European sovereignty," the president said. - 'Original sin' - Beijing has repeatedly expressed fury at US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's insistence on referring to COVID-19 as the "Wuhan virus" -- also to the consternation of some G7 counterparts who fear such a term risks encouraging racism. Chinese officials have also sought to sow doubt over the origin of the virus. On March 12, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lijian Zhao tweeted: "It might be the US army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan. ... US owe us an explanation!" Beijing is seeking to wipe out its "original sin" both domestically and internationally, researcher Francois Heisbourg told AFP. In some countries, China's propaganda may find fertile ground, said Ekman. "Russia, Iran, Pakistan and Algeria amongst others wouldn't be displeased to announce together (with China) a post-Western 'new world order' when this crisis ends," the expert said. On the European Union's very doorstep, aspiring bloc member Serbia has already been drawn into the battle for influence. "European solidarity does not exist. That was a fairy tale," President Aleksandar Vucic said after the EU banned exports of medical supplies. Vucic then praised the Chinese: "the only ones who can help us", and addressed Chinese president Xi Jinping as his "brother" after Beijing pledged to send help. "Some people, in their heart of hearts, are very impressed with the successes of Chinese governance," China's embassy in France tweeted last Friday. "They envy the efficiency of our political system and hate their own countries' inability to do as well!"
New Delhi, April 2 : The Office of Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government, on Thursday, suggested usage of homemade face masks for people to overcome shortage.

Dr Shailja Vaidya Gupta, Senior Adviser, Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government, said "This is primarily meant for the people who want to wear mask but do not have access to it. They can make these washable and reusable masks home." Gupta said the shortage of face masks and hand sanitizers is a stark reality.

Axious public frantically shopped hygiene products, in particular marks and hand sanitizers, amid COVID-19 outbreak due to which the sudden increased supply could not be met by the burgeoning demand.

Therefore the government issued the manual on homemade masks, "Masks for Curbing the Spread of SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus" for home fabrication. The key criteria for proposed designs are ease of access to materials, ease of making at home, ease of use and reuse.

However, the government hitherto maintained that face masks were only required for the people who are suffering from the Coronavirus disease and their close contacts, for example a designated family member who is looking after the patient or healthcare workers who are treating them. A healthy person needs not to wear face masks.

But as cases of COVID-19 surge in India, the government said protective masks lower the chances of coronavirus entering our respiratory system through droplets that are present in the air.

According to a report published in Pub Med analyses show that if 50 per cent of the population were to wear masks, only 50 per cent of the population would be infected by the virus. Once 80 per cent of the population wears a mask, the outbreak can be stopped substantially. Wearing of masks is especially recommended for people living in densely populated areas.

"India has pockets of dense population. It's mind boggling the density; the North East district of Delhi has a population density of 36,155 per square km, the models and control points for India are out of scale! Masks and washing hands will help and are easy to make at home". said Dr Gupta.

The Science and Technology Empowered Committee was constituted on March 19. The committee is jointly chaired by Prof. Vinod Paul, Member, NITI Aayog and Prof. K Vijay Raghavan, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, and is responsible for coordination amongst science agencies, scientists, industries and regulatory bodies, and to take speedy decisions on research and development to implementation related to the Sars-Cov-2 virus and the COVID-19 disease.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
FENTON, MI-- The Kehoe family of Fenton found a way to distract themselves while stuck at home amid the coronavirus outbreak -- a golden doodle puppy they named Goose.

Andrea Kehoe, a Kettering University employee now working from home, said Goose was the happy distraction her family needed right now.

The family had a golden retriever for many years and couldnt bring themselves to find a new one since she passed away three years ago, Andrea said. But when she and her husband Mike realized the family would be confined to the house for at least a few weeks, they thought it would be the perfect time to welcome a new family member.

Its a good way to combat everything that we all of a sudden werent able to do, Andrea Kehoe said.

If it werent for the pandemic, the Kehoe family would be in California on their spring break vacation right now. Their son, 17-year-old Patrick, a junior at Powers Catholic High School, was supposed to be taking a tour of the University of Southern California.

Their other son, 19-year-old Ben, is finishing his classes online at Kettering from home. The pandemic also caused the rest of Patricks lacrosse season to be canceled, Andrea said, so they all needed something that was happy.

Having Goose, who was named by Ben and Patrick after the Top Gun character, has brought the family closer, Andrea said, as they all want to play with him and spend time with him.

Hes bringing us together, were gathering in the living room and taking him outside, instead of all four of us being in different directions in the house, Andrea said.

In the two weeks since the Kehoes adopted Goose from Facebook, Andrea said hes given them a reason to go outside more and be more active during the at-home social distancing than they would if they didnt have him.

He gives them a reason to go outside, focus and help out, Kehoe said. Its a change of pace and theres not a lot of ways you can mix things up right now, so it was a good change.

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A Russian cargo plane carrying 60 tonnes of medical supplies, including ventilators, masks and other protection gear, needed to treat the patients with COVID-19 landed in the US as the country wrestles with the coronavirus pandemic that the White House has warned could kill up to two lakh people during the next fortnight.

The Permanent Mission of Russia to NATO on Thursday tweeted a video of the Russian Ministry of Defence cargo aircraft Ruslan AN-124-100 arriving at the John F Kennedy airport in New York.

"MoD cargo aircraft Ruslan AN-124-100 arrived in Flag of United States NY JFK airport with 60 tons of medical equipment, ventilators, masks & other protection gear to assist in fighting real common adversary- COVID19," the mission said in the tweet.

The move to buy medical equipment from Russia comes after a telephonic conversation between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on March 30.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a tweet said that it was a time to work together to overcome a common enemy that threatens the lives of all.

"We have to work together to defeat COVID-19. This is why the US agreed to purchase urgently needed personal protective equipment from Russia to help FEMA respond in New York City," he said.

Earlier, State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said on Wednesday, "as a follow-up to the March 30 phone call between President Trump and President Putin, the United States has agreed to purchase needed medical supplies, including ventilators and personal protection equipment, from Russia, which were handed over to FEMA on April 1 in New York City."



Both the countries have provided humanitarian assistance to each other in times of crisis in the past and will no doubt do so again in the future, she said.

"This is a time to work together to overcome a common enemy that threatens the lives of all of us," she added.

"The countries of the G20 agreed last week to work together to defeat the coronavirus, and we are working closely with these countries and others to ensure that critically needed supplies get to those in need," Ortagus said.

The United States is committed to the global fight against COVID-19, she said, adding that the US is a generous and reliable contributor to crisis response and humanitarian action across the world.

"But we cannot do it alone," Ortagus noted.

President Trump told reporters on Tuesday that the US was headed for a "very tough two weeks", advising people to be prepared for the "hard days" ahead, as the country is at war with the deadly coronavirus pandemic that the White House projects could claim one to two lakh lives during the next fortnight.

Deborah Birx, a member of White House Task Force on coronavirus, based on a model from actual data from the ground, said the death toll in the US could be between 100,000 to 200,000, with the strict implementation of the existing mitigation measures including social distancing till April 30.

Across the United States, hospitals are facing shortages of ventilators. Some medical device makers have agreed to ramp up supplies. But because patients diagnosed with or suspected to have COVID-19 often require breathing support, there is widespread concern that these devices won't be developed and shipped quickly enough.

A total of 932,605 COVID-19 cases have been reported across more than 175 countries and territories with 16,809 deaths reported so far, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

The US has reported 213,372 COVID-19 cases, the highest in the world, and over 5,000 people have died due to the disease.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ALMATY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd April, 2020) Kazakhstan expects a 4.4 percent decrease in oil production in 2020 down to 86 million tonnes, National Economy Minister Ruslan Dalenov said.

"Against the backdrop of low prices, the forecast for oil production has been lowered by 4 million tonnes to 86 million tonnes," Dalenov said at a government meeting on Thursday.
" " The tallest dog ever was the late great Dane Zeus (left), who stood 3 feet, 8 inches (1.1 meters) tall from the ground to the withers. The tallest dog living is Freddy (right) who is 3 feet, 4 inches (1.1 meters) from ground to withers. Guinness World Records

Have you ever noticed that people sort of look like their dogs? Well, maybe not exactly like them, but the outdoorsy fella tends to go with the chocolate lab while the petite woman who sits quietly working crossword puzzles often has a fluffy lapdog curled up next to her on the sofa.

People often choose breeds that reflect their own style and personality, and that got us thinking: What's the biggest dog in the world? And we learned that all depends on what you're talking about: height, length or weight.

Advertisement

The Tallest Dogs Ever

Going strictly by height, according to Guinness World Records (GWR) that would be the great Dane. This sleek, long-legged breed has held the height record for tallest dog for more than two decades.

The tallest dog ever in GWR history was a great Dane called Zeus who stood 3 feet, 8 inches (1.1 meters) tall from the ground to the withers (the ridge between the shoulders of his front legs). Zeus lived in the U.S. and died in 2014.

The current recordholder for tallest living dog is another great Dane named Freddy who lives in Essex, England. When he was measured for GWR in 2016, Freddy stood 3 feet, 4 inches (1.1 meters) from ground to withers, but when he stands on his hind legs (not an official GWR measurement), he's more than 7 feet (2.3 meters) tall!

Freddy is a great example of not judging a book by its cover. His owner, Claire Stoneman, told The Telegraph he was the "runt of the litter" when he was a puppy. (That's Freddy pictured on the right in Stoneman's tweet below.)

Speaking of official measurements, GWR measurements are all performed by a professional veterinarian. To be eligible for a GWR, dogs must be at least 1 year old and possess a vet-certified "clean bill of health." But the famed records-keeper no longer accepts claims for heaviest or lightest pets.

In an email, Amanda Marcus, public relations manager with Guinness World Records North America, Inc., explained why. "We appreciate that the welfare of the pet would be, in the majority of cases, at the forefront of the owner's mind," she says. "We had, however, become increasingly concerned that owners would potentially be encouraged to over or underfeed their pets in the quest for recognition. Therefore, to avoid any undue suffering to any animal, we have ended our interest in such records."

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The Longest Dogs

While they may not be the prettiest dogs, when it comes to length, Irish wolfhounds are tough to beat. Three different Irish wolfhounds have held the title of longest dog at GWR since 2006. The most recent was a hound named Farrell who was 7 feet, 9 inches (2.4 meters) from nose tip to tail tip.

Interestingly, the longest dog ever recorded for GWR was an English mastiff measuring an incredible 8 feet, 4 inches (2.5 meters) from nose tip to tail tip. Considering how heavy mastiffs are, that hound must have been massive because when it comes to weighty canines, the American Kennel Club (AKC) says the mastiff (which actually has a number of different breeds) holds that title.

" " Irish wolfhounds are known to be one of the longest and leanest dog breeds. Catherine Falls Commercial/Getty Images

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The Biggest Dogs Overall

A 2014 AKC press release listing the 15 largest dog breeds included the mastiff, the Neapolitan mastiff and bull mastiff on their list. A typical male mastiff stands at least 30 inches (76 centimeters) from the ground and can weigh between 160 and 230 pounds (72 and 104 kilograms). These are not lapdogs. They are heavy and strong  literally bred for battle and can be an intimidating presence to say the least. But those who know and breed them swear by their sweet, steadfast and protective temperament.

Mastiffs aren't the only heavy hitters in the dog world. The Saint Bernard and Newfoundland, both working breeds, are large powerful dogs. Saint Bernard males can weigh anywhere from 140 to 180 pounds (63 to 81 kilograms) and stand up to 30 inches (76 centimeters) high. Newfoundlands, also called "Newfies," are typically 130 to 150 pounds (58 to 68 kilograms), and can stand up to 28 inches (71 centimeters) high. Both the Saint Bernard and Newfie are gentle giants  strong, dependable family dogs. Owing to their strength and their heavy coats, both breeds were traditionally used in rescue operations: Saint Bernards in the treacherous snows of the Swiss Alps and Newfoundlands in the frigid water of the North Atlantic.

" " Saint Bernards definitely come to mind when you think of the biggest dog breeds in the world. Robert Kirk/Getty Images

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Caring for Big Dogs

While large dogs can make wonderful pets, they are not for every household and come with special challenges regarding their care, training and even feeding.

Most dog breeds were bred for a purpose, and large breeds were typically working dogs. They require a lot of exercise and need activity. Prepare to take large dogs like these for walks and remember, when they "do their business" you'll have to clean it up. The dog is bigger and so is their poo.

These big dogs also need more basic living space. A 130-pound (58-kilogram) mastiff can easily climb onto a sofa or put his paws on your lovely granite countertops. Expect to pay for training in order to help your large canine companion become a hospitable housemate.

And the cost of feeding such a big dog isn't anything to sniff at. Remember Freddy, the world's tallest dog? According to his owner, who actually owns two great Danes, it costs about 10,000 British pounds ($12,000 US), annually, to buy their food.

Now That's Interesting Because of their large, lumbering charm, great Danes have been immortalized in the Sunday comics  Marmaduke; in children's books  the character Pinkerton by author Steven Kellogg; and, of course, in cartoon characters  Astro from The Jetson's and doggy detective, Scooby Doo. "Nana" the beloved watchdog of the Darling children in the children's novel Peter Pan was a Newfoundland and on the other end of the spectrum the terrifying Hound of the Baskervilles from the short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a crossbred bloodhound and mastiff.

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Originally Published: Apr 2, 2020
College of Education builds on K-State's cyber land-grant university initiative with free Remote Learning P-12 community

Thursday, April 2, 2020

MANHATTAN  Kansas State University is expanding its resources to help people across the world transition to remote learning with a new free digital community for P-12 education.

The K-State College of Education's Remote Learning P-12 community is another cyber land-grant university initiative and a place where educators and parents can share innovative ideas and resources that support student success. The online forum is open to parents, teachers, principals, superintendents and school counselors in Kansas and around the nation and world and can be accessed through K-State Global Campus. The community can be found online at remote-learning-p-12.mn.co.



"Our K-State faculty and staff have been one of the silver linings of this pandemic," said Debbie Mercer, dean of the College of Education. "They are donating their time and expertise to help teachers, schools and parents continue on through this adversity."



Thomas Vontz, professor of curriculum and instruction and coordinator of the Remote Learning P-12 community, said the idea came to him after learning of a community built for higher education.



"College of Education faculty at K-State have been discussing a variety of ideas to address how schools, teachers, parents and students could keep teaching and learning in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis," Vontz said. "Our colleagues in Global Campus developed an online forum for higher education teaching that really took off. So, we borrowed a good idea from them and modified it."



Karen Pedersen, dean of K-State Global Campus, said she sees both a need and enthusiasm for educators pulling together to help one another.



"Establishing a Keep Teaching community for higher education professionals to crowdsource resources and provide support was our first step," Pedersen said. "With more than 1,550 individuals in that community, I'm very excited the College of Education is setting up the Remote Learning P-12 community."



Todd Goodson, professor and chair of the department of curriculum and instruction, believes this pandemic will touch and change many aspects of society.



"I suspect educators will learn some things from this crisis and take away a few innovations that will have lasting impact," Goodson said. "Moments like this are game-changers for almost every aspect of society, including education institutions."



J. Spencer Clark, associate professor of curriculum and instruction, agrees with Goodson and believes this is a time for growth and, in the end, teachers and students will benefit.



"For the long term, we hope teachers return to the classroom with more online resources and tools to enhance their face-to-face teaching and pedagogy," he said.



Read more about K-State's remote learning resources, k-state.edu/media/newsreleases/2020-03/university_demonstrates_cyber_land_grant_leadership.html. More information also is available at k-state.edu/keepteaching.






The Delhi Police issued a notice to seven people, including Tablighi Jamaat leader Maulana Saad Kandhalvi, and lodged an FIR against them for holding a religious congregation here allegedly in violation of the lockdown orders and not maintaining social distancing to contain the spread of coronavirus, officials said on Thursday.

The notice contains 26 questions seeking details of name, address, registration details of the organisation, details of the its office bearers, details of income tax returns filed by Markaz for the last three years, PAN numbers, bank account numbers and bank statements for the last one year of the organisation.

The Delhi Police's Crime Branch wrote to Saad and others on Wednesday, seeking the details under Section 91 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Investigating officers in the case also sought a list of employees working for the organisation (Markaz), number of religious gatherings organised by it from January 1, 2019, as per the notice.

A map plan of the premises was also sought. Details whether CCTV cameras are installed in the premises have also been sought.

Officials have also asked the organisation to produce a copy of the permission sought from police or any other authorities, if any, for holding a religious gathering in the premises.

Details of audio-visual recording made by or in possession of any person who attended the gathering have also been sought.

Details of people -- both Indian and foreigners -- who arrived at the Markaz after March 12 and their health conditions have also been demanded.

Besides, officials sought details of people and volunteers who were on duty at the premises and details of curfew passes issued to any person.

The FIR was registered on Tuesday at Crime Branch police station on the compliant of SHO Nizamuddin.

According to the FIR, the Delhi Police contacted the authorities of Markaz on March 21 and reminded them of the government order that prohibited any political or religious gathering of more than 50 people.

One Mufti Shahzad was informed about the situation arising due to COVID-19 and was asked to take immediate action for preventing the spread of the disease. He was directed to send the foreign devotees back to their respective countries and other Indian persons to their respective cities, the FIR stated.

However, no one paid any heed to the lawful direction of police, it added.

Moreover, an audio recording purportedly of Saad was found in circulation on WhatsApp on March 21, in which the speaker was heard asking his followers to defy the lockdown and social distancing and to attend the religious gathering of the Markaz, according to the FIR.

On March 24, the government ordered 21-day nationwide lockdown and restricted any social, political or religious gathering.

On March 24, a meeting was held at Hazarat Nizamuddin police station between SHO and officer bearers of Markaz. The meeting was attended by Saad, Mohammad Ashraf, Mohammad Salman, Yunus, Mursaleen Saifi, Jishan and Mufti Shehzad and they were informed about lockdown orders, the FIR said.

It was found that despite repeated efforts, they did not inform the health department or any other government agency about the huge gathering inside the Markaz and deliberately disobeyed the government orders, it said.

The Sub District Magistrate of Defence Colony inspected the premises several times and found that around 1,300 people, including foreign nationals, were residing there without maintaining social distance. It was also found that there were no arrangements of hand sanitizers and face masks, the FIR said.

Police said an extensive data mining has been carried out to identify the people who attended the congregation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Once a flashpoint in US-China relations over their sale of synthetic opioids and their precursors, online drug vendors in China are pivoting to other white powdered substances: unproven treatments for Covid-19.

Chemical vendors on social media and e-commerce platforms are responding to a surging demand for antiviral medication like chloroquine and remdesivir  exploiting the wave of hope propelled by as-yet inconclusive trials and US President Donald Trumps repeated promotions.

Both drugs  long-time treatments of malaria that are yet to be clinically proven in the US as safe and effective on Covid-19 patients  are already being hoarded around the world and used for self-medication, with sometimes harmful results.

In January, a vendor on Facebook advertising under the name Zhang Ellen peddled familiar fare: good quality research chemicals that included variants  or analogues  of fentanyl.

Some 50 times more potent than morphine, the drug has fuelled a synthetic opioids crisis in the US that in 2018 killed more than 30,000 people. After US-China trade talks included commitments by Beijing to crack down on its production in China, Trump administration officials now say the drugs flow into the US has dramatically decreased.

Chinese vendors' ability to advertise publicly have also dwindled since tech companies, including social media platforms and e-commerce websites, improved their ability to trawl for fentanyl-related substances, said Logan Pauley, an analyst for Washington-based security research firm C4ADS who tracks the flow of synthetic opioids and other drugs into the US.

Now, amid a pandemic that has infected more than 900,000 worldwide and killed more than 46,000, Zhangs Facebook feed today is flush not with fentanyl analogues but advertisements for hand sanitiser and face masks.

And when contacted privately, the vendor confirmed they were also selling both chloroquine and remdesivir, which could be sold at a cheap price for bulk orders. (Facebook did not respond to a request for comment.)

Story continues

Pauley said he began to notice vendors advertising the antimalarial drugs online in mid-February  around the time chloroquine trials in China suggested possible efficacy of the drug against Covid-19, including one study the state news agency Xinhua said had found that chloroquine, remdesivir and another antiviral demonstrated fairly good inhibitory effects at the cellular level.

Other research in the country was less hopeful, with one small study in early March concluding that hydroxychloroquine, a variant of chloroquine, was no more effective than other forms of conventional care.

But demand for and prices of such drugs spiked in mid-March, when  contrary to what his own health officials were saying  Trump touted chloroquine, hydroxychloroquine, and remdesivir as possible game changer drugs against the coronavirus.

At one White House briefing, Trump also wrongly claimed that his own Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had approved the deployment of chloroquine for use against Covid-19. The FDA has since issued an emergency use authorisation for it to be prescribed in certain situations while clinical trials continue.

Absent any clinical trial, no magic drug existed for coronavirus patients, Anthony Fauci, a top US health official, reminded the public during an appearance on CNN.

It was necessary, he said later at a briefing, to determine whether drugs like chloroquine would have any adverse effects when treating a patient with an ailment different from the one it was originally approved for.

And while not mentioning chloroquine or remdesivir by name, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the World Health Organisation (WHO), recently implored people to refrain from taking any drug that had not been shown to be safe or effective.

Recent events have demonstrated the risk of self-medicating. In late March, an Arizona man died and his wife was hospitalised after ingesting fish-tank cleaner because it contained the same active ingredient as chloroquine. And in the Nigerian capital of Lagos, health authorities reported a rise in chloroquine poisoning following Trumps remarks, according to Agence France-Presse.

Yet sale of the drugs by online vendors in China  many of which say their products are only for research purposes but have no way of knowing whether buyers use the chemicals themselves  has continued apace. Several companies indicated that they were struggling to keep up with the soaring demand.

A sales representative of one drug company based in Hebei province that recently started offering hydroxychloroquine expressed surprise at how much faith people seemed to place in Trump, who, the representative stressed, was not a doctor.

If he said [the antibiotic] amoxicillin was an anticarcinogen, would everyone go to buy amoxicillin to treat cancer? quipped the salesperson at Hebei Aicrowe Biotech Co, which sells products through e-commerce giant Alibabas international portal. (Alibaba is the parent company of the South China Morning Post.)

Medical staff at the IHU Mediterranee Infection Institute in Marseille, France, hold packets of tablets containing chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine, two antimalarial drugs that US President Trump promoted as possible treatments for coronavirus patients. Photo: AFP

Amid the surge in interest, labs from which Aicrowe procured the chemicals had increased their prices like crazy, the salesperson said. The company was now selling hydroxychloroquine  entirely to customers overseas  at US$1,000 per kilogram.

Another vendor said that the companys sale price of chloroquine, which was shipped mainly to US buyers, had increased tenfold since Trumps remarks.

Despite the mark-up, the prices offered by Chinese vendors remain significantly lower than the typical cost of such drugs in the US. Without insurance, one 200mg pill of hydroxychloroquine sells at around 80 cents  equating to US$4,000 per kilogram  according to Drugs.com, an independent health care industry monitor.

The FDA, which advises Americans not to buy medication online from any pharmaceutical vendors based outside the US, referred inquiries to an agency notice stating that there are currently no vaccines to prevent or drugs to treat Covid-19.

In an open letter published last week, the agency emphasised that any substances listed for research purposes rather than consumption have not been evaluated for safety in humans.

When asked about the sale of chloroquine and remdesivir on its platform, a spokesperson for Alibaba cited a company policy that prohibits sellers from making any reference to Covid-19 or the coronavirus in product listings.

We are now actively removing any such listings and taking punitive actions against sellers, the spokesperson said.

While the pandemic has created a chance for many vendors in China to diversify their portfolios  and despite Chinas tightening grasp on the production of fentanyl-related substances  many are still selling precursor substitutes, something that the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is actively trying to counter.

In a review of vendors offering chloroquine and remdesivir for overseas clients, the Post identified over a dozen  among them Aicrowe  also dealing in chemical substances that are either known analogues of fentanyl or precursors used in the production of the synthetic opioid.

Among its line-up, Aicrowe offered at least two known precursors to fentanyl: 40064-34-4 and 125541-22-2, as they are known according to their chemical abstracts service (CAS) numbers.

The latter is considered a masked precursor by the DEA, meaning that it must be subject to one or more chemical reactions before use in the synthesising process.

The extra degree of separation from the final product of fentanyl makes it difficult for US authorities to make a legal case for classifying such precursors controlled substances, said Pauley, who advises the US State Departments bureau of international narcotics and drug enforcement.

When asked through Alibabas online chat portal about the likelihood that buyers were purchasing precursor chemicals for the production of fentanyl, Aicrowes sales representative said: We dont know  nor do we understand  what they use them for.

But if it breaks any law, then we dont sell it, the representative added, before blocking further inquiries.

At least one other vendor selling chloroquine on Alibaba was also dealing in the chemical 99918-43-1, or 4-anilinopiperidine, one of the fentanyl precursor substitute chemicals that the DEA proposed last year to have designated as controlled substances in the US.

The DEA, which argued in a Federal Register filing that the substance had no application other than in the synthesis of fentanyl, expected for the new controls to be adopted and publicly announced in the very near future, possibly as early as next week, an agency spokesman said.

The Alibaba spokesperson said the company prohibited the sale of any controlled substance, and also restricted certain substances that are known to be precursor chemicals in the production of controlled substances.

We will continue to aggressively monitor our marketplace and welcome reports of any illicit listings to expedite takedowns, the spokesperson said.

Following the Posts inquiries about the sale of suspected fentanyl precursor substitutes on its platform, Alibaba began scrubbing listings of such chemicals from its English-language platform, including those listed by Aicrowe. As of Wednesday, a number of the same substances remained online on its Chinese platform.

Sign up now and get a 10% discount (original price US$400) off the China AI Report 2020 by SCMP Research. Learn about the AI ambitions of Alibaba, Baidu & JD.com through our in-depth case studies, and explore new applications of AI across industries. The report also includes exclusive access to webinars to interact with C-level executives from leading China AI companies (via live Q&A sessions). Offer valid until 31 May 2020.

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A steady, hard rain pelted us early on as we readied the boat for a day. The punishing downpour let up considerably as we launched at Fairport Harbor. It was the typical start of a walleye kind of day on the deep waters several miles north of the harbor.

We dug out tackle and set up rods for trolling, as we motored toward the off-shore schools of fish, leaving the rain behind only to chisel through a fog-like haze. Lake Eries waves, which can at times be punishing, barely gave a splash as we bumped our way to 68 feet of water.

It was Saturday, June 20, 1987. Thats right, 32 years ago. But like flipping a light switch, that day suddenly seemed like yesterday.

Log book

I know those and other details of the day because it was the first page I flipped to recently when I discovered a long-forgotten log book. The tattered pocket size note pad had been hidden for decades in a box full of memories; it was a treasure found while fighting boredom by actually doing some spring cleaning, something I normally plan to do next spring.

So who cares about a day of fishing so many years ago? I do. I dont care so much about the fact that there were three of us aboard or that we fished from 8:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. or that we kept 12 walleyes ranging from 6 pounds to 8 pounds, or that we were trolling deep diving crank baits and blue spoons.

Why that faded page in my fishing log so jogged my memory is simply a name, one of three names listed at the bottom. The three included me, my close buddy Paul Fedorchak and Paul Liikala, a fellow outdoor writer who was later to become a good friend.

Liikala died last summer after a very brief and ugly struggle with brain cancer. Hes still in my phone, hes still with me in thought, and his absence haunts me to this day.

Remembering a friend

Seeing Liikalas name in that old log book, on the first page that fell open by chance, gave me the courage to talk about him. I wanted to share his story since that midsummer day months ago when he surrendered to the cancer. Maybe next week I thought and then the next, until weeks became months, and I still couldnt bring myself to say it or write it. A really good friend is hard to let go.

Liikala and I met at my first annual meeting after joining the outdoor writers of Ohio. Over the years, we tended to seek each other out to share the expense of a room, discuss our similar leadership roles in the organization or compare notes and writing successes.

Liikala was a career educator, and so was I. That alone gave us fodder for nonstop chatter, countless stories and personal philosophies. Adding writing, raising families and part-time jobs to the mix meant that we never came even close to running out of things to talk about.

Liikala was an accomplished character. Armed with a well-oiled gift of gab, he took on a weekly radio show and speaking gigs, all while collecting a huge and faithful congregation of friends.

A skilled jokester, Liikala, a master of sarcasm, could trade jabs and laughs with anyone who cared to partake. That list included everyone who knew him.

Liikala was a highly respected communicator known locally as well as nationally, publishing magazine features in some of the most recognized regional and national publications.

We had just completed plans to share a spring fishing trip to fish the Niagara River mouth for lake trout when Liikala called to tell me that he needed to have some medical issues looked in to and would not be able to make the trip.

That was in March. There was hardly anything resembling a good day after that.

My very best memories of Liikala were of our regular spring and summer trips to troll the Lake Erie shoreline near Eastlake or Fairport. He had a well-earned and detailed memory of the underwater structure from Avon to Conneaut, and he could predict a likely bite better than any electronic sonar unit.

Every outing was special. If we fished from his boat, it was a jab time. He called her a kind name with the color yellow in it, a tint she may have worn a few decades ago.

I called the poor thing the Yellow Submarine. Tired, dented and filled with enough tackle, coolers, junk and stuff actually needed, that old gal was Liikalas pride and joy, a pride and joy that I suspect matched his collection of friends.

Indeed, Paul Liikala clearly represented a life well-lived.
The prime minister is not considering taking a pay cut in solidarity with Australians struggling through the coronavirus crisis.

As a million workers were laid off last month, causing Centrelink queues to stretch for kilometres, Scott Morrison declared: 'We are all in this together'.

But today he said he was not considering cutting his hefty $549,250 salary which comes out of taxpayers' pockets.

The Prime Minister (pictured today) is not considering taking a pay cut in solidarity with Australians struggling through the coronaviurs crisis

The government is spending more than $200billion on measures to shore up the creaking economy, which will saddle Australia with debt for years to come.

But the burden could be reduced if high-earning public sector workers share some of the pain by agreeing to pay cuts.

The prime minster was today asked if he was considering reforming franking credits or cutting ministers' salaries including his own to help pay for his huge spending.

Mr Morrison replied: 'No, we're not reconsidering franking credits and these sort of things.'

Franking credits are a tax rebate to shareholders who get dividends, including retirees. Labor pledged to scrap them in the 2019 election campaign.

Dozens of high-earning figures in the private sector have vowed to take pay cuts even though many, like the prime minister, are working harder than ever.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce, whose base salary is $2.1million, has said he will not take a penny of his salary as long as coronavirus lasts.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce, whose base salary is $2.1 million, has said he will not take a penny of his salary as long as coronavirus lasts

NRL CEO Todd Greenberg, who earns $1.2million, will take a 25 per cent pay cut - and has said he will sacrifice more if the players have their salaries cut further.

Politicians, judges and officials holding senior public office have had their pay frozen until the crisis is over - but some commentators say the freeze is not enough.

John Roskam, Executive Director at the Institute of Public Affairs, said: 'Not all this extra spending has to be new money and debt. There should be a 20 per cent reduction in public service pay until the crisis is over.

'There needs to be a sense of shared sacrifice from the public service. We have seen a disconnect of bureaucrat elites from the productive economy.'

Earlier this week One Nation leader Pauline Hanson demanded politicians take a pay cut.

NRL CEO Todd Greenberg, who earns $1.2million, will take a 25 per cent pay cut - and has said he will sacrifice more if the players have their salaries cut further

'I have no problems with politicians wages being cut back in areas, and Im happy to tell the Prime Minister where to start,' she said.

The base salary for a federal MP is $207,100.

Ms Hanson also said politicians' perks should be removed, such as flying business class instead of economy and that committee payments should cease.

Westpac chief economist Bill Evans said unemployment will peak at nine per cent in the June quarter.

Deloitte Access Economics partner Chris Richardson estimated one million Australians lost their jobs last week.

With 699,100 unemployed already in February, that would see 1,699,100 people without work - out of 13,714,200 in the labour force.

Last month Malta's Prime Minister said he would forgo a month's salary to send a message to the nation that he was also making sacrifices during the pandemic.
In a sign of how significant the impact of the new coronavirus is on the foundations of American bookselling, the Andover Bookstore, Americas oldest continuously operated independent bookstore, is turning to customers to help ensure its doors will open again when the pandemic passes. On Wednesday, owner John Hugo announced that the store, like others across the country, has launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise $125,000 in order to ensure the bookstores survival.

The Andover, Mass., bookshop opened in 1809, when James Madison was president, and has weathered every national crisis sincebut it was a regional crisis that precipitated the current challenges Hugo is facing. In 2018, the Merrimack Valley gas explosions led to widespread business closures and as much as $1 billion in losses to the economy of the area, which is located north of Boston. In the aftermath, Hugo shuttered two other bookstores that he owned and sold another. Then the coronavirus hit.

We are running out of cash to pay our rent, utilities, payroll, liabilities, and publishers, and make sure we have enough cash on-hand to re-open once we make it through, Hugo wrote on the stores GoFundMe page. We are making a small amount through our website and very much appreciate all of your support, but it is not enough to pay our rent and our payroll.

In a statement, Hugo wrote that he is optimistic the store will find a way to emerge from the outbreak prepared for future as long as its past. We are so grateful for all the support from our local community and are especially looking forward to the day we open our doors again, said Hugo.
Rion and her employer, a tiny conservative cable outlet known as OANN, appear to have gotten special permission from the White House, in violation of the guidelines. The reasons, and the source of the approval, are unclear, but OANN and Rion have a history of reporting favorably about Trump. Rion herself has pushed conspiracy theories that advance his political interests, such as the unfounded allegation that officials in Ukraine secretly manipulated the 2016 election to help Hillary Clinton. Trump, in turn, has tweeted praise of OANNs reporting dozens of times.
A modern, reliable backup generator system might be more vital than ever in 2020 We recognize the incredible strain that recent events are causing to vital healthcare facilities.... Having reliable back-up power is critical, and anyone can use our online tools to find out what they need to make that happen.

In times of widespread uncertainty, the dependability of our most essential life-sustaining utilities becomes even more important. The proliferation of COVID-19 has forced critical healthcare facilities into mandatory isolation, and the availability of service and repair workers is becoming limited due to quarantine-related workforce reductions. These facilities must maintain constant power, and with hurricane season approaching in the spring, this becomes an even more pressing concern. Preferred Utilities Manufacturing now offers a set of free online tools that anyone can use for designing these emergency generators and planning fuel loads.

Emergency generators are playing a crucial role in ensuring that these facilities have an uninterrupted source of power available "off the grid" as needed. Preferreds free online tools are designed specifically to help facilities not only design the most functional emergency generator plan, but also to meet rules and regulations like those in Florida that require critical healthcare facilities to have effective generators.

Our web tool really provides a head start on emergency generator design and planning, David Eoff, Preferreds National Manager. One of its most important features is the capability to calculate fuel load needs and main tank storage size, as well as fuel oil pumps and piping systems. These things are often regulated by the state, so accuracy is paramount.

Engineers can design a system for any number of generators, with a standard pump control program that can handle up to two-day tanks and up to two main storage tanks. No programming and minimal engineering are required. This is important for any facility that is without sufficient backup emergency generators, but it's especially crucial for those that could be facing the beginning of hurricane season while still on virus-related lockdown.

We recognize the incredible strain that recent events are causing to vital healthcare facilities and the public at large, with the older end of the population widely considered to be the most at-risk, said David Bohn, President and CEO of Preferred Utilities Manufacturing. Having reliable back-up power is critical, and anyone can use our online tools to find out what they need to make that happen.

For more information about Preferred's online design tool, visit http://www.preferred-mfg.com.

About Preferred Utilities Manufacturing Corporation:

Preferred Utilities Manufacturing Corporation is an engineering-based manufacturer of fuel oil handling systems, boiler instrumentation and controllers, high quality burners, nuclear power plant outage reduction tools, and related component parts for commercial, institutional, and industrial facilities. Preferred Utilities Manufacturing applies continuous research and development to existing products, helping them to lead the industry with new and innovative power plant solutions. Their manufacturing, engineering, and administrative headquarters is located in Danbury, Connecticut, with regional sales and service offices throughout the United States. Founded in 1920, Preferred Utilities Manufacturing Corporation is celebrating a century in business this year.
As the Donald Trump administration calls on foreign governments to release Americans held in prisons where coronavirus may run rampant, a new report finds that some detainee families are having trouble getting the attention of the US government agencies meant to rescue their loved ones.

Diane Foley, whose son Jim Foley was murdered by the Islamic State (IS) in August 2014, hopes the findings will prevent other families from experiencing what hers went through trying to free Jim, a freelance journalist abducted while reporting on the Syrian civil war.

Everyone told me he was their highest priority, but the reality was it was nobodys mission to bring him home, said Foley, founder and president of the Foley Foundation.

Criticized for his administrations handling of Foley and three other Americans captured by IS, President Barack Obama ordered a broad overhaul of US hostage policy in 2014. Out of that restructuring came an FBI-led fusion cell designed to oversee hostage cases, a State Department special envoy and a hostage response group within the National Security Council.

The organizational changes were a significant improvement in the governments handling of Americans held overseas and largely continue to function effectively, according to the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation study, which was based on interviews with 25 former American hostages and detainees, their families and advocates.

Despite the progress in recovery efforts, there remains a significant disparity between US hostages held by terrorists and those wrongfully detained by foreign governments, with the latter receiving less attention, information and access from US officials, the study found.

Part of the problem stems from confusion over what constitutes a wrongful detainee in the first place, explained Cynthia Loertscher, the report's author.

If an American broke a foreign countrys law, however theyre being detained for purpose of putting leverage on the United States, Loertscher explained, thats where we start to wade in the waters of wrongful detentions.

In the absence of a legal definition on whether a case like that is considered an unlawful detention, she said those families are often deemed ineligible for hostage recovery services and end up at the Bureau of Consular Affairs, the State Department office responsible for the general protection of American citizens overseas.

According to Diane Foley, the fusion cell and special envoy have gradually taken on more detainee cases, particularly those individuals whose imprisonment is not acknowledged in countries like Syria and Iran. She credits the Trump administration for recognizing the needs of those families, but said more can be done.

There are a lot of cases in limbo not able to get the best of our government behind them, Foley said.

In a statement provided to Al-Monitor, a spokesperson for the FBIs Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell said although families can work with other government agencies, it takes the lead on family engagement matters: We try to coordinate and deconflict all US government interactions through one point of contact to lessen the burden on families.

The State Department did not respond to a request for comment.

President Trump touts a long list of imprisoned Americans freed during his time in office. Those released under his watch include Danny Burch, an engineer held captive in Yemen for 18 months, and Caitlan Coleman, who was held for five years by the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Other high-profile releases include North Carolina pastor Andrew Brunson in Turkey, aid worker Aya Hijazi in Egypt and three Americans in North Korea who were sent home ahead of the president's May 2018 summit with Kim Jong Un.

More recently, Lebanon released Amer Fakhoury, a 57-year-old naturalized citizen accused by Lebanese authorities of running a torture prison while part of an Israel-backed militia in the 1980s and 1990s.

Bob Levinson, a retired FBI agent who disappeared in Iran 13 years ago, is believed to have died in Iranian custody. In a statement announcing his death, the family thanked the current administration for its efforts while also calling out those in the US government who for many years repeatedly left him behind.

Two Americans detained in Iran were also released under Trump, Xiyue Wang in 2019 and Robin Shahini in 2017.

The coronavirus outbreak has brought renewed attention to those who remain behind bars. Administration officials have in recent weeks publicly urged Iran, Venezuela and other foreign adversaries to release their American detainees, fearing the virus will be a death sentence if introduced to those countries prison populations.

In Syria, Bashar al-Assads government is known to be holding at least two Americans: psychotherapist Majd Kamalmaz and freelance journalist Austin Tice.

In a recent news conference, Trump for the first time publicly called on Syria to let Tice out immediately.

In Iran, several Iranian-Americans, including businessman Siamak Namazi, are being held on dubious charges. But citing coronavirus concerns, authorities have temporarily released some 100,000 other prisoners, including US Navy veteran Michael White.

His familys spokesman, Jonathan Franks, said the complete blackout of information in Iran had held up White's release.

Does the government have to do a better job on the wrongly detained? Absolutely. But thats an ongoing thing, he said. The issue that we had was that all the information coming out of Iran was shut down  Its not like the US government can just bop over to the prison.

A common frustration among those interviewed for the Foley study was how much information about their missing relatives remained classified. Tired of being told we cant talk about that, some participants said they had developed relationships with congressional staffers who might have access to information about their loved ones.

A fusion cell spokesperson told Al-Monitor, We always seek to ensure that relevant information is shared quickly and fulsomely with families and are always looking for ways to more efficiently partner with families to meet their expectations.

Former hostages and their families also said they still were unsure of the governments position on paying private ransoms to terrorists. During Jim Foleys captivity, US officials repeatedly warned his family they could face criminal charges if they paid IS for his release. The Obama administration reversed itself after his death and said the United States would no longer prosecute families who paid ransoms to hostage-takers.

Today its unclear whether that immunity extends to friends who contribute to a ransom fund or banks involved in the transfer. Its these kinds of uncertainties Diane Foley hopes other families who find themselves in her position can avoid.

As Americans we can definitely do better than what I experienced, she said. We want every American who is brave and out in the world doing things to have the backing of our government to bring them home.
The Border Security Force (BSF) on Thursday contributed one day's salary of its staffers, totalling over Rs 33.28 crore, to the PM-CARES Fund to combat the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

"An amount of Rs 33,28,57,504 has been deposited to the PM-CARES account. This amount is the one day salary of the troops and other staffers of the force," a BSF spokesperson said.

The Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES Fund) was recently announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The about 2.5 lakh personnel strong BSF is primarily tasked to guard the borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh apart from rendering a variety of duties in the internal security domain of the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Captain Brett Crozier, commanding officer of the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, addresses the crew during an all-hands call on the ship's flight deck in the eastern Pacific Ocean December 19, 2019.

WASHINGTON  An aircraft carrier captain who made a stunning plea for help over a coronavirus outbreak on his vessel has been relieved of duty.

The officer, Capt. Brett Crozier of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, had written a letter to military leadership regarding the situation on his carrier, and it leaked to the media.

"The captain's actions made his sailors, their families, and many in the public believe that his letter was the only reason help from our larger Navy family was forthcoming, which was hardly the case," Thomas Modly, acting Secretary of the Navy, told reporters Thursday at the Pentagon.

"It raised alarm bells unnecessarily," he added, saying that the Navy was making preparations to address the concerns laid out in the letter. Modly said that the captain's letter, dated March 30, was sent via nonsecure unclassified email and also outside the chain of command.

In a four-page letter, first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, Crozier described a worsening coronavirus outbreak aboard the warship, a temporary home to more than 4,000 crew members. More than 100 people on the ship were infected.

"We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our Sailors," Crozier wrote. "The spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating."
The spread of fake and real coronavirus information is being tracked by scientists to see which stories are getting the most attention on social media.

Researchers from the Open University will compare COVID-19 posts on Twitter, Facebook and Reddit against fact-checked articles from verified sources.

It comes as the UK government announced a spike in false and misleading narratives about the deadly virus that has put much of the world in lockdown.

Professor Harith Alani from the OU said his research could help governments, scientists and health organisations better stop the spread of dangerous rumours.

He said they would also look at ways to directly alert people on Twitter and Reddit if a post they are sharing is from a fake source or contains misinformation.

Coronavirus 'deniers' are using Facebook, WhatsApp and YouTube to spread conspiracy theories and misinformation about the deadly disease

Social media giants have said they are actively working to monitor and remove misinformation about COVID-19 and are promoting official information sources.

OU researchers will look to debunk myths, such as COVID-19 is a man-made virus, that you can tell if you have the virus by holding your breath for 20 seconds and that taking a hot bath will prevent you from catching the coronavirus.

Researchers say misinformation and 'fake advice'' can be dangerous because it can lead to people 'taking greater risks' than if they were following official guidance.

Alani said they will provide information to policymakers and health officials about the spread of fake news on the coronavirus.

It would also then be used to alert social media users about the extent to which they are spreading false information - with possible warnings about a fake post.

Scientists advise people to check official sources of information such as the NHS, World Health Organisation or the CDC. Alani and his team will check fake news against fact checking websites and articles to monitor the spread of fake news

They will extend existing tools and algorithms already in use for monitoring generic fake news as part of a project called CO-INFORM.

This project provides a dashboard and information that lets journalists, policymakers and others track fake news.

'We will extend and use such algorithms to find the claims that are being made about COVID-19,' said Alani, a professor of web science at the OU.

He said they would 'check them against facts from trusted and authoritative sources, and produce knowledge and graphs for policymakers and health influencers'.

'We will collect those articles (the misinforming ones and the corrective ones from the fact-checkers) and track their spread on social media, to understand which ones are spreading more than others,' added Alani.

He said they would look at which geographic areas, by what age and cultural groups, etc the articles are most quickly spread.

WHAT FAKE INFORMATION IS BEING SHARED AND WHAT DO SCIENTISTS SAY? 1. 'Drink water to wash the virus away' Paul Hunter, a professor in medicine at University of East Anglia said: 'Absolutely b****cks. There is no evidence for that whatsoever. Even if the water did wash it off your throat. Viruses bind onto cells in the body very strongly and are taken in. So just washing water over it wont do anything.' 2. 'Hold your breath for 10 seconds to check for the disease' Professor Hunter said: 'Thats rubbish because a lot of people who are incubating the infection wont necessarily have any effects on their lungs at all. Ive never heard that.' 3. 'The virus hates the sun' Professor Hunter said: 'Heat does kill viruses. If you heat something up to about 60F (15.5C), it's likely to die in minutes. Similarly UV light will inactivate the virus and we do know if you look at the survival of these viruses on surfaces, the death increase as temperate increases. 'But you cant rely on that to protect you. Your lungs are about 37C degrees, and with a temperature its a little higher. If the virus was killed by heat, we wouldnt get ill.' 4. 'If you have a runny nose, it's only a common cold' Professor Hunter said: 'The symptoms [of COVID-19] that are far more common are fever and a cough leading to shortness of breath. Those are the classic symptoms.' 5. 'Gargle salt water as prevention' Dr Head said: 'Theres no evidence at all that salt water will protect yourself from coronavirus infection, so do not rely on this approach.' 6. 'It lasts on the hands for 5-10 minutes' Dr Head said: ' We know that the virus can last on some hard surfaces for a few days, and it is likely the virus can survive for at least a few hours on a persons hands. This is why regular and thorough hand-washing is so important.' Advertisement

'This could hopefully help governments, scientists, media, and health organisations to get a better understanding of what misinformation needs to be addressed more urgently, and how effective fact-checking and other campaigns have been in halting the spread of particular rumours online.'

This would show which rumours are spreading more than others, where, and when.

The team will also investigate the most effective way to alert users on Twitter and Reddit of the extent to which they are spreading false information in their posts.

'We know that we can use this information to show individuals how much false information they have been circulating on social media,' said Alani.

'We need to look at how to correct people's beliefs in a more effective and personalised fashion.

'Although we are seeing that this misinformation is spreading, we don't yet know the effect of this on this type of crisis.'

The Department of Health and Social Care urged people to watch out for false guidance about coronavirus online.

It pointed towards nhs.uk/coronavirus for official advice on the outbreak.

A cross-Government counter-disinformation unit was set up in a bid to deal with the potential extent, scope and impact of misleading and false details.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport-led team will engage with social media companies to monitor interference with the aim of limiting the spread coronavirus-related fake news.

Official NHS guidance is now being displayed at the top of internet search results as part of a crackdown.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: 'These changes will ensure the latest trusted NHS guidance sits at the very top of Google search lists, so people can be reassured they are reading official, up-to-date Government advice.'

A wide range of fake posts have been shared across social media since the start of the outbreak, which scientists say risk making the pandemic worse.

However, the Department of Health says there is no basis for this claim; you should instead consult nhs.uk/coronavirus for official advice on the outbreak.

A more recent piece of misinformation is that it can't spread in warmer climates.

Messages range from those suggesting that the risk of coronavirus has been exaggerated to the idea that the virus was man-made  either as a weapon, or to sell more vaccines, or as a smokescreen to hide the actions of a cabal of CEOs

The CCDH has today launched a '#Dont Spread The Virus' campaign, which encourages social media users not to engage with or share coronavirus misinformation online, but to report it to social media platforms instead

The World Health Organisation says all evidence suggests it can be transmitted anywhere including places with hot and humid weather.

It's also not true that Vitamin C can prevent you from catching the virus, cancer, heart disease and other illnesses - as claimed by Nobel prize winner Linus Pauling.

Recent research suggests taking an average dose of 200mg of vitamin C does reduce the duration of a cold in the general population, according to a review of several dozen studies in 2013 cited by independent fact-checking charity fullfact.org.

However, there was no evidence it could prevent the common cold. Similarly, there's no evidence it can prevent Covid-19.

The UK-based charity the Center for Countering Digital Hate has been tracking 50 social media accounts that are peddling health-related misinformation.

These forums promote fake cures, question the risk from the current pandemic and peddle conspiracies suggesting that the virus was man-made for nefarious ends.

Funding for the three year long Open University project came in part from a 393,000 EU emergency fund grant.
WASHINGTON  Relatives of Americans who are wrongfully imprisoned abroad or held hostage by militant groups say in a report Thursday that the U.S. government must do better in communicating with them, though they cite improvements over the past five years.

Several of those interviewed for the report say they do not believe that the cases of their loved ones have the attention of the highest levels of government. In particular, family members of Americans detained by foreign governments on trumped-up charges are less satisfied with the attention and information they receive than are relatives of hostages held by militant or criminal groups.

The report from the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation is based on interviews with 25 former hostages and detainees as well as their relatives and advocates. It cites improvements in the governments response since U.S. officials overhauled the hostage policy five years ago, but says relatives still want more complete and accurate information and clarity about which agency is supposed to help them. Some, for instance, want the government to declassify more information so that it can be more easily shared, or to provide limited security clearances.

The report is the latest outside effort to scrutinize how the government interacts with hostages and detainees and their families back home. It examines the changes to hostage policy that were instituted by the Obama administration in 2015 and that largely remain intact under President Donald Trump. Those include the creation of an FBI-led hostage recovery fusion cell and the appointment of a State Department envoy for hostage affairs.

The policy revamp followed the beheadings of Westerners, including Foley, a freelance journalist, at the hands of the Islamic State group in Syria. Relatives of hostages demanded changes after they said U.S. officials threatened prosecution if they tried to raise a ransom, kept them out of the loop on rescue attempts and didnt clearly communicate government policy.

Foleys mother, Diane, established the foundation to raise attention for hostage issues and to advocate for Americans held overseas.

The report says the policy improvements have been effective and durable, resulting in better government access for hostage families and more resources. But it also says families of other detainees dont feel like their cases are prioritized in the same way.

The U.S. government distinguishes hostages who are captured by overseas criminal organizations or by militant groups designated as terrorists from detainees who are held by foreign governments, often arbitrarily or on exaggerated or fabricated charges. The distinction matters in terms of which government agency is responsible for the case.

Hostage cases are worked by the FBI-led Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell and the State Department through its envoy for hostage affairs. Detainee cases are run through the State Department, largely through its consular affairs office but also its hostage office if the detention is regarded as being for illegitimate purposes.

Though the hostage policy overhaul sought to establish lanes of responsibility within the governments response, several of the reports participants expressed confusion about which agency was supposed to be their primary point of contact.

Many relatives of hostages who were interviewed said they felt they had reliable access to the government, but relatives of detainees did not feel the same, with one family advocate saying they had to work way too hard to get the State Departments attention and help.

The State Department did not respond to a request for comment. The FBI had no immediate comment.

There is a notable disparity in the treatment of hostage and wrongful-detainee families by the U.S. government, with the latter receiving less attention, information, and access, the report said. It said the U.S. government can do more to support the families of those Americans wrongfully detained abroad.

Several interviewees said they were concerned about having less access to the State Departments hostage affairs office because of turnover there. Robert OBrien, the official who used to hold the position, is now Trumps national security adviser.

The Trump administration has made the return of hostages and detainees a priority. Officials have eagerly touted the release of multiple high-profile Americans as validation of those efforts. Danny Burch was freed last year, 18 months after being abducted in Yemen and Kevin King, an American professor, was released by the Taliban in a prisoner exchange last November.

Still, other cases remain unresolved or have not had positive outcomes.

American journalist Austin Tice remains missing after vanishing in Syria in 2012. Trump recently mentioned Tice by name, saying the government was working to bring him home.

Last week, the family of retired FBI agent Robert Levinson, who vanished on an unauthorized CIA mission to Iran 13 years ago, said it had been told that the U.S. government had concluded that he was dead. U.S. officials have not said what evidence led them to make that determination.

___

Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at https://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP.
COLUMBUS  A federal judge has approved a settlement requiring BP Products North America Inc. and BP-Husky Refining LLC to pay $2.6 million to the U.S. government and Ohio for alleged violations of clean air laws.

The agreement signed March 25 by Senior U.S. District Judge James G. Carr settles allegations that BP Products and BP-Husky violated the Clean Air Act and hazardous substance reporting requirements at the BP-Husky Toledo Refinery.

Under the agreement, the companies will pay a $200,000 penalty to Ohio and will complete a $1.2 million lead abatement project within 18 miles of the Toledo Refinery. The project will aim to reduce childrens exposure to lead-based paint hazards in child-occupied facilities. The project must be completed within three years.

The settlement stems from allegations that the companies failed to operate and maintain emissions monitoring systems at the Toledo Refinery. According to a January 2020 complaint, valves, piping and other equipment were not properly identified, monitored or equipped to detect and repair leaks that emit hazardous pollutants into the air. The complaint also alleged a failure to alert state and local agencies when releases of the substances occurred.

The agreement requires the companies to implement proper controls to ensure compliance with clean air laws moving forward.
Never before, scientists say, have so many of the worlds researchers focused so urgently on a single topic. Nearly all other research has ground to a halt, The New York Times writes in the article Covid-19 Changed How the World Does Science. The Trump administration and its Chinese counterparts have cast coronavirus research as national imperatives, sparking talk of a biotech arms race. The worlds scientists, for the most part, have responded with a collective eye roll.

Absolutely ridiculous, said Jonathan Heeney, a Cambridge University researcher working on a coronavirus vaccine.

That isnt how things happen, said Adrian Hill, the head of the Jenner Institute at Oxford, one of the largest vaccine research centers at an academic institution.

While political leaders have locked their borders, scientists have been shattering theirs, creating a global collaboration unlike any in history. Never before, researchers say, have so many experts in so many countries focused simultaneously on a single topic and with such urgency. Nearly all other research has ground to a halt.

Normal imperatives like academic credit have been set aside. Online repositories make studies available months ahead of journals. Researchers have identified and shared hundreds of viral genome sequences. More than 200 clinical trials have been launched, bringing together hospitals and laboratories around the globe.

I never hear scientists  true scientists, good quality scientists  speak in terms of nationality, said Dr. Francesco Perrone, who is leading a coronavirus clinical trial in Italy. My nation, your nation. My language, your language. My geographic location, your geographic location. This is something that is really distant from true top-level scientists.

On a recent morning, for example, scientists at the University of Pittsburgh discovered that a ferret exposed to Covid-19 particles had developed a high fever  a potential advance toward animal vaccine testing. Under ordinary circumstances, they would have started work on an academic journal article. But you know what? There is going to be plenty of time to get papers published, said Paul Duprex, a virologist leading the universitys vaccine research. Within two hours, he said, he had shared the findings with scientists around the world on a World Health Organization conference call. It is pretty cool, right? You cut the crap, for lack of a better word, and you get to be part of a global enterprise.

For Mr. Trump, the unabashedly America First president, Dr. Duprex and other American scientists represent the worlds best hope for a vaccine. America will get it done! the president declared. But trying to sew a Made in the USA label onto scientific research gets complicated.

Dr. Duprexs lab in Pittsburgh is collaborating with the Pasteur Institute in Paris and the Austrian drug company Themis Bioscience. The consortium has received funding from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation, a Norway-based organization financed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and a group of governments, and is in talks with the Serum Institute of India, one of the largest vaccine manufacturers in the world.

Vaccine researchers at Oxford recently made use of animal-testing results shared by the National Institutes of Healths Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Montana.

Separately, the French public-health research center Inserm is sponsoring clinical trials on four drugs that may help treat Covid-19 patients. The trials are underway in France, with plans to expand quickly to other nations.

In some ways, the coronavirus response reflects a medical community that has long been international in scope. At Massachusetts General Hospital, a team of Harvard doctors is testing the effectiveness of inhaled nitric oxide on coronavirus patients. The research is being carried out in conjunction with Xijing Hospital in China and a pair of hospitals in northern Italy. Doctors in those centers have been collaborating for years.

But the coronavirus has ignited the scientific community in ways that no other outbreak or medical mystery has before. That reflects the scope of the pandemic and the fact that, for many researchers, the hot zone is no longer an impoverished village in the developing world. It is their hometowns.

This is playing at home, said Professor Hill, of Oxford. He has worked on vaccines for Ebola, malaria and tuberculosis, diseases that have been most prevalent in Africa. But for Covid, it is happening right here.

Several scientists said the closest comparison to this moment might be the height of the AIDS epidemic in the 1990s, when scientists and doctors locked arms to combat the disease. But todays technology and the pace of information-sharing dwarfs what was possible three decades ago.

As a practical matter, medical scientists today have little choice but to study the coronavirus if they want to work at all. Most other laboratory research has been put on hold because of social distancing, lockdowns or work-from-home restrictions.

The pandemic is also eroding the secrecy that pervades academic medical research, said Dr. Ryan Carroll, a Harvard Medical professor who is involved in the coronavirus trial there. Big, exclusive research can lead to grants, promotions and tenure, so scientists often work in secret, suspiciously hoarding data from potential competitors, he said.

The ability to work collaboratively, setting aside your personal academic progress, is occurring right now because its a matter of survival, he said.

One small measure of openness can be found on the servers of medRxiv and bioRxiv, two online archives that share academic research before it has been reviewed and published in journals. The archives have been deluged with coronavirus research from across the globe. Despite the nationalistic tone set by the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, Chinese researchers have contributed a significant portion of the coronavirus research available in the archive.

Though Chinese officials initially covered up the outbreak and have since used it for propaganda purposes, Chinese scientists have in many ways led the worlds coronavirus research. A Chinese laboratory made public the initial viral genome in January, a disclosure that formed the basis for coronavirus tests worldwide. And some of todays most promising clinical trials can trace their origins to early Chinese research on the disease.

Few areas of the world have been spared. Last year, Jamal Ahmadzadeh, an epidemiologist at Urmia University in Iran, warned that the world needed a rapid-alert system in response to MERS, another coronavirus. No country was immune to the risk, he wrote. In an email last week, as Iran grappled with one of the worlds worst coronavirus outbreaks, he wrote that defeating the virus required information-sharing across laboratories and across borders.

Even scientists working in fields beyond infectious diseases have been drawn into the effort. Dr. Perrone, who is supervising an Italian clinical trial of the immunosuppressive drug tocilizumab, is a cancer specialist. He is involved because of his experience running clinical trials for the National Cancer Institute in Naples.

Dr. Perrone said the coronavirus pandemic may make medical science more nimble long after the emergency has passed. Ten days after researchers conceived of the trial, the normally laborious government approval process was complete and doctors began enrolling patients, he said. This should be a lesson for the future, he said.

While Mr. Trump has touted American pharmaceutical prowess, and big drug companies like Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson have announced that they are bankrolling coronavirus vaccine research, the biggest drug companies focus on drugs they can sell year after year in affluent countries, not during short-lived crises centered in the developing world. Vaccine research has been seen as insufficiently profitable.

When Ebola captured the worlds attention in 2014, for example, the drug giants that chased a vaccine all took major losses on their investments. The first vaccine, originally devised by a Canadian government lab and now sold by Merck, was approved for sale last year, long after the epidemic faded.

Of course there are people in competition. This is the human condition, said Dr. Yazdan Yazdanpanah, the director of infectious disease at Inserm in France. What is important is to come up with a solution for everyone. The way to achieve that is to collaborate.
I know well that a persons true character comes through in crisis, she said, adding Brown stepped up and showed exceptional leadership. She said when she watched news reports about the shooting four years ago, she couldnt have imagined the day when she would be mayor of Chicago and choosing him to lead the citys police force.
LONDON (dpa-AFX) - British Airways plc, owned by International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG.L, BAIRY.PK, BAY.L), will furlough up to 36,000 staff, due to the escalating coronavirus or Covid-19 crisis. The airline, which has grounded much of its fleet, reportedly has reached a deal with Unite union, under which 80 percent of the 45,000 BA staff will be suspended from Thursday. The affected employees include cabin crew, ground staff, engineers and head office employees. Meanwhile, no staff are expected to be made redundant. Those affected employees would receive some of their wages through the government's coronavirus job retention scheme. The company and the union have been negotiating for more than a week. The decision is likely to affect all staff at Gatwick and London City Airport. The company had suspended all operations in these locations until the coronavirus crisis gets over. British Airways continues to run services at Heathrow. British Airways is already in deal with its 4,500 pilots, who are taking a 50 percent pay cut in April and May. In London, IAG shares are currently trading at 209.70 pence, up 3.61 percent. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Amid a 21-day lockdown imposed in the country to combat the coronavirus pandemic, Air India has got approval from Indian and Chinese authorities for operating cargo flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong to get medical supplies, its Chairman and Managing Director Rajiv Bansal said on Thursday.

"We have applied to the Chinese authorities to commence freighter operations to two destinations -- Shanghai and Hong Kong -- from Delhi. There have been a few regulatory challenges from the Chinese side," said Bansal.

He added that the cargo coming from China would be medical supplies.

"I am happy to announce that an hour back, we got the approval for launching the freighter operations to Shanghai from Delhi for two dates - 4th April and 5th April. We have applied for subsequent dates also for 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th. We hope to get those approvals also within a day," Bansal told a press conference around 4 pm.

He said Air India has also got the approval for carrying cargo flight operations to Hong Kong.

"Approval for Hong Kong came faster. We already have approval in place to launch cargo flight operations between Delhi and Hong Kong," he said.

Bansal said that they have a group of freight forwarders and consignees and they have been informed about the flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong.

He added that they have been asked to book their consignment on these flights that the national carrier would be operating.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Britain would "massively increase testing" amid a growing wave of criticism on Thursday about his government's failure to provide widespread coronavirus screening.

In a video message posted online on Wednesday night from Downing Street, where he has been in self-isolation since announcing on March 27 that he had contracted the virus, Johnson said testing was the "way through".

"We're also massively increasing testing. As I have said for weeks and weeks this (testing) is the way through," Johnson said.

"This is how we will unlock the coronavirus puzzle, this is how we will defeat it in the end." He was reacting to condemnation of his government, especially in the media, after officials revealed that just 2,000 out of half-a-million staff in the state-run National Health Service (NHS) had been tested.

There have also been reports of staff being turned away from drive-in test centres because they did not have the correct paperwork, or others which were deserted because testing was by appointment only.

Figures published Wednesday showed a total of 2,352 people with COVID-19 have died in the UK, an increase of 563, the largest single-day rise.

Two of the deaths were medics.

Testing for the general public has also been condemned as not being widespread enough.

On Tuesday, 10,000 hospital patients and NHS staff were tested in England, well below the daily target of 25,000 and the 70,000 a day achieved in Germany.

Various normally pro-government newspapers condemned the plans as "chaotic", a "scandal" and a "shambles" as the backlash gathered pace.

Paul Nurse, chief executive of biomedical research centre the Francis Crick Institute, told the BBC Thursday that the government should summon "the Dunkirk spirit" and let 'small ship' labs start screening for the killer disease.

So far, Public Health England (PHE), the body tasked with testing, has insisted all screening should be carried out centrally.

PHE medical director Professor Paul Cosford defended his organisation's work.

"At the very outset we identified this, we got the tests in place, we designed the tests in our laboratories. We have played our part," he told BBC radio.

Britain is currently in lockdown, with shops shut and the public asked to stay at home to try to limit the spread of coronavirus.

The government has promised an enormous package of support for businesses and employees hit by the measures, but is facing questions about how quickly the money is getting through.

New government figures show 950,000 people applied for state welfare support known as universal credit in the last fortnight.

It is available to the unemployed and those on low incomes. National plane carrier British Airways is expected to announce it will suspend 36,000 staff later on Thursday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SAN FRANCISCO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Doximity announced today that it has teamed with researchers from two of the country's leading academic medical and healthcare research organizations, to publish the first and largest, wide-scale national study of physician views on the global coronavirus pandemic. Conducted last week between March 21-24, 2020, a total of 10,750 American physicians on the Doximity network clicked on the survey link and more than 2,600 responses were received, representing all major-medical specialties. Doximity is the largest online professional network, with over 70% of U.S. physicians as registered members.

The study found that most U.S. physicians (73%) reported not being able to test patients quickly and easily for Coronavirus, despite 50% reporting that they had treated at least one patient with possible COVID-19 symptoms. Nearly 50% also reported concerns about patients likely avoiding testing or treatment due to financial barriers.

Key Findings Include:

Doctors Say Medical Supplies and COVID-19 Testing Are Inadequate: 77% did not believe that their hospital or clinic had adequate medical supplies or equipment to manage the crisis. Overall, 73% reported not being able to test patients quickly and easily.

77% did not believe that their hospital or clinic had adequate medical supplies or equipment to manage the crisis. Overall, 73% reported not being able to test patients quickly and easily. There Are Not Enough Precautions in Place : Nearly 60% did not think there were enough coronavirus precautions in their clinical setting.

: Nearly 60% did not think there were enough coronavirus precautions in their clinical setting. Government Agencies Not Doing Enough: The majority of physicians (70%) did not think that government had taken appropriate measures to support the medical supply chain or had adequately responded to the pandemic.

The majority of physicians (70%) did not think that government had taken appropriate measures to support the medical supply chain or had adequately responded to the pandemic. Finances May Impact Patients Getting Treatment: 48% of doctors reported concern that patients are avoiding testing or treatment due to financial barriers.

48% of doctors reported concern that patients are avoiding testing or treatment due to financial barriers. Social Distancing is potentially an Under-Reaction: While social distancing is inconvenient and has large economic impacts, most  but not all  physicians agree that it is absolutely necessary to successfully fight this pandemic. 59% reported that current social distancing measures are appropriate, while 28% reported current measures are likely an under-reaction.

While social distancing is inconvenient and has large economic impacts, most  but not all  physicians agree that it is absolutely necessary to successfully fight this pandemic. 59% reported that current social distancing measures are appropriate, while 28% reported current measures are likely an under-reaction. Many Doctors Are Turning to Telemedicine: Over 80% of physicians have moved to, or are planning to adopt, telemedicine virtual visits with patients. Telemedicine can be beneficial in treating patients remotely, saving in-person visits for high-priority coronavirus patients.

"Our thanks go out to the physicians who participated in our study last week. For the first time, we have aggregated opinion data that reflects what they are experiencing on the front lines of this pandemic. These voices are highlighting clinical, medical safety and supply issues that must be addressed quickly," said Dr. Anupam Bapu Jena, an associate professor of health care policy and medicine at Harvard Medical School.

"The findings highlight the difficult road ahead for healthcare providers confronting the coronavirus pandemic," said Chris Whaley, Ph.D., lead author and Policy Researcher at the RAND Corporation. "We hope this insight on physician experiences and concerns surrounding the pandemic will help design appropriate and immediate policy response."

"As an emergency medicine physician, I see first-hand how these challenges are impacting day-to-day operations in the ER. I practice in Chicago, and we've already begun to see patients in severe distress due to this pandemic. The bottom line is that the issues flagged in this study, both at the clinical and system level, need to be addressed quickly for us to get and stay ahead of this," explained Amit Phull, MD, board-certified emergency medicine physician and vice president of strategy and insights at Doximity.

Click here to view the full study.

About Doximity

Founded in 2011, Doximity connects physicians and clinicians to make them more successful and productive. It is the largest professional medical network with over 70 percent of all U.S. physicians as members. The network enables medical professionals to communicate with colleagues and patients, and to share their perspectives on the latest health care trends and research. Doximity is based in San Francisco and was created by the founders of Epocrates and Rock Health. To learn more, visit www.doximity.com.

SOURCE Doximity

Related Links

http://www.doximity.com


Stressing that congregating in religious places will cause "chaos" in the wake of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, music maestro AR Rahman has urged people to adhere to the advice of the government and self-isolate.

The Oscar winner's appeal comes after Tabligh-e-Jamaat's Markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin West emerged as an epicentre for spread of COVID-19 in different parts of the country after thousands of people took part in a congregation from March 1-15.

In a lengthy statement on Twitter, Rahman on Wednesday asked people to be "kind and thoughtful".

"God is inside your heart (the most sacred shrine), so this is not the time to cause chaos by congregating in religious places. Listen to the government's advice. Self-isolation for a few weeks may give you many more years.

"Do not spread the virus and cause harm to fellow humans. This disease does not even warn you that you are a carrier, so don't assume you are not infected. This is not the time to spread false rumours and cause more anxiety and panic," he wrote.

Rahman also thanked the healthcare workers on the frontlines, battling the pandemic in order to save several lives in the country.

"This message is to thank the doctors, nurses, and all the staff working, in hospitals and clinics all across India, for their bravery and selflessness. It fills one's heart to see how ready they are to deal with this most dreadful pandemic. They risk their lives to save ours," the 53-year-old composer said.

He said one must help their neighbours, senior citzens, the underprivileged and migrant workers during this health crisis.

"It's time to forget our differences and unite against this invisible enemy that has turned the world upside down. It's time to bring the beauty of humanity and spirituality into action," he added.

Oscar-winning sound engineer Resul Pookutty and Rahman's collaborator on the award-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire" shared the same sentiments.

"... God is in your hearts not in shrines, you don't have to congregate now, follow Govt rules, few days of isolation might give you many years of life!" Pookutty tweeted on Thursday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Small gold coins and bars, most popular among retail investors, are in big shortage due to high demand and supply disruptions amid coronavirus.

Gold dealers are desperately looking for clients those who want to sell the yellow metal, and are offering a rare 10-15% premium over spot prices, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

We have a buyers waiting list and we emailed our clients seeing who wished to sell their gold. At this time there is roughly only one or two sellers for every 99 buyers, Mark OByrne, founder of Dublin-based dealer GoldCore, was quoted as saying in the report.

Markus Krall, CEO of German precious-metals retailer Degussa, said hes never seen such high premiums and demand before. Gold is currently trading at around $1590 per ounce at press time.

Last week, Goldman Sachs said it is time to buy the yellow metal. "Both the near-term and long-term gold outlook are looking far more constructive, and we are increasingly confident in our 12-month target of $1800/toz," it added.
Fido can now get flea treatment by phone.

Or at least the prescription for it.

In the latest of a flurry of executive orders due to COVID-19, Gov. Doug Ducey directed that veterinarians may now use "telemedicine'' to diagnose and treat animals, the same way that medical doctors now use telephone and computer hookups to deal with their two-legged clients.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a public health declaration two months ago allowing all medical practitioners, including veterinarians, to use telemedicine to prescribe certain controlled substances to patients even if they have not conducted an in-person medical exam.

And last week the federal Food and Drug Administration said it won't enforce regulations requiring in-person animal examinations before certain drugs can be used.

In his order Wednesday, Ducey said the need to protect veterinarians "requires an expansion of veterinary telemedicine in Arizona for the duration of the state's public health emergency.''

This is about more than keeping vets safe, he added.

"This order allows veterinary professionals to carry out their commitment to caring for Arizona animals, including house pets and farm animals, while Arizona residents practice physical distancing and limit their time away from home,'' Ducey said in a prepared statement.

Vets are barred from charging more for a telemedicine visit than they would for an in-person visit. Companies that provide pet insurance cannot deny coverage solely because the service was provided at the owner's home.
Experts believe that it is necessary to think of measures to lead water to the Mekong Delta through a transmission network to save the area from severe drought and saline intrusion.

In 2016, saltwater for the first time reached Cai Cui Port in Can Tho, just 100 kilometers from Tran De beach in Soc Trang, and reached administrative centers in the provinces of Ben Tre and Vinh Long.





But the situation has been more serious this year. Saltwater has affected 10 out of 13 provinces in Mekong Delta. Some provinces have declared an emergency because of the saltwater attacks.



The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) predicted that 130,000 hectares of fruit trees will be affected and 150,000 households will lack water for daily use.



Lacking freshwater, people have to either wait for freshwater relief aid or buy water at exorbitantly high prices. However, experts say the measures wont be able to settle the problem as the saline intrusion level has exceeded the record level of 2016.

Experts believe that it is necessary to think of measures to lead water to the Mekong Delta through a transmission network to save the area from severe drought and saline intrusion.

According to Vu Trong Hong, former Deputy Minister of Irrigation, now MARD, this years drought season has not reached its peak, and building more seawater prevention sluices is an expensive but ineffective measure.



Meanwhile, the supply of fresh water from the upstream to the branches of Mekong River has been interrupted due to the upstream hydropower dams.



The freshwater supply in the Mekong Delta has to rely on natural rainwater. More than ever, the Delta needs a true freshening program that allows people to have access to water for daily life and irrigation.



Under the long-term freshening program, it is necessary to think of transmitting water from the east to the west through transmission lines, and building standardized water reservoirs, Hong said.



According to Hong, a water freshening program was drawn up in 1996. However, the implementation was delayed as some experts believed that there was no need for it and that farmers should irrigate crops with underground water.



As farmers used too much water, the freshwater layer has been lost. Meanwhile, many mangroves forests have been cleared away, which has allowed saltwater to penetrate deep into the mainland.



Hong thinks water containing areas should not be removed. In the past, Mekong Delta had Dong Thap Muoi and Long Xuyen Quadrilateral areas to contain water and prevent saltwater intrusion.



In the current context of freshwater shortage, Hong has urged acceleration of the water freshening program.



While waiting for the long-term freshening program to be implemented, it is necessary to bring water to people through temporary transmission works, he said, stressing that support in money and water shortage relief are not enough.

Mai Lan

Mekong Delta provinces want to build reservoirs to store freshwater Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc recently had a working session with localities declaring an emergency because of drought and saline intrusion in Mekong Delta, including Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Kien Giang and Ca Mau.
We now offer lithium prices and coverage free for reference. Click here to read all about it. Join our growing community of participants who want to learn more about electrification and how this market is developing.
I heard my father playing these songs in clubs so beautifully, Wynton said in the liner notes accompanying the album. What I love about his style is that hes got a serious touch and hes always listening and always trying to make everybody in the band sound better, which is the best way to play. . . . The feeling in his playing comes through as just what it is: deep interest and concern for things human and musical.
[April 02, 2020] Huawei Joins the Open Invention Network

DURHAM, N.C., April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Open Invention Network (OIN), the largest patent non-aggression community in history, and Huawei, the largest diversified electronics and communications company in the world, announced today that Huawei has become a licensee and member of the 3,200 strong community of OIN licensees. As a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices and the first major Chinese company to embrace open source software (OSS), Huawei is reinforcing its commitment to OSS as an enabler of advanced communications systems.

With continuous innovations being implemented, the ICT industry is undergoing unprecedented transformation. Linux-based platforms, including the Linux Foundation Networking projects such as OPNFV and ONAP, are enabling service providers and enterprises to provision new levels of functionality across cloud and software defined networks at an unprecedented pace, said Keith Bergelt, CEO of Open Invention Network. As a global leader in ICT infrastructure, and a company with a significant intellectual property portfolio, we appreciate Huawei joining OIN and supporting patent non-aggression in the core of Linux and adjacent OSS. In addition to being a worldwide technology leader, Huawei is consistently a top contributor to the Linux Kernel, other key open source projects, and is a Platinum member of the Linux Foundation , said Jim Zemlin, Executive Director at the Linux Foundation. By joining the Open Invention Network community, Huawei is further demonstrating its strong support for defending open source and open collaboration. Huawei is committed to offering he highest-quality ICT and smart devices. Linux and OSS are critical elements of technologies we are developing and integrating with carriers and enterprises around the globe, said Jianxin Ding, Head of Global Intellectual Property, at Huawei. By joining the Open Invention Network, we are demonstrating our continued commitment to innovation, and supporting it with patent non-aggression in Linux and other core open source projects.



Open to all, OINs community practices patent non-aggression in core Linux and adjacent open source technologies by cross-licensing Linux System patents to one another on a royalty-free basis. Patents owned by Open Invention Network are similarly licensed royalty-free to any organization that agrees not to assert its patents against the Linux System. The OIN license can be signed online at http://www.j-oin.net/ . About Huawei

Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. With integrated solutions across four key domains  telecom networks, IT, smart devices, and cloud services  we are committed to bringing digital to every person, home and organization for a fully connected, intelligent world.

Huawei's end-to-end portfolio of products, solutions and services are both competitive and secure. Through open collaboration with ecosystem partners, we create lasting value for our customers, working to empower people, enrich home life, and inspire innovation in organizations of all shapes and sizes. At Huawei, innovation focuses on customer needs. We invest heavily in basic research, concentrating on technological breakthroughs that drive the world forward. We have more than 194,000 employees, and we operate in more than 170 countries and regions. Founded in 1987, Huawei is a private company fully owned by its employees. About Open Invention Network

Open Invention Network (OIN) is the largest patent non-aggression community in history and supports freedom of action in Linux as a key element of open source software (OSS). Patent non-aggression in core technologies is a cultural norm within OSS, so that the litmus test for authentic behavior in the OSS community includes OIN membership. Funded by Google, IBM, NEC, Philips, Sony, SUSE and Toyota, OIN has more than 3,200 community members and owns more than 1,300 global patents and applications. The OIN patent license and member cross-licenses are available royalty-free to any party that joins the OIN community. For more information, visit http://www.openinventionnetwork.com . Media-Only Contact:

Ed Schauweker

AVID Public Relations for Open Invention Network

[email protected]

+1 (703) 963-5238

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China has named one of the coronavirus whistle-blowers a 'martyr', according to state media, after his informant has allegedly gone missing.

Li Wenliang, a 34-year-old doctor from Wuhan, lost his life to killer infection COVID-19 in February after contracting it from a patient.

He was reprimanded by police for warning the public of a 'SARS-like' disease weeks before Wuhan was put under lockdown.

Dr Li Wenliang, 34, who died of the coronavirus last month after being punished for sounding the alarm over the outbreak has been given the honourable title of 'an advanced individual'

Dr Ai Fen - who went public over the spread coronavirus in Wuhan - has disappeared sparking concerns that she has been detained, reports suggest. Dr Ai is feared to have been detained

Who is Dr Ai Fen? It has been recently revealed that Dr Li sounded the alarm of a potential outbreak after receiving a test message from his colleague Dr Ai. She has been billed as 'the one who gave out the whistles to the whistle-blowers'. Dr Ai, who works in the ER, criticised the management of Wuhan Central Hospital for dismissing the early warnings of the coronavirus in an interview published last month by a Chinese magazine - before it was quickly censored. She admitted 'feeling regretful about not speaking out more' after four of her colleagues, including Dr Li, had contracted the virus and died while fighting the outbreak. She also said that she faced 'unprecedented, extremely harsh reprimanded' by officials at Wuhan Central Hospital after sending the text. Advertisement

The news comes as Dr Li's colleague Ai Fen, who had informed him about the virus, has reportedly disappeared, sparking concerns that she has been detained for speaking out.

People who claim to know Dr Ai have alleged on Chinese social media that she was living and working as usual while slamming the report from an Australia channel as fake.

Authorities have not responded to the report.

Late Dr Li has been officially ranked as a 'martyr' by local officials who lauded his bravery, dedication and quick reaction.

His name is among a total of 14 medical workers in the province of Hubei who received the title after they contracted the contagion at work and then died of it, reported state broadcaster CCTV through its social media account.

Citing officials from Hubei, A CCTV post said: 'They disregarded their personal safety, stuck to the front line, raced against the clock fighting the demon illness and safeguard people's life safety and health day and night.

'Salute! Farewell to heroes!'

Dr Li was reprimanded by police for sharing the information and made to sign a statement (left) agreeing not to commit any more 'law-breaking actions'. His death caused an uproar in China

A woman wearing a face mask walks past a poster of late Li Wenliang, a Chinese doctor who died of coronavirus at a hospital in Wuhan, in Prague, Czech Republic, on March 27

The late honourees include 51-year-old Liu Zhiming, the former head of Wuhan's Wuchang Hospital who succumbed to the infection on February 18 after being infected at work.

Two of Dr Li's colleagues, 56-year-old Jiang Xueqing and 57-year-old Mei Zhongming, were also on the list.

More than 3,000 medical workers have contracted the coronavirus while treating patients, and at least 26 of them have died, according to figures released by Chinese media.

Dr Jiang Xueqing (left) and Dr Mei Zhongming (right), who also worked for Wuhan Central Hospital, have lost their lives to the deadly disease. Dr Jiang, 56, specialised in treating diseases in the mammary gland and thyroid gland while Dr Mei, 57, worked with Dr Li Wenliang

Dr Li, ophthalmologist, was pronounced dead in the early hours of February 7 after testing positive on January 31.

The news of his passing was initially reported by state media Global Times before being quickly retracted. His workplace, the Wuhan Central Hospital, then claimed that doctors were still trying to save him.

His death and the conflicting reports about it sparked an uproar on Chinese social media, with the public accusing the authority of trying to cover up the truth and controlling freedom of speech.

More than 3,000 medical workers have contracted the coronavirus while treating patients, and at least 26 of them have died, according to figures released by Chinese media. The picture shows hazmat-clad medical workers transferring a patient at a hospital in Wuhan on February 6

'He wasn't allowed to speak. He wasn't even allowed to die,' wrote one person on popular messaging app WeChat as she commented on a circulating notice which apparently instructed all media outlets to suppress the coverage of the passing of Dr Li Wenliang.

'Dr Li Wenliang was only allowed to "die" after most web users had gone to bed,' condemned another person on Twitter-like Weibo, claiming that Dr Li's hospital was quick to deny relevant reports and declared the medic's death in the wee hours today.

The deceased medic blew the whistle on the coronavirus outbreak in late December, around three weeks before the authority locked down Wuhan to stop the spread of the contagion.

This photo taken on April 1 shows medical workers disinfecting a stretcher in Wuhan Central Hospital in Wuhan. Li Wenliang was a doctor at the hospital before dying of COVID-19

He was reprimanded by police for sharing the information and made to sign a statement agreeing not to commit any more 'law-breaking actions'.

A Chinese government investigation found last month that the police had acted 'inappropriately' in dealing with the case.

The police has since apologised to the public and pardoned Dr Li.

Life in Wuhan, the former centre of the coronavirus pandemic, is slowly returning to normal. The picture shows a man wearing a face mask riding a scooter outside Wuhan University today

It has been recently revealed that Dr Li sounded the alarm of a potential outbreak after receiving a test message from his colleague Dr Ai, who has been billed as 'the one who gave out the whistles to the whistle-blowers'.

Dr Ai, who works in the ER, criticised the management of Wuhan Central Hospital for dismissing the early warnings of the coronavirus in an interview published last month by a Chinese magazine - before it was quickly censored.

She admitted 'feeling regretful about not speaking out more' after four of her colleagues, including Dr Li, had contracted the virus and died while fighting the outbreak.

She also said that she faced 'unprecedented, extremely harsh reprimanded' by officials at Wuhan Central Hospital after sending the text.

She has not been seen since her interview with Renwu Magazine on March 10, 60 Minutes Australia reported.

On March 29 after Dr Ai was reported to have gone missing, a post on her account on Twitter-like Weibo shared a picture with the caption: 'A river. A bridge. A road. A clock chime'

After the show's investigation aired, a post on the doctor's Weibo account - a social media platform similar to Twitter - shared a picture with the caption: 'A river. A bridge. A road. A clock chime'.

The post was tagged under a phrase 'you are the sweetest and the most bitter', indicating her love and hate relationship with her hometown.

Some comments under the mysterious post, however, suggested that Dr Ai was living and working as normal.

One reply read: 'Dr Ai is okay and living normally. I am from Wuhan and know her family.'

Her rumoured disappearance comes after criticism was levvied at the Chinese government for lying and covering up key information during virtually every stage of its coronavirus response - accusations Beijing has denied and condemned.
Thiruvananthapuram, April 1 (IANS) Top Kerala actor Prithviraj and award winning director Blessy and 56 others are stuck in Jordan after shooting of a movie was stopped there following restrictions in the wake of coronavirus crisis and have sought help to return home.

Blessy emailed to the Kerala Film Chamber, seeking help to take up the case with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The media came to know about the email on Wednesday.

A Chamber official Anil Thomas said the email has been forwarded to various lawmakers, including Malayalam superstar turned Rajya Sabha member Suresh Gopi.

Prithviraj's mother Malika Sukumaran, a yesteryear's actress, said that she spoke to her son on Monday.

"He said the shooting has been stopped following strict restrictions imposed on account of Covid-19 in Jordan. The shooting was on in a desert. Things are fine with them, except that the shooting is not happening. They were supposed to wind up the Jordan part of the shoot next week and were scheduled to fly out to Algeria as per their original schedule," said the actor's mother.

Billed as one of the costliest Malayalam film 'Aadujeevitham' is based on the award winning eponymous Malayalam novel by Benyamin.

It tells the tale of the life of a man ending up in shambles after reaching the Middle East and finds himself tending goats in extreme desert temperatures.

Blessy's past films including his debut film in 2004 'Kaazcha', 'Thanmathra' (2005) 'Pranayam' (2011) to name a few, all of which occupy a place of pride in the Malayalam film industry.

--IANS

sg/tsb
 Flash

The ongoing epidemic COVID-19 may pose a bigger threat to the countries and regions devastated by conflicts than anywhere else, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has warned.

Experts from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have warned, it will be nearly impossible to fight COVID-19 in spots affected by conflicts without concerted efforts among states and humanitarian organizations.

Plans to prevent and respond to the virus must urgently move forward before it gains a foothold in conflict zones, they said in a statement issued in Geneva.

In addition to representing a major threat to life in countries with strong health systems, this coronavirus is even more dangerous in sites of conflict where a substantial number of refugees living in large groups are suffering scarcities of clean water, soap and medicines, they said.

What is worse, it is hard to detect and follow the sickness in places where the local health, social and economic systems have been destroyed, which consequently increases the chances of transmissions.

Peter Maurer, the committee's president, said, "COVID-19 has overwhelmed advanced health care systems. Many of the places where we work lack even basic health care infrastructure, let alone intensive care capacity. Our fear is that unless urgent action is taken to curb the spread of the virus, it will devastate some of the world's most vulnerable communities."

According to ICRC, people in prisons and displacement camps around the world are among the most vulnerable groups prone to transmissions. Health systems in conflict zones in places such as Syria, Yemen, South Sudan, northeast Nigeria, and Afghanistan, are simply not prepared to handle a flood of COVID-19 cases without massive extra support.

Last week, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent launched an appeal for 800 million Swiss francs ($826.6 million), a call for states to boost resources for countries with limited capacity to respond to this urgent threat.

Without assistance, the pandemic can spread easily among the displacement camps where physical distancing is not possible and the containment will be difficult, as it is harder to trace and isolate suspected cases when people flee their homes due to violence.

Maurer said: "Our work helping victims of conflict is still needed even amid an increased response to the virus. This work is made extra difficult because of the scale of this current pandemic, and the necessary and vital measures countries are now taking to contain it, such as movement restrictions of people and goods. To avoid a catastrophe, governments and other armed actors in conflict theaters must facilitate the work of humanitarians as a priority."

Even as the ICRC continues its work in places of war, it is re-orienting its activities to try to prevent and assist with the COVID-19 pandemic, often in close collaboration with National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC).

The present focus is on a number of areas such as Afghanistan, Armenia, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, El Salvador, Gaza, Iraq, Lebanon, Mexico, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan and Syria.
Hand Sanitizer Market: Global Size, Trends, Competitive, Historical & Forecast Analysis, 2018-2024 Rising improvement in living standards is driving the global animal vaccine market.

Global Hand Sanitizer Market is valued at USD 1118.57 Million in 2017and expected to reach USD 2152.19 Million by 2024 with the CAGR of 9.8% over the forecast period.

Hand hygiene is a vital principle and exercise in the prevention, control, and reduction of healthcare- acquired infections. Hygiene is defined as maintenance of cleanliness practices which carries utmost importance in maintenance of health. Hand sanitizer is in liquid form and it helpful to decrease the infectious agents on the hand. Combination of isopropyl alcohol, ethanol is form in the alcohol based hand sanitizer version. Alcohol based sanitizer should be flammable. Benzalkonium chloride or triclosan Compound contains non-alcohol based sanitizer. More than other hand washing forms 90% alcohol rubs are effective against the virus. In few seconds isopropyl alcohol will kill the 99.99% bacteria in the laboratory and human skin. the hand sanitizer have different of benefits . Like, Hand Sanitizer are convenient, portable, easy to use and not time consuming, risk of spreading gastrointestinal and respiratory infection is decreased among families who use hand sanitizers. Additionally, commercially prepared Hand Sanitizer contain ingredients that help prevent skin dryness.

Get Sample Copy of This Premium Report @ https://industrystatsreport.com/Request/Sample?ResearchPostId=12656&RequestType=Sample

Global Hand Sanitizer Market report is segmented on the basis of product, distribution channel, end use and region. Based upon by product the hand sanitizer market is segmented into gel, foam, and spray and other. Based on distribution channel the market is segmented into online store, departmental store, pharmacy store and other. Based on end use the market is segmented in to restaurants, schools, hospitals, household purpose and others.

The regions covered in this Hand sanitizers market report are North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World. On the basis of country level, market of seed treatment sub divided into U.S., Mexico, Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Italy, China, Japan, India, South East Asia, GCC, Africa, etc.

Key Players for Global Hand Sanitizer market Reports

Global Hand Sanitizer report covers prominent players Reckitt Benckiser Group, The Himalaya Drug Company, Procter and Gamble, Gojo Industry Inc., Henkel Corporation, Unilever, Vi-Jon Laboratories Inc., Chattem Inc., Best Sanitizers Inc., and Kutol Products Company and Other.

IIT KPG researches develop hand sanitizer

Researchers from IIT Kharagpur developed two different type of alcohol based sanitizer based on WHO guidelines admit the corona virus outbreaks. According to the institute the team from school of medical science and technology of the institute manufactured a isopropyl alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, glycerol and water containing hand sanitizer.

Increasing consumer inclination towards wellness and health is resulting in product innovations is boosting the growth of hand sanitizer market.

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Due to increasing number of viruses the demand of hand sanitizer market is increasing in the market. For example, In China, there were 81093 coronavirus infected patients were 3,242 people have died of the disease since the outbreak began in December, according to the World Health Organization. Due the outbreak of recent coronavirus the hand sanitizer market is booming in 2020. Easy availability is also one of the factor which boosting the hand sanitizer market. Additionally, rise in health expenditure, increase in awareness about hand hygiene, and support from organization such as WHO, FDA, and others towards the need for sanitation expand the demand for hand sanitizers. However, health hazards associated with chemical ingredients are anticipated to hinder the market growth during the forecast period. For example, number of skin related problems are causes due to alcohol toxicity present in some sanitizers. Like Itching, Slight to severe flaking, scaling, or peeling, Fine lines or cracks, Gray, ashy skin color, Redness, Deep cracks that may bleed. Moreover, increasing number of viral diseases is creating the opportunity to market in forecast period.

Asia Pacific is emerging region in hand sanitizer market

Asia pacific is a most populated region due to this the viral infections are rapidly spread. Due to this reason the hand sanitizer demand in Asia pacific is increasing. The rate of viral infection in Asia pacific is rising in order .additionally, achieve highest growth rate compared to other regions due to presence of countries such as China, India and Japan are observing significant industrial growth. Numbers of companies are focusing on expanding their business network, across regional markets. North America is a dominating region due awareness about hand sanitizer in peoples, number of manufacturer of hand sanitizer companies presence and owing to high hygiene standards among the U.S. population. For example, in 2019, Purell Advanced was the leading hand sanitizer brand after private label brands in the United States, generating around 36.7 million U.S. dollars. The Babyganics brand generated around 1.7 million U.S. dollars.

Key Benefits for Global Hand Sanitizer Market Report:-

Global market report covers in depth historical and forecast analysis.

Global market research report provides detail information about Market Introduction, Market Summary, Global market Revenue (Revenue USD), Market Drivers, Market Restraints, Market opportunities, Competitive Analysis, Regional and Country Level.

Global market report helps to identify opportunities in market place.

Global market report covers extensive analysis of emerging trends and competitive landscape.

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Global Hand Sanitizer Market Segmentation

By Product

Gel

Foam

Spray

Others

By Distribution Channel

Online Store

Departmental Store

Pharmacy store

Other

By End User

Restaurants

Schools

Hospitals

Household Purpose

Others

By Regional & Country Analysis:

North America

U.S.

Canada

Europe

U.K.

France

Germany

Italy

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

Southeast Asia

Latin America

Brazil

Mexico

Middle East and Africa

GCC

Africa

Rest of Middle East and Africa

Continued..

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Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday appeal to the attendees of a congregation in the coronavirus-hotspot Tablighi Jamaat centre in Delhi and those who came in contact with them to voluntarily report for screening.

The chief minister also called upon people to cooperate in efforts against coronavirus spread and said that those who have travel history and have any symptoms should come forward.

This is in the interest of their own life and in the interest of entire humanity, society and the country, he said.

On the Tablighi Jamaat meet, he said, "The congregation should have stopped immediately. Action against those who are responsible for failing the objectives of the lockdown should be taken."



Tablighi Jamaat's Markaz in Nizamuddin West has emerged as an epicentre for spread of the coronavirus in different parts of the country after thousands of people took part in a congregation from March 1-15. Many of the participants have tested positive for COVID-19 in several states.

The chief minister, who chaired a high-level meeting, also directed officials to conduct tests on the basis of random survey which will help in assessing the real status of the virus spread.

He said that survey should be focused on places with high footfalls.

Health Minister Raghu Sharma, Energy Minister B D Kalla, Agriculture Minister Lalchand Kataria, Chief Secretary DB Gupta and other senior officials were present in the meeting.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BOCA RATON, FL, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- 98 Alive is a patented, natural, and holistic immune system booster that will soon be available to the American consumer.

The supplement, based on the Melaleuca alternifolia leaf, has been used as a topical remedy for centuries by Australian indigenous communities because of its beneficial properties.

We needed an alternative to harsh, man-made chemicals that drug companies sell and doctors prescribe, said Professor Max Reynolds, the founder and developer of 98 Alive. I wanted to find a natural, organic compound that people could use instead of antibiotics and other prescription drugs.

Professor Reynolds said five different 98 Alive supplements will soon be available in the U.S. We are excited that more people will learn about the beneficial properties of 98 Alive. The supplements coming to America include:

98 Alive Immune Support Capsule, a product to stimulate the immune system and fight disease.

98 Alive Immune Syrup

98 Alive Natural Nasal Spray

98 Alive Respiratory Health liquid

Professor Reynolds, a leading Australian scientist and microbiologist, and his research team took almost a decade to formulate 98 Alive.

The new concentrate has 43 new organic compounds and six new compounds never before seen by man, he said. We developed an alternative, natural remedy for people who dont want to use prescription drugs with their many harmful side effects.

Professor Reynolds said 98 Alive has five times more antioxidant activity than Krill oil and 14 times more than fish oil.

We have a proven supplement that balances and supports the immune system, Professor Reynolds said. A wide range of customers, including mothers, seniors with arthritic problems, doctors, health-care providers, and naturopaths, use 98 Alive.

Since 98 Alive came on the market, it has built a strong and loyal following:

I take 98 Alive every morning as a boost for my immune system. I know if I miss my daily routine, I can feel the difference in energy levels and general wellbeing.

Im very happy with 98 Alive immune system capsules. They help me stay healthy and free from colds and the flu.

The supplement, which is rich in antioxidants, helps the immune system, reduce joint pain, and improve overall wellbeing,  Professor Reynolds said.

It took extensive global research and clinical trials before Professor Reynolds and his research and development developed 98 Alive, which is listed on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods.

98 Alive is time tested and scientifically researched. It is the only Melaleuca alternifolia leaf supplement that has been scientifically researched, he said. We developed 98 Alive to help people stay healthy and enjoy life. Without health, we have nothing.

For more information, visit 98Alives website.

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Arnold Schwarzenegger has been urging others to self-isolate amid the global coronavirus pandemic.

But on Thursday the 72-year-old former Governor of California stepped out of quarantine to ride bicycles with his daughter Christina Schwarzenegger, 28, in Los Angeles. The pair appeared to be in high spirits as they took in the fresh air.

This comes after The Terminator star debuted his new 'Don't be an a** stay inside' t-shirts, which will donate 100% of the profits to After-School All-Stars on Instagram.

All smiles: Arnold Schwarzenegger stepped out of quarantine to ride bikes with his daughter Christina Schwarzenegger, 28

Giving back: The Terminator star advertised his new 'Don't be an a** stay inside' t-shirts, which will donate 100% of the profits to After-School All-Stars on Thursday

The father-of-five and his rarely photographed daughter, who graduated from Georgetown University, matched in all-black ensembles, as they rode a few feet apart.

While she is not as well-known as older sister Katherine, 30, who is married to Chris Pratt, Christina appeared with her mom Maria Shriver, 64, on Netflix's Take Your Pills in 2018.

On their outing, as they loaded bikes on the back of his SUV, he politely turned down a fans' request for a selfie, to adhere to distancing guidelines.

Father daughter time: The actor and his rarely photographed daughter, who graduated from Georgetown University, matched in all-black ensembles, as they rode six feet away from each other

In the past month, he donated $1 million to the Frontline Responders Fund to help stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus and additional personal protection equipment to hospitals dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak.

'Mission accomplished,' he said in a video he shared on his Instagram Story, in which he wears a mask and shows off shipments full of N95 masks on Wednesday.

On the same day, he called people to 'stay at home' and captioned a video of himself lifting weights in his backyard, 'Stay at home, stay fit. We cannot control the virus but we can control our fitness.'

Joy ride: Schwarzenegger took a break from hanging with his donkey and daughter to puff a Cuban Partagas cigar on his Indian Motorcycle on Thursday

Playing around: The 72-year-old former Governor of California has been urging others to self-isolate amid the global pandemic at home, as he shares videos at home with his pet donkey Lulu

'Mission accomplished,' he said in a video he shared on his Instagram Story, in which he wears a mask and shows off shipments full of N95 masks on Wednesday

'We cannot really control the virus, but we can control what kind of shape we stay in,' he urged in the video while demonstrating an 'improvised' workout

'We cannot really control the virus, but we can control what kind of shape we stay in,' he urged in the video while demonstrating an 'improvised' workout. 'Just as long as you do something every day, bike riding, push-up and sit-ups...just do it.'

On Thursday, Schwarzenegger's content focused around his beloved donkey Lulu, who he is 'trying to teach' social distancing.

In the video on his Instagram, Lulu can be seen waiting outside for her dad to open the door.

'PUT THAT COOKIE DOWN,' he captioned the video on Instagram, which featured him kissing the donkey's head and hugging her neck

Beloved pet: Schwarzenegger's content has been focused around his beloved donkey Lulu, who he is 'trying to teach' social distancing

While he doesn't film himself letting her in, he later shows himself feeding her a snack in the kitchen.

'PUT THAT COOKIE DOWN,' he captioned the video on Instagram, which featured him kissing the donkey's head and hugging her neck.

On Tuesday, he hilariously posed with his pet in front of a chess board and revealed on Twitter she's not the best 'partner, but she's getting there.'
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  The Department of Social Welfare and Development will take the lead in the distribution of cash aid to the most financially-hit households nationwide during the quarantine, a role previously held by local government units, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases said Thursday.

The DSWD will exercise full control and supervision over the distribution of the emergency subsidy programs funds, task force spokesman Karlo Nograles said in a televised briefing.

The emergency subsidy program is in line with the newly signed law, Republic Act 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, which gives President Rodrigo Duterte new powers in handling the current health crisis, including realigning funds in the 2020 national budget.

This is to ensure only the targeted beneficiaries will receive the government subsidies, Nograles explained.

The official said the role of the LGUs will be limited to assisting in handing out the cash.

The LGUs were previously tasked to submit their databases of target beneficiaries to the national government as well as distribute social amelioration cards to those eligible to get subsidy.

Nograles also said the subsidy would be in the form of P5,000 to P8,000 in cash. Earlier this week, the government said the relief includes cash and food.

Families covered include the homeless, those with at least one member who is on a no-work-no pay situation, a senior citizen, a solo parent, a person with disability or a pregnant and lactating woman.

READ: LIST: Qualified beneficiaries of COVID-19 subsidy

Duterte said Wednesday he transferred the task of distributing the aid to the national government because of politicians with a lot of complaints.

Tinanggal ko sa politiko kasi maraming reklamo, Duterte said in a speech Wednesday.

[Translation: I gave the job to the national government because there are plenty of politicians with a lot of complaints.]

On March 21, the President ordered LGUs to stand down and abide by the directives of the IATF and the Office of the President.

This was shortly after Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto ordered the limited mobilization of tricycles in his city to help bring health workers and patients with urgent needs to hospitals. This is prohibited under the enhanced community quarantine guidelines, which include the suspension of mass transport. Sotto has since complied with the ban.

Duterte had earlier approved the recommendations of the IATF to restrict the movement of people, ordering most except for those rendering vital services to stay at home, in a bid to stem the spread of COVID-19. The quarantine is scheduled to last until April 13.
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In the middle of surreal events, we shut down to other things happening around us. Sometimes thats natural, although some willfully ignore less publicized events, too.

Sometimes I think that one of lifes lessons is learning to cope with unpredictability while continuing to personally grow within yourself and rise above the circumstances around you. And this is probably more relevant now than ever before.

Now thats easy for me to say but harder to do. But it does help to look around and see what else is going on.

In just the last week or so, two separate drowning incidents occurred involving children in rural Vietnam. Southern Vietnam is battling one of the worst droughts in history, and at least two people I know in the Hoi An area have suffered personal tragedies recently.

Obviously this makes it harder for people to stay upbeat when its an endless series of reports of deteriorating conditions everywhere. But in strange times perhaps there are ways to cope or deal with negative overload.'

The way I manage is by trying to see beyond the immediate negatives. Its a way of thinking Ive developed over decades during a lot of stressful events.

Firstly, Ive noticed my own bad habits of reacting to negative thoughts and events, particularly in the mornings, by blowing them way out of proportion to their reality.

If I dont shut down this stuff by refusing to react, just let the thoughts drift away  then the second problem becomes a nasty process of adding more problems to the first thoughts, even if they are unrelated, a sort of layering negatives on top of each other.

As my thoughts escalate in my head, Im often brought back to earth by the Vietnamese wandering pass the coffee shop, the blind vendors peddling pens and tissues, the old ladies carrying kilos of veggies to the markets, or the young ice boy delivering blocks of ice by 6:00 am around town.

So if the Vietnamese can trundle on so can us Westerners.

I asked the Vietnamese owner of a restaurant in Hoi An I frequently visit, "What do you think about the coronavirus?"

Her English isnt good so she angled her arm as if she was describing an airplane slowly crashing downwards while saying "zero."

I think she summed up the situation well and still smiled as she spoke.

Her place is popular to expats and tourists: its simply decorated; the food is good and cheap; and the mum and dad, working a 12-hour day (and often longer), still give everyone a great smile.

As one of the few restaurants in her area alongside one of the main streets, she still got foreigners in for lunch and dinner although the numbers were dwindling fast until nationwide social distancing started this week.

Between sign language and a handful of phrases, we both agreed that most of her business would come from the stranded travelers still around.

Their son has been unemployed for a while despite speaking enough English to work in the hospitality industry.

He pointed out that the family has been through far worse difficulties over the years with a grin on his face.

Its one of the more fascinating aspects of the Vietnamese character, the power of family in tough times, the shelter and support they can offer and the simple fact that life here is sometimes so hard that the coronavirus becomes indistinguishable from daily struggles.

This doesnt mean the locals are trusting to luck or simply accepting their fate. Folks do wear masks, stay away from crowds, and so on.

Perhaps the Vietnamese have a more tuned sense of realism than many of the visitors around town at the moment.

Im certainly still bamboozled by the number of young foreigners riding around on motorbikes without a face mask, helmet, T-shirt or decent shoes.

And they are hanging out in large groups at the beach, heck, parties even!

Quite a few of my Vietnamese friends are now hosting relatives out of work or downsizing businesses and scrambling for alternative incomes. They are adapting to changing economic conditions fast.

I do wonder if we in the West have lost the ability to accept change quickly  certainly theres more to learn from our Asian neighbors than we think. In surreal times, maybe we have to get more real.

So whatever inconveniences we Westerners/tourists face, its nothing compared to the locals. Strange days indeed.

Whats the worst that can happen? No is not fatal.

How can I help or live the fact that I cant help (at this time  you might be able to later)

Look at how the Vietnamese cope with life

Our Western attitudes could do more harm than good

Shelter our kids from constant bad news

Make a plan even if it doesnt work out immediately
COVID-19 in Korea felt like half-disaster, half-disaster movie.'

IMAGE: A couple takes a walk in Seoul, April 1, 2020. Photograph: Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters

NRIs and People of Indian Origin describe the impact coronavirus is having on their lives.

Sayam McMurtie, Seoul, South Korea

As someone of mixed Indian and Scottish descent, who was raised in the United Kingdom, has a business that primarily operates in South Africa and is currently living in South Korea, my corona bubble likely spans further than most.

The murmurs of a cluster of unknown medical anomalies in the largely unknown city of Wuhan, had just began to trickle through to a handful of mainstream media outlets when I embarked on my planned one-year adventure in Korea.

The headlines were enticing enough to provide some decent toilet reading material -- the proximity of China to Korea was enough to store that information in the save-for-later part of my brain.

By the time our New Year's Eve plans -- my girlfriend's and mine -- were scuppered due to being bedridden with fever and a cocktail of other aches and pains, we were joking that we might have that "Wuhan thing."

The transition from punchline to panic was swift.

Moments prior to landing in Seoul, roughly 10 hours into my journey from the UK, an announcement echoed throughout the plane warning passengers to be cautious and take appropriate hygienic measures whilst in the country.

"Avoid unbottled water sources."

"Don't dine at unfamiliar eateries."

Etc.

It's the first time I've heard such a message upon arrival to a country.

This wasn't something prompted by the now pandemic, as it predated its recognition.

It left me with the preconceived notion that South Korea was a country that required extra hygienic diligence on my part, if I wanted to keep healthy and avoid an expensive prescription.

Fast-forward four months and the nation is now the Poster Child of Pandemic response procedure.

So, as someone at ground level for the entirety of Korea's corona timeline, perhaps I can give some insight into how they managed to curtail the super-virus and send it into remission with apparently unparalleled efficiency?

Well, I'm not sure I can.

When China announced to the world that the not-so-anticipated sequel to SARS had been released, South Korea reacted instantly.

That is, every component of Korea.

The visibility of face masks instantly became common place.

Hand sanitisers were strategically placed at every appropriate point; elevators, point of sale counters, entrances to markets etc.

People took it upon themselves to distance themselves from each other and reduce their travel.

A local cocktail bar I used to frequent went from being quiet and cosy to 'I'm the only customer'... and cosy.

Local business owners I spoke to would tell me how people are becoming cautious and how their business was suffering as a result.

By the time the first suspected patient was announced on January 7, an import from Wuhan, the Korean government had started to engage in constant and concise communication with the public.

The ministry of health issued a plea on January 8, outlining the information gathered thus far and setting the criteria for those who should be concerned - providing a dedicated line of contact.

By January 13, the ministry of health was announcing its plans to develop a localised COVID-19 test kit, promising its delivery within a month.

Within seven days, on January 20, the first confirmed case coming from within Korea was announced.

From that point on, Korea, much like myself, was filled with a flurry of concern -- I say concern, and not panic.

My planned trip to Japan for my 30th birthday was binned.

I now had a valid excuse not go to the gym.

That voice at your shoulder that usually berates you for resorting to the food delivery app, was all but silenced.

Life felt constricted. I felt alert, but never like my existence was hanging in the balance.

Calls from relatives would generally start-off with an inquiry into how my life was contending with the threat of the virus, but only on a superficial level.

The effects, it seemed at the time, were exclusive to the ASEAN nations and their neighbors.

My staff in South Africa seemed entirely oblivious to the situation, and even those that are more avid followers of current events, would talk to me about the topic with a level composure only possible for those perceivably isolated from its effects.

IMAGE: Employees from a disinfection service company sanitise a subway station in Seoul, March 11, 2020. Photograph: Heo Ran/Reuters

In truth, the virus has always felt at arm's length from me.

At its peak, COVID-19 in Korea felt like a half-disaster, half-disaster movie.

The government's persistent updates would be transmitted directly to people's phones, issuing warnings of confirmed cases and sharing their most intimate of recent movements.

The notification noise, that can only be described as the lovechild of a siren and a foghorn, would bellow out in synchronisation.

I recall being in a restaurant (suitably distanced from other patrons, as is now the norm here) as the siren/horn hybrid activated.

The initial panic in the air quickly subsided and reverted to jovial conversation.

It had become so commonplace that curiosity outweighed concern. People would discuss how Victim 3 seemed to be having an affair with Victim 6.

Chuckle over the fact Victim 8 somehow managed to stop off for a quick nose-adjustment in Gangnam (the plastic surgery capital of South Korea, and yes, the same one as the song) shortly before handing themselves over to the relevant COVID-19 test center.

Or seethe at the cult-like rural church that the public now attribute to be the catalyst of the sharp spike in cases we had here.

IMAGE: Sayam McMurtie with his girlfriend Jiseon Baek-lee.

If COVID-19 was a problem faced only in Korea, I would be in the cafe I sit in now, writing this article, thinking, "Ah well, this is annoying."

I would begrudge the fact I had to fill in my contact details and place it in a box before being able to order my coffee -- a precautionary measure to aid in tracing.

As it stands however, the world is in lockdown, my business is temporarily closed as a result.

My father is in Scotland is having conversations with people through his window.

My mother, who falls under the category of particularly vulnerable people, likely wouldn't know where to go or what to do if she did develop symptoms.

I've somehow found myself in one of the only countries in the world where everyday life pretty much resembles normality, albeit with a precautionary layer of societal Dettol.

Just as the world inhales deeply its collective gasp of fear, Korea appears to be almost at the point it can sigh with relief, leaving me stuck somewhere in between.

Dear Reader:

Are you someone of Indian origin living through these challenging times somewhere abroad?

We would like to hear how you are coping and what's happening outside your window.

How it has been for you emotionally and practically?

We would like to have your observations and perspectives.

Please share your responses with us and we will publish your account right here on Rediff.com.

Do write in to us at news@rediff.co.in (Subject: Living abroad through COVID-19) along with your NAME, AGE and LOCATION.

Please don't forget to share a photograph of yourself and any significant pictures you have taken of your environment.
General Secretary of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), John Boadu says the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party will meet to take a decision about the party's parliamentary and presidential primaries.



According to him, though the party slated April 25 for the primaries, COVID-19 seems to disrupt the party's plans for the primaries.



Speaking on Okay FM's 'Ade Akye Abia' programme, he added that a decision will have to be taken by NEC to decide on the way forward as a party.



However, aspirants can go about their campaign duties, adding that the primaries will surely come off.



"Aspirants and party faithfuls are entreated to observe the COVID-19 protocols whilst they go about their campaign duties," he added.



The governing New Patriotic Party (NPP) has settled on 25th April 2020, as the date to hold parliamentary primaries in all the 169 constituencies where the party has sitting Members of Parliament to elect its parliamentary candidates for the 2020 general elections.



The party will equally hold its 2020 presidential primaries on the same date.



Ahead of these primaries, the party has cautioned prospective aspirants to desist from all forms of campaign activities until nominations are opened or they risk being disqualified for flouting party directives.



These decisions were taken by the party at a joint National Executive Committee (NEC) and National Council meeting held on Monday, 21st October 2019 at the Alisa Hotel in Accra.







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Source: Isaac Kwame Owusu/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected]









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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CLEVELAND, Ohio  A Cuyahoga County Juvenile Detention Center officer and a juvenile court employee have been ordered to quarantine because of coronavirus suspicion, according to a memo obtained by cleveland.com.

The memo said healthcare providers ordered both to quarantine based on their symptoms. Neither tested positive for COVID-19 so far, but the memo said employees would be updated if their status changes. The memo does not say whether or not the employees have been tested.

The memo written by the court human resources director Sandy Spiker said the Ohio Department of Health advised court officials that no other court employees need to quarantine unless they are showing symptoms of COVID-19.

Concerns over coronavirus in the juvenile detention center led the three advocacy groups  the Juvenile Justice Coalition, the Ohio ACLU and Police Matters Ohio  to call for the juveniles to be released.

A Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court spokeswoman did not immediately return messages seeking comment.

Court officials made several steps in recent weeks to prepare for coronavirus, including issuing an order to the countys police departments that the detention center would stop housing any juvenile charged with only misdemeanor crimes.

Anyone entering the building, including juvenile inmates and employees, are required to undergo a medical screening before being allowed to go inside.

Read more from cleveland.com:

Cuyahoga County Jail warden resigned after investigation found he retaliated against employees, used on-duty officer for airport drop-off

Cuyahoga County Juvenile Detention Center rejecting kids arrested for misdemeanors due to coronavirus

Advocates want Ohio officials to release some juvenile inmates amid coronavirus pandemic
By Lia Zhu, China Daily | Apr. 02, 2020

As the coronavirus is spreading in United States and most Chinese cities have reported no more new cases, some Chinese parents are paying tens of thousands of dollars for private jets to get their children out of the US and back to China because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Since the first week of March, when the coronavirus epidemic escalated into a global pandemic, some business jet companies have reported a spike in inquires and flights.

"We have surging inquiries for international flights, mostly parents of students studying in Europe, especially London, and the US," said Christine, a marketing manager at a Beijing-based private jet company. She gave only her first name because she's not authorized to speak with media.

The company has seen increased international business in the past two weeks because of the pandemic, said Christine, who declined to give the number of jets that have been chartered.

She said she received "countless" phone calls from New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco every day.

"The parents watch the news about the US situation. They fear their children would contract the disease or be discriminated against in the US," Christine said.

Unlike commercial airlines, business jets companies need approval from the civil aviation authorities for every flight mission.

The flight crew returning from hard hit areas will self-quarantine for 14 days before the next flight mission, said Christine.

At the hourly rate of US$10,000, flying private from Los Angeles to China would cost US$300,000 for a long-range jet, such as the Bombardier Challenger 850 with 14 seats, according to Christine.

It's more than 30 hours for a round trip between Los Angeles and Beijing, because flights are supposed to be empty in trips outbound from China, although inbound trips could be full, she said.

Two Chinese students studying at a San Francisco university recently secured a private jet in Los Angeles for US$250,000, said an aviation consultant based in the Bay Area, who helped the students' parents source a private jet.

"It's big money, but they feel lives are more important," said the consultant who asked not to be named. "They turn to the private jet market mainly to avoid exposure to crowded airport terminals or passengers in airline cabins, and long wait time during transfers."

The US has overtaken China and Italy to become the new epicenter of coronavirus pandemic with largest number of confirmed cases. The United States had more than 186,000 cases and over 3,800 deaths from COVID-19 as of Tuesday, according to data monitored by John Hopkins University.

Business jets, which mainly serve the wealthy and big corporations, have recently received public attention in China following reports of a "sky-high-price" ticket for a Boeing 787 private jet.

The flight, executed by Chinese business jet company Deer Jet, took off from London on March 18 and arrived in Shanghai via Geneva, according to Chinese media reports. Tickets sold at US$25,365 each (180,000 yuan), and all 40 were sold out quickly.

While the global aviation industry takes a hard hit from the pandemic, many private jet companies report strong sales as wealthy flyers avoid commercial flights.

PrivateFly, a private jet charter broker company with headquarters in the UK and US, said it has seen a significant rise in demand for short notice on-demand private jet charters relating to the coronavirus.

"Inquiries are ranging from evacuations and repatriations from affected areas, to corporate and private individuals looking to book a private charter flight," the company said on its blog:

"Some following an airline cancellation, others are looking at private aircraft to avoid moving through large crowds at airports and airliner cabins, which have a perceived higher risk of exposure."

Travelers also choose to fly on private aircraft because the current airline cutbacks make international flights more difficult, said Frank Wang, CEO of US-China Travel Management Consultants Co Ltd in Beijing.

Air fares from the US to China have skyrocketed in the past few weeks due to a lack of planes caused by suspensions by global airlines, he said.

"The US airline companies have suspended all flights to China since February. Some Chinese airlines are still operating a few selected air routes, but those are expected to be further cut," said Wang.

A one-way economy-class ticket from the US to China costs more than US$2,000 now, compared with US$600 before the disruptions, according to Wang. "Even if you are willing to pay the price, there's no ticket available. I can't find any ticket for April," he said.

To curtail the spread of the virus from returning overseas travelers, Chinese authorities have imposed new restrictions on Chinese airlines, allowing them to operate one route to any specific country with only one weekly flight. The passenger load on flights in and out of China also can't exceed 75 percent.

Although the restrictions don't apply to private jets, Christine said she expected stricter requirements in coming weeks.

After Beijing directed all inbound flights to other cities including Tianjin, Shanghai and Nanjing, the capital city has banned all chartered flights from overseas.

"For other cities, we currently need the clients to provide a letter of acceptance issued by the municipal authorities before we apply for a flight mission to CAAC (Civil Aviation Administration of China)," said Christine.
Coronavirus Diaries is a series of dispatches exploring how the coronavirus is affecting peoples lives. For the latest public health information, please refer to the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions website. For Slates coronavirus coverage, click here.

As the coronavirus outbreak has forced most Americans to stay inside their homes, a huge swath of the countrys jobs have disappeared. The Department of Labor announced Thursday that 6.6 million people in the U.S. filed for unemployment last week. That broke a record set just the week before of 3.3 million people filing claims. Up until now, theres never been a week in which more than 695,000 people filed for unemployment since 1967, when the country started keeping track. This mushrooming population of newly laid-off citizens has clobbered state unemployment websites, which keep crashing across the country due to capacity issues.

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I talked to three people who recently lost their jobsall of whom have been having trouble accessing the benefits to which they are entitledabout the strain this disaster is putting on their lives. Their accounts have been condensed and edited for clarity.

Pamela from Philadelphia

I started my new job in collections the first week in March, and the following week I was laid off because of coronavirus.* My co-workers were able to work from home, but I had just started, so I was not trained enough to work on my own at home. I went ahead and applied for unemployment. I had been receiving unemployment a couple months prior to all this happening, so all I needed to do was reactivate my account. Since that day Ive been trying to call, email, and go on their website to at least check the status. Theres no possible way that you get through to a representative and theres no way to check your claim status or file for biweekly benefits, because the site just crashes.

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My son has sickle-cell disease, and he is in the hospital quite often. Im in need of money for my son, taking care of his needs. At this point, I have nothing. I dont even have the means to take him down to the hospital, because I dont have any gas. He needs medicine. And another problem is that he gets into a depression because theres nothing he can do. I get depressed because hes depressed. Im worried because what if something happens to him? Because of the disease, hes very susceptible to the virus. My main concern is my son getting sick, so I cant risk finding another job and possibly catching something and bringing it back to my son. And then my concern is once he is able to go back to school, how do you know for certain that none of those kids still carry the virus?

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Currently we privately rent a duplex. I dont know how that would apply when the government says that we cant be evicted. Im hoping that we wont have to do that, because we have rent due today. Im too freaked out to reach out to the landlords, but Im pretty sure they would be accommodating. I have no backup plan. I can barely go to the food store. My only means of income is borrowing from people. Thats embarrassing, and then I have to pay them back. Someone may let me borrow up to $100. You know, $50 is for food to have it last for two weeks. Were a family of four, so thats really tough.

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Im doing my due diligence calling three times a day, hoping Id be able to get through to someone for unemployment. Our main thing is just money. Were at a low point.

Ann from Dallas

I worked at a hotel in the cafeteria. The first week of the coronavirus they told us, OK, instead of two days off, everybodys going to have three days off. Third week, I saw them cleaning out the coolers in the banquet hall. The chef said, I think this is going to affect us. The next day, HR made the announcement that due to the coronavirus were forced to shut down because hotel occupancy has been low, and all the banquets have been canceled. I was the last round of people to be furloughed. Im hopeful about getting my job back, but Ill get hit twice because the hotel is doing renovations from August to November, so then Ill be back to square one. I have a fiance; he was also laid off.

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I used my last paycheck to pay my rent. Im aware of this rent strike, but Im not doing it, because the pandemic isnt going to be over for a couple of months. I dont want to push myself back further into debt with my landlord. Im worried about utilities. Ive been using my washing machine and dryer less to cut down on the bills. The water company stopped disconnections, but our light company is not concerned about whats going on. All the other companies are giving people leeway, but ours doesnt care. I only have to pay them $82, but they keep sending me these emails saying I need to reply urgently because theres a disconnect notice in effect for April 6. But when I called them and tried to get a deferred payment, they told us were not eligible.

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Last Wednesday, I was able to get through to the unemployment website, and I filed my claim. But when I try to go back to check, I cant get through. I called numerous times; it was shut down. I would probably buy more food with the benefits and pay a bill or two, but its only $230. My savings wont cover very much at all. Thatll last us for two weeks. Its three of us here. My fiances been helping with food with the money hes saved. My daughter is 19. Shes been helping me with a bill here or there.

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Ive been looking for jobs on Indeed.com. Ive been applying, but for hotel hospitality its not looking very good. Im seeing more health care jobs. More jobs in nursing homes and hospitality. I used to be a home health aide, but I dont want to go into anybodys home. My other daughter is a home health aide in New York. The patients brother, who lives in the household, was diagnosed with COVID. Her agency didnt tell her, so she was exposed all that time and didnt know.

Morgan from Lowell, Massachusetts

I was a salesperson in the shoe department at Macys. The store was already going out of business, but we ended up closing a week early because of coronavirus. Were all expecting a severance from Macys too, which we still havent gotten, and its been over two weeks. And also the unemployment website isnt working for me. They have somebody elses cellphone number instead of mine. When I try and reset my password, it sends an alert to someone elses cellphone, and Im just frustrated because I havent got through. Ive been trying to get their website to work since March 17.

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The benefits would help me pay my billselectricity and car insurance. Its pretty much my lifeline right now. Getting through to unemployment is basically my full-time job right now. When I call in, its an automated message that says the fastest way to apply for benefits is through the website, and then it hangs up on you. I have my fiance at home. Hes out of work too, so were both calling and going on the website. But nothings working. The unemployment office is closed because of the virus, but it says its open on the website. Most of my bills are due at the middle and end of the month. The worst-case scenario is that Ill get behind on my bills for three months. After youre behind, its hard to catch up. I havent applied to other jobs yet. Ive worked in retail the past seven years, but with all the malls closed its going to be a while before I find another job. I have my fingers crossed that I either get my severance or unemployment.

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Three Indians pursuing academic careers in Italy stayed back when COVID-19 was sweeping across the European nation - one to complete his doctorate, the second for coronavirus related research and the third to see how the country with the world's second-best healthcare facilities tackles the pandemic.

All three are from Assam and have been staying in Italy for nearly four years. They are among the few Indians who did not return home when the Indian government made arrangements to bring them from the country, among the worst affected with over 13,000 deaths and more than 1,10,000 cases.

On March 24, as India began a 21-day lockdown to curtail the spread of the virus, Prabin Upadhyaya was awarded hisdoctorate online. The biologist did his PhD in neurosciences and imaging from the Gabriele d'Annunzio Universityin Chieti city in central Italy's Abruzzo region.

I completed my doctorate, with an additional title of PhD Europeaus and was given Excellent' grade. Currently, I am looking for a post doctoral position for further research, Upadhyaya told PTI from Chieti.

When the flights to India were arranged, there was some work left for my PhD degree. So I decided to stay back till I finish, said Upadhyaya, who belongs to Jagun in Assam's Tinsukia district and has been under home quarantine for the past 20 days.

Upadhyaya has no regrets and Akash Deep Biswas, a PhD scholar of Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and a computational biologist, doesn't either.

Biswas is currently working on finding a molecule which can inhibit the CoV-2 main protease.

I had started working on the CoV-2 protease from mid February and wasn't interested in leaving this country under any circumstances because of my work demands, he said from Pisa.

His research article on computational approach based on molecular dynamics simulation to study the dependence of the protein hydration-shell density on the size of the protein molecule, which includes 17 proteins besides CoV-2 main protease, was published on March 23 by the Royal Society of Chemistry's Journal of Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics.

According to Biswas, who belongs to Tezpur, the reason for the many positive cases and deaths in Italy is the high average age of 45.5 years.

A huge number of people are either very young or very old. These two groups of people are very vulnerable to COVID-19 as their immune system is low compared to others, he said.

Italians, he said, are very sad about the whole situation but are optimistic and positive.

They call the patients fighters. The dead are being buried with respect and dignity. They have this strong belief that we all will soon come out of this situation, said Biswas.

Promit Choudhury from Silchar is doing his masters at Politecnico Di Milano in Italy's worst-hit Lombardy province. Before coming to Italy, he worked with Mahindra & Mahindra (in its R&D wing) for two years.

Currently I am also working with a Mexico-based company as a senior consultant and taking care of its operations in Europe. Now, with the shortage of ventilators and protective gear like masks, our company is working on low-cost solutions like reusable gear.

When Indians from Italy were leaving for home -- when the pandemic was in the second stage in Italy -- Choudhury consulted with his parents and chose to stay back.

I wanted to see how Italy being second best in the world in terms of healthcare facilities tackles the situation and adopts counter-solution measures, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three investment properties at Market Court, Bray, Co Wicklow, are being offered for sale individually or in one lot with a combined 915,000 guide price.

Harry Byrne of agents Mason Owen and Lyons says this would equate to a net initial yield (NIY) of 8.64pc.

Unit 1 is let to Sherry FitzGerald, which pays 39,000 in annual rent. With a 390,000 guide price this lot would generate a 9.09pc NIY. Extending to 924sqft, the lease on this ground floor unit will expire in October 2027.

Also on the ground floor, Unit 4 is occupied by Hair Box and generates 18,000 in annual rent. With a 200,000 guide price it would have an 8.39pc NIY. Extending to 652sqft, its lease will expire in July 2031.

Directly over Unit 1 is Office 1, occupied by Smiles Dental clinic on a 30,000 annual rent. With a 325,000 guide price, this 1,440sqft premises would yield 8.64pc.

Market Court is a mixed use complex behind Bray's landmark Town Hall, which is let to McDonald's restaurant.
Actress Jennifer Garner poses with her children Violet Affleck, Seraphina Rose Elizabeth Affleck and Samuel Garner Affleck at her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, August 20, 2018 in Hollywood, California. - Garner, who received the 2,641st star in the Motion Picture category, stars in the soon to be released film

Image Source: Getty / Robyn Beck / AFP

Jennifer Garner's son, Samuel, is already shaping up to be quite the master of poetry. The 8-year-old recently channeled his creativity (read: likely boredom) while social distancing with his family by penning a highly relatable haiku titled "Corona Virus." Perfectly sticking to the 5/7/5 syllable count, Samuel's three-line poem reads as follows:

corona virus

we eat we sleep we stay home

thrilling it is NOT!

Welp, that just about sums it up! He displayed the masterpiece of literature on his mom's letter board, using a delightfully random mix of uppercase and lowercase lettering. Oh, and the true piece de resistance (besides the notably larger, all-caps "NOT," that is)? The fact that Samuel chose to sign it with an old-timey pen name, Fitz B. Ireland. Kids do the darnedest things, especially in these strange times, wouldn't you agree?

When Jennifer shared Samuel's poignant work with her Instagram followers, she captioned the photo: "Things must be getting bleak when an 8 year old boy adopts a pen name and voluntarily writes poetry. #hangintheremamas" All in favor of Samuel releasing an entire book of haikus, please say "Aye."

Related: Hearing Jennifer Garner Telling Kids to Go the F*ck to Sleep Will Be the Best Thing You Do Today




Wits researchers unravel the mystery of magmatic rocks consisting of random proportions of minerals

Geologists found the answer as to why certain magmatic rocks have varying proportions of minerals than what is expected of their type.

Researchers at Wits University in Johannesburg, South Africa, have found the answer to an enigma that has had geologists scratching their heads for years.

The question is that of how certain magmatic rocks that are formed through crystallisation in magmatic chambers in the Earths crust, defy the norm, and contain minerals in random proportions.

Normally, magmatic rocks consist of some fixed proportions of various minerals. Geologists know, for instance, that a certain rock will have 90% of one mineral and 10% of another mineral.

However, there are some magmatic rocks that defy this norm and do not adhere to this general rule of thumb. These rocks, called as non-cotectic rocks, contain minerals in completely random proportions.

One example is chromite-bearing anorthosite from the famous Bushveld Complex in South Africa. These rocks contain up to 15% to 20% of chromite, instead of only 1%, as would normally be expected.

Traditionally, these rocks with a wrong composition were attributed to either mechanical sorting of minerals that crystallised from a single magma or mechanical mixing of minerals formed from two or more different magmas, says Professor Rais Latypov from the Wits School of Geosciences.

Seeing serious problems with both these approaches, Latypov and his colleague Dr Sofya Chistyakova, also from the Wits School of Geosciences, found that there is actually a simple explanation to this question  and it has nothing to do with the mechanical sorting or mixing of minerals to produce these rocks.

Their research, published in the journal Geology, shows that an excess amount of some minerals contained in these rocks may originate in the feeder conduits along which the magmas are travelling from the deep-seated staging chambers towards Earths surface.

While travelling up through the feeder channels, the magma gets into contact with cold sidewalls and starts crystallising, thereby producing more of the mineral(s) than what should be expected, says Chistyakova.

The general principle of this approach can be extended to any magmatic rocks with wrong proportions of minerals in both plutonic and volcanic environments of the Earth.

It is possible that a clue to some other petrological problems of magmatic complexes should be searched for in the feeder conduits rather than in magma chambers themselves. This appealing approach holds great promise for igneous petrologists working with basaltic magma complexes, says Latypov.
One of the companies on Ottawas list for $192 million vaccine development funding still does not know how much it will receive from the federal government, but says the money will help push its vaccine development from early testing to full clinical trials. Medicago, a private Quebec-based biotech company, says it has already received $7 million from the government of Quebec.

In an e-mail to Yahoo Finance Canada, Medicagos chief financial officer Mike Warner explained the funding would be used for pre-clinical and human trials and to expand laboratory space ... so that substantial quantities of the vaccine can be produced and delivered for the population.

A press release from last week explained that the government funding would help push their team from pre-clinical testing to full clinical trials.

Medicago successfully produced the virus-like particle in COVID-19, an essential first step in creating a vaccine. This isnt the companys first shot at curbing pandemics. They developed a vaccine for H1N1 in 2009.

The company works with plant-based treatments to target virus contamination and limit its mutation. Human trials for the COVID-19 vaccine are expected to roll out by July or August, and Medicago is aiming to have a development program submitted to authorities by November 2021.

Other funding recipients include the Vancouver-based company, AbCellera. Its team uses advanced computers, lab technology and artificial intelligence to scan blood samples of patients who have recently recovered from COVID-19, to identify and isolate antibodies to treat and prevent the virus.

The University of Saskatchewan also received $23 million in federal funding for its Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization - International Vaccine Centre (VIDO-InterVac). The team behind that vaccine stated human testing could begin as early as this fall.

In the past, Canadian investments in biotech have largely focused on the public sector through universities and hospitals. There has been less project financing in the private sector in recent years. A report by Deloitte highlighted that 66 per cent of Canadian firms received less than $1 million in venture capital.

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Natasha Crowcoft, a professor in epidemiology at the University of Toronto, explained why investors can have an aversion to the market.

Its a really expensive business of preparing a vaccine from the stage theyre at to the candidate virus-like particle. Its a very high risk investment.

Crowcoft added that government funding for vaccines was largely focused in universities and public institutions as an investment in the sciences in general. She says the governments investment could take some of the risk off of companies like Medicago.

While cases of the coronavirus were ramping up, a handful of North American biotech companies like Moderna (MRNA), Gilead Sciences (GILD), Inovio Pharmaceuticals (INO) and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (REGN) saw a short-term stock market boost as they announced plans to develop vaccines. Whether they are the first to develop a successful vaccine or not, the other coronavirus-fighting clinical products that these companies produce meet some increased demand for medical supplies.

Crowcroft believes its far too soon to put a timeline on a successful COVID-19 vaccine, though she wants people to be optimistic. This pandemic is happening at a time where science has never been before, Crowcoft explained, For Medicago to say that it took 20 days for it to have its candidate vaccine produced, thats incredible.
Even before Covid-19, the elders of Vancouvers Chinatown knew all about isolation, having been marginalised by poverty, language, familial dislocation and simply living in one of the citys most socially challenged neighbourhoods.

But some now have one less thing to fear  thanks to a campaign to deliver free groceries to them during the coronavirus pandemic.

Those behind of the Chinatown Care Packages scheme said some elders had been scared to go outside to get food, while others had limited means and mobility. Canadian authorities have been telling all residents to stay at home as much as possible for about the past three weeks.

Project manager Christina Lee said she had been overwhelmed, incredibly humbled by donations and support. The scheme hit its fundraising target of C$10,000 (US$7,100) within 24 hours of the launch of its Go Fund Me campaign on Friday, and then swiftly doubled that goal. It is now directing would-be donors to other projects.

Vancouver Chinatown elders were already faced with a host of challenging social circumstances, before the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: Chinatown Care Packages

The scheme provides needy Chinatown elders with a weekly delivery of fruit and vegetables. Masked and gloved volunteers began deliveries on Tuesday.

Lee said elders in Chinatown tended to live alone, since many dont have family to check in on them, she said.

And many speak Chinese dialects like Taishanese, also known as Sze Yup, further isolating them, even in a heavily Chinese city like Vancouver, where about 20 per cent of the greater metropolitan population has Chinese heritage.

[Elders] are the people who are at most risk with this disease. They now need to stay home the most, and they have high anxiety about having to go out and do things

Alain Chow, Bao Bei Chimese Brasserie

Those behind the project include Chinatown groups the Hua Foundation, the Yarrow Intergenerational Society for Justice and Chinatown Today, as well as Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie and the VanCity Credit Union.

The Yarrow societys long-term work to identify and reach out to isolated Chinatown elders had been crucial to the food project, said Lee.

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But the campaign had goals that reversed the previous target of breaking the walls of social isolation.

A volunteer (right) for the Chinatown Care Packages project takes a selfie with a recipient in Vancouver on Tuesday, March 31, 2020. Photo: Chinatown Care Packages

There are so many concerns around elder folk and the risk of infection. We actually wanted to reduce the points of contact for them getting groceries as much as possible, said Lee.

Yarrow has been able to contact these people in the language they are comfortable with  they have been a natural fit.

The focal point of Vancouver's Chinese community long ago shifted from Chinatown to the satellite city of Richmond, which has become the most Chinese city in the world outside Asia.

And many recent immigrants to Canada from Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China tend to be wealthier than those who ended up in Chinatown.

Lee said there were still about 600 needy Chinese elders living alone in Chinatown, although some had family support, and others preferred not to accept help. She hopes the initiative will eventually reach about 200 elders in the neighbourhood.

The initial care packages include about a weeks worth of culturally appropriate groceries  napa cabbage, lo bak, bak choi, apples and oranges  but they would eventually be more tailored said Lee. We all know that Chinese seniors always have lots of feedback to give, Lee said with a laugh.

Chinatown Care Packages consisting of a week's worth of fruit and vegetables are assembled in the Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie in Vancouver's Chinatown on Tuesday, March 31. Photo: Chinatown Care Packages

But generally the seniors are really happy to be able to stay safe and stay home, and still have access to fresh food.

In addition to cash, the campaign organisers had also been flooded with messages of support. Just to know that someone is looking out for [the elders] means a lot to a lot of people, said Lee.

Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie  along with its sister restaurant in Chinatown, Kissa Tanto  have been shut since March 16.

In the meantime, Bao Bei has become the centre of operations for the grocery campaign, turning to its suppliers for the food, taking orders, and donating time and floor space to the project, said Alain Chow, the restaurants kitchen operations manager.

So we had this extra capacity to help  our business is food and getting food to people, and this was just a natural way to keep doing that, said Chow.

Chinatown Care Packages of groceries for elders are picked up for delivery at the Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie in Vancouver on Tuesday. Photo: Chinatown Care Packages

Chow said he hoped the deliveries could eventually include cooked meals.

They are the people who are at most risk with this disease, said Chow. They now need to stay home the most, and they have high anxiety about having to go out and do things. But the neighbourhood is already a hard one to navigate for them. They need this kind of help.

Chow said that running restaurants in Chinatown was sometimes challenging, overlapping the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood, where street drug use and crime are major problems.

Both Bao Bei, a modern Chinese restaurant, and Japanese-Italian Kissa Tanto are relatively new additions to the Chinatown landscape, where concerns about gentrification form a backdrop to many discussions about its future.

But Chow said he loved the neighbourhood, and the Chinese background of the restaurants ownership put it in an unusual position in relation to the existing Chinese community. He said hoped the grocery project could continue in some form, even after the pandemic.

We care about this neighbourhood and its evolution, he said. You cant fight change. Its going to happen no matter what. But we want to have a hand in shaping that change.

More from South China Morning Post:

This article Coronavirus: Grocery project comes to rescue of Vancouvers Chinatown elders, alone and scared to go out for food first appeared on South China Morning Post

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Before leaving home Tuesday evening, Grady Rothkamm turned to his parents and told them he loved them as he always did before leaving the house. Later that evening, police said, a fight between him and someone else would leave the 26-year-old dead.

He was going to go to a friends house for a little bit, Rothkamms mother Shanna Rothkamm said. He was going to be home, because I had some chicken from the night before. He said Oh, there is plenty of that. Ill have that when I get home. He said he loved me and that he would see me later. I told him be careful and that I loved him, too. He was very good about telling us he loved us, even before he went to bed a night.

His stabbing death became Beaumonts first homicide of the year. There were 20 in 2019.

Officers were called to the 9300 block of Riggs Street at about 9:44 p.m. Tuesday where they found Rothkamm suffering from multiple stab wounds, according to information from the Beaumont Police Department.

Rothkamm was pronounced dead at the scene. The suspect, police said, fled on a bicycle.

By 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Ronald Laverne Crawford, 53, was in custody on a charge of murder. Crawford is in the Jefferson County jail in lieu of a $1 million bond.

BPD said as of Wednesday afternoon they did not know what caused the fight, but it didnt appear the two men knew each other knew each other.

Shanna Rothkamm said she, her husband and their daughter are still in shock.

Words cant describe it, she said. I think not knowing is worse and the fact that it is a murder.

The grieving mother described her son as funny with a good heart.

He never met a stranger, she said. He was always the one that was going to help out a friend no matter what. He was one of those that would help people and they would never help him back.

He enjoyed riding dirt bikes, his mother said, and admitted that she would reluctantly watch him compete.

He did from the time he was 6 until he was about 15, she said. That was his biggest thrill. Nothing scared him. He was a daredevil. They would go on the track and they would get lost for a while and you couldnt see him. All of the sudden, they would come flying over this big thing and I would think, Oh my gosh.

Shanna Rothkamm said she has no regrets about her last words with her son.

We were all on such a good page, she said. He cut the grass the day before yesterday. My husband said Oh my God. I didnt get to tell him thank you for cutting the grass. When they do it without being told, it makes it even better.

chris.moore@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/chris_moore09
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has asked companies to stop selling all forms of the heartburn drug Zantac, after an investigation found that potential cancer-causing contaminants can build up in the product over time.

The FDA has asked manufacturers of the prescription and over-the-counter drug to pull all supplies from the market with immediate effect.

Consumers were also warned to stop taking the drug and to dispose of any remaining liquids or tablets following FDA disposal instructions.

The agency added that people should not return their Zantac drugs to drug take-back locations during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement on Wednesday, the FDA said the withdrawal of all ranitidine products, commonly known as Zantac, from the market was the latest step in an ongoing investigation of a contaminant known as N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA).

Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Show all 13 1 /13 Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Two girls wash their hands with water from recycled bottles at a rudimentary hand-washing station at La Montana School, Bolivia. Similar hand-washing stations are in use in all schools in areas where water has become scarce Unicef/Ashley Gilbertson VII Photo Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Using a Unicef-supported water point, a woman and her husband wash their child outside their home in the village of Abdoya in Djibouti. Abdoya is in a remote zone, with a desert-like climate, and is home to hundreds of families who live with only a few natural resources Unicef/Shehzad Noorani Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Despite major issues of water scarcity in Jordan, Mahmoud is able to wash his hands and face using a storage tank provided by Unicef. He lives in the Baqaa camp with his parents, brother and sister. The family are refugees from the Palestinian territories Unicef/Sebastian Rich Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Children in India are taken outside to wash their hands before they receive their mid-day meal. A healthcare worker ensures they are washing their hands correctly Unicef/Ashima Narain Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places A child in Malawi uses sanitiser and a tippy tap  a device for hand washing that is operated by a foot lever Unicef/Bennie Khanyizira Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places In the Domiz camp for Syrian refugees, in northern Iraq, a girl helps her brother to wash his hands with water from a tap. More than 30,000 refugees currently live in the camp Unicef/Salam Abdulmunem Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Children wash their hands at Escola Vila Verde in Timor Leste using a facility donated by Unicef Unicef/Helin Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places During a household visit in a Sudanese village, a community health worker demonstrates how to wash hands using soap and water Unicef/Shehzad Noorani - Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places A girl from the Warao community in Venezuela learns how to wash her hands correctly Unicef/Roberto Montico Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Pedrina Toj Sucup teaches her son, Sergio Romeo Toj Sucup, how to wash his hands in the community of Santa Ana Panquix, Guatemala Unicef/Willocq Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places During their break, schoolgirls at Snor Kley school in Cambodia apply the good practices of hand washing they have learned, using water from the school's water and sanitation facility Unicef/Bona Khoy Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places Access to basic sanitation has continued to improve in the Kamwenge district of Uganda Unicef/Zahara Abdul Hand-washing in the world's hardest-to-reach places In Indonesia, a group of children in primary school sing a song about hand washing and the importance of cleanliness Unicef/Shehzad Noorani

We didnt observe unacceptable levels of NDMA in many of the samples that we tested, said Janet Woodcock, director of the FDAs Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

However, since we dont know how or for how long the product might have been stored, we decided that it should not be available to consumers and patients unless its quality can be assured.

According to the FDA, levels of the contaminant increased over time and when stored at higher-than-normal temperatures.

In September, the FDA advised Zantac users to consider switching drugs after it found low levels of NDMA  a probable carcinogen to humans, that can increase the risk of cancer.

Some pharmacy chains such as Walgreens, Walmart and CVS Pharmacy  as well as manufacturers of Zantac  already suspended selling and making the drug several months ago.

Sanofi, the company that produces the Zantac brand, stopped doing so in October. It said in a statement that We take this issue seriously and continue to work closely with the F.D.A. to evaluate any potential safety risks associated with Zantac.


Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Thursday directed state officials to keep a close watch on people from the state who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin Markaz last month, an official spokesperson said.

Thakur issued the direction during a video conference with deputy commissioners (DC) and superintendents of police (SP) after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video conference with chief ministers of all states to review the COVID-19 situation.

Such people should be kept under strict surveillance after being traced to check spread of COVID-19, he said.

Till Thursday, a total of 190 people who returned to Himachal Pradesh after attending the congregation in Delhi have been quarantined, Director General of Police Sitaram Mardi said.

At 73, the maximum people were quarantined in Baddi, followed by 35 each in Una and Sirmaur, 23 in Shimla, 10 each in Kangra and Chamba and four in Mandi.

Another 17 people from the hill state have been quarantined in Delhi itself.

Meanwhile, as per unconfirmed reports, the Union home ministry has sent a list of more than 700 people from Himachal Pradesh who attended the congregation.

The list has reportedly been prepared after tracking the mobile phones of those who were present at the Markaz. However, despite repeated queries by the media, no one from the state police confirmed or denied it.

The state's DGP has urged the Muslims to hold Friday prayers in their homes instead of mosques.

The police chief further said that the 11 Tablighi Jamaat members against whom an FIR was registered at Nerwa Police Station in Shimla district on Wednesday had not attended the congregation.

They had come from Misarwala village located in Paonta Sahib Tehsil of Sirmaur district, he added.

The 11 were booked under sections 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of Indian Penal Code at Nerwa Police Station.

They arrived in Nerwa in Shimla district from Paonta Sahib in Sirmaur district to go to their homes in different villages amid a curfew, a Nerwa police officer said.

Eight of them are residents of Kima Chandrawali village whereas two are residents of Bharanu village. The driver Shabeer is a resident of Paonta Sahib, he said.

All of them have been quarantined in Panchayat Bhawan, he added.

Stressing that religious leaders should not hold functions or gatherings, Thakur directed the officials to take strict action against violators.

The chief minister also asked all DCs and SPs to hold meetings with religious leaders and disseminate their recorded messages to motivate people of their respective communities to avoid religious gatherings and celebrations to check the spread of COVID-19.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It's crawfish season, the time to be outdoors with friends, a cold beer, Cajun scents and spicy red mudgbug-peeling hands. Unfortunately for us, COVID-19 has other plans, and none of those include outdoor gatherings as we practice social distancing.

Thankfully, the Gulf food favorite is still available to enjoy at home. Some local outposts are offering up bags of crawfish via makeshift drive-thru setups, pick up or even by delivery.

One longtime Houston restaurant, Goode Company Seafood, is even hosting a drive-thru fish fry and boil.

HoustonChronicle.com: Live coronavirus updates

Friday, April 3, from 4 to 8 p.m., both Houston locations will be offering single-serving plates of seafood that include catfish, shrimp, seafood rice, green beans and empanadas starting at $18. Family packs, which serve 4 to 6 people, are $75. The restaurant is also selling margarita kits with tequila for $40.

For just the crawfish, Levi Goode is bringing back the mudbug boil on Saturday and Sunday, April 4-5. Prices: 2.5lbs for $20, 10lb family packs for $75. For larger servings, they have family packs to pre-order and pick up on Friday, April 3, at 5 p.m. Pickups for pre-orders are from noon to 1 and again from 4 to 5 p.m.

These are available at the Westpark location at 2621 Westpark Drive, as well as in Memorial at 10201 Katy Freeway, Suite 400.

To place an order online:

Other local crawfish spots are adjusting their menus and take-out options, too. Among those is Houston favorite, Crawfish & Noodles, which explained on its social media that it will be temporarily lowering its per-pound prices to encourage sales.

"We have never made crawfish this low before in our history and this will ONLY be available during these hard times," they write of their $8 per pound servings. "We hope this make it more affordable for our guests through these hard times."

They add: "If you want to do more, please contact your representative and ask them to waive sales tax payments and liquor tax payments. We dont sell liquor but we know plenty of restaurants who do and none of us are in a position to handle the burden of paying taxes, rent."
Highlights Samsung has launched AKG N400 truly wireless earbuds in South Korea

The N400 earbuds bring with them IPX7 waterproof technology

They also get active noise cancellation feature

Samsung's premium audio products brand, AKG, has quietly launched a new pair of noise-canceling earbuds in Korea. Called the AKG N400 earbuds, these have been launched as the rivals to the Galaxy Buds+ and are listed on the company's Korea website for 229,000 Won (Rs 14,112 approximately).

The newly launched N400 earbuds bring with them IPX7 waterproof technology and can withstand up to 1-meter water for 30 minutes. They also offer up to 5 hours of battery life with ANC for up to six hours. The earbuds promise a full charge within 2 hours and offer up to 12 hours of battery life on standby mode.

The AKG N400 earbuds also support features such as Samsung's Bixby, Google Assistant and Siri and provide 1 hour of battery life when charged for 10 minutes in the Qi-certified quick charging mode.

With the earbuds, Samsung is also offering support for features such as TalkThru mode that drowns the music so that users can have a conversation without removing the earbuds. There's also an Ambient Aware mode that lowers the volume automatically to make the user aware of their surroundings while listening to music.

For now, the earbuds have only been announced for purchase in Samsung's home country, South Korea with no information being shared on the global launch for them.
There has always been controversy surrounding vaccines, but in the past, that was usually overridden by fear of the disease itself. The diseases vaccines prevent can be dangerous or even deadly. However, many anti-vaccination groups add to the confusion of people on the benefits of immunization against infectious diseases.

Now, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, scientists are racing to find a vaccine to stem the spread of the virus.

A new study has looked at 'Russian trolls' that polarized vaccination efforts and found that during the 2016 election cycle, politically opposing tweets by Russian trolls about vaccination, targeted people with specific political inclinations.

A team of researchers at the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania and Georgia State University has identified nine types of troll personas, from those fake boosters of Donald Trump to fake Black Lives Matters activists, and studied how these personas tackled vaccination.

Note: BLM = Black Lives Matter; IRA = Internet Research Agency. Fig. 2a (top) and 2b (bottom): Nodes (circles) represent the various Internet Research Agency accounts. Edges (lines) represent topical similarity between accounts. Size of nodes indicates accounts' reach, in terms of retweets. Color in Figure 2a indicates the different personas (the topical type of account). Color in Figure 2b indicates discussion of vaccines by the account (red indicates that the account mentioned vaccines at least once between 2015 and 2017; black indicates no vaccine mentions). CREDIT D. Walter, , "Russian Twitter Accounts and the Partisan Polarization of Vaccine Discourse, 2015-2017," American Journal of Public Health. Published online ahead of print, March 19, 2020: e1-e7. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2019.305564

The team found how the Russian Internet Research Agency (IRA) discussed vaccines. There were more than 2.8 million tweets posted by more than 2,600 accounts operated by the IRA between 2015 and 2017. Over the past years, Russian Twitter trolls have attempted to fuel the anti-vaccination debate in the United States. Using internet bots, these trolls shared opinions from both the view of anti-vaxxers and those who are pro-vaccination to confuse the ongoing debate.

"We found differences in volume and valence of vaccine-related tweets among nine thematic personas. Pro-Trump personas were more likely to express an antivaccine sentiment. Anti-Trump personas expressed support for vaccination. Others offered a balanced valence, talked about vaccines neutrally, or did not tweet about vaccines," the researchers wrote in the paper.

Vaccination debates and mistrust

Anti-vaccination discussions are still ongoing even with the United States' worst measles outbreak in 25 years, in 2019.

Now, the world is seeing the rapid spread of the coronavirus disease, which has so far infected nearly a million people. The ongoing global pandemic that has touched all continents except Antarctica and affected 180 countries and territories has sparked the need for a vaccine to prevent the spread of the virus. With the ongoing debate and mistrust for vaccination, these trolls may play a part in the search for a COVID-19 vaccine.

Although vaccination tweets only made up a small part of the messaging from these accounts over three years, these messages used pro-and anti-vaccination tweets. By polarizing vaccination, the trolls could potentially affect attitudes of people against vaccination, promote hesitancy to get vaccinated, and magnify health disparities.

"Russian trolls worked to polarize Americans on a health topic that is not supposed to be political," Yotam Ophir, an assistant professor of communication at the University at Buffalo and a former postdoctoral fellow at APPC, said. "As our nation deals with the coronavirus pandemic, that type of politicization poisons the well of crisis communications for COVID-19 in ways that create tensions, mistrust and, potentially, a lack of intention to comply with government orders and health directives," he added.

COVID-19 and vaccination efforts

As COVID-19 spreads throughout the world, scientists and pharmaceuticals scramble to develop therapies and vaccines against it. If the Russian trolls continue spreading misinformation about vaccines, it can take a toll on worldwide efforts to contain the virus.

There are about 20 institutions and companies developing a vaccine against COVID-19. Scientists aim to develop a vaccine in about a year or so, depending on the fast-tracking of governments. However, if fewer people get vaccinated because of misinformation, the risk of another outbreak is inevitable.

The researchers in the study noted that there is some evidence that vaccine safety has been politically polarized. If this will go on, more people will have mistrust issues on vaccines, which are developed to help protect populations against infectious diseases.
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Linkedin Alice Lefebvre (Agence France-Presse) Paris, France  Thu, April 2, 2020 17:02 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f44f91 2 World France,doctor,medical-practitioners,health-worker,medical-emergency,coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic,health Free

COVID-19 has French hospitals in dire need of nurses, so seasoned doctors and interns are taking crash courses in drawing blood and other skills long forgotten or never learnt.

"I've never done this before, but it's the kind of thing you learn on the job," said fourth-year medical student Eliott, 22 -- a vial in one hand and a needle in the other as he practices on a dummy while being instructed in dosage.

Eliott took an express course offered by Paris hospital group AP-HP, which is desperately seeking solutions for a dearth of nurses as the unprecedented health crisis swamps its facilities.

France has more than 22,700 people afflicted with coronavirus in hospital on top of the usual patient population, with more than 5,500 in intensive care units (ICU).

More than 3,500 have died in hospital so far.

Once trained, Eliott can be called upon to provide nursing care in the greater Paris region.

"Our vocation is to help" in any way, he remarks.

With other volunteers, including a cardiologist, Eliott learnt to draw blood, start an intravenous drip and inject medicines -- tasks normally done by trained nurses.

"What we need most at AP-HP are paramedics and nurses," said director general Martin Hirsch.

The group's hospitals have more than 1,700 COVID-19 intensive care patients in and around Paris, now the epicenter of France's coronavirus outbreak.

'It comes back fast'

One nurse usually cares for two to three ICU patients, and on Monday, the AP-HP training platform sent 200 newly-trained medics to hospitals around Paris.

Among those getting a refresher course was a 35-year-old radiologist who declined to give his name.

"It must be 10 years since I have done this," he said while sticking a needle into a dummy's arm. "But it comes back fast."

At first, "I couldn't do anything right, but now I'm feeling better, already more prepared than this morning," he added.

The teacher, a nurse, patiently takes the class through the ABCs of hospital care.

First they are reminded of the importance of following strict hygiene -- regularly changing gloves and disinfecting as they go along -- especially key in dealing with a highly-contagious virus.

Then they are shown how to apply a tourniquet, disinfect skin, find a vein... and within minutes four new nursing personnel are trained.

"Nursing is not something to be taken lightly, particularly in intensive care, it is essential to train caregivers even if they are already doctors," said the teacher, who also did not wish to be named.

Several dozen volunteers are trained each day, said Hirsch, to be sent to critical and geriatric care wards at hospitals in the Paris metropolitan area.
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex have officially embarked on their new lives separate from the British royal family. No one knew exactly what the future will look like  least of all the couple themselves. But theyve made a few decisions recently including their surprise move from Canada, where theyd been living ever since the bombshell announcement, to Meghans native Los Angeles.

Fans are not loving Harry and Meghans decision to move. Many are especially critical now amidst the global coronavirus pandemic, saying the Duke and Duchess of Sussex should be doing their part to help.

Prince Harry | Victoria Jones  WPA Pool/Getty Images

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle moved to a secluded compound in L.A.

Followers are well aware that Harry and Meghan were seeking a quieter, less complicated life when they decided to quit the royal family. At first, they tried to find it on Vancouver Island, where they allegedly spent time hiking, doing yoga, and spending time together as a family. But that wasnt enough.

People reported that Harry, Meghan, and Archie decamped for the United States in late March just before their official last day as senior royals, March 31. That move has earned Prince Harry an unsavory new nickname.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle | Rosa Woods  Pool/Getty Images)

Critics are calling Prince Harry by a rude new nickname

One article dubbed the Duke of Sussex Hollywood Harry as a way of criticizing his new living situation during the global crisis. Though there were reports that Harry was concerned for his father Prince Charles, who was diagnosed with coronavirus in March, he did not return home to Britain. Instead, he and Meghan are living behind closed doors in L.A.

Its reported that Harry is staying in touch with his dad and elderly grandparents, Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth, via social media group chats. But hes not going back home.

Prince Williams response to the coronavirus crisis was quite different from Harrys

Its not just that Prince Harry is half a world away from his family. Critics are also pointing out the stark contrast between Harrys response to the coronavirus crisis compared to his older brother, Prince William. Apparently, the Duke of Cambridge expressed his desire to return to his former job as an air ambulance pilot to do his bit in the fight against the virus.

Its unlikely that Prince William will get his wish. But either way, royal followers cant help but notice the major difference in approach between the two brothers. Hollywood Harry went into hiding while Prince William valiantly stepped up to the front lines.

No one knows what Meghan and Harry will do next

Observant fans noticed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex signed off their last Instagram post with a simple, Harry & Meghan, rather than using their titles like they normally do. They also made it clear theyd be launching new Instagram accounts that didnt include the word royal, which the queen wouldnt let them use anymore.

The first big post-Megxit announcement is the release of the Disneynature documentary, Elephant, which Meghan provided voiceover work for. This project serves as proof that these two are willing to dip toes into the world of Hollywood as part of their new life.

Could Harry be the next one to try the actors life on for size, thereby earning him the title, Hollywood Harry for real? Well have to wait to find out.
A Birr man and his girlfriend have made it safely to Ireland after they feared they would be stranded in Melbourne after their flights were cancelled twice.

Last week, Colm Cahill (25), from Birr and his girlfriend Andrea Treacy, from Rathdowney, were left stranded in a hostel in Melbourne, having spent nearly 5500 on flights home only to have them cancelled.

The pair were working and travelling in Australia since last October and had been monitoring the Covid-19 situation in recent weeks. By St Patricks Day, the pair realised it was time to make a move home when friends messaged from all over the world to say their cities were in lockdown.

Colm contacted the Tribune last week to say the situation for Irish visa holders had gotten extreme. Flights were being cancelled by the hour. In the past week, myself and my partner spent close to 5000 on two separate flights that were cancelled with no sign of a refund in the foreseeable future.

The pair were stranded in the hostel, having both lost their jobs, and had been in touch with the Irish Embassy and passed on their details. Colm then set up a Facebook group Get us home from Australia (Ireland), creating polls and helping people to source information. The first airline they booked with a cost of 800 each and they relaxed, believing they would be home this week.

However, within hours, the airline cancelled the flight and said they would instead provide a travel voucher when it was feasible. Colm then said a lot of panic set in and some people paid large sums for flights. With his girlfriend, Andrea, he decided to wait a little while and looked at the option of renting a house. They then went to view houses but this was not an option because everybody was looking for a six-month lease, deposit and rent upfront and that was too expensive for the pair.

They then booked another flight at a cost of 1,600 each. However, this flight was subsequently cancelled. Colm then set up the Facebook group while also writing to the Irish Embassy, saying with the current global situation I understand everybody is vulnerable and in need. The situation for Irish visa holders in Australia has gotten extreme.

Thankfully, Colm told the Tribune on Tuesday last the pair were lucky enough to have gotten a seat on a Qatar flight from Melbourne on Monday last, March 30 after the Irish Embassy block-booked seats for Irish citizens.

According to Colm, the flights were 1740, bringing their total spend on flights to just under 8500. However, the pair were hopefully that some of the flights would be refunded at a later day.

However, Colm was absolutely delighted to be home. The main thing, though is that we got back, he enthused. The pair are now doing their 14 days of isolation but Colm remains active on the Facebook group.

There are still plenty of Irish in desperate situations reaching out daily for help as the situation in Australia gradually worsens with no sign of relief for visa holders. Theres unfortunately a boat load of misleading information stating otherwise. This is one of the core reasons we are still putting so much time into the maintenance of the page daily, he said.
Most animals at a zoo see humans standing outside their enclosures with hot dogs and cell phones, and they arent impressed.

As zoos and sanctuaries around the globe face extended closures, however, some of their residents might long for more crowded walkways and little noses pressed against the glass, from back when we touched things. Take Ariranha, Thor, Yeyuno, and Matteo, the Philadelphia Zoos giant river otters. They might actually miss you.

Probably for a lot of animals, humans become wallpaper, but we do have some  our Humboldt penguins and our giant river otters  that frequently engage with people, said CEO Andy Baker. They do get a lot of stimulation, but theres few passersby, and Im sure they wouldnt mind some more engagement.

More often than not, the money to pay for food and other care at the nearly two dozen facilities that house animals in Pennsylvania comes from visitors walking through the gates. The Philadelphia Zoo, which draws more than 1.2 million visitors annually, closed on March 17, just ahead of its usual spring rush. It has never been shuttered for this long. In the age of coronavirus closures, caretakers are ramping up the call for donations and trying to keep the public interested.

The Philadelphia Zoo launched a daily Facebook Live program featuring keepers interacting with their charges. Wednesdays show starred meerkats digging around for meatballs. They stopped and peered upward as a helicopter hovered nearby.

The zoo has also launched a Spring Back Fund" on its website to care for our animals and ready the zoo so we can once again welcome guests through our historic gates as soon as we possibly can.

Zoos and sanctuaries may close their doors, but their work never really stops, Baker said. Its hardly a skeleton crew. An unnamed sloth bear cub appeared outside last week for the first time, without a crowd of gawkers to greet it. A lemur is due to give birth any day now, and the zoos geese are sitting on their eggs to hatch them.

Life goes on, " Baker said. "A number of things have to carry on, whether we are open or not.

At the nonprofit Wolf Sanctuary of Pennsylvania, in Lititz, Lancaster County, 56 wolves and hybrid wolf-dogs rescued from all over the country live on 80 acres. The sanctuary, which typically sees a few hundred visitors for daytime weekend tours, closed on March 19. On Wednesday, it canceled Saturdays full moon fundraiser, where guests can visit the wolves at night and roast marshmallows by bonfires.

Each wolf can eat up to five pounds of raw meat per day, equivalent to about 20 Burger King Whopper patties. Its raw meat six days a week and one day of fasting, said Michelle Mancini, the education coordinator.

Most of the meat is donated. It comes from farmers, hunters whove taken deer from areas without chronic-wasting disease, and even from people who have extra unused meat in their freezers.

We arent sure yet if well have to buy meat, Mancini said.

The amount the wolves require, she said, could cost thousands of dollars a week.

 READ MORE: For Pennsylvanias Amish, the coronavirus and the call for social distancing are a challenge

 READ MORE: Pa. survivalists have been prepping for a disaster scenario like coronavirus. Now, many feel vindicated.

The sanctuary is hoping to host virtual tours in the future.

The Pittsburgh Zoo is seeking donations through an Emergency Operation Fund. The Cape May County Zoo, which is normally open free to visitors, depends on donations even more so. At the Lehigh Valley Zoo, customers can buy merchandise with the hashtag #belikebean  named for Bean, its resident three-toed sloth, a natural social distancer.

Were probably basically doing what everyone is doing. Were trying to sell gift cards, trying to sell memberships, said Howard Scharf, director of sales at the Lehigh Valley Zoo.

T&D Cats of the World, an animal sanctuary in Penns Creek, Snyder County, is seasonal, and employee Jennifer Mattive said her family is watching the calendar and hoping the pandemics curve flattens. The sanctuary is scheduled to open in May. But like zoos and farms, she said, the staff is always working, always seeking donations.

Financially, this will be a big hit to us, as well as other animal facilities. We do not receive government funding, although many of our animals are government confiscations, she said. "Admission fees and donations help cover expenses. "

The coronavirus may threaten more than zoo coffers. Baker said scientists believe primates and great apes could be susceptible to it. Keepers who work with them at the Philadelphia Zoo are wearing masks and practicing social distancing, Baker said. The same precautions are being taken around the big cats and red river hogs out of fear they could be vulnerable, too.

There have been no reports about animals getting sick from any zoo or anywhere around the world, but that doesnt mean it hasnt happened," Baker said. Great apes share just about every disease we humans have.
Cyient -- global engineering, and solutions company -- on Thursday announced that it has been providing the Telangana State Police with two drone-based surveillance to help implement the COVID-19 lockdown in Hyderabad.

The is enabling the police to make lockdown-related announcements and also in organising their ground forces to monitor the situation in congested areas of the city.

Extending thanks to the company, the official twitter handle of Cyberabad Police wrote: Thanks to @Cyientfor extending help and supporting us to implement the #lockdown to fight #covid19."

"Using their aerial inspection through drones capability, we can seamlessly monitor the situation in remote areas and tackle any emergency," #stopthespread #essentialservices" the tweet read.

Equipped with surveillance cameras, thermal imaging payloads and sky speakers for public announcements, Cyient's drone-based aerial inspection capability is positively augmenting the police's ability to combat the spread of the pandemic.

By providing situational awareness on a real-time basis, the technology gives police the means to understand and deploy resources very quickly to manage evolving situations.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A controversial change to the way Special Needs Assistants (SNAs) are allocated to schools is being deferred for a year.

The postponement, to September 2021, is a result of the Covid-19 crisis, which has interrupted the normal preparations for such a move.

The Cabinet today approved the deferral in the face of the practical difficulties in continuing discussions with the education partners about implementing the new system and organising information sessions with schools.

The proposed change was linked to a longer-term move to bring supports, such as speech therapy, into schools but the pilot scheme for what is known as the School Inclusion Model, has also been disrupted by current events.

The planned new SNA allocation regime had generated controversy and a delay allowing time for further discussion will be welcomed by education organisations and other advocacy groups.

The deferral means that the existing system of allocating the more than 16,000 SNAs for pupils in mainstream classes will remain in place for September, with provision for additional supports, where necessary, based on the current rules.

Announcing the deferral, Education Minister Joe McHugh said the emergency response to Covid-19 had had required a huge response from the education sector and it was important that we can give schools and families of children with additional needs clarity and certainty on the resources and supports that will be available from September".

He confirmed that as part of the decision to defer the new allocation model, that no school would receive a lower allocation of SNA support for September 2020 than they currently have. That means that SNAs who are currently employed will have jobs in the next school year.

He said if schools identified that additional SNA support was needed for children in mainstream classes, which could not be met from their existing allocation, they would be able to apply by email for their allocation to be reviewed.

A diagnosis of a disability, or a psychological or other professional report, will not be necessary for this process. Rather, other forms of evidence, information or documentation will be used to support such applications,  he said.

Currently, the allocation of SNAs is based on the number of pupils who have a diagnosis of disability, but the Department of Education wants to replace that with a system based on the school's profile, similar to the way resource teachers are now allocated.

In the weeks before the Covid-19 crisis hit, Mr McHugh was under increasing pressure from education organisations and other advocacy groups to defer the new allocation model to allow for more discussion.

While the changes would give schools more flexibility about the use of resources, there was concern that some pupils would lose out.

Adam Harris, chief executive of the autism charity AsIAm, said while they supported much of the thinking behind the model, there must also be some weight attached to the needs of individual students with diagnoses.

Concerns raised by school leaders included the need for clearer guidance and a fit-for-purpose appeals system.

There was also criticism of what was seen as a piecemeal approach, with changes to SNA allocation methodology going ahead before the scheme offering wider in-school supports for children with additional needs was ready.
Mumbai-based early stage fund house Unicorn India Ventures has announced first close of its 2nd equity fund at $12 million. The second equity fund of Rs 400 crore was announced last year. Unicorn India has raised funds from domestic investors comprising of family offices and investors from the first fund.

The Fund expects to reach final close in next 12 months, which is expected to see participation from large institutional investors. With the first close, Unicorn India has also announced its first investment in a Trivandrum -based startup SaScan Meditech.

SaScan is an innovative Neo-Diagnostics startup developing integrated hardware and software solutions for medical diagnostics. Founded in 2016, currently Sascan is focusing on bringing OralScan to the market, a handheld fully automated solution for non-intrusive Oral Cancer screening. The company is also working on clinical trials for a device to screen for another common type of cancer. With the new funds, SaScan will explore the possibility of developing its proprietary technology for the diagnosis of other types of epithelial cell carcinomas and pre-cancerous abnormalities with a vision to build a comprehensive diagnostics solutions range for easy, accessible and early cancer detection.

Anil Joshi, Managing Partner, Unicorn India Venture, says, Our commitment to nurture Indian startups is unwavering and we will keep scouting for innovative ventures as done in fund-I. Having announced our first investment from fund-II simultaneously is a testimony to that. SaScan is building a range of devices and solutions to detect early signs of cancers. Their methodology of making cancer detection less painful and more accurate in pre-diagnosis impressed us to invest in it.

From the new fund, Unicorn India will participate in Pre Series A and upwards rounds. The cheque size is expected to be a million dollars. The Fund House expects to invest in 20 companies from the second fund.

Bhaskar Majumdar, Managing Partner, Unicorn India Ventures says, Our first fund has been performing quite well. Many companies from the first fund like Open Bank, Genrobotic, Sequretek, Smartcoin are scaling up faster than its peers. They have already caught the attention of many top-notch international funds. With this second fund, we hope to continue our track record of identifying innovative business models with faster scalability across sectors B2B, SaaS, healthTech, robotics, gaming and digital content.
Australian startups are facing a major funding squeeze in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, with local technology funds warning businesses chasing capital to prepare for intense scrutiny.

"Great founders will still get funded, but their number of funding options will decrease," Airtree Ventures partner John Henderson told The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.

Mr Henderson said Airtree had actually increased its investing pace over the past few weeks, but warned corporate venture arms and public market investors may pull back in the coming months, reducing the capital available to startups.

AirTree Ventures partner John Henderson said his firm was still writing deals but it was likely other forms of funding would slow. Credit:

Main Sequence Ventures partner Phil Morle said deals would still be inked into the next year, but companies would have to demonstrate to investors how they would operate in an economy that has been changed significantly.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday took a dig at the BJP-led government over the way the lockdown was enforced, saying no country with such a huge number of migrant labourers has attempted it without arranging for their stay and food.

He said the Congress needs to act as a watchdog to ensure that the poor and vulnerable sections were comprehensively protected in the wake of the crisis created by coronavirus.

Addressing the Congress Working Committee (CWC) virtual meeting here to discuss the issues related to COVID-19, Gandhi said India has to fight the global pandemic with a country-specific strategy and it needs to prepare "for economic devastation".

"We have looked at COVID for two months since February and have spoken to experts. No country in the world has attempted a lockdown with huge migrant labour without arranging for their stay, food and ration and pushing them back home," Gandhi said.

"Congress needs to act as a watchdog. We need to ensure that the most vulnerable and the poor are protected comprehensively. India has to fight COVID with an India- specific strategy and consultation. India needs to prepare for the economic devastation," he added.

Gandhi's remarks at the meeting were tweeted by party leader Randeep Singh Surjewala.

He said Congress workers need to help people, soften the blow and assist them in every manner possible.

"Also, let's take the message that we need to take special care of our senior citizens and elders," he said.

Gandhi said coronavirus particularly attacks aged persons, people with lung disease, diabetics, persons with heart disease and it makes them most vulnerable.

"All state governments need to issue a special advisory for these categories and take care," he said.

In his remarks, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Congress stands with the nation to meet the challenge of COVID-19.

The government announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown on March 24 to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Then he felt better; he has seasonal allergies, so at first we thought it was just the allergies, she said. But he started to feel worse again. He couldnt eat or drink. On the evening of March 27, she took him to the hospital. Within an hour, she said, the doctors had to intubate him; then his heart failed, and they could not resuscitate him.
Vietnam's Covid-19 tally up by four to 222

Vietnam confirmed four more Covid-19 cases early Thursday, with one more patient related to Hanois Bach Mai Hospital.

"Patient 219" is a 59-year-old woman from Hung Yen Province in northern Vietnam. She took care of a patient at the department of neurology at Bach Mai, staying in the same room with "Patient 133" on March 16. "Patient 133," a 66-year-old woman from the northern province of Lai Chau, was confirmed positive on March 24 after getting a heart ailment treated at the Bach Mai Hospital for three weeks.

On March 25, on learning about the Lai Chau case, "Patient 219" immediately visited the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanois Dong Anh District for checking. Her samples showed she had contracted the virus and she was admitted for treatment at the hospital.

This latest case raises the number of infections associated with the Bach Mai Hospital, now the nations largest infection hotspot, to at least 40; 26 of them are employees of Truong Sinh Company, a food and logistic services provider to Bach Mai.

The remaining three cases recorded Thursday morning are Vietnamese returning from abroad who had been quarantined upon arrival.

"Patient 220" is a 20-year-old man who returned from France on March 17. He was sent to a quarantine camp in Hanois Thach That District and developed Covid-19 symptoms of fever and cough on March 22.

"Patient 221" is 24, a student in Canada. She returned to Vietnam March 24 on a flight transiting in Taipei, and was quarantined at an army facility in the northern province of Vinh Phuc. Her test results were confirmed positive on March 30.

"Patient 222" is a 28-year-old woman in Hanoi's Phuc Loi Commune, Long Bien District. She lives and works and the U.S. She flew home on March 20 and tested positive on March 30.

Of the 222 Covid-19 cases confirmed in Vietnam until now, 64 have been discharged from hospital.

Vietnam declared Covid-19 a national epidemic Wednesday afternoon with infections recorded in 25 out of 63 cities and provinces.

The Covid-19 pandemic has so far spread to 203 countries and territories, claiming over 47,000 lives.
by Shan Ren Shen Fu ()

Priests remain close to their infected flock. Some conduct eucharistic blessings in streets. Others gave up ventilators in favour of younger patients. Although Chinese authorities have lifted quarantine restrictions in most of the country, churches remain closed and gatherings are still banned.

Beijing (AsiaNews)  The number of deaths among Italian priests from the coronavirus has left a mark among many Chinese priests. As of 25 March, 68 priests had died. Many of them risked their life to be close to their dying parishioners; others refused to use ventilators in favour of younger patients.

Shan Ren Shen Fu, a well-known blogger priest in China, looks at some reactions and comments, divided between the necessity of safety, which risks leaving the faithful alone, and the pastoral need to be close to them. What follow are some excerpts from one of his posts, which received wide circulation in Chinese social media.

It should be noted that in China, although the authorities have declared an end to the quarantine in most of the country, churches remain closed and gatherings are still banned. During the epidemic, the dead were wrapped in plastic bags and taken to crematoria without funeral services.

I recently wrote an article about Italian priests who died from the coronavirus. My article aroused misunderstandings and opposition. If priests do not wear a mask or a protective suit, they should not make pastoral visits, much less go to visit the sick in hospital. Being a priest is no protection from infection and without protection, one risks infecting the faithful who come in contact with you.

This is undeniable and undisputable. The number of cases of contagion in Italy is rising at an incredible pace and the death rate is close to 10 per cent. When the epidemic broke out in China, the Chinese bought the masks available around the world to help their compatriots! Now we learn that it is not that Italians do not wear masks, but that they leave the few available to hospitals and doctors. This is why people, including priests and nuns, cannot find extra masks.

I asked a Catholic immigrant in Italy why don't Italians wear a mask. He said that only the sick wear masks. However, the main reason is that in addition to gifts made during Chinese New Year, the rest was purchased by the Chinese and shipped to China. So, now the government calls on citizens to reserve masks for healthcare workers.

This morning I read an article titled Behind the number of cases in Italy. It is very moving. It states: "Since there are too many patients and there is no health equipment, all patients over 65 years of age give up on their own treatment . . . I too am 65 years old. If I had a 20-year-old patient next to me and if there was only enough to save one person, I would stop my treatment so that the young person could hope to survive.

A few days ago, I saw a video that was made after Italy imposed a quarantine. In it we see priests carrying the Eucharist in procession and blessing the people. This video impressed me a lot and I felt very encouraged. Those priests were moved by faith and love. Jesuss words come to mind: I will not leave you orphans (John 14:18). The heart oppressed by the greyness is full of hope in an instant!

An American priest came up with something else: confessing in the church parking lot so that people did not have to get out of their car and kept a safe distance. For me, this is quite lovely. ...

A priest studying in Rome commented on my post. I greatly admire the older priests who died in Italy! They did not get infected staying at home; most of them went to visit the faithful, giving the last rites (because Italy has many faithful and the sick need to receive the sacraments). They were infected precisely doing that. At a time of great difficulty, we must learn and think about their courage and pastoral heart.

I have decided to return to my parish (during the quarantine in China, he moved in with his parents). My father and mother told me: The other priests have not left yet, why are you hurrying? I didn't know what to answer.
A 37-year-old man has been charged with assaulting his 74-year-old mother by allegedly grabbing her by the neck and pulling her back.

At last week's sitting of Portlaoise District Court, the man was charged with assault causing harm, and breach of a barring order, at a location in Kildare on March 12 last.

The man cannot be named as the offence of breaching a barring order comes under the domestice violence act.

Garda evidence outlined that when charged and cautioned, the accused made no reply.

The DPP had directed summary disposal in the case.

The garda said it was alleged that on March 12, the accused assaulted his own mother, a 74-year-old woman, by grabbing her by the neck and pulling her back.

The woman suffered a slight injury to her neck which the garda described as redness.

After hearing the outline of the alleged facts, Judge Catherine Staines accepted jurisdiction in the case, meaning it will be dealt with in the district court and not sent forward to the circuit court.

The accused was granted bail, with conditions that he stay away from the injured party and her home; he stay out of a named area; he provide the gardai with a permanent address; and sign on one day a week at the garda station.

The matter was adjourned to June 25 next, for a guilty plea to be entered, or a hearing date fixed.
A reporter attends an online class demonstrated by a teacher at the Korea Biological Science High School in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, Thursday. /Yonhap



By Bahk Eun-ji



Students are set to begin the new school year with online classes next week, while schools remain physically closed amid growing fears that crowded classrooms could turn into breeding grounds for COVID-19.



As questions about whether students and schools are ready for the online classes are drawing public attention, Kim Soo-jeong, a teacher at the Korea Biological Science High School in Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, demonstrated a real-time remote class during a press conference Thursday.



Kim conducted a demonstration with the press to show how teachers check attendance of students and the progress of classes by using a number of tools, such as Zoom, a video conferencing platform; Class 123, a classroom management tool; One Note, a digital note-taking app; Google Form, a survey administration app; and messenger Kakao Talk.






China lifted the limitations on the ratio of foreign shareholding in securities and fund management firms on Wednesday, allowing them to set up wholly-owned units on the Chinese mainland. The accelerated pace of China's opening-up has brought confidence to foreign institutions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

SHANGHAI, April 1 (Xinhua) -- China scrapped the limitations on the ratio of foreign shareholding in securities and fund management firms on Wednesday, a move that shows wider opening-up of its financial industry.

The move gives those foreign companies the green light to set up wholly-owned units on the Chinese mainland, offering them a chance to better tap the Chinese market. It also provides Chinese investors with a greater variety of financial products and services.

The accelerated pace of China's opening-up could help boost confidence for global companies, many of which have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic and are grappling to mitigate its economic fallout.

Photo taken on March 31, 2020 shows the office of Nomura Orient International Securities in Shanghai, east China. (Xinhua/Fang Zhe)

MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL

The abolition of the limits on foreign ownership in securities firms on Wednesday came after a March announcement by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) to advance the time for the move originally scheduled for this December.

Foreign financial institutions have acted quickly. On Friday, Morgan Stanley said it had received CSRC approval to increase its shareholding in its China securities joint venture, Morgan Stanley Huaxin Securities Company Limited, from 49 percent to 51 percent.

On the same day, Goldman Sachs said it had been approved to increase its ownership in its China joint venture, Goldman Sachs Gao Hua Securities Company Limited, from 33 percent to 51 percent.

The approvals put the number of foreign-controlled joint venture securities firms in China at five. The other three are Nomura Orient International Securities, J.P. Morgan Securities (China) Company Limited, and UBS Securities.

DBS Bank has also applied for the establishment of a controlling joint venture securities firm in Shanghai.

"This is a significant milestone in the evolution of our business in China," said Todd Leland, co-president of Goldman Sachs in Asia Pacific ex-Japan, adding that the company will now seek to move toward 100 percent ownership at the earliest opportunity.

Mark Leung, CEO of J.P. Morgan China, said the company is eyeing the same move in its Chinese joint venture.

Along with foreign companies in securities business, world asset management leaders such as BlackRock, Fidelity, Schroders, Neuberger Berman are actively preparing for the application of wholly-owned mutual fund units in Shanghai.

"China's asset management market is expected to grow more than four-fold in the next 10 years," said Jackson Lee, country head in China for Fidelity International.

The removal of foreign ownership caps will bring benefits to both global investment banks and Chinese investors, said Toshiyasu Iiyama, head of China Committee of Nomura Holdings.

Chinese investors will enjoy more financial products and services, and have more ways to diversify their investment portfolio, said the executive.

Guests unveiled the five newly-established foreign financial institutions at an online opening ceremony in Shanghai, east China, March 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Fang Zhe)

CONFIDENCE IN TRYING TIMES

In recent years, China has taken concrete steps to open up its market. The well-rounded process includes widening market access for foreign firms, increasing commodity and service imports, and improving the business environment.

The latest move to open up China's financial sector on Wednesday has brought confidence to foreign institutions, as the coronavirus outbreak continues to exert a negative impact on the global economy.

On March 20, five newly-established foreign financial institutions in Shanghai, including J.P. Morgan Securities (China) Company Limited, held an online opening ceremony.

A week later, the first sales department of Nomura Orient International Securities in Shanghai opened an account for its first client.

"Over the past years, we have been impressed by the pace of opening-up pushed forward by the Chinese government. It was beyond our expectations," said Iiyama of Nomura.

J.P. Morgan's Leung also said that he was delighted to see the opening-up of China's financial sector continued to yield new results, citing the rapid development of the new economy and the acceleration of the internationalization of Chinese currency.

"These moves have made China's financial market more mature, and brought tremendous opportunities for many companies including J.P. Morgan and our customers," said Leung.

By further opening up the finance industry, China can attract more investment from international companies and make the country more integrated with the world economy, said Yan Hong, a finance professor at Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance.
She's been practising yoga while enjoying some downtime from her busy schedule amid UK's coronavirus lockdown.

And Rita Ora continued to put on a sporty display as she performed a sizzling dance to her new single How To Be Lonely in an Instagram clip shared on Wednesday evening.

The musician, 29, showcased her incredibly toned midsection as she slipped into a black crop top, teamed with matching running tights.

Turning up the heat: Rita Ora put on a sizzling display as she performed a sizzling dance to her new single How To Be Lonely in an Instagram clip shared on Wednesday evening

Proving less is more, the media personality swept her tresses into a sleek ponytail to reveal her naturally radiant complexion.

The Hot Right Now hitmaker flaunted her fancy footwork as she swayed to her new song, in which she details battling insecurity and lack of self-worth.

Rita captioned the clip: 'Dancing away to #HowToBeLonely  Send me your dances on @tiktok!! #stayathome.' [sic]

Working it: The musician, 29, showcased her incredibly toned midsection as she slipped into a black crop top, teamed with matching running tights

In her element: Proving less is more, the media personality swept her tresses into a sleek ponytail to reveal her naturally radiant complexion

Posing up a storm: The Hot Right Now hitmaker flaunted her fancy footwork as she swayed to her new song, in which she details battling insecurity and lack of self-worth

Earlier this week, the blonde beauty shared new behind-the-scenes snaps from the set of the music video for How To Be Lonely, admitting she had egg yolk in places she 'can't say out loud' following the shoot.

London native Rita transformed into a space warrior for the sci-fi inspired video as she donned a a metallic bralet with matching shorts and a skirt.

The songstress also wore a bright blue wig as she posed alongside an alien extra in one snap, brandishing a laser gun.

The former ANTM host received special effects make-up for the shoot and uploaded a photo of herself in the make-up chair getting liquid poured onto her face to create a mask.

Having fun: Earlier this week, the blonde beauty shared new behind-the-scenes snaps from the set of the music video for How To Be Lonely

All in the details: The former ANTM host received special effects make-up for the shoot

Speaking to The Face magazine about the video, Rita admitted: 'I had egg yolk in places I cant say out loud. But you know me - Ill do anything for the art!'

The video was released to Rita's YouTube channel on March 27 and has since received over 1 million views.

Speaking about the release, Rita told fans: 'The past year has felt like the end of a chapter and the beginning of a new and exciting one!

'One of the most liberating feelings for me is performing and creating music. You all know that music will always be my first love, even when Im working on different projects, Im always writing and making music...so, heres something new!'
[April 02, 2020]

Appcast Announces Recruitment Advertising Grant Program to Help Address COVID-19 Pandemic Hiring Needs

LEBANON, N.H., April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In response to the dire need for increased staff to treat patients and slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, Appcast recently launched a no-cost recruitment advertising grant program worth $100,000. The program rapidly grew to $368,000 following the participation of like-minded recruiting industry leaders including Adzuna , Careerbliss , CareerBuilder , Directly Apply , Get.it , iHire , Lensa , LinkUp , MyJobHelper , Results Generation , StaffAttract and Upward .









Eligible organizations must be based in the U.S. or Canada and currently hiring workers to combat the impact of the pandemic.

To date, 26 grants have been awarded to a variety of organizations including healthcare systems, senior living communities, facilities management companies, pharmaceutical research and development firms, and other health services companies.

Chris Forman, CEO of Appcast, said, Public health experts have identified significant shortages of front-line workers, and the situation is escalating daily. Given our expertise in helping to recruit qualified and often highly specialized talent, we knew Appcast could support positive change during the most challenging of times. Were receiving a steady stream of applications and look forward to granting awards on a daily basis. Forman continued, Its gratifying to see our job site partners and recruiting colleagues supporting this initiative. Were proud to partner with organizations that stand with us to support this cause.

To learn more, please visit Appcasts COVID-19 Recruitment Grant site . Job sites interested in joining in support of this initiative can contact Matt Molinari of Appcast by emailing [email protected] .

About Appcast

Using real-time data and programmatic technology, Appcast is advancing the recruitment advertising industry, enabling employers, agencies, recruitment firms, and job boards to improve recruitment outcomes, ROI, and attract high-quality job seekers. To learn more, visit https://www.appcast.io .

Note to editors: Trademarks and registered trademarks referenced herein remain the property of their respective owners. Media Contact: Heather Salerno SVP Marketing, Appcast [email protected]
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 01:47:16|Editor: Wang Yamei

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Chinese Ambassador to Azerbaijan Guo Min (L), Azerbaijan's Deputy Foreign Minister Ramiz Hasanov (C) and Deputy Health Minister Viktor Gasimov attend the handover ceremony of medical aid from China to Azerbaijan in Baku, capital of Azerbaijan, on April 2, 2020. Azerbaijan received 5,000 COVID-19 test kits donated by the Chinese government to help the country curb the spread of the COVID-19 outbreak, the authorities said Thursday. (Chinese Embassy to Azerbaijan/Handout via Xinhua)

BAKU, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Azerbaijan received 5,000 COVID-19 test kits donated by the Chinese government to help the country curb the spread of the novel coronavirus outbreak, the authorities said Thursday.

Addressing a ceremony to mark the delivery, Ramiz Hasanov, Azerbaijan's deputy foreign minister, thanked the Chinese government for the donation. He described the assistance as "a sign of friendship" between the two nations.

Hasanov said Azerbaijan also demonstrated solidarity with the people of China and supported their battle against the coronavirus.

Chinese Ambassador to Azerbaijan Guo Min said the donation showcased the deep friendship and mutual understanding between the two countries. She said China would send a second batch of aid to Azerbaijan, including non-invasive respirators and protective clothing.

The ambassador highlighted the efforts by the government and people of China to tackle COVID-19. She also hailed the support provided by Azerbaijan to China during a difficult time for her country.

Azerbaijan has registered five coronavirus-related deaths so far, with 369 people now infected. A total of 26 people have recovered. The government suspended classes at all educational institutions and banned public gatherings before imposing a special quarantine regime and ordering social distancing in an effort to address the outbreak.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with UK's Prince Charles on Thursday and discussed the coronavirus crisis, with the British royal hailing the Indian diaspora's role in combatting the pandemic.

The prime minister conveyed his condolences for the loss of life in the UK over the past few days, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

Prime Minister Modi expressed satisfaction that the Prince of Wales had recovered from his own recent indisposition and wished him good health.

Prince Charles had tested positive for coronavirus last month. He expressed his appreciation for the members of the Indian diaspora in the UK, including many members of the National Health Service, who were playing a seminal role in combatting the pandemic, the statement said.

The Prince of Wales also referred to the selfless work being done by religious and social organisations of the Indian community in the UK.

He thanked the prime minister for the facilitation and assistance provided for UK citizens stranded in India during the present crisis.

Modi also thanked Prince Charles for the keen interest he has always taken in Ayurveda.

He explained the recent Indian initiative aimed at teaching basic yoga exercises through short animation videos, and disseminating easy home-made traditional remedies for enhancing immunity, the MEA said.

Prince Charles appreciated the potential of these initiatives for enhancing health and wellbeing, especially in the present situation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Turkey's tourism minister said on Thursday he expects flights to return to normal by the end of June, after airlines canceled most flights to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

Mehmet Nuri Ersoy told broadcaster CNN Turk that air traffic from Asia would likely be opened first, followed by Russia, then the Balkans and Europe. Domestic flights would also restart, he said.

Turkish Airlines has extended the cancellation of its flights from April 17 to May 1, while limited domestic flights continue. Pegasus Airlines has stopped all flights.

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New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

6 signs you may be infected with coronavirus: Diarrhea is first sign of illness

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Apr 02: As Global coronavirus infection which is nearing a million mark and 47,235 deaths have been reported so far, researchers, have now found that there are other symptoms which also shows that you have been infected with coronavirus.

Here are six signs, different from that of usual high temperature and continuous cough, that may suggest you've already been infected by COVID-19.

Conjunctivitis

Diarrhoea

Tummy ache

Loss of smell

Loss of taste

Fatigue

Conjunctivitis

The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) reported that a mild follicular conjunctivitis can also be a symptoms of coronavirus.

They suggested that conjunctivitis is possibly transmitted by 'aerosol contact with the conjunctiva,' or the mucus membrane that covers the eye. Conjunctivitis can make eyes bloodshot, burn or feel gritty, produce pus that sticks to lashes, itch and water.

Loss of taste

According to researchers, a loss of smell or taste may be a sign that you have coronavirus. More than 1.5 million people who took part from March 24 to 29, who tested positive for the virus had reported a loss of smell and taste.

Loss of smell

Researchers from Harvard Medical School also linked loss of smell to coronavirus. The study found that there are certain cells at the back of the nose harbour the distinctly shaped proteins that coronavirus targets to invade the body.

Infection of these cells could lead to an altered sense of smell.

Diarrhoea

More than half of coronavirus patients have a digestive symptom. A study of 206 patients,in Wuhan, China - where the virus is believed to have originated from, found that around 99 patients (48.5 percent) went to hospital with digestive issues, such as diarrhoea and with no underlying digestive conditions.

Tummy ache

As part of the same study, 0.4 percent of patients reported abdominal pain.

According to Michael Hirsh, medical director for Worcester's Division of Public Health, hospitals are now seeing patients who have tested positive for COVID-19 displaying only abdominal pain.

Mr Hirsh has said: "What we've been seeing is patients coming in not so much with complaints about respiratory stuff but with abdominal stuff."

He added stomach pain can be a result of developing pneumonia in the lower lobes of the lungs.

Fatigue

It is now believed that Fatigue will be the carrier of the second coronavirus wave.According to the World Health Organization (WHO) one the most common symptoms of coronavirus is fatigue which is nothing but feeling extreme tiredness.

With COVID-19, shortness of breath often occurs 5 to 10 days after the first sign of fever.
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Linkedin Andreo Calonzo (Bloomberg) Manila, Philippines  Thu, April 2, 2020 15:10 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f38e79 2 SE Asia Manila,Duterte-style,COVID-19,lockdown Free

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gave authorities the green light to shoot dead protesters who attempt to riot or disrupt food distribution during a lockdown prompted by the Covid-19 outbreak.

More than 100 residents of a poor community in Quezon City in the capital region hit the streets on Wednesday asking for food from the government, but were dispersed by cops for allegedly violating quarantine rules, the Philippine Star reported. Local authorities said the protesters -- some of whom were arrested -- were wrongly told by an unidentified person that cash and food would be distributed, prompting them to leave their homes.

My orders to the police, the military and the village officials: if theres a commotion, if they fight back and your life becomes at risk, shoot them dead, Duterte said in a televised address late Wednesday. He also warned leftist groups against causing food riots.

Cops wont shoot people dead, and they understand that Duterte just overemphasized following the law during a crisis, police chief General Archie Gamboa told ABS-CBN News Channel on Thursday. Declaring martial law is not being discussed as an option to maintain order during the lockdown, Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said in a separate briefing.

Dutertes comments, which are similar to his orders in a drug war that has killed thousands, come as his government seeks to enforce a monthlong lockdown of Luzon, the Philippiness main island. The country has 2,311 coronavirus cases, including 96 deaths, as of Wednesday.

Through a law that gave Duterte more powers, his government has allocated 200 billion pesos ($3.9 billion) for cash grants to 18 million poor families or at least $98 a month. The budget department has released half of the funds for assistance, it said on Thursday.
While scores of people are watching Tiger King on Netflix as they stay home amid the coronavirus outbreak, it appears that the subject of the docuseries is now himself in quarantine because of the pandemic.

During an interview with Andy Cohen on Cohens SiriusXM radio show, the husband of Joseph Maldonado-Passage -- -- better known by his adopted name, Joe Exotic -- told the host that Maldonado-Passage had been put in isolation in prison in Texas, after some inmates at a jail where Maldonado-Passage had previously been tested positive for the coronavirus.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Dillon Passage told Cohen that Maldonado-Passage is not necessarily thought to be infected, but since he recently transferred from a prison with multiple cases, he was placed in isolation for safety.

According to a Dallas-Fort Worth NBC News report, inmate records show that Maldonado-Passage has been transferred to a prison medical center in Fort Worth.

Maldonado-Passage, who was born Joseph Allen Schreibvogel, is serving 22 years in prison after being convicted on charges relating to his role in a murder-for-hire plot that was intended to kill his rival, Carole Baskin, the head of a big cat rescue operation.

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness," is a seven-part docuseries that tells the story of Joe Exotic, his feud with Baskin, the mysterious disappearance of Baskins first husband, Exotics supposed country music career (his songs were, it turns out, performed not by him but by a Vancouver-based band), and so many other outlandish twists and turns that the series has become an avidly watched and discussed distraction during these uncertain social distancing times.

-- Kristi Turnquist

kturnquist@oregonian.com 503-221-8227 @Kristiturnquist

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KAMPALA -Telecom giants MTN Uganda has extended their support and beefed up the fight against COVID 19 by launching MoMoPay Red Cross Merchant Account for customers to donate money towards the spread of the coronavirus in the country, and support those most affected by the pandemic.

This code was unveiled during the face live chat is *165*3*191919# and here any amount towards this noble cause is highly appreciated.

Speaking during the Live chat MTN Uganda CEO Wim Vanhelleputte empthasised the companys commitment to stand together with Ugandans by doing everything it can to reduce the impact that covid19 is having on their lives.

We will continue to look at ways of supporting our communities and government, to ensure that together, we do everything feasible to get through this difficult time, he said.

Mr. Robert Kwesiga, the Secretary General Uganda Red cross appreciated MTNs gesture and reiterated the societys commitment to alleviate the human suffering that is increasingly being experienced by communities especially the most vulnerable people in society.

Recently, the Telco scrapped all charges on sending any amount of money using MTN Mobile Money, in a bid to reduce the physical exchange of paper money.

This was aimed at minimizing the risk of transmission of covid-19 that has paralysed daily life across the world

Needless to say, the company also launched a data bundle that is enabling customers to work from home. Dubbed Work from home, the data bundle is meant to promote the concept of social distancing while reducing the anticipated negative impact that limited movement and contact between people, may have on both the economic and social fabric of our society at a paltry amount of UGX 2,000 for 1 GB between 9:00am  5:00pm.

As a brand we are committed to continue working with the government, and other partners to reduce the impact and disruption that this pandemic is having on the lives of Ugandans. Working closely with the Ministry of Health and still committed our media assets including radio, SMS, social media, call centre and continues to implement various precautionary measures to drive awareness among the public to protect themselves, Wim further explained.

The Company also made UGX 500M available, to facilitate efforts to prevent, manage and curb the spread of covid 19 in Ugand among which UGX 297M was disbursed to the Uganda Red Cross, who are using the funds for their execution plan that includes community sensitization and surveillance, ambulance services, psychological support, case tracing and handling referrals among other interventions.

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Mennonite Church USA Responds to COVID-19 Pandemic

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Mennonite Church USA

April 2, 2020



ELKHART, Ind., April 2, 2020 /Standard Newswire/ -- During widespread closures and physical distancing caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Mennonite Church USA (MC USA), the largest Mennonite denomination in the United States, has responded by educating and equipping its congregations, ministry partners, and constituents via the Internet.



"Our priority is to extend love to one another in these difficult times by offering programming that best serves our church while also preparing for the future," said Glen Guyton (pictured), executive director of Mennonite Church USA.



MC USA has launched the following initiatives:

"Staying Healthy and Hopeful," a web page that provides news updates, tips and free resources.



A blog series on social justice issues impacting vulnerable groups during the pandemic.



A webinar series to equip pastors and leaders to address pandemic-related faith formation topics, such as rituals around death and dying, youth ministry, and compassion fatigue, on Tuesdays at 4:00 p.m. EDT.



Monthly Facebook Live messages from Guyton on the first Wednesday at 12:30 p.m. EDT.

MC USA's five faith-based agencies have responded:



Everence has launched several financial initiatives to assist congregations and constituents.



MennoMedia is offering a weekly resource email featuring free Bible studies, Sunday school curriculum and devotionals.



Mennonite Education Agency is providing professional webinars and prayer support to school administrators.



Mennonite Mission Network launched The Hope Series, including a daily prayer time and weekly Bible study on Facebook Live and has made emergency funds available.



MHS is connecting with health and human services providers through its COVID-19 resource page and monthly resource newsletter.



"Now is the time for us to live into our identity as a peace church," said Guyton. "Call your neighbors and reach out to those who are vulnerable. Together, we can get through this by demonstrating love and compassion for people in our community."



Ongoing support of MC USA and its agencies enables the denomination to continue to help people in need. Additional updates and information can be found in MC USA's various e-publications.



With offices in Elkhart, Indiana and Newton, Kansas, MC USA is comprised of 530 congregations and 62,000 members. An Anabaptist Christian denomination, MC USA is part of Mennonite World Conference, a global faith family that includes churches in 86 countries.



SOURCE Mennonite Church USA



CONTACT: Camille Dager, News Editor, 574-523-3068, CamilleD@MennoniteUSA.org



Related Links



http://mennoniteusa.org


By Express News Service

CHENNAI/COIMBATORE: A total of 1,122 people from Tamil Nadu could have attended the Tablighi Jamaat at the Nizammudin Mosque earlier this month, say State government officials. Of them, 711 have returned to Tamil Nadu of which 611 have been identified and quarantined, said Revenue Secretary J Radhakrishnan on Wednesday.

A hundred more are to be tracked down, but they havent come forward yet and the police and revenue officials are on the lookout for them, he added.Of the total, 411 are currently staying in other States and have not come back here yet. We spoke to Imams of local mosques to find out the whereabouts of the missing 100. They are strongly advised to come forward and get themselves admitted before they affect other, the officer added.

Massive spike in Kovai

Of the 110 cases that tested positive on Wednesday, a whopping 28 are from Coimbatore. The district now has a total of 34 cases. Barring one, all who have tested positive had attended the Delhi event -- 20 of them are from Mettupalayam, 5 from Anamalai, and 2 from Pollachi. The lone person who did not attend the event but tested positive is the husband of the 29-year-old railway doctor, who is currently under treatment at the ESI Hospital. She tested positive earlier this week.

106 others from the district, who participated in the Delhi event, have been tracked down by the officials. As in Chennai, Coimbatore officials have also started implementing a containment plan, wherein they are visiting every house in the neighbourhood of positive patients to conduct regular check-ups. Pollachi sub-collector R Vaidthyanathan said movement of people in Pollachi and Anamalai has been restricted as part of the containment plan. Deputy Director of Health Services G Ramesh Kumar said 119 foreigners who attended the Maha Shivaratri event at the Isha Foundation have been quarantined at the centre itself, for the last 60 days. However, they have not exhibited any symptoms so far.Meanwhile, the tally in Erode went up to 22 with 2 more testing positive for the virus. Both of them -- aged 26 and 54 -- had attended the Delhi event. They are now in treatment at the IRT Hospital and efforts are on to trace their contacts.

Over half the cases in South

Of the 110 cases, 59 are from southern districts including Madurai, Theni, Dindigul and Tirunelveli. Thousands in these parts have been quarantined and kept under monitoring. In Theni, 23 who went to Delhi were tracked down and tested. Of them, 20 have tested positive: 3 from Periyakulam, 1 from Chinnamanur, 1 from Theni, 2 from Uthamapalayam and 13 from Bodi.

Similarly, in Dindigul officials tracked down 89 persons who attended the event. Of them 17 have tested positive. Nine from Madurai who attended the event tested positive on Wednesday, taking the district tally to 15.

Tirunelveli now has 29 positive cases as 6 new persons test results were confirmed on Wednesday. All six of them came forward voluntarily asking to be tested. Of the six, one patient is from Melapalayam and five others are from rural parts of Tirunelveli aged between 33 and 50. All are asymptomatic and being treated at the GH, she said. Sivaganga recorded its first five cases today, all of them participants of the event. Administration here has tracked down 25 attendees. Only 5 of them tested positive.

18 cases in northern region

Tirupathur, which managed to stay clear so far, recorded 7 cases in a single day. Authorities of the district, which was formed just four months ago, have hit the ground with containment activities. All seven are at the Ambur GH, said Collector MP Sivanarul, adding that all of them attended the Delhi event. Three under attendees are quarantined.

Tiruvannamalai recorded the second positive case -- a 43-year-old man -- on Wednesday. He has been admitted to Cheyyar GH. He too went to Delhi. Collector KS Kandasamy said 34 people from the district could have attended the Delhi event.(With inputs from Erode, Madurai, Theni, Dindigul, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Tirupathur, and Tiruvannamalai)

Highlights

Of the 110 cases that tested positive on Wednesday, a whopping 28 are from Coimbatore

Out of the 110 cases, 59 are from southern districts including Madurai, Theni, Dindigul and Tirunelveli

Tirupathur, which managed to stay clear so far, recorded 7 cases in a single day

106 others from the district, who participated in the Delhi event, have been tracked

Thousands in these parts have been quarantined and kept under monitoring
Radio Free Europe, which has journalists in the country, reported that Turkmenistan has tried to squelch even private conversations about the virus. Plainclothes police officers detain those who gossip about it in food lines, the news organization said. Despite sharing a border with Iran, which has reported more than 44,000 infections, Turkmenistans government says the country has not had a single case.

To me its very short sighted, Dmitri Trenin, the director of the Moscow Carnegie Center, said of the former Soviet leaders minimizing the epidemic. If you say, Well, we are an island in a stormy sea and that is because of me, then youve cloaked yourself in armor that doesnt allow a single chink. If there is one chink, your credibility goes down.

And they are not likely to be able to hold out long, he added. Look around  they are surrounded by countries with multiple cases.

The president of Tajikistan, Emomali Rohman, who has been in power since soon after the Soviet collapse in 1991, initially embraced precautionary measures like closing mosques but then reversed course, without public explanation.

The message, though, was clear: He would defy the virus. As with the regions other long-serving potentates, stability has been a cornerstone of Mr. Rohmans political image. He casts himself as a fatherly figure who brought normalcy after the mayhem of the Soviet breakup and an ensuing civil war.

His playbook for holding together a wobbly state has been to deny vulnerability, first to terrorist attacks, which have been misrepresented as opposition violence, and now to the pandemic. As late as March 22, long after most nations had begun strict social distancing, Mr. Rohman gathered about 12,000 students in a stadium for a celebration of the Persian new year, Nowruz.
Safe, secure telemedicine option for patients across the U.S. Our telemedicine service can replace an in-office visit in many cases, says Josh Helms. It can ease the strain on emergency rooms and ensure that patients get what they need to ease their pain during this uncertain time.

As concerns about the Coronavirus (COVID-19) mount, Physician Partners of America (PPOA) is pleased to announce it has launched virtual office visits via telemedicine. This service allows both new and established patients in Florida, Texas and California to talk to physicians about symptoms, seek advice on managing their pain, and receive prescriptions electronically.

We understand some people are under stay-at-home orders, and others are too high-risk to venture out, so we are using technology to bring our doctors to them virtually, from the comfort of home, says Josh Helms, COO of PPOA.

Many chronic pain patients are at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 than the general population, while others showing symptoms may aggravate their pain by coughing. Patients should consult their primary care physician or a testing site for diagnosis; however, current PPOA patients and referral patients seeking guidance or medication management are encouraged to use the telemedicine option.

Telemedicine, also known as telehealth, connects people with physicians by telephone or videoconference. A safe, timesaving addition to healthcare, it has grown by more than 260 percent in three years and is proving especially valuable during the Coronavirus pandemic.

PPOA is well-equipped to handle all appointment and billing details through the same HIPAA-compliant electronic medical records (EMR) system used for office visits.

After a patient requests an appointment, a PPOA team member will reach out to schedule and confirm the virtual appointment, and a PPOA physician will call the patient at a pre-arranged time.

To access Physician Partners of America telemedicine, patients can visit its home page and click on the Schedule Appointment button or call 888-412-6958 and set a telephone appointment.

About PPOA:

Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Tampa, Fla., Physician Partners of America (PPOA) is a national healthcare organization focused on strengthening the doctor-patient relationship and improving patient outcomes. PPOA, and its affiliates share a common vision of ensuring the wellbeing of patients and providing their physician partners the opportunity to focus on the practice of medicine. This model allows physicians to be physicians, caring about patients and their needs in the face of ever more complex administrative requirements. For more information about Physician Partners of America, visit http://www.physicianpartnersoa.com.


Three weeks into life under mandated social distancing, New Yorkers have been adjusting to this new reality by moving their social lives online.

From virtual dance parties with live D.J. sets to dinners and recipe-sharing over Zoom, theyve shown that social distancing doesnt mean giving up social interaction. In fact, it can be a reminder that we are all in this together, and participating in online events can help support local businesses that are now economically vulnerable.

Here are some suggestions for maintaining a New York social life this weekend while keeping a safe distance from other humans:

Friday

Happy Hour Art Party

Have your (or your pets) portrait drawn live during happy hour. Angelica Hicks, a New York-based illustrator, will choose a selection of photos to draw live, starting at 5 p.m. Participants are encouraged to submit a photo of what they want her to illustrate by 11 p.m. Thursday. During the event, she will recreate photos from the submissions.

Visit the Rockefeller Centers Instagram page for the live stream.

Queer Shabbat Dinner

Starting at 6 p.m., join Jake Cohen, the editorial director of feedfeed, for a queer Shabbat dinner cooking demo of an easy, at-home chicken soup. The evening is part of a queue of events from Themfest, a queer-focused music and arts festival put on by them, an online magazine from Conde Nast.
Pakistan PM Imran Khan urged the youth of the country to join the 'Corona Tiger Force', which he referred to as 'jihad' against Coronavirus pandemic. He urged the citizens of Pakistan, especially the youth to join the force.

"I want youth to play their role in helping our fight against the COVID 19 by joining our Corona Tiger Force, which will be organised to do Jihad against the suffering caused by this pandemic," Imran Khan wrote on Twitter.

Imran Khan on Monday announced the formation of 'Corona Relief Tiger Force' to battle the Coronavirus along with the Pakistani government and Qamar Bajwa-led Army. The Force will be responsible for delivering essential goods, food, engage in the awareness campaign, quarantine management and so on. In the thick of a global outbreak. Imran Khan rejected a total lockdown in the country, citing the economic impact it would have. He further justified his decision by saying that the situation of the country was not as bad as Italy or China due to Coronavirus.

READ| Pakistan PM Imran Khan tests positive for Coronavirus?

Pakistan confirmed 2,238 positive Coronavirus cases on Thursday morning with--709 cases in Sindh province, 54 in Islamabad, 276 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 845 in Punjab, 164 in Balochistan, 6 in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and 184 in Gilgit Baltistan. Out of which, 31 have died while 82 have recovered.

Pakistan increases testing capability

Pakistan said on Tuesday that it considerably increased its testing capability since the coronavirus outbreak as the number of the COVID-19 cases crossed 1,900 in the country, showing a constant upward trajectory despite efforts to pull it downwards. Meanwhile, the government planned to rent two three-star hotels in the city to use their rooms to isolate suspected patients of the coronavirus. A 1,000-bed Expo Centre Hospital has also been completed for patient management and will start functioning soon.

"The country had the capacity to test 30,000 people on March 13, and this will rise to 280,000 by tomorrowBy April 15, we will further increase it to 900,000, Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar, who was flanked by the Prime Minister's Advisor on Health Dr Zafar Mirza and Revenue Minister Hammad Azhar, told reporters. He said the government was balancing its measures to combat the virus and also ensure food supply to the people.

(With PTI inputs)

READ| Pak PM Imran Khan claims to use 'wisdom' to beat coronavirus, taunts India's lockdown

WATCH: Suspected coronavirus patient taken into custody from passenger train in Pakistan
Pakistan: Authorities of coastal district Gwadar have banned fishing in the Arabian Sea in view of the coronavirus pandemic

by Behram Baloch

April 02,2020 | Source: Dawn

Authorities of coastal district Gwadar have banned fishing in the Arabian Sea in view of the coronavirus pandemic. Gwadar Deputy Commissioner retired Captain Mohammad Waseem has urged the fishermen community to show responsibility and not violate his governments orders. Strict action will be taken against the fishermen who violated Covid-19 safety rules, he warned.



He said in order to prevent coronavirus from spreading in Gwadar, local fishermen should join hands with the administration by not holding public gatherings. We have been taking all decisions in best interest of the people of Gwadar, he said. Instead of fishing in the sea fishermen should stay at their homes during the lockdown, Capt Waseem said. He ordered release of all fishermen who had been detained by Levies force for violating the lockdown after screening and testing them for coronavirus.
[April 02, 2020] JourneyApps Provides Free Access For State Governments, Healthcare Agencies and NGOs to Build and Deploy Critical COVID-19 Apps.

Developers from qualifying organizations can start coding in minutes through a web-based IDE  while working from home.

Custom apps for use cases like medical inventory reporting can be built in a matter of hours.

Organizations interested in the free plan can sign up at journeyapps.com/covid19apps DENVER, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via NetworkWire  JourneyApps announced today that it will open its low-code app development platform at no charge to state governments, healthcare agencies and NGOs fighting the rapidly-spreading COVID-19 pandemic. The announcement comes as state governments are facing an urgent need to collect patient and hospital data that can be funneled into cloud data warehouses for analysis and rapid response. The new free plan will give qualifying organizations access to the JourneyApps web-based integrated development environment, OXIDE, that allows developers to build and deploy custom apps while working from home. Developers can use their existing JavaScript skills to rapidly deliver custom apps that automatically work offline and across mobile and desktop devices as well as web browsers, allowing medical personnel to access and report crucial data in remote locations. When we heard about a state that wanted to provide a custom app for hospital staff to self-report the inventory levels of supplies and equipment needed for COVID-19 on a daily basis, we knew JourneyApps could help make a difference in this fight, said Conrad Hofmeyr, CEO at JourneyApps. Hundreds of oranizations around the world are already using JourneyApps to build and deploy mission-critical apps in challenging conditions. What could be more mission-critical than apps used to support the battle against COVID-19?



In addition, JourneyApps supports the ability to make apps HIPAA compliant , a requirement for apps dealing with patient data to ensure data is secure and that only authorized medical staff can view patient records. Developers will have to ensure the right app-level controls are in place, but JourneyApps takes care of key requirements, such as data encryption, full data audit trails, and automatic data backups, said Kobie Botha, Chief Product Officer at JourneyApps. The COVID-19 pandemic is not the first international health crisis that JourneyApps has responded to. In October 2014, JourneyApps partnered with organizations such as GlobalGiving and others in West Africa to release the Ebola Care app which was used to perform contact tracing, track orphaned children and coordinate ambulance transfers during the Ebola epidemic of 2014-2016.

Organizations who would like to enroll into the free plan should visit journeyapps.com/covid19apps to sign up. About JourneyApps: JourneyApps is a low-code app development platform purpose-built for developers who need to rapidly build and reliably run complex apps for field workers, even in the most challenging environments. Based in Denver, JourneyApps helps more than 100 customers around the world keep their competitive edge with intelligent work automation and informed decision-making for all employees. More information at journeyapps.com . Media inquiries:



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In the basement, she spotted her niece lying on the ground and heard a man groaning with pain, she recalled. Concerned for her safety, she called police and waited for them to arrive. Her fears were soon confirmed, she said, when a female police officer emerged from the basement crying.
Sometime in June 2001, while browsing the Wall Street Journal, I stumbled upon an item on an inside page all the way at the bottom. It was no more than 75 words in a box. It covered a CIA security announcement concerning an increase in internet and cell phone traffic among suspected terrorists from suspect areas in the Arab world. I canceled a Fourth of July trip downtown because of it.

I assumed that if an attack was coming, it would be on America's premium self-celebratory holiday, the Fourth of July.

When nothing happened, I took off my tinfoil hat, ascribing my worries to my suspicion of Islam  suspicions I had carefully curated from prior events such as the first World Trade Center attack, the Cole, the embassy bombings, and the killing of Americans soldiers in the 1983 bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut.

It has become accepted knowledge that America's intelligence agencies missed 9/11 warning signs  but that's not entirely true. Signs were seen, but they impelled no action. We were so convinced that the fall of the Soviet Union as the end of history precluded any need for urgency. Yet, even if there had been, no one, at that point, knew how to react.

I don't think I need to remind everyone of what happened on 09/11/2001.

I share this vignette as a means of showing that there are always signs. We, for whatever reason, miss them, or we ignore them for political purposes, or we refuse to believe them because they contradict the core tenets of our belief system.

I believe that China's actions today may be telegraphing an intent we are choosing to ignore. They show all the signs of a nation preparing to attack America. China seeks a bespoke world run by China with "Chinese characteristics"  a dream that under Trump was drifting away.

China appears to be laying the groundwork for a "justified" attack on the United States, perhaps in the South China Sea or perhaps elsewhere. It will be a military attack, not an act of terrorism, and the excuse will be America's deliberate transmission of COVID-19 in Wuhan.

When the Chinese became accusatory, it's telling that they didn't blame the CIA, always the usual suspect. No, they blamed it on American soldiers.

American military deliberately infecting China is an act of war worthy of a military response.

In October, the 2019 World Military Games were held in Wuhan. Chinese media triumphantly trumpeted the Americans winning just eight medals, while China won 239. It was then that we supposedly infected Wuhan citizens with the "American virus."

China is now defenestrating foreign media, sending home reporters from the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, and Washington Post at just the opportune moment. No nation wants journalists around when it is planning a sneak attack.

And with its economy ravaged by Trump's trade war and the virus shutdown, and now back at full production, while America's economy is in total shutdown and in the grip of an active pandemic, there will never be a better time to attack.

Here in America, the Democrats along with corporate media eagerly buy China's lies surrounding the nascence of the worldwide pandemic, the propaganda blaming America, the stories of Chinese benevolence, and the efficiency of Chinese methods in getting control of the virus at home. They are actively supporting China's version of the truth. China has every reason to believe they will continue to do so.

When or if China attacks, the left (the Dems, Antifa, and BLM) will flood the streets with anti-war protesters designed to stop America from responding to China's attacks. After all, don't we deserve it? We elected Trump, didn't we?

China claims there are no new infections when there is ample evidence that that claim is a lie. But the Chinese know that by the time people understand, it will be too late. They will have struck, and any new cases will be used to bolster their casus belli. Those Chinese who perish in the interim of silence will have died for the fatherland.

Conservative media have been neither as naive nor as malicious as their mainstream brethren, often writing that China's behavior, with the denials and accusations, is merely a clumsy and foolish attempt to convince the world.

I don't see it this way. I think China is doing this to convince its own citizens more than anyone else. The Chinese communists can survive the world's condemnations, especially if they defeat America, but they live and die by controlling their own population. When they attack an American naval ship in the South China Sea, they won't need to worry about the support of their own nation because they will have convinced the people that America started the war and a peaceful and beneficent China was reluctantly, and only as a last resort, defending itself.

China is facing a demographic time bomb and has ten years to rewrite the facts on the ground. It is facing a quandary of epic proportions. It won't be long before it has the oldest population on the planet. Those people will be old before they are rich.

China's business model is existentially flawed. It has extraordinary debt that is multiples of its GDP, having grown exponentially through government funding of empty cities, military buildup, high-speed rail to nowhere, a Belt and Road initiative that's becoming obvious to partner countries as a means of colonialist extortion, and various other nonproductive government lending to CCP members. Its vaunted reserves will soon disappear.

China is also a nation, thanks to the "one child" initiative, that has hundreds of millions of young men with no prospect of marriage. Hundreds of millions of "incel" men make for either an angry and expendable fighting force or a bane upon society.

China is on the clock. Today, it is formidable, with a sophisticated and capable military. The Chinese may be able to win a confrontation, even a war, with the United States. Under Obama's policy of surrender, China had a chance of overtaking us economically while growing its military until its primacy was a fait accompli. But Trump killed that dream with his trade war, exposing the inherent weaknesses of the Chinese economy. And should the aftermath of the pandemic play out without interference, China's position in the world will be irreparably damaged.

What does China have to lose?

Time is not on China's side. Unless the Chinese destroy us on the field of battle soon, the clock will run out, and the dream of the coming "Chinese century" will be just that: a dream.

Everything they are doing points to them preparing to do so.

For China, there will never be a better time to start a war with America.

Please follow the author on Twitter at @williamlgensert.
Former President Trump blasts Sen. Mike Rounds in emailed statement

Former President Donald Trump criticized South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds after Rounds said the 2020 election was fair on national television Sunday.
Real women fix each other's crowns and empower each other and it holds true for celebrities who have shown up at this time of global crisis.

Actress Priyanka Chopra Jonas has decided to donate $100,000 along with the organization BON V!V Spiked Seltzer to the women out there who are working for the betterment of society amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Taking to her Instagram story, Priyanka revealed that she was supposed to launch a promotional campaign with the brand in the next few weeks, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, she decided to halt the plan. She will now use the resources for the four women who are in need.

She posted a video in which is seen requesting her users to nominate such women.

Our worlds changed quickly, and needless to say, we couldnt go forward with our original plans to launch this campaign. Each week Ill go live with @BONVIVSeltzer to share the stories of four women who are overcoming the struggles of our new realities in their own powerful way. pic.twitter.com/9ZHJKVpsq5  PRIYANKA (@priyankachopra) March 31, 2020

"Our worlds changed quickly, and needless to say, we couldn't go forward with our original plans to launch this campaign. Each week I'll go live with @BONVIVSeltzer to share the stories of four women who are overcoming the struggles of our new realities in their own powerful way. If you know a woman we should highlight, visit the link in my bio for the next steps. We are all in this together. #togetherwomenrise #partner," Priyanka wrote.

The actress also issued a statement, which read:

Reuters

"We will be donating $100,000 in total to women who are rising above everything during this crisis. If you know a woman we should highlight, share her story with us, whether she is in the service industry, from a large business, small business owner, or first responders on the front lines. We want to commemorate her. #TogetherWomenRise."

Priyanka and her husband Nick Jonas have also donated to organizations like the PM-CARES Fund, Unicef, Feeding America, and Goonj.
CROMWELL  Two female Middletown High School students were killed in a vehicle rollover Monday night on Route 9 in Cromwell.

The two victims were identified by state police as Sophia Rae Brancaccio, 14, and Chloe Russell, 16.

State police were called to the crash on Route 9 south at about 10:16 p.m.

According to the accident report, a 2001 Toyota Tacoma driven by Tavien D. Harris, 19, of Middletown, was traveling in the right lane, north of Exit 20S, when he lost control of the vehicle, left the roadway, struck an embankment and rolled over.

Both passengers were thrown from the vehicle during the crash, state police said.

Russell was taken to Hartford Hospital where she was pronounced dead. Brancaccio, who was then hit by an unknown vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.

Witnesses reported the suspect, who fled, was driving a smaller-model SUV.

Superintendent of Schools Michael Conner said Harris is a graduate of the high school. He reported the news to the school community in a video Tuesday afternoon.

The highway was closed in both directions at Exits 20 and 21 for about five hours while the investigation took place.

Sophia Raes family has set up a GoFundMe account to raise money for her funeral and attorney expenses at For Sophia Rae. By Wednesday morning, $4,985 of the $10,000 goal has been donated to the fund.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Trooper John Wilson at 860-534-1098 or john.wilson@ct.gov.
Workers in New Zealand remain deeply concerned about being exposed to the potentially deadly COVID-19 coronavirus. The Labour Party-led governments four-week shutdown of schools and non-essential businesses began on March 26 in an attempt to stop the virus from spreading.

So far, New Zealand has confirmed 797 cases of the virus, with one death. The numbers are rising each day. Most cases relate to international travel, but many originated within New Zealand.

Despite Prime Minister Jacinda Arderns claim that her government has acted faster than other countries, there has been nowhere near enough testing to know the extent of contagion. Just over 26,000 tests have been conducted.

This week, the government finally widened the criteria so anyone with symptoms can be tested regardless of whether they have a history of travel. This will still not identify people who are infected but have no symptoms.

There are many reports of vulnerable workers being placed at risk. On March 28, Stuff reported on workers at a New World supermarket in the affluent Wellington suburb of Thorndon, near Parliament. They were sent an email telling them if they stayed home they would be placed on leave without pay, even if they had health problems.

A similar message was sent to workers in a Christchurch supermarket. The email was signed off with the hashtag #bekind, Stuff noted.

Stan, a resident of Levin, north of Wellington, told the World Socialist Web Site he and his wife were concerned as they share a house with a supermarket worker. My wife has diabetes and fibromyalgia, which makes her more vulnerable to COVID-19. The supermarket worker has to be careful because he might pass it on, he explained.

Its only been less than a week of the lockdown and frontline workers are getting stressed out and overwhelmed already, Stan said. He added that without mass testing, treatment and isolation, the quarantine will have limited long-term effect. Why havent they been stockpiling tests since November? Why arent they testing all staff in essential services?

The WSWS has spoken with hospital workers who are concerned about vague safety protocols and a lack of protective equipment. Workers are also concerned that staff with pre-existing medical conditions are finding it difficult to get classified as "high-risk" and take time off work.

The government has repeatedly stated that it has millions of masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) available, and is procuring more from overseas. But hospital workers, disability carers and others have reported shortages. An online petition demanding higher-quality PPE for doctors and nurses has more than 16,000 signatures.

Another petition last week calling for the shutdown of the meat processing industry over unsafe conditions gained over 2,600 signatures. The Otago Daily Times reported on March 31 that a worker at Silver Fern Farms Finegand processing factory said there were no masks and workers were told to be two metres away from others but thats just really unrealistic in [this] type of work.

If we walk off the job, we wont get the subsidy, and if we stay at work, we risk getting COVID-19, the worker said. The Meat Workers Union is working closely with businesses to keep the factories in operation.

While the government is giving billions of dollars to businesses, thousands of workers have been sacked. Others have been forced to stay home during the lockdown on reduced pay. Companies affected by the pandemic can get a wage subsidy from the government but are not obliged to pay full wages, compelling many people to seek welfare payments.

A Taupo resident, whose husband had taken a pay cut from his restaurant job, told the WSWS it was too hard to get assistance. They need to make it easier to get food grants while this is happening. Phones [are] overloaded with the Ministry of Social Development, she said. What about all those people who dont have the internet or phone? There are still people who are poor enough that cant afford these so-called necessities.

Fletcher Building, New Zealands largest construction company, today announced a 20 percent wage cut for 9,000 employees during the four-week lockdown. Should the lockdown be extended, it will cut wages by 50 percent for the next four weeks, and 70 percent after that.

The WSWS has seen a letter sent to workers at Downer Group announcing a 20 percent wage cut. It declared, we have to make some sacrifices now to avoid redundancies. The wage reduction would last at least four weeks and could be extended up to 12 weeks. The construction and engineering company, which operates primarily in Australia and New Zealand and employs 53,000 people, made an underlying profit of $340.1 million in 2019.

The letter said Downer had been working closely with four trade unions which are supportive of us working to retain as many jobs as possible. The E Tu union released a brief statement on March 31 saying members at Downer were free to accept this offer to ensure your income continues at 80 percent, even though the union did not believe the companys process was lawful. The statement has since been removed from the unions website.


The Sri Lankan authorities on April 2 said the navy reportedly seized $65 million worth of crystal methamphetamine and ketamine in the countrys biggest drug bust. According to international media reports, the authorities raided a flagless vessel in the countrys southern waters after receiving a tip-off. The Sri Lankan navy arrested nine Pakistani men, who were suspected of smuggling drugs.

While speaking to an international media outlet, Navy Commander Piyal de Silva said that the Navy personnel wore special protective clothing in case the suspects had coronavirus and found 605 kilograms of crystal myths and 579 kilograms of ketamine. Silva reportedly said that this was the first time that the authorities found ketamine. She added that it is likely that the smugglers were trying to take this cargo on some East Asian destination.

The Sri Lankan defence ministry told the media outlet that the drugs had an estimated value in Colombo of about $65 million, which made it the countrys biggest single seizure of drugs.

READ: Sri Lanka Records First Death Due To Coronavirus

Drugs worth $33 million seized last month

Last month, in another drug bust, the Sri Lankan authorities arrested two foreign trawlers packed with over $33 million worth of heroin and crystal methamphetamine. According to reports, the troops found 400 kilograms of heroin and 100 kilograms of the drug ice onboard the two vessels. A navy spokesperson reportedly said the 16 foreign crew and five Sri Lankan crewmen were destined for questioning.

READ: The Latest: Sri Lanka Arrests Thousands For Violating Curfew

The spokesperson said, "The two foreign vessels were trying to offload the drugs onto a Sri Lankan fishing boat. Further adding the vessels had no registration and were intercepted in international waters some 1,100 kilometres from the countrys coast. According to the initial investigations, Iran-Pakistan coast was the point of origin.

According to international media reports, back in 2016, the Sri Lankan authorities also seized 800 kilograms of cocaine on a ship at Colombos port from Saudi Arabias King Abdullah Port. Last year, the authorities reportedly also discovered 301 kilograms of cocaine inside a shipping container at Colombo. The authorities further also believe that that Indian Ocean island is also being used as a trafficking transit point.

(With PTI inputs)

(Image source: Representative/Unsplash)

READ: Sri Lanka Arrests Thousands For Violating Curfew

READ: Jaishankar Talks To Sri Lankan FM Over SAARC Meeting On COVID-19
(CNN) - More than a third of residents in an elder care home near Milan died in less than a month during the coronavirus pandemic, a spokesperson for the facility has revealed.

Sara Aragno told CNN on Wednesday that 63 out of 150 residents at Borromea Residence, a care home in the Mediglia municipality, had died since early March.

The first of the 63 deaths at the home happened on March 3, in the earlier stages of Italy's battle with a coronavirus outbreak that has now killed more than 13,000 people in the country.

It is not known how many of these 63 residents had been infected with the coronavirus, because only 36 residents have been tested. All 36 tested positive but not all have died. No postmortem tests have, or will be, carried out, Aragno said. However, doctors might find out more from their clinical records.

Mediglia, a village of 12,000 people in the northern Lombardy region, is geographically very close to the original coronavirus cluster reported in the country.

"I signed an ordinance on February 23 forbidding all non-medical staff to enter in the care house," the Mayor of Mediglia, Paolo Bianchi, told CNN Wednesday. "I receive every day updated death tolls, and I noticed they were growing and growing."

It is feared that the actual number of deaths from the coronavirus pandemic in Italy might be much higher than the official number, because not everyone who dies outside of hospital is tested for the virus.

"It is plausible that deaths are underestimated," Silvio Brusaferro, head of the national health institute, said in a news conference on Tuesday. "We report deaths that are signaled with a positive swab. Many other deaths are not tested with a swab."

The care home said it had made phone contact with relatives seeking information on their loved ones. "We understand their anguish," the spokesperson said. "We have taken all the necessary measures: we have divided those with symptoms on a floor and those without in another floor and we check the temperature of our staff three times a day."

However, that is not always enough to protect the elderly. "The elderly are the most exposed to fatal events, over 80% of the deaths are over 70, hospices without a doubt can represent a reality that favors the epidemic spread," said Franco Locatelli, head of the Superior Health Council, in a news conference.

According to a statement from the Italian Society of Gerontology and Geriatrics on March 30, Italy's 7,000 care homes are "neither equipped nor have trained personnel" and they can become "biological bombs of contagion." The society made the statement while announcing it had started a blood survey to evaluate the effectiveness of diagnostic criteria in nursing homes.

The story was first published on CNN.com "More than 60 residents of an Italian elder care home died in a month"
By Trend

Police guards will monitor the movements of every citizen through electronic devices in Azerbaijan, Aziz Bagishev, Deputy Chairman of the Main Public Security department said in an interview with Azerbaijan Public Television and Radio Broadcasting Agency (ITV), Trend reports on Apr. 2.

The deputy chairman said that the citizen, leaving the house, will have to explain the reason for going out by calling or sending a message to a certain number.

The structure to which this information will be sent, will redirect it to the police. Having stopped a citizen on the street, the police will already know whether this person is allowed to leave the house or not. A citizen will even have to inform about going to the pharmacy or market. This work has already been completed, and the public will be informed soon, Bagishev said.

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their houses and apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence. Other kinds of operation, except for the vital work and services, will be suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Smilyn wants to be a part of the global community rally behind the true heroes of the pandemic, the health care professionals who are fighting on behalf of us all

California CBD brand, Smilyn Wellness, is donating 10 percent of all proceeds until May 1st to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund launched by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Additionally, Smilyn Wellness is offering a 40 percent sitewide discount with code WHO40.

"Smilyn wants to be a part of the global community rally behind the true heroes of the pandemic, the health care professionals who are fighting on behalf of us all," stated Brett Weiss, CEO of Smilyn Wellness.

"We are grateful for those combating on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic. We thank them for their extraordinary commitment and courage, and there is no greater satisfaction than to support them."

By donating to the vitally important Solidarity Response Fund, Smilyn Wellness will support the World Health Organization (WHO) in getting essential supplies to health care workers on the frontline, safeguarding communities with the latest coronavirus information, and fast-tracking efforts to acquire life-saving treatments.

World Health Organization (WHO) Relief Efforts 

COVID-19 is spreading profusely around the globe. The World Health Organization (WHO) is organizing the global effort  assisting countries to prevent, detect, and respond to the pandemic.

WHO and its partners launched the COVID-Solidarity Response Fund to fund the activities of the Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan, which includes:



Organizing activities to track and understand the spread of the virus

Buying and shipping critical supplies including masks and protective wear for hospitals

Delivering evidence-based guidelines and advice to ensure health workers and responders receive critical information and training to detect and treat affected patients

Producing guidance to prevent the spread and prevent themselves and others

Accelerating efforts to develop vaccines, tests, and treatments

The WHO  as the global guardian of public health, requires adequate, predictable and flexible backing, including innovative investment models and various funding streams to remain agile in its work with partners to create health and well-being for all.

Shop Smilyn CBD and Make a Difference 

Smilyn Wellness is among the various brands giving back and donating proceeds to coronavirus relief efforts. The California CBD wellness brand delivers the highest-quality CBD products for those seeking alternative solutions to combat medical conditions.

CBD is more than just dosing, it's a lifestyle. A lifestyle that promotes longevity for every person (and every pet).

Products include CBD tinctures, gummies, softgels, roll-ons, face masks, salve, sprays, and CBD pet products. Shop now  40 percent sitewide discount with code WHO40.

About Smilyn Wellness

Smilyn Wellness in California is a CBD-wellness brand simplifying the benefits of premium hemp extract. We exist to revolutionize. We exist not only to help individuals look and feel amazing  but also smile throughout the adventures of life. Combining scientific data with health-based knowledge, Smilyn offers a portfolio of CBD products that are trustworthy, tasty, and geared toward an active new-age lifestyle.

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A 67-year-old COVID-19 patient from Haryana passed away at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Chandigarh, informed Dr Kuldeep Singh, Ambala Chief Medical Officer on Thursday.

The state has reported forty-three coronavirus positive cases so far, out of these, 23 have been cured/discharged.

Meanwhile, Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij on Wednesday said, "All SPs in Haryana have been told that all those places where they (those who attended Markaz event) could be checked. Police did checking in Ambala yesterday and four possibly infected people were found. They have been admitted to hospital and their samples sent for test."

"40 people have been placed under quarantine. Further action will be taken after their report comes," he added.

India so far has 1834 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 143 patients who have been cured and discharged.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Donald Trump, flanked by officials and business leaders, announces a national emergency with regard to the coronavirus in the White House Rose Garden in Washington on March 13, 2020. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Trump Tests Negative for CCP Virus for a Second Time

President Donald Trump was tested for a second time to determine whether he contracted COVID-19, and the result came back negative, according to the White House on Thursday.

Trump was given a new CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus test that provides results in 15 minutes, according to a memo provided by the White House. The test was carried out on Thursday morning.

This morning, the President was tested again for COVID-19, utilizing a new rapid point-of-care test capability. He is healthy and without symptoms, wrote White House physician Dr. Sean Conley in the memo. The results came back in 15 minutes.

Trump said, during a Thursday evening briefing at the White House, that he took the new CCP virus test out of curiosity to see how it worked.

It took me literally a minute to take it, he said. I think I took it really out of curiosity to see how fast it worked, Trump added. The second one is much more pleasant.

Medics attend to a COVID-19 patient at the University Hospital in Essen, Germany, on April 1, 2020. (Marcel Kusch/dpa via AP)

Previously, Trump tested negative for COVID-19 in mid-March, coming just days after he met with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and a Brazilian government official who later tested positive for the virus. Bolsonaro was also tested, with the results coming back as negative.

The White House physician said at the time that the president didnt need to get the CCP virus test because he only had limited contact with the Brazilian delegation.

Vice President Mike Pence, first lady Melania Trump, and Trumps daughter Ivanka have been tested for the virus. All of the tests came back negative.

On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the new CCP virus test, which provides a result in 15 minutes.

Abbott Laboratories, a health care company based in Illinois, said its new test can deliver positive results in as little as 5 minutes and negative results in 13 minutes.

Apart from the rapid results, the test is important because it can be used outside hospitals in places such as doctors offices and urgent care clinics. The test runs on the companys ID NOW platform, a 6.6-pound box the size of a small toaster.

Dr. Scott Gottlieb, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a former FDA commissioner, said the new test is a game changer.

This is GAME CHANGER. Abbott to market, starting next week, a fast point-of-care #coronavirus test, delivering positive results in 5min and negative results in 13min. Will deliver 50K tests/day to start. Kudos to Abbott and FDAs Jeff Shuren and team at CDRH who are in the fight, he wrote in a Twitter post.

Zachary Stieber contributed to this report.
Police are continually checking compliance with the extraordinary measures in force, Robert Kiss, an official of the emergency centre set up by the operative board coordinating the response to the epidemic, said.

They are checking compliance with curfew restrictions, rules on shop-opening times and home quarantine rules, he said. The measures have already contributed to hindering the spread of the virus and they will be maintained until the state of emergency is in force, he added.



Police have registered 739 irregularities concerning the curfews, a total of 956 warnings have been issued and 49 people have been fined for violating the restrictions, he said.



The authorities have ordered home quarantine in over 9,679 cases so far and have conducted more than 71,350 inspections, Kiss said. Altogether 97 people have been fined for violating quarantine rules and 14 people have been issued warnings.



The authorities have filed misdemeanour charges against 322 people, he said. A total of 39 shop-owners have been warned about not complying with regulations, and fines have been issued in 25 cases, while misdemeanours have been reported in 61 cases.



MTI Photo: Tamas Soki
The COVID-19 public health crisis has severely impacted children, particularly our most vulnerable. Over the last three weeks, the state and federal governments have worked to strike a balance: address the educational needs of students, while also protecting the immediate health needs of all our citizens. Here in Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont has struck this balance by canceling classes across the state until at least April 20 and waiving the 180-day school year requirements, while also providing access to meals and learning to students at home. As a parent and education advocate, I am grateful for this leadership during incredibly difficult times.

Over the last week, some additional action from the state in response to new federal measures has highlighted why Connecticut must be thoughtful about the longer-term educational impact of this crisis on our students. First, Connecticut waived the mandated annual statewide assessment  the Smarter Balanced Assessment in Connecticut, or SBAC, which measures student achievement and makes the results public. Second, the state waived the school district requirement to fulfill the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the federal education law that further established equal opportunity for all students.

Both waivers make a world of sense in these times. There is no practical way to administer the states standardized test or to meet ESSA requirements right now, plus any resultant data would be an outlier due to the unanticipated uncertainty of remote learning. Although we are all doing the best we can, we can agree that nothing replaces the benefits of full-time classroom instruction.

That said, Connecticut should not lose sight of the long-term implications for equity if we eliminate these important growth measures this year. Although many teachers and parents may find flaws with state assessments and standards, these measures are oriented towards closing opportunity gaps for students in every state and district. Until the passage of No Child Left Behind, or NCLB, under President George W. Bush, requiring states to break out test scores by racial and economic group, English language proficiency and disability, gaps in academic achievement were often hidden within statewide performance averages.

For example, on last years administration of the SBAC, 54.6 percent of fourth-graders statewide met or exceeded performance expectations in English Language Arts. However, disaggregating that data to look at performance by income-level reveals that only 36.2 percent of fourth-graders from low-income families met or exceeded ELA expectations that year, as compared to 70.5 percent of their peers from higher-income families. This critical information illustrates the disparity in educational opportunity in Connecticut. Its a matter of equity that cannot be ignored.

Unfortunately, its now inevitable that when we lose out on this years annual data, we will not be able to assess the extent to which gaps have grown or narrowed since previous years. And many professional interests groups that have been pushing for an end to high-stakes testing will no doubt want to make this years testing waiver permanent. However, as a state, we must commit to continuing to test once this health crisis is over.

Testing continuity not only provides valuable data for parents, educators and policymakers about students academic preparedness in specific years, it also facilitates year-over-year comparisons, which allow us to measure the efficacy of our public education investments, especially with respect to serving high-need student populations. Thats why civil rights and national nonprofit education leaders  including The Education Trust, National Urban League and the Center for American Progress  have already responded to the federal waivers for assessments, writing: Should a targeted, one-time waiver from annual assessments be granted to a state in response to coronavirus, it is critical for accountability determinations to be carried over from the prior year to ensure transparency and continued support for students while any such waivers are in effect.

As an education advocate and a public school parent myself, I am supportive of the necessary steps districts must take during this unsettling time for our country and our communities. Nevertheless, as we look ahead, we cannot let these temporary changes become an opening for a long-term roll back of accountability over the progress of students. There are already so many ways in which our most at-risk student populations  those who have special needs or live in poverty or are enrolled in struggling districts  will be affected by this crisis. As adults, we should commit to maintaining the continuity of high standards and opportunity for all students in the better days to come.

Amy Dowell is the Connecticut state director for Democrats for Education Reform and Education Reform Now CT.
The latest frigates of project 22350 will be deployed in the Black Sea. They are armed with Kalibr cruise and Tsirkon hypersonic missiles. All the necessary infrastructure will be built. Experts say the Russian frigates will be a major deterrence in the region. Their deployment is a response to the USA after its withdrawal from the INF Treaty which poses a threat of deployment of American attack weapons in Romania, the Izvestia said.

Admiral Gorshkov Frigate (Picture source: Wikipedia)

Defense Ministry sources said a decision in principle to deploy the frigates in the Black Sea fleet had been made. Berths, workshops and arsenals will be built for them. The frigates will play a major role, expert Dmitry Boltenkov said. "The modern warships will considerably expand the capabilities of the Navy. They will radically change the military balance in the region. Cruise missiles will target the US base in Romania. They will be a powerful deterrence in the Black Sea area," he said.

The Russian Navy operates a single frigate - the Admiral Gorshkov. The Admiral Kasatonov second frigate is undergoing acceptance trials. It is likely to become operational by the end of the year. The third and the fourth the Admiral Golovko and the Admiral Isakov have to join the Navy in two years. Two more frigates were laid a year ago.

The frigates have stealth features. They were produced with composite materials and have a new hull and superstructure architecture. It all decreased the frigate signature. The warships destroy surface and ground targets from 130mm artillery gun A-192M and by antiship Onix and cruise Kalibr missiles.

In the near future, the frigates have to be armed with hypersonic Tsirkon missiles. No air defense in the world can intercept them because of the high speed. They are being tested. In February, the Admiral Gorshkov fired a Tsirkon at a ground target from the Barents Sea.

Poliment-Redut and two Palash artillery guns defend the warship from an air raid. The former has Poliment radar with a phased antenna array. The missiles are kept in universal vertical launchers comprising modules of four or eight cells each. Each complex can attack 16 targets at a time. It mostly intercepts airplanes, helicopters and cruise missiles.

The automatic control is easily integrated with others into a single combat contour. An automatic control system has been tested in Crimea. It integrates all air defense of the peninsula, including warships and aircraft. It ensures single command of fighter jets, bombers, attack jets, helicopters, drones, as well as air defense and radars.

The Admiral Kasatonov will have a number of robotic systems to increase combat effectiveness. They are Orlan-10 drones and unmanned boats. The drones allow the frigate to operate as a scout and an electronic warfare complex.

Rear provision will enjoy major attention. The Russian Navy used to lease berths from Ukraine in Sevastopol and there was no sense to invest in them. The situation has changed and new warships and submarines are coming, Boltenkov said. "A warship needs rear provision. It needs a berth, fuel supplies, compressed air, electricity, steam. The crew need food. Workshops are necessary to maintain mechanisms and modern weapons. There should be warehouses for missiles and torpedoes and cranes to load them. The Soviet coastal infrastructure could not provide everything necessary and the service life of warships decreased," he said.

The new frigates will need a free space in Sevastopol. At present, the base accommodates a lot of Ukrainian warships. They can be moved to the base in Lake Donuzlav, the Izvestia said.

 Copyright 2020 TASS. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Did the royal family fail to provide the demands of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle that they decided to stand on their own instead? Or the Sussexes just had unreasonable requests in the first place?

Prince Harry and Meghan initially said that the reason behind their departure from the monarchy was due to their desire to become financially independent and to give their family the privacy they deserve.

However, right after their official exit on March 31, some royal experts and royal insiders claimed that the royal family might have contributed to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's decision.

They added that the royal couple felt like the other members never met their impositions.

According to one anonymous insider, there was an instance in the past that Harry and Meghan looked like they were not satisfied in anyway and wanted more.

They then talked about how the Sussexes got their own home at Frogmore Cottage, their own Household (a different one from William and Kate's), and their own staff.

In addition, they also got their own Communications Secretary and a new Private Secretary.

Furthermore, Harry and Meghan had their own spaces at Buckingham Palace, more funds, and their own charitable foundation.

Despite all those, they still chose to leave. And for Meghan's case, she brought Harry with her to live outside the monarchy to continue supporting her life dreams.

Spoiled Even After Exit?

Since their decision to step down as senior members of the royal family was somehow smoothly granted, it caused some experts to tag the couple "spoilt" because of the move -- with Meghan already flaunting herself in Hollywood after catching a new movie role even before their official exit.

Per royal biographer Angela Levin, the author of the book entitled "Harry: Conversations with the Prince," she said she can now "barely recognize" the royal prince.

"It is profoundly sad but true that with each week that passes Harry and Meghan's behavior is becoming increasingly self-centred," Levin wrote on Fashion magazine Tatler.

For the royal biographer and everybody else, seeing how they announced their plans even before Megxit made them look like selfish individuals even more.

They were even expected to be "gracious and dignified" on behalf of Queen Elizabeth II on their last days, but they failed in the end.

"Instead, they released the news that they have quit Commonwealth country Canada, for the starrier Los Angeles, and that Meghan will voice a Disney documentary about elephants," Levin went on.

She added that Harry is obviously stressed over the events happening around him right now. Levin believes that Harry started to change when the Sussexes made an appearance on ITV's documentary "Harry & Meghan: An African Journey."

From there, Harry finally broke his silence and admitted the fact that there is indeed a royal rift. Meghan also claimed that time she had not been supported while she was fighting an unfair battle with the British media.

What can make this whole exit drama even worse for them is the fact that without the royal family on their side, they will suffer from tabloids' criticisms even more.
The 2019 Ministerial Declaration of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) as well as the 2016 Outcome Document of the UN General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on Drugs recognize the important role of civil society in addressing the World Drug Problem.

UNODC supports Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) participation in relevant drug-related policy discussions and meetings, particularly the CND regular and intersessional meetings and encourages the increased dialogue between NGOs, member states and UN entities, through the Vienna NGO Committee on Drugs (VNGOC).

UNODC also provides capacity building workshops using the guide for NGOs developed jointly by UNODC and the VNGOC.
Hungary has yet again come under fire from the international liberal mainstream, Peter Szijjarto, the foreign minister, said on Facebook.

Referring to criticism of Hungarian measures against the novel coronavirus, Szijjarto wrote:



Theres nothing surprising about the recent attack by the failed Italian left-wing prime minister, the German Socialists who are forever the little brother in the grand coalition, the never-elected Austrian Greens or the Luxembourg communists, or indeed the extremely intolerant northern liberals.



The international liberal mainstream attacked us ten years ago when we sent the IMF packing, he wrote, adding that the government also had come under attack for cutting taxes instead of introducing austerity and embarking on job-creation rather than continuing welfare benefits, thereby protecting Hungary from the economic collapse.



We were also attacked five years ago  for building a fence on the southern border, under the command of the police and army to protect the security of the Hungarian people, he wrote.



And the international liberal mainstream has attacked us even now, when the democratically elected Hungarian parliament has given us the authority to protect our country against the world pandemic.



Szijjarto said such attacks were borne of frustration and envy because they can only dream of the kind of social support that the Hungarian government has won by a two-thirds majority in the last three parliamentary elections.



Meanwhile, Justice Minister Judit Varga told German public television ARD that the epidemic response bill was democratic, arguing that parliament could repeal the governments authorisations anytime, which she said was unique in Europe.



Varga added that it would also be up to parliament to declare the epidemic-related state of emergency over.



Timea Szabo, group leader of opposition Parbeszed, was also invited to the programme. She insisted that over the past ten years the government had always used its power to empty of its contents democracy and the rule of law and demanded guarantees that the government will not do the same in connection with efforts against the epidemic.



MTI Photo
President Trumps attacks on Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer could backfire in a state critical to his re-election prospects, political strategists say.

In tweets and during press conferences, Trump has made reference to the woman in Michigan and expressed that Whitmer and other governors were not showing enough gratitude to the federal government. He also recently referred to her as Half Whitmer on Twitter, as Whitmer has criticized the federal response to the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis.

The tensions have eased somewhat in recent days. On Saturday, Trump approved Whitmers request to declare Michigan as a major disaster zone, and the president and governor talked Tuesday about Michigans ongoing needs for responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Whitmers spokeswoman.

Its a de-escalation that needs to happen, say some Republicans, including Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, who lives in Michigan.

Everyone should be shedding the partisanship and coming together, McDaniel told the Associated Press in an interview where she was asked about Trumps attacks

I am rooting for Gov. Whitmer, said McDaniel, who also suggested some of Trumps criticism has been mischaracterized. I think shes done good things. ... I just didnt like her trying to lay every problem at the presidents feet.

John Truscott, a close aide to former Gov. John Engler and who now heads the Truscott Rossman public relations firm, is more blunt.

I do believe it was completely unnecessary, Truscott said about Trumps tweets and statements about Whitmer. It was an attack and in a crisis, that just doesnt have any place in the conversation.

Everybody knows this is a very stressful time. This is the most difficult crisis weve dealt with in a century. And so, tone matters and words matter, and you just have to be very, very careful.

U.S. Reps. Fred Upton and Paul Mitchell, both members of Michigans GOP Congressional delegation, also have pushed back against Trumps attacks.

Mitchell, whose district goes from northern Macomb County to the Thumb region, told the Associated Press that he raised concerns directly with the White House. He said he also told Whitmers office that her criticisms may have not been accurate.

I did relay to the (Trump) administration that I didnt think it was helpful and why play that game, Mitchell told the AP. These are times when the American people look for leaders. Leaders dont whine. Leaders dont blame.

Upton, who represents southwest Michigan including Kalamazoo, stressed the need for political unity.

The challenges we are facing require all of us to leave our politics at the door," Upton said in statement to MLive. Ive been in constant communication with both the Governor and the President and all of my Michigan colleagues from both parties. I continue to urge all leaders to work together and remain focused on solutions.

Michigan Republican Party Chairman Laura Cox said that polling shows rising support for Trump.

I am confident that, through President Trumps leadership, our nation will get past this difficult time, and I firmly believe that the voters of Michigan will reward him with a second term this November," Cox said.

But criticizing Whitmer at this point is bad politics in a state that Trump badly needs to win in November, said Bernie Porn, pollster for Epic Era in Lansing.

I can think of nothing dumber on the part of President Trump than to criticize Gretchen Whitmer and the actions that she has taken on coronavirus, Porn said. "Shes getting a 70%-plus positive job rating, not from our polls but from other polls looking at her handling of coronavirus. Trump is getting in the low 40s.

Thats a big gap and so its rather stupid for him to pick a fight with Whitmer, especially considering Michigan is a battleground state key to his winning in 2016, Porn said. Its kind of a head-scratcher.

T.J. Bucholz, a Michigan Democratic strategist who heads Vanguard Public Affairs, agreed its bad strategy -- and as Democrat, I hope he keeps doing it," saying it hurts Trump more than Whitmer.

Its not the time right now to levy political attacks on people, he said. I think they backfire, and were starting to see that with Trump.

Trump is showing his stripes here, in terms of how he feels about us as a state, Bucholz said. The most egregious was Trump even suggesting that Michigan might not get a federal declaration because of Whitmers mouth. Thats terrible.

Jeff Timmer, a Michigan Republican strategist who has been critical of Trump, said its unlikely that the president will take the advice to lay off the attacks on Whitmer.

He reacts first and then tries to dig himself out of the hole afterward, Timmer said. The fact that hes stopped criticizing Gretchen Whitmer for a couple of days is only because she hasnt for a couple of days pointed out the failings of his administration.

I think that the more she gets mentioned as a potential vice presidential candidate, the more he will lash out at her, Timmer said.

And not everyone is urging an end to partisan politics when it comes to coronavirus.

Michigans Trump re-election campaign sent out a press release Wednesday that said it was an April Fools joke to trust Whitmers leadership of Michigan.

The press release criticized Whitmer for waiting until March 26 to file a request to a federal disaster declaration, and said she made unsubstantiated claims that vendors had canceled shipments of medical supplies to Michigan.

Meanwhile, the Michigan Democratic Party held a press call to to criticize Trumps slow, ineffective response to COVID-19 that they say "has put thousands of Michigan health care workers and patients in peril.

While Whitmer is not on the November 2020 ballot, its clear that Trumps handling of the coronavirus crisis will be a top issue in the 2020 presidential campaign, Timmer said.

A few thousand dead Michigan residents is not going to be easily forgotten, Timmer said.

This will be the defining issue of an election that was already going to be a referendum on Trump personally, he said. Thats all this election was going to be before this, and his handling of this will be the only thing that will matter.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more on MLive:

Three weeks into Michigans coronavirus crisis, the numbers are rising exponentially

Whitmer says those who dont follow Michigan stay home order are incredibly selfish,' risk coronavirus spread

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer discusses states coronavirus response needs with President Trump

Global condom shortage expected during coronavirus lockdown
Hillsborough County sheriff Chad Chronister. Photo: ABC Action News / YouTube

Netflixs hit Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness delivers on its title and then some. Although it centers on roadside exotic-animal zookeeper Joe Exotic, it pivots toward the equally absorbing lives of other individuals, including one woman who runs Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Florida. Joe Exotic  whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage  is serving 22 years in federal prison on multiple charges including violating the Endangered Species Act and murder-for-hire. The flamboyant zookeeper, who once ran for president of the United States, was convicted this year of trying to hire a hit man to kill Big Cats founder, Carole Baskin, who criticized his zoos treatment of animals, and for killing five tiger cubs.

But the docuseries also tells Baskins intricate story, which includes the mysterious disappearance of her second husband, Don Lewis, on August 18, 1997. Baskin, who said she last saw her husband early that morning as he was packing up a truck to drive to Miami and then fly to Costa Rica, has long maintained she had nothing to do with her husbands disappearance, but the series calls that into question. On her organizations blog, Baskin posted a lengthy rebuttal of the shows portrayal of her and her work.

On Monday, March 30, Hillsborough County sheriff Chad Chronister, who serves the Tampa, Florida, area, tweeted that his department is open to receiving new leads on the case. Since then, Chronister told Vulture that detectives have been receiving about six tips a day, most of them from rabid fans of the series promoting their theories, which he doesnt hold against them. He watched Tiger King with his wife and son and was as riveted as everyone else. Chronister took time out of his busy schedule  this week, his department arrested a megachurch pastor for violating the countys stay-at-home order and holding services  to talk to Vulture about Lewis and his missing-person case.

How much did you personally know about this case when you started watching Tiger King?

Im gonna be honest with you: I didnt know much at all. Twenty-eight years ago, when I started, I was a narcotics detective. I was in the undercover world, and I had nothing to do with the case. But I was telling my wife, as we sat down and watched it all, these memories came flooding back. Oh my God, I remember this. I remember them saying this. It led me to call the detective supervisors and the commander over our homicide section and say, I think we need to sit down and have a meeting. I think we need to garner whatever attention we can from the popularity of this phenomenon thats going on right now. How exciting is it that everyones staying home? Theyre doing what everyones asking to do. Stay away from each other. So theyre watching Netflix. But we need to take advantage of this. Because as you watch the show, and you see how complicated everyones lives were  and Don Lewiss life was no less complicated; hed fit right in  you saw how everyone had to show their loyalty almost on a daily basis because theyre all so competitive. Well, maybe one of those relationships have soured by now. Or maybe this will refresh someones memory and we can take advantage of that and get the missing piece to finally solve this missing-person case.

The case has just remained open all these years?

Correct. The last thing we did was back in 2010. We met with Dons kids, and took samples of their DNA, and entered that into a database figuring if his body was ever recovered, we would be able to garner DNA from it and be able to positively identify him there. He had been arrested a few times, so we had his fingerprint records, we had his dental records, but back then we didnt have any type of DNA samples. And then in 2011, we reached out and asked Carole to come in and take a polygraph. And she did decline to take a polygraph. She said that her legal counsel said that it wouldnt prohibit the sheriffs office from ever pursuing criminal charges on her in the future and that theres no benefit or gain for her. So that was the last action weve taken. Since then, its been quiet. We havent received any tips or leads, and it has truly become a cold case, for a lack of a better term. And then when the Netflix documentary came out, its generating a ton of leads. Were getting on average about six a day right now, and we assigned a homicide supervisor to comb through those leads. Now, none of those leads have been deemed viable to date. Most of the tips have been from individuals who have watched the documentary, and they have their theories that he was murdered, and who committed the murder, and this is the reason why they did it.

Oh my Lord.

[Laughs] Ive told my detectives not to get upset, because someone may call and cause us to look at this case from a different lens, and maybe that will help us solve the case. I certainly dont discount it. But you saw the documentary, where everyone believed that he was buried under the septic tank. Well, that septic tank wasnt put in until years after his disappearance. That was a dead end. There something about the meat grinders, and people asked, Why didnt you get DNA from the meat grinders? Well, the meat grinders where removed. They stopped using them weeks before his disappearance. But people watching the documentary dont know a lot of the information weve already investigated. At every turn, it seemed our investigators were met with another obstacle. Everyone thought that he took a private plane to Costa Rica or wherever. Well, there was no manifest that he had ever left the United States. For some reason, he had two passports, but neither one of them were flagged with him leaving the country. So that kind of refuted the theory that he was in Costa Rica.

And then theres the will. I know that was a big point of contention: that the will was forged. Certainly, like you and everyone else, I am suspect of the will. Ive never heard, in my 52 years of life or in my 28 years in law enforcement, of anyone creating a will that stated if Im missing, or kidnapped, please leave the bulk of my wealth to this individual. So a lot of that was suspect. And then we had someone who worked for Carole who said, Yes, I witnessed all the signatures.

And then, later on, she recanted her statement. Our detectives and our detective supervisor went to Costa Rica, and, even there, they were met with different obstacles. He had some business dealings with some extremely shady people down there, almost equivalent to a Costa Rican Mafia. There were people upset because he was having sexual encounters with younger females down there. Some of their parents were upset. He was taking money and clothes down there for them. He was paying individuals to have sex down there. He did have a girlfriend down there, too. But then theyd go to interview two security guards who worked at the entrance of his property, spent eight to 12 hours together every day, and wed separate them. One would say he hasnt seen Don in six weeks; the other would say he just saw him. At every turn, there was an obstruction. When I say that Don Lewiss life was no different and no less complicated than anyone portrayed in that documentary, I mean it.

Well, you just answered several of my questions. Have you seen the blog post that Carole posted to refute claims in the documentary? One of the things she says is that Don Lewis was not really wealthy. What did the investigation show?

We estimate his net worth, at the time, to be around $5 million to $7 million. To me, thats wealthy. I guess thats a matter of perspective, depending if youre living at a greater revenue. But, to me, it is wealth. We talked to some of his office managers back then. And I remember one said that Don was upset that Carole had spent so much money on the cat rescue. He wasnt happy about that. And he was taking cashiers checks out that he was taking to Costa Rica in $20,000, $30,000, and $40,000 increments. He would hide money in the clothes that he would take down to people in Costa Rica. It just got more and more complicated.

What kind of business did he have in Costa Rica?

The brothers that he was involved with had a helicopter business. There are rumors that he was loaning them money. But we could never confirm that, because of the money being offshore and maybe being hidden in different accounts. But you cant get subpoenas for Costa Rica to get cooperation from anyone down there, so it was yet another obstacle that our detectives faced as they were trying to follow the money trail.

In her post, Carole also wrote about how in the months before he disappeared, Dons behavior had gotten really bizarre. She said he was hoarding vehicles, dumpster diving, that it was suggested maybe he had Alzheimers but then was diagnosed as bipolar. Did your department look into any of that?

No, I cant confirm any of that. None of our detectives have indicated anything like that.

As part of the review you are doing now, are you proactively investigating the case, or are you just collecting tips to see where that may lead?

The case has never been closed. Ive asked that a detective supervisor be the one assigned to all the new leads that would come in, to deem them viable or unviable and then work with other detectives if a viable lead does come in. I think its important. Now that its gained this type of notoriety, Im even more motivated than before, and even more optimistic, hoping that we can bring closure to Don Lewiss family and try to seek justice if indeed he was murdered.

In the documentary, it says Carole was the last person to see him alive, when he asked her to pack up a truck to go down to Miami to go to Costa Rica.

He asked her to grab one of the trucks and pack it full of supplies, that they were gonna go to Miami and then head to Costa Rica from there. He drove away in the truck and said, Ill be back. And she says thats the last time she saw him. And that was at 7:15 a.m.

Did you corroborate that, or was that her statement?

Thats just her statement. I think thats where technology would have helped us with this case. If this would have happened today, you have GPS, you have cell phones. Another thing that I want to mention is that people have brought up how her brother worked here and helped to cover it up. He was a patrol deputy. That morning, she had gone to the store at three oclock in the morning to get some milk for the cats that she had at the rescue. He wasnt too far from her. Weve been able to confirm he had a burglary suspect under arrest, so he wasnt around during that time frame. We can account for his whereabouts. And other than that, he had no involvement in the case. He was extremely cooperative, just like her. Shes always made herself available and has always been cooperative. I cant deem her as uncooperative just because we asked her to take a polygraph and she said no. She can exercise that right.

I cant stress enough that the individuals in that documentary were all  complicated is the most polite word I can use. Its crazy just how crazy how all their lives were. Don Lewis fit right in. I guess thats what made it intriguing and entertaining and why its become such a big hit.

Everything youve just described makes it believable that Don Lewis would just decide to disappear, except for one important thing: that he left his money behind. It seems youre saying you think it is suspicious, and you dont believe he just walked away.

Oh, absolutely. Probably the two largest indicators that make his disappearance suspicious is not leaving his kids anything in the will and that the will said if I disappear or get kidnapped, leave my money to this individual. Ive heard of wealthy people wanting to get away or disappear. But Ive never heard of one disappearing and not taking their money with them. Who can forecast that they might disappear? [Laughs] It all comes back to entertainment and intrigue and why were having this conversation.
European hospitals could run out of drugs being used to treat COVID-19 patients in intensive care within days, a hospitals body has warned.

The European University Hospital Alliance said in a statement sent to national governments that hospitals across the continent could run out of stocks of muscle relaxants, sedatives and painkillers in less than two weeks.

But at the hardest-hit hospitals, existing stocks might only last two days.

"The most urgent need now is for the drugs that are necessary for intensive care patients," the alliance said, noting that shortages have led some hospitals to buy alternative drugs or try other doses on patients.

"It is extremely worrying that overworked and often less-experienced nurses and doctors-in-training, drafted to fill the gaps, have to use products and dosages that they are not used to."

The group, which represents nine university hospitals in Austria, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden and Spain, said some governments were coping with the crisis by refusing to export to others.

That could exacerbate current shortages, the alliance wrote.

It said: "No single country in Europe has the production facilities to provide all the drugs (or protective gear or ventilators) needed. Co-ordinated European action will be of vital importance."

Spain , the second-worst hit country in terms fatalities, passed a grim milestone on Thursday as it recorded its 10,000th death from the pandemic.

A new record 950 COVID-19 deaths were recorded on Thursday, although the growth in infections is waning, health ministry data showed.

Spain also lost nearly 900,000 jobs, although that figure is dwarfed by the US, where 6.6 million new unemployment claims were made last week.

In New York state, the number of deaths doubled in 72 hours to more than 1,900.

In the city, bodies were loaded on to refrigerated mortuary trucks outside overwhelmed hospitals.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said: "How does it end? And people want answers. I want answers. The answer is nobody knows for sure."

Story continues

In Italy , where the total of 13,915 deaths is the highest globally, another 760 deaths were reported on Thursday as mortuaries overflowed with bodies and coffins piled up in churches.

Experts drew hope that the spread was already slowing in the country.

Sky's Sally Lockwood, in Rome, said the lockdown there could start to be lifted "incrementally, by generations, soon" although she warned that schools "might not go back until September".

In Italy, "they have upscaled their ICUs", she said, while in Spain "14% of healthcare staff are infected", a third of hospitals are at full capacity in ICUs.

Close to 940,000 people around the world have contracted the virus, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University, and more than 47,000 people have died.

In other developments:
Information is freedom, but false information can be deadly. The free press is one of the prime disseminators of information in the US, and its role is even more important in the time of ingrained social media and the global crisis of the coronavirus. While the world reels from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, mainstream media, from national news outlets to local publications, are vulnerable to infection from viral, false information.

Social media is a breeding ground for viral, and in the time of the coronavirus, potentially deadly false information. In the time of the internet and social media, false information and memes propagate like a deadly pandemic. Local newspapers, TV stations, radio, and podcasts need to be extra vigilant to wash their news thoroughly (with soap) to make sure they dont spread fake information.

In France, a viral post suggested that snorting cocaine kills the coronavirus. Hopefully, most people would not take that seriously and rush out to buy a bunch of cocaine, pile it on their desk, and tell the coronavirus to Say hello to my little friend. But the post was spread widely enough  and taken seriously enough  that the French health ministry had to issue a statement that cocaine does not actually kill the virus.

Imagine if an article was published about someone who had recovered from COVID-19 and stated they had snorted cocaine daily as part of their home treatment. For one, a journalist should probably not put that in the article. And if they did, they should clarify, distinctly, that cocaine does not kill the virus. Its the combined responsibility of the journalist and the publications editor to ensure that snorting cocaine to kill the coronavirus does not get presented as truth.

Another viral post in the US had a bunch of tips to test and protect oneself from the coronavirus supposedly from a member of the Stanford Hospital Board. While not as extreme as the cocaine post, the tips included gurgling water and salt as a preventative measure and testing ones lungs by holding your breath for 10 seconds. Stanford University issued a statement about the post, and multiple national media outlets covered, and corrected, the myths in the post.

Still, the post simmers and is currently being spread on blogs, social media, and has even infected mainstream media. For example, if an article quotes one of the false tips from a COVID-19 patient who has recovered, its the responsibility of the publication to not present it as fact.

Ideally, any publication of false information by any media outlet should only be to refute it. Quotes from sources that repeat any myth shouldnt be published. Media consumers notoriously have short attention spans and may not fully absorb that the paragraph following a quote of fake information disputes that information.

Media consumers also do not necessarily have the training to cognitively question and verify information published by the media they ingest. If they see a post from Stanford, a name that inherently establishes credibility, they typically do not actually go to the Stanford website to check if it is valid. If the fake information is published as truth by another source they trust  a local newspaper, for example  it further ingrains the infection of fake information into their psyche.

Locally, the post surfaced on Nextdoor, the social media platform to connect neighbors and neighborhoods. Fortunately, the post was disputed in comments and flagged by users enough that it was deleted. Some social media and blogs can be self-correcting by users, although there may be lingering damage from the initial post.

More mainstream media  local newspapers, TV news, radio, etc.  must rely more on the firewall of their journalists and editors. Feedback does happen through letters to the editor or contacting the journalist/editor directly. But often thats too late. While some may read/watch/listen to a retraction of previously published false information, many will not see it, potentially perpetuating the myth. And sometimes, theres no response from the publication at all.

While media outlets inherently should be vigilant in publishing accurate information, its extremely important now. Its important during the crisis to not pack the news with if it bleeds, it leads stories. While those are important, stories of hope, recovery, and goodwill can bolster communities under stress. Regardless of the angle, journalists should check every piece of information from their sources. To not do so is irresponsible journalism in normal times. In the time of the coronavirus, it can be deadly.
Early last year, NASA introduced an ambitious plan to return American astronauts to the Moon and also establish a permanent base there, with an eye toward ultimately positioning astronauts on Mars. The Artemis Moon Program has its share of doubters, including many in the US House of Representatives, that appear to choose a more powerful concentrate on a crewed goal to Mars. As Ars Eric Berger reported last August, NASA stands a very real threat of turning the Artemis Program into a repeat of the Beauty Program a flags-and-footprints sprint back to the Moon without follow-through in the form of a lunar base or a sustained existence in deep space.

If the Artemis Programs ambitious objectives survive the appropriations process, materials science will be crucial to its success, particularly when it comes to the materials needed to construct a viable lunar base. Concrete, as an example, needs a significant quantity of included water in order to be functional in situ, and also there is a noticable short supply of water on the moon. In a brand-new paper in the Journal of Cleanser Manufacturing, an international group of scientists recommends that astronauts establishing a base on the moon could utilize the urea in their urine as a plasticizer to produce a concrete-like building material out of lunar soil.

Theres absolutely a strong debate to be created utilizing existing products on the Moon itself to create a lunar base. NASA approximates that it sets you back around $10,000 to transport one extra pound of product right into orbit, according to the writers. Previous propositions have asked for 3D printing with Sorel cement, which calls for substantial amounts of chemicals and water (consumables), and also a rocklike product that would call for both water and phosphoric acid as a liquid binder. (The latter could be better matched to constructing a base on Mars.).

Surging lunar regolith (the penalty grainy soil on the surface of the Moon) with geopolymers can provide an option. Geopolymers bring several advantages to the concrete mix: they are immune to fire and have reduced thermal conductivity, supply radiation protecting, and can hold up against the elements of the extreme lunar atmosphere (high quantities of sulfates, for example, in addition to strikes from acid and salt). They generally reveal good freeze/thaw resistance and also high compressive stamina, also.

3D printing is preferred for lunar building and construction to lessen risks to people on the Moon throughout building and construction, yet that layer-by-layer production strategy needs a product that is pliable sufficient for extrusion, among other preferable buildings. On Earth, one could simply include extra water, yet this is not practical on the Moon. There are supposed super-plasticizers that would certainly be perfect for this function, yet there are no normally happening super-plasticizers on the Moon either, so this, as well, would certainly require pricey transport. (Plasticizers are chemical ingredients that serve to soften first concrete mixes so that they are flexible adequate to pour or shape prior to setting.).

Yet there will certainly be human astronauts on the Moon throughout construction, generating natural waste (urine and feces). As well as the urea component in pee might serve as a reliable super-plasticizer for 3D printing building materials for lunar bases. Scientists from Norway, Spain, the Netherlands, as well as Italy set out to establish evidence of concept with the European Area Firms blessing. (In Addition To its Chinese counterpart, the ESA is additionally interested in establishing a lunar base.).

 To make the geopolymer concrete that will certainly be used on the Moon, the concept is to utilize what is there: regolith loosened material from the Moons surface area as well as the water from the ice present in some locations, said co-author Ramon Pamies of the Polytechnic College of Cartagena (Murcia). With this research we have seen that a waste item, such as the urine of the workers who occupy the Moon bases, can additionally be used. The two major components of this body fluid are water as well as urea, a molecule that permits the hydrogen bonds to be damaged as well as for that reason decreases the thickness of several liquid combinations..

The group made use of an artificial product developed by the ESA with comparable qualities as lunar regolith, adding urea, a polycarboxylate-based super-plasticizer, and also a naphthalene-based super-plasticizer to various sets, in addition to making a control batch without any super-plasticizer. The researchers used a 3D printer to make mud cylinders out of each batch. They evaluated each batch for the capability to support heavy weights while preserving shape, consisting of after each of 8 freeze/thaw cycles, imitating as much as feasible the extreme lunar problems.

The results: the batches without super-plasticizer and the polycarboxylate-based super-plasticizer verified as well tight for 3D printing and also were prone to fracturing. The batches with urea- and naphthalene-based super-plasticizers, on the other hand, proved flexible enough for extrusion with little (naphthalene) to no (urea) fractures, as well as they likewise kept their form under heavy external loads. Both those batches showed a decrease in compressive strength and some microcracks after eight freeze/thaw cycles, however. Overall, urea exhibits promising properties as a super-plasticizer for 3D printing of lunar geopolymers, the authors concluded.

More to do.

This is primarily a proof of principle, and more experiments are needed. The materials were not subjected to a vacuum, for instance, which could cause crack formation due to the evaporation of volatile components. The team also has not yet evaluated how well lunar regolith geopolymers would hold up under meteorite bombardment or how well they would shield humans from high radiation levels.

Theres also one other pragmatic concern. We have not yet investigated how the urea would be extracted from the urine, as we are assessing whether this would really be necessary, because perhaps [urines] other components could also be used to form the geopolymer concrete, co-author Anna-Lena Kjniksen said. The actual water in the urine could be used for the mixture, together with that which can be obtained on the Moon, or a combination of both..
[April 02, 2020] Bold Commerce Launches 'Buylocal.ly' Platform to Help Businesses Connect with Customers

Bold Commerce today announced the launch of its all-new buylocal.ly online directory and platform, which is designed to quickly and easily connect businesses in local markets with consumers. Buylocal.ly was created amid the COVID-19 pandemic as a way to help local restaurants and stores let their community know that they are operational, along with business hours, pickup and delivery instructions, location information, and business category. The free directory makes it easy for residents of any city throughout North America to shop at and support local businesses. In just a few steps on the buylocal.ly website, businesses can register and create a free listing to add their store, service, or restaurant to the online directory. Consumers that visit the buylocal.ly website can search for nearby businesses through a broad city search, or by narrowing down the local area based on their address, postal code or zip code. They can further narrow their search results by category such as restaurants, retail, and health.Users can also filter their search to only show businesses offering curbside pickup, delivery, or dedicated hours for senior citizens.



Following a soft launch in Winnipeg this past weekend, the platform saw more than 500 local businesses creating listings in the directory, which includes information on delivery and pickup services available and how to place orders amid government requests for people to shelter-in-place and practice physical distancing. Bold will continue to add new features daily as adoption grows across the continent. "We heard loud and clear from our customers and others in the local community that there was a growing need for a consolidated and go-to resource that would help both businesses and consumers quickly and easily discover restaurants, shops, and services that remain operational amid the pandemic," said Yvan Boisjoli, CEO and co-founder of Bold Commerce. "Over this past weekend, while we were still iterating and testing the platform ahead of today's official launch, we saw thousands of visitors to the website, a clear indication that local residents are indeed looking for ways to continue to shop locally and do their part to help keep businesses going in the community."

"Winnipeg is an amazing place, knowing that people and businesses like Bold Commerce are creating and executing ideas like buylocal.ly," said Bobby Mottola, Managing Partner of Academy Hospitality, and President and Owner of Pizzeria Gusto. "This platform helps keep our staff working and allows us to continue making food, which in turn provides comfort and normalcy at the dinner table for our guests." "The last few weeks have been the most trying times for me since starting my florist business almost 20 years ago. Flowers are always part of special occasions, from weddings to funerals and the little moments to just brighten your day. Celebrations and memorials have changed as we know them. Family can't attend the special moments they have always been a part of," said Julie Myers, owner of Floral Fixx Design Studio, reflecting on the sudden contrast to how her business has operated for decades. "I've had so many touching phone calls from people trying to share their emotions through the gift of flowers when they can't be there in person. The buylocal.ly site will help me connect with customers that are looking for a beautiful way to brighten the day of a loved one, friend, colleague, or employee." "I'm in awe of the resilience of entrepreneurs that have adapted overnight to the impact this pandemic has had on their business and on the lives of those around them," said Boisjoli "I'm hoping that this tool will help communities throughout North America come together to support each other during these difficult days." Any local organizations, Chambers of Commerce, or others looking to use buylocal.ly for community initiatives can contact Suzy Bodiroga at [email protected]. About Bold

Bold Commerce offers customizable commerce solutions that empower merchants to grow their business. With over 90,000 customers worldwide and close to 2,000 technology and agency partners, Bold is committed to continuous innovation and world-class service to lead the way in ecommerce solutions. Bold is headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba and also has an office in Austin, Texas. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005523/en/

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In a decisive measure to protect Karnataka based companies that manufacture parts and systems for the assembly lines of global aerospace and defence (A&D) majors like Boeing and Airbus, the state government has exempted local A&D manufacturers from the nationwide anti-Covid-19 lockdown and permitted them to resume manufacturing activities with immediate effect. The State Government hereby [exempts] industries supplying to Defence & Aerospace manufacturing from the purview of the Lockdown and further to relax the restrictions imposed on the movement of ...

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I really dont care about money right now, I care about YOU  You shouldnt be struggling to find a roof for your family.

Thats the shocking email 38-year-old Sarah Vanderhelm received from Chris Boyes, the landlord of her downtown Toronto condo. This comes after a devastating time when Vanderhelm had been laid off from her dream job as a cook, with no income during the COVID-19 pandemic.

While others are scrambling to pay rent, landlords as of Wednesday are still allowed to threaten tenants with eviction, though Premier Doug Ford promised no tenants would lose their homes during the outbreak. Thats why this message touched Vanderhelm so deeply, especially coming from someone who shed only met once.

It made me tear up, it really did. A person we dont really consider family is treating his tenants like family, she says.

On top of that, Boyes also offered all tenants who were struggling to afford basics to contact him if they needed supplies like medicine or groceries that he could deliver.

My tenants are people, and I think we should treat them as such, Chris Boyes wrote to the Star in the email. This past week, hes been busy scrambling to organize his own books as he freezes rent for his 36 tenants.

How can I possibly ask someone to pay rent when theyve lost their job and it wasnt their fault? This is downtown Toronto. Rent is anything but cheap here.

Having lived paycheque-to-paycheque in the city, Boyes also says hes paying a good deed forward, just as his former landlord did when he had faced tough times. When I ended up losing my job, (my landlord) completely waived my rent payment for the couple months I had no income for. I am now in a fortunate position to do so.

On top of the delivery runs and the temporary rent freeze, Boyes is urging his tenants who have not lost their jobs to store their money away for a rainy day instead of paying rent. Even if you are capable of paying rent, hold onto the money for your own good. We do not know whats to come, he wrote in the letter.

The email Boyes sent to his tenants  which was screenshotted by Vanderhelm and sent to her brother Dale who later posted on Twitter  has received praise, with more than 1,000 retweets since it was posted Tuesday. Unfortunately, some responses from other Twitter users show a completely different story through email screenshots of landlords demanding rent payments from their tenants.

I have a few messages, to not only landlords but to the government. Tenants are often left out to dry. Lets support them, he says. Start treating tenants as people.

Boyess generosity is something Vanderhelm hopes catches on with other landlords. Its disappointing that what Chris did is a rare occurrence. It should be the other way around. Im so fortunate to have such an amazing landlord.
The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 on the African continent as of Wednesday was 6,261 with over 200 fatalities.

The potential for an explosive growth of the pandemic is already clear, due to the prevalence of slums and overcrowded working class areas housing the most vulnerable in every country.

World Health Organisation Secretary General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has pleaded, Dont abandon the poorest to coronavirus. Africa should wake up, he declared. As far as the fate of the African working class goes, his appeal will fall on deaf ears of the continents ruling elite and the imperialist powers.

Alexandra township in Johannesurgwith some 20,000 informal dwellingsand Cape Towns Khayelitsha township, the second largest township in South Africa, have already confirmed cases.

In Khayelitsha, a 25-year-old woman tested positive and is in isolation with her three-year-old daughter. She was in contact with members of her family and a childminder. According to Times Live, the young woman was left to potentially infect others, while local authorities and the African National Congress government squabbled over who should take responsibility for her.

Following reports in Rwanda that two young men had been murdered by the police for violating the lockdown, the South African media reported that a man in Volsoorus, outside Johannesburg, had been shot and killed by metropolitan police.

According to Times Live, following a confrontation with a group of people, the police discharged rubber bullets. It is alleged that the deceased, Sibusiso Amos, 40, was followed up to his veranda where he was fatally shot.

After the release of the officer who shot Amos, Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) spokesperson, Sontaga Seisa, tried to placate public anger, telling the press, He [the officer] is out now but that does not mean he is off the hook. I want to emphasise that being out does not mean he is not involved in this murder and other charges.

The police have been charged with two further counts of murder in relation to the lockdown and are being investigated by the IPID.

The South African military is also being investigated after videos surfaced showing soldiers degrading treatment of people who allegedly violated the lockdownwith some forced to do push ups, sits ups and other exercises. The Financial Times reports more such abuses, including footage of a balaclava-clad soldier who was seen kicking and beating civilians caught outside in the lockdown.

Nigerias lockdown, which began on Monday, is set to put 30 million people under quarantine in Abuja, Lagos and Ogun. The Nigerian military and the police are enforcing the lockdown.

In Kenya, Amnesty International and 19 other human rights groups in a joint statement noted that they continue to receive testimonies from victims, eyewitnesses and video footage showing police gleefully assaulting members of the public in other parts of the country. Police indiscriminately threw tear gas, frog marched and beat up members of the public trying to get home in time for the curfew.

The statement continues, We have testimonies from suppliers and trained medical practitioners who experienced intimidation and threats of arrest as they tried to provide services during the lockdown.

Riven by social inequality, with ruling elites who will stop at nothing to protect their wealth, African governments are exploiting the lockdown to impose de facto martial law and abrogate democratic rights as they prepare for serious opposition from the working class.

Even as the national bourgeoisie clamour for aid and bailout packages and coronabonds from the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, they remain subordinate economically and politically to the major powers. Global markets have rendered their policies of import substitution largely ineffective. The ruling elites are bitterly hostile to an independent movement of the working class which would challenge their rule.

The dissolution of the Soviet Union brought with it a resurgence of neo-colonialism, culminating in a new scramble for Africaas US imperialism tries to offset the growing economic influence of Chinese capitalism on the continent, while the old colonial European powers try to maintain a foot hold.

The Financial Times reported that Ken Ofori-Atta, chairman of the joint World Bank-IMF Development Committee, had co-chaired a meeting in which African finance ministers called for a $100bn stimulus package. It noted that the IMF said it was making $50bn available for emerging countries, with $10bn for low-income countries.

However, the struggle for control of vital mineral and oil reserves, spheres of influence and other raw materials and markets means all aid or debt relief is tied to demands for free access to local markets by multinational corporations. The bulk of the debt will then be re-imposed on the backs of the poor, as ever deeper attacks are made on the working population to pay back the corporations, banks and financial institutions, like the IMF and World Bank.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) recently warned that half of all jobs could be lost on the African continent because of the pandemicwhen 60 percent of the population remains unemployed and job insecurity soars.

Achim Steiner, administrator of the UNDP, said, Without support from the international community, we risk a massive reversal of gains made over the last two decades, and an entire generation lost, if not in lives then in rights, opportunities, and dignity.

This comes as the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) warns that Africa is two to three weeks away from being overwhelmed by the coronavirus storm.

Africa accounts for 1% of global health expenditure yet it carries 23% of the disease burden, including hundreds of thousands of deaths each year from malaria, HIV/Aids and tuberculosis, UNECA Executive Secretary Vera Songwe told Bloomberg. Our hospital systems are so weak and so stressed already that another stress on them is going to break them.

She warned, If there is one African country or one country anywhere in the world that still has the coronavirus, the whole world has it. Weve seen the speed of contamination and how quickly it can re-spread.

A study by Imperial College in London showed that if early action had been taken to slow the spread of the virus, 800,000 would die from the coronavirus in Africa. However, if it was delayed, this number would soar to 4 million.

Save the Children UK chief executive Kevin Watkins told The Express, If we act now and act decisively, we can prevent and contain the pandemic threat facing the poorest countries Delaying prevention and containment in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa will not only claim many lives in those regions, it will potentially fuel the pandemic in Europe, North America and other regions. Failure to act now will increase the numbers infected by coronavirus in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa by almost one billion.

Oxfam International executive Jose Maria Vera said, Without urgent, ambitious and historic action, we could easily see the biggest humanitarian crisis since World War Two We can only beat this pandemic if we act in solidarity with every country and for every person. No one is safe until we are all safe.

An internationally coordinated response to stop the spread of the virus on the African continent is urgent. Without measures to provide the necessary medical equipment and staff to halt the pandemic, the contagion will spread, killing millions and risks blowback on the entire world. Mark Lowcock, UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, told Bloomberg. If we leave coronavirus to spread freely in these places, the virus will have the opportunity to circle back around the globe.

Only by building a socialist leadership in the working class, pulling behind it the impoverished peasantry and in unity with workers in the imperialist centres, can the working class in Africa prepare the uncompromising struggle against the banks, corporations and world imperialism now required.
A healthy Australian grandmother died alone in hospital from coronavirus aged just 67, as her infected husband lay isolated a few doors away.

Janet Lieben, from Blayney, New South Wales, caught the deadly respiratory infection on a once-in-a-lifetime cruise on the doomed Ruby Princess ship.

Her husband Jerry, a Vietnam veteran, was also infected, and was in the same hospital when Ms Lieben died alone in an ICU cubicle on Wednesday.

'He was absolutely distraught, he's inconsolable,' a hospital source told the Daily Telegraph.

'He couldn't comfort her, he's sick himself with the virus, there was nothing he could do but let her go, it's broken his heart.'

Jerry (pictured, left) and Janet Lieben (right) had been enjoying a special 11-day cruise with old army friends around New Zealand on the doomed Ruby Princess

The couple, who friends said shared a 'special bond', were among the 440 passengers who caught COVID-19 while sailing on the Ruby Princess.

She died at Orange Base Hospital in rural NSW, making her the first patient to die in the state outside of Sydney.

The virus-stricken ship docked in Sydney on March 19 after an 11-day trip to New Zealand.

Ms Lieben is the seventh person to die from the ship, which was allowed to freely dock in Sydney with passengers spilling out into Circular Quay.

Janet Lieben (pictured) with her beloved dog Benny. The doting grandmother died on Wednesday after suffering complications from COVID-19

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

At least six more people who had not been on the cruise have since caught COVID-19 from its passengers, with that number expected to rise.

On Monday, health officials revealed there were 211 cases of coronavirus from the Ruby Princess in NSW, 70 in Queensland, 71 in South Australia, 43 in Western Australia, 18 in Victoria, 22 in ACT and two in the Northern Territory.

Ms Lieben, a retired factory worker, had been on the cruise with her husband, a former officer with the Australian Army, for a reunion with his former colleagues.

They were among 25 Australians on board the ship for the event, organised by the Air Dispatch Association Australia (ADAA).

ADAA president Nick Nicolai said Mr Lieben had been 'very worried' about his wife's condition earlier this week, while he suffered a 'rasping cough' and chest tightness.

Cruise ship passengers are seen leaving the Ruby Princess (pictured) in Sydney's Circular Quay on March 19

Australia has 5,136 confirmed cases of coronavirus so far, with 24 people dead. Nearly half of those cases are in New South Wales

'Janet was a vibrant, wonderful woman and was very healthy, he said.

'We're a very tight knit community; Janet's death has affected us all.'

NSW chief medical officer Kerry Chant said the ship had been considered 'low risk' before the diagnoses, meaning it could freely dock in Sydney.

The ship had more than 1,100 crew and close to 2,700 passengers, New South Wales health minister Brad Hazzard said last month.

Mr Hazzard said those on board were quickly told to self-isolate, with authorities scrambling to contact thousands of passengers after some tested positive.

A 66-year-old crew member from the Ruby Princess (pictured) is seen being evacuated from the ship on Thursday after suffering coronavirus symptoms

The Ruby Princess cruise ship (pictured) is seen from Kurnell National Park in Sydney on Thursday, with around 1,000 crew members still aboard

Three quarters of coronavirus deaths in Australia can be linked to cruise ships, an aged care centre in Sydney and a cancer treatment ward of a Melbourne hospital

It has now been linked to seven deaths in Australia, including Ms Lieben.

The other victims from the ship are all in their 70s and 80s, and died between March 24 and March 31.

Following the Ruby Princess fiasco, NSW banned all cruise ship passengers from disembarking until new protocols are in place.

Three other Australians died after getting off cruise ships.

James Kwan, 78, died at a Perth hospital on March 1 after returning to Australia from the highly-infected Diamond Princess in Japan.

Garry Kirstenfeldt, 68, died in a Toowoomba hospital on March 25. He was on the Voyager of the Seas which docked in Sydney 11 days earlier.

The crew member, 66, (pictured) had become sick on board and was rescued by an ambulance helicopter

Ray Daniels, 73, died in Joondalalup Hospital in Perth six days after arriving back in Sydney from a New Zealand cruise onboard the Celebrity Solstice.

Five of Australia's 24 deaths came from the same aged care home in Sydney, the Dorothy Henderson Lodge.

Two other deaths came from an outbreak at the oncology ward at Melbourne's Alfred Hospital.

The source of infection for the remaining six people who lost their lives has not been confirmed.

But there are fears the toll from the Ruby Princess could still rise, with many passengers still in hospital - and around 1,000 crew members still onboard.

The Ruby Princess cruise ship (pictured) is seen from Kurnell National Park in Sydney on Thursday, with around 1,000 crew members still aboard

On Thursday night, another crew members was removed from the embattled ship as it remains anchored near Sydney Harbour.

The 66-year-old man was evacuated from the ship, which has become an epicentre of Australia coronavirus outbreak.

It is one of eight cruise ships sitting off the coast of NSW, with officials considering a military-style operation where medics fly to the vessels to test passengers and crew.

They are not allowed to dock, with authorities fearing a further outbreak.

The Australian Border Force and the NSW Health Department both blame the other for allowing passengers to disembark without medical checks, infecting more than 400 people around the country with coronavirus.
The impact of coronavirus and related lockdown showed up in Indias manufacturing activities, which slowed to a four-month low in March and the outlook for coming months too turned subdued.

The manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for India slowed to 51.8 in March from 54.5 in February, according to Nikkei Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index, compiled by IHS Markit.

Follow live updates of coronavirus here

A figure above 50 indicates expansion, while a sub-50 denotes contraction.

"The most prominent signs of trouble for Indian manufacturers came from new export orders and future activity indices, which respectively indicated tumbling global demand and softening domestic confidence," said Eliot Kerr, an economist at HIS Markit.

"The Indian manufacturing sector remained relatively sheltered from the negative impact of the global coronavirus outbreak in March, however, there were pockets of disruption and a clear onset of fear amongst firms," he said.

Track state-wise confirmed coronavirus cases here

Kerr added that should the trajectory of injections continue in the same vein, the Indian manufacturing sector could expect a much sharper negative impact in the coming months, similar to the scale seen in other countries.
Oil prices skyrocketed on Thursday after President Donald Trump told CNBC Saudis and Russia will ease pressure on oil, ending a price war that has contributed to crude's massive plunge.

West Texas Intermediate crude futures surged 24.67% to settle at $25.32 per barrel, for its largest single-day percentage gain in history. Given WTI's 59% decline this year a smaller gain, of course, now accounts for a much larger percentage move. International benchmark Brent crude jumped 17.8%, or $4.40, to trade at $29.14 per barrel.

Trump told CNBC's Joe Kernen Thursday that he spoke to President Putin yesterday and Saudi Crown Prince Thursday and expects them to announce an oil production cut of 10 million barrels and could be up to 15 million.

The president later tweeted that a production cut would be "great for the oil & gas industry!" His comments came before a meeting with energy industry executives scheduled for Friday.

tweet

"It will be very welcomed by the industry in the short run," Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street." "As long as the coronavirus continues, there's just a substantial amount of excess capacity being generated every day ... It will be particularly helpful as we come out of this virus and will speed the time hopefully where the supply-demand for oil can get back into balance."

Oil production is typically discussed in terms of barrels per day, but Trump made no reference to the time frame of the cuts. Additionally, it was not clear how the cuts would be distributed across oil-producing countries.

RBC commodity strategist Helima Croft said the U.S. could have to give up something in return.

"What we know is the Saudis were looking at this through the lens of the financial crisis and believe they needed a response commensurate to 08/09," she said, referring to the collapse of prices during the 2008-09 financial crisis.

"The question is can Trump put together the package that gets them to do that?" Croft said. "We know there's an emergency OPEC meeting. They will be looking for signs that U.S. production will be curtailed. They will be watching what happens with the Texas Railroad Commission and with Canada," she said.
KENT, Ohio -- Kent State University has changed several admissions procedures for fall 2020 applicants due to the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis, citing unprecedented challenges to students and high schools.

Kent State has waived application fees, and moved the deadlines to apply for the fall 2020 semester and to apply for scholarships to May 1, and the deadline to confirm enrollment to June 1. The university has also waived ACT/SAT requirements, since the test was canceled for many students.

Kent will accept unofficial transcripts from high school counselors, and admissions staff will use a more holistic approach in determining whether students are admitted in fall 2020 and fall 2021.

The success of our students is not linked to a single test score, and a holistic admission process will identify unique talents and diverse perspectives that will contribute to our campus community, said Sean Broghammer, associate vice president for enrollment management/admissions.

Melody Tankersley, Kent States interim senior vice president and provost, said the changes are aligned with the universitys commitment to making higher education accessible.

Kent State is always committed to promoting access to higher education, and the need to do so is particularly crucial in these times of unprecedented challenges, Tankersley said. Our faculty and deans are in full support of Kent State using a more holistic approach to evaluate prospective students, and we are all confident that we will maintain the highest academic profile for our incoming class."

For more information, visit Kent State Admissions or contact Broghammer at 330-672-8899 or sbrogham@kent.edu.

See also:

Kent State announces fee and meal-plan refunds for students sent home because of coronavirus

Fund to help Kent State students strapped financially because of the coronavirus crisis

Kent State will pay nothing to Jane Fonda, other May 4 commemoration speakers after cancelations due to coronavirus
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 10:04:22|Editor: huaxia

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by Keren Setton

JERUSALEM, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese doctors who worked in Wuhan, central city of central China's Hubei Province, shared their experience of treating COVID-19 infections with Israeli doctors on Wednesday.

During a video conference, organized by China Global Television Network (CGTN), Chinese doctors spoke to their Israeli colleagues and answered questions about the virus and treatment.

"These meetings are very important, because they allow us to learn from the experience from China," said Nasreen Hassoun from the Infectious Diseases Unit at the Rambam Health Care Campus in Haifa, "We want to know how to treat patients from their experience. We wanted to learn more about clinical data."

"The most important thing we learned is to intervene in the beginning, to not get many severe cases. We learned from the Chinese experience that severe cases are very hard to treat. we still don't know the exact treatment and there have not been proper clinical trials," said Hassoun.

As of Wednesday, more than 5,500 cases have been reported in Israel with 26 deaths and 94 in critical condition . Israel was one of the first countries to impose travel bans when the virus broke out late last year. The country has been under a virtual lockdown in recent weeks since the virus begun to spread in the country in mid-March.

It has been of great public concern that the healthcare system will not be able to cope with a massive influx of intensive care patients. Among the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries, Israel ranks among the lowest in terms of the number of hospital beds per capita.

"The maximum we can do now, is to learn from other places," said Hassoun, "It's important to be open-minded."

The major challenge for physicians and scientists worldwide is significant as no one has dealt with the new virus before. The experience shared by the doctors in Wuhan on Wednesday is valuable to their Israeli counterparts.

"When we learn, we will be able to do better with the next wave of patients," she said.

"Nowadays when the world and information is so open and so transparent to everyone, it is very important to share your experience in order to help people all over the world and I think China has done this," said Haim Maayan from the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Aviv.

"The data sent by Chinese physicians to medical journals was very important," Maayan told Xinhua.

The experience shared on Wednesday is very valuable to physicians. Hopefully such conferences will continue worldwide so everyone can benefit, according to Israeli experts attending the conference.
The General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, Mr. John Boadu has said that from all indications, the president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is forever committed to defeating the corona virus pandemic which has become a global canker and threatening the economies of nations including Ghana.



He cited measures put in place by the president as an evidence of his commitment.



He made this statement when he donated Personal Protective Equipments (PPEs) to Assin Fosu Municipal Health Directorate for onward distribution.



The items include 45 hospital beds, 100 Veronica buckets and stands, 30 gallons of alcohol based hand sanitizer, 200 liquid soaps, 100 bowls, disposable gloves, cartons of antiseptic soap, tissues etc.



This donation, he said, is aimed at augmenting the efforts of government in the fight against the spread of the deadly Covid -19.



Mr. John Boadu hinted that what he was doing in Assin Fosu was going to be replicated around the country to ensure that everyone is adequately educated and protected against the spread of the virus.







Meanwhile, the National Deputy Director of Communications for the NPP, Mr Yaw Preko said the fight against Covid-19 needs collective effort, therefore it must be tackled without any political interference.



On his part, the Municipal Chief Executive for the area, Mr Nicholas Fiifi Baako assured that all measures are in place to ensure the safety of the citizenry. He advised the public to adhere to all the preventive measures put in place.

Source: peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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As the novel coronavirus continues to spread, commercial flights have all but stopped. The situation is so dire that the head of the trade group representing the world's airlines called the last few months "its deepest crisis ever."

A Reuters analysis of data from FlightAware, which tracks air traffic in real-time, reveals a series of sequential and precipitous declines in flights in four key regions as officials sought to contain the outbreak.

From March 24 to March 30, FlightAware tracked about 280,000 flights, down almost 500,000 from the same week a year earlier.

In late March, the International Air Transport Association estimated lost revenue from the coronavirus will exceed $250 billion in 2020 and urged governments to offer immediate financial support to the industry.

The transport association said today's crisis is far worse and more widespread than after 9/11, when U.S. airlines lost approximately $19.6 billion in revenue in 2001-2002. After the terrorist attacks, the U.S. government provided $15 billion to airlines in compensation and loan guarantees.

"Airlines are desperately trying to survive in the most difficult times imaginable," said Alexandre de Juniac, head of the IATA. "We have the people and the experience to see this through. But, to be perfectly frank, we don't have the money."

Congress voted on March 27 to give the U.S. aviation industry $58 billion in a coronavirus rescue package, and Singapore Airlines lined up a $13 billion funding package led by state investor and majority stakeholder Temasek.

AIRLINES LIMIT FLIGHTS

Because of travel restrictions enacted by governments around the world, the number of airlines grounding most or all of their fleets has grown rapidly over the past few weeks.

To account for day-to-day changes in the number of flights on weekends versus weekdays, Reuters measured change in air travel based on the same day a year prior.

In the Middle East, major carriers including Emirates, Flydubai and Saudia, Saudi Arabia's state airline, suspended all passenger flights. Israel's El Al slashed its flight schedule, and Turkish Airlines suspended all international flights on March 27.

In Asia, Singapore Airlines grounded most of its fleet on March 23 after the city-state banned all short-term visitors, and Qantas suspended international flights until at least May after the Australian government banned the arrival of non-citizens and non-residents.

In Europe, passenger data from the region's Airports Council International reveals an even deeper industry crisis than air traffic statistics indicate. As of March 22, the number of passengers traveling into and out of European airports had declined by 88 percent, or 5.2 million fewer daily travelers compared to a year earlier.

In Italy, containment efforts to staunch the spread of the virus triggered a rapid drop. There, data shows a 98 percent decline in passenger travel, or 440,000 fewer daily passengers compared to the same time last year.

Budget airlines Ryanair and easyJet grounded most of their fleets in late March.

U.K. CLOSES WINDOW

The number of passengers arriving to and departing from British airports has also declined, though at a slower pace than elsewhere in Europe. As of March 22, data shows passenger traffic down 82 percent from the same time last year.

One reason for the difference: The UK was originally exempt from the U.S. travel ban on foreign nationals who had recently visited China, Iran and a group of 26 European countries, said Michael Stanton-Geddes, head of economics at ACI-Europe.

The exemption "temporarily protected a lot of transatlantic traffic," he said. "People getting from Europe to the U.S. had to go through London."

As of mid-March, some vacationers were still leaving the UK for European destinations. On March 14, Jet2 turned around flights bound for Spain after the airline canceled all flights to the mainland.

In China, air traffic is starting to pick back up after two months of severe travel restrictions. The country saw a half million fewer flights during the same two-month period compared to the same period a year ago.

A TURBULENT TIME

The drop in flights in the United States following the Trump administration's travel restrictions mirrors the drop in air traffic around the world.

Data from FlightAware shows just 866 international flights arrived in or departed from the United States on March 30, a drop of 83 percent compared to the same day a year ago. Flights involving private business jets and turboprop planes were also down 67 percent in the U.S. and 64 percent worldwide, the data shows.

The number of domestic flights has been less affected than international flights, however. Daily flights within the United States were down 51 percent on Monday compared to a year prior, according to FlightAware data.

But many of those flights have far fewer passengers. Planes are only 10-20 percent full, industry lobby Airlines for America said in late March.

CARGO SUPPLANTS PASSENGERS

So far, the number of cargo flights has remained largely unaffected by the travel restrictions.

Data from FlightAware shows flights by freight and package carriers such as Atlas, Polar, FedEx and UPS arriving in and departing from the United States initially declined during the first week of February 2020. The drop, which correlated to the Hubei Province lockdown, "shows how important China is to the world of international commerce," said Andrew Charlton, an industry analyst.

Shortly thereafter, however, U.S. cargo flights rebounded to previous levels, the data shows.

Because passenger jets transport about half of all air cargo carried worldwide, the grounding of those planes has increased demand for freighters. In response, some commercial airlines such as American, Delta and Virgin Atlantic are using passenger jets solely for shipping cargo.
Getty Images

SpaceX has banned Zoom, saying that it is unsafe.

Elon Musk's private space company said that employees could no longer use the video conferencing app because of "significant privacy and security concerns".

Instead, it advised people working from home to use more traditional methods to communicate with each other, according to a memo first reported by Reuters.

The use of Zoom and other video conference apps has surged in recent weeks, as lockdowns across the world have forced people to stay away from their usual places of work and study.

That has left aerospace companies like SpaceX  which works on highly classified technology and missions from other organisations such as Nasa  rushing to ensure they can still work without compromising national security.

In an email dated March 28, SpaceX told employees that all access to Zoom had been disabled with immediate effect.

"We understand that many of us were using this tool for conferences and meeting support," SpaceX said in the message. "Please use email, text or phone as alternate means of communication."

Those more traditional methods come with their own security problems. Neither traditional email or texts are end-to-end encrypted, meaning that they can be intercepted and read as they are passed between different people.

Two people familiar with the matter confirmed the contents of the mail, Reuters reported. A representative for SpaceX, which has more than 6,000 employees, did not respond to a request for comment.

NASA, one of SpaceX's biggest customers, also prohibits its employees from using Zoom, said Stephanie Schierholz, a spokeswoman for the U.S. space agency.

The FBI's Boston office on Monday issued a warning about Zoom, telling users not to make meetings on the site public or share links widely after it received two reports of unidentified individuals invading school sessions, a phenomenon known as "zoombombing."

Investigative news site The Intercept on Tuesday reported that Zoom video is not end-to-end encrypted between meeting participants, and that the company could view sessions.

Story continues

Zoom did not immediately respond to requests for comment on SpaceXas decision, but it has been advising users to use all the privacy functions on its platform.

As a defence contractor, California-based SpaceX has been classified as an essential business, allowing it to stay open through shutdowns that are in effect in California and Texas, the development and testing hub for its Starship rocket that could be used to get to the moon and Mars and send national security satellites to space.

Additional reporting by Reuters

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An average of 98.6 percent of industrial enterprises above designated size and 76 percent of the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across China have resumed work by March 28, according to Xin Guobin, vice-minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).

Workers package rackets at the workshop of a sporting goods company in Shangguan Township of Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Feb. 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Xu Yu)

At present, Chinas industrial fundamentals have become stable, and the basic trend of steady long-term growth for Chinas economy remains unchanged, Xin said at a press conference held by the joint prevention and control mechanism of the State Council on Monday.

The proportion of employees in industrial companies above designated size who had returned to their posts had reached 89.9 percent as of March 28, Xin said.

Resumption of work and production in the manufacturing sector concerns economic and social stability, Xin stressed, disclosing that relevant government departments have taken targeted measures to address problems and difficulties hindering efforts of enterprises to resume work and production.

Efforts have been made to improve the overall benefit and level of work resumption, with industries producing anti-epidemic supplies and living necessities, public services and facilities, preparations for spring ploughing and sowing, foreign investment and foreign trade, as well as a high-tech industry being prioritized in relevant efforts, according to Xin.

So far, more than 90 percent of the employees in the iron and steel industry, as well as the electronics industry have returned to their posts, Xin disclosed, saying that the figure in industries including textile, automobile, machinery, and light industry stand between 70 percent and 90 percent.

On the basis of earlier efforts to promote the resumption of work and production in 51 leading enterprises and more than 7,300 key supporting enterprises, the MIIT facilitated relevant efforts of another 41 leading enterprises and 379 key supporting enterprises, whose production capacity has basically reached that of the same period during the previous year, Xin said.

The 92 leading enterprises have helped drive forward work resumption of more than 400,000 SMEs on the upstream and downstream of their industries, according to Xin.

More than 95 percent of the industrial enterprises above designated size in Hubei province, the worst-hit Chinese province by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), have resumed work, with an average of about 70 percent of the employees in these companies having returned to their posts, Xin disclosed.

The automobile industry and other pillar industries of the countrys economy have enjoyed particular assistance from the MIIT since the epidemic was preliminarily contained, according to Xin.

The MIIT has regarded 15 key complete vehicle enterprises as its focus in facilitating the resumption of work, and established and improved for them a comprehensive coordination mechanism covering key departments such as the Ministry of Transport and the Peoples Bank of China, as well as 26 local industry and information technology departments, Xin said.

So far, the countrys more than 1,300 supply chain enterprises in 26 provinces and cities have all resumed work and production, according to Xin, disclosing that the proportion of enterprises in the automobile industry that have resumed operation have risen from around 60 percent on Feb. 19 to 97 percent.

Meanwhile, the proportion of employees in the industry who have returned to their posts has grown from about 50 percent to 82 percent, which is equivalently the same level as that of the same period last year.

Basically, all the industrial enterprises above designated size in major industrial provinces of the country, such as south Chinas Guangdong and east Chinas Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong, and Fujian, have resumed production.

China has a huge industrial scale and relatively complete industrial system and enjoys enormous domestic market demand, sufficient policy space, and prominent institutional strengths, Xin said, stressing that the impact of the epidemic on the countrys industrial economy is temporary and controllable.
[April 01, 2020] Booz Allen Hamilton Commits $100 Million+ to Support Employees and Communities Through Pandemic Resilience Program

Booz Allen Hamilton (News - Alert) today announced a pandemic resilience program of more than $100 million to support its 27,000 employees and the communities where they live and work. The program includes major benefit program enhancements to support employees dealing with health, childcare, and COVID-related issues; a pledge of job security at least through July 1; and a commitment to provide funding, assistance, and technology expertise to aid vulnerable populations, military families, veterans and frontline healthcare workers. These initiatives will be financed by reprioritizing planned spending and investment and will help to enable employees to continue to work with government and commercial clients as they face unprecedented challenges. The firm supports the critical missions of clients globally, working closely with the U.S. government and commercial enterprises during this unique time of crisis, including programs directly related to COVID-19 recovery. "These moves will help protect the health and financial security of our people, their loved ones and their communities during a very uncertain, difficult time," said Horacio Rozanski, Booz Allen's President and CEO. "Supporting our people empowers them to fully support our clients in this time of critical need. Our business is our people, and this is just the right thing to do." The company will redirect $100 million by reallocating its budget to provide employment security and additional benefits, including major enhancements to its dependent-care program, flexible work, training and other options to address employee challenges at home, including support for public service by employees who are trained and certified such as firefighters or nurses. The budget reallocation includes items such as the elimination of many events and a variety of other overhead expenses, as well a a hiring freeze in non-billable departments.



The firm and the independent Booz Allen Foundation also launched a coordinated philanthropic initiative this week to address pandemic-related causes. The initial giving will support veterans and military families through the COVID-19 Military Support Initiative, assist frontline healthcare workers and vulnerable communities through the CDC Foundation, and address the immediate needs of vulnerable local populations through the Feeding America network of food banks and community based agencies. The Foundation is expected to announce additional recipients for its funding at a later time. The funds for Feeding America will support national efforts and also be distributed to the front lines in areas highly impacted by the COVID-19 virus where the firm has a significant presence. Throughout the coming year, Booz Allen plans to contribute its technology and consulting expertise to combat the effects of the virus, pledging to contribute pro-bono projects, in-kind contributions and volunteer time to organizations and communities helping the neediest on the front lines. The company will provide strategic planning, digital modernization, analytics and cyber capabilities, among other services.

About Booz Allen For more than 100 years, business, government, and military leaders have turned to Booz Allen Hamilton to solve their most complex problems. As a consulting firm with experts in analytics, digital, engineering and cyber, we help organizations transform. We are a key partner on some of the most innovative programs for governments worldwide and trusted by the most sensitive agencies. We work shoulder to shoulder with clients, using a mission-first approach to choose the right strategy and technology to help them realize their vision. With global headquarters in McLean, Virginia, our firm employs nearly 27,000 people globally, and had revenue of $6.70 billion for the 12 months ended March 31, 2019. To learn more, visit www.boozallen.com. (NYSE: BAH) BAHPR-GI View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005726/en/

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Details added (first version published on 15:53)

BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 1

Trend:

Starting from 12:25 (GMT +4) on April 1, Armenian armed forces have shelled at border-fighting posts near the villages of Mezem and Gushchu Ayrim in the Gazakh district of Azerbaijan, at military and civilian vehicles moving along the highway in this direction, as well as at citizens engaged in economic activities, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijan State Border Service.

Intensive shelling of the border points of Azerbaijan have been carried out by Armenian units deployed near the village of Kirans of the Ijevan region of Armenia, that were using large-caliber machine guns and sniper rifles.

As a result of the shelling, military and civilian vehicles have been damaged.

The enemys provocation has been prevented. The combat positions of the Armenian armed forces have been suppressed by the return fire.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Supreme Court deputy president, Lord Hodge, claims there is still no clear answer in a dispute over the usage of EU law

UK Courts are set to still be under EU jurisdiction until Brexit is fully completed, according to UK's top judges.

In cases involving EU law, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Wednesday it will still be forced to refer to the European Court of Justice.

The statement came in a ruling on Wednesday relating to a mistake over VAT charges.

The EU legal jurisdiction over UK laws will leave Brexit supporters furious, as they have long demanded for the ruling to end.

A mail order company selling vitamins and minerals called Zipvit made a claim against HM Revenue and Customs after the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) made a ruling that VAT should have been charged on supplies by Royal Mail.

Deputy president of the Supreme Court, Lord Hodge said though claims that there is still no clear answer in a dispute over the usage of EU law.

Martin Howe, QC, chairman of Lawyers for Britain claimed it was the 'inevitable consequence of the highly flawed withdrawal agreement'

'This court has examined the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union bearing on the issues in this case,' he said.

'By a unanimous decision, this court finds that this case law does not provide a clear answer to the issues posed by Zipvit's claim.

'It is common ground that, at this stage in the process of the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union, in a case involving an issue of EU law which is not clear, this court is still obliged to refer that issue to the CJEU to obtain its advice on the point.

'Therefore, this court makes an order for a reference and sets out the questions for the CJEU to answer to enable this court to determine whether Zipvit's claim is correctly made or not.'

Royal Mail supplied postal services to Zipvit but at the time they were supplied it was understood by both parties that these services were exempt from VAT.

Zipvit's claim is that it is entitled to recover part of the price it paid to Royal Mail for postal services as if it had been VAT as input tax.

Martin Howe, QC, chairman of Lawyers for Britain, stated that the Supreme Court decision was the 'inevitable consequence of the highly flawed withdrawal agreement'.

The ruling comes following a claim made by mail order company Zipfit, which sells vitamins and minerals, against HMRC

'It highlights that the UK will suffer continuing interferences to the sovereignty of our legal system for many years to come, from a court which is now entirely foreign, contains no UK judge, and has no duty to uphold the interests of the UK now we are not a member state.

'This judgement illustrates the vital need to modify the parts of the withdrawal agreement, which will require the UK to be bound by rulings of the ECJ after the transition period ends on December 31 this year.'
Madrid: Spain's death toll from the coronavirus rose above 10,000 on Thursday after a record 950 people died overnight, but health officials saw a glimmer of hope as the epidemic slowed in terms of proportional daily increases in infections and deaths.

Red Cross volunteers at a food bank in Huesca, Spain have been helping people affected by the coronavirus. Credit:Getty Images

The death toll in Italy, meanwhile, climbed by 760 to 13,915, slightly higher than the rise of 727 a day earlier. The number of new cases grew 4668 from 4782, bringing total infections to 115,242.

Thursday was the fourth consecutive day in which the number of new cases remained steady in Italy, reinforcing government hopes that the epidemic has hit a plateau. Italy hit a daily peak of 6557 new cases on March 21.

Spain has the world's second-highest death toll after Italy at 10,003. The number of registered coronavirus cases rose about eight per cent from Wednesday to 110,238, the ministry said. The total deaths rose by just over 10 per cent, about the same rate as the previous day.
The employees of Navratna



Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) have contributed their one days salary amounting to Rs 2.71 crore to the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund, the BEL said on Thursday.

The PSU said in a statement the company has also released Rs 10 crore from its Corporate Social Responsibility Fund towards PM CARES fund, to combat and contain the COVID-19 pandemic in India and also for relief efforts.

BEL is putting in all efforts to support the countrys war against COVID-19, the press release said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia  As the number of new coronavirus cases and deaths jumped to new highs around the world on Thursday, investors in most larger Asian stock markets headed for the exits again, sending key indices lower.

The rising death toll coupled with a grim warning from the United States government that the number of fatalities there could reach as high as 240,000, rattled investors nerves.

Meanwhile, oil prices surged on hopes for a US-brokered truce between Saudi Arabia and Russia, as the two top producers slug it out for a bigger slice of the worlds energy market. Those gains drove energy stocks traded in Europe, and European benchmark share indices, higher.

In Asia, Indias SENSEX stock index plunged more than 4 percent, making it the regions worst-performing market on Thursday. New economic data showed factory activity there fell to a four-month low as the country shuts down to control the spread of the virus.

Australias benchmark S&P ASX 200 Index dropped nearly 2 percent, while New Zealands NZX 20 Index shed 0.6 percent.

Banking stocks in Australia came under pressure after neighbouring New Zealands central bank ordered lenders in New Zealand to suspend paying dividends to help support the countrys financial system amid coronavirus uncertainties. The move is likely to affect Australias top lenders operating in New Zealand, analysts say.

Japans Nikkei 225 fell 1.4 percent,

But mainland Chinas Shanghai Composite rose 1.7 percent, while South Koreas KOSPI Index gained 2.3 percent, as investors hoped that the worst of the outbreak may be over for those countries. Hong Kongs Hang Seng Index gained 0.84 percent,

Most Asian stocks remain far below their multi-year highs of late February, after the record crash in global markets as the virus exploded around the world.

Ride the wild wind

Volatility will remain elevated until we see some clarity that infection is contained. Investors are now caught up with the motion of this whole thing, Alexander Chia, head of regional equity research at RHB Investment Bank, told Al Jazeera.

The market is influenced by newsflow, either on infection rates or the economic data released, and whether those data came in better or worse than projection.

But bucking the downdraft in stocks, oil prices jumped, with Brent crude surging 11.32 percent to $27.54 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate soared 9.06 percent to $22.15 a barrel.

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had recently spoken to the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Russia and expected a production deal to end their price war within days.

Disagreements in early March between the Saudi-led OPEC+ group of oil producers and Russia over output curbs led to the price war that crashed crude prices. The slump in demand for energy amid shutdowns of almost all non-essential business has added to the plunge.

In Europe, stocks in the United Kingdom, France and Germany gained between 0.2 percent and 0.6 percent in early trade on Thursday.

It can be seen that a sense of fear had again descended upon the global equity market amid the continued exponential growth in COVID-19 spread on a global scale, Jingyi Pan, market strategist at IG Asia, told Al Jazeera.

No light

The sense is that the disruption from COVID-19 may sustain for some time, seeing the situation worsening particularly for the likes of the US and the light at the end of the tunnel being nowhere in sight.

About 938,000 people worldwide have been sickened by the coronavirus, which has killed nearly 47,000. Some 193,000 people have recovered.

The pandemic is escalating in the West after the US overtook China in the number of reported cases. The US, Spain and the UK reported their respective highest numbers of deaths in a single day this week.

The worsening health situation has forced most governments to seal their countries borders while ordering schools and businesses to close their doors in an effort to combat the disease. Policymakers have poured trillions of dollars into economies worldwide to soften the blow of an imminent global recession, defined as two straight quarters of economic contraction.

Investor sentiments in Asia are mostly dominated by concerns over the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on businesses, Thomas Yong, chief executive officer at Fortress Capital Asset Management, told Al Jazeera.

In essence, uncertainties over [the] extent and time span of temporary business closures and operation halts.
Thursday, April 2, 2020

On March 12, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the human coronavirus a pandemic, which is defined as a global outbreak of a disease. The existence of the coronavirus has created a worldwide panic. Among the things I dont understand: why this virus, compared with others before it, warrants shutting down the United States and killing its economy. Our nation survived 9/11, Swine Flu, and H1N1. But coronavirus (COVID-19), together with the politics behind it, threatens to annihilate us.

A Look at the Statistics

When we look at the coronavirus numbers objectively, we might ask if the actual number of deaths and infections so far justify the measures taken around the world to contain the virus. Globally, the world has a population of 7.8 billion people. As of March 31, Worldometer, which is tracking the disease, reported 803,547 infections and 39,045 deaths.

New York City (NYC), the epicenter of the disease in the United States, leads the news coverage because it has had the highest number of deaths. As of March 30, 1,200 were dead in New York State, 914 in NYC. There were 66,500 infections statewide, with 36,221 (more than half) of those in NYC. The population of New York City is 8.6 million people; for all of New York State it is 19.5 million. So, while NYC has 44% of its states population, it has 54.5% of the states infected residents.

The United States has 327 million people. As of March 31, there were 164,785 coronavirus infections ranging in severity, with 3,073 deaths. A significant portion of those infections and deaths involved New York residents.

Since we are on the subject of deaths, we should also consider the number of abortions annually in the U.S.: 862,320 in 2017, down from 926,190 in 2014. Do the math, and its clear that many more unborn babies are being killed every year in America than there are people dying from coronavirus (so far). But take a guess which one of those is rockin news coverage 24/7. Theres big-time media advertising revenue to be made from coronavirus, helped along by overamped alarmist coverage.

Only essential services are supposed to be open during this pandemic, yet some states are allowing abortion clinics to remain open. It would seem killing unborn babies is essential business. New York is one of these places. All Womens Medicals New York website states: We are Open. We are doing Abortions, which are an essential medical service.

Coronavirus fatality rate and statistical modeling

The worldometers website has compared the fatality rate of the coronavirus with other recent viruses. According to their data, the case fatality rate with seasonal flu in the United States is less than 0.1% (1 death per every 1,000 cases). The mortality rate for SARs was 10% and MERS 34%. The rate for the coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is estimated at 2% of those who contract the disease. Because the disease is ongoing, it is impossible to get an exact fatality rate.

We have had doomsday predictions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and other modelers have led to panic and hysteria among the public. On March 12, Dr. Amy Acton, Ohios Department of Health director, issued a statement proclaiming that 100,000 Ohioans had coronavirus. When pressed about the accuracy of her numbers, Acton conceded she was guesstimating. Likewise, on March 13, The New York Times reported that Matthew Biggerstaff, a top CDC disease modeler, presented four scenarios with his worst case projecting that between 160 million and 214 million people in the United States could be infected [and] . . . As many as 200,000 to 1.7 million people could die.

The models are only as good as the data and the assumptions fed into them. Two Stanford professors are among scientists who have questioned the predictions of the virus models used to make decisions about the death rate and the shutdown of the country. These scientists believe that there has been a selection bias in the testing for COVID-19 because the persons presenting themselves for testing are already sick. Healthy people are not being tested.

Madeline Osburn, a staff writer for The Federalist, has reported an online interactive predictive map called COVID Act Now being used by cities, towns, and states to make planning decisions about how to handle the coronavirus. At the top of their website in bold letters are these words: Why You Must Act Now. Public Leaders and Health Officials: The only thing that matters right now is the speed of your response. This model is intended to help make fast decisions, not to predict the future. Osburn quotes leaders across America who have relied on COVID Act Nows dire predictions about deaths and hospital capabilities in their states and cities to make decisions about shutting down businesses.

Politics, Osburn argues, is at the heart of the matter. She writes: Founders of the site include Democratic Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins and three Silicon Valley tech workers and Democratic activists  Zachary Rosen, Max Henderson, and Igor Kofman  who are all also donors to various Democratic campaigns and political organizations.

COVID Act Nows website scares officials into acting quickly, even in areas where coronavirus virus cases are almost non-existent. Osburn cites Jessica Hamzelous NewScientist article that questions COVID Act Now and other modelers heavy reliance on the UKs Imperial Team as the primary source of data and flawed assumptions built into the primary source that can skew projections. As it stands, we do not know how many people in the U.S. will contract the disease and how many will die. Statistical modeling is an inexact science that is frequently wrong.

On March 29, President Trump and his coronavirus team extended the period of time Americans have to practice social distancing to April 30. The team believes that the number of deaths in the U.S. can be held down to between 100,000-200,000, rather than the predicted 2.2 million if nothing was done. To repeat: our nation has 327 million people. There are other diseases you are more likely to die from than the coronavirus. Heres the CDC ranking of the top 10 causes of death in America:

Heart disease: 647,457 Cancer: 599,108 Accidents (unintentional injuries): 169,936 Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 160,201 Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 146,383 Alzheimers disease: 121,404 Diabetes: 83,564 Influenza and pneumonia: 55,672 Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 50,633 Intentional self-harm (suicide): 47,173

I am concerned about the politization of the virus and the efforts from the Left to wreck the economy. Note how President Trump was originally calling for a stimulus package of around $1 trillion. The final legislation was more than double that once Democrats like Nancy Pelosi sunk their teeth into it, adding billions of dollars in legislative fat and pork that had zero to do with the coronavirus.

Years from now, I believe the American people will look back at this period with regret about media manipulation and gamesmanship that placed us in a reactive mode. What is different about this disease is the non-stop media coverage. We have not had that with previous pandemics. What we are watching and living through includes raw politics and the desire of Democrats to win the November elections by any means necessary. As Chicagos Rahm Emmanuel famously said: You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. That pertains to the media as much as it does to politics.

Calculating politics comes at a price. We have taught Americas enemies how easily we can be manipulated as a people. Coronavirus politics has accomplished something no foreign enemy could have done at gunpoint.
Improvement in profitability and outperformance against the industry can be important characteristics in a stock for some investors. Below, I will assess Shanghai Jin Jiang Capital Company Limited's (SEHK:2006) track record on a high level, to give you some insight into how the company has been performing against its historical trend and its industry peers.

See our latest analysis for Shanghai Jin Jiang Capital

Commentary On 2006's Past Performance

2006's trailing twelve-month earnings (from 31 December 2019) of CN676m has declined by -11% compared to the previous year.

Furthermore, this one-year growth rate has been lower than its average earnings growth rate over the past 5 years of -1.8%, indicating the rate at which 2006 is growing has slowed down. What could be happening here? Well, lets take a look at whats transpiring with margins and if the rest of the industry is experiencing the hit as well.

SEHK:2006 Income Statement April 2nd 2020

In terms of returns from investment, Shanghai Jin Jiang Capital has fallen short of achieving a 20% return on equity (ROE), recording 8.4% instead. Furthermore, its return on assets (ROA) of 2.6% is below the HK Hospitality industry of 4.1%, indicating Shanghai Jin Jiang Capital's are utilized less efficiently. However, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for Shanghai Jin Jiang Capitals debt level, has increased over the past 3 years from 2.9% to 6.0%.

What does this mean?

While past data is useful, it doesnt tell the whole story. In some cases, companies that experience a prolonged period of reduction in earnings are undergoing some sort of reinvestment phase Although, if the entire industry is struggling to grow over time, it may be a sign of a structural shift, which makes Shanghai Jin Jiang Capital and its peers a riskier investment. You should continue to research Shanghai Jin Jiang Capital to get a better picture of the stock by looking at:

Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for 2006s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for 2006s outlook. Financial Health: Are 2006s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why weve done it for you. Check out our financial health checks here. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 December 2019. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:18:43|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China has been actively assisting African countries in fighting the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) since the outbreak, a health official said Thursday.

China has been dispatching medical teams to African countries for 57 years, with nearly 1,000 medics now working in Africa, said Li Mingzhu, an official with the National Health Commission (NHC), at a press conference.

Since COVID-19 broke out in Africa, the NHC has instructed the Africa-based medical teams to support their host countries in epidemic response and carry out training and health education campaigns for more than 250 times, with more than 10,000 people having attended the training, Li said.

Training conducted by Chinese medical teams in local hospitals has raised local medical staff's capacity for early identification, diagnosis and clinical treatment, he said.

Chinese medical teams have issued COVID-19 response guidelines in multiple languages, which have yielded positive results, Li noted.

Chinese experts have provided technical support to 54 African countries for treating the disease through video conferences, Li said, adding that China has aided the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in their COVID-19 response.

"We will continue to do our best to help African countries enhance their capabilities to cope with COVID-19," Li added.
Technavio has been monitoring the 5G equipment market and it is poised to grow by USD 16.28 bn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 71% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. Request a free sample report

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005619/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global 5G Equipment Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Huawei Technologies, Nokia, Samsung Electronics, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, and ZTE are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

The adoption of 5G networks for smart cities has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

5G Equipment Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

5G Equipment Market is segmented as below:

Product Macrocell Small Cell Others

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30474

5G Equipment Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our 5g equipment market report covers the following areas:

5G Equipment Market Size

5G Equipment Market Trends

5G Equipment Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies growing focus on developing unified 5G standards as one of the prime reasons driving the 5g equipment market growth during the next few years.

5G Equipment Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the 5G Equipment Market, including some of the vendors such as Huawei Technologies, Nokia, Samsung Electronics, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, and ZTE. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the 5G Equipment Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports.

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5G Equipment Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist 5G equipment market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the 5G equipment market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the 5G equipment market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of 5G equipment market vendors

Table Of Contents :

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

The threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT

Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Macrocell Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Small cell Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Others Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 09: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends

PART 10: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

PART 11: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Huawei Technologies

Nokia

SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson

ZTE

PART 12: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005619/en/

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Public sector lenders have swung into action after the allowed all commercial to offer their customers a moratorium of three months on the repayment of term loans. Many have informed their customers about the deferment of EMIs and interest dues to help soften the blow due to the crisis.

Here's why the three-month moratorium on your home or auto loan may not be such a great idea after all:

First, a little background. The moratorium is essentially available to instalments falling due on between March 1 and May 31. Despite this many borrowers were still getting sms reminders to pay their instalments on time. So, in order to make things clear, some public sector have taken to Twitter to announce their moratorium offer for their customers.

However, many lenders also advised borrowers not to make use of the moratorium offer in case they were in a position to pay their instalments on the due date. State Bank of India, the country's largest lender, was one such.

The bank cautioned its customers that deferment of EMIs offered under RBI's relief package could put an additional burden on them while advising borrowers to repay if they had the means. SBI said on its website that deferring EMIs on a thirty-lakh-rupee with a residual maturity of 15 years would entail a net additional interest of approximately Rs 2.34 lakh. A back of the envelope calculation will that the sum worked out to as many as eight EMIs. In other words, if you defer three EMIs on your home loan, you will end up paying eight EMIs more.

has said that the interest will continue to accrue on the principal outstanding for the period of the moratorium at the contracted rate of the loan. The tenure will get extended by the corresponding period for which the moratorium has been availed.

This means, if the EMI for the month of March 2020 has been paid and moratorium for April and May 2020 has been availed, then the loan tenure will be extended by two months. However, since the interest has accrued during the moratorium period, it will get loaded to the EMI at some point, and the borrower will invariably end up paying a higher to service the loan at the contracted rate.

This can be better understood with a small illustration. The instalment on a thirty-lakh-rupee taken for 20 years at nine per cent rate of interest works out to about Rs 26,991. Let's assume you've serviced the loan for five years already, and need to pay another 180 instalments over 15 years. If you availed the moratorium in totality, and the EMI you would start paying in June would work out to about Rs 27,600. This works us to Rs 608 more per month or Rs 1,09,500 or thereabouts for the residual life of the loan. Your call on whether or not this makes financial sense.

Coming back to the lenders, has extended the term loan repayment period by three months, and has asked customers to contact their respective branches for further details.

has also increased the repayment schedule as well as residual period of the term loan by 3 months due to moratorium. However, interest during the moratorium period will continue to accrue and the recovery of interest on cash credit/overdraft during the period March 1, 2020 to May 31, 2020 (moratorium) deferred and will be recovered after moratorium period.

While had made it clear that the moratorium isn't a concession, has encouraged customers whose incomes have not been impacted to continue payment as per the schedule.
NORWALK  A part-time employee at Stew Leonards has tested positive for COVID-19 and others are staying home due to potential exposure.

The employee of the Norwalk store stayed home after not feeling well more than a week ago, according to a post the store made on Facebook that was shared Wednesday in a Norwalk community group. Store managers were notified this week about the employee testing positive, the post read. Co-workers who were in contact with the employee were sent home to quarantine, according to the post.

The store has adjusted its hours, but has no plans to close. A spokeswoman for the store declined to provide the role of the employee who tested positive, citing privacy concerns.

Stew Leonard Jr. said employees of some of his other stores have also tested positive for the coronavirus, but he did not specify the locations. Leonard said a handful of employees across the grocery chains seven locations in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey have also been quarantined.

Were no different than America right now, Leonard said Wednesday. Were not any different than whats happening out there. Unfortunately, all businesses that are open today...theyre all having the same issues. The people that work at Stew Leonards are part of the community.

Leonard said employees who come into contact with someone with coronavirus for more than 10 minutes are asked to quarantine and not come to work for two weeks. The employees are given full benefits and pay during that period, he said.

Leonard said many of these employees are not exhibiting symptoms, but the policy is used as a precaution. The company is now hiring more people to fill the gaps.

The grocery store chain is closing early for the first time in its 50 years to deep clean each of its locations nightly, Leonard said. The stores are closing at 8 p.m. each night so shopping carts and registers can be scrubbed, and buttons, door knobs and work surfaces are wiped. The company has also allowed employees to adjust their hours and work stations to limit exposure.

The stores have also installed plexiglass at the registers and in other areas to help protect customers and employees, as well as doing cleaning blitzes every two hours where all surfaces are cleaned.

Were doing everything in the store we can to keep distancing, Leonard said, adding the cleaning goes above CDC standards.

Meghan Bell, a spokeswoman for Stew Leonards, declined to say whether the cleaning and protective measures are in response to employees testing positive for the coronavirus.

Weve been monitoring the pandemic closely and have been making changes almost daily in response since the beginning of March, she said.

Stew Leonards and all stores that remain open in Norwalk were ordered this week by Mayor Harry Rilling to reduce the number of people allowed inside.

Rillings latest orders came after a 60 percent increase in confirmed cases over the weekend. Norwalk now has more than 300 cases and 15 city residents have died.

Rillings order also recommends only one member of each family to go shopping at once. Lamont has recommended the same practice for everyone going to stores in Connecticut.

I thought (the customers) were going to get sort of angry with us, but instead its no problem, Leonard said. Everybody understands the situation right now. Everybody is trying to do their part to help prevent this epidemic we have.

erin.kayata@hearstmediact.com
Lerner and Rowe Injury Attorneys LOVES to Give Back, especially during their Pay it Forward giveaway. Our law firm lives by the credo that more can get done when we come together to offer a helping hand. These weekly giveaways are just an extension of us reaching out to help spread light, love, and positivity. - Kevin Rowe, Esq.

Each Monday and Friday at 3:00 p.m. MST during the COVID-19 pandemic, attorney Kevin Rowe with Lerner and Rowe Injury Attorneys is going live on Facebook to give away $200 Walmart Gift cards to 20 total people each week (10 on Monday and 10 on Friday). The law firm came up with the idea to host a Pay it Forward giveaway as a means to help bring a bit of light and love into the lives of those who could use some extra positivity during these uncertain times. To participate, individuals are asked to send in the name of a person who is going through a rough time right now with a brief description of their circumstances to winners@lernerandrowe.com. The law firm also asks for the individual submitting the entry to include their name and relationship to the nominee.

Lerner and Rowes spring elves then randomly select 20 nominees from the entries each week. From there, winners will receive a call from Kevin Rowe during each live Facebook event held on Monday and Friday so that he can personally offer his congratulations.

Our law firm lives by the credo that more can get done when we come together to offer a helping hand. These weekly giveaways are just an extension of us reaching out to help spread light, love, and positivity. People may be feeling extra burdens because of a lost job, health concerns, or other struggles, we just dont know. What we do know is that we have the ability to make a positive impact by connecting with others, sharing a kind word, and offering a small boost to help them feel valued, said Kevin Rowe, ESQ.

All are invited to join in the conversation and fun! Please send in your nominations, block off your calendars for each Monday and Friday from 3:00 p.m. to 3:45 p.m., and connect live with Lerner and Rowe Injury Attorneys on Facebook at Lerner and Rowe - Facebook.

About Lerner and Rowe Injury Attorneys

Lerner and Rowe Injury Attorneys is a powerhouse law firm in representing personal injury clients. Attorneys Glen Lerner and Kevin Rowe have grown their law firm into one of the largest personal injury firms in the country, with over 50 attorneys and nearly 400 support employees located in Arizona, Nevada, California, Washington, Oregon, Illinois, Indiana, New Mexico, and Tennessee. The law firms continuous exalted levels of success can be attributed to the high levels of respect and dignity shown to victims and family members hurt in an accident.

For those injured outside one of the previously listed states, Lerner and Rowe has an established network of attorneys across the country, ready to help. The firm takes pride in nourishing these relationships as they know a personal injury attorney can make all the difference in obtaining fair compensation for the pain and suffering inflicted upon the victims of tortious conduct.

For more information about Lerner and Rowe Injury Attorneys in Phoenix, please call 602-977-1900. To connect with the law firm socially, follow Lerner and Rowe on Twitter and Instagram, or become a fan of its Facebook page. Also, visit lernerandrowegivesback.com to learn more about the many other community services that the lawyers and legal support team of Lerner and Rowe actively support.
Local Meals on Wheels programs are on the front lines, focused on doing all they can to keep older Americans safe and nourished. The current pandemic has increased the demand for Meals on Wheels around the nation and specifically in Southern California. In fact, In just two weeks the number of clients served has grown by 20%, in greater Los Angeles. The organization expects the number of home-bound seniors served to jump by 40% over the coming weeks. Through its donation to Meal on Wheels California, Kate Farms formulas and shakes will be distributed directly to seniors, the chronically ill, veterans and other vulnerable populations most in need, through Meals on Wheels California member organizations including:

Meals on Wheels West

Saint Vincent Meals on Wheels

on Wheels Human Services Association

Meals on Wheels Long Beach

West Los Angeles Meals on Wheels

Meals on Wheels San Francisco

Meals on Wheels Santa Barbara

"These are unprecedented times. Delivering high-quality, nutritious food to those who are most susceptible to the COVID-19 pandemic is critical. That's why we're excited to be partnering with Kate Farms. We are grateful for the generous donation that will provide more vital nutrition to our clients who need it now more than ever. Kate Farms is helping to maintain the health and wellness of our clients," Chris Baca, Executive Director of Meals on Wheels West.

Kate Farms was built on the value of caring for people and to service those who are most at risk. The company was founded by loving parents to save their daughter Kate, who was born with cerebral palsy and weighed only 16 pounds when she was five years old. She was failing to thrive because she could not tolerate the available formulas, so out of desperation, they developed a plant-based formula without any common allergens. Now, Kate Farms is the #1 recommended plant-based formula prescribed to deliver vital medical nutrition to people with chronic diseases and the general population. Their plant-based beverages are made from the highest quality, organic, plant-based ingredients, without any allergens and it tastes great. The $500,000 commitment in product donation includes its three core products  Komplete Shakes available in Coffee, Vanilla and Chocolate flavors, Peptide 1.5 available in Chocolate and Vanilla, and Standard formula available in Chocolate and Vanilla. All three medical nutrition beverages support digestive health, weight maintenance and delivery of healthy antioxidants.

"Now is the time to come together to support Americans who are most at risk. We saw a need in our community to help our elderly neighbors, and with, Meals on Wheels, are delivering plant-based nutrition to their doorsteps," said John Hommeyer, Chief Experience Officer at Kate Farms. "This is one of the ways we're supporting organizations committed to caring for the people in our communities who are most at risk and we encourage others to give whatever they can during this time to lift our communities."

To learn more about Meals on Wheels West, visit www.mealsonwheelswest.org and to learn more about Kate Farms mission and products, visit: www.katefarms.com.

ABOUT MEALS ON WHEELS WEST

Meals on Wheels West (MOW West) provides community-based services that nourish and enrich the lives of our homebound neighbors of all ages by providing nutritious meals, an emergency preparedness program and referrals to other services that promote independent living and wellbeing.

Meals on Wheels West is Delivering More Than a Meals to seniors, the chronically ill, the disabled, veterans and formerly homeless people. Programs include Delivering More Than a Meal, Supporting Veterans on the Homefront, Heal Healthy at Home, Food & Shelter and Connecting Generations.

For more than 45 years MOW West has been serving Santa Monica, Venice, Malibu, Pacific Palisades and Marina Del Rey. There is Hidden Hunger even in the most affluent communities.

To volunteer, donate or learn more visit www.mealsonwheelswest.org

ABOUT KATE FARMS

Kate Farms was founded in 2011 when a little girl named Kate Laver was failing to thrive because she couldn't tolerate any of the available tube feeding formulas. Her determined parents had the transformative idea to develop a better formula using the highest-quality, organic, plant-based ingredients without the synthetic ingredients and common allergens found in traditional formulas. Today Kate is a thriving teenager and parents and healthcare professionals are driving a movement that says tolerance is no longer the acceptable measure of effectiveness in medical nutrition.

Kate Farms produces unique, plant-based, organic, clinically proven nutritional formulas without major allergens including soy, dairy and corn. Covered by Medicare, Medicaid and more than 2,000 private insurance plans and a growing number of WIC plans, Kate Farms is made of easily digestible pea protein, prebiotics from organic agave inulin and a clinically effective phytonutrient blend that delivers antioxidants. Kate Farms flows easily through a feeding tube and is also used orally because of its great taste. Kate Farms is on formulary with many of leading children's and adult hospital systems across the country.

For more information, visit www.katefarms.com or follow the company on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

Contact:

Errin Cecilsmith

215-439-7776

[email protected]

SOURCE Kate Farms; Meals on Wheels West

Related Links

https://www.katefarms.com


The world is adding over 60,000 cases daily on an average and more than 3,000 people are losing their lives to Covid-19 each day passing. The global count is now nearing 900,000 and the death toll stands at over 43,000.

The US is rapidly inching closer to the 200,000 cases mark, while Italy and Spain both are ahead of China in the case tally, with over 100,000 Covid-19 cases. The three nations now together share almost half the total Covid-19 cases across the globe. Back home, India also witnessed one of the biggest spikes in the number of cases in the past few days and the tally ...
Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and others scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Workers unload a cargo plane at Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens, Tuesday, March 31, 2020. Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and other states scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP Photo-Thanassis Stavrakis

Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and others scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.

Sixty-eight countries  Canada is not among them  have curbed exports of personal protective equipment or medicine, according to Simon Evenett, a professor of international trade at Switzerland's University of St. Gallen.

He called the policies "inhumane" and a potential "death sentence" for some of the world's most vulnerable patients.

"It means they're going to go without. And you don't want to think about what going without a medical ventilator means when you're seriously ill with COVID-19," said Evenett, who runs the Global Trade Alert nonprofit, which tracks protectionism.

"Countries which use (the restrictions) are essentially grabbing a small number of supplies for the moment and denying sick people in other countries the possibility of treatment," he said in phone interview, highlighting France and India as hoarders.

"If you think that this is going to have a happy legacy for international relations, think again."

On Tuesday, China responded to complaints from Europe about ineffective coronavirus test kits by tightening standards around certification of medical goods for export.

The decision seeks to clamp down on defective products, but could have the effect of further slashing supply from a country that produces half of the world's personal protective equipment  also known as PPE.

Omar Allam, who heads an Ottawa-based global trade consultancy, said the move aims to bolster China's reputation, but effectively severs Canadian wholesalers from some reputable Chinese manufacturers by tacking on red tape that trips up the supply chain.

"You could have a reliable provider with a great track record, but if they don't have the required medical certificate, it could take them up to a year to get this," said Allam, who is working pro bono to connect the Canadian government with foreign suppliers.

This is a major blow to countries like the U.S. and Canada."

Officials across the country this week warned that equipment shortfalls are placing health-care workers and vulnerable Canadians at growing risk of exposure to the virus.

A lack of supply and surging demand have sent prices soaring for goods from gowns to gloves, swabs and face shields.

"One government had placed an order for 200 million masks from China. And what this did overnight to the price of masks was to treble them," Evenett said.

Air cargo rates have also shot up as airlines park planes  which often carry freight as well as passenger luggage  due to plummeting travel demand.

"I would say that theyve more than doubled, even tripled," said Gary Hopkins, managing director of U.S.-based Air Charter Service's Toronto office.

A cargo flight between Beijing and Vancouver carrying 100,000 kilograms in freight might typically cost $300,000, but is more likely to go for $800,000 this week, Hopkins said.

"Theres a lack of availability of the aircraft. Each one is like gold dust to get those slots," he said, noting taxpayers often foot the bill. "Governments are stepping up all over the world to pay for that."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised Wednesday that federal health authorities will not cut any corners when it comes to making sure masks provided by China meet the necessary standards.

The comments followed an announcement from the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa that the country is sending 30,000 medical masks along with thousands of gowns, gloves and goggles to Canada.

The shipment was announced amid reports that the Dutch government is recalling around 600,000 defective masks that were recently shipped from China. Spain has also raised concerns about Chinese-made COVID-19 testing kits that were faulty.

On Tuesday night, China's Ministry of Commerce announced that PPE  which includes COVID-19 test kits, N95 respirator masks, ventilators and infrared thermometers  can only be exported if its manufacturers show certification by a national registry and documentation proving it meets the import country's standards. The exports will be checked at customs in China to confirm the paperwork, according to the government release.

At the height of the crisis there, Beijing sought to buy virtually all of the countrys medical supplies and withhold exports, Evenett said.

"Now the government is letting selected Chinese medical suppliers ship abroad. But because it's a pretty ad hoc and non-transparent system, its pretty much tantamount to an informal export ban," said Evenett.

"This is the worst type of short-term thinking," he said.

Since the start of the week, more than 11 million face masks have arrived in Canada, including a shipment of one million masks that reached a Hamilton warehouse overnight, Trudeau said Thursday.

The government has spoken with nearly 3,000 companies to secure "millions of pieces of vital equipment," he said.

Ottawa has also co-signed a statement with partners including Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and others to keep supply chains open.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2020.
Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Thursday termed Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi's comments on the nationwide lockdown as "unfortunate" and "false".

In a media briefing, Javadekar said, "Congress president Sonia Gandhi's reactions after CWC meeting blaming the government that the lockdown was not properly planned, is not only unfortunate, but false as well."

"More importantly, this is unfortunate and unnecessary politicisation of the issue of calamity," he added.

Javadekar said that the world is fighting against coronavirus and India took precautionary steps, including the decision to enforce a lockdown.

"The whole world is praising India for timely action. People have made lockdown successful. There will always be pain and hurdles and hardships. The government with the cooperation of all people, state governments, district administrations, NGOs and with all the political parties, are doing a laudable job which the world is praising," he added.

"Political discussion can take place only after we defeat coronavirus. Till that time, we have to work in unison, work in one direction and we have to be united in this fight against coronavirus," the minister said.

"I hope the wisdom will prevail on the Congress leadership. Everybody needs to be on one page. I hope such comments will not happen till we defeat coronavirus," Javadekar further said.

Earlier, Gandhi had termed the 21-day lockdown "unplanned" and said it has caused chaos and panic in the lives of migrant workers.

"The 21-day lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India. It has been heartbreaking to see lakhs of people walking for hundreds of kilometres towards their villages without food or shelter," she had said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
OAKLAND (BCN)

Schools in the Oakland Unified School District will remain closed for the rest of the school year following a statement Wednesday by Alameda County's superintendent of schools, Oakland Unified Superintendent Kyla Johnson Trammell said Wednesday.

In the statement, Superintendent L. Karen Monroe said, "Following the Governor's press conference earlier today, it is now clear that California's schools will be engaged in distance learning for the remainder of the school year."

Gov. Gavin Newsom, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and state Board of Education President Linda Darling-Hammond said schools should remain closed through the end of the year because of the pandemic.

Trammel said, "We are working to determine the full impact" of the school closure decision.

School leaders will be exploring alternatives for graduation, promotions to higher grades, whether summer school will be held, and other impacts. Meanwhile, school leaders are working to complete plans to bring learning to students in their homes.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
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Belarus has received more than 2,000 rapid coronavirus tests, medical protective suits, infrared thermometers, safety glasses, disposable gloves and shoe covers from China, according to Deputy Health Minister Boris Androsyuk.

The medical humanitarian aid from China arrived in Belarus on Wednesday. Belarus had earlier sent medical goods to China, Androsyuk said.

Chinese Ambassador to Belarus Cui Qimin said the humanitarian aid was only the first batch.

The Chinese embassy will purchase 10,000 tests with reagents for detecting coronavirus, masks, protective clothing, infrared thermometers, pulse oximeters and other medical supplies for Belarus, according to the ambassador.

The Chinese government plans to send a group of medical experts to Belarus, the ambassador added.
A new type of ventilator, the Breath4life, was introduced by UCLouvain University in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, on March 26. (Pool Daina Lelardic/BELGA MAG/AFP via Getty Images)

Complex Ventilator Designs Could Mean GM, Ford Miss Virus Peak

Other low-tech, affordable solutions exist

News Analysis

As the number of fatalities from the CCP virus has increased in the United States, medical professionals have expressed their concern over the vast number of ventilators that could be needed to treat patients, with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo requesting some 30,000 ventilators for New York State alone.

President Donald Trump suggested on Monday, however, that the number of fatalities from the virus could peak as soon as mid-April, with the total number of fatalities potentially exceeding 100,000. If such forecasts prove to be correct, projects by Ford and General Motors (GM) to produce large numbers of sophisticated, high-tech ventilators by May and June could waste valuable time and resources, while failing to provide timely care for seriously ill patients in the United States.

General Motors announced that it will contribute its resources at cost to partner with Ventec Life Systems in the production of VOCSN-model sophisticated and high-quality critical care ventilators. According to GM, tooling and manufacturing capacities at the companys Kokomo facility are being fast-tracked to such an extent that the first ventilators could be delivered by the end of April, with capacities ramping up to over 10,000 units per month after that.

Ford announced that it will produce the Airon Model A-Ea comparatively simpler ventilation devicein association with GE Healthcare at Fords Rawsonville facility in Michigan, with production targets of 1,500 by the end of April and 12,000 in May.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), ventilators are necessary for those patients suffering from acute symptoms of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, and which leads to the disease known as COVID-19.

Such symptoms include respiratory failure or Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), and occur most commonly in patients with existing diseases and those of advanced age. Ventilator manufacturers such as ResMed and Philips have vowed to double or even quadruple the number of ventilators produced over the coming months.

Ventilator Complexity

As medical technology has advanced, ventilators have progressed from simple intermittent air pumps to computer-aided, high-tech devices with arrays of sensors to detect factors such as the patients breathing patterns and whether their body is making an effort to breathe. Most ventilators can administer a pre-set tidal volume of oxygen-enriched air a certain number of times per minute (the respiratory rate) and at a certain speed, while some ventilators also moisten the air flow by means of a nebulizer.

Other features often include large touchscreens, patient history logs, and battery back-up systems. Physicians use these tools to generate a ventilation strategy for individual patients.

Ventilators are also produced for specific applications, including patient transport situations, ambulance devices, for domestic use, and high-tech units specifically designed for intensive care units (ICUs). According to medical device manufacturer Medtronic, top-of-the-range ICU ventilators can cost from $25,000 to $50,000.

While the Airon device to be manufactured by Ford is claimed to be a relatively simple device, the VOCSN devices to be produced by GM are deemed to be rather more sophisticated. According to the GM press release, the VOCSN seamlessly integrates five separate devices including a critical care ventilator, oxygen concentrator, cough assist, suction, and nebulizer into a single portable device. VOCSN provides invasive and non-invasive ventilation across a comprehensive set of modes and settings throughout the care continuum.

GM and Ford are working feverishly to secure component supply chains, but if supplies of even one component are delayed, production could grind to a halt.

Our teams have been working tirelessly with @MyVOCSN to produce critical care ventilators at our Kokomo, IN facility. Retooling is underway and we are poised to deliver the first ventilators next month with capacity of more than 10,000 monthly. https://t.co/34Here89Fa pic.twitter.com/vxZvSzHveb  General Motors (@GM) March 27, 2020

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said they would remove obstacles to the development of new solutions, saying in a statement, If you want to help expand production of ventilators to save American lives in this pandemic, we are going to work with you to sweep every possible barrier out of your way.

Simpler Solutions

Medical and engineering technicians at institutes around the world have also been racing to develop simple ventilators that can be manufactured and deployed for use quickly, including the mechanization and automation of hand-operated ventilation bags.

An interdisciplinary team of engineers and medics from the UKs Oxford University and Kings College, London is currently constructing and testing a series of ventilator prototypes that they say could be manufactured with off-the-shelf and 3D-printed components using the tools available in well-equipped university laboratories and small and medium-sized enterprise workshops. The team says that their OxVent prototype has been approved for testing by the British government, and that production could take place at scale within two to three months.

There are also simple ventilation products on the market that already provide basic levels of ventilation and could, perhaps, be adapted to fulfill some of the emergency requirements of ICUs in the United States. Vortran Medicals GOVENT, for example, is a simple but functional and cost-effective ventilation system, and does not require an external power source.

Vortran says its product is the ideal backup ventilator for the management of difficult situations such as mass casualties, natural disasters, disease outbreaks, major power outages, and is the perfect solution for transportation needs, whether in or out of the hospital.

Your Smartphone as a Ventilator

Indian manufacturer AgVa healthcare has developed functional and cost-effective mini ventilators for the Indian market that can be controlled entirely by an app on an Android smartphone. According to Professor Diwakar Vaish, the app can even alert healthcare professionals if the patient needs assistance, and the ventilator can cost as little as $200.

While India has banned the export of critical medical equipment such as ventilators during the CCP virus crisis, AgVa Healthcare says it is also ready to tie up with local manufacturers in each country to mass produce our ventilators by utilizing our licenses.

Sharing Ventilators Between Patients

As the CCP virus has taken hold around the world, healthcare professionals and engineers have attempted to plan for eventualities of large patient numbers and potentially insufficient ventilation resources. A team of doctors from Geel hospital in Belgium has suggested that it may be possible to share one ventilator between two or even four patients to provide a reasonable level of patient ventilation.

While not an optimal treatment solution, differential multi-ventilating between four patients in emergency situations is technically possible, and at very low cost. With four bed-heads arranged like spokes around a ventilator, tubing sets can be coupled with a series of fittings and valves to provide ventilation and a degree of monitoring for up to four patients.

Such concepts have come in for criticism, however. A joint statement issued last week by a group of six medical associations, including the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) and the American Association of CriticalCare Nurses (AACN), says that sharing mechanical ventilators should not be attempted because it cannot be done safely with current equipment and could even, under certain circumstances, fail to prevent, or even cause, the demise of multiple patients.

The reasoning behind the warning is that ventilators are not designed for the ventilation of multiple patients, and that cross-contamination, poor monitoring, and uneven gas flows cannot be ruled out.

Sharing ventilators also makes the ethical choices faced by doctors and medical committees impossibly complex. If the ventilator can be lifesaving for a single individual, using it on more than one patient at a time risks lifethreatening treatment failure for all of them, says the group.

With current equipment designed for a single patient, we recommend that clinicians do not attempt to ventilate more than one patient with a single ventilator while any clinically proven, safe, and reliable therapy remains available (i.e., in a dire, temporary emergency).

However, a 2006 study suggests that a single device can potentially ventilate four patients during cases of disaster surge involving multiple casualties with respiratory failure. The team from Geel hospital also built in readily available filters and flow controls to allow them to monitor individual patient pressure levels.

No Need to Reinvent the Wheel

In association with the Lukasiewicz Research Network in Zabrze near Krakow, the Nalecz Institute of Biocybernetics and Biomedical Engineering in Warsaw, Poland, announced recently (pdf) that it could make manufacturing plans for its Ventil device available to medical product manufacturers. The institute claims that the Ventil can double a hospitals ventilator capacity by using one ventilator to treat two patients.

Ventil is not a ventilator. It is a precisely controlled divider, connected to a ventilator with an appropriate power surplusthat is, in practice, to any on-site hospital ventilator. The device allows the doctor to watch over the course of ventilation in two patients simultaneously. Its design is much simpler than the ventilator itself, it is also much cheaper and easy to manufacture, said Prof. Piotr Ladyzynski, deputy director of the institute.

Following connection to a ventilator, Ventil can simultaneously ventilate two patients in different clinical conditions. (Source: IBBE PAS, www.ibib.waw.pl, fot. G. Krzyzewski)

The Ventil allows the air volume pumped into each patient to be independently controlled and monitored, and the first batch of 100 devices has already begun. The same sort of production could be rapidly initiated in any company dealing in the production of medical equipment, and at significantly reduced costs, effectively doubling the amount of ventilators operating in a given area, said Dr. Janusz Wrobel, director of Lukasiewicz Research Network.
The U.S. topped 1,000 coronavirus deaths in a single day for the first time Wednesday, a daily death toll more than double that of two of America's most deadly illnesses  lung cancer and the flu.

Death counts from the virus are difficult to keep up to date, but the Johns Hopkins coronavirus database  whose sources include the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the European CDC and the National Health Commission of China  shows that the U.S. hit 1,040 cases Wednesday at 10:25 p.m. EDT. Since the virus' first appearance in the U.S. in late January, 5,116 people have died and more than 215,000 have been infected.

The previous high mark for a single day in the U.S. was Tuesday, with 504 deaths.

Some researchers say the daily death toll could more than double  to 2,200 or more  by mid-April. That figure would eclipse heart disease, the nation's No. 1 killer with about 1,772 deaths per day, according to the CDC.

Our country is in the midst of a great national trial, President Donald Trump said in a White House briefing on the virus. Were going to go through a very tough two weeks.

Lung cancer kills 433 people each day in the U.S.  that's the same number of seats on a Boeing 747 airplane, according to the Lung Cancer Foundation of America. Breast cancer kills about 116 Americans a day.

The flu, a chronic killer that the nation has come to expect in yearly cycles  and the reason millions of Americans get flu shots  killed an estimated 508 people per day in the U.S. during the 2017-18 flu season, the nation's worst in the last decade, according to the CDC. This year's flu season has recorded an average of 383 deaths per day, CDC figures show.

While health officials say COVID-19 is considered a flash medical event in that it is unlikely to maintain its deadly hold for more than three or four months, the 1,000 threshold is a significant one because it shows just how potent an unforeseen outbreak can be on the U.S. medical system.

Story continues

It also raises questions about COVID-19's possible deadly effects over time. Anthony Fauci, a member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, has cautioned that the virus could become a recurring event, much like the flu. He said that the U.S. needs to get ready for the next cycle, possibly to occur in the fall of 2020.

"We really need to be prepared for another cycle," Fauci said.

Healthcare worker Ludnie Emile prepares to test people for COVID-19 at their drive-thru coronavirus testing station in Palm Springs, Fla. on March 19, 2020.

Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, emphasized the need to continue developing a vaccine and test it quickly so it will be available "for that next cycle."

A University of Washington study updated this week projects that if the entire nation makes an all-out effort to restrict contact, coronavirus deaths will peak in the next two weeks and patients will overwhelm hospitals in most states.

Nationally, the University of Washington model predicts a peak daily death toll of 2,214 in mid-April, and a total of 84,000 Americans dead by the end of summer. Thats more than twice the lives claimed during the 2018-19 flu season, which killed 34,000 people, according to the CDC.

But that figure represents the models most likely estimate. The range of scenarios spans from 36,000 COVID-19 deaths to more than 152,000, according to the research team led by Christopher Murray, founder and chair of the University of Washingtons Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation.

As many as 240,000 Americans may die from the new coronavirus according to estimates released by the White House on Tuesday, a grim prediction that influenced Trump's decision to extend social distancing guidelines.

The daily coronavirus death toll likely wont dip below 100 before June 11, the study predicts.

Coronavirus symptoms can be confused with that of the flu and, indeed, the two viruses have similar effects. Tracking the flu has been equally troublesome for health officials. The CDC says the burden of influenza disease in the United States can vary widely and is determined by a number of factors including the characteristics of circulating viruses, the timing of the flu season, how well vaccines are working and how many people got vaccinated.

Health experts say the future of the coronavirus depends on such factors as whether humans develop increasing immunity to it and whether an effective vaccine is developed. If neither occurs, the virus will likely continue to circulate and establish itself as a common respiratory virus like the flu.

The CDC estimates that the flu has resulted in 9 million to 45 million illnesses, 140,000 to 810,000 hospitalizations and 12,000 to 61,000 deaths annually since 2010.

Contributing: Katie Wedell, Erin Mansfield and Dinah Pulver, USA TODAY Network

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus kills 1,000 in a single day in US, double that of the flu
The verdict from one of Canberra's medical experts was direct this week when police in Sydney and Melbourne started warning Australians to leave their local parks and stay indoors. Peter Collignon, an infectious diseases physician and a professor at the Australian National University, said the state decisions on hard lockdowns looked like "panic by politicians" rather than science.

His advice? Collignon said there was no good reason, other than official quarantine, to prevent someone going outside for fresh air, including exercise, provided they were not in groups and kept two metres away from each other.

Illustration: Simon Letch Credit:

It seemed like another small argument over the scale of the social-distancing rules, much like the hamfisted way the Victorian government told single people they could not visit their partners and then reversed the directive hours later. But there is a broader issue at stake in these disputes because the science suggests the shutdowns will last longer than expected. Much longer.

On some projections, the cycle of closing and reopening services will last until next year. Tony Blakely, an epidemiologist and a professor at the University of Melbourne, says the current approach could continue into 2021 in the hope a vaccine arrives.
Grace Kelly's granddaughters have revealed they've moved back to their mother's Monaco home to support her during lockdown.

Princess Stephanie, 55, the younger sister of Prince Albert, 62, is currently on lockdown with her daughter, Pauline Ducruet, 25, who has travelled home from New York to be with her, while 21-year-old Camille Gottlieb's jetset lifestyle is also on hold.

Speaking to Monaco Info, Pauline and Camille admitted they have not lived under their mother's roof in a long time, but make the best of the situation by walking their dogs and practicing yoga.

Monaco has so far reported 46 cases of coronavirus since the beginning of the outbreak, and only one death, and Prince Albert is now out of isolation after testing positive.

Stephanie of Monaco, (right) 55, is spending the lockdown with her two daughters, Camille Gottlieb, 21 (left) and Pauline Ducruet, 25 (centre)

The two sisters opened up about their lives on lockdown and admitted the fact their uncle Prince Albert, 62m tested positive to COVID made them realise how serious the pandemic was (Stephanie with her daughters at home)

Pauline and Camille came home before Monaco entered a lockdown to limit the spread of the pandemic.

'Since I've left Monaco, we haven't spend so much time together for so long,' Pauline said.

'We spend several weeks in the same city, but not under the same roof,' she added.

She explained the lockdown has been a 'happy' one for the family, but she added that they have to take precautions so as not to feel like they are 'on each other's toes' too often, except for at mealtimes.

Pauline, pictured in a throwback picture with Camille, said she practiced yoga to keep zen during the period of confinement

Pauline added that she's doing yoga to stay zen, while 21-year-old Camille said: 'I draw a lot, I walk my dog a lot, I try to walk least than an hour by myself per day.'

The women revealed that they also take to their terrace every day at 7pm to chant Monaco's hymn and wave its flag, and applaud healthcare workers every day at 8pm.

Coronavirus has directly touched the family, with Prince Albert announcing he had tested positive and was self-isolating on March 19.

'We always think that it only happens to others, and the fact that it happened within our family, it made us think "there's no barrier",' Pauline said.

'Everybody can get it, it made us realise it was really serious and we could not take this lightly,' she added.

Prince Albert, pictured with Camille at the International Circus Festival in Monaco in January 2020, announce he had tested positive to the Coronavirus on 19 March and has been isolating ever since

Pauline, who works as a fashion designer in New York, is the daughter of Stephanie and her former husband Daniel Ducruet, to whom she was only married a year from 1995 to 1996.

Her brother Louis, 27, was also born of this union.

Meanwhile, Camille, born in 1998, is the daughter of Jean Raymond Gottlieb, who worked as the head of security for Stephanie until they struck a romance and became lovers.

While his name reportedly doesn't appear on her birth certificate, and while Stephanie never shared the identity of Camille's father, her daughter has publicly stated he was her father.
Russia's youngest coronavirus victim who was working from home and looking after children before she succumbed to the disease, posted updates of her illness while losing her fight for life.

Anastasia Petrova, 36, editor of a business magazine in Perm city, first got a fever on 23 March and died eight days later, becoming Russia's youngest victim.

The single mother kept posting as long as she could while she rapidly succumbed to the deadly coronavirus, highlighting how quickly the disease can lead to a fatality.

Anastasia Petrova, 36, has become the youngest recorded fatal victim of the COVID-19 novel coronavirus in Russia, after succumbing to the disease while working from home and caring for her two sons last week

Anastasia, pictured in an undated photo, was a journalist and editor and continued to post updates on her social media as she lost her life to the deadly virus in Russia

Pictured: An intensive care ward prepared for patients of the coronavirus in Perm, Russia

Like millions around the world, the single mother was working from home caring for her two beloved sons Ilya, 12, and Yaroslav, 10.

On Monday last week she was optimistic, posting: 'Today I had the first day of my holiday.

'Well, almost a vacation - I cheerfully trained for an online lecture.'

She attacked 'Covidiots' who gathered in a crowd of more than 150.

By evening her fever rose and next day she had a sore throat and serious cough.

Pictured: Perm Medical-Sanitary Unit in Perm, Russia where Anastasia died after a short battle with the deadly coronavirus last week

'I called a doctor, and reported on my contacts with people who had arrived back from abroad .

'I have three of them, but everyone came more than 14 days ago.

'But on the phone I heard the words: 'Oh hell 'Now I am waiting for a doctor.'

She was told to take her temperature every 20 minutes and swallow paracetamol.

'You can see how it drops from 38.4C to 37.3C,' she wrote hopefully.

'I believe it's just ARVI (Acute Respiratory Viral Infection), by the way (not Coronavirus).'

By evening she added: 'My favourite local doctor came (really favourite, the first one in my practice with whom I can communicate very calmly and who does not faint when I say 'I'm allergic to penicillin).'

'She didn't come right in, asking about the symptoms while standing about one metre [3.2f] from me.

'She promised they would come and take a test on corona and asked not to leave home for 14 days, or at least until I had a negative test.'

The doctor doubted it was coronavirus. 'We giggled about issuing me a sick notefor ARVI she had visited 32 sick people today.'

Although ill, Anastasia was still paying attention to world events and had kept her sense of humour.

Referring to aid sent by Vladimir Putin, she asked: 'Listen, why is everyone criticising Russia's assistance to Italy in the fight against coronavirus?'

Pictured: The acting chief of Perm Region, Dmitry Makhonin, said: 'We must not lie to the people', in response to accusations that officials had covered up the cause of Anastasia's death last week

She wrote that 'thousands' were dying there while Russia 'had everything under control

'These doctors we sent to Italy will later be able to save Russian patients.

'This is perhaps one of the "helping" actions of our government with which I completely agree.'

The night of 24 March she was already in hospital after her fever soared.

'The resuscitators came with a ventilator, very cool and professional,' she wrote from her intensive care bed.

'They wear masks for snorkelling, by the way. In addition to masks for their mouth and nose.'

They measured the oxygen in her blood and was told 'so far I do not need their help, but, in general, I am at risk.

Pictured: Anastasia poses in an undated photograph. The 38-year-old continued to post to her social media during her final days, highlighting the lack of proper PPE being used by medical staff

'They ordered me to continue breathing oxygen.

'And if anything - they are nearby and will be here in five minutes. If I feel worse.

'They told me how they have treated swine flu - and that mainly pregnant women were brought to them.

'They cursed that the ambulance crews do not use full protection when on emergency calls.'

She posted with a note of alarm: 'When a resuscitator [doctor] looks thoughtfully at the printout of your analysis, it's actually very scary.

'My temperature was brought down to 38C.'

Later Anastasia posted to her friends: 'Neither I nor the doctors think that it is coronavirus - the totality of symptoms suggests both this and ordinary flu.

'The doctors made the decision about hospitalisation based on the state of my lungs, a very high temperature and my anamnesis [medical history].'

She added: 'No strength, I sleep 90 per cent of the time.'

On 27 March she posted that her test was negative for coronavirus.

But later her friend revealed Anastasia messaged her the following day, with alarm in her voice: 'Yulia, my second test was positive. I feel very bad.'

This was her last communication and she died on Tuesday.

Not for the first time in Russia, there is a suspicion that her death was being listed as something other than coronavirus.

Pictured: Marina Shilova, Anastasia's mother, pictured in an undated photograph, who will look after Anastasia's two beloved sons Ilya, 12, and Yaroslav, 10

This prompted a furious reaction from the acting governor of Perm region Dmitry Makhonin who said: 'The death of journalist Anastasia Petrova has caused a great public outcry.

'If it was known that she had coronavirus, why are they silent about this?

'It is unacceptable to hide information from the public.

'We must not lie to the people.'

Anastasia's two sons are reported to be negative for coronavirus and will be raised by her mother, Marina, also an editor.

A friend called Tatyana Cherepanova posted a public message to the distraught Marina, 58, saying that Anastasia was 'unusually gifted, talented, with such a fine mental abilities'.

She told the bereft Marina: 'You must now raise your grandchildren, cherish your memories of your daughter, and edit your newspaper ...

'You are very strong.

'You can do it. May God give you strength.'
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Linkedin Belen Carreno and Ingrid Melander (Reuters) Madrid, Spain  Fri, April 3, 2020 02:05 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f588ae 2 World Spain,unemployment,job-cuts,coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic,economic-impact,SARS-CoV-2,health,novel-coronavirus Free

Spain has shed jobs at a record pace since it went into lockdown to fight the coronavirus, social security data showed on Thursday, laying bare the scale of the epidemic's impact in the euro zone's fourth-largest economy.

Some 900,000 workers have lost their job since mid-March, with those on short-term contracts in tourism or construction among the hardest hit. At least another 620,000 have seen their contracts suspended with temporary layoffs and tens of thousands are on sick leave.

"The data is extraordinary, it's unprecedented," Social Security Minister Jose Luis Escriva told a news conference. "It reflects a real disruption to normal activity."

Spain, which has the world's second-highest death toll from the epidemic after Italy with 10,003 fatalities as of Wednesday, has allowed citizens to leave home since March 14 for essential trips only.

This week, Spain tightened the lockdown further, with only employees in key sectors permitted to travel to and from work. Streets are empty, and hotels, restaurants and bars are closed.

Some 900,000 jobs were also lost at the peak of the 2008/9 financial crisis, but that happened over 20 weeks rather than under three weeks now with the coronavirus, Escriva said.

Thursday's data is some of the first globally to reveal the lockdown's impact on the labor market.

Jobless numbers for March, also published on Thursday, showed Spain registered its highest monthly increase ever, with a 9.3% jump from the previous month bringing the total number of unemployed people to around 3.5 million.

The jobless data does not even reflect the full extent of the job losses, since some of those who lost their work had not been registered yet and others don't have the right to unemployment benefits.

"Practically paralyzed"

"The country is practically paralyzed as a result of the health emergency," Unai Sordo, the leader of Spain's biggest labor union CCOO, told broadcaster TVE.

Looking at the social security data in more detail, 898,822 Spaniards - including 613,000 fixed-term workers - lost their jobs since the lockdown started.

Meanwhile, many companies, from car plants to fast-food chains, have implemented "ERTE" temporary layoffs, under which companies that face financial difficulties can temporarily suspend a worker's contract.

ERTE applications take five days to process, suggesting the figure of 620,000 will rise.

The CEOE employers' group said those temporary layoff schemes had contained the rise in unemployment, and called for relaxed rules introduced because of the coronavirus to be extended when the lockdown ends.

"It is crucial to relax the use of ERTES... in order to facilitate the recovery of sectors such as tourism or industry, which will be gradual, thus avoiding serious and lasting consequences for employment," it said in a statement.

March is usually a good month for employment in Spain because it marks the start of the holiday season, with many temporary workers finding jobs in the hospitality sector.

"We will have to work on relaunching the economy once we can get control of the epidemic," Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos told RNE radio.

The social security data showed that around 80,000 workers are off sick with confirmed coronavirus, while another 170,000 are on sick leave because they are isolated after coming into contact with someone with the virus.
In Vietnam, the number of infections still increases day by day and there is high risk of further COVID-19 infection in the community. The Prime Minister on March 31 issued Directive No.16/CT-TTg on the implementation of urgent measures in respect of Covid-19 prevention and control. Accordingly, the social distancing order will be implemented nationwide for 15 days from midnight of April 1 according to the principle of each family isolates itself from other families, one village from other villages, one commune from other communes, one province from other provinces, while employees and workers in factories and production establishments must keep a safe distance from each other, wear face masks and make sure areas are properly disinfected and sterilised.

It can be said that Vietnam has not been careless with the pandemic. The Secretariat and the Government have managed both directly and drastically from the beginning as well as taken many strong measures, often one step ahead of the recommendations of the World Health Organisation (WHO) on anti-epidemic action. Therefore, despite many difficulties and limited resources, Vietnam has achieved positive and important results in disease control in the first phase, while expressing its resolution, bravery and confidence in the current phase thanks to the appropriate methods. The authorities have ensured the sufficient supply of essential goods to people, receiving high appreciation from the world.

With the steadfast spirit towards the dual goals of preventing and controlling the epidemic successfully and ensuring socio-economic development, the Partys direction and the Governments administration have been praised and trusted by the people in the country as well as overseas Vietnamese. In recent days, quarantinined people have expressed their gratitude to the Party, State, army, public security forces and medical staff for their care. This shows the strength and humanity of Vietnams regime.

Directive No.16 was issued in response to the appeal of the Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong, imbued with the spirit of attaching the utmost importance to peoples health and life above all else in order to prevent and control the disease in a proactive manner. The Directive also highlighted the intelligence, bravery and determination of the Government, ministries, agencies and localities in a thusfar effective Covid-19 fight through the implementation of urgent measures. In addition, the Government has affirmed its efforts in ensuring the supply of essential goods and services to people in all cases.

In fact, according to reports from localities and enterprises, up to now, the supply of essential goods to the market has been consistently plentiful, easily meeting consumption demand. Distribution businesses and many small traders in the markets still continue to serve people. The distribution systems of essential goods in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are still open, avoiding any shortage of goods. However, many rumours misinterpreting the spirit of Directive No.16 have appeared on social networks, making many people confused and then rushing to supermarkets to buy goods for storage, particularly in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Obviously, this activity creates a high risk of infection.

Depending on the development of the epidemic, the Government will issue appropriate recommendations and requirements. If the epidemic continues to evolve negatively and spread in the community, there must be higher and more stringent decrees. However, in order to effectively implement these measures, it is crucial to prepare and take gradual steps. These are not bans, but only orders, recommendations, restrictions and requirements made by the Government leaders.

Currently, the Government still allows factories to operate but is asking employees of state agencies and enterprises to apply information technology in order to work from home. The Government has assigned unit heads to monitor and handle this. If there is a Covid-19 infected case in an agency due to loose management or employees still gathering, the leader must be responsible. If factories, which have thousands of workers, are not controlled well, causing an infection case, they will be closed immediately to avoid cross-contamination and infection of the community.

The Government has not yet issued a blockade order as the epidemic is still under control. Therefore, it is essential to ensure issues related to life, production, economy and society. If we to ignore this opportunity, considered as a golden time, the situation will be more complicated and difficult. The Government sees that with the above requirements, people and enterprises will face numerous difficulties or feel uncomfortable as their lives are temporarily disturbed. However, it is hoped that all will strictly comply because the fight against the epidemic requires the consensus of agencies from central to local levels as well as the support of the people.
Amaravati, April 2 : Appraising the Prime Minister on the measures taken in the state, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy assured him that necessary resources are being deployed to handle the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reddy participated in the Prime Minister's video conference with chief ministers, on Thursday, and explained the strategy adopted for containment of the coronavirus while ensuring minimum inconveniences for the public.

Reddy told the Prime Minister that of the 132 cases recorded in the state by Thursday, 111 are related to the Tablighi Jamaat event. He said while 91 persons had attended the event, 20 positive cases were people who had come in contact with the Delhi returnees.

"We have identified 1085 persons who attended Nizamuddin markaz and quarantined them. The cluster containment strategy is being implemented to have control over the situation," Reddy said and requested that the Centre send essential equipment to the state at the earliest.

The Chief Minister also appraised the Prime Minister about the measures taken to handle the potential coronavirus threat from foreign returnees to the state. From February 10 onwards, 27,876 foreign returnees to AP are under observation, of whom, 10,540 belong to urban areas and 17,336 are from rural areas.

During the meet, the Chief Minister also elaborated upon the regular survey being conducted with the help of volunteers, ANMs, Asha workers to ensure strict monitoring of the situation and in planning timely strategies.

As part of the COVID-containment strategy 2012 non-ICU beds have been set up in Vizag, Vijayawada, Nellore, and Tirupati. Additionally, special hospitals have been set up in 13 districts for COVID-19. A total of 10,933 non-ICU beds, 622 ICU beds have been set up in these hospitals. Apart from these, 20,000 more beds have been readied to accommodate cases in main cities and towns for isolation purposes. A total of 1000 ICU beds are ready in the state, the Chief Minister assured the Prime Minister Modi.

The ration has been provided to people along with an additional 1kg of dal for free and the same will be repeated for another two times in April. Moreover, financial assistance of Rs 1,000 will be provided to the poor for their expenses.

Stating that the COVID-19 crisis has forced the state government to postpone disbursal of employees' salaries by as much as 50 percent, the Chief Minister requested the central government to favourably consider the state's financial situation.

Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Chief Ministers of various states were among those present in the video conference.

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State governments identified on Wednesday nearly 8,700 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi and deployed a large posse of police and intelligence officers and anti-terror personnel to trace anyone who attended the event that has emerged as the countrys biggest Covid-19 hotspot.

All of them, including the son of a Jharkhand minister, have been quarantined.

Data from the Union health ministry showed that 154 of the 356 new cases of infection reported on Wednesday -- -- or nearly 43% -- were people who attended the event held in Delhis Nizamuddin.

So far, seven of the attendees --- six in Telangana and one in Kashmir --- have died. The Centre has sounded a nationwide alert and asked police in states to trace all people who attended the congregation and get them tested for Covid-19.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

Wednesday was the second day of tracking attendees but top officials said they expected the number of people linked to the event to rise in the coming days as many people who attended the weeks-long event came back to their homes in the first week of March.

In some states like Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, members of the Jamaat attended the summit on a weekly rotational basis, officials said. Entire Muslim dominated areas are being scanned, said a Bihar government official, who was not willing to be named.

Across states, officials scanned all local mosques and directed heads of gram panchayats to provide information about the attendees who havent contacted the authorities.

The biggest jump was reported in Haryana, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

Officials In Haryana and Rajasthan, most of the 503 and 524 attendees identified, respectively, hailed from the Mewat region, which begins at the edge of the national capital region and comprises parts of Haryana and Rajasthan. Police officers in the two states said they were trying to find out whether some of the attendees were foreigners.

If they turn out to be foreigners, the persons who provided them lodging will be booked for violating the orders asking people to inform presence of foreigners, said a senior Rajasthan police officer on condition of anonymity. Haryana home secretary Vijai Vardhan said the entire Mewat region was being scanned with the help of Rajasthan government.

In Himachal Pradesh, the state government released a list of 840 persons who travelled to Nizamuddin but it was not immediately known how many of them attended the Jamaat event. On Tuesday, the figure was 17.

In Maharashtra, authorities identified over 300 persons and in Gujarat, officials named 72 people who attended the congregation. All of them have been quarantined and their swabs have been taken for Covid-19 tests.

In Uttar Pradesh, the police identified 569 Jamaat members who attended the Nizamuddin meeting in March, said additional chief secretary, home, Awanish Awasthi. In Uttarakhand, 230 attendees were identified.

Awasthi said the police were also searching for 218 foreign nationals, who had come to participate in the congregation in Delhi and were staying in different places across Uttar Pradesh. Awasthi said they were also looking whether the foreigners violated visa norms, which prohibits persons coming on tourist visa to visit a religious function.

In Andhra Pradesh, as many as 812 people were identified as having direct and indirect links with the Jamaat meeting . In Telangana, the government identified 1,030 persons who had attended the event. Officials in the two states said their health conditions are being monitored.

In Assam, all 13 Covid-19 patients had attended the congregation. Of the 547 attendees, 230 have been traced, said health minister Himata Biswa Sarma, appealing to the attendees to voluntarily contact local health authorities.

In Bihar, where only 86 attendees, apart from 57 foreign nationals, have been tracked, the government asked the states anti-terror squad and district police to look for the returnees. Those who attended the religious gathering at Nizamuddin will be traced. We are coordinating with other states to trace them, said Bihar police chief Gupteshwar Pandey.

In neighbouring Jharkhand, Mohammad Tanveer, the son of Jharkhand minister Haji Hussain Ansari, was among the 37 people who attended the event. Tanveer is now in quarantine.

The ministers son Md Tanveer and one another have been sent to quarantine run by the administration. Their samples had been taken and sent for testing for Covid-19. They are fully cooperating with the administration, Deoghar SP NK Singh said,

Ansari, however, said his son had not gone to Delhi since 1993 when he studied there.

(With agency inputs)
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- BMW Brilliance, a joint venture between BMW Group and Brilliance China Automotive Holdings, kicked off on April 1 the construction of its new Tiexi plant, which is expected to largely ramp up BMW's production capacity in the world's largest auto market.

Covering an area of 3.2 square kilometers, the extension project is designed to be fitted with flexible manufacturing assembly lines available for mixed production of BMW-branded BEVs, PHEVs and fuel-powered vehicles.



(Existing Tiexi plant, photo source: BMW Brilliance)



The completed new Tiexi plant will be equipped with dedicated workshops for stamping, car body building, painting, and assembly, and create thousands of jobs to local residents. It will be part of BMW's largest production base in the world together with the existing Tiexi plant, Dadong plant, a powertrain factory, and a R&D center located in Tiexi.

In October 2018, BMW and Brilliance Automotive announced they would expand their joint venture until 2040. BMW also said it planned to invest 3 billion in the project, further expanding its production plants in China.



(Existing Tiexi plant, photo source: BMW Brilliance)

In Tiexi, a new plant on the existing plant ground would be built to double the site's capacity, while extensive remodeling and expansion measures would target the neighboring plant in Dadong. As a result, the total annual production capacity of BMW Brilliances plants would increase to 650,000 units from the early 2020s.

BMW does not halt investment or production businesses in China due to the coronavirus pandemic. In late Feb., the joint venture saw its 3 millionth China-built BMW-branded vehicle roll off the assembly line at Dadong plant, Shenyang.
Hasher Jallal Taheb, 23, of Cumming, Georgia, was snared in an FBI sting in January 2019 when he tried to buy assault rifles, explosive devices, and an anti-tank weapon from agents posing as gunrunners

A jihadist yesterday pleaded guilty to plotting to blow up the White House, the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument and the Statue of Liberty with IEDs and a rocket launcher.

Hasher Jallal Taheb, 23, of Cumming, Georgia, was snared in an FBI sting in January 2019 when he tried to buy assault rifles, explosive devices, and an anti-tank weapon from undercover agents.

'Taheb hatched a dangerous plan that would have resulted in unimaginable injury,' said Byung J. 'BJay' Pak, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.

In March 2018, a member of the community in Atlanta reported his concerns to local law enforcement that Taheb had become radicalized.

He had changed his name and obtained a US passport for travel abroad, for 'hijra', a term used by ISIS to encourage its followers to migrate to its enclaves in Syria and Iraq.

In addition, by July of that year he had begun planning domestic jihad with his targets initially including the White House and the Statue of Liberty.

'Taheb planned to conduct a terrorist attack on the White House as part of what he claimed was his obligation to engage in jihad,' said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers. 'And that was just one of the iconic American landmarks he wanted to target.'

During undercover meetings with Taheb in January 2019, he produced sketches of the White House and described the types of weapons and explosives he wished to use in the attack, including semi-automatic weapons, improvised explosive devices, an anti-tank weapon, and hand grenades

By December 2018, Taheb had listed several other targets in the Washington DC area: the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, and a synagogue.

During undercover meetings with Taheb in January 2019, he produced sketches of the White House and described the types of weapons and explosives he wished to use in the attack, including semi-automatic weapons, improvised explosive devices, an anti-tank weapon, and hand grenades.

FBI special agents arrested Taheb on January 16, 2019, after he arrived at a pre-arranged location where he expected to obtain weapons for his attack.

Assistant Attorney General Demers said: 'Thanks to a tip from a member of the community and the work of the agents, analysts, and prosecutors responsible for this case, the threat posed by the defendant was neutralized and the defendant has admitted his guilt and will now be held accountable for his crime.'

Taheb (second from left) will be sentenced on June 23 before U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen. As part of the plea agreement, Taheb and the government agreed that he should receive a 15-year sentence of imprisonment

Taheb will be sentenced on June 23 before U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen. As part of the plea agreement, Taheb and the government agreed that he should receive a 15-year sentence of imprisonment.

'This plea is the result of a more than year-long intensive investigation by FBI Atlanta's Joint Terrorism Task Force, which was because of a tip from the community,' said Chris Hacker, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta.

'Our citizens are our most important weapons in fighting terrorism, our eyes and ears in our communities, and why we say to please contact law enforcement if you see or hear something suspicious.'
U.S. Customs and Border Protection would like to remind all travelers that the border is open and fully operational to essential travel only, according to a press release from the Michigan State Police.

The CBP along with numerous other law enforcement agencies throughout the state of Michigan are reporting that they are getting calls from concerned travelers that the border is shut down to medical professionals.

These rumors that are currently circulating are false, the press release said.

The border remains open to all essential travel which includes medical professionals who are vital during these difficult times, according to the press release.

Travelers are urged to monitor border wait times at https://bwt.cbp.gov/index.html and also follow @CBPGreatLakes on Twitter for up to the minute updates of what is happening at the border.
Home should be a refuge. But for people reporting to a hospital during the coronavirus crisis, home is just one more place to dread. Doctors, nurses and others working at Illinois hospitals where COVID-19 patients are being treated fear returning to their families, who might be more at risk because of invisible dangers they unwittingly bring home.
Elementary students view educational content on their IPTV. Telecom companies will provide unlimited data for students, parents and teachers when accessing educational content amid COVID-19. Courtesy of SK Broadband



By Kim Hyun-bin



The country's leading mobile carriers and technology companies have come out with emergency tech-support measures for schools and families as unprecedented online classes begin April 9 at elementary through high schools around the nation.



The new school year here usually begins in March, but the country postponed it three times, pushing it back by five weeks amid fears that schools could become vulnerable to cluster infections of COVID-19.



SK Broadband (SKB), KT and LG Uplus will provide their networks free of charge for teachers, students and parents when viewing educational content while Samsung, LG Electronics and the government will provide some 63,000 units of smart devices such as tablets to students from low-income families.



The move comes after the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) asked domestic tech companies for support as the government is not 100 percent capable of establishing remote-education.






Nithya Gnanapandithan By

Express News Service

Natsuka Kusanos Domains, currently streaming on MUBI, is a film unlike any Ive seen before. Some might even argue that it is not a film at all. Aside from the first 15 odd minutes, the 150-minute-long film is made up almost entirely of table readings and rehearsals of the three main actors. Right at the outset, we are introduced to almost the full story in the form of a confession of a terrible crime read back to the protagonist Aki Takemoto (Asami Shibuya) by an official (Kenta Ryu, the only other actor in the film, aside from the aforementioned trio). Though this portion is filmed like a scene in a normal movie, its interesting to note that this scene too is essentially made up of a reading.

Aki has confessed to murdering the three-year-old daughter of her longtime friend Nodoka (Tomo Kasajima), who asked her to babysit Honoka on a day when there was a typhoon in the area. Her motive is unclear. But in her confession, Aki mentions a letter she has left for Nodoka, which only the two of them will understand. After reading her statement and getting her signature, the official asks her what she meant in the letter by the kingdom made with chairs and sheets on the day of the typhoon. Aki says she cannot explain. When asked what happened on the day of the typhoon, she only says it was just a very fulfilling day for them and goes on to sing a song.

Once the table readings begin, we find out that there was another day with a typhoon, 22 years

ago, when Aki and Nodoka built a bedsheet castle and used that song as a password to their kingdom or domain. Later rehearsals reveal that this day is believed by Aki to be a significant one in her and Nodokas friendship. Through these readings and rehearsals, which expand upon the sequence of events described in Akis statement at the start, we slowly piece together the story. How Aki meets Nodoka, her husband Naoto and daughter Honoka at their house. How Aki finds that what initially seemed like a comfortable home is, in fact, a stifling one for Nodoka because of Naotos need to maintain it and their family in a certain way. How Aki calls Naoto out for this and how he, in turn, banishes her from their home.

The scenes are not read in chronological order and there is a lot of repetition as the actors rehearse the scenes over and over (seemingly on different days). But there are also subtle changes in these repeated revisits. Sometimes in the lines themselves, which change slightly in each reading/rehearsal. Scenes are cut off partway in initial readings, but we are shown more and more of these later. There are no props used at first for the table readings, but slowly they are added in. A mug here, a bag there. The biggest change, of course, is in the performances. We see the actors slowly morph into the characters and it is a fascinating insight into the process of acting.

The way the scenes are revisited also mirrors the way memories work. Fluid, ever-changing, details coming and going. So the whole movie can be seen as Aki perhaps remembering and trying to come to terms with what happened. This would explain the addition, as the film goes on, of location shots minus the actors. It is also hinted at by two oft-repeated scenes that have characters trying to reconstruct past events.

The first of these is of Aki and Nodoka talking about their castle building  Aki helps her friend remember how they became really close after that day though Nodoka had other friends who were closer before. The other features Aki, Nodoka, and Naoto having a conversation at the dinner table and the two women together recall a childhood visit to the school Naoto now works at. This second scene also talks about the two women having their own way of communicating without words. Naoto calls it a coded circuit and says they are actually conveying more without words. The same can be said about the film too. It somehow conveys more though it eschews a lot of what makes up a traditional film.

Another instance of this departure from the norm is the cinematography. The camera often holds still on one actors face, even when they are not the one speaking. In a subsequent rendition of the scene, we get only the face of the one speaking. Or sometimes, its someone who is not even in the scene. When the camera pans, it is not smooth like it would be in a finished movie. Often, it lands off to the side of an actor, on their back, in their hair, sometimes it goes out of focus, captures a reflection of itself in a mirror. All of it reminding us that what we are watching is all made up, not real.

And yet, paradoxically, Domains remains consistently immersive. Even without the usual trappings of cinema, I found myself fully invested in these characters, in what was going on in their minds.

Rather than world-building of the physical sort, Domains constructs a psychological world that is hard to resist. a long time to come.
B oris Johnson has praised the "inspirational" NHS as he stood on his doorstep during self-isolation and clapped for the key workers fighting coronavirus.

The Prime Minister joined people all across the UK in applauding the NHS workers on the front line of the fight against Covid-19.

He shared a video of him standing outside 11 Downing Street at 8pm as he thanked them for their hard work during the pandemic.

Mr Johnson wrote: "Thank you to the NHS and all of our critical workers for all you are doing to fight #coronavirus. You really are an inspiration."

Boris Johnson in Downing Street / number10gov/flickr

It comes as the Prime Minister continues to self-isolate after testing positive for coronavirus last week.

Downing Street confirmed on Thursday that Mr Johnson is still showing coronavirus symptoms.

Clap for Carers returns - In pictures 1 /29 Clap for Carers returns - In pictures NHS workers applaud on the streets outside Royal Liverpool University Hospital REUTERS Firefighters are seen applauding at Cadogan Fire Station REUTERS NHS workers applaud on the streets outside Chelsea and Westminster Hospital REUTERS Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" in London AFP via Getty Images People are seen applauding from flats in Riverlight Quay during the Clap for our Carers REUTERS Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" AFP via Getty Images Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" AFP via Getty Images Fireworks are seen during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS REUTERS Firefighters are seen applauding at Cadogan Fire Station REUTERS NHS workers applaud on the streets outside Chelsea and Westminster Hospital REUTERS People stand on their balcony and clap near West Middlesex University Hospita AP NHS workers in the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital PA Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" AFP via Getty Images Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" AFP via Getty Images Finlay MacDonald plays the pipes at his home in Glasgow alongside sons Elliott, ten, and Fionn, eight PA NHS workers applaud on the streets outside Royal Liverpool University Hospita REUTERS Members of the public clap outside the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital PA Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" AFP via Getty Images Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" AFP via Getty Images Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" PA Members of the public take part in a national "clap for carers" AFP via Getty Images A member of the public bangs a pot outside the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital PA

The Prime Ministers official spokesman told a Westminster briefing on Wednesday: The PM continues to have mild symptoms, but he does still have symptoms.

Asked if he would be leaving self-isolation on Friday, the spokesman said: Were following the guidelines from Public Health England and from the chief medical officer which state that you need to self-isolate for a period of seven days, so no change in that.

Mr Johnson spoke from isolation on Wednesday, addressing the criticism aimed at the Government in recent days for low testing rates for NHS staff and other key workers.

Boris Johnson gives update on testing from self-isolation

He said: "I want to say a special word about testing because it is so important and as I have been saying for weeks and weeks, this is the way through.
Calls are mounting for stricter directives on using personal protective gear in hospitals and nursing homes as a new report from a Ministry of Labour-funded disease prevention body warns provincial guidelines do not embody a health and safety approach.

Government directives currently say front-line health-care workers only need protective equipment if they are in close contact with confirmed COVID-19 patients. Earlier this week, the Ontarios chief medical health officer said personal support workers do not need to wear protective gear unless their location is the site of an outbreak.

Michael Hurley, president of the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions, said he is disappointed in current precautions that he says leave workers  especially those in nursing homes  at risk.

Youve got brutally low levels of staffing compounded by almost no equipment compounded by no time or attention to how to combat the spread of this virus, he told the Star.

Sharleen Stewart, president of Service Employees International Union that represents 60,000 health-care workers including nurses and personal support workers, said she wants clear directives that all health-care staff  including staff in nursing homes  should have access to N95 masks.

Ive referred to this nightmare as sending firefighters into the fire with no equipment, she said.

We are not paying enough attention to community (health-care) workers. Theres a bunch of vunerable workers there.

The calls for stronger protection point to a deepening tension between those advocating a workplace safety approach outlined in a new report by the Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers (OHCOW), and health-care facilities desperately managing supply shortages.

Given those shortages, some experts have pointed to the need to prioritize protective gear for health-care workers doing procedures known to carry high risk of aerosolization of the virus and accidental transmission.

OHCOW is an independent organization funded by the Ministry of Labour and tasked with preventing illness and injury in the workplace. Its recent report says existing guidelines on protective gear for health-care workers are too weak given that the COVID-19 outbreak is in its early stages.

If you are uncertain about the hazard you employ maximum protection until you have more information to base your decision on, the report by occupational hygienist John Oudyk says.

Expert evidence from infectious disease doctors and the World Health Organization shows COVID-19 is spread through droplet contact. The OHCOW report reiterates that airborne transmission is unlikely to be the predominant path of infection, but notes the health and safety approach is to prepare for the worst case scenario.

That precautionary approach, the report says, is based on recommendations made by the SARS Commission that investigated the provinces response to the 2003 epidemic.

The Commission describes its one single take-home message as the precautionary principle that safety comes first: that reasonable efforts to reduce risk need not await scientific proof.

The Ontario health system needs to enshrine this principle and to enforce it, the commission found.

It is the most important single lesson of SARS, and it is a lesson ignored only at our collective peril.

The OHCOW report points to some research studies that suggest aerosol transmission may be possible in limited circumstances, including a recent University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) pre-print study of a biocontainment unit where 13 COVID-19 patients were cared for. The study, which has not yet been peer reviewed, identified some samples with virus genes in the air.

The researchers were unable to find evidence of live  and therefore infectious  virus from their air samples, however. They said the low concentrations of virus from their samples made it difficult to find infectious virus and noted a need for further experiments.

While the pre-print study does not indicate that COVID-19 is an airborne virus, its co-authors said, it does point to the value in implementing protocols that maintain airborne isolation standards including respiratory protection.

The head of UNMCs Division of Infectious Diseases said its health-care workers are caring for patients known or suspected to have COVID-19 with special precautions and said the facility had recently introduced universal mask use for all personnel in patient care areas.

We need to continue to emphasize the known methods of transmission and the ways to combat such transmission, he added.

In the meantime, front-line workers particularly those in long-term care homes with limited access to PPE  are feeling afraid, said Canadian Union of Public Employees secretary-treasurer Candace Rennick.

Theyre feeling abandoned, she said. I think the response has been completely and totally inadequate.
Iranian parliament speaker Ali Larijani has tested positive for COVID-19, parliament's department of public relations announced in a statement on Thursday, April 2.

Responding to several members of parliament inquiring about Larijani's health, the statement has affirmed that following the detection of some symptoms, Mr. Larijani was tested positive, and immediately quarantined.

A former commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, Larijani, is the most senior Iranian official to contract the virus, so far.

Earlier, two dozen lawmakers, Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri, Deputy president Ms. Massoumeh Ebtekar and several other officials, had been infected by the deadly novel coronavirus.



Furthermore, the top advisor of Iran's Supreme Leader, Dr. Ali Akbar Velayati also tested positive, Iranian news outlets reported on March 12.

Before being appointed as Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's top foreign policy advisor, Velayati had set a record by presiding over the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for sixteen years (1981-97).

A Johns Hopkins University graduate, Velayati was tested positive while managing a hospital in Tehran, where the victims of COVID-19 are treated.

However, no official report on the condition of those infected with the deadly virus has been published.

Najaf, Iraq-born, 61-year-old Larijani, presided over the Iranian parliament for twelve years but decided not to run in this year's elections.

Larijani, a former top political advisor to the Islamic Republic Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, is representing the city of Qom, where the first cases of coronavirus were detected in Iran, and soon spread to other parts of the country. Earlier, two other MPs from Qom had also tested positive.

Although renowned for being close to the extremist allies of the Supreme Leader, Larijani supported the so-called moderate clergy, Hassan Rouhani in his two successful presidential campaigns.

Based on the Islamic Republic Ministry of Health reports, Iran has more than 50,000 cases of the virus and 3,160 deaths, so far.

However, data exclusively collected by Radio Farda show that more than 70,000 have so far been hospitalized in Iran's 31 provinces for having COVID-19 symptoms.
Five people tested positive for COVID-19 in Bihar on Thursday, taking the total number of cases in the state to 29, an official said.

According to state epidemiologist Ragini Mishra, two women from Gaya, the wife and the mother of a coronavirus patient with travel history to Dubai, and as many men from Gopalganj, both of whom returned from the Middle East recently, tested positive.

A resident of Saran district, who had recently travelled to the UK, also tested positive, she said.

"Altogether, 1,973 samples have been tested in the state so far, of which 29 have tested positive," Mishra told PTI.

Notably, Gopalganj reported its first COVID-19 case on Tuesday when a man with travel history to the Middle East tested positive.

It is, however, the first time that a sample has tested positive from Saran.

Of the 29 people reported COVID-19 positive in Bihar till date, one has died, while three have recovered.

The deceased was a 38-year-old from Munger who returned from Qatar a month ago and breathed his last on March 21 at AIIMS, Patna, a day before test results confirmed he was COVID-19 positive.

He had been suffering from renal failure and ended up infecting several others, including neighbours, relatives and employees of private hospitals in Munger and Patna before he was referred to AIIMS here.

Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has congratulated the three people who have fully recovered.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
MIAMI, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- itopia, leading provider of Windows desktop & app environments on Google Cloud, announced that it is prioritizing deployments related to business continuity and enabling businesses to deliver secure, virtual workspaces on any device for their employees. As businesses rush to equip the mass migration of their office workers for remote work, itopia's cloud automation technology makes this transition possible within one day on Google Cloud.

"In the midst of the current health crisis related to COVID-19, itopia is here to help businesses continue their operations," said Jonathan Lieberman, CEO of itopia. "We're committed to making the work-from-home transition as seamless as possible. By spinning up secure, remote work environments for our customers on the world's widest-reaching cloud network, itopia is helping businesses keep their employees safe, healthy, and productive."

itopia is a cloud-native automation and orchestration solution enabling Desktop as a Service (DaaS) on Google Cloud. itopia uses automation to rapidly provision cloud environments with Microsoft RDS, simplify IT task management, and auto-scale cloud resources to match real-time user demand.

By prioritizing work-from-home deployments, itopia is showing its commitment to helping organizations stay productive despite the extraordinary workforce challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to quick and seamless implementations, organizations may also receive $800 Google Cloud Platform Credit through itopia to get started.

About itopia

Because enterprises need better ways to keep ahead of market transformations, itopia automates and orchestrates infrastructure on Google Cloud, enabling enterprises to shed IT burdens and focus on what they do best. itopia's core offerings include accelerating VDI migration to Desktop as a Service (DaaS), eliminating infrastructure overhead including Citrix or VMware, and providing a unified management console for securely delivering Windows desktops & apps to distributed workforces.

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Web: www.itopia.com

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PITTSBURGH, April 2, 2020 - University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists today announced a potential vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, the new coronavirus causing the COVID-19 pandemic. When tested in mice, the vaccine, delivered through a fingertip-sized patch, produces antibodies specific to SARS-CoV-2 at quantities thought to be sufficient for neutralizing the virus.

The paper appeared today in EBioMedicine, which is published by The Lancet, and is the first study to be published after critique from fellow scientists at outside institutions that describes a candidate vaccine for COVID-19. The researchers were able to act quickly because they had already laid the groundwork during earlier coronavirus epidemics.

"We had previous experience on SARS-CoV in 2003 and MERS-CoV in 2014. These two viruses, which are closely related to SARS-CoV-2, teach us that a particular protein, called a spike protein, is important for inducing immunity against the virus. We knew exactly where to fight this new virus," said co-senior author Andrea Gambotto, M.D., associate professor of surgery at the Pitt School of Medicine. "That's why it's important to fund vaccine research. You never know where the next pandemic will come from."

"Our ability to rapidly develop this vaccine was a result of scientists with expertise in diverse areas of research working together with a common goal," said co-senior author Louis Falo, M.D., Ph.D., professor and chair of dermatology at Pitt's School of Medicine and UPMC.

Compared to the experimental mRNA vaccine candidate that just entered clinical trials, the vaccine described in this paper -- which the authors are calling PittCoVacc, short for Pittsburgh Coronavirus Vaccine -- follows a more established approach, using lab-made pieces of viral protein to build immunity. It's the same way the current flu shots work.

The researchers also used a novel approach to deliver the drug, called a microneedle array, to increase potency. This array is a fingertip-sized patch of 400 tiny needles that delivers the spike protein pieces into the skin, where the immune reaction is strongest. The patch goes on like a Band-Aid and then the needles -- which are made entirely of sugar and the protein pieces -- simply dissolve into the skin.

"We developed this to build on the original scratch method used to deliver the smallpox vaccine to the skin, but as a high-tech version that is more efficient and reproducible patient to patient," Falo said. "And it's actually pretty painless -- it feels kind of like Velcro."

The system also is highly scalable. The protein pieces are manufactured by a "cell factory" -- layers upon layers of cultured cells engineered to express the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein -- that can be stacked further to multiply yield. Purifying the protein also can be done at industrial scale. Mass-producing the microneedle array involves spinning down the protein-sugar mixture into a mold using a centrifuge. Once manufactured, the vaccine can sit at room temperature until it's needed, eliminating the need for refrigeration during transport or storage.

"For most vaccines, you don't need to address scalability to begin with," Gambotto said. "But when you try to develop a vaccine quickly against a pandemic that's the first requirement."

When tested in mice, PittCoVacc generated a surge of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 within two weeks of the microneedle prick.

Those animals haven't been tracked long term yet, but the researchers point out that mice who got their MERS-CoV vaccine produced a sufficient level of antibodies to neutralize the virus for at least a year, and so far the antibody levels of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccinated animals seem to be following the same trend.

Importantly, the SARS-CoV-2 microneedle vaccine maintains its potency even after being thoroughly sterilized with gamma radiation -- a key step toward making a product that's suitable for use in humans.

The authors are now in the process of applying for an investigational new drug approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in anticipation of starting a phase I human clinical trial in the next few months.

"Testing in patients would typically require at least a year and probably longer," Falo said. "This particular situation is different from anything we've ever seen, so we don't know how long the clinical development process will take. Recently announced revisions to the normal processes suggest we may be able to advance this faster."

###

Additional authors on the study are Eun Kim, Geza Erdos, Ph.D., Shaohua Huang, Thomas Kenniston, Stephen Balmert, Ph.D., Cara Donahue Carey, Michael Epperly, Ph.D., William Klimstra, Ph.D., and Emrullah Korkmaz, Ph.D., all of Pitt; and Bart Haagmans, of Erasmus Medical Center.

Funding for this study was provided by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases grant R21-AI114264, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases grants R01-AR074285, R01-AR071277 and R01-AR068249, and National Cancer Institute grant T32-CA175294.

When the embargo lifts, UPMC and Pitt will conduct a virtual press conference where the authors will answer questions from reporters. There is limited availability for reporter participation. Please contact Erin Hare (HareE@upmc.edu) by 5pm on Wednesday, April 1, if you'd like to participate.

Media outlets may share a public livestream of the virtual press conference with their audiences. Viewers will not be able to ask questions but can watch the event live.

To read this release online or share it, visit https://www.upmc.com/media/news/040220-falo-gambotto-sars-cov2-vaccine [when embargo lifts].

About the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

As one of the nation's leading academic centers for biomedical research, the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine integrates advanced technology with basic science across a broad range of disciplines in a continuous quest to harness the power of new knowledge and improve the human condition. Driven mainly by the School of Medicine and its affiliates, Pitt has ranked among the top 10 recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health since 1998. In rankings recently released by the National Science Foundation, Pitt ranked fifth among all American universities in total federal science and engineering research and development support.

Likewise, the School of Medicine is equally committed to advancing the quality and strength of its medical and graduate education programs, for which it is recognized as an innovative leader, and to training highly skilled, compassionate clinicians and creative scientists well-equipped to engage in world-class research. The School of Medicine is the academic partner of UPMC, which has collaborated with the University to raise the standard of medical excellence in Pittsburgh and to position health care as a driving force behind the region's economy. For more information about the School of Medicine, see http://www.medschool.pitt.edu.

About UPMC

A $21 billion health care provider and insurer, Pittsburgh-based UPMC is inventing new models of patient-centered, cost-effective, accountable care. The largest nongovernmental employer in Pennsylvania, UPMC integrates 89,000 employees, 40 hospitals, 700 doctors' offices and outpatient sites, and a more than 3.7 million-member Insurance Services Division, the largest medical insurer in western Pennsylvania. In the most recent fiscal year, UPMC contributed $1.2 billion in benefits to its communities, including more care to the region's most vulnerable citizens than any other health care institution, and paid $587 million in federal, state and local taxes. Working in close collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences, UPMC shares its clinical, managerial and technological skills worldwide through its innovation and commercialization arm, UPMC Enterprises, and through UPMC International. U.S. News & World Report consistently ranks UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside on its annual Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals and ranks UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh on its Honor Roll of America's Best Children's Hospitals. For more information, go to UPMC.com.

http://www.upmc.com/media

Contact: Erin Hare

Mobile: 412-738-1097

E-mail: HareE@upmc.edu

Contact: Arvind Suresh

Mobile: 412-509-8207

E-mail: SureshA2@upmc.edu
Tenants who have the financial capacity must continue to pay rent even with the moratorium on rental evictions in place, according to Housing Minister Michael Sukkar.

In a TV interview with ABC News, Sukkar said that the moratorium on evictions amid the COVID-19 outbreak does not necessarily mean that tenants can skip paying their rents.

"Unless you have an arrangement with your landlord that takes into account your financial circumstances, you are required to pay your rent. The moratorium applies to make sure that people do not find themselves without a home," he said.

Sukkar assured that the national cabinet is exploring options and proposals to set a framework that can help landlords and tenants make an agreement about rental payments.

"To the greatest extent as possible, we want flexibility. We want landlords and tenants working it out for themselves," he said.

Adrian Kelly, president of the Real Estate Institute of Australia, said Sukkar's message should clarify the issue about rents and the moratorium on evictions.

"A moratorium on evictions doesn't mean rent is not payable, it is. If circumstances mean that payment in full is not possible it is a holding off from payments, not a cancellation," Kelly said.

However, Kelly urged the state governments to step up and provide assistance to Australians to help them continue to pay their bills, including rent.

"The rent cash flow ensures that everyone wins and I unashamedly include the real estate agent in that. We need income in order to continue to employ our property managers who are at the coal face of looking after both tenants and landlords," he said.

Furthermore, Kelly said it is counterintuitive just to leave tenants and landlords to sort things out themselves.

Sukkar said in the ABC News interview that the national cabinet is already considering some proposals to set a standard.

"I'm sure there will be a framework of minimum standards and requirements. It's not in any landlord's interest to lose a great tenant who is going through a short-term difficulty. I'm sure landlords understand that. But we need to put in some minimum standards," Sukkar said.

In an earlier statement, Ben Kingsley, chairperson of PICA, landlords must also be provided with assistance from the government. PICA outlined some of their suggested policies that would help landlords amid the outbreak.

"Let's be clear  landlords understand the situation. The vast majority are hardworking, average Australians who own just one rental property," Kingsley said.
The number of coronavirus cases in Egypt has increased to 850 on Thursday; however, the daily increase rate is not alarming, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said in a televised statement.

Compared to the Egyptian population of 100 million people, the number of cases is not high, and Egypt is still in the middle phase of the outbreak and has not reached the dangerous, third phase, Madbouly said.

The average daily infection rate was between 30 and 40 cases last week, and this week it has been between 50 and 60, the prime minister said. It is expected that it will range from 60 to 70 cases a day next week.

According to the prime minister, these rates are not alarming as Egypt is still seeing a natural gradual curve in the spread of the virus.

What [would be] alarming [would be] the registration of hundreds of cases daily. We do not want to reach this stage, Madbouly said.

The prime minister urged people not to underestimate the situation and to commit to the precautionary measures in place.

Madbouly also said that the capabilities of the health ministry exceeds the requirements of the current number of cases.

The health ministry has been coordinating its efforts with university hospitals and making a plan to start integrating some of them to help in the fight against the coronavirus.

The aim of the government, according to Madbouly, is to have a comprehensive health system that encompasses all governorates and provides needed medical services to Egyptian citizens.

The government is looking into providing workplaces like factories and construction sites, among others, with up to 1,000 vehicles that can function as clinics, in an initiative from Health Minister Hala Zayed, the prime minister said.

Mobile clinics can provide workers with necessary medical services and help in taking the necessary rapid measures if any coronavirus cases are detected.

Madbouly also addressed the efforts exerted by the state to repatriate Egyptians stranded abroad by flight suspensions.

The premier said that there the government will temporarily stop returning citizens from abroad after already expatriating those who were stranded.

A stranded person is someone who had to leave Egypt either for a work mission, training course, for medical treatment or for tourism, the prime minister said.

These are the kinds of people who are considered stuck, as they dont have residence in the country they are in and they have to return to Egypt, he added.

Madbouly said that, at first, the government performed medical check-ups and tests on returnees at airports and asked them to self-isolate for 14 days.

The government discovered, however, that many people have not been committing to self-isolation, and that led to an outbreak in some areas.

Since people were not committed, the government has decided to put returnees from abroad in compulsory quarantine in hotels at state expense.

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As coronavirus patients are hospitalized, it is difficult for doctors to predict which of them will require intensive care and a respirator. Many different factors come into play, some yet to be fully understood by doctors.

As such, computer scientists at the University of Copenhagen are now developing computer models based on artificial intelligence that calculate the risk of an individual patient's need for a ventilator or intensive care. The new initiative is being conducted in a collaboration with Rigshospitalet and Bispebjerg Hospital.

With these models, hospitals will be able to know - for example - that 40 percent of their 300 hospitalized patients will probably require a ventilator within one week. This allows them to plan and deploy their resources in the best possible way." Mads Nielsen, Professor and Department Head, University of Copenhagen's Department of Computer Science

What do the seriously ill have in common?

Algorithms will harvest vast amounts of data from multiple sources. First, they will find patterns in data from Danish coronavirus patients who have been through the system up until now. In doing so, doctors hope to identify shared traits among the most severely affected patients. This may turn out to be the number of white blood cells, the use of certain pharmaceuticals or something else.

"We are aware of certain things that increase risk, such as age, smoking, asthma and heart problems, but there are other factors involved. After all, we hear about young people who end up on ventilators, and older people who do well without understanding why. So let's get the computer to find patterns that we aren't able to see ourselves," says Chief Physician Espen Solem of Bispebjerg and Frederiksberg Hospitals.

These patterns will be compared with information from newly hospitalized patients. The data consists of X-rays, tests and measurements taken of patients at the time of their admittance to hospital, along with their electronic health records.

"All data will go to a supercomputer where, within minutes, our model calculates how likely a specific patient is to require a ventilator, and how many days will go by before such a need arises. That's our goal," says Mads Nielsen.

First models ready in two to three weeks

Although the models will not be used as a basis for treating individual patients, they will be used as a planning tool that can still make a big difference for hospital staff. According to Espen Solem:

"It will be a great help if we know from the outset whether an individual patient is someone who we need to pay extra attention to, and reserve capacity for. Danish hospitals are still able to keep up, but the situation could change."

Work on the computer models is underway this week, and Mads Nielsen expects the first, rough models to be ready in two to three weeks.

"We hope that our models will be able to be used during this initial wave of coronavirus infections - otherwise, they will be beneficial during the second wave that we anticipate in autumn. Perhaps the models can also be taken to countries where the pandemic has yet to spread as widely as it has in Denmark," says Mads Nielsen.
As job losses climb into the millions due to the coronavirus pandemic, laid-off workers increasingly can't make the rent. That's also bad news for small landlords.

Unlike large real estate companies and REITs that own multiple rental buildings, small, so-called mom and pop landlords have neither the cash nor the credit availability to cover their costs when the rents aren't paid.

There are about 8 million individual landlords in the United States, meaning those who typically own between one and 10 properties. They own and manage half the rental properties in the nation and house about 48 million renters, according to Avail, a software company that sells them the type of online rental platforms used by larger landlords.

Avail conducted a survey in late March of more than 3,000 mom and pop landlords and over 7,000 tenants who rent from them. More than half (54%) of the renters said they had already lost their jobs due to the coronavirus outbreak, and of those, about a third said that if they couldn't afford to, they would simply stop paying rent. Some said they would look to family and friends for help, while others said they didn't know what they would do.

That will leave millions of landlords in the lurch. Most have mortgages on their properties, and while some can apply for the government's forbearance program, that doesn't cover all of their expenses.

Most small landlords don't make a ton of money from rent payments, said Laurence Jankelow, co-founder of Avail. They use that to cover their costs. They are banking on the appreciation of the properties for future gains.

"The expenses they have to pay for maintenance on the building  there's no forbearance on paying your utility bill," he said.

Taylor Denchfield owns about a dozen single-family rental properties in Maryland. He is starting to get calls from tenants already and is trying to deal with them on a case-by-case basis.
A man who is facing attempted murder charges after stabbing three members of an Asian American family he believed were 'spreading the coronavirus' could be charged with a hate crime offence.

The incident occurred at a Sam's Club in Midland, Texas, and was only stopped when a heroic employee of the store intervened, preventing the man from killing the family in his assault while.

The employee, Zach Owen, sustained stab wounds to his hand during his heroic rescue, according to authorities who spoke to BuzzFeed News.

Joe L. Gomez reportedly stabbed three people from an Asian American family and had to be subdued by an employee of the store, could face hate crime charges

Jose L. Gomez, 19, attacked the family on the 14 March, and after being subdued by the store employee, was taken into custody by an off-duty border patrol agent.

In a statement obtained by ABC news, Gomez said he 'thought the family was Chinese, and infecting people with the coronavirus.'

He has been charged with three counts of attempted capital murder and one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, but the FBI has confirmed to BuzzFeed News that the case is also being handled as a possible hate crime.

Family members who were stabbed in the incident included a 2-year-old and a 6-year-old, according to documents obtained by ABC. Owen and the three victims have all been discharged from hospital.

A Sam's club in text, similar to that in which the assault occured, where a Sam's club employee had to intervene to prevent Gomez from stabbing an Asian American family to death

Speaking to CBS7 Bernie Ramirez, the border patrol agent who took Gomez into custody, said that wen he first saw the altercation he thought people were fighting over goods in the store.

'My initial thought was it was just the shortage of items that they were fighting over,' Ramirez said. 'So I just started making my way over there to break it up.'

As he got closer he saw that an employee had a man in chokehold, and saying that the man had stabbed people in the store. Ramirez pulled out his badge and detained Gomez before the police arrived.

He gave credit to Owen, the employee, saying 'he went into a knife fight empty handed. He took control of the individual and he disarmed him. If Zach had not been there things could've gone really badly.'

Ramirez even said Owen would be a great addition to the border patrol forces, saying: 'I dont know what kind of line of work Zach is wanting to go into, but Border Patrol is always hiring, and wed love to hire somebody like him.'

Speaking about Gomez's thinking behind the attack, Ramirez said: 'I've got close to 19 years in law enforcement. It's crazy and it's sad the way certain individuals think, their mindset. It's a sad deal.'

The FBI have warned of a potential increase in the number of hate crimes against Asian American people during the coronavirus outbreak.

Some, including President Donald Trump, have used rhetoric that critics say is fueling such incidents and stoking prejudices against Asian Americans.

Trump has referred to Covid-19 as the 'Chinese virus' on numerous occasions which critics say is blaming China and inciting harassment. When defending his use of the term, Trump said: 'It's not racist at all, no. Not at all. It comes from China.'

President Trump, pictured alongside VP Mike Pence giving a press briefing about the coronavirus, has repeatedly used the term 'China virus' when referring to Covid-19, despite critics saying such rhetoric will stoke aggression towards Asian American people in the U.S.

In a public statement on the issue of hate crimes against Asian Americans, warning that cases are likely to increase, the FBI said: The FBI assesses hate crime incidents against Asian Americans likely will surge across the United States, due to the spread of coronavirus disease [...] endangering Asian American communities.

'The FBI makes this assessment based on the assumption that a portion of the US public will associate COVID-19 with China and Asian American populations.'

An FBI spokesperson told Buzzfeed News that the organization 'will use all authority granted to us by federal law to investigate and hold those who commit violent acts accountable for their actions.'

'During the COVID-19 pandemic, we want to remind everyone that any violent criminal act against any person because of their race, ethnicity or national origin is a hate crime. This includes violence toward Asian Americans or individuals from East Asian countries.'

As of April 1, there have been over 216,000 cases of coronavirus in the U.S
Dickinson Wright PLLC is pleased to announce that Will Dorton has joined the firms Lexington office as Of Counsel.

Mr. Dorton joins the firm after serving as Corporate and Securities Counsel at Tempur Sealy International, a New York Stock Exchange-listed company headquartered in Lexington, KY and as a Staff Attorney at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the Division of Corporation Finance in Washington, DC. He previously served as a corporate attorney at a leading international law firm based in Atlanta, GA.

Mr. Dorton has significant experience in securities, governance, corporate finance, M&A, financial services regulatory and corporate treasury matters. His practice includes counseling companies on a range of complex corporate transactions, including all aspects of leveraged finance and general mergers and acquisitions, where he has worked with banks and non-bank financial institutions and corporate borrowers, including private equity firms and other financial industry participants. He counsels clients on federal securities law compliance and capital markets matters, including periodic and current reporting, capital-raising transactions, Section 16 matters, proxy statement disclosure, Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, exchange listing requirements, insider trading regulations and executive compensation documentation and disclosure. He also has experience representing banks and other financial industry participants in regulatory matters and has counseled clients across industries in all aspects of entity formation and maintenance. Mr. Dorton is able to offer clients a unique perspective based on his varied roles in private practice, as a federal regulator and an in-house advisor.

Will received his B.A. cum laude from Washington University in St. Louis and his J.D. magna cum laude from the University of Kentucky College of Law, where he was also elected to the Order of the Coif and served as a staff editor for the Kentucky Law Journal.

About Dickinson Wright PLLC

Dickinson Wright PLLC is a general practice business law firm with more than 475 attorneys among more than 40 practice areas and 16 industry groups. Headquartered in Detroit and founded in 1878, the firm has 18 offices, including six in Michigan (Detroit, Troy, Ann Arbor, Lansing, Grand Rapids, and Saginaw) and 11 other domestic offices in Austin and El Paso, Texas; Columbus, Ohio; Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; Lexington, Ky.; Nashville, Tenn.; Las Vegas and Reno, Nev.; Phoenix, Ariz.; Silicon Valley, Calif.; and Washington, D.C. The firms Canadian office is located in Toronto.

Dickinson Wright offers our clients a distinctive combination of superb client service, exceptional quality, value for fees, industry expertise and business acumen. As one of the few law firms with ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification, Dickinson Wright has built state-of-the-art, independently-verified risk management controls and security processes for our commercial transactions. Dickinson Wright lawyers are known for delivering commercially-oriented advice on sophisticated transactions and have a remarkable record of wins in high-stakes litigation. Dickinson Wright lawyers are regularly cited for their expertise and experience by Chambers, Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and other leading independent law firm evaluating organizations.


By PTI

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday accused India of "illegally changing the demographic structure" of Jammu and Kashmir, saying the new domicile rules were in "clear violation of international law".

The Indian government on Wednesday laid down rules for domicile which can now be given to anyone who has resided in the Union Territory for 15 years.

This is "another illegal step by India to settle non-Kashmiris" in the region, the Foreign Office said in a statement.

"This is a clear violation of international law, including the 4th Geneva Convention, it said.

The FO urged the UN and the international community to "take immediate cognizance of this Indian action and prevent India from changing the demography" of the region.

Under the new law, anyone who has resided for 15 years in Jammu and Kashmir or has studied for seven years and appeared in Class 10 and Class 12 examinations in an educational institution located in the Union Territory is a domicile.

Pakistan has been unsuccessfully trying to drum up international support against India for withdrawing Jammu and Kashmir's special status on August 5 and bifurcating it into two Union territories.

India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 was its internal matter.

It also advised Pakistan to accept reality and stop all anti-India propaganda.
Nigerias tally of Coronavirus (COVID-19) infections, on Thursday evening, increased to 184 as 10 new cases were announced by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

According to the new data released by NCDC, seven of the cases were reported in Lagos and three in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The total number of states which have reported at least a confirmed case of COVID-19 in Nigeria is still 12 and the FCT.

NCDC said as of 08:00 p.m. on April 2, there are 184 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Nigeria.

A total of 20 people have been discharged after recovering from the virus while two have died.

Details

Nigeria has been grappling with containing the spread of the disease as the number of confirmed cases continues to increase. Lagos State still tops the chat with the highest cases in the country.

A breakdown of states where cases have been confirmed indicate that Lagos now has 98 cases, followed by FCT  38, Osun -14, Oyo  8, Akwa Ibom  5, Ogun  4, Edo- 4, Kaduna  4, Bauchi  3, Enugu  2, and Ekiti  2. Rivers and Benue have one case each.

Community transmission

As Nigeria struggles to combat the spread of the virus, the health minister, Osagie Ehanire, said Thursday that the nation is beginning to see early signs of community transmission of the virus.

Going by the global trajectory of the disease, Nigeria is expected to record more cases as health authorities have embarked on contact tracing to locate thousands of people who have come in contact with infected persons.

Mr Ehanire said the lockdown in Lagos, Ogun and the FCT will be helpful as we continue to intensify efforts to detect and confirm cases of COVID19.

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With the expanded national case definition and addition of two new laboratories to test for COVID19 in Ibadan and Ebonyi States, the national testing capacity is now at 1,500 a day.

I applaud all our health workers and emergency responders in this critical time, he said.

Concerns

With the increasing cases in Africa, the World Health Organisation expressed concern that the spread of the virus is threatening fragile health systems on the continent.

WHO said infections are increasingly spreading not only between African countries but within different localities in the hardest-hit countries.

WHO Regional Director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti said case numbers are increasing exponentially in the African region.

It took 16 days from the first confirmed case in the Region to reach 100 cases. It took a further 10 days to reach the first thousand. Three days after this, there were 2000 cases, and two days later we were at 3000, she said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 18:27:30|Editor: huaxia

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KUWAIT CITY, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Kuwait reported on Thursday 25 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the total number in the country to 342, the Health Ministry said in a statement.

Among the six new cases are five Kuwaiti citizens who returned from Britain and France and one Philippine resident who returned from France, according to the ministry statement.

Nine cases have a history of contact with infected patients, and 10 are under investigation, the statement said.

So far, 261 patients are still receiving treatment, including 15 in ICU, it noted.

Meanwhile, Kuwaiti Minister of Health Bassel Al-Sabah announced the recovery of one more patient from the coronavirus, raising the number of the cured in the country to 81.

The Kuwaiti government has decided to impose a nationwide curfew to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

On March 13, Kuwait suspended all commercial flights. The government also decided to close stores, malls and barbershops.
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Xiaomis Mi Band line could be getting a new version as early as tomorrow at an event hosted by the Mijia sub-brand will introduce its latest wearables. The Xiaomi Smart Inn conference will be live broadcasted starting at 2MP local time.



Mijia Weibo post confirming new wearables

The Mi Band 5 is expected to bring a 1.2-inch OLED color display and NFC on global units which would allow for contactless payments. Up until now, NFC was only available on Chinese Mi Band units. Apart from the update display and expanded NFC functionality we dont know much about the new band.

According to speculation, the Mi Band 5 will launch at CNY 180 ($25) in China. As usual, the wearable will arrive to global markets later on.

Source (in Chinese) | Via
"Serving in the military changes you. The shades and degrees of change vary for everyone, but no one is ever the same as...
Saudi Arabia has taken the drastic step of imposing a 24-hour curfew in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina as it seeks to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has infected more than 1,800 people in the kingdom.

The measure, effective immediately and until further notice, makes exceptions for workers to leave their homes for approved jobs, according to a statement from the Ministry of Interior. Residents may buy food at grocery stores between 6 a.m. until 3 p.m., but are encouraged to use delivery services.

Commercial activity in both cities is shut down, with the exception of grocery stores, pharmacies, banks and gas stations. Cars can only carry one passenger at a time.

The coronavirus has infected 1,855 people in the Gulf kingdom and killed 21, the Health Ministry said Thursday.

More than 2.5 million Muslims around the world attend the annual hajj pilgrimage in Mecca and Medina each year. After suspending a smaller pilgrimage known as umrah, authorities are now urging people to delay making travel plans for the hajj this July and August.

We have asked our Muslim brothers in all countries to wait before concluding contracts [with tour operators] until the situation is clear," the hajj minister told state TV.

The kingdom had already banned prayers in mosques and restricted the entry and exit from the cities of Jeddah, Riyadh, Mecca and Medina. International passenger flights are suspended indefinitely.

The eastern province of Qatif, the epicenter of the virus in the kingdom, has effectively been on lockdown since March 9 with residents barred from traveling in and out.
The Pacific Asia Travel Association (Pata) has announced the launch of the Pata Crisis Resource Centre and Tourism Recovery Monitor, a unified platform that provides reliable and up-to-date policy statements, authoritative information, and tourism indicators from around the globe.

The aim is to provide a global centralised repository of reliable information for users based on their needs.

The Pata Crisis Resource Centre is a result of a pilot Expert Task Force (ETF) led by Pata Immediate Past Chair Sarah Mathews to accumulate knowledge, generate support, and help members and industry stakeholders across the globe access solutions by governments, while also assisting governments in understanding the challenges through the travel impact survey.

Pata vice chair Soon Hwa Wong also led an ETF to establish the Pata Tourism Recovery Monitor, an integrated resource for strategic tourism planners and decision makers to keep fully abreast of the fast changing environment. Both initiatives are housed under one microsite.

Mathews said: The travel and tourism industry has weathered many different types of crises; however, the current unprecedented pandemic poses a severe threat to the entire industry impacting the economic livelihood of millions of people around the world. According to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), up to 75 million jobs are at immediate risk globally, while travel and tourism GDP loss to the world economy is up to $2.1 trillion. Therefore, I felt it was critical that we brought together global crisis experts like Damian Cook of E-Tourism Frontiers, Willem Niemeijer of YAANA Ventures, and Greg Klassen of Twenty31 to help create a long term Crisis Resource Centre. The centre will be a unified source of information for travel and tourism organisations to find solutions to the current crisis.

We are launching with two key areas of focus; one is to house all the efforts across the globe by governments who have and are providing aid, relief, and support for their industry stakeholders within the resource center. Secondly, we are asking for the industry to complete a business impact survey in order to use those results to request for more government support for our industry. Whilst the current focus is on Covid-19 as a public health issue, the goal is to establish a long term resource centre for the industry to utilise when we face any future crisis. The travel and tourism industry is incredibly resilient, and travel will continue to inspire millions of people across the world, she added.

"In crisis management, we need to have the latest status of the situation. For post crisis recovery planning, we need reliable data, updates and developing trends at our disposal. Timing is everything especially when it relates to the execution of recovery efforts. Too early could result in a complete waste of resources. Too late could risk being one of the last off the starting block, said Wong. The Pata Tourism Recovery Monitor (PTRM) is designed to be the go-to resource for strategic tourism planners and decision makers to keep fully abreast of the fast changing environment. Being the trusted voice of the industry, Pata has brought together an array of experts and partners to share valuable data, content and trends of leading tourism indicators to help us spot "green shoots" as soon as they start to appear. PTRM is a product of a new initiative recently announced known as the Expert Task Force (ETF) where Pata members can propose short term solutions to fix immediate challenges or introduce innovative and effective enhancements to help the association and members do better business. I am very happy to take the lead on this and encourage our members to do likewise going forward."

The Pata Crisis Resource Centre and Tourism Recovery Monitor collates reliable data and information to assist all industry stakeholders as they deal with the current crisis. The association is currently asking governments, and international and national organisations to seek their assistance in collecting information on aid and relief packages available to businesses in their respective destinations. In addition, Pata will add further data and information that will be useful to organisations as they deal with the current situation. While this is a much needed resource, Pata cannot do this alone and is encouraging governments, partners, members and, international and national associations and organisations to assist the Association and support this initiative. - TradeArabia News Service
MBABANE  Some analysts feel government can do more to cushion businesses in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

The analysts feel the decisions taken to help businesses and employers seem to be not enough as compared to that of neighbouring South Africa. Most of the measures have nothing to do with the size of the two economies, as they relate to relief in payments of taxes, among others.

Notable measures taken by the neighbouring country include fast-tracking the payment of employment tax incentive reimbursements from twice a year to monthly to get cash into the hands of compliant employers.



South African businesses that are tax compliant and have an annual turnover of less than R50 million will be eligible for a delay of 20 per cent of their pay-as-you-earn liabilities for the next four months. They will also be eligible for a delay in their provisional income tax payments without penalties or interest over the next six months.



declarations



For Eswatini, taxpayers projecting losses will file loss provisional returns. The due date has been postponed by three months, which means June declarations and payments are due in September. December declarations are due in March 2021. There is also an extension of returns filing deadlines by three months before penalties kick-in for small and medium enterprises.



For old debts, the Eswatini Revenue Authority will waive penalties and interest if principal is cleared by the end of September 2020. This applies to all debts (excluding Customs debt). This is meant to assist taxpayers clear their old debts and accumulated interest and penalties and start on a clean slate for their business to enhance recovery, Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg announced recently.



In South Africa, at least R500 million is available immediately to assist small and medium enterprises that are in distress through a simplified application process. On top of that, South Africa is setting up a temporary employee relief scheme, which will help companies that are in distress to pay their workers and avoid retrenchments during the lockdown.

A local analyst, speaking on condition of anonymity, felt government would have matched most of the measures taken by South Africa, especially regarding taxes, as most companies were already in distress.

Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade Manqoba Khumalo was yet to react on the measures by noon yesterday following an electronic mail forwarded to the office.




MLBTRs Steve Adams just recapped the notable trades that Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto has made dating back to his hiring late in the 2015 season. That was an unenviable task when you consider the eye-popping amount of deals that Trader Jerry has swung since he arrived in Seattle. One of Dipotos most significant moves so far came on Nov. 23, 2016, when the Mariners and Diamondbacks made a trade that will likely impact both franchises for the foreseeable future.

The Mariners sent right-hander Taijuan Walker and middle infielder Ketel Marte to the Diamondbacks for middle infielder Jean Segura, outfielder Mitch Haniger and lefty Zac Curtis. The only member of the quintet who hasnt established himself in the majors is Curtis, who pitched 38 innings in the bigs from 2016-18 but is now a free agent after the Rangers released him last July. On the other hand, Walker, Marte, Segura and Haniger have all enjoyed at least some success at the MLB level.

Walker, once a blue-chip prospect, hasnt really lived up to the hype thus far. After a so-so run with the Mariners, he did well for Arizona in 2017, throwing 157 1/3 innings of 3.49 ERA/4.04 FIP ball. Unfortunately, injuries have cut down Walker since then. He underwent Tommy John surgery early in 2018, forcing him to miss almost all of that season, and then made just one appearance last season as he recovered from TJS and battled shoulder problems. The 27-year-old is now back with the Mariners on an inexpensive contract, so its clear that the acquisition didnt work out as hoped for the Diamondbacks.

On the other side, the Marte pickup has gone swimmingly for Arizona. Marte was not the headliner in the deal at the time, but hes a former top-100 prospect who has emerged as one of the majors stars during his short MLB career. The switch-hitting Marte, now 26, had his struggles in his first season as a D-back, but that didnt stop GM Mike Hazen from extending him on a five-year, $24MM guarantee going into 2018. That decision has worked out beautifully for Arizona, which benefited from Martes 2.6-fWAR effort in 2018 and far more from his 7.1-fWAR showing last season. Marte divided his nearly MVP-caliber 2019 campaign between second base and center field  positions that were sore spots for the Mariners.

The Mariners miss Marte, but that doesnt mean they came away empty-handed in this swap. As noted earlier, they got back Walker on a low-cost pact that may or may not pay dividends. Segura gave the team two productive seasons before it traded him to the Phillies in a deal for shortstop J.P. Crawford, who has a chance to end up as the Ms long-term answer at the position. And then theres Haniger, who thrived from 2017-18 before a gruesome injury (a ruptured testicle) deprived him of 99 of 162 games in 2019. Haniger was not viewed as a cant-miss prospect when the trade went down, but he ran roughshod over Triple-A pitching and has held his own in the majors when healthy. Hes under control through 2022, so a healthy version could either continue as an asset for the rebuilding Mariners or wind up as a valuable trade chip.

Adding everything up, this counts as one of the most fascinating deals of the past few years. Both sides landed good players, but Marte has clearly been the most valuable piece to this point. The Marte addition is among the reasons D-backs GM Mike Hazens trade history has gone over so well.
But asked about it on Monday on Fox News, Mr. Trump dismissed that official assessment of Chinas disinformation campaign. They do it and we do it and we call them different things, he said. He added that every country does it before denouncing The New York Times and The Washington Post, which had written about the anti-American disinformation campaigns, as dishonest and corrupt.

American and Chinese officials appear to realize that finding common ground on the virus could help save lives. Nations have been receiving shipments of medical gear from China, though some of the test kits for the virus have turned out to be faulty. In Italy, Chinese experts have advised officials on how to carry out strict lockdowns.

Actually this is smart, said Orville Schell, the director of the Center on U.S.-China Relations at the Asia Society. Isnt that the only way to do it? You cooperate where you share interests and you compete and criticize where you dont. We did it with the Russians in the Soviet days and got some things done.

Mr. Trumps earlier attacks on China originated in part with national security officials who aim to hold the Communist Party accountable for the outbreak, and in part from the presidents deep frustration that the pandemic was sinking the American economy, which he saw as key to his re-election.

Mr. Trump has sought to deflect widespread criticism that his administrations failures had led to the spread of the virus across the United States. And from his campaign in 2016 and the recent trade war, Mr. Trump knows that being tough on China appeals to his supporters, some of his political advisers said.

Meanwhile, Mr. Mnuchin and Mr. Kudlow, who typically counsel the president to try to work more closely with Beijing, had been preoccupied with the crash in the stock markets and a looming recession.

In mid-March, Mr. Mnuchin and Mr. Kudlow were working long hours shepherding an enormous stimulus bill through Congress. In their absence, more hawkish aides, including Mr. Pompeo, Mr. Navarro and Robert C. OBrien, the national security adviser, had the presidents ear.
Doctors and hospitals overwhelmed in the pandemic will have to make their excruciating life-or-death decisions meticulously or they risk being second-guessed by a jury when the onslaught is over.

Lawyers who defend health care providers are already giving advice on how their clients can avoid liability if they're forced to choose between patients. How they prepare for this battlefield triage now -- and how they practice it in the chaos of peak infections -- will determine whether negligence cases against them are dismissed or lead to trials or settlements over the death of a parent or spouse.

"The key, in my opinion, is to have clear written policies that do not discriminate or single out certain types of patients based on age, gender, race or any of those unlawful, suspect criteria," said Nick Oberheiden, who represents doctors in malpractice litigation.

Governors and medical experts have warned that the U.S. doesn't have enough ventilators, masks and other resources to keep struggling patients alive and check the spread of the virus in the nation's 6,000 hospitals. As many as 200,000 Americans could die, Dr. Anthony Fauci estimated on Sunday.

Oberheiden said he's telling clients they'll need written documentation of all decisions, including efforts to help those who are ultimately denied lifesaving care. And even though older patients are less likely to survive Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, hospital triage plans shouldn't single out that factor, he said.

"Where it's done correctly, it's not simply the age," Oberheiden said. "It's more objective medical criteria."

Health care providers may prioritize patients without underlying conditions who are likeliest to make a full recovery, but there's no national standard for triage. The question of withholding or withdrawing ventilators from the sickest patients is so charged that medical experts have encouraged providers to develop their own guidelines. Like the U.S. pandemic response itself, it's largely a state-by-state and, to some extent, hospital-by-hospital patchwork.

There is an established standard of care in the industry, however, and providers could be accused of breaching their duty to patients by violating it and of negligence for failing to have enough ventilators on hand, for example.

It's a tough case to make in a pandemic.

"I would expect hospitals to argue that their obligations are to make sure they have adequate equipment in ordinary times, not in pandemic times, and that seems quite persuasive to me," said I. Glenn Cohen, a bioethics expert at Harvard Law School.

New protocols lay out how to ration ventilators to save the most lives in the outbreak, Cohen and others wrote Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. But a plaintiff could still claim that the hospital bungled the triage or hadn't planned properly for an outbreak, raising further questions for the courts.

Something like that happened after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Tenet Healthcare Corp. agreed in 2011 to pay $25 million to settle a class action by the families of dozens of patients who perished in a Tenet facility in New Orleans. The plaintiffs said the company had failed to prepare adequately for the storm.

In the wake of the pandemic, providers may be accused of failing to foresee a crisis that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and others have warned was inevitable, said Carmel Shachar, executive director of the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy at Harvard Law School. That's especially so after the recent drumbeat of outbreaks from SARS to swine flu to Ebola.

Rachel Seifert, the general counsel of Community Health Systems from 1998 to 2017, said hospitals shouldn't be held liable amid a national shortage of critical equipment. Even so, she added, they need to be fastidious about the triage plans they are fashioning or refining as they brace for the first big wave of bad covid-19 cases.

"The wording of a memo about how to make those difficult or impossible decisions based on the likelihood of survival would be a difficult exhibit in a wrongful-death case," Seifert said. "If written at all, it should be written very carefully" and vetted by lawyers and risk managers.

Partly with this in mind, hospitals are preparing to allocate limited resources to patients, including time with doctors and nurses and access to ventilators, said Allison Hoffman, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania who specializes in health care law and policy. Sticking to the playbook and applying its standards consistently can help protect health care providers in court, she said.

At the same time, Hoffman said, "they're tying to look at what is reasonable and customary in uncharted territory."

Health care lawyer George Indest said he's confident of his clients' position.

"Every hospital out there has a mass casualty plan for a plane crash or a tornado or something like 9/11," he said, referring to Joint Commission standards, and conducts regular drills on "who to pass on, who to send to another facility, who to put aside until later. It's probably just never been expected that something of this nature would happen."

Triage policies should spell out which types of patients get access to which resources when a hospital is rationing in a crisis, Harvard's Shachar said. That means allocating services without discrimination and based on urgency, because that's what judges and juries will ultimately be able to understand, even in the face of grieving plaintiffs, she said.

On Saturday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Civil Rights fired off a bulletin warning that "persons with disabilities should not be denied medical care on the basis of stereotypes, assessments of quality of life, or judgments about a person's relative 'worth' based on the presence or absence of disabilities or age."

Hospitals and doctors are focused on care right now, as they should be, said Sean Zabaneh, who represents them in court.

Still, he said, they should be "making sure they have insurance coverage in place that is applicable to the new circumstances that are becoming more normal every day as a result of the pandemic, and staying up to date on the quickly evolving legal standards and legislation." Lawmakers could pass legislation to protect health care providers that adhere to the standard of care, he added.

Litigation by families of those who lose out in triage is only a matter of time, said health care attorney Andrew Wachler. He said he expects such lawsuits to be filed shortly after the contagion's peak.
To prevent the transmission of coronavirus through spitting, the Haryana government has prohibited the sale of chewing gum in the state till June 30 and asked authorities to effectively implement the ban on gutkha and pan masala.

"COVID-19 transmits through droplets. There may be a possibility of transmitting COVID-19 by spitting of chewing gum/bubble gum towards another person," the state government's Food and Drug Administration department said in the order.

Around 13,000 persons are under surveillance due to COVID-19 and this step was taken to check the spread of the virus further.

The department has also asked authorities across the state to effectively implement for a year the ban on gutka (chewing tobacco) and pan masala, which was announced in September last year.

In wake of COVID-19, the department has directed officials to check the sale and distribution of scented or flavoured tobacco, gutkha, pan masala, and kharra (a powdered combination of tobacco), areca nut, lime (chuna) and katechu.

The Uttar Pradesh government has also banned manufacture and sale of pan masala, saying the move will help stop the spread of coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hong Kong: Bar closure directions explained

(To watch the full media session with sign language interpretation, click here.)

A further spread of COVID-19, which originated from people who had been to bars, prompted the Government to order the closure of bars and pubs.

Secretary for Food & Health Prof Sophia Chan made the statement today when explaining the latest directions under the Prevention & Control of Disease (Requirements & Directions) (Business & Premises) Regulation to reporters.

First of all, we are seeing more and more cases. Secondly, we are also seeing secondary as well as tertiary spread among people who have been to bars.

Prof Chan explained that the Government has already put in place infection control measures to prevent the further spread of the virus.

But then when we see that there are these secondary and also tertiary transmissions, that is, through the contact tracing done by the Centre for Health Protection, it really rang the bell that we cannot allow the transmissions to continue.

If we look at these secondary and tertiary transmissions, it was really in the last two days that the Centre for Health Protection had done the contact tracing.

So that's why we have moved swiftly and decided today that we should close these bars and also pubs.

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg plans to extend the citys stay-at-home order as city officials make more than $80 million in budget cuts and move toward closing all city parks Easter weekend  all signs that the coronavirus pandemic isnt letting up.

The number of confirmed cases shot up to 313 Thursday after Nirenberg announced that another 59 residents of a Southeast nursing home had tested positive for the virus. But no new deaths were reported.

Nirenbergs stay-at-home order would last until April 30 if the City Council approves the extension next week. Otherwise, the order expires April 10.

San Antonio residents could soon start to see further restrictions on what can stay open.

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Those who planned to hang out at city parks Easter weekend will likely have to change those plans. City Attorney Andy Segovia told council members that officials plan to close parks that Saturday and Sunday, though no official decision has been made.

An exception could be made to trailways and greenways that residents use to walk, run and cycle, provided they keep their distance from one another, Segovia said.

In previous years, the council has lifted the regular curfew on several of the citys major parks, including Brackenridge, the Thursday before Easter through Easter Sunday to allow for overnight camping. But that was before COVID-19.

A budget shortfall caused by the pandemic has spurred City Manager Erik Walsh to pause $82 million in spending on city programs, including street improvement projects and economic development incentives.

What we dont know right now is where were going to land because we dont know how long the curve of this infection will last, Nirenberg said. But obviously theres going to be a tightening of belts across city departments.

On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases

City budget writers project its $1.27 billion operating budget  which pays for services such as police and fire protection, streets and infrastructure and parks  will take a substantial hit as local economic fallout from the pandemic deepens. Last week, the city projected it could as much as $75 million  a number that grew by $7 million Thursday.

Much of the lost revenue stems from falling sales taxes and hotel room bookings. But about $8 million in losses results from milder weather in February, resulting in less revenue from city-owned CPS Energy than expected.

The deepest cut is $50 million in street maintenance projects, Deputy City Manager Maria Villagomez told council members. Walsh also paused $12.4 million in economic development incentives along with spending on downtown events, after-school and summer programs among other measures.

And Walsh primed council members to expect further cuts.

We need to realize that, as we continue down this path, we may have to continue to look at everything we do beyond the basic operations and the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Walsh said.

The city has also let go of 90 employees hired through temp agencies and put a hiring freeze in place, which will save another $4.4 million.

So far, none of the citys full-time employees have been laid off. No official said layoffs were off the table, but Nirenberg tried to provide reassurance.

I will tell you as in every crisis weve ever dealt with in terms of the city organization, were trying to preserve people, their livelhoods, Nirenberg said. Were going to do everything we can to take care of people, our own city employees and people all throughout this community.

City officials arent yet ready to tap about $206 million the city has in reserve funds. That amount would cover less than two months of expenses, Villagomez said.

The reserves are the last line of defense, Walsh said.

On ExpressNews.com: SA could see unemployment as high as 14 percent due to COVID-19

Council members sought additional funds to boost programs aimed at helping needy families hit by the crisis.

More residents are calling the city to make use of its risk mitigation fund  the aim of which is to give financial assistance to residents struggling to stay in ther homes or who have been forced out by drastic rent increases, residential development or health and safety problems.

In any given week, the city receives about 50 calls from residents looking for assistance from the fund, Assistant City Manager Lori Houston told council members.

Now about 2,000 people a week have called the city seeking aid through the fund, Houston said.

About $30,000 was spent from the fund last week. It has about $430,000 remaining out of $1 million approved by council last year. Officials have eyed outside contributions as a way to replenish the fund.

Some concerns arose about whether residents in all corners of the city who needed COVID-19 testing could get it. The city has received 5,000 tests a week from the federal government but at the states direction has sent 1,500 to Austin and El Paso to help bolster their supply, Assistant City Manager Colleen Bridger told council members.

In San Antonio, the area with the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases is ZIP code 78209, where Alamo Heights is located. But few positive cases have shown up on the citys South Side, Metro Health data shows.

Whether thats because there are simply fewer cases in that part of town or that people there dont have access to testing is something Metro Health is trying to figure out, Bridger said.

District 5 Councilwoman Shirley Gonzales shared that concern.

The concern in the neighborhoods is that the reason why we dont have as many is because were not getting tested, Gonzales said.

Several council members called for more City Council meetings and complained about a lack of communciation from city staffers about efforts to combat the virus.

Those are going to determine the scale of the disaster, District 7 Councilwoman Ana Sandoval said. I expect to be a part of that conversation.

District 4 Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia said she gets most of her information on the citys efforts from the news media.

But not everyone agreed. District 8 Councilman Manny Pelaez said he has enjoyed plentiful communication with city officials throughout the crisis.

Erik, we like to complain a lot when things arent perfect, Pelaez said.

Nirenberg said he has been keeping council members up-to-speed on his efforts and chalks up anxieties to council members just wanting to get into the game. But he said that he and council members would try to work out how many weekly meetings they should have.

Weve been keeping everybody looped in when were making these orders and how were doing that, Nirenberg said. What I think youre hearing is that theres really a desire to dig into the work.

Joshua Fechter is a staff writer covering San Antonio government and politics. To read more from Joshua, become a subscriber. jfechter@express-news.net | Twitter: @JFReports
As the novel coronavirus spreads across the country infecting hundreds of police officers in other cities, many police departments in Central Pa. cant find masks or respirators to protect themselves and the public.

The pandemic created an acute shortage that is impacting medical workers and others on the front lines, including police officers.

In Harrisburg, police had some masks on-hand but not nearly enough for every officer.

Thats when police Cpl. Teresa Covey got an idea.

An avid motorcyclist, she was familiar with the face shields worn by riders to protect from wind, bugs and weather. She suggested the microfiber shields as an option to provide officers with some barrier against the virus as they continue to interact with the public as a necessary part of their job.

Such shields and homemade masks are not as effective as surgical masks or N95 respirators, experts say, but they say its better than nothing and they fit better than a bandana or scarf.

The department bought 300 of the shields, which are sometimes called biker bandanas, and handed them out Tuesday, two per officer. They feature an American flag design with a blue line to illustrate law enforcement's separation of order from chaos.

The shields are versatile and stretch to fit snugly over an officers nose and mouth, Covey said. She said many officers are wearing them around their necks, where they can easily be pulled over their mouth and nose when necessary.

Officers can also double up and wear both shields at the same time, and even fold the fabric over for four times the protection if a situation calls for it, she said.

For the guys and gals who didnt have anything she said. Its something.

As of Sunday, 818 members of the nations biggest police force in New York City had tested positive for coronavirus. The department said about 5,000 of its 55,000 total employees are on sick leave.

Major city departments nationwide, such as Houston and Detroit, are being forced to sideline officers as infections rise in the ranks, according to Reuters.

One Pa. state trooper has tested positive for Covid-19 but state officials would not say where the trooper was stationed in the Commonwealth. That trooper is now under self-quarantine. There are no publicly known cases of coronavirus among police officers in Dauphin and Cumberland County at the moment.

Central Pa. police chiefs said they are in a difficult situation, where officers must continue interacting with the public but they dont have enough protective gear for all officers for all situations. Instead, police must pick and choose the situations when officers wear masks to ensure there are masks available for known contaminated situations.

In Upper Allen Township, Police Chief James Adams placed an order for gloves and N95 masks more than a month ago as virus cases started piling up in Washington state.

The order was confirmed, he said. But after waiting two weeks and not getting delivery, he inquired and was told his order was cancelled. No reason was given.

Since then, other than a couple of citizens dropping off a handful of masks, I have not been able to get any, Adams said. I have contacted my state and federal representatives: told them my frustration, and I get emails back that they are glad I contacted them and they will forward my concerns. As of Wednesday, Adams said he still cant find any N-95 masks.

We have a couple and are using them very sparingly until we run out, Adams said. Then I go to a box of basic carpenters dust masks that we acquired.

Derry Township Police Chief Garth Warner said his department put in orders with various vendors and agencies for N95 masks but hasnt been able to get them filled yet.

We have some and are only utilizing them when necessary, he said. We are always looking to supplement our supply to keep our officers equipped.

Carisle police say they had enough N-95 masks on hand for each officer, thanks to a stash previously purchased out of concerns to protect against deadly fentanyl found in heroin products. A local contractor also donated a few to make sure each officer could have one, said spokesman Sgt. David Miler.

Each Carlisle officer was issued a safety kit to help deal with Covid-19 concerns. The kits contain nitrile gloves, N95 masks, surgical masks, eye protection, and various cleaning materials.

A generous resident also donated multi-layer homemade surgical masks for each officer.

A woman donated a supply of these masks to Carlisle police.

Officers are wearing varying degrees of this protection based on the nature of the call, Miller said. They are also taking steps to protect both citizens and themselves with social distancing, talking to people by telephone when feasible, or talking with people outside when feasible.

The department, like most others, also have instituted new guidelines that uniforms, duty gear, and patrol vehicles must be cleaned after every shift.

In addition, in Carlisle, Miller said officers are not permitted to congregate as they typically would within the building or at roll calls and instead must practice social distancing even amongst themselves.

We have also set up a decontamination station in one of our bays to assist any officer(s) who feel they were exposed, Miller said. Of course there is extra cleaning of surfaces, computers, door handles, etc. also being done throughout the station.

Most officers across Central Pa. have access to gas masks they could use, if necessary, but the appearance of gas masks could cause unnecessary alarm among residents.

It makes your voice sound muffled and its a different look, said Carlisle police Cpl. Jeff Kurtz. It would definitely excite people more than they need to be excited.

The public messaging on masks has been mixed since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis. The Centers for Disease and Control initially said masks were not necessary unless someone was caring for a Covid-19 patient or had reason to believe they were infected.

But that message has since evolved as more is being learned about the new coronavirus, including its ability to transmit through moisture on peoples breath, possibly up to 27 feet, according to one study.

The CDC says it is now reviewing its policy on masks and may be considering a recommendation to encourage broader use.

In Pennsylvania, the health department still is not recommending routine use of masks, so state police officers wont be wearing them on routine patrol, said Communications Director Ryan Tarkowski.

That said, troopers on patrol have been issued a kit that contains a mask, coveralls, sanitizer, and other personal protective equipment to be used as necessary, he said.

Similar to guidance available to the general public, Tarkowski said, troopers are regularly reminded to take the following steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19:

Wash their hands regularly; use hand sanitizer if soap and water is unavailable.

Keep their workspace clean and sanitized.

Practice social distancing whenever possible.

Avoid large gatherings when off-duty and limit personal travel.

Stay home if they are feeling sick.

READ: Pa. trooper tests positive for coronavirus

READ: Network usage spikes amid coronavirus as people rely on devices: Comcast

READ: Harrisburg man ran down street to fire back at fleeing shooters: watch video
US Democrats due to the coronavirus pandemic will postpone their presidential convention by more than a month to August 17, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced on Thursday.

"In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds so we can best position our party for a safe and successful convention," DNC Chief Executive Joe Solmonese said in a statement. "During this critical time, when the scope and scale of the pandemic and its impact remain unknown, we will continue to monitor the situation and follow the advice of health care professionals and emergency responders."

The convention, originally slated for July 13, will be held in the US city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The decision followed a televised statement from former Vice President Joe Biden, frontrunner for the party's presidential nomination, urging that the convention be postponed at least until August.

The delay would presumably give Biden and his main rival, Senator Bernie Sanders, extra time to campaign in public, provided the coronavirus pandemic abates.

Both candidates have ended public appearances for now, and scaled back their efforts to interviews and statements on social media due to a nationwide lockdown over the highly contagious and often life-threatening disease.

Biden remains the clear frontrunner in with more pledged delegates won in states that held primary elections before the pandemic hit.

The Republicans scheduled their convention August 24-27 in the US city of Charlotte, North Carolina, where they are expected to formally nominate President Donald Trump for a second term in office. Trump faces no serious opposition within his party.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A primary argument of Gov. J.B. Pritzker and legislative supporters of a graduated income tax is that we can trust them. We can trust them to use additional money it would generate to shore up the states finances. We can trust them not to use it to come up with new ways to spend money. We can trust them not to use the new system to regularly increase income taxes.

By May 3, we will have a good idea of just how seriously we should regard their word.

May 3 is the deadline for the General Assembly to pass legislation allowing a referendum on creation of a nonpartisan commission to draw legislative boundaries, replacing the highly politicized process now in place. If they miss that deadline, the state will not have a chance to address the issue until the next U.S. Census in 10 years.

Repeated surveys have shown the measure is immensely popular. The most recent, a study conducted by Fako Strategies & Research of Darien for the nonpartisan organization CHANGE Illinois, found that 80% of likely Illinois voters consider the present means of creating legislative districts to be unfair and 75% support creation of an independent commission to rectify that.

A Senate bill sponsored by Grayslake Democrat Melinda Bush that would put the measure on the November ballot comes into the picture with 31 co-sponsors. The House version, led by Glen Ellyn Democrat Terra Costa Howard, has 16 co-sponsors.

Support for change from the public and within the legislature is clearly strong. Only three people stand in the way of action. Democratic Speaker Mike Madigan decides what legislation gets voted on in the House. Democratic Senate President Don Harmon has that role in the Senate. Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who has repeatedly claimed to support a new redistricting process, has the prestige and influence of his office to move legislative leaders of his own party.

We cannot help but wonder how these three individuals  or the dozens of rank-and-file lawmakers they lead in both chambers  can expect voters to trust them to handle a new income tax system that many Illinoisans view skeptically if the politicians wont even allow people to vote on a measure the public long has clamored to adopt.

Legislative redistricting, even when identified by the more familiar pejorative term gerrymandering, is not a topic with immediate emotional appeal. It sounds wonky and process oriented. Yet, gerrymandering is the foundation supporting many of the issues that do stir voters passions  corruption, lack of accountability and the tyranny of one-party rule.

The current system encourages these embarrassments. A pivotal question for voters this fall will be whether to put the powers of income taxation into the hands of people who cynically obstruct changes that would control them.

Lawmakers and legislative leaders should understand the links to that question will follow them if they cannot act on a Fair Maps Amendment referendum by May 3.

 Daily Herald, Arlington Heights
Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili.

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Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari, who helped guide the U.S. economy out of its last crisis, said Thursday that policymakers need to be less selective this time when deciding whom to help.

Kashkari was an architect of the 2008 Troubled Asset Relief Program that aided banks through the Great Recession. The program came about to resuscitate the then-moribund financial sector, which had been crippled by toxic assets largely related to the mortgage industry crash.

In seeking how to distribute the more than $400 billion allocated to TARP, Kashkari said those making the decisions were "too targeted" because they wanted to avoid the appearance of bailing out people who didn't deserve it.

"We didn't end up helping many homeowners," the central bank official said during a webinar in which he endorsed a more aggressive approach now that would pay off once the coronavirus crisis is contained.

"We need to err on the side of being generous, helping as many small businesses, as many small profits as we can to retain their workforce," he said. "It's much better to keep workers attached to their businesses so that when the crisis is behind us, we can then turn the economy back on as opposed to have to reorganize the economy."
Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij on Thursday said that 927 people, who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event, in Delhi's Markaz Nizamuddin, have been found in the state.

"A total of 927 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Markaz Nizamuddin have been found in the state. Out of these people, 107 are foreigners. Maximum people hail from Nuh district," said Vij after a video conference of Haryana Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister and Health Minister with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"They all have been quarantined and we have sent 256 for testing and the rest has been quarantined. Some of these people came on a tourist visa to promote religion. Strong action will be taken against them for violating visa norms," he added.

As many as 400 coronavirus patients have been found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster at Nizamuddin, the Centre said on Thursday.

The Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi has emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after several positive cases across India were linked to the gathering, including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Telangana.

An FIR was earlier registered against Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad and others under the Epidemic Disease Act, 1897 in Delhi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Georgia Man Pleads Guilty in Plot to Blow up White House

A 23-year-old man from Forsyth County, Georgia, has pleaded guilty to allegedly plotting an explosive jihad attack on the White House, the U.S. Department of Justice announced in a press release April 1.

Hasher Jallal Taheb pleaded guilty to a charge of attempting to destroy, by fire or an explosive, a building owned by or leased to the United States. Taheb and the government agreed that he should receive a 15-year jail sentence as part of the plea agreement.

According to the press release, he had also planned to target the Statue of Liberty, Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and a synagogue prior to his arrest on Jan. 16, 2019.

The would-be jihadist was apprehended during a meeting with undercover FBI special agents at a store in Buford where he expected to obtain semi-automatic assault rifles, explosive devices, and an anti-tank weapon.

According to U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Byung J. BJay Pak, a member of the Atlanta community first reported concerns that Taheb had become radicalized and was making plans to travel abroad to a local law enforcement agency, which then contacted the FBI in March 2018.

A subsequent undercover operation conducted by the FBI found that Taheb had applied for a U.S. passport three months later, in June 2018, and that he had begun planning prospective jihad attacks in the United States on a number of significant landmarks.

In a meeting with the informant and an undercover FBI agent on Dec. 2, 2018, Taheb allegedly stated that they could do more damage in the United States because they would be one of many, if they went abroad. He also allegedly said that jihad was an obligation, and that he wanted to be a martyr and cause as much damage as possible, according to a criminal complaint (pdf) filed in 2019.

Undercover FBI special agents allegedly met with Taheb in January 2019, where he produced sketches of the White House and described the types of weapons he planned to use in the attacks, including semi-automatic weapons, improvised explosive devices, an anti-tank weapon and hand grenades. They arrested him shortly after and he is due to be sentenced on June 23, 2020 before U.S. District Judge Mark H. Cohen.

Taheb hatched a dangerous plan that would have resulted in unimaginable injury, Pak said in a statement. We are grateful to community members who noticed his dangerous evolution and alerted law enforcement. Along with our federal, state, and local partners, we will remain vigilant in order to disrupt these types of attacks before they happen.

Authorities said prior to his arrest, Taheb had demonstrated an interest in the teachings of lslamic lecturer and a leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Anwar al-Awlaki. The Yemen-based terrorist had claimed responsibility for terrorist acts against targets in the United States, Saudi Arabia, Korea, and Yemen since its inception in January 2009. Al-Awlaki was killed by an American drone strike in Yemen in September 2011.
If youre wearing disposable gloves to the grocery store or other public places, theres a good chance they arent protecting you from COVID-19 coronavirus the way you think.

One Michigan nurse took to Facebook to explain whats wrong with uses shes seen during the states coronavirus outbreak. She also gives this nugget of advice: Wash your hands instead.

Whats better than wearing gloves in public? Just wash your hands. Really, said Carolyn Flietstra, a registered nurse and Holland Home executive vice president of home and community care. If your skin is intact, the virus will not enter through it. But wash your hands really well.

RELATED: 11 ways to make grocery shopping safer as coronavirus spreads

While in-depth research about this novel virus and its spread is ongoing, recommendations from doctors about how to protect oneself are varied at this point. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not mention the use of disposable gloves in its Protect Yourself guide. The CDC does recommend wearing gloves while cleaning and disinfecting your home. To see the latest recommendations from the CDC, check here.

The CDC does recommend hand washing as a protective measure against contracting the coronavirus.

As a nurse, it drives me a little nuts to see people wearing whatever disposable gloves to the grocery store, driving their vehicles, eating food, you name it, We've all seen it, maybe you've done it. Here's why it doesn't help keep you safe from the coronavirus.

RELATED: Stores, apps that will deliver groceries to your home during coronavirus pandemic

Flietstras main squabble with the rising use of disposable gloves for everyday activities is people wearing them for long periods of time without changing them as they touch multiple things, from grocery products, to the inside of a purse or wallet, to bags, to the backseat or trunk of a vehicle, to the steering wheel - and maybe even drive-thru food after that.

She says to imagine youre using disposable gloves to keep paint of your hands while painting a room. Pretend the paint is coronavirus.

Now pretend you don't take the gloves off when you finish painting, but instead touch other walls, your kids, your face, your food, Flietstra said. You wouldn't; the paint would be all over the place.

RELATED: Michigan doctor says leave groceries outside for 3 days if possible, shows how to disinfect

In the medical field , there are specific techniques and guidelines to effectively use gloves to prevent the gloves from spreading disease, she said.

Heres an abbreviated version of glove technique:

Wash hands Put on gloves Perform procedure without touching anything unnecessarily Carefully remove glove by grabbing the cuff edge and pulling it off inside out to prevent the outside from touching anything Throw the glove into a no-touch receptacle Repeat steps 4 and 5 with the other glove Wash hands again

That's why health officials keep telling you to wash your hands 20 seconds before you eat or touch your face, Flietstra said. And why they aren't telling you to shop with disposable gloves on.

The CDC recommends frequent handwashing for at least 20 seconds. Handwashing should occur after being in a public place and after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing. Also wash hands before touching your eyes, nose and mouth, and before eating. Hand sanitizer with at 60% alcohol can be substituted when soap and water are unavailable.

Flietstra also has advice for proper hand washing. She says to pretend you painted that room without gloves. Now theres paint all over your hands that needs to be washed off. The paint would be under fingernails, around nailbeds and on fingertips.

Scrub these well like you have paint all over them, and your 20 seconds of handwashing will go by in a blink, she said.

After washing, be sure to dry clean hands with something thats also clean, Flietstra added.

Flietstras post has garnered over 19,000 shares and nearly 4,000 reactions.

Why doesn't it make you safer to wear disposable gloves to the grocery store? As a nurse, it drives me a little nuts to... Posted by Carolyn Flietstra on Saturday, March 21, 2020

The novel coronavirus continues to pummel Michigan. The total number of confirmed cases reached 9,934 on Wednesday, April 1, while deaths rose to 337, according to the states daily update on coronavirus numbers.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

READ MORE:

How much more is the U.S. drinking during coronavirus spread? A lot.

Whitmer says those who dont follow Michigan stay home order are incredibly selfish,' risk coronavirus spread

Wednesday, April 1: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan
The province is introducing new measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in Manitobas jails, including using the Winnipeg Remand Centre as a quarantine station.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The province is introducing new measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in Manitobas jails, including using the Winnipeg Remand Centre as a quarantine station.

Beginning Thursday, all new admissions to the provinces adult and youth correctional facilities will be funnelled through the centre, where accused offenders will be isolated for up to 14 days before being formally admitted or transferred to another facility.

Approximately 2,000 inmates are being housed at the provinces six adult correctional facilities, with beds available for another 500, a Manitoba Justice spokesperson said Wednesday.

"We have created capacity at Winnipeg Remand Centre to ensure we can safely handle all people admitted into custody," the spokesperson said.

Defence lawyers, meanwhile, will no longer be allowed in-person visits with clients at the remand centre; instead, lawyers will now have to communicate via phone or video link.

"My understanding is that there were very few defence counsel who were continuing to attend the remand centre, because of health concerns," said Gerri Wiebe, president of the Defence Lawyers Association of Manitoba. "For the last couple of weeks now, we have been working with Corrections to expand access to our clients."

While the video equipment is still in the process of being installed, the remand centre now has several additional phone lines to accommodate discussions between lawyers and clients, Wiebe said.

"We phone there and set up an appointment, and are given a set time, and then they bring the client down to a phone booth, as I understand it," Wiebe said.

Access to bail hearings will be increased on evenings and weekends, with Crown attorneys available day and night to work with defence counsel on bails and sentencing recommendations, the province said in its Wednesday media bulletin.

All new admissions to the provinces jails, such as the Headingley Correctional Centre (above), will be isolated for 14 days at the Winnipeg Remand Centre. (Wayne Glowacki / Winnipeg Free Press files)

In the North, the number of court hearings that can be held by teleconference will be increased to avoid unnecessary travel.

Wiebe said shes been told those in police custody will soon be allowed to apply for bail by telephone from the station.

"Processes to address that are being put in place as we speak," she said. "My understanding is the plan is to have telephone appearances either to bail court or before a justice of the peace, where release conditions can be worked out."

The speed with which changes are being made to the justice system is "unbelievable," Wiebe said.

"Everything is happening at a much greater pace than our system is used to dealing with. There isnt a lot of formal memos going out  its a lot of, Can we do this? Can we do that? It's different parties getting together to make the system as efficient and effective as we can," she said.

Stay informed The latest updates on the novel coronavirus and COVID-19 delivered to your inbox every weeknight. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Last month, Manitobas three levels of court announced the adjournment of most out-of-custody matters for at least a month, effectively limiting court proceedings to bails and in-custody sentencings and remands.

On Monday, a spokesman for federal Public Safety Minister Bill Blair confirmed he has asked the heads of the Correctional Service of Canada and the Parole Board of Canada what options are available for releasing some prison inmates early.

On the provincial level, prosecutors are reviewing case files to determine which offenders can safely be released.

"We are reviewing every single file of everybody who is currently in custody," said one Crown attorney, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"We have public health issues that we are now looking at, so I think were working with an eye to make sure everybody who is in is in to protect the public," the prosecutor said. "If they are supposed to be in, we are still saying they should be, but if we can release them, we are."

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca
Indonesia's most active volcano Mount Merapi erupted Friday, shooting a column of ash some 5,000 metres (16,000 feet) into the air in its second major eruption this month.

Ash and sand covered areas several kilometres (miles) away from the peak of the rumbling crater near Indonesia's cultural capital Yogyakarta.

But authorities did not raise Merapi's alert level.

"There has been no reports of damage from the eruption. We urge people to stay calm and not panic," national disaster mitigation agency spokesman Agus Wibowo said.

Merapi erupted earlier this month, shooting a massive ash cloud some 6,000 metres in the air.

That eruption coated Yogyakarta and neighbouring city Solo with grey dust and forced an airport closure.

Mount Merapi's last major eruption in 2010 killed more than 300 people and forced the evacuation of 280,000 residents.

That was Merapi's most powerful eruption since 1930, which killed around 1,300 people, while another explosion in 1994 took about 60 lives.

The Southeast Asian nation -- an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands and islets -- has nearly 130 active volcanoes.

It sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", a vast zone of geological instability where the collision of tectonic plates causes frequent quakes and major volcanic activity.
Last year, Rock Island needed to rent pumps in order to get water out of the city at a cost of $10,000 per month. The river was above flood stage for nearly 90 days in 2019. This year, Tweet said the city has applied for federal flood relief so the city can buy its own pumps to have onsite when the river rises. This type of response, Tweet said, was once needed only every few years. Now, he said, its pretty much every year, and sometimes multiple times per year.
Bottom Line: An analysis of a large Swedish cohort revealed that breast density, microcalcifications, and masses are heritable features, and that breast density and microcalcifications were positively associated with a genetic predisposition to breast cancer.

Journal in Which the Study was Published: Cancer Research, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research

Author: Natalie Holowko, PhD, postdoctoral researcher in the department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm

Background: "Breast features identified through mammography are important for identifying women at high risk of developing breast cancer in the short term," said Holowko. "It is important to understand the genetic determinants of these traits, as the underlying mechanisms for their association with breast cancer is not well understood."

Holowko explained that the heritability of breast cancer is roughly 30 percent, and previous studies have estimated that the heritability of breast density is roughly 60 percent. While breast cancer and breast density have overlapping single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), the heritability of other mammographic features, such as microcalcifications, masses, or breast density change, have not been previously reported, she noted. "We wanted to study the heritability of these traits, as this could help us identify important loci for breast cancer susceptibility, which could be used to better identify women who are at increased risk for developing breast cancer," Holowko said.

How the Study was Conducted: Holowko and colleagues evaluated mammographic screening history and detailed questionnaire data from the KARMA prospective cohort study in Sweden. Women were enrolled between January 2011 and March 2013; mammograms were continually collected and participants were followed for diagnosis of breast cancer. Women younger than 40 or older than 75 years were excluded, as were women with a prior breast cancer diagnosis, breast enlargement, or breast reduction. The data cutoff was October 2017.

Results: The researchers calculated the heritability of four mammographic features - breast density, average density change per year (cm2/year), microcalcifications, and masses - using 1,940 sister pairs. The heritability of breast density was estimated to be 58 percent, similar to previously reported findings. The heritability of microcalcifications and masses were estimated to be 23 percent and 13 percent, respectively. Breast density change was not determined to be an inherited trait.

Holowko and colleagues investigated the associations between mammographic features and genetic predisposition to breast cancer, as determined by a polygenic risk score (PRS), among 9,365 women in the KARMA cohort. They found statistically significant positive associations between PRS quintiles and breast density and microcalcifications.

Author's Comments: "If we can better understand the mammographic features that are associated with breast cancer risk, then we can aim to improve how these features are measured and hopefully improve early breast cancer detection," Holowko said.

Study Limitations: "We identified some limitations with modeling assumptions for density change, however, sensitivity analyses indicated almost no heritability, so we believe the presented results are reliable," noted Holowko.

###

Funding & Disclosures: This study was supported by the Swedish Research Council, the Swedish Cancer Society, and the Stockholm County Council. Holowko declares no conflicts of interest.

About the American Association for Cancer Research

Founded in 1907, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is the world's first and largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research and its mission to prevent and cure cancer. AACR membership includes 46,000 laboratory, translational, and clinical researchers; population scientists; other health care professionals; and patient advocates residing in 127 countries. The AACR marshals the full spectrum of expertise of the cancer community to accelerate progress in the prevention, biology, diagnosis, and treatment of cancer by annually convening more than 30 conferences and educational workshops, the largest of which is the AACR Annual Meeting with more than 22,500 attendees. In addition, the AACR publishes eight prestigious, peer-reviewed scientific journals and a magazine for cancer survivors, patients, and their caregivers. The AACR funds meritorious research directly as well as in cooperation with numerous cancer organizations. As the Scientific Partner of Stand Up To Cancer, the AACR provides expert peer review, grants administration, and scientific oversight of team science and individual investigator grants in cancer research that have the potential for near-term patient benefit. The AACR actively communicates with legislators and other policymakers about the value of cancer research and related biomedical science in saving lives from cancer. For more information about the AACR, visit http://www.AACR.org.
As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to grip the globe, Buddhist publishers are among the many facing a challenging marketplace. Quarantine orders and social distancing guidelines have largely disrupted publishing operations as well as sales, but houses are finding ways to make up for lost ground.

Nikko Odiseos, president of Shambhala Publications in Boulder, Colo., pointed out strategies the press is taking to reach retailers and consumers during the pandemic. Shortly after the outbreak of Covid-19, Shambhala launched a weekly email outreach series, Take Heart, which focuses on issues surrounding the coronavirus and offers encouragement for uncertain times. It has more than 200,000 subscribers, according to Odiseos. The publisher is also offering free domestic shipping on orders from the Shambhala.com website, free digital resources from authors, and 40% off online courses, in addition to promoting its authors online events.

We continue to fire on all cylinders with all 42 of our team working remotely, collaborating, and moving things along efficiently as possible, Odiseos told PW. Revenue from our online courses with our authors have doubled in March, mostly in the last 10 days, and our audio offerings are seeing a bump as well.

Odiseos noted that backlist titles from religious and personal development authors, such as Pema Chodron and Russ Harris, have also seen a sales spike. Amazon is prioritizing books on kids activities as well as natural therapies, which includes meditation and mindfulness, all of which continue to ship quickly, he said.

Parallax Press is also making up for losses in the physical marketplace via online specials. In addition to offering a 30% discount on children's and classroom books for all the families staying home and homeschooling at this time, the Berkeley, Calif., based publisher hosted an online summit with LionsRoar.com Buddhist magazine, which featured seven of its authors. Registered event attendees are receiving e-book offers and a 40% discount on those authors core backlist titles.

While Shambhala and Parallax have not yet adjusted on-sale dates for any titles, Wisdom Publications CEO/publisher Daniel Aitken said the press released some of its titles earlywhile it could ship from the Wisdom website. The press is now considering delaying the pub date for other soon-to-be-published books. It has not exactly been business as usual, Aitken observed.

The publisher is focusing on its digital offerings as well as its membership platform, while Wisdom authors are providing online meditation retreats based on their books. This all has been extremely successful, Aitken noted.
DETROIT, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --

WHO: Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan





Dr. Adnan Munkarah, Henry Ford Health System Executive Vice President and Chief

Clinical Officer





Dr. Steven Kalkanis, CEO, Henry Ford Medical Group and Senior Vice President and Chief

Academic Officer of Henry Ford Health System





Study organizer and world-renowned interventional cardiologist Dr. William W. O'Neill



WHERE: View a recording of this event on the Henry Ford Health System Facebook page,

City of Detroit government Facebook Page or on the city of Detroit website. The

presentation took place during the Mayor's daily briefing at Eastern Market in Detroit.



CONTACT: Tammy Battaglia

248-881-0809 cell/text

[email protected]

Henry Ford Health System to lead first large-scale US study to determine drug's effectiveness in preventing COVID-19



Healthcare Workers, First Responders Can Volunteer for 3,000-person Study

Henry Ford Health System will lead the first large-scale study in the United States of the effectiveness of an anti-malarial drug in preventing COVID-19 in healthcare workers and first responders who volunteer to participate.

The study of hydroxychloroquine used prophylactically could begin as early as next week, after a plea to the federal government by Detroit Mayor Michael Duggan and Metro Detroit healthcare experts.

"This is going to be the first major, definitive study in healthcare workers and first responders of hydroxychloroquine as a preventative medication," said the study's organizer, Henry Ford Health System's Dr. William W. O'Neill, a world-renowned interventional cardiologist and researcher who has pioneered multiple treatments for heart disease. "There has been a lot of talk about this drug, but only a small, non-blinded study in Europe. We are going to change that in Metro Detroit and produce a scientific answer to the question: Does it work?"

Participation in the study is strictly on a volunteer basis. Dr. Marcus Zervos, division head of Infectious Disease for Henry Ford Health System, will oversee this study with Dr. O'Neill.

"We are glad to see Henry Ford's lead on this volunteer study that could help protect medical workers and first responders across southeast Michigan," Mayor Duggan said, acknowledging U.S. Food & Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Stephen M. Hahn. "I also deeply appreciate Dr. Hahn's prompt support for this important effort."

Both health care workers and first responders will be enrolled at Henry Ford Hospital Detroit. Currently, there are no FDA-approved therapies to prevent or treat COVID-19. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, hydroxychloroquine (also known as hydroxychloroquine sulfate) is an FDA-approved arthritis medicine that also can be used to prevent or treat malaria. It is available in the United States by prescription only. The drug is sold under the brand name Plaquenil and it is also sold as a generic medicine. It is commonly used by patients with arthritis, lupus or other rheumatic conditions.

"Metro Detroit has a history of stepping up when things get tough," said Dr. Adnan Munkarah, Henry Ford Health System Executive Vice President and Chief Clinical Officer. "We have a commitment to do that right now  to look at all options in a scientific way  in the face of this worldwide pandemic."

The study, titled WHIP COVID-19 Study, is a 3,000+ subject look at whether the drug prevents front-line workers from contracting the virus. Once they provide a blood sample, the study subjects will receive vials with unidentified, specific pills to take over the next eight weeks: a once-a-week dose of hydroxychloroquine, a once-a-day dose, or a placebo (a pill that looks like the medication, but does not contain any medication or other active ingredients). The study medication was specially procured for this study and will not impact the supply of medication for people who already take the medication for other conditions.

Participants will not know what group they are in. They will then be contacted weekly and in person at week 4 and week 8 of the study to see if they are exhibiting any symptoms of COVID-19, including dry cough, fever or breathing issues, as well as any medication side effects. At eight weeks, they will be checked again for symptoms, medication side effects, and have blood drawn. Results will be compared among the three groups to see if the medication had any effect.

"Given our broad clinical trials and translational research infrastructure, we are grateful to bring this type of large-scale effort to the COVID-19 battle," said Dr. Steven Kalkanis, CEO, Henry Ford Medical Group and Senior Vice President and Chief Academic Officer of Henry Ford Health System. "We see the heroics of the frontline responders in healthcare, public safety and service. Henry Ford Health System is poised to do anything we can to help them stay safe."

The FDA will provide the drug directly to Henry Ford Health System physicians to distribute. Recruiting has not yet begun. More information can be found at www.HenryFord.com/whipCOVID19.

The CDC describes hydroxychloroquine, which has been used for 75 years, as a relatively well-tolerated medicine. The most common adverse reactions reported are stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and headache. These side effects can often be lessened by taking hydroxychloroquine with food. Hydroxychloroquine may also cause itching in some people. Minor side effects such as nausea, occasional vomiting, or diarrhea usually do not require stopping the antimalarial drug. Although rare, serious side effects can occur while taking this medication.

If the study finds the drug effective as a preventative medication for COVID-19, it is possible that the study could expand to include hydroxychloroquine in other COVID-19 treatment options, the doctors said. Henry Ford Health System doctors are prescribing hydroxychloroquine as an off-label treatment for only hospitalized COVID-19 positive patients who meet specific criteria as outlined by the hospital system's Division of Infectious Diseases. As required by the state of Michigan's Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, the physicians are documenting the prescribed use in the patient's electronic medical record.

Henry Ford, as one of the region's major academic medical centers with more than $100 million in annual research funding, is already involved in numerous COVID-19 trials with partners around the world. Henry Ford is also becoming involved in an Abbott-led study of a rapid, point-of-care test for COVID-19. The equipment, about the size of a toaster, delivers positive results in as little as five minutes and negative results in 13 minutes.

About Henry Ford Health System:

Under the leadership of President and CEO Wright L. Lassiter, III, Henry Ford Health System is a $6 billion integrated health system comprised of six hospitals, a health plan, and 250+ sites including medical centers, walk-in and urgent care clinics, pharmacy, eye care facilities and other healthcare retail.

Established in 1915 by auto industry pioneer Henry Ford, the health system now has 32,000 employees and remains home to the 1,900-member Henry Ford Medical Group, one of the nation's oldest physician groups. An additional 2,200 physicians are also affiliated with the health system through the Henry Ford Physician Network. An active participant in medical education and training, the health system has trained nearly 40% of physicians currently practicing in the state and also provides education and training for other health professionals including nurses, pharmacists, radiology and respiratory technicians.

Media contact:

Tammy Battaglia

Henry Ford Health System

[email protected]

248-881-0809

SOURCE Henry Ford Health System

Related Links

https://www.henryford.com


One of the largest commercial testing labs in the US faced a backlog of as many as 160,000 coronavirus tests after a surge in requests over the last two weeks.

The backlog through March 25th forced Quest Diagnostics to delay returning test results to patients by up to 10 days.

Quest is providing testing at a dozen of its facilities around the country.

Quest Diagnostics faced a backlog of as many as 160,000 coronavirus tests, about half the 320,000 that were ordered through March 25

The backlog through March 25th forced Quest Diagnostics to delay returning test results to patients by up to 10 days

A look at the backlog of coronavirus testing at Quest Diagnostics as it unfolded

The company called the backlog a 'significant amount', according to internal materials obtained by CNN.

Quest, following a broadcast news report, posted a statement on its website saying the backlog on Wednesday had a backlog of 115,000 tests.

A spokeswoman said the company has since made 'significant progress' on its backlog of testing.

Quest had performed and reported results of more than 400,000 tests for the deadly flu-like virus, also known as COVID-19,' the spokeswoman said in a statement sent to DailyMail.com.

There have been more than 236,000 confirmed cases in the US of the coronavirus, which has been blamed for 5,647 deaths.

President Donald Trump and his administration, in efforts to slow the spread of the outbreak, had turned to commercial testing labs to help with testing for the infection because the companies had a larger capacity to roll out the exams.

There have been more than 236,000 confirmed cases in the US of the coronavirus, which has been blamed for more than 5,600 deaths

How the number of new coronavirus infections have escalated from day to day

A day-to-day look at deaths in the US blamed on the coronavirus outbreak

However, the pace of testing has still fallen short with the fast spread of the virus to enable a speedy quarantine of those who are infected and to have a clear understanding of the full scope of the disease, say health care workers, state officials and others who have raised concerns.

The Trump administration has since warned this week that the spread of COVID-19 could result in as many as 100,000 to 240,000 deaths in the US.

President Donald Trump and his administration, in efforts to slow the spread of the outbreak, had turned to commercial testing labs to help with testing for the infection because the companies had a larger capacity to roll out the exams

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and who also serves on the president's coronavirus task force, says the nation will only be able to loosen restrictions mandated on businesses and public gatherings with more rapid testing

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and who also serves on the president's coronavirus task force, says the nation will only be able to loosen restrictions mandated on businesses and public gatherings with more rapid testing.

Quest began COVID-19 testing on March 9 from a single laboratory, in San Juan Capistrano, California, says the company's spokeswoman.

'In approximately the first two weeks of providing testing, we experienced a sharp influx of test orders that continued to outpace our growing capacity through March,' she explained.

'We also incurred a backlog across our network that has been particularly acute at our San Juan Capistrano, Calif. laboratory, given it was the first and, for several days, only lab in our network to provide COVID-19 testing. Much of this testing was based on our lab-developed test, which is less suited to high throughput environments.

Quest responded in mid-to late March, she said, and 'implemented a higher throughput in vitro diagnostic test for COVID-19 from Roche at a total of 12 Quest Diagnostics laboratories across the United States.'

'We also implemented our lab-developed test at two additional laboratories. We completed this process by the end of March. We exited March with testing capacity in excess of 30,000 COVID-19 tests a day across the 12 performing laboratories,' she added.

Quest Diagnostics since the backlog has made 'significant progress' on its backlog of testing, says a spokeswoman

Quest had performed and reported results of more than 400,000 tests for the deadly flu-like virus, also known as COVID-19,' the spokeswoman said. A Quest worker is pictured at work

'We grew our testing capacity to a level that allowed us to meet and at times exceed demand. As a result, we reduced the backlog 28% from 160,000 tests on March 25 to 115,000 tests currently.'

Quest is not the only lab facing delays in testing turnarounds, as well as other challenges.

LabCorp says it was turning around results in about four to five days, but depending on different factors, including how long it was taking to transport specimens.

Utah-based ARUP Laboratories had been testing coronavirus specimens for out-of-state patients until about two weeks ago because of 'supply constraints in the face of extraordinary demand,' the company said.

Among critics who say testing was not being turned around fast enough, Joseph Kanter, an ER doctor in New Orleans who serves as an Assistant State Health Officer for the Louisiana Department of Health, described the impacts of longer wait times for test results.

He said the delays force medical staff to rely on more personal protective equipment, or PPE, already in short supply across the country, and which has to be used until a patient is confirmed to have the virus.

Joseph Kanter, an ER doctor in New Orleans who serves as an Assistant State Health Officer for the Louisiana Department of Health, said testing delays force medical staff to rely on more personal protective equipment, or PPE, already in short supply across the country

Megan Schlanser, a nurse in Michigan, described the impact on frontline health workers, who because of limited testing, are sometimes left beginning to feel sick without knowing if they have been infected

'The faster we can turn those tests around, some of those will be negative and we'll save the PPE burn,' Kanter said. 'It's getting better, but it still is a bottleneck.'

Megan Schlanser, a nurse in Michigan, described the impact on frontline health workers, who because of limited testing, are sometimes left beginning to feel sick without knowing if they have been infected.

'The scary thing is that we could potentially all be carriers and even not even show symptoms... so I could be potentially infecting all of my coworkers.'
Hollywood didn't quite corner the market on great World War II movies. If we're being honest with ourselves, Great Britain knew more about the war in Europe and North Africa than Americans ever would. If they hadn't held the line in the days before Pearl Harbor, our greatest generation would've never had the chance to prove itself.

These movies were made for a British audience, starring actors who were huge movie stars in their home country but never necessarily made it in Hollywood. They celebrate Great Britain's role in the conflict by focusing exclusively on that country's perspective.

What we get is movies made with all the craftsmanship we're used to with Hollywood war films from the era but that don't follow the Hollywood rules about plot and character we've seen in a hundred other (often great) WWII movies.

Film Movement has collected five of these classic films in "Their Finest Hour," a new Blu-ray box that makes high-definition versions available in the U.S. for the first time. Most of them are also available for purchase or rent via digital stores like iTunes, Amazon, VUDU or FandangoNOW.

The box set is still worth the investment because most of the movies come with outstanding documentary extras. Film Movement is a small distributor that's doing amazing work in making available a wide variety of lesser-known films from around the world. If you're looking for ways to support businesses likely to be hardest hit but the current crisis, buying this title directly from Film Movement would be a good option to consider.

1. Went the Day Well? (1942)

Based on a short story by Graham Greene, "Went the Day Well?" tells a fictional story about German paratroopers who land in England, impersonate British troops and take over a remote village.

On its face, the movie looks like it's going to be a heartwarming story about plucky civilians who foil an enemy plot to establish a beachhead for a coming invasion. While that does describe the plot, it doesn't suggest the violence and brutality the movie depicts. There are real consequences for both villagers and troops, and the deaths aren't underplayed.

That these charming British character types are required to react with such sudden ferocity gives the movie a sense of real consequence missing from most homefront films. Does it matter that fear of German invasion in Britain had almost totally receded by 1942? Not really. This was a movie made for an audience who knew just how close they had come to fighting the enemy on their home turf.

"Went the Day Well?" is also available to stream or buy online.

2. The Colditz Story (1955)

Before Guy Hamilton directed four of the best James Bond movies ("Goldfinger," "Diamonds Are Forever," "Live and Let Die" and "The Man With the Golden Gun"), he made his bones with this based-on-real-life drama about Allied troops trying to escape from a German prisoner-of-war camp housed in the medieval Colditz Castle.

Colditz was supposed to be escape-proof and was used to house prisoners who made repeated escape attempts from other camps. Put a group of French, British and Polish men determined to escape in one place, and they're going to come up with a series of ingenious plans.

The movie takes a few liberties with the actual details as to which prisoners tried to escape at which time, but the movie's thrilling central escape really happened in much the same way it's portrayed in the film.

"The Colditz Story" is also available to stream or buy online.

3. The Dam Busters (1955)

This movie revealed the previously classified story behind Britain's "bouncing bombs," which the RAF's 617 Squadron used to destroy German dams in 1943. Michael Redgrave plays the visionary engineer who conceives and designs the devices, and Richard Todd is the RAF pilot who leads the raid.

The final bombing sequence is shot in a way that should look familiar to fans of the Death Star destruction sequence in the original 1977 "Star Wars" movie. There's probably a good reason for that inspiration, since the special effects shots were overseen by Gilbert Taylor, whose long career included a job as cinematographer on "Star Wars."

There's one unintentionally shocking thing about this movie: Richard Todd's character, Wing Commander Guy Gibson, has a magnificent black labrador retriever as a pet. The dog is black, and Gibson has given him a truly unfortunate name, one that inspired a pre-title card at the movie's beginning warning audiences that the film reflects cultural attitudes of the era that may no longer be acceptable.

The dog is quite popular on the base, and everyone seems determined to greet the creature with his racist name. He's so beloved that the flight crews use his name as one of their code words for the mission.

"The Dam Busters" is not available to stream or purchase digitally, most likely because of that poor dog's name. It's a movie that deserves a wider audience and, if that requires dubbing in an innocuous name for the dog, let's hope someone gets around to that soon.

4. Dunkirk (1958)

Christopher Nolan's classic 2017 "Dunkirk" plunges viewers into three different perspectives (land, sea, air) and three different timelines (week, day, hour) to give a sense of the chaos of war from the battlefield perspective.

Director Leslie Norman's 1958 film takes the opposite and more traditional approach, giving context every step of the way and telling a series of parallel stories of men on the ground in France and citizens back home in Britain that eventually meet up and intertwine on the beaches at Dunkirk.

Brits really do see Dunkirk as the defeat that won the war, and this movie, made less than a generation after the 1940 evacuation, is a document of that operation made by people with direct connections to the war.

"Dunkirk" is also available to stream or buy online.

5. Ice Cold in Alex (1958)

Journeyman director J. Lee Thompson warmed up for his early 1960s career peak (the consecutive one-two punch of "The Guns of Navarone" and "Cape Fear") with this North Africa adventure tale that's every bit as good as those two better-known films.

A British medical field unit (John Mills, Sylvia Syms and Harry Andrews) tries to cross the desert to Alexandria, Egypt, in a breaking-down jeep. They're accompanied by a South African officer (Anthony Quayle), who may not be what he seems.

Mills' character, Capt. Anson, dreams of enjoying an ice-cold lager in his favorite bar once they arrive in Alexandria (hence the title), and it's that beer (with dew forming on the glass) that keeps him motivated through all the crises the group encounters along the way.

The action scenes are riveting, and much of the movie was shot on location in Libya. If you think you saw it back in the day, the version released theatrically in the United States cut out half the movie. Even if that version kept in the action sequences so effective here, it's the dread created in quieter scenes that make the film so effective.

"Ice Cold in Alex" is also available to stream or buy online.
By Crispian Balmer

ROME, April 2 (Reuters) - The head of the European Commission apologised to Italy on Thursday for a lack of solidarity from Europe in tackling its coronavirus crisis, but promised greater help in dealing with the economic fallout.

There has been widespread dismay in Italy over Europe's response to the pandemic, starting with an initial failure to send medical aid, followed by a refusal amongst northern nations to endorse joint bonds to mitigate the cost of recovery.

The far-right League party has jumped on the discontent to call into question Italy's continued membership of the 27-nation bloc, while even staunch pro-Europeans have expressed consternation at the lack of empathy and support.

Italy has recorded 13,155 coronavirus deaths in just six weeks, more than anywhere else in the world, and registered 110,574 confirmed cases, second only to the United States.

In a letter published in the Italian daily La Repubblica, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said too many EU countries had initially focused on their own problems.

"They did not realise that we can only defeat this pandemic together, as a Union. This was harmful and could have been avoided," she wrote, adding: "Today Europe is rallying to Italy's side."

The main bone of contention is a request by Italy and eight other countries to issue "recovery bonds" on behalf of all euro zone countries to help fund efforts to rebuild national economies that are expected to dive deep into recession.

Conservative leaders in wealthy states such as Germany, the Netherlands and Austria have so far recoiled at the idea of issuing bonds with highly indebted nations, such as Italy.

ATTACKING GERMANY

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte urged a rethink.

"I believe that everyone will eventually realise even in those countries that a shared, orderly, strong and rapid European response is the only solution," he told Spain's La Sexta television. "A slow response would be a useless response."

Story continues

The opposition League, Italy's most popular party, has struggled to gain much attention during the coronavirus crisis, and has leapt on the EU debate to gain greater traction.

"Commission president von der Leyen has apologised today to Italy and Italians. She could have thought of this sooner. From Europe, all we are getting are words and smoke: zero substance," League leader Matteo Salvini wrote on Twitter.

The party's economic adviser, Claudio Borghi, posted on Twitter a fascist-era poster from World War Two of a smiling Nazi soldier with the slogan "Germany really is your friend".

"Time passes but the tactics are always the same," Borghi wrote.

Von der Leyen told La Repubblica that the European Union would allocate up to 100 billion euros ($109.62 billion) to the hardest-hit countries, starting with Italy, to help cover the cost of lost wages and to preserve jobs.

She said the commission also wanted to make sure that "every euro still available in the EU's annual budget" is spent on tackling the coronavirus crisis.

However, she did not mention the euro bonds sought by Rome.

Underscoring the scale of the epidemic in Italy, the crematorium in the country's financial capital Milan announced on Thursday that it would not take in any more bodies for the rest of April to allow it to clear its backlog of coffins. (Additional reporting by Angelo Amante in Rome and Elisa Anzolin and Agnieszka Flak in Milan; editing by Nick Macfie)
Prosecutors seek to bring Russias radio to liability for fake news distribution

 flickr.com/ Jobs For Felons Hub

16:25 02/04/2020

MOSCOW, April 2 (RAPSI)  Prosecutors have forwarded to the communications watchdog Roskomnadzor papers seeking to bring radio Echo of Moscow to administrative liability for distributing fake news about epidemic in a penal colony in Russias Orenburg, the press service of the Prosecutor Generals Office reports.

According to the official website of the regional directorate of the Federal Penitentiary Service, a report about mass decease of convicts serving sentence in the penal colony N8 is a fake. A conducted check has not confirmed the epidemic.

Earlier, the Echo of Moscow in Orenburg published on its website an article reading that penitentiary authorities attempted to conceal the outbreak of an unknown decease in the Orenburg penal colony N8. The publication was found on the Facebook page of one of the users, the statement reads.




New Delhi, April 2 : As many as 569 coronavirus suspects related directly or indirectly to the Tablighi Jamaat have been quarantined in Uttar Pradesh, while in Andhra Pradesh 111 people who attended the religious congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin have been identified.

According to UP government officials, the corona suspects were picked up on Wednesday, adding out of the 569, 218 are foreign nationals. Ther rest include the caretakers and other staff of mosques where Markaz Tablighi Jamaat followers were said to be in hiding.

UP government sources said all of them have been quarantined, but the samples of all of them have not yet been taken due to shortage of testing units.

Sources say it will take two-three days before all these suspects get tested.

Meanwhile, during the video conferencing with Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier in the day, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy said that out of 132 cases in the state, 111 people are those who went to Tablighi Jamaat or their contacts.

In Rajasthan, 138 people related to the Tablighi Jamaat have been quarantined, out of which 13 have been tested positive for the Covid-19.

According to Rajasthan government officials, one person, a resident of Jhunjhunu district, who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in the national capital tested positive on Thursday.

On Wednesday, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said that Covid-19 cases may rise due to negligence and carelessness, in reference to the recent Markaz Nizamuddin episode in Delhi.

Speaking at a press briefing, Joint Secretary of the Health Ministry Lav Agarwal said at least 386 new positive cases of novel coronavirus and three new deaths have been reported in the country, but it should not be looked at as a trend.

However, the number of cases might rise due to negligence and carelessness. On Thursday, a total of 1,965 people tested positive for Covid-19 in Indian while 50 people have died across the country.

Out of 1,965, 150 people have recovered.
KRT8 8" x 4' portable field luminaire using Indigo-Clean by Kenall. A 5"-wide KRT5 is also available. In order to accommodate the pressing need for lighting in temporary facilities, it is available as a Fast Track item  meaning it ships from our U.S. facility in just 5 business days from the time of order.

In response to the urgent need for lighting in temporary hospitals, Kenall introduces the KRT Series, a portable, durable luminaire using Indigo-Clean Technology. These unique lighting fixtures provide generous ambient light while safely and continuously killing harmful bacteria, bolstering existing cleaning and infection prevention protocols, and reducing harmful bacteria when used as recommended.

The KRT Series mounts quickly and easily using exterior mounting brackets and a 12-foot cord and plug to accommodate tie wrap and chain installation, or the fixture can be hard wired for daisy chain configurations. In order to accommodate the pressing need for lighting in temporary facilities, it is available as a Fast Track item  meaning it ships from our U.S. facility in just 5 business days from the time of order.

Indigo-Clean Technology is a combination of white ambient light and a narrow 405 nanometer light. It safely kills harmful pathogens in the environment; in the air, and on hard and soft surfaces. Indigo-Clean Technology is independently lab-tested and proven to kill staph* such as MRSA**, as well as ESKAPE pathogens. 24/7 operation is recommended for optimal disinfection.

For more about this new luminaire series, or Kenalls medical and sealed isolation room lighting, visit http://www.kenall.com.

*Per independent lab report #SG5-09S16076094. Contact manufacturer for a copy of this report.

**Antimicrobial Activity of a Continuous Visible Light Disinfection System by Rutala, et. al, ID Week 201

About Kenall

Indigo-Clean is a brand of Kenall Manufacturing, an independent sector of Legrand. Kenall was founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1963 and has built a reputation for durable lighting solutions of superior quality and exceptional value. Today, the company creates unique solutions for the healthcare, cleanroom/containment, food processing, transportation, high abuse, and correctional lighting markets. Kenall luminaires are designed in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and comply with the Buy American Act (manufactured in the United States with more than 50% of the component cost of US origin). For additional information, visit http://www.kenall.com.

About Legrand and Legrand, North and Central America

Legrand is the global specialist in electrical and digital building infrastructures. Its comprehensive offering of solutions for use in commercial, industrial, and residential markets makes it a benchmark for customers worldwide. Legrand reported sales of approximately $7.1 billion (USD) in 2018. Legrand has a strong presence in North and Central America, with a portfolio of well-known market brands and product lines that includes AFCO Systems, C2G, Cablofil, Chief, Da-Lite, Electrorack, Finelite, Kenall, Luxul, Middle Atlantic Products, Milestone AV, Nuvo, OCL, On-Q, Ortronics, Pass & Seymour, Pinnacle, Projecta, QMotion, Quiktron, Raritan, Sanus, Server Technology, Solarfective, Vaddio, Vantage, Wattstopper, and Wiremold. Legrand is listed on Euronext Paris and is a component stock of indexes including the CAC40, http://www.legrand.us.


Chinese medical experts share their experience in COVID-19 prevention and control with their Pakistan counterparts at Pakistan Emirate Military Hospital in Rawalpindi of eastern Pakistan's Punjab province, April 1, 2020. A Chinese medical expert said on Wednesday that prevention work should be the top priority for Pakistan to cope with the increasingly severe COVID-19 epidemic in the country. (Xinhua/Liu Tian)

ISLAMABAD, April 1 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese medical expert said on Wednesday that prevention work should be the top priority for Pakistan to cope with the increasingly severe COVID-19 epidemic in the country.

Ma Minghui, head of a medical expert team sent by the Chinese government to Pakistan, told Xinhua that since the eight-member team's arrival in Pakistan, they have emphasized the importance of prevention in the fight against the COVID-19.

"The Pakistani side starts to understand the significance of the prevention work and we are in the same page now regarding this point," said Ma.

"If the situation is getting worse, Pakistan's medical resources and system would face a huge challenge. Therefore, prevention should be the top priority so as to control the totality of the infected" and provide better treatment with limited medical resources, Ma said.

Ma and his colleagues on Wednesday visited Pak Emirates Military Hospital (PEMH) in Rawalpindi. The Chinese team shared their experiences on the disease diagnosis, suspected patients quarantine and treatment to critical patients.

The experts, who served in the frontline when the disease broke out in China, also gave their Pakistani counterparts suggestions on improving their treatment schemes.

Nigar Johar, commandant of the PEMH, told Xinhua that the Chinese team's visit to the hospital was important. "And definitely they have vast of experiences and we are gaining from that experiences and they are recommending things which would be helpful to us."

The Chinese medical experts will also visit Lahore and Karachi later to guide local medical staff over COVID-19 related prevention and treatment.
Bay Area businesses are ramping up production of critical medical equipment to fight COVID-19, and in some cases converting factories for that purpose, to help address a nationwide shortage.

The transformation comes as Bay Area health care workers speak out about the lack of masks, ventilators and tests needed to fight the coronavirus, especially during the surge of cases expected in the next couple of weeks.

After Fremont officials declared a local emergency, the city fast-tracked its zoning permit process two weeks ago  cutting it from around four months to less than a week  to let more than 115 biotech companies make COVID-19 supplies.

Within a week of the citys changes, one company  BioGenex  secured the go-ahead to provide raw material to Roche labs to make COVID-19 tests. Other companies that already had the right permits let the city know they were switching gears. 3-D printer PrinterPrezz is now producing medical supplies and hospital instruments instead of implants. Medical equipment maker Evolve Manufacturing Technologies pivoted to pushing out 3,000 test kits a day, CEO Noreen King said.

Those kits include nasal swabs, which are used to take test samples from patients. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that Californias shortage of coronavirus tests was mainly due to a lack of swabs.

Another critical need as COVID-19 patients enter intensive care units is ventilators. Evolve is also working with California industrial design company Nectar Product Development to produce a low-cost ventilator, King said. Evolve previously made around 400 ultrasound machines a month, but is setting up a new production line to make up to 50,000 ventilators a month instead. The new ventilator design still needs approval from the Food and Drug Administration.

Ventilators have never been mass-produced before, King said. Its very hard. But were going to get there. A lot of people are working on this. Ive never seen anything like this.

Evolve is hiring 150 people to meet the demand.

Not only is the medical equipment for battling COVID-19 in short supply, but so are the materials needed for the companies to make more of those products, King said.

Finding supplies is super difficult right now, King said. Although her company has always tried to source locally, most parts still come from China, where production is backlogged under COVID-19 lockdown. Even with that country slowly reopening, air freight remains curtailed because passenger flights are nearly eliminated.

Fremont Deputy City Manager Christina Briggs said the city is capitalizing on the capacity of many companies already doing advanced manufacturing to meet the moment.

Right now were so grateful that these companies are able to mobilize overnight to this crisis, Briggs said.

Fremont companies are joining a statewide effort to fill critical supply shortages. More than 350 businesses and manufacturers in California have repurposed their facilities to make medical supplies and essential products, according to the governors office. Gap and St. John Knits are making masks, gowns and scrubs for hospital workers. Anheuser-Busch and other distilleries are producing hand sanitizer. Long Beach satellite maker Virgin Orbit partnered with medical experts to develop a simply designed ventilator that can be mass-produced and is donating an aircraft to bring masks from China to the Bay Area.

Getting ventilators to treat the growing number of COVID-19 patients and masks to protect workers are top priorities, Newsom said Wednesday during his daily coronavirus update.

There were 9,587 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state on Wednesday, according to county health data. The number of patients in intensive care was 774  a nearly 17% increase from Tuesday.

We are preparing for a two-thirds increase in hospital bed capacity, not just in terms of physical needs but making sure we have the appropriate protective gear and ventilators and personnel, Newsom said.

California already requested 10,000 ventilators from the federal government. By Saturday, the state had nearly half of them, according to the governors office. About 170 of them were broken. Silicon Valley clean energy company Bloom Energy refurbished them over the weekend and sent them back to Los Angeles for use.

Newsom said he was working on different partnerships around the world to get a few thousand more.

There is simply not a purveyor of ventilators that hasnt already received a call directly from me or the team, Newsom said. We are searching high and low across the globe.

Unlike President Trump, Newsom has not used executive power to mandate that companies make supplies. Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to force General Motors to manufacture ventilators on Friday.

The California Nurses Association, which represents more than 100,000 nurses in the state, says the state and federal governments both need to do more, Government Relations Director Stephanie Roberson said.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Quite honestly, were spending way too much time fighting at the facility level day to day on ensuring our nurses get the proper PPE, Roberson said, using the term for personal protective equipment.

Some Bay Area nurses on the front lines say they have enough protective gear now. But, as policies change, sometimes daily, to stretch those supplies, they worry that wont last.

I wish that I was confident that our country had enough PPE, and it is inexcusable to me that there is not, Becky Cherry-May, a nurse at Kaiser Permanente Vacaville Medical Center, said. We had plenty of time to prepare.

Cherry-May said nurses caring for COVID-19 patients at her hospital wear the same N95 mask throughout the day, which increases the risk of infection  similar to reports from other Bay Area hospitals. She started using her own masks at work.

Kaiser Permanente Vice President Irene Chavez said the hospital system is following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines and is allowing mask reuse when not soiled. She said on Tuesday the system has appropriate Personal Protective Equipment to protect our teams.

On Wednesday, Cherry-Mays hospital hadnt seen a surge of COVID-19 cases. But she worried there wont be enough beds and ventilators to cope if it arrives.

Of course theres always hope, but what Ive seen around the world in areas that are just as competent and able as California to produce these supplies and get hold of them, its frightening, Cherry-May said. I sincerely hope we have enough ventilators to take care of patients, but based on other areas with large populations, that doesnt seem to be the case.

San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Alexei Koseff contributed to this report.

Mallory Moench is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mallorymoench
The German Mission in Nigeria has pledged 5.5m to the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund, says the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Nigeria.

The donation follows the growing number of coronavirus cases in Africas most populous which has infected over 170 people with two deaths as of April 2, 2020.

Also Read: COVID-19: NCDC Releases Updated List Of State Emergency Numbers For Citizens

The Mission expressed that the donation by Germany would help vulnerable persons in Nigeria have access to potable water, food and shelter amidst the crisis.

UNOCHA Nigeria tweeted:

Just In: #Germany pledges 5.5m to the Nigeria Humanitarian Fund.

Its more critical than ever for vulnerable people to have access to clean water, food & shelter.

This will enable partners to continue delivering life-saving aid amidst COVID-19.

Dankeschon Deutschland 

https://twitter.com/OCHANigeria/status/1245622652535844866
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 00:14:39|Editor: huaxia

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BEIRUT, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese Foreign Ministry submitted on Thursday a complaint to the UN Security Council over Israel's continuous violations of Lebanon's airspace, the National News Agency reported.

"We call upon the UN Security Council to put an end to the daily Israeli air, sea and land violations," the ministry said.

Israel reportedly bombed an air base in western Syria late on Tuesday while flying in Lebanon's airspace. Enditem
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan  A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction and death sentence of Ahmed Omar Sheikh, a British-born militant who had been convicted of masterminding the 2002 abduction and killing of the American journalist Daniel Pearl, lawyers said.

The court also overturned the convictions of three other men who had been serving life sentences in the case. All four men were expected to be freed soon, lawyers said.

Mr. Pearl, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted in January 2002 in the city of Karachi, while working on an article about Pakistani militant groups with links to Al Qaeda. He was later beheaded.

A two-member bench of the Sindh High Court in Karachi, headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, found that there had been sufficient evidence to convict Mr. Sheikh of kidnapping, but not of murder, said Mr. Sheikhs lawyer, Khawaja Naveed Ahmed. The court ruled that the charge of abduction was proven, he said.
Special tax regime for self-employed people legislatively approved in Russia

 RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov

00:11 02/04/2020

MOSCOW, April 2 (RAPSI)  President Vladimir Putin has extended a special beneficial tax treatment to self-employed persons across Russia. The laws version signed by the President has been published on the official website of legal information.

Previously, such a regime applied to the individual earners only in 23 regions.

The law is aimed to give more citizens an opportunity to do business in more comfortable conditions choosing the special beneficial tax regime called Earned income tax, an explanatory to the document reads.

Under the law, Russian regions would be authorized to introduce by themselves the tax for self-employed.

The initiative has been sponsored by the chair of the State Duma Committee on Budget and Taxes Andrey Makarov and senator Nikolay Zhuravlev.
Kendallville, IN (46755)

Today

Snow showers this evening. Breaks in the overcast later. Low 9F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph, becoming ENE and decreasing to less than 5 mph. Chance of snow 40%..

Tonight

Snow showers this evening. Breaks in the overcast later. Low 9F. Winds NNW at 10 to 20 mph, becoming ENE and decreasing to less than 5 mph. Chance of snow 40%.




Haiti - Education : $10M aid to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on education





After an online meeting, Talia Miranda de Chaisemartin, in charge of the Haiti file at the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), announced that the Board of Directors of PME had approved a fund of 10 million dollars in favor of Haiti from the global fund of 250 million dollars https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30421-haiti-news-zapping.html intended to help developing countries including Haiti.



Faced with the unprecedented challenge, the GPE had to act, underlined Serigne Mbaye Thiam, Vice-president of the board of directors of the SME "These funds will allow developing countries to act quickly to mitigate the negative impact of Covid-19 on the most vulnerable children and strengthen the resilience of their education systems."



The financing of the GPE of $10 million will be available immediately to face the health crisis which affects education and support the response plan of the Ministry of National Education compared to Covid-19 by responding to urgent needs and long-term. This includes ensuring continued learning, in particular through educational radio and television programs, the supply of teaching materials and assistance to teachers.



"We are taking steps to mitigate the effects of school closings on the learning of the most vulnerable children in developing countries," said Alice Albright, Director General of the GPE. "The institution is committed to ensuring that learning can continue and to ensure that each child continues to receive the education he needs."



The news was welcomed by officials from the Ministry of National Education who have already made arrangements to follow up on this matter. UNICEF, Agent-partner in the context of accelerated financing from the GPE, has already started work with the Working Group formed by the Minister Cadet https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30041-haiti-education-meeting-of-the-follow-up-committee-of-the-accelerated-financing-of-the-global-partnership-for-education.html for the coordination and management of the Ministry Response Plan to Covid-19. This group includes representatives from the Minister's office, general management and the technical departments concerned.



The five main areas of intervention under the Plan have already been identified and the request for funding will be submitted to the GPE shortly by the agent-partner.



Recall that a mission of the GPE stayed in Haiti, about a month ago https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30211-haiti-education-a-delegation-of-the-global-partnership-for-education-on-mission-in-the-country.html provided an opportunity to take stock of Ministry-GPE cooperation with regard to the development of the Ten-year Education and Training Plan (PDEF).



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30211-haiti-education-a-delegation-of-the-global-partnership-for-education-on-mission-in-the-country.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30041-haiti-education-meeting-of-the-follow-up-committee-of-the-accelerated-financing-of-the-global-partnership-for-education.html



HL/ HaitiLibre


















"Give us our money!", demands a group of home buyers, standing on land that should by now be finished condos -- one of many fictitious projects that together comprise what is described as Morocco's biggest-ever property scam.

Adverts on state television had promised dream homes at three for the price of two, while brochures boasted of ornately carved wood finishings and copious marble.

But it was all a fantasy -- more than 600 million dirhams (about 57 million euros, $65 million) allegedly disappeared, leaving more than 1,000 buyers out-of-pocket, according to one of the lawyers representing them.

In a country where corruption is endemic, the unprecedented scale of the alleged fraud has generated political waves.

Called upon by deputies to address the issue in parliament, Prime Minister Saad Eddine El Othmani said the government was absolved of any blame, provoking indignation among defrauded investors who have appealed to King Mohammed VI.

The man accused of being at the forefront of the scheme has been charged and is in detention awaiting trial.

But the vast scam has prompted major questions about alleged negligence and complicity of some Moroccan institutions.

Mohamed el Ouardi, as head of the Bab Darna group, allegedly received advances for apartments that never made it beyond the paper they were drawn on.

"The swimming pool would have been just over there," scoffs would-be apartment owner Soufiane, aged in his 40s, as he points across a building site in the commercial capital Casablanca.

Bab Darna consists of a group of firms that cashed advances from "at least 1,000 victims" who invested in around 15 fictitious real-estate projects in and around Casablanca over a decade, Mourad el Ajouti, one of the lawyers for the investors, told AFP.

The money was allegedly embezzled by cashing "advances ranging from 20 percent" to the full cost of the apartment, he added.

Houria, 49, who works in e-commerce, said "highly persuasive sales agents" proffered a golden opportunity and swayed her into advancing 400,000 dirhams; 20 percent of the cost of a villa.

But the vendor "had neither the title deed nor construction permit", el Ajouti said; basic requirements lacking in all contracts signed by the investors.

Such practices did not prevent Bab Darna from exhibiting with great fanfare at real-estate shows in Casablanca, Paris and Brussels.

"The authorities were not aware (of el Ouardi's activities)?" asked Houria, dumbfounded. "Who protected him?"



She, like other victims that AFP spoke to, did not want their full names published.

El Ouardi, 59, is described as a smooth salesman who carved a path through the real-estate jungle.

But in November, with nothing to show for their investments, angry customers went round to his home.

When cheques for reimbursements that they say he penned personally bounced, their patience finally ran out and they hauled him to the police station.

He is currently awaiting trial with six alleged accomplices -- his finance manager, the notary and sales agents.

A trial date has not yet been set, but the suspects face between 10 and 20 years in prison for fraud or complicity in fraud.

Many of the victims come from Morocco's diaspora, who number several million and often invest in property back home.

"I left Morocco to escape corruption and nepotism, but these things have entrapped me once more," lamented another victim Youssef, 36, who lives in Japan and is self-employed.

Sifeddine, an entrepreneur living in Argentina, reserved an apartment thanks to a brochure promoting modern buildings covered in ivy, alongside elegant palm trees shading a turquoise pool.

The TV adverts, broadcast during primetime hours and using famous actors, reassured him.

"El Ouardi received me at his villa and was very persuasive, in front of a notary and agent," he said.

"It was 10:00 pm, the sub-municipality's office was opened specially at his request to sign the contract; he must have greased a lot of palms,", Sifeddine alleged.

Jalal, a salesman in his 40s of dual French-Moroccan nationality, took the plunge in 2018 when he visited a Moroccan real-estate show in Paris.

Bab Darna "had one of the best stands" at the show, known as Smap Immo, he said.

He came back to Morocco to sign the deal, and took the presence of a notary and registration of the contract at a sub-municipality office as guarantees of legitimacy.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 06:13:41|Editor: huaxia

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BRASILIA, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from the novel coronavirus climbed to 299 in Brazil as the number of confirmed cases went from 6,836 to 7,910, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.

In the past 24 hours, 59 COVID-19 patients died, raising the mortality rate to 3.8 percent, and 1,074 people tested positive, slightly less than the 1,119 new cases reported in the previous 24-hour period.

Brazil's more prosperous southeast region continues to be the epicenter of the national outbreak, with 4,988 cases, followed by the northeast, with 1,180 cases.

Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta on Wednesday said officials were expecting a spike in cases in April.

He urged Brazilians to "redouble" their efforts at social distancing and sheltering in place, saying "this is not the time to waver."
Tedros Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO), says within the next few days, the world will record one ...





Tedros Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO), says within the next few days, the world will record one million cases of coronavirus.





According to global statistics, as of Wednesday, more than 800,000 people had been infected, with over 40,000 deaths.





Speaking at a press briefing on Wednesday, Ghebreyesus expressed concerns about the rapid escalation and global spread of coronavirus.





As we enter the 4th month since the start of the #COVID19 pandemic, I am deeply concerned about the rapid escalation and global spread of infection. Over the past 5 weeks, we have witnessed a near exponential growth in the number of new COVID-19 cases, reaching almost every country, territory and area, he said.





The number of deaths has more than doubled in the past week. In the next few days, we will reach one million confirmed #COVID19 cases, and 50,000 deaths.





He said although African countries, as well as locations in Central and South America, had recorded relatively lower numbers of cases of infection, the effects could be serious in terms of social, economic and political consequences.





It is critical that we ensure these countries are well equipped to detect, test, isolate and treat #COVID19 cases, and identify contacts  I am encouraged to see that this is occurring in many countries, despite limited resources, he said.





Many countries are asking people to stay at home and shutting down population movement, which can help to limit transmission of the #coronavirus, but can have unintended consequences for the poorest and most vulnerable people. I have called on governments to put in place social welfare measures to ensure vulnerable people have food and other life essentials during this crisis.




Amazon.com Inc. has filled 80,000 jobs in the span of a few weeks, part of a hiring spree to add 100,000 workers to meet soaring demand in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The tech giant also announced a raft of worker protections, including plans to check employee temperatures at its facilities in the U.S. and Europe and at Whole Foods Market locations by early next week. The company is checking the temperature of 100,000 employees a day and plans to provide masks to all facilities by next week, according to Dave Clark, Amazons senior vice-president of worldwide operations. Any employee found to have a temperature above 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit will be asked to go home and not return until after having gone three days without a fever, Mr. Clark said.

The announcement comes after Amazon warehouse workers and other hourly employees have called on Amazon to do more to protect them. Employees in at least 15 warehouses in the U.S. have tested positive for COVID-19 or entered quarantine due to symptoms, the company said this week. That list has grown almost daily in recent weeks.

Amazon employs more than 500,000 people in the U.S., making it the second largest private employer. Walmart Inc., the nations largest private employer with about 1.5 million workers, recently announced similar plans to provide masks to employees and take temperatures at the start of each shift. The company has hired 65,000 workers since March 19 and said it would add 150,000 to manage the shopping surge sparked by the outbreak.

About 15 employees at a warehouse in Staten Island, N.Y., walked out of work on Monday, according to Amazon. The walkout was followed by similar actions at facilities in Chicago and the Detroit area, as well as a sick out on Tuesday by workers at Whole Foods, which is owned by Amazon.

As the virus spread across the U.S., Amazon has faced overwhelming demand and mass employee absences at its warehouses, The Wall Street Journal reported this week. Some workers have said Amazon hasnt provided enough cleaning supplies at facilities or properly enforced social-distancing efforts. Organized employees have called on Amazon to shut down any warehouse where at least one confirmed case of COVID-19 is found.

Amazon has implemented several measures to keep employees safe at warehouses, including separating tables and chairs inside break rooms and eliminating meetings between workers and managers that would typically begin before each shift, according to workers. The company said warehouses with confirmed cases can be temporarily closed for deep cleaning and reopen once that process is over.

Amazon has secured an additional 450,000 canisters of disinfectant wipes and more than 50,000 hand sanitizers for its warehouse staff, according to a memo reviewed by the Journal.

Mr. Clark of Amazon said in a blog post that the company is in the process of distributing masks to workers, which will be available as soon as Thursday in some locations, with all facilities having masks by early next week. The company will donate any N95 masks it receives to health-care workers or will sell them at cost, he said.

Amazon has rolled out several new policies in recent weeks. The company said employees who show symptoms or are diagnosed with COVID-19, or are in quarantine, are eligible for up to two weeks of paid sick leave. The company has also raised hourly pay for employees in the U.S. and Canada by $2 through the end of April and allowed employees to take an unlimited amount of unpaid time off through the end of the month. Mr. Clark said Amazon expects to go well beyond our initial $350 million investment in additional pay, and we will do so happily.

The company is planning to conduct daily audits of the new health and safety measures, using cameras in its facilities and machine learning to monitor social distancing.

With over 1,000 sites around the world, and so many measures and precautions rapidly rolled out over the past several weeks, there may be instances where we dont get it perfect, but I can assure you thats just what theyll beexceptions, he said in the post.

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The number of deaths attributed to the global coronavirus epidemic in Belgium increased sharply and passed the 1,000 mark on Thursday, health officials said.

The official toll in the country of 11.4 million has doubled in the space of three days, in part because figures have been updated with a backlog of fatalities from retirement homes.

There have now been 1,011 deaths and 15,348 officially recorded cases since the start of the outbreak, officials told a daily conference.

"Ninety-three percent of deaths involve an elderly person of more than 65," said Dr Emmanuel Andre, the government health spokesman.

Earlier this week Andre confirmed the death of a 12-year-old girl among those infected with COVID-19.

Belgium has entered what authorities hope will be the nation's peak period of the pandemic, and around half the intensive care beds in hospital units across the country are occupied, Andre said.

The country has imposed a similar national lockdown to those in its European neighbours, with restaurants, bars and non-essential firms shut, school suspended and public events banned.

Belgium even put its year-old search for a stable coalition government on hold for a while, with parliament giving caretaker premier Sophie Wilmes a mandate to tackle the virus.

Per capita Belgium remains among the worst hit countries in Europe.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 05:21:17|Editor: xuxin

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Staff unload medical humanitarian aid supplies sent by China from a plane at the airport in Minsk, capital of Belarus, April 1, 2020. Belarus has received more than 2,000 rapid coronavirus tests, medical protective suits, infrared thermometers, safety glasses, disposable gloves and shoe covers from China, according to Deputy Health Minister Boris Androsyuk. (Photo by Henadz Zhinkov/Xinhua)

MINSK, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Belarus has received more than 2,000 rapid coronavirus tests, medical protective suits, infrared thermometers, safety glasses, disposable gloves and shoe covers from China, according to Deputy Health Minister Boris Androsyuk.

The medical humanitarian aid from China arrived in Belarus on Wednesday. Belarus had earlier sent medical goods to China, Androsyuk said.

Chinese Ambassador to Belarus Cui Qimin said the humanitarian aid was only the first batch.

The Chinese embassy will purchase 10,000 tests with reagents for detecting coronavirus, masks, protective clothing, infrared thermometers, pulse oximeters and other medical supplies for Belarus, according to the ambassador.

The Chinese government plans to send a group of medical experts to Belarus, the ambassador added.
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(Kitco News) - The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact the mining sector with senior precious-metals producer Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd. (NYSE:AEM, TSX: AEM) announcing more mine closures, this time in Mexico.

On Monday, the Mexican government announced the closure of all non-essential business to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. Mining operations have been deemed non-essential.

In accordance with the latest government announcement, Agnico said in a press release Thursday that is it ramping down operations at Pinos Altos, Creston Mascota and La India.

Each of these operations will be placed on care and maintenance until April 30, 2020. Exploration activities in Mexico will also be suspended during this period, the company said.

The latest mine closures come more than a week after the company said that it was placing its Canadian operation in northern Quebec and Nunavut on care and maintenance. The company also suspended all exploration activity in Canada.

While Agnico Eagles North American operations have been curtailed, the company said that its Kittila mine in Finland is expected to continue to operate at normal levels.

Last month, the company said it suspended all underground operations for 72 hours and disinfected common areas at Kittila after one of its employees tested positive for COVID-19.

Underground operations resumed on March 31, 2020. There was no interruption to surface or mill operations as mill production was maintained with surface stockpiles, the company said.

According to some analysts, Mexicos mine closures could have a long-term impact on silver prices in particular. Mexico is the worlds biggest primary silver source, and the nations silver output represents about 23% of global supply. According to data from the U.S. Geological Survey, Mexico produced 6,300 metric tons of silver in 2019.
All San Antonio homeless shelters have closed their doors to new clients, raising concerns about where and to whom the already struggling population can turn for help as the coronavirus pandemic spreads.

City officials are trying to shrink the hole in the safety net with a new hotline and homeless resource hub locations, the City Council heard Thursday.

It is certainly one of our social service emergencies, or the aspects of this emergency, that we are dealing with beyond the public health and the hospitals, City Manager Erik Walsh said.

On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases

Expected to launch Friday or Monday, the hotline is specifically for those seeking homeless services and can help them find the ones that are still available, said Colleen Bridger, the assistant city manager who oversees the Metropolitan Health District.

Currently, Bridger said, people must call each shelter to find out where they can go and what services are available there.

Every single shelter in the city has stopped generally accepting homeless individuals, Bridger said. (Haven for Hope) does make some exceptions for families and veterans and a couple other categories.

As of the 2019 Point-in-Time Count, there were about 2,900 homeless people in San Antonio, including 622 who were living on the streets.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio homeless shelters struggle to balance needed services with preventing coronavirus outbreak in crowded facilities

The city is redeploying staff to talk to homeless individuals and let them know what services are available.

It has also started feeding hubs and homeless hubs, where once a day, every other day, people can get meals and bags of clothing and can use hand-washing stations.

This week, a hub opened at Christian Assistance Ministry on McCullough at Avenue E. It offers food, hygiene kits, bags of clothes each week, hand-washing stations, a place to pick up mail and showers, and it educates people on what is going on six days a week, said Dawn White-Fosdick, the executive director.

Sometimes we may be the first person they get information from, she said.

Not everyone knows about the hubs, and officials said theyd work to get the word out.

The issue is always, how do we communicate that to the public? I still feel like we dont have that right, Councilwoman Shirley Gonzales said.

At CAM, there are cones set 6 feet apart to show people where to maintain social distance as they stand in line. Once a person gets to the front, there is no hand-to-hand contact as volunteers distribute food, clothing and hygiene kits.

A staff member will set down the sacked lunch on the table, step back and then the (homeless) person can walk up and get it, Fosdick said.

CAM has long been a resource for homeless people, and the hub is serving an increased number. Typically, its volunteers and staff serve about 105 people per day  but recently they had 225 people in less than an hour, Fosdick said.

Ive noticed (homeless) people are asking a lot more questions. They usually have a network of resources for them. Now there is this clamoring for information, Fosdick said. A lot of people said, I need clothes. Or, I need a bag to carry things in. There is a sense of desperation.

Earlier this week, city officials did receive some good news. San Antonio will be receiving an additional $11 million in federal funding to address housing and homelessness. Bridger said there have been several conversations on how to best use those funds.

Weve all committed to the fact that we want to use the vast majority of the additional federal dollars to keep people in their homes, because it is way too late once they become homeless, Bridger said. We want to go much farther upstream.

sara.cline@express-news.net
Trial drug may block early stages of COVID-19, study in human cells shows

A drug already tested against lung disease could potentially inhibit COVID-19 by reducing the coronavirus load that enters the lungs and other organs. That is according to a study in human cell cultures and organoids by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Canada, published in the journal Cell.

The results could be promising for the treatment of COVID-19 patients who are in the early stages of infection, according to the researchers.

"Our study provides new insights into how SARS-CoV-2 infects the cells of the body, including in blood vessels and kidneys," says Ali Mirazimi, adjunct professor at the Department of Laboratory Medicine at Karolinska Institutet and one of the study's corresponding authors. "We hope that our results can contribute to the development of a novel drug treatment that can help patients with COVID-19."

The researchers used tissue samples from a patient with COVID-19 to isolate and cultivate SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease COVID-19. In cell cultures, they were able to show how the spike protein in SARS-CoV-2 binds to a cell surface receptor called angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) in order to enter our cells. It is the same mechanism that the original SARS-virus from 2003 used to bind to our cells, and which has been described by several of the researchers in previous studies.

By adding a genetically modified variant of this protein, called human recombinant soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hrsACE2), the researchers wanted to test if the virus could be stopped from infecting the cells.

The result now published shows that hrsACE2 reduced viral growth of SARS-CoV-2 by a factor of 1,000 to 5,000 in cell cultures. The result was dose dependent, meaning it varied depending on the total amount of virus in relation to the total amount of hrsACE2. The authors were also able to verify these data from regular cell cultures in engineered miniature replicas of blood vessels and kidneys, so-called organoids grown from human stem cells.

"We believe adding this enzyme copy, hrsACE2, lures the virus to attach itself to the copy instead of the actual cells," Mirazimi says. "It distracts the virus from infecting the cells to the same degree and should lead to a reduction in the growth of the virus in the lungs and other organs."

The research has so far been limited to cell cultures and engineered miniature organs, but the biotech company Aperion Biologics, which develops the drug APN01 with the active substance, is planning to conduct a clinical pilot study on infected COVID-19 patients in China. The same drug has already been tested against lung disease in a clinical phase II study.

The researchers note that the current study only examined the drug's effect during the initial stages of infection and that further research is needed to determine if it is also effective during later stages of disease development.

ACE2 usually helps lungs and other organs to maintain normal function but when viruses bind to the protein they could damage the cells. This could, according to the researchers, explain why some COVID-19 patients suffer severe lung disease and multi-organ failure.

With the help of the organoids, the researchers were also able to show that the virus can directly infect and multiply itself in blood vessels and kidneys. This provides important information on the development of the disease and the fact that severe cases of COVID-19 present with multi-organ failure and evidence of cardiovascular damage. hrsACE2 also reduced the SARS-CoV-2 infection in these engineered human tissues.

"The virus causing the COVID-19 is a close sibling to the first SARS virus," says Josef Penninger, professor in UBC's faculty of medicine and co-corresponding author of the study. "Our previous work has helped to rapidly identify ACE2 as the entry gate for SARS-CoV-2, which explains a lot about the disease. Now we know that a soluble form of ACE2 that catches the virus away, could indeed be a very rational therapy that specifically targets the gate the virus must take to infect us."

###

The study was financed in part by the Swedish Research Council, the European Research Council and grants from Canada for COVID-19 research. Several of the researchers report conflict of interests, including Josef Penninger who is a founder and shareholder in Apeiron Biologics. Please see the study for a complete list.

Publication: "Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 infections in engineered human tissues using clinical-grade soluble human ACE2," Vanessa Monteil, Heysoo Kwon, Patricia Prado, Reiner A. Wimmer, Martin Stahl, Alexandra Leopoldi, Elena Garreta, Carmen Hurtado del Pozo, Felipe Prosper, J.P. Romero, Gerald Wirnsberger, Haibo Zhang, Arthur S. Slutsky, Ryan Conder, Nuria Montserrat, Ali Mirazimi, Josef M. Penninger, Cell, online April 2, 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.04.004

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Boeing is set to offer buyout and early retirement packages to employees, two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in a bid to mitigate the financial fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Boeing was initiating a voluntary layoff plan that allows eligible employees who want to exit the company to do so with a pay and benefits package, one of the people said.

Boeing Chief Executive Dave Calhoun is expected to detail a voluntary layoff plan in a memo to employees as early as Thursday, the second person said.

Boeing has some 150,000 employees worldwide with nearly half in Seattle area

Reuters reported last month, citing industry sources, that layoffs or furloughs were a 'real possibility' as deferred aircraft deliveries and downpayments due to a virus-related plunge in air travel forced Boeing to consider tougher steps to reduce cash outflow.

A representative for Boeing declined to comment.

Boeing, which calls itself America's largest exporter, has some 150,000 employees worldwide, nearly half of whom are clustered around marquee factories in Seattle's Puget Sound region.

The buyout plan comes three weeks after the U.S. planemaker said it would freeze hiring and overtime pay except in certain critical areas to preserve cash.

The company calls itself America's larges exporter and has requested a $60bn bailout package from the government. Grounded Boeing 737 MAX aircraft are seen in Seattle, Washington. The planes are still grounded

The coronavirus pandemic has compounded the year-old crisis over the grounding of Boeing's 737 MAX following fatal crashes that killed 346 people in a five-month span.

Boeing halted 737 production in January.

Last week Boeing halted operations at its twin-aisle factory and other facilities around Seattle after more than a dozen employees were infected - at least one fatally - by the virus that causes COVID-19.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier on Wednesday that an announcement on early retirement and buyout packages could come as early as Thursday.

Boeing has called for a $60 billion bailout in access to public and private liquidity, including loan guarantees, for the struggling U.S. aerospace manufacturing industry.

A worker leaves the Boeing Everett Factory, amid the coronavirus disease outbreak, in Everett, Washington
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The Victorian Opposition is demanding an explanation from Daniel Andrews' government after police allegedly let up to 30 guests celebrate a wedding at the weekend despite social distancing rules.

A reception was held in Broadmeadows in Melbourne's north on Sunday, with pictures and video showing family and friends dancing and gathering for a photo with the bride and groom.

Guests claimed Victoria Police were called, and officers allegedly told attendees the party could continue - as long as guests kept 1.5 metres away and limited themselves to groups of five.

David Southwick MP, the Coalition's state police spokesman, said: 'Social distancing rules have been put in place to protect the community from COVID-19 and must be followed by everyone. '

'There can be no loopholes when it comes to peoples' safety and the Andrews Government must explain why this event was allowed to go ahead.'

Victoria Police let wedding celebrations go ahead in Broadmeadows, Victoria, at the weekend despite strict social distancing measures. 32 people are in the above photograph

Those present at the wedding were told the party could continue if they kept 1.5m away from one another and kept themselves in groups of five. The bride and groom are on left

When Police Minister Lisa Neville was approached for comment, a government spokeswoman provided Daily Mail Australia with a statement that did not shed further light on what happened.

'It's incredibly disappointing to see people flouting the clear directions of the Chief Health Officer,' the spokeswoman said. 'Not following the rules right now means Victorians will die.'

Police have strong powers to enforce their social distancing directions including on the spot fines of up to $1,652 for individuals and $9,913 for businesses.

A Victoria Police representative previously said the agency will 'not be providing a running commentary on individual spot checks, reports of people breaching self-isolation or breaches of mass gatherings.'

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

The decision to allegedly allow the wedding to proceed has sparked a fierce backlash online given people have had to call off weddings and limit numbers at funerals under the rules.

The restrictions announced by Prime Minister Scott Morrison on March 24 limited weddings to the bride, groom, celebrant and two witnesses from March 26.

Several couples, including Steve Irwin's daughter Bindi and lover Chandler Powell, brought their weddings forward so they could celebrate with family.

The groom's family and several guests were approached to comment.

'The cops came and did nothing,' one wedding guest said. 'They let us continue in groups of five and 1.5 metres apart.'

A second source with knowledge of the situation confirmed that was correct.

The wedding - although hardly large by normal standards - came before the introduction of even more draconian guidelines which ban public gatherings of more than two people.

Victorian authorities were forced to backflip on Wednesday after earlier announcing couples couldn't meet up if they didn't already live together.

Ms Neville tweeted yesterday morning: 'You cannot visit your partner for social reasons'. She was backed in by Victorian premier Daniel Andrews.

Coalition MP David Southwick, left, has called on Daniel Andrews' government to explain why police allegedly allowed a wedding to go ahead

;Police stand guard outside Melbourne's Crown hotel where travellers from overseas have been placed into forced quarantine since new coronavirus control measures kicked at midnight Saturday

NSW Police move on a family sitting in Rushcutters Bay park as authorities enforce 'stay home unless essential' orders across the nation

Mr Andrews said at a press conference: 'That's not work, that's not care-giving, that's not medical care, that's not shopping for the things you need when you need them, and it does not comply with the rules. People should not do that.'

But the state's chief health officer, Dr Brett Sutton, announced the government would make an exemption last night.

'We have no desire to penalise individuals who are staying with or meeting their partners if they don't usually reside together,' he said. 'We'll be making an exemption. Hope that helps.'

Couples are allowed to visit each other at home in New South Wales, the state worst affected by COVID-19.

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said visiting a partner counts as 'care' because it is vital for mental health.

'I would put that under care, absolutely, mental health, that's under care we need to look after each other,' Mr Fuller said.

The Victorian government spokeswoman said: 'Our message is clear  stay at home. There are only four reasons to leave your home: food and supplies, medical care, exercise, and work or education.'

5,105 Australians have tested positive to COVID-19.
W ith the UK in lockdown, theres never been a better time for film fans to discover new cinema. With that in mind, weve launched One Perfect Scene, a new regular feature where we take a close look at one perfect scene to introduce movie fans to a specific genre, era, actor or filmmaker. You can catch up with the series here.

A quiet, uninterrupted shot of two actors sharing a cigarette and chatting politics perhaps doesn't sound a star-making turn, but it was for Michael Fassbender, who in 17 minutes sat with his face mostly in shadow, established himself as one of cinema's unmissable, mercurial talents.

It came in 2008's Hunger, Steve McQueens bruising portrayal of IRA man Bobby Sands hunger strike. Fassbender played Sands, a republican prisoner who staged protests in an attempt to regain political status after having it revoked by the British government.

The scene is Hunger's centrepiece. It sees moderate Belfast priest Father Moran, played by Liam Cunningham, join Sands in the prison meeting room. They sit perhaps a foot apart and start almost as boxers, jabbing and barbing each other. Things settle as they size things up; they slip into something like small talk, chatting jobs, bureaucracy, the priest's jealously of his younger brother. They joke about the joys of smoking.

Then things change. The scene doesn't, of course; it is unwavering, unbroken, the light unshifting. We never really see the pair's faces; for most of the scene, there's more clarity in the smoke that their expressions, and so we listen closely, intently. "So, what did you call me here for?" asks the Father. "What, is that the idle banter over with?" shoots back Sands, his voice lilting, teasing. 

The two are there to try and understand each other; Moran wants to understand Sands and his protest. They're simply talking, but it's back and forth, constant chatter, the points getting harder and harder, spilling out faster and faster. Yet neither shout; the chat is a rare moment of quiet in a film marked by its stripped-down scenes of dirty protests and brutal beatings. For all the scenes of violence and harrowing conditions in the prison, this discussion has the most impact. Being unbroken, with no relief for those watching, the sequence is strange and compelling  more like something from an art project or theatre piece than a scene from a commercial film. Perhaps it's no surprise, given director McQueen won the Turner Prize as a visual artist in 1999 before turning to film.

Fassbender, though, is the reason it works so beautifully. Its the innate contrasts and complexities in his performance that makes the scene so compelling: every detail is considered, but never mannered. The way he holds his weakened hand against the table, as if its being pushed down by the weight of the cigarette, is inspired. So is the manner in which Fassbender conveys Sands geniality by asking about the priests wee brother with a whimsical note in his voice  only moments later to lean forward with an accusatory air: "Theres a war going on, I thought you might understand. This subtlety and these contrasts drive the scene along. It was a bold decision for McQueen to include such a long shot but he was right to trust the strength of Fassbender's abilities. In other hands, it could so easily have been tedious and indulgent.

There's a fragility and a femininity to him, but also a masculinity that can translate. You're not in awe of him. You're part of him. He pulls you in. And that's what you want from an actor. You want people to look at him and see themselves, was how director Steve McQueen described Fassbender in 2012, going so far as to compare him to a young Marlon Brando.

This mix of fragility and masculinity are apparent here. The actor underwent 10 weeks of fasting before filming began to lose almost three stone, and immersed himself during production by avoiding speaking to anyone but McQueen on set. One glance at his fragile frame is enough to tell you about the characters situation and the treatment he's suffered. Physically, hes a broken man, but the fact that Fassbender is able to convey the characters resilience and determination is remarkable. He makes subtle movements towards Cunningham in his seat, as if the strength of his convictions are pulling him forward. Later he holds his gaze with unblinking eyes when telling a story about drowning a wounded foal in a river, as if he's daring him to look away and not take his convictions seriously. Anyone can lose weight for a role, but his ability to convey inner strength and conviction sets him apart.

25 underrated movies on Netflix and Amazon Prime 1 /33 25 underrated movies on Netflix and Amazon Prime The Miseducation of Cameron Post  Netflix Chloe Grace Moretz plays the titular role in this powerful drama. After shes discovered kissing the prom queen, Moretzs character is sent to the gay conversion camp called Gods Promise, where she rallies together with fellow disciples in the face of terrible adversity. Booksmart  Amazon Prime Video Olivia Wildes directorial debut Booksmart is an inspired comedy and coming-of-age movie, and one of the funniest films of last year. Swots Molly (Beanie Feldstein) and Amy (Kaitlyn Dever) head out for a night of partying, realising theyve forgotten how to have fun during their high school studies. Captain Fantastic  Netflix In this quirkier than a Wes Anderson convention, this comedy drama centers around a family who have grown up in isolation, with father Ben (Viggo Mortensen) teaching how to live their lives away from capitalist society. Paris is Burning  Netflix This groundbreaking documentary captures the spirit of the trailblazing ball culture of 80s New York, taking us into the lives of the African-American, Latino, gay and transgender communities who made it one of the most influential LGBTQ+ movements of the 20th century. Blindspotting  Netflix This uniquely styled comedy drama follows a man with just days left on his sentence, whose future is thrown in doubt after witnessing a police shooting. Its much funnier and quirkier than it sounds, trust us. Whats Eating Gilbert Grape  Amazon Prime Video This early 90s cult classic follows Johnny Depps young shop clerk in small town America, tasked with looking after his obese mother and mentally impaired younger brother. Theres also one of the first movie performances from Leonardo DiCaprio to look out for. Ingrid Goes West  Netflix Take a trip with Aubrey Plazas outsider Ingrid, as she travels to Venice Beach to infiltrate the Insta-fabulous life of her favourite influencer in this dark, oddball comedy. Dolemite is my Name  Netflix This Netflix drama is a real return to form for Eddie Murphy. Plenty of people were calling for him to be recognised during awards season for his performance as Rudy Ray Moore, the star of blaxploitation films in the 70s. Private Life  Netflix Private Life is one of the few Hollywood movies of recent times that tackles the subject of middle-aged couples trying to have children. Its sensitive and quietly devastating, featuring the best Paul Giammatti performance in years and a great turn from Kathryn Hahn. Okja  Netflix We told you Boon Jong-Ho would be back. A genetically-enhanced super pig and a young girl form an unlikely and beautiful friendship in this gem, going head to head with a superfood conglomerate. This Netflix original was dismissed as vegan propaganda by some when it came out in 2017, but its so much more. Blinded by the Light  Amazon Prime Video A love letter to the songs of Bruce Springsteen, based on the memoirs of Sarfraz Manzoor and directed by Bend It Like Beckhams Gurinder Chadha, this movie is a coming-of-age tale that will resonate with most viewers  fans of the Boss, or not. Atlantics  Netflix This Cannes prize-winning debut from filmmaker Mati Diop tackles a challenging subject matter  the tragic deaths of migrants at sea  in a surprisingly life-affirming way, following a love story at the very edges of human capabilities. Annihilation  Netflix This brilliantly weird high-concept sci-fi is one of the best original Netflix movies yet, following cellular biology professor Natalie Portman as she ventures deeper into a mysterious zone called the Shimmer. Think heart of darkness with added aliens. Under the Skin  Amazon Prime Video In Scarlett Johanssons impressive, varied and sometimes controversial career, Under the Skin stands out as her strangest movie. Here she plays an alien life form who drives around Scotland in a van seducing men, only for them to meet terrifying, unexpected fates after visiting her apartment. The Tale of Princess Kaguya  Netflix Netflix users are blessed with the Studio Ghibli back catalogue on demand. Theyre all worth checking out, of course, but while the likes of My Neighbour Totoro get all the praise, 2013s The Tale of Princess Kaguya features some of the studios most breathtaking animation and elegant storytelling, and is one of our top picks. The Wife  Netflix Glenn Close can count herself unlucky not to have picked up a long-awaited Oscar for her towering performance in this subtle drama, playing a woman who questions everything after her self-obsessed husband received the Nobel Prize. The Two Popes  Netflix Critics including the Standards Charlotte OSullivan tipped this two-hander drama for success at the Oscars a while back. Its gone under the radar slightly since then, but the performances from Jonathan Pryce and Anthony Hopkins as Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio respectively are electric. Blue Ruin  Netflix Bloodthirsty revenge flick Blue Ruin is a slow-burning delight, and one that might easily go unnoticed on Netflix without an A-list cast to entice viewers. Its a violent and visceral watch at times, but its also a compelling look at human endurance and the impacts of reopening old wounds. Cube  Amazon Prime Video More high-concept sci-fi, this time in the form of an independent Canadian movie from the 90s, where a group of friends find themselves trapped in a maze of cube-shaped rooms, all booby-trapped and not what they seem. Its bonkers, in the best way. American Animals  Amazon Prime Video This esoteric take on the heist movie centres around the real library robbery at Transylvania University, where a group of students attempted to steal a collection of rare books. The movie cuts from dramatisation to documentary footage, and is well worth exploring. Filth  Amazon Prime Video James McAvoy throws the kitchen sink at his performance as a troubled and misanthropic detective in this uniquely distressing and compelling drama, featuring all the guts and grime youd expect from an Irvine Welsh adaptation. The Ritual  Netflix Horror films following inexperienced groups of travellers into the woods have become a sub-genre all of their own, but The Ritual is better than most. This supernatural horror is intelligently done and genuinely scary in places, with strong performances from the likes of Rafe Spall. Snowpiercer  Amazon Prime Video This high-concept thriller helped announce Parasite director and Korean master Bong Joon-Ho to a bigger western audience. Snowpiercer follows a revolt onboard a train, which is carrying the last humans alive on earth in the aftermath of a second ice age. More from Bong Joon-Ho later. Good Time  Netflix The Safdie Brothers anxiety-inducing Uncut Gems is one the most talked about films of the year  and quite rightly, its fantastic  but their previous film Good Time is just as compelling. Robert Pattinson gives one of the best performances of his career, playing a desperate conman in the aftermath of a botched heist. The Big Sick  Amazon Prime Video This alternate take on the classic rom-com tells the story of Kumail (Kumail Nanjiani) and Emily (Zoe Kazan), who must learn to deal with adversity and cultural contrasts following Emilys shock health diagnosis. Its beautiful, funny, moving and well worth your time.

The film is relentless and often despairing, but this scene helps it find humanity in depravity. From sharing a joke and a cigarette, the two men end up discussing what it means to believe in something enough to put your life on the line for it. Theyre discussing something so much bigger than themselves, and Fassbender holds the viewer in his sore, beaten hands, pulling them along.

In some ways you have to understand what were the reasons to live and what were the reasons to die, McQueen said about the sequence. Tragically, and somewhat inevitably, the priest is unable to dissuade Sands, but his convictions are still laid bare for all to see.
New Delhi/Mumbai, April 2 : If you are waiting to watch a movie, the day this shutdown ends, think again. Government sources indicate that the shutdown may not just end on April 14 itself, as initially planned. PM Narendra Modi is believed to have told Chief Ministers that it is a long drawn battle.

In what can be seen as a confirmation of the same, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray from his Twitter account as Chief Minister, declared: "The Prime Minister said that the State Government should not lift the lockdown immediately from April 15 but it should happen in phases. Precautions should be taken that there is no crowding." However, Thackeray didn't hint at a prolonged shutdown but suggested that there may be a phased, rather than an abrupt withdrawal.

Government sources told IANS that an abrupt withdrawal was never on the table. The efforts of social distancing for 21 days will go in vain, if trains and flights are allowed to function normally from the 22nd day after the pan-India shutdown was announced by PM Modi, insisted the source.

However, there is no clear assertion from the government, as of Thursday evening, to suggest that the full shutdown will be extended.

Government sources indicate that the situation was complicated ever since the Tabhlighi Jamaat congregation led to India seeing a steep rise in its coronavirus infections as well as fatality tally. The coming week will prove crucial on how successfully the contact tracing takes place across India and how well the ascending graph is arrested, the source said.

Meanwhile, Arunachal CM Pema Khandu said that lockdown will end on April 15, before deleting his tweet. After the Chief Ministers' teleconference, Khandu had tweeted: "Completion of lockdown will end on April 15 next. But it doesn't mean free will to move out on streets. We all must be responsible in slowing down. Lockdown and social distancing in(is) the only way to fight COVID19. PM @NarendraModi." However, he soon deleted his tweet.

Prime Minister Modi said he will release a short video on Friday morning where through he will address fellow Indians. However, informed sources indicate the Prime Minister is unlikely to talk about what happens after the lockdown ends on the night of April 14.

PM Modi asked for suggestion from Chief Ministers in his video conference, on how to slowly rather than abruptly end this shutdown. This was the second such conference with CMs ever since the shutdown was announced. Chief Ministers will come back with their suggestions in the third such conference with the Prime Ministers, whose date is yet not fixed.

A government statement read: "Prime Minister said that it is important to formulate a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population once Lockdown ends. He asked the States to brainstorm and send suggestions for the exit strategy." Either way, don't expect to drive your car to the nearest movie theatre or go for a dinner at a pizza joint on April 15.

(Anindya Banerjee can be contacted at anindya.b@ians.in)

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
A federal judge has temporarily put off a decision on whether to reclassify thousands of Uber drivers in California as employees to qualify them for state sick leave pay during the coronavirus pandemic.

But the judge told the San Francisco ride-hailing company to try to reach a quick agreement with drivers for short-term benefits.

The health of drivers and their customers would be served by access of drivers to benefits for an interim period during the pandemic crisis, U.S. District Judge Edward Chen of San Francisco said at the close of a nearly two-hour hearing Wednesday, held by telephone.

He asked opposing lawyers to work on an interim agreement that serves the public interest in public health, and told them to report on their progress by Friday.

Ubers lawyer, Theane Evangelis, told Chen the drivers would be better off seeking benefits from the federal government or the company, both of which exceed the three days of paid sick leave per year that California provides for full-time employees. She said Uber has paid benefits averaging $900 to about 1,400 ailing drivers nationwide since the coronavirus struck.

Shannon Liss-Riordan, lawyer for the drivers who sued the company, countered that they may not be eligible for federal benefits and would need at least a doctors note to get anything from Uber.

A lot of Uber drivers dont even have health care. They dont have a doctors office, Liss-Riordan said. She said employees can take sick leave in California after calling their employer and saying they feel unwell.

On Thursday, drivers for Lyft took a similar case before U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria of San Francisco, who did not immediately rule on whether they were entitled to sick leave under state law, and asked for further written arguments by Monday. Liss-Riordan, who also represents the Lyft drivers, said Chhabria may return their case to San Francisco Superior Court to determine their rights under California law.

Uber and Lyft have classified their hundreds of thousands of drivers as independent contractors, not employees, making them ineligible for such benefits as minimum wage and overtime as well as state-mandated leave.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

A California Supreme Court ruling and a recent state law, AB5, classify workers as employees if they are in the same business as the company that pays them. The companies contend they are in the business of technology, not transportation, and are funding a November ballot initiative that would exempt them from AB5.

At Wednesdays hearing, Chen said Uber drivers have a very strong case that they would be considered employees under AB5. But he said they would have to clear additional hurdles to win an injunction requiring immediate sick-leave pay, including provisions in many drivers contracts requiring them to take disputes to arbitration.

Well cross those bridges when we have to, but during this interim period, why not reach a short-term agreement for benefits? the judge said.

He scheduled the next hearing in the case for April 22.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com
LONDON (dpa-AFX) - National Express Group plc (NEX.L) announced Thursday that Matt Ashley has decided to step down as Group Business Development Director and from the Board with effect from April 3. He is taking up the role of Chief Financial Officer designate at William Hill Plc. (WMH.L). The shares of National Express were losing around 5 percent in the early morning trading in London. The company noted that Ashley will no longer stand for re-election at the Company's 2020 AGM. Ashley has been with the company for over 10 years in a number of roles, including as Group Finance Director, President and CEO North America and most recently Group Business Development Director. Further, National Express announced that Matthew Crummack, an existing Independent Non-Executive Director of the Company, will be appointed as the Senior Independent Director. Elliott Sander will stand down as Senior Independent Director with effect from April 3, but will remain as a Non-Executive Director. In London, National Express shares were trading at 193.70 pence, down 5.05 percent. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
A mother-of-three accused of murdering a man in a knife attack in a Dublin housing estate is "on the verge of being well" enough to attend court, a judge has been told.

Christina Anderson (38) is charged with murdering father-of-seven Garreth Kelly (39), who was stabbed on a street in the west of the city in February.

Mr Kelly had been trying to start his car to go to work when he sustained fatal wounds and died at the scene.

Ms Anderson, of Brownsbarn Wood, Kingswood, is charged with murdering Mr Kelly last February 25.

She was remanded in custody in her absence for another two weeks by Judge Dermot Dempsey at Dublin District Court.

The accused has been detained at the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) and was medically unfit to be taken to court after her first appearance.

Anxious

Yesterday was her fourth court date on the charge.

A state solicitor said the investigation file was still being awaited by the DPP, and she sought a further two-week adjournment.

Ms Anderson's solicitor, Michael Kelleher, said the defence had been in touch with the hospital, and "she is on the verge of being well, we expect in the next week or so".

He said the accused had not been present since the first day and was "very anxious to appear in court".

Mr Kelleher consented to the adjournment to April 15.

A judge has already ordered the accused to be medically and psychiatrically assessed.

Detective Sergeant Dara Kenny previously said Ms Anderson made no reply when charged.

Mr Kelly was believed to have been staying with his partner at another house in the estate at the time of his death.
Beijing lawyer Chen Qiushi as seen in videos he took from Hong Kong demonstrations that he attended, from Aug. 17 to Aug. 20, 2019. (Screenshot via WeChat)

US Lawmaker Seeks Inquiry Into Disappearance of Chinese Journalists

WASHINGTONA U.S. congressman is calling on the State Department to urge China to investigate the disappearance of three Chinese citizen journalists who sought to expose the impact of the CCP virus on the Chinese city of Wuhan.

In a letter dated March 31, Republican Representative Jim Banks asked the U.S. government to seek a probe into the fates of Fang Bin, Chen Qiushi and Li Zehua. According to media reports, they went missing after taking videos and publishing them online including images of overwhelmed hospitals and corpses piled in a minibus.

All three of these men understood the personal risk associated with independently reporting on coronavirus in China, but they did it anyway, Banks wrote, alleging the Chinese regime imprisoned themor worse.

Fang Bin, a Wuhan clothes salesman, began filming his trips to hospitals around the locked-down city and posting the videos online in late January. The scenes showed long lines outside hospitals, patients clinging to life, and distraught family members.

Chen Qiushi, a 34-year-old lawyer-turned-citizen-journalist from eastern China, arrived in Wuhan on Jan. 24, a day after the city was placed under lockdown. Armed with a smartphone, he said he wanted to document stories about the citys residents.

In just over two weeks, he published more than 100 posts on his YouTube and Twitter accountsboth platforms are banned in Chinathat drew millions of views. He filmed interviews with locals who had lost loved ones, patients lying on temporary beds lining hospital hallways, and, according to Chen, a body left under a blanket outside an emergency ward.

Li Zehua, a former anchor for Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, was the third video blogger arrested in the outbreak epicenter of Wuhan. Li arrived alone in Wuhan by train on Feb. 12, tracing the steps of Chen Qiushi and Fang Bin, who had been arrested by local police.

Over the two weeks, before the police got him, he visited the Baibuting residential compound, where many became infected after attending a large-scale banquet, interviewed a funeral home worker, and went to a local train station where migrant workers were said to be stranded.

The Chinese Embassy and the State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, first emerged in Wuhan in late December, sickening tens of thousands and upending life in the industrial city of 11 million people in central China.

Chinas censorship policies have come under scrutiny since the virus outbreak amid allegations from online critics and local media that they potentially obscured the seriousness of the outbreak in its early stages.

The CCP virus has now spread to over 200 countries and territories.

The Epoch Times refers to the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, as the CCP virus because the Chinese Communist Partys coverup and mismanagement allowed the virus to spread throughout China and create a global pandemic.

The Epoch Times contributed to this report.
[April 02, 2020] SL Green Realty Corp. to Release First Quarter 2020 Financial Results After Market Close on April 22, 2020

SL Green Realty Corp. (NYSE: SLG), Manhattan's largest office landlord, today announced it will release its earnings for the first quarter of 2020 on Wednesday, April 22, 2020 after market close. The Company's executive management team, led by Marc Holliday, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, will host a conference call and audio webcast on Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 2:00 pm ET to discuss the financial results. Simultaneous with the earnings release, supplemental data will be made available in the Investors section of the SL Green Realty Corp. website at https://slgreen.com/ under "Financial Reports". The live conference call will be webcast in listen-only mode in the Investors section of the SL Green Realty Corp. website at https://slgreen.com/ under "Presentations & Webcasts". The conference may also be accessed by diaing toll-free (877)-312-8765, or international (419)-386-0002, and using conference ID 5789867.



A replay of the call will be available for 7 days after the call, by dialing (855)-859-2056, using conference ID 5789867. About SL Green Realty Corp.

SL Green Realty Corp., an S&P 500 company and New York City's largest office landlord, is a fully integrated real estate investment trust, or REIT, that is focused primarily on acquiring, managing and maximizing value of Manhattan commercial properties. As of December 31, 2019, SL Green held interests in 100 buildings totaling 46.5 million square feet. This included ownership interests in 29.0 million square feet of Manhattan buildings and 16.4 million square feet securing debt and preferred equity investments. Forward Looking Statement This press release includes certain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are intended to be covered by the safe harbor provisions thereof. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that we expect, believe or anticipate will or may occur in the future, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and we caution you not to place undue reliance on such statements. Forward-looking statements are generally identifiable by the use of the words "may," "will," "should," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "intend," "project," "continue," or the negative of these words, or other similar words or terms. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking statements made by us. Factors and risks to our business that could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements are described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, potential risks and uncertainties relating to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). SLG-EARN Source (News - Alert): SL Green Realty Corp. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005166/en/

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The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry noted that it is the real face of Putin and Kremlin regime

Open source

The Russian authorities block the transit of humanitarian cargo for the fight against coronavirus for Ukraine through its territory for over the week as Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Yehor Bozhok stated.

UN, USA President Donald Trump, State Department should be aware that for more than a week now Russia blocks transit through its territory of humanitarian convoys with medical goods directed to Ukraine for fighting COVID-2019, he wrote.

Bozhok noted that it is the real face of Putin and Kremlin regime.

On March 30, President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin held the phone talk, during which Trump agreed to purchase necessary medical means, including ventilators and personal protection equipment, from Russia, which were passed to the FEMA.

Earlier, it was reported that Russia had dispatched medical supplies to USA amid Covid-19 outbreak.
Editors note: This report has been updated with new information.

A 17-year-old Jersey City girl who was shot Wednesday night was released from the hospital and then died after she was readmitted Thursday, the Hudson County Prosecutors Office said.

The girl, identified as Stephanie Jacques, was one of two people shot in the area of Martin Luther King Drive and Oak Street at roughly 7:50 p.m., authorities said. An 18-year-old man was also shot and he was treated at the Jersey City Medical Center.

Both victims were shot in the lower body.

Jacques was also taken to JCMC for treatment and then released. She was taken to the hospital again Thursday morning and was pronounced dead at 10:57 a.m. JCMC officials declined to comment on the teens condition when she returned to the hospital Thursday morning.

The prosecutors office did not provide details on why she was re-admitted. The cause and manner of death are pending the findings of the Regional Medical Examiners Office.

It is the second fatal shooting in two days in Jersey City and third in the city this year.

According to police radio transmissions, Jacques and the 18-year-old were shot by people in a passing vehicle. Two guns have been recovered, police said in the radio transmissions.

Between 8 p.m. and 8:35 p.m. Jersey City police responded to a number of reports of shots fired, although police were also receiving reports of fireworks as well.

On Tuesday, 25-year-old Damon Smith was fatally shot in the area of Cator and Rose avenues. Later Tuesday there were at least two incidents of shots fired, one at Rutgers and Warner avenues and the other at Stevens and Rutgers avenues.
Pakistan on Thursday accused India of "illegally changing the demographic structure" of Jammu and Kashmir, saying the new domicile rules were in "clear violation of international law".

The Indian government on Wednesday laid down rules for domicile which can now be given to anyone who has resided in the Union Territory for 15 years.

This is "another illegal step by India to settle non-Kashmiris" in the region, the Foreign Office said in a statement.

"This is a clear violation of international law, including the 4th Geneva Convention, it said.

The FO urged the UN and the international community to "take immediate cognizance of this Indian action and prevent India from changing the demography" of the region.

Under the new law, anyone who has resided for 15 years in Jammu and Kashmir or has studied for seven years and appeared in Class 10 and Class 12 examinations in an educational institution located in the Union Territory is a domicile.

Pakistan has been unsuccessfully trying to drum up international support against India for withdrawing Jammu and Kashmir's special status on August 5 and bifurcating it into two Union territories.

India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 was its internal matter. It also advised Pakistan to accept the reality and stop all anti-India propaganda.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Senator Bong Go has denied allegations his office labeled boxes of COVID-19 medical donations with his name.

There are unverified posts on social media where boxes of surgical masks and personal protective equipment were sent to hospitals bearing the lawmaker's name. There were also photos where boxes were labeled, "From Malacanang (Sen. Bong Go)."

He claimed these malicious social media posts were created to discredit him.

"Let me state this in very clear and unmistakable language: claims circulating that I am involved in handling donations intended for the government are UTTERLY FALSE, DELIBERATE DISINFORMATION, AND BLACK PROPAGANDA," Go wrote on his Facebook page on Wednesday.

President Rodrigo Duterte's former aide added, "In this time of crisis, if you cannot help, just quarantine your mouth!"

Go reiterated he is not involved in the operations of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD). This comes after Duterte signed an order mandating that all health-related donations be coursed through the office.

"Nais ko po klaruhin na wala po akong kinalaman sa operasyon at mandato ng OCD. Wala rin pong kinalaman ang opisina ko sa distribution ng government resources," he said.

[Translation: I am not involved in the OCD. My office is not helping with the distribution of government resources.]

Reports also circulated the OCD is conducting raids to gather all remaining stocks of PPE and other medical supplies for COVID-19 response. This was denied by National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council-OCD (NDRRMC-OCD) spokesman Mark Timbal on Thursday.

"May kumalat po na fake news that some hospitals were raided by government to confiscate their supplies and equipment para ipamigay sa ibang hospitals. OCD has been gathering resources through procurement and donations. What we have pooled are distributed," he said in a message to reporters.

Meanwhile, LT Group, inc., one of the private donors, said it asked the help Go in identifying the beneficiaries.

Due to numerous requests for assistance we have received, we have asked the guidance from the Office of Senator Bong Go  in identifying beneficiaries which in this instance, are the medical front-liners in Cavite, said the company in a statement.

It added, It is unfortunate that some quarters are misconstruing Sen. Gos advice due to labels on the packaging which the Senator has no knowledge of.
Properties Investment (PI), a Dubai Investments joint-venture company engaged in the investment and development of real estate properties, has announced a three-month rent relief as a goodwill gesture for all retailers within The Market  a dedicated retail avenue, located in the Green Community, Dubai Investments Park.

In the wake of ongoing efforts to control the Covid-19 pandemic and with mall managements across the country stepping up efforts with various initiatives, Properties Investments has temporarily advised retailers to close shutters, adhering to preventive measures adopted by the government, said a statement from PI.

Through The Market, the company has been providing shopping experiences creating an impact on the wellbeing of the community and during such crucial times, it becomes even more important to ensure the health and safety of not only our customers, but also tenants.

"Our tenants are the backbone of our success within The Market and now with the temporary suspension of business, we announced this relief, to directly support them," remarked its General Manager Dr Rashid Abdulla Al Haji.

"Our mall management teams are working closely with the tenants to ensure the rent relief aids towards the recovery of their businesses during these times," he added.

According to him, Various precautionary measures and steps like awareness communication, regular sanitisation, sterilisation and disinfection protocol to limit, contain and curtail the spread of the novel coronavirus had been implemented by mall management prior to the temporary closure.

Properties Investment along with the mall management teams have ensured constant monitoring of the situation with regular and timely feedbacks to the tenants, reiterating undue commitment and support towards the continued success of the retailers, he added.-TradeArabia News Service
The Brihanmumbai Municipal



Corporation (BMC) has made public the GIS map of COVID-19 affected areas in the city on its website on Thursday, officials said.

Two days ago, the BMC had announced the GIS mapping of coronavirus-affected areas in the city, besides setting set up a 'war room' to monitor the viral infection in the city and take steps to prevent its spread.

The civic body had said that with the help of the maps, residents in those areas could take precautions more vigilantly, and people visiting those places for any work could take preventive measures.

The maps of the areas where there are higher number of coronavirus cases will be posted on the BMC website to provide information about it to the public, civic chief Praveen Pardeshi had said in a release.

A BMC spokesperson said that the citizens can check these coronavirus-affected areas on the weblink:- https://mumgis.mcgm.gov.in/portal/apps/webappviewer/index.html ?id=47726549910f4920b8ce6367053a1697.

The BMC has also formed a 'corona war room' in its disaster control unit, which will be functional round-the- clock and various activities like planning, prevention and management of the pandemic will be conducted there.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has sent two senior IAS officers - Ashwini Bhide and Dr Ramaswamy N - on deputation to the BMC to take steps to contain the spread of the deadly disease in the country's financial capital.

Bhide, the former managing director of Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL), will work as coordinator of the war room that will collect and analyse the data on coronavirus disease.

So far, 181 COVID-19 cases have been reported in Mumbai city and BMC has demarcated 146 containment zones across the city to avoid spread of coronavirus.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has identified over 145 "containment zones" across the city and sealed some of them completely with the help of police to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Winners will pitch to investors for early-stage funding at an exclusive, invite-only Investor Forum, planned for September 2020 in Northwest Arkansas. SCALE Challenge winners will engage with business and community leaders in Northwest Arkansas

The Center for Advancing Innovation (CAI) announces 25 winners of the international SCALE -- Supply Chain and Logistics Enterprises -- Challenge. Supported by a grant from the Walton Family Foundation. SCALE is an open innovation contest to innovate the supply chain and logistics industry sector by launching 20+ high-tech startups advancing breakthrough inventions in advanced materials, artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous vehicles, drones, robotics, 3D printing, machine learning, augmented reality and virtual reality. Winning startups and overviews of their innovations are listed on the website below:

https://www.scalechallenge.org/winners.html.

Winners will pitch to investors for early-stage funding at an exclusive, invite-only Investor Forum, planned for September 2020 in Northwest Arkansas. SCALE Challenge winners will engage with business and community leaders in Northwest Arkansas, where they are expected to have a significant presence. Rosemarie Truman, Founder and CEO of CAI, said, While SCALE is the largest challenge CAI has ever orchestrated, the Challenge is a first of a kind in two important dimensions. First, its one where CAI systematically joined high-tech startup teams with entrepreneurs to cultivate the art spirit. Second, SCALE represents the most significant challenge to disrupt supply chains across multiple dimensions, the food supply chain, fashion supply chain and more.

Jake Slatnick, Co-Founder and CEO of Aira, a SCALE Challenge winner, added, CAI put together a recipe to fuel innovation. Its an initiative thats accelerated growth and is advancing infrastructure. We are honored to be winners and look forward to continued collaboration and opportunity.

The SCALE Challenge was orchestrated by CAI, a 501(c)3 non-profit that launched 300+ startups since 2014. CAI partners with 120+ research institutes -- including the National Institutes of Health, NASA, universities, and hospitals that cumulatively have more than 175,000 inventions combined. CAI and a 15-member committee of industry experts and investors selected 20+ de-risked disruptive inventions -- including breakthroughs -- from research institute partners. Startups launched around selected inventions in the SCALE Challenge.

In partnership with the Silicon Valley-based CODAME, CAI also matched startup teams with Featured Artists, who serve as mentors and potential co-founders. Artists cultivate and nurture "art spirit", which will make SCALE Challenge startups more creative, disruptive, and poised for long-term success. SCALE Challenge Featured Artists can be viewed at https://www.scalechallenge.org/artists.html. In addition to artists, leading professionals advised, mentored, and judged the teams throughout the SCALE Challenge as Advocates https://www.scalechallenge.org/advocates.html.

Ross Devol, President and CEO of Heartland Forward and Walton Family Fellow, said, "Through the SCALE Challenge, entrepreneurs have tremendous support, training on how to SCALE up, and access to capital. It's so critical in the Heartland that we not lose focus that entrepreneurs are our future. Entrepreneurs will determine how successful the Heartland is over the long term."

Winners recognized with the Innovation Excellence Award will receive a cash award. The following startups are recognized as winners:

For more information on the SCALE Challenge, visit https://www.scalechallenge.org/.

ABOUT CAI:

The Center for Advancing Innovation (CAI) is a global public-private partnership, non-profit focused on creating a virtuous circle of innovation and driving growth breakthroughs through novel, creative paradigms and models. CAI's mission is to accelerate and increase the volume of technology commercialization to ignite entrepreneurship, bolster the global economy, and maximize the potential of promising inventions. CAIs award-winning challenge-based accelerator, rigorous evidence-based due diligence, and capital-efficient lean management models serve to hyper-accelerate gazelle high-performing startups for outsized investor returns. Named as the Tinder for Startups by Nature, the Kickstarter for IP by Wired, and a Powerful Innovation Toolkit by the White House, CAI launched 300+ startups and trained 3500+ entrepreneurs in 100+ cities worldwide since 2014. For additional information about CAI, please visit http://www.thecenterforadvancinginnovation.org.

ABOUT THE WALTON FAMILY FOUNDATION:

The Walton Family Foundation is, at its core, a family-led foundation. The children and grandchildren of our founders, Sam and Helen Walton, lead the foundation and create access to opportunity for people and communities. We work in three areas: improving K-12 education, protecting rivers and oceans and the communities they support, and investing in our home region of Northwest Arkansas and the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. In 2018, the foundation awarded more than $595 million in grants in support of these initiatives. To learn more, visit waltonfamilyfoundation.org and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

ABOUT CODAME:

As members of Intersection for the Arts, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, CODAME shapes the future by building ART+TECH project explorations and inspiring experiences. CODAME events, installations, and workshops connect people of all specialties and backgrounds. Join us to continue the visionary celebration, running since 2010. You can learn more about CODAME on http://codame.com/
The EU and Irish flags flying outside the European Commission in Brussels. Photo: Reuters

Ireland can share in an EU "unemployment reinsurance scheme" worth up to 100bn to help member governments pay emergency coronavirus welfare payments.

The European Commission is working on details of the plan to be presented to EU finance ministers at discussions next Tuesday on a major suite of measures to support member states, all of which are struggling with spiralling unemployment rates due to the virus.

The move comes amid huge pressure on the EU by nine states, led by France, Italy and Spain, to make "a real response" to the crisis.

"Unemployment numbers are just exploding right now, something far above and beyond the usual emergency measures," one senior EU official told the Irish Independent.

The deepening crisis and mounting death tolls in several member states have caused a backlash to the EU leaders' refusal last week to back a plan to issue so-called "coronavirus bonds" to shoulder the virus debt burden. Ireland supported the plan.

In the Netherlands, a founding EU member state, there were serious rifts within the government over Prime Minister Mark Rutte's refusal last week to even consider such bonds.

The welfare reinsurance idea was yesterday confirmed by the EU Jobs and Welfare Commissioner Nicolas Schmit of Luxembourg, and it is based on a whole raft of ideas which emerged after the crash in 2008. These never got the necessary member state backing with heavy objections by the big budget payers, including Germany, Netherlands and others.

But now this EU Commission move is seen as part of a set of proposals that will be discussed by the EU finance ministers meeting by video conference.

Many Brussels diplomats now hope this meeting will back the plan along with other measures already being lined up.

These additional moves include harnessing the eurozone's bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism. There are also moves afoot to bolster the European Investment Bank's role in fighting the crisis and its huge economic fallout.
Zeguro now offers its Cyber Safety solution free for six month to help SMBs offset potential financial loss due to data breaches. Last year, 69% of SMBs in the US experienced a data breach, and those numbers are expected to increase due to the COVID-19 business realities.

Zeguro (zeguro.com), an integrated cybersecurity and insurance provider, today announced that it would be offering its Cyber Safety solution free of charge for a minimum of six months to help organizations of all sizes mitigate cyber risks that may be even more prevalent due to remote working during the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Zeguros Cyber Safety solution helps mitigate risks through cybersecurity awareness training, web app vulnerability scanning, and security policies. Cyber risks such as malware and spam attacks are on the rise, and unprecedented shelter-in-place and lockdown orders are forcing entire states, countries, and communities to work from home without proper employee security training. To help protect every organization from the digital unknown, Zeguro is offering its Starter bundle completely free for everyone that signed up starting March 1st, 2020 and continuing for six months.

Zeguro is also happy to assist larger organizations that require our Premium or Business plans to get more options, such as additional seats for training and/or more web vulnerability scans. For a complimentary solution walk-through and a coupon code for larger Cyber Safety bundles, organizations should reach out to support@zeguro.com.

Startups and SMBs are especially vulnerable to cyber attacks, explains Sidd Gavirneni, CEO of Zeguro. Last year, 69% of SMBs in the US experienced a data breach, and those numbers are expected to increase due to the COVID-19 business realities. During these difficult economic circumstances, the best thing we can do to help is to offer our cybersecurity solution for free and reduce possible financial loss from cyber attacks.

Zeguro also offers cyber insurance, priced based on a companys unique risk profile. Many variables -- such as number of records stored, frequency of backups, whether or not the organization conducts regular web app vulnerability scanning -- can impact the pricing of a cyber insurance policy.

About Zeguro

Zeguro is a comprehensive cyber safety solution and insurance provider for small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs). Zeguro offers a suite of tools for risk mitigation and compliance, as well as insurance premiums that are tailored to the size, sector and profile of a company. The Zeguro Cyber Safety platform continuously protects your SMB, and provides custom-tailored insurance that evolves with the health and security posture of your company.
It looks like Addis Ababa wants to waste time before reaching an agreement on its controversial Renaissance Dam

Almost a month after walking out of US-brokered tripartite negotiations, Addis Ababa is working on another proposal for an agreement it said it will deliver to Egypt and Sudan soon.

We wont subscribe to an agreement just because the US and the World Bank came forward with it. We need to take time and sort out sticking points, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedu Andargachew told AP last week.

Asked when the negotiations would resume, Andargachew said in another interview with The Reporter Ethiopia that the Ethiopian side does not believe the negotiations have stopped. Therefore, after Ethiopia finishes the discussions it is conducting internally and when the Egyptians fully recognise that Ethiopia has the right to use its water resources, the negotiations will resume without any third party involved, he said.

This is not new for Ethiopia, according to Mohamed Hegazi, former deputy to Egypts foreign minister. It has repeatedly adopted the strategy of playing for time, negotiating for concessions and withdrawing at the last minute. Hegazi described this step as another delaying tactic.

It had previously suggested that South Africa mediate to resolve the differences. Then, it called last week for holding a summit for the Nile Basin countries to resolve the dam issue. Finally, now it claims that it is working on its own proposal; more time wasting and a manifestation of lack of seriousness, bad intention and willingness to spoil whatever is reached in Washington, Hegazi said.

A final agreement on the filling and operation of the dam was supposed to be signed by Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia in Washington at the end of last month. While Ethiopia refused to attend that round of talks, Egypt initialed the agreement. Sudan preferred to wait until Ethiopia signs the accord.

As a result, the tripartite negotiations that started in November last year in Washington came to a halt. In the meantime, the dam is more than 70 per cent built.

Ethiopia wants to fill the dam within three years, allowing it to generate power for domestic consumption and export. Since the filling of the dam will reduce flows downstream, Cairo wants the process extended to as long as 15 years to minimise the reduction in flow to Egypt during the fill.

According to a former diplomat who spoke to Al-Ahram Weekly on condition of anonymity, it was very important that Egyptian diplomacy use the time to explain to the world the impact of the latest developments on Egypt and the region.

Now, explained the diplomat, Egypt is using all diplomatic means to break the present deadlock in the negotiations. The US should also push for signing the agreement that was reached after four months of discussions between the technical teams of the three countries, he said.

Hegazi agreed that the Washington agreement should be the basis for resolving the present situation. Whatever Ethiopia needs to put on the table should be presented in Washington. If not, the international community should carry out its responsibility and move to contain the situation that could harm Egypt and the whole region, he said.

March witnessed several diplomatic initiatives on the part of Egypt to clarify to the world the present situation concerning the stalled tripartite negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri delivered messages from President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi to the leaders of Burundi, South Africa, Tanzania, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Niger.

Shoukris tour included South Africa, the current president of the African Union as well as some Nile Basin countries in the hope that they will be able to convince Ethiopia to sign the final agreement on the filling and operations of the dam, the diplomat said.

The tour came a few days after his two-legged European tour that included Belgium and France.

Shoukri called on the EU to urge Ethiopia to sign the agreement on the filling and operation of the GERD in order to preserve security and stability in the Horn of Africa.

Shortly before his European tour, Shoukri visited several Arab countries to update them on the current situation.

During his tours, Shoukri also sought to explain what happened during negotiations with Ethiopia and Sudan that started in March 2015 after the signing of the Agreement on Declaration of Principles as well as the consequences and repercussions that may result from any unilateral Ethiopian decision to fill the GERD without signing the agreement with Egypt and Sudan.

Meanwhile, a delegation from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, headed by Assistant Minister for African Affairs Ambassador Abu Bakr Hefni visited Somalia and Djibouti last week to brief their leaders about the latest development on the Renaissance Dam.

Another delegation headed by Assistant Minister for Arab Affairs Yasser Othman visited Algeria, Tunisia and Mauritania for the same purpose.

Last week, President Al-Sisi discussed the dam with Deputy Chairman of the Sudanese Sovereign Council Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo during his two-day visit Cairo.

Dagalo said Khartoum will be a mediator between Egypt and Ethiopia in the hope of bridging their differences. No more details were disclosed.

The US and the World Bank were brought into the dam talks after Al-Sisi last year called on the international community to help find a solution to the long-running dispute.

Several rounds of talks were held in the presence of officials from the US Treasury Department and the World Bank as observers.

The US had set mid-January as the deadline for reaching an agreement.

The deadline was later extended to the end of February, but in the last round of talks Addis Ababa failed to attend.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 26 March, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Slack is now reportedly offering integration with Microsoft Teams and other calling apps in a bid to offer the best chat productivity possible. Now, thats not going to be full integration, allowing users to make calls directly in the Slack app. But it will let users move into a Microsoft Teams call directly from within the popular app.

The experience is available in the form of an app called Microsoft Teams Calls, which can then be set as a default calling provider in Slack. Users will be able to join calls. Thats on top of the new ability to see who is already in a call before joining, from within the Slack app.

New Slack integrations arrive just in time as more users are working from home

Slack isnt solely providing support for Microsoft Teams calling integration either. Slack users are additionally gaining the ability to add those calls directly from Slack event reminders associated with the Outlook Slack app.

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And the company is also adding in VoIP phone integration and support for several other services. Those include Zoom, Cisco Jabber, RingCentral, and Dialpad. Cisco Webex meetings were already supported in previous releases. Each can now be set as the default calling app, allowing users to jump into those calls from directly within the Slack app.

Each of the new integrations stems from the rampant growth Slack has experienced as more workers complete their tasks from home. The company indicates that it has seen an almost 350-percent increase in calls made and received in its app. Thats over the past month alone and tied directly to its claim of record-breaking figures with regard to the users.

Slack is capitalizing on that and on the rapidly-expanding number of Microsoft Teams users with its latest integrations. But the integration will undoubtedly prove convenient to workers who are staying home. Or for those who are part of smaller on-site teams for the time being.

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With such a wide swath of popular VoIP calling solutions now at users ready disposal, Slack can perform more adeptly as an all-in-one enterprise messaging platform. Thats true even where the apps cant make calls directly in the Slack app just yet. The integration means fewer clicks from users, to begin with.

Cementing Slacks place as a productivity app right now

Now, Slack may not be at the top of anybodys list in terms of best messaging apps or platforms. But it is certainly one of the top messaging apps dedicated to productivity and enterprise users. Support for Microsoft Teams and VoIP phone integration with top providers only helps the company hold onto its position.

Each of the new integrations is also already available right now. The calling features are available in-app, behind a click on the in-chat phone icon. Users simply need to have a Zoom account linked, for instance, before making the call. The same holds for each of the other integrations too. Slack has updated its Help Center pages to assist anybody having difficulty instantiating a phone call with the new features.
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The religious right is anti-science. The religious right supports Donald Trump, and he welcomes their support. Therefore, America is doing much worse in our fight with the coronavirus than we could be. If Trump had not chosen to ally himself with those anti-science Bible-thumpers, the whole world would be better off. So posits an op-ed by Katherine Stewart in the New York Times (3/27/20).

Stewarts article is entitled, The Religious Rights Hostility to Science Is Crippling Our Coronavirus Response, and the subtitle is Trumps response to the pandemic has been haunted by the science denialism of his ultraconservative religious allies.

Stewart opines, Donald Trump rose to power with the determined assistance of a movement that denies science, bashes government and prioritized loyalty over professional expertise. In the current crisis, we are all reaping what that movement has sown.

I noticed one response to this NYT op-ed, where the author asked sarcastically, [It must be] all those evangelical Christians running Communist China and lying to the global community, right? And no one ever seems to notice the irony of those who claim Donald Trump is some sort of dictator yet want the federal government to have unlimited power in responding.

I will grant one point to Sullivan: It does not help that there are reports of a few mega-churches in the country that are defying the orders to not meet together in large groups lest we infect one another. But those irresponsible ministers are the exception, not the rule. Shame on those pastors who are disobeying the governments commonsense orders during the pandemic. They are putting other peoples lives at risk.

But the vast majority of churches in the country are using the tools available to us to meet and hold service in virtual ways, through the internet.

What is the basis of Stewarts claim that evangelicals are anti-science? In previous articles, I have demonstrated the indispensable role that Christianity played in the founding of modern science.

It seems that her biggest argument that Christians are supposedly anti-science has to do with climate change. Many Christians, and I am one of them, do not buy into the notion of man-made, catastrophic, global warming. Sullivan writes, Today, the hard core of climate deniers is concentrated among people who identify as religiously conservative Republicans.

And the problem is? Climate change is the lefts new religion. But it is fraught with all sorts of problems. Climategate, which has been so conveniently forgotten, provided ample evidence that some global warming alarmists were so convinced by their theory that they ignored evidence that was contrary to it  and, worse, they even fudged the raw data.

If Christians are accused of being anti-science because we dont buy politicized science, then so be it.

Competitive Enterprise Institute compiled a number of different predictions by the expert scientists in the last few decades. They called this article: Wrong Again: 50 Years of Failed Eco-pocalyptic Predictions.

For example, Al Gore once predicted that the polar ice cap may disappear by the summer of 2014. Its still there. Despite one failed prophecy after the next, no one ever seems to hold these people accountable.

When I saw this blame-the-Christians article in the NYT, I turned to Volume II of Philip Schaff of Yales History of the Christian Church, written around the turn of the twentieth century.

The great historian describes the unwarranted suspicion and hostility toward Christianity on the part of the Caesars and the Roman people around 200 AD.

Schaff writes: The common people also, with their polytheistic ideas, abhorred the believers in the one God as atheists and enemies of the gods. They readily gave credit to the slanderous rumors of all sorts of abominations, even incest and cannibalism, practiced by the Christians at their religious assemblies and love-feasts, and regarded the frequent public calamities of that age as punishments justly inflicted by the angry gods for the disregard of their worship. In North Africa arose the proverb: If God does not send rain, lay it to the Christians. At every inundation, or drought, or famine, or pestilence, the fanatical populace cried Away with the atheists! To the lions with the Christians! (p. 43).

The early Christians were called atheists because they did not believe in the pantheon of Roman gods. Whatever bad happened  including pestilence (and the coronavirus is a pestilence)  in their ignorance they scapegoated Christians.

President Trump has been working very hard to fight this pandemic and to cause private and public entities to partner together to fight the common enemy. If he welcomes divine help as well, what is wrong with that? So have virtually all our presidents.

Scapegoating the Christians because of this virus is an old and failed policy. Too bad the newspaper of record would resort to this old tactic.
[April 02, 2020] Peer39 and NewsGuard partner to help brands avoid fake news and untrustworthy sites

NEW YORK, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- News content accounts for nearly one out of every five targetable ad impressions online, creating a clear opportunity for advertisers looking to reach engaged consumers. Yet for all of the legitimate content available, fake news remains a scourge on the internet, with legitimate-looking sites popping up to take advantage of programmatic buying automation while propagating misinformation.

Naturally, brands looking to buy news content want to avoid the divisive issues and low credibility associated with fake news. Peer39 and NewsGuard have collaborated on a new solution that helps brands find the right people in the right context, while also ensuring that ads appear alongside content from legitimate news media.



Peer39 , the leading provider of page-level intelligence, has incorporated NewsGuards database of trust ratings for thousands of news and information websites as an added layer of protection for advertisers using its offering. Using the service, brands can target their ad campaigns on thousands of trusted news sources while avoiding misinformation sources flagged by NewsGuards team of trained journalists. This includes a flag for COVID-19 misinformation specifically, which NewsGuards analysts have been cataloging in the companys Coronavirus Misinformation Tracking Center. We're seeing in this crisis just how crucial quality journalism is, with millions relying on their local news organizations for information they can trust amid all of the inaccurate information being shared," said David Chavern, CEO of the News Media Alliance, which represents hundreds of news publishers, stressed the importance of brands continuing to advertise on news content. "Advertisers who flee from news content in this time are not only damaging the journalism industry, they're endangering public health and safety. We applaud Peer39 and NewsGuard for offering brands a way to continue advertising on trusted news sources while avoiding misinformation sites." The offering is available today through MediaMath an AppNexus and will be available through most major Demand-Side Platforms (DSPs) in the coming weeks.



The relationship between advertiser and publisher needs to be built on trust and credibility, but deceitful, opportunistic publishers of fake news have led advertisers to hold money back, even from legitimate content, out of fear about content credibility, said Peer39 CEO Mario Diez. This partnership allows advertisers to invest in the News category with full confidence, knowing that they have detailed page-level intelligence, at scale, with the most rigorous data on source quality available for news websites built right in. The data set covers all the news and information sites that account for 95% of online engagement in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany and Italy and includes flags for specific categories of false news, such as health misinformation, conspiracy theories and hoax stories, enabling advertisers to target their campaign more granularly to avoid certain kinds of unreliable sites.

Without a good way to determine reliability of news content, many advertisers have simply chosen to avoid advertising on news content altogether, said NewsGuard Co-CEO Gordon Crovitz. This is bad for the financially challenged journalism industry, bad for democracy and bad for public health. Its also a missed opportunity for those brands to reach valuable and engaged audiences. Advertisers using our new offering with Peer39 can avoid running campaigns on all of those sites with the check of a box in their DSP. About Peer39



Peer39 is an independent data company that provides the largest data set available in the digital advertising ecosystem. Every day, the industry's leading brands, agencies, and publishers trust Peer39's AI-powered semantic analysis engine to provide a holistic understanding of page content, meaning, and sentiment. We do this by analyzing the relationship between words on a page, the content of a video, or in an app, ensuring appropriate classification. As people's time and attention become more fragmented, Peer39 believes that to succeed, you need as much contextual understanding of your audience as possible. We believe that it's as much about the digital environment as it is about the physical environment. Only then can you deliver the right ad to the right user in the right context. About NewsGuard Launched in March 2018 by media entrepreneur Steven Brill and former Wall Street Journal publisher Gordon Crovitz, NewsGuard provides credibility ratings and detailed Nutrition Labels for thousands of news and information websites that account for 95% of online engagement across the U.S., U.K., Germany, France, and Italy. NewsGuard employs journalists to rate each site based on nine apolitical criteria of journalistic practice, including whether a site repeatedly publishes false content, whether it regularly corrects or clarifies errors, and whether it avoids deceptive headlines. Based on the criteria, each site receives a trust score of 0-100 and an overall rating of Green, indicating the site is generally reliable, or Red, indicating that it is not reliable. NewsGuards ratings and Nutrition Labels can be licensed by internet service providers, browsers, news aggregators, and social media and search platforms. Consumers can access NewsGuards ratings through its browser extension Android and iOS apps, and the Edge mobile browser. Over 700of libraries globally use NewsGuards free media literacy browser extension on their public-access computers for patrons. Contacts: Steven Brill, Co-CEO, [email protected], +1 212-332-6301

Gordon Crovitz, Co-CEO, [email protected], +1 212-332-6407

Carter Stone, VP of Partnerships, [email protected] , +1 646.637.2932

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A woman has been arrested in the murder of a Nehalem man, nearly a month after he was found dead in a Tigard hotel.

Police said Danielle Morin, 46, was arrested in Mountlake Terrace, Washington on Wednesday, and is awaiting extradition to Oregon. She is suspected of killing Brian Lowes, 61. Lowes checked into the Embassy Suites hotel near Washington Square on the afternoon of Friday, March 6, and was found dead in a hotel room a few hours later from multiple gunshot wounds.

Police would not say whether Morin and Lowes knew each other or anything about what led to the shooting. They said Morin is believed to be from the Seattle area.

Investigators have asked anyone with more information about the murder to contact Tigard Police at 503-718-2677 or tips@tigard-or.gov.

Jayati Ramakrishnan; 503-221-4320; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com; @JRamakrishnanOR

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Sci-fi author Bae Myung-hoon poses in this photo provided by Blossom Creative. Courtesy of Blossom Creative



By Kwak Yeon-soo



In recent years, science fiction has become a popular genre in Korea, with a surge in the number of sci-fi titles in bookstores.



In the past decade or so young, talented writers have lifted the once unpopular literary genre and brought it to the mainstream. Some 105 original sci-fi titles were published in Korea in 2019, compared to 30 in 2005, according to data provided by Kyobo Book Center, the country's biggest bookstore chain.



Author Bae Myung-hoon, 42, one of the most popular sci-fi writers in Korea, has seen a dramatic change in the status of the genre since his debut in 2005.



"Over the last few years, there's been an increasing number of aspiring sci-fi writers. As their books are being published, we're seeing a profound change in the literary world," Bae said in a recent e-mail interview with The Korea Times. "Sci-fi was really a B-genre with a small fan base, but has managed to seep into the mainstream."



Although the genre has attracted many fans, it still has more room for growth.



In Western countries, modernization and the emergence of sci-fi occurred at the same time. But in contemporary Korea, where development happened at an extremely rapid pace, society hardly comprehended the process of modernization.



"Compared to the past, when people were busy making a living, Koreans have become more conscious of the challenges facing humanity," he said.



Bae's interest in the sci-fi genre grew while studying international relations at Seoul National University. "Since my early 20s, I've written novels about the world we live in and raised relevant questions that help us confront real-world dilemmas. Such interests naturally drew me to this genre," he said.



After earning a master's degree in international relations, he worked as a researcher at the Korea Information Society Development Institute, in which he explored future studies and how humans should respond to technology such as artificial intelligence. He added that he has continued to develop his scientific knowledge through reading books, researching on the internet and talking with scientists.



Bae decided to pursue a writing career after he won the Science Technology Creative Literature Award in 2005 for his short story "Smart D."



Bae's works span the genres of fantasy, children's literature and detective fiction, but the books that received the most attention were sci-fi.



However, his books did not receive immediate attention because, at that time, Korea's literary scene praised stories that focused on characters and their inner feelings.



By contrast, Bae's books were known for their imaginative premises, clarity of language and a quirky sense of humor, according to translator Sung Ryu.



Then in 2009, he rose to fame with his novel "Tower," in which he addresses inequality perpetuated by social and economic systems.





Reissued edition of "Tower" released in February / Courtesy of Moonji Publishing

"Tower" was not only praised by sci-fi readers but also by those in the wider literary community, and Bae became the first winner of the Young Writers Award in 2010.



"I was planning on making a debut as a writer at the age of 50 after retirement. But my novel 'Tower' became an instant hit and allowed me to become a full-time writer," he said.



"Tower" consists of six short stories set in the fictional world of Beanstalk Tower, a 674-story skyscraper that functions as a city state. A lot of events take place in the building with 500,000 residents, from state wars to social conflicts.



Bae said it is easier to tackle social issues through sci-fi because authors are not limited by reality and can more easily explain complicated issues.



"When 'Tower' was published, Korean readers said the stories share similarities with real-life situations in Korea. But I think they hold universal themes," he said. Themes include class divide and the ethical side of human relations.



"Tower" was reissued with a new cover in Korea in February, and its English edition will be published in the U.K in October, according to Bae. Honford Star is the publisher of the upcoming English translation of the book.



An English-version of "Taklamakan Misdelivery," a story that follows a pilot who crashes in a desert and over two millions of people come to find him using satellite map technology, has been published in Asymptote Journal.



"I have long hoped for there to come a day that I could introduce my works to foreign readers. I'm grateful to those who made it possible, especially the translator Sung Ryu. I feel like I'm making my debut again," he said.





"I Am a Sci-fi Writer" released in February / Courtesy of Moonji Publishing
The $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program seems to have something for every small business.

One notable exception: venture-backed startups.

To qualify for paycheck protection loans, companies must generally have fewer than 500 employees, so it seems logical that startups qualify. But here's the rub: Some companies are considered affiliates of other entities. In those cases, the number of employees is determined by combining all the affiliated companies. If a venture firm and its portfolio companies were to be considered affiliates, which is what the SBA has long assumed is the case, many would easily blow through the 500-person cap. That makes them ineligible for the loans.

So, without further guidance, VC-funded startups have to prove to the SBA that they should not be affiliated. That takes time, which is one thing startups don't have.

"It's a difficult manual process on a good day," says Justin Field, senior vice president of government affairs for the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). "In these circumstances it may well be impossible." In many cases, he says, the SBA just won't have time to make a decision on individual companies until it's too late for the loans to do any good.

Banks are on the hook, too. The paycheck protection loans come with a 100 percent federal guarantee, meaning the banks will get their money back even if the borrower can't pay. But if banks don't administer the program properly--including abiding by the affiliation rules--they could lose the guarantee.

One factor in determining if companies are affiliated is if one controls the other. Venture investors can typically veto the merger or dissolution of a company. The model certificate of incorporation maintained by the NVCA, for example, contains just such a provision. It's not clear if that would constitute control.

"We are interpreting that this type of provision is not indicative of control or of affiliation, but the rules are imprecise," says Matthew Moisan, counsel with law firm Lowenstein Sandler.

On March 27, the NVCA submitted a letter to Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza asking for clear guidance on the affiliation rules. On Wednesday, House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Representative Ro Khanna sent a letter to the administration, also asking for guidance.
CHICOPEE  A man shot Wednesday morning in Willimansett has died and police detectives have arrested a suspect in the shooting.

Because the investigation is active and on-going the name of the suspect and charges have not been released yet. Michael Wilk, police public information officer, said he will provide updates as soon as possible.

The victim, whose name will not be released until family is notified, was shot at 10:41 a.m. at 239 Meadow St. He was treated at the scene and taken to the hospital by ambulance where he later died, Wilk said.

Our officers responded to a shots fired call at Belsky Brothers Coal, he said. Upon arriving they found a male party with a gunshot wound.

Chicopee Police detectives with the Massachusetts State Police are investigating the homicide. Department officials offered condolences to the family of the victim, he said.
A man who stole protective equipment and hand sanitiser from an ambulance has been jailed amid a spate of coronavirus-related thefts and assaults.

Mark Manley, 35, targeted an ambulance parked outside Guys Hospital in London on Saturday evening.

When challenged by security staff, the suspect assaulted one security worker and racially abused another, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said.

The suspect had taken a bag containing personal protection equipment [PPE] from the vehicle.

Items taken included masks, paper suits and hand gel. Some of the items were rendered no longer usable due to contamination.

Manley was detained by security guards and a passing British Transport Police patrol.

He was arrested for theft from a motor vehicle, two public order offences and assault against an emergency worker in relation to the security guard, who suffered facial injuries.

Manley, of no fixed address, was jailed for six months after admitting theft and assault at Croydon Magistrates Court on Monday.

It is one of numerous cases involving attacks on ambulances or paramedics during the coronavirus outbreak.

On Wednesday, a man was arrested on suspicion of vandalising eight ambulances in Kent- putting them out of service.

In Kirkby, Merseyside, face masks and gloves were stolen from an NHS work van sometime overnight between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.

(Getty Images (Getty Images)

Chief Inspector Phil Mullally said: This equipment is vital in allowing NHS staff to complete their job and in the current climate where we are supposed to be supporting each other and working together, it is upsetting to see this sort of crime has taken place.

At the start of the UK coronavirus outbreak, there were reports of numerous thefts of hand sanitiser and protective equipment from hospitals, sparking emotional appeals by doctors.

Following incidents where paramedics and police officers had been deliberately coughed on by people claiming to be infected, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced that such incidents would be charged as assault on an emergency worker and punished by up to two years imprisonment.

Northamptonshire Police Chief Constable Nick Adderley said one of his officers had to self-isolate away from his ill mother after being spat and coughed at.

Writing on Twitter, he said: The officer is a primary carer for his mother who has cancer. He will now need to self isolate and will no longer be able to care for his mum.

Full welfare support put in place and we will support his mum where we can. We are working with the CPS to expedite such cases and to ensure that the maximum penalties and sanctions are imposed.

Disgusting, demeaning and potentially life threatening assault on our colleague.

Meanwhile, Lancashire Police said Callum Heaton, 23, had been jailed for 12 months for spitting at two officers while claiming he was infected with the virus.

Heaton, who was arrested for being drunk and disorderly in Burnley on Saturday, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault on an emergency worker and one of criminal damage at Burnley Magistrates' Court on Monday.

A spokesperson Lancashire Constabulary said: It is totally unacceptable that police and other front line workers who are doing their best to keep our communities safe are treated like this.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society in Wales reported pharmacists were also facing abusive and aggressive behaviour.

Director of the society, Elen Jones, said: I have been shocked to hear of pharmacy teams being verbally abused and even spat at.

I have also heard of fights starting outside pharmacy premises. This is totally unacceptable behaviour.

Community pharmacists and their teams are doing everything they possibly can to help in very difficult circumstances.

They are under significant pressure and they need the help of the public so they can continue to provide vital healthcare support."

Additional reporting by PA
Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and others scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.

Sixty-eight countries  Canada is not among them  have curbed exports of personal protective equipment or medicine, according to Simon Evenett, a professor of international trade at Switzerlands University of St. Gallen.

He called the policies inhumane and a potential death sentence for some of the worlds most vulnerable patients.

It means theyre going to go without. And you dont want to think about what going without a medical ventilator means when youre seriously ill with COVID-19, said Evenett, who runs the Global Trade Alert nonprofit, which tracks protectionism.

Countries which use (the restrictions) are essentially grabbing a small number of supplies for the moment and denying sick people in other countries the possibility of treatment, he said, highlighting France and India as hoarders. If you think that this is going to have a happy legacy for international relations, think again.

On Tuesday, China responded to complaints from Europe about ineffective coronavirus test kits by tightening standards around certification of medical goods for export.

The decision seeks to clamp down on defective products, but could have the effect of further slashing supply from a country that produces half of the worlds personal protective equipment  also known as PPE.

Omar Allam, who heads an Ottawa-based global trade consultancy, said the aim of the crackdown is to bolster Chinas reputation, but it effectively severs Canadian wholesalers from some reputable Chinese manufacturers.

You could have a reliable provider with a great track record, but if they dont have the required medical certificate, it could take them up to a year to get this, said Allam, who is working pro bono to connect the Canadian government with foreign suppliers.

This is a major blow to countries like the U.S. and Canada.

Officials across the country this week warned that equipment shortfalls are placing health-care workers and vulnerable Canadians at growing risk of exposure to the virus.

A lack of supply and surging demand has sent prices soaring for goods from gowns to ventilators.

One government had placed an order for 200 million masks from China. And what this did overnight to the price of masks was to treble them, Evenett said.

Air cargo rates have also shot up as airlines park planes  which often carry freight as well as passenger luggage  amid plummeting travel demand.

Air freight fares have tripled and quadrupled, Allam said. You may have a supplier that will sell you masks at a buck 20 each. But when youre spending $80,000 to $90,00 in UPS charges, thats a lot of money.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised Wednesday that federal health authorities will not cut any corners when it comes to making sure masks provided by China meet the necessary standards.

The comments followed an announcement from the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa that the country is sending 30,000 medical masks along with thousands of gowns, gloves and goggles to Canada.

The shipment was announced amid reports that the Dutch government is recalling around 600,000 defective masks that were recently shipped from China. Spain has also raised concerns about Chinese-made COVID-19 testing kits that were faulty.

On Tuesday night, Chinas Ministry of Commerce announced that PPE  which includes COVID-19 test kits, face masks, ventilators and infrared thermometers  can only be exported if its manufacturers show certification by a national registry and documented proof that it meets the import countrys standards. The exports will be checked at customs in China to confirm the requisite paperwork, according to the government release

At the height of the crisis there, Beijing sought to buy virtually all of the countrys medical supplies and withhold exports, Evenett said.

Now the government is letting selected Chinese medical suppliers ship abroad. But because its a pretty ad hoc and non-transparent system, its pretty much tantamount to an informal export ban, said Evenett.

This is the worst type of short-term thinking, he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2020.
Mumbai Polices crime branch unit 2 seized 33,000 three-ply masks worth Rs 8.25 lakh from Agripada on Thursday and arrested a shop keeper, Abdulsamad Subroti Ansari, 42, for allegedly illegally storing the masks at his home in Bharucha compound and selling them in black market.

We got tip-off, following which a constable visited Ansaris home as a customer to buy a mask. Ansari took Rs 25 from the constable for one mask, despite the government putting a price cap of Rs 10 on the sale of 3-ply masks, said police inspector Sanjay Nikumbhe of crime branch unit 2.

The police then raided Ansaris house and handed him over to Agripada police for further probe, said Nikumbhe.

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Fortis Healthcare on Thursday donated Rs 5.90 crore to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund to support the government's efforts in setting up effective healthcare facilities and services for patients hit due to the COVID-19 outbreak across the country.

Fortis Healthcare MD and CEO Ashutosh Raghuvanshi said these are testing times and the fight against coronavirus will require everyone's support.

"We are glad that we can contribute a humble sum of Rs 5.90 crore to the PM's National Relief Fund as part our commitment to extend every possible support to the government during this hour of crisis," Raghuvanshi said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The state Supreme Court denied review Wednesday of a lower-court ruling requiring all California cities to follow the state's sanctuary law, which prohibits most types of law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration agents.

SB54, signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2017, bars state and local police from asking arrestees about their immigration status, from notifying federal agents about an immigrant's upcoming jail release, or from holding an immigrant beyond the scheduled release date for transfer to immigration officers. It does not apply to immigrants charged with serious crimes.

Some local governments, including the Orange County and San Diego County boards of supervisors, supported the Trump administration's unsuccessful suit in 2018 that claimed the state law conflicted with federal law.

But the only city that sued to overturn the law was Huntington Beach, a coastal community of 200,000 in Orange County. City officials said SB54 interfered with local law enforcement by limiting police cooperation with immigration officers.

An Orange County judge ruled in favor of Huntington Beach in September 2018 and said the law violated the city's authority to regulate municipal affairs under the city charter. The ruling, if upheld, would have allowed any of Californias 121 charter cities, including its largest cities, to exempt themselves from SB54, while leaving other cities bound by the law.

But the state's Fourth District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana overturned the ruling in January and said the law regulates issues of "statewide concern" that outweigh local interests.

In the 3-0 ruling, Justice Richard Fybel said the Legislature, in enacting SB54, had made findings that undocumented immigrants were reluctant to report crimes to police, and sometimes to attend school or seek health care, if they believed local officers were working with immigration agents.

Fybel said the law also protects immigrants' constitutional rights, "a matter of paramount statewide concern."

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates said the ruling was at odds with provisions in the state Constitution that allow charter cities to regulate their police departments.

But the state's high court unanimously denied review of the city's appeal Wednesday, making the appeals court decision final and binding on trial courts statewide.

The case is Huntington Beach vs. Becerra, S260766.

Bob Egelko is a staff writer for The San Francisco Chronicle. E-mail: begelko@sfchronicle.com
More than half a million people in central China have been put under a new coronavirus lockdown after three doctors tested positive for the virus despite showing no symptoms.

The county of Jia in Henan Province, with about 570,000 residents, has halted transport in and out of the area as well as local buses and taxis since Monday, according to a government notice.

Regional officials have ordered all villages, towns and residential complexes to activate their 'wartime mechanism' amid fears for a fresh outbreak, another notice said.

Social media footage purports to show a road blockade being place in the Jia County after officials ordered a new lockdown amid fears for a new coronavirus crisis

As of yesterday, the coronavirus has killed 22 people and infected 1,273 in Henan, the third most populous province in mainland China. Pictured shows Pingdingshan, a city in Henan

Strict isolation measures have been put on the county of Jia, which has about 570,000 people

The news comes after Beijing declared over the weekend that it had largely curbed the outbreak.

Life in all provinces, including former epicentre Hubei, is slowly going back to normal.

But concerns about a second wave remain due to an influx of people arriving from abroad as well as the so-called 'silent carriers', who can spread the virus without realising.

'Silent carriers' are patients who don't suffer any known symptoms of the COVID-19 disease, including fevers, a sore throat or coughs, but they will test positive in nucleic acid tests, which detect the coronavirus.

As of yesterday, the coronavirus has killed 22 people and infected 1,273 in Henan, which borders Hubei.

With more than 109 million residents, Henan is the third most populous province in mainland China.

Another clip shows the largely empty streets of Jia county after officials enforced strict measures to prevent an outbreak from happening. All residents must wear face masks

China zeros in on patients without symptoms China has started giving daily reports about the coronavirus patients who show no symptoms amid fears that they could lead to a fresh crisis. Beijing's health officials are now providing day-to-day updates of the nation's 'silent carriers', who can potentially spread the contagion unaware. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday urged officials to ramp up testing suspected asymptomatic cases and intensify the monitoring, tracking, quarantine and treatment efforts imposed on them. Authorities have ordered all cities to isolate such patients in quarantine centres for 14 days, according to a previous directive from Wuhan. People in close contact with them face two weeks of medical observation. China today reported 55 new asymptomatic cases, including 17 detected among new arrivals from abroad. Advertisement

According to the Jia County Coronavirus Control and Prevention Office, all neighbourhoods must enforce strict isolation measures and prohibit their residents from making unnecessary journeys.

All residential complexes must keep only one gate for people to enter and exit, and each household can only send one member out per day to do shopping.

All residents must wear a face mask while outside.

They must also use a health code or health coupon to prove they are virus-free before being allowed in shops, communities or other public places.

All orders were delivered in formal documents issued by the Jia County Coronavirus Control and Prevention Office, which has been released by Jia County Radio and Television Station.

One video circulating on social media purports to show a road leading to the county being blocked by a check point, manned by mask-donning workers.

Another clip released by an independent media outlet appears to show largely empty streets and a traffic blockade at the entrance of the area.

Provinces around China have launched strict health-screening measures to prevent a second wave of infections. In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, workers returning from Henan province alight from a specially arranged train at the Shenzhen North Railway Station

Health officials of Henan reported the three asymptomatic cases on Sunday.

According to a statement, the sufferers, known by their surnames Zhang, Liu and Zhou, all work for the Jia County People's Hospital.

They were identified during a physical examination given to all health workers by the hospital on March 25.

Zhang and Zhou both tested positive in a nucleic acid test.

Liu's test result came back as 'single positive', which means he tested positive but would still need more tests to confirm its validity.

It is said that Liu had been to Wuhan, the former centre of the pandemic, in the past but had passed a 14-day self-quarantine.

None of them showed any symptoms. All were put under medical observation.

China today reported 55 new asymptomatic cases, including 17 detected among new arrivals from abroad. Health workers wearing protective masks and suits are pictured disinfecting the ground of Laojunshan Scenic Spot in Luoyang, Henan Province, on March 3

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday urged officials to ramp up testing suspected asymptomatic cases and intensify the monitoring, tracking, quarantine and treatment efforts

One 59-year-old cleaner, Wang, who lives in another city in Henan was also diagnosed with COVID-19 on Saturday after visiting Zhang in Jia county a week earlier.

Officials have tracked down 15 close contacts of Wang and 53 close contacts of the three doctors. All of them are under medical observation.

China today reported 55 new asymptomatic cases, including 17 detected among new arrivals from abroad.

Overall, the country has registered 3,199 deaths caused by COVID-19 and 81,589 infections, including 1,075 asymptomatic cases.
Mick Salyer, proprietor of multiple Napa establishments including ZuZu Tapas, says restaurants are like families. Thats why closing the doors and laying off nearly his entire 45-person staff in the wake of the coronavirus crisis was a gut-wrenching decision.

Restaurateurs like Salyer all across Napa Valley are having to decide, will they stay open and hope they can inch by with a take-out model? Does continuing operations put employees at risk? Will they provide employees with sick leave? Should they shutter entirely, guaranteeing lay-offs and dramatic revenue loss?

We really had no choice but to lay people off. There was no income flow, and all these other bills are still going to be there, Salyer said. We had to make that decision in order to be able to get to the other side to try and help these people after this is all over.

Nearly 10 million initial unemployment claims were made across the nation in the last two weeks, according to the most recent Department of Labor statistics, the highest count in history. Last week alone, California had 878,000 of those claims, a large proportion of which came from the service industry.

You couldnt have designed a better way to destroy the restaurant business if you tried, said Ken Frank of La Toque at the Westin Verasa. Its almost a perfect weapon to destroy restaurants as we know them because social distancing is the very opposite of everything we do.

Frank furloughed 73 people, keeping only five on board for essential functions, while mounting a daily effort to provide lunches for Napas homeless center.

Restaurants are a big chunk of who we are in Napa, Frank said of the roster of high-caliber restaurants that help attract visitors. For a little town, we punch way above our weight  its part of who we are and why people come here, but everything is going to be much more difficult when we re-open.

New focus on community assistance

Compline Wine Bar, Restaurant and Merchant downtown laid off roughly half of its staff. Though it remains open for limited menu delivery, management decided to redirect the bulk of efforts towards providing meals for healthcare workers and first responders. The chef and employees prepare meals for 60 Queen of the Valley staff members seven days a week and 181 OLE Health workers on weekdays.

Producing these meals for healthcare professional has allowed us to keep part of our staff employed. It also allows us to continue spending money with our local and regional purveyors, which we hope will help keep others in our local food chain employed, as well, said Matt Stamps and Ryan Steins, co-owners of Compline.

Additionally, the restaurant, which hopes to rehire all the workers it can once it reopens, is providing free meals to its laid-off workers. Its also offering all staff the option to buy food from its purveyors at cost without any markup.

The curbside model

Some Napa restaurants have closed temporarily, but those that remain open have shifted to some combination of curbside, delivery and take-out models.

Gotts Roadsides two Napa Valley locations remain open. The St. Helena location has switched over to take-out and delivery and the Oxbow Market location will be making the transition this weekend.

We can be there for hungry locals, keep our employees collecting a paycheck and a meal, and help feed healthcare workers and first responders, Gotts President Clay Walker said.

But since the shelter-in-place order went into effect, Gotts sales have dropped 60%, according to Walker. Customers eager to support the restaurant during the economic freeze have bought more gift cards and merchandise than normal, he said, but not enough to make up for the steep decline.

Gotts employs nearly 100 people between the two restaurants, some of whom have had their hours cut due to slower traffic and shorter days, Walker said. Others have been unable to come into work since schools were closed and theyre without childcare.

Through March 31, management decided to allocate 100% of sales to pay for employee-related expenses like payroll and benefits.

Our intent was to help bridge the gap to April 1, when government programs became available to our employees, Walker said, admitting that proceeds will now be funneled as they would normally, to a combination of staff-, overhead- and supply chain-related payments.

Closure

Decisions to close arent only about the economic calculus.

Chuck Meyer, co-owner of Napa Palisades Saloon, said he felt responsible for the well-being of his staff and the community the restaurant serves. That burden was heightened once employees started raising those same questions about safety to him.

Not being able to answer an employee who asks you that question with 100% certainty was the deciding factor, Meyer said of the decision to close the restaurant the day before St. Patricks Day.

He and his co-owner considered moving immediately towards a take-out or delivery option, but none of those things are really going to save the business, Meyer said. Whats going to save it is getting back into full business with people circulating through and us having a full restaurant.

Meyers closure resulted in the layoff of all 30 of his staff members, but he remains committed to their well-being. Every week, he dips into his own pockets to purchase groceries from his wholesale purveyors and provides his former employees with a family-sized box to help feed their households. Doing so keeps his supply chain open, Meyers says, and allows him to stay in touch with staff and do anything I can to help them if theyre in trouble.

Salyer made a similar calculus in arriving at his decision to close. We looked at the to-go and the pick-up model and, for the most part, we didnt feel it was the right way to do it because it wasnt cost-effective and we felt wed be putting the staff in jeopardy at a certain point, he said.

Frank recalled a phone call he had with local restaurant owners and chefs just before the stay-at-home orders were issued in Napa.

The consensus was that we know its absolutely the right thing to do. Its going to kill us, but its clearly the right thing, Frank said. But boy, being in a restaurant when theres no life in it is really surreal thing because its what we all live for.

Frank said that though the situation is bleak, theres reason to be hopeful.

We all have the same fears, we all have the same problems. Some of us are a little bit better off than others, but were all screwed and were all screwed together, he said. And we are absolutely determined that were going to get through this.

Editors Note: Because of the health implications of the COVID-19 virus, this article is being made available free to all online readers. If youd like to join us in supporting the mission of local journalism, please visit napavalleyregister.com/members/join/.

You may reach Carly Graf at cgraf@napanews.com; 713-817-4692; or via Twitter @carlykgraf.

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South Africa: Eskom conducts more maintenance work as demand drops

As South Africa enters day 7 of a nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, Eskom has announced that it will double maintenance work at its plants.

With the COVID-19 national lockdown in full effect, Eskom has experienced a significant reduction in demand for electricity. Electricity usage has dropped by between 7 500MW and 9 000MW since the lockdown came into effect last week. This has allowed Eskom to operate without the need to implement load shedding, said the power utility.

The utility is making use of the low demand to carry out important short-term maintenance of generation infrastructure.

In order to protect the integrity of the system, Eskom has taken some generation units offline.

From midnight on Friday, 3 April 2020, Eskom will add Koeberg Unit 2 to units taken off the grid.

However, these will be able to return to service at short notice, should the need arise.

Koeberg Unit 2 is scheduled to return to service by 30 April 2020, if not called before then.

As part of protecting the integrity of the power system, Eskom has also issued force majeure notices to the wind independent power producers. These notices serve to alert the wind Independent Power Producers (IPPs) of the possibility that Eskom may, from time to time, curtail their supply to the grid during the national lockdown, the power utility said.

Should this remote possibility happen, the IPPs will be afforded one day of relief for every day, or part thereof, of lost production. This will ensure that none of the wind IPPs are worse off than before the force majeure.

Last month, Eskom handed over its Academy of Learning (EAL) centre in Midrand, Johannesburg, to government to be used as a quarantine site. This was done as part of efforts to assist in the fight to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.

The facility, which has 416 beds and other facilities, will be used to accommodate people who have to undergo a period of quarantine and observation for signs of COVID-19.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
President Mnangagwa yesterday met national executive members of the Zimbabwe Chiefs Council and representatives of religious groups to update them on Covid-19 and Governments efforts to curb the spread of the virus.





The two meetings were held separately at State House. The President briefed the two groups on the 21-day lockdown which began on Monday.





The religious groups leaders were drawn from the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC), the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference (ZCBC), the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs in Zimbabwe (SCIAZ) and the Zimbabwe Indigenous Interdenominational Council of Churches (ZIICC).





Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Harare, Robert Ndlovu, who was representing the ZCBC offered Government the use of 55 health institutions run by the church.





We have 55 health institutions that include, hospitals, clinics and rural health centres and we offer these to Government for use in the fight against the pandemic.





We have also cancelled mass gatherings to allow self-isolation, he said.





Archbishop Ndlovu said Catholics in various professional fields were also fund-raising to buy protective equipment and other materials needed in the fight against the disease.





ZCCs representative, Reverend Samuel Sifelani said they had already issued pastoral statements advising their membership on how to conduct themselves in line with recommendations from the World Health Organisation and the Ministry of Health and Child Care.





We also have various health centres across the country and these are open for Governments use in the fight against Covid-19, he said.





President of the EFZ, Bishop Never Mparutsa said: We believe the limit of 50 (number of people in a gathering) is still too high given the danger posed by the virus.





We have been mobilising resources to assist Government and our members also run hospitals and other facilities that are available to Government. If things become tough, we are also willing to offer some of our Church buildings for use possibly as quarantine centres.





President Mnangagwa greets Reverend Samuel Sifelani using a quick right kick, quick left kick approach at State House in Harare yesterday during his interface with church leaders on Covid-19 measures.  Picture: Tawanda Mudimu





President of the SCIAZ, Sheikh Ismail Duwa said they had closed mosques to the public and were encouraging their members to pray at home adding they had also established a Covid-19 Muslim Taskforce.





Prior to the national lockdown, the Covid-19 Muslim Taskforce went under necessary training focusing on the novel corona virus and had commenced a countrywide outreach health, educational and awareness tours in different provinces of the country.





All this was being guided by the Presidential directives on preventing the spread of the corona virus, Sheikh Duwa said.





ZIICC representative Reverend Andrew Wutawunashe also offered his organisations facilities to Government saying the illegal sanctions imposed on the country were hampering efforts to fight the disease.





On the basis of humanitarian considerations I would want to say sanctions must be removed.





The situation we are in affects all of us and doesnt consider who you are so the sanctions must be removed, he said.





In his remarks President Mnangagwa said religious groups had a role to play in the fight against the pandemic.





To you heads of churches and religious groups, this is the message I wish to convey to your congregants so that together we fight this pandemic. Where we are failing as Government, as secular authorities at the end of the day all of us are at the hands of God himself and his wishes and you are the only people who can intercede between us and the Lord above.





This is why we say to you this is the challenge facing us as a nation and we have a role to play. In your case you have two roles, the physical role to play where you advise and assist the congregants and the second role is the spiritual role which guides the nation spiritually, President Mnangagwa.





Addressing the traditional leaders earlier, President Mnangagwa said chiefs were the custodians of people in rural areas and had a pivotal role to play in educating them about Covid-19.





In our country there is an outbreak of a disease called coronavirus or Covid-19, said President Mnangagwa.





We are told that this disease is highly contagious. We are being advised that people should maintain social distance and wash their hands regularly. We should wash our hands using running water and wear masks as well. We received assistance from our friends and materials are arriving in the country. Our Health and Child Care Minister (Dr Obadiah Moyo) is in charge of the distribution. We resolved that each province should have an isolation centre.





President Mnangagwa said Covid-19 started in urban areas and no case had been recorded yet in the rural areas.





President Mnangagwa said the disease had been detected in Harare and Victoria Falls with eight confirmed cases including one death.





The World Health Organisation recommended for a lockdown of 21 days as part of controlling the disease and after deliberating as leadership we resolved to do that here starting on March 31.

About 60 percent of our population is in the rural areas and that is where you are as traditional leaders. All the confirmed cases that we have have been recorded in urban areas so people are running to the rural areas. We then said how can we resolve this and agreed that we should talk to traditional leaders. People in the rural areas are under your structures including the village heads and we expect you to go and teach people about this disease. Tell them that unnecessary gathering has been banned for 21 days. If there is a funeral, we are only allowing 50 people only because if one person is infected the whole family will also be infected. For the next 21 days, we hope that we may be able to contain the spread of the disease and new infections, he said.





President Mnangagwa updated the traditional leaders on the invention of a ventilator by the Harare Institute of Technology and efforts being made to manufacture Covid-19 related material locally. Herald




Coronavirus is the World's 'Greatest Test' Since World War II - UN Chief

Sputnik News

16:56 GMT 01.04.2020

The long-term impact of the coronavirus is being challenged as business activity has been forced to grind despite emergency stimulus packages. The United Nations and WHO are stressing the importance of international cooperation in order to combat the outbreak.

The coronavirus pandemic presents the worst danger to global peace that the world has seen since the end of the Second World War, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Wednesday.

The disease "represents a threat to everybody in the world and... an economic impact that will bring a recession that probably has no parallel in the recent past," he said while attending the launch of a UN report on the socioeconomic impacts of the virus.

"The combination of the two facts and the risk that it contributes to enhanced instability, enhanced unrest, and enhanced conflict are things that make us believe that this is the most challenging crisis we have faced since the Second World War".

The report calls the disease "a global health crisis unlike any in the 75-year history of the United Nations, one that is killing people, spreading human suffering, and upending people's lives".

"But this is much more than a health crisis. It is a human crisis. The coronavirus disease is attacking societies at their core", the report adds.

Mr Guterres called for a stronger and more unified global response to curbing the outbreak. Describing the fight as an "unprecedented test" which has left countries "in turmoil" and their economies "in a nose-dive".

It will only be possible "if everybody comes together and if we forget political games and understand that it is humankind that is at stake", he explained.

The secretary-general slammed countries ignoring the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines and choosing to go their "own way" in attempting to tackle the spread and called for "large-scale, coordinated and comprehensive" action.

He said that the response must include the scaling up of "health capacity for testing, tracing, quarantine and treatment, while keeping first responders safe, combined with measures to restrict movement and contact".

The UK has received criticism from a former WHO director for not conducting nationwide testing, as well as concerns being raised about countries such as Sweden not implementing sufficient social distancing measures.

Mr Guterres statement came during a live-streamed press briefing just before it was confirmed that the number of Covid-19 cases worldwide had reached 860,000, with more than 42,000 dying with the virus.

His words appeared to echo Chinese President Xi Jinping, who called for "stronger international cooperation" at the emergency G20 summit last Thursday.

China has been issuing aid packages of medical equipment as well as sending medical experts to coronavirus-stricken countries such as Spain and Italy.

The coronavirus pandemic has been confirmed to have taken 30,000 lives in Europe alone, a report revealed on Wednesday.

With economic activity the world over grinding to a halt and growth rates indicating a rapid fall into recession, social stability appears to be under threat, with protests over lockdown policies in Tunisia and Hungary passing emergency powers legislation.

 Sputnik

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Student doctors in Cuba are trudging from house to house trying to identify cases of the coronavirus pandemic to stop it from spreading in the Caribbean island nation. "How many people live here? Have you been in contact with foreigners? Do you know the health rules to follow?" they ask. Some 28,000 students repeat the same questions dozens of times a day, all across the country. In the Vedado neighborhood of Havana, Liz Caballero Gonzalez, a 46-year-old doctor, accompanies two students charged with canvassing an area that is home to 300 families each day. In a country where many people wear face masks -- and some shops won't allow customers in unless they have one -- the only thing that sets the students apart is their white gowns. Crippled by six decades of US sanctions, Cuba was one of the last countries in Latin America to close its borders, desperate to keep the tourism revenue it relies on. It finally caved on March 24 and now has 212 coronavirus cases and six deaths. As a precaution, close to 2,800 people are receiving hospital care. In its fight against coronavirus, Cuba is relying on its world renown health services: According to the World Health Organization the country has 82 physicians per 10,000 people, compared with 40 for Russia, 26 for the United States and 18 for China. - 'Solidarity and selflessness' - "We don't have the technology of rich countries, but we have a human personnel that is very qualified, with great solidarity and selflessness," said Caballero Gonzalez. Door-to-door care is nothing new for Cubans used to family doctors who have "always done the rounds... to look for any type of transmittable illness." Over the past two weeks, rounds have increased in order "to reach 100 percent of the population in as little time as possible," she said. Medical students have joined the national effort because Cuba has an abundance of them, including thousands of foreigners attracted by the country's 25 medical faculties and the prestigious Latin American School of Medicine (ELAM). "We're already used to going door-to-door," said second-year student Susana Diaz, 19. "There's always a time around September-October when we do home visits for dengue. So when the coronavirus situation worsened, the university asked if we'd go door-to-door," she said. Any suspicious illness -- such as a cough or fever -- is immediately reported to the local medical center. "Many thank us for what we're doing," Diaz said. Doctors are "much loved" in Cuba, said Maite Perez, 30, after a visit by one of the students. "I'm really happy they're looking after our health," she said. Perez is taking health precautions seriously: She keeps a mop at the front door to clean her shoes, categorically washes her clothes after returning home and wears a mask every time she leaves. There's just one rule that's proving painfully hard to adhere too: no hugging or kissing. "I just want to hold my mother and kiss her, to squeeze her... but we're not allowed to," Perez said. - 'It's not rocket science' - For Carlos Lagos, 83, watching students file past his door has become the new norm. The students ask "if I feel bad, if I have a fever, how I look after myself," said Lagos, standing at his door bare-chested due to the heat. Elder care is crucial in Cuba where 20 percent of the population is over 60. "So far I feel fine and I hardly go out," said Dolores Garcia, 82, from behind the gate to her apartment. She's delighted to have a face mask. "Someone who loves me a lot brought it to me," she said. Cubans are used to going without basic necessities -- there's often a lack of soap, for example. Instead of a hydroalcoholic hand sanitizer, Cubans have been using a chlorine solution to wash their hands. With a lack of medical face masks, many have made their own from cloth, including Marina Ibanez, a 56-year-old kindergarten employee. "When I saw that people were walking around without masks... I got to work making face masks for people," she said. Although she had no experience, she has already made 50, which she distributed to neighbors. "It's not rocket science," Ibanez said. Cuban doctor Liz Caballero goes door-to-door in Havana on March 31 looking for possible cases of coronavirus Medical students go door-to-door in Havana's Vedado neighborhood in search of potential coronavirus cases Cuban medical student Susana Diaz interviews a man as she searches for possible coronavirus cases A woman puts face masks that she made for neighbors out to dry in the Havana neighborhood of Vedado
The number of corona-infected patients in Himachal rose to six on Thursday with three out of 190 participants of the Tablighi Jamaat meet at Nizamuddin, traced and quarantined in the state, testing positive for COVID-19.

Amid the ongoing state-wide manhunt for Tablighi Jamaat meet participants, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur asked state officials to keep a close watch on the people from the state who attended the Islamic congregation in New Delhi last month, an official spokesperson said.

The Islamic discourse was attended by thousands of Jamaat members, along with hundreds of foreigners -- many of them suspected coronavirus carriers -- and has triggered a nationwide scare of community spread of the virus.

Till Thursday, a total of 190 people who returned to the hill-state after attending the congregation in Delhi have been quarantined, Director General of Police Sitaram Mardi said.

Additional Chief Secretary (Health) R D Dhiman said the three persons, who have been found positive, had returned to Una district recently after attending the congregation last month.

They are being sent to Tanda's Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College (RPGMC) for treatment, he said.

The official said the people who came in their contact are being traced.

A total of 27 samples were taken for testing on Thursday, of which three from Una were found positive, whereas samples of one person have been taken again, Dhiman said, adding that the remaining 23 were negative.

Earlier three cases were found positive in Kangra district. One of them recovered, whereas the other died. The third patient is undergoing treatment at the Tanda hospital.

Of 190 Jamaat Tablighi participants traced in HP, 73 have been are quarantined in Baddi, followed by 35 each in Una and Sirmaur, 23 in Shimla, 10 each in Kangra and Chamba and four in Mandi district.

Another 17 Nizamuddin Markaz attendees from the hill state have been quarantined in Delhi itself.

Meanwhile, as per unconfirmed reports, the Union home ministry has sent a list of more than 700 Himachal Pradesh natives who attended the congregation.

The list has reportedly been prepared after tracking the mobile phones of those who were present at the Markaz. However, despite repeated queries by the media, no one from the state police confirmed or denied it.

In the meantime, the state's DGP has urged Muslims to hold Friday prayers in their homes instead of mosques.

The CM issued the direction to keep a close watch on Nizamuddin Markaz attendees during a video conference with deputy commissioners and superintendents of police after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video conference with chief ministers of all states to review the COVID-19 situation.

Such people should be kept under strict surveillance after being traced to check spread of COVID-19, he said.

Stressing that religious leaders should not hold functions or gatherings, Thakur directed officials to take strict action against violators.

The chief minister also asked all DCs and SPs to hold meetings with religious leaders and disseminate their recorded messages to motivate people of their respective communities to avoid religious gatherings to check the spread of COVID-19.

The DGP further said the 11 Tablighi Jamaat members against whom an FIR was registered at Nerwa police station in Shimla district on Wednesday had not attended the congregation.

They had come from Misarwala village located in Paonta Sahib Tehsil of Sirmaur district, he added.

The 11 were booked under sections 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of Indian Penal Code at Nerwa Police Station.

They arrived in Nerwa in Shimla district from Paonta Sahib in Sirmaur district to go to their homes in different villages amid a curfew, a Nerwa police officer said.

Eight of them are residents of Kima Chandrawali village whereas two are residents of Bharanu village. The driver Shabeer is a resident of Paonta Sahib, he said.

All of them have been quarantined in Panchayat Bhawan, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Of the thousands of participants of Tablighi Jamaat in Nizamuddin, at least 86 were from Bihar.

The State Government has identified 37 such persons who attended the religious gathering in New Delhi, while a search operation is on for the remaining 49 persons. Of the 37 persons identified, 17 belong to Patna, 13 from Buxar and seven persons hail from Katihar. Samples have been collected from those traced. These persons have been quarantined, said a Government source.

The Bihar Government has converted 50 hotels, with 1800 rooms, into quarantine centers.

For latest updates on coronavirus outbreak, click here

Meanwhile, the number of positive cases in Bihar on the eighth day of lockdown rose to 23. This includes one death which took place on March 22. The victim, who belonged to Munger, had travelled from Qatar to Bihar.

In the meantime, the Bihar cops are having a difficult time convincing people to maintain social distance. According to reports reaching here from Madhubani, the cops were attacked when they tried to persuade the locals in a Jhanjharpur Masjid to maintain social distance. At least eight policemen sustained injuries in the stone-pelting incident at Madhubani.

This is the second violent incident in two successive days in Bihar. Earlier, in Jehanabad, a Block Development Officer (BDO) and a police officer were attacked and their vehicles damaged when the officials had gone there to quarantine those migrants who had come over from Delhi and other States.
Ben Ayade, governor of Cross River, has directed security agents to arrest anyone who moves about without the use of face mask, starti...





Ben Ayade, governor of Cross River, has directed security agents to arrest anyone who moves about without the use of face mask, starting from Friday.





are sick persons or those looking after them. This is despite the World Health Organisations (WHO) advisory that those in need of face masksare sick persons or those looking after them.





Although Cross River has not recorded any coronavirus case yet, the governor said the measure is being taken because of the infections in neighbouring states.





Following the proliferation of new cases of coronavirus in neighbouring states, the Cross River state governor, Sir Ben Ayade, has imposed new restrictions on residents of the state as follows, he said.





No citizen or resident of the state will be allowed to leave home without a face mask from Friday 3rd, April 2020; failure to adhere to this directive will lead to the arrest and quarantine of the offenders for 14 days.





The Cross River State garment factory has been mandated to produce face masks to be distributed free to citizens and residents alike to meet with the demand.





He said anyone who is unable to get masks from the state government before Friday are advised to purchase theirs.





All public gatherings remain banned, markets should remain closed except where foodstuff is sold, the statement added.





All exit and entry points into the state are now completely shut. No human or vehicular movement will be allowed into the state under any disguise.




While health ministry officials insist that increasing clusters of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases across India should be classified as local transmission -- where the infection source can be traced -- rather than community transmission -- where the source cannot be traced for a large number of people -- clinicians in California have published a detailed case study of the first case of community transmission in the United States on February 26, underlining the need for expanded, aggressive testing.

Following the diagnosis, the US ramped up testing to discover the staggering magnitude of the pandemic. It now has the highest number of cases in the world, with at least 190,000 infections and over 4,000 deaths. The study was published on March 31.

The case made the US ramp up testing. The woman tested positive on February 26 and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a policy on expediting testing on February 29.

For clinicians, the medical history of an otherwise healthy woman in her 40s, whose chest infection rapidly deteriorated to near-fatal septic shock, offers critical clues to the management and treatment of Covid-19.

The woman was admitted to the UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, California, with a respiratory infection, which chest imaging indicated was community-acquired pneumonia (CAP).

Her condition worsened within 24 hours, and she was quickly moved to the intensive care unit (ICU) and put on ventilator support to help her breathe. She was given antibiotics, including linezolid, piperacillin-tazobactam and azithromycin, to kill a possible bacterial infection.

The battery of tests over the next few days included a viral panel, respiratory culture, blood cultures, bronchoscopy cultures to identify infection source, but all came up negative.

The doctors then started suspecting Covid-19 but did not test her as she had no history of international travel or contact with a person with the coronavirus disease -- in line with the testing criterion of the US Centers of Disease Control at the time.

She next developed acute respiratory distress, with fluid building up in her lungs and making it difficult for her to breathe, which quickly worsened to septic shock, a potentially fatal sudden drop in blood pressure in reaction to severe infection.

The severity of her respiratory condition and her lack of response to all supportive treatment led the clinicians to put her on airborne precautions and strict contact precautions and finally get her tested for Covid-19. Two days later, the results came back positive.

Since there were no approved antiviral therapies for Covid-19, the UC Davis got regulatory approval to treat her with an investigational drug called remdesivir, the broad-spectrum antiviral developed by Gilead Sciences that has shown promise against coronaviruses in animals.

Remdesivir infusions resulted in the patient needing significantly less ventilator support and having better blood oxygen levels and chest X-ray results. Fourteen days after first admission to UC Davis, she was taken off ventilation. She has since been discharged and is recovering at home.

Remdesivir is an experimental drug, though there are ongoing clinical trials to analyse its safety and effectiveness against Sars-Cov2, the virus that causes Covid-19. In Medanta, we managed the 14 Italian patients symptomatically and all but one have recovered and been discharged. Only one is still in the ICU, but she is stable, said Dr Yatin Mehta, chairman, Chairman Institute of Critical Care and Anaesthesiology, Medanta-The Medicity, Gurugram, where Indias first large group of 14 tourists was isolated for treatment in March.

The US case study emphasises knowledge gaps in the diagnosis and management of Covid-19 patients in the absence of known community transmission. Without clear risk factors, such as travel history, contact, co-morbidities like hypertension and diabetes, and advanced age, Covid-19 infection can initially masquerade as pneumonia.

According to recent guidelines in India, all hospitalised patients with severe acute respiratory infection, such as acute respiratory distress syndrome or pneumonia without an explanatory diagnosis, must be tested for Covid-19 even if no clear source of exposure is identified, Dr Mehta.

The US study underscores the value of expanded testing. There are individuals in the community who are not manifesting severe enough symptoms to check with their health care providers To tackle the pandemic, there needs to be significantly faster, less expensive and more widespread testing of all patients who potentially have Covid-19, said Michael Schivo, co-director of UC Davis Comprehensive COPD Clinic and senior author on the study, in a statement.

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Cancellations: A constantly updated list of cancellations, closures, postponements and changes is available 24/7 at Pantagraph.com. All coronavirus content at Pantagraph.com is free.

BNPrepared.org: Help for employers, employees, families and visitors to McLean County. The site is a joint effort of McLean County Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development Council for the Bloomington-Normal Area and Bloomington-Normal Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Drive-through testing: Available 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily at the McLean County Fairgrounds, 1106 Interstate Drive, Bloomington; testing may end early if day's allotment of tests runs out; tests are for first responders, healthcare providers, those over 65 and those with underlying conditions, all of whom have symptoms; IDs required; sponsored by Illinois Department of Public Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

General information: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html; McLean County Health Department, https://health.mcleancountyil.gov/708/CORONAVIRUS-COVID-19; Illinois Department of Public Health, http://www.dph.illinois.gov/topics-services/diseases-and-conditions/diseases-a-z-list/coronavirus; Johns Hopkins University, https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/.

Schools: Closure order extended through April 30

Special Olympics Illinois: State Summer Games (June 12-14), canceled

Stay-at-home order: through April 30, by order of governor; essential businesses like grocery stores, gas stations, pharmacies, etc., remain open.

Senior/vulnerable shopping: Blain's Farm & Fleet, 8-9 a.m. Mon.-Sat., 10-11 a.m. Sun.; Dollar General, first hour of each day; Green Top Grocery, 8-9 a.m. Tue. and Fri.; Hy-Vee, 7-8 a.m. daily in-person and online, free DoorDash delivery to high-risk customers (promo code SPECIALDELIVERY); Jewel, 7-9 a.m. Tue. and Thur.; Meijer, 7-8 a.m. Tue., Thu.; Schnucks, 6-7 a.m. daily; Target, first hour each Wednesday; Walgreen's, 8-9 a.m. Tue.

Blood: Make appointment at redcross.org or to find the closest place to donate blood and platelets.

Crisis, guidance: 24/7 assistance by calling 211 or 888-865-9903; McLean County Triage Center providing temporary supportive mental health services to first responders, call 309-434-6567 or email mhtriage@mcleancountyil.gov.

Faith:

Catholic Diocese of Peoria: public worship suspended through Easter Sunday; Holy Week events streamed live at www.cdop.org.

Christ Church of Normal; 10 a.m. Palm Sunday and 7 p.m. Good Friday services, live worship at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrtQrX3HMNNC9IFkNI8lz9A

Downtown Bloomington churches: Ecumenical Good Friday online service, noon April 10, via Zoom; address tbd.

Government: Parts or all of most government buildings are closed; help is available online or by phone.

Lend a hand:

Illinois Health and Hospital Association has asked contractors, dentists, veterinarians and other groups to donate medical masks to local hospitals; needed are standard surgical masks and N95s with NIOSH or FDA approval, including expired N95s. Questions? Email PPE.donations@illinois.gov. To donate, call Bloomington Fire Department Station 2 at 309-434-2285.

DeWitt County Farm Bureau: collection box for unused masks located outside front entrance of DeWitt County Farm Bureau, 1060 IL-54, Clinton.

Illinois Prairie Community Foundation: Drake Zimmerman and Jan Elfline Fund will match first $25,000 raised through emergency fund. Send check to IPCF, 915 E. Washington St., Ste. 2, Bloomington, IL 61701 (write COVID-19 Response Fund on memo line).

United Way of McLean County: COVID-19 Community Care Fund, donate at covid19.dsgive.us; $5 for one meal, $20 for family of four

The Quarantine Concerts; April 11, streaming at https://ess.org/the-quarantine-concert; artists receive 100% of donations during performance; sponsored by McLean County Museum of History, PT.FWD and Chicago's Experimental Sound Studio.

Schnucks Round Up at the Register; donate at register to help United Way support those experiencing hardships due to COVID-19.

Transportation: Connect Transit reduces frequency to weekend levels, changes boarding procedures; fare collection suspended until April 14.

Support: Salvation Army Safe Harbor Shelter and food pantry remain open, shelter guests screened for COVID-19, volunteers no longer serving food; pantry hours, 1-3 p.m. Mondays; donate at sabloomington.org.

Quote: "Kind thoughts are the roots. Kind words are the blossoms. Kind deeds are the fruits." - Kirpal Singh
A new study, published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, highlights the feasible use of mobile health (mHealth) devices to help with the screening and detection of a common heart condition.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a heart rhythm condition that causes an irregular and sometimes, abnormally fast heart rate. In AF, the heart's upper chambers (atria) contract randomly and sometimes so fast that the heart muscle cannot relax properly between contractions. This reduces the heart's efficiency and performance -- but also leads to a higher risk of blood clots.

AF is the most common heart rhythm disturbance, affecting around one million people in the UK. People with AF are at increased risk of having a stroke and dying, as well as heart failure and dementia. Currently, low detection due to lack of visible symptoms and non-adherence are major problems in current management approaches for patients with suspected AF.

Photoplethysmography technology

mHealth devices, such as fitness trackers, smart watches and mobile phones, may enable earlier AF detection, and improved AF management through the use of photoplethysmography (PPG) technology.

PPG is a simple and low-cost optical technique that can be used to detect blood volume changes in the microvascular bed of tissue. It is often used non-invasively to make measurements at the skin surface.

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To help determine whether a mHealth technology-supported AF integrated management strategy would reduce AF-related adverse events, compared to usual care, an international team of researchers, led by Associate Professor Guo from Chinese PLA General Hospital in Beijing, and Professor Gregory Lip, Lead for the Liverpool Centre for Cardiovascular Science (LCCC)/Price-Evans Chair of Cardiovascular Medicine at University of Liverpool, conducted a randomised trial.

Central to the study was mobile health technologies developed by leading global technology companies, with a focus on using wearable smart devices such as those from Huawei, working in conjunction with a specially developed mobile app. These pieces of equipment and software can monitor a person's vital signs with great detail and, most importantly for this study, 24 hours a day.

The specially designed mobile app not only charted the patient's biometrics, it afforded clinicians the ability to offer integrated care throughout the duration of the trial. Doctors were able to periodically assess the patient's updated statistics and contact them through the app to offer advice via the ABC care pathway. The ABC pathway, developed in part by the LCCS' Professor Gregory Lip, is a set of guidance for patients and clinicians, which aims to promote a streamlined holistic approach to the management of AF, and ensure that the danger of complications is minimised.

The researchers enrolled a cluster of 3,324 AF patients aged over 18 years from 40 cities across China. The patients were randomized with 1678 receiving usual care and 1646 receiving integrated care based on a mobile AF Application (mAFA) incorporating the ABC Pathway: 'A' Avoid stroke; 'B' Better symptom management; 'C' Cardiovascular and other comorbidity risk reduction. All patients were followed up in outpatient clinics at 6 and 12 months.

Results

Upon completion of the study, the researchers were able to show that occurrences of stroke, systemic thromboembolism, death and rehospitalisation were significantly lower with those patients in the mHealth intervention group compared to those undergoing usual care (1.9% compared with 6%). Rehospitalisation rates were also notably reduced, with only 1.2% of patients in the intervention group needing to be readmitted to hospital, in comparison to 4.5% of patients in the control group.

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In addition to these positive figures, subgroup analyses by gender, age, type of condition, risk score and comorbidities, demonstrated consistently lower risks for the composite outcome for patients receiving the mAFA intervention compared to usual care.

These results show an undeniable benefit for the adoption of an integrated approach to monitoring and treating cardiac conditions such as AF.

With smart technologies such as phones, watches and integrated smart home systems becoming increasingly accessible and affordable, the ability for clinicians and researchers to adopt this technology to passively and unobtrusively gather a seemingly unlimited amount of data and information on the global health population is offering boundless opportunity for assessing and treating all manner of diseases and conditions.

Integrated care approach

Associate Professor Guo said: "Our study clearly highlights the need for an integrated care approach to holistic AF care, supported by mobile health technology, as it help to reduce the risks of rehospitalisation and clinical adverse events."

Professor Lip said: "Improved AF care requires early detection which enables the implementation of the priorities of AF management, which is as 'easy as ABC': Avoid stroke; Better symptom optimisation; Cardiovascular and risk factor management. Our clinical trial shows how the mAFA App and smart devices can improve detection of AF and the holistic management of AF patients, improving outcomes in this common heart rhythm disorder."
Madison County, a predominantly rural county many Syracuse-area workers call home, has the highest rate of coronavirus cases per capita of any county in Upstate New York.

Madison County also has had two deaths from coronavirus  both elderly people with underlying medical conditions, according to county health officials.

The county has 73 cases of coronavirus or 10.3 cases per 10,000 people, as of this morning, according to an analysis by Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.

In contrast, Onondaga County had 6 cases per 10,000 people. Oswego, Oneida and Cortland counties have about 2 cases. Cayuga County is reporting 0.5 cases per 10,000 people.

The only places in New York state with higher rates of cases per capita than Madison County are New York City, Long Island and counties just north of New York City.

The high per capita number among Madison Countys nearly 71,000 residents has county health officials puzzled - and concerned.

"It surprises me at how quickly it spread in our county,'' said Eric Faisst, Madison Countys public health director. We dont like being on the high end.

Faisst said he believes several factors may be to blame for the high number of cases per capita in the county.

The virus may have been present in the Madison County community before anyone knew about it, and along with that, social distancing may have kicked in late among residents, Faisst said.

Events, such as large dinners or social gatherings, may have fostered community spread, Faisst said. He said the department hasnt pinpointed any particular events where someone infected may have spread the disease to a number of people.

Dessa K. Bergen-Cico, professor of public health at Syracuse University, said the number of cases in Madison County may be linked to it being a bedroom community.

"Its not the old horse-and-buggy times,'' she said. "People go in and out of the county all the time. Theres a lot of traffic in and out of the county.

"People who reside there go to work in other counties, and go to grocery stores and other places in other counties. So theyre in contact with a lot of people,'' she said.

Also, Cazenovia College, SUNY Morrisville and Colgate University have large populations of students who come and go all the time, she said. Colgate University had had several cases of students with coronavirus.

The harsh takeaway, both experts said, is that smaller communities can be hit as hard as large metropolitan areas.

"It seems like several factors aligned, and its the perfect storm here,'' Faisst said. We see that in rural areas were not as protected as we thought we might be.

Its a serious health concern, and people need to take the messages of social distancing seriously.," she said.

The number of people tested directly impacts how many confirmed tests a county finds. Total testing numbers are not available for all counties, but compared to Onondaga County Madison County is testing slightly fewer people per capita. (Madison has done 66 tests per 10,000 people; Onondaga County has done 92 tests per 10,000 people.)

Madison County is seeing 15.7 percent of the people who get tested are coming back positive, compared to 6 percent in Onondaga County.

Madison County, however, was restricting testing more than Onondaga County due to an initial shortage of test kits, county officials said. Madison County limited testing to people who had COVID-19 symptoms who also met one of these criteria: close contact with someone who tested positive, traveled to a country under CDC warning, was in quarantine or had tested negative for other infections.

The Madison County Health Department today announced that it has started a COVID-19 hotline. Residents can call the hotline at 315-366-2770, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. with questions they have regarding the COVID-19 virus. This hotline is not for people experiencing symptoms of COVID-19.

Note: The analysis in the article was based on cases reported as of Thursday morning. The information in the graphic below is being updated many times daily, so the numbers in the graphic may vary from the numbers in the article.

Elizabeth Doran covers education, suburban government and development, breaking news and more. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact her anytime 315-470-3012 or email edoran@syracuse.com

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"I think the feeling is, if we make a change here, we're opening ourselves up to have this brought in in other land developments, and it's not something we really want to see in the village overlay district," said board...
CHICAGO, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Amid the increasing number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States, Chinese Consulate in Chicago has opened two hotline services to better serve Chinese citizens with regard to the pandemic.

One is providing consular assistance and protection service to Chinese citizens and the other is offering the service to Chinese students studying in U.S. Midwest, according to a notice the consulate issued on Tuesday.

The hotline service started on March 30.

The Chinese consulate calls on Chinese citizens and overseas Chinese to stay calm, reduce travel, stay at home, and guard against COVID-19 rationally and scientifically.

At a news conference held late Tuesday, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker extended the state's stay-at-home order to April 30. Schools and non-essential businesses, including bars and restaurants, which are closed to dine-in customers, will also remain closed until that date.

By Tuesday, the U.S. Midwest state of Illinois had reported 5,994 known infections and 99 deaths since the outbreak started.
Employees of the National Police and the National Guard requested all arrived from Vietnam, Qatar and Bali to sign a 14-day observation commitment. Many of the evacuees did not agree to such conditions

Open source

Ukrainians continue to return home: authorities organize special trains and flights. And if earlier numerous returnees were simply sent to self-isolation, that is, to their homes, then now the precautionary measures were decided to tighten.

Employees of the National Police and the National Guard requested all arrived from Vietnam, Qatar and Bali to sign a 14-day observation commitment. Many of the evacuees did not agree to such conditions, and some spent more than 10 extra hours on the plane without water, food and a toilet, boycotting the authorities' demands. One of the passengers had to defecate in front of the plane.

It also turned out that for some citizens no free observation was offered. Two-week stay at the "Pushcha Congress" hotel along with meals costs almost 20 000 hryvnias.

Are the authorities' actions in respect of returnees legal, and what will their boycott lead to?

New course: observation instead of self-isolation

After the situation in Novi Sanzhary Ukrainians who arrived in the country were mainly sent to self-isolation. On March 21, the government passed a decree introducing informed consent for home quarantine. Our interlocutor Olexander returned from the Czech Republic on March 25 and stayed at home for exactly five days, but now he already quietly walk in the park. He says that no one offered him an observation: it was enough to sign a self-isolation leaflet.

Observation is not often proposed abroad. Isolation of citizens in hotels and resorts is practically not widespread there, since this gives a high probability of contracting those who were healthy. Usually, authorities simply strictly enforce compliance with home quarantine. In Italy, the fine is 3 000 euros. In Sweden, self-isolated for a walk alone are fined for the first time 135 euros, for the second time - up to 1,500 euros. In the UAE, fines range from 13 to 27 000 dollars, and in Singapore, a citizen who left the country during self-isolation had his passport canceled.

Automatic daily monitoring has also been introduced in Poland. Every day, an isolated person needs to take several pictures, attaching his geolocation.

The penalty for violation of self-isolation in Ukraine is from 17 to 34 000 hryvnias (607  1214 USD). But in order to take it, it is necessary to check citizens for staying at home. The Ministry of Health had hopes for complaints from neighbors, and Anton Herashchenko, deputy Interior Minister, wrote about "tens of thousands of district and patrol police officers" who would monitor quarantine compliance.

But Minister of Infrastructure Vladyslav Krykliy said that "the responsibility of self-isolation turned out to be absent." This is not surprising, because the self-isolation leaflet contains many exceptions. For example, if a person needs food products, then going out to the store is not prohibited. The same thing with work from the office - it is better to "try to switch to the remote work." Since the violations are not clearly registered, it is difficult to fine for non-compliance.

Therefore, the authorities decided to try a different tactic. The Minister of the Interior promised that all returnees will undergo a forced observation. New arrivals from Qatar and Bali were provided with two options: the observation in the hotel "Pushcha Congress" with a high level of comfort - for a fee, and the hotel "Cozatsky", located in the center of the capital, on Independence Square - for free. People complain authorities did not warn them about the changes.

We learned about the observation yesterday, when we took off! Before that, there was talk of self-isolation. If we knew people would have stayed in Bali. We talked a lot about the observation, but no one was strictly quarantined, and we are just one of the last flights, they need at least someone, "says passenger from Bali, Olexiy Val.

It is interesting that, according to those returned from Qatar and Bali, Ukrainians from parallel flights were easily released for self-isolation.

Is forced confinement legal?

Disobedience to border guards and doctors and a passengers refusal to have a physical examination can really have consequences for him, because this is a violation of sanitary legislation. Criminal liability is even possible. But passengers did not refuse a physical examination, and even offered to conduct it at their own expense.

Attorney Rostyslav Kravets says that the compulsory observation and hospitalization of people with an unconfirmed diagnosis is not provided for by law: neither the Law on Sanitary Safety, nor the Law on the Protection of Population from Infectious Diseases. Lawyers say that there are no visits to the sanatorium and observations among the duties of citizens after crossing the state border. In addition, it is impossible to confirm the illness of passengers in the current conditions in order to be hospitalized: the state did not provide everyone with voluntary testing at the border.

An emergency situation, which would allow violating the rights of citizens, has not yet been implemented.

But there is a nuance. According to the decision of the Cabinet No. 241 adopted the day before these events at an emergency pace, persons who visited countries with recorded cases of coronavirus are subject to mandatory observation for 14 days.

Some lawyers believe that forced hospitalization is possible only on the basis of the law, of which there are no decisions. Given how it is written out, it can be challenged in court. In addition, there are doubts that the decision has indeed entered into force.

On the one hand, the document has not been published in the Uriyadovyi Courier newspaper, which means it is not yet working.

We didnt receive such a decision and it wasnt published in today's issue. Perhaps it will come later in the day, and then it will be published later, the Government Courier told us.

On the other hand, it is already appeared on the government website. Was it placed there before or after the planes landed  is a difficult question.

The authorities appeal that the observation in any case should to be implemented, as citizens were allegedly warned about it. But this is not a legitimate reason for detention. Especially if the passengers did not sign any papers.

However, the signature requirement itself is quite eloquent. If the decree worked before the arrival of Ukrainians, they would hardly be asked to sign something. So its more likely that forced observation is illegal. Although it is certainly impossible to say this.

Meanwhile, the returnees created a group in the messenger and are looking for ways out of the situation.

We made a statement on the plane together with a SkyUp lawyer and a police representative. The lawyer agrees that the Cabinets decision is not applicable to us, but cant help us. The head of the Shevchenkovsky district police also came, everyone wrote a statement for self-isolation, they accepted but theres no result yet, says Alex Val.

Police protocols are unlikely to greatly help the evacuated, as they can be considered 24 hours a day.

But the problem is not only in the fact of concluding an observation, but also in the fact that it costs a lot of money.

Bali price observation

Of the two options, paid and free, the Pushcha Congress Hotel is in high demand. Passengers say that all the places there have already been booked. A double room for the time of quarantine will cost 338 euros, regardless of whether it is for one or for two. If the second person shares it, two weeks of quarantine will cost everyone 169 euros. Children under 12 years old can live with adults for free.

As for food, both in free observation and with paid, quarantined must buy food on their own.

According to sanitary standards, housekeeping will be canceled, so there will be no charge for this service.

The hotel has three stars. It has an excellent rating on one of the booking services - 8.8 out of 10. Pushcha Congress is a 10-minute walk from the lake. True, the evacuees will not appreciate it. Data on the living is still different. Someone says that a separate floor will be allocated for the evacuees, someone talks about the building.

It is interesting that, despite quarantine measures, hotel rooms can be safely booked for a time immediately after the departure of the returnees. If you check into the hotel from April 14 to 24, you will need to pay 21 200 hryvnias (757 USD). On dates later, the amount may be about 19 000 hryvnias (678 USD). This is without lunch and dinner, but with room cleaning.

It seems that the state still did not partially compensate the hotel owners for their reception of returnees. However, Krykliy claims that the authorities can still intervene and pay for the stay in the hotel.

In Cozatsky hotel, they dont demand money from people right now, since the hotel belongs to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

But the conditions of stay are called impossible by evacuated.

The food there is expensive, its cold in the rooms, rusty water flows from the tap. We tried a sandwich, its impossible to eat, Alexei Val reports.

Those who were accommodated in the hotel complained en masse of the cold: there turned out to be 12 degrees of heat. Most of them were not from Kyiv, and they did not have warm clothes. Now, according to reports in the evacuated group, the rooms warmed up a bit. But many, seeing the conditions in Cozatsky, asked for a transfer to the Pushcha

The food here, judging by the evacuated reports, is even more expensive than in a paid hotel. If you eat food from the Khvanchkara restaurant, it will cost about 14 000 hryvnias (500 USD) for the entire duration of the observation. Whether couriers with contactless food delivery will be allowed to come to Cozatsky is unknown.

Observation of citizens at the Ramada Encore hotel is also being discussed now: also not for free, but for 6 600 hryvnias (236 USD). There are no clear figures yet, as the list of hotels is being specified. If the data are correct, it means that the state has nevertheless contributed, since according to the usual price, an overnight stay in a hotel costs more than 2 000 hryvnias (72 USD).

So at whose expense should the observation take place? Since the evecuees themselves are not interested in it, then, theoretically, it should be for the state. Previously, it was. Interestingly, the repatriates in the sanatorium in Novy Sanzhary did not pay for food. The Ministry of Health allocated 2.65 million hryvnias for the maintenance of 72 people. It turns out that the living of one repatriate there cost 36 800 hryvnias (1314 USD), including food. True, the amount could increase due to the stay of Deputy Minister Zoryana Skaletskaya and journalists.

It is significant that the evacuation of Ukrainians from other countries this time turned out to be paid. This happens due to the budget deficit. Citizens said that the average ticket for recent flights cost about 7 000 hryvnias (250 USD).

The issue of cost of observation is not standardized. The Law on the Protection of Population from Infectious Diseases only stipulates that an isolated person has the right (and not the obligation) to receive free treatment. Observation is something else.

In the new decree, the issue of payment for compulsory observation is also not addressed. But lawyers call the decision of the authorities to charge money from Ukrainians dubious. They are afraid to give specific assessments.

How will it end for people?

It is still difficult to predict any consequences, since the lawyers themselves cannot agree on a new ruling. If it is challenged in court, Ukrainians who sat on the plane without food, water and access to the toilet, or were forced to pay for the observation, will be able to compensate moral damage. The state will answer, and law enforcement officers in the framework of the criminal case will have to tell what they were guided by when making such decisions.

In the meantime, some members of the evacuated group write that they still managed to leave home, and the police could not stop them.

Lawyer Yuri Belous emphasizes: in exercising his rights, a person must observe the moral foundations of society and must refrain from such actions that could violate the rights of others.

"A citizen of Ukraine has the right to return to the country and under no circumstances should he or she be restricted in this right. This is stated by the Constitution of Ukraine, as well as the norm of the Law of Ukraine" On the Procedure for Citizens of Ukraine to Exit from Ukraine and Enter Ukraine." The Constitution proclaims that a person, his life and health, are recognized in Ukraine as the highest social value. At the same time, citizens themselves, in addition to rights, have obligations, including the obligation to take care of their health and not harm the health of others. Infected people have the right to free treatment and appeal to the court demanding compensation for damage caused to their health and / or property as a result of violation of the law on protecting the population from infectious diseases. People with an infectious disease must comply with the requirements and recommendations of health workers, says the lawyer.

Some of those who went to self-isolation say that they will hide for some time in order to avoid a fine. But Bilous emphasizes that the spread of the disease can be punished with a prison term of up to 3 years. And if it led to the death of people  than from 5 to 8 years in prison.

Some repatriates are already reporting that they were offered to pay 14 500 hryvnias (520 USD) to "refuse" from the observation. So far, we do not have data on whether someone agreed to such an offer. Recall that corruption also faces criminal liability.

Is it worth staying on observation or self-isolation  thats the moral choice of the repatriate himself. You can understand those who are afraid of getting infected from the evacuees, and those who were obligated to undergo observation, although this did not concern previous flights. The problem here is the lack of a unified approach by the authorities and the strict practice of controlling self-isolation. The law should be equal for everyone. If part of the citizens was sent for observation for free, then it is necessary to provide such conditions to the rest.

Let's hope that in the future evacuated Ukrainians will act in accordance with moral standards, and the authorities  according to the letter of the law.
Tekashi 6ix9ine could be released from prison early due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The rappers lawyer, Lance Lazzaro, told Rolling Stone that a recent request to grant his client  real name Daniel Hernandez  an early release seems likely to be successful.

Lazzaro filed a motion requesting Hernandezs release last week, saying the rapper has asthma, which puts him at risk for Covid-19.

Judge Paul Engelmayer initially referred Lazzaro to the Bureau of Prisons, but according to Rolling Stone, that referral led to an appeal from Lazzaro back to Engelmayer.

Based on what [Engelmayer] wrote this morning, it seems likely hes going to grant it, Lazzaro told the publication of the request to release Hernandez.

Engelmayer gave prosecutors until Wednesday evening to make their case  and it appears that the prosecution isnt opposing the request.

United States Attorney Geoffrey Berman reportedly wrote in a letter to the judge that the Government does not oppose the defendants motion for compassionate release.

Hernandez was sentenced to two years in prison in December 2019.

He had pleaded guilty to charges accusing him of joining the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods gang.

Hernandez then cooperated with prosecutors, acting as a witness on their behalf.
The first homeless person to test positive for the coronavirus in San Francisco was living in a city shelter, officials announced Thursday, setting off a race to trace everyone the individual has recently interacted with, as officials tried to contain a potential outbreak among the citys most vulnerable residents.

Health officials said they isolated the person  who was at the Division Circle Navigation Center  in a hotel room, where they were described as being in good condition. Officials said it was unclear where or how the person got the coronavirus.

Recent counts from state and federal sources have fewer than a dozen total homeless COVID-19 cases in California and fewer than 300 nationwide.

City officials said the shelter remains open, and that masks have been provided to all of the centers residents and staff, with instructions to wear them at all times. Health officials are trying to trace every person the infected individual contacted in and outside of the shelter. The gender and age of the individual was not disclosed.

A doctor and health workers were also deployed to the shelter to conduct symptom and temperature screenings for all residents and staff, while a cleaning crew was being dispatched to disinfect the facility, which is located at 224 South Van Ness Ave. and houses about 180 people.

Health officials said any residents with symptoms will be tested and quarantined at hotel rooms. Other shelter residents will be moved out of the shelter to hotels based on their risk of exposure and risk of disease, which includes vulnerable people over 60 or with underlying conditions, they said.

Abigail Stewart-Kahn, interim director of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, said the city had planned for weeks in anticipation of the first coronavirus patient at a homeless shelter.

The well being of our homeless neighbors is our top priority, and we will continue to work in partnership with our nonprofit service providers, (Department of Public Health) and the entire city to aggressively contain the virus and protect our community, Stewart-Kahn said in a statement. To the Division Circle Navigation Center community, I am here for you, HSH and DPH are here for you as is the entire city.

Jennifer Friedenbach, director of the Coalition on Homelessness, called the development very, very frustrating and scary. Advocates for the homeless have urged city officials for weeks to move people from group living situations like shelters to hotel rooms, where they can quarantine if they must.

This has been our fear. We are really scared, Friedenbach said. The folks who live at that Navigation Center are very vulnerable ... this was exactly why we had been pushing them to stop the practice of having them sleep one on top of the other.

City homeless officials said they have been racing to set up overflow accommodations so they can cut the 2,000-person population in San Francisco shelters by about half. That would allow them to increase the physical distancing between beds to the recommended 6 feet, instead of the current 3 feet or less.

Trent Rhorer, director of San Franciscos Human Services Agency who is in charge of emergency housing, said officials hopes to meet that goal next week.

The huge Moscone West convention center will be open as an overflow shelter to take transfers by Friday, he said, and it will have 394 beds. Two other sites are in negotiation, he said, and if they come online, they will bring the total to 850 beds.

The city is also planning to move vulnerable homeless people who are 60 years or older, or have underlying conditions, into hotels rooms.

Rhorer said he expected to have 2,000 rooms in 10 hotels available by Friday evening, but those will not just be for homeless quarantines. They will also house health care workers needing respite and the most vulnerable among 19,000 people living in SRO hotels and permanent supportive housing. Those types of housing often have shared kitchens and other common spaces, making isolation difficult.

Housing homeless people in hotel rooms requires extra staffing for case management and counseling, he said. Many chronically homeless people have mental or substance abuse issues, and you cant just give them a room and say, here you go, he said. They need help while theyre inside.

Also Thursday, five city supervisors, including Hillary Ronen, whose district includes the Division Circle shelter, issued a statement saying they intend to introduce an emergency ordinance on Tuesday requiring that at least 1,000 rooms be used for unhoused people currently in congregate settings like shelters.

We cannot wait any longer, they wrote. We will mandate that the city lease an estimated 14,000 hotel rooms by the time the coronavirus is expected to reach peak infection on April 28.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Ronen and several other supervisors held a news conference at the shelter Thursday afternoon to emphasize the urgency of their demand.

We have the hotel rooms, we have the money, we have the staffing, why wouldnt we do this? Ronen said. Why wouldnt we do this right now and save thousands of lives?

City planners have set a target of renting 4,500 hotel rooms during the crisis, with 1,000 of those set aside for health workers so they may rest and isolate themselves from their families.

Randy Quezada, spokesman for the citys Emergency Operations Center, said the plan for now is to stick to that target, with the specific parameters regarding homeless.

The citys strategy is led by scientists and health experts, and for homeless people that means housing only the most vulnerable, those who need to isolate but cant and those who have coronavirus. If the guidance were getting from science changes we can adapt, for but now that is the strategy. Science has to lead the way we make these decisions.

National guidelines from the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention advise that homeless people who dont show signs of COVID-19 or who arent in a vulnerable category should remain in homeless camps, but be encouraged to keep 6 feet of space between them and supplied with sanitary gear. All counties in the Bay Area have been using those guidelines.

Rhorer estimated that securing and maintaining 14,000 hotel rooms could cost around $60 million a month in rent and staffing  at a time when the city is facing a huge budget deficit because of costs associated with the pandemic.

A lot of the homeless on the street are not able to self-care in hotel rooms, and its potentially dangerous for them to be placed in there without support, he said. So they need staffing.

Kevin Fagan and Alejandro Serrano are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: kfagan@sfchronicle.com, alejandro.serrano@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @KevinChron, @serrano_alej
As the full scale of the damage to public health caused by the Tablighi Jamaat meeting  and its aftermath  in Delhis Nizamuddin area emerges, there are some things we can be clear about.

One of them is that attempts by Hindutva communalists to try and turn this into a Hindu-Muslim issue are despicable. It is shameful that TV channels allow terms like bio-jihad to be used or let guests suggest that those who visited the Markaz Nizamuddin were out to poison Hindus.

In fact, the vast majority of those who were infected were Muslim. So, far from being a jihad against Hindus, this an act that, so far at least, has risked more Muslim lives.

The second thing we can be certain of is that various authorities are not blameless. There appears to have been laxness in granting visas. The Delhi Police, who have a station located next to the Markaz, failed to clear the building. The police have released a video of an officer speaking the leaders of the Markaz and asking them to vacate the complex. So not only were the police aware of the situation but they did not act even after the Jamaat leaders ignored their warning.

The police video also contains clear references to Delhi Administration officials which suggests that even the state government failed to act.

This may not be the best time to fix the blame but there can be no doubt that there is lots of blame to go around.

Equally, it is as clear that the Jamaat leaders behaved with extreme irresponsibility, using religion to encourage people to stay inside the building and to ignore health warnings. The videos and audiotapes that have now been discovered show Jamaat clerics saying things like Yes there is a virus. But 70,000 angels are with me and if they cant save me, who will? This is the time for more such gatherings. A voice, believed to be that of Maulana Saad, is heard saying, This is a plan to end amity between Muslims, to alienate them from each other.

These are not videos recorded in secret as part of some sting. The Jamaat actually put them up on its YouTube channel and advised people that social distancing was an elaborate conspiracy against Muslims.

At a time when millions of Indians are making sacrifices to fight the coronavirus, this kind of behaviour is not just criminal, it amounts to attempted murder.

All this seems clear cut enough. So, why is there a problem?

Well, because of what seems like a knee-jerk reaction from sections of the secular establishment.

I cannot believe that any sensible person  Hindu or Muslim, secular or communal  can approve of the primitive fundamentalism of the Jamaat, an orthodox group that would take Islam back several centuries to fulfil its objectives.

And yet, such is the nature of our political dialogue that many secular liberals believe they must respond vigorously to everything that Hindu communalists say. So, if Hindutva extremists and trolls are using terms like jihad and using the incident to attack all Muslims, then the answer must be to find some way to defend the Jamaat.

And so, we have had the sad and pathetic spectacle of various people who should know better trying every trick in the book to find excuses for the Jamaat.

All of Wednesday, we heard the excuses. There was, first of all, the constant blaming of the authorities. Why didnt the police break up the gathering? The IB was keeping a watch on the Markaz: why did it allow the foreigners who had attended to travel around India? And so on.

There are valid questions but they, in no way, lessen the horror of what the Jammat did.

A murderer is no less responsible for his actions because an inept police force failed to capture him in time.

To point to the mistakes of others to suggest that the Jamaat is only one of many guilty parties is like saying that the Holocaust was only partly Adolf Hitlers fault because the global community could have stopped him earlier but did not.

When their explanations fail to hold, some secularists then switch to a tactic that is often associated with their ideological opponents on the right  whataboutery.

Ok, they say, if this was wrong, then why was it okay for parliament to remain in session even when social distancing was the norm? What about Shivraj Singh Chauhans victory celebrations in Bhopal when legislators hugged each other despite the risk of coronavirus infection? Why was it okay for Yogi Adityanath to refuse to call off Ram Navmi celebrations till the very end? Or even, what about the migrant exodus after the lockdown where there was no physical distancing?

There are two answers to the whataboutery.

The first is that not only were all of these things wrong, they were widely criticized and condemned at the time  by many people, including those members of the secular establishment who are now using them to offer tactical cover to the Jamaat.

The second answer is that it does not matter what else happened. You cannot explain away the 2020 Delhi riots by saying that the 1984 riots were worse. All riots are bad and should be condemned. So what if legislators hugged each other at Shivraj Chauhans victory celebrations? How does it make the behaviour of the Jamaat any less criminal?

The problem with knee jerk secularism is that it can sometimes offer up excuses for the indefensible. We think we are defending the Muslim community from attacks by bigots.

In fact, we are damaging Indian secularism.

Each time secularists take a stand that runs totally counter to morality or even to common sense, we damage the liberal idea of India. Yes, communalists will play the Hindu-Muslim game. But we must never fall into the trap of doing the same thing.

We must condemn disgraceful and criminal behaviour wherever we see it. Once we start defending people only because they belong to a particular religion, we are no better than the religious bigots on the other side.

It makes no sense to say, as some are now claiming, that the incident had nothing to do with religion. This was a religious gathering. And the reasons for the behaviour of the congregation were explicitly religious  they were told that 70,000 angels would protect them.

Secularism does not mean that you rush to the defence to every Muslim, no matter what he or she has done. It means that you fight against all religious bigots and their primitive mindset that ignores science and promotes religious mumbo-jumbo.

The issue with the Jamaat gathering is not only that it endangered the lives of so many people. It is that it did so in the name of religion. In the process, it strengthened the communal Hindu propaganda that Muslims are fundamentalists who do not regard themselves as subject to Indian laws.

Of course, this is complete nonsense. The average Muslim is as sensible and as patriotic as the average Hindu. Many influential Muslims have condemned the Jamaat.

But when secularists feel obliged to find excuses for Muslim bigots, they obscure this reality. If India is to move forward, then all of us should unite to fight bigots, no matter whether they are Hindu or Muslim.

Find excuses for one or the other and the battle is already lost.

The views expressed are personal

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Except in the most violent cases, prosecutors have stopped accepting criminal complaints in person from people seeking the arrest of their alleged abusers. The office said it is setting up a way to handle the complaints by phone. Also, people are being told they can petition in civil court for emergency orders of protection, then return in two weeks for a personal review by prosecutors.
A 52-year-old COVID-19 patient with a travel history to Sri Lanka passed away on Thursday after battling with the lethal infection.

He was admitted to SSG Hospital, Vadodara on March 19.

"A 52-year-old COVID-19 patient lost his life today morning. He had a history of travel to Sri Lanka and he was admitted to SSG Hospital, Vadodara on 19 March," said S Agarwal, Vadodara Collector.

Four members of his family, who have also tested positive for the virus, are undergoing treatment, he said.

On Wednesday, Jayanti Ravi, Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department of Government of Gujarat, said that eight more people have tested COVID-19 positive. All the eight positive cases are from Ahmedabad. The condition of 66 people out of 82 in the state is stable while three persons are on ventilator support.The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's latest bulletin said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
One of my favorite rituals takes place on Sunday mornings in my tranquil little suburb of Menlo Park here in California. We have a lovely once-a-week outdoor farmers' market abounding with stalls filled with fresh vegetables, fruit, and greens galore, plus specialty items: nuts and nut butters; dates; chicken, duck, and quail eggs; fresh flowers; flash-frozen grass-fed beef; fresh breads; and quiches, cakes, and cookies from an outstanding artisan baker  not to mention the bounty from our fisherman, who takes his boat out from Half Moon Bay at the end of the week and brings us fresh salmon, sole, halibut, and crab in season.

There's always live music at one end of the row of vendors' stalls, whether jazz or folk or ethnic. And as there's a large church nearby, many people come to the market after services dressed in their Sunday best, adding to the colorful and festive atmosphere of our beloved farmers' market.

Until today.

This morning, the whole parking lot area where the market takes place was roped off. You could enter only on one end, and you had to stand in line, six feet apart from the person in front of you, and wait for permission to enter the now practically dead farmers' market. Once admitted, you had to stand in line again at each of the stalls where you wanted to make a purchase. God forbid if you touched a head of lettuce and put it back!

Otherwise ordinary people were wearing N-95 surgical masks  the kind that doctors in hospitals need but can't get due to panicked healthy individuals who stockpiled them  and sterile gloves. Across the street at Trader Joe's, there was a long line of similarly masked and gloved folks waiting in line  six feet apart  to buy their groceries.

By the way, officials of the city of Menlo Park, an affluent suburb of some 30,000 people, ordered police enforcement of this insanity to "protect" us! In the entire county of San Mateo, in which our city resides, there has been to date only one death from this virus. One! In the entire county!

Every year, tens of thousands of Americans die of "flu-related" illnesses  mostly those in their '80s and '90s whose immune systems can no longer fight off pathogens. People age and eventually weaken. This is reality. We have never shut down our entire productive economy or hijacked people's freedom over it. Avian flu, SARS, and Ebola had death rates of 20% to 40%  much worse than COVID-19 (AKA the Wuhan virus or the Chinese Coronavirus) with its mere 1% or even less, but they never got the remarkable publicity this microscopic critter has managed to snare. You can't turn on a TV or fire up your computer or gaze into your iPhone without seeing that prickly red ball that is out to get you.

Why didn't we see blown-up artist-rendered images of these other flu viruses? Or is that a question we shouldn't be asking?

Here are a few more questions that perhaps we shouldn't be asking.

Should Californians passively stand by and follow the draconian, business-killing, joy-killing, life-killing lockdown measures that Governor Newsom and our local officials suddenly feel emboldened to thrust upon us? Should citizens across the nation meekly accede to the bizarre, out-of-proportion measures being mandated by out-of-control state officials, who seem to be unaware of burgeoning unintended consequences, or else may actually want to feed the fires of destruction? Isn't it time to call out our city councils, county supervisors, all the way up to our governors?

Remember these prescient words from Founding Father Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Whether or not they "deserve" neither, they will surely get neither. Giving up liberty is a surefire road to tyranny.

Recall the world-changing lines penned by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. Then ask yourself what has happened overnight to our God-given rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness that are the birthright of every American citizen. Consider that the usurpations being visited upon us today are far worse than those our Founders faced from the policies of King George III. And those "usurpations" prompted the American Revolution.

Have we become so cowardly that we readily cede our liberty out of fear of a virus from which 99% of people recover? Where is Patrick Henry when we need him?

Yes, we want to protect our frail elderly from this virus, as from any flu. But what about the rest of us? Have we turned into a nation of paranoid hypochondriacs? This virus isn't a death sentence! But that's more than can be said for our "non-essential" small businesses: our restaurants, dry cleaners, hair salons, bookstores, movie theaters, camera stores, nail salons, tailors, repair shops, and hundreds more  the backbone of our local economies and the providers of the goods and services we need and want in our towns. These are beloved and essential parts of our communities that are dying before our eyes.

At this moment, there is an unprecedented threat to our liberty and our way of life in America, but it's not from the Chinese virus. The danger we face is a return of the debilitating and demoralizing Great Depression, and the rough beast of socialist oppression and totalitarianism advancing upon our nation.

Wake up, America!
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It's the key that opens to door from total lockdown: serologic testing, which will show definitively who has contracted COVID-19 and is in theory safe to return to work.

"Everyone's waiting for serologic testing, the whole world," said France's Health Minister Olivier Veran.

He said that the global research community was focussing on ways of perfecting the tests, which measure viral antibodies in a person's blood that signal immunity.

Veran said that mass production of the tests could start within weeks.

"It's a huge factor, especially when we're trying to reduce confinement," he said.

The World Health Organization said that serologic tests were still being developed but were yet to be properly evaluated.

'Great interest'

Current diagnostic tests, known as RT-PCR, are invasive and use genetic analysis to see if a person is actively infected.

Serologic testing, which only requires a drop of blood to conduct, focuses instead on finding virus antibodies, the presence of which indicates that an individual has had COVID-19 and is now likely immune.

"Antibodies are one of the key immune response components. They start to be detectable around a week after initial infection," said Andrew Preston, a reader in Microbial Pathogenesis at the University of Bath.

There are two types of antibodies associated with the COVID-19 immune response: IgM, which the body produces in the early stages of viral response, and IgG, which arrive later on during infection.

The tests being developed can identify both antibodies, key hallmarks of a patient's auto-immune response to the virus.

"Thus there is great interest in the use of an antibody test to indicate immunity against disease for use in the lifting of lockdown restrictions," said Preston.

Supply problem

Antibody testing is so crucial because of the large proportion of people with COVID-19 infections who may not show symptoms but can still pass the virus on to others.

Such tests already exist for other illnesses. And once they are perfected for the novel coronavirus the results can be analysed in labs using existing hardware.

Once widely available, they could be used to determine who gets to return to work and exit the lockdown currently being experienced by billions around the world.

"The main question is how to ensure everyone can return to work," Francois Blanchecotte, president of the French Union of Biologists, told AFP.

In Italy, the president of the Venice region Luca Zaia, has proposed that returning workers carry a document after testing to prove they aren't contagious.

Similar measures have been proposed in Germany.

"A GP told me yesterday that if I gave him a serologic test and it showed that he's immune, he would offer his services to a neighbouring hospital's COVID-19 unit in an flash," said Philippe Herent, director of the Synlab Opale group of laboritories.

He however cautioned that global demand for the tests is likely to significantly outstrip demand, and production remains limited.

Caveats

The tests aren't the perfect solution, however.

"They have to be used carefully. Used too early, the convalescent patient may still be carrying and shedding the virus, they may still be a risk to others," said Michael Skinner, a reader in Virology at Imperial College London.

It's due to this risk that countries are likely to continue producing and using RT-PCR tests and combine them with the serological versions.

"You might see a mix of the two: one diagnosis to see if you're still contagious and a serological test to know if you have antibodies," said Blanchecotte.

Another potential pitfall is that it not yet known for certain whether people who have recovered from COVID-19 are immune to reinfection.

"In a vast majority of infectious diseases, recovery from disease and evidence of a strong immune response would lead to a period of immunity from re-occurrence," said Preston.

"(But) the caveat is that we don't know for sure that a positive antibody test does imply someone is immune (from COVID-19)."

Most countries in lockdown still lack testing capacity, so it is not at all clear when restrictions on movement could be lifted, even with a widely available antibody test.

But serologic tests are the only way to know for sure what percentage of humanity has been infected with COVID-19, which will help inform a variety of current unknowns, not least mortality rates.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2020 AFP
Members of the gardai at a checkpoint on O'Connell Street due to Covid-19 (Coronavirus) in Dublin's City Centre Photo:Gareth Chaney/Collins

TAOISEACH Leo Varadkar has said Ireland is headed for a recession as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, but the austerity of the bailout years can be avoided with tax cuts used to stimulate the economy.

Mr Varadkar said Ireland's economic picture is very bad with the economy put to sleep as a result of the spread of the disease.

We've experienced in the last two weeks a sharp, sudden and unexpected shock to our economy, he said at a briefing in Government Buildings on Thursday evening.

The number of jobs lost in the past week or so was lost over a period of three years during the economic and financial crisis of 2008 onwards.

Mr Varadkar said that tax receipts would continue to fall in April and that the deficit and the national debt will all rise in the coming months.

We're facing a public health emergency which in turn is leading to an economic recession. But as is always the case it has always been the case, we will get through it.

Mr Varadkar said the objective certainly if I have anything to do with it is to avoid another era of austerity in Ireland and the tax increases and welfare cuts that were a hallmark of the post bank guarantee and Troika bailout period a decade ago.

He said the Government intends to pursue counter-cyclical measures to get the country out of recession, which he described as the reverse of austerity. This could potentially include tax cuts, he said, citing the reduction in VAT for the tourism, service and hospitality industry at the beginning of the last decade.

We have cut taxes in the past to stimulate the economy and it has worked, he said.

Mr Varadkar pursuing this policy would depend on the States ability to borrow at affordable prices which will also determine whether it can continue to maintain emergency welfare payments to people who have lost their jobs.

Expand Close Minister for Finance Paschal O Donohoe speaking in Government Buildings at the Q1 Exchequer Returns. Photo: Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland. / Facebook

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Whatsapp Minister for Finance Paschal O Donohoe speaking in Government Buildings at the Q1 Exchequer Returns. Photo: Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland.

I think we're in a good place in that regard, because we had a surplus going into this, because we've cash on hand, the rainy day fund, because the economy was in good nick, I think we will have the capacity to borrow long before other countries may lose it, he said.

Mr Varadkar also said the intention remains for the State exams to go ahead and that Education Minister Joe McHugh and the State Examinations Commission are working on a plan to ensure this.

Mr Varadkar said a decision will be taken towards the end of next week as to whether the restrictions in place on public movement have to be extended, relaxed or refined.

Well have a better idea towards the end of next week as to how were getting, he said.

He said there had been real progress on flattening the curve but that while the daily rate of increase had come down to 10pc it needs to go down to 5pc or less.

He added: The progress we've made is definitely not enough. We need to get that rate of increase down to about 5pc or less in order to give us the assurance that we need that we will have adequate capacity in our health service to deal with the increasing number of cases.

He said there are now 2,000 empty beds across the health system and he had never seen so much capacity in the system, but he warned that the surge is only starting.

Mr Varadkar also ruled out giving people over 66 access to the 350 pandemic unemployment payment, saying they should already be drawing the State pension.

We have to make sure that everyone has something and that does mean that some people are getting maybe more than they ought to have got and some people are getting maybe less than they think they should have got, he said.

But the only way you can make sure that people have money last Friday was a very simple scheme - 350 weeks across the board for anyone who lost their job and yes, there are anomalies, and we'll try and do the best we can.

He said that Children's Minister Katherine Zappone is working on a proposal to provide childcare for healthcare workers that would be announced in the coming days and will likely involve childcare in the home.

This comes after Mr Varadkar warned the country is facing into an economic emergency due to the coronavirus crisis.

During a teleconference call with political leaders, Mr Varadkar said the spread of the virus resulted in sudden shocks to the economy.

The Fine Gael leader also noted that unemployment is now higher than during the first days of the financial crash.

One source said Mr Varadkar told the leaders of political parties that the Covid-19 virus has done as much damage as the banking crisis.

He told them to suspect sudden sharp shocks to the economy and said this was now an economic emergency, the source added.

Another source said: Varadkar said we are facing an economic emergency.

The Taoiseachs spokesperson said Mr Varadkar said the increase in unemployment was worse than the crash and that it happened more suddenly.

Thats a fact. More than 500,000 people are listed on the live register today, the spokesperson said.

The crash caused widespread unemployment, collapsed the property market and resulted in a massive bailout for the banking sector.

Mr Varadkar was briefing political leaders on the impact the virus has had on the States finances by video link.

Party leaders and representatives of Independent TDs raised concerns about the delays in testing and the lack of personal protection equipment for medical staff.

At the end of the meeting, Mr Varadkar complained that his comments about the economy had leaked before the called had finished.

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It comes after a fall in tax income will be an even bigger hit to the Exchequer than extra spending linked to the Covid-19 outbreak, Paschal Donohoe has warned.

The Minister for Finance told reporters on Thursday that a Central Bank estimate for 8bn of extra spending this year on measures linked to the outbreak will definitely be in the vicinity of a figure like that, potentially higher the longer this public health emergency continues for and how quickly the public health guidance changes.

And he said the full financial hit will be more than double that as income tax, Vat and other tax headings shrink even faster than spending rises.

I should indicate though that the tax revenue that will be foregone as a result of economic activity going down is likely to be ahead of that (8bn) figure and the cumulative cost of where we will be will be high but it is going t be completely by how long this phase of the public health emergency goes on.

The Minister and his officials also admitted that the prospect of a so called V-shaped economic recover as swift and steep as the current crash is increasingly unlikely.

A rapid turnaround and economic bounce back is still a possibility the Minister said, but the Secretary General of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform Robert Watt warned that even if it happens for some parts of the economy others face a longer period of disruption  including overseas travel.

It comes as the latest Exchequer returns from the Government, which track revenue and spending each month, showed that VAT collected in the first three months of this year was 849m less than the same period in 2019 at just over 1bn.

March is a big month for VAT payments which have been waived for many companies to help them survive the coronavirus lockdowns that have shuttered businesses across the State and confined people to their homes.

At the same as revenues fell sharply, current spending rose dramatically, by 11.5pc, pushing overall spending top 13.6bn, a figure that was 960m more than the Government had expected at the end of the first quarter.

So far, the State has set out around 8bn in emergency spending to help the economy survive the coronavirus shock, although the final bill will be much higher, with some economists saying it will cost 25bn to repair the damage.

An Exchequer deficit of 2,535m was recorded to end-March 2020. This compares to a deficit of 966m in the same period last year, the Department of Finance said in a statement.

At this stage, the 1,569m year-on-year deterioration is driven by increases in current and capital voted expenditure, it said.

Official data revealed today showed that the coronavirus pandemic has pushed over 300,000 workers onto State wage support lifelines as they have either been laid off or seen their pay cut.

The Central Statistics Office said that 283,037 people were in receipt of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment and that 25,104 were signed up for the Temporary COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme.

The Central Statistics Office Live Register tracks benefits and so those who have signed up for Government wage have now been added to the register.

The majority of those whose income from employment has been affected due to Covid-19 are currently being facilitated through the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment which is administered by the DEASP, while a smaller cohort are currently being facilitated through the Revenue Temporary Covid-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme, the CSO said.
Doctors continue to be baffled over how the severity of coronavirus varies so dramatically among patients around the globe.

More than 47,000 people have died from the killer disease since it first reared its head in China in December.

The US is now grappling under the pandemic, recording the highest number of cases topping 216,000 and recording a death toll of more than 5,000.

But despite the number of cases, medical professionals remain confused about why the virus affects some people much more severely than others.

A member of the Brooklyn Hospital Center helps a person who was just tested for COVID-19. Doctors continue to be baffled over how the severity of coronavirus varies so dramatically among patients around the globe

At one end of the spectrum, some people have tested positive with no symptoms at all.

At the other, people who on the surface have appeared to be fit and healthy have lost their lives.

'Why are some people completely asymptomatic, some have mild disease, others have severe disease but recover - and others have fatal disease? We are still trying to figure this out,' Dr. Brian Schwartz, Vice Chief for Clinical Affairs in UC San Francisco's Division of Infectious Diseases, told Mercury News.

'It is a small subset of people that will go on to develop serious disease. Most will not,' he said.

'We want to learn how to prevent people from developing serious disease - and if they do, figure out how to treat it the right way.'

Age is known to be a key deciding factor, with older people statistically at a greater risk of dying if they become infected.

The death rate climbs with age, with those aged 80-plus having a 14.8 to 20 percent chance of dying.

'Why are some people completely asymptomatic, some have mild disease, others have severe disease but recover - and others have fatal disease? We are still trying to figure this out,' Dr. Brian Schwartz, Vice Chief for Clinical Affairs in UC San Francisco's Division of Infectious Diseases, asked

Among those aged below 19, the death rate is just 0.2 percent.

However there are always anomalies with age.

A 101-year-old man in hard-hit Italy tested positive for coronavirus last week. One week later he had recovered and was released from hospital.

The news came as Connecticut announced the youngest fatality recorded worldwide, when a six-week-old baby died from the illness.

Underlying health conditions are also linked to the severity of the case, with those with diabetes, lung disease and heart disease at greater risk.

Doctors have not yet fully pinpointed why this is the case.

Higher percentages of patients with underlying conditions are being admitted to the hospital and to an ICU than healthier individuals, according to the CDC.

Monica and Adrian Arima both began feeling ill with body aches and low-grade fever when they were returning home to Palo Alto after holidaying on a Nile River cruise together. Their conditions varied dramatically

Dr. Michelle A. Albert of UC San Francisco and president of the Bay Area American Heart Association's board of directors, said coronavirus and heart disease are both inflammatory conditions so this means the virus could worsen underlying heart conditions.

'Against the backdrop of existing inflammation, it could set off a cascade that results in a worsened underlying biological system,' she said.

Some pre-existing health conditions such as cystic fibrosis, asthma, or emphysema - as well as the effects of cancer treatment - can leave patients more susceptible to infection.

One elderly couple who fell ill from coronavirus have told how they both contracted the disease at the same time but developed drastically different symptoms.

Medical personnel with protective suits transport the possible cases of COVID-19 to the Molinette hospital through the use of ambulances on March 26 in Italy

A paramedic sanitizes an ambulance at Mt. Sinai Hospital on April 1 in New York

Monica and Adrian Arima both began feeling ill with body aches and low-grade fever when they were returning home to Palo Alto after holidaying on a Nile River cruise together.

Adrian is 70 and Monica is 64, meaning Adrian is in a higher risk age group.

But Monica has asthma and diabetes, while Adrian's underlying health is good, meaning she is in a higher risk health group.

They said their symptoms were identical but Monica went on to be hospitalized for 13 days needing to be given oxygen and an experimental drug.

Adrian was in hospital for three days and didn't need oxygen or the drug.

Monica still has a cough weeks later but Adrian has fully recovered.

Some doctors also believe there could be genetic reasons for the differing reactions.

'One of the things that we've learned from human genetics is that there are extremes at the human phenotype distribution, and pathogen susceptibility is no different,' Stanford geneticist Carlos Bustamante said in Science.

'There are going to be people who are particularly susceptible, and there are going to be those who are particularly resistant.'

Schwartz believes this could be down to the 'doors' of a cell that allows the virus to enter the body.

Coronavirus enters the body through cells in the respiratory tract using a 'door' or receptor called ACE-2 on the cell's surface.

Schwartz's theory is that the virus enters some people more easily because they have either more doors or their doors open more easily, exposing them to more of an infection.
WILMINGTON, Del., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Young Conaway is pleased to welcome two new associates to the firm's Intellectual Property Litigation Section.

Nicholas D. Picollelli, Jr. joins the firm after practicing asbestos law at a local Delaware office of a national firm. Mr. Picollelli earned his J.D. and Business Organizations Law Certificate from Widener University Delaware Law School in 2016. While in law school, he was a Senior Staff Member of The Delaware Journal of Corporate Law and member of the Moot Court Honor Society. Following graduation, he completed back-to-back clerkships for the Honorable Charles W. Welch III in the Delaware Court of Common Pleas and the Honorable William L. Witham, Jr. in the Delaware Superior Court.

Mr. Picollelli received his undergraduate degree in History from Virginia Tech in 2012. During college, Mr. Picollelli was a Cadet in the Reserve Officer Training Corps and Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets. Following graduation, he served for seven years in the Delaware Army National Guard as a Military Police Officer, earning the rank of First Lieutenant.

Mr. Picollelli is admitted to practice in both Delaware and Pennsylvania.

Joseph F. Ecker joins the firm after serving as a Patent Examiner at the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO). Mr. Ecker earned his J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law in their Intellectual Property Law Track in 2018. While in law school, he was an Executive Board Member of the Maryland Intellectual Property Student Association and judicial extern in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland for the Honorable Marvin J. Garbis, who was a founding member of the Patent Pilot Program for the District of Maryland.

Mr. Ecker received his undergraduate degree in Bioengineering/Biomedical Engineering from the University of Maryland in 2015. While in school, Mr. Ecker spent several years working at a technology incubator at University of Maryland where he led pre-clinical research and manufacturing projects for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

Mr. Ecker is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and Maryland and is registered to practice before the USPTO.

About Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP

Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP counsels national and international clients, handling sophisticated advisory and litigation matters involving bankruptcy, intellectual property, corporate and alternative entity law. Young Conaway also guides regional businesses through a myriad of employment, education, real estate, tax, estate planning, environmental, and banking issues. For additional information, contact Marketing and Business Development Director Felicia Gojmerac, 302.571.6600 or [email protected] or follow us on LinkedIn or Twitter.

SOURCE Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP
The numbers we have right now are March, where you dont really see the totality of the damage done by the emergency; April numbers may give us better guidance, Harris said. And then there will have to be some discussions about when do we think the economy will reopen, and how fast will it ramp back up, as we try to project off into the future for the next budget year.
A few contractual doctors of Hindu Rao Hospital in north Delhi have expressed their desire to leave the facility during the coronavirus outbreak, NDMC commissioner said on Wednesday.

She made the remarks on Twitter, sharing an 'order' stating that some doctors and nurses have tendered their resignations in view of the coronavirus pandemic, but they will not be accepted.

The North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) commissioner said the "order was issued against directions of DHA and without the knowledge of Additional Commissioner and Commissioner. Disciplinary action will be taken for this disobedience". "From my side, ANY unwilling worker is MORE than welcome to resign. Especially in a pandemic," Joshi said in a series of tweets.

The only remotely coronavirus-related activity presently going on at Hindu Rao Hospital is screening, for which more than enough personal protective equipment (PPE) kits are available, she claimed.

"More PPE kits are being procured directly from the manufacturers. We will evidently never undertake any activity which risks our staff," she added. Joshi also shared pictures of a few doctors working at the hospital wearing PPE.

"Only a couple of contract doctors have expressed a desire to leave. Their applications will be processed tomorrow itself. Plainly, their contract WILL NOT BE RENEWED IN FUTURE," she said. The total number of coronavirus cases in Delhi rose to 152 on Wednesday.

Also read: Coronavirus Cases in India Live Updates: First COVID-19 case in Arunachal; man attended Nizamuddin event

Also read: Coronavirus: India to buy masks, ventilators from China to meet shortage
Amiya Meethal By

Express News Service

KOZHIKODE: "I set off from my home four months back to undertake four-month-long Jamaat (preaching) along with two others. Our first 80 days were in Ernakulam and Idukki districts and the rest in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana," says the 21-year old youth of Kozhikode who was present at the Banglewali Masjid of Tablighi Jamaat (TJ) in West Nizamuddin on March 18-19.

It is learnt that the religious congregation on March 18 at the mosque converted the place into a Covid-19 hot spot, claiming 10 lives and caused hundreds of positive cases so far.

"We did not take part in the congregation on March 18 as it was meant for Tamil people. But we stayed at the masjid. The practice in the mosque was such that two people had to share food from a plate. But most of the time, we ate from outside. There are no rooms in the multi-storey mosque. Hundreds will sleep together in halls," the Perambra native told TNIE.

He along with two others from Kuttiyadi, both above 50, set off for Jamaat together. "On return, we boarded the train on March 20 from Nizamuddin and alighted at Kozhikode station around 6.30pm on March 22 and reached home by a car," he said.

The youth said that there were five members on return journey, all from Kozhikode, plus a 12-year-old North Indian boy. "The boy was sent with us by his relatives in New Delhi as his father is working in Kerala. The train compartment was half empty," said the youth.

According to him, all five are in home quarantine now and none of them has any Covid-19 symptoms. The youth, who did not complete plus-two, was in Bahrain for a year and then came back to pursue freelance photography.

He, along with nine others, went for preaching in UP and Haryana. Two of them are from Kottayam. "People will join the team and drop out as the time slot of Jamaat for each will be different. Mine is not a TJ Muslim family. Only I was attracted to this way," he said.

According to local health officials, they are closely monitoring the youth on a daily basis and he has not shown any symptoms in the 11 days of quarantine.

Three time schedules of Jamaat

According to another senior TJ follower, who is an assistant professor here, Jamaat of TJ meant preaching the Muslims to adhere to the basic tenets of the religion.

"It could be termed as a call for returning to the basics of the religion. The Jamaat would be held at a mosque. One can choose Jamaat of three types -- 3 days, 40 days and four months," he said. The assistant professor along with two others were at Banglewali Masjid on March 7-10 and returned on March 11.
Researchers have found strong evidence that the risk for armed conflict is higher after a climate-related disaster, but only in vulnerable countries.

Lead author Tobias Ide from the University of Melbourne said the disasters include storms, floods and droughts - the frequency and intensity of which will increase in the future, due to climate change.

"Bushfires in Australia will not spark a civil war as the state is democratic and able to provide relief," said DECRA Fellow Dr Ide. "But when it comes to droughts in Nigeria or storms in Pakistan, where you have large marginalised populations and little state presence, the picture may well change."

The paper, published today in the Global Environmental Change journal, provides invaluable evidence for policy makers such as the United Nations Security Council, which has been called on to invest in climate adaptation and risk reduction for the millions of people already suffering from the effects of climate change.

"The question 'Will a warming world also be a world with more violent and armed conflicts?' has been a very real one for political leaders and civil societies across the world," Dr Ide said. "Climate change makes tense social and political situations even worse, so climate-change disasters may act like a 'threat multiplier' for violent conflicts.

"Only countries with large populations, the political exclusion of ethnic groups and relatively low levels of economic development, are susceptible to disaster-conflict links. Measures to make societies more inclusive and wealthier are, therefore, no-regrets options to increase security in a warming world."

Research on the effects of climate change have on armed violence have previously been open to interpretation but Dr Ide and his colleagues say their study shows that climate-related disasters enhance armed conflict risks.

"We find that almost one third of all conflict onsets in vulnerable countries over the recent decade have been preceded by a climate-related disaster within seven days," said co-author Carl-Friedrich Schleussner from Climate Analytics. "This does, however, not mean that disasters cause conflicts, but rather that occurrence of disasters increase the risks of an outbreak."

Dr Ide added: "If we look at what happened in Mali when a severe drought occurred in June 2009, we can see that the militant Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) group exploited the resulting state weakness and desperation of local people to recruit fighter and expand its area of operation. The Philippines were another country where recurrent disasters weakened government structures in contested regions, hence opening a space for rebel groups."

In the large majority of cases, opportunity factors drove the onset of armed violence. Rather than aggrieved populations, rebels exploited the temporary weakness of the state after a disaster, to stage attacks.

Michael Brzoska, a co-author and Associate Senior Researcher from the University of Hamburg, said: "The most surprising result of our study for me was the prevalence of opportunities for armed violence over those related to grievances in post-disaster situations."

The study employed an innovative approach combining different research methods. "For the first time, we brought together statistical analysis on the global level with case study assessments allowing us to assess the robustness of our findings as well as to compare the individual circumstances of each case," said co-author Jonathan Donges from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impacts Research.

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Paris, April 2, 2020 - Sodexo, world leader in Quality of Life, reaffirms its whole-hearted commitment to its clients, consumers, suppliers and employees in the 67 countries in which the company operates, to combat the health, economic and social fallout from COVID-19.

From the very first signs of the December 2019 COVID-19 outbreak in China, Sodexo began mobilizing its resources to ensure its consumers stay safe and healthy and that its business continues to operate for its clients:

Sodexo is on the front line with healthcare professionals and patients everywhere . The 95,000 Sodexo employees working in hospitals, senior residences and in areas of public administration under strain, are fully mobilized and have been supported by additional team members from sites with lower activity. In China , with strongly reinforced health measures, Sodexo staff were on the front line to support healthcare professionals and patients in the hospitals of Wuhan. In France, 40 Creche Attitude nurseries have welcomed children of healthcare professionals and we have maintained the catering operations for schools that have remained open .

. Sodexo has ensured continuity of its operations according to local situations. In the United States despite many schools and universities closing, our teams continue to provide students with access to food by distributing 300,000 meals a day.



Everywhere, the health and safety of employees and consumers is Sodexo's top priority. We have introduced enhanced measures in addition to social-distancing guidelines that all staff adhere to, including:

Modification of the service offered in our restaurants linked to the requirements of social distancing;

offered in our restaurants linked to the requirements of social distancing; Creation of specific shortened menus to take into account the exceptional organization of the sites;

to take into account the exceptional organization of the sites; Reinforcement of Food Health and Safety measures in kitchens and small communities by, for example, supplying staff in elderly care homes with disposable gowns that are changed every day, and cleaning or disinfecting all human contact points every four hours in all workplaces in France.

Mindful of the difficulties encountered by its suppliers, Sodexo has also adopted support measures:

Taking into account the needs and constraints of suppliers as close as possible to the field : payment deadlines, logistics chain support, adaptation of our orders (volumes, consumption dates, etc.);

: payment deadlines, logistics chain support, adaptation of our orders (volumes, consumption dates, etc.); Implementation of agile financing solutions , in particular for SMEs and local suppliers;

, in particular for SMEs and local suppliers; Early redemption of vouchers to support restaurants affiliated in France.

In addition, Sodexo is demonstrating its unanimity in the current crisis:

By supporting staff of health establishments: In France , donation of 1,200 meals offered by Lenotre in Ile-de-France, donation of several hundred electronic tablets to maintain the link between hospitalized patients and their loved ones, and the donation of 26 tons to date of fruit and vegetables to more than a hundred health establishments and their staff in

Ile-de-France and Grand Est.



By supporting communities with what they need most: In France, donation of nearly 25 tons of food by the Schools & Universities segment to various associations; the equivalent of 43,000 meals. In the United States , significant donations to food aid associations including Feeding America, Food Recovery Network, Moves for Hunger and Food Rescue US.



Sodexo is extremely proud of its employees who do a great job in often tough circumstances, and in locations that are on the front line. Sodexo recognizes their dedication and professionalism and extends its heartfelt thanks.

Sodexo immediately responded to the pandemic's economic impact by adapting its operational management. This included closing down sites, lowering service frequency and cancelling or postponing some services.

Whenever possible, we have reassigned our people whose workplaces have closed to other sites urgently requiring additional team members.

To date, almost 4,000 employees, primarily in North America and in Europe, have been reassigned to hospitals and retirement homes, which urgently required additional staff.

For example, 40 employees, who normally work in New York airline lounges, have acted as reinforcements for our people working at the Maimonides Medical Center.

Sodexo is working proactively with other business sectors like retailers, e-commerce and manufacturing firms to find jobs for our employees hit by the COVID-19 economic fallout, who cannot be placed with other clients.

Despite all our efforts, we know that this once-in-a-lifetime crisis currently confronting us will regrettably mean lay-offs for some of our on-site staff in some countries, while strictly adhering to local employment legislation. As a result, we have decided to establish

a global Sodexo Employee Relief Program to help on-site staff, who face layoffs.

The global program will be administered locally according to the specific needs of each country and support provided will depend on various factors, including the existence of government social protection programs.

This 30 million program directed towards those facing lay-offs due to site closures will be funded by senior executives and the company as follows: Sodexo Chairwoman of the Board of Directors Sophie Bellon will waive 50% of her remuneration over the coming 6 months 1 , Group CEO Denis Machuel will waive 50% of his fixed remuneration over the next 6 months as well as his variable remuneration for Fiscal 2020, Group Executive Committee members will give up 10% of their fixed remuneration over the coming 6 months as well as their annual variable remuneration, The 200 senior executives from all segments and operations around the world will also waive their annual variable remuneration.

due to site closures will be funded by senior executives and the company as follows:





Sodexo Chairwoman of the Board of Directors, Sophie Bellon said:

"Our teams are our most precious asset. In adversity, they demonstrate the strength of our values ??and their professionalism without fail. I want to highlight my support and express my gratitude to them during these particularly difficult times."





Sodexo CEO, Denis Machuel said:

"Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic, our employees have been exemplary under often difficult conditions serving our clients and consumers around the world, and I want to pay a huge tribute to them. This unprecedented crisis highlights the major role played by the service industry and our people in the global campaign to fight the virus. We are making every effort to support our employees, clients, consumers and suppliers as much as possible. The Employee Relief Program allows us to address the individual needs of the most vulnerable affected by this once-in-a-lifetime global crisis."





About Sodexo

Founded in Marseille in 1966 by Pierre Bellon, Sodexo is the global leader in services that improve Quality of Life, an essential factor in individual and organizational performance. Operating in 67 countries, Sodexo serves 100 million consumers each day through its unique combination of On-site Services, Benefits & Rewards Services and Personal and Home Services. Sodexo provides clients an integrated offering developed over more than 50 years of experience: from foodservices, reception, maintenance and cleaning, to facilities and equipment management; from services and programs fostering employees' engagement to solutions that simplify and optimize their mobility and expenses management, to in-home assistance, child care centers and concierge services. Sodexo's success and performance are founded on its independence, its sustainable business model and its ability to continuously develop and engage its 470,000 employees throughout the world.

Sodexo is included in the CAC 40, FTSE 4 Good and DJSI indices.

Key figures (as of August 31, 2019)



22.0 billion euro in consolidated revenues



470,000 employees



19thlargest private employer worldwide



67 countries



100 million consumers served daily



7.7 billion euro in market capitalization (as of March 17, 2020)

Contacts

Analysts and Investors Press Virginia Jeanson

Tel: +33 1 57 75 80 56

virginia.jeanson@sodexo.com (mailto:virginia.jeanson@sodexo.com) Mathieu Scaravetti

Tel: +33 6 28 62 21 91

mathieu.scaravetti@sodexo.com (mailto:mathieu.scaravetti@sodexo.com)









1The Chairwoman does not receive any annual variable compensation.







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The coronavirus has killed three of the six people confirmed to have the virus in rural Toole County, an especially deadly tally at least partially tied to the state's first outbreak in an assisted living facility.

The small county in northern Montana has a population of about 4,800 but accounts for three-fifths of the state's five total deaths from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Statewide 217 people have been sickened and at least 32 have recovered, while 19 have been hospitalized.

COVID-19 hits those who are older or have existing health conditions hardest. Toole County reported its first case of the virus March 25. That was 79-year-old Bev Rogers, whose family said she died four days later.

In the Cut Bank Pioneer Press newspaper, the family wrote that Rogers had been a resident of the Marias Heritage Center, a 38-bed retirement and assisted living facility under the umbrella of the Marias Medical Center, the county hospital.

"When she was living at your facility, she would mention you each by name and brag about how well you cared for her. You had concern for her until the end," the family wrote in the paper.

On March 27, two days after Rogers' positive test for COVID-19 was reported, the Marias Medical Center posted a press release to its Facebook page saying the county had confirmed additional COVID-19 cases that included employees at the Marias Heritage Center. The release did not say how many employees were ill.

"The situation also exposed others to COVID-19 and, as such, we expect that there could be other positives," the release read.

The Toole County Health Department said Wednesday that it could not provide details about how many of the county's six total cases are connected the assisted living facility, citing privacy laws.

The state provides information about the age and gender of patients, however, and Toole County cases have been mostly in an older population. In addition to Rogers, the cases include a man between the ages of 70-79, a woman between 80-90, and another woman between 90-99. The other two cases are a woman between the ages of 10-19 and a woman between 40-50.

Little information specific to the assisted living facility was available from either the Toole County Health Department or the Marias Heritage Center.

The health department has put out press releases and videos on its Facebook page about case tallies and deaths in the county. Many local health agencies and counties have relied on Facebook during the pandemic to get information out to the public.

Local county health offices and medical facilities, including Toole County, have been overwhelmed trying to respond to COVID-19 cases, making it difficult to find time to respond to media requests for information.

Asked Tuesday and Wednesday over the phone and in messages about what measures have been taken at the Heritage Center to protect residents from further spread of the virus, the county did not answer and directed questions to the facility.

The Heritage Center also did not return messages left by phone and online asking about the degree of exposure at the facility and what measures were being taken to protect residents, employees and others from further spread of the virus.

The health department did post a release on its Facebook page Wednesday about the county's third death and sixth positive case, the test results for which came back Tuesday.

"We know this virus is deadly and now that reality has hit home in a terrible, tragic way. You as a community need to come together and stop this by following guidance provided. We are working diligently around the clock to stop the spread and keep our community informed," the release reads.

Toole County Commission Chair Joe Pehan told Lee Newspapers on Monday that health care facilities in Shelby are on lockdown, and patients and residents are not allowed out of their rooms, to help prevent the spread of the virus. Employees wear protective suits when delivering meals, he said.

"We're taking every precaution to keep everyone safe and keep this from spreading in all our facilities," Pehan said. "The whole town, we're on the governor's shelter-in-place (order) so there isn't hardly any movement in the town of Shelby whatsoever."

Jim Murphy, the head of the Communicable Disease Bureau in the state Department of Public Health and Human Services, said Monday the Toole County situation is the first outbreak of COVID-19 in Montana in a congregate setting. The state monitors those types of outbreaks, and Murphy noted that because the coronavirus is a new disease, even a single case would be considered an outbreak.

Congregate settings present heightened risks, Murphy said, for several reasons, including the opportunity for the virus to spread and, in this case, the percentage of those involved who would be more likely to get severely ill because of their age.

"A COVID-19 case that is in a nursing home or congregate setting is a lot more of a risk than somebody in a private house," Murphy said.

Any time there's an outbreak in a settling like an assisted living facility, Murphy the state works with the local health department and offers them assistance.

The governor's office said earlier this week it was sending Toole County additional personal protective equipment for health care providers, and health care staff from other areas of the state.

Administrative rules in Montana detail how quickly a health care provider must notify counties, and in turn how fast counties must notify the state, about reportable illnesses, which includes include COVID-19. Murphy said Toole County has been "very rapid" in reporting information about its cases and alerting the state to the situation at the assisted living facility.

"It was all handled in the same evening, the result came in in the evening and they initiated conversations with a couple jurisdictions and clinicians that were involved," Murphy said.

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Turkey said the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has surpassed 15,000 and the virus has now spread to all of the country's 81 provinces.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca also told reporters on Wednesday that 63 more patients have died of the virus, raising the death toll in Turkey to 277.

The number of confirmed cases now stands at 15,679, Koca said, with 2,148 more new infections detected in the past 24 hours.

The Turkish government had refrained from providing a breakdown of COVID-19 cases by region, saying it wanted to prevent people from traveling to areas that were free of the virus.

However, with infections now registered in all provinces, Koca revealed for the first time that 60 percent of the cases are located in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and could lead to death.
A woman stopped by the police while running alongside her son in a Havana suburb, a man reprimanded by an agent by the capital citys Malecon (seawall), which he was driven away from...

Cubans agree that streets on the island are emptier than usual, but many are unclear on what they can and cannot do, what the limits are, as they do not know how far the government's recommendations go, and just exactly what is mandatory.

The police are no better informed, according to accounts appearing on social media: diffident and unconvincing, they are unable to give citizens precise explanations and indications.

The responsibility for this situation lies with the government, not only due to its lack of effective communication, which has generated confusion, but also because many of the measures taken in Cuba so far are unconstitutional and, as such, illegal.

Restrictions such as those on travel, for both Cubans and foreigners on the island, the school closures, the prohibition on picking up family members arriving from abroad at airports, the compulsory confinement of family members, etc., had no legal footing. The only thing supporting their imposition is having been declared by the government through official media, but this does not make them legal.

Such measures would only be lawful after the declaration of a "state of emergency" which, however, has yet to be announced. And this is where the confusion begins.

According to Article 67 of the Constitution, paragraph two, referring to the different working hours and the systems governing them, these may be, exceptionally, altered by the National Defense Law, whose Articles 20 and 21 stipulate that "in cases of natural disasters or catastrophes, or their imminence; or other circumstances whose nature, magnitude or proportion affect internal order, the security of the country, or the stability of the state, the president of the Council of State may declare a state of emergency throughout the nation, or part of it, and, for the duration of its validity, implement the population's mobilization."

The law stipulates the way in which the state of emergency is declared, its effects, and its cancellation. It also determines the fundamental rights and duties recognized by the Constitution, the exercise of which must be regulated differently during the state of emergency."

In other words, Esteban Lazo, in his capacity as President of the Council of State, should be the one to declare a state of emergency, thereby legalizing the restriction of freedoms, currently imposed in Cuba in an arbitrary manner.

In addition, Law 75 on National Defense must be invoked to implement the state of emergency.

This laws states that "National Defense is prepared and executed under the leadership of the Communist Party. The State, for its part, must ensure the necessary resources."

The use of the National Defense Act "is provided for in three cases: war, general mobilization, or a state of emergency."

With regards to the latter, it states that, once declared, "as soon as circumstances permit, the President of the Council of State reports his decision to the National Assembly of Popular Power, or the Council of State, if the former cannot meet."

In addition, "the President of the Council of State may prolong the state of emergency, or declare it over, depending on the presence or disappearance of the causes that gave rise to it, and shall report his decision to the National Assembly or the Council of State, as provided for."

In other words, only a duly declared state of emergency can temporarily restrict the rights of citizens in peacetime, but this is currently being done in Cuba anyway.

The government has also activated the Defense Councils, ignoring the fact that, according to Law No. 75, they "they are constituted and prepared during peacetime to govern the country under conditions corresponding to a state of war, war, general mobilization, or a state of emergency, the least stringent exceptional measure."

Unlike Cuba, other countries affected by Covid-19 have declared states of emergency, alarm, or activated other mechanisms existing in their legal systems for emergency situations in which citizens' freedoms need to be restricted.

Why has the Cuban Government not done this, despite being in the midst of a global pandemic?

It is difficult to verify the truth from among the possible explanations: not to further alarm the population, the tendency to govern in an autocratic manner, deeply rooted in Castroism...

In any event, the government has once again taken advantage of the lack of a democratic culture in the country, a deficiency that it has nurtured among Cubans, and ignorance of the constitutional mechanisms that limit restrictions on fundamental rights theoretically protected by the Constitution.

No one, not even the State, can violate fundamental rights without a legal basis to do so. The fact that the government has invoked protecting the public from a health crisis does not make its actions valid, nor is the repeated proclamation of the existence of the rule of law in Cuba credible when there is no adherence to the rules established by the State itself.

The call to "strengthen the rule of law" made by Miguel Diaz-Canel at the close of the Fourth Regular Session of the National Assembly of Popular Power, on December 21, the focus of the intense legislative agenda that had been planned for the coming months, is an early casualty of Covid-19 in Cuba.
The California Department of Public Health is again reporting daily counts of health workers infected with the coronavirus after The Chronicle reported its decision this week to withhold the data, prompting outrage from nurses and other medical professionals.

A Chronicle reporter also asked Gov. Gavin Newsom why the state stopped sharing the data.

Happy to provide information, and well make sure you get that, Newsom responded during his daily news briefing Wednesday.

The same day, the states public health department resumed reporting those cases. In its daily release, the department said 127 health workers were infected across the state  a jump from Saturday, when 73 health workers were infected. That was the last day the state reported numbers before stopping. Later on Thursday, numbers were updated to show 138 health workers have been infected.

Health workers expressed outrage Monday when they learned from a reporter that the information would no longer be available. The numbers had been climbing by about five a day since late March, and then, on Saturday, they leaped from 48 to 73.

Health workers said the numbers of infections among their ranks was critical to understanding the scope of the outbreak  especially because many medical professionals report having to work without sufficient personal protective equipment.

Christa Duran, an emergency room nurse at San Francisco General Hospital, said she was glad to hear Thursday the data was shared again. She had called the decision to withhold the numbers bulls.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

If more health care workers and frontline workers are being exposed without the proper PPE, then its really important to see these numbers because it gives them more ability to analyze the best ways to combat this virus because were still learning about it, Duran said.

Mallory Moench is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mallorymoench
Top Congress leaders on Thursday discussed the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak and the lockdown, with party chief Sonia Gandhi calling for acting in solidarity and helping the disadvantaged during the crisis.

She said while the 21-day nationwide lockdown may have been necessary, the "unplanned manner" of its implementation had caused chaos and pain to millions of migrant workers all over India.

Besides Sonia Gandhi, former prime minister Manmohan Singh and former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and other senior leaders discussed the issue at a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) through video conferencing.

Addressing the meeting, Sonia Gandhi said the country is in the midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis.

"The magnitude of the challenge before us is daunting but our resolve to overcome it must be greater," she said.

She said the COVID-19 pandemic has already caused untold suffering across the world, but it has also "reaffirmed the bonds of brotherhood" that unite humanity.

"In our country, those who are most vulnerable to the consequences of this pandemic are the poor and disadvantaged. We must come together for their sake and do all we can to support them through the difficult days that lie ahead," she said.

She further said that "the 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a fresh effort to lessen the local damage from the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, San Francisco city leaders Thursday announced a new set of relief and  down the road  recovery efforts aimed at the citys business sector.

The immediate boost would come from $10 million in grants and low-interest loans to small businesses, an effort that builds on initiatives launched in March as concerns about the coronavirus took hold. On a more long-term basis, an economic recovery task force will begin meeting next week, with leadership from the private sector as well as City Hall.

The impact that this pandemic is having is severe to not just public health, but also our local economy and peoples livelihoods, Mayor London Breed said in a statement. We know that there is much more to be done over the coming weeks and months.

The economic strain can be measured not only by the boarded-up storefronts seen throughout the city, but the demand shown for the funds made available so far.

On March 11, Breed earmarked $1 million to be used for grants of no more than $10,000 to help businesses of five employees or fewer. That resiliency fund has already attracted more than 2,000 applicants.

One was Alvin Yu, who received an $8,000 grant on March 31 to help tide things over at Steep Creamery  his pair of boba and ice-cream-roll stands popular with tech workers in the blocks near South Park.

My wife told me about the grant at 10:30 one evening. I spent two hours putting together an application, and heard back the next day, Yu said, whose outposts are closed indefinitely. It was my first time ever reaching out to the city.

The $10 million set-aside announced Thursday includes $1 million to augment the fund that Yu and others have drawn from. The remainder will be used to create a new source of emergency business loans.

The loans will be interest-free, in amounts of up to $50,000. Like the grants, theyre reserved for businesses where an owner has no more than four employees and less than $2.5 million in gross receipts.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The task force is more aspirational  seeking, in the words of the press release announcing it, to lay the groundwork for economic recovery once the city has made meaningful progress containing COVID-19.

It will begin meeting next week, with co-chairs that include two city officials  Assessor Carmen Chu and Treasurer Jose Cisneros  as well as Chamber of Commerce CEO Rodney Fong and Rudy Gonzalez, executive director of the San Francisco Labor Council.

In a show of political unity, the task force was announced jointly by Breed and Norman Yee, president of the Board of Supervisors.

We simply cannot afford to wait in preparing for what we know will be a difficult recovery, Yee said in a statement. This global outbreak has changed our world and how we function in it.

These initiatives are part of a larger effort to soften the economic blow of recent events. The last few weeks have also seen the deferral of business taxes and various licensing fees, plus a $2.5 million relief fund for arts organizations.

John King is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron
Coronavirus response to top NATO Ministerial agenda

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

01 Apr. 2020

NATO Foreign Ministers will hold a meeting by secure videoconference on Thursday (2 April 2020) to address the Alliance's response to the coronavirus and other key issues for the Alliance.

"This is a global health crisis", Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told a press conference ahead of the one-day meeting, the first such gathering in the Alliance's history held by videoconference.

"NATO is doing its part to help in this common fight against an invisible enemy", the Secretary General said, citing examples including the airlift of medical equipment, US and Turkish medical donations and Germany taking in French and Italian patients.

Across the Alliance, allied armed forces are responding to the pandemic, including with field hospitals, transport of patients, disinfection of public spaces, and securing border crossings. "We are in this crisis together and when we respond together, our response is more effective", the Secretary General said.

Ministers will also discuss NATO's role in the fight against international terrorism, including the Alliance's training mission in Iraq. On Afghanistan, the Secretary General said that Ministers would discuss NATO's continued commitment to long-term peace and stability in the country. "The situation remains difficult", the Secretary General said, calling on the Taliban and all political actors to play their part and honour their commitments to ensure intra-Afghan negotiations can start.

Ministers are also expected to agree a new package of support for Georgia and Ukraine and address how to further strengthen NATO's political dimension, following the appointment by the Secretary General of a group of ten experts to support the process.

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A six week old baby has tragically become the youngest person in the world known to have died from coronavirus.

The baby, who was born in Connecticut on the east coast of the US, died last week after being brought to hospital in an unresponsive state, where staff were unable to revive the baby.

Tests conducted on Tuesday confirmed that the baby was Covid-19 positive and is believed to be the youngest casualty as a result of the virus.

Governor of Connecticut Ned Lamont said that the virus attacks the most vulnerable in society, as he described the baby's death as 'absolutely heartbreaking'.

He tweeted: "It is with heartbreaking sadness today that we can confirm the first pediatric fatality in Connecticut linked to COVID19.

A 6-week-old newborn from the Hartford area was brought unresponsive to a hospital late last week and could not be revived. Testing confirmed last night that the newborn was COVID-19 positive. This is absolutely heartbreaking."

It is with heartbreaking sadness today that we can confirm the first pediatric fatality in Connecticut linked to #COVID19. A 6-week-old newborn from the Hartford area was brought unresponsive to a hospital late last week and could not be revived. (1/3)  Governor Ned Lamont (@GovNedLamont) April 1, 2020

"Testing confirmed last night that the newborn was COVID-19 positive. This is absolutely heartbreaking. We believe this is one of the youngest lives lost anywhere due to complications relating to COVID-19," he continued.

"This is a virus that attacks our most fragile without mercy. This also stresses the importance of staying home and limiting exposure to other people. Your life and the lives of others could literally depend on it. Our prayers are with the family at this difficult time."
Birds and animals reclaim Palatine Hill for themselves during Rome's lockdown.

Animals and birds living on Rome's Palatine Hill are taking advantage of the lack of tourists to "take back" the hill for themselves, reports Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

The creatures live in the wildest, most undisturbed area of the Palatine, which is part of the Colosseum archaeological park, however they tend to stay hidden during the day.

Not anymore though. The wild animals, including foxes, porcupines, rabbits and hedgehogs, can now be seen pottering around in daylight among the ancient Roman ruins.

"They are present all year round, here they find a protected environment because no pesticides or herbicides are used, but only organic products with low environmental impact" - Gabriella Strano, the park's landscape architect told La Repubblica - "Generally, during the day they remain hidden out of fear but now they are back to reclaim their space."

Some of the more colourful birds include pheasants, parakeets, woodpeckers and mallards, while the hill is also home to 60,000 bees which make organic wildflower honey.

Mallards at the Fontanone

In recent weeks, Rome has seen an increasing number of ducks returning to its fountains, from the Barcaccia in Piazza di Spagna to the Fontanone on the Gianicolo, whose crowds of tourists have disappeared.

There is even a video of a mother duck with nine ducklings in tow waddling along the pavement on Lungotevere Aventino.

During Italy's lockdown, due to the Coronavirus, animals have made a return to deserted cities, emboldened by the lack of people and traffic.

In Rome there are growing cases of cinghiali or wild boar appearing on streets in the city suburbs, while further afield people have seen swans and cormorants in the canals of Venice, dolphins in the Sardinian port of Cagliari and - best of all - a badger barrelling down a street in the centre of Florence.




[April 01, 2020] SHAREHOLDER ALERT: CLAIMSFILER REMINDS AAN, BDX, FLR, MGPI INVESTORS of Lead Plaintiff Deadline in Class Action Lawsuits

NEW ORLEANS, April 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors of pending deadlines in the following securities class action lawsuits:

Becton, Dickinson and Company (BDX)

Class Period: 11/05/2019 - 02/05/2020

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: April 27, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-becton-dickinson-and-company-securities-litigation Aarons, Inc. (AAN)

Class Period: 3/2/2018 - 2/19/2020

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: April 28, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-aarons-inc-securities-litigation-1



Fluor Corporation (FLR)

Class Period: 11/2/2017 - 2/14/2020

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: April 28, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-fluor-corporation-securities-litigation-2 MGP Ingredients, Inc. (MGPI)

Class Period: 2/27/2019 - 2/25/2020

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: April 28, 2020

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-mgp-ingredients-inc-securities-litigation

If you purchased shares of the above companies and would like to discuss your legal rights and your right to recover for your economic loss, you may, without obligation or cost to you, contact us toll-free (844) 367-9658 or visit the case links above. If you wish to serve as a Lead Plaintiff in the class action, you must petition the Court on or before the Lead Plaintiff Motion deadline. About ClaimsFiler ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations. To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com

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A large number of countries announced lockdowns and restrictions on movement in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus. While these restrictions will hopefully help control COVID-19, it is also impacting a very important section of the society: The farmers. Across the world farmers are going through a tough phase because of the social distancing requirements of the current scenario.

Here's how they are coping.


Health workers sanitizing an area near the Nizamuddin mosque after Covid-19 positive people who attended a religious congregation organised by the Tablighi Jamaat spread the deadly virus to different parts of the country. (DC Photo: Pritam Bandyopadhyay)

New Delhi: The Union government has decided to proceed against the foreigners who attended a religious gathering organized by the Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin in Old Delhi, from where carriers of the coronavirus transmitted the deadly infection to different parts of the country.

The news agency PTI reported that Union home minister Amit Shah has directed the Delhi police, the police chiefs of states to take legal action under the Foreigners Act and the Disaster Management Act against 960 foreigners for violating laws of assembly.

These 960 foreigners have been blacklisted and their visas have been cancelled, the Home Ministry said in tweet.

In another significant development, sources in the Enforcement Directorate (ED) indicated to Deccan Chronicle that a money-laundering probe is being contemplated against the Tablighi Jamaat and its chief Maulana Saad to trace the source of their funds.

According to these sources, ED personnel are in touch in this regard with the Delhi police, who have registered a first information report (FIR) against the maulana and other members of Tablighi Jamaat under the Epidemic Disease Act, 1897 and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for violating government directions prohibiting public gatherings.

Bands of missionaries, several of them foreign, fanned out from the congregation to various parts of the country unwittingly carrying the deadly virus with them. Covid-19 positive cases and deaths due to the infection have been reported from Hyderabad, Tumakuru, Tamil Nadu, and other places.

The Enorcement Directorate is scrutinizing the details of the 960 foreign nationals who attended the gathering.

The ED is looking at launching a probe against the Jamaat under the stringent provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), sources said.

Prior to the Nizamuddin congregation, the Tablighi Jamaat had organised similar religious gatherings at the Sri Petaling Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which has been linked to more than 600 COVID-19 cases, making it the largest-known centre of transmission of the virus in southeast Asia.
Symptoms of coronavirus vary in intensity from one person to another. Health ministry guidelines indicate when and how to self-quarantine, and when quarantine alone is insufficient

As COVID-19, the disease caused by novel coronavirus, spreads around the world, each country has published its own guidelines on when to self-quarantine and when to contact health professionals.

In Egypt, contacting health professionals is either by calling the official hotline (105), or heading directly to hospitals dedicated to receive suspected coronavirus cases.

Official guidelines published by the Ministry of Health in Egypt with regard to symptoms of coronavirus and when to act are as follows:

Symptoms of coronavirus vary in intensity from one person to another, but generally can range from very mild to severe respiratory illness and may include fever, cough and shortness of breath. These symptoms can be very similar to those for influenza, so it may be difficult to distinguish without clinical testing.

Signs and symptoms of COVID-19 may appear two to 14 days after exposure and can include:

 Fever. A sign of activation of the immune system against a given pathogen, fever can be caused either by bacterium or virus.

 Cough. The combination of fever and cough is highly suggestive of infection in the respiratory system. Still, this combination is also present in the common cold, influenza, and many other non-lethal respiratory illnesses.

 Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. This is often an indication of the level of severity of an infection and should be taken seriously.

 Tiredness or aches. Some people are barely affected and some have shaking chills and muscle aches. Chills are usually found in later stages of the disease, and it is not a typical early sign of coronavirus. Tiredness can be described as disorientation and weakness or feeling heaviness in the body or a sluggish mind.

 Sore throat. This is an early manifestation of the disease, but when you have this symptom, the infection has probably spread through your system and may have infected others around you.

 Headaches are not a main symptom of this disease but may appear in some cases, especially in patients with chronic conditions who may have circulatory problems triggered by this new infection.

 The significant alteration in body systems typically manifests itself in the form of loss of appetite. This is a common symptom in the early phase of the disease, but may become more apparent later on, when the infection becomes more severe.

The guidelines indicate that anyone feeling these symptoms should self-isolate and not contact the official hotline in Egypt (105) or head to the hospital for testing unless:

1. You have had contact with a laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 patient and then you developed symptoms, especially cough, shortness of breath, and fever.

2. You have returned within 14 days from another country where there are rampant infections, and you developed any of the symptoms.

3. You are a healthworker or in contact with healthworkers and you develop symptoms.

4. You work in the fields of tourism or travel, connected to countries where many cases emerged, and you develop symptoms.

Protect those closest to you

If the symptoms are not linked to any of the cases abovementioned, self-quarantine is advised, in order to avoid infecting others.

Self-isolation should be practiced in such a way so as not to harm those closest to you at home.

The US Centre for Disease Control and the UK NHS issued advice in that regard as general guidelines:

The main step is to stay in a separate room with the door closed and windows open, and to sleep alone. If you have to share a bathroom, wipe the surfaces you have touched every time you use it.

If it is extremely necessary to leave the room, try to keep at least two metres (three steps) from other people that you live with, particularly older people or those with underlying health conditions.

Manage your symptoms by taking paracetamol, and stay well hydrated by drinking water and hot drinks frequently.

Wash hands frequently with soap on a regular basis, each time for at least 20 seconds. Everyone in the house should wash their hands frequently, avoid touching their face and clean surfaces regularly.

If you cough or sneeze, do that into tissues, throw them in a trash bin, and then wash your hands. Your trash bin should be kept separate to that of the rest of the household, be double-bagged, and not thrown away until 72 hours has passed.

Keep your things to yourself. This included dishes, towels, bed linen and cutlery. Your clothes can be washed with other family laundry.

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LOS ANGELES, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Consumer Watchdog released a "Know Your Rights" tip sheet today outlining 6 things consumers should know about their health care cost and access rights during the COVID-19 pandemic.

California consumers and patients should know their legal rights as COVID-19 is expected to heavily tax the resources of the health care system and may exceed capacity in some communities, potentially resulting in limitations on access to care, according to the non-profit and non-partisan Consumer Watchdog.

The prospect of shortages of medical staff and equipment for treating those made severely ill by COVID-19 has triggered discussion of "rationing" medical care. Those suffering from other major illnesses unrelated to COVID-19 may also experience roadblocks to accessing care as the health care system is burdened with treating COVID-19 patients.

New actions taken by Governor Gavin Newsom and state regulators help to ensure continued access to medical care, and existing state and federal laws prohibit rationing measures that discriminate on the basis of a pre-existing condition or disability.

"The last thing Californians should have to worry about when they are trying to keep themselves and their families safe is whether they'll have access to health care if they need it," said Jerry Flanagan, Litigation Director for Consumer Watchdog. "We encourage California patients to wash their hands, respect social distancing rules, and know your health care rights!"

Consumer Watchdog provided 6 health care consumer tips to help Californians navigate the COVID-19 crisis (detailed information below):

1. If you don't have health insurance, it's not too late to sign-up for coverage.

2. You can talk to a doctor without leaving your home.

3. Your health insurance plans cover COVID-19 testing with no out-of-pocket costs.

4. You can ask your health insurer to waive early medication refill limits to keep you out of the pharmacy and help you observe social distancing rules.

5. If medically necessary testing or care is denied, you have a right to appeal.

6. A person with COVID-19 may receive treatment if they can benefit from the treatment, regardless of any pre-existing condition, disability, or age.

"These are extraordinary times, but civil rights laws still prohibit health care providers from denying or limiting treatment for coronavirus because of a person's pre-existing health condition or disability when they would benefit from the care," said Daniel L. Sternberg, Consumer Watchdog staff attorney. "People with pre-existing health conditions not only face greater risks due to COVID-19, but also risk greater violations of civil rights."

The six consumer tips in detail: ( Download here: https://www.consumerwatchdog.org/sites/default/files/2020-04/KNOW%20YOUR%20HEALTH%20CARE%20RIGHTS%20COVID.pdf )

1. If you don't have health insurance coverage, it's not too late to sign-up for coverage for 2020.

The deadline to enroll in coverage for 2020 has been extended through June 30 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Californians who have lost their job and employer-provided health insurance can also enroll in individual and family coverage, and potentially qualify for subsidize health insurance through the Covered California insurance marketplace. For more information, visit the Covered California website here: https://www.coveredca.com/.

2. You can talk to a doctor without leaving your home.

In order to support the dual goals of social distancing and continued access to necessary medical care, California insurers have been ordered to support "telehealth" services by reimbursing doctors at the same rates regardless of whether a service is provided in-person or through telehealth. Telehealth technologies include videoconferencing, streaming media, and phone services. Contact your physician or medical professional for more information.

3. Your health insurance plans cover COVID-19 testing with no out-of-pocket costs.

Medically necessary testing or medical screening services ordered by a health care provider are covered by health insurance plans. Under the direction of Governor Gavin Newsom, your deductibles, co-payment, co-insurance and other "cost-sharing" out-of-pocket charges related to COVID-19 testing must be waived by health insurers. This includes waiving cost-sharing for emergency room, urgent care or provider office visits when the purpose of the visit is to be screened and tested for COVID-19. State regulators have also made clear that health insurers cannot send "surprise," or "balance" bills to patients related to COVID-19 testing or treatment provided by doctors who are not participating in the insurer's network.

A small number of health insurance companies have begun to announce that they will also waive co-pays, deductibles and other out of pocket costs for consumers who need COVID-19 treatment. Consumer Watchdog warned that, as of April 2nd, no state or federal laws require COVID-19 treatment costs to be waived. Consumers are urged to check with their health insurance company for more information.

4. You can ask your health insurer to waive early medication refill limits to keep you out of the pharmacy and help you observe social distancing rules.

To ensure continued access to prescription medications while promoting social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, health insurers may relax refill restrictions on "maintenance" prescriptions for chronic conditions. This could include waiving refill restrictions in order to permit early refills or offering 90-day prescriptions for maintenance medication prescriptions, allowing patients to limit trips to the pharmacy. Contact your health insurer or pharmacy for more information. Your health insurer's failure to provide this flexibility in response to your request may violate federal and state civil rights law.

5. If medically necessary testing or care is denied, you have a right to appeal.

If your health insurer denies, changes, or delays your request for medical services, denies payment for emergency treatment or refuses to cover experimental or investigational treatment for a serious medical condition, you can apply for an Independent Medical Review ("IMR") on the California Department of Managed Health Care website here: https://www.dmhc.ca.gov/FileaComplaint.aspx.

The California Department of Insurance has asked that all IMR applications related to COVID-19 be sent to: [email protected].

(Note that in California, some health insurance plans are regulated by the Department of Managed Health Care and others by the Department of Insurance.)

6. A person with COVID-19 may receive treatment if they can benefit from the treatment, regardless of any pre-existing condition, disability, or age.

People with chronic pre-existing health conditions and disabilities are more vulnerable to acquiring the virus, and they are more vulnerable to healthcare discrimination that may deny them necessary care.

Physicians may withhold care that is deemed futilein other words, medically ineffective. However, those patients whose condition may be treated should not be given lower priority because of a pre-existing health condition or disability.

If the current pandemic results in rationing of treatment, the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act, and Affordable Care Act, among other state and federal laws, dictate that allocation of treatment must be made without consideration of a pre-existing health condition. The Age Discrimination Act prohibits similar forms of discrimination based on age.

For example, conditions like diabetes, depression, an intellectual disability, or a physical handicap cannot be a basis for denying care.

While the possibility of a person's survival may receive some consideration in allocation decisions, that consideration must be based on the prospect of surviving COVID-19 and not on the basis of other disabilities.

As noted by the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in a bulletin issued on March 28, 2020:

" civil rights statutes  remain in effect. As such, persons with disabilities should not be denied medical care on the basis of stereotypes, assessments of quality of life, or judgments about a person's relative 'worth' based on the presence or absence of disabilities. Decisions by covered entities concerning whether an individual is a candidate for treatment should be based on an individualized assessment of the patient based on the best available objective medical evidence."

Consumers may contact Consumer Watchdog by filing a complaint on Consumer Watchdog's website: http://consumerwatchdog.nationbuilder.com/submitcomplaint

Consumer Watchdog is a non-partisan and non-profit public interest organization. For more information, visit us on the web at: www.ConsumerWatchdog.org.

SOURCE Consumer Watchdog

Related Links

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The Journal is changing its circulation policies for Santa Fe and northern New Mexico readers, allowing it to concentrate on providing thorough news coverage and excellent service to its subscribers while reducing the expense of its free distribution.

The roughly 40 free distribution racks around Santa Fe and northern New Mexico that contained the weekly print Journal North section are being being removed.

However, every Journal subscriber in Santa Fe and northern New Mexico will continue to receive the weekly Journal North section inserted into their Albuquerque Journal.

In addition, Journals are sold at grocery stores throughout the Santa Fe area, and they all contain the Journal North section. The North section also appears on the Journal app and e-paper options, which are available to our subscribers.

Even without the free print distribution, the Journal reaches more than 31,000 readers a week in Santa Fe and northern New Mexico through its print and digital products.

The Journal is an independent newspaper that has been operated by the same family for nearly a century. For decades, its Santa Fe news team has provided accurate in-depth, investigative and breaking news stories that inform and enrich the lives of our readers. That team will continue to do so during these trying times and beyond.

Wed like to thank our subscribers and advertisers for their support, which allows us to provide the information that is most important to you.

505-823-4400 Those who would like to subscribe, can do so by going to abqjournal.com/subscribe or contact our customer service at

Thank you and stay safe,
The Archbishop of Yangon demands that the CCP apologize to the whole world and pay for "the destruction caused by the destruction." The CCP "is a threat to the whole world". The text of the declaration published yesterday evening on the website of the diocese. "The truth will set you free."

Yangon (AsiaNews) - "The Chinese Communist Party [CCP] regime is morally culpable" for the coronavirus pandemic. "What it has done and what it has not done" has "destroyed lives all over the world" and "the Chinese people are the first victim" of the virus, just as they are the first victim of this repressive regime".

This is the frank, direct and strong charge that the Archbishop of Yangon, Card. Charles Bomakes in a statement made public yesterday evening at 10.18 pm on the website of the diocese (see here). For the first time since the beginning of the coronavirus epidemic, which originated in Wuhan (Hubei), an ecclesial personality has lashed out against the Chinese regime, holding it responsible for the human and economic toll the pandemic is causing worldwide.

By directly accusing "the all powerful XI [Jingping] Card. Bo recalls how the authorities silenced doctors, journalists and intellectuals who raised the alarm already in December, waiting until January 23rd to isolate Wuhan and Hubei. Citing a study by the University of Southampton, he says that "if China had acted responsibly one, two or three weeks earlier, the number of people infected with the virus would have been 66%, 86% and 95% lower respectively. % ".

From the charges for provoking the pandemic and requests for "apologies and [for] compensation for the destruction caused", the cardinal examines the "criminal negligence and repression" of the Chinese communist regime, which stifles religious freedom, destroys thousands of churches, imprison Muslims in forced labor camps, practice the removal of organs from prisoners of conscience, suppresses the freedoms of lawyers, dissidents, intellectuals.

According to Card. Bo, the CCP "is a threat to the whole world".

His reflection began recalling the words of Pope Francis of March 27, when he said "we are all on the same boat" and he concluded for the sake of our common humanity, we must not be afraid to hold this regime to account. Christians believe, in the words of the Apostle, Paul, that the truth will set you free. Truth and freedom and the twin pillars on which all of our nations must build surer and stronger foundations."
The number of people who have died in Northern Ireland after contracting coronavirus has risen by six to 36, health officials said.

Testing has resulted in 85 new positive cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the region to 774.

A total of 2,921 patients have died in hospital after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Wednesday, the Department of Health said, up by 569 from 2,352 the day before.

The UK Department of Health also said that, as of 9am on Thursday, a total of 163,194 people have been tested of which 33,718 tested positive.

The number of people who have died in Wales after contracting coronavirus is 117, a rise of 19, health officials said.

Dr Robin Howe, incident director for the Covid-19 outbreak response at Public Health Wales, said: 284 new cases have tested positive for Covid-19 in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 2,121, although the true number of cases is likely to be higher.

Nineteen further deaths have been reported to us of people who had tested positive for Covid-19, taking the number of deaths in Wales to 117.

We offer our condolences to families and friends affected, and we ask those reporting on the situation to respect patient confidentiality.

A total of 126 patients have now died in Scotland after testing positive for coronavirus, the Scottish Government has confirmed, up by 50 from 76 on Wednesday.

Official statistics showed that 2,602 people had tested positive for the virus, up 292 on the previous day.

At a briefing at St Andrews House in Edinburgh, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said that 162 people were in intensive care with Covid-19.

A total of 18,128 coronavirus tests have been carried out in Scotland.

Public Health England said 10,657 tests were carried out in England on Wednesday and testing capacity for inpatient care in England currently stands at 12,799 tests per day.
Two more persons, both evacuated from Tablighi Jamaat's Nizamuddin Markaz here, died of coronavirus, taking the death toll in the national capital to four while the number of positive cases also rose sharply to 293, the Delhi government on Thursday.

The figure of COVID-19 cases on Wednesday in Delhi was 152. The total number of 293 cases includes 182 people who took part in a religious congregation of the Jamaat last month.

The number may shoot up in the coming days as the government has decided to test all those who were evacuated from the Markaz, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said in a digital press conference.

The Markaz has emerged as a hotspot of coronavirus cases in Delhi.

A total of 2,943 people, including 1,810 from the Markaz, have been quarantined by the government, Kejriwal said, adding 21,307 people have been directed for self-quarantine at their homes.

He appealed to Delhiites to stay indoors and follow the ongoing 21-day lockdown.

On Wednesday, the Delhi government, in coordination with the police, evacuated over 2,000 people. Since then the building has been sealed and area sanitised.

The Delhi Fire Service personnel were also roped in for disinfecting the area.

Meanwhile, Maulana Saad Kandhalvi, the head of the Nizamuddin Markaz said he has quarantined himself on doctors' advice. The police have already registered an FIR against him and is on a lookout.

"We should help and support our government in dealing with this crisis. I have also quarantined myself in Delhi under instructions from doctors. This precautionary measure is not against the principle of faith so it's important to adopt such steps," he said in an audio clip.

"I appeal to all my jamaat to follow the instruction of our government," Saad said in the clip.

He said there has been no doubt that this pandemic is the "result of sins we humans have been committing".

Instructions of ulemas, government, and doctors need to be followed and no one should stray out of home and organise gatherings, he added.

The Delhi Police Special Branch has also identified and quarantined 275 foreign nationals, who have been staying in various mosques in the city after attending the Jamaat's congregation.

Of these 275 foreign nationals, 172 are from Indonesia, 36 from Kyrgyzstan, 21 from Bangladesh, 12 from Malaysia, seven from Algeria, two each from Afghanistan and the US and one each from France, Tunisia, Belgium and Italy.

Eighty-four of them have been staying the northeast Delhi and 109 in central Delhi, they said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The presidency has responded to Mondays rebuke by Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, who criticised President Muhammad Buharis handling of the coronavirus pandemic, saying the president had been conspicuously absent as the virus gained a foothold across the country.

Mr Soyinka also said the president may have overstepped his constitutional boundaries for issuing a stay-at-home order in some parts of Nigeria to stem the spread of the pandemic.

The president, during a nationwide broadcast Sunday night, announced a 14-day lockdown on Lagos and the Federal Capital Territory, the two places most affected by the outbreak. The lockdown also affected Ogun State due to its proximity to Lagos.

The Nobel laureate said rational measures for the containment of the coronavirus pandemic should align with the unity of purpose between the federal and state governments without nitpicking dissentions.

What happens when the orders conflict with state measures, the product of a systematic containment strategyincluding even trial-and-error and hiccups  undertaken without let or leave of the centre, Mr Soyinka queried.

Reaction

On Wednesday, the presidency, in a response by the presidents media aide, Garba Shehu, condemned Mr Soyinka for criticising the presidents action, saying he has no professional expertise in the matter.

Professor Soyinka is not a medical professor. His qualifications are in English literature, and his prizes are for writing books and plays for theatres.

He is of course entitled to his opinions  but that is exactly all they are: semantics, not science. They cannot  and should not  therefore be judged as professional expertise in this matter in any shape or form, Mr Shehu said.

The presidency said governments across the globe have ratcheted up lockdown measures to flatten the spreading curve of the pandemic, based on medical and scientific evidence.

Across the world  from parts of the United States and China, to countries including the United Kingdom and France, government-mandated lockdowns are in place to slow and defeat the spread of coronavirus.

All have been declared, and all have been made necessary, based on medical and scientific evidence. The guidance of the Nigerian Governments medical specialists is to advise the same, Mr Sheu said.

He said Mr Soyinkas comment that we are not in a war emergency was superficial to the views of highly-placed scientists.

Dr Richard Hatchett, Head of the International Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (and former Director of the US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority) has said, War is an appropriate analogy.

Professor Anthony Fauci, Director of the United States National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force has said of the battle against the pandemic is almost like the fog of war, Mr Shehu said.

On the legality of the lockdown, he said the governments primary duty in law and action is the defence of the people of Nigeria, against the pandemic.

We face a global pandemic. Nigeria is now affected. The scientific and medical guidance the world over is clear: the way to defeat the virus is to halt its spread through limitation of movement of people.

Perhaps Wole Soyinka may write a play on the coronavirus pandemic, after this emergency is over. In the meantime, we ask the people of Nigeria to trust the words of our doctors and scientists  and not fiction writers  at this time of national crisis, he concluded.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian has pointed the finger at the troubled Ruby Princess cruise ship, warning staff onboard may have misled NSW Health about the extent of illnesses in passengers.

In her strongest comments yet on the Ruby Princess debacle, Ms Berejiklian said it was "absolutely potentially the case" that NSW Health was given incorrect information from the crew.

A sick crew member was removed from the Ruby Princess on Thursday afternoon. Credit:Janie Barrett

The Premier's position comes as Australian Border Force and healthcare providers boarded the Ruby Princess on Thursday, moored off Botany Bay.

One sick crew member was taken off the ship, NSW Police said in a statement on Thursday. Other sick crew had previously been removed.
There he was, riding down the escalator at one of Russia's leading infectious disease hospitals alongside Vladimir Putin as the president toured the facility and its preparations for the coronavirus epidemic.

There he was, announcing sweeping new restrictions for Russia's capital on March 30, catching Moscow's 12 million residents off-guard and sending them scrambling to run errands before being all but confined to their homes.

And there he was, visiting another Moscow hospital on April 1, ordering reconstruction work to be quickened, and more beds added.

"We are mobilizing all our efforts in the fight against the coronavirus," Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said during the visit. "The reconstruction of these locations, the logistics, equipping them with the necessary equipment is vital. Such work is carried out around the clock. Thousands of people are on the job."

Sobyanin is the head of Russia's largest and most important city, and the location of the majority of Russia's coronavirus cases.

Get Tested: Can You Pass Our Simple Coronavirus Quiz? Test your knowledge! Begin

He's also frequently the face, and signature, of some of the increasingly restrictive orders that the government has imposed in an effort to curtail the disease's spread. As of April 2, nearly 70 percent of the country's 3,548 confirmed cases were in Moscow.

Sobyanin was the first, and most prominent, government official to be shown issuing a dire warning -- publicly -- about how serious a threat COVID-19 was.

"The fact is that the testing volume is very low, and the true picture...no one in the world knows," he told Putin on March 24.

And Sobyanin has been the official pushing out some of the more controversial and draconian measures aimed at curtailing the disease's spread: first ordering cafes and restaurants closed; then, a few days later, ordering a virtual Moscow lockdown, including a restriction on how far you can go outside to walk your dog.

Putin gave public approval to the lockdown -- calling it "justified and necessary." Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, meanwhile, was relegated to following Sobyanin's lead, calling on regional authorities around the country to implement similar orders to keep people at home.

It's a prominent perch for Sobyanin at a time when the Russian government is in flux.

In January, Putin surprised many Kremlin watchers by pushing out his longtime protege Dmitry Medvedev as prime minister and replacing him with Mishustin, who was the well-regarded, but largely obscure head of the Federal Tax Service.

'Trusted By Putin'

The uncertainty was also due to the proposed constitutional amendments Putin called for. Among the amendments, which were to be voted on this month, was one that would open the door for Putin staying in office until 2036.

"Sobyanin has a unique position," said Nigel Gould-Davies, a senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London. "He is trusted by Putin, highly experienced, and knows how the system works. It's hard to see who else could step up for Putin. Mishustin is new to the PM role and not well known."

To be sure, Putin still commands Russia's political stage, particularly in a crisis. And the country, be it the political elite or average Russian, still watches him for instructions and guidance.

On April 2, in his second major televised speech since the coronavirus exploded into a major national crisis, Putin repeated a warning about the dangers of an outbreak and called for extending a national work holiday until the end of the month. He also said he would grant regional authorities more legal powers to impose anti-coronavirus measures.

At the same time, Mishustins press service announced a multimillion-dollar fund to compensate small and midsized businesses for their coronavirus-related losses.

Some observers have argued that Putin's response has been uneven and sporadic. His visit along with Sobyanin to the Kommunarka infectious disease hospital, widely publicized by state media, was followed by his televised speech a day later.

Images of Putin appearing in a yellow, full-body hazmat suit, while lauded by state TV, was met with derision in other places.

"Sobyanin is more visible as a virus fighter than the president and prime minister," Andrei Kolesnikov, a political analyst for the Carnegie Moscow Center, wrote in a commentary. "The head of state, who is accustomed to dressing up in public relations clothing of various kinds (naval officer, deep sea diver, eco-tourists, etc.), received a powerful counterattack to his image when he put on a costume to fight the virus. It caused nothing but ridicule."

Gould-Davies said there have been two surprises in the Kremlin's public coronavirus response.

First, he said, was that Putin had all but dropped out of sight following the hospital visit, and the speech that followed. Second was that many of the measures being taken -- for example, stay-at-home orders -- are being taken at the region level, not the national.

"Absent leadership carries risks: if not a 'Chernobyl moment' then a 'Kursk moment,'" he said, referring to the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster and the 2000 sinking of the Kursk submarine.

Both events are seen by many historians and political scientists as critical leadership failures: by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1986, and Putin himself in 2000.

From Tyumen To Moscow

Prior to becoming mayor, Sobyanin, 61, was governor of the Siberian region of Tyumen, and then rose to top positions in previous governments. He was chief of staff for Putin's administration from 2005 to 2008, and became deputy prime minister when Putin shifted to become prime minister in 2008.

He was tapped to run Russia's capital city in 2010, after its longtime mayor, Yury Luzhkov, was pushed out by Medvedev amid a behind-the-scenes power struggle.

It made sense that Sobyanin would become the face of the government's coronavirus response, given Moscow's importance, politically and economically, said Vladimir Gelman, a political scientist and professor at the European University at St. Petersburg and the University of Helsinki.

Gelman drew a parallel to the United States, where the governor of New York State -- the hardest-hit U.S. state -- has taken a prominent public role in the coronavirus response.

But Gelman said there appeared to be a deeper political calculation at work here: a way to insulate Putin, and the Kremlin, from potentially unpopular moves -- for example, declaring an outright state of emergency; or measures to halt the economic swoon the country is facing.

"Neither the president nor the prime minister would like to take responsibility for the coronavirus response," Gelman said.

"Putin may worry that harsher [measures] will harm his ratings, and so better to let others be the public face of coronavirus policy," Gould-Davies said.

Historically, the position of Moscow's head has also been a springboard to national political office. Nikita Khrushchev and Boris Yeltsin, for example, both went on to become the country's leaders. Luzhkov also aspired to national office.

Sobyanin "is considered one of the likely successors of Vladimir Putin as president, if [Putin] decides to abandon the regime of personal power," said Ivan Priobrazhensky, a Russian political scientist and commentator now based in the Czech Republic.

"It can be predicted that the power and influence of Sobyanin in this situation will only increase," he said.

Even if Russia's virus containment is successful, the country will still have to reckon with the economic fallout. On April 1, former Finance Minister Aleksei Kudrin said Russia's economy could contract by as much as 8 percent this year.

"Most probably, it could be a kind of switch of responsibility not only in terms of combating the virus but also in terms of responsibility for economic security," Gelman said. "Why don't you switch the blame to Mr. Sobyanin?"
BALTIMORE, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Warnken, LLC will represent healthcare workers or public safety employees exposed to COVID-19 at work pro bono. Warnken, LLC wants to help. Here's the criteria for those exposed:

Diagnosed with COVID-19.

Works in Maryland .

. A public safety employee; or

A healthcare worker working in a facility where COVID-19 patients are being diagnosed or treated

Exposed to COVID-19 at work

The lawyers at Warnken, LLC have been trying to figure out how best to help. Jim Lanier, attorney at Warnken, LLC, was primary drafter of a proposed new bill that would create a presumption under Maryland law that healthcare workers at COVID-19 facilities, and public safety employees, got COVID-19 at work. That bill is with government relations professionals actively seeking sponsorship.

But whether or not this law is passed, Warnken, LLC will not charge any fee for a healthcare worker or a public safety employee who got COVID-19 at work. Warnken, LLC has always tried to stop insurance companies from pushing injured people around. The crisis is no different.

The workers Warnken, LLC can help include, but are not limited to, police officers, firefighters, first responders, EMT's, paramedics, ambulance workers, nurses, doctors, technicians, and more. Warnken, LLC is proud to support everyday heroes.

The proposed law is a small modification to Maryland Code, Labor & Employment, section 9-503. See below for the applicable addition to the existing presumptions law.

(e) COVID-19.  A COVID-19 covered employee who is a "public safety employee" under Section 9-628(a) of this title, or is an employee who is employed at a location in which individuals were diagnosed with or were treated for COVID-19 at the time of the employment is presumed to have an occupational disease that was sustained in the line of duty and is compensable under this title if the COVID-19 covered employee is diagnosed with COVID-19.

About Warnken, LLC

Warnken, LLC is a law firm representing the injured throughout the State of Maryland. Warnken, LLC has been General Counsel to the Maryland Troopers Association for more than twenty years. Warnken, LLC has a focus on workers' compensation, personal injury, law enforcement, and medical malpractice.

Media Contact: Byron Warnken; 443-921-1104

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation will shoulder the medical expenses of COVID-19 patients who have no contribution payments, the agency president said Thursday.

PhilHealth chief Ricardo Morales said they will be lifting conditions for members availment of benefits, particularly the required contributions. He stressed that public health crisis demands that those who contracted the viral disease have access to health services.

Universal healthcare na tayo ngayon at under pandemic condition, lifted muna yung mga ganong delayed contributions, said Morales in an interview on CNN Philippines. Saka na tayo magbilangan. Ang importante mabigyan muna ng tulong.

[Translation: We are now carrying out universal health coverage, and under pandemic condition, stipulations regarding delayed contributions will be lifted for now. Let's do the computations later. What's important is that COVID-19 patients are given assistance.]

He clarified that infected PhilHealth members will still be required to pay for their missed premium contributions. However, their coronavirus-related medical expenses will be covered by the agency.

Yung mga hindi nila nabayaran sa premium, hahabulin na lang nila yon," Morales said. "Pero hindi yung mga ginastos nila sa ospital."

[Translation: They will have to pay for their missed contributions later, but not their hospital expenses.]

PhilHealth will also shoulder medications for pre-existing health conditions of COVID-19 patients, such as hypertension or diabetes, he said.

He added that PhilHealth will pay for medical examinations of suspected COVID-19 patients, as long as it is done by a health professional and administered in a hospital accredited by the agency.

In case there are no PhilHealth-accredited hospitals in the areas, Morales said members should have the supervising physician sign forms for the services administered, and PhilHeath will also take care of the expenses.

No balance billing policy

The agency chief reiterated that COVID-19 patients will not have to pay for treatment costs, as the Bayanihan Law mandates the implementation of a No Balance Billing policy.

This means that all medical expenses, including medicines and doctors fee, will be shouldered by the state health insurer. Morales said PhilHealth has prepared a P30-billion fund for the health crisis.

Nag-issue kami ng guidelines today [April 2] sa hospitals na sasagutin ng PhilHealth lahat ng gastusin sa mga pasyenteng tatamaan ng COVID-19, Morales said. Alam ng ospital yan. Walang dapat ilabas na pera yung pasyente.

[Translation: We issued guidelines to hospitals today, saying that PhilHealth will cover all expenses of COVID-19 patients. The hospitals know that. Patients won't have to pay for anything.]

Different case rate after April 14

According to Morales, PhilHealth will be implementing a different set of packages for COVID-19 cases by the end of the enhanced community quarantine, which is set to expire on April 14.

May bago na tayong case rate na puwede i-apply sa mild, moderate, severe, and critical cases," he said. "Yung ang gagamitin natin."

[Translation: We now have a new case rate that we can apply for mild, moderate, severe, and critical cases. That's what we'll use.]

In the event that the insurance offered would not suffice, patients may apply for additional fundingwhich will come from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, and it will be a case-by-case basis, he added.

Pero hopefully kasi napag-aralan na natin nang husto to, hopefully magkakasya naman ang ating case rate para sa critical cases after April 14, Morales said.

[Translation: But hopefully, since we've been able to thoroughly assess the situation, hopefully our case rates will be enough to shoulder critical cases after April 14.]

Earlier, the PCSO was asked to transfer over 420 million of its fund to PhilHealth to cover COVID-19 related packages.

As of April 2, the health department has recorded 2,633 COVID-19 cases in the country. The death toll stands at 107, while 51 patients have recovered.
The Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, calls for a commitment to international solidarity, and confirms the Church is close to those who are suffering because of the coronavirus.

By Andrea Tornielli

In an exclusive interview with Vatican Media, the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, confirms the closeness of the Church to those who are suffering during this dramatic time of the coronavirus pandemic. He calls for a spirit of international solidarity and says this is not the time to shut ourselves off from others.

How are the Pope and the Roman Curia living this crisis?

We are sharing this difficult moment with everyone. It is a dramatic moment for many. I am thinking of the sick, the elderly above all, the dying, their families. We are in the time of the Easter Vigil. The Church keeps vigil with everyone. She is close to those who suffer and are in need. We need to be freed from the imprisonment of a time lived in frustration, from the threat of sickness and death. "Lazarus, come out!" (Jn 11:43), is the cry that resounds in time, particularly now, so as to be a new time of life and spirit. Pope Francis is seeking every way possible to be close to people throughout the world. Contact with people has always been fundamental for him, and he intends to maintain this, even if in a new and unprecedented way. The daily live broadcast of the Holy Mass from Santa Marta is a concrete example. The constant prayer for the victims, their families, health care personnel, volunteers, priests, workers, families is another. All of us collaborators are trying to help him maintain contact with the Churches in all the countries of the world.

This crisis is affecting families, changing people's lives and causing serious repercussions even on the economic system. What can it teach us?

We are experiencing a tragedy bound to have significant consequences on our lives. First of all, we are being confronted with our fragility and vulnerability. We realize that we are not creators, but poor creatures, who exist because Someone gives them life at every moment. We are not absolute masters either. All it takes is a mere nothing, a mysterious and invisible enemy, to make us suffer, to make us seriously ill, to make us die. We realize that we are small, insecure, helpless. We are also confronted with the essential, with what really matters. We are offered the possibility of rediscovering the value of family, friendship, interpersonal relationships, relationships that we normally neglect, solidarity, generosity, sharing, closeness in the concreteness of small things. We need one each other, communities and societies, to help us care for one another. Finally, I believe this is an opportune moment to return to God with all our hearts, as Pope Francis reminded us during the extraordinary moment of prayer on March 27th, and a few days earlier in the "ecumenical" Our Father, prayed together with all the worlds Christians.

How does Christian faith help us interpret what is happening?

Christian faith is God irrupting in human history. God who becomes flesh, God who comes to share everything about our existence except sin, and is willing to suffer and die to save us. We are preparing to celebrate Easter in this Lent which has been unique: Jesus rises, conquers death, gives life. Faiths outlook in these difficult times helps us to abandon ourselves more and more to God, to knock on His door with our incessant prayer that He may shorten this time of trial. It helps us to see all the good that surrounds us, and that is witnessed by many people. It is comforting to experience the pastoral creativity, already mentioned by Pope Francis, of bishops, priests, men and women religious, and the commitment of many lay people. They are the "voice" of the Gospel. So are all those (from doctors to nurses to volunteers) who are fighting the disease. I think it is good to see how the Church, which lives immersed in the reality of her people, seeks and finds a thousand ways, using all possible means, to ensure that people are not left alone, that they can pray and receive a comforting word. It struck me that, even in the current crisis, people are finding a way to express themselves - for example through music and song  in order to be together. I would like this to happen in some way in parishes too. It would be nice if all the churches could ring their bells for one minute at the same time, for example at noon; and that this sound might be a call to pray together, even given the physical distance.

What can you tell us about the health situation of the Holy See's employees?

As you know, at the present time there are seven positive, confirmed cases of Covid-19. At the beginning of March, there was the case of someone who underwent a medical examination in view of employment. In the past weeks, another six have been discovered. All of them have passed the critical phase and are now improving. Obviously, as in Italy and in all the countries of the world, we are daily and hourly monitoring the situation, thanks to the dedication of our doctors and nurses.

What is the Holy See doing during this time to help the Churches around the world?

Through its Dicasteries, the Holy See is committed to maintaining contact with the local Churches, trying to help, as far as possible, the populations particularly affected by the spread of the coronavirus, regardless of religious or national affiliation, as it has always done. Since the global health emergency began, the Holy Father himself wanted to express his closeness and solidarity with the Chinese population, sending a gift to the charitable organization Jinde Charities and the Diocese of Hong Kong, and later also to Iran, Italy and Spain. Various initiatives are being studied to provide concrete gestures of solidarity, and to witness charity.

Masses and other liturgies - including funerals  have been suspended. Churches, however, are still open almost everywhere. What does this mean? What do you want to say to the faithful who cannot receive the sacraments?

The suspension of celebrating the liturgy was necessary to avoid large gatherings. However, in almost every city, churches remain open. I hope those that may have been closed will reopen as soon as possible. Jesus is present there in the Eucharist; priests continue to pray and celebrate Holy Mass for the faithful who cannot participate there. It is nice to think that the doors to Gods house remain open, just as the doors of our houses remain open, even though we are strongly encouraged not to go out except for essential reasons. The family is a domestic church. We can pray and prepare ourselves for Easter by following the liturgies and prayers on television. To the many members of the faithful who suffer because they cannot receive the Sacraments, I would like to say that I share their sorrow. But I would like to recall the possibility of making a spiritual communion, for example. Moreover, Pope Francis, through the Apostolic Penitentiary, granted the gift of special indulgences to the faithful, not only to those affected by Covid-19, but also to health care providers, family members and all those who care for them in various ways, including through prayer. In a vigil like this one, there is also another aspect that must be highlighted and reinforced. This is possible for everyone: to pray with the Word of God; to read, to contemplate, to welcome the Word who is coming. With His Word, God has filled the void that frightens us in these hours. God communicated Himself in Jesus, the complete and definitive Word. We must not simply fill time, but fill ourselves with the Word.

Loneliness is one of the biggest challenges at this time. In the Covid-19 wards people are dying alone, without the comfort of relatives who are barred from entering the intensive care units. How can the Church show she is close to people?

This is one of the consequences of the epidemic that, in a certain sense, upsets me. I have read and heard dramatic and moving stories. When, unfortunately, a priest cannot be present at the bedside of a person who is dying, every baptized person can pray and bring comfort by virtue of the common priesthood received with the Sacrament of Baptism. It is beautiful and evangelical to think that at this difficult time, in some way, even the hands of doctors, nurses, health care providers, who every day comfort, heal or accompany the sick in their last moments, become the hands and words of all of us, of the Church, of the family that blesses, says good-bye, forgives and comforts. It is God's caress that heals and gives life, even eternal life.

How will the Holy Week liturgies take place in the Vatican?

We have studied different options than the traditional ones. In fact, it will not be possible to welcome pilgrims, as has always been the case. In full respect of the regulations to avoid infection, we will try to celebrate the great Rites of the Easter Triduum in order to accompany all those who, unfortunately, will not be able to go to church.

The crisis is becoming global and is beginning to involve countries in the worlds South. How can the Church contribute to a spirit of mutual help between different nations and continents with different problems, so as not to lose the spirit of solidarity and multilateral collaboration

Unfortunately, we are facing a pandemic and the virus is spreading like wildfire. On the one hand, we see how many extraordinary efforts are being made by developed countries. Many sacrifices have been made by ordinary individuals, families and national economies, to effectively tackle the health crisis and combat the spread of the virus. On the other hand, however, I must confess that I am even more concerned about the situation in the less developed countries. There, health care facilities are not able to ensure necessary and adequate care for the population in the event of a more widespread diffusion of the Covid-19 virus. The Holy Sees vocation is to consider the entire world. It seeks not to forget those who are farthest away, those who suffer the most, those who perhaps struggle to gain the attention of the international media. This is not only a concern linked to the current pandemic emergency. How many wars, how many epidemics, how many famines scourge so many of our brothers and sisters! There is a real need to pray and to commit ourselves, all of us, so that international solidarity never fails. Despite the emergency, despite the fear, now is not the time to shut ourselves off from others. In these days, we are, unfortunately, realizing this: problems and tragedies that we usually consider far from our lives, have knocked on our doors. It is an opportunity to feel more united and to nurture the spirit of solidarity and sharing among all countries, among all peoples, among all men and women in the world. Challenges and profound changes will come about as a result of this crisis. Civil authorities need to exercise their responsibility beyond the self-centeredness of their own personal, group, and national interests. They need to provide for the common good, wisely and responsibly, according to the values of freedom and justice.
By Akbar Mammadov

The illegal elections organized by Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan on March 31 were strongly condemned and rejected by the international community, Spokesperson of Azerbaijani Foreign Afairs Ministry Leyla Abdullayeva said in a briefing on April 2.

She emphasized that international and regional organizations, including the European Union, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, NATO, GUAM, the Turkish Council, as well as the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, have issued statements condemning the so-called "elections" and saying they have no legal basis.

Each of these organizations and states has reaffirmed their principled position and told Armenia that the forced acquisition of territories by force cannot be recognized as legitimate; the occupation of territories cannot be used to impose their international recognition or change their legal status, Abdullayeva said.

While reading the statement of the Foreign Ministry of Armenia, the aggressor country on this issue, one inevitably remembers the fairy tale Alisa behind the mirror in which the protagonist falls into the world of his imagination and fantasy. In reality, the truth is completely different and well known to the international community, the spokesperson said.

What did Armenia achieve by organizing a fiction in Nagorno-Karabakh under the name of election, allocating considerable financial resources for this chimera from its budget? Speaking of democracy under conditions of military occupation and ongoing ethnic cleansing is nothing more than insinuation and self-deception. By the way, the very fact of a separate statement by the Armenian Foreign Ministry on the so-called "elections" show in Nagorno-Karabakh once again proves the absence of the need for the participation of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh in the negotiations, the spokesperson emphasized.

Abdullayeva further said that Armenias destructive position is not surprising and must be understood the context of the still ongoing military occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and the adjacent regions of Azerbaijan, as well as the forced expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis from their homes as a result of ethnic cleansing, violation of the fundamental human rights of the local Azerbaijani population of the occupied territories.

She further reminded the elections run counter to Azerbaijans Constitution and the international law and have no legal force in this regard.

---

Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
WHO concerned over rapid escalation in COVID-19 spread as caseload approaches one million

1 April 2020 - Deaths from COVID-19 have more than doubled in the past week and will soon reach 50,000 worldwide, while the global caseload is heading towards one million, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) told journalists on Wednesday.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there has been "a near exponential growth" in case numbers over the past five weeks, affecting practically every country, territory and area of the world.

"As we enter the fourth month since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, I am deeply concerned about the rapid escalation and global spread of infection", he stated.

Although Africa, Central America and South America have reported relatively lower numbers of cases, Tedros warned that the disease could have "serious social, economic and political consequences" in these regions.

"It is critical that we ensure these countries are well equipped to detect, test, isolate and treat cases, and identify contacts. I am encouraged to see that this is occurring in many countries, despite limited resources", he said.

'Solidarity' drug trials underway

Meanwhile, 74 countries have responded to the UN health agency's call to participate in a "Solidarity Trial" to compare four promising drugs or drug combinations, which might help treat COVID-19, and save the lives of those worst affected.

More than 200 patients are taking part so far and have been randomly assigned to one of the study tracks.

Tedros said "each new patient who joins the trial gets us one step closer to knowing which drugs work".

The trial was announced last Friday and aims to reduce the time needed to generate evidence about which medicines are safe and effective against the new virus.

To mask or not to mask?

The UN health agency continues to work with Governments and manufacturers to speed up production of protective equipment, including masks, for health workers on the frontlines of the battle against COVID-19.

Tedros also addressed the growing debate over whether the general public should also wear masks.

"WHO recommends the use of medical masks for people who are sick and those caring for them", he said, adding "however, in these circumstances, masks are only effective when combined with other protective measures".

Battling locusts and disease in Sudan

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Sudan continues its battle against swarms of desert locusts which are ravaging crops and threatening food security.

To support the country in this fight, the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) contributed 10 4x4 off-road vehicles to the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources during a virtual handover ceremony held on Wednesday.

"While these vehicles would help to curtail the destructive effects of the locusts, and enhance food security, they would also be of use to advance Government's endeavor to combat the dreadful COVID-19 disease", said Jeremiah Mamabolo, the Joint Special Representative at UNAMID, speaking from Khartoum.

The event marked the first-ever virtual press conference in the history of UN and AU peace operations in Sudan, according to the mission.

In a sign of the times, UNAMID drivers  wearing protective masks and gloves -- handed over the keys of the vehicles to transport officials at the Ministry's parking lot.

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If you're lusting after healthy, plump and glowing skin this spring, listen up.

External aggressors, caffeine, hormones, too much alcohol and high stress levels can often leave our skin a little dull and lacklustre. The good news is there are plenty of beauty products that can do wonders for dehydrated and dull complexions.

Typically these products contain potent antioxidants such as vitamin C, to help diminish dark spots, address hyper-pigmentation, refine skin texture, and create a luminous healthy-looking complexion all year round.

Ahead we're selected the very best skin brightening products which promise to deeply hydrate and transform dull skin.

Jade rollers and gua sha tools have been hailed for generations for their ability to stimulate blood flow and collagen production for plumper, lifted skin, giving the appearance of a natural facelift.

Made from naturally cooling jade stone, the roller and gua sha tools are used in addition to skincare to boost circulation and help drain the lymphatic system. To use, work from the inner part of the face outwards (and upwards), using a light to medium pressure and slow, mindful strokes. You can also store the tools in the fridge for extra cooling power.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is reportedly a fan - no wonder her skin is eternally glowing.

Buy now on Amazon

OSKIA Nutri-Bronze Adaptive Sheer Tinted Serum is a gorgeous makeup skincare hybrid that adds believable luminosity and warmth to the skin.

Enriched with a blend of anti-ageing powerhouse ingredients including bakuchiol, milk peptides, pro-vitamin B5 and Swiss apple stem cells, the serum improves skin condition and cell health, as well as helping to reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. It also protects against free radicals and hydrates and plumps thanks to added vitamin E and hyaluronic acid.

Nikki Wolff, Dior celebrity makeup artist and Instagram sensation, explained during her weekly Sunday makeup tutorial how she likes to use the serum 'to help even skin tone before makeup application' by rubbing the serum between her fingers and applying directly to the skin.

Buy now on Cult Beauty

If you want to transform dull, tired skin while catching up on your favourite Netflix series, the Seoulista Beauty Brightening Instant Facial is a great choice. This Korean brand's sheet masks are made from biodegradable cellulose formed from coconut and are free from parabens, mineral oil, sulphates and artificial colours.

Saturated with a radiance-boosting and skin-smoothing blend of vitamin C and alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs), it leaves you skin hydrated and smooth in just 20 minutes, revealing a more radiant and even-toned complexion.

Buy now on Superdrug

Following on from the success of the sell-out Purity Bronzing Water Gel launch in 2019, St. Tropez has added two new products to its foolproof, transparent and no-rinse tanning range.

The new St. Tropez Self Tan Purity Vitamins Bronzing Water Body Mist is an ultra-lightweight, hydrating self-tan mist that adds radiance to the face and body no matter what time of year.

It also works to brighten, protect and mimic the positive effects of sunshine without the harmful effects, thanks to its infusion of beetroot extract and naturally occurring sugars which stimulate the production of vitamin D in the skin.

Buy now on Cult Beauty

This powerful antioxidant protects skin from free radicals (such as sunlight, smoke and pollution), and it also brightens. Vitamin C builds collagen and increases cell turnover to lighten hyperpigmentation and keep skin from looking dull.

KORA Organics Noni Bright Vitamin C Serum is a vegan and cruelty-free serum that's formulated with a potent dose of 12 per cent ascorbyl glucoside, a water-soluble derivative of vitamin C that sinks into skin quickly upon application so your skin cells reap all the benefits before it destabilises.

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Proven to instantly increase skin hydration, Philosophy's latest Renewed Hope in a Jar Water Cream features an exclusive complex containing hyaluronic acid, pineapple extract and Norwegian glacial water, to deliver a burst of long-lasting hydration.

This refreshing moisturiser has a unique and lightweight slush-puppie-like texture that doesn't leave the skin feeling sticky or greasy.

It's soothing and crazy hydrating, like you've downed a day's worth of water in an instant - just what dehydrated and stressed skin types are yearning for.

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This powerhouse serum from French skincare brand Caudalie effectively fights hyperpigmentation, acne scars, and other dark spots.

Ideal for sensitive skin types, the 97 per cent natural and oil-free serum tackles dark spots using its patented formula of grapevine sap Viniferine, an ingredient that's known to be 62 times more effective at brightening than vitamin C.

Vinoperfect Serum also boosts the skin's radiance and can be applied during both morning and evening skincare routines. It's no wonder it's a best seller.

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If dark circles and puffiness are your issue, scoop up this ultra-brightening eye cream from Sunday Riley.

Brimming with ingredients like under-eye bag minimising caffeine, Brazilian ginseng root, watermelon and shea butter, it's not only hydrating but will give your peepers an instant brightening boost to help you look more awake.

Plus, a pea-sized drop is more than enough to cover the whole eye area and it comes in hygienic airless-pump packaging.

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MailOnline may earn commission on sales from the links on this page.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

A mechanism for the transportation of patients from the districts to Baku is being developed in Azerbaijan, Spokesperson for the Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers Ibrahim Mammadov said.

Mammadov made the remarks in Baku at the press conference held by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2, Trend reports.

For this purpose, special rules are being developed, the spokesperson said.

"A document in connection with the transportation of seriously ill patients, people suffering from cancer, blood diseases and others has been almost prepared, Mammadov added. A decision will be announced soon. The necessary conditions will be created for the transportation of such people to Baku, their treatment and returning back."

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their homes, apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence.

To this end, all kinds of operations, except for the vital work and services, have been suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.
Saudi Arabia has called for an urgent meeting for OPEC+ group and other countries, with the aim of reaching a fair agreement to restore the desired balance in oil markets.

This invitation comes within the framework of the kingdom's constant efforts to support the global economy in this exceptional circumstance, and in appreciation of US President Donald Trump's request, said a Saudi Press Agency report.

Trump said on Wednesday he had spoken with Saudi and Russian leaders and believed the two countries would make a deal to support prices.
Authorities have issued an urgent warning about a Netflix phishing scam targeting Australians in isolation during the deadly coronavirus pandemic.

Text messages offering free subscriptions to the popular online streaming service are being widely circulated by scammers trying to trick subscribers' into giving out personal information such as bank account and credit card numbers and passwords.

'Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we will give out three months of Netflix Premium to help you spend time at home,' the text messages states.

The message includes a link which would supposedly let the victim claim the promotion.

Australians are being warning about a scam offering free subscriptions to Netflix (stock image)

Government body Scamwatch warns everyone to not click on the link and to delete the message immediately.

'Dont fall for this #COVID -19 Netflix phishing scam! Netflix is not offering free streaming for 3 months. Dont click on the link - just delete the message,' it tweeted on Thursday.

Australians have become a common target for phishing scammers during the coronavirus crisis due to recent lockdown laws.

'Unfortunately, scammers are taking advantage of the spread of coronavirus to exploit and play on the fears of consumers across Australia,' the Scamwatch website states.

'Scammers are doing things such as falsely selling coronavirus-related products online, and using fake emails or text messages to try and obtain personal data.'

Scamwatch shared the phising text message Australians need to be aware of and to delete

People are urged to not click on any links in emails or messages, or open attachments from people or organisations they don't recognise.

The number of cybercriminals trying to steal individuals details via streaming services such as Netflix, Disney+ and Spotify and selling them for discounted prices is on the rise, according to cyber security firm Proofpoint.

Scammers tactics to be aware of include a malicious code sent via e-mail which aims of taking control of devices and phising emails claiming there is an issue with the users account and asking for login details to address the problem.

Online streaming services such as Netflix have become a recent target of scammers

Scammers are also using previously stolen credentials/password reuse.

Subscribers to major online streaming services such as Netflix have have options within their settings to manage devices connected with the account.

Proofpoint recommends subscribers concerned about potential unauthorised use on their accounts to log into their settings to review recent streaming activity.
While cases of coronavirus continue to rise in India, those at the frontline - nurses and paramedics, are working day in and day out to ensure those affected are treated and taken care of.

But shockingly, there have been many incidents of doctors being beaten and spit on by patients and those suspected with the virus symptoms. Now in another episode, kin of coronavirus patient beat up a doctor on duty in Hyderabad.

Representational Image/Reuters

The incident took placer when a family member of a 50-year-old patient at Gandhi Hospital entered into a bitter argument with junior doctors and manhandled them after the patient was put on ventilator support on Wednesday night.



Junior doctors at the hospital were angry that the patients brother was repeatedly violating all instructions and not listening to them, moving around the hospital premises in gross violation of lockdown rules.

Representational Image/ Reuters

The incident led to security guard taking cognizance of the issue and asking the patients kin to stay put inside the hospital.



Given the circumstances, there were people in large numbers at the hospital who had come for testing and controlling them was a major challenge.

The patients brother alleged that his brothers condition turned critical due to negligence of the doctors who had not treated him properly.

Reuters

Gandhi Hospital superintendent Dr Shravan Kumar and other senior doctors intervened to counsel the patients brother who was in uncontrollable rage, Deccan Chronicle reported.



Reacting to the incident, Hyderabad police commissioner Anjani Kumar said, In this war-like situation police and doctors have to stand together to win against coronavirus.
In an unorthodox public hearing Tuesday night, Lynchburg citizens urged Lynchburg City Council to support public safety agencies, economic development and the citys parks in next fiscal years budget.

The annual meeting at city hall usually draws dozens of residents eager to give their input in the budget process.

But with Virginia under a mandatory stay-at-home order because of the coronavirus pandemic, the city limited the number of in-person speakers and asked citizens to deliver their comments over email and phone instead.

About 20 people opted to share their thoughts about the more than $370 million proposed budget, which largely maintains current city services and does not include any tax increases, from the safety of their own home.

Council received eight emails asking the body to fully fund more than $1.2 million in repairs to creekside trails damaged in a 2018 flood. The money is included in the citys proposed budget but a pandemic-induced economic slowdown could force council to rethink the project.

Parks advocates want to make sure that doesnt happen.

Just an hour in the Blackwater Creek recreation area any day these past weeks makes it clear that hundreds of Lynchburgers of every age, ability and background use and value the citys natural areas to maintain their physical health and their emotional well-being in these uncertain times, the League of Women Voters of Lynchburg wrote in an email to council.

About a half-dozen residents urged the council to support economic development for next fiscal year.

Please do not cut economic funding out of the budget, resident Ryan McIntire said in an email. These funds are critical to sustaining and growing the tax base of our wonderful city. We need all the efforts to attract, retain and encourage business growth that we can get.

The proposed budget currently calls for more than $300,000 in funding increases for the citys office of Economic Development and Tourism and more than $500,000 on capital projects for economic development next fiscal year.

Jaime Maxwell, the president of the Lynchburg Firefighters Association, was one of just three people to speak in person at Tuesdays public hearing. He asked the council to consider allocating more than $500,000 to the Lynchburg Fire Department to hire nine new firefighters.

Ive heard over and over again that public safety is the priority of this council, Maxwell said. Now its time to step up.

Similarly, Richard Loving, the president of the Lynchburg Police Foundation, asked council to invest more in the police department, including hiring new officers and allocating more money for equipment.

This is a very unique time in our history and the demands on our leaders of their community are going to be many, Loving said. We ask that you consider those first responders that are risking their lives on the front lines of this crisis.

City Manager Bonnie Svrcek previously said any increase in funding for public safety would have to be offset by tax increases or cuts to city services  two things the council has so far been reluctant to approve.

The economic slowdown accompanying the coronavirus pandemic has thrown the citys budget process into a haze of uncertainty.

Deputy City Manager Reid Wodicka said Tuesday city staff are currently revising the original revenue projections submitted alongside the proposed budget early last month.

A new projection is expected to be completed by late April. Council will then have two months to finalize the budget.

Richard Chumney covers Liberty University for The News & Advance. Reach him at (434) 385-5547.

Richard Chumney covers Liberty University for The News & Advance. Reach him at (434) 385-5547.

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By Chayut Setboonsarng

BANGKOK (Reuters) - Thailand's anti-monopoly watchdog warned food delivery platforms on Wednesday they could face fines for charging higher commissions as online food orders surge amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The announcement comes after malls and restaurants were ordered to close except for take-out orders in late March. Food delivery platforms have seen a spike in orders, with operators like Foodpanda seeing orders rise 20 times from a year ago.

Thailand has reported 1,771 confirmed cases and 12 deaths.

There have been complaints that food delivery platforms have increased their service fees for restaurants from 20% to rates of up to 40%, the Office of Trade and Competition Commission (OTCC) secretary-general Somsak Kiatchailak said, without naming any companies.

Platforms are also charging restaurants fees for marketing and advertising, he said.

Unfair commercial activity that causes damage to consumers will face a penalty of 10% of the year's revenue, the OTCC said.

Grab said on Wednesday it was cutting its maximum food delivery commission from 35% to 30% to reduce financial burden for its partners.

"We are taking another step to provide greater support to alleviate the impact of COVID-19 on our community," Head of Grab Thailand, Tarin Thaniyavarn, said in a statement.

Rival food delivery app, LINE MAN, owned by Japanese chat app LINE Corp < 3938.T>, has always charged between 20% to 30% for restaurants who opted into the platform's promotional program with a discounted delivery fee, its head of business development and marketing, Waranan Chuangcham, told Reuters.

Restaurants can also use LINE MAN without commission where customers pay the regular deliver fee, she said.

Foodpanda, which has seen order increases of up to 30% each week in Bangkok, said it has kept commission at 30%. Foodpanda Thailand CEO Alexander Felde said it was rolling out a package worth 35 million baht to support riders and restaurants.

Story continues

The package includes insurance, masks, sanitizer kits for its riders and also free delivery and vouchers for restaurants, Felde said adding that the firm was recruiting 5,000 riders each week to keep up with demand.

GET, the Thai unit of Indonesian ride-hailing startup, Go-Jek, did not respond a Reuters request for comment.

($1 = 33.0300 baht)

(Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
Resolving a days-long impasse and after nearly a month at sea, two ill-fated Holland America cruise ships - carrying passengers sickened by the coronavirus - were finally allowed to dock in Florida on Thursday.

Cruise line Holland America said in a statement that more than 1,200 passengers from both ships would transfer straight to charter flights to their homes.

About 45 sick passengers will stay under quarantine on the Zaandam ship, and about 10 passengers, who are in critical condition, will be transferred to area hospitals.

Four passengers have died since the Zaandam departed from Argentina's capital on March 7.

Other passengers, like Chris and Anna Joiner, have documented their ordeal at sea... begging to get off the ship and to return home:

(SOUNDBITE)(English) CHRIS JOINER, CANADIAN CRUISE SHIP PASSENGER, (AUDIO LAID UNDER STILL PHOTOGRAPH SHOWING CRUISE PASSENGERS ANNA AND CHRIS JOINER HOLDING SIGN READING 'HELP US', PROVIDED BY CHRIS AND ANNA JOINER) SAYING:

we won't let this go. There are people out there, there's 450,000 Canadians out there who are trying to get home but they're not stuck on a cruise ship that's sick."

Another posted this video on social media, reciting a poem about being stranded on a cruise ship:

(SOUNDBITE)(English) MORVEN, CRUISE SHIP PASSENGER, RECITING POEM ABOUT BEING STRANDED ON CRUISE SHIP:

As we search for a port to take us, the world is watching on. And the world will remember.

Many passengers were transferred to its sister ship, the Rotterdam, while in the Panama Canal.

The ships docking comes after U.S. President Donald Trump earlier this week urged Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to let it happen.

(SOUNDBITE)(English) U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP, SAYING:

I'll be speaking to the governor.

DeSantis on Wednesday expressed opposition to the states resources being used to treat foreign nationals on the ships.

(SOUNDBITE)(English) FLORIDA GOVERNOR RON DESANTIS, SAYING:

Clearly, we're going to be willing to accept any Floridians on board. My understanding is that most of the passengers are foreign nationals. (FLASH) We have worked so hard to make sure we have adequate hospital space in the event of a COVID-19 surge that we wouldnt want those valuable beds to be taken

DeSantis on Wednesday issued a a stay-at-home order that shuttered most of the state which has reported over 8,000 cases of coronavirus and at least 125 deaths.
A 'much-valued' member of the Royal Scottish Agricultural Benevolent Institution has passed away this week at the age of 55.

Richard Huxtable, who was a case officer with RSABI for over four years, died on Monday 30 March, the farm charity confirmed.

RSABI is dedicated to the relief of hardship and poverty amongst farmers and agricultural workers in Scotland.

"We have some very sad news. A much-valued member of the RSABI team, Richard Huxtable, has passed away this week," Nina Clancy, CEO of RSABI, said.

During that time, Mr Huxtable provided support to hundreds of farmers and farm workers in the North East, Orkney and Shetland.

His contribution to the work of RSABI, and the wider Scottish agricultural industry, can not be overestimated, the charity said.

"He was a hugely respected and valued member of the RSABI team, who brought a combination of care, intelligence and business knowledge to his role, along with his own unique sense of humour," RSABI added.

"He will be greatly missed and our thoughts are very much with Richards wife and family at this incredibly difficult time."
Upon completion of the project, GCL-SI will have the world's largest module production capacity, said the company.

"This is another solid step in the dual-main business operation strategy (namely, PV+ energy storage)," said Eric Luo, chairman of the listed company, "GCL-SI welcomes upstream and downstream companies in the industrial chain to come to Feidong and build a super PV intelligent manufacturing base together."

The new factory will focus on producing 210mm high efficiency modules and is also capable of manufacturing 166mm and 158.75mm modules. Automatic and intelligent production technology will be fully applied in the factory, with the big data support, according to Luo.

Feidong, a county of Hefei City, stated that it aims to create a super PV intelligent manufacturing base which is expected to accommodate cells, backsheet, glass and other supporting supply chain companies.

Cooperation between GCL-SI and Feidong County is based on their consensus on the promising development of the semiconductor and PV industries. GCL-SI has a faith on the PV development in the context of the global energy transition, Luo added.

GCL-SI's optimistic outlook on the PV market has been echoed by the forecast made by the International Energy Agency (IEA) which expects the global cumulative installed capacity of PV to reach 1,721GW by 2030 and 4,670GW by 2050.

At present, GCL-SI's module production capacity is 7.2GW, with its products covering both monocrystalline and polycrystalline.

SOURCE Xinhua Silk Road
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / First Mining Gold Corp. ("First Mining" or the "Company") (TSX:FF);(OTCQX:FFMGF);(FRANKFURT:FMG) is pleased to announce the appointment of two new Directors - Mr. Richard Lock and Ms. Aoife McGrath to its Board of Directors (the "Board") effective immediately. In addition, the Company announces the retirement of Dr. David Shaw and Mr. Michel Bouchard from its Board. Dr. Shaw has served as Director of the Company since its inception in March 2015, and Mr. Bouchard joined as a Director in April 2016 post First Mining's acquisition of Clifton Star Resources Inc.

Keith Neumeyer, Chairman of First Mining, stated "On behalf of First Mining's Board of Directors, we are delighted to welcome Richard and Aoife to the Company. Richard brings corporate experience and technical expertise gained from developing some of the largest mining projects in the world. Aoife brings significant public mining company experience on both the technical and corporate development fronts from her many years working on a vast number of global gold assets. Both bring complementary skill sets to our Board as we advance our portfolio of development-stage gold assets in Canada. I would also like to thank David and Michel for their extensive contributions to the Board and the Company over the last several years. We wish them both great success in all their future endeavors."

First Mining is also pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Spiros Cacos as Vice President, Investor Relations and the transition of Mal Karwowska to Vice President, Corporate Development. Dan Wilton, CEO of First Mining, stated "We are excited to welcome Spiros to the First Mining team and to have Mal focus on First Mining's corporate development activities. Spiros brings 20 years of experience and relationships in investor relations to the role, which will help us broaden our investor base and marketing reach. We continue to focus on value-enhancing opportunities for our broader portfolio of gold assets, including finding partners to fund and advance some of our assets as evidenced by our recent earn-in transaction with Auteco Minerals on our Pickle Crow Gold Project. This transition of responsibilities better aligns our resources with our corporate objectives."

Board Additions

Richard Lock is a veteran mining executive with more than 30 years of experience in project management, development and operations for major mining companies including Rio Tinto, Western Potash, DeBeers and Anglo American. Richard is currently serving as the Senior Vice President and Project Director for the NorthMet mining project in Minnesota being developed by PolyMet Mining Corp. His most recent prior roles include Construction Director for KAZ Minerals' Peschanka open-pit copper mine in Russia and executive and project director roles at Arizona Mining's Hermosa Zinc Project in the U.S. (acquired by South32 Limited in 2018 for $2.1 billion). He has been involved with numerous projects including Yara International's Dallol potash project in Ethiopia, Western Potash's Milestone potash project in Canada, and several of Rio Tinto's projects including the Resolution and Keystone copper assets in the U.S. and the Diavik diamond mine in Canada's Northwest Territories. Mr. Lock holds a Bachelor of Science in Mining Engineering from Cardiff University in the U.K.

Aoife McGrath is a geologist with more than 20 years of experience in the international mining sector, predominantly in gold exploration. Throughout her career she has worked and led teams in Africa, North America, South America and Europe, with her experience spanning the full spectrum of company size and stages of exploration. She has been involved in a number of exploration discoveries including at the Geita gold mine in Tanzania, at the Chirano Project in Ghana and at the Mulatos Project in Mexico. She most recently served as the Head of Exploration and Geology for Beadell Resources Ltd, an ASX-listed gold producer acquired by Great Panther Mining Limited in 2019. Immediately before that, Aoife spent more than five years with Alamos Gold, serving as Vice President, Exploration and prior to that as Director of Exploration and Corporate Development. During her tenure she was a member of the corporate team that assessed global business opportunities, reviewing approximately 50 opportunities annually, both project and corporate. Additional previous roles include Executive Director of Exploration at Carbine Resources Ltd and Exploration Manager at the Chirano Mine for Red Back Mining Inc. She also served on the Board of Directors of the Peru-based, private exploration company Pucara Resource Corp. Ms. McGrath holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology from University College Dublin, a Master of Science in Mineral Exploration from the University of Leicester, and a Master of Science in Engineering Geology from Imperial College London.

Investor Relations Addition

Spiros Cacos has 20 years of investor relations experience working with public mining companies, ranging from early-stage exploration and development to production. Over the last two years, Mr. Cacos served as Vice President, Investor Relations for Group Eleven Resources Corp., a mineral exploration company listed on the TSXV and OTC, focused on advanced stage zinc exploration in Ireland. His prior roles include serving as Director of Investor Relations for Great Panther Mining Limited (formerly Great Panther Silver Limited), a primary silver mining company listed on the TSX and the NYSE with two mining operations in Mexico, and serving as Corporate Development and Communications Director for International Enexco Limited, a North American exploration and development company. Mr. Cacos has an M.A. in International Relations and Diplomacy from the Schiller International University in Paris, France and a B.A. from Simon Fraser University in Canada.

About First Mining Gold Corp.

First Mining Gold Corp. is a Canadian-focused gold exploration and development company advancing a large resource base of 7.4 million ounces of gold in the Measured and Indicated categories and 3.8 million ounces of gold in the Inferred category. First Mining's primary focus is the development and permitting of its Springpole Gold Project and the advanced exploration of its Goldlund Gold Project, both located in northwestern Ontario. Springpole is one of the largest undeveloped gold assets in Canada, with permitting and a Pre-Feasibility Study underway. Goldlund is an advanced exploration stage asset where drilling in 2020 is planned to define both the extension of the existing resource area and to better define the regional scale potential. First Mining's eastern Canadian property portfolio also includes Cameron, Pickle Crow, Hope Brook, Duparquet, Duquesne, and Pitt.

First Mining was created in 2015 by Mr. Keith Neumeyer, founding President and CEO of First Majestic Silver Corp.

ON BEHALF OF FIRST MINING GOLD CORP.

Daniel W. Wilton

Chief Executive Officer and Director

For further information, please contact:

Spiros Cacos | Vice President, Investor Relations

Toll-Free: 1.844.306.8827 | Email: info@firstmininggold.com

???????www.firstmininggold.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and the United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "plans", "projects", "intends", "estimates", "envisages", "potential", "possible", "strategy", "goals", "objectives", or variations thereof or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved, or the negative of any of these terms and similar expressions.

Forward-looking statements in this news release relate to future events or future performance and reflect current estimates, predictions, expectations or beliefs regarding future events and include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: (i) the Company's focus on advancing its assets towards production; and (ii) realizing the value of the Company's gold projects for the Company's shareholders. All forward-looking statements are based on First Mining's or its consultants' current beliefs as well as various assumptions made by them and information currently available to them. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by the respective parties, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and the parties have made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: failure to obtain regulatory approval; demand for the Units and FT Units; fluctuations in the spot and forward price of gold, silver, base metals or certain other commodities; fluctuations in the currency markets (such as the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar); changes in national and local government, legislation, taxation, controls, regulations and political or economic developments; risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining (including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins and flooding); the presence of laws and regulations that may impose restrictions on mining; employee relations; relationships with and claims by local communities, indigenous populations and other stakeholders; availability and increasing costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development; title to properties.; and the additional risks described in the Company's Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2019 filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com, and in the Company's Annual Report on Form 40-F filed with the SEC on EDGAR.

First Mining cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive. When relying on our forward-looking statements to make decisions with respect to First Mining, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. First Mining does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by the Company or on our behalf, except as required by law.

Cautionary Note to United States Investors

This news release has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the securities laws in effect in Canada, which differ from the requirements of U.S. securities laws. Unless otherwise indicated, all resource and reserve estimates included in this news release have been prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum 2014 Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves. NI 43-101 is a rule developed by the Canadian Securities Administrators which establishes standards for all public disclosure an issuer makes of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects. Canadian standards, including NI 43-101, differ significantly from the requirements of the SEC, and mineral resource and reserve information contained herein may not be comparable to similar information disclosed by U.S. companies. In particular, and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the term "resource" does not equate to the term "reserves". Under U.S. standards, mineralization may not be classified as a "reserve" unless the determination has been made that the mineralization could be economically and legally produced or extracted at the time the reserve determination is made. The SEC's disclosure standards normally do not permit the inclusion of information concerning "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" or "inferred mineral resources" or other descriptions of the amount of mineralization in mineral deposits that do not constitute "reserves" by U.S. standards in documents filed with the SEC. Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted into reserves. U.S. investors should also understand that "inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an "inferred mineral resource" will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian rules, estimated "inferred mineral resources" may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies except in rare cases. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an "inferred mineral resource" exists or is economically or legally mineable. Disclosure of "contained ounces" in a resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian regulations; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "reserves" by SEC standards as in-place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measures. The requirements of NI 43-101 for identification of "reserves" are also not the same as those of the SEC, and reserves reported by the Company in compliance with NI 43-101 may not qualify as "reserves" under SEC standards. Accordingly, information concerning mineral deposits set forth herein may not be comparable with information made public by companies that report in accordance with U.S. standards.

SOURCE: First Mining Gold Corp.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583551/First-Mining-Announces-Board-Changes-and-Appointment-of-Vice-President-Investor-Relations
Coronavirus claimed its first life in Beaumont on Wednesday.

The victim was described as a man in his 70s, with underlying but unspecified health issues. The Beaumont Public Health Department said he had no known history of recent travel. City spokeswoman Carol Riley said the man had been hospitalized in Beaumont, but that no other details had been provided.

It was the second COVID-19-related fatality reported in Southeast Texas. Last week, the virus was cited in the death of Michael Westbrook of Lumberton, a member of the Symphony of Southeast Texas member and longtime local educator.

The death overshadowed the news that 10 more cases had been confirmed across Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Newton, Orange and Tyler counties  bringing the number of in Southeast Texas to a combined 62.

Related: SE Texas 1st coronavirus fatality was an educator, symphony performer

The majority of the increase came from Orange and Jefferson counties, which rose by five and four cases, respectively.

More Information Helpful numbers (409) 550-2536: Hotline for residents of Jasper, Jefferson, Hardin, Newton, Orange and Tyler counties who have symptoms that could be coronavirus and want to be tested. The hotline is active Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. In off hours, callers will be directed through an automated menu to their county's health department. 211, option 6: For general coronavirus inquiries. See More Collapse

This is an important reminder that COVID-19 is a very serious disease, the release said. While 80 percent of individuals who contract COVID-19 will have mild to moderate symptoms and fully recover, they may spread the disease to people who are at high risk.

In part to continue to pursue measures to contain that spread, Beaumont Mayor Becky Ames earlier this week updated her stay-at-home emergency order, backing residents who exhibit coronavirus symptoms but may previously have been expected to work while waiting for test results to come back.

Ames included the provision requiring quarantine for people under investigation or treatment for coronavirus or who have been ordered to stay home and updated the fine for violating the order using a different code that removes the potential for jail time but increases the fine to $2,000, among a couple of other changes.

Related: In coronavirus fight, mayors take lead in stay-at-home orders

Port Arthur, which has a stay-at-home order nearly identical to Beaumonts and has had the most public cases of people working while waiting for test results to come back, has not taken such a firm stance.

One of that citys first positive tests came from an individual who worked at a health clinic and saw some 18 patients before the infection was confirmed and the individual went under quarantine.

Mayor Thurman Bill Bartie said any recommendation to add a provision to the emergency order to mandate someone observe quarantine while waiting for test results would need to come from Public Health Director Judith Smith.

Smith did not return a request for comment Wednesday.

But to me, I believe the quarantine should begin when youre tested, until you get results, Bartie said. Individuals who tested positive would then be expected to continue in isolation.

Related: SE Texas coronavirus testing expands with more planned

Ames said she was not aware of any specific cases within Beaumont where an employee had to work while waiting for test results, but she made this and other amendments as a result of questions members of law enforcement heard from residents since the first order was passed.

The amendment also adds car washes to the list of essential businesses, suspends bus fares and mandates transit be used only for essential travel while observing proper social distancing.

We wanted to put something in place so the employees would be protected if they do have symptoms but their test hasnt come back yet, she said.

While clinics run by the Southeast Texas Regional Operations Center had a slight lag time between when someone was referred for a test and an appointment to take it could be made, a clinic in Hardin County, which had its first full day of operation Wednesday, should help limit the time between when someone has symptoms and their test result comes back.

On the first full day, the Silsbee drive-thru site tested 33 people, while the Jefferson County clinic tested 82.

Top hits: Get Beaumont Enterprise stories sent directly to your inbox

Orange County Judge John Gothia said he expects his county will get a drive-thru clinic next week. Officials are finalizing plans for a location and a staff of nurses to run it.

Were pretty much ready to go with it, we just have to wait for confirmation on people who will work the site, he said. Hopefully well be able to announce late this week or early next week to open it next week.

He said that facility also would use kits purchased from and tested by the same New Jersey-based company used at the other two sites. The high demand for test kits means the counties arent getting full orders for kits fulfilled at one time, but enough have been coming in to operate the two sites and plan for a third one.

The call center for residents from Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Newton, Orange and Tyler counties experiencing coronavirus symptoms received 172 calls today and has referred a total of 927 people for testing since it opened March 20.

This article has been updated to reflect that an employee of Motiva's Port Arthur Chemical site did not continue working after exhibiting symptoms of coronavirus and waiting for official test results.

kaitlin.bain@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/KaitlinBain
MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI  Allen Serio thought hed be spending this spring helping to oversee construction of a cocktail bar that would serve as the primary outlet for Wonderland Distilling Co., a new Muskegon liquor producer he co-owns.

Instead, with the outbreak of COVID-19 and related shortages of basic medical necessities, his production facility has transitioned away from perfecting gin and whiskey recipes and towards producing just one thing: hand sanitizer.

Several local distilleries have transitioned their expertise in creating alcohol-based spirits to producing alcohol-based sanitizers instead, a key element in slowing person-to-person spread of novel coronavirus.

Obviously, being a distillery thats working on getting open, it was a pretty big shift for us, from going from being a company in a startup position to going to being a hand-sanitizing company, said Serio.

Wonderlands production facility, at 2217 Lemuel St, in Muskegon Heights, has been producing gallon-sized bottles of the stuff, with a primary focus on selling to first responders, healthcare workers, and employees at other businesses deemed essential.

Meanwhile, Wonderland Distilling has indefinitely postponed construction of a tasting room and cocktail bar in Muskegons Lakeside business district.

The public facing side, which was under construction, is at a complete standstill, and the production side of things has switched its model, and were in overdrive making hand sanitizer, said Serio.

Burl & Sprig, a rum-focused distillery operating a bar at 500 W. Western Ave., in downtown Muskegon, and Long Road, with locations in Grand Rapids and Grand Haven, have also begun producing hand sanitizer for individual purchase, as has New Holland Brewing Co.

Their efforts follow a directive by the federal government allowing beverage manufacturers to reorient their production in accordance with regulations from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau of the U.S. Treasury Department and following recipes from the World Health Organization.

That recipe involves isopropyl alcohol, glycerin and hydrogen peroxide, mixed according to certain standards and overseen for 72 hours before distribution, according to Serio.

Even while many essential employees, from line cooks to nurses, have continued to report to work amidst a state-wide stay-at-home order, hand sanitizer has been hard to come by nationwide.

Thats why, on Wednesday, March 18, distillation regulations were loosened to allow Michigan distillers to make denatured alcohol  typically only produced through industrial manufacturing permits, which no Michigan distiller currently has  using their beverage permits.

According to Centers for Disease Control, sanitizers of at least 60 percent ethanol and 70 percent isopropyl alcohol inactivate viruses similar to COVID-19, and are therefore considered effective in slowing that virus spread.

We had the ability and we had to do kind of our civic duty, you know? said Serio of getting started in this work. Its been overwhelming, the response out there. Theres so many companies out there, and were working as hard as we can to keep up with that demand.

But distillers attempting to supply that demand have faced the same supply-chain issues that caused a sanitizer shortage in the first place. Because so many distilling businesses were encouraged, all at once, to shift focus, recipe elements - especially pure alcohol and packaging - went out of stock nationwide, according to Cody Wasilchenko, co-owner of Burl & Sprig.

His company ended up finding bottles in California and pumps in Florida that finally arrived on Wednesday, in time for what he hopes will be a weekend roll-out. His business will be selling 3,000 16-ounce bottles of hand sanitizer for $6 apiece for pickup at the downtown bar, alongside their usual beverage menu, now configured for takeout. (The bar will be taped off to keep customers at a six-foot distance from one another, per social distancing guidelines.)

Theyve also set up contracts with Trinity Health and Wesco, to sell directly to those employees.

Its been a lot of work...trying to find these ingredients and barter with everybody for the alcohol and the bottles, said Wasilchenko. Its pretty much consumed my life for the last week and a half.

Serio faced similar issues, he said, and has partnered with Country Dairy Farm, in New Era to use empty milk containers, and with Webb Chemical Service Corporation, 2708 Jarman St., for product supply.

From 9-11 a.m. on Wednesday, Serio and his business partners distributed 104 gallon jugs to Muskegons fire department, central dispatch, and healthcare providers, he said. They expect to have another hundred gallons ready by the end of the week, each selling for $28 per gallon through a curbside pickup arranged outside their Muskegon Heights production facility.

For many small businesses, the arrival of COVID-19 has spelled devastation. For the food and beverage industry, the closure of dine-in services has sent sales careening.

In the face of what Wasilchenko, the Burl & Sprig co-owner, called a crippling loss of liquor stores, however, being able to meet an entirely new demand offers just a bit of relief, said Pete Johnson, Burl & Sprigs other owner.

With such a high demand out there, youre not getting the national producers - theyre just not getting into West Michigan ... so theres a high demand locally, and were able to produce it for them and get it to them, said Johnson. Its good for our distillery because we virtually have no liquor sales, so its an opportunity to help keep the lights on, and were certainly glad to have an opportunity to help serve the community, too.

Keep up with MLives ongoing coronavirus coverage here.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more on MLive:

Coronavirus crisis in pictures: How people in West Michigan are battling the outbreak

Michigan asking feds for more medical supplies as coronavirus cases grow

Michigan coronavirus cases now at 7,615; up 1,117 cases, 75 deaths in one day

Muskegon Boys and Girls Club launches virtual interactive activities for all kids during coronavirus
Here in the days of #stayhome and social isolation, home consumption habits for coffee are trending up. It might be a good time to consider your caffeine uptake, and consider adding in a cup of decaf now and again.

Soothing decaf. Warming decaf. Delicious decaf! Were in the Golden Age of Decaf, and you might find yourself really enjoying a cup of the soft stuff, whether as a change-up to lighten your daily caffeine intake or a complete switch for health reasons. Specialty coffee is like a two-front arms race of decaf options, a dual to see who can come up with the tastiest decaffeinated coffee, often paired with the cutest possible brand name.

You wont catch any of the Death Before Decaf malarkey here at Sprudgewe love the stuff! Our comprehensive #StillRoasting list is a great place to find active roasters in your area, many of whom are offering a tasty decaf product, and our coffee at home and coffee subscription guides are chockd full o roasters making tasty caff-less goodness.

But today well take it a step forwardthis is a guide for our favorite decaf options from near and far. Got more suggestions? Make sure to add em to the comments or let us know on social media. Happy drinking!

Swiss Water Decaf

This is the motherlode. The decaf experts at Swiss Water have curated a totally unique and deeply considered Curated Coffee Subscription, featuring different coffee roasters offering their spin on high quality decaf. Enjoy brands like Joe, Grumpy, Manzanita Roasting, Talking Crow, and many more, delivered weekly or monthly, plus access to special edition roasts exclusive to club members. This is the ideal hookup for the decaf lover in your life, or perfect if youre looking to get regularly delivered decaf into your home rotation.

Amavida Coffee Roasters

Ooh, a nice single origin decaf from Honduras? With notes of raisin, baking spice, date, and vanilla? Sign me up!

Camber Coffee

Camber Coffee of Bellingham might have my personal favorite decaf blend name of anyone in the industry: Goodnight Moon. Its adorable and it makes me want to have a nice sleepy cup with a book before bed. While youre at Cambers website, be sure to check out their Employee Relief Fund.

Counter Culture Coffee

Slow Motion is Counter Culture Coffees flagship decaf blend brand, but right now its actually a single origin, comprised of 100% Peru Ihuamaca. Look for tasting notes of molasses, cocoa, and my personal favorite of all possible notes, smooth.

Dogwood Coffee

Decaf coffee is a whole different animal, says Minneapolis roaster Dogwood Coffee, so we take extra time in roasting this coffee. Dogwoods decaf offering, De Cana, comes from the Huila region of southwestern Colombia, and is decaffeinated using sugar cane.

Duluth Coffee

Its tough to beat the cutie sloth on bags of Duluth Coffees Colombia Sugar Cane Decaf. This comes form the Quindio department of Colombia courtesy of the Lopez familylearn much more here via Cafe Imports.

Elixr Coffee

From the hills of Cauca, Colombia to the streets of Philadelphia comes Elixr Coffees delicious Swiss Water Process decaf. Enjoy notes of red berry and caramel, not unlike Gritty.

Equator Coffees

You like decaf, huh? Looking for some decaf? Equator Coffees of San Rafael, CA has you covered and then some. Not one, not two, but three, four, five distinct decaffeinated coffees are available here: Ethiopia Kochere single origin, decaf espresso, decaf Equator blend, a nice decaf organic blend, and a decaf Eye of the Tiger espresso blend. While youre there at Equators site, consider tipping the baristas!

Greenway Coffee

Houston favorites Greenway Coffee are roasting up some delightful decaf from the Cauca region of Colombia, from the Trilladores Andes Mill. Look for notes of dates and cinnamon.

Intelligentsia

Enjoy delicious, non-caffeinated coffee, without compromising on flavor, promises Intelligentsia Coffee. Take your pick from a threefer of decaffeinated options out of Chicago: Peru El Mago, decaf Black Cat, and the decaf House Blend.

Joe Coffee Company

Slip yourself a cup of Joes Nightcap Decaf blend and the sweet dreams are on us. Currently this is a blend of coffees from Honduras, comprising varieties like Typica, Bourbon, and Caturra.

Olympia Coffee Roasting Company

Were not shy about our love for Olympia Coffee Roasting Companys Asterisk Blend decafone of the few decaf coffees we recommend to anyone, any place, anytime, and would put toe to toe with any other coffee in your daily drinking arsenal. Learn more about the current offering from Olympia Coffee and considering donating to their webstore tip jar.

Onyx Coffee Lab

This is so smart. Not only does Onyx offer a lovely standard decaf option (currently a single origin Colombia Narino), but they also have an innovative half-caf option called POWER NAP! Its all from the same village, called Aponte (in the Narino region of Colombia) and its all processed via the honey and raised bed drying method. This clocks in at roughly half the caffeine of a typical cup of coffee, and is a truly unique product offering in the world of decaf.

Partners Coffee

NYCs Partners Coffee have another excellent name for their decaf blend: Ghost Town is a Peruvian coffee from the cooperative COOPAFSI, located in the Cajamarca. Look for malt, golden raisin, and white chocolate, whichif that doesnt sound good, I dont know what does.

Pilot Coffee

Pilots Catalyst decaf blenda collaboration with Swiss Water Processis ready to spark joy without sparking the jitters. Its an ever-changing, crowd-pleasing blend with notes of chocolate and caramel.

Red Bay Coffee

Red Bay Coffee of Oakland offers a lovely Ocho Libre Decaf, Colombian single origin thats available for 20% off if you set up a subscription.

Stumptown

Another expert Swiss Water Decaf collaboration, Stumptowns Trapper Creek Decaf blend has been a benchmark third wave decaf offering for decades. Come see what all the loves about.

Talking Crow Coffee Roasters

We adore this predominantly decaf specialty coffee roaster. At press time they have seven single-origin decaf offerings on their menu. Cant decide? Get the sampler pack with all seven and host a virtual cupping on Zoom!

Verve

Verves decaf selection is on point. One coffee, three ways: Vancouver Decaf as whole bean, instant, or ready to drink flash brew by the 12-pack count. Now thats chill drinking.

Some (but not all) of the roasters in this feature are advertising partners on the Sprudge Media Network. For a complete list of partners please consult the right hand side of this and every Sprudge feature.

Jordan Michelman (@suitcasewine) is a co-founder and editor at Sprudge Media Network.
UPPER THUMB  The confirmed cases of coronavirus in the Upper Thumb sat at 21 and three deaths after state numbers were released Wednesday.

New numbers are released by the state each day at around 3 p.m.

Numbers Monday showed Huron County sitting at three confirmed cases and zero deaths, Tuscola County at 11 confirmed cases and two deaths and Sanilac County at seven confirmed cases and one death.

"Do not make the mistake of thinking since our numbers are low that we do not have a problem," said Huron and Tuscola County Health Officer Ann Hepfer. "As I have said just about every day, that would be a fatal mistake. This virus is all around us."

Hepfer stressed again that "testing does not change the treatment."

"If you know of someone who is currently in quarantine and they are out and about in our community, you can call the health department and report these incidences," Hepfer said. "We will not confirm or deny if someone is supposed to be in quarantine, as this is HIPAA protected. The health department does know who we have issued quarantine orders to and we do conduct daily followup. We do have legal authority to enforce these quarantines with court assistance and law enforcement action."

Hepfer said the best thing people can do to combat the virus is to stay at home.

Numbers continue to rise across the state. As of Wednesday afternoon, there were 9,334 confirmed coronavirus cases in the state of Michigan, up 1,719 from the day before. The total deaths statewide increased by 78 Wednesday to 337.

The majority of confirmed cases are centered around the Detroit area. Wayne County had the most confirmed cases Wednesday with 4,548. Oakland County was next with 1,910 and Macomb County had 1,088. Combined the three counties have recorded 296 coronavirus-related deaths, almost 88 percent of the deaths statewide.

For general questions about COVID-19, people can call the state hotline at 1-888-535-6136. You can also find more information at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html, www.michigan.gov/coronavirus, www.hchd.us or www.tchd.us.
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Linkedin Eisya A. Eloksari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 19:10 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f505e0 1 Business COVID-19,aid,RedDoorz,Hotel,coronavirus Free

Hotel booking platform RedDoorz is making 102 rooms near hospitals in Jakarta available for free to medical workers treating COVID-19 patients.

RedDoorz has partnered with the Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry to offer rooms in two hotels near the Gatot Subroto Army Hospital and the Cipto Mangunkusumo National General Hospital, which both handle COVID-19 patients.

"There is currently tremendous pressure on the medical sector and our healthcare workers because of the coronavirus. We hope that other private companies will participate in the effort to end the pandemic," said RedDoorz chief executive officer Amit Saberwal in a written statement on Thursday.

The two hotels are the RedDoorz Plus Near Plaza Blok M near South Jakarta and the RedDoorz Plus @Thamrin in Central Jakarta. The company's initiative is part of its "Red Heroes" movement across Southeast Asia for combating the spread of the coronavirus.

"Of course the partners that are chosen are those who have implemented SOP related with hospitality services as stipulated by the Health Ministry, in accordance with COVID-19 handling procedures," Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Wishnutama Kusubandio said in the press statement.

Read also: COVID-19: Govt partners with hotels to house medical workers

Previously, the Jakarta administration provided accommodations for doctors and nurses to support them in the fight against COVID-19. A total of 220 rooms with 414 beds have been prepared for medical workers in the Grand Cempaka Business Hotel in Central Jakarta.

The government announced that there have been 1,790 COVID-19 cases in Indonesia, around half of which in Jakarta. As of Wednesday, 170 died and 103 recovered. At least 11 of the confirmed deaths were doctors who handled COVID-19 cases.
Regulatory News:

NAVYA (FR0013018041- NAVYA) (Paris:NAVYA), a leading company in autonomous driving systems, announces the strengthening of its Executive Committee with two strategic appointments.

Appointment of Olivier Le Cornec as CTO Chief Technical Officer

Aged 51 and holder of a Magistere in Minerals and Industrial Materials from the University of Orleans, Olivier has extensive experience in the automotive sector combined with expertise in autonomous driving systems. He started his career as a Consultant in the simulation of complex mechanical systems within the Altran Group for the Renault Group. He then joined the PSA Group as Head of Advanced Axles and Ground Linkage Projects for hybrid vehicles. In 2010, Olivier was appointed Technical Manager of new generation Hybrid projects and in 2013, Technical Manager of ADAS developments (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) and of the Electrical and Electronic architecture of the Group's new vehicle bases. In 2017, he joins the Transdev group as Technical Director of Autonomous Transport Systems, where he was responsible for the launch of the Rouen Normandy Autonomous Lab and the development of the Cristal vehicle in partnership with Torc. Before joining NAYA, Olivier was Director of Technical Policy and Industrial Partnerships within the RATP group for Autonomous Transport Systems, where he was responsible for launching the "Paris 2 Connect" intelligent infrastructure project, supporting autonomous mobility and future services for the city. His experienced profile will be a major asset to support NAVYA in the development of its technology and thus increase its leadership to become the reference player in the provision of level 41 autonomous driving systems.

Appointment of Benoit Jacheet as CFO Chief Financial Officer

Aged 54 and a graduate of the ICN Business School in Nancy, Benoit is a specialist in business development and financing. He has solid experience in financial supervision, managing complex situations and change management. After starting his career in the banking sector as Deputy Director of the BNP Paribas office in Indonesia, Benoit held several positions in Business Control and Strategic Marketing in the IBM, Bouygues and Vivendi groups. He was then Director of Financial Projects at Neuf Cegetel and then held responsibilities as CFO in technology and telecom groups Imakys (ex-Ericsson) between 2006 and 2008 and at A&O Systems in 2009-2010. For the past 10 years, Benoit has led interim financial management assignments for listed, family-owned or LBO companies, and has accompanied the transformation of Ymagis (cinema), Wonderbox (gift boxes), Mauna Kea Technnologies (medical devices), Movitex (ready-to-wear), Leosphere (atmospheric analysis lidar) and Promovacances (tourism).

Benoit succeeds Frank Maccary who will leave the Company at the end of April 2020, and whom the entire NAVYA team thanks for his commitment and contribution to the Company.

Etienne Hermite, Chief Executive Officer of NAVYA, says: "I am happy to welcome Benoit and Olivier to NAVYA. The leadership they will bring in their respective fields will enable us to accelerate the execution of our strategy, including in this unprecedented context of the health crisis.

About NAVYA

NAVYA is a leading French name in the autonomous driving systems. With 280 employees in France (Paris and Lyon) and in the United States (Michigan), NAVYA aims at becoming the leading player for the supply of autonomous driving systems for passenger and goods transport. Since 2015, NAVYA has been the first to market and put into service autonomous mobility solutions. The AUTONOM SHUTTLE, main development axis, was launched in September 2015 and nearly 160 units have been sold as of 31 December 2019, notably in the United States, France, Germany, Switzerland, Japan and Australia. The AUTONOM TRACT is dedicated to goods transport. Created in 2014 with the support of Robolution Capital, investment fund managed by 360 Capital Partners, his reference shareholder, NAVYA's shareholders also include the Gravitation fund and Paris Region Venture Fund (Region Ile-de-France) managed by Cap Decisif Management as well as Valeo and Keolis groups.

NAVYA is listed on the Euronext regulated market in Paris (ISIN code: FR0013018041- NAVYA).

For more information visit: www.navya.tech/en

1 Level 4 is the penultimate level before completely autonomous driving. Within a limited context and pre-defined situation, the car is able to move without a safety driver onboard the vehicle.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005411/en/

Contacts:

NAVYA

Nicolas de Cremiers

Head of Marketing

communication@navya.tech

+33 (1) 85 50 01 10

Benoit Jacheet

CFO

finance@navya.tech

NewCap

Investor relations

Thomas Grojean

navya@newcap.eu

+33 (0)1 44 71 94 94

NewCap

Media relations

Nicolas Merigeau

navya@newcap.eu

+33 (0)1 44 71 94 98
WASHINGTON  Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nations leading expert on infectious diseases, who has become a regular at President Trumps coronavirus briefings, will receive enhanced personal security after receiving threats following his repeated pleas for Americans to help slow the spread of the deadly pandemic, officials said on Wednesday.

Dr. Fauci has been the Trump administrations most outspoken advocate of social distancing rules that have shuttered the nations schools, forced businesses to close, kept people in their homes and battered the United States economy.

That has made him a target of online conspiracy theorists who have accused Dr. Fauci, a longtime scientist and civil servant who has served presidents of both parties, of trying to undermine Mr. Trump during a year in which the president is fighting for re-election.

The Department of Health and Human Services granted the enhanced personal security for Dr. Fauci, 79, after the Justice Department signed off on a request for extra agents to guard him, officials said. Alex M. Azar II, the health and human services secretary, had grown worried that the threats against the doctor were increasing as more of the country shut down in response to the coronavirus.
Marine life can be rebuilt in a human lifetime, experts say

Key international climate talks due to take place in November were last night postponed until next year.

The Cop26 meeting was set to take place at Glasgow's Scottish Events Campus - which is being turned into a temporary Covid-19 field hospital - from November 9 to 20.

But an announcement from the UN's climate body, the UNFCCC, said the summit would be pushed back to 2021 in light of the pandemic.

UN climate chief Patricia Espinosa said: "Covid-19 is the most urgent threat facing humanity today, but we cannot forget that climate change is the biggest threat facing humanity over the long term.

"Soon, economies will restart. This is a chance for nations to recover better, to include the most vulnerable in those plans, and a chance to shape the 21st century economy in ways that are clean, green, healthy, just, safe and more resilient."

A mid-year UN climate meeting scheduled for June in Bonn, which would have laid groundwork for the November talks, has been delayed to October.

Cop26 is the most important round of talks since the global Paris Agreement to tackle climate change was secured in 2015.

This year marks the date by which countries are expected to come forward with stronger emissions cuts to meet the goals of the deal.

Plans submitted so far put the world on a pathway toward more than 3C of warming, though the Paris Agreement commits countries to curb temperatures to 1.5C or 2C above pre-industrial levels to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.

But with countries around the world grappling with coronavirus, an "ambitious, inclusive" meeting in November was no longer possible, and rescheduling would allow countries to focus on climate and allow more time for preparations, the UN said.

Climate campaigners said the delay to Cop26 was sensible and unavoidable, but warned the response to Covid-19 should not undermine efforts to address the climate crisis.

Meanwhile, a 'substantial' recovery of life in the oceans could be achieved by 2050 if major threats such as climate change are dealt with, a study has said.

The oceans are important sources of food, water and clean energy and key for tackling global warming as they store heat and carbon, but many marine species, habitats and ecosystems have suffered catastrophic declines.

Climate change, hitting areas such as coral reefs, is further undermining the oceans' productivity and rich wildlife, researchers writing in the journal 'Nature' warn.

But substantially rebuilding marine life, so populations rebound by 50-90pc, within a human generation is largely achievable if action including tackling climate change and restoring habitats happens on a large scale.

The scientists said the focus should be on rebuilding depleted wildlife populations and ecosystems, not simply on conserving what remains.
In this article:

Anna Kendrick and the Barden Bellas in a still from Pitch Perfect (Universal)

Set your DVRs and settle in as TopFilmTip brings you charismatic continental thrills, historical biopics and cold war conspiracies with the best films on TV for Thursday, 2 April.

Audrey Hepburn is chased around Paris by men seeking her dead husband's ill-gotten gains in top Hitchcock-esque classic Charade 12:40pm Film4

Unhappy schoolboy grows up to become cavalier, war correspondent, prison escapee and statesman in Richard Attenborough's Young Winston 2:55pm Movies4men 1

Alt-girl mix-genius joins misfit songstress team in aca-puking, aca-uplifting, aca-awesome acamaraderie aca-comedy Pitch Perfect 9pm ITV 2

Read more: The best 4K TV deals

Amid communisms fall, icy Mi6 agent tears through East & West Berlin seeking spy-list in exquisitely brutal neon joy Atomic Blonde 9pm Film4

Forgetting to put flowers on Algernons grave, writers' blocked author's drug-fuelled brain bender prompts intellectually adventurous thrill ride Limitless 10pm 5 Star

Suave sentinels seek superiors' soul, prize-fighter's pride prevents profit & odd date accidentally ends in O.D.: Quentin Tarantino's flawless masterwork of script & style Pulp Fiction 10pm Sony Movie Channel

Cabin fevered, specimen seeking scientists unleash Martian zombie-itis in panic fueled stabby space horror The Last Days On Mars 1:20am Film4

Check everything new on streaming in April:

Netflix UK: Aprils new releases

Everything coming to Now TV in April

Amazon Prime Video UK: The biggest April releases

Follow TopFilmTip on Twitter for daily film recommendations.
The price of cough medicine has increased by more than 10 per cent in just one week while numerous other high demand products have also surged, sparking fresh fears of coronavirus profiteering.

The Office for National Statistics today published data showing how online prices for key items changed between March 16-22 and March 23-29.

The data shows the price of cough and cold medication was up a staggering 10.7 per cent week on week.

It was by far the biggest increase of any product but price hikes were also recorded on a wave of other essentials.

The cost of pet food was up 3.1 per cent, paracetamol was up 2.8 per cent and rice was up 1.9 per cent.

While those percentages appear to be relatively small, such increases in such a short space of time on a wide variety of items will cause concern.

The data will pile the pressure on the government to get tough with online retailers to make sure they act fairly during the coronavirus crisis.

Data published today by the Office for National Statistics showed the online price of cough medicine increased by more than 10 per cent in a week

The ONS data also showed that items like tomato puree, vitamin C and tinned beans have also seen weekly price increases

Boris Johnson has previously warned retailers they will face 'significant' fines if they are deemed to be treating consumers unfairly during the coronavirus crisis

Price of high demand items surges during coronavirus crisis Office for National Statistics data shows the online price of high demand products increased by 1.1 per cent between March 16-22 and March 23-29. Here is how prices have increased on key items: Cough and cold medication: Up 10.7 per cent Pet food: Up 3.1 per cent Paracetamol: Up 2.8 per cent Rice: Up 1.9 per cent Nappies: Up 1.6 per cent Flour: Up 1.4 per cent Anti-bacterial hand wipes: Up 0.9 per cent Tomato puree: Up 0.5 per cent Spray cleaning products: Up 0.4 per cent Vitamin C: Up 0.4 per cent Tinned beans: Up 0.4 per cent Pasta sauce: Up 0.2 per cent Toilet rolls and hand wash: Up 0.1 per cent Advertisement

It is the first time the ONS has published weekly data looking at the impact of the disease on shopping prices.

The numbers watchdog analysed the change in prices on a series of high demand products.

They included: dried pasta, rice, flour, hand wash, toilet rolls, nappies, paracetamol, vitamin C and pet food.

Overall, online prices of the high demand products increased by 1.1 per cent between March 16-22 and March 23-29.

The price of nappies increased by 1.6 per cent, flour went up by 1.4 per cent and toilet rolls rose by 0.1 per cent.

Most items in the high demand basket saw only 'modest' price changes with 13 of the 22 products ranging between minus one per cent and plus one per cent.

The ONS said all of the price data used was 'scraped from a number of large online UK retailers' over the period March 16-29.

Separate data detailing the impact of the disease on business showed that the majority reported the prices they buy and sell at have remained stable.

Some 68 per cent of firms said there had been no change to their selling prices and 63 per cent reported that the costs of buying goods and services had generally stayed the same in the period between March 9-22.

The numbers on price increases are likely to prompt calls for ministers to act and do more to protect consumers, especially at a time when many will be facing financial difficulty.

Last month Boris Johnson warned shops they will face 'significant' fines if they are deemed to have unfairly hiked prices on essential items during the crisis.

The Prime Minister said at his daily press conference that 'I do not want to see people profiteering, people exploiting peoples need at a critical time'.

He said the Competition and Markets Authority already had powers, including imposing financial penalties, to combat unfair price hikes but that the government was looking at whether it needed to go further.

Downing Street is urging people who spot firms 'exploiting consumers through harmful sales and pricing practices' to report them to the CMA.

The watchdog has set up a coronavirus task force and is monitoring businesses to make sure they behave reasonably.

The CMA can impose fines or threaten court action against any firms found to be either fixing prices or unfairly putting up the cost of goods.

Mr Johnson had been asked what he thought of profiteering and he replied: I dislike it very much and I do not want to see people profiteering, people exploiting peoples need at a critical time, a national emergency. We are indeed looking very carefully at what is going on.

'The Competition and Markets Authority already has various powers that it may use and we are looking at the legislative framework to see what it may be necessary to do to prevent profiteering just as has happened in wartime many, many years ago.
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Linkedin Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 07:36 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f0c009 1 National COVID-19-in-Indonesia,donation,BNPB,rapid-response-team,task-force,donasi Free

Amid the spread of COVID-19 in Indonesia, the governments rapid-response task force has received a total of more than Rp 66.5 billion (US$4 million) in cash donated from the public.

Government spokesperson for COVID-19-related matters Achmad Yurianto expressed his gratitude toward the public on behalf of the task force.

We are grateful that the community, both as individuals and groups, has donated more than Rp 66.5 billion to date to the COVID-19 task forces account in order to deal with this problem comprehensively, Yurianto said at a press conference on Wednesday.

At Tuesday's conference, he also said that donations pooled in the National Disaster Mitigation Agencys (BNPB) COVID-19 volunteer desk reached Rp 40 billion, adding that the donations would be used responsibly and reports on their use would be posted on the task forces and agencys respective websites.

Notably, conglomerate company Bakrie Group donated Rp 20 billion to the task force on Monday. On March 23 coal producer PT Adaro Energy also announced that it was donating Rp 20 billion to the BNPB.

On March 24, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) pooled more than Rp 300 billion from its members, with the funds channeled directly to the BNPB, the COVID-19 rapid-response team, the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) and the Health Ministry.

Indonesian artists and celebrities collected about Rp 11.5 billion in donations through a virtual concert called #dirumahaja as of Tuesday through the crowdfunding site Kitabisa.com. Media company Narasi, which organized the concert, said that it would distribute the raised money independently, including to charity organizations.

In the press conference, Yurianto also said that the country recorded 1,677 cases of COVID-19 as of Wednesday with 157 fatalities and 103 recoveries, affecting 32 out of 34 provinces.

He also said that the government had distributed around 475,200 rapid test kits to every provincial health office for early detection and contact tracing, adding that it also had distributed 349,000 pieces of personal protective equipment for medical workers across the country.
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has shocked the world. It was first reported in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, in China as a pneumonia-like illness seen in patients who had one thing in common  they visited the Huanan seafood market. Since then, the virus has spread to 180 countries and territories, infecting over 937,000 people worldwide. Now, a new mathematical model developed by scientists at the Universita degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Italy, shows that about 2 to 3 percent of the total population of Hubei Province has been infected.

In this new study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, a team of researchers used the Susceptible-Infected-Recovered-Dead (SIRD) model, which included data between Jan. 11 and Feb. 10, with key epidemiological parameters until Feb. 29. The team provided estimates of the case fatality and case recovery ratio along with their 90 percent confidence intervals as the outbreak grows.

Image Credit: Stockklemedia / Shutterstock

Forecasting the evolution of the outbreak

With the use of the SIRD model, the team was able to forecast the growth of the outbreak at the epicenter three weeks ahead. They projected that between 80,000 and 160,000 people would be infected by Feb. 29, which is close to the actual infection toll during that time  84,000.

The researchers believe that this is the first study using a mathematical modeling approach, which provides an accurate three-week-ahead forecast. This is important as the model can accurately predict how many people will be infected, and therefore prepare healthcare services, diagnostic testing, and government funding amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Further, the researchers noted that the actual number of infections in the total population is about twenty times more than those reported, and the mortality rate is lower than previously thought. Based on their computation, the fatality rate in China was about 0.15 percent, which is significantly less than the reported 2 to 3 percent.

The team estimates that the coronavirus has infected about 2 to 3 percent of the total population in Hubei Province. Hubei province is home to about 60 million people, which equates to 1.2 million to 1.8 million infected people.

WHO gathering latest data about COVID-19

Studies like this can help the World Health Organization (WHO) determine the severity and extent of the virus since testing is limited across the globe. The lack of testing kits, since this virus is novel, can lead to delayed testing of patients with suspected COVID-19. When mass testing is accessible, the number of infected people may increase significantly. It is expected that the actual fatality rate of the disease may be much lower.

The estimates based on scientific data and mathematical algorithms can help health officials track the outbreak and determine the extent of its effect. Now, the WHO is gathering the latest scientific findings and knowledge on coronavirus disease and compiling them in a database.

Virus spread

The vast spread of the virus across the globe is overwhelming healthcare systems in most countries affected.

Mass testing is vital to prevent the spread of the virus. If more people get tested, those who are carriers of the infection can be quarantined, isolated, and health officials can effectively perform extensive contact tracing.

The United States is now home to the highest number of cases, with nearly 217,000 infections and more than 5,000 deaths. Italy has the most significant number of deaths, with a death toll surpassing 13,000, and more than 110,000 infected.

China has reported more than 82,000 infections and more than 3,000 deaths, however, it has the most number of recoveries, with more than 76,000 of those infected now recovered.
WAR

OUR BODIES THEIR BATTLEFIELD

by Christina Lamb (William Collins 20, 432 pp)

Foreign correspondent Christina Lamb looks into the face of one of the worlds great hidden evils in this devastating book.

Traumatic to write, deeply unsettling to read, its a global chronicle of mass-rape in war: a shocking indictment of mans inhumanity to woman in the frenzied aftermath of battle. The most dreadful thing about it  apart from the physical injuries and the ruining of hundreds of thousands of womens lives  is that all too often it happens with impunity.

Deeply embedded in the human psyche there seems to be a belief that rape is an acceptable side-effect of conflict, permissible because the circumstances of war are extraordinary. Some perpetrators have even talked as if by committing rapes they were being chivalrous, because they were not killing the women. Well, the horrific accounts from the survivors whom Lamb interviews throw all that to the wind.

Foreign correspondent Christina Lamb (pictured), chronicles mass-rape in war around the world, in a devastating new book

With the violence done to their bodies, and the lack of justice for the perpetrators to bring closure, these women feel as good as dead.

Even by speaking out, they are being heroic. Once the secret is out, these people are in danger of becoming outcasts. But in order for anything to change, the stories need to come out. Brace yourself for a profoundly distressing tour of war-torn countries and refugee camps, and for ordeals you wont be able to forget.

Naima was an 18-year-old Yazidi girl in Iraq when ISIS came to her town in 2014. The women and girls were herded into the Galaxy Cinema and sorted into ugly and beautiful. Their ISIS captors then passed us around like sweets, she said. They put the girls names in a bottle, like a lucky dip. Naima was sold on and on as a sex slave to 12 men, each of whom raped her several times a day.

Lamb was shown a typical ISIS Certificate of Ownership, with two thumb prints of seller and buyer, date, and price of $1,500. No name for this product. Just Age 20, with hazel green eyes, thin and short, height 1.3 m.

They took something from me I cant get back, says Turko, who was traded on the internet forum called Caliphate Market, along with PlayStation consoles. She was raped three times a day by her owners.

This male rape-lust has nothing to do with desire, apparently. Its all about total power: pure violence, as Antony Beevor described it.

OUR BODIES THEIR BATTLEFIELD by Christina Lamb (William Collins 20, 432 pp)

In the Spanish Civil War, Fascist troops were given two hours after the capture of any village to enjoy the women.

Lamb meets a pair of elderly ladies from the Philippines who were two of the 200,000 comfort women (dreadful euphemism) for Japanese soldiers during World War II. They didnt dare speak out about it until the 1990s and were rejected by their own families when they did.

Rape, Lamb writes, is the only crime in which society is more likely to stigmatise the victim than punish the perpetrator. There are some glimmers of light in this appalling story. The brave Tutsi rape victims who did dare to speak out, helped to bring the first conviction for rape as a war crime ever: in 1998 Rwandan Mayor, Jean-Paul Akayesu, was sentenced to life imprisonment for atrocities against the Tutsi ethnic group, including rape.

Heroes shine out of Lambs journey: she meets Dr Mukwege, who has treated 35,000 rape victims in his hospital in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where hes a virtual prisoner in fear for his life; Christine Schuler Deschryver, who runs a haven of rescue and help for rape victims in that country; and Abdullah Shrim (the Beekeeper of Aleppo), who rescued 265 Yazidi girls captured by Isis.

But the real heroes are the women who have experienced unfathomable cruelty and dared to speak out.
The 1460th Transportation Company, a Michigan Army National Guard unit headquartered in Midland, is not currently scheduled to join the roughly 300 National Guardsmen and women who've been mobilized in the state in response to the coronavirus pandemic, a local lawmaker confirmed Wednesday.

However, Rep. Annette Glenn, R-Midland, stated Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Paul Rogers informed her that members of the Midland unit with certain specialized skills  such as medical training, strategic planning, and logistics  may still be individually "handpicked" for mobilization.

"I deeply respect the 'mission first' attitude and commitment of all our National Guardsmen and women, especially those from Bay and Midland counties, and I appreciate Maj. Gen. Rogers for briefing me as I work through my subcommittee's budget-setting responsibilities over the next few months for all National Guard activities in the state," said Glenn, whose husband served with the 1460th Transportation Company in the 1990s.

The Guard will not mobilize entire medical units, Rogers told Glenn, because that would take doctors and nurses away from their civilian healthcare duties at a time when hospitals and other medical facilities are under increasing pressure as the number of coronavirus victims increases. She said some surgeons, however, who are part-time Guard members and are no longer performing elective surgeries in their private practices  under a gubernatorial executive order banning such procedures  are volunteering for full- or part-time military duty.

Glenn said according to Rogers, the Guard has no plans or expectations of being mobilized for law enforcement duties or to suppress civil unrest.

"They stand ready, however, as always, to help keep our people, hospitals, medical supplies, neighborhoods, and businesses safe if called upon to do so," she said.

In addition to the roughly 300 National Guard members currently on active duty in Michigan, including three each at state veterans' homes in Grand Rapids and the Upper Peninsula, the status of other Michigan National Guard units is as follows:

 A Michigan Air National Guard unit has returned from deployment overseas but is currently still in quarantine due to the coronavirus.

 Two other units who were already scheduled and in the process of training and deployment will not have their plans altered at this time.

Monday, President Donald Trump authorized Governor Gretchen Whitmer's request to allow up to 3,000 Michigan National Guard members to be utilized for up to 90 days. They will help with some of the humanitarian and community needs in response to the coronavirus, with federal funds paying for the Guard activities.

Rogers also reported Michigan's Veterans Trust Fund lost $11 million in stock market investments in March, but it still has $54 million on hand. That's $4 million to spare over the $50 million the fund must, by state law, keep in its accounts, while using the interest to assist veteran relief efforts  typically to assist financially-stressed veterans with rent payments, groceries, and utility payments. No funds will be needed for the latter in the immediate future, however, since utility shutoffs have been suspended under the governor's current declaration of emergency.

The fund dispersed $22,397 to 17 Midland County veterans in 2019, Glenn said, and $7,429 to five Bay County veterans.

Glenn invites citizens who have any concerns, input, or questions about the coronavirus, the state's military and veterans services budget, or any other issue involving state government to call her at 571-373-1791 or email AnnetteGlenn@house.mi.gov.
He's been enjoying some time away from the cobbles as production was suspended amid the coronavirus pandemic.

But Jack P Shepherd ensured he celebrated his 20-year Coronation Street anniversary with his fans as he shared throwback snaps on social media to mark his milestone on Thursday.

The soap star, 32, expressed his gratitude towards the show for giving him his huge TV break as troubled character David Platt in the emotional post.

'Thank you for everything': Jack P Shepherd ensured he celebrated his 20-year Coronation Street anniversary with his fans as he shared throwback snaps on social media on Thursday

The actor's collage featured a series of photos from his days as a cheeky schoolboy, as well as shots of David in action with his co-stars.

Jack captioned the pictures: 'Today marks my 20th year anniversary playing the role of David platt, heres a few photos of my life before I got the part and a few highlights of my character. Thank you @coronationstreet for everything.'

His post garnered attention from his former on-screen girlfriend Michelle Keegan, who played Tina McIntyre from 2008 until 2014.

The Our Girl star, 32, penned: ' Congratulations Jacky boy! Bloody amazing achievement I hope that Tina tattoo is still imprinted on your arm. Heres to the next 20 years xxx.'

The soap star, 32, expressed his gratitude towards the show for giving him his huge TV break as David Platt (pictured in 2019)

A trip down memory lane: The actor's collage featured a series of photos from his days as a cheeky schoolboy (pictured centre in nursery with his classmates)

Back in the day: Jack (pictured far right) appeared in great spirits as he played with a toy water gun

Having fun: The thespian (pictured bottom left) pulled an animated facial expression as he posed with a trophy alongside his pals

Tracy Barlow actress Kate Ford commented: 'Ha! X happy anniversary Jack', while former on-screen love rival Ryan Thomas poked fun at not receiving a shout out by quipping: 'No one mention!' [sic]

In March 2018, viewers were left devastated after Corrie villain Josh Tucker (Ryan Clayton) threw Jack's character David onto a bed in a semi-conscious state as he spiked his drink.

The harrowing storyline earned Jack the coveted Best Actor prize at The British Soap Awards later that year.

While many fans branded the plot 'uncomfortable,' the media personality revealed he's received plenty of praise from fans and victims' support groups for taking on the role.

Former love: The TV star also shared shots of David with his co-stars (pictured with former on-screen girlfriend Michelle Keegan, who played Tina McIntyre from 2008 until 2014)

Getting some action: David has embarked on many romances in his day

Trauma: The hairdresser looked devastated as he said goodbye to his late wife Kylie in 2016 (played by Paula Lane)

Speaking to the ITV soap's official blog, the actor recently detailed: 'People saying that they've enjoyed watching the storyline. Then they always hesitate and say, 'I shouldn't really say that as it's not something you should enjoy' but what they mean is that it's been a good topic and it needed to be addressed.

'It's interesting because when it was released in the press that we were going to do this storyline there was a lot of response with people saying it's disgusting, Corrie shouldn't be putting that on the screen, it's a family show.

'As soon as it went on screen people realised that you didn't see David get raped, all you saw was a door slamming shut and you knew what was going to happen after that. It let the audience use their own imagination.

'The storyline was more about the aftermath and the mental effect that happened with David. People got it and it was a good story, I think Corrie played it out really well.'

Drama: He also shared a scene from when Audrey (Sue Nicholls) tried to kidnap to David and Sarah (Tina O'Brien) in 2002 (pictured with on-screen mum Gail, played by Helen Worth)

Brave: The media personality also portrayed a rape victim in March 2018, a harrowing storyline which earned him a Best Actor prize at The British Soap Awards later that year

In good company: Jack pictured far left with his on-screen family The Platts

Earlier this month, the thespian filmed the last scenes for the famous show before production was suspended amid the COVID-19 crisis.

A statement from the broadcaster said its staff had been working hard to ensure filming continued 'whilst adhering to the Government's latest health guidelines'. ITV also reassured fans that enough episodes have been recorded to see both soaps through until the early summer.

The statement said: 'ITV has sadly taken the decision to suspend production of the soaps Coronation Street and Emmerdale with effect from Monday March 23.

Congratulations! His post garnered attention from former co-stars Michelle Keegan and Ryan Thomas, as well as Tracy Barlow actress Kate Ford

'We've been doing our best to carry on filming, whilst adhering to the Government's latest health guidelines, to ensure we've episodes of both soaps airing on ITV until at least the early summer.

'However, the health and well-being of the production teams, actors, crew and their families is of paramount importance to us and we now feel that the time has come to stop filming.

'We'd like to thank our viewers for their support and hope they continue to enjoy both soaps in the coming months.'
When COVID-19 began spreading locally, the Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts in northwest Houston reacted by canceling all tours and events. As things got worse the inevitable became apparent and doors closed to the public starting March 17, meaning the museums annual gala needed to be called off as well.

Modifying operations to provide services digitally was a challenge since the fine arts museum doesnt normally do as much online activity. But the museum didnt want to let its patrons down and instead sought to keep its (virtual) doors open by providing new online art programming.

Library services: Harris County Public Library offering digital services for patrons

We completely changed our model to switch everything over and develop all new programs for this constant online activity, Museum Director Ani Boyajian said.

The Pearl Fincher Museums new online art programming is being created and posted on its website, pearlmfa.org, and its social media pages on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

As part of the new programming, the museum is highlighting work from current exhibitions Monday, Wednesday and Friday on social media.

The museum also launched Pearl at Home, a webpage accessible through the Pearl Fincher website offering art activities for the whole family with downloadable instructions for ages five and up. New art projects are posted on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Individuals and families are encouraged to share creations by posting photos on the museum social media pages. Post using the hashtag #pearlathome and tag the museum as well. Patrons can also share artwork by emailing photos to education@pearlmfa.org.

Another new activity is The Pearl Home Art Challenge prompting art-making for all ages and skill levels. Each Friday, the museum posts a new art challenge for the week. At-home artists can complete the challenge and share their work on the museums social media pages using the hashtag #pearlartchallenge.

Although the museum is closed during this emergency period, we adopted the attitude that when one door closes, another door opens, Boyajian said. The new door that opened for the Pearl and our community is our new online programming, reaching out more than ever to people at home.

It was important that we continue with our mission to bring art and art education to the community.

New door

Different organizations have their galas other times of the year, but the Pearls would have taken place in March. The postponement of the Pearls of Art Gala was a blow because the event is how the museum receives the majority of its fundraising for annual operations.

Sports Night returns: Pearl Fincher Museum brings back Sports Night at the Pearl

Instead, doors are closed, and everybody is working from home.

Boyajian says its been a test keeping the museum operating by providing online activities. The operations team has been using different means of communications such as telephone, video conferencing and emails to try to move things forward.

Essentially were just trying to keep things going and its been a huge challenge, Boyajian said.

The easiest thing for the Pearl to get up and running was expanding its social media presence and developing new ideas for posting as a regular program, according to Boyajian.

The new online programming started on March 13th, when the Pearl Home Art Challenge was posted as an at-home alternative to the canceled Museum Family Day. A new Home Art Challenge has been posted every Friday since then and the other online programming snowballed from there.

Guest artists will also be making videos and art teachers will develop lessons and lectures that theyll be posting on the website. Boyajian says theyre organizing all of that behind the scenes and are still figuring out the technology for each individual project that theyre doing.

Yet to come is an exciting range of additional planned online activities, including photographic and video workshops, demonstrations, talks, tours, and guest-artist projects, Boyajian said. There are many in the process of being organized. There will be something for everyone.

Seeking support

Without normal operations and regular revenue, the Pearl is looking to make up for the funding its missing. Boyajian hopes the community will come through and help the museum during this time so they can sustain.

We have all sorts of regular costs to maintain the museum and protect the artwork, Boyajian said.

The annual fundraising gala was originally scheduled for March 21 but has been postponed until June 27. The annual Student Art Contest has also been temporarily postponed until further notice. Boyajian says receiving community support is vital in order to endure this difficult period and to continue with their mission in northwest Houston.

Donations in any amount are being accepted through the museums website or through mailed checks, which can be sent to 6815 Cypresswood Drive, Spring, Texas 77379.

Inspired to make art

The Pearl Fincher Museum of Fine Arts is considered a cultural center in the northwest Houston area, Boyajian said.

Its a very important part of a lot of peoples lives when we have our doors open and they can come to the museum to get that enrichment in their lives from participating in our activities, Boyajian said.

People may be stuck at home, but the museum is determined to continue connecting the community to art.

With Pearl at Home projects updated weekly such as drawing horse portraits and Hawaiian quilts, creatives of all ages and skill levels can interact with each other through art. Most projects can be completed with easily-accessible materials or items found around the home.

Now, Boyajian just hopes that the public and surrounding communities find them and sees what the Pearl is doing.

The whole point is so that while everyones at home they can have a dose of art and be inspired to make art while they have this time and thats a beautiful thing, Boyajian said. We hope the people take advantage of that and that they come visit our website, make some art and view some art through the activities and programming that were offering.

alvaro.montano@chron.com
[April 02, 2020] Jvion's COVID Patient Vulnerability Lists Help Hospitals Proactively Respond to Pandemic

CareATC among customers using Jvions COVID Patient Vulnerability Lists to proactively intervene with high-risk patient populations ATLANTA, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Jvion, a leader in clinical AI, today announced it is supporting customers in the fight against COVID by delivering COVID Patient Vulnerability Lists, which provide insights on individual patient risk to help care providers take proactive action to save lives in their communities. As of today, Jvion has provided lists to 30% of its customers, analyzing over four million patients and identifying approximately 200,000 high vulnerability patients. The patient vulnerability lists are available to all existing customers at no charge. Leveraging a combination of claims data and publicly available data, the AI-generated lists rank hospital patient populations based on their risk for the most severe outcomes if infected. Patients are classified by their risk of hospitalization, end organ failure, and mortality as a result of infection. The lists also identify the clinical factors and social determinants of health driving their risk, including factors like unemployment, transportation access and food insecurity. Health systems can use this information to proactively engage patients with guidance to prevent the worst outcomes, prepare for surges of patients in advance, establish mobile testing centers for vulnerable populations, and to inform partnerships with community groups to address the top socioeconomic contributing factors, said Dr. John Frownfelter, Chief Medical Information Officer for Jvion. This could include providing food delivery services if tranportation is limited, to protect the vulnerable from leaving their homes, he added.



Vickie Rice, VP of Strategic Analytics at CareATC in Oklahoma, said, With the output from Jvions COVID-19 list, weve been able to proactively reach out to those patients in our population who are most vulnerable to COVID-19, while at the same time offering our employer clients the ability to mitigate the impacts of this disease on their population. Other customers are using Jvions COVID Patient Vulnerability Lists to identify neighborhoods where mobile testing clinics are appropriate, saving vulnerable patients from a trip to the hospital where they could expose themselves to the virus.

In addition to customer-specific patient vulnerability lists, Jvion also released a COVID Community Vulnerability Map, which has received over one million views to date. The map provides a geospatial view of populations at-risk for severe outcomes, and surfaces the socioeconomic and environmental drivers for that risk. It is also overlaid with points of interest such as transportation, food sources, hospitals and health services, helping community leaders and healthcare providers deploy interventions and allocate resources. About Jvion Jvion enables healthcare organizations to prevent avoidable patient harm and lower costs through its AI-enabled prescriptive analytics solution. An industry first, the Jvion Machine goes beyond simple predictive analytics and machine learning to identify patients on a trajectory to becoming high risk and for whom intervention will likely be successful. Jvion determines the interventions that will more effectively reduce risk and enable clinical action. And it accelerates time to value by leveraging established patient-level intelligence to drive engagement across hospitals, populations, and patients. To date, the Jvion Machine has been deployed across about 50 hospital systems and 300 hospitals, who report average reductions of 30% for preventable harm incidents and annual cost savings of $6.3 million. For more information, visit www.jvion.com, or follow Jvion on Linkedin and Twitter. Jvion PR Contact:

Lexi Herosian

[email protected]

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Getting started on a healthy program can be easy with some professional help.
Out of the over 85 coronavirus



positive cases reported in different parts of Gujarat so far, authorities are struggling to find out the exact source of infection in at least seven individuals.

While some health officials claimed that it is an indication of community transmission, others feel that Gujarat is still away from that stage even as the source of infection remains unknown in seven cases.

According to officials, people usually get infected during their foreign visits or due to local transmission, wherein they come in contact with a coronavirus positive person locally.

In community transmission, the source of infection for a large number of peopleremains unknown as the virus spreads in a community without people knowing about it, they said.

So far, 87 people have been found coronavirus positive in Gujarat. While seven of them died, as many patients have recovered.

In Ahmedabad, where 31 people were found positive, the source of infection in a man from Gomtipur area, who has died, is yet to be known.

"Similarly, the source of infection in a woman pathologist in Ahmedabad, who tested positive a week back, remains unknown," Deputy Municipal Commissioner, Om Prakash Machra, said.

In Bhavnagar, authorities are still struggling to find out how a 45-year-old woman got infected with the deadly virus and eventually died.

"That woman never stepped out of her village. Her contact tracing did not suggest that she came in contact with a coronavirus positive patient. Although her husband had visited Surat, he is healthy. So we are not sure how she got infected. It can be a case of community transmission," chief district health officer (CDHO), Dr A K Taviyad, said.

In Rajkot, where 10 persons have been found positive so far, authorities are stil baffled about a mother-son duo.

"We believe that the 45-year-old son first got infected and it then spread in his 75-year-old mother. Despite our efforts to establish a link, the source of infection is still unknown," Rajkot CDHO, Dr Mitesh Bhanderi, said.

In Surat, two men with no history of foreign travel have tested positive. One of them runs a laundry, while the other one used to work at a leading grocery supermarket.

"Though it is still unknown how they got infected, it cannot be termed as community transmission. These are only isolated cases. In community transmission stage, multiple cases of such nature emerge from one area, which is not the case at present," Deputy Municipal Commissioner of Surat, Dr Ashish Nayak, said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At Least Eight Afghan Civilians Killed By Roadside Bomb In Helmand

By RFE/RL April 01, 2020

At least eight civilians, mostly children, were killed when their vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand.

Omar Zwak, a spokesman for the provincial governor, said the civilians were traveling in a minivan in Helmand's Gereshk district on April 1 when the blast occurred.

Two other civilians were wounded in the attack. Zwak said the casualty figures could rise.

The victims were all from a single family, according to Helmand police spokesman Zaman Hamdard, who said six of the dead were children.

Provincial councilor Abdul Majid Akhundzada also confirmed the death toll.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but both the Taliban and Islamic State militants are active in the province.

Government forces only control the capital, Lashkar Gah and five other districts out of a total of 14 districts in the province. The Taliban controls the remaining territory, including the Gereshk district.

More than 100,000 civilians have lost their lives in the war-torn country since 2009, according to the United Nations' Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.

U.S.-led international forces have been operating in the country since the Taliban regime collapsed in 2001.

Washington signed a deal with the Taliban last month that sees the gradual withdrawal of international troops from Afghanistan with the expectation that intra-Afghan peace talks will follow.

With reporting by by AP, dpa, and tolonews.com

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/at-least- eight-afghan-civilians-killed-by-roadside- bomb-in-helmand/30521842.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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The death of one of Kashmir's wealthiest businessmen and an Islamic preacher associated with the Tablighi Jamaat has pointed to the negligence of authorities in containing the coronavirus

Srinagar: The death of a well-known Kashmiri businessman and an Islamic preacher associated with the Tablighi Jamaat has pointed to the negligence of authorities in containing the coronavirus. Days before his death, doctors refused to admit 65-year old Islamic preacher Mohammad Ashraf Anim to the Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences Bemina in Srinagar and didn't even carry out any tests, despite the fact that he had symptoms of the disease and had travelled outside Jammu and Kashmir. The reason provided, according to members of his family, was that Anim had no history of international travel, and the hospital had restricted itself to testing such cases. Anim, his family said, was advised to isolate himself at home.

According to his nephew Zafar, who is a doctor, Anim was taken to SKIMS Bemina on 21 March, but even as doctors had written on his medical card that he was a suspected coronavirus case, they refused to admit him to the hospital. Later, when the family shifted him on its own to SKIMS Hospital in Soura, he was not tested there and was only admitted to the Chest Disease Hospital the following day. It was there that he breathed his last on 26 March.

Follow all the latest coronavirus updates here

The patient had provided doctors with his travel history  including his visit to the Tablighi centre at Nizamuddin in Delhi and to Uttar Pradesh. He had travelled outside Kashmir between 7 and 16 March. The hospital records reveal that he showed symptoms of COVID-19 on 21 March at SKIMS Bemina, including a high fever. After he developed a high fever and began to suffer from shortness of breath, his family shifted him from his residence at Hyderpora to SKIMS Bemina, but the doctors refused to admit him there.

"We revealed our entire travel history to the doctors at the SKIMS, including his visit to the mosque at Nizamudin, but they refused to carry out any tests. We even revealed his prior travel history during the month of January. The doctors told us that the he should be home quarantined and they were only testing those who had an international travel history. So we decided to get him back to our home before we shifted him to the CD Hospital, where he was admitted to the isolation ward and died due to lung inflammation," said Zafar.

Zafar said that they arranged for an "oxygen cylinder from one of our relatives who already has a medical complication". And as Anim's condition deteriorated, "we shifted him to the CD Hospital, where he passed away". Zafar added, "My uncle was diabetic and also suffered from hypertension; there are no specialist doctors at the CD Hospital and he was not managed well." SKIMS Bemina authorities aren't authorised to comment on patient or treatment history.

The death of one of the richest persons in Kashmir  whose family had been running cement industries as well as toughened glass manufacturing units, alongside selling textile fabrics  points to the maltreatment of patients in hospitals. Although the authorities had promised to hold an inquiry into Anim's death, Additional Commissioner Kashmir, Tassaduq Hussain Mir, said that they were not carrying out any "probe". A report by the divisional authorities has however noted that the "patient has been given ample time to spread the virus by intermingling with the public and relatives". The hospital authorities of SKIMS Bemina have also been asked to explain their position.

Following Anim's death, Kashmiris have raised questions over the laxity in handling the coronavirus by the authorities, as there have also been reports of patients managing to flee from hospitals and even vandalising property of healthcare centres to protest the lack of facilities. At least two people have died due to COVID-19, while 48 others have tested positive in Kashmir. The death of Anim has also raised questions over the laxity in the tracing people with whom patients have come in contact in Kashmir, while those who have been quarantined have complained about the lack of healthcare facilities.

GN Var, an educationist, who knew Anim and his family, said that his death reflects the negligence of authorities in dealing with the disease. "While the government closed schools, it allowed winter games in Kashmir when the coronavirus had already spread in other parts of world. The government should take over the hotels in Kashmir and keep the coronavirus patients there and not mistreat them. The tracing of contacts of the coronavirus-positive cases has not happened properly," said Var, who lives a few miles away from Anim's home. Following his death, some residents of his home town of Hyderpora have moved to other places, said a local resident.

Kashmir's nodal officer for the coronavirus, SM Kadri, said, "We are following the health guidelines strictly. The high-risk contacts  who are the family members of the coronavirus-positive cases  are being tested irrespective of whether they are symptomatic or asymptomatic for the disease. The neighbours who are in the low risk category are being tested if they have the symptoms," he said.
The COP26 negotiations were scheduled to take place in the British city of Glasgow in November.

This years United Nations global climate summit is being postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic, host country the United Kingdom has said.

The most important climate summit since Paris 2015, also called COP26, was scheduled to take place in the British city of Glasgow in November. It will now be held in 2021.

British Business Minister Alok Sharma, who was also due to preside over the COP26 talks, said with countries struggling to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, governments needed more time to prepare.

We will continue working tirelessly with our partners to deliver the ambition needed to tackle the climate crisis, Sharma said. And I look forward to agreeing to a new date for the conference.

Some 30,000 people, including 200 world leaders, were due to attend the 10-day conference.

The world is facing an unprecedented global challenge & countries are rightly focusing on fighting #COVID19. Due to this, #COP26 has been postponed. We will continue working with partners to deliver the ambition needed to tackle the climate crisis & agree a new date   Alok Sharma (@AlokSharma_RDG) April 1, 2020

While the coronavirus crisis has thrown the climate talks into uncertainty, some see the delay as an advantage with the US presidential elections set for November.

UN negotiators say the postponement will allow them to assess whether they will have support in the White House after US President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 Paris agreement in 2017 and rolled back Obama-era environmental policies.





If the Democrats win  with either Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders as the next president  it would mean a return to negotiations for the US, the worlds second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China.

While there was broad support for the postponement of the negotiations because of the devastating effects of coronavirus, many questioned the decision.

Alden Meyer of the US-based Union of Concerned Scientists said events can be postponed, but climate change will not pause even for a pandemic of epic proportions.

The response to the COVID-19 pandemic is showing that the nations of the world can come together to tackle global challenges and that the policy landscape can shift quickly when there is sufficient political will, Meyer said.

This should give us hope as we move forward in the fight to tackle the global crisis of climate change.

Urgent action

Greenpeace International Director Jennifer Morgan said leaders should now double down on efforts to ensure a green and just way forward.

Going back to business as usual is completely unacceptable. This pandemic shows there are huge lessons to be learned about the importance of listening to science and the need for urgent collective global action, Morgan said.

The COP26 talks this year were expected to deliver new global targets for protecting biodiversity, but that event scheduled in China will also be delayed now.

Many experts suggest COVID-19 has a direct link with environmental degradation, deforestation and illegal wildlife trade, bringing wild animals into close contact with humans and increasing the likelihood of pandemics such as COVID-19.

They also believe that climate change will make poorer communities more vulnerable to such outbreaks.
Donald Trump has said the federal government will intervene to rescue passengers and crew from the coronavirus-stricken cruise ship Holland America Zandaam after Florida's Governor Ron DeSantis said he would only rescue the 49 Floridians on board.

'They're dying, so we have to do something,' the president said in Wednesday's White House press briefing.

Trump weighed in on the cruise ship saga, as the Zandaam and sister ship Rotterdam are fast approaching Florida and hoping to dock at Port Everglades later this week.

Four people have died on board the Zandaam and at least 190 more have symptoms of the killer virus which has claimed the lives of more than 42,000 worldwide.

Donald Trump said at Wednesday's White Hosue briefing that the federal government will intervene to rescue passengers and crew from the coronavirus-stricken cruise ships headed for Florida

But Florida's governor said he would only save the 49 Floridians stranded on board the ships and planned to refuse permission for any of the other 2,000-plus passengers or crew to disembark.

Trump said it was understandable that states don't want to take on the additional burden of a potential influx of COVID-19 patients but insisted that 'from a humane standpoint' the US has to help people 'no matter where they're from'.

'It's a tough situation, it's a tough situation,' he said. 'You can understand there are people who are sick on those ships and states don't wanna take them - they have enough problems right now they don't want to take them.

'But from a humane standpoint we don't have a choice. We have to... people are dying. We're going to do something.'

Trump said the government had been sending medical teams on board the ship to 'care for the people'.

'They're dying, so we have to do something,' the president said. The Zandaam (pictured) and sister ship Rotterdam are fast approaching Florida and hoping to dock at Port Everglades later this week

Four people have died on board the Zandaam and at least 190 more have symptoms of the killer virus which has claimed the lives of more than 42,000 worldwide

The US is also working with other countries to repatriate their citizens.

'We have Canada notified - there's a lot of Canadians, lots of British on the ship and they're coming to take the people on the ship back to their homeland.

'Canada is coming, the UK is coming and we have a lot of Americans,' he said.

'We're taking the Canadians off and giving them to Canadian authorities so they can bring them back home, do the same thing with the UK.'

In a comment that seemed to be directed at DeSantis, Trump said the US would step in regardless of the nationality or residence of those on board.

'We have to help the people. They're in big trouble no matter where they're from,' he said.

'They happen to be largely American but whether they were or not they're dying so we have to do something - and the governor knows that too,' he said of DeSantis.

Florida Gov DeSantis announced earlier Wednesday that the state would only rescue the 49 Florida residents on board the two liners and that all other passengers and crew members would be forced to remain at sea

Trump added he was 'speaking with the governor about that a lot'.

He didn't provide details about a plan but said 'you'll see what we're doing'.

DeSantis announced earlier Wednesday that the state would rescue the 49 Florida residents on board the two liners but that all other passengers and crew members would be forced to remain at sea.

'We are going to be willing to accept Floridians on board,' he said.

'My understanding is most of the passengers are foreign nationals.'

The governor previously said the state would offer no assistance to the ships until the cruise ship firm provided a plan of action for distributing the infected people to medical facilities.

Canadian passengers Chris and Anna Joiner ask for help onboard the Zaandam on March 27

'My concern is that we have worked so hard to make sure we have adequate hospital space in the event of a Covid-19 surge, we wouldn't want those valuable beds to be taken because of the cruise ship,' said DeSantis.

He said Tuesday that the state's healthcare system is stretched too thin to take on the Zaandam's coronavirus caseload.

'Just to drop people off at the place where we're having the highest number of cases right now just doesn't make a whole lot of sense,' DeSantis said.

Federal, state and local officials have been negotiating over whether the Zaandam and Rotterdam would be allowed to dock at Port Everglades later this week.

Two of four deaths on the Zaandam were blamed on COVID-19 and nine people have tested positive for the virus, the company said.

At least 190 more reported symptoms. More than 300 Americans are on Zaandam and Rotterdam.

The Zandaam set sail on a two-week voyage from Buenos Aires, Argentina, on March 7 and was due to arrive in Chile on March 21. It is now off Valparaiso, Chile, and is hoping to dock at Port Everglades this week

Holland America said the Rotterdam took on nearly 1,400 people who appear to be healthy from its sister ship, leaving 450 guests and 602 crew members on the Zaandam.

The Zandaam set sail on a two-week voyage from Buenos Aires, Argentina, on March 7 - 10 days before the company canceled all voyages over fears of an outbreak - and was due to arrive in Chile on March 21.

The ship had been granted permission to dock in Punta Arenas in Chile but when it arrived on March 14, permission was refused and passengers were prevented from leaving.

It stopped in Valparaiso, Chile, to take on more provisions and fuel but people were ordered to stay on board.

Carnival Cruises, the world's largest cruise operator which also jointly owns the Zandaam and Rotterdam ships, has said more than 6,000 passengers are still stuck at sea on board its ships.

Including the 2,000-plus on board the Zandaam and Rotterdam, Carnival's Costa Magica and Costa Favolosa are also stranded at sea near Miami amid negotiations with the US Coast Guard to evacuate passengers.

Cruise ships still at sea: Cruise line: Holland America Line MS Zaandam: 190 ill onboard; 4 deaths MS Rotterdam: No COVID-19 cases If officials allow it, both ships will dock in Florida later this week. Cruise line: Princess Cruises Coral Princess: No COVID-19 cases Passengers will disembark on April 4 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Pacific Princess: No COVID-19 cases Passengers will arrives in Los Angeles in mid-April. Cruise line: P&O Cruises The Arcadia: No COVID-19 cases This ship is expected to dock in Southampton, England, on April 12. Cruise line: Cunard Line Queen Mary 2: No COVID-19 cases There are 264 passengers onboard and the ship is heading to Southampton, England. Cruise line: MSC Cruises MSC Magnifica: No COVID-19 cases The ship is heading to Europe Cruise line: Cruise & Maritime Voyages Columbus: No COVID-19 cases The ship is expected to arrive in Tilbury, England, on April 13. Cruise line: Hapag-Lloyd Cruises MS Europa: No COVID-19 cases With only crew members onboard the ship is sailing to Barbados and with an expected arrival of April 3. Hanseatic Nature: No COVID-19 cases With only crew members onboard, the the ship is expected to arrive in Hamburg, Germany, on April 15. Cruise line: Carnival Cruises Costa Magica: Stranded near the port of Miami. Costa Favolosa: Stranded near the port of Miami. Advertisement

According to a company filing, crew members have also been forced to stay on board the ships amid fears that no one will be able to leave until the end of April.

In total, more than two dozen cruise ships are waiting at Port Miami and Port Everglades in Florida as well as nearby offshore, according to the Miami Herald.

The Coast Guard has directed all cruise ships to remain at sea and told operators to be prepared to send sick passengers to countries where the ships are registered.

States and nations have been turning away ships after cases of coronavirus were confirmed on board.

Cruise ships have become particular hotbeds for the virus, with a number of liners being doomed by fatal outbreaks.

In the worst cruise ship crisis so far, 706 people tested positive on the Diamond Princess after Japanese authorities imposed a two-week lockdown in Yokohama.

At least seven people have died after they were taken to hospital from the doomed vessel.

Passengers were confined to their cabins during the lockdown but several countries eventually lost patience with Japan and airlifted their citizens home.

Japan was widely criticised for its handling of the ship, with one disease expert saying the quarantine was 'completely inadequate' after viewing the conditions on board.

Japan had initially impounded the ship after a passenger who left the ship in Hong Kong in January subsequently tested positive.

Weeks later another Caribbean Princess ship was struck by an outbreak, when two passengers and 19 crew members on the Grand Princess cruise ship tested positive for coronavirus in early March.

The ship docked in Oakland, California, on March 9 with 3,500 on board and people were repatriated and sent to army bases for quarantine.
WASHINGTON, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Governor of the U.S. state of Florida Ron DeSantis issued an order Wednesday directing residents statewide to stay at home so as to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

"I'm going to be doing an executive order today directing all Floridians to limit movements and all personal interactions outside the home to only those necessary to obtain or provide essential services or conduct essential activities," DeSantis said at a press briefing.

The order takes effect Thursday and is valid for 30 days. DeSantis' decision was made after he consulted with President Donald Trump by phone in the morning.

"At this point, I think even though there's a lot of places in Florida that have very low infection rates, it makes sense to make this move now," DeSantis said.

"I did consult with folks in the White House, I did speak with the president about it, he agreed with the approach of focusing on the hot spots but at the same time he understood that this is another 30-day situation and you have to do what makes the most sense," he added.

Previously hesitant to issue a stay-at-home order, DeSantis has been under pressure to do so. He issued a "safer-at-home" order Monday for Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, and Monroe counties through mid-May.

As of Wednesday, confirmed cases in the state neared 7,000, with the death toll increasing to 87, and over 900 being hospitalized, NBC's Miami branch reported.
A concreter who fell asleep at the wheel after drinking 30 beers was surprised to learn he broke the law.

Michael O'Rourke pleaded guilty to drink driving at Townsville Magistrates Court after the incident on February 9.

The 50-year-old was spotted by police getting into his car while looking intoxicated at 3.10am after celebrating his birthday.

Police prosecutor Anita Page told the court Mr O'Rourke was found asleep in the drivers seat with his keys in the ignition.

'The defendant was incoherent and was slurring his speech and had extremely bloodshot eyes,' she said, as reported by The Townsville Bulletin.

Michael O'Rourke pleaded guilty to drink driving after falling asleep at the wheel after his 50th birthday party (stock image)

Mr O'Rourke told police he had 20-30 drinks in five hours and blew a blood alcohol reading of 0.072.

His lawyer Bill O'Toole said he was surprised he had broken the law.

'It is a funny thing that my client found himself in the situation where he did not realise he was committing an offence by sitting in the car,' he said.

Mr O'Rourke has an extensive history of traffic offences, but only one drink-driving charge from back in 1998.

Mr O'Toole said his client went to retrieve his wallet from his car and didn't make it back to the party.

'He had been out celebrating his 50th birthday with some work colleagues. As a group, decided they might go to The Ville Casino, when he arrived there he realised he shouldn't be there and ought to go back to his vehicle to retrieve his wallet so he was at the vehicle for a number of hours. At no stage did he endeavour to drive the vehicle,' he said.

Magistrate Steven Mosch fined Mr O'Rourke $350 and disqualified his licence for six weeks.
By Akbar Mammadov

Twenty-seven years have passed since the occupation of Kalbajar, the largest of the occupied regions of Azerbaijan during the Nagorno-Karabakh war with neighboring Armenia in the early 1990s.

The occupation of the Kalbajar region was the greatest military-strategic defeat of Azerbaijan in the Karabakh war.

The large-scale attack of the Armenian military units, which began on March 27, ended with the occupation of the Kalbajar region on April 2, 1993.

As a result of the occupation, 53,340 people were expelled from their ancestral lands, 511 civilians were killed, 321 people were taken prisoner and went missing, and the region suffered $761 million in damage.

As a result of the occupation, the district center, about 150 villages, as well as dozens of historical and cultural monuments, a museum, "Istisu" sanatorium and other important facilities were destroyed by Armenian forces.

The territory of Kalbajar region is 1936 square kilometers, and the population was over 93,000 before the occupation. Residents of the region currently live in 56 regions of Azerbaijan.

Following the occupation of Kalbajar, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 822 calling for the immediate withdrawal of all occupying forces from Kalbajar and other occupied regions of Azerbaijan. However, so far no obligations arising from the resolution have been fulfilled. Subsequently, the UN Security Council adopted resolutions 854 on the liberation of the Aghdam region, 874 on the liberation of the Fizuli region and 884 on the liberation of other occupied territories, but these resolutions remain on paper.

So far, Armenia has not implemented the four resolutions of the UN Security Council on the liberation of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding areas.

The confict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region between Armenia and Azerbaijan emerged in 1998 as Armenia made territorial claims against the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. The ensuring war caused Armenia to occupy around 20 percent of Azerbaijans lands, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

---

Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
An Ode to Joseph Echols Lowery: An American Icon and Human Rights Champion

The Honorable Charles Stith (Courtesy Photo)

Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death is your sting?

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Corinthians 15:55

(Johannesburg) On March 28th, in what for me was the wee hours of the morning, I received a text from Joe Lowerys daughter, Karen, confirming his passing. The Reverend Dr. Joseph Echols Lowery was an American Civil Rights movement leader and icon and Methodist minister. He was a stalwart in the fight for freedom and justice, whether it was an advocate for garbage workers, farm workers rights, a Palestinian homeland, or an opponent of the South African apartheid regime.

I met Reverend Lowery as a first year seminarian at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta over 45 years ago. We were introduced by another mentor of mine, Dr. Major J. Jones. I interned at Central United Methodist Church where Joe served as senior pastor. In addition to leading a local church, he was chairman of the board of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), which was founded by Martin Luther King, Jr as the flagship organization of the American civil rights movement. Joe was a contemporary of and confidant to Dr. King.

From my first Sunday at Central until my last visit with him in July, he never ceased to impress me. On the first Sunday I attended Central, I was blown away by his power in the pulpit. He brought justice and Jesus together with a wit, wisdom, and eloquence and accessibility that made you believe that through Gods grace broken nations and broken hearts could be made whole, whatever the circumstance. The man was a preaching machine.

Over the years our relationship grew, from mentorship to friendship. Over the years I came to appreciate a number of things about him. First and foremost, he had an instinct for being on the right side of history and the right side of humanity.

His work during the Civil Rights Movement was the stuff of legends. His willingness to speak truth to power, whether it was chastising Alabama Governor George Wallace for his racist views (as a Methodist pastor speaking to a Methodist layman), or calling out principalities and powers on the Iraq War during Coretta Scott Kings funeral as President George W. Bush sat nearby, he showed no fear or favor. He had an instinct for being on the right side of history.

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In the the late 70s, he led the charge against a Mississippi-based power company for its purchase of coal from South Africa. In the 1980s when US President Ronald Reagan was formulating the tenets of his infamous policy of constructive engagement with the South African apartheid regime, Joe was calling on Congress to resist that unholy alliance. As the SCLC chair he led boycotts against the Winn Dixie Supermarket chain, and others, for carrying South African products on its shelves. It is no wonder that one of the first people Nelson Mandela wanted to meet when he went to Atlanta in 1990 was Joe Lowery. It is no wonder that the synergy was complete when President Obama awarded another son of South Africa, Desmond Tutu, and Joe Lowery the US Presidential Medal of Freedom on the same occasion. He had an instinct for being on the right side of history.

Lowery was one of the first of the old guard to bless the candidacy of Barack Obama for the presidency. While others were content to sit on the sidelines he was there on the frontlines, daring to be a mid-wife to a new morning for America. He had an instinct.

Over the years, I have come to appreciate Joes place in history more and more. I have said on more than one occasion that America has been blessed to be a nation with two sets of founding fathers. The first were named George, Thomas, John, and Benjamin. The second were Martin, Ralph, Andy, and Joe. Those first founding fathers conceived the promise of America: We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal. It took the second set of founding fathers to give to substance to that promise. Joe gave soul and sinews to the American dream, as he framed it in his own creative fashion at President Obamas inauguration, [it is] the joy of a new beginning,  for the day when black wont be asked to get back, and brown can stick around, when yellow will be mellow, when the red man can get ahead, man, and when white will embrace what is right.

When I got the word Joe had passed the first thing that came to mind was the last time I saw him. It was a good visit. He had some vintage insights to offer about the current occupant of the White House and we talked about the current state of things around the world. I always valued his sage wit and wisdom on such matters. During this particular visit, we focused more on personal things. He walked me through parish stop over the some fifty odd years he pastored. The refrain as he segued from one chapter of the story to the next was, I loved them and they loved me. Something crystalized for me in a way that had not before. Joes fidelity to the causes he championed didnt reflect some preconceived commitment to a movement, he did what he did because of his deep and abiding love for people, a love that only a pastor can know. What I came to see the sweet summer day in July was that it was his grounding in the human condition, as a pastor, that informed his lifes labor. His lifes long work was not trying to catalyze a movement it was simply trying to be faithful in the moment.

His place in history and his place in our hearts is secure. He is a conqueror, death has no victory here. A mighty oak has fallen. Are we saddened? Yes. I say, yes again. This mighty oak has fallen, but the memory of his strength will endure. The shade and shelter its branches provided over the years will always be, an image in our minds eye that will never die. Death has no victory here. Well done, old good and faithful servant, well done.

Ambassador Charles Stith served as President Clintons envoy to Tanzania and is the non-executive Chair of the Johannesburg-based African Presidential Leadership Center.
By Drazen Jorgic and Lizbeth Diaz

MEXICO CITY/TIJUANA, April 1 (Reuters) - Mexico's medical device industry is scrambling to meet an eleven-fold jump in demand for ventilators as patients with respiratory conditions linked to the coronavirus pandemic overwhelm hospitals in the United States and Europe.

At the same time as some medical instrument companies in the United States are teaming up with auto manufacturers to rapidly turn production lines over to the life-saving machines, others are retooling their factories south of the border.

U.S. medical device firm Hillrom is due to start building ventilators in Tijuana, while companies such as Vyaire Medical, Fisher & Paykel and Getinge are either boosting production of auxiliary ventilator parts or other coronavirus-linked products such as masks and protective clothing.

"You can't flip a switch and turn them on overnight. But the world can't afford for us to wait six months," said Howard Karesh, Hillrom spokesman.

Even before the coronavirus pandemic drove demand for medical products through the roof, Mexico was the top source of imported medical devices for the United States. The $17 billion industry is one of Mexico's biggest export sectors.

That could now be a source of bilateral friction. U.S. reliance on imported medical equipment has been exposed as a strategic weakness during the pandemic, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said on Monday, while some in Mexico warn that the country may soon need the equipment for itself as cases rise.

Ventilator machines pump oxygen into the lungs of patients with acute respiratory problems, helping to avoid lung failure, which is common with the worst-impacted coronavirus patients. Shortages led to deaths in Italy.

A Mexican medical devices association and Tijuana's local government both told Reuters that demand for ventilators has jumped 1000% following the coronavirus outbreak, which has caused nearly 4,000 deaths in the United States and more than 43,000 worldwide.

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Requests for other coronavirus-related equipment have also soared, with demand for thermostats up 150%, probe covers 300% and medical anti-bacterial solutions 430%, according to Arturo Perez, secretary of economic development for Tijuana.

The industry was on Tuesday included on a Mexican government list of "essential activities," allowing factories to stay open despite a nationwide shutdown hitting most businesses.

"We... must continue operating because we are going to save lives and mitigate the pandemic," said Miguel Angel Felix Diaz Alonso, treasurer of a Mexican industry association representing 76 medical manufacturers in Baja California.

The Mexican medical devices industry expanded 9% last year and in 2018 exports totalled $17.1 billion, the association said. Numbers on the volume of ventilators produced were not immediately available.

About a third of all medical equipment in the United States was imported in 2018. Mexico was the top U.S. supplier, accounting for about 17% of total imports, according to a report by Fitch Solutions.

Hillrom, which manufactures ventilators in California, said it was due to increase production capacity of its Life2000 model five-fold on an annualized basis, and would also begin producing the machines in its Tijuana factory.

New Zealand firm Fisher & Paykel Healthcare said it was increasing Mexico production of humidification devices and associated consumables, which are used alongside ventilators.

Integer, a U.S.-listed medical business, said it was increasing production of ventilator and patient monitoring device batteries at least threefold per month in its Tijuana facility.

Hospitals in the United States are also reporting shortages of medical N-95 masks, protective clothing and other equipment.

Stryker, which also has a plant in Tijuana, is expanding global production of defibrillators and patient hygiene, disinfecting and surgical protection products, as well as hospital beds and stretchers.

"We are also exploring expansion into new product areas such as masks and we are working with... (U.S. regulators) to accelerate the approval of essential personal protection equipment," a company spokeswoman said.

MEXICO TURNS TO CHINA

While its own industry focuses on meeting demand from abroad, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's government has sought to double the domestic healthcare system's ventilator capacity by ordering 5,000 machines from China.

Three Mexican medical industry executives told Reuters the government had not contacted them to request higher production or to divert ventilators earmarked for export towards Mexican hospitals.

The presidency directed questions on why Mexico was not tapping its domestic industry to the health ministry. The ministry did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Mexico's approach contrasts with that of many nations, who have enacted wartime mobilization measures to boost production and stop local manufacturers exporting ventilators.

Mexico is several weeks behind the United States in terms of the spread of the coronavirus, with 1,215 confirmed cases and 29 deaths.

But with infection numbers growing and officials warning the health system could be overwhelmed, Lopez Obrador may find himself under pressure to capture more ventilator capacity at home.

Alejandro Macias, Mexico's former pandemics tsar and chief medical adviser during the 2009 swine flu outbreak, forecast Mexico will need at least 30,000 ventilators during the peak of the crisis.

"If I was the president... I would tell those producers 'you are in Mexico, we need a share of that production'," he said. (Reporting by Drazen Jorgic and Lizbeth Diaz; Additional reporting by Raul Cortes Fernandez; Writing by Drazen Jorgic; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel and Rosalba O'Brien)
New Delhi, April 2 : Flag carrier Air India has entered into commercial charter flight agreements with four countries to repatriate their citizens.

According to Air India CMD Rajiv Bansal, the airline has entered into agreements with France, Canada, Germany and Ireland to ferry their citizens back home. The airline will operate 18 flights under these agreements.

"We were approached by these countries' embassies for charter flights to repatriate their citizens. These agreements are on commercial basis," Bansal said in an online press conference of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Bansal added that after ferrying the passengers, the aircraft will return without any passengers on-board.

On the establishment of India-China 'Air-bridge' for transportation of cargo, Bansal said that the airline has obtained regulatory permission from Chinese authorities to operate flights to Shanghai on April 4 and 5. Subsequently, the airline has also applied for other dates such as April 6, 7, 8 and 9 to operate cargo flights.

The airline will also be operating cargo flights to Hong Kong.

On the domestic front, the Air India Group has been transporting essential cargos throughout the country. Accordingly, the airline has operated 62 cargo flights between March 26 and April 1.

It has also been instrumental in rescuing stranded Indians, mainly students and pilgrims, from China, Japan and Europe.

Besides, the Air India CMD said that the airline has released the January flying allowances of its pilots. These allowances make up a substantial proportion of the operating crews' monthly pay.

In addition, he said that none of the airline's employees (ground staff), who are engaged in the cargo operations, have contracted Covid-19 and that the company is taking full precaution and providing personal protective equipment (PPE) to its employees.
The trade union Siptu have added to the growing calls for priority to be given to health care staff for coronavirus tests.

Hundreds of workers have tested positive for the virus and are off work.

Others are waiting for tests and test results, which can take up to ten days.

Siptu's Paul Bell says it is important the issue is addressed.

He said: "We think we are at a critical point now, we have hundreds of workers at this stage waiting for tests.

"And we also have the same number of workers waiting for the results of tests.

We believe it is very, very important, and also very important especially for homecare assistants and home helps who are also serving in the community, who are trying to care for elderly patients, instead of having them go to hospital he said.

Meanwhile, an Irish company is to receive 10m from the EU Commission to develop a rapid test for Covid-19.

Hibergene Diagnostics from Dublin is one of 17 companies in Europe to benefit from an overall EU grant of 48.5m.
Bengaluru-based startup firm Bione Ventures Pvt Ltd, a B2C platform for genetic and microbiome testing, has launched a rapid at-home screening kit for COVID-19 that delivers results within minutes. The company said it will make available the product for sale on their platform within a week.

"We are importing this screening kit from one of our partners in the US, which has secured USFDA approval for the product. In India, we have secured certification from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The screening kit can provide respite from the impending fear of the COVID-19 contagion," Surendra K Chikara, a genomicist and founder of the company told DH.

The simple point-of-care home screening kit renders quick results, without having to step out in the wake of the lockdown. It will foster timely detection of the disease while acting as a preventive tool for others in proximity to the user, by isolating the carrier immediately, he said.

The kit is likely to be priced between Rs 2,000 and Rs 3,000 depending upon the global supply, to increase its affordability for the masses, he said.

COVID-19 screening test kit is an IgG & IgM-based tool which takes 5-10 minutes to deliver the results. Upon receiving the kit, the user is required to clean the finger with an alcohol swab and use the lancet provided to finger-prick. The cartridge provided reads the results from the blood sample thus obtained, within 5-10 minutes, the company said in a statement.

Bione was founded in 2019 in Bengaluru by Dr Surendra K Chikara, who was among the pioneers in bringing NGS sequencing in India.

The company is well-equipped to supply 20,000 kits per week and intends to build its manufacturing facilities in the coming months to cater to the demand, he added.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:12:24|Editor: huaxia

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DAMASCUS, April 2 (Xinhua) -- A total of six new COVID-19 cases were registered in Syria, bringing the total number of those infected with the virus to 16, the Health Ministry said in a statement Thursday.

Two death cases have been reported so far in the country, said the ministry, spelling no further details.

Earlier in the day, the Syrian Interior Ministry extended the coronavirus-related curfew from 12 hours to 18 over the weekend only.
A former US Marine yesterday plunged to his death in a paraglider after its engine cut out mid-air in high winds over Thailand.

Professional pilot Dennis Michael Flynn, 62, was using the machine with friends in Chonburi when he lost control shortly after takeoff.

Flynn hurtled towards the ground strapped inside the rudimentary aircraft: a seat attached to a parachute with a turbine on the back for propulsion.

The veteran was attended to by paramedics shortly after 8am and was still alive and groaning in agony as he lay in a grassy field covered in blood.

Professional pilot Dennis Michael Flynn, 62, was using the machine with friends in Chonburi when he lost control shortly after takeoff (pictured: Flynn was still breathing as he was stretchered away from the scene)

Friends paid tribute online to the American, who had family in the U.S. and was a motorcycle enthusiast, too. One said: 'Dennis died while enjoying his life here in Thailand. He is a U.S Marine. He also had been a bush pilot in Alaska. It is very sad he died. Dennis was 62 this year. This is a very sad ending to his life.'

He was taken to the Wat Yansangwararam Hospital but he died later from severe internal injuries suffered in the crash.

Flynn hurtled towards the ground strapped inside the rudimentary aircraft: a seat attached to a parachute with a turbine on the back for propulsion

Police officers arrived at the scene and later questioned his friends who he had been flying with.

They said that Flynn had taken to the skies shortly before them as he wanted extra time to practice at the Huay Too reservoir in the Sattahip district.

One of his flying pals said: 'We recently bought the paramotor and came here to practice.

'He took off before me and shortly after I saw that he crashed. He could not handle the paramotor after the engine hitched.'

Friends paid tribute online to the American, who had family in the U.S. and was a motorcycle enthusiast, too.

One said: 'Dennis died while enjoying his life here in Thailand. He is a U.S Marine. He also had been a bush pilot in Alaska. It is very sad he died. Dennis was 62 this year. This is a very sad ending to his life.'

Police Major Colonel Thanach Sripraman said the officers have already contacted the U.S. Embassy to inform Flynn's family.

He said: 'Initially, we already contacted the embassy to take care of his funeral but we will need to investigate the paramotor as he might not have had the flying licenses. We can also check where it was bought and what the issues were with the machine.'
Mindware, one of the leading Value Added Distributors (VADs) in the Middle East and Africa, has extensively strengthened its security capabilities and portfolio. This will enable its channel partners to address the growing cyber security needs of enterprises across the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region.

Following the acquisition of Arrow ECS, Mindware inherited a large portfolio of security vendors.

Among others, the revamped portfolio now includes Barracuda Networks, Forcepoint, McAfee, RSA, and Trend Micro.

Nicholas Argyrides, General Manager  Gulf at Mindware explains: For todays CIOs, IT security has become one of the highest priorities considering the increasing number as well as sophistication of cyber threats. As organisations undergo digital transformation and expand their digital presence, they, unsurprisingly, become more vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Technology trends such as Cloud Computing also increase similar risks. As such, the security shielding of companies needs to evolve, so as to include the latest security solutions coupled with best practices. This will ensure that the organisation is not compromised in any way.

Against such scenario, we see the security business as being one of the major growth drivers for Mindware and our partners. Our focus in this segment will, of course, mean an increased investment in resources, training and certifications.

Mindware has been steadily building out its security team and, by now, has a healthy spread of security specialists installed in every key country across the region. They work with partners to ensure that the various security vendors in Mindwares portfolio are well-represented and promoted. The team comprises of product managers assigned to the various security vendors.

These product managers work closely with the vendors to plan and implement strategies to increase market penetration. In addition, there is a parallel team of certified and highly skilled pre-sales engineers.

These engineers are not only proficient in helping partners conduct proof of concepts (PoCs) but, upon request, also supporting when it comes to the actual implementation. This is especially helpful for those partners that are yet to develop their skillsets for particular solutions or technology verticals.

The distributor has also developed robust capabilities in conducting demos and PoCs pertaining to every single one of its security vendors, always in conjunction with its system integrator partners.

These PoCs carried out by Mindware and our partners are often executed by deploying the product in a virtual setting in the end customers datacentre, which is fast becoming the favoured mode when it comes to testing. Alternatively, we also support partners in conducting PoCs by physically installing products on prem. These demos allow potential customers to test the solutions prior to a full-fledged implementation, which is invaluable in demonstrating the effectiveness of a particular offering, said Argyrides.

The Cloud team at Mindware is currently working to identify and add relevant security solutions to the recently launched Mindware Cloud Marketplace in order to create co-sell opportunities for partners using the platform. These solutions are typically those that complement the Microsoft products currently available on the Marketplace and can be sold as a bundle.

Mindware also has agreements with its various security vendors to act as their Authorised Training Centre (ATC). The company regularly conducts training and certification programmes across the region for end customers as well as channel partners.

When it comes to IT security related skills, the general consensus is that there is a need for continuous education in our region. To help enhance skills, we plan and conduct a very dynamic series of seminars and training programmes every month, which are typically attended by both end users and partners. These sessions take into account the constantly evolving security landscape and the specific market needs at that point in time. -- Tradearabia News Service
KIOCL said the company produced 2.375 million tons of pellets in FY 2020 as against 2.238 million tons of previous FY.

The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 1 April 2020.

The company dispatched 2.356 million tons as against 2.206 million tons of previous FY.

Export market has helped to improve performance of the company.

The company processed different types of ores received from different locations including Iron ore slime to make charge mix economically viable.

Chairman and Managing Director of the company CMD, Shri MV Subba Rao stated that this performance is appreciable as a merchant pellet producer in the absence of captive raw material source after incurring huge logistic cost in moving the Iron Ore from East coast to its Pellet plant at Mangaluru at the west coast of India.

The company is totally depending on 100% coastal movement for all inward and outward materials.

Further, the company contributed Rs 10.1 crore to PM CARES fund which is in addition to one day salary of the employees.

The company also paid Rs 15 lakh to Karnataka CM relief fund.

KIOCL has already started distributing Face masks, sanitizers, hand gloves, free food etc to the needy people at Bengaluru and Mangaluru.

Shares of KIOCL closed 2.02% lower at Rs 58.20 yesterday, 1 April 2020.

KIOCL, a CPSU and a pioneer in Iron Ore Mining, Beneficiation & Pelletization Technology, engaged in the business of manufacture and sale of highquality Iron Oxide Pellets in domestic and export markets.

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Holland America's MS Zaandam cruise ship has finally docked in Florida, after being turned away from multiple ports and stuck at sea for 27 days.

The vessel is carrying 1,045 passengers and crew, 219 of whom are sick with symptoms of COVID-19.

Four passengers have died on the ship in recent days, including two who passed away from coronavirus.

Holland America reached a conditional agreement with officials in Florida Thursday allowing the MS Zaandam and its sister ship, the MS Rotterdam, to dock at the Port of Everglades in Fort Lauderdale.

As part of the docking agreement, nine people suspected to have COVID-19 will be transported to nearby Broward Health hospital. 45 other sick passengers will remain on board the two vessels.

Foreign nationals who are cleared to travel will board buses directly to an airport before flying by charter planes back to their home countries.

Of the 2,426 people on board both vessels, 311 are American citizens. It is unclear whether they will be tested for COVID-19 before returning to their homes.

It may take two to three days for all people disembark the ships - with priority given to the those requiring medical assistance.

In a statement, Holland America extended their 'sincere gratitude' to President Trump, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for helping to resolve the situation.

'These travelers could have been any one of us or our families, unexpectedly caught in the middle of this unprecedented closure of global borders that happened in a matter of days and without warning,' said Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America.

'We are so happy to be able to get our guests home and assist those few who need additional medical services. The COVID-19 situation is one of the most urgent tests of our shared humanity, and we must do everything we can to ensure we continue to act in ways consistent with our common human dignity.

Thursday's deal comes after Trump urged DeSantis to drop his opposition to accepting the ships. The Governor has expressed concern that ill passengers will take hospital beds away from Florida local s who become sickened by COVID-19.

The state is thought to be one of the country's next coronavirus hot spots, with confirmed cases of the virus surging there in recent days. Florida now has reported over 8,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, and on Wednesday the state's death toll surged 16%.

The MS Zaandam was turned away from docking at all South American ports.

The Zaandam is pictured arriving in Fort Lauderdale, Florida Thursday. The coronavirus-stricken ship is carrying 1,045 passengers and crew

Land at last! The Zaandam is pictured making its way to port shortly before 5pm Eastern Time Thursday

The cruise liner made its way into the Port of Everglades just before 5pm, much to the relief of those on board

The MS Rotterdam is pictured pulling in to port after sister ship Zaandam. The boat is pictured off the coast of Florida ahead of its arrival in the city. 1,381 people are on board the ship

Passengers from the Rotterdam cheer as they head to dock at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale

Rotterdam's staff members look on as they head to dock at Port Everglades Thursday afternoon

Rescue workers stand by the Zaandam ready to help sick passengers and crew off the ship

Canadian passengers Chris and Anna Joiner ask for help onboard the Zaandam on March 27

PRESIDENT TRUMP INTERVENES: 'THEY'RE DYING, WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING'

During Wednesday's White House press conference, Trump said of the cruise ships' passengers: 'They're dying, so we have to do something'.

'It's a tough situation, it's a tough situation. You can understand there are people who are sick on those ships and states don't wanna take them - they have enough problems right now they don't want to take them.

One 80-year-old passenger from San Francisco says he is disheartened by the fact that the U.S. has not been more helpful in their rescue attempts. 'Jesus Christ, people, this is not the Black Death. What kind of fragile people have we [America] become that we can't rise up to the challenge?' he stated via text message.

'But from a humane standpoint we don't have a choice. We have to... people are dying. We're going to do something.'

More than 236,000 Americans have contracted COVID-19, and more than 5,100 have died due to the virus.

Governor DeSantis said Wednesday that he was only interested accepting the 49 Floridians on board.

'My concern is simply that we have worked so hard to make sure we have adequate hospital space in the event of a COVID-19 surge that we wouldn't want those valuable beds to be taken because of the cruise ship,' he stated.

'Just to drop people off at the place where we're having the highest number of cases right now just doesn't make a whole lot of sense,' the Governor added.

On Wednesday, DeSantis issued a 'stay-at-home' order for residents of his state amid the exploding case numbers. He has been criticized for implementing the order too late - with critics

However, his reversal comes amid increasing pressure - not just from the President, but from other Florida politicians as well.

'It is immoral not to let them come. We need a plan, a healthcare plan, obviously to protect the citizens on the ground and make sure that we test everyone, put them in isolation if necessary,' Florida Representative Donna Shalala told CNN Thursday.

'We have to admit them, the sickest ones need to go to our hospitals, and, of course, the hospitals are crowded but we Americans don't turn people away.'

On Saturday evening, the Rotterdam took on nearly 1,400 people who appear to be healthy from the Zaandam.

The passengers were seen boarding lifeboats at the side of the Zaandam, before making their way across to the Rotterdam which was anchored close by.

After the exercise, 450 guests and 602 crew members remained on the Zaandam.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said Wednesday that that he was only interested accepting the 49 Floridians on board the cruise ships

During Wednesday's White House press conference, Trump said of the cruise ships' passengers: 'They're dying, so we have to do something'

Florida is one of the nation's coronavirus hot spots with deaths surging 16% Wednesday. DeSantis says he wants to keep hospital beds for locals

On Saturday, passengers were seen boarding lifeboats at the side of the Zaandam, before making their way across to the Rotterdam which was anchored close by

PASSENGERS BEG THE GOVERNMENT FOR HELP: 'GET US THE HELL OFF THIS SHIP!'

Passengers have been complaining about deteriorating conditions on board the vessels - with some say they feel imprisoned.

One 80-year-old passenger from San Francisco told The New York Times that he was disheartened by the fact that the U.S. has not been more helpful in the rescue attempts.

'Jesus Christ, people, this is not the Black Death. What kind of fragile people have we become that we can't rise up to the challenge?' he stated via text message.

Passenger Chris Joiner told Canadian broadcaster CBC he had asked the Canadian embassy in Chile for help, saying: 'Get us the hell off this ship.'

Toronto resident Michael Kasprow said he's worried about his elderly mother and her friend, both in their 80s, who are stuck onboard. 'We've seen what it can do on a cruise ship, and I just feel like they're sitting ducks,' he said.

Another couple spoke of their fears that, even once they dock, they may be stranded away from home due to escalating travel restrictions and flight bans.

'How will we get home from a port with flights diminishing by the day?' said Norma Kirkham, 63, from Victoria, Canada. 'Where will we stay?'

Canadian passenger Anna Joiner is pictured in her cabin onboard the MS Zaandam last week. Many passengers have complained they are 'imprisoned' on the vessels, and their chances of contracting coronavirus are growing by the day

CRUISE SHIP CHAOS: THOUSANDS STILL STUCK AT SEA Last Thursday, more than a dozen crew members from two Costa cruise ships were brought to shore in Miami, before being rushed to the hospital to be tested for coronavirus. Startling footage saw more than a dozen crew from the Costa Favolosa and the Costa Magica jump into lifeboats in order to reach mainland United States. The crew members wore hazmat suits and were inspected by medics once they arrived on dry land, and several ambulances were on standby to escort them to hospital. A company spokesperson said the Costa Favolosa and the Costa Magica are carrying a combined total of 1,939 crew, and there are at least 30 who have come down with a flu-like illness. The remaining crew from the two boats are still trapped on the vessels, which are anchored outside of Miami, a week on. The decision to bring in sick crew members divided the Miami community - with many claiming that resources should instead be going to locals, and not to overseas nationals from cruise ship companies. The decision to bring in sick crew members divided the Miami community - with many claiming that resources should instead be going to locals, and not to overseas nationals from cruise ship companies More than a dozen crew members from two Costa cruise ships were brought to shore in Miami, before being rushed onward to hospital to be tested for coronavirus Still stuck: There are 1,926 crew members who remain on board the Costa Favolosa and the Costa Magica, which are both anchored off the coast of Miami for more than a week. They have not been allowed to dock in the city Advertisement

CRUISE SHIPS AND CORONAVIRUS: OUTBREAKS ON BOARD THE VESSELS

The Zaandam set sail on a two-week voyage from Buenos Aires, Argentina, on March 7 - 10 days before the company canceled all voyages over fears of an outbreak - and was due to arrive in Chile on March 21.

The ship had been granted permission to dock in Punta Arenas in Chile but when it arrived on March 14, permission was refused and passengers were prevented from leaving.

It stopped in Valparaiso, Chile, to take on more provisions and fuel but people were ordered to stay on board.

Carnival Cruises, the world's largest cruise operator which also jointly owns the Zaandam and Rotterdam ships, has said more than 6,000 passengers are still stuck at sea on board its ships.

Including the 2,000-plus on board the Zaandam and Rotterdam, Carnival's Costa Magica and Costa Favolosa are also stranded at sea near Miami amid negotiations with the US Coast Guard to evacuate passengers.

States and nations have been turning away ships after cases of coronavirus were confirmed on board.

Cruise ships have become particular hotbeds for the virus, with a number of liners being doomed by fatal outbreaks.

In the worst cruise ship crisis so far, 706 people tested positive on the Diamond Princess after Japanese authorities imposed a two-week lockdown in Yokohama.

At least seven people have died after they were taken to hospital from the doomed vessel.

Passengers were confined to their cabins during the lockdown but several countries eventually lost patience with Japan and airlifted their citizens home.

Japan was widely criticised for its handling of the ship, with one disease expert saying the quarantine was 'completely inadequate' after viewing the conditions on board.

Japan had initially impounded the ship after a passenger who left the ship in Hong Kong in January subsequently tested positive.

Weeks later another Caribbean Princess ship was struck by an outbreak, when two passengers and 19 crew members on the Grand Princess cruise ship tested positive for coronavirus in early March.

The ship docked in Oakland, California, on March 9 with 3,500 on board and people were repatriated and sent to army bases for quarantine.
British Airways has reached an agreement with the U.K. trade union Unite to furlough staff without anyone being made redundant.

The flagship U.K. airline's agreement reportedly entails suspending 80% of its cabin crew, engineers, ground staff and head office employees. It will furlough staff on 80% of pay without any cap on earnings, according to Reuters, in what would be a modified version of the British government's job retention scheme.

The news comes amid the worsening coronavirus crisis, which has halted the majority of passenger travel globally and delivered a crippling blow to the airline industry. Many major airlines have slashed up to 90% of their operations and some have grounded their entire fleets.

Airline trade groups have warned that without rescue funds, huge numbers of staff are at risk of losing their jobs. The global air transport sector supported some 65 million jobs last year, according to the Air Transport Action Group.

The aviation sector is one of the worst-hit as economic activity plunges and countries impose lockdowns and stay-at-home orders in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.
Rome [Italy], April 2 (ANI): White sheets to cover the huge windows and hide from curious and the random passer-by the activities inside. It's the so-called 'cultural centre', a mosque in disguise, run in Brescia by the Tabligh Eddawa, the missionary branch of Tablighi Jamaat.

The centre has been closely monitored, for a couple of years now, by the Italian intelligence because of the kind of devotees it welcomed and still welcomes.

According to the Italian police, in fact, from the 'centre' passed Maulana Tariq Jameel, a member of the Tablighi Jamaat and director of a madrassa in Faisalabad, Pakistan. And, before his arrest in April 2015, even Hafiz Muhammad Zulkifal, considered by investigators the "spiritual ideologist" of the massacre at the Peshawar market in 2009, in Pakistan, which cost the lives of 137 people, mainly children, as well as being part of an Al Qaeda cell based in Sardinia.

Zulfikal, arrested in 2015 during a counter-terrorism operation in Sardinia, has unfortunately been freed last December because the terms for pre-trial detention expired. He currently is under closed monitoring, because the Tribunal said there are "valid sources of evidence relating to his supposed financing, direction and liaison with armed groups operating abroad dedicated to the design and implementation of guerrillas and terrorist acts,"

The Tablighi Eddawa in Brescia was involved also, last July, into an investigation related to money transfers and funds to Jihad. The hypothesis of a huge flow of money sent to jihadi fighters and the link with Pakistan emerged when the Brescia police dismantling an illegal funding network which had been active for months.

The network of illegal fundings involved a couple of Pakistani 'Islamic Cultural centers' active in Brescia and all linked to the Tablighi. Among these associations are Al Ummah Italia, al Noor, Masjid Ennour Onlus, Arahma Onlus and of course the Tablighi Islamic Center.

According to the official reports, these associations are connected to Tablighi Eddawa, a worldwide network of itinerant missionaries engaged in the door-to-door propagation of Islamic faith and aimed at converting non-believers or converting the "bad" Muslims.

A network very popular apparently, especially among the immigrants. The network, according to the investigations, preaches the "true radical Islam, its members live imitating the Prophet's lifestyle and try to bring back to Allah all Muslims of weakened faith".

Tablighi Jamaat thrives on voluntary donations, but its transcontinental network of mosques, Koranic schools and cultural centers would not be able to survive without the funds regularly received by the Muslim League and other pan-Islamic organisations financed by Saudi Arabia and from the Wahhabi countries of the Gulf.

The organisation's headquarters in Europe, located in Dewsbury, England, was built in 1978- thanks to money from the Muslim League. And it is not only Italy in fact but also France, United Kingdom and USA to have proven links of the organization to Al Qaida and other terror groups. But someway the attention to the group, despite evidences of partnership with a number of jihadi groups, and despite the fact that several famous jihadi have been linked to the organization, is quite lose and the West did not ban yet the group.

According to the intelligences of western countries, in fact, Tablighi Jamaat is not a terrorist group in itself but 'only' the "antechamber of terrorism". They infiltrate mosques and Koranic schools which are gradually reopened to radicalise the local Muslims and transform them into fighters to be sent to war theaters but does not commit any terrorist act itself.

Things are different in Russia. In February 2020 in fact a counter-terrorism operation in Moscow led to the dismantling of a terrorist cell directly affiliated to Tablighi Jamaat. The Russian Federal Secret Service arrested in fact seven people, both Russian and Central Asians, all actual members of the Tablighi.

The cell, according to Russian intelligence, was engaged in various activities, including the search for new followers through a strong campaign of proselytism, the dissemination of Tablighi Jamaat propaganda material in the Muscovite Islamic community, the management of training camps for new recruits, functional to their radicalization.

Moscow, unlike the Western countries, has banned and outlawed the Tablighi Jamaat activities in the country since 2009, when the organisation was included, on recommendation of the Russian Supreme Court, into the list of terrorist groups monitored by the Kremlin.

.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. The EU will provide Armenia with 51 million Euro assistance to fight against coronavirus, ARMENPRESS reports the EU Office in Armenia announced.

Particularly, 18 million new funds + 33 million redirected towards supplying medical devices and equipment, training for medical and laboratory staff, support to SMEs and business community, as well as social and humanitarian assistance to those affected by the coronavirus outbreak.

More is yet to come through access to important regional banking facilities and further restructuring of projects, reads the statement.
Delhi health department authorities wrote to the city police commissioner on Thursday, seeking deployment of adequate security personnel at the hospitals designated for COVID-19 treatment and the quarantine facilities in the national capital.

In a letter to the police chief, Delhi Health Secretary Padmini Singla said the coronavirus patients brought from the Markaz in the Nizamuddin area and some other patients were triggering a "law-and-order problem" and "commotions" in hospitals.

It said those who had congregated inside the mosque were brought out in a "massive exercise" held from March 30 to April 1, 536 of them were sent to various hospitals after they showed symptoms and 1,810 were sent to quarantine facilities.

One person from the Markaz, who was admitted at the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital, "attempted suicide", but was saved by the hospital staff, the letter said.

Two other inmates at a quarantine facility in Narela had escaped and were tracked in Patparganj, Singla said in the letter.

During an interaction over a video link with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday, a senior doctor had also said that the patients brought from the Nizamuddin Markaz were "not cooperating" with the medical staff.

The total number of coronavirus cases in the national capital nearly doubled to 293 on Thursday from the 152 on Wednesday, with 141 fresh cases reported in a day, according to Delhi government authorities.

Two more deaths were reported on Thursday, taking the COVID-19 toll in Delhi to four.

These cases include 182 people who took part in a religious congregation in the Nizamuddin area last month, the Delhi health department said in a statement.

"In view of the above, I am directed to request you to deploy adequate police force at all the quarantine facilities and hospitals as per the list enclosed with the letter," Singla said.

The listed hospitals are LNJP Hospital, GTB Hospital, DDU Hospital, Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital and the isolation facilities at AIIMS, Jhajjhar, besides seven quarantine facilities across Delhi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
This is the shocking moment a police officer tried to shoot a teenage boy in the back for breaking Argentina's coronavirus stay-at-home order.

The incident occurred last Friday in the central Argentina province of Cordoba, where cops had stopped the 16-year-old who reportedly violated the nation's lockdown order imposed to control the spread of the coronavirus.

A bystander recorded the tense moment in La Brigada, a neighborhood in the city of Bell Ville, as the cop climbed on top of the teen boy's in an attempt to subdue him while holding his service weapon as spectators in yelled at the cop.

Subsequently, the teenager got up from the ground and sprinted down the street before the police officer aimed and fired one shot, miraculously missing his target.

A police officer in Cordoba, Argentina, has been suspended after he was caught on video shooting at an unarmed 16-year-old boy last Friday. The incident took place after the boy resisted arrest for breaking the South American nation's stay-at-home order

The cop held his gun over the teenage boy's while he attempted to arrest him after the 16-year-old disobeyed Argentina's lockdown law imposed to control the spread of COVID-19

A second video shows the boy running down the dirt street before reaching a tree where another person appears seeking cover.

The cop and his partner - whose names were not made public - then walked over to their squad car before leaving the scene.

According to Argentine newspaper La Voz, the teen did not suffer any injuries.

A cop (top left) in Argentina aims his gun as the teenage boy (center) escapes after resisting arrest for disobeying the country's lockdown law

The Cordoba police department suspended the police officer who shot at the boy and have ordered him to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.

The Argentine government imposed a stay-at-home decree on March 20. It was scheduled to expire March 31 but has been extended until April 13.

Residents can only leave their residences for trips to buy food or medicine.

The Argentine government has reported 34 deaths and 1,133 people sickened due to the coronavirus global pandemic as of Thursday.
The figures suggest that the United States squandered its potential advantages, like two additional weeks of lead time for preparation and a single national government with superior resources. The U.S. response has fallen mainly to state and local authorities, yielding an even less unified response than in Western Europe. Most Western European governments have enacted stringent social-distancing measures that go beyond what has been implemented in much of the United States.

Western Europe appears to have had more success in testing as well. It has conducted at least twice as many tests as the United States, and probably far more. (Much of that European data is out of date, as many nations do not appear to frequently update their published figures on testing).

There is no guarantee that current trends will continue. But if youre looking to compare the United States to anywhere in the world, Western Europe is your best bet.

Western Europe, as we are defining it, has a population of 320 million, nearly the same as the population of the United States, at 330 million. Its population is affluent and distributed fairly similarly to the United States, with a mix of urban and rural areas and no single city dominating the population. And as in the United States, some parts of Europe, like the Lombardy region of Italy, have suffered severe coronavirus outbreaks while other parts have largely gone unscathed.

The fundamental similarity of the coronavirus outbreaks in the United States and Western Europe is difficult to glean from many of the comparisons recently being made between the United States and individual countries. Popular charts of growth in coronavirus cases or deaths over time, for instance, measure the outbreak in terms of raw numbers, without an adjustment for population, and show the many nations of Western Europe well beneath the United States. The gap closes quickly if the nations of Western Europe are combined.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

A meeting of the Operational Headquarters of the Azerbaijani parliament chaired by Prime Minister Ali Asadov was held in the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2, Trend reports.

The issues related to the application, regulation through more specific mechanisms of a special quarantine regime were discussed and appropriate decisions were made at the meeting.
Here are the latest developments in Asia related to the novel coronavirus pandemic: - Trump casts doubt on China virus figures - President Donald Trump cast doubt on the accuracy of official Chinese figures on its coronavirus outbreak after US lawmakers, citing an intelligence report, accused Beijing of a cover-up. The controversy around Beijing's transparency has strained ties, adding to tensions triggered by a conspiracy theory in China that the US military was to blame for the virus. At a press briefing, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying didn't directly address Trump's comments but said that politicians who accused China of concealing information were "shameless and without morality". - Australia seeks to end cruise standoffs - Australian police and military will soon begin taking doctors on helicopters to several cruise ships stranded near Sydney to assess nearly 9,000 crew for COVID-19, officials said. The military-style operation, due to begin by the weekend, is aimed at resolving a standoff between cruise line operators and authorities who fear a wave of new imported coronavirus cases would overwhelm local hospitals. - China county shut down as fears grow of second wave - Jia county in China's central Henan province, home to about 600,000 people, has gone into lockdown after a woman who visited the area tested positive for the virus, underscoring concerns over a second wave of domestic infections. China, where the virus emerged late last year, has largely managed to bring its outbreak under control and is now reporting only a small number of new infections a day. - Fiji's capital ordered into lockdown - The Fijian capital Suva was ordered into lockdown from Friday after two people from one of the city's crowded squatter settlements tested positive, bringing the Pacific nation's confirmed cases to seven. "There is a high risk these patients have infected others," Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama warned. - Australian scientists test vaccines - Tests have begun in Australia of two potential vaccines on ferrets, as scientists worldwide race to develop one at record speed. One from the University of Oxford would deliver a bit of defective virus that is unable to replicate, but would be enough to provoke an immune response. Another from drugmaker Inovio would be an injection of genetic material from the virus. Results from the tests are expected within two to three months, although it is expected to take much longer to develop a proven vaccine. - North Korea insists it is coronavirus-free - North Korea remains totally free of the coronavirus, a senior health official in Pyongyang has insisted, despite mounting scepticism overseas as confirmed global infections near one million. The already isolated, nuclear-armed North quickly shut down its borders in January after the virus was first detected in neighbouring China, and imposed strict containment measures. Experts have said North Korea is particularly vulnerable to the virus because of its weak medical system, and defectors have accused Pyongyang of covering up an outbreak. - Duterte tells Philippine police to shoot dead troublemakers - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has told security forces they should shoot dead anyone causing "trouble" in areas locked down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Hours earlier, nearly two dozen people from a slum community in the capital Manila were arrested for holding a protest that accused the government of failing to provide food aid to the poor. - Indonesia releases prisoners - Indonesia has released some 18,000 inmates in a desperate bid to stop coronavirus from rampaging through its notoriously overcrowded prison system, authorities said. - Oil soars - Oil prices soared 10 percent on hopes for a US intervention to end a Saudi-Russia price war, with President Donald Trump saying he expected the two to resolve the row, while dealers were also cheered after China called on authorities to buy up the battered commodity. - Japan's two-mask pledge ridiculed online - A pledge by Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to send two reusable cloth face masks to every household as the country battles the coronavirus outbreak has been met online with derision and humour. Within hours of the announcement, the hashtag "Abenomasks", a play on the prime minister's signature "Abenomics" economic policy, was trending on Japanese Twitter. burs-sr/kaf The global number of COVID-19 deaths and infections is surging as countries ramp up measures against the pandemic The global coronavirus infection count is fast approaching one million Countries across Asia have imposed lockdowns and social distancing measures to stop the spread of COVID-19 Scientists around the world are racing to develop a COVID-19 vaccine President Donald Trump has cast doubt over the accuracy of China's coronavirus figures, as US lawmakers accused Beijing of a cover-up Rates of testing for COVID-19 are low in Indonesia
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The United States on Wednesday warned Hungary against restricting human rights and press freedom after parliament gave nationalist leader Viktor Orban sweeping powers due to the coronavirus pandemic. "As governments around the world respond, we urge them to avoid undue restrictions on essential human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the ability of the free press to provide information to the public about the crisis and the government's response," a State Department spokesperson said when asked about Hungary. "Unduly restricting these rights and freedoms would harm the public's trust in us as leaders, at a time when trust is most needed," the spokesperson said, without criticizing Orban by name. The State Department called for all emergency measures to target only the COVID-19 pandemic, which has spread rapidly around the world. "Governments should ensure such powers are restricted to the period of time needed to address the current crisis and lifted as soon as they are no longer needed." Orban, a nationalist who has often thumbed his nose at the rest of the European Union, was on Monday granted the power to rule by decree until his government decides the emergency is over. Parliament also threatened prison sentences for journalists who publish what it deems "falsehoods" about the virus. President Donald Trump, who shares Orban's anti-immigrant sentiment, last year welcomed the Hungarian leader to the White House and praised him despite criticism of the erosion of democracy. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also visited Budapest last year, with his aides insisting he was not validating Orban's rule but rather seeking to ensure that the NATO ally does not gravitate into the Russian orbit.
3D Cell Culture Market Scope of the Report

The global 3D cell culture market size is predicted to accumulate revenues at 25.50% CAGR over the forecast period. It stood at USD 725.15 million in 2016. 3D cell culture is a method of cultivating cells in an artificial environment in which cells are allowed to interact with the environment. It has applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. It is possible to mimic cell behavior and assemble their environment with the help of scaffolds. The global 3D cell culture market report by Market Research Future (MRFR) touches on salient aspects such as drivers and challenges as well as outlines predictions for the forecast period (2017-2023).

Advances in organ and tissue regeneration and drug toxicology screening can drive market demand exponentially. The benefits of 3D cell culture in comparison to 2D cell culture are likely to work in favor of the market. Adoption of in-vivo models and development of advanced assays can positively impact the global 3D cell culture market.

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Treatment of chronic diseases and advances in microfluidics can culminate in heavy demand for the global market. Biocompatible nature of 3D scaffolds as well as the use of synthetic and natural materials of its manufacture can direct the formation of tissues. Development of digital tools for expediting the rate of cellular growth is likely to pave the way for new growth opportunities. Emergence of lab-on-a-chip (LoC) technology will bolster the demand for 3D cell environments in the coming years.

3D cell culture market Segmentation

The global 3D cell culture market is segmented by technique, product, application, and end-user.

Applications of the global 3D cell culture include tissue screening & engineering, regenerative medicine, cancer research, stem cell research, drug discovery, and others. The drug discovery segment is predicted to display a CAGR of 25.75% during the assessment period.

On the basic technique, 3D cell culture market is segmented into scaffolds-based 3D cell culture and scaffold-free 3D cell culture.

By product, 3D cell culture market is segmented into consumables and instruments. Consumables are touted to attain a major market share in the coming years and exhibit 25.88% CAGR during the forecast period.

By end users, it is segmented into research & academic laboratories, pharmaceutical & biotechnology companies, contract research organizations, and others. Pharmaceutical & biotechnology companies can contribute to the global 3D cell culture market revenue by exhibiting a CAGR of 26.13% during the forecast period.

3D cell culture market Regional Analysis

The global 3D cell culture market is divided regionally into the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), and the Middle East & Africa (MEA).

The Americas accounted for a major chunk of the market in 2016. This can be attributed to rising demand for organ donations, alarming numbers of cancer cases, and presence of reputed drug manufacturers. Abundance of funds available for the study of 3D cell culture environments can drive regional market demand. Applications in biological research and launch of new technologies can augment the size of the global 3D cell culture market in the region.

APAC is predicted to exhibit the fastest growth rate of 26.17% during the forecast period due to growth of economies and a plethora of opportunities. Other factors such as rise in healthcare spending, a large geriatric populace, and developments in life sciences can influence the APAC 3D cell culture market.

Lastly, the MEA is expected to grow at a modest rate owing to low investments in development of healthcare infrastructure and low income levels of patients.

3D cell culture market Competition

Merck KGaA, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Corning Incorporated, Lonza, Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc, Kuraray Co Ltd, and others are major players of the global 3D cell culture market.

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On March 5, as the deadly coronavirus was racing through the United States, Vice President Mike Pence paid a visit to the Minnesota headquarters of 3M, the manufacturing giant that produces protective respiratory masks.

Pence, who leads the White House's coronavirus task force, praised the company during a public roundtable for deciding at the outset of the crisis "to go to full capacity" and ramp up production of high-grade N95 masks.

With its factories in South Dakota and Nebraska cranked up and running around the clock, 3M was on pace to double its global output to nearly 100 million a month, according to the company.

But in a private meeting shortly before Pence spoke publicly, company leaders had warned the vice president 3M had a problem, according to people familiar with the session, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the closed-door discussion.

Chief Executive Michael Roman said he was concerned that repurposing the company's industrial masks, which made up a bulk of its production, for use by doctors and nurses could leave the company vulnerable to lawsuits. The lack of a liability waiver from Congress - a protection the industry has sought for years - would hinder full distribution of the gear, he said.

While all N95 masks, also known as respirators, filter at least 95 percent of airborne particles, masks for construction and medical use vary in design and fit, and are subject to different regulations.

The liability issue, which set off a scramble by Pence's aides, was one of a number of roadblocks that delayed the distribution of a basic protective item desperately needed to stem the spread of the virus.

The confluence of a slow initial response by the Trump administration, its wariness of compelling the industry to produce gear and a long-running debate about granting manufacturers legal protection in a health emergency contributed to a critical shortage of masks to front-line workers, according to an examination by The Washington Post of the early weeks of the crisis.

The dearth of masks for medical workers in the United States, despite weeks of warnings as the virus ravaged parts of China and Italy, has become symbolic of the nation's wider failure to properly prepare for the pandemic.

The first coronavirus case in the U.S. was reported Jan. 21 in the state of Washington. By early February, the federal government had declared a public health emergency. But it took nearly a month, until March 2, for the Food and Drug Administration to issue an emergency order giving manufacturers formal blessing to begin repurposing industrial masks for health care workers, a necessary step to getting construction masks into hospitals.

It was another two weeks before Congress passed and President Donald Trump signed emergency legislation that included the protection against lawsuits that 3M sought, settling a long-running political battle over liability when industrial masks are used in health emergencies.

The liability waiver - which was then extended to future health emergencies in the $2 trillion stimulus package - helped open the floodgates. 3M is on track to distribute at least 31 million masks to health care workers this month, up from five million a month it was providing earlier this year, according to the company and White House officials.

On March 21, the federal government awarded manufacturers contracts to produce about 600 million N95 masks over the next 18 months to supplement the private sector's supply.

By then, the virus had been spreading in the United States for two months, and the need for masks was so dire that some doctors in Seattle and New York were reusing them or making their own from craft supplies.

"It is a basic role of government to provide defense, in this case against a public contagion. But they have not met the test," said Rhonda Medows, a doctor in hard-hit Seattle, who serves as an executive with one of the region's largest medical centers.

The need to dramatically ramp up U.S. production and distribution of masks should have been apparent early on in the crisis, former disaster preparedness officials said. For years, public health advocates had warned that the U.S. national stockpile of medical supplies was woefully inadequate. Domestic mask makers had repeatedly tried to sound the alarm about the country's overreliance on foreign-made masks - a problem that became acute when China shut down its factories as the virus swept through that country.

Katie Miller, a spokeswoman for Pence, said the vice president worked intently on procuring more masks from the moment Trump tapped him to lead coronavirus response in late February.

"We were trying to do this in any way that we could, as fast as we could, understanding the urgency of the issue," she said.

The Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement that it had been working with American manufacturers since January to respond to the outbreak.

"HHS has been transparent that more supplies are needed," the department said in a statement.

Some critics said the industry itself could have done more. Despite the emergency order from the FDA and another declaration intended to give companies protection from lawsuits, it was only after the passage of the legislation in mid-March that 3M, one of the country's biggest mask manufacturers, substantially increased its distribution of industrial masks for health care customers.

Roman, the company's CEO, said in a March 22 statement that the new law helped "ensure that all N95 disposable respirators can be used in health-care settings, and has enabled us to increase distribution to those workers beginning this weekend."

3M declined to comment on Roman's private remarks in his meeting with Pence. In a statement, the company said it did not delay shipments, adding it shipped more than 1.35 million industrial masks to health care customers in the two weeks before the law was signed. But the company acknowledged the volume increased after it secured liability protection.

"Don't talk to your lawyers if you're making masks or gowns or ventilators," said Arthur Caplan, a professor of bioethics at New York University School of Medicine. "See where the need is and get moving as fast as you can."

In the past week, 3M said it delivered 10 million N95 respirators to health care facilities across the country. The company is now manufacturing 35 million N95 masks a month in the U.S., more than 90 percent of which are designated for health care workers, it said, and expects to be up to 50 million a month in June. 3M did not respond to questions about the mix of medical versus industrial masks it is now producing.

Still, the need is outstripping supply, industry officials and health care experts said.

So far, the Trump administration has refused to use one major tool at its disposal, the Defense Production Act, to force companies to produce and distribute masks, part of a pattern of showing deference to private industry in fighting the outbreak.

Instead, the president has praised companies that have volunteered to help produce masks. On Sunday, Trump outraged many doctors and nurses by questioning whether they need as many masks as they have requested, even suggesting without evidence that some were being squandered or "going out the back door."

"We're delivering millions and millions of different products and all we do is hear that, 'Can you get some more?' " he told reporters on Sunday, citing the case of a New York hospital whose mask usage has spiked. "I don't think it's hoarding; I think it's maybe worse than hoarding."

For two decades, experts on pandemics have cited the need for mass stockpiles of protective equipment and rapid production to replace quickly diminished supplies as key steps to contain outbreaks.

"What was done in the U.S. in early January - in those precious weeks - would have been critical," said Christopher Kirchhoff, a former Pentagon and White House national security aide who worked on the Ebola mobilization and later put together a "lessons learned" report about the experience.

In response to the mask shortage, volunteers around the country have stepped forward to try to fill the gap. Members of sewing circles are stitching masks at home. The clothing manufacturer Hanes has said it will shift underwear production lines to make gear. Americans have scoured work sites and storage closets to find unused masks to donate - including Washington National Cathedral, which located 5,000 unused respirators in a church crypt.

But some experts said those efforts, while heartening, may be too haphazard to make a dent in the problem. Health care workers have said they continue to suffer shortages on the front-lines - a problem dramatically illustrated by guidance from the Centers on Disease Control and Prevention last month advising workers to use bandannas to cover their faces as a last resort.

In a normal year, the U.S. health care system uses about 25 million medical N95s, according to Premier Inc., an organization that helps hospitals purchase supplies. Many of the masks are disposable and meant to be used once.

HHS has estimated that the United States could need as many as 3.5 billion N95 masks during a pandemic.

A 2016 planning document prepared by the National Security Council called on the White House to prioritize procuring protective equipment in case of a pandemic. The planning guide, first reported by Politico, drew on the expertise of multiple agencies. It was developed by a White House medical preparedness task force established by President Barack Obama but disbanded by the Trump administration in 2018. White House officials have said the task force's functions were folded into another office.

At the time, the issue was hypothetical. Now, nations around the world are grappling with the sheer scope of the need. Massive quantities of the filtered masks are sought now not just in the United States, but simultaneously in nearly every nation of the world.

The need has spiked just as countries have closed borders and worked to stockpile their own supplies.

"The pressure is just so intense because of the global nature of this," said Khatereh Calleja, president of the Healthcare Supply Chain Association.

Despite known worries about possible pandemics, manufacturers said one reason for the shortage has been a decision by many hospitals to adopt just-in-time purchasing of items like masks as a cost-savings mechanism.

"Manufacturers don't carry inventory and if you do, you are less competitive," said Charles Johnson, president of the International Safety Equipment Association, a trade group that represents mask-makers. "They produce what they need to satisfy orders. That's what has happened to global manufacturing."

American manufacturers have also been warning for years that more and more production of medical supplies, including masks, has been relocated overseas, including to China. That has reduced costs for American health care companies, but has made the supply chain more vulnerable to global pandemics.

China, which experienced the world's first coronavirus outbreak, was quick to stop exporting masks its own doctors and nurses needed at home, making stockpiling more difficult in recent months, U.S. health care executives say.

An analysis by the Associated Press last month found that there had been no shipments of medical grade N95 masks from China since Feb. 19 and only 13 shipments of nonmedical N95 masks, which was about half as many that had arrived in the same period a year earlier.

To satisfy demand in the case of emergencies like the coronavirus pandemic, the federal government in 1999 established the Strategic National Stockpile, a last-resort cache of drugs and supplies intended to be tapped only in moments of crisis.

But the national stockpile was significantly depleted during the H1N1 influenza outbreak of 2009, when 85 million N95 respirators were distributed from the cache and was never significantly replenished despite repeated warnings and requests from health care and industry groups.

Federal officials said in March that the stockpile contained about 12 million N95 respirators and 30 million surgical masks, a tiny percentage of what is now needed by health care workers and emergency responders.

The Trump administration has begun distributing the meager supplies but with so much more demand than supply, many states have received only a fraction of their requests.

By this week, the stockpile was nearly exhausted, The Post reported Wednesday.

In a statement, HHS said Secretary Alex Azar pushed for more funding for the stockpile and began transferring supplies to Washington state, site of the nation's first outbreak, on March 1.

The agency noted, however, that "health care supply chains are private sector driven."

Some experts said mask production and distribution could be accelerated if Trump used the Defense Production Act, a 1950 law that gives the commander in chief the power to marshal resources in time of war and order industrial manufacturers to produce specific items.

"The administration has considerable power in this regard," said Nicole Lurie, who served as a top HHS official in the Obama administration.

Trump did invoke the act last week to compel General Motors to manufacture ventilators to help handle the surge of coronavirus patients, but he has otherwise resisted bipartisan calls to embrace it more fully.

"We are, as you know, using the act, but we use it only when necessary," he told reporters on Thursday. "We use it as leverage. We generally don't have to use it to accomplish what we want to accomplish."

3M, which dominates the mask market in the United States, produces most of its respirators for industrial use. Even after boosting production, only five million out of 35 million of its masks a month were going to health care workers before the law passed last month, Pence said at a White House briefing.

Other manufacturers include Moldex, based in Culver City, California, which produces eight million a month, also largely industrial, and Honeywell and Owens & Minor, which declined to disclose their production figures.

The manufacturing lines that make medical and industrial models are generally regulated by two different agencies, so converting them from making one product to the other is not straightforward, according to Dan Glucksman, a spokesman for the International Safety Equipment Association. Some retooling would be required, as medical N95 masks include an extra material that makes them splash-proof, he said.

Over the years, 3M executives have warned about rising costs due to liability lawsuits, including those related to the use of industrial and medical protective equipment. The company has faced lawsuits from people who allege they were exposed to pollutants such as asbestos, coal dust and hazardous chemicals, according to a review of 3M financial reports.

For more than a decade, mask manufacturers have sought extra legislation to protect themselves from lawsuits over the use of their industrial masks in health emergencies, arguing that such a waiver was necessary to ensure supply during a crisis.

Industrial respirators meet most of the performance standards of medical masks, but are not tested for fluid penetration, according to the FDA.

During the 2006 avian flu outbreak, six companies wrote in a letter to then-President George W. Bush that without legislation, "the ability for American manufacturers to address emergency preparedness or have surge production capacity is and will be severely constrained."

Opponents of such a measure have said such a blanket protection could leave the U.S. government - and by extension, American taxpayers - on the hook if health care workers file lawsuits after becoming sick while wearing industrial masks distributed during a pandemic.

The trial lawyers lobbying organization, the American Association for Justice, has spent years working with consumer advocates and others to block attempts by 3M and other manufacturers to secure waivers from lawsuits, officials there said, adding that court actions have historically been an important check on unsafe equipment.

The liability issue was still unresolved when Azar declared a public health emergency on Feb. 4.

It took another month for the FDA to address the shortage of medical N95 masks, issuing an emergency authorization on March 2 that legalized the sale of many types of industrial masks for health care workers.

Agency officials did not say what caused the delay or respond directly to a question about whether they regretted not moving faster. In a statement, the FDA said it began creating "a more streamlined access to market" for some protective masks in 2018.

On March 10 - five days after Pence visited 3M - Azar went further, using his authority under a law adopted during the avian flu outbreak to declare that manufacturers, distributors and other parties would be immune from federal and state lawsuits if they distributed products in accordance with the FDA emergency action. Instead the federal government would assume the liability risk.

But manufacturers wanted the protections to be reinforced in new legislation.

"Whether or not the agency chooses to issue that order, it had to be tested in a court of law," Johnson said. "Without clear cut legislative action that allows the government to take on that liability . . . our members would still face our day in court."

Jonathan Moreno, a professor of medical ethics and health policy at University of Pennsylvania, said a pandemic was the wrong time for companies to dwell on their liability concerns.

The dire medical need "was very clear in early March," he said. "You didn't have to be a fancy epidemiologist or Dr. [Anthony] Fauci to know what was coming."

The liability language that the industry was seeking was included in an early draft of the first coronavirus relief act that Trump signed into law on March 6, but House Democrats cut the language, according to people familiar with the negotiations, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., who opposed including the provision in that bill, said what industry wanted amounted to "an indefinite, blanket liability."

Democrats agreed to include key liability protections that the industry was seeking in the second coronavirus-related legislation, passed on March 18. It explicitly covered many industrial masks used to combat coronavirus until October 2024.

Pallone said he agreed with that approach because it was a "targeted liability waiver" with an end date.

On March 19, the day after the bill was signed into law, Pence described the measure as having opened the floodgates.

"Following the signing of last night's bill, all of those masks now have liability protection and the companies can sell industrial masks to hospitals," he said during the White House's daily coronavirus briefing.

Standing beside him, Trump echoed that view. "They had a big problem with liability," he said, in an apparent reference to 3M.

Roman, the company's CEO, also cast the law as a game-changer.

"As I write this, more than 500,000 respirators are on the way from our South Dakota plant to two of the more critically impacted areas, New York and Seattle, with arrivals expected starting tomorrow. We are also ready to expedite additional shipments across the country," he said in a statement.

Later in the month, the industry got even more cover when Senate Republicans included liability protection as part of the $2 trillion stimulus package, over the objections of some Democrats, who had said such a move would give away too much.

"Let me be very clear that this provides immunity for respirator manufacturers from this point forward," Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, said during a floor debate over the measure in mid-March.

The final bill - which waived manufacturer liability for more types of industrial masks used during the coronavirus crisis, as well as future public-health emergencies - was signed into law Friday by Trump.

- - -

Beth Reinhard contributed to this report.
Washington, April 2 : US President Donald Trump has warned Iran against a "sneak attack" on American forces and assets in Iraq, threatening a "very heavy price" as a consequence.

"Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on US troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed," Trump said in a tweet on Wdnesday, without providing detailed information.

Trump tweeted immediately after his intelligence briefing on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The President's remarks comes after US media reports, citing intelligence, said that Iran or Tehran-backed forces were plotting attacks against American forces in Iraq.

"We've been seeing something brewing and developing pretty seriously," Xinhua quoted a US official as saying to The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

Trump's warning also came days after a New York Times article revealed that the Pentagon had ordered military commanders to plan for an escalated military campaign against Iranian-backed militia groups in Iraq.

The US military and Iran-backed militia fell into direct conflict last month.

On March 11, a rocket attack on Camp Taji killed two US soldiers and one British service member, and wounded 14 others.

The next day, the US military retaliated and destroyed facilities of Kata'ib Hezbollah's (KH), a Shia militia group.

Camp Taji was under a similar rocket attack on March 14, and three US service members were injured.

The US government last week designated 20 individuals and companies based in Iran and Iraq, accusing them of supporting Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force and other Iranian-backed militias.

Commander of US Central Command Kenneth McKenzie previously said that the threat to America in the Middle East remains very high and that the tensions have not gone down.

The US has enhanced its defence posture in the region. Two U. aircraft carrier strike groups currently were cruising in the area, namely the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS Harry S. Truman.

Washington said that the KH was responsible for numerous attacks against the US and the US-led coalition forces in Iraq, including a rocket attack on an Iraqi base near Kirkuk (the K1 base) in December 2019 that had killed an American civilian contractor and injured four service members.

The rocket attack on the K1 base led to the US drone attack on January 3 in baghdad that killed Quds Force chief Qasem Soleimani.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 10:24:09|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, April 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday warned Iran against a "sneak attack" on U.S. forces and assets in Iraq, threatening a "very heavy price" as a consequence.

"Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!" Trump said in a tweet, without providing detailed information.

Trump sent the tweet immediately after his intelligence briefing on Wednesday, according to his daily public schedule issued by the White House press office.

Iran or Iran-backed forces are plotting attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq, U.S. media reported, citing U.S. intelligence.

"We've been seeing something brewing and developing pretty seriously," a U.S. official told The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

Trump's warning came days after a New York Times story revealing that the Pentagon had ordered military commanders to plan for an escalated military campaign against Iranian-backed militia groups in Iraq.

The U.S. military and Iran-backed militia fell into direct conflict last month. On March 11, a rocket attack on Camp Taji killed two U.S. soldiers and one British service member, and wounded 14 others. The U.S. military on the following day retaliated and destroyed facilities of Kata'ib Hezbollah's (KH), a Shia militia group.

The Camp Taji was under a similar rocket attack on March 14, and three U.S. service members were injured.

The U.S. government last week designated 20 individuals and companies based in Iran and Iraq, accusing them of supporting Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force and other Iranian-backed militias.

Commander of U.S. Central Command Kenneth McKenzie previously said that the threat to the United States in the Middle East remains very high and that the tensions have not gone down.

The United States has enhanced its defense posture in the region. Two U.S. aircraft carrier strike groups currently were cruising in the area, namely the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and the USS Harry S. Truman.

Washington said that the KH was responsible for numerous attacks against the United States and the U.S.-led coalition forces in Iraq, including a rocket attack on an Iraqi base near Kirkuk (the K1 base) in late December 2019 that had killed a U.S. civilian contractor and injured four U.S. service members.

The tit-for-tat between the U.S. military and the Shia militia group might lock them into a cycle of attacks and reprisals.

The rocket attack on the K1 base led to the U.S. airstrike against senior Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani and the subsequent Iranian missile strike retaliation.
EffortlessHR has been providing their customers with valuable services for a number of years, and the EffortlessHR Employer Resource Center will continue to enhance that experience.

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Lola Kakes, Founder and CEO of EffortlessHR believes that: This new Resource Center will provide quality service to our current clients and all future clients in the area of employment law, which is so important, especially in todays workplace.

All EffortlessHR customers will be provided with unlimited, confidential access to employment law and ERISA attorneys, able to provide them with specific answers to their specific employment related HR, health care, benefits, and retirement questions. Theyll also have access to a variety of human resource, health care and retirement content, tools and resources. Each member will be personally introduced to the services to ensure they take full advantage of the resources EffortlessHR is providing.

We are excited to begin delivering valuable resources to EffortlesHRs customers, said Mike Naclerio, President & CEO of Enquiron. EffortlessHR has been providing their customers with valuable services for a number of years, and the EffortlessHR Employer Resource Center will continue to enhance that experience.

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On March 4, authorities announced the first positive case of the new coronavirus in the Houston region. Case counts increased slowly; it took two more weeks for the areas numbers to surpass 50.

Then the daily increase started to pick up: The total number of cases passed 100 after two more days, neared 500 after another week, and, at months end, surpassed 1,000. Nine deaths were linked to the virus.

While the numbers fall short of representing how many area residents are actually sick from COVID-19, the steep climb reflects more than the expansion of testing, said Philip Keiser, the local health authority for Galveston County.

Theres more people being infected; thats the only way you can explain that, he said. The numbers are increasing and theyre increasing rapidly.

Houston Chronicle

Government officials in the Houston region  which includes Harris County, where most of Houston sits, and the seven counties surrounding it  make it difficult to get a broad view of who is getting infected and how.

More Information How the city of Houston's coronavirus cases compared to other large cities at the end of March: Houston: 377 Chicago: 2,611 Los Angeles: 3,011 Philadelphia: 1,675 See More Collapse

Each jurisdiction shares information about its cases differently with the public. The city of Houston and the counties of Harris, Fort Bend and Galveston stopped providing individual case data and are now only showing jurisdiction-wide summaries, using different methods of categorization.

Specific case demographics requested by the Houston Chronicle were not provided. City spokesman Scott Packard said their epidemiologists were sharing that information with the state.

But what is clear is the region is now grappling with that steeper climb, meaning stretched epidemiology teams have even more people to try to track.

Its quite difficult, honestly, said Yaneth Calderon, health and human services spokeswoman for Fort Bend, where a third epidemiologist was brought in to help in the county of 740,000. The numbers are increasing and so the workload is increasing as well.

While the Houston area is not experiencing the surge in cases found in viral hot spots like New York City and New Orleans, the regions future is uncertain as urgent calls for social distancing continue. More than 100 new cases have been identified daily in the Houston region since Saturday.

And while government officials at the start of March connected the regions first dozen infections to fateful trips on a Nile River cruise in Egypt, many more cases in recent weeks have been attributed to whats called community spread.

This began with the March 10 diagnosis of a Montgomery County man  a local police officer  who became critically ill after attending the Houston rodeo. His case prompted the rodeos closure to prevent more people from getting sick.

Dr. Robert Atmar, infectious disease specialist at Baylor College of Medicine, believes the decision to cancel the famed rodeo after a week and a half did the most to curb the initial spread.

Otherwise, the Houston area might have had more in common with New Orleans, where thousands flocked in late February for Mardi Gras. The city had more than 2,200 cases as of Wednesday morning, compared with Houstons 377.

New York City had 41,771 cases as of 5 p.m. Tuesday, with 1,096 people dead.

The good news is that were at least a week or more behind and, in the case of New York City, several weeks behind, Atmar said. I hope we never catch up.

Some Houston-area infections have been linked directly to another person already known to have COVID-19, such as a Galveston woman acquainted with the Montgomery County man.

In other cases, multiple people in the same household  including young children  are being infected. For still more, officials report frankly that they dont know how the person got it.

No known exposure, Harris County listed for 70 of its first 200 cases.

Investigation pending, said 51 more.

On March 31, the regions total number of cases stood at 1,153, partly the result of testing that has become more widely available.

Four government-run or privately supported testing sites were operating in Harris and Fort Bend Counties, while Montgomery County officials could not offer mass testing because of the scarcity of test kits.

Sick residents there were told to stay home unless their symptoms were SEVERE, in which case they were told to call their health care provider.

Since there are no approved treatments for COVID-19, there is no need to be tested, officials in that suburban county of 550,000 said in a news release.

Less-populated rural counties such as Chambers, Liberty and Waller still had recorded fewer than 10 cases each by the end of March. Galveston County, which extends from the Gulf Coast toward Houston, had the most cases per capita, about 3 for every 10,000 residents.

Behind the numbers are human stories: The sick ranged from a girl under the age of 10 in Porter to a man in his 90s in Spring.

Police officers and firefighters were getting infected, as were people in senior living and other supported living facilities. A port worker, television anchor and rapper also counted among the ill.

Nine died, not counting the deaths of two residents of a Montgomery County senior-living community announced Wednesday.

They included a man in his 80s who lived in a northwest Harris County nursing home and a mother remembered for the pizzas she baked. All were over 50. Nearly all were reported to have underlying health issues.

By the end of March, around 10 percent of the total number were deemed recovered  meaning the patients tested negative for the virus twice, 24 hours apart, or their symptoms went away.

Those recovered included a Spring woman in her 40s who had visited New Orleans. She was hospitalized for 16 days, at times in critical condition. A Fort Bend County man in his 70s who had traveled to Egypt also recovered. He was first in the region to test positive with COVID-19.

Mayor Sylvester Turner believed cases in Houston would peak around May 2. The region braced to see if the steep rise in case numbers would flatten.

emily.foxhall@chron.com

nicole.hensley@chron.com
Terrence McGregor, Coordinator for the Health Programs COVID-19 Operations Center at Los Angeles County Fire, navigates the MEDIVIEW TRIPS patient tracking software (March 20, 2020) We now have the ability to track each of our personnel from the onset of exposure or illness, through their return to work.

The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD), one of the worlds largest fire services, has deployed Beyond Lucid Technologiess patient tracking software  called MEDIVIEW TRIPS for COVID-19 Crew Exposure Tracking  to monitor both sworn and civilian personnel who may have been exposed to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The LACoFD Health Programs Office is observing personnel over a 7-, 14-, or 21-day period during which team members self-report symptoms into an online form that transfers data to a longitudinal care record (Patient Profile), which is in turn analyzed over time using MEDIVIEW. This lets the Health Programs Office quickly determine whose condition is improving or declining after potential exposure, and to take steps to isolate the provider-patient if necessary  or decide that he or she is cleared to work.

The approach to crew monitoring for COVID-19 exposures that LACoFD is using was invented by Cypress Creek EMS (CCEMS) near Houston. CCEMS is another Beyond Lucid Technologies partner-client using MEDIVIEW to track frequent users of 9-1-1, including patients with chronic care or mental health needs and substance use challenges. This type of managed care program is often called Community Paramedicine or Mobile Integrated Health (CP/MIH). Recognizing that COVID-19 exposures similarly require tracking of symptoms over time, CCEMS turned its CP/MIH program inward, adopting a data-driven approach to managing the care of its provider-patients. LACoFD augmented this method, adding automation of exposure reporting and monitoring forms.

In a letter to the International Association of EMS Chiefs (IAEMSC), Terrence J. McGregor, NRP, LP, NCEE, Central Region EMS Program Head and Clinical Director in the Los Angeles County Fire Departments Emergency Medical Services Bureau, wrote: In Los Angeles, one of the many challenges we have encountered in our response to COVID-19, is the tracking and monitoring of our personnel. Based upon the data for COVID-19, we recognized the potential for a significant increase in the number of exposed and symptomatic personnel, and quickly identified a need to better track the health and exposure of our responders. Beyond Lucid Technologies, was able to provide a simple and cost-effective solution that was deployable over a weekend.

McGregor continued: In addition to increasing our Health Programs Office staffing to manage the consequences of COVID-19 responses, the inclusion of this solution has provided us with a continuous, strategic view of the health of our workforce in the face of COVID-19. We now have the ability to track each of our personnel from the onset of exposure or illness, through their return to work. Given the significant threat we face on the front lines of this health crisis, the rapid deployment, ease-of-use and comprehensiveness of MEDIVIEW TRIPS has given the Los Angeles County Fire Department the tools needed to protect and care for our personnel.

Jonathon Feit, Co-Founder & CEO of Beyond Lucid Technologies, said: I grew up in Los Angeles. My parents, sisters and friends live here. Imagine knowing that youre helping keep safe those who are keeping you and yours safe. Its why we do what we do. Well say it over and over again: For emergency responders wearing all patches  Fire, EMS, and Police  BLT will not let budget be an impediment to getting you tracking software more sophisticated than a spreadsheet, to protect your own by monitoring them from the moment of exposure through an observational program that hopefully ends with an all-clear (but well track you up to hospitalization). SPEAKING OF HOSPITALS: We know public health agencies and hospitals desperately need access to real-time, consumable, actionable data that they can trust. Therefore, on March 20 at 5:17 p.m., at the start of this deployment, Beyond Lucid Technologies activated 75 Los Angeles County hospitals on Americas largest regional prehospital health information exchange (HIE), in collaboration with Stryker Corporation.

About Beyond Lucid Technologies, Inc.

Beyond Lucid Technologies, Inc. (BLT, http://www.BeyondLucid.com), is a health-and-safety IT firm that develops software packed with innovations that make Fire, Ground and Air Emergency Medical Services, medical transportation and Community Paramedicine / Mobile Integrated Health safer, more efficient and more cost-effective  with a special focus on addressing the scourge of drug addiction. BLTs prehospital pipes connect the dots for partner-clients in 27 U.S. states, including nearly 200 hospitals already linked to the MEDIVIEW BEACON Prehospital Health Information Exchange. BLT has been called Silicon Valleys Emergency Medical Technology Experts. Winner of the 2019 Frost & Sullivan Technology Leadership Award for EMS Communications Platform, runner-up for the 2018 East Bay Innovation Award (IT & Communications category), and accolades from EMS World and the Journal of Emergency Medical Services (JEMS).

CONTACT:

Jonathon S. Feit, MBA, MA

Co-Founder & Chief Executive

Beyond Lucid Technologies, Inc.

(650) 648-ePCR [3727] main

Jonathon.Feit@beyondlucid.com
The final stage of Sydneys controversial CBD light rail has quietly opened without the usual pageantry a multi-billion dollar project completion would attract.

The second segment of the $2.9 billion light rail, branching off from Anzac Parade to Kingsford, began operating at 5am on Friday morning, four months after trams started running between Circular Quay and Randwick.

A light rail employee wearing a face mask in Sydney. Credit:Kate Geraghty

Due to open before the 2019 state election, the completion comes a year later than the NSW government first forecast, and almost twice the original cost following several blowouts and contractor disputes.

Transport Minister Andrew Constance wasnt on hand for the first L3 tram to leave Juniors Kingsford given the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions in place across the country.
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

We are being told to stay home and practice social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic, but where does that leave people with routine doctor appointments? What about someone who notices a lump in her breast? Or has worrisome digestive problems? Should these patients still see their doctor, and, if so, how?

At Yale Medicine, patients can still see their specialistswhether it's their cardiologist, urologist, Ob/Gyn, dermatologist, pediatrician, oncologist, and othersfor a telehealth video visit.

What is telehealth?

"Telehealth" refers to the broad category of electronic telecommunications technologies, including things like smartphone apps, while "telemedicine," or video visits, are specific to remote doctor-patient services, allowing you to receive health care and services from your provider who is in a different location.

To participate in telemedicine, patients need to download the MyChart app to their device (smart phone or tablet). When the appointment time comes, the patient and provider log in and talk to one another over a video connection.

The platform is completely compliant with HIPAA, the federal law that protects patient privacy, says Pamela Hoffman, MD, medical director for Telehealth Services for Yale Medicine and Yale New Haven Health System. "It provides the safety and security that patients deserve. For instance, videos are not recorded," Dr. Hoffman adds.

To maintain social distancing protocols, all Yale Medicine appointments that can be handled via telehealth are currently being converted to telehealth. The transition has been quick, Dr. Hoffman says. YM has had experience with telehealth, with some doctors doing these visits for several years now, but the services have expanded dramatically in recent weeks. For example, Dr. Hoffman said that there were 34 video visits scheduled on one particular day in the pre-COVID-19 era, whereas in a single day this week, more than 1,500 video visits were scheduled.

If someone is uncomfortable with a video visit or doesn't have a device that can support it, a telephone consult is another option. But Dr. Hoffman says a video visit is preferred, because it allows for better interactions between patient and provider.

"If patients have any concerns about doing a video visit, they can talk to their provider about it, or even whoever calls to schedule the appointment," she says. "We know that these visits work well, and we don't want people to wait for in-person visits because we don't know when those will take place. This is the new normal."

As for insurance coverage, Dr. Hoffman says video visits are covered just like a regular appointment would be. "Right now, we don't want that to be a hindrance to getting care," Dr. Hoffman says.

We asked Yale Medicine specialists in different disciplines to discuss how they've adapted to Telehealth.

Telehealth and cardiovascular medicine

Yale Medicine Cardiology ramped up its telehealth visits quickly, knowing that heart patientsalong with pulmonary and immunocompromised patientsare at especially high risk for complications if they are infected with COVID-19, says cardiologist Joyce Oen-Hsiao, MD. She says almost 95% of Yale Medicine's cardiac patients are now using telehealth.

"It's just like talking to grandkids over FaceTime," she says of the video visits. "It's a little bit of a different platform, but essentially it's the same thought process."

Patients should treat video visits the same way they would an in-office appointment, Dr. Oen-Hsiao says, adding that the doctors are seeing the patients at their designated appointment time and are moving from one patient to the next, just as they would in the office. Patients shouldn't postpone any visits just because they are telehealth, and they should bring up the same issues as they would in the office, she adds.

"We run through their medications, ask them how they are doing, discuss symptoms, and ask them to check their blood pressure if they have a monitor at home," she says. "It's very helpful for the patient, not only so they can stay in touch with the doctor, but also to make sure they have enough refills, so they will not be in danger of running out."

Cardiologists using telehealth have identified potential complications in patients they see over video, which helps them prevent serious problems and hospital stays, she says. Dr. Oen-Hsaio has picked up on changes patients may not notice themselves, as she did when she saw that a patient was using different muscles to breathe. (If patients start to have a build-up of fluid in their lungs, it is harder for them to breathe, which means that instead of using mostly the diaphragm to take a breath, they will start using muscles in their neck to help take a breath.)

"If physicians can see their patients on video, we can notice if a patient is struggling to breathe more," she says. She asked another patient to hold the phone down to her legs so she could diagnose "pitting edema" (a build-up of fluid that leaves a "dimple" after pressure is applied to the area) and prescribe medication.

While the goal is to avoid office visits, "If there are major issues, the patient may be asked to come in," Dr. Oen-Hsiao says. As always, it's important to call 9-1-1 if there are symptoms that could signal a heart attack: chest discomfort (pressure, squeezing, fullness, pain) in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or comes and goes; discomfort in one or both arms, or the back, neck, jaw, or stomach; shortness of breath with or without chest pain; or other signs that could include a cold sweat, lightheadedness, or nausea.

Telehealth and Ob/Gyn

In the past, physicians from Yale Medicine Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences had used telehealth very little, says Hugh Taylor, MD, chair of the department. But the service is now working very smoothly for many Ob/Gyn patients, he says.

"Naturally, there are things we can't do remotely, such as when a physical exam is needed, or for ultrasounds. But in many cases, it works beautifully," Dr. Taylor says. "Patients feel safer using telehealth given the risks out there, and they can get the same medical care they would have received in the office. It saves them gas and travel time. That's helpful, because some of our patients have had to travel great distances for care."

Currently, Ob/Gyn physicians are only seeing patients in person who are pregnant and need to be monitored, and those with urgent needs, including cancer patients or women who have had a miscarriage. "We are deferring routine annual exams in healthy people until the risk goes down," Dr. Taylor explains. "And for those who do come in, we are screening them at the door and taking temperatures and spacing people out by six feet in the waiting room."

It's also a way to keep appointments running on time. "In the office, so many things can throw off all the appointments in the day. One person can be late because of a traffic jam, and it has a domino effect," Dr. Taylor says. "I was on time for every video visit I did the other day."

Telehealth and pediatrics

In the past, telehealth was not widely used in pediatrics, except for some surgery and neurology patients. "For surgery, we had done some brief follow-up visits post-surgery. Instead of having a family come in, we could check the wounds via telehealth and save them the visit, and that worked well," says Anthony Porto, MD, MPH, a Yale Medicine pediatric gastroenterologist and vice chair of ambulatory operations in the Department of Pediatrics.

Now, nearly all non-urgent appointments are moving to telehealth, and the transition is going smoothly, Dr. Porto says. "We were concerned about continuity of care if we delayed visits until we could meet face to face, and we are finding this to be very seamless," he says. "Kids are very engaged, sometimes more engaged than they are in the office, because we are using technology that is second nature to them."

The only difference for pediatrics in terms of MyChart is that for patients under age 13, a parent has to sign a digital proxy to see information for their child.

And if patients and families preferor if they don't have a device that allows for a video visita telehealth appointment can be done over the phone.

"We want to keep as many people at home as possible. The patients who do need to come in are more likely to be immunocompromised, and they still need to come to our infusion sites in Trumbull, Greenwich, and New Haven," Dr. Porto says.

For now, Dr. Porto says he is trying to embrace the positive parts of this difficult time. "I think families and providers alike will see that telehealth is the future, and we are just going to keep enhancing its services," he says. "As a parent myself, it's nice to know you could have certain visits after school on the phone and leave in-person visits for new cases or others where it is preferred."

Telehealth and orthopaedics

Before the current crisis, Yale Medicine Orthopaedics & Rehabilitation's Jonathan Grauer, MD, says his department had not fully embraced telehealth visits.

That's changing. "There is a lot we can do through telemedicine or telephone encounters. For example, with a video visit, we can ask a patient about how much they can they move their arm, and see it. Or, if someone has an incision site they are worried about, they can show us," says Dr. Grauer, an orthopaedic spine surgeon.

No elective surgeries and procedures are being done right now; all are being deferred, to be rescheduled when life begins to return to normal. "Not only is this for the safety of patients and medical teams, but we anticipate shortages in personal protective equipment (PPE), and we want to conserve these as much as possible right now," Dr. Grauer explains. "This is hard because something may be considered elective medically, but when someone is in pain, they may not see it that way. Nonetheless, we can't have an elderly person come in and then get sick, or give someone an elective procedure and later on be short on masks and gowns because of it."

This experience with telehealth has made Dr. Grauer realize there will probably be a greater place for it in orthopaedic care going forward. "You can get a lot from a telehealth visit instead of waiting three weeks for an in-person appointment."

Telehealth and urology

By the time COVID-19 arrived in Connecticut in early March, Yale Medicine's urologists were already testing telehealth visits with a small percentage of patients who had undergone surgery recently through a pilot program. "We had a handful of physicians who were familiar with it," says Diana Glassman, clinical program director of urology.

By mid-March, urology physicians were seeing almost all patients online. "When we launched our pilot program, we had to spend a lot of time convincing patients this was a good idea," Glassman says. "Since last week, we haven't had to convince anyone."

For now, a wide variety of appointments can be accomplished through telehealth, Glassman says. "Most of our assessment of a patient's health comes from reviewing radiology images and looking at lab results, and those can be done before the telehealth visit starts," she says. Based on information from those sources, doctors can change medications, or decide to keep everything the same.

Patients can discuss any symptoms that may be concerning them. So far, patients have been able to show physicians their stitches, or sutures, from surgery and how wounds are healing, Glassman says. For those with catheters collecting urine in a bag, doctors can request to look at the urine for signs of blood or clots. "It's not glamorous, but it works," she adds.

Two groups of patients are keeping their in-person hospital or office visits: bladder cancer patients who need to continue their treatments, and patients with an emergency. For example, people who have urinary retentionwhich means they are unable to completely empty their bladderare being seen, Glassman says. "We want those patients to come in so we can be proactive and keep them out of the emergency room," she says.

The biggest challenge Glassman and her team faced with video visits has already gone away. "We've seen a change in the public's understanding of the value of staying home. Now the understanding is there," she says.

Telehealth and dermatology

Sara Perkins, MD, a Yale Medicine dermatologist, says skin conditions such as acne, psoriasis, and rosacea can be assessed and handled via video visits.

"Because dermatology is such a visual field, I think in some ways we are particularly well-suited for this," Dr. Perkins says. "Every patient is getting a call and being offered to convert to a video or phone visit. I think patients are appreciative of having their questions answered without having to go to the office."

Patients can also upload photographs into MyChart, which is sometimes preferable for doctors to assess a spot on the skin or some other problem a patient may be worried about. And if a patient has something that looks like a precancerous lesion, for example, the plan may be to first try a topical medication and then make an appointment in person.

Routine appointments, including total body scans for moles, and cosmetic procedures, are being postponed for now.

"In most situations, it is alright to wait for your total body skin exam for a few months. If a patient has a spot that's changing, hurting, bleeding, or otherwise concerning to them, that lesion should be evaluated. They can send me a photo and I can see the lesion over the video, hear how it changedand whenand determine the urgency of when you need to be seen," Dr. Perkins says.

Dr. Perkins stresses that telehealth is a worthy tool for dermatology. "If you have a skin concern you've been putting off, or you wanted to schedule an appointment but one wasn't available for months, this is an opportunity to re-engage and schedule a video visit," she says.

Plus, through telehealth doctors can still write prescriptions, which patients can fill via home delivery or drive-through pharmacies.

Telehealth and cancer

To show just how quickly Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale New Haven changed previously scheduled in-person visits to telehealth ones, Anne Chiang, MD, Ph.D., its chief network officer, shares this metric: "Last week, in some parts of Smilow, we had more telehealth visits than in-person visits," she says. "The fact that we made that transformation in a short time period means that everyone is working together to make patient care a priority."

Dr. Chiang notes that patients who need to receive treatment in the hospital, such as chemotherapy or immunotherapy, are still scheduled to go in. Another group of patients who are continuing to be seen in-person are ones who are very sick, as well as those who need lab tests completed, she says.

But many cancer patients who had follow-up visits scheduled before the COVID-19 pandemic can continue to see their physicians through video visits. "We can talk with patients about test results that have come back, and for patients managing pain medication, we can discuss how well the medication is working and make adjustments if needed," says Dr. Chiang, a lung cancer oncologist. "We can see the patient and examine rashes or bruisesthere are a lot of aspects of the physical exam that are observed and not felt."

Telehealth initiatives, launched over a year ago, allow Smilow patients cared for in New Haven or at one of the 15 care centers located throughout the statewith one in Rhode Islandto discuss the results of genetic testing, answer questions about palliative care, and provide second opinions on cancer diagnoses, Dr. Chiang explains.

A little less than a year ago, Dr. Chiang helped a patient enroll in a clinical trial through the Smilow Waterford Care Center located near her home. "She felt comfortable having the appointment from her home and she was so grateful that she was able to enroll in the clinical trial," Dr. Chiang says. "After this pandemic, I think we will find that being able to do video visits is an easy way to communicate and allows our patients to stay at home more often."

Being able to do that, Dr. Chiang says, is "a wonderful thing."

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
Dentist in Bridgewater, NJ, Dr. Drew Fairweather, Supports Feeding Hands Food Pantry

Better Image Dentistry will be hosting a fundraiser for the Feeding Hands Food Pantry, which provides nearly 10,000 pounds of food to veterans, the working poor, persons with disabilities, seniors, and the unemployed. The practice will host a raffle for hand-painted glass artwork, with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the Feeding Hands Food Pantry. Dentist Dr. Drew Fairweather is well known for his compassion in the community, which he carries over into the care he provides, often through sedation dentistry in Bridgewater, NJ.

The Feeding Hands Food Pantry provides food to those in need throughout northern New Jersey. It is a private, non-profit organization that has been in operation since May 2014. Dr. Fairweather and his team at Better Image Dentistry are proud to host a fundraiser to support the Feeding Hands Food Pantry and will be raffling off unique, hand-painted glass artwork created by a patient of the practice. The proceeds from the raffle will go to a ShopRite gift card which will be donated to the pantry to buy food with.

Dr. Fairweather has volunteered with the Feedings Hands Food Pantry since 2017 and has participated with many other community charities, including the Agape House, for decades. Dr. Fairweathers compassion extends into his dental practice as well, often in the form of sedation dentistry.

Since many patients have dental anxiety or fear of the dentist, Better Image Dentistry offers soothing sedation dentistry to calm patients fears and block sensations of discomfort. The practice offers a variety of sedation levels, including nitrous oxide, oral and IV sedation, depending on the patients level of anxiety or what procedure they need.

Not everyone needs sedation dentistry, but our team offers this to help those who are fearful of the dentist get the care they need, says Dr. Fairweather. We have a board-certified anesthesiologist right in our office for those who choose nitrous oxide sedation dentistry.

Even those who are unafraid of the dentist can choose sedation to help give them ease through extensive dental procedures. Commonly, those seeking dental implants to replace missing teeth require some level of sedation dentistry before going into surgery. Dr. Fairweather and his team do not want any patient to experience discomfort or be fearful of their procedure and offer private consultations to discuss sedation options before treatment begins.

Those interested in learning more about sedation dentistry in Bridgewater, NJ, or who would like to be a part of the raffle to support the Feeding Hands Food Pantry, are encouraged to contact dentist, Dr. Fairweather by visiting http://www.betterimagedentistry.com or calling 908-722-7901.

About the Dentist

Better Image Dentistry provides personalized, industry leading dental care to Bridgewater, NJ. Dr. Drew Fairweather is a member of the Seattle Study Club and the Dawson Academy Alumni Association and has earned his Fellowship with the International Dental Implant Association. He is a Gold Plus Invisalign Provider and has been published multiple times in the exclusive Journal of the American Academy of Clear Aligners. Dr. Fairweather and the staff at Better Image Dentistry value providing excellent care from dental implant placement to Invisalign, gum disease treatment, and cosmetic dentistry. They also value giving back to their community and work regularly with organizations such as Agape House, Donated Dental Services, and local food shelters. To learn more about Better Image Dentistry and the services they provide, visit http://www.betterimagedentistry.com or call 908-722-7901.
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Thursday said that over 1,400 people from the state attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi, of which 1,300 have been traced and are being quarantined.

"Over 1,400 people from Maharashtra attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. Out of which, around 1,300 have been traced till now and are being quarantined in Maharashtra. Their samples will be collected for COVID-19 testing," Tope said.

The Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi has emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after several positive cases across India were linked to the gathering, including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana.

An FIR was earlier registered against Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad and others under the Epidemic Disease Act 1897 in Delhi.

A total of 2,361 people were brought out from the Markaz in Nizamuddin area in a joint operation by authorities which lasted for over 36 hours, following which the South Delhi Municipal Corporation had carried out a sanitisation of the premises and nearby area.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Celebrating industry excellence

ICR Research By

Published 02 April 2020

Cemtech Middle East and Africa 2020 welcomed delegates from over 35 nations to the Grand Hyatt Dubai, UAE, on 16-19 February. The conference and exhibition offered a comprehensive overview of the regional cement industry and gave attendees the opportunity to network with cement producers and international industry specialists.

The 15th Cemtech MEA conference and exhibition was successfully held at the Grand Hyatt Dubai, UAE, on 16-19 February 2020. Thomas Armstrong, managing editor of ICR, opened proceedings by welcoming delegates to the city and also provided an outlook of the cement supply-demand dynamics of the GCC countries.

Overall, the six countries of the GCC showcase the broader issues facing the entire MEA region. Namely, these consist of overcapacity, declining demand and the potential for recovery. The GCC region reached a peak cement demand level of 95Mt in 2015, with consumption subsequently dropping back to 73Mta in 2018. Meanwhile, total capacity soared to 157Mta in 2018, up from 110Mta in 2010. Thus capacity utilisation has fallen to around 46 per cent in the Gulf, intensifying competition, eroding profits and driving increased exports.

Saudi Arabia, the GCCs largest market, has recently begun to provide some relief to the sector by posting several consecutive months of solid demand growth, although progress could be undermined by the evolving political situation and coronavirus epidemic.

Economic forecasts

Providing an economic context for the conference programme, Paul Roger of Exane BNP Paribas (UK) noted the disappointing growth in the world economy in 2019. However, he also forecast an overall 2.6 per cent expansion in global cement consumption for 2020. Particularly strong markets over the coming year are expected to include North America and certain European countries, such as Poland and India.

Frank Brannvoll, Brannvoll ApS (Denmark), assessed the global energy markets and anticipated how they could perform in 2020. Brent oil is expected to remain in the US$55-75 range with an average of US$68/bbl. Elsewhere, there remains a general uncertainty about petcoke prices for this year as the availability of the fuel increases while demand may fall. Mr Brannvoll also looked at the EU-ETS carbon market and forecast an average range of 25-35+ for carbon prices in 2020.

Regional cement industry

Following the economic overview, the conference programme directed its focus towards specific MEA cement markets.

Joey Ghose of Raysut Cement (Oman) noted how one of the most significant challenges for the domestic industry is that it remains the largest market for UAE cement exports, with this having a knock-on effect on local production and sales. However, Raysut Cement has recently started enjoying a resurgence in financial performance and is also planning further international projects.

As part of these plans, Mr Ghose detailed the companys intentions for a 16Mta expansion into eastern Africa.

Noha Bakr, Egyptian Centre for Strategic Studies (Egypt), highlighted the fundamental issue of Egypts declining demand against a constantly expanding supply. In 2019 cement consumption is estimated to have fallen to 48.4Mt from 51Mt in 2018, while capacity reached 81.2Mta. This comes as megaprojects that have previously propped up demand complete major construction phases, resulting in a high risk of this demand continuing to deteriorate over the short- to medium-term. If unfavourable regional dynamics can be overcome, exports could be boosted to lessen the strain on the domestic industry.

Hamid Reza Tajik, ICEM AB (Iran), showed how new export markets, alongside housing and infrastructure projects, are expected to support the domestic expansion of the Iranian cement industry. Consumption in 2019 reached 53.96Mt, while cement production capacity is forecast to grow to 100Mta by 2021. Importantly, exports are projected to recover from the impact of ongoing sanctions and continue to increase from the 14.21Mt recorded in 2019.

Trading

Sharique Siddiqui, Pakistan International Bulk Terminal (Pakistan), gave a presentation on the countrys first purpose-built terminal for bulk cement, clinker and coal handling. Involving an investment of over US$300m, the terminal became operational in 2017, and can process up to 12Mta of coal imports and 4Mta of clinker and cement. It is expected to be instrumental in facilitating Pakistans clinker export trade, which has reached 2.077Mt in the 1HFY19-20 against 2.148Mt in the FY18-19.

Tony Hadley, Tony Hadley African Advisory, considered how oversupply in east African markets may impact upon cement exporters in the Middle East. Mr Hadley concluded that, due to local clinker capacity expansion, manufacturers should not base export plans on clients in the east coast of Africa. Despite this, there remains a good opportunity for the uptake of bagged cement in South Africa.

Plant tour to Union Cement Delegates of the Cemtech MEA 2020 event had the opportunity to visit Union Cement Cos 4.5Mta plant in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE. The company was acquired by Shree Cement (India) in 2018 for an enterprise value of US$305.24m. While the plant only operates one kiln line, it was recently classified as the largest capacity kiln in the world at 14,500tpd.

Plant projects and operational upgrades

Manoj Rustagi, JSW Cement (UAE), detailed the companys successful project to set up a 1Mta clinker production unit in Fujairah, UAE. The plant, constructed on an EPC basis by Sinoma, started kiln ignition in early March 2020. Once fully commissioned, the facility will ship clinker, alongside high-quality limestone from a nearby mine, to Mumbai, India, for processing and dispatch.

Elsewhere, Yanbu Cements Amr Nader provided a case study of how the Saudi Arabian company flourished while the global and domestic cement industry came under significant pressure between 2011-20. The local sector was a sold-out market until 2015, however, as demand fell, clinker stocks increased, companies started making losses and some even began halting production. Despite this, Yanbu started an operational excellence programme and managed to develop sustainability-led growth through efficiency gains and innovation to remain distinctive in the oversupplied market.

In addition to the economic forecasts and market reports, the Cemtech speaker programme also featured a selection of case studies from leading manufacturing technology suppliers, showcasing how issues facing the modern cement plant can be overcome.

Event sponsor, Total Lubricants (France), detailed how its products can improve the lifespan of open gears by reducing abrasion and abrasive wear without impacting production.

Industry experts

Peter Hoddinott, Peter Hoddinott Consulting (UK), discussed how many popular preconceptions about the cement industry are no longer applicable due to a wave of new developments in recent years. For example, the industry no longer has such a high barrier to entry for new players as it once did, due in part to the influx of cheaper technology from Chinese equipment suppliers. This has had major consequences for both cement producers and established equipment suppliers worldwide.

Sustainability concerns

Muhammad Mehmood, Fauji Cement (Pakistan), outlined the sustainability initiatives that the company has implemented in the face of spiralling energy costs. The facility successfully put a 15MW captive solar power plant into operation at the end of 2019, which is the largest of its kind in the countrys industrial sector. The unit is expected to save 16,752t of CO 2 emissions and reduce the cost of energy to US2.96/kWh against US13/kWh from the National Grid.

Jim OBrien, Jim OBrien CSR Consulting (Ireland), analysed the key sustainability metrics of the MEA cement industry to 2030 and detailed its high potential for improvement. In comparison to areas such as Europe, it still has fairly low utilisation rates of alternative fuel (AF). In addition, the Middle East has a high clinker/cement ratio at around 85 per cent, while the global trend shows an average of around 77 per cent. However, drivers for change such as population growth will be heavily felt in the MEA region as the population is projected to reach 3.4bn people by 2050.

Bassem Nassouhy of Scientific Business Solutions (UAE) continued exploring the topic of alternative fuel usage in the Middle East by providing an extensive overview of the requirements that need to be met before utilisation. This includes local regulations, such as whether the AF can be imported, all the way through to processing equipment.

Extended programme

Delegates also had the opportunity to network and discuss manufacturing solutions with a range of international exhibitors at the 21-stand exhibition.






By Vali Nasr




Nguyen Tuan Hai has entrusted his children with the future of the family business

For the first ten years since the companys foundation, Alphanam was involved in many industries, such as infrastructure, electrical engineering, and paints with factories across the country.

In 2011, the group opened a new chapter when chairman Nguyen Tuan Hai let his son Nguyen Minh Nhat and his daughter Nguyen Ngoc My take over parts of the business to lead the group.

With these new young team leaders, the company entered the real estate sector with a firm foothold, developing a series of prestigious real estate projects in Lao Cai, Hanoi, Danang, Binh Dinh, and Ho Chi Minh City, among others. Nhat was appointed as CEO of Alphanam Real Estate JSC at the age of 28 while My has been the CEO of Foodinco Land JSC since the age of 25.

Explaining his faith in his childrens management abilities and responsibilities, Hai said, I believe I am not as good as my children and the reality is proving that.

Since his children were small, Hai often brought them to his business trips, showed them his work, his partners and manufacturers.

Those lessons we learnt from our father from early childhood helped us a lot and determine how we act today, said Nhat.

Alphanams series of real estate projects throughout Vietnam include hospitality, residential, commercial, and urban planning projects with a great contribution from both of Hais children. Their successes are highlighted by the negotiations with Marriott International, and InterContinental Hotels Group, bringing in nearly 15 hotel projects, besides Altara, the brand Alphanam developed itself.

Among these hotel projects, the imposing real estate projects of M Landmark tower, the Altara Suites, and Four Points by Sheraton hotel are some candidates to create new luxury accommodations and apartments for both residents and travellers in Danang City.

In addition, the group also pays much attention to cultural tourism promotion with its Muong Hoa Cultural Park that encompasses a full range of attractions, accommodation, and public amenities. The programmes and architecture work in tandem to accentuate and enhance the landscape.

Designed with respect to nature, the terrain, and local communities, the cultural park aspires to provide visitors an experience through giving the five indigenous tribes a voice that reverberates throughout the valley of Sapa to the world.

The plan to bring Sapa to the world stage does not stop at just one hotel. We have more projects in the pipeline such as Courtyard by Marriott hotel, JW Marriott Resort & Spa, Holiday Inn Resort, and InterContinental Resort, to offer a variety of products in Sapa fit for different domestic and international demands, My shared.

Apart from business, My told VIR more about what she has done with the Alphanam Green Foundation. The foundation, founded in 2016, is currently sponsoring a series of environmental initiatives to help establish better living standards for communities across Vietnam.

My also shared that the succession in her family takes place naturally. My father has never imposed on us, he always raises the matter and entrusts us with those duties, and then lets us find the way ourselves, she said.

Both Nhat and My shared that they learn from their father. We are not afraid of a challenge and always adhere to our fathers saying, Do more than what you say.

At present, according to Hai, he has passed down over 70 per cent of the groups activities to his children and works now as an advisor, backing the two in managing the business. After years of ups and downs, both Nhat and My play a key role in the groups impressive business activities and have gained a lot of achievements that help them to create a new fruitful face for Alphanams family business.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer ordered all K-12 schools to remain closed throughout the academic year to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus.

The governor signed an executive order Thursday ordering all K-12 schools closed for the remainder of the school year, which typically ends in June. The Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and the Michigan Council of Charter School Authorizers are developing resources for teachers to offer online learning.

My number one priority right now is protecting Michigan families from the spread of COVID-19, Whitmer said in a Thursday release. For the sake of our students, their families, and the more than 100,000 teachers and staff in our state, I have made the difficult decision to close our school facilities for the remainder of the school year.

Watch live: Gov. Whitmer to announce extension of K-12 school closures

The governor said its unsafe for students to return to classrooms while the number of COVID-19 cases found each day sharply rises. The infectious respiratory disease, believed to spread quickly between people in close proximity, has killed 337 people and infected 9,334 as of Wednesday.

Given (the) viruss aggressively persistent spread and potentially fatal consequences, in-person instruction in our schools is too dangerous to resume in the near future, and very likely for the remainder of the 2019- 2020 school year, Whitmers order states.

Whitmers order applies to all public, private and boarding school buildings in Michigan. It leaves open the possibility of classes resuming if restrictions on public gatherings are lifted before the end of the academic year.

School districts across the state are ordered to implement a process to allow high school seniors to graduate and move younger students on to the next grade.

Students will be awarded credit and grades for courses taken based on coursework through March 11. Districts can require graduating seniors to take an optional final exam or other activities to test their understanding of course material or allow seniors to graduate by proving their competency in other ways.

Districts must provide high school seniors who were failing a course as of March 11, an opportunity to receive credit for the course, as determined by the district.

All public universities have canceled or suspended in-person classes.

READ MORE: How to find free lunch for Michigan kids with schools shut down

Students who rely on schools to provide meals have still been able to pick up lunches while classrooms are closed. Schools across the state are providing food to students at designated pickup locations or school bus stops.

The governor ordered all school buildings closed from March 16 through April 5 as part of statewide efforts to slow the spread of coronavirus. That was changed to April 14 when Whitmer issued a sweeping executive order to close businesses and require people to stay in their homes.

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The governor indicated in interviews during the last week that she had been having conversations about closing classrooms for the year.

Michigans COVID-19 cases are all but assured to reach 10,000 when the state releases its daily totals Thursday afternoon. The first case was found on March 10.

In the three weeks that followed, the virus spread across Michigan, bringing deaths in the hundreds, confirmed cases in the thousands, and deep disruption to this states economy, homes, and educational, civic, social, and religious institutions, Whitmers order reads.

Only 1% of Michigans confirmed COVID-19 cases are residents under 19 years old, according to the state.

Sixty-seven of Michigans 83 counties are home to confirmed coronavirus cases. Mackinac County joined the list Wednesday with its first confirmed case.

Nearly half of all cases are in Wayne County. More than a quarter of Michigans COVID-19 cases were found in Detroit.

The majority of cases remain in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties. Michigans three most populated counties accounted for 80% of the cases and almost 88% of the states deaths from COVID-19. The trio of counties are home to 39% of Michigan residents.

There have been more than 186,000 cases of the coronavirus and more than 3,600 deaths in the United States. Michigan ranks third in the country for the most COVID-19 cases discovered, behind New York and New Jersey and trending close to California.

Public health officials believe the number of cases confirmed so far represents a fraction of the total number of people who are infected. More cases are found as testing becomes more available.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more on MLive:

Michigan unemployment claims spike as coronavirus cases continue rapid growth

Michigan on the cusp of a pretty dramatic upswing in COVID-19 cases, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says

Michigan closes in on 10,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with largest single-day jump

Thursday, April 2: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Trump urged by Michigan Republicans, Democrats to back off attacks on Gov. Whitmers coronavirus response

Whitmers proposed 70-day emergency extension for coronavirus response too long, Senate leader says
US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks with reporters during her weekly press conference at the US Capitol March 26, 2020, in Washington, DC.

The speaker said the committee "will root out waste, fraud and abuse" and "protect against price-gouging, profiteering and political favoritism." It will also try to ensure the U.S. response to the outbreak is "based on the best possible science" and the advice of leading health experts, Pelosi said.

"We face a deadly virus and a battered economy with millions of Americans suddenly out of work," Pelosi said. "Congress has taken an important step in leading this crisis by passing three bills with over $2 trillion in emergency relief. We need to ensure those dollars are spent carefully and effectively."

On a conference call with reporters, the California Democrat said House Majority Whip James Clyburn, D-S.C., will lead the panel. Pelosi said the committee, which will include Democrats and Republicans, will oversee the Trump administration's handling of the $2 trillion relief package passed last week and the government's ongoing response to the crisis.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday announced a new House select committee to oversee the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

In response to Pelosi's announcement, White House spokesman Steven Groves said President Donald Trump and the White House coronavirus task force "are committing 100% of their time, energy, and resources to ending the current crisis." He added that "any attempt to politicize the crisis even before it has ended is dangerous."

On a conference call with reporters Thursday, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., called the panel redundant because of the oversight mechanisms built into the stimulus.

The Treasury Department did not immediately respond to CNBC's request to comment on the committee's formation.

Pelosi announced the panel's creation on a day the Labor Department reported that a staggering 6.6 million people filed unemployment claims last week as the outbreak ravages the economy. It brings the two-week total to about 10 million, an unprecedented figure as business grinds to a halt to slow COVID-19's spread around the country.

The U.S. has more than 216,000 cases of the disease, the most in the world, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. At least 5,137 deaths have been linked to COVID-19 nationwide.

Congress will not return to Washington until April 20 at the earliest as the pandemic takes a dire toll. Pelosi has called to move forward with another relief bill shortly after lawmakers come back to the Capitol, though Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said he wants to first see how effective the earlier stimulus money is before making a decision.

The federal government faces a complicated task in quickly doling out the money appropriated to distressed individuals, small businesses, states and corporations. It will execute or help to oversee an estimated $300 billion in direct payments to households, $350 billion in loans to small firms, $500 billion in grants and loans for big business, states and municipalities, and the state distribution of an extra $600 per week in unemployment insurance for workers displaced by the virus.

The half-trillion dollar pool of taxpayer money sparked the most concern among Democrats as lawmakers crafted the relief bill. Pelosi at one point called it a "slush fund."

Congress eventually added an inspector general and congressional oversight posts to monitor how Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin uses the money. The law also includes limits on stock buybacks, dividends and executive compensation for companies that receive taxpayer bailout money.

Even so, some Democrats have argued the legislation did not go far enough to ensure corporations would not disproportionately benefit from the government relief.

Since the bill passed, Democrats have also pushed the administration to help states expedite unemployment insurance as reports indicate their systems have struggled to keep up with the flood of applicants.

Trump has repeatedly decried Democratic oversight of his administration since the party regained control of the House in January 2019.

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A senior U.S. official has told Reuters that Washington believes agents under the direction of Tehran were "directly involved" in the killing of an Iranian dissident in November in Turkey.



Masud Molavi Vardanjani, a former intelligence operative for Iran before he began exposing corruption involving Iranian officials, was shot and killed in Istanbul on November 14.



"Given Iran's history of targeted assassinations of Iranian dissidents and the methods used in Turkey, the United States government believes that Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) was directly involved in Vardanjani's killing," the senior U.S. administration official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.



Reuters last week quoted two Turkish officials as saying that two intelligence officers in Iran's consulate in Istanbul had instigated his killing.



U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted late on April 1 that he was disturbed by reports that Iranian diplomats were involved in the killing of a dissident. Pompeo, who did not name Vardanjani, said the reports are "fully consistent" with the diplomats' assignments.



Pompeo in November had previously described Vardanjani's killing as "another tragic example in a long string of suspected Iran-backed assassination attempts" of Iranian dissidents. He had not elaborated further.



Vardanjani fled Iran to Istanbul in June 2018 after being put under investigation by Iranian authorities.



A Turkish police report published last month said Vardanjani had an unusual profile, and that he had worked in cybersecurity at Irans Defense Ministry before becoming a vocal critic of the country's regime.



Tensions between Washington and Tehran have been running high in recent years after President Donald Trump pulled his country out of a 2015 nuclear deal with other global powers that aimed to curb Iran's nuclear program.

Based on reporting by Reuters
A federal appeals court ruled this week that Texas, one of the first states to enact such a ban, can temporarily prohibit abortions from taking place. The ruling came fewer than 24 hours after a federal judge in Austin lifted the statewide restriction on abortions that went into effect after Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signed an executive order March 22 halting all procedures that were not "immediately medical necessary" to save a life. Attorney General Ken Paxton later said those include abortion.
For many, the main point of investing is to generate higher returns than the overall market. But every investor is virtually certain to have both over-performing and under-performing stocks. At this point some shareholders may be questioning their investment in EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings Limited (HKG:8101), since the last five years saw the share price fall 50%. We also note that the stock has performed poorly over the last year, with the share price down 45%. Unfortunately the share price momentum is still quite negative, with prices down 28% in thirty days.

Check out our latest analysis for EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings

EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. When a company doesn't make profits, we'd generally expect to see good revenue growth. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

Over five years, EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings grew its revenue at 20% per year. That's well above most other pre-profit companies. Unfortunately for shareholders the share price has dropped 13% per year - disappointing considering the growth. It's safe to say investor expectations are more grounded now. If you think the company can keep up its revenue growth, you'd have to consider the possibility that there's an opportunity here.

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

SEHK:8101 Income Statement April 2nd 2020

You can see how its balance sheet has strengthened (or weakened) over time in this free interactive graphic.

What about the Total Shareholder Return (TSR)?

We've already covered EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings's share price action, but we should also mention its total shareholder return (TSR). Arguably the TSR is a more complete return calculation because it accounts for the value of dividends (as if they were reinvested), along with the hypothetical value of any discounted capital that have been offered to shareholders. EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings hasn't been paying dividends, but its TSR of -42% exceeds its share price return of -50%, implying it has either spun-off a business, or raised capital at a discount; thereby providing additional value to shareholders.

Story continues

A Different Perspective

We regret to report that EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings shareholders are down 45% for the year. Unfortunately, that's worse than the broader market decline of 20%. Having said that, it's inevitable that some stocks will be oversold in a falling market. The key is to keep your eyes on the fundamental developments. Regrettably, last year's performance caps off a bad run, with the shareholders facing a total loss of 10% per year over five years. We realise that Baron Rothschild has said investors should "buy when there is blood on the streets", but we caution that investors should first be sure they are buying a high quality business. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with EJE (Hong Kong) Holdings (including 1 which is is significant) .

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of companies that have proven they can grow earnings.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on HK exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
The HAWC gamma-ray observatory detects cosmic rays from its altitude of 13,500 feet in Mexico's Pico de Orizaba National Park. The Sierra Negra volcano looms large in the background.

Albert Einstein's theory of special relativity has survived one of its stiffest tests yet.

A concept called the Lorentz Invariance, named after Dutch physicist Hendrik Lorentz, holds that the laws of physics are the same for observers throughout the universe , no matter where they are or how fast they're moving.

The Lorentz Invariance is at the heart of special relativity, which predicts, among other things, that the speed of light in a vacuum is a constant 186,282 miles (299,791 kilometers) per second, whatever the situation.

Related: The genius of Albert Einstein: his life, theories and impact on science

This speed is indeed constant in all measurements to date, even those made at the highest energy levels that scientists can produce here on Earth with particle accelerators. And it holds at far higher energies as well, the kinds generated by dramatic astrophysical phenomena, a new study reports.

The study team analyzed data gathered by the High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory, a system of 300 water tanks built on the shoulder of a volcano in the Mexican state of Puebla. Sensitive detectors inside these tanks measure the cascades of particles generated when high-energy gamma-rays strike the molecules in Earth's atmosphere .

The observatory has detected evidence of photons with energies above 100 teraelectronvolts  about 1 trillion times higher than the energy of visible light  streaming from at least four different astrophysical sources, reports the new study, which was published online Monday (March 30) in the journal Physical Review Letters .

That's a big deal, because it shows that even those supremely potent photons did not exceed the universal speed limit. If they had been moving faster than 186,282 miles per second, they would have decayed into lower-energy particles and never reached the water-tank detectors, study team members said.

"How relativity behaves at very high energies has real consequences for the world around us," co-author Pat Harding, an astrophysicist at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico and a member of the HAWC scientific collaboration, said in a statement.

"Most quantum gravity models say the behavior of relativity will break down at very high energies," Harding added. "Our observation of such high-energy photons at all raises the energy scale where relativity holds by more than a factor of a hundred."

HAWC data could push those limits out further in the future, providing even more stringent tests of special relativity, Harding said.

"As HAWC continues to take more data in the coming years and incorporate Los Alamos-led improvements to the detector and analysis techniques at the highest energies, we will be able to study this physics even further," he said.

Mike Wall is the author of " Out There " (Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate ), a book about the search for alien life. Follow him on Twitter @michaeldwall . Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or Facebook .
[April 02, 2020] Cloudstaff Puts Employees First During COVID-19 Pandemic

Cloudstaff Modern Workforce, a leading global cloud workforce provider, today announced the successful launch of their "Employees First" business continuity plan in response to COVID-19 lockdown in the Philippines, where the largest cluster of employees is located. Within 48-hours of when the first novel coronavirus cases were confirmed in the Philippines, Cloudstaff successfully transitioned 2,500 people to work from home in disparate locations around the world. Implementation of the Cloudstaff business continuity plan included addressing employee financial, technical and personal needs. Arrangements were made to advance staff pay two-days early to ensure the ability to purchase groceries and essentials for their families; update leave policies to allow greater flexibility; move office PCs into homes of employees that did not have them; provide mobile hotspots for staff with internet connectivity issues; and facilitate 24/7 tech support to rapidly address potential technical issues. "Our clients depend on Cloudstaff to fill their business eeds and always provide services that are seamless, regardless of disruptive events," said Lloyd Ernst, Cloudstaff founder and CEO. "We have positioned our employees to be successful at home and to remain completely connected to their clients and their colleagues."



"Cloudstaff was able to achieve all of this through collaboration and participation from all employees across the company," said Jamie Stewart, Cloudstaff CFO. "Clients have not missed any deliverables and have expressed appreciation that actions were taken quickly to secure services they depend on." About Cloudstaff

Cloudstaff is a leading provider of outsourcing solutions. Cloudstaff combines innovative technologies, "best-match" recruiting and modern work environments to provide offshore workforces that seamlessly integrate into customers' existing company structures and workflows. Cloudstaff passionately embraces technology to deliver next-generation outsourcing solutions that provide incredible scalability (in both sizes and capabilities), tighter workforce integrations, better team collaboration, higher rates of efficiency and detailed reporting. Cloudstaff is committed to delivering world-class outsourcing solutions and the highest levels of customer satisfaction, while providing an enjoyable, family-friendly workplace that encourages personal and professional growth for staff. Cloudstaff aims to be a responsible corporate citizen and provides support for the community through its outreach and environmental programs. Cloudstaff is an Australian-owned company with operation centers in the Philippines and China. Cloudstaff has offices in the USA, UK, Australia and Asia. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005811/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Many investors are still learning about the various metrics that can be useful when analysing a stock. This article is for those who would like to learn about Return On Equity (ROE). By way of learning-by-doing, we'll look at ROE to gain a better understanding of China Risun Group Limited (HKG:1907).

Our data shows China Risun Group has a return on equity of 20% for the last year. Another way to think of that is that for every HK$1 worth of equity in the company, it was able to earn HK$0.20.

See our latest analysis for China Risun Group

How Do I Calculate ROE?

The formula for ROE is:

Return on Equity = Net Profit (from continuing operations)  Shareholders' Equity

Or for China Risun Group:

20% = CN1.4b  CN6.8b (Based on the trailing twelve months to December 2019.)

Most readers would understand what net profit is, but its worth explaining the concept of shareholders equity. It is the capital paid in by shareholders, plus any retained earnings. The easiest way to calculate shareholders' equity is to subtract the company's total liabilities from the total assets.

What Does ROE Mean?

Return on Equity measures a company's profitability against the profit it has kept for the business (plus any capital injections). The 'return' is the profit over the last twelve months. That means that the higher the ROE, the more profitable the company is. So, as a general rule, a high ROE is a good thing. That means ROE can be used to compare two businesses.

Does China Risun Group Have A Good ROE?

Arguably the easiest way to assess company's ROE is to compare it with the average in its industry. Importantly, this is far from a perfect measure, because companies differ significantly within the same industry classification. Pleasingly, China Risun Group has a superior ROE than the average (12%) company in the Chemicals industry.

SEHK:1907 Past Revenue and Net Income April 2nd 2020

That's clearly a positive. I usually take a closer look when a company has a better ROE than industry peers. For example you might check if insiders are buying shares.

Story continues

How Does Debt Impact ROE?

Virtually all companies need money to invest in the business, to grow profits. The cash for investment can come from prior year profits (retained earnings), issuing new shares, or borrowing. In the first two cases, the ROE will capture this use of capital to grow. In the latter case, the use of debt will improve the returns, but will not change the equity. That will make the ROE look better than if no debt was used.

China Risun Group's Debt And Its 20% ROE

China Risun Group clearly uses a significant amount of debt to boost returns, as it has a debt to equity ratio of 1.27. while its ROE is respectable, it is worth keeping in mind that there is usually a limit to how much debt a company can use. Debt increases risk and reduces options for the company in the future, so you generally want to see some good returns from using it.

But It's Just One Metric

Return on equity is a useful indicator of the ability of a business to generate profits and return them to shareholders. In my book the highest quality companies have high return on equity, despite low debt. If two companies have the same ROE, then I would generally prefer the one with less debt.

But when a business is high quality, the market often bids it up to a price that reflects this. The rate at which profits are likely to grow, relative to the expectations of profit growth reflected in the current price, must be considered, too. So you might want to check this FREE visualization of analyst forecasts for the company.

Of course China Risun Group may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of other companies that have high ROE and low debt.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Traffic congestion throughout the country has fallen dramatically as people heed calls to avoid unnecessary travel, new analysis shows, with peak-hour traffic in the major cities now flowing as freely as on a typical Sunday morning.

During evening rush hour last Thursday, analysis from location data company HERE Technologies revealed 1.8 per cent of Melbournes major roads were congested, far fewer than the 19.8 per cent typically clogged at this time of week.

The HERE analysis revealed 5pm to 5.15pm was normally the worst time of the week for traffic congestion in Melbourne, but last week the citys roads were experiencing the sort of free-flowing traffic usually seen at 9.30am on a Sunday morning.

Using the interactive slider above, you can compare the typical traffic congestion during the Thursday evening peak with what it was like at this time last Thursday. The scale goes from dark red for heavily congested roads to green for free-flowing traffic.
The emergence of the coronavirus pandemic has exposed the weakness of health systems in most countries, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said.

The Director-General, WHO, Tedros Ghebreyesus, said this at a press conference on Thursday.

This virus, which was unknown three months ago, has exposed the weaknesses and inequities in our health systems and societies, our lack of preparedness, and the gaps in our supply chains and other essential systems, he said.

He also said health systems have to be prepared for large numbers of cases, even as essential health services are maintained .

We know that when health systems are overwhelmed, mortality from vaccine-preventable and other treatable conditions will increase dramatically, he said.

He said gaps in essential care can result in many more deaths than the coronavirus itself.

WHO recently published guidance on maintaining essential health services while responding to COVID-19.

Lessons learned

Mr Ghebreyesus said it was inspiring to hear from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and Singapore about their experiences and the lessons they have learned.

We plan to do another similar briefing in a few weeks time, when we will have even more experiences to share from Europe and elsewhere, he said.

He said the global agency is learning, reviewing the evidence and adapting the recommendations as necessary.

In the next day or two, we will reach more than one million confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally, and 50,000 deaths, he said.

This is one of more than 40 pieces of detailed, evidence-based guidance to guide countries in the response.

READ ALSO:

Every day, WHO engages in numerous discussions with extensive networks of experts to refine the guidance to reflect the best science.

Our press conferences are a good way for us to highlight key messages for the world at large, but they are no substitute for technical guidance. We urge all countries to read and implement this guidance, he said.

Financial update

The official said two months ago, WHO issued the first Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan, with an initial target of $675 million for the first three months of the response.

As of yesterday, Im delighted to say that $677 million has been pledged or received, he said.

He said out of the amount, $300 million has been pledged or received for WHOs operations, and the remainder has been given to partners or bilaterally.

While appreciating all Member States and partners for their generosity and solidarity, he said the rise in the pandemic since February had led to the increase in global needs .

But as you know, the pandemic is many times larger than it was in early February, and the global needs have also increased significantly, he said.

He said WHO and partners will require much more support over the coming weeks and months.

We count on the continued support from governments, the private sector and the global community, he added.
We are moving into a period of bewilderment, a curious moment in which people find light in the midst of despair, and vertigo at the summit of their hopes. It is a religious moment also, and here is the danger. People will want to obey the voice of Authority, and many strange constructs of just what Authority is will arise in every mind.  The public yearning for Order will invite many stubborn uncompromising persons to impose it. The sadness of the zoo will fall upon society.

Leonard Cohen, Moving Into a Period, from Book of Longing

Go read Leonard Cohens Moving Into a Period in his Book of Longing. The poet foresaw that our present pandemic bewilderment would beget authoritarianism and captivity, amid best epidemiological efforts. Our elected authorities could do worse than to dwell on some artful prophecy, rather than increasingly dwelling on subjective constructs of correct conduct; rather than breathing in too much fear, and exhaling a peculiar version of order.

Speaking of the opposite of artists, lawyers today sift through the public health tea leaves justifying the daily contraction of our freedoms. The noose gets tighter and tighter, based upon a global public health strategy that we have all bought into. Canada is too far into project quarantine to change direction. Were instead distancing ourselves until we can start coming back together.

Except for some, were told, who are putting the rest of us at risk, necessitating still more restrictions upon our rights, some lawful, some not, but often we cannot distinguish between the finger-wagging sneers and democratically accountable legal orders that can be reviewed by the judiciary to ensure constitutional compliance. Cmon people could be the motto for the voice of Order. Were awaiting the counterpoints motto, but it will probably be uttered by an artist, or maybe by B.C.s artful public health officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry.

We see here and there, among the many, extraordinary, unprecedented restrictions on our freedoms in Canada, our authorities begin to drift from the solid ground of public health justifications for restricting our liberties, toward a fear-based model of suppression.

Police stopping vehicles for no good reason; the homeless harassed; official snitch lines set up to enable rage; provincial borders patrolled as if citizens were enemies; prosecutors stubbornly fighting epidemiological facts in the name of speculative risk to public order, filling the very prisons in need of evacuation.

But the adjustment to this clampdown is just that  an adjustment. Our authorities could put more into publicly justifying the scientific necessity of each new restriction, and more into crafting a proportionate means to achieving the public health ends.

Anecdotal and social media reportage cannot be the evidence upon which freedom is diminished. At no point should the governments response to COVID-19 be about anything but epidemiology. Not obedience to the elected (cmon people!) and public order, lest the means becomes the end.

Another adjustment is needed too to democratic transparency. Neither civil society nor the judiciary can possibly assess the legality of government and legislative actions if the law is the worst kept secret in Canada.

I say the worst kept secret because the finger-waggers we elected may say whats what at their daily public lectures, but still we the people cannot find the words. We cannot find the words of the law, which fuels its power, because the lawmakers live and work in a bubble necessarily separated from the rest of us.

Because the words of the prophets may be online but the Pharisees are meeting too much in private to make important decisions that take too long to become public. We cannot find the words of the law because our authorities are not sharing their work with us. We are just supposed to trust them.

I dont. I dont trust them because I tasted the hubris of power when I was one of them, back in the day, the aftertaste bitter.

I dont trust them because trust is earned, not once and for all, but continually through action, not promises.

I dont trust them because thats my job but also because its their job to operate within a constitutional system with a Canadian version of checks and balances that are founded on distrust of any one in favour of trusting the many. Because the elected are not deities but people with jobs, today, in a democracy governed by a Constitution.

Today, doing their democratic job does involve shrinking freedom, with the awesome power of the law. But why, when and how its done matters  needing more art, more science, less fear.
Nighclubs are hosting live streaming sessions as a way of keeping the party going through the coronavirus shutdown.

Business Insider Australia spoke to One Six One and Poof Doof about their new livestreaming initiatives.

Some of these nightclubs want to ensure they're paying DJs so they continue to have an income.

Visit Business Insider Australias homepage for more stories.

Following the closure of nightclubs in Australia to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, business owners have turned to live streaming.

Several venues and organisations in Australia have taken to either Facebook, Instagram, Twitch or Youtube to live-stream DJ sets while still adhering to social distancing measures. Some of the venues getting onbaord include The Breakfast Club nightclub in Melbourne, The Stonewall Hotel in Sydney and House of Mince's 24 hour live stream at Sydney's Club 77 nightclub.

"A bunch of nightclubs and promoters were really quick out of the gate to start their streams online," Kat Dopper, creative director of inclusive events platform Heaps Gay told Business Insider Australia. Dopper also sits on the Nightlife Advisory Panel with the City of Sydney and was the creative director of the 2020 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

Jane Slingo, executive producer of Australia's Electronic Music Conference, and a board member of Music NSW, told Business Insider Australia via email it was "fantastic" to see the community so motivated and quick to keep their creativity alive online.

"By nature, those in the electronic music community are digital natives," she said. "In this part of the music sector there's already a history of live streamed events well before COVID-19 - global streamed events from the likes of Boiler Room, Cercle, Worldwide FM events. So it's not surprising how quickly DJs and club nights have made a significant imprint on our feeds as life moves more permanently to online."

Story continues

Poof Doof and One Six One switch on live streaming

Melbourne-based queer nightclub Poof Doof switched to live streaming after business completely dried up following the coronavirus-related shutdowns.

Owner Anthony Hocking told Business Insider Australia the business has been operating every Saturday night for over eight years. It has put on shows all over Australia, doing seasons in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney. In November 2019 it even partnered with major venue group Merivale, hosting an event at its iconic Ivy nightclub in Sydney.

"It just went gangbusters," Hocking said, explaining how there were between 2000 and 3000 people turning up each night. On top of that, Poof Doof was involved in a big season of Mardi Gras events before everything went silent because of the coronavirus outbreak.

"We were really lucky that we had such a great Mardi Gras campaign and a great summer because in a split second it was closed," he said. "All of my promoters, DJs, performers, management team, everyone in the industry is just without work."

But, to "keep the party going", Poof Doof decided to take its service online by live-streaming on Facebook every Saturday. It also posts the full streams on social media afterwards so people can go back and watch during the week.

"We're still going and we still haven't missed a Saturday in eight years and four months," Hocking said. The live stream goes from 9pm until 2am and is hosted by Jimmi the Queen. There is a multi-camera setup in the club, with DJs doing one-hour sets each.

View this content at Business Insider

And Hocking said it has been a success, with the company's first stream two weeks ago gaining more than 32,000 viewers.

"People were...getting dressed into drag at home and they were sending photos of their outfits," he said, adding that there was a lot of positivity online, "which was fantastic."

One Six One nightclub in Victoria also made the switch to live-streaming. It held its first live stream DJ set on Saturday night from 6pm until midnight, with four different DJs.

Zok Szoeke, special project manager at One Six One, told Business Insider Australia the club did a callout on social media asking for music requests people wanted them to play. He added that the event even started at the early time of 6pm because parents wanted something for the kids to dance along to as well.

Over Friday and Saturday, the nightclub had around 500 viewers in total, with between 30 and 60 people on at any one time.

One Six One is going to be doing the live stream once again this Saturday but with the social distancing rules constantly shifting in the past, Szoeke has a plan if there are more changes.

"The goalposts do keep shifting a little bit," he said "If that happens, we will be running it from home." And Szoeke aims to get the DJs to work remotely as well.

Szoeke also mentioned his hopes to make live streaming more interactive, with apps like Zoom and Houseparty allowing users to see each other. "We'd love to be able to hook into something like that where we can have our audience on screen in front of us maybe," he said.

The challenges of monetising live streams

Dopper highlighted some of the main challenges facing venues who utilise these live streams.

The first is being able to navigate the different types of technology it requires, especially for those who are new to it. The second is how to monetise it, "whether it's sponsorship dollars or click per view or crowdfunding," she said.

"It's going to be quite a saturated market as well because everyone's doing the same thing," she said.

Slingo also raised concerns around the difficulty of monetising these events. She said it is "setting a precedent that artists, creatives and technical crew should offer free labour to produce these streams during a time when the music sector has been particularly hard hit by the crisis and desperately need to be paid for their work."

Nonetheless, Slingo said the 24 hour House of Mince managed to raised over $9,000 via a GoFundMe, which the promoter is splitting equally among all those involved with the stream.

View this content at Business Insider

Poof Doof pays its DJs and performers, with Hocking adding that it was about providing some income in the queer community.

"All of the DJs and all the drag performers, they've all lost their booking," he said. "There's just absolutely no cashflow whatsoever, so at least we can pay some DJs, pay some performers and then we can deliver a really fun product to people in their homes."

The company has also set up a PayPal donation link on the stream, with people sending anywhere from $5 to $20 to support the artists. Poof Doof's partners including Red Bull and beverage company Lion are also going to support the live stream while the club is shut.

"I've been funding [it] up to this point, but it looks as though our partners are going to contribute to the costs of running it," Hocking said.

One Six One didn't hold its livestream for free on Facebook. Instead, Szoeke set up a Vimeo page which cost viewers $2 per stream  all to ensure DJs were paid.

"The idea was we could pay the DJs," he said. "And if it builds, we can split the profits amongst the DJs playing and at least give them some work. If it takes off, we could do three, four nights of it  if there's a demand for it. And that will mean we can put our whole roster effectively back on where there's no paid gigs at the moment."

There are concerns about licensing laws when live-streaming over Facebook

Szoeke pointed out his concerns about licensing when he considered doing a livestream on Facebook.

"We did think about Facebook, because that's where everyone's doing it," he said. "But we're also mindful of copyright and we want to pay music licences. That's something I don't think is being really enforced at the moment but we're aware that there's copyright involved here and everyone in the chain needs to get paid."

Slingo also raised the licensing issue, pointing out that there should be a model in place that ensures the streams are licence-compliant.

She said APRA AMCOS  the music rights body that licences organisations to perform and play music from its members  currently has blanket license options for the publishing rights for live streams on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. The organisation also added an update to online licensing amid the coronavirus outbreak, with advice for both commercial and around non-commerical streaming online.

However, Slingo emphasised how complex licensing can get, especially during this time.

"There's the master (recording) rights, which is particularly prevalent in DJs performing on live streams," she said. "PPCA [a non profit organisation that represents record companies and recording artists] don't have the same blanket license options as APRA, instead referring to the record labels for licensing clearance for use of recordings.

"If you can imagine the number of records one DJ plays in a two hour set, and multiply that by full DJ lineups on livestreams, it's a minefield."

Nonetheless, Slingo saw this issue as an opportunity for the music industry to create a new  and much more simplified  payment model for licensing.

"I hope that the various copyright owners and respective copyright collection societies work together with the clubs, venues and artists to create a new world remuneration model that's manageable and fair," Slingo said.

"Simply applying a pre COVID-19 license payment model to the period we are in now isn't the solution in my opinion. Already so many are confused at best or not aware of what they need to get in place to ensure they're license compliant. The licensing process needs to be dramatically simplified."

Trying to keep audience alive with no source of income

Dopper said artists are a "resilient" bunch and are used to creating their own work. But with their work being completely gone right now, it has become a challenge.

"We're used to working on minimal budgets and creating our own work and we've done that for a long time. So that's not really new to us," she said. "But having all our work completely wiped out pretty much for the remainder of the year, it does mean that we have to really think on our toes."

Dopper said the biggest factor for her now is on how to stay connected to the audience Heaps Gay has worked so hard to build, without a source of income.

"An artist friend of mine explained it really well actually," Dopper explained. "He said it's like most of us have built our houses on quicksand. Because we've worked so hard to build these audiences and we want to come out the other side as a business or as an artist and still have those audiences. Seeing all of our work just disappear, it's pretty sad."

Slingo also shared the same views about audiences, especially the long term effects of people at home having access to so many content options.

"Many artists, venues and promoters have very healthy social media numbers," she said. "Many are more niche but very important to their local club or electronic music culture. I worry about artists or collectives that don't have a massive digital footprint looking to streaming as a lifeline and having low viewer numbers or lack of engagement as factors that compound the anxiety already being experienced by so many."

"Right now, it feels in some ways like a tsunami of a race for attention from so many individual parties, during a time when the viewer is more heavily distracted than ever by the COVID-19 updates on their news feeds."

Looking ahead to the future is a hard thing to do for nightclubs and those in the arts industry as it is hard to know when the social distancing rules are going to end and forced closures are going to be reversed.

"That's going to be the biggest impact on the arts industry, that we can't plan," Dopper said.

"I don't know when I should be booking in venues to do big events."
London: NATO is ready to face down any threat from Russia despite the pandemic, the military alliance has warned Moscow.

The outbreak has forced NATO to cancel some military exercises, including the US-led "Defender-Europe 20".

Meanwhile, Russia, which is suspected of a campaign of disinformation about the virus, has been flexing its muscles in exercises close to the allies' borders, including in UK waters.

NATO's Jens Stoltenberg has warned Moscow not to use COVID-19 as cover. Credit:Bloomberg

Jets from NATO air forces have intercepted Russian warplanes several times in recent weeks and alliance naval vessels shadowed seven Russian warships loitering unusually in the North Sea for several days.
Finally, Gov. Greg Abbott has clearly ordered Texans to stay home except for essential travel.

His reluctance to formally do so  even as he announced tighter and tighter social distancing measures and public health precautions in response to COVID-19  has been baffling.

As the virus spreads across Texas and the nation, governors in other states, and mayors and county judges in Texas, issued stay-home orders. But Abbott struggled to follow their lead, a decision that seemed to undercut his concern about ensuring there is enough hospital bed space in this crisis  a concern we share.

Were grateful he has come around, but it says a lot about his confusing message that he had to release a video Wednesday clarifying how his most recent order requires all Texans to stay at home.

Lets review some recent history.

On March 22, Abbott explained why he hadnt given a statewide stay-at-home order at that time.

Were still within 48 hours of my most recent executive orders, he said. Lets wait and see how effective those orders will be in preventing the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Im the governor of a state that has 254 counties, and most of those counties have zero coronavirus cases right now.

The second-largest state in the country, Texas has more counties than any other, many of them in rural areas. At the time, 65 of the counties had at least one reported case, while the state had 140 cases and five deaths. But a stay-home order from Abbott at this time might have helped slow the spread of COVID-19. Researchers have said social distancing and staying home save lives.

In less than two weeks, the number of counties in Texas with at least one reported case has more than doubled; now, the state has thousands of reported cases as deaths continue to increase. And who knows how many cases havent been reported? We stay home to slow this spread and save lives.

Abbotts messaging about this has consistently been confusing. In news conferences hes told Texans to  and we quote  stay at home. But he was slow in making this official, and hes often been behind the curve when it comes to issuing orders.

The executive orders to which he referred were closing schools for at least two weeks, banning dining at restaurants, closing gyms and prohibiting public gatherings of more than 10 people. He also postponed May 26 primaries until July 14.

But again and again, Abbott has followed rather than led. These executive orders came after many Texas mayors enacted similar policies in their communities.

Then came Tuesdays announcement of the most restrictive orders he has given so far.

They will stay in place through April 30. Aside from saying schools will remain closed until at least May 4, the order says that every person in Texas shall, except where necessary to provide or obtain essential services, minimize social gatherings and minimize in-person contact with people who are not in the same household. The essential services include going to the grocery store and health care providers, and being outdoors for activities such as exercise, fishing and hunting.

It sounded like stay-at-home and looked like stay-at-home, but the governor specifically said Tuesday, This is not a stay-at home strategy.

This was so confusing the Texas Hospital Association and the Texas Nursing Association, which had urged him to declare a stay-at-home policy, were left with the impression that he had. Also, the Texas Medical Association cheered Abbott for his stay-at-home executive order.

Was it or wasnt it?

On Wednesday, Abbott clarified. Yes, he is ordering Texans to stay home.

It is the right message from the governor, but it was belated and needlessly muddled. We hope most Texans get it.
In today's environment, we know that Social Distancing and the simple behavioural change of staying at home and reducing public contact can help curb the spread of this pandemic. But being home-bound may not be as great as it sounds. It is tough to stay entertained with nowhere to go. Therefore, ShortsTV, which is available across platforms such as Tata Sky, Airtel DTH, Dish TV and d2h, has curated five best international short films that you can watch to keep away any stay-at-home blues and be completely entertained.

JIMBO

Jimbo, winner of Best Short film at Studio city film festival, Los Angeles, is the story of a young boy who is quiet, and shy and has spent his life cowering in the shadow of his controlling, anarchist, father El Tigron. Jimbo decides to take charge of his destiny and break free from his fathers prison and set his inner rebel to unleash.

THE COMPANY

Ever dream of starting your life over in another town, with another name, in another country? For a fee, an organisation called The Company will provide all the documents necessary to create a brand new you in a brand new place.

TIME OF THE PLUMS

Yasmine, a 10-year-old girl lives in her own world of fantasy with the notes she feels and sounds she sees. She takes refuge in the colours of her own world whenever her life coincides with reality.

I NEED TO KNOW

Maria, a doctor from Santiago serves in a rural hospital in Southern Chile. When 12-year-old Paola visits the hospital, Maria finds out about her terrible secret.

ECLIPSE

Eclipse is the story of a wretched man and a young woman who encounter an opportunity that could change their lives. And in the end, there can be only one survivor.

Watch other internationally acclaimed short films on Tata Sky ShortsTV, ShortsTV Active, and Airtel ShortsTV.
Gov. Greg Abbott is allowing Texas churches to resume religious services that cant be broadcast remotely or conducted from home if they follow federal health guidelines and arent located near significant community spread of the coronavirus.

Many local churches plan to remain closed and continue livestreaming services as the virus continues to sicken people around the city and across the state. But some pastors likely will use the latest guidance from state leaders to attempt to reopen, the director of a Baptist group here said.

Abbott has deemed religious services in churches, congregations and houses of worship to be essential. But he said institutions that cant conduct services remotely and choose to hold gatherings in person must still keep people spaced apart at an appropriate distance.

In a more detailed guidance document issued Wednesday, Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton clarified that churches must avoid large gatherings if they are in a geographic area experiencing substantial local spread of the virus.

Houses of worship should work with counties and cities to determine that risk and the appropriate safety measures to take, they said.

More detailed guidance from the CDC currently recommends that if a community is experiencing substantial community spread of COVID-19, then the houses of worship in that community should cancel all in-person gatherings of any size, the document states.

But if a community is experiencing moderate to substantial spread, then the CDC recommends a reduction of activities in coordination with local health officials, possible smaller gatherings incorporating social-distancing measures, cancellation of activities with 10 or more people when high-risk populations attend in person ... and use of creative means to deliver other faith-based services.

For example, they said, a church could hold Easter services in a parking lot, with worshippers in carefully spaced cars, their windows down to hear their pastor through a sound system. Or a church could provide Communion or a blessing via a drive-up service, the document said.

On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases

The Metropolitan Health District on Wednesday said San Antonios rate of community spread is considered moderate.

The public attendance at Roman Catholic churches in the Archdiocese of San Antonio is suspended through at least April 30. Similarly, the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas called on its clergy and congregations to stop gathering in person for worship services for at least the next month.

Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller this week strongly encouraged Catholic priests to livestream services or broadcast them through other media.

Its been difficult, challenging, because we have continued celebrating Mass every day, we continue celebrating the sacraments as needed  but all in the context of social distancing and the directions we have received locally, Garcia-Siller said Wednesday.

Baptist congregations operate autonomously and can decide individually whether to reopen their doors or keep them closed. The San Antonio Baptist Association, which has about 350 member churches, hasnt been formally notified of any that plan to reopen for people to attend worship services. But executive director Darrell Horn anticipates some will do so.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio now has 229 coronavirus cases, but no new deaths

I personally cant think of anybody that doesnt have a cellphone that couldnt do Facebook Live. But I would imagine that some pastors are going to go ahead and use that as an open door to meet together, Horn said Wednesday.

Ive seen some pastors post their objection to being required not to meet, he said. Theres always going to be some that have objected to any restriction.

The association has provided technical tutorials and guidance on its web page on how churches can stream their services through Facebook Live and upload them to YouTube.

Its web page urges churches to apply Jesus teaching, Love your neighbor as yourself, to protect the health of others in any decisions they make, and to follow the current state and federal health guidelines and those of the World Health Organization.

Part of loving your neighbor is not infecting them with the virus, Horn said. I do not feel the government is asking anybody to deny their religious faith  all theyre asking is people keep their distance, wash their hands and follow health guidelines.

At The Restoring Church, where senior pastor Darryl Crain chided some of the congregation for staying home during a sermon he gave on March 15, the doors have been closed since last week and services are being streamed online so people can watch them from home.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio nursing home at center of coronavirus outbreak recently cited for infection control problems

Crain expects the livestreaming will continue the next several weeks, including Easter, and said his church probably wont consider reopening until the last Sunday in April or the first Sunday in May if the number of coronavirus cases is trending downward by then.

During his March 15 sermon, Crain said people are 3.5 times more likely to die from rabies than they are from COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. He declined to retract that Wednesday, saying those statistics were accurate two weeks ago. But he also said his church doesnt want to be irresponsible by allowing people to attend services in person.

Theres a lot of worst-case scenarios that are producing a panic that probably isnt as warranted. However, we need to balance that with just plain common sense and responsibility, Crain said.

The nondenominational Community Bible Church, which has around 30,000 members and is one of the largest congregations in San Antonio, will remain closed until further notice and is continuing live broadcasts of all of its services at onlinechurch.com and through its Facebook page and other applications.

An average of 18,000 households have tuned in to watch one of its five services broadcast live during the past couple weekends, said Josh Boren, the churchs marketing and creative director, calling it an excellent quality experience even on a small screen.

Community Bible Church has said it will continue following the mayors and citys orders.

Cornerstone Church  a nondenominational, evangelical church with more than 22,000 members  also remains closed, but is continuing live broadcasts of its services online, a spokesman said.

Peggy O'Hare covers demographics, the census and occasionally crime and general assignment stories in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Peggy, become a subscriber. pohare@express-news.net | Twitter: @Peggy_OHare
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Linkedin Ghina Ghaliya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 11:37 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f1ae3c 1 Politics KUHP,Criminal-Code,house-of-representatives,Lawmakers,correctional-facility,bill-deliberation,Law-and-Human-Rights-Ministry,Yasonna-Laoly,legislative-body Free

The House of Representatives is set to resume deliberation of the revisions to the Criminal Code (KUHP) and the 1995 Correctional Center Law, at a time when the country is consumed by efforts to contain the COVID-19 outbreak.

It plans to restart the deliberation of both bills during a plenary session Thursday afternoon.

The deliberation of the two bills were postponed in September 2019 following widespread protests led by tens of thousands of university students following the passing of the revised law on the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). The protesters argued that the bills would threaten democracy and curtail civil rights.

Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly and House Commission III overseeing legal affairs agreed to resume deliberating the two bills after the government decided to start releasing inmates to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country's overcrowded prisons.

Read also: House urged to stop controversial omnibus bill deliberation, prioritize COVID-19

The government released over 5,500 inmates on Wednesday to meet its target of releasing about 50,000 inmates.

"Please understand that the government is committed to continue the deliberation of both bills. We dont disagree on the bills," Yasonna said in a virtual meeting with House Commission III on Wednesday.

The minister added that he would ask President Joko Jokowi Widodo to submit a new presidential letter (Surpres) instructing the House to restart the deliberation process.

Anticorruption activists have warned that the revision to the 1995 law could be a gift for graft convicts, as it would remove technical hurdles for obtaining special remissions, including conditional releases.

The revised law would scrap a 2012 government regulation on the rights of inmates, which stipulates strict criteria for issuing remissions and parole for prisoners convicted of extraordinary crimes, including terrorism and corruption.

House Deputy Speaker and Commission III member Azis Syamsuddin said that the House leadership would meet to discuss the possibility of restarting deliberations without a new Surpres, and announce its decision at the plenary meeting on Thursday.
Some 66 prisoners in NSW jails have been put into isolation after developing coronavirus-like symptoms.

None of the prisoners are yet confirmed as having COVID-19, a source told AAP.

But some coronavirus tests have been administered and those inmates are awaiting the results.

As a precaution, all inmates who develop coronavirus-like symptoms will be put into isolation.

As a precaution, all inmates who develop coronavirus-like symptoms will be put into isolation (Pictured: Silverwater Correctional Complex)

The development came as Civil Liberties Australia added its voice to a growing call for prison populations to be reduced.

'Prisons and other places of detention are a serious challenge to social distancing measures and therefore represent a threat to the health of both the prison population and to the wider community,' the organisation said in a statement on Thursday.

'State and territory governments must adopt measures as a priority to minimise prison populations and reduce crowding in these facilities.'

Corrective Services NSW is expecting the COVID-19 test results to be returned within days.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

The NSW government passed laws last week giving the corrections commissioner the power to grant conditional parole to low-risk offenders where necessary.

While the authority to act now exists, AAP understands at this stage there are no plans for the early release of prisoners.

Corrections Victoria has also made it mandatory for all prisoners who enter the facility as of March 28 to spend 14 days in a protective quarantine unit.

Melbourne Assessment Prison, Metropolitan Remand Centre, Port Phillip Prison, Ravenhall Correctional Centre and Dame Phyllis Frost Centre all currently have the measure in place.

Corrections Commissioner Emma Cassar said it was important to isolate new prisoners to protect others as well as staff.

'This measure applies to people who have been out in the community these past few weeks and that bring that exposure risk with them into custody,' she said.

'We are working closely with the Department of Health and Human Services, our staff, prisoners and all relevant authorities to ensure we're taking the measures needed to protect everyone's health.'

Australia currently has 5,108 positive coronavirus cases with a total of 24 dead.
Former Prime Minister H D Deve



Gowda on Thursday condemned the blocking of traffic movement between Karnataka and Kerala causing inconvenience to the people of both states.

He hit out at the the BJP government in Karnataka for denying entry to vehicles coming from Kasaragod to Mangaluru.

Gowda shot off a letter to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, stating that the JD(S) leaders there had brought to his notice 'the inhuman and inappropriate action' of Karnataka authorities who brought the traffic movement between Kasaragod and Mangaluru to a grinding halt.

"The situation is very grim since I learnt four to five patients died for want of medical facilites since the ambulances ferrying the patients were denied permission to cross the border so as to avail the treatment in hospitals in Mangaluru," Gowda wrote.

The veteran JD(S) leader condemned the attitude of the BJP government in Karnataka for denying access to people from Kerala to avail medical facilities and also movement of essential goods for the people.

The JD(S) supremo said he would take up the matter with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Two days ago, Gowda had written to Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa highlighting the plight of people in Kasaragod in Kerala who are not allowed to enter Mangaluru due to coronavirus pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Much of Oak Hollow Pet Memorial Park is overgrown, with weeds so dense in some areas that names of beloved pets etched in headstones cant be seen.

Now, the owner of the small Northwest Side cemetery is giving people who have animals buried there until May 21 to retrieve their pets headstones and excavate the soil in and around the plot, according to a legal notice that was published March 25.

After May 21, the owners of the park said, Any remaining soil around the plots will be used in creating natural looking landscaping berms on the property. It will not be excavated and hauled off.

On ExpressNews.com: Construction on San Antonios Northwest Side disturbs pet cemetery

It is unclear if this is simply a long-awaited cleaning of the cemetery or if the park owner has other plans for the property.

Neither the owner of the cemetery nor those listed as contacts in the legal notice could be reached for comment.

Margaret Bombella, whose chihuahua-terrier mix named Ninny is buried there, said the situation doesnt seem right.

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Jim Kennerly, secretary of the Texas Cemeteries Association and an expert on laws pertaining to human cemeteries, said he does not know of any state laws related to pet cemeteries.

According to Bombellas 1984 contract with the pet memorial park, she paid $275 for the headstone, lot and opening and closing of the grave. The contract states that year-round care is provided at no additional cost.

Bombella also tried calling the phone numbers listed in the legal notice, but she said that as of Wednesday no one had returned her calls.

Thats my plot, as far as Im concerned, Bombella said. No one has called me to tell me what is going on.

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Bombella said she still has a copy of the contract and may seek advice from a lawyer to see what rights she has under the agreement.

I want to be reimbursed at a fair market price, Bombella said. Thats my property.

This is not the first time the small pet cemetery in the 6300 block of Prue Road has caused complaints from residents.

In December, the grounds had been disturbed by construction crews that were working on a site adjacent to the cemetery.

Because of the narrow road and small right-of-way, the crew and equipment had spilled over to the cemetery property.

City employees went to the cemetery and found scattered dirt and equipment parts on the ground.

After multiple complaints, the developer cleaned up the equipment and moved it to a different area.

But the cemetery, which opened in 1973, still looked untended  much of it was overgrown and there was litter strewn about.

This just isnt right, Bombella said who has retrieved her dogs headstone. How can they just do this?

According to Bexar County records, the land is owned by Joseph Mangione of San Man, Inc.

There have been issues with another property owned by Mangione.

In 2016 and 2017, dozens of families were forced to vacate the Oak Hollow Mobile Home Park, owned by Mangione, after septic systems overflowed, above-ground pools of waste formed around the residences, and E. coli was found in the soil.

The city required that Mangione either fix the sites septic tanks or close the park. Mangione decided to close it.

sara.cline@express-news.net
MBABANE  The newly-refurbished holiday destination in Eswatini has temporarily closed its doors to adhere to governments advice to stay at home.

This follows a number of other hotels and resorts that have closed their operations since the virus started spreading in the continent. Sibebe Resorts Public Relations Officer, Larry Mhlanga, said the resort was in full support of the efforts done by the government of Eswatini to curb the spread of the coronavirus in the kingdom.

Rise

The numbers of confirmed positive cases has been on the rise in neighbouring countries as well as in Eswatini. as of yesterday there were eight confirmed cases in Eswatini. Mhlanga said the exercise of adhering to the partial lockdown was important in that people pulled from all corners of the country in order to assist government. The well-being of our employees and clients is our top priority and we have, as an establishment, decided to temporarily close our operations to play our part in limiting the spread of the novel coronavirus, Mhlanga said.

Effective

He stated that the closure of the resort was effective from yesterday until further notice. Just 10km out of the capital city, the establishment is well-known for its proximity to the famous landmark in Eswatini which is the Sibebe Rock and its manmade infinity pool which was built in 2019. It had been operating throughout the March period. Mhlanga revealed that before the decision to close they had been practising the necessary precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the virus. He said they saw it fit to totally shut down since that would prevent any human contact. Mhlanga urged their patrons to also adhere to the safety measures by staying safe and remaining at home throughout the period of the partial lockdown which is supposed to last for 20 days from last week Friday.
Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

As the number of novel coronavirus cases in Montgomery County passed 100 and the county registered its first two COVID-19 deaths, officials Wednesday made a plea urging the community to come forward with supplies to help ward off the threat brought on by the outbreak.

Personal protective equipment needs are surgical masks, gloves, gowns, shoe covers, hair covers, goggles, N95 masks and full facial shields. Disinfectant spray and disinfecting wipes, are also in short supply, according to the Montgomery County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Donation drop offs can be made at the MCOHSEM office at 9417 Airport Road in Conroe.
LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (OTCQB:CLSH) (CSE:CLSH) ("CLS" or "the Company"), a diversified, integrated cannabis producer and retailer, announced the release of a shareholder update.

To view the shareholder update, please go to https://www.clsholdingsinc.com/investors

About CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (CLSH) is a diversified cannabis company that acts as an integrated cannabis producer and retailer through its Oasis Cannabis subsidiaries in Nevada and plans to expand to other states. CLS stands for "Cannabis Life Sciences," in recognition of the Company's patented proprietary method of extracting various cannabinoids from the marijuana plant and converting them into products with a higher level of quality and consistency. The Company's business model includes licensing operations, processing operations, processing facilities, sale of products, brand creation and consulting services. http://www.clsholdingsinc.com

Twitter: @CLSHusa

About Oasis Cannabis

Oasis Cannabis has operated a cannabis dispensary in the Las Vegas market since dispensaries first opened in Nevada in 2015 and has been recognized as one of the top marijuana retailers in the state. Its location within walking distance to the Las Vegas Strip and Downtown Las Vegas in combination with its delivery service to residents allows it to efficiently serve both locals and tourists in the Las Vegas area. In February 2019, it was named "Best Dispensary for Pot Pros" by Desert Companion Magazine. In August 2017, the company commenced wholesale offerings of cannabis in Nevada with the launch of its City Trees brand of cannabis concentrates and cannabis-infused products.

http://oasiscannabis.com

About City Trees

Founded in 2017, City Trees is a Nevada-based cannabis cultivation, production and distribution company. Offering a wide variety of products with consistent results, City Trees is one the fastest growing wholesale companies in the industry. Its products are now available at 44 dispensaries.

https://citytrees.com

Forward Looking Statements

This press release and the shareholder update contain certain 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and 'forward-looking statements' as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, the 'forward-looking statements'). These statements relate to, among other things, the future impact of the COVID-19 virus on our business, the future results of our initiatives to retain our employees and strengthen our relationships with our customers and community during the pandemic, the future effect of our initiatives to expand market share and achieve growth following the pandemic, results of operations during the pandemic, and the effectiveness of our business practices during the pandemic. The continued spread of COVID-19 could have, and in some cases already has had, an adverse impact on our business, operations and financial results, including through disruptions in our cultivation and processing activities, supply chains and sales channels, and retail dispensary operations as well as a deterioration of general economic conditions including a possible national or global recession. Due to the speed with which the COVID-19 situation is developing and the uncertainty of its magnitude, outcome and duration, it is not possible to estimate its impact on our business, operations or financial results; however, the impact could be material. In some cases, you can identify forward looking statements by terminology such as 'may,' 'might,' 'will,' 'should,' 'intends,' 'expects,' 'plans,' 'goals,' 'projects,' 'anticipates,' 'believes,' 'estimates,' 'predicts,' 'potential,' or 'continue' or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are only predictions, are uncertain and involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, levels of activity or performance to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity or performance expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be considered together with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect actual results, later events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. See CLS Holdings USA filings with the SEC and on its SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com for additional details.

Contact Information:

Corporate:

Chairman and CEO

Jeff Binder

jeff@clsholdingsinc.com

888-438-9132

Investor Relations:

ir@clsholdingsinc.com

SOURCE: CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583570/CLS-Holdings-Provides-Shareholder-Update
OSTERSUND, Sweden, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --Skanska has signed a contract with the Swedish Transport Administration to build double-track on the West Coast Line, Sweden. The contract is worth about SEK 1.7 billion, which will be included in the order bookings for Sweden for the second quarter 2020.

The project encompasses 24 kilometers of double-track on the railway line between Angelholm station and just south of Maria station in northern Helsingborg. It includes 19 new railway bridges and two road bridges. In addition, seven level crossings will be replaced by new level crossings for increased security and the several stations will be rebuilt. New switches, contact lines and signal systems will also be installed.

Preparatory work will commence in late summer/autumn 2020 and the new double-track is expected to be in use during the later part of 2023. The project will be completed in May 2024.

Skanska is one of the leading development- and construction companies in the Nordics, with operations in building construction and civil engineering in Sweden, Norway and Finland, and developing residential- and commercial property projects in select home markets. The commercial development stream is also active in Denmark. Skanska had sales of about SEK 70 billion and more than 15,200 employees in its Nordic operations during 2019.

For further information please contact:

Andreas Joons

Press Officer

Skanska AB

tel +46-(0)10-449-04-94

Direct line for media, tel +46-(0)10-448-88-99

This and previous releases can also be found at www.skanska.com.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/skanska/r/skanska-builds-new-double-track-on-the-west-coast-line--sweden--for-about-sek-1-7-billion,c3079309

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/95/3079309/1222762.pdf 20200402 SE railroad

SOURCE Skanska
Washington, April 2 : The US Coast Guard has directed cruise ships carrying passengers infected with the novel coronavirus to stay off American shores "indefinitely" and prepare to give the patients medical care aboard the vessels.

The Marine Safety Information Bulletin said that all ships operating in US waters "with more than 50 persons on board should increase their medical capabilities, personnel and equipment in order to care for people who contracted COVID-19 or other influenza-like illness for an indefinite period of time", Xinhua news agency reported on wednesday.

For foreign-flagged ships "that loiter beyond US territorial seas", the mandate dictates that they should evacuate the passengers through -- and seek support from -- their countries of origin "prior to seeking support from the limited facilities in the US".

In addition, vessels within US territorial seas "should report the number and condition of any and all ill persons on board" on a daily basis, according to the memo signed by Coast Guard Rear Admiral Eric Jones, whose district covers Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Puerto Rico.

Vessels or masters that "do not immediately report illness or death among on board personnel" could face civil penalties or criminal prosecution, the memo said.

Officials at federal, state and local levels have been debating whether to let the cruise ships dock at US shores, especially the Zaandam and Rotterdam -- two vessels owned by Holland America.

There are more than 300 U.S nationals on board the two ships. Two of the four deaths were believed to be caused by COVID-19, nine people have tested positive for the virus and at least 190 more have reported symptoms, local media cited the company as saying.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said on Tuesday that the state's healthcare system was too overwhelmed to handle patients aboard the Zaandam.

"Just to drop people off at the place where we're having the highest number of cases right now just doesn't make a whole lot of sense," he said.

President Donald Trump said later that people are "dying on the ship", vowing to do "what's right. Not only for us, but for humanity." The overall number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the US now stands at 216,515, the highest in the world, with a total of 5,119 deaths, according to date by the Washington-based Johns Hopkins University.
EWG News Roundup (4/3): PFAS Taints Military Bases, Trump Rolls Back Car Emissions Standards and More

Information Sought on Trump EPAs Suspension of Environmental Rules

Clean Water Advocates Applaud Immediate Statewide Moratorium on Water Shutoffs to Protect Californians

Monsanto Relied on Shady EPA Risk Study To Dispute Court Verdict That Roundup Caused Cancer

UPDATED MAP: Suspected and Confirmed PFAS Pollution at U.S. Military Bases

Coronavirus Exposes Our Food System's Crisis

Actor and Advocate Mark Ruffalo Applauds $75 Billion Water Cleanup Proposal in COVID-19 Stimulus Bill

"There Aren't Enough Tests": As Pandemic Intensifies, Global South Prepares for the Worst

"Social Distancing Is a Privilege": Pandemic Highlights India's Class Divide as 1.3 Billion Lock Down
Kolkata, April 2 : One sub-inspector was among five police personnel injured as police teams came under attacks in two districts of West Bengal while trying to disperse gatherings and enforce the coronavirus-induced lockdown, an officer said.

The incidents happened at Bhangar of 24 Parganas South district and Goaltore of West Midnapore on Wednesday night.

At Bhangar's Kulberia, the police had gone on a campaign to raise awareness about safety issues and the need for people to stay at home to contain the spread of the dreaded infection.

According to the police officer, when the cops reached the spot, they found a gathering of youths who were drunk.

As the police ordered them to go home, they were attacked by locals, who also vandalised a police vehicle.

Five police personnel including an SI were injured. Two of them sustained head wounds.

"When we reached the spot, we saw a gathering of 50 people. They started running. The locals surrounded us and started throwing stones and bricks," said an injured police man.

Seven persons have been arrested in connection with the incident.

At Goaltore, the police were attacked when they tried to remove a gathering at a tea stall.

Two police vehicles were damaged by the mob, which also beat up the police personnel.
It was like, this is unbelievable, this is not really happening, Ms. Battle said. Im going to wake up and Im going to have to catch a flight.

April was meant to be one of her busiest months, as schools rush to get students ready for standardized testing season. Instead, she is home with her husband and teenage son, trying to figure out how to cut expenses. They have gotten their bank to defer this months mortgage payment. Ms. Battles husband, a substance abuse counselor, still has a job, but they arent sure how long that will last.

When you have to think about paying for groceries or for therapy, which one are you going to do? Ms. Battle said.

Economists have warned that those sorts of choices  groceries or therapy?  could turn an acute economic crisis into a long recession. If laid-off workers cant pay their bills, there could be a cascade of further layoffs and business failures. The greater the damage, the less chance of a quick economic rebound once the health crisis eases.

The deeper the layoffs get, the longer the recovery will take, said Julia Pollak, a labor economist for ZipRecruiter.

The congressional legislation passed last week was meant, in part, to prevent that cascade. The government will provide businesses with low-interest loans  which in some cases could turn into grants  to help them avoid layoffs and keep the lights on. And the law temporarily expanded the unemployment insurance system to cover more workers and offer them more generous benefits.
Students from third grade through third preparatory stage will be asked to prepare one multi-discipline research paper for the whole year not for every subject

Egypts education minister announced on Thursday the details about the new research paper system adopted as an alternative for final exams of Egyptian school students due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Egypt suspended classes in schools and universities from 15 March nationwide as part of measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.

Students from third grade through third preparatory stage will be asked to prepare one multi-discipline research paper for the whole year not for every subject, which should be submitted online between 9 April and 15 May 2020, Education Minister Tarek Shawky said in a video statement on Thursday.

Students can write the research paper unanimously or in groups of up to five students.

The minister said the new system is an excellent evaluation technique that measures skills not demonstrated during a two-hour written exam which mainly relies on retrieval capacity.

The research paper aims to teach students new skills like teamwork, self-reliance, research, analysis, connecting topics and formulating ideas, Shawky said.

On Sunday, the ministry will release a tutorial video on its official website to explain how to work on the research paper starting with choosing the topic itself all the way to submission.

On 9 April the ministry will announce topics of the research papers for each school year on its official website as well as in state-owned newspapers, the minister said. Students can choose between four or five topics.

Students will present their research projects online to the Ministry of Education or offline in paper to their schools, which will send them to the ministry.

The teachers will provide guidance while the ministry will evaluate whether the papers are accepted or unaccepted."

Egypt has so far recorded 770 cases of coronavirus, including 52 fatalities.

Earlier this month, the communication ministry said it would support online education by allowing free-of-charge surfing of all education platforms after it has increased data limits for internet packages by 20 percent.

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A Navy sailor was



grievously injured in an accident of material failure in the high-pressure air system on board a naval vessel, the Navy said here on Thursday.

A Board of Inquiry has been ordered by the Navy to investigate into the cause of the incident, which occurred on Wednesday, the Eastern Naval Command said in a statement here.

'An incident of material failure in the High-Pressure Air system onboard a Naval vessel berthed alongside at Visakhapatnam occurred on 01 Apr 20.One sailor on duty in the vicinity of the incident was grievously injured," it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
When over the counter paracetamols did not help abate Delhi-based Ankur Tiwari's low-grade fever, sore throat and breathlessness, he tried calling up the COVID-19 helplines to check if he needed to get tested for the fatal virus, but to no avail.

"The numbers were either busy or did not connect at all. I waited for over half an hour on a single call, but it never connected," Tiwari told PTI.

The two helpline numbers that the 46-year-old teacher had tried calling were 011-22307145 (Delhi govt) and 011-23978046 (central govt), both of which he took down from the audio message that plays on the phone before making a call.

"Eventually, I had to go to a local doctor, who has assured me that I have nothing more than seasonal flu," he said.

Tiwari is among the many people who have raised concerns, especially in the last two weeks when the number of positive COVID-19 cases in the country started spiking, about the allegedly non-functional helpline numbers issued by the central and state governments.

As on Thursday, at least 1,965 people in the country are infected with coronavirus while 50 have died due to the disease.

Over a month back, the central and the state governments set up 24X7 helplines to answer people's queries on novel coronavirus, including when, how and where one should get tested in case they have symptoms like coughing, fever, shortness of breath, and vomiting.

City-based journalist Chinki Sinha, who wanted to inform authorities about a positive COVID-19 case in her neighbourhood of Defence Colony, also called the Delhi helpline and received a response similar as Tiwari.

The helpline was busy for over 30 minutes.

"I was calling about the positive case in the neighbourhood and how the guards of the landlords in the colony were sitting without masks. I wanted to ask them to sanitise the area," she said.

Sinha finally tweeted to chief minister Arvind Kejriwal about the problem, to which she hasn't received a response yet.

Many also turned to Twitter to register their complaints on the issue.

Azhar Ullah from Delhi, who wanted to report two suspected COVID-19 cases, also pointed out that neither the state not the central helpline was functional.

"#coronavirus emergency no. are not working 01122307145, 01123978046, 9599507173 i am trying to connect two suspect are their i am from delhi (sic), he wrote.

Another user Akash Deep shared a screenshot from his phone showing all his outgoing calls to the Delhi helpline number 011-22307145 as "not connected".

"Sir I called more then 100 times on helpline no. No response no help I am feeling viral if I want to check my self what I can do. What kind of services you provide. #coronavirus," he wrote.

Twitter user Abhimanyu also shared screenshots where six calls made to the health ministry's 24*7 control room 011 23978046 "didn't connect".

According to the 'Delhi Health Bulletin COVID-19' released daily by the state government, its coronavirus help desk received and responded to an average of 287 calls per day between March 19-25.

Incidentally, most complaints about the Delhi government helpline involve a single number 011-22307145, which is the one announced on the audio message before making a phone call, and the list of state helplines that is being circulated on social media.

The average number of calls too increased by over three times after the government activated 10 lines in the Directorate General of Health Services state headquarter control room on March 26.

The average number of calls received and responded to were 823 between March 26-29.

The 10 Delhi helpline numbers are --22391014, 22301028, 22302441, 22307133, 22304568, 22307745, 22307135, 22307145, 22300012, 22300036.

Several attempts to reach out to the Union health ministry about the helpline went unanswered.

People in different states have also complained about not being able to get through helpline numbers issued by both state and central authorities.

In Mumbai, Allisandra D'Abreo tried calling the Maharashtra helpline 020-26127394, after her 49-year-old mother showed persistent flu-like symptoms including fever, body pain, congestion, coughing and chest pain, but the line was constantly busy.

"I wanted to know if I should get my mother tested for coronavirus, or if consulting any other doctor was fine. I called up the state helpline thrice in an hour, but every time it was engaged," she told PTI.

D'Abreo added she also tried calling the numbers that are announced in the message before a call, but both were "busy". Eventually, she had to take her mother to a nearby clinic.

Tagging Haryana health minister Anil Vij, Twitter user Ravi Wadhwa said he had been trying to call the state helpline for two days but found it was either busy or out of coverage area.

"@anilvijminister sir haryana corona virus helpline number is not working either it shows not in coverage area or line is engage . I have been trying to connect call for two days .please do the needful, Wadhawa wrote.

In multiple tweets, Himanshu Mahajan from Uttar Pradesh said the state helpline was not working



"Help line #coronavirus numbers not working. Where should people approach," he wrote.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Northam is still reviewing the state budget, and the General Assembly is scheduled to return to Richmond on April 22 to consider any amendments he might suggest. Its unclear how they will do that at a time when gatherings of more than 10 people have been prohibited, though House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn (D-Fairfax) said Friday she intends to find an outdoor location for delegates to meet. The Senates plans remained unknown.
State budgets will be crushed by the coronavirus crisis as millions of workers and businesses stop paying taxes, says Josh Goodman of Pew Charitable Trusts. But state officials are going to have to wait a few more weeks until they know just how bad their fiscal situations will be.

Personal income taxes and sales taxes are the two largest sources of revenue at the state level, and both will take a serious hit as businesses reduce hours or close up shop entirely and workers lose their jobs.

Federal aid is in the pipeline, with $150 billion set aside for states and localities in the $2.2 trillion aid package signed into law last week. But some governors are saying that wont be enough.

Colorado is one state seeing a rapidly deteriorating fiscal picture, according to Bloomberg Tax. Two weeks ago, state officials projected a $750 million shortfall in revenue this fiscal year and next as a result of the pandemic. A week later, that number nearly doubled to $1.4 billion.

New York, at the epicenter of the crisis, is facing even larger shortfalls. Gov. Andrew Cuomo says the state expects to lose between $10 billion and $15 billion in revenues in the fiscal year starting April 1. In just one week, the state spent $600 million on medical supplies, according to Bloomberg News.

States face legal limits: Most states are required to balance their budgets, and only a handful can carry debt from one year in the next. That leaves three options when the economy craters: using federal aid to replace lost revenues; dipping into rainy day funds, to the extent that they exist (see the Tax Foundations review here); and enacting budgetary austerity in the form of reduced spending on everything from education to highway repair. Accounting tricks such as shifting the schedule of payments can provide a cushion, but the wiggle room is limited.

The timing is terrible: States tend to have low cash balances in March as they prepare for an influx of tax payments in April, but as many states follow the IRS in delaying tax day until July, those payments are now just a trickle.

Story continues

In addition to the operational challenges, the shortfalls will make it harder to create budgets for the next fiscal year, which starts on July 1 in most states. Budget committees typically rely on revenues in January and February as the basis for the next years budget, but that wont work in this context. Its been challenging, said Colorado state senator Rachel Zenzinger. We had the budget about 98% done before the virus hit, so were going to have to more or less scrap many of the decisions we already made and start over. Social distancing requirements in state legislatures will make the process that much harder.

Time for a debt jubilee? The size of the problem is so great that some experts are kicking around the idea of large-scale debt forgiveness. Michael Hudson, an economist at the University of Missouri at Kansas City, told Marketplace Thursday about the ancient tradition of the debt jubilee, in which all debts are forgiven on a regular basis in order to reduce economic volatility and social disorder.

The reason your cancel the debts is you want to preserve stability, Hudson said. The states and localities, New York City and New York state, have to pay unemployment insurance, and all the other costs associated with the coronavirus out of their own revenues, and yet they have to balance the budget. If New York state and City have to repay all of the debts that they run up, then youre going to have the whole character of government change. And in order to prevent the economy from being distorted, you have to adjust [and] simply say these debts wont be paid.

Until then: Short of a revolutionary debt holiday, states will have to start adjusting to the mounting revenue shortfalls and rising social welfare expenditures, with cutbacks being one likely result. Lower taxes and increased demands for funding will impose severe strains on state and local budgets, researchers at the Brookings Institution wrote last week. Furthermore, with most state fiscal years ending June 30, and with most states required to enact budgets that they expect to balance, it is likely that state and local governments will start paring back spending relatively soon.

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One of the six pillars of the Chester County Historic Courthouse on North High Street will shine in blue light on January nights beginning Tuesday evening in recognition of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day.
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Linkedin Suherdjoko and Andi Hajramurni (The Jakarta Post) Semarang/Makassar  Thu, April 2, 2020 12:38 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f2494b 1 National COVID-19,COVID-19-Indonesian-patients,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,coronavirus,Ganjar-Pranowo,Central-Java,South-Sulawesi,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia,burial,WHO Free

Authorities across some regions are trying hard to assure the public that the burial of people with COVID-19 is not something to be wary of, as reports emerged that some locals have rejected the idea of having the bodies of deceased persons infected by the novel coronavirus buried in cemeteries near their homes.

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo said he was "deeply saddened by the reports", emphasizing that all burials of those with or suspected to have contracted COVID-19 in the country had followed the safety standards of the World Health Organization (WHO).

"I don't want such a thing to happen again. Let's respect the feelings of the family members of the deceased," he said on Wednesday, "They are already in so much grief as they were not able to see the faces of the deceased one last time."

"So, please don't hurt them [the family members] more. Let's support them together."

Read also: Alone on their deathbed, how COVID-19 keeps families away from loved ones

On Tuesday, the dead body of a COVID-19 patient that had been buried in Tumiyeng village in the province's Banyumas regency was dug up to be removed to another cemetery following protests.

Four villages previously rejected the idea having the dead body buried in a local cemetery, as they were reportedly concerned about possible coronavirus transmission.

Banyumas Regent Achmad Husein even went as far as to help in the digging to show residents that as long as the corpse had been handled properly, the dead body of a COVID-19 patient was not dangerous.

"In the near future, we'll educate residents so they understand that the virus dies underground and it won't spread everywhere and infect people," Husein said as quoted by tribunnews.com on Wednesday.

Similar tensions have been reported in Depok and Tasikmlaya in West Java, Bandar Lampung in Lampung and Gowa regency in South Sulawesi.

Ganjar said he himself had asked experts about the protocol for handling the dead bodies of people with COVID-19.

The safety protocols include that hospital authorities treating the patient spray disinfectant on the corpse, wash the body, cover it in plastic and put it inside a coffin for the burial.

"If the bodies are handled according to the guidelines [...] they will not spread the disease. It's safe, the virus will be dead, too," Ganjar said, "The most important thing is that residents should not attend the funeral."

Following the protests, the Banyumas administration prepared three plots of land as a graveyard specifically designated for COVID-19 patients and suspects.

Read also: Viral video shows Southeast Sulawesi family unwrapping body of suspected COVID-19 fatality

South Sulawesi also took a similar action after locals rejected the idea of burying three COVID-19 suspects in the provincial capital of Makassar on Sunday and Tuesday.

"The South Sulawesi administration has prepared a special graveyard for COVID-19 patients and suspects so such incidents won't occur again in the future. The graveyard can be used starting on Wednesday," medical department head of Hasanuddin Military Command Col. Ckm. Dr. Soni Endro Cahyo Wicaksono said on Tuesday.

Husni Thamrin, public health department head of the South Sulawesi Health Agency, said his side would continue to educate people so the latter understood that all COVID-19 patients and suspects were buried in accordance with WHO guidelines.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Indonesia has recorded 1,677 confirmed coronavirus cases with 157 fatalities, making the country's mortality rate of 9.3 percent among the highest in the world. (nal)
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that US authorities will evacuate passengers from a stranded cruise ship due to dock in Florida after being barred from several South American countries because of a coronavirus outbreak aboard.

Trump said the US was "sending medical teams on board the ship" and taking people off, with foreigners being sent home.

"We're taking the Canadians off and giving them to Canadian authorities," he said. "Same thing with the UK.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The global outbreak of the novel coronavirus has forced countries to impose lockdowns in a bid to restrict public movement and practise social distancing.

On March 25, India imposed a lockdown for 21 days following an address by PM Modi to the nation. In the aftermath, thousands of foreign tourists were left stranded in the country after flight services were grounded.

Dawn Hardwick, 50, from Leamington Spa, and her daughter Rosie, 6, were among the many who were trapped. They were travelling to Jaisalmer, in Rajasthan when the lockdown was announced.

Hardwick told the Daily Mail that she was spat on and called "coronavirus foreigners" before she managed to take a 600-mile taxi drive to Delhi after the British High Commission refused any sort of assistance.

Hardwick also said that the UK's response to the crisis had been "disgusting". She said, "I was told to help myself when I spoke to the British High Commission, and when I called again they put the phone down on me."

Dawn had her hopes back when she found the doors of the German Embassy opened and she could finally reach home on Friday only for the rescue mission that was arranged by the embassy.

According to the report, Dawn and Rosie flew to Frankfurt on Thursday and arrived home late on Friday after a flight to London.

Meanwhile, the death toll from the novel COVID-19 in the UK rose by 563 in the last 24 hours, according to the health ministry, a "record jump" that totalled the number of patients who died in hospitals to 2,352.
Dublin, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Biofuels: Global Markets" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



This report presents a general overview of biofuel types, manufacturing methods, feedstock options, typical plant costs, and operating margins, followed by an analysis of major geographical markets: North America, Europe, South America, Asia-Pacific, and Africa and the Middle East.

Each regional evaluation includes estimates of market size for sales of ethanol, biodiesel, and other fuel types, and a forecast for growth to 2024. Projections are expressed in constant (2019) U.S. dollars. The report concludes with a discussion of industry structure and brief company profiles of the various players in the area.



The report includes:

An overview of the global markets for liquid biofuels within the industry

Analyses of global market trends, with data corresponding to market size from 2018 and 2019, and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2024

A look at the regulatory framework regarding the use of biofuels, incentives for fuel production, and the number and capacity of manufacturing plants

Analysis of significant patent data and their allotments in each category underlying discoveries in the biofuels market

Information on the market opportunities and market outlook for major listed companies and strategies that may lead to a better understanding of the market from a practical perspective

Market share analysis of key market participants and assessment of their competitive landscape

Profile description of market-leading corporations, including Acciona Energy, Beta Renewables, Cargill, Evonik Industries, GreenShift Corp., Novozymes, Synthetic Genomics Inc., and Virent Energy Systems

Currently, the most common biofuels are liquid fuels used primarily in transportation applications. In this report, the term biofuels will be used in this context. The greatest market growth will take place in a few EU member states, Asia-Pacific and South America. The Africa and Middle East regions will remain relatively under-developed due to a lack of investment.



There are a number of reasons for the projected relatively gradual increase in biofuels consumption in most major markets. Biofuels consumption is to a large extent policy-driven, i.e., the result of various government mandates and incentives. A number of government policy objectives provide the motivation for these mandates and incentives, including increasing energy security and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Most major biofuel consuming nations already have a policy framework for biofuels in place, so new regulations are unlikely to lead to major increases in biofuels consumption in the near to mid-term.



The next most important market driver for biofuels is the price of oil. The price of benchmark Brent crude oil, which at times has been as high as $145 per barrel, was slightly over $71 in 2018 and is expected to decline still further in the next few years. Feedstock costs are another major influence on the market for biofuels. Feedstocks prices can swing wildly from high to low, disrupting farmers' planting plans, the cost of manufacturing biofuels, and the profitability of ethanol and biodiesel. For example, U.S. corn production has been at record high levels in recent years, which has kept corn prices generally stable in the $3.40 and $4.00 per bushel range and increased the profitability of U.S. ethanol production. U.S. corn prices increased somewhat in 2019, but it is difficult to draw any conclusions about a long-term trend that might put a damper on ethanol production.



A more serious consequence of increased biofuel demand is the impact on world food and feed prices. The global rise in population, and a greater percentage of food crops used to manufacture biofuels, has been criticized for diverting food away from the human food chain, leading to food shortages and price rises. Land and water use are other challenges. The desire to diversity away from biofuel feedstocks that compete with other human needs, of course, has been the driver behind the development of so-called advanced biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol and algal biodiesel. However, the technological obstacles to commercializing these advanced biofuels have proven greater than some proponents once envisioned.

Key Topics Covered



Chapter 1 Introduction

Study Goals and Objectives

Reasons for Doing this Study

Scope of Report

Information Sources

Methodology

Geographic Breakdown

Chapter 2 Summary and Highlights



Chapter 3 Overview

Conversion Routes for Biofuels Production

Biofuel Evolution

First-Generation Biofuels

Second-Generation Biofuels

Third-Generation Biofuels

Fourth-Generation Biofuels

Feedstocks Yield

Net Energy Yield

Cost of Production

Chapter 4 Ethanol

Corn Ethanol

Corn Ethanol Manufacturing

Cellulosic Ethanol

Ethanol Blending

Coproducts of Ethanol Production

Ethanol Plant Costs

Chapter 5 Biodiesel

Biodiesel Manufacturing

Transesterification

Post-Reaction Processes

Biodiesel Blending

Coproducts of Biodiesel Manufacturing

Biodiesel Plant Costs

Chapter 6 Other Biofuels

Straight Vegetable Oil/Pure Vegetable Oil

Wood Diesel

Biobutanol

Biobutanol Manufacturing

Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil

Hydrothermal Upgrading Diesel

Fischer-Tropsch Biofuels

Fischer-Tropsch Manufacturing

Algal Fuel (Oilgae)

Biomethanol

Dimethylfuran

Bio-DME

Green Gasoline

Designer Hydrocarbons

Chapter 7 North American Biofuel Market

Biofuel Production

Ethanol

Biodiesel

Advanced Biofuels

United States

Legal Framework

Ethanol

Biodiesel

Advanced Biofuels

Canada

Legal Framework

Ethanol

Biodiesel

Advanced Biofuels

Mexico

Legal Framework

Ethanol

Biodiesel

Advanced Biofuels

North American Biofuel Market Projections

Overall Market

Market by Country

Chapter 8 European Biofuel Market



Chapter 9 South American Biofuel Market



Chapter 10 Asia-Pacific Biofuel Market



Chapter 11 Middle East and Africa Biofuel Market



Chapter 12 Industry Structure

Company Profiles

Abdiesel

Acciona Energy

Algae Floating Systems Inc.

Algaewheel

Algenol Biofuels

Alensys (Alternative Energiesysteme) Ag

Anchor Ethanol Ltd.

Archer Daniels Midland Co.

Argent Energy Ltd.

Beta Renewables

Biodico

Biodiesel International Ag (Bdi)

Bioenergy International

Biopetrol Industries Ag

Bluefire Renewables

Caramuru Group

Cargill Inc.

Cavitation Technologies Inc.

Cellana

Cerradinho

Chemrec Ab

China Clean Energy Inc.

China Resources Alcohol Corp.

Choren Industries

Codexis Inc.

Cosan Group

Dedini S.A. Industrias De Base

Desmet Ballestra

Diversified Energy Corp.

Dyadic International

Enerkem

Estener

Evonik Industries

Fagen Inc.

Flottweg

GEA Group

Granbio

Grace Davison

Green Fuel Extramadura

Greenenergy International Ltd.

Greenline Futura

Greenshift Corp.

Haldor Topsoe

Henan Tianguan Fuel Ethanol Co.

Hielscher Ultrasonics Gmbh

Inbicon

Ineos Enterprises Ltd.

Isolux Corsan

Inventure Renewables Inc.

Iogen Corp.

JFE Holdings

Jilin Fuel Ethanol Co.

Katzen International Inc.

Mascoma Corp.

Neste Oil Oyj

Novozymes

One Water Inc.

Permolex International

Poet Biorefining

Praj Industries Ltd.

Preem Ab

Primafuel

Qteros

Raizen

Sekab

Shaval Biodiesel

SNC Lavalin

Synthetic Genomics

Velocys Inc.

Verbio Vereinigte Bioenergie Ag

Virent Energy Systems

Vogelbusch Gmbh

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/dwwa6r

Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research.
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Linkedin Alya Nurbaiti and Asip Hasani (The Jakarta Post) The Jakarta Post/Jakarta/Surabaya  Thu, April 2, 2020 15:28 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f3ab1a 1 National minor-deaths-COVID-19,juvenile-deaths-COVID-19,COVID-19-children-deaths,COVID-19-children,Save-the-Children,KPAI Free

In the month since the first COVID-19 case was identified in Indonesia, the country has recorded at least five minors among the deaths of people infected with or suspected of being infected with COVID-19.

The governments official data, however, has so far not acknowledged that any deaths among minors have occurred. The information The Jakarta Post has obtained is either from leaked data or from regional administrations that has not been confirmed by the central government.

The data is scattered and not all of it has complete information regarding whether the children were healthy prior to infection or had other underlying conditions.

Childrens rights organizations have called on the government to make public the ages of COVID-19 patients and pay more attention to the issue because COVID-19 is generally not supposed to kill healthy children. They also insist that the government should have made efforts to protect vulnerable children who had underlying conditions.

Pay more attention to children

University of Indonesia (UI) epidemiologist Tri Yunis Miko Wahyono said that the death of a minor because of COVID-19 without any comorbidity was highly unusual. Comorbidity is a medical condition that co-occurs with another.

If a minor dies of COVID-19 without a comorbidity factor, its most likely because of poor handling. For example, if theyre not adequately treated during the early stages of the disease during which they only show mild symptoms, he told the Post on Wednesday.

Director of Save the Children Indonesia Tata Sudrajat said the government must pay more attention to minors, especially minors who have a history of comorbidity.

It is commonly known that the elderly with underlying illnesses are the most vulnerable to COVID-19. Children with illnesses, however, have not been a concern, he told the Post on Wednesday.

To address the matter, Tata said, the government must first and foremost provide data showing the age, gender and history of comorbidity of all COVID-19 patients and suspected cases.

Such data will allow us to identify the age group and better prepare preventive and handling methods, he said.

Child Protection Commission (KPAI) chair Susanto regretted the death of minors from COVID-19, saying that all stakeholders must ensure that children are protected from coronavirus infection.

He said that physical distancing measures must be seriously enforced. Even if schools have been suspended, parents must ensure their children stay at home and not play outside.

Five known deaths

Leaked data from the Health Ministry, obtained by the Post on Monday, reported that a 17-year-old male in West Java -- recorded as Case 190 -- died on March 18, making him the first fatality among people under 18 years in Indonesia.

An 11-year-old girl who died in Pamekasan on Madura Island, East Java, earlier this month has since been confirmed as having tested positive for the disease, Pamekasan authorities stated on March 31.

The girl died on March 20, only a day after she was admitted to hospital. Her second test result dated March 29 came back positive for COVID-19.

The girl, however, also reportedly suffered from dengue fever. East Java COVID-19 task force curative team head Joni Wahyuhadi said the fatality was most likely caused by a combination of dengue fever and COVID-19.

Based on the report sent to us, the patient went through stage four of dengue hemorrhagic fever. She suffered dengue shock syndrome, Joni told the Post on Wednesday, adding that the girl had been among the 1 percent of dengue fever patients who fell into dengue shock syndrome.

Besides the confirmed cases, authorities also report at least three deaths of minors among suspected COVID-19 cases, one of whom was a baby.

Last week, the COVID-19 spokesperson in Cianjur, West Java, Yusman Faisal told tempo.co that a teenage girl who was a patient under surveillance died on March 25 in the former athletes village currently being used as a hospital for those with mild symptoms in Kemayoran Jakarta.

The West Kalimantan administration also reported on Tuesday the death of a 14-year-old in Kubu Raya regency, West Kalimantan. The child was suspected of having COVID-19.

West Java Health Agency head Berli Hamdani told the Post on Wednesday that the province had recorded the deaths of two minors among suspected COVID-19 cases.

Yes, we recorded the deaths of a teenager and a baby, he said, without elaborating further.

It was not clear whether the teenager he mentioned was the girl from Cianjur or another case.

He said the agency could not confirm whether they had died as a result of COVID-19 because like many other deaths, there was a comorbidity factor.

Its also difficult to confirm as it requires an autopsy procedure to do so and this involves family permission, among other things, he added.

The global death rate among the age group of 10-19 years as of Tuesday was 0.2 percent, as opposed to 14.8 percent in people 80 years and older, according to Worldometer.

Among the 685 cases provided in the leaked data, 11 patients were in the age group of 1-19 years, including the 17-year-old who died.

The leaked data did not include the 11-year-old girl who died in Pamekasan.

Arya Dipa contributed to this story from Bandung
With more cities and states enacting stay-at-home orders to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, one of the few sanctioned outings is exercise. As a result, outdoor spaces have been swamped. In Seattle, where I live, city officials have closed parking lots, ball courts, and playgrounds at popular local parks to dissuade people from swarming, but people are still showing up in droves. Over the weekend, I took advantage of a rare sunny spring day and ran at a nearby park, where I found hundreds of other people doing the same. The density of people was astoundingthere were people everywhere, walking four across on the paved path, with cyclists, rollerbladers, and skateboarders weaving around pedestrians. There was no way everyone was staying the CDC-recommended 6 feet away from others at all times, and I wondered how likely it was that parkgoers might infect one another.

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In wide-open spaces, where people can maintain adequate space, the risk of infection is vanishingly low. But it may be slightly higher in crowded spaces where people are walking close to one another or zigzagging through one anothers paths. Im not going to be a false optimist and say the risk is zero, says Dylan Morris, a Ph.D. candidate at Princeton University who co-authored a recent study about the novel coronaviruss ability to live in the air and on different surfaces.

One major consideration is whether you can encounter virus particles in the air. The short answer is yes, in theory; Morris and his colleagues paper found that potentially infectious virus particles we breathe, cough, or sneeze out can remain in the air for up to three hours. That scary-sounding fact made headlines, leading many to believe infection was inevitable.

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Clouds produced by our sneezes and coughs have more forward momentum.

Three hours might sound like a long time, but theres an important caveat: The density of virus particles that remain in the air isnt necessarily enough to infect you. Theres a steep drop-off in the number of particles that remain after just an hour, says Morris, and how much virus is left after that timeor three hours, for that matterdepends on how much virus there was to begin with. The amount an infected person breathes out on, say, a casual walk around the park might not be enough to infect a passerby, but more studies are needed to understand this. Scientists are actively working to understand the minimum virus load to infect a human, says Morris.

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So, its certainly possible, though not terribly likely, that you could encounter virus particles during exercise. Using an analogy borrowed from Virginia Tech professor Linsey Marr, Morris says that exposure to virus particles is similar to exposure to cigarette smoke. Youre going to inhale a lot if youre standing right next to someone and they puff in your face, he says. Youre not going to get a lot of secondhand smoke 6 feet away from them, and youre really not going to get a lot if youre 12 feet away.

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The farther away you can stay from others, the better. While 6 feet is the CDC-recommended distance, MIT professor Lydia Bourouiba warns that virus particles can travel beyond than that. In a recently published JAMA paper, she found that we produce a cloud of droplets, and that cloud is propelled out of our bodies with varying force. Droplets from a simple exhale appear to travel about 6 feet, but sneezes and coughs expel particles from our body with more force. Clouds produced by our sneezes and coughs have much more forward momentum, potentially carrying particles up to 27 feet. Six feet is a baseline, and something weve started to cling to as safe, but its important we dont get lulled into a false sense of security, says Bourouiba. We cant pretend theres this wall at 6 feet.

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The same caveat to Morris and colleagues work applies here: While Bourouibas research shows virus particles could travel quite far, its unclear whether the concentration of those particles would be enough to be infectious. (Researchers are now stressing the importance of viral load; exposure to small amounts of virus particles may not trigger infection.) That depends on the amount of virus being expelled. Its also unclear whether those particles would ever even make it to you while youre walking, running, or biking outside. The moment you have a draft or wind, that [droplet] cloud is being mixed and diluted, says Bourouiba. How open the space youre in can make a big difference. If youre hiking and its a trail full of people walking in the same direction, full of trees with little airflow, thats a higher potential load than an open area. If theres no airflow, clouds can remain in concentrated pockets. In an enclosed space, like a hospital room, the long distances droplet clouds can traverse is much more worrying, and underscores the importance of proper protective gear for health care workers. Bourouibas findings could have implications for other enclosed spaces, too, like grocery stores or public transit.

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Your mode of exercise might also change the risks you encounter as well as the risk you pose to others. If youre running, biking, or otherwise exerting yourself, that changes your breathing. Breathing heavily will increase the particles youll expel, says Morris. Bourouiba agrees, pointing out that exhaling more forcefully might also increase the momentum of your droplet cloud. Plus, she says, your breathing cycle speeds up: Youd inhale the same amount much faster because youre going through multiple cycles at a higher frequency. Again, that doesnt necessarily mean that youll hoover up enough virus particles to infect you, but its not impossible. And if youre breathing heavily and traveling past others at close distances, its unlikely but still possible that you could be shedding virus particles. (Scientists have posited for weeks that people with no symptoms are contributing to the spread of the virus.)

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As a result, Morris suggests exercising with a mask, or staying at home. The scientific community is in the midst of a heated debate about masks right now, but both Morris and Bourouiba agree that they cant hurt, as long as were reserving N95 masks for health care workers on the front lines of the pandemic. Surgical masks, homemade cloth masks, or even bandannas can be somewhat useful. Any kind of breathing, talking, coughing, sneezing, or breathing heavily when youre doing a hard workoutall those things put respiratory secretion out into the environment, and a simple cloth mask could block some, he says. Its not going to go down to zero, but this is so much a numbers game of concentrations and dispersion that the more you block, the more you protect others. Exercising with a bandanna tied to your face may be slightly unpleasant, but its a pretty minor inconvenience to endure if it protects others from your flying spit.

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The important thing, though, is to be just as cautious in a mask as you would be without one. Bourouiba worries mask wearing might lure us into a false sense of security. Masks are not protecting you from inhalation of residual particles in the air, and theyre not sealed, so droplets still escape through the sides, she says, so wearing a mask does not give us license to get closer to people than we otherwise would. But, she says, it cant hurt.

The upshot? Get outside, if you can, but think carefully about where youre going, what youre doing, and how youre interacting with others. As for me, Ill be avoiding that crowded park until our social distancing guidelines are relaxed.

For more on the impact of the coronavirus, listen to Thursdays episode of What Next.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIAWith much of the globe under stay-at-home orders, police officers are becoming the enforcers of a new coronavirus code that demands what humans naturally resist: complete isolation and obedience.

Empowered by tough new laws and public pressure, police forces are testing how far to go in punishing behaviour that is ordinarily routine. In Australia, authorities have threatened people sitting alone drinking coffee with six months in jail. In Britain, police came under fire for using a drone to film and shame a couple walking their dog on a secluded path.

But in other countries, enforcement has been much more aggressive and escalated into serious violence. In Kenya, officers are under investigation in multiple cases, including the death of a teenager shot while standing on a balcony during a dusk-to-dawn curfew. Police also used tear gas and batons on passengers at a ferry terminal and are being investigated in at least two other deaths, leading President Uhuru Kenyatta to say he regretted the violence.

In the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday ordered police and the military to shoot anyone who causes commotion, after 20 protesters were arrested as they demanded food during the countrys lockdown.

There is a long history of aggressive policing during pandemics and other crises, with officers guarding the sick, enforcing travel restrictions and issuing citations for spitting. Whats different now is that orders to stay home are more widespread, forcing countries, states, cities and towns to grapple with how policing should work when its not entirely clear what activities are prohibited or why one might be riskier than another.

Defining law and order gets more complicated when people need to keep going outside to work  just to eat. Or, in less dire cases, when a few 20-somethings sitting in the grass might be harmless  or might be reckless spreaders of contagion. Or when the public is anxious and stir-crazy, and there can never be enough police to catch every perpetrator.

People are writing a new playbook daily on how to deal with this thing, said Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, a Washington-based organization of law enforcement officials and analysts worldwide. The key question is: How can the police serve in a reassuring role?

Police officers in many hot spots seem to be acting cautiously. From San Francisco and New York to Bangkok and Milan, more and more people are complying with rules for social distancing. Traditional crime is down, and those who carry badges are learning to think like doctors in masks  focused on the health of the public and themselves.

Its been a brutal learning curve. More than 1,400 officers in New York City have tested positive for the virus. Several police chiefs, in Detroit and elsewhere, have also gotten sick, leading departments worldwide to change how officers interact with their colleagues and the public.

In London, commanding officers now work on alternate days to reduce the chance that the virus will sideline the upper ranks. In Northern Ireland, spit and bite guards are being introduced so suspects wont get saliva on arresting officers.

Patrol hours have also been extended in jurisdictions big and small to minimize interaction at stations, and more conversations with the public are taking place from squad cars.

A lot of the interactions focus on guiding people home. In California, where the outbreak appears to be reaching a plateau after two weeks of lockdown, officers have rarely gone beyond verbal or written warnings, said Michael Rustigan, a professor of criminal justice at San Jose State University.

In parts of Florida and Canada, police officials have explicitly promised leniency.

Its only in the worst-case scenario were going to do anything, Sgt. Michael Elliott, president of the Edmonton Police Association, said last week after lawmakers in that Canadian city passed a law allowing for fines of $1,000 to $500,000 for failing to comply with public health orders. We dont want to stress out the citizens any more than we have to.

But in some places, severe crackdowns suggest that the pandemic is magnifying policing problems that had already existed.

More than two dozen gay men and transgender women were arrested Tuesday in Uganda for flouting rules on social distancing. Campaigners accuse police of targeting a group that has been demonized in the country for years.

In Kenya, where authorities are often accused of heavy-handed tactics, police officers fired tear gas, beat commuters and made some lie face down on the ground at a ferry terminal in the coastal city of Mombasa, hours before an overnight curfew began March 27. Images and videos from the chaos showed passengers coughing, spitting and touching their faces to unblock their mouths and noses.

In a low-income neighbourhood east of Nairobi, a 13-year-old boy was shot Monday night, apparently by police, as he stood on the balcony of his familys apartment. He died Tuesday morning. Police said he had been struck by a stray bullet.

Countries with more autocratic governments have been quicker to use antagonistic tactics.

Videos from India have shown police officers in masks using batons to beat and disperse large groups of people. Last month, Dubai police arrested a European man who posted videos on Instagram showing himself at a beach that had been closed.

And in the Philippines, where Duterte had unleashed the police and military to wage a bloody drug war long before the virus came, security forces are now being tasked with maintaining locked-down order by any means necessary.

After the protesters were arrested in Manila for demanding food, Duterte warned that security forces would kill or jail all troublemakers.

Do not test me. Do not try to test it, Duterte said Wednesday night in an address to the country. We are ready for you.

China, where the virus appeared first, may have set the tone for strict measures. A lockdown that brought the country to a halt for weeks was enforced at every bureaucratic level, from top government officials to police to neighbourhood committees, and was aided by widespread surveillance and the suppression of dissenting voices.

But even in some of the worlds most liberal democracies, there are signs of a rush to sirens and action.

In Israel, 900 people were fined for going more than 100 meters from their homes. In England, besides cracking down on people walking dogs, police have told small local stores not to sell chocolate Easter eggs because they are not essential items.

Australia is following a similar path. In Sydney, where new lockdown rules threatening large fines and jail terms went into effect this week, police stopped a man washing windshields alone at an intersection Tuesday. A day later, they drove patrol cars through a grassy park to move on anyone who seemed to be doing what the police commissioner had declared illegal at a news conference: sunbaking.

We accept that the government has to do something, but there should be limitations on what I see as really broad powers, said Shahleena Musk, the acting legal director for the Human Rights Law Center in Melbourne, Australia. There should be clarity about these powers and a wide public education campaign to make sure people understand what their obligations are and why they are there.

Public health experts argue that the best way to get people to comply is not with crackdowns and shame, but rather by appealing to their own self-interest and sense of camaraderie.

You want to use carrots instead of sticks, said James Colgrove, a public health professor at Columbia University. People want to do whats best for themselves, and the way you get them to do whats best is to tell them why they should do it and explain it to them. Nobody likes to be threatened.
HACKENSACK, N.J.  An East Orange General Hospital doctor on Wednesday became the first emergency physician to die of likely coronavirus complications, the American College of Emergency Physicians said in a statement.

Frank Gabrin, 60, of New York City, died in his husband's arms just days after Gabrin developed symptoms consistent with those of the virus. He was a two-time cancer survivor.

"He was just an amazing man," said Debra Vasalech Lyons, who was friends with Gabrin for 20 years.

Gabrin focused on helping physicians heal from burnout, helping "health care heroes thrive," Lyons said. He emphasized compassion as a way to heal.

I lost my best friend to Covid19 a few hours ago. @DrFrankGabrin was an ER Doctor in NYC. He planned to go back to work when he recovered. It took only five days from the first sign of symptoms. He leaves a husband of less than one year behind. We are devastated. #PPENow pic.twitter.com/LVOSe9XXG6  Debra Vasalech Lyons (@DebVasalech) March 31, 2020

Arnold Vargas, Gabrin's husband, told NBC News that Gabrin was not tested for COVID-19 but that he was certain he was infected. Gabrin and Vargas were married for less than a year.

"This was their fairy tale," Lyons said. "It happened so fast. An hour later, he was gone."

Gabrin was delightful, caring and wonderful to work with," Alvaro Alban, chairman of East Oranges Emergency Department, told NBC.

"I believe that caring for others should be an emotionally rewarding, health-generating experience," Gabrin wrote on his website. "I believe that there is nothing better than caring for others, making a real difference that matters for them. I believe in changing the world, making it a better place, one patient encounter at a time."

Story continues

A health care worker at University Hospital in Newark also has died. Kim King-Smith, a technician who performed EKGs, or electrocardiograms, died Tuesday from COVID-19 complications, said Dr. Shereef Elnahal, the hospitals chief executive.

Dr. Shereef M. Elnahal is commissioner of the NJ Health Department. Tuesday, September 11, 2018.

"Emergency physicians understand that sometimes in our efforts to save your life, we may end up sacrificing our own," American College of Emergency Physicians President William Jaquis said in a statement.

"This is not a decision made lightly or a post abandoned in times of need. We know the risks of the job we signed up for, but we are on the frontlines in this historic war against COVID-19 with insufficient protection."

The American College of Emergency Physicians asked health professionals to "take the pause" Wednesday evening to honor Gabrin, "a life lost on the frontlines."

Follow Alexis Shanes on Twitter: @alexisjshanes

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Coronavirus: First emergency doctor dies from COVID-19 in US in NJ
A Facebook user has been fined VND12.5 million (US$530) for spreading fake news, incorrectly claiming a COVID-19 patient had died in Vietnam.

Thanh's false posts received a lot of interactions by his followers according to evidencecollected by Cang Long District Police.

ang Ngoc Thanh, 27, from Cang Long District in the Mekong Delta province of Tra Vinh posted misleading stories about the pandemic situation in Viet Nam on his personal account between January 27 and February 14, triggering peoples anxiety.

He incorrectly claimed a person from Singapore had died in An Truong Commune of symptoms related to the virus, and another had died after treatment at Cho Ray Hospital in HCM City.

Both his posts were false.

Thanh admitted his faults and promised not to post incorrect information in the future.

As the countrys fight against COVID-19 enters a tough stage, many other Facebookers have received strict fines for composing and spreading fake news.

Vu uc Chi, 36, from the northern Quang Ninh Provinces Cam Pha City, wrote on his page that Cam Pha City forces each family to donate VN50,000 to prevent coronavirus. Do you think it is a right thing to do while everybody is struggling to make ends meet?

The information was confirmed false by local police. The donation to the Government to support the COVID-19 fight is wholly voluntary, not compulsory.

Chi was fined VN12.5 million.

Meanwhile four localities in Quang Ninh Province have imposed curfew from 10pm, including Ha Long City, Cam Pha City, Tien Yen District and Ba Che District.

Those who go out after 10pm without justified reasons will be fined and even quarantined at local cultural halls.

Eighty people have already been dealt with for breaking the curfew.  VNS

Hanoi police summon two disseminators of fake Covid-19 news Hanoi police have warned the public not to share unconfirmed information about Covid-19 that causes confusion in the community.
A Russian military transport plane carrying medical equipment, masks and supplies lands at JFK International Airport during the outbreak of the CCP virus disease (COVID-19) in New York City, New York, U.S., April 1, 2020. (Stefan Jeremiah/Reuters)

Russia Shipped Medical Gear Needed to Curb COVID-19 to US After Trump-Putin Call

There Are Some Shortages in Medical Supply in Russia, Critics Say

Russia sent the United States medical equipment on Wednesday to help the country fight the COVID-19 pandemic, after Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed the crisis in a phone call on March 30. However some critics say Russia does not have enough for its own needs.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said Russia had paid half the cost with the other half being paid by the United States. According to CTV News, the foreign ministry said the part paid by Russia was sponsored by Russias state investment fund.

The United States has agreed to purchase needed medical supplies, including ventilators and personal protection equipment, from Russia, State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said in a statement.

A Russian military plane carrying protective gear and ventilators landed in New York City on Wednesday and the equipment was passed to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in New York City on the same day.

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) attends a meeting with Russias President Vladimir Putin during the G-20 summit in Osaka on June 28, 2019. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)

A U.S. official quoted by Reuters said that the shipment contained 60 tons of ventilators, masks, respirators, and other items, and would be examined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ensure it complies with U.S. standards and requirements.

Usually, the United States donates supplies to embattled countries rather than accepting them.

We are a generous and reliable contributor to crisis response and humanitarian action across the world, but we cannot do it alone, Ortagus said.

Both countries have provided humanitarian assistance to each other in times of crisis in the past and will no doubt do so again in the future, Ortagus added. This is a time to work together to overcome a common enemy that threatens the lives of all of us.

Dmitry Peskov, Kremlins spokesman, said Moscow hoped the United States might also be able to provide medical help to Russia if necessary when the time came.

It is important to note that when offering assistance to U.S. colleagues, the president [Putin] assumes that when U.S. manufacturers of medical equipment and materials gain momentum, they will also be able to reciprocate if necessary, Peskov was cited as saying.

Boxes with medical equipment and masks to help fight the CCP virus (COVID-19) are seen on board a Russian military transport plane ahead of its departure to the United States of America, at an airdrome outside Moscow, Russia on April 1, 2020, in this screen grab taken from video. (Russian Defense Ministry/Handout via Reuters)

Russias shipment of medical necessities to the United States met with some criticism in Russia.

Russia has actually sold the United States masks and medical equipment when doctors and nurses across the country are left without masks and are infecting one another, prominent opposition politician Alexei Navalny wrote on Twitter.

Novaya Gazeta reported that doctors at a hospital in the Moscow region had been asked to sew their own masks.

Meanwhile, the medical workers trade union has been collecting funds to buy protective clothes for doctors.

Russian Health Ministry said that the country is prepared to curb the virus and has enough ventilators for its own use but some people on Twitter pointed out places experiencing shortages.

There are currently 226,374 cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, reported in the United States. The total numbers of deaths due to COVID-19 in the United States is 5,316, of which 1,374 occurred in New York City, according to John Hopkins University.

In Russia the total of 3,548 confirmed cases and 30 deaths were reported, according to the same source.

Reuters contributed to this report.
On a bench in the foreground, LeTourneau University campus pastor Pat Mays welcomes viewers and announces an update on a recent mission trip to Mexico. He shouts and snaps his fingers. Theres a quick cut, some editing magic, and freshman Wil Manchester jumps from the distant background to appear on the bench next to Mays, wearing a fedora and ready to share his experience on the spring break trip.

It could be a TikTok video, but this is LeTourneaus chapel now.

The Texas schools campus is closed, like most institutions of higher education across the country, and everything has moved online for fear of spreading COVID-19. For Christian colleges and universities, this includes chapel.

The daily or weekly service is often critical to the identity of a Christian college or universityits where the whole community comes together in one place and interacts. Chapel services are seen as a key part of students spiritual formation, and attendance is often required for credit necessary to graduate. And its not uncommon for a discussionor controversythat starts with a chapel speaker to define the life of a campus for a semester and sometimes the experience of a whole class of students. Chapel sets Christian higher education apart.

Now schools are trying to figure out how to translate that core part of their community life onto the internet.

This feels like a brand-new school year, in a way, where were inventing new ways to connect with students and deliver content, said university pastor Jamie Noling-Auth at George Fox University in Oregon.

Going online in a matter of weeks has been a challenge to a lot of Christian schools, where there hasnt been a lot of emphasis on being tech savvy in the past. Angie Richey, president of Life Pacific University, in California, said it might have taken years to launch online chapel if there werent an urgent need to do it right now.

Innovation thrives in crisis, Richey said. This is a way to keep some type of consistency in the midst of separation and isolation. Its kept us together.

Some schools are just trying to keep it simple while ministering to their college community in this time of crisis and keeping everyone connected. At Harding University, in Arkansas, president Bruce McLarty stars in a daily, five-minute YouTube video he films in his home office on his iPhone.

This is about as low tech as it gets, McLarty says in the first virtual chapel video.

Except, of course, its not as low tech as gathering students into a physical building. Compared to what Christian colleges have been doing, this is the future.

Its been a big learning curve, said Laurel Bunker, associate vice president of Christian formation and church relations at Bethel University in Minnesota. You cant fall flat in front of the camera if youre going to engage with the audience. You cant just sit there and say, Hi, lets open up the word of God.

Bethels online chapel is a daily video and a podcast with interviews of faculty and staff, as well as a short weekly sermon. Bunker said she had to learn how to make eye contact with the camera. The audience should feel as though youre really looking at them and talking to them personally, she said.

There were also technical difficulties, at first. Bunker has an old Dell computer that needed to be updated before she could record quality sound and video.

Many Christian colleges require chapel attendance as part of their core curriculum. That can be difficult to measure online. At some schools, like Oklahoma Baptist University, Life Pacific, and Palm Beach Atlantic in Florida, students are receiving chapel credit through quizzes and questionnaires after theyve watched the videos. Other schools, including Harding, George Fox, and Covenant College in Georgia, have decided to waive the attendance requirement this year, giving students credit whether they log on and watch the videos or not.

For a lot of us campus ministers, were just rolling with it, Noling-Auth said. Its like, whatever we need to shift, were going to shift.

Noling-Auth and her team are uploading sermons to Spotify multiple times a week. Theyre also making an effort to have a presence on Instagram.

We dont understand the scale of how something like the coronavirus is going to be impacting our students and our families, Noling-Auth said. But they want to do whatever they can so that that students can continue to receive pastoral care, spiritual nurture, and biblical encouragement.

While moving the services online, some chaplains feel extra pressure to be creative and entertaining. Theyre trying to find ways to grab students attention. Charleston Southern University is producing daily, one-minute devotional videos featuring administrators, faculty, students and even board members. The first featured Clark Carter, vice president of student life, singing along to the Mister Rogers Neighborhood theme song, Wont You Be My Neighbor? while he rubbed his hands with sanitizer, before he turns to the video and says, Oh, hello, neighbor.

At Life Pacific, the university is looking at using newer forms of social media, including TikTok and Snapchat, to engage students.

At LeTourneau, Mays is posting creative lessons to YouTube, making use of time lapses and other editing tricks when he can. His most recent video starts with a soliloquy about trees and wind and features students helping with yard work at his house.

I dont like to watch talking-head videos. Theyre always, honestly, a little boring, said Mays, who is also part of an improv troupe. Anytime you can mix serious stuff with chances to laugh, or at least smile, to me, those are very rich moments.

Richey said that kind of creative engagement will only become more important going forward. She wouldnt be surprised if schools keep doing virtual chapels and looking for new forms of social media engagement, even when students are allowed to return to campus.

There is so much noise out there, Richey said. So how can we be unique, how can we be creative without compromising authenticity to who we are?
The Democratic National Committee will push back its presidential primary one month to August 17, despite claiming last week that the Milwaukee convention would held as planned.

Joe Solmonese, CEO of the Democratic National Convention Committee, said in a statement that the decision was based on the smartest approach to the growing Wuhan coronavirus pandemic.

During this critical time, when the scope and scale of the pandemic and its impact remain unknown, we will continue to monitor the situation and follow the advice of health care professionals and emergency responders, he said.  . . . Im confident our convention planning team and our partners will find a way to deliver a convention in Milwaukee this summer that places our Democratic nominee on the path to victory in November.

The announcement comes after former vice president and Democratic frontrunner Joe Biden said Wednesday night that he expected the delay. I doubt whether the Democratic Convention is going to be able to be held in mid-July, early July. I think its going to have to move into August, Biden told Jimmy Fallon on NBCs The Tonight Show.

The DNCs convention will now happen a week before the RNCs convention from August 24-27 in Charlotte. North Carolina GOP Chairman Michael Whatley insisted last week that his team was firmly committed to moving forward with the date.

Politico reported last week that Democrats were planning for a delay of their original plan for the convention being July 13-16, after walk-throughs of the site were postponed and organizing personnel were working from home, but the party publicly rejected the claim.

There are no plans to cancel the convention and we are not considering a rules change at this time, Xochitl Hinojosa, the DNCs communications director, said. Contingency planning is a routine part of preparations for any convention.

More from National Review
Antonakos said that not only could she see Crowley and Jacobs, but she was able to see the guests at the wedding through Zoom. While she could not talk to them, she could send them a private message, she said.
An ill-fated cruise that has had a COVID-19 outbreak and four deaths has finally come to an end after politicians in Florida agreed to allow its passengers  including 247 Canadians  to disembark in Ft. Lauderdale.

"I couldn't begin to tell you how happy we are," said passenger Chris Joiner, 59, of Orleans, Ont.

He and his wife, Anna are on board the MS Zaandam, a Holland America Line cruise ship that had been sailing off the coast of South America and in the Caribbean for more than two weeks, looking for a place to dock.

"It's been a long, long journey  the worst experience of our lives," said Joiner. "Thank God, it's finally over."

The Zaandam and its sister ship, the Rotterdam, are carrying 1,243 passengers, including the 247 Canadian passengers and one Canadian crew member. They docked at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday afternoon.

Local officials previously resisted allowing the two ships to dock as the Zaandam has confirmed COVID-19 cases on board and several passengers in need of hospital care.

Four passengers on the Zaandam have died after the ship was hit with a flu-like illness in mid-March. Two of the deceased later tested positive for COVID-19, and Holland America has not yet said how the other two died. Several others on board have tested positive for disease that is caused by the coronavirus.

The Rotterdam and its crew joined the Zaandam last week, taking on more than half of its passengers to provide some relief.

Submitted by Chris Joiner

"Local Americans lined the canal waving and cheering us as we entered  an emotional moment to be sure," said passenger Catherine McLeod, 69, from Nepean, Ont., who is on the Rotterdam. "I'm relieved. I can't wait to get back to my own bed."

Holland America said in a statement that passengers will undergo health screenings and clear customs and immigration in Port Everglades, then will disembark by Friday evening.

Ten passengers will be taken to a local hospital for immediate care, while those deemed healthy will be bused directly to the airport for mainly charter flights home, said Holland America. The company said 45 passengers who are still showing symptoms will remain on board until they are cleared for travel.

Story continues

'This has been a nightmare'

The Zaandam began its South American cruise on March 7, but the trip was cut short a week later, on March 14, amid the growing COVID-19 pandemic. The plan was to allow passengers to quickly disembark and fly home.

But Holland America struggled to secure a place to dock as nearby countries, such as Chile and Peru, closed their borders to foreigners in response to the pandemic.

Following the illness outbreak, the ship's passengers were forced to spend the past 12 days confined to their cabins as a safety precaution. They've spent more than two weeks not knowing if and when they were going to get off the ship and be permitted to return home.

"This has been a nightmare from March 14, when the first port in Chile closed. [Then] all the ports in Chile closed and all of South America closed," said Joiner.

Holland America Line

After a series of rejections, the Zaandam and Rotterdam planned to dock in Fort Lauderdale. But as the COVID-19 outbreak in Florida worsened, concerns grew that the sick passengers would drain resources needed for local citizens.

"We have enough to deal with, with our folks in Florida," Gov. Ron DeSantis said at a news conference on Monday. "We don't want [the ships] to come in."

U.S. President Donald Trump, however, advocated for the passengers and their swift return home.

"We have to help the people  they're in big trouble no matter where they're from," he said during a news conference on Wednesday. "We have to do something; they're dying and the governor knows that, too."

Joiner said he was surprised but pleased when Trump weighed in on the matter.

"We never thought Mr. Trump would come to our rescue," he said. "But, you know, you start to think, this is a humanitarian mission. Now, we have people that are sick, including Americans."

submitted by Chris Joiner

Joiner's wife, Anna, has been suffering from a cold. But he's hoping they both pass their health check so they can leave the ship.

He said he won't feel full relief until he and Anna are buckled in their seats on that flight home.

"Until we're on that plane  that's when we can relax," he said.
Ryan Eble, left, and his father, Chris Eble, talk April 1, 2020, in their milk house while fresh milk gushes down a drain at the Eble family's Golden E Dairy near West Bend, Wisconsin. Many dairy processing plants across Wisconsin have more product than they can handle and that's forced farmers to begin dumping their milk down the drain. (Mark Hoffman/AP)
By Trend

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on the appointment of a new deputy minister of economy, Trend reports on Apr. 2.

According to the decree, Sahib Alakbarov has been appointed Deputy Minister of Economy.

Sahib Alakbarov served as Head of the Executive Power of Sabail district in 2005-2009, in 2009-2010 - Deputy Chairman of the State Statistical Committee, and since July 2, 2010 - Deputy Minister of Taxes.

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Have Sheriff Offices in North Carolina, possibly even Beaufort County's Sheriff Office, become too political in the discharging of their sworn constitutional duties?

No, the sheriff is a constitutional officer.

Yes, the Sheriff Office, on strong occasion, often reverts back to political patronage in the dispensation of their sworn constitutional duties.
Mumbai, April 2 : Actor Mukul Dev is receiving a lot of praise for his performance as a terrorist mastermind in the web series "State Of Siege: 26/11". He is also the man who penned the story of the Rajkummar Rao-starrer "Omerta" that released in 2018. Mukul says he does not feel the pressure of finding a balance between the two callings, as writing is just a "passion".

"I am an actor who also writes. I love reading so I read a lot of books. The interest in writing has developed recently. When I was writing the story of 'Omerta' I was not writing it to make a film or something. But when a filmmaker like Hansal Mehta picked up my story and turned it into a film, I thought that now I can consider myself as a legitimate writer. Having said that I am an actor and I will remain that. Writing is a little box of interest that I take out once in a while," Mukul Dev told IANS.

"State Of Siege: 26/11", directed by Matthew Leutwyler, has Mukul playing Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi. The show also features Arjan Bajwa, Arjun Bijlani, Vivek Dahiya, Sid Makkar, Tara Alisha Berry, Khalida Jaan, Jyoti Gauba, Roshni Sahota, Suzanne Bernert, Naren Kumar and Jason Shah.

"Since I am an actor and am shooting most of the time, I have time in between shots and I keep writing then. I am surrounded by people who are filmmaker, producer and actors. So once in a while, they also inquire if I have a story or somethin. If they like it, they eventually make something out of it. But that is a time-consuming process and I see no reason of stop acting for my writing. Writing is a passion," he shared.

So, what is his favourite topic to write about? "I like to write on anything that is intriguing, unheard of -- something that is offbeat. I used to love reading Richard Bach. So yeah, writing will happen side by side," he replied.

"State Of Siege: 26/11" is streaming on ZEE5.

(Arundhuti Banerjee can be contacted at arundhuti.b@ians.in)
Popular actor, Richard Move Damijo has called on men of the Nigerian customs service to distribute all the seized food items in their custody to the public as a way of relieving Nigerians during the lockdown period.

Read Also: Fayose Takes Coronavirus Test, Reveals Result

RMD made the call via a post on his official Instagram page.

He wrote:

Sitting here wondering if this wont be a good time for government to ask Customs about all the plenty seized rice, tomato, vegetable oil and all the other food items they have in their possession and give out to our people in need. Whilst thanking them for reduced fuel prices at this time (inject smiley face)and all the other efforts so far, food is a major part of this lock down. I know sometimes the agencies of govt dont work as a team but please this is the time for customs to step and tell us how much relief they can bring to Nigerians.
SAN ANTONIO - States are seeking to ban abortion during the current coronavirus-related public health emergency by classifying it as an unnecessary medical procedure, sparking legal battles nationwide.

A federal appeals court ruled this week that Texas, one of the first states to enact such a ban, can temporarily prohibit abortions from taking place. The ruling came fewer than 24 hours after a federal judge in Austin lifted the statewide restriction on abortions that went into effect after Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed an executive order March 22 halting all procedures that were not "immediately medical necessary" to save a life. Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, later said that those include abortion.

The seesawing rulings come as more states try to take the same approach as Texas, and abortion rights groups are increasingly taking states to court.

In Ohio, a federal judge sided with Planned Parenthood in its suit against the state, which was the first to bar abortions by classifying them as unnecessary medical procedures, and ordered the ban to be lifted for two weeks. In Alabama, a district court judge suspended the ban until arguments from both sides next week. Lawsuits are pending in Iowa and Oklahoma.

The rulings come as more states try to ban abortion. Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb, a Republican, included abortion in an executive order banning elective procedures that went into effect Wednesday. Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said last week that he believes abortion should be part of a ban on unnecessary medical procedures, as did Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, both Republicans.

"This lawsuit, from Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion groups, demands an exception to prioritize abortion over all other health care in the midst of the covid-19 emergency in our state," Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter said in a statement, referring to the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

"It attacks the governor's executive order which preserves limited health care resources and medical safety equipment, in blatant disregard of the escalating illness and death this pandemic is inflicting on Oklahomans," he said.

Abortion providers said they are also ready for a protracted legal battle.

"I can say we are going to be taking every legal option we have to keep the clinics open and if that means filing for extreme relief at the Supreme Court, that's what we will do," said Nancy Northup, CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights.

Abortion rights advocates said harassment against abortion providers has increased in recent days and protesters are coughing in the faces of patients and staff.

In the Texas case, attorneys general in 13 other states led by Louisiana's Jeffrey Landry, a Republican, submitted a "friend-of-the-court" amicus brief this week to the 5th Circuit Court, saying they are concerned the case is a threat to the executive power of governors to protect public health.

"It's a matter of gubernatorial authority in a public health crisis to conserve resources," said Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill, a Republican who signed the brief and is running for reelection. "Gubernatorial authority provides the temporary relief from certain constitutional liberties. It's not comfortable and I don't like it but courts must recognize the right to take these actions."

Abortion providers and lawyers representing them said the states are taking advantage of a health crisis to limit access to abortion.

"The pandemic is an excuse to do something that they've tried to do for years," said Rupali Sharma of the Lawyering Project, which is part of the legal team suing Texas.

Paxton argued in court filings that abortion clinics should not be exempted from the governor's emergency order - which he interpreted as a ban on all types of abortion - to preserve the limited health-care resources they need to fight the virus's spread.

Abortion providers told the court that Texas' restrictions do not achieve its goal because surgical abortion requires the use of little protective equipment and medical abortions consist of giving a patient pills often taken at home. The prescription leads to a miscarriage and is available in Texas through the 10th week of pregnancy.

District Judge Lee Yeakel issued a temporary restraining order Monday, agreeing with providers that a virtual ban would be unconstitutional but declined to speculate on whether the U.S. Supreme Court ruling carved out an special exception for health emergencies.

Within hours of that decision, Texas' attorney general petitioned the three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans - considered the most conservative federal appellate court - to stay that order. It covers Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

"It's apparent now more than ever that they are using women as pawns and disregarding the lives of the people in clinics who have now been rescheduled twice," said Amy Hagstrom Miller of Texas-based provider Whole Woman's Health. "My staff has been put in position to deny women their constitutional rights."

The 5th Circuit rarely blocks state attempts to restrict abortion, intervening in recent years only when laws operate as an outright ban on the procedure. The court approved a Texas law that imposed restrictions on doctors who perform abortions and heightened requirements on abortion clinics. It was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2016.

Two of the three judges stayed the lower court's order; dissenting Circuit Court Judge James Dennis indicated that Paxton went too far in saying in his news release that all abortion procedures, including medical abortions, are prohibited because there is no use of medical equipment in that procedure.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the antiabortion Susan B. Anthony List, praised the court's decision.

"At a time when millions of Americans are making heroic sacrifices to protect the vulnerable, and legitimate health care workers risk their own lives to care for covid-19 patients with crucial protective equipment in short supply, the abortion industry demands special treatment," she said.

Abortion rights advocates said women who are forced to carry a pregnancy to term will eventually take up more hospital resources when they require need pre- and postnatal care. Abortions, advocates said, are normally in-office procedures that don't require masks and rarely result in complications. They argued that delaying the procedure could force women to travel and help spread covid-19 further.

"It is a sign that they will stop at nothing to stop abortion care. They can't help themselves," Jennifer Devlan, director of the ACLU's Reproductive Freedom Project. "There's no way this is motivated by public health. It's not grounded in science but in politics."

- - -

Barnes reported from Washington.
Indore residents pelted stones at healthcare workers who went there to screen people in the of the coronavirus outbreak. The locality where this incident took place was Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore. A case has been registered against the unidentified people. Read more

Here's more top news of the day:

1) In A Total Mockery Of Lockdown, Thousands Chant Jai Shri Ram, Assemble At Temples On Ram Navami

PTI

Amid chants of 'Jai Shri Ram' and a total mockery of the nationwide lockdown, thousands of devotees assembled in temples in various parts of West Bengal on the occasion of Ram Navami on Thursday. Read more

2) As India Battles Against Covid-19, Pune Startup Readies Ventilator That Costs Just Rs 50,000

ANI

As more and more people get admitted in hospitals, there is an urgent need for more ICUs and ventilators, for those in critical condition. Read more

3) What Insanity Is This? Kin Of Coronavirus Patient In Hyderabad Beats Up Doctors On Duty

AFP

While cases of coronavirus continue to rise in India, those at the frontline - nurses and paramedics, are working day in and day out to ensure those affected are treated and taken care of. Read more

4) Coronavirus: Tally Reaches Over 1,900 In India, 50 Deaths But 150 Persons Have Recovered Too

Reuters

Of this, 1764 people are presently suffering from the COVID-19 disease, 150 people have recovered and discharged from the hospitals, one person migrated while 50 deaths have been reported so far. Read more

5) Lockdown Affecting Relationships? NCW Got 69 Complaints Of Domestic Violence Since March 24

As most of the employed population started working from home and started spending more time with their partners and coupled with the stress around the COVID-19 outbreak, are having an impact on personal relationships. Read more
MANZINI  A senior medical doctor at Good Shepherd Mission Hospital has been advised to be in self-quarantine.

This was after he was exposed to two patients who tested positive for coronavirus and they were those whom the Ministry of Health confirmed as case number one and nine, respectively. As a result, on Tuesday the doctor in question was given an undisclosed number of days to be in self-quarantine. A source close to the matter said the medical staff at the hospital, including doctors and nurses, were concerned about their safety. He said this was because at first, their assumption was that maybe their colleague was not at work for the reason that he allegedly knew something which they were not aware of. He said the panic among the medical staff members, who later learnt that the senior medical doctor was in self- quarantine because he was exposed to COVID-19 positive patients, was that they were also automatically in danger.

Contact

He said this was because they were also in contact with all patients that the doctor in question attended to. Again, he said the medical staff members were worried why the doctor was only placed on self-quarantine, instead of being tested. If the administration felt so strong that the doctor should be in self-quarantine, surely he should be tested and contact- tracing initiated, the insider said. He said the staff members wondered and were concerned why the hospital was failing to implement the standard procedures of the World Health Organisation (WHO), which include testing a person who had been in contact with COVID-19 positive individuals and start contact-tracing afterwards.

Meanwhile, Muzi Dlamini, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Good Shepherd Mission Hospital confirmed the matter. He said the issue was one of the concerns which were raised by the workers with management last Saturday. Thereafter, he said they had a day-long meeting with relevant stakeholders on Monday about the issue of the doctor among others. He said workers were also represented in the meeting.
China has unveiled a new firefighting drone that can put out a blazing high-rise building within minutes.

Video shows six drones were deployed in the air as they extinguished the 10-storey block covered in smoke during a drill.

The huge fire was under control within 10 minutes and completely put out in less than 15 minutes, according to the local press.

China has unveiled a new firefighting drone that can put out a blazing high-rise building within minutes. The picture shows the drones putting out the fire in Chongqing

Video shows six drones were deployed in the air as they extinguished the 10-storey block covered in smoke during a drill . Two of the drones are pictured during the exercise

The firefighting drone can lift 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of weights and rise to 100 metres (328 feet) within 10 seconds, said Cao Bing, chairman of Guofei General Aviation Equipment Manufacturing.

Mr Cao said the powerful device can also remain airborne for 20 minutes.

The fire in the exercise was created using five tons of firewood, 300 kilograms (661 pounds) of heating oil and 100 kilograms (220 pounds) of gasoline.

The drone can lift 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of weights and rise to 100 metres (328 feet) within 10 seconds, said Cao Bing, chairman of Guofei General Aviation Equipment Manufacturing

'In the past, we only considered using drones individually to extinguish a fire, which wasn't ideal,' Mr Cao told the press.

'Also, in some situations when the fire truck cannot enter [the scene] quick enough. The drone can lift up the hose pipes to save time for the rescue.

'Experiments have demonstrated [drones] working in groups can quickly seize a large fire and improve the initial rescue efforts,' Mr Cao added.

The manufacturer said they plan to officially introduce the devices to the public in the summer this year after improving its accuracy of controls and ability to work in groups.

The fire drill took place on January 20 in the Chongqing city of south-western China.

The manufacturer said they plan to officially introduce the devices to the public in the summer this year after improving its accuracy of controls and ability to work in groups

Drones have been widely adopted to help firefighters tackle blazing buildings and wildland fire. The picture shows the blazing building during the fire drill in Chongqing, China

Drones have been widely adopted to help firefighters tackle blazing buildings and wildland fire.

They can be sent to fire locations as scouts, using cameras with thermal imaging technology to help first responders in their rescue efforts.

Firefighters in the U.S. have been using drones for emergency scenarios such as rescuing survivors and putting out fires.

London Fire Brigade also uses drones to help improve their responses to incident and access areas which are unsafe for firefighters.
The parliament is truly ready for more special sessions since all factions understand the situation in Armenia and the whole world. This is what Speaker of the National Assembly Ararat Mirzoyan told reporters at Yerablur Military Pantheon today, adding that the parliament is aware of the fact that the government might need new tools to combat the coronavirus at any moment and is ready to consider all tools.

I must say that the National Assembly is very balanced and responds promptly. It makes changes to the governments documents and considers them again. All deputies clearly understand that the measures are extraordinary and that its not always that these measures will favor this or that layer of society. They also have a very high sense of responsibility for the steps and actions that will determine the fate of people, the parliamentary speaker said.
The European Union announced on Thursday 51 million euros ($55 million) in assistance designed to help Armenia deal tackle the coronavirus epidemic and its severe socioeconomic consequences.

The EU Delegation in Yerevan said this includes 18 million euros in new funds allocated to Armenia and 33 million euros that will be redirected from other projects which it had planned to finance in the country.

It said the aid package will be used for supplying medical equipment, training medical personnel, supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and providing humanitarian assistance to socially vulnerable groups of the population.

More is yet to come through access to important regional banking facilities and further restructuring of projects, the delegation added in a statement.

According to additional information posted on the missions Facebook page, the EU will spend 30 million euros on supporting Armenian businesses by improving their access to cheap loans, working capital and guarantees.

It also says: Over 3,000 vulnerable households with elderly people, people with disabilities and large families in Shirak, Tavush and Lori regions will receive humanitarian aid packages.

The EU announcement marks the largest coronavirus-related aid allocation secured by Armenia so far.

The United States last week pledged to provide with more than $1 million in similar aid. It is primarily aimed at strengthening Armenian health authorities capacity monitor infections and detect the virus.
Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

This funding aims to support the preparation of large-scale laboratories for SARS-CoV-2 testing; infection prevention and control; risk communication; the implementation of emergency public health plans for entry points at the border; and the launch of case detection and event-based surveillance for influenza-like diseases. It also help train quick response teams and update training materials for health workers.

For Vietnam, nearly 3 million USD in medical assistance will help the Government prepare a laboratory system, launch case detection and event-based surveillance, assist technical experts in response and preparation, boost risk communication; and prevent and control infection, among others.

Over the past 20 years, the US has provided more than 706 million USD for the health sector and over 1.8 billion USD of total assistance for other areas in Vietnam.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has collaborated with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in providing training for 15 hospitals and supporting 63 provinces and cities across Vietnam in supervising, reporting and collecting SARS-CoV-2 testing samples. They have also assisted Vietnam in developing national guidelines for coronavirus infection prevention and control.

In the region, through the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the US is actively supporting research in key ASEAN countries to combat the pandemic, including treatment methods, vaccines and medical countermeasures. The NIH has worked with ASEAN partners on malaria treatment and prevention, studies on cases of coronavirus transmission from bats and others on public health benefits.

Through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the CDC, the US has launched regional programmes to enhance the ASEAN nations capacity in preparing for disease outbreaks and building diagnosis capacity in the laboratory.
The Association of Resident Doctors of Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (ARD-PGIMER) here on Thursday expressed their concern over the Chandigarh administration's decision of directing the transfer of all patients confirmed to be COVID-19 positive to the Nehru Hospital Extension facility of PGIMER.

In a press statement, ARD-PGIMER said that the hurdles involved in the safe transfer of these patients while endangering all those involved in transport and subsequently the Chandigarh population have not been given due consideration.

"The number of patients with confirmed COVID-19 in the UT currently stands at 15. Transfer of all these stable COVID-19 positive patients at this stage poses the risk of bringing them out of effective isolation with great risk of infection to all those involved in transport, their families and neighbors," the statement said.

"Ambulance drivers, accompanying doctors, nursing personnel and the accompanying police force all stand at risk of contracting the infection and passing it on during the unnecessary transport of stable patients," it added.

The ARD-PGIMER also said that it may result in community spread.

"The patient attendants and healthcare providers will have a false sense of security that they are dealing with non COVID-19 patients, leaving them unprotected and at high risk of infection, which ultimately may result in community spread," it said.

"ARD-PGIMER would like to propose that patients be referred from other hospitals only if they require ventilatory support if the same is not available at the other tertiary care facilities. This will allow optimum utilisation of the dedicated NHE COVID hospital, at PGIMER Chandigarh," the statement further said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 16:42:29|Editor: huaxia

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WUHAN, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Ye Baixin, a doctor at a Wuhan hospital, had a busy schedule even during his quarantine. Every morning, his phone buzzes with nearly 100 messages from across the world.

"Anyone can share information on children patients of COVID-19?" reads one inquiry in a chatroom on the instant messaging app WeChat. "I wish to conduct a survey on the immunity of frontline medics (in the United States). Any suggestions from doctors in Wuhan?" read another comment from Boston.

Ye, a doctor at Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, is the founder of four WeChat chatrooms dedicated to COVID-19 experience sharing. So far, they have drawn in more than 2,000 doctors, including some 400 doctors in China and more than 600 from the United States.

Compared with conventional academic exchanges, discussions in the chatrooms take place at any time, with doctors from diverse departments including ICU, infection, respiratory, cardiology, obstetrics and gynecology, exchanging experience on COVID-19 prevention and control, clinical treatment plans and protection of medics.

Among them are several prominent figures in China's fight against the novel coronavirus, including Zhang Wenhong, who heads Shanghai's medical team to fight the epidemic.

"The pandemic has united doctors from across the world, and medical workers in Wuhan are proving to the world, with their actions, that the virus can be defeated," Ye said.

As the epidemic subsides in the former hard-hit city, where only one confirmed case was reported in the past week, Ye said frontline medics in Wuhan are offering their experience to the world while boosting global morale.

Via video conferences, doctors in Wuhan have shared their COVID-19 treatment experience with universities and hospitals in several countries, including Israel, the United States, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland.

Ye created the first group chat on March 22, when he was observing quarantine in Wuhan after returning from the United States as a visiting scholar. Dedicated to sharing experience on fighting the pandemic, the chatroom reached its 500-member cap within hours.

Three more rooms were opened amid the influx of American and European doctors. Tencent, the tech firm that runs WeChat, then helped Ye create a "corporate chat room" that allows more members to join.

With the help of a volunteer team from Wuhan University, Ye is now upgrading the chatrooms to include seminars and other academic exchanges.

On March 28, Zhang Jinnong, director of the emergency department at Wuhan Union Hospital, held a live talk in one chatroom. In fluent English, the veteran doctor recalled his personal struggle with the viral infection, gave advice on testing and treatment, and answered questions raised by his Northern American and European peers.

"The chatrooms, by gathering medical workers together, facilitated the faster spread of information," Ye told Xinhua. "This is important, as time is precious in the global fight against the COVID-19 epidemic."
Medical-grade face masks are hard to come by in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic, and while the effectiveness of a fabric version is comparatively nominal, community members are stitching them in bulk for emergency backups or an added layer of protection.

While the La Crosse County Health Department hopes area health care facilities will not need to rely on them, it has started to accept handmade face masks after a specific pattern from UnityPoint Health called The Olson, named after 1930s nurse Lyla Mae Olson.

The design uses cotton fabric, double-sided adhesive and hair ties, the latter of which the health department requests be replaced with cloth ties or bias tape.

Gundersen Health System also is accepting masks crafted to meet the specifications listed on its website, and the Onalaska Care Center is seeking masks following The Olson criteria.

The need is going to be kind of endless, said Nancy Johnson, director of nursing at the Onalaska Care Center. The idea behind the cloth mask is to wear them over our (surgical) masks to extend their life.

The Onalaska Care Center has 50 residents, and Johnson says the facility will accept as many masks as people will make for us. Its really a nice thing people are doing.

Marcia Marshall of Holmen is among those sewing up a storm, whipping out 23 fabric masks before running out of elastic. An experienced seamstress, Marshall is able to finish a single mask in about 30 minutes, and she was quick to volunteer her time and materials.

I wanted to be helpful to the community while sitting at home, Marshall said. This is one thing I could do.

Mask donations for the Onalaska Care Center, 1600 Main St., can be dropped off at the facility by ringing the front bell. Gundersen Health System asks sewers call in advance at 608-775-6600 so hospital can track supply levels.

The La Crosse County Health Department requests masks, stored in sealed plastic containers, be dropped off at tents located on Isle La Plume, 2000 Marco Road.

Masks should follow the guidelines at on the UnityPoint website, with the substitution of cloth ties.

The La Crosse County Health Department stresses that no individual should make a special shopping trip to get supplies to make masks, as social distancing should be the communitys priority.

Emily Pyrek can be reached at emily.pyrek@lee.net.

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National Organizer of the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA), Clement Boateng, has expressed disappointment in the Government of Nigeria for closing their land borders to curb the spread of coronavirus.



Nigeria closed its border as it recorded its first death from the COVID-19 pandemic.



The Secretary to the government, Boss Mustapha disclosed that the closure would last for four weeks.



Addressing the issue on Peace FMs 'Kokrokoo, the GUTA National Secretary was of the view that the Nigerian government should have informed member States of ECOWAS before proceeding to take such action.



He bemoaned the Nigerian government for failing to give prior notice to neighbouring countries like Ghana, knowing that closing the border abruptly would cause major problems to traders and business tycoons who use the border.



Clement Boateng told host Kwami Sefa Kayi on Thursday, April 2, 2020 that Nigeria is becoming authoritarian government in the Sub-Region and its about time for ECOWAS to bring them to order.



Nigeria thinks they are the biggest economy in the Sub-Region and so would want to dictate to us. Its about time that the ECOWAS Commission calls Nigeria to order because we all belong to the Commission. So, if there is the need to close the border, you have to inform your member States to give a prior notice to their citizens that from this period, every person must do his or her business before the period," he lamented.



Mr. Boateng however advised traders in the country to use other means to transact business.



We have advised our traders that they should look for other options," because the Nigerian borders will not be opened for them any time soon until the pandemic is dealt within the country, he said.







Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Even as India entered the ninth day of the 21-day lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24, it reported a total of 2,069 positive cases of coronavirus.

According to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, India currently has at least 1,860 active cases, with the death toll at 53. About 155 people have been cured and discharged.

Globally, the number of COVID-19 positive cases is nearing a million, while the death toll stands at 49,180.

Here are the top developments as of April 2:

# Prime Minister Narendra Modi will share a video message with his fellow Indians at 9 am on April 3.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

# The Ministry of Home Affairs has blacklisted and cancelled the tourist visas of at least 960 foreigners, who attended the Tablighi Jamaat. According to the Home Ministry, at least 400 cases, linked to the religious congregation, were found positive.

#The GoI has launched a mobile app called Aarogya Setu to help people assess the risk of catching the coronavirus infection on their own. The app will also alert authorities if someone has come in close contact with a person, who was infected with deadly virus.

#More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, double the record of 3.3 million reported for the previous week. The layoffs have led many economists to envision as many as 20 million lost jobs by the end of April.

#During his video conference with the chief ministers of all states, PM Modi hinted at a staggered lockdown withdrawal. He said that it is important to formulate a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population once the lockdown ends.

#The death toll in Spain breached the 10,000 mark as at least 950 people died overnight.

#Dharavi, which is Asia's largest slim, in Mumbai, has been sealed after a death due to COVID-19 was reported from the area on April 1. Around 4000 workers are working on contract tracing, the Health Ministry told media persons.

S.No State/Union Territory Total confirmed cases Cured/discharged Deaths 1 Andhra Pradesh 86 1 1 2 Andaman and Nicobar Islands 10 0 0 3 Assam 5 0 0 4 Bihar 24 0 1 5 Chandigarh 16 0 0 6 Chhattisgarh 9 2 0 7 Delhi 219 8 4 8 Goa 5 0 0 9 Gujarat 87 8 7 10 Haryana 43 21 0 11 Himachal Pradesh 3 1 1 12 Jammu and Kashmir 62 2 2 13 Jharkhand 1 0 0 14 Karnataka 110 9 3 15 Kerala 265 25 2 16 Ladakh 13 3 0 17 Madhya Pradesh 99 0 6 18 Maharashtra 335 42 13 19 Manipur 1 0 0 20 Mizoram 1 0 0 21 Odisha 4 0 0 22 Puducherry 3 1 0 23 Punjab 46 1 4 24 Rajasthan 108 3 0 25 Tamil Nadu 234 6 1 26 Telengana 107 1 3 27 Uttarakhand 7 2 0 28 Uttar Pradesh 113 14 2 29 West Bengal 53 6 3 Total number of confirmed cases 2069 156 53

#Below is the state-wise tally:
The Roofing Alliance, the foundation of the National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA), proudly announces the release of two new reports: A Study of the U.S. Roofing Industry and Its Workforce and Moisture in New Concrete Roof Decks. Both reports were funded by the Roofing Alliance in their ongoing commitment to the improvement of the roofing industry.

An aging population of workers, scarcity of skilled workers and an overall need to understand the demographics of the roofing industry were the motivations for the research project A Study of the U.S. Roofing Industry and Its Workforce. The Roofing Alliance funded the study to capture workforce demographics in support of programs to attract the next generation of the roofing workforce and to strengthen NRCA's voice and role in Washington, D.C. with statistical data that can be shared with regulatory and federal agencies.

The industry has been ill-equipped to fully understand the magnitude of the challenges because of a lack of comprehensive workforce data and a detailed examination, shared from the studys executive statement. To help fill this information gap, The Roofing Alliance commissioned Arizona State University in 2019 to study current roofing workforce demographics, types of work, skilled and unskilled labor shortages, and effects of labor shortages at national and regional scales, as well as industry challenges and potential solutions. A comprehensive survey methodology was adopted to collect data from roofing contractors throughout the U.S.

The study comprehensively examines the demographics of the U.S. roofing workforce, including the contracting, manufacturing, distribution and design communities; explores types of operations; and analyzes industry challenges, trends and emerging issues. The final report summarizes that the labor shortage in the roofing industry is more severe than previously recognized. The study showed 90% of U.S. roofing contractors faced labor shortages during the past year with the west being the most severely affected by a lack of skilled workers.

A second but more long-term report, Moisture in New Concrete Roof Decks, was conducted between 2016 and 2019 with engineering researchers who conducted multiple experiments, measurements and computer simulations on new concrete roof test decks and roof systems installed over test decks. The results of this research has shown that with current roofing materials, the use of a vapor retarder or other concrete moisture mitigation techniques, such as venting, are needed when placing a roof system over a new concrete roof deck.

The research shows that the moisture content of a concrete roof slab may not drop to a level conservative enough to install a roof system over it in any reasonable amount of time after pouring concrete, or ever, without a vapor retarder or other moisture mitigation technique. This comprehensive report offers detailed information on why architects, engineers, contractors and especially roofing contractors should understand how to install roofing systems properly over new concrete roof decks.

Other industry associations and organizations that supported the study along with the Roofing Alliance include Chicago Roofing Contractors Association, Chicagoland Roofing Council, National Roofing Contractors Association, GAF, Soprema Inc., Johns Manville and the Canadian Roofing Contractors Association.

Both reports are available in the NRCA bookstore. The report: A Study of the U.S. Roofing Industry and Its Workforce is available in electronic format only and the Moisture in New Concrete Roof Decks is available as a hard copy only. (Due to a stay-at-home mandate issued for Illinois regarding COVID-19, NRCA is unable to ship hardcopy reports from its bookstore until further notice.)

For more information on the Roofing Alliance, visit http://www.roofingalliance.net or contact Bennett Judson at bjudson@roofingalliance.net.

About the Roofing Alliance

The Roofing Alliance is committed to shaping the industrys future by funding education, research, scholarships and philanthropic initiatives, all for the purpose of securing the industrys future excellence. Composed of 171 members representing extraordinary leaders from the contracting, manufacturing, distribution and service provider communities, the Roofing Alliance has committed $13 million to enhance the performance and long-term viability of the industry and allocated more than $5 million to fund 48 research, education, technical and philanthropic programs and projects. Serving as the foundation of the National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA), Roofing Alliance members are focused on giving back and supporting high-quality educational programs and ensuring timely and forward-thinking industry responses to major economic and technological issues. For more information about Roofing Alliance initiatives, visit http://www.roofingalliance.net.


By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Over 35,000 migrant labourers in Hyderabad and Secunderabad will be provided free meals every afternoon at all the 150 Annapurna Kendras in the city, informed Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) Commissioner D Lokesh Kumar on Wednesday.

The corporation has identified 735 homeless persons from the neighbouring districts and the states of Orissa, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh. The identified labourers have been shifted to 12 shelter homes in the city, where they are being given food, shelter and basic amenities, including regular medical checkups.

On Wednesday, the corporation officials said that six additional, temporary shelter homes are being established at Uppal, LB Nagar, Chandanagar, Goshamahal, Begumpet and Yousufguda areas in the city to rescue homeless people and migrant workers amid the coronavirus crisis.

Kishan gives Rs 1cr to PM-CARES, Rs 1cr to TS

Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy on Wednesday announced `1 crore to the PM-CARES fund and also announced Rs 50 lakh each to the CMRF and Hyderabad Collector from his MPLADS.


The spring session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, which was scheduled for May 22-25 in Kyiv, has been postponed to a later date due to the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak.

Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on European Integration Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze said this in a comment to Ukrinform on April 2.

After the first January meeting of the organizing committee to prepare and hold the NATO PA spring session, the work was continued in the working group, however, in connection with the spread of coronavirus, we began to receive signals from the International Secretariat of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly that not all countries are ready to send their delegations to the spring session. And recently, the International Secretariat announced a decision to postpone the session to a later date, she said.

Klympush-Tsintsadze assured that the postponement of the NATO PA spring session does not mean that it will not take place in Kyiv at all. At the same time, the MP was unable to predict when the session would be held in Ukraine.

As reported, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a resolution On Holding Spring Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in 2020 on April 25, 2019, which provides for the creation of an organizing committee to prepare for the session.

In April 2017, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly supported the initiative of the Verkhovna Rada to hold in Ukraine a spring session of the Assembly, which is scheduled for May 22-25, 2020.

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Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square. Recently the square has been deserted because of COVID-19. (L'Osservatore Romano )

Among the other disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has been the closing of houses of worship and the cancellation of religious gatherings. The arrival of what could be called spiritual distancing was powerfully symbolized last week by images of Pope Francis offering a blessing to an empty St. Peters Square. Christians around the world in the coming weeks will be attending Easter services via YouTube and Jews will be participating in Passover seders on Zoom.

The alacrity with which mainstream religious groups have responded to the pandemic is admirable, but the idea of suspending public worship also has provoked dissent. Were referring not only to a handful of religious leaders who have behaved recklessly in holding services in defiance of social distancing norms or government decrees, but also to those clergy members and commentators who, without advocating violation of the law, have questioned the idea.

For example, Cardinal Raymond Burke, the former archbishop of St. Louis and onetime Vatican official who is a hero of conservative Catholics, has criticized the closing of churches for worship  undertaken in some cases even before civil authorities acted to shut down public meetings. (The California Catholic Conference announced a suspension of public celebrations of Mass on March 18, a day before Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered Californians to stay at home.)

Even as we have found a way to provide for food and medicine and other necessities of life during a time of contagion, without irresponsibly risking the spread of the contagion, so, in a similar way, we can find a way to provide for the necessities of our spiritual life, Burke wrote on his blog on March 21. He suggested that worshipers could gather in large churches without violating the requirements of social distance, a debatable proposition at best.

A similar argument was proposed in a March 13 article in Foreign Policy magazine by Lyman Stone, a research fellow at the Institute for Family Studies and a Lutheran. Stone suggested that the lesson of Christian responses to plagues over the years is: We dont cancel church.

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Stone, who wrote a handbook that suggests ways for churches to continue to meet in small groups, further argued: Even as we take Communion from separate plates and cups to minimize risk, forgo hand-shaking or hugging, and sit at a distance from each other, we still commune. He also suggested that continuing church services would serve as a societal roll call, especially for older people: Those who dont show up should be checked on during the week.

(The idea that religious services are vital isn't confined to members of the clergy and commentators. When Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday belatedly issued a stay-at-home order, he included attending religious services as one of the "essential activities" exempt from the order.)

Arguments against suspending worship aren't just a variation on President Trumps aspiration that American churches would be filled on Easter as part of an expedited economic revitalization. Trump was later persuaded that this wasnt a good idea.

Many who worry about closing churches or suspending services aren't cheerleaders for capitalism; they want to defend religious values. Those values include fellowship with other believers  it was an Anglican priest who wrote that no man is an island  and of course contact with God. As Burke put it: In considering what is needed to live, we must not forget that our first consideration is our relationship with God.

Of course a religious leader would say that. But the bishops and pastors who have decided to close churches for the time being in the interest of public health are also acting on a religious impulse, a reverence for human life.

In an editorial written partly as a response to Stone, the magazine Christianity Today made a powerful case for erring on the side of safety.

The editorial argued that even if we do practice stringent hygiene and social distancing, coming together as congregations in the face of this pandemic actually mars our witness. Rather than looking courageous and faithful, we come off looking callous and even foolish, not unlike the snake handlers who insisted on playing with poison as a proof of true faith. It added: The church remains the church online, too.

The same can be said of other faiths that must worship virtually as the price of protecting themselves and others from a rampant virus. In time, churches, synagogues, mosques and private homes will again be filled with worshipers. But it would be tragic  and fundamentally irreligious  to rush that return to normalcy and risk human lives.




Four French soldiers deployed in the Sahel region of western Africa in France's anti-jihadist Barkhane force have tested positive for coronavirus, the army said on Thursday.

The infections are the first confirmed by the French army among soldiers serving in its foreign operations.

Colonel Frederic Barbry, the spokesman for the French armed forces chief of staff, told AFP one of the soldiers was being treated in his country of deployment, while the other three have been repatriated.

The group had arrived in the area several weeks ago and were not showing symptoms, he said. People they had been in contact with were being placed into quarantine but military operations were continuing as normal, said Barbry.

The 5,100 strong-Barkhane force fights jihadists in cooperation with the Sahel countries of Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Mauritania and Chad.

France last week said it will withdraw its contingent of troops from Iraq, mostly trainers to local armed forces, because of the coronavirus pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BAGHDAD, Iraq, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Asiacell has announced an urgent initiative to support efforts to combat the coronavirus epidemic in Iraq, by allocating 750 million dinars to the Iraqi government and USD 500,000 to the government of the Kurdistan autonomous region.

This initiative by Asiacell comes after the spread of the epidemic in many regions of our beloved country. Asiacell is responding to this crisis by actively supporting and standing with the people of our country in these difficult circumstances. It should be noted that this initiative complements many other initiatives launched by Asiacell since the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis, including awareness-raising and instructional campaigns, and the distribution of sanitisation materials and basic food supplies to poor families.

At the same time, Asiacell has appealed to the Iraqi people to comply with the instructions of the responsible authorities and to follow to the advice provided, and to stay at home to get through this difficult period. Asiacell has dedicated all of its media channels, human resources and communications technology to these efforts.

Commenting on this initiative, Mr Faruk Mustafa Rasool, Chairman of Asiacell, said: "We have responded to the call for help by contributing 750 million Iraqi dinars to combat this epidemic in our beloved country." He added: "We have also given 500,000 dollars to the government of the Kurdistan region for the same purpose."
Ben & Jerrys has released a new flavor of ice cream inspired by a Netflix show.

The company describes it this way, We are flipping our lids over our newest Netflix pint, Chip Happens! Weve teamed up with Netflix to churn up something extra special, an ice cream as perfectly imperfect as the culinary masterpieces of Nailed It!

Candyhunting discovered the new flavor and posted about it on Instagram.

New Ben & Jerrys Chip Happens is heading to stores VERY soon!! Well, its actually already on shelves in Australia, since this one is a global launch. It will be in the US any time now. The flavor is made in partnership with Netflix and the show Nailed It!, which is a competition series where amateur bakers try to replicate stylized cakes and other baked goods. The ice cream has a chocolate base, fudge chips, and crunchy potato chip swirls.

Some commenters on the Instagram post, however, said they have seen it in stores in the U.S., including Walmart.

Please note, it is a limited edition.

Ben & Jerrys had earlier this year released another Netflix flavor - Netflix & Chilld.

That flavor is described by Delish.com like this, Its made with a base of peanut butter ice cream mixed with sweet and salty pretzel swirls, and fudge brownie, a.k.a. all the delicious sweet and savory flavors you want when youre laid out on the couch with your favorite show.

Ben & Jerry's Netflix & Chilll'd.

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The trade ministry has proposed a 10 percent discount on electricity rates to relieve financial pressures caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The total value of the discount is estimated at VND11 trillion ($466 million) and will benefit both households and businesses between April and June, according to a proposal submitted to the government by the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Households that consume less than 300 kWh per month will be eligible to avail of the discount. This means a 300 kWh bill will be charged VND563,040 ($23.86) a reduction of VND62,560 ($2.65) from the existing rate. About 87 percent of households consume less than 300 kWh a month.

The trade ministry said that those who consume more than 300 kWh are typically in the high-income bracket and not affected financially by the pandemic, and will not therefore be eligible for the discount.

The ministry also proposed a 10 percent discount for businesses and factories, and said power will be supplied free to quarantine facilities and hospitals where Covid-19 patients are being treated.

The proposal came after businesses and households requested discounts of up to 50 percent in electricity prices for three months as their incomes have been slashed by the pandemic.

However, power consumption in the first quarter rose 6.34 percent year-on-year, according to national power utility Vietnam Electricity (EVN).

In March last year, the government had increased power prices by 8.36 percent to VND1,864 (8 cents) per kWh after keeping them unchanged for two years.
NEW YORK, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Clarity Benefit Solutions is celebrating National Employee Benefits Day by sharing some big news with their partners, clients, and network.

Clarity is excited to announce that they are unveiling a new look and rolling out some new features to offer its brokers, employers, and participants even more. This announcement comes fittingly on National Employee Benefits Day, as Clarity's mission is to provide a simply smarter and more thoughtful approach to employee benefits.

Clarity Benefit Solutions will still be providing the same level of proactive partnership, benefit solutions that work, and smarter administration that you know and trust -- they'll just be doing so with a brand-new website, an expanded team, and more offerings.

The new website isn't just an aesthetic update. While it does provide an improved look and feel, it also gives users access to a variety of updated offerings, including:

The Clarity Care Account allows employers to provide tax-free financial support to employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. Funds can be used to pay for healthcare, home office, education, and COBRA expenses.

allows employers to provide tax-free financial support to employees during the COVID-19 pandemic. Funds can be used to pay for healthcare, home office, education, and COBRA expenses. COBRA Plus is a new COBRA service for recently furloughed employees. Employers can add a COBRA subsidiary and employees have multiple options to pay their share of the premium.

is a new COBRA service for recently furloughed employees. Employers can add a COBRA subsidiary and employees have multiple options to pay their share of the premium. Ready for Life Funding Acceleration provides a tax-free advance to employees for their HSA and FSA programs.

provides a tax-free advance to employees for their HSA and FSA programs. Clarity Benefits Renewal Portal brings the renewal process online and helps promote your programs with digital employee engagement materials.

Clarity is very excited to see these new offerings in the hands of brokers, employers and participants this year.

These expansions are only made possible because of the amazing team at Clarity. While every individual plays a key role in Clarity's success, some recent additions and promotions have made a substantial impact. Most recently, Clarity has added numerous sales leaders in new territories to provide nation-wide coverage. Other recent additions include:

Bill Sowders  Vice President of National Sales

 Vice President of National Sales Krista Woolley  Vice President of Marketing

 Vice President of Marketing Jill Schwartz  Vice President of Client Services

 Vice President of Client Services Linda McCormack  Vice President of Consumer Benefit Implementation & Renewal

The aforementioned individuals round out an already successful team of creators, innovators, and relationship-builders who carry out Clarity's mission every day.

The new website and offerings facilitate Clarity's simply smarter approach to combine ingenuity and technology, so consumers can get the most from their benefits. With new ways to save time and money and provide peace of mind, Clarity Benefit Solutions is providing new ways to be Ready for Life.

About Clarity Benefit Solutions

Clarity Benefit Solutions combines ingenuity and technology to create thoughtful new ways for consumers to get the most from their benefits. New ways to save time and money. New ways to provide peace of mind. New ways to be Ready for Life. We know that benefits can be confusing, so our solutions are designed to replace frustration with innovation, delivering programs and tools that are tailored to consumers' needs, easy-to-use, and supported by a dedicated service team. At Clarity, we are Simply Smarter.

Contact

Clarity Benefit Solutions

Krista Woolley, 214-477-5600

VP, Marketing

[email protected]

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Clarity Benefit Solutions

Benefits administration company gets a new look and improved offerings

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[April 02, 2020] VersaBank's 2020 Annual Meeting to Be Held via Live Webcast - Shareholders Are Strongly Encouraged to Attend via Webcast and Vote in Advance

VersaBank (the "Bank") today announced its upcoming annual general meeting of shareholders (the "Meeting") to be held on Wednesday, April 22, 2020, at 10:30 a.m., will be live webcast. As the Bank's by-laws do not permit an entirely "virtual" annual meeting, the Bank will still be conducting the Meeting at a physical location (see change in the location below); however, given the public safety concerns associated with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, shareholders are strongly encouraged to attend via the live webcast. In addition, to facilitate virtual attendance, shareholders are strongly encouraged to vote in advance via one of the methods described below. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005103/en/ https://www.versabank.com/ The Bank also announced that the physical location of the Meeting has been changed from the TMX Broadcast Centre in Toronto to the VersaBank Innovation Centre of Excellence, 1979 Otter Place, London, Ontario, N5V 0A3. Advanced Proxy Voting Instructions Shareholders (registered and non-registered) are reminded that votes can be cast in advance through one of the following channels, which are described in greater detail in the proxy materials, previously distributed: To Vote by Mail: Return the Form of Proxy to the Bank'stransfer agent, Computershare Trust Company of Canada ("Computershare"), 100 University Avenue, 8th Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5J 2Y1 To Vote by Fax: Forward the Form of Proxy to 1-866-249-7775 or 1-416-263-9524 To Vote Using the Internet: Visit www.investorvote.com



David Taylor, President and CEO, stated, "our digital Bank was uniquely designed to embrace the future taking full advantage of emerging technologies. We require minimal staff who can seamlessly work from remote locations. VersaBank is not only well equipped to deal with COVID-19 challenges, but to thrive and continue to capitalize on new opportunities afforded by our unique positioning as a Schedule I bank with the flexibility and capability to benefit from lucrative niches. I look forward to speaking with you on the conference call (and webcast) following the formal portion of our meeting."

A link to the webcast and conference line will be posted on VersaBank's website, closer to the event, at www.versabank.com/investor-relations/shareholder-meetings. Amended Notice of Meeting An Amended Notice of Meeting has been filed on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) and is available for shareholders to download. About VersaBank VersaBank adopted an electronic B2B branchless model in 1993, becoming the world's first branchless financial institution. It holds a Canadian Schedule I chartered bank licence and obtains its deposits, and most of its loans and leases, electronically. VersaBank's Common Shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol VB and its Series 1 Preferred Shares and Series 3 Preferred Shares trade under the symbols VB.PR.A and VB.PR.B, respectively. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005103/en/

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Financial relief is finally on the way to many Americans who are struggling due to the COVID-19 crisis. Yet, it will take a lot longer for Americans to recover from the fear the Coronavirus has sparked in many peoples hearts.

I take this pandemic seriously and you should as well. But statistically, your risk of getting the virus is still remote and the risk of dying from it is minimal, but there is a virus that we hear almost nothing about these days, and it is absolutely going to touch you. In fact, the death rate from it is 100%.

I speak of the virus of sin; an infection that has been passed on since the beginning of human existence. Its a virus that we all have and are born with. The Bible says it this way: All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And sadly, every single one of us will actually die from it. Again, the message of the Bible is that The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).

Thats pretty dismal and sounds hopeless. But while we cant stop the earthly consequences of the sin virus, the rest of that verse tells us there is a cure.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." The cure is blood-based; the blood of a Savior that cures the sin virus for its eternal effect.

I say this not to be preachy, but to remind you that even in the midst of some of the most frightening days of our nations history  and while understanding that many will have a hard time of paying bills, holding a job, or finishing school, or visiting elderly relatives  there is hope.

There is light in the midst of the darkness, and even if you avoid coronavirus, you need to take steps to protect yourself from an even more deadly virus, but one that already has a cure and a cure that costs you nothing but your willingness to accept it.

As Christians, many of us have already accepted this free gift, but we have a golden opportunity to share it with others and tell them about the hope that we have in the Lord.

My prayer is that this virus would not leave the imprint of economic hardship, or fear, but instead that it would cause hearts to come to God, people to care more for their neighbors, and families to be strengthened as they spend time together.

I believe that when we bring the powerful solution of our faith to others, to our communities, and to the voting booth, we will be a force for good in our nation.
Garcetti: City Wont Hesitate to Close Businesses Ignoring Coronavirus Orders

Los Angeles city government will not hesitate to close businesses deemed non-essential as well as construction sites that dont practice social distancing while emergency orders are in place, Mayor Eric Garcetti said Tuesday.

If any non-essential businesses continue to operate in violation of the (Safer at Home) order, were going to act to enforce the  order and ensure their compliance, Garcetti said during his daily coronavirus briefing.

The citys Business Ambassadors program and crisis response teams have been asking non-essential businesses that have remained open to shut down, and theyve visited about 540 of them, Garcetti said.

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The Los Angeles Police Department has visited about 144 of those locations, and Garcetti said most have complied, with only four being referred to the City Attorneys Office for possible citations.

People can let the city know of any non-essential businesses that continue to operate at coronavirus.lacity.org/businessviolation.

Garcetti said construction sites will now be required to adopt certain plans and protocols in order to keep their workers and the public safe. They will be required to check workers for symptoms of coronavirus and educate them on coronavirus prevention measures.

Their employees will also be required to work at least 6 feet apart and cannot share tools, phones or other individual materials.

Critical infrastructure projects like homeless shelters and housing should move forward, but never at the expense of our workers health, never at the risk of anyones life, Garcetti said, adding that there have been reports of construction sites that have not followed the social distancing orders.

Those guidelines will be available Tuesday night at ladbs.org.

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The city saw an additional 215 positive coronavirus cases today, bringing its total to 1,386 since the outbreak began.

Garcetti said there are 1,382 available beds and 222 intensive care unit beds at hospitals in Los Angeles County with 861 available ventilators.

Thats woefully insufficient, Garcetti said, adding that the city is working with suppliers to get more ventilators. The need is urgent and we need to have more partnerships, locally and globally to build more medically sound ventilators.

Garcetti on Sunday appointed Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka as the citys chief logistics officer during the coronavirus pandemic, and Seroka is supervising the shipments of medical supplies.

Seroka said last week the port has the ability to expedite cargo units that carry medical supplies, but it must also continue to ship other commodities in order to not cause a backup.

The city has conducted 10,027 tests, including 1,623 tests Tuesday, and will have administered 13,000 tests by the end of the week, Garcetti said.

Two new testing sites are set to open that are staffed by the county and will include a walk-up site.

People who are eligible can sign up for tests at coronavirus.lacity.org if they are 65 or older, have an underlying medical condition or are experiencing symptoms.

Garcetti said there has been outpouring support for a fund that his office established that is being used to address the coronavirus.

Another $1 million was anonymously donated Tuesday, and recording artists Rhianna and Jay-Z have made contributions through their respective charities, Garcetti said.

Donations can be made at MayorsFundLA.org.
More than 400 Indian students including nearly 100 Malayali students are stranded in different parts of the UK

Even as the Air India is planning to operate special flights to London between April 4 and April 7 to fly out foreigners stranded in the country, the authorities are yet to make any announcement on evacuating Indians stuck in the UK. The Air India officials said that the national career will also operate flights on Mumbai-London route between April 5 and April 7.

More than 400 Indian students including nearly 100 Malayali students are stranded in different parts of the UK who have requested the Union government to arrange special flight to evacuate them immediately.

I got the news unofficially yesterday, but their plan is to drop British in the UK and fly back without any passengers. I contacted the Indian High commission regarding the special flights. But they said there is no news and asked not to be believe any rumours, said one of the stranded students Akhil Dharmaraj, a marine engineer hailing from Kerala.

However, they have asked us to wait for updates, added Akhil, who went to South Shields UK for competency exams along with a group of friends.

The students, many of whom are in the UK for short term courses or examinations, are worried over the escalating number of Covid19 cases in the country and the possible scarcity of essential goods.

Currently, we are able to find food though there is a limit on the number of items to be purchased. We are not able to get sanitisers, gloves and face masks here as there is acute shortage of such materials. We have to wait in long queues for entry into the supermarkets without any protection. Almost all of us are living in shared apartments with common kitchen, bathroom facilities and it would impossible to keep someone isolated if they develop any symptoms. Many of us are the supporting members of our families back home with elderly parents and small children. As the condition has turned worse in India too, we are stuck here indefinitely and worried over the return journey, he added.

There are many students from other states like Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Telengana who are unable to return home due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, Air India has already conducted special flights to Israel and Germany to fly out foreigners stranded in India during the lockdown. Though regular flight services have been suspended, cargo flights and flights specially permitted by the aviation regulator DGCA are operating during the period.

Many foreigners are stranded in India following the suspension of all domestic and international commercial passenger flights due to the 21 day national lockdown announced in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.

Last week, German nationals stranded in Kerala were evacuated in a special flight from Thiruvananthapuram international airport as per the direction of German Embassy facilitated by the state government.

Recently, the bodies of Kerala expatriates who passed away in UAE were repatriated to Kerala in the cargo flights operating between Kerala and UAE.
Gujarat: Nearly 25,000 fishermen are stranded in boats anchored in the port areas

April 02,2020 | Source: The Times of India

Nearly 25,000 fishermen are stranded in boats anchored in the port areas of Porbandar, Veraval and Mangrol for the past one week owing to the lockdown. While fishing activity has stopped, these fishermen are not allowed to leave the port and it becoming increasingly difficult for the boat owners and the fishermen association to provide them with food and water. While nearly 15,000 fishermen are stranded at Porbandar port, another 10,000 are stranded at Veraval and Mangrol coasts. These fishermen are mostly natives of south Gujarat from districts like Valsad and Vapi, Una, Delvada, Wanakbori. Some of them also belong to Andhra Pradesh.



Talking to TOI, president of Porbandar Machimar Boat Association, Bharat Modi said, There is no sanitation facility in the boats and we are worried that in this situation the fishermen trapped in boats may get infected with some other diseases. Its very difficult to provide food and drinking water for so many people. According to a rough estimate more than 2,000 boats are anchored at the Porbandar port. After the association made a representation to the district collector, they were asked to prepare a list of the fishermen with their Aadhaar numbers and addresses. However, even after submitting the list, the district administration refused to provide GSRTC buses to transport them home, Modi alleged.



Veraval and Mangrol coasts are also facing the same problem. President of Akhil Gujarat Machimar Mahamandal, Gopal Fofandi told TOI: We are representing our situation before the district administration every single day asking them help to send these people to their native, but every entreaty is falling on deaf ears. We, at the association level, are making arrangments for food and water.



Porbandar district collector D N Modi said: The number of fishermen that have been projected by the association is exaggerated. We had a meeting with the employers of these fishermen and given them responsibility to provide them food. The fishermen community is the worst hit from the lockdown as the fising season will end on June 10 and they get 70 percent of their annual catch during the period from March to June. They venture into the deep seas for 15 to 21 days and come back to the coasts with big catch. They use ice to keep the catch fresh inside the boat. However, with ice factories closed for the lockdown, there is no ice available to keep the fish fresh. Even the fish processing factories are closed now and so there are no buyers too. The fishermen anchors the boats at Porbandar and Veraval coast as the boat owners stay there.
The US has nearly run out of its emergency stockpiles of medical supplies like masks, gowns and gloves in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic that has claimed over 5,000 lives in the country and infected 210,000 people, according to reports.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has delivered more than 11.6 million N-95 masks, 5.2 million face shields, 22 million gloves and 7,140 ventilators, exhausting the emergency stockpile, an official was quoted as saying by The New York Times on Wednesday.

According to a report in the Daily quoting a senior administration official, there was a tiny slice of personal protective equipment leftover that is being preserved for emergency medical workers for the federal government.

The federal government has nearly emptied its emergency stockpile of protective medical supplies like masks, gowns and gloves as state governors continue to plea for protective gear for desperate hospital workers, it said.

The Trump administration has also pulled up the private sector to manufacture these supplies including ventilators which are so critical in the treatment of coronavirus patients.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

To make, procure, deliver crucial medical supplies to our doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers, my administration is leveraging the might of American manufacturing, supply chains, and innovators across the industry and across every industry, Trump told reporters at a White House news conference.

Hanes is making protective gear, masks, and we're making tremendous amounts of product. There's never been anything like it, he said.

Cardinal Health from Ohio has donated 2.2 million gowns to the strategic National stockpile, he added.

FEMA along with the Department of Homeland Security has joined hands with the private sector called project Air Bridge to bring supplies from other countries to the US, including gloves, gowns, goggles and masks.

These supplies will soon be distributed around the country. We have large cargo planes coming in from various parts of the world, he said.

"Every day, new planeloads are landing in cities such as New York, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles. Additional flights have been scheduled and we are adding more and more. And they're actually coming in ahead of schedule. A lot of these lights are coming in with a lot of material ahead of schedule," the president said.

Responding to a question, Trump said that thousands of ventilators are being manufactured with the help of 11 companies.

We are soon going to have more ventilators than we need. We are building thousands of ventilators right now you know it takes a period of time to build them and again nobody could have known a thing like this could happen. We are building thousands, he said.

We will fairly soon be at a point where we have far more than we can use even after we stockpile for some future catastrophe which we hope doesn't happen. We are going to be distributing them, the extras around the world we will go to Italy, we will go to France, we will go to Spain which is you know very hard hit, he added.

The US has frozen shipment of personal protective equipment outside the country, the CNN reported.

Meanwhile, a Russian cargo plane carrying 60 tonnes of medical supplies, including ventilators, masks and other protection gear, needed to treat the patients with COVID-19 landed in the US on Wednesday to support the country's fight against the pandemic.
The Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorneys Office ruled in December that there would have been enough evidence to charge James Jimmy Edwards in the killing of Karen Lee Spencer of Huntington if he were alive, police said. Some people thought the teen was the girls boyfriend.
The coronavirus outbreak has seen millions of people ordered to stay in their homes flock to Zoom, using the video conference app for everything from brunches and birthday parties to religious events and even a UK cabinet meeting. But the spike in popularity is leading to a wave of scrutiny, particularly around privacy.

While video chat apps in general have seen a surge in usage, including Microsoft's Skype and Teams platforms and Cisco's Webex, Zoom has emerged as the go-to contender thanks to its ability to host a large number of users  up to 100 in the free version  and fun social features such as customizable photo backgrounds. The company's stock price has nearly doubled in the past two months.

But that surge in growth and the company's widespread usage have surfaced several concerns.

In the last week alone, issues with Zoom's privacy protections have been flagged by users, security researchers and US authorities. The increased attention highlights a new front in the global debate over privacy and security as a result of the global pandemic, as millions of people adapt to working remotely and using technology that could potentially expose their data.

New York Attorney General Letitia James sent a letter to Zoom on Monday asking whether the company "is taking appropriate steps to ensure users' privacy and security," a spokesman for James's office told CNN Business.

In a statement, Zoom said it would address James's questions. "Zoom takes its users' privacy, security, and trust extremely seriously," a spokesperson for the company said in a statement. "During the COVID-19 pandemic, we are working around-the-clock to ensure that hospitals, universities, schools, and other businesses across the world can stay connected and operational. We appreciate the New York Attorney General's engagement on these issues and are happy to provide her with the requested information."

On Monday, the FBI issued a warning against "Zoom-bombing," where hackers or trolls hijack a public video call. The agency cited examples of users entering meetings or virtual classrooms to shout profanities and share pornography. The FBI urged victims of "teleconference hijacking" to report any incidents to the agency.

Zoom founder and CEO Eric Yuan addressed some of those issues in a tweet on Friday, saying they stem from users not enabling some security features such as meeting passwords and additional privacy controls.

"We will enforce these settings in addition to training and blogs," he said.

A Zoom spokesperson said the company was "deeply upset to hear about the incidents involving this type of attack."

Users hosting large public meetings should review their settings to make sure only the hosts can share their screen, and activate additional privacy controls, the spokesperson added. "We also recently updated the default screen sharing settings for our education users so teachers by default are the only ones who can share content in class."

Founded nine years ago, Zoom has found itself suddenly become a vital social and professional lifeline for millions around the world. But that rapid growth has led to it already being hit by the kind of controversies that far larger tech companies like Facebook and Google frequently grapple with.

"They've gone from interesting new startup product to part of the global infrastructure in days. And I think the many gaps in maturity are becoming painfully clear," Jules Polonetsky, CEO of the Future of Privacy Forum and the former chief privacy officer of AOL, told CNN Business in an interview. "Some of them range from just stupid stuff that maybe doesn't create risk to most users, to other things that are going to create legal liability for them."

Another recent issue, first reported by Motherboard, involves Zoom's sharing of user data with Facebook. Zoom originally allowed users to log into its iOS app using their Facebook accounts, but the feature it was using to do so shared details with Facebook about the user's device, including its timezone, language, model number and IP address. (Facebook offers the tool to any developer to integrate with their apps.)

The revelation led to two Zoom users separately filing class action lawsuits against the company in a Northern California district court this week, with one suit alleging that the video app "has failed to safeguard the personal information of the increasing millions of users of its software" and the other claiming it gave them "no opportunity to express or withhold consent to Zoom's misconduct." The lawsuits accuse Zoom of collecting users' personal information and sharing it with third parties, including Facebook, without properly notifying the users.

Zoom declined to comment on the lawsuits, but directed CNN Business to a recent blog post in which it says it removed the code that allows the data sharing with Facebook to occur. Facebook did not respond to a request for comment.

Some security experts have expressed doubts about Zoom's claim that it offers "end-to-end encryption for all meetings."

Instead, Zoom uses something called transport encryption, which only secures the message while it's en route from a video chat to the company's servers, according to David Kennedy, founder of cybersecurity firm TrustedSec and a former cyberwarfare specialist with the United States Marine Corps. That means Zoom effectively functions as a middleman in all video conversations on its platform and has access to those conversations, he said.

A report by The Intercept first identified the shortcoming.

Zoom did not respond to multiple requests for comment on its encryption. The company released an update to its privacy policy over the weekend, stressing that it "collects only the data from individuals using the Zoom platform required to provide the service and ensure it is delivered effectively."

The Zoom spokesperson acknowledged that the company collects "basic technical information" such as IP addresses and device details, but stressed that it has strict privacy controls to protect against unauthorized access.

"Importantly, Zoom does not sell user data of any kind to anyone," the spokesperson added.

Without end-to-end encryption on video, Kennedy says video conversations on Zoom could technically be accessed and stored by the company.

"Zoom doesn't seem to be very clear on what they record, what they don't record," he said. "There's a lot of things that Zoom is doing that is particularly alarming and concerning, because they're not using the right language and terminology."
After deleting the original post, Khandu in a new tweet blamed an officer whose 'comprehension in Hindi was limited.'

Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu on Thursday tweeted that the 21-day lockdown to restrict the spread of coronavirus will end on 15 April. The tweet was posted on Khandu's Twitter account moments after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with chief ministers via video conferencing.

Completion of lockdown will end on 15 April next. But it doesn't mean free will to move out on streets. We all must be responsible in slowing down. Lockdown and social distancing (is) the only way to fight #COVID19. PM @narendramodi #IndiaFightCorona, read the tweet which was deleted later.

News agency ANI shared a screenshot of the tweet.

Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Pema Khandu tweets after the video conference meeting of Chief Ministers with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. #CoronaLockdown pic.twitter.com/yOr8iMaX5p  ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020

After deleting the original post, Khandu in a new tweet blamed an officer whose comprehension in Hindi was limited.

The tweet with respect of lockdown period was uploaded by an officer whose comprehension in Hindi was limited. And therefore same was removed. @TimesNow https://t.co/7nuUT7QfCx  Pema Khandu (@PemaKhanduBJP) April 2, 2020

During his meeting with chief ministers, Modi praised the efforts taken by state governments to restrict the spread of COVID-19.

Follow LIVE updates on the coronavirus outbreak here

He also stressed on the formulation of common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of population once the lockdown ends.

Modi had announced a 21-day complete lockdown from 25 March to stop the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

There were reports in the media last week that the 21-day lockdown will be further extended. Cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba had called the reports baseless.

Over 48,000 people have died and more than 9 lakh infected by COVID-19 globally. In India, 50 people have died of coronavirus and nearly 2,000 have tested positive for the virus.
[April 02, 2020] Texas Web Developer Helping Businesses Implement Curbside Pick-up Service for Customers

HARLINGEN, Texas, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The idea to provide curbside pick-up for customers is not new, but the process can create disorganized confusion for businesses and customers alike. MPC Studios, a Texas website and application developer, came up with a brilliant solution called Curby. Businesses can sign up and use the Curby app for free at GetCurby.com. Curby helps a business provide customers with a curbside pick-up service that is organized and easy. Curby not only works for restaurants but any essential business remaining open during the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers only need a phone with text messaging, making Curby likely to be useful to more people, since customers don't need to install any apps or sign up for anything. For businesses, Curby is a time-saver. Entering a new order takes about 10 seconds, and then Curby does the heavy lifting of communication by texting an order confirmation to the customer, a notification when the order is ready, and notifying the business once the customer is curbside. Curby was designed to be easy to use, immediately. The sigup process for businesses is ridiculously fast, and a business can begin using Curby right away. The interface is clean and intuitive, and most users dive right in and start using it with no training at all.



Nothing gets lost. You see all your orders on the dashboard. And the workflow makes implementing curbside pick-up service to customers easy. The Coronavirus crisis created a sense of urgency for the team for rapid deployment. Since launching last week, Curby has been enthusiastically received by businesses and Chambers of Commerce, eager to find ways to help members.

Curby's focus is to help a business stay organized with curbside pick-up service. "We wanted to get something helpful out to businesses right away," explains GM and Curby Project Manager David Winters. "They don't have time to wait on a solution, so we started with the most important features first and are adding more features every week." Curby is currently Free. "We're in a position to help," says MPC President David Watkins. "We may eventually charge something to offset our hard costs, but right now we're simply trying to help." For interviews or more details:

David Watkins

https://GetCurby.com

956-423-2233

[email protected] View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/texas-web-developer-helping-businesses-implement-curbside-pick-up-service-for-customers-301033733.html SOURCE MPC Studios

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* Euro zone periphery govt bond yields http://tmsnrt.rs/2ii2Bqr

By Olga Cotaga

LONDON, April 1 (Reuters) - Euro zone bond yields fell on Wednesday, with investors rushing into safe-haven government debt as the continuing spread of the novel coronavirus fed risk-off sentiment.

More than 74,000 new cases were reported globally on Tuesday, the largest increase in a single day since the virus began and almost 30% above the previous day's rise.

There are now over 850,000 cases and 42,000 deaths across 205 countries and territories, according to a Reuters tally at 0200 GMT on Wednesday. Italy and the United States have reported a total of more than 100,000 cases each.

Germany's Bund yield was down 4.7 basis points at -0.504% . Most of the rest of the core euro area market also saw declines, with France and Belgium seeing rates steady.

Lyn Graham-Taylor, fixed income strategist at Rabobank, said there was a strong risk-off mood across the financial markets on Wednesday.

The market can't "look around the corner" for a significant improvement in the euro zone economy given the recently published weak data and the lack of positive news in regards to the coronavirus, he said.

Data on Wednesday showed euro zone manufacturing activity collapsed last month as breaks in global supply chains caused by measures to curb the coronavirus pandemic crushed output.

The nosedive could worsen in coming months, a survey showed on Wednesday.

Elsewhere, Portugal launched the sale of a 7-year bond via a syndicate of banks, reflecting widespread sentiment in Europe that national treasurers are under pressure to finance huge government rescue programs to fight the economic fallout from the spread of COVID-19.

"I've heard rumours the books are going to be really big," Rabobank's Graham-Taylor said, adding that "it wouldn't be a surprise" if the number was much bigger than that of the 2015 issue, when books topped 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion).

Story continues

Spain was the first euro zone member country to tap the primary market with a 7-year bond last week. Belgium also priced a 7-year bond on Tuesday.

Unicredit analysts said the 7-year maturity segment appears to be meeting with strong demand from financial institutions.

Portugal's 10-year government bond yield was last up 1.7 bps to 0.852%, a six-day high. ($1 = 0.9128 euros) (Reporting by Olga Cotaga; Editing by Jan Harvey)
ISIL has resurfaced again, claiming responsibility for the killing of more than 50 people in two attacks in Kabul.

Kabul, Afghanistan  Mohammed Sharif sits in a tiny visitors room inside a prison run by Afghanistans intelligence agency, the National Directorate of Security [NDS], in the capital Kabul.

A member of the Islamic State of the Khorasan Province (ISKP), an ISIL (ISIS) affiliate, Sharif, 21, spent the last eight months in prison after he was captured during a raid in Kabul.

Last December, Afghan and US forces claimed to have meted out a humiliating defeat to ISKP in Nangarhar, its main stronghold in the war-torn country.

ISIL claims deadly attacks in Kabul

But in the past weeks, the group resurfaced again claiming responsibility for the killing of more than 50 people in two attacks targeting the minority Shia and Sikh communities in the Afghan capital.

This has raised concerns in the countrys security establishment at the groups capability to carry out daring attacks in the capital, as the West-backed Kabul government prepared to hold talks with the Taliban as part of a United States-brokered peace process.

The US and the Taliban signed an agreement on February 29 in Qatars capital, Doha, aimed at ending the 18-year war, with a gradual withdrawal of foreign troops from the country.

ISKPs attacks has raised concerns in the countrys security establishment at the groups capability to carry out daring attacks in the capital [Maciej Stanik/Al Jazeera]

Extremist groups around the world often refocus their efforts into acts of terror, when faced with military setbacks, said Andrew Watkins, senior Afghanistan analyst with the International Crisis Group.

ISKPs recent resurgence of activity in Kabul reveals a return to one of the groups primary target sets  ethnic and religious minorities  that suggest a continuity in the groups objectives from years prior: Attempting to foment sectarian divide and conflict.

Sharif says he joined the ISKP to take revenge against the Americans who since the 2001 invasion of the South Asian country have committed numerous atrocities against civilians.

But he also emphasised the hatred towards the infidels  the local communities who are not Sunni Muslims.

The Hazaras [Afghanistans largest ethnic minorities, who are primarily Shia Muslims] insult us, they dont accept Caliph Umar and Bibi Aisha [figures important in Sunni Islam] and tell awful things about them. This is the main reason why the Islamic State [ISKP] is killing the Hazaras, Sharif said.

As a Muslim, I was outraged when Americans were shooting the Quran in Bagram. In France, the Quran was burned many times. This is our right to fight against these people. From the very first day, I wanted to kill the Americans and the infidels, he told Al Jazeera.

Sharif grew up in Kabul, as one of seven siblings to poor parents. He describes his childhood as disappointing, as he began to work on the streets of Kabul, selling plastic from the age of four.

He was encouraged to join ISKP by his older brother, who was killed in a drone attack in 2019 carried out by the US.

Origin of ISKP in Afghanistan

After joining the ISKP, which he said was an easy process, he was asked to transport explosives for suicide bombers on motorcycles and planting them in different places [within Kabul].

We were not responsible for big attacks, he told Al Jazeera.

Each ISKP cell in the capital city, he says, had about 10 members and focused on different tasks. He does not know how many of them operated in Kabul as there was limited contact between the cells.

Sharif said the armed group faced a setback in 2019, when its main recruiting leader, Najibullah, was killed in a drone attack in Nangarhar.

ISKPs activity in Afghanistan began in 2015 following the Pakistani operation against armed groups in North Waziristan, close to the Afghan border, which displaced more than one million people.

Islamabad crushed armed groups in 2014. Many of the former fighters, including the members of Tehrik-i-Taliban in Pakistan (TTP), found refuge across the border in Afghanistan.

As Andrew Watkins, the analyst from the International Crisis Group explains, there has long been a sense of affinity between the communities in the porous Afghan-Pakistani borderland.

While, according to Watkins, it is hard to establish how many of the original TTP members turned to ISKP, it is clear that most of its leadership was of Pakistani origin.

Local Afghans, including former Taliban fighters, flocked to the group, as well as Chechens, Central Asians, Arabs and Uighurs.

Black flags soon appeared in several districts in the mountainous Nangarhar province bordering Pakistan, spreading fear among local communities.

On the one hand, the ISKP gained military control over a certain geographic area, on the other, their members organised numerous attacks in urban centres, mostly against the Hazaras Shia community.

According to Watkins, there is little evidence that the groups operations were coordinated with ISILs core in the Middle East.

Over time, Watkins says, the ISKP also showed little desire to engage in state-building or providing services, although it managed to take control over the smuggling industry.

ISILs brutality

As Global Witness reported in 2018, it made millions of dollars exporting talc, chromite and marble across the Pakistani border.

The recent UN report in 2019 claims that the ISKP had between 2,500 and 4,000 fighters in Afghanistan.

Watkins, however, is sceptical about any such estimates as there are discrepancies in numbers from other sources.

The picturesque village of Garbawa in Nangarhar province experienced the brutality of the ISKP early on when the region fell under the groups control in 2017.

Local elders told Al Jazeera that even Soviet atrocities fade in comparison to ISKPs brutality. When they told their stories sitting under the trees in the villages centre, the children standing around could not stem their tears.

Over a hundred of our people were killed by the ISKP. It was like a slaughterhouse, Amrullah, 65, told Al Jazeera.

Once they kidnapped an eight-year-old boy. The next day they asked the village men to go to the riverside to get him. When we got there, we found the boys head floating in the river.

The villagers initially fought back but ISKPs brutality gave them no choice but to leave. Most of them settled in a refugee camp in Jalalabad, Nangarhars capital.

The village of Garbawa in Nangarhar province experienced the brutality of the ISKP when the region fell under the groups control in 2017 [Maciej Stanik/Al Jazeera]

They only returned after the Taliban, the main armed group in the country, pushed the group out of the village several months ago.

Today, with no government presence, the only force protecting the village is the villagers themselves. They raised money and bought weapons for their police to protect the villagers.

Our livestock was killed. The only work we have here is farming. We still havent recovered from that incident. The ISKP was here only to spread terror, Gulab Khan, another village elder, said.

Inflict major casualties

Anas, 22, from Kot district in Nangarhar says he decided to join the ISKP after spending two years in Bagram prison between 2017/19. He initially joined the TTP when the group took over his village. He is now in the same NDS run prison in Kabul, awaiting trial.

Anas, together with several other men, surrendered themselves to the NDS, in December 2019, when their bases in Nangarhar province fell to government forces.

Jails in Afghanistan are the main recruitment ground for the ISKP. I was appalled with the prison conditions, Anas says.

He joined the ISKP after talking to a local mullah (a religious leader), who encouraged him to fight against the US and infidels.

Shah Mahmood Miakhel, Nangarhars governor, says the ISKP was not a significant military force. However, they managed to destabilise the province for five years, mostly because of Kabuls lack of vision and adequate strategy to fight back.

I can say it is a leadership issue, you cannot find solutions to our problems in Kabul. For local problems you need local solutions. Of course with their support, he told Al Jazeera sitting in his offices yard in Jalalabad.

Our strategy was to cut off their supply route to Orakzai [Pakistan]. It took us two months. All the operations happened over the last year, we cleared the area, we established bases, and then began to improve governance.

With no government presence, the only force protecting the village is the villagers themselves [Maciej Stanik/Al Jazeera]

But according to Watkins, while the ISKP has indeed faced defeat in Nangarhar, some of its forces managed to escape to the Kunar province or across the border to Pakistan.

The recent attacks by the ISKP in Kabul, it seems, are an attempt to show that although their military capacity weakened, they can still inflict major casualties in urban centres.

Most importantly, however, even if the ISKP never rebuilds itself, it was the grim situation in the Afghan-Pakistani borderland that provided a fertile ground for the groups development.

A problem, which has not been addressed to this day.

On both sides of the border these communities have been marginalised. Not only by their governments, but on the Afghan side even by the Taliban, Watkins says.

That is why there was space for the Islamic State (ISKP) to come in.
US President Donald Trump said he has invited US oil executives to the White House to discuss ways to help the industry "ravaged" by slumping energy demand during the coronavirus outbreak and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Trump also said he had talked recently with the leaders of both Russia and Saudi Arabia and believed the two countries would make a deal to end their price war within a "few days" - lowering production and bringing prices back up.

"I'm going to meet with the oil producers on Friday. I'm going to meet with independent oil producers also on Friday or Saturday. Maybe Sunday. We're going to have a lot of meetings on it," Trump told reporters at a media conference.

"Worldwide, the oil industry has been ravaged," he said. "Its very bad for Russia, its very bad for Saudi Arabia. I mean, its very bad for both. I think they're going to make a deal."

Global oil prices have fallen by roughly two-thirds this year as the coronavirus has slammed global economies at the same time major producers Saudi Arabia and Russia have started to flood the market with oil.

The collapse in prices has threatened the once-booming US drilling industry with bankruptcies and massive layoffs, and Washington has scrambled for ways to protect the sector.

In the coming meetings with oil executives, Trump is expected to discuss a range of options to help the industry, including the possibility of tariffs on oil imports from Saudi Arabia, according to the Wall Street Journal, which was first to report the planned meetings.

Major drillers expected to participate in the initial meeting on Friday include Exxon Mobil Corp , Chevron Corp , Occidental Petroleum Corp , and Continental Resources , according to the Journal.

Occidental said it had no comment, while officials at the other companies did not respond to requests for comment.

A source familiar with the plan told Reuters that oil refiners and small producers would also be represented and the issue of potential waivers for royalties on existing federal offshore and onshore leases would be discussed.

The American Petroleum Institute, which represents the US oil and gas industry, said its president Mike Sommers would attend the initial meeting, but added, "We are not seeking any government subsidies or industry-specific intervention to address the recent market downturn at this time."

The API, many of whose members operate globally, has said in the past it opposes trade tariffs because it can complicate projects and business relationships in other countries.

The group on March 20, however, sent a letter to the Trump administration requesting relief from some regulatory requirements to ensure steady supplies during the coronavirus. The administration has since announced it will temporarily ease some environmental enforcement.

Trump this week called Russia and Saudi Arabia's price war "crazy" and spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the issue. Top energy officials from the two countries later spoke and agreed to continue discussions alongside other major global oil producers and consumers, according to the Kremlin.

The Trump administration said it is also planning to send a special envoy to Riyadh to push for lower output.

Saudi Arabia's crude supply rose on Wednesday to a record of more than 12 million barrels per day, two industry sources said, despite a plunge in demand triggered by the coronavirus outbreak and US pressure on the kingdom to stop flooding the market.
April 02 : Kareena Kapoor Khan announced on Tuesday that Saif and herself will be donating money to UNICEF, GIVE INDIA and IAHV (International Association for Human Values) to fight against the Corona Virus. This was hugely criticised by lot of their fans as they did not choose to help the Prime Minister Emergency fund, rather chose to prefer the global organisations. Amidst this criticism, the actress finally announced their support to PM CARES Fund and The Chief Minister' Relief Fund (Maharashtra).

The actress took to her instagram account and wrote, "We extend our support to the PM Cares Fund and the Chief Minister's Relief Fund (Maharashtra). In times like these, every helping hand and every rupees raised, matters. Do help whenever possible. Kareena, Saif and Taimur"

The news of them donating to global agencies before was not taken well by a lot of people in the country and there was a lot of hatred shared by the fans as comments to her post. People did not appreciate their step and as a result the actress along with her husband Saif chose to extend their support to PM Cares Fund and CM Relief Fund.

Celebrities from all walks of life are coming forward to help the country fight the crisis. Even normal public is trying to do their best to help the government face this difficult situation. Everyone is doing their bit and donating an amount according to one's status.

Some are feeding the police workers; others are distributing food to the poor and needy. Today the country stands together in fighting the pandemic.
New Delhi, April 2 : The Congress working committee (CWC) on Thursday pledged its "unstinted" support in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic but said it will continue highlighting the shortcomings in the government initiatives and suggested priorities.

The CWC said that the economic revival is essential part which may need Rs 5-6 lakh crore of resources and demanded that the government should immediately appoint an 'economic Task Force' consisting of world renowned economists to suggest emergency plan within one week; a short to medium term plan within one month; and a medium to long term plan within three months in order to protect and revive the economy as majority of the state governments have complained of inadequate financial resources in absence of central government not releasing state's share of the GST.

The CWC in its resolution said that, "India and the whole world faces an unprecedented crisis, the rapid spread of coronavirus or COVID-19 that has the potential to claim hundreds of thousands of lives and devastate the world's economy." "From the day the first case tested positive in India, the Congress has extended its total support to the central and state governments in their efforts to deal with the grave and unfolding circumstances. The Congress pledges to continue its unstinted support." the resolution said.

The CWC thanked doctors, nurses, health workers, Safai Karamcharis, Police Personnel and employees of every central and state government departments providing essential services to the people for their courage and services.

A lockdown or any other kind of restrictions is futile unless it is accompanied by extensive testing. It is the testing that has yielded results in some countries, the party said.

However, the party said that the government should have priority in dealing with the containment of the spread of the virus by extensive testing, medical treatment to the infected persons, and livelihood support to the poor people, especially daily wage earners, migrant workers, casual and temporary workers, laid-off workers, self-employed, farmers, tenant farmers and landless agricultural workers and ensure maintenance of supply of goods and services so that people locked down in their homes can access their daily household needs.
The operators of a landfill dump say part of some 6,000 tonnes in waste from the Spencer Dock development in Dublin was contaminated and not inert as they had been told, it has been claimed in the High Court.

Murphy Environmental Hollywood and Integrated Materials Solutions Limited Partnership, owners and operators of the 54 hectare landfill in the Naul, north county Dublin, is suing the Spencer Place Development Company, builders PJHegarty and Sons, and Barnmore Demolition and Civil Engineering.

It is alleged demolition waste from Spencer Dock was delivered and placed into a sealed cell area of the landfill in February 2017. The following month, it is claimed, it was discovered the waste included contaminated and hazardous material in breach of the written promises that it was inert.

The claims are denied.

The case is pending trial in the High Court and the Barnmore defendant, which carried out demolition work at Spencer Dock, sought to inspect and test the landfill and the material in question.

In May 2017, the High Court granted an inspection order but disagreement then arose over the extent of the inspection and the case went back before the court.

The dispute centred on the extent of the inspection with the landfill operators complaining Barnmore wanted to puncture holes in the sealed cell containing the waste in order to extract samples and go beyond the cell where the Spencer Dock waste was. Barnmore argued the inspection order did not confine them to inspecting a particular cell.

In December 2017, the High Court said the inspection should take place in circumstances where the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would scrutinise it.

The EPA would act as a "neutral arbiter" in whatever approach is adopted to ensure that no environmental damage is caused by the inspection. The court said the inspection could be done in accordance with certain protocols.

The landfill companies appealed that decision arguing the High Court erred in ordering what it said was a much wider inspection than was necessary. It was argued, among other things, sufficient weight was not given to the risk of environmental damage from the wider inspection.

A three-judge Court of Appeal this week, in a judgment delivered electronically, dismissed the appeal.

Mr Justice Seamus Noonan, on behalf of the appeal court, said the High Court was entitled to come to the conclusion that the proposed inspection protocol was compliant with the court's inspection order and was the "least intrusive" on the site in order to satisfy the defendant's requirements.

The court was also entitled to conclude the only real issue of relevance in the operators' objection was the potential for environmental damage and the necessity for the EPA to approve the inspection works meant this concern was not justified, he said.
With shortages of masks, gloves and testing kits hampering the fight against the coronavirus in Canada, there is one important weapon that remains unused  rapid blood tests that will tell within 15 minutes if someone has been exposed.

These tests cannot detect early infections because the body's immune system hasn't had time to produce antibodies against the virus. But about five to seven days after symptoms show up, they could be used to determine who has been infected and who has not  which would provide a more accurate picture of Canada's epidemic, including identifying people who were asymptomatic or had only mild infections.

The rapid blood tests are already being used in Europe, Asia, Australia and the U.S. Some academic laboratories are also developing COVID blood tests.

But so far none of those tests has been approved for use in Canada.

One company, BTNX Inc., in Markham, Ont., is shipping thousands of rapid tests to hospitals in the U.S.

Mitchell Pittaway, the company's chief financial officer, said he would rather be distributing the tests in Canada.

"The response [from Health Canada] has been a bit longer than what we would have liked to have seen," Pittaway said. "The U.S. has been much quicker."

Similar to blood glucose test

This week his company shipped 20,000 tests to U.S. hospitals. It will be sending another 200,000 to the U.S. next week.

"As a Canadian company with Canadian staff, ideally we would love to have all of this capacity blocked off for Canada, but we're not able to step back and not address needs coming from other countries."

BTNX Inc.

The test kit sells for about $10 US and it uses a simple finger-prick of blood to reveal whether someone has been infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

"It's similar to a blood glucose test," said Pittaway. "Put a droplet of blood in the sample well, followed by two droplets of buffer, and after 15 minutes there will be a reaction." That's if the person has been infected with COVID-19. There will be no red lines on the test paper if there are no antibodies detected in the blood.

Story continues

The company reports that the test is highly sensitive and specific for the COVID-19 virus, but does not recommend it as stand-alone confirmation of an infection, and the test can be complicated if a person has been infected by milder coronavirus strains.

Still, Pittaway said the test could help reduce the current strain on the laboratory testing system by prioritizing anyone who gets a positive result on the blood test.

Health Canada reviewing

There is a risk of false positives and false negatives with any test. That's one reason Health Canada is taking a close look at the rapid blood tests before approving them for use in Canada

"The department is working with the National Microbiology Laboratory to validate testing and research, along with expert advice, so that we can have confidence in the test results," Health Canada spokesperson Geoffroy Legault-Thivierge said in an email.

In the U.S., the FDA granted expedited approval for their use by health care professionals only.

"And that's the same as we're pursuing in Canada," said Pittaway There are more than a dozen companies ready with blood tests and waiting for Health Canada to give them the go-ahead.

"Our application to Health Canada was submitted and under review," Bryan Fang, a spokesperson for Healgen Scientific said in an email. "Health Canada will release the information once it is approved."

Healgen Scientific

Fang said his company received European approval back in February to supply a rapid COVID-19 test to the U.K., France and Italy.

"We are increasing our capacity every day," Fang said Wednesday. "As of today, we can make 500-600K per day."

Swab test kits prioritized

Two weeks ago, Canada's health minister signed an interim order to speed up approvals for COVID-19 tests and other medical devices. Rapid blood tests are being considered under that order

"These tests are also being accepted for review; however, the World Health Organization does not currently recommend serological tests for clinical diagnosis, and Health Canada is following this advice," said Legault-Thivierge, adding that Health Canada officials are giving the traditional PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing kits priority under the interim order.

Evan Tsuyoshi Mitsui/CBC

The laboratory-based PCR test is the only one that can detect an infection in the early stages, using a nasal swab inserted into a patient's nose. That sample is sent to a hospital or provincial lab, where specialized machines try to detect the virus's genetic material.

But a cross-Canada shortage of testing kits, machines and trained laboratory staff means many COVID-19 cases are being missed, and provincial case counts are underestimating the extent of the epidemic in Canada.

People are still shocked to learn that they might not be tested despite having symptoms or being in close contact with someone who is infected. Even in nursing homes with active COVID-19 outbreaks, Ontario is still only testing people with symptoms.

Dr. Samir Sinha, director of geriatrics at Toronto's Sinai Health Systems, told CBC Toronto's Mike Crawley that everyone in an affected long-term care facility should be tested.

"That's important so that we don't miss cases that could allow us to further spread this virus around and potentially kill more people," he said.

Across Canada, researchers are scrambling to increase PCR testing capacity. At the University of Toronto, Keith Pardee is developing a portable test system that uses different chemicals than the ones currently running short. His test is not yet approved for use, but he hopes to have patient trials completed by early next month.

At the University of Calgary, Dr. Dylan Pillai is developing another alternative to the PCR test that would also be portable and use different chemicals. He said he could be ready within two weeks to help take the load off the laboratories.

"We have a working assay already developed and we're just in the process of validating that," he said.

With new research suggesting there could be a substantial number of people infected without showing any symptoms, experts are increasingly recommending the use of population-wide rapid blood tests as an important tool in the process of returning to normal. The blood tests will reveal how many people have already been exposed, and could therefore be expected to have at least some short-term immunity to the virus.
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One person was killed Thursday in Warri, Delta State, South-South Nigeria, during a clash between angry youth and soldiers enforcing the stay-at-home order in the state because of the coronavirus.

The Delta State government has identified the slain youth as Joseph Pessu, said to be 28 years old.

Information surrounding the clash is still hazy but two persons who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES attributed it to the highhandedness of the officials of the Nigerian Army who are patrolling the city.

In one of the video clips of the incident, some youth are seen running around, while thick black smoke could be seen billowing out of the area and the sound from gunshots heard from a distance.

I dont even understand what is wrong with these people, a voice, apparently from people who did the recording, could be heard from the background. Its so crazy, they are fighting with them.

Another clip of the incident showed some youth brutally assaulting a soldier.

The Commissioner for Information in Delta State, Charles Aniagwu, said the state government was worried about the killing and has requested the military authorities to investigate it.

READ ALSO:

Mr Aniagwu called on residents to remain calm and cooperate with the state government by staying indoors.

Meanwhile, the army authorities have asked Nigerians to report unprofessional conduct of their officers who are enforcing the lockdown across the country.
China stepping up efforts to provide test kits

From:ChinaDaily | 2020-04-01 10:56

Local producers ramp up production and exports as the pandemic fight outside the nation faces shortages of key materials

As COVID-19 spreads around the world, it is of paramount importance to test people in a timely manner to detect infections and formulate responses.

Thanks to much-improved research and development capabilities, Chinese companies were able to develop nucleic acid test kits quickly in January, soon after Chinese scientists published the genomic sequence of the virus, and then developed antibody tests later in February. They were also able to produce test kits in large volumes to help the country deal with the disease properly due to solid manufacturing capacity, industry experts said.

While the contagion's spread in China has already been effectively contained, a lack of test kits is becoming an issue in many other countries. Chinese test kit producers have ramped up production and exports, eyeing increasing overseas demand.

Xu Shan, secretary-general of the China Association for Medical Devices Industry, estimated that more than 100 Chinese companies have obtained CE marking by the European Union for their novel coronavirus test kits, or the permits for the products' commercial launch in the EU and other markets recognizing the designation.

By March 19, more than 64 Chinese in vitro diagnostic device producers had obtained the designation, which is also widely recognized in Southeast Asia, Central Asia and Africa, according to the Professional Community of Experimental Medicine, a national industry organization under the National Association of Health Industry and Enterprise Management.

The virus test kits of several Chinese companiesincluding BGI Group and Hunan province-based Sansure Biotech Inchave also become commercially available in the United States, with updated guidance from the United States Food and Drug Administration issued on March 16. The new policy allows eligible use of qualified products in clinical testing for the novel coronavirus before they have been officially approved or granted emergency use authorization by the FDA.

Previously, some Chinese companies submitted requests to the FDA for such authorization, which permits use of unapproved medical products or unapproved uses of approved medical products in a declared emergency to diagnose, treat or prevent serious or life-threatening diseases or conditions.

Shi Lichen, founder of Beijing Dingchen Consultancy, said it's very impressive that Chinese companies successfully developed an array of virus test kits in a very short time following the outbreak, and they are well-prepared to meet domestic and overseas demand.

Xu said recent messages from foreign trade associations and institutions seeking to purchase test kits often accumulate in a few hours as infections spike overseas. A WeChat group has been set up by the association to help link Chinese test kit providers with overseas buyers.

"Chinese companies didn't hesitate to develop test kits when the outbreak occurred, and they have made tremendous contributions to COVID-19 prevention and control in China. It makes sense that foreign countries with soaring testing demand are now seeking imports from China," she said.

Multinational companies took relatively more time to make decisions and produce products due to the large size of their organizations, and perhaps also because the outbreak first occurred in China, she added.

Wang Sizhen, co-founder and CEO of Genetron Holdings Ltda Beijing-based precision oncology companysaid he is very impressed with the capability Chinese companies have demonstrated during the COVID-19 struggle.

Wang cited one example. By Feb 2, nearly 130 Chinese companies had joined a campaign initiated a day earlier to suspend some ongoing businesses and scientific research programs so that resourcesincluding laboratories, devices, capital and personnelcould be used to accelerate infection detection and control of the COVID-19 outbreak.

"Chinese companies acted quickly based on their experience and capacity accumulated over the past two decades, especially in the IVD sectoran area that features interdisciplinary R&D, manufacturing and laboratory applications involving biology, physics, chemistry, materials, optoelectronics and genetics," he added.

The National Medical Products Administration said it had approved 11 nucleic acid test kits and eight antibody test kits as of March 17.

BGI Group developed two of the first four diagnostic tests that received emergency approval from the NMPA on Jan 26 for the novel coronavirus.

A subsidiary of BGI Group, BGI Genomics produced real-time fluorescent RT-PCR kits for specific testing of novel coronavirus. The kits received CE-IVD marking on Feb 26. The company announced on March 27 that it had received the FDA's formal EUA.

The PMseq metagenomics sequencing kits using BGI Group's combinatorial probe-anchor synthesis sequencing technology can rapidly detect viral sequences to identify and diagnose novel and other coronaviruses.

In addition, another subsidiary of BGI Group, MGI's ultra-high-throughput DNBSEQ-T7 sequencing system and analysis software, also received NMPA certification as Class III medical device to support future epidemic prevention and control efforts.

The genetic system can complete the entire novel coronavirus detection processfrom sample extraction to diagnosiswithin 20 hours.

More importantly, it can process 50 to 200 samples per run and deliver 100 megabytes of data per sample, ensuring extremely high virus detection accuracy as well as information on viral mutations, which is of great use in current and future clinical and epidemiological research in battling COVID-19.

BGI Group has also rapidly scaled up manufacturing following the COVID-19 outbreak.

By March 22, its total output of real-time fluorescent RT-PCR kits was capable of testing 4.72 million samples, and the test kits had been distributed to more than 70 countries and regions around the world, with international orders for more than 1 million tests.

In China, BGI had performed over 560,000 tests in its laboratories as of March 22, including 310,000 in Shenzhen, Guangdong province.

Sansure Biotech, one of the first six companies China approved to sell detection kits for the coronavirus, is operating at full capacity.

With a daily production capacity of 500,000 test kits, the company has distributed its products to more than 40 countries and regions to help curb the contagion, including donations to countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Sweden and Sierra Leone.

Wang's company, which has expertise in genetic solutions for cancer treatment, has a detection kit for novel coronavirus using PCR-fluorescence probing that received CE marking in late March.

It has also developed a new lower respiratory tract aerosol particle sampler that is pending approval. It will help alleviate two common problems of nucleic acid testslow viral load in throat swab samples and high risk of exposing medical staff to infection.

The company has donated a Genetron S5 sequencer and supporting instruments to a hospital in Wuhan, Hubei province. It can perform accurate molecular tests of clinical samples to yield comprehensive genomic data to help monitor mutations of the coronavirus, formulate preventive measures and develop related diagnostic kits, vaccines and drug treatment.

Chinese biotech and IVD companies invested heavily into the development and production of new test kits and genetic devices for rapid pathogen detection, even when a lack of testing resources hindered prevention and control of COVID-19 in China. It is great that their products can help other countries fight the contagion, Wang said.

However, Shi said it is important for Chinese companies to establish efficient overseas sales networks to better distribute products, especially because many of them lack experience in overseas markets as the domestic market has traditionally been their priority.
A seemingly routine pot bust turned into a dangerous situation for a pair of Pa. cops, as a young suspect battled back.

As WFMZ 69 News reports, the quickly escalating situation happened Tuesday evening in Alletown, as 18-year-old Kevin Silva-Heredia allegedly was dealing pot with a friend from a parked car.

But when police arrived in response to a call about suspicious activity, Silva-Heredia wasnt about to go quietly. Instead, Allentown police say he put one of their own in a chokehold, while grabbing for a second officers gun in an effort to disarm him or her.

Details from WFMZ:

Allentown police were dispatched to South Idaho and Mohawk streets about 5:30 p.m. to investigate a report of two men in a parked car, who were possibly dealing drugs. Responding police officers asked the two people inside  later identified as Silva-Heredia and co-defendant Anthony Silva Zackey  whether they had anything illegal in the car.

Silva-Heredia, who was in the passenger seat, stepped out of the car and allegedly became very argumentative when told to put his hands on the car for a pat down.

He said he wanted to get his mom and tried to walk away but was stopped. Thats when he allegedly tried to run from officers.

Silva-Heredia allegedly tried to grab an officers gun and placed another officer in a chokehold during the struggle, taking both officers to the ground. Police eventually took him into custody, and officers also apprehended Silva Zackey, who ran away.

A search of the car allegedly turned up a glass jar containing pot, a plastic bag of pot, plastic bags, two digital scales, cash and Xanax and Percocet pills.

Silva-Heredia faces felony counts of conspiracy, aggravated assault, and disarming a police officer. He also faces misdemeanor counts of drug possession, possession of drug paraphernalia, resisting arrest and simple assault.

Silva Zackey faces a felony count of conspiracy and misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest, drug possession and possession of drug paraphernalia.

At last report, both were lodged in county jail in lieu of posting bail or bond.

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Pune, India -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/02/2020 -- "Analytical Research Cognizance" has added latest research report on "Global Microfluidics Device Market", this report helps to analyze top manufacturers, regions, revenue, price, and also covers Industry sales channel, distributors, traders, dealers, research findings, conclusion, appendix and data source.



The Global Microfluidics Device Market report by wide-ranging study of the Microfluidics Device industry which covers comprehensively all aspects of the different industry verticals. This includes its past performance analysis, latest market performance estimation for the current year based on the drivers, challenges and trend. Furthermore, the future projection for the forecast period is also covered within the global Microfluidics Device industry report.



The Microfluidics Device market segmentation provides the customer a comprehensive overview of the overall Microfluidics Device industry, assisting them in making informed decisions through key insights into the Microfluidics Device market. The segmentation is done on the basis of product, region, and application.



Request a sample of Microfluidics Device Market report@ https://www.arcognizance.com/enquiry-sample/732379



Summary

The report forecast global Microfluidics Device market to grow to reach xxx Million USD in 2019 with a CAGR of xx% during the period 2020-2025.



The report offers detailed coverage of Microfluidics Device industry and main market trends. The market research includes historical and forecast market data, demand, application details, price trends, and company shares of the leading Microfluidics Device by geography. The report splits the market size, by volume and value, on the basis of application type and geography.



First, this report covers the present status and the future prospects of the global Microfluidics Device market for 2015-2025. And in this report, we analyze global market from 5 geographies: Asia-Pacific[China, Southeast Asia, India, Japan, Korea, Oceania], Europe[Germany, UK, France, Italy, Russia, Spain, Netherlands, Turkey, Switzerland], North America[United States, Canada, Mexico], Middle East & Africa[GCC, North Africa, South Africa], South America[Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, Chile, Peru].



At the same time, we classify Microfluidics Device according to the type, application by geography. More importantly, the report includes major countries market based on the type and application.



Finally, the report provides detailed profile and data information analysis of leading Microfluidics Device company.



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Key of Chapters as follows (Including and can be customized) :

Part 1:

Market Overview, Development, and Segment by Type, Application & Region

Part 2:

Global Market by company, Type, Application & Geography

Part 3-4:

Asia-Pacific Market by Type, Application & Geography

Part 5-6:

Europe Market by Type, Application & Geography

Part 7-8:

North America Market by Type, Application & Geography

Part 9-10:

South America Market by Type, Application & Geography

Part 11-12:

Middle East & Africa Market by Type, Application & Geography

Part 13:

Company information, Sales, Cost, Margin etc.

Part 14:

Conclusion



Market Segment as follows:

By Region

Asia-Pacific[China, Southeast Asia, India, Japan, Korea, Oceania]

Europe[Germany, UK, France, Italy, Russia, Spain, Netherlands, Turkey, Switzerland]

North America[United States, Canada, Mexico]

Middle East & Africa[GCC, North Africa, South Africa]

South America[Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, Chile, Peru]



Key Companies

Roche

Abbott Laboratories

Siemens Healthcare

Agilent Technologies

Fluidigm Corporation

Bio-Rad Laboratories

Cepheid

Dolomite Centre

Micronit Microfluidics

Johnson & Johnson

Becton, Dickinson And Company



Market by Type

Glass

Polymer

Silicon



Market by Application

Point Of Care Testing

Pharmaceutical And Life Science Research

Drug Delivery

Analytical Devices

Clinical And Veterinary Diagnostics

Environmental And Industrial



Each company covered in the Microfluidics Device market report includes a detailed company profile as well as their latest updates such as new product development, expansions, and acquisitions and mergers. The performance of each player in all Microfluidics Device industry verticals is covered in the report.



Some of the key information covered in the Microfluidics Device market report includes the market size, share for the segments, and the revenue generation in the market that includes the cost and profit statistics. This overall market outlook is the mainstay of the global Microfluidics Device market report. The report does not shy away from going the extra mile for the customers by providing them with all the latest developments in the Microfluidics Device market such as the news, updates, latest surveys conducted, as well as the substantial amount of statistics in tabular and graphical formats.



The report concludes with a detailed SWOT analysis to sum up the information covered in the global Microfluidics Device market report, making it easier for the customers to plan their activities accordingly and experience great success in their endeavors. For more information on the Microfluidics Device report, get in touch with arcognizance.



Major Point of TOC:

Chapter One: Market Overview

1.1 Market Definition

1.2 Market Development

1.3 By Type

1.4 By Application

1.5 By Region



Chapter Two: Global Market Status and Future Forecast

2.1 Global Market by Region

2.2 Global Market by Company

2.3 Global Market by Type

2.4 Global Market by Application

2.5 Global Market by Forecast



Chapter Three: Asia-Pacific Market Status and Future Forecast

3.1 Asia-Pacific Market by Region

3.2 Asia-Pacific Market by Type

3.3 Asia-Pacific Market by Application

3.4 Asia-Pacific Market by Forecast



Chapter Four: Asia-Pacific Market by Geography

4.1 China Market Status and Future Forecast

4.1.1 China Market by Type

4.1.2 China Market by Application

4.1.3 China Market by Forecast

4.2 Southeast Asia Market Status and Future Forecast

4.2.1 Southeast Asia Market by Type

4.2.2 Southeast Asia Market by Application

4.2.3 Southeast Asia Market by Forecast

4.3 India Market Status and Future Forecast

4.3.1 India Market by Type

4.3.2 India Market by Application

4.3.3 India Market by Forecast



Chapter Five: Europe Market Status and Future Forecast

5.1 Europe Market by Region

5.2 Europe Market by Type

5.3 Europe Market by Application

5.4 Europe Market by Forecast



Chapter Six: Europe Market by Geography

6.1 Germany Market Status and Future Forecast

6.1.1 Germany Market by Type

6.1.2 Germany Market by Application

6.1.3 Germany Market by Forecast

6.2 UK Market Status and Future Forecast

6.2.1 UK Market by Type

6.2.2 UK Market by Application

6.2.3 UK Market by Forecast

6.3 France Market Status and Future Forecast

6.3.1 France Market by Type

6.3.2 France Market by Application

6.3.3 France Market by Forecast



Chapter Seven: North America Market Status and Future Forecast

7.1 North America Market by Region

7.2 North America Market by Type

7.3 North America Market by Application

7.4 North America Market by Forecast



Chapter Eight: North America Market by Geography

8.1 United States Market Status and Future Forecast

8.1.1 United States Market by Type

8.1.2 United States Market by Application

8.1.3 United States Market by Forecast

8.2 Canada Market Status and Future Forecast

8.2.1 Canada Market by Type

8.2.2 Canada Market by Application

8.2.3 Canada Market by Forecast

8.3 Mexico Market Status and Future Forecast

8.3.1 Mexico Market by Type

8.3.2 Mexico Market by Application

8.3.3 Mexico Market by Forecast



Chapter Nine: South America Market Status and Future Forecast

9.1 South America Market by Region

9.2 South America Market by Type

9.3 South America Market by Application

9.4 South America Market by Forecast



Chapter Ten: South America Market by Geography

10.1 Brazil Market Status and Future Forecast

10.1.1 Brazil Market by Type

10.1.2 Brazil Market by Application

10.1.3 Brazil Market by Forecast

10.2 Argentina Market Status and Future Forecast

10.2.1 Argentina Market by Type

10.2.2 Argentina Market by Application

10.2.3 Argentina Market by Forecast

10.3 Columbia Market Status and Future Forecast

10.3.1 Columbia Market by Type

10.3.2 Columbia Market by Application

10.3.3 Columbia Market by Forecast



Chapter Eleven: Middle East & Africa Market Status and Future Forecast

11.1 Middle East & Africa Market by Region

11.2 Middle East & Africa Market by Type

11.3 Middle East & Africa Market by Application

11.4 Middle East & Africa Market by Forecast



Chapter Twelve: Middle East & Africa Market by Geography

12.1 GCC Market Status and Future Forecast

12.1.1 GCC Market by Type

12.1.2 GCC Market by Application

12.1.3 GCC Market by Forecast

12.2 North Africa Market Status and Future Forecast

12.2.1 North Africa Market by Type

12.2.2 North Africa Market by Application

12.2.3 North Africa Market by Forecast

12.3 South Africa Market Status and Future Forecast

12.3.1 South Africa Market by Type

12.3.2 South Africa Market by Application

12.3.3 South Africa Market by Forecast



Chapter Thirteen: Key Companies

13.1 Roche

13.1.1 Company Profile

13.1.2 Products & Services Overview

13.1.3 Sales Data List

13.2 Abbott Laboratories

13.3 Siemens Healthcare

13.4 Agilent Technologies

13.5 Fluidigm Corporation

13.6 Bio-Rad Laboratories

13.7 Cepheid

13.8 Dolomite Centre

13.9 Micronit Microfluidics

13.10 Johnson & Johnson

13.11 Becton, Dickinson And Company



Chapter Fourteen: Conclusion



If you have any special requirements, please let us know and we will offer you the report as you want.



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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:08:20|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Civil Service Bureau of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government said Thursday that 42 civil servants had been suspended from duty by the end of February for being arrested on participating in violent protests.

In a written reply to the HKSAR Legislative Council, the bureau said they are among the 43 civil servants under investigation or being prosecuted for suspected of participating in violent protests since June 2019.

If a civil servant is being investigated on whether he or she has committed a criminal offence, the authorities can suspend his or her duty according to the established mechanism, the bureau said.

The suspension is neither a disciplinary punishment nor an assumption of being guilty, but a decision regarding those civil servants temporarily unsuitable to perform their public duties, it added.

Months of violent protests, always accompanied by vandalism of shops and metro stations and bitter assaults on police and residents, plunged Hong Kong into chaos in the second half of last year, with social order damaged, the rule of law jeopardized and economic activities disrupted.

The bureau also said it is studying topics including requiring all civil servants to swear allegiance to the Basic Law and the HKSAR.
Human brains are three times larger, are organized differently, and mature for a longer period of time than those of our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees. Together, these characteristics are important for human cognition and social behavior, but their evolutionary origins remain unclear. To study brain growth and organization in the hominin species Australopithecus afarensis (famous for Lucy and Selam from Ethiopias Afar region) more than 3 million years ago, an international team of researchers scanned eight fossil skulls using conventional and synchrotron computed tomography. Published in the journal Science Advances, the findings show that while Australopithecus afarensis had an ape-like brain structure, the brain took longer to reach adult size, suggesting that infants may have had a longer dependence on caregivers, a human-like trait.

Australopithecus afarensis inhabited eastern Africa more than 3 million years ago  Lucy herself is estimated to be 3.2 million years old  and occupies a key position in the hominin family tree, as it is widely accepted to be ancestral to all later hominins, including the lineage leading to modern humans.

Lucy and her kin provide important evidence about early hominin behavior  -they walked upright, had brains that were around 20% larger than those of chimpanzees, and may have used sharp stone tools, said Dr. Zeresenay Alemseged, director of the Dikika field project and researcher at the University of Chicago.

The scientists produced high-resolution digital endocasts of the interior of Australopithecus afarensis skulls, where the anatomical structure of the brains could be visualized and analyzed. Based on these endocasts, they could measure brain volume and infer key aspects of cerebral organization from impressions of the brains structure.

A key difference between apes and humans involves the organization of the brains parietal lobe  important in the integration and processing of sensory information  and occipital lobe in the visual center at the rear of the brain.

The exceptionally preserved endocast of Selam, a skull and associated skeleton of an Australopithecus afarensis infant found at Dikika in 2000, has an unambiguous impression of the lunate sulcus  a fissure in the occipital lobe marking the boundary of the visual area that is more prominent and located more forward in apes than in humans  in an ape-like position.

The scan of the endocranial imprint of an adult Australopithecus afarensis fossil from Hadar (A.L. 162-28) reveals a previously undetected impression of the lunate sulcus, which is also in an ape-like position.

Some scientists had conjectured that human-like brain reorganization in australopiths was linked to behaviors that were more complex than those of their great ape relatives. Unfortunately, the lunate sulcus typically does not reproduce well on endocasts, so there was unresolved controversy about its position in Australopithecus.

A highlight of our work is how cutting-edge technology can clear up long-standing debates about these 3-million-year-old fossils, said Dr. William Kimbel, a paleoanthropologist in the Institute of Human Origins at Arizona State University.

Our ability to peer into the hidden details of bone and tooth structure with CT scans has truly revolutionized the science of our origins.

A comparison of infant and adult endocranial volumes also indicates more human-like protracted brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis, likely critical for the evolution of a long period of childhood learning in hominins.

The pace of dental development of the Dikika infant was broadly comparable to that of chimpanzees and therefore faster than in modern humans. But given that the brains of Australopithecus afarensis adults were roughly 20% larger than those of chimpanzees, the Dikika childs small endocranial volume suggests a prolonged period of brain development relative to chimpanzees.

The combination of apelike brain structure and humanlike protracted brain growth in Lucys species was unexpected, Dr. Kimbel said.

That finding supports the idea that human brain evolution was very much a piecemeal affair, with extended brain growth appearing before the origin of our own genus, Homo.

Among primates, different rates of growth and maturation are associated with different infant-care strategies, suggesting that the extended period of brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis may have been linked to a long dependence on caregivers.

Alternatively, slow brain growth could also primarily represent a way to spread the energetic requirements of dependent offspring over many years in environments where food is not always abundant.

In either case, protracted brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis provided the basis for subsequent evolution of the brain and social behavior in hominins and was likely critical for the evolution of a long period of childhood learning.

_____

Philipp Gunz et al. 2020. Australopithecus afarensis endocasts suggest ape-like brain organization and prolonged brain growth. Science Advances 6 (14): eaaz4729; doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aaz4729
Eritrea has begun a nationwide lockdown for 21 days to stem the spread of coronavirus.



The announcement came after the health ministry reported three new cases of the virus, putting the total number of infected individuals at 18.



One of them is a 13-year-old girl, who contracted the disease from her mother who had been abroad.



The other two patients had also arrived in the country before a ban on commercial flights, the health ministry said.



During the lockdown, all citizens in the one-party state and highly-militarised state, including public sector employees, must stay at home.



One member of each household is allowed to go out to buy essential food items during the day from grocery stores, which can remain open.



Pharmacies and banks are also continuing to provide services, but other trading activities and weekly markets have been stopped.



However, those living in rural areas engaged in farming are exempt from the lockdown as they are involved in food production.



Construction and trucking would also continue to function, the health ministry said.



The lockdown might entail considerable hardships on the daily lives of citizens, it admitted.



But the gravity of threat caused by the pandemic meant there was no other option, it said.

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:59:26|Editor: huaxia

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SHANGHAI, April 2 (Xinhua) -- People-to-people diplomacy plays a unique role in the global coronavirus fight, said a report released by a government-affiliated think tank in Shanghai on Thursday.

It is also a crucial counterforce against the forces of populism and anti-globalism, said the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies in the report titled "Working Together with One Heart: People-to-people Diplomacy in the Coronavirus Crisis."

As COVID-19 continues to spread worldwide, people have come to realize that only through global solidarity can a victory against the disease be secured, said the report.

The report identified non-state actors as important extra-governmental resources that have displayed immeasurable capacities, stating that such robust people-to-people diplomacy complements government efforts by providing additional channels for communication and coordination and is crucial to global epidemic prevention and control.

International non-state actor cooperation and people-to-people diplomacy should be seen as essential subsystems and vital links of the anti-virus global network, which underpins the robustness of the whole structure, said the report.

It emphasized that global solidarity and coordination not only help pool materials and manpower, but also help promote people's recognition of the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Many countries and international organizations offered aid for China's fight against the epidemic in the early stages to help weather the most difficult times.

As the epidemic rampages through the world, non-state actors in China such as charities and enterprises have become proactive contributors, donating medical materials and sharing anti-virus experience to aid other countries, it said.

These acts of goodwill and humanitarianism all reflect long-cherished Chinese values as expressed in such sayings as "Love has no boundaries" and "A favor, however trivial, should be returned with much greater kindness." It also shows the unique role of people-to-people diplomacy in this global epidemic fight, according to the report.
Editors note: This story has been updated after Dr. Michael Hirsh incorrectly stated the officer who tested positive for COVID-19 had been in contact with a suspect.

Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. on Wednesday afternoon announced there are 50 new cases of COVID-19 amid the ongoing pandemic.

The citys total number of cases is now 165, the manager said.

One member of the Worcester Police Department has tested positive, Augustus said. That officer is in isolation.

The officer was not in contact with any suspects but had participated in a voluntary test of police officers as the city worked to keep first responders safe.

City officials said Dr. Michael Hirsh, the medical director of Worcesters public health department, had incorrectly stated during a press conference Wednesday that the officer had been in direct contact with a suspect who showed symptoms of the virus.

Two other officers from the station are now in quarantine because they were in close contact with the other officer, according to Augustus and Hirsh.

Additionally, two members of the citys homeless population were taken for testing Wednesday afternoon after showing symptoms of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, Augustus said. Those two people will go to a city site for quarantine after testing is complete.

Worcester also provides nursing services to four area towns. There are 29 cases in Shrewsbury, 7 in Holden, 16 in Grafton and 4 in Leicester, Augustus said.

Massachusetts Department of Public Health on Wednesday afternoon announced 33 new deaths related to COVID-19. A total of 122 state residents have died since the outbreak began and at least 7,738 residents have tested positive.

There are 563 cases in Worcester County, DPH said.

Hirsh said that additional beds being set up at the citys DCU Center, as well as the use of facilities like the Beaumont Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Center in Worcester, will help provide enough space for patients as the largest wave of the outbreak is expected in mid-April.

Were going to have the surge capacity that we need when we feel the wave hit toward the end of next week, Hirsh said.

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About 40 parishioners usually volunteer at the pantry, but almost all of them are 65 or older, Majchrowicz said. About one third of them are no longer coming because they are in the group most vulnerable to serious complications from COVID-19 and they are staying at home as instructed.
The number of coronavirus patients in California who are in intensive care unit beds roughly quadrupled Wednesday from where it stood six days ago to 774 as officials said the state needs tens of thousands more such beds in coming weeks for an anticipated surge of cases.

Gov. Gavin Newsom opened a news conference Wednesday by stating a single number  774  because, he said, the number of people in ICU beds remains his focus, along with the number of people hospitalized in the state for COVID-19 (1855 people, roughly triple the figure from six days ago).

Thats the number I wake up to that I am most focused on as governor of the state California, Newsom said. Those numbers represent our most urgent need in terms of keeping people alive and keeping people healthy and safe in the state of California. It is incumbent that we prepare for a surge in the number of hospitalizations and the number of ICU patients.

The statistical models the state is using to guide the coronavirus response indicate the first phase of hospital capacity could be exceeded in the middle of May, officials said. Eventually the state may need approximately 27,000 more ICU beds.

The good news is we have time, Newsom said. Continue to practice safe physical distancing. Stay home. Connect with others.

Dr. Mark Ghaly, secretary of the state's Health and Human Services, said that if officials had not issued a stay-at-home directive and other precautionary measures that preceded the directive, California would have needed more than 700,000 hospital beds in a scenario in which millions of state residents got infected at a peak.

Ghaly said social distancing, paired with the states efforts to procure more equipment and beds, will help both decrease the number of expected cases and increase the surge capacity the health system can handle.

Now Playing: Jessica Boykin, 32, had stuck plenty of people with needles by the time she graduated from the nursing school at Los Medanos College in 2018, but nothing prepared her for the coronavirus pandemic. Now she's an ER nurse on the front lines, where equipment and staff are short. Many nursing students who are just inches away from graduation are hoping to join her, and begging the state to bend its licensing rules so they can work. Video: SFGATE

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Earlier in the week Newsom announced an initiative to recruit thousands of retired medical workers and students to increase hospital staff for the expected surge. As of Wednesday, 34,000 people had applied to join the battle against the virus, Newsom said.

Alejandro Serrano is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: alejandro.serrano@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @serrano_alej
By PTI

MUMBAI: Due to the coronavirus outbreak, Maharashtra is likely face a tricky political situation soon as Uddhav Thackeray, who took oath as the state chief minister in November last year, has to get elected to either House of the state legislature by the end of May.

Thackeray, who is still not a member of either the state Legislative Assembly or Council, was sworn in as the chief minister on November 28, 2019 following an unprecedented month-long political drama after the assembly poll results.

As per Article 164 (4) of the Constitution, a minister, who for any period of six consecutive months is not a member of the legislature shall at the expiration of that period ceases to be a minister.

The six-month period in Thackeray's case will end on May 28.

However, due to the coronavirus outbreak and the ongoing lockdown, the political activity in the state has come to a standstill.

The gram panchayat elections scheduled to be held in March were also deferred.

Nine legislative council seats are falling vacant on April 24 and Thackeray was set to be elected as an MLC during the biennial elections to these nine seats.

However, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has still not announced the election schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The ECI had earlier deferred the Rajya Sabha polls in view of COVID- 19 and said that the fresh date would be announced later.

Similarly, the by-election to the Maharashtra Legislative Council from the Dhule Nandurbar local authorities constituency scheduled on March 24 was also postponed.

According to sources, if the dates for the biennial elections to nine legislative council seats are not announced after the lockdown period ends on April 14, the state may head for a political logjam.

Thackeray may have to resign from his post and cannot be sworn in till he becomes a member of either house of the legislature.

Sources in the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), however, said the situation will not go that extent.

Sources said that in the past, NCP leader Fauzia Khan and Shiv Sena's Deepak Sawant, who were members of the legislative council, had continued as ministers after their term as MLC ended.

"But both- Fauzia Khan, who was school education minister in the Prithviraj Chavan government, and Deepak Sawant, who was health minister in the Devendra Fadnavis government- resigned later," sources said.

According to sources, Khan and Sawant were already members of the legislature and ministers so they could continue for another six months.

"But in Thackeray's case, he is not a member of the legislature and within six months, he has to become an MLA or an MLC. The six-month time-frame is not extended as per constitutional provisions," they said.

"The minister, in this case the chief minister, has to get elected in six months, failing which he ceases to be in the post," sources said.

This is a peculiar political situation for which Thackeray may have to step aside and make way for other Sena leaders like Eknath Shinde or Subhash Desai, who are ministers in his cabinet.

Sources, however, said that Thackeray would have the option of getting elected as one of the 12 Governor appointees.

Vacancies for the 12 seats will be in June.

When asked about it, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut told PTI, "We haven't given a thought to this issue as yet. But a solution would be found. A situation will not arise that the state may have to face a political crisis, I can say this with confidence."

In the past, Sushilkumar Shinde and Prithviraj Chavan had become chief ministers when they were not member of either house of the state legislature.

But within six months, Shinde was elected to the Assembly, while Chavan chose the Council route.

Sources said a Supreme Court judgement ruled that Article 164 (4) places a restriction on a non-member to continue as minister or chief minister unless he can get himself elected to the legislature within a period of six months from the date of his appointment.

The supreme court order was in respect to a case in Punjab where Tej Parkash Singh was made a minister in 1995 when he was not member of the legislature.

He failed to get himself elected in six months and resigned.

Talking to PTI, former state legislature principal secretary Anant Kalse said the court judgements in such cases are about misuse of Article 164 (4).

"In this (Thackeray's) case, there is no misuse.

There is an unprecedented situation due to which elections could not be held.

If the elections to the legislative council are not announced till May end, then the chief minister can resign and the entire council of ministers can take oath again," he said.

"Or else, he can become a member of the Legislative Council as a Governor appointee for the time being," he said.

A senior NCP minister said at present there are two governor appointee vacancies from the party quota.

Rahul Narvekar and Ram Wadkute, both NCP MLCs from the governor appointee category resigned as members to join the BJP before the assembly elections.

Narvekar is now a BJP MLA from Colaba in Mumbai.

"Everybody is now busy with coronavirus eradication. We have not given a thought to this issue as yet. But the matter would be resolved," a Congress minister said.
The Internal Revenue Service will not make Social Security recipients file a tax return to get their $1,200 coronavirus relief checks, reversing a policy that angered members of Congress and confused millions of older Americans.

Guidance published by the IRS on Monday said that people who dont normally have to file a tax return with the government would have to file a simple return to get their money.

Late Wednesday, as the outcry grew, Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin backtracked.

Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return need to take no action, and will receive their payment directly to their bank account, Mnuchin said in a news release.

The IRS will use the information on the Form SSA-1099 and Form RRB-1099 to generate $1,200 Economic Impact Payments to Social Security recipients who did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019. Recipients will receive these payments as a direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their benefits, the release said.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was among dozens of lawmakers blasting Treasury for making seniors jump through hoops to get their checks.

We called for this.



Because Social Security recipients, our vulnerable seniors, and people with disabilities MUST get the critical direct cash assistance from our new coronavirus response bill without having to file tax returns. https://t.co/CzL4ScCISO  Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) April 2, 2020

The $2.2 trillion relief package passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump specifically directed the IRS to use information from Form SSA-1099 and Form RRB-1099 to send the coronavirus relief payment without recipients having to take any action. Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, complained:

Despite language Congress passed in #COVID19 relief bill to ensure Social Security beneficiaries would NOT have to file taxes to receive direct relief, IRS issued guidance saying seniors DO have to file taxes. Thats ridiculous. IRS should follow the law that Congress passed  Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) April 1, 2020

The Washington Post reported that more than 15 million Americans on Social Security dont make enough money to file a tax return. The last time the government sent stimulus checks, during the last recession, an estimated 3.5 million Social Security recipients missed out on the money because they did not file a tax return, the Post reported.

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Elkon, a leading Turkish concrete batching plant manufacturer, said it has joined hands with Dubai's Al Khaleej Sugar Refinery for the construction of a major agro-industrial complex in Egypt that is set to start beet sugar production.

Based in Jebel Ali, Dubai, Al Khaleej Sugar was established in 1992 with a production capacity of 2400MT. Since the commencement of production in July 1995, it made remarkable progress to achieve the status of the largest standalone sugar refinery in the world, which was achieved during last few years, with a production capability of more than 7000 tons per day.

The plant in Egypt is being set up under a land deal signed between Canal Sugar Company and the Egyptian government and once competed it would see the production of 1 million tonnes of sugar annually.

A major Turkish group with over 40 years of experience, Elkon said the project is being developed at an investment of around $1 billion to help fill a supply gap in the market and make Egypt self-sufficient in sugar.

The construction and concrete supply for the project is being handled by a leading engineering and construction company in China.

As a solution for this vital project, the Chinese company has decided to buy Elkomix-135 Quick Master Compact Concrete Mixing Plant.-TradeArabia News Service
Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial.

RIO DE JANEIROMarcelo Rocha felt like he couldnt escape the news. The unburied victims of the coronavirus in Italy. A lockdown order in the United Kingdom. Brazil shutting most of its borders. But it all still seemed a little removed from the reality of a 22-year-old born and raised in Maua, a town in the outskirts of Sao Paulo.

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Then, on March 19, Cleonice Goncalves, a 63-year-old domestic worker, became the first confirmed death from COVID-19 in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The initial media reports portrayed her as an anonymous casualty of an invisible virus: no name, no background, just an occupation and an identity shaped by contrast. Like many low-income, breadwinning Brazilian women, Goncalves worked for the same family for years in one of the countrys most expensive ZIP codes, 75 miles from her own home. Her boss had recently returned from a trip to Italy and tested positive for the coronavirus. Goncalves, who suffered from high blood pressure and diabetes, was only diagnosed after her death.

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Goncalves passing was emblematic of Brazils indelible social disparities. For Rocha, it was a wakeup call. Goncalves, he realized, could have been his mother, who is also a housekeeperone of more than 6 million domestic workers nationwideand cant afford to stop working, even during a pandemic. In the days that followed, Rocha and other daughters and sons of women like Goncalves launched a manifesto called For Our Mothers Lives, demanding that domestic workers be put on paid leave. They are also collecting donations to help with rent, bills, and lost wagesanything that can make a difference in households where families are already having to choose between risking their health and going hungry. More importantly, Rocha says, were lending them a voice.

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The beginning of the coronavirus outbreak in Brazil can be traced back to the weddings and holidays abroad of the rich and famous. So far, most of the cases in the city of Rio de Janeiro have been in affluent neighborhoods, earning COVID-19 the nickname of disease of the wealthy among underserved communities. But as the countrys number of confirmed cases and deaths have continued to climb exponentiallycurrently 6,836 and 240, respectivelyit is only a matter of time before it cuts across the social divide. At least one case has been confirmed in a favela in Rio and one suspected death is being investigated. So what does that mean for the more than 13 million Brazilians living in favelas and other peripheral areas of the country?

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President Jair Bolsonaro has failed to rise to the challenge of leading the nation during this crisis. But in all of Brazils five regions, young community activists and journalists like Rocha are raising awareness about the particular ways in which a pandemic of global proportions affects their day-to-day lives and threatens their livelihoods. According to a recent study by the Data Favela institute, 7 out of 10 families in Brazils underserved communities have already seen their income go down, and 84 percent of families with children reported an increase in expenses since schools closed.

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While many of us are binge-watching documentaries about exotic animal parks and baking bread, they remind us that home offices and self-quarantine are the privilege of a few. For the as many as 35 million Brazilians who lack access to clean water, even the ability to wash ones hands is not guaranteed. Were not all in the same boat, Thamyra Thamara, from Rios group of favelas Complexo do Alemao, wrote in Marie Claire Brasil.

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Born and raised in these communities, the communicators, as they call themselves, formed a national coalition earlier in March to coordinate localized efforts to spread the word about prevention, promote helpful assistance services, and debunk fake news. The group now has more than 60 members across 10 different states. And they are finding creative ways to meet their neighbors where they are. In localities that lack internet connectivity, for example, the best strategy might be to hire a sound car to circulate through the streetsblasting messages like stay home, the coronavirus is not a flu, quit the parties and barbecuesor distribute fliers and signs in churches, bars, and lottery retail stores. Some groups have recorded funk songs with personal hygiene tips.

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It is hard to convince someone who has been leaving their house day after day despite gunshots and police operations that they are just now putting their life at risk.  Juliana Pinho

Via social media, communicators best practices and educational materials using hashtags like #CoronaInTheFavelas and #CoronaInThePeripheries to showcase their efforts. In its manifesto, the group addresses housekeepers, doormen, drivers, and delivery and informal workers. We need to point toward paths that really take our realities into account, the document says. From us to our own.

These community reporters are writing about the scarcity of gas cylinders and tracking the availability of hand sanitizer, while promoting crowdfunded campaigns to support waste pickers and street vendors. With their words and actions, they reject the prognosis that the favelados are doomed and can only brace for the worse. Often at a personal risk, they are tapping into their communities resourcefulness and resilience to collect and distribute donations of food supplies and hygiene products. Their actions have been acknowledged by Brazils minister of health, who praised the favelas for their wisdom and dignity in the face of a pandemic.

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As communicators and residents, we understand what is happening in these territories, says Juliana Pinho, a coalition member who lives in Nova Holanda, one of the 16 favelas of the Complexo da Mare in Rio de Janeiro. Pinho says it is important to adopt the communities language. The coalitions prevention tip sheets, entitled How Not to Flop in the Times of the Coronavirus, feature recommendations that reflect what is feasible in most of these areas (residents are encouraged to wash their hands with soap and water in the absence of hand sanitizer and to leave doors and windows open for ventilation) and boost solidarity among neighbors (if you have access to water, share the hose with others). We end up filling the void left by the state and we approach care not as an obligation, but as a display of affection, Pinho says.

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Traditionally forgotten and overlooked by public authorities, these vulnerable populations are skeptical that this time will be any different. In the city of Rio de Janeiro, the issue of intermittent access to clean water has been made worse by a monthslong supply crisis, and the states universal health care system infrastructure has been strained in recent years. Concerns over how a concomitant spike in seasonal H1N1 influenza and dengue cases could overload the public system have led states to anticipate their vaccination calendar.

This week, the Senate approved an emergency aid plan dubbed corona voucher for informal workerswho make up 47 percent of the population of favelasof roughly U.S.$115 for at least three months. But other challenges remain, like the impediments to social distancing in densely populated areas and cramped houses shared by several family members. Options to isolate vulnerable populations in ships and hotels are being considered, with few concrete steps taken so far. The lack of coordination between the state and federal governments has also hindered response efforts. President Jair Bolsonaro and state governors have been at odds with each other over the appropriate restrictive measures, further aggravating the presidents political isolation. Bolsonaro continues to downplay the crisis, ignore social distancing recommendations, and contradict his own public health team.

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The community activists and reporters are also up against fake news. For weeks, the journalist Gisele Alexandre had been receiving questions about the coronavirus from neighbors and relatives at the Capao Redondo community in Sao Paulo. Some asked her to verify information and videos they were receiving on WhatsApp. So Alexandre decided to launch the podcast Manda Noticias (Send the News), a series of short audio clips she releases three times a week and can easily be shared on social media. The idea is to debunk unsupported claims, like the viral message that drinking hot water or tea could prevent the spread of the virus, or a video taken out of context that supposedly shows the minister of education encouraging children to go back to school. After only two weeks, at least 500 people have already subscribed to Alexandres podcast. Two- to three-minute audio bites are also the strategy behind the new Pandemia Sem Neurose (Pandemic Without Neurosis) podcast, which recently alerted listeners to personal data collection scams.

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In the meantime, residents of favelas are left with conflicting messages. Militias and organized crime groups are themselves telling people to stay home and imposing curfews. But worried about losing their income and emboldened by the presidents discourse that the country and the economy cant stop, many people are choosing to go back to the streets and open up their shops. It is hard to convince someone who has been leaving his or her house early in the morning to work and coming back late at night day after day despite gunshots and police operations that they are just now putting their life at risk, says Pinho.

Rocha describes the governments handling of the crisis as the perpetuation of a culture of genocide. Were all going to die one day, Bolsonaro said this week while once again opposing a lockdown. But Rocha and his friends and neighbors know that, when it comes down to it, its often their lives that are claimed. If the government looks at us and says that were going to die, we respond by saying, what can we do to keep us alive? Rocha says. We will make ourselves be seen.
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Thursday said it will approach the Supreme Court against the Kerala HC order which asked the central government to unseal the Karnataka-Kerala border for movement of patients with medical emergencies and essential goods.

After a review meeting, home minister Basavaraj Bommai told News18, "We are appealing. Karnataka is going for a special leave petition in the Supreme Court. We have got the option to go to the SC and we are going to the SC."

Even since lockdown was announced on March 25 to arrest the spread of coronavirus, most states sealed off their inter-state borders to restrict movement of people. While essential services and goods vehicles were allowed to cross borders, as per the guidelines, some villages along the Karnataka side of the border with Kerala created a blockade, completely restricting movement of even essential services.

Over the past week, many roads connecting Kerala to Karnataka, particularly the roads from Dakshina Kannada and Kodagu districts of Karnataka linking Kasaragod in Kerala, have been blocked. A few overzealous locals have even built seven-foot mud-walls to ensure no one travels from Kerala to Karnataka over fears that they could be carriers of the Covid-19 disease. In some cases, locals parked large JCBs to ensure no vehicular movement from Kerala.

Fuelling these fears, Mysore-Kodagu MP Pratap Simha accused Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan of sending back labourers across the border in vegetable trucks, when high number of coronavirus cases were registered in adjacent areas. Simha had tweeted that Karnataka authorities would not be pressurised under any circumstances.

CM @vijayanpinarayi Sir, ur home dist Kannur, which is adjacent2 Coorg, has too many Corona cases n u r sending back labourers using vegetable carrying trucks. So we hv blocked the road today. Dont try to put pressure on Kar Chief Secretary to open the border. We will not allow. pic.twitter.com/xDmxs37Qx1 Pratap Simha (@mepratap) March 27, 2020

He even thanked chief minister BS Yediyurappa for sticking to his ground and asked for other borders to also be sealed.

Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan addressed two letters to the Prime Minister to intervene. However, no action was taken by the Centre. Many patients who avail medical facilities in the coastal Karnataka town of Mangalore could not be brought in ambulances. Essential supplies like vegetables to many hilly regions of Kerala were also cut off.

On Wednesday, a Kerala HC bench, hearing a petition by the Kerala High Court Advocates Association, directed the Centre to remove the blockade and allow essentials services and supplies to be resumed. Denial of health services amounts to infringement of right to life under Article 21 and also affects the right to freedom of movement under Article 19(1) (d) of the Constitution, it said.

The Kerala HC asked the Union government to intervene as the arterial roads that connect Mangalore to Kasaragod are part of the national highway network. Hence, it is the duty of the central government to ensure that roads are blockade-free.

Kerala MP Rajmohan Unnithan, meanwhile, approached the Supreme Court and argued that the blockade was a vindictive action by the Karnataka government and a human rights violation.

"Two people died because ambulance was not allowed. The condition of people is very bad. Cancer patients, dialysis patients are not able to go to hospital. Vegetable supply from states like Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat all come through these routes. If they lock the border, it will be huge trouble for us, Unnithan told CNN-News18.

The district of Dakshin Kannada had called for a 72-hour complete lockdown, stating that the neighbouring district of Kasaragod was a Covid-19 hotspot. Even Karnataka's leader of opposition and former CM Siddaramaiah urged the state to allow passage on humanitarian grounds, stating that the fight against coronavirus was beyond caste, religion and boundary.

Critical & essential travel from Kasaragod to Mangaluru should be allowed on humanitarian grounds.Patients from Kerala seeking medical assistance in Karnataka can be allowed with adequate precautionary measures.Our fight against Corona is beyond caste, religion & boundary. Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) April 1, 2020

Former PM Deve Gowda, too, batted for Kerala, telling Pinarayi Vijayan in a letter that he would take up this cause with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the latter had assured that hospital facilities and essential commodities will be available to all round-the-clock during the 21-day lockdown.

"Hope with our efforts, better wisdom prevails upon the BJP government and we are would be able to restore the access between the two states through the Mangaluru-Kasaragod highway at the earliest," he wrote to Vijayan.
M ore than 70 workers at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London have tested positive for coronavirus.

Some 181 staff members at the children's hospital have so far been tested, of which 73 were found to have the virus.

Around 315 workers are also now self-isolating at home, although the hospital insists this has not impacted its services.

Great Ormond Street itself has eight confirmed Covid-19 patients in its care at the moment.

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures 1 /81 Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures A deserted Westminster Bridge PA A man wearing a face mask or covering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past customers sat outside a restaurant AFP via Getty Images Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Runners pass cardboard cutouts of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William during the London Marathon in London AP An empty escalator at Charing Coss London Underground tube station Jeremy Selwyn Electronic bilboards displays a message warning people to stay home in Sheffield PA A sign is displayed in the window of a student accommodation building following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Mancheste Reuters People take part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions, in Londo AP People sing and dance in Leicester Square on the eve on the 10PM curfew Reuters Hearts painted by a team of artists from Upfest are seen in the grass at Queen Square, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bristol Reuters Graffiti reads 'good luck and stay safe', as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, under a bridge in London Reuters A sign is pictured in Soho, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London Reuters Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures, during a coronavirus briefing in Downing Street, London AP A person runs past posters with a message of hope, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Manchester REUTERS Riot police face protesters who took part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions in London AP An image of The Queen eith quotes from her broadcast to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the Coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images Durdle Door in Dorset Reuters Captain Tom Moore via Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Coronavirus outbreak PA An NHS worker reacts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS Reuters Goats which have taken over the deserted streets of Llandudno @AndrewStuart via PA Tobias Weller PA Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed London Landscapes: Hyde Park and the Serpentine, central London. Matt Writtle A newspaper vendor in Manchester city centre giving away free toilet rolls with every paper bought as shops run low on supplies due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus PA Theo Clay looks out of his window next to his hand-drawn picture of a rainbow in Liverpool, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue Reuters A young man cuts another man's hair on top of a closed hairdresser in Oxford Reuters General view of the new NHS Nightingale Hospital, built to fight against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London via Reuters Jason Baird is seen dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children in Stockport, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters A woman wearing a face mask walks past Buckingham Palace Getty Images A man holds mobile phone displaying a text message alert sent by the government warning that new rules are in force across the UK and people must stay at home PA Medical staff on the Covid-19 ward at the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, in Wales, as the health services continue their response to the coronavirus outbreak. PA Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking part in a virtual Cabinet meeting with his top team of ministers PA A shopper walks past empty shelves in a Lidl store on in Wallington. After spates of "panic buying" cleared supermarket shelves of items like toilet paper and cleaning products, stores across the UK have introduced limits on purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have also created special time slots for the elderly and other shoppers vulnerable to the new coronavirus. Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour PA Mia, aged 8 and her brother Jack, aged 5 from Essex, continue their school work at home, after being sent home due to the coronavirus PA Children are painting 'Chase the rainbows' artwork and springing up in windows across the country Reuters Social distancing in Primrose Hill Jeremy Selwyn A general view of a locked gate at Anfield, Liverpool as The Premier League has been suspended PA Homeless people in London AFP via Getty Images A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow's street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss PA The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace, London, for Windsor Castle to socially distance herself amid the coronavirus pandemic PA A general view on Grey street, Newcastle as coronavirus cases grow around the world Reuters Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty (L) and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance look on as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he speaks during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news conference inside 10 Downing Street Reuters The ticket-validation terminals at the tram stop on Edinburgh's Princes Street are cleaned following the coronavirus outbreak. PA Locked school gates at Rockcliffe First School in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A sign at a Sainsbury's supermarket informs customers that limits have been set on a small number of products as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases grow around the world Reuters Jawad Javed delivers coronavirus protection kits that he and his wife have put together to the vulnerable people of their community of Stenhousemuir, between Glasgow and Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" Getty Images A man who appears to be homeless sleeping wearing a mask today in Victoria Jeremy Selwyn A pedestrian walks past graffiti that reads "Diseases are in the City" in Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images Staff from The Lyric Theatre, London inform patrons, as it shuts its doors PA A quiet looking George IV Bridge in Edinburgh PA A quieter than usual British Museum Getty Images A racegoer attends Cheltenham in a fashionable face mask SplashNews.com A commuter wears a face mask at London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn A empty restaurant in the Bull Ring Shopping Centre Getty Images A deserted Trafalgar Square in London PA Passengers determined to avoid the coronavirus before leaving the UK arrive at Gatwick Airport Getty Images

A spokesman for the hospital said: "We continue to monitor Covid-19 related staff absence carefully which currently equates to six per cent of our workforce and are able to fully staff all of the services we have planned to run at this time.

The Bloomsbury based centre is one of the world's leading children's hospitals and is the largest clinic for child heart surgery in the UK.

The news comes as the Government faces sustained criticism that NHS workers do not have the proper personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep them safe while they treat patients with the infectious disease.

Great Ormond Street Hospital through the ages 1 /20 Great Ormond Street Hospital through the ages TV puppet Basil Brush entertains children at GOSH in January 1974 Getty/Hulton Archive Staff nurse Rowena Joseph tends to a patient in February 1979 Getty/Hulton Archive Child patients gather on an old balcony at the hospital, weeks after the end of the Second World War in Europe. GOSH was badly damaged during the blitz and relied on philanthropy for a rebuilding project Getty/Hulton Archive Members of the public surround a stall at a fete held in 1909 to raise money for Great Ormond Street Getty/Hulton Archive Young GOSH patients play with presents 10 days before Christmas in 1932 Getty/Hulton Archive British F1 driver James Hunt meets children on February 3, 1977 Getty/Hulton Archive The Hospital for Sick Children, as it was then known, shortly after it opened in 1852 Getty/Hulton Archive One of Great Ormond Street's earliest patients, a young girl pictured in about 1867 Getty/Hulton Archive A young boy has his hearing tested in August 1954. Patients would be checked in a soundproofed room where they were asked to press buttons in response to sounds being broadcast through a loudspeaker Getty/Hulton Archive A GOSH patient is fed honey sent to the hospital as a gift from Buenos Aires in 1943 Getty/Hulton Archive An old ward of the hospital pictured in 1949 Getty/Hulton Archive A young patients opens his stocking early following Blitz air raids 1940 Getty/Hulton Archive A nurse cares for a young girl at the hospital in 1913 Getty/Hulton Archive Well-known '40s dancer Alma Jones gives presents to a young GOSH patients on a Christmas visit in 1945 Getty/Hulton Archive Patients and staff pose for pictures in December 1913 Getty/Hulton Archive

Former World Health Organisation director Anthony Costello first revealed the figures on Thursday, tweeting that he had received an email informing him of the outbreak in the hospital.

He shared a snippet from the message which read: "We now have eight Covid-19 positive patients across the hospital.

"Through our staff testing, we have had 73 confirmed Covid positive staff members out of 181 tested.

"318 staff members are currently off work because they, or someone in their household, are displaying symptoms. This is similar to yesterday."

Mr Costello went on to express concern that adequate measured were not being taken to protect workers in the hospital.

He said: "An informant tells me social distancing in the hospital is a fiction," before adding: "Many team members do handovers in a small office space without the use of masks."

However, Downing Street insists that PPE is now reaching the medical front line  with more than 45 million units delivered to NHS trusts and providers on Wednesday.

Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast:

The Prime Ministers official spokesman said: We have now delivered 397 million products of PPE over the past two weeks, including masks, alcohol hand rub and aprons.

Yesterday, over 45.5 million units of PPE were delivered to 280 trusts and providers, including five million aprons, one million of the FFP3 face masks, six million surgical masks and 21 million gloves.

We do recognise that there have been some distribution problems while we have been dealing with the surge in demand.
New York City has already set up 45 new mobile morgues. Local crematories are now allowed to work around the clock. At one Brooklyn hospital, the in-house morgue was filled to capacity on Tuesday. The next day, the nursing staff ran out of body bags.

As the coronavirus epidemic enters its second month, the casualties in New York are starting to severely tax the citys ability to accommodate its dead. With more than 1,000 deaths so far and thousands more projected, city officials are working hard to stave off an emergency.

In the past few days, the citys medical examiners office has taken over the collection of bodies, dispatching the fleet of new refrigerated trailers to hospitals in all five boroughs, some of whose morgues have already filled up. Funeral homes are becoming backed up. And, running on smaller staffs, cemeteries and crematories are scrambling to keep up with demand.

Its taking longer for the bodies to be released and for the bodies to be transferred, said Patrick J. Kearns, a fourth-generation funeral director who operates three funeral homes in Queens and one on Long Island. When you overwhelm the health system, you also overwhelm the death system.
A survey conducted by the US Conference of Mayors and released on Friday documents the urgent need by cities across the country for medical equipment and supplies to care for those infected by the coronavirus and for testing kits to contain the accelerating pandemic. With coronavirus cases in the United States topping 210,000 and the death toll approaching 5,000, including more than 800 deaths just in the last day, the survey makes clear that there is no region in any state prepared to deal with the crisis.

Martina Papponetti, 25, a nurse at the Humanitas Gavazzeni Hospital in Bergamo, Italy poses for a portrait at the end of her shift, March 27, 2020. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

The exponential spread of the pandemic is underscored by comparing the situation as of Wednesday with the situation just one month ago. At that time, the US had suffered two deaths and the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases was 89. Virtually all projections, moreover, say that the country is only on the cusp of an acceleration whose apex is still several weeks away.

New York State continues to be the most hard-hit region, with 83,712 cases (now more than China) and 1,941 deaths. This includes 7,729 new cases and 227 new reported deaths.

The survey covered 213 cities in 42 states and territories, which are home to a total of 42 million people and include areas with populations ranging from 2,000 to 3.8 million people. This includes 45 cities with a population below 50,000 and six with populations greater than one million. Among the cities surveyed are some of the most inundated metropolitan regions, including Detroit, New Orleans, San Francisco and Las Vegas.

In summary, the responses from the cities show that:

92.1 percent do not have enough test kits to trace and contain the pandemic in their region

91.5 percent of cities do not have enough masks for either first responders or medical personnel

88.2 percent do not have enough other personal protective equipment for these workers

85 percent do not have enough ventilators to keep severely and critically ill patients alive

62.4 percent have received no emergency supplies from their state

This snapshot of the utter failure of the richest country in the world, with by far the greatest collection of billionaires, to mount an effective and coordinated response to the virus is an unanswerable indictment of the entire political and economic system of capitalism. The naked indifference, ignorance and cruelty of the president, Donald Trump, is only the most concentrated and odious expression of the outlook that prevails within the ruling elite and both of its political parties.

Some cities provided estimates of what they need to fight the disease outbreaks in their cities. These include:

28.5 million face masks

24.4 million other PPE items

7.9 million test kits

139,000 ventilators

New York City, the current epicenter of the contagion in the US, did not respond to the survey, meaning the actual need across the country could be double or more what is reported.

What cities and states are being promised by the Trump administration is a mere fraction of these needs, and the majority of urgently needed supplies are still weeks if not months away.

These numbers are an indication of what is to come in cities across the country. The Trump administration is currently projecting a best-case scenario of between 100,000 and 240,000 coronavirus deaths in the USalready a human and social catastropheand calling this a good outcome. But the disastrous lack of medical supplies around the country suggests that many times that figure will die as cities and states are overwhelmed by the disease and are unable to provide even basic medical care to those infected, or protection to doctors, nurses, medical staff and first responders.

The survey also sheds light on the chaotic distribution of goods from the federal to local and state governments. When asked about its materials on hand, Montgomery, Alabama responded that the masks it received had expired despite having been approved by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Of these, 13 percent were dry rotted.

Los Angeles has separately reported that the 170 ventilators it received from the federal government arrived broken and had to be fixed. Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker announced that instead of getting a shipment of 300,000 N95 respiratory masks, his state was instead sent thousands of surgical masks, which are far less effective in preventing infection.

Moreover, mayors and governors are complaining that they are being forced to bid against one another as well as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to buy equipment on the market, resulting in price gouging that pushes up costs by factors of five-fold, ten-fold or more.

None of this information on the dire situation facing the American people made its way into yesterdays White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing. The event opened not with the state of the pandemic, but with Commander in Chief Donald Trump, flanked by Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, other uniformed military brass and Attorney General William Barr, announcing an enhanced counter-narcotics operation in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean, targeting Venezuela.

During the second part of the press conference, Trump continued to make the false claim that, Nobody could have known a thing like this could happen, despite the fact that his administration was well aware of the possibility. It is reported, for example, that Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar alerted the National Security Council as early as January 3 of the dire implications for the US of the coronavirus outbreak in China.

Vice President Mike Pence in an interview earlier Wednesday on CNN claimed that Trump never underestimated the threat represented by the virus and instead blamed the delay in responding on the CDC and China. He said that in mid-January the CDC was still assessing that the risk of the coronavirus to the American people was low, and added, The reality is that we couldve been better off if China had been more forthcoming.

At no point during the press conference did Trump express sympathy for the families of the dead or the hundreds of thousands infected. Instead, he boasted of the 11 companies making ventilators right now, singling out Ford and GM. No mention was made of the unsafe and virus-infected conditions being imposed on their workers. He went on to tout a new big order from WalMart for medical supplies and the purchase of 2.2 million gowns for the national stockpile from [Ohio-based] Cardinal Health.

As the survey of the countrys mayors shows, 2.2 million gowns are about a tenth of what is actually needed to keep medical workers safe from the virus. But none of the members of the servile press even brought up the damning report by the US Conference of Mayors, or any of the other multitudinous and tragic facts that expose the absurd and lying presentations given out daily by the White House.

Instead, Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx, the medical figureheads aiding and abetting the criminal indifference of the task force, continued to promote the newly extended social distancing guidelines from the White House. What they did not say is that while such actions can slow the spread of the virus, they do nothing to ultimately stop the pandemic from continuing.

As the World Health Organization has repeatedly stressed, measures that increase social distancing such as canceling sporting events may help to reduce transmission, but the only way to properly fight the pandemic and prevent a resurgence of the virus is to find, isolate, test and treat every case, to break the chains of transmission.

Fauci said that at some point, I think it makes sense that you are going to have to relax social distancing. The one thing we hopefully would have in place, and I think we will have in place, is a much more robust system to be able to identify someone whos infected, isolate them and do contact tracing. Because if you have a really good program of containment, that prevents you from ever having to get into mitigation.

In other words, there will hopefully be in the future the infrastructure needed to know exactly who is infected and isolate and treat those individuals. In the meantime, however, the government has essentially given up on testing and contact tracing. Its guidelines themselves tell people to stay home if they are sick, rather than get tested, and local health officials are testing only those who require hospitalization.

Fauci is arguing, in effect, that instead of training new workers for the public health system and providing them the tools necessary to track the virus, tens or hundreds of millions of people should accept the fact that they will get infected and possibly die.

Nor was any mention made of the colossal sums of money, more than 6 trillion dollars, to be handed over to the corporations and banks under the massive bailout bill passed by Congress last week in a near-unanimous bipartisan vote. In contrast, a mere pittance has been allotted to hospitals under siege from the pandemic and only temporary and completely inadequate aid to workers who face the loss of their jobs and livelihoods.

This must be categorically rejected by the working class. Alongside the urgent need for the medical equipment and personnel to provide the necessary care for those infected, there must be a clear plan that includes a robust, well-designed and international strategy to test broadly and identify the silent movement of the infection deep in the community.

The resources exist to combat the pandemic and save untold numbers of lives. But the allocation of those resources requires the independent mass mobilization of the working class in opposition to the ruling elite that monopolizes the wealth produced by the workers. The struggle against the pandemic is inseparable from a struggle against capitalism.
A woman who claimed she had the coronavirus as she drooled and spit" on a State Police trooper is among the latest people in New Jersey charged with aggravated assault on an officer, officials said Thursday.

Col. Patrick Callahan, superintendent of the State Police, said the woman, who he didnt name, was pulled over in Morris County sometime Wednesday and found to have an active warrant. Her arrest occurred the same day the states attorney general announced six people who engaged in similar behavior toward police faced upgraded charges.

I was pleased to see what the attorney general did with his announcement yesterday that that is not disorderly conduct (charge), Callahan said during the states daily coronavirus press briefing.

Gov. Phil Murphy referred to the six people already facing charges as knucklehead row on Thursday and said the state would also continue its crackdown on these cases.

If you engage in such reckless behaviors you are going to face, at the very least, fines of up to $10,000 and up to 18 months in jail, Murphy said.

The governor also the police would continue to crackdown on people who ignore orders to stay indoors unless necessary and not gather in public to help curb the spread of the virus.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Hello, you cant have a gathering, Murphy said.

Callahan said there were six other virus-related enforcement actions police took over the past day, including breaking up a funeral in Lakewood with 60 to 70 people attending. The funeral marked the fourth consecutive day police have been called to gatherings in Lakewood in violation of the emergency order set in place in March to slow the spread of the virus.

Newark police also closed 4 businesses and issued 130 summonses for violating state lockdown rules in the third consecutive night of enforcement efforts that involved handing out at least 100 tickets.

Callahan also cited an incident in Edison where a person facing a drug arrest coughed and claimed to have the coronavirus. In another, a man who had a vehicle towed claimed to have coronavirus and threatened to spit on the door handles of his vehicle, Callahan said. He also referenced a party in Morristown that led to a charge against one person, without providing details.

New Jersey now has at least 25,590 cases of COVID-19, including at least 537 deaths, officials said Thursday. Only New York has more among U.S. states.

Murphy said Wednesday night New Jerseyans should expect the fallout from the virus will drag deep into May.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

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The West African Health Organisation (WAHO) has distributed over 30,000 diagnostic test kits to the 15 ECOWAS Member States as part of measures by the bloc to help combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic in the sub-region.



Since the first case of the deadly coronavirus, otherwise known as COVID-19, was reported from Lagos, Nigeria on February 27, 2020, the ECOWAS region, comprising 15 Member States has recorded a total of 1,077 new confirmed cases and 31 deaths as of March 31, 2020.



A statement issued by WAHO on April 1, 2020, said the bloc was currently distributing 50,000 specimen transportation kits, 10,000 personal protective equipment (PPE), and some medications to Member States.



It adds that Many States have received their allocation of diagnostic kits, but all the other support are expected to be delivered to the countries by DHL between 30 March and 7 April.



We have placed orders for more diagnostic test kits and PPEs which we expect to arrive within the next 2 weeks. In addition, we are sourcing for ventilators which are equipment for supporting the breathing of severely ill patients in hospitals to distribute to countries. All these efforts are to supplement what individual countries are doing by themselves, the statement added.



WAHO is the specialized institution of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) responsible for health issues. Its mission is to attain the highest possible standard and protection of health of the peoples in the sub-region through the harmonization of the policies of the Member States, pooling of resources, and cooperation with one another and with others for a collective and strategic fight against the health problems of the sub-region.



Below is the statement



1 April 2020 - The Covid-19 pandemic is rapidly evolving in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region since the first case was reported from Lagos, Nigeria on 27 February 2020. As of yesterday, 31 March 2020, a total of 1,077 new confirmed cases and 31 deaths have been reported across all 15 Member States. Sierra Leone was the last country in the ECOWAS region to be affected and reported a confirmed Covid-19 case on 31 March 2020.



The West African Health Organization, WAHO has distributed over 30,000 diagnostic test kits to the 15 ECOWAS Member States and these were the first testing kits received by most of our countries, and we are also currently distributing 50,000 specimen transportation kits, 10,000 personal protective equipment (PPE), and some medications to Member States. Many States have received their allocation of diagnostic kits, but all the other support are expected to be delivered to the countries by DHL between 30 March and 7 April. We have placed orders for more diagnostic test kits and PPEs which we expect to arrive within the next 2 weeks. In addition, we are sourcing for ventilators which are equipment for supporting the breathing of severely ill patients in hospitals to distribute to countries. All these efforts are to supplement what individual countries are doing by themselves.



As the Institution designated by the highest authorities of ECOWAS to lead the coordination, collaboration and communication in the region with regards to Covid-19 pandemic, WAHO has been very active in bringing together Member States to adopt a regional approach to the pandemic and to support them as necessary. On 14 February 2020, a few days after the declaration by WHO of Covid-19 as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, The West African Health Organization, WAHO convened an emergency meeting of the Ministers of Health of ECOWAS on preparedness and response to the outbreak of Covid-19, the first region in Africa to do so. The meeting agreed on a unified regional approach to Covid-19, and we held media briefings on this in Bamako, Mali on 14 February 2020, and in Abuja, Nigeria on 17 February 2020.



WAHO immediately strengthened the capacity of all 15 member states to test for Covid-19 through a regional laboratory training and distribution of the first batch of diagnostic kits to all member states. We then conducted several other regional trainings on risk communication, emergency operations, and a simulation exercise for the regional rapid response teams. In all the 15 ECOWAS Member States, several actors including health workers are being mobilized to save lives. However, there continues to be the challenge of securing sufficient materials given the disruption in global supply chains. This is something WAHO is tackling through its partnership with other agencies and bodies to ensure we never run out of stock in the region.



Other key actions WAHO is taking to fight this Covid-19 pandemic is the development of Operational Guides for the fight against Covid-19 pandemic in the ECOWAS region; and an online training for healthcare workers on the use of these guides. The online training starts in the week of 6-12 April 2020.

About the West African Health Organization (WAHO): WAHO is the specialized institution of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) responsible for health issues. Its mission is to attain the highest possible standard and protection of health of the peoples in the subregion through the harmonization of the policies of the Member States, pooling of resources, and cooperation with one another and with others for a collective and strategic fight against the health problems of the sub-region.

However, the most important tool in this fight is the behavior of every citizen. It is of utmost importance that the citizens heed the information on how to protect themselves and their loved ones, and so stop the spread of the pandemic in their own community. Every citizen must:



 Regularly and thoroughly wash hands with soap and water, or if not possible clean them with an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.



 Limit the number of people with whom you are in contact each day and reduce physical contact to the minimum. Maintain at least 1.5 meter distance between yourself and anyone, do NOT shake hands, kiss or hug.



 Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth, particularly with unwashed hands since the virus easily infects the body through these areas.



 Cover your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze; then dispose of the used tissue immediately.



 Avoid places of concentration of people, such as sports, cultural and religious gatherings. These events should be cancelled in all our communities.



 Stay home if you feel unwell, or if you feel you have come in contact with someone with Covid-19. If you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, seek medical attention following the directions of your local health authority.

- END -

About the West African Health Organization (WAHO): WAHO is the specialized institution of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) responsible for health issues. Its mission is to attain the highest possible standard and protection of health of the peoples in the subregion through the harmonization of the policies of the Member States, pooling of resources, and cooperation with one another and with others for a collective and strategic fight against the health problems of the sub-region.



For more information on WAHO, please visit http://www.wahooas.ore / https://twitter.com/OoasWaho / https://www.facebook.com/ooaswaho

PRESS

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Featured Video
Perth, Australia, April 2, 2020 - (ABN Newswire) - Deep Yellow Limited (ASX:DYL.AX - News) (HAM:JMI.HM - News) (OTCMKTS:DYLLF - News) is pleased to announce the completion of the infill drilling program at the Company's Tumas 3 deposit on EPL 3496 in Namibia. The drill program was developed to identify sufficient Indicated Resources to support the Tumas 3 Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) the Company is currently undertaking.

HIGHLIGHTS

- Resource infill drilling program completed at Tumas 3 (Namibia), comprising 246 holes for 5,154m

- Drilling focussed on converting 50% of the existing Tumas 3 Inferred Resource base to Indicated Resource status

- 85% of drill holes returned a result greater than 100ppm eU3O8 over 1m; early interpretations indicate results to be sufficient to achieve the necessary amount of Indicated Resources required for the PFS

- Drilling also confirms continuous mineralisation across the 2.5km tested of the previously defined 7km long Tumas 3 deposit

o Best intersections include:

- T3I058 1m @ 1082ppm eU3O8 from surface

15m @ 2087ppm eU3O8 from 7m

2m @ 552ppm eU3O8 from 27m

- T3I083 1m @ 595ppm eU3O8 from surface

14m @ 2461ppm eU3O8 from 5m

- T3I101 10m @ 628ppm eU3O8 from 7m

- T3I232 11m @ 1370ppm eU3O8 from 10m

- Results and analysis from the drill program is being compiled and evaluated to produce an updated Tumas 3 resource estimate, expected to be completed by mid-May 2020

- With only 60% of the known regional Tumas palaeochannel system drilled, significant upside potential remains to further increase the resource base, with 50km of this highly prospective target remaining to be tested

The drill program focussed on converting approximately 50% of the Inferred Resources at Tumas 3 to an Indicated JORC status. EPL 3496 is held by Reptile Uranium Namibia (Pty) Ltd (RUN), part of the group of companies wholly owned by Deep Yellow.

On 29 January 2020 the Company announced the commencement of an infill drilling program for the ongoing Tumas 3 PFS. The drill program was completed on 24 March, comprising 246 RC holes for 5,154m.

Story continues

The results from the drill program have confirmed exceptional continuity of uranium mineralisation over a 2.5km length of palaeochannel within the Tumas 3 deposit. Importantly, downhole logging analysis indicates that the results from the drill program are sufficient enough to achieve the Indicated Resource target required to support the Tumas 3 PFS which is currently underway. The Tumas 3 deposit is 7km long and 0.2km to 1.1km wide and contains 33.1Mlb of Inferred Resources at a grade of 378 eU3O8 utilising a 200ppm cut off.

Deep Yellow has only drilled 60% of the known Tumas palaeochannel system, with significant upside potential to further increase the regional resource base through ongoing exploration.

Currently, all data is being compiled and evaluated to produce an updated Tumas 3 resource estimate, which is expected to be completed by mid-May 2020.

Tumas 3 Infill Drilling

Infill drilling of the previously 100m by 100m spaced holes was carried out at 50m centres achieving an overall hole spacing of 70m x 70m deemed sufficient for Indicated Resource determination.

210 holes or 85% of the 246 holes drilled in this program returned a result greater than 100ppm eU3O8 with an average grade of 364ppm eU3O8 over an average thickness of 4.5m. Of greater interest and importance is that 157 holes (64%) of these holes intersected greater than 200ppm eU3O8 with an average grade of 568ppm eU3O8 over an average thickness of 5.9m.

These results closely reflect the statistics of the previous drilling programs completed at Tumas 3, indicating that the expected resource conversion of Inferred to Indicated JORC status will be much greater than the 40% to 50% conversion target stated in the January announcement.

Figure 2 outlines the area of infill drilling showing hole locations and grade thickness distribution (GT= eU3O8ppm x Metre Thickness). Importantly, it highlights that previously identified areas of high grade were confirmed by the recent drilling.

Figures 3 and 4* show a long and cross-section through the deposit, again confirming the continuity of the mineralisation and the high-grade zones within this deposit.

As previously observed, the calcrete associated uranium mineralisation is not located in a simple configuration within the large palaeochannel but occurs in a system of channels varying in size and depth. The mineralisation can occur close to the surface but generally is confined to a depth of 5m to 25m.

The uranium mineralisation is of the calcrete type occurring mainly in palaeochannels as found at the Langer Heinrich Mine 50km north-east of the project area.

Appendix 1, Table 1* lists the 246 exploration drill holes from the current infill drilling program at Tumas 3 and Table 2 includes the 210 drill holes returning uranium intersections above cutoff and showing equivalent uranium values in ppm and thickness with hole depth and coordinates provided.

Conclusions and Analysis

The results from the recently completed infill resource drilling program has continued to provide the Company with a better definition of the uranium mineralisation occurring at Tumas 3. The results also maintain the Company's positive expectation for the deposit and the highly encouraging prospectivity of the Tumas Palaeochannel system.

The Tumas 3 uranium mineralisation has become more clearly defined, providing the Company with a high-level of confidence that this deposit will achieve the required resource upgrade to support the PFS currently underway. The Tumas 3 uranium mineralisation remains open and limited resource infill drilling is planned to test this later in the year.

*To view tables and figures, please visit:

https://abnnewswire.net/lnk/YESH4598



About Deep Yellow Limited:

Deep Yellow Limited (ASX:DYL.AX - News) (OTCMKTS:DYLLF - News) (Namibian Stock Exchange:DYL) is a specialist differentiated uranium company implementing a new contrarian strategy to grow shareholder wealth. This strategy is founded upon growing the existing uranium resources across the Company's uranium projects in Namibia and the pursuit of accretive, counter-cyclical acquisitions to build a global, geographically diverse asset portfolio. The Company's cornerstone suite of projects in Namibia is situated within a top-ranked African mining destination in a jurisdiction that has a long, well regarded history of safely and effectively developing and regulating its considerable uranium mining industry.

Contact:

John Borshoff

Managing Director/CEO

T: +61-8-9286-6999

Email: john.borshoff@deepyellow.com.au

www.deepyellow.com.au

Source:

Deep Yellow Limited

Copyright (C) 2020 ABN Newswire. All rights reserved.
SYRACUSE, N.Y.  St. Josephs Health plans to furlough workers as it braces for a surge of coronavirus patients.

Leslie Paul Luke, president and CEO of St. Joes, said in a message sent to employees today the hospital is preparing for the  unprecedented fiscal fallout associated with the coronavirus pandemic.

St. Joes is cutting pay for senior management and planning to furlough an undetermined number of employees, he said. The hospital did not provide any details about the amount of the pay cut or how the furloughs will be carried out.

Furloughed workers will continue receiving benefits such as health, dental and basic life insurance. Luke said more information about furloughs will be available in the days and weeks ahead.

St. Joes employs about 4,800 people.

These are difficult steps that are intended to make sure we are able to provide the best possible care for our patients and communities through this unprecedented time, Luke said. We hope to bring back as many of our impacted colleagues as we can at the appropriate time, and, as the situation evolves, affected colleagues may be asked to serve our system in new ways.

At the same time it is planning to furlough some workers, St. Joes is adding clinical staff, beds and ventilators to respond to the pandemic, he said.

St. Joes, Crouse, Upstate and other hospitals statewide have been forced to cancel profitable elective surgeries to make more beds available for coronavirus patients. That has taken a toll on their finances. Over the past three weeks, Syracuses three hospitals have freed up nearly 300 beds.

Crouse Health has lost about $4.2 million over the past two weeks and shelled out an extra $3 million for personal protective equipment for its doctors and nurses as the hospital prepares to handle a rising number of people with coronavirus.

So far, Crouse has managed to avoid any layoffs of its 3,100 employees, but some staffers have been temporarily redeployed from two out-patient surgery centers to other areas of the hospital.

James T. Mulder covers health news. Have a news tip? Contact him at (315) 470-2245 or jmulder@syracuse.com
DETROIT  Detroit on Thursday began testing its first responders, bus drivers and health care workers for coronavirus using new rapid testing kits that produce results in about 15 minutes or less.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said Wednesday the city is the first in the country to begin using the kits from Abbott, a global health care company based in Lake County, Illinois.

"It's being set up right now and it's becoming clear that Detroit will be the first city in the country to use the 15-minute testing to test our police officers, fire fighters, EMTs and our bus drivers so that we know right away the results," Duggan said at his daily press briefing.

Abbott has said the tests can produce positive results in as little as five minutes and negative results in as little as 13 minutes. The company hopes to ramp up production to the point where it can deliver 50,000 kits per day, per a release.

The city spent $377,049 on Abbott testing kits, instruments, control swabs and bar code readers, according to the city's purchase order dated March 29. The purchase order did not specify quantities for the equipment, but a spokesman for Mayor Duggan said the city bought 5,000 kits.

Testing being performed on Abbotts ID NOW platform.

The rapid test kits are part of Detroit's massive testing effort to contain the spread of COVID-19. The metro Detroit area is among the country's hardest-hit regions. The city as of Thursday had 2,860 positive cases and 97 deaths. Hundreds of police officers have been quarantined and 91 members of the department, as of Wednesday, have tested positive.

Abbott specializes in diagnostics and medical devices. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on March 27 approved the use of Abbott's ID NOW platform to detect COVID-19. The devices are about the size of a toaster.

Duggan spokesman John Roach said he does not yet know if the city is planning to buy more rapid testing kits to use on residents.

The equipment is useful in outbreak hotspots, Robert Ford, Abbott's president and chief operating officer, said in a statement released upon the FDA's approval.

Story continues

"With rapid testing on ID NOW, healthcare providers can perform molecular point-of-care testing outside the traditional four walls of a hospital in outbreak hotspots," Ford said.

A company spokesman did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Thursday.

Detroit continues to offer drive-through testing for residents and others who have a doctor's prescription. About 600 people were tested on Wednesday. Duggan said daily testing could reach 1,000 residents.

The city is in talks with local transportation services to arrange rides for Detroit residents who don't have a car. A deal could be reached by Friday, Duggan said.

"We're going to keep going until we get everybody in this city to have equal access to testing," he said.

The city's coronavirus website has more information about how to get tested and how to find a doctor accepting new patients, those with and without insurance.

Contributing: Jay Cannon, USA TODAY

Joe Guillen can be reached at jguillen@freepress.com

DOJ: California engineer ran train 'off the end of rail tracks' in attempted attack on USNS Mercy in Los Angeles

France's coronavirus lockdown: A preview of restrictions we may see in America

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Abbott rapid coronavirus test put to use in Detroit, Michigan
Parliament has approved a financial agreement that enables government to access US$35 million as Special Drawing Rights from the International Development Association (IDA), a member of the World Bank Group, to fight the coronavirus disease.

The money is to finance the Ghana COVID-19 Emergency Preparedness and Response with US$21.5 million expected to be expended on case detection, confirmation, contact tracing, recording and reporting as component one.

Sub-component of the money would be used to strengthen disease surveillance systems at points of entry, public health laboratories, and epidemiological capacity for early detection and confirmation of cases.

Chairman of the Finance Committee, Dr Mark Assibey-Yeboah, during a presentation of a report of the committee for adoption of Parliament on Wednesday, said a US$12.7 million of the total sum would also be spent on containment, isolation and treatment.

According to him, the focus will be to support the leasing, renting, establishment and refurbishment of designated facilities and centres to contain and treat infected cases in a timely manner.

He disclosed that US$700,000 would be used as social and financial support to households, particularly families of those who are isolated or quarantined.

Dr Assibey-Yeboah explained that the support will include psychosocial counseling, food-baskets and feeding during the isolation, quarantine and treatment period.

A sum of US$3.6 million is meant for the training and capacity building for preparedness and response as well as priority of service delivery, he disclosed.

He added that US$3.4 million of the fund would be used to strengthen multi-sector national institutions and platforms for policy development and coordination of prevention and preparedness using one health approach.

Some components of the fund will go into community engagement and risk communication (US$7.4 million), and implementation management, monitoring and evaluation and project management (US$2.7 million).

The project management activities will include the recruitment of additional staff/consultants responsible for overall administration, procurement and financial management under the project and financing of project coordination activities.

The Special drawing rights (abbreviated SDR, ISO 4217 currency code XDR (numeric: 960)) are supplementary foreign exchange reserve assets defined and maintained by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

So far, the World Bank Group is making available an initial package of up to US$14 billion in immediate support to assist countries coping with the health and economic impacts of the global outbreak of COVID-19.

Deputy Minister of Finance, Abena Osei-Asare, on behalf of the Minister of Finance, presented papers for the Parliamentary approval, which the Speaker, Prof. Aaron Mike Oquaye, referred to the Finance Committee for consideration.

On Tuesday, March 17, 2020, the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta apprised Parliament that the government was in discussion with the World Bank to tap into a US$12 billion World Bank Group fast-track COVID-19 facility to help the nation close its financing gap in the 2020 budget.

This was after he had told the House that preliminary analysis undertaken by his ministry showed that the novel coronavirus would negatively impact on the nation's petroleum receipts due to the collapse of international crude oil prices, custom receipts, expenditures and financial conditions on the fiscal front.

---Daily Guide
A drug addict who stabbed a man to death in a fight outside a Melbourne milk bar has been jailed for seven years.

Ricky Garrard was trafficking drugs when he killed tradie Sadiq Husseini at Doveton on July 19, 2018.

Garrard stabbed Mr Husseini once in the stomach while the man held him in the headlock during a fight outside the milk bar.

Ricky Garrard was trafficking drugs when he killed tradie Sadiq Husseini (pictured) at Doveton on July 19, 2018

Garrard stabbed Mr Husseini (pictured in the milk bar) once in the stomach while the man held him in the headlock during a fight outside the milk bar

The 21-year-old killer pleaded guilty to manslaughter at the start of his trial.

He was jailed in the Supreme Court of Victoria on Thursday for a maximum of seven years.

He must serve five years before being eligible for release on parole.
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An unprecedented 2.1 million people in the Sahel region will not have access to enough food, with the Covid-19 pandemic likely to hamper aid operations, a projection by the World Food Programme (WFP) showed.

Eric Branckaert, the WFP Senior Regional Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping Officer, said on Thursday that the projection was a 77-per-cent increase, up from 680,000 food insecure people in 2019.

Food insecurity means that people lack access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food.

It is a clear deterioration of the situation it is unprecedented. We have not seen such numbers before.

With conflict and displacement being the main reasons for the sharp increase, countries most affected will include Burkina Faso, Cameroon and Niger.

Others are Chad, Mali, Sierra Leone and Liberia, especially during the lean season from June to September, the UN official said.

READ ALSO:

He said aside the Covid-19 pandemic, a locust infestation that is currently moving from East Africa into the Sahel region, will make matters worse.

However, the potential impact of Covid-19 and the locusts is not yet included in the 2.1 million, the WFP official warned.

He added that the coronavirus outbreak would make it difficult for aid agencies to scale up operations and reach everyone in need.

This is a crisis layered on top of a crisis, and the situation risks getting out of hand, said WFP West Africa Director Chris Nikoi.

(dpa/NAN)
LEWISBURG  Three Bucknell University students suspected of having coronavirus have tested negative for the illness, Bucknell University announced.

In the future, the university said it will only make an announcement if a student tests positive for the virus.

The university had previously announced that two students were being tested, but Dr. Catherine ONeill, medical director of Bucknell Student Health, said now that testing is more available, it will no longer do so.

The two students are doing well, ONeill said. A third student who became ill after visiting New York City on spring break last month also tested negative.

Although suspected COVID-19 cases will not be announced, she said the university will isolate and care for students who believe they have the virus. Individuals who might have had been in close proximity of them also will be contacted, she said.

ONeill is advising any of the 170 students still on campus to act quickly if they suspect they have COVID-19.

Those who develop a fever and symptoms of respiratory illness, such as cough or difficulty breathing, should call ahead to Student Health, she said.

Only students who were given permission remain on campus because Bucknell, like most colleges, has switched to remote education because of the pandemic.
Paris: The prayer meeting at an evangelical church in Mulhouse, a small city in eastern France near the border with Germany and Switzerland, was just the latest in a series of such annual gatherings going back a generation.

But this year's meeting - in the words of a regional health official - was "a kind of atomic bomb that went off in the town in late February that we didn't see".

Someone in the crowd of 2500 had the novel coronavirus, kicking off what soon became one of Europe's largest regional clusters of infections, which then quickly spread across the country and eventually overseas.

The centre of Mulhouse, a city in eastern France, believed to be the country's first cluster of COVID-19. Credit:AP

As of Wednesday, local time, France reported 56,989 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, and the country's death toll is the fourth highest in the world at 4032, including 509 within the last day And the actual number of fatalities may be higher, because public health authorities were initially not including deaths that occurred outside hospitals in the tally.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Bryte Payment Solutions, Inc., is excited to announce its new plan to help restaurants remain viable during the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic. During this challenging time, Bryte is offering restaurantsfree of chargethe ability to setup an online ordering service to help them keep their doors open, and their staff employed.

The consequences of social distancing, and of millions of Americans staying indoors, have been far-reaching. COVID-19 has already caused numerous businesses to suspend operations. The food service industry, in particular, has been hard hit, as restaurants are forced to layoff their staff.

Bryte Payment Solutions has been working with restaurants since it opened. Its president and co-founder, Dave Humphrey, knows that "restaurant staff are a vulnerable employee population." That is one of many reasons he wants to help them stay employed.

Often the people who cook and prepare food, or wait tables in dining establishments, struggle to make ends meet. Many of them work two or even three jobs, and have families to support or debts to pay.

The Bryte team has set up DontPanicTakeOut.com, for restaurant owners who want to retain their employees and their customers, but without using third-party vendors like UberEats or DoorDash.

"These platforms not only take a large percentage of your revenue, they also put your competitors in front of your customers," Humphrey said. "Not a good idea." Instead of being at the mercy of those vendors, he said "it's better to focus instead on driving your customers to your own online ordering system."

Bryte can help restaurants do this. "Due to the economic impact of the coronavirus, we have waived all setup fees, all monthly fees. We charge a minimal service fee to the consumer, just like DoorDash and UberEats, but it's less," CEO Jason Felts said. "But unlike them, we charge you nothing. In fact, we don't even charge you to process the credit card transaction."

This free offer comes with no risks whatsoeverand Bryte already has support staff in place to assist restaurants. Bryte has also posted a four-step plan to help these businesses survive the next few monthsand position themselves to be stronger than before. This includes great tips about how to use social media to advertise. Owners or managers can go to https://dontpanictakeout.com to learn more.

Humphrey reminds everyone of Robert Schuller's famous quote that says: 'Tough times never last. Tough people do."

Bryte Payment Solutions, Inc., is dedicated to providing efficient payment solutions, including funding options for businesses. Bryte has specialized in providing quality service to the retail, lodging, and restaurant sectors for almost a decadeand is paving the way to the future for merchants around the nation. Its goal is to accomplish this with the utmost transparency, integrity, and respect.

Media Contact:

Terry White

(904) 438-2566

[email protected]

SOURCE Bryte Payment Solutions
Employees of the Uttar Pradesh Road Transport Corporation (UPSRTC) on Thursday contributed one day's salary to the COVID-19 relief fund under the chief minister's office.

A demand draft of Rs 2.47 crore was presented to UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath by Principal Secretary, Transport, Rajesh Kumar Singh and MD of UPSRTC Raj Shekhar, according to an official release.

Raj Shekhar later told media persons that the UPSRTC was grateful to all its employees for contributing one day's salary in the fight against coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: After two employees of the Lifestyle store at Chennai's Phoenix mall tested positive for COVID-19, the Chennai Corporation has strongly advised those who visited the store between March 10 to 17 to isolate themselves.

They have also been asked to contact the helpline numbers 044 25384520 or 044 46122300 if they develop any symptoms.

CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW CORONAVIRUS LIVE UPDATES

"Anyone who visited the Phoenix Mall, especially the Lifestyle outlet, between March 10 to March 17 and all employees who work inside the mall are advised to stay cautious and seek immediate medical care by calling us on the below number, if you develop any COVID-19 symptoms," read a notification by the city corporation.

Earlier, on Tuesday, a male member of the staff tested positive and is undergoing treatment in his hometown of Tiruvannamalai and on March 27 a woman employee of the store tested positive.

Health secretary Beela Rajesh told reporters on Thursday that it was found that the woman employee had interacted with a man from Kerala who later tested positive for COVID-19 in Sri Lanka.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:30:04|Editor: yhy

Video Player Close

Hu Wei (4th R), charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy, attends a ceremony with Sri Lankan Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi (4th left front) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, April 1, 2020. China has handed over its first donation of humanitarian aid and medical supplies to Sri Lanka to strengthen the solidarity between the two countries as Sri Lanka fights the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka said on Thursday. (Xinhua/Tang Lu)

COLOMBO, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China has handed over its first donation of humanitarian aid and medical supplies to Sri Lanka to strengthen the solidarity between the two countries as Sri Lanka fights the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka said on Thursday.

The aid, which includes 50,000 medical masks and 1,008 COVID-19 test kits, was handed over by Hu Wei, charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy, to Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo, and the materials were later handed over to Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi and her team at a formal ceremony held on Wednesday.

The embassy said Sri Lankan prime minister and health minister thanked the Chinese government and its people for the donation and commended China's efforts in successfully battling the pandemic in their country.

Rajapaksa said as Sri Lanka is now battling the COVID-19, the country looked forward to continued support from China in terms of their experience and prevention methods in controlling the pandemic as well as medical supplies.

Hu briefed the prime minister on the recent situation in curbing the pandemic spread in China and praised Sri Lanka for their efforts in fighting the virus which had been widely recognized by the World Health Organization and the international community.

Hu said China will continue to share its experience in the prevention, control and treatment of the COVID-19, and will continue to provide help within its capacity through various channels.

Director General of Health Services at the Health Ministry Anil Jasingha told the media after handover ceremony that China had handed over materials that was of vital importance to Sri Lanka's health sector and appreciated the strong solidarity shown at this special time.

Also on Thursday, Sri Lanka's Health Ministry said a 73-year-old patient who was infected with COVID-19 died at the National Infectious Disease Hospital, taking the death toll in the country to three.

According to the latest figures from the ministry, so far 148 people have been infected by the COVID-19, of whom 21 have recovered.

The country has remained under an islandwide curfew since March 20 over the outbreak of the pandemic.
An Environmental activist has succeeded in a legal challenge brought against the State's decision to remove certain protections from a rare and protected species of freshwater pearl mussel.

Peter Sweetman brought High Court proceedings seeking to quash the making of any legislation or administrative act to remove the freshwater pearl mussel as a "qualifying interest" from any part of the Munster Blackwater Special Area of Conservation (SAC).

He also sought to quash the making of a statutory instrument in September 2018 by the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht known as the 2018 EU Environmental Objectives (Freshwater Pearl Mussel Amendment) Regulations.

Mr Sweetman claimed that the state's decision related to the population of freshwater pearl mussels in the main river channel of the Blackwater, which flows through counties Waterford and Cork, which is a designated site of European importance.

The freshwater pearl mussel is a designated protected species, the conservation of which is of global importance given that Ireland has 43% of the EU's population of adult fresh water pear mussels.

Mr Sweetman claimed that the decision to implement the new regulations was flawed and in breach of EU directives on environmental protection, the including the Habitats Directive.

He claimed that the regulations effectively removed a legal obligation to put in place certain conservation measures that lessened the chances of conserving the species.

The regulations he argued removed certain obligations including the setting of ecological quality objectives for the entire length of the Blackwater river.

The regulations it was claimed also removed obligations on emission limits values for discharges into the river, or to investigate sources of pressure on the species in the river.

The action was against the Minister, Ireland and the Attorney General.

File image of Peter Sweetman

The High Court granted Mr Sweetman, represented in the proceedings by solicitor Brian Harrington, permission to bring his challenge in 2018.

Following discussions between the parties it was agreed that the court could make an order quashing the statutory instrument on the basis that the regulations were made in breach of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Directive.

The court further ordered that the state respondents pay Mr Sweetman's legal costs of taking the proceedings.

The orders, which were formally perfected recently, were granted by Mr Justice Charles Meenan.
[April 02, 2020] 5G Equipment Market 2019-2023 | The Adoption Of 5G Networks for Smart Cities to Boost Growth | Technavio

Technavio has been monitoring the 5G equipment market and it is poised to grow by USD 16.28 bn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 71% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. Request a free sample report This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005619/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global 5G Equipment Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire) The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Huawei Technologies, Nokia, Samsung (News - Alert) Electronics, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, and ZTE are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments. The adoption of 5G networks for smart cities has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. 5G Equipment Market 2019-2023 : Segmentation 5G Equipment Market is segmented as below: Product Macrocell Small Cell Others

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA

To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30474 5G Equipment Maret 2019-2023 : Scope



Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our 5g equipment market report covers the following areas: 5G Equipment Market Size

5G Equipment Market Trends

5G Equipment Market Industry Analysis This study identifies growing focus on developing unified 5G standards as one of the prime reasons driving the 5g equipment market growth during the next few years.

5G Equipment Market 2019-2023 : Vendor Analysis We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the 5G Equipment Market, including some of the vendors such as Huawei Technologies, Nokia (News - Alert), Samsung Electronics, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, and ZTE. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the 5G Equipment Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support. Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports. Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform 5G Equipment Market 2019-2023 : Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist 5G equipment market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the 5G equipment market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the 5G equipment market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of 5G equipment market vendors Table Of Contents : PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT 2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$ PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis PART 04: MARKET SIZING Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023 PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

The threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Macrocell - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Small cell - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Others - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Americas - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity PART 09: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends PART 10: VENDOR LANDSCAPE Overview

Landscape disruption PART 11: VENDOR ANALYSIS Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Huawei Technologies

Nokia

SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (News - Alert)

ZTE PART 12: APPENDIX Research methodology List of abbreviations About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005619/en/

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Good Morning America

The Biden administration's plan to send 500 million at-home tests to Americans for free is an historic undertaking, but one that will take weeks or months to fully execute, recently released contracts and interviews with seven test manufacturers suggest. Contracts for the first two batches of tests were announced on Friday, one for 13.3 million kits from a health technology company and another for an undisclosed amount from a distribution company in Virginia that had extras on hand -- all to be distributed in an effort to reduce the massive testing shortage in the U.S. Tests won't be available to be ordered through a government website until later this month, the official said, meaning it's unlikely the average American will get free tests delivered in time for the January peak of omicron cases predicted by most models.
How China's all powerful Communist party bungled the response to the coronavirus crisis.

IMAGE: Passengers at the Shanghai railway station. Photograph: Aly Song/Reuters

Srikanth Kondapalli is the professor in Chinese studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University.

One of India's leading experts on China, Professor Kondapalli explains China's response to the coronavirus, which first erupted in a seafood market in Wuhan, to Sheela Bhatt. The first of a two-part interview:

What are the lessons India should learn from China?

China's political leadership's argument, despite Dr Li Wenliang and others's suggestions, was that this is a new virus whose characteristics are not known and hence pleaded time to assess from November to January 23rd.

In the interregnum, it is estimated that over 5 million left Hubei province during the spring festival break.

China ordered everyone to be confined to their homes. It built huge hospitals for treatment to treat COViD-19.

The 'model' that soon began to unfold included A complete ban on any visits, a blanket ban on information sharing (with whistleblower journalists arrested or vanished), dismissal of the local leadership, sending over 40,000 well-trained medical personnel from other provinces.

While China says that over 3,000 people were killed, other estimates put it as a lakh or more.

The truth may not be never known given the lack of information.

In this model, once Wuhan was shut down, infections in other parts of China have been relatively contained.

Also, the (Communist) party-State integration led to a cohesive response after January 23rd, although it was a highly top down approach.

A second 'model' of addressing COvID-19 is that of the responses of South Korea, Japan and Taiwan although each of these had a slightly different flavour.

Overall, when the virus spread, mainly from Chinese visitors, all the three nations swung into action, tracked intensely the trail of these infected persons and selectively quarantined the affected.

The rest of the population is free without any curbs except those who recently arrived from abroad.

All these three had relatively a smaller number of casualties and prompt medical attention.

All the three nations also had regular medical education disseminated in schools and educational institutions and as such their cultural and social conditions are conducive to address such outbreaks.

Their medical progress has also been higher as they invested heavily in this sector. The State intervention here, if any, has been discreet with no collateral damages unlike in China.

A third 'model' is that of Western countries like Italy, Spain, Germany, France, the UK or the US.

The medical health status here has achieved substantial progress and their investments in this sector per capita is considered to be one of the highest in the world.

Of course, they have also been prone to influenza, foot and mouth disease and other pandemics.

The largest number of casualties are unfortunately reported from these countries as the contagion spread.

Various reasons were mentioned in the local press including the influx of Chinese labourers, tourists, settlers as a part of the Belt and Road Initiative of China, direct flights to Wuhan and the rest of China, lax social habits in the light of the contagion and others.

A fourth 'model' in the making is that of India. While the numbers of infections are low at around 2,000 and 35 deaths, the first measure that India took is to ban flights to and from China, evacuated over 700 Indians from Wuhan, provided 15 tonnes of medical support to China, quarantine the evacuees in ITBP centres.

However, most of the infections came from unexpected quarters -- infected travellers from Europe and West Asia.

India's efforts are a one-day Janata Curfew and later a 21-day lockdown. India announced direct cash and food provisions to the needy, allowed the media to report freely, restrict other activities to essential services.

Regular and live telecast of the respective ministries's press conferences are made. As the per capita investment in India on medical health is low, many suggested to millions of casualties.

There was a speculation raised about the mounting infections among migrants, but none so far have been reported by the press.

India also had extended $10 million in aid to the SAARC countries for coping up with the virus spread.

IMAGE: A Chinese man sleeps before boarding a train before the annual spring festival at a Beijing railway station. Photograph: Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

Coming to the ongoing controversy about the origin of the coronavirus, is there any authentic and specific information emerging on how the coronavirus emerged? How did it spread?

While the first reports about the detection of COVID-19 came as early as December 8, 2019 (some reports suggest as early as November 2019) from the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan, it was closed only on January 1, 2020 a day after a local doctor, Li Wenliang, alerted about a new virus in circulation.

He was silenced, but became a victim of the virus eventually on February 6. Over 500 million netizens viewed his story and the party was forced later to acknowledge his contributions.

The Wuhan health commission was in denial mode or obfuscating the extent of viral infections as early January coincided with the 'two sessions' of Hubei province.

This was the time when the first cases outside China -- in Thailand and Japan -- were reported.

President Xi Jinping was conspicuous in not mentioning COVID-19 during his spring festival eve speech on December 31, 2019 at Beijing, giving legitimacy perhaps for lower level cadres at Wuhan to participate in the mass celebrations, thus spreading the virus.

Soon after information broke out, a small leading group was established to address the coronavirus issue with Premier Li Keqiang as the chair.

A quarantine on Wuhan and Hubei province with over 56 million people was announced with restrictions on the movements of people.

A one billion yuan (about $140 million) outlay was made to build two major hospitals at Wuhan and for other medical purposes. 4,000 medical personnel from the armed forces were despatched to Wuhan in three batches.

In addition, 2,600 personnel were despatched as the confirmed cases mounted in the second week of February.

In the top down political system of China, it is natural for officials to take cue from the central leadership's announcements.

The grave situation resulted in an unprecedented four meetings of the top politburo standing committee (PBSC).

The fourth meeting was held on March 27. Xi issued instructions on the epidemic on January 20.

The PBSC meeting on January 25 -- two days after the quarantine on Wuhan city was implemented -- with Xi chairing the session on epidemic prevention work.

Another PBSC meeting was held on February 3 that called for 'telling the moving stories of how those on the front line are preventing and fighting the virus' and showcasing China's unity.

It also directed the propaganda department to 'guide public opinion and strengthen information control'.

Xi alluded to the negative effects of restrictions on economic progress. Vice Premier Hu Chunhua, taking a cue from Xi, stressed in a teleconference that stable employment opportunities should be created for resuming production.

Hu, belonging to the tuanpai (Communist Youth League), and now head of the small leading group on poverty alleviation and development, had on February 5 held a teleconference to stress ensuring supply of agricultural products across the country and unblocking supply chains while preventing the virus epidemic.

On February 10, Xi -- termed by the official media as the 'commander of the people's war gainst the epidemic' -- for the first time appeared in public and inspected a local epidemic prevention and control centre where he praised the morale, spirit and determination of health workers.

On March 10, for the first time, Xi visited the epicentre of the COVID-19 announcing victory. Earlier, in an unusual criticism, he said China should fight 'devils'.

The official narrative has been that at the provincial level the local Wuhan government mishandled the situation by cover-up of the outbreak of COVID-19, possibly not to disturb the celebrations for the 'two sessions' (Provincial People's Congress and the advisory body meetings) and the public feasting of over 40,000 people on the spring festival eve, thus aggravating human-to-human transmission of the virus to spread further.

IMAGE: People dressed in Hanfu, or Han clothing, and wearing face masks at a theme park on Chinese National Costume Day in Changsha, Hunan province. Photograph: Reuters

Wuhan Mayor Zhao Xianwang justified by stating that the health commission's notices did not indicate any looming danger.

Moreover, another spring festival gala celebration were held on January 21 with participation provincial party chief Jiang Chaoliang and governor Wang Xiaodong in attendance.

On January 23, the city was locked down even as over 5 million people fanned out for the spring festival holidays.

The central leadership by all counts followed the beaten track -- that is deflecting blame on local officials and mobilising massive resources to counter the virus.

On February 10, the Hubei party committee removed Zhang Jin and Liu Yingzi, party chief and director of the provincial health commission, replaced by Wang Heshang.

Local officials like Wang Baoquan, party chief of the Huajiahe township -- the epicentre in Wuhan -- and Peng Zhihong, deputy party chief were dismissed.

More officials are being 'investigated' including Wuhan deputy mayor Chen Xiexing and two district chiefs, Lin Wenshu and Yu Song.

On February 13, Jiang Chaoliang, who mainly headed several banking institutions before heading the top Hubei party position in 2017, was replaced by Shanghai Mayor Ying Yong. Wuhan party secretary Ma Guoqiang was replaced by Shandong's Jinan city party secretary Wang Zhonglin.

Ying Yong worked with Xi before and is said to part of the new Zhijiang army faction. Ying's appointment at this crucial juncture is to send signals of Xi's personal involvement to counter COVID-19, restore order and restore economic growth rates.

IMAGE: Xi Jinping, general secretary of China's Communist party, during his visit to Wuhan. Photograph: Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

How did the Chinese media and its social media cover the COVID-19 crisis?

China's media is governed by the Communist party's central committee's propaganda (recently renamed as publicity) department's directives.

All journalists in China -- print and electronic -- need to obey the guiding principles provided by this department.

There is a rigorous evaluation method to assess the reports of the media in China.

In general, while media counterparts abroad insist on acting as ombudsman by insisting on the accountability of the powers that be, China's media has to abide by handouts from the powers that be with rare exceptions.

In general, while there is freedom to choose topics of interest and to speak, all written reports have to be vetted by the party committees, including in the media.

As sorting out the millions of reports is a humongous task, those articles written by journalists which are 'deviating' from the party line are singled out for punishment.

In the case of Wuhan and Hubei province lockdown, while China's media reported the handouts of the local provincial leadership, it is queer that despite the looming crisis there were hardly any investigative journalists at work.

The rare exception is the Caixin Daily and a few voluntary whistleblower journalists who reported the actual events unfolding.

Chen Qiushi, a citizen lawyer and journalist reporting on Wuhan, has disappeared since February 6. It was reported by the Financial Times that Chen's case attracted 180 million netizens on Weibo in just a few hours before it was removed by censors.

Another journalist Fang Bin disappeared from February 9 after he posted videos of the situation in the hospitals.

Dr Jiang Yanyong, a military doctor who criticised the government's handling of the SARS crisis in 2003, was reportedly put in house detention.

Some intellectuals like Professor Xu Zhangrun from Qinghua University, Professor Zhao Shilin from Nationalities University, Professor Xu Zhiyong and others have been critical of China's leadership's responses.

They demanded transparency and instituting of democracy. However, many of these are put under house arrest or other restrictions.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on April 2, 2020

2020/04/02

CCTV: On March 31, UN Secretary General Guterres issued a report entitled Shared Responsibility, Global Solidarity: Responding to the Socio-economic Impacts of COVID-19. He said, "COVID-19 is the greatest test that we have faced together since the formation of the United Nations. This human crisis demands coordinated, decisive, inclusive and innovative policy action from the world's leading economies  and maximum financial and technical support for the poorest and most vulnerable people and countries." Do you have any comment?

Hua Chunying: We noted this recent report issued by the UN Secretary General. We welcome the UN's efforts to coordinate international response to the pandemic.

Since the COVID-19 broke out, the UN, the WHO and other international organizations have been mobilizing the international community to enhance policy coordination and resource input, and especially to help developing countries with fragile public health systems to be better prepared. Their efforts have been widely supported by the international community. During the recent Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit on COVID-19, all sides agreed that no country could face this pandemic alone, and the international community needs solidarity and cooperation more than ever.

President Xi made a series of proposals on a united international response, including a G20 health ministers' meeting to be convened as quick as possible, a G20 COVID-19 assistance initiative for better information sharing with the support of the WHO, a collective response for prevention and control at the international level, and discussion on the establishment of regional public health emergency liaison mechanisms. He also called on G20 members to take collective actions like cutting tariffs, removing barriers, and facilitating the unfettered flow of trade. Together, the G20 can send a strong signal and restore confidence in global economic recovery.

The COVID-19 pandemic is disturbingly ravaging the world. As Secretary General Guterres said, it may be the greatest test for our generation. Faced with this global public health crisis that came at a sudden, the international community must work together in solidarity to overcome it. We hope all will respond to his call and support the UN and WHO's coordinating work so as to defeat the pandemic as soon as possible.

Bloomberg: There is a report today citing three US intelligence officials that China concealed the extent of the virus, under-reporting both total cases and deaths. Two of the officials also said that the report concluded that China's numbers were not real. Do you have any comment on this?

Hua Chunying: As a Bloomberg reporter, you must be well aware of recent US media reports on the epidemic situation at home and the administration's response. When you raised this question, I believe you already had an answer in your mind and just wanted to get it confirmed.

I noted many US media's reports on what you mentioned. US Vice President Pence and Secretary of State Pompeo said similar things on April 1 to accuse China of covering up the epidemic. They even claimed that China was dealing with the epidemic in December more than a month earlier before the world learned about it.

My colleagues and I have been elaborating on all the details of China's response, which shows clearly that China has been giving open, transparent and timely updates to the world. I believe you may have drawn the same conclusion based on the daily information released by the Chinese government. On international public health security, we should listen to WHO and experts on epidemiology and disease control rather than several politicians who are habitual liars. In fact, just yesterday, a senior WHO official refuted unwarranted accusations on "China's untransparent data" in a press conference in Geneva. We sympathize with the US people as they are facing a severe situation, and I can imagine why some in the US are trying so hard to shift the blame. We don't want to get into any meaningless argument with them. But in response to their endless, immoral slanders, I feel I have no choice but to take a few moments to clarify the truth once again.

It is true that Wuhan was where COVID-19 cases were first reported. But where and when exactly did this virus originate? We read many recent reports and findings on that. There are articles written by medical professionals from Italy, the UK, the US, Australia and other countries, which are published in top academic journals including Nature Medicine. On the origin of the virus, the Chinese government's position has been consistent. It is a serious matter that requires scientific, fact-based and professional assessment made by experts. Now there are various reports on experts' science-based and authoritative opinions. These views should be valued and respected by all, including those politicians in the US. China invited WHO experts to visit Wuhan as part of a joint mission. As some in the US are so obsessed with the issue, we advise the US side to also invite WHO and international experts to visit the country and find out the truth.

The timeline of China's response is very clear, as you can gather from media reports. On December 27, 2019, Zhang Jixian, director of the Department of Respiratory and Critical Care at Hubei Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, reported the first three suspected cases. On December 29, related centers for disease control and prevention and hospitals in Hubei and Wuhan carried out epidemiological investigation. On December 30 Wuhan Municipal Health Committee issued an "urgent notice on the treatment of pneumonia of unknown cause". On December 31, the NHC sent an expert group to Wuhan to investigate on site. On January 3, 2020, China started to send timely updates to WHO and other countries, including the US. On January 8, the pathogen was preliminarily identified. On January 11, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention uploaded five whole genome sequences of the novel coronavirus on website and shared data with the world and WHO. On January 23, Wuhan was put under lockdown and unprecedented comprehensive, thorough and rigorous measures were adopted. By taking these decisive and strong measures, the Chinese government ensured to the highest possible extent the life and health of the Chinese people and bought precious time for stemming the global spread of the virus. As I said yesterday, the journal Science published a paper by researchers in the United States, the UK and other countries saying that China's control measures worked by successfully breaking the chain of transmission and bought other countries valuable time. Recently Dr. Fauci, the medical expert leading the White House effort to contain the coronavirus, reportedly said he refused to let others push him to say that China should warn the US three months beforehand, because it just doesn't comport with facts. The Lancet's editor said on BBC that "the message from China is very clear...we wasted February when we could have acted...it is a national scandal".

China has always been open, transparent and responsible in all its efforts. Can the few US individuals accusing China tell the world, if the outbreak had hit the US first, would it have handled the situation better than the Chinese government? If their answer is yes, I wonder if they could answer the following. On January 15, the US CDC issued warnings on pneumonia caused by the coronavirus. On January 25, the US announced the decision to close its consulate in Wuhan and withdraw all staff. On February 2, it banned entry of all Chinese nationals and foreign nationals who had been in China for the last 14 days. What the US has done in the two months since then? According to a New York Times report on March 11, Dr. Helen Y. Chu, a whistle-blower in the US, sounded the alarm on the epidemic in the US back in January and reported her testing results to US regulators, only to be told to "cease and desist" and "stop testing". At the end of February, the White House still asked officials and health experts to get approval from the office of Vice President Pence before making public statements on the epidemic. On March 2, the CDC stopped releasing data on tests and deaths. On March 2, Dr. McCarthy from the New York-Presbyterian Hospital said at a CNBC program that his hospital had to "plead" to health authorities to test suspected cases. Can they explain all this? I've seen many reports calling on US officials to stop seeking excuses and scapegoats for their poor response.

We understand the US is facing difficulties and some officials are under pressure and we feel deeply for the hardship of the American people. Out of humanitarian spirit, we would like to provide support and help to them as our ability permits. However, the comments by these few US politicians are just shameless and morally repulsive. As we've repeatedly said, slanders, smears and blame games cannot make up for lost time. More lies will only waste more time and lead to more lives lost. A word of advice to these politicians: at this moment, lives should come before politics. It is immoral and inhumane to politicize public health, which should be condemned by all in the US and beyond. I hope they will lose no more time and focus instead on fighting the pandemic and saving American lives.

I see you've been nodding in agreement. I hope you will help get my message across to the American people, including the few individuals who have been denigrating and smearing China. It would be much appreciated.

AFP: Some countries are adjusting their officials figures to include more cases and deaths than previously reported. For instance, in France, people who didn't die in hospitals were now being reported, too. So does China have a plan to revise upward its official figures in the future?

Hua Chunying: That's a subtle question, but I think I know what you mean. Other countries may adjust the figures as they see fit. The Chinese government, like we said, has been publishing daily updates in a timely, open, transparent and highly responsible manner. You may check the WHO press conference held yesterday in Geneva, where head of the WHO Emergencies Program again commended the timely and valuable data from China.

Shenzhen TV: According to reports, US officials from multiple government departments are planning to take new restrictive measures on Huawei, which will require foreign companies using US chip-manufacturing equipment to obtain approval before supplying some chips to Huawei. Are you aware of this and what's your comment?

Hua Chunying: You mentioned possible US plan to impose new restrictions on Huawei, I'm not sure what they are trying to do now. You will need to ask them. But I did notice the other day the strong remarks by Huawei's rotating chairman Xu Zhijun. I think his rhetorical question has a point.

The Chinese government consistently objects to the US using state power and trumped-up charges to suppress Chinese companies. We will not sit idle and watch the US resort to technological bullying.

CRI: China sent a medical team to Venezuela to help the country's fight against the COVID-19. This is the first and to date the only medical team that China has sent to the Latin American and Caribbean region. Can you confirm that?

Hua Chunying: Since the outbreak, with the vision of building a community of a shared future for mankind in mind, China has been organizing video conferences, donating prevention materials and facilitating commercial procurement to support countries in Latin America and the Caribbean in fighting against the COVID-19 and safeguarding their people' as well as Chinese people's life, safety and health. At the request of the Venezuelan side and in light of their practical needs, China has recently sent a team of medical experts to the country. The Chinese experts will help improve local response and treatment measures and make positive contributions to the epidemic control in Venezuela and in the Latin American and Caribbean region.

China Daily: Reports from the Netherlands, Belgium and other European countries suggest that masks purchased from China failed to meet quality standards. Do you have a response to that?

Hua Chunying: I already responded to questions on the quality of Chinese masks reported by Dutch media a few days ago. According to the preliminary investigation conducted by the competent authority on the Chinese side, the batch of masks in question was purchased by a Dutch procurement agent. The Chinese manufacturer informed the Dutch side before shipping out these products that they are non-surgical masks. Their export customs clearing procedures were also under the name of "non-surgical masks".

Amid the ongoing global fight against the pandemic, Chinese manufacturers, putting themselves in the shoes of other countries in urgent need, have been working around the clock to provide medical supplies for the international community. China attaches high importance to export quality control. Relevant departments have just rolled out more rigorous regulative measures. Export companies of medical supplies need to state in written or digital format upon customs clearance that their products have valid registration certificate for medical devices and products and meet the quality standards of their destinations.

We all know that masks of various category offer different levels of protection. Some are for day-to-day use and others for professional and medical purposes. All countries are in urgent need of medical supplies including masks. We want to remind everyone to double-check the instructions for use to make sure what they purchase can serve their intended purposes and avoid making mistakes in a rush, such as misusing non-surgical masks for surgical purposes. It is irresponsible for the few media to hype up the so-called quality issue of Chinese products before getting their facts straight. I do hope they are not driven by ulterior motives because apparently such hype-up does not help international cooperation in fighting the pandemic.

Phoenix TV: We see some reports on foreigners who live in China refusing to follow quarantine measures. Some even beat medical staff and had altercations with local residents. But in other places, local governments are accused of offering "super-national" treatment to foreigners, which have been criticized by online citizens. What is the Foreign Ministry's take on this?

Hua Chunying: We've also noticed some online reports on this, and frankly, they make me feel sad.

I answered a question here yesterday about foreigners and whether they are discriminated against in China. What you mentioned today is about foreigners who do not abide by Chinese regulations. I think both issues deserve high attention. China always attaches great importance to the safety and health of foreign nationals in China. Since the outbreak of the epidemic, we have offered them assistance in coping with the epidemic and leading as normal a life as possible. Foreign citizens who contracted the COVID-19 here have also been treated as equals. At the same time, all the foreigners in China should strictly abide by China's laws and regulations on prevention and control of infectious diseases and local regulations in this regard, because these rules are meant to protect everyone, Chinese and foreigners alike. Chinese and foreign citizens in China are treated equal in front of these measures and regulations. Foreigners who defy epidemic prevention measures and disrupt public order, thus endangering public health and safety, will be held accountable according to law.

Reuters: First question is about the US congressman calling on the State Department to urge China to investigate the disappearance of three Chinese citizen journalists who sought to expose the impact of the coronavirus in Wuhan. The second one is about the Trump administration tightening rules to prevent China from obtaining advanced US technologies for commercial purposes that is then diverted for military use. Do you have any comment?

Hua Chunying: On your first question, frankly, I'm really confused what these American congressmen are actually doing for the American people whose votes put them in office, especially in the face of this challenging pandemic. They are constantly paying attention to what's going on in other countries, and then making vicious criticism based on completely wrong, twisted, fabricated and false information, to serve their hidden motives. Regarding the three missing persons, I don't know what they were talking about. I know that some people in the US may have some concerns about how information was released early on when the epidemic broke out in Wuhan. But relevant departments have already conducted a thorough investigation and released the results. We Chinese people trust our government. Why do some US congressmen believe they are in a position to cast doubt when they have no facts at all? Their time would be better spent on urging the government to do more for their constituents, to save as many lives as possible and to ensure the safety of the American people. This is my advice to the rowdy crowd. The more noise they make, the more damage they will do to American image in the world, especially in the eyes of the Chinese people.

On your second question, it is a customary international practice to promote integrated development of military and civilian sectors. The US is no exception. As I know, the US Defense Department and military conduct various cooperation projects with American universities, R&D institutions and private companies. Some American multinational companies are the "military-civilian fusion" per se, as their business operations and products cover both ends. China's military-civilian integration policy is aimed at effectively mobilizing military resources, coordinating economic and social development with national defense development, and benefiting the public with scientific and technological progress. This policy is aboveboard. There is no such a thing as "theft" or "diversion" of foreign technology. In this fight against the COVID-19, China is actually ahead of the US in some areas. We used things in this fight that the US does not even have. How could the US accuse us of stealing from them things that they don't even have? Some US officials distorted China's military-civilian integration policy in malicious disregard for facts and seek to place a technological embargo on China under this pretext, thus disrupting and impeding normal economic, trade and technological cooperation between China and other countries. This practice, born out of Cold-War mentality, contravenes the spirit of international cooperation and the trend of the times. It undermines the interests of China, the US and the common interests of all.

China urges the US to adopt a responsible attitude, stop its malicious accusations and slanders, take an objective view on China's military-civilian integration policy, and make more efforts to promote China-US relations and international cooperation.
A Japanese restaurant has come under fire for releasing a takeaway menu offering a 'Wuhan burger' and 'bat wings'.

Nobunaga Yakitori in Brisbane launched the menu this week after the government banned dine-in service to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

The 'virus-free menu' was slammed by some customers, who accused the restaurant of being racist for making light of the Chinese origins of the deadly pandemic.

The outbreak has brought the Australian economy to a halt as businesses have been forced to close and thousands of workers have lost their jobs as a result.

Nobunaga Yakitori in Brisbane launched the new takeaway menu this week after the government banned dine-in service to slow the spread of the coronavirus

The 'virus-free menu' was quickly slammed as racists by customers who believe it is in poor taste as it makes light of the pandemic, which has killed more than 40,000 people across the globe

The menu featured a $16 'Wuhan Burger' with 'flame grilled bat' - which is actually chicken - wasabi mayo, lettuce and avocado.

It also featured 'bat wings' - which are actually chicken wings' - with 'China Sea salt' for $6 a piece.

Coronavirus is believed to have originated from Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei in China, after a person ate bat soup at a wholesale animal market.

The owner of the Brisbane restaurant has opened up about the menu, saying 'it was an attempt to add humour'.

The owner wrote in a post on Instagram there there was 'no bad feelings toward Chinese people, simply because of their race'.

The owner of the restaurant has opened up about the menu, saying 'it was an attempt to add humour'

'The REAL Chinese posters, took no offence, and I am relieved to know that, because, most certainly none was intended,' the post said..

'I've had threats of one of them coming to the restaurant with a knife, another threatened to come and physically assault me.'

They apologised to 'some who felt offended', but some takeaway fans were able to see the funny side.

One fan on Facebook wrote: I wanted to say I love your humour.

Not offensive or racist at all. When we are allowed to roam a bit more freely we will come by for some of your food. Good luck with your business.

Another added: Many of us do not feel being offended at all! We all understand what you are doing is humour and is part of relieving.

But the restaurant has been slammed with negative reviews website Zomato.

The restaurant has been slammed with negative reviews website Zomato, with many people calling it racist

'The owner is a awful person and tried to make fun of people's death,' one person wrote.

'Terrible attitude! Social media attitude is horrible. Came up with an insensitive 'covid-19' menu with very racist and inappropriate labelling and language. So disappointing! NEVER come here,' wrote another.

'Terrible and inappropriate restaurant,' another person wrote.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Nobunaga Yakitori restaurant for comment.
Dzuana Vanen Philip who was admitted into Benue State University after several years of applying for Medicine and Surgery at other universities was inducted in 2019 and began his housemanship at Federal Medical Center, Makurdi.

The deceased doctor was expected to complete his housemanship in 4 months time before his untimely death.

Vamen Philip died in the early hours of Wednesday, April 1, and will be cremated in line with the National guideline for management of Lassa Fever patients.

A friend of the deceased, Aindigh Kamo Mark took to Facebook to share ;

SO SAD WE LOST HIM.

Dr. Dzuana Vanen Philip was a very intelligent, careful and meticulous doctor. He graduated from the prestigious Mount St. Gabriels Secondary School, Makurdi in 2004 with a fantastic result from both WAEC and NECO. He wrote UTME many times applying for medicine and surgery at Uni Jos, ABU and Maiduguri. He rejected many admission offers and insisted his calling was in medicine. He finally got admitted on merit list in 2009 at BSU to read medicine and surgery. While in medical school he demonstrated a high level of maturity, intelligence, academic resilience, discipline and diligence.

Read Also: Nigerian Varsity Don Discovers Cure For Coronavirus, Lassa Fever

Dr. Dzuana will be remembered for his selflessness and humility in his daily interaction with course mates and colleagues. He graduated in 2019(10years school duration) after a protracted stay in medical school occasioned by lack of accreditation at BSU. He was inducted in the middle of 2019 and started housemanship at FMC Mkd, where he has been for the last 8 months. With just 4 months away from the end of housemanship, Dr. Dzuana took ill and was later confirmed to have contracted Lassa Fever, was initially managed at BSUTH but was later transferred to Irrua Specialist Hospital where he had two sessions dialysis on account of kidney failure.

He finally gave up in the early hours of Wednesday 1st April 2020. Sadly he will not be buried at his ancestral home. He will be cremated in line with the National guideline for management of Lassa Fever patients.

At this very difficult moment when the world is battling with a Pandemic (COVID 19), we still have with us the likes of Lassa and other tropical illnesses ravaging us. God consoles us and Grant the soul of Dr. Dzuana eternal rest.
Drivers line up to get a coronavirus test administered by Riverside County medical personnel at Diamond Stadium in Lake Elsinore. On Thursday, the Riverside County Sheriff's Department announced the first death in the department from COVID-19. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

A Riverside County sheriff's deputy died Thursday morning from complications of the coronavirus, the latest sign of how law enforcement is being hit hard by the outbreak.

The department tweeted that Deputy Terrell Young was its first member to succumb to the virus. Young battled symptoms of COVID-19 for a week before his death, Sheriff Chad Bianco said in a Facebook post. He served in the department for 15 years.

Our prayers go out to his family and friends as we suffer through this loss, said Bianco, who had announced March 26 that a deputy had tested positive for the coronavirus. Since then, two other Riverside County deputies have also been infected.



Young was working at one of the county jails in late March when he reported very early in the shift that he was not feeling well and was sent home, Bianco said in a video posted on social media. Because of the nature of his assignment that day, he hadnt interacted with any employees or inmates. Young was sent home to quarantine, where he was doing well and recovering at home a week ago, Bianco said.

Young started his career with the Riverside County Sheriffs Department in December 2005. He is survived by his wife and four children, according to the Riverside County Sheriffs' Assn.

Riverside County Sheriff's Deputy Terrell Young. (Riverside County Sheriff's Dept.)

The news of Terrells loss strengthens our resolve to work ever more closely with our health professionals to stop the spread of COVID-19," association President Bill Young said Thursday. We continue to urge everyone that this virus is real, it is deadly and we should continue to maintain social distancing as much as possible.

Bianco said the department has been working hard to prevent the virus from spreading to the inmate population by making deputy contact with those in the jail very controlled and limited.

As of March 26, the department had 11 inmates who were symptomatic and in quarantine, Bianco said. None has tested positive for COVID-19.

Several deputies who have experienced symptoms were in self-quarantine last week, the sheriff said, but have not tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Story continues

Law enforcement personnel are among more than 200 people who have died of the coronavirus in the state. A Santa Rosa police detective died last week.

Since the outbreak began, the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department has sent 209 employees home to quarantine because of exposure to the virus.

We are saddened to announce the passing of one of our own RSO family members, Deputy Terrell Young. Terrell Young served this department for 15 yrs & is the 1st member to succumb to the COVID-19 virus. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his loved ones during this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/bKYGI3KIXP  Riverside County Sheriff's Dept (@RSO) April 2, 2020

The Los Angeles Police Department continues to test more of its 13,000 employees, and more than 30 have tested positive for COVID-19. The department is now taking the temperatures of officers as they arrive for their shifts.

"We are taking every step to ensure officers' health," said Assistant Chief Horace Frank, who noted that anyone with a fever will be sent home immediately and directed to get medical treatment.

Department roll calls are now conducted with officers spaced far apart to ensure social distancing. Those with even slight signs of illness have been ordered to stay home, Frank said.

Work spaces are now frequently sanitized, and officers are equipped with N95 masks and gloves and goggles to use in the field if needed.
Police have shared an image of a tractor pulling a trailer rolled onto its side following an accident on the busy A50 roundabout in Derbyshire.

A tractor pulling a trailer rolled over on the A50 westbound carriageway near Sudbury on Tuesday 31 March.

The Derbyshire Roads Policing Unit shared the image on social media, saying incidents like this happen frequently.

The tweet from the force reads: "A50 Westbound near Sudbury. Trailer rollover.

"Happens relatively frequently on this roundabout when drivers carry too much speed. #DriveToArrive."

There have been numerous road accidents involving agricultural machinery in recent times.

In November 2019, a tractor driver pulling 11 tonnes of potatoes luckily escaped with minor injuries following a road incident in Cambridgeshire.

Elsewhere, a farm worker became the unfortunate target of a lighthearted pun contest on social media after his trailer overturned on a road in Scotland.
A six-week-old baby girl has died of coronavirus in the US state of Connecticut, Governor Ned Lamont said on Thursday, stressing that the death is a reminder that "nobody is safe with this virus" as the COVID-19 cases there crossed 3,500.

IMAGE: Workers prepare to load a deceased person into a trailer outside of Brooklyn Hospital Center during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, New York. Photograph: Brendan Mcdermid/Reuters

A report in the Hartford Courant newspaper quoted officials as saying that the infant arrived at the hospital unresponsive and tested positive for the coronavirus post-mortem.

Probably the youngest person ever to die of COVID here in Connecticut. That baby was a less than seven weeks old. And it just is a reminder that nobody is safe with this virus, Lamont said.

Lamont said that the state recorded a tragic milestone with the death of the infant.

The governor, in a tweet, said that the baby from the Hartford area was brought unresponsive to a hospital late last week and could not be revived.

"Testing confirmed last night that the newborn was COVID-19 positive. This is absolutely heartbreaking. We believe this is one of the youngest lives lost anywhere due to complications relating to COVID-19," he said.

"This is a virus that attacks our most fragile without mercy. This also stresses the importance of staying home and limiting exposure to other people. Your life and the lives of others could literally depend on it. Our prayers are with the family at this difficult time," Lamont said.

Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin said, our hearts break for that family, and our prayers are with the families of all of those who have lost loved ones and all of those affected by this ongoing epidemic.

Earlier, the youngest Connecticut resident to die of COVID-19 was a 35-year-old man, the report said.

The state has 3,557 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 85 people have died of the disease.

About 766 COVID-19 patients are currently hospitalized in the state.

The news report said that a model prepared by the University of Washington projects that as the coronavirus hits a peak in Connecticut on April 15, hospitals here will fall dramatically short on available beds.

In Connecticut, it foresees a peak of 41 single-day deaths in mid-April, before the numbers taper off during May and hit zero before the start of June. As many as 1,100 residents could die of the disease.

According to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, the number of Americans to have been infected by coronavirus stood at 214,000, and 5,093 had lost their lives from the deadly disease.
by Samir Youssef*

Iraqi Christians are pained by the tragic images coming from Italy. In Iraqi Kurdistan, the authorities too have ordered a lockdown, closed places of worship and forced people to stay at home. A "third generation" of war, a "biological" one, is underway. Protection is both spiritual and medical.

Erbil (AsiaNews)  From Italy to Iraq, the coronavirus crisis has become a global challenge to be fought with prayers and by following the instructions of public and health authorities. Fr Samir Youssef is a Chaldean priest in northern Iraq. For years, he has helped Christians, Muslims and Yazidi victims of the Islamic State. He has become a partner of AsiaNews in the campaign Adopt a Christian from Mosul. At present, he has dedicated his prayers (see video) to Italy, to the victims of the pandemic that increasingly looks like a war. He sees it as "third generation of wars, a biological war that is cold and hot, [. . .] like the flu, between light and darkness, between good and evil, in eternal battle. Here his testimony (first part).

First of all, I hope you are all well. I call on the Lord our Saviour to intervene and save Italy, and the whole world, from this cursed virus.

Like in your country, everything is on hold here. A total curfew is in place. People are locked down at home; universities, churches, restaurants and shopping centres are closed; all collective activities have stopped. Only mini-markets, pharmacies and hospitals remain open.

Most products come from Turkey, some drugs are made locally but most come from Italy and Switzerland. We still fear future drug shortages. What unimaginable problems this invisible thing has created!

Here in Enishke, Iraqi Kurdistan, one can walk only near the church; the main roads are off-limits. At the beginning, the lockdown was supposed to last until 29 March, then the government extended it to 8 April. Now it will certainly go beyond that.

Iraq has hundreds of cases, but it is hard to get reliable numbers, also because the border with Iran, the COVID-19 hotspot in the Middle East, was not immediately closed.

When Italy was first struck by the virus, I felt deep sadness and closeness, not only me but everyone here in Kurdistan, Christians and others, mindful of the great help received in the past from your country.

We have heard many sad and touching stories. We heard about the doctors and nurses, the sacrifice they make by staying in hospitals for days; about those who didnt go home to avoid infecting their loved ones. We heard the stories of those who died, the elderly who die in hospitals without the comfort of their children and relatives. We heard of seniors, but also young people, full of life, who died. We saw the row of coffins outside churches, and those carried away by the army.

We saw things in Italy, then France, the United States, Africa, Asia ... the whole world is facing a challenge. We either beat this cursed virus together, forever, or it will pop up again with a vengeance and terrorise us again.

Here, too, we are under a curfew. Still, young people went out, especially among the Kurds, until the Kurdish government deployed the Peshmerga to force people to stay home. We are all working together  clergy, doctors, politicians, police forces, experts and security forces  to stop this virus.

I think that a third generation of wars has begun, biological war. Government intervention is not necessary; three large technology companies that want to shape the fate of the world are enough to exploit this virus to their advantage.

In the future, this period will be analysed more closely . . . There is a mystery behind it all. Ostensibly, we are in a global war, but it is not a classic conflict.

I think that, like the Cold War, the conventional wars in Syria, Libya and Yemen will end to make way for another type of war, cold and hot at the same time, like the flu.

This war will be one of science and people of good will against science and people moved by self-interest, a war between light and dark, between good and evil, in eternal battle.

For this reason, we have two ways of protecting ourselves, a spiritual one and a medical one. The first requires prayers, reading the Gospel, entrusting oneself to the Lord and his mercy. The second consists in following the path of science and proper health guidelines.

(first part)

*priest in the Diocese of Zaku and Amadiyah
Like a thief in the wee hours of the night who would normally take his victims by surprise given that the greatest weapon thieves operate with apart from weapons of mass destruction, is the element of surprise, the World is currently bombarded by the attack of a disease known as CORONAVIRUS which has so far defied all scientific attempts and researches to ascertain the solution.

This emerging health phenomenon has practically wrestled humanity literally to the ground and the members of the human race can be seen panting and fighting to breath.

The World's economy is shut down.

World LEADERS like the British Premier has been in quarantine after testing positive to this new kid in the block.

The next King of England got hit by Coronavirus but he managed to find his steps back to the World of the living- he defeated the new master of the universe- CORONAVIRUS.

The chief medical officer of the United Kingdom is in self isolation. The health minister of Britain is in quarantine. The most powerful man in Nigeria and the head of the Presidential cabal in Nigeria is battling for life after he got tackled from the under belt by CORONAVIRUS which he caught in far away Germany. The daughter of President Muhammadu Buhari came back from United Kingdom and went into isolation. Two state governors in Nigeria have claimed to have tested positive. One of the finest musicians in modern day history of Nigeria Davido is praying for his wife Chioma who got infected by Coronavirus in Britain.

There are a few documented accounts on the etymology and historicity of this strange disease that has seized the World by the neck threatening to squeeze life out of it.

I read one of the few good evidence based accounts of the origin of CORONAVIRUS that emerged from China but has transformed into a pandemic.

The writers states that originally, scientists believed the virus may have developed in bats, and later pangolins.

However, they proceeded to affirm that genomic comparisons suggest that the SARS-Cov-2 virus is the result of a recombination between two different viruses, meaning the exact origin of the virus is still unclear.

Hear them: "In the space of a few weeks, we have all learned a lot about COVID-19 and the virus that causes it: SARS-CoV-2. But there have also been a lot of rumours. And while the number of scientific articles on this virus is increasing, there are still many grey areas as to its origins."

They inquired further into the interrogatory and asserted the following: "In which animal species did it occur? A bat, a pangolin or another wild species? Where does it come from? From a cave or a forest in the Chinese province of Hubei, or elsewhere?"

This is the historical timeline: In December 2019, 27 of the first 41 people hospitalised (66%) passed through a market located in the heart of Wuhan city in Hubei province in China.

"But, according to a study conducted at Wuhan Hospital, the very first human case identified did not frequent this market."

"Instead, a molecular dating estimate based on the SARS-CoV-2 genomic sequences indicates an origin in November. This raises questions about the link between this COVID-19 epidemic and wildlife". ( www.weforum.org ).

In the media documentations and reportage of the phenomenal health challenge, it is generally accepted that CORONAVIRUS was first noticed in China as aforementioned.

What is not understood yet and still subject to an avalanche of conspiracy theories is if the disease was lab generated and how it jumped from animals to man. A lot of studies on that are going on as i write.

What is not debatabls however is that there have been constant flows of controversial affirmations and claims made so far by World leaders. The emergence of this new health mystery has widened the scope of global political divisions from across board.

Some of these claims by politicians sounds so strange that you would think these claims were been made by habitual drunks with mental challenge.

For instance Iran accused Isreal of building CORONAVIRUS whereas Israel is similarly attacked by this disease.

Then another absurd happening was that the United States of America with one of the highest cases of infections went ahead to tighten the noose around the neck of Iran by imposing further economic sanctions even when Iran has had the misfortune of having some of the most deadly cobsequences of the CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC.

Traditional allies of the USA like Germany and a few others bypassed the United States sanctions against iran to deliver the much needed medical facilities to Iran to confront the CORONAVIRUS challenge. The World's powers are not left out in this squabble with China and USA having a childish spat over it.

The United States of America blames China for the outbreak and the eccentric President of the USA the Billionaire Donald Trump even called it WUHAN VIRUS. China then fired its own salvo by blaming US soldiers for importing the CORONAVIRUS into China.

Recently, security reports in the USA indicated that the Chinese government hid the facts of coronavirus from the rest of the World which made it difficult to know how to confront it and stop it from becoming a pandemic.

This piece is not about those controversies.

This reflection is to show how CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC has perfectly immitated the theory of anomie propounded long ago by a European Sociologist and Philosopher.

The health emergency has ended up making the WORLD look like an organised chaotic platform.

Everyone is scampering for dear life and not even the scientists are sure anymore how best to avoid the rapid spread of this ailment just as the harvests of deaths in Countries that ordinarily are developed and rich such as Italy and Spain has further pointed to the resemblance of this disease to that iconic sociological research unleashed by that scientist known as the theory of anomie. CORONAVIRUS has delivered a CHILD OF ANOMIE and the World is in a state of confusion.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC has understandably unleashed anomie on the global stage and everybody is running for cover.

Imagine a DISEASE that made toilet papers to become scarce commodities to an extent that Australian house wives freely exchanged punches in Super markets in panic buying sprees. Imagine a monstrous disease that made British families to stock up approximately 1 billion worth of foodstuffs in their houses that they can't possibly consumed before they perished. Nations are not sure what to do with panic buyers and in Nigeria there is widespread profiteering even as security forces in an attempt to enforce a curfew of stay at homes have wantonly violated the human rights of citizens.

So what is this theory that CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC has imitated and has brought to real life? In getting to the root of this inquiry we have to seek out the definition of the concept.

What then is the Definition of Anomie? The idea of anomie says study.com means the lack of normal ethical or social standards.

This concept first emerged in 1893, when French sociologist Emile Durkheim published his book entitled, The Division of Labour in Society.

Incidentally, France is an epicentre of the new global health emergency.

In this book, Durkheim indicated that the rules of how individuals interact with one another were disintegrating and therefore people were unable to determine how to act with one another.

As a consequence, Durkheim believed that anomie was a state where the expectations of behaviour are unclear, and the system has broken down. This is known as normlessness.

Durkheim claimed that this normlessness caused deviant behaviours, and later, as claimed in his 1897 work, Suicide, depression and suicide.

Durkheim's theory was based upon the idea that the lack of rules and clarity resulted in psychological status of worthlessness, frustration, lack of purpose, and despair. In addition, since there is no idea of what is considered desirable, to strive for anything would be futile.

Further, study.com gave us a privileged information thus: "In criminology, the idea of anomie is that the person chooses criminal activity because the individual believes that there is no reason not to. In other words, the person is alienated, feels worthless and that their efforts to try and achieve anything else are fruitless. Therefore, with lack of any foreseeable alternative, the person falls into criminal activity".

There is no doubt that CORONAVIRUS has imitated the philosophical theory propounded long ago by Durkheim because it has resulted in a fundamental shift in the attitudinal norms of the majority of the human race who belonged to organised religions to an extent that congregants are told to stay home and not walk into those worship centres.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC has set out a state of organised chaos that questions the validity of the claims made by some religious organisations that they have the esoteric and metaphysical powers to overcome all health adversities. Many faith leaders have died from this affliction and those who are alive are scampering for dear life. Saudi Arabia which houses the two holiest shrines of one of the World's largest religious groups- Islam, is on shutdown. Vatican city where the Vicar of Jesus Christ on Earth the Holy Father Pope Francis has ordered all the churches locked. Religious Priests and nuns have died. Monks of Christian and other faith based organisations have died. Iranian influential religious scholars have died. Atheists and humanists have died.

To bring out this reality to a better focus and perspective, one just have to realise that this new disease has led to the shutting down of miracle centres and even Atheists are not spared because each and everyone of the human family is in a race against time to save humanity. Doctors who are on the frontlines of battling the virus have died. Musicians and actors have died. Journalists and students are not spared and the elderly are mostly affected and then 70% of the victims of CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC are males.

Scientists have also been exposed as professionals who did not anticipate the impossible possibilities and it looks like Scientists failed to borrow a leaf from PHILOSOPHERS who search constantly for SOLUTIONS EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO EMPIRICAL PROBLEM.

CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC has understandably unleashed all those negative tendencies that the theoretician of the Theory of anomie predicted are essential elements that defines that human situation.

Will the World's Scientists learn a lesson and start evolving ways of tackling even health issues that may be like 50 years away?

Even the World's superpowers were taken by surprise by this CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC leading to a lot of hidden facts to come out in the open such as the POVERTY OF SPECIFIC MEDICAL FACILITIES TO TACKLE THIS NEW HEALTH EMERGENCY.

Besides, CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC has also demonstrated that manufacturers of beers and cars are also strategic in the area of manufacturing or fabricating certain tools like Ventilators by the motor companies and then hand sanitizers by beer brewing companies which are traditional medical equipment.

These facts were unknown before now.

This is a perfect imitation of PHILOSOPHY BY CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC.

Humanity should get Philosophers to think for the World so other professionals will remain vigilant to their primary mandates.

All hands must be on deck is the common anthem we should be singing after this lockdown occasioned by the health emergency and the motto of the Boys Scouts comes into focus here which says 'BE PREPARED". But the World was never prepared. It is even worst in Africa and Nigeria whereby perennial lack of good governance has led to the destruction of the health infrastructures.

In Nigeria, what has manifested is that the practice of over 40 years of pillaging of the commonwealth of Nigeria by few politicians and military Generals to the tune of over $400 billion USD (estimated by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes, years back) has come back to haunt and hunt those thieving political class who failed to build health facilities in Nigeria and preferred health tourism.

With CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC all nations' borders are shut down so these thieving elites of Nigerian species who actually brought in CORONAVIRUS into Nigeria are staying back to be treated in the collapsing health institutions.

Emmanuel Onwubiko is the Head of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria and [email protected] ; www.emmanuelonwubiko.com; www.thenigerianinsidernews.com ; [email protected] ; www.thenigerianinsidernews.com.
RIO DE JANEIRO  As coronavirus cases and deaths mount in Brazil, President Jair Bolsonaro has remained defiant, the last notable holdout among major world leaders in denying the severity of the coronavirus.

Brazilians, he declared last week, are uniquely suited to weather the pandemic because they can be dunked in raw sewage and dont catch a thing.

Defying guidelines issued by his own health ministry, the president on Sunday called on all but the elderly to get back to work.

Then he insisted that an anti-malaria pill of unproved efficacy would cure those who fall ill with the virus that has killed more than 43,000 people worldwide.

God is Brazilian, he told a throng of supporters. The cure is right there.

Several world leaders  among them President Trump and Prime Minister Boris Johnson  were slow to grasp the menace of the highly contagious virus, and reluctant to embrace disruptive and economically painful social distancing measures that have become the norm in much of the world.

But Bolsonaro remains the highest profile holdout in eschewing the scientific consensus on the lockdown measures required to keep health care systems from being overwhelmed.

His handling of the crisis has led to consternation across the countrys political spectrum as congressional leaders, editorial boards and the head of the Supreme Court have essentially beseeched Brazilians to ignore their president. A movement to impeach Bolsonaro is gaining popular support, with Brazilians banging pots from their windows nightly to repudiate their president.

He has demonstrated that he is unfit to be president, said Maria Herminia Tavares de Almeida, a political scientist at the University of Sao Paulo. He remains in power for one very simple reason: No one wants to create a political crisis to oust him in the midst of a health emergency.

Since the coronavirus was detected in Brazil in late February, the virus has spread quickly across the country, with large clusters in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the countrys most populous states. As of Wednesday, there were 5,812 confirmed cases in Brazil, where testing is limited, and 202 recorded deaths.

Bolsonaro and his allies say he is unfairly being portrayed as reckless for positing that the strict isolation measures could be more detrimental to the welfare of Brazilians than allowing the virus to crest more quickly.

Ernesto Londono, Manuela Andreoni and Leticia Casado are New York Times writers.
First responders are on the front lines of the fight against the new coronavirus ensuring orders are being followed and traveling to emergencies that could expose them to COVID-19.

Although first responders are trained to approach potentially risky situations, the coronavirus carriers who do not show symptoms are a new fear  first responders usually depend on signs of illness to know what risks they could be exposed to. According to the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, one in four people who contract the coronavirus will not show symptoms, NPR reported.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Coronavirus live updates: Houston reports two more deaths, 48 new cases

Even with proper personal protective equipment and new coronavirus precautions in place, first responders bear a greater risk of contracting COVID-19. As of April 1, at least 14 Houston Police Department Officers had tested positive for the coronavirus, the Houston Chronicle reported.

With an oath to serve and protect, Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman said deputies and all front line personnel are heroes. Hermans coverage area includes much of Humble, Kingwood and Atascocita.

We dont have a choice whether we deal with the public, Herman said. When we get a call, we have to go those folks out there are heroes.

New precautions

Herman said there were a lot of unknowns when the coronavirus started to affect Houston but they now understand how the virus is contracted and have been able to put protective measures in place.

Dispatch operators are asking additional questions to confirm if there is a risk of coronavirus so those who respond to the call can be the most prepared. The precinct is also working to ensure bars are closed and restaurants only serve to-go orders after County Judge Lina Hildago issued a Stay at Home order on March 24. The order has been extended until at least April 30.

LONE STAR SUPPORT: Lone Star loans ventilators, personal protective equipment to local hospitals

Herman has closed access to the precincts two main offices to the public, one in Humble and one in Cypresswood. Despite closures, police reports can be filed online through the precincts website. They have also discontinued fingerprinting services for citizens for the risk of exposure.

Additionally, we have bought hand sanitizers, not only hand sanitizers, but we have bought Clorox wipes for our troops in our offices, Herman said. As a matter of fact, I have spent close to $1,000 of my own personal money to buy these things because I didnt want to wait a week or two weeks because the county had to order them. Some of the things the county initially told us wouldnt be in until May, but theyve started getting them in. So all of our people are pretty much well equipped with everything they need to function out there as police officers.

Kingwood division focuses on safety

Commander Megan Howard at the Kingwood Division of the Houston Police Department echoed similar precautions, including providing PPE, online police reports and additional screening questions during 911 calls. Roll calls for the division are being held outside with distance between each person. Additionally, they are using a cleaning service to clean the back of their patrol cars so the next person who sits in the back will not have to risk exposure from the previous person.

We want to make sure we protect our personnel because we dont want to sacrifice our service to the city by accidentally exposing each other, Howard said.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Tracking coronavirus: Interactive maps, charts show spread of COVID-19 across Houston, rest of Texas

One of the biggest differences that both the Atascocita Fire Department and the Kingwood Division have seen due to closures and stay-at-home efforts is a decrease in traffic, which seems to have lowered crash reports, although Howard did not have hard numbers on crash reports.

And what that tells me is that the public is really heeding the instructions and the county orders about staying home and trying to keep everyone safe, Howard said. Of course, we appreciate the publics cooperation in that.

Limiting mental burden on first responders

The biggest concern Howard has seen in her line of work is not the risk of exposure but the risk of taking it home. The mental pressure is what first responders are feeling in general, Howard said.

They are taking precautions to make sure they have the least possible chance of bringing home the coronavirus. Howard said they have had minimal calls for cases of the coronavirus with one possible exposure, but those at risk are past the incubation period and there has not been any issues.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: First responders cant social distance. Some are getting sick. And departments say it could strain responses

People have either household members or family members who they would normally visit who could be considered high risk, and thats kind of the biggest concern, Howard said. And I see that echoed in a number of ways. One of the reasons for everyone wanting to make sure that they have PPE is because they want to make sure that they can be clean when they get home and they dont risk exposing their families.

Although deputies may help EMS if needed, they usually do not come into direct contact with medical calls. Herman has had one deputy test positive for the coronavirus who is assigned out of the Humble office. He was on scene with a sheriff deputy where they had to come in contact with a suspect by fighting them to the ground and arrest them. The next day, the deputy sheriff tested positive.

So the sheriffs office alerted us and the three of my deputies that were there were all alerted, they immediately went into quarantine and I think two days after one of my deputies started showing signs of the coronavirus, Herman said. He went and got tested and tested positive, and so he is currently I think still at home through the rest of this week.

Adjusting to social distancing

At the administrative level, many non-essential employees have been sent to work from home in the Atascocita Fire Department, Battalion Chief David Roark said. And measures have been put in place to prevent any potential spread of the virus, such as taking temperatures at the door. They started to see coronavirus cases in the department about two weeks ago with a steady increase since then, but could not disclose the amount of cases they have had, he said.

Even though we have to be here, were trying to do our part to make sure we are social distancing, Roark said. So where as we used to sort of once every tour, once every time we came into work, we would do one big training where everybody meets up and we do a big, what we call multi-company training. Were eliminating things like that and were going back to everybody to make sure that youre getting your training in but were concentrating on stuff where we dont all have to get together.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Atascocita Fire Dept mulls rebuild, renovation options at Station No. 29

Before COVID-19, the entirety of the Atascocita Fire Department found time to gather for meals and take time to be together. Now, due to the risk of the coronavirus, most are staying in their stations on shifts and are no longer gathering together for meals, or at all. Sammy Melendez, EMS Caption for Atascocita Fire Department A shift, said it seems like the most used method for communication is across a large group text to stay in touch.

Family-like connection

Theres a lot of camaraderie in the fire department. You know, were a family, were here for long shifts, and we make a habit of getting together, Melendez said. We even have like one station would host dinner one day and we would all get together and everybody would have that family meal or things of that nature. That has been one of the biggest changes, that were trying to avoid, trying to respect social distancing and avoid anyone getting exposed or getting sick.

One of the biggest changes Roark has seen is how they respond to COVID-19 while in the field. Despite concerns, volunteers and part-time employees have been helping to support the department in addition to full-time staff continuously through the coronavirus. They are taught to do an assessment when they walk into a room, something that is now more important than ever before according to Roark. They slow down and make sure they are not walking into a potential exposure if they do not have to be.

Im very, very confident in the policies and procedures that weve developed when were interacting with these patients, Roark said. The real stress comes from the fact that this can be transmitted by someone who doesnt have any symptoms. So just having to take that extra level of precaution every time you leave the station, you know, it just makes every response a little bit harder.

If by chance they are exposed, the Atascocita Fire Departments administration has prepared to help with quarantine options so they could choose an alternative from going home to isolate for the suggested 14 days to prevent spreading the virus.

Theres definitely an added level of stress for us, Roark said. ...My whole family is at home, they are socially distancing at home and theyre taking it very seriously. Unfortunately, weve had to have some difficult talks at home about what happens if I know Im exposed at work.

Despite the risks, Melendez said this job is their passion and they are happy to help the community.

We love to do it, its what we want to do, we want to be out here helping the community, Melendez said. I think were all glad to be able to come to the station and do our part to help the situation.

savannah.mehrtens@chron.com
How do you celebrate Palm Sunday when you cant go to church or even get the traditional palm fronds?

Thats the question many churches in New Jersey are grappling with this week as they prepare for the pre-Easter tradition at a time when coronavirus social distancing rules mean public services are banned and people are encouraged to stay at least 6 feet from each other.

New Jerseys Catholic dioceses have already warned parishioners: No palms will be handed out this Sunday. But a few other Christian churches are planning drive-by palm distributions or the delivery of sanitized palm crosses to elderly church members.

And some churches are rethinking the tradition entirely and encouraging new Palm Sunday customs -- including hanging tree branches, Christmas wreaths or any greenery on your front door to mark the holy day.

While we must be apart this Palm Sunday, we remain the Catholic community of South Jersey. No amount of social distancing and restrictions from public gatherings will change that in the Diocese of Camden, the diocese said in a social media post urging Catholics to hang any greenery they can find on their houses Sunday morning.

Through this green branch on our door we remember each other and Jesus sacrifice for us, as we enter into the holiest week of the Christian calendar, the Diocese of Camden said.

On Palm Sunday, since we will be unable to receive our beloved palms at Mass, let us all put a branch on the door or window of our home to celebrate Palm Sunday. It doesnt need to be a palm, any green branch will do. (1/5) pic.twitter.com/2XRs9usgI9  Diocese of Camden (@camdendiocese) April 1, 2020

Palm Sunday, which traditionally falls on the Sunday before Easter, celebrates Jesus triumphant arrival in Jerusalem before he was crucified. In the accounts in the Bible, people placed small branches on the ground as Jesus rode in on a donkey.

Christian churches in the U.S. usually bless and distribute palms to the faithful on Palm Sunday or use them in processions in the church. Many people fold the fronds into crosses or other designs and display them in their houses before Easter.

However, other types of branches are used in other parts of the world where palms are hard to find. Some countries use olive branches, yew trees or native plants in their Palm Sunday traditions.

New Jerseys Catholic dioceses announced last week that no palms would be distributed this year. But Palm Sunday Masses will still be celebrated via live stream videos in many parishes.

People should not show up at church hoping to pick up a palm, the Catholic churches said.

Blessed palms can be made available for distribution at a later date  they are NOT TO BE DISTRIBUTED UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE at this time, the Diocese of Metuchen said in a statement to parishioners. If one person who has the coronavirus even touches some of the palm which someone else will take, they could be infecting them.

Other churches said they are sanitizing palms.

At Westminster Presbyterian Church in Middletown, volunteers will drop off palm crosses in sanitized packets to elderly church members, church officials said.

The delivery folks will be wearing personal protection equipment (PPE) when dropping off the packets, the church said in a statement.

The Middletown church will also host a one-hour Palms & Psalms event in the church driveway on Sunday where church members can drive thru and pick up their palms following an online church service.

Kelly Heyboer may be reached at kheyboer@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KellyHeyboer. Find her at KellyHeyboerReporter on Facebook.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Oil markets are in pain. Demand has plummeted, with about three billion people under lockdown just as the world faces a historic supply glut. The worlds crude storage, meanwhile, is filling fast, from underground caverns to rail cars and tankers. For landlocked producers, that hardly matters: Some are already paying customers to take their oil away.

The consequences will be long-lasting. Drillers in the U.S. and elsewhere are scaling back or shutting down production. Against a background of steep spending cuts, not all of that will be swiftly reversible. Price relief will hinge on the worlds convalescence.

The collapse in appetite for gasoline, jet fuel and diesel has been unprecedented in speed and scale. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. estimated Monday that with economies representing 92% of global gross domestic product now under some form of social distancing, the loss of demand this week stands at 26 million barrels per day, roughly a quarter below last years levels. Over a month, thats almost 800 million barrels lost. Numbers since published from the shuttered economies of Italy and Spain suggest levels of destruction could be even worse. Spanish diesel demand is down 61%. The collapse is translating into a surplus thats straining refineries, pipelines and the worlds limited ability to squirrel away oil.

There is no precise estimate for how much capacity the world has to store oil products. Analysts at S&P Global Platts estimate 1.4 billion barrels, including 400 million of floating storage. So far, 50% of that has been used: The figure will rise to 90% by the end of April. Its a squeeze visible in freight rates, with fleets of very large carriers filling up, making it harder to use them to store oil or even move it to a buyer. Costs for the benchmark journey from the Middle East to China have risen sevenfold; Reliance Industries Ltd. paid $400,000 a day for a supertanker to haul oil from the Middle East to Indias west coast in early April.

Story continues

For landlocked drillers, though, there are greater worries. They are facing a lack of local storage, and pipeline companies asking them to cut back or prove they have a buyer for their crude before loading. They simply cant get oil to the right place, at the current price. Meanwhile, refineries are cutting back as they reach storage limits.

This all means that negative oil prices  when producers are effectively paying customers to take the oil  arent only possible, but already a reality. The global benchmarks for oil, West Texas Intermediate and Brent, have dropped about two-thirds this year. They arent about to dip below zero. You wont get paid for filling up at the pump. In the neighborhood of $20 a barrel, though, where your oil is now matters almost more than how much it costs you to produce it.

Check out grades that demand expensive refining or in locations requiring costly transport. Wyoming Asphalt Sour, used in paving, was among the first to slide into the red at a negative $0.19 per barrel in mid-March, as my colleagues Javier Blas and Sheela Tobben reported last month. Other producers may be selling at a loss, effectively subsidizing buyers to take their output. Western Canadian Select, the benchmark price for the giant oil-sands industry in Canada, is at around $5, with Bakken crude in Guernsey, Wyoming, in single digits too. The gap with WTI has become wider.

Many of these producers are already cutting back, or shutting down. Whiting Petroleum Corp., a shale champion, filed for bankruptcy Wednesday. Oil explorers, servicing companies and others are in severe pain too, and the squeeze wont be felt only in the U.S. Russia says it wont boost supply at current prices. Ecuador has failed to find buyers.

What does this mean for an eventual recovery? First, the extent of demand loss means that even a resolution to the Saudi-Russian spat would help only a little, perhaps easing pressure on the worlds fleet of very large oil carriers, known as VLCCs.

A real pick-up in prices will require demand to come back. At that point, it may not require much to prompt a temporary spike, depending on how much is stored, locked up by traders through financial contracts, or taken out for good. Geopolitics, with oil-producing nations strained, may also help a little. For the time being, though, negative prices are here to stay.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Clara Ferreira Marques is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering commodities and environmental, social and governance issues. Previously, she was an associate editor for Reuters Breakingviews, and editor and correspondent for Reuters in Singapore, India, the U.K., Italy and Russia.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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Houston health care leaders are urgently putting together contingency plans  from repurposing hospital beds not currently in use to creating a makeshift facility at NRG Stadium  to prevent an expected surge of COVID-19 patients from overwhelming area hospitals.

The plans, assembled by leaders from the Texas Medical Center, the city of Houston, Harris County and the region, stress fluidity and flexibility because the extent of the surge, projected to peak in the next two to four weeks, is so maddeningly unknowable.

Its like were waiting on a very, very slow moving hurricane that has been sitting off the Gulf of Mexico for three weeks, said Dr. James McDeavitt, dean of clinical affairs for Baylor College of Medicine. We dont know if the eyes going to hit us or were going to be hit by the outer bands. We have to be ready for both.

CORONAVIRUS UPDATES: Stay informed with accurate reporting you can trust

Dr. Umair Shah, executive director of Harris County County Public Health, said officials are looking at numerous contingency plans, putting all the pieces together. He said regional leaders hope they dont have to execute the plan or at least all of its phases, but must think steps ahead.

A number of officials emphasized that Houston doesnt want to be in (the same situation as) New York  a reference to the nightmare blow the coronavirus has inflicted on that city. As leaders and residents there braced for matters to get even worse, New York Citys death toll neared 1,400 Wednesday afternoon.

To avert such a situation here, Shah said Houston and Harris County public officials are focusing now on the NRG Stadium option. Under that plan NRG would be staffed by a mix of doctors, nurses and other employees provided by a private company and as well as those in the medical center who have had their jobs or work curtailed or shelved in anticipation of the coming surge.

Shah says the stadium idea would only be executed if patient volumes cannot be handled through contingency plans already in place at hospitals. That involves not just repurposing beds but rapidly making available beds not currently in use.

Houston-area hospitals should be able to create at least 3,500 more beds by such creative rearranging, estimates Darrell Pile, CEO of the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council, a state group that coordinates the emergency response to disasters in a 25-county area centered in Houston.

For now, those improvisations havent been necessary in Houston. Pile estimates an average hospital occupancy rate of roughly 60 percent in the area  the Harris Health System is close to 90 percent, CHI St. Lukes is 47 percent  partly thanks to its suspension of most elective surgeries nearly two weeks ago. In a city with roughly 14,000 beds, that will accommodate quite a few COVID-19 patients.

But the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients are definitely picking up. In SETRACs area, for instance, the number of hospitalizations grew more than 40 percent  729 to 1,031  from March 26 to March 30.

Last weekend, Methodist began moving some of its sickest patients into a second intensive care unit, a neurosurgery suite recently converted to house COVID-19 patients.

Now Playing: Melanie Aluotto, director of emergency and observation services at Memorial Hermann Memorial City, gives a tour of the hospitals alternative care site tent for the care of potential COVID-19 patients. Video: Chron

The next couple of weeks are going to be very telling, said Methodist President Dr. Marc Boom. If the curve flattens over the next two or three weeks, well manage well. The real question is, what if, over the next two or three weeks, it doesnt flatten?

Boom noted that in mid-March, Methodist had three or four COVID-19 patients, all travel-related. Now it is has more than 100 throughout its system. So does Memorial Hermann.

In all, more than 840 people in Harris County are now hospitalized with either COVID-19 or suspected COVID-19, according to data collected by SETRAC.

Beds alone dont tell the whole story. Some 40 percent of the COVID-19 patients at both Methodist and Memorial Hermann have had to be admitted to the ICU, officials said.

Thats consistent with statistics out of China and Italy. Those statistics also found such patients spend significantly longer in the ICU, on ventilators and recovering upon returning to a regular hospital bed.

These patients do not have rapid stays, said Dr. Bela Patel, executive medical director of critical care for Memorial Hermanns hospital in the medical center. They can get very sick very quickly, which demands high expertise and skill levels in the ICU.

Such longer stays make the hospital less able to take on new patients, said Patel, also a UTHealth physician.

An adequate number of ventilators has proved a problem in many locations, but Pile said the Houston area supply is currently good  as of Sunday, 667 ventilators were available for use in a nine-county area. Patel said that Memorial Hermann has one for every one of its more than 500 ICU beds.

The real shortage may be ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) devices, which replace the function of the persons lungs and are used, sparingly, when ventilators fail. Patel estimates there are only about 50 of the devices in Houston.

The existing contingency planning includes discharging eligible patients to home, to nursing homes and to long-term acute care hospitals as early as possible; opening beds in parts of the hospital that may have been closed for a period of time and repurposing beds in recovery rooms and other areas not normally used for inpatient care.

CORONAVIRUS IN HOUSTON: All of the latest news, numbers and analysis to keep you up-to-date, only on HoustonChronicle.com

Pile said such actions, in addition to the suspension of elective surgeries, can provide hospitals more than 20 percent additional capacity in the event of an emergency.

Shah said the hope is that such contingency efforts, in place at every hospital, will suffice. He said the uncertainty requires officials to maintain a fine balance  between taking all steps necessary to be ready for a worst-case scenario, such as laying the groundwork for a hospital, and not getting too far ahead of an evolving situation.

Dr. Paul Klotman, president of Baylor, said Houston has some advantages on New York. Houston started social distancing sooner; the virus may not thrive as well in this hotter, more humid climate; and the fact that the area is not as densely populated, he said.

The key, he says, is for Houston to take advantage of such natural advantages.

The more aggressive we are about maintaining our social distance, the better our chances of maintaining our current infection rate, 2 [percent] to 3 percent, which is much lower than New York, said Klotman. Do that, and we should be able to squeak by when the peak hits in four weeks.

But if we lower our guard and the infection rate rises significantly, the peak will come four weeks later and patient demand will far exceed hospital capacity and well need field hospitals.

Lisa Gray contributed to this report.

todd.ackerman@chron.com
Egypt announced the detection of 69 new coronavirus cases and six new fatalities on Wednesday, according to the country's health ministry.

The total number of infections has reached 779 nationwide, while the death toll stands at 52.

The first coronavirus case in Egypt was discovered in mid-February, almost two months after the deadly virus first surfaced in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

Ministry spokesman Khaled Megad said that all the fatalities were 5 Egyptian citizens and one Jordanian man.

The 69 new coronavirus patients are also Egyptians, who had come in contact with the cases detected earlier, in addition to returnees from abroad.

The spokesman said that 22 more cases  all Egyptians except for one Malaysian woman  have fully recovered and left the isolation hospitals on Wednesday.

The number of people whose test results have turned from positive to negative so far has risen to 221, among whom 179 have fully recovered and discharged from the isolation hospitals, Megahed said.

Egypt has prepared 27 hospitals nationwide to treat coronavirus patients, and six of these hospitals are currently being used to treat those infected with the virus, with an occupancy rate of 50 to 60 percent.

In a video message published on the ministrys official Facebook page on Wednesday, Health Minister Hala Zayed said that according to the data analysis of the outbreak in Egypt, the most affected age group by the virus has been those aged between 50 to 59, representing 22 percent of the total infections.

Zayed added that 94 percent of people killed by the coronavirus in Egypt have been over 50 and all had chronic diseases or tumors.

She also noted that 61 percent of those infected have been males and 39 percent females, while children under 10 years old constitute only 2 percent.

Zayed added that the average period of hospitalisation from initial admission to full recovery has been eight days, underscoring that the epidemiological situation in Egypt is stable compared to the global situation.

The minister called on Egyptians returning from abroad and all those who have been in contact with people who have tested positive to follow the health ministrys guidelines, at the top of which is remaining in self-isolation for 14 days.

Egypt has grounded international flights until mid-April as part of strict measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus, but the country has since operated several exceptional flights to bring home nationals stranded overseas provided that they undergo 28-day quarantine.

A nationwide nighttime curfew also is in effect daily from 7 pm to 6 am until 7 April.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered his second address to the nation on the coronavirus situation in the last eight days. The head of states speech is broadcast by Russian television, TASS reported.

The president declared that paid non-working days in Russia would be prolonged until April 30.

"We have not passed the peak of the epidemic in the world and in our country yet. Due to this, I have decided to prolong the non-working days until the end of the month, that is, until April 30." He stressed that workers would still be paid during the days-off.

Public agencies, pharmacies, groceries, essential good shops will continue working during the days-off, the president informed.

Vladimir Putin has thanked all those who observe coronavirus prevention recommendations, in particular medics. "I am certain that all citizens will join their voices to the deepest thanks to our medical workers," Putin stated in his televised message.

"I would like to sincerely thank all of you without an exception and to say thank you to the volunteers and all people who have not stayed indifferent and realized their personal responsibility for the struggle against the epidemic and strictly follow the recommendations of the authorities and medical specialists, caring about their own health as well as that of their relatives and dear ones and the security of all those around," Putin said.
The kit is priced between INR 2000-3000/- depending upon the global supply

Bengaluru based start-up Bione has recently launched a rapid COVID-19 at-home Screening test kit. The easy-to-use kit displays accurate results within minutes, instrumental in the timely screening of the deadly virus.

The at-home screening kit is available for sale on companys platform after approval from the requisite medical regulatory authorities.

In a breakthrough development, the Biotech company has devised the screening kit for coronavirus which can provide respite from the impending fear of the contagion. The simple point-of-care home screening kit renders quick results, without having to step out in the wake of lockdown. It will foster timely detection of the disease while acting as a preventive tool for others in proximity to the user, by isolating the carrier immediately.

The kit is priced between INR 2000-3000/- depending upon the global supply, to increase its affordability for the masses. Under normal circumstances, the ready-to-use kits can be received within 2-3 days of placing the order at their platform. An effective screening tool for mass screening, the organisation is also in talks to provide bulk orders for early detection.

COVID-19 Screening test kit is an IgG & IgM based tool which takes 5-10 minutes to deliver the results. Upon receiving the kit, the user is required to clean their finger with an alcohol swab and use the lancet provided to finger-prick. The cartridge provided reads the results from the blood sample thus obtained, within 5-10 minutes.

As per the company statement, The products have been sourced from worldwide CE and FDA approved partners and are brought to market after stringent quality controls have been ensured. The kits are approved by ICMR and will be deployed in the market after proper quality checks and assurance. The company is in the process of getting approval for more USFDA partners.

The organisation is well-equipped to supply 20,000 kits per week and intends to build its manufacturing facilities in the coming months to sufficiently cater to the high demand.

Currently, the kits are experiencing a worldwide upsurge in demand especially from the US, Italy, Spain etc. due to lack of coronavirus testing solutions in the market.

Speaking on the launch, Dr Surendra Chikara, CEO, Bione said, We had been tracking the pandemic and pooled in a lot of time, resources and attention in our mission to develop a tool effective in curbing the outbreak. COVID-19 Home Screening test kit has emerged as a breakthrough product in such unprecedented times. By bringing down the result time, we are looking to make an impact and help India fight COVID-19. We strongly believe that the government's support is pivotal in leading a revolution against coronavirus.

The company had earlier developed a Microbiome test kit to check gut dysbiosis and also genetic tests to predict susceptibility to contagious diseases such as COVID-19, based on their genetic makeup.
Venture capital firms including Accel, Kalaari, SAIF Partners and Sequoia have advised start-ups to be "prepared for the worst", and urged them to adopt options like pay deferral and reduced salaries for workforce instead of slashing jobs in these difficult times.

In an open letter to start-ups, these VCs pointed out that start-up founders will "inevitably be faced with difficult decisions" on execution for the next 21-30 days, and on how to plan for the next 12-18 months.

"As early-stage investors in India, we are a group that is unequivocally bullish on the long-term outlook for the start-up ecosystem. We believe in our founders and teams, and wish everyone the best in navigating through this extremely turbulent and stressful time," the letter said.

The firms offered advice on a number of issues, including fundraising, managing employees, business continuity plan and communicating with investors and stakeholders.

The 21-day lockdown across the country -- enforced by the government to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus infection -- has been challenging for businesses, especially start-ups in the country. There have been a number of reports of start-ups and digital businesses laying off staff and slashing salaries as they look to cut costs and rationalise operations to get over these difficult times.

The letter pointed out that the macro situation is constantly evolving and adaptability of all plans would be key for start-ups.

"Be prepared for the worst; then readjust if situation improves faster... Taking a 'wait and watch' approach before taking any action in the hope that clarity will emerge is not a good idea in a situation like the one we're in," it said.

It advised that for most companies, the priorities should be "employee safety first, business continuity second, and liquidity and runway, a key third".

The firms advised start-ups to look at people costs only after all other costs are reviewed and reduced, and that they should stay updated with government directions (both central and state) on dismissal of employees, reduction of salary, etc.

It added that if organisations have to undertake steps to cut employee-related costs, they could explore options like pausing hiring, re-aligning roles, changing appraisal systems, pay deferrals and pay reduction.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The new coronavirus forced into isolation Israels health minister, who has had frequent contact with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after he tested positive for the disease, the Health Ministry said Thursday.

The Middle East has over 82,000 confirmed cases of the virus, most of them in Iran, and over 3,600 deaths. Irans Health Ministry said Thursday that the new coronavirus killed another 124 people, pushing the countrys death toll to 3,160.

In a rare acknowledgment of the severity of the outbreak by a senior Iranian official, President Hassan Rouhani said the new coronavirus may remain through the end of the Iranian year, which just began late last month, state TV reported Thursday.

We always have to follow the health protocols provided by the health ministry, Rouhani added.

In Lebanon, the Philippines ambassador, Bernardita Catalla, died of complications from the coronavirus Thursday, the Philippines said. Lebanon has recorded 494 cases, including 16 deaths.

Israel said Health Minister Yaakov Litzman and his wife, who also contracted the virus, are in isolation, feel well and are being treated.

Shortly after the announcement, Netanyahus office said he returned to self-quarantine because of contact with Litzman. Netanyahu, who has tested negative, had previously been in isolation after a top aide tested positive for the virus.

Hebrew language media reported that the head of Israels Mossad spy agency and the National Security Council were asked to self-quarantine because of their interactions with Litzman.

Israel has gone into near-lockdown to try to contain the outbreak. It has reported over 6,200 confirmed cases and 29 deaths of COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus.

Israels large, insular ultra-Orthodox community, of which Litzman is a member, has been particularly hard hit. In the early phases of the outbreak, some rabbis had pushed back or ignored government-mandated movement restrictions, but resistance appears to have diminished.

For most people, the virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause severe symptoms like pneumonia that can be fatal.

In Syria, the government extended the closures of mosques until April 16, nearly a week before the start of the holy month of Ramadan when Muslims spend more time in prayers and worship. It also extended indefinitely a ban on visits to prison and detention facilities, citing concerns over the spread of the virus, and expanded curfew times over weekend days.

Rights groups have called on Mideast governments to release thousands of political detainees held in crammed and unhygienic jails. In government-controlled Syria, 10 cases of infection and two deaths were reported, amid concerns the virus may be more widespread.

The World Health Organization said it was increasing preparedness in the rebel-controlled, northwestern region of Syria that is home to nearly 4 million people, most of them displaced by the war and repeated government offensives. Only half of the health facilities are functioning in rebel-held territory, where displaced camps are crowded and the virus transmission would be fast once it reaches the area.

Meanwhile, the pandemic is expected to wipe out $23 billion in passenger revenue from airlines across the Middle East and Africa this year, according to an assessment Thursday by the aviation industrys largest trade association.

The International Air Transport Association said Mideast airlines will see a $19 billion drop in revenue this year, compared to 2019. Airlines in Africa, which include EgyptAir, are expected to see a $4 billion drop. Hundreds of thousands of job in the aviation sector are also at risk across both regions.

Saudi Arabias revenue loss could exceed $5.6 billion this year, as all pilgrimage flights are currently halted in addition to commercial flights to and from the kingdom. The United Arab Emirates, home to worlds busiest airport for international travel in Dubai, is projected to lose $5.4 billion in revenue.

Egypt and Qatar could also see more than $1 billion each in revenue loss, while the aviation sector in South Africa is expected to lose $2.3 billion in potential revenue.

IATA said projections are based on assumptions that travel restrictions will continue through the second quarter of 2020. Even if travel recovers partially in the second half of the year, it will be slow and impacted by an overall slump in the global economy and weakened passenger demand.
It has been announced that that on March 31, 2020 the Delaware Harness Racing Commission approved a plan to distribute purses from the final two weeks of the Dover Downs meet that were not contested due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Delaware Standardbred Owners Association has been working to help its harness racing community during the pandemic while racing in the state has been suspended.

Please see the following correspondence from DSOA Executive Director Sal DiMario for details.

Members of the Delaware Harness Racing Community:

On behalf of the Directors of DSOA I am pleased to inform you that the Delaware Harness Racing Commission approved the revenue distribution plan submitted by DSOA and Dover Downs to distribute purse money for the final two weeks of the shortened 2019-2020 Dover Downs scheduled meet.

Separate weekly direct deposits will be made this week and next week; you will receive email notifications from Dover Downs prior to receiving the deposit as usual. The plan that was approved complied with all relevant Delaware statutes that govern how purse money may be used.

A six-week look back period was employed, February 3 to March 16, 2020; every owner entity (owners and partnerships) that raced a minimum of two starts during that period were included; every owner entitys starts were totalled and then divided by six (six weeks) to get that entitys weekly per start average; that PSA was then multiplied by the purse payment per start amount, which is the total purses paid for each week (total purses minus five per cent trainer and driver fees) divided by the total number of owner entities. The trainers and drivers fees were calculated the same way.

Example: ABC partnership had 18 total starts for a per start weekly average of three which was multiplied by the purse payment per start amount. 18~6 = 3 X ppsa = amount you will receive.

I wish to extend DSOAs thanks to John Hensley and Dover Downs for their assistance and co-operation. I want to express DSOAs gratitude to Secretary of Agriculture Michael Scuse for his leadership and hard work on this entire project. We could not have done it without him as he was the liaison between all the stakeholders including the Governors office. And finally, I want to thank the Delaware Harness Racing Commission for their prompt action reviewing and approving this plan.

I also want to thank the Board of DSOA Directors for their tireless dedication to the horsemen and women they work hard to represent. I also thank you, the members of the racing community, for your patience and co-operation; we will get through this one day at a time.

Sincerely yours,

Salvatore DiMario

Executive Director

In addition, the DSOA is also in early discussions with the Department of Agriculture regarding a possible interest free loan program similar to the one the Governors Administration recently approved for the restaurant and hospitality industry. This is in the early stages and will require further discussion, but it is being pursued.

As the Harrington Raceway meet approaches the DSOA will keep you updated on the status of the 2020 Spring Meet.

Please go to the DSOA website at DSOAOnline.com and the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/DEStandardbredOwners/ for ongoing updates on COVID-19 issues surrounding our Delaware racing community.

Thank you to the horsemen and women of Delaware for their patience and know that the DSOA is working to find every possible solution to help our racing community.

(Delaware Standardbred Owners Association)
We know that in reality marriage is dog cheap, says a character in A Hazard, and anybody can have it for the asking. But for Edna Pontellier, the protagonist of Kate Chopins The Awakening (1899), marriage is dog-leash hard to escape from. After the book caused an uproar in Chopins native St. Louis and beyond, the author portrayed herself as hardly more than a bystander: I never dreamed of Mrs. Pontellier making such a mess of things and working out her own damnation as she did. . . [and] when I found out what she was up to . . . it was . . . too late.
[April 02, 2020] APMEX Helps Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma Match $1 Million in Donations

During these challenging times, APMEX employees have gone above and beyond to help serve our customers. Due to their hard work and commitment, APMEX has donated $250,000 on behalf of our employees to help provide food for thousands of Oklahomans. The donation helped the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma (RFBO) meet its goal of creating a $1 million fund to match other donations to combat hunger during the COVID-19 pandemic. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005706/en/ APMEX employees volunteer at the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma (Photo: Business Wire) APMEX CEO Ken Lewis said the gift was made in recogntion of company employees working tirelessly during this difficult time to serve customers, co-workers and the community.



"One of our core values at APMEX is helping our neighbors in need," Lewis said. "During this global crisis, our employees are proud to turn their energies into supporting our longtime partner, the Regional Food Bank." Deb Bunting, interim CEO of the Regional Food Bank, said financial support from companies like APMEX is more important now than ever before.

"We are so grateful to APMEX and its employees for their support as we provide food assistance to a growing number of Oklahomans," Bunting said. "Every dollar donated is critical to helping us respond to this pandemic and getting food into the hands of our neighbors who are now facing food insecurity." To take advantage of APMEX's matching donations, visit rfbo.org/give or call 405-600-3161. Donations made by texting DISASTER to 501-501 will also be matched. The text to give is an automatic $10 donation. Data and text rates may apply. About APMEX

Since opening our doors in 2000, APMEX remains one of the largest sources in the Precious Metals industry. Over the last two decades, we have sold more than $11 billion in Gold, Silver, and other Precious Metals in more than 60 countries around the world. For additional information, visit APMEX.com or call (800) 375-9006. About the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma

The Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma is leading the fight against hunger in 53 counties in central and western Oklahoma and envisions a state where everyone, regardless of circumstance, has access to nutritious food. Founded in 1980, the Regional Food Bank is the state's largest hunger-relief 501(c)(3) nonprofit that distributes food through a network of community-based partner agencies and schools. The majority of people served by the Regional Food Bank are chronically hungry children, seniors living on fixed incomes and hardworking families struggling to make ends meet. The Regional Food Bank is a member of Feeding America, the nation's network of food banks. To join the fight to end hunger, visit rfbo.org. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005706/en/

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This is the moment a brave shopkeeper grabbed at a gun brandished by an armed robber demanding money from the till.

CCTV footage showed how Christopher Allison pointed the weapon at a shop assistant at the Best One store in Washington, Tyne and Wear, leaving them fearing for their life.

Newcastle Crown Court heard how the brave assistant grabbed at the weapon, which turned out to be a blank firing handgun, and 'tussled' with the 31-year-old, who left empty handed.

Prosecutor Emma Dowling told the court the attempted robbery was captured on the shop's CCTV.

An armed robber points a handgun at a shopkeeper inside a shop in the north east of England

Brave shopkeeper lunged to grab the gun from Christopher Allison at the Best One shop in Washington, Tyne and Wear on December 27

She said Allison had gone into the shop on Front Street, Concord, Washington, on December 27, and picked up a drink from a fridge and added: 'The defendant came to the counter with the energy drink and a white plastic bag in his hand.

'He asked the worker if he could also have a scratchcard, a number 16 and when he went to get the scratchcard the defendant produced a gun and demanded money from the till.

'Initially, the shop worker states he thought the gun was a toy. He tried to grab the gun and there was a tussle.

'The defendant got away and pointed the item at him again. This time he ducked under the counter in case it was fired.'

The court heard when Allison left he store, the brave shop worker watched the direction he walked to and told the police.

In a statement, the worker said: 'Initially I was not too frightened of the male, he seemed nervous, which gave me the confidence to grab at his hand and the gun but when he struggled and pointed it at me again I felt really frightened, that is the reason I hid behind the counter.'

He added: 'When the man pointed the gun at me I felt like it might be the last day of my life.

After a brief 'tussle' with Allison, the shop assistant was left fearing for his life

The brave shopkeeper hid behind the counter as the Allison (pictured) left empty handed

'He seemed nervous, I kept thinking he was so nervous he might have killed me.'

Allison, of Johnson Terrace, Sulgrave, Washington, admitted attempted robbery and possession of an imitation firearm at the time of committing an offence and has been jailed for two years and four months.

Christopher Allison (pictured), 31, admitted attempted robbery and possession of an imitation firearm at the time of committing an offence and was jailed for two years and four months

Judge Tim Gittins said the shopkeeper was 'brave' despite his 'fear and distress' and added: 'He had no way of knowing that it wasn't a real weapon, even if you knew it was an imitation, a fake.

'He was a lone worker providing a public service in running that local shop. There is no reason why he or anyone in such circumstances should have to face someone in the way he did.'

The court heard Allison, who suffers from aspergers syndrome and has learning difficulties, had lost his job before the raid and had fallen into debt with his rent payments.

Judge Gittins said: 'What you did was chose a highly foolish and seriously criminal way to try to deal with those problems.'

Richard Holland, defending, said Allison has shown a 'considerable degree of remorse' for what he did and is a vulnerable individual.

Mr Holland said: 'He was, on this occasion, motivated by financial desperation, having lost his job shortly before this offence was committed.'
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 00:03:02|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on deepening the two countries' cooperation to combat COVID-19 in a phone conversation on Wednesday.

When China was at its hardest moment in the fight against the COVID-19 epidemic, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressed his sympathy in a letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping, and all sectors of the Ukrainian society expressed their support to the Chinese people in various ways, Wang said.

Now that Ukraine is also facing the threat of the virus, China is ready to assist Ukraine in medical supplies within its capacity and share experience on COVID-19 prevention and control without reservation, he added.

Stressing the strategic partnership between the two countries, Wang said China is ready to further deepen its cooperation with Ukraine on co-building the Belt and Road, and turn the potential of cooperation between the two sides into practical results.

There are about 4,000 Chinese nationals working, studying and living in Ukraine, Wang said, adding that he hopes and believes that the Ukrainian side will provide necessary support and help to them and guarantee their health and safety.

Wang said the pandemic is a global challenge that needs joint response from the international society. As a responsible country, China has been sharing information with other countries and carrying out international cooperation in an open and transparent manner from the outset, he said.

Now upholding the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind, China has provided necessary assistance such as medical supplies to more than 100 countries in need, and contributed to safeguarding global public health, Wang said.

Any attempt to slander China's anti-epidemic efforts is groundless and untenable, said the Chinese foreign minister.

Kuleba said that China has become a model of effectively dealing with the virus, adding that against the backdrop of the pandemic sweeping across the world, countries can only overcome the difficulties together through united efforts.

Some politicians have smeared China for their own purposes, and their remarks are utterly groundless, said the Ukrainian foreign minister.

Kuleba expressed his sincere gratitude to China for actively providing Ukraine with anti-epidemic supplies, saying his country is willing to learn from China's experience and continue to deepen exchanges and cooperation with China so as to jointly combat the epidemic.

The Ukrainian government attaches great importance to the development of relations with China and is willing to push for further development of the two sides' strategic partnership, Kuleba said, adding that Ukraine will do its utmost to guarantee the health and safety of Chinese nationals in Ukraine.
The state government in Rajasthan plans to screen all its population for coronavirus disease Covid-19, health minister Raghu Sharma said in a statement on Wednesday. This will make Rajasthan the first Indian state to do that.

Sharma said that 27,000 active surveillance teams have screened 38.62 million people from 9.2 million households. The work of survey and screening is on. Our target is to screen every person in the state so that all suspected cases could be identified, the minister said.

Meanwhile, 15 positive cases of the coronavirus disease were reported in Rajasthan on Wednesday, taking the overall number to 108, including 18 evacuees. So far, 6,942 samples have been tested, including those evacuated from Iran; 108 of them tested positive and 6,656 negative, while results of 178 are still awaited.

Sharma also said that more than 2000 people who came in contact with 108 Covid-19 positive people are being traced and screened.

Rajasthan has prepared 97,000 quarantine beds and 18,000 isolation beds to tackle with the rise in Covid-19 numbers. The minister said that orders for 250 ventilators have been placed. He did not specify the number of existing ventilators in the state - public health experts said there were about 1,500 ventilators in Rajasthan.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.
Chennai, April 2 : With Tamil Nadu entering the deep dark 'coronavirus tunnel' with no light at the end, the knitwear town Tiruppur has got a different kind of a tunnel that tries to keep the people safe.

The district has got the 'Coronavirus Disinfectant Tunnel', courtesy D. Venkatesh a businessman from the district.

Shoppers at the Thennampalayam Uzhavar Sandhai vegetable market were surprised as district administration officials had asked them to walk through the tunnel having disinfectant sprayers.

While one walks through the tunnel for a few seconds, the coronavirus disinfectant sprayers would do their job-spraying one per cent sodium hydro chlorite solution so that the person walks out free of virus infection on his body.

The walkers have to raise their hands and their palms facing the front while entering the tunnel.

District Collector K. Vijayakarthikeyan stressed the point that tunnel spraying is only an additional precaution and not a substitute for washing hands with soap.

The tunnel has a capacity to hold 1,000 litres of disinfectant.
At least 148 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin last month have been quarantined in different districts of Assam, even as the number of coronavirus cases in the state has risen to 16.

All 16 COVID-19 positive cases had attended the religious congregation in Delhi, Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Thursday.

He said the exercise of tracing the contacts of those who tested positive for the disease is going on.

Nine of the 56 persons from Hailakandi district in south Assam, who returned from Nizamuddin, have been put under home quarantine, police officials said.

In Kamrup district of lower Assam, 37 people attending the Jamaat congregation were shifted to Sarusajai Stadium quarantine camp in neighbouring Guwahati, while another 10 persons were quarantined in ingimari Model Hospital, said Joint Director Health Dr N S Tishya.

Three of them have tested negative, Tishya said.

In adjacent Barpeta district, the eight persons who had come from Nizamuddin and kept in isolation in FAA Medical College and Hospital were found negative for COVID-19.

In another lower Assam district of Nalbari, three of the 11-member Jamaat team who have come from Shambli district in Uttar Pradesh after attending the congregation in Nizamuddin and took shelter at Mollapara in the district tested negative for the virus, Deputy Commissioner Bharat Bhusan Dev Choudhury said.

One member of the team, a 19-year-old man, tested positive for the disease on Wednesday, Sarma said.

The man was shifted to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital on Wednesday night for COVID-19 treatment, Choudhary said, adding the results of other seven members of the team are awaited



The 11-member team from Uttar Pradesh had arrived in the district on religious purpose. It was supposed to visit various mosques.

The deputy commissioner also said following the detection of the positive case, the district administration has picked up 37 persons so far who were in contact with the Jamaat team.

They were admitted to an isolation ward of Nalbari Swahid Mukunda Kakati Civil Hospital, Choudhury said.

All the 37 persons will be shifted to Sarusajai quarantine camp, he added.

The entire Mollapara area, where the eleven persons had taken shelter since March 21, has been sealed off, Choudhury said.

He also said that of the 37 persons, 24 are directly related to the Nizamuddin case.

A total of 29 people had visited Nizamuddin from Nalbari district and five of them are yet to return, the DC said.

Three persons tested positive for COVID-19 in Goalpara district on Thursday, taking the total number of coronavirus cases in the state to 16, Health Minister Sarma said.

The state had reported 12 cases on Wednesday and one on Tuesday.

While eight patients are getting treated at a hospital in Jorhat, four are undergoing treatment in Guwahati and one in Silchar, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Natural News) Companies that sell colloidal silver, which could provide protection against infection with the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), now face possible reprimand from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for selling fraudulent products.

The federal agency, which only considers pharmaceuticals to possess any medical benefits, says it recently issued warning letters to multiple firms instructing them to stop suggesting that colloidal silver can in any way help prevent, treat, mitigate, diagnose or cure the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19).

Instead of focusing on FDA-approved pharmaceuticals, which maim and kill hundreds of thousands of Americans every year, the FDA has instead indicated that it will be actively monitoring companies that sell colloidal silver to ensure that theyre not trying to help people avoid infection using this natural alternative.

The FDA is exercising its authority to protect consumers from firms selling unapproved products and making false or misleading claims, including, by pursuing warning letters, seizures, or injunctions against products and firms or individuals that violate the law, the agency further indicated in an announcement on its Health Fraud Scams website.

In order to make way for an eventual Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine, the FDA is trying to clear out natural things like colloidal silver, vitamin C, zinc, and quinone that threaten to expose the inevitable jab solution as unnecessary, and thus fraudulent.

The colloidal silver companies targeted by the FDA as part of its crackdown include:

 JRB Enterprise Group Inc. DBA Anti-Aging Bed

 Halosense Inc.

 Bioactive C60/FullerLifeC60 LLC

 Corona-cure.com

 Carahealth

 Xephyr LLC dba N-ergetics

 GuruNanda, LLC

 Quinessence Aromatherapy Ltd

 Vivify Holistic Clinic

 Colloidal Vitality LLC

 The Jim Baker Show

 Herbal Amy Inc.

Listen below to The Health Ranger Report as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, talks about how people are already fleeing big cities to get away from whats to come with the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis:

The science is clear: Colloidal silver is a powerful antiviral

Say what it might about colloidal silver, but the FDA is just plain wrong when it comes to completely discounting it as fraudulent. While we cant say for sure that colloidal silver is a certifiable cure for the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), it remains a scientific fact that silver ions are powerfully antiviral.

Long before pharmaceutical drugs even existed, silver was commonly used to kill harmful microbes, whether they be bacteria or viruses. Research into colloidal silver has found that its capable of killing more than 650 known pathogens, including the smallpox virus and even HIV (human immunodeficiency virus).

Colloidal silver is also capable of attaching to the outer protein shells of viruses and foiling their attempts at attaching to host cells, effectively preventing infection.

Colloidal silver may be a lifeline or just a gimmick  only time will tell, reports Film Daily. Clearly there is a lot of positive information about colloidal silver which, in the absence of a mainstream solution, is not something to be dismissed outright.

More of the latest news about the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) is available at Pandemic.news.

Sources for this article include:

FDA.gov

NaturalNews.com

FilmDaily.co
LANSING, MI -- Law enforcement agencies around the state are being recognized for their work in ensuring compliance with Gov. Gretchen Whitmers Stay Home, Stay Safe executive order.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel gave shout-outs to a dozen police departments and sheriffs offices Wednesday, April 1, for helping to make sure businesses and residents comply with order.

As of Wednesday, no criminal cases related to violations of the order had been filed by the attorney generals office, according to Ryan Jarvi, a spokesperson for the office.

Whitmer ordered the state to suspend activities that are not necessary to sustain or protect life until at least April 14. The governor used emergency powers to shut down most businesses and restrict public life to slow the person-to-person spread of COVID-19, an infectious respiratory disease.

Initially, Nessels office was fielding complaints about violations of the order. Overwhelmed by calls, they asked people to direct complaints to local law enforcement.

We are continuing to work with businesses and our partners in law enforcement through some of the uncertainty surrounding this unprecedented public emergency, Nessel said in a prepared statement. We must all work together and do our part to slow the spread of COVID-19.

One of a dozen departments that received direct kudos was the Washtenaw County Sheriffs Office, where Director of Community Engagement Derrick Jackson said police are responding to complaints related to the order but no fines or citations have been given out thus far.

Were taking the calls and our real goal here is compliance through education, Jackson said. All of our business owners have been great so far.

Within a day of Whitmers order being announced, Jackson said his department fielded about 17 calls. Some were complaints about businesses; others were questions from the owners themselves. But he said owners whose businesses arent deemed essential have largely been willing to make adjustments and shut down.

Were pretty fortunate when we respond to calls, people have been good partners, he said. There are a lot of questions. Were trying our best to answer.

In Novi, Chief of Police David Molloy said his office has received and responded to about 20 complaints of allegations of violations against the governors order. They have not handed out any citations either.

Molloy said most complaints have been about businesses that residents believed might be open when theyre not deemed essential under the governors order. Most of those businesses were in manufacturing, and police responded to find that they were producing parts for the defense or medical industries, which are allowed under the order.

We also responded to a sporting goods store but they werent open to customers, Molloy said. They were just doing curbside pickup, which is OK.

The other law enforcement agencies recognized by the attorney generals office Tuesday were the:

Auburn Hills Police Department

Branch County Sheriffs Office

Gladstone Michigan State Police Post

Hamtramck Police Department

Iron Mountain Police & Fire Services

Michigan Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement

Roscommon County Sheriffs Department

St. Clair Shores Police Department

Troy Police Department

Utica Police Department

Jarvi said the agencies that were being recognized were those that reached out to the attorney generals office for guidance after the order was announced. They have also been active in responding to complaints.

These organizations were phenomenal in terms of their commitment to helping Michigan residents understand, adapt to and ultimately adopt the Governors Stay Home, Sate Safe order, Nessel said. We are grateful for their assistance and partnership.

Violations of the governors stay-at-home order could result in a $500 fine and/or 90 days in jail.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more on MLive:

Michigan State University offers drive-thru coronavirus testing

Fitness coach turns to baking bread as coronavirus changes life in almost every way

Whitmer says those who dont follow Michigan stay home order are incredibly selfish,' risk coronavirus spread

Wednesday, April 1: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan
"Eventually what we'll have to have are certificates of who is a recovered person and who is a vaccinated person because you don't want people moving around the World without their certificate."

*Bill Gates- An Unelected American Billionaire

"The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed and hence clamoring to be led to safety by menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary".

*H.L. Mencken- Journalist, Satirist, and Social Critic So far the American people have been compliant proles, not scratching to deep below the surface of information out there beyond the dire headlines, and quietly going along with the dismantling of our Constitution currently taking place while the traitors in the media cheer it on. So far the American people have been compliant proles, not scratching to deep below the surface of information out there beyond the dire headlines, and quietly going along with the dismantling of our Constitution currently taking place while the traitors in the media cheer it on.

Americans don't understand that ignorance, apathy, and inaction are viewed as weakness, division, and consent by our controllers who are clearly using this plannedemic to tie our freedoms to a new vaccine that will likely be mandatory. The CEO of Pharmaceutical giant Johnson and Johnson, Alex Gorsky appeared on NBC's Today Show to announce that they are already working on a Coronavirus vaccine.

Gorsky said what would normally take 5 to 7 years, they will do in as many months and said they will start production of the vaccine before it has results of any studies. He believes they will have several hundred million doses ready by mid 2021. I guess, as usual, we'll have to find out about the side effects the hard way, just be a good patriot and don't ask too many questions!

He doesn't mention if toxins found in other vaccines will be incorporated into his company's new vaccine such as Thimerosal, a Mercury based compound more toxic than Mercury, Formaldehyde, Aluminum adjuvants, Cancer causing Glyphosate, traces of antibiotics and heavy metals like Lead, Cadmium, and Nickle, Cancer causing food coloring and dyes and cells from aborted human fetuses.

In 1986 the traitors in our Congress sent Ronald Reagan a Bill that he signed into law called the "National Childhood Vaccine Injury Safety Act" which sounds like a Bill that would protect children but actually prohibits American citizens from suing vaccine makers for damages. The Supreme Court upheld the law in a lawsuit decided in 2011.

In 1980 roughly 1 in 10,000 children were diagnosed with Autism, in 2018 the CDC put the number at 1 in 59. The numbers have gotten worse every year since the law protecting the vaccine makers was passed! That should make Americans angry and distrusting of these companies yet more cities and states are mandating dangerous and little tested vaccines which is not only unconstitutional but violates the Nuremberg Code. Where is the outrage?

Dr. Shiva Ayyadurai is an Indian American who invented E-Mail as a teenager, is a Fulbright Scholar, holds 4 degrees from M.I.T. and has started 7 successful tech companies. He is also a candidate for a US Senate seat in Massachusettes. His company Cytosolve Inc. is discovering cures for major diseases as well as methods to prevent common ailments by validating ancient and traditional methods from India, China, and other anciet cultures.

Dr Shiva recently sent President Trump a letter offering a plan to protect those who are most vulnerable to COVID-19 while allowing the country's healthy workers to get back to work! Dr. Ayyadurai finished his doctoral work in M.I.T.'s Department of Biological engineering.

He believes Dr .Fauci should be indicted for his handling of this crisis, maybe somebody should listen to him.

A recent interview with Dr. Shiva Ayyadurai is here:

In his letter to Trump he wrote:

"The current trajectory of Dr. Anthony Fauci's public health policy will result in the short and long term destruction of our citizen's immune health as well as our nations economic health, perhaps a conscious and intended goal.

Dr. Fauci's policy, at best, is an outdated 1950's, one size fits all, non-personalized approach to medicine and public

health; And, at worst is a 'fake science' of the immune system, one Dr. Fauci, over 5 decades has perpetuated and exploited to build his career. There is no reason to shut down our entire country and no reason to quarantine all of our

citizens."

Dr. Ayyadurai points out that vaccines require a very low level of testing and hurrying this vaccine through without proper testing would be how the majority of childhood vaccines are rolled out. Of the 30 childhood vaccines none of them has been placebo control tested.

Denmark just announced that vaccines in that country will be mandated and given by force with police assistance if necessary, and CIA Whistleblower Edward Snowden recently cautioned that using surveillance to spy on citizens during this pandemic may continue long after the pandemic is over.

Snowden went on, "They already know what you're looking at on the internet, they already know where your phone is moving, now they know what your heart rate and pulse are, what happens when they start to intermix these and apply artificial intelligence to it?"

Former British Prime Minister and Globalist Shill Gordon Brown wrote an op-ed in the Financial Times a few days ago arguing to not let a good crisis go to waste and use the fear associated with the COVID 19 Virus to create a global financial government.

Many of the deep state globalist traitors in our own government are pushing the same agenda to go along with their police state and the SES connected Dr. Fauci and his long association with chief eugenicist, Bill Gates, sure looks like one of them. I don't trust him!

While jails and prisons are releasing felons all across the country, mayors and governors are threatening to arrest law abiding, tax paying citizens for leaving their homes.

In Los Angeles, where tens of thousands of homeless people sleep, urinate, defecate in the streets and sidewalks, and commit petty crime without being hassled by the police, yet a dozen police officers descended on a home in a quiet residential neighborhood responding to a complaint that too many people were attending a one year olds birthday party.

With globalists everywhere in this pandemic picture just who is watching out for Americans who aren't ready to give up their rights and the freedom to move about the country without proving we have taken Mr. Gates latest vaccine? What's next mandatory vaccine Checkpoints, would you be ok with that?
Press Release

April 2, 2020 Statement of Senators Frank Drilon, Risa Hontiveros, and Kiko Pangilinan on VP Leni Robredo's successful efforts during the COVID pandemic "We are outraged by the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission's plan to investigate Vice President Leni Robredo just because her efforts to extend assistance to Filipino families struggling to make both ends meet during this national crisis may embarrass the government. When has helping people become a crime? Is it a crime to look for resources so that our health care workers are protected when they attend to the sick? Is it a crime to offer free shuttle vehicles so that our essential service providers in this unprecedented shutdown of business operations can get to work? No one has the monopoly of helping alleviate the sufferings of our people. In this time of national crisis, we expect everyone to support all public and private initiatives in responding quickly and in staying to help until the curse of the coronavirus disease pandemic is finally defeated. Saving lives is not a contest but everyone's business. We cannot allow ourselves to sit by and watch our people risking their own safety, getting sick, and worse, dying without adequate medical attention. We cannot afford partisan politics and bureaucratic juggernauts to lead us into national paralysis. We have to be at the forefront in responding to the needs and demands of our people during this most trying time of our nation's history. We need to ensure that help is on the way even under extraordinary circumstances. We hope the PACC and everyone in government see it that way too."
About 2000 contacts of Covid-19 positive persons have been identified

A man waves from inside a bus after he is discharged from a makeshift coronavirus quarantine facility set up at a hotel requisitioned for the purpose by the authorities in Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir. Hundreds of local residents who were on their return from outside Kashmir were quarantined in such facilities. The authorities say that most of the 49 persons tested positive a have history of travel to various parts of India and abroad. (DC Photo: H U Naqash)

Srinagar: The Jammu & Kashmir police on Wednesday stepped up their efforts to trace members of the Tablighi Jamaat who are reported to have attended a meeting at its headquarters in New Delhis Nizamuddin area in mid-March but have not, so far, presented themselves for mandatory screening and possible quarantine, officials here said.

A large number of the participants of this meeting are reported to have contracted the novel coronavirus that causes the disease COVID-19 and several others including one from J&K have died of the disease over the past one week.

Reports emanating from the capital said that 87 people from J&K who were among the people stuck in the Nizamuddin area have been put in quarantine in Delhi itself.

J&Ks director-general of police Dilbag Singh said on Wednesday evening in Kathua that most of those from the union territory who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin have been traced and will soon be sent to quarantine.

He, however, did not disclose the number of such people.

With six more persons testing positive, the number of COVID-19 patients in J&K rose to 62 on Wednesday. Officials said nearly 2000 contacts of these positive cases have been identified and efforts are being made to put them in hospital quarantine.

While addressing a press conference in Jammu, the chief spokesman of J&K government Rohit Kansal said a robust tracing process was underway. Many of the positive cases could be traced as a result of a vigorous contact tracing exercise undertaken by the administration.

As a result we were able to trace many cases including some that were asymptomatic. This is important because if not traced these cases could have continued in the general population and could even have infected more cases.

Kansal said that nearly 2,000 contacts of positive cases have already been identified and instructions have been issued that no known contact be left untraced. He claimed that J&K has been testing cases aggressively and it was among the first to start testing locally through four testing centres.

Our testing rate has been nearly 77.5 per million, one of the highest in the country and next only to Kerala. We have decided to further increase it. To begin with, we plan to test every single one of the 2,000 contacts that we have identified, he said.

The authorities said that 236 more persons who were shifted into administrative quarantine upon their return to Srinagar two weeks ago were on Wednesday discharged after successfully completing their 14-day quarantine period. Most of these persons were students who had returned from Bangladesh and other countries.

The officials said that about 1,900 such persons were put under administrative quarantine in Srinagar. Another group of about 370 among them will be sent home on Thursday after completion of their quarantine.
We find ourselves with little to no empirical evidence of whats happening, said Mr. Miller, because the virus outbreak became a factor so late in March. I dont have a sense, other than its going to be catastrophic.

Contracts and closings can lag the reality of the market by several weeks or months as paperwork makes its way through the system, but there are already some signals of decline.

At the end of March, there were 5,801 active listings for sale in Manhattan, down 15.3 percent from the same period last year, said Noah Rosenblatt, the chief executive and founder of UrbanDigs, a real estate data company. And 1,159 listings were taken off the market, compared with just 417 the same time last year.

One of the biggest obstacles for the real estate market will be trying to sell apartments under virtual lockdown. Real estate agents in New York had been deemed nonessential workers, so in-person showings were effectively banned, although new guidance from the Cuomo will now allow showings and some back-office real estate functions to continue. And few apartment buildings are allowing visitors or move-ins. Even if buyers agree to purchase a home sight unseen, many of the steps toward closing remain stubbornly analog, in spite of efforts to incorporate video calls and other technology into the process.

Before the pandemic, 2020 would have been a very strong recovery year for us, said Diane Ramirez, the chief executive of Halstead, a real estate brokerage firm. I cant even begin to think of what it will be like now.

The luxury market, which is in a yearslong price correction, could be further affected. Last week, only two properties in Manhattan went into contract at $4 million or more, the lowest weekly sales rate since August 2009, during the last recession, said Donna Olshan, the president of Olshan Realty. In the last week of March 2019, 21 contracts at or above that price were signed.

Anything left on the market now, the price is just a suggestion, she said, noting that sellers already in contract, as well as new buyers, are pushing for more aggressive price cuts.
Moy said that once the urgent employee issues had been handled, she expected to spend the next few months in one of two ways. For restaurants that are reopening, she said, she will try to get rent abatements or deferrals. For the restaurants that go out of business for good, her job will be the assignment of lease and sale of assets, she said.
By Gina Lee

Investing.com - Oil prices rallied in Asia on Thursday morning, as hopes rise for a truce between Saudi Arabia and Russia in their ongoing price war.

International Brent Oil Futures rose 0.7% to $25.79 by 9:43 PM ET (2:43 AM GMT) and U.S. Crude Oil WTI Futures jumped 3.64% to $21.05, reversing losses in the last session.

U.S. President Trump said at a press conference yesterday that he expected the two producers to come to an agreement within the next few days.

"It's very bad for Russia, it's very bad for Saudi Arabia. I mean, it's very bad for both. I think they're going to make a deal," he added.

While not a major directional driver today, The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said overnight that crude inventories rose by 13.8 million barrels last week, a weekly build last seen four years ago.

EIAs report was in sync with American Petroleum Institute (API)s Wednesday report of a 10.485-million-barrel build.

Meanwhile, oil demand continues to shrivel as the number of COVID-19 cases globally show no sign of decreasing and investors are buckling up for another tough month.

Global inventories will be chock full by mid-May. I think the market can continue to decline further, Gene McGillian, a broker and oil analyst at Tradition Energy, told CNBC.

Theres no signs of reproachment with producers and with further demand destruction we could get another $5 taken from the market, he added.

Rystad Energys Bjornar Tonhaugen was also pessimistic, telling CNBC, April will be one of the toughest months in history for oil, and this is no April fools joke. The market is oversupplied in April to the tune of 25 million barrels per day. Theres nowhere to hide from this tsunami of oversupply.

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EMMITSBURG, Md. - Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board has just restarted online sales of wine and spirits, giving Pennsylvanians at least the promise of slaking their thirst for hard liquor in these hard times.

Gov. Tom Wolf made the announcement during his Wednesday briefing on state governments response to the coronavirus pandemic, perhaps jumping the gun on the PLCB, which appeared to be planning a slow roll-out while it gets back on an operational footing.

That (online) is the way to buy liquor during this crisis," Wolf said. "Thats the safe way to do it and thats how were doing it in Pennsylvania.

Its a welcome step for drinkers, who have also seen all of the states liquor-by-the-drink outlets closed since mid-March.

But with the agencys 600 state-owned liquor stores still closed indefinitely as part of the Wolf Administrations stop the spread efforts, theres probably no quick end in site to a related Pennsylvania pandemic phenomenon - steady streams of cars and trucks bearing Pa. license plates crossing the state lines for the nearest liquor store.

We saw that firsthand here, this week.

Mountain Liquors is the first liquor store one sees when crossing the Pennsylvania / Maryland line on U.S. Route 15, coming south from Gettysburg.

Tuesday evening, youd have been hard-pressed to tell which side of that state line it was on. Ten cars occupied the parking lot during a PennLive visit. Seven bore Pennsylvania license plates; two were Marylanders - and since they didnt more during our stay were deducing that they belonged to the two staffers in the store.

The Pennsylvanians never stopped coming through the next hour, either.

Its a coronavirus closure run," said Joe OToole, a Waynesboro retiree who used the occasion of that days extension of shelter-in-place orders to Franklin County to get out and get his last provisions. We dont buy that much but... we cant go out after 8 p.m. tonight so we wanted to make one last run to Maryland before we cant get any of the products we like.

OToole and his wife JoAnn were buying wine; none of the groceries in their town have a wine-expanded permit that allows them to sell wine, so with the state stores closed, this 20-mile trip was their next best option.

It was their second trip to Emmitsburg since the March 16 shutdown, the OTooles said.

Pennsylvania is an absolute outlier in its decision to close liquor stores. While bars, restaurants and taverns that sell liquor by the drink have been closed throughout the Eastern Seaboard, liquor stores have remained open as essential businesses in all of the states that ring our borders: New York, Maryland, New Jersey, Ohio, West Virginia and Delaware.

The crush of Pennsylvania shoppers at one New Jersey store just across the Ben Franklin Bridge from Philadelphia caused it to close for several days last week after a tsunami of business.

When Friday (March 20) hit, we had a massive influx of people, Johnny Canal, a manager in his familys Canals Discount Liquors in Camden County, told Pennlives sister outlet NJ.com this week. We were up 120% over a normal Friday and Saturday. We were pulling so many people from Pennsylvania and a lot of people really didnt care about social distancing and I could see the staff was getting worried.

Canal said he tossed and turned in bed Saturday night before deciding to shutter the store Sunday. We had to do something to protect the staff and the community, Canal said. Canals reopened last Friday, restocked and a doorman dedicated to limiting the customer counts inside.

Nationally, liquor appears to be a creature comfort many Americans are clinging too as layoffs and cancellations mount. The market research firm Nielsen reported total U.S. sales of alcoholic beverages rose 55 percent in the week ending March 21, from the same period one year ago.

Wolf Administration officials have mostly refused to offer further explanations about their decision since the big close occurred March 16, instead standing on their statements that its a matter of stopping the spread of COVID-19.

We understand the public wants to have access to wines and spirits during these unprecedented times, but we have a responsibility to mitigate community spread of this virus to every extent possible and make sure our employees and our customers are as safe as they can be, Board Chairman Tim Holden said Wednesday in announcing the online reopening.

We believe that re-opening FineWineAndGoodSpirits.com in a controlled manner will allow us to provide access to consumers while also protecting our employees and consumers from unnecessary risk.

That hasnt stopped many Pennsylvanians from wondering why, if its deemed safe enough for them to physically line up to buy wine and beer at a grocery store, they cant be trusted to do the same at the states liquor stores, which happen to hold the monopoly on distilled spirits sales.

I do wish theyd open them (state stores) back up. Im working. Theyre not shutting down my job, said Robert Varner, 59, who helps build pallets at 48forty Solutions in Biglerville, Adams County. The firms wooden pallets are a part of the distribution and freight industry that has been deemed life-sustaining.

Its cheaper here," Varner said, a freshly-scored bottle of vodka from Mountain Liquors in hand, "but see Id rather pay a couple more cents and run closer to home.

Some lawmakers share the border-jumpers opinion.

Sen. Pat Stefano, R-Fayette County and chairman of the senate committee that oversees liquor law in Pennsylvania, said he was hopeful that instead of closing the PLCB would instead take steps like controlling the number of customers in the stores at one time, reducing the hours of operation through the week, or offering curb-side pickup.

I do believe the state stores can operate as safely as grocery stores, and I believe a lot of our small businesses can do the same," Stefano said. Id like to see us get back to getting our economy running a little bit, while still keeping people safe."

Signs on the door at Mountain Liquors advised customers that the store was on a pitch count; no more than 10 people inside at a time, including the staff.

Wolf, for his part, said Wednesday he doesnt think he got it wrong with the liquor stores, and hes not planning to open the stores anytime soon.

Our liquor stores are closed and I think thats going to be good for our employees in the liquor stores, and its also going to be good for the patrons. Its one less place that that disease can be spread," the governor said.

How fast this disease takes off depends solely on how well we do staying at home, Wolf continued. The more we do that, the better we enforce this ourselves, the better position Pennsylvania is going to be in in terms of keeping ourselves safe.

This is not exactly Prohibition, it must be noted.

Other outlets that are still selling other types of alcohol to go in Pennsylvania include the nearly 1,000 licensed breweries, wineries, and distilleries that make and sell their own product; restaurant licensees that can sell food and beer to go, up to two six packs per transaction; the nearly 1,000 groceries and convenience stores that have permits to sell wine and beer; and beer distributors.

As for the PLCBs online sales program, officials do expect online demand to outstrip supply in the short term, and they note that access to the site will be randomized throughout the day - think a statewide consumer lottery - so that order availability isnt exhausted in seconds or minutes each day.

The agency said it will take a controlled number of orders per day with plans to increase as fulfillment capacity increases. Customers who get in will be limited to purchasing up to six bottles per transaction from a reduced catalog of about 1,000 top-selling wines and spirits. All orders must be shipped to home or non-store addresses, and only one order per address will be fulfilled per day.
Our people Meet Merck physician and volunteer Dr. Mo Ali: We are here to serve the people we look after, I cannot stand by and watch this. Merck employee puts work on hold, now helping care for patients in London

In light of the pandemic, Merck has changed its volunteer policy to support employees like Dr. Ali with medical backgrounds. Recognizing the need for additional health care professionals, including doctors, nurses and medical laboratory technicians, to assist in regions where COVID-19 is spreading, on March 21 the company deployed a new program to enable our medically trained employees to volunteer their time to aid their communities while maintaining their base pay.

Mercks Dr. Muhammed Mo Ali, like so many other physicians, wasnt a stranger to a new infectious disease. Dr. Ali was with the United Kingdoms National Health Service (NHS) in 2009 during the swine flu pandemic. As part of NHS then, he had seen the countrys emergency plans. Fast forward to today, Dr. Ali had left his full-time role with the NHS in 2017 to join Merck. But he was in the U.K. in February when COVID-19 was spreading across Europe and the UK. He knew this was not a drill. And he knew he had to help. Usually, Dr. Ali spends most of his weekdays as Mercks managing director of Norway. On weekends, he is an active partner and medical doctor at a general practitioners office in Harrow, a large suburban town in greater London.

On February 28, Dr. Ali had scheduled one of his recurring visits back to London after having just attended a conference in Switzerland. He could see what was happening. At that point, Dr. Ali made up his mind that he wanted to stay to treat patients. In an email sent February 28, Dr. Ali asked his direct supervisor if he could stay. Ethically theres no way I can step away from this now. I cant leave them at this stage. These are my patients as well.

The first week of March, the NHS of London asked local physicians to pull out their emergency plans. The week of March 9, numbers had accelerated more than expected. Dr. Ali said, It became very clear that this was headed in the wrong direction.

Early on, Dr. Ali had some tough decisions to make. He had to quarantine from his parents-in-law and sister-in-law, telling them that you might not likely survive this, and I cant be the cause of that.

The neighborhood in which Dr. Ali serves is the epicenter of London right now. The local hospitals ran out of beds right away. The virus has spread so quickly that the health care center is overwhelmed. In one weeks time, a new 4,000 bed ICU is expected to be completed and ready for use. Its a case of preparing for the worst but hoping for the best.

Dr. Ali wants everyone to know there is a light at the end of this tunnel. He used to see 10% of his patients via video calls and was in the minority. Now the majority operate near 100% digital means. While these may seem like the darkest of days, This will be the reason behind building a new health care system, says Dr. Ali. Were making history at the moment, just not the history we want to be a part of. Even so, Dr. Ali sees an opportunity for goodness to rise out of this to reform, rebuild and regenerate a system fit for the future.
This blog covers software patent news and issues with a particular focus on wireless, mobile devices (smartphones, tablet computers, connected cars) as well as select antitrust matters surrounding those devices.
Most Americans won't see their payments from coronavirus stimulus bill until April 13 and, for some, it could take up to 20 weeks to get a check.

The delay far exceeds the three weeks Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said it would take for the money to make it into the hands of Americans as the economy spirals downward.

More than 6.6 million people filed for unemployment last week as restaurants, gyms, bars and other business closed as part of social distancing practices to stem the spread of the virus.

Most Americans won't see their payments from coronavirus stimulus bill until April 13 and, for some, it could take up to 20 weeks to get a check as businesses have been shuttered

The Internal Revenue Service appears to be overwhelmed when it comes to sorting out the $250 billion that has to be distributed to Americans

Roughly 10 million Americans have lost their jobs and filed for unemployment in the two weeks that the coronavirus started rapidly spreading across the country.

Individual checks to help ease that pain were allocated as part of the $2.2 trillion relief package that President Donald Trump signed into law on Friday.

But the Internal Revenue Service appears to be overwhelmed when it comes to sorting out the $250 billion that has to be distributed to Americans making under $99,000.

Initially, the IRS will distribute about 60 million payments, likely in the week of April 13, for taxpayers who provided their direct deposit information through their 2018 or 2019 tax returns, CNN reported after it obtained a memo from the House Ways and Means Committee that contained information on the process derived from briefings with Trump administration officials.

The week of May 4, the IRS will begin mailing paper checks to those they don't have bank information for, which is about 80 million people.

That is a more lengthy process.

Those checks will be issued at a rate of about 5 million per week and it could take up to 20 weeks to get them all out.

People with the lowest income, based on adjusted gross income, will receive their checks first and the timeline could change, CNN reported.

The checks will consist of $1,200 per adult making up to $75,000 a year before phasing out and ending altogether for those earning more than $99,000. That would result in $2,400 to a married couple making up to $150,000, with $500 payments per child.

Congressional staff were told about 150 million taxpayers will be eligible, but of those, the IRS estimated they only had about 70 million people's direct deposit information.

That translates into roughly 80 million checks to be mailed to the remaining recipients.

'The Bureau of Fiscal Service estimates they can cut 20 million checks a month,' a source told CNN.

Speed is of the essence as bills come due at the end of the month and millions are out of work as several states have issued stay at home orders to try and contain the highly contagious disease.

About 90 percent of Americans are now under some form of lockdown - up from less than 50 percent just a few weeks ago - as the death toll rose to 5,139 as more than 216,000 Americans have tested positive for the virus.

Roughly 10 million Americans have lost their jobs and filed for unemployment in the two weeks that the coronavirus started rapidly spreading

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin originally said Americans would start seeing checks within three weeks

The IRS already had to reverse a policy that Social Security recipients who dont typically file a tax return would need to submit a simple return in order to qualify for $1,200 relief payments.

Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers expressed outrage at the requirement, putting heavy political pressure on the Treasury Department to reverse its decision.

More than 15 million people on Social Security don't file an annual tax return because their income is so low.
When he was tested in Springfield for the COVID-19 virus, Curtis Carey knew he needed to stay away from other people for a period of time.

"There was a pamphlet that they gave me that said two to three days, (for test results) and I think they verbally told me three to four days was the expected turnaround time," he said.

But Carey, 42, a Springfield native, St. Louis resident and chemist at the Kincaid Power Station in Christian County, ended up spending a sometimes frustrating 12 days to get word he did not have the virus.

"I almost wish I had gotten it and had mild symptoms and survived," he said, because he would have built up resistance to the disease. "But I was relieved to actually get the results and be able to go home."

As of Wednesday, Carey was one of 503 people who have been tested for COVID-19 in Sangamon County. His experience was an example of the angst some people have faced while awaiting word on whether they have the disease for which there is no vaccine. Results for most of the 402 people tested so far have been negative for the virus. Seventeen have tested positive which includes two deaths. There were 84 patients awaiting test results.

The time it took Carey to receive results was far above the local average, a county spokesman said, explaining the slowdown could be attributed to a rush of tests about the time Carey's was administered.

Carey got an indication of a health problem when he and other workers at the power plant, operated by Luminant, a subsidiary of Vistra Energy, had their temperatures taken on March 16. Carey said he registered at 99.1 degrees -- not very high, but high for him, as his temperature is usually 96 or 97 degrees.

"I continued to monitor my temperature," he said. "I was a little worried." But in addition to the light fever, he started having a headache.

Carey lives in St. Louis with his wife, mother-in-law and 2-year-old daughter, and to cut down on commuting and because of some odd shifts, he usually spends a night or two a week at the Springfield home of his parents, Paul and Jackie Carey.

So to protect his parents, he decided to stay with his brother, Alan Carey, in his Springfield home.

He made a telemedicine call to Springfield Clinic, and was told he should be seen.

Overnight, his temperature rose to 101 degrees then dropped to about normal. But he still had a headache.

"I really wasn't feeling feverish, but with the symptoms and all ... I was certainly concerned," he said.

He got a 7:45 a.m. appointment the next morning at the clinic's facility on Wabash Avenue. He was given a mask and was evaluated.

"They thought that I should get tested for COVID-19," he said. He drove to the Memorial Health System respiratory screening clinic set up on South Sixth Street.

There he was told to call a hotline to see if he could be approved for a coronavirus test. He parked and made the call and gave his medical history. After about 90 minutes, someone came to his car to "do the nose swab."

He said it was uncomfortable, but not painful.

Afterward, he called the Sangamon County Department of Public Health to ask if they recommended he go to a hotel.

"A lot of my concern was over infecting my family," he said. "They ... didn't recommend staying at a hotel, which I'm glad, because it would have been two weeks."

So he stayed with his brother whose house has a bedroom and bathroom where Carey could stay isolated.

While there, he said, "I did put on a mask and go outside" to the backyard "on two different days. But I was a little worried about contaminating the areas that I'd be walking through.

"It was really frustrating," he said, as earlier results could have allowed him to go back to work much sooner than he did.

For the first three or four days at his brother's house, he said, he had a headache and was just taking care of himself.

He then started working from the home.

Carey said his brother also gave him food, and "brought up a microwave so I was able to cook a few things."

Jeff Wilhite, spokesman for Sangamon County, said records show Carey's test was processed by LabCorp of North Carolina. Results for such tests have been taking an average of four to six days. He said the 12 days for Carey's test results "was an outlier for sure." He noted that Memorial sent 153 tests to LabCorp on March 16 and 17, which could help explain the delay in processing. The Sixth Street screening site began operating March 16.

"There's nothing that county health can do to speed up the private labs," Wilhite said. "We wish that there was." He said Centers for Disease Control tests done at the Illinois Departmnt of Public Health lab take about a day to get results.

"Memorial Health System is processing COVID-19 tests through labs operated by the Illinois Department of Public Health and by a national vendor," said spokesman Michael Leathers, adding it has drive-through clinics in Springfield and Decatur. He said up to three patients had delays of up to 12 days to receive results.

"All other results are being forwarded to patients within eight days or less," he said, "and the situation is improving as testing companies adjust to the significantly increased volume. There is a national shortage of testing supplies and overall testing capacity because of the current high demand."

Carey said during his isolation he was able to video-chat with his family in St. Louis a couple times a day which was "a comfort." He also kept in touch with friends.

"It really wasn't terrible," he said. "It was nice to see my brother quite a bit. We stayed about six feet away or eight feet away within the house."

Even though he tested negative, Carey worries about the effects of the national COVID-19 outbreak on the health and livelihoods of others.

"I really hope that the people stay home as much as they can," he said, "and that we can come out with as few deaths as possible and not overload the hospitals. But I think we're already past that point. In some regions we'll be over that point and more."

Carey spent 13 days away from his family in St. Louis going from his job to testing and isolation.

Getting home was "great. I came in the door. My daughter started yelling and running around the kitchen," he said. "It was really sweet."

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San Francisco, 2 April 2020: The Report Mini LED Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Application (Automotive, Consumer Electronics (Mobile Phone, Laptop, Television)), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2019 - 2025

The global mini LED market size is expected to reach USD 5.9 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 86.6% over the forecast period, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Amidst rapid development of Organic Light-Emitting Diodes (OLEDs), mini LEDs have gradually forayed into the industry to bridge the application and technology gap between micro LEDs, which have not been able to overcome their inherent technical hurdles, and traditional LEDs. They are being integrated into backlight modules owing to their increased color gamut and brightness level, lower response time, and improved contrast ratio.

Increasing demand for miniaturized display in consumer electronics devices is expected to positively impact industry growth over the next few years. Mini light-emitting diodes are expected to aid chip makers in gaining market share and technology penetration. Chip sizes ranging from 100 to 200 m were commercialized in late 2018. Consumer electronics, digital signage, and industrial displays have been the early adopters of this technology. High dynamic range and power-saving capability are some of the features that make them a suitable backlight solution for next-generation displays. Key players are expected to cash in on this opportunity by providing mini LED packages.

Currently, the applications are limited to backlighting in televisions and laptops. These light-emitting diodes have the potential to alter LCDs by decreasing the performance gap with OLED displays. Miniature LEDs are expected to grow beyond these applications in the automotive, smartphone, and digital signage segments. They are suitable for curved display and notch design, and thus in the coming years, are expected to become mainstream smartphones.

Asia Pacific is one of the prominent manufacturing hubs as there are numerous China- and Taiwan-based companies involved in the development and mass production of mini light-emitting diodes. As manufacturers themselves feel that the manufacturing cost is much higher than other technologies, the focus currently hinges on cost reduction before introducing the technology into mainstream applications. Once low-cost products are introduced, miniature LEDs are expected to expand their presence in other regional markets as well.

Access Research Report of Mini LED Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/mini-led-market

Further key findings from the report suggest:

Mini LED is expected to become one of the mainstream display technologies, and thus various vendors are reporting their developments by showcasing these products in several exhibitions and trade shows

The automotive display application segment is expected to exhibit the highest CAGR in mini LED market over the forecast period. Mini light-emitting diodes have high contrast and brightness ratio, which provide clarity in automotive displays, thereby ensuring safety and security

North America is expected to be early adopters of this technology owing to regional demand for premium gaming monitors and laptops

Innolux Corporation; Japan Display, Inc.; Everlight Electronics Co. Ltd.; and EPISTAR Corporation are some of the prominent companies working on the development of mini light-emitting diode technology and products.

Browse more reports of this category by Grand View Research at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/electronic-devices

Grand View Research has segmented the global mini LED market on the basis of application and region:

Mini LED Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2025)

Consumer Electronics Mobile Phones Laptop/Notebooks Television

Automotive

Others

Mini LED Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2018 - 2025)

North America

Europe

Asia Pacific

Latin America

MEA

Access Press Release of Mini LED Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-mini-led-market

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.

For More Information:www.grandviewresearch.com
John V. Thomas has served two stints with Hampden Township, with that first term starting more than 40 years ago.

So when the current president of the Board of Commissioners says the remote setup for Thursdays township meeting has never been used before, it speaks to how Hampden Township and so many other central Pennsylvania municipal and school boards will be covering new ground to conduct business while following Sunshine Laws.

Originally, the commissioners talked about conducting a public meeting that allowed for social distancing. But as the coronavirus outbreak has worsened and residents across the state have been ordered for all intents and purposes to stay inside, the Hampden Township board will hold its meeting as a group at 7:30 p.m. Thursday with residents welcome to phone in to participate or listen.

Residents can access the meeting, per an announcement posted today by the township secretary, by calling 1-408-418-9388 or 1-646-992-2010 and entering the meeting ID number of 798 540 348. Anyone with a disability who requires an auxiliary aide, service or any other accommodationon to participate should contact the township manager at 717-761-0119. You can find the agenda at this link.

Were making up the rules as we go along and trying our best, Thomas said Tuesday. We dont want to have any situation where were encouraging people to get together. We believe were doing it in accordance with the Sunshine Law by having call-ins as long as they can have the two-way conversations. So we have two separate call-ins in case one of them fails.

Erik Arneson, executive director of the Office of Open Records, said in an email Wednesday that his office has received many questions about how the Sunshine Act applies during the current emergency. Including questions by phone, email, and on our webinars, Im sure were into the hundreds by now.

He said that his office has provided an advisory to organizations and residents and that the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association has issued its guidance in allowing for public participation.

Thomas noted that Thursdays meeting has seen its agenda shortened. All the planning commission business originally listed on the agenda has been tabled, including an addition to the popular Als of Hampden at 2240 Millennium Way. Assuming theres a resumption of business as usual, one project will be discussed at the May meeting and several others could be discussed as late as June, per the agenda.

One item awaiting approval is a request from Waste Management to amend trash collection days for several neighborhoods. Another item that is expected to be approved but will have to wait for the pandemic to abate before its installed is the Fredricksen Library Grandons StoryWalk at Creekview North Recreation Center. The StoryWalk concept had its origins in Vermont and has been copied by more than 300 libraries in the United States and Canada. Pages from a childrens book are installed along a path, with children proceeding on the trail to the next page in the story. Jim and Jean Grandon are donating it to the community.

That wont be the lone project put on hold. The commissioners in March talked about using grant money to put in a pavilion, restroom and more trails at Veterans Park, and took a look at the results of a feasibility study that was done on the townships almost 50-year-old pool. You can see that study below.

For now, Thomas said, the commissioners will see where things stand when the pandemic is over and an assessment is made of the economic damage it left behind. Were doing the things that we have to do, he said. The things that we wanted to do are being put aside for the time being, and I think our folks understand that.
First, Donald Trump scolded Chuck Schumer for criticising his administration and playing "politics." But then, the president panned the Senate Democratic leader during his nightly coronavirus briefing.

"Now is not the time for politics," Mr Trump said before the White House released a letter from the president back to Mr Schumer sharply rebuking him. The duo has feuded for years.

"Thank you for your Democrat public relations letter and incorrect sound bites, which are wrong in every way," Mr Trump wrote in a letter responding to one Mr Schumer wrote him urging him to put a military official in charge of distributing medical supplies to fight Covid-19.

"The existing federal leadership void has left America with an ugly spectacle in which States and cities are literally fending for themselves, often in conflict and competition with each other, when trying to procure precious medical supplies and equipment," the Senate minority leader wrote.

The two New Yorkers spoke by phone several times recently, but they decided to trade barbs on paper on Thursday as thousands more Americans tested positive for the disease.

"If you spent less time on your ridiculous impeachment hoax, which went haplessly on forever and ended up going nowhere (except increasing my poll numbers) and instead focused on helping the people of New York, then New York would not have been so completely unprepared for the 'invisible enemy.' No wonder AOC and others are thinking about running against you in the primary. If they did, they would likely win," Mr Trump wrote.
Another 6.6 million Americans  including 181,032 people in Massachusetts  filed new unemployment claims last week, numbers that mean the economy is almost certainly in a recession.

And possibly in a depression, said Karl J. Petrick. associate professor of Economics at Western New England University in Springfield. One of the unofficial definitions of a depression is a 10% drop in gross domestic product which we might see when first quarter numbers come out in late April.

Writing on the website of the American Institute for Economic Research in Great Barrington, senior research fellow Robert Hughes warned that the early low-end estimates for real gross domestic product include drops of 6% for first quarter and 25% percent for the second quarter.

"Expect extraordinarily weak economic reports over the next several months," he said.

A recession is, technically speaking, two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth. Another definition of a depression --like the Great Depression that gripped the country in the 1930s -- is a recession that lasts for more than two years.

"Whether that happens is a political decision," Petrick said. "We have the means in the federal government to stop that from happening. Do we use them?"

U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, is calling for another economic stimulus bill that would, among other things, include an infrastructure plan to get Americans working again. On Thursday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell cautioned Democrats about adding things he thinks of us unrelated to coronavirus bills,according to the Washington Post.

Thursday's report from the U.S. Department of Labor means that there have been 9.4 million new unemployment claimants in just the last two weeks.

Those 181,662 new claimants followed the 148,452 initial claimants a week earlier, the week ending March 21. Thats 330,144 new unemployed people in the two weeks since the coronavirus crisis hit.

That's almost 9% of the state's 3.8 million-person workforce out of work over just two weeks.

The week-to-week increase was smaller from the week of March 21 to the week of March 28, just 32,610 new claims verses the 141,000-claim jump from a week earlier.

And both weeks broke records set in 1982.

"Not surprised by this at all," Petrick said. "This gives a really good indication of how the shutdown is affecting us in terms of unemployment "

Expect those new claimant numbers to keep increasing, Petrick said, as more businesses close and as changes to federal law in the CARE Act make more gig workers and self-employed people -- barbers, tradespeople -- eligible for unemployment.

Simply driving past closed shopping malls and factories with empty parking lots shows where the impact is most felt.

In Massachusetts, the retail trade sector of the economy saw the biggest single increase in new claims with 15,444 (160.5%) followed by manufacturing, which was up by 7,674 (262.9%) according to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.

Food and Accommodation once again posted the largest total amount of initial unemployment claims filed over the week  up 25,993  although that number is 41.4% lower the new claim numbers from the previous week when that sector posted a 44,353 person increase in initial claims.

New unemployment rate numbers are due out Friday, April,

But Petrick said those numbers are from household surveys conducted prior to the shutdown.

How high could unemployment go?

Economist Miguel Faria-e-Castro of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis predicts unemployment rates of between 10.5% and 40.6%.

That would make this employment picture as bad as the Great Depression. Massachusetts unemployment averaged about 36% in 1933 before Roosevelt's New Deal took hold and the economy began to recover.

Petrick said recovery is going to be tricky. This is an economic problem caused by a response to a health crisis, not by an economic crisis.

The direct payments $1,200 per person, will help.

"But there arent a lot of places open for us to buy stuff," he said. "I imagine a lot of that money will go paying bills, paying down credit card debt. But this is going to be a long recovery."

He said getting people back to work will take time. As employers re-open theyll need to go through the process of hiring, getting applicants and the like. That alone will take weeks.

Related content:
Area food banks, pantries and soup kitchens are stocking up, supplying families who use their services with nonperishable items during restrictions made necessary to avoid the spread of coronavirus.

As the crisis continues and unemployment rises, families facing food insecurity may struggle in coming weeks. This list of resources is intended to support them, state Sen. Mary Daugherty Abrams, D-Meriden, said in a prepared statement.

Her constituents live in Middlefield, Rockfall, Middletown, Cheshire and Meriden.

As this crisis continues, we must support everyone in our communities, and that includes those who have experienced financial hardship due to COVID-19s impact on the economy. I hope that those who find themselves in need can receive assistance during these tough times, and those who are in a position where they can make donations support these vital community resources. We must remain united in the face of this extreme challenge, Abrams said in a press release.

Many locations require paperwork or proof of residence, she said. Visitors are encouraged to call before visiting any location as they may have new protocols in place during the virus outbreak.

The list may not include every location in the 13th District, but is intended to support members of the community in need, Abrams added.

Middlefield

Middlefield Food Bank, Middlefield Social Services, 405 Main St., 860-349-7121, is open by appointment.

Middletown

Amazing Grace Food Pantry, 16 Stack St., 860-347-3222, is open Wednesdays and Fridays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The St. Vincent de Paul Middletown soup kitchen, 617 Main St., 860-344-0097, is handing out takeout meals from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

A mobile food pantry is available at Cross Street AME Zion Church, 440 West St., from 10 to 11 a.m. on the second Thursday of every month.

The Shiloh Baptist Church Food Pantry, 346 Butternut St., Middletown, 860-346-8295, distributes food on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month from 4 to 5 p.m.

The Zion First Baptist Church Food Pantry, 16 James A. Moses Ave., Middletown, 860-347-5074, is open every third Saturday of the month from 10 a.m. to noon. Emergency food is available by appointment only.

Meriden

Salvation Army, 23 St. Casimir Drive, Meriden Corps Community Center, 203-235-6532, has an emergency food pantry running from 9 a.m. to noon Tuesdays and Thursday.

The soup kitchen, at 460 Broad St., serves individuals and families Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 1 p.m.

New Opportunities of Greater Meriden, Old Nappier Building, 74 Cambridge St., 203-235-0278, is also providing food.

Meals on Wheels is continuing delivery. Anyone who received meals at a site should call to arrange home delivery.

Operation Pantry, the food bank offering a three-day supply of food to those in need, can be visited Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at noon. Patrons can receive items once a month. Distribution is dependent on the available supply.

Apostolic Community Church Food Pantry and Soup Kitchen, 146 Center St., 203-639-0780; is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Meriden Soup Kitchen at First Baptist Church, 460 Broad St., 203-980-3372, is available weekdays from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Cheshire

Cheshire Community Food Pantry, 175 Sandbank Av., 203-699-9226, serves customers Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9 a.m. to noon and Tuesdays, and Thursdays from 2:30 to 6 p.m. by appointment only. Donations can be left in the donor vestibule during regular hours. For information, visit Cheshire Food Pantry on Facebook.
Passenger with COVID-19 dies on train

THAILAND: The body of a 57-year-old passenger who collapsed and died on a south-bound special express train in Thap Sakae district on Monday night (Mar 20) tested positive for COVID-19, an official said yesterday (April 1).

CoronavirusCOVID-19deathhealthtransport

By Bangkok Post

Thursday 2 April 2020, 10:42AM

An official sprays disinfectant on a special expressway train after a male passenger, who collapsed on the train and later died, tested positive for COVID-19. Photo: @pr.railway Facebook page

The positive test was confirmed by the Songkhla provincial public health office, State Railway of Thailand (SRT) deputy governor Voravuth Mala said on the SRT PR Facebook page.

The SRT did not name the passenger, but Thai media reported his name as Anant Sahor, 57, of Narathiwat province.

The SRT deputy governor said the passenger bought a ticket for a second-class air-conditioned carriage on the Thaksin Special Express Train No 37 operating between Bangkok and Hat Yai on March 30. He boarded the trains car No 4 at Bang Sue railway station en route to Sungai Kolok.

The man developed a cough and vomited during the journey. His condition had apparently improved by the time the train reached Hua Hin railway station, and a team of screening officials from Hua Hin municipality checked his body temperature, which was measured at 36 degrees Celsius. Officials advised the passenger to take a rest at Hua Hin station, but he insisted on continuing his journey.

At about 10:15pm, train staff found the passenger collapsed in front of a toilet. When the train reached Thap Sakae railway station, a local rescue team boarded the train and took the man to Thap Sakae Hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after midnight. He suffered from diabetes, but his fluid was sent for COVID-19 tests, which came back positive yesterday.

SRT has sent a list of 15 pasengers who were on board the same carriage as the dead passenger to Songkhla public health office and quarantined 11 people, including 2 train staffers at Bang Sue railway station, a security guard, 7 railway staffers working on the special expressway train, and a railway police officer, Mr Voravuth said.

Dr Suriya Khuharat, chief of Prachuap Khiri Khan public health office, said yesterday that the passenger had just returned from Pakistan to Suvarnabhumi airport. He underwent screening at the airport, but was not found to have any fever.

Prachuap Khiri Khan governor Pallop Singhasenee said Anant was the 13th Covid-19 infection case in the province, but was the first to die.
Michigan Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun said residents should strongly consider wearing homemade masks while out in public to protect themselves from the coronavirus, but also asked residents to donate medical gear to overwhelmed hospitals.

Khaldun stopped short of recommending widespread use of masks, noting that health care workers have the highest need for N95 respirators and surgical masks as COVID-19 cases rapidly increase. Khaldun advised people to don face protection if they have access to it during a Thursday press conference.

If there is an N95 mask or surgical mask, we want it to go directly to our hospital partners, Khaldun said. That said, we know that some people may have a mask at home or they may be able to make a mask out of cloth or a bandana, and if they want to do they can. They should strongly consider it and it certainly wont cause any harm.

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Face masks and other personal protection equipment are scarce as hospitals deal with a growing number of COVID-19 patients. U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams advised against the general public wearing masks but asked the CDC to investigate whether it should recommend a change in guidance.

Facemasks owned by people who arent sick and arent caring for someone who is sick should instead be donated to health care workers due to the short supply, according to the CDC.

In Michigan, hospitals had 1.4 million surgical masks and 409,750 of the more protective N95 masks available as of April 1. The state asked the federal government to provide 21.8 million N95 respirators and 1.1 million surgical masks on March 25, some of which have been provided since.

Masks are expected to offer more protection because they help block airborne particles that carry the coronavirus. However, masks dont guarantee anyone is protected and Khaldun reminded residents to continue social distancing and frequent hand washing techniques.

The number of worldwide confirmed COVID-19 cases is nearing 1 million, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. That includes 217,263 in the United States and 9,334 in Michigan, as of Wednesday.

The CDC does not recommend people wear a facemask unless they are caring for someone who is sick. People who are sick are advised to wear a facemask when they are around others and before entering a hospital.

Theres been further conversation from federal officials about whether people should start taking extra measures to prevent community spread of the coronavirus. Health officials have not offered official guidelines or regulations on mask-making, but Khaldun said people can make their own facial protection at home.

Michigan has not released any specific recommendations for whether people who arent caregivers should wear masks in public.

Khaldun said most people shouldnt be in public regardless.

The governor issued an executive order prohibiting people from leaving their homes unless to work, collect supplies, check on loved ones or perform other necessary tasks. The order remains in place until April 14.

Khaldun said people should take the governors order seriously. No one is immune to the coronavirus, she said.

Thats just absolutely unacceptable, Khaldun said of people who violate the stay home order. This is so incredibly important that people stay home. You can be 25 years old, healthy, no medical problems, you can easily get the coronavirus and you could potentially die."

Public health officials believe the number of cases confirmed so far represents a fraction of the total number of people who are infected. More cases are found as testing becomes more available.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more on MLive:

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Michigan on the cusp of a pretty dramatic upswing in COVID-19 cases, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says

Michigan closes in on 10,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with largest single-day jump

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T he Government has set a target of carrying out 100,000 tests for coronavirus every day by the end of April.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced he is "setting the goal" for 100,000 tests as he conducted his first press briefing since leaving self-isolation for Covid-19.

Mr Hancock said the UK lacked a large diagnostics industry so was having to build from a lower base than the likes of Germany, which is testing at greater levels for coronavirus.

He said a country-wide shortage of swabs had been resolved but that there remained a global challenge around sourcing the reagent chemicals needed for the tests.

The announcement on Thursday came amid a growing outcry over the lack of testing of NHS staff for Covid-19.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock in Downing Street / 10 Downing Street/AFP via Getty

The Cabinet minister defended his decision to prioritise testing of patients over NHS staff and said he thought any health secretary would have done the same.

Mr Hancock said: I understand why NHS staff want tests, so they can get back to the front line, of course I do.

But I took the decision that the first priority has to be the patients for whom the results of a test could be the difference in treatment that is the difference between life and death. I believe anybody in my shoes would have taken the same decision.

Mr Hancock said NHS staff will be able to get tested for Covid-19 absolutely before the end of the month.

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He added: With 5,000 tested since (staff testing) started at the weekend weve clearly made significant progress.

Large-scale antibody testing  to see if someone has been infected with the virus and recovered  will only be rolled out when clinicians are confident it is a valid test, Mr Hancock said.

He added: No test is better than a bad test.

Responding to the announcement of the 100,000 test target, former health secretary Jeremy Hunt said it was "great news for NHS staff".

Mr Hunt, who has been critical of the Governments policy on mass testing, tweeted: Thoughts on todays testing announcement: Great to have Matt Hancock back. He looked healthy and well and we have missed his leadership!

No one can doubt the extent of the govts commitment to testing. You dont promise 100k tests a day with a firm deadline unless you are deadly serious. This is great news for NHS staff desperately waiting for a test to get back to work."

Mr Hancock said NHS frontline staff and their families will get tested if they need it over the coming weeks.

He outlined the order of testing prioritisation as being patients, then critical care staff, then NHS and social care staff more generally, then other key workers and finally the general population.

He said: Ive set out why weve prioritised patients first, the next prioritisation is of course NHS staff working in critical care and then after that, we will spread the availability of tests across the NHS and social care and then other key workers and then over time to the population as a whole.

Professor John Newton, director of public health improvement for Public Health England, said swab tests were the most important priority for the NHS as antibody tests work best 28 days after an infection.

Medical Director of NHS England, Professor Stephen Powis / via REUTERS

He said: The initial priority of course is for the swab tests because those are tests which allow the NHS to manage critically ill patients to the best they possibly can and also to allow NHS staff and other key workers to come back to work when they can.

The antibody tests are ideally done 28 days after an infection, so in fact the requirement for the antibody test isnt really with us yet.
Neuro-pharmaceutical and psychedelics company Mind Medicine Inc. (NEO: MMED) (OTC: MMEDF) has acquired exclusive rights to data, compounds, and patents for research with LSD and other psychedelics from the Liechti laboratory in Switzerlands University Hospital Basel.

Exploring High-Dose LSD Treatment for Anxiety

MindMed CEO JR Rahn told Benzinga that much emphasis has been placed on psilocybin in recent years as a psychedelic therapy model, but the potential safety and efficacy of LSD in hallucinogenic psychotherapy may provide an even greater promise for patients.

"Over the past decade we have amassed the largest collection of clinical trials around LSD," said Matthias Liechti, who heads the psychedelics research lab at University Hospital Basel. "We have been studying the pharmacology and potential medical uses of LSD and other psychedelics for many years in the laboratory, in patients, and in healthy volunteers."

MindMed has special interest in an Phase 2 trial on high-dose LSD treatment for anxiety currently being conducted by Liechtis lab. The company will also work under the direction of Liechti to continue developing therapy with LSD micro-dose as potential treatment for adult ADHD.

MindMed hopes to leverage the impactful data and clinical trials Liecthi and his team have "diligently executed on in LSD for 10 plus years," the company said.

Through future commercial clinical drug trials, the goal is to turn LSD into an FDA approved medicine as a way to treat mental illnesses.

Picture: University Hospital Basel via Wikimedia

See more from Benzinga

 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Hinting at a staggered lockdown withdrawal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said it is important to formulate a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population once the lockdown ends.

The Prime Minister's statement came after his interaction with Chief Ministers of states via video conferencing to discuss measures to combat the outbreak.

He asked the states to send suggestions for the exit strategy and reiterated the importance of social distancing in preventing the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

Modi also talked about the need of setting up crisis management groups at district levels and district surveillance officers need to be appointed. Data must be taken from the accredited labs for testing to ensure congruence in data of district, state and centre.

He said it is necessary to ensure staggered release of funds to the beneficiaries under PM Garib Kalyan Yojana to avoid crowding at banks.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Modi said that keeping in mind the harvest season, the government has given some relaxation from lockdown but it is necessary to continuously monitor and maintain social distancing as much as possible.

He also asked states to think of other platforms for procuring grains apart from APMC, and explore the possibility of creating pooling platforms for rural areas, like that in ride sharing apps, which can be used for this purpose.

Track this blog for latest updates on coronavirus outbreak

He said that India's focus in the next few weeks should be on testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine. He highlighted the necessity of maintaining supply of essential medical products, availability of raw material for manufacture of medicines and medical equipment.

It is necessary to ensure availability of separate, dedicated hospital facilities for COVID-19 patients, he said.

To increase the availability of doctors, he asked states to tap into the resource pool of AYUSH doctors, organize online training and utilise para-medical staff, National Cadet Corps and National Service Scheme volunteers.
'This week will be crucial and we are prepared.'

Archana Masih/Rediff.com reports.

The armed forces have set up 19 dedicated hospitals to treat coronavirus patients.

In addition, it has also set aside separate wards in 32 other army and air force hospitals across the country.

Over 9,000 beds and around 400 ICU, and 1,033 high dependency unit beds have been readied in military and base hospitals to aid civil hospitals in providing medical care.

The hospitals are located in Delhi, Pune, Lucknow, Kanpur, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Hindan, Visakhapatnam, Jodhpur, Ambala, Jorhat, Barrackpore etc.

The defence services are also equipped to carry out tests in five major base hospitals -- the Air Force Command Hospital in Bengaluru, the Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, Command Hospitals in Lucknow and Udhampur, and the Army Research and Referral Hospital in Delhi.

Isolation and quarantine wards have been set aside and every cantonment has been directed to prepare medical and quarantine facilities.

At six military locations -- Manesar, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Chennai, Hindan and Mumbai -- quarantine facilities house citizens evacuated from foreign countries.

The Indian Air Force evacuated passengers from Wuhan and Iran aboard a C-17 Globemaster III aircraft last month. C-130, An-32, AVRO and Dornier aircraft have been deployed into service.

The IAF airlifted nearly 25 tons of essential medical supplies in the last three days from Delhi, Surat, Manipur, Surat, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The supplies include personal protective equipment, surgical gloves, thermal scanners, hand sanitisers and medical personnel.

The IAF has set up nine quarantine facilities with 200 to 300 personnel at important bases across the country.

"This week will be crucial and we are prepared," says an armed forces doctor. "The service hospitals are there to aid civilians. It is a national emergency and doctors, nurses, pathologists, ambulance drivers, all are ready to face the challenge."

Work towards readying facilities had begun three weeks prior.

In hospitals where there are no positive cases as yet, the staff is prepared. Medical staff will be provided separate accommodation and not allowed to go home while treating COVID-19 positive patients.

In hospitals where there are no testing facilities, samples are being sent to the nearest labs after following the Indian Council for Medical Research laid down three-layered packing procedure. The samples are put in an ice box and transported.

IAF and Indian Navy aircraft have flown blood samples of suspected COVID-19 cases to Mumbai, Chandigarh and Delhi for testing.

At many military stations leave has been cancelled and those who were expected to return from leave have been asked to remain where they are till the middle of April. They have been told to seek medical help at the closest military hospital in case of any medical assistance.

Sanitising and isolation protocols are being adhered to for those coming from duties from other military stations.

Since armed forces personnel have to take permission for any foreign travel six months in advance, foreign travel by its personnel is not a major reason for concern. However, contact with people who have travelled abroad remains an issue.

Three army personnel -- including two medical staff and one jawan in Leh whose father had travelled to Saudi Arabia -- have tested positive so far. The jawan has subsequently recovered.

Military stations and units are adhering to sanitising protocols and are restricting outside contact into the bases.

Nearly 400 quarantined people who had traveled from abroad that were housed in military facilities have been discharged. Medical care to Indian citizens evacuated from Iran and Malaysia has been provided at IAF bases in Hindan and Tambaram.

"This is a crisis, a national emergency and the armed forces personnel are ready in the service of the country and its people," says the military doctor.

"Like always, we will do our duty honourably."
India captain Virat Kohli on Thursday said that he is enjoying the time he is getting at home to spend with his family but added that he feels blessed to have the space for himself during these times. Kohlis remarks came during a candid chat with former England captain Kevin Pietersen on Instagram Live when he was asked about the ongoing coronavirus pandemic which has caused a nationwide lockdown in India.

Speaking on the issue, Kohli said: We are at home. Its been difficult. Its been intense. All over the world. He added: We do have space. We went away to a farm before everything got intense. It is great we have a space to walk out. We have to be grateful. People are going through so much these days. Its tough to watch.

Also read: Umar Akmal needs to change his attitude, show commitment to be a regular in Pakistan team: Misbah

On being asked about spending time with his wife and Bollywood star Anushka Sharma, Kohli said: It is the longest we have spent together at one place since we have been married. We have never been at one place for so long at same time. Its bizarre. Its not a good thing to single out this as an opportunity to spend time. But it is what it is . We have to be positive and we are being cautious. These are strange times, he said.

On being asked what he is missing about the outside world, Kohli said, he misses nothing. I am not missing anything. My brother messaged me that he is dying at our home in Gurgaon. He told me I cant take it anymore. I am just stuck at the house. People are not just used to being stuck at home. This is our life everyday. We are in isolation everyday, he said.

I am glad we are at home. We are stuck in one place. If we were in some country on some tour, it would have been difficult. All of us stuck in a different part of the world, he added.

Also read: Kevin Pietersen interviews Virat Kohli on Instagram: Live Updates

Pietersen has been doing social media lives with the likes of Kohlis limited-overs deputy Rohit Sharma and South Africa pace ace Dale Steyn over the past few days as the world observes virtual lockdown to beat the coronavirus pandemic.

Kohli and actress wife Anushka Sharma recently pledged to support the Prime Ministers Relief Fund and Chief Ministers (Maharashtra) Relief Fund in the ongoing battle against the coronavirus pandemic. A source in the industry had told IANS that Virat and Anushka have jointly donated Rs 3 crore towards the cause.

The batting icon also made an appeal to all to strictly follow the guidelines that have been set by not just the government, but also medical experts in our fight against the coronavirus outbreak.

(With inputs from agencies)
In unique campaign aimed at spreading awareness about COVID-19, Punjab Police has taken over to social media to appeal to people to stay at home and cultivate their hobbies by making the best use of the relatively free time during the nationwide lockdown.

Appealing people on Tik Tok, Sharechat, Facebook and Twitter, Punjab Police is trying its best to educate the masses on the precautionary measures to be undertaken during the lockdown.

In this regard, the Punjab Police has recently launched specific slogans for all the districts of the state including Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Mohali, requesting people to "stay home to stay safe".

Sharing fascinating posters on Twitter, Punjab Police gave several messages to people such as -- Hello, Patiala Kuch Din Outings te Lagao Taala (Hello Patiala, please put a hold on outings for somedays), Benefits of staying at home, during a pandemic- you become a Biryani Specialist! Show off your culinary skills! Be like Deepu (a native of Punjab), Stay at Home!, Ludhiana Thode Dina Tak Gharo Bahar Nahi Aan (Ludhiana, please do not step out of your houses for few days) and Bas Ghar Vich Hai Khushali (Happiness is only at home).

"Attention Patialvis! We got your back, but you gotta have your back too!," a message on Twitter by the police force read.

Police chief Dinkar Gupta who took a lead and launched a video appealed people to stay home and not face trouble in getting essential commodities.

The animation videos shared by the Punjab Police are suggesting people to cultivate their hobbies have trended both on Tik Tok and Twitter by garnering more than 4 million views in just 24 hours.

Among many of these videos is 'Deepu di Biryani' animation series that tells people about the benefits of staying at home. This series gives a message that people can use this lockdown period to explore their hidden talent of writing poems, making videos, paintings, and even take up cooking and explore culinary skills. The force is also advising people to follow social distancing norms and avoid handshakes apart from using sanitizers and keeping the surrounding clean and hygenic.

Apart from its regular updates on the work being done by the force in different parts of the state, some police personnel are also exhibiting their singing skills.

Utilising the social media space to the hilt, Punjab Police has been consistently sharing Do's and Don'ts of quarantining and measures against corona.

These creative initiatives are also helping Police to get feedback from people who are sharing their grievances and ideas in the form of comments and re-tweets. Following this, the administration and police personnel try to solve their issues at the earliest.

Punjab Police has also released songs apart from cartoons and caricatures to inform people about the toll-free numbers and avenues to reach Police and medical staff in case of an emergency.

The total number of COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday rose to 1965 in India, including 1764 active cases, 151 cured, discharged or migrated patients and 50 deaths, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 22:11:08|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- At around 7 a.m., 40-year-old Liu Kun puts on a mask, a protective suit and gloves, picks up a bucket full of water and trudges around Babaoshan People's Cemetery in western Beijing.

Liu and his colleagues search for a name amid rows of gravestones, gently wipe it with a piece of wet cloth, place down some chrysanthemums, and bow three times out of respect.

As Tomb-sweeping Day, also known as Qingming Festival, approaches, Liu, a cemetery worker, has taken on a new task -- cleaning tombs and offering flowers to the deceased as requested by their relatives who cannot visit the graveyards amid the novel coronavirus outbreak. The service is free of charge.

Qingming is one of the most important traditional festivals for Chinese, when people go to cemeteries to make offerings to their ancestors and ensure the graves are properly tended to. It will fall on Saturday this year.

Around 9.78 million Chinese visited cemeteries to honor their deceased relatives during the three-day holiday for Tomb-sweeping Day last year, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

To prevent large crowds and reduce cross-infection, many Chinese provinces and cities have suspended mass tomb-sweeping activities, launched reservation services to control visitor numbers in cemeteries, or called on the public to sweep their ancestors' tombs remotely.

Beijing launched a reservation system for visiting tombs from March 19. For those who are unable to visit tombs, they can ask the cemetery to offer sacrifices on their behalf through the system.

It is not an easy job to search for a grave in Babaoshan People's Cemetery, the largest of its kind in Beijing and home to around 68,600 gravestones. Even worse, some customers may input an incorrect grave location when they register their information online, and some deceased buried there share the same names.

"The cemetery is so big that we have to spend a lot of time finding the right gravestone. Now we are divided into different groups, and our efficiency has improved. Each group can pay respects to 30 to 40 deceased each day," Liu said.

"The tomb-sweeping activities usually run between late March and early April. The average daily visits to our cemetery reached around 15,000 during the period in previous years. The figure decreased significantly this year due to the outbreak," said Meng Xiankai, deputy director of Babaoshan People's Cemetery.

The cemetery adopted an appointment system for different tomb-sweeping timeslots. Citizens are required to register with their personal information and have their temperature checked upon arrival. Touchless faucets and hand sanitizer dispensers are installed in public toilets and other places.

By Tuesday, the cemetery had received more than 10,000 tomb-sweeping visits and its staff had offered around 700 tomb-sweeping services on behalf of their clients.

Li Qin, a Beijing resident who visited the cemetery, said the tradition of paying tribute to deceased relatives and friends is deeply rooted in Chinese culture. "The cemetery staff truly help many Chinese who cannot visit in person to fulfill their wishes in this special period," she said.

When Liu and his colleagues were busy locating the graves, a commemorative activity was being staged online by the Babaoshan funeral parlor for those who were unable to visit the site but still wanted to uphold tradition. A live broadcast of the proceedings was also held.

"With technological advances, 'internet plus funeral service' may become a future trend," said Zhou Weihua, deputy director of the funeral parlor.

"Helping clients sweep tombs and holding online commemorative activities not only meets the demand in this special period but also offers more options for people to remember their deceased family members in the future," Zhou said.
An Eastern Partnership that delivers for all

In this challenging time, marked by the coronavirus outbreak, we can see how important international cooperation is. Over the last decade, the Eastern Partnership has brought concrete benefits for people in Georgia and across the European Unions eastern neighbourhood. In particular:- Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of Georgias economy, and since 2009, EU support has helped over 40,000 Georgian SMEs and microenterprises access loans on better terms to develop their activities, increase incomes and create jobs;- Since 2013, EU assistance to link Georgias education programmes to market needs have helped over 30,000 Georgians find employment through more relevant vocation education courses and labour market tools such as Worknet.ge;- Over 90,000 Georgians living in smaller towns and villages have easier access to 200 public and banking services as well as free internet and libraries through the EUs support to the establishment of 76 Government Community Centres throughout the country- Under Erasmus+, almost 7,500 students and academic staff exchanges have taken place between Georgia and the EU. Over 9,300 young people and youth workers from Georgia have been involved in joint exchanges, training and volunteering projects.To ensure our partnership continues to deliver in the fast changing world of today, we need to do even more and better. To shape our priorities, we consulted last year with people, businesses, organisations and governments of 33 countries from across our shared region. While there was an appreciation for the results achieved, there was also a clear expectation that we enhance our cooperation when it comes to jobs and prosperity, investments, connectivity, good governance and common challenges such as climate change and the digital transformation.And now we presented our response to these consultations with long-term objectives for our policy beyond 2020. Our continued engagement with the Eastern Partnership countries remains a key priority for the European Union. Our proposals for the future are ambitious yet achievable. They build on existing cooperation but also identify areas where we need to go further. They are built on fundamental values as the heart of the EU project, such as the rule of law, protection of human rights and fight against corruption.Concretely, we are proposing to our partners to work together on the following objectives:- Together for resilient, sustainable and integrated economies: Strengthening the economy is key to meeting citizens expectations and reducing inequality and for making our partnership a success. We will focus on job creation and economic opportunities, through increased trade, investments, stronger connectivity, in particular in transport and energy, and linking education, research and innovation better with private sector needs.- Together for accountable institutions, the rule of law and security: Good governance and democratic institutions, the rule of law, successful anti-corruption policies and security are essential for sustainable development and the consolidation of democracy. They are the backbone of resilient states and societies as well as strong economies.- Together for environmental and climate resilience: To protect our world for generations to come, we all need to take responsibility. The EU will work with its partners to improve the resource-efficiency of economies, develop new green jobs and promote local and renewable sources of energy.- Together for a resilient digital transformation: The EU will further invest in the digital transformation of our partners, aiming to extend the benefits of the Digital Single Market to partner countries. Our joint work will also focus on strengthening e-Governance, scaling up digital start-ups and supporting the cyber resilience of partner countries.- Together for resilient, fair and inclusive societies: Free and fair elections together with transparent, citizen-centred and accountable public administrations are essential for democracy. The EU will continue to focus on these key areas, engaging with civil society, which needs to be given sufficient space, and supporting free, plural and independent media and human rights, as well as ensuring mobility and people-to-people contacts, all particularly important also due to growing disinformation against EU values.Over the past decade, trade between the EU and its eastern partners has nearly doubled. Over 125,000 small and medium-sized businesses have directly benefited from EU funding, creating or sustaining more than 250,000 jobs. We are better connected thanks to improved transport links and easier access to high capacity broadband. And according to recent surveys, the EU is the most trusted international institution among Eastern Partnership citizens. We will keep this results-oriented approach and look to do much more together in the face of todays challenges, including when it comes to crises such as COVID-19 pandemic.And through this we will build an even more ambitious Eastern Partnership that delivers for all and continues to bring our shared continent closer together.
With infections linked to a March event of the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi leading to a countrywide surge in Covid-19 cases, chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday completely prohibited all gatherings, including religious, in the state.

The chief minister said the state government will impose a total ban on all congregations, irrespective of the religion involved. I will personally talk to the acting jathedar of the Akal Takht, he said, directing the state chief secretary to discuss the matter with the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) in view of the upcoming Baisakhi festival.

Amarinder also ordered 21 days of quarantine for all those who had returned to the state from Nizamuddin (Delhi) since January this year, and asked the police and administrative officials to move aggressively to track, trace and isolate all such people.

He directed the police and health department to constitute special teams to track and follow up on those who had returned to Punjab from Nizamuddin.

The chief minister issued these instructions while reviewing the current situation through a video conference with DCs and other senior officials of the civil administration and police department. The state authorities were initially slow in tracking and tracing the Nizamuddin returnees and swung into action after reports of a surge driven by infections among the Jamaats members came from different parts of the country.

200 FROM PUNJAB VISITED NIZAMUDDIN

According to DGP Dinkar Gupta, some 200 persons from Punjab had visited Nizamuddin and returned here, at different times, with 12 districts believed to be affected. They were being tracked, along with some from others states who had arrived in Punjab for Tablighi Jamaat work. The health department was debriefing and contact tracing them, though, so far, no corona confirmed cases had come to light.

Health secretary Anurag Agarwal informed the chief minister that the department had so far received a list of 125 of these persons, of whom 73 had been tracked and samples collected in 25 cases, some of whom had come to Mansa as late as March 19. As a precautionary measure, all of them had been placed in quarantine, he added.

The Kapurthala deputy commissioner informed the CM that 31 people who returned from Nizamuddin had been quarantined though they had been found to be asymptomatic so far.

In Patiala, too, 29 of them had been quarantined but there were no symptoms shown by them.

On a suggestion from director general of police (DGP) Dinkar Gupta, the CM ordered quarantine of the Pakistani nationals who were in Amritsar, saying the state could not afford to take any chances at this critical juncture.

The Amritsar DC said Pakistan had given permission to allow entry of four of its citizens who had come from Delhi, of whom three had tested positive. The BSF and immigration staff who handled them had been quarantined, he said, but added that there were a few more Pakistanis still stuck in Amritsar.

Amarinder also warned the officials against any complacency in terms of curfew enforcement and law and order, as well as relief measures and management of essential supplies.

He inquired about the steps being taken to protect and provide for the migrants who are stranded in Punjab due to the sealing of the borders and other restrictions.

The Pathankot DC said 111 migrant labourers from J&K were stuck in the district and had been accommodated in marriage palaces and other places, with strict social distancing norms being maintained. Three had been quarantined as they had fever and cough.

QUOTE

The state government will impose a total ban on all congregations, irrespective of the religion involved.

Capt Amarinder Singh, chief minister
Doctors treating Missouri City Councilmember Jeffrey L. Boney, who was hospitalized on Saturday after he tested positive for COVID-19, have discovered a blood clot in his right lung, he said Wednesday.

He remains in ICU at United Memorial Medical Center in Houston.

Related: Missouri City City Council Member Jeffrey L. Boney hospitalized with COVID-19

A pulmonary embolism sometimes develops when the virus attacks the lungs and can cause lung damage and decreased oxygen levels in the blood and potentially other organs as well. Boney said his doctors are monitoring the situation closely.

Initially, Boney said he didnt have many of the typical COVID-19 respiratory symptoms such as a dry cough and shortness of breath and doctors are using his condition for a case study.

I have an amazing medical team, he said. He is being treated byDr. Joseph Varon and Dr. Joseph Gathe.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Two test positive for COVID-19 at state-funded disability living center in Richmond

From his hospital bed, Boney shared the news that he had the novel coronavirus Saturday morning via Facebook.

I want to be extremely clear with you...I am in great spirits and I plan to overcome this temporary challenge. But, please know that this is a very serious epidemic and anyone is susceptible, he wrote in a Facebook post. It is time for all of us to not only know this pandemic is real and affecting lives, it is also time for us to take seriously all of the things that we have been asked to do by our local leaders. I am here and I am fighting and I will get through this with the support of my family and friends.

Boney has served as the District B representative on the Missouri City City Council since November 2017 and is also an award-winning journalist for the Houston Forward Times newspaper and contributor for CNN Headline News.

knix@hcnonline.com
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Linkedin Dzulfiqar Fathur Rahman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 19:14 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f51248 1 City COVID-19-in-Indonesia,COVID-19-Jakarta,Greater-Jakarta,anies-baswedan,Jabodetabek Free

Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan is demanding the government issue a regulation granting him authority to handle not only Jakarta but also its satellite cities to curb the COVID-19 outbreak.

The governor said he needed greater authority because Jakarta, the national epicenter of the outbreak, bordered with cities that fall within two neighboring provinces. The cities are Bogor, Depok and Bekasi in West Java and Tangerang in Banten.

The recently issued Government Regulation No. 21/2020 on large-scale social restriction (PSBB) stipulates that a governor may only limit mobility within his province.

The situation in Jakarta is very concerning, Anies said during an online video conference with Vice President Maruf Amin on Thursday. Therefore, we recommend [the government] issue a separate policy for Greater Jakarta where the spread of COVID-19 ignores administrative borders.

Read also: People are dying, Pak Maruf: Anies reports Jakartas harrowing situation to VP

The Jakarta administration recently extended a state of emergency in Jakarta until April 19, imposing large-scale social restrictions that have been in place since March 16 suspending school, office, religious and public activities.

As of Thursday, the fast-spreading COVID-19 had infected 885 people in Jakarta  nearly half of the countrys confirmed cases. Of the confirmed cases in the capital, 90 people have died.

However, Anies said the enforcement [of the restriction] was very limited because the restriction was not mandatory.

The governor was expected to write on Thursday a letter to the Health Minister to officially launch large-scale social restrictions in Jakarta.

We may tighten it in the near future, said Anies.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Parents whose children attend various Catholic elementary schools received an e-mail last night that distance learning will continue through April 30.

In accordance with state and federal guidelines all school buildings will remain closed, and home-based learning will continue through April 30, 2020, wrote Michael J. Deegan, superintendent of schools for the Archdiocese of New York in an e-mail.

On March 16, the Archdiocese said in-person classes would resume April 20.

Deegan also announced that Staten Island Catholic elementary schools in the Archdiocese of New York will be on Easter break from April 6 through April 17. Home-based classes will resume on Monday, April 20.

During times like this, the safety and well-being of our Catholic schools families and staff, as well as those in the broader community around us, are our primary concern, said Deegan in a March 29 letter to Catholic School families.

NO MORE NOTIFICATIONS OF POSITIVE CASES

Since its been 14 days since Catholic schools were in session, Deegan said the Archdiocese will no longer send out notifications about positive test results since students or staff members could not have been exposed at school.

The policy of the Health and Safety Task Force of the Superintendent of Schools has been to notify schools communities of all positive test cases within the school community since there was potential for exposure to members of the school. The Task force policy has been updated as of March 29, 2020. That date marks more than 14 days since schools are closed, which is the known incubation period for COVID -19, he added.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

New York City public schools are closed until at least April 20. However, Mayor Bill de Blasio has repeatedly said its possible that schools will remain closed for the remainder of the school year.

This week, the state Department of Education, in accordance with the governors executive order, issued guidelines that school districts across the state cancel those spring breaks scheduled for the beginning of April -- stating that virtual learning must continue during that time.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Filipino student Racquel Helena "Kelly" Dicolen Abagat had sore throat on March 14, a day after returning from a study trip to Brussels, Belgium. Since she's a fan of sweets and softdrinks, she didn't make a big deal out of it. That was until she got a headache and a 38.2 degree Celsius fever the next day.

Her symptoms got worse in the succeeding days. She lost her ability to taste and smell. Swallowing became a task  making it hard for her to eat and drink water. Then the cough came.

"Middle of the week, yun talaga ang difficulty of breathing. Parang may dumadagan sa dibdib mo. Tapos you cant sleep na totally flat ang bed, kailangan elevated ang katawan mo so you can breathe well, Kelly said in a Viber interview.

[Translation: By the middle of the week, I was having difficulty breathing. It felt like something was on my chest. You cannot sleep on a flat bed, you always have to be elevated so you can breathe properly.]

The 24-year-old graduate student based in Berlin was having a hard time doing normal chores, such as cooking, because she would be easily exhausted. It reached a point that her chest would feel so tight that she had to breathe through her mouth.

She realized these are all respiratory symptoms linked to the coronavirus disease.

Germany's COVID-19 protocol

With her recent travel history and COVID-19 symptoms, she qualified for testing. She went to a designated testing center in Berlin, Germany on March 16. Health workers sent her home after taking her samples.

After three days, they called to deliver the news: Kelly has severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, or SARS-CoV-2 for short.

A Quarantine Certificate also came in the mail. Enclosed are the protocols on staying at home for 14 days and on ending her quarantine.

She was also asked to send a form to everyone she was with two days before the onset of her symptoms, telling them to watch out for any indication of COVID-19 infection.

The doctor advised me, since it was just mild symptoms, to just stay home, Kelly said.

The doctor didnt prescribe any medicine, but only told her to boost her immune system. She began eating vegetables and regularly took Vitamin C and Zinc while recuperating.

Kelly recalled her doctor saying: Dont panic, be calm, be well rested.

Her fever went down after a day. But most of her symptoms lasted for a week. She recorded her condition daily in a monitoring sheet.

I check my temperature 3 times a day, mark when I have a symptom. Doctors call you everyday to check up on you if you are on home quarantine, Kelly said. Kinakamusta ka nila, tinatanong nila kung kaya mo pa. Kasi kung hindi na, they might admit you (to a hospital).

[Translation: They ask how you are, if you can manage. If you tell them you cannot manage anymore, they could admit you to the hospital.]

She was only tested once. In Berlin, the protocol is for the one-time testing to confirm if the patient has COVID-19. Kelly was declared to have recovered from the virus on March 29.

"Two days before your 14th day of quarantine, if you dont feel any symptom at all, then the doctor may clear you from quarantine or declare you recovered," she said.

Fighting the invisible enemy

Being infected with COVID-19 isnt only a fight for physical recovery; it could also take a toll on ones mental and emotional state.

Living alone in Germany, with a disease that forces her to go on isolation, is hard. She said she always cried at night, but she often prayed as well.

Ang sakit na to, ang mga tao hindi pwede bumisita sayo, alagaan. Feeling ko at times nakaka-down sya in a way na youre fighting the virus physically pero, dapat meron ka pa ring disposition na i-encourage ang sarili mo na kaya mo ito kasi ang dami sa news na nagkaka-pneumonia na sila o kaya nagiging critical na kondisyon nila, she said.

Her friends, family, and even strangers would always comfort and support her. The Philippine Embassy in Germany and members of the Filipino community would also check up on her from time to time.

Encouraging messages from friends and from family. My friends bring me food, they leave it outside the door, she said.

Low risk doesn't mean no risk

Kelly is young, practices good hygiene, and has no existing illness. This means she belongs to a group of people considered at low-risk of getting infected. She believes she contracted the virus while she was travelling  no matter how cautious she was.

Feeling ko dun sa public transportation kasi noong papunta ako nag-train kami, nung pabalik ko nag-plane, and there is a lot of people there," she said.

[Translation: I have a feeling I got it while traveling because we took a train and plane. It was crowded.]

She now understands no one is immune from the invisible enemy that has infected close to one million people and killed 47,200 people.

"To be honest, ito ang medyo ironic, I was so cautious. I wash my hands every single time. I go to the bathroom, even in public areas. I carry with me my alcohol and sanitizer wherever I go. The point here is it can happen to anyone, even millennials," she said.

[Translation: It's a little ironic because I was cautious. I always washed my hands in the bathroom, even in public areas. I always carry my alcohol and hand sanitizer. The point is it can happen to anyone, even millennials aren't spared.]
This time, it was a fairly routine question that Chanel Rion, a correspondent for One America News Network, posed to President Donald Trump during Tuesday's White House news briefing: How many clinical trials would it take before a potential coronavirus drug he has touted could be approved? Trump wasn't sure and turned the question over to Anthony S. Fauci, his infectious-diseases expert.

But the brief Q&A raised its own question: What was Rion doing there in the first place?

Under strict new guidelines jointly imposed last month by White House officials and the White House Correspondents' Association, which represents journalists, access to the cramped briefing room is now restricted to about 15 reporters each day, to enforce social-distancing measures amid the coronavirus crisis, and several smaller news organizations can rotate in only once every several days.

And it wasn't OANN's turn on Tuesday. Nor on Wednesday, when Rion showed up in the room again - prompting the correspondents' association to vote to remove OANN from the rotation.

"We did this because a reporter for this outlet twice attended press briefings in contravention of this policy," the board of the WHCA said in a statement late Wednesday. "We do not take this action lightly. This is a matter of public safety."

Rion and her employer, a tiny conservative cable outlet known as OANN, appear to have gotten special permission from the White House, in violation of the guidelines. The reasons, and the source of the approval, are unclear, but OANN and Rion have a history of reporting favorably about Trump. Rion herself has pushed conspiracy theories that advance his political interests, such as the unfounded allegation that officials in Ukraine secretly manipulated the 2016 election to help Hillary Clinton. Trump, in turn, has tweeted praise of OANN's reporting dozens of times.

The White House, in effect, on Tuesday bent the rules - which were designed to ensure the health of journalists, the president and the nation's top public-health officials - in granting access and a national spotlight to a correspondent from an obscure but Trump-friendly news outlet.

OANN was founded 2013 by Robert Herring Sr., a millionaire Republican donor from San Diego who made his fortune in the circuit-board business before starting over in media. His son, Charles Herring, president of One America's parent company Herring Broadcasting, told The Post last week that the channel "is designed to report just the news" and that "we would not describe our news reporting as right-leaning."

But for a 2017 story, more than a dozen former and current employees described Robert Herring to The Post as a heavy-handed unofficial news director who frequently ordered coverage favorable to Trump. It was the first channel to carry Trump's 2016 campaign speeches live, and internal emails showed Herring directing that other candidates' rallies not get the same treatment.

Rion, who did not respond to repeated requests for comment, has socialized with the Trumps at Mar-a-Lago, according to photos she has posted on Facebook, and brags on her personal website about having "been aboard the Trump Train from its first week" at the start of the 2016 campaign

At both Tuesday and Wednesday's briefings, she stood at the back of the press room - and this, too, was a violation of the guidelines: Reporters are required to occupy a seat, with no standing in the aisles or behind the seating area.

WHCA President Jonathan Karl said he alerted White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham and the White House press office on Tuesday that Rion's presence was "a clear violation" of precautions that have been strictly followed at the White House for weeks.

"The rules are clear," said Karl, ABC News's White House reporter. "If you don't have a seat in the briefing room on your given day, you cannot be there. The rules are established to protect the health of the White House press corps. We're abiding by the [Centers for Disease Control's] guidelines."

Grisham declined to comment on Wednesday.

In an email, OANN founder and chief executive Charles Herring said Rion's presence "was appropriate" and that she was invited to attend the briefing. He declined to say who invited her or why.

Trump clearly has been delighted by OANN's participation, calling on Rion and a colleague, Jenn Pellegrino, who handles weekend shifts at the White House, several times over the past two weeks. "OAN. Very good," he said after calling on Rion in one briefing. "They treat me very nicely."

Rion has attracted attention at the briefings with bizarre or heavily loaded questions. At Monday's session, she compared the number of coronavirus deaths to the number of "children killed by their mothers through elective abortions every day" and then asked the president: "Do you agree with states who place coronavirus victims above elective abortions?"

In a previous briefing, Rion brought up Trump's controversial use of the term "Chinese virus" by rhetorically asking whether he considered the term "Chinese food" to be racist because "it is food that originated from China?" After Trump amiably replied that he didn't think it was "racist at all," she went on to argue that "major left-wing media . . . have teamed up with Chinese Communist Party narratives" to push criticism of the president for using the term.

Rion, who joined OANN last May, has pushed some odd conspiracies. In October, she claimed that former FBI lawyer Lisa Page and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe had had an affair - a story later retracted by OANN. She later traveled to Ukraine with Rudy Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer, to produce a documentary series for OANN about Giuliani's claims in support of Trump's actions in withholding military aid to the country.

During a special report that aired on the network in mid-March, Rion suggested that the coronavirus came from "a biosafety level-three lab in North Carolina" and that it was then smuggled into China by lab workers and released. She cited as her source a "citizen investigator." None of the claims have been confirmed.

In her previous pastime as a political cartoonist, she produced illustrations suggesting that Hillary Clinton was behind the unsolved 2016 murder of Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich - an evidence-free conspiracy popular in right-wing circles.

On her website, she calls herself "a fierce foe of anything Clinton, of everything Obama, and as a total and unrelenting enemy of academic left-liberalism and political correctness anywhere." She is engaged to be married soon to Courtland Sykes, an also-ran in the GOP primary for the 2018 U.S. Senate race in Missouri, who briefly went viral that year with a social media rant blasting feminists as "she devils" with "snake-filled heads" and explaining how he expects Rion to prepare for him "a home cooked dinner at six every night."

This, of course, was before Rion took a job that lately has kept her at the White House past 6 p.m. Neither she nor Pellegrino appear to have had much journalism experience before covering the White House for OANN, a network that typically attracts a fraction of the audience watching Fox News, MSNBC and CNN.

Before joining OANN two months ago, Pellegrino was an intern for Bill O'Reilly, a booker for the home-shopping network QVC, and a production assistant at Fox News, interspersed with sales and business development jobs, according to her LinkedIn profile.

On Sunday, Trump called on Pellegrino twice to ask a question - one of which seemed to please him immensely.

"Mr. President, your approval ratings have been the highest they've ever been, as well as the ratings on your handling of the virus," she asked. "Yet there are some networks that are saying they're debating whether to carry these briefings live. Do you think there's a link between the two?"

"Well, I don't know," Trump replied. "I know that - boy, that's a nice question. Thank you very much."
Karnataka curfew: If you have not stocked up booze, then read this

Karnataka govt moves SC against Kerala HC order for opening of borders

India

oi-PTI

Bengaluru, Apr 03: The Karnataka government has moved the Supreme Court challenging a Kerala High Court order asking the Centre to intervene and remove the blockades erected by it on the national highways connecting the two states for ferrying essential goods amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The plea will be taken up for hearing by a bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Deepak Gupta on Friday.

The state government's plea filed by advocate Shubhranshu Padhi said, "The issue involved in the present SLP (special leave petition) is with regard to the closure of a road between the State of Karnataka and State of Kerala in order to combat the spread of the pandemic COVID-19...from the bordering Districts of the States."

The plea said the order of the Kerala High Court has been passed wholly without any jurisdiction and is thus liable to be set aside.

"The said direction has been passed despite the earlier observations in the same Impugned Order that the High Court had no territorial jurisdiction to issue any direction to the State of Karnataka to remove any impediments which are located in the State of Karnataka. On the face of it, the Impugned Order has been passed wholly without any jurisdiction and is thus liable to be set aside on this ground alone, the plea said.

The state government said that Karnataka has locked down its borders in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 except the movement of essential commodities.

"The State of Karnataka had specifically closed the Makutta Check post on the Mysore-Virajepat-Kannur highway. However, the High Court vide the Impugned Order has directed Central Government to intervene and remove the closure on the said road," it said.

The plea said the order passed by Karnataka is based on adequate material as the existing facilities in the Mangalore district would not support patients from outside the state and there was every possibility of a serious outbreak of COVID-19 in the border districts of Karnataka, if free ingress and outgress of patients is allowed.

The High Court had on April 1 gave the order on a PIL seeking directions for opening of the roads connecting Kasaragod in Kerala and Mangaluru in Karnataka, which had been closed by Karnataka in view of the lockdown to check the COVID-19 outbreak.

"...we feel compelled to issue directions to the Central Government today because we are of the view that any further delay could entail loss of precious lives of our citizens", the Court had said in its order delivered on Wednesday night after a detailed hearing earlier in the day.

The order came amid reports of deaths of at least seven seriously ill persons after the ambulances carrying them to hospitals in Mangaluru, 15 kms from Kasaragod, were allegedly not allowed by Karnataka police on the borders.

The court had said the national highways come under the administrative jurisdiction of the Central Government and that the provisions of the National Highways Act clearly provide for the maintenance of such highways by it.

The act even provides for penal measures to be taken against anyone blocking such a highway, it said.

The arterial roads that connect Mangaluru in Karnataka, to Kasaragod in Kerala were part of the National Highway network and it is therefore the duty of the Central Government to ensure that the said roads are kept free of blockades, the court had said.

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Story first published: Friday, April 3, 2020, 1:10 [IST]
Despite the daily increase in the number of COVID-19 cases globally, about 18 countries have not confirmed any positive case.

Preventive and containment measures have been put in place to ensure the virus does not spread to them.

All countries in Europe, North America, and South America have reported at least a case of the virus while Africa, Asia, and Australia still have some virus-free countries.

Africa

Although countries in Africa started confirming cases in February, 49 out of the 54 countries in the continent have confirmed cases of COVID-19.

The remaining five countries, Comoros, Lesotho, Malawi, Sao Tome and Principe, and South Sudan remain virus-free.

Comoros shares a border with Mozambique, Tanzania, Madagascar, and Seychelles, nations who have each recorded more than nine cases, yet has none.

In Comoros there is no testing available for COVID-19, according to the U.S. embassy in Madagascar and Comoros. Nonetheless, passengers who have transited through China or Japan face entry travel restrictions or quarantine.

Lesotho is enclaved within South Africa. South Africa has the highest number of cases on the continent, confirming 1,1380 cases, five deaths, and 50 recoveries.

On March 30, authorities implemented a lockdown and entry restrictions to curb the spread of the virus. The lockdown is expected to last for 21 days.

Citizens during this period are permitted to buy food and seek medical care.

Businesses except for supermarkets, pharmacies, banks, petrol stations, and health care centres have been shut.

Malawi, Sao Tome and Principe, and South Sudan all share borders with affected countries.

In Malawi (bordered by Zambia, Tanzania, and Mozambique) a state of disaster was declared by the government on March 31 due to the pandemic. Prior to the declaration, all schools and universities were closed since March 23. Public gatherings of more than 100 people have been banned.

The Malawian government also placed a ban on foreign nationals arriving from places seriously affected by Covid-19, except for SADC countries.

In Sao Tome, the government extended the state of emergency for another 15 days.

Sao Tome shares maritime borders with Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Nigeria.

Meanwhile, most precautionary and containment measures in South Sudan are focused on creating awareness. Across the country a campaign raising awareness on the coronavirus disease and how to best protect yourself and your family is being rolled out.

There is a total of 6,383 confirmed Covid-19 cases in the African continent.

Asia

Asia which comprises of 48 countries has four COVID-19 free countries: North Korea, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Yemen.

These countries are all bordered by countries which have confirmed a case of the virus.

In Tajikistan, travel restrictions and mandatory quarantine has been implemented by the government.

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Turkmenistan, an isolated Asian country with one of the most repressive governments, has, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF) who published a rebuke for the President, Gurbanguly Berdimuhame, allegedly placed a ban on the word coronavirus.

Turkmenistan is surrounded by Iran, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan, countries which all have numerous Covid-19 cases.

Despite the global ceasefire call by the UN Chief, Antonio Gueterres, last week due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, fighting continues in Yemen.

A group, Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts on Yemen, said in a statement that prisoners and detainees in Yemen are particularly vulnerable  and at high risk of death if the novel coronavirus emerges in overcrowded prisons and other detention facilities.

They further said that the health system in Yemen is on the brink of collapse and that prisoners must cope with a lack of adequate food and minimum standards of hygiene and contravene standards set by international law.

There is a total of 188,159 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Asia.

Australia

In Australia, Solomon Islands, Palau, Tuvalu, Nauru, Kiribati, Federated State of Micronesia, Vanuatu, Tonga, and Marshal Islands have not confirmed a case of the virus.

Many of the countries within the continent are ill-equipped, according to The Guardian, as they are reliant on sending samples overseas.

Solomon Islands and Kiribati denied entry to citizens coming from high-risk countries. Micronesia has placed an entry ban on anyone who has been in any country with a confirmed case of coronavirus. Marshall Islands have shut down their borders.

Resorts in the continent are emptied of tourists and some countries have found their spacious and secluded grounds useful quarantine sites.

Countries on the Australian continent have nearly 6000 cases.

All figures in the report are gotten from Worldometer.
NASA is inching forward with its plans to launch a successor to the Hubble space telescope.

In an unprecedented step, NASA tested a giant 21-foot mirror on its James Webb space telescope that is designed to observe a range of frequencies not currently seen by Hubble.

In the test, NASA simulated some of the conditions the telescope will encounter in space, including zero-gravity, with the mirror - which is actually 18 hexagonal mirrors segments - fully unfurled.

Named after the second administrator of NASA, the replacement flagship telescope (pictured) has also run well over its enormous $8 billion budget

While the latest test marks a step forward for the craft, the telescope has long-been delayed and over-budget.

A Government Accountability Office report released earlier this year casted doubt on whether NASA will be able to meet a launch date slated for 2021.

In its report, the agency says that technical problems with the telescope's primary contractor, Northrop Grumman, give the telescope a 12 percent chance of meeting its slated launch of March next year.

The telescope will most likely, according to the GAO, launch about six months later in July of 2021.

Among the issues backing up the launch are critical components of the instrument's construction like the bolts used by Northrop Grumman, some of which did not meet strength requirements and would need to be replaced.

Other issues included problems with flaps meant to stabilize the observatory and misfiring actuators that could lead to a complete failure of the telescope's mission objectives.

The instrument, billed as a successor to NASA's Hubble Telescope, has been in development for more than a decade and has until recently alluded firm launch dates.

'Now estimated to cost $9.7 billion, the projects costs have increased by 95 percent and its launch date has been delayed by over 6.5 years since its cost and schedule baselines were established in 2009,' wrote the GAO.

James Webb is set to replace Hubble as NASA's flagship telescope when it launches in 2021 and looks to explore previously undetectable areas of space

In August last year, NASA announced that it had successfully assembled the craft, marking the biggest milestone of its long road to completion.

Once completed, the telescope will be used to look back to the first galaxies born in the early universe more than 13.5 billion years ago, and observe the sources of stars, exoplanets, and even the moons and planets of our solar system.

It will use the most advanced technologies to make observations including infrared light that will be able to suss out details of planets and moons within our solar system most distant galaxies.
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.  When the coronavirus struck New York, Sandra Weinstein, a congregant at Young Israel of New Rochelle, said she felt like a pariah.

The first cluster of cases in New York state originated from her synagogue before the virus spread across Westchester County and the state.

Now, she and hundreds of synagogue members could become heroes.

Tuesday, Young Israel members began donating blood, so researchers can determine whether they have enough antibodies to fight off COVID-19. If congregants have sufficient antibodies, they can donate plasma several days later that could be used to help treat people sick with the virus.

A truck was parked outside the synagogue Tuesday for blood donations.

Paramedic David Rosenberg draws blood from Sandra Weinstein, which will be screened for antibody levels, in a bus outside the Young Israel of New Rochelle synagogue March 31.

Members who tested positive for the coronavirus and have been symptom-free for 14 days are tested to ensure they are negative for the virus. If they're healthy, the antibody levels in their blood will be studied by medical professionals from Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Montefiore Medical Center.

Now that Im out of quarantine  its time to save people, Weinstein, a New Rochelle resident, said.

More than 1,000 congregants were quarantined for most of March after a 50-year-old synagogue member and New Rochelle resident tested positive for COVID-19 on March 3. About 100 members of the synagogue contracted the virus, leading Gov. Andrew Cuomo to set up a 1-mile containment zone around the synagogue March 12 for two weeks.

Liise-anne Pirofski, chief of Montefiore's Department of Medicine Division of Infectious Diseases, who is leading the effort, said Young Israel members reached out to the hospital to donate blood. She said the Young Israel cluster is the first cohort of recovered people who can make a difference.

Their plasma would be transferred to at-risk people or infected people as a stopgap measure until a vaccine and new treatments are developed.

The hospital could build a stockpile of plasma to treat patients as the number of cases grows, Pirofski said. Based on outbreaks such as H1N1 and SARS, shes encouraged this method will help COVID-19 patients.

Story continues

Paramedic David Rosenberg tests Elliot Cohen to confirm he is negative for COVID-19 on March 31. Members of the Young Israel of New Rochelle synagogue, who are symptom-free after testing positive for the coronavirus, began donating blood to see whether they have enough antibodies to fight off COVID-19. Cohen says he feels well and is happy to help find treatments for people in need.

To see people who have recovered and recovered with such vigor and spirit, their willingness to help is amazing, Pirofski said.

Weinstein, 45, tested positive March 6 after experiencing "odd" symptoms. She had a splitting headache, then a low-grade fever and eventually a slight dry cough and shortness of breath. The symptom that alarmed her most was losing her sense of smell and taste.

My husband made some type of liver, and I said, Ugh, you didnt make good liver, theres no flavor to it,  Weinstein said. And all of (a) sudden, I had no taste and smell. That, to me, has been the worst symptom because that one has lasted.

While Weinstein and other congregants dealt with the original stigma attached to COVID-19, she said she and others were fortunate they received testing and treatment before the hospital system got overwhelmed.

She has a chance to be a small part of a solution to a worldwide threat.

If I save someone, if they can learn something, they can make a vaccine, she said. Still weird that theyre using my antibodies, my blood, that theyre going to learn from  if were going to be that crazy pariah community at this point, let them learn on us. Were going to give back.

Johanna Daily, right, an infectious disease physician at Montefiore Medical Center, speaks with Sandra Weinstein in a blood drive bus outside Young Israel in New Rochelle on March 31.

Young Israel member and high school senior Millie Helft helps coordinate appointments. She said all time slots were filled Tuesday, and blood donations would probably continue Wednesday and Thursday.

Her father and mother suffered from COVID-19, so she saw how debilitating the illness can be.

"I think there's just a really good sense of community, not just Jewish community but really community, of just people working together to do something really beautiful and strong," Helft said.

Young Israel member Stan Weiss, who tested positive March 5, said he felt like he had a 24-hour virus that wouldnt go away. An avid cyclist, Weiss, 65, said he believes his exercise routine helped him avoid serious health issues.

Weiss said Young Israel members did their part to slow the virus' spread by remaining quarantined for as long as officials said, a point of pride for him.

Now they're going beyond that.

If I can help somebody, Im more than willing, Weiss said. If it was the other way around, Id like someone to help me. It could be a lifesaving procedure for someone.

Follow David Propper on Twitter: @dg_props

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: New York synagogue members donate blood to help fight COVID-19
Another four residents have died from coronavirus at a nursing home in Middlesex County, and 10 more have tested positive for the virus, a spokeswoman for the facility said Thursday.

The deaths come a week after two other residents died at Atrium Post Acute Care of Princeton, in Plainsboro, according to a spokeswoman for the facility. A total of 16 have tested positive

We are deeply saddened for the families who lost a family member and are praying for the other 10 patients, the facility said in a statement. We are continuously working with the local hospital and Department of Health, following all guidelines to contain the spread of COVID-19.

The state Department of Health could not confirm the specifics of the situation at Atrium, but said local health departments lead outbreak investigations in their jurisdictions.

The Department of Health is being vigilant about all of the residents in long-term care facilities in New Jersey, said department spokeswoman Donna Leusner, who noted that the state continues to work with local health departments and long-term care facilities on infection control protocols.

Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli held a conference call with all long-term care facilities on Tuesday and issued updated guidance directing long-term care facilities, including universal masking of all staff, and anyone entering the facility. Under those guidelines, residents newly admitted or readmitted from hospitals who are symptomatic must also be masked while staff is providing care.

The state is also requiring that for those coming from hospitals, facilities create separate wings or units for those suspected or confirmed with COVID-19 and separate wings or units for those who are asymptomatic and admitted or readmitted.

On Wednesday, the state reported that New Jersey has had 22,255 positive cases of COVID-19 and 355 people have died.

Long-term care facilities across New Jersey, meanwhile, continue to be devastated by the dangerous and contagious illness. Roughly one-quarter of New Jerseys long-term care facilities have at least one COVID-19 case  93 of 375 facilities. They include nursing homes in every county except Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland and Salem counties.

Fifty-two of the states 355 coronavirus-related deaths as of Wednesday are associated with long-term care facilities, or more than one in five of the deaths, according to Leusner.

Among them were five residents of the Woodcrest Health Care Center in New Milford, Bergen County, who died after testing positive for the coronavirus. CareOne, the company that owns the facility, said 16 residents and six staff members have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, and those numbers are expected to rise.

The union that represents the health care workers at Woodcrest Health Care Center has criticized the facilitys handling of the outbreak.

In a statement, Atrium said it had stopped allowing visitors in its Princeton facility and has stopped communal dining and activities. The nursing home is using disposable products for meals and is taking the temperatures of employees twice per shift. Atrium also said its doubled the amount of times it takes vital statistics from its residents.

We will continue to implement all precautions as needed and as recommended. We are thankful for our dedicated associates who still come in daily to care for our seniors, Atrium said.

Union officials representing the health care workers at Atrium said their hearts went out to the families of residents who lost their lives at Atrium and the caregivers who "continue to make incredible personal sacrifices to protect the lives of others.

Milly Silva, executive vice president of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, said more needs to be done to ensure the safety of nursing home residents and their caregivers.

Even the most basic personal protective equipment is lacking in many nursing homes. The federal government must immediately ramp up production and nationalize PPE supply to get it into the hands of frontline caregivers, Silva said. "Testing must also be made widely available to nursing home staff at impacted facilities to slow further spread of the virus.

According to federal records, Atrium is certified to house 180 people and currently has 138 residents. The facility was fined by the federal government for safety violations in 2017 and 2018, totaling $12,500. The facilitys most recent inspection by the federal government, in September 2018, turned up minimal violations.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

J. Dale Shoemaker is a reporter on the data & investigations team. He can be reached at jshoemaker@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JDale_Shoemaker.

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Healthcare professionals are increasingly coming under attack during treatment of COVID-19 patients or while visiting localities for conducting tests, adding more worries at a time several had faced harassment at the hands of their landlords and locals.

Doctors are now raising the demand for deployment of CRPF personnel in the hospital to enable them to work in a safer environment besides strong action against those who take law into their hands.

Follow live updates of coronavirus here

The latest incident was that of Tatpatti Bakhal in Madhya Pradesh's Indore where two doctors and other healthcare workers were attacked on Wednesday when they went to the locality to screen people for COVID-19. Indore has the largest number of at least 75 out of the nearly 100 COVID-19 cases in the state.

The locals pelted stones at the team of doctors and Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) and Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) workers and were shooed away from the area, following which seven persons were arrested.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday issued a strong warning to those involved in such incidents in a tweet, saying no one will be spared who puts a spanner in the efforts to fight COVID-19. In another tweet, he said, this is not just a tweet. This is a strong warning. Human rights are for humans.

Track state-wise confirmed coronavirus cases here

This area is under the special watch of the health authorities in the city as it has been earmarked as an epicentre of the virus spread. This was the second incident in Indore in less than a week after locals in Ranipura area allegedly spat at officials and abused them during the screening process.

Another incident was reported from Telangana where relatives of a 49-year-old COVID-19 patient attacked doctors after his death, accusing them of the negligence of duty. This prompted the junior doctors to petition the government to provide them proper security.

The relatives blamed the doctors for the death and slapped and attacked them. The 49-year-old man already had co-morbidity issues. He died while being treated for COVID-19, a statement issued by the Telangana Junior Doctors Association said. It also said there were similar incidents in Khammam and Nizamabad.

On Thursday, the Resident Doctor's Association in AIIMS-Delhi joined their Telangana counterparts in solidarity and shot off a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking his intervention in ensuring the security of healthcare professionals across the country.

"It is extremely disheartening to know that such events continue unabated even when this country is going through this massive pandemic. Such actions would destroy the morale of frontline healthcare workers deployed in such testing situation," the letter signed RDA President Dr Adarsh Pratap Singh, Vice President Dr Chandan Palit and General Secretary Dr Srinivas Rajkumar.

Need for the deployment of police was also raised by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday after a video conference he had with doctors treating COVID-19 patients in the national capital. The doctors had told Kejriwal that some patients were turning aggressive and cited one incident in Rajiv Gandhi Hospital where doctors had to intervene to prevent the attempt of one person admitted there to commit suicide.

"The doctors told me that no one was willing to touch that person. They sought deployment of police in the hospitals where COVID-19 patients. I will be approaching the Union Home Secretary for the deployment of police," Kejriwal had said.

Earlier, there were complaints about doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals facing eviction from their rented accommodations as house-owners were wary of virus infection, as they were engaged closely with COVID-19 related activities. In several cities, the healthcare professionals also faced stigma and harassment with several refusing to engage with them.

This had prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to issue an appeal not to mistreat doctors and healthcare workers as they battle to save the country from one of the most infectious viral attacks in recent years. "In this hour of crisis, those in white coats are the incarnation of God. Today they are saving lives, putting their own lives in danger," Modi had said during an interaction with the people of his constituency Varanasi on COVID-19 via video link.

The Centre has also announced a medical cover of Rs 50 crore for those in the forefront of the fight against the deadly virus. Delhi government also announced a Rs one crore compensation to the families of those engaged in the treatment of COVID-19 who dies during their duty.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 4)  The Philippine National Police said Thursday there's nothing new with President Rodrigo Duterte's order to shoot and kill unruly violators of the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine once they become a threat to law enforcers' lives.

"It is just like self-preservation, you know in any law enforcement function, eh that's why we have issued firearms because we're given the discretion on when to use it," PNP Chief General Archie Gamboa told CNN Philippines in a phone interview.

Gamboa clarified that in maintaining peace and order, the police will fight back only when they are attacked first.

"You only use this as a last resort, and it has been thought to the PNP's personnel since magsimula sila sa training hanggang sa kanilang (they started training until their) career courses," he added.

He was asked if the PNP would follow the President's order, which has gained criticisms. Duterte in a speech Wednesday night said, My orders are sa pulis pati military, pati mga barangay, na pagka ginulo at nagkaroon ng okasyon na lumaban at ang buhay ninyo ay nalagay sa alanganin, shoot them dead!"

[Translation: My orders to the police, the military and the barangays: If they become unruly and they fight you nd your lives are endangered, shoot them dead!]

Duterte's statement was widely seen as a response to an earlier protest in Quezon City where dozens of residents of Sitio San Roque claimed they have not received any aid from the local government. The Quezon City government has denied this, saying there has been continuous distribution of food packs across the city.

Lawmakers, human rights advocates, and leftist groups have condemned Duterte's statement, saying his administration should address the pleas of the poor instead of resorting to violence.

READ: Groups, lawmakers condemn Duterte's order vs. lockdown violators
Nilofer Safar, a young Afghan air hostess, faces an uncertain future after being grounded for more than three weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic that has hit the global airline industry especially hard.

I miss doing my job on domestic and international flights, she told Radio Free Afghanistan. I hope that this [coronavirus] pandemic soon ends and we can resume normal flights.

Safars employer, Kam Air, is the leading private airline in Afghanistan. Its fleet consisting of a dozen small and large aircraft used to carry 26 international and six domestic flights daily.

Kam Air Commercial Director Sulaiman Omar says the government should waive taxes to help them get through this difficult patch.

If this situation continues, not only Kam Air but both of the Afghan airlines will be broke, he told Radio Free Afghanistan, alluding to the prospects of his company and national carrier Ariana Afghan Airlines. We dont have any money.

Omar says that despite being grounded they still owe the government parking fees, airport charges, and other taxes. If our liabilities continue to mount, we will not be able to fly again, he noted.

Afghanistans civil aviation authorities say the aviation industry in their country has lost more than $20 million since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, which forced Afghan airlines to cut flights from early March and ultimately prompted them to cease all flights by the end of the month.

Muhammad Naeem Salehi, a spokesman for the Afghan civil aviation authority, says they have sent a formal request to the Afghan government to request waiving parking and landing fees for the airlines. We will implement it as soon as it is approved, he said.

As the coronavirus pandemic virtually forced global passenger airlines to a halt, the industry is expected to lose hundreds of billions of dollars in revenues.

But many airlines are expected to recover once the demand for global travel rises after the end of the coronavirus pandemic.
To help satisfy your culinary needs during these stay at home days, here are sixteen quality eateries - ranging from Italian to Asian, Street Food to Pub Grub, plus Vegetarian and Vegan - which now offer home delivery around the Hungarian capital.

Italian



1. Trattoria Venezia

As you may know, trattoria means an Italian restaurant serving simple food, and this one is a great example offering pizza and pasta. The fresh pizzas come out of the wood-burning oven, and they prepare gnocchi and fried lasagne tubes, and even risottos.



Order from Trattoria Venezia here



2. 2 Spaghi Fresh Pasta Bar

The pasta is handmade under the supervision of the Italian owners. They make it with and without eggs by using Italian durum wheat flour, and you can also get stuffed ravioli and tortellini. They cook sauces fresh every day too.



Order from 2 Spaghi Fresh Pasta Bar here



3. IGEN

True Neapolitan Pizza is made exclusively in a wood-fired oven here. They have strict rules on shape, texture, preparation, and fermentation, and this place is a member of Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, AVPN, so you are in good hands when it comes to great pizza. It's worth trying the desserts too!



Order from IGEN here



4. Il Terzo Cerchio

The Tuscan style restaurant features barbecued meat and wood-fired oven. The excellent menu is rich in meat- and fish dishes as well as pasta and desserts. Home-made bread and Italian wine is also available for home delivery.



Order from Il Terzo Cerchio here



Asian



5. Tokio

If youre looking for sushi with a great selection of wine, then Tokio is a great choice! There are both hot and cold Japanese options, with traditional and more international offerings. Expect exciting flavours and upmarket food.



Order from Tokio here



6. Dang Muoi Pho Bistro

Dang Muoi has opened its first restaurant in the city after having a well-known buffet at the famous Jozsefvaros market. Today they own five, and the menu is rich in classic pho varieties and traditional soups. You can also order Vietnamese rice noodles, tofu, and roast beef.



Order from Dang Muoi Pho Bistro here



Street Food



7. Buja Disznok

There are three dishes on the home delivery menu at Buja Disznok (which translates Lush Pigs): premium quality, GIANT breaded pork cutlet, fried chicken legs, and fried duck liver. Expect huge portions (45-50 dkg) of meat.



Order from Buja Disznok here



8. Happy Panda

Probably the best of the street food genre in Budapest at the moment, Happy Panda serves Chinese dishes. There are not many on the menu; a few soups, salads, multi-layered pancakes with many extras, and rou jia mo.



This one is similar to a sandwich filled with pulled pork, but the meat is minced and not torn. The flavour has cumin and mildly hot peppers, among other things. Try the pancakes, made with onion and chilli sauce!



Order online from Happy Panda here



9. Tolto

At Tolto, they make individually flavoured, handmade barbecue sausages such as wild boar and chicken. They also serve homemade bread, special sauces (fancy some Chinkiang sauce?), toppings, and craft beers. Fine dining at this restaurant meets street food.



Home delivery will start from Friday, 27 March on Wolt and Netpincer



Order from Tolto here



10. Kandallo Pub

One of the best representatives of the 'craft beer with burger' concept in Budapest also delivers to your home. Kandallo Pub serves mind-blowing burgers in extra meat or vegetarian versions plus craft beers. Try goat-cheese burger!



Order from Kandallo Pub here



11. Nemo Fish & Chips & Salad

At Nemo Fish & Chips & Salad you can order online a wide selection of grilled- and breaded fish and other seafood. You can get fish soup and salmon pasta and even fish burger. There are certainly fish and chips and salads available on the menu.



Order from Fish & Chips & Salad here



Vegetarian-friendly & Vegan



12. Istvanffi Veggie Burger

You can request your burger with three types of vegetable patties: wheat, mushroom, and oatmeal. They do French fries too and have developed their selection of sauces. 100% Vegan



Order from Istvanffi Veggie Burger here



13. Olive Tree Hummus Original

Olive Tree Hummus Original is based on the concept of bringing authentic Israeli and Ukrainian cuisine to Budapest. Hummus, falafel, vareniki dumplings are among the dishes on the menu. They offer many deals for 2-3 persons should you need to order for more people.



Order from Olive Tree Hummus Original here



14. Maharaja - Csengery Street

The first Indian restaurant in Hungary has been offering the most popular Indian and Nepalese dishes since 1994. Theyve got an enormous menu including many vegetarian dishes and a selection of Indian breads.



Order from Maharaja here



15. ONO Poke Bowl & Bar

Poke bowl is the national dish of Hawaii. Its name indicates a cutting technique. It is traditionally made by mixing fresh fish with colorful vegetables and fabulous sauces. Build your own with fresh salmon, tuna, or vegan options.



Order from Poke Bown & Bar here



+1 Juicy Bagel

Juicy Bagel serves fruit juices and smoothies from common and astonishing ingredients, lactose-, gluten-, and sugar-free products, raw vegan cookies. And the center is the bagel. 100% Vegan



Order from Juicy Bagel here
New Role to Fuel Growth, Oversee Sales and Marketing

LONDON, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- CloudMargin, creator of the world's first and only collateral and margin management solution native to the cloud, today announced that David G. White has just joined the firm in the newly created role of Chief Commercial Officer. White has 14 years of capital markets experience in over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives markets and supporting technology.

Based in London and reporting to CloudMargin CEO Stuart Connolly, White is responsible for establishing and meeting targeted revenue objectives; overseeing the sales and marketing teams and ensuring cohesive strategies for those areas; enhancing the sales management processes, and working with partner firms to create a seamless platform for increased sales cohesion.

Connolly said: "I had a great working relationship with David at TriOptima and am delighted he has joined CloudMargin as our Chief Commercial Officer. This is an important new role for us as we continue to grow, and David will hit the ground running, thanks to his deep domain and technical expertise, understanding of our product, and strong working ties with our outstanding partners - such as AcadiaSoft - as well as many in our client universe. In these times of stress across our industry and the world, I know that David's leadership, empathy, calm demeanour and compassionate professionalism will be a welcome addition to our team."

White said: "I am hugely excited to join a fast-growing company in an important and evolving market. With continued regulatory change, and a desire across the industry to drive new levels of efficiency, CloudMargin is well positioned to capitalise on the significant opportunity that exists and continue to carve out its place as a key market provider. Having worked with Stuart previously, I know I am joining a company with a positive, energetic culture and thoroughly look forward to working with the talented team across the organisation."

From 2016 to 2019, White served as Head of Sales for the triResolve business line of TriOptima, now a unit of CME Group. In that role, he was responsible for the global sales team, client acquisition and revenue growth of the firm's counterparty exposure management service. For four years prior, he was Product Marketing Executive at TriOptima. Previously, White spent five years as a Consultant and Manager at DCG, The Derivatives Consulting Group, later known as Sapient Global Markets, specialising in OTC derivatives projects on behalf of Tier 1 investment bank clients.

Often tapped as a speaker on OTC derivatives for industry conferences, White earned a degree in Economics from Bristol University of the West of England.

About CloudMargin

Headquartered in London, CloudMargin created the world's first cloud-based collateral management workflow tool, which has earned nearly 20 industry awards and honours since 2015 for innovation and best-in-class technology. The firm's Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model is helping many of the leading sell-side and buy-side financial institutions globally - including brokerage firms, banks, asset management firms, pension funds and insurance companies - as well as outsourcers and other technology firms meet time-critical regulatory deadlines and reduce costs associated with collateral requirements that are growing dramatically. CloudMargin bypasses many of the shortfalls of legacy, on-premise software, enabling clients to experience rapid implementation and access to robust and secure collateral management workflow software. With more than 20 integration partnerships, CloudMargin was the first collateral management solution provider to be a member of the SWIFT network, facilitating straight-through processing through settlement. For more information, visit www.cloudmargin.com .

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/464866/CloudMargin_Logo.jpg
Pastor Rodney Howard-Browne, leader of Revival International Ministries and The River at Tampa Bay Church in Tampa, Florida, was arrested Monday for holding worship services during the coronavirus pandemic in violation of a "safer-at-home" order.

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said that when he saw images from a crowded Sunday service at the church posted online, "The River Tampa Bay Church has an advantage over most places of worship," said Chronister, "as they have access to technology allowing them to live stream their services over the internet and broadcast television for more than their 4,000 members to watch from the safety from their own homes. Instead, they encouraged people to come and gather at the church, even provided bus transportation for the services."

Howard-Browne's actions were a direct violation of Executive Order 20-05, which went into effect on March 20, limiting gatherings, including faith-based gatherings, to less than 10 people. He was also violating the Safer-At-Home Order, which went into effect on March 27, advising Hillsborough County residents to remain in their homes as much as possible to create greater social distancing and reduce the spread of the new coronavirus, the sheriff's office said, Christian Post noted.

Chronister told 10 News that he hopes church members realize how serious officials are after this arrest. "I believe there's nothing more important than faith in a time like this. And as a sheriff's office we would never impede someone's ability to lean on their religious beliefs as a means of comfort," Chronister said. "But practicing those beliefs has to be done safely."

After hours after he was arrested, Howard-Browne said he's now getting threats stirred by "religious bigotry and hatred "during a Facebook Live broadcast.

"My story doesn't change. I understand what the media said. I understand what the sheriff said. There's another whole side about that which I'm not gonna go into that. The sheriff's doing the best job that he can. I understand I got thrown under the bus which, that's fine. I'm a big boy, I can take it. I understood. I knew this was coming. I thought it was gonna happen yesterday (Sunday) it didn't, it happened today. But we have forced a national debate on the First Amendment. And it's not about a virus. It's about the church being a[n] essential service to the community where the church can meet and take care of the people. That's the whole thing," he said.

His actions were a direct violation of Executive Order 20-05, which went into effect on March 20, limiting gatherings, including faith-based gatherings, to less than 10 people. He was also violating the Safer-At-Home Order, which went into effect on March 27, advising Hillsborough County residents to remain in their homes as much as possible to create greater social distancing and reduce the spread of the new coronavirus, the sheriff's office said.

A private test poll of 226 pastors conducted by Barna Research on March 20-23 showed that while a vast majority of pastors, 67%, have opted to close their churches to observe social distancing orders in light of the pandemic, 5% said their churches will remain open as normal. Another 17% said they plan on staying open for small gatherings or meetings, and 11% will remain open to offer crisis services according to CP.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins responded to churches that have continued to gather as the coronavirus pandemic moves across the county, calling their action a "defiance of common sense."

"At this point, holding public church gatherings in the midst of a public health crisis is not a defense of religious freedom - it is a defiance of common sense and the care of your congregation. Spread the Good News, not the virus!" tweeted Perkins, whose organization works "to advance faith, family and freedom in public policy and the culture from a Christian worldview."
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Perk Labs Inc. (formerly Glance Technologies Inc.) (CSE:PERK)(OTCQB:PKLBF)(FKT:GJT) ("Perk" or the "Company") today announced the official launch of Perk Hero, its all-in-one mobile ordering, contactless payments and digital loyalty platform for businesses. Perk Hero is now available in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store in both the United States and Canada - download it by clicking on the following links:

Apple App Store (Canada): https://apps.apple.com/ca/app/perk-hero/id1485811954

Apple App Store (US): https://apps.apple.com/us/app/perk-hero/id1485811954

Google Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.perkhero

Merchants can download the Perk Hero App and go through a quick and easy onboarding process, set up their own profile and menu, and quickly start taking mobile pre-orders and safe contactless digital payments. Onboarding and support information for merchants can be found at: https://perkhero.com/help-center-merchants/

Perk Hero provides merchants with the technology to engage with their customers and reward them every time their customer orders and pays. Merchants can access a streamlined dashboard to grow and track orders and payments, collect business intelligence and create personalized marketing offers - all of which create a more positive customer experience, leading to increased operational efficiency and revenue growth. A custom-branded white label enterprise solution is also available.

"With the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, more than ever before, we are seeing the need and demand for mobile ordering and safe contactless digital payments" said Jonathan Hoyles, CEO of Perk Labs. "Perk Hero empowers merchants to be able to quickly and seamlessly convert their smartphone or tablet into a device that can accept safe and contactless mobile orders and payments."

Perk Hero changes the way consumers order and shop by gamifying their experience and providing them with digital loyalty rewards every time they make a payment. Perk Hero uses game design elements to engage customers, build loyalty and incentivize them to pre-order from home, make quick and secure contactless mobile payments in-store, and earn instant rewards.

Perk Hero incorporates fun gaming elements that appeal to Gen Z and Millennials, which represent a large and valuable segment of the population. They grew up as digital natives and are not only comfortable, but prefer using mobile apps and smartphone technology. By leveraging artificial intelligence, data analytics and gamification technology, Perk Hero provides users with a more engaging user experience. The app encourages users to choose an avatar, complete quests or challenges, and collect coins for every dollar spent with easy redemption through the app.

"In order for businesses today to cultivate brand loyalty and increase revenue with the younger demographic, they must find ways to create meaningful interactions," said Hoyles. "Perk Hero does just that by offering a range of features from quests and gamified activities that involve levelling up via earned experience points for each transaction or completed activity."

Concurrent with the official launch, Perk Hero also launched a marketing campaign encouraging merchants to sign up for Perk Hero. During the ongoing crisis, the Company is offering special reduced rates to support the restaurant and service industry and small businesses. The Company also activated all of its social media channels today and will be offering a special promotion by providing an in-app credit to healthcare workers in Vancouver, BC.

In March, Perk Labs announced a partnership between Perk Hero and Alipay, the world's largest mobile payment platform with 900 million users, where Alipay users will have the option to use Alipay as their preferred payment method at participating Perk Hero merchant locations. This payment option within Perk Hero will help merchants leverage a new and ever expanding global market of predominantly Chinese visiting Canada and the U.S. each year.

About Perk Labs Inc.

Perk Labs Inc. is the owner of Perk Hero, the all-in-one mobile ordering, contactless payments and digital loyalty platform for businesses that enables merchants to provide their customers with digital rewards and a more engaging and convenient customer experience. For more information about Perk Labs, please visit www.perklabs.io

For more information, contact:

Jonathan Hoyles

CEO

(833) 338-0299

investors@perklabs.io

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements (collectively "forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: "may", "believe", "thinks", "expect", "exploring", "expand", "could", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "plan", "pursue", "potentially", "projected", "should", "will" and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. These forward-looking statements, which involve risks and uncertainties, relate to, among other things, the discussion of the Company's business strategies and its expectations concerning future operations, that Perk Hero will change the way that customers shop and order, that Perk Hero will increase revenue for merchants, and the commercial launch of Perk Hero. Although the Company considers these forward-looking statements to be reasonable based on information currently available to it, they may prove to be incorrect, and the forward-looking statements in this release are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company is not a guarantee of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Undue reliance should not be placed on such forward-looking information, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are based will occur.

SOURCE: Perk Labs Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583590/Perk-Labs-Officially-Launches-Perk-Hero--Featuring-Mobile-Ordering-Contactless-Payments-and-Digital-Loyalty
The Arewa Youths Consultative Forum, AYCF, on Thursday declared that Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, sho...





The Arewa Youths Consultative Forum, AYCF, on Thursday declared that Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, should be arrested and made to undergo psychological tests.





AYCF President-General, Yerima Shettima made the call while condemning Kanus continued attacks and claims that President Muhammadu Buhari is fake.





Following Buharis broadcast ordering a lockdown to tackle the spread of Coronavirus, Kanu had claimed that the president used a body mask during the nationwide address.





The IPOB leader had on several occasions claimed that the Nigerian president was dead and replaced with one Jubril Al-Sudan.

However, Shettima counselled the Nigerian government to apprehend Kanu using Interpol.





According to the AYCF President-General: Its been my position that Nnamdi Kanu should be checked psychologically, for us to be sure that he has no health problem. Its necessary for the government of the day to arrest him.





There is this Interpol arrangement that can be used to get him arrested wherever he is and brought back to the country where he should be made to undergo psychological tests.





If hes normal, then Kanu should be made to face the music at the Federal High Court but if hes found to be psychologically abnormal, then he should be taken to a psychiatric home.





The way hes taking on the president and government using abusive words should not be encouraged. Mind you, if such character is allowed to go unpunished, our government both locally and internationally will be undermined by people who see him as a role model.





Such madness must be checked, however, nobody is against anybody criticising the government but when you take on someone like the number one citizen of the country on a personal ground, then it gives us concern. Like him or not, Buhari remains the number one man.





In as much as I dont agree with so many things Buhari is doing, I cant go out of my way to rain abuses and I think its high time we began to look at this issue and bring Kanu to order.








When Candida Rifkind got the call on March 14 that her Aunt Cecilia had died, she realized she couldnt attend the funeral. The rapid spread of the coronavirus was making international travel more uncertain than ever. Just a day earlier, the United States had blocked most European visitors from entering its borders. Ms. Rifkind, an English professor who lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, didnt want to risk it. (Canada and the United States closed their borders to each other the next week.)

So the family devised a solution: Host a small funeral in Los Angeles, her aunts home city, and post a live stream for everyone else. Late in the morning on March 18, Ms. Rifkind received a protected link and a password. She hooked up her laptop to the TV, sat with her husband on her living room couch and streamed her aunts funeral from nearly 2,000 miles away.

As governments across the globe espouse self-isolation to stem the spread of the coronavirus, funeral homes are facing intense pressure. In Spain, local officials traced over 60 Covid-19 cases to a large funeral held in late February. On March 20, Washington State affirmed that funerals and memorial services were banned indefinitely. In Kentucky, as in much of the United States, funerals are restricted to the closest of family, and guidance from the White House to avoid social gatherings in groups of more than 10 people has placed firm caps on how many family members can attend.

Funeral homes racing for new ways to help people grieve at a remove have taken up a much-maligned technology: live-streaming. But in the age of social distancing, mourners are finding online funerals to be a surprisingly intimate way to honor loved ones. Even in self-isolation, collective grieving still matters.
Preity Zinta had also previously pledged support to the PM-CARES fund set up to tackle COVID-19 in India.

While practicing self-isolation, actor Preity Zinta on Wednesday took a trip down the memory lane and said "watching Soldier after forever" as she shared a clip from the movie on social media.

The 45-year-old actor took to Twitter to share a still from the romantic-action movie and wrote that she missed her co-star Bobby Deol.

Here is her tweet

Watching Soldier after forever with mom & hubby Cuz Tuesday night is Hindi movie night  and I cannot say no to mom and Gene Miss you #BobbyD#Day21#quarantine#stayhome#staysafe#tingpic.twitter.com/AG3ZHL9bBg  Preity G Zinta (@realpreityzinta) April 1, 2020

Like many other Bollywood stars, Preity Zinta is making the best use of her social media platforms in raising awareness about the coronavirus. The Kal Ho Naa Ho actess also urged people not to abandon their pets, as there has been a lot of misinformation on social media claiming that animals spread coronavirus.

Here is her post

Recently, the actress had pledged support to Narendra Modi's PM-CARES fund, set up to tackle the coronavirus outbreak in the country. She also asked her fans and followers to donate as much as they can.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1637 on Tuesday. The death toll due to the COVID-19 rose to 38 while 133 cases were cured or discharged after treatment, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.

(With inputs from Asian News International)
Two AH-64 Apache helicopters operate with the guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Hamilton during a joint naval and air integration operation in the Persian Gulf, March 27, 2020.

US Navy/MCS 3rd Class Matthew F. Jackson

In March, US Navy surface ships, including a destroyer, worked with Army Apache helicopters to practice responding to threats at sea.

The addition of Army aircraft expands the Navy's ability to do reconnaissance and to hold threats at bay, a Navy officer said.

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US Navy Expeditionary Landing Base ship USS Lewis B. Puller (ESB 3), assigned to US Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT), has been conducting joint naval and air integration operations with US Army AH-64E Apache attack helicopters, assigned to US Army Central Command's (USARCENT) Task Force Saber, throughout the month of March.

The operations, which are designed to enhance the capabilities of US forces to respond to surface threats, have involved Puller performing as a landing base platform for the Apaches, while Cyclone-class Patrol Coastal (PC) ships select simulated targets for them to engage.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Hamilton (DDG 60) also participated in the joint operations.

"The integration of US Army air weapons teams with other joint fires into the maritime environment greatly enhances our ability to expand reconnaissance and attack capability," said Capt. Peter Mirisola, Commander, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 50/Commander, Combined Task Force (CTF) 55.

An AH-64 Apache helicopter operates with the guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Hamilton during a joint naval and air integration operation in the Persian Gulf, March 27, 2020

US Navy/MCS 3rd Class Matthew F. Jackson

"The Apaches, in coordination with our surface ships, allow us to hold an adversary at high risk at extended ranges. Combined with other joint fires, these aircraft significantly increase the precision lethality of our joint maritime forces," Mirisola said.

AH-64 Apache helicopters operate with the expeditionary landing base ship USS Lewis B. Puller during a joint naval and air integration operation in the Persian Gulf, March 27, 2020.

US Army/Spc. Cody Rich

The Apache AH-64E is a twin-engine, four-bladed, multi-mission attack helicopter designed as a highly stable aerial weapons-delivery platform.

It is capable of destroying an array of mobile armored targets on land and sea using a 30 mm automatic gun, aerial rockets and AGM-114 Hellfire missiles.

Story continues

Similar integration operations with special operations assets were conducted in the Arabian Gulf between US naval forces and MH-6M Little Bird helicopters during Operation Earnest Will from 1987 to 1988.

An AH-64 Apache helicopter operates with the guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Hamilton during a joint naval and air integration operation in the Persian Gulf, March 27, 2020.

US Navy/MCS 3rd Class Matthew F. Jackson

More recently, USNAVCENT surface forces also conducted joint naval and air integration operations with AC-130W Stinger II gunships, assigned to US Special Operations Command Central (USSOCCENT), March 8 and 9.

"Working with USARCENT forces represents another key capability in our ongoing integration of naval and air assets across our joint and coalition force to ensure maritime superiority," said Vice Adm. Jim Malloy, commander, USNAVCENT/US 5th Fleet.

AH-64 Apache helicopters operate with the expeditionary landing base ship USS Lewis B. Puller during a joint naval and air integration operation in the Persian Gulf, March 27, 2020.

US Army/Spc. Cody Rich

"This kind of cross-domain integration allows us to maintain highly lethal and effective defensive capabilities, regardless of what platforms are operating in theater," Malloy said.

DESRON 50/CTF 55 conducts maritime security operations in support of regional security and stability. Its responsibilities include planning and executing a robust regional engagement program with coalition forces from regional partners and allied navies who operate and deploy to the Arabian Gulf.

The coastal patrol ship USS Monsoon patrols the Persian Gulf, March 25, 2020.

US Army/Spc. Cody Rich

The US 5th Fleet area of operations encompasses about 2.5 million square miles of water area and includes the Arabian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea and parts of the Indian Ocean.

Capt. Scott Hattaway, right, commanding officer of the expeditionary mobile base platform ship USS Lewis B. Puller, speaks to a US Army air weapons team during a tour by Capt. Peter Mirisola, center, commodore of Combined Task Force (CTF) 55, March 13, 2020.

US Navy/MCS 1st Class Michael Mui

The expanse is composed of 20 countries and includes three critical choke points at the Strait of Hormuz, the Suez Canal and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern tip of Yemen.

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Five teenagers were arrested in connection with a robbery attempt that turned into a shootout with an off-duty Universal City police officer on the North Side, according to the San Antonio Police Department.

At around 9 p.m. Wednesday, police were called to an apartment complex in the 13400 block of Blanco Road for a burglary in progress. Before police arrived, a second call came in about a shooting at the same location.

FIND OUT FIRST: Get San Antonio breaking news directly to your inbox

The off-duty officer, who called in the burglary, said he fired at the teenagers after they robbed him and threatened to kill him, according to SAPD. Before the shooting, the off-duty officer said he saw the teenagers trying to break into cars at the apartment complex.

When the officer approached the teenagers, the teens pointed a gun at him and asked "if he was ready to die tonight," according to San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.

Fearing for his life, the off-duty officer pulled out his gun and shot nine times at the teenagers while one of the teens returned fire, police said. Two of the teenagers were hit and sustained non-life threatening injuries.

One of the injured teens remained at the scene while the others fled in a stolen vehicle, SAPD said. The teen who remained at the scene was later taken to a local hospital.

While at the scene, police were called to a second shooting near the 1200 block of Blanco Road, where police said they arrested four teenagers in connection with the initial incident. Evidence was found to link the two shootings, police said.

The teens  one 17-year-old male, two 16-year-old males, one 16-year-old female and one 15-year-old female  were arrested on a variety of charges, including aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon.

Taylor Pettaway is a breaking news reporter and general assignment writer. Read her on our breaking news site, MySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com | taylor.pettaway@express-news.net | @TaylorPettaway
A woman in her 60s has died of coronavirus in Victoria, taking the national death toll to 24.

Health authorities in Victoria confirmed the woman had become the sixth COVID-19 fatality in the state on Thursday afternoon.

Victorian Chief Health Officer, Professor Brett Sutton, confirmed the death with an announcement to Twitter: 'Sadly, since this morning, we have been advised of a 6th COVID-19 death - a woman in her 60s who died in a Melbourne hospital last night.'

'A fifth death was a woman in her 70s, which was announced earlier. Our thoughts are with their families.'

A woman in her 60s has died of coronavirus in Victoria, taking the national death toll to 24

On Thursday morning, health authorities in Victoria confirmed a woman in her 70s had become the fifth COVID-19 fatality in the state.

The Queensland health minister said an 85-year-old patient from Darling Downs, in regional southern Queensland, had also died from the condition overnight.

The man died in Toowoomba Hospital after being on the ill-fated Ruby Princess cruise ship earlier this month.

The 85-year-old man is the second Queenslander who has died after being on the cruise ship

Nationally, coronavirus cases soared to 5,108 by Thursday afternoon.

In Victoria alone, there are now 1,036 cases - up 68 from Tuesday - including 36 patients still in hospital and six in intensive care.

Another 57 people were diagnosed in Queensland overnight, taking the state's total to 835, including three people who have died. Nine patients remain in intensive care.

A fourth woman from Noosaville, in Queensland, died from the virus while in Sydney.

The Northern Territory also confirmed an additional two cases of coronavirus overnight, both from returning travellers.

A woman in her 20s who returned from Bali on March 20 and has been self isolating at home was diagnosed, as was Alice Springs woman who recently returned from the Gold Coast.

The state's total confirmed cases now rests at 21, the lowest in Australia.

Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos and chief health officer Brett Sutton held a press conference on Thursday morning regarding COVID-19 updates.

Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said the woman who died in Victoria was in her 70s and had been battling the illness in hospital for several days

Pictured: Two women wearing face masks as they walk near a COVID-19 testing clinic in Bondi

Ms Mikakos said she understood the female victim was in hospital for several days battling the virus.

'I have to stress, this is a very serious situation. Unprecedented in our lifetime. I urge Victorians to follow the rules.

'None of these rules have been made lightly, they've all been made to help the most vulnerable members of our community.'

In response to the death of a fourth Queenslander, health minister Steven Miles said it is more crucial than ever to slow the spread of the virus through effective social distancing policies.

'The longer we can slow it, the better our hospitals will be able to cope with demand, the more lives our doctors and nurses and health staff will be able to save, and that is what is at stake here. Queensland lives,' he said on Thursday.

'When we ask you to do things which are often inconvenient, sometimes are very inconvenient, sometimes very impactful on your work or your business, please know that we are taking this seriously because it is serious. This virus is deadly.'

Police are seen wearing protective face masks while working at Adelaide airport on Wednesday, April 1

In response to the threat in Victoria, health authorities in the state have expanded their testing criteria.

'We will be shifting our focus to testing a wider group of people in the community,' Ms Mikakos said.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Police officers, child protection workers, homelessness support workers and paid or unpaid workers in health care, residential care and disability care are now being encouraged to get tested if they develop symptoms.

Immunosuppressed patients admitted to hospital and patients in high-risk settings such as military operating settings, boarding schools, prisons and correctional settings will now also qualify for testing.

Ms Mikakos said most of the cases of coronavirus had come from overseas, so the decision to isolate returning Australians in hotels - away from their families - had freed up additional testing kits.

The state's chief health officer Brett Sutton said of all the people who had returned home and were quarantined in hotels, he is only aware of one who tested positive for COVID-19.

He expects lockdown measures to keep Victorians safe will likely be in place until at least the end of May or early June.

The full effect of the policies will not be felt for at least 10-12 days after they were introduced due to the incubation period of the virus and delay in receiving results from testing kits.

Ms Mikakos also announced an additional 9,000 critical care beds after the state government struck a deal with private hospitals.

Some 4,000 health workers have expressed interest in helping in the fight against COVID-19.
By Sam Nussey and Kanishka Singh

(Reuters) - SoftBank Group Corp said it has terminated a $3 billion tender offer for additional WeWork shares agreed last year with shareholders, drawing threats of legal action and plunging the floundering office space company further into crisis.

The tech investment giant said in statement that given its duty to its shareholders it could no longer proceed with the deal, citing criminal and civil probes into the startup, WeWork's failure to restructure a joint venture in China and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

A special committee of WeWork's board said it was disappointed and is considering "all of its legal options, including litigation."

SoftBank's decision to rescind the offer means the Japanese firm is no longer obligated to proceed with a further $1.1 billion in debt financing for WeWork. It also underscores the depth of the disarray at WeWork, which is undergoing a drastic restructuring and whose earnings are at risk as many countries impose orders to stay at home due to the pandemic.

"WeWork is in real trouble and SoftBank's withdrawal from the share purchase worsens the situation materially," Richard Windsor, an independent analyst, wrote in a note.

The startup, which lost $1.25 billion in the third quarter, told investors last week that it had $4.4 billion in cash and cash commitments and would be able to weather the economic downturn.

The tender offer, which would have mostly benefited a select group of shareholders including ousted co-founder Adam Neumann, had been agreed in October as part of bailout plan by SoftBank after WeWork's IPO plans flopped. Investors had been concerned about its losses and a business model that involves taking long-term leases and renting out spaces for a short term.

In November, sources said the New York State Attorney General was investigating WeWork, examining whether Neumann, indulged in self-dealing to enrich himself. A spokeswoman for Neumann declined to comment at the time.

Story continues

SoftBank said in its statement that there were "multiple, new, and significant" pending criminal and civil investigations in which authorities have also requested information about WeWork's financing activities and communications with investors.

Following the termination of the deal, SoftBank shares closed up 2.5%, outperforming a 1.4% decline for the broader Tokyo market.

SoftBank itself has been under growing financial strain, with souring tech bets bringing it under pressure from activist investor Elliott Management and pushing it into a radical pledge to raise $41 billion by selling down core assets to raise cash for share buybacks and to reduce debt.

A merger of its U.S. wireless unit Sprint with T-Mobile US was completed on Wednesday, which will provide an undetermined gain to be booked in the quarter ending June and will reduce strains on its balance sheet.

(Reporting by Sam Nussey in Tokyo and Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
Eric Yuan, founder and chief executive officer of Zoom Video Communications Inc., speaks during the BoxWorks 2019 Conference at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2019. Bloomberg

Von Glitschka was just trying to teach people how to create designs in Adobe Illustrator. Glitschka, half of the two-person design firm Glitschka Studios in Salem, Oregon, had shared the link to his Zoom video call on his Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter profiles on Saturday, and a dozen or more people tuned in. Without warning, one user took over the meeting, displaying a YouTube channel playing "some kind of neo-Nazi thing," said Glitschka, who had just started paying for Zoom. Then the person  a man with a French accent, Glitschka said  started annotating the screen with a racial slur. "I was just embarrassed that they logged in just to see some creative stuff, and then they had to be exposed to that kind of idiocy," he said. He had been using the service for about 2 years before his call was hit with the so-called zoombomb  a term that's been in the lexicon for only two weeks. Now Glitschka is no longer posting links to his Zoom calls publicly. Instead, he's asking anyone interested in joining to send him a private message and then providing access information. Zoom is having a moment as people turn to video chat as they're forced to stay in home to stem the coronavirus outbreak. It's well on its way to becoming a cultural icon and shorthand for video chat, much like we say "Google" for search or "Uber" for ride-sharing. Zoom's mobile app now has over 32 million daily active users, 10 times more than there were a year ago, Bernstein Research analysts Zane Chrane and Michelle Isaacs wrote in a note distributed to analysts on Wednesday, citing data from privately held Apptopia. But as the growing phenomenon of zoombombing shows, sudden popularity can tease out previously unforeseen problems. In the case of Zoom, if a conference organizer shares a link in public and doesn't take steps to limit access, anybody who sees the link can join the call  and do whatever they want on it. On Monday, the FBI's Boston division issued a warning on zoombombings. The agency had received reports of meetings getting interrupted with pornography, threats or hateful content and discouraged people from sharing links to meetings on social media. In addition to zoombombs, security is another emerging issue for Zoom as it keeps growing. On Monday, the office of New York's attorney general, Letitia James, asked Zoom in a letter to describe any changes it has made after a software developer found that Zoom's Mac app could turn on a person's camera without permission, The New York Times reported. Another person found that Zoom's Windows app can lead one to unintentionally share a "hashed" version of one's Windows account credentials, allowing them to run programs on the computer without the owner's permission, according to BleepingComputer. Zoom is working to address both issues, marketing chief Janine Pelosi said.

'I didn't think that it would actually happen to me'

Increasingly, zoombombing attacks are being carried out by groups that seem to be working in coordination. This can lead to a particularly disorienting flood of images, and make it almost impossible to de-escalate without ending the meeting. On Monday, Laurel Walzak, an assistant professor at Ryerson University's media school, organized an informal Zoom meeting to talk about sports. She had directed people to a website for the weekly talks where they could subscribe and gain access, and had also shared the link to the meeting. About 30 people joined the call. Soon after it started, five to seven users started called up vulgar images or entering text comments in a chat window. Unsuspecting call participants gasped as unwanted music played and several people spoke. "If I muted, whatever controls they had  they could unmute," Walzak said. "If I tried to shut the video down or delete them, another one of them would pop up." She wanted to end or leave the meeting. One person on the call suggested she hit a keyboard shortcut to access the task manager on her PC, from which she could close the Zoom program. Walzak hit the keyboard shortcut but her computer screen went green before showing filthy images, she said, causing her to wonder if a virus had infiltrated her machine. She restarted her computer and sent participants an email containing access information for a fresh Zoom meeting. That second meeting went off without a hitch. John Saddington, founder and CEO of San Francisco-based business-software start-up Yen.io, has been paying to use Zoom for years. He had never been zoombombed before Monday. Saddington, who has over 73,000 followers on YouTube, had upgraded his Zoom account to run webinars, and this was his first time sharing the stream on YouTube. He had circulated a link to join the Zoom call on Twitter and elsewhere. "I didn't expect much of it, to be honest, and didn't expect anyone to click it," Saddington said. As more than 200 people watched the stream from YouTube, a cluster of around 20 people joined in just a few seconds. One appeared in ski mask, with blacklight showing in the background. Several people started speaking racial slurs as one user played videos of sex acts. Saddington was overwhelmed. "Do I close down Zoom or do I close down the YouTube live stream?" he said. "I kind of had a blue screen of death as all of this stuff was happening, and it was very loud and in my face." Instead, he totally switched off his computer. Text messages and tweets flowed in asking what had happened, and he apologized and said he wasn't ready to begin streaming again. He needed time to decompress, he said, and people understood. Saddington said he had heard about zoombombing, and how to stop it. "I knew exactly what it was. And yet, I didn't think that it would actually happen to me, and I'm a technologist," he said. "I really care about privacy and security, but that caught me off guard." Some institutions have begun to offer advice on how to lower the risk of getting bombed, but hosts don't always heed it. For instance, Stony Brook University warned faculty members this week in an email message and provided guidelines for prevention, including using the university's Zoom system and only permitting authenticated university users to join meetings. Caitlyn Cardetti, a Stony Brook Ph.D. student focusing on cellular and molecular pharmacology and president of the school's Graduate Women in Science and Engineering group, received that email  it's just that she wanted to make sure people from a similar group at a nearby institute, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, could join an informal call she was hosting. She started a video call with her school account and shared the link on Twitter and other online venues. The call had a dozen participants, including one woman with her 2-year-old son on her lap. About a half-hour in, five people with male names piled in. They shouted obscenities, and one person shared a sexually explicit image in front of everyone. Cardetti brought the meeting to a close and started a new one that disabled screen sharing, kicking out two people who didn't seem to belong to the group. The participants spent five minutes essentially rolling their eyes. "As a women's group, we were like, 'Well, this is frustrating, and this is why groups like us are here,'" she said. She said the meeting crashers might have been boys in high school who found the meeting link on Twitter.

How to protect yourself, and what Zoom is doing to help
Khare said hes not suggesting that people go out and buy medical-quality masks, but rather that they should fashion their own. While not as protective as the masks used in hospitals and clinics, homemade fabric versions could still reduce the spread of the virus. Bandanas, cloths, anything you put over your nose and your mouth," Khare said.
The US, with NATO, routinely conducts military exercises all over Europe, especially since the Russian annexation of Crimea in 2014  exercises Russia inevitably condemns as destabilizing. The Defender Europe-20 exercise had just begun garnering increased attention in Western media when it was cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. A whole suite of linked exercises have also been scrubbed along with Defender Europe-20, including Dynamic Front, Saber Strike, and Swift Response. Although the exercise as planned will not occur, what we do know about it can already tell us much about the US commitment to Baltic defense, as well as the defense policy dilemma which continues to afflict NATO in the Baltic Sea region.
The month of March 2020 will be remembered as the longest month in human memory, as its events have overwhelmed even the most experienced political observers and put unprecedented challenges before political and economic experts worldwide.

With over 664,103 cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus infection being recorded and nearly 30,883 deaths worldwide, the outbreak of this virus is the worst global crisis since World War II and has spared none around the globe.

The ongoing crisis has hit almost every country in the world with different levels of severity. The pandemic has hit Western countries such as the European Union countries and North America in a manner that has been far more severe than in its country of origin, China, where the outbreak is now almost under control.

The tragic death toll in Italy is currently the worlds highest, with over 10,000 deaths reported by 29 March in the stricken country. An equally alarming rate has been recorded in Spain, which has recorded nearly 6,000 deaths. France has recorded over 2,300 deaths and the United Kingdom has recorded over 1,000. With the current rate of infection, the numbers are projected to increase exponentially, as the Covid-19 virus is now reported to be out of control in these countries.

The case of the United Kingdom is peculiar, as until last week the British government was still discussing the appropriate strategy to address the situation in Europe, where the virus was crossing from country to country unopposed. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, along with a panel of experts, proposed what was called the insane idea of letting the virus rip inside the country in order to acquire what was called herd immunity.

The proposed system would have allowed 60 per cent of the British population, estimated at around 66 million, to be infected with the virus, which would mean 40 million people. This would create improved immunity against the virus, but would also lead to the deaths of between 300,000 and one million people in the process.

Thankfully, this bizarre plan was shunned by the British nation and was later scrapped. However, during these deliberations the rate of deaths increased in the UK, with the overall 14-day cumulative incidence rate rising from 3.3 cases per 100,000 population on 11 March to 36.1 cases per 100,000 population on 25 March. Johnson has been infected by the virus himself, along with Minister of Health Matt Hancock and the Prince of Wales. All three are in quarantine at the moment, though Johnson is still acting as prime minister.

In the United States, the virus hit the country in a Blitzkrieg-type assault covering the entire 50 states. The country has the highest numbers of Covid-19 infections at 124,655, with over 2,327 deaths reported. The states with the highest infection rates are New York, New Jersey and California. All three states are under lockdown, causing panic across the country and causing the New York Stock Market to record its worst performance in decades.

US President Donald Trump has signed the largest bailout bill in United States history, amounting to $2.2 trillion, in an attempt to calm fears of the collapse of the US economy and, with it, the collapse of the global economic system. In an unprecedented move since World War II, Trump invoked the Defence Production Act, which allows the federal government to compel companies to produce supplies and products for national defence. The reason was to compel the carmaker General Motors to produce the ventilators used to treat Covid-19 on a massive scale.

General Motors had apparently been haggling and wasting valuable time in taking the decision to produce the ventilators, and it offered lower numbers and higher prices than initially quoted. The Act now compels the company to prioritise the production of ventilators as if for war purposes, a very unusual action in a capitalist economy and particularly in that of the United States, but one that shows how far the administration will go in trying to weather the Covid-19 storm.

The myth about the superiority of Western healthcare systems has been debunked in this crisis, and the acts of desperation by governments in Italy, France, Germany, the US and other countries have exposed the massive flaws within these systems and how unready they are to face a major health crisis. Hospitals in Europe and North America appear to be understaffed and unequipped to face a challenge of the magnitude of the coronavirus outbreak, and despite the heroic and tireless efforts by medical staff they have been shown to be unable to face the mounting challenges.

At no other point in modern history has the world as a whole been under such stress. The worst part is still to come, and at this point there is no approved therapy for the Covid-19 virus even if dozens of medications are being tested on patients to help curb the outbreak. The greater challenge will be to create a vaccine that can be used on a global scale as a form of protection against possible future outbreaks of the virus. It will prove challenging to develop this, since the virus has been mutating and taking different forms.

Moreover, the current economic crisis and projected economic recession after the crisis raise the question of the sustainability of the current neo-liberal capitalist model that has been unable to withstand the crisis and could still crash at any moment, rendering companies bankrupt in a matter of hours or even minutes. Companies that were founded decades if not centuries ago may find themselves filing for bankruptcy as a result of the current economic crisis, and there is an urgent need for the economic system to be rethought by the worlds economists.

It is high time to adjust the current economic model to withstand future hits without crashing entirely, but that is a bridge the world will cross after containing the current outbreak. With most cities across the world today in lockdown or at least in partial curfew in fear of further deaths and mayhem, it is high time that there was global coordination on an unprecedented scale to save the world from impending doom and keep things from falling apart.

This will require bolder and braver decision-making and leadership from all the worlds leaders.

The writer is a political analyst and author of Egypts Arab Spring and the Winding Road to Democracy.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 2 April, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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JohnJohnJ wrote:

So MIT Sloan is slightly (per employment reports) better than Stern for PE/VC, but remember a lot of these kids that go to PE/VCs (from Sloan and Stern) usually go to smaller PE/VCs. You go to bigger name PE/VC if youre from Harvard/Stanford and sometimes Wharton.



Now is Sloan $200k better than Sloan in this market? Hell no!

If you dont get into PE/VC straight after your MBA, the path traditionally taken by others is - work in IB for a few years and then transition to PE/VC. Example, if you go to the Blackrock website, an large number of employees are from Harvard, Wharton and then followed by Stern/Columbia - thats partly because of their large presence in NYC





Also, NYC is always better than Boston for jobs.



Posted from my mobile device

I would disagree on a few things. Blackrock is the world's largest asset manager, most of it is in passive index investing. Indeed based in NYC, but not a destination where many top MBAs want to end up.I am of the opinion that if you go to a top MBA, in a few years the money you used to pay for it will not mean as much. So I would vote for MIT Sloan here. If it is your dream school, then go with it and don't look back.Now in terms of clean energy/sustainability investing, I'd say MIT has the edge. Look at the MIT Sloan Sustainability Initiative, Sustainability Certificate, Clean Energy Prize, etc. MIT carries weight in the field. You'll always have that badge of honor, and with a great cohort of smart people. It is incredibly hard to get into Sloan, and you finally made it. Go with it!
Democratic presidential frontrunner Joe Biden has called for the United States to ease sanctions on Iran to reduce suffering as the Islamic republic reels from the coronavirus pandemic.

Biden said the United States should set up a dedicated channel for banks and other companies to operate in Iran and issue licenses for the sale of pharmaceuticals and medical devices.

The former vice president also called for guarantees to aid groups that they will not be penalised for operating in Iran -- and said Tehran should reciprocate by freeing detained Americans.

Biden said that President Donald Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran, which includes sweeping sanctions, had "badly backfired" by encouraging aggression from the clerical regime.

"It makes no sense, in a global health crisis, to compound that failure with cruelty by inhibiting access to needed humanitarian assistance," Biden said in a statement on Thursday.

"Artificially limiting the flow of international humanitarian assistance to pursue a political point will not only allow the Iranian government to deflect responsibility for its own botched response, it will increase the threat this virus poses to the American people, now and in the future," he said.

His appeal came a day after his rival for the nomination, Bernie Sanders, led left-leaning lawmakers in calling for a lifting of US sanctions on Iran, where more than 3,100 people have died from COVID-19.

Biden had faced criticism from Sanders supporters by hesitating in a television interview on Sunday from saying if he favored easing sanctions on Iran.

The Trump administration has proposed US aid to Iran but offered few details and has kept expanding sanctions.

The administration insists it has never targeted humanitarian goods, but few banks or exporters outside of China are willing to risk US sanctions by doing business in Iran.

Trump withdrew from an accord sealed by former president Barack Obama's administration, in which Biden was vice president, that promised sanctions relief to Iran in return for denuclearization.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Thursday slammed the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh over the FIR against a senior journalist for his comments on Twitter against Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, saying it is a "deplorable" act intended to suppress media freedom.

The former home minister demanded that the FIR be immediately withdrawn.

The Uttar Pradesh police on Wednesday booked The Wire editor Siddharth Varadarajan over comments on Twitter claiming that the day Tablighi Jamaat held its event in Delhi, Chief Minister Adityanath had insisted that a Ram Navami fair will take place as usual.

The FIR against Varadarajan also mentioned his remark, questioning Adityanath's participation in a religious ceremony at the Ramjanmabhoomi site in Ayodhya during the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus.

Chidambaram, in a series of tweets, said, "UP government has filed an FIR against @thewire_in for carrying a story containing facts and only facts. No fact' is wrong or even alleged to be wrong. Where is the crime?"



"The FIR is a deplorable act intended to suppress freedom of the media. The FIR must be withdrawn immediately," he said.

The FIR referred to a tweet by Varadarajan which said, "On the day the Tablighi Jamaat event was held, Adityanath insisted a large Ram Navami fair planned for Ayodhya from March 25 to April 2 would proceed as usual and that 'Lord Ram would protect devotees from the coronavirus'.

Later, the journalist tweeted, "I should clarify that it was Acharya Paramhans, Hindutva stalwart and head of the official Ayodhya temple trust, who said Ram would protect devotees from coronavirus, and not Adityanath, though he allowed a public event on 25/3 in defiance of the lockdown and took part himself."



In his statement, Varadarajan called the FIR "politically motivated".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The poll is from Michigan but the results seemingly could apply in South Carolina.

The Altarum Institute, an Ann Arbor-based research firm that supports Michigan's public health, surveillance and outbreak management systems, said new survey results found men are less likely to follow social-distancing guidelines than are women.

More than 16,000 Michigan residents completed the tracking survey about COVID-19 perspectives, attitudes and behaviors.

9% of men reported they are "unlikely" or "extremely unlikely" to follow Michigan's shelter-in-place order, compared to just 4% of women.

Men are less likely to take appropriate public health precautions.

90% of women reported avoiding public spaces much more than usual, while only 76% of men reported doing so.

While 85% of women reported maintaining a distance of 6 feet or more from others more than usual, only 77% of men reported doing so.

About half of men reported still working outside the home, whereas just 41% of women reported working outside the home.

Men also reported an overall lower level of concern about COVID-19. 33% of men rated their concern as less than 8 on a 0-to-10 scale, compared to only 18% of women.

While not scientific, a Times and Democrat Facebook poll is an interesting comparison. More than 70% of respondents disapproved of the way South Carolina is handling the coronavirus crisis, with women offering the most comments. Many offered opinions related to the need for the state to require people to stay home.

South Carolina is NOT handling it well. We need to shelter in place!

Shelter in place. You will think twice when your loved one is breathing by a ventilator, and you are unable to visit them to even say goodbye.

To date, Gov. Henry McMaster has not put South Carolinians on a shelter-in-place order. Importantly, the governor has said he believes South Carolinians can follow advice on preventing the spread of COVID-19 without being ordered to stay home.

He has acted when shown otherwise, issuing orders to stop dining-in at restaurants and to prevent large gatherings of people. He has closed schools. He closed beaches and boat landings when it became clear people were not following the rules against mass gatherings. And on Tuesday, he ordered closure of a list of non-essential businesses including barber shops and salons.

A longtime health care worker in Orangeburg said people should be doing more to stay safe and keep others safe. She writes:

It was obvious as I made my one necessary trip into town today that the citizens of Orangeburg are totally ignoring the shelter in place command by the governor. The Bypass is almost bumper-to-bumper and the  shopping centers were packed.  The top people at S.C. DHEC addressed the issue of the large, area-wide counties with small numbers of active virus cases, of which we are either first or second. She said their numbers are small so people assume they do not have a problem where they live. However you do not know how many people around you when you are shopping, etc., do have the virus but have not been tested or shown any symptoms.

She is right that people here should not assume they are safe from the coronavirus. If all  perhaps men in particular -- do not practice sensible precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, McMaster ultimately will have no choice but to take action that further inhibits the ability of people to move about and businesses to operate. We hope it wont come to that.

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Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) Headquarters has reported 164 casualties among illegal armed formations in the Russian-occupied Donbas over the last month.

"In March 2020, casualties among the Russian-occupation forces amounted to 164 people, including 51 killed, 113 wounded and injured," the JFO Headquarters said, referring to its intelligence reports.

In addition, members of the Joint Forces destroyed 10 pieces of enemy equipment, in particular, a 120mm mortar, two infantry fighting vehicles, two light armored multipurpose transport vehicles, an unmanned aerial vehicle and four military vehicles.

The command of the Joint Forces emphasizes that in the event of a threat to the life and health of the Ukrainian military, our units always give an adequate response, opening fire on the enemy.

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SILICON SLOPES, Utah, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today at a press conference at the State Capitol, Governor Gary Herbert announced an ambitious effort to crush the curve, the #TestUtahChallenge, to double the state's COVID-19 testing capacity and gather data from each Utah citizen to help health officials better combat the virus. The testing expansion comes in partnership with the Silicon Slopes Serves initiative, which is managing a private-public partnership to set up new testing facilities that, at scale, will more than double the state's daily testing capacity from 3,000 to 6,000+ tests a day.

As part of this effort, the #TestUtahChallenge calls on every Utahn to complete an online assessment at TestUtah.com . All Utahns are encouraged to take the assessment regardless of symptoms. The data will be aggregated by the state to allow public health officials to better track the spread of COVID-19 throughout the state. Increased testing and tracing of the virus will allow a more effective and targeted response, helping reduce transmission and infections.

The assessment, created in partnership with the Utah Department of Health, asks individuals to provide information regarding any symptoms they may be experiencing as well as related questions regarding mental health, stress, and occupational considerations. All those taking the assessment will receive helpful, accurate, evidence-based information regarding the COVID-19 virus. An algorithm will process the responses and instruct each individual on whether or not they should be tested for COVID-19. For those for whom testing is recommended, the assessment will trigger an email that will provide each person a unique QR code and will recommend a testing center location. Following the test, results will be emailed or texted to each individual informing them of their diagnosis and recommended next steps. Testing is currently available in Provo and Orem. Additional testing locations will be added soon.

The assessment will be conducted using GDPR, HIPAA, HITRUST and FedRamp compliant technology, maintaining the highest levels of security and privacy protection available. The #TestUtahChallenge comes in addition to Governor Herbert's stay-at-home directive.

"We are excited to announce a first-of-its-kind public-private partnership that will help accelerate testing for COVID-19 and help us flatten the curve in Utah and save lives," said Governor Gary Herbert. "It has been amazing to work with Silicon Slopes and so many incredible leaders in both the technology and healthcare communities of Utah to develop a solution to keep our citizens safe, informed and help us all get us back to a normal way of life as quickly and safely as possible."

The effort comes on the heels of Silicon Slopes' broader initiative to mobilize the tech community in a public-private initiative to combat the COVID-19 epidemic via SlopesServes.com , where members of the community can find business resources, donate to the COVID-19 Community Response Fund, volunteer, and donate medical supplies.

"Utah is an amazing place. Leaders across many industries have come together virtually overnight to create a solution that will help crush the curve and save many lives," said Clint Betts, executive director of Silicon Slopes. "We're grateful for the seamless way the public and private sectors in Utah rally together with the sole goal of helping people. There is no place or partnership like this anywhere in the world."

The Silicon Slopes Serves health committee gathered a broad partnership of founders and leaders of area companies to build an open-source approach to scaling COVID-19 testing in Utah. The coalition includes ATL Technology, Co-Diagnostics, Domo, Nomi Health, Qualtrics, RPH Engineering, local hospitals and many others in the community that donated notable resources to mobilize this effort as well as some that are offering services at a discounted or complimentary rate. The health committee is led by Mark Newman of Nomi Health and Dave Elkington of the Silicon Slopes Board.

For more information and to take the assessment and schedule a test, visit TestUtah.com .

About Silicon Slopes

Silicon Slopes is the voice, hub, and heart of Utah's startup and tech community. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization empowering Utah's startup and tech community to learn, connect, and serve in an effort to make entrepreneurship and opportunity in Silicon Slopes open and accessible to all. Spanning from Logan to St. George, Utah, Silicon Slopes is a state-wide organization and the official moniker of the state's startup and tech community.

SOURCE Silicon Slopes

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https://www.testutah.com


Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan today held another consultation devoted to the solutions to the social-economic issues caused as a result of the coronavirus, reports the news service of the Government of Armenia.

The Prime Minister stated that the government needs to review the tools for responding to investment proposals and the speed at which it responds to those proposals. This needs to be one of the major items on our agenda so that we are convinced that we will consider the proposals at a proper speed and at a proper level, especially in the post-crisis period, he said.

Afterwards, the government officials shared ideas and recommendations for assistance to and development of various branches of economy and exchanged ideas.

Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Arayik Harutyunyan shared a recommendation on ensuring access to distance learning to provide the children of socially disadvantaged families with Internet connection and tabs through government support in order to organize their learning process, and the idea was approved.

Prime Minister Pashinyan stated that, in terms of strategy, the government must set the objective to have all schoolchildren be technically equipped and assigned the minister to revise the envisaged toolkits with the Ministry of High Technological Industry and present them to the government.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky and President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a phone conversation discussed some agreements to coordinate efforts to combat the coronavirus spread, the press service of the Ukrainian president reported on Wednesday evening.

The interlocutors discussed the situation with the coronavirus spread in the world and the measures taken in both countries to ensure the protection of citizens. A number of practical arrangements have been made to coordinate efforts and cooperation between Ukraine and Turkey to combat the pandemic and its aftermath. The president of Turkey has promised to promptly consider requests of the Ukrainian party for the supply of respirators and protective suits, reads the report.

In addition, President Zelensky thanked Turkey for its consistent support of Ukraines territorial integrity and sovereignty, the non-recognition of the illegal annexation of Crimea, and for its support for the Crimean Tatars.

The presidents welcomed the implementation of the agreements reached during their meeting on February 3 this year, including the construction of housing in Kherson and Henichesk for internally displaced persons (IDPs) form Crimea.

The parties separately discussed the situation that occurred for Ukrainian motor carriers on the Turkish-Bulgarian border due to an entry ban to Turkey. President Erdogan assured that the situation would be resolved in the near future.

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A data company released a video showing the spread of the coronavirus that originated from college students who descended onto a Ft. Lauderdale beach during spring break.

Tectonix GEO analyzed secondary locations of several thousands of anonymized mobile device users to show where they went to across the country after spring break.

Want to see the true potential impact of ignoring social distancing? Through a partnership with @xmodesocial, we analyzed secondary locations of anonymized mobile devices that were active at a single Ft. Lauderdale beach during spring break. This is where they went across the US: pic.twitter.com/3A3ePn9Vin  Tectonix GEO (@TectonixGEO) March 25, 2020

When that data is tracked, it shows it spreading through the streets of Fort Lauderdale, to the airport, and then to much of the East Coast and Midwest.

Students were criticized for attending spring break, and the state of Florida was criticized for not closing the beaches at the very onset of the crisis. Presumably, untold numbers of them carried the COVID-19 virus with them to Florida, and an even greater number carried it back home with them once the break was over, Mass Live reports.
She's the reality star turned body-confidence advocate.

And Malin Andersson embraced her figure as she rocked a tiny cream bralet and thong knickers for a sizzling new Instagram video posted on Thursday.

The former Love Island star, 26, looked happy and confident as she happily modelled the lingerie for the camera.

Gorgeous: Malin Andersson embraced her figure as she rocked a tiny cream bralet and thong knickers for a sizzling new Instagram video posted on Thursday

Malin posed up a storm for the short clip, putting her hand on her hip as she pouted for the camera.

She then twirled around, displaying her bottom in thong knickers as she did so.

The star looked sensational as she continued to flaunt her curves with a number of poses before turning the camera off with a smile.

Captioning the empowering video, she wrote: 'Lol Im pouting n s**t.. who for? MEEEEEE'

Looking good: The former Love Island star, 26, looked happy and confident as she happily modelled the lingerie for the camera

Cheeky: She then twirled around, displaying her bottom in thong knickers as she did so

The video was soon flooded with several messages from fans complimenting and praising Malin.

The TV personality is no stranger to showcasing her figure on her social media all in the name of body confidence.

Malin's post after she revealed that she's returned to her previous job as a carer for the elderly and terminally ill, after feeling a 'void' while away from the sector.

The beauty took to Twitter to make the revelation on Sunday, while declaring she felt compelled to help out during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Work it: Malin posed up a storm for the short clip, putting her hand on her hip as she pouted for the camera

Flaunt: The star looked sensational as she continued to flaunt her curves with a number of poses before turning the camera off with a smile

She wrote: 'So Ive decided to return to my former job as a carer throughout this horrible period. For those that dont know I became a carer for the elderly/palliative care after my mum died and it brought me so much satisfaction.

'I cant sit at home on my own anymore knowing I have training within the sector. My heart hurts for them, and if I can give something more then what Im doing - then I am satisfied.'

She added: 'Im blessed to be able to work from home and that Im financially free. I have a roof over my head.I have food.

'But with all of that something is still missing-thats me sat here healthy knowing I can do more. Giving to others fills a void that material things can never bring.'

Body confident: Captioning the empowering video, she wrote: 'Lol Im pouting n s**t.. who for? MEEEEEE'

Malin's announcement comes days after she reflected on her battle with suicidal thoughts.

While expressing concerns over the mental health state of those self-isolating, the reality star gave fans an insight into her own struggles.

The TV personality turned mental health and body positivity advocate spoke candidly about her own experiences in a bid to help out others.

Alongside a picture taken on a holiday in Bali, Malin warned that even when people appear to be coping, there's no knowing how they are really feeling.

Carer: Malin revealed that she's returned to her previous job as a carer for the elderly and terminally ill, after feeling a 'void' while away from the sector

Explaining that repressed emotions can come through at any time, she recalled going on holiday after the death of her daughter, believing that she was dealing with her grief, but had instead buried it.

Malin lost her baby daughter Consy last January, just one month after giving birth to her due to 'complications' with being born seven weeks premature.

Recalling the holiday she took shortly afterwards, she said: 'I was in Bali, my first real escape after Consy. I had a freeing, amazing time.

'I then came back to normality tried to "live" but I didnt want to. Pause. This isnt spoken enough. Its only spoken about when it happens. Listen.

Helping hand: The Love Island star took to Twitter to make the revelation on Sunday, while declaring she felt compelled to help out during the COVID-19 pandemic

'I was happy. People thought I was ok again, they thought I was over everything. My actions said so. My social media said so too. To everyone else I was "Happy".

'Truth: I wasnt. I tried. I was suppressed. I wasnt feeling my pain. I was ignoring the fact I wasnt ok.'

If you have been affected by this story, you can call the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit www.samaritans.org

For help with the loss of a child, contact The Lullaby Trust on 0808 802 6868 or visit www.lullabytrust.org.uk

Twitter announcement: Taking to her account on the micro-blogging site, she made the revelation and shared her reasons for going back to the sector
Boris Johnson (R) and conservationist David Attenborough attending an event to launch the COP26 climate summit. The summit has now been postponed until 2021 due to the coronavirus.

A major UN climate change conference due to take place in November has been postponed until 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The COP26 summit was set to be hosted by the U.K. at the Scottish Event Campus (SEC) in Glasgow, Scotland, with over 30,000 people expected to attend.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the U.K. government said new dates for the conference would be "set out in due course" following talks.

"In light of the ongoing, worldwide effects of COVID-19, holding an ambitious, inclusive COP26 in November 2020 is no longer possible," the government added.

In a sign of how things have changed in recent months, the SEC is now being converted into a temporary medical facility to provide support to NHS Scotland.

Coming five years after the landmark COP21 summit in Paris, where world leaders committed to making sure global warming stayed "well below" 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, the Glasgow talks were viewed as being especially important.

It was at Paris that countries also agreed to "pursue efforts" to limit the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius and, according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), made national pledges to reduce or curb greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2030. UNEP adds that governments at COP26 were set to review pledges made in 2015 for the first time.

The above will now be put on hold. Reacting to the developments, John Sauven, Greenpeace U.K.'s executive director, said in a statement that the decision to postpone the Glasgow talks was "inevitable given the health emergency the world is currently facing."



"It's during moments of crisis like this that what is possible starts to dramatically shift," Sauven went on to add. "The health of the planet and individual health need to be looked at as a whole. The pandemic has clearly shown that we are all affected and that we can only solve these challenges if we act together as a global community."

Richard Dixon, who is director of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said that "given the worldwide health dangers of coronavirus" it was "understandable" that the climate negotiations in Glasgow had been delayed.

"Every effort must be made to save lives and protect the vulnerable who will suffer the most in this crisis," he said.

"However, rich countries must not use the delay in the talks to delay taking urgent action on reducing emissions and providing climate finance for developing countries."



Describing the climate crisis as "very urgent," Dixon said COP26 needed to take place in the first half of 2021 and that "COP27 should still happen as planned that autumn."
President Donald Trumps son-in-law Jared Kushner, a top aide and key adviser on the federal governments response to the new coronavirus pandemic, made a rare TV appearance on Thursday to speak with reporters.

Kushner, the 39-year-old husband of Trumps daughter Ivanka, attended the daily coronavirus briefing alongside the president, Vice President Mike Pence and other officials.

In contrast to other top members of the administration, including his wife, Kushner eschews the spotlight  avoiding most interviews and skipping social media.

But he broke his characteristic silence on Thursday to laud the work of the coronavirus task force in, according to him, working to secure crucial supplies for the health care workers treating the thousands of virus patients around the country.

The governments coronavirus response to date has been heavily scrutinized. The presidents own rhetoric about the virus became sharply more serious in recent weeks after he originally downplayed it compared to the flu and said his opponents were trying to politicize it as a hoax.

Explaining his changing approach, Trump said Tuesday that he was not about bad news and was a cheerleader who had tried to be positive.

Other issues, including a lagging rollout of national coronavirus testing, have now been largely overcome, the government insists.

Speaking Thursday, Kushner said he understood the worry that medical professionals felt in facing a rising tide of ill patients without either necessary protective equipment  to keep themselves safe while providing care  or needed supplies like ventilators to treat the respiratory illness.

We recognize the challenge that America faces right now, Kushner said. We know what a lot of the people on the front lines are facing, the fear they have that they wont have the supplies they need, and our goal is to work as hard as we can to make sure that we dont let them down.

MANDEL NGAN/Getty Images Jared Kushner speaking at Thursdays coronavirus media briefing at the White House

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"We're going to have a higher fatality rate among our health care workers," Dr. Esther Choo warns

Jared Kushner at Thursdays coronavirus media briefing at the White House

Few aides have lasted as long or have had as much responsibility in the Trump administration as Kushner.

Since 2017, Kushners portfolio has included peace in the Middle East, government innovation and other issues and he has struck a pose about governing that largely aligns with Trumps outsider perspective: that the White House must encourage unusual  even uncomfortable  partnerships between public agencies and private companies, with a focus on data and insights, in order to get things done

Critics have said this approach can be careless, trespassing transparency and ethics concerns, and Kushners track record is mixed.

The White Houses vaunted plan for peace between Israel and the Palestinians, for example, was almost immediately dismissed by everyone but Israel after its release in January.

Elsewhere during Thursdays briefing, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin touted the new funds to support struggling businesses  through government loans that will be forgiven if payroll is maintained  and the individual cash to Americans, mostly in the form of $1,200 payments that Mnuchin said would begin in two weeks via direct deposit.
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD/NAMAKKAL: A 23-year-old youth hailing from Namakkal district in Tamil Nadu died reportedly of dehydration and exhaustion at a temporary shelter at Marredpally police limits in Hyderabad on Wednesday night.

The youth is believed to have travelled some 454kms from Wardha in Maharashtra, at least some part by foot, to Hyderabad with 24 others from Tamil Nadu.

Namakkal Collector K Megraj told Express that the deceased was identified as B Logesh, a diploma holder and resident of Pallipalayam, 55 kms from Namakkal.

He was working at a private company in Nagpur since February 14. Stranded in the town after the nationwide lockdown, Megraj said he left Nagpur on a truck on March 30.

However, locals in Secunderabad saw Logesh and his companions walking towards Bowenpally on Wednesday night and brought it to the attention of authorities.

FOLLOW CORONAVIRUS LIVE UPDATES HERE

Revenue department staff and police shifted all 25 youngsters to a Telangana government shelter in West Marredpally in the city.

"At the shelter, they were provided facilities to have a bath and dinner. Minutes after having dinner, Logesh collapsed and fell unconscious. The shelter's watchman informed Marredpally police who visited the place and called 108 to shift him to a hospital. Later, he was declared dead," police said.

The body was shifted to the mortuary at Hyderabad's Gandhi Hospital. After post-mortem examination, the body was sent to Tamil Nadu in an ambulance.

Telangana police believe Logesh might have died of a heart attack caused by dehydration and exhaustion. Police learnt that the place at which the youngsters were staying asked them to vacate after the lockdown was announced.

It is not known how much of the distance they travelled by foot.

Namakkal Collector said the ambulance would reach Logesh's parents in Pallipalayam in the early hours of Friday.

Logesh's father works as a watchman at a textile store while his mother works at a local garment store.
Five inmates, including Md Khalid convicted in the 1993 Bowbazar blast case that killed 69 people, have donated Rs 42,000 for the state emergency relief fund to fight the coronavirus outbreak. The convicts are presently serving life sentences in a correctional home in south Bengal

Five murder convicts, all of whom are serving life sentences at the Midnapore Central Correctional Home in south Bengal, have donated Rs 42,000 to the corona relief fund set up to fight the disease, said a top official of the state jail department.

The prisoners canteen has also donated Rs 24,500, taking the total amount of donation from the jail to more than 60,000. The jail officials have received eight more applications which are being processed.

This is the first time in the state, and probably in the country too, that jail inmates have donated their income to fight the disease, said a jail official.

The Bowbazar blast killed 69 people in 1993 in central Kolkata. In 2001, a city court convicted satta don Rashid Khan and five others, including Md Khalid, under various sections of the TADA and the Explosives Substance Act.

Out of the 42,000, Khalid donated Rs 20,000 and another one who was convicted in a murder case donated Rs 14,000, said the jail official.

Convicts earn Rs 60  Rs 80 per day depending on the work they do in the jail. They can buy everyday items such as food, clothes, soaps etc from the prison canteen. The prison canteen spends 50% of the profit for the prisoners welfare.

On Tuesday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee donated Rs 5 lakh each to the Prime Ministers National Relief Fund and the state Emergency Relief Fund to help combat the spread of novel coronavirus. Premier clubs in Kolkata and some eminent citizens including Member of Parliaments have also donated to the state Emergency Relief Fund.

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WUHAN, April 1 (Xinhua) -- A Wuhan-based college jointly built by Chinese and Italian universities has cooperated with medical experts from the city's top hospital on compiling an Italian version of a COVID-19 prevention guide.

Based on the latest COVID-19 Prevention and Diagnosis Guide issued by the National Health Committee of China, the Italian version added practical experience from frontline medical workers in Wuhan, according to the Istituto Italo-Cinese built by China's Zhongnan University of Economics and Law and the Sapienza University of Rome.

The guide received wide support and positive feedback from the Italian public once being published on the Sapienza University of Rome's official website.

Xu Diyu, the Chinese principal of the Istituto Italo-Cinese, said the guide is written in plain terms targeting a series of frequently asked questions concerning the spread and prevention of COVID-19.
EUGENE, Ore. The Eugene family YMCA is partnering with the City of Eugene to offer essential workers support while they do their jobs.

Since March 23 they have continued to offer full day care for first responders, medical professionals and other essential workers.

RELATED: EUGENE YMCA, SCHOOL DISTRICTS PARTNER TO PROVIDE CHILDCARE FOR FIRST RESPONDERS

YMCA officials said it's critical that people who are expected to work have a safe place for their children to play, learn and get some exercise.

Brian Steffen, CEO Eugene Family YMCA, said: "Infants up to 12 years old, that's the focus that we're providing right now, and we're doing that as part of a broad collaboration, so for example the YMCA is focused on care of children who would typically be in one of the 26 childcare sites that we have throughout Lane County. And then school providers are also helping provide services to some of the infants and toddlers."

Steffen also said kids and staff have their temperature taken every day and they're keeping a close eye on everyone, watching for symptoms.
Bengaluru: On one hand prime minister Narendra Modi's mother Heeraben donates Rs. 25,000 on the other a few organisations too are doing their bit through Corprate Social Responsibility to aid individuals and institutions combat Corona Viris.

Wipro, Azim Premji Foundation, Infosys foundation, Atria University, Embassy Group, Muthoot Group and a few others have stepped forward to support the Bengaluru City Traffic Police, destitute so, children, manual scavengers and pourakarmikas tasked with enforcing the nation-wide lockdown to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

These section of the society play a crucial role in breaking the chain and breaking the spread of deadly COVID 19 and to bounce back to normal life which almost everyone is yearning for. This helps the society in ensuring maintain social distancing.

According to an official communique, Wipro Ltd, Wipro Enterprises Ltd and Azim Premji Foundation, have together committed Rs 1125 crore towards tackling the unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis arising from the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.

These responses will be carefully coordinated with relevant government institutions and would be executed by the Azim Premji Foundations 1600-person team, in collaboration with many of its over 350 strong civil society partners, who have a deep presence across the country.

Of the Rs 1125 crore, Wipro Ltds commitment is Rs 100 crore, Wipro Enterprises Ltds is Rs 25 crore, and that of the Azim Premji Foundation is Rs 1000 crore. These sums are in addition to the annual CSR activities of Wipro, and the usual philanthropic spends of the Azim Premji Foundation.

Infosys Foundation, the philanthropic and CSR arm of Infosys and Narayana Health launched a 100-room quarantine facility for COVID patients in the vicinity of Narayana health city in Bengaluru.

The patients in the isolation facility will be monitored by the doctors and nurses of Narayana Health City. This partnership is another step in the Foundations efforts to expand hospital and quarantine facilities and ensure proper medical treatment for the patients belonging to the economically weaker sections of the society.

Earlier this week, Infosys Foundation announced its commitment of INR 100 crore to help the government with COVID-19 relief efforts.

Mrs. Sudha Murthy, Chairperson, Infosys Foundation said, Diseases often hit the underprivileged the hardest, this is a small effort by the Foundation to ensure that the underserved people of our society get access to clean, hygienic accommodation as well as appropriate medical treatment.

Meanwhile, Infosys co-founder Narayan Murthy family commits Rs 10 crore to Akshaya Patra for COVID 19 relief.

Akshaya Patra Foundation has been serving cooked food and distributing essential groceries boxes for the migrant labourers and daily-wage earners who have lost their livelihood and in great despair in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent national lockdown.

Akshaya Patra Foundation plans to distribute 1,33,000 (1.33 lakh) essential grocery boxes which will serve 55,86,000 meals.

Maintaining order and ensuring that citizens are staying in their residences, the traffic police are at risk of contracting the virus as well. To aid them in conducting their duties in a safe and sanitary manner, Embassy reached out to the Police authorities offering to assist the task forces on ground during this difficult time.

Identifying the zones around Embassy Manyata Business Park, Embassy Tech Village, Embassy Icon and Embassy Paragon, Embassy Group has set up four hydration stations where the police personnel can take refreshing time breaks.

The stations are equipped with drinking water, refreshments and toilet stops. In addition, Embassy Group has procured hand sanitizers, disposable masks and nutritional snacks through vendors vetted by the Traffic Police.

The items have been handed over to the Headquarters and will be distributed daily over the next 8 days to the 44 stations and their 3,800-person task force.

Mr. Jitu Virwani, Chairman & Managing Director, Embassy Group, has concurrently reached out to the BS Yediyurappa, Karnataka Chief Minister, to identify how private companies can assist the Governments efforts in addressing the impact of the virus.

In response, the CMs office has shared a directive with information on how to contribute towards the mitigation of the virus. This includes the set-up of a bank account to receive tax-exempt donations towards a Chief Ministers Relief Fund.

Across 10 UP districts including Varanasi , Bhadohi, Jainpur, Mirzapur, Ghazipur, Azamgarh, Chandauli, Mau, Balliya and Sonbhadra Muthoot Group has partnered with senior police officials of UP State Police and are distributing 5 Kg Wheat Flour, 3 Kgs Rice, 1 Kg Dal, 500gm sugar, 500ml cooking Oil, salt and spices to hundreds of poor people, migrant workers and daily wage workers.

Atria University along with government has planned to feed 1.5 lakh needy at times of distress.

In the wake of the rapidly spreading COVID-19, Atria Foundation felt an urgent need to assist the State Government in its efforts to serve several of the lesser privileged who are facing the brunt of the crisis. As a sign of our solidarity in the fight against the deadly Coronavirus, and in an effort to bring some relief to the hungry, we are making available 1.5 lakh free meals every day for the needy in Bengaluru," says Sundar Raj, Chairman, Atria group.
RIVERTON  A husband and wife were charged Friday morning in the death of 38-year-old Trevor Bartlett, who died of a gunshot wound early Thursday.

Court documents state the following: On March 26 at about 5:09 a.m., Courtnie Mills, 43, called the Riverton Police Department to report that 38-year-old Trevor Bartlett had shot himself to death at her home on Sunset Drive in Riverton.

Mills had said she and her husband, 37-year-old Mario Mills, found Bartlett dead in their garage that morning when they woke to let their dogs out.

Mario Mills said he last saw his friend at about 11:30 the night before, March 25, before leaving him alone, drinking alcohol in the garage.

Mills told police that Bartlett had been in a dark place recently, and had been talking about suicide. Mills also said he found his own Glock .45 caliber pistol on the ground approximately three feet from Bartletts body. After he found the weapon, Mills told police, he unloaded it and placed it on the work bench near his deceased friend.

RPD detective James Donahue arrived on scene, saw the body, and noted the pistol.

He noticed Bartlett had a single gunshot entry wound to the left side of his head near his temple. Blood speckling from the fired gun was somewhat spread out, not concentrated near the gunshot entry wound, Donhaue wrote in court documents.

I found this to be odd because it indicated the firearm had been fired from the left side of Bartletts body, probably at a distance beyond six inches, rather than a typical contact-type wound often associated with suicide.

The pistol also lacked the blood spatter or blowback pattern indicative of close contact.

Donahue found three live .45 caliber bullets in the area along with a single spent .45 caliber shell casing.

The casing was on the floor about six feet from where Bartlett was sitting when he suffered the gunshot wound.

There were fresh cuts on Bartletts right hand. At the victims feet, there was a Coca Cola bottle with blood spatter inside and out.

There was not a logical reason for blood to be present in the interior of the Coca Cola bottle, Donahue wrote.

Next to the bottle was another bottle, of hard alcohol, tipped over, partially consumed, and leaking on the floor. There was also blood on the outside of that bottle. The detective asked the married couple if their friend was right- or left-handed. Courtnie Mills said she knew him to be right-handed since shed seen him at work. The gunshot wound was on the left side of his head. Due to these anomalies and the angle of the wound, Donahue concluded the shot had been fired from a distance not likely achievable by Bartlett.

The gun also was unharmed, which the detective found inconsistent with the report that it had landed the unlikely distance of three feet from Bartletts body as Mario Mills had claimed.

The two were interviewed separately later that morning within the Riverton Police Department.

Courtnie Mills said her husband woke her at 1:30 that morning saying Bartlett was dead and that he had killed him.

She went to the garage, checked their friends pulse, found that he was dead. She began to call 911, but her husband asked her not to because he did not want to go to jail, wrote Donahue. The woman noticed her husband looked dirty, as if hed been fighting. Her husband said indeed they had been fighting: over the gun. After the struggle, Mills told his wife, he shot his friend, and decided to report the death as a suicide.

Mills went back to the garage with his wife, donned latex gloves, picked up the pistol and put it in Bartletts left hand, then took it out of his deceased friends hand, unloaded it, and put it on the workbench.

The pair went upstairs to their bedroom, undressed and placed their clothing in a white plastic garbage bag, which they hid under their bed.

After the visit from police, but before their 10 a.m. interviews at the station, the pair moved the bag of clothes again: dumping them in the dumpster at Courtnie Mills place of work in what Courtnie Mills would later admit was an attempt to conceal the crime. In his interview, Mario Mills described a sharp argument over suicide.

He and his friend were drinking the evening of March 25. His wife Courtnie went to bed at around 10:30. Bartlett was in a dark place, related Mills, saying he wanted to die, and had made a list of people he was going to kill before he died.

Bartlett told Mills he should shoot him because he was sick of life, Donahue would later write of the interview. Mills said he got out his Glock and loaded it, telling his friend he should just shoot himself.

Bartlett said he had tried before but could never follow through with it, and again challenged Mills to kill him, according to the latters interview. Mills unloaded, reloaded the gun, he said, eventually telling Bartlett he couldnt shoot him. They argued further about it, after which, Mills said, he gave in, grabbed the gun, and fired a single shot into his friends left temple.

I killedTrevor! yelled Mills during his interview. I killed my best friend.

He then said, I wish I would have got Trevors request for me to kill him in writing.

After Bartlett died, Mills said, he got his wife, donned the latex gloves and maneuvered the gun to make the act look like a suicide, and went upstairs with his wife and bagged their clothes. He took a shower and went to bed.

At five a.m., he woke up with his wife and reported Bartletts death as a suicide.

Mario Mills faces life in prison, or the death penalty, for first degree murder.

His wife faces a misdemeanor punishable by six months in jail and $750 in fines, if convicted of helping him to cover the act.

Both are from Riverton. Because the suspect in the case is her husband, Wyoming law defines Courtnie Mills alleged actions as a misdemeanor, not a felony. She is also charged with interference with a peace officer, which is punishable by up to one year in jail and $1,000 in fines.
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New York, April 2, 2020  In response to the Colombian National Protection Units announcement that it would be suspending the countrys Risk Assessment and Protection Measures Recommendation Committee, which grants protective measures to journalists, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement:

While we understand that the Colombian response to the coronavirus pandemic has made in-person meetings impossible, there is no reason the National Protection Unit cannot find a remote solution that will allow the committee to continue working, said CPJ Central and South America Program Coordinator Natalie Southwick. At a moment of increasing deadly violence against human rights defenders and journalists across Colombia, the state cannot use the coronavirus as an excuse to abandon its responsibility to protect its most at-risk citizens.

The committee suspended meetings to conduct risk assessments and respond to requests for protective measures on March 19, and announced the decision on March 31, according to a report by the Bogota-based Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP). The committee said it plans to resume meeting once there are conditions necessary for relevant officials to participate, according to that report.

The National Protection Unit, founded in 2011, guards hundreds of people under threat, including union leaders, human rights activists, politicians, and journalists, according to CPJ research.
McCormick & Company Chairman and CEO Lawrence Kurzius said Thursday the spice maker's business in China has improved in recent weeks as that country emerges from the coronavirus outbreak.

"We've lived all three phases of this crisis," he said on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street." "Our China business is coming back."

McCormick, the maker of Old Bay Seasoning, French's mustard and Frank's Red Hot, has three plants in China, including one in the city of Wuhan in Hubei province, Kurzius said. The coronavirus originated in Wuhan late last year.

"All of our facilities are open. People are back at work. We're operating normally," he said.

Retail demand from consumers is "through the roof," Kurzuis said, but he cautioned that not everything has gone back to normal. He said the company's food service business is recovering at a slower pace.

"Quick service restaurants and regular food service restaurants are open largely, but customer traffic is building. It's going to take a while for that to rebuild," he said.

Kurzius' insight into how McCormick's China business is recovering from the outbreak fallout comes during a debate over the Chinese government's transparency around the crisis.

Bloomberg recently reported that U.S. intelligence officials told the White House that China deliberately downplayed the scale of the outbreak, limiting the reported number of confirmed cases and deaths.

There have been more than 82,400 confirmed cases in China and 3,322 deaths, according to composite data Thursday morning from Johns Hopkins University. Chinese health officials also have reported a step decline in new cases over the last few weeks.

But Kurzius is among other business leaders who say the situation on the ground in China has improved. Starbucks has reopened around 95% of the stores it temporarily shuttered in China in response to the virus' spread, CEO Kevin Johnson told CNBC last week.
Legendary fund manager Li Lu (who Charlie Munger backed) once said, 'The biggest investment risk is not the volatility of prices, but whether you will suffer a permanent loss of capital. So it seems the smart money knows that debt - which is usually involved in bankruptcies - is a very important factor, when you assess how risky a company is. We can see that Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) does use debt in its business. But the more important question is: how much risk is that debt creating?

When Is Debt Dangerous?

Debt assists a business until the business has trouble paying it off, either with new capital or with free cash flow. If things get really bad, the lenders can take control of the business. However, a more frequent (but still costly) occurrence is where a company must issue shares at bargain-basement prices, permanently diluting shareholders, just to shore up its balance sheet. Having said that, the most common situation is where a company manages its debt reasonably well - and to its own advantage. The first thing to do when considering how much debt a business uses is to look at its cash and debt together.

See our latest analysis for Badger Meter

How Much Debt Does Badger Meter Carry?

As you can see below, Badger Meter had US$4.48m of debt at December 2019, down from US$18.1m a year prior. But it also has US$48.9m in cash to offset that, meaning it has US$44.4m net cash.

NYSE:BMI Historical Debt April 2nd 2020

A Look At Badger Meter's Liabilities

According to the last reported balance sheet, Badger Meter had liabilities of US$57.2m due within 12 months, and liabilities of US$33.6m due beyond 12 months. Offsetting this, it had US$48.9m in cash and US$61.4m in receivables that were due within 12 months. So it can boast US$19.4m more liquid assets than total liabilities.

Having regard to Badger Meter's size, it seems that its liquid assets are well balanced with its total liabilities. So while it's hard to imagine that the US$1.38b company is struggling for cash, we still think it's worth monitoring its balance sheet. Simply put, the fact that Badger Meter has more cash than debt is arguably a good indication that it can manage its debt safely.

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In addition to that, we're happy to report that Badger Meter has boosted its EBIT by 67%, thus reducing the spectre of future debt repayments. There's no doubt that we learn most about debt from the balance sheet. But ultimately the future profitability of the business will decide if Badger Meter can strengthen its balance sheet over time. So if you're focused on the future you can check out this free report showing analyst profit forecasts.

But our final consideration is also important, because a company cannot pay debt with paper profits; it needs cold hard cash. Badger Meter may have net cash on the balance sheet, but it is still interesting to look at how well the business converts its earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) to free cash flow, because that will influence both its need for, and its capacity to manage debt. Happily for any shareholders, Badger Meter actually produced more free cash flow than EBIT over the last three years. That sort of strong cash conversion gets us as excited as the crowd when the beat drops at a Daft Punk concert.

Summing up

While we empathize with investors who find debt concerning, you should keep in mind that Badger Meter has net cash of US$44.4m, as well as more liquid assets than liabilities. And it impressed us with free cash flow of US$73m, being 103% of its EBIT. So is Badger Meter's debt a risk? It doesn't seem so to us. When analysing debt levels, the balance sheet is the obvious place to start. However, not all investment risk resides within the balance sheet - far from it. Consider risks, for instance. Every company has them, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Badger Meter you should know about.

At the end of the day, it's often better to focus on companies that are free from net debt. You can access our special list of such companies (all with a track record of profit growth). It's free.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
One silly mistake of a person can takes lives of many others. What happened at Nizamuddin Markaz is the classic example of the same. Now coronavirus is spreading at an exponential rate all across the nation.

To celebrate April Fool's Day, some people pranked their loved ones by saying that they have tested positive for COVID-19. Given the grave situation everyone is dealing with all over the world, this wasn't the right kind of prank to be played at the right time. Although, the prank was harmless, it caused a lot of confusion and tension among fans.



Indian filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma and K-Pop star Kim Jae-Joong are also culprits.

While South Korean K-Pop star has removed the Instagram pose after receiving backlash, Ram Gopal Varma still hasn't.

My doctor just told me that I tested positive with Corona," RGV wrote on Twitter.



My doctor just told me that I tested positive with Corona  Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) April 1, 2020

Sorry to disappoint, but now he tells me its a April Fool joke its his fault and not mine," he wrote in another tweet. We are not sure if people laughed at this.



Sorry to disappoint, but now he tells me its a April Fool joke  its his fault and not mine  Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) April 1, 2020

He then apologised for hurting the sentiments of people. At the same time, he said that he wanted to just lighten up the mood of people.



"Anyway I am just trying to make light of a grim situation but the joke is on me and if I dint offend anyone I sincerely apologise to them.



Anyway I am just trying to make light of a grim situation but the joke is on me and if I dint offend anyone I sincerely apologise to them  Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) April 1, 2020

People weren't impressed by this at all:

Lavadekebal  Madhava Reddy Pesala (@PMadhavaReddy3) April 1, 2020

Vesesaduuuuuu.. Bagaaa vesesaduu  Praveen Pk (@praveen_pk98) April 1, 2020

Vesesaduuuuuu.. Bagaaa vesesaduu  Praveen Pk (@praveen_pk98) April 1, 2020

Oh you missed covid-19 award  VIJESH RAJ (@itsvijeshraj) April 1, 2020

No sir. Its not his fault if you sent the wrong sample.   Rajnish Chauhan (@IronManRC) April 1, 2020

Feared right  Jayakrishna surampudi (@SurampudiJk) April 1, 2020

If this is an April fools prank then it's in very bad taste.        (@ThakurAkshay) April 1, 2020

Kim Jae-joong, on the other hand, has posted, I have been infected with COVID-19. It is a result of my negligence, disregarding the cautionary words of the government and my friends, he said.



He soon admitted he had gone too far for April Fools Day and thanked his fans who were worried about him.



I dont think of this as an April Fools prank...I wanted to tell you that protecting yourself is protecting the precious people around you, Kim said.



Meanwhile, Kim Jae-joong and Kim Jae-joong April Fools were among top searches on South Korean portal Naver and people were also debating.


As the whole world is fighting the deadly virus[COVID 19] which has already claimed thousands of human lives worldwide, Ghana as a nation is also doing its best in combating the pandemic.

All health centres including hospitals, clinics are trying so hard to help the government in dealing with the virus from especially from spreading.

Owing to this, the health centres in the Offinso North District in the Ashante Region of the Republic of Ghana are pleading with the government, religious bodies, individuals and organizations to come to their aid.

The representatives from the various hospitals, therefore, made a courtesy call to the general public this morning 2nd April 2020 on CRUZ 96.9 FM morning show hosted by SK DE BROADCASTER.

They further stated that the health facilities within the district are seriously in need of items such as nose masks, hand gloves, hand sanitizers veronica buckets and many more.

"Now that we are yet to receive our first case, even though we have three suspected cases, of which all proved negative after testing, we need not wait until we have our first case of the virus in this district before we start to do things in a rushing manner. I am therefore pleading with the individuals, organizations, religious bodies e.t.c to help in providing the above-mentioned items to help fight this dangerous disease," Mr. VINCENT of the AME Zion hospital stated
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-01 15:20:09|Editor: xuxin

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SYDNEY, April 1 (Xinhua) -- A study released on Wednesday has shown that male dolphins will coordinate their vocalizations in order to find a mate, proving another layer in the alluring mammals' complex social lives.

Researchers from the University of Western Australia and the University of Bristol used underwater microphones, called hydrophones, to record groups of dolphins in Shark Bay, Western Australia.

Lead author on the study, Bronte Moore told Xinhua that the project had been running for over 40 years, meaning that the team could easily identify individual dolphins by markings on their dorsal fins to determine who was socialising with who.

"The population of dolphins in Shark Bay have been shown to have one of the most complex social structure of any non-human species, featuring multi-level alliances among male bottlenose dolphins," she explained.

Moore said that the latest research further described how males in this population build strong, life-long relationships with other males.

The team recorded groups of male dolphins vocalising together using a series of "pops" which they would match in tempo, and maintain sometimes for up to 25 seconds.

Male dolphins were recorded making these coordinated noises when herding females for mating, an activity which usually occurred with a ratio of two or three males to one female.

"As only one of the three males is likely to father offspring under these circumstances, they may be using coordinated pops to reduce tension between themselves in order to cooperate in pursuing the female together, and increase their overall odds of reproducing," Moore explained.

"This reproductive strategy is a testament to their social complexity, as they are able to work together to secure females and increase the overall odds of reproducing, rather than taking an 'every man for himself' approach."

According to Moore, the relationships between the dolphins are complex, and similar to the way humans have close friends, outer friendship groups and then acquaintances.

"Loosely, we can say that in humans, synchronised actions lead to increased feelings of bonding, foster cooperation and diminish the perceived threat of rivals," Moore said.

While she hesitated to make any comparisons or judgements as to what is going on inside the minds of these large mammals, Moore added that, "the social complexity observed in this population would suggest that these animals are very intelligent."
Members of a Tablighi Jamaat



group hailing from Mumbai on Thursday requested the Maharashtra government to arrange their return from Uttar Pradesh where they have been quarantined.

States across India are tracking down and testing the persons who attended a congregation of Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi last month after it was found that many who took part in the gathering contracted coronavirus.

A group of 13 persons from suburban Kalina in Mumbai had traveled to Delhi in the second week of March and stayed at a mosque near the venue where the congregation took place.

However, they did not attend the gathering, claimed a member of the group.

Later they traveled to Gazipur in UP's Gonda district.

"After this issue of Tablighi congregation came up, local police (in UP) came to the mosque where we were staying and shifted us to a nearby school two days ago," the member said.

"Our medical examination was conducted, which did not reveal anything. But we are stuck here. We request the UP as well as Maharashtra government to help us return to Mumbai," he said.

Inspector Atal Bihari Thakur from Khodare police station in Gonda district told PTI that a total of 25 persons including the 13 from Mumbai have been quarantined at the school.

Their tests did not reveal coronavirus infection, but authorities are taking precautions, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Russian Navy has conducted anti-submarine drills and exercises in the Mediterranean Sea with warships and helicopters reports Tass.

A fleet of frigates in the Black Sea held drills in the Mediterranean to detect and eliminate a notional enemys submarine, the fleets press office reported on Wednesday.

Admiral Makarov and Admiral Essen held drills in the Mediterranean Sea to search for and destroy a notional enemys submarine. The frigates crews are currently accomplishing missions as part of the Navys permanent task-force in the distant maritime zone, the press office said in a statement.

The Navy sailors practiced tactical techniques of detecting and continuously chasing the submarine, while accomplishing the procedures within the required time limits to notionally employ torpedo weapons and rocket-propelled bombs. The crew of a Ka-27PL anti-submarine warfare helicopter from the Black Sea Fleets naval aviation and air defense force provided support from the air, the statement says.

As a result of joint operations by the crews of the frigates and the helicopter, the chase of the submarine ended with its notional destruction, the press office said.

In the final stage of the drills, the crews practiced the elements of joint deployment and combat manoeuvring as part of a surface action group and held specialized communications and air defense drills to provide protection for a group of ships during their transit at sea.

The warships, like those commanded by Admiral Grigorovich, represent a new series of Project 11356R/M frigates (the Project 11357 designation is also used). These frigates are designed to destroy enemy surface ships and vessels, submarines and ground installations, carry out patrols and defend sea lanes.

The frigates are armed with eight launchers for Kalibr-NK cruise missiles that are capable of striking surface, coastal and underwater targets at a distance of up to 2,600 kilometres.

This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
(Newser)  Costco shoppers, take note: The retail giant says starting Friday it will only allow up to two people inside stores on each membership card, USA Today reports. The companywhich has seen huge lineups amid waves of panic buyingannounced Wednesday that the "temporary change is for your safety and the safety of our employees and other members, and to further assist with our social distancing efforts." Costco also pared back its weekday hours earlier this week due to the coronavirus, saying stores will close Monday through Friday at 6:30pm.

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But if you're 60 and older, good news: Costco is still offering senior shopping hours three times a week from 8am to 9am on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, ABC News 4 reports. No matter your age, the chain has put a limit on your purchase of essential itemslike toilet paper, water, and sanitizing wipesand prohibits buyers from returning such "recently hoarded items," per CBS Los Angeles. It turns out Costco isn't the only big retailer making changes amid the pandemic. Home Depot has set new social-distancing rules that will close stores at 6pm and limit the number of customers at any one time, but the News Tribune notes that Costco didn't say how many people are allowed inside. (Read more social distancing stories.)
While most people are addicted to Netflix's true-crime "Tiger King" documentary series, one character of the real-life story of Joe Exotic and his tiger zoo is not impressed.

Jeff Lowe, joined by his wife Lauren Lowe, spoke to Us Weekly on Monday on how the series failed to portray Exotic (whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage) for who he really is.

According to Lowe, Joe is the "biggest criminal" he has ever known.

Speaking of the country music songs Exotic uploaded, the former business partner revealed that it wasn't even him singing but instead was sung by a Washington guy he paid $3,000 just to sing it. Lowe added that Exotic also stole the three grand from someone from the park.

Adding to the statement, Joe allegedly embezzled another $3,500 from the park for a music video of him lip-synching.

"Everything about Joe was fake! We tolerated it as much as we could," said Jeff Lowe.

Lowe mentioned that he and his wife were with Exotic for three years, so they believe they really know who he was as a zoo operator.

"You have to have a sense of humor just to exist because of the drama and the chaos - it was just horrible."

Lauren Lowe quipped, "Joe was definitely a nightmare!"

Speaking about his portrayal on the documentary, Lowe took issue with the series' implication that he stole the zoo from Joe Exotic.

He said the portrayal of him and his wife stealing the zoo was unfair because they came there to help him and get him back on his feet.

"We left to move away because we didn't want to be in a zoo in Oklahoma, so the notion that we tried to steal the zoo from his is just ridiculous."

Lowe also claimed that he covered Exotic's bills and have even put Exotic in charge of the zoo before returning to Las Vegas.

Jeff Lowe reportedly found out that Exotic "f****** up" was when Exotic locked him out of his own bank account.

"We came back to find out he stole $88,000 for his campaign money for his condoms and yard signs. He formed my name 40 times on $50,000 cashed checks."

Aside from that, Exotic also reportedly sold cubs, so the FBI watched Exotic even before Lowe came into the picture, as per TMX.com.

"We had to protect ourselves. And if it means turning over a guy to the federal authorities that killed not just five tigers, it was just the tip of the iceberg. He has killed a hundred tigers that were not beneficial to him monetarily."

Lowe also said that he knew where the former zookeeper buried the bodies of the five tigers that Exotic killed.

Talking about the murder-for-hire plot on Carole Baskin, Jeff Lowe admitted that he and his former business partner spoke about getting rid of the Big Cat Rescue CEO every day but "not in any kind of serious way."

However, he did note that Joe Exotic was obsessed with taking Baskin out.

"It was about, 'How do I eliminate Carole Baskin?' we all knew it, and it just got to the point where once Joe started making aggressive moves towards a plan, we knew we had to get out of here."

READ MORE: Too Late Now to Say Sorry? Justin Bieber Disappoints Fans With This!
By Jerri-Lynn Scofield, who has worked as a securities lawyer and a derivatives trader. She is currently writing a book about textile artisans.

Today is day 9 of the 21-day lockdown in India to slow the spread of COVID-19 transmission. So far, outside of some problematic disease clusters  including one in the Delhi neighbourhood, Nizamuddin West, where the Tablighi Jamaaat in March hosted a religious gathering  the government of India has been able to stay ahead of the progress of the disease, according to this Channel News Asia account, COVID-19 infection rate steepens as India searches for 9,000 exposed to Delhi cluster.

The Times of India reports 50 COVID-19 deaths in India as of the time of posting, Covid-19 in India: State-wise count of confirmed cases and deaths.

Now, many believe the COVID-19 tsunami is just about to make landfall in India. One reason for the lack of confirmed cases thus far may be that India is testing far too few people to have an accurate handle on the extent of spread of the disease. Until recently, India only tested people who had traveled abroad, or had a direct link with someone who had the disease. More recently, the testing criteria have been relaxed, to include health workers. So, just as the man who looks for his keys under the streetlight because the light is better there, so India may not be finding many cases of COVID-19 because its not looking for them hard enough.(See the text and chart in this brief Bloomberg piece, Chart: As India Increases Covid-19 Testing, New Infections Spurt.)

Others have advanced other possible explanations for Indias relatively sparse number of cases. I know theres lively debate over whether heat and humidity slow COVID-19s spread. I wont weigh in on any side of this debate. Yet its certainly hottening up as India moves into its summer: today, it is 30 degrees C in Delhi (86 F), 37 degrees C in Kolkata (98 F), and 34 degrees C in Mumbai (93 F). Its too soon to tell whether General Summer will play the same role in protecting India from the worst ravages of this disease that General Winter periodically plays in the defense of Moscow.

And today, the Indian press widely reported a new study by New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) researchers who cautiously advanced the hypothesis that one reason India, along with Japan, has been less severely affected by COVID-19 is that both require universal childhood immunization with the Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine than does either Italy, the Netherlands, or the United States (see US scientists link BCG vaccination with fewer coronavirus cases, Indian scientists hopeful but cautious).

Now, I am well aware that correlation isnt causation, and it is well above my pay grade to opine on this issue. I draw attention to this report, so that those more qualified can pipe up in comments. A shout out here to Ignacio: I would like to see your take on this study. I am also well aware that the global situation is so awful, that I may be leaping to embrace any small cause for optimism.

Lockdown to Be Extended?

From conversations with well-informed Indians, I wouldnt be surprised if come April 14, the day of its scheduled expiry, the current lockdown will be extended. The government of India has vociferously denied it has any such intention. Here wed be wise to remember Claud Cockburns quip  believe no rumour until it has been officially denied.

The Migration Catastrophe

By now, many people have seen the horrible pictures of the spontaneous migration of millions of Indian migrant workers from cities, especially Delhi and Mumbai, to the countryside. This is the greatest exodus of Indians since Partition. Prime Minister Narendra Modis announcement of the lockdown took many of these workers by surprise. The lockdown shuttered transportation services  bus, train, airplane. It also led to the cut-off of day wages to these workers.

Unsurprisingly, with no money, no work, and the threat of disease looming, most workers headed for their home villages  where they knew they could get food, and would have family support in the event they fell ill (see The Guardian, India racked by greatest exodus since partition due to coronavirus.).

This phenomenon seemed to take the government by surprise.

And, it defeated the primary purpose of the lockdown  reducing contact between people so as to limit COVID-19 spread.

The governments immediate response: confusion.

Then, Modi weighed in with an apology. From the Hindustan Times, Please forgive me: PM Modis apology to the poor hit by national lockdown:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday sought forgiveness for putting people in trouble by ordering a complete lockdown in the country but said the fight against coronavirus is one of life and death. My conscience tells me that you will definitely forgive me as I had to take certain decisions which have put you in a lot difficulty, he said on his radio programme Mann ki Baat. Especially, when I look at my poor brothers and sisters, I definitely feel that they must be thinking what kind of a Prime minister is this who has placed us in this situation, he added. The lockdown is for you to protect you and your family. You have to show this patience for many more days, he added.

Alas, migrants needed far more than an apology.

And that statement of contrition was quickly replaced by outrage over a widely reported case, when local officials in Bareilly doused migrants with disinfectant: bleach. The news was picked up widely , first on social media and then in India and internationally, by the BBC, Coronavirus: Anger as migrants sprayed with disinfectant in India and Al Jazeera, Migrants in India sprayed with disinfectant to fight coronavirus. From the latter:

Indian health workers have caused outrage by spraying a group of migrants with disinfectant, amid fears that a large-scale movement of people from cities to the countryside risked spreading the coronavirus. Footage showed a group of migrant workers sitting on a street in Bareilly, a district in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, as health officials in protective suits used hosepipes to douse them in disinfectant, prompting anger on social media on Monday. Nitish Kumar, the top government official in the district, said health workers had been ordered to disinfect buses being used by the local authorities but in their zeal had also turned their hoses on migrant workers. A number of opposition leaders, including former Uttar Pradesh chief ministers  Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav  attacked the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the state for its cruel and inhuman treatment of the poor. The workers have already suffered a lot. Please dont wash them with chemicals now. This will not protect them and instead endanger their health, tweeted Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. I have asked for action to be taken against those responsible for this, he said in a tweet.

Make time to view the embedded video clips in either the BBC and Al Jazeera accounts.

The government insisted on closing state borders. So large masses of workers now find themselves trapped. Others whove made it home have been barred from their villages. From The Guardian:

Migrant workers who have made it to their villages have often found they are no longer welcome. In several villages in Bihar and Jharkhand, villagers put up barricades at the entry points and hung posters, warning the migrants against entering the village before a health check. We took this decision as outsiders entry to the village could put everyones life at risk, said Umesh Singh, 60, a schoolteacher from the village of Baniya-Yadupur in Bihar. This is very dangerous time and we cant ignore this.

The Migration Exodus: A View From Kolkata

I checked in with my friend, Dr. Sunandan Roy Chowdhury, at his home in Kolkata, to get his take on the impact of Indias lockdown on its migrant workers. Sunandan has been active in West Bengals politics for many years, and is secretary for Citizens Forum for Peace and Democracy, He responded by email to my questions.

JERRI-LYNN SCOFIELD: What does this exodus from the cities tell us about the poor in India?

SUNANDAN ROY CHOWDHURY: Life in the Indian sub-continent does not seem to be of much value, especially if the life in question belongs to the poor strata of society. In the US, there are movements such as Black Lives Matter. Sadly enough, in India or in the entire sub-continent, we do not have a movement which will say poor lives matter. That the lives of the working poor matter little to the Indian systems of power, was proven once again in the last seven days.

JERRI-LYNN SCOFIELD: Tell us about Indias lockdown policy, and its impact on migrant workers who emigrate to the major cities in search of work?

SUNANDAN ROY CHOWDHURY: In the wake of the crisis emanating out of the deadly Corona virus or COVID 19, the Indian government under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi declared a 21 day lock down starting midnight of 24 March. While the lockdown drastically reduced the possibility of contacts between human beings in the vast geography that is India, thereby hopefully reducing the chances of contamination of the virus and saving people from contracting the disease, it also put in peril lives and health conditions of hundreds of thousands of working class people who have moved from one part of India to another in search of jobs.

Between two to five million people from Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh, parts of West Bengal, Jharkhand and Orissa leave their native villages or towns to go and work in Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and in the areas around Delhi. Many also go to Kerala or to Gujarat and Maharashtra. The poorer east sends the working hands to factories and farms of the more prosperous north, west and south. Knowledge of this phenomenon is fairly common place in the well-educated and aware sections of Indias confident upper middle class.

JERRI-LYNN SCOFIELD: To what extent do you fault the Modi government for the impact of its lockdown on Indias migrant workers?

SUNANDAN ROY CHOWDHURY: When the lockdown was declared, the decision was taken hurriedly. Neither the Prime Minister, nor his close group of trusted political colleagues, the ministers who are in his close circle, nor the senior bureaucrats around him  and I believe the decision of 21 day lockdown was done with adequate consultation, no one at the top of Indias government cared to think what will happen to these couple of million of migrant workers.

The result unfolded as a human tragedy of great proportions. Hundreds of thousands of workers with their families, among them infants and young children were stranded in Indias capital, scrambling to get into buses which have also been taken off roads in the wake of the lockdown. Some got into buses, tales have spread that a bus has carried up to two hundred people, with eighty of them on the top of the bus. Television cameras have witnessed people walking five hundred kilometers to walk home. No food, no water, no shelter, and the scorching sun. Scenes of British Indias partition on 15 August 1947 have come to haunt the nation. When the government at Centre and in the states realized the severity of the situation, already at least twenty lives were lost. At the time of writing on 29 March there were twenty nine deaths from Corona in India and there were at least twenty deaths due to government negligence.

Shall we blame the Prime Minister for this, shall we blame some chief ministers of the states from where the workers hail? I think the bureaucrats are no less to blame. It is true that the final decision was definitely the PMs but I wont be convinced that he alone took a decision of this proportion; it was more of a collective decision. Where was any wisdom of the bureaucrats, many of whom have served in the districts and all of whom must know that there are nearly five million workers who move from one part of India to another for jobs. And, many of them are domestic workers in the homes of the bureaucrats themselves. So, I will say it is the politicians and bureaucrats and the entire upper strata of Indian society who have failed Indias poor. And, of course, this is not the first time, and if Corona does not shake us to the core, then it wont be the last time either.

JERRI-LYNN SCOFIELD: Im struck by the lack of concern for the needs of Indias poorest citizens. This problem seems to extend well beyond this governments COVID-19 policy.

SUNANDAN ROY CHOWDHURY: The poor workers are poor not only in that they have poor incomes. They do not have a voice, they do not have trade unions to come to their rescue. In India even the trade unions are also clubs of the affluent. Only seven percent of Indias work force is unionized, and these are the well-heeled and well-oiled employees in banks, large private and public corporations and in Indias stagnant universities, schools and colleges. Indias middle class not only has an incompetent governing group, but it creates this incompetence at the top by producing and re-producing class and caste hierarchies in every modern institution.

So, the tragedy that has unfolded in the wake of the unplanned, poorly planned decision of lockdown, is only the tip of the iceberg, it betrays a much greater and much deeper malaise. If educated westernized and now sufficiently Hinduttva-ised India, if that India does not mends its ways, then it is a matter of decades, when that iceberg will destroy Indias five-trillion dollar titanic.

Modi Governments Response

The Modi government has made available some limited economic support. As Al Jazeera reports, Hungry, desperate: India virus controls trap its migrant workers:

Under pressure to address the growing emergency, the central government last week announced a $23bn welfare scheme for the poor. This included doubling the amount of free food rations under an existing national programme, $10 to tide over senior citizens, and raising wages by $0.27 per day for those working under the governments rural employment scheme.

The situation reminds me of a supersized version of the 2016 demonetization debacle, and Im not the only one to make the comparison (see India: Demonetization Debacle, a 2018 post-mortem analysis of a Reserve Bank of India report, which is only one of several Naked Capitalism accounts).

As Jayati Ghosh, an economist at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi and frequent Naked Capitalism contributor told Al Jazeera:

The events are similar in the sense that policymakers now seem just as unprepared for the consequences as they were back then, and again the poorest are suffering  but at least during demonetisation not every part of the economy came to a grinding halt.

Ghosh and others say say that the aid the government has provided is sadly inadequate to the magnitude of the economic damage it has inflicted. From Al Jazeera:
The board meeting of Al-Ahram editors has convened at exactly 11am every day since the establishment of the paper. But this Thursday, and for the very first time in Al-Ahram's history, the editor-in-chief attended the meeting wearing a white coat.



The need to salute, appreciate and show support for Egypt's medical teams was behind this gesture by editor-in-chief Alaa Thabet, who believes that medical teams not only in Egypt but all over the world are on the front lines fighting the coronavirus, and that the hectic efforts of these new warriors should be honoured and saluted by everyone.



Thabet said that local media has stood behind fighters in all fields, and the fight against COVID-19 is no less significant than any great military battle.

"Medical teams have been sacrificing their time and their lives for us to be able pursue a better living environment. They are sacrificing their lives for us to survive this epidemic, which is the ultimate noble goal of humanity," Thabet said.

"The least we can do in support of each and every one of our medical team is to show our support," he added.

Al-Ahram will be illuminated tonight in white, and a giant picture of a white coat  symbolising the presence of medical staff  will stand at the main gate of the 145-year-old establishment.

"Words will never explain our gratitude to those fighting the virus, but one day we will be able to tell the heroic stories of our medical staff to our people in this newspaper. We, in Al-Ahram, will be telling our children and grandchildren for years to come, because it is the fight of noble souls to save humanity."



The total number of infections in Egypt has reached 779 nationwide, while the death toll stands at 52.

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Cash-strapped and stranded abroad, hundreds of Canadians are waiting for an emergency loan from the federal government because they need money to pay for hotels or book flights.

The Canadian government has paid out $1.8 million in loans to 525 recipients through the COVID-19 Emergency Loan Program for Canadians Abroad. It is currently processing another 800 loan applications, according to Global Affairs Canada.

The repayable loan of up to $5,000 is intended to cover flights back to Canada, or basic expenses, such as hotels and food, until citizens can return home. There are currently 391,451 Canadians signed up to the Registration of Canadians Abroad.

Kimberley Bradley, 50, of Pembroke, Ont., says she needs the emergency loan to cover her hotel bill in Varadero, Cuba. She's been forced into quarantine with hundreds of other travellers and only has enough cash to cover four more nights, she said.

"People have run out out of money. They're waiting on emergency loans, begging the hotels to wait," she said. "I have no room left on my credit card."

Bradley said she has booked three different commercial flights out of Cuba in the past 10 days, each paid for on her credit card, but they've all been cancelled. Each time, she received credit for future travel but no refund.

Travelling on a tight budget

Bradley started the loan application process eight days ago. She received an email from Canada's emergency response centre today that said, "Due to a high volume of requests, we will not be able to give updates on the status of individual loan applications." The most recent communication warned the process could take a week.

In a statement released Tuesday, Global Affairs Canada said it is working "around the clock" to ensure it is "providing emergency assistance and consular services to Canadians abroad who need it."

Westjet Vacations

Bradley, who has an autoimmune disease that is exacerbated by the cold, arrived in Cuba in early January. She rented an apartment in a fishing village for six months, she said.

Story continues

When COVID-19 concerns escalated in early March, she weighed her options. She says she didn't have a place to quarantine in Ontario because she lives with her daughter, who is an essential service worker. Bradley also survives on a disability pension and had pre-paid six months' rent in Cuba.

So, she decided that she would self-isolate in her private apartment in Cuba until the end of June.

That plan fell apart last Tuesday, when Cuban immigration officials decided to force all foreigners into quarantine in hotels to try to control the fast-spreading virus.

"A lot of people missed opportunities to take flights because they thought they were just going to wait things out here," Bradley said.

Nonetheless, she doesn't blame Cuban officials for taking steps to contain the virus, she said.

Now, she's forced to pay $50 a night at the Barcelo Solymar hotel, which she said is beautiful, with kind staff, but far beyond her tight budget.

Submitted by Kimberley Bradley

There are no commercial flights in or out of Cuba, but Bradley was informed late Wednesday that the Canadian government is chartering a flight out on Sunday. She can't afford the ticket unless she receives the loan in time, she said.

Loan application denied

Toronto resident Alexandra Acosta helped her 62-year-old father apply for a $1,000 emergency loan last week to go toward a plane ticket home from Lima, Peru.

Given the economic uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and her own circumstances, Acosta couldn't afford to loan him money herself, she said.

"I have enough money to last me for my groceries. My husband's not working. I'm not working. You can only use your credit card so much," she said.

Her father, Juan Acosta, just received an email from the Canadian Embassy in Lima that he was denied the loan. The rejection email didn't specify why, but said: "This program is intended to provide assistance to Canadian citizens who plan to return to Canada, have been prevented from doing so because of COVID-19, and have no other source of funds."

The federal government has arranged three flights to bring Canadians home from Peru this week.

Acosta said she is devastated.

"If he was here with me, he would be ... in this house, so I could make sure he is OK," she said. "You gotta take care of your parents because they took care of you."

Submitted by William Fafard

Acosta said she searched for a commercial flight out of Peru for her father last month after the Canadian government warned travellers that they should return home while they still can. She wasn't successful.

She said her father moved from Canada to Peru two years ago to pursue a business opportunity and care for his elderly father. Acosta concedes that Peru is her father's primary residence these days, but she says he's a Canadian citizen and she wants him home.

The eligibility criteria to qualify for an emergency loan from the federal government include:
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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 03:39:20|Editor: huaxia

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A citizen takes a picture of the famous city sculpture "Three Smiths" which has been put on facial masks, in Helsinki, Finland, March 31, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhu Haochen)

-- COVID-19 death toll close to 14,000 in Italy, total number of confirmed cases rises to 115,242;

-- Coronavirus deaths in Spain pass 10,000 mark;

-- Portuguese president announces a 15-day extension of state of emergency;



-- British gov't pledges to carry out 100,000 tests per day by the end of April.

BRUSSELS, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The following are the latest developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in European countries.

Sanitation workers clean the ground at Piazza del Duomo in Milan, Italy, on March 31, 2020.(Photo by Daniele Mascolo/Xinhua)

ROME -- The number of COVID-19 deaths reported in Italy has risen by 760 to 13,915 and the total number of confirmed cases has risen to 115,242, according to the latest data released by the country's Civil Protection Department on Thursday.

Speaking during a televised press conference, Civil Protection Department Chief Angelo Borrelli confirmed that there were 2,477 new active coronavirus infections compared to Wednesday, bringing the nationwide total to 83,049 cases.

Of those infected, 28,540 are hospitalized, 4,053 are in intensive care and the rest are quarantined at home, Borrelli noted, adding that there were 1,431 additional recoveries compared with Wednesday, bringing that total to 18,278.

An ambulance arrives at the IFEMA Exhibition center in Madrid, Spain, March 23, 2020. LATIN AMERICA OUT. (EFE/Handout via Xinhua)

MADRID -- The number of deaths caused by COVID-19 in Spain surpassed the 10,000 mark on Thursday, the Spanish Ministry for Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Services confirmed.

A total of 10,003 people have died from the infectious disease in Spain as of Thursday, 950 more than the death toll of 9,053 on Wednesday.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases rose by 8,102 from 102,136 to 110,238 over the last 24 hours, while the number of people who have recovered from the disease increased to 26,743 from 22,647 on Wednesday.

A man wearing a face mask is seen in Erfurt, central Germany, on April 1, 2020.(Photo by Kevin Voigt/Xinhua)

BERLIN -- Germany registered 6,156 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 140 deaths over the past day, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Thursday.

The average number of cases per 100,000 inhabitants in Germany increased from 81 to 88 on Thursday although there were regional differences, according to the RKI, the federal government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention.

Staff carry equipments at a drive-through COVID-19 test station set up in the parking lot of an IKEA store in Wembley, northwest London, Britain, March 31, 2020.(Photo by Ray Tang/Xinhua)

London -- The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Britain reached 33,718 as of Thursday morning, an increase of 4,244 in 24 hours, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.

As of Wednesday afternoon, of those hospitalized in Britain who tested positive for the novel coronavirus, 2,921 have died, up 569 over the same time on the previous day, the lastest figure from the department showed.

During Thursday's Downing Street coronavirus daily briefing, Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who is out of self-isolation after recovering from COVID-19, announced a five-pillar action plan to carry out 100,000 tests per day by the end of April.

A municipal worker disinfects the street to stop the spread of the COVID-19 in Cascais, Portugal, March 28, 2020.(Photo by Pedro Fiuza/Xinhua)

LISBON -- Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on Thursday announced in a televised national speech a 15-day extension of State of Emergency to fight the pandemic of COVID-19.

The state of emergency, which was declared by the president on March 18 and would end on Thursday midnight, will be renewed until April 17 under the new endorsement.

A medical biologist handles a swab to test a mediacal worker for the COVID-19 disease at a COVID-19 drive-in test center in Paris, France, April 1, 2020.(Photo by Aurelien Morissard/Xinhua)

PARIS -- France has registered 471 new fatalities from COVID-19 in hospitals in the past 24 hours, bringing the toll to 4,503, Director General of Health Jerome Salomon announced on Thursday.

A total of 26,246 people are now hospitalized, including 6,399 in intensive care, Salomon said at the daily briefing.

In addition, 14,638 confirmed or possible cases of coronavirus infection had been reported in accommodation establishments for dependent elderly people (called "Ehpad" in French) while 884 deaths had occurred in social and medico-social establishments, said the health official.

An emergency medical staff member leads a man to an ambulance in Brussels, Belgium, on April 2, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhang Cheng)

BRUSSELS -- A further 183 patients had died of COVID-19 in the past 24 hours in Belgium, raising the country's death toll to 1,011, according to fresh figures released Thursday by public health institute Sciensano.

In the last 24 hours, Belgium also reported 1,384 new cases of confirmed coronavirus infection, taking the total to 15,348, according to Sciensano Institute which is in charge of monitoring and analyzing COVID-19 data collected from its network of partners.

THE HAGUE -- The coronavirus death toll rose dramatically in The Netherlands on Thursday, with 166 fatalities reported in the past 24 hours, the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) said.

The daily death toll fluctuates in The Netherlands from 132 on Sunday, 93 on Monday, 175 on Tuesday, 134 on Wednesday to 166 on Thursday. The total number of reported deaths in The Netherlands now stands at 1,339.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases (patients who are or were admitted to hospital) has increased by 625 to 5,784 and the total number of positive tests grew by 1,083 to 14,697.








By Simon Jessop

LONDON (Reuters) - Luxembourg, the European Union's largest investment hub has tightened its disclosure rules in the face of market volatility caused by the coronavirus and asked funds to disclose whenever client demand to exit exceeds 10% of total assets.

Markets have been roiled across the globe as governments lock down citizens to try to halt the spread of the virus, teeing up economic recession and prompting some investors to withdraw their cash until markets calm down.

A number of funds have already suspended trading as a result of the volatility, and Luxembourg regulator the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF) has written privately to fund firms to demand they alert it on a daily basis if redemptions hit double-figures.

More than 4.7 trillion euros ($5.13 trillion) of assets are invested in Luxembourg-domiciled funds, making it the biggest asset management hub in the EU, the country's government says.

CSSF confirmed in a statement it had contacted the 60 biggest asset managers domiciled in Luxembourg on March 10 for initial information, and followed this with a March 13 update in which it provided a standard template for firms to report redemptions above 10%.

That circular asked recipients to alert the CSSF of any daily redemptions above 10% and any weekly redemptions above 30%, as well as other developments in relation to managed funds, such as new or emerging operational or liquidity issues, it said.

"We are in regular contact with investment fund managers, including the largest 60 managers with activities in Luxembourg, to assess any material impact on their funds," the CSSF said.

"At present, we believe the use of existing liquidity management tools, as advocated by the CSSF and international bodies, are working appropriately, and that funds are able to operate as intended and in the best interest of investors."

The CSSF did not disclose how many funds, if any, had reported any redemption breaches under the new rules, which follow a raft of suspensions of British property funds and of equity and credit funds across the Nordic region and in France.

Story continues

Nicolas Mackel, chief executive at Luxembourg for Finance, the development agency for the country's financial sector, said he had heard several high-yield bond funds and money market funds had suffered redemptions, but that "it seems to be, at this stage, relatively quiet on that front".

Xavier Parain, Chief Executive at FundRock Management, which provides risk management and back office functions to around 100 fund managers, said he had received the communication from the CSSF and considered the approach wise.

"They are asking questions around funds suffering big redemptions, gates and problems with valuation - they're asking for daily feedback on all this," he said.

Over the last two weeks, Parain said he had heard of a handful of funds in Luxembourg forced to temporarily suspend trading to ensure fair pricing of the funds, and the firm had scaled up its own checks on fund liquidity.

"In these market conditions, more managers are using these tools to ensure fair valuations for clients... For me it's good market practice," Parain added.

($1 = 0.9154 euros)

(Reporting by Simon Jessop; editing by Barbara Lewis)
Following US President Trumps earlier tweet that he had discussed oil prices with Saudi Arabias Crown Prince, Texas Railroad Commissioner Ryan Sitton reports that he discussed with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak the prospect of taking 10 million barrels per day off the global oil markets.

we agreed that #COVID19 requires unprecedented level of intl cooperation, Sittons tweet read in part.

Sitton mentioned that he looked forward to talking with Saudi Arabias Energy Minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman soon as well.

Russia and Saudi Arabias failing cooperation in the OPEC+ agreement have resulted in increased production from OPEC, with both Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Russia promising to increase production. Saudi Arabia has previously reported that it has increased its oil production to more than 12 million bpd.

The extra barrels on the market coincided with the Covid-19 pandemic, which destroyed global oil demand, pushing down oil prices to levels not seen in years.

Oil prices were trading up more than 20% on Thursday afternoon following the positive oil market developments, with WTI crude trading at $24.80 (+$4.49), and Brent crude trading at $30.02 ($5.28). Oil prices had been up even more immediately following President Trumps tweet, but prices have since fallen back somewhat.

Several analysts have suggested that any OPEC action would be too little, too late, with demand unlikely to snap back anytime soon due to the pandemic. A 10 million bpd cut, however, would go a long way to stabilizing the oil market.

The Saudi Press Agency earlier on Thursday confirmed that it had called an urgent meeting for OPEC+ and other states to discuss the oil markets and the coronavirus response. Details on the timing of the meeting, however, have not been disclosed.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Nurses on the front lines of the Bay Areas coronavirus response on Thursday called on the state to provide more personal protective equipment, warning that a shortage of masks and gowns could have devastating consequences for medical personnel and their patients.

The registered nurses from UCSF and Seton Medical Center in Daly City  members of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United  protested outside their hospitals to highlight a shortage of N95 respirators and other protective gear critical for health care workers treating patients infected with the virus.

Both hospitals received additional medical supplies Thursday expected to last several weeks.

The pandemic has decimated protective equipment supplies at hospitals across the country, and the situation got bad enough at Highland Hospital in Oakland this week that nurses created their own protective equipment by cutting holes in trash bags and placing them over their uniforms.

Hospitals are not meeting their legal and moral obligation to make and provide safe workplaces for us, said Cathy Kennedy, secretary of the California Nurses Association, during an address to nurses Thursday on Facebook.

Now Playing: Health Workers Protest Lack of Personal Protective Equipment Video: Lea Suzuki

We have hospital administrators saying, You can reuse your mask. Disinfect it, put them in a brown paper bag, hang them over an IV pole or better yet use the same mask for the entire shift. This is absolutely ridiculous. As nurses we know better.

Nurses at Seton Medical Center in Daly City joined protests during their shift change at noon Thursday. State officials designated the 177-bed hospital  which was on the verge of closing before the outbreak  to treat COVID-19 patients.

The hospital on Thursday received 15,680 N95 masks and 1,200 goggles, which will be used by nurses treating COVID-19 patients. The supply should last for 35 days in a moderate surge scenario, according to hospital president Anthony Armada and the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which represents more than 600 Seton employees. If cases spike, they will last for 26 days.

Nurses are told to use the same mask for their shift, Armada said.

Workers at Seton are ready to meet the immense challenge of being on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Sal Rosselli, president of the workers union.

More supplies are still necessary to implement the best safety protocols at Seton, but this shipment is a testament to what can be accomplished when caregivers and government officials work together for the public good.

Debra Amour, a registered nurse at Seton who is a California Nurses Association member, credited Gov. Gavin Newsom for his quick response to the pandemic but said more equipment needs to be sent to the Bay Area, where there are 2,886 coronavirus cases as of Thursday evening.

Were being skipped over, she said. In Northern California we are the center, were the ones most in need.

Weve got to get this right.

Newsoms office did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Seton said it is separating patients with COVID-19 diagnoses and symptoms from other patients in its emergency room, intensive care units and medical and surgical floors.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

We understand that access to PPE has been an issue for medical facilities nationwide  we are partnering with our physicians, nursing and clinical leadership to administer our PPE policy according to evidence-based and CDC and CDPH guidelines to ensure we are protecting our employees and physicians, Seton said in a statement.

We continue to work with our vendors, the County and the State to ensure adequate supply.

About a dozen nurses protested outside the UCSF Mission Bay medical center at 6 a.m. Thursday wearing bandannas and holding red posters that said, Protect nurses, patients, public health.

UCSF said it has sufficient supplies  including N95 masks, surgical masks and gloves  to last about five weeks and expects additional supplies to arrive in the coming weeks. The supplies will be shared across hospitals.

UCSF Health has extensive protocols and procedures in place for protecting our care providers, staff and other patients, based on the latest science and recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the state and county departments of public health, the hospital said in a statement Thursday.

An Atlas Air flight landed at San Francisco International Airport Thursday carrying 65 tons of medical supplies that will be delivered to the UCSF hospital system, airport officials tweeted.

San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Mallory Moench contributed to this report.

Tatiana Sanchez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tatiana.sanchez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TatianaYSanchez
BRASILIA (Reuters) - The United States is ready to cooperate with Brazil on medical and logistical issues in the fight against coronavirus, Brazil's foreign minister Ernesto Araujo said, citing a telephone conversation between the countries' presidents on Wednesday.

Jair Bolsonaro and Donald Trump did not discuss restrictions on citizens entering the other's country, nor did they compare confinement and quarantine measures imposed in both countries, Araujo said.

The White House said in a statement that Trump and Bolsonaro stressed the importance of slowing the spread of the virus through "sharing information, increasing preparedness, and cooperating on therapies and vaccine development."

"The two leaders also affirmed their continued commitment to aggressively safeguarding jobs and incomes, using all available tools to restore global economic growth," the White House said.

(Reporting by Ricardo Brito; Writing by Jamie McGeever; Editing by Richard Pullin)
The Cuban Government cannot maintain power without changing, as social discontent, previously covered up, has erupted in some sectors of society, facilitated by modern media instruments.

In addition to unresolved problems such as fuel, housing, transport, food and medicines, there are others, such as 1 - the reduction in liquefied gas reported on 16 January. 2- On 30 January the President of the Republic warned that, due to the lack of fuel, the sugar harvest could be halted for a few days, and 48 hours later two sugar plants in Granma province were shut down. 3- On February 6 private taxi drivers operating between Havana, Artemis and Mayabeque went on strike, protesting against new restrictive measures.

This decline, coupled with the intensification of US measures against the Cuban Government, is exacerbated by the presence of Covid-19.

Desperate for foreign money, the Cuban Government squandered Cuba's geographical advantage as an island, and failed to learn from the experiences of Asia and Europe, with regards to isolation, regions the pandemic hit before Cuba. Faced with the threat of its arrival, instead of closing borders in time, it actually enticed tourists to come. As a result, the virus arrived the midst of a crisis characterized by declining production, shortages of food, medicines, toiletries, water, a lack of international credits and an ageing population.

The combination of the structural crisis, US measures, and the coronavirus pandemic will lead to a deterioration in living conditions much more acute than usual. There has been a notable increase in the activity of those who used to let themselves be plundered, but who now, as a result of the crisis, are beginning to take independent action.

A look at how fast things are unfolding, with previously inconceivable events taking place, speaks for itself:

In February: 1- an attempt to lynch a rapist in Santiago de Cuba ended in a confrontation between the residents and the police. 2- In the "Last Thursday" forum of the magazine Temas, dedicated to the press, two journalists from alternative bodies gave the event an unexpected twist when they leveled criticisms, and asked those present questions, breaching the wall that the government had managed to build between independent journalists and government officials. 3- The censorship of the documentary Suenos al pairo, selected for the Cuban Art and Film Industry Institute's (ICAIC) Youth Section, spurred some 20 filmmakers to withdraw their works, in solidarity, forcing ICAIC to postpone the event. Subsequently, in response to the firing of the Exhibition's director, a group of filmmakers issued a statement of protest. 4- The Cuban Institute of Radio and Television (ICRT) edited out a scene in the film Love Simon, in which two young homosexuals kiss each other, sparking an outcry by the LGBTIQ community, which organized a public kiss-off, forcing the ICRT to apologize and broadcast it uncut

In March: 1- the incarceration of the artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara and the announcement that he would be subjected to a summary trial prompted the Movimiento San Isidro to pursue legal actions with international organizations; cries of protest by artists, publishers, activists, journalists, filmmakers, officials and dissidents, both Cuban and foreign; and the collection of some 3,000 signatures, which forced the trial to be suspended until further notice. 2- Dozens of self-employed workers from Santa Clara, chanted the slogan "We pay for patents, we're not criminals!" demonstrated before the provinces Popular Power and Communist Party, against the new regulations on this sector

The events cited demonstrate that there is a fast-moving shift in awareness, along with a loss of fear, which has forced the Party-State-Government to postpone, suspend or alter a set of decisions that would have previously been inconceivable.

Totally out of time, without the political will to introduce a market economy, and negotiate with the US, the outcome could take an extremely dangerous turn.

A market economy regulating monetary life is a key achievement of human civilization. It was not created by capitalism, but rather always existed. The ruling Party-State, however, chained to its ideology, has decided that planning, rather than the free market, will remain the cornerstone of the economy.

Relations with the United States, following the re-establishment of diplomatic communications, President Barack Obama's visit to Cuba, and the six packages of measures issued by his Administration to ease the embargo, and as evidence of a change of policy towards Cuba, exposed the Cuban Government's refusal to change and its determination to prevent Cubans' empowerment.

For these reasons, the coronavirus, in this time of crisis, will have an incalculable effect on the deteriorating situation in the country, and could lead to a state of disorder, unless the Cuban authorities, out of time, finally muster the political will to save the nation, and their legacies, in the history books.
(Bloomberg) -- Google will allow political ads that mention the coronavirus, reversing a policy thats been in place since January, after some U.S. politicians complained it was stifling their campaigns during an election year.

The company initially blocked all ads related to the virus under its policy of not letting marketers capitalize on major unexpected events like epidemics and natural disasters. As the virus spread, Google started allowing health authorities to buy ads for public service announcements. Soon, political advertisers will be able to jump in, too, according to a memo sent to advertisers by Googles head of industry, elections, Mark Beatty. More information will be provided in the next few days, he added.

In the U.S., politicians have criticized President Donald Trumps response to the crisis, and some political groups complained that Googles ad ban prevented them from telling potential voters about this. The virus has also added more fuel to the debate over whether the U.S. should adopt a single-payer health-care system, one of the central issues in the Democratic presidential primary. Google and its YouTube video service have become a big part of election strategies for many politicians. Axios previously reported on the memo.

COVID-19 is becoming an important part of everyday conversation, including a relevant topic in political discourse, a Google spokesperson said. Were planning to allow more advertisers to run ads related to COVID-19.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

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Three more patients have died in Telangana due to the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the state announced late on Wednesday night, linking all these cases to a religious gathering in the national capitals Nizamuddin area.

Thirty new cases were detected in the southern state in a 24-hour period on Wednesday. The government said all these could be traced back to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at the Islamic missionary groups Delhi headquarters that has emerged as a hot spot of Covid-19 infections. The state also said it was planning to conduct diagnostic tests on over 300 of its residents who attended the event.

According to data from states, over 300 confirmed cases and 11 deaths, including the three in Telangana on Wednesday, could be linked to the March gathering. Officials are scrambling to trace the footsteps of those who visited Jamaats six-storey headquarters, also known as Markaz, and then fanned out across the country.

Altogether, nine deaths have been reported in Telangana -- all linked to the gathering.

The total number of infections in the state stand at 121, including 14 persons who have been discharged after recovery.

Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao briefed governor Tamilisai Soundarajan at the Raj Bhavan on the pandemic situation and also held a meeting with officials toll late in the night.

All three who died and 30 people who tested positive on Wednesday are those who had been to Markaz at Nizamuddin in Delhi. The six who died earlier were also those who had gone to Markaz, an official release from the chief ministers office said.

Initially, the virus spread among those who came from abroad, and through them it spread to others. They are all recovering. Many of them have been discharged. No case among them was serious. Nobody died. But the positive cases for the past few days involve those who went to Markaz, it said.

The chief minister also appealed to the Markaz attendees, their family members and those who came in contact with them to undergo tests.

Since the virus is spreading through those who went to Markaz, they all should undergo tests without failure, he said.

ANDHRA REPORTS 67 POSITIVE CASES

The neighbouring Telugu state of Andhra Pradesh reported 67 positive cases in a span of 24 hours. Forty-three of them were reported between 9 pm on Tuesday and 9am on Wednesday.

According to a late-night bulletin on Wednesday, another 24 cases were reported during the day, taking the overall tally of positive cases in the state to 113. This includes two patients who have been discharged.

...1085 persons attended the Delhi prayer meeting, and we have tracked and taken samples of 585. While 70 people tested positive, 500 results are yet to come and 21 people are yet to be traced, Andhra chief minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy said.

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A central Montana man has been charged with aggravated animal cruelty after 230 cows were found starving in the middle of calving season, including 65 that were found dead.

George J. Savoy, 57, was taken into custody Tuesday after people who drove by his property - located about 40 miles southwest of Great Falls - reported seeing the dead cows, the Great Falls Tribune reported.

The area was reportedly filled with a horrible stench and animals were strewn across the landscape with many unable to move and covered in bird droppings.

The Cascade County sheriff's office, public works and the state Department of Livestock responded to the scene Tuesday to remove carcasses - some from a stream - and feed the surviving animals.

Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter performs an interview on a property where a herd of roughly 230 starving cattle were found Tuesday

A total of 65 cows lay dead all presumed starved to death at a ranch west of Cascade, Montana

The land is 'grazed down to the dirt,' Capt. Scott Van Dyken said, noting the animals had no available food.

Several of the animals are pregnant.

'Some of these moms, you could walk right up to,' Deputy County Attorney Jennifer Quick said. 'They couldn't get up they were so weak.'

An investigator for the Montana Department of Livestocks Great Falls district said it was the worst case of animal cruelty involving cattle that he had seen.

'I havent seen one this bad,' Paul Johnson, said from the scene.

Three other properties owned by Savoy were being checked, authorities said.

'This is a big disaster,' Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter said about the starving black Angus herd. 'I know this community is going to want to help. And you know what? We need their help.'

The carcass of a dead cow lies in a pasture on Mission Road with bird droppings all over it

An emaciated cow waits to be fed. It could cost $27,000 per month to feed them and $100,000 in total to pay someone to move them and care for them

It's unclear how the situation came about but it comes amid the coronavirus pandemic when many people may not be able to help due to reduced incomes and social distancing measures.

In Montana there are 217 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 6 deaths out of Toole, Madison and Lincoln counties.

'Talk about lousy timing for something like this,' Commissioner Joe Briggs said.

Cascade County Attorney Josh Racki said he planned to file an animal welfare petition to seize the herd and possibly be reimbursed for county funds spent on the animals care, which is estimated to cost up to $100,000.

It could cost $27,000 per month to feed them and to pay someone to move them and care for them. The starting range for all the costs - including being treated by a vet - is $50,000.

Feed donations can be made at Cascade Solid Waste Site on the Simms-Cascade Road.

Financial donations can be made at the Sheriffs Office at 3800 N. Ulm Frontage Road or via the Sheriff's Legacy Foundation website.

Call 406-454-6820 for questions to the sheriff.

In this Tuesday, March 31, 2020, photo, Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter discusses his office seizing several hundred starving cows and calves
At a Wednesday afternoon news conference, Ontarios associate chief medical officer of health presented the latest COVID-19 numbers: the province had 2,392 confirmed cases, including 37 dead.

Those numbers, Dr. Barbara Yaffe cautioned the watching public, may be out of date. She explained: the province relies on its 34 local public health units to submit the data, which was retrieved the previous afternoon.

Minutes later, a journalist pointed out that those health units were, at that moment in news releases and on their websites, publicly reporting more than 65 dead. Why such a large difference, CTVs Scott Lightfoot asked?

I am kind of surprised at that discrepancy, I have to say, Yaffe responded, adding that the province doesnt at this moment have a better way to report the numbers.

Hours later at 5 p.m., after more health units had posted their days findings, the provinces official Wednesday total of 37 was off by at least 45 publicly reported COVID-19 deaths, according to the Stars count  a more than 100 per cent difference.

The conflicting information coming from the provinces health-care authorities is confusing to patients, doctors, epidemiologists and the general public who rely on health officials to tell them exactly how the COVID-19 epidemic is spreading, said experts who spoke to the Star.

At the news conference, Yaffe said she speaks regularly with the public health units medical officers of health about the importance of putting the data into the provincial database as soon as possible.

When asked if the province had any plan to make its numbers more current, Yaffe said: its a big challenge and were working on it constantly.

I think that part of it will be adding some resources to the local health units to do more intensive contact follow-up and more timely data entry, she said.

Inputting data into the provinces reporting system may not be the top priority for the local units in the middle of a crisis, she said, but it is important so that we can be as up-to-date as possible and as transparent as possible, and thats what we all want.

Hayley Chazan, a spokesperson for Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott, said the province is providing $100 million in additional investments for public health units to support COVID-19 monitoring and testing.

Yaffe and Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams continue to have conversations with public health units about the importance of submitting data related to COVID-19 cases into Ontarios Integrated Public Health Information System, she said.

The Star maintains a daily tally of public reports from all 34 regional public health units in the province. As of Wednesday evening, they were reporting 2,806 confirmed or probable COVID-19 cases, including 82 deaths.

According to David Fisman, an epidemiologist with the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto, the biggest problem with the provinces data being out of date is that its confusing to the public  no small thing amid a crisis.

A big jump in deaths, like the Stars count reveals, is to be expected in the exponential phase of an epidemic, he said, especially with several ongoing outbreaks at Ontario nursing homes.

The fact that deaths doubled  that seems like an important thing to know, he said. If Ontarians arent getting up-to-date information as the case counts grow, he said, how are you going to get people to stay in their house for two months?

As for what explains the large gap between the provinces data and whats publicly available from the health units, Fisman said that may just be the nature of the beast that is Ontarios low-tech health reporting system.

High-tech and public health are not synonymous, he said.

Dr. Anna Banerji, also a professor at the Dalla Lana school, said incomplete death numbers released by the province dont give health-care workers an accurate sense of the impact of the virus.

It can make people think its better or worse than the actual state, she said, noting that a delay of one or two days is sometimes part of the process of gathering the data. Longer than that, I think it could impact our understanding of whats going on, what the actual situation on the ground is.
Two more deaths related to the novel coronavirus in Iowa were confirmed Thursday by state public health officials.

The new deaths were both in Linn County, and were older patients, between the ages of 61 and 80.

That brings the total coronavirus-related deaths in Iowa to 11 since it first appeared here in early March.

The state also confirmed 66 new confirmed cases of the virus, bringing the states total to 614 cases.

A total of 74 Iowans are hospitalized with coronavirus-related illnesses or symptoms, according to state public health data.

Linn County continued to lead all 99 Iowa counties on Thursday with 103 positive cases, followed by Polk County with 87 and Johnson County with 80. A total of 63 of Iowas 99 counties currently have at least one positive COVID-19 case, according to state data.

A total of 326 women and 288 men have tested positive, with the 41-60 age range the highest with 226 cases, followed by Iowans in the 61 to 80 range with 178 cases, younger Iowans in the 18-40 range with 168 positive results, another 34 over the age of 80 and eight below the age of 18, according to IDPH figures.

Gov. Kim Reynolds plans to give the latest update on the states response to the coronavirus during her daily briefing Thursday afternoon at the State Emergency Operations Center at Camp Dodge in Johnston.

According to IDPH, the locations and age ranges of the 66 individuals include:

Allamakee County, one child (0-17 years), two adults (18-40 years), four middle-age adults (41-60 years), one older adult (61-80) years

Black Hawk County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Boone County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Bremer County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Buchanan County, one adult (18-40 years)

Cedar County, one adult (18-40 years), one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Cerro Gordo County, two middle-age adults (41-60 years)

Clay County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Clinton County, two adults (18-40 years), one older adult (61-80 years)

Dallas County, one adult (18-40 years), three middle-age adults (41-60 years)

Delaware County, one older adult (61-80 years)

Jefferson County, one adult (18-40 years)

Johnson County, one adult (18-40 years), three middle-age adults (41-60 years)

Jones County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Linn County, three adults (18-40 years), four middle-age adults (41-60 years), one older adult (61-80 years), one elderly adult (81+)

Mahaska County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Marshall County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Muscatine County, one adult (18-40 years)

Polk County, two adults (18-40 years), one middle-age adult (41-60 years), three older adults (61-80 years)

Poweshiek County, one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Scott County, three middle-age adults (41-60 years), one older adult (61-80 years)

Tama County, two adults (18-40 years), one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Van Buren County, one older adult (61-80 years)

Warren County, one adult (18-40 years), one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

Washington County, one adult (18-40 years), one older adult (61-80 years)

Winneshiek County, one older adult (61-80 years)

Woodbury County, two adults (18-40 years), one middle-age adult (41-60 years)

A status report of monitoring and testing of COVID19 in Iowa is provided by IDPH and can be found on its website.

In addition, a public hotline has been established for Iowans with questions about COVID-19. The line is available 24/7 by calling 2-1-1 or 1-800-244-7431. The state of Iowa has started sharing the number of negative tests conducted at outside labs, and is providing additional information on the conditions of those infected with COVID-19.

NOTE: A Des Moines County resident previously reported positive turned out to be negative. A previously identified Poweshiek County resident was actually a resident of Linn County
BAGHDAD  As the deadline approaches for Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Adnan al-Zurfi to form his government, he continues to meet with different parties to gain the support of the United States and Iran and ensure parliamentary approval of his government.

Since the fall of Saddam Hussein, all Iraqi prime ministers have needed the approval of two rival powers  the United States and Iran  to form a government.

Zurfi has 30 days from the date of his appointment as prime minister (March 17) to form a government and obtain parliamentary approval for that government, otherwise another candidate will take his place.

On March 31, the commander of Irans Quds Force, Esmail Ghaani, visited Iraq to meet with Shiite leaders regarding Zurfi.

According to a senior source in Hadi al-Amiri's office, Ghaani met with Iraq's four principal Shiite leaders: Amiri, of the Fatah Alliance; Ammar al-Hakim of the National Wisdom Movement; Nouri al-Maliki of the State of Law coalition; and Muqtada al-Sadr of the Sairoon Alliance, which is the largest parliamentary bloc.

Ghaani stated during his meetings that Irans new policy is to avoid interfering in Iraqs internal affairs. However, it is important to Iran that Iraqi Shiites agree on a prime minister. So far, the Fatah Alliance, which is affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), and State of Law have objected to Zurfi's candidacy and demanded his withdrawal.

Ghaani said that Iran opposes any candidate who is critical of Iran, which according to the source, was a reference to Zurfi. Despite Tehran's insistence that it is not interfering in the process, Iran and its allies are making it clear that they don't support Zurfi.

Zurfi has been a vocal supporter of Iraqs alliance with the United States, criticizing Iraqs standing with Iran against the United States, which he said is not in Iraq's interest.

In an interview with state-owned al-Iraqiya TV in May 2019, Zurfi said, "Iraq must adjust its policies with the new US administration," adding that Iraqs blindfolded standing with Iran has no benefits for the two countries.

Regarding Iran's help in fighting the Islamic State (IS), he said that Iran was actually serving "its own interests in preventing [IS] from reaching its borders."

Zurfi has supported the demands of anti-government protesters and criticized Iran-backed militias for attacking and intimidating the protesters. Zurfi also opposed a parliamentary vote to expel US troops following the assassination of Quds Force leader Qasem Soleimani, despite the insistence of the PMU and Iran to expel US troops from Iraq.

Yet Zurfi is now attempting to appeal to Iran, seeking its support for his Cabinet.

On March 29, Zurfi tweeted, The international community should help [Iran] by lifting or easing the sanctions and providing medical treatments for this [coronavirus pandemic]. He emphasized the close ties between Iraq and Iran, stating that Iraq is a close neighbor to the Islamic Republic of Iran.

He said that he will prioritize de-escalating US-Iran tensions as "the conflict between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran has negative repercussions on the political, economical and security situation in Iraq.

Despite his previous criticisms of the PMU, Zurfi tweeted that the PMU "is an Iraqi military institution established to fight terrorism and save Iraq, reminding his opponents in the PMU that we contributed to writing the law and voted for the PMU and allocated a sufficient budget for it in the Finance Committee."

Zurfi has also approached the United States to gain its support for his Cabinet. He met with ambassadors of the UN Security Council March 26 in Iraq, including US Ambassador Matthew Tueller, to discuss the current Iraqi security and political situation.

Zurfi also met with EU ambassadors March 28 to discuss the coronavirus pandemic in an attempt to gain international support for his government.

Donald Trump administration appears supportive of Zurfis nomination, but he has yet to receive any response from Tehran, despite all his appeasement efforts.

US Assistant Secretary of State David Schenker said March 19, regarding Zurfi's nomination, "We are hoping that pro-Iran parties  that is, Iran and its ally  do not move to scuttle the nomination." Schenker added at another briefing that the United States is "focused on principles, not individuals," so as to not be seen as interfering in a heavy-handed way.

It's a challenge to secure both the support of Washington and Tehran, because their central goal is to negate the other's influence. On certain issues of dispute between the United States and Iran, Zurfi could take a diplomatic stance, such as on US sanctions on Iran. Yet on other issues he would not be able to satisfy the two sides with one stance, such as the PMU's attacks on US bases and subsequent US retaliation.

In fact, Zurfis silence on the above issue is one reason why Iran is hesitant to support him because he might seek to curb the ambitions of Iranian militias in Iraq.

Under such circumstances, it will be difficult for Zurfi to successfully form a government. Iran's political influence, not only among the Shiites but the Sunnis and the Kurds, will pose a challenge to Zurfi's government formation; the Sunnis and Kurds will not vote for a prime minister whom the Shiites and Iranians do not accept.
Care workers are being forced to turn to food banks as they self-isolate with no sick pay during the coronavirus pandemic, prompting an appeal to help them feed themselves before they return to caring for the sick and elderly.

The Care Workers Charity, which issues grants to care workers in financial difficulty, said the virus outbreak had led to a huge spike in demand, with applications for handouts surging by 400 per cent since Monday evening. The charity has launched an emergency fund to provide self-isolating care workers who are struggling financially with 500 grants.

The Independents Help The Hungry campaign is highlighting projects that need your help to feed people left vulnerable by the Covid-19 crisis, with job losses, a fall in income or self-isolation.

Thousands of people working in care homes or providing home care are having to take time off work if they or a member of their household has Covid-19 symptoms, but in doing so are often left with no income because chronic underfunding in this care system means their employers cannot afford to give them sick pay, the charity said.

Recommended How to support our campaign

Some are turning to food banks during this time, while others are said to be going hungry until they are able to start working again.

The Care Workers Charitys emergency fund has a target of 1m and has already raised 100,000 since its launch  but the charity said the financial hardship was only going to get worse and far more would be needed to support care workers through the crisis.

There are around two million carers in the UK, and the Care Workers Charity estimates that around half of them will be forced out of work and may find themselves struggling if they have to self-isolate.

Karolina Gerlich, executive director of the charity, said: Most care workers are on low pay. When you are on low pay, even losing a week in full wages can have a really disastrous effect. Many care workers have partners who have lost jobs, which exacerbates the situation.

We have care workers who are fighting the virus at the front line, putting their health and lives at risk every day to support people, and then not having the money to buy food and pay their bills when they are choosing to do the right thing and self-isolate.

Ive been hearing from carers who are already having to go to food banks, and food banks are already beyond their limits of what they can provide.

Ms Gerlich said morale among care workers was particularly low at the moment because, while there has been a surge of support and appreciation for NHS staff, the care sector has received comparatively little recognition for their efforts during the pandemic.

Im seeing so many people say they dont know how they can carry on because everywhere they turn people are clapping for the NHS and everything else, and they feel like theyre forgotten, she said.

There are a lot of people in home care who care workers go to visit, who may have the virus. There are care workers who are moving into care homes to stay with residents to protect them. People are making so many sacrifices right now, its incredible.

They are definitely very much on the frontline, its just not being recognised.

More than 60 cross-party MPs have backed the charitys fundraiser and co-signed a letter stating that any care worker who has to self-isolate must be supported through any financial hardship they may suffer.

Our social care system is often an afterthought, with our care workers the unsung heroes. There is a real need for long-term fundamental reform. However, it is clear that social care is in urgent need of help, quickly and directly, the letter states.

You can donate to the Care Workers' Charity's fundraiser here.
WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he is weighing grounding domestic flights between coronavirus hot spots as he ramps up efforts to try to contain the pandemics spread.

Were thinking about doing that, Trump told reporters at a White House briefing, a day after he warned the nation to brace for a hell of a bad two weeks, with 100,000 to 240,000 coronavirus deaths projected, even if current social distancing guidelines are maintained.

Limited flights continue to run between cities like New York and Detroit, though passenger counts have plummeted across the nation. The Transportation Security Administration screened just 146,348 passengers Tuesday, down from 2,026,256 the same day last year.

Nonetheless, Trump said he was looking at new restrictions, even as he voiced concern about the impact on already-struggling airlines, saying that, once you do that, you really are clamping down on an industry that is desperately needed.

Trump, however, offered mixed messages during the briefing.

He seemed to suggest that he was looking to temporarily ground all domestic flights, saying, Were looking at the whole thing because were getting into a position now where we want to do that, we have to do that ... and we may have some recommendations.

But pressed later on whether that was his intention, he said he was thinking of something less restrictive.

I am looking where flights are going into hot spots, he said. Closing up every single flight on every single airline, thats a very, very, very rough decision. But we are thinking about hot spots where you go from spot to spot, both hot. And well let you know fairly soon.

Trump also said he was considering similar restrictions on train travel, while claiming, incorrectly, that anyone boarding a plane or train is currently subjected to very strong tests for getting on, getting off.

Trump in the past has said he was reluctant to ground flights because of challenges in getting the system back up and running once the threat posed by the virus fades.

When you start closing up entire transportation systems and then opening them up, thats a very tough thing to do, he said Wednesday.

Over the course of the crisis, Trump has been criticized for acting too slowly and for mixed messages from his administration. Over the weekend, he floated but then pulled back on the idea of a mandatory quarantine for residents of New York, New Jersey and parts of Connecticut. In the end, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel advisory urging residents of the states to refrain from nonessential travel for the next 14 days.

Indeed, Trump seemed to acknowledge Wednesday that perhaps he should have acted sooner.

Its a very big decision to do that, and were pretty late in the process from the standpoint that this is starting, he said. Youre going to start seeing, I think over the next couple of weeks, youre going to start to see us hit a top and start coming down.

___

Follow Colvin on Twitter at https://twitter.com/colvinj
A 47-year-old man has been accused of stealing a car from a woman in Dublin as she delivered vitally needed medication to elderly people cocooning in their homes to avoid Covid-19.

Patrick Dignam from Kimmage Road Lower, Kimmage, in Dublin was charged with motor theft at St Martins Park, also in Kimmage, and theft of the car owners keys and her handbag on Wednesday evening.

He was refused bail when he appeared before Judge Dermot Dempsey at Dublin District Court today.

Garda Jason Hurley said the accused made no reply when charged.

The garda objected to bail due to the seriousness of the offence.

He alleged the car owner had been helping senior citizens in the locality who have been restricted to their homes.

The injured party was delivering vitally needed medication to elderly people unable to leave their homes due the covid-19 epidemic, the garda said.

It was alleged the woman parked outside a house at St Martins Park to deliver medicine and left her keys in her car.

She then noticed it being driven away at about 6pm in the direction of Kimmage Road Lower.

Another garda observed it being driven erratically and later saw a man standing beside the drivers door.

The keys and handbag were recovered nearby and the accused allegedly fled on foot.

Gardai also seized the accuseds jacket and a neck lanyard belonging to the woman. There was also CCTV evidence, the court heard.

The judge heard he made admissions to taking the handbag and keys from the car.

There were garda fears the accused would interfere with witnesses because he lived about 100 yards from house where the car was taken.

Defence solicitor Daniel Hanahoe said his client was a diagnosed schizophrenic who lived in the locality, and he was co-operative with gardai.

The offence can result in maximum sentences of 10 years for theft and five for the motor theft.

Refusing bail, Judge Dempsey remanded Mr Dignam in custody to appear at Cloverhill District Court next Thursday. He acceded to a request from the defence to request medical attention for Mr Dignam in custody.

Legal aid was granted after the judge noted the man was on social welfare.

Mr Dignam sat silently at the side of the courtroom throughout the hearing and has not yet indicated how he will plead.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 16:46:03|Editor: huaxia

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Chinese Ambassador Wang Yu (2nd L) hands over medical supplies to Mohammad Sarwar Danish, second vice president of Afghanistan, during a handover ceremony in Kabul, Afghansitan, April 2, 2020. China stands together with Afghan people to fight the novel coronavirus, Chinese Ambassador to Afghansitan Wang Yu said at a handover ceremony of the first batch of China-aided medical supplies on Thursday. (Xinhua/Zou Delu)

KABUL, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China stands together with Afghan people to fight the novel coronavirus, Chinese Ambassador to Afghansitan Wang Yu said at a handover ceremony of the first batch of China-aided medical supplies on Thursday.

"On behalf of Chinese government, I'm handing over the much-needed medical assistance to the Afghan government. The medical assistance includes ventilators, protective clothes and face masks," Wang said at the ceremony which was also attended by Mohammad Sarwar Danish, second vice president of Afghanistan.

The donation by China was the latest action of Sino-Afghan cooperation to fight the virus and reflected the true brotherly friendship between the two neighbors, said the ambassador.

"At the most difficult moment in China's fight against the COVID-19 outbreak, Afghanistan jointed the international community to extend its hand to China. Such expressions of friendship will always be remembered by the Chinese government and people," said Wang.

Noting the helping hand China has lent to other COVID-19-hit countries, Wang said, "please rest assured, China stands together with Afghan people to fight this virus. We will continue to provide support within our capacity."

On his part, Danish expressed sincere gratitude for China's donation at the ceremony, adding "I want to also congratulate China on their unparalleled achievements and success in the fight against COVID-19."

Afghan authorities confirmed 43 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, bringing to 239 the total number of patients in the country since the outbreak of the disease in mid February.
A man has been jailed after stealing personal protection equipment (PPE) from an ambulance and assaulting an NHS hospital security guard.

Police were called at 9.19pm on Saturday to reports of a man stealing from an ambulance near Guy's Hospital on St Thomas Street, south London.

Mark Manley, 35, took a bag containing PPE from the vehicle which included masks, paper suits and hand gel, police said.

The NHS and emergency services have faced a severe shortage of PPE while battling the coronavirus outbreak.

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures 1 /81 Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures A deserted Westminster Bridge PA A man wearing a face mask or covering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past customers sat outside a restaurant AFP via Getty Images Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Runners pass cardboard cutouts of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William during the London Marathon in London AP An empty escalator at Charing Coss London Underground tube station Jeremy Selwyn Electronic bilboards displays a message warning people to stay home in Sheffield PA A sign is displayed in the window of a student accommodation building following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Mancheste Reuters People take part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions, in Londo AP People sing and dance in Leicester Square on the eve on the 10PM curfew Reuters Hearts painted by a team of artists from Upfest are seen in the grass at Queen Square, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bristol Reuters Graffiti reads 'good luck and stay safe', as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, under a bridge in London Reuters A sign is pictured in Soho, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London Reuters Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures, during a coronavirus briefing in Downing Street, London AP A person runs past posters with a message of hope, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Manchester REUTERS Riot police face protesters who took part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions in London AP An image of The Queen eith quotes from her broadcast to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the Coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images Durdle Door in Dorset Reuters Captain Tom Moore via Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Coronavirus outbreak PA An NHS worker reacts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS Reuters Goats which have taken over the deserted streets of Llandudno @AndrewStuart via PA Tobias Weller PA Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed London Landscapes: Hyde Park and the Serpentine, central London. Matt Writtle A newspaper vendor in Manchester city centre giving away free toilet rolls with every paper bought as shops run low on supplies due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus PA Theo Clay looks out of his window next to his hand-drawn picture of a rainbow in Liverpool, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue Reuters A young man cuts another man's hair on top of a closed hairdresser in Oxford Reuters General view of the new NHS Nightingale Hospital, built to fight against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London via Reuters Jason Baird is seen dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children in Stockport, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters A woman wearing a face mask walks past Buckingham Palace Getty Images A man holds mobile phone displaying a text message alert sent by the government warning that new rules are in force across the UK and people must stay at home PA Medical staff on the Covid-19 ward at the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, in Wales, as the health services continue their response to the coronavirus outbreak. PA Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking part in a virtual Cabinet meeting with his top team of ministers PA A shopper walks past empty shelves in a Lidl store on in Wallington. After spates of "panic buying" cleared supermarket shelves of items like toilet paper and cleaning products, stores across the UK have introduced limits on purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have also created special time slots for the elderly and other shoppers vulnerable to the new coronavirus. Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour PA Mia, aged 8 and her brother Jack, aged 5 from Essex, continue their school work at home, after being sent home due to the coronavirus PA Children are painting 'Chase the rainbows' artwork and springing up in windows across the country Reuters Social distancing in Primrose Hill Jeremy Selwyn A general view of a locked gate at Anfield, Liverpool as The Premier League has been suspended PA Homeless people in London AFP via Getty Images A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow's street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss PA The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace, London, for Windsor Castle to socially distance herself amid the coronavirus pandemic PA A general view on Grey street, Newcastle as coronavirus cases grow around the world Reuters Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty (L) and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance look on as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he speaks during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news conference inside 10 Downing Street Reuters The ticket-validation terminals at the tram stop on Edinburgh's Princes Street are cleaned following the coronavirus outbreak. PA Locked school gates at Rockcliffe First School in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A sign at a Sainsbury's supermarket informs customers that limits have been set on a small number of products as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases grow around the world Reuters Jawad Javed delivers coronavirus protection kits that he and his wife have put together to the vulnerable people of their community of Stenhousemuir, between Glasgow and Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" 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When challenged by hospital security staff, the suspect assaulted one and racially abused another.

Some of the PPE items were also rendered no longer usable due to contamination, the Met Police said.

Manley was eventually detained by the security guards with the help of patrolling British Transport Police officers.

The suspect was arrested on suspicion of theft, actual bodily harm and a racially aggravated public order offence. He was later charged with all three offences.

The 35-year-old was also charged with an assault against an emergency worker after the security guard sustained non-life threatening facial injuries.
Many taxi drivers are self employed and struggle to find support.

Taxi drivers have made an urgent appeal to the Northern Ireland Executive to provide support as they deal with a near total loss of income.

The Belfast Public Hire Taxi association urged the finance and infrastructure department to consider grants to support the industry.

Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon moved to assure drivers her officials were working on measures to alleviate pressures brought about by regulation demands.

"I understand this is a really worrying time for you and you are being hit very hard by the scale of this public health and economic crisis," the minister said in an open letter.

"While my responsibility for taxis only extends to the regulation of the industry, I am aware of the increasing financial hardships this crisis is creating, with my Executive colleagues I pushed hard to secure the self-employed financial package announced by the British Government last week.

"While it is not perfect, it will go someway to helping self-employed people, like those within the taxi industry, to help put food on the table and pay bills. With Executive colleagues I will continue to press for more assistance.

She said she was working with the Department of Communities on social distancing advice for taxis which she hoped would be ready as soon as possible.

Gerry Maxwell of Belfast Public Hire Taxis said the message did not go far enough.

"We need actions, not words," he told the Belfast Telegraph.

"I know one driver sat for nine hours and had one job. I asked him why he sat so long - and he said he was desperate for the money.

"It is getting tougher by the day and there is no support for us. In the Taxi Act of 2008 there is provision to give us grants. Why can we not get these grants?

"We have car payments, insurance, mortgages and also have to pay for testing - we pay 138.50, that's more than anyone else - and now is the time we need their support. We pay rates like any business, but without the building. Yet there is support for businesses.

"Also we urgently need social distancing advice - how can you social distance in a saloon car?"

Mr Maxwell said drivers had recently bought new cars and could not get them tested in order to start work.

"We are at our wits' end. I am not confident they can help us. We have been told to go on to universal credit, but not everyone qualifies. We have been told to try the government self-employed support scheme. But June is a long way away."

He said drivers had considered offering delivery services for the vulnerable but fear of spending any extra money on the likes of fuel would put them off.

He added: "Banks will charge you for a loan of they lend you anything. There are no holidays on car payments - we need our Executive to stand up for us."

Nichola Mallon said taxi drivers should explore opportunities on how they can take the pressure off vital services such as delivering food supplies and the Executive was considering how to re-purpose laws to allow for them to support.

"I know this is a difficult time for you, but in dealing with the impact of Covid-19, we are facing theses challenges together," she added.

"I want to assure you that I am doing and will continue to do, everything within my power and remit as infrastructure minister to help you though this crisis and I will continue to work with Executive colleagues to do as much as we can together to help you for as long as the crisis lasts".

The infrastructure, finance and communities departments have been approached for comment.
Video conferencing apps are turning us, against our will, into modern-day Narcissusesunable to look away from our own reflections. Unlike the figure from Greek mythology, however, many of us arent drawn to our striking visages but to our own dumb faces, as someone recently put it in Slates Slack. Were forced to confront ourselves on cameraflaws, unflattering lighting, and alland we cant avert our eyes, even if we find a gargoyle staring back at us.

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The problem, of course, is that if you have anything resembling a social life these daysor if youre working from homeyoure probably spending a fair amount of time video chatting. Maybe youre attending daily meetings, going on first dates, hosting happy hours, or playing board games with family members on Zoom (the videoconferencing service of choice for the coronavirus pandemic). And each time you pick up another call, there you are again in the top right corner, thumb-sized and baggy-eyed, with unwashed hair and comfy sweats. By now, you might even have a Zoom hangover.

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There are a few quick fixes to the problem of having to stare at yourself frequently. Guides to looking better on video calls abound. Zoom even has a Touch Up My Appearance feature in Video Settings, which the company says can help smooth out the skin tone on your face, to present a more polished looking appearance. But airbrushing doesnt get to the root of the issue. For that, you might want to hide your face entirely.

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The good news is that on Zoom, at least, you can hide yourself without turning off your camera. Others can see you, but you wont be staring at yourselfthe closest youll get to the experience of talking in person. If youre in Gallery mode (the Brady Bunchstyle view), all you have to do is right-click your video to display the menu and choose Hide Self View.

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If youre in Speaker mode (where the person talking is the largest screen), that same option will appear, but clicking on it wont actually do anything. Instead, youll have to enter full-screen view, then hover over your image, where a small menu will appear at the top. Choose the icon on the left, which reads Hide thumbnail video when you hover over it. The thumbnail will then become a text box that indicates whos speaking.

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If you eventually happen to miss your own imageor if you just want to double-check that youre not being captured at an unflattering angle, or that your pile of laundry isnt in viewyou can always right-click any users display and choose Show Self View in Gallery mode. In Speaker mode, you can return to the box indicating whos speaking and click the middle icon in the menu. It might not cure Zoom fatigue, but it will free you of the burden of having to see yourself, yet again, for hours on end.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
Market Three, which has a reputation in the Philippines capital as a lair for drug dealers and hit men willing to kill someone for $100.

Manila, Philippines: The fishing is best on nights like this when the moon is a sliver in the sky, and at midnight in the Philippines largest fishing port, the atmosphere was frenetic.

Dockworkers in thick rubber boots emptied the catch from the rusting vessels crowded against the pier. Into hundreds of plastic pails lined up in rows, they tossed grouper, barracuda, tuna, flying fish, moonfish and sardines: 300 tons of fish on an average day.

Women in slime-streaked aprons, pockets stuffed with cash, shouted orders and negotiated prices, and the returning fishermen soon had money to spend in the nearby bars and brothels.

The Navotas Fish Port Complex, a quarter-square mile of crumbling piers, is a vital part of the economy of Manila, the Philippine capital. Last year, the government announced a $270 million plan to rehabilitate the port.

But the governments renewal plans have worried the ports impoverished residents, who have already suffered tremendous trauma at the hands of the Philippine authorities and now fear being evicted.

Inside the port is one of Manilas most notorious slums, Market Three, which has a reputation in the capital as a lair for drug dealers and hit men willing to kill someone for $100.

When President Rodrigo Duterte questions the humanity of the people being shot by the police in his anti-drug campaign, in which at least 6,600 people have died, hes aiming his slurs at people like those in Market Three.

What crime against humanity? Duterte said in defence of his anti-drug campaign. Id like to be frank with you, are they humans?

At the height of the governments crackdown in 2016 and 2017, Market Three, named after the nearest pier, was an epicentre of the killings, even though the majority of the 1,000 or so families living here had nothing to do with the drug trade.

There were bodies found floating in the water, while other people were killed inside their homes, as many as five in a night.

While residents blamed the police for many of these summary executions, in most cases, the killers were never identified.

But the people of Market Three were certain it was the police who smashed open their doors during raids in the middle of the night, wearing masks, carrying guns and shining flashlights into their faces.

Because people couldnt quite discern why the police or their proxies were killing some and not others  mistaken identity or disproportionate punishment were frequent guesses  the raids filled the whole slum with a fear that death could happen at any time, for any reason.

Theres less of that now. While the governments deadly anti-drug campaign goes on, the police focus has shifted to other areas of the country and to other targets. Just on Wednesday, Duterte ordered the police and the military to shoot people protesting the nations lockdown over the coronavirus.

Were still scared, said John Felix Eduarte, 18, who grew up inside Market Three.

When he was a child, he scoured the nearby piers for dropped coins and fish that slipped out from a pail. He sold them and used the money to gamble for penny stakes.

At the ports ice plant, he packed shaved ice into balls, and threw them at his friends. Or he hitched rides on sea bound fishing boats, leapt off into the bay, and swam back to the docks.

Its too dirty now to swim. If you swallow the water, youll definitely throw up, Eduarte said.

And like many of Market Threes resident, he now works on the docks, hoisting crates, pulling 80-pound pails of fish and shoveling ice.

The port proper is connected to Market Three by a narrow cement path that wends between an overgrown empty lot known as the Mountain, a permanent black puddle the size of a swimming pool, and the ports 20-foot-high outside wall.

When Eduarte was 15, he met Merry Punio, then also 15, at a karaoke stall. They had the same favorite song. They were both dating other people, but soon they were singing duets, and a week later, started dating each other.

Punio isnt from the fish port and had sworn she would never go inside one of Manilas most dangerous neighborhoods.

But when her sister moved there, she visited, and found something unexpected. Its a happier place than outside, she said.

The alleys of Market Three function as a communal living room. On a visit, a group of women played poker around a plastic table, their banter breaking out into peals of laughter.

A few boys practiced break dancing, and a man shaved in the reflection of a broken off car mirror. One boy wiped the bleary eyes of his baby sibling, just woken up from a nap.

During Market Threes feast day in November for its patron saint, Our Lady of Remedies, children play agaw buko, a game involving a battle to grasp a greased coconut. Others line up for pukpok palo, using a stick while blindfolded to break a clay pot filled with flour.

Drawn by this street life, and willing to overlook the dangers for love, Punio moved in with her boyfriend, and they now have their own place, a tiny space shorter than they are tall, underneath the home of Eduartes father.

Many poor Filipinos dont have weddings or official marriage certificates, but within a year, she and Eduarte were calling each other husband and wife. She stopped going to school, angering her parents.

They had a baby named Chloe. They didnt know how to bathe her or how to feed her.

Everyone here helped us, she said. Youre never left alone.

Eduartes uncle got him a job unloading crates of fish. He makes between nothing and $4 a day, $20 on really busy days. Its enough for him, Merry, Chloe and Yhuan, their infant son.

The port is a 24-hour operation, and the people who use shabu, the local variant of meth openly sold in the area, say it helps them stay alert for the midnight rush and gives them strength to haul heavy pails of fish until dawn.

On his way to work at 5 a.m. earlier this year, Eduarte stepped over a puddle of blood. A man had been shot in a dispute between drug dealers on the Mountain. Given the amount of blood, Eduarte doubted the victim survived.

Daisy Maraguinot, 45, a longtime resident of Market Three, dismisses the need for shabu to get by on the docks. There are plenty of people who do the work without drugs, she said. She mostly leaves the drug dealers of Market Three alone, but shed like them gone.

Since the government announced its rehabilitation plans for the fishing complex, Maraguinot, the president of an organisation that supports rights for the areas informal settlers, has been negotiating with the port authorities not to demolish their homes.

Its a battle to convince the authorities that, as workers, theyre valuable to the fish port, and that they deserve a place to live nearby.

Of course we dont want to live like this, Maraguinot said. We want a decent place to live. But we need to make a living more.

Last year, the police installed a CCTV camera inside Market Three. Maraguinot doesnt trust the police. Theyve killed her friends and neighbors, and when they did their raids, cellphones and televisions disappeared with them.

But if they were here to arrest the drug dealers, Maraguinot was willing to give them a chance. Since then, theyve arrested dozens of people, including children.

With the coronavirus having shut down much of the Philippines, the residents of Market Three feel abandoned by the government, Maraguinot said, with many in the community surviving only on privately donated rice.

While the fishing port remains open, many day labourer jobs have dried up.

We can die of COVID-19, Maraguinot said, but were more likely to die of hunger.

Aurora Almendral and Hannah Reyes Morales c.2020 The New York Times Company
By PTI

ISLAMABAD: The number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan surpassed 2,000 on Wednesday, indicating an upward trend despite efforts by the government to contain the pandemic. The Ministry of National Health Services said that 105 new patients tested positive for the virus in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of infections to 2,039.

It showed that the largest provinces of Punjab had 708 cases, Sindh - 676, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) - 253, Balochistan - 158, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) - 184, Islamabad - 54 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir - 6. So far, 26 people have died due to the virus and 82 have recovered, while another 12 are in critical condition.

The increase in the number of cases showed that there was little impact of the measures, including partial lockdown, taken so far to reduce the spread of the disease. Officials in Pakistan are scrambling to contain the disease by appealing to the public to remain inside homes and go out only in cases of emergencies.

But there was little impact on the masses and in several cities, people were seen roaming out while security officials were trying to convince them to go back to their places. Prime Minister Imran Khan would hold a meeting of National Core Committee to discuss steps to contain the deadly virus.

He has already announced Rs 1,200 billion package to deal with the economic challenges posed by the coronavirus crisis.
The government is appealing for help from private industry to dramatically ramp up testing for coronavirus as pressure mounts on Boris Johnson over the failure of official attempts to accelerate checks for frontline NHS staff.

With ministers facing a deluge of criticism over figures showing just 2,000 of the estimated 125,000 self-isolating frontline medics had been tested for Covid-19, health secretary Matt Hancock held a virtual meeting with the pharmaceutical industry to ask for help in scaling up capacity. On his return to Westminster today after self-isolating for seven days with coronavirus symptoms, he is expected to set out a five-point plan to try to restore momentum to the governments strategy.

The medical director of Public Health England (PHE), which has been accused of taking an overly bureaucratic approach to testing, insisted that the body had played our part in making sure tests were available for patients in hospitals. But Professor Paul Cosford said that the job of using outside laboratories to boost testing potentially to as much as 100,000 a day was for the separate Office for Life Sciences, which is the joint responsibility of Mr Hancock and business secretary Alok Sharma.

Downing Street said the number of self-isolating NHS staff tested at drive-through facilities had increased to 2,800 by Wednesday, with "significant" numbers of frontline medics tested in hospitals.

Meanwhile, a growing number of industrial and academic labs were coming forward to highlight opportunities to conduct tests outside PHE labs, in what one scientist described as a repeat of the flotilla of little boats which saved the day at Dunkirk.

Ministers have been accused of snubbing offers of help from the wider scientific community while relying on NHS hospital facilities and PHEs network of eight labs.

But Downing Street said it had accepted the loan of testing machines from almost 100 institutions to set up a new testing centre which started operations in Milton Keynes this week. Two similar large-scale labs are due to open next week in Cheshire and Glasgow to process tests from the North of England and Scotland.

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, said its research laboratory was being repurposed to carry out 500 Covid-19 tests a day by next week, rising to 2,000 later, and suggested other research centres could offer similar help.

He told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: A metaphor here is Dunkirk  we are a lot of little boats and the little boats can be effective.

The government has put some big boats, destroyers in place. Thats a bit more cumbersome to get working and we wish them all the luck to do that, but we little boats can contribute as well.

The University of Oxford was reported to have 119 unused testing machines available, while the Animal and Plant Health Agency was said to have potential capacity for 40,000 tests a week and one medical research laboratory in Abingdon launched a drive for up to 1,000 small labs across the country to volunteer to test frontline healthcare workers.

In a video message issued late on Wednesday, the prime minister  who is himself self-isolating after developing symptoms  said that testing was the way through the crisis.

Admitting that the government needs to massively ramp up testing so NHS staff who are self-isolating unnecessarily can return to work, Mr Johnson said: This is how we will unlock the coronavirus puzzle. This is how we will defeat it in the end.

Labour called for clarity on how ministers plan to increase antigen testing, which did not meet last weeks target of 10,000 daily until Tuesday this week  despite lab capacity rising to 12,750  at a time when Germany is testing 500,000 people a week and the World Health Organisation is urging all countries to test, test, test.

Shadow cabinet member Shami Chakrabarti said: Were asking the government to be transparent and to be clear  about what its plans are to deliver the kind of scale of testing that we need, both to get the NHS workforce tested but also to return as quickly as possible to community-based testing.

Without widespread testing in the population, we dont understand  having listened to experts  the way out of the lockdown.

Labours shadow health secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, tweeted: We need clear National Testing Strategy to beat the virus. Make full use of labs in HE [higher education], research institutions & industry & cut through any bureaucracy holding this back. Community testing & tracing is way out of lockdown cycles until vaccine found.

Matt Hancock and Boris Johnson have both tested positive for coronavirus (AP)

Speaking after his video conference, Mr Hancock said: Ive called together our pharmaceutical giants and testing specialists to call on them to build a scale of diagnostic capability never before seen in this country.

It is a huge task but they know they have the have the full support of this government as we work towards this common goal in the national interest, as part of our national effort to tackle coronavirus.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said Mr Hancock had asked for solutions which could be scaled up immediately and at pace to deliver an immediate boost to capacity and delivery  as well as medium-term solutions which would sustain and further grow this capacity over the course of the emergency response in the coming weeks and months.

And Mr Johnson's official spokesman said the NHS has developed a new swab specification which is being shared with potential manufacturers in the hope that it will provide a means to increase testing to the hundreds of thousands.

A five-point plan being launched today is expected to feature boosting testing capacity; paying private firms to conduct swab testing; rolling out antibody tests which show whether someone has had the illness and recovered; randomised sampling of the population; and building up Britains long-term diagnostic capacity by working with pharmaceutical firms.

Prof Cosford admitted that everybody involved is frustrated by the low number of tests being carried out.

He said he expected testing to hit 15,000 per day imminently and 25,000 by the middle of April, with five drive-through NHS staff testing hubs up and running and another four to come on stream this week.

One hospital had managed to get 100 workers back to work after testing staff, he said.

Work being led by the Office for Life Sciences to look at a much broader set of universities, industry and other laboratories will give us another 100,000 or more tests per day, Prof Cosford continued.

Weve certainly not refused any help from any laboratories and weve talked to many about what might be possible.

Its actually worse to have wrong tests than no tests at all. We need to be very careful to make sure that the tests we use are tests that work.
Twenty-four hours after the Navy's top leaders said they need commanding officers to be candid about problems, the captain of a coronavirus-stricken aircraft carrier who pleaded for help has been relieved of command.

Capt. Brett Crozier, who commanded the carrier Theodore Roosevelt, was removed from his job after a letter he wrote about the situation on his ship was sent to people outside his chain of command, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said.

"The responsibility for this decision rests with me," Modly said. "I expect no congratulations for it and it gives me no pleasure in making it. Captain Crozier is an honorable man who, despite this uncharacteristic lapse of judgment, has dedicated himself throughout a lifetime of incredible service to our nation, and he should be proud of that."

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday said he supported Modly's decision.

Related: 'Sailors Do Not Need to Die': Carrier Captain Pleads for Help as Virus Cases Surge

The pair discussed Crozier's letter at length with reporters Wednesday and said, while disappointed it leaked to the press, that it was not inappropriate for the captain to raise concerns about the situation on his ship with his chain of command.

"I don't know who leaked the letter to the media -- that would be something that would violate the principles of good order if he were responsible for that, but I don't know that," Modly said Wednesday.

On Thursday, Modly said he still didn't know whether Crozier leaked the letter to his hometown newspaper, the San Francisco Chronicle.

But sending it to anyone outside the chain of command, "who had been moving and adjusting as rapidly as possible to get him the help he needed," undermined the process, Modly said.

"For these reasons, I lost confidence in his ability to continue to lead that warship as it fights through this virus to get the crew healthy," he added.

Much remains unclear about how Modly arrived at his decision to fire Crozier after both he and Gilday implied yesterday that raising concerns about the health and safety of his sailors was not out of line.

Modly on Thursday said Crozier did send the letter to his chain of command, but also copied 20 to 30 others on the email. That was inappropriate, Modly added. He said Crozier should have instead "walked down the hallway" to speak to his commanding officer.

"It's not a blast-out email to anybody who he knows about the situation," Modly said during the sometimes-heated Thursday press conference.

The letter's going public raised unnecessary panic on the ship, the acting Navy secretary added.

"The chief petty officers were not prepared to answer questions from the crew in terms of how bad the situation was," Modly said. "[The letter] misrepresented the facts of what was going on on the ship as well. And at the same time, the families here in the United States were panicked about the reality of what's happening on the ship."

Crozier warned that a failure to evacuate the carrier's crew would result in rapid spread of COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Modly said 114 sailors who have tested positive, adding "with great certainty there's going to be more."

"That'll probably be in the hundreds," he said.

But Crozier should have called him or another superior directly if he was concerned about the situation deteriorating, Modly added.

Instead, he said, Crozier created doubt about the Navy's ability to handle the situation on the Roosevelt, a nuclear-powered aircraft. That was "a completely unnecessary thing," Modly said.

He acknowledged that commanding officers aren't trained for the type of crisis they're currently facing in the coronavirus pandemic.

"But we expect more from our COs than what they trained for," he said. "We expect them to exercise good judgment that does not put their crews in jeopardy and is not jeopardizing the national security mission in the United States."

Modly sought to assure the Roosevelt's crew members during the period of turmoil, telling them "no one cares more than I do about their safety and welfare."

"I am entirely convinced that your commanding officer loves you and that he had you at the center of his heart in mind and every decision that he has made," Modly said. "I also know that you have great affection and love for him as well, but it's my responsibility to ensure that his love and concern for you is matched, if not exceeded by, his sober and professional judgment under pressure."

Modly said no one from the White House influenced his decision to relieve Crozier. Defense Secretary Mark Esper was aware of his decision, Modly said, and added he was told he had the secretary's support.

Lawmakers have been quick to blast the Navy's handling of the situation. In a joint statement, members of the House Armed Services Committee called Modly's decision to remove Crozier from his job an overreaction, and said they fear it'll have a chilling effect when it comes to commanders reporting problems.

"While Captain Crozier clearly went outside the chain of command, his dismissal at this critical moment -- as the Sailors aboard the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt are confronted with the COVID-19 pandemic -- is a destabilizing move that will likely put our service members at greater risk and jeopardize our fleet's readiness," the statement from House Democrats adds.

Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., a veteran Marine officer, said he learned on his first day in uniform that speaking truth to power is not grounds for relief.

"This is far from the first time in the last several years that Congress is going to have a lot of questions for Navy leadership -- on leadership," Moulton tweeted on Thursday.

Capt. Dan Keeler, the Roosevelt's executive officer, has temporarily assumed command of the ship, Modly said. Rear Adm. (sel.) Carlos Sardiello, who previously commanded the carrier, will replace Crozier.

"He is extremely well acquainted with the ship, many members of his crew and the operations and the capabilities of the ship itself," Modly said. "He's the best person in the Navy right now to take command under these unusual circumstances."

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

Read more: The Marine Corps' 1st New Littoral Regiment Will Be Based in Japan
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Thursday said that an initiative to mobilise services of ex-servicemen (ESM) has been started to take their help in assist the State and the District Administration to fight the coronavirus.

"As the nation continues to fight the challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (ESW), Ministry of Defence, has taken the initiative to mobilise services of ex-servicemen (ESM) community as a part of augmentation of precious human resource to assist the State and District administration, wherever required," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry also said Rajya Sainik Boards and Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ESM volunteers to assist the State and the District Administration in performing public outreach activities.

"The ESM across the country has risen to the occasion of 'Service before Self' at a time when the nation has made a clarion call and need them to fight this unique challenge," read the statement.

In Punjab, an organisation called 'Guardians of Governance' comprising 4,200 ESM is assisting in data collection from all the villages. Chhattisgarh government has also engaged some ESM to assist the police.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday accused the Congress of playing "petty politics" and said that it is high time the party think of interest.

Taking to Twitter, Shah said that India's efforts to fight coronavirus are being lauded "domestically and globally".

"Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, India's efforts to fight coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. 130 crore Indians are united to defeat COVID-19. Yet, Congress is playing petty High time they think of interest and stop misleading people," Shah tweeted.

This came after the meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) via video conferencing.

A statement issued by the CWC after the meeting suggested the central government to immediately form an economic task force consisting of world-renowned economists to suggest plans to protect and revive the economy.

It also asked the Centre to urgently scale up testing for coronavirus, saying it has followed "a flawed strategy" and that lockdown is futile unless there is extensive testing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
What the future holds for the elderly in Vietnam is unclear, especially if they are poor or sick.

Luu Dinh Long

For the past 10 years Ive been living in a rented room in a house owned by an old, childless couple.

In their 80s now, Nghi, the husband, and Van, the wife, still work as scrap collectors.

Their house is in a tiny alley in Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City. Ever since I have known them and came to live with them under the same roof, their life has not been easy financially. Their food usually is simple, comprising only vegetables, or food others give Van.

I rarely see her go to the market. Occasionally I give her some money, telling her to buy something nice to eat, but on their dining table I see the same food she gets from others when going around picking scrap.

"How do you plan on keeping all of your money when eating like that?" I asked her jokingly.

"I need to save up in case were sick and need medicines," she replied.

He used to earn a living by fixing cassette players while she sold used clothes at a market.

When I started renting the attic of their house in 2005, both of them had already stopped working. Shortly afterward they began to receive orders to make votive papers. They make paper horses, and for working all day they get VND90,000 (less than $4).

At night they go out to collect scrap. There is a bookstore not far from the house, and the manager there has a rule for his staff: segregate all the trash that can be recycled, just for her. Every night at 9 oclock she goes to collect it. After that she makes a tour of restaurants and street-side eateries to pick metal cans and plastic bottles.

Late one night I went downstairs and found her eating a banh mi in a dark corner and him lying on the floor, squashing mosquitoes. I could not help but feel how lonely that scene was for those two old souls.

Even though my room is only 10 square meters, I have to share the restroom downstairs with them and the ground floor where they live is always filled with bags of scrap they collect and the votive paper they make, I do not want to vacate because it would mean they have to wait for someone to rent that room.

The sum of VND1.5 million ($65) per month they earn from renting out the room to me has been their main source of income for years now.

For now they will keep working as scrap collectors "because as long as we are still healthy enough, we will keep doing the job to earn some extra money," Van said.

Stories of old people long past working age but still working for a living are not unusual in Vietnam.

A survey by the General Office for Population Family Planning in 2017 found more than 70 percent of elderly people in Vietnam have to work for a living since only 30 percent have access to pension and social security.

But Minister of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs Dao Ngoc Dung said only 40 percent of the countrys more than 11 million elderly people have to keep working to take care of themselves even after crossing retirement age.

Of the two contradictory figures, we do not know which one is closer to the truth.

But officially Vietnam entered the aging phase in 2011 when 9.9 percent of the population was aged above 60. In 2018 the ratio jumped to 11.95 percent when the population was 94.67 million, and it is expected to climb to 17 percent in 2030 and 26 percent in 2050.

Actually, if the elderly are still healthy enough to work it is a good thing because, to some extent, working is a joy.

But it would be a problem when they are simply too old to work but still have to labor to earn a living or cannot afford health insurance or do not have a pension and have no choice but to become a burden for their children and grandchildren.

Two seniors sit by the bank of the West Lake in Hanoi October 2018. Photo by VnExpress/Dinh Tung.

Recently the social media in Vietnam has been abuzz with a video showing an 88-year-old woman in the nations south being beaten by her son and daughter-in-law. An elderly person once told me: "If we get old and sick but don't die and instead lie [in bed] and let our children and grandchildren take care of us, then, however much they may love us, they will one day become disrespectful one way or another."

The video shows the woman lying in bed wearing a diaper, clearly lacking the ability to take care of herself. Her daughter-in-law appears to yell at her first before it gets ugly with the beating. Then her son comes to continue yelling along with more beating.

Though netizens quickly jumped in to express their anger and indignation, and many wished a horrible fate for the son and his wife and the police took in the couple, no one can tell what exactly happened because there must have been a long story for such behavior by the two.

Probing deeper, we can see that inadequate welfare, both spiritually and materially, for old people, and the inadequate public attention to the elderly is the main reason.

Vietnam does not have a hotline to protect old people. In many other countries, whenever one learns that an elderly person is being abused, they can call a hotline to report to the police or victims can call themselves.

We neither have programs to prepare old people for or get them acquainted with the rapid changes occurring in the modern world or teach them on how to manage their physical and spiritual health nor activities to save them from loneliness and being forgotten.

Old people live on the fringes of society.

In worse cases, there are criminal rings that coerce elderly people to beg on the street, with most victims being poor people in rural areas who come to big cities looking for a job.

Nghi told me that after he turned 80 he has been getting a stipend of VND300,000 ($13) a month from the government.

"I give her VND100,000 to cover the cost of our meals. With the rest, I treat myself to a nice breakfast sometimes."

People easily become unstable when they grow old. And that is the future for all of us.

Creating a stable future for the elderly, at least at the basic level, is a task that should be accomplished as soon as possible. This should in fact be a national policy.

It is high time Vietnamese stopped clinging to the old saying "young people depend on their parents and the old depend on their children."

*Luu Dinh Long is an editor at Giac Ngo, a Buddhism newspaper published in Ho Chi Minh City. The opinions expressed are his own.
Cancun, Riviera Maya streets closed, beaches off limits, non-compliance will result in sanctions says governor

Cancun, Riviera Maya, Q.R.  State governor Carlos Joaquin says people who do not comply with recommendations regarding the coronavirus contingency will be sanctioned. The announcement came on the same day as additional restrictions were announced by various municipality heads.

Cancun

In Cancun, mayor Mara Lezama explained that while all beaches are closed until further notice, in addition to this official measure, temperature tests and questionnaires will be carried out randomly in different parts of our city, she said adding that it is her position to put the safety and health of Benito Juarez residents above all else.

Busy Cancun beaches are now empty after mayor shuts them due to pandemic

She added that in coordination with the Federal Terrestrial Maritime Zone (Zofemat), we have closed the beaches of the Municipality of Benito Juarez until further notice and that no person, without exception, should be on them.

We will be strict. No one should be on the street except in cases of force majeure, as these measures are only implemented for the intention of saving lives, she added.

Similar measures are also now being applied in Playa del Carmen with the State Secretary for Public Security, Jesus Alberto Capella Ibarra, warning that more stringent measures will be imposed. He said it is truly incredible and unfortunate the number of people who continue on the streets as if nothing happened, as if in Quintana Roo and particularly in Cancun, people were immune to this global pandemic.

Playa del Carmen

Aside from closing beaches and some streets, the City Council of Solidaridad has also installed points where drivers entering and leaving the city are being checked for the virus. In a statement, the Solidaridad City Council says the checks are being carried out in coordination with the governments of Quintana Roo and Mexico following the recommendations and health protocols to reduce contagions through a coordinated strategy between the three levels of government.

Mayor Laura Beristain Navarete made an energetic call to the entire population to stay at home, as it is the best way to stop infections. This is a time when we need to be united. Lets stay home, it is for the good of our families.

Tulum

Municipal head Victor Mas Tah says residents should not leave their homes from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. and notes that the sale of alcoholic beverages in supermarkets, convenience stores and warehouses is restricted from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The mayor of Tulum also says that parties, meetings and visits to the beaches of Tulum are suspended.

It is the last opportunity to avoid massive spread of COVID-19, the collapse of health services and high death rates, he said when announcing the additional actions. He acknowledged that many people have to go out every day to earn a living and asked those who do so to punctually follow the hygiene and healthy distance recommendations for their well-being.

Mario Cruz Rodriguez, director of Desarrollo Economico Tulum says that as of April 1, only one person per family will be permitted inside shopping stores. He explained that the initiative serves to limit the presence of people on the streets, and thus help prevent the risk of contagion.

We have seen that when they go shopping they take the whole family, which does nothing to help the current sanitary measures adopted, he explained.

We made the call to store managers and the response was positive. Now only one person per family will enter, which will help prevent infection, he added noting that security personnel at the entrance of stores will allow access to only one family member.

The federal government has declared a health emergency in the country due to the spread of the coronavirus. These are decisive moments, because the decisions we make today will directly impact collective health and our economy, stressed Mas Tah.

Other municipalities such as Cozumel, Puerto Morelos and Isla Mujeres have also implemented mobility restrictions with the closing of beaches, addition of roadway filters and cancellation of public events.

The latest positive coronavirus figures for the state of Quintana Roo, which were released April 2, have grown to 55.
A three-month state of emergency has been declared by President Faure Gnassingbe of Togo, just after the West-African nation announced that it has recorded 36 confirmed cases of Coronavirus and two deaths from the disease.



Gnassingbe who declared a nationwide curfew between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time starting from Thursday April 2, disclosed that an anti-pandemic special unit of 5,000 people from defense and security forces has been set-up to observe the measures to fight the epidemic.



The Togolese President said;



I am addressing you in a very particular context where the world is faced with an unprecedented coronavirus-caused health crisis.



In view of the seriousness of the situation and in keeping with the constitutional provisions, I declare a three-month health emergency in Togo."



Gnassingbe stated that the operational capacities of the health sector have been reinforced and mobile laboratories will be deployed to provide confidential, rapid and free tests for COVID-19 for people across the country.



Asides releasing a national fund of 400 billion CFA francs (about 665 million U.S. dollars) to ensure the socio-economic measures is carried out, the Togolese leader who won a fourth-term in February disclosed that the charges for water and electricity supplies will be free for the population during the health emergency. A special measure has also been taken to support farming so as to ensure food self-sufficiency in the country.













Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Sri Lanka's central bank on Thursday made a desperate call to its citizens living abroad to deposit their savings in the country's banking system to tide over the current financial hardships due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In view of the emergency call, Sri Lanka also said that all such remittances will be exempted from the exchange control regulations and taxes for a period of three months and would be protected under the banking secrecy provisions.

Your foreign currency deposits in the Sri Lankan banking system at this difficult stage will be of immense help to authorities to tide over the present crisis, an official statement said on Thursday.

To overcome the financial stress, the Sri Lankan government has also decided to restrict all imports of medicine and fuel.

Sri Lanka's economic growth in 2019 stood at under 3 per cent while the Sri Lankan rupee has already depreciated to a record low of over 190 to the US dollar, the Central Bank figures show.

Globally, more than 930,000 people have been infected and 46,800 people have died due to coronavirus that originated from China in November-December.

Till Thursday, Sri Lanka reported 148 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 3 deaths.

Several areas in the country are under total lockdown with the whole country being placed under a curfew which will be partly lifted on April 6.

The coronavirus outbreak has highly impacted tourism of Sri Lanka, a major source of revenue for the country.

This blow to the island nation's tourism comes after the Easter Sunday attacks last year that killed 258 people, including Indians.

In 2018 the island country attracted a record 2.2 million visitors, earning Sri Lanka about USD 4.4 bn. It was named as the world's top tourist destination in 2019 by the travel guide, Lonely Planet.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The lockdown may continue but there's some light on the horizon: a veritable online festival is set to resurrect Luxembourg's music scene from its temporary slumber.

The skies are blue, the weather is summerly, and we're sure many of our readers miss going out or heading to the occasional spring festival. Self-isolation and quarantine may continue but here are some news to lift the hearts of the Grand Duchy's musical souls: a real online music festival made in Luxembourg will spice up your usual Netflix&chill evenings coming weekend.

15 local DJs covering different music styles will bring Luxembourg's finest vibes straight to your living room on 4 and 5 April. Each DJ will stream live on the event's Facebook page. Scroll down for the full schedule.

"My passion is to connect people"

We had a chat with the organiser of the event, who already previously organised the "Apero Window" and the "Party from the Couch" events in Luxembourg.

"My job but also my passion is to connect people through events this is what I have done in the past years with Project Lux organizing more then 300 events in Luxembourg," Tony told RTL.

"Then suddenly I found my self jobless and unable to support people with such an important aspect of their lives: social interaction."

"My motivation for this series of online events probably came from my country. I am Italian, and I was affected by this situation even before it started in Luxembourg. When I look at Italy, I see people dancing and singing from their balconies, supporting each other like a big family not giving up values like hope and unity in a moment where all these things are more important than ever."

Tony then took the decision to do everything in his power to give back a bit of social life to Luxembourg: "So I have decided to do something for my Luxembourg, to give support to this country, to keep people busy while making them understand how important is to stay home to go over this time as fast as possible in order to go outside and party all together again."

"My hope for this new project Luxembourg Online Music Festival is to entertain the same people that used to enjoy my events before the pandemic by trying to create some virtual connections and making them feel part of a community. I also want to give some hope and motivation to Luxembourg's DJs - they find themselves in the same situation than I do."

We also spoke to Jeff Reinert, a local dj who goes by the name OXID8. He is one of DJs that will perform on Sunday. Every cloud has a silver lining, he explained: "the lockdown makes me more creative as I have more time to focus on my music."

He added: "I think the online festival is a great idea. It's a good way to raise the spirits, and to forget a bit about the current situation. I'm thrilled that people will have the possibility to enjoy live music from the safety of their homes."

Full schedule

Saturday 04.04.20 LATINO - HIPHOP - GENERAL

17:00-18:00 DJ Tony Salsa CubaYork Luxembourg Salsa/Bachata

18:00-19:00 Oliver.D Ghettofunk / Dancehall

19:00-20:00 Dj Bisi Hip Hop/Urban

20:00-21:00 DJ DEE Old School Hip Hop

21:00-22:00 Dj Kroogz Generalist

22:00-23:00 DJ SE7EN Generalist

23:00-00:00 DJ Double-J Generalist

00:00-01:00 DJ Kirsty Sutherland Generalist



Sunday 05.04.20 ELECTRO - HOUSE -TECHNO

16:00-17:00 Manu Mendes House

17:00-18:00 Black Kizz Ethnic / Deep House

18:00-19:00 Sam Felten ironikmusic Tech House

19:00-20:00 Ju Ju La Nuit Calme Melodic Techno

20:00-21:00 Lady Caro'zart Melodic House/Progressive Techno

21:00-22:00 DJ Andrew Martin Tech House/House Techno

22:00-23:00 Jessee (Jessee and Friends) Drum and Bass

23.00-00.00 OXID8 Bass House Set
MTN Group today published its Group Integrated, Sustainability and Tax Reports for the year ending 31 December 2019, illustrating the significant economic and social impact it has delivered through the group to the markets it operates in across Africa and the Middle East.

The three reports set out how the company delivered growth and unlocked value by continuing to focus on executing its BRIGHT strategy. They also show how MTN operations strive to ensure that all who are touched by our products and services are positively impacted.

Delivering on our strategy in a more agile way

Our 2019 Integrated report highlights the progress we have made against our strategy and the value created by developing and distributing a range of innovative and reliable communication products and services. We also share our intention to harness the pioneering spirit MTN has built over the last 25 years to accelerate the implementation of our strategy in a more agile way in close collaboration with our many partners, with whom we are #GoodTogether.

Key highlights:

The work we have done on strengthening our operations and balance sheet over the last few years positions us well to weather the more turbulent operating environment.

Given the progress and momentum we have seen in our commercial, strategic and financial initiatives, we have enhanced our medium-term guidance framework.

While we maintain our service revenue growth, EBITDA margin improvement, capex intensity reduction and ROE improvement targets, we have increased our targets for the next three to five years to secure at least a further R25 billion in asset realisations which will further moderate our leverage ratios.

Contributing to infrastructure and government revenue

The infrastructure we build supports the development of the technology which boosts local economies. MTN invested R26 billion in its networks and systems in 2019. MTN is also among the largest taxpayers in many of our markets and MTNs tax contributions for the year under review amounted to R31 billion, up from R24 billion in 2018. Tax contributions include corporate taxes, indirect taxes, withholding taxes, payroll taxes, operating licence fees and other payments to government authorities.

This stemmed from contributions made in South Africa of R4,6 billion, Nigeria of R6,7 billion, SEAGHA of R9,3 billion, WECA of R6,7 billion and MENA of R3,2 billion.

PwC Building Public Trust Award

Our 2018 tax report was selected from the tax reports of the top 100 JSE listed companies. An independent panel of judges reviewed the tax reports and MTN was awarded first place for the PwC Building Public Trust Award amongst South African based multinational companies. This award is given for excellence in tax reporting.

Driving broader socio-economic benefits to society

To make an impact on meeting the UN SDGs by 2030, we need to deepen our focus, acting collectively and decisively. Having often reflected on this objective, I believe we can achieve this if we come together through our connected and shared humanity to collaborate effectively through partnerships, said MTN President and Group CEO Rob Shuter.

What we are most proud of are the partnerships we have made and the impact they have had. Three in particular come to mind: 1) Rapid rural roll-out programme (R3) with our various partners, in 2019 we saw over 1300 sites reaching 6,9 million people, 2) Internet Watch Foundation partnership to make children safer online, we successfully blocked 2 million URLs containing child sexual abuse material, 3) Signing up to the GSMA-led industry-wide plan to achieve net-zero GHG emissions by 2050 in line with the Paris Agreement.

We view sustainability as an integral part of MTNs value creation journey now and into the future. We strive to create and protect shared value for our stakeholders through responsible economic, environmental and social practices. Key points from the 2019 Sustainability report are as follows:

Environmental: MTN recorded its highest ever greenhouse gases saved/avoided at 28 889 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCo 2 e) in 2019, despite an increase in our energy consumption due to the growth in our network.

MTN recorded its highest ever greenhouse gases saved/avoided at 28 889 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCo e) in 2019, despite an increase in our energy consumption due to the growth in our network. Social: We reached over 1,9 million beneficiaries through our Corporate Social Investment across our footprint, over 400 000 of which were women and over 300 000 youth.

We reached over 1,9 million beneficiaries through our Corporate Social Investment across our footprint, over 400 000 of which were women and over 300 000 youth. Governance: MTN adheres to a culture of sound ethical business conduct  over 10 000 ethics e-learning completion by staff, over 1 800 vendors prequalified following due diligence process and over 130 calls to tip-offs anonymous whistle-blower line, a significant increase from previous years.

MTN adheres to a culture of sound ethical business conduct  over 10 000 ethics e-learning completion by staff, over 1 800 vendors prequalified following due diligence process and over 130 calls to tip-offs anonymous whistle-blower line, a significant increase from previous years. Economic: Through our CHASE model, we are driving smartphone adoption with over 675 000 affordable low-cost smartphones distributed in 2019 alone. We also witnessed a 39% reduction in the groups effective rate per megabyte.

Rob added that: Access to the internet has the power to change lives and bridge inequalities, we are contributing to accelerating digital and financial inclusion by connecting the unconnected. We believe that by contributing to the prosperity of Africa and the Middle East, we are creating shared value for all.

Another key example of this: MTNs Mobile money and Homeland solutions which are not only facilitating the flow of money into Africa from the Diaspora, but between different regions in Africa, setting the stage to enable African Continental Free Trade Areas vision of creating a single market across the African continent.

MTNs response to COVID-19

As business and society, we are seeing a concerning increase in the transmissions of COVID-19 cases across multiple countries. To mitigate its impact, we are implementing several measures to support our employees, customers, partners, communities and our business during this time of uncertainty for all of us. These measures include the establishment of a Global Staff-Care Emergency Fund which will be utilised for preventative health and safety, treatment, and emergency lockdown sustenance provisions. We are also rolling out relief products and services under the Yello Hope Crisis Package umbrella across MTN to enable customers to access critical health and education information, and mobile money services. Our investment focus at this time is on resilience and capacity in our networks.

As I write, we are in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and there is much uncertainty as to how and when society will emerge from it. The impact of COVID-19 on worldwide economies is challenging and our commitment remains steadfast to do all we can to minimise the economic and social impact across our markets. MTN Group cares because
Americans can ill afford such dysfunction. According to the analytics company GlobalData, the United States needs an additional 75,000 ventilators to cope with the pandemics serial punches, in city after city and state after state, over the coming months. And the rest of the world will need at least 800,000 more ventilators. Even with a full-court press by medical device makers helped by the U.S. automakers, some of which are pitching in to help accelerate production, it appears unlikely that adequate numbers of ventilators, which help people breathe when they cannot do so for themselves, will be available soon enough.
Waseda University professor Yukiko Fukagawa speaks during the Institute for Global Economics (IGE) Distinguished Lecture Forum at the Seoul Foreign Correspondents' Club office at Korea Press Center in Seoul in this July 2019 file photo. / Courtesy of IGE



Japanese economist considers Moon's economic team 'unprofessional'



This is the fifth in a series of interviews with global economic experts analyzing the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic and possible countermeasures against a global recession.  ED.




House Passes $2 Trillion Stimulus Package Deal

The $2 trillion stimulus deal reached earlier by the Senate, was finally passed by the House on Friday, March 27.

President Trump is expected to immediately sign the massive legislation that promises to provide a much-needed shot in the arm for working and unemployed individuals, and small and big businesses.

The deal includes approximately $367 billion for small business loans administered through the Small Business Administration.

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It also includes direct payouts to most Americans and more money and an extension of unemployment benefits.

While the bipartisan measure unanimously passed in the Senate, at least two Republican congressmen opposed the bill.

Colorado Rep. Ken Buck argued that he didnt want the cure to be worse than the problem itself. Buck objected to the inclusion in the package of $75 million for public broadcasting, $50 million for museums and libraries, and $25 million for the Kennedy Center.

Earlier, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) blasted Senate members for including $13 million for Howard University, a historically black college.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) attempted to force a full yes or no vote that reportedly irritated House members who agreed to do a voice vote in which members were not required to attend in person and risk personal safety in light of the spreading coronavirus.

Earlier, several civil rights organizations noted watching with vigilance as Senate negotiations and, later, voting in both chambers took place.

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We know that when the economy goes into decline, people of color always bear the brunt, said Teresa Candori, communications director for the National Urban League.

We will be fighting to make sure the most vulnerable communities are not an afterthought.

The coronavirus is an equal-opportunity pandemic, stated Melanie Campbell, president of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation.

If you think about (Hurricane) Katrina, if you think about other catastrophes, a lot of times, bailouts ended up taking care of the top, and then it trickles down to the people, Campbell said.

Our federal government has to be bold about responses as this is an ever-evolving pandemic that can become a real catastrophe for peoples daily lives.

Many said theyre reminded that the household wealth of communities of color declined during the 2008 recession.

They said those losses never recovered, and its led to fears that minorities will again suffer a severe and long-term hit as the nation battles COVID-19 and whatever the aftermath might present.

The agreed upon stimulus package includes one-time direct payments of $1,200 per adult who made $75,000 or less in 2019 and $2,400 for couples who made less than $150,000.

An additional $500 will be added for each child.

If individuals havent filed 2019 taxes, the payouts will be based on their 2018 returns.

The payments will phase out at a rate of $5 per every additional $100 in income over $75,000 in adjusted gross income for single adults, $112,500 for heads of household, and $150,000 for married couples filing jointly.

The checks would be directly deposited into bank accounts if you included direct deposit information on your tax form. If you did not, your check would be mailed.

Lawmakers and President Trump have said they want the checks mailed by April 6. Still, because the Internal Revenue Service has reduced staff at all of its locations because of the coronavirus, many believe the checks may not go out until May.

Residents are not expected to have to fill out any forms or call the IRS because the government will automatically send payment based on information culled from a 2018 or 2019 tax return.

Meanwhile, with unemployment rates expected to approach 20 percent  and as much as 30 percent among minorities, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) emphasized the need for more available benefits and a more extended period.

Under the stimulus deal, the federal government adds $600 per week to the state benefits jobless workers currently receive. The deal adds four months to the 26-week limit that benefits are paid.

Its unemployment insurance on steroids, Schumer proclaimed. But, and most importantly, the federal government will pay your salary, your full salary, for now, four months.

Michele Evermore, the senior policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project, called the inclusion of the new unemployment provision, unprecedented.

Because this situation is so different, we have to break all the rules, Evermore stated.

The new stimulus also adds a pandemic unemployment assistance program, which provides jobless benefits to independent contractors, gig economy workers, and the self-employed, who typically dont qualify for such assistance.

For small businesses, the stimulus means they will get $367 billion to keep making payroll even while workers are required to stay at home.

Companies with 500 employees or less that keep paychecks steady could get up to $10 million each in forgivable small business loans.

Federally guaranteed loans will provide eight weeks of assistance for qualifying employers who maintain payroll. Those who meet requirements would have costs such as utilities, mortgage interest, and rent forgiven. Individuals can also defer payment of their 2020 payroll taxes for up to two years, and employers are allowed to cut workers hours but not lay them off.

Those workers are then eligible for some unemployment benefits.

Businesses can apply for COVID-19 relief through the stimulus by visiting, www.sba.gov/coronavirus. The website is expected to become operational soon.
Six planes carrying more than 4,000 high-quality French breeding pigs have arrived in China so far this year, the first of an expected dozens of plane-loads as the world's top pork producer rebuilds its decimated hog herd.

China is ramping up imports as it rushes to restock after an outbreak of African swine fever swept through the country from late 2018, killing tens of millions of pigs and reducing its sow herd by as much as 60 percent.

Soaring pork prices and a government drive to rebuild have prompted farmers who had halted buying to resume orders, with some doubling contracts that had been signed prior to the disease. Each charter is worth up to 1.5 million euros ($1.6 million).

"It's like after World War Two. They lost half the herd and need to repopulate fast to get it back," said Marie Pushparajalingam, global strategist for French swine genetics company Axiom.

China imports breeding pigs to take advantage of traits like increased productivity and better meat quality that global genetics firms select for during breeding. A top breeding sow can have a litter of as many as 16 piglets.

Axiom sent two 777 charters to China in January, followed by two 747s last month, totalling about 3,400 pigs. It has signed deals for a further six plane-loads later in the year, said Pushparajalingam, and is expecting additional business.

Another 500 boars bred by Dutch firm Topigs Norsvin arrived from France in southwestern Guizhou last week, said China's Dekang Group, which will use the pigs in a nucleus breeding farm to produce 20 million pigs for slaughter.

China typically slaughters about 700 million pigs a year to produce more than 50 million tonnes of pork -- about half of global consumption. But the disease outbreak cut pork output by 21 percent in 2019, sending prices soaring, and production is set to fall again this year.

Fattened hogs in China currently cost about 35 yuan ($4.93) a kilogram, or three times the price in France.

Under pressure to meet government targets for pork production, some provinces began offering import subsidies of about 2,000 yuan per pig to farmers last month.

Producers face a severe shortage of sows and are even holding back females normally destined for slaughter to use in breeding farms. Those pigs will produce much smaller litters than a sow bred to be a productive mother.

Imports from France alone this year look set to top the 11,000 pigs China imported from all countries in 2017, a year after pork prices hit a record.

In all, China may need more than 150 plane loads of pure bred pigs to replenish its herd, according to one genetics company estimate.

GENETICS COMPANIES BENEFIT

The surge in demand is a boon for global genetics firms.

China's customs has said it will allow more countries to ship live pigs, and is also working to resume exports from the United States, which has not been able to export to China during recent trade tensions.

Still, cumbersome quarantine procedures for importing pigs and obstacles related to the coronavirus outbreak will limit overall numbers.

Before shipment, pigs must undergo a month of health checks and spend another 30 days in quarantine under observation by an official Chinese vet. On arrival, the pigs spend a further 45 days in a quarantine centre to ensure they are disease free.

The coronavirus epidemic has further complicated shipments, said Laurent Poussart, manager of Francexporc, a pig freight specialist.

A sharp reduction in cargo planes flying between Europe and China is driving up costs, and China does not permit foreign airline crew to disembark.

Poussart's latest cargo to China arrived just a day before the Chinese airline he was using cancelled all further flights to and from Europe.

China's pork prices soared to record highs after ASF slashed hog herd in 2019.
Are you stuck at home, watching time creep past like a glacier? Do you not know what day of the week it is? Has the world become an unfamiliar, empty place, with interesting bits of technology lying around but nothing much happening?

If this sounds like you, then hoo boy does Amazon Prime Video have the new programme for you. The creators of Tales from the Loop cant possibly have known they would be birthing this sparse, slow eight-part sci-fi drama into a world perfectly suited to receive it. Not only is life under quarantine surprisingly evocative of their setting, the fictitious town of Mercer, Ohio, but they have just what every creator of sparse, slow sci-fi craves: a captive audience.

In part, the pacing can be put down to the programmes genesis. It was inspired by a 2014 book of the same name by Swedish artist Simon Stalenhag, who has a cult following for his gorgeous depictions of an alternate-reality Sweden, a beautiful and uncanny landscape populated by robots and dinosaurs and mysterious machinery. Clearly someone decided that the global audience wouldnt be able to handle a Swedish setting, but this version of America is just as remote, and its technological marvels are equally melancholic.

Unlike The Twilight Zone or Amazing Stories, which have similar premises, Tales from the Loop at least tries to give a context for its strange goings on, although it doesnt try to explain them. Mercer sits on top of a giant particle accelerator, the titular Loop, where scientists conduct experiments on the far fringes of physics. The Loop is run by Russ Willard (Jonathan Pryce) and the first episode opens with him speaking directly to camera. Everyone in town is connected to the Loop in one way or another, he says. And you will come to know many of their tales  in time. His daughter-in-law Loretta (Rebecca Hall) spends much of rest of the first instalment with a young girl, played by Abby Ryder Fortson, who is searching for her mother.

Tales from the Loop is maybe best understood as visual art, rather than a conventional narrative. The production design and music do justice to the original works, and the score, by Paul Leonard-Morgan and Philip Glass, lends ballast to the imagery. It is often gorgeous to look at and its set-pieces are given more time to stick in the mind than they would in a series with a denser plot. Children coming across a stricken robot in a snowy wood. A gravitational anomaly that makes snow fall upwards. A family of restrained geniuses coming to terms with loss and mortality.

Nobody would accuse Tales from the Loop of being gripping, but it has other qualities, rare in a frenetic era: it is thoughtful, patient, and unafraid to leave its Big Questions open-ended. This is slow television for slow days, and for all the viewers who switch off after 10 minutes worried they are slipping into a coma, there will be others for whom this is a curious joy.
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Update: Tax cuts are likely to be deployed by the incoming government in a bid to stimulate the country out of recession, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.

He said this has been done before at times of deep recession and it has been found to work.

Potentially yes we could, he said. It should not come as big shocker.

"One of the things to stimulate the economy in 2011 and 2012 was the reduction in VAT in labour intensive areas of the economy, he said.

He warned that to follow such policies the country will need to retain the ability to borrow money on international markets.

He said the Covid-19 crisis has seen the country effectively put to sleep and confirmed the economy is heading into recesssion.

Speaking at a briefing in Government Buildings, Mr Varadkar said:

The economic picture is very bad, we have suffered a sudden sharp and unexpected shock to our economy.

He was speaking after the Cabinet held a short incorporeal meeting during which it agreed to delay new arrangements for the appointment of special needs assistants by a year, because of the crisis.

Mr Varadkar also chaired a meeting of the Cabinet sub-committee which heard an update from the Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan who was back at work following a health scare.

Commenting after the deaths of 13 more people who had contracted the virus, Mr Varadkar said it was another sad day for Ireland.

We can work with Independents but Fine Gael is clear there needs to be a third party in Government if we are to be involved says @LeoVaradkar #iestaff  Daniel McConnell (@McConnellDaniel) April 2, 2020

Mr Varadkar restated that as things stand, the State exams in the summer will go ahead.

He said the government wants all Leaving Cert students to start college in October.

He said education minister Joe McHugh is working "really hard" on options, and advises students who are studying to continue to do so.

He said the Leaving Cert will happen by "hook or by crook"

In relation to the public health response to the Covid-19 crisis, Mr Varadkar said progress has been made but it is not enough.

He said the country's hospitals are very quiet saying there are 2,000 vacant public beds and spare ICU beds for when the surge comes, and it will come he said.

He said it will be next week before we can make a decision as to whether restrictions imposed on the country can be relaxed.

He said they need to wait to see what the pressure is on ICU beds at that stage before any decision can be taken.

The State Examinations are as of now going ahead and plans are being developed to allow them go ahead in June says @LeoVaradkar #iestaff  Daniel McConnell (@McConnellDaniel) April 2, 2020

He also warned about secondary deaths occuring because people with underlying conditions are staying away from hospitals.

We very much encourage people who are suffering symptoms to contact the health care professionals because we do not want them missing out, he said.

He said that while contract tracing has increased it is still not where it needs to be.

We are not where we want to be or where we thought we would be a couple of weeks ago when it comes to testing, he said.

We are asking people to bear with us, he added.

Meanwhile, the government confirmed this evening that new Garda powers, contained in Emergency #Covid19 legislation passed by by the Dail last week, have yet to be transferred to the force.

The associated regulations are being finalised, it said. The powers relate to enforcing limits on public gatherings.

[snippet1]987600[/snippet1]
Fake news: PM Modi has not been asked by 18 nations to lead a task force to fight COVID-19

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 02: Several users on Twitter have posted that 18 nations including the USA and UK want Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lead a task force to fight the coronavirus. It also goes on to say that this is a proud moment for India. Believe in him and India, we will win, the message also says.

While Prime Minister Modi has taken several initiatives in this fight against COVID-19, it is not true that he has been asked to lead an international task force. On the website, narendramodi.in, there is an article titled, " PM at the helm of India's fight against COVID-19.

18 nations including USA and UK wants NARENDER MODI as leader for TASK FORCE for CORONA..what a proud moment for INDIA..believe in him and INDIA will win  #IndiaFightCorona #modihaitomumkinhai pic.twitter.com/y1BNgwJqty  rAaAhUl (@NaMo4Bharath) April 1, 2020

While the article speaks about the various initiatives that the government has taken to fight the pandemic, it also speaks about the virtual G-20 summit and how the PM also made an international effort.

Fake: People in Italy are not throwing their money on the streets due to COVID-19

On the extraordinary virtual G-20 summit, the article says that, "an Extraordinary Virtual G20 Leaders' Summit was convened on 26 March 2020 to discuss the challenges posed by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and to forge a global coordinated response. Earlier, PM had a telephonic conversation with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia on this subject.

PM underscored the need to put human beings at the centre of our vision of global prosperity and cooperation, freely and openly share the benefits of medical research and development, develop adaptive, responsive and humane health care systems amongst others.

PM called on the Leaders to help usher in a new globalization, for the collective well-being of humankind and have multilateral fora focus on promoting the shared interests of humanity.

Under the sub-header, International efforts, the article says, " Prime Minister also held telephonic discussions with the Prime Minister of the UK, H.E Boris Johnson, with Prime Minister of Israel H.E Benjamin Netanyahu on the 12th of March 2020 and Crown Prince of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman on the 17th of March 2020.

Fake: Govt has not banned messages on COVID-19

On 25th of March Prime Minister held discussions with President of the Russian Fedration H.E Vladimir Putin. On the 26th of March Modi held separate telephonic discussions with His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and His Highness Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad al Thani, the Amir of the State of Qatar.

Prime Minister also had a telephonic conversation with H.E. Ursula Von Der Leyen, President of the European Commission on the 24th of March 2020.

Nowhere does it mention that that PM has been asked to lead a global task to fight COVID-19. Moreover there is no such task force that has been set up. It has been decided that all countries would cooperate with each other in ensuring supplies and also finding ways to fight this pandemic.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 9:39 [IST]
The founder of easyJet has demanded a vote on whether to sack one of the company's directors in a row over a 4.5 billion order for 107 planes that could stand idle due to coronavirus.

Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou's holding company easyGroup yesterday requisitioned a meeting of the company's shareholders to decide whether to remove Andreas Bierwirth from the easyJet board.

It follows through on a threat from the businessman, who is easyJet's biggest shareholder, to start sacking directors if the company did not take steps to cancel its order from Airbus.

Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou's (pictured) holding company easyGroup yesterday requisitioned a meeting of the company's shareholders to decide whether to remove Andreas Bierwirth from the easyJet board

Mr Bierwirth is pictured at a news conference in Cologne for the low-cost airline Germanwings

The Luton-based carrier grounded all of its planes earlier this week as demand for flights collapsed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Chief executive Johan Lundgren has indicated the airline would consider accepting Government bailout loans if needed.

EasyJet's board said it is 'considering the contents' of Sir Stelios's requisition and will announce its decision in time.

On Tuesday, Sir Stelios said the Airbus order, which will see 4.5 billion paid to the European plane maker over the next three years, is easyJet's 'main risk to survival'.

He said he is concerned easyJet did not consider the crisis to be a 'force majeure' - a legal term for unforeseen circumstances that allow a business to get out of a contract.

The Luton-based carrier grounded all of its planes earlier this week as demand for flights collapsed due to the coronavirus pandemic

Sir Stelios said: 'In short, I would rather spend shareholders' scarce money paying lawyers to defend easyJet against a potential legal action by Airbus demanding payments for dubious penalties rather than buying overpriced planes that will sit on the ground or fly their passengers at a loss.'

He has threatened to remove a non-executive every seven weeks unless his demands are met.

Separately, fellow budget airline Wizz Air has said the number of passengers it is carrying dropped by 36% in March, as it cut capacity by 34%. It is operating flights between China and Hungary to deliver medical equipment, the carrier said.
Vision Tech Solutions DMCC, a Dubai-based tech firm specialising in IT infrastructure and support, is offering free IT consultancy to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) facing work-at-home challenges amidst COVID outbreak.

The trend of working from home, in a bid to restrict the spread of the COVID-19 contagion, is quickly becoming a reality for an increasing number of people. However, most small and medium sized businesses rely on technology that is maintained physically within workplaces, inaccessible to employees from remote locations, said a statement.

In response to this emerging challenge, Dubais Vision Tech Solutions DMCC is offering a free tech solution consultancy to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), to enable such organizations to rapidly shift to remote working arrangements, without compromising the security of their data and networks.

As the COVID-19 virus spreads across the globe, some of the worlds largest companies are asking employees to work from home, as a precaution against infection. Industries that are geared towards providing services through direct physical interaction with their customers, such as airlines, hospitality and healthcare, are particularly in need of effective tech support and solutions. Educational institutions are another sizable sector that needs such support, to replace physical classrooms with online e-learning alternatives.

The main challenge being faced in implementing a work-from-home policy is that employees are not being able to connect to appropriate servers, which affects their productivity. Vision Tech Solutions highly qualified management team and tech personnel have the expertise and experience to provide the requisite IT infrastructure and support that can resolve this issue efficiently, safely, and cost-effectively, it said.

Rajab Ali Virani, Managing Director of Vision Tech Solutions DMCC believes that the tech sector needs to step in and proactively engage with businesses to limit the negative impact of the ongoing disruption in standard operations.

We will provide free consultancy to SMEs and work closely with them to help connect employees working from home to office servers remotely, through a firewall. This arrangement will ensure that the data privacy and security of the company is preserved. We will also offer our services to help schools run their e-learning programs and assist with deploying reliable remote access to servers, so people can work or learn at home seamlessly even during this crisis,  Virani explained.

The threat of hackers, who are infecting users with malware by duplicating coronavirus tracker-maps, has emerged as a significant risk to businesses. They are using these maps to spread malicious software and gather information on users, including their names, passwords, credit card details and other data.

One of the primary reasons we are offering to manage all the IT systems for SMEs is to ensure that these businesses are protected from opportunistic hackers and malicious parties, particularly if they currently use a network that is not properly secured said Virani.

The coronavirus contagion might be the key challenge right now, but a companys data, privacy, and security cannot be compromised, whether or not teams are working remotely. Vision Tech Solutions DMCC can give companies peace of mind by ensuring that they do not have to choose between productivity and compromising their security and data, because of a move to remote working arrangements.

Viranis proposal to provide free consultation follows a statement by the UAE Central Bank, announcing a stimulus package of Dh100 billion that will help boost SMEs, the banking sector, and the real estate industry during this crisis. TradeArabia News Service
Jerry Palens Stampede Now at UW American Heritage Center

This is among artist Jerry Palens long-running Stampede cartoons recently donated to the University of Wyomings American Heritage Center. (Jerry Palen Collection)

The original artwork of Jerry Palens widely syndicated ranch-living cartoon, Stampede, now resides at the University of Wyomings American Heritage Center (AHC), thanks to the generosity of Douglas collector Art Nicholas.

From its first appearance in the agricultural-related publication Wyoming Stockman and Farmer more than 47 years ago, Palen has been publishing a Stampede cartoon every month. At the time of Palens retirement in 2016, Stampede had a viewership of more than 2 million readers in both the United States and in Canada.

Stampedes main characters -- Elmo, Flo and their dog named Dammit -- capture the dynamics of ranch and farm life in a style that draws out its humor while recognizing the underlying seriousness of the profession. Palen came by his insight honestly: His father, Dr. J.S. Palen, was a large animal veterinarian in Cheyenne who often took his sons along when he went on ranch visits.

At the AHC, the cartoons are part of the Jerry Palen Papers, which also include a variety of horse memorabilia and saddles. Palen also is an artist and sculptor, whose sculptures have been commissioned by the White House. Two of his works stand on the grounds of the Wyoming State Capitol.

It has been my true privilege to peek into the lives of rural America and bring humor to such hard-working and resilient folks. Of course, growing up with a veterinarian father who made house calls to farms and ranches gave me an edge, Palen says about his AHC collection. Dad always took two flunkies with him to do the dirty work: my brother and me. Flo and Elmo were on every farm or ranch we visited, and they have been wonderful inspirations for a humble cartoonist like me. The Stampede cartoon series is Flo and Elmos story.

Nicholas, who also owns the Wagonhound Ranch near Douglas, says it is a privilege to donate the collection of Palens art, cartoons and memorabilia to the AHC.

Jerry, with his wife Anns support, has brought a big smile to us all. Farming and ranching have tremendous rewards, but there are times when its helpful to appreciate the humor in it all to make it through the day, Nicholas says. My wife, Catherine, and I offer many thanks to Jerry and Ann, Bill and Carol Ward, along with our other friends, who made it possible to preserve this wonderful collection for the enjoyment of all our countrys farmers and ranchers, and those who support them.

The AHC is excited to have the complete 43-year run of Palens Stampede cartoons, says Director Paul Flesher.

Now that we have accessioned them, we look forward to sharing them with Jerrys fans across the state and beyond, perhaps even through a touring exhibit, once the present COVID-19 restrictions are over, Flesher says.

To learn more about the new collection, visit the AHCs online catalog at http://rmoa.unm.edu/docviewer.php?docId=wyu-ah12748.xml.
Police are relieved they no longer have to stand between lovers as they enforce Victoria's coronavirus restrictions, after a ban on couples visiting each other's homes was relaxed by health authorities.

Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton said Wednesday night's announcement from Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton that couples who live in different households can visit each other was viewed by police as a positive move.

The relaxation of rules around partner visits have saved police a "lot of hassle", says Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton. Credit:Justin McManus

"It saved us a lot of hassle," he told ABC Melbourne radio.

I'm glad it got clarified because we started getting a lot of calls saying, 'Whats this one about?'"
All 77 doctors and nurses, who rushed from Shenzhen over to Hubei province to fight the novel coronavirus, which was the epicenter of the outbreak at that time, had returned home by March 31.







They worked together with local medical workers in Hubei, and they successfully completed their tasks.





The 77 people were sent to Hubei in five batches. The first team, which left for Hubei on Feb. 9, was made up of 13 people from five hospitals in Shenzhen; the second team had 17 people and left on Feb. 14; and the remaining three teams arrived in Hubei by late February.





Every time the doctors and nurses departed for Hubei, senior officials of the municipal government of Shenzhen saw them off, providing words of encouragement.





Liu Yuxiang, head of the third team, said: "We have an obligation to help, and we represent hope for the residents of Hubei. That's why we feel honored to go to the front line."





To ensure the mental health of frontline doctors, nurses and patients, Shenzhen also sent a fifth team of five psychiatrists to Hubei, demonstrating Shenzhen's thoughtful planning for the mission.





Li Xuewu, head of the fifth team, said the psychiatrists made detailed psychological assistance plans for various kinds of mental problems, and they tried to help them let off steam and improve their quality of sleep.





"The Shenzhen medical corps' services are comprehensive and professional, demonstrating the city's sense of duty," said Yu Dewen, commander-in-chief of medical assistances to Hubei from Guangdong.





The doctors from Shenzhen paid special attention to protecting themselves as well as local residents who had not been infected; they offered considerate treatment and care to the patients, providing them with psychological counseling; and they also cooperated well with doctors and nurses from the Inner Mongolia and Guangxi Zhuang autonomous regions, along with those from Shanxi, Gansu and Yunnan provinces.





Meng Xinke, a member of the first team, said, "We cannot help others and defeat the virus unless we effectively protect ourselves."





The Shenzhen doctors widely used Chinese traditional medicine and acupuncture to help treat people infected with the virus.





Liu Yuxiang said, "Many patients thanked us and praised the wonders of the TCM, which caused their conditions to improve quickly."





The Shenzhen doctors in Hubei took advantage of social media platforms to strengthen communications with each other and the patients in Hubei.





Jianli county, where many Shenzhen doctors and nurses worked, became the first county in Jingzhou city where severe cases stopped appearing from Feb. 27 on.





Some patients are touched by the help they received from Shenzhen doctors. Pei Pei, a patient who recovered after treatment and was recently discharged from a quarantine hospital in Wuhan, told Zheng Mingmi, a doctor from Shenzhen: "Thanks for your care. Without you, I would not have been discharged from the hospital. Someday when I go to Shenzhen I will certainly pay you a visit. Don't forget that you have a friend in Wuhan."





Ms. Li, another patient in Wuhan who was treated by Shenzhen doctors and nurses, said that the doctors' help rekindled her belief that she could defeat the virus, helping her to recover sooner. "They treat me like family," Li said.





While the doctors and nurses were combating the virus on the front line in Hubei, the local governments in Shenzhen took care of families under their jurisdiction, as the city was also largely on lockdown to curb the spread of the contagion.




It won't be easy, but if conservation efforts are doubled around the world, scientists believe the world's oceans could be restored by 2050.

Oceans have been hurt by centuries of overfishing and pollution, but a new scientific review published in the journal Nature found that the oceans are also resilient, and successful conservation techniques have resulted in several types of marine life rebounding. In 1968, there were just a few hundred humpback whales left, but now there are more than 40,000. There are once again thousands of sea otters off of western Canada, and globally, mangroves and seagrass meadows are rarely being disturbed. Scientists also found that slowly, fishing is becoming more sustainable worldwide.

For the oceans to make a full recovery in 30 years, climate change must be fully addressed, so coral reefs don't die and the ocean doesn't become too acidic, and there has to be a renewed focus on keeping farm pollution and plastic out of the water.

"Overfishing and climate change are tightening their grip, but there is hope in the science of restoration," Callum Roberts, a professor at the University of York and member of the review team, told The Guardian. "One of the overarching messages of the review is, if you stop killing sea life and protect it, then it does come back. We can turn the oceans around and we know it makes sense economically, for human wellbeing, and of course, for the environment."

More stories from theweek.com

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Jared Kushner doesn't appear to know how the federal stockpile works


Boeing hinted at further job cuts in light of weak commercial plane demand (AFP Photo/MANDEL NGAN)

New York (AFP) - Boeing unveiled a voluntary worker layoff program Thursday, telling employees that it hoped to avoid "other workforce actions" as the aviation industry reels from the coronavirus crisis.

The initiative was announced by Boeing Chief Executive David Calhoun, who said such belt-tightening was needed amid the hit to the industry caused by the pandemic.

"It's important that we start adjusting to our new reality now," he said.

Boeing's financial picture was already a bit cloudy prior to the coronavirus outbreak because of the crisis surrounding the 737 MAX, which has been grounded for more than a year following two fatal crashes.

But the COVID-19 crisis has made Boeing's situation significantly worse, grounding most commercial airline travel and putting major carriers in a life-or-death fight to go forward.

"When the world emerges from the pandemic, the size of the commercial market and the types of products and services our customers want and need will likely be different," Calhoun said.

"We will need to balance the supply and demand accordingly as the industry goes through the recovery process for years to come."

Calhoun said the company would have additional information on the program in three to four weeks.

A Boeing official said the company expects "several thousand employees to take the voluntary layoff package or retire," adding that the company would continue to recruit in some targeted areas, including for defense and space programs.

Workers would exit Boeing permanently and would generally receive a pay and benefits package that includes a period of partially-subsidized healthcare coverage.

"We're in uncharted waters," Calhoun said. "We're taking actions -- including offering this voluntary layoff plan -- based on what we know today."

Boeing, along with major airlines, is eligible for federal funds under the $2.2 trillion relief package signed into law last week, but has thus far not said if it will seek money under the law.
State governments introduced a raft of regulations to prevent the spread of COVID-19 this week.

And on Thursday, Instagram star Skye Wheatley hit back at an accusation that she was breaking rules by allowing two family members to visit her house.

The 26-year-old mother posted a YouTube video of her home renovations on Wednesday featuring visiting family members - but one follower took issue with it.

'I'm doing everything I can!' On Thursday, Skye Wheatley (pictured) hit back at a fan who accused her of breaking COVID-19 regulations

Skye then posted a series of clips to her Instagram Story on Thursday, explaining that the video was filmed before the regulations came into place.

'This girl slid into my DMs and she sent a screenshot of my vlog and she said, "this is more than one family member at your house, I'm reporting you to the authorities",' Skye said.

'Hun, that reno video was filmed before those laws came into place. So just FYI, nobody needs to be reporting no one, okay?

'Because I'm abiding by the rules and I'm doing everything I can just like many of you guys are.'

Cause of controversy: The 26-year-old mother posted a YouTube video of her home renovations on Wednesday featuring visiting family members - but one follower took issue with in. Pictured: Skye, her son Forest, a visiting family member and her partner Lachlan Waugh

Ouch! 'Hun, that reno video was filmed before those laws came into place. So just FYI, nobody needs to be reporting no one, okay?' Skye explained on her Instagram Story

In the video, Skye, her partner Lachlan Waugh and their one-year-old son Forest ate at a cafe, which would not have been allowed if it was filmed this week.

Even if Skye's video was filmed after the new COVID-19 rules, she would not have been breaking any regulations as she lives on the Gold Coast.

In Queensland, households are permitted to have two additional guests at a time but it is advised that social distancing should be observed during visits.

As of Thursday, NSW and Victoria do not permit social visits, including family members, unless it is for 'care' purposes like delivering food.

Not breaking any rules: Even if Skye's video was filmed after the new COVID-19 rules, she would not have been breaking any regulations as she lives on the Gold Coast, where two visitors are permitted

Tasmania and ACT have two-person gathering limits, while SA and the NT have 10-person gathering limits. Lastly, WA has a two-person limit, but family is excepted.

Meanwhile, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to escalate in Australia.

As of Thursday evening, there have been 5,108 confirmed cases, which have resulted in 24 deaths.
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Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II paid a visit to Yerablur Military Pantheon. He said the following:

On April 2, we paid a visit to Yerablur Military Pantheon to pay our respects to the sons of the Armenian nation who died during the Four-Day Artsakh War of April 2016 and pray for their souls to rest in peace.

The memory of the righteous is blessed.
Health Ministry issues guidelines for dialysis of COVID-19 infected patients

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Apr 02: The Health Ministry on Thursday asked state and Union territories to identify and earmark at least one hemodialysis facility with adequate number of machines, trained staff and other support equipment as a preparatory fixed-point dialysis unit in case of rise of COVID-19 epidemic.

In its 'Guidelines for Dialysis of COVID-19 patients', the ministry said health departments may issue directives to district administrations allowing easy movements of such patients, accompanied by one attendant, to a dialysis facility.

The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,965 in the country on Thursday while the death toll rose to 50, according to the Union Health Ministry. It said the government-run transport system should be arranged for those who do not have private vehicles.

The ministry said COVID-19, a disease caused by a novel coronavirus (SARS CoV-2), is currently a pandemic, which produces high morbidity in the elderly and in patients with associated comorbidities.

Coronavirus: Health Ministry identifies 20 existing, 22 potential hotspots in India

"Chronic kidney disease stage-5 patients on dialysis are also vulnerable group because of their existing comorbidities, repeated unavoidable exposure to hospital environment and immunosuppressed state... These patients are therefore not only more prone to acquire infection but also develop severe diseases as compared to general population," it said. The guidelines stressed that patients on regular dialysis should adhere to prescribed schedule and not miss their dialysis sessions to avoid any emergency dialysis.

The guidelines outlined that dialysis units should have a signboard posted prominently in the local language as well as Hindi and English asking patients to report any fever, coughing or breathing problem in dialysis unit and waiting area. All hemodialysis units should educate their personnel, including nephrologists, nurses, technicians, other staff and all patients undergoing treatment along with their caregivers about COVID-19, it said.

All universal precautions must be strictly followed and all staff members should strictly follow hand hygiene, the guidelines stated, adding medical and support staff treating infected patients should be monitored for COVID-19 infection at the dialysis facility and should take necessary action if found infected.

The ministry recommended that dialysis units should have a designated screening area, where patients can be screened for COVID-19 before allowing them to enter inside dialysis area. It said the screening area should have adequate space to implement social distancing between patients and accompanying persons while waiting for dialysis staff. It also recommended that every patient should be asked about symptoms suspected of COVID-19, history of contact with a diagnosed case of coronavirus infection and history of contact with person who has had recent travel to foreign country or from high COVID-19 prevalence area within the country as notified by the central and state/UT governments respectively.

6 signs you may be infected with coronavirus: Diarrhea is first sign of illness

Inside the dialysis unit, the guidelines stated that suspected or positive COVID-19 patients should properly wear disposable three-layer surgical mask throughout dialysis duration and patients should maintain hand hygiene, follow cough etiquettes, like coughing or sneezing using the inside of the elbow or using tissue paper.

For the Dialysis Staff, the ministry said the unit staff should make sure an adequate stock of masks and sanitizers are available in screening area to provide to the patients and accompanying person if necessary.

"During dialysis, it should be ensured that a patient or staff in a unit does not become the source of an outbreak and the dialysis personnel, attendants and caregivers should also wear a three-layer surgical facemask while they are inside dialysis unit," it said. It said all patients with suspected or positive COVID-19 be dialyzed in isolation. The isolation ideally be in a separate room with a closed door, but may not be possible in all units.

"The next most suitable option is the use of a separate shift, preferably the last of the day for dialyzing all such patients. This offers the advantage of avoiding long waiting periods or the need for extensive additional disinfection in between shifts. "The next suitable option is to physically separate areas for proven positive and suspected cases.

Where this is also not possible, we suggest that the positive or suspected patient may be dialyzed at a row end within the unit ensuring a separation from all other patients by at least 2 meter," it said, adding staff caring for suspected or proved cases should not look after other patients during the same shift. The ministry urged the dialysis staff to use personal protective equipment (PPE) when dealing with proven or strongly suspected patients of COVID-19.

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Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 15:43 [IST]
Along with other businesses, Ford Vietnam is implementing measures to protect heath and safety of workers and others

Following Ford and Toyota announcements to shut down plants in Asia, some manufacturers made scenarios to temporarily close worldwide in order to cope with the spreading coronavirus outbreak.

The health and safety of our employees, dealers, customers, partners, and communities is our highest priority, Mark Ovenden, president of Fords International Markets Group, said in press release last week.

Ford CEO Jim Hackett also notified employees that tougher actions such as job cuts could be needed depending on the severity and length of the coronavirus pandemic.

Fords facility in Vietnam ceased operations starting from March 26 and became the first automaker in Vietnam to do so. Meanwhile, Japanese Panasonic decided to temporarily close the factory in Panasonic Appliances Vietnam in Hanois Thang Long Industrial Park 1 on March 19 in order to protect labourers, after two workers were found under suspicion of infection.

Japanese bathroom product manufacturer TOTO has temporarily closed its office and showroom in Ho Chi Minh City after the companys staff came into contact with a patient infected with the disease.

Japanese companies understand that it is the most important to stop the spread and to keep the infection under control within the capacity of existing medical facilities. So we support all measures currently implemented by the Vietnamese government. We understand how difficult it is to decide on many urgent yet sensitive issues in a very rapidly changing environment, said Shinji Hirai, chief representative of the Japan External Trade Organizations Ho Chi Minh City office.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc called this a golden time to contain the spread of the coronavirus in Vietnam, while enforcing stricter measures as well as stressing safety first amid the rapid increase of new infection cases over the past three weeks.

Under the prime ministers newly-signed direction, operations of service trading facilities, except for those selling essential goods and services shall be closed from March 28 to April 15 and religious rituals and activities of over 20 people and all gatherings outside offices, schools, and hospitals shall be temporarily suspended until April 15.

Under a survey from the American Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam to measure the business impact in Vietnam in the wake of the outbreak, members are proactively taking measures to protect their staff and workplaces. Over 90 per cent of responders said they have made changes, including educating employees on good hygiene, including frequent handwashing and avoiding touching of the face; providing hand disinfectant in the workplace (88 per cent); more cleaning of surfaces (70 per cent); and providing links for public information updates from the World Health Organization, and/or the Ministry of Health. Other measures included encouraging or requiring masks and temperature checks at the workplace, among others.

Guido van Rooy, executive director of the Dutch Business Association Vietnam stressed, The crisis is affecting each and every one of us. It is useful for all companies to better understand what others are doing to solve these problems, and by sharing potential support and providing each another with tools or methods to mitigate the losses or simply survive.

The association has hosted many online conferences for its members including top firms such as Signify, DeHeus, HEINEKEN Vietnam, Royal Haskoning, and FrieslandCampina in order to update and share experiences to cope with the crisis. Rooy said the association is managing to keep their employees on board during this difficult time in order to excel when the economic tide turns.

All participants agreed that the crisis will be over one day and they all want to come back stronger than before. By bluntly cutting costs, companies will have a hard time to get back on their feet again once the crisis passes, and that is why most companies are focusing on cost control, he said.

The business community agreed that they should follow guidelines provided by leading global and local health authorities, while global corporations should identify input-variable triggers that could drive significant liquidity events and identify actions to stabilise the organisation in each scenario. In the same battle, Laurent Levan, president and general director of URC Vietnam said, At URC Vietnam, our management team has been closely monitoring the impact across our business operations from the beginning of the pandemic and our Business Continuity Plan has been immediately activated for appropriate responses as well as other appropriate measures to guarantee the best continuity of operation and ensure the good health of our employees, our partners and local community.

From the continuity for our supply chain to the price stability of our products, from flexible work arrangements to split teams and rotation: these are examples how URC Vietnam as a responsible company is acting to mitigate business interruptions. Of course, URC Vietnam strictly follows all the guidance and direction from the government and local authorities. We are all mobilised to accompany the countrys efforts to fight this terrible pandemic, he added.

ABBs CEO Bjorn Rosengren also commented, With many critical services and industries at risk of being overwhelmed or shut down, we all need to work together  governments, businesses and civil society  to keep our healthcare systems, power networks, and other essential services operational. The health and wellbeing of all of us  workers, families, society, and future generations  depend on it.
On Monday evening, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) issued a statement outlining its proposed response to the coronavirus crisis and its effect on Royal Mail workers.

Two weeks ago, the union called off industrial action voted for by 94.5 percent of its 110,000-strong membership on a 63.4 percent turnout, instead promising to form an additional emergency service for the duration of the coronavirus crisis. It offered to put aside their differences with management in the interests of the nation and asked the employers and the government to look after workers safety and halt their attacks on conditions in return.

The CWUs announcement, signed by General Secretary Dave Ward and Deputy General Secretary Terry Pullinger, supposedly gives further consideration to the fast moving Coronavirus crisis and how this is impacting on frontline workers, the country and the ability of Royal Mail Group to maintain its network operations. It calls for the implementation of 16 emergency service principles to ensure Personal Protective Equipment [PPE] is in place for all employees, minimise the further spread of the virus and save lives, whilst maintaining an emergency network with prioritised services.

Ward and Pullinger have written what amounts to a devastating indictment of the union bureaucracys own actions. The protective measures listed in the document should have been implemented weeks ago. That the CWU is now appealing for the most basic sanitary protections is an admission of the desperately unsafe conditions it volunteered its membership into when calling off the planned national strike.

Ward and Pullinger refer to the fast moving Coronavirus crisis in the hope of hiding the fact that these dangers were already apparent when they made their first grovelling appeal to Royal Mail when calling off industrial action. They use the same fast-moving line as Boris Johnsons Conservative government, used to justify its own criminally delayed and negligent response to the pandemic.

The truth is that by the time the CWU pledged to form an additional emergency service for the nation, many of its members had walked out of postal depots in London over COVID-19 fears. The World Socialist Web Site wrote then:

Strike action would be the basis for demanding safe working conditions and precautions against the spread of the virus, not just in Royal Mail but for the whole working class. Walkouts in recent days by Royal Mail workers in London, outsourced workers in the NHS and other workers in Italy, Canada and the United States demonstrate the desire for a fight over corporations and governments refusal to put in place basic safety measures.

We then cited numerous Royal Mail employees who angrily reported appalling sanitary conditions in their workplaces.

The only thing the CWU gave these workers as assurance for their safety was the promise of talks with Royal Mail and a letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson!

Postal workers have had long and bitter experiences with such negotiations being used to demobilise action, while the employers prepare their assault. Several workers made the point that they would expect strike action immediately if there was no change in the companys behaviour, and that they had no faith that the company would budge an inch.

One said on a social media forum, If RM [Royal Mail] are pressing ahead with Executive Action, then we should press ahead with Industrial Action...why should we be put at a disadvantage?

Another commented, Royal Mail Management will indeed pick up your [the CWUs] proposal and be rubbing their hands at the prospect of them having more time unopposed to drive their change through.

These predictions have proved correct. Social media is filled with reports of unsafe and unnecessary work being carried out in departments across the country.

In a mark of the anger building up amongst a broad section of workers, walkouts took place in Southwark, London and Bridgewater in the South West of the country last week, demanding improved protections against the virus. On Monday morning, nearly a hundred workers at the Royal Mail sorting office in Alloa, Scotland, launched a wildcat strike to protest delivering junk mail, unsafe working conditions and a lack of protective equipment. Fifteen postal workers walked out of another Royal Mail depot, Lochgelly in Fife, for a second day Tuesday.

An Alloa postal worker told the Daily Record, Royal Mail has asked us to continue delivering non essential junk mail to every household which not only puts us at extra risk, but also vulnerable people in the community because the virus can be transmitted on letters and flyers. They are putting profit over everyones health.

We work on top of each other in the sorting office and it hasnt got any better since the outbreak. The managers dont seem to be bothered by it and just want us to continue working as normal which isnt possible or fair.

The only PPE weve been given are gloves and sanitiser that turned up on Monday. Its not good enough.

On Wednesday, a postal worker contacted the WSWS and said, Royal Mail are going to start cracking down on absences: New rules are, if you have to take time off to care for loved ones with covid or self-isolate because someone in house is infected, you wont get paid unless you take as annual leave. If you are sick with covid it will only be recognised as such if you have seen a doctor and have a doctors note saying so. My friend said the guys at his place are livid.

For the CWU, these events came as a warning. Alarmed by the prospect of mass independent action, the union issued its statement with the sole aim of heading off any rank-and-file struggle. The words strike and industrial action do not appear once in the document. Instead, the CWU meekly present what we believe is the right position for the company and the Government to immediately adopt and let Royal Mail know they are available to discuss with you any alternative suggestions. 

This ever-so-humble appeal was made to a company that has sacked thousands of workers over the last decade and is hellbent on a new round of attacks under CEO Rico Back and to a government whose inaction in response to the pandemic will cost thousands of lives.

The CWUs principles are purely for the record. Its talk of an emergency service is a fraud, designed to cover for the business-as-usual profit-making of Royal Mail.

This rotten policy has been endorsed by the Socialist Party (SP), with a CWU branch secretary writing on its website, The CWU has sought to put pressure on Royal Mail management and the Tory government by demanding that postal workers should be regarded as providing emergency services during the virus outbreak, such as through delivering urgent medical supplies to people self-isolating and other vulnerable and elderly people.

This has now effectively happened, with Royal Mail workers being put on the list of key workers.

What does this victory signify in practice? The CWU has succeeded in keeping workers on the job on behalf of the government and on its terms. As for how workers jobs and safety can be secured, the Socialist Party says that there are mixed signs coming out of Royal Mail, with indications of an internal battle at the very top. We saw a days delay in them responding to the offer of talks with the CWU, which could have been due to those at the top debating how to deal with the dispute in the changed situation.

The policy of the CWU and its errand boys in the SP is to seek an agreement with an imaginary reasonable section of the employers. Such is the politics of betrayal. Predictably, Dave Ward tweeted yesterday complaining that Royal Mail had refused to make any of the changes proposed by the CWU. The CWU would now write to the government and the Trades Union Congress and consult with lawyers.

There is a strong case for an emergency postal service being organised, with all necessary steps taken to protect the lives and livelihoods of those involved or required to stay at home. But this task cannot be accomplished under the private ownership of Royal Mail and the criminal leadership of the government. It requires the independent action of postal workersorganised in rank-and-file committees and in alliance with other sections of the working classin opposition to the CWU bureaucracy and based on a socialist programme of class struggle, not negotiations with the bosses.
Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

Amid COVID-19 outbreak, the agency has actively connected with industry associations of the host country and those in Vietnam in order to support Vietnamese firms in taking advantage of opportunities to boost their exports to Singapore.

Apart from organising field trips for Singaporean fruit and vegetable importers to Vietnam to seek supply sources in February, the office has also continued to collect information related to the public procurement demand of the Singapore Government, and actively implemented trade promotion and business matching activities.

According to statistics of the Singapore Enterprise Department, Vietnam's export value to the country in February increased 49 percent compared to a month earlier, and up 102.78 percent compared to the same period in 2019.

The office proposed to the representative office of Vietnam Airlines in Singapore to join hands in supporting Vietnamese exporters, and the carrier has maintained cargo flights from Singapore to Hanoi and HCM City and vice versa.

Particularly, the national flag carrier has also offered preferential shipping rates lower than the market price for Vietnamese firms exports to Singapore.
The city of La Crosse announced Thursday it will reduce its 13 polling places to just eight for Tuesdays election.

In a move to hopefully prevent mass exposure to the novel coronavirus, the city has combined five of its polling places with eight existing locations.

Voters from the Harry J. Olson Senior Citizen Center will now vote at the Black River Beach Neighborhood Center.

Voters from the Myrick Park Center, the UW-L Student Union, Living Word Christian Church and Hogan Administrative Center will now vote at the UW-L Recreational Eagle Center.

Voters from the Southside Neighborhood Center will now vote at the Coulee Recovery Center.

According to officials, the consolidations were strategically done to still maximize accessibility for voters.

Other cities across the state have acted similarly as worries mount about the effects on voter turnout and the spread of the virus on Election Day.

Some have questioned whether the consolidation of polling places will only increase crowds and lines at a fewer sites, but city officials said because of the amount of voters who already have exercised absentee and early voting, theyre hoping crowds will be limited.

We just want to try to limit as much potential of exposure as we can, La Crosse Mayor Tim Kabat said. With these its always going to be a balance.

As of Thursday, the city clerks office reported it mailed 7,862 absentee ballots to La Crosse residents, 37 were emailed, 16 online and 317 to health-care facilities. It also reported that 949 people had voted early in-person.

That leaves the potential for roughly 80% of the citys population still needing to vote at the polls.

At each of the eight polling spaces, police and fire personnel will be present to enforce social distancing and proper hygiene tactics, similar to the way early voting has operated at City Hall for the past two weeks, Kabat said.

The state has felt pressure during the past few weeks to postpone the election because of the pandemic.

Its the only state in the country that is planning to hold an election during this stage of the pandemic, and is one of the key swing states for the 2020 presidential election.

Last week, Gov. Tony Evers urged lawmakers to send ballots by mail to each registered Wisconsin voter, but the call was never answered.

Signs now indicate that a postponement is now unlikely, which led La Crosse city officials to make this consolidation move.

This was the right thing to do, Kabat said. I think we have really put forward a fair and accessible and convenient election for people, while of course balancing keeping people safe and healthy.

Area voters will see a number of local races on the ballot, including County Board seats, as well as a state Supreme Court race and the Democratic presidential primary.

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Coronavirus pandemic: US nearly runs out of emergency stockpiles of medical supplies

International

oi-PTI

Washington, Apr 02: The US has nearly run out of its emergency stockpiles of medical supplies like masks, gowns and gloves in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic that has claimed claimed over 5,000 lives in the country and infected 210,000 people, according to reports.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has delivered more than 11.6 million N-95 masks, 5.2 million face shields, 22 million gloves and 7,140 ventilators, exhausting the emergency stockpile, an official was quoted as saying by The New York Times on Wednesday. According to a report in the Daily quoting a senior administration official, there was a "tiny slice" of personal protective equipment left over that is being preserved for emergency medical workers for the federal government.

"The federal government has nearly emptied its emergency stockpile of protective medical supplies like masks, gowns and gloves as state governors continue to plea for protective gear for desperate hospital workers," it said.

The Trump Administration has also pulled up the private sector to manufacture these supplies including ventilators which are so critical in the treatment of coronavirus patients. "To make, procure, deliver crucial medical supplies to our doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers, my administration is leveraging the might of American manufacturing, supply chains, and innovators across the industry and across every industry," Trump told reporters at a White House news conference.

Africans rush for chloroquine as coronavirus tsunami looms

"Hanes is making protective gear, masks, and were making tremendous amounts of product. There's never been anything like it," he said. Cardinal Health from Ohio has donated 2.2 million gowns to the strategic National stockpile, he added. FEMA along with Department of Homeland Security has joined hands with the private sector called project Air Bridge to bring supplies from other countries to the US, including gloves, gowns, goggles and masks. "These supplies will soon be distributed around the country. We have large cargo planes coming in from various parts of the world," he said.

"Every day, new plane loads are landing in cities such as New York, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles. Additional flights have been scheduled and we are adding more and more. And they're actually coming in ahead of schedule. A lot of these lights are coming in with a lot of material ahead of schedule," the president said.

Responding to a question, Trump said that thousands of ventilators are being manufactured with the help of 11 companies. "We are soon going to have more ventilators than we need. We are building thousands of ventilators right now you know it takes a period of time to build them and again nobody could have known a thing like this could happen. We are building thousands," he said.

"We will fairly soon be at a point where we have far more than we can use even after we stockpile for some future catastrophe which we hope doesn't happen. We are going to be distributing them, the extras around the world we will go to Italy, we will go to France, we will go to Spain which is you know very hard hit," he added.

The US has freezed shipment of personal protective equipment outside the country, the CNN reported. Meanwhile, a Russian cargo plane carrying 60 tonnes of medical supplies, including ventilators, masks and other protection gear, needed to treat the patients with COVID-19 landed in the US on Wednesday to support the country's fight against the pandemic.

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Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 13:25 [IST]
New Delhi/Washington, April 2 : The British-born terrorist involved in the kidnapping and beheading of Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl 18 years ago, is set to be free after a Pakistani court commuted his death sentence to seven years in prison on Thursday.

Aarti Tikoo Singh New Delhi/Washington, April 2 (IANS) The British-born terrorist involved in the kidnapping and beheading of Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl 18 years ago, is set to be free after a Pakistani court commuted his death sentence to seven years in prison on Thursday.

Daniel's parents called it a mockery of justice and demanded that the prosecution in Pakistan should appeal the court verdict. "Anyone with a minimal sense of right and wrong now expects Faiz Shah, prosecutor general of Sindh to do his duty and appeal this reprehensible decision to the Supreme Court of Pakistan," Judea Pearl, Daniel's father tweeted.

Apart from Omer Sheikh's commutation of sentence, the other three convicts, Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil, earlier handed life terms, were set free by the Sindh High court on Thursday. Since Omer Sheikh has been in prison for the past 18 years, his sentence will be counted from the time served, Pakistani media reported.

Washington-based author Asra Nomani, a friend and colleague of Daniel Pearl, who was present in Pakistan at the time of the kidnapping, called the acquittal of Sheikh and three others horrible.

"Eighteen years ago, on January 23, 2002, Omar Sheikh set the trap for the kidnapping of an innocent citizen of humanity, Danny Pearl. Today, Danny is betrayed a second time by this miscarriage of justice that would release Omar Sheikh to walk free on this earth," she said.

"Omar Sheikh is a danger to society. For the sake of all journalists, we must realize justice for Danny," Nomani told IANS over phone.

A prominent member of Harkat ul-Ansar terror group, Sheikh was also involved in the kidnapping and murder of four Western tourists in Kashmir in 1994. He was released from a jail in India, along with terrorist Masood Azhar, in exchange of passengers of the hijacked Indian Airlines flight IC814 in 1999.

In 2002, an anti-terrorism court in Pakistan had convicted Omer Sheikh and other three terrorists for the kidnapping and beheading of Daniel (38) who was researching a story on Islamist terrorists in Karachi.

The defence counsel of the four terrorists had submitted that the prosecution had "miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon." A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha decided in their favor on Thursday.
A state judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging the medical aid in dying law in New Jersey, stating the physician and pharmacist who filed the claim on religious grounds are not required to help people end their lives.

The law, enacted by Gov. Phil Murphy a year ago, permits New Jersey residents with a terminal diagnosis  defined as an incurable, irreversible and medically confirmed disease that is expected to end the persons life within six months  to seek permission from two doctors to end their lives with a prescription. The patients must make two oral requests and one written request over a minimum of 15 days.

The law allows doctors and pharmacists to refuse to cooperate with a terminally ill patients request to die. But doctors who exercise this right are obligated to relinquish the patients file so another physician can be found, according to the ruling issued Tuesday by state Superior Court Judge Robert Lougy.

Rabbi and geriatrician Yosef Glassman of Bergen County argued the law legalizes murder. No doctor in New Jersey should be required to do anything to help carry it out, including the routine act of releasing a patients file, his attorneys argued in court five months ago.

The state Attorney Generals Office asked the court to dismiss the case because neither Glassman nor the pharmacist Manish Pujara who joined the lawsuit had legal standing to challenge a law that did not affect them.

Lougy agreed and granted the dismissal.

The plaintiffs suffer no harm. Nothing in the act requires (the) plaintiffs to participate as patients, physicians or pharmacists," according to the decision. Their deeply felt religious, ethical or professional objections to the act do not suffice to establish standing.

People with terminal illnesses who met the laws criteria have been permitted to use the law since Aug. 27.

Lougys decision also noted that in the months since the lawsuit was filed, the physician, pharmacist and Anthony Petro, a terminally ill cancer patient who joined the case on behalf of all affected patients," could not explain how the law had negatively affected them.

The challengers argued the law violates the constitutional rights of people with serious illnesses. Lougy wrote the constitution does not establish a constitutional or fundamental right to protect or defend the lives of others and doing so would curtail the rights to privacy of capable terminally ill patients to determine the course of their own medical treatment.

Alan Howard, a partner in the Perkins Coie law firm who has collaborated with Compassion & Choices, a national organization that promotes aid in dying laws, expressed gratitude for the judges decision on Thursday.

We are grateful that the Superior Court recognized that there are terminally ill New Jersey residents who are counting on this end-of-life care option to bring peace of mind during this difficult time, Howard said. Dying people should have this compassionate option to end their suffering if it becomes unbearable.

Glassmans attorney could not be reached for comment.

Glassman temporarily succeeded in delaying the law from taking effect on Aug. 14 when another state Superior Court judge granted a restraining order on the grounds that the Murphy administration had not developed the necessary rules to make the law work. On Aug. 27, an appellate court found the state had provided sufficient guidance and overturned the restraining order  a move the state Supreme Court let stand that same day.

Lynne Lieberman, a retired social worker from Absecon with metastatic lung cancer, also praised the ruling.

Im happy with this ruling because I would like the option of medical aid in dying as a last resort to ease my final days, Lieberman said in a statement released by Compassion & Choices. I know it will give me peace of mind simply having the medication, even if I never use it. It will make it easier for me to fully live out the time I have left.

Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio.
FAIRFIELD, Conn., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- While the IRS allows corporate foundations to make grants directly to individuals in need within their target communities, it typically does not permit them to assist employees of their sponsoring companies. However, as President Trump declared coronavirus a national emergency, corporate foundations can now provide disaster relief to those employees, reports Foundation Source, the nation's largest provider of support services to private foundations.

Although self-dealing regulations typically prohibit corporate foundations from granting directly to employees of their sponsoring companies, they are permitted to do so in the case of a "qualified" disaster, one that is federally declared by the president, resulting from certain terrorist or military actions, an accident involving a common carrier, or any other event that the secretary of the treasury has defined as catastrophic.

"Now more than ever, foundations can make a critical difference," said Page Snow, chief philanthropic officer of Foundation Source. "As the coronavirus pandemic forces many companies to furlough workers and reduce business hours, corporate foundations can use tax-advantaged dollars to take care of their own."

Under the qualified disaster exception, emergency grants can be made by corporate foundations to the employees of sponsoring companies without pre-approval from the IRS. However, to prevent self-dealing and other types of misuse, company foundations must adhere to certain applicable requirements, including the following:

Grant recipients must be selected on an objective determination of need.

The class of beneficiaries must be large or indefinite (this is referred to as the "charitable class"). As such, corporate foundations typically adopt a program intended to assist victims of a current and any future disasters to ensure that the class is indefinite.

The foundation must establish an independent selection committee to ensure that any benefit to the sponsoring company is only incidental and tenuous.

A majority of the individuals on the foundation's selection committee must consist of persons who are not in a position to exercise substantial influence over the affairs of the employer.



Disaster relief grants may not be made to members of the selection committee.

IRS self-dealing rules prohibit the foundation from making relief grants to recipients who are insiders, "disqualified persons," with respect to the foundation. Disqualified persons include officers, directors and trustees, substantial contributors, owners of more than 20% of an entity that is a substantial contributor, and certain family members of all such individuals. Additionally, under certain conditions, corporations, partnerships, and other types of entities can be disqualified persons.

Employee disaster relief cannot substitute for a benefit that the employer is required to or has committed to provide to employees. Therefore, if the sponsoring company already has a disaster relief program, the corporate foundation is prohibited from stepping in and taking over this obligation.

Provided all IRS requirements are met, employee disaster relief assistance should not result in taxable compensation to employees and will be treated as a charitable distribution by the granting foundation, which counts toward its 5% payout requirement.

Foundation Source has a streamlined process and specialized applications for its corporate foundation clients that ensure IRS compliance when making these grants. For more information about establishing a corporate foundation or making the best possible use of an existing one, visit www.foundationsource.com.

About Foundation Source (www.foundationsource.com)

Foundation Source is the nation's largest provider of comprehensive support services for private foundations. Our complete outsourced solution includes foundation creation (as needed), administrative support, active compliance monitoring, philanthropic advisory, tax and legal expertise, and online foundation management tools.

Approaching our third decade, Foundation Source provides its services to more than 1,650 family, corporate, and professionally staffed foundations, of all sizes, nationwide. We work in partnership with wealth management firms, law firms, accounting firms, and family offices as well as directly with individuals and families. Foundation Source is headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut.

SOURCE Foundation Source

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GREENWICH  As the number of cases of coronavirus continues to rise in Greenwich, First Selectman Fred Camillo said Thursday that tough steps may need to be taken nationwide.

A total of 170 Greeenwich residents had been diagnosed with coronavirus as of Thursday, up from 157 on Wednesday, according to the state of Connecticut. The state medical examiners office said seven people with coronavirus have died at Greenwich Hospital, although that counts includes all patients, not just Greenwich residents.

Of those seven, at least three were town residents. But Camillo said a family friend had passed away Wednesday night after being diagnosed with the virus and that total had not been officially updated.

As cases rise nationwide, Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim said Thursday that the nation must institute stronger stay-at-home policies immediately. When meting with the local media, Camillo did not dispute Ganims viewpoint and said the Democratic mayor was speaking from the heart.

Thats not a foreign thought at this point, said Camillo, a Republican. Its been discussed by almost everybody. I dont know if were there yet, but lets look at it this way: If we had shut down for two weeks as a nation two weeks ago, how much further along would we be in flattening the curve?

What were trying to do is keep the economy going as much as possible and keep government functioning as much as possible while flattening the curve by shutting down as many things as possible but not totally doing it. he said. On many levels, were not far from it now so I think (Ganim) is not far off.

Camillo has been aggressive in promoting social distancing in town, closing the towns parks and beaches as well as the playgrounds, libraries and civic centers. The towns Senior Center and Town Hall are also closed to the public.

Hospital adds surge beds

As of Thursday afternoon, there were 95 patients at Greenwich Hospital who have tested positive for the virus. Since the outbreak began, 75 coronavirus patients have been treated at Greenwich Hospital and discharged to continue their recovery at home.

The hospital said it continues to handle the patients without needing to look for alternate sites.

Greenwich Hospital has reassigned patient areas to maximize our internal hospital bed capacity and added surge beds in many locations throughout the hospital, hospital COO Diane Kelly said Thursday.

We also have surge plans that include using our outpatient facility at Holly Hill Lane. We are jointly examining with the state and town additional alternate local sites, as this is an important step in the process, she said. Hospital leaders will continue their dialogue with town officials about alternate sites.

BET meets via Zoom

In the meantime, the business of town government continues. The Board of Education and the Board of Estimate and Taxation have successfully held meetings remotely through the use of the Zoom video conferencing app. On April 7, the towns Planning and Zoning Commission will do so, too.

Four items will be considered at the next meeting, including sewer hookups to the new Greenwich Academy Performing Arts Center and preliminary plans for the Greenwich High School Cardinal Stadium improvements, Town Director of Planning and Zoning Katie DeLuca said.

GHS is not seeking a municipal improvement yet but rather this is a pre-application.

DeLuca said this is a chance to simply discuss the plans and is not yet a formal application.

This allows for an applicant to express a concept with the Planning and Zoning Commission, DeLuca said. It is non-binding. It is an important part of the process because we want the applicant to present the entire project to the commission.

Residents can observe the meeting by going to www.greenwichct.gov/virtualpnz.

It is important people know there is still transparency and an ability to get involved, DeLuca said. Its our way to try to keep things afloat.

kborsuk@greenwichtime.com
The National Commission for Women has received over 250 complaints since the country-wide lockdown was imposed to control the spread of coronavirus, out of which 69 are cases of domestic violence which indicates an alarming rise in such cases, its chairperson Rekha Sharma said on Thursday.

Since March 24, a total of 257 complaints related to various offences against women were received, out of which 69 were of domestic violence, she said.

State-wise analysis of the data showed that the maximum number of complaints were received from Uttar Pradesh (90), followed by Delhi (37).

Thirty domestic violence complaints were received between March 2 and March 8, while 58 such complaints were received between March 23 and 30, according to the data.

Complaints of other crimes like rape or attempt to rape and dowry harassment saw a slight reduction in the mentioned period, the NCW data showed.

Sharma said the number of domestic violence cases must be much higher but the women are scared to complain due to constant presence of their abuser at home.

She said from March 24 till April 1, the NCW has received 69 domestic violence complaints and it is increasing by the day.

"Women are not approaching the police because they think that if they take her husband away, the in-laws will torture her. Because of the lockdown, women are not able to reach out to the police. They don't even want to go to the police because they are afraid that once their husband comes out of the police station, he will again torture her and she can't even move out," she said.

"Earlier women could go to their parents' place but now they are unable to reach. The NCW is in touch with these complainants," she added.

Women rights activists said they have also received numerous complaints of domestic violence from women since the enforcement of the lockdown.

Activist Kavita Krishnan, also the secretary of All India Progressive Women's Association, said vulnerable women could have moved to safer places if the government had given some warning of the lockdown.

"All the women (domestic violence victims) who contacted me said had they known (about the lockdown), they would have tried to get out earlier and be somewhere safer," she said.

"The only thing to do is help and rescue domestic violence survivors. Their situation is worse now in the lockdown," Krishnan added.

According to Vani Subramanian, who is a member of the women's group Saheli Trust, "captivity anyway drives people crazy and abusive situations only make it worse".

Ranjana Kumari, the director of Centre for Social Research, said everyone is at home due to the lockdown and women are not getting the courage to contact for help.

"It is not a good situation for women," Kumari said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The death toll worldwide from Covid-19 has surpassed 50,000, and more than a million people have tested positive, official figures show.

As of Thursday evening, 51,335 people had succumbed to the coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins University.

But the true numbers are believed to be much higher, because of testing shortages, many mild cases that have gone unreported and suspicions that some countries are covering up the extent of their outbreaks.

At least 208,600 have recovered, the universitys statistics suggest.

Spain reported a record one-day number of deaths, 950, bringing its overall toll to 10,003, despite signs that the rate of infections is slowing.

Italy recorded 760 more deaths, bringing the total to 13,915, the worst of any country, but new infections are levelling off. More than 10,000 health workers in Italy have been infected and 69 doctors have died.

The UK death toll among hospital patients again rose by a one-day record  up in 24 hours by 569, or 24 per cent, to 2,921.

Health secretary Matt Hancock has pledged that 100,000 people will be tested for the virus each day by the end of the month, following an outcry over the UKs failing to reach other countries levels of testing.

The government is adamant it will use only tests that have passed strict efficiency checks.

One of Britains top health officials says the number of people admitted to hospital with the virus could plateau in the next two to three weeks, but before then death rates could rise steeply.

Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of Public Health England, said he could not rule out the possibility the UK was on course for 1,000 deaths a day by the weekend.

New Yorks governor, Andrew Cuomo, warned that the state was quickly running out of breathing machines, saying at current rates there were enough ventilators for just six days.
>>> Vietnam to declare nationwide COVID-19 epidemic

>>> Domestic donors purchase 2,000 ventilators to support COVID-19 treatment

The decision stated that the outbreak of the disease commenced on January 23 this year, when the first infected case was confirmed in Vietnam.

COVID-19 is classified as a Group A infectious disease according to Vietnamese disease classification, as it poses the risk of becoming a global pandemic through transmission from person to person..

The document also set out solutions and measures to cope with the pandemic following the Law on Infectious Diseases, including setting up a Steering Committee for the disease; organising medical declarations, first aid, medical examination and treatment; health quarantine; disinfecting affected areas; promoting personal protective measures; mobilising resources in society to fight the epidemic; and promoting international cooperation in anti-epidemic activities.

Five more patients now free of coronavirus

Five more patients found to have contracted the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, in Ninh Thuan Province and Ho Chi Minh City were announced as recovered on the morning of April 1, bringing the total number of recovered cases in Vietnam to 63.

Leaders from Ninh Thuan Provincial Department of Health and Ninh Thuan Province General Hospital present flowers to congratulate two patients No. 61 and 67 and the hospitals doctors during the duos release on April, 1, 2020. (Photo: NDO/Nguyen Trung)

At Cu Chi District field hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, three patients were discharged this morning, including patients No. 45, 48 and 64, while patients No. 61 and 67 were also released the same day from Ninh Thuan Province General Hospital.

After finishing treatment, they will continue to be quarantined and monitored for an additional 14 days as regulated by the Ministry of Health.

As at the morning of April 1, Vietnam had 212 cases of infection, with 63 having recovered. The remaining 149 patients are being treated at 22 medical facilities nationwide and the majority are in stable health.

Meanwhile, four critically ill cases are getting better thanks to the efforts of doctors and nurses at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases No. 2 in Hanoi. All four have shown positive progress, with the most severe case, patient No. 26, now removed from artificial ventilation and intubation. Two amongst them have also so far tested negatively twice for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
(Alliance News) - easyJet PLC on Thursday said founder and largest shareholder Stelios Haji-Ioannou has requisitioned a general meeting to remove Non-Executive Director Andreas Bierwirth from his position.

Shares in easyJet were down 3.6% at 506.60 pence in London in early morning trading.

Bierwirth joined the board of the budget airline in July 2014 and is currently chief executive of Magenta Telekom, formerly known as T-Mobile Austria.

"The board is considering the contents of the requisition notice and further announcements will be made as appropriate. Shareholders are advised to take no action at this time," easyJet said.

On Monday, Haji-Ioannou warned he would seek the removal of the entire board unless the company cancelled a GBP4.5 billion aircraft contract with Airbus SE, as the budget airliner grounded its entire fleet.

In a letter addressed to easyJet's board, Haji-Ioannou said he will send notices of general meetings to remove non-executive directors of the company for dereliction of duty unless his demands were met. He owns 34% of the company via investment vehicle easyGroup Holdings Ltd, which sent the requisition notice.

At present, easyJet has grounded its entire fleet due to travel restrictions imposed by governments around the world in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Airlines have taken a hit as countries around the globe close their borders and ordered citizens to stay at home as much as possible to help contain the virus spread.

By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
About 400 COVID-19 cases have been found in the country whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation, the Health Ministry said on Thursday, indicating that the number could go up as testing and contact tracing was underway.

Addressing the daily briefing on the coronavirus situation in the country, Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said 328 new cases of the coronavirus infection and 12 new deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of cases to 1,965 so far in India.

"Yesterday, the cabinet secretary through video conferencing with chief secretaries and DGPs asked them to initiate intensive contact tracing of Tablighi Jamaat participants and implement containment measures on a war-footing," Agarwal said.

Based on contact tracing and sampling conducted so far, about 400 positive cases have been identified whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster, he said.

This includes 173 people from Tamil Nadu, 11 from Rajasthan, nine from Andaman and Nicobar Islands, 47 from Delhi, two from Puducherry, 22 from Jammu and Kashmir, 33 from Telengana, 67 from Andhra Pradesh and 16 from Assam. These numbers are increasing as more samples are being tested, Agarwal said.

Regarding the Dharavi coronavirus case in Mumbai, he said the building there has been sealed and sample collection and contact tracing is going on as per protocol.

Appropriate action is being taken in that particular case as per protocol, he added.

On instances of medical professionals contracting coronavirus infection, Agarwal said that in majority of the cases doctors who caught the disease, and subsequently infected people associated with them, were not on COVID-19 duty. He said that there have been limited cases of doctors on duty testing positive for coronavirus.

In this context, he also highlighted the importance of training that is provided through AIIMS in coordination with states on hospital-related infection prevention control to healthcare workers and urged all of them to take precautions while dealing with COVID-19 patients.

Reacting to the attack on frontline healthcare workers, Agarwal said people should not misbehave or attack those who are rendering service despite the risk of contracting the deadly infection and reminded how people had enthusiastically expressed their solidarity with the healthcare professions during the Janta curfew on March 22.

Responding to a question over some doctors resigning because of shortage of personal protection equipment (PPEs), he acknowledged that there were problems related to the paucity of those items, and said that orders had been placed for over 1.5 crore PPEs and their supply had already started.

As far as N-95 masks are concerned, he said domestic manufacturing of the masks has been stepped up and order for over 1 croremasks have been placed with the supply to some extent started.

"The stocks of PPEs and N-95 masks which were available at the state and country level have been distributed to states in proportion to the number of coronavirus cases reported from them," Agarwal said.

The joint secretary said that the prime minister in a high-level meeting with the chief ministers of states/UTs, through video conference, urged them to manage the crisis at the district-level and to focus on testing, isolation and quarantine facilities.

States were also requested to upgrade healthcare human resource, conduct online training of frontline workers as well as increase the strength of existing capacity through involvement of retired health workers from government, private hospitals and NGOs, he said.

The official said that under the orders of the Supreme Court, states have been directed to take effective measures to fight fake in order to prevent panic among people.

The ministry with the help of National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Science (NIMHANS) has recommended general public measures to be taken on mental health for the elderly and children to deal with anxiety and stress due to the coronavirus outbreak, he said.

A psycho-social tollfree helpline number 08046110007 is also functional for any behavioral health related query.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The search for a couple in their 70s who have been missing for more than two weeks has been called off due to bad weather.

Russell Hill and Carol Clay were last heard from via radio on March 20 after they entered the Wonnangatta, 349km north-east of Melbourne, for a camping trip.

Last Friday, the couple's campsite was found burned to the ground alongside Mr Hill's car, with the pair nowhere to be seen.

Russell Hill and Carol Clay were last heard from via radio on March 20 after they entered the Wonnangatta, 349 kilometres north east of Melbourne, for a camping trip

A week-long search was called off on Thursday and will be reassessed once the weather improves, according to a Victoria Police spokeswoman.

An air and land search has been conducted, with video footage showing police looking through kilometres of dense forest.

Parks Victoria, the Mounted Cattleman's Association of Victoria and the SES were also helping with the search.

The couple left their Drouin home on March 19 and planned to visit numerous campsites along the Dargo River.

Police are unsure what they were wearing when they vanished.

Police have released images of a car similar to Mr Hill's in the hopes someone will recognise it

Inspector Craig Gaffee told Nine News: 'Mr Hill is an experienced camper and knows the area really well.

'However when he does go camping and he does quite often, he maintains daily contact, which hasn't occurred on this occasion.'

Police don't believe the pair were quarantining due to COVID-19.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 03 5142 2200.
A vulnerable woman with a chronic incurable illness remains detained in hospital because the HSE has so far been unable to find a nursing home willing to take her since family members forced their way into another nursing home and allegedly gave her illegal drugs.

Katherine Kelleher, solicitor for the HSE, told the High Court today that the woman's condition has improved but efforts to find another nursing home willing to take her have so far proven unsuccessful.

She sought orders, in the context of intended wardship proceedings, continuing the hospital detention while the HSE continue to seek a nursing home place for her.

Given the "stringent" measures put in place last week by the government to combat the threat of Covid-19, the woman will not be at a disadvantage as a result of the orders continuing, she said.

The woman, aged in her fifties, has a variety of conditions, including chronic pulmonary disease and a chronic incurable illness, making her very vulnerable to Covid-19.

The orders also restrain the family members visiting the woman and permit the HSE not to to inform them of her whereabouts. Any nursing home which admits her can confiscate her mobile phone to prevent contacts which might disclose her location.

Ms Kelleher said the orders would make clear to the woman's family members they cannot "act with impunity".

Solicitor Alec Gabot, as guardian ad litem representing the womans interests, supported the HSE application.

Mr Gabot, who visited the woman in recent days, said she is "probably one of the most extraordinarily vulnerable persons anyone could come across in society".

File photo.

She has multiple health conditions and needs a wheelchair to get around and is distressed that has been taken from her, he said. The wheelchair was taken because she used it to move around the hospital and go outside and had received illicit substances while doing so, he said.

It was considered she would not be safe, including from infection, if she continued to have it.

Mr Justice Mark Heslin, who described the woman as very vulnerable with very complex needs, made the orders sought and listed the matter for further review in July.

The woman had been transferred from the hospital to a nursing home last month but Ms Kelleher said, just a day after the transfer, some of her family members, who have a history of involvement in drugs and criminality, tried to force their way into the nursing home and threw drugs in a jumper to her through a window.

This occurred after nursing home staff, in line with visitor restrictions due to Coronavirus concerns, refused entry to the family. The incident caused great distress to staff and some residents who witnessed it, Ms Kelleher said.

The woman was readmitted to the hospital that same weekend due to a health issue and the nursing home refused to take her back when she was ready for discharge.

On the application of the HSE, the High Court, on March 23, made orders for her detention in hospital pending transfer to a nursing home. Other nursing homes must be fully apprised of the incident with the family members, the court directed.
Nearly a quarter of Quebec's seniors residences have at least one case of COVID-19, Quebec Premier Francois Legault said Wednesday, Legault said 519 of the province's roughly 2,200 seniors homes and long-term care facilities have reported cases, and he urged Quebecers to refrain from visiting elderly people who are highly susceptible to the virus.

"There must be no visits in residences. It's a matter of life and death,'' he said.

The Quebec government has already pledged $133 million Canadian (US$94 million) in emergency assistance for seniors residences to help them hire new staff and adapt to the crisis. On Wednesday, Legault said the government would also offer to pay for hotels for workers who want to limit their contacts outside of work.

The number of cases in the province rose by 449 on Wednesday, to a total of 4,611. Two more people died, bringing that total to 33. Canada has more than 9,711 confirmed cases including 111 deaths.

While most people who are infected with COVID-19 experience mild or moderate symptoms, the virus can be more serious for older people or those with underlying health conditions.

Quebec also announced it would begin limiting non-essential travel in four more regions, including between Gatineau, Quebec and the Canadian capital of Ottawa, where police could be seen stopping motorists on Wednesday afternoon.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the COVID-19 crisis unfolds , the focus of business leaders and others has been on immediate responses and short-term time horizons. This is for good reason. Yet there are initial signs of how the crisis may be shaping longer-term assumptions about business and its context.

The spread of the pandemic has brought to the fore the need for business leaders to recognise the crucial interdependencies between business and its environmental, social, and governance context.

In addition, given the massive public sector contributions to companies during the crisis, and recognising companies' reliance on healthy societies, business leaders will need to appreciate amendments to the social contract that underlies societal support for their operations.

They will need to do much better in working with others in safeguarding planetary boundaries, strengthening the social immune system, and building capable and accountable states.

Below I set out five implications of the pandemic for business leaders.

Paying attention to planetary boundaries

The emergence of the virus is linked to humans' callous treatment of wild and domesticated animals for food and dubious medicinal benefit. COVID-19 thus shows that current approaches to the trading and consumption of wild and domesticated animals are not only ethically and ecologically problematic, but also highly risky to ourselves.

More broadly, the risks of zoonotic diseases (those that spread to humans from animals) have risen as people increasingly squeeze wildlife into ever tighter corners. As noted by the author David Quammen , as

we disrupt ecosystems we shake viruses loose from their natural hosts.

Many scientists  and also an increasing number of business leaders  thus see COVID-19 as a tragic example of the broader risks to business and societies from our seeming inability to address environmental risks associated with climate change, biodiversity loss, and other  planetary boundaries .

Strengthening the 'social immune system'

COVID-19 highlights for businesses their interdependence with the social fabric in which they are embedded. One implication is that businesses are directly affected by the scope and quality of countries' social welfare systems. Provisions of the welfare state, including sick leave, have turned out to be crucial. They not only cushion the blow to vulnerable workers, but also help reduce the spread of the disease.

A related concern is the vicious cycle between COVID-19 and poverty and social inequality. Poor people are particularly exposed to contracting the disease, and they are less likely to receive good medical attention if they get sick. They are also much more exposed to the negative economic impacts.

The health of the society on which businesses depend thus depends on the existence of a decent social welfare system and the absence of extreme poverty and inequality. This has been referred to as the  social immune system . Business leaders will need to recognise how vital it is for their companies' long-term health, as well.

Building capable and accountable states

For the last 50 years, many business leaders inspired by Milton Friedman and his doctrine , or just motivated by selfishness, have chipped away at the idea that we need a strong state. The emphasis has been on reducing the role of the state and leaving more and more responsibilities to market actors.

But now business leaders are crying out for decisive government action in response to COVID-19. The assumption that we don't need capable governments has been turned on its head.

Business leaders have also stood idly by in recent years as political leaders have self-servingly eroded confidence in science . COVID-19 has highlighted the folly of this.

The US's President Donald Trump and Brazil's Jair Messias Bolsonaro openly derided scientific advice on the pandemic. President John Joseph Pombe Magufuli of Tanzania has urged churches to stay open because the coronavirus is  satanic .

COVID-19 is showing how leaders' lack of interest in or inability to make good use of science can have disastrous consequences. It is showing up with great urgency a similar problem with other serious but more longer-term challenges, such as climate change.

At the same time, there are concerns that some government leaders are using the crisis as an opportunity to deepen their authoritarian grasp on societies. They are applying surveillance mechanisms to control the pandemic, but also to control people.

This is expressing itself in states known for their authoritarianism , such as China and Hungary. But a much broader range of states are using technologies to monitor people in ways that would have been considered preposterous a few months ago.

So, on the one hand, business leaders will need to recognise the need to build capable states and evidence-based government. At the same time, they will also need to be proactive in ensuring that states remain accountable and respectful of individual freedoms.

Managing crises responsibly

The COVID-19 crisis is many ways unique. But it is also part of a broader pattern of increasingly frequent crises, as we push beyond planetary boundaries.

In South Africa, businesses were just recovering from a record-breaking drought when the crisis hit. In Australia, people were still reeling from disastrous fires .

Business leaders will need to recognise that crises will become less exceptional and thus their responses must become better prepared, more proactive, and more responsible. They must respond to both the synergies and tensions between business and community resilience.

Often, ensuring business continuity is a vital contribution that business leaders can make to the communities in which they operate. For example, in many countries pharmacies and retailers still have products in store. This isn't an accident but the result of highly sophisticated and energetic responses that commenced already in January.

The news has also been full of impressive efforts by companies to repurpose their production facilities or to make products and services available to medical workers.

Other efforts to continue with business during the crisis have been less benign. Some have sought to keep operating despite public health warnings to the contrary, such as some gyms. Others are more brazenly opportunistic, for instance by peddling questionable  health products  or through price gouging .

Another form of opportunistic behaviour is for companies or associations to make use of the crisis to influence public spending or policy in their favour. For example, coal companies have lobbied hard (and in the US, quite successfully) to benefit from government stimulus packages. This has been despite widespread calls to align such stimulus efforts with the imperative to address climate change.

In coming decades, business leaders will need to distinguish themselves by showing strong crisis management capabilities in maintaining business continuity, and by contributing more clearly to societal resilience.

Collaborating in a new social contract

The crisis is of such scope and depth that many business leaders and managers are engaging in a radical shift towards coordination and collaboration with the government and civil society organisations. In South Africa, for example, business leaders have established working groups interacting with national government to coordinate the crisis response in terms of public health, as well as social and economic impacts.

This shift is as swift, far-reaching, and seemingly natural as would have been unimaginable a few months ago.

The challenge for the next few years will be for a similar commitment to collaboration to address shared social and environmental problems before they manifest in crises like this one.

Ralph Hamann ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possede pas de parts, ne recoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a declare aucune autre affiliation que son poste universitaire.

By Ralph Hamann, Professor, University of Cape Town
Kolkata: Thermal screening being conducted on visitors for COVID-19 amid coronavirus pandemic, at a hotel in Kolkata on March 18. 2002. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS) Image Source: IANS News

Mumbai, April 2 : The Covid-19 death toll in Maharashtra shot up from 16 to 19 even as the number of positive cases rose to 416 on Thursday, officials said here.

The 81 new cases registered included 57 from Mumbai, nine each from Pune and Ahmednagar, five in Thane and one in Buldhana, with the positive cases crossing the 400 mark in less than 24 hours from 335 on Wednesday.

Details of the new fatalities are awaited, said officials.

On the other hand, 42 persons have fully recovered in the state and have been discharged from hospitals.

The city's worst nightmare came true when at least two Covid-19 cases were reported from Dharavi - notorious as Asia's biggest slum and world's most congested district - in central Mumbai.

While a 53-year old man with no history of foreign travel has reportedly succumbed in a government hospital late on Wednesday, a 51-year old civic sanitation employee was found positive on Thursday, sending shockwaves throughout Dharavi.

Moving swiftly, the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), with a police team, promptly sealed off the entire building No. 9 in Punjabi Camp, Sion-Koliwada area amidst howls of protests and abuses.

Officials have so far chosen to officially play down the incidents and are not confirming the death of the 53-year old man ostensibly to prevent panic in Dharavi.

In another cause for concern, Health Minister Rajesh Tope announced that 1,400 persons who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi last month have been identified and process is on to track and quarantine them.

So far, around the test results of 46 persons who returned from the event have proved negative and the reports of the remaining 3 are awaited.

Besides, more than 200, including several foreigners, in different parts of the state are already under quarantine with complete protocols implemented.

The MCGM has also released a list of all its containment (quarantine) areas in the city to help the people and avoid these localities where either Covid-19 patients have been found or suspects are kept in isolation.

They include several residential complexes across the city which are now sealed with entry-exit barred for all till the isolation periods are over, while the civic body is fumigating various localities and housing complexes around Mumbai.

The state government has now opened around 3,500 temporary camps for housing migrant labourers across the state where they are getting food, accommodation and other basic needs till the lockdown period is over.

Early on Thursday, police detained around 325 migrants who attempted to sneak out of Maharashtra in container trucks to Rajasthan and further investigations are on.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:05:58|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping said Thursday that China stands ready to support and assist Indonesia in overcoming the current challenge of the COVID-19 epidemic.

In a phone conversation with his Indonesian counterpart, Joko Widodo, Xi noted that the coronavirus disease is breaking out in multiple countries and regions, including Indonesia. On behalf of the Chinese government and people, he extended sincere sympathies to their Indonesian counterparts.

After a strenuous struggle, the Chinese people have walked out of the most difficult period, Xi said, adding that China identifies with Indonesia's difficulties and is willing to offer help.

China, said the president, is confident that under the leadership of Widodo, Indonesia will prevail over the epidemic.

Xi stressed that in face of the severe pandemic, China and Indonesia have been supporting each other, which has demonstrated the profound friendship of sharing weal and woe and helping each other between the two countries.

Noting that this year marks the 70th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties, Xi said China is willing to work with Indonesia to continuously deepen cooperation in building the Belt and Road and push forward the development of their comprehensive strategic partnership.

The epidemic is a common challenge for all mankind, and only by fostering strong synergy can the international community defeat the enemy, stressed the president.

China and Indonesia, he suggested, should cooperate closely to push the Group of 20 major economies and the international community to play their roles in crisis response and global economic governance.

China will uphold the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, share its experience and provide as much support as it can for the global battle against COVID-19, and work with other countries to promote the development of global public health and build a community of common health for mankind, he added.

For his part, Widodo said that under Xi's leadership, the Chinese people have scored important achievements in fighting the epidemic, from which the world can learn.

He expressed gratitude to China for its material assistance and valuable support for Indonesia's fight against the outbreak, saying that China's help is very important to Indonesia.

Viruses know no borders and stand as a common enemy of mankind, Widodo said, stressing that Indonesia is firmly opposed to any act of stigmatization and is ready to work with China to strengthen international solidarity and cooperation.

Indonesia, he added, looks forward to working with China to deepen cooperation and push forward the development of bilateral relations.
Fine print of some big banks can prevent customers from getting assistance, as millions of Americans are laid off.

United States borrowers seeking a reprieve from mortgage, auto or credit card payments because of coronavirus hardships are not getting the help they expected from big banks that promised assistance in recent weeks.

JPMorgan Chase & Co, Bank of America Corp, Wells Fargo & Co and Citigroup Inc are among lenders that announced programmes to help customers whose incomes have suddenly dropped because of illness, layoffs or government-imposed business closures stemming from the pandemic.

But fine print can prevent customers from getting assistance, borrowers and bank sources said.

For instance, lenders offering 90-day forbearance on mortgage payments are limited in how they can structure help for customers whose loans are owned by investors.

Mortgage-bond holders are still requiring monthly payments even if borrowers do not pay. Banks have been willing to foot the bill for a few months, but will ultimately need cooperation from investors.

Some customers are finding they are expected to write a big cheque as soon as the grace period ends, rather than having missed payments tacked onto the end of the loan.

Demetria Favors, a Wells Fargo & Co borrower in Arlington, Texas, asked the bank for help after her partners income declined because of coronavirus.

Favors told Reuters she waited three hours to speak to a customer service representative, who said she could skip payments for 90 days without late fees. But she would need to get up to date by June 23rd or face penalties and a knock on her credit report.

If you dont have your mortgage payment on April 1, why in the world would you have $6,000 on June 23rd? asked Favors.

Wells Fargo is offering three-month payment suspensions to any mortgage borrower who requests them. But what happens afterward depends on who owns the loan and the customers particular issues, a bank spokesman said.

Favorss frustrations echo problems described by several borrowers who have tried to tap assistance promoted by US banks.

Some had the impression they were eligible, only to discover they were not. Others found assistance came with a catch, like balloon payments at the end of a forbearance period.

Bank sources said they are trying to help customers, but that economic problems caused by the epidemic are too widespread and severe for the industry to allow everyone to stop paying bills indefinitely.

Nearly 10 million Americans have already filed jobless claims. Some economists expect the unemployment rate eventually to spike as high as 12 percent in the coming months and second-quarter US economic output to fall as much as 40 percent from a year earlier before the country can get back to normal.

Bank announcements about customer assistance were meant to be a quick Band-Aid for a rapidly escalating crisis, industry sources say. While there may be more substantive solutions ahead as banks negotiate with investors and government agencies, bank sources say are hopeful they can come to a solution before the 90-day grace period is over.

That is cold comfort for people like Todd Ruddick, who had to close his Chicago restaurant last month due to coronavirus restrictions.

Ruddick sought a waiver on his personal credit-card payments from Citigroup Inc after reading about assistance the bank announced on March 6.

After he waited on hold for a few hours, a representative told Ruddick the only way to avoid a late fee would be to close the account, which would result in the bank sending it to collections. He decided that skipping the payment and accepting the late fee was a better option.

My restaurants going to open, hopefully, sometime in May, he said. What I need is a little assistance to get me from here to there.

However, Citigroup said the COVID-19 relief programmes were mainly for depositors, such as fee waivers for early withdrawals from certificates of deposit, not for credit-card borrowers like Ruddick.
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This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005256/en/

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Intelligent Completion Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist intelligent completion market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the intelligent completion market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the intelligent completion market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of intelligent completion market vendors

Table Of Contents:

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

The threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY APPLICATION

Market segmentation by application

Comparison by application

Onshore Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Offshore Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by application

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 09: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

PART 10: MARKET TRENDS

Increase in deepwater and ultra-deepwater E&P activities

Increase in use of unconventional E&P techniques

Consolidation among oilfield service companies

PART 11: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

PART 12: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Baker Hughes

Halliburton

National Oilwell Varco

Schlumberger

Weatherford

PART 13: APPENDIX

Research methodology

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005256/en/

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Judges block temporary abortion bans in Texas, Alabama, Ohio

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Courts have issued blocks against measures taken in Alabama, Ohio, and Texas that were aimed at temporarily banning elective abortions during the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. District Court Judge Lee Yeakel ruled against Texas temporary ban, arguing in a decision released Monday that it caused irreparable harm to those seeking an abortion.

Regarding a woman's right to a pre-fetal-viability abortion, the Supreme Court has spoken clearly, ruled Yeakel.

There can be no outright ban on such a procedure. This court will not speculate on whether the Supreme Court included a silent except-in-a-national-emergency clause in its previous writings on the issue.

The block on the abortion ban will be in place until April 13, when a court hearing via phone will take place, reported local media outlet KUT.

U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson issued a temporary restraining order against the order given in Alabama, also expected to go through April 13 as arguments are heard in court.

In his ruling, Thompson argued that the government desire to conserve medical supplies does not outweigh the serious, and, in some cases, permanent, harms imposed by the denial of an individuals right to privacy.

Finally, an Ohio order was ruled unconstitutional if the order prevents abortions from being carried out."

The litigation against the orders came from pro-choice groups including Planned Parenthood, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Center for Reproductive Rights.

Without injunctive relief, Plaintiffs will be forced to continue turning away patients seeking abortion care, warned the lawsuit filed against Texas order last week.

Not only will these patients be deprived of their constitutional right to essential healthcare and self-determination, but forcing them to continue their pregnancies will in fact impose far greater strains on an already-taxed healthcare system 

Proponents of the temporary bans on elective abortions have argued that such measures are necessary to free up much-needed medical supplies for combating the coronavirus pandemic.

[It is] unconscionable that abortion providers are fighting against the health of Texans and withholding desperately needed supplies and personal protective equipment in favor of a procedure that they refer to as a choice, said Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a statement last week.

My office will tirelessly defend Governor Abbotts Order to ensure that necessary supplies reach the medical professionals combating this national health crisis.

Alexandra DeSanctis of the conservative publication National Review took issue with the rulings, arguing that they underscore exactly how damaging the prevailing abortion jurisprudence is.

Even at a time of national crisis, as states exercise great discretion and authority to allocate resources as they see fit and shut down hundreds of thousands of non-essential businesses in order to stop the spread of disease, abortion providers are given a free pass from the courts to continue doing business, wrote Desanctis.
By Trend

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has signed a decree to extend the quarantine in the country amid the coronavirus outbreak until April 13, Trend reports citing TASS.

"The corresponding order [on extending the quarantine until April 13] has been signed, and we cannot ease restrictive measures and we cannot promise that they will be eased from April 14," Conte told a press conference on Wednesday. "When experts approve, we will move to phase 2 and gradually lift the quarantine. Then phase 3 will follow, and we will lift the state of emergency," he added. "If we start easing measures now, then all the efforts made so far will be in vain," he noted.

Italian Health Minister Roberto Speranza earlier announced that the quarantine measures will be extended, and schools will remain closed.

The quarantine was imposed in Italy on March 10. Over 110,000 coronavirus cases were confirmed in the country, and more than 13,000 people died from coronavirus-associated illnesses and complications.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about the outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, in central China. Since then, cases of the novel coronavirus  named COVID-19 by the WHO  have been reported in more than 160 countries, including Russia.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Home Depot has ordered all 2,300 of its stores in North America to stop sales of N95 masks to try to free them up for those on the front lines of the coronavirus emergency response, the company said Wednesday.

The announcement came on the same day that President Donald Trump said that the federal governments stockpile of personal protective equipment had nearly been depleted by the states.

UNEMPLOYMENT: Macys furloughs most of its 130,000 staff amid pandemic

The demand for masks, gowns, face shields and gloves has skyrocketed during the spread of the virus, which has killed at least 4,726 people and sickened more than 209,000 in the United States.

The frantic competition for supplies has resulted in a number of high-profile episodes of hoarding and price-gouging. It has drawn scrutiny to retailers that sell personal protective equipment, commonly known as PPE.

The N95 respirator, a type of mask that protects against airborne droplets from sneezes or coughs, is among the most sought-after supplies.

We stopped restocking stores a couple weeks ago to prioritize shipments for hospitals and first responders, Sara Gorman, a spokeswoman for Home Depot, said in an email Wednesday night. As an extra precaution, we locked them down with a stop sale beginning last week.

Gorman said that the company had donated millions of dollars in PPE equipment and redirected shipments of N95 masks to hospitals, health care workers and emergency responders across the United States.

Home Depot was not the only major retailer to redirect supplies because of the crisis. On March 20, the home improvement retailer Lowes said it would donate $10 million of products to medical professionals.

STAY POSITIVE: 15 pieces of good news to come out coronavirus pandemic

Lowes is currently delivering essential items, such as respirators and other protective gear, to hospitals nationwide by working with national health care supply distributors to allocate product where its needed most, the company said on its website.

On the companys site, product pages for N95 masks said Wednesday night that they were not available for purchase online. It was not immediately clear if the masks could be purchased at the stores. Lowes did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday night.

During an appearance on CNBC last week, Mike Roman, chief executive of 3M, which makes N95 masks, expressed concern over some retailers continuing to sell protective gear.

Its disappointing when you see that, because were trying to redirect everything to health care workers, he said.

Amazon has restricted the sales of some medical supplies, but not all of them. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Last month, Target apologized after a shopper in the Seattle area shared on Twitter a photograph of store shelves filled with boxes of N95 masks, which the company said was an error. Washington state was an early epicenter of the pandemic in the United States.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?: A timeline of the coronavirus pandemic

Were removing & donating them to the WA State Dept. of Health, Target wrote on Twitter. Were also reviewing inventory for additional masks to be donated.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
The state Senate passed its final budget bill Thursday afternoon, ending a budget season that was like no other in state history. While the bulk of legislative business in recent years has been done through the budget process, the Democratic majorities in the state Legislature demonstrated last year that hot-button issues can get done in the latter half of the legislative calendar.

New remote voting rules could allow that to happen again this year. However, with the coronavirus pandemic continuing to ravage the state, it remains to be seen whether state lawmakers have the appetite  in an election year no less  to deal with outstanding policy issues like marijuana legalization, ethics reforms, and other issues in the months ahead.

City & State caught up with state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins on the Senate floor Thursday afternoon to hear her thoughts on whether the business of legislating will continue in the months ahead. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

What are the chances that the state Senate will reconvene again this year, remotely or otherwise?

We have now been able to set up a remote situation where we can indeed convene conferences. We can convene sessions and so as things arise, we will certainly be ready to serve. There's always legislative ideas that people have that could be helpful. So we intend to continue to do our work.

Are there any specific plans to come back?

Well, we're on a break. But because of the reality of the circumstances, which are ever-changing, we will be back as needed.

A lot of stuff that was not part of the budget discussions, like some of the voting reforms passed in one legislative chamber but not in the other chamber. In retrospect, do you feel that there was not enough coordination between the two chambers from the get-go?

I always go back to our very first year where we really, the chambers together passed so much landmark historic legislation. We have obviously continued to be partners, but between the budget and this terrible pandemic, all of our energies were focused on making sure that we keep our government running, that we supply our residents with the things that they needed that are pertinent to this particular situation. If we've understood nothing, we should have understood that nothing is promised for us. So if you can get something done, if you can figure out things, do it while you can. We'll be meeting again, and we'll be accomplishing so much more.

Are you happy with the changes to the criminal justice reforms?

Yes. I mean, you know, we worked to try and strike that balance. Its extremely important that we change a criminal justice system that massively incarcerated people. We did want to make sure that there were opportunities for the district attorneys to do what they had to do in terms of discovery time. We wanted to make sure that certain crimes were certainly bailable offenses. This pandemic changes everything. I think everybody's thinking about what it means to have your freedom and to be in situations that, you know, are safe. So I think this whole idea of mass incarceration is gone. And I think that we've really taken good steps to make sure that the justice system is just.

Last year, the Assembly and the state Senate really came together with the rent reforms and the Green Light bill, and it really seemed like the Legislature had asserted itself as a co-equal branch of government. Now, things have really changed. The governor has these emergency powers. A lot of legislation passed one house but not the other. Where is the Legislature now vis-a-vis the executive branch compared to where the Legislature was last spring?

Everything is relative. Everyone respects the fact that we are co-equal branches. In certain circumstances, one branch sort of has a dominant role. So during this time with this pandemic  and you heard me congratulate the governor  we need somebody who can lead and coordinate agencies and make sure that people are understanding what the needs are.

So did the three people in a room  you, the governor and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie  meet in person during budget negotiations?

Earlier on, we met in a room, and then kind of by phone.
SAN CARLOS, Calif., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A new, peer-reviewed case study published in JCO Precision Oncology1 demonstrates the unique ability of Signatera technology to detect esophageal cancer recurrence almost one year before current standards of care, using a simple blood draw to monitor for traces of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA). This report builds upon a fast-growing body of scientific evidence behind the Signatera test across multiple cancer types.

The study follows a 72-year old man with recurrent Stage III esophageal cancer whose recurrence was detected 350 days before radiographic imaging, using Signatera's personalized and tumor-informed technology. After undergoing multiple CT scans showing no signs of cancer, the patient's physicians escalated to a PET scan, which revealed a 4 cm nodule in his liver that was later surgically removed. The full study can be found here.

"This case study illustrates the potential advantage of using personalized ctDNA testing as a surveillance tool, especially in the current environment with COVID-19," commented senior author Eirini Pectasides, M.D., Ph.D., a medical oncologist specializing in gastrointestinal cancer at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School.

In the era of COVID-19 and social distancing, where cancer patients are among those with the highest risk of mortality from exposure to the virus, many oncologists are cancelling routine surveillance visits and looking for remote monitoring solutions. In response to the pandemic, Natera has announced a temporary GI Cancer Expanded Access Program that offers compassionate use of the Signatera test for patients with any form of GI cancer through July 31, 2020, including esophageal cancer, which was the focus of the case study. Details of the Expanded Access Program can be found here.

"Patient anxiety around cancer recurrence can be immense," commented Solomon Moshkevich, General Manager of Natera's Oncology business. "This case exemplifies the value of early recurrence detection, through blood testing that can be accessed remotely from one's home."

Signatera has been validated across multiple cancer types to detect molecular residual disease (MRD) up to 2 years earlier than standard diagnostic tools,2-5 with virtually no false positives (< 0.3%).3 While a negative test result does not mean someone is definitely cancer-free, it does mean the risk of relapse is significantly reduced. These results, in conjunction with clinical and pathological risk assessment, may help patients avoid treatment with chemotherapy that can weaken the immune system.

More About Signatera

Signatera is a custom-built circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) test for treatment monitoring and molecular residual disease (MRD) assessment in patients previously diagnosed with cancer. The test is available for clinical and research use, and in 2019, it was granted Breakthrough Device Designation by the FDA. The Signatera test is personalized and tumor-informed, providing each individual with a customized blood test tailored to fit the unique signature of clonal mutations found in that individual's tumor. This maximizes accuracy for detecting the presence or absence of residual disease in a blood sample, even at levels down to a single tumor molecule in a tube of blood. Unlike a standard liquid biopsy, Signatera is not intended to match patients with any particular therapy; rather, it is intended to detect and quantify how much cancer is left in the body, to detect recurrence earlier and to help optimize treatment decisions. Signatera test performance has been clinically validated in multiple cancer types including colorectal, non-small cell lung, breast, and bladder cancers. Medicare has proposed insurance coverage for the use of Signatera in patients with Stage II or III colorectal cancer, and it is expected to finalize that coverage decision in mid-2020.

Signatera was developed by Natera, Inc. a laboratory certified under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA). This test has not been cleared or approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Although FDA does not currently clear or approve laboratory-developed tests in the U.S., certification of the laboratory is required under CLIA to ensure the quality and validity of the tests.

About Natera

Natera is a global leader in cell-free DNA testing. The mission of the company is to change the management of disease worldwide with a focus on reproductive health, oncology, and organ transplantation. Natera operates an ISO 13485-certified and CAP-accredited laboratory certified under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) in San Carlos, Calif. It offers proprietary genetic testing services to inform obstetricians, transplant physicians, oncologists, and cancer researchers, including biopharmaceutical companies, and genetic laboratories through its cloud-based software platform. For more information, visit natera.com. Follow Natera on LinkedIn.

Forward-Looking Statements

All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release are forward-looking statements and are not a representation that Natera's plans, estimates, or expectations will be achieved. These forward-looking statements represent Natera's expectations as of the date of this press release, and Natera disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including with respect to our efforts to develop and commercialize new product offerings, our ability to successfully increase demand for and grow revenues for our product offerings, whether the results of clinical or other studies will support the use of our product offerings, our expectations of the reliability, accuracy and performance of our screening tests, or of the benefits of our screening tests and product offerings to patients, providers and payers. Additional risks and uncertainties are discussed in greater detail in "Risk Factors" in Natera's recent filings on Forms 10-K and 10-Q and in other filings Natera makes with the SEC from time to time. These documents are available at www.natera.com/investors and www.sec.gov.

Contacts

Investor Relations: Mike Brophy, CFO, Natera, Inc., 650-249-9090

Media: Paul Greenland, VP of Corporate Marketing, [email protected]

References:

Einstein DJ, Liang N, Malhotra M, et al. Assessment of molecular remission in oligometastatic esophageal cancer with a personalized circulating tumor DNA assay. JCO PO. 2020;4:239-243. Reinert T, Henriksen TV, Christensen E, et al. Analysis of plasma cell-free DNA by ultradeep sequencing in patients with stages I to III colorectal cancer. JAMA Oncol. 2019;5(8):11241131. Coombes RC, Page K, Salari R, et al. Personalized detection of circulating tumor DNA antedates breast cancer metastatic recurrence. Clin Cancer Res . 2019;25(14):4255-426. Abbosh C, Birkbak NJ, Wilson GA, et al. Phylogenetic ctDNA analysis depicts early-stage lung cancer evolution. Nature. 2017;545(7655):446-451. Christensen E, Birkenskamp-Demtroder K, Sethi H, et al. Early detection of metastatic relapse and monitoring of therapeutic efficacy by ultra-deep sequencing of plasma cell-free DNA in patients with urothelial bladder carcinoma. J Clin Oncol. 2019; 37(18):1547-1557.

SOURCE Natera, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.natera.com


While announcing a statewide shelter-in-place order on Wednesday, Georgia governor Brian Kemp, a Republican, said that he had just been informed that asymptomatic individuals could spread the coronavirus.

The illness is now transmitting before people see signs.Those individuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt [symptoms], Kemp said at a press conference. We didnt know that until the last 24 hours.

It has been widely known for months that the coronavirus can spread through asymptomatic transmission. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently updated its guidelines for outbreak mitigation regarding asymptomatic transmission, leading Georgia health officials to change their projections for an outbreak in the state.

Its a combination of recognizing theres a large number of people out there who are infected and who are infected, who are asymptomatic, who never would have been recognized under our old models, but also seeing the community transmission that were seeing, said Dr. Kathleen Toomey, head of Georgias Department of Public Health.

Governor Kemp had initially resisted signing a shelter-in-place order due to the effect it would have on the states economy. However, in recent days the governors of Florida, Texas, and South Carolina all introduced limitations on residents mobility to combat coronavirus spread. Georgia has 4,748 confirmed cases, with Florida at 7,773, Texas at 4,607, and South Carolina at 1,293, according to Johns Hopkins Universitys coronavirus tracker.

With the extent of coronavirus spread across the U.S. becoming clearer, Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday said the outbreak in the U.S. was increasingly comparable to that of Italy, one of the worst outbreaks in the western hemisphere.

More from National Review
[April 02, 2020]

Xinhua Silk Road: GCL-SI to build 60GW module factory in Hefei, east China

BEIJING, April 2, 2020 /CNW/ -- GCL System Integration Technology Co., Ltd. (GCL-SI) (002506.SZ), a leading PV company in China, recently announced a plan to build a 60GW module factory in Hefei, capital of east China's Anhui Province.

According to the agreement it signed with the Government of Feidong County recently, GCL-SI will invest a total of 18 billion yuan in the project which will be built in four phases, each with a production capacity of 15GW, from 2020 to 2023. The first phase requires a total investment of 5 billion yuan and is expected to start opertion this year.







Upon completion of the project, GCL-SI will have the world's largest module production capacity, said the company.

"This is another solid step in the dual-main business operation strategy (namely, PV+ energy storage)," said Eric Luo, chairman of the listed company, "GCL-SI welcomes upstream and downstream companies in the industrial chain to come to Feidong and build a super PV intelligent manufacturing base together."

The new factory will focus on producing 210mm high efficiency modules and is also capable of manufacturing 166mm and 158.75mm modules. Automatic and intelligent production technology will be fully applied in the factory, with the big data support, according to Luo.

Feidong, a county of Hefei City, stated that it aims to create a super PV intelligent manufacturing base which is expected to accommodate cells, backsheet, glass and other supporting supply chain companies.

Cooperation between GCL-SI and Feidong County is based on their consensus on the promising development of the semiconductor and PV industries. GCL-SI has a faith on the PV development in the context of the global energy transition, Luo added.

GCL-SI's optimistic outlook on the PV market has been echoed by the forecast made by the International Energy Agency (IEA) which expects the global cumulative installed capacity of PV to reach 1,721GW by 2030 and 4,670GW by 2050.

At present, GCL-SI's module production capacity is 7.2GW, with its products covering both monocrystalline and polycrystalline.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/xinhua-silk-road-gcl-si-to-build-60gw-module-factory-in-hefei-east-china-301034197.html

SOURCE Xinhua Silk Road
Omar Ricci knew the title of his khutbah, or sermon, at the Islamic Center of Southern California would catch some people off guard. Thank God for the coronavirus, read the headline, which made more than one Muslim in the audience do a double-take.

When he spoke, Ricci explained what he meant: Thank God for this reminder that we are not in control and must always be dependent on God. Thank God for this reminder that we should be grateful for all things  for groceries, toilet paper, good health. Thank God for reminding us life is fragile, and we had best appreciate the miracle and blessing that God has given us in creating us as souls.

As a spokesperson for the ICSC, home to one of the oldest and most prominent mosques in the USA, Ricci is one of many faith leaders around the world helping their congregations navigate the uncertainty surrounding coronavirus, which has killed more than 66,000 worldwide, infected more than 1.2 million and crippled the global economy.

As church services go viral and newsletters promising of Gods goodness throughout this tragedy populate inboxes, questions about whether God created coronavirus  or if its Gods will for the virus to flourish or if it was sent as some sort of punishment  abound. Many faith leaders say this is not a punishment, and they challenge their followers to find God even in suffering.

The Rev. Lou Ann Jones, right, leads prayer as eight people spread out around the flagpole at St. John's Blymire's United Church Of Christ near Dallastown, Pa., on March 16. They prayed for the community, nurses and doctors, government leaders and many others during the turmoil from the coronavirus pandemic.

From Riccis perspective, coronavirus is not only a test of faith but a solidifying agent of faith, he says. When youre in difficult times, thats when you actually get to practice faith.

He points to the 67th chapter of the Quran, verse 2: He who created death and life  to test you  as to which of you is better in conduct. He is the Almighty, the Forgiving.

From an Islamic standpoint, Ricci says, part of that test includes how Muslims react in difficult times.

The Quran says trials will come and to be prepared for them, Ricci says. So how do we react  do we go off and hoard toilet paper? Or do we take care of others? If we know trials are coming, thats where faith is supposed to kick in.

Story continues

The coronavirus has robbed us all: Let yourself mourn the loss, experts say.

Rabbi Chaim Bruk, co-CEO of Chabad Lubavitch, a Hasidic Jewish community in Bozeman, Montana, says it's normal in times of heartache and fear to wonder, "How do I get through this and maintain my faith in God?"

For Bruk, it's personal: In Brooklyn, where Bruk grew up, his father and three uncles have all tested positive for the virus (one uncle is in ICU at New York University's hospital in New York City.) Ages 52 to 77, the four brothers are experiencing various levels of illness.

Overwhelmed by the situation, Bruk opened the book of Psalms last week and took a minute to pray. His 10-year-old daughter found it odd, because typically Bruk prays at particular times, as mandated by his religion. She asked what was going on and was everything OK.

Probably for the first time in my life, I wasnt praying because that was the order of the day or there was a particular holiday, Bruk says. I told her, I need to have this moment with God. I need to talk to him a little bit. 

Imam Mohamed Yusuf prays alone at the Andalus Mosque in Eastleigh, Nairobi, on March 27, 2020, as the government banned mass prayers in mosques to curb the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

He had an epiphany then, he says, a startling realization that all he could do, all he could control, were his prayers. He knows that for many, the virus and the accompanying havoc across the globe will result in doubts. That's normal, he says. It's more about what someone does with those doubts.

I dont care if youre the greatest atheist in the world, something of this magnitude requires introspection on some level, and there will be a spiritual component to that, Bruk says.

Weve always said that for every breath we take, we should thank God. I always thought of that as a cute concept, but in the last few weeks, its become very real, he says.

Suffering, he points out, has been experienced for centuries, by people of all faiths, as all religious texts document. If theres comfort in suffering, Bruk says, it comes from the knowledge that God suffers with you. Although Bruk doesnt know the why behind this particular suffering  which includes terribly sick people on the brink of death as well as those who have lost their jobs and arent sure how theyll feed their family  he does believe theres a reason for it. He just doesnt understand it. He might never get to, either.

Its not my job to be Gods lawyer, Bruk says. Im his salesman. I do believe hes the greatest thing that ever existed, and I encourage people to get to know him without trying to explain what hes doing or why.

Why something is happening, and whether it's God's will, is a topic Thomas Jay Oord thinks about a lot.

When will coronavirus end? What wartime and human kindness can tell us about what happens next

A Christian theologian, author and teacher at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho, Oord has been busy the past few weeks giving guest sermons via the videoconferencing app Zoom as he tries to answer the question If God is good, then why does the coronavirus exist?

There are, he says, a lot of bad answers to that question. When he preaches, Oord explains that there are two types of evils: moral evils, such as murder, and natural evils, such as hurricanes, tornadoes or in this case, the coronavirus. People often respond in one of three ways.

First, theres the group that says God is angry about sin or gays and lesbians or whatever, Oord says, and hes using a natural evil to punish the world. Oord rejects that view because God is a god of love, hes not in the business of doing evil.

Next comes the group that says God hasnt caused a natural evil but allows it. If you buy into the theory that God is a god of love, Oord says, that doesnt make any logical sense. Letting something horrible happen goes against God's nature.

A boy carries a box of matzos for Passover that he picked up from his synagogue in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Amid the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, Jewish communities where the holiday of Passover is celebrated with a traditional meal known as a seder are adapting their traditional rhythm of extended families dining and observing together.

Then there are the people who chalk it up to a mystery.

Oord doesnt buy any of those. In his teachings, he presents a fourth option: God cant simply prevent the coronavirus  or any other natural evils  singlehandedly but requires our participation and cooperation to fight it, he says. In keeping with his foundation that God is a god of love, Oord says, I dont think God is in the business of punishing and harming the most vulnerable, the people on the margins.

Oord does believe God is omnipotent but not in what he calls "the classical view." God can't make a square round, Oord says, just like he can't contradict his nature, which is good and loving.

That was the message Oord brought to Clackamas United Church of Christ in Milwaukie, Oregon, a Portland suburb. The Rev. Adam Ericksen, who had Oord speak, has been thinking a lot about people on the margins, too. Hes adamant that no matter your belief in the meaning (if one exists) behind coronavirus, the role of the church in this moment is to make sure no one, including people on the margins, falls through the cracks," Ericksen says.

Its not lost on Ericksen that this pandemic is spreading and halting normal life as major religious holidays such as Passover and Easter approach.

In Judaism, Passover commemorates the liberation of Israelites, who were led out of Egypt by Moses after God sent 10 plagues to the Egyptians. In Christianity, Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. The joyous holidays acknowledge the deep suffering that preceded them.

I think the big question here is, how do you give a sense of hope in the midst of this, Ericksen said. How do you make sure that coronavirus, and death, doesnt have the last word? Thats what the resurrection is all about. And now were being asked to enact that.

That some people are so quick to compare the current world to Passover is a bridge too far for Danya Ruttenberg.

Affectionately known as the Twitter rabbi, Ruttenberg has been answering questions on social media since coronavirus blew up, often beating back the idea that God is somehow punishing the world by unleashing a plague for the new millennium.

People want to make meaning in a time of fear, uncertainty and suffering, and thats totally understandable and natural, she says. And Passover is coming up, so people are making those comparisons. But no, I do not think God is smiting us. My theology does not involve a man in the sky with a pair of dice saying, Its smite-the-people oclock.' Thats not how I understand what God is.

Ruttenberg is quick to point out that people have agency and free will, a concept often referenced in the Judeo-Christian creation story about Adam and Eve. People have choices today, too, she says  whether theyre going to self-isolate and practice social distancing or if theyre going to be reckless and let the virus spread.

She finds comfort in a passage from the Talmud, the two-part Jewish text that contains centuries of thought, debate and discussion. In Talmud Brachot 32b, Rabbi Elazar said, Since the day the Temple was destroyed the gates of prayer were locked  though the gates of prayer were locked, the gates of tears were not locked. The idea, Ruttenberg explains, is that we are always able to cry out to God and that in times of heartbreak, there are still powerful ways to connect spiritually.

Although uncertainty abounds, she can find hope, too.

I dont think God caused the coronavirus, but I see Gods work everywhere, she says. In every single person who makes the decision to love their neighbor as themselves, in every person whos staying home even though its not convenient, in every doctor and nurse and health care worker who are putting themselves at risk, in every grocery store worker.

The proof of the holy is a lot of places.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus and God: What faith leaders say about pandemic
City Editor

Tom Roeder is the Gazette's City Editor. In Colorado Springs since 2003, Tom has covered the military at home and overseas and has covered statehouses in Denver and Olympia, Wash. His main job, though, is being dad to two great kids.
A shopper wore a vintage diving helmet while browsing for potatoes at a Woolworths supermarket in southern Queensland.

The shopper was spotted at the Noosaville store on the Sunshine Coast on Thursday and staff watched on in disbelief as he stocked up on groceries.

Many people thought the lengths the man went to protect himself from the coronavirus was hilarious.

The shopper was spotted at the Noosaville store on the Sunshine Coast on Thursday and staff watched on in disbelief as he stocked up on groceries

Many people thought the lengths the man went to protect himself from the coronavirus was hilarious (pictured: A lady wears a face mask as a preventative measure against corona virus at a checkout in a Woolworths supermarket in Coburg, Melbourne)

One person wrote: 'Going deep sea diving after the supermarket to look for pearls.'

'Is it going to flood next? Are the seas going to rise and cover the earth? Does this guy know something we don't?' another joked.

Another person said: 'At least it is reusable.'

'I have always wanted one of those diving masks! This dude is awesome,' another said.

Several shoppers have been spotted at stores and supermarkets wearing bizarre outfits to protect themselves against the coronavirus.

One person was pictured in a supermarket car park wearing a silver space suit costume and helmet.

Another shopper was pictured at Woolworths in a full hazmat suit, gloves, goggles and a face mask.

One image showed a whole family completing their shopping in an extreme plastic outfit that was the 'stuff made of nightmares.'

They were all wearing gloves and facemasks but were covered in plastic ponchos and each had a plastic water cooler over their heads.

Several shoppers have been spotted at stores and supermarkets wearing bizarre outfits to protect themselves against the coronavirus (pictured: A man wearing a space suit in a supermarket car park)

One image showed a whole family completing their shopping in an extreme plastic outfit that was the 'stuff made of nightmares'

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

The extreme outfits came as coronavirus cases continued to rise across Australia.

There are 5,108 positive COVID-19 cases across the nation and the worldwide number sits at 854,600.

As of Thursday afternoon, 24 Australians have died from the virus.

Panic-buying during the pandemic has sparked violent brawls in supermarkets throughout the nation as customers rush to get their hands on in-demand groceries.

Woolworths and Coles stores have seen sales soar in recent months, well beyond what is standard for this time of year.

As a result, Woolworths created 20,000 new jobs - many are short term contracts - designed to give people now out of work due to COVID-19 a lifeline.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-02 16:54:04

AM Best to Host Webinar on the Impact of Oil Price Movements and COVID-19 on Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Markets

Vasilis Katsipis

General Manager, Market Development

+971 4375-2782

vasilis.katsipis@ambest.com

AM Best will host a complimentary webinar on 7 April 2020, at 9 a.m. (GMT). A sudden drop in oil prices in March 2020, further spooked financial markets already unsettled by the accelerating spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Oil prices have been hit by both weakened demand due to the COVID-19-related economic slowdown and excess supply. OPEC+ supply discussions broke down after the failure of negotiations between two of the largest oil producers, Russia and Saudi Arabia. On 17 March 2020, the Brent Crude futures price dropped to below USD 30, for the first time since 2016. This AM Best webinar considers the potential impact of the oil price drop and COVID-19 on the insurance markets in the Middle East and North Africa.

Register now: www.ambest.com/webinars/oil.

Presenters:

Vasilis Katsipis (host), general manager, Market Development;

Salman Siddiqui, director, Analytics;

Valeria Ermakova, associate director, Analytics; and

Jessica Botelho-Young, CA. senior financial analyst, Analytics.

Attendees can submit questions during registration or by emailing webinars@ambest.com. Playback will be available to registered viewers shortly after the event.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright  2020 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005
Stephen Booth: The EU creaks under the virus strain  as Salvini lashes out at this den of snakes and jackals

Stephen Booth is Head of the Britain in the World Project at Policy Exchange.



It is still too early in the Coronavirus pandemic to grasp its long-term implications for international politics.

Two visions of international relations are being put forward, often reflecting the prejudices of their advocates. We are either headed for a future with a greater focus on national self-sufficiency, potentially leading to more international political conflict.

Alternatively, this is the moment for increased international cooperation that reflects the interconnected nature, for good and ill, of the world in which we live.

The eventual reality is unlikely to be so binary, since the crisis will reinforce both instincts and the policy response will require a bit of each. National borders may become thicker in response to the crisis, and yet the development and dissemination of a vaccine will be a global endeavour. Supply chains may need to be more resilient in future, but autarky clearly isnt the answer.

Nowhere is this tension between the national and transnational more evident than within the EU, and the eurozone in particular, since it is both a collection of nations and in effect a quasi-state.

In my previous column, I noted that the initial response to the crisis  border closures and the stockpiling of medical equipment  had been characterised by uncoordinated national measures, with the EU institutions struggling to ensure that Europes internal borders remain open and that medical goods continue to be traded freely across the single market.

Over the last two weeks, the political and economic dividing lines exposed by the eurozone crisis nearly a decade ago have loomed large, with leaders at odds over how to finance a common economic response.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has once again been called on to do the heavy lifting, as countries increase national deficits to deal with the crisis. Its new Pandemic Emergency Purchase Programme (PEPP), a bond buying programme of up to 750bn, is more flexible and has less strings attached than previous ECB schemes. It has already had some success in reducing borrowing costs for countries, such as Italy, which are most in need.

However, the relaxation of the ECBs usual restrictions under the PEPP is testing the boundaries of what is legally and politically acceptable in the so-called frugal member states, chiefly the Netherlands, Germany and Austria.

Under current rules, the ECB is unable to take a direct role in helping individual governments, unless a wider bailout programme has first been agreed by other member states.

In 2018, following legal cases brought in by Germany, the European Court of Justice specifically pointed to previous limitations on the ECBs bond-buying activities when ruling that it was not breaching the ban on direct financing.

Eurozone leaders are therefore examining other means of collective action, rather than relying solely on the ECB. The politics of this are fraught. As the eurozone crisis eased and took the pressure off to enact further reforms, there was much unfinished business.

Supporters of a common eurozone treasury see this crisis as their chance to further the cause. Last week, nine EU member states, including France, Italy, Spain and Portugal, called on fellow governments to develop a common debt instrument  so-called Coronabonds  to increase the eurozones fiscal firepower and display European solidarity.

However, German and Dutch politicians are loathed to enter into mutually guaranteed financing instruments with governments with debts that already amount to near, or well over, one hundred per cent of GDP.

Wopke Hoekstra, the Dutch Finance Minister, sparked a major row after reportedly calling for an audit into why some countries did not have enough fiscal room to cope with the economic impact of the crisis.

The Dutch and German preference is that, if further action is required, the eurozones bailout fund  the European Stability Mechanism (ESM)  should be the vehicle.

The problem with this, from an Italian point of view, is that an ESM programme carries the stigma of asking for a bailout and usually has strings attached, such as external budgetary oversight.

This is political dynamite in Rome. After Coronabonds were rejected at last weeks EU meeting, Italian opposition leader Matteo Salvini, whose Lega party tops opinion polls, tweeted, A far cry from being a union, this is a den of snakes and jackals. Italy may have to say goodbye to the EU, he suggested. A fudge may well be found in the coming days that can calm things down for now, but the fundamental structural and political challenges facing the eurozone have been exposed once again.

The EU will also have to confront another question posed in the wake of the Coronavirus crisis: how much is too much centralised state control and will the freedoms we take for granted be restored? Many countries are experiencing unprecedented limits on civil liberties to contain the virus, but these restrictions sit uneasily with liberal democratic traditions.

The UKs emergency powers were passed with the proviso that MPs would vote every six months on whether they should be renewed. However, the Hungarian parliament this week approved a controversial law that will extend the state of emergency and allow Prime Minister Viktor Orban to govern by decree for an indefinite period of time.

Among other things, the law means that individuals who publicise untrue or distorted facts, in the eyes of the government, potentially face several years in prison. European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen did not mention Hungary by name, but in a statement said: Any emergency measures must be limited to what is necessary and strictly proportionate. They must not last indefinitely.

The Commission says it will closely monitor the situation but this is a long-running story. In 2018, the European Parliament voted to pursue action against Hungary under Article 7 of the EU Treaty, which allows the EU to give a formal warning to any country accused of violating fundamental rights.

The EU may impose sanctions, such as suspending voting rights. However, these sanctions require unanimity, and Poland, which is also facing an investigation under Article 7, has said it will veto any action against Hungary.

We can already see that the global public health crisis is having profound economic consequences. The political implications of the coronavirus are far less clear at this stage but will also be hugely important for all liberal democracies as they navigate the geopolitics of the post-virus world. As recent developments within the EU illustrate, crises tend to amplify and accelerate trends that are already underway.
Patrick Marmo, right, and an assistant remove the body of a person killed by the coronavirus from a hospital.

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

New York City is the epicenter of the US's coronavirus outbreak.

To see how the rising death toll is affecting "deathcare"  services that families use to put the bodies of loved ones to rest  I shadowed Patrick Marmo, a funeral director from Brooklyn.

What I saw and heard suggest that the city's resources are strained at best. "No one in the New York City area possibly has enough equipment to care for human remains of this magnitude," Marmo said.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

On a typical day, Patrick Marmo is responsible for about 40 bodies. By the end of Monday, he had 143.

Marmo, a Brooklyn native and a state-licensed embalmer of 30 years, is the founder and CEO of International Funeral Service of New York, a company based in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. It's one of the largest and best-equipped local providers of "deathcare," the term for services including removing and embalming corpses, arranging funerals, and coordinating burials and cremations.

But Marmo says New York City's coronavirus epidemic is straining his industry to a breaking point.

"I don't know how many more bodies I can take," Marmo told Business Insider. "No one in the New York City area possibly has enough equipment to care for human remains of this magnitude."

The city has quickly become the epicenter of the US's outbreak. A person dies from the virus roughly every six minutes in New York City, and that rate is likely to increase as cases peak over the next few weeks. A simulation by one leading area hospital suggested that admissions would begin to skyrocket even further on Thursday, according to a senior employee. The US government has said 100,000 to 200,000 Americans may die from COVID-19.

Handling the dead in the pandemic has become its own frontline battle. The growing body count in New York City means that available hospital morgue space is dwindling. The city may run out of overflow storage for bodies later this week, Politico reported.

Story continues

In the wake of COVID-19's carnage, Marmo, his colleagues, and the grieving families they serve face increasingly precarious difficulties of their own, like whether or not they can even hold funerals.

To understand how the industry is coping with the grim situation, I spent the day with Marmo and his staff. What I saw and heard suggests the city is entering a growing, chaotic, and risky battle over its dead.

Editor's note: The following content may not be suitable for everyone, though we have blurred sensitive parts of some images. We're also withholding or redacting some names and other details of workers and the families of the deceased to protect their privacy.

Marmo is a 49-year-old native of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, with an unmistakable accent. I met him outside the Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home, one of a handful of mortuary-service locations he owns across the city.

Marmo and his 14-year-old business partner, Chip.

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Marmo's fascination with the industry started with seeing the "Dawn of the Dead" in 1978 (he said he "didn't sleep for days"). But his watershed moment occurred as a kid, when he and a friend named Frank quietly peeked into a funeral home and watched an embalmer work on a body.

"I was like, 'Oh my God.' We couldn't believe what we were seeing, because there was a little crack in the window," he said, though workers soon spotted the kids. "They chased us, but we were young kids and we got away. But me and Frank kept going back. We kept going back."

By the time he was 15, Marmo's morbid curiosity had led to a part-time job at the funeral home.

When the funeral-home doors opened, the staff pulled up N95 face masks and put on surgical gloves.

Joe Antiocio, International's office manager.

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

I'd brought protective gear too to reduce my risk of exposure as much as reasonably possible while shadowing Marmo and his crew. I also packed a fresh change of clothes for after the assignment.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Phones started ringing almost immediately after the home opened at 9 a.m.  families called to seek assistance, while other funeral-home locations tried to work through logistical challenges brought on by the pandemic. An employee said they'd been working 12-hour days and apologized for the chaos.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Space for the deceased is waning. Before the pandemic, International typically had 40 open cases on its roster. By the end of the day I visited, it had taken on 11 new COVID-19-confirmed bodies, for a total of about 22, in addition to all the other non-COVID-19 decedents whom families had asked the company to handle.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

The caseload is only part of the story, though, as it does not include completed cases (i.e., bodies buried or cremated), only those awaiting a final resting place.

By Saturday, International had 43 COVID-19 cases. By Monday, it had 71. That brought its total to 143 cases (including deaths not caused by COVID-19).

Antiocio helps keep track of cases in International's care.

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Within the first hour International opened on the day I visited, a family called about a loved one who'd died from complications related to COVID-19. Her body was at a hospital in Brooklyn and needed to be picked up.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

We piled into a van that the staff calls "Big Black." It's discreet by design: Few people would want to see the "BODY REMOVAL SERVICE" label emblazoned on its side.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Still, there is a grim placard in the front window to ensure the car doesn't get ticketed or towed.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

A box of body tags sits in the front of the car.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

The van has a pneumatic lift and can accommodate multiple large bodies at a time.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

As New York City's coronavirus crisis grows, employees are filling it up regularly.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

As the rate of new COVID-19 patients outstrips hospital resources, more and more bodies are going to morgues. The city has requested emergency mortuary assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but hospitals have already begun to expand capacity. At least one hospital is using a 53-foot refrigerated semitrailer to temporarily hold overflow.

Bodies inside an unnamed New York City hospital's makeshift morgue: a refrigerated semitrailer.

Special to Business Insider

"At the rate people are dying, I think [hospitals] are doing a good job even thinking about refrigeration," Marmo said. "With a week's notice, they've prepared pretty well."

When we arrived to pick up the woman's body, our temperatures were checked at the hospital entrance to ensure no one had a fever. The group moved past security into an office area and notified the staff that they would remove the body from the morgue.

A nurse showing a digital thermometer used for measuring the temperatures of people who go to hospitals or public facilities.

Alfonso Di Vincenzo/KONTROLAB/LightRocket via Getty Images

Marmo wheeled out a gurney while his colleague put on two pairs of surgical gloves, a plastic gown, and a face shield. Typically, far fewer precautions are needed.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

But these days, Marmo's crew brings along a lot of personal protective equipment for workers who have to get close to bodies as they move them onto gurneys, inside boxes, and into the van.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Some people in the deathcare industry have contracted COVID-19, though from where is not clear. "A friend of mine is on a ventilator right now  he's a funeral director," Marmo said. "That guy's fighting for his life."

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

For removals, Marmo said, he used to send one worker and a $5 bill to hand to a security guard, who would "open the refrigerator door, help verify a person's name, and help you move the body from the refrigerator." Now he sends two workers because many security staff members are too afraid to get close to bodies of people who had COVID-19.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Marmo's team also keeps industrial disinfectant spray in the van, since it almost certainly kills the coronavirus.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Marmo and his assistant found the body in the hospital morgue, sprayed down the bag (especially its zipper) with disinfectant, and opened it to verify the person's identity.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

They draped a disinfectant-soaked paper towel over the mouth to ensure that any material inadvertently emitted from the lungs  which harbors the disease  would be at least partly blocked.

After a graceful slide of the body bag onto the van's gurney, the team wheeled their precious cargo out of the hospital and into the van, then drove off to a funeral home.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

They took the body to De Riso Funeral Home in Brooklyn. As I wondered how they'd move the body from this parlor to a basement below ...

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

... Marmo's colleague activated a hidden pneumatic lift, which popped out of the floor.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

A narrow staircase led to the basement, where embalmed bodies awaited dressing for funeral services.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Marmo and his colleague moved the woman's body into a refrigerator unit that's between 40 and 45 degrees Fahrenheit to slow decomposition before embalming. Then they carefully yet speedily dressed the embalmed body of a man before leaving.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

"I don't ask anybody on my staff to embalm them, because I don't want the responsibility of them getting sick on my on my hands," Marmo said of the COVID-19 patients he picks up.

coronavirus covid 19 deceased dead international funeral service new york business insider

Special to Business Insider

Driving around the city was surreal in many ways. The streets, for one, were empty even during the weekday morning rush hour. "The only thing on our side is no traffic," Marmo said. "It helps us be more efficient. The demand is so much greater now."

There was no traffic during the weekday rush hour on I-278, the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

The city ordered nonessential businesses closed starting on March 22.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Many essential businesses decided to close too, like this laundromat near the funeral home. "We will reopen once the virus has settled down," its sign read. But Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said that could take months.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Meanwhile, New York state is running out of ventilators, space, and time. Cuomo said last week that the region may need 140,000 hospital beds in the coming weeks; it currently has about 75,000, including a newly arrived US Navy hospital ship to help meet the needs of uninfected patients.

The USNS Comfort in New York.

Mike Segar/Reuters

Cuomo also said 30,000 ventilators were needed for patients who cannot breathe; the federal government is sending 4,000.

On Tuesday, he said that the state had ordered more from China but that it was "impossible" to get many more because of a slow federal response  and FEMA's outbidding states. (He said the distribution of ventilators now largely depends on the federal government.)

Doctors and nurses are struggling to keep older and other at-risk patients from succumbing to COVID-19. Healthcare professionals need to defend themselves from infection too, but they face a shortage of personal protective equipment such as air-filtering masks, body gowns, and face shields. Those without are resorting to trash bags, hand-sewn masks, and other improvised gear to prevent themselves from getting sick for as long as possible.

Marmo said he was trying to protect his employees and the families who visit his funeral homes. He bought mist-dusters and a barrel of a sanitizing chemical recommended by a professional. He plans to have workers in protective gear regularly spray down facilities to prevent contamination.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

"It's all hands on deck. We're just trying to keep our masks on, our gloves on, and stay sanitized and disinfect everything as much as we can," said Kareem Elmatbagi, the son of Awad Elsayed Elmatbagi, Marmo's business partner next door at Islamic International Funeral Services, which specializes in Muslim clients. "We're just praying to God that we don't catch it."

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Kareem Elmatbagi said he was especially concerned about his father catching the virus and was trying to keep him at home. "My dad's 65. He's a kidney-transplant patient. He's diabetic. He has high blood pressure. He has heart problems. He has a really weak immune system," he said. "He's high-risk."

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Exposure to the coronavirus is a tragic and scary complication for the families of patients who die. Those who know they've been exposed must quarantine themselves for 14 days, meaning they might not be able to attend a funeral at all.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Others are afraid to be around the body of a person who had COVID-19 because of the risk of exposure (even though embalming fluids destroy viruses), or to be around anyone else at all.

"It's really heartbreaking right now that people can't honor their dead. It's truly sad," Thomas Cheeseman, a funeral director at International, told Business Insider. "Everybody's on hold right now because they don't know what to do. They're afraid to leave their house. Their loved one passed away from it. And now they don't want to be in the room with the loved one because they're misinformed."

A single rose stuck in a planter outside Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home in Brooklyn.

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

During my day at the funeral home, I watched six family members meet to honor an elderly relative who died of the coronavirus and had been embalmed for an open-casket funeral.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Marmo said his staff was concerned about allowing the family to have a typical service, since the city has discouraged gatherings of 10 or more people. So he limited the number of people who could attend and asked them to stay at least 6 feet apart (according to guidelines form the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

The family agreed to be photographed but asked that their names be withheld and their faces blurred. They burned a long stick of incense as part of their tradition. Relatives who were self-quarantining joined the procession via video chat.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Everyone wore face masks and stood far from one another during the rites. It wasn't a tight, warm, and touching service  it seemed awkward and rushed, and the staff commented on how disappointed it made them feel that things had come to this.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Even families whose relatives died of other causes, not COVID-19, are affected. International specializes in escorting decedents from other nations back home. But the pandemic has made international travel extremely restricted and complex.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

One family in particular came to mind for Marmo. "They lost a 7-year-old boy. He came here from Jamaica for special medical treatment," he said. The mother "wants to put her son to rest back home, where he's from," he said, "but she can't get a flight out."

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

"I told her that I would keep her son with me until this works out," he added.

Collecting payment from people who have lost family members to COVID-19 also comes with complications and risks. Marmo recounted the story of one woman whose husband died from the disease and who was self-quarantining at her home.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

"She said she's going to wear a mask and gloves. I told her I would do the same. She sat on one side of the dining-room table. I sat at the other. But I was really uncomfortable," Marmo said. "I was hoping she was writing a check. She gave me cash and was counting the bills, just touching them all."

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Yet another consequence of the pandemic: Workers said the coronavirus outbreak in New York had complicated and slowed the flow of bodies from hospitals to funeral homes and families and, ultimately, to a final resting place. "We're stuck right now," Marmo said. "We're so new to this. We're in uncharted waters."

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Cheeseman said a big factor was the COVID-19 testing speed. New York has ramped up processing, but he said it could still take days to get a result, finalize a death certificate, and obtain a permit to cremate or bury a corpse.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Meanwhile, cremations  the most common service  are becoming a logistical nightmare, since crematoriums don't have room to store all the new COVID-19 bodies in an onsite morgue. There are only four crematoriums in the area, Marmo said, adding that they "are overwhelmed" by the new demand.

A crematorium technician removing ashes and bones from a cremation oven.

Cole Burston/Toronto Star via Getty Images

"We have to confirm with the crematory, because they don't want to hold anything in refrigeration. We have a time slot to be there  so they'll go basically from the car right into the retort, which is the cremation oven," one International employee told me. The person asked not to be named because of the sensitive nature of their work.

A crematorium technician carefully pouring the ashes of a body into an urn.

Cole Burston/Toronto Star via Getty Images

Back at International's office, I learned that two more COVID-19 bodies had been called in to be picked up from the hospital we'd just left. Cheeseman showed me a few photos on his phone of tent facilities popping up outside hospitals all over the city  for "containment and testing," he said. "And temporary morgues," a colleague added.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Bodies in various states of preparation waited inside one of International's morgues. Boxes of COVID-19 bodies awaiting cremation were very evident. There didn't seem to be much space left.

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

New York City's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is exploring contracts with vetted funeral homes to help with body removal and other mortuary services. "They only have so many transport vehicles," Marmo said. "So it makes sense for them to make an alliance with funeral directors that have the capability of doing transports."

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Dave Mosher/Business Insider

OCME did not immediately respond to queries from Business Insider about this.

An employee said International typically has a maximum capacity of about 90 bodies at a time. But the industry is having to get creative with finding new space. "We're overwhelmed. Everybody's overwhelmed. All of the funeral directors I've spoken to are overwhelmed," Marmo said. "I never thought I would go through anything like this."

coronavirus covid 19 deceased dead international funeral service new york dave mosher business insider 00065

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

For now, some funeral homes have resorted to unused chapel space and other spaces for storing boxed bodies that are imminently headed to a crematorium.

coronavirus covid 19 deceased dead international funeral service new york business insider 00103

Special to Business Insider

Marmo said it would help if the local or state government set up temporary refrigerated morgue facilities around the city to support private-funeral-home overflow  perhaps chilled tents or semitrailers. "It's still cool out," Marmo said. "If this extends to May or June, how are we going to do this?"

Workers construct what is believed to be a makeshift morgue behind a hospital in Manhattan on March 25.

Carlo Allegri/Reuters

Marmo added: "I've thought about putting a refrigerated trailer outside the funeral home. But that's horrendous."

Marmo said that if more refrigeration space doesn't come when cases really begin to spike in April and May, a state order to send bodies straight to a crematorium or grave site instead could help people like him handle the volume with integrity. But families would then have to sacrifice funeral services.

coronavirus covid 19 deceased dead international funeral service new york dave mosher business insider 00060

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

Marmo is frustrated by and worried about the situation. After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, he said, families could at least get together to honor their loved ones, especially those who'd served. "There's no way they're going to have full police funerals now. There's no way," he said. "After 9/11, at least they were giving people funerals they deserved."

Firefighters carry the casket carrying New York City Fire Department Chief Peter J. Ganci into St. Kilian Church for his funeral in Farmingdale, New York, on September 15, 2001.

Reuters

Marmo said people sometimes tastelessly joke that his business must be great because of the pandemic, but he strongly disputed that notion.

coronavirus covid 19 deceased dead international funeral service new york dave mosher business insider 000028

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

"It's kind of balancing out, because overtime is going to be crazy," he said of his employees working around the clock. "These guys out there and girls? They're breaking their asses."

coronavirus covid 19 deceased dead international funeral service new york dave mosher business insider 000014

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

After my visit, I wiped down just about every nook and cranny with sanitizing wipes. I also completely changed out of my clothes before leaving.

coronavirus covid 19 deceased dead international funeral service new york dave mosher business insider 00097

Dave Mosher/Business Insider

I took a decontaminating shower when I got home, then collapsed from emotional exhaustion. Funeral directors are used to dealing with death, but I was not. And it was abundantly clear to me that much more is yet to come.

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Read the original article on Business Insider
Deiga Kwadzo Dei XII, Paramount Chief of Peki Traditional Area in the South Dayi District of the Volta Region has called on residents in the area to isolate relatives who returned from Covid-19 hit areas for 14 days.



He observed that natives of the Traditional Area were returning home as a result of the lockdown of some parts of the country due to the Covid-19 pandemic, underscored the need for residents to give the returnees separate rooms for a mandatory 14 days isolation to limit the spread of the coronavirus.



Deiga also urged them to ensure that the returnees did not mingle with them in their homes and the community, and also to observe the social distancing and other health safety measures outlined by the World Health Organization to avoid the spread of the virus.



The Paramount Chief who said this in a press release signed by Mr Frank Theophilus Kofi Dei, Chief of Staff, Deiga Palace, and copied to the Ghana News Agency, also asked the residents to monitor closely the returnees for symptoms of the coronavirus, which include fever, cough, sore throat, sneezing and breathlessly.



He asked them not to rush suspected cases to hospitals, but call the Peki Government Hospital on 024-542-8909/050-603-7186 for health professionals to come over to the affected returnee and take sample for testing and confirmation.



Deiga also tasked Divisional, Town and Clan chiefs of the area to continue to make use of Community Information Centres to sensitize the people on the dangers posed by the pandemic and the need to adhere to health safety protocols.



The Paramount Chief said it was important for all to join the fight against the Covid-19 because with collective understanding and cooperation we shall overcome the pandemic in no time".







Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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CONTACT:

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TIE-IN: The 50th anniversary of May 4, 1970 killings at Kent State (May 4, 2020).

Was there a Conspiracy or

Order to Fire at Kent State?

William A. Gordon, the author of "Four Dead in Ohio," considered by many to be the definitive study of the Kent State killings and trials, is available to be interviewed in April, before the 50th anniversary of the tragedy that shocked the nation.

Here are a few of the questions you could ask him:

1. Why did the Ohio National Guardsmen suddenly stop, practically about-face and fire at the students, most of whom were 300 feet away? Was there a conspiracy or order to fire?

2. One of the 9 wounded survivors claims there was an order: "Get ready. Get set. Point. Fire." Why do you say it a hoax?

3. Why is the university "honoring" some of the worst propagandists and people who still defend and want to celebrate the violence of the students? Could not it find anyone else to "honor"? What about the people who were part of the "search for the truth" Or those who fought for some semblance of justice?

4. Why did you announce that you would donate free ebooks to Kent State's students, faculty and alumni? What do you mean it is "an act of creative revenge"?

5. In the annals of literature has any historian ever definitively solved any historical cause celebre?

6. In the end, will a Guardsmen ever come forward and say why they really fired?

7. Which professor complained your book read too well?
Sajid Hussain, a Pakistani journalist granted political asylum in Sweden in 2017, is reported as missing. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliates the Svenska Journalistforbundet (SJF) and the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) urge the Swedish government to conduct a swift investigation into Hussain's disappearance.

On Friday, March 28, online Pakistani newspaper Balochistan Times revealed its editor-in-chief, Sajid Hussain has been missing since March 2.The 39-year-old was last seen at 11am on March 2 in the Swedish city of Uppsala.

Hussains friends reported his disappearance to the Swedish police after they stopped receiving phone calls from him.

Initially, police refused to register the case saying it is normal in Sweden for someone to go in isolation. We insisted that it was not normal for us.Then they registered the case," said Taj Baloch, a friend of Hussain to Al Jazeera.

Sajid Hussain fled Pakistan in 2012 after receiving death threats, having his home raided, his family interrogated and surveilled. Between 2012 and 2017 Hussain moved through Oman to the United Arab Emirates and Uganda before finally seeking refuge in Sweden.

Balochistan Times is known for reporting on alleged human rights violations in Pakistan.

PFJU said: It is concerned over the report of Pakistani journalist Sajid Hussains disappearance and urge the Swedish police to investigate on the matter and let his family know about his disappearance.

Ulrika Hyllert, president of SJF, said: We are very concerned about the disappearance of our colleague and our thoughts are with Sajid Hussains family. We urge the police to investigate the matter carefully and keep the family informed.

IFJ said: Sajid Hussains disappearance is incredibly concerning. The IFJ urges the Swedish government to support Sajid Hussains family and ensure that authorities are using all possible means to investigate his disappearance, locate him and ensure he is safe.
M att Lucas has finally dropped the music video for his Baked Potato Song.

The comedian, 46, recreated a 20-year-old comedy track to help promote public health advice in light of the coronavirus crisis.

A clip of him singing the tune, which he shared on Twitter last week, racked up millions of views within days  inspiring the Little Britain star to release it as a single to raise money for NHS workers.

The song itself will be available to buy and download on Friday, but the video is already free to watch on YouTube.

Lucas first duetted with the root vegetable on comedy quiz show Shooting Stars, where the singing spud delivered some handy words of advice, including: "Do be early, don't be late" and "Always eat what's on your plate".

His new version is more topical in content, featuring the lyrics: Wash your hands, stay indoors, thank you baked potato. Only go to grocery stores, thank you baked potato.

All proceeds raised from sales of the track will go to FeedNHS, an initiative set up to raise 1million to provide 6,000 meals per day for critical care staff in London hospitals.

The fundraiser comes as the Standard works with the Felix Project to feed vulnerable Londoners, old and young, through its Food For London Now campaign.

Lucas promoted the new single on The One Show on Thursday, during which he also hinted at a Little Britain reunion.

Appearing on the BBC programme via video link from his home, he revealed that he and David Walliams, 48, had discussed reviving their comedy show with Netflix.

He told hosts Alex Jones and Amol Rajan: (Walliams and I) message each other most days and send each other those silly memes that everybody sends.

Celebrities make a show of thanks for frontline NHS key workers 1 /9 Celebrities make a show of thanks for frontline NHS key workers Daniel Craig and Phoebe Waller-Bridge were among stars featuring in celebrity show of thanks to the NHS NHS/Twitter PA PA PA PA PA Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge was among stars who join in a show of thanks for NHS workers on the frontline of the Covid-19 crisis NHS/Twitter

We are getting on well and we are thinking about what we can do with Little Britain.

But we dont know what it will be. Could it be a podcast? Could it be a series on TV? Could it be a stage show?
Egypts health ministry announced 86 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, the highest daily increase so far, bringing the total to 865, as well as six new fatalities, giving a total death toll of 58.

Ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed said that all the fatalities were Egyptian citizens.

The 86 new coronavirus patients are also all Egyptians, and include some recent returnees from abroad and others who had come into contact with previously detected cases.

The spokesman said that 22 more cases  all Egyptians except for one German national -- have fully recovered and left isolation hospitals on Thursday.

The number of people who have subsequently tested negative for the virus has risen to 282, of whom 201 have fully recovered and been discharged from hospitals, Megahed said.

Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly that the country has not reached the dangerous third phase yet, and urged people to stay at home.

According to the prime minister, the rates are not alarming, as Egypt is still seeing a natural, gradual curve in the spread of the virus.

The first coronavirus case in Egypt was discovered in mid-February, almost two months after the virus first surfaced in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

Madbouly stressed the upcoming week is important in terms of committing to self-distancing and preventive measures among citizens.

Health Minister Hala Zayed also said that the numbers of cases in Egypt are reassuring compared with some countries in the Middle East and some other countries with coronavirus clusters.

The average number of infections in Egypt is seven cases per one million citizens and the fatality rate stands at 0.4 per one million citizens, the minister said, adding that the average number of cases in some Middle Eastern countries ranged between 17 to 500 per one million, while the average number of fatalities ranged between 1 to 36 per one million.

The minister added that the average number of infections in clustered countries exceeds 2,000 cases and 200 fatalities per one million citizens, stressing that the increases in the daily case rate in Egypt are still in line with the expected rates for each week.

Zayed said that Egypt still has one of the lowest rates of infection globally in terms of population size.

The increased rate of infections is due to the lack of commitment by some returnees from abroad to a 14-day self-quarantine upon their return to the country, she claimed.

Zayed also urged all citizens nationwide, especially in Cairo, Alexandria, Port Said and Damietta governorates, to commit to self-isolation and social distancing, to reduce the number of infections.

Egypt has grounded international flights until mid-April as part of strict measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus, but the country has since operated several exceptional flights to bring home nationals stranded overseas, provided that they undergo a 14-day quarantine.

A nationwide curfew is also in effect daily from 7pm to 6am.

Authorities have also shut cinemas, restaurants, coffee shops and nightclubs, suspended schools and universities and closed mosques and churches.

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New Delhi, April 2 : President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu will on Friday hold a videoconference meeting with Governors, Lieutenant Governors (LGs) and Administrators of states/UTs to bolster the efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus amid a nationwide lockdown.

The agenda of their videoconference from the Rashtrapati Bhavan would include the status of coronavirus cases in states, Red Cross' role with focus on vulnerable sections, and the role of civil society/voluntary organizations/private sector in complementing the efforts of the Union and state governments to contain the spread.

In a videoconference on March 27, 14 Governors and Delhi LG Anil Baijal had shared with the President their experiences in their respecive states and UT. The remaining Governors/LGs and administrators are slated to share their experiences on Friday.

On March 27, the President asked the Governors/LGs to rope in volunteers from the Red Cross and other religious organizations to contain the outbreak of the coronavirus.

The President had emphasized India's inherent strength of sharing and caring, and that the measures should be directed to mitigate the sufferings of the most vulnerable section of society.
A hospital worker with a medical mask.

Romeo Ranoco/Reuters

Health authorities are reconsidering their guidance that told most people not to wear masks during the coronavirus outbreak.



Health bodies across Europe and the US had told people not to wear masks unless they had symptoms or were treating the infected.

But the WHO and US CDC are now reconsidering, while others have already gone further, as studies suggest people wearing masks, even if they have no symptoms, can slow the virus spread.



Austria and Israel have announced new rules requiring people to cover their faces outside.

Most authorities are considering asking people to wear non-medical masks or use things like clothing cover their faces, so that surgical masks can be reserved for health workers.



Click here for live updates about the coronavirus around the world.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Countries, states, and cities around the world are starting to rethink their guidance that had said wearing masks and facial coverings is not necessary for most people during the coronavirus for most people.

Health authorities in Europe and the US, as well as the WHO, have said that wearing a mask is not necessary unless you already have symptoms, or work in a job that involves caring for the infected.

The US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) states that "You do not need to wear a facemask unless you are caring for someone who is sick (and they are not able to wear a facemask)."

N95 respiration masks at a laboratory of 3M, in Minnesota, US, on March 4, 2020.

Reuters/Nicholas Pfosi

In a tweet in late February, the US Surgeon General wrote: "STOP BUYING MASKS! They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus."

Now the WHO and CDC are reassessing advice about masks and facial coverings, alongside officials in some US states and some European governments. The Surgeon General also said this week he is looking again at his position.

A panel of advisors to the WHO is now assessing whether the virus can spread further than previously thought through the air. The chair of that panel told the BBC that the findings could change their advice.

Story continues

"The WHO is opening up its discussion again looking at the new evidence to see whether or not there should be a change in the way it's recommending masks should be used," Professor David Heymann said.

The CDC too may start urging Americans to cover their faces in public, according to The Washington Post. Two federal officials told the Post that the CDC is debating a policy change, which would tell people to use clothing and other materials to keep proper masks free for medical staff.

Hanno Kautz, a spokesman for Germany's health ministry, said the country also might consider requiring people to wear non-medical masks when going to supermarkets.

The empty Brandenburg Gate is pictured during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Berlin, Germany, March 25, 2020.

Fabrizio Bensch/Reuters

It would be following neighbouring Austria, which announced on Monday a new rule requiring people to wear masks when they go outside.

Sebastian Kurz, the chancellor of Austria, noted that masks are "alien to our culture," but said the country needed to try and find new ways of fighting the virus.

So far, advice in countries like Germany has been in line with that issued in some other European states. For example, Ireland's health service says that "using masks is unlikely to be of any benefit if you are not sick," and there is similar advice from UK health authorities.

But three European countries  Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Bosnia-Herzegovina  have already made the wearing of face masks in public a requirement, according to The Financial Times.

Health care professionals test for COVID-19 at the ProHEALTH testing site in Jericho, New York on March 24, 2020.

Steve Pfost/Newsday RM via Getty Images

In the US, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said he could not wait any longer for new advice from the CDC and told everyone to start wearing masks.

He said people should stay home where possible, and use n0n-medical face coverings like clothing when going outside. California's governor has not made the same plea.

And Israel's prime minister said on Wednesday that everyone should wear masks when they go outside, and should use a "a scarf or any other facial covering" if they cannot find one, Reuters reported.

As Business Insider's Hilary Brueck reported, scientific studies into the effectiveness of face masks have had inconclusive results, with some finding that they can contribute the slowing a virus spread but others suggesting that they are not worth wearing.

But they may help to stop the spread if everyone wears them, as it can stop even people who have no symptoms and don't know they're infected from spreading it to others.

Amid a global mask shortage, a need to prioritize health workers

But countries around the world are already facing severe shortages of masks, leaving healthcare workers who are treating patients without. Some are wearing plastic sheeting as an alternative, or breaking health guidelines by reusing the same mask.

A sign tells customers that all N95 protective masks are sold out at Marin Ace Hardware in San Rafael, California, on March 2, 2020.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

In the US, for example, the $7 billion federal stockpile of equipment, including masks, that had been maintained to deal with a public health emergency has almost run out of protective equipment.

And the CDC was forced to update its guidance to say that healthcare workers could use a bandana or a scarf to cover their faces if they did not have a mask.

In light of these issues, many countries had encouraged people not to buy masks as it would decrease the number available to medical staff and those working with infected people.

The CDC currently says on its website that "Facemasks may be in short supply and they should be saved for caregivers."

Health authorities have also warned that masks and non-medical facial coverings could actually help to spread the virus if people don't wear them properly.

Read the original article on Business Insider
: The Telangana government



would pay incentives to employees of medical and health and police departments, besides releasing full salaries for them, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said.

The government had, on March 30, decided to implement deferment of salaries to employees including All India services officers and pensioners in the wake of dwindling coffers due to the ongoing lockdown imposed in the wake of coronavirus. Themove drew flak from the opposition parties as well as the Joint Action Committee of Telangana government employees.

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has decided to pay full month salary for medical and health and police employees and staff. He also decided to pay an additional incentive for them. He will announce incentive in a day or two, a press release issued on Wednesday said.

A decision to this effect was taken by the Chief MInister at a review meeting held here at Pragathi Bhavan on Wednesday.

Medical and Health Minister Etela Rajender, Chief SecretarySomesh Kumar, DGP Mahendar Reddy, Finance Secretary Sri Ramakrishna attended the meeting, it said.

It was decided to cut 75 per cent of salaries of the Chief Minister, Ministers, MLAs, MLCs, chairmen of various corporations and local public representatives.

The government had said that in respect of all other category of employees, there shall be deferment of 50 per cent in gross salary, except Class-IV employees for Class-IV employees, outsourcing and contract employees, there shall be a deferment of 10 per cent in gross salary, an official release had earlier said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The suspected human smuggler who sped off from the U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 35 has been identified in federal court.

READ MORE: Gunfire, blockades reported in Nuevo Laredo days after death of cartel leader

An arrest affidavit filed on Wednesday identified the trucker as Larry Clink, a U.S. citizen. He was charged with transport, attempt to transport and conspire to transport immigrants who had entered the country illegally.

Border Patrol said that despite the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic, agents will continue to prevent the flow of illegal immigration and exploitation by human smugglers.

On Monday, Clink arrived at the U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 35 driving a blue Volvo tractor hauling a refrigerated trailer. He had a passenger who was identified as Jessica Hauver, according to court documents. Clink stated that he was traveling to San Antonio.

Asked what he was hauling, Clink stated, Nothing. It is empty, states the affidavit. Clink stated he had dropped off a load in Laredo and was returning to San Antonio.

Then, a K-9 unit allegedly alerted to possible contraband to the back of the trailer. Agents referred Clink to secondary inspection for further examination.

Clink avoided secondary inspection and left the checkpoint. (Agents) in the secondary area pursued the tractor-trailer and pulled it over on mile marker 30 (of North I-35), states the affidavit.

Agents escorted Clink back to the checkpoint. There, an inspection of the trailer yielded 40 people from the countries of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. All allegedly admitted to being in the country illegally.

Homeland Security Investigation special agents arrived to take over the case. Clink allegedly agreed to speak to authorities without an attorney present. He stated that a woman he knew asked him if he was willing to do a job.

Clink confessed that he was to get paid $6,000 to pick up the tractor-trailer and take it to San Antonio. Clink stated that two weeks prior, he was contacted by the known female and picked up the same vehicle and dropped it off in San Antonio, and for that he was paid $5,000, the affidavit states.

READ MORE: Nuevo Laredo confirms second case of novel coronavirus

Hauver was not charged.
President Trump on Wednesday said his single biggest disappointment is that churches cant meet during the COVID-19 pandemic and indicated its one reason he considered opening the country before Easter.

Although there is no federal policy governing churches meeting during the pandemic, the White Houses Coronavirus Guidelines urge Americans to avoid social gatherings in groups of more than 10 people. Vice President Mike Pence previously said the coronavirus is three times more contagious than the flu.

My biggest disappointment is that churches can't meet in a time of need, Trump said, adding that times of need traditionally are a great time for churches to be together for people.

And yet if you do that ... you're really giving this invisible enemy a very big advantage, Trump said.

Churches, he said, were one of the reasons he considered an Easter date for re-opening the country. Trump called it an aspirational date. Eventually, he extended the Coronavirus Guidelines until the end of April.

It's very, very disappointing, he said of churches being unable to meet, but again, [if] you get too close and if somebody's sick, you're gonna probably catch it. So you have to be very careful.

Some states, such as Washington, specifically prohibit churches from meeting. Others, such as Texas and Florida, specifically exempt churches from their coronavirus policy.

The guidelines suggest:

- Listen to and follow the directions of your state and local authorities.

- If you feel sick, stay home. Do not go to work. Contact your medical provider.

- If your children are sick, keep them at home. Contact your medical provider.

- If someone in your household has tested positive for the coronavirus, keep the entire household at home.

- If you are an older American, stay home and away from other people.

- If you are a person with a serious underlying health condition -- such as a significant heart or lung problemstay home and away from other people.

- Work or engage in schooling from home whenever possible.

- If you work in a critical infrastructure industry, as defined by the Department of Homeland Security, such as healthcare services and pharmaceutical and food supply, you have a special responsibility to maintain your normal work schedule. You and your employers should follow CDC guidance to protect your health at work.

- Avoid social gatherings in groups of more than 10 people.

- Avoid eating or drinking at bars, restaurants, and food courts -- use drive-thru, pickup, or delivery options.

- Avoid discretionary travel, shopping trips, and social visits.

- Do not visit nursing homes or retirement or long-term care facilities unless to provide critical assistance.

- Practice good hygiene: wash your hands, especially after touching any frequently used item or surface; avoid touching your face; sneeze or cough into a tissue, or the inside of your elbow; disinfect frequently used items and surfaces as much as possible.

Related:

Church Pools Chick-fil-A Points, Donates 460 Sandwiches to Hospital Workers

34 Coronavirus Cases Linked to One Arkansas Church -- Take it Very Seriously, Pastor Pleads

Trump, Pence Thank Churches for Suspending Services: Americans Are Coming Together

Photo courtesy: Getty Images/Win McNamee/Staff

Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
Morrisons is launching a click and collect food box service from hospital car parks to help NHS staff who are struggling to buy essential groceries during the coronavirus pandemic.

The click and collect service, which will launch at St James's Hospital and Leeds General Infirmary on Thursday, aims to help key workers who may be finding it difficult to get the food they need.

Morrisons has responded with a designated click and collect site within hospital car parks making it easy for staff to pick up their groceries after their shift has ended.

The boxes are available for vegetarians and meat eaters, and are priced at 30 each.

A typical box will include a variety of items such as canned baked beans, soup and pasta sauce, milk, dairy products such as butter and cheese, bread, rice and pasta, vegetables, such as potatoes, carrots and onions and essential household items.

While the Vegetarian Food Box includes vegetarian proteins such as meat free sausages and mince, the Meat Food Box includes fresh meat such as chicken or beef.

Starting with NHS staff at the two Leeds hospitals, orders can be placed now via a dedicated website for staff, with collections on Monday and Thursday between 6-8am for night shifts and 4-6pm for day shifts.

A spokesperson for the supermarket told The Independent that while the initiative is currently only available in Leeds, it is working to bring the NHS click and collect boxes to more hospitals as soon as it can.

David Potts, Morrisons chief executive, said: At this important time, the National Health Service is supporting the whole country so we need to support them too.

We will be taking this service to many more hospitals to help feed NHS staff as they face into the challenges of treating people affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

The boxes are available for NHS staff to collect from hospital car parks (Morrisons) (A Victor De Jesus/ UNP 0845 600 7737)

The move follows a number of calls from doctors and nurses on social media for people to stop stockpiling groceries.

Earlier this month, Dawn Bilbrough recorded an emotional plea to shoppers to stop buying more than they needed during the coronavirus outbreak.

She said she didnt know how she was supposed to stay healthy to be able to care for patients when there was no fruit, veg or basic foods available.

The boxes are available for vegetarians and meat eaters (Morrisons) (A Victor De Jesus/ UNP 0845 600 7737)

You just need to stop it, she said, because its people like me that are going to be looking after you when youre at your lowest so just stop it. Please.

Morrisons recently launched a range of food boxes for the general public, which aim to provide food to people who are struggling to place orders online.

According to the website, each box includes a selection of everyday items dependent on current availability and come in two options: vegetarian or meat.

Morrisons is working to bring the NHS click and collect boxes to more hospitals as soon as it can (Morrisons) (A Victor De Jesus/ UNP 0845 600 7737)

Elderly or vulnerable customers  such as those with underlying health issues who have been ordered to remain indoors  are prioritised. The boxes cost 30, with a 5 delivery fee on top and contain enough ingredients to feed two adults for one week.

Marks & Spencer has since followed suit, introducing a food box for their customers that costs 35 and contains everything from tinned meat and fish, to pasta, toilet roll, shortbread and Percy Pigs.
State-owned RINL is extending a financial assistance of Rs 6.16 crore towards the PM CARES fund to combat the coronavirus outbreak in the country, a company official said.

Out of Rs 6.16 crore, Rs 1.16 crore has already been transferred to the fund, Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd (RINL) chairman and managing director P K Rath said.

"The country is facing a very tough time. We have joined the battle with the government to deal with this problem. Our contribution is Rs 6.16 crore to PM CARES fund for fight COVID-19. Rs 1.16 crore has already been transferred," he said.

He further said that most of the staff is working from home and only necessary operations at the unit are on.

Those on duty have been provided with proper safety equipment and the company's premises are being sanitized on a regular basis.

Besides, the company is also distributing food packets, hygienic products such as masks, hand sanitizers and other medical facilities to the communities living near the RINL's facility in Andhra Pradesh, he said.

Visakhapatnam-based RINL, under the Ministry of Steel, produces special steel, including wire rod coils, rounds, billets of different grade and dimensions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Qcify on Worldwide Business with kathy ireland We have to become more efficient to sustain the growth, providing a good food supply to the population

Worldwide Business with kathy ireland is excited to announce an exclusive interview with Raf Peeters, CEO of Qcify to discuss the companys innovations and automated quality control for the food processing industry.

A network working 24/7, the system collaborates with machines around the world to eventually have every machine in every location viewing everything the exact same way. The user-friendly interface and cutting-edge technology work together to allow workers to test 10 to 20 times the number of samples in the same time period with greater accuracy than ever before.

The food industry is under enormous pressure because population is growing at a rapid pace but food production is not following at the same rate, says Peeters. We have to become more efficient to sustain the growth, providing a good food supply to the population. There is also a big increase in labor costs. As consumers, we arent happy that the prices increase at the same pace, and the only way to overcome this is by becoming more efficient.

The science behind Qcify makes automated inspections 6 to 12 times faster than a typical worker that can only analyze one food sample for quality every 15 minutes. Automation helps with convenience and offers less pressure, helping people evolve from an execution role one of supervision. The Qcify 3D vision system records whole images of products and is analyzed using AI to look at products like humans do. This helps increase grow production volumes while operating more efficiently.

For more information about Qcify, visit qcify.com and tune in to Fox Business Network as sponsored content on Sunday, April 5, 2020 at 2:00pm ET. Please refer to your local TV listings for the exact time in your area.

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Soon after New York City recorded its first coronavirus case early last month, Bellevue Hospital went into overdrive.

In a matter of days, the patients in the intensive care unit on the hospitals 10th floor were moved to different wings. Then the engineers and carpenters got to work, retrofitting all 54 rooms with high-efficiency filters and exhaust fans to turn them into negative pressure spacesthe environment most conducive to treating coronavirus patients.

As each room got opened up, literally a COVID-19 patient filled that space behind them, said Dr. Nate Link, Bellevue Hospitals chief medical officer. It was almost a race to the finish line until just a couple days ago they finished the 54th room. And we filled it with a patient.

That level of preparation, Link said, helped set Bellevue on a path to cope with an influx of coronavirus patients in the city that has become the epicenter of the crisis.

In an exclusive interview with NBC News, Link described in great detail how the hospital has girded itself for the pandemic and how its preparing for the peak of the outbreak.

Three weeks ago, we were a normal hospital. Three weeks ago, we had our usual patients, Link said. We were full and busy with all our usual work. Then the first patient hit the hospital. And it feels like ever since then we have been sprinting to stay ahead of the wave.

Major public health crises are nothing new for Bellevue, the oldest hospital in New York City. The medical center founded in 1736 has treated outbreaks of everything from yellow fever and smallpox to typhus and tuberculosis as well as the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.

During the influenza pandemic of 1918, Bellevue packed three children to a bed. During the Ebola outbreak, the hospital treated the citys lone patient.

We have always taken care of the patients that nobody else wanted really, Link said.

And I think its actually part of our legacy to take care of infectious diseases and pandemics, he added. Its really what Bellevues been about.

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Image: Bellevue Hospital gate (NBC News)

Link began his tenure at Bellevue as an intern during the AIDS crisis and now leads the 800-bed hospitals 1,200 physicians in establishing its quality of medical care.

Bellevue is one of ten facilities in the country designated a special pathogens hospital, a distinction given to medical centers that are especially equipped to deal with communicable diseases.

COVID-19, a novel virus thats highly infectious and more dangerous than the flu, has spread quickly through the most densely-populated metropolis in the country.

Of the 83,000 cases in New York state, more than half are in New York City. At least 47,000 patients have tested positive for COVID-19 in the city and over 9,000 people have been hospitalized. As of Wednesday evening, the city's death toll stood at 1,374.

In a grim sign of the crisis, the city's medical examiner set up a makeshift morgue outside Bellevue Hospital days ago.

Image: Makeshift Morgues (NBC News)

Anticipating a surge in patients, Link said the hospital is moving to further transform itself to accommodate a crush of new arrivals with severe respiratory problems.

The gastrointestinal unit, usually reserved for colonoscopies, is being refashioned into an intensive care unit. Then the hospital plans to outfit each operating room with three to four ventilators. Link said that if more beds are needed, he plans to put a second person in each ICU cubicle.

That will take us up to 200 beds for COVID-19 patients, Link said. And honestly, we're beginning to look beyond that. I think eventually we might have cots in the cafeteria or a big circus tent outside.

Link said the hospital has an adequate stock of personal protective equipment for its staffers, the masks, gowns and other gear that healthcare workers have been complaining are in short supply at other facilities.

At least one Bellevue Hospital doctor has publicly complained about lack of the protective equipment In an interview with the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Sana Maheshwari, 31, identified as a resident doctor in the emergency room at Bellevue Hospital, complained that she had to use the same mask for the duration of her 12-hour shift.

This is America, Maheshwari was quoted as saying. Not feeling safe at work is insane to me.

An untold number of U.S. healthcare workers have come down with the virus, and Link acknowledged that his staffers are apprehensive about the days ahead.

That's natural and logical, Link said. We go to great lengths to prepare them...But no matter what you say to people, it just feels like almost like the air is dangerous.

Bellevues nursing staff has come up with its own ingenious workarounds to enhance their safety, Link said. One example: they rigged the IV lines and medication pumps in such a way that they dont always have to enter a patients room to adjust medications.

Were going to keep this up as long as we have to, Link said.

He implored Americans to heed the orders to stay home and limit their social interactions. Link also pushed back strongly against the idea of letting the virus run its course rather than shutting down normal American life.

If 200 million people in this country were infected, we would have six million deaths, Link said. That's a Holocaust-magnitude number. That would be completely unthinkable.

The only real solution right now is the crackdown that we are trying to achieve across the country, he added. And I would say every city, every American needs to do this right now. It's our best chance of taking the edge off the growth so that we can get it under control and begin to take next steps.
Andre Muswieck is a German fireman. At seven oclock last Monday evening, the phone rang in his fire station in Bergen auf Rugen, 200 kilometers from Berlin. On the other side of the line there was no fire, at least not the kind he usually puts out. It was the voice of German chancellor Angela Merkel, who wanted to know what he considered his most important contribution to society. Muswieck was not rude, but he was laconic: Listen, Im not in the mood for f***ing radio jokes right now. And he hung up.

Merkel isnt used to being hung up on. Especially not by firemen. I guess nobody would be too happy about the fire department hanging up on them. We all wanted to be a fireman when we were kids. So she called again. This time, she managed to convince Muswieck that she was the real Merkel, and she congratulated the emergency workers on their support during the health crisis. But what I like about the story is not Merkel but Muswieck, because he plays the part of a new kind of hero: one who wouldnt ever expect to receive a call from someone important just because hes doing his job. Muswieck is civil society. And thats exactly what we need now. When people tell you that the model for getting out of this mess is China, the criminal Communist dictatorship, remind them that China is not the solution but the problem. The real solution is Muswieck.

The national role model is a normal guy. He works in a hospital, drives a bus, delivers fruit to the supermarket, or supervises a power plant. He isnt aware that hes saving humanity with his work. He isnt trying to raise awareness. He isnt trying to do anything more than his duty, but will die doing it if necessary. Nor does he expect state honors. Hes content to be paid at the end of the month, if possible.

Nuradin, the driver of the 110 bus in Berlin, is one of these new heroes. In an interview for the German press, he explains how he is exposed to the coronavirus every day. He receives congratulations from passengers, who until now didnt even say hi each morning as they boarded his bus. His reply to them is great: Its nothing, someone has to do this job. Giuseppe Berardelli used to say something along those lines too, until he got the coronavirus. He was a priest in Bergamo, Italy. He was 72 years old and died after donating his mechanical ventilator to a younger patient. The ventilator had been purchased for him by the faithful at his parish. But he gave it up to save someone elses life. No one was able to attend his funeral because of the health measures. But the whole town joined in applause to say goodbye to Father Berardelli.

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Giuseppe, Nuradin, and Muswieck are saving us in this sad hour, each in his own way. And their example is spreading. Social networks are also channeling the best of civil society. First in Italy, then in Spain, and now all over the world. Hence the spread of the viral message: Hi, Im Antonio, a retired doctor. If during quarantine you need help with a medical emergency that is not serious enough to go to hospital and you cant find your doctor, I will attend you, no charge. Send me a direct message. Dozens of retired doctors then posted similar messages on their networks. Later on, other professionals, unemployed workers, retired people, and people with free time joined in. Teachers offer desperate parents help with homeschooling, booksellers give personalized advice on books for quarantined readers, and food engineers teach anyone who needs to know how to preserve food for a longer time.

Slightly discouraged by how useful doctors, scientists, and psychologists are to mankind, those of us that just write for a living tend to get jealous. We vented our frustrations on Twitter a few days ago: Hello, Im a philosopher. If during the quarantine you need help about Thomistic ethics but its not serious enough to go to the Thomistic emergency room and you cant find your family philosopher, I can help you, no charge. Send me a direct message. We Spaniards might be confined. But dont expect us to suddenly take everything seriously.

A few days ago, we learned from the press that the Spanish government had been unable to obtain masks, respirators, or tests  they had to return 650,000 defective tests to China because they were conned. Which is why so many doctors were risking their lives attending to coronavirus patients without protection, or wrapped up in plastic bags, while the infection rate among health workers soared. The public reaction was immediate.

Inditex, the worlds largest textile company, made its immense logistics service available to the government, brought half a million masks to Spain, and donated millions of euros to hospitals. I like to boast about it because the company is from my hometown, La Coruna. The owner of Inditex is multimillionaire Amancio Ortega, a guy from a humble background. In 1975, he opened his first clothing store. Today, he has more than 7,000. Most Spaniards reacted with gratitude to Inditexs donations, but not all. The left wing took advantage of Inditexs donations to organize a Twitter campaign against Ortega. The governments own vice president, the Communist Pablo Iglesias Turrion, has shamed Ortega for his donations to the public health system on several occasions. Spain is not a banana republic that depends on someone coming along and giving us things, he has said.

Its better just to pretend he never said it. Thats what the nuns who, unaware of these controversies, began to sew masks in their convents several weeks ago are doing. As are grandparents making masks in old peoples homes. And the owners of 3D printers, who have begun to share plans for respirators and print pieces. Its a pity that the plans for printing governments dont exist yet.

From what we are seeing in Europe, this new heroic profile emerging from civil society represents a threat to the Left. Its individual initiative contributes to the cohesion of society and to uniting the nation, proving people dont need the state to force them to do their duty. And finally, because contribution to the common good comes before ideology. A country united and fulfilling its obligation through individual responsibility is incompatible with politicians who want the state to provide a universal minimum wage paid by the Ministry of Unicorns, or who want to confiscate a good chunk of workers wages to finance, I dont know, the Association for the Protection of the Rights of Damned Pangolins. I suppose these are the kind of things worth fighting for until you actually have to do it with your own money.

When most of society practices charity  solidarity is more like a hurting conscience for social-democrat millionaires  the state becomes less necessary. Thats why the Left feels the need to deactivate the feeling of unity that is born of tragic times. Ill give you an example from my own country. But first, you have to promise me that, once youre thinking, What a bunch of idiots the Spanish are! you remember that this is only an exception, and that really Spain is a great nation.

This happened in my own backyard. When the confinement started, someone on Twitter called for the entire country to come to their windows at eight in the evening and give a big round of applause to medical workers. The first day was exciting. Even my surliest and most cantankerous neighbors leaned out the window and applauded. It was like a Frank Capra movie. All that was missing was the snow. On the second and third day, the applause was even louder, and was followed by shouts of Viva Espana! and Keep it up, neighbors! On the fourth day, the left wing, with the aforementioned Pablo Iglesias, called on the neighbors to beat their pots and pans against the King of Spain, who represents national unity. So a series of neighbors leaned out of the balconies with their pots and pans and began to beat them with the headache-inducing zeal that only a progressive neighbor confined in captivity is capable of. As a result, when the time came for applause, the ovation degenerated into an escalation of insults. That was the end of national unity. And so the Left began to fish in its favorite raging river, chaos.

That need for division, for moral and material poverty, explains why those in power in Cuba and Venezuela have welcomed the crisis. The extraordinary measures against the pandemic announced by the Cuban regime have provoked hilarious headlines in the international press: Cuba forbids its inhabitants to leave the island. I guess we were all looking forward to this change in the regimes position. But the economies of Cuba and Venezuela will likely go down with the pandemic. Unfortunately, over there, the only stimulus that private initiatives receive from the government are electric shocks in El Helicoide prison.

To be fair, the Left is just as unreasonable in other latitudes. Remember on March 12 that the President of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, said this about the coronavirus: Look, about the coronavirus, that thing about not giving hugs. . . . We need to hug each other, its perfectly safe! There were already more than a thousand dead in Europe. I think Lopez Obrador tried to reassure his people by imitating John Wayne in The Quiet Man. But he turned out to be identical to Leslie Nielsen in Airplane!  which in an eloquent initiative was retitled in Latin America as Wheres the Pilot?

Throughout the West, governments are imposing harsh containment measures, an unprecedented curtailment of freedom. There is no alternative. But for that plan to work, private cooperation is needed. Modern states have no real power to contain and direct all of their citizens, thank God. Theres only one China, and its a bloody hellhole. Any Westerner would rather have three coronaviruses a month than live in a Communist dictatorship where human life is worthless.

Thats why its time for civil society. Every mans time. The pandemic will hit us hard. It may wipe out the world we knew. The new world wont rise from states, but from each of us. Its a good time to remember what the Colombian philosopher Gomez Davila once said: A decent man is one who demands of himself that which the circumstances do not. The cure for this crisis is clear: Each individual must act as if the state did not exist, and each state must act as if individual initiatives didnt. And then, everyone pray.

More from National Review
Nevada's sex workers are among the unemployed after brothels and strip clubs shut down due to coronavirus concerns.

Its like any business  its going to make a mark, said legal sex worker Sandi Benks of the closure's financial impact. You work so hard when youre an independent contractor, and its just on hold. Its just bizarre.

On March 18, Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak announced the closure of all non-essential businesses, including bars and strip clubs, and the directive was expanded the following day to include the states brothels.

According to a 2012 University of Las Vegas report prepared for the Nevada legislature, there were 12,000 registered strippers in the city alone. Because sex work is not a state-regulated industry, there is no official statewide data on the number of legal sex workers in Nevada.

Benks said she left the Love Ranch in Mound House several days before the brothel closed because of coronavirus concerns.

I had a gut feeling and I just packed up and left, she said. I bailed on it. I wasnt comfortable. I knew nationally we werent supposed to be in groups over 10 and I was like this is a group over 10  Im outta here. Im a stickler on that. Id rather play safe than sorry.

Benks said that even before the closure, she had clients cancelling, and one canceled because he suspected hed been exposed to the virus.

It was already affecting me in my head, she said. When theres a pandemic, you want to be smart about it.

She said she is considering using her fan base to market hand-crafted items on Etsy, as well as offering a virtual girlfriend experience.

I have a lot of regulars who would like to support me through this time, but cant, she said.

All her income as a sex worker is contractually required to go through the brothels, she said.

And, as an independent contractor, she doesnt pay into state unemployment, according to Rosa Mendez, public information officer for the Nevada Department of Employment, Rehabilitation and Training. On Friday, Mendez said that meant they would not be eligible for state relief.

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However, the CARES Act passed that same day now allows independent contractors to receive unemployment, said Chuck Muth with Nevada Brothel Association on Wednesday. He added the process and system won't be set up for a couple more days.

According to the University of Las Vegas report, the brothel industry brought in between $35 million and $50 million that year, and served about 400,000 clients.

During the brothel closures, sex worker Alice Little said she will focus on marketing her brand and working as a social media influencer.

A sign on the front door of the Love Ranch in Mound House, Nevada on March 30, 2020.

She said while she knows of workers who are creating online and webcam content, she doesnt know of any legal workers who are considering working on the streets.

I do have friends in the independent world, and Ill tell you, ladies are pulling back by and large right now, she said. Sex workers as a whole are participating in social distancing.

Abby Avery, a former public-school teacher who switched to a career as a sex worker two years ago, said she cant envision online camming for herself.

I dont really see camming or doing anything like that as an option, she said. At this point my plan is to just kind of ride it out and see how long everything is shut down.

There are women who likely will turn to doing it illegally ... I cant imagine there wouldnt be. But, I think first girls would resort to web camming and finding virtual ways to supplement their income.

Protests at Amazon, Whole Foods begin: 'Us grocery store workers need to be fairly compensated.'

Freelancers, gig workers: Can receive unemployment benefits plus $600

Melissa Holland, executive director for AWAKEN, a faith-based nonprofit organization out of Reno that works with human trafficking victims, said her group is aiming to help displaced sex workers during the coronavirus closure. But, Holland said AWAKEN had only contacted workers at the Reno Mens Club, a local strip joint, and had not reached out to any of the states brothel workers.

Both Little and Benks said they would not approach AWAKEN for financial help.

It will be, 'Renounce your old life  and embrace Jesus Christ to receive this financial benefit.' How about No, Little said. How dare they now pretend, Oh, now we care for you.' No, you dont.

Sex worker Imogen Steel, a New Zealand native who came to Nevada specifically to work as a sex worker, has been holed up at the Sagebrush Brothel in Mound House since the closure of the brothels, waiting for them to reopen.

Im not going to do camming, Im not going to do porn. The type of clients I like to attract are classy people. Im not a slut, she said. Thats not an option for me. And I cant do any side jobs because Im loyal to my company.

Shes hoped the brothels re-open in April, the original projected opening date for non-essential businesses. Yet on Wednesday, Gov. Sisolak extended a statewide business shutdown through April 30 and ordered Nevadans to stay at home to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Maybe we are going to start hugging longer, and maybe we are going to put more emphasis on connection and human touch. Im hoping people are developing an awareness of what its like not to have it and value it more. Cell phones and computers cant do it, she said. Im assuming theres going to be a herd rush looking for positive touch (when they re-open), and Im hoping its going to be to my room.

Reach Reno Gazette Journal reporter Amy Alonzo at aalonzo@masonvalleynews.com

This article originally appeared on Reno Gazette Journal: Coronavirus in Nevada: Unemployed sex workers struggle financially
National carrier Air India has temporarily suspended contracts of around 200 pilots, who were re-employed after retirement, a report said. The decision was taken as all domestic and international passenger flights in the country have been grounded due to the nationwide lockdown in the face of coronavirus pandemic. This has led to a significant decline in the revenues of the debt-laden airline.

"Since almost all the planes have been grounded and the carrier's revenues have taken a significant fall during the last few weeks, the airline has decided to temporarily suspend the contract of around 200 pilots who were re-employed after their retirement," a senior official told news agency PTI.

Air India has already reduced allowances of all its employees by 10 per cent, except cabin crew, for the next three months to pare revenue losses in time of coronavirus outbreak. Earlier today, the airline announced that it has disbursed flying allowances for January to it pilots.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus Live Updates: PM Modi to release video message at 9am tomorrow

On Thursday, the airline secured contracts with Germany, France, Ireland and Canada to repatriate their citizens on commercial charter flights, informed Air India CMD Rajiv Bansal. Air India has got approval from Indian and Chinese authorities for operating cargo flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong to get medical supplies, Bansal added. He said the cargo coming from China will contain medical supplies.

Air India is also planning to conduct multiple special flights to London between April 4 and April 7 to fly out foreigners stranded in the country amid the lockdown to check the spread of coronavirus. The flights will be operated on Delhi-London routes and Delhi-Mumbai routes. These flights, however, will not bring back Indians on their way.

According to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, there are 1,764 active cases of coronavirus in India, and the pneumonia-causing disease has caused 50 deaths in the country so far.

ALSO READ: 'Post-lockdown bookings never stopped,' says Indian Railways

(With PTI inputs)
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Salceda appealed on Thursday for a two-week extension of the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine.

In a statement, Salceda reiterated that mass testing should be done in the country. The mass testing can go beyond the last day of the island-wide enhanced community quarantine at 12 a.m. of April 13, thus the need for an extension.

Based on our capacity and possible increments, we cannot do that before April 14, thus we cannot lift ECQ and we will need the next 14 days to have a better grasp of situation, said Salceda in his letter to President Rodrigo Duterte.

Salceda, who chairs the House of Representatives Ways and Means committee, called for a mass testing of 10,000 specimens per day and intensified contact tracing activities. The national government must also use the best technology available in fulfilling these steps to flatten the curve of the disease in the country.

We have not yet confronted the enemy or have fully grasped its dimensions. We do not yet fully know the size of its territory or the magnitude of its full impact. We must identify infection clusters with data from mass testing and intensified contact tracing, and confront the virus where it is, he told.

Salceda said the government should approach the COVID-19 crisis with evidence-based, logical, and lifesaving strategies. He said that historical, scientific, and economic evidence suggest a more cautious approach to the pandemic.

A premature lifting of the ECQ would not be good for the economy. It will not fulfill our public health objectives. And it risks getting us back to square zero in terms of our progress in fighting this disease, said Salceda.

Last March 31, Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Ano deferred the extension of the Luzon enhanced community quarantine since the economy will suffer.

Its not advisable to extend the lockdown because our economy will suffer greatly. Lets take the remaining two weeks seriously so we can solve this, he said in Filipino in a radio interview.

Business tycoon Ramon Ang downplayed the negative impact of the island-wide enhanced community quarantine to the economy in an interview with CNN Philippines Rico Hizon Wednesday evening.

We can make money again but life, once you lose it, it's gone forever. So between life and money, Id choose life, told Ang, the president and chief operating officer of San Miguel Corporation.

RELATED: Ramon Ang on extending Luzon-wide quarantine: Between life and money, Ill choose life

Salceda said the most reputable sources in the medical community never suggested to shorten the lockdown.

He mentioned mobility and isolation tendency as the most critical factors in fighting the disease, which affected 2,633 persons and claimed 107 lives in the country as of Thursday.

Salceda said, the ECQ has significantly reduced mobility. You can see that in reduced energy consumption and in reduced demand for fuel. So people are no longer moving around carrying the virus as much as they would have.

In elaborating the isolation tendency factor, the Albay lawmaker mentioned the need for mass testing in the country.

Its how much you isolate confirmed and suspected cases from the rest of the population. And that only increases once you know who are COVID-positive in the first place, through mass testing, said Salceda.

As more test kits arrive in the country, Salceda said, it should be an opportunity to end the virus.

Its wishful thinking to suggest that weve reached the peak. No data scientist would say that, and certainly no doctor or public health expert would be enthusiastic about lifting the ECQ at this stage in our countrys health care capacity, he said.

Last March 30, the Food and Drug Administration approved five rapid test kits for COVID-19. Four are manufactured in China and one in Singapore.

The samples from these test kits must still pass a confirmatory test using the machine-based method.

There are now 17 accredited polymerase chain reaction-based test kits accredited by the FDA in the country.

RELATED: FDA approves 5 rapid test kits for COVID-19, but requires confirmatory test for samples

Caloocan City 2nd district Rep. Edgar Erice earlier suggested for a 30-day extension of the Luzon enhanced community quarantine. He noted that "science" and "common sense" would prove the country is still grappling with the COVID-19 crisis.

RELATED: Lawmaker calls for 30-day extension of Luzon-wide quarantine
JAKARTA, April 2 (Reuters) - Indonesia's central bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve have been "discussing intensively" for a potential currency swap and repurchase line, Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Perry Warjiyo told a call with investors on Thursday.

BI has also discussed using or increasing the $30 billion equivalent bilateral swap line it has with China, Warjiyo said.

Indonesia has swap lines with Japan and Singapore as well, and a regional swap initiative it also could use to bolster its foreign exchange reserves, he said, although adding that the current level of reserves was still considered "adequate".

Indonesian financial markets have been hit by capital outflows related to the coronavirus pandemic. (Reporting by Tabita Diela, Fransiska Nangoy and Gayatri Suroyo; Editing by Tom Hogue)
By Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy on Wednesday did not rule out punishing the captain of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, who wrote a scathing letter to Navy leadership asking for stronger measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus. In a four-page letter, the contents of which were confirmed by U.S

By Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Navy on Wednesday did not rule out punishing the captain of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, who wrote a scathing letter to Navy leadership asking for stronger measures to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

In a four-page letter, the contents of which were confirmed by U.S. officials to Reuters on Tuesday, Captain Brett Crozier described a bleak situation onboard the nuclear-powered carrier as more sailors tested positive for the virus.

Sailors and their families have expressed anxiety and frustration.

The letter put the Pentagon on the defensive about whether it was doing enough to keep service members safe and alarmed the families of those aboard the ship. Its home port is San Diego, California.

"I don't know who leaked the letter to the media. That would be something that would violate the principles of good order and discipline, if he were responsible for that. But I don't know that," Acting U.S. Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said when asked multiple times if the captain would be punished.

"The fact that he wrote the letter up to his chain of command to express his concerns would absolutely not result in any type of retaliation," Modly said.

In the letter, the captain called for "decisive action" - removing over 4,000 sailors from the ship and isolating them. He said that if the Navy did not act now, it would be failing to properly safeguard "our most trusted asset - our sailors."

"It's disappointing to hear him say that. However, at the same time, I know that that's not the truth," Modly said, adding that he did not agree with the captain that all but 10 percent of the ship's crew could be removed.

The carrier was in the Pacific when the Navy reported its first coronavirus case a week ago. It has since pulled into port in Guam, a U.S. island territory in the western Pacific.

About 1,000 personnel have been taken off from the ship so far and that number will rise to 2,700 in the next few days. So far 93 personnel on the ship have tested positive.

"This ship has weapons on it. It has munitions on it... It requires a certain number of people on that ship to maintain the safety and security of the ship," he added.

'I FEEL HELPLESS'

As coronavirus has spread, frustration has grown over the Navy's speed in dealing with the crisis, a sailor onboard the Theodore Roosevelt told Reuters, adding that on Wednesday the Navy communicated a satisfactory plan to those on the ship.

"Why does it seem that our (commanding officer) is begging the Navy to take care of us and keep us safe and higher ups don't seem to be quickly making a good plan for us?," said the sailor, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Over the past few days, there have been messages of concern from family members on social media.

"As a mother I feel helpless... I was able to speak to my son earlier, but he has no idea what is going on or where he is going," Barbara Muniz, who said her son is on the ship, wrote on the carrier's Facebook page.

On Monday, Dee Ronmar wrote that her son was on the ship and she did not understand why the carrier was allowed to make a port visit in Vietnam last month.

"How come more safety precautions weren't taken to ensure no contractions, minimizing the spread, when you all docked a few weeks ago?," Ronmar wrote.

During the briefing, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Russell Smith said that "morale does seem high" on the ship.

(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
A man living in Northern Ireland is mounting a legal challenge against the State over the Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment.

A pre-action letter was sent to the Minister of Social Protection Regina Doherty this afternoon from Phoenix Law, a firm based in Belfast, on behalf of "an Irish national", a man who lives in Co. Armagh and works in Co. Louth.

The man cannot access the payment, despite holding a PPS number and having proof of paying PRSI in the Republic of Ireland.

The Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection have confirmed the emergency Covid-19 payment of 350 per week for workers who have lost their jobs due to the crisis, is only available to people working and resident in the State, meaning that potentially thousands of cross-border workers would not be eligible for the payment.

Phoenix Law argues that this stance is unconstitutional.

The letter "seeks to challenge the continual failure by you to provide our client with Covid payments as per government guidance", noting their client "seeks the same access and entitlements that his fellow workers are entitled to during this national crisis."

The government have until 2pm on Monday to respond by ensuring that Covid-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payments will be made to their client and backdated to March 17.

"If you fail to do so, we will issue judicial review proceedings without further notice and fix you with the costs of same," the letter reads.

The grounds for the legal challenge are stated as: "The failure of the Irish government to apply their process fairly to all citizens who pay PRSI and Taxes within the Irish State."

The 28-year-old man involved was temporarily laid off due to the Covid-19 emergency on March 17, and to date has not received any Covid-19 payment through the scheme via his employer.

At least one fellow employee who is ordinarily resident in the State has received the payment.

Phoenix Law argues in the letter that the "difference in treatment" has "no legitimate aim or purpose. It is unjust, unreasonable, arbitrary and/or disproportionate. It is unjustifiable."

Gavin Booth, representing the man involved says he hopes the issue can be resolved before taking further legal action.

"We believe that all those who work, pay tax and PRSI should be entitled to payments by the government regardless of what part of the island they live on," he said.

"We do hope that the Irish government resolves the issue without the need for court action but we will move to issue this case on an emergency basis should it not be resolved."
WASHINGTON  The CIA has been warning the White House since at least early February that China has vastly understated its coronavirus infections and that its count could not be relied upon as the United States compiles predictive models to fight the virus, according to current and former intelligence officials.

The intelligence briefings in recent weeks, based at least in part on information from CIA assets in China, played an important role in President Trumps negotiation on Thursday of an apparent detente with President Xi Jinping of China. Since then, both countries have ratcheted back criticism of each other.
Like other sectors of the economy, the arts have been hit hard by the coronavirus as the pandemic has shuttered concert halls, theaters and galleries, canceled performances, art shows and public events, and disrupted crucial fundraising activities.

But help is on the way.

Late last week the Oregon Cultural Trust announced plans to take $10 million from its $29 million permanent fund to bankroll an emergency relief program for nonprofit arts organizations around the state.

The state agencys proposal is currently being reviewed by the governors office (which oversees the trust) and will need to be approved by the full Legislature in an anticipated special session, but its expected to pass without any significant opposition.

Everyone is in support of this, said Brian Rogers, OCTs executive director.

The need is dire.

According to a survey conducted by Americans for the Arts, the 537 Oregon arts organizations that responded have lost nearly $6.7 million to date because of the coronavirus pandemic, with 94% saying theyve been forced to cancel at least some scheduled events.

Portlands Regional Arts and Culture Council is estimating total virus-related losses in the metro area alone will be $45.8 million when all is said and done.

And, as Rogers points out, nonprofit arts and cultural organizations wont be able to write this off like for-profit businesses on their taxes  the loss they assume will be their loss.

Details of how the emergency relief funding program would work are still being sorted out, but the idea is to allow nonprofit arts and cultural organizations to apply for grants to help fund basic needs such as making payroll (for those that have paid staff) and covering operational expenses. The cost of setting up a virtual office or putting programs online could also be eligible. Funds will not be available for capital construction or other projects not related to virus impacts.

The overall intent is to keep it simple, fast and, above all, accountable, Rogers said.

Additional relief is on the way from other sources. The National Endowment for the Arts received $75 million in the federal relief package, and Rogers anticipates $350,000 to $400,000 of that will be coming to the Oregon Arts Commission (which he also heads) for distribution. Charitable organizations such as the Oregon Community Foundation and the Miller Foundation have also stepped up to help, and Rogers said OCT would be working to align its actions with what they and other groups are doing.

For mid-valley arts organizations, the relief funding could be a lifeline in turbulent times.

We had to close the reception for our most popular event of the year, the Jim and Ruth Howland Community Open (art show), said Cynthia Spencer-Hadlock, executive director of The Arts Center in Corvallis. Thats when a quarter to a third of our members renew every year.

With the centers doors closed to the public, she added, the staff has been working to create virtual art exhibits and other online offerings, and relief funding could help with those efforts. Spencer-Hadlock said shes already applied for assistance from the Oregon Community Foundation and Miller Foundation and will apply for an OCT grant as soon as that option is available. She also said The Arts Center could help distribute pass-through funds to individual artists if theres money for that.

We are just trying to keep doing projects that fit our mission to serve the community and find the funding to do that, she said.

Melissa Babcock Saylor, an artist and childrens book illustrator who works mainly in collage and cut paper, said shes lost income since Albanys Gallery Calapooia was forced to shut its doors last month. She is one of 20 artists who show work at the cooperative gallery.

The impact has been that the place people can go and buy art is closed, she said. Were just waiting for (the pandemic) to be over so it can open again.

For now, Saylor said, many Gallery Calapooia artists are focused on making new work and trying to maintain a connection with their customers through social media. Having the gallery closed shuts off an important potential income stream, and shes hoping relief funding from OCT can help the gallery weather the storm so it will still be there when the virus outbreak tapers off.

I believe the gallery would look into it just so we can keep the doors open and pay some bills, she said.

For the Oregon Cultural Trust, dipping into the permanent fund is akin to a private charitable foundation dipping into its endowment, something thats almost unheard of. But given the severe and sudden financial blow dealt to the states arts community by the coronavirus pandemic, the OTC board of directors felt it was the right thing to do, Rogers said. The vote, taken during an emergency meeting on March 21, was unanimous.

The intent of the permanent fund is to support arts and culture for future Oregonians, Rogers said. Without doing something now, there might not be much left.

Reporter Bennett Hall can be contacted at bennett.hall@lee.net or 541-812-6111. Follow him on Twitter at @bennetthallgt.

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Kendall Jenner was seen in happier days in a flashback photo shared on Wednesday.

Long before she self-isolated due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 24-year-old Keeping Up With The Kardashians star posed in a white bikini, showing off her enviable supermodel figure.

The suit was co-designed with her younger sister Kylie Jenner for their holiday 2019 Kendall + Kylie line.

Easy times: Kendall Jenner was seen in happier days in a flashback photo shared on Wednesday

The ex of Ben Simmons also had on a stylish hat as she posed outdoors.

The caption read: 'A little something for your Wednesday Holiday 2019 shot by @sashasamsonova and styled by @danixmichelle in an incredible @gladystamezmillinery oversized Panama Straw Hat.'

The siren had her makeup perfectly done with neutral tones as the hat took over the shoot.

Flawless: The siren had her makeup perfectly done with neutral tones as the hat took over the shoot

It's been a crazy time for Kendall as she was seen in the middle of a physical fight between Kourtney and Kim on KUWTK.

Kendall was told she was sick so she did not do the work she was supposed to. Kim added that she had to step in.

The Vogue cover girl seemed annoyed but blew it off.

She likes her bod: Also in March Kendall was seen in both a Calvin Klein shoot, where she showed off her killer curves

Just for Kimmy: Kendall was seen in SKIMS this week to mark the 6 month anniversary of the brand

However, when Kim told Kourtney she does not do the work because she does not care, the 40-year-old mother-of-threw blew up.

Kim said Kourtney scratched her so hard she drew blood.

Also in March Kendall was seen in both a Calvin Klein shoot, where she showed off her killer curves, and a SKIMS shoot to mark the 6 month anniversary of Kim's brand.

FIGHT! It's been a crazy time for Kendall as she was seen in the middle of a physical fight between Kourtney and Kim on KUWTK. Kendall was told she was sick so she did not do the work she was supposed to. Kim added that she had to step in. Kendall seemed annoyed but blew it off

Last week Kylie shared another flashback photo with Kendall.

The two reality stars were pictured cuddling up to one another in matching white cropped tops and full glam.

Kendall, 24, immediately responded to the Instagram post, writing: 'arent we fighting?'

Kylie, 22, replied: 'yes but my titties are sitting nice in this pic.'

Then older half-sister Khloe Kardashian, 35, chimed in: 'I miss us.'

The way they were: Kylie posted a throwback snap Sunday showing her cuddling up to older sister Kendall, 24, in matching white cropped tops and full glam

Last month, Kylie shared with her Instagram followers that she got used to staying home all the time while pregnant with Stormi.

'I'm on day 8. My pregnancy prepared me for this, I didn't leave the house for months,' she said last Wednesday.

After falling pregnant by rapper Travis Scott in 2017, Kylie took extensive measures to conceal her growing baby bump.

She hid it with baggy clothing in Instagram snaps and kept out of the public eye as much as possible throughout the end of 2017 and the start of 2018.

The beauty only confirmed her pregnancy when she announced the news that she had given birth to a baby girl on February 1, 2018.

Practice: After falling pregnant by rapper Travis Scott in 2017, Kylie took extensive measures to conceal her baby bump wearing baggy clothing in Instagram snaps and not going out in public




German magazine giant Bauer Media Group closed its New Zealand titles Thursday due to the coronavirus, sparking criticism from Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern after the government offered the company financial help.

The move will cost 237 jobs and spell the end of prestigious current affairs titles such as the New Zealand Listener and North & South, as well as best-sellers including Women's Day.

While Bauer cited the "severe economic impact" of the pandemic as the reason for the closures, Ardern suggested the publisher was intent on closing anyway in a media market that was already struggling before the virus.

"In my view this appears to have been a decision that has been made at the same time as COVID-19, but not because of it," Ardern told reporters.

She said the government had pleaded with Bauer to take advantage of a government wage subsidy to tide the business over during the crisis, which has hit media advertising revenues, but the publisher refused.

"I'm extraordinarily disappointed and frankly gutted to see what has been a part of New Zealand history close its doors fairly abruptly today," she said.

Another major publisher NZME this week closed its Radio Sport station and rumours abound that cuts are imminent among other major media players in the South Pacific nation.

It is an issue being felt across the region, with Australia's national newswire AAP due to close later this year and Rupert Murdoch's New Corp halting printing of around 60 regional newspapers.

Finance Minister Grant Robinson said the government was considering a support package for New Zealand's ailing media sector, but had not yet finalised details.

"Quite clearly, we don't want the government owning all media," he said.

"What we have to do is ensure that as part of our recovery packages there's something that supports different voices in the media.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
E veryone's concerned about staying connected with friends and family during the UK-wide lockdown. But many are particularly worried about their older relatives.

Whilst millennials and Gen-Z are used to hopping on Houseparty calls or WhatsApp group video chats, older people might not feel so comfortable with the new types of tech and apps.

Enter tablets. The ideal gadget to have to hand in a time like this. The bigger screen and smooth interface means theyre easier to handle than a smaller smartphone. And theyre certainly better for FaceTiming with younger members of the family.

TechSilver is one of the most popular online retailers which sells tech for older people from easy-to-use mobile phones to large-print keyboards. Loneliness and isolation are damaging not just to physical health but also mental wellbeing. Simple to use technology enables seniors to enjoy a better quality of life through keeping connected with loved ones and the outside world, said CEO and founder, Miles Waghorn.

Dixons Carphone, the business behind Currys PC World and Carphone Warehouse, recently announced Age UK as its headline charity partner. The two organisations will deliver digital support in order to equip older people with essential tech skills.

Covid-19 is a threat to everyone, but to older people above all, to their mental as well as physical health. Many are very anxious at the prospect of being alone for a long time. We cant allow that isolation to become any more difficult than it already is. Technology can keep friends and family connected, wherever they are, as well as keep us entertained, productive and healthy, said Dixons Carphone chief executive Alex Baldock.

Here are the tablets and gadgets to help you stay connected with older relatives.

Apple iPad Mini 5

Apple

Apple makes some of the best tablets around and the Mini iPad range is extremely popular thanks to its smaller size, which is handy for reading too. It has a 7.9-inch screen and weighs a mere 300g so its easy to carry around. It also works with the Apple Pencil too for those who arent used to typing on a touchscreen.

The companys iOS software is rather easy to navigate and comes with many accessibility features built-in. The integrated FaceTime app means you dont need to worry about logins to other platforms, whilst the 10-hour battery life is useful too.

GrandPad

GrandPad

GrandPad is the first tablet designed specifically for older people to stay in touch. It features custom-designed apps with large and clearly labelled icons for video and voice calls, photos, email, the weather and online search. The free companion app essentially creates a private social network for family to have video calls and share photos directly with the device.

The auto-answer feature is particularly handy. It allows calls from trusted family members within the network to automatically ring through, so everyone can get chatting straight away and theres no issues with answering the call.

Facebook Portal

Facebook

Not technically a tablet but a handy gadget all the same. Facebook Portal is a tablet-sized device that uses the Facebook platform, and WhatsApp, to connect people via video calls. It features Amazons Alexa voice assistant so you can answer calls with your voice.

The AI-powered smart camera stays on you as you move around the room so you could be cooking or tidying and it feels like youre all in the same room. As well, the Watch Together function means you can watch shows from Facebook Watch together. All calls are encrypted too, whether youre calling another Portal or smartphone.

The company has seen an increase in sales as people look for video-calling gadgets to keep in contact with one another. As people are taking measures to socially distance themselves and move to working from home, were seeing increased interest in Portal, both in sales and usage. Were pleased that we can help people connect with family, friends and colleagues during this time, said Facebook in a statement.

Prices from 79 for the Portal Mini, portal.facebook.com

Lenovo Tab E10

(Lenovo ) / Lenovo

This 10-inch Lenovo tablet has a budget-friendly price and also means that if you accidentally drop it, it shouldnt be too difficult to replace. It features 10-point multi touch and a six-hour battery life which is more than enough for family video calls. It's worth noting, though, that the front camera is only 2MP so the picture wont be the clearest.

You can also download Microsoft Office apps onto the device in order to use Microsoft Word and Excel which will certainly come in handy.

Samsung Galaxy Tab A

The Samsung Galaxy Tab A (Samsung) / samsung

One of John Lewis most popular tablets, this tablet has a lot to recommend it. With a 10.1-inch display, a full-metal unibody and a 5MP front-facing camera, this is an easy to use device and will be perfect for video calls and chats.
ALTON  U.S. Reps Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, and Rodney Davis, R-Taylorville, have announced that Madison County will receive $1.7 million in Community Development Block Grants to help fight the spread of COVID-19.

The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development as part of the federal $2 trillion COVID-19 economic stimulus bill.
Washington: Here on one side there is a havoc of Corona going on the other side, Iran on the other side is not getting its hawks, successive attacks are being carried out one after the other. Taking this thing every day, serious concern goes, and every day some new case comes up. Keeping this in mind, US President Donald Trump has also warned Iran this time.

Corona doubled in week, WHO expresses serious concern

According to the information received, President Donald Trump has said that Iran should be prepared for strict action on behalf of the US if Iran or Iranian-backed groups attack the US military or assets in Iraq. On January 3, an air strike was carried out by the US at Baghdad Airport, in which Iranian General Qasim Suleimani died. Since then, tensions between the US and Iran have increased.

Security Council appeals for ceasefire in Afghanistan to fight Corona

Trump recently briefed the White House that his administration has received intelligence that Iran is planning to attack. However, additional details were not provided. Iran has been blamed for rocket attacks targeting American soldiers present in Iraqi military bases. In a span of one week, three separate attacks caused a furore at Camp Taji and Basmaya. Three coalition soldiers, including two Americans, were killed and some were injured.

Death toll increases in 48 hours, Spain is falling coffin shortage
The relatives of the 176 victims of the Ukrainian airliner shot down by Iran's Revolutionary Guard over Tehran on January 8 have set up an association to seek justice for the death of their loved ones.

In a video circulated on social media, Hamed Esmaeilion, a Canadian-Iranian dentist from Toronto, says members of the board of directors of the association will soon be elected and he has been appointed as the spokesperson.

"The association wants to bring the perpetrators of the crime, including those who ordered it, to justice," Esmaeilion who lost his wife and daughter in the deadly crash says.

The newly founded association has been described as an independent, non-political civil entity.

The Islamic Republic has so far rejected demands by the Ukrainian and Canadian governments to hand over the flight recorders for expert analysis. Critics believe Iran's conduct is a delaying tactic not to share information.

The authorities in the clergy-dominated Iran have recently argued that fighting the deadly novel coronavirus in the country has disrupted the investigation into the Ukrainian passenger plane tragedy.

"Despite the daunting hurdles posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Iran must live up to its pledge to co-operate with the investigation into its downing of a commercial airliner in January," the Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said on March 26.

Canada, Ukraine, Germany, Britain, and Afghanistan have formed a group to pursue a thorough investigation of the incident.

Ukraine's deputy Foreign Minister, Yehor Bozhok, told Radio Farda on March 31 that there has been no positive development concerning the case. "Tehran should immediately hand over the black boxes to Kiev or any other country Ukraine chooses,".

Iran's representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in Montreal, Farhad Parvaresh, promised March 11 to transfer the black boxes to Ukraine within two weeks, but as of April 2 that has yet to occur.

Meanwhile, Canadian lawyers are seeking a class-action status lawsuit on behalf of victims' families, looking for at least C$1.5 billion ($1.1 billion) in compensation.

The lawsuit names the Islamic Republic, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Revolutionary Guard, and others as defendants.
Representative image: Reuters

MA Kalam

It would indeed be revealing, as well as quite embarrassing, particularly for the privileged middle and upper classes, if a survey is undertaken to locate and spot the residential blocks in the different cities of India where the instances of COVID-19 cases have occurred. That will also show how and from where the infection is spreading to other people and other localities. It is not at all difficult to do that; mapping through GIS is an easy exercise.

Needless to say, almost all of these cases surely are in the neighborhoods inhabited by the richer and privileged sections of the society, and most of them are those who have a travel history of having been abroad. After their return they have infected those who have come in contact with them.

Fine, many of them have been isolated or quarantined, if not actually hospitalised, and as a consequence of the lockdown have the extravagance of work from home (it is another matter that post-lockdown the TV viewership has increased sharply). Many of them also have the advantage of drawing their regular, guaranteed salary at the end of the month.

At the other polar opposite of the class edifice, at the bottom of the pyramid, are the multitude of hapless groups of people, sections of our own society, the others, who for absolutely no fault of theirs, not to talk of any crime committed, have overnight been thrown out of everything  jobs, wages, shelters, source of income, and the like. This was because a nation-wide lockdown was imposed as a result of the overseas excursions of those at the other end (the upper end) of the class hierarchy.

Besides the urban homeless and the needy, those who have been made to bear the brunt of this lockdown are the migrant labour who have become, during the last few years, a given in most of our cities and town. These migrant workers (aka guest workers) are reluctantly accepted in many places; mainly because they come cheap and the locals mostly refrain from doing certain kinds of jobs in the vicinity of their own habitations and locales (they may, however, do more demeaning jobs away from their own dwellings, say in West Asia/Gulf or other overseas contexts). These guests are now being thrown to the wolves and the weather.

As the State had no contingent plan for these migrant labour, an institution-created famine-like situation has arisen due to the starvation that they have been facing. After five days of lockdown the central government woke up to the misery of these souls and directed the state governments and the union territories to provide shelter and food to them. In the interim these people had a choice; either starve to death or risk breaking the physical distance barrier and get susceptible to the virus. Hopefully, now that their plight has been highlighted, things will get better for these guests.

The luxury of the so-called social distance does not operate in their ambit as lower class habitations as also other allied spaces that pertain to them are extremely dense by definition. Almost all seem to have chosen the option of reaching their respective homes going by the thronging witnessed at bus stops and highway halting points for buses and trucks. However, to no avail as the states in their wisdom have shut all borders for them by suspending all forms of transport.

During Partition in 1947, people moved due to issues between the two countries. Now the mass movement of people is also because of a partition  a partition between the rich and the poor, within the national borders, across state borders wherein each state is guarding its territory with vehemence. The State has failed utterly on two counts; one, in not anticipating such an event, and second, in not being able to either prevent or combat the movement.

It is really poignant that the choice is between death by hunger and death by the virus. Given such a choice, the poor feel it is better to die in their native place than in a strange locale. Also, if they do beat starvation death and live, the chances of recovery and survival from the virus appear to be higher even if they are infected. It is death by starvation that is most galling for them as evidenced by empirical responses that are obtained by sources that are interacting with them.

It is such an unfortunate thing that all crises always seem to impact the poor in the worst negative way possible. Floods, droughts, hurricanes or what have you invariably target the less privileged. It is utterly ironical that the present crisis that has emerged among the upper echelons in India due to Covid-19 too does so.

It is also pertinent to point out as to how the ilk of the original carriers of the virus, the upper classes, are planning their strategies in combating the absence of their domestics, cooks, drivers as can be seen from the debates and dialogue of the resident welfare associations and similar bodies on social media. The dominant narrative is no work, no pay. Those who say they will pay, are making it sound as if they are achieving martyrdom by their act.
A Pakistan court on Thursday commuted the death sentence of the prime accused in the 2002 murder case of US journalist Daniel Pearl to seven years in jail, according to media reports.

The Sindh High Court overturned the verdict earlier given by the anti-terrorism court (ATC) to UK-born Ahmed Omar Sheikh, the prime accused, The Express Tribune reported.

The other three convicts, who were earlier given life sentences, were also acquitted by the court, the Dawn reported.

A high court division bench led by Justice K K Agha had reserved its ruling on March 6 after after five days of consecutive hearings.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
[April 02, 2020] Avaya Supports Healthcare Providers with Free Collaboration and Contact Center Apps to Help Bolster Their Ability to Respond During COVID-19 Crisis

As healthcare workers around the world face the daily challenges of responding to COVID-19, Avaya (News - Alert) Holdings Corp. (NYSE:AVYA) continues to enhance their ability to deliver critically needed support and care. The company today announced it is providing communications and collaboration solutions for free to healthcare organizations in order to help them stay connected, productive and safe. Avaya solutions are helping providers address the unprecedented demands on them, such as an increase in patient care and inquiries, the pressing need to proactively outreach to their communities, and an ability to virtually connect patients, family members and care teams, especially with staff working from home or in temporary locations. Healthcare is a priority for Avaya, and the company works with 80% of the Health and Life Sciences Fortune 500 Companies, and 12 of the top 20 U.S. hospitals rely on Avaya communications solutions. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company has been supporting healthcare organizations worldwide in a number of ways: A key healthcare services provider leading the COVID-19 testing effort has been able to continue their critically important work while moving over 2,300 employees to work remotely with the help of Avaya solutions.

One of the largest healthcare providers in the southwest United States, with more than 10,000 Avaya unified communications users, is able to maintain its high level of health services while moving staff to a work-from-home environment to help ensure their safety.

The company has also worked with government health departments across the U.S., including Washington State Department of Health, to get emergency call centers up-and-running in a matter of hours.

Avaya recently helped the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority and Shared Health Manitoba leverage CPaaS solutions to quickly ramp up their ability to respond to huge increases in call center volume. WellMedic Health Centers, one of the most innovative health and wellness centers in Latin America, implemented Avaya communication and contact centers solutions for remote agents to address their current challenges. "In a moment like this with whole world impacted by COVID-19, we have to act immediately, and with Avaya's support, in just over a weekend we were able to move our traditional call center to a remote deployment without interrupting service to doctors, their patients or our team," said Carlos Araiza, IT Leader at WellMedic. "They quickly helped us develop our contingency strategy and implement the appropriate solution." "Our deepest gratitude goes out to the healthcare workers and organizations on the front lines battling COVID-19. Many of the providers who work with Avaya have told us how critical it is to stay connected and engaged with colleagues, patients and communities," said Jim Chirico, Avaya President and CEO. "In the early days of the pandemic, we worked with hospitals to quickly donate and deploy collaboration apps and technology to support their efforts. Now we know it's critical to support them with new capabilities that can help during this unprecedented global heath challenge."



The free software offers Avaya is providing for healthcare organizations include: A complementary 60-day subscription for the Avaya Spaces cloud meeting and team collaboration app that enables online virtual patient visits where care team members and patients can connect, meet and share across any device, using video, voice, chat and more. It also allows staff to create "spaces" for frequent topics and ongoing projects, and the entire healthcare team can work and meet wherever they might be.

A complementary 90-day subscription for Avaya Cloud Notification Solution (ACNS), the modular cloud-based notification system that provides real-time communication when it matters most. Automation capabilities include Hotlines, Auto Forms, Auto Attendant, Custom IVR, and notifications to enable healthcare workers to quickly manage inquiries on-demand, conduct outreach to patients, gather and share information about patients and prioritize call backs.

A 90-day complimentary license for contact center customers to convert their existing office-based contact center agents to remote workers. Avaya contact center solutions for remote agents can help address the health and safety concerns for staff while enabling them to effectively and efficiently respond to the increasing volume of patient and community inquiries. In response to COVID-19, Avaya has enabled customers to empower several hundred thousand contact center agents to now work remotely.

Complementary 90-day licenses to a wide range of Avaya unified communications solutions compatible with virtually every Avaya platform, to enable healthcare providers to transition their teams into remote work environments to stay safe while being able to stay productive and collaborate from anywhere. HIPAA-compliant options for Healthcare, supported by an independent third-party audit, are available for Avaya Cloud Office, Avaya Cloud Notification Solution (ACNS), Avaya OneCloud IX Contact Center, Avaya OneCloud ReadyNow, Avaya Conversational Intelligence, and for Avaya Managed Services premise-based solutions.

To learn more about the Avaya free offers for Healthcare, organizations are asked to visit this web page. About Avaya Businesses are built on the experiences they provide, and everyday millions of those experiences are built by Avaya (NYSE: AVYA). For over one hundred years, we've enabled organizations around the globe to win - by creating intelligent communications experiences for customers and employees. Avaya builds open, converged and innovative solutions to enhance and simplify communications and collaboration - in the cloud, on-premise or a hybrid of both. To grow your business, we're committed to innovation, partnership, and a relentless focus on what's next. We're the technology company you trust to help you deliver Experiences that Matter. Visit us at http:www.avaya.com. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This document contains certain "forward-looking statements." All statements other than statements of historical fact are "forward-looking" statements for purposes of the U.S. federal and state securities laws. These statements may be identified by the use of forward looking terminology such as "anticipate," "believe," "continue," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "might," "our vision," "plan," "potential," "preliminary," "predict," "should," "will," or "would" or the negative thereof or other variations thereof or comparable terminology. The Company has based these forward-looking statements on its current expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections. While the Company believes these expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections are reasonable, such forward-looking statements are only predictions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond its control. The factors are discussed in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC (News - Alert)") available at www.sec.gov, and may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. The Company cautions you that the list of important factors included in the Company's SEC filings may not contain all of the material factors that are important to you. In addition, in light of these risks and uncertainties, the matters referred to in the forward-looking statements contained in this press release may not in fact occur. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by law. Source (News - Alert): Avaya Newsroom View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005143/en/

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Boeing Co (NYSE: BA) shares traded lower by another 11.8% on Wednesday as the stock market experienced yet another volatile trading session.

A pair of large Boeing option trades were mixed in nature, with one deep-pocketed Boeing bull making a massive bet on a sharp recovery for the stock.

The Trades

On Wednesday, Benzinga Pro subscribers received two option alerts related to unusually large trades of Boeing options:

At 9:30 a.m., a trader bought 1,465 Boeing call options with a $170 strike price expiring on Sept. 18 near the ask price at $21. The trade represented a bullish bet worth $3.07 million.

At 1:01 p.m., a trader bought 509 Boeing put options with a $100 strike price expiring on April 17 near the ask price at $4.651. The trade represented a $236,735 bearish bet.

Extreme market volatility has pulled the rug out from under a lot of traders. Attend the virtual Benzinga Options Boot Camp to learn to trade options in a volatile market and start going after solid trades with absolute confidence. Register for FREE at benzingabootcamp.com before space fills up!

Why It's Important

Even traders who stick exclusively to stocks often monitor option market activity closely for unusually large trades. Given the relative complexity of the options market, large options traders are typically considered to be more sophisticated than the average stock trader.

Many of these large options traders are wealthy individuals or institutions who may have unique information or theses related to the underlying stock.

Unfortunately, stock traders often use the options market to hedge against their larger stock positions, and theres no surefire way to determine if an options trade is a standalone position or a hedge. In this case, given the relatively large size of the largest Boeing trade, it could potentially represent an institutional hedge.

Boeing At Risk?

Boeing shares have plummeted 59.6% year-to-date on fears the government will need to bail out or potentially even nationalize the ailing company. According to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, as of last Friday Boeing had not requested financial help from the government.

Story continues

Boeing has said that they have no intention of using a program that may change in the future, Mnuchin said. These are things that the companies need to come and ask us for. ... Right now Boeings saying they dont need it.

Back on March 20, Boeing announced it was suspending its dividend and share buybacks in an effort to weather the COVID-19 downturn.

Several Wall Street analysts have since stepped up with bullish commentary on the beaten-down stock. On Monday, Argus upgraded Boeing from Hold to Buy and set a $220 price target for the stock. The firm said Boeing plans to resume production of the grounded 737 MAX by May, and he anticipates it will be cleared to fly sometime this summer.

Credit Suisse and Baird also recently reiterated Neutral ratings on Boeing stock.

Bullish sentiment among StockTwits messages mentioning Boeing was at 64.6% on Wednesday, down from its 2020 high of 75.8% on Feb. 12.

BA Chart by TradingView new TradingView.widget( { "width": 680, "height": 423, "symbol": "NYSE:BA", "interval": "D", "timezone": "Etc/UTC", "theme": "light", "style": "1", "locale": "en", "toolbar_bg": "#f1f3f6", "enable_publishing": false, "allow_symbol_change": true, "container_id": "tradingview_ca773" } ); Benzingas Take

The $3.07 million call purchase is the headline of the morning due to both its size and how far out of the money it is. The break-even price for those calls is $191, suggesting 46.1% upside for Boeing shares over the next five-plus months.

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Istanbul's opposition mayor on Thursday called for a lockdown in Turkey's largest city after it reported the country's highest number of coronavirus cases and criticised the lack of coordination with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey's government has announced measures to contain the spread of the virus from shutting schools, banning mass prayers, suspending international flights to restricting intercity trips. But Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu's demand is likely to put pressure on Erdogan's government which has so far resisted taking stronger lockdown measures. Erdogan has instead urged Turks to adapt themselves to "voluntary quarantine" conditions. The official figures on Wednesday revealed Istanbul with a population of around 15 million is the epicentre of Turkey's outbreak, with 60 percent of nationwide cases and 117 deaths. According to the latest figures released Thursday, Turkey has recorded a total of 356 deaths and 18,135 cases. "We are aware that Istanbul has become the epicentre. We have cases and a death toll almost 10 to 11 fold compared to Izmir or Ankara. This shows that if we can control the situation in Istanbul, we can relieve Turkey," Imamoglu told AFP in an interview. "When we look at what's being done elsewhere in the world, we believe a two or three-week lockdown in Istanbul will be a measure which will reduce the number of cases, and of deaths." - 'The earlier the better'- Without a strict lockdown, Imamoglu warned, even if 15 percent of the residents in Istanbul move around rather than stay home, that would represent two million people -- the population of some European cities. "This has the potential to easily increase the threat." Erdogan's government has stopped short of a full lockdown only banning elderly people aged 65 from going out. "This decision needs to be taken by the cabinet, by the president. God willing, a lockdown will be declared," Imamoglu said. "The earlier the measures are taken, the more efficient they are. To say 'let's wait a bit' means we don't get what the disease is." - 'No response' - Since taking office in June, Imamoglu of the opposition CHP party -- widely seen as Erdogan's main challenger for the next presidential elections -- has been at odds with the central government. But discrepancies appear more evident during the pandemic. Asked if he communicated his call for a lockdown in Istanbul to Erdogan, Imamoglu said: "I have asked (for a phone call) with the president but I haven't heard back from him yet." Erdogan's office has not commented on talks with Imamoglu, though the interior and health ministries have held talks with the mayor. Imamoglu this week launched a donation campaign tagged "We'll Succeed Together" to help vulnerable populations with cash and essentials. But his campaign was branded "illegal" by Erdogan who himself launched a "National Solidarity" campaign to raise funds, donating part of his salary and urging business leaders and wealthy citizens to contribute. Erdogan blasted Imamoglu's campaign as an initiative which gives the impression of a "state within a state." The mayor said Erdogan's comments were "unfortunate". "The municipality is part of the state." - 'Solidarity vs division'- Without naming the Istanbul mayor, Erdogan said Thursday his government would not allow anyone to promote "division rather than solidarity." "No one is above the law in Turkey," he said, taking aim at those who are "trying to dynamite" the government's initiative to raise money. "No one has the right to dilute (our efforts) against the coronavirus". But Imamoglu called for dialogue. "We do our best to overcome this (tension). We call, or request meetings," he said. "On our end, we have no problem communicating, even now ... We are obliged to communicate with every part of the state." Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu has urged a lockdown on Turkey's biggest city, which is emerging as the country's epicentre of coronavirus cases Istanbul has most of Turkey's virus cases, though there is no strict lockdown for now Turkish authorities have announced measures to contain the spread of the virus from shutting schools, banning mass prayers, suspending international flights to restricting intercity trips
In a message for the 500th Anniversary of the first Mass celebrated in what is now Argentina, Pope Francis invites the faithful to live out the words of Jesus: Do this in memory of me.

By Christopher Wells

On Wednesday, 1 April, the Bishop of Rio Gallegos, Bishop Jorge Garcia Cuerva, presided over a Eucharistic celebration in commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the first Mass celebrated on Argentinian soil.

The Liturgy was originally scheduled to take place in Puerto San Julian, where the first Mass in Argentina was celebrated in 1520. However, in view of restrictions imposed on account of the Covid-19 pandemic, Bishop Garcia Cuerva celebrated the anniversary Mass in the Bishops chapel in Rio Gallegos, without the presence of the faithful.

Jesus accompanies Argentina in Eucharist

In his message for the Anniversary, Pope Francis recognized the pain felt by the people at not being able to celebrate the event as they had intended. We are like the disciples of Emmaus, he wrote, walking with a sad face because of what is happening, uneasy about how it will develop and worried about the consequences it will leave. But, he continued, like the disciples, we can say to Jesus, Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent. The hidden presence of Jesus in the Eucharist has accompanied Argentina for five hundred years, the Pope said. He is in our midst, accompanying our journey.

Living the words of Jesus

Pope Francis said that in these days it is essential that we are able to remember and learn this Eucharistic sense that only the Lord can teach us. The Lords words, Do this in memory of me, continue to resound in the various towns, parishes, chapels, hospitals, schools, houses, cities, and neighbourhoods, the Pope said. It is an opportunity to ensure that everyone has food to eat, that no one is left by the wayside. Do this in memory of me means allowing oneself to be taken, blessed, and given as bread broken and shared for the life of the world, said Pope Francis, taking up the words of St John Paul II.

In his letter to Bishop Garcia Cuerva, Pope Francis said, Dear brother, although you will be physically celebrating alone, your people, our Argentinian people, will be accompanying you. And, he added, I am also joining you from here [in Rome], as a son and a part of this People of God who gives thanks and celebrates the Lords faithfulness.
UAE President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has issued a federal decree for 2020 appointing Abdulhamid Saeed as the new governor of the UAE Central Bank.

With more than 35 years of experience in the banking and financial services, Saeed has held key positions as a board member of the First Abu Dhabi Bank, the Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company, the Emirates Investment Authority, the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and Sky News Arabia.

He had also served as a member of the Mubadala Investment Companys Board Executive Committee and Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee. Prior to that, he held senior positions at Citibank.

Saeed holds a Bachelors degree in Business Administration from the University of Arizona, US.
Respect is still for essential as ever teachers I never considered my work as essential. I work in a school. I help the school run smoothly on a day-to-day basis. It's not a prestigious job. I dont earn a huge salary. I dont work 12 hours a day; Im finished by 3.15pm. Im a part-time worker. I dont engage in fancy meetings at work. I dont need to wear a suit. I do a lot of menial work like photocopying exams, preparing science experiments, organising travel cards, refilling classrooms with necessary items. But in these changing and different times, it looks like I will be the last employee standing. It is me that needs to still go to work, along with cleaners, nurses, orderlies. It's because of me that teachers can continue to deliver information to their students. It's because of us, teachers and staff, the countrys youth will continue their studies and maintain progress through their respective year groups. The kids will be able to graduate at the end of the school year with a full complement of knowledge of the school curriculum. That's while CEOs, chairmen, stockbrokers, directors, financiers are at home, watching Netflix and doing yoga in front of YouTube. Who is essential now? Alison Hatzantonis, Willoughby I have a lot of sympathy for workers who are trying to juggle a new work environment alongside supervising their childrens education (''Dont beat yourself up, minister urges parents'', April 2). Everyone is aware that schools have stayed open to provide supervision for children who cannot stay at home. Yesterday, a teacher friend informed me that some of the children still attending her school are the most difficult who have stay-at-home mums. Teachers are still going into work to make it possible for essential workers, such as health workers, to provide services that save lives and keep our society functioning. They are not going into school to babysit the children of parents who cant cope.

When the next term commences, the NSW government must issue a directive that in households where there is one parent at home, a home where the technology needed for online learning is available, students must not be sent to school. And when we get to the other side of this, maybe teachers will get the recognition and respect they deserve. Debra Miniutti, Ashbury I am not surprised that working parents are at breaking point. Though all of us are trying our best, it is overwhelming at times. We teachers are trying to establish the new norms while juggling the needs of the students, and parents are busy trying to hold down a job and support their children's learning at home. The virtual education model works best for independent, motivated learners with parents, and sufficient technological infrastructure at home to support them. It is not a solution for everyone. The school holiday break is coming up soon which will give us all a chance to recoup and rest. Sharon Everson, Wyoming Canberra must be held to account I would like to add my voice to those of the group of former judges urging our Parliament to set up a bipartisan committee to scrutinise the responses of our federal government to the pandemic (Ex-judges push for scrutiny of virus measures, April 2). Our wise Kiwi friends have already established such a committee which has the power to question ministers and demand documents to ensure accountability and to preserve democratic principles.

One example, which is a topic of discussion in Australia now, is the right of the Australian people to transparency with regard to the modelling used in determining which measures are put in place to control the spread of the virus. As a doctor and an immunologist, I would be much more reassured if it were to be made clear why certain measures need to be introduced at particular times. After all, these measures affect us all. Alyson Kakakios, Croydon Support migrant workers Australia to date has a very bad record for its treatment of visa workers (''Owners face tough choice as migrants ineligible'', April 2). They form the bulk of workers who have been underpaid by often wealthy companies and individuals. They have been the victims of racial vilification. These people fill important roles in workplaces across the country, often taking on work that the average Australian would turn their nose up at. It behoves the government to extend its wage support to these people. Genevieve Milton, Newtown Too great a risk Healthcare workers are at the highest risk of contracting coronavirus, especially as the supplies of protective equipment dwindle (''Retired medicos get call to arms'', April 2). Infection rates as high as 40-50 per cent of frontline staff have been seen in Italy. By far the biggest risk factor for the impact of the virus is age. Bringing older healthcare workers out of retirement to work on the frontline is industrial manslaughter. By all means use them in non-contact support roles and for tele-health away from infection risk, but exposing older workers to infection will fan the flames and increase the spread among the most vulnerable. Bart Fielden, Lindfield

Simply trying to help A group of Chinese-Australians have been convening regularly since the coronavirus outbreak in January, working to assist state and federal governments to support local Chinese restaurants, families and communities, including those in China. Since the outbreak in Australia, like the majority of Australians, we are stepping up to support our country: Australia, not China. For example, the Australian Emergency Assistance Association and the organisations president Haha Liu has organised $200,000 worth of hospital-grade hard surface disinfectants donated to Victoria and NSW. Many others are doing their best to donate medical supplies back from China with no cost to Australian taxpayers. We have been working with state governments to arrange the distribution of these goods but unfortunately while they have been responsive, bureaucracy has meant some of these supplies are currently sitting at the docks. Despite our efforts people still doubt our intentions, including the Health Services Union (HSU), recently labelling acts of generosity by Australians of Chinese background as foreign interference and putting health service workers lives at risk.

Rather than making accusations, the HSU and the Australian Medical Association should work with us to bring down bureaucratic red tape to ensure these urgent medical supplies are delivered. Wesa Chau, chief executive, Cultural Intelligence, Melbourne Top marks to ABC Following its life-saving local safety broadcasts during the recent catastrophic bushfires and floods, the ABC has once again demonstrated its invaluable community role through its deal with the NSW and Victorian governments to broadcast educational shows on a childrens channel from mid-April (''ABC to air educational shows and mini lessons to support students and teachers'', April 2). This decision will provide much-needed support for students and their parents struggling to cope with home schooling. The commercial channels would not do this because they cant show advertisements during childrens time slots. Well done, Aunty. Rob Phillips, North Epping Sewing machines at the ready In WWI it was socks for the troops. Now our hospitals need gowns and masks (''Hospitals struggle with shortages'', April 2). Thousands of us have sewing machines and want to help. The patterns are not complicated; an average home dressmaker can make a ward gown in a few hours. Come on, big fabric chains. We will rally behind you. Jocelyn Mather, Wollongong

Opportunity knocks Shame you arent still pounding the halls of power, Bob Carr (Bigger emergency lurks beneath the virus, April 2). Your critical assessment of global events leading to our current crisis is laudable and insightful. Equal measures of intelligence, humility, historical respect and a reverence for life might just help us survive and possibly thrive but more significantly, mature culturally, post-coronavirus. The commendable political climate of bipartisanship we are currently witnessing could extend to addressing a greater threat to our global survival: climate change. Sure, politically, climate change is a slow burn, easily swept aside with claims of fake news by tweet-addicted world leaders. However, not taking the opportunity this moment in time allows, would suggest not just stupidity but a crime against humanity. Cleveland Rose, Dee Why Biggest threat to US Bruce Wolpe reminds us that America's reality-show President has never had a handle on the desperate reality of this pandemic ("When 200,000 dead Americans amounts to a 'very good job': Trump's morbidity marker," April 2). But Trump's ignorance has a much deeper, darker meaning for American friends and family with whom I've spoken. The abandonment of the truth and the reliance on "alternative facts" have eroded all trust in US institutions and fuelled despair in the normally "can-do" population. No healing will be possible until Trump rides his golden escalator into oblivion. Mark Paskal, Clovelly

Id like to believe that Trump has finally seen the light but the greatest threat in the US is Trump himself (Dire warning makes Trump finally take threat seriously, April 2). If he were just some crazy old guy sitting on his front porch yelling at passers-by, that would be fine, but as President his record of veering all over the place, putting out false information, and lavishing praise on himself, has made him a danger to his people. Who knows what weirdness hell come out with next week. Joan Brown, Orange A league of their own It is no longer permissible to sit on a park bench, even if alone. However it seems NRL players may be allowed to return to the field (Governments COVID-19 exemptions leave door ajar for early NRL return, April 2). This could be good news for any over-70s, desperate for social activity. I assume they would also be free to mingle again, provided they form a footy team of course. Graham Lum, North Rocks Flour power by any other name Pasta pasta pasta: its everywhere- except on supermarket shelves. Whats with the current fascination for this staple? Wherever one looks there is a new recipe involving pasta. But heres the rub  its all the same. It's just starchy carbs in thousands of weird and wonderful shapes purporting to be a different food from each other. Judy Finch, Cedar Party

Worth a cheer Thank you, David McAllister and the Australian Ballet (Virtual pirouette a windfall for ballets bunheads, April 2). Ill be sitting at home, all dressed up, sipping champagne from a crystal glass, and you will hear all of us, from around Australia, clapping and cheering and rising from our seats calling Encore! Margaret Hogge, North Curl Curl Pip-pip, hooray I see from the latest COVID-19 information that one of the early signs could be that you lose your sense of taste and smell (''Loss of taste and smell key COVID-19 symptoms, study finds'', April 2). With this in mind, my wife and I have decided to have a wine-tasting twice a day. Tony Lyons, Lithgow Staying afloat
The United Nations food agency has negotiated a humanitarian corridor to keep food aid flowing in southern Africa after most countries shut their borders to stop the spread of coronavirus, an official said on Thursday.

Up to 45 million people in southern Africa face hunger following a devastating drought and two cyclones last year, and there are growing fears the situation could be compounded by the outbreak of coronavirus.

Lola Castro, World Food Programme director for southern Africa, said South Africa had agreed to let vessels carrying food aid land on its shores and move it to countries like Zimbabwe, Malawi, Botswana and Namibia, which face food shortages.

Castro told reporters during a video conference that Africa's most advanced economy, which has declared a 21-day lockdown, had agreed to "a sort of a humanitarian corridor", a move that would help the agency continue its work.

"At this moment we are actually maintaining our normal food distributions but maybe in the future, depending with the effect of the virus and effect on the food system, especially on the smallholder farmers ... maybe we will see an increase in prices and number of people who require food assistance," she said.

More than $400 million was required to import food aid for the next three months in southern Africa, which has received patchy rains this year, said Castro.

Africa has now registered almost 6,445 cases of coronavirus and 241 deaths. The continent is already suffering a huge economic impact from lockdowns aiming to contain the virus and a sharp fall in global demand for commodities. Some international aid workers have been prevented from doing their jobs by closed borders.

Daily lives have been upended in most African countries due to tough lockdown measures that have affected swathes of populations that rely on informal trade for a living.

Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organisation regional director for Africa, said governments on the continent had to balance between physical distancing measures while making sure that families had food on the table.

"The potential economic impact is of great concern at the lowest socio-economic levels," Moeti said.

Authorities in Zambia said the country had recorded its first death from coronavirus, and the number of confirmed cases had risen by three to 39.

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Technavio has been monitoring the flaxseed oil market and it is poised to grow by USD 134.7 million during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of over 3% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005258/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Flaxseed Oil Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please request latest free sample report on Covid-19 Impact

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Archer Daniels Midland Company, Cargill, General Nutrition Centers, Nature's Way Products, and Wonder Labs are some of the major market participants. The increasing number of surgeries will offer immense growth opportunities. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Increasing number of surgeries has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Flaxseed Oil Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Flaxseed Oil Market is segmented as below:

Product Organic Inorganic

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download latest free sample report of 2020-2024: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30209

Flaxseed Oil Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our flaxseed oil market report covers the following areas:

Flaxseed Oil Market Size

Flaxseed Oil Market Trends

Flaxseed Oil Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies industrial uses of flaxseed oil as one of the prime reasons driving the flaxseed oil market growth during the next few years.

Flaxseed Oil Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Flaxseed Oil Market, including some of the vendors such as Archer Daniels Midland Company, Cargill, General Nutrition Centers, Nature's Way Products, and Wonder Labs. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Flaxseed Oil Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Flaxseed Oil Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist flaxseed oil market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the flaxseed oil market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the flaxseed oil market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of flaxseed oil market vendors

Table Of Contents:

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT

Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Organic Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Inorganic Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 09: DECISION FRAMEWORK

PART 10: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

PART 11: MARKET TRENDS

PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Archer Daniels Midland Company

Cargill

General Nutrition Centers

Nature's Way Products

Wonder Labs

PART 14: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

PART 15: EXPLORE TECHNAVIO

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  An official from Malacanang's anti-corruption body wants the National Bureau of Investigation to probe Vice President Leni Robredo for allegedly competing with the national government's response to COVID-19 outbreak.

In a statement, Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission Commissioner Manuelito Luna said Robredo may have violated certain laws when she received donations to help those most affected by the crisis through "illegal solicitations (and) actions that compete with or calculated to undermine, national government efforts" to mitigate the impact of the health crisis.

The PACC official questioned the Office of the Vice Presidents free shuttle service and dormitory for health workers, as well as donations of personal protective equipment to various hospitals.

Luna said Robredo should leave it up to the government agencies to do the work.

"Being a part of the national government, Robredo is barred from competing with the DOH (Department of Health), DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development) and OCD/NDRRMC (Office of Civil Defense), or undermining their efforts, and from soliciting donations, in cash or in kind, from the taxpaying public, especially since funds have already been appropriated or set aside for relief assistance, disaster mitigation, rehabilitation, etc.," he said.

READ: Funds for trolls should be used to provide protective gear for COVID-19 frontliners  VP

Luna also said Robredo may have breached certain provisions of the law and implementing rules that created the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, the Solicitation Permit Law and related issuances, as well as measures and protocols approved by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases which directs the state's COVID-19 response.

However, fellow PACC member Greco Belgica said Luna's statement was not the body's position, clarifying that it was just a personal opinion.

"PACC is not asking anyone to investigate VP Leni Robredo," Belgica said in a Facebook post, even expressing gratitude for her efforts.

"This is not the time for politicking, he added. "We are not concerned with any personality. Our main concern is to make sure all the needy Filipinos get all the help they need the President promised. Our concern is to end this COVID-19 virus."

The Vice President chided the multiple attempts that question her authority. Robredo tweeted a short clip of her doing a hair flip, saying she's busy with work to waste time for such a complaint.

Robredos spokesman Barry Gutierrez dismissed Lunas statement as "ridiculous" and "out of touch," noting that the Vice President is just trying to help without requesting for additional funds or seeking expanded powers.

She did this because she saw a need, and she took action to meet it," Gutierrez said in a statement. "She did this because it was the right and responsible thing to do."

As of Wednesday evening, the Office of the Vice President said it has received over 40.3 million in donations for frontliners and turned over 33,075 sets of protective gear to hospital personnel in Luzon and Samar. Dormitories have also been set up for hospital staff as public transport has been suspended during the month-long Luzon quarantine.

On Wednesday, netizens were enraged after the NBI summoned Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto to explain why he supposedly violated the public transport ban during the quarantine period. Authorities alleged that Sotto violated the days-old Bayanihan to Heal as One Act even if the issue on allowing tricycle operations in his city was addressed prior to the passage of the new law.

Several senators cried foul over the PACC official's suggestion, saying it's not the time to be divisive.

"'Di ba bayanihan nga? Walang monopolyo sa pagtulong," opposition Senator Kiko Pangilinan said. "Hindi nakikipag-contest si VP Leni. Pinupunan niya ang mga pagkukulang ng pamahalaan."

[Translation: Isn't it time for cooperation? There shouldn't be a monopoly as to who can help. VP Leni isn't engaging in a contest, she is filling the gaps.]

Sen. Panfilo "Ping" Lacson also slammed Luna's request.

CNN Philippines' Multi-Platform News Writer Melissa Luz Lopez contributed to this report.
NASA is again planning to back to the moon, and this time, it will be for good. NASA plans to send astronauts back there in 2024, and they plan to build a base that will allow them to stay. This lunar base may be made with something that is readily available: the astronauts urine. (Photo : Pexels)

NASA is again planning to back to the moon, and this time, it will be for good. NASA plans to send astronauts back there in 2024, and they plan to build a base that will allow them to stay. This lunar base may be made with something that is readily available: the astronauts' urine. In addition, NASA is also considering if their homes could be grown from mushrooms instead of built.

NASA's Artemis program will send the next man and the first woman to the moon, and it plans to land at the moon's South Pole. According to NASA, that place has fluctuating temperatures which will require inhabiting astronauts to learn to operate and live on celestial body aside from Earth.

According to NASA, the astronauts cannot just land on the moon and simply set up a habitat.They also have to consider the need for being protected from radiation and extreme fluctuations in ambient temperature, which ranges from -9 F to -313 F, or -22 C to -191 C. They also have to contend with impacts from micro-meteorites.

NASA's Artemis program also aims to look for and utilize lunar water, along with many other resources that can be found on the surface or beneath it, in order to make long-term exploration possible. Artemis aims to make a sustainable means of going to the moon and staying there for good, according to Jim Bridenstine, NASA administrator. Artemis is not like the Apollo missions in that its objective is the sustained presence on the moon or around it.

Materials for transport to the moon can cost $10,000 per pound, according to a study. The key, therefore, to a sustainable habitation, is to use materials already found there and those which the astronauts already carry.

A recently published study investigated the use of moon dust or regolith being mixed urea, which is part of urine, to make some type of concrete which may be 3D-printed for building a structure. According to Polytechnic University of Cartagena professor Ramon Pamies, author of the study, water from ice on the surface can be used.

But since the researchers wanted to limit water use because life support systems need it, urine could be used instead, with the regolith mix being 3D-printed. Urea allows the breaking of hydrogen bonds and thus reduces viscosities of aqueous mixtures.

They tested the usefulness of urea as plasticizer to soften the mixture and make it pliable with a regolith-like material. Common plasticizers like polycarboxylate and naphthalene were also used for comparison.

After 3D printing, they were tested weight load capacities for up to 25 pounds. They found that the naphthalene and urea mixtures can hold heavy weights and also retain their shape. Both were also amenable to 3D printing.

They also put the samples through eight freezing and thawing cycles to simulate temperature conditions on the moon. The samples were subjected to up to 176 F. The researchers plan on making other tests as well, such as the materials' reaction in a vacuum, to determine if they could evaporate or crack. They also plan to test how they can withstand meteorite bombardment and if they can shield the astronauts from high radiation. They also need to simulate 3D-printing on lunar conditions.

Norway's stfold University College professor and co-author Anna-Lena Kjniksen disclosed that they have so far not investigated how urea is going to be extracted from urine, since they are also assessing if it is really necessary. They are considering the use of other components for making the geopolymer concrete.
Spain has the worlds second-highest number of fatalities and rising unemployment, but there is hope amid the crisis.

A record 950 people have died from coronavirus in Spain in the space of 24 hours, lifting the countrys death toll to 10,003 from 9,053.

Meanwhile, the number of infections on Thursday rose to 110,238, up from 102,136 a day earlier.

With the worlds second-highest number of fatalities after Italy, and third-highest tally of cases after the United States and Italy, Spain is struggling to contain the infection amid a strict lockdown that was recently extended until at least April 11.

Here are five key developments:

Despite tragic milestone, a glimpse of hope

Thursdays increase in infections represented a 7.9 percent increase.

The daily increase in infections in percentage terms has been slowing gradually since March 25, when reported cases rose by just more than 20 percent.

Although the mounting death toll brought more grief to the Spanish people, Health Minister Salvador Illa insisted there was a reason for optimism.

The data shows that the curve has stabilised  we have reached the highest point and things are slowing down, he told parliament. Theres light at the end of the tunnel. A glimpse of hope: the curve has stabilised.

The peak of the curve and we have started the slowdown phase.

Spain  practically paralysed as about one million people lose jobs

Spain, a country of about 47 million people, has shed an unprecedented 900,000 jobs since it went into lockdown in mid-March, with temporary layoffs affecting at least a further 620,000.

Social security data also showed that about 80,000 workers are off sick with coronavirus, while another 170,000 are on sick leave because they are isolated after coming into contact with someone with the virus.

Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz told reporters: This is an absolutely unprecedented situation.

Workers from the multinational ArcelorMittal pose with a thermal camera and a digital thermometer, which they use to take the temperature of personnel entering a factory, to help combat the spread of COVID-19 in Gijon, Spain [Eloy Alonso/Reuters]

Spain has suffered from chronically high joblessness in its recent past, not least in the aftermath of the 2008-09 financial crisis when the unemployment rate rose to just below 27 percent.

The country is practically paralysed as a result of the health emergency, Unai Sordo, the leader of Spains biggest labour union CCOO, told broadcaster TVE.

March is usually a good month for employment in Spain because it marks the start of the holiday season, with many temporary workers finding jobs, in particular in the hospitality sector.

The destruction of jobs is extraordinarily heavy for women, young people and the most precarious work sectors, Pepe Alvarez, leader of the UGT union, Spains second-biggest union told RNE radio.

Medical staff use bin bags as aprons

Spains doctors and nurses have released clips of each other cutting up plastic garbage bags to use as protective clothing.

More than 15,000 of them are sick or self-isolating and unable to help patients  approximately 15 percent of the countrys confirmed cases.

In Spain we send our soldiers into combat with garbage bags pic.twitter.com/nlZMDohjDu  Angel  (@angeel_alg) April 1, 2020

One union has said the concentration is higher in the capital Madrid  21 percent  the epicentre of the outbreak that has killed more than 9,000 and infected more than 100,000.

Medical workers in Italy, for example, make up just below 10 percent of reported COVID-19 cases, a smaller share than in Spain  although scientists say the data are not directly comparable because medical staff may not be tested at the same rate.

Man, 93, recovers from COVID-19

On Wednesday, doctors and medical staff applauded the discharge of a 93-year-old Spanish man who had recovered from COVID-19.

The man, whose name was not released, had spent five days in isolation at a hospital in La Seu dUrgeil.

More than 95 percent of people who have died of coronavirus in Europe have been older than 60, the WHO said on Thursday.

Hospital staff cheers as 93-year-old man in Spain is discharged after COVID-19 recovery pic.twitter.com/mToAwIBbrp  TIME (@TIME) April 2, 2020

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and can lead to death.

In about-turn, Catalonia seeks Spanish military help

The separatist government of Spains Catalonia region abandoned its initial reluctance and asked the national military on Thursday for assistance in tackling the coronavirus pandemic.

Catalonia is a badly hit region with more than 2,000 deaths and about 2,000 people in intensive care.

Members of the Emergency Army Unit wearing protective suits prepare to disinfect at a nursing home in Madrid, Spain [Manu Fernandez/AP]

Last month, an official of the Catalonia government, whose independence quest has created political turmoil in recent years, said military help was totally unnecessary.

However, Alba Verges, a senior health official in the northeastern region, told Catalunya Radio that assistance from military health personnel would now be welcome.

We need hands. Hands also means that if [the military] has doctors and nurses that they make them available to us, she said.
As the new coronavirus has crossed Oregon and the country, stories of healthcare workers challenges likewise spread across communities and social media.

Some nurses in Oregon stash equipment in paper bags between patients. They sport swim goggles instead of face shields. They use masks far beyond their recommended use, sometimes for weeks at a time.

On Monday, Oregon Health and Science University revealed 12 of its workers had tested positive for the virus. Providence and Legacy, two of the biggest healthcare providers in the region, reported 18 stricken staff members between them. It was unclear what kind of equipment the infected workers were using, but the improper use of safety gear increases the risk of contracting the virus.

As medical workers run dangerously low on personal protective equipment, or PPE, a spirit of public volunteerism has emerged. Crafters, quilters and church groups have leapt into action, to a soundtrack of whirring sewing machines, in a desperate bid to stave off a catastrophe.

But the do-it-yourself PPE movement, while it gives idle hands a purpose and provides equipment for some people who might otherwise go without, has shortcomings. The products being made in Oregon homes are not medical grade, something crafters readily acknowledge, so their use is an absolute last resort in healthcare settings. Even the protection they provide to non-medical folks is limited, experts say.

Sarah Laslett, executive director of the Oregon Nurses Association, said the efforts of home-crafters are greatly appreciated, but they cannot supplant medical-grade masks, gowns and face shields.

I think it is tremendous the amount of community energy that is being put out, and I know there are a lot of people out there who want to help, but I urge us not to think of homemade masks as a solution in healthcare settings, she said. They do not substitute for PPE.

The Cadillac of masks

To understand the vital role of masks in the fight to stop the spread of the coronavirus, you first need to understand droplets, said Richard Corsi, dean of Portland State Universitys Maseeh College of Engineering and Computer Science.

When a sick person coughs, sneezes or even speaks, they expel droplets of mucus and saliva, some of which can contain virus particles. These droplets can be as small as 0.5 microns, invisible to the naked eye. The width of a human hair is usually between 75 and 100 microns.

Given their tiny size, these droplets can remain airborne for an unknown amount of time. Corsi said the 6-foot rule, trumpeted by government agencies as a safe social distance, is misleading. Instead, Corsi recommended staying 20 feet away back from other people.

But for those in jobs where they interact with the public  healthcare workers, grocery store employees and other essential service staff  keeping that kind of distance is usually impossible. Thats where masks come in.

At the top of the medical mask hierarchy is the N95, made from non-woven polypropylene fiber and so named because it removes 95% percent of particles down to 0.3 microns.

When they are fitted with a proper seal, the N95 is the gold standard for protection, Corsi said, calling them the Cadillac of medical masks.

Thats why its so important that these crucial pieces of protective equipment be reserved for frontline healthcare workers, Corsi said.

Homemade masks, by contrast, dont offer the protective seal of N95s and are often made from woven materials that offer particles a much more direct path from the open air into the wearers nose or mouth. A 2010 study found that homemade masks, depending on their fabric, blocked between 10 and 40 percent of particles of 1 micron.

Still, Corsi said, homemade masks are better than nothing, especially if people find themselves in a confined space like a MAX train or bus. Beyond the protection they offer to those wearing them, they also reduce the likelihood that people with the virus, who may not be showing symptoms, will spread it to others.

A few hospitals in the Pacific Northwest have distributed kits containing patterns and materials for sewers to craft PPE at home, but most were not accepting donations of homemade gear.

Oregon is not alone in its shortage of equipment. A survey of 213 U.S. mayors from 41 states found that 91% did not have adequate supplies of masks for first responders and medical personnel. More than 88% were lacking in other personal protective equipment.

The importance of medical-grade masks only underscores the urgency of the shortage, according to Corsi.

Its a great failure of our country that we cant provide the PPE that our healthcare workers need, he said. I hope the public realizes that if (workers) dont have what they need, its going to be worse for everyone.

A shortage of supplies, a spectrum of solutions

In mid-March, Chuck Gross, a retiree from West Linn, started hearing stories of nurses and doctors running low on protective gear. His family is full of medical professionals and he wanted to help.

Working with a seamstress, he developed nine gown prototypes made of Tyvek, a waterproof construction material, and brought them to the state veterans home in Lebanon, home to one of Oregons worst clusters of coronavirus. Staff there looked over the samples and gave him the go-ahead.

Gross went to Home Depot and negotiated a discount on materials. He reached out to friends, family members and neighbors and assembled a group of 10 amateur sewers. Late last week, he delivered 120 gowns to the veterans home.

Ive heard from people wearing garbage bags, Gross said. These Tyvek gowns are a hell of a lot better than that.

Gross is one of countless regular people, organizations and businesses who have stepped in to fill a gap in supplies created by a lack of preparedness by hospitals and exacerbated by governmental bureaucratic inefficiency.

A Facebook group in Portland includes more than 7,000 sewers. A small, independent garment factory in the city switched from producing clothes to masks earlier this month. Dozens of other groups have organized around needle and thread.

A reprieve for health cares workers, maybe

Brown has lamented the response of the federal government to her pleas for more protective equipment, but on Tuesday her administration announced the arrival of a shipment from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Oregon also solicited donations of PPE certified by the Food and Drug Administration, resulting in more than 400,000 N95s flowing into state stockpiles.

It remains unclear how big of a dent the shipment would make, though any influx of safety equipment was welcomed by state agencies.

But with the federal government reportedly mulling a recommendation that everyone start sporting a mask in public, interest in homemade safety gear is unlikely to wane.

For those who are able, though, Corsi said there was one course of action that provides even more protection than a whole box of N95s: staying home and washing your hands.

-- Kale Williams; kwilliams@oregonian.com; 503-294-4048; @sfkale

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Coronavirus: 155 test positive in Palestinian Territories Premier Shtayyeh, Israel must control our workers

(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, APRIL 2 - A reported 155 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the Palestinian Territories, including the Gaza Strip, after 21 new cases were reported, the health ministry of the Palestinian National Authorities (PNA) said Thursday. The ministry said it was the highest number of new infections registered so far. Ministry spokesman Kamal Shakhra stressed that most of the people who tested positive were Palestinians who had returned home from Israel and the majority were in villages in the area of Jerusalem.



Shakhra urged workers - an estimated 60,000 - who are coming back from Israel as Pesach is approaching to self-quarantine at home for two weeks.



Premier Mohammad Shtayyeh urged the World Health Organization (WHO) to put pressure on Israel - which has reported many more cases - to ''check all workers before sending them home so they don't nullify efforts made by the government to contain the disease as it has so far done successfully''.(ANSAmed).




YouTube is preparing to go head-to-head with viral sensation TikTok by launching its own short-form video platform, a report claims.

According to The Information, the feature will be called 'Shorts' and exist inside the current YouTube app.

It will allow creators to take advantage of YouTube's vast catalogue of licensed music and create videos similar to those seen on TikTok, it is believed.

Details of the potential feature are scarce - for example, it is not known what the time limit on videos will be, or when YouTube will roll out 'Shorts' to the masses.

Scroll down for video

It will allow creators to take advantage of YouTube's vast catalogue of licensed music and create videos similar to those seen on TikTok, it is believed. Details of the potential feature are scarce, such as a time limit on videos

The feature was purportedly confirmed by YouTube CEO, Susan Wojcicki on a podcast due to be released later this month with Dylan Byers, a Senior Media Reporter at MSNBC.

He tweeted: 'This is potentially big. And, bonus: YouTube chief Susan Wojcicki and I talked about TikTok in a podcast episode that will air later this month.

'Weve got an item coming soon confirming this news, along with a few of her comments on YouTube & short-form video.'

MailOnline has approached YouTube for comment.

TiKTok is a Chinese app developed by Beijing-based ByteDance and is predicted to have more than ten million users in the UK alone by the end of next year.

TikTok is wildly popular with children and young adults due to the bitesize, easily-digestible content the app specialises in.

TikTok is wildly popular with children and young adults due to the bitesize, easily digestible content the app specialises in. Its features have been widely imitated by rivals to reproduce its success YouTube is now reportedly developing a similar feature called 'Shorts'

According to SensorTower, a mobile analytics site, TikTok was the most downloaded social media app worldwide with 104.7 million installs in January. This represents a 46 per cent increase from January 2019 and puts it ahead of Instagram, Facebook and Twitter

TIKTOK: A CHINESE-OWNED SOCIAL MEDIA APP SPECIALISING IN SHORT VIDEO CLIPS TikTok is a Chinese social media app where users can live stream, create short videos and music videos and Gifs with a host of functions. TikTok's tagline is 'Make every second count'. It was the most downloaded app in the US in 2018 and the world's fourth most downloaded app in 2018, ahead of Instagram and Snapchat. TikTok is known in China as Douyin where it was launched in 2016 and then made more widely available around the world in 2017. Douyin is still the version of the app used in China, available to download separately to TikTok. It offers users a raft of colourful modification and editing tools including overlaying music, sound, animated stickers, filters and augmented reality (AR) for creating short videos. The Beijing based social network has more than 500 million active users and the company is now worth more than $75 billion (58 billion). In 2020 Donald Trump called for the US arm of TikTok to be sold to an American company over fears the China-owned app posed a national security risk. Talks are under way between ByteDance, Oracle and Walmart over US operations after Trump threatened a download ban in the US. Advertisement

In January, it topped the list of most downloaded apps in both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, despite still being banned in China.

According to SensorTower, a mobile analytics site, TikTok was the most downloaded social media app worldwide in January 2020, with 104.7 million installs.

This represents a 46 per cent increase from January 2019 and puts it ahead of Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Industry analyst firm eMarketer has revealed TikTok will likely reach ten million users in the UK by next year.

It predicts that this year the UK user base of TikTok will grow 67.0 per cent to 8.12 million people and continue to grow and surpass ten million by 2021.

This unabated success and continued rise to popup culture phenom has seen its format and features imitated and replicated by rival companies.

Instagram, which initially was pursuing a long-form video content with its IGTV, pillaged ts rival's creative elements and made its own version.

It released a feature called reels which saw most of TikTok's features cloned.

Instagram's parent company, Facebook, also released a TikTok clone titled Lasso.

YouTube has long been at the top of the mountain for video content, and despite TikTok's success and several upstart contenders, has batted away competitors for more than a decade.

It is still the go-to place for most people for video content, with more than two billion global monthly users.

It has adapted its format to keep up with changing demands and the firm, owned by search giant Google, incorporated Snapchat-like stories and a new social feed.
A little less than a year ago, in April 2019, Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks with the Chairman of the DPRK State Affairs Commission, Kim Jong Un, who arrived in Vladivostok at the invitation of the Russian President. This was the first meeting between Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un and his first foreign visit after being re-elected as the head of the State Affairs Commission.

This first Putin-Kim Summit was seized upon by both sides as an opportune moment to assert their influence and connections during tense nuclear talks, The Diplomat writes in the article Did Kims Vladivostok Visit Reshape Russia-North Korea Relations? Despite this show of strength, however, did this landmark meeting lead to any real developments in the year since? This seems all the more relevant as de-escalation on the peninsula stalls, as the Kremlin could potentially act as a renewed lifeline to Pyongyang during the current diplomatic impasse.

Of course, the potential for bilateral rapprochement appears more likely given both states compatibility on paper. Faced with the long-term effects of its own U.S.-led sanctions, Moscow appears an enticing prospect for a Kim regime eager for political and economic support. At the same time, North Koreas continued posturing opens opportunities for a resurgent Russia to flex its muscles in yet another geopolitical flashpoint. These prospective benefits would build on strong historical ties, with both leaders last year expressing desires to strengthen a fraternity forged during the Cold War.

While such rhetoric may grab international headlines, reality has often proved unkind to these official ambitions. A quiet solidarity, therefore, continues to dominate Russias relations with the North, as everyday relations have remained mired in obscurity. These difficulties are exemplified by the Putin administrations limited enthusiasm for post-summit market cooperation, which appears more focused on indulging Kims equestrian pursuits than encouraging any real development. In the absence of any concrete plan, the continued dominance of symbolic pleasantries saw Russias official exports to Pyongyang only rise by a modest $10 million in 2019.

Russian Ambassador Alexander Matsegora noted in December the continued unwillingness of businesses to run the risk of sanctions by openly working with North Korea. As such, what little trade persists between the two states remains motivated by sheer realpolitik, with Russias continued oil exports playing a small role in maintaining a generally friendly regime. February shipments of 1,500 coronavirus diagnosis kits to the North, as well as alleged plans to allow guest workers to return soon in spite of COVID-19, further display this bare-bones approach. This exposes the inescapable presence of geopolitics in Kremlin thinking regarding the peninsula at large.

Diplomacy, as a result, will remain the key area of bilateral development for the foreseeable future. Such a strategy was summed up by last Aprils meeting, which appeared to place great emphasis on the symbolism of the states traditional friendship and understandings.

A visit by the Norths Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui to Moscow in November also embodied desires to maintain a line of communication regarding topics of mutual concern. This quiet consensus, however, has also recently produced tangible results, like a joint Sino-Russian proposal for mild sanctions relief at the United Nations in December. Such united demands were once again made in March, citing coronavirus concerns.

The China factor, then, remains an essential reference point for Moscow, as it attempts to provide limited protections for Pyongyang against a mutually menacing Trump administration. Due to this, Russias continued relations with North Korea look set to walk a fine line between de jure adherence to international agreements on the one hand and a realist need to provide a level of diplomatic cover to the isolated regime on the other.

This approach, of course, suggests that little material change has occurred between Pyongyang and Moscow over the past year, with Vladivostok merely reaffirming long-held governmental accords. Nevertheless, as uncertainty reigns over the future of denuclearization on the Korean peninsula, the Kremlins eyes are now trained on the region more than ever. In ordinary times, immediate attention would have soon turned to whether or not Kim attends Russias celebrations of the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, a subject of much speculation in the lead-up to the 70th anniversary in 2015. But given coronavirus crippling effect on the movement of state officials around the globe, a check-up on relations may have to wait.
Taiwan will donate ten million face masks to countries struggling with the coronavirus pandemic, a move that will likely rile China, which claims Taiwan as a territory and has donated far fewer masks to other countries despite its role in covering up the risk posed by a deadly virus that originated within its borders.

At the previous stage, we formed a national team, now we need to play an international match and fight the pandemic together with other countries, said Taiwans president, Tsai Ing-wen. At this stage, we will donate 10 million masks.

According to Taiwans foreign ministry, 7 million of the masks will be sent to European Union countries, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland. Taipei also plans to send masks to the U.S.

Taiwan has done a remarkable job containing the spread of the virus, with only 322 confirmed cases of coronavirus and five deaths resulting from infection as of Tuesday.

China criticized an agreement between Taiwan and American Institute in Taipei on coronavirus cooperation, calling it a political plot to pursue independence with the help of the epidemic.

China shipped only two million masks to be distributed across Europe, while Jack Ma, Chinas richest man, donated another two million.

Today, were grateful for Chinas support, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said of the mask shipments.

China also supplied rapid test coronavirus test kits to Spain and the Czech Republic, but the majority of the tests turned out to be faulty. Up to 80 percent of the 150,000 portable test kits China delivered to the Czech Republic earlier this month did not produce correct results. Spain, which has the second-highest number of coronavirus fatalities in the world after Italy, found that the rapid coronavirus test kits it purchased from Chinese company Bioeasy only correctly identified 30 percent of virus cases.

In December, local and national officials issued a gag order to labs in Wuhan after scientists there identified a new viral pneumonia, ordering them to halt tests, destroy samples, and conceal the news. A recent collaborative study by scientists based in both China and the U.S. found that 95 percent of infections could have been prevented had China implemented measures to stem the spread just three weeks earlier.

Story continues

The U.S. intelligence community concluded in a classified report Wednesday that China deliberately provided incomplete public numbers for coronavirus cases and deaths resulting from the infection.

More from National Review
Karachi, April 2 : The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Thursday commuted the death sentences of the key accused in the case of slain American journalist Daniel Pearl, who was abducted and beheaded in Pakistan in 2002.

The death sentence of the prime accused Ahmed Omer Saeed Sheikh was commuted to seven years in prison while the other three convicts, Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil, who were earlier handed life sentences, were set free by the court, Dawn news said in a report.

Since Sheikh has been in prison for the past 18 years, his seven-year sentence will be counted from the time served and was expected to be released, the report further said.

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) had sentenced to death prime accused Ahmed Omer Saeed Sheikh, commonly known as Shaikh Omar, and life term to co-accused Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil for the abduction of the slain journalist.

Shaikh Omar and other convicts had moved the SHC in 2002 challenging their convictions handed down by the Hyderabad ATC after finding them guilty of abducting and killing Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal who was researching a story on religious extremists, in January 2002 in Karachi.

While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants had submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon, Dawn news reported.

They had further contended that Naseem and Adil Sheikh's confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary.
The Connecticut National Guard is performing potentially life-saving service to residents as the peak of the coronavirus pandemic approaches.

Members helped erect field hospital tents at Danbury Hospital and St. Francis Hospital in Hartford; this week they are converting space at state universities into medical care for the sick. At least two members have tested positive for the virus, so far.

With this remarkable and vital work going on, the Trump administration wants to divert millions from the National Guard budget to build more wall along the Southern border with Mexico.

We have always thought that the mission to build a physical wall was a bad idea, for moral, economic and practical reasons. But now with the desperate fight against the novel coronavirus in our state and around the country, the timing is particularly odious.

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong is right to stand up for state residents and challenge the diversion of National Guard funds. On Tuesday, Tong joined attorney generals from seven other states to file action to permanently block the federal government from siphoning a total of $3.8 billion from defense budgets for the wall.

National Guard units would otherwise lose $790 million to purchase equipment needed to respond to emergencies and natural disasters, such as hurricanes.

The Connecticut National Guard needs every cent of its budget right now to respond to the COVID-19 crisis, and our states economy cannot afford to lose any more revenue. The President has no legal right to grab lawfully appropriated taxpayer dollars, Tong said. The law was clear before todays crisis, but it is imperative now that we move immediately to protect public health, our state economy, and national security.

The motion follows a March 3 lawsuit by a coalition of 19 states challenging the money shuffle.

For Connecticut, the effect of redirecting defense funds goes beyond the National Guard. Four fighter plane engines made by Pratt & Whitney, for a total of $80 million, would be unfunded. This would translate to a $195 million reduction in business sales and ripple effects including a $5.5 million loss of state and local tax revenues, Tong said. We can ill afford this.

After Gov. Ned Lamont activated the Connecticut National Guard as part of the COVID-19 emergency response, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security promised full reimbursement for the costs. But with one arm of government giving while another is taking away, a court injunction against the taking becomes necessary.

Residents of Connecticut are grateful for the rapid response of the states National Guard. This week units are erecting a third field hospital, at Middlesex Hospital in Middletown, as well as climate-controlled tents at hospitals for veterans in West Haven and Newington, and will convert spaces to accommodate 300 hospital beds each at Webster Arena in Bridgeport, Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven and Western Connecticut State University in Danbury.

Their work is invaluable in this uncertain time and much more important than an ineffective wall.
"There is the right to information law and there is accountability; being open. This is a high public interest case and so there was nothing wrong for Martin Amidu to disclose those details, Maurice Ampaw said while defending the Special Prosecutor.



The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has invited four individuals to assist in investigations into an alleged act of bribery and related offence in the purchase of three aircrafts from Airbus SE for Ghana.



Those invited include: UK/Ghanaian citizen Samuel Adam Foster alias Samuel Adam Mahama and UK nationals; Philip Sean Middlemiss; Sarah Davis and Sarah Furneaux.



Some communicators of the opposition NDC are against Martin Amidus decision to put out private details of those involved in newspapers.



However, Lawyer Maurice Ampaw says in an era of accountability and right to information, Martin Amidu did nothing wrong.



"What is confidential about a crime? We must begin to name and shame," he said.



The lawyer who was speaking in an interview on Neat FM, further asked the NDC to shut up if you have nothing good to say.



If I were the NDC I will keep quiet . . . they are just playing a political game with the issue. Mahama, whether they like it or not, will be invited. They should stop the propaganda. Lets allow Martin Amidu to do his work. It seems the airbus scandal has turned to coronavirus and its scaring the NDC, he added.









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Featured Video
A vulnerable Australian doctor trapped on a cruise ship off the coast of Uruguay faces almost certain death, his family fears.

Dr John Clifford, 71, has been stranded on the Greg Mortimer off the coast of Montevideo in Uruguay since March 23 when a passenger came down with a fever.

Daily Mail Australia has been told at least nine people onboard the ship are believed to have become ill from COVID-19, with one finally removed after becoming critically ill.

Dr John Clifford watches the Falklands go by while trapped upon the Greg Mortimer, which has been infected with the dreaded coronavirus

There are 90 passengers trapped on the Greg Mortimer cruise ship, which had departed Australia for the Antarctic on March 13

A drawing of the Greg Mortimer by Dr John Clifford's worried granddaughter

Dr Clifford's wife, Margaret Zacharin, said matters had gone from bad to worse on Thursday with the ship's doctor overcome with illness.

'One of the two doctors employed onboard for that purpose is too ill to do his duties and the other doctor has requested help from the passengers,' she said.

Mr Clifford, who is an orthopedic surgeon that suffers from asthma, has been asked to carry out COVID-19 tests on his fellow passengers.

There are 90 passengers trapped on the cruise ship, which had departed Australia for the Antarctic on March 13.

Prof Zacharin said she cannot understand why her husband has been asked to carry out the tests when the cruise operator, Aurora Expeditions, claims to have two expedition doctors on the vessel.

'If that's the case, I'm unsure why the doctor working is requesting passengers to help,' she said.

Prof Zacharin said many of the passengers onboard the trapped vessel were Australian doctors.

'He's 71 years of age, he's an orthopedic surgeon - he deals with bones, not respiratory illness and he has asthma himself. The mortality rate for 70-80 years olds is up to 20 per cent,' she said.

'What do you think is going to happen if he starts dealing with sick patients? But it is very foolish to be looking at that rather than looking at urgent evacuation of that ship.'

The Greg Mortimer has been trapped off the coast of Montevideo in Uruguay (pictured) since March 23 when a passenger came down with a fever

There are more than 450 infections linked to cruise ships, including 340 cases from the Ruby Princess (pictured off Sydney on Thursday) and 74 from the Ovation of the Seas.

Prof Zacharin said she believed the Uruguayan government had provided a berth for the ship but would not let it dock until the ship's doctor provided a report.

'Well he's too sick to write it,' she said.

On Wednesday, passengers of the Greg Mortimer were forced to watch from the isolation of their cabins as a charter flight they were blocked from joining lifted into the sky to repatriate 134 of their fellow Australians.

It remains unclear how long they will have to wait before they too are rescued.

'There isn't another charter flight being organised at this moment,' Prof Zacharin said.

The family has been in contact with everyone the opposition to the Deputy Prime Minister to try and secure safe passage for the passengers off the doomed ship.

'It needs to be everywhere,' Prof Zacharin said. 'It is personally unsafe and I'll certainly go to bat for my family, but it's also very foolish to be putting what is almost certainly a whole ship with COVID-positive - just like every other cruise or small ship - (together).

'You stick people in a Petri dish and they'll all get the infection. If they went home now, most of them would have little or no illness.'

Prof Zacharin's daughter Vanessa Clifford, who is an infectious disease doctor herself, said her father had remained composed despite the looming threat.

Her father is able to communicate with loved ones about once a day via WhatsApp.

Canadian passengers Chris and Anna Joiner ask for help onboard the Zaandam on March 27

'They're dying, so we have to do something,' the US president said. The Zandaam (pictured) and sister ship Rotterdam are fast approaching Florida and hoping to dock at Port Everglades later this week

'He's reasonably calm and he's in a room with another anesthetist from Western Australia and they both seem to be managing okay, but obviously they're stressed by the idea of having to do medical work when they're in a high-risk age group,' she said.

Hundreds of Australians remain stranded on cruise ships across the globe, which are being monitored by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

When the Morrison government announced a 30-day ban on the arrival of ships on March 15, at least 37 were in Australian waters and 90,000 passengers remained at sea worldwide.

Among the worst at risk is Holland America Lines MS Zandaam, which has seen dozens of passengers get sick and reports of deaths.

On Thursday, police have escorted doctors to the Ruby Princess cruise ship after a seventh passenger died from coronavirus.

An 85-year-old patient from Darling Downs, in regional southern Queensland, became the seventh Ruby Princess cruise passenger to die from COVID-19.

There are more than 450 infections linked to cruise ships, including 340 cases from the Ruby Princess and 74 from the Ovation of the Seas.

Aurora Expeditions said in a letter to family and friends: 'There is no doubt this is the most challenging situation any of us have every experienced and our thoughts are with you ... All relevant government authorities are 100 per cent engaged.'
By Mike Whitney

April 01, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - Donald Trump called Russian president Vladimir Putin on Monday to discuss plunging oil prices that are wreaking havoc on Americas shale oil industry. The two leaders talked briefly about the coronavirus pandemic but quickly switched to Trumps real concern which is oil production.

For the last month, Saudi Arabia has been flooding the market with crude oil to force Russia to agree to deep production cuts. To his credit, Putin has stubbornly resisted Saudi coercion and maintained current output levels. As a result, prices have plummeted to an 18-year low of $20.09 per barrel which is well below the break-even rate that American frackers need to survive. In less than a month, the capital-intensive US shale oil industry has gone into a steep nosedive that has set off alarms on Wall Street where analysts expect that a wave of defaults will deliver a knockout blow to the big investment banks. Thats why Trump decided to call Putin. He wants to see if he can persuade the Russian president into slashing production.

Its worth noting, that Putin remained stoically silent when the Trump administration imposed economic sanctions on Russia for its alleged activities in Ukraine. Nor did the Russian president complain about Washingtons meddling in Syria or its attempts to block Russias pipelines to Germany and Bulgaria. (Nordstream and Southstream) But now that the shoe is on the other foot and US business interests are being hurt, Trump thinks nothing of calling Moscow for help. As one critic said, It looks like the Trump team can dish it out, but it cant take it.

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The phone call has gotten almost no coverage in the American media, which is to be expected since theres no way to spin an incident in which an American president is clearly pleading to evil Putin for a favor. The Russian state media, Tass, summarized the phone call in a terse 3-sentence statement that excluded any useful background. Heres an excerpt:

The leaders discussed also the current status of the worlds oil market. An arrangement was made on Russian-US consultations in this regard through energy department heads, the Kremlin said. Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump agreed to continue personal contacts. (Tass)

Notice how the report in Tass forgoes the baseless allegations and recriminations that typically appear in the western media. Given the deluge of Russian meddling disinformation that has dominated the headlines for the last 3 years, youd think the editors at Tass might be more critical of Trumps gesture, after all, Trumps phone call strongly suggests that Washington is ready to cave in to its mortal enemy provided it gets the production cuts it wants. It seems like Tass might want to offer an opinion about that, especially since the MSM has taken such a hostile approach to all-things-Russian. Apparently, not everyone uses their media to push their own narrow political agenda.

Some readers might recall how Trump scolded Putin in Helsinki in 2018 for pushing oil prices higher ($85 per barrel) which Trump claimed was hurting growth in the US. Not surprisingly, Trump had his facts wrong. The reason prices rose in 2018 was because the Trump administration clapped harsh economic sanctions on both Iran and Venezuela which caused an immediate decline in production followed by a sharp rise in prices. The US also supported the attack on Libya also contributed to the spike in prices. Bottom line: Russia was no more responsible for the high prices in 2018 than it is for the low prices today. In 2018 the problem was US sanctions that choked off supply, while in 2020 the problem is the Saudis. Its the Saudis that increased production not Russia. That doesnt mean that Putin cant help to ease the situation, but it does mean that the two leaders will have to air their differences candidly and find a constructive way to move forward. That means there needs to be a summit which, to this point, has been strenuously opposed by the U.S. foreign policy establishment.

In any event, its extremely unlikely that Putin will agree to reduce oil production in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. Thats not what he wants at all. What Putin wants from Washington is far more comprehensive. He wants the US to rejoin the community of nations so they can deal collaboratively on critical issues like war, pandemic, nuclear proliferation and global security. He wants a reliable partner that will play by the rules, comply with international law, stop the bloody regime change wars, respect the sovereignty of other nations, and lend a hand with global crises.

Thats what he wants. He wants an ally that will respect the interests of others, cooperate on issues of mutual importance, and work to create a more equitable and prosperous global economy.

If Trump shows he is willing to change, then Putin will undoubtedly make every effort to help out. But if Trump continues with Americas go-it-alone approach, theres not going to be a deal

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Controversial plans for a security gate to stop homeless people sleeping in the doorway of the Disney Store on Dublin's Grafton Street, have been approved.

The company that operates the shop had argued rough sleepers and drug use in the recessed entranceway had exposed staff to threatening behaviour and confrontation.
She's been getting out most days for a walk and some fresh air during the coronavirus 'safer at home' order in California.

And on Wednesday, Malin Akerman, 41, was joined by her husband Jack Donnelly, 33, and her son Sebastian Zincone, six, from her first marriage.

The trio were spotted laughing together as they took a break to sit on the ground and watch something on Jack's phone on their trip to LA's Griffith Park.

Getting some fresh air: Malin Akerman enjoyed a fun trip to LA's Griffith Park on Wednesday with husband Jack Donnelly and her son Sebastian Zincone, six, from her first marriage

The Billions actress was dressed casually in a white hoodie and black leggings and left her blonde hair loose.

Jack kept it low-key, too, choosing to pair a black t-shirt with gray sweatpants.

The couple married in Mexico in December 2018.

Malin was previously wed to Italian musician Roberto Zincone from 2007 to 2013.

Relaxed: Malin, 41, was dressed casually in a white hoodie and black leggings and left her blonde hair loose. Jack, 33, kept it low-key, too, pairing a black t-shirt with gray sweatpants

Stocking up: Also Wednesday, the Swedish-born, Canada-raised actress made a solo run to the grocery store to pick up supplies for her family

Grocery supplies: She wore the same ensemble but kept the hoodie up over her hair as she left the store pushing a shopping cart loaded with purchases

Also Wednesday, the Swedish-born, Canada-raised star made a solo run to the grocery store to pick up supplies for her family.

She wore the same ensemble but kept the hoodie up over her hair as she left the store.

In addition to food and drink, she picked up some beautiful fresh flowers.

Malin has wrapped filming on her first project in which she co-stars with her British actor husband.

The two are part of the cast of the dramatic comedy Friendsgiving set for release in October. It also stars Jane Seymour, Christine Taylor, Kat Dennings and Aisha Tyler.

Bouquets: In addition to food and drink, Malin picked up some beautiful fresh flowers

Coming to big screen: Malin has wrapped filming on her first project in which she co-stars with her British actor husband the dramedy Friendsgiving set to open in theaters in October
The new age for the fossil changes what we thought was happening on the African continent, not only when H. heidelbergensis was living and dispersing across the landmass but also when our own species, Homo sapiens, was evolving prior to making its forays into the rest of the world.

The study has been published in the journal Nature.

A ground-breaking discovery

The skull was discovered in a lead and zinc mine at Broken Hill, in what was then known as Northern Rhodesia but is now Kabwe in Zambia.

It was unearthed by an unnamed African miner and his Swiss colleague called Tom Zwigelaar . Elsewhere in the site, various other fossils were found, including fragments of femur and the partial jaw of another individual. These are not the only fossils to have come out of the Broken Hill mine, as records show that it was rich in the remains of animal bones.

The human fossils were noted for their importance as the first significant hominin fossils found in Africa. They were donated by the Rhodesia Broken Hill Mine Company who owned the mine to what was then the British Museum but is now the Natural History Museum, London in 1921.

When the fossils arrived in London they were examined by the palaeontologist Arthur Smith Woodward, who declared that they belonged to a new species of human, which he named Homo rhodesiensis.

More recently, many researchers have instead suggested that these fossils represents variation within another ancient human species known as Homo heidelbergensis.
- Senator Koko Pimentels wife, Kathryna Yu-Pimentel, posted an adorable picture of their newborn baby girl

- According to Mrs. Pimentel, the baby was born on March 29 and her full name is Ma. Kathryn Helena Yu-Pimentel

- In another viral post, the senators wife expressed her gratitude for being given the chance to have a second life

- She said that she and her child survived a miracle emergency C-section delivery

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Senator Koko Pimentel has been heavily bashed for breaching COVID-19 quarantine protocols but his attention might be focused on an even more important matter  caring for his newborn baby.

KAMI learned that his wife, Kathryna Yu-Pimentel, posted an adorable picture of their newborn baby girl.

According to Mrs. Pimentel, the baby was born on March 29 and her full name is Ma. Kathryn Helena Yu-Pimentel. She also referred to baby Helena as a miracle baby.

In another viral post, the senators wife expressed her gratitude for being given the chance to have a second life, saying that she and her child survived a miracle emergency C-section delivery.

I am grateful for my 2nd life...me & Baby Helena survived a miracle emergency C-section delivery last March 29, 2020 (8pm). Thank you to all of those who helped us, sacrificed & risked themselves just to save my life and baby Helena... I will be forever grateful to all of you... to the hospital and doctors who really took care of us with open arms.... maraming salamat po. Iam very humbled that all of u monitored me and our baby 24/7. We felt the genuine love, commitment & concern that no amount of money can buy... upto now I still cant believe that me & my miracle baby are alive....

Unexpected people really helped us during our time of life & death crisis.... you are all our angels sent from above...in time, po when all this crisis is finished we will pay it forward to all of you... thank u to all our true friends, family & loved ones who prayed for us during this crisis.... hindi nyo po kami binitawan sa dasal maraming maraming salamat po, Mrs. Pimentel posted on Facebook.

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KAMI reported earlier that Angel Locsin slammed Senator Pimentel on social media.

Aquilino Koko Pimentel III is one of the incumbent Senators in the Philippines. He is currently in hot waters because of his decision to go to the Makati Medical Center despite testing positive for COVID-19.

Please like and share our amazing Facebook posts to support the KAMI team! Dont hesitate to comment and share your opinions about our stories either. We love reading about your thoughts and views on different matters!

Welcome to the new episode of our Pinoy Confessions feature! Our team gave some pieces of advice to our followers who are going through difficult situations in life. Check out all of the exciting videos and celebrity interviews on our KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel!

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When the city of Albany signed up for albany.recovers.org through FEMA last year, it was with the thought that a massive Cascadia earthquake was a possibility in the future and other natural disasters could cut communication or render emergency services thin.

"We had it since last year, but we never had an emergency to push it out for," said Albany emergency manager Chuck Perino.

On March 13, there was an emergency.

The novel coronavirus had been spreading throughout the country after it had caused thousands of deaths overseas, but the first case didn't come close to Oregon until the end of January. By March 13, Gov. Kate Brown closed all public schools until April 28 to try to help stop the spread of the illness.

"This is a piece of software created after a devastating tornado hit in Missouri, and they offered it to anyone who wanted to use it," Perino said.

The program allows people to enter a need they have  groceries, for example  and then partners them with volunteers who have submitted tasks they're available to help with or supplies they have to spare.

It was used in California during the wildfires last year and in Douglas County during the snowstorms of 2019.

The link is on the city's homepage at cityofalbany.net, and so far 18 people have posted needs and 25 volunteers have signed up with a variety of experience, from reptile rescue to child care.

"A volunteer working at the city gets the request, and if it's an actual need, they match that need with donations or volunteers and they make the connection," Perino said.

The service, the city said, is free.

"It's in recognition of the fact that there are a lot of needs out there and no single entity, government or churches, can handle all of them," said City Manager Peter Troedsson. "So what this site intends to do is use technology to match people with needs to people or organizations that can help."
Tik Tok star Faisal Shaikh has landed in a new controversy as advocate Ali Kaashif Khan has claimed that he has been receiving threat calls and abuses ever since he filed a complaint against Faisal for making a video outdoors amid lockdown.

Ali has filed the written complaint at Amboli Police Station and the Cyber Crime Cell, as per reports. Talking about receiving threats for his acton against Faisal, Ali told Spotboye in an interview, Ever since I have submitted my complaint, Faisu has not called me directly. But he is trying to reach out to me through many sources. I am constantly getting calls from his people asking to take the complaint back. I got a call from Dubai also which I can share with you. My Instagram is loaded with abusive comments which is disturbing again and they have also been telling me that this is my personal vendetta which is not true at all or else why would I get their bail done? I have called this out as I was the one to file a PIL in Bombay High Court to ban TikTok last year in November. So, anything which is coming across about TikTok, I need to report as it will make my appeal stronger. I dont bother what people say, I will keep doing what is right.

Ali believes the threats are not just from random fans but from fake accounts operated by his close aides. He further said, I have been with them so I know how many fake fan accounts they hold. The abuses and threatening comments that I have been receiving since yesterday are not from fans but their own people.

Also read: Jackie Shroff is stuck somewhere between Pune-Mumbai, says Tiger Shroff, Ayesha are at home, I could have gone too but decided not to flout lockdown

Meanwhile, Faisal Shaikh has been sharing home-made videos on Tik Tok. He recently shared a video message for his fans and wrote, Lets all be responsible citizens of this country. Its time to help one another, appreciate and acknowledge all the help around and most importantly, its time to be socially distant- stay home, stay safe. In the video, he has asked his fans to offer food and water to daily wage workers who are walking several kilometres to reach their villages. He has also talked about mental health and asked people to stay in touch with their near and dear ones on phone.

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Delhi Fire Services personnel sprayed on Thursday thousands of liters of disinfectant in south Delhis Nizamuddin in a massive sanitisation drive after over 300 people who visited the area in March for a religious gathering tested positive for the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) in different parts of the country.

The six-storey building of Islamic missionary group Tablighi Jamaat in the congested Nizamuddin area has emerged as a hot spot of the infection, and authorities across states have launched efforts to trace the footprints of the attendees.

DFS director Atul Garg said the department sanitised the Markaz, as the building is known, in Nizamuddin, lanes surrounding the building and other adjoining residential areas.

We sprayed at least two fire tenders full of disinfectants. One fire tender contains 10,000 litres of water mixed with sodium hypochlorite (liquid bleach). We used two fire tenders, he said.

Garg said fire personnel sprayed the disinfectant on shops (which were closed), footpaths, walls, parked vehicles and buildings in the vicinity as well.

On Wednesday, in a meeting with the chief secretary and top bureaucrats in Delhi, lieutenant governor Anil Baijal directed that the fire department be used to disinfect Covid-19 clusters, quarantine centres and vulnerable public places in Delhi.

Health workers from the integrated diseases surveillance programme are also preparing to go door-to-door in the area as they seek to track and contain cases of Covid-19.

On Wednesday, the last of the 2,346 people who had been in the building were evacuated; 536 of them were sent to the hospital and 1,810 placed in quarantine. So far, the March congregation has been identified as being responsible over 358 infections and 11 deaths.

Everyone within a 3km radius (focal area) of the building and in the buffer area (5km radius) will be screened for symptoms. Those who are symptomatic -- a cough will do -- will be tested. This will entail door-to-door coverage, first in the focal area and then the buffer area.

The cluster containment strategy has two components: one is to mark the epicentre and the buffer zone where extensive door-to-door surveys will be conducted. We do a complete lockdown in and around the area. The next step is identifying all potential positive cases by going in for aggressive testing. We pick samples from everyone with any respiratory illness in the area, said a senior technical expert with the Union health ministry who asked not to be named said on Wednesday.

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T he Foreign Office today said it was finalising arrangements for evacuation flights to rescue British passengers on two virus-hit cruise ships set to dock in Florida.

Four people have died aboard the Zaandam, including 75-year-old Briton John Carter, whose widow has been isolated on the ship since his death.

They were among 200 Britons on the liner, which has nine confirmed cases of Covid-19 and has some 200 people with reported flu-like symptoms.

The Zaandam offloaded its healthy passengers at Rotterdam earlier this week, with both vessels having been denied entry to ports in several countries.

The Zaandam has been denied entry to ports at several countries / REUTERS

A Foreign Office spokesman said: We are working closely with the tour operator, Holland America Line, to finalise flight arrangements for British nationals to return to the UK. Details will be available in due course.

The liner, and sister ship the Rotterdam, are seeking to dock in Florida but local authorities have been reluctant to take more patients into a state healthcare system already stretched by the coronavirus outbreak.

However, President Trump last night said there was no choice but to allow the ships to dock and for those on board to disembark.

Speaking at the daily White House coronavirus briefing, Mr Trump said: We have to from a humane standpoint... People are dying.

It came after Mr Carters family issued a statement saying his widow urgently required assistance.
Ever since the first foldable phones were foisted upon us, I've been struggling to understand their purpose.

They're cool, sure  and technologically speaking, they're incredibly impressive. But from a practical, ten-fingered human perspective, what benefit do they actually provide? I've yet to hear a single unambiguous answer. And that's to say nothing of all the significant downsides and compromises they require.

At first, I assumed the foldable phone fad was similar to other questionable-benefit smartphone trends of the moment  counterproductive elements like "waterfall displays," cutouts in the active viewing areas of screens in exchange for smaller borders around said panels, and heck, even 5G  in that it was ultimately conceived as a way to make appliance-like devices seem new, exciting, and meaningfully different from their predecessors (and thus suddenly worth buying at a time when most of us are content to stick with our current phones for increasingly long periods).

But the more I've thought about it, the more I've come to the conclusion that something even deeper is going on in this domain. Plain and simple, I don't think device-makers actually want people to buy their current foldable phones, nor do they want tech writers to cover them closely in the way they'd cover a typical high-profile product arrival.

The foldable phones of the moment, I suspect, exist mostly to serve as marketing vehicles for the brands behind 'em. They aren't about the experiences they provide  which consistently fall short of being commendable, let alone exceptional; they're about the idea they represent that the company whose name is stamped on the exterior is an innovator, a leader, a hardware authority paving the way to an exciting new mobile-tech future.

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And that idea resonates only if you don't look too closely.

The evidence of this approach is everywhere, once you really start thinking about it. Remember the release of the Motorola Razr? That product was hyped as hard as any cellular apparatus in recent memory. The buildup to its arrival was nothing short of monumental  and then, at what should have been the attention-commanding climax, the phone just sort of...fizzled.

Take the launch event itself, to start: Instead of hosting a high-profile parade timed for maximum visibility, as most phone-makers do with an attention-worthy product, Motorola opted to hold its media moment at 11 p.m. Eastern Time on a Wednesday  without any live streaming, even. It offered attendees limited hands-on time in a noisy environment that, in hindsight, is tough not to suspect was designed at least in part to cover the creaking and croaking we'd hear about when the phone actually hit store shelves three months later.

Speaking of store shelves, if you for some reason wanted to buy the Razr when it technically became available, you were probably out of luck. Stores simply didn't have 'em, with many retailers reporting they'd never received any units to sell.

Motorola also stayed strangely silent about the numerous issues reviewers uncovered with the phone and went as far as to actively (and, from the sounds of it, somewhat underhandedly) prevent one website from working with iFixIt to investigate the cause of some problems with the device's display.

Then came the similarly hyped Samsung Galaxy Z Flip  Samsung's second attempt at a foldable phone and the device built up as being the first foldable worth anyone's while. Samsung was apparently so eager to have people use the Flip and see what it was really all about that, after weeks of breathless hype and promotion, it made the device available to reviewers for a mere 24-hour period before requiring the units to be returned.

As anyone who's ever tested gadgets for a living can tell you, that's extraordinarily atypical. And it's not nearly enough time to see what a device is actually like to use. (Hmmmm.) The buzz in the writer community also suggested Samsung's PR squad issued more than a few gentle nudges encouraging sites to focus on the Galaxy S20 flagship with their coverage and not on the far more sensational Flip.

And just like with the Razr, if you actually wanted to buy the Flip once it went up for sale, you were almost certainly out of luck.

Call me crazy, but when you consider all these factors together, it sure seems like the companies making the current crop of foldable phones don't want anyone to look at 'em for terribly long, let alone go out and buy 'em. They want us all to ooh and ahh over the concepts and the ideas of the technology without closely considering the reality of it. (Former BlackBerry phone producer TCL seems to have found an even more effective way to accomplish that: It's coming up with eye-catching, coverage-inducing foldable phone forms that don't even work and aren't actually for sale.)

Maybe one day, foldable phones will find a reason for existing and a mature enough type of technology to be worth owning. For now, though, the more you think about 'em, the more apparent it becomes that their actual present purpose has less to do with real-world usage and more to do with the message their very existence provides.

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India: Christians arrested for 'forcible conversion' while providing aid to the poor

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Christians in southern Indias Tamil Nadu state were arrested on false charges of forcible conversion while providing food and other aid to the poor amid escalating persecution in the majority Hindu country.

Morning Star News reports that pastor Perumal Kanagaraj and about 30 young adults from Viluppuram Church of South India were serving the poor in the nearby slum area of Anumandai village when a member of the Hindu Munnani extremist group showed up and began shouting obscenities at them.

The Hindu Munnani activist soon lost his cool and started beating the youth missionaries while he continued abusing them in extremely foul language, Kanagaraj said. Within no time the crowd started gathering, and he held us up there and was not letting us move.

When the Christians began to call police, the Hindu nationalist told them he had already filed a police complaint against them.

We told the person, Brother, you dont like it that we are coming here. It is fine. We will leave, but he threatened us, that if we left from the place we would be burnt alive," Kanagaraj told Morning Star News. He was getting more and more aggressive.

The police took the Christians into custody, where they physically abused and verbally berated the believers.

They spoke ill about Christianity and slapped us as we stood there in the police station helplessly, Kanagaraj added. We requested that the police not lodge any cases against the [Christian] youths, fearing police cases would affect their careers.

Hoping to incite violence, Marakkanam Inspector of Police Senthil Vinayagam spoke abusively to the Christians, telling them, Instead of doing this work, send your wives to someone and earn money.

The inspector was trying hard to incite the youths that they would respond equally aggressively to his words, but by Gods grace we did not fall into it, Kanagaraj continued. We remembered Jesus on the cross when the Hindu extremists and police were humiliating us using vulgar language, and we did not protest.

Police released them with a warning that they should not be seen again attempting to convert people in the area, he said.

According to Kanagaraj, his church has been providing aid to the poor for three years. The grain, clothing, and flashlights his congregation provides are essential to the poor, who will now have to go without this aid.

Persecution watchdog group Open Doors USA notes that since Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu nationalist BJP party rose to power in 2014, Indias Christian minority has faced growing pressures over alleged forced conversions.

Eight out of 29 states in India have adopted anti-conversion laws that seek to prevent any person from converting or attempting to convert, either directly or otherwise, another person through forcible or fraudulent means, or by allurement or inducement.

However, such laws are often used by Hindu extremists as an excuse to disrupt church services and harass Christians.

In recent years, numerous reports have emerged regarding police brutality toward religious minorities in India. Illegal arrests and false criminal charges are among the most common forms of police harassment endured by Christians, emboldening Hindu militant groups to make false accusations against Christians.

In March, Christians in Indias Uttar Pradesh state were falsely accused of forcefully converting Hindus to Christianity. As a result, they were brutally beaten by a drunken police officer who then ordered them to pose like Christ on the cross.

In February, nine Christians were beaten by the police after being accused of forceful conversion in the town of Sathankulam, Thoothukudi District, in Indias Tamil Nadu state.

India is ranked 10th on Open Doors 2020 World Watch List of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian. According to the CIA World Fact Book, about 80 percent of India's population is Hindu.
The central government has taken the decision to receive foreign donations to the fund, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fight the coronavirus outbreak in the country, government sources said on Wednesday.

The Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund will simply accept donations and contributions from individuals and organizations who are based in foreign countries. According to government sources, this is consistent with India's policy with respect to Prime Minister's Relief Fund (PMNRF). PMNRF has also received foreign contributions as a public trust since 2011.

This clarification by the sources comes in the wake, they say of lot of misinformation on that PM CARES Fund accepting foreign donations.

"For those comparing this with previous instances of natural calamities, here is what the Official spokesperson had said on Aug 22, 2018- In line with the existing policy, the Government is committed to meeting requirements for relief and rehabilitation through domestic efforts. Contributions to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund and the Chief Minister's Relief Fund from NRIs, PIOs and international entities such as foundations would, however, be welcome," the sources said.

"In view of the interest expressed to contribute to government's efforts, as well as keeping in mind the unprecedented nature of pandemic, contributions to the trust can be done by individuals and organisations, both in India and abroad," sources said.

"A public charitable trust PM CARES Fund was set up in view of several spontaneous requests from India and abroad for making generous contribution to support the govt in its fight against COVID-19," they added.

Last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had created PM CARES Fund and appealed to all the countrymen to show their support for the cause. The prime minister is the chairman of the trust and its members include the defence minister, the home minister and the finance minister.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Grand Canyon National Park, last major site to remain open during coronavirus pandemic, was reportedly closed to the visitors with immediate effect as of April 1. The Arizona landmark, otherwise visited by millions, was shuttered in accordance with the decision of the parks superintendent and the director of the National Park Service, as directed by the local officials and members of Congress.

The closure comes after reports of pressure and umpteen warnings issued by county officials and the Navajo Native American leaders to National Park Service (NPS), as per the reports. The assembly of crowd had continued in the park despite the enforcement of social distance measures due to COVID-19 (coronavirus) disease spread. Violators swarmed the natural wonder elevating the risk of community spread.

NPS said in a statement that the health and safety of park visitors, employees, residents, volunteers, and partners at Grand Canyon National Park is the Service's number one priority. And therefore, modifications to the operation in accordance with the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has been made. It said that NPS has assessed its park units and is committed to following the guidelines as per state and local public health guidance to address the pandemic.

Read: British-American Companies Join Race To Develop Tobacco-based Coronavirus Vaccine

Read: China's Successor As UNSC Chair Takes Immediate Remedial Steps; Plans Coronavirus Meeting

Over 80 cases in Coconino County

Arizona congressman Raul Grijalva was quoted as saying that hundreds of visitors crowded the Grand Canyon Park despite officials' instructions that restrict gathering of 10 or more people. US Interior Secretary David Bernhardt in a statement that as soon as the authorities received the letter from the Health and Human Services Director and Chief Health Officer for Coconino County issuing clear instructions for the closure of Grand Canyon National Park, they sealed it.

Thus far, a blanket closure of its 419 sites and monuments across the United States, including Yellowstone, Yosemite in California, and the Statue of Liberty, has been closed to the public, according to US media outlets. Decisions to shutter National Parks were taken by the respective superintendent after a case-by-case assessment. NPS received a letter this week from at least 10 members of Congress, including House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) who had expressed concerns over the park still functional exposing public and workforce to COVID-19. More than 80 tested positive to the virus in Coconino County, including one at Grand Canyon Park.

Read: France Reports 509 More Coronavirus Deaths, Highest Single-day Toll

Read: Coronavirus Crisis: Portugal Gives Full Citizenship Rights To Migrants
If there was no coronavirus, we could have considered the natural gas tariff because it turns out that the sides had met the conditions. There was no problem regarding the tariff until April, but there might be talks over the tariff now. This is what Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan told reporters at Yerablur Military Pantheon today, touching upon the fact that Gazprom Armenia has submitted a bid to the Public Services Regulatory Commission to raise the natural gas tariff and that this particularly concerns revocation of the privilege for socially disadvantaged people.

I believe the coronavirus pandemic should have made Gazprom Armenia review the periods for submitting the bid. I dont believe now is the best time to submit the bid. Im not well aware of the issue, but this is the way I see it. Im certain that government officials are constantly negotiating with Gazprom Armenia to find the optimal solution, he said.
The government is considering a proposal to put import of tyres under the restricted category to promote domestic manufacturing, according to sources.

Currently, there are no restrictions on tyre imports. Putting restrictions will mean the importer will have to seek a licence for inbound shipments.

In the third week of March, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade had sought the views of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) on the matter as domestic tyre manufacturers have long been demanding restrictions on imports, the sources said.

The industry has time and again raised concerns over rising imports of tyres from countries like China.

However, the sources added that given the disruption in the global supply chain due to the Covid-19 outbreak, it is very unlikely that the DPIIT would agree on the proposal.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
London, April 3 : Global airline major British Airways on Thursday said that it has reached an agreement with trade unions to place more than 30,000 cabin crew and ground-based employees in April and May on furlough.

In a statement, the airline said that the move comes under the ambit of 'UK Job Retention Scheme'.

"As a result of the significant decline in flying, British Airways is making use of the UK's COVID-19 Job Retention Scheme to help UK-based employees placed on furlough," the airline said in a statement.

"It has today reached agreement with trade unions, GMB and Unite, to apply this scheme to more than 30,000 cabin crew and ground-based employees in April and May." As per the statement, under this scheme, furloughed employees will receive 80 per cent of their base pay and of certain allowances.

"This agreement is subject to union ratification," "British Airways has also reached agreement with its 4,000 pilots to take four weeks of unpaid leave in April and May." The airline's parent company IAG's other airlines have received support from similar job retention and wage support schemes for more than 17,000 employees in Spain and are seeking similar support in Ireland.
FEMA Has 10,469 Ventilators for Distribution Through New Process, Hospital Association Says

The American Hospital Association (AHA) said April 1 that federal authorities have thousands of ventilators in reserve and will distribute them to needy states according to a new process.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has 10,469 ventilatorsdevices that help seriously ill patients breatheand plans to ship them to states in the amount needed to manage the immediate crisis, AHA said in a statement.

FEMA defines immediate as requirements necessary to sustain life within a 72-hour window, according to the statement.

To request ventilators from the national stockpile, states and tribal governments will have to demonstrate the urgency of their need for the devices. That includes sharing information about current equipment stockpiles and hospital beds.

In a briefing April 1, President Donald Trump said that about 10,000 ventilators from the national stockpile were in the process of being allocated.

We have, as you know, almost 10,000 ventilators, which we need for flexibility, Trump said at the White House briefing with the COVID-19 task force.

It sounds like a lot, but its not. Because, as you see on the board from yesterday, as this scourge, as this plague, as this virus movesit moves very fastand we dont know yet whether were going to need it in Louisiana, in New York, you know, wherever it may be, Trump said.

Were going to be shipping outweve already agreed to ship out over 1,000 today to different sites, different locations. But we have to have the flexibility of moving the ventilators to whereto where the virus is going. And well be able to see thatyou know, well be able to see that from charts a couple of days in advance, Trump said.

Federal officials have said that 400 of the machines had been earmarked for Michigan, 300 for New Jersey, along with 150 each for Louisiana and Illinois, and 50 for Connecticut, the Washington Times reported.

The report indicated that those 1,050 machines would be delivered by April 2.

Trump said there were a lot more ventilators coming in and that nearly a dozen companies were producing the devices.

Were soon going to have more ventilators than we need. Were building thousands of ventilators right now. Now, it takes a period of time to build them. And again, nobody could have known a thing like this could happen. Were building thousands. We will fairly soon be at a point where we have far more than we can use, even after we stockpile for some future catastrophe, which we hope doesnt happen. Trump said.

He said that in time, a reserve of the devices would be built up, and the United States would supply them to other countries.

Were going to be distributing themthe extrasaround the world. Well go to Italy, well go to France. It will go to Spain, which is, you know, very hard hit.

Four new states imposed sweeping stay-at-home directives on April 1 in response to the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic, putting more than 80 percent of Americans under lockdown, as the number of deaths in the United States nearly doubled in three days.

The governors of Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Nevada each instituted the strict policies on a day when the death toll from COVID-19 shot up by 925 to more than 4,800 nationwide, with 214,000 confirmed cases, according to a Reuters tally.

A total of 39 states and the District of Columbia are now requiring residents to stay home except for essential trips, such as to the doctor or grocery store.

White House medical experts have forecast that even if Americans hunker down in their homes to slow the spread of COVID-19, some 100,000 to 240,000 people could die from the respiratory disease caused by the CCP virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus.

Since 2010, the flu has killed between 12,000 and 61,000 Americans each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The 19181919 flu pandemic killed 675,000 in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Reuters contributed to this report.
General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, John Boadu, says the National Democratic Congress (NDC) deserves to be blocked from all public access and released after the 2020 general elections.



Describing the party as harmful and deadly as the Coronavirus pandemic, he said the NDC should not be granted the audience when they speak.



Do you people still listen to NDC when they speak? Their habit surpasses that of COVID19. We should have blocked them from accessing public facilities, locked them down and free them after the elections, he said in an interview with NeatFm.



The NPP General Secretary further stated the party had on several occasions given out mischievous advice and always opposed policies not originating from them.



Citing an example of the persistent pressure by the NDC to airlift Ghanaian students in China back home, John Boadu said the country would have been mourning by now if the government had heeded to their counsel.



When the outbreak began, countries like Iran, Italy and others went for their citizens from China and because of that, the NDC was calling on us to also evacuate Ghanaian students from Wuhan. If we had listened to the NDC, we would all have been dead by now, he said.



He said the fact that democracy exists does not mean that a political partys misbehavior should be condoned with.



That we are in a democratic country doesnt mean if a political party is misbehaving, we should just sit and watch them, he added.



Meanwhile, Ghanas current active cases of the novel coronavirus are 195 with five deaths.



About 58 infected persons are receiving treatment at home after 20 of them were recently discharged.













Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Curfew was clamped in Medo



area of Lohit district in Arunachal Pradesh on Thursday for 24-hours after a man tests positive for COVID-19, an official said.

The 24-hour curfew which has been clamped at Medo area since 12 PM on Thursday would be in force till Friday noon, Lohit Deputy Commissioner Prince Dhawan said.

The 31-year-old man, who tested coronavirus positive is from Medo area of the district and he is also the first person in Arunachal Pradesh to have COVID-19.

"The curfew has been clamped as a precautionary measure against spreading of coronavirus after the person tested positive," the DC added.

The man had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhis Nizamuddin on March 15.

"The district health authority had kept the infected man at a special isolation room at Zonal Hospital Tezu, the district headquarters town and all his family members were kept in quarantine room," Health Secretary P Prathiban said, adding that the swab samples of the family members would be collected and will be sent to Dibrugarh for test.

The 31-year-old man reached Medo in Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh on March 18 after attending the Markaz congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin on March 15.

He left Nizamuddin on March 16 and since March 24 he was under home quarantine and was not showing any signs and symptoms even after 16 days.

The district police are on job to trace all the persons who came in contact with the person, Lohit district SP Wangdi Thungon said.

State Surveillance Officer (Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme) Dr L Jampa informed that six more who, also attended the Markaz congregation, were located in Namsai district and have been found negative.

Meanwhile, another 12 people were traced by the capital complex police on Thursday morning.

So far, the state government has tracked down 19 people who had been to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi last month.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Fury over stolen children

Aboriginal Senator Aden Ridgeway demanded that the Prime Minister reprimand the Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Senator Herron, as a storm broke over his denial that there ever was a "stolen generation". The chairman of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, Mr Geoff Clark, said the Government's behaviour "smells like a campaign that is going to take them into the next election. It's a bit like the One Nation cry".

Keating like 'fallen dictator'

The Nobel Peace laureate and East Timorese activist, Jose Ramos Horta, compared Mr Paul Keating with an African dictator and said he was the subject of a "father and son" relationship with former Indonesian president Soeharto. "That former prime minister reminds me of a deceased African despot Jean Bedel Bokassa. When Charles De Gaulle died, the African ... dictator cried and screamed, called out and said `Papa, Papa'."

Goodbye CDs, hello Super CDs
Australians have expressed concerns for Prime Minister Scott Morrison after he appeared to sound 'breathless' and 'unwell' during his latest press conference.

On Thursday, the federal government announced childcare will become free from next week for all working parents during the coronavirus pandemic.

But many viewers quickly pointed out how Mr Morrison appeared 'fatigued', 'restless' and 'overworked' on television and noted he was interrupting his sentences to take 'gasps of air'.

Australians have expressed concerns for Prime Minister Scott Morrison after he appeared to sound 'breathless' and 'unwell' during his latest press conference (pictured left on February 1 and right on April 2)

'Sounds like he ran to the press conference from the pub,' one said.

Others said he sounded 'sick', 'breathless' and 'exhausted' and expressed concerns over his apparent 'lack of sleep', 'nose whistles' and 'lack of hair'.

'This man is not well. I don't like his leadership abilities but I do hope he isn't sick,' one said.

A second person said: 'He looks so tired and sick and has lost hair.'

A third said: 'His breathing sounds laboured. Stay well Mr Morrison.'

Another added: 'What's wrong with his breathing? He sounds asthmatic. Something is wrong with him, he needs sleep - it's taking its toll.'

A timeline of Scott Morrison's coronavirus announcements February 1: Foreign travellers who have left or passed through mainland China are banned from Australia February 20: Australia extended ban on foreign travellers from China again for another week February 27: The Prime Minister launched an emergency response plan to deal with coronavirus February 29: The government bans foreigners coming to Australia from Iran March 4: Travel ban is extended to South Korea March 11: The government extended the travel ban to Italy March 12: Scott Morrison unveiled $23billion stimulus package to prevent recession March 13: Government effectively bans 'non essential' public gatherings of more than 500 people March 15: All travellers arriving in Australia from overseas will have to self-isolate for two weeks March 18: Australians are advised against all international travel for the first time in history after the government upgraded the travel ban on Australians to Level 4 for the entire world - as social gatherings of more than 100 people are banned March 20: The Australian government shuts the border - as only citizens and residents can enter the country March 22: Pubs, clubs, gyms, dine in restaurants and cafes ordered to close but schools, food delivery services and restaurants offering takeaways are allowed to stay open March 24: Overseas travel, house auctions and inspections, birthday parties and barbecues are banned. Only five people will be allowed to attend weddings and funerals will be limited to having just 10 attendees. Hairdressers are allowed to stay open but customers can only visit for 30 minutes March 27: Every traveller returning from overseas will be forcibly quarantined in isolation hotels March 29: Gatherings of more than two people are banned across Australia March 30: The government announces plan to pay the wages of six million Australians for the next six months. Workers at companies hit by the coronavirus shut down will be paid a flat rate of $1,500 per fortnight April 2: Childcare will become free help families through the coronavirus crisis Advertisement

During Thursday press conference, Mr Morrison announced that childcare will become free

During Thursday afternoon's press conference, Mr Morrison announced that childcare will become free from next week.

The government will pay 13,000 childcare centres 50 per cent of their fee revenue. In return, the centres must stay open and not charge parents.

The scheme, which will last for at least three months, will cost $1.6 billion and will benefit around 1 million families.

Free childcare will be available to all parents regardless of their job but in the event that places fill up, Education Minister Dan Tehan said he wanted centres to prioritise access for essential workers such as doctors and nurses.

This morning it was revealed that Australia's biggest states will remain on lockdown until June.

New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said the level three restrictions will last at least 90 days.

He did not say what would happen after that time as health officials wait to see if the draconian measures succeed in bringing down coronavirus infection rates.

At a press conference this morning, Mr Fuller revealed police powers to fine people who break social distancing rules will last for three months.

He said: 'There was a good question yesterday about when is the turn-off period for these health orders. It is 90 days.'
The sister of actor Matthew Broderick, who until last spring was a church pastor in Morristown, says being related to a celebrity got her special attention during her near-fatal bout with coronavirus at a California hospital.

I think Im absolute living proof that this system is completely corrupt, the Rev. Janet Broderick, rector of All Saints Episcopal Church in Beverly Hills, told New York Magazine.

The Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles announced March 11 that Broderick, 64, had coronavirus and was being treated for a severe form of pneumonia" at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Beverly Hills, and had tested positive for coronavirus.

In the magazine interview, she was asked if she received preferential treatment being a religious leader and Matthew Brodericks sister."

Yes, but I feel evil for saying that," Broderick replied.

My GP (general practitioner) didnt know I was Matthew Brodericks sister and didnt care very much. As soon as I got ahold of the guy at the hospital who knew who Matthew was, I was given the name of the head of the emergency room," Broderick told the magazine.

Broderick moved to California in June after 10 years as the church pastor at St. Peters Episcopal Church in Morristown. Before that, she was the rector for eight years at Grace Church Van Vorst in Jersey City.

Trust me, the folks Ive spent my lifetime working with in Jersey City would never have been given the name of the head of the emergency room. If they were, it would have been disregarded. I think there is no question and it breaks my heart," Broderick told the magazine.

She is recovering at home under quarantine.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

The diocese previously said Broderick, 64, fell ill not long after attending a religious conference in Kentucky attended by about 500, the diocese said. She and a second person from the Kentucky conference, a church rector in Washington, later tested positive for coronavirus.

Broderick recounted her near-death experience in the interview. She said she had trouble breathing and was given an oxygen tube.

I spoke to Jesus, I planned my funeral. I FaceTimed with my children. They say now I looked and sounded like Darth Vader. I was gasping for air, Broderick said.

Her famous brother was rehearsing for a revival of Plaza Suite, a comedy by Neil Simon, and texted her during breaks.

Broderick began to recover after doctors injected antibiotics and Kaletra, an antiviral medicine ordinarily used to treat HIV, the magazine reported.

She told the magazine that she hopes the coronavirus crisis will result in a fairer approach to health care in the United States.

My God, I hope this causes us to take some kind of look at how we are handling medicine in this country. Wouldnt that be a wonderful thing," she told the magazine.

Brodericks move to Beverly Hills, which is near Hollywood and home to many in the business, drew interest in light of her familys acting history.

In addition to her brother, Matthew  perhaps best-known for playing the title character in "Ferris Buellers Day Off  her father, James Broderick, played the lead role on TVs Family in the late 1970s.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

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Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) Wednesday warned that Libya was facing a big danger about the spread of the new coronavirus because of the high level of insecurity, the weak health systems and a large number of migrants, refugees and displaced"
Expectant mothers are preparing for changes in childbirth as hospitals restrict who can visit during their stay.

Hannah Miller is expecting her second son on May 2.

I am 35 weeks, so next week will be the beginning of nine months, Miller said.

This birth will be different from her first, and Miller is already feeling it.

"Especially with a pandemic, it's been really scary for the most part, Miller said.

Miller said stores are out of diapers and formula, but she's trying not to make many trips.

"I dont physically go into stores because Im afraid whats going to happen to my baby if I get sick," she said.

Then there's the hospital visit.

Right now, shes not allowed to have anyone with her at her appointments. During her birth, at Immanuel Medical Center in Omaha, only one person will be allowed in the hospital during and after the birth. That means Millers first-born child and her family wont get to meet the baby for several days.

Miller is worried about the surge in COVID-19 positive patients, too.

"What if they run out of beds? What am I supposed to do?" Miller said.

Nebraska Medicine said it's preparing for that surge by moving the Bellevue Medical Center's labor and delivery unit patients to their Omaha campus. Beginning Saturday, all scheduled and unscheduled births will be moved to the University Tower.

We know that there's a possibility that we will need to use that 11-bed unit for overflow (COVID-19) patients," said Sue Nuss, chief nursing officer and vice president of operations for Bellevue Medical Center.



It also allows the system to protect specialized staff.



"We're realizing that we could potentially have our labor and delivery staff get sick as well, and so combining the two units allows us to combine the staff so we can have more depth in the charts, Nuss said.

Staff is also doing drills in case a pregnant mom shows symptoms, including how to get the person into the hospital and into an isolation room.

Nuss said the pandemic pushed their team to plan for the worst.

"I've been a nurse for 37 years," she said. "I hope I dont ever, ever, ever have to go through this again,"



Watch the video above to learn more about this story.
Two Irish tourists Ethan and Uyoa

In their handwritten letter, Ethan and Uyoa state, We have been travelling through Southeast Asia for the past few months. Our trip has ended here in quarantine in Vinh City.

Not exactly what we had planned for or expected, but we have had a pleasant time here. We have been treated kindly by all of the staff here and we are very impressed with how the Vietnamese are handling the COVID-19 situation, they added.

The letter concludes with, We hope to return to Vietnam and explore it properly under better circumstances. Many thanks, from Ethan and Uyoa.

A letter written by Ethan and Uyoa

Both Ethan and Uyoa had originally entered the nation from Laos through the Cau Treo international border gate in Ha Tinh province on March 18 before being put into isolation in Nghi An commune of Vinh City.

Following the completion of their 14-day isolation, the Irish tourists sent a written letter to the management board of Nghi An commune.

As of April 1, 135 out of a total of 453 people have gone on to complete a 14-day compulsory quarantine period in the isolation area situated in Nghi An commune.
135 of them have been recorded over the last 24 hours

As of 10:00 am, on April 2, 804 cases of the COVID-19 coronavirus were registered in Ukraine. The number of patients has increased by 135. The press service of the Ministry of Health informed about it on its Facebook page.

"According to the Public Health Center, as of 10:00 am, on April 2, there were 804 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ukraine, 20 of which were lethal, 13 patients recovered. Over the last 24 hours, 135 new cases have been recorded," the message reads.

Speaking on the statistics:

Vinnytsia region - 51 cases; Volyn region - 10 cases; Dnipropetrovsk region - 10 cases; Donetsk region - seven cases; Zhytomyr region - six cases; Transcarpathian region - one case; Zaporizhzhia region - 19 cases; Ivano-Frankivsk region - 74 cases; Kirovohrad region - seven cases; Kyiv - 160 cases; Kyiv region - 64 cases; Lviv region - 11 cases; Luhansk region - three cases; Odesa region - 14 cases; Poltava region - five cases; Rivne region - 19 cases; Sumy region - 26 cases; Ternopil region - 106 cases; Kharkiv region - one case; Kherson region - four cases; Khmelnytskyi region - six cases; Chernivtsi region - 143 cases; Cherkasy region - 54 cases. Chernihiv region - three cases.

Data from the temporarily occupied territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk regions and the city of Sevastopol are not available.

As we reported earlier, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky once again called on Ukrainians not to violate the quarantine regime.

"We continue to stay at home! Once again, I ask you to grow up! You know, there is a well-known fact that after the Chernobyl accident, higher authorities gathered people for the May Day demonstration. Nobody was afraid then, because the radiation is invisible. Coronavirus is also invisible," the president said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 18:44:47|Editor: xuxin

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PHNOM PENH, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia (GMAC) on Thursday called on all international buyers to honor their purchasing contracts in order to ensure the livelihoods of millions of Cambodian workers and the survival of factories in the kingdom.

In an open letter, GMAC said all parties in the global apparel supply chain are feeling the extreme burden caused by COVID-19. However, manufacturers (factories) operate on razor-thin margins and have much less ability to shoulder such burden as compared to their customers (buyers).

"The consequential burden faced by our workers who still need to put food on the table is enormous and extreme," GMAC said.

"We urge you to honor the terms of your purchasing contracts and fulfill your obligations by taking delivery and pay us for goods already produced and goods currently in production," it said. "This will allow us to continue to provide work to our 750,000 workers and provide us the ability to pay our workers and ensure the livelihoods of millions of Cambodians."

GMAC also appealed to all buyers to uphold their corporate and social responsibilities to their suppliers as well as to the workers employed in the sector.

"Together, we can surely overcome this pandemic and protect the lives of our workers and their families and ensure the survival of our businesses," it said.

The garment and footwear industry is the kingdom's biggest export sector, employing about 750,000 people in approximately 1,100 factories and branches, according the Labor Ministry.

The sector earned gross revenue of 9.3 billion U.S. dollars last year, up 11 percent compared to the year before.
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Linkedin Galih Gumelar (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 12:25 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f1f0bb 1 National COVID-19,coronavirus,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia,outbreak,haj,Religious-Affairs-Ministry,Saudi-Arabia,pilgrims Free

The Religious Affairs Ministry has made assurances that this years haj is still on schedule for July, dismissing reports that the Saudi Arabian government has asked Muslims around the world to put the annual pilgrimage on hold due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Ministerial spokesman Oman Fathurahman said that Riyadh had not formally informed Jakarta of a suspension of the haj.

The Saudi government has not decided whether the haj will be deferred. We will continue with preparations as long as there is no official announcement from Saudi Arabia regarding the haj, Oman said in a statement on Wednesday.

Several media outlets and news agencies have reported over the last 24 hours that Saudi Arabia had asked Muslims to "postpone" plans to perform the obligatory pilgrimage this year as the kingdom grapples with its COVID-19 outbreak.

Saudi Arabia confirmed 1,720 COVID-19 cases and with 16 deaths on Thursday morning, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

We have asked our Muslim brothers around the world to wait on making hajj plans until there is clarity, Benten told state-run broadcaster Al Ekhbariya, as reported by Bloomberg.

Read also: COVID-19: 42 Indonesian pilgrims stranded as Saudi Arabia imposes travel restrictions

However, Oman said that international media had failed to accurately translate Bentens statement, which was made in Arabic.

Rather than asking Muslims to put the haj on hold, Oman claimed that Benten had asked pilgrims to postpone any "haj contracts" for the time being, pending new announcements from the kingdom.

The Saudi minister [] only suggested that they not be hasty in booking accommodation for the pilgrimage. This might be because the Saudi government is still preparing the haj facilities, said Oman, adding that Bentens statement was similar to the letter the Indonesian ministry had received.

The latest correspondence that the ministry received on the matter was a letter on March 6.

In it, Saudi Minister of Hajj and Umrah Mohammad Benten asks Jakarta to delay finalizing the government-sponsored haj program until further notice, including transportation, accommodation and catering arrangements.

Read also: Saudi king offers to pay for coronavirus patients' treatment

Oman added that the government had a backup plan if the haj was canceled, that Religious Affairs Minister Fachrul Razi had promised to refund all pilgrims in such an eventuality.

In the meantime, the government has asked Indonesian pilgrims to pay their haj travel fees in full by May 19.

By Tuesday, more than 94,000 pilgrims had fully paid their travel costs, which ranged from Rp 31.4 million (US$2,169) to Rp 72.3 million per pilgrim.

Around 221,000 Indonesian pilgrims have signed up for this years haj, with the first batch of pilgrims scheduled to depart on June 26.
Debra C. Howe Supporting NOVA nursing is more important than ever given the current pandemic. Ms. Howe has also generously donated to the NOVA COVID-19 Emergency Student Aid Fund.

The Northern Virginia Community College Educational Foundation (NOVA Foundation) is proud to announce an exceptional gift of $1 million from donor Debra Coffman Howe of Palm Beach, Florida. Ms. Howe is adding to her existing endowed scholarship fund to increase her support for NOVA nursing students. Supporting NOVA nursing is more important than ever given the current pandemic. Ms. Howe has also generously donated to the NOVA COVID-19 Emergency Student Aid Fund.

Founded in 1979, the NOVA Foundation is dedicated to supporting the college's goal of providing all students with a high-quality, life-changing education. The NOVA Foundation, through its donors, funds more than 300 scholarships, emergency aid grants and a range of academic programs and student services throughout the College's six campuses and NOVA Online. By connecting donors to NOVA programs, the Foundation raises funds, increases visibility and strengthens partnerships among the College, individual donors, businesses and state and local communities.

As a nursing student as NOVA, Ms. Howe reached a point where financially she could not afford to finish her associate degree in science. She went to a trusted NOVA nursing instructor to postpone her studies. Within days, she was notified that her current year tuition and books had been paid for by an anonymous donor. She was put in contact with NOVA Financial Aid and the NOVA Foundation and with their help, received grants, scholarships, loans and even a part-time job. Ms. Howe was able to complete her studies and went on to earn Bachelor of Science degree from St. Joseph University in Windham, Maine.

Debra Coffman Howe is an outstanding example of the power and impact of NOVAs alumni  not just here in Northern Virginia but throughout the U.S., said Dr. Anne Kress, President, Northern Virginia Community College. I am grateful that our alumni continue to invest in NOVA though our Foundation.

Ms. Howe continues a successful career in healthcare and has held key leadership positions in long-term healthcare and senior care. She is currently the Managing Partner and President of Airamid Health Services as well as Kaine Financial Services. Airamid Health Services, LLC is a progressive leader in providing a full range of healthcare consulting services across the State of Florida, with a goal of helping clients keep pace with the challenges that are reshaping Americas healthcare future.

I was able to fulfill my dreams thanks to the dedicated faculty, staff and donors at NOVA. I will never forget the relief and gratitude for those who allowed me to focus on moving forward, said Ms. Howe. NOVA was truly my launching pad to very successful career in healthcare and I am happy that I am now in a position to give back to other hard working and focused NOVA students.

With NOVAs nursing program at capacity and the critical shortage of nurses across Northern Virginia and throughout the country, the impact of Ms. Howes gift will be felt by generations of nursing students here at NOVA. said Kelly Persons, Executive Director, NOVA Foundation.

Additional information about the NOVA Foundation can be found at: https://www.giving.nvcc.edu.

Media inquiries:

Hoang Nguyen

O: 703-425-5839

M: 240-620-9652

hdnguyen@nvcc.edu

Foundation inquiries:

Linda Odorisio

O:703-323-3421

M: 703-785-9297

lodorisio@nvcc.edu

###

Northern Virginia Community College is the largest institution of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia and one of America's largest community colleges. NOVA enrolls more than 75,000 students at its six campuses in Alexandria, Annandale, Loudoun, Manassas, Springfield and Woodbridge, and through NOVA Online. For more information about NOVA and its programs or services, call 703-323-3000 or visit the College's website, http://www.nvcc.edu.
Coronavirus, and the inevitable stay-at-home order issued by Mayor Ron Nirenberg on March 23, has turned much of downtown San Antonio into a ghost town.

Popular tourist destinations  typically loud and lively with people  now seem eerily quiet as much of the state shelters in place. Even the San Antonio River is running clear due to the lack of barge traffic.
Jeremy Corbyn has said he would have acted more quickly to curb the coronavirus outbreak if Labour had won the general election.

In a valedictory interview as he prepares to stand down as Labour leader, Mr Corbyn said he hoped the government would have recognised the severity of the outbreak sooner if he had been elected prime minister.

Mr Corbyn also said it was ludicrous that nearly 500,000 NHS staff and care workers have not been tested for coronavirus, urging ministers to get on top of testing.

The government has been under fire over the testing capacity for the virus, with the UK lagging behind other countries such as Germany, Italy and South Korea.

Downing Street admitted only 2,000 of the 125,000 NHS staff who are self isolating have been tested for the virus, prompting concerns that health professionals are being kept at home unnecessarily.

Asked how he would have handled the crisis, Mr Corbyn told Sky News: I hope wed have started onto it more quickly and recognised the seriousness of it from the World Health Organisation warnings that were sent out in January from China and recognised that the only way you can get on top of it is by knowing how severe it is and that means testing.

The fact that we are not yet even testing 10,000 people a day is very, very serious indeed.

There are almost half a million people working in the NHS and the care sector, even they have not yet been tested. It is ludicrous. We have got to get on top of testing.

Mr Corbyn said the NHS had been weakened by 10 years of austerity, which had caused difficulties in coping with the virus.

It has obviously been a very fast-moving crisis, we do have to bring it under control, said Mr Corbyn.

Testing is a very, very important way of it, but also the superhuman efforts of people throughout the NHS to free up beds, to bring staff back, to bring retired staff back and now to open three new hospitals is wonderful and we should applaud them.

But we shouldnt have had 10 years of austerity when we ended up with 94 per cent bed occupancy in the NHS and obviously a difficulty in coping because of that.

Boris Johnsons failure to scale up testing irritates me a great deal, Mr Corbyn said, adding that he raised the issue with the prime minister three weeks ago.

Recommended Keir Starmer favourite to replace Corbyn as voting closes

Asked what the prime minister had told him, the Labour leader said: He said that at that time, they were testing at 5,000 a day and it was going to increase as quickly as possible.

Here we are now all these weeks were not even yet reaching 10,000 a day and its apparently because theres a shortage of testing equipment because the NHS was not able to purchase it when it needed to because they seemed to be running on the idea that it wasnt necessary to test.

It is absolutely ... how can you possibly have an idea of how many people have coronavirus unless you test?

Downing Street said Matt Hancock would be setting out plans for a significant increase in testing on Thursday.

Voting has now closed in the Labour leadership contest, with the winner to be announced on Saturday.
Last night, I watched a news item which was reported by Vivian Kai Lokko a journalist with Citi FM which was aired on Citi TV news and I terribly felt ashamed as a son of the north. I am sure many people felt same after watching it.

About 4 days ago, I am sure most of us watched on various social platforms the unacceptable humiliation and embarrassment 30 of our young sisters (Kayeyei) from the north precisely from Walewale went through in the hands of a combined team of police and military at Ejisu in Kumasi upon the directives of one Beatrice, MCE for Ejisu. These young girls were treated like 'animals' or as if they were 'criminals'.

All our northern politicians and leaders, past and present, NDC, NPP, CPP, PNC et al, do you feel proud as sons and daughters of the north when you see your younger brothers and sisters who live in this humiliating conditions in Accra and Kumasi?

Both NPP and NDC politicians from the north, you have all failed these youngsters and the earlier something is done about this humiliating practice called Kayayei, the better for your own image.

These Kayayei or head potters come from districts and constituencies in the north, thus Northern Region, Savannah Region, North-East Region, Upper East and Upper West. This Kayayei menace has been in existence for the past 25 years and counting. And it appears to be getting worse by each passing year. Why can't all our leaders from the north as listed above come together as sons and daughters to address this issue?

With just two weeks partial lockdown, many of these young girls say they cannot survive because there's no food. It took Senyo Hosse and his fellow One Ghana Movement to supply packed foods for them as shown in the screenshots. According to him, they will provide 6000 takeaways every day for the the lockdown period just to ensure that they have something to feed on. Why must it take Senyo Hosse & co to mobilize foods for these people when there hundreds of well to do elites from the north in Accra? If the govt is not doing what it ought to do for this youngsters? why can't those of you our leaders from the north, help your own younger siblings whether they are your biological relatives or not?

Let me give a practical example, about three days ago, I read a post by Hon. Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa MP for north tongu in the Volta Region, who provided contacts numbers on his Facebook post, and indicated that anyone from his constituency who is affected by the lockdown in any of the areas could reach out through the numbers provided for necessary assistance.

How many of our leaders from the 5 regions in the north have thought about something like that?

Where are our leaders, MPs, Ministers, MMDCEs etc from the north? If this was elections time, politicians would have sent buses there to Agbogbloshie and its environs bring most of our brothers and sisters up north to vote.

But when it's lockdown, these youngsters are abandoned and left to their fates. Lock at the ridicule and embarrassment the Ejisu MCE Beatrice meted to the young ladies who were traveling in the cargo truck to Walewale on Monday.

My follow northerners in leadership, positions be it political or not, what future are you going to bequeath to the younger generation and those yet unborn with the alarming influx of minors from the north to southern Ghana in the name of Kayayei? Many of these young girls and boys are of school going ages.

Some of them are young as 7, 8, 9, 10, years and so on.

Ghana govt does not allow child labour in our cocoa farms because the world would blacklist our cocoa product for using children and minors in the cocoa farms. Shamefully, our governments since 1992 have gleefully watch these menace to continue. What's the difference between child labour in the cocoa farms and child labour in the streets of Accra in the name of Kayayei?

I challenging all our leaders from the north, there's no pride or dignity in what our own youngsters go through in the hands of their exploiters or masters. Indeed some people liken Kayayei to modern form of slavery. Let's all look sharp and come together and find a lasting solution or alternative for these young girls. Many of these young girls are sexually abused by predatory guys and end up us teenage mothers.

To my fellow citizens from the north, politicians, businessmen and women, the elites, etc for how long should this dehumanizing practice continue? For those who think this is work, would you allow your own children to go through this kind of activities? Our fathers and grandfathers many of whom never went to school decided to send you and all of us to school so that , the things they could not do, with the benefit of education, we should be able to do that not just for own ourselves and families but they hoped that with our education we

could build a better society not just for ourselves alone but for the betterment the present generation as well as those yet unborn.

It's about time, we all come together as people from the north, whether you're NDC, NPP, CPP, PNC, etc and see to it that better alternative livelihoods are created for these people to stay in the north. The Gender Minister Cynthia Morrison said, there about 15,000 Kayayei in Accra, most of these young girls are from the north. Let's give ourselves timelines to work harder to end this humiliating menace.

God bless Ghana

Baba Musah

Son of the north

[email protected]
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As the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 continues to rise sharply in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now recommending that people wear face coverings when out in public.

The new guidance to wear a nonmedical basic cloth or fabric mask is voluntary, President Donald Trump said Friday. But it represents a shift for the CDC, which previously said that healthy people who arent caring for someone who is sick dont need to wear face masks to protect themselves from the novel coronavirus.

The World Health Organization continues to stand by its previous advice, that medical masks be used by healthcare workers in health facilities and by people in the community who are sick and those caring for them. But while noting that research to support widespread mask use in communities is limited, the organization now says it is looking into the issue more deeply.

The CDC announcement came after a growing number of health experts began suggesting that we should all be wearing masks of some kind. In fact, several large health departments, including those of Los Angeles and New York City, had advised all residents to wear face covering when out in public even before the CDC changed its guidance.

Federal officials stress that the use of masks should be in addition to all the other measures currently recommended for COVID-19 prevention, including social distancing.

Deborah Birx, M.D., coronavirus response coordinator for the White House coronavirus task force, said Thursday night that people wearing a face covering should not be lulled into a false sense of security, and must keep up with diligent hand-washing, avoid face touching, and stay at least 6 feet away from those they do not live with.

Most people should not use medical maskseither loose-fitting surgical masks or the more snug N95sbecause these should be reserved for healthcare professionals who need them to protect against COVID-19 while in close contact with patients, officials say.

Story continues

Trump and Surgeon General Jerome Adams, M.D., M.P.H., recommended simple masks that could be made at home or purchased online. The two city health departments advised using common household items like scarves, bandannas, or other cloth. These reusable, washable items are constructed from materials like cloth scraps, and wont further stress the supply of medical masks.

Public health experts have also emphasized that the potential benefit of wearing a face covering is not for your own protection but to safeguard others around you. This is to protect people around you if you are infected but do not have symptoms, according to the CDC website.

Thats because a significant share of people with COVID-19perhaps a quarter, by some estimatesshow no symptoms. But they may still be contagious.

If you put a mask on someone who is ill, they are less likely to spread the virus to others, says Tom Frieden, M.D., a former director of the CDC. That includes people who dont have symptoms. We know people who dont have symptoms can spread the virus."

Heres what you need to know now about mask use amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

What Protection Might Masks Provide?

Some experts have said that theres little reason for the average person to wear a mask. In the research thats been done, we dont see any benefit at the community level for wearing the mask, said Amanda McClelland, M.P.H., a senior vice president at Vital Strategies, a public health organization that focuses on global health threats.

Still, some evidence suggests that masks may be useful for this group, although the extent of any potential benefit is unclear. A 2011 Cochrane review of 67 studies found that mask use, hand-washing, and isolating sick people, especially when used together, can be effective in containing viral epidemics.

And studies of dorms and other high-density settings like households do show some efficacy for masks, according to Raina MacIntyre, Ph.D., professor of global biosecurity at the University of New South Wales Sydney in Australia. For instance, a 2010 study found that the combination of mask use, providing alcohol-based hand sanitizer, and education about hand and cough hygiene reduced the prevalence of flulike illness inside a college dorm more than only hand and cough hygiene education. If they work in high-transmission settings, they should also work in low-intensity settings, out in the community, MacIntyre said.

In the case of COVID-19, having everyone wear masksas the new CDC guidance recommendsmay reduce the spread of the virus by people who are infected but not experiencing symptoms, said Donald K. Milton, M.D., Dr.P.H., a professor of environmental and occupational health at the University of Maryland in College Park.

The argument is that since anyone can be infected without knowing it and spread the infection, that everyone should wear masks, Milton said. In the U.S., where we are not prepared to test rapidly and aggressively trace and quarantine all contacts, surgical masks could be helpful.

Who Should Wear a Medical Mask?

Healthcare workers should use masks to protect themselves when taking care of patients suspected of having COVID-19, according to the CDC. People with symptoms that might signal COVID-19such as a fever, a cough, and shortness of breathshould also wear a mask when they are around others, to limit the spread of infection, the CDC says.

If youre caring for someone who may have COVID-19, you should also wear a mask, according to the CDC and the WHO. The reason: So far, the novel coronavirus is thought to spread mainly between people who have close contactmeaning within 6 feetwith each other. Thats how far droplets of bodily fluid that might contain infectious virus are probably able to travel through a cough or sneeze, the CDC says.

But in some instances, especially during certain hospital procedures, the virus may be able to float in smaller particles in the air, a process known as aerosol transmission.

For the rest of us, medical masks are not necessary, the CDC reiterates in the new guidance. The supply of surgical masks and N95s, which are both meant to be used by healthcare workers for one patient and then thrown away, continues to be severely strained.

In fact, stocks are so low that the CDC has issued guidance on extending the life of protective gear, such as using one mask to care for multiple patients.

I dont think we are at the point where there is strong evidence that mask wearing by the general public will be helpful, and I dont think it is prudent to advocate for this when there are real concerns for healthcare workers, said Amesh Adalja, M.D., an infectious-disease physician and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Health Security in Baltimore. MacIntyre, too, said that surgical masks and N95 respirators need to be saved for healthcare workers right now.

But some countries have advised broader mask use. In China, for example, authorities advise that people wear disposable medical masks in public places and on public transportation; in Hong Kong authorities have recommended wearing these when taking public transportation and in crowded areas.

Such recommendations could be considered more globally if were able to dramatically increase the available mask supply, according to an article published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine journal in March.

While evidence that masks used outside of healthcare prevent respiratory infections from spreading is still scant, the authors write, people at higher risk for the disease may want to consider wearing a surgical mask when in high-risk areas, where there are crowds of potentially infected people.

It may also be rational to recommend that anyone in quarantine who needs to go outside wear a mask to prevent potential asymptomatic or presymptomatic transmission, they write.

What About Homemade Masks?

When it comes to the evidence on the kinds of face coverings the CDC is now recommending, effectiveness is mixed. A study published in The BMJ in 2015 found that healthcare workers using cloth masks were more likely to be infected with respiratory diseases than those who used disposable surgical masks, even when workers washed them at the end of each of their shifts.

Two laboratory studies, one published in 2013 in the journal Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness by scientists with Public Health England and another published in Plos One in 2008 by scientists in the Netherlands, have demonstrated that masks made of household materials, such as T-shirt scraps, tea cloths, or vacuum bags, arent as effective at blocking particles of virus in droplets and aerosols as surgical masks. Still, they did provide some protectionespecially, according to the Public Health England study, those made of vacuum bags, tea towels, and blended cotton fabric.

Even manufactured surgical masks and N95 respirator use can be tricky for people who arent trained and used to them. In fact, healthcare workers must take an annual test (PDF) to prove that they can properly fit and seal an N95 mask.

While some experts say wearing a homemade or purchased mask may help you remember not to touch your face, others note that they can be uncomfortable, leading wearers to adjust them often. Or you might take a mask off to eat or drink, then put it back on afterward. That defeats the purpose, said McClelland at Vital Strategies. People contaminate themselves more by touching the mask and taking it on and off their face.

As Birx noted, mask wearers must still continue other safety measures, including social distancing. Because homemade ones are not even as effective at filtering out virus as commercial surgical masks, which are not great, people should be aware that these are not protective and should not do anything you would not do without one of them on, Milton said.

How to Wear a Mask Properly

If you live in Los Angeles, New York City, Newark, N.J., or another area that has directed people to wear face coverings in public, look up the specific guidelines for whatever city youre in. New York Citys guidelines are fairly extensive.

For instance, New York says that people should use a face covering when out in public and near people but that they dont have to wear one while doing solo exercise like biking or running outdoors, as long as theyre able to stay more than 6 feet away from others. The CDC says a face covering should be worn in community settings, especially in situations where you may be near people, such as at grocery stores and pharmacies. The agency also says that face coverings should not be used on children younger than 2, anyone who has trouble breathing, and those who are unconscious or otherwise unable to take one off.

The surgeon general said that people should wash their hands before donning a mask, and avoid touching their faces while wearing one.

Youll also need to avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth while removing your face covering and to wash your hands right away afterward. Then, place the covering where it wont be touched by anyone in your house and where it wont contaminate other surfaces.

New York City recommends that people hand or machine wash cloth face coverings once a day, and wear them again only once theyre completely dry. You may want to rotate a few face coverings.

The CDC has put out instructions for making cloth face coverings at home. Options include masks that require a sewing machine to no-sew coverings that can be made by simply cutting a T-shirt. Additional mask recipes are available online, such as this one from a Wisconsin hospital asking for donations of homemade masks as a supplement to their supplies.

If you wear a disposable mask, such as a surgical mask, while ill or caring for someone else, its essential to follow proper safety steps. Wash your hands before putting the mask on, then try not to touch the mask. If you do, wash your hands again. Discard the mask as soon as its damp. To remove it, handle the elastic around your ears, not the front of the mask, throw it away immediatelyeither in a closed plastic bag or a bin with a lidand wash your hands again. Dont reuse the mask.

Best Steps for Prevention

Until we get more clarity from federal health officials about mask use, everyone should take the following steps to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus and other infections.

First: Practice social distancing. Stay home as much as possible, and when you do have to go out, avoid crowds and keep 6 feet between yourself and others.

Impeccable hand hygiene is [also] key, said Isaac Bogoch, M.D., an epidemiologist and associate professor of infectious disease in the department of medicine at the University of Toronto. Thats to protect you from exposure to droplets of fluid from coughs or sneezes that contain the virus.

Wash hands frequently, scrubbing thoroughly for the recommended 20 seconds.

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Use hand sanitizer when you cant get to a sinkafter touching a handrail or door handle, on public transit, or using a shared keyboard at the library, for example.

Abstaining from touching your face is also important because thats how germs get transferred from your hands to your mouth or nose, and enter your body. Its easy to say but hard to do, Bogoch said, but now is the time to make this a habit.

And of course, cover any coughs or sneezes with a tissue, and if you cant, sneeze or cough into the crook of your elbow.

Editors Note: This article was originally published March 2. It has been updated to include additional research and expert advice.





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Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. CR does not endorse products or services, and does not accept advertising. Copyright  2020, Consumer Reports, Inc.
Officers found a man dead in the street after a possible shooting early Thursday morning just blocks from the University of New Mexico.

Tanner Tixier, an Albuquerque police spokesman, said police responded to a possible shooting sometime before 12:30 a.m. in the 1500 block of Gold SE, near Central and University.

He said arriving officers discovered a mans body in the street.

There is no information on any suspects, Tixier said. Additional details will be released when they become available.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) _ Micron Technology Inc. (MU) on Wednesday reported fiscal second-quarter profit of $405 million.

The Boise, Idaho-based company said it had profit of 36 cents per share. Earnings, adjusted for stock option expense and restructuring costs, were 45 cents per share.

The results topped Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of nine analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of 38 cents per share.

The chipmaker posted revenue of $4.8 billion in the period, also surpassing Street forecasts. Seven analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $4.66 billion.

For the current quarter ending in June, Micron expects its per-share earnings to range from 40 cents to 70 cents.

The company said it expects revenue in the range of $4.6 billion to $5.2 billion for the fiscal third quarter. Analysts surveyed by Zacks had expected revenue of $4.82 billion.

Micron shares have decreased 20% since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has declined 23%. In the final minutes of trading on Wednesday, shares hit $43.09, an increase of slightly more than 6% in the last 12 months.

_____

This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on MU at https://www.zacks.com/ap/MU
Africans rush for chloroquine as coronavirus tsunami looms

International

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Libreville, Apr 02: Despite loud appeals for caution, Africans are rushing to embrace chloroquine, the venerable anti-malaria drug touted as a possible treatment for coronavirus. From hospitals in Senegal to pharmaceutical companies in South Africa and street sellers in Cameroon, chloroquine has fired hopes of a medicinal fix against a virus that is set to scythe through Africa's poorly protected countries.

Chloroquine and derivatives such as hydroxychloroquine have been used for decades as cheap and safe drugs against malaria, although their effectiveness in this field is now undermined by growing parasite resistance. Small-scale tests in China and France -- either unpublished or outside the rigorous framework of mainstream drug trials -- suggest that chloroquine reduces virus levels in people with coronavirus.

On March 24, President Donald Trump said chloroquine could be a "gift from God" -- a comment that sparked strident criticism. Health watchdogs have issued calls for caution until larger clinical trials are carried out, and there have been several recorded deaths from self-medication because of toxic side effects. Despite this, in many settings across Africa, chloroquine has been placed in the front line against coronavirus. Its rise stems partly from desperation, given Africa's meagre capacity to deal with a pandemic on the scale seen in Europe or the United States. Burkina Faso, Cameroon and South Africa have swiftly authorised hospitals to treat virus patients with the drugs.

Around half of infected people in Senegal are already being prescribed hydroxychloroquine, Moussa Seydi, a professor at Dakar's Fann Hospital, told AFP last Thursday. Every patient who was recommended the drug accepted it, "with no exceptions," he said. In Democratic Republic of Congo, President Felix Tshisekedi last week declared it was "urgent" to produce chloroquine "in industrial quantities".

Coronavirus cure: All you need to know about anti-malaria drug Chloroquine

South Africa has already said it will join a large-scale trial, and one of the country's biggest pharmaceutical companies has promised to donate half a million pills to the health authorities. Even if the effectiveness of the drugs against coronavirus remains for now unproven, concern about securing enough of them already runs deep.

Two decades ago, Africa, the continent worst hit by HIV, was last in line to get new antiretroviral AIDS drugs when the treatment emerged from the labs. "If it turns out that chloroquine is effective, Africa, which imports most of its drugs, perhaps won't be a priority for (the pharmaceutical) industry," said Professor Yap Boum of Epicenter Africa, the research arm of the medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

France has already imposed a ban on exporting chloroquine and Morocco has requisitioned all stocks of the drug. "You won't find any in pharmacies in Yaounde, everyone is out of stock," Boum said, referring to the Cameroonian capital. "Local people have been buying it, apparently without prescription, which is dangerous." The Cameroonian government has officially asked health professionals "not to yield to the desire for profit" and to avoid prescribing chloroquine preventatively.

AFP correspondents report frantic demand in pharmacies in Abidjan, Ivory Coast's economic hub, in the Angolan capital Luanda and also in Malawi -- one of a handful of sub-Saharan nations where there are still no recorded cases of coronavirus. The rush is a deep source of anxiety for people with the auto-immune disease called lupus, which is also treated with chloroquine. In the Gabonese capital Libreville, Armelle Oyabi, head of an association of people with lupus, has been closely monitoring purchases at the only pharmacy left in the city that still has chloroquine.

"I check that the drug is being given to people who actually need it," she said. "If we can't get this drug, we will not only be hit by lupus but also be more vulnerable to coronavirus." Chloroquine has been part of the medical toolkit from before World War II -- it was developed in 1934 as a synthetic derivative of quinine. Alice Desclaux, a doctor at the Institute of Development Research (IRD) in Senegal, said the risks from self-medication from chloroquine were largely rooted in illegal sales. "Chloroquine has always been on sale informally in Africa," she said.

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Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 11:12 [IST]
Shocking footage has emerged of a man armed with a whip launching into a racist tirade at people lining up outside a Chinese consulate.

The man, wearing an Akubra, cracks the bullwhip while abusing members of the public wearing face-masks who are waiting to enter the Chinese Consulate-General in Sydney's inner-west on Monday.

The racist rant goes for several minutes, with the man even threatening to shoot the Chinese general-secretary and accusing China of spreading COVID-19.

The frightening incident is the latest in a string of coronavirus-related racial attacks, and comes just days after a Australian woman of Vietnamese background was called an 'Asian dog' and spat on in nearby Marrickville.

A man was seen cracking a whip after exploding into a racist tirade outside the Chinese Consulate in Sydney

He yelled racial abuse at the people in the queue, saying they had deliberately spread the killer coronavirus around the world

The Chinese Embassy was seen closed with nobody in sight days after the act of racial abuse

'Death to communism! Wake up Australia! Wake up! No more s**t from China,' the man said.

'I'll put a bullet in the General Secretary's head. I'm going to kill that leader of China.

'Filthy f**ing commies. Trying to take over the world. No more.'

The man then turned to the queue of people at the building's entrance and accused them of spreading coronavirus throughout the world.

'We know it's deliberate. Five million people left your country and spread that filthy f***king disease worldwide,' he said.

'You're all wearing your masks and you know why you're wearing your masks? You knew about it!

'I'm onto you. I know you deliberately released this virus.

'Wake up Australia! Be wise to these pr**ks.'

NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia they received no reports about the incident and did not attend. The Chinese Consulate has been contacted for comment.

The disturbing act follows a series of vile racially-motivated attacks on people of Asian appearance since the coronavirus crisis began.

The argument broke out in the streets of Marrickville, in Sydney's inner west, at around 3pm on Monday, with a woman in grey (pictured) allegedly racially abusing two sisters

Sophie (pictured, left, with sister Rosa) said no one should be able to get away with racial attacks, which have ramped up in recent months due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Rosa Do, 19, was allegedly spat in the eye by a 17-year-old girl in Marrickville on Monday while crossing the road with her sister.

The Caucasian girl allegedly screamed abuse at the teenager, calling her an 'Asian dog'.

'Asian b**ch. You brought corona here. Eat a bat again you dumb wh***,' she said.

The stranger then allegedly continued to taunt the sisters, trying to kick them before spitting in Rosa's face.

Police arrested a 17-year-old woman on Tuesday afternoon and charged her with three counts of common assault, use offensive language in/near public place, and two counts of attempt stalk/intimidate intend fear of harm.

On a Melbourne train last week a mother who was with her young daughter was seen yelling racial abuse at two passengers and allegedly punched one of them in the face.

A bystander filmed the moment the woman on the train in Melbourne yelled at two men to 'go back to your own country' as her young daughter begged for her to stop

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

The woman then screamed 'go back to your own country' at the men, calling one a 'disease-carrying motherf***er'.

Police officers are understood to have taken the woman off the train and received statements from the victims, as well as numerous other passengers.

In Epping in Sydney's north-west a street with a large Asian population was covered in graffiti that read 'death to dog eaters'.

Daniel Palmer who lives in the street shared the pictures online.

'Week 2 of isolation: This s*** on my road in front of an Asian household in f***ing Epping,' he captioned the images.

'S*** like this lurks beneath the surface in society, and you usually only notice it if you're ethnic when it creeps out in small bite-sized chunks.'

Mr Palmer said someone had since painted over the racial comments and the police had been notified.

Daniel Palmer, a designer and developer, shared the images of the graffiti that read 'death to dog eaters' on his street in Epping, 18km north-west of Sydney's CBD, on Monday

In Queensland, a South Korean woman was viciously attacked by a group of six people after they demanded how long she had been in the country.

The woman, 27, was left with scratches above her eyes and on her cheek following the attack where she was repeatedly shoved to the ground.

She tried to defend herself - but then the group began to beat her with their fists.

She then desperately tried to call Triple Zero as her hair was pulled and she was kicked in the face.

She said the thugs told her to 'go back to your country' and asked if she had 'self-isolated for 14 days'.
Thiruvananthapuram, April 2 : Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday said that there were 21 new coronavirus positive cases taking the total number in the state to 256.

"This includes two who had attended Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi. Today there are 1,65,934 under observation, which includes 643 at various hospitals in the state. Kasargode recorded 8 cases today," said Vijayan.
It is a difficult time for everyone around the world, especially because of the global health crisis. It has become even more challenging for Prince Harry after learning that his father Prince Charles has tested positive for the coronavirus.

A source exclusively told "Us Weekly" that the Duke of Sussex wishes he was with his family in the U.K.

The Wake Up Call Harry Needed

Despite everything that has transpired over the last few weeks, Prince Harry got worried when he learned that his father was diagnosed with a life-threatening disease.

"It was a huge wake-up call for the Prince," the source said. "He is overwhelmed with feelings of guilt for not being closer to home while this is all going on."

The source also said that Prince Charles told both his sons Prince William and Prince Harry about his diagnosis over the phone. They were quite emotional.

"During the heartbreaking call, he confessed to feeling beyond helpless, being over 5,000 miles away in L.A," the source claimed.

"Charles tried to calm Harry down by saying that he's OK and that he's only suffering from mild symptoms, which slightly helped put his mind at ease but he's (Harry) is still worried. Harry also admitted that it's hit home that Charles and the Queen aren't going to be around forever."

On Monday, March 30, the Palace announced that Charles is following the strict guidelines of the government concerning COVID-19 patients. The heir to the throne only came out of self-isolation to consult his condition with a medical professional.

The source also revealed that Harry has been trying to regularly contact Prince Charles and the Queen. The eight-hour difference, however, has made the calls few and far between.

"The royals are desperately trying to rally together amid the pandemic, which is a huge struggle given that they've been forced to physically separate," the source added.

Moving Forward, Never Looking Back

The 35-year old Prince and his wife Meghan Markle shocked the world with their announcement at the beginning of this year. The couple has decided to take a step back from their roles as senior members of the royal family in their desire to live a more private, independent life.

While the couple initially moved to Canada with their son Archie, they have recently relocated to Los Angeles.

On Monday, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced that their "Sussex Royal" Instagram account would be inactive. On their final post, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex shared a message of inspiration to all their followers amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"What's more important right now is the health and wellbeing of everyone across the globe and finding solutions for the many issues that have presented themselves as a result of this pandemic," the couple wrote.

"As we all find the part we are to play in this global shift and changing habits, we are focusing this new chapter to understand how we can best contribute. While you may not see us here, the work continues."

What's next for Harry and Meghan? Their followers will just have to wait and see.

READ MORE: Prince Charles Makes MASSIVE Improvement After Coronavirus Positive Test
THE creation of Ireland's newest university through the merger of Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) and Institute of Technology Tralee (ITT) will play a crucial part in the national recovery from the Covid-19 crisis.

Education Minister Joe McHugh has now been given clarifying details on the proposed Munster Technology University (MTU) merger by the consortium partners which aims to keep Ireland at the forefront of global technology, engineering excellence and world class research and development.

MTU partners insisted the new university will play a crucial role in the recovery of the southern region from the coronavirus crisis - and provide critical future support for the pharmaceutical, medical, engineering and IT sectors.

The Cork and Kerry colleges boast a total of six campuses and the proposal to merge them to create a 'super technology' university was first mooted in 2009.

CIT has 17,000 full and part-time students while ITT has almost 4,000.

"Notwithstanding the current crisis, the MTU consortium, in compliance with the instructions of Minister McHugh, has this week responded to the minister on the specific clarifications he had sought regarding the application for MTU to be designated as the States second Technological University," a spokesperson said.

"The designation as a technology university will enable MTU to play a leading role in the recovery of the Munster region post COVID-19, sustaining and developing community and economy."

MTU partners insisted the new entity will help deliver on the strategic aims set out for Ireland in the Technological University Research Network (TURN) blueprint.

"The MTU consortium wishes staff, students and the wider community well in this current crisis, and looks forward to playing its role in the recovery process."

In 2018, MTU was awarded 2m by the Department of Education to work on the development of its TU status.

Some 2.3m was awarded in 2017.

The merger would create a university that would rival older colleges in terms of student numbers, financial clout and industrial linkages.
Fianna Fail MEP for Munster and parts of Leinster Billy Kelleher has welcomed the decision of the European Commission to approve a 200 million Irish government scheme to support the economy and jobs during the Covid-19 crisis.

Mr Kelleher, who represents Laois and Offaly, was speaking following the granting of an exemption under State Aid rules that will allow the Irish government support companies that will lose at least 15% of their turnover by means of repayable advances.

The scheme will apply to Irish companies employing 10 or more employees in Ireland in certain manufacturing or internationally traded sectors.

This is a common sense decision by the EU Commission. While in general the EU seeks to avoid national governments funding businesses to maintain a level playing field, there is scope during crises such as the current Covid-19 one for such support to be allowed.

The ultimate goal for all of us is to maintain jobs and protect the economy. At a time like this, we do need direct intervention in the economy.

These strong measures taken now will ensure that the Irish economy comes out of this crisis in the best possible shape with as many people in employment as possible.

I hope to see more requests from the Irish government to the Commission for State Aid exemptions. The Commission has committed to making decisions as quickly as possible. This request was made on March 26th and approved by March 30th. The EU is ready and willing to assist Ireland and other member states to project jobs, concluded Mr Kelleher.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he had spoken to Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman and that he expects Saudi Arabia and Russia to cut oil output by as much as 15 million barrels per day, as the two countries signaled willingness for a deal.

In a pair of tweets, Trump initially said the cut would be about 10 million barrels a day, before later raising the figure.

"If it happens," the Republican U.S. president wrote on Twitter, it "will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry!"

Trump did not specify that the cuts referred to barrels per day, but that is the most common expression of supply and demand for oil.

Oil markets plunged in March as the production feud between Saudi Arabia and Russia intensified as global demand plunged due to the coronavirus pandemic shuttering many economies.

Trump, who is scheduled to meet with U.S. oil executives on Friday, did not say there was a definitive deal between Saudi and Russia but said he expected and had "hope" for the cut.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia had cut production for more than three years to bolster prices.

That deal ended in early March after Russia and Saudi Arabia were unable to come to an agreement to further curb output as the coronavirus outbreak worsened worldwide, and the Saudis said they would boost oil production to an all-time record. That, along with the pandemic, caused worldwide prices to drop to nearly $20 a barrel, losing more than two-thirds of its value so far this year.

A cut of 10 million to 15 million barrels per day would be nearly impossible by OPEC countries alone, but in the last several days, Texas regulators have weighed cutting output, and oil companies there have pressed the White House to act.

Two Republican U.S. senators have also proposed a bill to withdraw U.S. troops from Saudi Arabia in response to Riyadh's move to flood the world with crude barrels.

(Reporting by Tim Ahmann; writing by Susan Heavey and David Gaffen; Editing by Bernadette Baum)
BRASILIA, April 1 (Reuters) - Brazil's government on Wednesday launched a program that will allow companies hit by the coronavirus crisis to reduce workers' salaries and hours, or temporarily suspend contracts, in order to preserve as many jobs as possible.

The program could potentially help save up to 12 million jobs, according to Economy Ministry estimates, and will cost the Treasury 51 billion reais ($10 billion).

It forms part of a broader 200 billion reais government package to safeguard jobs and help companies pay wages, according to Economy Minister Paulo Guedes. It will officially come into effect by an executive decree to be published on Thursday.

According to the scheme, companies will be allowed to reduce wages and hours by up to 70% for a period of three months, with the government partially making up workers' lost earnings. Alternatively, companies will be able to suspend workers' contracts for up to 60 days.

The government's contributions will be limited, staggered and capped to varying degrees, depending on each employee's earnings and the measure taken by each company.

($1 = 5.25 reais) (Reporting by Marcela Ayres and Gabriel Ponte Writing by Jamie McGeever Editing by Leslie Adler)
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Former national security adviser Susan Rice criticized President Donald Trump after he told PBS White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor to be nice and not threatening at a coronavirus briefing, saying he cant stomach strong black women.

You go, girl. Pathetic when insecure men cant stomach strong black women. https://t.co/ExjC9z5p1J  Susan Rice (@AmbassadorRice) March 30, 2020

Earlier, Alcindor pressed Trump on some of his prior statements regarding medical supplies needed to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

Youve said repeatedly that you think that some of the equipment that governors are requesting they dont actually need. You said New York might not need 30,000  she began.

I didnt say that, Trump said. (This was a lie. Trump recently downplayed the need for ventilators after New York Governor Andrew Cuomo requested them, saying, I dont believe you need 40,000 or 30,000 ventilators. You go into major hospitals sometimes, and theyll have two ventilators. And now, all of a sudden, theyre saying, Can we order 30,000 ventilators?)

Why dont you people act why dont you act in a little more positive, its always trying to get you, get you, get you. And you know what? Thats why nobody trusts the media anymore, Trump continued. Be nice, dont be threatening, dont be threatening, be nice.

Alcindor later tweeted about the encounter, saying: Im not the first human being, woman, black person or journalist to be told that while doing a job.

She added: My take: Be steady. Stay focused. Remember your purpose. And, always press forward.

President Trump today at the White House said to me: Be nice. Don't be threatening. Im not the first human being, woman, black person or journalist to be told that while doing a job. My take: Be steady. Stay focused. Remember your purpose. And, always press forward.  Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) March 29, 2020
The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has presented some assorted items to Kayayes at Old Fadama in the Ododiodio Constituency of the Greater Accra Region.

The presentation was to support them fend for themselves during the lockdown period.

The items presented included bottled water, liquid soap, nose masks, food items, sanitizers, drinks and veronica buckets.

The delegation was led by the Chairman of the Party Hon. Samuel Ofosu Ampofo and ably assisted by Hon. Prosper Bani, Peter Otokunor and Hon. Alex Segbefia.

Also present were Greater Accra regional executives which included chairman Ade Coker, Vice Chairman Vinyo and Regional Zongo Caucus Coordinator, Ismaila Ali Horoya.

Members of the delegation after the presentation also sensitised the Kayayes on Covid-19 and how to protect themselves.

According to chairman Ofosu Ampofo, the NDC sees the needs of the kayayes as a priority and that their work cannot be taken for granted.

He also admonished them to take particular care of themselves and take the issues of social distancing seriously.

The MP for the Area, Hon Nii Lante Vanderpuiye stressed that the party is much concerned about the plight and sufferings of the head porters within the community.

He cautioned them not to take things for granted and comply with the directives of public health authorities.

This donation follows an earlier donation made on behalf of the party on Sunday 29th March 2020 by the flag bearer H.E John Dramani Mahama to the Ridge Hospital where he presented 100 Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), set of gloves, masks, coveralls, boots and 400 cartons of water to frontline health workers.
Conor McGregor has accused bitter rival Khabib Nurmagomedov of 'chickening out' of his UFC lightweight title defence against Tony Ferguson later this month.

Nurmagomedov announced on Wednesday evening that he was back in his native Dagestan and ruled out the prospect of breaking the coronavirus quarantine to compete at UFC 249 on April 18 at a venue still to be decided.

UFC president Dana White has been at pains to insist the show will go ahead despite the global pandemic which has forced the event to be moved away from Brooklyn because of the partial US crackdown on the spread of the virus.

Khabib Nurmagomedov announced he would not be leaving Russia to fight at UFC 249

Conor McGregor has accused his fierce rival of 'chickening out' of facing Tony Ferguson

McGregor referenced the bizarre history of Nurmagomedov-Ferguson, with the two yet to meet in the octagon despite being booked to fight on five separate occasions since December 2015.

The previous four cancellations have been because of health or fitness concerns but McGregor, who had been linked with a fight against the winner, had no doubt who was to blame for the latest postponement.

'The fact of this matter is, both Tony and Khabib where engaged in a game of chicken here towards the fight bell,' McGregor wrote on Twitter.

'With Khabib chickening out first. Making it 3-2 in pullouts in Tony's favour. Khab scurried out of the US to home, and amid the crisis. Very high risk. Congrats Tony.'

Khabib has been scheduled to face Ferguson on five occasions but they have never met

The Irishman returned to the UFC in January by impressively stopping American veteran Donald Cerrone in his first bout since losing to Nurmagomedov in October 2018.

McGregor had planned to be more active in 2020 but admitted his relief he did not have a fight scheduled before the Covid-19 outbreak, as he believes he would have ignored the seriousness of the situation.

He added: 'I am in shape to fight right now! At the beginning of all this, I said to myself  I'm happy I don't have an official fight booked.

'If I did, I would have consumed all the incorrect data to support me taking part in the bout, and I would have followed through, competed. And won.'
The scale of the economic wipeout from Covid-19 is truly horrifying.

As the lockdown has spread across the United States, the number of Americans filing jobless claims shot up to 6.65m  almost twice the number of just a week ago, ahead of all forecasts and bringing the two-week total up to 10m people.

On this side of the Atlantic, claims for universal credit have soared to 1m and the numbers of furloughed workers is climbing.

British Airways is suspending 32,000 employees and the ONS is reporting 27 per cent of companies have cut staff levels.

Economic damage: Alarmist forecasts of 10 per cent plus loss of output in Britain and in America in the second quarter, look likely to be a reality

Alarmist forecasts of more than 20m job losses in the US, and a 10 per cent-plus loss of output in Britain and in America in the second quarter, look likely to be a reality.

The impact on the healthy corporate sector is dramatic. The stampede from paying dividends grows apace, with the grand dame of the property sector Landsec cancelling the third quarter payout and BAs owner IAG stopping the final distribution and placing the money into reserve.

Across the FTSE350 and AIM100 some 120 firms have ditched or suspended dividends over the last four weeks, according to brokers Peel Hunt  at a cost of 11.8billion to investors. Some 40 companies have committed to keep paying distributing 8.5billion.

And there are a further 100 firms which have announced dividends worth 13.6billion but not yet determined if they will proceed.

Over the short haul, fund managers and savers will be hard hit by the loss of an income stream.

Older investors, in particular, rely on the dividends to meet bills. In letter addressed to UK plc, asset manager Schroders argues that, in the current crisis, employees, customers and suppliers need to be prioritised along with keeping enterprises alive  prudence before dividends.

I would add that the same approach must be applied to executive bonuses and pay.

In the interests of getting new capital sorted quickly  employment agency Hays has just raised 200million  Schroders also supports waiving pre-emption rules which require new shares to be offered to all existing investors.

The suddenness and depth of the collapse in jobs, output, earnings and dividends is alarming. The safety nets put in place by the Government  if they can get business lending right  will help.

But the best cure is to restore public transport and ease the lockdown for the young and fully abled as soon as practical.

Tiger balm Hong Kong has never quite been reconciled to the switch of domicile of HSBC to London in 1992 when it came to the rescue of Midland Bank.

The Bank of England insisted regulation and the main share quote shift to London, which seemed sensible enough given the British hand over of the territory to China five years later.

Ever since, there has been a tug-of-war between the City and Hong Kong over domicile. As HSBC became more global, with a series of acquisitions in the noughties, including the disastrous takeover of Household in the US, being in London looked logical.

But when the American ventures went wrong, and it was clear that Hong Kong, China and Asia-Pacific would remain the biggest source of earnings, pressure for a return to Hong Kong returned.

Much of this debate looked to have been settled by the recent once-in-a-generation review of domicile followed by almost a year of violent upheaval on Hong Kongs streets.

The current cessation of dividend payments, at the behest of the Government amid the Covid-19 trauma, has some Hong Kong-based executives pressing for a rethink.

HSBC has more than 1m shareholders in Hong Kong, many of them private individuals dependent on dividends to pay the rent.

That executives in Hong Kong should be using the current health emergency to press their own agenda is immoral.

But it is my understanding that chairman Mark Tucker is unmoved and will read the riot act.

Animal spirits Never has owning a dog seemed as attractive to me as I see proud owners exercising their hounds in Richmond Park each day.

This is great news for Pets At Home, a refugee from private equity, which is benefiting from soaring sales of animal food and other requisites.

It also has set aside 1million for pet charities and a further 1million for staff and discounts for NHS workers. Whoopee.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video conferencing with the Chief Ministers to discuss the measures to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic on April 02, 2020. The meeting is significant in terms of measures that have so far been taken by all the states, Union Territories as well as the central government to meet various challenges triggered by the crisis. (Image: Special Arrangement)


OTC Listing - DTC Eligibility Application Lodged

Sydney, April 2, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Theta Gold Mines Limited ( ASX:TGM ) ( OTCMKTS:TGMGF ) refers to the dual listing of the Company's shares on the OTCQB market in the United States (ASX release 8 November 2019). The Company's ordinary shares are listed on OTCQB under the code TGMGF.The Company is pleased to advise that it has now lodged its application for DTC eligibility with the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation, part of the US Federal Reserve System1 (DTC). Once approved, DTC eligibility will facilitate electronic trading of securities by individual investors that use self-managed online broking accounts (such as TD Ameritrade and E-Trade), as opposed to restricted trading through market makers.The Company has been advised that approval for DTC eligibility is expected during the current calendar quarter.About Theta Gold Mines Limited

Theta Gold Mines Limited (ASX:TGM) (OTCMKTS:TGMGF) is a gold development company that holds a range of prospective gold assets in a world-renowned South African gold mining region. These assets include several surface and near-surface high-grade gold projects which provide cost advantages relative to other gold producers in the region.

Theta Gold Mines core project is located next to the historical gold mining town of Pilgrim's Rest, in Mpumalanga Province, some 370km northeast of Johannesburg by road or 95km north of Nelspruit (Capital City of Mpumalanga Province). Following small scale production from 2011-2015, the Company is currently focussing on the construction of a new gold processing plant within its approved footprint at the TGME plant, and for the processing of the Theta Open Pit oxide gold ore. Nearby surface and underground mines and prospects are expected to be further evaluated in the future.

The Company aims to build a solid production platform to over 100Kozpa based primarily around shallow, open-cut or adit-entry hard rock mining sources. Theta Gold Mines has access to over 43 historical mines and prospect areas that can be accessed and explored, with over 6.7Moz of historical production recorded.
House Rules returns to Seven on Monday with 8 teams competing in an opening challenge to renovate a 1970s penthouse at the Focus tower on the Gold Coast.

Six teams will then proceed to renovate each others homes around Australia.

Tamara & Rhys

Queensland

Lawyer and Fitness Pro

Brisbane couple Tamara, 28, and Rhys, 29, prove opposites do attract.

We are very much opposites, Tamara explains. If I dont like people Im not going to spare your feelings over something, Ill just tell it how it is. Whereas, Rhys will just be nice even if he thinks youre not a nice person.

The half fiery, half chilled couple met at the gym where they both trained. After training at the same gym for a year, a mutual friend pointed Rhys out to me, says Tamara. Even though hed never spoken to me I followed him on Instagram, and the very next day he started talking to me and the rest is history.

Tanya & Dave

Western Australia

Married with Kids

Life is bright and breezy for Perth couple, Tanya,38, and Dave,36.

Happily married parents of three children, Luke, 8, Benjamin, 7 and Emily, 4, the photogenic Perth pair recently upsized to a bigger house in the burbs.

We have the perfect family house now where all the kids have room to grow up in and we can call our forever home, enthuses Tanya.

However, despite being spacious, their dream two-storey art deco heritage home is stuck in a 1980s time warp and needs a complete design overhaul to welcome it into the 21st century.

The house is just really worn and needs a lot of TLC. The kitchen is not functional and has a lot of old, tired, dark wood cabinetry and our bathrooms are daggy and dated, confirms Tanya.

Dave adds: The reason we entered the competition is basically to upgrade our home for the kids, something we would never be able to do ourselves at this point of our lives.

Susan & Anthony

Victoria

Married Cheerleaders

Husband and wife cheerleaders Susan and Anthony will be shaking their pompoms and strutting their stuff as they compete this year.

The newly married cheerleaders first met through a mutual friend ten years ago and are hoping their total lack of renovation experience will be made up for with plenty of enthusiasm and energy.

Nobody shakes pompoms like Anthony can, cheerleading and dance academy owner, Susan, 31, says.

Recently buying a house in Berwick, Victoria, to call their very first home, Susan and Anthony are hoping their meticulous organisation skills and healthy competitiveness will put them on the path to success.

Laith & George

New South Wales

Best Mates

Laith, 29, and George, 30, still live at home with their parents but agree they should fly the nest.

We both still live at home, me with my parents and George with his parents, confirms Laith. I think you could say we are like brothers from different mothers, but its time to move out.

Despite having no renovating experience, Laith is hoping his best mate George, who is a qualified builder and owner of a construction company, is going to be his guru.

Weve definitely got what it takes to win, me being a builder for years and Laith Laith is Laith, jokes George.

Kayne & Aimee

Victoria

Plumber Couple

Positive plumbers Kayne, 37, and Aimee, 26, are the first tradie couple in House Rules history.

Im pretty honoured to be the first lady tradie on the show, Aimee adds. I want to show everyone that we can give it a crack just as much as the fellas.

Both plumbers by trade this sunny couple from Victoria met on a job site in Sydney in 2015 and plan to win us all over with their hard work ethic and joie de vivre.

We are an easy going team that loves a laugh and never takes anything too seriously, says Kayne.

I cant see us getting too stressed about a situation, rather we will always find the positive and will work our butts off to make sure we are standing there at the end of the competition.

Lenore & Bradley

New South Wales

Mother and Son

Bradley, 31, is super close to his mum, Lenore, 55, and feels entering House Rules: High Stakes is his way of giving back.

Mum and my stepfather Michael have always sacrificed so much for us kids so Im really happy to be able to do this with her so she and Michael can hopefully get the home they deserve, says Bradley.

Lenore and Michael have been stuck at their current abode in Greystanes, NSW for years, unable to give it the love it so desperately needs.

A menswear fashion designer, Bradley is hoping his strong design skills and love for colour and prints, will help him and Lenore thrive in the competition.

Kimmy & Rhi

Tasmania

Twins

Twins from Tasmania, Kimmy, 31, and Rhi, 31, think their twin-tuition will give them the winning edge.

With my interior design qualification and our twin-tuition weve got it in the bag, reveals Kimmy.

The sisters who live and work in Launceston are virtually impossible to tell apart and are in complete sync with one another.

We finish each others sentences, we know how each other are feeling, says Kimmy.

We say the same thing at the same time, both twins chime in instantaneously.

Living only around the corner from each other the only two real differences between the pair is that Kimmy is single and Rhi has a partner, Sam,30, who she met online and has been seeing for the past two years.

Carly & Andrew

Queensland

Married Straight Shooters

Brisbane dad, Andrew, 46, admits hell only be guided by his wife Carlys opinions whilst renovating.

Ill listen to Carly but if outsiders try to give me design advice whilst Im renovating Ill be like youve got no idea!

The straight shooting landscape foreman from Sydney has already renovated with his wife on two previous NSW properties of theirs including one in Marrickville and another in Greenacre, before moving to Queensland.

We renovated our first apartment in Marrickville which was a 1970s deceased estate, Andrew explains.

We dropped the ceiling height with shadow lines all around it, removed a wall between the kitchen and lounge to make it an open plan living area and completed a full bathroom renovation where I installed all the floor and wall tiles.

Host Jamie Durie

Host Abbey Way

Judge Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen

Judge Kyly Clarke

Designer Saul Myers

Designer Carolyn Burns-McCrave

7pm Monday  Thursday next week on Seven.
Photo: Paul Wasneski/Flickr

Read on for the most recent top news you may have missed in Sacramento.

About one-third of Sacramento County coronavirus cases linked to church gatherings, health officials say

Health officials say a large chunk of confirmed coronavirus cases in Sacramento County are being linked to church-related gatherings.

Read the full story on CBS Sacramento.

To avoid coronavirus, Sacramento homeless take drastic measure: moving into a vacant home

As California's mandatory "stay at home" order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus approaches the two-week mark, but with no new shelter beds yet available in Sacramento, three of the city's homeless resorted to a drastic measure over the weekend: moving into a vacant house.

Read the full story on The Sacramento Bee.

Coronavirus first responders: Sacramento-area fire departments deploying mobile health care units

Meeting potential coronavirus patients where they are: That's the strategy behind a new mobile unit being deployed by fire departments and health authorities in the Sacramento area.

Read the full story on CBS Sacramento.

Unemployment applications surge as stay-at-home order continues

More than a million California residents have now filed for unemployment, and that number continues to grow.

Read the full story on CBS Sacramento.

This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
A new analysis by Oregon health officials offered the first positive sign that social distancing is helping in Oregon.

Sweeping social distancing measures appear to be reducing the transmission of the novel coronavirus between 50% and 70%.

The figures are estimates and do not signal that Oregon has defeated the coronavirus. Loosening restrictions would lead to a resurgence in cases in as little as a week. The state still faces major challenges, including the risk that front-line health care workers will continue contracting the virus.

Here are the latest developments to know Thursday:

UNEMPLOYMENT: More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week  doubling a record high set just one week earlier  a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus.

CARE: As the coronavirus spreads through Oregon, hospitals are taking in more patients. Hospitalizations have doubled in six days at Providence, and nearly tripled at Legacy Health. Its not clear how long most patients stay. State health officials say they do not know how may Oregonians have recovered so far from coronavirus.

CASES: One more Oregonian has died of coronavirus, and dozens more have been infected, bringing the total number of known cases in Oregon to 737. But the days rise in infected patients was the smallest increase in more than a week.

RESPONSE: Gov. Kate Brown asked the federal government to pay for as many as 1,250 Oregon National Guard members to help respond to the coronavirus pandemic. She also issued a 90-day moratorium on commercial evictions. The order comes as many small business owners reported panic and fear over the prospect of making rent this month. But Portland city leaders said that wasnt enough. Theyre calling for state officials to waive missed rent and mortgage payments.

BUSINESS: A Redmond factory has launched a new project to sterilize used face masks and high-end respirators that are in short supply. Other businesses are struggling. Demand for hotels fell 80% in Portland amid the coronavirus outbreak.

FOOD: Demand for online groceries has skyrocketed. Many shoppers who want to limit their exposure to the coronavirus are finding it hard to nail down delivery times. Some grocers are taking more social distancing measures. Costco will limit the number of shoppers inside the store at a time.

ESSENTIAL WORKERS: Employers across Oregon are having to address cases of coronavirus within their workforce. Among the essential workers who recently tested positive for COVID-19 include a Washington County firefighter, a Hillsboro Amazon warehouse employee and a state prison worker. Meanwhile, parents who work in essential service industries are trying to do their jobs and figure out how to address the sudden loss of child care after schools and many private day cares shut down.

CENSUS: The virus has complicated efforts for census surveyors. Only four in 10 households in Oregon have responded to the census so far.

COURTS: A federal judge in Oregon declined to tell U.S. immigration courts how to operate during the coronavirus outbreak after six nonprofits urged the judge to order all immigration courts to require remote hearings for detained people.

MEDIA: In Portland, Salem, Bend and Baker City, newspapers have cut staff in the past few weeks even as they raced to cover the coronavirus outbreak. Falling ad sales have prompted sweeping cutback statewide.

OUTDOORS: Recreation in Oregon is effectively closed. A beautiful spring weekend during the pandemic resulted in the unprecedented closure of public lands.

GOOD NEWS: An Oregon veteran -- free and clear of coronavirus -- celebrated his 104th birthday with relatives and staffers of the Lebanon nursing home where he lives. He may be the oldest patient worldwide to survive COVID-19. Meanwhile, firefighters and police officers in Clackamas County helped an 8-year-old boy mark his birthday.

-- The Oregonian/OregonLive

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.

Sign up for free text updates about coronavirus
US President Donald Trump On Wednesday (April 1) raised soiubt over the accuracy of official Chinese figures on its coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak after several lawmakers in the US accused Beijing of hiding numbers.

"How do we know if they are accurate. Their numbers seem to be a little bit on the light side," Trump said at a press conference. The US president, however, asserted that Washington's relationship with China is still good and he is close to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

But the recent war of words between US and China over coronavirus outbreak has strained ties with some Chinese claiming that the US military was to blame for the spread of virus in China.

Citing a US intelligence report, Republicans in Congress accused China of misleading the global community on the number of infections and deaths in Chinese mainland due to coronavirus.

Notably, China has officially confirmed 82,361 cases and 3,316 deaths as of Wednesday, while the US has 206,207 cases and 4,542 deaths so far.

Calling Beijing's numbers as "garbage propaganda," Republican Senator Ben Sasse said, "The claim that the United States has more coronavirus deaths than China is false. Without commenting on any classified information, this much is painfully obvious: The Chinese Communist Party has lied, is lying, and will continue to lie about coronavirus to protect the regime."

Michael McCaul, top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said China is "not a trustworthy partner" in the fight against coronavirus.

"They lied to the world about the human-to-human transmission of the virus, silenced doctors and journalists who tried to report the truth, and are now apparently hiding the accurate number of people impacted by this disease," McCaul said.

Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic infected 905,279 people worldwide and increased the death toll to 45,371 till 11.45 pm (IST) on Wednesday even as the head of the United Nations has described this crisis as humanity's worst since World War II.

The US has recorded the highest numbers of cases worldwide at 199,092 including 4,361 deaths. Italy has a total of 110,574 positive cases including 13,155 deaths, the highest fatalities globally. Spain followed Italy with 102,136 cases and 9,053 deaths.
Irene Hunt cares for elderly patients and people with debilitating illnesses in their homes. She decided to quarantine herself from her daughter Esther more than a week ago, because she didnt want to expose her to the coronavirus. Hunt and her husband worried not only about the risk of transmitting COVID-19 to their 7-year-old daughter, but also to her mother-in-law, who is 69 and providing child care now that schools are closed.

Hunt works in an essential services industry  a category of work necessary to keep communities operating, such as health care, grocery stores and garbage service. While tens of thousands of people have been forced out of other jobs, Hunts clients count on her care. She is among thousands of parents statewide trying to work and figure out how to address the sudden loss of child care after schools and many private day cares shut down.

Home care workers are doing essential work, and those of us who are parents need help, said Hunt, from Springfield. We cant care for people if our child care needs arent met.

Gov. Kate Brown ordered K-12 schools to close statewide to prevent the spread of the virus, a move that affected nearly 1,300 schools and 580,000 students.

The governor also mandated that schools provide emergency child care for workers in these essential industries to offset the loss of child care and required that private day cares prioritize emergency child care  for the children of workers in essential industries like Hunts  and limit their services to only ten children at once to avoid transmission risks.

The patchwork system remains hard to navigate and afford for some parents who cant work from home.

The Oregon Department of Education, which is overseeing state-run child care for essential service workers, is essentially building the new system from the ground up. Agency officials cannot quantify either the need for or supply of child care for the children of essential workers. Officials were able to confirm just two of Oregons 197 school districts had started offering child care  Salem-Keizer school district, which started providing child care Mar. 23, and Silver Falls school district, which will begin next week. Portland Public Schools also opened one center.

The Education Departments child care division has so far approved 620 applications from private providers to offer emergency care. Those caregivers must weigh the risks of added exposure, alongside other logistics, such as sanitation requirements and unpredictable demand.

Were grappling with a sudden transition and have only had weeks to get child care started, said Melanie Mesaros, spokesperson for the Early Learning Division within the Education Department.

But even these new options may not help workers who cant afford to pay for child care. Private day cares will continue to charge for care, and the cost of day care offered through schools will depend on whether or not the school is contracting with day care providers, a choice that individual districts will make.

Anticipating the increased need, state officials expanded financial aid programs to offset the costs of child care.

Hunt earns $13.50 an hour and cant afford emergency care to fill the days her daughter would have been in school.

For now, their daughter is living with Hunts mother-in-law. Hunts interactions with her are limited to talking on the phone or waving through the windows when she drops off groceries or activities.

Its a vulnerable feeling, Hunt said, because what if I get sick, and that was the last time I get to see her?

A statewide hotline fielded nearly 300 requests for information about child care options between March 18 and Tuesday, according to data from the hotline, 211 Info. Mesaros said most of the requests came from people who said they worked in essential jobs.

Portland Public Schools established one day care facility at Rieke Elementary in southwest Portland on March 20, and is prepared to open additional sites if there is demand for them.

Spokesperson Karen Werstein said the district is caring for about seven kids every day at the school care center. The district is providing the space, custodial services and food. The children are watched by licensed day care providers, Werstein said.

She said district staffers will provide information about how to get linked up with child care to parents who ask for it and will consider opening up more facilities, based on demand.

For essential workers like Hunt, going to work brings the added risk of contracting and spreading the virus. Stress about accessing and affording childcare compounds those concerns, said Melissa Unger, executive director of Service Employees International Union Local 503, which represents more than 72,000 public workers and care providers statewide.

Child care is one of the top things we are hearing about, Unger said. You have a lot of single moms, and lots of folks dont have families they can rely on to help them.

Workers in SEIU Local 49, which also represents many workers in essential industries, face similar concerns.

There is a lot of anxiety for families making 20 to 40 thousand dollars per year, said Felisa Hagins, the unions political director. Many of our workers are low-wage workers and being able to afford child care is concerning. They are making a lot of tough decisions around employment and their families economic status.

Unger says her union contacted state officials shortly after schools closed to voice concerns about child care.

It feels like they are working to find solutions, and that the solutions are just hard, Unger said.

The union partnered with state officials to survey home care workers and gauge how the lack of child care impacted their ability to continue doing their jobs. The survey received more than 300 responses within 24 hours.

State officials say it is impossible to predict what the demands on the emergency child care system will be.

For Hunt and others, not being able to afford child care pits her responsibilities to her family against her responsibilities to clients who rely on her.

One of my clients won't eat or take a shower if I don't help him, Hunt said.

Hunt has also gained new clients because some personal care workers have quit.

With so many other caregivers that are dropping out because they dont have child care or are quarantined, I cant just walk away and leave my clients by themselves, Hunt said.

-- Piper McDaniel; amcdaniel@oregonian.com; 503-221-4307; @piperamcdaniel

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.




Samoa bans all imported pork and pork products from ASF countries



The government imposed measure aims to stop African swine fever (ASF) from entering the country after Papua New Guinea confirmed an ASF outbreak, reported Fiji Times.

Tilafono David Hunter, Samoa agriculture ministry chief executive said the Samoan government has banned all pork from 26 countries with confirmed ASF cases, which include China.

However, any form of imported pork products such as canned or processed pork, will undergo strict testing.

All retailers are no longer allowed to sell any imported pork, which includes pork products such as canned pork.

- Fiji Times
This photo provided by Bibb County Sheriff's Office shows Caesar Crockett Jr. The Bibb County Sheriff's Office says officials are looking for Crockett Jr. He's accused of getting into a fight with his child's mother Tuesday, March 31, 2020 in Macon, Ga. During the fight, the sheriff's office says he pulled out a gun and fatally shot the woman's mother, stepfather and sister.ORG XMIT: GAPD101

The search for a Georgia man accused of killing three people and kidnapping his 2-year-old son ended Wednesday after an hours-long armed standoff in Florida.

Caesar Zamien Lamar Crockett Jr., 29, fled to Tampa with his toddler King Crockett after he allegedly shot three of his child's mother's family members during an altercation, according to the Bibb County Sheriffs Office.

Jamila Augustine French was injured during the physical altercation, and her mother, 67-year-old Janet Samuel; stepfather, 69-year-old James Samuel; and sister, 47-year-old Lechasta Childs, were killed. French was treated for her injuries and released, police said.

Tampa Bay Police Chief Brian Dugan said his department was alerted that Crockett could be headed to Tampa about an hour before an Amber Alert for the missing child was released. Deputies in an unmarked police car parked along Interstate 75 spotted Crockett's vehicle, a black 2007 Pontiac G5, and begin trailing him.

He attempted to flee the scene around 1:30 p.m. and the pursuit lasted "for quite some time" before he crashed, Dugan said. He gave up his young son to police, but remained in the car with a gun for 6 hours.

The child was taken to a hospital and was doing fine," according to Dugan. Crockett finally surrendered to the police at about 7:40 p.m.

They just kept talking to him, Dugan said at a press conference near the exit ramp where Crockett had crashed his car. I dont know if he got tired or what, but he eventually surrendered and we were able to take him into custody with no problems whatsoever.

Dugan thanked the officers for risking their safety during the coronavirus pandemic.

This just goes to show you their dedication, he said, that theyre willing to do anything, potentially exposing themselves to this virus, no matter whats going on in our world.

Crockett is facing three counts of murder and one count of kidnapping in Georgia.

The Bibb County Sheriffs Office said deputies took French to meet with the Hillsborough County Child Protective Service and pick up her son. The department shared a photo of their reunion on Facebook.

Story continues

Post by BibbCountySheriffsOffice.

Follow N'dea Yancey-Bragg on Twitter: @NdeaYanceyBragg

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Man accused of killing 3, kidnapping toddler surrenders after standoff
The current 21-day lockdown may help reduce the projected number of symptomatic novel coronavirus cases in India by nearly 83 per cent till day 20 from the beginning of the intervention, thereby flattening the COVID-19 curve, scientists say.

The modelling study by researchers from Shiv Nadar University in Uttar Pradesh considered the optimistic scenario, where cases are isolated immediately within one or two days since showing symptoms.

"We also assumed 80 per cent to 90 per cent of the population resorted to social distancing," Samit Bhattacharya, Associate Professor at Shiv Nadar University told PTI.

"In this optimistic scenario, we projected number of symptomatic cases can decline by almost 83 per cent by day 20 from the beginning of the lockdown -- 3,500 against 30,790 -- and deaths -- 105 against 619 -- as well," Bhattacharya said.

The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,965 in the country on Thursday while the death toll rose to 50, according to the Union Health Ministry.

The researchers believe that under the most optimistic scenario, the 21-day lockdown, announced by the government on March 24 to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, may help in slowing transmission and "flattening" the COVID-19 curve.

The researchers said the typical goal of flattening the curve is to minimise the number of cases over extended days, to gain more opportunities for interventions to control the spread of the virus meantime, and reduce the burden on the health care system.

At the beginning of the lockdown, India was in the second phase of the COVID-19 outbreak, with the disease spreading to close contacts, and there was no evidence for community transmission. However, the scientists said the country appeared to have slid into the third phase of the outbreak.

Some infectious disease carriers can unusually transmit the pathogen onto a dozen-to-few dozen others, called super-spreaders, they said.

The researchers estimated the number of symptomatic cases during the 21-day lockdown by considering a scenario where the basic reproduction ratio (R0) is 2.2, with super-spreading events triggered by COVID-19 carriers following the 20/80 rule, and an assumption of 30 per cent symptomatic cases.

R0 is an indicator that quantifies the nature of spreading infection -- a number that describes how many people a newly infected person is likely to pass the virus to others, the scientists explained.

For example, the R0 of influenza varies between 1.3 to 2, according to earlier studies, meaning that an infected person could potentially spread the flu virus to one to two others in a fully healthy population.

They said the super spreading 20/80 rule means out of total infected persons, 20 per cent of them contribute in spreading 80 per cent of infections in healthy population.

India, with a population density of 412 people per square kilometer, and an average range of 4.5 to 5 people in each family which typically has one person above 60 years of age is undoubtedly predisposed to the easy spread of highly transmissible COVID-19, the researchers said.

They believe the country may also have witnessed a super surge in symptomatic cases.

"Our prediction shows that India could have embraced about 5,000 and 30,790 symptomatic cases in the next 10 days and 20 days, respectively," said Naga Suresh Veerapu, Assistant Professor at Shiv Nadar University.

"The projected number of cases can reach approximately 2,70,360 and deaths 5,407 by day 40 in the absence of an intervention," Veerapu said.

A flattened COVID-19 curve for the next two or three months is difficult to comprehend, the scientists said.

All measures that provide few opportunities for the virus to spread must be continued, which not only limit any individual's infection hazard, but also protect the entire community, they added.

These measures may include, avoiding large gatherings, 14-day quarantine for suspected cases of infection, systematic surveillance, and expanded testing for the identification of COVID-19 infections, continued work at home for employees, the researchers said.

Practices such as respiratory hygiene, hand washing, and other protective activities at an individual level may help maintain a flattened COVID-19 curve, they added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chron.com is compiling the latest headlines on the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the Houston area.

6:08

A UH professor has developed a water-proofing solution for N95 masks that he hopes will combat the spread of COVID-19. "Standard masks are somewhat porous, and especially if they get wet, they can allow the virus to penetrate, " Curran said.

6:02

A Houston-area photographer is giving a boost to local businesses through free video shoots amid the tough business climate created by COVID-19 outbreak.

5:49

There are 27 new coronavirus cases in Fort Bend County, bringing their total number of cases now up to 221. Ten people have recovered from the virus.

Galveston County health officials have reported 12 new COVID-19 cases, which brings the county's tally up to 130 cases. Brazoria County health officials added 14 new cases on Thursday, which brings the county case total to 123.

5:31

The total number of COVID-19 cases has now surpassed the one-million mark worldwide, reaching a staggering 1,007,977 cases on Thursday afternoon. There have been 52,771 deaths worldwide and 210,055 recoveries.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. was 238,820, according to Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. death toll was more than 5,300.

5:09

Target has announced that it will provide face masks and gloves to more than 350,000 employees across the country. The megastore chain also said that it will actively monitor and when needed, meter guest traffic at its 1,900 stores nationwide to effort social distancing.

4:04 p.m.

A Harris County Sheriff's detention officer has tested positive for COVID-19, which brings the agency's number of confirmed cases up to 13. The officer is a male in his mid-20's who was working at the 1200 Baker Street jail facility. This is the first case of a detention officer to test positive for the virus.

At this time, there are 179 Harris County Sheriff's deputies, detention officers and staff on quarantine for possible COVID-19 exposure.

3:17 p.m.

Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said the officer in the hospital with COVID-19 is now on a ventilator, the Chronicle's Dylan McGuinness reports. The number of officers who have tested positive is now up to 17.

The number of firefighters with COVID-19 remains at 12 with 173 total quarantined, according to fire Chief Sam Pena. Forty-nine have been tested and two have recovered.

3:09 p.m.

Mayor Sylvester Turner announced 48 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the City of Houston, pushing the tally to 506, reports the Chronicle's Dylan McGuinness. Two more people have died, both in their 60s-70s with underlying conditions. The city death toll is now 6.

"The goal is to keep that number down," Turner says.

1:30 p.m.

Space Center Houston announced it will close to the public "until further notice," citing concerns over COVID-19. While you can't tour the facility in person, the learning center will still offer access to attractions online.

"The health and safety of our guests, employees, volunteers and local community is our utmost priority," officials said in a statement.

Another major tourist trap north of Houston is getting cracked down: Lake Conroe. Deputies tasked with patrolling the lake are enforcing social distancing rules on the water and areas where people gather on the lake, such as public beaches.

In Laredo, residents were mandated to cover their mouth and nose, which drew ire from some.

A BIT OF FUN: Check out the photo above of Houston's pro sports mascots in a social distancing pose.

9:30 a.m.

The last of Fort Bend County's free disinfectant distribution ended after fewer than two hours today.

Through private donations, the sheriff's office was able to dole out nearly 13,000 bottles of disinfectant spray to residents and hundreds of gallons to different entities, such as other first responders.

In northeast Houston, a new, free testing site is planned to open soon at Forest Brook Middle School at 7525 Tidwell. Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee said she helped secure the site and free testing alongside United Memorial Medical Center.

She said she hopes the site can help more senior citizens be tested for the virus.

"Our senior citizens are extremely vulnerable to this devastating virus, but it has proven deadly to young people as well and they make up the vast majority of those being tested," Jackson Lee said in a media statement. "Our efforts must target our senior citizens. We must test as many people as possible from all demographic groups in order to end this pandemic."

LATEST:

Today is the final round of free disinfectant distribution for Fort Bend County residents, courtesy of the county's sheriff's office.

SHORTAGE: Home Depot halts sales of N95 masks

Through private donations, the sheriff's office was able to dole out nearly 13,000 bottles of disinfectant spray to residents and hundreds of gallons to different entities, such as other first responders. The distribution is available for Fort Bend County residents only.

Fort Bend County residents can stop by 1521 Eugene Heimann Circle in Richmond starting at 8 a.m. today.

See Houston-area stats by county, including recovery rates:

Check back for updates as they come in.
2. Dear Evan Hansen

I managed to get tickets to see the original cast in New York maybe three years ago. My wife and my eldest son and I went knowing that this was very much the hot ticket but not really knowing why. And we just sat there transfixed. Ben Platt was extraordinary with his kind of chocolate voice, and theres an amazing story thats told with such energy and these fantastic tunes.

Theres something very exciting when you feel like you are ahead of the curve of your peer group  to go home and brag about having seen something very special  because it was years before it would come here. Then last year, I went to see the opening in London, with a brand-new guy called Sam Tutty, and hes equally exciting.

3. Pod Save America

As the world has politically gone to what some might call hell in a handcart, I find myself more and more obsessed with following the ins and outs on both sides of the Atlantic, and what happens next  because your politics are so inextricably linked to ours. Of course, [this podcast] is unashamedly partisan. The four guys [Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, Dan Pfeiffer and Tommy Vietor] used to work for Obama, and it comes from a left-wing, Democrat perspective. But it does it with a wit and a clarity and a slight anarchy that I find very useful to understand how American politics works.

4. Marvel Comics

I used to get a Hulk comic when I was little, and it was always Marvel Comics over DC Comics. I never quite connected with Batman and Superman. I realize these are slightly preposterous words to use, but I find Marvel characters somehow more believable. I abandoned them for a bit as a young man trying to be windswept and interesting. But in my slightly more mature years, Ive allowed myself to admit that I like having Marvel Comics in my life. Of course a few years ago I got to be one of those characters [Kilgrave in Netflixs Jessica Jones], which was a strange through-the-looking-glass moment.

5. The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

Im doing this play called Good [scheduled to begin in October at the Playhouse Theater in London], which is about a genuinely good man in the run-up to the Second World War, the rise of Hitler, and how he comes to terms with life under that regime. And how human beings adapt and find what they formerly found appalling perfectly acceptable  to overlook the occasional immorality because its easier than standing up and fighting it. Im trying to get my head as deep into that world as possible, so Im reading the largest book Ive ever tried to consume. Its an absolute doorstop. And this extraordinary retelling of those events sends a chill. It feels much more like a warning of things that might come back.
NEWTOWN >> The Council Rock School Board on Jan. 6 announced that it has granted Superintendent Dr. Robert Fraser a temporary leave from his duties as administrative head of the school district. In the interim, the board has appointed assistant superintendent for teaching and learning Dr. Susan Elliott as substitute Superintendent. The Board looks forward to Dr. Fraser's return to the district...
Julian Fernandez Mascaraque, 59, attends the burial of his mother Rosalia Mascaraque, 86, during the coronavirus outbreak in Zarza de Tajo, central Spain, Wednesday, April 1, 2020. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Raquel Fernandez watched as cemetery workers lowered her grandmother's casket into the grave and placed it on top of the coffin of her grandfather, buried just three days earlier.

Eusebio Fernandez and Rosalia Mascaraque, both 86, are two of Spain's more than 10,000 fatalities from the coronavirus pandemic.

Like thousands of other elderly victims in Spain, their deaths this week illustrate one of the darkest realities of the crisis: Doctors at overburdened hospitals in need of more resources are having to make increasingly tough decisions on who gets the best care, and age appears to matter more than ever.

"Due to a lack of resources in this country, they won't put an 86-year-old person on an assisted breathing machine. It's simply that cruel," said Fernandez, a nurse. "My grandparents fought all their lives to be happy and build their strength so they could grow old with dignity, so of course this moment is very painful, and it is difficult for us to cope with."

Her grandparents fell ill with a fever and cough. After staying home for several days as health authorities recommended, their son rushed them to a hospital in Torrejon, east of Madrid, on March 25.

Two days later, Eusebio died of respiratory failure after testing positive for coronavirus. Rosalia died 48 hours later but her test was inconclusive. Neither was put in an intensive care unit or on a ventilator, Fernandez said.

Family members, right, attend the burial of Rosalia Mascaraque, 86, during the coronavirus outbreak in Zarza de Tajo, central Spain, Wednesday, April 1, 2020. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

She said her grandmother had a heart condition, but that she believed her grandfather was in excellent health and should have been given more of a fighting chance.

"I understand that between someone who is 30 or 40 years old and my grandfather, they will not choose my grandfather, but if this had happened in another moment, in a health care system that claims to be among the best in the world, this would not have happened," she said.

The coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death.

Spain has recorded 110,238 infections, placing it just behind Italy's 115,242 cases, which is the most in Europe. The Spanish government said Thursday the country had over 6,000 patients in intensive care.

Agonizing life and death decisions are being made in Madrid and northeast Catalonia, the main hot spots for the outbreak.

Undertakers carry the coffin of Rosalia Mascaraque, 86, during the coronavirus outbreak in Zarza de Tajo, central Spain, Wednesday, April 1, 2020. Intensive care units are particularly crucial in a pandemic in which tens of thousands of patients descend into acute respiratory distress. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Spain's Health Minister Salvador Illa said care is being given "based on each patient's case profile, not their age."

But two weeks ago, workers in Madrid's hardest hit hospitals told The Associated Press that patients over 80 were not given priority for ICU beds because of their lower chance of survival.

On Wednesday, guidelines of Catalonia's medical emergency response service distributed to hospitals and seen by the AP recommended that virus patients over 80 not be intubated. The document said staff should "offer resources to those patients who can most benefit from them as far as years of life to be saved (and) avoid hospitalizations of people with scarce chances of survival."

Dr. Xavier Jimenez Fabregas, medical director of Catalonia's medical emergency system that distributed the guidelines, told AP that age is just one of many factors. He said the guidelines were accepted ethical practices being applied to this crisis, "given the elevated number of patients with respiratory failure."

The Italian Society of Anesthesiology, Analgesia, Resuscitation and Intensive Care issued 15 ethical recommendations in deciding ICU admissions if beds were in short supply. They called for wartime, triage-type decisions to benefit those with a better hope of survival, not on a first-come, first-served basis.

An undertaker prepares a grave during the burial of Rosalia Mascaraque, 86, during the coronavirus outbreak in Zarza de Tajo, central Spain, Wednesday, April 1, 2020. Intensive care units are particularly crucial in a pandemic in which tens of thousands of patients descend into acute respiratory distress. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Guidelines previously developed by New York state's health department exclude some seriously ill people from receiving limited ventilators in major emergencies but note that making old age an automatic disqualifier would be discriminatory. The plans add, however, that given the "strong societal preference for saving children," age could be considered in a tie-breaker when a child's life is at stake.

Recommendations published this week by German medical associations in response to COVID-19 also say age alone shouldn't be a deciding factor. Among the situations where they said intensive care should not be provided if availability is in short supply: if the patient needs permanent intensive care to survive.

Experts also say hospitals must calculate how long a patient might need a hospital bed or ventilator and how many more lives the machine might otherwise save.

In hard-hit areas of France and Spain, patients "are hospitalized only when there is a chance to save them," said Marc Bourquin of the French Hospital Federation.

Spanish doctors and nurses say they do not dispute that they offer the best care possible to every patient, but they said lack of ventilators and ICU beds amid increased demand have forced them to raise the bar on who gets what treatment.

An undertaker prepares a grave during the burial of Rosalia Mascaraque, 86, during the coronavirus outbreak in Zarza de Tajo, central Spain, Wednesday, April 1, 2020. Intensive care units are particularly crucial in a pandemic in which tens of thousands of patients descend into acute respiratory distress. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Dr. Olga Mediano of Spain's Society of Pulmonologists and Thoracic Surgeons said it is not just about saving the youngest.

"You always have to decide the ceiling of care for a patient. You don't want to put him or her through a treatment if it won't be good for them," Mediano told AP. "You would never intubate a patient who is 95 years old. They wouldn't be able to take it."

She described the current situation as unique, "with extremely limited resources and a certain number of ventilators, and intensive care units that are overwhelmed. You have to prioritize and see which patients will most benefit from certain treatments."

She said nearly every hospital in Spain is doing so, "and we are probably being more restrictive in giving access to the ICU than before because we lack beds."

At her hospital in Guadalajara, Mediano said they are making up for the lack of ventilators by using oxygen masks, and that some patients are responding better than expected. Other hospitals also are doing this, she said.

Family members attend the burial of Rosalia Mascaraque, 86, during the coronavirus outbreak in Zarza de Tajo, central Spain, Wednesday, April 1, 2020. Intensive care units are particularly crucial in a pandemic in which tens of thousands of patients descend into acute respiratory distress. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Julian Fernandez Mascaraque, 59, attends the burial of her mother Rosalia Mascaraque, 86, during the coronavirus outbreak in Zarza de Tajo, central Spain, Wednesday, April 1, 2020. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

Spain's public health care system is known for its efficiency and universal care, but it has seen significant budget cuts in the past decade. In 2017, Spain had an average of 9.7 ICU beds per 100,000 inhabitants, compared with 33.9 for Germany in 2017, 25.8 for the U.S. in 2018 and 16.3 for France this year, according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development,

One sign of hope in Spain is that it has recorded the second highest number of patients who have recovered from the virus with over 26,000. Only China, with 76,000, has more.

Health officials also say Spain's outbreak appears to be "stabilizing," as indicated by the steady slowdown of the growth rate for new infections. This appears to be due to the stay-at-home rules Spain has employed for over two weeks as part of a national state of emergency.

Hospitals also have rushed to increase capacity, and the number of intensive care beds have tripled in Madrid and in Catalonia.

But Lidia Perera, a nurse at Madrid's Hospital de la Paz, said the situation is still critical.

"Normal wards are starting look like they are almost ICU," Perera said. "Now the ICU is only for people who are going to be intubated."

Explore further How would overwhelmed hospitals decide who to treat first?

 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre confirmed last night that 14 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 in Ireland have died.

 10 deaths located in the east, 4 in the South

 The patients included 7 females and 7 males.

 8 patients were reported as having underlying health conditions.

There have now been 85 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland. The median age of deaths in Ireland is 82.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has been informed of 212 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland, as at 1pm, Wednesday 1st April.

In Louth, there are now 51 confirmed cases of Covid-19.

There are now 3,447 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.

The HSE is now working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.

Todays data from HPSC, as of midnight, Monday 20th March (2,990 cases), reveals:

 48% are male and 50% are female, with 134 clusters involving 563 cases

 Median age of confirmed cases is 48 years

 834 cases (28%) have been hospitalised

 Of those hospitalised, 126 cases have been admitted to ICU

 752 cases (25%) are associated with healthcare workers

 Dublin has the highest number of cases at 1,645 (55% of all cases) followed by Cork with 255 cases (8%)

 Of those for whom transmission status is known: community transmission accounts for 60%, close contact accounts for 21%, travel abroad accounts for 18%

Research conducted on behalf of the Department of Health shows that 65% of people in Ireland are engaging in digital interactions with family and friends.

The nationally representative online survey of 1,270 adults conducted today, and which will be conducted twice weekly, reveals:

 89% believe current social distancing measures are appropriate

 94% are confident in their ability to adhere to new restrictions

 85% feel they have adapted to changes since COVID-19 and know the steps to take if they develop symptoms

Dr. Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; Our research suggests that 1 in 3 people are worried about their health, with 3 out of 4 worried about the health of their families and friends.

People are taking action to look after their wellbeing. Two thirds of people are conversing with family and friends by using phone and internet.

Restrictions do not mean you stop maintaining your relationships or your health. Adapt your hobbies; go for walks, exercise and do the things that maintain wellbeing within the limits of physical distancing and public health advice.

I can confirm that expanded contact tracing for all confirmed cases for the 48 hours prior to the onset of symptoms, as decided by National Public Health Emergency Team will commence this week. This will reduce transmission of the virus.

Dr. Colm Henry, Chief Clinical Officer, HSE said; The public health messaging remains the same for all patients awaiting testing. Assume you have COVID19 and isolate. Each and everyone of you can break the chain of transmission of the virus, save lives and reduce illness among vulnerable groups.
Chennai Rains: Depression over north coastal region weakens, light rain very likely across TN

Chennai mall employees directed to remain in quarantine

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Chennai, Apr 02: The Greater Chennai Municipal Corporation has said that three employees of the Phoenix Marketcity Mall at Velacharey have contracted coronavirus.

The employees have been sent to home quarantine.

The civic body, in a statement, urged people to spread this news so that those who visited the Phoenix mall can take precautionary measures.

Three workers of Lifestyle Store in Phoenix Mall, Velachery have tested positive for COVID-19. All the workers of the store are now under home quarantine," a statement read.

The civic body also said that those who visited the Lifestyle showroom or the mall between March 10 and March 17 and those who work there to remain cautious and to seek immediate medical care if they develop symptoms of COVID-19.

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Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 20:01 [IST]
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Linkedin Asip Hasani and Apriza Pinandita (The Jakarta Post) Blitar/Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 13:30 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f2b6f7 1 World COVID-19,Wuhan-coronavirus,Singapore,Dutch-citizen,Joey-Schouten,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,Blitar,Malang,Netherlands Free

Last month, news of a Dutchman who claimed to have contracted COVID-19 in Indonesia in January emerged, stoking speculation that the disease had spread in Indonesia months before the country announced its first positive cases in March.

Joey Schouten, 21, a Dutch traveler said he came back to Indonesia in January after spending a couple of days in Singapore.

Eindhovens Dagblad  a local newspaper in Eindhoven, the Netherlands -- on March 20, recalling his visit.

Schouten told the news outlet that some Indonesian bystanders took him to a hospital when he was feeling ill during his visit to East Java, where he spent nine days in three different hospitals, on IV and ultrasound machines.

Schouten's version of events

Schouten told The Jakarta Post on March 26 that he went to Singapore to extend his visa in January. He visited tourist sites including Chinatown, before returning to Blitar, East Java, where he suddenly felt sick about 10 days later.

The Singapore government announced its first confirmed case in the country on Jan. 23.

He said he did not want to go to the hospital and stayed home in a sick condition for another three days. Afterward, he went to a hospital in Blitar, the Budi Rahayu Catholic Hospital, for a checkup. He said he was hospitalized there for two days before the hospital recommended that he go to a hospital in Malang as it could not find out what was wrong with him.

I went to Aisyiyah Islamic Hospital [] where I was hospitalized again for four days. And then I went to Saiful Anwar General Hospital and was hospitalized again for three days, he wrote.

The resident of Helmond in the Eindhoven metropolitan region told Eindhovens Dagblad he had no idea what had been wrong with him until he got a message from his doctor on March 19, informing him of the positive result of the medical test he had taken at a hospital in East Java back in January.

Read also: Months after returning home, Dutchman learns he had COVID-19 in Indonesia

The news outlet published a screenshot of a text message from a person named Dhea Daritsh, who claimed to be a staff member of Aisyiyah Islamic Hospital  a screenshot that also circulated on the internet. The message, in Indonesian, said that it related to Joey's "visit" to the hospital on Jan. 22.

The hospital has since issued a statement, saying the information was false. Aisyiyah said they never had a patient named Joey Schouten.

Just because one hospital denies it, it doesnt mean that its not true, Schouten told the Post.

On Feb. 3, Schouten posted a photo on his Instagram account showing himself lying on a hospital bed, geotagged to the Saiful Anwar General Hospital.

Schouten did not provide any exact dates for his version of events while he was in Indonesia, except for the screenshot of the message he received from someone he claimed to be his doctor.

A friend's version of events

The Post interviewed a man, Rino TH, 25, a resident of Garum subdistrict in Blitar regency, East Java. Rino claimed to be Schouten's friend during his stay in Blitar. Rino said he first met Schouten in 2018 when the latter visited Blitar. After months of living in the city, Schouten returned to the Netherlands.

At the beginning of November last year, Schouten returned to East Java, lived in Tulungagung for about one week before moving to Blitar on Nov. 16 and then renting a house, Rino told the Post.

On Dec. 20, Joey and Rino went on a bike trip to Bali from Blitar, and then stayed on the island for about four days, before arriving in Blitar on Dec. 28.

On Jan. 6, Schouten went to Singapore to extend his visa and return to Blitar on Jan. 10 after a one-night stay in Surabaya, Rino said.

About seven days later [Jan. 17], Rino said Schouten felt his throat hurt and had difficulty swallowing food and drink. On Jan. 22, Rino took him to the Budi Rahayu Catholic Hospital in Blitar.

After having a blood test, the hospital said Schouten had hepatitis, a diagnosis that was refuted by Schouten.

Following a suggestion from Rino, Schouten asked a "referral note" to be transferred to the Saiful Anwar General Hospital in Malang  about 70 kilometers east of Blitar. Both left the Budi Rahayu Hospital later in the afternoon, just hours after Schouten got examined.

The next day, on Jan. 23, Schouten told Rino that he went to the Saiful Anwar Hospital by online taxi Grab. He also told Rino that he might be hospitalized for about two or three days there.

The two did not communicate with each other until Jan. 25, when Schouten told Rino that he was leaving the hospital and returning to Blitar. Later that day, Rino met Schouten and Rino said he looked weak.

He also told me about his confusion regarding what kind of illness he was suffering from. He said he did not receive any clear information from the hospital, Rino told the Post.

Days later, Schouten decided to return to the Netherlands to get medical treatment even though his health had not fully recovered despite having no more difficulty in swallowing, according to Rino.

On Feb. 23, Schouten departed for the Netherlands.

Schouten and Rino have not communicated with each other since Feb. 25. On March. 21, Schouten reached out to Rino, saying that his name was all over the news. Rino then looked for the news until he found an article in Indonesian media outlet Republika.co.id about Schoutens COVID-19 positive result being sent to him from someone claiming to work at Aisyiyah Islamic Hospital.

Rino said he did not know how the hospital's name was included as one of the hospitals where Schouten was treated during his time in Blitar and Malang.

In his reply to the Post, Schouten insisted he went to Aisyiyah hospital before he went to Saiful Anwar.

It is possible that Joey contracted the coronavirus when he visited Singapore for the visa extension, or maybe not, Rino told the Post last week. Rino said whatever Schouten had, he had not contracted it, because he had been healthy since January.

Hospitals' version

Budi Rahayu Catholic Hospital confirmed a Dutch national named Joey Schouten visited the hospital on Jan. 22 to seek medical treatment for his illness. The hospital spokesperson Anton Y. Subandi told the Post on Saturday that Schouten had difficulties eating and drinking because of a problem in his throat.

The hospital told Schouten the diagnosis of his illness after conducting a laboratory test of his blood, Anton said.

Schouten submitted health insurance from a European insurance company to the medical service cost that the hospital rejected because it had no "cooperation" with the European insurance company.

Schouten's friend, a local, then suggested that Joey be given a "referral note" to get treatment at Saiful Anwar Hospital in Malang, said Anton.

Anton refused to specify the hospital diagnosis but asserted that the hospital did not have adequate medical equipment to conduct a test for COVID-19.

Earlier, Saiful Anwar Hospital confirmed they treated a patient named Joey Schouten from Jan. 23 to 25. Schouten confirmed to the Post that the dates Saiful Anwar provided were correct.

Aisyiyah hospital, meanwhile, denied that they ever treated a patient named Joey Schouten.

Schouten's version vs others'

The information given by Rino and the three hospitals all add up, in which Schouten visited two hospitals: a few hours on Jan. 22 at Budi Rahayu hospital in Blitar, traveled about 70 kilometers to Malang using a ride-hailing service on Jan. 23 and spent three days and two nights at Saiful Anwar from Jan. 23 to 25, or about four days in two hospitals.

The information throws doubt on Schouten's claim that he spent two days in Budi Rahayu and four days in Aisyiyah hospital afterward before being hospitalized in Saiful Anwar for three days. Schouten, however, insisted to the Post he went to Aisyiyah, although he did not provide the exact dates.
Hospitality group Lollipop unveils home-delivery cocktail range

Immersive hospitality group Lollipop has unveiled an innovative way to help the business survive the Covid-19 lockdown which has closed UK on-trade venues.

The London-based group has launched Cocktails by Lollipop, a range of bar-quality bottled cocktails which are available for delivery - with their garnishes - to homes around the UK.

The range includes Aperol Spritz, Sunny Sangria, Espresso Martini - made with a special 'foaming formula' - and The Valentina, a one-litre serving of Bellini. Each comes in a striking coloured bottle with its garnish in a separate pouch.

Bottles can be purchased individually (as a small one-serving bottle or large three-serving bottle) or in boxes of six or 12. Monthly subscription boxes are also available.

Lollipop founder Sebastian Lyall said the group had made the move to retain staff and keep its connection with customers during the lockdown, which is expected to last for several weeks.

"We have decided to bring bar-quality cocktails, along with garnishes, to your home so you can enjoy a delicious cold beverage in isolation with flatmates or family," he said.

"We are all drinking at home now so why not continue doing that and also support a small business which needs your love and care."

Lollipop's venues include The Bunyadi, the world's first naked restaurant, World War Two-themed cocktail bar The Bletchley, "cook your own" drinks bars ABQ London and Paris and The Grid, an escape room inspired by the television series Black Mirror.

Many drinks industry businesses and individuals have announced schemes to beat the UK lockdown, from online training sessions for bartenders to virtual whisky tastings.

2 April 2020 - Bethany Whymark
HOME is, for many, their safe space.

It is a haven from which they can enjoy respite from the outside world  usually their workplace  but under quarantine, those lines have become blurred beyond recognition.

Social distancing guidelines mean that couples who might have enjoyed an average of 10 hours apart daily, during which they would socialise, educate and work at their respective jobs, are now living in one anothers pockets for the foreseeable future.

Kate McCabe, a relationship and psychosexual therapist based in Dublin, says that couples who want to survive the quarantine with their relationship intact should abide by the four basic needs in a relationship: fun, power, love and belonging.

Firstly, for those who are experiencing relationship difficulty, be kind to yourself, she told Independent.ie.

Couples have found themselves coping with many changes suddenly  for example, they are now working from home, worrying about childcare, caring for elderly parents, facing unemployment and financial insecurity; all of which can cause panic and fear.

She advises establishing a consistent morning routine, a contract of sorts, in which both parties commit to some semblance of daily routine during times of widespread uncertainty.

Consistency is key  if youre working from home, you likely already have some bit of consistency, but it has proven to be very effective during stressful times. Get up at the same time every morning, have a cup of coffee at the same time.

It doesnt need to be exciting; it just needs to be a pattern youve established. Its a way to manage anxiety during an exceptionally anxious time, she explains.

Ms McCabe says that the key to enduring civility in captivity is communication, consideration and the negative reactive to the positive proactive.

Communication, above all, is essential. Partners need to talk to each other. They need to be open and honest and direct in how theyre feeling. In return, partners need to listen without criticism or judgement as to how the other is feeling. Make sure you ask once a day, How are you?

One thing we encourage with people is to consider one question before you say something. Ask yourself, will this help us or make things worse? When people are panicked and stressed, it all comes out, all past and present gripes. Its about avoiding that.

Her negative-to-positive response technique is one well-established in her practice. The power of positive thinking should extend beyond the personal to the couple.

Negative thoughts become realities, so think of one positive thing per day, she explains.

If youre off to a bad start, try to rescue it.

Youre signing up to a contract in your agreement to be consistent  whether thats starting the morning with breakfast, looking at the sky and listening to the birds. Try to start the day calm in partnership.

Panic and fear are contagious, but so is happiness. I tell people to still watch comedy and make sure to laugh. There are lots of things we cant control, but we can control how we think and react about this. You might like watching Rick Stein in France, so your goal is to plan a trip there when the time comes.

We dont have freedom, but we do have some. We can choose to do things like getting in nice food, lighting candles and putting on nice music.

In this climate, its a choice to be positive and proactive, even if someone is a bit upset, be calm in response. This is normal and healthy  this is reality. Acknowledge your partners strengths."

Real-Life

Shelley Carlyle (25) from Coolock, Dublin and boyfriend Jack Morgan (26) from Glasgow, Scotland, are still in the honeymoon phase of their relationship as Jack recently moved to Dublin after one year of a long-distance relationship.

Ms Carlyle, a midwife, has been self-isolating at their shared home in Terenure for 14 days before returning to work as she had been travelling.

This means that herself and Jack  a research assistant in a biochemical laboratory  are glued at the hip during this unique period in their relationship.

Were going very well thankfully. Jack being able to work from home is actually fabulous for us, she explains. We did long-distance for so long that were both really appreciative of the fact that we arent now. That would have been the worst  not knowing when youll see each other again.

The quarantine has provided an unusual chapter in their love story. And while they might not be doing it intentionally, they are practicing gratitude, which is one of the most recommended techniques for mental health agility during the pandemic.

I dont think either of us feel we have to spend time together; were grateful were spending it with each other. I cant imagine how difficult it is for couples who hate their partners or were considering breaking up before this, Shelley said.

Its still a novelty, of course. We had teething issues in the first month when we moved in together in December, but now were in a good routine.

Were both just appreciative that were in a safe home and not in a risky renting situation, or anything that would add extra stress to the situation."
President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday met with the Presidential Committee on the impact of the coronavirus on Nigerias economy, and directed the Ministry of Finance and National Planning to ensure that salaries were paid.

Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, who chairs the presidential committee, said this in Abuja while answering questions from State House correspondents at the end of the meeting.

She said the committee briefed the president on current happenings around the world due to COVID-19 and its impact on the countrys economy.

She said the president also directed the committee to put in place measures meant to protect the poor and less privileged members of the society from unnecessary hardships as a result of the virus.

She told the State House correspondents that the president also directed the ministry to ensure that critical infrastructure like roads, rails are protected and as much as possible, use local inputs so that the country retains value within her economy.

On the directives given, Mrs Ahmed said: Well, he has directed that we should make sure that salaries are paid, make critical infrastructures like roads, rails are protected, as much as possible use local inputs so that we retain value within our economy.

And also make sure that we take measures that protect the poor and the vulnerable.

The minister further explained that the purpose of the meeting was to update the president on situations that are evolving on a daily basis.

This meeting was just to brief Mr President as the situation we are in keeps evolving on a daily basis, as the health crisis gradually expands, affecting states and also the lockdown that has been ordered to help curtail expansion of the health crisis.

The consequences of the lockdown are the additional slowing down of the economy and the measures that we need to take to mitigate the negative consequences of the slow trade and businesses, she added.

The Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, who is also a member of the committee, said: The economy is not in the best of shapes due to COVID-19 and oil prices are collapsing every day, hence the need for the President to be constantly briefed.

Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, said: the economy is not looking as simple as everyone thought it would be.

The global economy, naturally, like we all know at this time, will naturally suffer growth problems and may even lead to recession globally.

So we are trying to see what we can do as a country to rescue our own situation so we dont go the direction many will go.

It is not going to be easy but we can only assure our people that we are on top of it and that we will resolve it and Nigerians will still be better for it.

Other members of the committee are Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Clement Agba, and the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mela Kyari.

(NAN)
Karen Fountain is no stranger to crisis situations. As a traveling nurse, she's cared for patients during dangerous times, including the Ebola outbreak in 2014. "That's what we're made for. We can walk in and start working in a day, two days. We don't need the full six months orientation. We can hit the floor running, and I think that's what makes us special, unique and able to assist," she said. Those specialized skills have never been more in demand. Across the country, the coronavirus pandemic is straining hospital systems, which are dealing with an influx of patients. State and health officials are responding by adding beds, canceling elective surgeries and reassigning staff. But more help is needed  especially more nurses.

Karen Fountain at work in a Bronx, NY hospital during the coronavirus outbreak. Source: Karen Fountain

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been pleading for health-care workers to come to the state, which leads the nation in confirmed cases, with over 92,381 reported as of Thursday. Ulster County Executive Patrick Ryan said the county, located 75 miles from New York City, has added 235 beds at the St. Mary's Avenue campus of HealthAlliance in Kingston and has commitments from two other local hospitals to double their capacity. Now, the county needs more medical workers to handle the increase. "Looking at the numbers, we knew we need to quadruple our hospital beds and of course the staff to go with it," Ryan said. "We are concerned about having enough doctors, nurses and medical staff on the front lines." As demand spikes, staffing agencies are offering unprecedented incentives for nurses willing to enter hot zones. NuWest staffing agency is paying those hired up to $10,000 a week in crisis pay. It's also offering relocation bonuses and tax-free housing and food. Fastaff, based in Denver, specializes in sending nurses to places hit by natural disasters, such as hurricanes, floods and tornadoes. It typically pays above market rates for staff, but Chief Executive Bart Valdez said the demand is so great that the company is increasing pay even further. "Typically, when we're fulfilling for a crisis, there's three or four hot spots around the country that we're focused on," he said. "Since this is so widespread, there's a great deal more competition for these nurses." Today's crisis comes at a time when the labor market for nurses was already tight, he added.

Karen Fountain and co-workers hold up signs urging people to stay home during the coronavirus pandemic. Source: Karen Fountain
A man from Kargil has tested positive for coronavirus and efforts are being made to trace all his contacts, a senior official said on Thursday.

"The test of one person has arrived. He is positive. The person belongs to Sanjak area of Chitan belt of Kargil", Commissioner (Health) Rigzin Samphel told reporters.

The infected person is already in quarantine in a hospital, he said.

Teams of health workers headed by a block medical officer (BMO) have been sent to the area of Sanjak-Chitan to find out his contacts and take urgent action, he said.

"We came to know that he had also visited Achanathang area of Kargil. We have sent a team to that area to find his contacts," he said.

While the man has no history of foreign travel, he had come in contact with pilgrims from Iran, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the U.S. military expands its territory into space, what will its early missions be?

Purchasing the next generation of GPS satellites, for one thing.

The Space Force became the sixth branch of the armed forces with much fanfare in December when President Donald Trump signed the National Defense Authorization Act. But its early days wont look like the sci-fi movies youre picturing.

The average American has no real sense of what it is that space does for them, said Shawn J. Barnes, a senior executive with the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Space Acquisition and Integration with the U.S. Air Force, and their imagination is more like Star Trek or Star Wars than it is thinking about the things that orbit and support them every day.

More on Space Force duties in tracking debris: Could internet-providing satellites create more space junk? Some worry about space-faring future.

So what is the early focus? Barnes said it will be providing the capabilities to support warfighters on the ground, at sea and in the skies. Protecting satellites that civilians use when finding routes home without traffic or making long-distance calls. And then making these systems resilient to evolving and increasing threats, which range from jamming communications and GPS satellite signals to using directed energy weapons, such as a laser, that applies focused electromagnetic energy against a target.

Much like the Marine Corps is an independent component in the Department of the Navy, the Space Force is an independent component in the Department of the Air Force. That means Barnes, Air Force Secretary Barbara Barrett's point man for space policy, architecture and integration issues, is playing a critical role in standing up the Space Force.

Some of his first purchases will be focused on more powerful GPS satellites. The Air Force has operated GPS satellites since the 80s and currently operates about 30 of them. Barnes said new satellites are needed as older satellites start to degrade.

Other procurement focuses will be on weather satellites, which help issue hurricane and tornado warnings among other things, and communications satellites.

And especially important are missile warning satellites. It was space operators at Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado, for instance, who saw that Iran launched missiles in January and alerted Americans and Iraqis to take cover before missiles struck the Iraq bases.

However, Barnes said he is not putting out bids for futuristic technologies. He first needs to work with NASA and other government agencies to better understand what the future might hold in cislunar, the space between Earth and the moon, and what role commercial companies will play in that portion of space.

Gen. John W. "Jay" Raymond, chief of space operations for the U.S. Space Force, is working on the Space Force culture - developing an eye-catching logo, a uniform and a term to call its members. He is also renaming bases, including Patrick Air Force Base, Schriever Air Force Base, Peterson Air Force Base and Buckley Air Force Base, that will primarily host space missions.

How COVID-19 is affecting space: Coronavirus pandemic puts pressure on time-sensitive space missions

And while he sorts that out, some 3,500 Air Force members whod been supporting the militarys space operations will be officially sworn into the Space Force this fall. The U.S. Air Force Academy is likewise graduating more than 60 people in April who will join the Space Force.

The next tranche of hires will be intelligence folks, cybersecurity experts, engineers and procurement specialists. People who enlist in the Space Force early on should expect to operate satellites or work at ground-based radar systems.

There likely wont be an opening for Capt. James T. Kirk or Capt. Jean-Luc Picard.

Its not clear to me that the Space Force, certainly in the near term, is going to be working in space, per say, Barnes said.

andrea.leinfelder@chron.com

twitter.com/a_leinfelder
April 1 (Reuters) - Yinson Holdings Bhd:

* 2 JV COS & UNIT RECEIVED NOTICE FROM AKER ENERGY GHANA OF DECISION TO TERMINATE LOI ISSUED ON 20 FEB FOR PROJECT AT DWT/CTP

* TERMINATION COMES IN LIGHT OF COVID-19 OUTBREAK Source : https://bit.ly/2V5bSn9 Further company coverage:
Over 4,300 persons left the country, including 1,700 foreigners.

The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine says nearly 6,500 Ukrainians returned to their home country over the past day.

As of the morning of April 2, there are no queues at checkpoints, border guards said.

Of all Ukrainians who returned from abroad in the past a day, almost 2,500 arrived without their own transport, with vehicles being provided by local authorities and the State Emergency Service.

Read alsoNumber of confirmed coronavirus cases in Ukraine rises to 804 by Thursday morning

In addition, over 4,300 people left the country for the same period, including 1,700 foreigners.

Over the past day, border guards together with representatives of the sanitary-quarantine departments have conducted temperature screening and a medical condition survey of over 8,000 persons. Following additional medical checkups, no signs of COVID-19 have been detected. All Ukrainians crossing in have signed self-isolation consent papers.

As UNIAN reported earlier, according to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, over 144,000 citizens returned to Ukraine over the coronavirus pandemic.
Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - Talon Metals Corp. ("Talon" or the "Company") (TSX: TLO) is pleased to announce that 5.73 meters (18.8 feet) of Mixed Massive Sulphides ("MMS") have been intersected and logged outside of the Company's resource area at the Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt project ("Tamarack Project"), located in Minnesota, USA. The Tamarack Project comprises the Tamarack North Project and the Tamarack South Project.

Highlights:

5.73 meters (18.8 feet) of MMS have been intersected in new drill hole 16TK0233C (starting at 500.45 meters) to the west of the Company's resource area (see Figures 1 & 2).





FIGURE 1: DRILL CORE FROM DRILL HOLE 16TK0233C: PHOTO FROM ~498.8 METERS TO ~506.5 METERS

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2443/54067_49eb6fb86450da27_002full.jpg









FIGURE 2: PLAN VIEW OF THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE HIGH-GRADE MSU WITHIN THE TAMARACK ZONE BELOW THE 138 ZONE. THE MAP SHOWS THE LOCATION OF DRILL HOLES 16TK0233C AND 16TK0233D WITH REPSECT TO THE BHEM ANOMALY AND THE HIGH-GRADE MSU RESOURCE AREA

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2443/54067_49eb6fb86450da27_003full.jpg





"We are excited to report that we have intersected 5.73 meters (18.8 feet) of mixed massive sulphides outside of the Company's resource area," said Henri van Rooyen, CEO of Talon. "As previously discussed, one of the Company's goals is to grow the resource at the Tamarack Project."

"Using directional drilling, we have now shown that we are able to cost-effectively target and drill more mixed massive sulphides," said Brian Goldner, Head of Exploration of Talon (on secondment from Rio Tinto). "Because of our effective use of geological and geophysical models as well as drilling methods, we anticipate that our drill program will be completed well under budget, leaving the Company with additional cash resources."

Drill Holes: Objectives, Design and Results

The objective of drill holes 16TK0233C and 16TK0233D was to test a potential widening of the high-grade massive sulphide unit ("MSU") evidenced by two Borehole Electromagnetic ("BHEM") plates that deviate from the trend of the massive sulphide (see Figure 2). Both drill targets lie outside of the Company's resource area. Hole 16TK0233C was targeting the center of a BHEM anomaly identified from drill hole 09TK0095, whereas drill hole 16TK0233D was targeting the edge of the BHEM anomaly identified in drill hole 16TK0233A.

Drill hole 16TK0233C was designed as a wedged hole from parent hole 16TK0233 and was directionally steered onto target, which eliminated the need to drill the top 311 meters of the hole. Drill hole 16TK0233D was drilled without the use of a wedge by drilling straight through the directional curve from 16TK0233C, which eliminated the top 343 meters of the hole. If drilled from surface, these targets would have required 1141 meters of drilling, but by using directional drilling, both targets were tested with only 485 meters of core drilled.

As a result, drill hole 16TK0233C intercepted 5.73 meters (18.8 feet) of MMS (starting at 500.45 meters) 5 meters (16 feet) to the west, and outside the Company's resource area.

Drill hole 16TK0233D was also drilled outside of the Company's resource area. The hole drilled the contact of the FGO/MZNO with CGO outside the Sedimentary wedge. A BHEM survey conducted on 16TK0233D has identified a strong BHEM anomaly to the north-east, towards 16TK0233A where the Company's resource area is located. Drill hole 16TK0233A intercepted 9 meters (29.5 feet) of MMS, grading 4.94% Ni, 2.08% Cu 1.00 g/t PGE's and 0.24 g/t Au (6.12% NiEq[1]) starting at 508 meters.

We look forward to providing results from further assays and geophysical data processing and interpretation when these become available.

Quality Assurance, Quality Control and Qualified Persons

Please see the technical report entitled "NI 43-101 Technical Report Updated Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) of the Tamarack North Project - Tamarack, Minnesota" with an effective date of March 12, 2020 prepared by independent "Qualified Persons" (as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") Leslie Correia (Pr. Eng), Andre-Francois Gravel (P. Eng.), Tim Fletcher (P. Eng.), Daniel Gagnon (P. Eng.), David Ritchie (P. Eng.), Oliver Peters (P. Eng.), Christine Pint (P.G.) and Brian Thomas (P. Geo.) for information on the QA/QC, analytical and testing procedures at the Tamarack Project. Copies are available on the Company's website (www.talonmetals.com) or on SEDAR at (www.sedar.com). The laboratory used is ALS Minerals who is independent of the Company.

Lengths are drill intersections and not necessarily true widths. True widths cannot be consistently calculated for comparison purposes between holes because of the irregular shapes of the mineralized zones. Drill intersections have been independently selected by Talon. Drill composites have been independently calculated by Talon. The geological interpretations in this news release are solely those of the Company.

The locations and distances highlighted on all maps in this news release are approximate.

Dr. Etienne Dinel, Vice President, Geology of Talon, is a Qualified Person within the meaning of NI 43-101. Dr. Dinel is satisfied that the analytical and testing procedures used are standard industry operating procedures and methodologies, and he has reviewed, approved and verified the technical information disclosed in this news release, including sampling, analytical and test data underlying the technical information.

About Talon

Talon is a TSX-listed base metals company in a joint venture with Rio Tinto on the high-grade Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project located in Minnesota, USA, comprised of the Tamarack North Project and the Tamarack South Project. Talon has an earn-in right to acquire up to 60% of the Tamarack Project. The Tamarack Project comprises a large land position (18km of strike length) with numerous high-grade intercepts outside of the current resource area. Talon is focussed on expanding its current high-grade nickel mineralization resource prepared in accordance with NI 43-101; identifying additional high-grade nickel mineralization; and developing a process to potentially produce nickel sulphates responsibly for batteries for the electric vehicles industry. Talon has a well-qualified mine management team with extensive experience in project management.

For additional information on Talon, please visit the Company's website at www.talonmetals.com or contact:

Sean Werger, President

Email: werger@talonmetals.com

Telephone: 416-361-9636

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain "forward-looking statements". All statements, other than statements of historical fact that address activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations or beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company. Such forward-looking statements include statements relating to the timing and results of the exploration program, including assay results, geophysical data processing and interpretation and the ability to extend the MSU at the Tamarack Project and the anticipation that the drill program will be completed well under budget. Forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements, and even if such actual results are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on the Company.

Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. Although the Company believes that the assumptions inherent in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly undue reliance should not be put on such statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.

Table 1: Collar Locations for Drill Holes Mentioned in Press Release

HOLEID Easting (m) Northing (m) Elevation (masl) Wedge depth (m) Azm Dip End Depth 09TK0095 490983 5168407 388.77 265.2 -73.6 663.86 12TK0158 490850 5168418 388.27 58.3 -89.2 594.66 16TK0233A 490914 5168369 388.40 392.0 283.6 -84.3 583.34 16TK0233B 490914 5168369 388.40 339.4 294.1 -83.2 551.08 16TK0233C 490914 5168369 388.40 309.7 300.4 -84.8 528.00 16TK0233D 490914 5168369 388.40 157.4 -89.8 578.51

Collar coordinates are UTM Zone 15N, NAD83.

Azimuth and Dip are downhole survey averages for the hole.

For daughter holes; collar coordinates and elevations are same as mother hole; approximate wedge depth given; azimuth and dip are the survey averages below the wedge.

[1] Where used un this press release NiEq% = Ni%+ Cu% x $3.00/$8.00 + Co% x $12.00/$8.00 + Pt [g/t]/31.103 x $1,300/$8.00/22.04 + Pd [g/t]/31.103 x $700/$8.00/22.04 + Au [g/t]/31.103 x $1,200/$8.00/22.04

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54067
Khairi Ali Ibrahim watched on as teams of workers exhumed a mass grave of Yazidis in Kocho village, south of Sinjar. It was difficult for the Yazidis," he said. "We waited for about five years for this step.

Ibrahim, the director of the Yazidi Organization for Documentation in Sinjar, said the exhumation, conducted in March, was part of an initiative by a national team of Iraqi parliamentarians and politicians and UN representatives to exhume mass graves and to promote accountability for crimes committed by the Islamic State (IS).

On Feb. 27, the national team announced its first list of individuals found in the Yazidi mass grave. It included 62 names, all of them male.

At a Baghdad press conference, the national team said that 73 mass Yazidi graves had been found, and 13 of them exhumed. The remains of 347 victims have been retrieved from the graves. The team noted that the official funeral processions will take place March 12. The team noted that the burials will take place within the two following days. However, all ceremonies were postponed until further notice due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

Saeb Khadr, a parliamentarian for the Yazidis, praised the efforts of the international and national teams for their contribution to exhuming the graves. He affirmed at the press conference that the remaining graves will be exhumed, and he called for more attention to this matter. Khadr urged handing over IS members to the courts and charging them with committing genocide.

Dia al-Saadi, director of the Department of Mass Graves Affairs and Protection of the Martyrs Foundation, a governmental body, told Al-Monitor that the process of opening mass graves faces several challenges, including attacks from IS and its allies. The exhumation teams face other challenges such as diseases, difficulty breathing and sunstroke. Also, the graves are far from the cities and lack suitable places for teams to live, not to mention a shortage of finances to complete the work.

Saadi said the team's tasks include "searching for and opening mass graves and exhuming bodies, controlling and documenting the evidence, and then handing the remains to forensic medicine to conduct matching operations between the bone specimen obtained from the remains and the blood sample provided by the families of the victims. An identity verification document is then issued for those who are identified. All legal papers are also referred to the competent courts to enable and assist the judiciary to issue appropriate decisions.

He agreed with Ibrahim that the identification of victims will help alleviate their families' suffering. It could also help rebuild trust between the families and state institutions, as well as facilitate accountability and future judicial procedures.

Not all names of the exhumed bodies are revealed since the matching procedures are still ongoing in the forensic medicine department," Saadi said, adding that they do not have enough information about victims to make identifications. "The next steps will be to open soon some mass graves in Ninevah province. All Iraqis graves in general were documented and the names of the victims were entered into a database for the department.

Ibrahim told Al-Monitor that the 62 Yazidis found in a mass grave had been shot and killed by the Islamic State. The specialists and those who supervised the opening of the Yazidi mass graves confirmed this," he said. "They stated that most of the injuries were in the head and chest of the victims, all from Kocho village.

He said the mass grave was discovered with the help of field survey teams as well as male and female survivors, "who were with their families when IS executed them."

Some graves were already open, which led to bone loss," Ibrahim said. "Others were washed away by the rain torrents and must be worked on in utmost speed. The incomplete blood samples and their severe shortage substantially slow the work in forensic medicine. Some families may have no surviving members or one at best.

Ali al-Bayati, a member of the Independent High Commission for Human Rights in Iraq, said the mass grave at Alo Antar, a giant pit, "contains the remains of more than 400 Shiite Turkmen victims, 600 Yazidis and other groups in addition to the bodies of members of the security forces from different regions in Mosul who were killed by al-Qaeda and IS members.

Quoting eyewitnesses, Bayati said IS would detonate explosives at Alo Antar to expand the pit of graves. He said the government is working to open this mass grave to provide victims' families a sense of justice. Those families have given testimonies to the International Commission on Missing Persons and the Council of the Independent High Commission for Human Rights.

The Office of Kidnapped Yazidis, funded by the Kurdistan Regional Government, said the Islamic State killed and kidnapped thousands of Yazidis, and that dozens of mass graves are located in Sinjar and the Ninevah Plains.

Of note, the first Yazidi mass grave was opened on March 15, 2019, in Kocho village.
Keeping active during menopause could help women maintain muscle mass, according to new research

A new European study has found that physical activity appears to boost well-being for women at all stages of menopause and could also help post-menopausal women reduce symptoms of depression.

Carried out by researchers from the University of Jyvaskyla, and Central Finland Central Hospital, Finland, the new study looked at 1,098 women aged 47 to 55 and asked them to self-report their mental well-being and levels of physical activity.

To determine the women's stage of menopause, the researchers asked them to keep a menstrual diary and took blood samples to record their hormone concentrations. Using this data, 304 women were classed as pre-menopausal, 198 were early perimenopausal, 209 were late perimenopausal and 387 were classed as postmenopausal.

The findings, published in the journal Menopause, showed that premenopausal women had fewer depressive symptoms than postmenopausal women, although menopause was not linked to the women's feelings of life satisfaction, or how positive or negative they felt.

However, the researchers also found that the women who had a high level of physical activity appeared to have fewer depressive symptoms, as well as higher satisfaction with life and a more positive outlook than those with a low level of physical activity.

"According to our research, postmenopausal women had more depressive symptoms than peri- or premenopausal women," says doctoral student Dmitriy Bondarev. "At the same time menopause was not related to positive mental well-being."

"Physically active women had lower depressive symptoms, had higher positive affectivity scores and were more satisfied with life in comparison to inactive women," Bondarev explains. "Thus, being physically active during the menopausal transition may help to withstand the negative influence of menopause on depressive symptomatology and spare positive mental well-being."

The researchers explain that the menopausal transition, which occurs on average between the ages of 46 and 52, is divided into three stages; pre-menopause begins five to ten years before menopause; perimenopause is the phase before the last menstruation; postmenopause is the phase after the last menstruation.

Although it is well-known that menopause has a physical effect on women, less is known about how it can affect mental health and well-being. The team commented that the new findings suggest that no matter what menopausal stage women are in, physical activity was beneficial for mental well-being.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Sabyasachi Dutta has accused the ruling Trinamool Congress of not letting the opposition help people after he was stopped by the police from distributing food during the Covid-19 lockdown, saying chief minister Mamata Banerjee was doing the same.

Dutta, a former mayor of Salt Lake, alleged that officers in the administration did not take his calls or respond to his messages when he tried to inform them about his plans.

He said the police stopped him on Tuesday saying it might lead to crowding in violation of the 21-day lockdown orders.

I was only inspired by the chief minister, Dutta said after he was stopped by police from distributing rice, pulses, etc among poor people.

Also read: Two patients die in West Bengal, death count reaches 6

Dutta left the Trinamool Congress and joined the BJP last year.

BJP state general secretary Sayantan Basu also alleged he was not allowed to distribute food in the Hare Street police station area on Tuesday and the matter was resolved only after a long argument.

Interestingly, the administration did not stop the BJPs West Bengal unit president Dilip Ghosh or the partys Asansol Lok Sabha member and Union minister Babul Supriyo from distributing relief material on Monday and Tuesday.

No police officer commented on these incidents.

So, we have to conclude that it is alright when the chief minister distributes relief material but when the BJP does the same it is a violation of lockdown orders. This is absolutely unacceptable, Dilip Ghosh said.

We have received reports that people are not getting relief material in many districts. Hoarding of essential items has led to price rise and the state government is doing nothing, Ghosh added.

Urban development minister and Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim said the opposition leaders were breaking the rules of the lockdown announced to stop the spread of coronavirus disease.

Opposition leaders should not put people at risk by starting a political competition. This is not the time for it. By drawing crowds while distributing relief materials they are only violating the lockdown announced by the Prime Minister, Firhad Hakim said.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / International Mining Corp ( CSE:IMCX) ( OTC PINK:IMIMF) (the "Company" or "IMC"), is pleased to announce, further to its news release dated March 18, 2020, that it has completed the acquisition (the "Acquisition") of 100% of the issued and outstanding share capital of Thane Minerals Inc. ("Thane"). Thane holds a 100% interest in an approximately 206 km2 (50,904 acres) land package (the "Land Package") located in north-central British Columbia, which includes six highly prospective mineralized areas identified to date including the "Cathedral prospect'.

Purchase Consideration

As consideration for the Acquisition, IMC has issued to the former shareholders of Thane (the "Vendors") an aggregate of $2-million CAD worth of common shares in the capital of IMC, at a deemed price of $0.38 per common share, for a total of 5,263,158 IMC shares (the "IMC Shares"). The IMC Shares will be escrowed and released over a 36-month period.

In addition to the foregoing, if, through additional exploration programs, a resource calculation of at least 800,000,000lbs of copper-equivalent, as determined based on a National Instrument 43-101 (Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects) ("NI 43-101") compliant resource estimate, is determined to be indicated within the Cathedral prospect area, then IMC will issue an additional aggregate of $2-million CAD worth of common shares (or cash in lieu, at IMC's option) to the Vendors.

Changes to the Board

In connection with the completion of the Acquisition, Mr. Thomas Greg Hawkins has been appointed as a Director and Chairman of the Board of IMC.

Mr. Hawkins holds a BSc in Geology from the University of Alberta and an MSc in Mineral Economics from McGill University. He has been involved in the Mining Exploration and Investment industries since 1969 and has been variously responsible for the identification and/or delineation of 10 mineral deposits in Canada, USA, Chile, Ghana, Mali and Zaire (DRC).

Mr. Hawkins is currently a Director of New Pacific Metals Corp. (NUAG) and was the Founding Project Consultant and/or Founding Director of seven public and private Exploration/Development ventures (Brohm Mining, Dayton Mining, Nevsun Resources, Banro Resource Corp., Tagish Lake Gold Corp., African Gold Group, Yellowhead Mining Inc.) and has participated in or been responsible for the definition of at least one resource/reserve in every case, with six of those cases resulting in production in the USA, Chile, Ghana, Mali and DRC. These ventures collectively have accounted for over $2.1 billion in market cap at the companies' respective peaks.

In 1990 Mr. Hawkins co-founded CME Consulting Ltd., an international full service consultancy and contracting firm that has served over 100 clients in 25 countries and has employed over 3000 people. He has authored and presented a number of papers on exploration, exploration philosophy and mineral economics since 1979. In 2004 he was awarded the Frank Woodside Past Presidents Award by the British Columbia and Yukon Chamber of Mines in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the mining industry.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Brian Thurston

Chief Executive Officer and President

ABOUT INTERNATIONAL MINING CORP.

IMC International Mining Corp. is a junior exploration and development company. It is focused on creating shareholder value through the acquisition, exploration and development of gold assets, which include the Company's 100% owned Bullard Pass Property in Arizona.

IMC continues to evaluate additional properties to add to its portfolio of mining assets.

INVESTOR RELATIONS:



i r@internationalmining.ca

1 (604) 588-2110

https://imcxmining.com

Forward-Looking Information: This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws relating to statements regarding the potential delineation of mineral resources within the Cathedral prospect area, and the Company's business and plans, including with respect to undertaking further acquisitions and carrying out exploration activities in respect of its mineral projects, including the Cathedral Project. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance and developments to differ materially from those contemplated by these statements depending on, among other things, the risks that no mineral resources are delineated within the Cathedral prospect area, that the Company does not complete any further acquisitions; that the Company does not carry out exploration activities in respect of its mineral projects, including the Cathedral Project, as planned (or at all); and that the Company may not be able to carry out its business plans as expected. Except as required by law, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation and does not intend to update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information in this news release. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct and makes no reference to profitability based on sales reported. The statements in this news release are made as of the date of this release.

The CSE has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the content of this press release.



SOURCE: International Mining Corp

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583535/IMC-International-Mining-Corp-Completes-Acquisition-of-Thane-Minerals-Inc
With rise in Omicron cases, SC to conduct hearings virtually for next two weeks

Can't allow every person who thinks of some solution to COVID-19 to file petition: SC

PIBs first bulletin after Supreme Court directive on fact check portal

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 02: The Press Information Bureau released its first bulletin after it set up a portal to check the flow of fake news. The decision to set up this portal was taken after the Supreme Court frowned upon the flow of fake news during the outbreak of this pandemic.

Latest updates on COVID-19 from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and various steps being taken for prevention, containment and management of COVID-19 in the country. As of now, 1637 confirmed cases and 38 deaths have been reported. During the last 24 hours, 376 new confirmed cases and 3 new deaths have been reported. 132 persons have been cured /discharged from the hospitals after recovery.

Cabinet Secretary's video-conference with Chief Secretaries/DGPs of the States:

The States were sensitised about the intensive contact tracing of Tablighi Jamat participants as this has increased the risk of containment efforts of COVID-19. The States were asked to complete the contact tracing process on a war footing.

It has been found that foreigners who had participated in the Tablighi Jamat had violated visa conditions. The States were asked to initiate action for violation of visa

condition against the foreigners and the organisers of the event.

PIB set ups COVID-19 fact check unit

The States were asked to implement the PM Garib Kalyan Yojana within the next week. This will involve large cash transfer to beneficiaries. It should be organized in a manner to ensure social distancing.

It was noted that lockdown is being implemented effectively all over the country. The States were asked to ensure that intra-state movement of goods is allowed without any hindrance while maintaining social distance.

The manufacturing of essential goods should be ensured. It should also be ensured that the supply chains of such goods are maintained.

74 flights for transporting medical cargo:

Under Lifeline Udan initiative of Ministry of Civil Aviation, 74 flights have been operated till date for transporting medical cargo across the country. A total of 37.63 tonnes of cargo has been transported till date out of which more than 22 tonnes has been transported on 31st March 2020.

Supreme Court's directions to media:

The Supreme Court of India has directed the Media, including print, electronic and social media, to maintain a strong sense of responsibility and ensure that unverified news capable of causing panic is not disseminated.

HRD Minister meets IIT Directors:

HRD Minister directs Directors of 23 IITs to take care of the students, faculty and staff in the campus. Also directs them to ensure maximum number of students being covered through online courses.

Price Monitoring & Resource Unit in J&K:

Jammu & Kashmir Union Territory has become 12th State where the Price Monitoring & Resource Unit (PMRU) has been set up by National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA). The PMRU shall help NPPA and State Drug Controller in ensuring availability and accessibility of medicines at affordable prices.

CIPET working against COVID-19:

In the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, Central Institute of Plastic Engineering & Technology, a Govt. of India Institute, is undertaking noble works for the wellbeing of community through its facilities in different states.

#Stayathome and send us your selfie

Fertiliser PSUs donate Rs 27 Crore:

PSUs under the Department of Fertilizers, have donated more than Rs 27 crore to PM CARES fund to fight COVID-19 pandemic.

Raksha Mantri reviews assistance efforts:

Raksha Mantri reviewed through video conference the assistance being extended by various organisations of Ministry of Defence to fight COVID-19. He directed all the organisations to redouble their efforts and work in close coordination with other ministries/organisations of Central Government in this crucial time.

IAF airlifts essential medical supplies:

Indian Air Force continues to provide full support in Nation's efforts to contain the spread of the Novel Coronavirus and the management of COVID-19. IAF has airlifted nearly 25 Tons of essential medical supplies in last three days from Delhi, Surat, Chandigarh to Manipur, Nagaland and the Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.

National Monitoring Dashboard on COVID 19 Grievances:

DARPG's National Monitoring Dashboard on COVID 19 Grievances was launched today where COVID19 related grievances received in CPGRAMS with all Ministries/ Departments and States/ Union Territories are monitored on priority basis by a technical team of DARPG.

Preparations of Railways in supplementing national efforts reviewed:

Minister of Railways has directed the officials of Indian Railways to reach out to needy people with food and other assistance to the best of their human abilities and resources. IRCTC and RPF are already engaged in distribution of free meals to the needy persons. Railways should widen the outreach of their efforts and go beyond the proximities of railways stations to deeper areas in consultation with district authorities and NGOs etc.

Multi-lingual videos by TIFR on Covid-19

Tata Institute of Fundamental Research has came out with a package of engaging and illuminating communication materials containing a set of multi-lingual (9 languages) resources (youtube videos) in explaining why social distancing is helpful for tackling viral outbreaks like COVID-19.
Photo credit: Matthew Lloyd - Getty Images

From Town & Country

Tired of being cooped up at home? Perhaps you'd like to imagine life someplace a bit bigger, a bit grander, and a bit more, well, royal? You're in luck, because many of the British royal family's palaces and castles now offer extensive virtual tours. Whether you want to traipse around Buckingham Palace or peek down the corridors of Windsor Castle, you can get a bit closer to achieving your dreams through these interactive online resources. Test them out and remember that there's nothing wrong with a bit of escapism.

Buckingham Palace

Photo credit: Pool/Tim Graham Picture Library - Getty Images

It makes the most sense to start with Buckingham Palace, the Queen's official residence and the royal family's headquarters. London's grand Palace also hosts a variety of special events, including jubilees, weddings, and the annual Trooping the Colour, which marks the Queen's official birthday. Buckingham Palace welcomes tens of thousands of visitors each year, and you could be one without leaving your home.

The Palace's virtual tour includes the opulent Grand Staircase, the White Drawing Room, the vibrant red Throne Room, and the Blue Drawing Room.

Windsor Castle

Photo credit: WPA Pool - Getty Images

While you may not have been invited to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding, you can imagine being there while touring the venue. Windsor Castle has been a royal home and fortress for more than 900 years. When royal weddings are not occurring, the castle acts as the Queen's homewhere she usually spends the weekendand as a royal residence where she performs certain official duties.

With this virtual tour, you can start by going inside a traditional State Banquet in St. George's Hall. Then visit the Waterloo Chamber and the Crimson Drawing Room. Make sure to click on the "i" icons for even more information about each space.

The Palace of Holyroodhouse

Photo credit: Tim Graham - Getty Images

If you want something with a bit of Scottish flair, take a look at the Queen's official residence in Scotland: The Palace of Holyroodhouse. Located in Edinburgh, the Palace was the principal residence of the Kings and Queens of Scots starting from the 16th century. This Palace hosts visitors throughout the year, and is available for your own personal viewing online through this virtual tour.

Story continues

The Tower of London

Photo credit: Kypros - Getty Images

While no one currently lives in the Tower of London, the building is technically a castle and is officially known as Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London. Founded in the eleventh century by William the Conquerer, the Tower has been used as an armory, a treasury, a menagerie, a public record office, the home of the Crown Jewels of England, and, most commonly, a prison. The Tower is now mostly a tourist attraction and a place to display the Crown Jewels.

Take a virtual tour, which includes photos of many of these precious jewels, here.

10 Downing Street

Photo credit: Scott Barbour - Getty Images

If you're in the mood for something more castle-adjacent (i.e. a MASSIVE house), Google Arts & Culture offers a virtual tour of 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Casually referred to as Number 10, the home is over 300 years old and has approximately 100 rooms. Number 10 was first used when King George II offered it to Sir Robert Walpole, the de facto first British Prime Minister, in 1732, so it certainly has royal ties.

On your virtual tour, you can explore the Cabinet Room, the Study, and the Grand Staircase. Each area also has accompanying informational videos, so you can really brush up on your British political history as you peruse.

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More than 30 percent of Wyomingites say they or a family member have lost their job or been laid off in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a University of Wyoming study.

The survey also found that more than 50 percent of people here say they or their immediate family have had their hours or pay cut.

The survey, which was conducted over 24 hours beginning Monday, paints a stark picture of the virus impact on the state, both economically and personally. What makes the data all the more concerning is that health officials across the state have said that this is likely the very beginning of the diseases spread. Indeed, the survey shows that two-thirds of those who spoke to UW researchers shared the view that the worst was yet to come.

Whats more, 64 percent of respondents believe the threat was real and not blown out of proportion. A quarter of respondents said they thought it wasnt a real threat.

The survey is the first in a wave of such measures that the universitys Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center plans to conduct to study the effects of the coronavirus in Wyoming. It showed broad concern about the disease here, which, as of Thursday afternoon, infected at least 153 people. It showed overwhelming support for how Gov. Mark Gordon has handled the situation, with less  but still positive  confidence in President Donald Trumps guidance.

The universitys researchers contacted 465 people for its survey, which has a margin of error plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.

Gordon has not issued a shelter-in-place order for Wyoming, which would undoubtedly have adverse impacts on the economy, though the medical community says its in the best interest of public health. The survey shows that the majority of those surveyed support such a move: Fifty-four percent would support shelter-in-place, with 22 percent opposed and 23 percent unsure.

Still, the survey results show people are taking the measures Gordon has put into place to heart: More people are washing their hands, staying home and limiting contact with people. It also shows broad support for Gordon. Nearly 82 percent of respondents said they approved of how hes handled the crisis, with even more  87 percent  saying they trust the information hes put forward.

The survey results show that Wyomingites for the most part are taking the threat of COVID-19 seriously, and changing their personal behaviors to reflect that seriousness, said one of the researchers behind the report, Brian Harnisch. Most Wyomingites trust the information they are hearing from Governor Gordon, and a large majority  82 percent  approve of how he has handled the situation so far.

Gordon and State Health Officer Alexia Harrist have ordered the closure of schools and many types of businesses where people tend to congregate. Bars and coffee shops are closed, though restaurants have been allowed to remain open for delivery and takeout.

The bleak economic numbers, with droves of people saying theyve been financially impacted, comes the same day as unemployment figures nationally were released, indicating an additional 6.6 million people had filed for unemployment insurance benefits in the last week of March. Statewide, similar applications have soared recently.

On a local level, 79 percent of people support the measures taken by local officials, with even higher levels of trust for the information theyre getting from public entities.

Theres a slight dip in approval for Trump: Sixty-two percent say they approve of his leadership and handling of the situation, while 34 percent disagree. The majority  55 percent  say they trust the information Trump is providing about the disease.

Financial fallout

Among the 464 people contacted for the survey, roughly 32 percent said they or an immediate family member had lost their jobs or been laid off. More than 56 percent said theyd had a pay cut or lost hours at work because of the virus spread, which caused the closure of most non-essential, public-facing businesses across the state.

More than 71 percent of those who responded to the survey said they were very concerned about the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, according to the university, while only 5.7 percent said they werent concerned. Three-quarters of those surveyed expressed concerned about how the virus would impact their own finances, while the remaining 25 percent said they werent concerned.

Nearly 90 percent of the respondents said theyd changed their daily routines: 80 percent are eating out less, washing hands more, avoiding physical contact with others more and spending more time at home. Those results are good news for state leaders and health officials, including Gordon, who for weeks have urged people to stay home, avoid contact with others and wash their hands.

The approval ratings are lowest for Congress  47 percent approve of their governance, with 45 percent disapproving. As for peoples confidence in the health care systems ability to absorb the pandemic, just over 50 percent said they had confidence, 30 percent said they didnt, and roughly 20 percent said they werent sure.

Harnisch said that the surveys authors are very confident these survey results represent the views of Wyoming residents as a whole.

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The residents of a locality in Madhya Pradeshs Indore pelted stones at healthcare workers who went there to screen people in the wake of coronavirus outbreak. Two female doctors reportedly sustained injuries in the incident.

Health department officials said that the incident happened when the workers sought to take an elderly woman to hospital for her medical examination as she was said to have come in contact with a Covid-19 positive patient.

The locality where this incident took place was Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore. A case has been registered against unidentified people.

More on Covid-19:

 Covid-19: Your guide to staying safe

 Covid-19: What you need to know today

 Can Covid-19 spread after symptoms end?

 How coronavirus is different from seasonal flu and common cold

Meanwhile, 19 new Covid-19 positive cases have been reported in Indore, taking the total number of cases to 75 in the city. The total number of positive cases in Madhya Pradesh stand at 98.

Chief Medical Health Officer Dr Praveen Jadiya said that as many as 600 people have been put in quarantine in the city.

A 65-year-old man who had tested positive for Covid-19 died in Indore on Wednesday.

Taking into consideration the rising number of coronavirus cases in Indore, Collector Manish Singh has divided all the hospitals in the district into three categories - Red, Yellow and Green - to ensure that there is no further spread of the disease and the general treatment of people can also continue.

The yellow category hospitals have been provided with PP kits, the red category hospitals, where the COVID-19 patients will be treated, will also be provided with ample PP kits. In the rest of the green category hospitals, where no such cases will go, can use the other kits readily available for the screening of patients, Singh told reporters on Wednesday.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

Covid-19 infections across the world crossed 900,000, with the United States, Italy, Spain and the UK now reporting the bulk of approximately 4,000 new daily fatalities.
The latest U.S. government effort to better the nation's weather forecast modeling may not be adequate to achieve its intended goal, according to leading scientists in the weather community. The planned effort, some say, lacks the necessary push for innovation.

Others say it does not provide the necessary investments in science for the United States to regain its status as the world leader in weather prediction.

On March 20, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration put out a request for proposals to partners, with a $45 million reward, to help it improve its weather forecast computer modeling. But some prominent voices in the weather community worry the scope of the request is too narrow for any organization to realistically help the government reach its goal.

Over the last few decades, NOAA's flagship prediction model, known as the Global Forecast System, or GFS, model has not kept up with forecasting gains made by several other international institutions, even though it has improved. Popularly known as the American model, its accuracy ranking recently slipped to fourth place, continuing to trail models in Europe while also falling behind Canada's main model.

The Trump administration has stated that improving U.S. weather modeling is a "top priority." In February, NOAA announced it was spending $505 million over eight years to buy new supercomputers, tripling the agency's capacity to support its modeling needs. The upgraded computing power is expected to be on par with that of the top international modeling centers.

To harness the power of these computers, NOAA released the March 20 request for proposals to find a partner outside the government to design and build what it calls the Earth Prediction Innovation Center.

EPIC is intended to be a "community modeling" effort, drawing in talent and expertise from universities and private companies to accelerate model improvement. A long-standing criticism of NOAA's modeling efforts is that they have been too insular, not sufficiently engaging the outside community.

In its RFP, NOAA announced that the winning bid will receive up to $45 million over five years to work with the agency in creating "the world's most accurate and reliable operational weather forecast model," according to a news release.

But several voices in the weather community have expressed concern that the RFP is too focused on technical matters related to computing and will not allow the award recipient to advance the science underpinning the modeling.

The RFP "is mainly about the 'plumbing' of numerical weather prediction and supporting outreach, with little mention of scientific innovation," wrote Cliff Mass, a professor of atmospheric science at the University of Washington and long-time critic of NOAA's modeling approach, in an email.

"There is ... no mention of how to bring the weather research community together, nor any requirement to demonstrate progress in providing the nation with better weather forecasts."

"I hope that everyone remembers that the 'I' in EPIC is for innovation, and facilitating that may be its most important function," wrote Gary Lackmann, a professor of atmospheric science at NC State University, who has advised NOAA on modeling efforts, in an email.

"So, while I recognize the need to discuss computing, the cloud, and software engineering, I do think greater emphasis is needed on the mechanism for reaching out to the community to draw on the potential innovations that are out there."

NOAA's response to this feedback is that this particular RFP is intended to identify a partner who can help it establish and sustain a process for tapping outside innovation, but isn't about actually conducting the innovation itself.

"The role of EPIC is to manage the process by which external innovation is integrated," wrote Chris Vaccaro, a NOAA spokesman, in an email.

In public forums, NOAA acting administrator Neil Jacobs, the architect of EPIC, has made this point, telling partners a computing infrastructure must first be established before innovation is brought in.

But if scientific innovation is not a focus of the RFP, then weather community leaders say that it must come next and that NOAA and Congress should strongly back it.

"NOAA must increase its support for R&D [research and development] on weather and climate prediction, in order to be able to take best advantage of EPIC's software developments," wrote Jim Kinter, who directs the Center for Ocean-Land-Atmosphere Studies at George Mason University.

Fred Carr, professor emeritus of meteorology at the University of Oklahoma, wrote that the computing aspect of EPIC is "absolutely a vital component." But he noted the RFP provides no funding for the underlying science, so "it is also vital that Congress continues to support the NOAA programs that fund such R&D."

Tony Busalacchi, president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, in an email, called the RFP effort as "just the first step" in the government's effort to recapture U.S. supremacy in weather forecast modeling.

But some are hopeful the EPIC RFP will lay the foundation.

"I look forward to seeing EPIC rise from this process and am optimistic it will be a major milestone in improving weather and climate services for the nation," said Peter Neilley, director of weather forecasting services at IBM, via email.
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(Newser)  Joe Biden is on course to become the Democratic nomineebut it may not become official until a lot later than expected. The candidate said Wednesday night that the Democratic National Convention should be pushed back from July to August because of the coronavirus pandemic, the New York Times reports. The convention is currently scheduled for July 13-16 in Milwaukee. "I doubt whether the Democratic convention is going to be able to be held in mid-July, early July," Biden said on the Tonight Show. "I think it's going to have to move into August." Biden has an almost insurmountable delegate lead over Bernie Sanders, but postponing the convention will give him less time to spend party funds reserved for a general election campaign against President Trump.

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Before Biden's remarks Wednesday, Democratic National Convention chief executive Joe Solomonese said organizers have to "balance protecting the health and well-being of convention attendees and our host city with our responsibility to deliver this historic and critical occasion." Other party officials say it is doubtful whether a traditional convention, with close to 5,000 delegates and thousands of other attendees, will take place at all. Options including a virtual convention or a drastically downsized gathering are being considered. A traditional convention is "out of the question at this point," veteran Pennsylvania superdelegate Ian Murray tells CBS. "I don't see where we're going to be able to all gather in a petri dish in Milwaukee with the coronavirus." (GOP organizers say they are still "fully committed" to holding their convention in North Carolina in August.)
Shamain Webster, who lives in the suburbs outside of Dallas, has seen the signs of a coming apocalypse for a while now, just as the Bible foretold.

Kingdom would rise against kingdom, Jesus taught his disciples in the Book of Luke. Webster sees widespread political division in this country. There will be fearful events and great signs from heaven, he said. She sees biblical values slipping away. A government not acting in the peoples best interest. And now this  a pandemic.

But Webster, 42 and an evangelical Christian, is unafraid. She has been listening online to one of her favorite preachers, who has called the coronavirus pandemic a divine reset.

These kinds of moments really get you to reevaluate everything, she said. As everyone goes through a period of isolation, she added, God is using it for good, to teach us and train us on how to live life better.

For people of many faiths, and even none at all, it can feel lately as if the end of the world is near. Not only is there a plague, but hundreds of billions of locusts are swarming East Africa. Wildfires have ravaged Australia, killing an untold number of animals. A recent earthquake in Utah even shook the Salt Lake Temple to the top of its iconic spire, causing the golden trumpet to fall from the angel Moronis right hand.

But the story of apocalypse is an old one. In ancient religious traditions beyond Christianity  including Judaism, Islam and Buddhism  it is a common narrative that arises in moments of social and political crisis, as people try to process shocking events.

The original word in Greek  apokalypsis  means an unveiling, a revelation.

Its not just about the end of the world, said Jacqueline Hidalgo, chair of religion at Williams College in Massachusetts. It helps us see something that is hidden before.

As a pandemic thrusts the United States and much of the world into a new economic and social order, those who study and practice religion see deeper truths being unveiled.

The crisis is revealing health care inequalities, class divisions and the fact that the most important workers in American society are among the least paid, said Jorge Juan Rodriguez V, a doctoral candidate in the history of religion at Union Theological Seminary in New York. What is being revealed are the fault lines in the system that always existed, he said. We are just noticing it now because the system is stressed.

About 44% of likely voters in the United States see the coronavirus pandemic and economic meltdown as either a wake-up call to faith, a sign of Gods coming judgment or both, according to a poll commissioned by the Joshua Fund, an evangelical group run by Joel C. Rosenberg, who writes about the end of the world, and conducted last week by McLaughlin & Associates, pollsters for President Donald Trump and other Republicans.

David Jeremiah, a pastor who has been one of Trumps informal evangelical advisers, asked in a sermon recently if the coronavirus was biblical prophecy and called the pandemic the most apocalyptic thing that has ever happened to us.

Among Christians, one of the most well-known apocalyptic narratives is the Book of Revelation in the New Testament, which tells the story of the defeat of an evil beast, a final divine judgment and the coming of a New Jerusalem.

While many biblical scholars read the book as a story about the destruction of corrupt political systems, many evangelical Christians believe it describes the rapture  Jesus return to save believers from a period of tribulation.

Joshua Johnson, 46, in Keller, Texas, spends time reading the story and interpreting its symbols, written nearly 2,000 years ago, in modern terms. He looks for the rise of the mark of the beast, a demonic mark all people will be forced to bear.

He wonders if Jesus will return by 2028, 10 years after Trump moved the US Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, which he saw as a prophetic sign. I tell my children, I think we are that generation, said Johnson, who attends Gateway Church, a prominent evangelical church.

In the United States, where Christianity is by far the dominant religion, about 40% of American adults believe that Jesus is definitely or probably going to return to Earth by 2050, including 1 in 5 religiously unaffiliated people, according to the Pew Research Center.

Some evangelical Christians are finding hope in a divine promise that God has saved them for eternity, a feeling of security amid so much uncertainty. For me personally it is just a reminder that God is sovereign, said Mark Lovvorn, 65, who attends First Baptist Dallas and is chairman of Providence Bank of Texas.

For centuries, religious traditions have not only offered a way for humans to understand apocalyptic moments. Over time, these hours of crisis have also shaped religion itself.

Some of the earliest apocalyptic speculation is found in Jewish scriptures, in stories like the Book of Daniel, as the Hellenistic age gave way to the Romans around the second and first centuries BC and Jewish communities experienced violent persecution. Some Jews speculated again about the end of time when the Roman army destroyed the Second Temple in Jerusalem in AD 70.

As the early Christians turned to an external savior and as the Romans continued to crush rebellions, Jewish leaders realized they needed to survive in the world as they knew it, explained David Kraemer, head librarian and professor of Talmud and rabbinics at Jewish Theological Seminary in New York.

The rabbis developed a system in which Jews could live anywhere, under any government and live meaningful lives connected to neighbors and to God.

That was the Judaism that enabled Jews to live through persecution, plagues, medieval centuries and on through early modernity, Kraemer said.

Every year the celebration of Passover, which begins next week and recounts 10 plagues from the Book of Exodus, is a reminder of Gods redemption. The Passover Seder says we have been in difficult circumstances before and we will get beyond them, he said.

In the Islamic tradition, the Quran tells stories of plagues and of a final earthquake that will tear the Earth apart, as well as stories of finding God in the created world.

In mainstream Islamic thought there is a distinction between the end of the world and the concept of apocalypse, said Amir Hussain, professor of theology at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. Apocalypse also includes what happens when ones eyes are opened.

Look at the creation, look at the oceans, Hussain said, reflecting on a favorite passage in the Quran about Gods mercy. How much better is it to have that realization in this lifetime?

In Buddhism, time is cyclical, not linear, making apocalypse both an end and a beginning. Apocalypse happens, and then a new order starts  a new social order, new moral order, said Vesna Wallace, professor of Buddhism at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The story repeats itself.

Apocalyptic stories in Buddhist scriptures share similar themes, often including an unjust ruler, social inequality, plagues and fruits that do not ripen, she explained, referring to texts from the fifth and 11th centuries A.D.

In Buddhist traditions, apocalypse comes as a result of collective karma  everyones actions toward one another and the world  which means its outcome can change, even in the present circumstance. Now people are kinder to each other; they are spending more time with families, Wallace said. Its like a warning to change the course of actions, to bring back compassion, empathy, develop social equality.

Modern, secular American life is filled with its own apocalyptic visions. Movies and television shows depict civilization on the brink of extinction. The Walking Dead explores life amid the zombie apocalypse. The Hunger Games presents a dystopian future after conflict and ecological disasters have destroyed much of the world.

A stark, binary structure  a clear good and evil, a clear before and after  appeals when society is fractured, said Hidalgo, the religion professor from Williams.

Apocalypse is a flexible script, she said. A sense of shared external evil can really bring folks together.

It is also a reminder that across several traditions, the memory of past crises can offer hope  that humans have survived such moments before and that the truths being revealed can become a call to action.

The countrys idols are being exposed, said Ekemini Uwan, a public theologian and co-host of the podcast Truths Table. People are advocating that we throw our grandparents to the slaughter, sacrifice them on the altar of capitalism, she added, referring to Republican leaders who have suggested that older Americans might be willing to sacrifice themselves to save jobs.

For too long America has been on spiritual life support, trusting its own invincibility, she said.

Is it the end of the world? Maybe it is, maybe it is isnt, she said. But we need to be ready. We need to learn to number our days because we really do not know when our last breath will be.

Elizabeth Dias c.2020 The New York Times Company
Is the Pandemic Driving US to Digital Dollars?

Concern about getting federal relief payments to Americans quickly may prompt rise of cryptocurrency dollar

Commentary

Has the time of digital currencies finally arrived?

Maybe so. In fact, theres no maybe about it. It has.

With the pandemic all but halting the entire U.S. economy, Congress and the president have enacted a $2.4 trillion relief plan. A big part of that plan involves directly depositing thousands of dollars into most Americans bank accounts.

Thats never been done before on such a scale. But then, we have no living memory of such a pandemic.

Its a brave new world.

Digital Dollar Introduced

The reasons for doing so can be argued for and against, but thats for another time. The key point here is that during the negotiations of the bill between House Democrats and Republicans, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) introduced the idea of creating a digital dollar.

The rationale is clear, if not altogether compelling. At least, not yet.

Pelosi noted that requiring the Federal Reserve member banks to establish digital dollar accounts or digital wallets for every American would make it much easier and quicker for the relief funds to reach them. That may be true, but does that reason alone make it the worthwhile or even the right thing to do?

Is convenience a valid reason for every Americans financial privacyand our constitutional rightsto be put on the scrapheap of history? Is it so very important that Americans are paid via a digital currency rather than receiving checks through the mail, or even via direct deposit, which is almost as fast?

Millions of Americans have been paying their taxes, as well as receiving tax refunds, via direct deposit for at least a decade if not more.

Why Now?

Why is direct deposit suddenly not good enough?

Also, why is it the left-wing progressives in Congress who are the ones pushing for the creation of the digital dollar?

The answer is simple enough: It would give the federal government, that is, the Federal Reserve, even more control over the economyand every Americanthan they already have. That, in itself, should put the idea onto the scrapheap of U.S. history.

But, Im afraid that wont be happening anytime soon.

Although the digital dollar was ultimately not part of the current federal relief plan, there will undoubtedly be other relief plans to follow this one. Look for other digital dollar proposals in those to come.

Digital Dollar a Certainty

In fact, its not only likely that a digital dollar will be created sooner rather than later, its an absolute certainty. As I mentioned above, its not about convenience as much as it is about expanding control.

With the current world situation rapidly deteriorating, control over currency, it will be argued, will become even more of a national security issue than it already is.

Digital currencies themselves are based on highly accurate and ideally frictionless platforms that enable banks to move whatever amount of digital currency wherever they wish, without the usual international barriers such as transfer fees, anti-money laundering checks, and other friction points involved in moving money from point A to point B around the globe.

Beta Testing Is Over

Distributed ledger technology, otherwise known as blockchain technology, was the seminal invention that allowed such anonymous and secure transactions to occur between two bitcoin holders anywhere in the world over the internet.

In fact, central banks around the world have been beta testing hyperledger fabric platformsessentially second-, third-, or fourth-generation blockchain environments that possess enhanced exchange performance, oversight, and privacy use aspects, among othersfor the past few years with high success. All of them are in various stages of creating if not issuing cryptocurrencies as alternatives to, and eventual replacements for, their actual currencies.

This new idea may not sit well with some boomers, who grew up with and trusted cash in hand. But for the millennials and Generation Z, its a no-brainer. These digitally native generations already practically use digital currency daily. Whether paying for their lattes, buying and selling items online, or doing their banking all online from their smartphones, they do so without ever handling cash. Making the transition to digital dollars would likely be immediate and seamless.

Cash Carries Diseases

One other benefit of digital dollars is that, unlike paper currency that circulates quickly throughout a population, digital money is not a vector to transmit deadly viruses. Recent news reports explain how dollars repatriated from Asia are being quarantined to prevent the further spread of the CCP virus.

That, in itself, may actually be the most compelling reason of all to make the switch from paper to digital dollars sooner rather than later. But its still not enough of a reason to give up what few rights seem to remain with us.

Blockchained Into Submission

Thats the irony of the emergence of the digital dollar. The original cryptocurrency, bitcoin, was created in response to the abuses and destruction by the worlds central banks that caused the 2008 global financial crisis.

The idea behind bitcoin was to create a currency that would be beyond the manipulation and control of central banks. It was to be a peoples currency that offered financial privacy, borne of the digital revolution, and setting people free from financial control and unbridled taxation of traditional financial authorities.

By allowing bitcoin holders to conduct buy-and-sell transactions completely hidden from the prying eyes of central bankers and government taxing authorities, people were free to do as they pleased. No one could see because all identities and transactions were hidden. Hence, the crypto in cryptocurrency.

The Real Pandemic

When the digital dollar finally does come about, it will bring with it a sea change in our identities as Americans. We will cease to be a truly free people. Rather, we will be, and possess, primarily financial identities.

Our value and worth as human beings will be degraded into earning, spending, and taxpaying units, overseen by central bankers and federal bureaucrats to a heretofore unknown granular degree.

Perhaps thats the real pandemic.

James Gorrie is a writer and speaker based in Southern California. He is the author of The China Crisis.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
CBC

An artist from Tsiigehtchic, N.W.T., who uses beads to replicate space, stars and entire universes, will have her art showcased in the Smithsonian, right next to Vincent van Gogh's work. Margaret Nazon's beading of the Milky Way is in Washington, D.C., where it will be presented in the Recovering Our Night Sky exhibit on light pollution at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. It will be beside a virtual image of van Gogh's The Starry Night. "I think because it's quite different, it's not like pa
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

More than 400 nursing homes and long-term care facilities in the United States are now also hotspots for person-to-person transmission of COVID-19. Many of these facilities are located in large cities such as New York City and Los Angeles, but the disease isn't contained to urban centers. In Maryland, 77 of the 95 residents in a Mount Airy nursing home have tested positive for the coronavirus, and five residents have died of complications from the disease.

Alice Bonner is a geriatric nurse practitioner who has served as director of the Division of Nursing Homes in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. She is a senior adviser with the Institute for Healthcare Improvement and an adjunct faculty member at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. She joined Sarah LaFave, a Ph.D. student at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, to discuss the special considerations that arise for older people living in long-term care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

There is a great deal of concern about the spread of COVID-19 in long-term care settings. Why are these settings at heightened risk for outbreaks?

Older people and people with multiple co-morbidities tend to have more severe symptoms if they contract COVID-19. Residents of nursing homes tend to be more frail, have more functional limitations, and have more chronic and complex conditions than other older adults. Based on the data that we have about COVID-19, that puts nursing home residents at highest risk for serious illness as a result of exposure.

In addition, nursing home residents often require help with things like using the toilet, getting in and out of bed, and getting dressed. Social distancing and hand-washing are the best ways to prevent spread of the virus, but these essential person-to-person interactions are still going to have to happen, meaning that residents and staff may be more likely than other people to spread the virus to one another.

What precautions are long-term care facilities taking to limit the spread of COVID-19?

Pretty much across the board, facilities are limiting visitors. For the most part, the only people who should be going into nursing homes and assisted living facilities at this point are essential staff. There are a few exceptions to that, such as in the case of compassionate care. If someone is not expected to live many more days or weeks, a family member may be permitted to visit. Also, for some people who have behavioral manifestations of dementia, for example, it may be necessary to permit a familiar one-on-one caregiver to be with that person.

Another thing that facilities are doing is screening staff and essential visitors for symptoms of COVID-19. That might include taking a person's temperature and asking about recent respiratory symptoms like a cough and shortness of breath, before that person enters the facility. In addition, facilities are providing meals to residents in their individual rooms rather than in group settings, and have canceled group activities.

Who makes decisions about visitor policies and other precautions for long-term care facilities?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and CMS put out federal guidance. In addition, each state health department, or whatever other state agency oversees nursing home safety and quality in a particular state, will issue state-specific recommendations or mandates. These typically include guidance on visitation policies, hand-washing, use of personal protective equipment, use of private rooms and isolation, testing procedures, and disease management.

If an older person in a nursing home develops COVID-19 symptoms right now, how are facilities handling that?

The answer is not to take the person directly to the emergency room or to call 911, unless the person has emergent symptoms like trouble breathing. The resident or a nursing home representative should communicate with the resident's primary care provider as a first step. In addition, the resident should isolate in a private room and personal protective equipment should be used based on CDC guidelines.

Do staff and providers in nursing homes receive ongoing training on infection control? How prepared do you think most residential facilities are to implement precautions or manage the COVID-19 outbreak?

Federal and state regulations typically require that infection prevention, surveillance, and management be part of new staff orientation and ongoing quality assurance and improvement efforts. With that said, the inspector general recently reported that infections are one of the primary adverse events that occur in nursing facilities. Infection control in long-term care settings is a concern that has existed for years, and the current outbreak is bringing it into sharper focus.

One urgent concern in terms of preparedness is the potential for workforce shortages. As the likelihood of a surge in cases approaches, it will become even more critical to identify individuals who are not contagious, since we may need to train additional health care workers to supplement the hospital, home care, and long-term care workforce. Some states are working on innovative methods to quickly train people who are out of work to become part of this workforce. In order to do that, states are asking the federal government for emergency waivers of federal requirements to help expedite training.

All the precautions we've talked about make sense from an infection-control perspective, but I imagine they also present a host of concerns about resident well-being.

Older people may experience anxiety or even depression due to social isolation during this time of social distancing. We need to be creative in safely providing opportunities for human interaction. Friends and family should consider contacting older people who may be isolated by making a friendly phone call. People can also think about contacting a local nursing home or assisted living residence and offering to make telephone calls to residents or their family members to provide support during this difficult time. There are also a lot of meaningful (including remote) volunteer opportunities available right now through Meals on Wheels, local departments of health, area agencies on aging, nursing facilities, and other organizations that support older people.

In addition to social isolation and loneliness, we're always concerned about elder mistreatment, neglect, and self-neglect. There is an increased risk for those issues right now. If older people, their loved ones, or others have concerns about any of these issues, they can contact their local Adult Protective Services Agency for support. It's OK to report suspected mistreatment even if you don't know for sure that it's happening.

Regardless of where they live, older adults are part of the fabric of our society. We do have to be careful about spreading the virus, but that doesn't mean that we should stop looking out for one another.

Explore further Keeping COVID-19 from nursing home residents requires money and improved infection control
Prince William and Prince Harry reportedly had mood swings that rivaled their mother, Princess Diana. Charles and Dianas fights have been well documented, and an unearthed biography claims that she passed that trait on to her sons. Not only did the brothers display extreme mood swings growing up, but their tempers often reminded Prince Charles of their mother.

Prince William, Prince Harry, Prince Charles, Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle, and Camilla Parker Bowles | Phil Harris / POOL / AFP via Getty Images

A look at Princess Dianas alleged mood swings

It is not a big secret that Diana and Charles marriage was less than perfect, even early on. In his 2018 book, Charles At Seventy: Thoughts, Hopes and Dreams, author Robert Jobson claims that the couple experienced intense fighting in the first few years of their marriage.

According to Express, Jobson revealed that Diana would often get angry with Charles over his friendship with Camilla Parker Bowles  who of course went on to become Prince William and Prince Harrys stepmother.

Princess Diana with her sons Prince Harry and Prince William at an event in London, 1995. pic.twitter.com/qIpbUTShPl  History Lovers Club (@historylvrsclub) January 17, 2020

Between the ups and downs in her marriage and constantly being in the royal spotlight, Jobson says that Diana experienced mood swings that left everyone on edge.

She could be your best friend one minute and the next your worst enemy, he wrote.

Diana apparently passed this trait on to both of her sons. Prince William and Prince Harry took most of their anger out on their father, especially following their moms tragic passing in 1997.

Inside Prince William and Prince Harrys fiery natures

In his book, Jobson revealed that William and Harry experienced the same mood swings as their mother, though the Duke of Cambridge has better control over his temper. Both of them have also challenged Charles on occasion, which Jobson says shocked the Prince of Wales.

The level of belligerence Charles has encountered from his sons has shocked the Prince, as both boys have, on occasion, challenged him, Jobson shared. [They displayed] alarming and irrational mood swings and temper[s] impossible to deal with.

Prince William and Prince Harry on Harry's first day at Wetherby School in London, September 1989 #Royal #PrinceWilliam #PrinceHarry pic.twitter.com/eIdxBm7cFQ  Royal Family (@Royal_FamilyUK) April 1, 2020

Jobson added that Prince William is not afraid to speak out against Charles. Growing up, Charles had to deal with Williams temper on the regular, which reminded him of his marriage to Princess Diana.

Other royal experts have echoed these reports. Katie Nicholl, for instance, wrote in her book, The Making of a Royal Romance, that William once lost his cool while playing a friendly party game in college.

William and Harrys anger issues may have also played a role in their most recent feud, something royal experts believe would have greatly saddened Diana.

What would Princess Diana think about William and Harrys feud?

Reports of a feud surfaced after Harry tied the knot with Meghan Markle. We still do not know what drove a wedge between the brothers, but Harry admitted last fall that they are currently on different paths.

The rift between Prince William and Prince Harry got worse after the Duke of Sussex decided to leave the monarchy. According to Marie Claire, William was hurt by Harrys exit, which became official on March 31.

Prince William Shares Sweet Throwback Photo of Prince Harry and Princess Diana on Instagram https://t.co/MPGbkVBNPZ  People (@people) September 9, 2019

In light of the feud, royal photographer Jayne Fincher recently revealed that Diana would be heartbroken over what has happened between her sons.

Diana] would be doing everything she could to try and solve it. Shed be doing everything to be the peacemaker, Fincher stated.

Fincher noted that Diana would also be trying to make Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Kate Middleton make amends. Whether or not she would have been successful is anyones guess, but it is clear that things still arent right between Prince William and Prince Harry.

Prince William and Prince Harrys icy encounter at Commonwealth Day

Before their exit from the monarchy became official, Harry and Meghan returned home for one last round of royal engagements. This includes a joint appearance at the Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey, where they joined other senior members of the royal family.

Fans were anticipating a warm reunion between Prince William and Prince Harry at the event. But all the cameras caught was an icy exchange between the brothers, who barely acknowledged each other.

#royal #flashback "KLOSTERS, SWITZERLAND  MARCH 29, 2002: Prince Charles Prince Of Wales With His Teenage Sons Prince William And Prince Harry At The Start Of Their Annual Skiing Holiday pic.twitter.com/kauWID0byW  Mace (@RoyaleVision) March 29, 2020

The Cambridges and the Sussexes were not a part of Queen Elizabeths procession for the service and were seated ahead of time. When William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, were shown to their seats, they gave a quick nod to Harry and Meghan before sitting down.

Harry and Meghan, who sat directly behind William and Kate, did not speak to them for the remainder of the service. Royal experts have described the encounter as painful and believe the royals missed an opportunity to show unity amid the negative reports.

Prince William and Prince Harry have not commented on the rumors surrounding their relationship. Harry and Meghan are currently in Los Angeles as the world deals with the coronavirus pandemic.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 22:26:24|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China's relevant measures and regulations on COVID-19 fight are subject to all the people in the country equally, no matter if they are Chinese or foreigners, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said Thursday.

Hua made the remarks at a press briefing when asked to comment on some recent misbehavior of foreigners in China, who reportedly disobeyed home isolation orders, beat medical staff, or had arguments with local residents at quarantine sites.

"Frankly speaking, it is very sad to see such media reports," Hua said.

China has always attached great importance to life safety and health of foreign citizens who live in the country, Hua said, stressing that since the COVID-19 outbreak, China has actively assisted them in epidemic prevention and living conditions, and treated those infected with the virus without discrimination.

"Meanwhile, all foreigners in China should strictly abide by the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Prevention and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, as well as specific regions' relevant laws and regulations on epidemic prevention and control," Hua said.

Foreigners who refuse to follow the epidemic prevention measures, disturb orders and endanger public health and security shall bear legal liabilities, Hua added.
Glasgow, United Kingdom  The Conservative British government must be pressed to recognise the state of Palestine  as the place where Palestinians must be enabled to exercise their right to self-determination, a former United Kingdom diplomat said on Thursday evening.

But Sir Vincent Fean, addressing an online audience, insisted that todays British government was doing some good things regarding the ongoing occupation.

The UK Department for International Development funds Palestinian refugees via the UN Relief and Works Agency [UNRWA], Sir Vincent maintained, adding Britain had not moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, as the US government did in 2018, infuriating Palestinians in the process.

Sir Vincent, a former British consul-general to Jerusalem, was speaking in his capacity as chair of the Balfour Project  an organisation created by Britons to highlight their countrys record in Palestine before and during the British Mandate period of 1920-48.

A panel discussion on Britains past and present responsibilities in the occupied Palestinian territories, which would have included contributions from Sir Vincent, had been due at Scotlands University of Dundee last month, but was cancelled due to the mounting coronavirus pandemic.





But joining other similar online initiatives in this time of global lockdown, the veteran diplomat held a virtual seminar from London.

He tackled a variety of aspects of Britains role in the region, from its duplicitous promise during World War I to grant the people of the Middle East an independent Arab state if they rose up against Ottoman Turkish rule, to the Balfour Declaration from which his organisation takes its name.

The infamous 1917 Balfour Declaration made the Zionist aspiration of creating a Jewish state in Palestine a reality when the British government announced a pledge to establish a national home for the Jewish people in the territory. Palestinians and their international supporters frequently point to the declarations caveat, which said, nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine.

Today, following the 1948 creation of the State of Israel, which came into being after the British Mandate over Palestine expired that same year, Palestinians continue to live under a brutal Israeli military occupation, with the Palestinian territory of Gaza currently subject to an ongoing air, land and sea blockade.

Peter Shambrook is an historian on the UKs role in Palestine during the British Mandate, and one of the panelists who had been invited to speak in Dundee before the events cancellation. Before Thursdays online discussion, he told Al Jazeera that the British administration [during the mandate] created and established a military and political iron cage into which the Palestinians  the indigenous population  were placed.





The relevance of that today is that Britain left in 1948, but that political and military iron cage is still firmly established in Palestine, added Shambrook. And that is why the current conflict continues  because you have fundamentally one people [the Israelis] oppressing another people [the Palestinians] in a variety of ways.

Yet, in todays unyielding crisis, which has claimed lives on both sides of a wholly uneven divide, Sir Vincent said that granting equal rights for Israelis and Palestinians was the key to a lasting peace.

The wellbeing and security of the people of Israel is best ensured by peaceful exercise of the right to self-determination of their neighbours  the Palestinians, he said, adding, the status quo is unacceptable and needs to change.
While everybody seems to be watching and talking about Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness," its still been a little surprising to see David Spade, of all people, emerge as a consistent interviewer of the colorful characters featured in the Netflix docuseries. But thats what happened, as Spade has been doing at-home interviews while his Comedy Central late-night show, Lights Out With David Spade, has stopped production during the coronavirus outbreak.

Not only has Spade been doing YouTube Lights Out Lo-Fi Chats with the likes of John Finlay, Jeff Lowe, John Reinke, and Kelci Saffery, all of whom are part of the weird world chronicled in Tiger King, it turns out that the series central figure, Joe Exotic, would like to see Spade play him in a scripted movie or TV series. Well, either Spade or Brad Pitt.

According to an interview with Tiger King co-directors Rebecca Chaiklin and Eric Goode in The Hollywood Reporter, Exotic has said hed like for Pitt or Spade to play him, though Chaiklin says, He doesnt refer to David Spade as David Spade -- he refers to him as Joe Dirt."

In a different interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Spade talked about landing the video chat with Saffery, one of the employees at Exotics big cat attraction, as featured in Tiger King."

The booking came out of left field, Spade told The Hollywood Reporter, and he also made a comparison between Exotic and the mullet-sporting character Spade played in the 2001 movie, Joe Dirt," about a hard-luck eccentric who, it turns out, isnt as much of a loser as he seems.

The Joe Dirt connection is working for me," Spade said.

Streaming on Netflix while millions of people are home because of the coronavirus pandemic, Tiger King has become a pop culture sensation. It has ranked as the most-watched program on the streaming service, and inspired where-are-they-now? stories about the people caught up in the true-crime saga of feuding big cat enthusiasts, a murder-for-hire plot, a mysteriously missing husband, polygamy, and much more.

More of our coverage:

-- Kristi Turnquist

kturnquist@oregonian.com 503-221-8227 @Kristiturnquist

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
With the onset of April, many Flagstaff residents are scrambling to figure out how to pay what is often their largest monthly expense: rent.

And with dozens of business closed and workers unemployed, property managers are having to decide what to do about tenants who may have lost their ability to pay.

On Tuesday of last week, Governor Doug Ducey issued an executive order delaying the enforcement of evictions on renters impacted by COVID-19, which is set to remain in effect for 120 days.

But even before the governors order, Barry Levitan of Levitan Investment Properties & Services said he was already drafting a letter to tenants on changes to their policy due to the crisis.

Im forgoing late fees, Im not sending out eviction notices, Im basically just asking for communication, Levitan said.

Levitan said if tenants have lost their jobs, they can work with them to find a solution, adding they understand that there may be some time between when tenants are able to apply for programs like rental assistance and when they actually receive the money.

If this crisis is ameliorated and lightens up in a months time, people can work on payment plans to pay back rent. I cant forgive rent, of course, but we can certainly stretch out the time involved to get people back working, Levitan said. Ive been around for a long time in Flagstaff and its been good to me and Ive got to return it.

But not all property managers have taken the same path when it comes to working with residents throughout the crisis.

Northern Arizona University junior Casen Johnson and his wife are raising their 18-month-old daughter and live at ReNew Flagstaff, owned by Trinity Apartments.

Johnson said both he and his wife are students at NAU. Johnson was working on campus for recreation facilities and his wife was a nanny for another family. But then the university closed all recreation facilities and the family his wife worked for lost their own jobs, meaning they no longer needed someone to look after their children.

As such, Johnson said both are filing for unemployment.

We were incredibly scared. You know, we live pretty much paycheck to paycheck and with those paychecks we can afford to get by. But as soon as that stops we cant afford pretty much anything and it scares us. So we dont know what were going to do, Johnson said. The only way we see ourselves getting out of this is if we take a hit either financially or to our credit.

Johnson said they think they should be able to pay this months rent to get some breathing room, but after that they will be out of luck.

Given their situation, they had planned to move in with friends as a way to drastically cut their costs, so they approached the apartments management about moving out.

We thought they would be a little understanding, a little lenient in letting us move out, but they decided they were going to stick to their policies. So they wanted us to pay three months of rent, which would be close to $4,000, and on top of that they wanted us to pay close to $1,000 in fees because we didnt get them a 60-day notice, Johnson said. And obviously we cant afford that in the slightest, so we cant afford to stay here but we also cant afford to leave here.

Johnson said they reached out to both the property manager for their apartment and to someone with Trinity to see if they could come up with a solution, but to no avail.

A representative for Trinity said the company is working with tenants and is developing a program to help tenants moving forward, but did not go into detail.

Johnson said he was glad to see that the governor had put a moratorium on evictions, but hes worried they may be unemployed for some time and they will still have a lot of trouble paying what they are being asked to pay.

Before all of this, we were fine, you know, we had a game plan. We both had a year left in school, we could afford it if we kept working, we mapped it all out and this [crisis] was the tornado that crashed through all of our plans and left us a little lost, Johnson said.

Assistance

Since the governor ordered a delay in evictions last week, the state has put in place several other measures to help assist residents with housing issues.

On Monday, the governor announced an agreement had been reached with banks to stop all evictions and foreclosures on homes and business for 60 days and made $5 million additional available for a new rental assistance program by the Arizona Department of Housing focused on those impacted by the coronavirus crisis.

Coconino County also has a rental assistance program for employees who have seen losses in income due to the coronavirus.

The City of Flagstaff announced it would not be shutting off any residents water through the crisis regardless of payment, and spokespersons for Arizona Public Service and Unisource made similar commitments regarding electricity and gas respectively.

Additionally, in emails to customers, Suddenlink and Centurylink said they would not be shutting off internet services during the crisis.

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The latest analyst coverage could presage a bad day for Public Joint-Stock Company Moscow United Electric Grid Company (MCX:MSRS), with the analysts making across-the-board cuts to their statutory estimates that might leave shareholders a little shell-shocked. Both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) estimates were cut sharply as analysts factored in the latest outlook for the business, concluding that they were too optimistic previously.

Following this downgrade, Moscow United Electric Grid's three analysts are forecasting 2020 revenues to be 160b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to accumulate 5.1% to 0.17. Before this latest update, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of 215b and earnings per share (EPS) of 0.24 in 2020. Indeed, we can see that the analysts are a lot more bearish about Moscow United Electric Grid's prospects, administering a pretty serious reduction to revenue estimates and slashing their EPS estimates to boot.

See our latest analysis for Moscow United Electric Grid

MISX:MSRS Past and Future Earnings April 2nd 2020

Analysts made no major changes to their price target of 1.10, suggesting the downgrades are not expected to have a long-term impact on Moscow United Electric Grid'svaluation. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. The most optimistic Moscow United Electric Grid analyst has a price target of 1.50 per share, while the most pessimistic values it at 0.73. This is a fairly broad spread of estimates, suggesting that the analysts are forecasting a wide range of possible outcomes for the business.

Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. We would highlight that sales are expected to reverse, with the forecast 0.7% revenue decline a notable change from historical growth of 5.4% over the last five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in the same industry are forecast to see their revenue grow 2.3% annually for the foreseeable future. It's pretty clear that Moscow United Electric Grid's revenues are expected to perform substantially worse than the wider industry.

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The Bottom Line

The biggest issue in the new estimates is that analysts have reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds lay ahead for Moscow United Electric Grid. Regrettably, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and the latest forecasts imply the business will grow sales slower than the wider market. We're also surprised to see that the price target went unchanged. Still, deteriorating business conditions (assuming accurate forecasts!) can be a leading indicator for the stock price, so we wouldn't blame investors for being more cautious on Moscow United Electric Grid after the downgrade.

Unfortunately, the earnings downgrade - if accurate - may also place pressure on Moscow United Electric Grid'smountain of debt, which could lead to some belt tightening for shareholders. See why we're concerned about Moscow United Electric Grid's balance sheet by visiting our risks dashboard for free on our platform here.

You can also see our analysis of Moscow United Electric Grid's Board and CEO remuneration and experience, and whether company insiders have been buying stock.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
As a means of extending a helping hand to those in need, Jaguar and Land Rover have deployed more than 160 vehicles globally to support emergency response organizations during the Covid-19 pandemic. A total of 57 vehiclesincluding 27 new Land Rover Defendershave been donated to the British Red Cross to help deliver medicine and food to people across the UK who now need additional support due to social distancing rules.

Land Rover

In an official statement, the Jaguar Land Rover team said that Jaguar and Land Rover teams in Spain, France, South Africa and Australia have loaned vehicles to their Red Cross societies and more markets are offering help to their local teams." "This service is being provided with fleets of vehicles now available due to the postponement of launch events." It added that Jaguar Land Rover is working closely with the UK government and has offered its research and engineering expertise, as well as digital engineering and design, printing of 3D models and prototypes, machine learning, artificial intelligence and data science support. Aside from the vehices, Jaguar Land Rover is also donating protective equipment to the NHS (National Health Service), including wraparound safety glasses given to the Royal Bolton Hospital, St Jamess Hospital in Leeds, and Birmingham Childrens Hospital. The health and safety of our employees, customers and their families remain our priority. Jaguar and Land Rover will do everything we can to support people in need around the world. Our partnership with the Red Cross goes back 65 years and we will work hand in hand with them to do all we can during this global health emergency. We will also provide help to those closer to home in our local communities. We can all play a part in helping the vulnerable during this global pandemic, Finbar McFall, Jaguar Land Rovers Customer Experience Director, noted.

Land Rover

For their part, Simon Lewis, British Red Cross Head of Crisis Response assured that they are extending support to the communities around UK. This unprecedented global health emergency requires us all to pull together. As part of the British Red Cross response to coronavirus, were delving deep into the heart of communities across the UK to help strengthen support for the most vulnerable people through delivering essential food parcels and medicines to those unable to get out. We have been overwhelmed by the kindness shown across the country, not only by our increasing number of volunteers, but also our longstanding partners. Thanks to Land Rovers generous support, our Emergency Response teams in the UK will be to reach even more people living in isolated communities than we could alone. The Land Rover group and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) have been working together for more than five decades, helping communities prepare and respond to emergencies with disaster-preparedness projects around the world.

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Land Rover

"Through its partnership with the British Red Cross, Land Rover has also helped fund emergency relief efforts through the Disaster Relief Alliance, which supports community resilience programmes in the UK and around the world, providing financial assistance immediately when disaster hits  including coronavirus. British Red Cross has already given 200,000 (around PhP 12.8 million) to support Asian countries severely affected by the pandemic," Jaguar Land Rover claimed.

Also Read:
Built in just ten days, NHS Nightingale, a temporary field hospital with a maximum capacity of 4,000 beds, will begin accepting patients with COVID-19 next week.

The hospital has been erected inside the ExCel conference and exhibition facility in Londons docklands. Construction was undertaken with military personnel, deployed on 15-hour shifts.

NHS Nightingale being built (credit MoD)

ExCel is one of four conversions to temporary hospitals nationally, along with Birminghams National Exhibition Centre, Manchesters Central Convention Centre and Cardiffs Principality Stadium.

Colonel Ashleigh Boreham, from Army Medical Services, told the press how the plans to transform ExCel had only been drawn up on March 21, over a brew (cup of tea). Sixty members of the military worked alongside building contractors and NHS staff to create two massive 2,000-bed facilities inside the building. Each is a kilometre long, divided into 80 wards with 42 beds. Just one ward of 42 beds will open initially, before expansion is ramped up to the full 4,000-bed capacity in two weeks time if needed.

Coronavirus patients transferred to the hospital would already be on a ventilator and would remain until their course of ventilation was finished. Those suffering other serious conditions, such as cardiac issues, would not be admitted.

While each of the 4,000 beds in Nightingale is supposed to have a ventilator, this is impossible. Last week, junior health minister Edward Argar said there were just 8,000 ventilators throughout the UK. Despite the desperate scenes from hospital wards in China, Italy and elsewhere for the last three months, the government only launched its Ventilator ChallengeUK to encourage their manufacture on March 26.

Other vital medical equipment required for patients with COVID-19, such as MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and CT (computed tomography) scanners, are already in short supply. According to the Royal Society of Radiographers, Imaging departments will play a vital role in managing patients during the pandemic, with the Lancet writing, CT is likely to become increasingly important for the diagnosis and management of COVID-19 pneumonia, given the continuing increase in global cases.

In response to a government announcement of 200 million funding for MRI and CT scanners last September, Ruth Thorlby, Assistant Director of Policy at the Health Foundation charity, noted, The governments announcement of funding for diagnostic equipmentif it is genuinely new fundingwould be welcome, but the amount pledged falls considerably below what is needed to bring the UK up to an acceptable level.

It is uncertain whether this money can truly help create the extra capacity needed given major NHS workforce shortages across the country. Staff are needed to operate the machinery and report scan results, but shortages contribute significantly to delays in diagnosis and treatment.

The government has also failed to supply sufficient personal protective equipment, such as face masks, gowns and eye protection, placing the lives of doctors and nurses in grave danger. In Italy, 61 doctors involved in the care of coronavirus patients have died.

The UK has yet to implement widespread testing for COVID-19, particularly among medics and health support staff. As of yesterday, only 152,000 people out of a population of 66 million had been tested.

NHS Nightingales chief operating officer, Natalie Forrest, has said that the number of staff required to run one ward is 200; for the 80-ward hospital, this equates to 16,000 staff.

The field hospitals in Birmingham (planned capacity of 2,000 beds), Cardiff (2,000) and Manchester (1,000) will collectively require even more staff than the ExCel/Nightingale.

According to the Unison trade union, at the end of last year there were 106,000 vacancies across the NHS in England, including over 44,000 vacancies in nursing. These figures marked an increase on the previous year. In mid-March, the government appealed to recently retired medical staff to return to the NHS to assist with the coronavirus pandemic. This resulted in 4,000 nurses and 500 doctors heeding the call. Tragically, the first of these returning doctors, 68-year-old Dr. Alfa Saadu, died Tuesday from COVID-19.

Saadus passing follows the death of two other NHS staff of COVID-19. Amged El-Hawrani, a 55-year-old ear, nose and throat consultant, died Saturday at Leicester Royal Infirmary. Adil El Tayar, aged 63, an organ transplant specialist, died last Wednesday at Londons West Middlesex University Hospital.

Even by drafting army medics, NHS Nightingale can only be staffed by robbing Peter to pay Paul. According to the Health Service Journal (HSJ), NHS staff are being asked to move quickly to work in the new field hospital. HSJ quotes an email from a London trust chief executive to their staff, saying, Along with other NHS trusts, we have been asked to identify a range of our people to help staff the new Nightingale Hospital.

Given the chronic staff shortages throughout the NHS, the government has already moved to dilute staffing levels, particularly in intensive care. The HSJ wrote that staff-to-patient ratios for intensive care are being dramatically reduced as the NHS seeks to rapidly expand its capacity to treat severely ill covid-19 patients.

Intensive Care Unit nurse-patient ratios are to be slashed from 1:1 to 1:6, or one nurse looking after six desperately sick patients. The number of patients a specialist consultant doctor will be expected to look after is to be doubled, with one consultant now expected to care for 30 patients.

Those volunteering to work at NHS Nightingale have been told, be prepared to see death, when the hospital opens, according to a report in the Daily Mail. The paper writes, Volunteers working at the NHS Nightingale coronavirus hospital have been told to prepare for the fact that up to 80 percent of patients who are on ventilators will die.

It is into such a situation that the new NHS Nightingale will shortly be receiving its first patients. While clearly the temporary hospital is a much-needed facility, given the criminal starving of resources in Britains health care system, for many who are taken there it will be little more than a waiting room for the dying.

Two morgues are attached to NHS Nightingale. It emerged Wednesday that just four miles away an emergency mortuary in east London is in preparation for the expected surge in coronavirus deaths. The Evening Standard reported that the facility, owned by the City of London Corporation and expected to be finished later this week, is being constructed on Wanstead Flats, Newham, to take pressure off funeral directors. Along with the temporary doubling in size of the capitals morgue at Westminster, a temporary mortuary with room for 1,600 bodies has also been built in a car park next to Hillingdon councils Breakspear Crematorium.
Asked Wednesday what measures Bullock's directive laid out that were not already in place, Bright provided a statement from the Governor's Office identifying two new funding sources intended to help people in the corrections system. One aims to help former inmates and those on probation access housing by temporarily removing all restrictions on housing vouchers. The other temporarily removes the fees people on probation pay for the equipment needed for remote community supervision, in the spirit of social distancing guidelines. Bright directed any additional questions on the matter to Bullock's Office.

"The DOC has been working proactively from the onset of the COVID-19 crisis to take steps to protect offenders, staff and the public," the statement said.
Eastern oysters and three species of clams can be farmed together and flourish, potentially boosting profits of shellfish growers, according to a Rutgers University-New Brunswick study.

Though diverse groups of species often outperform single-species groups, most bivalve farms in the United States and around the world grow their crops as monocultures, notes the study in the journal Marine Ecology Progress Series.

"Farming multiple species together can sustain the economic viability of farm operations and increase profitability by allowing shellfish growers to more easily navigate market forces if the price of each individual crop fluctuates," said lead author Michael P. Acquafredda, a doctoral student based at Rutgers' Haskin Shellfish Research Laboratory in Port Norris, New Jersey.

Farming mollusks such as clams, oysters and scallops contributes billions of dollars annually to the world's economy. In the United States, more than 47 million pounds of farm-raised clam, oyster and mussel meat worth more than $340 million were harvested in 2016, the study says.

The study, which took place in a laboratory setting at Rutgers' New Jersey Aquaculture Innovation Center in North Cape May, New Jersey, tested the feasibility of farming multiple bivalve species in close proximity to each another.

Mimicking farm conditions, the study examined the filtration rate, growth and survival of four economically and ecologically important bivalve species native to the northeastern United States. They are the Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica); Atlantic surfclam (Spisula solidissima); hard clam (Mercenaria mercenaria); and softshell clam (Mya arenaria).

When supplied with seawater containing naturally occurring algal particles, the groups that contained all four species removed significantly more particles than most monocultures. This suggests that each species prefers to filter a particular set of algal food particles.

"This shows that, to some degree, these bivalve species complement each other," said co-author Daphne Munroe, an associate professor in the Department of Marine and Coastal Sciences in the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. She is based at the Haskin Shellfish Research Laboratory.

The scientists also found virtually no differences in growth or survival for any of the four species, suggesting that when food is not an issue, these bivalves could be raised together without outcompeting each another.

"This study illustrates the benefits of diversifying crops on shellfish farms," Acquafredda said. "Crop diversification gives aquaculture farmers protection from any individual crop failure, whether it's due to disease, predation or fluctuating environmental conditions. In future studies, the feasibility of bivalve polyculture should be tested on commercial bivalve farms."

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Spain's health authorities confirmed that the country's total number of coronavirus cases increased by 9,222 to 94,417, a higher daily rise in new cases than on Sunday and Monday, when 6,549 and 6,398 new cases were confirmed respectively.

Spain also saw 849 new deaths in the past 24 hours, a new high over 838 reported on Sunday, bringing its death toll to 8,189. Madrid, still the worst-hit in the country, registered 27,509 cases and 3,603 deaths as of Tuesday, reported Xinhua news agency.

The World Health Organization (WHO) data showed the global tally of COVID-19 infections has grown to 719,700 as of 10 CET Tuesday, with 33,673 deaths.

Outside China, some 640,000 cases have been reported by more than 200 countries and regions, including 10 countries, mostly in Europe, with over 10,000 cases.

Italy remains the worst hit in Europe. On Tuesday, the country observed a minute of silence for the victims of the coronavirus pandemic. Its total number of infections has climbed to 105,792, including 12,428 fatalities. A total of 2,107 new active infections were reported compared to Monday, bringing the national total to 77,635.

In Germany, confirmed cases on Tuesday increased by 4,615 within one day to 61,913, while the number of new deaths rose to 583 compared with 455 a day earlier, according to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), a federal government agency and research institute responsible for disease control and prevention.

RKI President Lothar Wieler warned that the "mortality rate will increase" in Germany.

The cumulative number of cases in France reached 52,128 by Tuesday, with death tally at 3,523. In the past 24 hours, the virus claimed 499 lives and forced 458 patients into intensive care units.

Britain saw its COVID-19 cases reaching 25,150 as of Tuesday morning, a rise of 3,009 in 24 hours. A total of 1,789 patients have died as of Monday afternoon, up 381 from the previous day.

Austria's cases climbed to 10,019 on Tuesday, with 128 deaths reported, making it the ninth country in Europe with over 10,000 confirmed cases, after Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Britain, Switzerland, Belgium and The Netherlands.

German Minister of Finance Olaf Scholz announced on Tuesday that the government was making "financial commitments" to support local companies in switching to the production of medical products.

Minister of the Interior Horst Seehofer also told the German newspaper Bild that in the future, Germany would need a law to "ensure medical supply," especially for medical products such as face masks and medicines in Germany.

"For things that may never happen, may occur very rarely, but when they do, they are existential for all of us," said Seehofer.

Also on Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron, while visiting a surgical mask factory near Angers in western France, pledged that "We have to rebuild our national and European sovereignty" amid the coronavirus crisis.

Macron said a consortium of four French industrial groups announced that it will produce 10,000 ventilators by mid-May to support French hospitals in their fight against the rapidly spreading coronavirus.

Ventilators are crucial in the fight to save patients whose lungs are assailed by the novel coronavirus. One of the biggest challenges faced by health workers around the world amid the pandemic is trying to save lives when the number of patients needing intensive care overtakes the available medical facilities.
Tamil Nadu on Thursday reported 75 fresh cases of Covid-19 of which 74 had attended the Tablighi Jamaat religious conference held in Delhi in March. The 75th person had contact with Patient 30 who had travel history, but not linked to the Delhi conference.

The state now has 309 positive Covid-19 cases, of which 264 are related to the religious conference, which is now being treated as the largest cluster in the country. Including Thursdays fresh cases, the virus has now spread across 20 districts in Tamil Nadu.

There are 75 fresh cases in Tamil Nadu today of which 74 were people who took part in this Delhi Conference. One person had contact with someone who has travel history, health secretary Dr. Beela Rajesh said.

Nearly 1500 persons from Tamil Nadu are believed to have attended the religious conference held in New Delhis Nizamuddin. Until Wednesday, the state has traced 1103 persons.

All 1103 people have been tested but some of the results are under process. Of these 264 have tested positive, she said. All have been tested but results are under process.

Rajesh said that the state was increasing the testing facilities and six more labs will be added soon. Each lab can carry out 100 tests every day.

Tamil Nadu was using the lockdown time to ramp up testing facilities and focus on infrastructure and equipment. We have enough masks, Personal Protective Equipment kits, enough to give all nurses who are working in isolation wards. We have made it mandatory for all who have to see patients in isolation wards. Daily there is a 20-minute mock drill on how to put on the PPE and remove it, how to interact with the patients, and how to maintain the distance, she said.
In a bid to combat the coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of Defence on Thursday said that it has taken a decision to mobilise ex-servicemen (ESM) to assist the state and district administrations wherever required.

"As the nation continues to fight the challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic, Department of Ex-Servicemen welfare (ESW), Ministry of Defence (MoD) has taken the initiative to mobilise services of Ex-Servicemen (ESM) community as a part of augmentation of precious human resource to assist the state and district administration, wherever required," the ministry said in a statement.

According to the ministry, Rajya Sainik Boards, Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ESM volunteers to assist the local administration in performing public outreach activities such as contact tracing, community surveillance, management of quarantine facilities or any such tasks assigned to them.

India recorded a spike in COVID-19 positive cases by over 400 in the past 24 hours, taking total number of active cases to 1,764. The total death due to coronavirus has touched 50, according to latest information available on the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's website.

"It is heartening to note the ESM across the country have risen to the occasion of 'Service before Self' at a time when nation has made a clarion call and need them to fight this unique challenge. Ex-Servicemen are disciplined, motivated and well trained to operate in adverse situations and they have pan-India presence in all the districts and villages across the country," the statement read.

In Punjab, an organisation called 'Guardians of Governance', comprising 4,200 ESM, are assisting in data collection from all the villages.

While the Chhattisgarh government has employed some ESM to assist the police, the Goa government has asked ESM to remain on standby for any assistance to the local administration.

In Uttar Pradesh, all Zila Sainik Kalyan Adhikaris are in touch with district control rooms and retired army medical corps personnels have been identified and kept ready. In addition, Sainik Rest Houses are being readied in Uttarakhand to act as isolation centres if the need arises. In Andhra Pradesh, all the District Collectors have asked for ESM volunteers.

By Chitranjan Kumar

Also Read: Coronavirus in India Live Updates: Over 400 COVID-19 cases reported in 24 hours; spike linked to Delhi event

Also Read: Coronavirus impact: Andhra Pradesh govt takes over private hospitals
A group of major U.S. oil and gas executives are set to meet with President Donald Trump on Friday to discuss the historic crash in the oil prices triggered by the covid-19 pandemic. But company executives and oil-state politicians are divided about how the federal government should stop the sector's bleeding.

The top executives of several huge U.S. multinationals, including ExxonMobil chief Darren Woods and Phillips 66 chief Greg Garland, as well as the heads of some independent producers, such as Continental Resources founder Harold Hamm, are expected to outline their struggles during a devastating drop in demand for oil, as Americans keep cars parked and planes grounded to stop the spread of the deadly virus.

Trump seemed eager to take steps to help: "Look, we have a great oil industry and the oil industry is being ravaged," Trump told reporters Wednesday. "We don't want to lose our great oil companies. You know, we're the number one producer of oil in the world."

Yet those who have the president's ear don't agree on the role he should play in arresting the crisis.

Smaller U.S. shale companies, many of which are deeply in debt, are asking for aggressive federal action to halt the flow of foreign crude into the United States that is making their reserves uneconomic to tap. The outbreak of the novel coronavirus has set off a fierce price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia that has flooded the global market with oil and sent the price per barrel into free fall, down by more than 60% since the start of the year.

Hamm, an Oklahoma-based shale pioneer and outspoken Trump donor, has called for tariffs to be placed on Saudi oil imports and has gone so far as to accuse the kingdom of illegally "dumping" oil into the market. Saudi Arabia "has moved to essentially flood the market with crude oil," Hamm said in an interview on Bloomberg Television last month.

But a larger group of more diversified oil companies, most of which can better weather the economic head winds, say they do not want the federal government to try to save their industry by constraining supply. In particular, refineries along the Gulf of Mexico do not want to lose access to the heavy foreign crude they are best suited for turning into gasoline and other fuels.

"That is an example of a policy that can make an already bad situation worse," said Chet Thompson, head of the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, which represents the U.S. refining sector. AFPM and the American Petroleum Institute penned a letter to Trump on Wednesday emphasizing that the fall in prices has more to do with downturn in demand for gasoline and other finished fuels than an oversupply of crude.

This division raises the political and diplomatic stakes for Trump, who this week talked by phone with both Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman in an effort to negotiate a truce between the two feuding oil producers. "Saudi Arabia, Russia, they're negotiating, they're talking and I think they'll come up with something," Trump said Wednesday.

But Saudi Arabia appears unmoved so far by U.S. pressure. And with the production battle showing little sign of abating, several lawmakers from oil-producing states are beginning to worry smaller producers in their regions will become casualties.

Few have been as vocal as Trump ally and GOP Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, where independent oil producers have been hit particularly hard by the crash in prices.

Cramer spoke with Trump by phone Monday evening about oil prices, and has been calling for an embargo on oil from Russia, Saudi Arabia, and other Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries nations. He has also introduced legislation with Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, to remove U.S. armed forces from Saudi Arabia in an effort to pressure the kingdom to curb production.

But major oil multinationals, which opposes restrictions on foreign crude, are engaged in their own lobbying campaign. The American Petroleum Institute helped put together the White House meeting, and its chief executive, Mike Sommers, will be in attendance.

That oil lobbying group is also pushing back against another idea from two leading shale producers in Texas, Pioneer Natural Resources and Parsley Energy, which have urged the state's Railroad Commission to coordinate an OPEC-style production cut.

"Policies directed at limiting our own supply in the state of Texas," Frank Macchiarola, API's senior vice president of policy and regulatory affairs, said last week before the meeting's announcement, "are counterproductive and have proven to be ineffective in the past."
Lagos State can expect to experience 270 days of rainfall in 2020. Many Lagosians who suffered from the 2012 and 2017 devastating flooding are wondering whether this is usual or not. Nelson Odume unpacks the issues.

What have been the notable rainfall patterns in Lagos over the last 60 years?

When one looks at the average annual rainfall received from 1960  2010, there is a gradual decrease in rainfall amount.

Also, from 1960  2010, on average, rainfall in Lagos began in late March, peaked in June and then ended in October. But there was a shifting rainfall events from the months of May, June, July to the months of August, September and October. The second peaking of rainfall happened in September.

A research paper of projected climate change between 2010  2099, showed that, apart from a few years towards the end of the century, rainfall amount will continue to decrease in Lagos and temperature will continue to rise. The decrease in rainfall can be up to 140 mm.

So, where do the risks lie for people living in the city?

While the amount of rainfall has been decreasing in Lagos, the frequency and intensity of extreme whether events are on the rise. So, the risk is not much about the annual rainfall amount, but its distribution and intensity when it happens.

These are not entirely new. For example, on June 17, 2004, Victoria Island received rainfall amount of about 243 mm (78% of the month's rainfall), causing devastating flooding. More recently, intense precipitations are happening more frequently in the months of June, July and September, increasing the risk of flooding.

What are the biggest weather risks faced by people in the city?

The risk is the growing 1-5 day extreme rainfall events, which have been predicted to increase in Lagos State. It is these extreme precipitation events that Lagosians should be more worried about.

Apart from extreme rainfall, storm surges are also predicted to rise in Lagos. These are also not entirely new. For example, on August 17, 1995 Victoria Island suffered from a devastating storm surge that destroyed properties worth billions of Naira.

What makes Lagos so vulnerable?

Lagos is bordered in the south by the Atlantic Ocean, in the east and southwest by lagoons and creeks. The relative position of Lagos, being a coastal city, makes it very vulnerable to coastal flooding and coastal erosion as a result of sea level rise. It is predicted that Lagos could experience about 12-17 cm sea level rise by 2050. This could increase coastal flooding because Lagos topography is flat and only about 0-5 m above sea level. In addition, sea level rise would increase coastal erosion and saltwater intrusion into groundwater. This would make the city's groundwater salty and would increase treatment costs.

Another factor that makes Lagos more vulnerable is that about 90% of Lagos is already built up. What this means is that land surfaces are covered with buildings, roofs, concrete and roads. These materials are largely impermeable. The natural soil and vegetation, which usually retain rainwater and make it to flow slowly, are removed giving way to materials that do not hold rainwater.

The implication is that when it rains, water is quickly collected into adjacent rivers, and these rivers easily become overwhelmed, leading to flooding. Because of the increased run-off, river channels can become modified, which can also increase the risk of flooding.

Insufficient drainage system and solid waste collection, illegal dumps, unplanned building on flood prone areas such as wetlands, as well as high population density are all contributing to flooding in Lagos.

What are government's responsibilities?

First, Lagos state government needs to strengthen its capacity for evidence-based decision making. The scientific community (researchers), practitioners and political class must work closely together so that decisions are informed by up to date scientific analysis. And the science must be informed by on the ground challenges.

Second, Lagos state government should embark on structural measures such as the construction of dikes, embankment and seawalls to minimise the risk of flooding in the city. The clearing of waterways, channels and drainage systems as well as efficient solid waste collection system would also help. And there are structural steps that could be taken such as building design codes that promote the use of permeable pavement as well as infiltration trenches.

Third, Lagos state government flood predictive capacity must be matched with effective early warning communication of risk, particularly to risk-prone population. Prediction is not enough. Communities should be mobilised to mitigate flooding risk through effective communication of early warning systems.

Fourth, land use planning and protection of ecosystems hold promise for mitigating risk. Lagos state government must continue to strengthen compliance and enforcement about land use planning, ensuring that developments are prohibited in flood prone areas, and sensitive ecosystems such as wetlands.

Finally, without adequate involvement of local communities, including local knowledge systems, the above measures would likely fail due to a lack of sense of ownership by the people. Therefore, Lagos state must also continue to strengthen its capacity to work with local communities and diverse stakeholders in addressing flooding risk within the city.

What should Lagosians do to prepare for the rainy season?

They must join government efforts to reduce the effects of flooding in the city. One way every person can do this is to avoid indiscriminate dumping of wastes on waterways, water channels and wetlands.

Lagosians can also form voluntary community-based organisations whose aims are to sensitise local people on the importance of keeping the drainage clean and liaising with relevant government authorities for effective communication of risk.

Finally, the threat of flooding in Lagos is an opportunity to look in the direction of nature-based solutions such as creating green spaces and protection of wetlands. These will mitigate the devastating effects of flooding. They can also help create jobs through recreation and tourism, conserve ecosystems and storing carbon.

Nelson Odume receives funding from International Science Council, Network of African Science Academies, National Research Foundation, Water Research Commission and the European Union Education, Audiovisual and Cultural Executive Agency.

By Nelson Odume, Researcher, Rhodes University
The cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19 will meet today to discuss the impact of the major restrictions introduced last Friday.

The death toll due to the virus in the Republic has gone up to 85.

14 further patients have died from the virus, while an additional 212 cases have been confirmed.

It brings the number of confirmed cases to 3,447.

Deputy chief medical officer Ronan Glynn admitted more testing would uncover more cases.

"At present, we are not carrying out as many tests we would like to be," he said.

He said: "In basic terms, if we were carrying out more tests, yes we would probably be picking up more people."

"That doesn't mean that the picture in terms of hospitalisations or intensive care would be any different and ultimately they are the figures we are most interested in," he said.

Meanwhile, the Health Minister, Simon Harris has strongly defended Ireland's efforts to provide quick test results for suspected Covid-19 patients.

People are being forced to wait up to ten days for a result because of a lack of swabs, testing centres and labs.

But the Wicklow TD said big progress has been made over the past days.

He said: "In relation to the swabs, the kits, the HSE has now secured a steady supply of them."

"In relation to the testing centres, we have gone from having the situation where the national ambulance service had to visit your home to test you," he said.

"To a situation where we now have more than 40 testing centres and soon more than 50 right across the country."
I was part of the crew on one of the Air India flights that brought foreign nationals stuck in different parts of India, to Mumbai. From Mumbai, they were flown to Europe on another flight.

It was not a pleasant flight. Most of them were not supportive. Not even half of them were wearing masks, and neither were they maintaining distance.

We heard that they weren't quarantined and hadn't taken any tests to check for COVID-19. Just the temperature check was done on them. I have read that sometimes symptoms are subdued in the initial stage, and tests are needed. What if it was the same for these passengers? That put us at considerable risk.

Worse was that some of them made fun of us, as we were wearing hazmat suits for protection. My friends, who were on other flights ferrying the foreigners, had similar experience. Some were called aliens. Not funny.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

The passengers were treating the flight like just another commercial flight. It was made clear to them that this was an emergency/medical flight, and that there won't be normal service. Each passenger was given a refreshment box. But they kept asking for more refreshments, and kept coming up to our resting area for tea or coffee. There were 250 of them, and I was glad when the flight got over.

By the way, if the Indian government can ferry Indians from different parts of the world and bring back home, why can't the airlines of countries these foreigners belonged to, do the same?

I hear there are many more Indians that are stranded world over. Why can't we have flights to bring them back?

Like the time Air India flew back Indians stuck in Wuhan, when the Coronavirus broke out. A friend was there on that flight. The passengers were very supportive, and cheered and thanked the crew once the flight was over.

The suit

We were given guidelines to protect ourselves while operating these flights. We wore the suit, which is made with a paper-like material. We also wore goggles, mask and the shoes were covered.

But the quality is poor. By the end of the two-hour flight, the suit had torn. Air India pilots had also highlighted this problem.

At the start of our duty, we had placed the refreshment boxes on the passenger seats. This way we would restrict engagement with passengers and practise social distancing. Just before opening the gates for the passengers to board, we put on the suits.

It is difficult to work wearing the suit. I couldn't use the washroom. I wonder how my colleagues on international flights will hold on for over six to eight hours.

Professional risk

It is not easy working during these times. We were first asked to volunteer for these rescue flights. Very few did. A roster was then created, and I was called for duty.

I left home at midnight to report for duty. Luckily only the apartment security guard saw me. I was worried as some of my colleagues had been abused by their neighbours. When I came back, again at night, a neighbour saw me. But he is also in aviation industry, so was understanding. I felt like a thief, trying to sneak into my own house.

Even though it was a domestic flight, many of us have decided to quarantine ourselves after coming back home. But even that is not easy. Many of my friends live in a joint family, and can't ask other members of the family to move out.

Some could. Like one friend's children, husband and mother-in-law moved out to relatives houses. But not everyone has this luxury. That puts everyone else in the family also at risk.

I have quarantined myself for a week.

I'm waiting for the lockdown to get over. But we fear about our jobs. Already, we hear that up to 30 percent of our allowances will be cut. I hope there is no risk to our jobs.

As told to Prince Mathews Thomas
(Bloomberg) -- Follow Bloomberg on LINE messenger for all the business news and analysis you need.

Singapores government urged residents to consider ordering their groceries online rather than going to the shops. That just became tougher.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.s Lazada Group SA is temporarily suspending new grocery orders in Singapore after strict physical distancing measures and rising coronavirus cases triggered a surge in orders.

RedMart, Lazadas online grocer unit, will not take new orders until it resumes on April 4, the company said in a notice to customers on Thursday. RedMart will use this time to make changes to the range of products available and prioritize daily essentials such as rice, flour and eggs, it said, adding that it will fulfill existing orders.

Lazadas RedMart and other grocery delivery services such as Amazon.com Inc.s Prime Now have been kept busy amid harrowing economic times in Singapore. These companies have been trying to cope with surging demand as about 5.7 million people in the densely populated island increasingly turn to online grocery shopping, part of Singapores S$7.5 billion ($5.2 billion) grocery market estimated by Euromonitor.

These companies now have to deal with a new situation where demand for essential items outpaces operational capacities, said Yinglan Tan, founding managing partner of Insignia Ventures. Players that manage shorter supply chain may be more equipped to handle the stress.

While the number of coronavirus cases has mounted to 1,000, the city-state has refrained from ordering a full lockdown of daily life and business, preferring to implement an ever-more-stringent set of rules and guidelines to restrain activity and curb the spread. Among the new cases was an employee working at a branch of a local supermarket chain NTUC FairPrice.

And while lockdowns in neighboring Malaysia may have disrupted food supply into Singapore, government officials have assured the nation it wont run out of food or basic necessities.

Story continues

NTUC FairPrice on March 27 imposed online purchase limits on items such as rice, instant noodles, vegetables and cooking oil.

Read more: Singapore Grocery Delivery Demand Surges Amid Virus Curbs: Chart

Singapores government advised the public on its official WhatsApp channel to order groceries online instead of venturing out, while also pushing more companies to make staff work from home. To help address a shortage of delivery slots, taxi and ride-hailing drivers are now allowed to make food and grocery deliveries.

Separately, the city-state said Thursday itll support 90% of the cost for local retailers going online in order to help them diversify their sales channels beyond traditional brick-and-mortar.

(Adds FairPrice online purchase measures in 8th paragraph.)

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A Cambodian government spokesperson defended the draft State of Emergency legislation on Thursday, calling the use of the soon-to-be-passed historic law as inevitable.

The newly-proposed law on declaring a national emergency would potentially give Cambodian government sweeping powers and unlimited access to martial power to enforce an emergency, while vastly controlling the citizenrys online and offline activities.

The draft legislation would allow for the curtailment of civil rights and liberties, such as freedom of movement, expression, association, and assembly  all enshrined in the Cambodian Constitution  and widely criticized by rights groups.

Phay Siphan, a government spokesperson, said the law was intended as a good measure to direct Cambodia through any emergency, going on to extol its importance.

The law is historically important and really important for Cambodians, he said.

Phay Siphan said the declaration of a state of emergency was unavoidable at some point in the future and could happen in the next 10, 20, 30 or 40 years, though not commenting on whether the government would enforce the law during the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Based on Article 22 of the Constitution, the draft law requires the King to declare the state of emergency, after reaching consensus with the Prime Minister and Presidents of the Senate and National Assembly, with the state of emergency being enforced through a Royal Decree.

He, however, didnt answer whether anyone besides the King can declare the state of emergency.

Dont blame the King. He always loves his country, Phay Siphan said.

Normally, in the absence of the King, Senate President Say Chhum is the acting head of state, with the power to draft Royal Decrees. But, the law does not explicitly state if in the extreme circumstance of a state of emergency, if the Senate president wields the same authority.

King Norodom Sihamoni and Queen Mother Norodom Monineath departed for Beijing Wednesday morning, leaving Say Chhum as the designated head of state, enabling him to sign the legislation as law after it was passed by parliament.

The draft state of emergency law has received strong criticism from civil society members, human rights defenders, and politicians for the wide-ranging powers it gives to the government with nearly no serious accountability.

While Amnesty International said in a statement the law would obliterate human rights in the country, Human Rights Watch called it a recipe for dictatorship.

These unprecedented powers are wildly disproportionate and threaten to permanently undercut the human rights of everyone in Cambodia, said Nicholas Bequelin, regional director for Amnesty International, in the statement.

The law enables declaring of a state of emergency in the case of war, foreign invasion, health crises like pandemics, but also the vaguely-defined scenario of severe chaos to national security and social order.

Violations of the draft law could result in imprisonment for up to 10 years, and, in some cases, result in fines totaling one billion riels, or around $250,000.

The Cambodian government should withdraw its draft state of emergency law, which would empower Prime Minister Hun Sen to override fundamental human rights protections, said Human Rights Watch.

However, Phay Siphan was quick to brush aside these concerns. When the country is under a state of emergency, there will be a military regime. The civil rights will be reduced and withdrawn temporarily, he said, defending the contents of the law.
By Sruthi Shankar and Devik Jain

(Reuters) - Oil prices roared back on Thursday, pulling Britain's commodity-heavy FTSE 100 out of early losses sparked by a record surge in U.S. weekly jobless claims.

The FTSE 100 <.FTSE> closed up 0.5% after gaining as much as 1.5% in late afternoon trading, with energy stocks <.FTNMX0530>, which have shed about a third in value this year, jumping 7.8%.

Major players BP <BP.L> and Royal Dutch Shell <RDSa.L> gained 6% and 9%, respectively, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he expects Russia and Saudi Arabia to announce a major oil output cut, signalling willingness by both countries to end their oil price war. [O/R]

A 25% surge in oil prices dispelled gloom in markets after data showed U.S. claims for unemployment benefits shot to a record high of more than 6 million last week amid tighter stay-at-home measures to curb the coronavirus pandemic.

"The doubling of jobless claims will fill investors with a sense of unease about the outlook," said Seema Shah, chief strategist at Principal Global Investors. "With lockdowns becoming stricter and being extended, we should anticipate further surges in jobless claims over the coming weeks."

In Britain, a survey conducted between March 9 and March 22 showed more than a quarter of UK companies reduced staff levels in the short term.

IAG-owned British Airways <ICAG.L> struck a deal with its union to suspend thousands of staff in one of the airline industry's most dramatic moves. Separately, IAG cancelled its final dividend.

The FTSE 100 concluded its worst quarterly performance since 1987 on Tuesday as the fast-spreading pandemic forced lockdown in most parts of the world, bringing economic activity to a near standstill.

Analysts are predicting a 21.9% decline in earnings for companies listed on the pan-European STOXX 600 <.STOXX> in the second quarter, according to Refinitiv data.

Gains on FTSE 100 were also limited by falls in shares of Standard Life Aberdeen <SLA.L>, Phoenix Group Holdings <PHNX.L> and Smith & Nephew <SN.L> as they traded ex-dividend.

Story continues

Cruise operator Carnival Corp <CCL.L> dropped 22.3% to the bottom of the index, as it raised $6.25 billion by issuing new debt and equity, borrowing at a high cost to weather the economic storm from the pandemic.

The domestically focused midcaps <.FTMC> fell 0.8%, with food producer Bakkavor Group <BAKK.L> sliding 19.3% after it revealed that the outbreak led to a cut in orders and suspended dividend.

Recruiter Hays <HAYS.L> dropped 13.3% after it announced an emergency 200 million-pound issue of shares as it sought to prop up its finances.

(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar and Devik Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Matthew Lewis)
Georgia Republican governor Brian Kemp has been a little behind the curve. Photo: Alyssa Pointer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution/AP

Yesterday, Georgia governor Brian Kemp joined fellow Trump-friendly Republican chief executives Ron DeSantis of Florida and Tate Reeves of Mississippi in relenting to widespread pressure and issuing a statewide stay-at-home order. What made this particular change of course significant is that it was accompanied by a gubernatorial admission of ignorance:

A stunning admission of deadly ignorance from Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who says he only just learned that asymptomatic people can transmit #Covid19. [I]ndividuals could have been infecting people before they ever felt bad, but we didnt know that until the last 24 hours. pic.twitter.com/T7NZWk2GDR  Andisheh Nouraee (@andishehnouraee) April 2, 2020

There have been credible reports about asymptomatic transmission at least since January, and generally accepted evidence that it was real and a very big deal for over the last several weeks. Heres a summary of the growing consensus from CNN on March 19.

Several experts interviewed by CNN said while its unclear exactly what percentage of the transmission in the outbreak is fueled by people who are obviously sick versus those who have no symptoms or very mild symptoms, its become clear that transmission by people who are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic is responsible for more transmission than previously thought.

We now know that asymptomatic transmission likely [plays] an important role in spreading this virus, said Michael Osterholm, director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.

Osterholm added that its absolutely clear that asymptomatic infection surely can fuel a pandemic like this in a way thats going to make it very difficult to control.

The only real controversy in recent weeks has been about the relative significance of asymptomatic transmission, not its existence. Yet the whole subject seems to have been news to Brian Kemp, who called the idea a game changer that he had just learned about in the last 24 hours.

Kemp isnt the only Georgia Republican showing his ignorance this week. State House Speaker David Ralston, who has been spearheading an effort to force a delay in Georgias May 19 presidential and down-ballot primary (the presidential primary was already postponed from its original March 24 date), did an interview on Tuesday in which he attacked voting by mail as an abomination favored by extreme liberal Democrats that could lead to (horrors!) high turnout. Ralston seems to be under the impression that up until now Georgia required an excuse for requesting an absentee ballot (it didnt). The Speaker also cited a common conservative fear of voting fraud via ballot harvesting (the practice of letting non-related third parties pick up and deliver to election officials signed and sealed ballots), which Georgia law already prohibits.

But the incident thats really got Georgians in a stir involves Republican State Senator Bruce Thompson, recently hospitalized with symptoms of COVID-19 and subsequently testing positive. He was sent home to self-isolate, and proceeded to take three carloads of people to his beach property in Florida, as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported:

A Florida sheriff unleashed a tirade Wednesday against a Georgia state senator who tested positive for the novel coronavirus and traveled to an island vacation home in his county.

Franklin County Sheriff A.J. Smith said state Sen. Bruce Thompson, a Republican from White, arrived Tuesday night at his beachfront home in St. George, Florida.

Thompson announced March 22 he had tested positive for COVID-19 after being hospitalized with respiratory issues. He could not immediately be reached Wednesday.

The county Thompson and his entourage traveled to had no known coronavirus cases, and as in much of the Sunshine State, local officials were fearful of out-of-state travelers. So Smith isnt happy with the impromptu beach party:

I am going to put a deputy out in front of his house and if he leaves were going to ask him why, because hes supposed to self quarantine  which could lead to an arrest, Smith told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

All in all, its clear the governing party in my home state needs to spend more time self-educating its members until this pandemic is over.
Two Tablighi Jamaat members tested positive for Sars-CoV-2 in Uttar Pradesh, one in Ghazipur and another in Meeruts Sardhana, state officials said at a press briefing in capital Lucknow on Thursday.

Additional chief secretary (Home) Awanish Kumar Awasthi said 1172 Tablighi Jamaat members have been identified in various districts of the state so far and the health department has quarantined 884 of them. He added that samples of 429 Jamaat members have already been sent for tests and except for two, all results were awaited. He said that the rest will also be tested.

Several members of the Tablighi Jamaat, who participated in a religious congregation or Markaz in Delhis Nizamuddin in March, have been found to be infected with the virus, a few of them have also died. Nationwide efforts to trace the participants and their contacts, who may be carrying the disease, is on.

Awasthi said 304 Jamaat members were found in Meerut followed by 197 in Varanasi, 187 in Gorakhpur, 145 in Bareilly, 104 in Agra, 70 in Gautam Buddha Nagar, 69 in Lucknow, 40 in Prayagraj, 33 in Kanpur and 24 in other districts located in the Lucknow division.

The state police have also identified 287 people of foreign origin who were staying in the state on tourist visas, all barring one--who is missing-- have been quarantined, Awasthi said, and added that a majority of them did not inform the local police about their whereabouts.

Passports of 211 such foreigners who arrived on tourist visas and yet participated in religious activities have been seized, he said.

Passports of 211 foreign nationals have been seized after registration of 34 FIRs in 14 districts for violation of the Foreigners Act. Several people who gave them shelter and concealed their presence in the state have also been booked in this connection, he said.

Action against them will be taken under the Epidemic Control Act 1897 as well as the Disaster Management Act, he said.

The district magistrates and superintendents of police of all the 75 districts have been directed to carry out extensive searches to locate foreigners residing illegally.

A senior police official at the director general of police headquarters in Lucknow said state police teams, including intelligence sleuths were deployed to trace Tablighi Jamaat members and foreign nationals.

He said while FIRs were lodged against the Jamaat members in 14 districts, no action will be taken till the quarantine period is over.

Awasthi said the district police officials have been asked to monitor the tracking exercise till all Jamaat members were quarantined.
RESIDENTS have been warned to be on their guard against criminals and scammers exploiting the coronavirus pandemic.

Oxfordshire County Councils trading standards officers have received reports of scams targeting people via emails, text messages and on the doorstep.

Judith Heathcoat, cabinet member for community safety, said: It is hard to believe that some people will look to take advantage of the situation our country is facing but unfortunately this is a reality.

Where possible, trading standards will pursue and tackle these despicable individuals but preventing people becoming victims in the first place is key. Be a good friend: help protect your family, friends and neighbours from scams.

Jody Kerman, head of trading standards, said: Action Fraud has recently reported that coronavirus-related fraud reports increased by 400 per cent in March. These scams come in many different guises so, before taking any action or agreeing to an offer, stop, take five and discuss with a trusted friend or family member.

Scams include people offering miracle cures or vaccines for coronavirus, people impersonating healthcare workers, claiming to be offering home testing for covid-19, emails offering a refund on bills and people offering to do shopping or collect medication, asking for money upfront and then disappearing.

If you think you have been scammed, report it to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040. If you need advice, call the Citizens Advice consumer helpline 0808 223 1133.
Five hundred and seventy people have died in nursing homes in Frances eastern region since the outbreak of the coronavirus, the regional public health authority said late on Wednesday.

France became the fourth country to pass the 4,000 coronavirus deaths threshold on Wednesday, but that does not include deaths outside hospitals.

Fatalities in nursing homes have surged, with dozens of deaths reported across the country. Officials have held back on directly linking the deaths to the coronavirus given the age and health condition of many who have died.

As of March 31, 411 nursing homes have been affected by COVID-19 out of 620 in the region, the Grand-Est Public Health Authority said in a statement. Five hundred and seventy people have died in total.-

Regions have been collating figures on the situation in nursing homes and the national health agency was due to give the figures for the country later on Thursday.

Almost 1 million people reside in care homes in France.

Senior care home representatives in March warned the Health Minister that at least 100,000 people could die if the situation was not brought under control.

SOURCE: REUTERS
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Linkedin Moch. Fiqih Prawira Adjie (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 19:24 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f52536 1 National COVID-19-in-Indonesia,graft-convict,early-release,inmates,overcrowded,prison,Yasonna-Laoly,Law-and-Human-Rights-Ministry Free

Anticorruption activists have criticized Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laolys plan to curb COVID-19 transmission in overcrowded prisons by revising correctional regulations and releasing 50,000 inmates early, including graft inmates.

Through Human Rights Ministerial Regulation No.10/2020 and Human Rights Ministerial Decree No.19/2020, Yasonna plans to change terms and conditions for prisoners and juvenile inmates that were initially regulated in Government Regulation No. 99/2012.

If approved, the regulations would release 300 graft convicts aged 60 years and above currently serving their sentences in addition to 15,442 drug convicts who have served five to 10 years, 1,457 special crime convicts with chronic diseases and 53 foreign prisoners who have served two-thirds of their sentences.

The ministry has so far released some 5,500 inmates to reduce prison overcrowding.

Anticorruption activists condemned the decision as the regulation would result in the release of people convicted in major corruption cases, including Setya Novanto who was sentenced to 16 years for rigging the Rp 5.9 trillion (US$424 million) e-ID project, which reportedly caused Rp 2.3 trillion in state losses.

Setya is not due for release until 2034, but the proposed regulation would release him early as he is 64 years old.

Read also: Overcrowded and understaffed, prisons scramble to protect inmates from infection

Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) activist Kurnia Ramadhana said other major graft convicts that would be eligible for early release included former Constitutional Court judge Patrialis Akbar, 61, former health minister Siti Fadilah, 70, former religious affairs minister Suryadharma Ali, 63, and lawyer OC Kaligis, 78.

Kurnia said that releasing corruption convicts would not be effective in reducing prison capacity as they only made up a small minority of inmates.

Law and Human Rights Ministry data in 2018 showed that Indonesia had 248,690 prisoners, of which graft convicts only made up 1.8 percent with 4,552, Kurnia said in a virtual press conference on Thursday.

Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) activist Muhammad Isnur said that by releasing corruption convicts early, the minister had relegated the status of corruption from an extraordinary to a mere ordinary crime.

Another ICW activist, Donal Fariz, said that Yasonna was taking advantage of the crisis to try and free graft convicts, adding that the move was another blow by the government to the anticorruption battle after weakening the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) through a recent law that stripped most of its powers and the appointment of controversial new leaders.
[April 02, 2020] Generational Equity Advises Wave Imaging Solutions and Ultrasound Parts Source in Sale to a Private Investor

Generational Equity, a leading mergers and acquisitions advisor for privately held businesses, is pleased to announce the sale of its clients, Wave Imaging Solutions Corp. and Ultrasound Parts Source (News - Alert), LLC to a private investor. The acquisition closed March 10, 2020 and details were not disclosed. Located in Mentor, Ohio, Wave Imaging Solutions is an authorized GE cardio-vascular ultrasound distributor. The Company is a full-service, new and reconditioned ultrasound sales service parts company. Their certified biomedical technicians repair and recondition ultrasound systems to the highest industry standards. Wave Imaging Solutions is also a proud Sony Medical Nationwide Distributor, Mindray Ultrasound Distributor, and Alpinion Ultrasound Distributor. Ultrasound Parts Source markets to ultrasound resellers, service companies, and doctors' clinics. Generational Equity Executive Managing Director of M&A - Central Region, Michael Goss, and his team, led by Senior M&A Advisor, Jim Branson, and assisted by Managing Director, Mergers & Acquisitions, Ryan Johnson, successfully closed the deal. Executive Managing Director Ed Weber established the initial relationship with Wave Imaging Solutions and Ultrasound Parts Source. "This acquisition was destined to happen due to the symbiotic personalities of th buyer and seller and their similar market backgrounds. Once the Buyer found this listing on DealForce, a meeting soon followed and an LOI was executed within three weeks," said Branson.



About Generational Equity Generational Equity, Generational Capital Markets (member FINRA/SIPC), Generational Wealth Advisors, and DealForce are part of the Generational Group, which is headquartered in Dallas and is one of the leading M&A advisory firms in North America.

With over 250 professionals located throughout North America, the companies help business owners release the wealth of their business by providing merger, acquisition, and wealth management services. Their five-step approach features exit planning education, business valuation, value enhancement strategies, M&A transactional services, and wealth management. The M&A Advisor named the company the 2016, 2017, and 2018 Investment Banking Firm of the Year. For more information, visit https://www.genequityco.com/ or the Generational Equity press room. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005122/en/

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While the nation fights the pandemic caused due to coronavirus, the number of positive cases in Bihar has reached from 9 to 11.

The nation is under lockdown to reduce the transmission risk and people are adhering to various precautionary measures including social distancing. In the wake of the same, Bihar, East Champaran based social activist Sarvesh Tiwari has come up with a creative and effective way to help people with social distancing by distributing masks among those in need.

The distributors use gloves and stick as precautionary measures while giving away the masks to minimize the chances of transmission. Having started his campaign from Musahar Toli, Sarvesh Tiwari aims to supply these masks to 20,000 people in need.

Another highlight of this campaign is that the masks are being distributed are of different colours, which makes it a first of its kind initiative toward this cause in the country.

The variety of colours helps ensure that masks aren't exchanged within the family members, helping to ensure their individual safety from the disease. For women, there are red and pink masks, for men it is blue and black while the children are being given white masks.

"Neither can we buy good quality masks owing to the lack of money, nor can we go out to the market to purchase it due to the nationwide lockdown. In such a scenario, many families including mine are benefitting a lot from this initiative by Sarvesh Tiwari", said Rudal Manjhi, one of the beneficiaries of the campaign, a resident of Musahar Toli.

The local youth of East Champaran are extending their full support towards the success of this campaign in the cause of fighting COVID-19. Tiwari along with his young brigade is also educating the masses about the symptoms and precautionary measures related to the disease while adhering to all the standards of safety and sanitation.

"Whenever a pandemic breaks out, the marginalized communities of society become the most vulnerable. The first reason behind this is the lack of awareness among their population and second is the lack of resources to avail precautionary tools and measures. Keeping this in mind, I decided to distribute masks among such sections of society at utmost priority while taking all possible safety measures, before the situation gets out of control. In these times demanding social distancing, this indigenous way of distributing masks using a stick is very easy to put into practice and people are adopting it very enthusiastically," said Sarvesh Tiwari.

The campaign is not only limited to this initiative alone. The people from other states that are returning to their homes are also being provided a free medical check-up by a specialist so that in case they are found positive they may receive treatment on time. This also helps to prevent the spread of the disease in the villages.

The secretary of Nirbhaya Jyoti Trust run by Nirbhaya's parents, and a crusader in the journey towards justice for Nirbhaya, Sarvesh Tiwari has been contributing to social cause through his organization "Rise Always Welfare Society" for many years now.

Sarvesh Tiwari has also adopted the families of the martyrs who lost their lives in 2016 Uri Attack along with 75 disabled children. The son of former Mukhia of Inarvabhar Panchayat, Anand Kumar Tiwari and presiding Mukhia, Usha Tiwari, Sarvesh Tiwari has been actively involved in the up-liftment of socially and financially under-privileged sections of the society.

He regularly organizes marriage ceremonies for the daughters and pilgrimage tours for the senior citizens of financially weak families and has installed hundreds of tube-wells to resolve water supply issue in his region.

This story is provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of this article.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Natural News) Before the outbreak of Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), Western technology companies, most of them U.S.-based like Google and Facebook, were already vacuuming up large quantities of our personal data and trading or selling it like it was a commodity in some bizarre 21st-century version of a Roman market.

But after the outbreak has now driven some 40 percent of the worlds population (more in the U.S.) out of the public square and into our homes, we continue to crave contact with the outside world.

And Big Tech is there to deliver it to us.

We FaceTime more. We Snapchat. We WhatsApp. We Skype. We are dating, intermingling, visiting, and interacting virtually now, and each day it seems that, as the outbreak widens and deepens, our leaders keep moving the self- isolation and social distancing goal posts.

And throughout it all, we seem to be more willing than ever to disregard digital privacy as we feed our desire to interact.

Likewise, the market power that made Big Tech look so dangerous makes it look vital and dependable now, writes Lionel Laurent for Bloomberg News.

Amazon, for instance, which has always wanted to be the Everything Store, is now the Only Store in cities like Paris and San Francisco, where its an essential lifeline for a myriad of household goods (with some restrictions) that cant always be found in the grocery stores or drugstores that are still operating, Laurent continues.

And now, a mega-corporation once accused of killing off large sectors of the economy  malls, retailers, even food distributors  has become, in the Age of Coronavirus, the only part of the economy that still functions.

Ditto for the other tech giants.

Laurent believes that its possible were seeing the beginning of a new economy, post-virus, and one that will be forged by a merger of sorts between Big Tech and Big Government. While the former becomes the dominant economic and social interaction force, the latter will use the former to help track disease and in the meantime our activities.

Does Mark Zuckerberg know more about the virus pandemic than Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro?

Because we cant have a successful pandemic response without knowing whether or not the bourgeoisie are in compliance, right?

Gone now are the calls for Big Government to place any restraint on Big Tech. The former must support the latter if the masses are to be supplied, entertained, connected and placated during this time of extreme danger and emergency measures. (Related: Three unmistakable signs that WAR is coming to America: Pompeo orders all American citizens to immediately return to the USA.)

Will it become the new normal? Sure, if the power brokers have their way about it.

Already, power is being flexed, as Laurent writes:

Facebook Inc. is taking down harmful misinformation related to the new coronavirus and redirecting users to public health authorities. Amazon has banned more than one million products that falsely promised to cure the coronavirus. Google is banning promotional ads for medical masks so they arent hoarded by panic-buyers.

Meanwhile, the Big Tech giants are flexing their muscle in the U.S., and without even a hint of interference from Congress.

Breitbart News Senior Technology Correspondent Allum Bokhari writes that Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is now the countrys chief medical officer.

Does Mark Zuckerberg know more about the Chinese virus pandemic than Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro? writes Bokhari, adding that likely the Brazilian leader does for a number of reasons, including life experiences and the fact that hes the head of a country.

And yet, Zuckerbergs platform has banned footage of Bolsonaro speaking to his people, attempting to calm their fears about the virus.

Whats next, choosing what news Americans can see on his platform? Oh, wait

Sources include:

Breitbart.com

finance.Yahoo.com

NaturalNews.com
Heartburn Medicine Ranitidine Urged To Be Removed From The Market Right Away For The Potential To Cause Cancer

Pills (Photo : Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay )

Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay



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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is urging manufacturers of the heartburn drug ranitidine, commonly known as Zantac, to immediately remove the product from the market. The withdrawal request is for both prescription and over-the-counter medications that are being investigated for their potential to cause cancer.



The ranitidine medications may contain N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) - a cancer-causing impurity - which the FDA has determined has increased NDMA levels over time and when stored at higher than normal temperatures, resulting in unacceptable exposure to the impurity.



The FDA said it has sent letters to all manufacturers of the heartburn medication to withdraw their product from the market. The agency is also urging consumers to stop taking any ranitidine tablets or liquid they currently have. They should be disposed of, and no additional ranitidine medications should be purchased.



Consumers that have prescription ranitidine should speak to their healthcare professional have alternative treatment options before stopping the medication. According to the FDA, other drugs such as famotidine (Pepcid), cimetidine (Tagamet), esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid), or omeprazole (Prilosec) are acceptable medications to treat heartburn that do not contain NDMA.



Several recalls have been issued for both prescription and over-the-counter ranitidine as far back as September 2019, with many retailers pulling the products from their shelves. At this time, the FDA said it did not have enough scientific evidence to recommended the discontinuation of these medications, only warning the public about the safety of these medications and urging them to consider alternative products.



Now, the FDA has determined through new testing that NDMA does increase in stored samples at high temperatures, as well as at normal temperatures, which could occur during the distribution and handling of the product. FDA testing found that the older the ranitidine product is, the higher the NDMA level is, increasing the risk of the cancer-causing impurity.



"The FDA is committed to ensuring that the medicines Americans take are safe and effective," Janet Woodcock, M.D., director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said in a statement. "We make every effort to investigate potential health risks and provide our recommendations to the public based on the best available science.



"We didn't observe unacceptable levels of NDMA in many of the samples that we tested. However, since we don't know how or for how long the product might have been stored, we decided that it should not be available to consumers and patients unless its quality can be assured.



"The FDA will continue our efforts to ensure impurities in other drugs do not exceed acceptable limits so that patients can continue taking medicines without concern," she added.


EDUCATION, Science and Technology Minister, Prof Joyce Ndalichako has commended the World Bank (WB) for approving 500 million US Dollars (about 1.15tr/-) as a loan to improve Secondary Schools education, quality and infrastructures in the country.

Speaking here on Thursday, Prof Ndalichako said the support in the Secondary Education Quality Improvement Project (SEQUIP) will be channeled to improve education quality and infrastructure, where about 6.5 million students in the institutions will directly benefit in the next five years.

Moreover, she said, it will also strengthen the government-run schools and establish stronger educational pathways for students, who thereafter leave the formal school system.

The loan, the minister added, would complement the governments efforts to improve education quality in the country after the government reinforced fee-free education policy right from Primary to High Schools, which has led to high enrolment in the institutions.

For instance, primary schools have seen a great increase from 8.3 million pupils to 10.1 million, and for secondary schools the enrolment has reached 4.4 million students.

The project will benefit boys and girls, with special focus on expanding access to their education especially the most vulnerable children, said Prof Ndalichako.

Highlighting the importance of the project, the Minister noted that it will help to meet the urgent needs of children, and realise the governments commitments in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

She said it will provide an opportunity for the State to focus on quality after a survey unearthed by Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and some stakeholders proposed priorities to start with.

Equally, it will address challenges in the sector by ensuring that students stay longer in school with a thorough roll-out gender sensitive safe programme(s).

The list also intends to support students, who drop out to further have access to recognized, quality Alternative Education and as well as increase their numbers.

It will also involve construction of new schools close to communities and ensure that they are equipped with right facilities, staff, textbooks and other learning materials.

According to the Minister, the scheme will also support innovative digital technology learning in core subjects and prepare students for further education armed with skills necessary for development.

Prof Ndalichako further said that the fund would support building 26 boarding schools for girls with a capacity to accommodate 39,000 student and some 1,000 day scholars.
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Silchar : , April 2 (IANS) The district administration in southern Assam's Cachar district ordered a probe of reported manhandled of a government doctor while on duty by a BJP MLA, officials said on Thursday. Ruling Bharatiya Janata Party legislator Kishore Nath strongly denied the incident.

An official of National Health Mission (NHM) told the media that the probe would be carried out by the in-charge of Barkhola primary health centre M. Singh.

The physician, who was allegedly manhandled, filed an FIR against the MLA, his body guards and associates for ill-treating him in the government hospital earlier this week.

The doctor told the police that during the spat, the MLA, his guards, supporters along with the parents of an under treatment baby scolded, abused and humiliated him.

The Officer-in-Charge of Barkhola police station (under Cachar district), Surajit Choudhury admitted that an FIR was registered under different sections of the Indian Penal Code.

"We are now investigating the matter," the police official said.The NHM official said that the heated argument between the doctor, MLA and the security guards ensued over the treatment of a newborn kid.

The BJP legislator Kishore Nath on the other hand claimed that the doctor "was in an inebriated condition and the FIR was filed against him three days after he met the doctor in the hospital".

Condemning the incident the Assam unit of Indian Medical Association has also submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal demanding action against Nath for allegedly abusing doctor Sujit Singh.
As of Monday, there were seven reported cases of National Park Service employees testing positive for COVID-19, according to an NPS spokeswoman. The park service is not commenting on individual cases, but said there have not been reports of an NPS employee who tested positive at Pullman National Monument. Labovitz said he was not aware of any confirmed cases at Indiana Dunes National Park.
 Flash

Chinese Embassy in Britain said Wednesday that it is assisting the work to arrange temporary flights to bring home Chinese students in the UK.

A spokesperson of the embassy said in view of the current situation in the UK and the difficulties faced by Chinese students there, the Chinese Foreign Ministry is actively coordinating with China's Civil Aviation Administration and other departments to bring home students in need by extra flight on Thursday, April 2.

"The embassy in UK is assisting the work related to temporary flights," added the spokesperson.

The decision was announced earlier in the day by China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying on the regular press conference, when the diplomat said due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, international passenger flights have been scaled down sharply and some Chinese students studying abroad run into difficulties on their way back home.

"Not long ago, China arranged temporary flights to transfer people facing dire situations in Iran and Italy back to China in an orderly manner," she added.

According to Britain's Department of Health and Social Care, the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Britain reached 29,474 as of Wednesday morning, an increase of 4,324 in 24 hours.

As of Tuesday afternoon, of those hospitalised in the country who tested positive for novel coronavirus, 2,352 have died, up 563 over the same time on the previous day, said the department.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister



Bhupesh on Thursday briefed Prime Minister Narendra Modi about steps taken by the state government to contain the spread of coronavirus and relief measures initiated for people affected by the lockdown, officials here said.

The PM held a video conference with chief ministers to take stock of the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak and the subseqent 21-day lockdown enforced to tackle the pandemic.

Baghel informed the PM about efforts being made to prevent and control the coronavirus spread in Chhattisgarh, an official of the government public relations department said.

The CM also provided details of measures being taken to provide relief to people, especially the poor, during the lockdown, he said.

Chief Secretary RP Mandal, Director General of Police DM Awasthi, Additional Chief Secretary Subrat Sahoo and Health Secretary Niharika Barik Singh were present at the conference along with the CM, he said.

Notably, Baghel, in a letter to the PM on March 29, had him urged to announce a special relief package for labourers under MGNREGS, workers in organised and unorganised sectors and Jan Dhan account holders.

Baghel had suggested in the letter that a sum of Rs 1,000 be transferred per month in the accounts of MGNREGS labourers and workers from the unorganised sector for the next three months.

Similarly, an amount of Rs 750 should be transferred into Jan Dhan Yojna accounts per month for the next three months, his letter said.

Till Wednesday, Chhattisgarh had reported nine COVID- 19 cases. Of these, two were discharged from a Raipur hospital on March 31 following recovery.

According to health officials, fresh samples of a woman, admitted in a hospital of Bilaspur, have tested negative for the infection and she is liketo be discharged soon.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 77-year-old man with underlying health conditions has become the third prisoner to die after testing positive for coronavirus - as calls grow to take urgent action to reduce crowding in 'pressure-cooker' British jails.

The inmate died on Friday at HMP Littlehey, a category C prison for sex offenders, where the virus also killed 84-year-old paedophile Edwin Hillier nearly two weeks ago.

The Ministry of Justice is facing demands to release inmates on remand and short-term sentences to clear space in jails, where the prison officers' union says crowding makes social distancing rules 'almost impossible' to enforce.

Former chief inspector of prisons Lord Ramsbotham (left) has called for some prisoners to be released. Pictured right: HMP Littlehey, which has seen two prisoners die

The deaths of three prisoners will increase pressure on officials to act. An inmate at HMP Manchester died in hospital on March 26 after testing positive for coronavirus. He was already terminally ill and receiving end-of-life care.

Nearly 70 pregnant women and mothers with babies are already being released early to protect them from the virus, but today former chief inspector of prisons Lord Ramsbotham called on authorities to go further.

Lord Ramsbotham said he was 'very worried' about the effect of the crisis on the country's jails, saying prison staff depleted by the virus would not be able to handle the crisis.

'The remand prisoners in particular should be let out,' Lord Ramsbotham wrote in a letter to The Daily Telegraph co-signed by 50 fellow members of the House of Lords as well as police and crime commissioners, leading academics and charities.

'They should also examine indeterminate sentence prisoners.'

The peer added the jail system now suffered from an acute lack of experienced officers since it had lost the equivalent of 80,000 years of operational expertise through staff cuts.

Justice Secretary Robert Buckland has sanctioned the early release of 69 pregnant women and mothers and babies from jails, but has resisted calls for the release of short-term prisoners.

Around 3,500 prison staff - representing about a tenth of the workforce - are in self-isolation due to suspected Covid-19. Some 14 employees have tested positive for the virus in eight prisons, as well as four prison escort and custody services staff.

Concerns about staffing levels growing dangerously low have led to Prison Officers' Union chief Dave Cook for the military to be drafted in as back up.

He told LBC that prisons are a 'pressure cooker', with inmates locked up for 20 hours per day, and numbers that mean social distancing measures are 'almost impossible' to enforce.

Edwin Hillier, 84, from Hertfordshire, was one of the country's oldest inmates at HMP Littlehey

Mr Cook said: 'The longer that it goes on, then the chance of violence and disorder increases. You only need to look at Italy.

'Coronavirus went into every prison in Italy and they suffered riots and hostage-taking and everything else, so that is what the Prison Service are trying to avoid or trying to keep a control against, but as staff get contaminated - and they will - then the number of staff available will start to drop off.'

A Government source confirmed that use of the military is being considered among several different options.

There are fears Britain's crowded prisons could hasten the spread of the disease, with inmates who have coronavirus symptoms placed in the same cells as those who have tested positive.

The technique, known as cohorting, has led to concerns that prisoners with conventional flu symptoms risk contracting the more serious condition, reported The Guardian.

Confirming the most recent death, a Prison Service spokesman said: 'A 77-year-old HMP Littlehey prisoner died in hospital on March 27. Our condolences are with his family at this time.

'As with all deaths in custody, there will be an independent investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.'

As of Monday, 65 inmates had tested positive for coronavirus in 23 prisons.

The first inmate to die, Edwin Hillier, was jailed for sex attacks on young girls in the 1970s.

He was rushed to hospital with suspected sepsis on Friday March 20 20 but post-mortem results showed he had also contracted coronavirus, which likely caused his death two days later.

A source told The Sun: 'The real concern is how he picked it up, who else he's come into contact with and how he died.'

Hillier, from Hertfordshire, was was serving an eight-and-a-half-year sentence for abusing girls in the 1970s.

He was sentenced in February 2016 at St Albans crown court by Judge Stephen Warner, who told him that he had subjected the victims to 'repeated and systematic abuse' for his own 'sexual gratification.'

Visits to all jails have now been banned by the Ministry of Justice to protect visitors, staff and the public.

Andrea Albutt, the president of the Prison Governors' Association, said: 'Prisons are now at the point where a decision must be made and implemented immediately on early release.'

However, a Ministry of Justice spokesman told the paper there were currently 'no plans to end short-term prison sentences'.

Alternatives such as transferring prisoners to Army barracks are said to be under consideration.
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San Francisco, 2 April 2020: The Report BFSI Security Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Physical Security (Software, Service), By Information Security, By End Use (Banking, Insurance Companies), By Region, And Segment Forecasts, 2019 - 2025

The global BFSI security market size is estimated to reach USD 74.3 billion by 2025, expanding at a CAGR of 13.1%, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Increasing risk of data loss owing to cyberattacks on banks and insurance companies is anticipated to propel the growth. Data related to the banking, financial services and insurance security (BFSI) industry is highly sensitive in nature as it contains personal or financial credentials. Thereby, cyber threats have prompted financial institutions to deploy reliable safety solutions at their premises.

Frequent emergence of new malware variants is driving demand for advanced safety solutions in the banking, financial services and insurance security market. For instance, in 2016, a mobile malware, masked as an application upgrade, was discovered. The malware displayed fake sites over authentic banking homepages for filching banking credentials of consumers. A generic solution would not have been enough to track this malware and that would have led to loss of large amounts of sensitive financial data.

Banking and insurance payment gateways require robust safety solutions to prevent breaches and enable secure transactions. Financial databases stored on cloud create need to verify safety systems of the cloud service provider. The market is lucrative in developing regions, such as Asia Pacific, owing to digitalized business operations in the BFSI industry.

Financial companies are stressing on consumer data protection and are implementing solutions such as firewall and threat management software. It has caused various companies to make huge investments in cybersecurity. Furthermore, governments across the globe have laid down stringent regulations to protect digital data related to BFSI. Such regulations have mandated response testing of threat management systems used in banks and insurance companies.

The industry includes a large number of Tier 1 companies that account for a majority share in the market. Industry giants acquire or collaborate with smaller players for sharing expertise and resources. Collaborations among big and small market players enable development of innovative products and services. The market is highly competitive in nature owing to the presence of major market players offering advanced safety solutions to the BFSI industry. Companies invest in R&D to develop innovative products for financial institutions. In addition, they adopt business strategies such as mergers and acquisitions to expand their product portfolio and gain a competitive edge.

Access Research Report of BFSI Security Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/bfsi-security-market

Further key findings from the study suggest:

The Physical Security Information Management (PSIM) segment is expected witness the CAGR of 18.7% over the forecast period owing to increasing cybercrimes in financial institutions

The encryption software segment is anticipated to exhibit the highest CAGR of 17.5% over the forecast period owing to rising need for preventing unauthorized access and hacking of data

Asia Pacific is estimated to be the fastest-growing regional market due to growth of fintech companies encouraging implementation of threat management solutions

Key market players in the BFSI security market include DXC Technology Company; Axis Communications; Honeywell International, Inc.; McAfee, Inc.; Sophos Ltd.; Symantec Corporation; IBM Corporation; Dell EMC; Bosch Security Systems; and Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc.

Browse more reports of this category by Grand View Research at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry/emerging-and-next-generation-technologies

Grand View Research has segmented the global BFSI security market based on physical security, information security, end use, and region:

BFSI Physical Security Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2025)

Software Video Surveillance Access Control Intrusion and Fire Detection Physical Security Information Management (PSIM)

Service Consulting & Training Services Integration & Maintenance Services Managed Security Services



BFSI Information Security Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2025)

Software Antivirus & Antimalware Data Loss Protection Disaster Recovery Encryption Firewall Identity Access Management Security and Vulnerability Management Unified Threat Management

Service Consulting & Training Services Integration & Maintenance Services Managed Security Services



BFSI Security End-use Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2025)

Banking

Insurance Companies

BFSI Security Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion, 2014 - 2025)

North America

Europe

Asia Pacific

Latin America

MEA

Access Press Release of BFSI Security Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/press-release/global-bfsi-security-market

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.

For More Information:www.grandviewresearch.com
This photo taken on March 23, 2020 shows employees eating during lunch break at an auto plant of Dongfeng Honda in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province. STR | AFP | China

As the second quarter begins in China, it's an altered landscape in the coronavirus-stricken economy with businesses that remain shut  some for good. The official resumption of work rate has crept steadily higher since early February, when more than half the country extended a Lunar New Year holiday by at least a week in an effort to limit the spread of the disease known officially as COVID-19. As of March 29, small and medium-sized enterprises nationwide had resumed work at a rate of 76.8%, up from around 60% about two weeks earlier, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's monitoring of about 2.2 million smaller businesses' use of cloud computing platforms. But it's unclear how quickly or whether that figure can reach 100%. "Further increase in the resumption of work rate for medium, small and micro-sized enterprises may hit a bottleneck, because some small, medium and micro-sized enterprises may have collapsed, and the data may not increase much," Bruce Pang, head of macro and strategy research at China Renaissance, said Monday, according to a CNBC translation of his Chinese-language comments. As of Monday, more than 429,000 business have dissolved or suspended operations for the year so far, according to analysis from Qichacha, which runs a Chinese business information database. Wholesale and retail had the largest share of business that dissolved operations, at about 38%, the data showed. Leasing and business services were second, at roughly 15%, followed by manufacturing, at around 8%. However, relative to the more than 126 million businesses still operating, the closures accounted for well below 1%, according to the data.

The coronavirus that emerged in late December in the city of Wuhan has killed more than 3,300 people in China. Even as the virus' spread has stalled domestically, authorities are worried about a resurgence, especially since the disease has become a global pandemic that's killed more than 39,000 people worldwide outside China. As Chinese authorities try to limit the spread of the virus, especially from travelers returning from overseas, changing policies can make it difficult for businesses to resume operations. For example, the hard-hit movie theaters were on their way to re-opening gradually in the last week or so, until the China Film Administration said Friday that all theaters must shut and remain closed, according to state media reports. In the meantime, China's largest companies, such as major industrial enterprises, have official resumption of work rates of 98.6% as of March 28, with a slightly lower rate of workers returning to work at 89.9%. Those major industrial businesses have an annual revenue of at least 20 million yuan from their primary business operations. Some regions have also reported 100% resumption of work rates for specific industries. For example, Guangdong province said that as of the end of March, 77 publicly listed companies had a resumption of work rate of 100%. But analysts point out those high figures do not necessarily capture how much businesses are producing and contributing to growth. China Renaissance estimates that for the large industrial enterprises, the economic utilization rate is at least 75%, according to a report published Tuesday.

Going forward, Pang noted that the global spread of the virus may cause some interruption in new orders for foreign trade companies in April, and the ability of domestic demand to match the drop in external demand is uncertain because the virus, employment and the state of small and medium-sized enterprises contribute to the investment and consumption appetite. China's privately run, smaller businesses contribute to the majority of growth and employment in the country. Yet they have tended to struggle in a state-dominated environment, particularly since the major banks are state-owned and prefer to lend to state-owned enterprises.

Spillover into financial pressures

In face of the coronavirus' impact on the economy, small businesses have been a focus of Beijing's response, including most recently a meeting on Tuesday of the State Council, the country's top administrative body. The newly announced measures specifically targeted small and medium-sized banks, offering an additional 1 trillion yuan (about $140.8 billion) for them to lend out at a special rate and cuts to the amount smaller banks need to have on hand, also known as the required reserve ratio. "(Small and medium-sized banks) could be severely hit by the COVID-19 pandemic as many, if not most, of their debtors are already very likely to be experiencing financial difficulties," Ting Lu, chief China economist at Nomura, said in a note Wednesday morning. "In this regard, the State Council's policy announcement is focused on supporting both SMBs and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)." The added financial pressure comes as Chinese businesses, both private and state-owned, have come to grips with slower growth in the world's second largest economy. Analysis from Fitch Ratings published Monday pointed out that "over the last two years, there has been a significant uptick in the total number of bond defaults in China" that has also hit state-owned enterprises, once thought to always benefit from government support. Defaults on bonds issued in China by privately owned enterprises is still far greater than that of state-owned enterprises, despite the latter accounting for 89% of onshore issuance during the two-year period, the Fitch report said. "If the economic situation continues to deteriorate we're going to see players in overcapacity (are) going to face a more challenging environment and their capability to receive support from their parent (for a recovery) is going to be weaker," Jenny Huang, director of China corporate research, Fitch Ratings, said in a phone interview Tuesday.

A global challenge
Four fresh cases of COVID-19 were



reported in Bihar on Thursday, taking the total number of people testing positive for the dreaded coronavirus to 28, an official said.

According to state epidemiologist Ragini Mishra, among the four samples three were tested at the IGIMS hospital in the city, while another was examined at the RMRI, an ICMR centre here.

"Among the three IGIMS samples testing positive, one is from Saran and two from Gopalganj districts. Details of the RMRI one are awaited. All the four samples were of males. Their age profile is yet known", she told PTI.

Notably, Gopalganj had reported its first COVID-19 case on Tuesday a man with travel history to the Gulf. It is however the first time that a sample has tested positive from Saran, which is the divisional headquarter and shares its borders with Gopalganj and Siwan which has reported five cases.

Of the 28 people reporting COVID-19 positive in Bihar till date, one has died while two have recovered.

The deceased was a 38-year-old from Munger, who returned from Qatar a month ago and breathed his last on March 21 at AIIMS, Patna, a day before test results confirming that he was COVID 19 positive came out.

He had been suffering from renal failure and ended up infecting several others, including neighbors, relatives and employees of private hospitals in Munger and Patna before he was referred to AIIMS, Patna.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Michigan has nearly 10,000 coronavirus cases and businesses continue to react.

A major event center is being transformed into a field hospital, communities tighten precautions to limit the spread of the virus and businesses are doing everything from giving raises to employees on the front lines to downplaying employee walkouts.

Below is a look at the most recent developments related to the crisis.

Michigan closes in on 10,000 coronavirus cases

Another 1,719 cases of COVID-19 were reported on Wednesday, the largest single-day jump yet. The state now has 9,334 cases, total.

State numbers also show a 30 percent increase in fatalities in the last day, with 78 new deaths and 337 total.

Hospitals furlough 2,500 employees

Mercy Health and Saint Joseph Mercy Health System are temporarily furloughing 2,500 employees, most of whom are non-clinical workers. The idea is to enable hospitals to focus resources on COVID-19 patients and prevent the spread of the virus.

The health systems have hospitals in Grand Rapids, Muskegon Shelby, Ann Arbor, Chelsea, Howell, Livonia and Pontiac.

Governor asks to extend state of emergency

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has asked state lawmakers to extend Michigans state of emergency through mid-June. It was first declared on March 10 and expires April 7.

The state of emergency allows officials to continue responding to the pandemic and partnering with the federal government. Some lawmakers think it shouldn't be extended as long as Whitmer wants, however.

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Beer company incentivizes pet adoption

On a lighter note, Busch is giving people three months of beer to 500 people who foster or adopt a dog through Midwest Animal Rescue & Services.

The Foster a Dog, Get a Busch promotion is open online for applications. They arent delivering kegs, unfortunately, but paying for the beer with a $100 pre-paid debit card.

U.S. alcohol sales spike during pandemic

Speaking of beer, $100 might not be enough for many Americans to cover three months of beer bills. U.S. alcoholic beverage sales rose 55 percent during the week ending in March 21, including a 42 percent spike for beer.

Online alcohol sales jumped 243 percent.

Michigan keeps pressing federal government for supplies

The state has made 34 requests to the federal government for various supplies during the coronavirus pandemic. While some supplies have been shipped, its only meeting a fraction of demand.

U.S. House candidate files lawsuit to extend deadline for signature gatherings

Social distancing has made it nearly impossible to gather signatures for political candidates, Republican U.S. House candidate Eric Esshaki said.

Hes filed a lawsuit to ask the court to suspend the April 21 deadline.

Flint imposes city-wide curfew

Genesee Countys coronavirus cases jumped from 185 to 249 on Wednesday, but Flint leaders are stepping up precautions.

Starting Thursday, the city is imposing a curfew from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., punishable by a misdemeanor with up to 30 days in jail and a $500 fine.

Former Cobo Center sees transformation

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Michigan National Guard have started transforming the 250,000-square-foot TCF Center in downtown Detroit to become a field hospital.

Once finished, it will have space for up to 1,000 beds and medical stations. The makeshift facility will be used for six months to treat COVID-19 patients.

Kroger gives employees $2-an-hour raise

For the next three weeks, Kroger employees on the front lines during the pandemic will see a $2-an-hour raise, which the company is calling a "Hero Bonus."

To help handle demand, the company has hired more than 30,000 new employees in the past two weeks across its stores in 35 U.S. states.

Three weeks in, coronavirus has grown exponentially in Michigan

In less than a month, Michigans went from no COVID-19 cases to nearly 10,000. Heres a visual look at the data on how we got here.

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Michigan unemployment claims system jammed

The Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency has been overwhelmed with requests, but officials are maintaining everyone who files will receive their benefits.

For the week ending in March 14, Michigan had 5,338 claims. The following week, there were 129,298 new claims.

Amazon employees stage walkout at Michigan warehouse

A group of southeast Michigan Amazon employees are concerned for their safety, as they claim their workplace remains open despite positive cases of coronavirus occurring at the facility.

The company said the walkout was small and that its taking extreme measures to keep workers safe.

Spectrum Health hiring hundreds to prepare for surge

The Grand Rapids-based Spectrum Health is looking to hire hundreds of temporary employees at its network of 14 hospitals in 16 counties.

It's also reshuffling staff and asking recent retirees to return.

First prison employee dies from coronavirus

A corrections transportation officer has died from COVID-19, the first Michigan Department of Corrections employee to die from the virus.

There are 24 staff and 141 inmates who've tested positive for the virus so far.

Detroit to receive first instant coronavirus test kits

Technology is emerging that can process COVID-19 tests in minutes and the first of those test kits have arrived in Detroit.

They'll be reserved for Detroit police, firefighters, EMTs and bus drivers.

Governor calls out those evading 'stay home' order

Michigan's "stay home" order from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer continues through April 14, and Whitmer is reemphasizing its importance.

Anybody leaving the house for frivolous reasons is being incredibly selfish, she said.

Grand Rapids hotels furlough 1,000 employees

The JW Marriott, Courtyard by Marriott and AC Hotel by Marriott have temporarily closed in downtown Grand Rapids during the pandemic and the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel is seeing consolidated service.

Its resulting in about 1,000 employees getting furloughed.

Menards in trouble with Attorney General again

Menards is getting warned for the second time for its business practices during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Attorney General is telling the business to cease opportunistic practices, including marketing sales to bring large numbers of people into its stores for non-emergency purposes.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus.

Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible.

Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more at mlive.com/coronavirus.
California's hospitals thought they were ready for the next big disaster.

They've retrofitted their buildings to withstand a major earthquake and whisked patients out of danger during deadly wildfires. They've kept patients alive with backup generators amid sweeping power shutoffs and trained their staff to thwart would-be shooters.

But nothing has prepared them for a crisis of the magnitude facing hospitals today.

"We're in a battle with an unseen enemy, and we have to be fully mobilized in a way that's never been seen in our careers," said Dr. Stephen Parodi, an infectious disease expert for Kaiser Permanente in California. (Kaiser Health News, which produces California Healthline, is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.)

As California enters the most critical period in the state's battle against COVID-19, the state's 416 hospitals  big and small, public and private  are scrambling to build the capacity needed for an onslaught of critically ill patients.

Hospitals from Los Angeles to San Jose are already seeing a steady increase in patients infected by the virus, and so far, hospital officials say they have enough space to treat them. But they also issued a dire warning: What happens over the next four to six weeks will determine whether the experience of California overall looks more like that of New York, which has seen an explosion of hospitalizations and deaths, or like that of the San Francisco Bay Area, which has so far managed to prevent a major spike in new infections, hospitalizations and death.

Some of their preparations share common themes: Postpone elective surgeries. Make greater use of telemedicine to limit face-to-face contact. Erect tents outside to care for less critical patients. Add beds  hospital by hospital, a few dozen at a time  to spaces like cafeterias, operating rooms and decommissioned wings.

But by necessity  because of shortages of testing, ventilators, personal protective equipment and even doctors and nurses  they're also trying creative and sometimes untried strategies to bolster their readiness and increase their capacity.

In San Diego, hospitals may use college dormitories as alternative care sites. A large public hospital in Los Angeles is turning to 3D printing to manufacture ventilator parts. And in hard-hit Santa Clara County, with a population of nearly 2 million, public and private hospitals have joined forces to alleviate pressure on local hospitals by caring for patients at the Santa Clara Convention Center.

Yet some hospitals acknowledge that, despite their efforts, they may end up having to park patients in hallways.

"The need in this pandemic is so different and so extraordinary and so big that a hospital's typical surge plan will be insufficient for what we're dealing with in this state and across the nation," said Carmela Coyle, president and CEO of the California Hospital Association.

Across the U.S., more than 213,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed, and at least 4,750 people have died. California accounts for more than 9,400 cases and at least 199 deaths.

Health officials and hospital administrators are singling out April as the most consequential month in California's effort to combat a steep increase in new infections. State Health and Human Services Secretary Mark Ghaly said Wednesday that the number of hospitalizations is expected to peak in mid-May.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said there were 1,855 COVID-19 cases in hospitals Wednesday, a number that had tripled in six days, and 774 patients in critical care. By mid-May, the number of critical care patients is expected to climb to 27,000, he said.

Newsom said the state needs nearly 70,000 more hospital beds, bringing its overall capacity to more than 140,000  both inside hospitals and also at alternative care sites like convention centers. The state also needs 10,000 more ventilators than it normally has to aid the crush of patients needing help to breathe, he said, and so far has acquired fewer than half.

Newsom and state health officials worked with the Trump administration to bring a naval hospital ship to the Port of Los Angeles, where it is already treating patients not infected with the novel coronavirus. The state is working with the Army Corps of Engineers to deploy eight mobile field hospitals, including one in Santa Clara County. And it is bringing hospitals back online that were shuttered or slated to close, including one each in Daly City, Los Angeles, Long Beach and Costa Mesa.

The governor is also drafting a plan to make greater use of hotels and motels and nursing homes to house patients, if needed.

But the size of the surge that hits hospitals depends on how well the public follows social distancing and stay-at-home orders, said Newsom and hospital administrators. "This is not just about health care providers caring for the sick," said Dr. Steve Lockhart, the chief medical officer of Sutter Health, which has 22 hospitals across Northern California.

While hospitals welcomed the state assistance, they're also undertaking dramatic measures to prepare on their own.

"I'm genuinely very worried, and it scares me that so many people are still out there doing business as usual," said Chris Van Gorder, CEO of Scripps Health, a system with five major hospitals in San Diego County. "It wouldn't take a lot to overwhelm us."

Internal projections show the hospital system could need 8,000 beds by June, he said. It has 1,200.

In addition to taking precautions to protect its health care workers  such as using baby monitors to observe patients without risking infection  it is working with area colleges to use dorm rooms as hospital rooms for patients with mild cases of COVID-19, among other efforts, he said.

"Honestly, I think we should have been better prepared than we are," Van Gorder said. "But hospitals cannot take on this burden themselves."

Van Gorder and other hospital administrators say a continued shortage of COVID-19 tests has hampered their response  because they still don't know exactly which patients have the virus  as has the chronic underfunding of public health infrastructure.

Kaiser Permanente wants to double the capacity of its 36 California hospitals, Parodi said. It is also working with the garment industry to manufacture face masks, and eyeing hotel rooms for less critical patients.

Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, a 425-bed safety-net hospital in Los Angeles, is working to increase its capacity by 200%, said Dr. Anish Mahajan, the hospital's chief medical officer.

Harbor-UCLA is using 3D printers to produce ventilator piping equipped to serve two patients per machine. And in March it transformed a new emergency wing into an intensive care unit for COVID-19 patients.

"This was a shocking thing to do," Mahajan said of the unprecedented move to create extra space.

He said some measures are untested, but hospitals across the state are facing extreme pressure to do whatever they can to meet their greatest needs.

In March, Stanford Hospital in the San Francisco Bay Area launched a massive telemedicine overhaul of its emergency department to reduce the number of employees who interact with patients in person. This is the first time the hospital has used telemedicine like this, said Dr. Ryan Ribeira, an emergency physician who spearheaded the project.

Stanford also did some soul-searching, thinking about which of its staff might be at highest risk if they catch COVID-19, and has assigned them to parts of the hospital with no coronavirus patients or areas dedicated to telemedicine. "These are people that we might have otherwise had to drop off the schedule," Ribeira said.

Nearby, several San Francisco hospitals that were previously competitors have joined forces to create a dedicated COVID-19 floor at Saint Francis Memorial Hospital with four dozen critical care beds.

The city currently has 1,300 beds, including 200 ICU beds. If the number of patients surges as it has in New York, officials anticipate needing 5,000 additional beds.

But the San Francisco Bay Area hasn't yet seen the expected surge. UCSF Health had 15 inpatients with COVID-19 Tuesday. Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center had 18 inpatients with the disease Wednesday.

While hospital officials are cautiously optimistic that local and state stay-at-home orders have worked to slow the spread of the virus, they are still preparing for what could be a major increase in admissions.

"The next two weeks is when we're really going to see the surge," said San Francisco General CEO Susan Ehrlich. "We're preparing for the worst but hoping for the best."

This KHN story first published on California Healthline, a service of the California Health Care Foundation.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 10:40:04|Editor: huaxia

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RIO DE JANEIRO, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Brazilian midfielder Willian has revealed that he is likely to leave Chelsea this summer after seven years with the Premier League club.

Willian, whose contract with the Blues expires in June, said he is open to offers from other clubs after talks about a new deal broke down.

"I have a beautiful story at Chelsea. I have a great relationship with the fans and everybody at the club. But my contract is ending and it's going to be difficult," the 31-year-old was quoted as saying by Brazilian news service Uol.

"Chelsea offered me [a contract of] two years. I asked for three and they said it was impossible. I don't know if they can change their mind but, with the end of my current contract, I'm free to negotiate with any team."

Willian has made 329 first-team appearances for Chelsea since joining the London club from Anzhi Makhachkala in August 2013.

He ruled out a return to Brazil in the near future, believing he still has plenty to offer for clubs in Europe.

"My goal is to continue in Europe for a while longer," the former Corinthians player added.
The Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday said the heartburn drug Zantac should immediately be pulled from shelves and consumers should dispose of any pills or liquid they have at home.

During safety tests last summer, extremely high levels of the contaminant NDMA, believed to be a carcinogen, were discovered in samples of the drug. The active ingredient in Zantac is ranitidine, and the FDA said that over time, NDMA appears as an impurity in ranitidine in levels exceeding federal standards, NPR reports.

The FDA issued a warning last September, and CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart removed the drug and its generic forms from stores. Since then, the agency has confirmed that the issue is how ranitidine naturally breaks down in normal storage conditions, and has nothing to do with the way it is manufactured.

"We didn't observe unacceptable levels of NDMA in many of the samples that we tested," the FDA's Janet Woodcock said in a statement Wednesday. "However, since we don't know how or for how long the product might have been stored, we decided that it should not be available to consumers and patients unless its quality can be assured."

More stories from theweek.com

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 Flash

While the world witnesses the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, all countries should shoulder their responsibility and provide joint leadership, especially in the United Nations, the Iranian Ambassador to China, Mohammad Keshavarz Zadeh, has told China.org.cn.

He warned that the world should be vigilant against any xenophobic, racist or intolerant propaganda.

"It's absolutely wrong and inappropriate to label the novel coronavirus as the 'China Virus' or 'Wuhan Virus,'" said the ambassador, referring to the practice of tying the virus to China by U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier in March.

The ambassador said this kind of propaganda is not a new type of ignorance and racism, but such language from the top leadership of a major power is unprecedented in the 21st century.

Trump's language has also drawn domestic criticism. "It's certainly not the way the leadership of the United States, the secretary of State, and the president of the United States, ought to be behaving in the best of times - but certainly not in a crisis." The Hill quoted former White House national security adviser Susan Rice as saying on Tuesday.

In the short term, Keshavarz Zadeh called on all countries and the United Nations to make effective arrangement to lead global efforts in sharing data about the COVID-19, coordinating international research, providing and encouraging greater funding of the World Health Organization, and humanitarian assistance.

According to the diplomat, Iran, the hardest-hit country in Middle East, has entered a dire situation at a time when the government was already under extreme pressure by U.S. unilateral sanctions. This has hampered Iran's ability to purchase and access vital medical equipment and pharmaceuticals from the international market.

"Iran has been unable to purchase medical equipment and medicine even from European companies due to fears by European banks of being sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury department if they traded with Tehran," the ambassador wrote.

Since Iran detected its first coronavirus case on Feb. 19, there has been an upsurge in confirmed cases. According to Iran's health authorities, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Iran reached 47,593 on Wednesday and the death toll has risen to 3,036.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has announced the extension of social distancing plan for another week until April 8. Iran's healthcare system faces mounting pressure with the influx of patients, said the ambassador.

Earlier in February, Beijing sent to Tehran several humanitarian aid consignments including testing kits and medical supplies, along with a volunteer group of medical experts from the Red Cross Society of China to assist Iran's response to the outbreak.

Following that, many Chinese people have also sent their undisputed assistance to Iran in fight against the epidemic, said the ambassador, expressing gratitude in a tweet.

He said: "China had a unique and unprecedented public health response that reversed the escalating cases and the country is already beginning to see success from the government's measures."

The ambassador said it's good to see the number of new cases in China declining, which opens the door for hope in controlling the disease.
Google on Thursday said it was providing $6.5 million in funding to fact-checkers and non-profit organisations fighting misinformation around Coronavirus (COVID 19) around the world.

Alexios Mantzarlis, News and Information Credibility Lead, Google News Initiative (GNI) News Lab, said it was in an effort to help address the challenge of the ongoing spread of misinformation related to the coronavirus pandemic.

He said through its GNI Google was providing the funds to support media outlets and fact-checkers working to combat misinformation around the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

Mr Mantzarlis said Google would be supporting Africa Check in Nigeria, and Data Leads in partnership with BOOM Live in India to leverage data from Question Hub.

He said this will be complemented by an effort to train 1,000 journalists across India and Nigeria to spot health misinformation.

Googles online resources were being updated to support the vital work journalists were doing and the GNI Training Centre had tools for data journalism and verification in 16 languages.

With a global team of Teaching Fellows delivering workshops entirely online in 10 languages.

Health authorities have warned that an overabundance of information can make it harder for people to obtain reliable guidance about the coronavirus pandemic.

Helping the world make sense of this information requires a broad response involving scientists, journalists, public figures, technology platforms and many others, he said in a statement.

According to him, some other media outlets and non-profits around the world which will receive support through the Google News Initiative (GNI) include First Draft, a non-profit that is providing an online resource hub.

He said others were Full Fact and Maldita.es, which would coordinate efforts in Europe focused on countries with the most cases, CORRECTIV in Germany, LatamChequea, coordinated by Chequeado, in the Spanish-speaking world and Latin America.

Mr Mantzarlis said the collaborative verification project Comprova in Brazil, SciLine, based at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the Australian Science Media Centre, creators of Scimex.org among others.

He said We also want to do more to highlight fact-check articles that address potentially harmful health misinformation more prominently to our users.

READ ALSO:

He said Google was also experimenting with how best to include a dedicated fact check section in the COVID-19 Google News experience.

Mr Mantzarlis said already, Google had made Google Trends data readily available in localized pages with embeddable visualizations.

He said reporters across the globe needed to understand and explain how the world was searching for the virus.

Also Local Google Trends data is available for journalists, health organizations and local authorities to help them understand peoples information needs around the world.

Mr Mantzarlis said fact-checkers and health authorities also need help to identify topics that people were searching for and where there might be a gap in the availability of good information online.

He however said unanswered user questions could provide useful insights to fact-checkers and health authorities about content they may want to produce.

Over 174 cases have been reported in Nigeria while the current global cases from World Health Organisations (WHO) is 930,000 and over 47,000 deaths.

(NAN)
It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. Unfortunately, there are also plenty of examples of share prices declining precipitously after insiders have sold shares. So we'll take a look at whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in Postmedia Network Canada Corp. (TSE:PNC.B).

What Is Insider Selling?

It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, such insiders must disclose their trading activities, and not trade on inside information.

We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. For example, a Harvard University study found that 'insider purchases earn abnormal returns of more than 6% per year.

See our latest analysis for Postmedia Network Canada

Postmedia Network Canada Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In the last twelve months, the biggest single purchase by an insider was when insider Leon Cooperman bought CA$7.2m worth of shares at a price of CA$1.26 per share. So it's clear an insider wanted to buy, even at a higher price than the current share price (being CA$1.25). Their view may have changed since then, but at least it shows they felt optimistic at the time. We always take careful note of the price insiders pay when purchasing shares. It is encouraging to see an insider paid above the current price for shares, as it suggests they saw value, even at higher levels. Leon Cooperman was the only individual insider to buy shares in the last twelve months.

You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

TSX:PNC.B Recent Insider Trading April 2nd 2020

There are always plenty of stocks that insiders are buying. So if that suits your style you could check each stock one by one or you could take a look at this free list of companies. (Hint: insiders have been buying them).

Story continues

Insider Ownership

For a common shareholder, it is worth checking how many shares are held by company insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Our data indicates that Postmedia Network Canada insiders own about CA$9.1m worth of shares (which is 7.7% of the company). Overall, this level of ownership isn't that impressive, but it's certainly better than nothing!

So What Does This Data Suggest About Postmedia Network Canada Insiders?

It doesn't really mean much that no insider has traded Postmedia Network Canada shares in the last quarter. On a brighter note, the transactions over the last year are encouraging. While we have no worries about the insider transactions, we'd be more comfortable if they owned more Postmedia Network Canada stock. So these insider transactions can help us build a thesis about the stock, but it's also worthwhile knowing the risks facing this company. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Postmedia Network Canada you should know about.

Of course Postmedia Network Canada may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Police in Colorado are on the lookout for a mother and father who left their five-year-old daughter at the alleged marijuana grow house they lived in and fled with their two-year-old daughter.

Liu Nei Li, 40, and Zaiqiao Feng, 48, left their Thornton, Colorado home with daughter, Anny Li, 2, Monday morning, according to the Thornton Police Department.

Police are searching for Zaiqiao Feng, left, and Liu Nei Li, who they say left their five-year-old daughter behind after leaving their home in Thornton, Colorado

The Thornton Police Department is asking anyone who has seen the family, which is driving a 2008 grey Toyato Highlander with Colorado plates 231-REZ, to call 720-977-5150

The Thornton Police Department in Colorado tweeted out the address of a missing family that abandoned their five-year-old daughter at home

The couple told their five-year-old daughter they were going grocery shopping, before pulling away in their gray 2008 Toyota Highlander with Colorado plates 231-REZ.

The daughter was left alone throughout the day Monday, until family members found her walking around at about 9pm on the front lawn.

They called the police at about 9:30pm.

After police executed a search warrant, they said they found a marijuana grow.

'We don't have any indication of foul play at this time,' police spokesman Matt Barnes told the Denver Post.

Police want anyone who's seen the couple to contact 720-977-5150.

Colorado is currently under a stay-at-home order amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  A business group recommends the lifting of the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine on April 12, 2020 and the easing of lockdown restrictions.

"The calibrated easing of restrictions can be accompanied by specific safeguards and hygienic measures to reduce the risk of spreading the disease while allowing a limited resumption of economic activity," the Foundation for Economic Freedom (FEF) said in a statement.

The FEF describes itself as an advocacy institution, composed of respected business leaders, retired bureaucrats and academic economists. Listed in its Board of Advisers are former Prime Minister Cesar Virata and economist Gerardo Sicat.

On movement of people, goods

One of the safeguards proposed by the group is the mandatory use of face masks for everyone venturing outside their homes, a measure recently adopted by the COVID-19 inter-agency task force but only until the end of the quarantine period.

It also supports disinfection measures in public transportation before and after every trip, adding that the absence of mass transport has been particularly injurious to the poor.

The FEF recommends the removal of checkpoints between local government units to allow the free flow of goods, with disinfection procedures also to be strictly observed.

New work arrangements, reopening factories

The group supports work-from-home arrangements and staggered working hours after the lockdown is lifted. It also encourages continued salary payments to employees.

Meanwhile, factories may also reopen but must observe social distancing, with a ban on groups of more than ten people, the statement said.

The group added that aside from supermarkets and groceries, hardware stores must be allowed to operate as well.

Medical efforts to combat COVID-19

To "give valuable data for decision points, the FEF supports mass or random testing for the virus.

READ: PH eyes 'massive testing' of suspected COVID-19 cases by April 14

It also encourages the mobilization of the private sector to produce much needed health supplies and the importation of critical medical equipment.

To gauge the effectiveness of measures, the group recommends a "weekly evaluation and assessment to further ease or dial up restrictions."
Researchers have unearthed evidence of rainforests near the South Pole 90 million years ago, a finding which suggests that the climate at this time was exceptionally warm with a higher level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere than previously thought.

The scientists, including those from Imperial College London in the UK, discovered forest soil pertaining to a time between 145 and 66 million years ago within 900 kilometres of the South Pole.

In the study, published in the journal Nature, they analysed preserved roots, pollen, and spores from this soil, and showed that the world at that time -- the Cretaceous period -- was a lot warmer than previously thought.

"The preservation of this 90-million-year-old forest is exceptional, but even more surprising is the world it reveals," said study co-author Tina van de Flierdt from Imperial College London.

"Even during months of darkness, swampy temperate rainforests were able to grow close to the South Pole, revealing an even warmer climate than we expected," van de Flierdt said.

According to the study, the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere were higher than expected during the mid-Cretaceous period, 115-80 million years ago, challenging current climate models of the period.

The mid-Cretaceous was the heyday of the dinosaurs but was also the warmest period in the past 140 million years, with temperatures in the tropics as high as 35 degrees Celsius, and sea level 170 metres higher than today, the scientists said.

However, they said, very little is known about the south of the Antarctic Circle at this time.

The scientists compared the current evidence of a temperate rainforest in the region to what is found in New Zealand today.

They said the finding is even more significant considering that the South Pole experiences only a four-month polar night, meaning for a third of every year there is no life-giving sunlight at all.

According to the researchers, the presence of the forest suggests average temperatures in this region were around 12 degrees Celsius, with little likelihood for the presence of an ice cap at the South Pole at the time.

The study noted that the evidence for the Antarctic forest is based on a core of sediment drilled into the seabed near the Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers in West Antarctica.

One section of the core, they said, caught their attention with its strange colour.

On scanning this section with an X-ray CT scan, the scientists discovered a dense network of fossil roots, which was so well preserved that they could make out individual cell structures.

The samples noted in the study also contained countless traces of pollen and spores from plants, including the first remnants of flowering plants ever found at these high Antarctic latitudes.

To reconstruct this ecology, the team assessed the climatic conditions under which the plants' modern descendants live, as well as analysing temperature and rainfall indicators within the sample.

They found that the annual mean air temperature was around 12 degrees Celsius.

Putting this in perspective, the researchers said this is roughly two degrees warmer than the mean temperature in modern-day Germany.

They believe the average summer temperatures may have been around 19 degrees Celsius and water temperatures in the rivers and swamps to be 20 degrees.

According to the study, the amount and intensity of rainfall in West Antarctica at this time may have been similar to those in today's Wales.

The scientists concluded that about 90 million years ago the Antarctic continent may have been covered with dense vegetation, with no land-ice masses on the scale of an ice sheet in the South Pole region.

They believe the carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere was far higher than previously assumed for the Cretaceous period.

"Before our study, the general assumption was that the global carbon dioxide concentration in the Cretaceous was roughly 1000 ppm," said lead author Johann Klages from the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany.

"But in our model-based experiments, it took concentration levels of 1120 to 1680 ppm to reach the average temperatures back then in the Antarctic," Klages said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Trend





Special permits allowing citizens to go outside will be prepared in Azerbaijan, said spokesman for the Cabinet of Ministers Ibrahim Mammadov, Trend reports.

Mammadov made the remark at briefing held by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2.

According to him, the permit template will be prepared in the coming days, and respective information be announced to the citizens.

"Since the permit template is not yet ready, we cannot provide the information. The permit will clarify the rules, cases in which a citizen can leave his house, as well as the control mechanism," Mammadov said.

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their homes, apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence.

To this end, all kinds of operations, except for the vital work and services, have been suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.

People are allowed to leave houses and apartments only if it is necessary to provide emergency medical care, if there is a directly dangerous situation for life and health, in order to visit authorized retail and public services, to perform official duties in cases of household waste, as well as in organizations operating during the special regime.

In order to minimize peoples communication with each other and thereby reduce the rate of infection, activities in a number of areas of the economy and services are prohibited during the announced period.
While the world is gripped by the coronavirus pandemic, war-shattered Libya marks one year Saturday of its latest bloody conflict that is plunging it ever deeper into chaos.

Russia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and others have fuelled the fighting in the oil-rich but poverty-stricken North African nation where hundreds have been killed and over 150,000 displaced.

Medical experts warn that Libya is at heightened risk of the fast-spreading COVID-19 illness, given the deteriorated public health system in the gateway country for desperate Europe-bound migrants.

As much of the world has hunkered down, militias in the south of the capital Tripoli have kept firing bullets, mortars and grenades at each other, the explosions echoing across the city.

Libya has been gripped by chaos for almost a decade, since longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi was brought down and killed in a 2011 uprising backed by several Western powers.

It is now split between the UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli and forces loyal to eastern-based strongman Khalifa Haftar, who launched his offensive to try to capture the capital on April 4 last year.

A Tripoli house after a rocket attack in February by forces loyal to eastern Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar. By Mahmud TURKIA (AFP/File)

One year on, and several failed ceasefires later, "we are simply witnessing the decimation of a nation", said analyst Jalel Harchaoui of the Clingendael Institute in The Hague.

The United Nations' envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salame, threw in the towel in early March following the repeated failure of efforts to restore order, although he said his resignation was for health reasons.

A Berlin summit in late January saw Moscow, Ankara and other foreign players engaged in Libya pledge to respect an arms embargo and support a truce.

But barely 10 days later, Salame was denouncing violations and a continuous influx of foreign arms and mercenaries.

'Existential battle'

Libya's UN-recognised Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj (left) and strongman Khalifa Haftar (right). By FETHI BELAID, HO (AFP/File)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has openly sent military equipment and fighters to the GNA.

Russia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates have meanwhile supported what Haftar claims is a campaign against jihadist "terrorists" and "criminals".

As Haftar's offensive has so far failed to take Tripoli, said Harchaoui, Erdogan's government has been able "to increase its presence and influence in the Libyan capital".

In recent months, Erdogan sent hundreds of pro-Turkish Syrian fighters to battle the pro-Haftar forces, who are supported by Russian mercenaries Moscow denies having sent.

Libya has confirmed just a handful of coronavirus cases but the UN warns it is at high risk because of insecurity, a weak health system and a high numbers of migrants, refugees and internally displaced persons. By Mahmud TURKIA (AFP/File)

Armed groups from western Libya are fighting Haftar forces "in an existential battle", said Wolfram Lacher of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs.

"Haftar's forces are notorious for looting and summary executions, and they include groups that are motivated by a thirst for revenge against entire communities," he said.

"The fear of war crimes, of collective punishment, of marginalisation under dictatorial rule means that the forces fighting against Haftar won't give up easily."

Fighting has intensified in recent days, despite the latest pledges by both sides to accept UN and international calls for a humanitarian truce to help contain the coronavirus.

Fighters of a military battalion loyal to Libya's Khalifa Haftar patrol in the eastern city of Benghazi during a state of emergency to combat the coronavirus disease. By Abdullah DOMA (AFP/File)

The international community's "distraction linked to COVID-19 has accelerated and exacerbated this escalation which, in any case, was inevitable," said Harchaoui.

Libya has confirmed just a handful of cases so far, but the UN aid agency OCHA has warned it is "at high risk of the spread of COVID-19 given its levels of insecurity, weak health system and high numbers of migrants, refugees and internally displaced persons".

'Situation unbearable'

Supporters of Libyan military strongman Khalifa Haftar demonstrate in February against the Turkish military intervention in support of the Tripoli government. By Abdullah DOMA (AFP/File)

A few days ago, the GNA even announced a counter-offensive paradoxically named "peace storm".

Fighting is still concentrated south of Tripoli and east of the coastal city of Misrata, after pro-Haftar forces in early January captured Sirte, some 250 kilometres (150 miles) away.

Fears of war and disease have piled on misery for the displaced, such as Fatma Khairi, who has taken refuge in a school building in the working class district of Abu Slim, in the south of Tripoli.

"I have a lot of trouble with the communal toilets where often there is no water or soap," she told AFP.

"My family and I live in dramatic conditions that I can hardly describe to you. The situation has become unbearable."

The humanitarian situation is likely to deteriorate as the world faces a deep economic crisis and a further slump in the price of oil, Libya's main source of income.

Pro-Haftar forces have already shuttered the country's main oil fields and production has come to a virtual standstill.

The Spanish NGO Maydayterraneo rescues migrants off the Libyan coast in February. By Pablo Garcia (AFP/File)

A political resolution to the conflict seems remote, said both Lacher and Harchaoui, who agreed that the international community would have to pressure the outside powers, especially the United Arab Emirates.

"If no Western state agrees to contradict the UAE even a little, an even more serious deterioration of the conflict will be inevitable," said Harchaoui.

Lacher judged that for now "Western states are not ready to exert meaningful pressure on Haftar and the UAE. As long as this is the case, the prospects for a political solution are virtually non-existent."
PlayStation maker Sony has established a $100 million global relief fund to help those around the world affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sony will use the initiative to support those working in the education, healthcare, and creative industries, and will kick things off by donating $10 million to medical charities including the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, the United Nations Children's Fund, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

In the area of education, the Japanese company wants to help those children who've lost learning opportunities as a result of school closures by exploring ways to leverage its technologies to fill that educational gap.

It has also pledged to find ways to support up-and-coming creators and professionals working in the music, film, video game, and animation industries who've been impacted by the cancellation or postponement of concerts, live events, movie productions, and more.

"Sony extends its condolences to the families of those who have passed away as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, and extends its sympathies to all those who have been impacted," said company CEO and president, Kenichiro Yoshida.

"In order to overcome the unprecedented challenges that as a society we now face around the world, we will do all we can as a global company to support the individuals on the frontlines of the battle against COVID-19, the children who are our future, and those who have been impacted in the creative community."
California schools should plan on teaching from afar for the rest of the academic year because it's unlikely the coronavirus will allow them to reopen before summer, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday.

"The right thing to do for our children, the right thing to do for the parents, for households, for the community which they reside, is to make sure that we are preparing today to set our school system up where we are increasing class time, but increasing it at home," Newsom said.

That means, he said, "fulfilling obligations through distance learning and other mechanisms to make sure that we're educating our kids, but not doing so physically on the school sites."

His comments follow guidance to districts Tuesday night from state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond. It's not a mandate, but it will give school districts the cover to do what many already felt was necessary, said Troy Flint, spokesman for the California School Boards Association.

Flint said Thurmond's letter gives districts the "security they feel they need to make a decision and explain that to their communities."

Still, many districts, teachers and students are struggling to adapt to at-home learning, particularly in California's rural areas where access to wireless internet can be sparse. Google announced Wednesday it will give free Wi-Fi to 100,000 rural households and provide 4,000 Chromebooks to students in need. The Wi-Fi will be delivered through mobile hot spots provided by T-Mobile.

Linda Darling-Hammond, president of California's State Board of Education, said roughly 20% of California students lacked internet access at home when schools closed several weeks ago. Districts have found resources to cut that by half.

"We need more Googles," Newsom said. "We still have a little bit more coverage that we're going to need in some of the more remote parts of the state."

California Republican U.S. Rep. Devin Nunes interpreted Thurmond's letter as tantamount to a statewide closure order. He said such a move is unnecessary. A rural school of fewer than 100 children in Nunes' Central Valley district remains open.

"The schools were just canceled out here in California, which is way overkill," Nunes said in an interview on Fox News. "It's possible kids could have gone back to school in two weeks to four weeks, but they just canceled the rest of the schools."

Virginia, Kansas and Arizona already closed schools for the rest of the year. California, the nation's most populous state, has more than 6 million students across 10,000 schools.

Californians are under a statewide stay-at-home order that requires most people to stay inside except for essential activities such as grocery shopping or going for a walk.

Newsom, the father of four children 10 and under, thanked women  moms and teachers, in particular  for bearing the brunt of coping with the new reality of children being at home rather than at school.

"There's a gender reality connected to this, and I just want to go deeply to express an appreciation to all of the moms, all those teachers, all those caregivers. I know how stressful this is. Trust me, I know," he said.

The California Federation of Teachers, one of the state's unions, supports the recommendation that schools close for the academic year, said president Jeff Freitas. Looking ahead, teachers need more access to professional development as well as guidance on online learning, grading and teaching students with special needs from afar, he said.




There's a God, and there's a Devil. Most people believe they reside in the Heavens and the Pits of Hell. The Catholic Church, however, believe they are fighting a war in Mexico.

Exorcism is a sacramental practice observed by the Catholic Church since 1614. The practice has been around since ancient times. The concept of possession and exorcism takes from prehistoric shamanistic beliefs which were observed in Western society and ancient Chinese culture.

According to the law of the Catholic Church, an exorcism can only be performed by ordained priests with permission from the local bishop. The ritual is considered a dangerous task and involves prayers, blessings, and invocations from the sacred document Of Exorcisms and Certain Supplications.

The practice has received much popularity over decades; so much so that it was performed on an entire nation---Mexico.

In May 2015, renowned Spanish exorcist Jose Antonio Fortea, along with Cardinal Juan Sandoval Iniguez and several trained exorcists, performed the Exorcismo Magno or Great Exorcism on the entire nation. The ritual, which was performed at the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Luis Potosi, hoped to remove "deep-rooted evil" in Mexico.

Apart from the rise of savagery and violence in the nation, the church was also worried about a large number of Mexicans joining the Cult of Santa Muerte---a "belief", they say, led to the rising demand for an exorcism.







Nuestra Senora de la Santa Muerta (Our Lady of Holy Death) is a female deity worshipped in Mexican folk Catholicism. The cult has increased in prominence in the 21st century despite having a reputation as a death cult for criminals and drug traffickers.

The Cult of Santa Muerta has an estimated eight million followers, with more among migrants in Central America, Canada, and the United States.

Despite receiving condemnation from the Catholic Church, followers of the Bony Lady continue to worship her "appeal" which they say stems from her "non-judgemental nature" and her supposed ability to grant wishes. Many criminals flock to the deity wishing for immunity from arrests.

Santa Muerte has been known to make its believer's desires true---some claim the idol has helped their health stabilize. Worshippers often leave cigarettes, liquor, candy, and flowers as an offering.

The rising number of Holy Death devotees once caught the attention of Pope Francis who called the cult as a dangerous symbol of narco-culture. Mexican churches have also accused Santa Muerte followers of worshipping the devil.

The cult is considered as one of the fastest-growing cults in the world. Across Mexico, millions of Santa Muerte followers have started cutting ties with the Catholic Church. This movement has led many religious leaders to believe the devil is possessing people's souls and causing chaos in the country's streets.

The Catholic church deployed nine exorcists to Mexico in a bid to stamp down the growing number of "satanic rituals and witchcraft" overtaking the country. They believe the power received from Christ will help expel the roots of evil in the country and bring about positive repercussions to the nation marred by thousands of murders and violence cases.

The war between both faiths led to an overwhelming workload for the exorcists, as revealed by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico. In light of the situation, the priest urged the general public to take the practice of exorcism to help banish the devil.

Want to watch a real-life exorcism? Play the video below:

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CLEVELAND, Ohio Cuyahoga County Jail Warden Gregory Croucher resigned Thursday amid two investigations into his conduct, and just days after he went into the jail after his return from an overseas vacation without going through the countys mandated coronavirus screenings.

Croucher was hired as warden in August after the former jail warden, Eric Ivey, was charged and convicted of misconduct during a string of deaths at the jail in 2018.

Croucher cited personal reasons for his resignation, according to Cuyahoga County spokeswoman Mary Louise Madigan. Madigan said an acting warden has not yet been named.

UPDATED: Cuyahoga County Jail warden resigned after investigation found he retaliated against employees, used on-duty officer for airport drop-off

The Cuyahoga County Sheriff and the county inspector general launched investigations earlier this month into two accusations against Croucher  one that he used excessive force on an inmate and another that he forced an on-duty corrections officer to drive him to the airport.

He was sent home to self-isolate on March 25 after a trip to Costa Rica.

Read more from cleveland.com:

Coronavirus got 900 inmates out of Cuyahoga Countys troubled jail when inmate deaths didnt. Some say the changes should stick

Cuyahoga County Jail warden worked for three days in jail after returning from vacation, now under self-isolation

Cuyahoga County activates at-home video visitation for jail inmates, gives one free visit per week amid coronavirus pandemic
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf is considering promoting K-12 students to the next grade or graduating them if they had passing grades before public schools were closed due to the coronavirus.

I think the Department of Education is looking at that and other things," Wolf said during the news conference on the daily COVID-19 report for Pennsylvania.

School districts around the state are struggling to get their educational programs back on track as they deal with ensuring students have access to lesson or the technology being used to deliver instruction. Some are resorting to sending out packets of enrichment activities, which are not being counted toward their grade.

The state Department of Education on Tuesday rolled out an array of resources to help schools get back to the business of educating students, which Wolf said is the departments major focus right now.

The big thing right now is to make sure that were doing what we can to provide an education for the next couple months for students, Wolf said. We recognize that weve got to do something to make sure those students are getting the education we need them to have.

Earlier this week, Wolf said schools would be closed indefinitely. He initially ordered the closure of schools on March 16. Wolf has also expanded his stay-at-home order across all of Pennsylvania through April 30.

Michigans Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was reported by The Bridge to be close to signing an executive order that would close all K-12 schools for the remainder of the year and allow students to be promoted to the next grade or graduate provided they were on pace to do so prior to that states March 16 mandated school shutdown.

School districts have been scrambling to provide distance learning options as they increasingly brace for the possibility that schools wont reopen this spring. Schools are facing mounting pressure to offer as much instruction as they can.

An emergency school bill signed by Wolf last week directed school districts to make a good faith effort to instruct students remotely.

School administrators have cited two steep challenges to online learning: serving low-income families who may not have computers and meeting the needs of students with disabilities.

Jan Murphy may be reached at jmurphy@pennlive.com. Follow her on Twitter at @JanMurphy.

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Student leaders are questioning the motive behind a bill that would grant the province more power in setting tuition guidelines and student fees.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Student leaders are questioning the motive behind a bill that would grant the province more power in setting tuition guidelines and student fees.

A Manitoba university or college board currently sets the respective institutions tuition. Schools also collect fees tied to programs and on behalf of student unions. The latter fund union staff salaries, advocacy work and campus expenses ranging from frosh events to student food banks.

Last month, the Progressive Conservatives introduced Bill 41, which would enable the minister to issue an increase or decrease to tuition and student fees set by a board. If it becomes law, schools who break guidelines could face financial penalties.

The proposed changes to the Advanced Education Administration Act, Colleges Act and Red River College Act also give the minister powers to ban "compulsory student fees."

A provincial spokesperson said the fees only include those set by university and college boards  but students are wary of the broad language.

"What Im worried about is what happened last year in the province of Ontario with the Student Choice Initiative. It allowed students to opt-out of incidental fees. Essentially, it was an attempt to wipe out student unions," said Meagan Malcolm, president of the University of Winnipeg Students Association.

In early 2019, the Doug Ford government issued a directive that allowed students to opt out of paying "non-essential" fees. The Canadian Federation of Students and York Federation of Students won a court challenge on the grounds of the initiative interfering with student union independence. Ontario is currently undertaking an appeal.

Around the same time, the Red River College Students Association (RRCSA) decided to create a more clear breakdown of its fees so members were better informed of their purpose. The per semester fee of $52.50 goes towards academic appeal support, building maintenance and emergency bursaries, among other things, said president Josh Roopchand.

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Roopchand said the first thing he thought of when he read Bill 41 was the Ford governments initiative  informally known as "voluntary student unionism." He echoed the same concerns as Malcolm, noting the college collects student union fees, and then transfers the monies to the RRCSA.

In a statement, a provincial spokesperson cited Bill 41 as a move to provide "greater financial certainty" to Manitobas post-secondary education system.

"The policy-based approach will be responsive, flexible and fair, and allow guidelines for tuition and student fees to vary depending on factors such as type of institution or programming," the spokesperson wrote.

Meanwhile, Jakob Sanderson with the University of Manitoba Students' Union (UMSU), is encouraged Manitoba won't interfere with local student union operations due to the untouched UMSU Act. However, he said he'd prefer the university set rates rather than the government: "I dont think the government should start meddling in the academy's affairs. The government is very good at running a government and the university can generally run itself better without the government."

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca

@macintoshmaggie
A steep rise in coronavirus cases on the Navajo Nation in the western part of the United States has caused concern among regional leaders, who worry the tribal lands are ill-equipped to handle the pandemic and the federal government is taking too long to address needs.

The Navajo Nation Department of Health and Navajo Area Indian Health Service reported 174 COVID-19 cases in the Navajo Nation on Wednesday, along with seven COVID-19-related deaths. There were roughly 49 confirmed cases one week ago.

The Navajo Nation is a 71,000 square kilometre (27,413 square mile) semi-autonomous territory spanning three US states  Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It essentially serves as a reservation for the over 350,000 Navajo (or Dine, in their language) people who live there.

Navajo Nation leaders have increased restrictions in order to avoid a dire outcome.

The Navajo Nation has been under a shelter-in-place order since March 13, with a curfew since March 30, in an effort to slow travel, according to Jonathan Nez, president of the Navajo Nation.

The curfew lasts from 8pm to 5am and excludes essential employees travelling to and from work, though they must have documentation to justify their travel.

But Navajo leaders have reportedly criticised the wider effort to contain the virus, with some pointing to what they say was the delayed closure of the Grand Canyon National Park.

The Navajo Nation and county leaders lobbied for the Grand Canyon to close for weeks, as tourists who wish to see the East Rim of the park must drive through tribal lands. It was closed on Tuesday.

The closure of the park took longer than it shouldve, but were glad its finally closed, Nez was quoted by local media as saying.

Wipe out

While the closure of the Grand Canyon is seen as a positive step, officials worry the coronavirus poses a serious threat to US Indigenous peoples.

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said she was very worried about the spikes in coronavirus cases on the Navajo Nation in a call with US President Donald Trump.

The pandemic could wipe out those tribal nations, Lujan Grisham told ABC News earlier this week.

Indigenous demonstrators have rallied against discrimination in border towns [Courtesy: Indigenous Action Media]

Police have reportedly started enforcing the curfew, driving through Navajo communities, stopping drivers and using intercoms to inform residents of Tuba City, Arizona that the lockdown was in effect.

While the curfew in the Navajo Nation is viewed as necessary by health and tribal officials, it could create challenges for Navajo citizens on tribal lands.

For example, there are only 13 full-service supermarkets on Navajo Nation lands, according to Partners In Health, a health advocacy organisation. Many people travel to so-called border towns such as Flagstaff, Arizona, or Farmington, New Mexico, for shopping.

The Navajo Nation also has a notable unsheltered population, which also lives in or around border towns, where some face discrimination.

Al Jazeera contacted the Navajo Nation about efforts to address these challenges, but did not immediately receive a response.

Navajo Nation authorities and the Arizona National Guard have set up emergency centres that will help with medical and food aid, according to local reports.

Federal aid

The massive $2 trillion emergency coronavirus aid bill passed by Congress on March 25 allotted $64m to the Indian Health Service (IHS), the federal agency that oversees healthcare among tribal nations in the US.

The sum is designated for testing for the coronavirus, according to the bill.

Rear Admiral Michael D Weahkee, the IHS principal deputy director, said in a statement sent to Al Jazeera that Congress has passed further bills, including $1bn in funds to fight the coronavirus outbreak.

IHS headquarters is working to get resources out to the front lines as quickly as possible. This week we held rapid tribal consultation and urban confer sessions to guide our distribution of $134 million in new resources to respond to coronavirus  in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

These funds will support IHS and tribal and urban Indian organizations in our response, Weahkee concluded.
New Delhi: Amidst the global coronavirus COVID-19 crisis, India launched an 18-hour operation called Operation Sanjeevani to deliver 6.2 tonnes of essential medicines and hospital consumables to the Maldives. Indian Air Force (IAF) lifted medicines from airports in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Madurai before delivering for the Maldives and the Indian Army facilitated the transport of these medicines and consumables from warehouses across India to the respective airports.

Indian Envoy to the Maldives, Sanjay Sudhir, said, "We have been able to carry operation sanjeevani with help of Indian armed forces. It is a very important assistance to the Maldives. Maldives has been one of the foremost countries which have received Indian assistance during COVID crisis. It is a growing example of India's neighbourhood first policy and reciprocation of Maldives' India first policy. Friendship in action!"

Maldives Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid thanked India for the support and in a tweet said, "Friends & partners indeed! Thank u India for facilitating the transfer of 6.2 tonnes of medicines procured by STO from Indian cities to the Maldives. Special thanks to PM Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for this timely support! Close cooperation is essential to overcome COVID-19."

The medicines include influenza vaccines, anti-viral drugs such as Lopinavir and Ritonavir which have been used to treat patients with COVID-19 in other countries, medicines for cardiac conditions, kidney ailments, hypertension as well as consumables such as catheters, nebulisers, urine bags and infant feeding tubes.

India has been assisting Maldives during the COVID-19 crisis. New Delhi gifted 5.5 tonnes of essential medicines to the Maldives on March 14 and also sent a 14-member COVID-19 Rapid Response Team of doctors to enhance preparedness. It had evacuated 9 Maldives nationals from China's Wuhan which was once the epicentre of the crisis.
Vice President Mike Pence is asking Americans to heed the government's social distancing guidelines amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic and not attend worship services with more than 10 people.

Pence told Nightline's Byron Pitts on Wednesday that the White House is "so grateful to churches and synagogues and places of worship around America" that are following the guidelines, which include avoiding large gatherings and staying at least six feet away from people.

There are some churches in the country that have flouted local social distancing orders; a Florida pastor was arrested on Monday and charged with unlawful assembly and violation of public health emergency rules after holding a packed service on Sunday. Pence said he and President Trump have been "enjoying worship services online," and "we really believe this is a time when people should avoid gatherings of more than 10 people, and so, we continue to urge churches around America to heed that."

Earlier this week, the White House said even with people following the guidelines, 100,000 to 240,000 Americans could still die from COVID-19. Pence told Pitts the White House is holding out hope that the country will be "in a much better place by June the 1st. If every American will put these guidelines into practice, if we all continue to do our part, we really do believe that by Memorial Day weekend or by early summer ... we can be through the hardest part of this. We can save lives, and we can begin to put America back to work."

More stories from theweek.com

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As the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in South Africa two weeks ago, the first glimpse emerged of the lengths to which people would go to avoid isolation. The country also saw what mechanisms law enforcement had at their disposal to impose such measures.

The case that received the greatest coverage involved a mother and daughter who had tested positive for COVID-19 fleeing a health facility with a third family member. The Department of Health applied for an urgent court order to track the family down and compel them into isolation. This was granted. The family was subsequently located and isolated.

Very soon afterwards the government sought to clarify the legal position around the event. It gazetted a new regulation for COVID-19 that makes it a criminal offence to refuse testing, treatment or isolation. If an individual does refuse isolation, they may be held involuntarily for 48 hours.

During this time an urgent warrant must be obtained to extend the isolation period. Any person who contravenes these regulations is subject to fines or imprisonment.

This case is polarising and peppered with prickly ethical issues. Many may be scandalised by the arrogant and irresponsible actions of the family. The opposing contention is that the family was hindered in exercising its autonomy.

In any national health disaster calling individuals to voluntarily restrict their movements and interactions, the tenuous no man's land between public interest and personal autonomy is bound to become a messy quagmire. On one hand, there is the evasive action of those who feel their autonomy is being restricted. On the other hand are people seeking a larger public good. In this case it's the quest to flatten the curve of the pandemic by reducing infection rates.

Public versus personal interests

Autonomy is a person's right to self-determination. So, it's my right to do what I want to, when I want to and in the manner I want to  provided the continued exercise of my autonomy does not infringe on the autonomy of another. Both ethically and legally, this is where autonomy meets its limit .

Through evading isolation, the family may have jeopardised the autonomy of many who are at risk of COVID-19 and are taking measures to avoid it, like social distancing. That's surely enough to make people feel angry.

There is a great deal of historical precedent in ethics literature for curbing personal autonomy in the interests of the wider public. Some examples are so obvious we take them for granted because they are inherently wrong. They include murder, theft and kidnapping.

Other examples are more subtle and include the right to freedom of speech , which is limited at the point where it offends the privacy or dignity of someone else.

Modern health policy leans demonstrably towards public health interests over those of individuals. Hence, we have notifiable diseases like tuberculosis where disclosure is mandatory.

In the case of HIV the Health Professions Council's guidelines allow healthcare workers to disclose the status of an HIV-infected individual to their sexual partner after sufficient counselling  even if the individual disagrees. Disclosure here is justified because it's seen to be in the interests of the wider public .

The bent towards public health priorities is also clear in primary care practices like vaccination and fluoridating water .

Lockdowns

In the case of COVID-19 it could argued that the demand on healthcare systems could be greater in developing countries than northern hemisphere countries. This suggests that the decision to impose lockdowns is all the more imperative.

The global south has weak health systems. It also has huge groups of individuals with diseases like HIV and TB. And millions of people live in very close proximity, in informal housing that facilitates the rapid spread of disease.

Because of this (and because in a novel pandemic like COVID-19 where there is very little data  and hence evidence  on which to base health recommendations) the decision to impose a lockdown makes sense. Under these circumstances, it is always advisable to proceed with utmost caution and in the interests of public health.

But a lockdown pits personal choice against collective good. Given the circumstances it appears reasonable to expect people to agree to limiting their freedoms.

Enforcing lockdown and adapting to it

Can authorities trust citizens to take measures like social distancing of their own accord?

The answer seems to be no and, in these cases, it has been necessary to cleave a legal framework compelling people to act in a morally responsible manner.

To ensure that principles like justice and equality across South African society don't succumb to COVID-19, it will be necessary to clamp down on those who flaunt the law while the rest of the country abides by it.

But such enforcement must be elastic enough to respond to the South African context, and demonstrably address the practical and social challenges that many face.

Harriet Etheredge does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

By Harriet Etheredge, Bioethicist and Health Communication Specialist, University of the Witwatersrand
Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi has made a personal account on Facebook. Suu Kyi, who keeps a low profile in public, writes in her first Facebook post that she wants to use social media to communicate with public and other leaders in the country as Myanmar is currently under country-wide lockdown due to coronavirus pandemic. So far the country has reported 15 COVID-19 cases.

The Myanmar leader in her first Facebook post wrote, "I had no willingness to join Facebook at first." Her profile is genuine is indicated by the blue tick that appears next to her name, Reuters reported.

Incidentally, Facebook and Myanmar do not have a particularly great history. The website, quite popular in the country, had been often used to share fake news and xenophobic messages against Rohingya people. Facebook has come under repeated attacks for its inability to effectively contain hate messages shared through its website in Myanmar. The situation has been deemed so bad that even United Nations cited Facebook for not doing enough to stop abuse of its platform in Myanmar.

Suu Kyi in her first Facebook post wrote that it was only created to communicate with people under the current circumstances. "Under the current circumstances, it was created in order to communicate with people faster and more efficiently related to COVID-19 challenges", wrote Suu Kyi.

Within hours the post had received around 3,10,000 likes. Her account has since gained more than 7,00,000 followers and has been verified by Facebook, BBC in a report stated.

Suu Kyi is otherwise known to keep a low profile as far as press conferences or interviews are concerned. Suu Kyi, after gaining power, has mostly communicated with public through formal statements.

The Myanmar leader was also recently seen washing hands in a video, and urging people to do the same to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

According to the Bangkok Post, the ministry of health in Myanmar gave out a warning saying that the country was at very high risk of a "major outbreak" after tens of thousands of migrants working in neighbouring Thailand rushed home before the border closed. So far, the country has experienced around 15 positive reported cases with one death.
About 75 percent of the individuals who are identified as asymptomatic go on to develop symptoms.

The head of the World Health Organization voiced deep concern on Wednesday about the rapid escalation and global spread of COVID-19 cases from the new coronavirus, which has now reached 205 countries and territories.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that his agency, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund backed debt relief to help developing countries cope with the pandemics social and economic consequences.

In the past five weeks there has been a near-exponential growth in the number of new cases and the number of deaths has more than doubled in the past week, Tedros told a virtual news conference at the organisations Geneva headquarters.

In the next few days we will reach one million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths worldwide, he said.

China, where the coronavirus outbreak first emerged in December, reported dwindling new infections on Wednesday and disclosed for the first time the number of asymptomatic cases, which could complicate how trends in the outbreak are read.

Asked about the distinction, Dr Maria ver Kerkhove, a WHO epidemiologist who was part of an international team that went to China in February, said the WHOs definition included laboratory-confirmed cases regardless of the development of symptoms.

"Over the past 5 weeks, we have witnessed a near exponential growth in the number of new #COVID19 cases, reaching almost every country, territory and area"-@DrTedros #coronavirus  World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) April 1, 2020

From data that we have seen from China in particular, we know that individuals who are identified, who are listed as asymptomatic, about 75 percent of those actually go on to develop symptoms, she said, describing them as having been in a pre-symptomatic phase. The new coronavirus causes respiratory disease COVID-19.

The outbreak continues to be driven by people who show signs of disease including fever and cough, but it is important for the WHO to capture that full spectrum of illness, she added.

Tedros praised Indias $22.6 billion economic stimulus plan - announced after a 21-day lockdown imposed last week - to provide free food rations for 800 million disadvantaged people, cash transfers to 204 million poor women and free cooking gas for 80 million households for the next 3 months.

"Many developing countries will struggle to implement social welfare programs of this nature. For those countries, debt relief is essential to enable them to take care of their people and avoid economic collapse"-@DrTedros #COVID19 #coronavirus  World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) April 1, 2020

Many developing countries will struggle to implement social welfare programmes of this nature, he said.

For those countries, debt relief is essential to enable them to take care of their people and avoid economic collapse. This is a call from the WHO, the World Bank and IMF - debt relief for developing countries, he said.

But debt relief processes are lengthy, Tedros said.

What we are proposing together with the World Bank and IMF is an expedited process to support countries so their economies will not be getting into crisis and their communities will not be really getting into crisis, he said.
The Olympics may have been postponed and the number of coronavirus cases is rising, but the Japanese government has not declared a state of emergency or ordered lockdown measures like those implemented in New York, California and countries such as China, Italy and Spain.

Businesses, bars and restaurants remain open in Japan and residents can, for the most part, move freely, leading some to express their unease at their governments slow reaction to the pandemic.

The Japanese government is really slow, hair stylist Natsumi Makino, who works at Hair Salon Nalu in Tokyos Shibuya ward, said.

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

Tokyo announced arecord 95 new cases on Thursday, up from 65 on Wedenesday and 78 Tuesday. Nationwide, Japan has about 3,000 cases, including 712 from a cruise ship, with 78 deaths.

Despite the increasing numbers, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has ignored pleas from several high profile politicians to declare a state of emergency, even though a recently revised law would allow him to do so.

Image: Shinzo Abe (JIJI Press / AFP - Getty Images)

While schools in the country have been closed since late February, Abe has refused to implement similar measures to those seen in China, numerous European countries and in New York and California, where bars, restaurants and most retail stores have been shuttered.

Instead, local politicians like Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike have been forced to step in. On Tuesday, Koike urged the citys 14 million residents to avoid bars, restaurants and karaoke.

With little guidance from the top, businesses like Hair Salon Nalu have taken matters into their own hands.

The salons owners ordered their staff to wear masks at all times, disinfect seats and equipment after each customer, and shortened the store's business hours.

The salon is also leaving as much space as possible between customers, Makino said.

It was a similar story in the city of Osaka, where Mayor Ichiro Matsui also urged people to stay home and avoid nonessential travel.

Story continues

Jake Shilling, the owner of The Hearth, a board game and cafe bar told NBC News that people appear to be heeding the advice.

From when the mayor told people to stay at home, we've had an almost complete drop off in the evenings, and very quiet days, Shilling, an Australian who has lived in the city for more than eight years, said.

Download the NBC News app for full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

He added that there were almost zero foreigners now too, expats and tourists alike.

Were social distancing measures to be put in place, he added that he would struggle to implement them in his small bar, although he began offering takeout from his restaurant over the weekend.

However, he was more concerned about his staff.

I've been very fortunate but I'm just not there financially where I can support my staff and pay rent while being completely closed for much more than a month, he said,

Ideally, he added, that he would like the government to announce a full lockdown for 3-4 weeks with the ability for small businesses to either receive a rent freeze/subsidy and a wage subsidy for my staff.

Instead, he expressed his frustration at a lack of direction from the government.

I honestly want something concrete, not wishy-washy, he said. That way, I can make firm plans.
Taliban team arrives in Afghan capital to begin prisoner exchange process

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 8:27 AM

A Taliban delegation is in Afghanistan's capital to start a prisoner exchange process with the government meant to pave the way for intra-Afghan peace talks, which are envisaged in an agreement reached in February between the militant group and the United States.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said a three-member "technical team" had arrived in Kabul on Tuesday to "help the process of prisoners' release by identification of the prisoners, (and) their transportation."

The prisoner swap  which is pivotal to kick-starting peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban  calls for the exchange of 6,000 prisoners held by the two warring sides.

The peace negotiations  known as the intra-Afghan dialog  will be aimed at restoring peace and stability to Afghanistan and ending Washington's 18-year invasion of the Asian state.

The prisoners exchange had been a sticking point between the Afghan government and the Taliban amid their differences over the process and its timetable.

"They (Taliban delegates) are here now and we will begin our discussion," a senior Afghan government official was quoted by Reuters as saying. "The prisoner release might go ahead in a few days if everything goes as planned."

The Taliban militants had been refusing to recognize the Afghan government until they reached a deal with the United States  in the absence of representatives from Kabul  in Doha, Qatar, on February 29.

Under the deal, the Taliban agreed to sever ties with al-Qaeda and other terror groups and sit down for peace talks with the Afghan government. In return, Washington will start a phased withdrawal of troops.

The Afghan government was a party neither to the negotiations nor to the deal, but it has been acting in accordance with its terms, including by agreeing to free Taliban prisoners.

The developments come amid a power struggle between incumbent President Ashraf Ghani and his main rival in Afghanistan's 2019 presidential election, Abdullah Abdullah, who are at loggerheads over the results of the vote won by Ghani.

The prisoner swap process, however, was facilitated after Abdullah agreed to endorse the negotiating team appointed by the government despite the election row.

Last week, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo flew to Kabul and later to Doha  where the Taliban have an office  to urge all sides to move forward with the process, which at that point was deadlocked.

On Tuesday, Pompeo praised the Afghan political groups for setting aside their differences over forming a negotiating team.

"We've seen a (negotiating) team identified. Looks like it's pretty inclusive, pretty broad. We're happy about that," Pompeo told a news conference in Washington.

"We've begun to see some work done on prisoner releases as well  all elements that have to come together so we can get to the inter-Afghan negotiations, which ultimately will prove to be the only mechanism that has any hope of delivering peace and reconciliation to the people," he said.

The US and its allies invaded the Asian country to topple the Taliban regime in 2001, accusing it of harboring the al-Qaeda terrorist group. The invasion did topple the regime, but failed to end the Taliban's militancy.

The militants now control or hold influence over more Afghan territory than at any point since that time and have carried out near-daily attacks against US-led foreign forces and Afghan military outposts throughout the war-ravaged country.

Over 100,000 Afghans have been killed or injured since 2009, when the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan began documenting casualties.

The Daesh terrorist group has also emerged in the Asian country more recently.

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New Delhi, April 2 : India has sent essential medicines and hospital consumables to the Maldives to assist the counrty in their fight against COVID-19.

Indian Air Force (IAF) C-130 aircraft airlifted 6.2 tonnes of essential medicines and hospital consumables to Male in Maldives under Operation Sanjeevani on Wednesday.

"These medicines and consumables were procured from eight different suppliers in India; however, due to the 21-day lockdown imposed in India to contain COVID-19, these medicines could not be transported to the Maldives by the suppliers through any other means," Indian Air Force said in a statement.

At the request of the Maldives government, the IAF aircraft activated Operation Sanjeevani and lifted these medicines from airports in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Madurai before flying to the Maldives.

The Indian Army facilitated the transport of these medicines and consumables from warehouses across India to the respective airports.

Among other things, these medicines include influenza vaccines, anti-viral drugs such as lopinavir and ritonavir (which have been used to treat patients with COVID-19 in other countries), medicines for cardiac conditions, kidney ailments, hypertension, high blood pressure, diabetes, arthritis, allergies and cancer treatment, anticonvulsants, as well as consumables such as catheters, nebulisers, urine bags and infant feeding tubes.

Earlier, India had sent 5.5 tonnes of essential medicines to the Maldives on March 14. India had also sent a 14-member COVID-19 Rapid Response Team of doctors and specialists enhance preparedness. The team worked closely with health authorities in Male and outlying islands.

The Maldives is the first country in India's neighborhood to have received essential medicines since the lockdown commenced in India.

The airlift of essential medicines, signals India's commitment to keep supplies of essential medicines open even in the most challenging times as the South Asian region combats the COVID-19 pandemic.
LYNNWOOD, Wash.  A 27-year-old Lynnwood-area man has been charged with second-degree murder, accused by Snohomish County prosecutors of fatally shooting a man after a fight over parking.

Alex Valdovinos was arrested Saturday after witnesses identified him as the person who fired an AR-15 assault-style rifle from his porch, killing DeMarcus Bell, 36, of Tacoma, according to the Snohomish County Sheriff and Medical Examiner's offices.

Valdovinos remains jailed in lieu of $1 million bail, The Seattle Times reported.

Parking had become a contentious issue with neighbors complaining that Valdovinos' visitors took up multiple parking spaces, says a probable-cause statement.

Around 11 p.m. Saturday, two men associated with a house nearby went to Valdovinos' house and complained, according to the probable cause statement. Two groups of men fought and one man fell off the porch and broke his leg. He was pulled inside the house and that's when Valdovinos is accused of firing into the air, breaking up the fight, according to the statement.

As men including Bell were returning to the neighboring house, the statement says Valdovinos fired three or four more shots. Bell was struck in the back of the head and collapsed in the driveway. He died at the scene.

It wasnt immediately known if Valdovinos has a lawyer.

 The Associated Press
Recently, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett declared, The partisan lines that once divided Indiana have evaporated.

His statement seems more aspirational than editorial if one considers the rancor that exists between the Democrats who control the Indianapolis City-County Council and the Republicans who control the State Legislature. Indeed, those partisan lines seem to have ossified.

Yet, were in the age of the coronavirus pandemic. Fortunately, this crisis has caused Hogsett, a Democrat, and Gov. Eric Holcomb, a Republican, to figuratively hold hands as they jointly announced stay-at-home directives and other actions that are designed to slow the rapacious spread of COVID-19. (One cant help but note how different this show of unity is from their counterparts in New York  both of whom are Democrats.)

Even the Congress, which usually is bitterly divided, reached an agreement regarding the largest stimulus package in history  unanimously so in the Senate. Even more stunningly, they did so in what amounted to a matter of days. To say this was uncharacteristic would be a gross understatement, especially given the legislations gifts to corporations and the wealthy, which normally would make Democrats chafe. There is, it seems, a glimmer of hope that this outbreak of sanity and cooperation could last beyond our present crisis. (Just kidding! Please accept my apologies for inserting a scene from the Theatre of the Absurd.)

The bottom line is that a crisis  war, famine, disease  can create a spirit of cooperation among our politicians and among ordinary citizens that would otherwise be unthinkable. During such times, we tend to focus less on personal motivations than we do on optimal outcomes. Some people do the right thing because it is in their self-interest, whereas altruistic people seek the well-being of others. (Some in the latter category are willing to do so even to their own detriment.)

Speaking of a crisis, Indianapolis began this year with a literal bang  or, more accurately, multiple bangs  especially among African Americans. Specifically, there were 31 homicides of African Americans in the first 60 days of 2020. During this period, the overall murder rate placed our city on par with New York and Los Angeles. (Sadly, close neighbor Chicago had more than twice our number of homicides during January and February.)

Fortunately, our homicide rate has slowed substantially in recent weeks. (Law enforcement officials and other city leaders believe the stay-at-home directives, whether from companies or the government, likely play a role in this reduction.) Unfortunately, as indicated by a deadly shooting just a few days ago, we still have much work to do in trying to stem the violence  especially before warmer weather arrives.

I raise this issue in large measure because I see the importance of executing a laser-like focus on an acute, hopefully temporary, phenomenon. When we recognize that a threat has the potential to affect all of us, we muster the resources that are necessary to address it. We even bury longstanding political hatchets. In the words of The Beatles, we come together.

This city and this nation are in a crisis vis-a-vis the homicide rate among young Black men and boys. They are killing each other at a phenomenal rate. I dont have space here to explore the causes, but that singular fact is irrefutable. What if we were to muster the resources that are necessary to address this phenomenon? What if we were to bury longstanding political hatchets to search for solutions to this crisis? What if we were to come together to solve this hopefully temporary phenomenon?

I am quite aware that naysayers, know-nothings and neer-do-wells snipe at the focused attention that the nation is shedding on the coronavirus. (Until quite recently, billionaire Elon Musk was among them. Fortunately, he decided to be a help rather than a hindrance.) Some of these people dont trust the government. Some of these people dont trust scientists or other experts. Some of these people simply lack compassion for others  until those others are their loved ones.

Similarly, there are people who are content to watch the homicide rate of Black men and boys to continue unabated. They dont feel that this particular crisis affects them or their loved ones, so they dont have a sense of urgency to solve it. (I should note that this misanthropy toward Black men and boys is not only a problem among white people. Mamie Till, the mother of Emmett Till, confessed that she was not all that concerned about the plight of Blacks in the South  until her son was brutally murdered.)

We are treating COVID-19 as a national crisis  which it is. During such times we mobilize the military  which we have. I am calling on our government, at all levels, to treat Black-on-Black violent crime as a national crisis  which it is. I also am calling on every citizen, everywhere, to treat this crisis like it affects all of us  because it does.

As a Black man, as the father of an adolescent Black boy, and as the grandfather of an infant Black boy, I understand that it is incumbent upon me not only to be vigilant in my defense of our lives, but also to be a vigorous evangelist who highlights the fact that each of these deaths is a diminution of all of us. One cannot be truly pro-life if one does not value the life of his or her neighbor. When one of us is killed, part of all of us dies.

Earlier I referenced The Beatles, which is one of my favorite groups. I believe that Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes (with the incomparable Teddy Pendergrass singing lead) intended a mild rebuke of the boys from Liverpool with the song Wake Up Everybody. The chorus includes the words, The world wont get no better if we just let it be. The world wont get no better. We gotta change it, yeah, just you and me. Truer words have never been sung.

Larry Smith is a community leader. Contact him at larry@leaf-llc.com.
New Delhi [India], Apr 1 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday held a telephonic conversation with his Kuwait counterpart Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah and the two leaders discussed the domestic and international aspects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.



"Both leaders discussed the domestic and international aspects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. They agreed that their officials would maintain regular contact during the health crisis in order to exchange information and explore avenues of cooperation and mutual support," a PMO release said.

The Kuwaiti leader stressed that his country "greatly values the contributions" of the large Indian community and would continue to ensure their safety and welfare in the present situation.

The Prime Minister expressed his "warm thanks and appreciation for this kind reassurance."

Modi conveyed his greetings and best wishes for the good health of the Amir of Kuwait, the royal family and the people of Kuwait.

"He underlined the importance that India attaches to its relations with Kuwait, a valued member of India's extended neighborhood," the release said. (ANI)


New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

Playing petty politics over coronavirus: Amit Shah slams Congress

India

oi-Deepika S

New Delhi, Apr 02: Home Minister Amit Shah slammed the Congress accusing the opposition party of "playing petty politics" while Prime Minister Narendra Modi's efforts to contain the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19 infection "are being lauded domestically and globally".

Shah urged the Congress to "think of national interest and stop misleading people".

"Under PM Narendra Modi's leadership, India's efforts to fight coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. 130 crore Indians are united to defeat COVID-19. Congress is playing petty politics. High time they think of national interest and stop misleading people," Shah's tweet read.

The attack on the Congress came hours after the Congress Working Committee, the party's highest decision-making body, met via video conference - to maintain social distancing protocols during the 21-day lockdown ordered by the Prime Minister - and criticised the Narendra Modi government for "the unplanned manner in which it (the nationwide lockdown) has been implemented".

COVID-19: Shah asks Delhi Police chief to ensure security of doctors facing harassment

Senior leader P Chidambaram backed the Prime Minister's lockdown last week, calling it a "watershed moment". However, the former Finance Minister has also taken the government to task over its "miserly" and "inadequate" compensation package for those affected by the virus.

"The 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India," interim Congress chief Sonia Gandhi said at the CWC meeting.

Gandhi urged the country and the government to "come together for their (the poor and migrants) sake and do all we can to support them through the difficult days that lie ahead".

Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, who has been vocal in his criticism of the government over the migrant crisis, urged the Prime Minister to develop "an India-specific strategy" and called on party leaders and workers to "help soften the blow by assisting the poor".

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Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 19:13 [IST]
The total number of Covid-19 cases in India on Thursday climbed to 2069 with 235 fresh cases being detected today. There have been 53 deaths, of which at least 12 deaths have been reported in the past 24 hours.

Nearly 9,000 people who attended New Delhis Tablighi Jamaat congregation between March 10 and 15, have been traced across India, confirmed home ministry spokesperson Punya Salila Srivastava, in a news briefing on Thursday. Of the total number of people traced so far, 1306 are foreigners and the rest are Indians.

In the national capital, of all the 2,138 people evacuated from the Markaz, 250 are foreign nationals. Health workers have sent 1,804 people to various quarantine facilities in and around Delhi, and 334 symptomatic people have been hospitalized.

In some positive news, 151 people have recovered so far, Lav Agarwal, joint secretary, health ministry said.

The Nizamuddin cluster was discovered after aggressive contact tracing done by Telangana of its positive cases.

People from Delhi went to different states such as Telangana, Jammu & Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, and Rajasthan making the south Delhi area a Covid-19 hotspot.

At least 400 positive cases have been identified from these states and their epidemiological linkage has been established with various clusters.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has expressed concern that the numbers may go up further as countrywide contact tracing of the people who attended the event, progresses.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video-conference with Chief Ministers of several states on the coronavirus pandemic, where he asked them to decide on the phased movement of the population as the lockdown is lifted. The Centre, has asked states to take stern action against people who violate the lockdown.

There has been a death in the Dharavi slums in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The building from where the death was reported has been sealed. There are 300 flats and 90 shops in the area that are being screened.

Very few doctors, so far have been infected in the line of duty, the health ministry official said.

The ICMRs epidemiology department has said there is no change in testing protocol yet, but new tests are being introduced so the committee is reviewing the protocol.

To expedite the detection of coronavirus cases in Maharashtra, the Centre has allowed the state to conduct rapid Covid-19 tests. The Maharashtra government will from now on use blood samples instead of swabs in rapid tests to detect the highly contagious coronavirus, according to state Health Minister Rajesh Tope. The highest number of coronavirus confirmed cases have been reported from Maharashtra so far, followed by Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
A drunk teenager who carried out an 'amateurish' robbery at a convenience store using a knife while dressed in a clown wig and his underwear has avoided jail.

Zye Allen, 18, was filmed by CCTV during the attempted robbery at a 7-Eleven on the Gold Coast in Queensland on Anzac Day last year.

Judge David Kent sentenced Allen to 18 months probation on Wednesday at Southport District Court, according to the Courier-Mail.

The teenager had pleaded guilty to common assault, going armed to cause fear and two counts of entering a premises with intent.

In the footage, Allen was seen staggering in front of the counter after riding his bike to the store.

At one point in the footage Allen's wig almost fell off, before he continued to wave around his pocket knife with the blade unopened.

It took the teenager a full minute to realise he needed to open the knife, before he spoke to the cashier and demanded cigarettes.

Allen then inspected his foot before he fell over and struggled to make a getaway on his push bike.

He failed to secure any cigarettes and the court was told Allen fell off his bike when he was stopped by police a short time later.

Zye Allen, 18, was filmed by CCTV during the drunken attempted robbery at a 7-Eleven

The teenager was extremely intoxicated, with a blood test later revealing he had a blood alcohol content reading of 0.24.

Prosecutor Matt Hynes labelled the attempted robbery as 'drunken and amateurish'.

'He had to be locked out of the store and was so drunk he tapped on the window,' he said.

Allen's lawyer said the teenager had planned to attend drug and alcohol rehabilitation but was unable due to issues related to the coronavirus pandemic.

The court also heard that Allen struggled with focusing during school and substance abuse.
Terming the coronavirus pandemic as a "crisis of a magnitude that we have never faced before" Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra on Thursday asked employees of the conglomerate to use the lockdown period to relook at personal and professional way of life to prepare for the future and to serve the "post corona world".

In a letter to over two lakh employees of the group, Mahindra reiterated what he had suggested during the last global recession on how to use the "down time to Reboot, Reinvent and Reignite" through introspection of the way things are currently done and then doing them better.

He asked them to use the time available to come up with new ideas and innovations; and taking advantage of the crisis "to dream bigger dreams about the future and raising ambitions once the crisis has passed".

Stating that these are not normal times on the work front, he said, "we are facing a crisis of a magnitude that we have never faced before. We are all worried, about our families, about our business, about our economy and about our country. Despite that, we are all doing whatever we can to carry on and are learning to live with uncertainty without letting it weigh us down."



Mahindra said, the present "circumstances have given us a break which we can put to good use" and the exercise of "Reboot, Reinvent and Reignite" must also be done today "both in our work and in our personal lives".

"...Staying at home has brought home to me how neglectful we have been in overburdening our environment," he said adding, he has "never seen Mumbai look as beautiful as it has during these Lockdown Days" with the skies bluer, air cleaner and no garbage on the streets.

"Do we need a health crisis to teach us that? Can we not keep it that way, even after the crisis has passed? Can we use transport more efficiently? Can we travel less and leave less of a carbon footprint? Can we increase the use of long-distance ways of meeting and communication to work more efficiently and enhance our work life balance? Essentially, can we Reboot our personal and professional way of life?," Mahindra questioned.

Stating that the same goes for reinvention and innovation, he said, "I think we are already reinventing the way we socially interact. Italians are singing to each other from their homes. Delhi residents are playing housie from their balconies. These seem to be trivial examples, but they all demonstrate how we human beings work around seemingly impossible barriers to reinvent how we connect with each other."



He further asked the employees, "can we reinvent our business processes so that we halve the time we normally took to reach a decision, build a product or deliver a service? Can we dramatically lower the cost of products and services by doing radical re-designs?"Stressing that it is also a time to "Reignite our dreams", he told the employees that with time in hand, they can do things they always wanted to do but never had time -- such as learning a language, brush up on a musical instrument or sharing stories with children.

He further said it is also time "to think of the future of our business, of new ways to serve the post corona world".

"What will be the new needs of people in such a world? What new experiences, products and services will they crave? Will they want a more comprehensive form of home healthcare? Will they want even more personalised and socially-distanced' experiences? Will they want a shared mobility experience that is also virus-proof'?," he asked.

Mahindra also reminded the employees to think of others in this time of crisis, specially for the underprivileged.

"It's also a time to think of others those who don't have a comfortable home to isolate themselves, those who don't have a regular income flow, those whose lives will be shattered because they depend on daily wages. It is heart-breaking to think of the devastation that that they will face," he said.

Reiterating that the group is setting up a fund for voluntarily donations to support such people, he said,"But over and above that, each of us has an individual responsibility to mitigate the misery of those around us. We can continue paying wages to domestic helpers who are unable to turn up for work. We can supply food, soap, sanitisers to BOP families. We can share some of our good fortune with those who have none."



Thanking the employees on how they have responded during the outbreak, he said, "I am proud of the way our organisation, in the true Mahindra spirit, has risen to the challenge and moved seamlessly into new ways of working. Work from home is going to be the new normal for some time to come, and you are all doing your bit. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart."



He said the lockdown has one unexpected benefit of having time to spend with loved ones and asked the employees "to take advantage of this to strengthen the family bonds even further because our families are the bedrock upon which our ultimate happiness is founded. Please make their wellbeing, and yours, the first priority".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As India battles the outbreak, sporadic attacks on doctors, social workers and police personnel have come to the fore raising concerns over their safety and prompting warnings by authorities.

In a related incident, police said on Thursday that an Army jawan allegedly shot dead a woman after her relative included his family's name in a list of people who had returned to their village in Mainpuri district in Uttar Pradesh following the outbreak of

Two women doctors were injured in Indore when a 5-member team of health officials was pelted with stones in Taatpatti Bakhal area on Wednesday while they were trying to trace a person who had come into contact with a COVID-19 patient, police said.

A case has been registered and seven people were arrested, police said, as Indore collector Manish Singh warned that the district administration will not tolerate such incidents and misbehaviour.

Relatives of a 49-year-old patient who died at a government hospital in Hyderabad assaulted the duty doctor and the staff alleging negligence, police said.

Telangana Director General of Police M Mahendar Reddy asserted that strong action will be taken against the culprits and necessary measures will be put in place to provide protection to all the doctors and paramedics treating COVID-19 patients.

In Bihar, Police and medical personnel were attacked by locals in Munger town when they visited a locality to collect samples from people suspected to have contracted coronavirus.

Stones were thrown at the quick response team (QRT), comprising policemen and an ambulance carrying medical personnel, when they visited the Hazratganj locality late on Wednesday, said the SHO of Qasim Bazar police station Shailesh Kumar.

The stone-pelting left a police jeep badly damaged and the situation was brought under control by use of force, he added.

Female social workers in Bengaluru and a man in Mumbai were gheraoed and assaulted in separate incidents linked to the survey of people who attended the recent Nizamuddin Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi, the biggest COVID-19 hotspot in India, said police officials from the two cities.

According to reports from state capitals, there also have been cases of policemen being attacked while trying to enforce the 21-day which entered the ninth day on Thursday and while keeping a surveillance on people under home quarantine.

In Bengaluru, community health workers engaged in conducting coronavirus survey in certain minority dominated areas were allegedly manhandled on Thursday, prompting the Karnataka government to issue a stern warning to the offenders.

The workers under the aegis of Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) along with health officials were conducting a door-to-door survey in the minority dominated areas in view of the virus spreading through those who returned to Karnataka after attending the Tablighi event.

A visibly upset Asha worker, Krishnaveni in a video message which has gone viral, alleged that a group of health workers who had gone to Hegde Nagar in the city were 'gheraoed' by some residents, their mobile phones snatched and all of them abused.

"They snatched our bags and mobile phones. They did not let us make a phone call. I have been working for the past five years but never ever faced a situation like this, she said.

Condemning the incident, Health Minister B Sriramulu shared the video in his Twitter handle and said, "The doctors, nurses and health workers who toil day and night are like Gods. Respect them. Will not sit idle if they are attacked. Beware!"



In Maharashtra, a man was assaulted by a group in Solapur district for allegedly informing a village official about those who attended the Tablighi gathering in Delhi.

The 56-year-old man had informed the 'gramsevak' of Pimpri village about seven locals who attended the Tablighi meet and also insisted that they be tested for coronavirus, police said.

In Uttar Pradesh, jawan Shailendra along with three others stormed into the house in Alipur village of one Vinay Yadav, who had included his name and that of his family in the list of people who had returned from Kolkata recently.

As the jawan started assaulting Vinay Yadav, his brother Dinesh and sister-in law Sandhya rushed to his rescue. Shailendra opened fire killing the 36-year-old Sandhya on the spot, police said.

An FIR has been lodged at Kurra police station and Shailendra has been arrested, it added.

In an earlier incident in Bihar, four policemen were injured when a group of people owing allegiance to Tablighi Jamaat assembled in a village in Madhubhani district allegedly attacked them as the men in uniform admonished them for defying the ongoing lockdown, a senior official said.

Four persons were arrested and efforts are underway to nab the others, he added.

In Karnataka, the Mangaluru city police said a case has been registered against four persons for assaulting two policemen and a health worker at Nyatarpu village in Belthangady taluk.

Two police constables and a health worker, who visited the house of a person under home quarantine, were attacked when they questioned the man who was roaming around without any precautionary measures, it said.

In Uttar Pradesh, a sub-inspector and a constable were seriously injured when a police team trying to enforce the was attacked by a group of villagers in Muzaffarnagar district on Wednesday, an official said.

In Delhi, Tablighi Jamaat attendees quarantined at a railway facility in Tughlakabad allegedly misbehaved with and even spit at doctors and healthcare personnel attending to them.

At the quarantine centre, they misbehaved with the staff and even raised objections over the food being served to them. They even spit at the doctors and those attending them and refused to stop roaming around the quarantine facility, according to Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar.
Syrian air defenses intercept Israeli missiles over Homs: SANA

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 1:48 AM

The Syrian army says the country's air defenses in the central province of Homs have intercepted a number of missiles fired by Israeli warplanes.

Syria's official news agency SANA quoted an unnamed military source as saying on Tuesday that the missiles had violated the Lebanese airspace before being confronted by the army air defenses.

"At 20:25 of Tuesday, the Israeli warplanes launched a number of missiles, from over Lebanon, into the direction of eastern Homs immediately, the army air defenses intercepted the hostile missiles and shot down a number of them," the military source said.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties in the Syrian media.

On March 5, the Syrian army air defenses also confronted an Israeli missile aggression on the country's central and southern regions, preventing the hostile missiles from reaching their targets.

The Tel Aviv regime mostly keeps quiet about the attacks on Syrian territories which many view as knee-jerk reaction to Syrian government's increasing success in confronting terrorism in country.

Israel has been a main supporter of terrorist groups that have opposed the government of President Bashar al-Assad since militancy erupted in Syria in March 2011.

Syrian government forces have taken back many areas once controlled by the terrorist groups. The government and allied forces are currently busy fighting last bastions of militants in the northwestern province of Idlib and areas in the neighboring Aleppo province.

The large-scale government offensive in Idlib has caused increasing friction with neighboring Turkey as Ankara insists that Syria and its main ally Russia are violating the terms of a ceasefire agreement reached in Russia in September.

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Jerome Boateng has been fined by Bayern Munich after crashing his Mercedes on the motorway while driving back from visiting his ill son.

According to German publication BILD, the Bayern centre back was returning from Leipzig, where he was seeing his son Jermar in hospital.

Boateng was driving home to Munich near Selbitz in northern Bavaria, when it was claimed he was caught off-guard in a hailstorm, and without winter tyres on his car lost traction and skidded into the motorway barrier.

Jerome Boateng was visiting his ill son, Jermar, in hospital before he crashed his car

Local police claim Boateng, who was reportedly not speeding, was not injured in the crash but did cause 22,000 worth of damage to his Mercedes.

However, Bayern have since decided to fine the German defender after he left Munich without the approval of the club during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Bundesliga giants will now donate Boateng's fine to local Munich hospitals.

And Boateng has since spoken out about the incident, claiming he will 'accept every fine' as his son's health is all that matters to him.

German centre back Boateng has been fined by Bayern Munich after the incident

Boateng said: 'I accept every fine in the world if it is justified. And I know that it was certainly a mistake not to let the club know about my trip, but at that moment I was just thinking of my son.

'His health was not good. When a son calls his father, then of course I'll still go, no matter what time.

'I accept every fine for him, after all, that's my son. I want to see the father which doesn't leave in such a moment to be with his four-year old son. I think it's sad.'
Indian-origin British MP Lisa Nandy, who made it to the final three-member shortlist in the leadership race to replace Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, made a plea for resilience as the postal ballot for the election closed on Thursday.

The 40-year-old MP for Wigan in Greater Manchester, where she was born, had called on the Labour Party to be "brave" and elect her during a series of hustings around the country.

The daughter of India-born academic Dipak Nandy and a British mother, along with other candidates, halted active campaigning last month as the coronavirus pandemic gained momentum in the UK.

Labour must show real leadership to help lead us through this crisis and rebuild a more compassionate, resilient country on the other side, Nandy said in a Twitter statement as voting closed.

"Last time we had an economic crisis the government responded with austerity. This time we have to get it right. We need the equivalent of a Marshall Plan to rebuild our public services and ensure all parts of the country come through this and Labour must ensure we get it, she said.

The strict social distancing rules in place to try and control the outbreak means the Labour Party cancelled plans for a special conference to unveil the new leader, planned in London, with the announcement now expected to be made online on Saturday.

"This is not a decision we have taken lightly. Our priority is the wellbeing of our members and staff, and ensuring we fully contribute to the collective effort to protect public health, a Labour Party spokesperson said.

A total of 784,000 members, affiliates and registered supporters were entitled to participate. They have been voting for their new leader since February 24, with Keir Starmer emerging as the frontrunner in the race.

A latest survey from YouGov revealed that the former shadow Brexit Secretary in Corbyn's shadow Cabinet, who stood on a unity platform in the three-month long contest, has a commanding lead over his rivals and could win on first preference votes in the preferential ballot system.

Rebecca Long-Bailey, the third shortlisted candidate, had revealed that all candidates had been asked to record a victory speech so it can be sent out over the airwaves as quickly as possible this weekend.

Angela Rayner, the shadow Education Secretary, has emerged as the favourite in the deputy leadership contest as she competes against Pakistani-origin Rosena Allin-Khan and fellow Labour MPs Dawn Butler, Ian Murray, and Richard Burgon.

As many as 114,000 new members who had joined since the December 2019 General Election, when Labour suffered a bruising defeat with its lowest number of seats since 1935, voted alongside members of affiliated trades unions and groups for the postal ballot.

Around 14,700 "registered supporters", who paid 25 pound to take part on a one-off basis, were also part of the preferential voting system in which the candidates are ranked in order of preference.

If no candidate secures more than half the first preference votes, the second preference votes of the lowest-ranked candidate are redistributed until the winner can be declared.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
STOCKHOLM, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Electrolux, a sustainability leader in the appliance industry, reports a 75% reduction in CO2 emissions from its operations since 2005. To reflect the Group's new commitment to become climate neutral across the supply chain by 2050, and its increasingly holistic approach to sustainability, the overall sustainability framework has also been updated.

The reduction of direct and indirect environmental impact is increasingly an important focus area for Electrolux. The 2019 Sustainability Report, released today, shows the company's progress towards its targets in the nine key areas outlined in its sustainability framework For the Better. Read the full report here: www.electroluxgroup.com/sustainab ilityreports/2019/

The report highlights that the absolute CO2 emissions in Electrolux operations have decreased by 75% since 2005. In addition, the most energy and water-efficient products accounted for 23% of the total products sold last year.

At the 2019 UN General's Climate Action Summit, Electrolux joined a global movement of business leaders working towards limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5C. The commitment

Electrolux made to become carbon neutral across the supply chain by 2050 is now reflected in the updated sustainability framework. Through a further UN initiative, Cool Coalition, Electrolux has committed to remove global warming gases from products by 2023 which also ties into the overall framework.

To celebrate the Electrolux centenary in 2019, The Better Living Program (BLP) was launched. This is an action plan to enable better and more sustainable living for consumers around the world through 2030. The BLP is now also fully integrated in the overall sustainability framework.

"Sustainability has always been very important for Electrolux. Our updated overall framework is more aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and represents our strong commitment to contribute to key global challenges by supporting consumers in making sustainable choices", says Jonas Samuelson, CEO Electrolux.

Other key initiatives and achievements from the report include 20 times more recycled plastic used in products and 44% less energy used per manufactured product. 30,000 children have learned about sustainable eating through Electrolux Food Foundation's Food Heroes program.

Moreover, a green bond framework was introduced as a new way to fund Electrolux sustainability initiatives. Proceeds will be used to finance, or refinance projects covered by the environmental areas of the Electrolux sustainability framework, For the Better.

For further information, please contact Electrolux Press Hotline

+46-8-657-65-07.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/electrolux/r/electrolux-highlights-lower-emissions-and-introduces-new-framework-in-2019-sustainability-report,c3078964

The following files are available for download:
After about 100 days since the coronavirus pandemic broke, over a million people have now been infected and more than 50, 000 have died, data from worldometers.info has revealed.

The world is currently seeing its darkest moment in about a century. Life, as it were, is no longer the same with billions across the world having been ordered to stay at home while streets and shops are deserted and hospitals are under strain as confirmed infections pile.

There is no vaccine yet for the coronavirus. A recent study found that the deadly disease can spread through the air and remains contagious for hours.

It can also linger in rooms formerly occupied by patients, making the contagion harder to avoid, the study found.

The disease has already put a foothold on Europe, the United States, and southeast Asia and is beginning to wreak havoc in Africa and South America. The World Health Organisation (WHO) is particularly concerned with the ability of the poorest countries in the world to control the disease.

The U.S. already has the highest number of reported infections in the world, nearly a quarter of the global total and President David Trump on Wednesday said the nation should brace for a very very difficult upcoming two weeks.

Even at the best-case-scenario, modeling from The Australian National University (ANU) last month estimated a global GDP loss of $2.4 trillion.

Confirmed cases

As of Thursday evening, there were 1,004,458 confirmed cases across the globe, a number that has doubled in a week, data from worldometers.info showed.

The number of infected people crossed the half a million threshold last Thursday, exactly a week ago, showing an accumulated growth rate of about 100, 000 cases in every two days during the period.

PREMIUM TIMES has been monitoring the worldometer, a tracking platform. In almost every 20 minutes in the past three days, at least 10, 000 confirmed cases are added on the global tracking meter.

READ ALSO:

The three worst-hit countries: the U.S., Spain, and Italy alone have a combined figure of over half a million infections, more than half of the global total.

There are 742, 394 active cases as of the time of reporting. Of that number, over 704, 000 are in mild condition.

Nearly 38, 000 cases are in serious or critical conditions.

Meanwhile, nearly 210, 000 people have recovered after treatment so far worldwide.

Death toll

After Spain and the United States recorded their highest daily deaths to Covid-19 on Tuesday, the total global body-count reached the scary landmark of 40, 000 and counting.

As of the time of reporting, about 51, 558 people have died from the virus, a strain of coronavirus which causes a pneumonia-like disease, data from worldometers.info showed.

Experts believe the death toll might even be twice the current figure as many people die without being tested.

Countries have continued to report inadequate testing kits for potential patients of Covid-19, a strain of coronavirus which has continued to defy science.

Hardest-hit countries in Europe are now contesting the unenviable position of who will record the highest daily death-toll yet.

Italy and Spain have hit over 900 and 800 deaths under 24 hours at least twice within the week. Combined death toll in both countries is now more than 20,000, roughly half the global total  demonstrating the high price nations can pay if the virus outstrips the capacity of a nations health care system.

France has surged past 4,000 fatalities and nearly 3, 000 people have died in the U.K.

The United States

In the span of a month, the coronavirus pandemic in America rose from fewer than 100 confirmed cases and two deaths to over 237, 000 infections. More than 5, 700 people have died.

Even if all of the social distancing guidelines are followed perfectly, health experts in America believe the death toll in the nation could still reach 100,000 to 200,000.

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Africa

Almost all of Africas 54 countries have recorded at least one confirmed case of coronavirus. However, the spread of the disease in the continent has been relatively slow compared to other parts of the world.

Only two countries in the continent have recorded more than 50 deaths. Algeria has the highest number of fatalities  86 with over 900 infections closely followed by Egypt with 52 deaths and over 700 cases. About 44 deaths and 691 infections have been recorded in Morocco.

South Africa still leads the continent with over 1, 000 cases with just five deaths, significantly due to the countrys relatively good health system.

Nigeria had 174 cases as of Thursday evening with two deaths.

The WHO officials said the statistics are likely to significantly underestimate the true number of cases in Africa, raising concerns that the contagion would soon overwhelm the continents under-resourced health services.
Lt. Col. James (Jim) R. Mellish, United States Army, Retired, currently of Auburn, AL, died on March 28, 2020. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Jeannette Evelyn Bousquin Mellish, children: James Walter Mellish of West Lafayette, IN, Dianne L. Register (John) of Hendersonville, TN, Elizabeth A. Gregg of Auburn, AL, Lynda Loraine Kelly (Mark) of Clarksville, TN; grandchildren: Jeannine Logan, James E. Mellish, Christopher Kelley, Jimmy Kelley, Jennifer Kelley, John Kelley, Rachel Kelley, Happy Gregg, III of Auburn, AL, Matthew Gregg of Auburn, AL; great grandchildren: Calla Kelley, Brandon Logan, Christian Logan, and Teddy Grace Gregg. Jim, 88, was born on September 14, 1931 in Savannah, GA to James E. and Murial E. Woodall Mellish. In 1942, the family moved to York, PA where he graduated from the York school system and attended York Collegiate Institute, prior to Pennsylvania State College, graduating with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture. He was designated a Distinguished Military Graduate and accepted a commission in the Regular Army as a lieutenant of infantry. Following Infantry Officer training he underwent Ranger training and went on to fixed and rotary wing training at Gary Air Force Base, Texas and Fort Rucker. His overseas assignments were France, Korea, Vietnam and Hawaii. Stateside, he was assigned to Fort Benning, GA, New Cumberland Army Depot, PA, Fort Leavenworth and Fort Rucker. He retired from Fort Rucker in 1982 with 28 years of service. Military recognition included: Master Aviator Wings, Ranger Tab, Combat Infantry Badge, Air Medal (eight awards), Bronze Star Medal, Legion of Merit (two awards), Army Commendation Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon (2 awards), National Defense Service Medal and numerous Vietnamese Service Medals. Upon retirement Jim was a Field Representative for United Services Life Insurance Company for 16 years. Concurrently, Jan and Jim opened a Florist business, Triangle Flower and Gift Shop which they operated in Enterprise, AL until 2016. Jim has been active as a volunteer for the Red Cross at Lyster Army Medical Clinic for 25+ years, The Enterprise Lion's Club, the Salvation Army, the Military Officers Association of America, and The Episcopal Church of the Epiphany where he served as Vestry member, Junior Warden, Senior Warden, and adult Sunday School leader. Services will be announced at a later date.
Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State on Thursday temporarily withdrew the Right of Occupancy of 10 filling stations in Maiduguri for hoarding petroleum products.

The Secretary to the State Government, Usman Jidda, in a statement in Maiduguri, said the withdrawal was in line with the powers vested on the governor under the states Land Use Act.

His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Borno State, Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, has directed the temporary withdrawal of their (filling stations) Right of Occupancy, pending the process of revocation of the same land in line with the provisions of Land Use Act and powers vested on him.

Government hereby warns other filling stations to desist from such acts of economic sabotage as Borno Government will continue to monitor the activities of all filling stations in the state.

Read also:

The government will not hesitate to take all necessary actions within the ambiance of the law to bring them to justice, he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that following the announcement of precautionary measures to contain Convid-19 spread in Borno, some filling stations hoarded fuel and sold above approved pump price.

The development prompted Mr Zulum to personally storm some of the suspected stations in Maiduguri to compel them to open and sell to customers at the approved pump price.

(NAN)
Theyre so appreciative, Talley said. I went out to make a few deliveries and these seniors are in tears saying Dont forget about me. I said we wont and that well be checking up on them. We do follow-ups; either we make calls or knock on the door to make sure theyre okay. Everyone wanted to help and was excited about it.
Iraq saw its oil revenues cut nearly in half in March when oil prices collapsed, even though OPECs second-largest producer exported more barrels of crude last month than it did in February.

According to data from Iraqs oil ministry, cited by AFP - Agence France Presse, Iraqs crude oil sales amounted to 105 million barrels in March. For these barrels, Iraq earned a revenue of US$2.99 billion. To compare, Iraqs February sales of 98.3 million barrels of crude oil earned OPECs producer almost twice that, at US$5.5 billion.

The federal government of Iraq sold its 3.390 million bpd of oil exports at an average price of $32.73 a barrel, Iraq Oil Report quoted the oil ministry as saying.

Iraqs oil typically trades at around $4 a barrel discount to Brent, so in the past couple of weeks, Iraqs crude oil was selling for $21 a barrel, Oil Minister Thamer Ghadban told local media, AFP reports.

Last week, Iraq, one of the oil producers worst hit by the oil price crash, was said to be proposing that all foreign oil firms operating in the country cut their budgets by 30 percent on the condition that crude production levels do not suffer.

Iraq, which relies on oil revenues for 95 percent of its budgetary income, is one of the least diversified economies in the Middle East.

Iraq was also one of the OPEC members who called for an emergency meeting of the cartel to discuss ways to support oil prices, which crumbled in March to as low as $25 a barrel Brent.

Iraq may see its wish granted soon after U.S. President Donald Trump intervened in the oil price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia and discussed the oil market with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Kingdom calls for an urgent meeting for OPEC+ states and another group of countries, with aim of reaching a fair solution to restore a desire balance of the oil markets, Saudi Arabia said on Thursday, via its official Saudi Press Agency, while President Trump said that he expects and hopes the Saudis and Russia to cut back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
For the sixth day in a row, the number of coronavirus deaths in a 24-hour period in Spain was above 800, taking the total number of fatalities from the Covid-19 disease in excess of 10,000. Thats according to official figures supplied by the Health Ministry at midday Thursday.

Spain set another new grim record today, with 950 coronavirus deaths in the space of just a day. The total fatalities across the country now stand at 10,003. In the same time period, 8,102 infections were confirmed, taking the total to 110,238.

When we talk about deaths there is no good data, but the curve has stabilized and we are entering the deceleration phase Health Minister Salvador Illa

On Wednesday, the total daily deaths came in at 864, with an increase of 7,719 new cases on the day before.

By Thursday, a total of 54,113 people in Spain had been hospitalized, while 26,743 had recovered and had been discharged from hospital since the coronavirus outbreak began.

Shortly after the figures were released on Thursday, Health Minister Salvador Illa began his appearance at a congressional commission to provide updated information on the governments work to combat the crisis. The session began with a moment of silence for the victims. There have been 26,000 people who have recovered [from the coronavirus] he explained. With an 18% rise on yesterday. When we talk about deaths there is no good data, but the curve has stabilized and we are entering the deceleration phase.

The minister also explained the reasoning behind the stricter confinement measures that were introduced on Monday in Spain, and which saw all non-essential activities suspended. To avoid the [health] system losing the capability of absorbing new cases, we needed to reduce hospital admissions, he said. The most effective way was to limit all movement, apart from essential activities. Three days have passed since the measure went into force and the data is telling us that mobility is falling.

Health Minister Salvador Illa at todays congressional commission. J.J. Guillen (EFE)

Illa also explained that 16 million masks had been distributed so far. The government has mobilized all of its resources to ensure that we have all the necessary material, he said. As well as purchases, we have also worked to increase national production of key products. The results are bearing fruit.

He added that car manufacturer Seat would today start to produce respirators. Spain is going to ensure the production of as many as 400 assisted-breathing devices every day, he said.

There are still tough weeks to come, the minister continued. But between all of us we are managing it. We are responding with strength, in a coordinated manner and with solidarity. Our health system is also up to the task. We are also working so that the social safety net is up to the task. Health comes before the economy. For the economy to be the priority once more, the priority today must be health.

Speaking at the daily government press conference on the coronavirus crisis, Maria Jose Sierra, from the Health Ministrys Coordination Center for Health Alerts, discussed the latest statistics from the fight against the disease. We still have an 8% rise in infections, which points to a stabilization, she said. The occupation of intensive care units is still critical in some regions, she added, explaining that this was because patients were requiring long periods of care there.

National Police death

On Wednesday, an officer from the National Police became the first among his ranks to die from the coronavirus. The man had spent 23 years in a riot police unit in Barcelona, and had also briefly served in Seville. The force conveyed its sympathies via Twitter, sending condolences to the officers family and friends.

Speaking at Thursdays press conference, Miguel Angel Villarroya, the defense chief of staff, said that 230 members of the armed forces had so far contracted the coronavirus.

Toll on pharmacists

A pharmacist disinfects a counter in Granada. Carlos Gil Perez (getty images)

Yesterday it emerged that eight pharmacists have so far died from the coronavirus in Spain, and 270 are currently in hospital or in quarantine. According to the Spanish General Council of Pharmacists, a total of 57 pharmacies have been forced to close their doors since the crisis began.

The council has called on staff to take extreme precautions while they are working, and reminded the general public to respect the advice of pharmacists, respecting safe distances when inside pharmacies, and only making visits when it is strictly necessary.

Repatriations

More than 700 Spaniards have been repatriated from Peru after being left stranded in the South American country due to an obligatory quarantine and the closure of the borders by the Peruvian government. Until now, former Spanish flag carrier Iberia has organized three flights from the Peruvian capital of Lima to Madrid, the last of which arrived on Wednesday. However, there are still around 700 Spaniards still in Peru, most of whom saw their flights canceled when the borders were closed. According to data from the Spanish consulate, a total of 1,469 Spaniards had requested repatriation.

Meanwhile, the Spanish government is preparing to send a plane to India to repatriate tourists from Spain who are stuck in the country. The Spanish embassy in New Delhi calculates that there are around 200 Spaniards trying to get home from the Asian country.

Spanish embassies and consulates are estimated to have already helped around 18,000 Spaniards get home from various parts of the world since the coronavirus crisis began.

Cellphone tracking

More than 40 million cellphones in Spain will be tracked as part of an anonymous study. Aly Song (REUTERS)

More than 40 million cellphones in Spain will be tracked as part of an anonymous study, allowing the authorities to follow the movements of the population between the countrys regions and helping decisions be made to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. Thats according to a statement released on Wednesday by the secretary of state for digitalization and artificial intelligence.

The study will analyze anonymous and aggregated data of Spanish residents movements while the health emergency continues, until normality returns. The reporting will not include personal data and will not be able to be used by the police while the confinement measures are in place.

Situation in Catalonia

Catalan premier Quim Torra warned on Thursday that the region may need to remain under lockdown after April 12, when the emergency measures are set to come to an end. In an interview with the radio network SER Catalunya, Torra said the stay-at-home orders will remain in place until experts say they are not necessary. The regional health chief Alba Verges also said that some type of confinement will continue after Easter. In an interview with Catalunya Radio, Verges added that intensive care units in the region were at their limit, despite tripling capacity.

Meanwhile in Barcelona, an army plane on Thursday delivered 12 tons of personal protective equipment that is destined for those working in essential municipal services, such as firefighters and police officers. According to the deputy mayor, Jaume Collboni, the shipment cost 500,000 and includes 600,000 face masks, 9,600 caps and 10,000 protective glasses.

The delivery comes as Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau warned that 70% of senior homes in the city could have been hit by the coronavirus.

Problems with new tests

A serological test in the Spanish region of Castilla-La Mancha.

On Monday, one million coronavirus tests arrived in Spain on an Air Force plane from China. But according to the Spanish Association of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC), the fast tests cannot detect the virus until the fifth or sixth day of infection, meaning they cannot be routinely used for diagnosis.

The blood tests are designed to look for the antibodies generated to fight infectious diseases, in this case the coronavirus. But in a document presented on March 30, SEIMC explains that in the early stage of the disease, during the first five to six days since presenting symptoms, there is little response from the immune system.

The most reliable way to diagnose the coronavirus continues to be with PCR testing, which in theory detects the virus from day one, but takes at least four hours to produce a result.

Possible coronavirus death in Gibraltar

A man with coronavirus symptoms has died in Gibraltar, the Gibraltarian government announced on Thursday. The man was aged between 55 and 60 and had been in voluntary isolation in his home in the British Overseas Territory, which is located in the south of the Iberian peninsula, for three days. On Wednesday night he called emergency services to say he was having trouble breathing. He died by the time health workers arrived. An autopsy is set to confirm whether coronavirus was the cause of death.

With reporting by Ramon Munoz, Jessica Mouzo and Elena G. Sevillano.

English version by Simon Hunter and Melissa Kitson.
Nursing homes across the country have been in lockdown for weeks under federal orders to protect their frail, elderly residents from coronavirus, but a wave of deadly outbreaks nearly every day since suggests that the measures including a ban on visits and daily health screenings of staffers either came too late or were not rigorous enough.

Recent outbreaks in Tennessee, New Jersey, Ohio, West Virginia and Maryland have pushed the death toll at the nation's nursing homes to at least 450 and highlight the biggest gap: Screenings of doctors, nurses, aides and other workers do not involve actual testing but the taking of temperatures or asking health questions that still allow infected, asymptomatic people to slip through.

"It's still been like Swiss cheese with people coming in and out of there, and thus you've got these explosions in senior facilities," said John BaRoss of Long Valley, New Jersey, who recently pulled his 85-year-old mother out of an assisted-living center out of fear of infection.

After an outbreak of 100 infections and four deaths at the Gallatin Center for Rehabilitation and Healing outside Nashville, Tennessee  where the National Guard was called in to help evacuate the facility  Sumner County Mayor Anthony Holt blamed staff members who came to work despite showing symptoms for COVID-19 and "exposed a lot of patients."

"Things got out of hand," Holt told the Associated Press. "Once employees became symptomatic, they should have asked them to go home immediately and called the health department. I don't think that occurred."

After an outbreak near Dayton, Ohio, killed six people and infected nearly 50 at a pair of nursing homes less than 10 miles apart, health officials began scrutinizing medical specialists such as phlebotomists and respiratory therapists who work in multiple facilities a day. One such health worker who visited both homes tested positive for COVID-19.

In Maryland, Gov. Larry Hogan said an outbreak that spread like "wildfire" at a Mount Airy nursing home, killing five and infecting 77, apparently began with an asymptomatic health worker who made it past a temperature check screening and "infected the population."

Some relatives of those at the Sundale nursing home in Morgantown, West Virginia, where 29 residents and staff have tested positive, say more should have been done to keep coronavirus out before the federal restrictions took hold in mid-March.

"The day before the shutdown, we just walked in wherever. There was no sign-in. There was nothing,' said Courtney Templeton about her last visit to her 69-year-old mother.

Templeton also faults the home for not testing residents fast enough and not keeping healthy ones separate from those just back from a nearby hospital showing COVID-19 symptoms, including her mother's roommate.

"She came back coughing and had a fever," Templeton said of a visit two weeks ago, after which she began begging the home to protect her mother. "Can't you keep the incoming patients separate? Can't you keep them quarantined for 14 days?"

Last week, Templeton got word both the roommate and her mom had the disease.

Though the federal government has not been releasing a count of its own, an AP tally from media reports and state health departments indicate at least 450 deaths and nearly 2,000 infections have been linked to coronavirus outbreaks in nursing homes and long-term care facilities nationwide.

And for the nation's more than 15,000 such facilities and the 1 million people who live in them, experts say the situation could get worse before it gets better.

They say the crisis has only deepened a chronic staffing shortage at nursing homes because more workers are self-quarantining or staying home with their children. There is still not widespread testing of staff or patients, and shortages of masks and other protective gear persist.

"It's an emergency situation, and it's just been totally neglected in all the national policy," said Charlene Harrington, a professor emerita at the University of California San Francisco and former state health official. "They're not focusing on the fact that these are the most vulnerable of people in the whole country."

And even more ominously, overcrowding in hospitals has some states seeking to force nursing homes to take patients who are recovering from COVID-19, raising fears they could spread it to residents inside.

New York issued a statewide advisory last week forbidding nursing homes from denying residents admission "solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19,." California told its nursing homes to make similar preparations. Massachusetts announced plans to designate specific nursing homes as care centers for COVID-19 patients  a move that has set it apart from other states

"Sending hospitalized patients who are likely harboring the virus to nursing homes that do not have the appropriate units, equipment and staff to accept COVID-19 patients is a recipe for disaster," said Mark Parkinson, president of the American Health Care Association.

Federal directives on nursing home coronavirus prevention followed the nation's biggest outbreak in one place, the deaths of 40 at the Life Care Center nursing home near Seattle. A government inspection found infections at the home and others nearby were likely caused in part by employees working while sick.

A March 13 order from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services says nursing homes should immediately halt visitors and nonessential workers, cancel communal dining and group activities, and actively screen residents and staff for fever and respiratory symptoms.

But the order did not mandate regular testing of staffers, which nursing home providers and advocates say is not possible or practical because of the limited availability of tests and delays in getting results.

"In an ideal world, would everyone have been screened with COVID tests? Of course. But this is all we could do," said Kathleen Hill O'Neill, a nursing home consultant and instructor at the University of Pennsylvania.

The restrictions have done little to slow the daily drumbeat of new infections.

In New Jersey, an entire nursing home relocated its residents after two dozen were confirmed infected and the rest were presumed to be. Seven died and more than 40 were infected at a nursing home in suburban Richmond, Virginia. Two died and at least 57 were infected at a nursing home east of Los Angeles. And on New York's Long Island, a retirement community has so far suffered eight deaths in two weeks.

"Coronavirus in a nursing home is like fire in dry grass," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said this week.

To be sure, infections of all kinds in nursing homes are a chronic problem, killing 380,000 every year. But an AP review of federal inspection records shows some facilities suffering outbreaks were given low "star" rankings for overall quality even before the coronavirus crisis. Three homes in Ohio and Illinois got two out of five stars, as did the one in Gallatin, Tennessee, where an inspector last year found an unsupervised cart in the hall where a resident scooped out ice with her bare hands.

For relatives of those in nursing homes, the visit ban has literally put them on the outside looking in, communicating with parents and grandparents through windows or by smartphones. Their greatest fear is that their loved ones will be left to die alone.

"When someone loses a loved one, you can't go and give them a hug," said 80-year-old Rosan Jordan, a resident of a retirement and nursing facility in New Orleans where her husband was among 13 to die of COVID-19 last month.

Even though she was in the same home, Jordan was kept apart from her husband and could only speak with him near the end on FaceTime.

"I should have known that was the last time I'd be talking to him," she said. "I hope it was some comfort to him to hear my voice."
Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh governments have taken over some private hospitals

Several states are earmarking select government hospitals as dedicated COVID-19 hospitals; Andhra Pradesh has identified four

Move expected to bring in public accountability of private hospitals

Monitoring and adherence to protocol crucial

Clarity still needed on the costing and funding during the period private hospitals remain under government control

More Indian states are adopting the model of harnessing resources with private hospitals in fight against coronavirus. After three Indian states - Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh - acquired private medical institutions for handling coronavirus cases, Andhra Pradesh government has followed suit. As of April 2, it has taken over 17 private medical colleges and hospitals, and two large hospitals - one each in Ongole and Ananthapur. Control of these establishments has been given to respective district collectors and they will be used as and when the need arises.

These are in addition to four state government hospitals - one each in Tirupati, Vijayawada, Vizag and Nellore - that the state has declared dedicated COVID-19 hospitals. State Aarogyasri CEO A Mallikarjuna told Business Today that more could be roped in, if required. There are as many as 470 private hospitals in Andhra Pradesh (with cumulative capacity of 44,000 beds) working with state government's Aarogyasri programme, a healthcare scheme to provide quality healthcare to the poor.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus Live Updates: 1,860 active cases in India; death toll at 53

According to some private hospitals in Karnataka, state government there too is in talks with the private sector to explore various options to harness their capabilities. All eyes now, however, are on how the decision to takeover private hospitals will be executed while addressing associated concerns. The private sector has raised worries around the costs involved, whereas independent experts are concerned about ensuring public accountability of the private sector.

"It is not clear in terms of how any move to take control of the private hospitals will be operationalised and who will pay for hospital staff during this period and bear other expenses. Also, whether this system would work better than giving a directive to the private hospitals to admit all COVID-19 patients is another question," a senior official at a large private hospital chain said.

Despite these concerns, it is becoming clear that government hospitals alone may not be enough to manage the fallout of coronavirus, underlining the importance of enlisting services of the private hospitals. In fact, experts have termed this as an important measure to deal with the challenges posed by novel coronavirus.

ALSO READ: $20 trillion lawsuit against China! US group says coronavirus is bioweapon

Rama V Baru, professor at the Centre of Social Medicine and Community Health at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, feels the move to takeover private hospitals could work well as "it rationalises the resources and given that many in the private sector already have the ICUs, human resources in place, this may be a better option than focusing on converting stadiums into hospitals or creating new healthcare facilities."

Also, this may be the best available option at a time when there is a resource crunch and a public sector infrastructure is stretched thin. It could also help ensure that the private hospitals are made more publicly responsible and accessible to those in need. What may be important is to ensure that there are protocols for them to follow backed by a system of monitoring so that there is public accountability of the private sector, Baru said. How that will be ensured, needs to be seen. Also, what is also being observed is if these arrangements would work better if there is a visible central command.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus outbreak: PM Modi to share video message with citizens tomorrow at 9 am
PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Credit Agricole Group (CRARF, CDA.L, ACA), comprising Credit Agricole S.A. and Regional Banks, Thursday said its intention to pay out dividends on 2019 results is no longer compatible. The company noted that the European Central Bank has asked banks not to pay dividends as long as the coronavirus crisis persists and 'at least until the beginning of October 2020'. The Board of Directors on February 13 had set the dividend proposed at the General Meeting for the year 2019 at 0.70 euro, up 1.4% from last year. Due to Credit Agricole Group's structure, 55.9% of the dividends distributed by Credit Agricole S.A. are paid to the Regional Banks, which retain a significant part of their earnings, in order to support the economies of their territories. Further, Credit Agricole S.A.'s Board of Directors has decided to propose to the General Assembly of May 13 the allocation of the entire profit of 2019 to the reserves' account. This measure will improve the CET1 ratios by around 20 basis points for Credit Agricole Group and around 60 basis points for Credit Agricole S.A. In Paris, Credit Agricole shares were trading at 6.53 euros, up 2.87 percent. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Sentinel Exclusive: Coronavirus or Not, 2020 Census, Presidential Election Will Still Occur

The coronavirus disease, or COVID-19, has dominated headlines and conversations around the world as well as challenged the U.S. economy and disrupted the nations healthcare system.

As government and health officials unite to resolve the situation, other influential voices are reminding people that the virus will not prevent critical national activities  like the 2020 Census and the presidential election  from occurring.

Stacey Abrams is one of those voices who takes every opportunity to amplify the message, Coronavirus or not, there will be an election this year and there will be a census this year and if they do not count us, we will not count for a decade!

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Abrams, a lawyer, author and former Minority Leader of the Georgia House of Representatives, gained international acclaim for her historic 2018 campaign as the Democratic candidate for governor of Georgia. Observers may remember that she narrowly lost the gubernatorial race to her opponent, Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp. His dual role as election overseer and Republican nominee caused many to charge him of having a conflict of interest and suppressing votes.

Recalling the experience, Abrams said, What the 2018 election showed me was that there is more work to be done and the urgency of that work. More than not winning the election, what I saw were hundreds of thousands of Georgians being denied their right to be heard and in a democracy, to be heard and seen is fundamental to your participation. It is the power that we have and without that power, we are bully victims of those who have a stolen that power from us!

Clearly, the experience had an effect on Abrams, but instead of retiring from politics, she intensified her efforts to promote voting rights and voter registration. In 2019, Abrams founded Fair Fight 2020 to encourage voter participation and education and support voter protection programs.

Fair Fight 2020 operates in 18 states and we have geared up voter protection teams in each of these states, explained Abrams. We are working with federal, state in local leaders to make sure that peoples right to vote is protected. We actually have hired staff in each of the states  a director and a field organizer  to make sure that we have the volunteers that we need to be poll watchers and poll workers, which of course becomes a very different conversation in the wake of the coronavirus and COVID-19.

Even with the limitations caused by the disease, Fair Fight uses hotlines where people can obtain information or report voter suppression and utilizes traditional approaches, such as phone banks and public service announcements to communicate with supporters. In light of COVID-19, Abrams released a statement on March 20, encouraging states to incorporate different approaches to conducting elections that ensure participation without compromising public safety.

While Abrams emphasized each states role in ensuring fair elections, she also reminded African Americans and marginalized individuals that they have responsibilities in the effort, too. She stressed that people in those categories must register to vote, connect their vote with others and be purposeful about their voting.

Elaborating on her comments, Abrams noted, Registration is our ticket to participation. The only real power that you are guaranteed is the power to be heard and that begins with registration.

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But, the second responsibility is to ensure that you dont do it alone. Your voice alone does not make a decision. It is when you connect your voice to others and link them together. It is one of the hallmarks of the Black community, she said.

Number three is that we have to be intentional about our decision, said Abrams, who remarked that people are often discouraged from voting after witnessing bad actors and deciding not to participate in an election. Our voices matter even more than they have before. We can win our country back this year!

Abrams advised people who are interested in criminal justice reform to vote for your judges and your district attorneys. To environmental activists, she urged voting for your state legislators; they decide what happens. Be intentional about our vote because it is power to make this country better and make our community stronger and we have to use that power.

The voting power works in concert with the census participation, added Abrams, who established the nonprofit, Fair Count, to ensure that hard-to-count communities in Georgia and across the nation are accurately tallied in the 2020 Census.

According to Abrams, If you dont get counted, you do not count. The census allocates $1.5 trillion dollars. The expectation is that there will be between 1.7 and 3.8 million Black people not getting counted.

If that scenario plays out, Abrams predicted that the Black community could lose up to $3 billion per year. The reduced funding will not only hurt social programs such as food stamps and school lunches, but will also decrease political power, which can translate into fewer local, state and federal representatives for communities of color.

In response to the attitude of I dont want the government to find me expressed by many Blacks, Abrams replied, They already know how to find you. I have heard so many people say I dont want to give them my information. But, if you have a light bill or a cell phone, they already know how to find you. So, fill out the census.

Abrams passion for people, community and doing the right thing, has been a lifelong endeavor, which likely started with her parents, Carolyn and Robert Abrams, who were Methodist ministers. Their impressed upon Abrams and her five siblings that it was our responsibility to serve the community and they took us with them to vote in every single election. They wanted us to see our citizenship in action, she said.

Her parents also exposed their children to the concept of volunteering time and talents to those in need. You dont get to just think about yourself. Your responsibility is the people around you  the people in your family, community, country and the world as well, Abrams said.

Since that time I have never wavered from my commitment to civic engagement in protecting our democracy and by recognizing the fundamental power of the right to vote.

Editors note: Stacey Abrams will be one of the honorees at the Power, Leadership and Influence of the Black Woman program, presented by Bakewell Media and the Los Angeles Sentinel, scheduled for later this year.
Like a silent shadow, Russian serial killer Mikhail Popkov carved his signature murders in his city in Russia, and he killed 78 women until he got caught.

He had one of the best covers to hide his activities as a former police officer who would have been doubted as the serial killer of these women in the city of Angarsk in Siberia.

He is called the "Werewolf" when he engaged in a killing spree that began in 1992 with some of the most vicious murders that made him Russia's most prolific serial killer.

Now, he has been convicted of all the 78 murdered women, though there might be more murders that are his handiwork but are not recorded

Picasso/ Jack the Ripper maestro of killing

Popkvov raped all the 78 female victims and may have derived more by this signature move before killing the women by butchering them.

One exception is a male police officer who was killed as one of his victims.

None of his victims was spared a kind death, as mutilation was his signature and his victims were gruesome canvasses of his. Because of this, Popkov has become the most famous Russian serial killer.

His killings were caused by a suspicion that his wife was unfaithful to him, but he never questioned his wife Elena.

Later, he began choosing sex worker or drunk women who consented to have a drink with him not knowing that they would be sentenced to death if they drink with him.

According to the "Werewolf," they were immoral, and deserved it. Only three lucky women survived because they did not drink with him.

Also read: Coronavirus Patients Can Spread Virus After Recovery, and Will Do So for Two Weeks

State prosecutor Alexander Shkinyov said on his second conviction that he escorted these "loose women" home, and even carried their bag.

When asked what Popkov felt as he butcher his victims, "He said that he felt satisfied when he felt their pain as they were stabbed," expressing no remorse but relished it with 78 kills.

One Russian Prosecutor who made a comment of another 56 dead to his credit, Popkov loved to kill and stabbed them 145 or 170 times.

The Werewolf killer trial

The killing rampage of Popkov began in 1992 with the last one in 2010. An extra conviction of 22 murders, sent him in for life in a Siberian penal colony.

His initial charge of 60 butchering women, was enough for 56 but pleads guilty. He even helped identifying his murder victims.

Although he is getting sentenced to Russia's toughest maximum-security jails, he did not even show any emotion, just cold stares.

But upon learning that he was going to lose his police rank, thus, losing his pension, this made Popkov mad.

Popkov's assumption that working with the investigation will keep his rank, but it did not keep him from losing it. He later appealed not to remove his pension.

He lead a double life as a father, husband, whose family never guessed that he was the "Werewolf."

Popkov added, "In one life I was an ordinary person, I was in the service in the police, having positive feedback on my work."

He went about killing for nearly two decades, and getting police supplies for his killing sprees.

Popkov finally got caught when the tracks of his 4x4 Lada was the giveaway, no cleaning of the murder scenes was enough. He finally got caught by a DNA test.

Related article: Wife Accidentally Kills Husband in Utah But Further Investigation Reveals a Different Story

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The prosecutor in New Jerseys hardest hit county for coronavirus cases has ordered police chiefs to stop any efforts to require infected residents to self-identify or place quarantine signs on their front doors.

Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella wrote in a directive that such requirements are totally inappropriate and therefore banned.

Musellas comments were issued in a directive on Saturday sent to all county police chiefs and directors, the sheriff and officers-in-charge. It came after several police departments advised their residents (with COVID-19) to self-identify when seeking police assistance and/or to post notices on their residences.

He said thats simply not permitted and could put residents in danger.

Several of our law enforcement agencies have, without authorization by the BCPO, gone beyond the guidelines, Musella wrote. Asking COVID-19 positive/quarantined individuals to self-identify that status when they seek police assistance may discourage those (with coronavirus) from seeking police assistance when they need it, thus endangering them, their families and the general public.

Bergen County coronavirus cases and deaths have soared since the start of the outbreak with roughly 376 cases per every 100,000 people. As of Wednesday, 3,494 county residents have tested positive for COVID-19 and there have been 75 deaths.

In addition, seven hospitals in North Jersey notified state health officials this week that they have reached divert status, in a single day on Tuesday, meaning they were overwhelmed with patients.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Across New Jersey, 163 police officers have tested positive for coronavirus, according to Col. Patrick Callahan, acting Superintendent of the State Police. The state as of Wednesday had 22,255 cases and 355 deaths.

The Ridgewood Police Department was one of the agencies in Bergen County asking residents to self-identify during the 911 call and with a note on the front door.

We also ask that you place a sign/note on your front door to alert our personnel to take infection-prevention precautions before entering your home or business, the police department says.

The notice remained on the Ridgewood PD website Thursday morning, but other agencies in Bergen County removed notices from their social media pages and websites after Musellas directive came out on Saturday.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Hubballi: At least ten Malaysian persons who comprise five couples have been kept under quarantine since more than 20 days in Karnatakas Belagavi in the backdrop of outbreak of coronavirus.

The district administration has seized their passports despite them informing that they have not attended religious congregation held at Nizamuddin Markaz Masjid in New Delhi.

The official said that all these persons are religious teachers who had come to Belagavi to give their preaching.

These couples had left Delhi on March 9 and had reached Belagavi on March 11 by train to take part in religious preachings much before the function was held in Nizamuddin which has reportedly become a hotspot for coronavirus.

These couples have already completed the 14-day quarantine and no symptoms of the virus infection have been found.

The officials have extended their quarantine for a few more days after more positive cases were reported amongst people who attended the function held at the national capital. The officials also said that all ten persons will be relieved after quarantine for five more days.

Meanwhile, the officials in 6 districts of Mumbai-Karnataka region have stepped up their effort to trace the persons who had attended Nizamuddin religious function though only one coronavirus case has been found in the region since outbreak of the virus.

Belagavi deputy commissioner Dr S B Bommanahalli said that more than 10 persons have been kept under home quarantine soon after they returned from the religious gathering held at New Delhi.

He also said that their throat and blood samples have been sent to the laboratory to conduct tests. The district administration is also searching for more people who had visited New Delhi to attend the function.

Meanwhile, Dharwad deputy commissioner Deepa Cholan said that the officials have identified 15 persons who had attended the religious gathering and all of them are kept under home quarantine by taking their necessary samples for test.
The federal government is making plans to release some prison inmates as part of measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 within the correctional facilities (prisons), the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, said on Wednesday.

Mr Aregbesola, who was speaking at the Presidential Taskforce briefing on the virus, said this move is to reduce congestion in the prisons and also avert the spread of the virus among a large population.

He said the government is already working with the prisons agency to determine the set of people to be released and what measures to ensure that they dont jeopardise the security of the nation.

He also said over 80 per cent of inmates awaiting trial are from the states, hence the need to work with the state governments.

We are working with the state government along with our own system to break down the profile, the basis of incarceration, the term of detention and several other factors to ensure that if at all people will be released, they will be released without jeopardising the security of the nation.

We are careful and sensitive on the steps we take even with the threat of COVID-19, he said.

As of Wednesday, Nigeria has recorded 174 cases of COVID-19, including two deaths.

Custodial Centres

The Controller-General of Corrections, Jaafaru Ahmed, earlier said that the country currently has a total of 244 custodial centres, 139 of which are main custodial centres and 85 as satellite centres.

He said all the facilities have a total 74,127 inmates, among which 1,450 are female, 21,901 convicted and 52,226 awaiting trial.

Mr Ahmed added that overcrowded facilities posed a serious threat to the inmates at this time of the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, if adequate steps are not taken to address the situation.

The personnel in the Nigeria correctional service manage facilities with the highest level of efficiency and professionalism such that I can tell you that yes we have congestion in some of the custodian centres.

Kaduna Prison

Speaking on the riot at Kaduna prison Tuesday, he said the inmates were anxious to know the outcome of efforts made to decongest some of the centres.

The mild disturbance in Kaduna centre happened because the inmates in the congested sections were anxious to know the outcome of our efforts to decongest some of the centres and they became agitated.

Information have gone round the commands to appraise the inmates of the efforts we are making to see that the approval given by the president is effected very soon, he said.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported the pandemonium at the Kaduna custodial centre on Tuesday morning which left two officers of the centre injured.

According to sources at the Nigeria Correctional Service, the inmates, around 11.30 am, protested their continued detention following a suggestion by Mr Aregbesola that the centres should be decongested nationwide to avoid the spread of COVID-19.

The sources, who do not want to be named, told PREMIUM TIMES that the inmates had thrown stones and other dangerous items at the officials of the service who were on duty and who had attempted to calm them down.

Mr Aregbesola commended the efforts of the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, in releasing offenders or suspects that are detained on minor offences.

That will go a long way in ensuring that social distancing and reduction of detainees in those centres.

This will ensure the occurrence of COVID-19 infection be reduced in those areas, he said.
It seems that one-way Americans are coping with the coronavirus is with alcohol.

According to an article written by the Associated Press, sales of alcoholic beverages in the United States rose by 55 percent in the week ending March 21. Sales of spirits like tequila, gin and pre-mixed cocktails jumped 75 percent from a year ago, wine up 66 percent and beer up 42 percent.

Online sales rose 243 percent as people stocked up.

In Central New York, many bars, restaurants and breweries began offering take-out beer and mixed drinks.

The increased sales during the crisis is reminiscent of the last major pandemic which affected the country, the influenza epidemic of 1918.

In October of that year, bottles of whiskey flew off the shelves of Syracuse liquor stores.

But, then, people turned to liquor hoping that it could prevent them from getting sick.

In the above full-page from the Syracuse Herald from Oct. 23, 1918, during the 17-day city-wide ban against public gatherings, Syracuse liquor dealers joined forces to publicize the medicinal benefits of whiskey.

RECOMMENDED to Combat Spanish Influenza, read the headline of the ad.

Wines and Liquors used with medicinal intent will repel the influenza bacillus and is highly recommended from professional as well as individual sources as a preventative. Dont wait for the Flu to come to you  guard against this plague in time.

The ad also contained a short article which appeared in the Post-Standard on October 20.

It read:

(NOTE: Whiskey was spelled without the e in the newspaper in 1918.)

An unprecedented increase in the sale of spiritous liquors, chiefly at wholesale stores but also noticeable at retail bars since the beginning of the influenza epidemic, is reported by liquor dealers. The demand has reached its greatest strength this week and is growing.

The sudden increase in sales is attributed to the use of liquor for medicinal purposes, chiefly as a preventive of influenza. Thousands of residents of the city, both men and women, apparently have reached the conclusion that whisky will repel the influenza bacillus. Physicians differ concerning its value as a remedy in this instance.

We have sold more than three times the amount of whisky since the epidemic began than we have sold in a similar period previously, said Daniel T. Leo of Leo Brothers, No. 309 South Warren Street. It goes chiefly in pints and quarts and the buyers tell us that they want it to ward off influenza. They take it with yeast cakes, with soda, with quinine and with a dozen other things, and some take it straight.

Some of our customers say physicians have advised the use of whisky and others say their friends have used it with good results. Not all of them are habitual users of liquor. In fact, I think a great many people who never bought a glass of whisky over the bar in their lives or took it at any time for beverage purposes, are taking it now.

At Higgins, Importer, Inc. one of the largest of the wholesale places, Charles E. Fenton, manager, made substantially the same report.

We are not only selling a greater bulk of whisky, but we are making many more sales, he said. Hundreds of people who never bought anything here before have obtained liquor and are using it as a preventative of influenza. In many cases they are acting on the advice of physicians, I believe the increase since the epidemic began has been at least 200 per cent.

Jay D. Page & Co., the Fayette Supply company and the Salina Supply company made similar reports and inquiry at several of the best-patronized bars elicited the same information. Whisky is being sold in tremendous quantities to people who believe that it protects them from infection.

Read more

1918 pandemic: Amid tales of woe, story of a woman who wanted a child so bad she stole one may be the saddest

1918 pandemic: Expert advice at the time -- drink plenty of water and dont eat like wild animals

1918 pandemic: Order to avoid crowds worked until a big plane flew over and thousands gathered to watch

1918: Syracuse bans all public gatherings for 17 days to halt spread of influenza

This feature is a part of CNY Nostalgia, a section on syracuse.com. Send your ideas and curiosities to Johnathan Croyle at jcroyle@syracuse.com or call 315-427-3958.

Thanks for visiting Syracuse.com. Quality local journalism has never been more important, and your subscription matters. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
A FORMER Usit chief executive has said he is surprised at the timing of the firm's collapse last week, despite the coronavirus onslaught.

Aidan Coghlan, who is now managing director of World Travel Centre, said his company has also offered to assist provisional liquidator Kieran Wallace in assisting with the outstanding Usit bookings.

There are about 3,000 bookings made through Usit where customers had yet to travel, with a significant number of those probably being students poised to make their way this summer to the United States on J1 working visas.

Mr Coghlan said it is unlikely the Usit brand itself will carry significant interest for potential buyers, while he does not believe the Usit shop leases in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway will be of interest either.

He said Usit probably lacks the resonance the brand once had with young travellers. Usit employed 76 people.

The Kinlay Group said last week that it had applied to have a provisional liquidator appointed to both Usit and The English Studio language schools in Dublin and London.

The Kinlay Group is owned by a group of businessmen including Neil O'Leary, David Andrews and Michael Tunney. They bought the business out of examinership in 2002 - the year after the 9/11 terror attacks.

Kinlay said Mr Wallace and Andrew O'Leary are being appointed liquidators of Usit and the language schools, and that it is hoped they will secure the "best outcome" for creditors.

The company said that as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, "and having explored all other possible alternatives", it was left with no option but to appoint the liquidators to the two businesses.

Mr Coghlan left his role at Usit in 2010.

Speaking to the Irish Independent, he said that most travel agencies have the biggest cash balances of their year around March and April, as they usually obtain outstanding payments for upcoming holidays around this time.

He said that most people who had paid for travel with Usit will probably get their money back.

But the Commission for Aviation Regulation, which administers a bonding scheme to reimburse consumers when a travel agent collapses, will now have to use funds from that bond to repay customers.

"I'm surprised despite the Covid-19 crisis that Usit went under at a time of year when cash balances of travel companies are normally quite buoyant," said Mr Coghlan.

He said World Travel Centre, which employs about 200 people between Dublin and Belfast, is privately owned and has no debt.

He added that the company has cash reserves it hopes will be sufficient to help it ride out the coronavirus hit to the economy.
Singapore has reported its fourth death due to the novel coronavirus, the Health Ministry said on Thursday, a day after 74 new COVID-19 infections, including seven Indians, were confirmed in the country.

The ministry said that a 68-year-old male Indonesian national, who was a Singapore Work Pass holder, passed away from complications due to COVID-19 infection on April 2.

The patient was admitted to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) on March 22 and was confirmed to have COVID-19 infection on the same day. He had been in Indonesia from January 20 to March 16 and was in the intensive care unit (ICU) since March 26.

The patient, with a history of diabetes and hypertension, developed serious complications and eventually succumbed to the infection after seven days in the ICU, said the ministry.

Seven Indian nationals were among 74 new coronavirus cases reported in Singapore on Wednesday, the highest daily increase in COVID-19 positive patients in the country. The total number of infections is 1,000.

Twenty of the new cases are imported, with a travel history to Australia, Europe, South America, Africa, ASEAN and other parts of Asia, said the Ministry.

Twenty-four COVID-19 patients are in critical condition in the intensive care unit. Most of the rest of the 457 confirmed cases, still in hospital, are stable or improving, the ministry said.

A total of 245 cases have fully recovered and been discharged from hospitals or relocated to community isolation services.

According to Johns Hopkins University data, a total of 932,605 COVID-19 cases have been reported across more than 175 countries and territories with 16,809 deaths reported so far.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Donald Trump arrives for a White House briefing during the coronavirus pandemic as US Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Karl Schultz looks on: Getty Images

Donald Trump and his top military commanders announced a new operation to combat "Mexican drug cartels" and other Central and South American narcotics organisations  saying he fears "losing ground" to such groups.

"We will defend our country regardless of the cost," Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said during a White House briefing. "You will not get past jump street.

"We're at war with COVID-19, we're at war with terrorists and we're at war with the drug cartels," the president said. "You will not penetrate this country."

He and Defence Secretary Mark Esper walked through a number of troops movements and deployments to support a new operation.

But his timeline did not align neatly with the White House's and Mr Trump's on calling the Covid-19 outbreak a major threat.

Mr Esper said he began to look at the Pentagon's "inventory" for conducting a Central and South American operation "months ago."

But Mr Trump at that time was saying the deadly virus is "like the flu" and would quickly be over inside the United States.
WomenShelter of Long Beach will have new leader in new year
Pitching for efforts on a war footing to identify and isolate COVID-19 hotspots, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hinted at a "staggered" exit from the ongoing lockdown after the 21-day period ends on April 14 while the nationwide tally of confirmed cases of the deadly virus infection crossed 2,300 with at least 73 deaths.

With a huge congregation of Tablighi Jamaat in the national capital's Nizamuddin area earlier this month emerging as the biggest hotspot of the coronovirus outbreak, authorities said nearly 9,000 people -- members of the Jamaat and their primary contacts -- have been identified and quarantined across the country. This includes, 1,306 foreigners who are associated with the Jamaat.

The figures announced by various states, including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi, showed more than 400 positive cases getting detected on Thursday itself -- taking the total to 2,360. At least 14 more deaths were reported too during the day.

A majority of the new cases are linked to the congregation, officials said.

Earlier in the day, the Union Home Ministry had said the consolidated nationwide tally of confirmed cases of infection stood at 1,965. It said 328 new cases of the novel coronavirus and 12 new deaths have been reported since Wednesday.

In the total tally, about 400 COVID-19 positive cases have been found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster, said the Union Health Ministry, which asserted there was no evidence to widespread community transmission and 20 existing and 22 potential hotspots have been identified across the country.

A Home Ministry official said while 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat members and their primary contacts have been quarantined till now across the country due to "massive efforts" to check the outbreak, the Centre has written to all states and union territories that "the lockdown measures should be implemented in letter and spirit".

Prime Minister Modi, who will share a video message with people on Friday morning, in the meantime interacted with chief ministers through a video conference and told them to focus on COVID-19 containment measures -- testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine -- and said it was imperative to work on a war footing, identify hotspots, encircle them and ensure that the infection does not spread out.

According to an official statement, Modi also pitched for formulating a common exit strategy to ensure "staggered re-emergence of the population" once the 21-day nationwide lockdown ends on April 14.

Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said the prime minister has urged states to manage the coronavirus crisis at the district level.

In the meantime, sporadic attacks on doctors, social workers and police personnel also came to the fore raising concerns over their safety and prompting warnings by authorities.

Seven persons were arrested for the alleged attack on health workers in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city, who had gone there to quarantine relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient but were attacked with stones by an unruly mob leaving two women doctors injured. A video of the attack went viral on social media.

Authorities also continued to take action against those violating the lockdown, which entered its ninth day on Thursday.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to all chief secretaries of the states and union territories to action against those violating the lockdown or making false claims under the Indian Penal Code and the Disaster Management Act.

Bhalla said those violating these laws can be punished with jail term of up to two years and fine.

However, hopes of the lockdown getting removed, at least partially, after its 21-day period rose further after Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said airlines are free to allow ticket booking for flights after April 14. He also said resumption of international flights will be considered on a case-by-case basis, depending on which countries they are coming from, after the 21-day lockdown ends.

Separately, Air India also said it has got approvals from Indian and Chinese authorities to operate cargo flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong to get medical supplies.

At the same time, several states including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala reported significant rise in the number of positive cases.

In Maharashtra, at least 81 more tested positive during the day, taking its tally to 416, while two more patients succumbed to the infection increasing the toll to 19.

The death of a COVID-19 patient from Mumbai's Dharavi, one of the biggest slums in Asia, sparked fear of its spread in the highly congested area. The Union Health Ministry said contact tracing and testing as per protocol is being conducted in the area. Several small-scale industries and workshops of leather goods, pottery and textiles operate from the slum colony spread over 613 acres.

Officials in the state also said around 1,400 persons from Maharashtra attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi and 1,300 of them have been traced. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said no social events including religious congregations would be allowed in the state.

The state was also allowed by the Centre to roll out rapid COVID-19 testing on mass scale.

In Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said there are 208 COVID-19 patients in the national capital, of which 108 were evacuated from the Nizamuddin Markaz (centre) of the Tablighi Jamaat.

He said two people who had attended the congregation died due to COVID-19 on Thursday and cautioned that the number of positive cases may shoot up in the national capital in coming days.

The Health Ministry said domestic indigenous manufacturing of N-95 masks has been stepped up, while orders have been placed for over 1.5 crore personal protective equipment (PPEs) and supply has begun too.

The main opposition party Congress, however, demanded that the government should immediately appoint an economic task force to suggest short and medium term plans to protect and revive economy.

It also demanded a financial assistance plan to reassure those affected due to lockdown.

Among those who tested positive on Thursday, there were some doctors and at least one airline crew member.

Globally, more than 9,40,000 people have tested positive since the deadly virus outbreak in China in December 2019, while more than 47,000 have lost their lives.

World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said there had been a "near exponential growth" in new cases over the past five weeks and a doubling of deaths in the past week alone.

"In the next few days we will reach one million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths," he said, while asking Africa and Latin America to be ready for a wider impact.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ResMed CEO Mick Farrell said Wednesday that his company has been ramping up production of ventilators for the last 90 days, trying to meet surging global demand as countries battle the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ventilators most in-demand for COVID-19 treatment push air and oxygen into and out of a person's lungs through tubes inserted through their mouth and trachea. They can help patients survive and recover from respiratory failure caused by the virus.

To help address a shortfall amid the global emergency, ResMed is seeking production help with some of the 500 components which go into its more sophisticated ventilators. The company is fielding offers for assistance from some of the world's largest automotive, aerospace and defense companies, including Tesla, Farrell said on CNBC's "Mad Money".

ResMed made tens of thousands of its high-end ventilators in 2019, and is aiming to double or triple that in the next year, and to get those ventilators to hospitals in Singapore, Italy and the U.S. The CEO said his company is in talks with FEMA to expedite delivery of the ventilators to U.S. hospitals.

"Mad Money" host Jim Cramer asked Farrell, "Have you been in contact with the legendary Elon Musk?"

Farrell said, "We've had offers from Tesla, from many other automotive manufacturers, from some of the biggest aerospace companies in the world and defense companies that can help with o-rings, screens, and screws." He noted that ResMed could use Tesla's help with lithium ion batteries, but didn't say if the companies had discussed plans to collaborate on those.

He also praised the Tesla and SpaceX CEO for buying and distributing lower-end ResMed BiPAP machines, which the company markets as "non-invasive ventilators," to hospitals in New York that wanted them:

"I think it's great what Elon did," Farrell said.

"He went up and bought what I would call bi-level, non-invasive ventilators from a platform of ours from 5 years ago, from Asia, and brought 1,000 of them over to New York...If there's product out there and you can move that for us, that's fantastic."

Musk recently said to his nearly 33 million Twitter followers that he and Tesla have procured "1,255 FDA-approved ResMed, Philips & Medtronic ventilators," from an un-named source in China, which he said he planned to donate.

This week, he added:

"We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device & shipping cost are free. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse."

MUSK TWEET 3

Hospitals seeking ventilators for COVID-19 patients are typically looking for their higher-end "invasive ventilators," not CPAP or Bi-PAP machines like Tesla purchased.

That's because, as NPR recently reported: "Ventilators require a breathing tube and operate as closed systems with a filter that traps any pathogens. Face masks generally used on CPAPs or BiPAPs allow air to escape, pumping the virus into the surroundings and potentially infecting other patients, caregivers or anyone nearby."

In early March, Musk wrote on Twitter that the "panic" over the novel coronavirus was "dumb."

MUSK TWEET

He also compared COVID-19 to the common cold, and incorrectly stated that children are "essentially immune" to the virus, confusing asymptomatic children with those who have developed antibodies to fight the virus.

MUSK TWEET 1

Still, Cramer said, "Anybody who gives anything is OK with me!"
New York City surgeon Dr. Craig Spencer discusses his concerns about COVID-19 outbreak on "The View," April 2, 2020. - (ABC)(NEW YORK) -- A surgeon who was the first person in New York City to be diagnosed with the Ebola virus in 2014 rejected President Donald Trump's claim that masks and other protective equipment intended for use in New York hospitals to fight the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, might have been stolen.



Dr. Craig Spencer, the director of global health and emergency medicine at Columbia University Medical Center is on the frontline of the COVID-19 fight in New York City, which has been considered the epicenter of the pandemic in the United States.



During a briefing on Monday morning, Trump responded to an account by a mask company executive who said the demand for masks had skyrocketed at one unnamed New York City hospital from between 10,000 and 20,000 masks a week to between 200,000 to 300,000 a week. Trump insinuated that people might be taking masks from the hospital "out the back door."



"Where are the masks going? Are they going out the back door? How do you go from 10,000 to 300,000? And we have that in a lot of different places," Trump said without mentioning any specific examples of hospitals reporting lost masks or ordering large amounts of them.



State officials across the U.S. have criticized the federal government for not providing enough supplies. With shortages, nurses and doctors have resorted to reusing protective equipment, accepting donations, buying their own personal protective equipment (PPE) and other workarounds to keep themselves safe.



The New York Greater Hospital Association and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo have since pushed back on Trump's claims.



Spencer responded to the president's remarks on The View Thursday.



"I don't see anyone running off with a ventilator or with masks," Spencer said. "I see everyone running into the hospital to help out."



"The only thing that I've seen is all of my colleagues, not only at my hospital but all around the city, just stepping up, working extra shifts, doing whatever they can to provide the best patient care," Spencer continued. "What I'm seeing is people show up and use that personal protective equipment to keep them safe and do everything they can so that they can stay at the frontlines."



Several states have sounded the alarm over a lack of ventilators for hospitalized COVID-19 patients, including a plea from Cuomo for 30,000 machines.



Spencer said "we all have concerns" about the number of ventilators and masks available.



"Health care workers are much more susceptible to this virus," Spencer said. "We're doing everything we can to be there and be present every day to stay safe and provide that high-quality care."



Spencer said the country's lack of preparedness for a pandemic "is really frustrating." Although planning for a pandemic is "expensive," he claimed it would have cost less than the $2 trillion stimulus package Trump signed into law Friday.



"I'm really concerned. Many of us, many of my colleagues, myself included, have written articles in the past couple of years worried about what's going to happen when we see a pandemic here," Spencer said. "Unfortunately, we're seeing that impact."



When it comes to COVID-19 testing, Spencer said that the fact that so many people are going untested is "a huge issue" and that it can "have an impact in our ability to know how prevalent the disease is; to know how it's spreading."



"It really did leave us behind the curve," he said.



Spencer's "concern right now" with COVID-19 is that the U.S. "didn't take it seriously early enough."



"We were warned by China and we didn't react. We were warned by Italy and we didn't really prepare," Spencer said. "People aren't taking it serious, even as it starts to spread across the rest of the country."



"If there's one message that I can share, it's that this is really real and it can take anyone down," Spencer said. "Young or old, no matter where you are, whether you're a Democrat or a Republican, it doesn't care. The only bipartisan thing right now in the country, it seems like, is our susceptibility to getting infected with coronavirus."



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Thursday to claim that Russia and Saudi Arabia agreed to a compromise to end the ongoing oil price war after a discussion between President Vladimir Putin and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Theres just one problem  Russia is denying both the agreement and the fact that a call between Putin and the crown prince even took place.

Trump tweeted that he spoke to his "friend"  Prince Mohammed  and that he expects they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry!

Putins spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, quickly denied that any conversation with the crown prince took place and noted that there arent any talks planned so far. The Saudi Embassy in Washington did not respond to Al-Monitors request for comment.

Why it matters: Trump has come under significant pressure from Republican senators in oil-rich states that have been severely impacted by the Russian-Saudi price war, resulting in significant layoffs exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., has assembled a coalition of previously pro-Saudi Republicans to pressure Riyadh by threatening to end US military support for the kingdom.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe, R-Okla., and other Iran hawks have vowed to stop opposing anti-Saudi legislation on Capitol Hill targeting the kingdom over the Yemen war and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Inhofe has also urged the Trump administration to place tariffs on Russian and Saudi oil for flooding the energy market.

The presidents leadership here preserves our additional tools, including 232 [tariff] investigations, in the event that Saudi Arabia and Russia dont adhere to the agreement, Inhofe said in a statement.

Whats next: Inhofe also noted that he spoke with the Saudi ambassador to the United States today, Princess Reema bint Bandar. According to Inhofe, Princess Reema affirmed that Saudi Arabia has called for an OPEC meeting to negotiate a resolution to global oil production and stabilize the global oil market.

Know more: Its hard to understate how much trouble the price war could spell for the US-Saudi security partnership. Check out Congressional Correspondent Bryant Harris in-depth story to understand why losing the support of these key senators could put Saudi Arabia in hot water.
A storm sitting off of Cape Cod will continue to slowly push west, bringing more clouds in to end the work week. Some showers will fall too, with the best opportunity east of the Hudson River, into the first half of Friday. From there, we'll be in and out of clouds through the weekend with temperatures gradually climbing each day, topping out in the low 60s by Tuesday. Another storm looks to show up thereafter, cooling us off for the second half of next week.

TODAY

There will be more clouds than clear skies this morning, with clouds filling in as we head toward lunchtime. Temperatures are in the 30s-to-40-degrees range. Skies will stay dry through then with a few showers advancing west this afternoon into the Berkshire Mountains in Massachusetts and Green Mountains in Vermont. Showers will continue to push into New York as we get into this evening, although none too heavy. The combination of the clouds and showers will keep our temperatures from rising too much from this morning's lows as we'll stay in the 40s-to-50-degrees range.

TONIGHT INTO FRIDAY

Clouds and showers will hang out tonight into Friday morning. Temperatures will settle in the 30s and low 40s overnight and rise about 10 degrees for tomorrow's highs. The showers will dry up through the day but clouds will hold on into the nighttime hours.

THIS WEEKEND

Clouds Saturday morning will begin to break up early, and sunshine will break out and hang out through the afternoon. Temperatures will respond nicely with highs in the 40s to the middle 50s. The warmer early April sun will make it feel better, too.

More clouds on Sunday with a spotty shower or two, but it'll stay pretty mild with similar temperatures to Saturday.

NEXT WEEK

A mix of clouds and sun for Monday with a few 60-degree readings popping up, a few low 60s on Tuesday with increasing clouds. Those clouds will bring a return to scattered showers on Wednesday with cooler temperatures to follow to close the week out. Pretty typical early April stuff.

On another note, here's your 4th CookingWeather video with a fun way to make your own fries and dipping Campfire Sauce. So easy and so good, I hope you can try it out.

Have a great day!

For more weather information from meteorologist Jason Gough, visit jasonsweather.com.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:01:13|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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KABUL, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The spokesman of Afghan Public Health Ministry on Thursday said that the ministry registered six new COVID-19 infections, including one imported case from neighboring Iran.

"Six patients were diagnosed with COVID-19 infection, five cases were detected in national capital Kabul and one case was registered in central Daykundi province," spokesman Wahidullah Mayar said in a statement.

The latest cases have brought the total number of the novel coronavirus cases to 245 in the country.

Among them, five patients have died and 10 were discharged from hospitals since the outbreak of the infectious disease in mid February.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 22:19:37|Editor: huaxia

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BANGKOK, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The World Bank on Thursday said in a press conference that it expects the Thai economy to contract 3 to 5 percent this year as a result of the COVID-19 impact.

"The COVID-19 crisis had affected Thailand's main economic engine, exports and tourism, that could cause the economy to shrink by 3 to 5 percent," said Birgit Hansl, the World Bank Country Manager for Thailand, on Thursday.

Developing countries in East Asia and the Pacific that were recovering from trade tensions now faced with the pressure from the crisis could lead to a 0.5 percent contraction of Southeast Asian economies, Birgit said.

COVID-19 pandemic would potentially lead to an economic shock, undermining the attempts to eradicate poverty in the region, the World Bank press release said.

The World Bank estimated 11 million more people would be affected by the slagging economy and the impacts from COVID-19 outbreak.

Earlier last week, the Bank of Thailand (BOT) forecast the economy to shrink by 5.3 percent this year, the first contraction since the 2008 global financial crisis.

However, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the BOT predicted 2.8 percent economic growth for 2020.

The World Bank recommended an urgent investment on long-term public health service in Thailand.
It was only a matter of time, really. With demand decimated by the coronavirus and Saudi Arabia on the oil warpath, the imbalance between oil supply and demand deepened dramatically, raising the question of what happens when the world's oil tanks and tankers fill up.

The answer? Nothing good.

Earlier this month, oil data analytics firm OilX warned that oil in storage around the world could reach 1 billion barrels before long. This week, Reuters quoted shipping industry sources as saying that as much as 80 million barrels of oil are hanging out in floating storage. OilX has calculated that this oil in floating storage could be even more, at some 100 million barrels.

And the number is only going to grow.

Earlier this week, Bloomberg quoted three sources from the Energy Department as saying the department was discussing whether to start renting out federal storage space to local oil producers as their tanks were filling up and there were no quick buyers for the oil they pump.

Earlier this month, Forbes' Gaurav Sharma reported that shipping rates for Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) had soared by an insane rate of 678 percent in just one month--to $175,000 a day--to ship crude from the Middle East to Asia. A rate increase this large suggests a massive increase in demand for VLCCs. What's more, this demand for VLCCs does not coincide with a proportional increase in demand for crude. Traders are hoarding oil.

Related: Russia: Oil Producing Countries Not Discussing Any New Deal

Reuters' Jonathan Saul notes in his report on storage that the last time there was so much oil in floating storage was in 2009, after the Great Recession. At the time, oil in floating storage reached 100 million barrels. This time it's anyone's guess how much oil traders and others would accumulate in storage before the demand situation improves. If forecasts coming in from investment banks and the IEA are any indication, it will be a while before all those barrels are sold.

Goldman Sachs, for one, told CNBC that some grades are already trading below zero because of the devastation the Covid-19 pandemic has inflicted on oil demand.

"Indeed, given the cost of shutting down a well, a producer would be willing to pay someone to dispose of a barrel, implying negative pricing in landlocked areas," the bank said.

"With demand collapsing but supply rising after OPEC and non-affiliated Russia failed to reach a production cut agreement in early March, global inventories could reach their maximum capacity within weeks," analysts from Eurasia Group told CNBC, adding "Already, ports and refiners are turning away oil tankers. This will put even more downward pressure on prices and pose an existential threat to many companies."

Related: Why A 15 Million Barrel Per Day Cut Will Never Happen



The group of doomsayers is large and growing. There is virtually no optimistic scenario about oil demand right now, just a couple of months after the IEA and the EIA predicted continued growth for U.S. shale output to over 13 million bpd, and investment banks forecast stable oil prices. But two months ago, the coronavirus outbreak had not yet become a pandemic. The situation is, according to many, unprecedented, which means the industry and all other stakeholders are navigating a terra incognita.

Global oil storage capacity has an upper usability limit of 1.2 billion barrels, according to IHS Markit data cited by Forbes' Sharma. In order to avoid filling tanks and tankers to the brim, producers would have to cut production, and according to IHS Markit, the cut would need to be about 10 million bpd. It looks like this cut would need to come soon to avoid a collapse in benchmark prices into single-digit territory. Of course, a question arises here: who will agree to cut so much production?

The answer: whoever wants to survive the crisis without too much pain.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
On normal days, United States wastes about 63 million tons of food annually. According to food loss experts, in this trying times of coronavirus pandemic where panic buying and restaurant closures are common, such figure is expected to inflate. (Photo : Pexels)

On regular days, the United States wastes about 63 million tons of food annually. According to food loss experts, in this trying times of coronavirus pandemic where panic buying and restaurant closures are common, such a figure is expected to inflate. Initiatives and suggestions to cut food waste and address food insecurity in the U.S. need to be highlighted.

Food waste at home

Households are the most significant sources of food waste in America. These wastes are from produce wilts, milk spoils, and leftovers stored in the fridge until they are tossed. Recently, the anxious costumers who have been hoarding food may realize that there is no way that they can eat everything that they bought, Frank Franciosi, of the U.S. Composting Council said.

"People are cooking from home, and tonnages of food scraps from single-family homes and apartments are up", Robert Reed of Recology, the company that handles the city's discards said.

Waste at restaurants, where Americans spend most of their money, is plummeting as eateries are shut down. Soon, however, take-out only models may likely shift this situation.

Food waste at the farm

Even before COVID-19, many food products are wasted at the farms as growers leave as much as half their crops in the fields largely because their products do not pass quality standards that the market sets. As the lockdown continued and U.S. immigration policy has limited visas for workers entering the country, producers fear that more crops will go unharvested.

As markets for goods such as restaurants, schools, and other food-related establishments are shutdown, outlets for highly perishable products like leafy vegetables are drastically narrowed down, worsening the supply problem.

According to Ben Feldman of the Farmers Market Coalition, sales outlets for farm products were planned by farmers months ago when they planted. When markets are closed, and farmers could not find alternative sales outlets, the produce will rot in the field.

How to prevent food wastage in these challenging times

For foods stored at home, cooks must learn to store produce to lengthen its shelf life and have more time to use it. Freezing, for example, is an effective strategy to reduce waste. There is also a need to understand labels on food before tossing it to the bin, Dana Gunders, executive director of ReFED, which works with businesses, non-profits, and governments to reduce food waste and loss suggested.

Restaurants may shift to take-out meals. Other restaurants have reinvented themselves, albeit temporarily, as a grocery store, selling of herbs to oil and avocados. Other restaurants opted to give food away to workers or the public. Philadelphia's Oyster House, for example, gave away all its oysters before closing down.

Several restaurants like Herbfarm in Washington repurposed its kitchen boxed three-course meals for medical workers. In New York City, a non-profit organization, Rethink is providing $40,000 grants to 30 restaurants to pay staff, create take-out meals from other restaurant's surplus ingredients and offer it to the public for a $3 donation.

Food Insecurity and Bottlenecks

Before the outbreak, excess food from supermarkets and restaurants are channeled to food banks to feed people in most need while keeping food from rotting. However, since the outbreak, groceries donations are dropping as consumers are hoarding supplies. Meanwhile, food security is on the rise as people are losing their jobs.

An amount of $450 M was allocated in the recent stimulus package for the U.S. Department of Agriculture to purchase and help in the distribution of food to food banks, thus addressing the issue.

Another problem is the shortage of volunteers for food banks. The volunteers are mostly the elderly and are told to stay at home to avoid getting COVID-19, leaving a void on the workforce. Since gathering of people is discouraged, agencies are now delivering meals to shelters, maximizing the help of laid-off workers, taxi drivers, and DoorDash and National Guard soldiers to assemble food boxes, load trucks, and deliver aid.

Opportunity in times of crisis

Online apps are on the rise to address this. In Kansas City, FeedKC.us, an online app lets restaurants and catering companies list their offerings, then connects them to drivers to deliver the goods to food banks in need. It is also happening in the Bay Area, New York City, Chicago, Seattle, Boston, Los Angeles, Austin, and Dallas and Pittsburgh using various online apps.

As weeks of quarantine drag on, consumers are getting less conscious about the food; there is less hoarding as many become familiar with online platforms. Online consumers also order groceries two to three days in advance, allowing online retailers to order more precisely in advance, thereby reducing wastage.

However, this is in the future, but the thing is quickly changing, Gunder said.
MEDFORD, Ore -- Some people call the trucking industry the backbone of the country. Truck drivers are the ones who keep food in the grocery stores and supplies available to a wide range of businesses.

NewsWatch 12 wanted to figured out how a local trucking company is doing during the pandemic.

FV Martin Trucking Company in White City says not a lot has changed for their company. The biggest change is social distancing. Drivers are no longer meeting with people face-to-face when picking up or dropping off supplies.

The traffic manager for the company says the drivers are also not running into any issues with gas stations being closed or restaurants. In fact he is still looking to a fill positions during this pandemic.

"I would say the trucking industry right now just like everything has to go. If the trucking industry stops, commerce stops. So I know it's kind of the backbone of the country. We always talk about it here, but not everybody knows that. So nothing has changed on our end. We are stilling keeping the economy going, " said Stew Davis, traffic manager at FV Martin Trucking Company.

His drivers are still running the same routes. Some drive locally in the valley and others drive from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

If you are interested in working at FV Martin Trucking Co here's a link to their website.
They're the former Married At First Sight couple who relocated from Melbourne to Sydney earlier this year.

And on Thursday Martha Kalifatidis, 31, and her personal trainer boyfriend, Michael Brunelli, were spotted working up a sweat at Bondi Beach amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The lovebirds were joined by Martha's younger sister, Sophie, who was also on hand to endure the intense bodyweight circuit set by Michael, 28.

Keeping fit: On Thursday, Martha Kalifatidis and her personal trainer boyfriend, Michael Brunelli, were spotted working up a sweat at Bondi Beach amid the COVID-19 pandemic

Company: The lovebirds were joined by Martha's younger sister, Sophie, (pictured middle) who was also on hand to endure the intense bodyweight circuit set by Michael

Martha showed off her toned midriff in a blood orange coloured crop top and a pair of black leggings. She also wore matching black joggers.

She appeared to be camera-ready for the workout, wearing a light shade of foundation, black eyeliner and pink lipstick.

The brunette beauty had her hair tied back and pinned down with an oversized clip.

Style: Martha showed off her toned midriff in a blood orange coloured crop top and a pair of black leggings. She also wore matching black joggers

Pose! Martha appeared to be camera-ready for the workout, wearing a light shade of foundation, black eyeliner and pink lipstick

Meanwhile, Michael opted to go shirtless and shoe-less for the occasion, opting for knee-length pink board shorts and a navy blue cap.

The vigorous workout consisted of the girls doing sets of eight different exercises which included intervals of 30 seconds squat jumps, rows and push-ups.

Martha and Sophie then had to complete a set of bicep curls, a number of glute bridge stretches and tricep dips followed by a 60 second sprint.



Work it! The vigorous workout consisted of the girls doing sets of eight different exercises which included intervals of 30 seconds squat jumps, rows and push-ups

Hunky! Meanwhile, Michael opted to go shirtless and shoe-less for the occasion, opting for knee-length pink board shorts and a navy blue cap

In the footage, posted to his Instagram stories, Michael passed a police van in which he then pretends to start doing elastic band exercises.

'Making sure they know I'm outside ''exercising,'" he wrote underneath the video.

The MAFS stars aren't believed to be breaking any of the government's new regulations which state that groups of more than two people should not be gathered together in public, as Michael and Martha live in the same household.

Sweat! Martha and Sophie then had to complete a set of bicep curls, a number of glute bridge stretches, tricep dips followed by a 60-second sprint

Safe: The reality stars aren't believed to be breaking any of the government's new regulations which state that groups of more than two people should not be gathered together in public, as Michael and Martha live in the same household

Last month, Michael slammed sunseekers who ignored social distancing rules to enjoy a day at Bondi Beach, amid the coronavirus pandemic.

At the time, Michael said their actions were 'absolutely ridiculous'.

He later commended police for shutting down Bondi Beach, saying that it's 'much needed' and hopefully people will start taking the crisis 'seriously'.

Not impressed: Last month, Michael slammed sun-seekers who ignored social distancing rules to enjoy a day at Bondi Beach, amid the coronavirus pandemic

'Just a quick update of what social distancing looks like in Bondi,' a shirtless Michael said while standing on a balcony opposite Bondi Beach.

The primary school teacher-turned-personal trainer panned the camera across the beach, drawing attention to thousands taking position on the sand.

Michael later shared a screen grab of a news article that revealed police had shut down Bondi Beach in response to the blatant ignoring of social distancing rules, and captioned it simply with a clapping hands emoji.

Good call: At the time, Michael said their actions were 'absolutely ridiculous'. He later commended police for shutting down the beach, saying that it's 'much needed' and hopefully people will start taking the crisis 'seriously'

Thirsty? At one point in her intense workout, Martha was seen drinking from a water bottle as Michael looked on

'Obviously it's been on the news, after yesterday was absolutely ridiculous, so check this out,' he said while panning the camera across a now-empty Bondi Beach.

'Absolutely nobody there, hopefully people can start taking this seriously now,' Michael concluded his post.

In an unprecedented move, officials closed the beach on Saturday, after shocking pictures showed thousands of sunbathers ignoring health warnings.
By Laman Ismayilova

Baku Children's Theater has came up with a new initiative. Viewers can watch theater's performances without leaving home.

The plays House of the Hare", The Magic Flute, "Crooked Eared Hare", "Tea Ceremony" and other will be aired on the theater's social networks until May 5.

Founded in 2001, Baku Children's Theater has successfully presented many artistic performances.

The theater has organized national and international festivals, including the "Our Theatre" festival with the Union of Theatre Workers of Azerbaijan and the Turkic Peoples' Theatre in collaboration with Turkish performers.

It also successfully cooperates with relevant international organizations including International Committee of the Red Cross and the Office of the Council of Europe.

In November 2009, a theater studio for children with special needs in Baku Children's Theater was established.

The theater studio performed within the framework of the 4th National Festival of Contemporary Performances of Children's and Youth with Disabilities which was held in Azerbaijan at the 2nd International Youth Festival for People with Disabilities in Moscow, where it was awarded a diploma.

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Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Lam_Ismayilova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
THE Government has warned people to beware of anyone calling to their door offering fake Covid-19 tests.

Fresh warnings about people being scammed during the pandemic have been issued with Gardai warning the public to be extra vigilant during the crisis. In particular, people have been told to beware of anyone calling to their door offering Covid-19 services including testing for the disease.

Health Service Executive staff will not call to your house unless you have been in touch with them first, senior Department of the Taoiseach official Elizabeth Canavan said at the daily Covid-19 briefing.

It comes as Rural Affairs Minister Michael Ring launched an extraordinary attack on Facebook, saying the tech giant must do more to police misinformation posted by users of the platform. Mr Ring said people needed to stop posting untrue messages that are frightening vulnerable people.

He described Facebook as The Faceless Book because of anonymous users posting information on it and called on the tech giant to do more to remove incorrect messages about the virus.

Don't be frightening our vulnerable people in this country. This is a very difficult time for everybody and I want to say that message loud and clear: Please do not be putting messages on Facebook, he said.

And I say to Facebook, that you have a responsibility as well, to make sure that these messages should not be going up.

Mr Ring said that Facebook needed to carry out more monitoring and removal of messages. These are not ordinary times, these are different times now and people are depending on information and the information they get want it to be correct information, he said.

We saw this through the election paper and got away with it. What we need to know is that the information in relation to this virus is reliable information from the HSE, from the government, and from the media.

Mr Ring said he had heard of people getting calls about different schemes that do not exist. A Government leaflet is going to every household giving them advice and information on how to avoid being scammed.

Responding to Mr Ring's criticism, Facebook said it was committed to ensuring people can access accurate information on its platforms.

"In addition to removing harmful misinformation we are also connecting people to accurate information around coronavirus in a number of ways. Anyone in Ireland searching for coronavirus related content on Facebook, or clicking on a hashtag on Instagram, is shown a pop up directing them to the HSEs dedicated coronavirus landing page," a spokesperson said.

"On both Facebook and Instagram, we have been prompting people to visit the HSE's website for accurate information through Newsfeed pop-up posts. We have supported greater visibility of authoritative advice by granting the HSE free ad credits to promote their public health messaging on our platforms.

They said the company's WhatsApp platform labelled any messages that are forwarded, and added: "We encourage all users to check the facts before sharing messages that have been forwarded to them, and we encourage users to engage directly with trusted and official sources for important information.

Tanaiste Simon Coveney said there was a lot of misinformation on social media and other platforms and that people should trust conventional media.

They were speaking at the launch of The Community Call - a major local and national initiative to provide support to those in need in the coming weeks, including with practical matters like deliveries of groceries and medicines.

The cross-body initiative involves the HSE, local authorities, An Garda Siochana, the Red Cross, the Civil Defence, GAA, IFA, LocalLink, the Migrant Forum, church organisations and others who will coordinate through community forums in each local authority area.

Mr Coveney said: We know there's always scammers that are out looking to try to take advantage of people's vulnerabilities and that's why I think the gardai have spoken as they have, but that's also why we're putting this structure in place so that people know they can trust it.

Every local authority has established a community forum to coordinate and connect a wide-range of community supports what is an unprecedented mobilisation of State and voluntary resources, Mr Coveney said.

Ann Marie Farrelly, the chief executive of Fingal County Council, said there has been a complete integration between the elderly charity ALONEs telephone helpline and local authority helplines.

"We'll make sure help reaches the right place, she said.
Western Australia will 'effectively turn into its own country' and close its borders in a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Premier Mark McGowan said the state will completely isolate itself from midnight on Sunday, and urged locals currently inter-state to return home immediately.

'In effect, we will be turning Western Australia into an island within an island. Our own country,' Mr McGowan said at a press conference on Thursday.

'These are drastic steps, but also sensible and workable. It will give us the best chance of combatting the virus and minimising the spread throughout our community.

'That's why we've taken the unprecedented step of introducing regional boundaries and brought in tough measures to restrict movement and social interaction.'

'It wont be forever  it is a temporary closure... Some might think its over-the-top and unnecessary. I can assure them that its not.'

Premier Mark McGowan said the state government 'will be turning Western Australia into an island within an island'

Mr McGowan said WA's isolated position in relation to the rest of the country will help stop the spread of the virus

Mr McGowan urged West Australian residents who are currently in other states to fly back home now. Pictured: Australian passengers arrive at the Duxton Hotel in central Perth after flying into Perth International airport on Monday

Mr McGowan urged West Australian residents who are currently in other states to fly back home now.

'Were finalising the arrangements but I want the message to be absolutely clear to any West Australian who is thinking of coming back to WA: you need to come home to Western Australia and come home now,' he said.

'I cannot stress that enough. If you are an eastern stater and thinking about visiting Western Australia, forget about it.'

Exemptions for the hard border closure apply to essential services, including healthcare and emergency services workers, transport freight and logistics, people with specialist skills not available in WA, national or state security and governance, and courts and judicial services.

Exemptions for fly-in, fly-out workers and their families may also be granted.

The premier said further exemptions will also apply 'on specific compassionate grounds'.

But the 14-day isolation period would still need to be followed for people allowed to enter the state.

'We have worked closely with the resources industry to come to a solution that ensures this important industry can continue to operate,' Mr McGowan said.

Mr McGowan said restrictions requiring people to quarantine for 14 days after arriving in the state are working, but the government can't become complacent.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

'Those restrictions are working well. But it makes sense that we go further now and close the border. It won't be forever - it is a temporary closure to make sure we limit the spread of the virus in WA.

'The number of new cases in WA continues to be very encouraging, and shows that the measures we have taken so far are starting to have a positive impact. But we cannot afford to take our foot off the pedal.'

Western Australia recorded eight new cases of coronavirus on Thursday - taking the state's total to 400, including two deaths.

New testing criteria came into effect in WA on Thursday, opening eligiblity to anyone presenting with a fever and acute respiratory symptoms.
(Newser)  A Georgia man has pleaded guilty to plotting to attack the White House, which authorities say was just one of his targets. Hasher Jallal Taheb of Cumming had been under investigation for close to a year when he was arrested in an FBI sting operation in January 2019. He'd presented a sketch of the White House and described the weapons he'd use before agreeing to receive semi-automatic rifles, explosives, and an anti-tank weapon, authorities say, per NBC News. In March 2018, agents had received a tip that Taheb, 23, had been radicalized and planned to travel abroad. He later indicated he couldn't travel to Islamic State territory because he didn't have a passport but would carry out an attack on US soil "as part of what he claimed was his obligation to engage in jihad," says Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers.

story continues below

The White House and the Statue of Liberty were his initial targets, though he later included the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, and a synagogue, say authorities, who believe Taheb worked alone. "Taheb hatched a dangerous plan that would have resulted in unimaginable injury," US Attorney BJay Pak says, per the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Federal public defenders argued Tahebwho lived with his mother, earned $8.15 an hour at a car wash, and had never before fired a gunwas baited. "This fantastical plan could not be farther from reality," Vionnette Johnson said at a January 2019 bond hearing. "He does not have the ability to do any of this." Taheb pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to destroy a federal building on Wednesday with prosecutors recommending a sentence of 15 years. Sentencing is set for June 23. (Read more terror plots stories.)
Law enforcers detected 706 new cases of violation of the curfew for the last 24 hours, InterPressNews reports.

As InterPressNews was informed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 204 citizens were fined for violating the curfew across the country on 1st and 2nd of April.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia continue working for 24 hours in order to identify violators of the restrictions imposed within the framework of the curfew. In order to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the country, the police respond promptly to all violations. Law enforcers detected 706 new cases of violation of the curfew for the last 24 hours. 204 citizens were fined for violating the curfew across the country on 1st and 2nd of April. In addition, the police fined 75 citizens for violating the restrictions of gathering and the 2-meter social distance. One natural person and one legal entity were fined for violating the economic activity restrictions, the Ministry told InterPressNews.
WASHINGTONFormer Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday night called for moving the Democratic National Convention from mid-July to August, making him the most prominent member of his party to say the convention must be rescheduled because of the coronavirus outbreak.

I doubt whether the Democratic convention is going to be able to be held in mid-July, early July, Biden told Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show. I think its going to have to move into August.

Fallon had not asked Biden about the conventions timing. The former vice president was responding to a question about how the virus would affect the election.

Katie Peters, a spokeswoman for the Democratic National Convention Committee, said after Bidens remarks that she expected the committee to reveal more details about changes to convention plans by the end of this week.

It was the second time in two days that Biden had questioned the timing of the convention, which is planned for July 13-16 in Milwaukee. On Tuesday he said during an MSNBC interview that it was hard to envision the conventions taking place as planned.

Senior Democratic officials believe Biden would much prefer to hold a traditional convention attended by thousands as opposed to a virtual convention in which he receives the partys presidential nomination without a made-for-television event. President Donald Trump, who like Biden hopes to have his nomination be a televised coronation, has pushed Republicans to maintain plans for their convention, which is set to take place in August in Charlotte, North Carolina.

While Biden has a nearly insurmountable delegate lead over Sen. Bernie Sanders, his last remaining rival for the Democratic presidential nomination, Biden cannot take formal control over convention planning until he clinches the nomination or Sanders drops out of the race.

Democratic officials, including the partys chairman, Tom Perez, had hoped and predicted that the party would have a nominee by late April, but with so many states postponing their primaries because of public health concerns about the coronavirus, Biden cannot clinch the nomination until June at the earliest if Sanders remains in the race.

Changing the date of the Democratic convention would be a logistical feat, requiring a rebooking of thousands of hotel rooms along with the arena and conference centre space in Milwaukee  or another city if the event is moved.

Joe Solmonese, the chief executive of the Democratic National Convention, said in an interview Monday that he had six to eight weeks before any decisions must be made about moving the convention. Bidens announcement is likely to hasten such choices.

Providing an opportunity for our candidate to reaffirm our democratic values, unify the party and share his vision for a safer and stronger future for our country has never before felt more important, Solmonese said Wednesday before Biden called for moving the convention. As we continue to put plans in place for a successful Democratic National Convention this summer, we will balance protecting the health and well-being of convention attendees and our host city with our responsibility to deliver this historic and critical occasion.

If the convention were moved, it would also affect how much money the partys nominee would be able to spend over the summer. Candidates have separate pots of money they can tap into in a primary and a general election. The longer Biden is not the official nominee of the party, the less time he has to spend general election funds his campaign has raised.

Read more about:
FREDERICKSBURG, VA  Mary Washington Hospital has set up a field hospital in a parking garage next to the hospital's emergency department in anticipation of a surge in patients with the new coronavirus, or COVID-19. Although hospital officials hope the extra space won't be needed, they wanted to create the additional emergency room capacity in case the number of coronavirus patients reaches levels beyond its current capacity in the next couple months.

After watching the health care system get overrun in Italy and then seeing how quickly hospital emergency rooms in Washington State were pushed to their limits starting almost a month ago, officials with Mary Washington Healthcare, which operates both the Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg and the Stafford Hospital, decided to take a proactive approach to the coronavirus.



Mary Washington Healthcare created a pandemic preparedness committee about five weeks ago that included hospital officials, nurses and other staff leaders. The committee has been meeting regularly to develop ways to essentailly "reoperationalize how we do everything at this hospital in order to be prepared to take care of our COVID and coronavirus patients when they are here," Dr. Christopher Newman, chief operations officer and chief medical officer for Mary Washington Healthcare, said Wednesday night during a virtual town hall organized by the health care system.

"We wanted to be proactive and not reactive in our responses. And we began to invest in things that would prepare us should coronavirus and the pandemic truly ramp up and reach our community here in the Fredericksburg region," Newman said.

Mary Washington Hospital officials studied medical responses in New York City and other parts of the country that are facing surges in coronavirus cases. They saw that emergency departments and intensive care units were the first to become overwhelmed.



After reviewing the best ways to get prepared for a surge in patients, the hospital then set a goal to double the capacity of its emergency department and its intensive care unit.



Story continues

In Fredericksburg, the emergency department at Mary Washington Hospital can reach its daily capacity of about 250 patients on days when there is not a pandemic, Newman said. So the hospital decided it needed to figure out a way to create more space for an increase in patients.



The hospital looked at using tents on its campus where it could expand its emergency department. But officials ultimately decided a field hospital using its parking garage was the most secure structure to care for coronavirus patients.



Get the latest updates on the new coronavirus in Virginia as they happen. Sign up for free news alerts and a newsletter in your Patch town.



"We invested in that in our community before it was truly needed. And we hope that we never will need it here. But we wanted to be prepared," Newman said.

The makeshift emergency hospital in the parking garage is filled with old hospital recliners that have been turned into treatment chairs. Plant hangers stationed next to the chairs will be used as intravenous bag holders.

"We don't have a lot of capacity to see more," he said. "So we knew we needed to be able to expand that capacity in a creative way."

On Thursday morning, the Virginia Department of Health reported 1,706 positive cases of the coronavirus, up 222 cases from Wednesday. The health department also reported 41 deaths from the coronavirus, an increase of seven. The health department reported that 246 people are hospitalized with the coronavirus.

The field hospital in the Mary Washington Hospital parking garage is filled with old hospital recliners. (Mark Hand/Patch)

Virginia State Health Commissioner Norm Oliver said Wednesday that 145 of the people hospitalized in Virginia with the coronavirus are in intensive care units and 108 of them are on ventilator support.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced Wednesday that state officials have decided to add surge capacity at locations in Northern Virginia, Hampton Roads and the Richmond area. The state chose the former Exxon Mobil site on Gallows Road in Fairfax County across from Inova Fairfax Hospital for Northern Virginia and the Hampton Roads Convention Center, which is near the Sentara and Riverside Hospitals in southeast Virginia. Northam said he hopes to announce the Richmond location on Friday.

In cities already facing a surge in coronavirus patients, fields hospitals are being set up. In New York City, a field hospital in Central Park is being used to treat overflow patients from the nearby Mount Sinai hospitals. The California National Guard set up a temporary hospital in Indio, California that will house 125 beds, helping to ease the burden on the local hospital systems.

Military personnel set up a field hospital at CenturyLink Event Center on Tuesday in Seattle that will house 250 beds for non-coronavirus patients. Seattle hospitals want to save their facilities for patients with the coronavirus.

At Mary Washington Hospital, doctors and nurses from other departments have agreed to help care for patients in the emergency department and the intensive care unit. Furthermore, primary care physicians from outside the Mary Washington Healthcare system have gotten in touch with the hospital to let officials know they are willing to come in and help in case the hospital sees a surge in a patients, Newman said.

For its intensive care units at both Stafford Hospital and Mary Washington Hospital, Mary Washington Healthcare's goal has been to double the capacity.

"We have access internally to about 71 ventilators and we're looking at creative ways to create ICU rooms out of rooms that are traditionally used for other things, such as cardiac procedures, post anesthesia care units, operating rooms, etc. that would be able to support ventilators in caring for sicker patients," Newman said. "So again, we wanted to prepared up-front."

RELATED:



This article originally appeared on the Fredericksburg Patch
Till April 1, Delhi police assisted 40 women undergoing labour pain by transporting them safely to the hospital.

Twenty-one of them were shifted to the Safdurjung Hospital where as seven were shifted to Sanjay Gandhi Hospital by PCR vans patrolling the area.

Earlier, the Delhi police also provided an emergency helpline number to those requiring assistance.

"The Delhi Police have provided food to over 1.5 lakh people during coronavirus lockdown. If anyone has any emergency or facing any problem, they can call us on our Helpline Numbers 112 or 23469526," the Delhi Police Public Relations Officer (PRO) MS Randhawa told ANI.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Its been weeks since Sam Kaufman put her parents on lockdown.

Both of them are in their 60s and cancer survivors (her mother twice over) and so Kaufman, the emergency department director at St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, didnt want to take any chances.

I said 'Ill do all the grocery shopping for you.' She drops the bags off outside their door and keeps her distance. Her mom sanitizes things before she brings them inside.

Were not seeing each other up close, Kaufman said.

That was the plan, and Kaufman thinks that most families in Billings should have a plan, too, as the nation faces an unprecedented situation.

Kaufman spoke with The Gazette by phone Wednesday, just a day after the White House revealed projections showing that between 100,000 to 240,000 Americans could die from COVID-19.

To think with anything that it couldnt happen, and it wont happen  Its probably better to think when this happens, if this happens, Kaufman said. It can happen to anyone at any time.

Planning is a great part of Kaufmans job for St. Vincent Healthcare, and her decision making is informed by past experiences.

In her 20s she started working as a paramedic, police officer and flight nurse in Texas. She worked for about 10 years with the Texas Emergency Medical Task Force, what she described as an elite group of first responders, directed by FEMA to disaster zones.

She said she was deployed as a flight nurse to Louisiana to help about 36 hours after Hurricane Katrina hit. She was also sent to Joplin, Missouri, in 2011, after an EF-5 tornado killed 161 people.

Kaufman was working for American Medical Response in Dallas during the Ebola outbreak in 2014.

Referring to the Ebola outbreak, Kaufman said before the situation escalated, it felt a lot like Billings.

I thought to myself, Its not gonna happen here, she said. 'It cant happen here.' Next thing you know, the whole hospital is shut down within hours and theres an Ebola crisis under your feet.

Kaufman returned to Billings for family.

She said that family planning amid COVID-19 should cover two components: reducing exposure risk and what to do if someone in the family is infected or exposed.

"I think it's probably going to be different for every family," she said of planning.

In general, Kaufman said that families should try to keep as many people home as possible, and try to have one person go out.

Families should consider how they could safely quarantine a person in the residence, or whether they need to go somewhere else. How would families provide food, medication and other essentials for their quarantined loved one? What happens if the infected person has to be hospitalized or needs medical care?

"So that youre not trying to face that and make those decisions when its happening and when the crisis is happening, but you've planned for it," Kaufman said.

One of Kaufman's more visible contributions to the local fight against COVID-19 was the setup of the St. Vincent Healthcare drive-through testing clinic. The clinic has been functioning seven days a week since March 15, according to the hospital. It has seen up to 60 people a day pass through.

Kaufman, who said she thinks it was the first drive-through testing clinic to become operational in Montana, has offered advice to other communities inside and outside the state on setting up their own.

Like other local leaders in the emergency and medical community, Kaufman asked, emphatically, for one thing in particular out of the Billings community. Stay at home, she said.

Staying home gives people a chance not only to protect themselves, but to protect others. Kaufman pointed to the fact that someone can have no symptoms of COVID-19 and still be carrying the virus and thus potentially spread it to others. It can take 14 days for someone to show symptoms.

Social distancing and staying at home are both public health strategies aimed at slowing the spread of the virus so that health care providers aren't overwhelmed with a surge of patients.

Both Billings hospitals continue to remain open for people in need of medical care or emergency treatment, but when possible, people are asked to call ahead.

The hardest-hit state in the country so far is New York, where nearly 2,000 people had died by Wednesday morning. New York confirmed its first COVID-19 case March 1. In the state of New York, 391 people died from Wednesday to Tuesday.

The death toll in the United States passed 4,000 on Wednesday.

But its not just the largest cities in the country that are being overwhelmed by a surge of COVID-19 patients, many of them struggling for air, medical care and limited health care equipment and resources.

Dougherty County in Georgia has had 24 deaths and nearly 600 positive cases, many of them stemming from what the New York Times reported was a well-attended funeral in late February that one epidemiologist described as a super-spreading event.

Dougherty County has a population of about 90,000. Yellowstone County has a population of around 160,000 people. As of Wednesday morning, Yellowstone County had 32 positive tests for COVID-19. The county saw its first hospitalization last week. More than 200 people statewide have tested positive, and five people have died.

All five of those deaths happened over a period of five days, and three of them were residents of Toole County, which has an estimated population of just under 5,000.

With all the precautions, and the new way of life that people are adjusting to, Kaufman said it's important to be able to think outside the box and adjust.

Social distancing can be isolating, but there are ways to maintain personal connections. Video chatting programs and applications are a great way to make up for lost time face to face, Kaufman said. Email and other electronic messaging can also work.

But Kaufman said in her own family, they've also fallen back on something a little bit slower.

"My mother-in-law is writing letters to our daughter, and she gets a letter almost every day in the mail," Kaufman said. "She looks forward to going and checking the mailbox every day."

The public health measures instituted at the state and county level in Montana have contributed to financial hardship and social isolation for many. Still, Kaufman said that her past observations of how people behave in times of crisis are still holding up in Billings.

People want to help. Theyre dropping off food, flowers and thank-you cards. There have been efforts to sew masks, scrub caps and other protective gear for responders and medical professionals. She says the outpouring of support amid such difficult times is genuinely humbling.

I think it truly brings out the good in people, honestly, she said of crisis situations. I see the same thing here. It has been amazing. We have people reaching out to us every day."
The E hatchback may be retro-inspired from the outside but it packs a whole lot of tech too, which is why it was recently awarded Red Dot: Best of the Best 2020 in automotive design. It's not only because of the way it looks but also because of its packaging and innovations that helped it get that title.

When Honda pulled the covers off the E Concept back in 2017, it caught a lot of attention for its retro-chic design. What was more surprising is the fact that the look didn't change much when it transitioned from concept to production.

Despite the small dimensions of the EV hatchback, the awards body praised it for its lounge-like atmosphere, a tough feat to achieve for subcompact vehicles. Its simple, human-centric design is also one of the reasons why the Honda E won over the judges of the Red Dot. There's also its connected infotainment system and services which allow the driver and occupants to benefit from connectivity on the go, while stationary, or charging.

As for the car itself, there are large round headlights that are a nod to the first-generation Civic which are then encased in a solid black panel. It's the same story at the rear featuring the same design albeit with round taillights instead. Keeping the car looking clean and minimalist are cameras instead of bulky side mirrors.

That minimalist theme is followed through to the inside. The driver and occupants are greeted by a full-width digital dashboard lined with a blend of wood and leather. There are are two 12.3-inch LCD touchscreens that stretch across the dashboard. These act as the primary infotainment display, as well as a gauge cluster showing useful driving information together with navigation and music, along with the aforementioned connected concierge services.

The Honda E was released in Europe late last year with other markets following soon. However, it isn't likely that we'll see it in the country in the coming years due to the lack of infrastructure. Then again, with a new president on board, Honda Cars Philippines might just give us a little surprise in the future.
Syracuse, N.Y.  Dr. David Lehmann checks all his patients for coronavirus symptoms whenever he visits them under bridges, on the street or in homeless shelters.

The Syracuse doctor, who cares for the citys homeless, has tested 13 of his patients for the virus so far. One has tested positive and is quarantined at a local motel where she is recovering, he said.

Lehmann, an Upstate Medical University doctor, has been caring for the citys homeless for the past two years. In addition to visiting city shelters, Lehmann cares for people on the street he meets when he rides along with John Tumino, a Syracuse chef who delivers food to people living outdoors.

Lehmann saw 130 patients last week.

Screening his patients for coronavirus symptoms became Lehmanns top priority in February when he realized how dangerous the disease could be for the homeless.

My greatest fear is that the disease will make a foothold in one of our shelters and spread like wildfire there and burst onto the street, Lehmann said.

Dr. David Lehmann of Upstate Medical University

There are about 400 people living on the streets and in shelters in Onondaga County, according to the Housing and Homeless Coalition of Central New York. Since the outbreak began, shelters have stepped up efforts to clean their facilities and screen people for symptoms before they come in, said Megan Stuart, the coalitions director.

People living outdoors are at less risk of getting the virus than people in shelters, Lehmann said.

Testing homeless people for the virus comes with logistical challenges.

Anyone tested for coronavirus is supposed to remain at home under quarantine until getting test results.

But what if you dont have a home?

Homeless people tested by Lehmann and other medical providers are being put up in rooms at a local motel where they are quarantined while awaiting test results. The Onondaga County Department of Social Services pays for the rooms, Lehmann said. He declined to identify the motel.

The Department of Social Services has really stepped up, Lehmann said. I dont know what we would do without them. You cant quarantine people in shelters and the guys on the street dont have any shelter at all.

Onondaga County officials did not return phone calls and emails from syracuse.com.

It usually takes two to three days to get results. Lehman visits patients while they are holed up at the motel to check their conditions. He went there Sunday to take the temperature of a man who had been running a fever.

To protect himself, Lehmann has an N95 face mask, gloves and a gown.

He worries about getting the virus and bringing it home to his wife.

Lehmann said people who work in the shelters also worry about their safety. They are troopers putting themselves on the front line of a very high risk population. I am very appreciative of them, he said.

Lehmann said the pandemic has caused some of his patients to develop a sense of camaraderie.

He said some of the homeless men at the Catholic Charities shelter at 1074 S. Clinton St. recently held a meeting and decided they needed to make more of an effort to help shelter staff.

They agreed to make sure there is no nonsense, no drinking, no drug use, Lehmann said. They banded together and it was a good thing to see.

Lehmann spends about half his time caring for the homeless. The rest of the time he teaches at Upstate.

When asked why he provides medical care to the homeless, Lehmann cited chapter 25 of the gospel of Matthew in the New Testament which reads in part:

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me  .

James T. Mulder covers health news. Have a news tip? Contact him at (315) 470-2245 or jmulder@syracuse.com

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Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst cases double in 2 days, total hospitalized down; 277 total cases
Thousands of people are practicing social distancing worldwide and under stay-at-home orders to stop the spread of coronavirus, and in a story posted by CNN, thats not stopping neighbors from leaving messages of hope on the windows of their homes.

Not only are people displaying teddy bears in their front windows, people are decorating their windows with rainbows, colorful hearts and anything that resembles a sign of hope. And evidence of this phenomenon has been spreading all over social media as photos are being shared.

People are participating for different reasons. Some want their neighbors who have been deemed essential workers and for families taking short walks for fresh air to see some joy, both on their way out of their homes and on walks.

Natasha James is the founder of a Facebook group Hearts in the Window. She told CNN her original intent was to bring people together and make an online community giving families an activity to do. James said she wants people to be part of spreading the love, not the germs.

When PennLive contacted James through Facebook, she wanted to remind people to decorate not only their house windows, but to adorn their car windows, places of work and even their yards with hearts and other artwork to encourage hope. Then take photos and share on the Facebook page or tweet it with #heartsinthewindow.

Natasha James, founder of Hearts in the Window Facebook group, also encourages decorating yards, car windows and places of work.

Another Facebook group called A World of Hearts is sharing a similar sentiment. Its founder, Tree Hanafy, told CNN I think its definitely helped bring some happiness to people who may be isolated at home all by themselves. she said.

In Norfolk, Virginia, Kyle Siebels said he found out about the effort through his neighborhood Facebook page. When the Siebels family went for a walk Tuesday, Siebels said he saw 30 houses participating. Now he and his family are decorating their windows as well.

Some participants, such as Kelsey Goldstein in Atlanta told CNN It gives the parents something to do with their kids, Goldstein said. Its nice to get out so you can see other people from afar and it makes you feel less alone, she said.

Read more:

In Haroey, an island on the west coast of Norway, Siw Harnes Sherman told CNN she found the Facebook movement through a friend in Canada and was inspired to share something people in Norway were doing. Instead of hearts, they are displaying rainbows.

Elizabeth Reynolds in British Columbia, told CNN this initiative started out as a craft. Shes a single mother with a 2-year-old and high-risk parents. When I saw other people making hearts on the window, I wanted to not only spread some cheer for those in our neighborhood on walks, but for my own sake. Seeing the color shine through the window has lifted my own spirits."

Thanks for visiting PennLive. Quality local journalism has never been more important. We need your support. Not a subscriber yet? Please consider supporting our work.
Even as most manufacturers are still assessing the overall impact on their businesses, early projections suggest the market may grow at its lowest ever rate, in 2020.

The countrys robust smartphone market is heading for its worst-ever snag, caused by the virus outbreak.

Even as most manufacturers are still assessing the overall impact on their businesses, early projections suggest the market may grow at its lowest ever rate, in 2020.

According to IDC Indias estimates, smartphone sales are expected to remain flat.

Other industry analysts and market research firms project the growth rate to remain below 5 per cent - also lower than its earlier worst performance.

Smartphone sales in India have always maintained a growth rate in double digits.

In 2012, for example, the market grew 120 per cent, with the launch of 3G services in all major cities.

Despite a fall in growth rate over recent years and an overall slowdown, sales grew 10 per cent in 2019.

To date, the worst show was in 2016, when demonetisation kept its growth at 6 per cent.

In 2020, however, the lack of component supply has hit manufacturing plans of all major vendors since February.

The lockdown has added to woes, with the market having now come to a halt.

According to Navkendar Singh, research director at IDC, sales during the first half of 2020 will be severely hit.

Research agency CyberMedia (CMR) has revised its market guidance for 2020.

It said smartphone production is likely to tumble 38-40 per cent from January-June.

During this period, 46 per cent of overall smartphone sales usually take place.

We anticipate a significant drop of around 20 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in shipments in Q1CY20.

"There will be a full-blown impact in Q2, with a sharp decline of around 28 per cent YoY, said Prabhu Ram, head (industry intelligence group), CMR.

With consumer sentiment getting hurt by the bleak economic outlook, CMR estimates consumer spending to remain muted for most of the year.

Most leading handset manufacturers Business Standard spoke to said they were yet to estimate the final impact.

While some are anticipating recovery after July, others are still unable to redraw their plans.

Between March and June, nearly 35 per cent of all new launches take place.

This is the period when plans for the upcoming festive season are set. However, industry players said they are waiting for the lockdown to be over before they can assess any loss.

The pandemic will force manufacturers to reflect and realign their market strategies.

Supply chain disruptions will now push brands to seriously ramp-up their localisation strategies in India, said CMR.

Market analysts like IDC and CMR estimate some growth during the second half of the year.

If the situation begins to normalise from end-May, then we can expect a surge during the festive season - beginning September, said Singh.

Normally, 37-40 per cent of total sales take place during the festive season.

Photograph: Lucas Jackson/Reuters
A Former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode has blasted Spokesman to Nigerian Ruler, Garba Shehu for calling playwright and Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka a mere fiction writer, that no one should listen to

In a tweet on his Twitter handle, @realFFK, fani-kayode wrote:

When he supported you in 2015 you hailed & praised him. Now that he has criticised you publicly about your handling of the Covid 19 pandemic you call him a mere fiction writer that no-one should listen to. That is a Nobel Laureate: a man whose shoes you are not fit to lick.

When he supported you in 2015 you hailed & praised him. Now that he has criticised you publicly about your handling of the Covid 19 pandemic you call him a mere fiction writer that no-one should listen to. That is a Nobel Laureate: a man whose shoes you are not fit to lick.  Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) April 1, 2020

Recall that Soyinka, had questioned Buharis decision to lock down Lagos, Ogun and Abuja amid the coronavirus outbreak.

In a statement on Monday, Soyinka said Nigeria is not in a war, demanding answers on whether Buhari has such powers to declare the curfew.

In his nationwide broadcast on Sunday, the ruler announced restriction of movement in the two states and the nations capital to curb the spread of the virus.

But Soyinka asked federal lawmakers among others to intervene in the situation, saying: The worst development I can conceive is to have a situation where rational measures for the containment of the corona(virus) pandemic are rejected on account of their questionable genesis. This is a time for Unity of Purpose, not nitpicking dissensions.

The playwright added: So, before this becomes a habit, a question: does President Buhari have the powers to close down state borders? We want clear answers. We are not in a war emergency.

Appropriately focused on measures for the saving lives, and committed to making sacrifices for the preservation of our communities, we should nonetheless remain alert to any encroachment on constitutionally demarcated powers.

We need to exercise collective vigilance, and not compromise the future by submitting to interventions that are not backed by law and constitution.

A President who has been conspicuously AWOL, the Rip van Winkle of Nigerian history, is now alleged to have woken up after a prolonged siesta, and begun to issue orders.

What happens when the orders conflict with state measures, the product of a systematic containment strategy  `including even trial-and-error and hiccups  undertaken without let or leave of the centre?

Reacting, Shehu in a statement urged Nigerians to disregard Soyinkas reservations on the lockdown in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun states.

Shehu said Soyinkas qualifications are in English literature and not medicine or science, stating that he does not qualify to be judged as a professional on the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.
(Newser)  In December 2016, Anthony Montwheeler, a patient at Oregon State Hospital, went before a state review board and claimed he had faked insanity in 1996, after kidnapping his wife and son at gunpoint, in order to avoid prison. It worked: Rather than being incarcerated, he was sentenced to remain under state jurisdiction for 70 years. But the review board ultimately decided, two decades later, that there was no evidence Montwheeler was mentally ill. He was discharged, a free man. A month later, on January 9, 2017, he allegedly murdered his ex-wife, Annita Harmon, kidnapping her near her Idaho home, driving her over the border into Oregon, and slitting her throat and repeatedly stabbing her at a gas station. An employee had already noticed her signal for help and called police. As Montwheeler fled the scene, he allegedly hit another vehicle head-on, killing the driver.

story continues below

In an extensive piece for Rolling Stone, Rob Fischer looks not only at Montwheeler's historyhis mother was fatally shot by his father when he was 6, and in addition to the 1996 kidnapping, he had a history of criminal activity, including setting firesbut at the problems with the country's mental health care system and the insanity defense specifically. (One professor calls the system of determining insanity in the courts "squishy.") Idaho doesn't offer such a defense, and Fischer offers up the possibility that Montwheeler drove Harmon across the state line specifically because Oregon does. In fact, Oregon's system is particularly "robust" for offenders, offering subsidized housing (Montwheeler spent much of his 20 years under state jurisdiction living in the community, not a hospital), mental health treatment, and work placementservices that cost about $18,000 per month per person. Is it possible, Fischer wonders, that once Montwheeler was out, he wanted back in? It may never be clear, but read the full piece here for much more. His trial starts in July. (Read more Longform stories.)
by Nirmala Carvalho

About 170 families received food and other aid in the Diocese Vasai. After the government imposed a quarantine, people are out of work and money. Many are not entitled to food rations provided by the state. The risk of contagion is high.

Vasai (AsiaNews)  Yesterday, Goretti Xalxo, a social worker who helps Adivasi migrants, and a team from Pahunch, a programme set by the Redemptorist Fathers in the Diocese of Vasai, delivered food rations to families living in Vasai originally from Chotanagpur, a plateau area in the Indian State of Odisha (Orissa).

For 170 tribal families in the Diocese of Vasai (Maharashtra), the lack of food, not the pandemic, is a source of concern, said Goretti Xalxo. Seeing their tears was heart-wrenching and touching, she explained. Some of them didn't have enough food for the next day.

The governments decision to lock down the entire country in order to contain the coronavirus outbreak has left millions of people unemployed, mostly economic migrants who had left rural areas in search of better conditions in the cities.

Without work, many are trying to go home on foot, in some cases walking hundreds of kilometres, because regular transportation has been disrupted.

Due to the quarantine, tribal migrants from Chotanagpur are locked down in the eastern part of the Diocese of Vasai, north of Mumbai. They are poor, and now out of work. They are daily labourers, doing domestic work or taking menial jobs.

Over the past few days, we have provided aid in various parts of the diocese. So far, we have managed to help 162 families. We gave them rice, dhal, oil, sugar and lentils, Goretti Xalxo explained.

A tribal woman from Odisha, she is grateful to Archbishop Felix Machado of Vasai for the logistical support and for helping get through the red tape and obtain police permits.

For his part, Archbishop John Barwa of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar (Odisha) is very much concerned by the fate of tribal migrants from the Chotanagpur area.

"Without jobs, he said, they have nothing to feed themselves with. They dont have ration cards and so are not entitled to the food provided by the Public Distribution System (PDS).

Goretti Xalxo noted that these people live in slums. They don't have the means to protect themselves from the COVID-19, not even masks. What is more, they are not respecting the social distance required by the situation.

We try to make them understand that they must take precautions to avoid contracting the virus, but with few results. Food is all they think about.

According to some observers, given the countrys great poverty, huge population, and vast territory, up to 300 million people could be infected in India.
There are more than 500,000 Covid-19 cases in Europe as of Thursday morning, according to a study carried out by Agence France Presse newswire. While this virus strikes on the continent, the rule of law must be respected, according to a number of EU states.

Some 34,500 people have died in Europe, the hardest-hit continent, with Italy tallying 13,155 deaths, and Spain close behind with more than 10,000 people dead. As of Thursday, France has more than 4,000 dead, but the number is still expected to rise.

Nearly 48,000 have died worldwide of the deadly virus.

Both Spain and Italy have more than 100,000 cases of coronavirus, while Frances latest figures are about half, with 56,000 cases.

Possible violations of rule of law

A number of European countries came out together to warn against breaches of the rule of Law in the EU while countries are battling the Covid-19 pandemic.

"In this unprecedented situation, it is legitimate for the member states to adopt extraordinary measures to protect their citizens and overcome the crisis", according to a joint declaration signed by Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Latvia, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

"However, we are deeply concerned about the risk of violating the principles of the rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights resulting from the adoption of certain emergency measures," according to the statement.

The statement refers to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has given himself practically unlimited power while dealing with the pandemic. Hungarian parliament gave him the right to govern for an indefinite amount of time while the disease is still active.

The 14 countries specify that emergency measures should be proportionate and provisional and not restrict freedom of the press.

The statement did not refer to Hungary directly, but Orban has imposed a five-year prison sentence for anyone who publishes or broadcasts fake news about the virus or about what the government is doing about the situation.

The states gave the other 12 member states the opportunity to sign the document, excluding Hungary. Poland has also been accused by member states on a regular basis for its issues with rule of law.
Rabobanks net profit was down 10% at $129.7m for the year to December due to lower interest margins, higher expenses and impairment charges.

According to the CEO Todd Charteris the bank focussed on growing its agricultural lending portfolio by lending to farmers (inside the farm gate) $1.1 billion but within the banks risk appetite. Its loan book stood at year-end at $13.15 billion.

The results show a net interest drop of 4% to $348.6m while expenses increased by 16% to $147.6m. The CEO said that higher staff costs which increased by $8m contributed to the lower profit as the bank increased its frontline agribusiness team as well as in their compliance and regulatory teams during 2019. Impairment charges rose from $2.5 m to $23.1m due to bad loan provisions.

Losses from derivative trading dropped significantly from $34.6m in 2018 to $4m in 2019.

According to the CEO the bank is positioned to meet the higher capital requirements by the Reserve bank. Its capital ratio was at 13.14% at year-end and the bank reports that it is well positioned to meet the new capital requirements within the extended timeframe of the Reserve Bank.

The Banks total assets stood at $16.8 billion at balance sheet date. Deposit liabilities increased by $769 million to $5.47 billion and borrowings from related parties stood at $6.87 billion after increasing by $834 million.

This was paraphrased from an article by Tim Hunter co  editor of the NBR.

RNZLs capital ratio currently sits at 13.14% and we are well placed to transition to the new requirements within the extended timeframe specified by the Reserve Bank.

Total assets at balance date were $16.8b.

Deposit liabilities grew by $769m to $5.47b, while borrowings from related parties grew $834m to $6.87b.

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After years of rumors, months of hearings and legal negotiations with US regulators, and almost two years after the initial announcement, T-Mobile US officially announced its merger with Sprint. The $23 billion deal combines the #3 and $4 carriers in the US (in terms of subscribers) into The New T-Mobile.

Sprints spectrum and subscribers will be transitioned to T-Mobile and as part of a deal made with US regulators, Sprint will sell its prepaid assets including Boost Mobile, its 9.3 million subscribers, more than 7000 retail stores, and its 800Mhz band spectrum to Dish Network, creating a new #4 carrier in the US. Dish will maintain these subscribers on T-Mobiles networks as an MVNO under a seven-year lease while it develops and rolls out its own 5G network. Boost Mobile will be transitioned under the Dish Network brand.

Back in October, the FCC announced its official approval of the merger. Chairman of the FCC, Ajit Pai, supported the merger with hopes it would launch the US further ahead in the 5G race. The large territory and outdated network infrastructure (and refusal to use Huaweis 5G tech) are all factors in the country being some way behind the 5G pioneers.

Sprint is sitting on precious 2.5GHz mid-band spectrum. This spectrum is ideal for 5G, and T-Mobile plans to use it in addition to its low-band 5G (600Mhz) for nationwide rollout. Initially, it will offer eight times faster speeds compared to LTE and hopes to reach 15 times faster speeds over the next six years. T-Mobile also plans on using the mid-bands to cover Americans in rural areas.

T-Mobile will offer access to 5G without added rates and the carrier promises it wont change pricing for three years  we hope the company does not raise rates, as anti-merger arguments surrounded this very topic.

John Legeres contract was supposed to go until April 30, but along with the news of the merger, the company announced that Legere is stepping down as CEO  effective immediately  and the companys President and COO Mike Sievert is now the new CEO of The New T-Mobile. Legere will become one of T-Mobiles new board of directors.

Mike Sievert, CEO of The New T-Mobile

Legere stepped in as T-Mobiles CEO in 2012 in a time when carriers got rid of unlimited plans. Hes credited with shaking up the wireless industry with T-Mobiles Uncarrier movement that challenged its competitors marketing and pricing tactics.

Over the course of Legeres time as CEO, T-Mobile grew from 33.3 million subscribers at the end of the third quarter of 2012, to 86 million customers at the end of the fourth quarter of 2019, which include its Metro by T-Mobile (acquisition of Metro PCS and its transition to Metro by T-Mobile also happened under Legere) customers as well.

Source
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have telephoned two UK hospitals as they continue to support NHS workers during the coronavirus outbreak.

Prince William, 37, and Kate Middleton, 38, chatted to staff from University Hospital Monklands in Scotland and Queen's Hospital Burton in the Midlands during Wednesday afternoon.

The royal family has resorted to phone calls and video conferencing to conduct some of their royal duties as the country continues to observe the coronavirus lockdown.

It comes after experts revealed how the Duke and Duchess would 'lead' the royal family in their response to the crisis.

Prince William, 37, and Kate Middleton, 38, phoned staff at hospitals across the country amid the coronavirus crisis

Prince William and Kate are currently seeing out the public health crisis at Anmer Hall in Norfolk with their children.

The Court Circular, a daily list of the official engagements conducted by the Queen and her family, recorded their telephone calls to the hospitals as events yesterday.

It said: 'The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge this afternoon talked to staff at Queen's Hospital Burton, Burton on Trent, Staffordshire, via telephone.

'Their Royal Highnesses afterwards talked to staff at University Hospital Monklands, Airdrie, Lanarkshire, via telephone.'

Prince William and Kate phoned hospitals in Scotland and Staffordshire and chatted with staff as the NHS battles the coronavirus (pictured, Prince William working from home at Kensington Palace last month)

William and Kate's telephone calls came after the Prince of Wales delivered a message of hope to the nation in the midst of the health crisis, saying 'end it will' and praising the 'remarkable NHS' as its staff 'battle heroically to save lives'.

Prince Charles, 71, who earlier this week came out of self-isolation following his Covid-19 diagnosis, recorded a video message in support of the charity Age UK, which he represents as patron.

He said: 'As a nation, we are faced by a profoundly challenging situation, which we are only too aware threatens the livelihoods, businesses and welfare of millions of our fellow citizens.

'None of us can say when this will end but end it will. Until it does, let us all try and live with hope and, with faith in ourselves and each other, look forward to better times to come.'

Kate and Prince William's phonecalls were recorded in the Court Circular yesterday (pictured, Kate working from home last month)

Last week, a royal expert revealed how the Duke of Cambridge will 'step up into statesman role' during the coronavirus crisis and will lead the royal family's efforts to support the nation.

Prince William was the first member of the royal family to speak to the nation during the crisis in a video, and joined Kate to visit an NHS 111 centre earlier this month.

Speaking to Australian website 9Honey, Katie Nicholl said the move was 'significant', adding that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were the 'best placed' members of the royal family to be 'pillars of support' for the nation at the moment.

She revealed: 'We're seeing William step up in that statesman role. It strikes me as interesting that the first member of the royal family to address the nation has been William.'

It comes after Prince Charles delivered an address to the nation released on Instagram yesterday

The royal expert explained that left Kate and William 'best placed' to lead the family's efforts and support the nation.

Katie revealed: 'Obviously William and Kate aren't in the vulnerable sector, therefore they are perhaps the best placed or among the best placed of the royal family to be able to help at the moment.'

She also said Kate and William are now temporarily diverting their attention from their key work, and instead focus on supporting the nation as it tries to cope with the pandemic.

Meanwhile sources have also revealed how royal aides are 'thinking outside the box' to establish new ways of working for The Firm amid the coronavirus crisis, telling Vanity Fair the family were 'going digital' with their work.

Kensington Palace declined to comment.
A biology professor is urging Manitoba Health to tap into university resources to expand and speed up COVID-19 testing.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A biology professor is urging Manitoba Health to tap into university resources to expand and speed up COVID-19 testing.

Jeffrey Marcus, a biological sciences professor at the University of Manitoba, believes Manitoba could increase its testing capacity by letting the Cadham Provincial Laboratory (CPL) borrow PCR machines (also known as thermal cyclers) from post-secondary schools.

The machines conduct a part of the COVID-19 test.

"Theres one sitting on the bench in my laboratory at the University of Manitoba campus gathering dust right now  These devices could be easily re-purposed to do COVID-19 testing. They are programmable," said Marcus, who details his suggestion in an opinion column published Thursday by the Free Press.

He suggests the lab also seek help from professors, technicians and graduate students to ensure those machines run smoothly, a maintenance role he expects would reduce the workload of those certified to do the actual testing.

Marcus estimated there are about 30 or 40 PCR machines at U of Ms Fort Garry Campus and said each one could be used in up to 400 tests per day, if they work constantly and without error.

Tapping into that capacity could speed up the processing of tests and also ensure those who get tested wait less time for their results, said Marcus.

"Thats really important because there are COVID-19 infected individuals who are asymptomatic. Those folks continue to wander around, distributing the virus to other people who can then become seriously ill. If we can expand the testing capacity . (we can) really flatten that curve," he said.

Marcus said the lab did ask universities to compile an inventory list of more routine supplies they could provide to support testing, if needed, such as chemicals and plastic lab devices.

The professor said the University of Washington, the University of California-Berkeley, and the University of North Carolina have supported testing efforts in ways similar to what hes suggested.

In a prepared statement, Manitoba Health said the Cadham Lab has discussed options to enhance its testing capacity with university researchers but those focused mainly on supplies and research questions.

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The health department indicated it doesnt expect to require loans of larger equipment, like the PCR machines, in the near future.

"CPL and other Manitoba medical labs have enough equipment to address the needed demand," the statement said. "In addition, establishing another accredited and licensed medical laboratory is a process that usually takes many months."

Manitoba is currently limiting COVID-19 tests to certain high-risk groups. That includes people with symptoms who have travelled to affected regions or had close contact with someone confirmed to have COVID-19. It also includes health-care workers, those in remote communities and those who live or work in close group settings, if they also have symptoms and risk contracting or spreading the virus.

The Cadham Lab performed 1,130 tests on Tuesday and has completed 10,044 tests so far, according to a provincial press release.

Joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga
Albany, N.Y.  More than 2,300 people have now died from coronavirus in New York as total deaths have tripled in less than a week.

The statewide death toll is now 2,373, up from 1,941 the day before and from 157 just over a week ago. Its the first time single-day deaths have reached over 400.

The state has been setting new high points for single-day deaths all week. Deaths totaled 728 as of last Saturday.

The virus has now reached every county in New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday during a press briefing in Albany.

We said it was going to march across the state," Cuomo said. It is going to march across the country.

A total of 13,383 people, about 14 percent of all cases, are now hospitalized due to the virus. About 3.6 percent of all cases, or 3,396 people, are in intensive care units.

The percentages are consistent with recent days.

Net new hospitalizations Wednesday totaled 1,157, down from 1,297 Tuesday and 1,412 on Monday. Net daily ICU admissions were 374, up from 312 the day before.

The overall trend lines continue to climb, Cuomo said.

One potential bit of optimism could be found in the number of daily intubations, Cuomo said. The figures have started to flatten in recent days.

The number of patients discharged also continues to increase as more people recover from the virus.

The state now has 92,381 confirmed cases of coronavirus, an increase of 8,669 overnight.

New York continues to test large numbers of people for the virus, which naturally leads to more positive results. The state conducted another 18,000 tests yesterday and has tested over 238,000 people total, Cuomo said.

The peak of the virus is expected in the next seven to 30 days, depending on how effective social distancing measures are, Cuomo said.

The state has taken extraordinary steps to prepare for the worst of the virus and to try to slow its spread. Hospitals are being asked to cooperate statewide and officials have been ramping up bed counts and searching for more equipment.

Cuomo has closed schools and told workers at nonessential businesses to stay home. All New Yorkers should only go out for exercise or needed errands like grocery shopping and medical care.

One model used by the state projects 16,000 New Yorkers could die as a result of the virus.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

New York City hospitals begin transferring patients to Upstate NY (report)

Medical exams in a parking lot: Family doctors fight on coronaviruss frontlines and worry about the homefront

Syracuse hospital to furlough workers amid coronavirus surge

Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst cases double in 2 days, total hospitalized down; 277 total cases

Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-282-8598
The cast of iconic sitcom Frasier reunited on Skype on Wednesday evening while on lockdown in their homes, to raise money for out-of-work actors amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Kelsey Grammer, Jane Leeves, Peri Gilpin and David Hyde Pierce joined hosts of Stars In The House Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley for the new online series which is supporting The Actors Fund during the pandemic.

And it was an emotional reunion for the stars of the show - which ran for 11 seasons from 1993-2004 - as they reminisced about their time on the series, with Kelsey, 65, declaring that he 'fell in love with each and every one' of his co-stars during his time on the sitcom.

Reunited at last! The cast of iconic sitcom Frasier reunited on Skype on Wednesday evening while on lockdown in their homes, to raise money for out-of-work actors amid the COVID-19 crisis

He also spoke about Lisa Kudrow's short-lived time on the series, when she was originally cast in the role of Frasier Crane's producer Roz Doyle, before she left to star in Friends.

Asked about his fondest memories, Kelsey said: 'There was a moment when I fell in love with each of you, really fell in love.

'What's so remarkable is tjhat it just happened again and again and again in a quiet moment where I would sit and think: "Dear God they're wonderful!"

'I was just completely wrapped in this love with them which I still have to this day.'

Reunion: Kelsey Grammer, Jane Leeves, Peri Gilpin, Dan Butler and David Hyde Pierce joined hosts of Stars In The House. Frasier ran for 11 seasons from 1993-2004

Jane, 58, who played Daphne Crane, described the cast as 'just a big family', while David, 60, who played Daphne's husband Niles, heaped praise onto star of the show Kelsey.

'You were the star... yet you took so much pleasure in the rest of us and the guest stars. You never said, "the light is on me, find what light you can", like other stars might,' he said.

Kelsey spoke about how his character was originally a secondary part on Cheers, before he was granted his own spin-off.

'I thought that Frasier should die with Cheers!' he admitted, of his initial reservations about Frasier getting his own sitcom. 'But I listened to a very wise man named [the then-president of Paramount TV] John Pike.'

Would-be star: They also spoke about Lisa Kudrow's short-lived time on Frasier, when she was originally cast in the role of Frasier Crane's producer Roz Doyle, before she left to star in Friends [pictured around the time Frasier began, 1993, in Mad About You with Helen Hunt]

Worked out well: 'The girl that was playing [Roz] was having real trouble. We thought it was kind of quirky and fun and it's going to work out and it never did,' Kelsey explained, referencing Lisa. 'But things went fine for her on Friends so it's okay,' he added, jovially

Kelsey had written a script for a totally different concept, in which he played a wealthy bedridden business mogul, which had no links to Cheers or the character of Frasier.

'John said, "I read the script. I think a sitcom should be funny!"' Kelsey recalled of the unimpressed TV exec. 'He then just said, "I want you to play Frasier!"'

Of Peri, 58, who played Frasier's radio producer Roz, he said: 'Peri was an 11th hour replacement.'

'The girl that was playing it was having real trouble. We thought it was kind of quirky and fun and it's going to work out and it never did,' he explained, referencing Friends actress Lisa.

'But things went fine for her on Friends so it's okay,' he added, jovially.

Cheers! On how they're getting through lockdown, Jane raised a glass of G&T...

Salute! As David sipped from a glass of red wine

Indeed, Lisa was cast as Phoebe Buffay on Friends which began the following year and concluded in the same year that Frasier did.

Niles actor David explained that he originally thought the Frasier script was 'terrible'.

'I thought [the writers] have written two of the same characters, Frasier and Niles. I thought - what a stupid thing to do!' he said, before adding sarcastically. 'Well that was one of the first of my many great insights about the show!'

The cast also discussed how they're keeping fit during the current health crisis, being holed up at home.

'I work out two hours a day, play with the kids then have a martini!' Kelsey said, as David and Jane both held up a glass of red wine and a gin and tonic respectively.

Surprise appearances: Other guests that appeared in the chat included other Frasier guest-stars Bebe Neuwirth [pictured bottom left], Dan Butler, Tom McGowan and Harriet Sansom Harris

Gone but not forgotten: One missing cast member in the Skype chat was John Mahoney, who played Martin Crane, who passed away in 2018 [pictured on the show in 2003]

'I live on the top floor of a 16 floor building,' David added. 'And I do yoga at home with [husband] Brian.'

He also said that when he goes to the grocery store at the moment he has to channel his clean-freak Frasier character Niles thanks to the current pandemic.

'Yes it's very Niles at the moment isn't it? Wiping things off!'

To which Kelsey added: 'I married someone with OCD so we've been wiping things for a while now.'

The episode was rounded off with hosts James and Seth brazenly declaring: 'I am so excited a reboot is going to happen!'

Reboot? The episode was rounded off with hosts James and Seth brazenly declaring they were 'so excited a reboot is going to happen'. This has not been confirmed, but Kelsey was spotted last year brandishing a potential script while out and about in London

Although this is not confirmed, there has been talk for a year now that the cast are hoping to reboot the show, with the quartet of actors laughing in response, but not giving anything away.

One missing cast member in the Skype chat was John Mahoney, who played Martin Crane, who passed away in 2018.

However, other guests that appeared in the chat included other Frasier guest-stars Bebe Neuwirth, Dan Butler, Tom McGowan and Harriet Sansom Harris.

Stars In The House is a daily live-streamed concert series which launched on March 16 and has already played host to a slew of major stars, from the likes of Annette Bening and Tina Fey to Danny DeVito and Cynthia Nixon.
LIMASSOL, CyprusVirtualTaboo.com, the 5-year-old company that produces virtual reality adult content, has become the first VR porn site to release that content in the 7K-quality format.

Founded in 2015, VirtualTaboo.com, one of the first high-end VR sites, will be using 7K for all new content starting April 3.

Weve always been at the forefront of tech, said Capo Rockett, President of Virtual Taboo. At a time when more people are looking for realistic, immersive experiences from home, we are upping our game and transporting them off the couch. 7K promises to make all the existing content on the market look like the standard of ten years ago.

The new 7K format broadcasts in 7260x3630 resolution, and shoots without interpolation in real 60fps footage. The 10-bit footage displays up to 1.07 billion colors, a vast improvement over the older 8-bit footage with just 16.7 million colors.

The 7K images perception is the closest format ever to the human vision field, and with the expansion to 200-degree videos, makes user perception more immersive and intense.

As is often the case, adult is leading the way in technology, and Virtual Taboos 7K videos push the envelope. Existing VR headsets available on the market have difficulty sustaining this ground-breaking technology, but consumer demand, led by porn, will force change. But even for those without a 7K-enabled headset, the quality will be higher across the board. All of Virtual Taboos new videos will now be shot in the 7K format originally and re-encoded to work for existing headsets.

As the first to bring 7K into the market, we see this as a great opportunity and stimulus for the VR manufacturers to enhance their products and help them evolve, said Rockett. 7K will quickly become the new normal and industry standard, making VR porn even more realperhaps more seemingly real than our own lives at this challenging time.

To see 7K videos in action, visit VirtualTaboo.com starting tomorrow, April 3.
YPSILANTI, MI - Three Ypsilanti city firefighters tested positive for COVID-19 last week, authorities said.

The three firefighters are quarantining at home for 14 days per guidance from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, Ypsilanti Fire Department officials said. The department did not specify when each person tested positive for the disease linked to coronavirus.

Ypsilanti Fire Department screens employees for COVID-19 symptoms every four hours, which includes a temperature check and basic questions covering their health at the time, officials said. The fire department also requests firefighters and employees self-monitor and report any symptoms to supervisors.

Health workers and first responders that exhibit coronavirus symptoms must self-isolate for 72 hours until they no longer show symptoms, according to MDHHS.

Firefighters clean the station constantly, which includes decontaminating fire equipment, uniforms, vehicles and more, said Ypsilanti Fire Department spokesman Richard Barnabo. A professional cleaning contractor also decontaminated the station after these cases were discovered, he said.

The loss of three firefighters is the equivalent of half of one shift, Barnabo said. This forces other personnel to spread out their hours, increasing not only their workload but their potential exposure time to COVID-19, he said.

We continue to meet the challenges ahead, he said.

Including these confirmed cases, there are now four firefighters in Washtenaw County confirmed to have COVID-19, including one with the Ann Arbor Fire Department.

Ann Arbor city firefighter tests positive for COVID-19

At least 400 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in Washtenaw County residents as of Wednesday, April 1, according to the county health department. Eight people have died and 100 have been hospitalized.

91 more coronavirus cases confirmed in Washtenaw County

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.
Canberra, April 2 : Two more Australians are set to appear on state television on Thursday to accuse Cardinal George Pell of sexually assaulting them when they were young, in fresh allegations against the Vatican's former financial chief, currently serving a six-year prison sentence for abusing two other children.

Pell, whose final appeal against his conviction is set to be heard on April 6 by Australia's High Court, was convicted in March 2019 on five sexual assault charges, committed against two choirboys of the St Patrick's Cathedral in 1996 and 1997, while he was Melbourne's Archbishop.

The new testimonies, made public on Thursday by state broadcaster ABC, were related to a dropped investigation of sexual abuse complaints against Pell dating back to the 1970's, when he was a priest in his native city of Balllarat in southern Australia Bernie, a man identified just by his first name, grew up in an orphanage in Ballarat, and has alleged in ABC's documentary series "Revelation" - set to be aired on Thursday - that he was abused by Pell on multiple occasions.

The 53-year-old man said that he had been convinced nobody would believe him if he reported the alleged abuse, having witnessed the priest's rise to the highest echelons of the Catholic Church.

Bernie described in graphic detail how Pell - who had become a "father figure" for him - abused him.

Peter Clarke, another Australian who grew up in the same orphanage, told ABC that Pell had touched him inappropriately in the establishment's swimming pool.

Clarke said that at the time he did not understand that the priest had sexually abused him, although he recalled the pain.

The Victoria state police had recorded the statements of both men, but a planned second trial was subsequently abandoned.

Pell has maintained his innocence throughout his trial and investigations and denied all child sexual abuse charges.

Unless his appeal is successful, the disgraced priest - imprisoned since February 2019 - is set to remain in prison at least until 2022, when he will be able to apply for parole, and will remain on the register of child abusers.
The Board of Education has agreed to shorten spring break to provide more distance learning for New Canaan Public School students, and less time off.

The school board approved distance learning classes to be in session on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, April 14, 15 and 16. The nine-person board voted 8 to 1 in favor of the change, with Bob Naughton opposed, during an online school board meeting on Monday, March 30, 2020.

This is instead of a school break that was originally planned to start Good Friday, April 10, 2020, and extend until Friday, April 17, 2020.

This will leave a four-day Easter weekend and a three-day weekend at the other end of the week. Wednesday, April 15, will be a half day for elementary schools and Thursday, April 16, 2020, will be a half day for Saxe Middle School, to set aside time for teacher professional learning.

After reflecting upon our goals for distance learning, I feel strongly that it would be counterproductive for us to shut down the entire program for 10 full days, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Bryan Luizzi said in a press release.

However, I also recognize, honor, and am enormously grateful for how hard everyone is working, and understand that we all need some time to relax and recharge, he said. He hopes the two long weekends will provide time for rejuvenation while also keeping everyone engaged and safe.

Luizzi said there are other benefits to these changes. If the school closure extends through May, these days can be used to break up the month by providing some timely days off for everyone, he said.

If we do not use the days in May, the Board of Education may consider applying the distance learning days towards ending the school year earlier in June, Luizzi said.
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 Flash

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may possibly cancel a planned trip in May to Moscow amid concerns over the global COVID-19 pandemic, government sources said on Thursday.

The Japanese leader was scheduled to attend a ceremony on May 9 marking the 75th anniversary of Russia defeating Germany in World War II.

Abe was also hoping the opportunity would provide a chance to hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a decades-old territorial dispute, the progress of which thus far has largely resulted in a stalemate over the issue.

In talks held in February between Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, it was agreed that Lavrov would visit Japan at an early juncture to pave the way for Abe's trip.

The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has scuppered Lavrov's planned visit here and may lead to further delays in talks being held between Abe and Putin.

Kyodo News, citing anonymous government officials, said that owing to the likelihood of progress being made on the territorial dispute being low, Abe is more likely to cancel his trip.

Tokyo and Moscow have been at odds over the sovereignty of four Russian-held islands located off Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido known as the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia.

The territorial spat has not only prevented the two countries from signing a post-WWII peace treaty but also hindered diplomatic and trade relations between the two countries.

The two sides have yet to make significant progress on inking a peace treaty, despite Abe's hope to do so when he met Russian President Putin in June on the sidelines of the Group of 20 summit in Osaka last year, although little progress was made.

A potential meeting between the pair could have happened on the sidelines of an APEC conference in Chile in November 2019, but the meeting was cancelled, dealing a further blow to the progress of territorial-related talks.

Both parties, nevertheless, have provisionally agreed to furthering joint economic activities on the disputed islands.

Such activities span defense, search and rescue operations, medical care, industry promotion and energy development, in line with a previously proposed plan, which also covers aquaculture, tourism and waste reduction.

The multi-faceted cooperation plan, based around five pillars proposed by Abe in 2016, was purportedly to become an important foundation for future ties between Tokyo and Moscow and to help foster and bolster mutual trust.

Since the provisional agreement both sides have since reaffirmed their commitment to promote joint economic activities on the disputed islands.
The Democratic presidential frontrunner says US has moral obligation to aid those in need regardless of where they live.

Democratic presidential contender Joe Biden on Thursday called on the administration of United States President Donald Trump to ease economic sanctions on Iran as a humanitarian gesture during the global coronavirus pandemic.

The former vice president said the US has a moral obligation to be among the first to offer aid to people in need regardless of where they live when confronting a virus that knows no borders or political affiliations.

While the Iranian government has failed to respond effectively to this crisis, including lying and concealing the truth from its own people, and it continues to act provocatively in the region, the Iranian people are hurting desperately, Biden said in a statement. Whatever our profound differences with the Iranian government, we should support the Iranian people.

Bidens statement comes just days after 34 members of the US Congress  most from the progressive wing of the Democratic Party  signed a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo calling for easing the sanctions. Among the signatories was Bidens fellow Democratic presidential contender, Senator Bernie Sanders.

With neighboring countries ravaged by war, medical systems either in disarray and underfunded, and the constant migration of pilgrims and immigrant workers, the viruss further spread in the Middle East poses serious risk both to human health and life and to regional economic and political stability, the letter stated.

Trump ramped up his attacks on Iran on Wednesday by claiming that it or its proxies were planning a sneak attack on US targets in neighbouring Iraq. He tweeted that Tehran would pay a very heavy price for any such action, but offered no details.

The Trump administration has repeatedly tightened sanctions designed to choke off Tehrans oil exports in the last month as the coronavirus outbreak has spread in Iran. Last week, it slapped new sanctions on 20 Iranian people and companies accused of supporting Shia militia in Iraq that are believed to be responsible for attacks on bases where US forces are located.

Biden acknowledged that there are already humanitarian exceptions to the sanctions in place, but said many countries and international aid organisations remain leery of offering help for fear of running afoul of the US sanctions. He said that in response, Iran should as a gesture release any American citizens it currently has detained in the country.

Artificially limiting the flow of international humanitarian assistance to pursue a political point will not only allow the Iranian government to deflect responsibility for its own botched response, it will increase the threat this virus poses to the American people, now and in the future, Biden said.

Specific steps that should be taken, Biden said, include issuing broad licences to pharmaceutical and medical device companies, creating a mechanism for banks, insurers and other firms to help Iranians in need, and issuing new sanctions guidance to aid organisations to reassure them that they will not be punished for engaging in humanitarian trade with Iran to support its coronavirus response.

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, with his protective mask, attends a cabinet meeting in Tehran earlier this month [Source: Mediawires/Presidency of Iran handout]

Irans Ministry of Health and Medical Education said on Thursday that the coronavirus has killed 3,160 in the country.

Several high-ranking government officials have tested positive for the virus, including the speaker of the Iranian parliament. Health officials there announced on Thursday that Ali Larijani, a former Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander who has led the countrys legislative body since 2008, tested positive for the virus and was being treated under quarantine.

In a rare acknowledgment of the severity of the outbreak in his country, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the coronavirus may remain through the end of the Iranian year, which just began late last month, state TV reported on Thursday.

We always have to follow the health protocols provided by the health ministry, Rouhani added.
Technavio has been monitoring the electric vehicle (EV) charging station market and it is poised to grow by USD 14.59 billion during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of over 33% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005272/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market 2020-2024 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please request latest free sample report on Covid-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. ABB Ltd., ChargePoint Inc., Efacec Power Solutions SGPS SA, ENGIE SA, EVgo Services LLC, Leviton Manufacturing Co. Inc., Schneider Electric SE, Siemens AG, Tesla Inc., and Webasto SE are some of the major market participants. The demand for energy-efficient automobiles will offer immense growth opportunities. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Demand for energy-efficient automobiles has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market is segmented as below:

Type AC DC

Geographic Landscape APAC Europe MEA North America South America



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download latest free sample report of 2020-2024: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30558

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our electric vehicle (EV) charging station market report covers the following areas:

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market Size

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market Trends

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies technological advances in EV charging as one of the prime reasons driving the electric vehicle (EV) charging station market growth during the next few years.

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market, including some of the vendors such as ABB Ltd., ChargePoint Inc., Efacec Power Solutions SGPS SA, ENGIE SA, EVgo Services LLC, Leviton Manufacturing Co. Inc., Schneider Electric SE, Siemens AG, Tesla Inc., and Webasto SE. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist electric vehicle (EV) charging station market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the electric vehicle (EV) charging station market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the electric vehicle (EV) charging station market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of electric vehicle (EV) charging station market vendors

Table Of Contents:

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Value chain analysis

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2019

Market Outlook

Market size and forecast 2019-2024

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY TYPE

Market segmentation by type

Comparison by type

AC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

DC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Market opportunity by type

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Europe Market size and forecast 2019-2024

North America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

MEA Market size and forecast 2019-2024

South America Market size and forecast 2019-2024

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 09: DECISION FRAMEWORK

PART 10: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

PART 11: MARKET TRENDS

Increasing number of launches in the field of EV charging solutions

Vehicle-to-grid infrastructure for decentralized power generation

Deployment of smart grids for EVs

PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

Competitive scenario

PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

ABB Ltd.

ChargePoint Inc.

Efacec Power Solutions SGPS SA

ENGIE SA

EVgo Services LLC

Leviton Manufacturing Co. Inc.

Schneider Electric SE

Siemens AG

Tesla Inc.

Webasto SE

PART 14: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

Definition of market positioning of vendors

PART 15: EXPLORE TECHNAVIO

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Wednesday to warn Iran against further attacks on US forces in Iraq  the same day that Iraqi officials told the Associated Press that the new head of the Quds Force had recently visited Baghdad.

Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq, Trump tweeted. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif did not directly deny an Iranian plot in Iraq in his tweeted rebuttal. Instead he characterized Iranian proxies as friends and obliquely referenced Trumps January strike on former Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad.

Unlike the US  which surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinates, Iran only acts in self-defense, Zarif tweeted.

Why it matters: Trumps tweet came the same week that Soleimanis successor, Brig. Gen. Esmail Ghaani, visited Baghdad in a bid to unite Iraqs divided political factions as they struggle to form a new government. Some Iraqi officials told the Associated Press that Ghaani opposes Prime Minister-designate Adnan al-Zurfi, whom the United States appointed as the governor of Najaf in 2004 following the invasion of Iraq.

Shortly after Trumps remarks on Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal quoted US intelligence officials as warning of something brewing and developing pretty seriously.

Trumps explicit warning also marked a drastic departure from his handling of the rocket attack that killed one British and two US troops stationed in Iraq last month. The president responded to the attack by bombing weapons depots owned by the Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah. But when a reporter asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo whether the United States held Iran responsible for the deaths of the soldiers at a White House briefing last month, Trump interjected to say, Maybe we shouldnt answer that.

Whats next: Since the March attack, the United States has relocated its troops to larger bases throughout Iraq. The United States has also transferred Patriot missiles into Iraq to defend against future attacks.

It is important to note that repeated attacks on Iraqi bases, which violate Iraqi sovereignty, have killed and injured Iraqi, coalition and US service members, a Pentagon spokesperson told Al-Monitor.

Both countries are also struggling to contain the coronavirus pandemic. The United States has the most COVID-19 cases in the world and Iran has the seventh most cases.

Know more: Hassan Ali Ahmed details Zurfis struggle to win Iranian support in his bid to form a new Iraqi government. And Elizabeth Hagedorn has the backstory on the transfer of US troops to larger bases in Iraq.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police received over 1,000 calls on their helpline number within a period of 24 hours till Wednesday after seeking assistance in resolving issues being faced by people due to the lockdown, officials said on Wednesday.

Delhi Police received 1,053 calls from Tuesday 2 pm to Wednesday 2 pm, out of which 160 where related to areas outside the national capital and those have been referred to the respective state police, they said.



COVID-19 LIVE | Haryana reports its 1st coronavirus death; PM to hold video conference with all CMs

While 29 calls were regarding not having food or money, which have been forwarded to an NGO for direct relief at their addresses, 27 calls were related medical issues and have been resolved through proper guidance, the police said.

As many as 696 calls related to movement passes were, and were advised to approach their respective Additional DCP-I office, they said, adding till Wednesday, 8,303 number of calls have received on their helpline number.

Police also distributed 450 ration kits in Jahangir Puri area along with an online food firm, they added.
The recommendation for 6 feet of separation between members of the public has been consistently shared by policymakers throughout the United States. Around the world, the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged individuals to stay at least 3 feet apart for effective social distancing.

However, Lydia Bourouiba, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor, contends that those recommendations may need to pushed another 20-plus feet, a notion that was firmly rejected by one of the country's leading infectious disease specialists.

According to Bourouiba's study, which was published in the Journal of American Medical Association, coughs or sneezes that expel respiratory droplets containing pathogens can be caught up in a gaseous cloud that may carry the droplets much farther than previously thought. Her findings also suggest that this longer hang-time of the droplets could also greatly extend the lifetime of the new coronavirus contained inside them.

"Owing to the forward momentum of the cloud, pathogen-bearing droplets are propelled much farther than if they were emitted in isolation without a turbulent puff cloud trapping and carrying them forward," Bourouiba wrote. "Given various combinations of an individual patient's physiology and environmental conditions, such as humidity and temperature, the gas cloud and its payload of pathogen-bearing droplets of all sizes can travel 23 to 27 feet (7-8 m)."

Social distancing because of COVID-19 Customers of a private bank stand in a queue maintaining social distance amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Dhaka, Bangladesh, April 2, 2020. REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain

The current recommendations for 6 feet of spacing have been based on research conducted by William F. Wells, who studied tuberculosis transmission in the 1930s, according to Bourouiba. Wells found that tuberculosis droplets can be broken down into large droplets and small droplets, known as aerosols.

Story continues

Bourouiba's argues that those current recommendations may not properly protect individuals from how the respiratory droplets truly behave in the air, "possibly contributing to the ineffectiveness of some procedures used to limit the spread of respiratory disease."

Bourouiba also cautioned that "no studies have directly evaluated the biophysics of droplets and gas cloud formation for patients infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus [which causes COVID-19]," but added that "several properties of the exhaled gas cloud and respiratory transmission may apply to this pathogen."

Aerosol expert Linsey Marr, a scientist at Virginia Tech, told AccuWeather last month that the spread of respiratory droplets can be compared to how second-hand smoke behaves in various air spaces. With proper social distancing and ventilation, the impact of smoke from someone's cigarette is decreased for individuals around them.

"If viruses are released from people by breathing or talking, coughing or sneezing, they come out not as the naked virus but they come out associated in these little respiratory droplets which can then travel through the air," Marr said. "If you imagine someone who is smoking and you're close to them, you're right in that puff of smoke. But if you're farther away, you're much more dilute so that's the idea of kind of staying away from someone, that things will get more dilute."

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, listens during a briefing about the coronavirus in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, Wednesday, April 1, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

One piece of evidence that Bourouiba used was the finding of virus particles in ventilation systems of hospital rooms in China. According to Bourouiba, the evidence of particles in those systems supports the gas cloud hypothesis because of how far the pathogens can travel from patients.

Bourouiba argued that her findings may influence the recommedations issued by the WHO and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

"In the latest World Health Organization recommendations for COVID-19, health care personnel and other staff are advised to maintain a 3-foot (1-m) distance away from a person showing symptoms of disease, such as coughing and sneezing. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends a 6-foot (2-m) separation," Bourouiba said in her research paper. "However, these distances are based on estimates of range that have not considered the possible presence of a high-momentum cloud carrying the droplets long distances. Given the turbulent puff cloud dynamic model, recommendations for separations of 3 to 6 feet (1-2 m) may underestimate the distance, timescale, and persistence over which the cloud and its pathogenic payload travel."

Nurse Yvette Laugere adjusts her N95 mask while working at a newly opened free Covid-19 testing site operated by United Memorial Medical Center Thursday, April 2, 2020, in Houston. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

For those reasons, Bourouiba also reinforced the importance of healthcare workers wearing appropriate personal protection, even if they are farther than 6 feet away from a patient.

One expert who is not convinced of Bourouiba's analysis is Anthony Fauci, one of the nation's top infectious disease doctors. Fauci called the published research "terribly misleading" during a White House briefing on Tuesday and said he was disturbed by the report.

"This could really be terribly misleading," Fauci said of the study. "What it was looking at the distance that droplets [travel] by - by speaking, by coughing, or sneezing. So if you go way back and go, 'Achoo!' And go like that, you might get 27 feet. But - so when you see somebody do that, get out of the way. But that's not practical."

"That is a very, very robust vigorous 'Achoo' sneeze. That's what that is. And that's not what we're talking about," Fauci added.

While the debate around the country over whether Americans should wear masks or not continues, Bourouiba's findings may point to "yes," especially if the virus can be transmitted by simply breathing or talking, as other studies have suggested.

Latest coronavirus COVID-19 coverage from AccuWeather.com

However, the CDC has yet to reform its guidelines on mask-wearing, a stance reiterated by Arleen Porcell, a CDC press officer, in an email to AccuWeather on Thursday.

"CDC has not changed its guidance on this topic," she wrote. "CDC is always evaluating emerging scientific evidence and making guidance updates as needed to keep the American public safe. An official statement will be issued at the appropriate time."

While the CDC has not changed its guidelines, studies like Bourouiba's and the openness to reconsider past recommendations, as President Donald Trump and U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams have pointed to in recent days, may change the way Americans live in the coming days.

"The idea of getting a much more broad, community-wide use of masks outside of the health-care setting is under very active discussion at the task force," Fauci told CNN. "The CDC group is looking at that very carefully."

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
President Donald Trump arrives for the daily coronavirus response briefing at the White House in Washington, April 1, 2020.

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that his administration is considering halting some domestic flights and rail lines between coronavirus "hot spots," or cities where COVID-19 has hit hard.

"I am looking where flights are going into hot spots. Some of those flights I didn't like from the beginning," Trump said at a White House briefing on the pandemic. Asked about rail travel, Trump said it was a "similar thing."

Trump said he did not support grounding all domestic flights. A decision will be made soon, he said.

"Closing up every single flight on every single airline, that's a very, very, very rough decision," Trump said. "But we are thinking of hot spots, where you go from spot to spot, both hot."

The worst of the U.S. coronavirus outbreak has been centered in the New York metropolitan area, though the virus has rapidly spread throughout the country. New Orleans, Seattle, Detroit and other major hubs  in addition to smaller cities and rural areas  have also been hit hard by COVID-19. Trump did not name any cities or routes in particular.

Read more: The coronavirus is starting to hit rural America hardhere's a map of the counties most affected

Trump said decisions about closing air and rail travel were "very big decisions from the standpoint of the future of our country in a way."

"We have to get our country back, we have to start moving again, we have to start working again," he said.

The airline industry has been hit hard by the unfolding public health crisis.

Airlines have slashed thousands of flights in a race to shrink to meet paltry demand and some executives have been forced to consider the chances of a broader shutdown of U.S. flights.

Carriers expect to make deeper cuts as demand falls further due to concerns about the virus and drastic measures such as stay-at-home measures to stop its spread.

Just 146,348 people were screened at U.S. airports on Tuesday, a nearly 93% decline from a year earlier, according to the Transportation Security Administration.
Day in the Life of Coronavirus LOCKDOWN - Sheffield, UK

So what's like for a family living under lockdown in the UK where your not allowed to go out for more than a brisk walk around the neighbourhood. All in attempts to flatten the parabolic pandemic curve that saw over 500 deaths last week, with likely another 10,000 deaths to come this month before the curve is flattened through extreme shutdown measures.

Ensure to subscribe to our youtube channel for new videos in our coronavirus series.

By N Walayat

http://www.walayatfamily.com

Copyright  2005-2020 Marketoracle.co.uk (Market Oracle Ltd). All rights reserved.

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any trading losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors before engaging in any trading activities.

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Atleast 10 shops were gutted in a



major fire broke that out at Bamboo Bazaar here on Thursday, fire department sources said.

The blaze was detected in the early hours.

Soon it spread to other shops, they said.

By the time fire extinguishers reached the spot, four shops were already engulfed in flames, the department sources said.

At least 10 shops were reduced to ashes as fire fighters struggled to contain the blaze.

Fire tenders were pressed into service to ensure that the flames were contained and did not spread to the residential area nearby, they added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Padma Shri awardee and former 'Hazuri Raagi' at the Golden Temple died here of coronavirus Thursday morning, a health official said.

The 62-year-old 'Gurbani' exponent had recently returned from abroad and tested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday, the official said.

Principal, Government Medical College, Dr Sujata Sharma said his condition started deteriorating Wednesday evening and he was shifted to ventilator support. He died at 4:30 AM Thursday, she said.

The man was admitted to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital here after he complained of breathlessness and dizziness on March 30, she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday ordered Russians not to go to work for the rest of April to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

Mr Putin gave the order in a nationally televised address in Moscow.

Russia has reported more than 3,500 cases of the new coronavirus, while senior officials have warned that the actual number of cases is probably much higher.

This week marked the beginning of a nationwide quarantine period, in which Russians working at jobs not considered obligatory for the functioning of the country were advised to stay home.

Supermarkets, pharmacies and certain state services have continued to operate during the quarantine.

(dpa/NAN)
New Delhi, April 2 : The Tourism Ministry on Thursday stated that it has received more than 500 requests from foreigners for help on 'Stranded in India' portal, which was launched two days ago.

These tourists got stranded after their vacations abruptly ended by a three-week lockdown and international flights were halted because of the coronavirus outbreak.

"In its first two days itself, it has received more than 500 queries and requests for help. The ministry is coordinating assistance to tourists with joint effort and support of the Ministry of External Affairs and state officials to address these queries," the ministry said in a statement.

The Ministry is also coordinating with the respective embassies regarding problems faced by the guests.

Tourists have sought information on extension of their visas and also on traveling back to their home countries.

Tourists are also facing difficulty in reaching metro cities such as Delhi and Mumbai from where flights can be taken out of India once the lockdown is lifted.

The Ministry of Tourism is working actively with the state officials to provide a solution. Emergency requests such as the need for food, medicine and care for the elderly tourists are being expedited.

The Hotels and Restaurant Division of the Ministry has been in touch with several hotels, which are accommodating guests during the lockdown and coordinating with the respective embassies on the problems faced by the guests.

Hotels are also told by the ministry to follow the protocol and extend their support till the departure of such guests is arranged by embassies.

The Ministry has set up a task force comprising its officials, both at the Central and regional levels and representatives of the state tourism departments to address the issues being brought forward in realtime.

The Coordination group is working through Whatsapp and emails and telephones to ensure smooth information flow and speedy redress of issues.

The Ministry has a 24x7 telephone Helpline -- 1363 -- which is also ensuring correct and updated information to tourists.
Fatty acid in triglycerides proves an effective platform for biological drug delivery

HOUSTON-(April 1, 2020)-We've all been warned about the dangers of triglycerides, the fat stored in your blood. But what if that unhealthy fat could effectively transport oral medication to your body and eliminate the need for some injections or IV treatment?

Houston Methodist nanomedicine researchers are studying this new drug delivery system for a diabetes drug that resulted in approximately 25% absorption in mice models, which is considered to be very high for an oral drug.

The research published in Science Advances may pave the way for oral delivery of more biological drugs, like those used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases.

"We know the human body can absorb fatty acids, so we decided to chemically link biological drug molecules to fatty acids to see how well these drugs are absorbed into the gastrointestinal system. It turns out that our 'transporter approach' was effective," said Haifa Shen, M.D., Ph.D., professor of nanomedicine, Houston Methodist Research Institute, who began this work more than five years ago when a family member diagnosed with diabetes needed insulin injections three times a day.

After designing a platform where a peptide-based drug used to treat diabetes mellitus was chemically linked to fatty acids, Shen and team packaged the resulting combination in a nanoparticle that was resistant to gastric acids in the stomach. Once inside the small intestine, the drug molecules were released from the nanoparticle and the mice absorbed 24.8% of the drug dosage.

The majority of small molecule drugs are prepared in tablets and given orally. But biological drugs, like those to treat diabetes, cannot sustain the harsh environment in the GI tract, which includes gastric fluids and digestive enzymes in the stomach. The only option has been intravenous infusion or injections, which are more costly than oral drugs and pose compliance challenges for many patients who struggle with inconvenient appointments and the high cost of treatment.

"This was just the first drug we tested. Our approach could be used to deliver many other biological drugs, such as human growth hormone and therapeutic antibodies," said Shen.

Now that the nanomedicine researchers have proven the drug platform works in animal models, the next step is to perform toxicity studies, produce the drugs in a larger quantity and, eventually, move to clinical trial in patients. Although fatty acids may one day be key to fighting diabetes, the technology still has a ways to go before people can derive benefit from consuming fatty acids.

###

Other Houston Methodist researchers collaborating on this paper include Z. Hu, S. Nizzero, S. Goel, L. E. Hinkle, X. Wu, C. Li, and M. Ferrari (formerly Houston Methodist, now with European Research Council).

This study was supported in part by grants from the National Institute of Health (R01CA193880, R01CA222959 and U54CA210181) and U.S. Department of Defense (W81XWH-17-1-0389).

For more information: Molecular Targeting of FATP4 Transporter for Oral Delivery of Therapeutic Peptide. Science Advances. (online April 1, 2020). Zhenhua Hu, Sara Nizzero, Shreya Goel, Louis E. Hinkle, Xiaoyan Wu, Chao Li, Mauro Ferrari, Haifa Shen.

This story has been published on: 2020-04-01. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Washington

President Donald Trump is resisting calls to issue a national stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the coronavirus despite his administration's projections that tens of thousands of Americans are likely to be killed by the disease. One by one, though, states are increasingly pushing shutdown orders of their own.

Trump said Wednesday he wants to give governors' "flexibility" on whether a stay-at-home policy is the best option for their constituents, but acknowledged that he's looking at limiting travel between hot spots within the United States. The president remains hesitant to press a unified policy even after the White House released "sobering" new projections on Tuesday that 100,000 to 240,000 Americans will likely succumb to the coronavirus even if current social distancing guidelines are maintained. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said Wednesday the nation's federalist system leaves much of the authority on how to properly respond to catastrophes to individual state governors and local officials.

On Wednesday alone, five more states  Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Nevada and Pennsylvania  added or expanded their stay-at-home orders.

But the invocation of federalism in the midst of a crisis that threatens a nationwide body count on par with some of the deadliest American wars suggests that Trump and his advisers are cognizant of the political ramifications of their response. Republican governors in states like Florida, Texas and Nebraska have questioned the necessity of applying strong social distancing rules to rural or exurban areas that haven't reported much evidence of the virus so far.

The lack of a unified, 50-state response also collides with evidence emerging that coronavirus infections are being spread by people who have no clear symptoms, complicating efforts to gain control of the pandemic. A study conducted by researchers in Singapore and published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday is the latest to estimate that around 10 percent of new coronavirus infections may be spread by people who were infected with the virus but not experiencing symptoms.

Even while deferring to governors, the Trump administration has issued guidelines that have urged Americans to work from home if possible, cancel on-site instruction at schools and avoid large gatherings. The resistance to a more robust response comes even as Vice President Mike Pence said White House models for the coronavirus toll show the country on a trajectory akin to hard-hit Italy. Speaking to CNN, Pence said, "We think Italy may be the most comparable area to the United States at this point." Italy, which has recorded more than 13,000 deaths, has issued a nationwide quarantine, shutting down almost all industrial production and largely prohibiting residents from leaving their homes.

The White House's best-case projection for loss of life assumes statewide stay-at-home orders, according to a senior administration official familiar with Trump's thinking. Trump, the official said, is a believer in federalism and that it is up to individual governors to set restrictions for their states. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal discussions.

More than 285 million people live in the 40 states where governors have declared statewide shelter-in-place orders or have recommended that residents stay home. In other states  places like Iowa and Nebraska, among others  governors have resisted state-level decisions, but some localities have declared residents should stay at home.

But there are signs that Trump administration officials are pushing behind the scenes for holdout governors to issue statewide quarantines. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had resisted issuing a statewide order but reversed course. DeSantis, a Republican, told reporters that he decided to issue the order after consulting with Trump and White House advisers. Rep. Donna Shalala, a Florida Democrat, said earlier Wednesday that Trump should be pressing governors for a unified approach to help stem the spread of the disease, calling his response "fragmented, weak and uneven."
LONDON  When Prime Minister Boris Johnson spoke to the British people from isolation on Wednesday, still suffering his own bout of the coronavirus, he said the key to overcoming the pandemic was more testing. This is how we will unlock the coronavirus puzzle, he said in a shaky, hand-held video.

In fact, the British government came very late to the recognition that testing for the virus is a key part of fighting it, by helping to slow transmission. That failure has set off an outcry in the country. The governments tardiness has left Britain with an undersupplied and poorly coordinated testing program that has reached only a fraction of the people tested in countries like Germany or South Korea.

The shortfall has frustrated doctors and nurses, who often have not had access themselves to tests despite potential exposure to the virus and who cannot quickly determine if patients have it. It has angered public-health experts, who say Britain is squandering valuable time during the lockdown that it could be using to get a better fix on the spread of the virus in the population.

Front-line doctors and nurses in the United States, where testing is now being ramped up, complained for weeks of similar deficiencies.
Allah will create peace, stay back in the Mosque, Maulana Saad told his followers

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 02: If we stay in Mosques, Allah will create peace in the world, Mauala Saad the head of the Nizamuddin Markaz of the Tablighi Jamaat told his followers.

The Delhi police is now examining an audio clip in which the Maulana is heard telling his followers not to leave the Mosque. He further tells them not to follow the government orders. Stay in the Mosque, and if you think you will die, then there is no better place to die, he also says.

I feel sad for those persons who say that at this time people should not go to Mosques and pray. This is in fact the time we should stay in the Mosques as Allah will create peace in the world, the Maulana also says.

The head of the Nizamuddin Markaz, Maulana Saad had refused to budge despite pleas by the Delhi police.

When Maulana Saad refused to budge, MHA ordered a mid-night clean up action at Nizamuddin

The Delhi police had urged the Maulana to vacate the Banglewali Masjid. The situation was critical and with the Maulana refusing to budge, the Union Home Ministry had to step in. National Security Advisor, Ajit Doval visited the markaz on March 29 at 2 am and convinced the Maulana to get the occupants tested.

Finally the markaz allowed 167 Tablighi workers to be hospitalised after the intervention of the NSA.

The first time the connection between the Tablighi Jamaat and coronavirus emerged was on March 17 2020. It was at this time that a case was detected in Telangana and by March 21, the Ministry of Home Affairs had drawn up a list of 800 foreigners associated with the Tablighi Jamaat.

It was learnt that an Indonesian, who attended the conference at Nizamuddin and travelled to Telangana had tested positive on March 17. Home Ministry sources tell OneIndia that nearly 1,000 Tablighi workers from abroad were in India. Of this around 200 were staying in Nizamuddin, the source also said.

Nizamuddin fiasco: At 510, Tamil Nadu had the maximum participants

The source also said that once they had identified the 800 foreign nationals, an advisory was sent to all the states to track them and medically screen them. The MHA says that nationals of Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Kyrgyzstan had come for proselytising activities.

The MHA says that so far 1,203 Tablighi Jamaat workers had been screened of which 303 had symptoms of COVID-19. The MHA in a statement said that the Bureau of Immigration has been sharing since February 1 with State authorities, details of all international arrivals from affected countries based on Self Declaration Form filled in by them. In addition, since March 6, Bureau of Immigration had also been sharing details of all the international arrivals (both Indians and foreigners) at all the international airports in the country.

Meanwhile the government has decided to blacklist all the foreigners who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event at Nizamuddin for violation of visa rules. Nearly 800 will be blacklisted, government sources have confirmed. Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said that all those who travelled to India on tourist visas recently and violated visa conditions will be proceeded against legally. This would include being blacklisted as well, he said.

A strict lockdown has been imposed in parts of southeast Nizamuddin after 24 persons tested positive for COVID-19. These are also being linked to cases in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Andaman Islands, Uttar Pradesh, Kashmir and also the five deaths in Telangana.

10 Indonesians who tested positive met scores of people after Tablighi meet

All these persons are said to have attended the congregation at the Nizamuddin Mosque in mid-March. Over 1,000 people continued to stay at the Markaz even as a 21 day nation-wide lockdown was announced. The organisation has been accused of gross negligence and an FIR has been lodged against the Maulana of the Mosque.

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Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 8:31 [IST]
Figures to be released this morning are set to indicate the coronavirus pandemic has already pushed unemployment to 17pc - above its peak level during the last financial crisis.

The sudden return of mass unemployment as Covid-19 has ripped through the economy in a matter of weeks is pushing tens of thousands of households and business to the financial brink.

Read More

A thousand people a day are now contacting Bank of Ireland alone seeking debt repayment breaks, the bank's head of retail Gavin Kelly, told the Irish Independent.

Around 60pc of those struggling customers are homeowners unable to meet mortgage payments because they have lost jobs or suffered pay cuts, while the rest are small businesses seeking a lifeline from their bank to ride out the crisis.

Policymakers have been pinning their hopes on a so-called 'V-shaped' recovery which would lift jobs and the economy as quickly and suddenly as they have crashed.

But the scale of the economic hit now being suffered means the prospect of an equally dramatic recovery is becoming remote, according to analysts at both Goodbody Stockbrokers and KBC Ireland.

The official Live Register figures for March, due this morning, are the first since the outbreak reached Ireland and since the Government ordered a lockdown of swathes of the Irish economy.

Dermot O'Leary, chief economist at Goodbody, said the unemployment rate may have risen to 17pc last month - up from 4.8pc in February.

At the height of the recession, the unemployment rate hit a high of 16pc.

The level of joblessness will be in stark contrast to the start of the year when the economy was close to full employment.

Mr O'Leary said the impact on the labour market of the Government ordering businesses to close will be laid bare. He said the number receiving unemployment benefit will be up by about 300,000. Most of these people are signing on for an emergency pandemic payment of 305 a week, which is worth over 100 more than the standard dole.

Mr O'Leary said the increase in numbers will be by far the largest monthly increase, and will also take the level of unemployment to a new all-time high of 482,000 out of a labour force of 2.5 million.

And he warned that unemployment is likely to rise further in April, reflecting further restrictions since last Friday.

He said it could take years after businesses reopen to return to the low level of unemployment reached at the start of the year.

Mr O'Leary said this meant a 'V-shaped' recovery is unlikely "given the lingering nature of public health policies".

"At this point, we do not know when economic life will be allowed to re-start and thus how long double-digit unemployment will persist," he said.

"As pubs, shops, hotels re-open their doors, there will of course be a sharp fall, but returning to pre-Covid levels will likely take years."

He said like other economies, Ireland is no different in relying on the advice of epidemiologists and health professionals as a key input into when restrictions will be removed and the shape of the economic recovery that will ensue.

"Given the experience of other countries, particularly China, we would be of the view that a full removal of the restrictions in developed economies is unlikely any time soon. When restrictions are loosened, they will be differentiated by sector and possibly region too. This makes a V-shaped recovery unlikely."

The speed of the crash now under way is unprecedented. Almost a decade of jobs growth since the second half of 2012 has been wiped out in less than a month.

Government efforts to date to contain the crisis are set to be dwarfed by the scale of the task, KBC's Austin Hughes said. He warned the bill to the State will be closer to 25bn than the 6.7bn of measures announced to date.
The worldwide coronavirus pandemic has led to a shortage of protective face masks, leading to a deluge of online tutorials ion how to make your own using a t-shirt or pillowcase.

Homemade masks offer significantly less protection than the N95 medical masks, which are made of a thick, tightly woven material that fits over the face and can stop 95 per cent of all airborne particles.

Public Health England still does not recommend Britons wear face masks, unless in a medical setting.

But there are good reasons to think DIY masks could be effective in tackling the pandemic, as they have been widely used in Hong Kong,Mongolia and South Korea -countries that largely have the disease under control.

The World Health Organisation also currently does not recommend that people without the illness wear face masks, but it could be about to reverse its decision due to evidence from Hong Kong that they may be effective in fighting the virus.

And in a further sign that attitudes about masks are changing, LA's mayor, Eric Garcetti, yesterday told all four million of the city's residents that they must wear face masks at all times to slow the spread of the deadly pandemic.

MailOnline has investigated how you can make your own face mask using everyday household items such as a t-shirt, kitchen towel or vacuum bags.

How to make a face mask from a t-shirt

A YouTube tutorial by Runa Ray shows how to make a face mask without any need for sewing, using just a plain t-shirt.

First of all you need scissors, pencil and a ruler, and a t-shirt you don't mind being used to make a face mask.

Cut out a 16" by 4" rectangle from the middle of the t-shirt, then fold it in half, and measure four inches on either side.

Then mark the t-shirt with an even number of tassels on each side and use scissors to cut them.

Turn the t-shirt inside out and separate the corner tassels, but tie the remaining ones in-between.

Then with the remaining t-shirt material cut some ear straps using the hem of the shirt.

Attach the straps to the remaining outer tassels and you have yourself a face mask, with no sewing involved, and using an old t-shirt.

A slightly more complicated method has been perfected by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh also managed to design a face mask that could be used if 'commercial masks' are not available during a virus outbreak.

A woman wearing a mask walks past a closed shop window display during the pandemic lockdown in Manchester

They used a regular cotton t-shirt, which was boiled for 10 minutes and then air-dried to sterilise the material, but also to shrink it.

The researchers used a marker and ruler to measure out what they wanted to cut and then formed the mask using an outer layer and then eight inner layers covering the nose and mouth.

The mask does not require any sewing, and instead involves it being tied multiple time around the face.

How to make a face mask from vacuum cleaner bags

By following the simple steps in the graphic, you can create your own face mask from a T-Shirt or vacuum cleaner bag,

Even UK politicians have got in on the act, with Gillian Martin, who is MSP for Aberdeenshire East, describing how she made a face mask from vacuum cleaner bags and elastic.

She told the Daily Record: 'I live in a small village and have been here for over 20 years. I don't want to worry or offend people when I go out.

'I started researching what other countries have been doing and came across a chart with the best materials to use to make a mask out of just about anything.'

'Just below medical material was a hoover bag. I have loads of them lying around and found Hepa-Flow bag that just goes on your Henry hoover'.

The chart the MSP is referring to from a University of Cambridge study which shows the materials that work the best against virus sized particles.

The top three are a surgical mask, vacuum cleaner bag and tea towel.

She added: 'I cut it up the bag and secured it with elastic. I live with my family of three who have all been self-isolating so I made one for each of us'.

Gillian Martin posted about her mask that she made from a vacuum cleaning bag

'I made it because I'm nervous of people coming up to me when I'm out walking the dog. I don't want to have to run away from them.'

Another popular YouTube method shows how to fold up a scarf, using hair ties at either end, to make a simple and easy no-sew mask. The same method can be used with a handkerchief and doesn't involve any sewing.

How to make a face mask from kitchen towel

For this you need two layers of kitchen towel and one of tissue.

You cut it in half, and then use masking tape on each end to ensure the mask is stiff.

Then you punch holes through either end of the mask and thread elastic bands through the holes.

Some Japanese women have even been posting instructions about how to make a face mask from a bra.

The method is simple and involves cutting off one cup with scissors and then sewing the bra straps on, so they can be attached to your face.

Do masks have to be complex to be effective?

The idea that masks do not have to be complex to be effective does have some support from recently published studies.

A University of Oxford study published this week concluded that surgical masks are just as effective at preventing respiratory infections as N95 masks for doctors, nurses and other health care workers.

It's too early for there to be reliable data on how well they prevent infection with COVID-19, but the study found the thinner, cheaper masks do work in flu outbreaks.

Two elderly women wearing protective face masks walk in Westminster on Wednesday

The difference between surgical or face masks and N95 masks lies in the size of particles that can - and more importantly, can't - get though the materials.

N95 respirators are made of thick, tightly woven and molded material that fits tightly over the face and can stop 95 percent of all airborne particles, while surgical masks are thinner, fit more loosely, and more porous.

This makes surgical masks much more comfortable to breathe and work in, but less effective at stopping small particles from entering your mouth and nose.

Droplets of saliva and mucous from coughs and sneezes are very small, and viral particles themselves are particularly tiny - in fact, they're about 20-times smaller than bacteria.

Experts universally agree that there's simply no replacement for thorough, frequent hand-washing for preventing disease transmission.
The Agreement has the potential to generate up to $16MMi in gross revenue for Nextleaf Labs over the next 12 months.

VANCOUVER, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Nextleaf Solutions Ltd. ("Nextleaf Solutions", "OILS", or the "Company") (CSE: OILS) (OTCQB: OILFF), Canada's most innovative cannabis extractor, is pleased to announce that Nextleaf Labs Ltd. ("Nextleaf Labs"), a Health Canada licensed standard processor whose acquisition by OILS is pending, has entered into a Cannabis Extraction Agreement (the "Agreement") with a well-known cannabis producer based in Ontario who operates a 10-acre greenhouse licensed for cannabis cultivation (the "Client").

Cannabis Extraction Agreement

Pursuant to the Agreement, the Client will provide cannabis biomass which Nextleaf Labs will process into refined and distilled THC and CBD oils using OILS's patented and proprietary extraction technology. The bulk distilled THC and CBD oils will be supplied to the wholesale market by Nextleaf Labs, with net proceeds of such sales expected to be shared by Nextleaf Labs and the Client. The initial term of the Agreement will end on the earlier of (a) 12 months, and (b) the date upon which 15 metric tons of biomass has been processed, and automatically renews thereafter for successive one year terms. Over the initial term, the Agreement has the potential to generate up to $16MM in gross revenuei for Nextleaf Solutions, who receives the economic benefit of processing activities conducted by Nextleaf Labs pursuant to agreements between the companies.

"Our stakeholders have been eagerly awaiting the commercialization of Nextleaf Solutions' proprietary extraction technology. We are pleased Nextleaf Labs' first large cannabis extraction agreement is with such a strong cultivator, who has been an early industry leader producing exceptional quality product at a large scale," stated Nextleaf Solutions CFO, Charles Ackerman. "We believe we are delivering on the overall mission of building a fundamentally-sound Company that operates one of the most efficient, technology-driven cannabis oil refineries in Canada, and we look forward to taking the business into the next phase of growth," continued Ackerman.

Nextleaf believes there is significant opportunities to monetize lower-grade cannabis materials into high-purity distilled oil. Investments in technology enable the delivery of efficient, scalable, and lower cost solutions to B2B partners and customers, driving higher margins and ultimately a competitive barrier for the Company over the long-term.

About Nextleaf

OILS is Canada's most innovative cannabis extractor, developing technology for extracting and distilling THC and CBD oils from cannabis and hemp biomass. The Company's industrial-scale extraction and purification plant in Greater Vancouver, BC has a design capacity to process 600 kg per day of dried cannabis biomass into refined oils. Nextleaf owns a portfolio of over 15 issued patents and over 60 pending patents for the extraction, purification, and formulation of cannabinoids. Nextleaf Solutions commercializes its patent portfolio through IP licensing, and supplying THC and CBD oils through Nextleaf Labs, a Health Canada licensed standard processor.

Nextleaf Solutions trades as OILS on the Canadian Securities Exchange, OILFF on the OTCQB Market in the United States, and L0MA on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

Follow OILS across social media platforms: Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.

www.nextleafsolutions.com

On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company,

Paul Pedersen, CEO

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT

Certain statements contained in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements". All statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this press release, including, without limitation, those regarding expected revenues resulting from the Agreement over the term, the Company's ability to capitalize on its IP portfolio and create a competitive barrier, the efficiency and scalability of the Company's technology and operations, expectations regarding lower concentrate costs and higher margins resulting from utilization of the Company's technology, expectations regarding the Company's ability to enter into further extraction agreements, and the Company's strategy, plans, objectives, goals and targets, and any statements preceded by, followed by or that include the words "believe", "expect", "aim", "intend", "plan", "continue", "will", "may", "would", "anticipate", "estimate", "forecast", "predict", "project", "seek", "should" or similar expressions or the negative thereof, are forward-looking statements. These statements are not historical facts but instead represent only the Company's expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve assumptions, risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual results may differ materially from what is expressed, implied or forecasted in such forward-looking statements. Additional factors that could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially include, but are not limited to the risk factors discussed in the Company's MD&A for the most recent fiscal period. Management provides forward-looking statements because it believes they provide useful information to investors when considering their investment objectives and cautions investors not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Consequently, all of the forward-looking statements made in this press release are qualified by these cautionary statements and other cautionary statements or factors contained herein, and there can be no assurance that the actual results or developments will be realized or, even if substantially realized, that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, the Company. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this press release and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect subsequent information, events or circumstances or otherwise, except as required by law.

The CSE has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the contents of this press release.

______________________________ i This estimate is based on management's current views, strategies, expectations, assumptions and forecasts, and has been calculated using accounting policies that are generally consistent with the Company's current accounting policies. The estimate is derived from the expected gross revenues from the Agreement, representations from Nextleaf Labs regarding current commodity pricing and projections. This estimate is considered a financial outlook under applicable securities laws. The estimate and any other financial outlooks or future-oriented financial information included herein has been approved by management of the Company as of the date hereof. Such financial outlooks or future-oriented financial information are provided for the purposes of presenting information about management's current expectations and goals relating to the future business of OILS. Readers are cautioned that actual results may vary materially as a result of a number of risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. See "Cautionary Statement".



SOURCE Nextleaf Solutions Ltd.

Related Links

https://www.nextleafsolutions.com


SPRINGFIELD  The Most Rev. Mitchell Rozanski is reviewing his temporary suspension of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick in the Springfield Roman Catholic Diocese with a decision expected later this week.

Catholic media reported March 27 that Rozanski was temporarily allowing nurses to touch the forehead and hands of a patient with a cotton swab immersed in blessed oil by a Catholic chaplain as a way of delivering that aspect of the healing sacrament amidst all the coronavirus infection controls to a sick or dying patient who requested it.

Shortly after news spread on what at least one headline called the controversial policy, Rozanski rescinded it and temporarily suspended the sacrament.

Rozanskis temporary directive that granted nurses, healers in their own profession, permission to deliver the blessed oil is a violation of Church law.

Under the Code of Canon Law only a priest can validly administer the sacrament.

It reads, Every priest and a priest alone validly administers the anointing of the sick.

The sacrament involves the laying on of hands in silence, prayers and then the anointment with oil. This can be preceded, if circumstances suggest it, the Vatican has explained, by readings from the Old and New Testament and the Sacrament of Penance and followed by the Sacrament of Eucharist.

The pandemic and the suffering and isolation it has inflicted on those with coronavirus disease 2019 prompted Pope Francis to authorize plenary indulgences for them and their caregivers that in essence allow those most sick to pray and know salvation does await them even without receiving the healing sacrament.

Pastoral care continues to be given in health care settings by chaplains administering remotely.

We do offer spiritual care to COVID patients in creative ways  and to families and one of our main focus is on supporting our staff, said the Rev. Ute Schmidt, manager of spiritual services and clinical pastoral education at Baystate Health.

She said much support is being given by phone as it is easier as well as by virtual technology.

Similar delivery of pastoral care is in place at Trinity Health Of New England, which includes Mercy Medical Center.

Chaplains and chaplain priests across the region are engaged in spiritual care of COVID-19 positive, persons under investigation and isolation patients via the telephone, said the Rev. Louis Serio, who hold degrees in divinity and canon law and is certified pastoral educator and regional director of spiritual care for Trinity, part of one of the largest Catholic health care systems in the country.

In every visit, where it is appropriate and possible we are following up with a call to family members to let them know that we are here to support them by telephone as well.

He added, We also continue to provide spiritual care for our patients and colleagues."

We are responding to all codes, traumas and rapid responses with the same limitations detailed above, Serio said.

Individual bishops have much to balance in weighing harms and duties for their those continuing to minister in parishes, which have been closed in many dioceses across the country, as Christs apostles in the face of the acute respiratory illness against which no one has immunity and there is no immunization.

Masses are being live streamed. Drive-up Adoration for the Blessed Sacrament arranged. Confirmations and First Communions postponed. Burials restricted to graveside services only.

Rozanski has issued numerous directives,including temporarily closing parishes and schools, since Governor Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency in the commonwealth March 10 in response to COVID-19.

The Archdiocese of Boston under Cardinal Sean OMalley, where at least eight priests are said to have tested positive for COVID-19, has extensive risk management directives.

Its directives around Anointing of the Sick include that, if is performed in a hospital or healthcare facility, the guidelines for protective measures, including garments, prevail; the anointing may be done with a cotton-tipped swab or a cotton ball which is to be burned or buried after use; and f the priest uses his gloved hand, the glove is to be burned or buried after the visit.

It is also not allowing any priest or deacon over 60 to perform this ministry as that age group is considered at higher risk for COVID-19.

Related:

Coronavirus: Springfield Diocese parishes face $1M loss with suspension of Masses

Coronavirus: Worshipers used to joining together in prayer, find themselves physically separated

Coronavirus spurs some faith communities to go digital in spirit as services are suspended
The third resident of an independent living facility in The Woodlands has died from the novel coronavirus according to Montgomery County Public Health officials and another resident has tested positive, bringing the total number at the facility to 14.

The Montgomery County logged nine new for cases Thursday, bringing the total number of COVID-19 cases to 119.

The latest death is reported to be a man in his 80s along with the other two deaths, a man in his 80s and a man in his 90s, were all residents of The Conservatory at Alden Bridge.

The independent living community remains under a shelter-in-place order issued last week by Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough.

According to the order, residents must shelter-in-place for the duration of the order. Those who leave the facility cannot return to the property until the order expires April 13.

Additionally, the order prohibits anyone from entering the property unless it is to provide food service, or are caregivers, medical professionals, law enforcement or someone assisting a resident in leaving under the order.

The Conservatory at Alden Bridge, at 6203 Alden Bridge Drive, offers apartment homes and services such as chauffeured transportation for scheduled trips to shopping, dining and medical appointments. The facility can house up to 237 residents and now has a capacity of about 200.

Public health officials also reported another case has made a full recovery bringing that number to 16. However, 17 people remain hospitalized with 83 residents in self-isolation.

Montgomery County remains under a stay-at-home order through April 30.

The case counts for Montgomery County communities are: The Woodlands, 27; Spring, 21; Montgomery, 20; Conroe, 21; Oak Ridge North, 8; Porter, 9; Shenandoah, 4; Magnolia, 3; Willis, 2; Hockley, one; Pinehurst, one; New Caney, one; and Splendora, one.

For a complete list of all confirmed new coronavirus cases in Montgomery County, visit mcphd-tx.org/coronavirus-covid-19/confirmed-cases.

cdominguez@hcnonline.com
Fauda is a number one Israeli television series developed by Lior Raz and Avi Issacharoff drawing on their experiences in the Israel Defense Forces. The series premiered on February 15, 2015. It tells the story of Doron, a commander in the Mista'arvim unit and his team as they pursue a Hamas arch-terrorist known as The Panther. The success of 1st and 2nd seasons have now given a huge expectation for the third season which will be premiered on Netflix on the 16th of April.



Fauda depicts the two-sided story of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Doron, a commander of undercover Israeli unit, the Israeli Special Forces, operating inside Palestinian territories, and his team, are hunting down Hamas terrorist Abu-Ahmed. On the other side of the fence, the life of Abu-Ahmed and his family, who has thus far murdered 143 Israelis, will never accept the State of Israel, and will continue Jihad for as long as it takes. The series was created by its lead role - Lior Raz and its screenwriter as both served in Israel's undercover unit in the Palestinian territories. Trailer of Faudas 3rd season:
JOHANNESBURG - Both the Islamic State group and al-Qaida see the coronavirus as a threat, but some of their fighters also see the upheaval from the pandemic as an opportunity to win over more supporters and strike harder than before.

Messages from the Islamic extremist groups show concern about the virus mixed with bravado, asserting that it is punishment for non-Muslims while also urging followers to repent and take care of themselves.

Al-Qaida suggested in a statement Tuesday that non-Muslims use their time in quarantine to learn about Islam. But in a sharp commentary in its al-Naba newsletter in mid-March, IS urged followers to show no mercy and launch attacks in this time of crisis.

In a commentary Tuesday, the International Crisis Group warned that the pandemic threatens the global solidarity that is key to fighting extremists, allowing the jihadists to better prepare spectacular terror attacks.

Though analysts said it was too soon to say which attacks can be blamed on militants exploiting the coronavirus, Islamic extremists in late March carried out their deadliest assault yet against the military of Chad, a significant contributor to Africas growing counterterrorism efforts, killing at least 92 soldiers near the border with Nigeria and Niger.

In Egypt, two military officials reported a spike in IS attacks in March in the restive northern part of the Sinai Peninsula. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

While Syria and Iraq have seen no uptick in attacks by IS since the virus spread there, the pandemic has prompted the U.S.-led coalition to halt training activities in Iraq amid a planned pullout from several bases.

There are signs elsewhere that the U.S., British and other militaries are pulling back because of the virus, leaving a possible opening for the extremists.

Thats a danger in Africas hot spots of the Sahel, the Lake Chad region and Somalia, where the U.S. military already worried allies in recent months by contemplating cuts to focus on threats from China and Russia.

Any state that was interested in pulling back in Africa will take the opportunity to do so, said Clionadh Raleigh, executive director of the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which tracks extremists activities worldwide. That will be unbelievably bad.

A U.S. Africa Command spokeswoman, Lt. Christina Gibson, told The Associated Press that while the size and scope of some AFRICOM activities have been adjusted to ensure the safety and protection of forces  both U.S. and partner nation  our commitment to Africa endures. She did not give details but said about 5,200 forces are on the continent.

The British army mission in Kenya, which provides counterterrorism training and other skills, this week announced that all army families are returning to the U.K. because of the virus.

But Frances largest overseas military mission, Barkhane in West Africas sprawling Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert, is keeping its 5,100 troops there, the French Defence Ministry said.

Four French soldiers with Barkhane have tested positive for the coronavirus, a spokesman said Thursday, adding that operations have not been affected. They were the first in the mission to be infected.

African military units, already stretched thin and under attack, are likely to take protective measures as the virus threatens their ranks.

In Nigeria, which has struggled against the Boko Haram extremist group and an assertive IS-linked offshoot, the military has called for suspending much of its activities including large gatherings and training.

A leaked memo signed by Nigerian armys policy chief says its vehicles might have to be used for mass burials or transferring the sick to hospitals.

While security forces are targets, under-guarded prisons could be too, said Laith Alkhouri, a counterterrorism adviser who researches extremists in West Africa. Both IS and al-Qaida-linked fighters have turned the Sahel into Africas most urgent extremism crisis, and even have engaged in some unprecedented co-operation.

Their fighters are likely to exploit the pandemic by accusing governments of mismanaging the crisis to try to win popular support, he said.

Some extremist groups are showing signs that, like the rest of the world, they are trying to understand the coronavirus and respond.

In Somalia, the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab held a rare five-day meeting of its leaders in March that discussed the virus. In a communique, the group recognized its emergency threat to the world, including Muslims.

An al-Shabab spokesman later told the AP it was too soon to comment on whether the group would heed a U.N. plea to halt attacks, which have continued, or whether it would allow health workers access to areas it controls.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban have gone even further, putting out videos on disinfection and photos of its fighters handing out face masks and soap. It also has offered security guarantees to any aid group assisting victims of the virus or helping to stop its spread.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed told the AP that if, God forbid, the outbreak happens in an area where we control the situation, then we can stop fighting in that area.

___

Kathy Gannon in Islamabad, Pakistan; Haruna Umar in Maiduguri, Nigeria; Sam Mednick in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso; Abdi Guled and Tom Odula in Nairobi, Kenya; Baba Ahmed in Bamako, Mali; Samy Magdy and Maamoun Youssef in Cairo; Samya Kullab in Baghdad and Sylvie Corbet and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed.

___

Follow AP news coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
TechnipFMC, a global leader in subsea, onshore/offshore, and surface projects with a major presence in the Middle East region, has announced plans to cut its planned capital expenditure for 2020 by 30 per cent to $300 million in response to current market conditions.

This is a reduction of $150 million when compared to the companys previous full-year guidance , said a statement from the company.

TechnipFMC asserted that it remains focused on taking all necessary steps to ensure the health and well-being of its employees, contractors and partners.

Apart from the 30 per cent capex cut, these other decisive actions eing taken in response to the current market environment include:

Over $100 million in annualised cost reductions for Surface Technologies 

primarily to address the sudden and sharp decline in North American activity.

Around $30 million in annualised cost reductions to corporate expenses - exit runrate savings to be achieved by year-end, with full recognition in 2021.

TechnipFMC continues to exhibit solid financial strength and liquidity. The cash and cash

equivalents totalled $5.2 billion at the end of 2019, of which $2.2 billion was available for company use outside joint ventures.

The UK-based group continues to leverage its global footprint, information technology infrastructure and diverse and talented workforce to ensure business continuity in the current environment, said the statement.

The company is also working in close cooperation with its clients to ensure the best project execution possible during this challenging period, it added.

TechnipFMC said its liquidity is further supported by a revolving credit facility of $2.5 billion.

In response to Covid-19 impacts, the group said it will move the location of its 2020 Annual General Meeting of shareholders to its offices at Dunfermline in Scotland, UK.-TradeArabia News Service
Algeria: president pardons 5,000 detainees, 'Hirak' excluded Measure for inmates serving less than 18 months, not opposition

(ANSAmed) - TUNIS, APRIL 2 - Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has pardoned 5,037 detainees, excluding however inmates who are waiting to be tried on charges of being members of anti-regime movement 'Hirak'.



The measure concerns detainees who have been sentenced by a court and who need to serve less than 18 months, according to a statement issued by the president's office, quoted by official news agency Aps. (ANSAmed)
Whether it is acknowledged or not, public education is directly influenced by the social, economic, and political events of the times in which we live. Because of the courage, commitment, and resilience of our citizens we know we can meet any challenge. Discussions are already underway in some communities about how to address the immense challenges created by COVID-19.

In this crisis, opportunity comes. All government functions and services can expect to be scrutinized and evaluatedincluding public education. When life moves so fast, it becomes hard to keep things in perspective. While we slowly adjust to what is now perceived as the new normal. We have time to envision how we can better increase efficiency, provide needed infrastructure, promote equity, and promote economic stability and growth. For educators, especially those on the frontlines, any change can have an immense consequence on every level of educationclassroom, school, district, state, and federal.

Contrary to popular belief, schools are not out of session for students. However, states and districts have been forced to find a different way to deliver public education. Policymakers and stakeholders have worked diligently to quickly sustain our children, continue to prepare them for success in an uncertain environment, and prepare children for an indeterminate future. The key ingredient is accessibility and convenience for parents, teachers, and students. For some districts, it means sending instructional packets and learning resources home, in others, it is digital or online learning.

States and districts that rapidly moved to online learning have discovered that is not without its unique challenges. Many students can lack the intrinsic motivation to do assigned classwork online, and for teachers, the in-person dynamic can be difficult to capture. Online learning does allow for the ability to personalize learning. Subject matter in textbooks, while not as interactive, are usually better scrutinized by experts and align closer with state standards. Teacher interaction is very critical in education, including providing direction, structure, motivation, and timelines.

Educators have been driven by health and safety reasons to work from their own homes. These dedicated, talented professionals are challenged daily by students with inadequate access to technology. Not every student has had access to technology, nor do our teachers. The technology divide is a real issue. However, even if schools were to provide technology devices or computers for all students, the use of technology and access to the internet will remain a challenge.

We must take the COVID-19 virus seriously. It has dispensed illness and death rapidly and has no known cure at this time. Also, the long-term effects could change how we live and how we educate children. There is an opportunity in every crisis. We just have to visualize what can and must be accomplished in a changing landscape. What does that look like?

Policymakers and stakeholders must commit to the foundational priorities and policies to assist students and schools. That begins by keeping our education workforce committed to the success of all learners, by maintaining a pipeline of well-trained, highly compensated educators who can flourish in the teaching profession. Our state must remain committed to success in literacy and prioritizing reading as a core value built around student success, educator quality, and parent support. We cannot back away from our support in keeping children safe and improve our funding for counselors and mental health treatment providers. Likewise, we have to ensure that our educators get the help they need to develop and implement instructional appropriate IEPs and that districts are maintained with sufficient staff to meet the needs of every child they serve.

The testing culture has killed the enthusiasm of many educators. Since 2012 Tennessee has had one misstep after another in testing, with notable exceptions. We understand testing and assessment have been waived by the state and federal government for 2020. At no point were any of the testing issues the fault of students or educators. We should pursue reliable standardized tests that provide accurate feedback for educators, parents, and students. However, when we make decisions based on unreliable or invalid test results, we place students at risk and harm educators professionally. This is especially unfair to the hardworking teachers in our state. Perhaps it is time we re-evaluate and have a public discourse over the cost of assessment and exactly what role and purpose we seek from high stakes testing and the results we seek as a society. Although we need testing to measure the progress of our students, we should recognize these tests are often unreliable in evaluating teachers and schools. No single test should be a determinant of a students, teachers or schools success.

During this time of reflection, we must also consider how we can modernize our school funding formula to reflect changing 21st century needs. We must have a plan and a funding formula that reflects our educational mission, priorities, and strategies. A formula that supports teachers, funds facilities, and facilitates innovation and technology, also a formula that looks to better connect K-12 education with workforce needs.

If we want all children from all backgrounds to succeed, we must give them the opportunities they deserve and we must build the system around them, rather than simply fitting children into a system. A rigid, inflexible public education system does not always pave a path for success in college, career, and life for every child. So, we should embrace some of the changes in our education landscape. We will defeat COVID-19. Tennessee will remain the best state in the nation for education and in turn, the best place to raise a family.

JC Bowman

Executive Director of Professional Educators of Tennessee
Rosdiana Abdul Rahim. (PHOTO: Yahoo News Singapore/Wan Ting Koh)

SINGAPORE  A woman accused of forcing her maid to strip and shower, and ripping the shirt she was wearing in front of family members including her husband, claimed trial to insulting the modesty of the Indonesian on Thursday (2 April).

These were not the only charges Rosdiana Abdul Rahim, 31, faced when her trial opened.

Testifying at the stand, the emotional 21-year-old victim told the court how Rosdiana had pinched her breast through her shirt and ripped it in front of her husband. The employer had told the maid that her breasts were small and that her husband would not be interested in seeing it.

Apart from insulting the modesty of the maid, Rosdiana, a 31-year-old Singaporean, faces six other abuse-related charges in 2017, including pulling the maids arm, pushing her into a shower, pulling her shirt and causing one of the buttons to loosen, and pulling the victims bra and causing one of the bra hooks to fall off.

In December the same year, Rosdiana allegedly ill-treated the maid by pouring powder onto her face, causing it to enter her eyes and cause her pain. She is also accused of inflicting violence on the maid by pinching her breast, kicking her twice in her vagina area, and closing the cupboard door on her forearm.

She is also said to have intimidated the maid by threatening to hurt her family in Indonesia should she dare to do anything, outside a hotel in Singapore. She is also accused of failing to grant the maid adequate rest daily - a contravention of the conditions she had to comply with as an employer of a domestic worker.

The maid, then 18, first arrived in Singapore for her first stint as a domestic worker in September 2017. She came to Singapore to change her life, she told the court through a Bahasa Indonesia interpreter.

The maid began working for Rosdiana, and stayed in a two-bedroom condominium with her employer, her employers husband and their five-year-old twin boy and girl.

On the first week of her job, the maid slept on a carpet in the childrens room. She was later instructed by Rosdiana to sleep at the corridor beside the toilet. The maid ended up sleeping under a cupboard without a pillow or blanket. The only cloth that she had brought to her from Indonesia was thrown away by Rosdiana, who claimed that it was smelly.

Story continues

According to the maid, Rosdiana also discarded the maids towel for the same reason, and told her that she smelled.

I said I bathed everyday but she didnt believe me, said the maid. This caused Rosdiana to force the maid to shower in front of her in November 2017.

The maid said her employer pushed her into the master bedroom bathroom while the bedroom and shower door remained ajar. There, Rosdiana allegedly sprayed water on the maid, who was then fully dressed, before asking her to strip.

Tearfully, the maid recalled that she complied while crying. Rosdiana then poured shampoo on her hair before turning on the shower. At one point, Rosdianas husband entered the bedroom and the maid tried to cover herself. However Rosdiana simply told her, No, my husband will not be interested.

The maid testified, I was afraid that she might threaten my family at home. After I finished bathing I wanted to change my clothes so when maam asked me how do I dry myself, I showed her with my hand.



Maam will not let me change my clothes in the (bathroom). I had to change my clothes outside the bathroom while the husband was just outside there in the living room, he was in a position where he was able to see, said the maid, who became emotional again.

I was feeling afraid. I was scared. I feel humiliated, said the maid, when asked how she felt.

She did not tell anyone about the incident then as she was ashamed. I thought I lost my own value or moral, she added.

Earlier that morning, Rosdiana had been angry with the maid, who had eaten a portion of maggi mee.

She wanted to humiliate me in front of everyone (and) she tried to rip open my clothes until some of the buttons were opened, said the maid, adding that other family members, including the grandmother, Rosdianas elder sister and the children watched without saying a thing.

Rosdiana then pulled on the maids bra from behind and under her blouse, causing a hook to fall off. The maid resisted by hunching over.

A few days later, before Rosdiana brought the family to Conrad Centennial hotel for an event, the employer had put baby powder all over the maids face, until my eyes were hurting, said the maid.

Rosdiana forbade the maid from removing the baby powder, and allegedly threatened her family, saying, If you remove powder on your face, your parents when you go back will not be there for you.

The maid believed that Rosdiana would harm her parents as the employer had once told her that her brother was married to someone from the same province in Indonesia.

The family of five stayed in the same hotel room for three days, where the maid was made to sleep on the floor in strong aircon without bedding or covering.

I tried to take the bath towel but maam did not allow me. Because it was so cold I wanted to use it, said the maid.

The day the family returned home, Rosdiana allegedly became infuriated after the maid failed to unpack the familys suitcase fast enough.

Ripped shirt in front of husband

She scolded me then she pull me to dining table and scolded me all the way. She ripped my clothes, at the time I was wearing a T-shirt, she pulled and ripped it. I tried to cover myself then she pinched my breast so I tried to cover my body.

The maid added that even though Rosdianas husband was present, she told the maid that her breast was small, and that the husband would not be interested.

Rosdiana then allegedly kicked the maid twice in her vagina area, nearly causing the maid to fall the second time.

I was crying. I stood up and she continued scolding me and at that time she asked me to change my clothes as we are going out again.

As the maid headed to the childrens room to change, Rosdiana followed her and banged the cupboard door on the maids forearm.

The maids ordeal only came to an end after Rosdianas husband dropped her off at an agency in December 2017. The agency later brought the maid to lodge a police report.

The trial continues on Thursday afternoon with the maid resuming her testimony.

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After much criticism, the Dutch government now wants to give a "gift" to other European countries that are grappling with the coronavirus outbreak, including Italy and Spain.

The coronavirus has hit Europe hard, bringing its major economies to a complete standstill. France, Germany, Italy and Spain  the four biggest EU economies  are all in lockdown, meaning that citizens are only allowed to leave their houses to buy food or medicine. The situation has been particularly dire in Italy and Spain where the number of infections and deaths are higher than those in China, where the outbreak began in late 2019.

The pandemic is also shaking the foundations of the European Union  the political and economic group of 27 countries  by resurfacing an old divides between northern and southern nations.

The Netherlands unveiled Wednesday a plan for a "coronafund," a common basket of cash filled with contributions from member states. "These are not loans or guarantees, but gifts to help people in need," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told lawmakers on Wednesday.

Tweet 1

The Dutch proposal comes after the country refused the idea of issuing joint European debt to mitigate the costs of the virus. The Dutch government wants to show solidarity with other EU nations, but it believes issuing joint debt is a step too far, which will take years to negotiate. Lawmakers in Germany and Austria have a similar opinion.

The Dutch position sparked anger across southern European nations, which are in favor of bolder moves to support all EU economies during the pandemic.
THE WANDERING HEARTS



Wild Silence (Decca)





Theres an appealing rawness to this debut. A male-female quartet with a folk-rock penchant, their harmonies will elicit comparisons with Fleetwood Mac, but the acoustic instrumentation looks more to country, with Fire And Water a lively hoedown and Burning Bridges a nostalgic ballad.


CHICAGO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As our nation faces the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, it's essential that everyone protect their health and reduce the spread of this serious lung infection with public health measures like thorough handwashing, cleaning surfaces and social distancing. In addition, the American Lung Association reminds everyone that an important step to immediately improve health and possibly avoid the most serious symptoms of this disease is to quit smoking and vaping.

"It's important to prevent getting COVID-19 in the first place, but it's also essential that we do all we can to keep our lungs healthy to avoid the worst effects of the disease," said American Lung Association Chief Medical Officer Albert Rizzo, M.D. "Smoking and vaping harms the lungs, leaving lung tissue inflamed, fragile and susceptible to infection. And tobacco use has been proven to harm our immune system and airway-lining cells that contain cilia on their surface, which are our essential defenders against viruses like the novel coronavirus. Without them working properly, the lungs may be left undefended against the virus and susceptible to the most severe complications of the infection."

Everyone is at risk for serious complications from COVID-19, and especially those who are more vulnerable, such as older adults or those with a chronic lung disease or immunocompromised. More recently, CDC has also identified smokers as a group of people at higher risk for severe illness if they contract the disease.

While more research into COVID-19 is needed, a recent study published by the New England Journal of Medicine found people who smoke were 2.4 times more likely to have severe symptoms from COVID-19 compared to those who did not smoke.

"We have long known that quitting smoking is the single best thing you can do for your health. And it's especially important now as quitting smoking and vaping can better equip your body to fight off this disease," Dr. Rizzo said. "As a physician, I know how hard it can be for many people to quit smoking. And it may take several quit attempts to be successful. Right now, as many people are sitting at home or even in quarantine, it may be the perfect opportunity to make that quit attempt."

Our communities might be isolated, but that doesn't mean you have to quit alone. For those who are ready to make a quit attempt, Dr. Rizzo recommends proven effective quit smoking methods through the American Lung Association, and offered the following tips:

Identify smoking or vaping triggers. Social distancing and working from home could provide the perfect opportunity to identify triggers and reshape responses, keeping someone trying to quit tobacco-free. If working from home or in social isolation, rearranging a living space - even moving furniture in the home - can help reset rituals to avoid that trigger.

Social distancing and working from home could provide the perfect opportunity to identify triggers and reshape responses, keeping someone trying to quit tobacco-free. If working from home or in social isolation, rearranging a living space - even moving furniture in the home - can help reset rituals to avoid that trigger. Get proven support. Make the most of a quit attempt with proven effective quit smoking or vaping resources. Join Freedom From Smoking quit smoking program or call the Lung HelpLine (1-800-LUNGUSA), and tobacco cessation counselors will offer personalized counseling support to walk those looking to quit through the step-by-step process of effective tobacco cessation methods.

Make the most of a quit attempt with proven effective quit smoking or vaping resources. Join Freedom From Smoking quit smoking program or call the Lung HelpLine (1-800-LUNGUSA), and tobacco cessation counselors will offer personalized counseling support to walk those looking to quit through the step-by-step process of effective tobacco cessation methods. Stay connected. While communities may be in social isolation, when it comes to getting support for quit smoking no one is alone. Join our online support community for support to quit for good.

Learn more about COVID-19 at Lung.org/covid19 and more information about quit smoking may be found at Lung.org/quit-smoking.

Media seeking to schedule an interview with Dr. Rizzo or other lung health policy and medical experts about COVID-19 and quit smoking or vaping may contact Stephanie Goldina at the American Lung Association at [email protected] or 312-801-7629.

About the American Lung Association

The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease through education, advocacy and research. The work of the American Lung Association is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer; to champion clean air for all; to improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families; and to create a tobacco-free future. For more information about the American Lung Association, a holder of the coveted 4-star rating from Charity Navigator and a Gold-Level GuideStar Member, or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNGUSA (1-800-586-4872) or visit: Lung.org.

SOURCE American Lung Association

Related Links

www.lung.org


National cabinet will consider putting commercial landlords on the $130 billion JobKeeper scheme as it looks to ward off a collapse in commercial real estate in shopping centres and offices around the country.

The effective ban on all non-essential activities triggered by the coronavirus crisis has seen customer numbers plummet at almost all retailers outside supermarkets and pharmacies, forcing dozens of chains to lay off thousands of staff and shutter stores.

Vicinity's Chadstone mall before the pandemic. Credit:

Top retailers such as Solomon Lew's Premier Investments are now refusing to pay rent on shops around the country leading to warnings of a domino effect across the economy.

Property lawyer Kitty Vo, a partner at Hall & Wilcox, said the coronavirus was having a huge impact on both tenants and landlords.
The alleged attack on an ASHA worker by the members of a minority community in Bengaluru on Wednesday evening has highlighted the plight of frontline health workers across Karnataka fighting the COVID-19 epidemic. But, what is even more worrying is the lack of support from the Health and Family Welfare Department to its frontline staffers as none from the department rushed to the help of Krishnaveni, the ASHA worker who was allegedly assaulted by people while at work even though the incident was brought to the notice of the police on Wednesday evening.

Follow live updates of coronavirus here

While the Health and Family Welfare Minister B Sriramulu chose to just tweet about the incident after media threw light on the incident, none from the departments visited the health worker who was publicly attacked while on duty. When Krishnaveni's video was viewed and retweeted hundreds of times, Health Commissioner Pankaj Kumar Pandey was questioned about the attack. He nonchalantly asked questions about the attack to be directed to Sriramulu since he had tweeted the video.

When asked further Pandey said, "Let me check, if it is true, we will lodge a case and take strict action against culprits." On the other hand, Health department Director Dr Omprakash Patil said he was not even aware of the incident. "I was busy in other things. I am yet to collect details about the incident. I don't know her name or which area she worked in," he said.

Track state-wise confirmed coronavirus cases here

However, Deputy Chief Minister Dr Ashwath Narayana who visited the ASHA worker at her home and expressed support on behalf of the government said, "Health workers went for surveillance work in Sadiq Nagar. During that time the mosque authorities made an announcement instigating the residents of Sadiq Nagar to surround those health workers. They were physically manhandled by the mob on the instructions of mosque authorities. The ASHA workers were only carrying out surveillance in the area since a domestic maid in the locality had tested positive for COVID-19. These types of incidents would only demoralise the health workers who have been working hard to fight the COVID-19 and yet no case has been registered until now. I have directed the police to immediately register a case and arrest the people responsible for instigation and those who have manhandled the health workers. They should be taught a lesson."

Health Minister Sriramulu tweeted, "Caste, creed and religion are not important here. Your personal interest is not important. The health of Indians and Kannadigas is important. In Sadiq Palya, in Bengaluru, some miscreants attacked a nurse. This is a heinous act. We will take legal action against them."

Another message posted by the minister read, "Doctors, nurses, ASHA workers, who come to your doorstep and are working day and night in this time of distress, are equal to God. Treat them with respect. If they are assaulted, we will not sit idly. Beware!"
Dollar symbol and Canadian flag on keyboard

One of the most interesting parts of a market crash is when investors send shares of just about every company lower. Its then up to the enterprising investor to determine where the best bargains are and invest accordingly.

This market crash is no different. Certain companies have seen their stock prices fall dramatically, even though their overall outlook hasnt changed all that much. Sure, high unemployment and a struggling economy will hurt every company. But some are more likely to get though this storm relatively unaffected.

Despite this, these companies stock prices have barely outperformed the overall market. It just doesnt make sense to me.

Here are three Canadian stocks that have been severely impacted by this market crash  names that look poised to perform pretty well during these tumultuous times.

Rogers Sugar

Although sugar might not be as valuable as toilet paper right now, my local grocer reports sales of the normally steady-selling sweetener have shot through the roof lately. They can barely keep it on the shelf.

Despite this, Rogers Sugar (TSX:RSI) shares havent done terribly well over the last month. The companys shares have outperformed the overall market, but theyre still down approximately 15%.

It goes further than just demand for the product on grocery store shelves. Folks are loading up on products that have sugar in them, the kinds of processed foods thatll last a few months in the pantry. Quarantine isolationists are making sure they have plenty of delicious snacks handy  something thatll also help boost Rogerss bottom line.

And then, when life returns to normal, so will the companys business. In other words, I dont predict too much of a drop-off for this stock.

This is all good news for the companys succulent 8.3% dividend  a payout that sure looks to be sustainable. Youll still get paid to wait during this market crash.

Molson Coors

Over the past few years, Molson Coors (TSX:TPX.B)(NYSE:TAP) has been plagued by a high debt load, weaker-than-expected sales, and a general decline in beer consumption. The international company would generally post decent results from Europe, but sales in North America would continually come up a little short of expectations.

Story continues

That trend has definitely reversed itself, at least temporarily. Beer sales in the United States shot up 42% in the month ending March 21 and have likely done even better since. Remember, people could still go out to many places a week and a half ago. Theyre forced to drink at home today, with many turning to alcohol to help ease the discomfort of being alone.

Despite this significant trend, Molson Coors shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange are still down approximately 20% over the last month. The stock is cheap on a price-to-book value and price-to-free cash flow perspective, and shares yield a robust 5.4% after the company recently hiked its dividend by 39%.

Northwest Healthcare

Northwest Healthcare Properties REIT (TSX:NWH.UN) has been crushed by the market crash, with shares falling approximately 30% compared to its 52-week high, which was set back in February. Its portfolio includes medical office buildings, clinics, hospitals, long-term care facilities, and retirement residences in Canada, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.

Most of these assets will get through this crisis just fine. Theres the risk of many older folks succumbing to COVID-19, but I remain optimistic that steps taken today will be enough to save most seniors. And as morbid as it sounds, much of the medical industry is booming today. This busyness will be good for the REITs bottom line.

In the meantime, investors who think the stock will ultimately recover can lock in a great entry point. The market crash has pushed shares down to the $8 range  a level that comes with a 9.2% dividend yield. Thats an excellent payout that should be sustainable once the world returns back to normal.

The bottom line

Todays market crash has unfairly decimated a lot of stocks. I believe Rogers Sugar, Molson Coors, and Northwest Healthcare Properties REIT are three stocks that deserve a better fate. These stocks offer excellent upside potential once the market returns to normal.

The post Market Crash 2020: Why Are These Canadian Stocks Down So Much? appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Fool contributor Nelson Smith owns shares of MOLSON COORS CANADA INC., CL.B, NV, ROGERS SUGAR, and NORTHWEST HEALTHCARE PPTYS REIT UNITS. The Motley Fool recommends NORTHWEST HEALTHCARE PPTYS REIT UNITS.

The Motley Fools purpose is to help the world invest, better. Click here now for your free subscription to Take Stock, The Motley Fool Canadas free investing newsletter. Packed with stock ideas and investing advice, it is essential reading for anyone looking to build and grow their wealth in the years ahead. Motley Fool Canada 2020
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 14:34:24|Editor: huaxia

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HANGZHOU, April 2 (Xinhua) -- East China's Hangzhou city debuted a new international cargo air route from Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhajiang Province to Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia.

The new flight, which took off on Tuesday, carried medical supplies donated by the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation, and packages from online stores mainly consisting of necessity supplies such as garments and face masks.

The flight is the province's first cargo air route to Kuala Lumpur, said Tao Lixin, general manager with Hangzhou International Airport Aviation Logistics Co., Ltd.

It aims at facilitating the business and trading interaction between the province and Southeast Asia, Tao added.
Pitching for efforts on a war footing to identify and isolate COVID-19 hotspots, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hinted at a "staggered" exit from the ongoing lockdown after the 21-day period ends on April 14 while the nationwide tally of confirmed cases of the deadly virus infection rose by more than 500 to cross 2,500 with at least 76 deaths.

With a huge congregation of Tablighi Jamaat in the national capital's Nizamuddin area last month emerging as the biggest hotspot of the coronavirus outbreak, authorities said nearly 9,000 people -- members of the Jamaat and their primary contacts -- have been identified and quarantined across the country. This includes, 1,306 foreigners associated with the Jamaat.

The figures announced by various states, including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Telangana, showed at least 556 positive cases getting detected on Thursday itself -- taking the total to 2,507. At least 17 more deaths were reported too during the day.

A majority of the new cases are linked to the congregation, officials said.

The Union Home Ministry put its consolidated nationwide tally at 53 deaths and 2,069 confirmed cases of infection, including 55 foreign nationals, as on 1800 hours.

In the total tally, about 400 COVID-19 positive cases have been found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster, said the Union Health Ministry, but it asserted there was no evidence to widespread community transmission and 20 existing and 22 potential hotspots have been identified across the country.

A Home Ministry official said while 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat members and their primary contacts have been quarantined till now across the country due to "massive efforts" to check the outbreak, the Centre has written to all states and union territories that "the lockdown measures should be implemented in letter and spirit".

Prime Minister Modi, who will share a video message with people on Friday morning, in the meantime interacted with chief ministers through a video conference and told them to focus on COVID-19 containment measures -- testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine -- and said it was imperative to work on a war footing, identify hotspots, encircle them and ensure that the infection does not spread out.

According to an official statement, Modi also pitched for formulating a common exit strategy to ensure "staggered re-emergence of the population" once the 21-day nationwide lockdown ends on April 14.

Health Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said the prime minister has urged states to manage the coronavirus crisis at the district level.

In the meantime, sporadic attacks on doctors, social workers and police personnel also came to the fore raising concerns over their safety and prompting warnings by authorities.

Seven persons were arrested for the alleged attack on health workers in Madhya Pradesh's Indore city, who had gone there to quarantine relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient but were attacked with stones by an unruly mob leaving two women doctors injured. A video of the attack went viral on social media.

Authorities also continued to take action against those violating the lockdown, which entered its ninth day on Thursday.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla wrote to all chief secretaries of the states and union territories to take action against those violating the lockdown or making false claims under the Indian Penal Code and the Disaster Management Act.

Bhalla said those violating these laws can be punished with jail term of up to two years and fine.

However, hopes of the lockdown getting removed, at least partially, after its 21-day period rose further after Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said airlines are free to allow ticket booking for flights after April 14. He also said resumption of international flights will be considered on a case-by-case basis, depending on which countries they are coming from, after the 21-day lockdown ends.

Separately, Air India also said it has got approvals from Indian and Chinese authorities to operate cargo flights to Shanghai and Hong Kong to get medical supplies.

At the same time, several states including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala reported significant rise in the number of positive cases.

In Maharashtra, at least 81 more tested positive during the day, taking its tally to 416, while two more patients succumbed to the infection increasing the toll to 19.

The death of a COVID-19 patient from Mumbai's Dharavi, one of the biggest slums in Asia, sparked fear of its spread in the highly congested area. The Union Health Ministry said contact tracing and testing as per protocol is being conducted in the area. Several small-scale industries and workshops of leather goods, pottery and textiles operate from the slum colony spread over 613 acres.

Officials in the state also said around 1,400 persons from Maharashtra attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi and 1,300 of them have been traced. Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar said no social events including religious congregations would be allowed in the state.

The state was also allowed by the Centre to roll out rapid COVID-19 testing on mass scale.

In Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said there are 208 COVID-19 patients in the national capital, of which 108 were evacuated from the Nizamuddin Markaz (centre) of the Tablighi Jamaat.

He said two people who had attended the congregation died due to COVID-19 on Thursday and cautioned that the number of positive cases may shoot up in the national capital in coming days.

Later in the night, the Delhi Health Department said the number of coronavirus cases has reached 293, after with 141 fresh cases and two deaths reported in a day. Of the total confirmed infectiions, 182 people took part in the religious congregation in the Nizamuddin area last month. At least four persons have died of COVID-19 in the national capital so far.

The Health Ministry said domestic indigenous manufacturing of N-95 masks has been stepped up, while orders have been placed for over 1.5 crore personal protective equipment (PPEs) and supply has begun too.

The main opposition party Congress, however, demanded that the government should immediately appoint an economic task force to suggest short and medium term plans to protect and revive economy.

It also demanded a financial assistance plan to reassure those affected due to lockdown.

Madhya Pradesh and Telananga also announced their tallies increasing to 107 and 154, respectively, while fresh cases were reported by Jharkhand and Bihar later in the night.

Among those who tested positive on Thursday, there were some doctors and at least one airline crew member.

Globally, more than 9,44,000 people have tested positive since the deadly virus outbreak in China in December 2019, while nearly 48,000 have lost their lives.

World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said there had been a "near exponential growth" in new cases over the past five weeks and a doubling of deaths in the past week alone.

"In the next few days we will reach one million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths," he said, while asking Africa and Latin America to be ready for a wider impact.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi, April 2 : The Delhi Commission for Women on Thursday has sought response from the Delhi Police regarding inhuman conditions in the brothels at GB Road.

The commission took suo moto cognisance of the inhuman conditions and stated that there is an acute shortage of food as well as personal hygiene material in these brothels. Further, these brothels are very small enclosed spaces where over two thousand women and children currently reside.

This is a very serious matter wherein lives of thousands of women are at stake. As such, the threat of spread of a pandemic becomes much worse in such confined spaces. Therefore it is imperative that adequate steps are taken in this regard urgently.

The commission has asked the police to state the steps taken to enforce lockdown and social distancing measures in the area and the status of availability of food and personal hygiene materials in the area and details of steps taken to ensure the same.

The commission has asked the Delhi Police to submit its report by April 6.
Two men have been arrested in northeast Delhi's Seelampur area for allegedly hoarding masks and sanitizers meant for public use to prevent the spread of COVID-19, police said on Thursday.

The accused were identified as Jagan Nath and Iqbal Javed, both residents of Seelampur, they said.

"The arrest was made after they were found hoarding masks and sanitizers meant for use by public for prevention of the COVID-19 pandemic," said Ved Prakash Surya, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Northeast).

The Executive Magistrate, Seelampur, along with his medical team conducted raids at two medical stores situated in Gautampuri, Seelampur and at main Seelampur Market and recovered masks and sanitizers found illegally hoarded, he said.

In another incident, on March 23, police along with district administration authorities conducted raids in Shahdara's Anand Vihar area.

Six thermometers, 1,09,000 gloves and 64,878 packets of masks were recovered during the raids, said Dinesh Kumar Gupta, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara).

A First Information Report was registered in this regard under sections of the Essential Commodities Act and the accused Sachin Grover, a resident of Shanti Vihar, was held, police said.

The number of coronavirus cases went up to nearly 300 in the national capital on Thursday, with 141 fresh cases and two deaths reported in a day, according to the Delhi Health Department.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Thursday discussed the coronavirus outbreak in the region with SAARC Secretary General Esala Ruwan Weerakoon and expressed willingness to host a health ministers meeting to tackle the health emergency.

In a telephone conversation, Qureshi and Weerakoon discussed the challenges being faced by South Asian states in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Foreign Office said.

"The need for joint efforts to deal with the situation was emphasised by both sides," according to the FO.

Qureshi said Pakistan, being a founding member, was committed to the SAARC process and considered it an important platform for regional cooperation.

The minister reiterated Pakistan's willingness to host a SAARC health ministers' meeting and suggested that due to the prevailing global health emergency a video conference could be organised. The SAARC secretary general appreciated Pakistan's proposal.

The foreign minister said the proposed SAARC COVID-19 Emergency Fund should be under the supervision of the body's secretary general and that modalities for the fund's utilisation be finalised through consultation among member-states.

Qureshi highlighted Prime Minister Imran Khan's call for debt restructuring of developing countries to help them route resources towards saving human lives in view of the economic impact of COVID-19.

Qureshi reiterated Pakistan's willingness to work closely with the SAARC secretariat and SAARC member states to realise the common goal of accelerating economic growth and promoting the welfare of the people of South Asia.

Congratulating Weerakoon on assuming responsibilities as the 14th secretary general of SAARC, the foreign minister assured him of Pakistan's full support and expressed the hope that under his stewardship, the SAARC process would be able to move forward.

In a video conference on forming a joint strategy to fight COVID-19 in the SAARC region, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 15 proposed the emergency fund with an initial offer of USD 10 million from India and asserted that the best way to deal with the coronavirus pandemic was by coming together, and not growing apart.

Subsequently, Nepal and Afghanistan pledged USD 1 million each, Maldives committed USD 200,000, Bhutan USD 100,000 and Bangladesh pledged USD 1.5 million to the fund. Sri Lanka on Monday pledged to contribute USD 5 million to the fund.

Pakistan is now the only country left to declare its contribution to the fund.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Now, the 38-year-old Pirate Party member is a symbol of the skepticism Beijing will have to overcome as it rushes to aid a Europe ravaged by a pandemic that began on Chinese soil. The Czech Republic was among numerous European countries to receive virus test kits and other medical supplies from China in recent weeks.



This isnt a humanitarian gift or aid, Hrib told Bloomberg News in a statement Friday. From Chinas perspective, its business.



Such sentiments are hardly surprising from Hrib, who flew the Tibetan flag over city hall March 10 to commemorate the anniversary of the regions failed 1959 revolt against Communist Party rule. The defiant move -- a throwback to late President Vaclav Havels support for the Dalai Lama -- came at a sensitive time for Beijing just as the coronavirus was prompting its first lockdowns in Europe.



The pandemic has shaken up Chinas diplomatic efforts on the continent, which has been a major focus of President Xi Jinpings Belt and Road plan to recreate ancient trade routes across Asia. In recent weeks, Xis government -- confident that the coronavirus is under control at home -- has sent supplies and disease experts to Europe, where the disease as killed more than 20,000.



Many such as the Czech Republics China-friendly president, Milos Zeman, have gladly accepted the support. Hrib represents another strain of Czech and European politics thats skeptical of Beijings promises and its strategic aims.



I would really like us to be a country that wouldnt steer away from the tradition of human rights, Hrib told Bloomberg in a previous interview last year. A country that would not turn away from victims of injustice, but one that offers a helping hand.

Hribs moves have prompted angry protests by China and the Shanghai municipal government severed economic ties with Prague after he entered a partnership with the Taiwanese capital, Taipei. If Prague keeps challenging China on Taiwan, Xinjiang or Tibet issues, the Chinese government will continue to respond with firm countermeasures, said Shi Yinhong, an adviser to Chinas cabinet and also a professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing.

The Czech Republic, faced with the coronavirus challenge, took an opportunistic turn by seeking aid from China while its traditional European allies are unable even to fend for themselves, Shi said. China, which is aiming to project its victory overseas, enforced the narrative by offering help.

Czechs critical of Beijings coronavirus support have highlighted problems with some 300,000 quick tests purchased from China, which health authorities said only worked if patients had been infected for at least five days, while about one-third were defective. China has said that inaccurate results can be caused by user error and cautioned against politicizing any issues with faulty equipment.



This is China fulfilling its role as a responsible major country and the Chinese people making kind and selfless contribution to the global response, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Tuesday in response a question about whether Beijing was using its assistance to sway public opinion. I believe that such efforts are worthy of respect, not disparagement.



Before Hrib took over in 2018 -- his first elected post -- Pragues position toward China had been aligned with the countrys official diplomatic stance, focused on economic ties. Two years earlier, Czech police suppressed peaceful protests and forced people to remove Tibetan flags from their homes during a visit by Xi.



Bilateral relations between China and the Czechs reached a pinnacle in 2015, when Zeman joined Xi at a military parade in Beijing to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II. Zeman was the only EU head of state in attendance.



Hrib, the Pirate Partys former health policy expert, developed a fondness for democratically run Taiwan when he spent two months there as a medical student in 2005. A certificate of honorary citizenship to Taipei hangs on his office wall. While his views resonate with a much of Pragues liberal population, it contradicts the Czech Republics one China foreign policy.



The Chinese Foreign Ministry said in October that the Prague city government had since 2018 repeatedly made erroneous moves and inappropriate remarks on major issues concerning Chinas core interests such as topics regarding Taiwan and Tibet.



Tensions between Prague and the Chinese government came to a head in January 2019, when the Chinese ambassador, Zhang Jianmin, demanded that a representative of Taiwan be expelled from a reception hosted by Hrib.



I refused, and I told him that here we dont throw out guests we invited, Hrib said. So the ambassador rushed out himself.



Bloomberg
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 12:36:34|Editor: huaxia

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TOKYO, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks fell Thursday morning on concerns the U.S. shutdown could last longer than expected and severely hurt the economy, with concerns rising Japan's healthcare system could buckle if spikes in COVID-19 infections continue in urban areas.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 154.34 points, or 0.85 percent, from Wednesday to 17,911.07.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, lost 15.39 points, or 1.14 percent, at 1,335.69.

Air transportation, consumer credit and metal product-oriented issues comprised those that declined the most by the morning break.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:00:47|Editor: huaxia

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VIENTIANE, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Lao Asia Pacific Satellite (LAOSAT), a joint venture between China and Laos, has donated 100 million kip (some 11,000 U.S. dollars) to the Lao government to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

Somdy Douangdy, Lao deputy prime minister and chair of the Task Force Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control, expressed gratitude for the donation on Wednesday, and said the Lao government will make full use of the donated resources to fight the pandemic.

"China and Laos are a community with a shared future. I am grateful to Chinese government for sending anti-epidemic medical expert teams and medical supplies to Laos when the COVID-19 was detected in Laos," Somdy added.

Laos has confirmed 10 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday morning.
Border Force officers have been pictured wearing face masks to intercept migrants trying to cross the English channel - a day after they were seen without any protective gear.

Around 24 migrants, including at least one minor, have been picked up off the Kent coast today, according to reports.

It is believed two rigid-hulled inflatable boats, each carrying 12 people, were intercepted by Border Force near Dover.

Border Force employees are 'key workers' allowed to continue doing their jobs throughout the coronavirus outbreak, which has already killed 2,357 in Britain.

But after pictures showed them failing to prevent the spread of the virus yesterday, they have finally taken the necessary measures.

Another worker wearing protective gear searches a migrant after being intercepted in Dover

A Border Force officer processes a migrant trying to cross the Channel wearing a face mask

Border Force officials are pictured without masks processing migrants at Dover yesterday morning after picking a group up off the coast at Folkestone, Kent

Staff were also pictured not following the Government's social distancing rules on Wednesday

The rescue operation is being carried out by three Border Force vessels, including Vigilant and Hunter, along with Dover Lifeboat.

The mission has been going on since around 4.30am today, and it is thought at least one more boat is currently trying to cross from France - but has not yet reached British waters.

Despite instructions from the Government to maintain social distancing measures for those still going to work, officials in high-visibility jackets were seen crowded together yesterday after picking up a group of migrants off the coast at Folkestone.

Wednesday's operation saw 11 Iranian, Syrian and Afghan men picked up off Dungeness, with the total number of migrants who have made it to Britain this year now at 467.

The rescue operation saw 24 intercepted today, with 467 making it to Britain this year in total

Last week a staggering 169 migrants tried to cross the Channel to the UK - with 95 arriving in the UK and the rest stopped by French officials.

In February, a record 102 completed the perilous trip across the Dover Strait, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, following a year where some 1,900 reached British land.

Dover and Deal MP Natalie Elphicke said: 'It's vital the Home Office and the French authorities take immediate action to stop these illegal crossings.

Dover and Deal MP Natalie Elphicke called for illegal migrants to be quarantined for 14 days

'If people break into the country illegally, whether by small boats or lorries, they should be immediately quarantined for 14 days for the protection of our community and our country.

'Our area is a key part of the vital supply line of food, medicine and goods, which is why I've been clear that illegal migrants picked up at sea must be taken to other smaller ports.

'Now more than ever, we need to put a stop to these illegal crossings. We need to protect the nation  and be fully focused on beating the virus at this time.'
Returning from Germany amid COVID-19 outbreak, Huynh Luu Duc Toan was placed in quarantine at the Khanh Hoa Military School. During that time, he published research about the epidemic in a prestigious science journal.

Huynh Luu Duc Toan, 30, a lecturer at the Banking Faculty of the HCM City Economics University, is now a postgraduate in behavioral economics at Otto Beisheim School of Management in Germany.

Huynh Luu Duc Toan





As the pandemic broke out, Toan decided to return to Vietnam.



After getting a negative test for the first time, Toan was transferred to Khanh Hoa Military School for quarantine.



Toan carried out research on Vietnamese peoples awareness about Covid-19 and published his findings in Economics Bulletin, an open science journal, founded in 2001 by Myrna Wooders, a Canadian economist. Its editor-in-chief is Professor John P. Conley from Vanderbilt University.

Toan carried out research on Vietnamese peoples awareness about Covid-19 and published his findings in Economics Bulletin, an open science journal, founded in 2001 by Myrna Wooders, a Canadian economist. Its editor-in-chief is Professor John P. Conley from Vanderbilt University.

Toan believes the awareness of risks will determine peoples behavior.



He carried out the research in the quarantine zone and selected samples randomly online. The survey was conducted on people aged from 15 to 47.



For Toan, computer and internet access are enough for him to work everywhere.



The researcher found two things. First, a relation between geographical positions and awareness of risks. The people in southern region had higher awareness than in other regions.



Second, use of social networks and fake news affects the awareness of risk.



The quarantine area was relatively quiet in the beginning. There were only four people in the area during the first days. The airy space allowed Toan to concentrate on the research.



Toan sent his work to Economics Bulletin. Receiving the news that the research had been published, Toan was happy he could do a small thing to contribute to the fight against Covid-19.



A small butterfly on the West Coast can create a storm on the East Coast. I just hope everyone in my position can be a small butterfly to inspire the power to blow away Covid-19, he said.



Vietnam has been doing well in its fight against coronavirus. Toan still wants the international media to pay attention to data from Vietnam.



According to Toan, people's awareness of official information is only ranked 5/10. Therefore, the role of the press and official information in this period is extremely important. The information needs to be condensed but sufficient, he said.

Le Ha

PM signs decision to officially declare nationwide COVID-19 pandemic Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on April 1 signed a decision to officially declare a nationwide pandemic.
Trump Warns Iran Of 'Heavy Price' If U.S. Attacked In Iraq

By RFE/RL April 01, 2020

President Donald Trump has warned Iran of a "heavy price" if it or its allies in Iraq attack U.S. troops or assets in Iraq.

"Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq," Trump tweeted on April 1.

"If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!" he added.

It was not immediately clear if Trump meant the United States actually has intelligence of such a plan.

Over the past year, the United States has accused Iranian-backed militias of attacks on Iraqi military bases hosting coalition forces and on foreign embassies, particularly the U.S. mission.

Hours before Trump's tweet, a top military aide to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei cautioned the United States of consequences of "provocative actions" in Iraq.

"Any U.S. action will mark an even larger strategic failure in the current president's record," General Yahya Rahim Safavi said, according to the semiofficial news agency Tasnim.

On March 11, a rocket attack on an Iraqi base killed two U.S. troops and one British soldier, heightening tensions in the region.

No one claimed responsibility for the attack, which was followed by deadly U.S. air strikes on the pro-Iranian Kataib Hezbollah militia group.

Tehran warned Trump against taking "dangerous actions."

In December, Washington blamed Kataib Hezbollah for a strike that killed a U.S. contractor and triggered a round of violence that led Trump to order the killing of a top Iranian general, Qasem Soleimani, in a drone strike in Baghdad the following month.

In retaliation, an Iranian ballistic-missile strike on an Iraqi air base left some 110 U.S. troops suffering from traumatic brain injuries.

With reporting by Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-warns- iran-of-heavy-price-if-u-s-attacked- in-iraq/30523909.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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The Jammu and Kashmir National Panthers Party (JKNPP) on Thursday described the newly enacted domicile law as "an obnoxious piece of superimposed legislation" and accused the BJP government at the Centre of having betrayed the trust of the people.

"By throwing open the J&K employment avenues, except a part of Class-IV jobs, to the outside states, the BJP-led government has caused the greatest disappointment to the educated unemployed. They have betrayed the trust of J-K people," JKNPP chairman Harsh Dev Singh told reporters here.

Singh staged a dharna against the domicile law and demanded its revocation.

Nearly eight months after withdrawal of Jammu and Kashmir's special status, the central government on Wednesday laid down rules for domicile which can now be given to anyone who has resided in the Union Territory for 15 years.

The Centre amended the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Decentralisation and Recruitment) in which a clause for domicile category was introduced under which jobs up to Group-4 in the government were protected.

Under the new law, anyone who has resided for 15 years in Jammu and Kashmir or has studied for seven years and appeared in Class 10 and Class 12 examinations in an educational institution located in the Union Territory is a domicile.

Questioning the changes, Singh said, "If the government had to issue such an obnoxious order, then why did it wait for around eight months? And why did it suspend the entire recruitment process in the new UT for so long?"



"The BJP government has crushed the sentiments of the J-K youth and trampled upon their aspirations...The youth have been belittled and betrayed, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A doctor has returned to work after suffering with coronavirus - but warned his intensive care unit is over capacity.

Dr David Hepburn described being wiped out by the killer virus and sleeping for 18 hours a day in a video posted last week.

But the intensive care consultant has now returned to work at Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport, South Wales and warned that the intensive care unit is already over capacity.

He said: 'It's great to be back, it's great to feel better. I'm really pleased to be able to treat patients again.

'It looks like we're going to have a very busy few months at the minute.

'We've got over 16 patients in intensive care, our normal capacity would be 13 ventilated patients.

'We've gone into the operating theatres now so we've got another three ventilated patients there.'

Dr David Hepburn has returned to the frontline at Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport, South Wales after being struck down by the virus and then recovering

Dr David Hepburn had been struck down by the virus earlier on in the pandemic, saying it had 'started off very innocuously' with symptoms including a 'burning sensation in my nose' and losing the sense of taste.

'I never had a cough - and then I've just had a week of feeling absolutely terrible.

'Aching muscles, aching bones, and unable to get out of bed. Sleeping 16-18 hours a day.

Last week Dr Hepburn pleaded with the British public to follow the government's self-isolation and social-distancing advice.

But the consultant has warned that Royal Gwent's intensive care unit is already over capacity, with some patients being moved into operating theatres

He said: 'This is a small sacrifice for a short period of time and then life will get back to normal again but we have to protect everybody and we have to protect the NHS.'

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board has seen the highest rate of Covid-19 infections in the UK outside of London.

First Minister Mark Drakeford told how a medic at the hospital had spread the virus unknowingly between staff leading to several infections.

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board has seen the highest rate of Covid-19 infections in the UK outside of London. Pictured: A patient is lifted into an ambulance by paramedics in Euston, London

Public Health Wales today confirmed that 19 more people in Wales have died after testing positive for coronavirus, taking the total number to 117.

Incident director Robin Howe there were 284 confirmed new cases, bringing the total number for Wales to 2,121.

Earlier this week it was reported that doctors and nurses were being 'gagged' and could face the sack if they spoke out over conditions on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic.

Members of the GMB Union, as well as Doctors' Association UK have warned NHS staff 'should not be gagged' after reports were published of staff being ordered not to speak to the media over concerns about personal protective equipment.

The British Medical Association says staff face 'life-threatening shortages' of protective equipment as they work with Covid-19 patients round the clock.

Some doctors have described how kit is being 'hidden' by desperate staff, while others have described how they feel as though it is 'inevitable' they will get sick.

GMB organiser Helen OConnor said: 'It is scandalous that hospital staff who are speaking out publicly because government and NHS trusts are failing them and patients will now be lined up to be sacked by ruthless NHS bosses, who do not want failings in their leadership to be exposed.'
The decision was delivered to the Lao and Cambodian Embassies in Vietnam.

Vietnam wishes to receive cooperation of the two neighbouring countries governments. It will continue to coordinate closely with countries in the region and around the world to early control the pandemic.

Amid COVID-19 impacts, countries and territories around the globe have implemented many strong measures to fight against the pandemic. ASEAN member nations have restricted entry and exit activities at different levels.

Cambodia on March 20 announced the suspension of activities at the countrys border gates with Vietnam from March 30 to April 19, while Laos suspended individuals entry at all international border gates across the country from March 30 to April 19.

Previously, the Lao government also ordered the temporary closure of 10 border gates with its neighbouring countries, including Vietnam, from March 19 to April 20, amid the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus in the world.
By Express News Service

KOLKATA: The Calcutta High Court has directed the West Bengal Police on Thurday to return a seized mobile phone and a sim card of a doctor posted in North Bengal Medical College and Hospital.

Indranil Khan, an oncologist, moved the court on Wednesday alleging harassment by police after an FIR was filed against him for some of his Facebook and Twitter posts at Mahestala police station in South 24 Parganas district.

He also alleged that the police interrogated him for 16 hours.

The doctor had made some social media posts highlighting the alleged shortage of protective gear for those treating coronavirus patients and suspects.

Khan, in his Twitter handle, uploaded photographs on March 29 and described how doctors are being asked to wear raincoat and use substandard masks.

The doctor was charged under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for allegedly causing disharmony and feeling of hatred which disturbed public tranquility.

He was called by the police for a lengthy interrogation on March 29 over the social media posts and his mobile phone, sim card were seized.

Khan's lawyer Lokenath Chatterjee told the court of Justice I P Mukerji during video conference hearing of the petition.

The High Court Justice said in his order that the state can only do so if a citizen tries to utilise this freedom by trying to circulate alleged facts maliciously with a view to causing damage to another person or to the public at large or the nation.

He directed that there shall be no further interrogation of Khan without the leave of a proper court.

He ordered that the police may start a criminal case against the petitioner without arresting him if at all the evidence prima facie discloses an offence.

Disposing of the petition, Justice restrained the doctor from making any posting on social media concerning the above issue for the time being.
The crisis is revealing health care inequalities, class divisions and the fact that the most important workers in American society are among the least paid, said Jorge Juan Rodriguez V, a doctoral candidate in the history of religion at Union Theological Seminary.

What is being revealed are the fault lines in the system that always existed, he said. We are just noticing it now because the system is stressed.

About 44 percent of likely voters in the United States see the coronavirus pandemic and economic meltdown as either a wake-up call to faith, a sign of Gods coming judgment or both, according to a poll commissioned by the Joshua Fund, an evangelical group run by Joel C. Rosenberg, who writes about the end of the world, and conducted last week by McLaughlin & Associates, pollsters for President Trump and other Republicans.

David Jeremiah, a pastor who has been one of President Trumps informal evangelical advisers, asked in a sermon recently if the coronavirus was biblical prophecy, and called the pandemic the most apocalyptic thing that has ever happened to us.

Among Christians, one of the most well-known apocalyptic narratives is the Book of Revelation in the New Testament, which tells the story of the defeat of an evil beast, a final divine judgment and the coming of a New Jerusalem.

While many biblical scholars read the book as a story about the destruction of corrupt political systems, many evangelical Christians believe it describes the rapture, Jesus return to save believers from a period of tribulation.
Former Bachelor star Monique Morley stepped out of her Sydney home for the first time on Thursday, after self-isolating for 14 days following a trip to the US and Mexico in February and March.

The 26-year-old Instagram model shared a photo of herself walking down the front steps of a property.

Monique looked almost unrecognisable as she debuted her new chocolate tresses cascading down her shoulders.

'Damn its nice to be outside!' Monique Morley has debuted her new brunette tresses following 14-days of self isolation after trip to the US and Mexico

She has clearly been keeping fit in quarantine, proudly showing off her trim and toned figure in a light blue cropped top and booty shorts in the photo.

'Damn, its nice to be outside exercising after quarantine,' the reality TV stunner wrote in the caption.

She also shared a video of herself combing her fingers through her luscious brunette tresses, and in a poll asked fans whether they liked the change on her Instagram Story.

New hair! She also shared a video of herself combing her fingers through her luscious brunette tresses, and in a poll asked fans whether they liked the change on her Instagram Story

On March 16, Monique arrived back home at Sydney Airport after flying in from Los Angeles International Airport.

She spent several weeks holidaying with a friend in Beverley Hills, California, and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.

Monique spent two weeks in lockdown inside her home in accordance with the government's strict new rules to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Quarantine: On March 16, Monique arrived back home at Sydney airport after flying in from Los Angeles International Airport. She spent several weeks holidaying with a friend in Beverley Hills, California, and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

All international arrivals into Australia are being forced to self-isolate for 14 days in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Those refusing to comply with these health orders could face fines and jail time.

At the time Monique of her arrival in Sydney, she told Daily Mail Australia the worst thing about self-quarantine was being unable to collect freebies from the post office - a predicament for many influencers.

Influencers like Monique are sent free fashion and beauty products from brands so they can review them on social media.

Monique rose to fame on Matt Agnew's season of The Bachelor last year, but was kicked out of the mansion after calling him a 'dog c**t' behind his back.

As of Thursday midday, there are 5,108 cases of coronavirus in Australia and 23 deaths.
-- XEN Becomes the First Medical Product Approved by Using Real World Evidence in China --

DUBLIN, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN) today announced China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) approved the registration of Allergan's XEN Gel Stent on March 26, 2020 for the surgical management of patients with refractory glaucoma. XEN is the first product to be approved in China through the Real World Evidence pathway.

To boost the reform of China's medical device approval process and explore the value of the Real World Evidence pathway, the NMPA and Hainan Provincial Government jointly initiated a Real World Evidence pilot program in Hainan in June 2019. Allergan partnered with the Hainan Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone and obtained permission to use XEN in clinical practice at the Lecheng Pilot Zone in April 2019 in accordance with the policy for urgently needed imported medical devices.

When combined with data from controlled clinical trials conducted outside China, the real world evidence data collection in Hainan Province enabled the assessment of ethnic differences to treatment with XEN and supported approval by the NMPA. Real world evidence is the clinical evidence regarding the usage and potential benefits or risks of a medical product from analysis of real world data. Real world evidence can be generated by different study designs or analyses, including randomized trials.

"We are honored that XEN has become the first medical product approved in China using real world evidence," said David Nicholson, EVP and Chief R&D Officer at Allergan. "As a global biopharmaceutical and medical device leader, Allergan has a broad product offering and a deep R&D pipeline. We are committed to improving the accessibility of our innovative products and working with local and national officials to speed their introduction into China to address unmet needs of Chinese physicians and patients."

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness. Research shows that the number of glaucoma patients in China would exceed 2.2 million by 2020. Glaucoma is one of the primary causes of irreversible vision loss and blindness.i An estimated 70 million people globally are living with glaucoma.ii

XEN is approved in more than 30 countries and provides a new therapy for refractory glaucoma patients in China. The XEN System is used by ophthalmologists for the surgical management of refractory glaucomas, including cases where previous surgical treatment did not work, cases of primary open-angle glaucoma, and cases of pigmentary glaucoma with open angles that are unresponsive to maximum tolerated medical therapy.

"XEN has filled a gap in minimal invasive glaucoma surgery in China and provides a convenient, safe and effective treatment for glaucoma patients and doctors. We believe it will help advance the innovation and development of ophthalmology in China," said Dr. Sun Xinghuai, Chief of the Ophthalmology Department at the Eye and ENT Hospital of Fudan University, and Dr. Wang Ningli, Director of the Ophthalmology Center at Beijing Tongren Hospital.

About Allergan plc

Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN), headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, is a global pharmaceutical leader focused on developing, manufacturing and commercializing branded pharmaceutical, device, biologic, surgical and regenerative medicine products for patients around the world. Allergan markets a portfolio of leading brands and best-in-class products primarily focused on four key therapeutic areas including medical aesthetics, eye care, central nervous system and gastroenterology. As part of its approach to delivering innovation for better patient care, Allergan has built one of the broadest pharmaceutical and device research and development pipelines in the industry.

With colleagues and commercial operations located in approximately 100 countries, Allergan is committed to working with physicians, healthcare providers and patients to deliver innovative and meaningful treatments that help people around the world live longer, healthier lives every day.

For more information, visit Allergan's website at www.Allergan.com .

Forward-Looking Statement

Statements contained in this press release that refer to future events or other non-historical facts are forward-looking statements that reflect Allergan's current perspective on existing trends and information as of the date of this release. Actual results may differ materially from Allergan's current expectations depending upon a number of factors affecting Allergan's business. These factors include, among others, the difficulty of predicting the timing or outcome of FDA approvals or actions, if any; the impact of competitive products and pricing; market acceptance of and continued demand for Allergan's products; the impact of uncertainty around timing of generic entry related to key products, including RESTASIS, on our financial results; risks associated with divestitures, acquisitions, mergers and joint ventures; risks related to impairments; uncertainty associated with financial projections, projected cost reductions, projected debt reduction, projected synergies, restructurings, increased costs, and adverse tax consequences; difficulties or delays in manufacturing; and other risks and uncertainties detailed in Allergan's periodic public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to Allergan's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. Except as expressly required by law, Allergan disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements.

i World Health Organization. (2011). Glaucoma is second leading cause of blindness globally. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/82/11/feature1104/en/

ii Quigley, H. A. (1996). Number of people with glaucoma worldwide. Retrieved from https://www.glaucoma.org/glaucoma/facts-statistics/glaucoma-facts-and-stats.php

CONTACTS: Allergan:

Investors:

Manisha Narasimhan, PhD

(862) 261-7488

Media Relations:

Lisa Brown

(862) 261-7320

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/222796/allergan_plc_logo.jpg
By Danny Shaw

April 01, 2020 " Information Clearing House " - In this trying time, have you heard some of your friends say that the U.S. government created this pandemic or that the pandemic is not real at all?

It is worth responding to these outlandish claims because in times of social tumult, there are no lack of conspiracy theorists irresponsibly tossing these ideas around. It is right to distrust the people in power and it is right to rebel. Poor and oppressed people instinctively know this system does not work for them but it is important that we critically read the mainstream news and back up our counter arguments with history and science.

The Battle of Ideas

Overwhelmed by the spread of the virus, and the plague of poverty and injustice, our people are searching for answers. Deprived of history and a critical education, some of our friends come up with all types of ideas. Religious zealots say that the coronavirus is the work of god on high intervening in earthly affairs to clean things up.

The liberatory perspective sees things differently than conspiracy theorists or bible thumpers. An organization that defends human life and the environment puts forth a worldview and program to challenge the social class that today seeks to dominate us whereas reactionary worldviews, consciously or not, buttress the power of the dominant social class because they offer justifications of the status quo. It is important to be able to understand all strands of thought and their social origins, such as religious ideology, liberalism, fascism, conspiracy theory and of course Marxism. History will judge our line of thinking and program for action, especially whether we have done all that is feasible, used democratic procedures, and acted to defend all human life by transforming the prevailing capitalist system.

Where does conspiracy theory lead us?

We should all be reading far and wide to understand this virus and historical moment. The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense encouraged their cadre to read the news for two hours every morning. Today this remains relevant. Wake up and read The New York Times, CNN, Foxnews, BBC and then read what the Chinese, Russian, Iranian and Venezuelan leadership is saying. With a dictionary by your side, (or nowadays with dictionary.com saved as one of your favorite websites) read what CounterPunch, The Gray Zone, Liberation News and other critical media sites are saying (See below for a more comprehensive list of anti-establishment media outlets).

Yes political education is hard work and takes years of training. How much easier to just throw your hands up and say: its the government! or its the hand of god! Dont waste your valuable time on conspiracy theorists because they only entertain ideas which confirm their own narrow view. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy.

To ignore the dangers of the virus is to also ignore the resistance of working people.

Detroit bus drivers went on strike and won greater protection from the virus. Amazon workers are on the frontlines of struggle right now. Peasants in Haiti are forming networks through WhatsApp and organizing teams on pickup trucks with bullhorns to raise awareness about the virus. The people and leadership of Wuhan, China coordinated an entire campaign to overcome the coronavirus. In another example of medical internationalism, China and Cuba are now sending doctors to dozens of countries to assist in the global fight against corona. In the column marked new deaths, which skyrockets every day in the West, the Chinese column has read zero for three consecutive days. We also cannot ignore the enormous hardships imposed upon the Iranian people who have a duel battle  one against the coronavirus and the other against an airtight U.S.-led military and economic blockade.

Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter

This unforeseen historical moment is pregnant with conversations and possibilities for building a new world in the aftermath of this pandemic that we could not have imagined last month.

Understanding the State

When we are walking down Utica, 149th or 125th St. we see the conspiracy documentaries. They are readily available. These conspiracy documentaries do more to retard and isolate than advance the struggle. They shroud the class enemy in mystery instead of exposing it. Why cant you find any revolutionary documentaries or books in our communities? Because they are a threat to the powers that be.

How do the rich maintain their stranglehold over society? Through the state, universal surveillance, and the armed repression of one social class by another.

There is now extensive documentation exposing the governments role in the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and the need to neutralize any other Black Messiah, as the FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover put it. Just in 1969, the FBI and local police departments tracked hundreds of Black leaders and assassinated 28 of them. This was not merely the doing of a handful of specific individuals who were pulling some invisible strings. This was an entire system that is antagonistic to true empowerment of the Black community and all oppressed communities. The state is presently a tool of class oppression because corporate power is entrenched in the three branches of government; the elites created the police, courts, prisons and military to protect their monopoly over the wealth of society.

Know your Enemy

Conspiracy theorists are not theorists in the critical sense at all but charlatans who make it seem like the enemy aka the ruling power structure is a mysterious, shady worldwide network that is unable to be pinned down. As 3.3 million Americans applied for unemployment last week and millions of other families anxiously await a meager check of $1,200; the billionaires are right before us in plain view, with their companies, property, mansions, yachts and stunning accumulation of wealth. As our families have to decide between intensified poverty because of layoffs or continuing to work and putting our loved ones at further risk, the bosses hide behind their laptops, cutting millions of jobs and moving billions of dollars.

The same individuals who run General Electric or Disney also own and run NBC, Telemundo and CBS. The social class that owns the means of production also controls the images, information and ideas that circulate through society. Its up to us to challenge them, using every means of communication at our disposal. Conspiracy theories do not encourage us to fight back; they distract our attention when what we really need to do is organize around real-life issues.

Most of the big endorsers of conspiracy theorists are privileged dilatants who are just interested in promoting themselves and their theory. As we saw with the 9/11 truthers, the Zeitgeist people and those obsessed with the Illuminati, their style leads to a cultish gathering around one enlightened thinker but organizes very little, if anything, for our communities. Show me a conspiracy theorist who does anything besides talk! It is a dead-end.

Which Way Forward? Fight to Learn, Learn to Fight

Cowering before such mesmerizing challenges, many good people fall into the conspiracy theory trap. But we propose another way forward. Join a union, student or tenant organization or study group.

We believe in the formation and training of multinational leadership and we believe in a broad struggle organized around every issue that affects our class i.e. access to healthcare, a peoples bailout, budget cuts, sexism, police brutality, wars of recolonization and military recruiting in our neighborhoods.

What will ever free us from the dictatorship of the rich and spare the planet more abuse by the corporations? Unity and struggle behind a program that seeks to overcome the multiple hierarchies of domination and create a democratic socialist economy aimed at meeting peoples needs rather than private accumulation.

Danny Shaw teaches Latin American and Caribbean Studies and Race, Ethnicity, Class and Gender at the City University of New York and is an adjunct lecturer at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. A Senior Research Fellow at the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, he works to keep young people out of the military and prison industrial complex. He is the author of six books: 365 Days of Resistance, Shedding that which is Not Us: A Working-Class Guide to Life Foods Training and Healing, The Saints of Santo Domingo: Dominican Resistance in the Age of Neocolonialism, My Son Blazes within Me: So Many Contradictions, So Little Time, Paisajes de Amor y Combate and Los Santos de Santo Domingo. " Source "
Parliament Buildings, Stormont in Belfast is lit up in blue in support for key workers and the NHS across the country as the second Clap For Our Carers takes place. Photo by Kelvin Boyes / Press Eye.

Scores of people young and old across Northern Ireland took to their doorsteps on Thursday evening to pay tribute to our health staff amid the coronavirus pandemic.

It is the second week in a row families across the UK have taken part in the 'Clap for Carers' initiative to show their gratitude to all those working in the health and social care system.

On Thursday afternoon health authorities confirmed there had been six more deaths from Covid-19 in Northern Ireland, bringing the death toll to 36 with another 774 people testing positive for the disease out of almost 7,000 tests carried out.

It comes as Economy Minister Diane Dodds outlined the "massive shock" to the Northern Ireland economy as a result of the outbreak.

Speaking at the daily Executive press conference, Mrs Dodds said 10,000 small businesses have received financial assistance through the 10k grant scheme and a further 3,200 are being processed.

She said 17,000 jobs have been furloughed, but greater clarity was needed from the Treasury and HMRC regarding eligibility.

Mrs Dodds said further announcements on the 25k scheme will be made next week.

Finance Minister Conor Murphy said 140m has been supplied to the Health Department for coronavirus measures, including for protective equipment.

"We are sourcing from the market both nationally and internationally, including China," he said.

"PPE and testing must be ramped up without delay."

He said 920m of Covid-19 support has been provided by Westminster and further allocations are expected to made by the Treasury in the coming days.

Health Minister Robin Swann said earlier that the Stormont Executive is "pushing on extensively" to increase testing for Covid-19.

Read More

Check out our live blog below to see how Thursday's coronavirus developments unfolded.
One America News Network correspondent Chanel Rion asks a question during a briefing by President Donald Trump on the CCP virus in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on April 1, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

OAN Reporter Removed From White House Briefing Rotation Plans to Attend as Press Secretarys Guest

A reporter barred on Wednesday from covering White House press conferences planned on attending Thursdays daily briefing as a guest of White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham.

Chanel Rion, a White House reporter for One America News (OAN), said during an appearance on the network on Thursday afternoon that she would go to the briefing later in the day. Grisham invited Rion on Wednesday and asked the reporter to come again on Thursday.

I will be in the briefing room today if theres no physical complications with that, the reporter said.

Charles Herring, the CEO of One America News, confirmed to The Epoch Times that Rion was invited to attend the briefing on Thursday by Grisham.

The White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) said in a statement Wednesday night that OAN was removed from the rotation of reporters who are allowed into the briefings because she twice attended them in contravention of a social distancing policy.

WHCA Statement on Removing News Organization from News Briefing Seat Rotation pic.twitter.com/KL3XcPq7Rt  WHCA (@whca) April 1, 2020

Based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, the association issued the policy cutting down on the number of reporters allowed in the room amid the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

The association assigns certain seats to certain outlets, rotating the seats among print, radio, and television reporters.

Rion stood in the back on Wednesday as a guest of Grishams. She has had a seat in the room in recent weeks on several occasions.

Photographs and video footage showed other reporters and photographers coming within six feet of each other repeatedly during the briefing, which would violate CDC guidelines.

They said I was violating social distancing guidelines by standing in that room when I was not allowed to. Now, if you look at footage of that briefing room, photographers are standing in that pathway. For the most part, you see a lot of them getting a lot closer than 6 feet, Rion said on Thursday. My positioning in that room, I was away from the majority of people for the majority of the time.

President Donald Trump speaks about the CCP virus in the James Brady Briefing Room in Washington on March 23, 2020. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

Herring told The Epoch Times in an email that the White House Correspondents Association failed to note Rion was an invited guest of Grisham.

OANs presence in the briefing room was therefore appropriate, he wrote.

OANs reporter stood in the back of the room to adequately address social distancing. The WHCA organization members were aware that Ms. Rion was extended an invitation by Stephanie Grisham, but took retaliatory action anyway.

Rion last month asked President Donald Trump, who opens every briefing, about some media outlets promoting Chinese Communist Party narratives, including the accusation that Trump calling the illness the Chinese virus was racist.

Is it alarming that major media players, just to oppose you, are siding with foreign state propaganda, Islamic radicals, and Latin gangs and cartels and they work right here out of the White House with direct access to you and your team? she asked.

One America News Network correspondent Chanel Rion asks a question during a briefing by President Donald Trump on the CCP virus in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on April 1, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump said that he was amazed when he reads some stories, adding, I dont think anybody has done as much as I have done in three years. This administration has done a great job. But the press is very dishonest.

Herring suggested the reporter associations move could be retaliation for that question.

Rion was promoted to lead the networks White House coverage in January.

Were delighted to have Chanel lead our White House coverage. Shes fully engaged in the news cycle and not afraid to ask the tough questions, Herring said at the time.
Overdrive

Nissan today announced the appointment of Guillaume Cartier as the Senior Vice President and Chairman for its Africa, Middle East, and India region (AMI) and Head of the Global Datsun Business Unit. The company mentions, Cartier will lead the regional management committee and be responsible for business strategy and performance with all functional heads for the Nissan brand as well as assume the role of Head of Datsun globally. He replaces Peyman Kargar who is taking up a strategic corporate role at Nissan following three years as AMI Chairman and global head of Datsun.

The 51-year old returns to Nissan after serving as Executive Officer and Senior Vice President at the alliance partner Mitsubishi. Cartier has held several senior positions with Nissan, which he first joined in 1995, including SVP Sales & Marketing for Nissan Europe in 2013. The company mentions, with over 25 years serving at Nissan and Mitsubishi across multiple roles covering global and regional operations, Cartier brings a wealth of experience across marketing and sales and a keen focus on business transformation.

"The Africa, Middle East and India region continues to be significant for Nissan in terms of long-term growth and potential market share. Cartier brings in a wealth of senior experience from this part of the world, having over 25 years at Nissan, and our alliance partner Mitsubishi, which will be vital in continuing to drive our business forward by meeting the needs of an expanding and evolving customer base." commented, Ashwini Gupta, Nissan's global Chief Operating Officer.
Oregons need for N95 masks, gowns, face shields and gloves has become so dire that nurses at many hospitals say they have less than a week left of gear to protect them and other medical staff against the new coronavirus.

The statewide shortage comes at the same time President Trump confirmed that the national stockpile of personal protective gear has nearly been depleted and the trickle to states will soon run dry.

Oregon has been scrambling on its own to secure protective gear but reports this week from the states frontline health care workers help quantify the urgency in the face of a chaotic supply chain.

Representatives for the Oregon Nurses Association -- a union with about 15,000 members statewide  said theyve heard of no hospital that has more than a seven-day supply of personal protective equipment.

That has led to stringent rationing of PPE, an acronym for the gear now common in the pandemic lexicon. According to the association, some nurses in Portland have been wearing swim goggles to work.

Other nurses who have been given masks designed for a single use have been told by their employers to make them last for their entire 12-hour shifts. Staff store them in paper bags between patient visits.

In Central Oregon, right now, some nurses have been wearing the same N95 masks for three weeks straight, said Sarah Laslett, the associations executive director. ... We are the people running toward the fire to help others, and right now, were getting burned.

Andrew Phelps, the director of Oregons Office of Emergency Management, said he doesnt know how much gear health care workers will need as the crisis intensifies and hospitals brace for a surge of patients in coming weeks, but the state is buying all it can.

He also doesnt know how much the states counties and hospitals have on hand because of the diffuse network, with each entity tracking its own supplies.

The state announced Tuesday that it had so far acquired and distributed more than 400,000 N95 masks, 50,000 surgical masks, 10,000 face shields and 1 million gloves. But the numbers lack context because the state cant say how long it will take workers to use up that gear.

Thank you, Dr Gilbert an OSA member and a #ORCovid19Hero! Posted by Oregon Society of Anesthesiologists on Monday, March 30, 2020

In harder-hit parts of the U.S., medical staff have anecdotally reported burning through in a day what was expected to last two weeks.

Major hospital systems in the Portland area, including Providence and Kaiser Permanente, declined to share with The Oregonian/OregonLive exactly how many days of gear they have left, but they said theyre also aggressively pursuing more supplies.

Oregon Health & Science University was the only one to give a range, saying it has seven to 30 days before N95 masks, P100 respirators, powered air purifying respirators and face shields run out.

Phelps said he knows the state isnt finding the equipment fast enough.

Its totally unacceptable, I think, to us as a state to put our first responders, our public health care workers, our doctors, our nurses in any kind of dangerous or vulnerable position to treat people who may be suffering from this virus, he said.

The state is working nonstop to get the equipment quickly and to distribute it to do the most good, he said.

Thats going to continue until were told by our health care professionals that we dont need any more.

***

States across the country and health care institutions point to a complex supply chain made even more complicated by unprecedented demand, production downturns and shifting science as COVID-19 continues to run rampant.

This is not just an issue of ringing up a PPE distributor, Phelps said.

For one, factories overseas that make some of the equipment have been shuttered to slow the spread of the virus.

Prices also have skyrocketed as international appeals soar and bidding wars follow.

CEO Rick Miller of Avamere said his normal channels have run dry. His Wilsonville-based company operates assisted living communities, nursing homes and other care facilities in 15 states including Oregon.

The company has had to resort to new vendors in China and Mexico that have charged sky-high prices.

Before COVID-19 spurred a pandemic, the company was paying 7 cents per a surgical mask. Now it has paid as much as $1.55 per surgical mask -- a 22-fold increase.

Avamere was paying 45 cents per N95 mask and now has shelled out as much as $4. The company has been quoted prices as high as $10 per N95 mask.

Dr. Hanan Haydar, an infectious disease physician at University Hospitals, holds an N95 face mask in preparation for any outbreak of coronavirus. February 18, 2020 Gus Chan, The Plain Dealer The Plain DealerThe Plain Dealer

Even if Avamere can find a new supplier willing to sell, some want full payment when its not clear if the shipments will actually arrive, Miller said.

We, like many, appear alone in this fight, Miller said. Were forced to solve this problem on our own and were failing.

In some cases, Miller said, Avamere is bidding against the U.S. government. And obviously, we cant compete against the U.S. government, he said.

As a result, he said some staff have resorted to wearing bandanas for masks and ponchos as protective gowns.

Forbes reported that bidding wars arent just happening with suppliers overseas. The magazine looked at one day of the buying frenzy  and found that as many as 280 million N95 masks in private warehouses in the U.S. were snapped up by foreign buyers on a single day earlier this month.

Some Oregon companies are stepping in to help. Last week, Nike said it was working with OHSU to produce face shields and possibly other safety gear.

Fourteen Oregon businesses that specialize in fields such as sewing, manufacturing or design wrote the governor and Oregon Health Authority Director Patrick Allen saying theyre poised to make protective equipment but they need to know whats needed most and have the state cut red tape for design approval and purchase of the gear.

A Central Oregon company, Medline ReNewal of Redmond, has announced it will start to sterilize used face masks and high-end respirators. Providence Health & Services has signed on as one of its first customers.

Community donations  including more than 60,000 masks and about 600,000 gloves, gowns, and face shields from dentists  also have helped temporarily boost stocks.

'Paws'itively awesome! Looking for ways to help the health care industry, the @OregonHumane made a donation of 18,000 N95 masks and 50 Tyvek suits to Providence today. Thank you for your generosity! pic.twitter.com/taWu7p6VxJ  Providence Oregon (@ProvHealth) March 27, 2020

***

In Oregon, as of Thursday afternoon, 826 people have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and 21 have died. Because of a lack of testing here and nationwide, many more cases are believed to be circulating undetected.

At least 31 health care workers at Oregon Health & Science University, Providence Health and Legacy Health and within Linn County have tested positive for COVID-19.

In New York, the current epicenter of the nations outbreak, hundreds of health care workers have tested positive.

Spain, which is second only to Italy in coronavirus deaths at more than 10,000, has seen more than 12,000 health care workers fall ill. That represents 14 percent of all COVID-19 cases in the country.

Some workers there have worn two surgical masks at a time when they couldnt get the much more effective N95 masks and fashioned makeshift gowns with scissors and tape out of garbage bags or operating room sheets.

Oregon health care workers worry thats what to come here.

Without the proper safety equipment, these frontline workers, they will continue to get sick, said Laslett, the nursing union leader. If those frontline health care workers are not protected, they will not be able to do the health care that the public desperately needs.

During a video conference earlier this week with Gov. Kate Brown, essential workers told Brown with tears in their eyes how theyll continue to do their jobs but need more gear.

Casey Parr, a respiratory therapist at OHSU, said he worries about his life and the safety of the people he lives with, including his 2-month-old child and mother-in-law, who is in her 60s.

Im 35 years old and for the first time in my life, Ive considered whether or not I need to write a will, Parr said. Im already anticipating that I will likely be infected because I lack basic protective equipment.

But, he said, he and his colleagues still show up to work.

Because we took an oath to provide the best care possible, Parr said. But when our health care professionals become patients themselves, its going to limit the number of staff that can continue that care.

Future confrontations between medical staff and administrators might be brewing, as some workers discuss whether they will treat patients if they arent given proper protective gear.

Rachel Gumpert, a spokeswoman for the Oregon Nurses Association, said for the most part, nurses who are working with known COVID-19 patients are wearing masks.

But outside those units, some nurses arent being given masks and they are being told they cant wear their own protective gear, whether professionally made or homemade.

Were extremely far from every nurse having an N95 mask, Gumpert said. We actually have nurses that dont have masks on at all in many facilities in many units.

Oregon Nurses Association members are performing life saving work with professionalism and courage around the... Posted by Oregon Nurses Association on Wednesday, March 25, 2020

The union has told its nurses that as COVID-19 cases surge, they should know they dont have to go into dangerous situations if theyre not supplied with adequate equipment.

If it comes down to it and you have a patient that you know has COVID symptoms, it will hurt more of the community and more patients if a nurse takes unnecessary risk and is exposed unprotected to those COVID symptoms, Gumpert said.

The implications of losing nurses to sickness or death from COVID are just extremely damaging for communities during a pandemic.

-- Aimee Green; agreen@oregonian.com; @o_aimee

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
A coronavirus patient spat in another man's face as he queued to buy train tickets in Thailand - before the spitter was found dead in a railway carriage.

Anan Sahoh, 56, was found slumped on the passenger train on Monday after he was earlier seen 'coughing and vomiting' during the journey.

Health officials grew alarmed when CCTV footage at the station in Bangkok showed him spitting at a man who was buying tickets from a machine.

Authorities are now desperately trying to trace the spitting victim to stop him spreading the disease to others.

CCTV footage showed this railway passenger spitting in another man's face as he queued to buy train tickets - before the spreader was subsequently found dead

Anan, who was seen walking on a crutch, was travelling from Bangkok to Narathiwat after recently returning from Pakistan.

He spat at the unknown passenger at Bang Sue station in Bangkok, where he boarded the train on Monday on which he was subsequently found dead.

Temperature checks at the station had reportedly showed a normal figure of 96.8F (36C), raising no alarms.

However, he developed a cough and vomited during the journey - during which train staff took a picture of him and his ID card - but his condition had improved by the time the train reached Hua Hin railway station.

Another temperature check found no change. Officials advised the passenger to take a rest at Hua Hin, but he insisted on continuing his journey.

At about 10.15pm, train staff found the passenger collapsed in front of a toilet when the train reached the Thap Sakae district.

Medics performed tests on his dead body which showed a positive result for Covid-19. He also had diabetes.

Anan Sahoh, 56, was found slumped on the passenger train on Monday after he was earlier seen 'coughing and vomiting'

Train staff had earlier taken a picture of Anan on the train (left). Health workers were later seen cleaning the carriage after the dead man was found to have the virus (right)

Other passengers were evacuated from the carriage which was then disconnected from the rest of the train and disinfected by workers wearing protective suits.

The director of the State Railway of Thailand, Thakoon Intrachom, said today: 'We are now worried about a man that was spat at in the security camera footage.

'We coordinated initially with the railway police but they have not found him yet.

'We want to announce that if anyone knows him or if he has heard about the news, then he should please go to the hospital immediately.'

Medics said the dead Anan, who lived in Thailand's deep south, had recently returned from Pakistan and passed through the country's Suvarnabhumi Airport.

He had a 'fit to fly' health certificate, and was not flagged as a health risk by thermal scans or temperature checks at the airport.

The railway carriage is cleaned after it was decoupled from the rest of the train, with health workers trying to limit the spread of the disease

Health workers in protective gear were trying to clean the carriage after the virus patient was found dead there on Monday

Railway officials say they have sent a list of 15 passengers who were on board the same carriage as the dead passenger to the public health office.

Eleven others have been quarantined, including two train station staff from the Bang Sue railway station, a security guard, seven railway workers and a railway police officer.

It is not clear when the man arrived back in Thailand. He was carrying a health certificate issued by a doctor in Pakistan on March 26.

A state of emergency that took effect last Wednesday barred entry into the kingdom except for diplomats and Thais.

Anyone arriving in the country must have a health certificate and spend 14 days in self-quarantine.

The number of infections in Thailand has soared past 1,700 - up more than 60 percent from a week ago - and the death toll has more than tripled to 13.
FILE PHOTO: The sun sets behind a crude oil pump jack on a drill pad in the Permian Basin in Loving County

By Rania El Gamal

DUBAI (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia supports cooperation between oil producers to stabilize the oil market but Russia's opposition to a proposal last month to deepen oil supply cuts has caused market turmoil, a senior Gulf source familiar with Saudi thinking told Reuters.

International crude prices have fallen over 50 percent to under $26 a barrel since March 6, when Saudi Arabia, de facto leader of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, and non-OPEC producers led by Russia failed to agree on a joint supply policy in response to the precipitous fall in fuel demand caused by coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had talked recently with both Saudi and Russian leaders and believed the two countries would make a deal to end their price war within a few days - lowering production and bringing prices back up.

"Saudi Arabia has always welcomed and supported cooperation among oil producers in their efforts to stabilize the oil market during the current crisis based on the principles of fairness and equity," the Gulf source said on Thursday.

But there is little evidence yet of Russia and Saudi Arabia bridging their differences after the collapse last month of their three-year pact to curb oil supplies.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Wednesday for global oil producers and consumers to address "challenging" oil markets.

But Russia's opposition to a proposal to deepen oil supply cuts by OPEC and other allies, a group known as OPEC+, at a meeting in early March sparked the turmoil, the source said.

"It was Russia's position that triggered the collapse of the OPEC+ agreement... this caused massive instability in oil markets," the Gulf source said.

In response to Russia's rejection of deeper oil cuts, Saudi Arabia slashed its export prices and said it would raise production to maximum capacity.

Producers were left with little choice but to end all voluntary supply restraint, the source added.

Story continues

The kingdom is flooding the market and has tried to sell cheap oil to refiners that buy Russian crude.

The speed and aggression of the Saudi response has shocked the industry. Russia has responded by saying it would boost output to capacity, too.

The U.S. Energy Department on Wednesday urged Saudi Arabia and Russia to calm oil markets after the kingdom's crude supply rose to a record of more than 12 million barrels per day even as oil demand falters on the coronavirus pandemic.

The flood of Saudi oil comes amid an unprecedented fall in demand as billions of people stop using cars and taking flights because they are under lockdowns to prevent coronavirus from spreading.

Already, tens of millions of barrels of oil have gushed into storage because refiners do not need it.

Putin and Trump spoke on Monday. Trump on Monday said Saudi Arabia and Russia "both went crazy" with their production after the supply deal failed.

"I never thought I'd be saying that maybe we have to have an oil (price) increase, because we do," Trump said.

Low oil prices are threatening to put U.S. shale oil producers out of business. They cannot compete with cheaper Saudi and Russian oil.

(Reporting by Rania El Gamal; Writing by Simon Webb; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)
New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

PM Modi, Prince Charles discuss coronavirus pandemic

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, Apr 02: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with UK's Prince Charles on Thursday and discussed the coronavirus crisis, with the British royal hailing the Indian diaspora's role in combatting the pandemic.

The prime minister conveyed his condolences for the loss of life in the UK over the past few days, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

Prime Minister Modi expressed satisfaction that the Prince of Wales had recovered from his own recent indisposition and wished him good health.

Prince Charles had tested positive for coronavirus last month. He expressed his appreciation for the members of the Indian diaspora in the UK, including many members of the National Health Service, who were playing a seminal role in combatting the pandemic, the statement said.

The Prince of Wales also referred to the selfless work being done by religious and social organisations of the Indian community in the UK. He thanked the prime minister for the facilitation and assistance provided for UK citizens stranded in India during the present crisis.

Modi also thanked Prince Charles for the keen interest he has always taken in Ayurveda. He explained the recent Indian initiative aimed at teaching basic yoga exercises through short animation videos, and disseminating easy home-made traditional remedies for enhancing immunity, the MEA said.

Prince Charles appreciated the potential of these initiatives for enhancing health and wellbeing, especially in the present situation.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, talks with experts during his visit to the School of Medicine at Tsinghua University in Beijing, capital of China, March 2, 2020.

China on Thursday denied that it hid the true number of its people who have been infected and killed by the coronavirus outbreak, decrying accusations of concealment as a "despicable attempt to put political interests above human life."

The blistering statement came a day after Bloomberg, citing three U.S. officials, reported that a classified U.S. intelligence report concluded that China's public tally of COVID-19 infections and deaths is purposefully incomplete.

In a statement to CNBC, the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., said that Beijing "has fully honored its obligation of notification prescribed by the International Health Regulations, and has been updating the statistics of its confirmed and death cases in an open, transparent and responsible manner."

"The Chinese government has, out of a strong sense of responsibility for its people's health, taken the most comprehensive and stringent measures to fight the pandemic," the statement said.

"Slandering and shifting blame cannot help make up for the lost time," the embassy added, "nor can they conceal some people's incompetence in the containment efforts or their despicable attempt to put political interests above human life."

"In this fight, countries are all interconnected, and they can only prevail by solidarity and stronger cooperation," the embassy said.

President Donald Trump was asked Wednesday at a White House press briefing whether he had received an intelligence report describing any discrepancies in China's numbers.

"We have not received" any such reports, Trump said. But he noted that China's tally appeared "to be a little bit on the light side, and I'm being nice when I say that, relative to what we witnessed and what was reported."

Trump has previously cast doubt on China's numbers. But he said at the briefing Wednesday evening that "we really don't know" if China "underreported or reported however they report."

The coronavirus pandemic began around the city of Wuhan in China's Hubei province  though Beijing's foreign ministry has claimed that it didn't necessarily originate there.

China has reported 82,432 coronavirus cases, data from Johns Hopkins University show. That number is less than half of the total cases confirmed in the United States, which has become the country with the highest number of reported infections in the world. More than 217,000 COVID-19 cases have so far been confirmed in the U.S.

While the disease in recent weeks has spread exponentially around the world  especially in parts of the U.S. and Europe  China's numbers have flattened.

China attributes its apparent success in "flattening the curve" of coronavirus growth to the "comprehensive and stringent measures" it has put in place to fight the pandemic. Those extreme steps reportedly included forcibly holding Wuhan residents in pop-up hospitals, conducting door-to-door health checks and requiring that citizens who showed any symptoms be immediately quarantined.

The total lockdown of daily life seems to have worked, according to China's numbers.
With a new study linking BCG vaccination with scale of severity of COVID-19 globally, doctors in India said "large-scale epidemiological studies" need to be conducted before drawing any conclusion.

According to the study led by a US-based researcher, a combination of reduced morbidity and mortality could make the Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccination a "game-changer" in the fight against novel coronavirus.

The BCG vaccine is part of India's universal immunisation programme and administered to millions of children at birth or soon after it.

Arvind Kumar, lung surgeon at the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said, while there seems to be an apparent link between BCG vaccination and COVID-19 cases reported in various countries, it will be "premature" to say there is a direct correlation.

"Large-scale epidemiological studies need to be conducted before we can draw any conclusion on this link, as suggested by the study," he told PTI.

The lung surgeon conjectured that as far as India and its demography is concerned, there is a possibility that "we have developed a better immune system to this virus through prior infections" which people in the western countries may not have been exposed too.

"Besides, their are other confounding factors like lockdown imposed in India by the government when the infection was in stage 2. And there is a possibility that a less virulent strain of COVID-19 is in circulation in India," Kumar said.

India, with the world's highest TB burden, introduced BCG mass immunisation in 1948.

Ravi Shekhar Jha, Senior Consultant and head of the pulmonology department, Fortis Escorts, Faridabad, echoed Kumar's views.

"This is too early to say there is a direct link. Unless we do rigorous and large-scale epidemiological studies, we can't say anything conclusive in this perceive correlation as put out in the study," he said.

The yet to be published study from the New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) states while citing the examples of Italy and the US that the severity of COVID-19 impact may be linked to national policies on BCG childhood vaccination.

"We found that countries without universal policies of BCG vaccination such as Italy, the Netherlands, and the United States, have been more severely affected compared to countries with universal and long-standing BCG policies," noted the researchers led by Gonzalo Otazu, assistant professor of biomedical sciences at NYIT.

While the US has reported almost 1,90,000 cases with more than 4,000 deaths, Italy has 1,05,000 cases and over 12,000 fatalities. The Netherlands has reported more than 12,000 cases of the disease and over 1,000 deaths.

Jha of Fortis hospital, however, said the lockdown can only slow down the number of cases of infection but mortality as such will not be affected much.

So, the BCG-COVID link needs to be further investigated and any direct correlation being attributed at this time would be too far-fetched, he said.

Rommel Tickoo, associate Director, internal medicine, Max healthcare, also pitched for large-scale epidemiological studies to further probe this link, if any.

Australia and other countries which plan to hold trials for this vaccine on health workers will be able to see the difference, if seen, he said.

In Iran too, the age-group born after 1984 when the vaccination was started there, the intensity of cases in that segment is different compared to those before it, the doctor said, adding that Indians may have developed a better immunity to coronavirus due to other previous infections.

So, large-scale trials are needed before one draws any conclusion, Tickoo added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Donald Trumps description of Michigans female governor has turned into a popular T-shirt slogan.

Outdoor Beerdsman in Boyne is one of several companies that have taken a phrase used by Trump to avoid naming Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and turned it into apparel to show moral support for the governor during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

The navy-blue V-neck That Woman in Michigan shirt Whitmer wore for an appearance on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah this week was printed by the Boyne company.

We are working to support her efforts in combating the coronavirus, said Ivette Lopez, owner of Outdoor Beerdsman. Ultimately, we are all in this together, supporting one another, spreading positive vibes and doing our part to lift each other up.

Over the past week, Trump has frequently criticized Whitmer for her response to the coronavirus outbreak that is sweeping through Michigan. Instead of calling her by name, Trump has opted to refer to the governor as that woman from Michigan or the woman in Michigan, inspiring the now-popular T-shirt slogan and a hot hashtag on Twitter.

RELATED: Trump says Whitmer isnt stepping up as governors plead for coronavirus supplies

RELATED: Trump urged by Michigan Republicans, Democrats to back off attacks on Gov. Whitmers coronavirus response

Lopez made three That Woman in Michigan designs after her friend Kim Mettler pitched the idea.

Products were made available online on Friday, March 27, Lopez said. Since then, they have been overwhelmed with more than 1,000 orders  including two from the Capitol on Saturday.

The designs are available on crew and V-neck T-shirts, long-sleeve shirts, hoodies, mugs, decals and a hat. They can be found on the company website under best sellers and Smitten with the Mitten. T-shirts are $20. Long-sleeve shirts are $30. Hoodies are $40. The hat is $25. The mug is $15. The decal is $4.

Boyne-based Outdoor Beerdsman is make apparel inspired by President Donald Trump's statements referring to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is "that woman from Michigan." The apparel is meant to provide moral support for the governor during the statewide battle against COVID-19 coronavirus.Outdoor Beerdsman

While non-essential businesses are closed during the statewide stay-at-home" order, Beerdsman can continue printing because the store includes Hoppy Hound Coffee Co. & Dog Bakery, which remains open for curbside pickup, Lopez said.

We are very blessed to have business coming during these hard times, she said.

The two-employee business was founded in 2014.

Its unclear who was the first to make the That Woman in Michigan shirts as many other companies are selling them, along with shirts that say I stand with that woman in Michigan. Etsy retailers with their own designs include Ann Arbor-based SmittenbyKristen, Farmington Hills-based TopKnot + Twine, Berkley-based Coolidge Creations, Saginaw Township-based Green Mitten Valley and Coldwater-based Old Timey Wimey Stuff.

The That Woman in Michigan shirt wasnt the first Michigan-made coronavirus-reference shirt Whitmer has worn during national television interviews. On Sunday, she appeared on Meet the Press wearing a shirt with the words Everybody vs. COVID-19. That one was made by a Michigan company Everybody vs. Detroit.

As of Thursday, April 2, Michigan has 10,791 coronavirus cases and 417 deaths from the virus. This week, Whitmer asked for a 70-day extension to the state of emergency that was declared on March 10 and is due to expire on April 7. Whitmers statewide stay-at-home order remains in effect through April 13. On Thursday morning, Whitmer announced that children will not return to classrooms to finish the school year.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

READ MORE:

Thursday, April 2: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Michigans chief medical executive: strongly consider wearing masks in public during coronavirus pandemic

Excessive drinking compromises immune systems, Michigan officials warn amid coronavirus
Srinagar, April 1 (IANS) As many as 236 more persons who were shifted to administrative quarantine upon their return to Srinagar two weeks ago were discharged on Wednesday after completing their 14-day quarantine period.

All the persons shifted into well-equipped hotels and government accommodations had returned from abroad, most of them from Bangladesh.

These persons belonging to various districts of Kashmir were entrusted to their district headquarters in SRTC busses the Srinagar administration had arranged. Srinagar residents in the group were ferried home or handed to their families.

Additional Deputy Commissioner Srinagar M. Haneef Balkhi, who has been designated as overall in-charge of quarantine facilities established in the district, oversaw their discharge and their transportation.

Other supervising officers including SDMs East and West Sandeep Singh Bali and Hamida Akhter were also present on the occasion.

The group was under thorough medical supervision throughout their quarantine period and were discharged after clearance from doctors.

There are around 1,900 persons who have been put under administrative quarantine in Srinagar after their return mostly from overseas countries.

While another group of around 370 persons will complete their quarantine and will be released tomorrow all the overseas-return persons in administrative quarantine in the district will complete their quarantine period by the end of this week and will be sent home as they complete it.

Shifting of overseas returnees to quarantine facilities was part of Srinagar administration's elaborate preventive measures put in place to contain spread of the COVID-19 disease after March 18 when the first positive case was reported in the district.

--IANS

zi/prs
The rate is the highest among the 45 countries and territories worldwide involved in the research that focus on peoples perception of their governments reaction to the epidemic.

Vietnam is followed by Argentina (61 percent), Austria (58 percent), Singapore (57 percent) and South Africa (56 percent) in this category.

Almost half of the world (43 percent) say their governments are doing too little in response to the outbreak. However, citizens in eight out of the 45 countries surveyed believe on average that their governments are overreacting and doing too much in response.

As the US overtakes China in the number of the confirmed cases, 19 percent of the US population believe the government is doing too much in response.

France and Spain are above the global average for considering their governments' response to be too little (64 percent and 66 percent respectively).
Iran said Thursday it only acts in self-defence after President Donald Trump warned it and its allies against attacking US troops in Iraq.

Unlike the US -- which surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinates -- Iran only acts in self-defence, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted.

Dont be misled by usual warmongers, AGAIN, he wrote, also cautioning that Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do.

Tensions have risen sharply between Tehran and Washington ever since Trump withdrew from a landmark nuclear agreement and reimposed sweeping sanctions in 2018.

They escalated in January when the US killed Irans Major General Qasem Soleimani in a Baghdad drone strike, following attacks on its troops in Iraq that Washington blamed on Iran-backed armed groups.

Iran retaliated by firing at bases in Iraq housing US troops.

Trump warned Iran on Wednesday that it would pay a heavy price in the event of further attacks on US troops.

He tweeted that upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq.

In response, Zarif wrote on Twitter that Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of proxies

Iran and the US are in a tense battle for influence in Iraq, where Tehran has powerful allies and Washington has close ties to the government.

Bases housing US troops and foreign embassies, particularly the American mission, have been targeted in more than two dozen rocket strikes since late October.

The attacks, which the US has blamed on Iran-backed armed groups, have prompted fears of a proxy war on Iraqi soil.

amh/fz/kir
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Many retired Ohioans expect to make their way home in the coming weeks after spending the winter in warmer parts of the country.

Their return also brings with it some concern with public health officials of spreading the novel coronavirus across state lines and bringing it back to the Buckeye State.

The Ohio Department of Health is asking that anyone returning home from places like Florida, the Carolinas, or really, anywhere that isnt Ohio to spend 14 days on self-quarantine, agency spokeswoman Melanie Amato said.

Right now we would ask that of anyone if they have traveled for any reason domestically or internationally, Amato said. We would also hope they keep social distancing.

Those in quarantine should monitor their symptoms and call their doctor if they experience a cough, fever or difficulty breathing.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine stressed several times since the start of his daily briefings to make sure they stay at least six feet away from others, wash their hands with soap and water and cover their mouth when sneezing or coughing.

The constant reminder is in preparation for a surge of cases that are coming, he said Wednesday during the briefing.

There have been 75 deaths in Florida as of 2 p.m. Wednesday, according to statistics from John Hopkins University.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a long-awaited stay-at-home order as many local governments in Florida defied health experts and allowed beaches to remain open.

Sixty-five people have died in Ohio from the coronavirus and the number of confirmed infections is now up to 2,547, according to the Ohio Department of Healths Wednesday figures

Read more coronavirus coverage at cleveland.com:

Confirmed Ohio coronavirus cases increase to 2,547 and 65 deaths: Gov. Mike DeWines Wednesday April 1 briefing

Explaining the latest lawsuit over Ohios delayed primary election, and how voters can request a ballot: Video

Summit County deputies to warn violators of social distancing rules at parks

Ohio appeals federal judges order blocking attempt to use coronavirus health restrictions to limit abortions

Sheetz stores to give free meals to children whose families are in need because of the coronavirus
WESTPORT  More than two weeks after Westport Public Schools closed to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, many adults have started transitioning into a new normal: Balancing their roles as parents, and now, teachers.

If you have two working parents that need to be available during the day, its not really possible, said Elena Shmonina, a mother of two 5-year-olds.

Fortunately, she said, her mother-in-law has helped while Shmonina and her husband continue to work. Starting at 8:30 a.m., the kids study and do classwork before taking a break around noon to play outside and ear lunch. They then return to do some more studying and typically finish their day around 4 p.m.

They do still have a structured day just like in school, Shmonina said of her familys routine. I dont think I would be able to do this without my mother-in-law.

Shmonina, who works at a bank, said working parents have a tough balance to handle, with caring for children while needing to make money in uncertain times. She typically works from her home office, using earplugs to focus while still helping her mother-in-law, but recently Shmonina required a change of scenery.

I actually asked to come to work today, Shmonina said Wednesday, adding only two employees were allowed at her job at a time. Thats kind of how I unplug.

With many now working around the clock to double as parents and teachers, she said shes noticed other parents talking about the challenges faced during this time.

I sometimes go to bed at 1 a.m. or 1:30 a.m. myself, Shmonina said.

As parents adapt to these changes, some local organizations are working to uplift and connect the community. WestportMoms, an online resource for families, has kept their website updated with the latest news for residents.

I think theres been ups and downs for everybody, WestportMoms co-founder Melissa Post said, adding clear communication from the school district has been a tremendous help.

Megan Rutstein, WestportMoms co-founder and mother of two, stressed the importance of parents knowing their limits.

I think the main thing is the schools are communicating with us and theyre in constant contact, Rutstein said. The teachers have been accessible if we need them.

With headlines constantly circulating about the coronavirus, the two have taken to social media to provide some light-hearted content while keeping the community informed. Their website also provides social distancing-friendly ideas for parents to keep kids engaged while in the house.

Weve really tried to create a resource for parents and kids to try and help support them during this time, said Post, a mother of three.

The moms also utilize their platform to assist businesses and were two of the families who spearheaded the OneWestport initiative, a website to keep the community connected to local shops.

We really try to be the link between the community and a lot of these organizations, Post said.

Rutstein said the silver lining in a difficult situation has been the strengthening of bonds between residents and within families.

For the most part, were all in the same situation, she said. I think that is whats bonding the community.

From using apps like Zoom and Houseparty to FaceTime appointments, residents are continuing to stay connected. While the future remains uncertain, both moms believe this was only a temporary hurdle.

These are those times that, as parents, you have to be stronger than you thought you could be, Post said. You enjoy your kids and know theyre going to look back and not remember at how bad you were at teaching them Spanish, but all the movies you watched and board games you played.

Shmonina echoed their sentiments.

We dont know whats going to happen, she said. I just keep saying this is temporary. This is not forever.


New Studies Show Benefits of NAL-Authier Combination

Brisbane, April 2, 2020 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Emerging lithium miner Sayona Mining Limited ( ASX:SYA ) ( FRA:DML ) ( OTCMKTS:DMNXF ) announced today further progress towards its planned expansion in Quebec, Canada, with preparatory studies showing the benefits of combining takeover target, North American Lithium (NAL) with Sayona's nearby Authier Lithium Project.Highlights- Sayona advancing preparatory work regarding proposed takeover of North American Lithium (NAL) in Quebec, Canada and integration with nearby Authier Lithium Project- New internal studies show benefits of combining ore bodies, with preliminary metallurgical testwork by SGS showing the ability to produce 6% Li2O concentrate at 80-85% recovery rate from a blended feed comprising Authier and NAL ore; PwC economic modelling demonstrates substantial boost to net present value (NPV) from Authier-NAL combination- Quebec's strategic position increasingly important amid COVID-19 outbreak and pressure to diversify global supply chains- Sayona's joint venture partner in Western Australia, Altura Mining, maintaining operations with new shipment underway; further talks planned regarding Pilgangoora JV exploration.Since officially lodging its bid for NAL with the court-appointed monitor (administrator) on 21 February 2020, Sayona has undertaken substantial preparatory work to ensure a rapid resumption of operations at NAL. The Company plans to integrate NAL with its emerging Authier project, located 60 km away, to deliver a significant improvement in plant performance and economics.Assay results undertaken by leading global certification firm SGS have demonstrated the ability to produce a 6% Li2O concentrate at an 80-85% recovery rate by blending Authier and NAL ore. A larger combined NAL/Authier reserve will also lengthen the mine life while increasing Sayona's lithium concentrate production from 2,600 tonnes per day (tpd) to 4,200 tpd, ensuring valuable long-term jobs for the benefit of the Quebec community, including First Nations peoples.Similarly, economic modelling undertaken by global accounting group, PwC has shown the superior economics resulting from the combination of NAL and Authier, with a substantial increase to NPV.Sayona also aims to re-engage with local businesses that have previously worked with NAL as part of the Company's focus on sustaining beneficial long-term relationships. Importantly, restarting operations at NAL will not only restore lost jobs and investment, but also enhance Quebec's position as a reliable and secure supplier to sensitive customers in the automotive, defence and technology industries in North America and Europe.This is particularly important given the impact of COVID-19 on global supply chains and increasing pressure on companies to diversify supply sources. The United States government has deemed lithium as a critical mineral and nearby Quebec is perfectly positioned to become a secure supplier.Elsewhere, Sayona's joint venture partner in Western Australia, leading lithium producer Altura Mining, has announced its Pilgangoora lithium mine and plant remain fully operational despite COVID-19, with the company progressing shipments to overseas customers.Sayona signed an earn-in agreement with Altura last year to develop the Company's exploration portfolio in the world-class Pilgangoora lithium district of WA (refer ASX announcement 8 August 2019). Under the agreement, Altura committed to spend A$1.5 million on exploration over three years to earn a 51% stake, with Sayona retaining the remaining project interest.Sayona's WA lithium portfolio comprises some 1,806 square kilometres, with its tenure in close proximity to other spodumene deposits, including Altura's Pilgangoora mine. Both Sayona and Altura Mining aim to undertake further joint exploratory work to maximise the benefit of the partnership.Commenting on recent progress, Sayona's Managing Director, Brett Lynch said: "Sayona is confident our world-class bid support team can ensure a successful turnaround at NAL and these latest results have only further strengthened this conviction. With support from the Quebec Government and other stakeholders, we are in a strong position to implement our planned strategy for the benefit of all."Investor support has also been excellent despite recent financial market volatility and I wish to thank all shareholders who have supported our current Renounceable Rights Issue (refer ASX announcement 26 March 2020). Despite COVID-19, we are continuing to work hard to deliver increased wealth for shareholders and will be ready to hit the ground running as soon as the NAL bid process concludes."About Sayona Mining Ltd

Sayona Mining Limited (ASX:SYA) (OTCMKTS:SYAXF) is an Australian, ASX-listed (SYA) company focused on sourcing and developing the raw materials required to construct lithium-ion batteries for use in the rapidly growing new and green technology sectors. The Company has lithium projects in Quebec, Canada and in Western Australia.

Please visit us as at www.sayonamining.com.au
Interviews with nearly two dozen Biden allies and donors over the last week provided the clearest picture yet of the critical early phase in Mr. Bidens efforts to choose a running mate. It is a process made even more complicated by the fact that Mr. Biden and his team are quarantined in different locations and grappling with how to run a campaign during a national health crisis.

Mr. Biden has stayed in touch with friends, though, and the question of his choice surfaces often on private donor calls. His allies and advisers are also bombarded with outside opinions, and it is something that Mr. Biden, himself a former vice president, cares deeply about.

There is not yet a consensus choice or a sense of who would deliver a surefire boost to the potential ticket, according to those interviewed, many of whom spoke on condition of anonymity, though the two names most frequently mentioned were Senators Kamala Harris and Amy Klobuchar. And his supporters are divided over whether Mr. Biden should prioritize selecting a woman of color as his running mate or whether regional considerations, like ties to the industrial Midwest, should hold greater weight.

My preference would be a black woman, said Representative James E. Clyburn of South Carolina, the highest-ranking African-American in Congress and perhaps Mr. Bidens most crucial supporter. But I dont think it has to be a black woman.

The outbreak of the coronavirus has heightened the stakes of the vice-presidential search. A decision that traditionally reflects a cocktail of political calculations, personal chemistry and governing experience has now taken on outsize importance for Mr. Biden. He would be 78 at inauguration, might not seek a second term should he win, and would be trying to rebuild the country in the wake of a pandemic  factors that make it less likely that he would select someone who offers strong political assets but a relatively thin resume.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Hobby Lobby has agreed to again close its stores in Ohio after reopening Monday, defying the states shelter-in-place order.

State Attorney General Dave Yost said Wednesday his office had sent a cease-and-desist letter to the company after reports it had opened all 19 locations in Ohio, as well as locations across the nation. In a post on Twitter, Yost said he quickly received a call from a lawyer for Hobby Lobby who said the company would again close its stores Wednesday night.

Earlier Wednesday, Yost sent out a tweet questioning why Hobby Lobby had reopened.

Hobby Lobby properly closed its stores during Ohios stay-home order, the attorney general tweeted. Now theyre open again  whats changed? Neither the order, nor the seriousness of the health threat, for sure. I sent a cease & desist letter to their general counsel.

Hobby Lobby did not respond to cleveland.coms request for comment. A spokesman for the Cuyahoga County Board of Health said in an email that officials on Monday spoke with employees at the Solon store and said the store had voluntarily closed.

Business Insider reported Tuesday that Hobby Lobby on Monday reopened in Ohio and across the nation. The company has several locations in Northeast Ohio, including Mentor, Solon, Macedonia, Stow, Fairlawn and Medina. Nobody picked up at any of the six stores when cleveland.com called on Wednesday.

Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Fulkerson, in a letter to Hobby Lobby General Counsel Peter Dobelbower, notes the Ohio Department of Healths order provides guidance on what businesses are essential and can remain open. Those include grocery stores, gas stations and pharmacies, among others.

It does not appear that Hobby Lobby meets the criteria outlined in the Directors order, Fulkerson wrote.

The move to reopen brought a police response in West Alllis, Wis., which forced the store to close because it was violating the non-essential business order, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. West Allis Deputy Police Chief Christopher Botsch tells the Journal Sentinel the store closed without incident.

USA Today reports not all stores in Wisconsin have closed, however. Police in Manitowoc, Wis., said they are seeking legal advice about whether to force the store to close.

A store in Jefferson, Indiana, was open for about an hour on Monday before it was forcibly shut down, WLKY reports. In Colorado, the company again closed all of its stores after a report by KRDO.

Neil Saunders, managing director of the retail consultancy Global Data, tells USA Today that craft stores claims of being essential businesses are "very spurious. In Michigan, the state attorney general denied a request by JoAnn Fabrics to remain open during the states shelter-in-place order, WZZM Channel 13 reports.

... All of the craft stores have behaved irresponsibly during this crisis and have only closed their stores when they have been absolutely forced to do so," Saunders tells USA Today.

More coronavirus coverage:

2nd person in Cleveland dies of COVID-19 coronavirus; 8 new cases confirmed by state

Projections show COVID-19 coronavirus will be one of Americas deadliest events -- Heres the numbers

Will wearing a mask protect me from coronavirus? The answers arent that simple

Ohio forms manufacturing coalition to aid in personal protection equipment production for coronavirus

Cleveland City Club gets zoom-bombed during coronavirus crisis: Tips to stop bad actors crashing internet get-togethers
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 20:40:23|Editor: huaxia

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VIENNA, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Wednesday announced that it is dispatching a first batch of equipment to rapidly detect the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 to over 40 countries.

The first batch of supplies, worth around 4 million euros (4.37 million U.S. dollars), will help countries use a nuclear-derived technique known as real time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, the most sensitive technique for detecting viruses currently available, according to a statement on the IAEA website.

The IAEA has been using its own resources and extra-budgetary funding from member states to provide emergency COVID-19 assistance. Member states, including the United States, Canada, the Netherlands and Australia, have so far contributed more than 9.5 million euros (10.38 million dollars).

In addition, China has informed the IAEA about its donations of detection equipment, kits, reagents and other medical materials worth 2 million dollars and provision of expert services, it said.

"I am very grateful to the governments of the United States, Canada, China, the Netherlands and Australia for their generous contributions," said IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi.

"I encourage others to contribute to this effort so that we can continue to swiftly respond to the growing demands from our member states," Grossi added.
Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) - Deaths from COVID-19 have more than doubled in the past week and will soon reach 50,000 worldwide, while the global caseload is heading towards one million, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) told journalists on Wednesday
Dilip Kumar on Wednesday shared a four-line poem on Twitter and urged his followers to stay home to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Bollywood veteran Dilip Kumar has been meticulously doing his bit on social media to inform and educate his fans about the COVID-19 outbreak. The actor on Wednesday shared a four-line poem on Twitter and urged his followers to stay home to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

(Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak)

Check out his post here

I urge you to #StayHomeSaveLives during this #COVID19pandemic Dawa bhi, dua bhi

Auron se faslaa bhi

Ghareeb ki khidmat

Kamzor ki seva bhi    

   

  

     Dilip Kumar (@TheDilipKumar) April 1, 2020

The 97-year-old actor in a tweet earlier has cautioned his followers and wrote, "I appeal to all of you to protect yourself and others by staying indoors as much as possible. The coronavirus outbreak transcends all boundaries and borders. Follow guidelines issued by health departments, protect yourself and others by limiting your exposure to others".

Kumar who was recently discharged from the hospital following backache has since put himself under home quarantine. On 16 March, he shared a health update on Twitter, adding his wife, actress Saira Banu, is ensuring he does not contract any infection.
How are Indians faring during the lockdown?

A Ganesh Nadar finds out.

Photograph: Alok Pathania/ANI Photo

The 21-day national lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus has understandably highlighted the travails of the poor and the migrant labour force.

But how do common people fare in this period of extreme national crisis? The self-employed, for instance, or someone at the lower rungs of the corporate ladder?

A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com finds out.

Satish

Works at a retail showroom, Chennai

It is very difficult to stay at home without work.

Essential commodities are available near my home, but you have to stand in line. I don't know if the people standing there are in good health or infected. So we wash everything before we use them in our home.

I also wash my hands and feet every time I step out of my home.

I see that it is the daily wage-earners who are suffering. Government staff get a month's salary so they are okay. I think people who employ daily wage-earners should look after them in these difficult times.

The provision and vegetable shops are open from the morning till 2.30 pm. We cannot go out after that.

I have a wife and two kids at home. Both the boys do some exercise inside the house every day.

Suresh

Taxi driver, Chennai

I stay in Chennai with my wife and two children. Last month I have not faced any problems, but I don't know what I am going to do this month.

From this month on, cabbies, auto drivers and coolies are going to face lots of problems.

The government has said they are going to give every ration card holder Rs 1,000. They have also said that auto drivers who have registered will get Rs 2,000.

I am a cab driver and I have also registered with the government's registered society. There are 17 different kinds of workers, like barbers, construction workers, drivers and so on, registered with the social welfare department of the government.

They have announced a cash dole only for the auto drivers and I am happy for them. But they have not announced anything for the other 16 societies.

The government should announce relief for all other societies, too.

Essential commodities and medicines are available nearby, but we cannot go to the main road.

The kids are exercising on the terrace when nobody else is there.

We are co-operating with the government. The government should help us.

Ganesan

Village barber, Tuticorin

We have been told to stay at home and we are doing that. Both my daughters are married and so it is only me and my wife.

In the village every day I always get four to five customers to either shave or cut their hair. But now there is no work as nobody is coming out and I cannot go to anyone's home till this lockdown ends.

I bought four masks from the village tailor who stitched it especially for us locals.

There is a small restaurant in the village which opens at 6 am and closes at 9 am. We can buy snacks from there and bring it home.

In the village bazaar provisions and vegetable shops are open from 6 am to 1 pm. I go there and get what I need. I always wear a mask when I go there.

The milk shops are not open.

Prathap

Security guard, Chennai

Last year I had gone to my village in Nepal so this year I did not go. I am happy where I am.

In my home in Nepal I have my mother, wife and two kids. I talk to them on the phone. They are safe as they are in a village. I have sent them money for their expenses.

I have stocked up enough provisions for two weeks. If I need vegetables they are available nearby in the morning only.

I cook my own food and sometimes the madam of the house where I work also gives me food.

I am happy where I am.
NASHVILLE, Tenn.  He couldnt use his regular fire hydrant across from the homeless encampment  tornado winds ripped up a giant tree and smashed it against the hydrant, knocking it out of service.

So Paul Schmitz parked his three-shower trailer a block away from the Jefferson Street bridge that about 50 people call home.

Wearing black nitrile gloves and a mask covering his mouth and nose, Schmitz gleefully set up a new hand-washing station.

My approach today is a hands-first philosophy, Schmitz said as five people drifted over from under the bridge. Clean your hands, and well go from there.

Clean your hands, and well go from there, says Paul Schmitz, who set up a hand-washing station near the Jefferson Street bridge in Nashville on March 26. ShowerUp, a nonprofit organization, provides the homeless with mobile showers.

Quickly setting up, he shouted greetings to those arriving.

Nathan! Schmitz sang out to a regular, Nathan Rice, 40.

The two exchanged huge smiles and an awkward elbow bump.

Despite his enthusiasm, Schmitz, 54, the affable founder of ShowerUp, is tired.

He has worked almost every day to provide showers to Nashvilles homeless since the tornado and COVID-19 hit.

The need for showers grew in that time since two of the organizations that typically provide them to the homeless  the YMCAs and Room in the Inn  shut down or cut back services.

Schmitz operates the mobile showers without his usual army of volunteers because he wants to protect them from exposure to the virus.

With one helper, Schmitz greets and connects with the homeless using ShowerUps mobile facilities.

The former radio executive bonds with those in a community he once ignored and sometimes feared.

'What else ya got?'

Like many teenagers in the '70s and '80s, Schmitz couldnt stop listening to pop radio, including those Casey Kasem countdowns.

Unlike many of his friends, Schmitz, a regular at church, started listening to Christian rock and pop pioneers, including Larry Norman and Randy Stonehill. He sang along to their songs while riding in the car, cutting the grass or shooting hoops in his driveway in his hometown of Peoria, Illinois.

Schmitz scored a dream gig toward the end of high school: He got $1.85 an hour on the air at Christian station WPEO in Peoria, playing records on weekends and holidays.

Story continues

That launched a decades-long career as on-air personality Paul Anthony. Schmitz became a Christian radio network exec in 2005.

Jared Charles, left, receives a towel from Paul Schmitz at the ShowerUp trailer in Nashville on March 26.

He said he believed in Christian principles, talked about them on and off the air, even helped organize winter coat drives for the needy with his radio network.

But Schmitz always felt uncomfortable when homeless people asked him for money on the street outside his corporate offices in downtown Wichita, Kansas. He warded them off with an awkward no thanks.

I didnt know how to engage folks that were on the street, and that paralyzed me from doing anything meaningful, he said. I had compassion, and I had concern, but I didnt know how to act on it.

One day, Schmitz was getting out of his work-issued Toyota 4Runner wrapped with the station logo, and a homeless woman in her 40s asked him for money.

Paul Schmitz runs the ShowerUp trailer mostly by himself because he didn't want to put his volunteers at risk of coronavirus.

Schmitz handed her $2, and she said in an insistent, raspy voice, What else ya got? What else ya got?

The 6-foot-2-inch Schmitz immediately got back in his car, closed the door and waited for her to leave.

Im inferring something menacing. I remember in that moment feeling like I need to get out of this situation, right now, he said.

Schmitz questioned himself for weeks afterward, wondering if he overreacted, if he missed an opportunity to be of service.

Handing out sack lunches

After getting married in 2007, Schmitz and his wife adopted three sisters, and they wanted to teach the girls basics about kindness and helping others.

Schmitz was reading two books that sparked his desire to serve to a new level, "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan and "Not a Fan" by Pastor Kyle Idleman.

After a night of pacing and prayer, Schmitz told his wife he wanted to pack some brown bag lunches and hand them to homeless people downtown.

His wife, Rhonda, responded, When do you want to start?

Spooky, center, a homeless man, often came to lunches that Paul Schmitz, left, and his wife, Rhonda, held weekly for the needy in Wichita, Kan.

That Sunday after church, Schmitz, his wife and their daughters packed into their black Toyota minivan, drove downtown and passed out 25 bags through the van windows. Inside were peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chips, homemade brownies, bottled water and napkins.

The vibe in the van was we felt like wed done something important for our family, Schmitz said.

His wife said, It was a good thing.

The next week, the family got out of the van and handed 35 sack lunches to homeless people, having brief conversations with each.

Over the next three months, church volunteers joined the Schmitz family and more than 50 sack lunches were being handed out. Conversations got longer.

Schmitz and the church volunteers decided to set up locations to have the homeless eat and talk and make it a community gathering. The volunteers named it People Loving Wichita.

Volunteers brought big boxes of fried chicken, hot dogs, chili and hamburgers, and more than 250 meals were served each week. Those meals opened doors to connection.

Paul Schmitz, far right, directs a client to an open shower.

The food was simply a handshake, but relationship was the most important thing, Schmitz said. With relationship, you have opportunity to make a difference in someones life.

The difference is combating the feeling many homeless people have that they dont matter.

The isolation created when you are homeless is not just physical; its emotional, its spiritual. When that happens, its easy to think that your friends and family dont care and dont want anything to do with you, Schmitz said.

A new radio network job brought Schmitz to Nashville in 2013, and he and his family jumped into volunteering for a Monday night homeless ministry called People Loving Nashville.

'No, I'm not'

Schmitz and his wife heard often from homeless people that they wanted to feel clean, to have access to showers, but he had no idea how to fill that need.

Then Schmitz saw a post on his Facebook feed about an upscale mobile shower unit that was part of a high-end outdoor hospitality event.

I heard in my heart and in my mind three words  Youre doing that,  Schmitz said. And I said out loud, No Im not. 

But Schmitz, convinced he received a message from God, decided to move forward. He uttered one of the most unusual sentences he has ever said to his wife:

Paul Schmitz says he felt like "God wants us to do a shower truck for the homeless.

I think God wants us to do a shower truck for the homeless.

Her first reaction:

Ummmmmmm  we have no money.

Then the questions: Where would they get such a truck? How would they do this when they both worked full time? Did they need permission from the city?

Rhonda said her husband had no answers, but he was determined.

His tone was, This is what we have to do. It wasnt a bossy tone at all. It was a matter-of-fact tone. We have zero choice right now,  she said. He knew it was going to work out. He just knew.

Schmitz gathered information and started fundraising, first through friends and family. Eventually, he got $20,000 for a box truck and got a plumbing company to build it out for a fraction of what it would normally charge.

It feels great to get cleaned up, Nathan Rice says.

The shower stalls are roomy, 6 feet by 4 feet, and there is a separate changing area, so clients wont feel cramped.

Schmitz started collecting from friends travel-size toiletry items  soap, shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrush, shaving cream, razors.

After debuting the showers at the Monday night People Loving Nashville gathering, Schmitz said he heard from folks who hadnt had a shower for weeks or months.

Thomas Lineweaver, 31, a writer/blogger who has lived on the streets for 10 years, said, A shower is important because it helps me feel clean, rejuvenated.

ShowerUp, with the help of the Predators Foundation and others, has a box truck and three mobile shower trailers that make about three to four stops a week.

The showers build the type of relationships Schmitz and his wife hoped for.

Rice, who lives in the Jefferson Street encampment, said, It feels great to get cleaned up. Paul is a good friend.

Follow Brad Schmitt on Twitter @bradschmitt.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee man operates mobile showers for homeless amid coronavirus
Italys death toll from the Wuhan coronavirus could be much higher than previously reported, according to an analysis by the Wall Street Journal published Wednesday.

The health care system in Italys Lombardy region has been stretched to the limit during the coronavirus outbreak, with numerous reports of hospital staff being forced to resort to war-time triage procedures. However, in addition to confirmed coronavirus deaths, many people may have died without having been tested for the illness.

There are many more dead than are officially declared, Eugenio Fossati, deputy mayor of the town of Coccaglio, told the Journal. But this is not a jaccuse. People died and they were never tested because time and resources are limited.

In March, in the town of Coccaglio, 56 people died, just 12 of whom were tested for coronavirus. A nursing home in the town lost 24 residents in March, none of whom were ever tested for the illness. By comparison, 86 of the towns residents died over the entire year of 2019.

We know the real number is higher, and we mourn them, knowing full well why they died, Fossati said. Its a hard truth to accept.

The city of Bergamo saw a similar spike in deaths. In March 2019, 125 people died in the city, while in March 2020 deaths hit 553, of which only 201 were confirmed coronavirus cases. Bergamo mayor Giorgio Gori told the Journal he estimates that one-third of the citys 120,000 people have been infected.

We were first, and we werent prepared. Any leaders looking at us and not reacting vigorously will have a lot to answer for, Gori said.

Italy had 110,574 confirmed cases of coronavirus with 13,155 deaths as of Thursday morning, according to the Johns Hopkins University tracker. On Tuesday, Vice President Mike Pence indicated that the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. could best be compared to Italys outbreak.

We think Italy may be the most comparable area to the United States at this point, Pence said in a CNN interview. Our message yesterday, our message over the next 30 days, is the future is in our hands.

More from National Review
Laois Offaly Sinn Fein TD Brian Stanley has today called on Banks to change their approach towards customers during this crisis.

Deputy Stanley said Sinn Fein wants the Central Bank and the Minister for Finance to step in.

"It is totally unacceptable how the banks are treating customers at this time when workers and small businesses are under huge financial pressure.

The fact that Banks are continuing to charge quarterly fees on customers who have the smallest amounts in their accounts is completely out of order. Constituents are complaining that sums of between 15 and 100 were taken from their accounts in recent days. Some who had just received an emergency Covid-19 payment, due to loss of employment, found that the Banks had already taken part of it. All Banks need to end this practice during the current crisis.

"Mortgage holders are also being squeezed. Despite repeated promises from banks of a payment holiday for customers at a time of national emergency, they have refused to ensure that mortgage interest will not accrue for those that can't make mortgage payments because of financial difficulties. This means, that people with an average 200,000 mortgage will pay almost 2,000 more over the lifetime of their mortgage.

"The Banks are profiting out of the crisis. This comes on the back of their profits increasing massively in recent years but despite this, they dont pay any corporation tax. These are the same Banks that the taxpayer bailed out.

"Sinn Fein wants the Central Bank and the banks called in by the government and this profiteering to be stopped. Banks need to realise that we are in the middle of a national emergency which is affecting every citizen in Ireland and many people are experiencing real financial hardship, he said.
Thanks to the alertness shown by



Maharashtras home department, a congregation similar to the one held in Delhis Nizamuddin, now linked to COVID-19 spread, was averted near here following withdrawal of permission for the March event, Minister Anil Deshmukh said on Thursday.

A two-day mega religious programme was planned in Vasai, on outskirts of Mumbai, but the home department denied permission for it after initially giving the go-ahead.

An official statement, quoting Home Minister Deshmukh, said an outfit, Shamim Education and Welfare Society, had formally sought permission from the department for organising a programme, Tablighi Ijtema, near Diwanman village in West Vasai on March 14-15.

The society, while seeking permission, had conveyed to the department that around 50,000 devotees would attend the event in which the Quran was to be recited besides offering of namaz.

The police, in a letter dated February 5, had informed the society about granting permission for the event.

In the meantime, Deshmukh said COVID 19 cases were being reported in the country and the state, and several people were quarantined, while suspects were being treated.

The department reconsidered granting permission to the Vasai event amid such a situation given that coming together of 50,000 people would have been detrimental to controlling the spread of the coronavirus, the release said.

Accordingly, permission was denied for the (Vasai) programme on March 6. Plus, strict instructions were given to the organisers of the event against holding the programme.

The alertness shown by the home department against the backdrop of the coronavirus outbreak helped in averting the Delhi-like episode, the statement quoted Deshmukh as saying.

The minister said Tablighi Jamaats event held in Delhis Nizamuddin last month has caused fear among people across the country as some devotees who attended the programme in the national capital were infected by coronavirus.

He said those who came in contact with the devotees concerned also have shown symptoms of COVID 19.

The situation in Delhi could have been averted had the alertness as shown by the (Maharashtra) state home department was exhibited there (in the national capital), Deshmukh said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SAN FRANCISCOHotHouse.com has released the debut scene from its latest bareback feature, Making Moves, co-directed by Trenton Ducati and Jasun Mark. The first scene, which features studio exclusive Arad Winwin putting the moves on Angel Rivera, goes live today. Digital downloads will be available for purchase on the Falcon Studios Group Store on April 10.

The energy between Arad and Angel is nothing short of explosive," states co-director Ducati. "Angel is a pleaser in this scene, and Arad knows how to dominate! It's a great kickoff to this satisfying series.

HotHouse.com, featuring more than 750 gay adult scenes, is available for promotion through the Buddy Profits affiliate program. Affiliates can choose between $35 pay-per-signup or 50 percent revshare for all memberships they refer, including trials. Affiliates are encouraged to visit BuddyProfits.com for promotional material. For more information about the Buddy Profits affiliate program, email [email protected]
Karl Stefanovic has spoken about the heartbreaking moment he and his mother Jenny, 70, discussed how she wouldn't get to meet his newborn baby when the TV star's wife Jasmine Yarbrough gives birth in the next coming weeks.

During a segment about mental health amid the coronavirus pandemic on Thursday's Today show, the breakfast host said his mum was 'terribly anxious' about COVID-19.

The 45-year-old explained that he's been constantly reassuring his mother, who is based in Queensland, that she will get to hold his baby daughter one day once everyone gets through the crisis.

Scary times: Karl Stefanovic has spoken about the heartbreaking moment he and his mother Jenny, 70, discussed how she wouldn't get to meet his newborn baby when the TV star's wife Jasmine Yarbrough gives birth in the next coming weeks (pictured with co-host Allison Langdon)

Karl's wife Jasmine, 35, is due in May.

'I spoke to my mum, mum is terribly anxious because she's in Cairns on her own and trying to isolate,' Karl explained.

'She has anxiety about not being with us with the baby coming. That builds for her and I just said to her, because this Lifeline counsellor said to me, "you focus on the positives".'

Trying times: Last month, Karl revealed his heartache on Today over his mother not being able to meet his baby daughter due to coronavirus. He said interstate travel restrictions and hospital protocols mean Jenny will have to stay in Queensland and not head down to Sydney where he and Jasmine are based

'That's hard for a grandparent': He also noted that hospitals won't be allowing anyone besides doctors, nurses and parents into the birthing suites as a safety precaution

He added: 'We will get through this. We will reach the other side. You will see the baby. You will do all those things.'

Karl said that focusing on short-term goals during the global health crisis helps to 'keep the spirits up.'

Last month, Karl revealed his heartache on Today over his mother not being able to meet his baby daughter due to coronavirus.

He said interstate travel restrictions and hospital protocols mean Jenny will have to stay in Queensland and not head down to Sydney where he and Jasmine are based.

'My mum lives in Cairns. She's just turned 70. She feels so isolated,' Karl said.

Baby joy: Karl is expecting his first child with wife Jasmine Yarbrough (pictured)

Not long now! Shoe designer Jasmine is due in May

'So she can't travel interstate and there's lots going on with the family and everything,' he added.

He added: '[Jenny] has lots of new grandbabies. The reality is she's not going to be able to meet them.'

He also noted that hospitals won't be allowing anyone besides doctors, nurses and parents into the birthing suites as a safety precaution.

'So that's hard. That's hard for a grandparent,' he said.

Karl has three older children from his previous marriage to Cassandra Thorburn: Jackson, 20, River, 12, and Ava, 14.

If you or anyone you know is struggling, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or click here.
President Donald Trump brushed aside reports of a perilous need for hospital equipment, saying the nation would soon have more ventilators than it needs as he revealed he personally put in a huge order for hospital gear with the CEO of Walmart.

Trump was asked at the White House Wednesday about a report that the nation's stockpile of equipment was depleted  a characterization he did not dispute.

'It is because were sending it directly to hospitals,' Trump said. 'We don't want it to come to the stockpile, because then we have to take it after it arrives and bring it to various states and hospitals.'

'I just had a great talk today with Doug McMillon from Walmart and I gave him a very very big order to for gowns, for protective gear. For the doctors, for the nurses for everything and he's actually very excited about it,' Trump said.

'I gave him a very very big order to for gowns,' Trump said of his phone call with the CEO of Walmart

'He's the biggest purchaser of this kind of thing. I mean of anything probably in the world and he is very excited about it. And he said what size. I said it's almost unlimited when you look at these hospitals. the amount that they order. you almost say how could they possibly use so much? whether it's a masks or the protective gear. But we are supplying a tremendous amount and we just ordered a lot from Wallmart.

Trump said he has 'taken this on personally.'

Outside of his own interventions, Trump is also continuing to urge governors to make their own purchases, even as some have howled that they are being out-bid by federal purchasers.

'We asked the states to do this as much as possible. Many of the states have people that whether it's that or clothing, they make clothing, lots of clothing, and many of the different states. We said see if you can get it directly for those manufacturers. Make a deal,' Trump said.

Trump said he placed a 'very big order' with the company

Employees work making masks and gowns at NorthCape, an outdoor furniture upholstery manufacturer, in Alsip, Illinois, USA, 31 March 2020

Trump said the nation had a 'pile of ventilators' and the country would soon have more than it needs

Hospitals are desperate for more protective gear to combat the coronavirus

He said the administration is urging states to 'use those local factories those local plants and have it made directly, ship it right into the hospitals.'

The president also spoke about ventilators, saying an additional 1,000 of the sophisticated machines have been transferred from the national stockpile  which would be about 10 per cent of the total.

'We have almost 10,000 ventilators, which we need for flexibility and it sounds like a lot.'

'As the scourge as this plague, as this virus moves ... We don't know yet whether we're going to need it in Louisiana, in New York, you know, wherever it may be,' Trump said.

'We're totally ready for it. We're totally ready for it,' Trump said, even as governors and public experts have warned of the potential for severe shortages.

'We agreed to ship out over 1,000 today to different locations, he said, speaking to the need for flexibility.

Numerous companies have undertaken crash programs to begin manufacturing ventilators to meet a global need. But many of them won't be coming online for weeks.

'When you make one, it doesn't get made in 15 minutes. It's not a mask can get quickly. 'It's complex. It's big. It's expensive,' Trump said.

'Right now we have a nice pile of ventilators. We have a lot more coming in,' Trump said.

'Were soon going to have more ventilators than we need,' the president said.

'Fairly soon,' he said there would be 'far more than we can use.'

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has said his state may need 30,000-40,000 thousand of them as it confronts the pandemic. It leads the nation in infections and deaths.

Trump said he was 'looking very seriously' at starting construction on two Navy hospital ships, after the USNS Comfort arrived in New York and the Mercy is docked in Los Angeles.

The president's statements about urgently needed equipment came a day after the administration said as many 100,000 people could die from the pandemic.
Gonzalez, a Kansas City, Missouri native, came to the Waco ABC affiliate in March from KETV-TV in Omaha, Nebraska. During her two years there, she covered the state's deadly floods of 2018 and reported on the Food and Drug Administration's action to keep some breast implants on the market despite their possible connection to breast implant disease. She's a Denison University graduate and earned a New England Student Emmy for her broadcast work while at Northeastern University School of Creative Arts, Media and Design in Boston, Massachusetts.
Mumbai, April 2 : After his toddler son Yash suggested Karan Johar should wear "simple clothes", the filmmaker's daughter Roohi has described his blazer collection as "girl clothes"! Karan took to Instagram, where he shared a video of himself along with his twins inide his walk-in wardrobe.

In the clip, Yash and Roohi are seen holding on to some of his clothes in their hands.

Roohi has a red sequined blazer, which Karan wore for an award event, and calls it "girl's clothes".

While Yash holds a neon yellow jacket and laughs loudly.

Then Karan is heard saying: "Are you laughing at dada's clothes? I guess I have to reassess my fashion choices." The filmmaker captioned the post: "Bachche man ke sache has a new meaning in my sartorial choices! #toodles #lockdownwiththejohars." This is not the first time Karan has shared a sneak peek of his life. The director, an avid user of social media, keeps sharing glimpses of his life and kids on the virtual world with his fans and followers.

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
As with most countries in the world, cases of coronavirus, COVID-19 in Peru are rising. The government has responded rapidly and firmly to flatten the curve, with widespread support from the public. However, considering the dynamics of the illness in other places, including those who have also carried out early responses, the hardest days are yet to come, and not just for health reasons.

Although 80 percent of the cases are concentrated in Lima, the countrys capacity to diagnose and treat people is still being developed. Although measures were put in place to close the gaps from day one, this is not going to be easy. According to our latest State Density Index, at least 107 out of the 196 provinces in the country have fewer than 10 doctors per 10,000 inhabitants. This situation could cause more complications in regions with high numbers of citizens over 80, given that this group represents one out of every six cases diagnosed with COVID-19.

The added pressure on the Peruvian health system is only part of the problem. As borders close and stock markets and international economies falter, the potential economic and social impact of COVID-19 is still uncertain. It has already posed a significant challenge for people who depend on daily incomes to survive and, depending on the duration of measures such as quarantine, threatens tourism, urban services and those who depends on the so-called sharing economy, who arent employed by, but depend on third-parties for their main income. There is no doubt that this will be more critical for people who were already in a vulnerable situation before; people in informal or precarious jobs, migrants, households that depend on only one salary and indigenous and rural populations.

According to the Chamber of Commerce of Limas Economic and Business Development Institute, in 2019, around one million people in Peru were at risk of falling back into poverty if their income was reduced by an average of seven percent. This leaves them extremely exposed to shocks such as an illness in the family, the loss of jobs, or the reduction of working hours, among others. These are precisely the dynamics that are exacerbated by the pandemic.

UNDP has supported Perus successful fight against poverty over the last two decades. With COVID-19 expanding its reach across Latin America, the stage is set for the country to show regional leadership when it comes to social progress. That involves protecting people not only from the illness, but also from the potential worsening of their living standards. An emergency fund for people living in poverty is fundamental, but it also must include the vulnerable class, many of whom direct or work in the small businesses that helped increase the national economys resilience during the last global economic crisis in 2008.

The true impact of COVID-19 will be complex and felt beyond national averages. It demands integral solutions which put people at the centre and which consider the socio-economic impact on families and the possible human rights violations to the most vulnerable populations. Just as other countries are already experiencing a rise in xenophobia and discrimination against people of Asian descent, in Peru the Venezuelan migrant population, largely employed in the informal sector, could be at risk. It is fundamental to develop policies that take into account both the overall socio-economic impact and analyses of the vulnerable populations income and their social services. It is also key to analyze how this evolving scenario is affecting gender inequalities.

This is a challenge that requires the leadership of the state and the support of everyone, particularly the private sector, along with active citizens, the majority of whom have responded with solidarity, responsibility, and creativity. Information technology and social innovation are opening new routes to explore that can already be seen in the country; professionals offering support through social networks, even parties on Google Hangouts to deal with the mental health impact produced by quarantine. Even within UNDP, through our Inspiring Businesses initiative, we are providing support to the private sector and its corporate volunteer schemes for the development of tools to reactivate small and medium businesses economies. This could later be expanded nationwide with the Ministry of Production and other alliances.

It is an atypical moment for a population who, in great majority, feel disconnected from the state. We must respond accordingly so in the face of the COVID-19 and other vulnerabilities, absolutely no one is left behind.
Editors note: This post includes updates related to COVID-19 and its effects on Albuquerque and the rest of the state.

PICTURES





UPDATES

4:35 p.m.

Dozens of COVID-19 tests underway at MDC

The Department of Health is testing close to 80 inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center for COVID-19 after it was announced earlier this week that one person there tested positive for the virus.

That inmate, a 39-year-old man, is quarantined alone. Four others are in quarantine either because they were in close contact with him or because they are exhibiting symptoms.

An additional 73 inmates are isolated in two separate housing units as they await testing and 17 MDC staff members are being tested.

The facility is on lock down, as recommended by the health department. That means inmates are released from their cells one at a time to shower and make phone calls.

 Katy Barnitz

4:23 p.m.

Virus cases shoot up to 403 as one more death reported

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in New Mexico climbed above 400 on Thursday  an 11% increase over the last 24 hours  and a seventh person died amid the outbreak, according to the state Department of Health.

The department announced 40 additional positive tests, bring the states total to 403 people who have been infected since March 11.

The state also reported its seventh death related to COVID-19  a Bernalillo County woman in her 70s, with underlying medical conditions.

Thirty-four people are now hospitalized in New Mexico with the virus, and 31 people are classified as having recovered.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham continues to urge New Mexicans to stay home unless its absolutely necessary to leave.

 Dan McKay

3:26 p.m.

NM to receive $16.7 million in housing assistance from coronavirus aid package

New Mexico communities across the state will receive over $16.7 million in emergency housing assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to the states response to the COVID-19 pandemic, New Mexicos congressional delegation said Thursday.

The funds are part of a first wave of grants from the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act passed by Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump last week.

New Mexico received the funding in three HUD programs, which include the Community Development Block Grant program, Emergency Solutions Grants and the Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) Program, the lawmakers said in a release.

COVID-19 Recovery- Community Development Block Grant can be used for the expansion of community health facilities, child care centers, food banks, and senior services. The breakdown is below:

 Albuquerque, $2,678,828

 Farmington, $229,696

 Las Cruces, $560,525

 Rio Rancho, 346,887

 Santa Fe, $361,227

 New Mexico Nonentitlement, $6,802,356

COVID-19 Recovery- Emergency Solutions Grants address the impact of COVID-19 among individuals and families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. The breakdown is below:

 Albuquerque, $1,364,214

 New Mexico Nonentitlement, $4,140,483

COVID-19 Recovery- Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS Program provides funding for rental assistance and other supporting services. The breakdown is below:

 Albuquerque, $76,795

 New Mexico Nonentitlement, $69,375

 Santa Fe Community Housing Trust, Competitive Grant Award, $146,556

 Scott Turner

2:35 p.m.

NM officials strongly encourage mask wearing in public

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham isnt mandating the use of masks when New Mexicans go out in public.

But the Governors Office said Thursday that top state health officials are now strongly encouraging state residents to cover up  by wearing face coverings when they leave their houses as a way to mitigate the spread of germs amid a coronavirus outbreak.

Specially designed masks for doctors and nurses should not be used by members of the public, however, to ensure theres as many as possible for frontline health care workers.

Our guidance to the public will be that face coverings may provide some additional benefit and are encouraged  but of course they do not replace the important actions of staying home, washing your hands, and aggressive social distancing as far as reducing the spread, Lujan Grisham spokesman Tripp Stelnicki told the Journal.

Read more >>

 Dan Boyd

1:45 p.m.

Pueblo of Isleta imposes curfew

The Pueblo of Isleta has imposed a curfew for residents living within its reservation boundaries due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The curfew is in effect between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m., according to the notice from Isleta Gov. Max Zuni posted Thursday on the pueblos Facebook page.

The curfew doesnt apply to anyone who must travel for work or emergency situations, the notice reads.

A curfew on the Navajo Nation between the hours of 8 p.m. and 5 a.m. went into effect March 30.

 Journal Staff

11:09 a.m.

Teacher evals halted for 2019-20 school year

The state Public Education Department will not require teacher evaluations for the 2019-2020 school year.

The education system in New Mexico has been drastically affected by the novel coronavirus that has gripped the world and nation. Schools across the state have been ordered to close for the rest of the school year and districts and teachers will be tasked with creating continuous learning plans without in-person classes.

The PED recently announced that statutorily mandated teacher evals will be waived, in part, because it may not be fair or accurate to evaluate educators while they shift to new instructional methods, said deputy secretary Gwen Perea Warniment.

Districts have been encouraged by the state agency to use data that was collected before closures to offer feedback to teachers.

Classroom environment surveys, which are filled out by families and students, arent required for this school year, either.

Instructional hour quotas and spring standardized testing have also both been waived for schools in the state.

 Shelby Perea

7:53 a.m.

A record 6.6 million seek US jobless aid as layoffs mount

More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week  doubling a record high set just one week earlier  a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus.

The stunning report Thursday from the Labor Department showed that job cuts are mounting against the backdrop of economies in the United States and abroad that have almost certainly sunk into a severe recession as businesses close across the world.

Applications for unemployment benefits generally reflect the pace of layoffs. Combined with last weeks report that 3.3 million people sought unemployment aid two weeks ago, the U.S. economy has now suffered nearly 10 million layoffs in just the past several weeks  far exceeding the figure for any corresponding period on record.

Read more >>

 AP

6:05 a.m.

NM hospitals prepare for tsunami

New Mexicos hospitals are modifying medical equipment to make more ventilators, confronting price-gouging and searching for bed space as they prepare for a surge in new coronavirus cases, according to an online panel discussion moderated by the Journal on Wednesday.

The top executives at Presbyterian, Lovelace and the University of New Mexico health systems also said they are collaborating well together and ready to work as a team amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

We can see the tsunami that is fast approaching the state of New Mexico, said Paul Roth, a doctor, chancellor for UNM Health Sciences and CEO of the UNM Health System.

The comments came in a 90-minute discussion sponsored by the Journal and moderated by Senior Editor Kent Walz.

Read more >>

 Dan McKay

6:05 p.m.

40 new cases on the Navajo reservation, total now 214

The Navajo Nation now has 214 cases of COVID-19, President Jonathan Nez told the Journal Wednesday evening, an increase in 40 from Tuesday. There are 7 total confirmed COVID-19 deaths on the Navajo Nation.

President Nez said Navajo residents have to wait three to four days for COVID-19 test results that are sent to laboratories in Albuquerque and Phoenix. Nez has petitioned the federal government for laboratory sites on the reservation to speed up the process.

We did get a National Guard 50-bed mobile clinic in Chinle (Arizona), to use as a quarantine site, Nez said. That site will be used for patients that test positive but dont require hospitalization. Here, many generations live in one household, so this is a way to prevent these patients from potentially spreading the virus in their homes and communities.

Nez said the Navajo Nation would receive personal protective equipment shipments from the national stockpile on Thursday for use in the Nations 12 hospitals.

Its not much, maybe a weeks worth of supplies, Nez said. Were getting Indian Health Service data that our peak might be early May or mid-May. Were just barely starting to go up that curve.

The Navajo Nation instituted special first-of-the-month precautions on Wednesday to protect elderly Navajo and other vulnerable citizens that usually do their grocery shopping on that day. All Bashas Dine Markets on the Navajo Nation extended their elderly shopping hours from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday.

Weve heard and seen stories of citizens stepping up to help each other out in this time of uncertainty, Nez said. It is bringing us together. We will overcome this virus and be stronger fo it. We should continue to pray for our healthcare workers and our first responders.

 Theresa Davis
By Olga Yagova and Devika Krishna Kumar

MOSCOW/NEW YORK (Reuters) - In a market oversupplied with crude and related products, traders at big oil companies are focusing on placing their own production and refusing to deal with third party volumes as the cost of storage soars.

Oil companies worldwide are scrambling to find a home for their output as they grapple with the fastest and deepest ever collapse in demand, with the coronavirus pandemic shuttering industry and keeping much of the world at home with little need to drive or fly, while both floating and inland storage is fast filling up.

Majors including ExxonMobil <XOM.N>, BP <BP.L>, Total <TOTF.PA>, and Russia's Lukoil <LKOH.MM> are among those shutting out third parties in an attempt to move their own output and avoid cutting production, five trading sources familiar with the companies' strategy told Reuters.

"We're instructed to focus on our group production as a priority and have to cut most of the trading activity due to the risks," a source with a European major said.

ExxonMobil, BP, Lukoil and Total did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Refining consultants and traders say the industry will need to cut output by 30% or more within weeks, while smaller and financially weak oil refiners may not emerge from the crisis.

NO TRADING

According to three market sources, Lukoil's trading arm Litasco, which has been active in trading third party oil and products, has slashed such activities to focus on placing barrels produced by the Lukoil group of companies.

"The focus is to place all Lukoil's volumes, other projects are not a priority now", one of the sources familiar with Litasco's business strategy told Reuters.

A source in the U.S. oil market said that Litasco was clearly reducing third party trades, in line with other majors.

"It's a new trend we clearly see. Those who have production try to place the oil with their own refineries," a source in the Mediterranean oil market said.

Story continues

Smaller oil producers and refiners which rely on oil majors to purchase their volumes face more difficulties, traders said.

"Crude is simply not needed here and there. You're lucky if you place anything at all", a trader in the European oil market said.

Those majors tied into term contracts with other producers are taking as little volume as is possible under the agreements, two traders said.

"We cut our purchases to minimum volumes...but we send most of it to storage anyway. There is a ban on any new buy contracts", a source in a European oil company told Reuters.

Another source at a large merchant in the U.S. oil market said that if the majors stopped buying third party crude entirely, the non-integrated producers would likely suffer first, while another source at a shale producer said smaller U.S. producers were struggling because of the pullback by the majors, especially as credit lines dried up.

(Additional reporting by Dmitry Zhdannikov in London and Bate Felix in Paris; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
As of last week, the United States surpassed China in total number of recorded COVID-19 coronavirus infections.

There are a few caveats to take in with that, but viral infections in China appear to be on a downward trend. China has a population of 1.4 billion people. The U.S. has a population 331 million people and confirmed infections have only increased. As of this writing, Wyoming had 95 confirmed infections.

That will likely increase between the time this paper is printed and when our readers get a chance to peruse this edition, which illustrates how quickly moving everything surrounding the pandemic is. Thankfully, no one has died yet.

Like China, the confirmed number of infections in the U.S. are smaller than whatever the actual number is. This is mainly due to our governments inability to initiate a vigorous testing program that can track the coronavirus spread.

That hasnt been the only core problem associated with this pandemic.

Theres a severe shortage of protective gear for medical workers treating the more serious cases of coronavirus infection, which places them at a huge risk of being infected themselves. Theres also the fact the pandemic response team was disbanded in 2018 and the Trump Administrations donation of millions of dollars worth of medical equipment to China after the first coronavirus infection in the U.S.

Contrast this with South Koreas response. South Koreas first positive coronavirus case was reported the same day the U.S. had its first case.

However, South Korea adopted a rigorous testing program, with the government hosting a summit with the countrys medical companies to create the partnership needed to combat the virus. This partnership resulted in the creation and mass distribution of COVID-19 tests throughout the country, which both allowed the government to track the spread of the virus to prioritize where it should respond first, as well as allowing for quick isolation and quarantine of those already infected. The country is successful in limiting exposure and the spread of the disease, all without the country-wide shutdowns and shelter orders seen in other countries.

Admittedly, South Korea has a much smaller land mass to deal with and roughly one-sixth of the population the U.S. has. A similar response could have been initiated in the U.S. regardless.

A rigorous testing and quarantine policy could have been implemented in major cities, then spread out to rural areas as needed. The result would have been less cases in places like New York and New Orleans and possibly single-digit cases reported in Wyoming.

What were seeing is a spectacular failure in leadership from our federal government. While Trump may claim he doesnt accept responsibility for anything regarding the coronavirus, the simple fact is this: the buck stops with him.

Infections and economy-hindering responses could have been lessened if we had a much more serious early response to the pandemic.

One positive thing to note: Trump has stopped talking about easing restrictions and rebooting the economy by Easter and has extended federal distancing guidelines through April 30. Someone in his administration has his attention and he is listening to their advice.
Administration Needs to Intensify Crackdown on Cheap Foreign Labor, Says Panel

The Trump administration created a good program in 2017 to protect U.S. workers by cracking down on employers that abuse temporary visa programs to bring in cheap labor from abroad but it needs to do a lot more, panelists at a discussion hosted by the nonpartisan Center for Immigration Studies said April 2.

With the virtual shutdown of much of the U.S. economy, American workers are hurting, and jobs are scarce, said Andrew R. Arthur, a resident fellow in law and policy at the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS).

Fortunately, there are agencies targeting, investigating, and bringing enforcement actions against employers who are discriminating against the American worker, and there are procedures by which the public can report fraud and abuse in temporary worker programs. But the administration can and should do more.

Arthur was referring to the Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative, which the administration launched in 2017. Under it, the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division has been investigating employers thought to be abusing temporary visa programs to deny U.S. workers job opportunities. IER has reached eight settlements with employers who agreed to pay more than $1.2 million in back wages to affected U.S. workers and civil penalties, according to CIS.

The Civil Rights Division uses traditional tools of investigation, lawsuits, outreach, and interagency coordination to fight employer preferences for temporary visa holders, while educating U.S. workers on their rights, the Justice Department said in a report.

The Division holds companies accountable for discriminating against U.S. workers by paying fines, paying affected workers their lost wages, and deterring companies from using illegal preferences.

U.S. workers are defined in the program as citizens and nationals of the United States, lawful permanent residents, aliens with temporary resident status under the amnesty provision in the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, asylees, and refugees, which means those who apply outside the country for protection.

The program came after President Trump signed Executive Order 13788 on April 18, 2017, which directed the attorney general, and the secretaries of State, Labor, and Homeland Security to protect the interests of U.S. workers in the administration of the nations immigration system.

The estimate of more than $1.2 million in back wages and civil penalties won by IER may seem low, Arthur and CIS Executive Director Mark Krikorian acknowledged during the online talk, but there are reasons for that, they said.

Unfortunately, proving discrimination in these cases can be difficult but alleging discrimination to a degree where the employer agrees to comply is a little bit easier, Arthur said.

Part of the reason why the penalties that these employers have agreed to havent been as high as we would hope is because they have settled claims that have been brought against them by IER in lieu of litigation.

Programs like the Protecting U.S. Workers Initiative are good because they really put the heat on employers, and more importantly, give the impetus to the numerous law firms that assist those employers to make sure that they are following the law, Arthur said.

But really the most important thing is to put the fear of God into employers that they need to comply with the law in the future.

Krikorian said that an employer can be debarred from using a visa program where there is proof of abuse.

This does not happen often, and usually only in the most egregious cases, he said. Even then, it often only results in a one-year-suspension of the employer from the program, he added.

Theres mixed messages from the various parts of the administration on how committed they are to protecting American workers, Krikorian said.

President Trumps executive order may be clear but the Employee Rights Section at the Department of Justice has no permanent head at the moment and that makes a difference, he said.

Personnel is policy, and if theres no political appointee pushing that forward theres a real possibility youre not seeing the same level of commitment.
Ukraines imports of natural gas rose to 2.7 billion cubic meters (bcm) in the first quarter of 2020, which is 76% higher than in the relevant period of the last year, according the LLC Operator of the Gas Transmission System of Ukraine (OGTSU).

"In January-March 2020, natural gas imports from EU countries totaled 2.7 bcm, which is 1.2 bcm or 76% more than in the first quarter of the last year and 6% exceeds average figures in 2016-2019, reads the statement.

In particular, Ukraines imports from Slovakia amounted to 1.9 bcm (up 99% compared to the relevant period of the last year), Hungary  0.5 bcm (up 58%), and Poland  0.35 bcm (up 21%).

The reported import volumes from Poland did not include the virtual reverse that became available at the beginning of the year  0.28 bcm.

In March 2020, Ukraines imports of natural gas made up 1.3 bcm, which is twice as much as in March 2019 (up 670 million cubic meters).

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Tourists walk under the full bloomed cherry blossom trees at Jimingsi Road on March 22, 2016 in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province of China.

China's domestic travel industry is poised to resume normal activity before the summer holiday season, according to the CEO of the country's largest travel site Trip.com.

Jane Sun told CNBC she was hopeful her company could forge the path to recovery for one of the industries hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

"We are confident, with the government's strong control measures, we'll be able to lead the recovery within China," Sun told "Street Signs" on Wednesday.

Sun's comments come as Trip.com's chairman, James Liang, commences a tour promoting domestic travel to coincide with the scaling back of containment measures which have seen some Chinese citizens confined to their homes for months.

"We saw the climb for the travel volume to be up within China, so we're confident that within a couple of months domestic travel in China will be recovered," Sun continued.

Trip.com, which owns Skyscanner, was one of the travel companies first hit by the outbreak, which originated in Wuhan, China. In January, the company pledged to pay for health care for infected customers and, in March, revealed senior leadership would cut their salaries to stem company losses.

However, Sun said the business is now on course to resume activities. After kick-starting domestic travel in China, she said the next step is to work with other Asian countries thought to have a handle on the virus, such a Singapore, Japan and Korea, to discuss easing present travel restrictions.

"I think it will be very good for the industry, very good for the economy," she said. "And also, as long as Asia stands strong, Asia will be able to (be) united as one team and extend our help to the rest of the world."
Trade union Unite, which represents craft and administrative grades in Bord na Mona, has said that the recognition that Bord na Mona workers are essential during the COVID-19 emergency highlighted the importance of the companys continued operation not only to workers and their communities, but to the country as a whole.

Highlighting the urgency of ensuring that the 2020 peat harvest proceeds in order to help ensure security of Irelands energy supply as we face into an uncertain period, Unite Regional Officer Bernard Daly said that there was an urgent need for legislation to obviate the need for repeated planning applications in order to harvest peat.

The government has classified Bord na Mona workers as essential during the COVID-19 emergency  at the same time as those workers are facing into job losses and uncertainty regarding terms and conditions.

In the short term, it is vital that the 2020 peat harvest proceeds on schedule, not least to ensure the security of Irelands energy supply in an increasingly uncertain world.

Due to the Governments failure to legislate, planning applications need to be submitted for any peat extraction exceeding 30 hectares. That is clearly untenable in the current situation, and Unite is now calling on the government to act immediately to ensure that the 2020 harvest goes ahead.

The Government must also make it clear to Bord na Mona that any attempt to use the current emergency to undermine workers terms and conditions would be not be accepted.

The Government has correctly recognised that Bord na Mona employees are essential workers at a time of national emergency, and they must be protected accordingly, Mr Daly concluded.
The global confirmed cases for COVID-19 have now crossed the one million mark globally with the United States of America, China, Italy and Spain highest hit nations.

The total number of confirmed cases as at the time of filing thing report according to worldometer, is 1, 001, 069, with about 51, 378 deaths and 210, 245 recovered cases.

The Director-General of World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, hinted earlier that the figure could go seven digits in a couple of days but it only took hours before that was achieved, which shows the geometrical rate of growth globally.

The WHO also warned that while relatively lower numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported from Africa, Central and South America, it could have serious social, economic and political consequences for these regions.



It is critical that we ensure these countries are well equipped to detect, test, isolate and treat COVID-19 cases, and identify contacts.

I am encouraged to see that this is occurring in many countries, in spite of limited resources.

Many countries are asking people to stay at home and shutting down population movement, which can help to limit transmission of the Coronavirus.

But it can have unintended consequences for the poorest and most vulnerable people, Ghebreyesus said.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
From Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County

As youre enjoying Sweetwater Countys open spaces as part of your social distancing, its important to take precautions and extra safety measures.

As COVID-19 cases continue to mount, the staff at Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County ask that you remain active, but be careful.

Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals around the country, including our own, are preparing for volumes of patients like weve never experienced before, Dr. Tony Pedri, an orthopedic surgeon at Sweetwater Memorial specializing in orthopedic trauma care, said. With our regional partners and metropolitan trauma centers experiencing such high volumes of patients, our ability to care for you locally is more important than ever.

The hospitals surgery department has implemented temporary measures to adapt and provide you with the best possible care during these unprecedented times, Pedri said. We have made the difficult decision to postpone all elective procedures that can safely wait, while continually evaluating all surgeries on a patient-by-patient basis.

While elective surgeries will be placed on hold, Sweetwater Memorial remains committed to providing expert, uninterrupted care to those who may sustain injuries.

Unfortunately, accidents dont take vacations, even during a pandemic, he said. We want to assure you that our resources and expertise are here for you when you need them the most.

While many of us choose to spend time in the wide-open spaces of Wyoming, please take extra precautions, especially while riding motorcycles, ATVs and bicycles, or simply staying in the yard playing on the trampoline, Pedri said.

The situation is evolving daily, and we continue to make changes and adapt accordingly, he said. I want to reassure you that our No. 1 goal at Sweetwater Memorial is to continue to provide the highest level of care to everyone in Sweetwater County and the surrounding areas. These are difficult times. As a community, we will remain strong and get through this together.

The healthcare professionals at Sweetwater Memorial encourage everyone to maintain social distancing, remain active and take precautions.
It was then that the gummy bears were registered as evidence, he said.

The gummy bears were stolen in the first burglary, Compton said. With all of the other things taken of high value, the candy was an after-thought. But then my wife made an off-handed comment, sort of joking, saying, They even took our gummy bears. Then the officer said, Wait, gummy bears? Youre joking. He left and came back with a bag of gummy bears asking if these were the ones stolen.

Compton asked the employee who owned the candy to come take a look and he confirmed that was it was his bag.

It was distinct-looking bag, Compton said. And the officer said, OK, we know who did this.

Compton said the officer told him Chicago police arrested someone a couple weeks ago for breaking into another nearby business, and the suspect happened to have a mostly eaten bag of Albanese gummy bears with him.

Later that same day around 7 p.m., Compton was notified an arrest was made.

Terrence Cole, 55, of Chicago, was charged with burglary and taken into custody, according to a report from the Chicago Police Department.
A woman here had to face a bizarre situation when her husband refused entry to her in their house due to the coronavirus scare.

Police said Babita had returned from her parents' place in Bihar after a couple of months on Wednesday when her husband Ganesh Prasad denied entry to her. They were married around five years ago.

Later, the woman reached the district hospital, where she is currently staying.

City police station incharge Vipin Singh said it was a family matter and they will talk to the woman's husband and make him understand the situation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Health workers sanitizing an area near the Nizamuddin mosque after people who attended a religious congregation organised by the Tablighi-e-Jamaat in New Delhi on Wednesday, April 1,2020. (DC Photo: Pritam Bandyopadhyay)

New Delhi: Religious gatherings in the pre-lockdown days are posing a daunting challenge to India which on Wednesday recorded a steep rise in fresh cases of the novel coronavirus Covid-19.

According to the Health Ministry, 386 fresh cases were reported between 4 pm on Tuesday and 4 pm on Wednesday, taking the total number of positive cases in India to 1,637. There have been 39 deaths.

The accelerating numbers at this stage of the epidemic are consistent with the pattern seen in several countries that have had a coronavirus outbursts, such as Italy, Spain and the United. It would indicate that the epidemic is entering into a stage in which new cases are those contracted the contagion locally rather than abroad.

The government maintains that the virus is still not at the community transmission level and attributed the sharp rise to vector that formed at the Tablighi-e-Jamaat gathering in Delhis Nizamuddin area during March 10-13.

One of the main reasons for the current rise in positive cases is the transmission by those who attended the Tablighi Jamaat meeting, said Lav Agarwal, a joint secretary in the Health Ministry.

Ever since the death in Telangana of six participants in that convention in Old Delhi, states have scrambled to locate others in their territory and bring them to quarantine.

The Tablighi development within the Covid-19 narrative has lent a communal tinge to the issue, though its not the first, or likely the last, religious event that is linked to the spread of the virus.

All religious gatherings are now under the scanner, and more such cases are expected to come up in the coming days. In fact, a major crisis situation is building up in Punjab where a former 'Hazoori Raagi' of the Golden Temple, Nirmal Singh, has tested positive for Covid-19.

The 62-year-old Gurbani exponent recently returned from abroad and was admitted to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital in Amritsar after he complained of breathlessness and dizziness on March 30. Police have sealed the area around his residence.

According to officials, Nirmal Singh held a large sammelan in Delhi and some other places after he returned from abroad.

Punjab had registered its first case, that of 70-year-old religious preacher Baldev Singh, who had travelled to Italy and Germany before reaching Navashahr. He later died of Covid-19, the first death in the state. Baldev Singh had actively participated in religious gatherings  Hola Mohalla  in Anandpur Sahib between March 7-9 and, as of Monday, of the 38 confirmed cases in Punjab, 26 are either his family members or those who came in contact with him.

While religious gatherings are now posing a challenge in contact tracing, questions are also being raised on the efficiency of airport screening that missed people who are now testing positive.

Maharashtra, meanwhile, has become another hot spot for coronavirus as the number of cases reached 302 after 86 new cases were reported on Wednesday. In a major concern for health authorities, one positive case of Covid-19 was reported from Mumbais Dharavi, one of the worlds biggest slum areas. The patient, a 56-year-old man, passed away late on Wednesday from Covid-19 related issues. Seven of his family members have been put in quarantine while his contact history is being traced.
Its the kind of problem many companies would love to have: suddenly people are using your product by the millions, to the point that it has become mission-critical for many, including journalists. Unfortunately for Zoom, what caused the demand (the company says twenty times more people are using the software now than used it in December of 2019) was a global pandemic, one that has exposed some of Zooms troubling weaknesses. A few are funny: Boris Johnson, prime minister of the United Kingdom, inadvertently shared the ID number for a cabinet meeting he held via Zoom, opening the door to anyone seeking to log on; a manager at a progressive advocacy group accidentally ran a meeting as a potato.

Somewhat more serious (although still on the nuisance end of the spectrum), attendees on some Zoom calls have been interrupted by pornography, thanks to a phenomenon that some are calling Zoom-bombing (borrowed from photo-bombing). Trolls appear to be dialing in to random Zoom calls and displaying porn videos or blasting other annoying audio and video. In a statement, Zoom said that hosts can prevent this by requiring a password, or by making use of various features such as the Waiting Room, which keeps new visitors at bay until the host allows them to enter. We are deeply upset to hear about the incidents involving this kind of attack, the company said.

Some flaws, however, can be extreme, such as a Windows vulnerability through which hackers were able to steal someones credentials. All a user had to do, according to a report from a software security blog, was click on a link in the Zoom chat window; if a hacker had configured the link properly, it would connect to the user registry within Windows and provide the users login and password. That scenario poses a significant problem for journalists who need to keep their conversations anonymous (in a blog post published Thursday, the company said it has fixed this problem). Its not the first backdoor-style vulnerability Zoom has seen: until late last year, Zoom secretly installed a hidden Web server on Mac computers that could be used by hackers to take control of the video camera. (Zoom has since removed this feature.)

Related: Americas local newspapers confront an apocalypse

There are other security risks, too. For some time, Zoom has claimed on its website and in white papers that its video calls are end-to-end encrypted. But a report from The Intercept says thats not the casecalls are encrypted for data traveling between a user and Zooms servers, but the company has access to information once it arrives. (Text chats are end-to-end encrypted, however.) With true end-to-end encrypted apps like WhatsApp or Signal, all information sent in either direction and from any location is locked up, and the companies in question dont have keys. Zoom offers less privacy, since the company could mine data for its own purposes or be compelled to do so by law enforcement. In a statement to The Intercept, Zoom said that it only collects data as needed to provide the service, and that it does not mine user data or sell user data of any kind to anyone; it does comply with legal requests from governments and law enforcement officials. And in a blog post published Thursday, the company apologized for using the term end-to-end encryption improperly, but promised that it does not decrypt any of the data that is transmitted between users of the service.

New security risks seem to be popping up every day: a researcher said he found a way for hackers to easily take control of a users microphone and video camera (Zoom said in its Thursday blog post that it has fixed this problem as well). Nilay Patel, the editor of The Verge, said on Twitter: The biggest question facing Zoom is whether these gaffes are move-fast-break-things mistakes, or reflective of a deeper culture of disrespect for user privacy. Or both. Will Zoom take advantage of the historic opportunity with which its been presented, or sink under the weight of problems? Until we have more answers, journalists would be wise to use Zoom with caution.

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Heres more on Zoom and its flaws:

Data leakage : Zoom is being sued by a user who claims its illegally disclosing personal information . Zoom collects data when users install or open the application; then, according to the lawsuit, the company shares it, without proper notice, to third parties, including Facebook. The suit, filed Monday in federal court in San Jose, California, contends that Zooms privacy policy doesnt explain to users how its feeding Facebook. Zoom told Motherboard , which first reported on the data sharing, that it has removed the relevant code .

Privacy flaws : After receiving a damning review in Consumer Reports , Zoom rewrote parts of its privacy policy . Zooms original policy allowed the company to collect information from users meetingsfrom videos to transcripts to the notes that users might share through Zooms chat featureand use that information for ad targeting.

AG letter : Zoom is now under the scrutiny of the office of New Yorks attorney general for its data privacy and security practices. On Monday, the office sent Zoom a letter asking what new security measures the company has put in place to handle increased traffic on its network and to detect hackers, according to a copy reviewed by the New York Times . The letter referred to Zoom as an essential and valuable communications platform, but it noted that the company had been slow to address security flaws, including those that could enable malicious third parties to, among other things, gain surreptitious access to consumer webcams.

Use a VPN: Security experts say if youre concerned about data leakage from Zoom, or about hackers making use of information in your calls, the best protection is to use VPN, or virtual private networking, software . VPN providers reroute all of your internet traffic through their own secure servers. They keep you anonymous, allow you to disguise your IP address, and provide end-to-end encryption of your data.

Other notable stories:

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Mathew Ingram is CJRs chief digital writer. Previously, he was a senior writer with Fortune magazine. He has written about the intersection between media and technology since the earliest days of the commercial internet. His writing has been published in the Washington Post and the Financial Times as well as by Reuters and Bloomberg.
Two employees of NETA, among the first marijuana companies to open for recreational sales in Massachusetts, have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

One employee works at NETAs cultivation facility in Franklin and reported the positive test on Tuesday. The other employee works at the Northampton dispensary and reported the positive test on Wednesday, according to a statement from NETA.

In both cases, the employees, who we are supporting in every way possible, practiced proper public health and social responsibility by self-identifying symptoms, notifying their manager after being ill for several days, pursuing COVID-19 testing, and self-quarantining, the statement said.

NETA has contracted with a third-party cleaning service and a thorough, deep cleaning of both facilities has already taken place, according to the statement.

That cleaning is in addition to nightly deep cleaning at both facilities, as well as a daily sanitization program, NETA said.

NETA is selling medical marijuana. Gov. Charlie Baker has banned all non-essential business in the state through May 4 to try and limit the spread of coronavirus. While recreational marijuana is not considered essential, medical marijuana is deemed essential business. Some companies and advocates have called for Baker to reconsider, saying that not everyone who uses marijuana as medicine has a medical card.

Health departments in Northampton and Franklin are aware of the positive tests and will be in communication with the employees, NETA said in its statement. Local health departments reach out to people who have been in close contact with a person a positive test.

Out of an abundance of caution, while maintaining each employees privacy to the fullest extent possible, in both situations, NETA also has been in touch with the employees colleagues that could potentially be deemed close contacts, and those employees have been asked to self-quarantine as a precaution, the statement said.

The Franklin cultivation facility grows and processes all of NETAs products. In addition to the Northampton store, NETA has a dispensary in Brookline.

NETA said it is following guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization and state guidelines, as well as using personal protective equipment when advised by CDC guidelines. The company says it has had social distancing and sanitization protocols in place and has been reminding employees to stay home if they do not feel well.

NETA notified the state Cannabis Control Commission of the positive tests.

The Cannabis Control Commission is deeply concerned about the Coronavirus (COVID-19)s threats to patients, customers, agents, staff, and all residents of the Commonwealth. The Commission is aware of the complaint and is looking into it, a commission spokesperson said.

Since the outbreak of coronavirus began in Massachusetts, the commission has made changes to try and reduce the spread of disease as it relates to the states marijuana industry, including allowing Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers to offer curbside pickup to patients.

In Massachusetts as of Wednesday afternoon, 122 residents have died from illness related to COVID-19 and at least 7,738 residents have tested positive for the respiratory illness.

Related Content:
Wednesday is usually New Comic Book Day but, with everyone on lockdown due to coronavirus, this weeks selection was a little light. The main distributor, Diamond, ceased shipments both to and from its warehouse  a seemingly logical move given that many stores are shuttered anyway. Less logical is that, unlike literally every other media industry, the product wasnt simply released digitally to consumers stuck at home. Instead, the entire comics world is on hold.

On a normal Wednesday, new books from companies like Marvel and DC would get a simultaneous physical and digital release, at the same price. Sometimes the physical copies even come with a free digital code. The whole idea being to avoid undercutting the brick and mortar stores with a more attractive digital product.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS via Getty Images

But what do you do when there are no brick and mortar stores to sell to? Apparently you just don't sell products at all. Anything that was scheduled for a physical release from Marvel, DC, Image and Dark Horse is on the back burner, either rescheduled for a later date or placed in limbo. Some digital-first titles like Freedom Fighters: Rise of a Nation will still be up for purchase on ComiXology and Kindle, but anyone looking forward to Batman #92 is out of luck until April 29th, at the earliest.

With Diamond's plans still up in the air, B2B software company ComicHub announced its own plan to deal with the stoppage, selling comics directly to customers. Readers can sign up and link their accounts to a physical store. When they purchase a comic, they'll get a digital copy instantly, but will also pick up the physical book at their local shop when it reopens. This will help to keep the stores afloat for now.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS via Getty Images

It's definitely a stop-gap solution for a business that hasn't embraced digital distribution in the way other industries have. And it's not even like those other media have ceased sending out physical products  you can still buy a copy of Animal Crossing: New Horizons from Best Buy or GameStop. Heck, there are mail-order comic sites out there, like Mile High, Midtown Comics and Discount Comic Book Service, that will ship stuff directly to your home.

However, many readers will tell you that comic shops are an integral part of the experience. I have fond memories of heading to the store down the street from my high school every Wednesday. I know the names of my "comic guys" and am even friends with a few of them on Facebook. While there are some bad apples out there akin to The Simpsons' Comic Book Guy, there are plenty of great shops out there, too.

But all those shops, both good and bad, hold an outsized amount of power because of the way the industry has developed over the past 50 years.

Carl Iwasaki via Getty Images

For their first few decades, comics were distributed and sold through newsstands alongside newspapers and magazines. This made sense given that they were considered periodicals. Unsold newsstand products could be sold back to the distributor, and that included comics, which is one of the things that makes old issues so rare. If you missed an issue, you were SOL.

This is one of the reasons comic shops started to spring up during the '70s. People wanted to buy and sell back issues. People also wanted to be sure they could get the new titles they liked; newsstands often had to take what they were sent and didn't have a lot of options. Retailers approached comics publishers to ask if they could just buy comics directly. The companies were totally on board with this direct market, especially since they could make the comic shops eat the cost of unsold stock by making the issues non-returnable.

Helen H. Richardson via Getty Images

This arrangement worked out pretty well for the next two decades, but it hit a snag in the '90s when Marvel Comics bought Heroes World, a comics distributor. Marvel gave its new subsidiary exclusive rights to distribute its product. This caused a bit of a panic as retailers no longer got the same discounts, and rival publishers started signing their own deals with distributors. Shops collapsed and so did most of the distributors, leaving Diamond as the only big one left. This is why one company shutting down operations has had such an outsized impact.

Between the Diamond stoppage and so many stores shutting their doors, it makes sense that many people are predicting that "comics are dead." Comics and the shops that sell them share a long history, which has created a strong sense of camaraderie. The direct market helped mold the biggest four companies  DC, Marvel, Image and Dark Horse  and created the culture around them, too. The stores were what helped Marvel stay afloat when it was in trouble after a string of bad decisions in the '90s and '00s. Retailers and publishers mingle socially all the time as well, at conventions and retailer summits. It's not just business at this point, it's personal. The comics industry is built on loyalty.

MediaNews Group/Boulder Daily Camera via Getty Images via Getty Images

If comics were to fully embrace digital, it would mean cutting retailers out. It would mean cutting their friends and supporters out. In the most simplistic terms, it feels like a betrayal  and no one wants to be the villain. Except that, by refusing to play the villain to their business partners, they're abandoning their customers. And if they're not serving their customers at all then there's no money coming in, and those stores might go under anyway.

Eventually the companies will have to make a decision. Their employees have bills to pay, after all. With Marvel and DC both owned by huge corporate conglomerates, there's no danger of either company dying. But other publishers might not be so lucky. Creators might just take their talents to ComiXology or Kickstarter. And there will still be comic shops. After all, we thought independent bookstores were on their way out a decade ago and yet their numbers have actually increased 40 percent since then, with almost 2,500 shops in the United States now. Comic shops can make a comeback too; they just have to stop acting like it's still 1975.
Amazon Says Its Taking Coronavirus Seriously, but Workers Say the Company Is Endangering Their Health

Amid mounting criticism of its pandemic response, Amazon on Thursday said it is rapidly expanding temperature checks for its employees and that it has nearly completed its hiring spree of 100,000 additional workers at its distribution centers.

The announcements illustrate the pressure Amazon is under as it grapples with a tidal wave of delays for sold-out items and complaints from employees about workplace safety during the pandemic. Despite Amazons expressions of support for its workforce, some Amazon employees and applicants told CNN Business that the companys messaging doesnt always match what they have seen inside the companys warehouses, and that they remain concerned about crowded hiring events and training sessions, limited access to disinfectant wipes and the companys overall ability to follow through on its commitments.

Confirmed cases of the coronavirus are known to have hit more than a dozen Amazon facilities in recent weeks, prompting calls for multiple fulfillment centers to be closed for deep cleaning. Employees of at least three sites have staged walkouts this week protesting Amazons decision to keep the centers open for business. Workers at Amazons LGB3 facility in Eastvale, Calif., have created a petition to close the building, saying the demands of their job make it impossible to comply with the companys social distancing guidelines.

One of the changes Amazon mentioned in its blog post-Thursday is daily temperature checks for employees in the United States and Europe, which the company said it began on Sunday. More than 100,000 employees per day are now receiving temperature checks, the blog post said.

As part of a response to several questions from CNN Business, an Amazon spokesperson declined to provide a list of facilities where temperature checks have begun.

The company previously told CNN Business that it is piloting the temperature checks in in select sites in New York City and Seattle, including its Staten Island facility, JFK8.

But two Amazon employees who spoke with CNN Business portrayed an effort at JFK8 that is less comprehensive than the company is admitting.

Employees of JFK8 were notified on Sunday via a message in the employee A to Z app that beginning that day, the company would begin conducting a daily temperature check for everyone entering the building for the first time that day at the start of their shift, according to a screenshot viewed by CNN Business.

But the two employees at JFK8 who spoke with CNN Business about the checks said the company did not check their temperatures, or the temperatures of other workers, when they were entering the facility at certain times this week. When asked why that might be, an Amazon spokesperson could not explain it, but claimed that all employees at the facility have been receiving the temperature screenings every day since Sunday.

The mixed messaging continued on Thursday, when employees at JFK8 saw a new message in the employee app, also viewed by CNN Business, that suggested daily temperature checks had not yet begun as previously claimed.

In the next few days, we will begin conducting a daily temperature check, the message read. Youll be notified when this is starting at your site. Amazon told CNN Business that the message was delivered to JFK8 employees as part of a wider communication to company associates.

Amazon declined to provide an updated count of the number of coronavirus cases at its Staten Island facility, where employees have claimed that as many as 10 workers have been diagnosed but only three cases have been disclosed.

In Thursdays blog post, Amazon also described disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer as standard across the company, but several employees told CNN Business that supplies were extremely limited at the facilities where they work. At the DTW1 facility in Romulus, Michigan, Amazon issues just three disinfecting wipes per shiftone at the beginning of each shift and one after each of two breaks, Mario Crippen, an employee at the facility who led one of the strikes this week, said.

One person walks around handing it out so you got to wait until they come around to you to get a disinfectant wipe, he said.

Hand sanitizer is limited, too, according to Crippen.

They have one person outside the break room squirting hand sanitizer on peoples hands because were running so low, he said.

Two Amazon employees at SDF4, a facility in Kentucky, told CNN Business that hand sanitizer bottles at the site are empty, disinfecting wipes are being rationed and Clorox wipes are unavailable.

We Amazon employees work hard every day, the least [the company] could do is be honest about the condition of things inside the belly of this beast, one of the SDF4 employees told CNN Business.

Amazon acknowledged to CNN Business the possibility of cleaning supply shortages at some sites, but said it has added 450,000 containers of disinfecting wipes and tens of thousands of hand sanitizer containers to its facilities.

In Thursdays blog post, Amazon also said that face masks it has ordered for workers are finally becoming available and will be distributed in the coming days, and that the company is conducting daily audits of the new safety measures it has implemented since the outbreak began. Those measures include more aggressive cleaning, policies designed to keep employees separated, and requirements that delivery drivers wipe down their vehicles with disinfectants at the beginning and end of every shift.

Amazon added that it has hired 80,000 of its planned surge of 100,000 workers, reflecting how quickly the company has had to adjust to spikes in customer demand. But the need to hire so many people so quickly has created some potentially dangerous situations.

One job applicant told CNN Business she arrived for her interview with Amazon only to discover what she estimated as 30 to 40 applicants crammed into a single waiting room, with many people having to stand because all the chairs were taken. The company had provided a solitary bottle of hand sanitizer for the room, and some people were coughing and sneezing. The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of jeopardizing her employment prospects, said she took one look at the situation and fled. She has not rescheduled her interview.

Im never applying for Amazon again, she told CNN Business.

According to Crippen, new hires are being packed closely together in training rooms at the facility where he works. Last week, he said, the facility hired 86 new workers who needed on-boarding.

Some of the people that do the new-hire training are afraid to do it, Crippen said. There are so many people at one given time and theres no way to social distance in one room.

Amazon said that its recruitment centers follow social distancing guidelines, with markers laid out on floors to separate job candidates.

Dave Clark, Amazons senior vice president of worldwide operations, said in Thursdays blog post that the company has made more than 150 changes to its processes to enhance worker safety.

With over 1,000 sites around the world, and so many measures and precautions rapidly rolled out over the past several weeks, there may be instances where we dont get it perfect, Clark wrote, but I can assure you thats just what theyll beexceptions.

The-CNN-Wire

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AUD  Australian Dollar

The AUD upturn faltered through trade on Wednesday as risk sentiment shifted, and investors looked to haven assets. Extended global lockdowns, lower quarter end dividends and a shift in tone from President Trump all sparked the risk off shift forcing the AUD back below 0.61 to intraday lows at 0.6040. Having touched 17 year lows at 0.5510 in mid-March the AUD has enjoyed a sustained upturn, buoyed by improvements in investor confidence and easing market panic. Wednesdays shift in risk sentiment highlights the AUD vulnerability as suggestions emerge the recent uptick was nothing more than a bear market bounce.

Direction will again be driven by ever changing coronavirus headlines and as the pandemics spread shows little signs of slowing at this point the possibility of extended global lockdown and isolation increases. Having come to a grinding halt the global economy will undoubtedly tip into a lengthy recession an environment that does not support a sustained AUD upturn and as long as the coronavirus continues to shut down conventional economic activity the AUD is open to another bear run and could well test March lows should timelines extend deep into H2 and 2021.

Key Movers

The risk off shift help bolster demand for the JPY and USD through trade on Wednesday as both currencies advanced near 1% against most other major counterparts. The USD remained well bid, doubling down on gains enjoyed through month end rebalancing, edging upward across a variety of key indices, while forcing the EUR back below 1.10.

Attentions now turn to US unemployment claims as a critical early marker of just how deep and widespread the economic impact of the COVID19 pandemic will be. Last week 3.3 million people filed for unemployment with conservative estimates suggesting a further 3.6 million will join the queue, with some economists forecasting a read nearer 6 million. As the coronavirus brings both domestic economies and the global economy to a grinding halt another poor unemployment read will only highlight the expense that lays before governments in supporting their citizenry through this unprecedented crisis.

Story continues

Expected Ranges

AUD/USD: 0.5830  0.6180 

AUD/EUR: 0.5430  0.5620 

GBP/AUD: 1.9980  2.0730 

AUD/NZD: 1.0080  1.0330 

AUD/CAD: 0.8480  0.8730 





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State officials have investigated roughly 3,300 reports of price gouging as Pennsylvania residents and retailers alike grapple with supply shortages during the coronavirus.

As of Thursday, 170 cease-and-desist letters have been sent to businesses significantly upping the prices on high-demand items, such as hand sanitizer, toilet paper or select food items, according to a spokesman for Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro.

One such letter was sent to a Harrisburg drug store that tried to sell nine rolls of toilet paper for $21.99. A Middletown grocery store received one for increasing the price of beef from $4 to $7.75, the attorney generals spokesman said.

While issuing a statewide disaster declaration, Gov. Tom Wolf put protections into place to guard against price gouging. Under state emergency rules, Pennsylvania businesses are banned from selling products for 20 percent more than their average cost in the week preceding an emergency declaration.

Residents who believe businesses are engaging in price gouging can email pricegouging@attorneygeneral.gov or submit a report through the attorney generals website.

Shapiro is asking for details like product name, price and location to be included in complaints.
Industry body COAI has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking urgent relief measures, including lowering of levies with immediate effect, for the telecom operators on account of the 'adverse impact' of COVID-19

New Delhi: Industry body COAI has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking urgent relief measures, including lowering of levies with immediate effect, for the telecom operators on account of the "adverse impact" of COVID-19.

The industry association said that despite the outbreak and spread of the coronavirus pandemic across the country, operators are playing a "critical role" in addressing the challenges faced by individuals, corporates, governance services, emergency and utility services.

COAI asserted that ensuring continuity of these services is of utmost importance in these challenging times.

In a letter dated 28 March to the finance minister, the Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI) made a plea for rationalisation of "high burden of the regulatory levies" on the telecom service providers with immediate effect.

Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak

The industry body -- whose members include Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea -- has sought cut in spectrum Usage Charge (SUC) by 3 percent for all the operators. It further said licence fee contribution (USOF contribution) should be immediately brought down to 3 percent from 8 percent.

Highlighting the issue of liquidity, COAI sought refund of the unutilised input tax credit immediately, or else grant of soft loan at MCLR (Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate) to companies, using the GST input credit as collateral.

It also urged the government to exempt the levy of GST on licence fees, Spectrum Usage Charges and payment of spectrum acquired in auctions.

COAI said service tax should be exempt on amount of licence fee and spectrum usage charges payable by telecom operators, in compliance with the Supreme Court order.

"Considering the sensitivity of this matter, we are hopeful that our submissions will merit your consideration and urgent support," COAI Director General Rajan Mathews said in the letter.

COAI said there has been a "severe disruptive impact" on the global supply chain, demand and supply elements as well as cash flows of the companies due to the slowing economic activities.

"This downturn will have an impact on all payments including those of employees, interest, loan repayments and taxes," COAI said.

Given the situation and its adverse impact on the economy and operations of the digital communication industry, it urged the government to provide relief measures "in the wake of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 pandemic".

COAI said the impact of COVID-19 is expected to be far-reaching on the economy.

"IMFs outlook for global growth in 2020 is negative and it estimates a recession as bad as during the global financial crisis (of 2008-09) or worse. We believe that India will also be severely impacted as a consequence of restrictive measures necessary for preventing the spread of this pandemic," it said.

COAI added that operators have invested and will continue to invest significantly in the telecom infrastructure (both capex and opex) and it is enabled to meet the increased demand for telecom services.
Guest Column Advice from an Ex-Political Prisoner: How to Cope With COVID-19 Isolation

A municipal worker disinfects a shopping area in Mandalay in March. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy

I was imprisoned twice, for a total of eight years, for my political activities between 1990 and 1998. During this period, I spent over one year in solitary confinement. I was locked up in a small 8-by-12-foot room for 23 hours and 40 minutes each day.

In my room, a mat, a bowl for a toilet and foodprovided by my familywere all I was allowed. Outside my room, there was a pot and a cup for drinking. I was not allowed to use a pillow because it was deemed as luxury.

I was not allowed to read and write. I could meet with my family for only 15 minutes every two weeks. Most days passed without my seeing another human being. I was bored. I was lonely.

I had a number of thoughts during that situation:

(1) I accepted my reality. I did not want to stay in this isolated prison cell, but I had no choice. I decided that I must survive.

(2) The Burmese military regime wanted me to suffer mentally after I was released from prison, due to a lack of mental stimulation while in prison. In order to continue to fight back, I endeavored to keep my brain active. I made a decision to study English while in isolation.

(3) I tried my best to study English. I was lucky. In the next cell down from me was Dr. Aye Chan, who could speak English and Japanese well. When the prison guard was away, I asked him to shout out one or two sentences in English. Then I wrote the words down on the concrete and memorized them.

I wrote down whatever I wanted to say on the concrete. I approached a prison guard who was sympathetic to us and asked him to smuggle in one page of a dictionary. He did, but after memorizing it, I had to eat the paper to avoid detection. Over time, I ate many pages of the dictionary.

Some of my friends composed songs, poems, novels, articles on the concrete, then erased them after memorizing them. That is the way we used our time. Do something. This is the best medicine when you are in isolation.

(4) I did not think about my release date because I knew I would be released when the time came, and this was out of my control. What I could try to control was my health. So I walked in the small room for many hours a day. Exercising will help your physical and mental health. So exercise! Walk at least 6,000 steps a day.

Now, because of COVID-19, many people are forced to stay at home or in hospitals for quarantine or care. Many are suffering from stress and other common mental health problems.

During my time in prison, I had no contact with the outside world, but I was able to survive by adapting my lifestyle and ways of thinking.

Today we have mobile phones and the internet, which we can use to contact our families and friends. But when in isolation, we need to be careful and avoid focusing on negative news all the timetry to read something positive to maintain balance.

There are other steps we can take to make this isolation easier for ourselves. Walk regularly. Practice meditation or yoga. Have a phone call with a counselor or friend.

Do something productivewhether it is small or big. Try to clean your house or cook. Do not think negatively. Try to think positive.

I am sure that even though we think we suffer a lot, many people around the world are suffering worse than we suffer. We cannot help being in isolation, but we can make it easier for ourselves by following this advice.

Bo Kyi is a former political prisoner and currently works as joint secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.

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Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot accused BJP leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, on Thursday of knowingly twisting Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's message to party workers on the ongoing nationwide lockdown, saying they did it for the sake of "petty"

"BJP leaders including Amit Shah ji, JP Nadda ji and Prakash Javdekar ji have knowingly twisted Congress President Smt. Sonia Gandhi ji's message for their petty In the mid of pandemic this was really uncalled for," he wrote on Twitter.

In a series of tweets, Gehlot said it was baffling that constructive criticism was not being tolerated by the leaders of the saffron party.

"They start reacting and go to the extent of calling the critics anti national. That is why we have to say that they do not believe in democracy, they are fascists and undemocratic," the veteran Congress leader said.

"The Congress President has already made it clear in a letter to the Prime Minister that the entire Congress Party is with him in this time of crisis, he should have welcomed this publicly," he said in another tweet.

"In a democracy, if the opposition points at certain lacunae, even that should be taken in a positive spirit so that things can be improved," Gehlot said.

He added that the points highlighted by Gandhi and the resolution passed by the Congress Working Committee (CWC) should have been taken as constructive criticism by the leaders of the ruling party at the Centre.

Shah on Thursday alleged that the Congress was weakening the country's fight against the coronavirus outbreak and wondered when would the grand old party give priority to national interest over its own.

His comments came in reaction to the government's criticism by Gandhi for the "unplanned" implementation of the countrywide lockdown, which, she said, caused "chaos and pain" to millions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Phillipine's authoritarian president Rodrigo Duterte has ordered his security forces to shoot down anyone causing unrest while the nation undergoes Coronavirus lockdown.



The Philippines has so far detected 2,311 cases and reported 96 deaths, with the country on a two weeks lock down which has resulted in poor families and workers complaining of not having food to eat.



Duterte has now ordered his military to kill anyone who disobeys government lock down rules, hours after some people from a slum community were arrested for holding a protest during the lock down.



Duterte speaking late Wednesday, said; My orders are to the police and military, also village officials, that if there is trouble or the situation arises that people fight and your lives are on the line, shoot them dead, Duterte said.



Instead of causing trouble, Ill send you to the grave, he said. International Human Rights Advocacy group, Amnesty International, reacting to Duterte's orders said in a statement;



It is deeply alarming that President Duterte has extended a policy of shoot-to-kill Deadly, unchecked force should never be referred to as a method to respond to an emergency such as the COVID-19 pandemic,









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Grenoble, France, April, 2, 2020 - Kalray (Euronext Growth Paris: ALKAL), a pioneer in processors for new intelligent systems, is sharing the status on its activity and the continuation of its activity following the various health measures taken by the French government.

The impact of Covid-19 epidemic on Kalray's research and development activity, which is not too dependent on its suppliers, is expected to be limited and Kalray is hopeful it will be able to stick to its development roadmap. The development teams are fully operational thanks to telework, which was put in place as soon as the containment was announced in France on Monday March 16. The company does not use technical unemployment to date.

However, the global health situation related to the Covid-19 epidemic and the containment measures implemented in many countries are likely to slow down business cycles, which could delay the deployment of some of company's projects. At this stage, Kalray is currently assessing all the impacts of this crisis on its business and its financial forecasts. The company is working with its partners as well, who are themselves assessing the impact of the crisis on their own activities.

In such context, and even if Kalray's cash position remains solid ( 15.7 million at December 31, 2019, reinforced by NXP investment), the company is taking additional measures in order to increase its financial visibility by limiting certain investments and by requesting bank loans as part of the support measures implemented by the Government. Nevertheless, Kalray confirms that its current cash position, including the NXP investment just announced, should allow the company to develop its technology roadmap, including developments related to the NXP strategic partnership, as well as the commercial deployment, beyond the next twelve months.

on April 20, as previously announced, the company will comment on its 2019 results as previously announced. Within this timeframe, Kalray hopes to be in a position to provide more details on the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic crisis on its business, which, as it constitutes a post-closure event, will have no impact on its 2019 accounts.

Next publication:

Monday April 20, 2020 (after market close): 2019 annual results

ABOUT KALRAY

Kalray (Euronext Growth Paris - FR0010722819 - ALKAL) is the pioneer in processors for new intelligent systems. A genuine technological breakthrough, "intelligent" processors are able to intelligently analyze a vast quantity of data on the fly and to make decisions and interact in real time with the outside world. These intelligent processors will be largely deployed in fast-growing sectors such as new-generation networks (intelligent data centers) and autonomous vehicles, as well as in healthcare equipment, drones and robots. Kalray's offering spans both processors and global solutions (electronic boards and software). Created in 2008 as a spin-off of CEA ("Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique", the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission), Kalray addresses a broad spectrum of customers including server manufacturers, intelligent system integrators and consumer product manufacturers such as car makers. Read more at: www.kalrayinc.com

INVESTOR CONTACTS

Eric BAISSUS

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Tel. +33 (0)4 76 18 90 71



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kalray@actus.fr

+ 33 1 53 67 36 79 MEDIA CONTACTS

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The Ministry of Industry and Trade has sent a report to the Prime Minister, proposing a reduction in the prices of electricity for three months to help ease difficulties facing production and business in the context of the ravaging COVID-19 epidemic.

Staff at the Hanoi's Bac Tu Liem power company inspect a transformer station

In the document, dated April 1, the ministry proposed that in the April  June period, the price of electricity for household consumption of up to 300kWh be cut by 10 percent. By so doing, it will suffer a loss of 2.930 trillion VND (about 124 million USD).

A cut of the same level was also proposed for production and business customers which will set the ministry back by 6 trillion VND. As for the accommodation customers, the electricity price for them will be reduced to that of the production households and this will lead to a loss of 1.8 billion VND for the ministry.

Besides, it also proposed the exemption of electricity costs for concentrated quarantine and treatment establishments related to the COVID-19, the total losses from which will amount to 100 billion VND.

As a result, the ministrys revenue this year from the sale of electricity will fall by nearly 11 trillion VND.

It said cost-saving measures will be applied within the ministry to help offset the losses./.

Vietnam saves over 800 million VND worth of electricity during Earth Hour Vietnam saved 436,000kWh of electricity, equivalent to 812.9 million VND (34,928 USD), for one hour from 20:30 to 21:30 on March 28, in response to Earth Hour 2020, according to the National Power Dispatch Centre.
We have been constantly innovating to create a suite of affordable, enterprise-grade Field Service Automation products. Adding enhancements that help companies streamline their field operations, meet compliance & continuity requirements, and address comprehensive SLAs for their own Business needs

Abaqus, a leading Field Service Automation platform, announced today that it has launched a major upgrade to its allGeo platform that adds Enterprise-grade capabilities to enhance data security, uptime and integration requirements for large field service companies.

As weve evolved from a point solution into a mobile workforce automation platform, our customers have been asking for more from us in the areas of data security, uptime, continuity and API integration, said Shailendra Jain, CEO of Abaqus. Thats why we have been consistently investing in our Infrastructure and R&D to build out the suite of affordable, Enterprise-grade Field Service Automation products that they need. These enhancements will help companies better streamline their field operations, meet compliance requirements and address comprehensive SLAs for their own business needs.

Advanced Capabilities at the Enterprise Level

Abaqus has enhanced its platform to better support the needs of large, sophisticated teams.



Industry specific Compliance: The allGeo platform is HIPAA & GDPR compliant to ensure security and privacy best practices.

Identity Management: The allGeo platform allows single-sign-on (SSO) using industry standards such as OpenID Connect, OAuth2.0, SAML and Identity provider (IdP) services such as Google, MS Active Directory, or customers in-house directory services.

Data Protection: Encryption of Data at Endpoints, at-Rest and in-Transit. This prevents unauthorized data access and abuse in case of hacks and theft.

High Availability: The allGeo solution is hosted on Amazon AWS carrier-grade infrastructure providing 99.99% uptime to ensure that field operations have uninterrupted access to the service during business hours.

Cloud-based Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity

Integration: The allGeo platform interfaces through APIs with other software systems in the field service workflow. This is achieved via REST API for bespoke integration or via pre-built connectors to systems such as QuickBooks, ADP, Zapier, Google Drive, AWS, S3, Pipedrive, Salesforce, USPS SEAM and others.

Manage Enterprise Roles & Permissions: The allGeo platform supports role-based access such that the service can be mapped to internal organizations and teams. Users and their managers can be granted access to sensitive data based on their roles and responsibilities.

Analytics and custom Reports: The allGeo platform supports custom reports and analytics to assist businesses with compliance, audits and KPI insights. These reports can then help optimize field operations to achieve greater ROI.

About allGeo:

Abaqus, based in Silicon Valley, CA, is a leading provider of cloud-hosted, low-code / low-IT field service automation platform that helps midsize and Enterprise businesses achieve field service excellence. The allGeo platform helps businesses customize and automate their field service workflows to better manage and optimize their operations, field employees & assets. With allGeo, Field service businesses can significantly reduce payroll and operations costs while improving productivity and accountability. The allGeo platform hosts a suite of turnkey apps that can be rapidly deployed in a wide range of industries e.g. Time Clock, Tracking & Monitoring, Mileage, Dispatch, Electronic Visit Verification, Lone Worker Safety, and Field Inspection using QR / mobile forms. Visit http://www.allgeo.com for more information.
Greece has placed an entire migrant camp in quarantine after 20 asylum seekers tested positive for coronavirus.

Sixty-three people were tested after a teenager who gave birth in hospital in Athens was found to be infected, the migration ministry said on Thursday.

The 19-year-old woman became the first recorded case among the tens of thousands of asylum seekers living in overcrowded camps across Greece, which even the government has described as a ticking health bomb.

The conditions are far from being ideal but I should also point out that Greece is dealing with this problem basically on its own. We havent had as much support from the European Union as we want, said prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Wednesday evening.

None of the 20 people confirmed as having Covid-19 in the Ritsona camp had shown any symptoms, the migration ministry said, adding that it was continuing to test people.

The site, about 45 miles northeast of Athens and a temporary home to hundreds of people, will be locked down for 14 days with police enforcing the quarantine.

None of the new cases showed any symptoms, the ministry said, adding that it was continuing its tests.

This news confirms what we have been repeatedly calling for  it is urgently needed to evacuate migrants out of the Greek islands to EU countries, said Leila Bodeux, policy and advocacy officer for aid agency Caritas Europa.

Greece, which recorded its first coronavirus case at the end of February, has reported 1,415 cases so far, and 50 deaths. It is the gateway to Europe for those fleeing conflicts and poverty in the Middle East and beyond, with more than a million people passing through during the migrant crisis of 2015-16.

But displaced people still stuck in those regions face a crisis when coronavirus eventually strikes there. Medics in Syria have told The Independent that they lack any capacity to treat Covid-19 patients; Yemen is currently dealing with the worst cholera outbreak in modern history; and Libyan doctors say they are already swamped by patients with battlefield injuries.

The UN and other agencies have raised fears for refugees in war-torn areas who lack access to basic resources during the pandemic. I am especially concerned for those without water to wash their hands, said Filippo Grandi, the UN refugee chief, in a recent emergency appeal. For those in overcrowded settlements unable to distance themselves from others. Now is the time for solidarity and compassion.

Jan Egeland, of the Norwegian Refugee Council, said earlier this week: When the coronavirus strikes overcrowded settlements or countries devastated by war and conflict, where hospitals have been bombed and the health system has collapsed, the consequences will be brutal.

The Greek coronavirus cases came as two migrants in Calais also tested positive for the pathogen, Le Parisien reported. The paper reported that French authorities were finalising plans to shelter migrants and that up to 1,000 were currently living in Calais.

Additional reporting by Reuters
Two armies are on the march in Egypt today. One is the white army, the convoys of medical personnel in hospitals, healthcare and research centres and other facilities who are working round the clock in the fight to contain the coronavirus. The other is the Egyptian Armed Forces which are engaged in two simultaneous battles.

The first is also the battle against Covid-19 to which the army is contributing with the production of disinfectants and hygienic substances and products in Nasr Company, military production factories and the Arab Manufacturing Organisation, and by means of the countrywide sanitisation and disinfection campaigns in major thoroughfares, government buildings, schools and universities, Al-Azhar buildings, the Coptic Cathedral and other vital public institutions.

The armys second battle takes on conventional enemies, terrorism and drug trafficking which frequently serves as a means to fund terrorist activities.

Local sources in Sinai have confirmed an Air Force strike against a terrorist convoy in the vicinity of Bir Al-Abd, killing and wounding a number of terrorist operatives. According to the sources, the operation targeted four SUVs transporting terrorists who attempted to take advantage of the governments current preoccupation with the coronavirus pandemic. The Air Force succeeded in taking out the four vehicles and the army followed through with combing, surveillance and targeted operations which were still in progress as of the writing of this story.

The Armed Forces, in collaboration with the Ministry of Interior, also launched an extensive drive to wipe out drug crops in central and southern Sinai. Members of the Border Patrol, the law enforcement forces of the Third Field Army, the civil police and the Air Force, took part in the sweeping campaign to discover and destroy hundreds of poppy and cannabis farms in the difficult-to-access ravines and hollows in the rugged mountainous terrain in St Catherine, Wadi Al-Nadiya, Wadi Al-Akhdar, Wadi Al-Abar, Wadi Matakha, Wadi Silaf, Wadi Maain, Wadi Fran, Wadi Sahb, Wadi Saal and El-Sheikh.

In addition to unearthing and destroying dozens of marijuana and poppy farms, the army confiscated tons of marijuana and hundreds of kilogrammes of cannabis seeds, poppy seeds and hashish powder. It also raided nine laboratories for the manufacturing and processing of hashish, as well as an unlicensed motorcycle used for smuggling activities.

According to a statement by the Armed Forces, the campaign was carried out in tandem with actions to tighten security and control over national borders in all strategic directions, a process that led to the seizure of vast quantities of narcotic substances.

The government has stepped up its fight to combat drug trafficking and prevent illicit drugs from entering the country in light of the serious threat they pose to the security and well-being of the Egyptian people, the statement said.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 2 April, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under headline: Tangential battles

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PROVO, Utah, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Savology, a Utah-based fintech startup providing free financial planning, oversubscribed a $750,000 seed round of funding to make financial planning more accessible and affordable than ever before.

Several strategic investors participated in the funding round, including:

After creating a free financial plan, Savology users get access to a financial report card showing them their financial strengths and areas that need improving most. Savology's Founder & CEO, Spencer Barclay, shares how Savology is helping American households improve their financial well-being to a crowd of thousands.

Brady Murray , CEO of MassMutual Intermountain West

, CEO of MassMutual Intermountain West Derrin Hill , CEO of RevRoad

, CEO of RevRoad Bruce Miller , Founder & CEO of PROFi - The Professional Financial Company LLC

, Founder & CEO of PROFi - The Professional Financial Company LLC Ben Tejes , Co-founder & CEO of Ascend Finance

"Savology has the potential to fundamentally change the direction of personal finances in America," says lead investor Brady Murray. "I look forward to seeing the positive impact that Savology will have on both households and the broader industry as they improve access to financial planning and other financial services."

Savology boasts a considerable lineup of financial service provider partners that include the likes of MassMutual, Acorns, Lively, M1 Finance, Self, Blooom, The Zebra, Credible and many others. Savology is on track to expand the network of partners to 50 providers this year.

"We are grateful to the early investors and partners who believe in our mission and make it possible for us to elevate Savology to new levels," says Spencer Barclay, Founder and CEO of Savology. "We know that we have an incredible amount of work ahead of us, but we are up for the challenge to help millions of households achieve financial security."

To date, the company has helped nearly 10,000 households improve their personal finances with its free financial planning platform. With the current economic uncertainty and recent stock market declines, there has never been a better time to help Americans with their personal finances. Savology plans to use this funding to help 100,000 users build free financial plans this year.

For more information about Savology visit savology.com .

For media inquiries, please contact Bri Ray, Communications Specialist, at (801) 472-2124 or [email protected].

About Savology:

Savology is a venture-backed startup that is on a mission to improve the financial wellbeing of millions of American households by making financial planning more accessible, actionable, and effective than ever before. In just 5 minutes, users can get a free financial plan, holistic report card, and personalized action items. Savology, based in the Silicon Slopes of Utah, was founded by serial entrepreneur Spencer Barclay in early 2019.

SOURCE Savology

Related Links

http://savology.com


AM Best will host a complimentary webinar on 7 April 2020, at 9 a.m. (GMT). A sudden drop in oil prices in March 2020, further spooked financial markets already unsettled by the accelerating spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Oil prices have been hit by both weakened demand due to the COVID-19-related economic slowdown and excess supply. OPEC+ supply discussions broke down after the failure of negotiations between two of the largest oil producers, Russia and Saudi Arabia. On 17 March 2020, the Brent Crude futures price dropped to below USD 30, for the first time since 2016. This AM Best webinar considers the potential impact of the oil price drop and COVID-19 on the insurance markets in the Middle East and North Africa.

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Algonac and Marine Citys websites have a new look.

Both websites have been awhile in the making. The Algonac City Council voted this past August to award the contract for website redevelopment to EvoGov Inc. in the amount of $7,200, plus $1,800 annually thereafter. The Marine City Commission voted in September to approve an $8,000 contract with Civic Plus for a redesigned city website.

Marine City launches more user-friendly website

Marine Citys website launched March 31. Staff sent out a request for proposals for its website in June.

The old website was through WordPress, and we had issues with the ease of use and functionality, City Manager Elaine Leven said.

She said the new website is easier to navigate, update and view.

It includes a super menu for finding information, a document center that has all the documents in one easy-to-find place and a fresh new look, she said. It will be easier for staff to update, since everything is made to work together and made for people that generally dont work on updating websites.

Leven noted that it might take a while for links to update, but people can go straight to the site by going to cityofmarinecity.org.

Algonac unveils open, engaging, fluid website design

Algonacs new website, which went live March 27, was a goal of the clerks department for this financial year.

I started researching companies to work with last July, City Clerk Sam Boelke said. I brought those recommendations to the staff meeting for input and together the group picked the company we thought was the best fit.

She said staff wanted the website to better reflect the changes in the community.

We have so much going on, with so many opportunities to participate and enjoy the city, she said. We wanted an updated way to get the message out.

One of the most prominent new features on the website is the citys new logo and branding.

One of the reasons we picked EvoGov is because they offered logo and branding services, as well as a long list of applications, Boelke said.

She said new websites are dependent on images and cell phone photos will not work, which means everything on the old website will not transfer.

Our opening drone video is courtesy of Midwest Aero Technologies, with the help of Linda Funke, who came out a couple days last summer and took hours of video for us, Boelke said. The photographs are courtesy of Kara Kunselman, of Kaptured Moments by Kara, a local photographer who graciously went out and took photos around town. Many thanks to them. We are grateful to them for their expertise and creativity.

The website is organized from the users point of view, with a section for departments, government, businesses, residents and an I want to section, which has direct links to common activities.

There is also a frequently asked questions section that provides information such as when the office is closed, easy links to paying water bills and taxes online and boxes for current news, including updates about COVID-19. The Algonac ship cam and Facebook page are also on the home page.

Its designed to be open, engaging and fluid, Boelke said.

On the mayor and city council page, there is a welcome message from Mayor Terry Stoneburner and links to each council members email addresses. Portraits are done by Tom Watkins.

Another new feature is a 311 tracking system, which allows people to submit a request for help online.

For example, someone is worried about the citys trees that overhang into their yard, Boelke said. They can submit a request online and its routed to the proper departments email. The requests are visible to the public, so its possible to look up and see if the problem has already been reported. Its a quick and easy way to notify the city.

She noted the service is available 24/7, so it is not restricted to when the city offices are open.

There are also meeting calendars. People can subscribe to the calendar and receive notifications when a new meeting is scheduled. All of the meeting information will be housed in one place; people will be able to click on a city council meeting and see the packet, minutes and any video taken in one spot.

Boelke said the city will use EvoGovs bids and proposals and employment programs when the time comes.

We dont have anything right now, she said. I anticipate that to be an upgrade to what were doing now.

The website includes information about building permits, park gazebo rentals, appreciation awards, the memorial chair program, voting, water quality and more.

Its all there and its easy to find, Boelke said.

Boelke said she and Algonac staff think the website looks great and reinforces the updated look for the city, since the logo and letterhead were launched a few months ago.

Ive only had positive comments about it, she said.

To see the new website, visit cityofalgonac.org.

Emily Pauling is a staff writer for The Voice. She can be contacted at 586-273-6200 or epauling@medianewsgroup.com.




Haiti - News : Zapping...





Panic at the national penitentiary

Wednesday at the national penitentiary, the death of an inmate due to breathing difficulties, led to believe a case of Covid-19 and sowed panic among inmates. However, Charles Nazaire Noel, Director of the National Prison Administration, denied the rumor and said that the detainee had died of an asthma attack.



Covid-19 : 2 "leaf doctors" arrested

Wednesday in Les Cayes, two individuals (Calustin Jean Mary and Jean Anes Serin) claiming to be leaf doctors (Neg Fey) were arrested for manufacturing and selling fake medicines to protect Covid-19 from a population under the influence of psychosis of disease, easy prey for crooks of all kinds...



Covid-19 : 100 trucks for urban spraying

Prime Minister Joseph Jouthe announced that in the coming days, 300 health workers trained by the Ministry of Public Health, accompanied by soldiers of the Haitian Armed Forces, will have the mission of cleaning up the streets by spraying, in order to limit the potential for spread of Covid-19. The Government should acquire 100 trucks adapted for this task.



The PNH redoubles its vigilance

The Haitian National Police (PNH) is redoubling its vigilance in the fight against banditry and crime in the country. The intensification of patrols allows the police to carry out important nets. The alleged bandit, Richardson Richard, a member of the Village de Dieu gang, was arrested by the Port-au-Prince police when he was trying to escape.



Continuation of the "pot a pot" operation

The Government is continuing the "pot a pot" operation to provide aid to the most disadvantaged. Distribution continues unabated and grows, every day a little more. Thousands of food kits are sent to the doors of the most vulnerable. Several cities have received their kits : Petite place Cazeau, cited in Les Cayes, Pelerin 5, Canaan... See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30397-haiti-social-denial-of-the-economic-and-social-assistance-fund.html https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-30393-icihaiti-social-distributions-of-thousands-of-food-kits.html



Unclog prisons

The Office of Human Rights in Haiti (BDHH) participates these days in several meetings with the judicial authorities and the Civil Society around a plan to decongest the prisons. See also : https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-30407-haiti-justice-towards-the-release-of-detainees-to-decongest-the-prisons.html



HL/ HaitiLibre


















The Africa Centre for Public Policy Watch (ACPPW) GCNH, UER chapter commend the government for initiating and leading the mobilization of relief for vulnerable citizens in the wake of COVID 19 in the country.

Under the current difficult and challenging times, the government could not have done better than tackling the plight of those who are worst affected by measures that have been put in place to check the spread of the disease. While commending the government for its benevolence and show of paternalism we call for key anti-corruption safeguards in its coronavirus stimulus support.

This we believe will ensure that the funds provided by the taxpayer and benevolent society will go toward fighting the virus and support the vulnerable and are not misappropriated by corrupt actors. The public has taken note of the numerous support coming from various corporate citizens and individuals. This is the more reason we need to ensure that all the support that is being realized both in cash and in-kind does not end being stolen by unscrupulous public officials and NGOs.

Information from our partners indicates that Swedbank may have facilitated the laundering of some millions of funds in Azerbaijan and other countries. Ghana has a history of poor management and the misappropriation of public funds. This gives reason for fear similar acts of corruption may repeat its ugly head here, in our country. As measures toward protecting funds dedicated to fighting COVIT 19 and its attendant problems we proffer the following safeguards:

First, all contributions (totals) in cash should be published every two days. This will enable the public for that matter all stakeholders to appreciate exactly how much is being committed to COVID 19 activities.

Secondly, we recommend a biweekly publication of all expenses on the intervention. This we believe, will go a long way to strengthen transparency and accountability and further boost public confidence in the entire exercise.

Thirdly, we urge all citizens to activate their civic responsibility under the Whistle Blowers law to ensure the information that could help expose corrupt actors are shared with the appropriate anti-graft institutions. This will go a long way to help the government take whatever actions are necessary and appropriate to recoup funds and or punish culprits.

Fourthly, we appeal to the government to demonstrate an ability to prosecute corrupt officials and any other person or group of persons who may misappropriate, steal or mismanage funds dedicated to anti-COVID 19 activities.

Security, security officials are also admonished to be humane in their dealings with the public in the lockdown areas.

It is important to note that efforts toward fighting the disease and ameliorating the plight of the vulnerable will fall short unless government anti-corruption strategies under COVID 19 financing are harmonized across all institutions including the media and civil society.

Once again we applaud the government and its partners, corporate citizens, the Ashanteman under His Majesty Otumfo Osei Tutu II, the media and all who have contributed or have intentions to contribute towards fighting the pandemic.
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Linkedin Anton Aliabbas and Shiskha Prabawaningtyas (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, April 3 2020

Cover your mouth: Police officers advise a supermarket customer to wear a mask as part of a public campaign to slow the spread of COVID-19 in Denpasar, Bali. Security authorities have been deployed to support the nationwide fight against the pandemic. (JP/Zul Trio Anggono)

President Joko Jokowi Widodo finally issued Presidential Decree No. 11/2020 regarding a COVID-19 public health emergency due to the worsening state of the pandemic. Relating to the decree, he decided to impose a large-scale social restrictions policy through Government Regulation No. 21/2020, underlining the threat of 19.5 million people traveling for mudik (homebound journey) this year.



To mitigate the socioeconomic impacts of the pandemic, he signed Regulation in Lieu of Law (Perppu) No. 1/2020 that will provide an economic stimulus and social safety net totaling Rp 405.1 trillion (US$24.6 billion).



Clearly, the government is bracing for the worst-case scenario from the pandemic. In particular, to curb the outbreak, the government needs more strategies to restrict people mobility. Jokowi said the new policies would be implemented through law enforcement.



The 2018 Health Quarantine Law stipulates prison terms and fines for residents disobeying the restrictions. In this regard, Jokowi has ordered the National Police to enforce the restrictions. His earlier pleas for physical distancing to slow the spread of COVID-19 seemed ineffective.



The new policies are clearly a response to the mounting pressures on the government, particularly from those who demanded tough measures to contain the virus transmission. And one possible consequence is deployment of security apparatus to control peoples movements and disperse crowds.



Our security institutions, both military and police, possess great resources, including personnel, logistics system and equipment, to enforce the policy. They also have a high-level of readiness to respond to this kind of danger. To control public spaces, security actors may form static and mobile teams in many places.



However, the deployment of a large number of security actors in public areas is problematic. Both police and military are professional in upholding their traditional missions such as combat, area security and law enforcement. But in general, they have inadequate training to handle a pandemic. Thus, without proper skills and protective equipment, which also eludes many of our health workers handling COVID-19 patients, security personnel are vulnerable to coronavirus infection. They may even become super spreaders.



To boost the effectiveness of the policies, Jokowi needs to solve several remaining problems. First, the government should issue a subsequent government regulation and health ministerial regulation on health quarantine as the law mandates them. Those regulations serve as guidance, both for local governments and the public at large during the public health emergency. The guidelines must explain in detail, clearly and transparently, the procedures and mechanisms for large-scale social restrictions.



Second, Jokowi should improve the command and control (C2) system in handling the pandemic. Presidential Decree No. 9/2020 on formation of the COVID-19 rapid response task force lacks a clear C2 system, whereas it is essential for all measures to fight the disease.



In this sense, improvement of the C2 system is strongly required. This will set a clear chain of command in the nationwide efforts to end the pandemic. Jokowi should lead the fight himself.



Finally, Jokowi should prepare another economic stimulus package to dampen the COVID-19 impact and the rise in unemployment resulting from a prolonged coronavirus crisis. Unlike regional quarantine, large-scale social restrictions do not oblige the central government and local governments to provide compensation to those affected. In this regard, a social safety net may be a good approach to minimizing social unrest or conflict.



Nevertheless, containing COVID-19 needs multiple approaches to flatten the curve of virus transmission, unless a vaccine to cure the disease is available and globally distributed.



Domestically, the government must communicate well with the public to prevent a panicked reaction and to ensure that coordination between the central and local governments work. Local and community-based initiatives to restrict human mobility must be supported by providing a guarantee of a fiscal regime to revise regional budget allocation.



The COVID-19 health protocols can only be implemented if there is transparently shared information about people infected, just to avoid unnecessary stigmatization and discrimination.



Through public health diplomacy, Indonesia should take the lead in the formation of an accountable and transparent regime of information sharing on both the people infected and health infrastructure in ASEAN. The return of more than 34,600 Indonesians from Malaysia following the lockdown there, for example, requires stricter border control.



On the international stage, Indonesia should actively promote public health diplomacy aimed at upholding equal distribution of health and medical needs for COVID-19 while minimizing economic destruction in the aftermath of the pandemic. Indonesia can liaise with developing and developed countries and negotiate overhaul of the global economic architecture post-COVID-19 pandemic.



Jokowi has to avoid any unnecessary actions, such as securitizing the pandemic by, for example, declaring a state of civil emergency. Jokowis statement about such a possibility indicates the early stage of securitization of COVID-19.



Applying a stronger security approach to contain the outbreak may lead to complications. Bear in mind that COVID-19 is a non-military threat, which is why we need more noncoercive measures against the virus and to maintain security institutions as supporting players.

______

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Troops and police in Ecuador have collected at least 150 bodies from streets and homes in the port city of Guayaquil, the Government has said.

Shocking images of a joint military and police task force gathering corpses the past three days comes amid warnings 3,500 people could die of the coronavirus in the city and surrounding provinces in the coming months.

Residents in Guayaquil, Ecuador's second city, had earlier published videos on social media of abandoned bodies in the streets.

Some left desperate messages for authorities to take away the corpses of people who had died in their homes as mortuary workers in masks and protective clothing carried plastic-wrapped coffins in the city this week.

Government spokesman Jorge Wated said mortuary workers had been unable to keep up with the removal of corpses.

People wait next to coffins outside Guasmo Sur General Hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador

People protest the difficulty of recovering bodies of relatives at Guasmo Sur General Hospital

A hospital worker is sprayed with disinfectant at Guasmo Sur General Hospital in Guayaquil

Relatives and the staff of Jardines de la Esperanza cemetery bury suspected Covid-19 victims

He blamed a curfew imposed under the pandemic.

'We acknowledge any errors and apologize to those who had to wait days for their loved ones to be taken away,' Mr Wated said.

He warned of difficult days ahead, claiming: 'The medical experts unfortunately estimate that deaths from Covid in these months will reach between 2,500 and 3,500 - in the province of Guayas alone, and we are preparing for that.'

'We are working so that each person can be buried with dignity in one-person spaces,' Mr Wated said, referring to a Government-run cemetery being made available with capacity for around 2,000 bodies.

It is not known how many of the dead were victims of the coronavirus.

Ecuador is the Latin American country worst hit by the virus after Brazil, with more than 3,160 infections and 120 deaths as of this morning.

Guayaquil's Guayas province has 70 percent of the country's Covid-19 infections.

A funeral home worker in a protective suit waits with a coffin on a pick-up truck outside Los Ceibos Hospital in Guayaquil after Ecuador reported new Covid-19 cases

Coffins are transported into a cemetery on trucks, in Guayaquil, Ecuador during curfew

A man helps a sick woman enter a hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador amid the pandemic

Funeral home employees wait with coffins on a pick-up truck outside Los Ceibos hospital

Men carry a sick man into a hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador during the coronavirus pandemic
Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly has shared his struggles working for President Donald Trump in a new book.

This is my hell, Mr Kelly said.

The quote is from an anecdote in ABC News chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karls new book Front Row at the Trump Show, in which Mr Kelly explains his strategies for dealing with Mr Trumps impulsive nature.

According to Business Insider, shortly after Mr Trump gave his fire and fury threat to North Korea, Mr Kelly said he began trying to overwhelm him with facts to try to prevent the president from lying and making impulsive decisions without context.

He needs to understand that 18 and 19-year-old people are going to die. This is big-boy and big-girl s***, Mr Kelly said. You have to understand people will die because of these decisions.

Mr Kellys own son, Robert Kelly, died when he was 29 in a landmine attack in Afghanistan in 2010.

Mr Trump selected Mr Kelly to replace previous Chief of Staff Reince Priebus in July 2017. Mr Kelly was regarded by some as the adult in the room, and it was hoped that his past as a retired Marine four-star general would bring discipline to the chaotic White House.

Despite his attempts to limit White House staff members access to the president - which included his own family - Mr Kelly was unable to wrangle the disparate forces working to influence Mr Trump and was eventually fired.

He said he was in way over his head and that now he cant keep his mouth shut about his time working for Mr Trump.

Mr Kellys decision to speak out against his former boss may be a little too little and a little too late to win him sympathy in the publics eye.

At a lecture he gave in February, Mr Kelly was heckled and shouted down by critics angry at him for his time in the White House.

While Mr Kelly may have tried to talk Mr Trump down from escalating tensions with North Korea and attempted to educate him on the costs of war, he also oversaw the implementation of the Trump administrations travel ban and the Muslim travel ban.

According to The Atlantic, one audience member asked him how he plans to atone for the blood of those immigrant children that are dying in detention centers.

Mr Kellys previous job prior to joining the Trump administration was as the head of the Department of Homeland Security, and in 2017 once told members of Congress to either change US immigration laws or shut up and support the men and women on the front lines.
On Tuesday the United States Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) announced a 14-day national lockdown in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19 among inmates in the federal incarceration system. The lockdown will affect about 170,000 prisoners, a small fraction of the 2.3 million imprisoned in the United States, most of them in prisons run by state governments and controlled by the governors.

The death of another inmate at the Oakdale Federal Correctional Institution in Louisiana was confirmed Wednesday, taking the total of deaths among those incarcerated at the prison to three. Nine inmates at the prison have tested positive and 32 more are exhibiting symptoms. The situation is so bad in Oakdale that the BOP has stopped testing for coronavirus and is assuming that anyone with symptoms has the disease.

The two-week lockdown order is part of a shift to Phase Five of the BOPs Pandemic Plan. Phase Four was only implemented on March 26, when the US death toll was already 578. Details of the heightened vulnerability of prisoners to infection and death from COVID-19 and the deadly implications of the continuing delayed release of non-violent prisoners can found here .

The nature of the lockdown is particularly concerning. The measures will leave prisoners isolated in individual cells for at least 23 hours a day. One prisoners mother quoted her sons description of the new conditions on Twitter, We are confined to our units. Staff must serve us our meals, take our laundry, give us our meds, deliver our commissary (if they feel like doing commissary).

Prisoners at state and local facilities are equally at risk. At the infamous Rikers Island jail, run by the New York City Department of Correction, there are 184 confirmed cases among inmates and more than 137 staff members have been infected. The citys jails have an infection rate of nearly 4 percent. Hundreds more prisoners and prison workers have tested positive for the virus across the country. The chaos engulfing the penal system, the lack of testing, and orders encouraging staff to remain silent on the effects of COVID-19 crisis mean these numbers are likely much higher.

A health care worker at Rikers Island told the World Socialist Web Site, When prisoners are allowed out to use washroom facilities, 50 people are sharing one toilet. Soap isnt guaranteed, they arent allowed hand sanitizer, it is true that people have smeared feces and there is regular flooding. It is totally unsanitary.

A public statement by a group called Formerly Incarcerated Prison Experts stressed, Inhumane solitary confinement is not to be confused with medical isolation or quarantine.  unsanitary conditions are even worse in cells designed for complete isolation. Lockdown measures will only worsen sanitary conditions for inmates.

On February 28, a statement from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner warned, These dehumanizing conditions of detention, sometimes euphemistically referred to as segregation, secure housing, the hole or lockdown, are routinely used by US correctional facilities.

Solitary confinement is recognized as a form of torture by the United Nations and medical professionals. In Psychology Today, J. Wesley Boyd M.D., Ph.D., wrote, Lets call it for what it is: Placing prisoners in solitary confinement is tantamount to torture and it needs to stop. On any given day, around 61,000 people are in solitary confinement in the federal and state prisons. The effect this has on prisoners is often catastrophic. For example, in Texas the suicide rate among those who have spent time in solitary confinement is five times high than the average.

The confinement of individuals, many of whom are likely already infected, in conditions where their health will further deteriorate, is no solution to the acute outbreak of the coronavirus in prisons. Furthermore, despite this confinement, prisoners and prison workers continue to be at heightened risk of infection due to failure of administrators to provide basic personal protective equipment (PPE). Ultimately, the lockdown measures will only result in an increased number of deaths among the prison population and the further degradation of prisoners mental health.

Many of those facing the possibility of infection are innocent individuals held in jail for inability to reach bail while awaiting trial or non-violent criminals, whose already draconian convictions for poverty and petty crimes are effectively being transformed into death sentences. This tragedy is the logical conclusion of the decades-long effort to criminalize poverty in the US justice system.

Prisoners who require services involving human-to-human contact are likely to be adversely affected by the measures, despite the BOPs announcement declaring, to the extent practicable, inmates should still have access to programs and services that are offered under normal operating procedures.

A health worker at Rikers Island gave the WSWS a list of Correctional Health Service programs that have been canceled since March 18. These include screening for HIV and HCV, hepatitis C treatment and methadone treatment. Methadone is a drug used to treat recovering heroin addicts. Without access to methadone these individuals are at risk of death.

Similar measures have also been extended to juvenile detention centers (JDC) across the US. Sampson Kelly, a school administrator at a JDC in New Orleans described the worries of her pupils to Newsweek, Theyre worried about being left behind. Theyre an afterthought. I think in the efforts to slow down the virus and be responsible, we just said, Kids, stay home, but no one thought about our kids. Despite initial claims that youth were effectively provided immunity from COVID-19, the threat to young people is becoming ever more apparent. Last week a 17-year-old died in California, while on March 31 it was reported that a 13-year-old child in the UK died from the virus.

The BOPs announcement of the lockdown came one day after inmates at Rikers Island were offered $6 per hour, a fortune by prison labor standards, and PPE to work as gravediggers on Hart Island. PPE is otherwise unavailable for prisoners. This is not the first time prison labor has been exploited by New York state authorities in response to this crisis. On March 9, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo bragged about the production of hand sanitizer for Corcraft by prisoners at Rikers Island who make as little as $0.16 per hour. Due to the products alcohol content, prisoners are still unable to use hand sanitizer to protect themselves anywhere in the US.

That prisoners, one of the most vulnerable layers of society, are paid insultingly low wages and blackmailed with the offer of lifesaving PPE to perform vital social functions in times of acute crisis, shows that the capitalist systems response is incapable of extending beyond its requisite exploitation of labor.

Every prisoner and worker must be given PPE and tested immediately to halt the spread of the coronavirus. Those who pose no threat to others and test negative for the virus should be released immediately. Those who are positive should be placed in quarantine with adequate sanitation, access to communication and assured release when they cease to be contagious.

Regardless of legal status, every remaining and released inmate should be ensured access to high quality health care. Those inmates who have been released should be assured housing and the provision of food. Critical programs must be reinstated with full PPE provided to both prisoners and prison workers. These necessary measures must be accompanied by the wider demands of the working class.

The resources exist to achieve these measures. As Wall Street and big corporations enjoy trillion-dollar bailouts, all claims that neither money nor resources are available to ensure basic social rights to prisoners should be rejected as lies. In a total indictment of the capitalist system, the failure to take these measures earlier has already led to preventable deaths of prisoners and prison workers and has increased the likelihood of the disease spreading to their family and friends. Every hour of delay will undoubtedly be paid for by more.

The barbarity of the US prison system, which confines more people than any country in the world, is a morbid yardstick of the wider decay of capitalism in the epoch of imperialism. Only a government by and for the working class guided by a socialist perspective can assure prisoners basic social rights. The mistreatment and hyperexploitation of societys most vulnerable has only intensified during the COVID-19 crisis.
Its not obvious that we need mass antigen tests. And its not clear that Johnsons policy has failed  far from it.

This morning, the Government received huge criticism over the speed at which it has produced Coronavirus antigen tests  or strictly speaking, RNA tests (which detect the presence or absence of the disease). The UK has been portrayed as shambles and disaster on the world stage, with many believing it lags behind numerous other countries.

Some criticisms have an element of truth; South Korea, the US and others have been much better at delivering tests than the UK, with Germany making 500,000 a week. The Government has also fallen behind its own pledges. Originally Boris Johnson promised to get to 10,000 tests a day, then 25,000 and 250,000, but the UK has barely reached the first target.

Various explanations have been attributed to testing deficiencies. One is a shortage of key chemicals called reagents needed for RNA testing, which the Government is trying to sort out. Another is that the UK never planned for a pandemic in the same way that South Korea and Taiwan did after SARS.

And there are complaints that the UK didnt react quickly enough to events in China earlier this year, unlike Germany  which rapidly ordered tests. Even so, some of the attacks on the Government have been hysterical and unfair.

One suspects that, with newspapers plagued by falling advertising revenues, and no big political decision to report on the horizon  lockdown, economic measures or otherwise  this is a stick that the media has decided to beat the Government with.

Its easy to do this if you frame data in a certain way. There have been, for instance, at least one too many articles that compare the UK only to South Korea, Germany and the US, which are anomalies in the global stakes  in their ability to produce masses of tests.

For example, Buzzfeed uses this selection and concludes: The data tells a clear story: The UKs numbers and aspirations fall well short of other major economies. Nowhere does it support such a sweeping statement  its sample size is too small  and, on a pedantic note, editors do not clarify what falling well short means statistically.

If one was to frame Britain in a wider global context, the conclusions would change. For instance, we are ahead of France and Japan, if COVID-19 testing is measured per million (not that this is a competition), and this should be reflected in write-ups.

There are are other, wider factors to mull. For example, its not at all clear that mass antigen testing, as opposed to antibody testing, has ever been the Governments aspiration, or is now. Ministers should be clearer on that point.

What we do know is that the UK wants hospital testing to be prioritised  clearly this is urgent  and has stopped community testing (which, incidentally, may explain why its test per head rate looks poor next to others).

But is it aiming to hit huge numbers in the first place? Jonathan Van Tam, the Deputy Chief Medical Officer, yesterday called testing a side issue, and suggested that social distancing is key to reducing deaths in the UK. If the Governments aim is to control the pressure on the NHS, lockdown should achieve this (if properly observed).

Thats why it is premature at the very least to deem the Governments policy a failure. And it remains unclear whether mass testing, although useful, is the salvation its been hailed, especially as it has not stopped shocking death rates in some countries.

Italy, for instance, is the second highest at testing (per head) of any country after Switzerland, but has had tragic outcomes. Germanys testing regime, too, is excellent, but it has still not flattened the curve, as some reporting might lead one to expect, and it appears on a similar trajectory to Britain in terms of death rates.

In the case of Germany, another fact ignored by the media is why it has been able to produce masses of tests. Some commentators have fawned over the country. Why cant we be like Germany?! They demand. Private healthcare is one of the reasons, though. Its system means that anyone with symptoms can be tested, with most covered by health insurance and the countrys large number of private laboratories.

If the Governments critics want German test numbers, they need a German healthcare system. Are any of them seriously proposing scrapping the NHS?

Additionally, Jack Dickens for Reaction explains that Germanys decentralised set-up has helped it, meaning that there are approximately 400 different authorities throughout the Federal Republic, which have allowed it to provide an effective testing programme from an early stage.

In Britain, on the other hand, testing is done by 12 state-owned laboratories run by Public Health England and other public health agencies, with about 40 managed by the NHS. This is certainly one reason that we are not as fast as Germany.

A theory that is becoming more popular by the day is that the UK needs to relax accreditation rules and allow private, university and charity labs to test for COVID-19. Then again, if the Governments goal isnt mass testing, the urgency for this changes.

Some of the UKs reliance on testing may shift in the coming weeks if antibody tests, which look for signs that someone has been infected through searching for an immune response, reach the country. Ministers have ordered 17.5 million of these, which will be transformative in determining the Governments future strategy for tackling the Coronavirus.

This should reduce the demand for RNA testing, and  hopefully  should mean those whove had the Coronavirus can go safely back to work. In conclusion, it is impossible to damn the Government this early on. It is the symptom of critics desperate to find wrongs in its approach. Lets hope, at least, that they can stop pretending the world consists of only four countries.
(Newser)  As millions of job cuts tear through the US economy, a faint glimmer of light has emerged: Some employers are trying to maintain ties to the staffers they're letting go so they can more quickly rehire them once the viral outbreak has passed, the AP reports. Several large retail chains are furloughing workersa form of temporary job cut that often maintains health insurancerather than laying them off. And many small businesses, too, are keeping in touch with workers they've had to let go. "Anyone who's trying to lay off workers is already thinking about how they can bring them back," said Jania Bailey, CEO of FranNet, a consultancy that works with franchise companies.

story continues below

One of them is Tracy True, who said she's keeping in touch at least once a week with the 10 furloughed staffers of her clothing store in Vestavia, Alabama. "As soon as we're given the all clear," True says, "we'll be back." How long millions of other laid-off employees will remain without work will help determine the depth and duration of a US recession that's almost surely begun and is destined to worsen in coming months. Britney Ruby Miller, co-owner of a chain of steakhouses, said her company is paying for health insurance through June for the roughly 600 workers they had to lay off. The company is also sending weekly updates to its former employees and keeping them on an employee assistance program. "The goal," Miller said, "is to welcome 100% of our employees back."

(Read more coronavirus stories.)
One of the country's most historic churches, St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, has opened a digital book of condolences to help people bereaved as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The new digital initiative was announced yesterday by the Dean, the Very Rev Dr William Morton, following the Government's guidance on funeral restrictions.

Earlier this week, the Government said immediate family members can still attend funeral services and the burial of loved ones, as long as social distancing measures are observed and the number of people is capped at 10.

"Over these difficult days, the cathedral has had to close to worshippers and tourists, but that does not mean that we fail to respond to those who suffer as a result of Covid-19," Dr Morton said.

"We continue to remember them in our prayers here, and, in addition, we are providing a virtual book of condolences which you may sign online if you have been bereaved by the death of a loved one as a result of the virus."

Church funerals have been suspended in a number of Catholic and Church of Ireland dioceses until the Covid-19 crisis has passed.

Last week, the Bishop of Down and Connor, the Most Rev Noel Treanor, announced he was closing all churches in his diocese and that the dead would instead be taken directly to the cemetery where a funeral prayer service would take place. He said requiem Masses would be celebrated in memory of the deceased when the pandemic has passed.

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Guidelines announced by Bishop Larry Duffy of Clogher at the weekend also instruct undertakers and families to have the body of the deceased brought directly to the place of burial with no church service. The burial will be led by a priest, a deacon or, if necessary, a lay person.

Giving a lay person permission to preside at the burial of the dead is a recognition of the concern over the health of Ireland's priests, most of whom are elderly and therefore must 'cocoon'.

The bishop excused all priests in his cross-Border diocese - which covers Co Monaghan and parts of Co Tyrone, Co Fermanagh and Co Donegal - who are aged 70 or older or with underlying health conditions from frontline ministry. Pastoral support to grieving families will be given by phone, email or online.

This guidance is now in operation in all Catholic and Church of Ireland dioceses.

Fr John Quinn, a spokesman for the Association of Catholic Priests, stressed that priests and funeral directors were frontline workers.

"The problem is that the majority of priests in the country are in the over-65 age bracket and so are vulnerable."

Fr Quinn said that in the event of a person having no funeral service in a church, the normal funeral rites such as incensing and sprinkling the coffin with holy water would still take place at the graveside and prayers of committal would be said.

"When all of this is over, we can do Masses and funeral rites with families that have been bereaved and mourn those who have died. Nobody will be forgotten, neither the living nor the dead."

HSE guidance for those who have died from Covid-19 requires relatives who have been living with or in close contact with the deceased to self-isolate. This can result in a spouse being unable to attend the funeral of their loved one.

That is what happened Tom Best in Co Fermanagh, who lost his wife of 51 years to Covid-19. The last time Tom saw Anne, she was being taken away in an ambulance from their Derrylin home. He was unable to see her in the isolation ward of the hospital and then, because he had to self-isolate, he could not even attend her funeral at St Ninnidh's cemetery. There was no church ceremony.

The Irish Association of Funeral Directors (IAFD) has approximately 300 member firms who handle more than 80pc of all funerals across the country. Asked if there is a difference in the protocols for the funeral of someone who has died due to Covid-19, a spokesperson said: "Dealing with a Covid-19 related funeral is entirely different to arranging a non-Covid-19 funeral due to HSE restrictions.

"The deceased cannot be embalmed, prepared or presented to mourners. They cannot repose in the funeral home or at a church service due to fears of infection from the body."

Asked if funeral directors will now perform their duties in full protective gear, the IAFD said: "At the moment this measure would only relate to the removal of a person who has died from Covid-19."
University of Texas at Austin students who went to Mexico on spring break have been diagnosed with coronavirus, according to CNN.

CNN reported, About 70 people in their 20s chartered a plane from Austin, Texas, to Mexico for spring break two weeks ago. Now, 44 of the students have tested positive for the coronavirus after ignoring the advice of officials who are asking people to avoid gathering in groups and avoid nonessential air travel.

Some of the students returned home on commercial flights, CNN reported.

Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen told CNN affliate KXAN, Quit being an a**. Get over yourselves. Whether you think this is an issue or not, it is. Whether you think it could affect you or not, it does. The reality of it is, if Im a college kid whos going to spring break in Mexico, youre affecting a lot of people. Grow up.

Asked #txlege Speaker @RepDennisBonnen his message for people who don't take #coronavirus guidelines seriously-- like the group of Spring Breakers who flew to Mexico & now have #COVID19. His answer is blunt. More this Sunday on #StateofTexas...

Background: https://t.co/ogiceUffdZ pic.twitter.com/j7gVS44HHj  Wes Rapaport (@wesrap) April 1, 2020

2 weeks ago, amid the coronavirus pandemic, about 70 students from the University of Texas at Austin partied in Mexico on spring break. Now, 28 of them have tested positive for the virus and dozens more are under quarantine. https://t.co/PGAfGoQeYP  The New York Times (@nytimes) April 1, 2020

Health officials told CNN that other passengers from the chartered flight are being monitored.

The University of Texas at Austin is working to help public health officials.

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Challenging times such as these make it crucial for the corporate sector to modify its operating procedures. With remote working becoming a new reality due to the COVID-19 outbreak, businesses might find it challenging to track and analyze employee performance. Analyzing the scenario from an employee's perspective one can say that remote working provides employees the opportunity to work flexibly. In place of rigidity and uniformity, KPIs can be customized to the individual, and core hours adjusted by agreement to meet the needs of the employee and the business. Quantzig's portfolio of employee performance management solutions can provide the data to help manage this change and gauge its success over time. Since the solutions also focus on identifying strengths and areas for improvement within your workforce it helps you to maximize outcomes by better managing your investments.

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
A 31-year-old man, who attended a congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin West, tested positive for COVID-19 in Lohit district on Thursday, making it the first case of coronavirus in Arunachal Pradesh.

Itanagar: A 31-year-old man, who attended a congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin West, tested positive for COVID-19 in Lohit district on Thursday, making it the first case of coronavirus in Arunachal Pradesh, health officials said.

The swab sample of the man, a resident of Medo area in the district, was sent for testing to the Regional Medical Research Centre (RMRC) at Dibrugarh in Assam and the report came back as positive, Health Secretary P Prathiban said. The man attended the congregation in Nizamuddin on 13 March, officials said.

Click here to follow LIVE updates on Coronavirus Outbreak

The district health authority has kept the patient at a special isolation room in the Tezu Zonel Hospital and all his family members are also in a quarantine facility, Prathiban said.

The swab samples of the family members would be collected and sent for testing, he added.

Six more persons who attended the congregation were located in Namsai district and have tested negative for COVID-19, State Surveillance Officer (Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme) L Jampa said.

The patient reached Medo on 18 March after attending the congregation. He left Nizamuddin on 16 March and 24 since March he was under home quarantine and did not show any symptom of coronavirus infection even after 16 days, officials said.

The police are on job to trace all the persons who came in contact with the infected man, Lohit district SP Wangdi Thungon said. A total of 58 samples were sent from the state for testing and 38 were found negative till Wednesday, Jampa said.
[April 02, 2020] SERVICEMASTER GLOBAL ALERT: Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is Investigating ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. on Behalf of Stockholders and Encourages Investors to Contact the Firm

Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm, is investigating potential claims against ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SERV) on behalf of ServiceMaster stockholders. Our investigation concerns whether ServiceMaster has violated the federal securities laws and/or engaged in other unlawful business practices. Click here to participate in the action. ServiceMaster provides services to residential and commercial customers in the termite, pest control, cleaning and restoration markets. The company's Terminix segment is a termite and pest control business that primarily operates in the United States. ServiceMaster's executives may have repeatedly assured the market that ServiceMaster was successfully executing upon initiatives to improve the performance in the Terminix segment. ServiceMaster provided preliminary financial results for the third quarter 2019 on October 22, 2019, missing revenue and earnings estimates. The Company ajusted EBITDA guidance to $415 to $425 million, down from $435 to $445 million. The Company attributed disappointing results partly to "termite damage claims arising primarily from Formosan termite activity," primarily in Alabama. The Company further stated that this had been a known issue, having taken mitigating measures in 2018. The Company also announced the sudden departure of Matthew J. Stevenson in his role as President of Terminix Residential.



On this news, ServiceMaster common stock fell $11.44 or 20%, to close at $44.70 on October 22, 2019. If you purchased or otherwise acquired ServiceMaster shares and suffered a loss, have information, would like to learn more about these claims, or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Melissa Fortunato or Marion Passmore by email at [email protected], or telephone at (212) 355-4648, or by filling out this contact form. There is no cost or obligation to you.

About Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.: Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a nationally recognized law firm with offices in New York and California. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in commercial, securities, derivative, and other complex litigation in state and federal courts across the country. For more information about the firm, please visit www.bespc.com. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005870/en/

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Concertio, a NYC-based provider of AI-powered performance optimization software, raised $4.2M in seed funding.

The round was led by Differential Ventures.

The company intends to use the funds to scale operations of its AIOps Optimizer platform and to further its technology lead in dynamic, continuous, and static optimization.

Led by Dr. Tomer Morad, co-founder and CEO, Concertio is a provider of AI-powered system performance optimization tools from the lab to deployment. Its patented Optimizer increase performance by tailoring the many system and application settings to work in concert with the currently running workloads, all automatically, continuously and in real-time. Its Optimizer products are used in a variety of use-cases, including maximizing system performance, reducing IT and cloud costs, Kubernetes resource optimization, minimizing latencies in high-frequency trading platforms, compiler flag mining, database optimization, optimization of CPU and ASIC products defaults, maximizing networking bandwidth, maximizing benchmark performance and more. They deliver support for configuration parameters in numerous platforms, including Intel CPUs, Linux, Kubernetes, OpenMPI, Hadoop, MongoDB, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis, Java, PHP, NGNIX, Apache Web Server, HHVM, Mellanox NICs, GCC flags, LLVM flags, and more.

Concertio features three modes of optimization: agent-based dynamic real-time optimization for use in production servers, continuous optimization where static optimization is implemented within the CI/CD pipeline, and static optimization for use by hardcore performance engineers and IT professionals.

FinSMEs

02/04/2020
Slamming the Congress for criticising the ongoing lockdown, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said the opposition party is weakening the country's fight against the coronavirus by doing "petty politics" and asked when will it give priority to national interest over its own.

Shah's comments came hours after Congress president Sonia Gandhi criticised the government for the "unplanned" implementation of the countrywide lockdown, which, she said, caused "chaos and pain" to millions.

"Under PM @narendramodi's leadership, India's efforts to fight coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. 130-crore Indians are united to defeat COVID-19," the minister said in a tweet.

"Yet, the Congress is playing petty politics. High time they think of national interest and stop misleading people," Shah said.

Later in a statement issue by the BJP, Shah said that in these tough times parties should stand together and fight coronavirus rather than doing petty party politics.

"But by doing such petty politics Congress is weakening the countrymen's fight against the virus," Shah said, asking "when will Congress give more importance to national interest before its own interest."

Shah underlined that the Modi government is working round-the-clock to ensure good health, safety and security of every Indian.

The minister also said the BJP-led government at the Centre is also working overtime to ensure availability of essentials across the country during the lockdown.

Gandhi, addressing a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) through video-conferencing, called for availability of all necessary equipment for medical professionals.

She said the onus lies on the government to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness.

The Congress chief said the country was in the midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis which can be overcome only if everyone acts in solidarity.
A pastor in Pennsylvania says he is planning an outdoor Woodstock-like Easter service to protest stay-at-home orders issued amid the coronavirus pandemic.

According to Fox News, evangelist Jonathan Shuttlesworth says he will have an outdoor Easter blowout service.

"Im gonna announce it.  Were gonna hold an outdoor Easter blowout service. Not online. A national gathering. You come from all over, like Woodstock. And were gonna gather and lift up Jesus Christ," he said.

Shuttlesworths announcement comes just days after a Florida pastor was arrested for holding in-person Sunday services. He was accused to violating quarantine orders by holding the service at his River at Tampa Bay Church.

"Im not ashamed that Dr. Rodney (Howard-Browne) got arrested, Shuttlesworth said. Im ashamed that when they wanted to arrest preachers for having church, in an entire state, there was only one to come for."

Shuttlesworth posted about Howard-Brownes arrest on Twitter as well.

"Pastor arrested for having a church service in his own building on Sunday, just like 1938 Germany... and just like 1938 Germany, other pastors say nothing, or applaud the arrest!," Shuttlesworth wrote on Twitter.

He also live-streamed a broadcast he called, The Rodney Howard-Browne Tribute Special.

Shuttlesworth also made headlines in early March for calling European churches who closed their doors because of the outbreak a bunch of sissies.

Shame on every European full gospel church, bunch of sissies, that shut down during this thing, he said.

Catholic Church not having holy water in the lobby  how holy is the water then? he said. That should be a sign to you that your whole religions a fraud. Any faith that doesnt work in real life is a fake faith. Totally fake.

He also said using hand sanitizer was for a bunch of pansies.

If youre putting out pamphlets and telling everybody to use Purell before they come into the sanctuary and dont greet anyone, you should just turn in your ministry credentials and burn your church down  turn it into a casino or something, he said. Youre a loser. Bunch of pansies... Got neutered somewhere along the line and dont even realize it.

Photo courtesy: Nicholas Green/Unsplash

Amanda Casanova is a writer living in Dallas, Texas. She has covered news for ChristianHeadlines.com since 2014. She has also contributed to The Houston Chronicle, U.S. News and World Report and IBelieve.com. She blogs at The Migraine Runner.
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DANBURY  Local colleges have donated thousands of pieces of equipment to area hospitals that are treating coronavirus patients.

Western Connecticut State University has provided 1,550 masks, 400 gloves and 174 gowns, according to the governors office.
The last thing a person over 65 years old should have to worry about right now is if they can find a doctor who accepts Medicare plans.

Village Health Partners is expanding access for individuals who are enrolled in Medicare to provide care for a high-risk population during the coronavirus pandemic.

Our slogan is, Helping our communities thrive, and we want to help our senior neighbors access care, said Keith Eppich, Village Health Partners Clinical Vice President and physician. The last thing a person over 65 years old should have to worry about right now is if they can find a doctor who accepts Medicare plans.

On March 17, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services expanded Medicare coverage for telehealth services, and the Department for Health and Human Services waived penalties under HIPAA laws for good faith use of telehealth during this emergency. This allows individuals without access to HIPAA-compliant software to have appointments with physicians through other software, like FaceTime.

We are seeing a major shift in coverage from big insurance companies, and now Medicare, allowing patients to access virtual visits that they havent been able to in the past, Chief Administrative Officer Patrick Figures said. We have not been able to see new patients with Medicare, but due to restrictions being lifted, we can now see anyone.

Village Health Partners now conducts nearly 90 percent of visits through telemedicine, to encourage social distancing while continuing to provide care for high-risk patients. They see more than 600 patients through telehealth per day.

We have always been a leader in bringing new technologies to patients, Figures said. We have been practicing telehealth for a number years, so our providers are comfortable with providing care virtually. Our physicians and patients are happy to still be able to work together on patient health, despite the distance.

Telehealth visits are medical appointments that allow individuals to visit with a physician, counselor or other provider from outside of the office  including at home or work  to allow for social distancing. Individuals can be treated, diagnosed and counseled by a health professional for cold and flu symptoms, a fever, sore throat, nausea and more, without having to leave their homes.

Were living in the future of healthcare, Figures said. It works just like a normal in-office visit. Its all of the care without any of the hassle.
Grocery store and pharmacy workers, generally low-wage workers that may have previously been dismissed as expendable and unskilled, find themselves on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. While most businesses in the state have shut down, these workers continue to provide essential services to keep society functioning as New York attempts to combat the coronavirus, often at their own risk.

Many of these workers are unionized with the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. Its president, Stuart Appelbaum, spoke with City & State about the challenges his members face, the victories the union has won amid the coronavirus crisis and the importance of recognizing the vital role of low-wage workers. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

What are some of the biggest challenges right now for some of your members, grocery stores or otherwise?

Let me tell you a little bit about our memberships. In addition to grocery store workers, we represent a lot of retail workers who are not working now. We also have nursing homes. So we have a lot of people who are on the front lines there too. And we also do a lot of food production. I think keeping our food supply open is also part of the front line in terms of making sure that were all able to survive. So when you look at our membership, our retail workers who are not in supermarkets are concerned about whats going to happen to them and for their future, how theyre going to survive. What I find surprising is that after Congress approved and the president signed stimulus bills, where the retail industry is going to be able to participate in stimulus relief, they immediately laid off all their employees, which seems to be the opposite purpose of what a stimulus bill is. I think that has to be addressed immediately by the companies that benefit in many ways from the stimulus bills.

What have been some of the things that youve been hearing from members on the ground?

First of all, people are working harder than they ever have before because of the volume. And the fact that the supermarkets need many more workers, theyre advertising for more workers, theres a volume into stores that has never been anticipated in the past. And supermarkets know they need more people to deal with it. So what does that mean for the individual worker? First of all, they go to work afraid. Two, they know that they have to work harder and longer than they ever have before. The worries about how theyre going to be affected and what theyre going to bring home to their families is always at the front of their minds. And theyre finding that many customers are on edge as well. That has come out in terms of interactions with the cashiers. People are desperate in all different sorts of ways, worried in all sorts of ways. Its several times Ive been told how customers have actually tried to steal the hand sanitizer that the cashiers have next to their register to protect them.

As you said, everyone is working incredibly hard right now and working extra hours.

Yes. 10-, 12-hour days.

Has there been an influx of new employees to lighten the load?

I dont know how many theyve been able to bring in. I dont know how responsive people have been. But I know the companies are desperately, desperately looking for more people to come to work.

What are some wins that you can say that you have been able to achieve for your members?

I think the reason that they are eligible for child care funding (under the new federal stimulus bill) is because weve lobbied for it. The protective equipment theyve got is often because weve had to push the employers to do it. One company, which Im not going to name, we forced them to change their  we also represent drugstores  we forced an employer to change its policies. We forced many employers to put up plexiglass guards that werent there. One employer just wanted to put up a card table in front of the register to increase the distance and have you lean over, but that wasnt sufficient. We also have achieved hazard pay for our members from the employers. We negotiated that with our employers. I think, though, that one thing that has to come out of this is that I think people now understand that all work should be valued. And that we all owe a debt of gratitude to grocery workers, who are putting themselves at risk to do these jobs. If they did not, we would not be able to survive.

Have more workplaces and workers tried to unionize with RWDSU?

I dont think that is something weve been focusing on right now. But I think weve heard from people who understand that especially in times like this its crucial to have a collective voice.

Have you heard about any deaths among your members or your stores?

Im not aware of deaths in any of our stores yet. Its not to say there arent. But I presume that we have people who are sick. I know weve had people in stores who are sick and stores have had to temporarily close.

How do you feel about the recent Amazon strike and the firing of the employee who organized it?

There has been an outpouring of support for these Amazon workers and incredible outrage that Amazon would choose to punish the whistleblower rather than improving or fixing the problems that were exposed. You have to remember, too, that the one corporation that is doing extremely well during this crisis is Amazon, and it was already an extraordinarily wealthy corporation of the wealthiest man on the planet. And you look at how little it is theyre doing to protect their own workforce. Its amazing; its outrageous. All these companies need to know that how they treat their employees safety today is going to be remembered tomorrow. They are going to be judged. Their reputation is going to depend on how they treat working people during this crisis.

Ive seen a lot of posts on social media pointing out the irony that all these overlooked, low-wage workers are now essential.

People finally understand that low-wage workers need to be appreciated and valued. That they are the ones who allow our society to continue to function. Nobody now is worrying about what white-collar workers are doing during this crisis. What they are concerned about is that supermarket workers and other low-wage workers have continued to work, that those are the ones who are important for us to be able to get through this. We expect in the future that the way they will be treated in the workplace, and the way they will be compensated in the future, will reflect the intrinsic value of what it is they are contributing to society, often at their own risk.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson



10 Downing Street

London

SW1A 2

Dear Boris,

We write concerning your Governments recent correspondence to the European Commission, opposing its proposal to open an office of the EU Delegation to the UK in Belfast.

As party leaders representing a majority of citizens who voted to remain within the EU, we feel strongly that an office in Belfast is necessary to ensure the implementation of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland which you negotiated with the EU.

You are aware that under, the terms negotiated by your Government, EU representatives have a right under law to be present during any activities relating to the Protocol implementation.

It is also for the EU to determine the extent to which it wishes to exercise these rights, including the opening of an office in Belfast staffed by EU representatives who can carry out their functions without interruption by the Westminster Government.

It is necessary for EU experts to be based in Belfast in order to liaise with your Government and NI Executive Departments on the implementation of the protocol and our obligations within it.

To oppose the opening of such an office by the EU in Belfast represents an act of bad faith by your Government and a breach of trust at this critical stage of the process.

We are calling on you to reverse the approach taken by your Government without delay and comply with the request made by the European Commission.

Co-signed:

Michelle ONeill MLA Clare Bailey MLA

Sinn Fein Greens

Colum Eastwood MP Naomi Long MLA

SDLP Alliance
To help protect residents at the Ronald McDonald House, volunteers who normally help prepare meals for residents there are being asked to stay away to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Rochester musician Fernando Ufret is holding a virtual concert Saturday to help fund meals for the families of hospital patients staying there.

For the past few months, hes been traveling between Iowa, where he lives, and Minnesota for performances.

With social distancing, events being canceled and venues closing to prevent the spread of COVID-19, it doesnt really matter where a musician is playing  concerts have gone virtual for now.

Ufret will play at 7 p.m. Saturday. So far, the effort has raised more than $1,800 of a $2,500 goal.

ADVERTISEMENT

For more information and to donate, visit "Fernandos Live Concert benefiting RMH of Rochester" event page on Facebook.

Ronald McDonald House in Rochester served more than 425 families with members in the hospital in 2019, with an average stay of 24 nights.

What:"Fernandos live concert for the Ronald McDonald House of Rochester" virtual fundraiser concert

When: 7 p.m. Saturday

Where: Facebook live
Google's Art & Culture app will now let you turn any of your pictures into a masterpiece.

The new feature, called "Art Transfer", takes your photo and uses artificial intelligence to give it the style of a famous artwork.

Users can choose "dozens" of well-known paintings and borrow their style for any image.

The feature can be used by opening up the tool  which exists as a separate tool for iOS and Android  and then selecting the Camera menu at the bottom. On there should be the option for Art Transfer, which will open up the feature.

Users can pick one of the different masterpieces and then have it transformed into the style of any of those artworks. Google will get to doing that, and give you a "fun fact" about the piece while you wait for the feature to be applied.

The feature does not simply use an overlay or a blend tool. Instead, Google has created algorithms that will recreate the photo in the style that has been chosen, it said, using artificial intelligence tools developed by the company.

Google said it has worked with cultural institutions such as the UK's National Gallery and Japan's MOA Museum of Art to allow them to have a variety of different styles, including van Gogh, Frida Kahlo, Edvard Munch or Leonardo da Vinci.

The Google Arts & Culture app already became somewhat viral in 2018, when it gave people the chance to match their pictures with a famous artwork, allowing them to find their lookalikes in classic paintings. That doppelganger feature became available in the UK later that year.

Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty

That app caused some stir when users found that it appeared to be sending pictures to Google to do the analysis. For the Art Transfer feature, all of the processing is able to be done on device, rather without processing the image online, Google said.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown placed a 90-day moratorium on commercial evictions for nonpayment Wednesday, bringing relief to thousands of businesses facing their first rent payments since losing significant revenue because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Brown had previously placed a ban on residential evictions, prohibiting landlords from charging tenants late fees for nonpayment of rent during the moratorium. But Oregon was slow to follow other cities and states in extending the moratorium to commercial leases.

On Tuesday, The Oregonian/OregonLive.com spoke to restaurant owners facing panic and frustration over the prospects of missing rent and being locked out of their businesses by landlords after weeks of diminished or no revenue. Wednesdays order comes just more than two weeks after Brown banned on-premises dining at restaurants and bars across the state.

It feels like a really big victory, said Maya Lovelace, chef-owner of Portlands Mae and Yonder. It means that we will all be able to potentially open up when this is all over because we will still have access to our businesses. The restaurants will still be here.

Before Oregons first confirmed COVID-19 case in late February, the Oregon service industry employed an estimated 155,000 people. Most have been laid off. Even restaurants and bars that have leaned into takeout and delivery report laying off 90% of their staff. Some will not reopen. The order banning on-premise dining had impacts far beyond the restaurant industry, touching on bakers, winemakers, fishmongers, meat purveyors and more.

A follow-up order on March 23 closed shopping malls, tattoo parlors, barber shops and gyms, plus any business that couldnt strictly enforce social distancing guidelines requiring six feet or more of space among staff and customers.

Without a civil order freezing evictions, small business owners were left to deal with landlords on a case-by-case basis. High-profile restaurants were offered rent freezes or other relief. Smaller businesses reported dealing with hardline landlords who expected rent in full on April 1  if those landlords would come to the table at all.

Restaurant groups including the Oregon Restaurant and Lodging Association as well as the newly formed Portland Independent Restaurant Alliance had advocated for a freeze on evictions over the past two weeks. Of particular concern was the valuable build-outs, equipment and other improvements that some businesses pay for out of their own pockets. Some leases allow landlords to lock out tenants within five days of nonpayment of rent.

Browns order prevents landlords of commercial properties from terminating any tenants lease or taking any action relating to evictions or otherwise interfering with a tenants right to possession of the leased premises. Tenants are required to provide documentation or other evidence that nonpayment is caused by, in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, the COVID-19 pandemic within 30 days of missing rent, including evidence of loss of income due to any governmental restrictions.

Tenants are expected to notify landlords as soon as reasonably possible that they will be unable to pay rent in full, and to make partial payments to the extent they are financially able. Late charges and other penalties are waived during the moratorium.

During this unprecedented public health crisis, too many Oregonians have found themselves with no way to pay the monthly rent for their homes and businesses, Brown wrote in a news release. These are difficult times. This order will help Oregon small businesses stay in their locations without the threat of eviction.

-- Michael Russell, mrussell@oregonian.com, @tdmrussell

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
According to his daughter, Prykhodko was transferred to Krasnodar on March 30

Pro-Ukrainian activist Oleg Prykhodko was transferred to the Russian Federation from Crimea, as Krym.Realii reported citing his daughter Natalia Shvetsova.

According to her, on March 30, Prykhodko was transferred to Krasnodar.

They provided with two hours for preparations and took him away. Today (April 1), he could phone the mother and tell that he is in Krasnodar. He was tired during the transfer, he spends a long time in a room as large as half a meter, she said.

Besides, the lawyer of Prykhodko, Nazym Sheikhmambetov reported that currently, he found out the information about the transfer at the administration of the remand center.

On October 10, 2019, pro-Ukrainian activist Oleh Prykhodko from Saky was detained in annexed Crimea.

Earlier, arrested in annexed Crimea Oleh Prykhodko was accused of a terroristic act preparation. Prykhodko was charged with preparing an explosion in Saky.

On February 8, 2019, FSB in Crimea held a search in the house of Oleh Prykhodko in the village of Orekhovo of Saky district. The security officers seized Ukrainian symbolism, the flags of Svoboda Party, red and black flags, a portrait of Stepan Bandera, equipment and home CDs. After the search, Prykhodko was taken to Simferopol, where he was questioned about his activities and connections on the mainland of Ukraine.
The Midland-Odessa Chinese Association will make a donation to the Unified Command Team this morning during the groups press conference. Donated items include 4,850 regular masks, 500 N95 masks and 650 pairs of disposable gloves.

On behalf of the Chinese American community in the Permian Basin, the Midland-Odessa Chinese Association would like to express our deepest gratitude to the healthcare and public service providers who are leading the fight against the COVID-19 outbreak, the group said in a press release.
The Arizona court of appeals gives lady killer Jodi Arias a life sentence for the cold-blooded murder of her ex-boyfriend, Travis Alexander, who was 30-years-old at that time. The accused was put on trial for his murder in 2008.

Her initial trial in 2013 ended in a life-term in prison that was given in 2015. According to the investigators, the deceased Travis Alexander was killed by her in cold blood. The investigator found his body inside the shower stall at his Mesa, Arizona residence.

Scene of the crime

Several day days after he had a tryst with Jody Arias, he was found dead in the shower. He sustained a gunshot to his face, with a slit in his neck from one ear to the other, and 30 stab wounds. His acquaintances were trying to reach him when he was not answering back, they decided to call the police.

Officers came upon the grisly scene with Arias as the key suspect in the cruel murder. The suspect was later arrested for the crime and charged.

Trial proceedings

One of the oral arguments that her defense foisted was trial by publicity, wherein there was live coverage of the proceedings in court.

Another major reason for her appeal is alleged misconduct of the prosecutor, who worked against her seeking a fair trial, also the public proceeding erased an impartial jury. In all logic, her defence argued that an impartial jury was detrimental to getting a fair sentence.

Also read: Guilty Mom Arrested After Son Was Found Dead Inside Hotel Bathroom

Her relationship with Alexander

Travis Alexander and Jodie Arias met in 2006, during a convention and soon after had intimate relations. Before meeting the victim, she was in a 4-year relationship and lived in, later she broke up with the current partner. They had a steamy relationship after breaking up with her 4-year partner.

They engaged in a long-distance relationship that was prone to arguments. Both were already separated and broke up in June 2007, but had consensual couplings. On June 4, 2008, she was to meet another man but went to see Alexander instead.

When they met, both had personal time and even took revealing pictures of each other. Alexander could not be reached, and he was found dead at home, just as Arias told during trial.

When a call asking for a comment or remark from one of Aria's attorneys Cory Engle, none was received from the defence.

The Jodi Arias trial was publicized to a national audience that was fixated by the sexual and violent nature of the presentation.

Throughout the 18 days of testimony, Arias said she did shot her boyfriend for self-protection because he meant her harm. She had no recall of cutting his face, after shooting her boyfriend.

The verdict

It was a fact that the jury perceived the way Alexander was dispatched by his deranged girlfriend. The death penalty was considered as a final verdict. The jury assigned was torn on a unanimous decision, if the death penalty would be the final verdict.

Despite her pleas of self-defence as an argument, Jodi Arias was still charged with first-degree murder, May 2013.

A new jury was formed in October 2014 to reach a decision but was undecided like the first jury.

A first and second jury not reaching a final verdict on Jodi Arias, imposing the death penalty was scrapped. Instead, life in prison was given on April 2015.

Related article: Wife Accidentally Kills Husband in Utah But Further Investigation Reveals a Different Story

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
By Matt Spetalnick and Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration said on Wednesday it was deploying more U.S.

By Matt Spetalnick and Phil Stewart

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration said on Wednesday it was deploying more U.S. Navy ships to the Caribbean to prevent drug cartels and "corrupt actors" like Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from taking advantage of the coronavirus pandemic to smuggle more narcotics.

President Donald Trump said he was doubling U.S. military resources in the region, including vessels, aircraft and personnel, in a drug interdiction effort to deal with what he called a "growing threat."

The beefed-up operation will also entail sending Navy ships closer to Venezuela, according to a U.S. official and two people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity. But it was unclear how close they would get to the Venezuelan coast, the sources said.

Trump, joined by Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley, made the announcement at the start of the White House's daily briefing on efforts to battle the pandemic.

It follows the indictment last week of Maduro and more than a dozen current and former officials on charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy, drug trafficking and corruption.

Maduro has remained in power despite a wide-ranging U.S.-led campaign of sanctions and diplomacy, something U.S. officials have privately said is a source of frustration for Trump.

On Tuesday, however, The Trump administration offered to begin lifting Venezuela sanctions if the opposition and members of Maduro's Socialist Party form an interim government without him, marking a shift in a U.S. policy.

Trump said Wednesday's move was needed because there is a "growing threat" that cartels and criminals will try to take advantage of the pandemic. "We must not let that happen," he said.

"Corrupt actors, like the illegitimate Maduro regime in Venezuela, rely on the profits derived from the sale of narcotics to maintain their oppressive hold on power," Esper said. "The Venezuelan people continue to suffer tremendously due to Maduro's criminal control over the country."

The naval deployment could ratchet up pressure on Maduro and his allies but is not a prelude to U.S. military action against Venezuela, one person familiar with the matter said.

Although Trump has insisted that all options are on the table against Muduro, U.S. officials have made clear there is little appetite for military force, which could entangle the United States in another foreign conflict.

Federal prosecutors last week accused Maduro and his alleged accomplices of shipping tons of cocaine into the United States each year, using the drugs as a "weapon." Maduro dismissed the charges as false and racist.

U.S. officials have long accused Maduro and his associates or running a "narco-state," saying they have used proceeds from drugs transshipped from neighboring Colombia to make up for lost revenue from a Venezuelan oil sector hit by U.S. sanctions.

The United States and dozens of other countries have recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuela's legitimate president, regarding Maduro's 2018 re-election as a sham.

But Maduro has remained in power, backed by the country's military and by Russia, China and Cuba

(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick and Phil Stewart; Additional reporting by Brian Ellsworth in Caracas; Editing by Peter Cooney and Tom Brown)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Tunisia: homage to first woman gynecologist in Arab world Her image on 10-dinar banknote

(ANSAmed) - TUNIS, APRIL 2 - The new 10-dinar banknotes that have started circulating in Tunisia portray the image of a woman - a novelty in the Arab world. The woman is Doctor Tawhida Ben Cheikh (1909-2010), a fundamental figure in Arab modern medicine, a pediatrician and the first woman to become a gynecologist in Tunisia and North Africa. The doctor is well-known for her stance in favor of sexual education and birth control and for promoting women's rights.



After graduating in medicine in Paris in 1936, she returned to Tunisia where she worked in the public sector for a long time, visiting poor women in Tunisian villages for free.



(ANSAmed)
Protect and help: donation of masks and medical equipment

Provide mobility: by providing vehicles to healthcare professionals

Use its industrial know-how: production of respirators and visors in 3D printing

Regulatory News:

While ensuring the protection of its employees through a system of extended measures and remote working, Groupe PSA (Paris:UG) chooses to help those who work every day to meet the essential needs of our society (protect heath, care,..)

Protect and help

To date, nearly 400,000 masks have been donated to hospitals, emergency services and local authorities. At the same time, the Groupe's medical services organize the donation of medical equipment (defibrillators, first aid kits, gloves, etc.) to hospitals in Milan, Madrid and Mulhouse.

Provide mobility for those who need it

Free2Move, offers its help by providing hospitals and healthcare professionals with vehicles from its fleet in Paris, Madrid and Lisbon.

The Opel France network lends a vehicle free of charge to healthcare community by using the fleet of courtesy cars or rental vehicles. It offers maintenance at cost price to healthcare Professional Opel drivers. 400 cars are ready to hit the road.

After-sales and spare parts activities remain open, depending of the country and the dealer network, to ensure the mobility of healthcare personnel and other customers who need it the most. In France, 500 Peugeot, Citroen, DS and Opel dealerships are currently open to provide maintenance and after-sales services for these customers.

In Spain, Groupe PSA and PSA Retail contribute to maintaining the mobility of health services, by providing vehicles (central action and local actions with the help of Vigo and Zaragoza production centers). And, in Morocco, 50 Peugeot 208 will be donated to the authorities.

Use its industrial know-how

Groupe PSA, and 3 French companies (Air Liquide, Schneider Electric, Valeo), rise to the challenge of producing 10,000 respirators in 50 days, between the beginning of April and mid-May.

A specific workshop will be created in its Poissy plant in order to be able to produce the central block of the respirator, under the conditions of the reinforced health protocol. Some volunteer employees from Groupe PSA will join the Air Liquide factory in Antony in order to strengthen its production.

In addition to the various actions, Groupe PSA 'Brazilian teams have started to print in 3D the components of the "face shields" used to protect medical teams that have contact with patients. The sets of face shields will be donated to public health authorities.

Mobilized at all levels, Groupe PSA also supports local initiatives, most of the time carried out on the initiative of subsidiaries according to the context and needs (in Morocco donation of masks with local authorities agreement...).

Some doctors at Groupe PSA sites participate in the telephone platform for the reception and regulation of the SAMU (French emergency medical service).

About Groupe PSA

Groupe PSA designs unique automotive experiences and delivers mobility solutions to meet all customer expectations. The Group has five car brands, Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Opel and Vauxhall and provides a wide array of mobility and smart services under the Free2Move brand. Its 'Push to Pass' strategic plan represents a first step towards the achievement of the Group's vision to be "a global carmaker with cutting-edge efficiency and a leading mobility provider sustaining lifetime customer relationships". An early innovator in the field of autonomous and connected cars, Groupe PSA is also involved in financing activities through Banque PSA Finance and in automotive equipment via Faurecia..

Media library: medialibrary.groupe-psa.com @GroupePSA_EN

Communications Division www.groupe-psa.com/en +33 6 61 93 29 36- @GroupePSA

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005351/en/

Contacts:

Media contacts:

Karine Douet: +33 6 61 64 03 83 karine.douet@mpsa.com

Valerie Gillot: +33 6 83 92 92 96 valerie.gillot@mpsa.com
File image of PM Narendra Modi during an election rally

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with UK's Prince Charles on Thursday and discussed the coronavirus crisis, with the British royal hailing the Indian diaspora's role in combatting the pandemic. The prime minister conveyed his condolences for the loss of life in the UK over the past few days, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

Prime Minister Modi expressed satisfaction that the Prince of Wales had recovered from his own recent indisposition and wished him good health.

Prince Charles had tested positive for coronavirus last month. He expressed his appreciation for the members of the Indian diaspora in the UK, including many members of the National Health Service, who were playing a seminal role in combatting the pandemic, the statement said.

The Prince of Wales also referred to the selfless work being done by religious and social organisations of the Indian community in the UK.

He thanked the prime minister for the facilitation and assistance provided for UK citizens stranded in India during the present crisis.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Modi also thanked Prince Charles for the keen interest he has always taken in Ayurveda.

He explained the recent Indian initiative aimed at teaching basic yoga exercises through short animation videos, and disseminating easy home-made traditional remedies for enhancing immunity, the MEA said.

Prince Charles appreciated the potential of these initiatives for enhancing health and wellbeing, especially in the present situation.
Last Tuesday Spains Supreme Court took a step that would be unthinkable in a country with rule of law: it released a statement threatening the governors and the prison boards made up of civil servants who manage the facilities where the Catalan political prisoners are serving their sentence. Specifically, the court warned them that if they agreed to allow the separatist prisoners to sit out the current lockdown at home, they would run the risk of facing criminal charges for perversion of justice. In other words, the court issued a preemptive warning to a number of professional individuals who have taken no decisions thus far. Isnt that itself a crime of coercion and a perversion of justice, as well as an utter embarrassment?

The public health emergency triggered by the coronavirus has caused disruption all over the world, leaving us unprecedented images and prompting governments to take decisions hitherto unheard of. In some countries, such as France and the USA, the authorities have decided to send prison inmates home to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks in penitentiaries. The UN, too, has made a call to allow any inmates who do not pose an immediate threat to society to be confined at home. It is an exceptional measure, taken for the sake of public health, to deal with a totally exceptional crisis. The Supreme Courts revengeful stance, with Justice Manuel Marchena at the helm, makes no sense at all. Cant they understand that the situation has changed completely and public safety considerations must take precedence?

It should be pointed out that Catalonias Justice Ministry has determined that it is up to each separate prison board to decide whether given the current global emergency an exception should be made in order to authorise the temporary release of grade 2 inmates who benefit from Article 100.2 of the Prison Services rules and regulation. This is the same article that allows them to have a job or do voluntary work off-site during the day. If they are fit to work outside the prison facility, why cant they spend the mandatory lockdown period at home? The most logical choice under the circumstances would be to massively bump low-risk grade 2 inmates up to grade 3. However, such a move would ultimately need to be endorsed by the Supreme Court and now we know that it wouldnt hesitate to disallow it. Therefore, that particular avenue is closed off beforehand.

As the virus spreads and the death toll rises in Spain, the Supreme Courts concern over nine individual inmates defies all logic. As a matter of fact, on Tuesday they leaked that the court would take immediate action, should the nine Catalan prisoners be allowed to go home. That sort of reaction actually proves that they are not regarded as ordinary prisoners and that the court is well aware of the political implications underlying the whole judicial process. Spains Supreme Court is effectively treating them as political prisoners.

We can only hope that Catalonias prison authorities will be allowed to make their own decisions, whatever those might be, free from the Supreme Courts threats and following objective criteria that take into consideration the current state of affairs. Furthermore, the Catalan government ought to consider whether the Supreme Courts communique itself might not be something that a court of law would like to hear about.
(TNS)  Technological hiccups disrupted Anne Arundel County District Judge Thomas Pryals bail review docket March 24, signs of a criminal justice system adapting on the fly to the implications of the rapidly evolving coronavirus pandemic  from the courtroom to county jails.At bail review hearings, judges determine if someone arrested and charged with a crime will be released in any capacity as they await trial or whether they will stay behind bars. These proceedings are among the few ongoing functions of courts which have been mostly shuttered to stop the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. However, even these essential matters have taken on a new form.Pryal was joined in the Annapolis courtroom by a clerk, a bailiff and two public defenders, the latter of whom would usually phone in from the jail with their clients. The prosecutor, who is usually in the courtroom, phoned in. Assistant States Attorney Kristopher Vicencio was adhering to his offices policy in light of the coronavirus pandemic.As usual, defendants appeared on video feeds from county jails with Department of Detention Facilities Pretrial Services staffers. The jail feed worked fine, but the Pryals voice wasnt carrying to the courtroom phone that was connecting Vicencio.This is really going well so far... Pryal quipped.Pryal presided that day over cases spanning the spectrum of people facing non-violent misdemeanor charges, whom county prosecutors and public defenders agreed should be released or have a chance at release , to capital offenses that occurred hours earlier.Your Honor, can I switch rooms really quick? Vicencio asked after the first case, saying his cell reception was shoddy. The Clerk called Vicencio on his own cell phone, switched it to speaker mode and placed it in front of Pryal.So began the second bail review hearing for a Baltimore woman, who just spent her 19th birthday behind bars awaiting trial on theft conspiracy charges. She was arrested in February after allegedly shoplifting from the Target in Laurel and was being held on a $3,500 bond, which her public defender, Peter Terech, described as unachievable" in an emergency motion for a bail review in light of the pandemic.The woman is single with a 10th grade education, a pretrial services employee said. She was participating in our education program here before it froze due to the, uh, problems.The detention centers partnership with Anne Arundel Community College, which allows inmates to achieve their GEDs, has been put on hold, Superintendent William Martin wrote in response to questions from The Capital. Weekend sentence, inmate visitation, inmate worker and community service programs have also been suspended.Vicencio told Pryal that the Baltimore woman should be released on pretrial supervision in light of the current circumstances and the judge ordered as much, mandating she not return to the Target.Martin said his department has changed in light of the most defining, challenging crisis hes seen over 50 years in corrections. During intake at Jennifer Road, inmates have their temperatures taken by thermal thermometer and answer health questions outlined by federal guidelines. This process is repeated when they are released.New inmates are placed in a separate housing unit and quarantined until it reaches 40 inmates or eight days, at which point the unit is placed on lockdown for 14 days, Martin said. Staff members, who have their temperatures checked every day, monitor those in quarantine for symptoms and conduct a medical physical in the first 14 days.After 14 days (new inmates) are transported to the Ordnance Road Correctional Center, placed into a housing unit and for the most part are on lockdown, Martin said. Only a few inmates are not on lockdown in that they assist in sanitizing the facilities.Public defenders are using the lockdown conditions in arguments for the release of clients, as they say jails are uniquely susceptible to outbreaks. Thats how the case of a Pasadena man, who police said broke into two homes while intoxicated, came before Pryal. The 33-year-old has been incarcerated since Jan. 19.Assistant Public Defender Brian Stubits cited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance while arguing the mans release. He wrote that federal agency recommends staying away from the sick and keeping hands clean.Inmates dont have access to most cleaning and sanitizing supplies, Stubits wrote. In an incarcerated environment, inmates are not able to socially distance themselves..."Vicencio said the allegations showed the Pasadena man was dangerous and he should be kept behind bars or released on strict pretrial supervision, perhaps house arrest. Pretrial services said they tried to find family or friends with whom the man could stay but none would agree.Pryal said he was inclined to release the man because of the pandemic but, without a place for him to stay, the risk was too great. Pryal told him to come back if he could make living arrangements.Eventually Pryal called the case of 37-year-old from Glen Burnie charged with violating a protective order, court records show. The man did not speak English. Stubits, who speaks Spanish, said hed met with his client at the jail to go over charges and the bail review hearing. The man understood him in person, Stubits said.Rather than allowing attorneys into the general population like usual, the jail has accommodated for defense lawyers to meet with clients in attorney booths, which have glass partitions. Theyve also arranged telephone calls for inmates with their attorneys, said District Public Defender William Davis.Pryal had to call for a Spanish interpreter on his smartphone. Ask if the defendant can hear you, Pryal instructed the interpreter.No escucho , the Glen Burnie man responded.Youre here for a bail review. Do you understand? the interpreter asked.He didnt understand. Stubits suspected the interpreters voice was too distorted  it came from a cell phone speaker into the courtroom and was picked up by microphones for the video call. Stubits tried explaining in Spanish, like he had at the jail. It turned out his client wasnt fluent in Spanish. His native language is Qeqchi', an indigenous dialect of Guatemala.Not being with the defendant at the time of the bail review is a little bit challenging, Davis said in an interview. Thats why his public defenders usually do the hearings from jail; because when a problem crops up they can mute the microphone and explain or ask questions in person.The pandemic came up even in cases where the judges ruling was never in doubt. Pryal ordered no bond for Timothy Paul Gough, 53, who is charged with murder for the alleged fatal stabbing of his girlfriend , and Todd Michael Lowry, a 69-year-old from Pocahontas, Virginia, who is charged with the sexual abuse of a 6-year-old girl.Lowry stated his right to a preliminary hearing but the Maryland Judiciary has postponed all non-emergency matters until after May 1.I wish I could tell you with some certainty when that will take place," Pryal said.
ATLANTA, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- GZA ( Global Zen Consciousness Alliance) under the Shaolin Chan Foundation presents DeRu's Master Key Combination to boost immune systems to save lives with a series of online teaching and sharing events to unveil the code of the master key combination revealing tools to boost immune system functionality, first series of which will be 11:00 AM on April 3rd. 2020 on America Web Radio live.

Grandmaster Master DeRu

DeRu will present one of his other talks on the topic of Master Key Combination to boost immune system at 11:00 AM on April 3rd. 2020 on America Web Radio live, and through Shaolin Institute, Atlanta facebook live-stream at 6:30 PM (ET). He will also present one of his series of online teachings and talks, on the master key combination with audience from the US and around the world, especially for medical workers and people with weak immune systems to meet the Covid 19 Pandemic.

He will further hold a series teaching talks on Zen Tai Gong, TCM, Nutrition and Meditation as other pieces of his boosting immune system series of Master Key Combination through Facebook live-stream at 6:30 PM for the next three Wednesdays and Fridays.

He plans to publish his teaching video series along with one of his books on the Master Key Combination, and a production of online teaching mini-series, in next few weeks through Amazon, assisting more seriously interested to turn inwardly to lighten one's own light to discover that innate intelligence and healing potential.

DeRu has presented his eastern wisdom, TCM (traditional Chinese Medicine), conscious energy natural healing and wellness for the last several decades including hospital systems, universities like Harvard University, George Washington University and George Tech

"One must tune in and lighten up one's own light to discover that innate healing potential without depending on authority of another, nor must one be clinging to the expression of one's inherited DNA memories, emotions, thoughts so on," said DeRu.

GZA is a part of Shaolin Chan Foundation, as was the (GZC) Global Zen Consciousness Conference hosted by SCF two years ago in Atlanta, exploring the infinite possibility of human conscious potential and intelligence with compassion of humanity.

This public project is part of Corona Love" under the Shaolin Chan Foundation a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. http://www.shaolinchan-foundation.org/

Contact Mike Tao for More info: 678-300-8031, [email protected]

SOURCE Shaolin Chan Foundation
Air India (AI) will operate charter rescue flights from Delhi and Mumbai to London between April 4 and 7 to fly back foreigners, who got stranded in India after the 21-day nationwide lockdown started on Mach 25 to contain the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak.

The national carrier will use Boeing 777 aircraft for these rescue flights.

Delhi to London flights will operate as AI 161 and will take off from Delhis Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI) at 2 am between April 4 and 7 and arrive in Delhi as AI 162.

However, AIs flights from Mumbai to London will operate only on April 5 and 7 as AI 131 (Mumbai- London) and AI 130 (London- Mumbai).

The carrier has not released information on the number of passengers who will be flown to London. The stranded passengers do not need to pay any air fare but will have to arrange their journey from London onwards.

The aircraft will return as ferry flights --- without any passenger --- on their way back to Delhi and Mumbai.

Earlier, AI operated rescue flights to Israel, Wuhan, China and Frankfurt, Germany to bring back passengers stranded in these countries due to Covid-19 outbreak.

Usually, the airline flies with two sets of crew members during such rescue flights.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday trained his guns at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over Jammu and Kashmir, even when his country is getting ravaged by the deadly coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. The total number of COVID-19 positive cases in Pakistan has crossed 2,000 and the country has witnessed over 30 deaths.

Ever since the abrogation of Article 370, Khan has spewed venom against the PM Modi-led government and continuously interfered in India's internal matter. His recent attack came on Thursday when he called the government 'Hindutva supremacist'. This comes a day after the Centre introduced new domicile rules for Jammu and Kashmir. On April 1, the government issued a gazette notification announcing a slew of amendments to 138 Acts of Jammu and Kashmir that included protecting jobs up to Group-4 for only those who are domicile of the union territory.

On Thursday, taking to micro-blogging site Twitter, Khan said, "We strongly condemn the racist Hindutva Supremacist Modi Govt's continuing attempts to illegally alter the demography of IOJK in violation of all international laws & treaties. The new Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Order 2020 is a clear violation of the 4th Geneva Convention."

"Timing of this latest illegal action is particularly reprehensible because it seeks to exploit the international focus on COVID19 pandemic to push forward BJP's Hindutva Supremacist agenda. The UN & int comm must stop India's continuing violations of UNSC Resolutions & Int law. We stand with the Kashmiris in rejecting this latest Indian attempt to alter the demography of IOJK. Pakistan will continue to expose Indian state terrorism & it's denial of the Kashmiris right to self-determination," added Khan.

His concern for the people of Jammu and Kashmir comes at a time when he has abandoned the people of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and left them to suffer during the trying times of the coronavirus.

Pakistan government has been battling the pandemic with the help of its close friend China, the country which was also the epicentre of the deadly virus. Recently, several doctors along with a consignment of ventilators and essential medicines were also dispatched from China to Pakistan. But shockingly, none of these medical facilities has been extended to the people of PoK.

In these trying times, the neglect of the Pakistan government has angered the people of PoK. "The situation in PoK is extremely precarious. According to newspaper reports, the Pakistani government is constantly discriminating against the common people and even not supplying basic necessities to the people in PoK," said JNU Professor Nalin Mohapatra to Zee News. China has been providing huge medical supplies and doctors to Pakistan to handle the deadly virus but PoK has been rendered an orphan.
Filmmaker Arati Kadav says she is planning to release her film Cargo on a digital platform as the nationwide lockdown poured water on her plans for a theatrical debut.

Starring Vikrant Massey, Shweta Tripathi and Nandu Madhav, the sci-fi movie has been written and directed by Kadav.

The story revolves around a lonely demon Prahastha who has been working on a spaceship for years for the Post Death Transition services with the help of a female astronaut where dead people are recycled for rebirth.

Kadav said she has started talks with leading streaming players for the film's digital release in the coming months.

We have started conversation with a few platforms such as Hotstar, Netflix, Amazon, Sony LIV and others and we are hoping to release it as soon as possible, maybe in one or two months. The idea is to release it soon on OTT when the lockdown is lifted, she told PTI.

The country is witnessing a 21-day lockdown, as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Kadav said though she was keen on releasing the film in theatres, the situation is such that it's best to bring it out on OTT platform.

I don't know when people will find the courage to go to theatres and watch a film, I hope very soon. I am a big fan of theatrical experience. But we don't know when the situation will normalise. It is a wiser decision right now (to release on OTT) and this is what everybody is advising me as well. We want it out by mid this year. Let's hope that it works out for us, she added.

Cargo", produced by Arati, Navin Shetty, Shlok Sharma and Anurag Kashyap, had its India premiere at the 2019 MAMI Film Festival under the spotlight section.

The film was set to be screened in March at the South by Southwest (SXSW)Festival, which was later cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The film was also to be screened at Miami festival, we were opening the festival over there. There were film festivals in Brazil and Argentina. I guess they are going online and there is one more festival going online.

We were upset that we couldn't go to the film festivals but I am trying to turn that around and make it a positive thing for me.

During the lockdown period, Arati said she is trying to keep herself busy by working on a few innovative ideas.

I am trying to make the most of the lockdown by actually working on a concept. The state we are in is also inspiring me to write stories, reflect on nature and our relationship with it.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Albany, N.Y.  New York could exhaust its supply of ventilators in just six days at the rate its using them now, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said today.

The state has already sent 400 ventilators from its stockpile to New York City and another 200 to sites in Westchester County and on Long Island to help facilities respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

Coronavirus: What if NY runs out of ventilators? Cuomo not going there yet

It has 2,200 remaining. About 350 people needing ventilators enter New York hospitals every day.

If a person comes in and needs a ventilator and you dont have a ventilator, the person dies, Cuomo said during a press briefing in Albany. Thats the blunt equation here.

After New Yorks stockpile is empty, the state will get creative, Cuomo said.

Among other steps, Upstate New York hospitals will be asked to move ventilators to stretched facilities in the New York City area. The state is also converting anesthesia and BiPap machines for use as ventilators.

BiPap machines are a type of noninvasive ventilator. They dont have as much energy to push air into a patients lungs as a standard ventilator, but should help many, state Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said.

The state bought 3,000 BiPap machines and the first 750 arrived Wednesday, Cuomo said.

This is not an ideal situation, he added. And this is not a standard medical protocol. In a perfect world, everybody would have a ventilator.

Hospitals will also split ventilators so one machine can support two patients.

Cuomo said the extraordinary steps New York is taking to meet its need for the devices is making a difference.

I dont want to say Im confident yet and it depends on how many we need, he said. "But I can say with confidence we have researched every possibility, every idea.

There is no state and no country that has done anything to provide ventilators that we are not doing.

The federal government has sent 4,400 ventilators to the state so far, but Cuomo doubted the Trump administration would be able to provide more. He said federal officials have been willing to do anything necessary to help, but buying more ventilators has become nearly impossible and companies wont be able to ramp up production in time to help New York.

The peak of the virus in the state is expected sometime in the next month.

Our attitude here is were on our own, Cuomo said. Just assume you are on your own.

More than 2,300 people have now died as a result of coronavirus in New York. Total deaths have tripled in less than a week.

Cuomo said hes feeling better about the states need for hospital beds. Its likely New York will be able to find enough.

Staffing is more challenging, Cuomo added, but health care workers from across the state and the rest of the country have stepped up. Over 85,000 people have contacted the state to volunteer and about 21,000 workers from other states have reached out.

Needs remain for other medical supplies, including gowns, masks and gloves, Cuomo said. But for the first time, hospitals are reporting their stocks to the state nightly, he added.

Officials will use those figures to redistribute supplies to facilities in need.

Cuomo again called on businesses for help. Any companies interested in producing needed equipment can contact the state at 212-803-3100 or covid19supplies@esd.ny.gov.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Coronavirus in NY: Deaths triple to over 2,300 in less than a week

New York City hospitals begin transferring patients to Upstate NY (report)

Medical exams in a parking lot: Family doctors fight on coronaviruss frontlines and worry about the homefront

Syracuse hospital to furlough workers amid coronavirus surge

Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst cases double in 2 days, total hospitalized down; 277 total cases

Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-282-8598
02.04.2020 LISTEN

President Akufo-Addo has announced the closure of Ghana's borders to human traffic and ordered all passengers who arrived before the airport lockdown to be quarantined and tested for the corona virus. Apart from that, he has banned all public gatherings including political rallies and conferences.

Even worship centres such as churches and mosques were not spared. They have been asked to shut down and those who flouted the executive order have been arrested and arraigned before court. The President also admonished us to practice regular hygiene protocols and observe social distancing.

He has also pleaded with all stakeholders to help in the fight against this deadly disease which has ravaged the world and killed many. The President even declared Wednesday, March 25th, 2020 as a National Day of Fasting and Prayer.

While the President wants us to believe that he is fully committed to the fight against Covid-19, his Principal Legal Advisor, the Attorney-General is in court praying for the injunction on the NIA registration to be lifted so people can congregate and register for the Ghana Card, which will be used as a primary proof of citizenship in compiling a new voters register for the December 2020 general elections.

What is worse, the President's legal advisor is asking the court to fast track the hearing of the case. According to the Attorney-General, the NIA registration is an "essential service" which cannot be postponed. This is where my dilemma begins.

The National Identification Authority is a state institution directly under the Office of the President. Why has the NIA blatantly flouted the President's orders? Why has the President not called the NIA boss and his officials to order? Does the President not realise the obvious dangers associated with the continuous NIA registration? How does the President explain to Ghanaians, a situation where he is virtually begging citizens to avoid public gatherings while he looks on and tacitly approves a registration exercise which will expose citizens to the deadly corona virus?

In fact, the President himself has observed a lot of social distancing even in meetings with the Clergy and other stakeholders at the seat of government. If Mr. President thinks that it is not wise to allow his visitors to be crowded at the Banquet Hall of the Flagstaff House, why does he think it is appropriate for other Ghanaians to gather in their communities and register for the Ghana Card? What is the President's interest in ensuring that the NIA registration continues unabated?

When you live in a country where we have to beg the IMF to help us raise $100million to fight the corona virus, but we can effortlessly raise over $200million for the compilation of a new voters register, you definitely cannot trust the political class, especially when they preach virtue and practice vice.

It appears that Mr. President is caught in a web of double standards. He needs to redeem himself by issuing express orders to the Attorney-General to discontinue the legal battle on the court injunction and also direct National Identification Authority to back down from its intransigence.

The President has asked us to trust him and that he will be honest with Ghanaians on the real status of the country as far the corona virus spread is concerned. In the light of the aforementioned developments relative to the President's call for social distancing and the avoidance of crowded places vis-a-vis his legal advisor's battle in court to allow for the NIA registration to continue, I have just one question: can we trust President Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo?

ISRAEL VENUNYE

The writer is a former national student leader, youth activist and a media practitioner.
Bengaluru, April 2 : With misinformation about novel coronavirus posing a major threat in fight against the pandemic, technology giant IBM on Thursday said it has trained its Artificial intelligence-powered virtual agent 'Watson Assistant for Citizens' to answer common queries about COVID-19.

'Watson Assistant for Citizens' leverages currently available data from external sources which include the Union Health Ministry and other government sources for prevention and treatment related guidance, citizen welfare schemes in India, as well as global resources such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), IBM said in a statement.

"IBM developed the 'Watson Assistant for Citizens' to provide an AI-powered virtual agent that helps governments deliver accurate information to their citizens without overwhelming contact centers where human agents are needed to help those who truly need them," Gargi Dasgupta, Director, IBM Research India and CTO IBM India/South Asia, said in a statement.

"To introduce this offering in India, IBM Research has trained Watson Assistant to answer queries in English and Hindi to enable various Government agencies and Departments to offer this service to its constituents," Dasgupta said.

Using information provided by clients, Watson Assistant for Citizens automates responses to frequently asked questions about COVID-19 that come in via text, such as "What are its symptoms?," "How do I clean my home properly?" and "How do I protect myself?" State and local government agencies, hospitals or other healthcare organisations can choose to customise the solution to address citizen questions specific to their area or region, including "How many cases till date in Mumbai?," "Which essential services are open during lockdown?," and "Where can I get tested in Bangalore?"

IBM said it is offering Watson Assistant for Citizens for no charge for at least 90 days and will assist with initial set up, which can typically be done in a few days.

The initial solution is available in English and is being tailored to include Indian languages as well such as Hindi, the company said.

IBM already is delivering this service across the US, as well as engaging with organizations globally in Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Italy, Poland, Spain and more.
In cognizance of the coronavirus pandemic, Jammu and Kashmir Board of school examination (JKBOSE) has postponed the class 10, 11 and 12 board examinations. Earlier, the examinations were postponed till March 31, 2020. A notice regarding this decision has been uploaded on the JKBOSE official website.

As per the notification, the examinations have been postponed until further notice. The fresh dates of the examination will be communicated to students separately.

Students are advised to visit the official website of the board for the latest updates regarding the examination.
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A former prime minister of Somalia and a rabbi were today named among the latest Londoners believed to have lost their lives to coronavirus as tributes poured in.

Nur Hassan Hussein, known as Nur Adde, led Somalia between 2007 to 2009 and was hailed today as a unifier and a gentleman as his family announced that he had died in Kings College Hospital in south London.

Mr Adde, 82, is understood to have been admitted five days ago suffering symptoms of Covid-19 and lost his life despite his family saying that he did his best in the fight to survive.

London Rabbi Uri Ashkenazi, 76, who led a small Orthodox Jewish community, the Stanislaver steibl, in Stamford Hill, also lost his life.

He is reported to have contracted coronavirus and be among the 728 Londoners to have died with the illness so far.

London during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures 1 /66 London during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures A woman jogging near City Hall, London, the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the UK in lockdown PA An image of Queen Elizabeth II and quotes from her broadcast on Sunday to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA A pedestrian walks past a billboard reading "Please believe these days will pass" on Broadway Market in east London AFP via Getty Images Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge Getty Images Boris Johnson Jeremy Selwyn Sun-seekers cool off in the water and sunbathe on the riverbank at Hackney Marshes in east London AFP via Getty Images Ed Davey is shown on screens as he speaks via videolink during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, London PA A herd of fallow deer graze on the lawns in front of a housing estate in Harold Hill in east London AFP via Getty Images A woman wearing a mask crosses a bridge over Camden Lock, London PA An empty Millenium Bridge PA A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" is seen on an underground station platform Getty Images People push to enter the Niketown shop in Londo AP Jo Proudlove and daughter Eve, 9, follow the daily online "PE with Joe" Joe Wickes' exercise class on "Fancy dress Friday Reuters Police in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Waterloo station looking empty PA Getty Images A quiet Parliament Square Getty Images PABest A man walks along a passageway at London's Oxford Street Underground station the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the UK in lockdown to help curb the spread of the Coronavirus PA Social distancing markers around the camel enclosure at ZSL London Zoo PA A police car patrols Greenwich Park in London PA The Premier League in action in front of empty stands AP Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed. A deserted Piccadilly Circus PA A general view is seen of a deserted Trafalgar Square AFP via Getty Images Getty Images The iconic Abbey Road crossing is seen after a re-paint by a Highways Maintenance team as they take advantage of the COVID-19 coronavirus lockdown and quiet streets to refresh the markings Getty Images A view of 20 Fenchurch Street (the 'Walkie Talkie' building) in the City of London, the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the UK in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus PA A deserted Chinatown PA A person looks at graffiti on a JD Wetherspoon pub in Crystal Palace, south London. Wetherspoons workers have described founder Tim Martin's lack of support for his chain's 40,000 employees as "absolutely outrageous" PA The London ExCel centre that has been turned into a makeshift NHS Hospital and critical care unit to cope with the Coronavirus pandemic PA The Palace Theatre, which usually shows the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play, sits in a deserted Shaftesbury Avenue PA The Sondheim Theatre, which usually shows the Les Miserables musical, sits in a deserted Shaftesbury Avenue PA Two members of a British Army mounted regiment exercise their horses in Parliament Square AP Westminster Bridge is deserted PA A quiet Canary Wharf Underground Station PA An empty street and bus stop at St James's Park AFP via Getty Images Whitehall Jeremy Selwyn A quiet Canary Wharf Underground Station PA A single pedestrian walks past The national Gallery AFP via Getty Images London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn Kings Cross and St Pancras Jeremy Selwyn Buckingham Palace looking empty in London, PA London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn Kings Cross and St Pancras Jeremy Selwyn London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn London's Carnaby Street empty as shops closed after a lockdown was announced in the latest bid to stop the spread of coronavirus through the UK AP A quiet Jubilee line westbound train carriage PA A single pedestrian walks past The national Gallery AFP via Getty Images A quiet Canary Wharf Underground Station PA Empty Embankment Jeremy Selwyn

The capitals death toll rose by 138 yesterday and accounts for about a third of the UK total of 2,352 fatalities.

Others whose deaths have already been announced include Ismail Mohammed Abdulwahab, 13, from Brixton, who died this week in Kings College Hospital. The suffering being inflicted on families was highlighted further today as bereaved relatives and friends spoke of their sadness.

Boris Johnson gives update on testing from self-isolation

Mr Addes son Mohamed Nour Adde confirmed that his father had died in a statement that sparked tributes from across Somalias political divides.

The current Somali prime minister Hassan Ali Kheyre wrote on his Twitter account: We extend our most profound condolences to the Somali people, friends and bereaved family of Somalias former prime minister Nur Hassan Hussein who passed away in London.

Mr Adde began his career as a police officer, rising up the political ranks to become attorney general until 1991, when civil war broke out. He later served as head of the nations humanitarian Red Crescent society before becoming prime minister.

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He formed an all-inclusive transitional federal government as Somalia battled the al Shabaab Islamist insurgent group, bringing the nations major clans together to sign of a peace treaty a year later.

Rashdi Abdi, an expert on African politics, said: He was a true patriot and gentleman. A unifier. From the same pedigree as Aden Adde, Somalias best loved historical leader.

Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo has declared three days of national mourning.

Coronavirus - In pictures 1 /106 Coronavirus - In pictures A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" is seen on an underground station platform Getty Images Customers wearing face masks shop at the pork counter of a supermarket following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan, Hubei province Reuters Westminster Bridge is deserted in London the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the UK in lockdown PA Canadian passengers Chris & Anna Joiner ask for help onboard the MS Zaandam, Holland America Line cruise ship, during the coronavirus outbreak, off the shores of Panama City via Reuters A man crosses a nearly empty 5th Avenue in midtown Manhattan during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in New York City Reuters The London Eye is pictured lit blue in support of the NHS, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Commuters cope with Coronavirus Jeremy Selwyn Milan's Piazza del Duomo empty AFP via Getty Images People in protective clothing walk past rows of beds at a temporary 2,000-bed hospital for COVID-19 coronavirus patients set up by the Iranian army at the international exhibition center in northern Tehran, Iran AP Martina Papponetti, 25, an ICU nurse at the Humanitas Gavazzeni Hospital in Bergamo, Italy poses for a portrait at the end of her shift AP Pope Francis celebrating a daily mass alone in the Santa Marta chapel at the Vatican, as part of precautionary measures against the spread of the new coronavirus COVID-19 AFP via Getty Imag Vysheyshaya Liga - FC Torpedo-BelAZ Zhodino v FC Belshina Bobruisk - Torpedo Stadium, Zhodino, Belarus, March 27, 2020 Players in action during the match despite most sport being cancelled around the world as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters Hanks and Wilson both have coronavirus Tom Hanks General view of an emergency makeshift field hospital as it is set up at Pacaembu Stadium for coronavirus (COVID-19) patients with a capacity of 200 beds in Sao Paulo, Brazil Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour despite Prime Minister Boris Johnson calling on people to stay away from pubs, clubs and theatres, work from home if possible and avoid all non-essential contacts and travel in order to reduce the impact of the coronavirus pandemic PA Naomi Campbell catches a flight in a hazmat suit with goggles, a surgical mask and rubber gloves @naomi Sophie and Emily Ward pose for a photograph with their hand-drawn picture of rainbows and a message on their window in St Helens, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Corona virus outbreak. PA Shoppers queue outside a branch of Costco, in Croydon, south London, on the weekend after Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered pubs and restaurants across the country to close PA Charing Cross Tube Bakerloo Line very quiet at 8.15am Jeremy Selwyn A woman with a plastic box over her head on the London Underground. PA A Racegoer attend Cheltenham Festival on Ladies Day wearing a fashionable face mask SplashNews.com Prime Minister Boris Johnson visits a laboratory at the Public Health England National Infection Service in Colindale PA A man who appears to be homeless sleeping wearing a mask today in Victoria Jeremy Selwyn A couple kiss in Milano Centrale railway station in Milan on March 8, 2020 AFP via Getty Images A combination picture shows visitors wearing protective face masks following an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) looking at blooming cherry blossom nd a pigeon walking at an closed cherry blossom viewing spot during the first weekend after Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike (not pictured) urged Tokyo residents to stay indoors, in a bid to keep the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) from spreading Reuters This combination photo created on March 5, 2020 shows tourists visiting Angkor Wat temple in Siem Reap province on March 16, 2019 (top) and on March 5, 2020 AFP via Getty Images Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange Getty Images U.S. President Donald Trump looks at the $2.2 trillion coronavirus aid package bill as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and Vice President Mike Pence stand by during a signing ceremony in the Oval Office of the White House Reuters A satellite image shows an empty South Beach during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Miami, via Reuters General view inside the empty stadium as the two teams line up prior to the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg match between Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund at Parc des Princes UEFA via Getty Images A Sainsbury's supermarket in Cambridge is among those to sell out of antibacterial hand sanitizer PA Tents and ambulances are set up next to the Princess Cruises Grand Princess cruise as it sits docked in the Port of Oakland on March 09, 2020 in Oakland, California. The Princess Cruises Grand Princess has been held from docking until today as at least 21 people on board have tested positive for COVID-19 also known as the Coronavirus Getty Images Medical staff produce traditional Chinese medicine to treat patients infected by the COVID-19 coronavirus at a hospital in Wuhan AFP via Getty Images Army soldiers wearing protective suits spray disinfectant as a precaution against the new coronavirus at a shopping street in Seoul, South Korea AP Russian President Vladimir Putin wearing protective gear walks at a hospital for patients infected with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on the outskirts of Moscow via Reuters A woman who has recovered from the COVID-19 is disinfected by volunteers as she arrives at a hotel for a 14-day quarantine AFP via Getty Images Passengers on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship are seen as the ship arrives at Daikoku Pier where it is being resupplied and newly diagnosed coronavirus cases taken for treatment as it remains in quarantine after a number of the 3,700 people on board were diagnosed with coronavirus Getty Images Dave Abel pictured in hospital in Japan Manchester United fans in the stands during the Premier League match at Old Trafford PA Police officers wearing masks stand in front of the H10 Costa Adeje Palace hotel in La Caleta, in the Canary Island of Tenerife AP Carnival revellers wear protective face masks at Venice Carnival Reuters A general view is pictured of Burbage Primary School in Buxton, Derbyshire after the closure of the school as a pupil's parent has tested positive for the novel coronavirus COVID-19 AFP via Getty Images People wearing face masks walk past the Olympic rings in front of the new National Stadium, the main stadium for the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Game Getty Images People leave Kents Hill Park Training and Conference Centre in Milton Keynes where Coronavirus evacuees are due to be released from quarantine today and allowed to go home PA Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA A woman wears a mask while crossing London Bridg Getty Images A general view of Worthing Hospital in West Sussex PA Passengers relax on board the Holland America-operated Westerdam cruise ship, which has been denied permission to dock in Thailand over coronavirus fears via Reuters A child waves as she sits in a vehicle carrying residents evacuated from a public housing building, following the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, outside Hong Mei House, at Cheung Hong Estate in Hong Kong Reuters A woman wearing a Minnie Mouse face mask looks at her mobile phone in Beijing on February 11, 2020 AFP via Getty Images The Costa Smeralda cruise ship of Costa Crociere, carrying around 6,000 passengers, is docked at the Italian port of Civitavecchia after a health alert due to a Chinese couple and a possible link to coronavirus on board, in Civitavecchia, Italy Reuters A patient covered with a bed sheet at an exhibition centre converted into a hospital as it starts to accept patients displaying mild symptoms of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan AFP via Getty Images A medical official takes the body temperature of a man at the departure hall of the airport in Changsha, Hunan Province, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus, China Reuters The view of the Wuhan International Conference and Exhibition Center Getty Images A plane carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, arrives at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire A police vehicle enters the gates of the Royal Air Force station RAF Brize Norton in Carterton AFP via Getty Images Passengers wear face masks as the push their luggage after arriving from a flight at Terminal 5 of London Heathrow Airport AFP via Getty Images French citizens arrive and settle aboard of an evacuation plane with destination southeastern France, before departure from Wuhan Airport (WUH), China AFP via Getty Images Police stand at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge that crosses from Hubei province in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China Reuters A member of staff at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside prepares for a bus carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China PA Doctor Paul McKay, who is working on an vaccine for the 2019-nCoV strain of the novel coronavirus, poses for a photograph with bacteria containing fragments of coronavirus DNA, at Imperial College School of Medicine (ICSM) in Londo AFP via Getty Images Workers produce masks at the Thai Hospital Product Company Ltd. factory in Bangkok AFP via Getty Images Passengers wearing face masks are seen on a bus after disembarking from the Costa Smeralda cruise ship, after tests on a woman from Macau with suspected coronavirus came back negative, in Civitavecchia, Italy Reuters People hoard bottles of alcohol after the Philippine government confirmed the first case of the new coronavirus in the country, in Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines Reuters Taking precautions: with fears growing that the coronavirus will spread from China, a health official checks a womans temperature on the underground in Beijing Getty Images An empty road is seen in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province on January 27, 2020, amid a deadly virus outbreak which began in the city AFP via Getty Images Students wearing masks meditate prior to a lesson at a high school in Phnom Penh, Cambodia AP Medical staff at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital wear protective clothing to help stop the spread of a deadly virus AFP via Getty Images Staff move bio-waste containers past the entrance of the Wuhan Medical Treatment Center, where some infected with a new virus are being treated, in Wuhan, China AP Workers driving excavators at the construction site of a field hospital In Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. The builders will complete the 1,000-bed hospital by February 3 to cope with the surge of 2019-nCoV patients in the city Getty Images Buddhist monks wear masks as they walk near Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodi AP A woman and a child wearing protective masks walk toward check-in counters at Daxing international airport in Beijing AFP via Getty Images An employee sprays disinfectant on a train as a precaution against a new coronavirus at Suseo Station in Seoul, South Korea AP A policeman wearing a mask walks past a quarantine notice about the outbreak of coronavirus in Wuhan, China at an arrival hall of Haneda airport in Tokyo, Japan Reuters Paramilitary police wear face masks as they stand guard at Tiananmen Gate adjacent to Tiananmen Square in Beijing AP The resident wear masks to buy vegetables in the market in Wuhan Getty Images Staff sell masks at a Yifeng Pharmacy in Wuhan AP Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV AP

Rabbi Ashkenazis death, which follows the loss of another London Rabbi, Neil Kraft, to Covid-19 earlier this week, was described as a huge loss for the Jewish community and people at large.

Rabbi Herschel Gluck OBE, president of the Jewish neighbourhood watch group Shomrim, said Rabbi Ashkenazi had been admitted to hospital reportedly suffering from coronavirus symptoms. He added that his colleague led by example, not by being on a pedestal.
Thursday, April 2nd, 2020 (10:12 am) - Score 4,995

The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has softened some of their key consumer protection rules for broadband ISPs and mobile network operators, although their new light-touch approach to enforcement will only remain so long as the current COVID-19 (Coronavirus) lockdown persists.

Most of the major communication providers have already agreed to a set of important commitments with Ofcom and the Government (DCMS) help to support and protect vulnerable consumers during the crisis (here), as well as those who may become vulnerable due to circumstances arising from COVID-19.

At the same time the regulator has just acknowledged that some of their usual rules and regulations, which exist to help protect consumers (e.g. automatic compensation for protracted internet outages, broadband speed rules and end-of-contract notifications), will have to be relaxed because operators are currently unable to function at their usual level.

Indeed staff shortages are a particularly huge problem right now and, elsewhere, engineering teams have been stretched thin, which means that many operators are currently focusing much of their energy on core tasks like network maintenance, repairs and essential work or support.

Ofcom Statement We recognise [the current situation] might affect the companies ability to comply with some of our rules during this time. We have written to the providers explaining that we will take account of the unique circumstances when enforcing our rules. For example, we appreciate activities like end of contract notifications, which providers are required to send when customers are approaching the end of their minimum contract term, might be driving additional traffic to call centres at a time when organisations need to prioritise calls from vulnerable people and those that are having difficulties staying connected. So, while we are encouraging providers to send these notifications as normal, we will take a pragmatic approach to compliance with rules like this, recognising the significant challenges providers face at this time and the steps they need to take to respond to the impact of the coronavirus.

The regulator also highlights other examples, such as with how part of their Broadband Speed Code of Practice, which normally gives ISPs 30 days to resolve a problem before allowing customers to exit their contract without penalty, may be affected. Some speed problems will take longer to solve, for example, because of a shortage of staff or engineers may not be able to visit peoples homes. We are in close contact with providers to understand how they are meeting these requirements, said Ofcom.

Likewise the new system of Automatic Compensation is heavily dependent upon engineering resources and imposes some very tight time-scales, which in the current climate would struggle to be met; through no fault of the network operators. For the period that these unique circumstances apply, providers will not need to pay automatic compensation where they are unable to meet the requirements for repairs, installations and home visits in the scheme. This is in line with an exception in the scheme that applies to civil emergencies, said Ofcom.

However, on compensation, the regulator warned that they still expect ISPs to provide the best possible service and do what is right by their customers, particularly those who are vulnerable and as part of that they must also stop charging customers who are without service.

We do not take these decisions lightly. And while we acknowledge the difficult circumstances that telecoms companies are in, that does not mean customers should be exploited. If we see evidence that is happening, we will step in and take action, said Ofcom.

Sorry to our readers for being late with this news, which came out yesterday. I initially thought it was just another rehash of Saturdays announcement, before taking a closer look.
Australia has one of the highest rates of coronavirus testing in the world, according to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who said it was helping curb the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

More than 261,000 tests have been conducted across nation to date - the highest per capita rate in the world - equating to more than one per cent of the population.

'We are the first country to the best of our knowledge that has been able to exceed that mark,' Mr Morrison said on Thursday.

'Those testing figures are the result of some incredible work that has been done by the health ministers, the securing of the testing materials themselves, and their application right across the country.

Coronavrius testing is carried out at a pop-up clinic in Bondi in Sydney, New South Wales where majority of Australia's 261,000 tests have been conducted

'It has been an extraordinary, mammoth testing effort and that has put Australia on top when it comes to ensuring we have the best information on tracking this virus.'

Only those who recently travelled overseas or had come into contact with a confirmed case of coronavirus were initially being tested for COVID-19.

The Federal Government expanded the range of people who can be tested for the deadly pandemic on March 26.

Anyone with pneumonia or people with a fever and acute respiratory infection who work in health or aged care now qualify for the test.

Anyone who has been in an 'high-risk location' where two or more cases have been diagnosed - such as a school or military base - can also be tested.

The Federal Government also allowed states to introduce their own laws regarding who can be tested.

Western Australia announced on Thursday anyone with a temperature of more than 38 degrees and show signs of a respiratory infections could be tested.

A large range of people can now be tested for the deadly pandemic outside of those who have recently travelled overseas or have come into contact with a confirmed case. Pictured: Bondi pop-up clinic

If you're in a high-risk work force - such as health or law enforcement - you can be tested with just two symptoms.

New South Wales erected pop-up clinics including one at Bondi which has become an epicentre for the virus after clusters developed among backpackers.

More than a hundred people flocked to the testing clinic within hours of it opening on Wednesday.

South Australia has introduced doing drive-thru testing clinics so patients don't have to step out of their car.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the free testing regime complemented the 'ring of steel' created around Australia through limiting those entering the country and forcing travellers into quarantine and isolation.

Mr Hunt said the 261,000 tests conducted were an 'extraordinary effort by our medical professionals, by our supply chain management, by our pathologists, who are very courageous leaders doing all of this work to save lives and protect lives'.

Anyone who has been in an 'high-risk location' where two or more cases have been diagnosed - such as a school or military base - can be tested. Pictured: Bondi pop-up clinic

Mr Hunt said contact tracing and Australians engaging in social distancing and self-isolation were also contributing to the fight.

Australia's testing regime is well ahead of other countries such as the United States where 216,533 confirmed cases have been recorded and 5,139 deaths.

Unlike in Australia where testing is free and readily available, many in America are struggling to be tested for coronavirus.

American officials decided early not to use the test adopted by the World Health Organisation.

A nurse takes a sample from a driver at a new COVID-19 drive-through testing facility at the Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre in Northfield in Adelaide, South Australia

President Donald Trump assured Americans at the start of March that a test developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was 'perfect' and that 'anyone who wants a test can get a test'.

But more than two months after the first US case of COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, was confirmed, many people still cannot get tested.

CDC data from March showed government labs processed 352 COVID-19 tests - an average of only a dozen per day.

Hospital staff test people outside the Tanunda War Memorial Hospital in Adelaide on March 31

CDC tests then hit a hurdle when they began returning 'inconclusive results' forcing them to admit that a component needed to be remanufactured.

To help increase the number of people being screened, the Food and Drug Administration issued emergency authorization for CDC-certified labs run by state health departments to begin processing swabs, and they were provided with kits that could test 250 patients.

As the first tests were processed at the state labs, technicians reported getting inconclusive results, which the CDC has said could be due to the test looking for signs of generic coronaviruses, of which there are many, rather than the specific virus that causes COVID-19.

All the while American citizens returning from China who did not have a fever weren't tested for the virus but were encouraged to self-quarantine at home for 14 days.

As more sick people sought to be tested, many states were forced to limit access because of the flawed CDC test.

Meanwhile the United States has hit 216,533 cases of the pandemic with 5,139 deaths. Pictured: Pop-up clinic at the University of Washington

Accounts began to emerge through social media of people with all the symptoms of COVID-19 who either couldn't get tested or had test results delayed by days or even a week.

A company called Everlywell developed a AU$222 test that Americans can take at home.

The test still has to be prescribed by a doctor - but they can do so over telemedicine - and then sent to a patient at home.

Each kit comes with swabs so samples can be taken from the nose and throat, as well as instructions on how to seal the sample and return it.

The users collect the samples themselves and send them in a pre-paid overnight package to an FDA-approved lab with results available within 48 hours.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2) - A group of business leaders submitted on Thursday a list of recommendations to the governments Interagency Task Force to help Luzon ease into the new normal with the scheduled end of the enhanced community quarantine by mid-April.

The implementing guidelines issued on March 16 by Malacanang set the expiration of the Luzon-wide quarantine at 12 midnight April 13. There are, however, calls for its extension due to the still increasing number of coronavirus infections.

Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Joey Concepcion said he and 60 other businessmen, along with Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles and Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, discussed the recommendations last weekend.

Concepcion, who did not identify the business leaders or their organizations, said one of the key recommendations is to shift from a Luzon-wide quarantine to a barangay-level lockdown.

We feel that it will allow the streets to be open, there will be no need for checkpoint, the flow of goods will be faster, Concepcion told CNN Philippines News Night.

He said that not all areas in Luzon are infected with the highly infectious coronavirus disease.

I think a more focused approach on the barangay will help us identify the level of virus spread, added Concepcion.

Another recommendation is to allow manufacturing, construction and agriculture to operate based on demand.

With this, workers in construction, particularly of government projects, non-food manufacturing, energy infrastructure, and government be allowed to physically report to work.

Concepcion also said that businessmen also recommended to allow a few public transportation to operate for workers who need to go to their offices. Only private vehicles or those consistent with social distancing will be allowed.

However, flights in and out of Metro Manila should remain cancelled.

Further, the business sector suggested to confine people within their homes as schools, malls, and other establishments that draw large crowd must remain closed.

Concepcion said that another meeting will take place this weekend to discuss the recommendations.

The country has now 2,633 cases of COVID-19, with 107 deaths and 51 recoveries.

The governments economic team has already prepared a 27.1-billion spending plan for everyone affected of the lockdown.

Apart from that, the government also implemented a social amelioration program that provides cash aid of 5,000 to 8,000 to the target beneficiaries which include senior citizens, persons with disabilities, homeless, among others.
LUCKNOW, India  Rukmani Sharma fears the virus that has turned the world upside down. But as a devout Hindu, she also fears for her soul.

COVID-19 restrictions mean that the 71-year-old woman wont be allowed to go to temple Thursday to celebrate the birthday of the Hindu god Ram, and she says shes feeling guilty.

Hindus around the world are in the midst of a nine-day period called Chaitra Navaratri that began with what for many is considered the Hindu New Year and will culminate with the festival of Ramanavami. Normally there is fasting, masses worshipping together, offerings in temples and festivals.

But this year, celebrations and prayers are home-bound events and if there is group worship, its livestreamed. India, where most of the worlds billion Hindus live, is in a government-ordered 21-day lockdown. People are allowed to leave their homes only for essentials. Religious gatherings are explicitly banned.

The significance of that ban is especially striking in Uttar Pradesh. Yogi Adityanath, the top government official in the north Indian state, had planned a grand festival over five of the nine days leading up to Rams birthday. It was expected to draw more than 1 million people from across India, to celebrate a recent Supreme Court ruling that will allow a Hindu trust to build a temple on a long-disputed site where the religious believe Ram was born.

Instead, Adityanath, a former monk, is urging the faithful to stay home. No one should come to temple. This is a time of crisis and people should realize that prayers from home are as acceptable as prayers offered in temple, Adityanath said.

Sharma, a resident of Uttar Pradeshs capital, Lucknow, is distraught that she wouldnt be able to perform a customary food ritual at the temple. She consulted a temple priest, and was advised to instead feed stray cows, which Hindus revere and worship.

The priest told me to cook food as usual and feed the same to the cow, she said. Cow is our mata (mother) and feeding mata is like feeding daughters.

Some temple priests in Uttar Pradesh said they have declined requests to visit homes, suggesting instead that people should donate the money they would have spent cooking food to the chief ministers virus relief fund.

It is our responsibility to follow social distancing, said Pandit Shubankar, a priest at Gomati Nagar Kali Bari temple in Lucknow.

Hindus in the U.S. are also following social distancing protocols.

Normally, Suhag Shukla would be scrubbing her Philadelphia home more intensely than usual, a sign of the renewal the holiday signifies. There would be guests and Temple worship. But the temples are closed, and the bells that worshippers ring when they enter are silent.

Her familys prayers are confined to the altar in their home and worship and celebrations are happening in cyberspace.

Normally, in the absence of a global pandemic India would have been seeing a lot of celebrations, said Shukla, executive director of the Hindu American Foundation. That would entail special foods and sweets, prayers and rituals and gatherings of guests and family. You would also be planning on joining your community at a local temple to celebrate as well.

With temples closed, Facebook and Zoom have become the way to connect for a religion where connection to all things is imperative.

Shukla said it is important during a time of unprecedented anxiety and uncertainty that people have a way to continue to commune with the Divine in kind of a sense of community.

Shukla said her plan for Thursday, which is also her birthday, was to participate with the wider community through livestream and perform altar prayers at home. She planned to prepare special foods for her family, probably a fruit-based meal with some sweets.

For everything and everyone life was on this fast forward, she said. Moving at that pace you dont have the time to stop and actually listen, which all contributes to kind of a polarized world that we had created. It just was going so fast. This is like, `Hey guys, you need to slow down.'

___

AP editor Gary Fields reported from Silver Spring, Maryland. AP photographer Matt Rourke contributed to this story.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support from the Lilly Endowment through the Religion News Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
After weeks of government denials that the coronavirus had even reached Indonesia, and weeks more of official claims that adequate screening measures were in place, the country of 270 million people faces a health disaster unprecedented in scale.

At a press conference on Tuesday, Achmad Yurianto, the governments spokesperson for COVID-19 affairs, announced 114 new infections and 14 new deaths. That brings the official total, which dramatically understates the extent of the spread, to 1,677 confirmed infections and 157 deaths. The virus has been detected in 32 of the countrys 34 provinces.

President Joko Widodo then declared a national public health emergency to be imposed until May 29.

Earlier in the day, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said the government would ban all arrivals and transits by foreign nationals in Indonesia. The country is bracing for a wave of Indonesian workers returning from Malaysia, which recently declared a national lockdown.

With the highest death rate in South-East Asia, at almost 9 percent, current numbers suggest that more people in Indonesia are dying from the virus than have recovered. The figures also suggest that only those who are seriously-ill are receiving treatment and appearing in the official statistics.

Over 80 percent of the 1,528 confirmed cases detected are on Java. This indicates the development of clusters on the densely populated island, but likely also reflects the fact that testing has largely been limited to the countrys major cities.

Over the weekend, a report published by a team from the University of Indonesia warned that the coronavirus pandemic would result in a death toll greater than that of the devastating Aceh tsunami in 2004, which killed more than 167,000 people.

The report warned that without substantial government intervention, 240,000 people could die by the end of this month. Even with a moderate intervention by the authorities, 48,000 may perish in April. A high-intensity intervention could lower the fatalities to 12,000.

On Friday, the government acknowledged that as many as 700,000 people may already have come into contact with the virus. Achmad Yurianto, an Essex University professor of applied mathematics, said that up to half the population, or 135 million people, could be infected by mid-May.

Government measures, including limitations on mass gatherings and calls for people to practice social distancing, combined with a criminal lack of testing, have drawn heavy criticism from medical experts.

The critics have repeatedly spoken of the urgent need to impose obligatory social distancing, close down schools and workplaces, ban travel between provinces and limit public transport services. Their pleas, however, have thus far fallen on deaf ears.

What we feared most is that our health system cannot cope with the pandemic, Iwan Ariawan, a biostatistics lecturer at the University of Indonesia, told the Jakarta Globe. In this regard, the number of our hospitals, hospital beds, ICUs [intensive care units], ventilators, and isolation rooms, would not be adequate if we do not implement the proper intervention.

Warnings issued by the Indonesian Doctors Association, which has urged the government for weeks to provide more funds for healthcare, have taken on an increasingly desperate tone. Its spokesperson Halik Malik said last Friday: The governments plans are in tatters and they appear to be avoiding a lockdown. Our health system is not as strong as [in] other countries.

Images on social media of doctors and medical workers threatening to go on strike have been widely shared. At least eight doctors have died of the virus. In a tweet that soon became viral, the brother-in-law of one of the deceased doctors attacked the governments handling of the crisis, saying: The limited amount of protective equipment is hard to forgive.

Indonesia had fewer than four doctors for every 10,000 people, according to World Health Organization data from 2017.

There was speculation in the local media on Sunday that the capitals metropolitan area, Greater Jakarta, deemed to be the epicentre of COVID-19 within the country, was likely to close its borders for travel. The Transportation Ministry, having curtailed some services, is reportedly discussing further restrictions on public transport in Greater Jakarta.

On Monday, however, Widodo again rejected calls for a lockdown of Jakarta. The decision is motivated solely by concern for corporate profit interests, including those of major transnational corporations with operations in the city. It means that the citys almost ten million workers, many of whom live and work in densely-populated areas, are imperilled by unchecked community transmissions.

While some workers, including in office-based and professional sectors, have been able to work from home, this has not been an option for the vast majority, who are employed in industries that rely on workers being on site. The extreme shortage of protective equipment, in a situation where the virus is known to have been spreading undetected for at least a month, has meant that workers must risk their lives on the job.

Economic instability in the major cities and fears of contracting the virus are forcing thousands, many unemployed or evicted from their dwellings, to return to their hometowns in the countryside. This mass exodus to the country, known as mudik, will be particularly widespread during the religious holiday period of Idul Fitri in late May. It could greatly accelerate the spread of the disease.

This years Idul Fitri season was expected to see around 20 million city dwellers travel to towns and villages. Jodi Mahardi, spokesperson for the Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Ministry, told the Jakarta Post last Thursday that a national ban on the mudik was being seriously considered by the government, but none has been announced.

Rural areas in Central Java province are witnessing an abrupt surge of incoming traffic, as tens of thousands of Jakarta residents continue to arrive by bus. Provincial governors across Java have announced their intention to monitor mudik travellers and prioritise them as the first to undergo COVID-19 tests, once more testing kits arrive from China.

At Tuesdays press conference, Widodo announced a new regulation that gives financial authorities the power to take extraordinary steps to ensure public health, save the national economy and the financial system.

The regulation would waive a cap on a maximum budget deficit for three years. A stimulus package of $US24.9 billion, which includes significant corporate tax cuts and handouts, will widen the 2020 budget deficit to as much as 5.07 percent of gross domestic product, the largest in more than a decade.

Last year, Widodo introduced a series of pro-business policies, including the privatisation of water supplies, bills slashing regulations over corporate control of land and natural resources, and the further neutering of the states anti-corruption body. His administrations agenda was met with opposition in the form of mass student protests across the country last September.

The increased presence of military figures and Suharto-era generals in the national cabinet, announced in October, was a clear expression of the Indonesian ruling elites fear of further social upheavals.

Now, confronted with this pandemic, Widodos cabinet has given permission to the national police to take proportionate law enforcement steps. The president warned at the press conference: We are preparing the option of martial law under abnormal circumstances. We are prepared to take such a measure, but not under the current circumstances of course.

His statements are a warning that growing anger over the governments grossly negligent response to the pandemic will be met with state violence and repression.
Stock markets fell 4.4% yesterday, marking the third session in a row of losses. The declines havent erased the gains from last weeks bullish trading, but they put a damper on investors enthusiasm. Theres a feeling of gloom; President Trump has said that the country and economy are in for a hard two weeks in the first half of April as the coronavirus epidemic peaks in the States, and he walked back his previously stated hope to see the country get back to work by mid-month. No one is certain what the near-term holds, except that times are hard.

Its in times like these that investors, when they buy, start looking that much harder at dividend stocks. With share prices dropping, and interest rates cut to near zero, stock dividends are the surest form of asset returns available today  and those low share prices have brought down the initial cost of entry.

Investment bank Wells Fargo has been following the markets, and the banks stock analysts are coming to the plain conclusion: get into dividends now. In a series of reports released in February and March, the firm's stock researchers outline some low-cost, high-return dividend stocks that investors need to consider  and also one that may be too risky to try. Weve pulled the details from the TipRanks database, so lets find out what makes these stock moves so compelling.

Oaktree Specialty Lending (OCSL)

Well start in the financial sector, appropriate when the financial world seems to be crumbling around us. But there is hope. Oaktree focuses on specialty finance, offering customized credit and loan solutions for companies that lack access to more traditional capital markets. The company generates its income through fees and interest on its loan products, which include first and second liens, unsecured loans, and preferred equity. With traditional markets staggering under the weight of the lockdowns and quarantines, Oaktree may find a wider field of action later this year.

Story continues

Earlier this year, just before the coronavirus outbreak hit the US, Oaktree announced a capital drive of its own, raising $300 million in 3.5% notes, which will come due in 2025. The notes were used to reduce outstanding debt while lowering the rates, and providentially gave Oaktree a sound footing just as the market disruptions hit. Shortly afterward, OCSL reported Q1 fiscal 2020 earnings, showing $14.1 million in net income, or 10 cents per share. This was down from Q4, and missed the EPS forecast by 17%.

Income was enough to maintain the dividend, however, at 10 cents per quarter. The annual payment, 40 cents, gives the stock a yield of 11.8%, far higher than the 2% average dividend yield found on the broader markets. OCLS has a reliable dividend history, and adjusts the payment when needed to ensure that the company can afford the dividend.

Wells Fargo analyst Finian OShea wrote on the stock shortly before the earnings report, saying, OCSL continues to exit legacy positions at par or greater, which likely improves its fundamentals every quarter that passes. While we still see the case for a discount because it chooses to under-earn, we are very positive on the stock at these levels.

OShea stands by this opinion, giving the stock a Buy rating with a $6 price target indicating an upside potential of 86%. (To watch OSheas track record, click here)

OCSLs Moderate Buy analyst consensus rating is based on 2 recent reviews, both of which agree that the stock is a buy-side proposition. Shares are priced at a heavy discount, $3.10, and the $5.80 average price target suggests an 81% upside potential for the coming 12 months. (See Oaktree stock analysis on TipRanks)

TPG Specialty Lending (TSLX)

Next up is another specialty finance company, TPG. TPGs customer base is middle market companies, and like Oaktree above, its corporate customers have limited access to the capital markets. TGP offers credit, financing, and funding solutions for complex business models. Underlining the importance of the niche, TSLX rose 27% in calendar year 2019.

The company had a good financial quarter to finish 2019, too. EPS beat expectations by 8.5%, coming in at 51 cents and at the top line, revenues were 3.6% over expectations, at $66.5 million. On a sour note, both numbers were down year-over-year. Despite that yoy drop, TSLX kept up its dividend  the company pays out 6 dividends annually, and has a history of adjusting those payments to ensure reliability. The current payment, due this month, is 25 cents per quarter.

Annualized, TSLXs dividend comes out to $1.64, giving a yield of 12.4%. This is more than 6x higher than the average stock dividend. And it simply blows away Treasury bonds, which have dipped below 1% as the Fed has cut rates to the bone in an effort to ameliorate the financial damage of the current economic shutdowns.

Finian OShea, quoted above, reviewed this stock as well, and rated it as a clear Buying proposition. He put a $23.50 price target on the shares, implying an upside of nearly 80%. (To watch OSheas track record, click here)

In his comments, OShea sees this stock as a conservative, defensive play. He wrote, Well reiterate the view that the value-add provided though highly structured and idiosyncratic deals is still under-appreciated, and perhaps highlighted by TSLX best-in-class-peers now showing non-accruals. Moreover, we see that TSLX should receive a richer valuation for preserving a defensive and opportunistic financial position at this market stage.

TPG has 5 Buy ratings and just 1 Hold, giving the stock a Strong Buy from the analyst consensus. The stock is selling for $13.15, and the average price target of $23.13 is indicative of a 76% upside potential for the coming year. (See TPGs stock analysis at TipRanks)

Ventas, Inc. (VTR)

Last on our list is Ventas, which Wells Fargo says to steer clear of. This company is a real estate investment trust, focused on health care facility properties in the US, Canada, and the UK. The company holds a varied portfolio, including medical offices, nursing homes, acute and special care centers, surgical centers, and medical labs. The portfolio is valued at more than $25 billion.

Youd think that a company focused on health care properties would not be badly hurt in the current epidemic environment, but Ventas shares are down heavily in the current market downturn, having lost 61%. This comes despite the company edging over the estimates in its last quarterly report, when it showed 93 cents per share Funds from Operations and $996 million total revenue. Company management, however, is lowering its forward guidance, as it is not certain that tenants will be able to meet rent obligations as the economy comes to a halt. Health care facilities are working harder than ever  but their medical operations expenses are growing faster as they try to cope with the coronavirus, and those medical operations may be seen as a higher priority than rent. It is part of the spreading ripple of consequences the epidemic has set in motion.

VTR is maintaining its divided, as REITs are required by law to return earnings to shareholders. The current payment is 79.25 cents quarterly, or $3.17 annually. This makes the yield 13.8%, the highest of the stocks on this list. The question for investors is, Does this yield offset the likely future risk?

Todd Stender, covering the stock for Wells Fargo, says to Sell this stock, and he has lowered the price target from$56 to $29. He writes of the company, The company did indicate that through February, its senior housing and companywide results were in line with its previous expectations; however, mgmt. felt it was prudent at this point to remove 2020 guidance not knowing how long this situation may last. The company has also shifted focus to the balance sheet and is becoming a bit more defensive given the level of uncertainty by tapping $2.75B from its $3.0B line of credit for added liquidity and flexibility.

Even though he rates the stock a Sell, Stenders lower price target still suggests about 20% upside. This REIT may still bring a return, but as with the dividend yield, its not known if that return potential is enough to balance the likely near-term risks. (To watch Stenders track record, click here)

This stocks analyst consensus rating is a Hold, based on a single Buy against 4 Holds and 3 Sells. Shares are currently trading for $22.95, and the average price target of $42.57 suggests a premium of 80% from that trading level. (See Ventas stock analysis on TipRanks)

To find good ideas for dividend stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.
New Delhi, April 2 : The Home Ministry on Thursday directed the states and the Union Territories (UTs) to "strictly" implement the 21-day nationwide lockdown measures and circulate penal provisions under the specific laws among people and authorities to stop violations.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla stressed on the subject through a letter to the Chief Secretaries of all states requesting them to implement the lockdown measures in "letter and spirit".

For the attention of the public authorities and citizens, Bhalla suggested the states that the penal provisions under the Disaster Management Act,2005 and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) should be widely circulated and action shall be taken by the law enforcement authorities for violation of lockdown measures.

In the letter, the Home Secretary also attached the extracts of penal provisions of Disaster Management Act, 2005 and the IPC, in bilingual version.

Referring to the lockdown measures issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on March 24 -- the day when Prime Minister announced the restrictions for 21-days -- Bhalla said it was clearly mentioned that "any person violating these containment measures will be liable to be proceeded against as per the provisions of Section 51 to 60 of the Disaster Management Act. 2005, besides legal action under Sec. 188 of the IPC".

The Home Secretary also gave reference of a letter issued to the states on March 31 wherein it was requested to strictly implement the lockdown measures issued by Ministry of Home Affairs in exercise of powers under Disaster Management Act, 2005 in letter and spirit, without allowing any exception.

In a letter to the states on Wednesday, the Home Secretary had also mentioned the observations and directions of the Supreme Court which mentioned "we trust and expect that all concerned viz.. state governments, public authorities and citizens of this country will faithfully comply with the directives, advisories and orders issued by Union of India in letter and spirit in the interest of public safety".

The Home Secretary's directions came as the Ministry came to know that the lockdown measures were being violated on various places across the country which could harm the purpose to isolate the people that is necessary to break the chain of novel coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic. The lockdown will continue till April 14.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
IRVING, Texas, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Former Arkansas Governor and Republican presidential nominee Mike Huckabee has joined the Board of Directors at OneShare Health, an ACA-exempt Christian Health Care Sharing Ministry (HCSM) based in Irving, Texas. Huckabee, who maintains strong ties to the Christian church, said he was initially drawn to OneShare Health's faith-driven vision.

Huckabee's Christian faith plays a significant role in his private and public life. After graduating from high school, he attended Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, AR, where he majored in religion. Following his graduation, he attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, TX. After several years in radio, TV, and advertising he spent 12-years as a pastor of congregations in Arkansas. Huckabee served as president of the Arkansas Baptist Convention, which he said helped spark a pursuit into major politics.

He came in second in the Republican presidential primaries in 2008 and ran again in 2016. He has written 13 books, most of them NY Times Bestsellers, and has hosted television shows on Fox News Channel and currently is the host of "Huckabee" on the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). He is still a contributor at Fox News.

Huckabee served as the 44th Governor of the State of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007. In addition to educational reform, Huckabee continues to push for making wide-scale changes to American healthcare.

After joining OneShare Health's Board of Directors, Huckabee said he appreciates the strides the company is making towards providing affordable healthcare options. "As a Baptist minister, I am inspired by the familiar verse in Galatians 6:2. That verse teaches that Christians are to 'Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.' At OneShare Health, we believe that bearing one another's burdens should extend into all areas of life, including healthcare.

"We have an incredible opportunity to shine a beacon of light and hope into a healthcare community that is fearful, stressed, and burdened with everything going on in America right now. We have a chance to practice 'Love they neighbor as thyself' on a daily basis. For those who share our common core of religious beliefs, OneShare Health is an excellent option for you to consider. Our desire is to set the gold standard as a health care sharing ministry which lives out the teachings of Jesus Christ."

About OneShare Health: OneShare Health is an ACA-exempt, nonprofit, Christian Health Care Sharing Ministry (HCSM) based in Irving, Texas, that facilitates the sharing of medical expenses among individuals and families who are united by shared religious beliefs. Healthcare sharing ministries are not health insurance and do not accept risk or make guarantees regarding payment of bills submitted by members.

For Press Inquiries, Please Contact:

Buddy Combs

OneShare Health

1-888-940-8291

[email protected]

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China retains long-suspended railway to ensure maneuverability in war

PLA Daily

Source: China Military Online

Editor: Wang Xinjuan

2020-04-01 21:42:32

By Peng Zengwei and Zhou Peng

NANCHANG, April 1 -- The Anhui-Jiangxi Railway connecting line under the Guixi Railway Station of Yingtan District in East China's Jiangxi Province will still be preserved after being suspended for over 10 years, announced the China Railway Nanchang Group on March 30, 2020.

The 1,000-odd meters long Anhui-Jiangxi railway connecting line under the Guixi Railway Station was built in 1994 to connect two main railway lines, namely the Anhui-Jiangxi railway line and the Shanghai-Kunming railway line. This connecting line can greatly reduce the transition time of military trains between the above two main railway lines. It is of great significance for enhancing the speed of troop maneuver and equipment transportation at critical moments.

In 2006, the Shanghai-Kunming railway line was transformed into an electrified line, but the Anhui-Jiangxi railway remains non-electrified, which makes the electric locomotives unable to operate. As a result, the former busy connecting line at the Guixi Station was gradually deserted and has been out of service for more than 10 years. Due to the high maintenance cost of the decommissioned line, there have been long-time controversies on its fate.

On March 13, the China Railway Nanchang Group held a symposium along with the Nanchang Military Representative Office to discuss its fate. The final decision was to preserve the connecting line and give policy support to national defense transportation facilities.

In the past two years, coping with the local military representatives, the China Railway Nanchang Group has successively constructed new facilities such as military platforms, military catering supply stations and military supply restaurants at some railway stations along the Shanghai-Kunming railway line and Nanchang-Fuzhou railway line. They have also built and maintained assembly sites, platforms and lighting facilities at some railway stations assigned with military transportation tasks, which has greatly improved local military transportation conditions.

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Because of shelter-in-place orders and concerns about COVID-19, personal shopping services have seen a dramatic increase in the past month. But that has led to questions about how ethical it is for these workers  many independent contractors  to risk their health for others during a global pandemic.

Instacart, a San Francisco tech company that provides shopping and home delivery services, recently announced that it would hire an additional 300,000 personal shoppers to fulfill a 150% increase in volume of orders. In the past week alone, the company has added 250,000 new personal shoppers, who are independent contractors, which more than doubled the company's number of Instacart shoppers before their hiring push. Out of the 250,000 new personal shoppers, 50,000 have already started shopping for the platform after clearing a background check. Instacart also has 20,000 part-time, in-store shoppers assigned to a specific store.

Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco has fourteen part-time Instacart in-store shoppers. Since the start of the shelter-in-place order in San Francisco, the majority of the orders fulfilled in the store were from Instacart's "Full-Service Shoppers." Instacart provides contract workers with a shopping list. They shop at the grocery store of your choice and then deliver groceries to your doorstep.

Last week, over half the customers in the store were Instacart shoppers, noted Rainbow Grocery marketing coordinator Cody Frost. He said many of the personal shoppers were unfamiliar with the store layout. Besides hand sanitizer and gloves, the store provided maps to show where items are stocked. Still, Frost has found that the shoppers, having already waited over an hour in line, were trying to fulfill their order so quickly that they were often not following the CDCs recommendation of six foot social distancing.

"As a worker-owned cooperative, we are more and more reflecting on the ethical nature of the gig economy," said Frost. "We know that there are a number of people who are vulnerable and high risk that are using these services, but there are a significant number of people who are low risk. So what is the ethical impact of asking a person to put themselves at risk for the convenience of not putting yourself at risk?"

"They're basically using their money to put someone else at risk when they could do it themselves."explains Santa Clara ethics professor David DeCosse, staff member of the school's Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, about low-risk members of the community using personal shopper services."Witness what all of these gig workers have been saying. They are not confident about the level of protections they have been accorded thus far."

"You don't need to be a rocket scientist to see what they're saying is true," he added. "If we cant get sufficient protections for people in hospitals right now, we're not able to do this for grocery workers and shoppers. You're passing on risk to these shoppers whom you do have reasonable expectations may well not have sufficient protection."

These health concerns led the Gig Workers Collective, an organization advocating gig worker rights, to call for an Instacart worker strike that started on Monday.

"It's so scary to be in a grocery store right now, and so scary to be around swarm and mobs of people," Vanessa Bain, one of the organizers for the strike, told the Washington Post. "I would convey to customers that we are also doing this out of interest in protecting them."

Organizers are asking that personal shoppers be provided hand sanitizer, $5 per order in hazard pay, as well as a default tip of 10% rather than 5%.

Despite the calls for a strike, Village Market owner Keith Trimble said many Instacart shoppers lined up with regular customers when the store opened this past Monday. "It's kind of hard to tell if there has been a difference or not," he said.

Trimble said his independent Oakland grocery store, which is enforcing limits of only 20 shoppers in the store at a time, has experienced a significant rise in Instacart shoppers. In the past week, he saw a 40% increase in orders and a 60% increase in sales from Instacart. 69% of those orders his store received were from first-time Instacart shoppers.

"There are so many people that are desperate to make money for all kinds of very fundamental reasons," said Professor DeCosse on why they are willing to risk their own health to work for personal shopping companies. "There are so many people right now who do not have health insurance, who do not have benefits. They have been working in the gig economy or service economy and we as a society have let that go for decades."

Instacart responded to strikers' demands by announcing they will distribute health and safety kits that will include face masks, hand sanitizer, and a thermometer for all contractors and employees starting next week. They will also lock in the tip amount for delivery from a customer's last tip amount, with a minimum tip guarantee of 5% unless the customer manually opt-out of tipping. The company is also offering 14 days of sick pay for full-service shopper or part-time in-store shopper who are affected by COVID-19 and a cash bonus between $25 and $200 for all workers. Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the company has instituted a no-contact, leave-at-the-front-door policy to drop off groceries.

"We are immensely grateful to the entire shopper community for continually stepping up as household heroes for families who are relying on Instacart now more than ever," their statement read. "We are continuing to monitor this situation and working around the clock to make sure we're providing you with the resources and support you need."

DeCosse notes that businesses are facing a radically different reality in the United States due to the economic fallout related to the COVID-19 pandemic. That might require businesses to readjust their goals and think creatively about how to support their workers in a time of crisis.

"Maybe it's time for leadership in these companies to forego big profits and make these people whole and really protect them," he said. "I do know, as an ethicist, it is the right thing to do. You don't want to make money on the backs of exposing your workers to risk that really could be addressed."

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Online Photo Editor Douglas Zimmerman oversees SFGATE's Instagram and covers the Bay Area soccer scene on SFGATE's Beautiful Blog. View his latest stories and send him news tips at dzimmerman@sfgate.com. Follow on Twitter @zimpix
The Houston Chronicle has lifted the paywall on this developing coverage to provide critical information to our community. To support our journalists work, consider a digital subscription

10:34 p.m. As the number of Houstonians with COVID-19 surpassed the 500-mark Thursday, health experts expect those figures to continue to rise for weeks or months until social distancing efforts -- hopefully -- pay off, reports the Chronicle's Dylan McGuinness.

Local officials remained optimistic that those efforts are proving effective, even if the rising numbers dont show it yet.

Standing outside a testing center, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee said she hoped that Houston would provide an example for the country and escape the worsening fates of New York City and New Orleans, where spikes in cases are beginning to overwhelm healthcare systems. Read more.

9:47 p.m. After President Donald Trump announced he had signed a Defense Production Act order for 3M to produce face masks, he slammed the company in a tweet late Thursday, Reuters reported.

We hit 3M hard today after seeing what they were doing with their Masks. P Act all the way. Big surprise to many in government as to what they were doing - will have a big price to pay! Trump said on Twitter.

The St. Paul, Minnesota-based company had not responded to Reuters' requests for comment late Thursday.

9:17 p.m. The 5,000 COVID-19 rapid testing kits that the City of Laredo and Webb County were planning to utilize at a drive thru testing site this week are likely fraudulent, the Laredo Morning Times reports.

After questioning the validity of the test kits, the validity of the FDA certification also came into question," according to a press release from the city. "An inquiry was initiated by the Laredo Police Department who are currently working with other authorities to investigate this matter."

The kits were purchased through a public-private partnership with Clear Choice ER. Clear Choice had purchased around 20,000 of these kits in total. Read more.

8:33 p.m. A handful of inmates appeared set to be released from jail tonight or Friday morning, following Judge Lina Hidalgos order to the Harris County Sheriffs Office to free hundreds of low-risk inmates in an effort to reduce the jail population and prevent a widespread outbreak of coronavirus, reports the Chronicle's St. John Barned-Smith.

On Wednesday, Hidalgo ordered Sheriff Ed Gonzalez to prepare a list of inmates accused of certain nonviolent offenses and who did not have previous convictions for violent crimes. That list was expected to include the names of some 1,000 inmates, which would be reviewed  and likely significantly pared down  by other county departments. Read more.

8:02 p.m. The Conroe Immigration Court will be closed Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.

The court is located in a detention facility controlled by the Department of Homeland Security at 806 Hilbig Road. The closure notice did not provide any more information.

7:35 p.m. Thirteen residents at a Texas City nursing home have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Galveston County Health District.

About 150 residents and employees of the Resort at Texas City were tested today. Results are pending.

"We are gravely concerned about the spread of this virus within nursing homes because of the close proximity and vulnerability of the residents," said Galveston County Local Health Authority Dr. Philip Keiser.

The health district received the first positive case at the facility on Saturday.

7:15 p.m. Since noon, the statewide total of COVID-19 cases jumped from 4,709 to 5,134. An additional 10 deaths were reported statewide for a total of 83. The Houston region's count is 1,568, up 172 from yesterday. Harris County added 108 new cases today. There have been 12 deaths in the Houston region.



7:11 p.m. Harris County announced two more coronavirus-related deaths, bringing its fatality count outside the city to four, reports the Chronicle's Samantha Ketterer.

The first was a woman between 80 and 90 years old, and the second was a man between 50 and 60 years old. They both lived in southwest Harris County and had underlying health conditions, according to Harris County Public Health.

Both cases were community-spread.

Our heartfelt condolences go out to the patients' family and friends, said Umair A. Shah, MD, MPH, HCPH Executive Director. Now more than ever, we must remain vigilant and continue to do everything we can to protect ourselves and loved ones. We urge our residents to stay home because it literally saves lives.

Harris County has reported 449 confirmed cases and four deaths, all outside the city of Houston. Of those patients, 87 have recovered.

Our heartfelt condolences go out to the patients' family and friends, said Umair A. Shah, MD, MPH, HCPH Executive Director. Now more than ever, we must remain vigilant and continue to do everything we can to protect ourselves and loved ones. We urge our residents to stay home because it literally saves lives.

6:57 p.m. Two additional Harris County Jail inmates have tested positive for COVID-19, Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said. That makes three total inmates with the disease with 30 more awaiting test results and 800 in quarantine as a precaution, he said.

The sheriff's office earlier today announced that the first jail guard, assigned to the 1200 Baker Street facility, also tested positive.

6:46 p.m.The Internal Revenue Service plans to send $1200 electronic payments as soon as late next week to millions of Americans as part of the $2 trillion coronavirus law, reports The Washington Post.

The electronic payments would be made a week sooner than expected. However, $30 million in paper checks for millions of other Americans wont start being sent out until April 24, as the government lacks their banking information, the Post reported. Some of those checks wont reach people until September.

6:26 p.m. Waller County now has 8 confirmed positive cases of coronavirus since announcing the first three cases last Friday.

6:19 p.m. The Texas Education Agency has been approved by the U.S. Department of Education to waive statewide assessment and accountability requirements under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, according to a news release.

For 2020 state academic accountability, all districts and campuses will receive a label of "Not Rated: Declared State of Disaster," the release said.

The move was expected after the state canceled STAAR testing, the Chronicle's Jacob Carpenter reports.

6:05 p.m. Valero today will begin producing hand sanitizer at its Hartley, Iowa, ethanol plant, according to a news release.

Valero received registration approval from the Food and Drug Administration to make the hand sanitizer, which it will donate to its ethanol plants and refineries and on to local hospitals and emergency care providers, the release said.

We are ready and willing to do what we can in communities surrounding our plants to help ease the nations critical shortage of hand sanitizer, said Joe Gorder, Valero Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. I am proud of our employees for their innovation and efforts to make this possible.

5:55 p.m. Under Harris Countys stay-at-home order, celebrations  father-daughter dances, anniversary dinners and baby showers  have been canceled. While that means Houstonians have to stay put, it doesnt mean they cant have fun. The resourceful have found new ways to celebrate, the Chronicle's Amber Elliott writes. Read more.

5:15 p.m. Multiple counties in the Houston region reported new cases at 5 p.m

Harris County Public Health reported 60 new cases of COVID-19. The countywide total is now 449 positive cases, including two deaths. Eighty-seven patients have recovered.

Fort Bend County added 27 new coronavirus cases, bringing their total number of cases to 221. Ten people have recovered so far.

The Brazoria County Health Department reported 14 new coronavirus cases, bringing the countywide case total to 123. The county added five individuals have fully recovered from the virus, totaling 20 recovered cases to date.

Galveston County Health District announced 12 new positive COVID-19. The county's tally is now up to 130. To date, 1,533 Galveston County residents have been tested.

Chambers County reported two new coronavirus cases, bringing the countywide total to 11. The county has tested 114 people so far. One person has been hospitalized.

5:01 p.m. Target will actively monitor and meter guest traffic in nearly all its stores starting April 4 to promote social distancing, according to a news release.

The company also will supply its more than 350,000 employees with face masks and gloves to wear at work, in addition to cleaning its stores and distribution centers. The stores will take social distancing measures like floor signage to encourage guests and team members to remain six feet apart. There will also be Plexiglass partitions at all registers.

4:51 p.m. Construction might slow in Houston after coming off a 12-month period that saw an increase in residential and non-residential construction starts, compared to the previous 12-months, reports the Chronicle's Katherine Feser.

The value of residential construction starts totaled $11.9 billion during the 12-months through February, according to Dodge, up 1.9 percent from the same period the year earlier. Non-residential projects, including office buildings, warehouses, schools and churches, totaled $10.2 billion up, 1.3 percent year-over-year.

But now, only a handful of industries have been exempt from limitations stemming the coronavirus pandemic. That rate of activity is not expected to be maintained in the coming months, though neither is construction expected to come to a screeching halt. Read more.

4:28 p.m.A MetroLift driver worked five days a weeks for most of March before testing positive for COVID-19, leading transit and health officials to reach out to all the passengers the driver may have ferried, reports the Chronicle's Dug Begley.

Metropolitan Transit Authority on Thursday confirmed the paratransit driver and another worker who cleaned rail cars recently reported positive tests. While exposure to the cleaning employee was limited and crews have increased disinfecting of buses and trains, MetroLift drivers often come into contact with elderly and disabled passengers who sometimes have weakened immune systems  among the most at-risk to experience severe symptoms of the novel coronavirus. Read more.

4:04 p.m. A Harris County Sheriffs Office detention officer has tested positive for COVID-19, pushing the agencys total number of confirmed cases to 13, according to a news release.



The detention officer, a man in his mid-20s assigned to the 1200 Baker Street jail facility, is the first jail guard and the third overall employee at the facility to test positive for the virus. His last day on duty was March 27.

So far one inmate in the Harris County Jail has tested positive for COVID-19. An additional 33 inmates are in quarantine with symptoms indicative of the virus and are awaiting test results.



Also Thursday, two male patrol deputies in their late 20s who previously tested positive for COVID-19 have now cleared quarantine and are on track to return to duty Saturday.



There are currently 179 Harris County Sheriffs Office deputies, detention officers and support staff in quarantine for possible COVID-19 exposure. One employees is currently in the hospital. Fifty-five previously quarantined employees have now been cleared to return to duty.



3:44 p.m. The third resident of an independent living facility in The Woodlands has died from the novel coronavirus, according to Montgomery County Public Health officials. A 14th resident tested positive, reports the Chronicle's Catherine Dominguez.

Additionally, Montgomery County logged nine new cases Thursday, bringing the total to 119. The latest death is reported to be a man in his 80s.

3:28 p.m. Delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic will not impact the one-year suspension of A.J. Hinch and Jeff Lunhow, a person familiar with the matter confirmed to the Chronicle's Chandler Rome.

ESPN first reported the news.

Hinch and Luhnow incurred one-year suspensions from commissioner Rob Manfred following a two-month investigation this winter into the club's sign stealing tactics during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Astros owner Jim Crane subsequently fired both men, but their league-mandated suspensions still remained. Read more.

3:17 p.m. Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said the officer in the hospital with COVID-19 is now on a ventilator, the Chronicle's Dylan McGuinness reports. The number of officers who have tested positive is now up to 17.

The number of firefighters with COVID-19 remains at 12 with 173 total quarantined, according to fire Chief Sam Pena. Forty-nine have been tested and two have recovered.

3:09 p.m. Mayor Sylvester Turner announced 48 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the City of Houston, pushing the tally to 506, reports the Chronicle's Dylan McGuinness. Two more people have died, both in their 60s-70s with underlying conditions. The city death toll is now 6.

"The goal is to keep that number down," Turner says.

Mayor @SylvesterTurner

announces 48 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the City of Houston, pushing tally to 506.



Two more people have died, both 60s-70s with underlying conditions. Death toll now 6 here.



"The goal is to keep that number down," Turner says.  Dylan McGuinness (@dylmcguinness) April 2, 2020

3 p.m.: Transit agencies in southeastern Texas are set to receive more than $300 million to stem revenue losses linked to COVID-19, federal officials announced Thursday, most of it coming to Houston.

As part of the first round of Congress-approved stimulus funding, $25 billion will go to transit agencies nationwide, doled out by the Federal Transit Administration.

Money will be distributed by urban areas, with most of Houstons $258.6 million going to the Metropolitan Transit Authority, which has seen ridership to drop to less than half its normal workday use.

 Dug Begley

2:55 p.m.: More than 2,000 COVID-19 sampling kits will soon be on their way to hospitals across the state from Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory in College Station, according to a news release.

Viral sampling kits  usually used on pigs, cows and chickens  are being repurposed to test humans. The sampling kits are being assembled from lab supplies already in stock at TVMDLs four labs across the state.

Once assembled, they will be shipped to hospitals in cities with a Texas A&M System campus to help meet the surge in needed test kits including campuses in Galveston, McAllen and the Texas A&M School of Law in Fort Worth.

2:30 p.m.: Slim Thug will discuss his coronavirus recovery during a virtual conversation, reports the Chronicle's Joey Guerra.

The Houston rapper, who revealed March 24 he was battling the illness, will talk about how it has affected his everyday life. He'll also discuss his upcoming projects and career.

2:05 p.m.: Under Harris Countys stay-at-home order, plans  such as father-daughter dances, romantic dinners, baby celebrations  have been canceled. While that means Houstonians have to stay put, it doesnt mean they cant have fun.

You dont want to let something like this make you miss on something thats special, Les Sarles said of his family's daddy-daughter dance. There are only so many of those moments.

Read more on at-home celebrations by the Chronicle's Amber Elliott here.

1:45 p.m.: In navigating a series of momentous and at times painful decisions to curb the spread of the new coronavirus, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo have extolled the importance of social distancing and avoiding unnecessary contact with others.



Yet for nearly two weeks after beginning unprecedented measures aimed at containing the virus, the mayor continued to gather dozens of senior officials for in-person meetings, and the city had no policy to help its employees work from home, report Mike Morris, Zach Despart and Jasper Scherer. Turner said he now meets with staff through video conferencing.



Still, city council meetings and news conferences continue to take place in person  albeit with new protocols to promote social distancing. Harris Countys response has been uneven, in part because independently elected officials oversee many parts of the government.



The pandemic has revealed tension between politicians rhetoric and the practical reality that vital city and county in-person functions must persist even during a national health crisis. And it has posed a difficult question to governments and the many essential businesses still operating: How do you balance the safety of workers and the public they serve with those vital services?

Read the story here.

1:35 p.m.: On today's episode of "Coronavirus Chronicle," the Houston Chronicle's new daily podcast, we're talking about unemployment and paying rent.

Reporter Sarah Smith, who covers housing, homelessness and poverty, joins host Ferrill Gibbs to discuss the dilemma facing tenants and property owners when the rent checks come due during a pandemic.

Subscribe to Coronavirus Chronicle on Apple Podcasts or your audio app of choice.

1:20 p.m.: As of noon Thursday, the statewide total went from 4,525 to 4,709 cases. There have been five new deaths which brings the state's total to 73.

Colin County reported the biggest jump in cases with 23 for a total of 207 followed by El Paso County with 18 new cases (total of 68).

Track all the Texas coronavirus cases here.

 Matthew Dempsey

12:55 p.m.: The Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday that it was reducing the amount of time men who have had sex with men should wait before they give blood or plasma, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The waiting period has dropped from one year to three months, in hopes of spurring blood donation during the coronavirus pandemic. FDA officials said gay and bisexual men will be eligible to donate if they have not had sex with another man for three months. The change takes effect immediately.

12:40 p.m. A fourth person in the Laredo region has died due to coronavirus, Webb County and the City of Laredo officials confirmed Thursday.

The 43-year-old male was treated at a local hospital and had been sick for more than a week, according to Laredo Health Department Director Dr. Hector Gonzalez.

As of this update, the city's total number of confirmed cases is currently at 62.

12:36 p.m. No, you can't catch COVID-19 from 5G network towers.

The premise may sound absurd, but apparently a lot of people believe it. That's why the Chronicle's Rebecca Hennes took it upon herself to debunk some of the myths surrounding coronavirus.

You can see her full list here.

12:31 p.m. It doesn't matter who you are or what you do. Our newsroom wants to hear about how how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting your life.

Weve made a form that you can fill out to let us know whats going on. And don't worry, we won't publish your name or information without your permission.

If you're interested, here's the link to the form: https://forms.gle/RyJjDuN1PHS24yZWA

12:29 p.m. Republican congressional candidate Kathaleen Wall is using the pandemic as the centerpiece for a new campaign ad airing in the Houston media market, Jeremy Wallace reports.

At one point in the controversial ad, a narrator lauds President Donald Trump for calling COVID-19 the "Chinese virus."

China poisoned our people, the narrator says. "... China is a criminal enterprise masquerading as a sovereign nation.

You can see the full ad for yourself below:

Wall is running for the 22nd Congressional District, which includes most of Fort Bend County and portions of Brazoria and Harris counties.

12:15 p.m. Need a distraction to get you through the stay-at-home order? Us too.

Thankfully, members of the Chronicle's features staff sat down and came up with some recommendations for all of us to help make the week a little more bearable.

Unless you've been staying at home under a rock, you've probably already heard of Netflix's "Tiger King" (and hopefully read Emily Foxhall's recent story about Houston's own tiger tale), but how about "The Plot Against America"? What about "Space Kiddettes"?

Critics Andrew Dansby, Cary Darling, Joey Guerra and Wei-Huan Chen give us the scoop.

12:05 p.m. CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, who recently announced that he tested positive for novel coronavirus, gave a chilling account of his experience on Wednesday's edition of "Cuomo Prime Time," which is being broadcast live from his basement as he self-quarantines.

"It was like somebody was beating me like a pinata," Cuomo said. "I was shivering so much . . . I chipped my tooth."

Cuomo, whose father was former New York governor Mario Cuomo, said he "was up all night" and experienced fever-induced hallucinations.

"My dad was talking to me," Cuomo recounted. "I was seeing people from college, people I haven't seen in forever. It was freaky what I lived through last night, and it may happen again tonight."

For more, read The Washington Post's full recap here.

11:57 a.m.: Organizers of the Offshore Technology Conference, the largest oil and gas industry conference in the world, have cancelled this year's Houston event as the coronavirus pandemic continues to worsen in the United States and elsewhere around the globe, reports the Chronicle's Sergio Chapa.

As we navigate these difficult and uncertain times, it is with a heavy heart that the OTC Board of Directors has determined that it is in our best interest to cancel OTC 2020," OTC Chairperson Cindy Yeilding said. "Our priority is the health and safety of our attendees and exhibitors, and we have taken federal, state, and local guidelines into account in making our decision."

Conference organizers had previously planned to postpone the event from May to either August or September but said they are canceling in light of the pandemic. Known in the industry as OTC and typically held in early May, the conference draws as many as 60,000 participants from dozens of nations around the world, many of which are also dealing with the pandemic.

11:15 a.m.: Montgomery County officials are asking their community to come forward with personal protection equipment and other cleaning supplies, reports the Chronicle's Jose R. Gonzalez.

PPE needs are surgical masks, gloves, gowns, shoe covers, hair covers, goggles, N95 masks and full facial shields. Disinfectant spray and disinfecting wipes, are also in short supply. Donation drop offs can be made at the Montgomery County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management office, 9417 Airport Road in Conroe.

11 a.m.: Doctors treating Missouri City Councilmember Jeffrey L. Boney, who was hospitalized on Saturday after he tested positive for COVID-19, have discovered a blood clot in his right lung. He remains in ICU at United Memorial Medical Center in Houston.

Initially, Boney said he didnt have many of the typical respiratory symptoms such as a dry cough and shortness of breath and doctors are using his condition for a case study.

 Kristi Nix

10:50 a.m.: A third privately-run testing site through United Memorial Medical Center, opened Thursday morning at Forest Brook Middle School, 7525 Tidwell Road, to a lengthy line of cars snaking several blocks away, reports the Chronicle's Nicole Hensley.

The line started moving just after 10 a.m. as U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee spoke alongside a crowd of mask-wearing civic and church leaders. She said the site on Tidwell in Trinity Gardens was picked for its proximity to seniors and families, as determined through census data.

We are concerned that we have not seen senior citizens at the testing sites, the congresswoman said.

A Houston Chronicle analysis found that most people testing positive for the novel coronavirus are under 60. The facility is the third installment though the medical center, with sites already in Acres Homes and Sugar Land.

10:15 a.m.: The schools, sidewalks and streets of Houston are empty. For weeks, Houstonians have been staying at home in compliance with Harris Countys new orders.

Were used to familiar faces  at the office, gas station, or regular Friday night restaurants. But social distancing means that life, for now, has reverted inside. So we asked Houstonians to open their windows to us, to help us capture a peek of what life is like inside our homes these days. The result is an intimate portrait of this time-capsule moment.

There is piano to learn, private weddings to arrange and silver linings to create. Heres a peek at how your neighbors are getting by.

 Maggie Gordon, Marie D. De Jesus and the Chronicle features staff

Marie D. De Jesus/Staff photographer

9:55 a.m.: H-E-B, Walmart and Kroger  three of the largest grocers in Houston  are now allowing employees to wear face masks and gloves during the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The grocers have installed hand sanitizing stations, plexiglass partitions at cash registers and floor decals at checkout lanes to promote social distancing. They have also reduced store hours to allow employees more time to rest, clean stores and restock inventory, and in some cases have limited the number of customers shopping in a store at one time. Curbside pickup customers are asked to stay inside their vehicles while their grocery orders are being loaded into the trunk.

 Paul Takahashi

9:30 a.m.: The City of Beverly Hills, a small municipality surrounded by Waco, has reversed its position that a local store selling CBD oil and vaping products did not qualify as an essential business, reports the Chronicle's Eric Dexheimer.

Gov. Greg Abbott's March 31 order prohibits hair salons, gyms, massage establishments, tattoo and piercing studios, and dine-in restaurants. Business owners who arent clear if their companies qualify as an essential service may submit their plea to the Texas Department of Emergency Management.

9:25 a.m.: Electricity use in Texas from 6 to 10 a.m. has been dropping over the past three weeks, a reflection that economic activity is slowing statewide because of the spread of the coronavirus.

Texans are also using less power overall, according to ERCOT. Since March 22, weekly electricity use has declined by 2 percent.

 L.M. Sixel

9:05 a.m.: Supermarket giant H-E-B has tapped three Houston restaurants to prepare meals-to-go for its Meal Simple program of chef-inspired grab-and-go meals, reports the Chronicle's Greg Morago.

Three restaurants in each city will prepare dishes for a limited number of stores as an effort by H-E-B to pump money into beloved Texas restaurants struggling to stay alive during the coronavirus pandemic which has devastated the states restaurant industry.

This week, Cherry Block Craft Butcher and Kitchen in Bravery Chef Hall, Brennans and Shepherds Underbelly Hospitality will represent Houston.

8:30 a.m.: Social Security recipients will not have to file a tax return to receive a stimulus check, the Treasury Department announced Wednesday.

"The IRS will use the information on the Form SSA-1099 and Form RRB-1099 to generate $1,200 Economic Impact Payments to Social Security recipients who did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019," the Treasury Department said in a press release.

The reversal comes after lawmakers urged the Treasury Department to send Social Security recipients their payments automatically, according to CNN.

8:05 a.m.: Nearly 276,000 Texans filed for first-time unemployment benefits last week, according to Department of Labor Data, an extraordinary number that soars past last week's already dire situation.

Over the last two weeks ended March 28, more than 431,000 people have filed jobless in Texas. Nationally, more than 6.6 million people filed first time unemployment claims in the U.S. last week.

 Erin Douglas

8 a.m.: Houston health care leaders are urgently putting together contingency plans  from repurposing hospital beds not currently in use to creating a makeshift facility at NRG Stadium  to prevent an expected surge of COVID-19 patients from overwhelming area hospitals, reports the Chronicle's Todd Ackerman.

The plans, assembled by leaders from the Texas Medical Center, the city of Houston, Harris County and the region, stress fluidity and flexibility because it's impossible to know the extent of the surge. Houston's cases are projected to peak in the next two to four weeks.

Houston-area hospitals should be able to create at least 3,500 more beds by such creative rearranging, estimates Darrell Pile, CEO of the Southeast Texas Regional Advisory Council, a state group that coordinates the emergency response to disasters in a 25-county area centered in Houston.
Kate Middleton is taking full advantage of Prince Harry and Meghan Markles exit. As royal watchers may have noticed, Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, has returned to a simpler look now that Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, is no longer an acting member of the monarchy. Royal experts believe Kates change in appearance is not an accident and is due to the fact that she no longer has to compete with the former Suits star.

Kate Middleton | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Did Meghan Markle intimidate Kate Middleton?

When Meghan tied the knot with Prince Harry in 2018 she seemed like the perfect addition to the royal family. Not only did Meghan have a successful career in Hollywood before she met Harry, but she had experience being in the limelight.

But for Kate, inside sources told The Sun that she was a bit intimidated by Meghans presence. For the most part, Kate Middletons insecurities boiled down to always being compared to Meghan, who seemed to dazzle onlookers wherever she went.

She most definitely went through a phase two years ago where she seemed slightly intimidated by Meghan, the insider dished. She was afraid of comparisons being drawn between them and that Meghan was the one who looked glamorous and popular for a while.

That changed, of course, when Harry and Meghan decided to step away from the royal spotlight in January. Their exit from the monarchy became official on March 31 and the couple is now living in Los Angeles with their son Archie Harrison.

Before their final farewell, Harry and Meghan returned to the UK for a quick round of royal engagements, which included one last appearance with Kate and her husband, Prince William.

Kate and Meghan enjoy one last engagement

In what might be the last time we see the Cambridges and Sussexes together in public, Kate and Meghan reunited a few weeks back for the Commonwealth Day service. The event was held inside Westminster Abbey and featured Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, and Camilla Parker Bowles.

Needless to say, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle wore their best to the high-profile event. The Duchess of Cambridge sported a coat dress from designer Catherine Walker, an outfit she has worn on other occasions.

A royal source is speaking out about Kate Middleton and Prince William's reunion with Meghan Markle & Prince Harry, and why Duchess Kate looked uncharacteristically glum https://t.co/Br8kKq2vyC  JustJared.com (@JustJared) March 11, 2020

Meghan, on the other hand, opted for a green dress by Emilia Wickstead complete with a matching headpiece.

Although both women looked amazing during the event, an inside source claims that Kate is looking forward to returning to a simpler look now that Meghans exit from the royal family is official.

Kate Middleton returns to a simpler life

Now that Meghan is out of the picture, a source says that Kate has told her make-up artist and stylist that she wants to go back to a much simpler look.

Someone who knows Kate well said the atmosphere since the Sussexes left has noticeably improved. Kate does not feel she has to compete now. She has gone back to a much simpler style, the source stated. Kate feels very much more relaxed now.

The insider noted that Kate Middleton feels as though a weight has lifted from her shoulders and is now using less eye makeup, paler lip colors and more high street nail polishes. She also appears less stressful and happier in public, which is definitely a good thing.

During a recent visit to an NHS center, for example, Kate wore a very affordable suit from designer Marks and Spencer. Her outfit was something an average working woman would wear and was a far cry from some of her other looks over the past few years.

We cannot say for sure that Kates new look is because of Meghans departure, but she has clearly changed things up in recent months.

How is the Duchess of Cambridge handling the lockdown?

While fans cannot wait to see more of Kates new look, the Duchess of Cambridge is currently homeschooling her three children amid the ongoing coronavirus lockdown.

Kate and William are staying at their country estate, Anmer Hall, with Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis. According to Daily Mail, a source says that Kate is doing the majority of the lessons, though William has pitched in a little.

Kate is leading on most of the teaching. She spends time every day doing something with them, the source stated. William is also rolling up his sleeves and getting stuck in as well.

Kate Middleton praised for 'touching' video of Cambridge children amid coronavirus lockdownhttps://t.co/MPdAgv5s9e pic.twitter.com/CcFvCJvbpy  Daily Express (@Daily_Express) March 27, 2020

William and Kate are expected to remain at their country house until the government lifts the lockdown. Other senior members of the royal family are also self-isolating. Queen Elizabeth is currently hunkering down at Windsor Castle while Prince Charles is in Scotland after testing positive for the coronavirus.

Harry and Meghan, of course, are living in Los Angeles and looking to start the next chapter in their lives.

Kate Middleton has not commented on the reports surrounding her new look.
ICTSI Oregon, the former operator of the Port of Portlands container terminal, has rejected a judges reduced $19 million award of damages against the longshore workers union, seeking instead to go back to trial solely to determine an appropriate amount.

In so doing, ICTSI Oregon Inc. preserves all rights, claims and defenses, one of its attorneys, Michael Garone, wrote to the court.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union has asked U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon to put the matter on hold as it challenges the jury verdict that it was both liable for damages and should pay any damage amount to the former terminal operator.

A federal jury in November found that the union sabotaged shipping traffic and caused productivity to plummet through years of labor slowdowns and stoppages. The unions workers were pressuring ICTSI Oregon to give them the dockside jobs of plugging in, unplugging and monitoring refrigerated containers, taking the so-called reefer jobs away from an electricians union.

The Philippine-owned ICTSI Oregon, which signed a 25-year lease in 2010 to operate Terminal 6, left the port in March 2017, idled by the labor strife it says the national longshore union and the local chapter encouraged. The company argued at trial that the union engaged in unlawful labor practices over nearly five years and caused tens of millions of dollars in losses to its business.

The jury awarded $93.6 million in damages to ICTSI Oregon. But last month, Simon lowered the jury award to $19,061,248, finding the evidence at trial didnt support the jurys larger award that the union argued was excessive and would lead to its bankruptcy.

The judge then gave ICTSI Oregon two weeks to either accept the lower amount or he said a new trial would be held solely on the damages amount.

Dan Jackson, attorney for the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and its Local 8 chapter, had argued that the jurys award was based on serious flaws in the damage calculations offered by an expert hired by ICTSI Oregon. The judge agreed.

In rejecting the judges reduced damages amount, ICTSI Oregons lawyers reminded the judge of his ruling that he will not disturb the jurys thoughtful and well supported findings on liability and causation.

The union, though, has asked Simon to either amend his ruling and allow a new trial on the question of its liability or allow an immediate appeal to proceed.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212

Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian

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Maulana Saad, 55, the head of the Tablighi Jamaat that came under the spotlight after its headquarters in Delhi emerged as the single-biggest source of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) on Tuesday, is known to be a recluse who maintains a low profile.

A great-grandson of Jamaats founder, Muhammad Iliyas, Saad was born in Western Uttar Pradeshs Kandhla town in May 1965. Saad received his early education from his father and he went on to get degrees from prominent Islamic seminary Darul Uloom in Deoband. He also studied at a Delhi seminary, his family in Kandhla said.

Saad has an ancestral house in Kandhlas Maulvian locality. A relative of Saad, Maulana Badrul Hasan, claimed 14-century ruler Muhammad Bin Tughlaq had gifted their family a tract of land in the town in Shamli district.

Hasan called Saad a cult figure, who maintains a low profile during his regular visits to his hometown. Within no time, big crowds gather to meet him. Therefore, he avoids meeting people here to stay in peace for a day or two, said Hasan.

The Delhi police on Wednesday said Saad has been the run since a case was registered against him for flouting social distancing and allowing a gathering at the Jamaat headquarters in Delhi. Officials across the country have been trying to trace the people who attended the gathering at the headquarters that later emerged as an infection hotspot.

Shamli police superintendent Vineet Jaiswal said he had no information about Saads presence in Kandhalvi.

Hasan said Saad usually stays at Jamaats Nizamuddin centre in New Delhi and visits Kandhla for a day or two every month. He denied reports of his presence in Kandhla. Hasan insisted Saad is not a fugitive as suggested by a section of the media. He added Saad is in Delhi and supports every action and order of the government.

Hasan said Saad and other organisers of the gathering are yet to receive a copy of the First Information Repot lodged against him He called for an end to Saads media trial.

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When something goes horribly wrong -- the disastrous launch of the space shuttle Challenger in January 1986, the devastation of the city of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 -- it only makes sense to endeavor to learn from the terrible occurrence in an effort to ensure that it can never happen again.

This is the thinking behind a move to establish a bipartisan panel, in the model of the so-called 9/11 commission, to get to the bottom of the systemic governmental failings that allowed COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus that has been ravaging the nation, to run amok despite ample warnings of what was ahead. How could the federal government have failed so badly to respond to the warning signs? Given the long lead time we had, after what happened in China and then Italy, how could our leaders in Washington have botched so badly their job of protecting the citizenry?

Thats a question that must be answered, fully. And the best way to get to the bottom of things is to form an investigatory panel, with subpoena powers. Thats exactly what Rep. Bennie Thompson, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, has proposed. Thompson, a Democrat from Mississippi, wrote the 2007 bill that implemented the findings of the 9/11 panel. On Wednesday, Thompson said the nation is at a similar inflection point and needs a full accounting of what went wrong.

Hear, hear.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., has also been working on the establishment of a panel to investigate the government failings that allowed the pandemic to rage unabated in our nation. Schiff, who is expected to meld his efforts with Thompson's, told The Washington Post that the panel wouldn't get to work until the pandemic is over. That, of course, is as it should be. But laying the groundwork now, so the commission can be up and running quickly, only makes sense.

Thompson has called for a 25-member, bipartisan panel, its members named by the chairmen and ranking members of relevant House and Senate committees. No one can logically oppose the creation of the COVID-19 panel. At least not publicly.

Because the people need to know what went wrong, and what can be done to keep it from ever happening again.

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An Australian man has proudly spent his $750 stimulus payment on eight cases of Victoria Bitter.

He was one of six million Australians who received the one-off payment from the government to ward off a looming recession brought on by the coronavirus crisis.

As soon as the money was in his account he headed to the bottle shop to stock-up on beer.

'I've just spent my stimulus money, I've got eight slabs in there and that should last me about eight days,' he said in a video shared online.

'I'm as happy as a pig in mud.'

An Australian man has proudly spent his $750 stimulus payment on eight cases of VB beer

Some social media users hailed him a hero for spending the cash rather than saving it.

'That's exactly what it was intended for, spend it on taxable items, keep our economy afloat,' one man wrote.

'I work 28 days a month and pay mammoth amounts of tax and this makes me happy..... good on him,' added another.

'How do you know this bloke hasn't been working for the past 35 years? Good on ya mate, have a beer for me,' wrote a third in the man's defense.

However, a number of people expressed frustration that taxpayer money was being spent on alcohol when it could have been used to help out small businesses.

'What a dog, the alcohol is most highly taxed anyway so some of the money going right back to the government,' one person wrote.

'Lucky guy, I need mine to pay my rent and buy food, had to isolate by doctors orders due to lung condition,' wrote another.

The stimulus payments, which are part of the Government's two-part $17.6 billion stimulus package announced on March 12, come as the Australian economy has grinds to a sudden halt after extreme measures were put in place to slow the spread of the deadly virus.

Most businesses have been forced to close indefinitely, with all cafes and restaurants now offering a takeaway service only.

Thousands of Australians have been left without work as a result.

He was one of the first Australians to receive the one-off payment from the government to ward off a looming recession brought on by the coronavirus pandemic

The payments are to go to anyone already receiving income support, which includes pensioners, veterans, Job seekers (Newstart), Youth Allowance recipients and more.

The money started hitting bank accounts on Tuesday, with a second $750 payment for welfare recipients and pensioners coming in July.

Those who are entitled to the benefit and who don't receive the money in their accounts should call Centrelink or log on to their MyGov accounts to check for updates.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Small, medium and not-for-profit businesses with a turnover of less than $50 million will also be eligible for a handout under the plan.

Tax-free payments from $20,000 up to $100,000 will be given out automatically through the Australian Taxation Office, to help companies retain staff between January 1 and June 30.

The Government believes this will help about 7.8 million employees in 700,000 businesses.

'Our targeted stimulus package will focus on keeping Australians in jobs and keeping businesses in business so we can bounce back strongly,' Scott Morrison said when he announced the stimulus.

'The economy needs temporary help right now to bounce back better so the livelihoods of all Australians are protected.'

While the $750 payments will be a welcomed sight for millions of Australians, Westpac Bank chief economist Bill Evans has warned they are unlikely to save Australia from a recession.

The economic impact of COVID-19 starts to be felt as people queue for access to a Centrelink Service Centre in Sydney on March 23, 2020

'The Government's Fiscal Stimulus Package is a bold initiative to bolster the Australian economy's defences against the damage likely to be wrought by COVID-19,' Mr Evans said.

'However, the current domestic and global environment has deteriorated more rapidly than we had expected  despite the Government's bold efforts the June quarter is still likely to show negative growth and Australia will experience a technical recession.'

Westpac forecasts around 800,000 job will be lost as a result of the coronavirus crisis, which will see Australia's unemployment rate hit 11 percent by June.
Kylie Jenner will be making a huge donation of hand sanitisers to southern California hospitals.

The 22-year-old reality TV star and her mother, Kris Jenner, have teamed up with cosmetics company Coty to mass produce the hand sanitisers.

Each sanitiser will come with a special message, reading, dedicated to first responders working to support our communities.

According to Page Six, Coty will be making the hand sanitisers in its factories, and Kylie Skin products will not be affected.

Kylie had recently donated USD 1 million to help supply protective wear to healthcare professionals fighting coronavirus on the front lines.

The businesswoman has also been using her star power to spread awareness about social-distancing, asking her fans to "stay inside" and "practice self-quarantine.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 12:43:41|Editor: huaxia

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MOSCOW, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The United States is ignoring the international law by signing the so-called "Taiwan Allies International Protection and Enhancement Initiative (TAIPEI) Act of 2019" into law, a senior Russian researcher in international relations has said.

"From the point of view of international law, such behavior is completely absurd and illegal," Vasily Kashin, a senior researcher from the Far Eastern Studies Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

The United States established diplomatic relations with China on the basis of the one-China principle, which means that it should bear corresponding responsibilities, said Kashin.

"Therefore, they have no right to promote the separatism of a Chinese province, but nevertheless they do it and the fact is that these diplomatic games they are engaged in are only a smaller part of what they do," he added.

"They also deliver weapons, and carry out other forms of cooperation. This is a traditional U.S. policy that has nothing to do with international law and in fact is a complete mockery of international law," he said.

"The signing is a reflection of a policy it had adopted quite a long time ago," he said, adding that this reflects a movement in a single direction, which is based on the U.S. awareness that the Taiwan question is related to the fundamental interests of China.

"As China considers its solution to be fundamental for its interests and it will not back down, the U.S. is hitting precisely at this spot," he added.

"We see an increased number of passages of U.S. warships through the Taiwan Strait, a changed model of military-technical cooperation, and so on," he said.

According to Kashin, on the diplomatic front, the United States continues to exert pressure on countries that wish to establish diplomatic relations with China.

"Now this practice, conducted by U.S. diplomats, is formalized in the law. Well, it was expected," he said.

Kashin noted that the fight against China is a priority of the U.S. foreign policy.

"We have witnessed that in addition to the Taiwan theme, the U.S. is also using the epidemic to attack China. A resolution has been submitted to Congress holding China responsible for this epidemic and this issue is already being actively discussed in some U.S. media," he said.

"This behavior itself against the backdrop of such a global catastrophe shows a degree of hostility," Kashin added.

He said that while the COVID-19 pandemic is raging, efforts are being made to discredit Chinese aid to the affected European countries, and there are rumors that China is doing this only to gain political influence.

"The U.S. fight against China in this crisis is escalating and is becoming more severe," he added.
La Trobe University senior executives have cut their own pay to grapple with "a very significant loss of revenue" as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The university is already expecting to lose between $120 to $150 million in revenue this year, out of its budgeted revenue of $850 million.

La Trobe University vice-chancellor and president, Professor John Dewar. Credit:Jeremy Piper

Senior executives have agreed to take a 20 per cent pay cut between April 25 and July 3 to "share the pain", La Trobe announced on Thursday night.

"Of this, 10 per cent will be donated to the La Trobe Student Crisis Appeal, and the remainder will accrue as savings to the university budget," the statement said.
A coyote that's believed to have attacked and bitten a 5-year-old girl in Dublin Hills Regional Park on Wednesday afternoon was located and fatally shot with a rifle early Thursday morning, a spokesman for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said.

Capt. Patrick Foy of the Department of Fish and Wildlife said the coyote was located after a joint investigation involving his agency, the East Bay Regional Park District, Dublin police and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal, Plant and Health Inspection Service.

The coyote was spotted in the vicinity of where a coyote attacked the girl at about 2:20 p.m. Wednesday at the 654-acre park, which is located north of Interstate Highway 580 and northeast of Schaefer Ranch, Foy said.

The injuries the girl suffered weren't life-threatening, according to Foy.

East Bay Regional Park District police said on Wednesday that the girl was taken to UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital after the attack and was in stable condition. Foy said he doesn't know if the girl has been released yet.

Foy said the coyote that was killed early Thursday has been taken to a Fish and Wildlife lab in Sacramento to see if there's DNA that can be linked to DNA that was taken from the girl's clothing.

Foy said the tests also are aimed at finding out if the coyote had rabies or another disease that could have infected the girl.

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The Chan Soon-Shiong Family Foundation is seeking to buy St. Vincent Medical Center near downtown Los Angeles and use the campus to help with the coronavirus crisis. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

A family foundation controlled by Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong is seeking to buy an empty hospital near downtown Los Angeles and turn it into a sprawling campus for COVID-19 patients and coronavirus research.

Soon-Shiong and his wife, Michele B. Chan, run the Chan Soon-Shiong Family Foundation, which has offered to purchase St. Vincent Medical Center out of bankruptcy for $135 million.

Soon-Shiong, who owns The Times, said in an interview that the goal was to create a "central command" center that would attract doctors and experts on the virus, and relieve pressure on other hospitals.

The state recently moved to lease the property to help the region cope with the coronavirus outbreak, and Soon-Shiong said his purchase would bolster that effort.

Thats what every city should have done, they should have established a central command, Soon-Shiong said, adding that we are in a war zone now."

A judge on Wednesday approved the Chan Soon-Shiong Family Foundation as the lead bidder for the hospital at a federal Bankruptcy Court hearing. Competing offers must be submitted to the court by Friday.

St. Vincent has been closed since January amid bankruptcy proceedings, a blow to the working-class, predominantly Latino neighborhood served by the hospital.

Politicians talked this year about using the medical center at 3rd and Alvarado streets to help the area's homeless population, but the proposal didnt gain traction.

The foundation's bid marks the latest twist for St. Vincent, which was founded in the 1850s by the Daughters of Charity  six nuns who wanted to offer services to the poor and saw a need for healthcare in a growing L.A.

It is now owned by Verity Health System, a nonprofit operator of California hospitals, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2018.

At the time, Verity officials said the company had more than $1 billion in debt from bonds and unfunded pension liabilities and needed cash to make seismic ugrades to its aging facilities. They said they purchased St. Vincent and five other hospitals in 2017 hoping to restore them to financial health but could not.

Story continues

The bankruptcy creditors include the hospital systems former management company, Integrity Healthcare, which is controlled by NantWorks, the Culver City company led by Soon-Shiong.

NantWorks-related entities contributed more than $300 million in unsecured and secured loans and investments to the chain as part of Integritys efforts to recapitalize and revitalize the hospitals. Verity opted to cancel the contract with Integrity as part of its bankruptcy proceedings, ending Soon-Shiongs relationship with the hospitals, according to court records.

The Chan Soon-Shiong Family Foundation was founded in 2009. Soon-Shiong said the foundation has nothing to do with NantWorks.

The long-term plan for St. Vincent Medical Center is still being worked out, Soon-Shiong said. If the sale to his foundation goes through, the infrastructure needs a significant amount of work, he said, and its unclear whether the center would operate as a hospital after the pandemic.

I think we have to address the homelessness issue, we have to address the mental health issue, we have to address the poverty issue, and thats the mission of the foundation, Soon-Shiong said.

Soon-Shiong said the state will be in charge of staffing the hospital. Court filings show that the state will pay $2.6 million a month to lease St. Vincent.

The court set a hearing Monday for an auction if other bids are submitted. A final hearing on the sale is scheduled for later next week.

Louis Cisz, attorney for American Hospital Properties of California, said his client also hoped to bid on the center and was disappointed with the timeline.

"Because of the ruling [Wednesday], and the short time frame, we're not sure we can complete the bidding in time," Cisz said. "This is a very accelerated process. In our view, the lead bidder wanted to close the sale as soon as possible."

Soon-Shiong said that bankruptcy proceedings had been going on for two years, challenging criticisms that the sale process is now moving quickly.

However, there "is an urgency in regards to COVID, Soon-Shiong said. We literally have weeks before we have a huge surge.

Times staff writer Alejandra Reyes-Velarde contributed to this report.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a virtual meeting with Chief Ministers of various states over the prevailing coronavirus situation in the country.

During the meeting, the Prime Minister said that coronavirus has attacked our faith and belief and is threatening our way of life, read a release by the Prime Ministers Office.

PM Modi lauded the effort by the the state governments in tackling the Covid-19 crisis in the country.

It is truly praiseworthy how all the States have worked together as a team to check the spread of the virus, he said.

The Prime Minister said that the focus for the coming weeks should be on testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine.

He said that it is important to formulate a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population once the lockdown ends and asked states to send suggestions for the same.

The meeting also saw Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in attendance.

This was Prime Ministers second video conference with chief ministers on coronavirus. The first was on March 20.

Earlier in the day, PM Modi held a telephonic conversation with Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on the coronavirus situation in the state.

This comes as Covid-19 cases in the country jumped to 1,965 on Thursday. Of the current 1,965 coronavirus cases in the country, 1,764 are active cases, 150 recoveries and 50 deaths.
One nursing home has seen almost 100 of its staff and residents tested positive for the Covid-19 virus, the Dail has heard.

The shocking situation, believed to be a Leinster-based facility, was outlined by Fianna Fail TD Stephen Donnelly as TDs debated the pandemic and gaps in responses.

Mr Donnelly outlined how 70 of the 200 staff had tested positive as had 19 of the 100 residents.

He said four residents in the same nursing home had also passed away and that kitchen and cleaning staff had left the facility.

Later, Mr Donnelly said: "One health care worker in Dublin who often sees 10 different clients a day has contracted Covid-19.

He added that the worker also lives in a small house with eight other health care workers who also have 10 clients a day.

Deputy Donnelly said: "It is entirely possible that some of them have been infected and in turn passed the virus on to vulnerable people they care for.

The HSE have confirmed they have no PPE to provide to home care workers.

This has to change. There are 13,000 private home care workers in Ireland. It makes no sense to tell everyone over 70 that they cant leave their house, while sending into those same homes people with no training in infection control and no PPE."

TDs during the day clashed on whether the parliament should sit or not with most of the country on lockdown and advised not to leave their homes.

Health Minister Simon Harris criticised the meeting in the Dail chamber, which he said ran counter to the national message to stay at home.

He noted the EU parliament had met digitally but TDs coming to Leinster House risked public health" with close contact with staff and travelling beyond their home.

Earlier, there was a row at the Dail business committee with Fianna Fail and Fine Gael TDs pushing for the parliament not to meet while Sinn Fein, other left-wing TDs, Solidarity-People before Profit members and Independents insisted the meeting must go ahead.

Cork North Central Solidarity TD Mick Barry told the chamber there were tens of thousands of people still being forced to go into work.

This included workers at a Tic Tac factory in Cork as well as another company where artificial hips and knees are made.

He also highlighted how some bus drivers had been given no protective equipment or options and called for a fare waiver during the crisis.

Sinn Fein's Louise O'Reilly demanded that frontline workers get sufficient access to personal protective equipment and she also claimed that private consultants now engaged by the state to respond to the emergency were getting paid more than those contracted under the public service.
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Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi (The Jakarta Post) Surakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 17:23 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f47abc 1 National COVID-19,COVID-19-travel-restriction,COVID-19-in-Indonesia Free

To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Surakarta administration in Central Java is urging its citizens to refrain from returning to their home towns unless they quarantine themselves for 14 days before they depart.

I warn you again, do not return to your home town. If they ignore this warning, I will put them under quarantine before they leave for their home town, Surakarta Mayor FX Hadi Rudy Rudyatmo said on Tuesday.

Rudy added that his administration was prepared to turn three old buildings into quarantine centers, namely Ndalem Joyokusuman, Ndalem Priyosuhartan and Graha Wisata Niaga.

The two first mentioned buildings are for people under monitoring (ODP) while Wisata Niaga is for people who wished to return to their hometown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We will conduct a health screening every day. They are allowed to go home if they are in a healthy condition, or go to the hospital if they are patients under surveillance."

Aside from limiting the number of people who contract COVID-19, Rudy also said the quarantine had been implemented because the public was worried about travelers from cities with numerous disease cases, such as Greater Jakarta.

Hopefully this policy will make them think twice before returning to their home towns, Rudy said.

The head of the COVID-19 advanced management task force in Surakarta, Ahyani, said his team is collaborating with the airports, train stations and bus terminals to detect the coronavirus among people who use public transportation to return to their home towns, while the neighborhood unit heads (RT) and district officers would attempt to detect those who use their personal vehicles to return.

We already coordinated with the officers in each area. We asked them to report them to us if they spotted travelers from Surakarta, Ahyani said.

As of Wednesday, referral hospitals in Surakarta have recorded 130 people under monitoring and 39 patients under surveillance, all of whom traveled from outside of the city.

Meanwhile, the local data revealed that there have been seven COVID-19 patients, three of which are from Surakarta while the other four are from outside of the city. The number of people under monitoring also increased to 232 from 219, while the number of patients under surveillance has risen to 29, of whom 14 recovered while six died.

We cannot afford to lock down the area. Surakarta is not big, but we have plenty of ways to get into the city because we are surrounded by five regencies. We obtain our food from the surrounding areas, Alyani said. (dpk)
Industry participates in WHO's social distancing campaign



Almost all industrial sectors are reeling under the new coronavirus shock, but a few industries are benefiting from it. A case in point is digital gaming. According to foreign wire services, the World Health Organization has begun a campaign called #PlayApartTogether, recommending that people practice social distancing to contain COVID-19 by playing online games.



On March 21, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also wrote on Twitter: "Let's listen to music, read books and play games at home." Global game-makers such as Activision Blizzard, Riot Games, Twitch and Unity are taking part in the campaign.



Considering the global health agency's critical stance on online games so far, it seems as if we were living in a different world. In May last year, the WHO caused controversy by defining "gaming disorder" as an illness, brushing aside opposition from the industry and academic circles. By including online gaming in the International Classification of Disease, the WHO said games could lead to addiction requiring treatment.



Less than a year has since passed, and the WHO is now making an about-face to encourage people to play online games. Earlier, the organization came under fire for its defense of China, the epicenter of COVID-19. Most governments are critical of the WHO, which has flip-flopped its position as the situation has changed. Many also seemed to be right when they raised reasonable doubts over the organization's classification of gaming disorder as a disease.



The emergence of COVID-19 as an unexpected ally of digital gaming, is highlighting the industry's more positive functions rather than its negative aspects. At a time such as now, when all outdoor activities have been virtually banned, the gaming industry is proving its real worth. Watching TV and YouTube is individualistic, passive and closed, while online gaming is communicative, positive and open. It has even been claimed to have a curative effect for anxious or depressed people.



Every technology has two sides. Even the internet, widely hailed as one of the greatest inventions of humankind, has its dark side. With or without COVID-19, online gaming has been underestimated. We need to take another look at this industry.


EastEnders star Maisie Smith has celebrated 12 years playing the teen tearaway Tiffany Butcher with a gallery of hilarious throwback snaps.

The soap star shared the funny snaps on Instagram from her early days as Tiffany as she and co-star Shona McGarty messed around with props backstage.

Maisie, 18, also reassured fans that despite her nostalgic post she has no plans to leave the soap, as filming continues to be halted due to the coronavirus.

Funny: EastEnders star Maisie Smith has celebrated 12 years playing the teen tearaway Tiffany Butcher with a gallery of hilarious throwback snaps

Maisie appeared to be poking fun at EastEnders veteran Dot Cotton in her snap, as she dressed up in a headscarf and tabard while pretending the smoke a cigarette.

The actress first joined the soap at the age of seven as Bianca Butcher's daughter, and became a breakout star with her hilarious one-liners.

She appears in the snaps with co-stars Devon Higgs (who played Tiffany's half-brother Morgan) and Shona (who played step sister Whitney Dean).

Throwback: The actress marked over a decade since she made her debut on the soap at the age of just seven, but reassured fans she isn't quitting the show

Gorgeous: Maisie made a full time return to EastEnders in 2018 after taking a four year break (pictured in March 2020)

Messing around: In the snaps, Maisie was messing around with her co-stars Shona McGarty and Devon Higgs

Looking back on her time in the soap - including a break from 2014 to 2017 - Maisie wrote: '12 yrs ago today I joined the cast of @bbceastenders.

'Thank you ALL for your endless support throughout the years  had the TIME OF MY LYF X X X p.s I havent left the show.'

Maisie also shared some snaps with her on-screen soap family, which included legend Pat Butcher, Janine Butcher and her dad, Bianca's on-off flame Ricky Butcher.

Classic: She arrived in Albert Square as Bianca's daughter with on-off flame Ricky, and the family has since caused chaos in the Square

Mad: The Butcher clan have gone down in EastEnders history during their time on the soap

The actress made a sensational return to the soap two years ago claiming she'd been abandoned by mum Bianca.

Since then she's been through her fair share of challenges, including becoming a drug dealer and being raped.

But in recent months she's found love with Keegan Baker (Zack Morris), and the couple surprised their loved ones by tying the knot earlier this year.

The pair also sparked rumours that they were getting close off-screen, but Maisie has insisted they're 'just mates.'

EastEnders airs on Monday at 8pm on BBC One. The soap is currently airing just two episodes a week due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Barely 48 hours after President Muhammadu Buhari announced a 14-day shutdown of business, economic and social activities in Lagos, Ogun and Abuja to slow down the exposure of Nigerians to the coronavirus pandemic, some residents of Lagos have threatened to protest if they do not receive any palliative from the government within two days.

The residents made the threat in footage currently circulating on social media. In the footage, there is a heated argument between the residents and officials of the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps (LNSC) who had gone to their neighbourhood to ensure the residents were complying with the lockdown.

The LNSC officials were members of the Lagos Special Taskforce on COVID-19.

The residents complained that the government ordered the lockdown without providing palliative to help them cope through the period of the lockdown. They also complained about the poor power supply and wondered how the government expected them to survive during the lockdown.

We are hungry. No food. No light. How do they want us to stay inside? No money, no food, what should we eat?, voices in the background said.

I have a question. You are saying we should stay indoor but the indoor you are asking us to stay do you know there is no food for us. There is nothing they provide for us. They said 14 days. Fourteen days is not a day and there is no money, no food, someone behind the camera asked the LRU officials.

An LNSC official responded saying if the residents wanted the government to release everyone so that the virus can continue to spread.

No, responded the resident.

I never said so. They said social distance. But we are telling you from now to two days we would come out to protest if they did not send any money of food to us. We would protest. We would protest. We are giving you two day. We would protest in two days time.

We want you to deliver our message in two days time we would protest. We cant stay indoor for hunger. In two days we would protest in two days. Weve heard you but in two days we would protest.

They did not pay us any money. They did not give us food. Our children are there they said we should stay indoor for what reason. Tomorrow we are going to protest. Our children are hungry and you say we should stay indoors. For what reason. You didnt give us money. You didnt give us anything and you want us to stay indoors.

The Lagos State government had promised to provide palliatives in the form of food items to the most vulnerable population in the state.

However, the state distribution process is riddled with inefficiency with several residents accusing officials of hoarding the supplies, sharing them among members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), or distributing them in a crowded atmosphere, which defeats the social distancing the state government is preaching.

During his nationwide broadcast on Sunday night, President Muhammadu Buhari also promised to provide relief materials for Abuja and Lagos residents during the 14-day lockdown.
In September last year, FCB Joburg promoted Suhana Gordhan to executive creative director, in line with a string of other promotions that happened within the agency. This move sees her joining the team of Neo Segola, who became an ECD in 2018, and newly promoted Tian van den Heever.

Suhana Gordhan.

Congrats on your appointment. How do you feel about it?

What excites you most about the agency and where its going?

Right now, everything is washed with a coronavirus hue, so what has started to excite me is how much more connected we have become as an agency and how were starting to value simple human interactions a little more. But mostly, what excites me is that in a time of crisis, creativity is what the world turns to. And as agencies, well be forced to find new ground to rethink, redo and adjust all our settings.

What do you love most about your career in advertising?

Any career highlights youre particularly proud of?

Tell us a bit about your experience and how this has equipped you for your new position.

What are you most looking forward to/enjoying so far?

Whats at the top of your to-do list?

Right now, its clear that all of us in advertising have a single, focused objective, and that is to help our clients get through the current lockdown and how to steer our brands through the extended crisis of the coronavirus without being opportunistic and inauthentic.

What are you currently reading/watching/listening to for work?

Tell us something about yourself not generally known?

Gordhan entered the advertising industry in 2001 and has worked on some of the country's much-loved brands at agencies like Ogilvy, Black River FC and Net#work BBDO. She joined FCB Africa in 2015 where she was the creative director before her promotion to executive creative director in September 2019 and is the creative lead on Coca-Cola South Africa.I recently caught up with her to find out more about the new role and asked her to share some of her career highlights and why these stood out.At first, I was resisting it because it means more responsibility. Then I was fearful because I thought it would mean moving further and further away from the actual work. And then like most things, I realised its the next step that will be my teacher, and so, a good thing.I love that it brings me the most unusual and memorable experiences like being a few metres away from Kevin Costner, learning to surf in Nicaragua, dressing like a ninja for some late-night graffiti, writing words for Madiba and nurturing young creatives.I love that it opens up knowledge on such a vast range of subjects from chicken and soda to women empowerment and healthcare. And most of all, I love that creative thinking leads to making and making is where your creativity gets to live in the real world.Im really proud of the work our team did for Coca-Cola last year. It was called The Coke Phonetic Can and it was about teaching South Africans to pronounce each others names. It was such a joyful, meaningful process, considering that even after 25 years of democracy, many of us still dont even attempt to get name pronunciations right. It also gave us the chance to produce a true, fully integrated campaign.Getting the opportunity to judge at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity in 2016 was also unforgettable  a dream come true and such a massive learning experience.I think that this industry is so dynamic and youre constantly learning. So when you get into a role like this, its not that you just apply everything and sit back and chill. I think that you find new gaps where learning is needed and I think you reach out even more to mentors for knowledge sharpening and guidance.I spent 10 years being a creative director and the learning never stopped there either, but I do think that all those years of experience made the transition into this role a little more natural.Being the Chair Aunty of the Loeries also really played its part. It helped grow me in totally different ways and it showed me the power and potential a platform has to create meaning and change.Weve been working on a project for USAID which is about helping 800,000 men living with HIV to stay on their medication. This is the most intriguing and profound problem Ive ever had to solve using creativity. It has been one of the most challenging and meaningful projects Ive ever worked on.Nothing about it is the usual and more than just factual knowledge, Im learning about something I knew very little about  the lived experience of HIV positive men in this country, the intricacies of the healthcare system and the devastating effects of stigma.by Nir Eyal  a book on how to manage distractions (not currently easy during Lockdown). Im also reading a book about the power of emotion in advertising, by Nahana's chief strategy officer, Rita Doherty.by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar  a daily live meditation on YouTube, so that I find calm in the times of the coronavirus., a series on Netflix because creatives need all kinds of inspiration including dramatic stories about Ancient Chinese Dynasties being threatened by throngs of daylight-loving zombies.Im a Hindu who occasionally has epic Jesus dreams.
TANZANIA Bureau of Standards (TBS) has said the registration of premises for food and cosmetics is a legal requirement that business people should fulfill with the aim of meeting quality standards.

All dealers in food and cosmetics business in the country should have their prime concerns on the protection of consumers health.

Dealers should take reasonable steps to ensure that the food supplied to the community is safe of good quality and at the same time they should ensure that registered premises for manufacturing, storage, distribution and selling are well constructed, secured and maintained in a way that the safety and health of consumers is assured.

An inspector with TBS, Baraka Mbajije said in an interview, adding that at TBS there is a special department responsible for the registration of premises and quality certification of goods before starting business operations.

With the Finance Act 2019, the obligations on the safety and quality control of food and cosmetics were officially transferred to TBS from the former Tanzania Food and Drugs and Authority (TFDA).

Mbajije said some of the requirements for the registration of business premises for food and cosmetics are the business formalisation, business licence and the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN).

The response of business people to register their businesses has remained low and since when TBS started registration of business premises in October last year received 2,237 only.

To ensure that business people comply with the law that requires them to register their premises for food and cosmetics, TBS is regularly conducting impromptu inspections in all the premises to identify those who have not adhered to the law.

One of the benefits of compliance to the law that requires owners of business premises to register for quality standards is the guarantee and preservation of the goods in premises that meet the required standards.

For imported food and cosmetics, the procedures to apply for the registration is almost the same as that of the business premises which is done online.

Also, trucks and other transport facilities that are used in food and cosmetics business should follow the same procedures of registration to meet the required standards.

After meeting the requirements, TBS inspectors take time to inspect the architect of the business premises designed for food and cosmetics merchandise that should among others show store for storage of goods.

He said for restaurants or hotels that provides food services, the premises should have a place for receiving and preparing food.

When a trader has all the requirements, the next step is to make registration of the premises for food and cosmetics online through a link at the TBS website.

After filling all the required documentations online, TBS officials will start processing the application then send the trader the control number for making payment.

After making the payment, TBS contact the business person for the inspection of the business premises before starting business operations.

When the inspection is complete and the premises meet the TBS standards, then the trader is issued with the quality certificate online.

The certificate remains valid for one year and the renewal is supposed to be done two months before the expiry period and that should follow procedures as is making the first application.

Mbajije said TBS has been doing impromptu inspections in all the premises to see if they comply the required standards.

The registration of premises and licensing of food businesses shall not be considered as the sole means of controlling operations of such premises.

However, there are other valuable means of aid in enforcing relevant legislation, such as adherence to good hygienic practices, good storage practice and good distribution practice that ensure day-to-day operations of these premises are in line with the laws and regulations.

The food premises shall be designed for the intended purpose and shall have no direct link with any business or occupation that may lead to contamination of food.

Every utensil and equipment used in food and cosmetics premises shall be suitable for their intended use, well designed and adequately cleanable and proper maintenance of cold chain for frozen products.

Every food contact surface shall be smooth and impervious, free from pits, crevices and loose scale, non-toxic and capable of withstanding repeated cleaning disinfection and sanitisation.

Utensils, crockery, cutlery and other equipment coming in contact with food shall be sufficient in number to enable adequate sanitisation before use.

Single service articles shall be stored in appropriate containers and handled, dispensed, used and disposed to prevent contamination of food or food contact surfaces.

Apart from business licence and TIN, also for imported goods a trader is required to attach descriptions regarding the manufacturing of the goods.

All the descriptions should be listed and their percentage. For example the amount of sugar used in grams or percentage and should put the Certificate of Analysis that will be given by the manufacturer of the goods.

Since when TBS took over the registration of food and cosmetics, has received 1,924 applications.
A 27-year-old who married a man 23 years her senior has opened up about their 'love at first sight' connection, while hitting back at people who claims she is her husband's paid sugar baby.

In March 2019, luxury real estate agent, Sarai Serface, 27, from Boulder, Colorado, had just moved to Denver when she decided to try out the Bumble dating app to meet someone.

After struggling to find someone within her age range, she decided to expand her age preference and she soon matched with Joel, 50, who was living just 30 minutes away.

Instant connection: Sarai Serface, 27, met her now-husband Joel, 50, on dating app Bumble and the couple says it was love at first sight

Controversy: Despite her family's shock over their 23-year age gap, Sarai and Joel got engaged after just one month of dating - and they tied the knot less than a year later

Bond: 'It was love at first sight for sure; an attraction arose within me that I didn't even know existed before Joel. It's hard to explain, but I was mesmerized,' Sarai said

They both felt an instant connection as soon as they swiped right for each other, but after just a couple of days of messaging each other and talking on the phone, the sparks they felt turned into love. The first date went from an instant connection to never a moment apart.

Within just a month in April 2019, they both knew they were committed to each other and decided to commemorate this with matching infinity tattoos and shortly thereafter, Joel asked Sarai to marry him at a restaurant where they were on a date.

On November 11, 2019, they decided to permanently mark their engagement by getting matching '222' tattoos on their ring fingers.

Then just three months later they got married in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, on February 22, 2020. Whilst Sarai's parents, both 53 years old, were initially skeptical, they have since warmed to him as a friend.

'It was love at first sight for sure; an attraction arose within me that I didn't even know existed before Joel. It's hard to explain, but I was mesmerized,' Sarai said.

'Initially from Joel's profile, I was attracted to the fact that he was passionate about the environment and people.

'When we first spoke by phone I was amazed by his articulation and poise. What initially attracted me to him was his maturity, resilience, thirst for adventure, and empathy.

'Physically, I found myself extremely attracted to all of his characteristics and I couldn't take my eyes or hands off him all night.

Critics: The couple knows that people are judgmental of their relationship, but they insist it doesn't matter to them what others think

Upset: 'I have got messages on Instagram calling our relationship "predatory". I have had a lot of comments calling me a sugar baby,' Sarai shared

Betrayal: Even some of Sarai's closest friends have told her she won't need to worry about money because she has a 'sugar daddy'

'As early as April 2019, we both knew we were committed and not going to separate. We actually got matching infinity tattoos then to celebrate our commitment, even though it was extremely early in the relationship.

'We didn't exactly have a traditional proposal; Joel asked me to marry him at one of our favorite restaurants and then on November 11, 2019, we commemorated the engagement by getting matching '222' tattoos on our ring finger. We were married in Ocho Rios, Jamaica on February 22, 2020.

'My parents, being near the same age as Joel, had a difficult time understanding why I was choosing this relationship. However, they welcomed Joel as a friend and have been working on warming up to the relationship.'

Sarai admits that people assume he pays her for sex, with one stranger who asked Joel where he 'bought' her from.

Despite the negative reaction from some strangers, they insist their love is strong and will last.

'It really shocked me when someone in the street asked Joel how much he paid for me. Someone else has asked where Joel bought me from,' Sarai said.

'Sometimes when we go out, people ask if he kidnapped me. We have also had someone come up to us both and say, 'please tell me you are father and daughter and not a couple'.

'One time when we went to the pharmacy to pick up medication, the pharmacist thought I was his child and gave me instructions for the medication.

Outrage: A stranger even asked Joel how much he had 'bought' Sarai for

Doubts: Joel admits that he was worried that Sarai was just going through a phase of dating older men when they first met

Evolution: 'However, I quickly realized that was not the case and that she was constantly growing and eager to better herself,' he added

'I have got messages on Instagram calling our relationship 'predatory'. I have had a lot of comments calling me a sugar baby. I have had friends tell me I don't need to worry about money because I have a 'sugar daddy'. The list goes on.

'Open your mind and expand your horizons. People always need to be growing and challenging their thinking.

'You might miss out on the love of your life because of your own reservations and judgements. I'm glad I didn't.'

Joel admits that he didn't expect their relationship to last due to their age gap, but has been pleasantly surprised by Sarai's maturity and openness and says that older women tend to be more 'rigid' or 'guarded', whilst Sarai is a 'breath of fresh air'.

'I knew I loved her before I even met her, but man, my heart went crazy in that moment we met,' Joel said.

'I, of course, knew she was beautiful from her profile but it wasn't until we had our first conversation that I realized she was also emotionally intelligent beyond her years, energetic, adventurous, integrous, compassionate, funny, charming, youthful, fun, and sweet.

'Neither one of us wanted the first date to end. Sarai capped the evening off by saying that she wanted 'one-hundred more of these dates'.

'At first, I was worried that Sarai might be immature based on her age or that she would lack life and relationship experience.

'I feared that this would just be a passing phase for her (being into older men) and that she might not have the durability to last in relationship long term.

'However, I quickly realized that was not the case and that she was constantly growing and eager to better herself.

Bond: Seven months after they met, the couple cemented their bond by getting matching '222' tattoos on their fingers

Follow up: They then both got infinity symbols on their necks

'I saw our age gap as being more beneficial when I realized that because of Sarai's younger age, she was completely open to personal growth and seeing and sharing the world through a completely new lens.

'This was a breath of fresh air, as opposed to older women who tended to be very rigid or guarded, in my experience, and it gave me an amazing appreciation for Sarai.

'The most difficult thing for me has been the perception that my conventional business environment has about my relationship; they don't necessarily accept younger or diverse significant others.

'My family comes from a conservative background and have their own expectations about what's right and wrong. With that being said, they did not immediately welcome Sarai warmly into the family.

'We are currently being patient and hoping that they see over time that our relationship, though alternative, is the healthiest and most passionate relationship I've ever experienced or could imagine.

'We hope to invite them into this beautiful love journey. We hope to prove to everyone just how deep love truly can transcend.'
Huawei and ZTE were the major winners in China Mobiles recent CNY37.1 billion ($5.2 billion) 5G tender, leaving Nokia empty-handed.

While Huawei took the lions share of contracts with 57.3% of their total value, ZTE got a look in with 28.7% and western vendors were not shunned entirely, with Ericsson winning 11.5% of total contract value.

The final 2.6% went to China Information Communication Technologies, which was formed in 2018 by a merger of FiberHome Technologies and Datang Telecom Group.

China Mobile began the second part of its 5G tender in early March, with the aim of pushing coverage across the country by deploying an additional 232,000 base stations.

The operator held its first 5G tender in June 2019, and Nokia won core network contracts including 12% of a mobility management device tender and 9% of a system architecture evolution gateway contract. Its exclusion in the second round is therefore unexpected.

The Finnish vendors footprint in China has never been vast, and it has seen its fortunes ailing in the market. Its Q4 2019 revenue was down 25% year-on-year to 469 million.

When releasing its forecast in February, Nokia left China out given that pursuing market share in China presents significant profitability challenges and the region has some unique market dynamics.

China Mobile has finished its initial 5G rollout, extending coverage to 50 cities. It now aims to have 300,000 sites functional by the end of the year.
A woman is cycling along a street in Wuhan, China on April 1, 2020. (Photo by NOEL CELIS / AFP) (Photo by NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)

As Lockdown Measures in China Ease, Travelers Without Symptoms Spread Virus Further

After Chinese authorities in the virus epicenter of Hubei province lifted social distancing rules, more than three million people traveled out of the region in the past seven days, according to an April 1 announcement.

Several people became infected after coming into contact with citizens from Hubei, raising concerns that asymptomatic carriers from Hubei could spread the virus and cause another big outbreak.

Asymptomatic carriers do not show symptoms such as fever, coughing, and sore throat, but test positive for the CCP virus during nucleic acid testing.

On April 1, while Chinese leader Xi Jinping was on an inspection tour of the tech hub of Hangzhou city, he also spoke about concerns regarding asymptomatic carriers.

Speaking to Zhejiang provincial officials, Xi said: [Local governments] must enhance the management of asymptomatic carriers, and pay attention continually to the task of preventing the outbreak.

On Lockdown

Jia county in Pingdingshan city, located in Henan province, was placed under lockdown again after a healthy person was infected with the virus from an asymptomatic carrier. The county had lifted restrictions on Feb. 28.

Chinese state-run media quoted a March 31 announcement from the county government, stating that all residential compounds and villages must be locked down immediately. Residents cannot go out, even if they possess a green health code.

Authorities launched a cellphone-based app for all citizens, which tracks their health condition and movements. A green code means the user is free of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus and can travel freely.

On March 29, a woman from Luohe city in Henan was diagnosed with the CCP virus. She was infected after coming into contact with a former classmate and doctor in Jia county. This doctor and two of his colleagues were asymptomatic carriers. One of the colleagues recently visited Wuhan, the city where the virus first emerged.

Two people, wearing protective suits as a preventive measure against the CCP virus, walk along a street in Wuhan, China on March 31, 2020. (NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)

New Data

After initially denying the risks of asymptomatic carriers, Chinas National Health Commission decided to begin reporting such cases beginning on April 1. It found 130 new asymptomatic carriers the day prior.

On Tuesday, the Commission said that two former asymptomatic carriers began showing symptoms. 302 other suspected cases did not test positive and were discharged from quarantine centers.

The Commission said there was a total of 1,367 recognized asymptomatic carriers in the country.

Chinese state-run newspaper The Paper reported on March 30 that 39-year-old Mr. Tang was diagnosed as an asymptomatic carrier in Huizhou city, Guangdong province on March 26. He left his hometown of Jingzhou city, Hubei province on March 17, and went to work in Huizhou from March 22 to March 25.

According to the report, Tang had stayed at home for almost two months due to local lockdown rules. Tang had only come into contact with one diagnosed CCP virus patienthis wifes uncleon Jan. 23. In other words, Tang could have been an asymptomatic carrier for more than 60 days.

People wait to be tested for the CCP virus in Wuhan, Chinas central Hubei province on March 30, 2020. (HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images)

Hubei Exported Cases

Besides Tang, governments in Gansu province and other cities of Guangdong province recently reported that they diagnosed virus patients who just arrived there from Hubei.

The Hubei government lifted travel restrictionsexcept for Wuhan, its capitalon March 25, allowing anyone with a green health code to enter or leave the region.

From April 8 onwards, anyone will be able to move in and out of the province, including Wuhan.

Residents of Hubei are already on the move. On April 1, Liu Yanhong, director of Hubeis Human Resources and Social Security Department, said at a daily press conference that more than 5 million Hubei residents left their hometown from March 25 to March 31. Of that figure, 1.875 million of them moved to other cities in Hubei, while the other 3.133 million left the province.

Many are worried that Hubei residents could spread the virus further as they travel.

Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Shandong, Gansu, and other provincial governments have since launched new rules requiring that all travelers from Hubei must be immediately quarantined. They will then undergo at least two nucleic acid testings. If they test negative, they will be allowed outside.

The Epoch Times refers to the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, as the CCP virus because the Chinese Communist Partys coverup and mismanagement allowed the virus to spread throughout China and create a global pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic has dealt an unprecedented blow to the world's battle against polio, the head of the global organisation to combat the disease has said after it suspended vaccination campaigns for the first time in three decades.

With the coronavirus marching swiftly across the world and nations imposing strict travel restrictions to slow its spread, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) has announced that its health workers cannot continue their mass immunisation drives -- and warned this risks a resurgence of the poliovirus.

"We're devastated by the fact that we have to stop the activities for a disease that we were working so hard to eradicate," the World Health Organization's Michel Zaffran, who heads GPEI, told AFP on Thursday.

He added that the organisation had "never" been forced to halt the programme in this way before.

There are only two nations remaining where the wild version of the poliovirus continues to spread -- Pakistan and Afghanistan -- but a strain that has mutated from the vaccine itself has also caused outbreaks in several nations in Africa.

Immunisation campaigns protect against both wild and vaccine-derived outbreaks of the virus, which spreads in areas of poor sanitation and contaminated water and can cause irreversible paralysis. Children under five are particularly vulnerable.

Zaffran told AFP that beyond travel restrictions put in place by governments, the new coronavirus itself was considered too great a risk for health workers and the community to continue vaccination drives.

"Many of these activities have been suspended because they bring people together, they increase the mass gathering effect and also the delivery of the vaccine uses a dropper which could actually get contaminated, either by the recipients, or by the health worker," he said.

According to announcement by GPEI last week, the organisation said it would halt immunisations until at least June, but Zaffran said it was impossible to predict when they will resume, with decisions likely made on a country-by-country basis. In the meantime, a devastating disease that the world had come achingly close to snuffing out will be free to spread.

Zaffran said the group was "extremely concerned" that the poliovirus could now start to advance again within Afghanistan and Pakistan and warned that in Africa it could cross borders into countries currently unaffected.

When the GPEI was set up in 1988, polio paralysed more than 1,000 children worldwide every day in dozens of endemic countries.

In the last decade, GPEI says more than 10 billion doses of oral polio vaccine have been given worldwide, estimating that this prevented some 6.5 million children from being paralysed by the virus.

While the vaccine-derived outbreaks have presented a grave setback, causing hundreds of cases, GPEI had put its hopes in a new vaccine that is awaiting WHO pre-licence approval for emergency use later this year.

Despite halting some services, GPEI will continue to try to monitor outbreaks and thousands of people in its network will be redeployed to help with the COVID-19 response in the countries where they work.

"Because we've got this infrastructure of very competent epidemiologists and surveillance officers and laboratories and logistics networks and so on on the ground, we believe that we have a role to play in supporting the response to this terrible pandemic," he said.

Zaffran said the weeks and months of suspension will be used to ensure that manufacturers keep sufficient stocks of the existing vaccine to deploy quickly once it is possible to resume immunisations.

But he cautioned that the suspension in some countries could last a "substantial amount of time", leaving remote communities potentially in need of an array of vaccines and medical help.

"Keeping in mind that we do want to eradicate polio, but we cannot go to remote communities and only offer polio drops if those communities are also affected by the lack of health services over the next several months," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
April 01, 2020

News

By Terri Moon Cronk

Defense.gov

Top Navy Official Provides Update on Aircraft Carrier COVID-19 Cases

Numerous sailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, and the Navy continues to support its subordinate commanders to protect sailors and Marines so they can protect the homeland and maintain their readiness to the best of their ability, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas B. Modly said.

In a telephone briefing for Pentagon reporters today, the acting secretary said the Roosevelt has had 93 positive tests, with 86 of those service members exhibiting symptoms and seven having no symptoms. So far, 593 have tested negative.

Nearly 1,300 crew members have been tested so far, and some of the results have not come back yet, he added.

The Navy has accelerated testing and is deep-cleaning all the spaces on the ship, Modly said.

"We are providing the commanding officer what he has requested, and we are doing our best to accelerate the pace wherever we can," the acting secretary said. "Like the rest of the country and the world, we are learning more about stopping the spread of this virus each day."

The front lines are constantly being redrawn in this process, Modly said. "Stopping the spread of this virus is the fight we are in right now. [The] Teddy Roosevelt is a frontline theater in this new battle, and we have to respond with the skill and agility and direct communication required to protect our people and our nation," he added.

Modly provided a timeline of actions the Navy has taken since the Roosevelt deployed.

"Prior to deployment, we embarked a special medical team on the ship," he said, noting that before the Roosevelt's visit to Vietnam, the World Health Organization identified fewer than 20 COVID-19 cases there at the time, and all of them were in Hanoi, which is "far away from where the ship was going."

The ship's staff screened sailors returning from liberty, including taking temperature readings, and anyone suspected of having been exposed was quarantined immediately. "We had no positive tests at that time," the acting secretary said.

"At the end of the 14-day observation period aboard the ship, there were two sailors with symptoms who had positive tests," he said, adding that they were properly isolated and flown off the ship to the naval hospital in Guam, and that their symptoms have since been resolved.

"We identified and quarantined all those who were suspected of being in close contact with those that had tested positive," Modly said. And all sailors with confirmed positive tests were removed from the ship and isolated immediately, the acting secretary told reporters.

The Navy continues its process of contact tracing, quarantine and monitoring to understand who might have been infected, he said. Once in port in Danang, Modly said, the commanding officer and the medical team expressed concern that the spaces off the ship were not sufficient to isolate service members at an adequate pace.

Additional space in Guam was sought immediately, and progress is being made, Modly said. "We already have nearly 1,000 personnel off the ship right now, and in the next couple of days, we expect to have about 2,700 of them off the ship," he said.

Modly emphasized that the Navy will not remove every sailor from the Roosevelt, noting that although it's big, it floats and it has a lot of people on it, the comparison of the aircraft carrier to a cruise ship pretty much ends there.

"This ship has weapons on it. It has munitions on it. It has expensive aircraft, and it has a nuclear power plant. It requires a certain number of people on that ship to maintain safety and security," he said.

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Medical staff from Fundacion Jimenez Diaz hospital hold a banner reading "Thank you all" as neighbours applaud from their balconies in support for healthcare workers, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Madrid, Spain. Photo: REUTERS/Sergio Perez

More than 10,000 people in Spain have died after testing positive for coronavirus, as the global number of infections moves closer to a million.

Spain reported a new record in virus-related deaths on Thursday, with 950 in 24 hours although the growth in infections is waning, health ministry data showed.

The total number of deaths stood at 10,003 while coronavirus infections rose by nearly 8 per cent overnight to 110,238.

The government has acknowledged that the real level of infection could be much higher because Spain only has the capacity of doing between 15,000 to 20,000 tests per day.

In the US, New York is rushing to bring in an army of medical volunteers as the statewide death toll from coronavirus doubled in 72 hours to more than 1,900.

As hot spots flared around the US in places like New Orleans and southern California, the nation's biggest city was the hardest hit of all, with bodies loaded on to refrigerated mortuary trucks outside overwhelmed hospitals.

"How does it end? And people want answers," said New York governor Andrew Cuomo. "I want answers. The answer is nobody knows for sure."

President Donald Trump acknowledged that the federal stockpile is nearly depleted of personal protective equipment used by doctors and nurses and warned of trying times to come.

"Difficult days are ahead for our nation," he said. "We're going to have a couple of weeks, starting pretty much now, but especially a few days from now that are going to be horrific."

There was also grim news for the US economy as figures showed more than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week.

The job cuts are mounting in the US as businesses close and a severe recession looms. Last week's jobless figure is much higher than the previous record of 3.3 million reported the previous week.

Close to 940,000 people around the world have contracted the virus, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University, and more than 47,000 people have died.

The real figures are believed to be much higher because of testing shortages, differences in counting the dead and large numbers of mild cases that have gone unreported.

European nations are facing extraordinary demand for intensive care beds and are putting up makeshift hospitals, while unsure whether they will find enough healthy medical staff to run them.

In Italy, with the most deaths of any country at more than 13,000, mortuaries overflowed with bodies and coffins piled up in churches, although experts drew hope that the spread was already slowing in the country.

Scientists offered more evidence on Wednesday that the virus can be spread by seemingly healthy people who show no clear symptoms, leading the US government to issue new guidance warning that anyone exposed to the disease can be considered a potential carrier.

Many countries are modelling their response in part after China, which in January closed off an entire province, home to tens of millions of people, in what at the time was an unprecedented lockdown. Beijing says the measures have been a success, with nearly all new cases of the virus imported from abroad.

People in Wuhan, once the epicentre of the crisis, are starting to return to work. They are being tracked by a smartphone app that shows if they are symptom-free. The app is required to board a subway, check into a hotel or just enter the city.
Nearly one in four paramedics in New York City have called out sick from work due to illness or injury as increasing number of coronavirus cases in the five boroughs has overwhelmed hospital and ambulance workers across the five boroughs.

According to the latest data provided by the Fire Department of New York, 950 employees from the Emergency Medical Services unit, who make up about 23 per cent of the entire workforce, called out sick as of Sunday.

EMS has been part of the FDNY since 1996, when the city merged the fire department with what was then the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporations EMS division.

An FDNY spokesperson told the New York Post that not all of those who have called out sick did so as a result of contracting the coronavirus.

Paramedics load a patient into an ambulance in New York City on March 24. According to the latest data, nearly one in four New York City paramedics called out sick

We have people injured on the job from normal operations, the spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, the FDNY says that it has been receiving approximately 2,500 more phone calls per day than usual.

This past Sunday, the fire department said it took 6,527 calls.

The last time the department saw that kind of a spike in emergency calls was during the events of September 11, 2001.

The FDNY also revealed that around 17 per cent of the 11,500 firefighters employed by the city were also out on sick leave.

The department said that it had made it easier for its employees to call out sick by setting up video conferencing with their medical division so that they would not have to come into work in person and possibly infect others.

FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro on Tuesday praised paramedics from the around the country who recently arrived to New York to help out the swamped EMS crews.

Around 500 paramedics from the around the country are now helping transport sick New Yorkers to hospitals around the area after volunteering.

The FDNY posted video on its Instagram page showing Nigro welcoming EMS workers from around the country who arrived in New York as part of a convoy of about 250 ambulances.

I almost didnt believe it, Nigro told the EMS workers who gathered in Fort Totten, Queens, on Tuesday while talking about how moved he was to see paramedics from around the country converge to help New York.

When the time comes, I hope were in a position here to reciprocate, the commissioner told the EMS workers.

As of Thursday morning, there were 83,889 confirmed cases of coronavirus in New York State. Of those, 1,941 people have died.

FDNY medical workers wear personal protective equipment outside a COVID-19 testing site at Elmhurst Hospital Center in Queens on March 25

In New York City alone, there have been 47,439 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 1,374 deaths.

There are currently 12,226 people hospitalized in New York State  with slightly more than 3,000 in intensive care.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Wednesday warned that he expected hospitals to be overwhelmed with coronavirus patients starting this weekend.

The mayor said that officials have been working with hotels to convert their living quarters into medical rooms where patients can be treated.

De Blasio said that the city needs to add 65,000 hospital beds by the end of the month in order to deal with the anticipated volume of patients.

The mayor said that hospital staff and medical workers need a significant supply of personal protective equipment to deal with expected onslaught of patients.

He said there is a need for 3.3 million N95 masks, 2.1 million surgical masks, 100,000 isolation gowns, and 400 more ventilators.

The situation is so dire that local officials have issued new guidelines to EMS workers in New York City and Long Island.

Since hospitals are stretched thin by the influx of coronavirus patients, the guidelines state that ambulances are not to transport a patient suffering from cardiac arrest if they cannot be saved in the field.

Paramedics from around the country arrived in Fort Totten, Queens, on Tuesday to help New York's overwhelmed EMS corps

The workload for EMS crews is so intense that paramedics have been told not to bring cardiac arrest patients to the hospital if they cannot be saved in the field

It almost seems like it's never stopping, people keep coming and coming and coming and there's just no space to put them, said Dr. Darien Sutton, an emergency room doctor at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan, told WABC-TV.

City officials have also instructed ambulance crews to withhold CPR and declare the person dead if they are unable to resuscitate them in the field.

Under normal circumstances, these patients would continue to be rushed to the hospital.

These orders are binding and the FDNY will devise a plan for implementation, said Deputy Fire Commissioner Frank Dwyer.

Sutton said the idea that EMS paramedics would be forced to declare a patient dead in the field is shocking.

As a doctor in New York and as a New Yorker, I have family that live here, and when I hear things like that I obviously get afraid, fearful for the livelihood of my family, Sutton said.

It is terrifying, it is really terrifying.

Health experts say doing CPR on a patient who may be infected with COVID-19 could be risky to paramedics.

When you're doing the CPR, you're pushing really hard on the patient's chest and they're expelling some air in the process as well, so if they are COVID patients, they'll be spreading it all around, said Dr. Vinayak Kumar with the Mayo Clinic.

This is the risk-benefit math you have to take into account.

Convoy of ambulances from Ohio and Michigan are seen headed toward New York City after FEMA said it was sending 250 medical vehicles to the coronavirus hotspot

A convoy of ambulances with Ohio and Michigan license plates were seen heading toward New York City on Tuesday as officials announced that FEMA was sending 250 emergency vehicles to the coronavirus hotspot.

Video shows the string of at least 10 ambulances driving westbound on Interstate 80 in New Jersey.

The footage was recorded by a couple, Ngel and Tara, who drove by the convoy and suspected that it was on its way to New York City to help with the coronavirus pandemic.

A convoy of ambulances with Ohio and Michigan license plates were seen heading toward New York City on Tuesday as officials announced that FEMA was sending 250 emergency vehicles to the coronavirus hotspot

Video shows the string of at least 10 ambulances driving westbound on Interstate 80 in New Jersey on Tuesday. It's believed the convoy was on its way to New York City to help with the coronavirus pandemic

'The ambulances had tags from Ohio and Michigan as well as FEMA in the back window,' Ngel told Newsflare.

The video was filmed around the same time de Blasio's office announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency was sending 250 ambulances and approximately 500 EMTs and paramedics to New York City.

'These resources will help the City increase capacity for medical transport in between medical sites and assist the FDNY with responding to a record number of medical calls,' the city said in a press release.

'These ambulances come fully staffed by paramedics and EMTs from around the country.'

Some of the ambulances had already arrived in the city and were in service by Tuesday morning, according to an FDNY spokesperson.

DailyMail.com has reached out to FEMA and the mayor's office to confirm if the I-80 convoy was in fact headed to the city.

Nigro said Sunday that the last five days have been the busiest stretch in the history of the city's EMS operation.

It comes as FDNY ranks are getting hit hard by the pandemic, with more than 282 personnel infected.
Democratic presidential front-runner Joe Biden has quietly expanded his lead over US President Donald Trump among registered voters, according to a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll.

The poll of more than 1,100 American adults found that 46pc of registered voters said they would support Mr Biden if he were running against Mr Trump in the November 3 election, while 40pc said they would vote for Mr Trump.

That advantage of six percentage points was up from a one-point lead for Mr Biden recorded in a similar poll that ran from March 6 to 9.

The result suggested that Mr Biden had not been hurt politically from his lack of visibility while the Republican president is at the centre of a government response to a pandemic that has infected more than 205,000 people in the United States and killed more than 4,520 people.

Mr Biden, who does not currently hold office, has been struggling to stay in the public eye as the coronavirus forced millions of Americans inside their homes.

While Mr Trump has held daily televised briefings about the virus, Mr Biden has had to shut down fundraisers and other campaign events, and election officials in many states have postponed their nominating contests.

Still, the poll found that the number of people who approve of Mr Trump in general, and also those who like the way he has handled the US coronavirus response, had changed very little over the past few weeks. About 44pc said they approved of Mr Trump's overall performance and 48pc said they liked the way he had responded to the coronavirus outbreak.

That compared with a 70pc approval rating among respondents for their state governors' handling of the pandemic.

Mr Trump initially underplayed the severity of the coronavirus, sparred with governors over their requests for medical supplies and floated the idea of reopening the economy against the advice of public health officials. But he shifted course to back extending the shutdown measures to slow the spread of the virus.

But Mr Biden has raised significant doubts about whether the Democratic National Convention will be held as planned in July, with the likely presidential nominee suggesting that the party's major gathering, slated for Milwaukee, may need to be altered or postponed.

When asked whether he could envision holding the convention in July, given the novel coronavirus pandemic and concerns about large gatherings, Mr Biden said: "It's hard to envision that.

"We should listen to the scientists," the former vice-president told Brian Williams in an interview on MSNBC.

Mr Biden noted that one reason the convention has been scheduled for mid-July was to accommodate the Olympics, which had been scheduled to begin on July 24. Given that the summer games have been postponed to next year, Mr Biden raised the possibility that the DNC could postpone the convention, saying: "There is more time now."

The Republican convention is scheduled for August in Charlotte.

"We ought to be able to do what we were able to do in the middle of the Civil War all the way through to World War II - have Democratic and Republican conventions and primaries and elections, and still have public safety," Mr Biden said. "We're able to do both."

Mr Biden also made the case that the November election may be different from any other before it, and he called on states to begin preparing now for more absentee ballots. He also said secretaries of state throughout the nation needed to consider a virtual election, with secure remote voting.

"They should be doing that now, planning on it," he added.

"This is about making sure that we're able to conduct our democracy while we're dealing with a pandemic. We can do both. It may mean a difference in the way we do it. It may mean that social distancing doesn't get it done. It may mean that you have a circumstance where you have drive-in voting, literally. You pull up and have - there's a lot of ways to do it. But we should be talking about it now."

During the interview, Mr Biden also again appealed to supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders, but he refrained from calling on his last remaining rival for the Democratic nomination to leave the race.

"Bernie has a lot of very, very strong and ardent followers. And I think it's a hard decision," Mr Biden said. "I'm not going to tell him to stay in or get out, that's his decision. But I feel confident about being the nominee, I don't see much that's going to change that."

Mr Sanders said on Monday that he still believed that he had a narrow pathway to the nomination. "Obviously I've - we've been talking to Bernie's people," Mr Biden said.

"I have respect for him, and I think there ought to be a way for us to accommodate his concerns on other matters in terms of everything from people being engaged in his organisation - I think there's a lot of things that can be done. But that's a decision for Bernie to make."

Mr Biden said within the next two weeks he would form a group within his campaign to start doing background checks on potential running mates. He said the list would be somewhere between six and 10 candidates, and he suggested among them could be Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Mr Biden has said he will choose a woman as a running mate.

When asked whether, given her leadership in response to the coronavirus outbreak in her state, he was lengthening his list of people to consider, Mr Biden said: "She hasn't lengthened the list. She made the list, in my mind, two months ago."

He also continued to criticise Mr Trump for his handling of the global pandemic.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is returning to self-isolation for another six days after a parliamentary aide was diagnosed with coronavirus yesterday, the premier's office said today.

Netanyahu, 70, the nation's longest-serving leader, had just ended a two-day period of isolation on Wednesday night after a parliamentary aide was diagnosed with the disease.

He immediately went on national TV to announce new measures to curb the epidemic.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he delivers a statement during his visit at the Health Ministry national hotline, in Kiryat Malachi, Israel in early March

sraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, Israeli Former Defense Minister and leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Our Home) right-wing party Avigdor Lieberman, center, and Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz, are shown on a billboard wearing masks in the Israeli city of Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv on Sunday

Israeli police officers wearing protective gear wait to detain Ultra orthodox men as they pray in a synagogue in defiance of government measures to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, in Bnei Brak, a suburb of Tel Aviv, Israel today

But his office said the prime minister would self-isolate again - for six days this time - in line with medical recommendations after Health Minister Yaakov Litzman and his wife tested positive for coronavirus.

Litzman, 71, has appeared regularly alongside the premier to give coronavirus updates. Netanyahu tested negative on Monday.

Several other senior officials were also self-isolating due to contact with Litzman.

The head of Israel's foreign intelligence agency Mossad, Yossi Cohen, will self-isolate at the intelligence agency's headquarters for three days, Israeli media reported.

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men push trolleys as they pass by billboards urging people to stay in their homes and keeping with government restrictions amid coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Ashdod, Israel yesterday

And the health ministry's director-general Moshe Bar-Siman-Tov announced via Twitter his own self-isolation at a facility at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Aviv.

Israeli regulations generally require 14-day self-isolation for anyone in proximity to a carrier, with the duration reduced for the days passed since the suspected exposure.

Israel has reported at least 29 deaths and more than 6,200 infections. Tight curbs have confined Israelis to their homes, forcing businesses to close and sending unemployment over 24 per cent.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews pray a morning prayer on the balconies and outside their homes in the Mea Shearim neighbourhood in Jerusalem, Israel today. The media report that Israel concentrates its enforcement activities on the quarters of the ultra-Orthodox population in order to prevent the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus which causes the Covid-19 disease

Israeli border police officers question an Ultra orthodox man as part of the government's measures to help stop the spread of the coronavirus in the orthodox city of Bnei Brak, a Tel Aviv suburb, Israel today

Customers wait in a line in front of a supermarket in Jerusalem, Israel today

In a statement, the health ministry said Litzman and his wife were feeling well despite having the coronavirus.

Litzman heads an ultra-Orthodox Jewish party and has urged his community to obey curbs after some rabbis and members cast doubt on risks and chafed against stay-at-home orders.

Israeli officials describe the ultra-Orthodox as especially prone to contagion because their districts tend to be poor and congested.

Netanyahu announced new curbs on Wednesday to deter movement around Bnei Brak, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish town that has suffered a disproportionately large outbreak.

'The situation there is horrible. Every day we stall, we put lives at risk,' Litzman said in an interview published on Tuesday in the Yedioth Ahronot newspaper.

'The public now has to listen to the health ministry.'
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: A group of people allegedly assaulted Asha workers when they went to collect details of the people over COVID-19 symptoms. The incident took place in Sarayipalya in Hennur police station limits on Wednesday and however, the police have not registered a case over the incident.

One of the victims made a selfie video and shared to news channels and it went viral. The Asha worker alleged that she had come to collect details of the suspected patients of COVID-19 and then a man went inside a Masjid and announced not to share anything with Asha workers.

A group of men who heard the announcement gathered around and snatched her mobile phone and also tore the papers which had details of the suspected cases. They did not allow her to call the officials of the health department or police. Meanwhile, other Asha workers who were in the neighbouring area were also thrashed by the men.

ASHA worker breaks down as she recalls ordeal of being gheraoed & heckled by residents of two localities in Bengaluru's Byatarayanapura while collecting data on #coronavirus. ASHA workers have been tasked with recording names of people showing symptoms of cough, cold etc pic.twitter.com/8Sq4oBhVvR  Anusha Ravi Sood (@anusharavi10) April 2, 2020

After a while, she managed to escape from the group and complained to health officials. But they did not take action against them and or file case with the police.

A senior police officer from East Division said that "Hoysala police attended when they received an alert and however it was a verbal argument between the Asha workers and the localites. They did not file any complaint to police and so no case has been registered".
The Tablighi Jamaat congregation is an embodiment of gross negligence and utter disregard of government directives.

The Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin has led to fears of a susbtantial COVID-19 outbreak and watering down of the positive effect of the lockdown. On Wednesday, several individuals linked to this congregation were found positive for the novel coronavirus. Reports stating that every sixth Indian Covid patient is from Tablighi Jamaat have surfaced.

Adding to the trouble, there are reports of members of the congregation not co-operating with the health officials and going to the extent of spitting on the authorities. The Delhi Police have also released a video wherein an officer is seen warning the organisers of the Jamaat and asking them to clear the congregation immediately.

The responsibility of the authorities, in these times of crisis, is to ensure that no such event is organised in the first place. There was a 13 March order by the Delhi government which prohibited congregations of more than 200 people and there was also a 12 March notification stating that anyone with travel history from COVID-19-affected countries must self-isolate.

The Tablighi Jamaat congregation was organised in blatant disregard of these orders. Undoubtedly, these individuals will be charged under the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code. However, courtesy Indias emphasis on due process and the pace of the criminal justice system, they may soon be enlarged on bail.

There is a desperate attempt all across the country to minimise the implications of this congregation on public health and safety. The urgency in this regard has led to a serious strain on resources and also caused a great deal of panic across the country. Hence, merely initiating criminal action against these wrongdoers is not sufficient.

The well-established principle of strict liability in the law of torts can be invoked and a suit claiming exemplary damages can be filed against the organisers and participants of this congregation. It is a settled law that principles of strict liability do not require any malicious intention on part of the wrongdoer. Damage resulting from lack of foresight is covered by this principle.

Since it is possible that many innocent persons will be infected, there is a possibility that multiple proceedings will be initiated against the members of this congregation. To do away with this possibility, the Central government must take to itself the task of litigating on behalf of all the affected persons.

Follow LIVE updates on the coronavirus outbreak here

Moreover, since there has been much strain on the resources of the central government as also various state governments due to the congregation, there is good reason to file a suit for exemplary damages.

In India, there is a legal precedent which can be invoked by the central government in this regard. After the Bhopal gas tragedy, wherein thousands of people were affected, the central government passed the Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster (Processing of Claims) Act, 1985 and took to itself the authority to represent all the claimants and file a suit or proceeding before any court. The said legislation also gave the central government the power to frame a scheme for registration and processing of claims, maintenance of records and registers, etc. It can also affix responsibility on other governmental authorities who failed to prevent the gathering from happening.

An exercise on similar lines is expedient. The Tablighi congregation is an embodiment of gross negligence and utter disregard of government directives. Such negligence has now endangered the lives of thousands of citizens of this country, apart from putting an unnecessary burden on the resources of the State. This is especially so as there was evidence of COVID-19 cases within the Tablighi Jamaat in Malaysia, at the time that the assembly took place in India.

Thus, a class action suit is the need of the hour. If such a suit is backed by an appropriate legislation, it would also send a strong and clear message that such negligence which puts the lives of innocent persons in danger should not be tolerated.

Raghav Pandey is an Assistant Professor of Law at Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai. Sudhanva Bedekar is an LL.M. Candidate at Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai
Working parents across Australia will be entitled to free childcare while the country battles the coronavirus pandemic.

The government on Thursday declared childcare centres an essential service that will continue to operate to help support parents who still have jobs in the current economy.

The new plan is expected to help one million Australian families over the next six months.

The federal government has unveiled plans for a free childcare program for working parents during the coronavirus pandemic

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?

Free childcare will be available to all parents regardless of their jobs or whether they are full-time or part-time workers.

The prime minister said any mother or father who has a job is considered an 'essential worker' and therefore qualifies for the government-funded program.

Education Minister Dan Tehan said it would apply to 'anyone from a truck driver through to a doctor to a nurse.'

'Anyone with a job right now is doing something essential for someone who would rely on that business's service, and that would include the public service as well.

'So, they will be first cabs off the rank,' Mr Tehan explained.

The government will waive the gap fee - the difference between what is charged by the childcare centre and the childcare subsidy - from March 23.

I'M A PARENT BUT I'M WORKING FROM HOME, DO I QUALIFY?

Yes. You will still be eligible for free childcare even if you are working from home.

Any working parent is eligible, but those in the healthcare sector or other essential jobs will be given priority

FREE CHILDCARE DURING THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS FREE CHILDCARE PLAN * Free child care starting next week, as the nation grapples with the coronavirus * The scheme, which will last for at least three months, will cost $1.6 billion and will benefit around 1million families * Parents still working will be prioritised, or for children who are vulnerable and need to be cared for * The government will pay half the reasonable fee cap for the next six months * The funding will be based on the number of children in care during the fortnight before March 2 * In order to receive the money, centres must stay open and not charge parents any fees * The amount will be paid fortnightly * It amounts to about $1.6 billion over three months * The plan aims to keep the nation's 13,000 childcare centres open * It completely reshapes the childcare fee scheme, with means and activity testing dropped. Advertisement

The prime minister, however, has warned that the new plan is not a 'convenience measure' and that those who are home with their children will be accommodated last.

Parents who work in the healthcare sector, such as doctors and nurses, will be given priority as well as those of vulnerable children who need to be cared for.

WHEN DOES IT START?

Funding will go into effect from Sunday, April 6, across 13,00 childcare centres in the country.

The program will cover enrolments as they stood in the fortnight leading up to March 2 - before people started pulling their kids out of care en masse due to losing their jobs or out of health fears.

The fee revenue payments will be paid fortnightly from April 6 and will replace the Child Care (CCS) and Additional Child Care Subsidy payments.

I ALREADY PULLED MY KIDS OUT OF CHILDCARE, CAN I RE-ENROLL THEM?

Yes. Under the new program, centres must also seek to re-enroll children who have been withdrawn, to make sure parents can keep places if they need them once the crisis is passed.

Daycare centres must seek to re-enroll children who have been withdrawn

Education Minister Dan Tehan said the aim was to make sure parents won't have to worry about trying to find new care for their children.

HOW LONG WILL IT LAST?

Free childcare scheme will cover parents for the next three months.

The scheme will be reviewed after three months and may be extended for a further three months. After the pandemic, the system will revert back to normal.

WHAT WILL IT COST?

For parents, nothing. The government will pay half the reasonable fee cap for the next six months.

Scott Morrison (pictured today) has announced that childcare will become free from next week

In order to receive the money, centres must stay open and not charge parents any fees.

The means and activity-testing of fee subsidies will be dropped while the new system is in place.

The relief package however, will ultimately amount to about $1.6billion over three months.

It's also expected the childcare sector will be able to access some $1billion in JobKeeper wage subsidy payments.
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A charity marking World Autism Day said it faces a funding shortfall of nearly 300,000 due to the Covid-19 crisis.

As I Am, which supports autistic people and their family members, said it needs public support now more than ever due to increased demand for its services.
After HCM City decided to temporarily close restaurants and catering services with the capacity of more than 30 customers, they began selling online and delivering food.

On March 24, customers paying for food at a shop on Mac Thi Buoi street in district 1 in HCM City received three to four menus of other shops belonging to the same chain.





The chain of European food shops had kicked off door-to-door service some days before because of the epidemic.



However, recently, the city has required all eateries of any size to shut down, except for deliveries, until April 15.

Philip Nguyen Ky, owner of Dao Hai San (Seafood Island) and Lobster Bay, said the chains began door-to-door delivery one month ago, but the revenue was below expectations and the cost high. As local authorities have now forced restaurants to shut down, he will have to boost online sales.

After HCM City decided to temporarily close restaurants and catering services with the capacity of more than 30 customers, they began selling online and delivering food.

Com Ga Hai Nam (Hai Nam Chicken Rice), a well known restaurant in district 1, HCM City, is using delivery only, carried out by GrabFood, Now, Go-food and Baemin.



Coffee and bubble tea chains such as Gong Cha, Highlands Coffee and Phuc Long have also announced they have stopped serving customers at the shops and are serving customers via online.



Meanwhile, Vo Duy Phu, marketing director of The Coffee House, said the chain has closed 100 shops in HCM City and has stopped selling take-away food. Customers need to use a specific app of The Coffee House and get door-to-door deliveries.



We believe that take-away service doesnt fit the municipal authorities instruction. The service can bring several billion of revenue more, but this wont help fight against the epidemic, Phu explained.



We hope customers feel secure when ordering coffee online and using door-to-door service, he said.



Also according to Phu, the revenue from door-to-door delivery has increased 30 percent, but this cannot compensate for the sharp fall in total revenue. However, many landlords have reduced by 20-50 percent rental expenses, and some of them have offered one-month rent exemption.



Ran Bien 5 restaurant on Nam Ky Khoi Nghia street in district 3 is the biggest one of the seafood chain.



Since the coronavirus outbreak, the revenue of the restaurant has dropped by 50 percent. After the local authorities released the decision on closing eateries with serving capacity of more than 30 customers, the restaurant announced it will serve no more than 30 people.



The number of workers at the restaurant has been cut by half. They are receiving 30 percent of their salaries.

Kim Chi

Shopping services boom amid COVID-19 outbreak As the Covid-19 epidemic has been escalating, more people are buying things online or using shopping serviced.
An experimental stem cell therapy derived from human placentas will begin early testing in patients with the coronavirus, a New Jersey biotech company said Thursday.

The treatment, being developed by the company Celularity, has not yet been used on any patients with symptoms of Covid-19, but it has caught the attention of Rudy Giuliani, President Trumps personal lawyer. Mr. Giuliani recently featured an interview with the company founder on his website and said on Twitter that the product has real potential, while also criticizing the Food and Drug Administration for not moving more quickly to approve potential remedies.

There is no proven treatment for the respiratory disease, but several experimental approaches, including old malaria drugs and H.I.V. antivirals, are being tested in patients around the world.

Celularity has also enthusiastically publicized the news of its early-stage trial for its treatment, known as Cynk-001. In an email Wednesday to a reporter, its public relations firm described a development as the first F.D.A. approval for Covid-19 cell therapy. The agencys decision, however, merely gives a green light for its product to be used in a clinical trial, not widely prescribed to patients.
There are many drastic changes being made to our lives as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

But what few people appreciate is that Britain has embarked on one of the greatest educational and social experiments in our history.

In any normal year, schools would reconvene in two weeks' time after the Easter holidays for the summer term. Not this year.

Millions of children of school age, with the exception of those who are considered vulnerable or whose parents are in key jobs, will have to adjust to working from home for as long as six months.

What few people appreciate is that Britain has embarked on one of the greatest educational and social experiments in our history, writes Anthony Seldon (stock image)

It is an eventuality for which we have had next to no time to prepare, the risks are beyond the imagination, and of all the toxic legacies bequeathed by this coronavirus crisis this one may prove to be the most devastating.

It is true that some 50,000 young people are already home-schooled, but their parents long ago worked out how to do it. In educational terms, the vast majority of young people have been abandoned in unknown territory.

Let me make this very clear. When it comes to home-schooling en masse, we have no collective memory of best practice, no historical evidence of the most effective techniques, and no bank of psychological research.

In short, we are embarking on a road without maps.

I write not as a psychologist nor a scientist, but as someone who was a school teacher for 30 years, 20 years of them as a head.

And for the past five years I have been running a university, which makes me the only person in Britain to have run both schools and a university  and I am worried.

In the worst-case scenario, too many of the most vulnerable children who are no longer in school under the watchful eye of teachers will, I fear, fall through the cracks. They are at risk of becoming victims and perpetrators of crime.

Sinister

They will be easy prey for the equivalent of the spivs and criminals who were spawned by the upheaval of British life during World War II  only their contemporary successors are far more sinister.

Anne Longfield, the Children's Commissioner, has already voiced her fear that criminal gangs will exploit school closures to recruit children as drug mules and street fighters.

Let me make this very clear. When it comes to home-schooling en masse, we have no collective memory of best practice, writes Anthony Seldon (stock image)

She describes the drug-selling networks known as county lines as 'sophisticated enterprises that have well-established hierarchies and use intense violence as part of their business model'.

We know already that these gangs are practised at targeting susceptible children and woo them initially by offering friendship, then money, then drugs. Many such children  and there is an estimated one million of them  live in households affected by violence and addiction.

'For those kids, school is the place where they get their safety, stability and structure in their lives,' says Longfield.

Threat

Without this support, the Children's Society believes that more and more young people 'will put their lives at risk, rob rival gangs for [drug] supplies'.

Let's face it, schools find it hard enough to keep the disengaged in school and to secure their attention under normal conditions.

Imagine how much more difficult it will be to keep young people studying  and safe  without a structure that combines registration, routine and the threat of sanctions. The fear is that many of them will run amok.

After all, what is to stop young people leaving their homes, congregating out of sight, out of mind, and falling into all kinds of danger?

We have only a limited number of police, they are already overstretched and their new powers to exercise control during this crisis are even now being questioned by judges.

Mental health problems will also proliferate. The past ten years have seen a steady rise in depression among the young, as well as an increase in suicide attempts.

And, only this week, the mental health charity MIND reported seeing a rise in concerns from those with existing conditions.

Even children lucky enough to live in secure and loving families often find that schools are unique in adding meaning and structure to their often anxious lives, as they negotiate the transition from childhood to adolescence.

Pictured: A teacher works from home on a video conference during the coronavirus crisis

The reassuring rhythm of the school year, the challenges it provides, and the aspiration it breeds all go towards engendering a sense of community and belonging. All that will be stripped away.

As for those who have worked for years to prepare for GCSE and A-level exams, suddenly hearing that those exams are to be scrapped has proved deeply traumatic.

And children are not the only vulnerable groups. Parents and guardians will be increasingly at risk of mental health problems, too, as they struggle to deliver home-schooling and to keep their children occupied and safe.

Tensions at home will become unbearable for some, leading to sky-rocketing rates of separation and divorce, and the pressures of living in lockdown could even spark an epidemic of domestic violence.

Meanwhile, social inequality will only be enhanced because not all children have parents equally willing and capable of overseeing lessons at home.

The tools they have at their disposal will vary, too, depending upon the resources they have at their disposal.

While many middle-class households will be able to draw upon a wide range of tech devices to enable access to digital technology at home, others on low incomes will find it hard to give their children the equipment they need.

In the same way, children whose families live in cramped high-rise flats may struggle to find quiet spaces in which to study.

Thanks to factors such as these, it may take years to make up the social disadvantages embedded by the loss of the long summer term's study at school.

So what can we do? Here is my plan to address the crisis.

Every schoolchild must be set ambitious targets by their teachers. Even the most disengaged young person rises to a challenge, and revels in the feeling of success and pride when they achieve it.

A record of achievement, bespoke for every young person, should be drawn up, so that they all have something to show for what they have achieved in the summer term.

Those who were due to sit GCSE and A-level exams require particular care. Proxy exams should be devised, marked by teachers. These will not only give them a sense of purpose but could be a key contributors to the grades the Government says they will be awarded.

Those destined for university in the autumn, meanwhile, must be given suitably challenging academic work.

We should also use this enforced period of absence from school to broaden our understanding of what good education is.

We should give young people the entrepreneurial and coping skills they will need, not just in the weeks ahead, but for the rest of their lives.

All young people should be encouraged to volunteer: #iwill is a national charity that boosts volunteering for ten to 20-year-olds.

They have encouraged many community-centred activities. Children at Birmingham's Woodhouse Primary Academy, for example, wrote letters to thank NHS workers. Other schools are encouraging pupils to write to people in care homes.

At my own university, the English Department has launched an online initiative to get children and adults to read Charles Dickens's Hard Times  regularly a set text for GCSE and A-level  in its original weekly instalments and then join in an online discussion.

Over the next few months, our nation will be tested more than at any point since the dark days of 1940. We can and must come out of this on top.
WASHINGTON (AP)  More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week  doubling a record high set just one week earlier  a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus.

The stunning report Thursday from the Labor Department showed that job cuts are mounting against the backdrop of economies in the United States and abroad that have almost certainly sunk into a severe recession as businesses close across the world.

Applications for unemployment benefits generally reflect the pace of layoffs. Combined with last week's report that 3.3 million people sought unemployment aid two weeks ago, the U.S. economy has now suffered nearly 10 million layoffs in just the past several weeks  far exceeding the figure for any corresponding period on record.

Some of last week's jobless claims are likely delayed filings from the previous week, when state offices that handle unemployment benefits were overwhelmed by a surge of online and telephone claims.

The accelerating layoffs have led many economists to envision as many as 20 million lost jobs by the end of April. That would be more than double the 8.7 million jobs lost during the Great Recession. The unemployment rate could spike to as high as 15% this month, above the previous record of 10.8% set during a deep recession in 1982.

Many employers are slashing their payrolls to try to stay afloat because their revenue has collapsed, especially at restaurants, hotels, gyms, movie theaters and other venues that depend on face-to-face interaction. Auto sales have sunk, and factories have closed.

More than two-thirds of the U.S. population are under stay-at-home orders, imposed by most U.S. states. That has intensified pressure on businesses, most of which face rent, loans and other bills that must be paid.

The White House and Congress expanded the unemployment benefits system in last week's $2.2 trillion economic rescue package. That legislation added $600 a week in jobless aid, on top of what recipients receive from their states. This will enable many lower-income workers to manage their expenses and even increase their purchasing power and support the economy.

It also makes many more people eligible for jobless aid, including the self-employed, contractors, and so-called "gig economy" workers such as Uber and Lyft drivers.

Kathryn Lickteig, a cook in Kansas City, signed up for unemployment compensation last week after the city shut down dine-in restaurants. She is hopeful that the extra $600 will help her ride out the shutdown instead of having to look for an interim job.

"It has eased my mind so much," she said. "I do not have to actively go out and expose myself to the public and possibly get sick. I can stay home now and do my part in social distancing."

The legislation will also help fund unemployment benefits for workers whose hours have been cut. That would enable these people to replace some of their lost income with unemployment aid even as they keep their jobs.

About 26 states allow workers with reduced hours to claim benefits. Most economists support doing so because it encourages companies to cut back on hours rather than lay off workers. Any program that encourages companies to maintain connections with their workers can help the economy rebound faster after the virus outbreak is contained.

Typically, people who receive jobless aid are required to actively look for a new job and to document their searches. But Congress has passed other legislation that encourages states to drop that requirement, given that so many businesses are closed, and most Americans have been ordered to stay mostly at home.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, said this week that just 6% of companies surveyed by Moody's say they're hiring -- down dramatically from 40% in the weeks preceding the coronavirus outbreak. The plunge in hiring underscores the difficulty that anyone out of work would have finding a new job.

On Friday, the government will issue the March jobs report, which economists forecast will show a loss of 145,000 jobs. That report is based on data gathered mostly before the spike in layoffs began two weeks ago. Though relatively small, that loss would still end a record-long 113-month streak of job growth.

Numerous state unemployment agencies have struggled to keep up with the flood of applications for jobless benefits. New York's Labor Department asks people to file on different days depending on their last names. Monday, for example, is reserved for those last names that start with A through F.

A guide to surviving financially as bills come due
There is no vaccination for stupidity and bad behavior.

Thats most unfortunate right now as the coronavirus pandemic sweeps across the globe giving people flu-like symptoms and causing several thousand deaths.

Even in the face of the spread of the virus  and a death toll worldwide that has climbed to more than 42,000  and despite government and health officials warnings to avoid crowds and unnecessary travel, there were widespread instances of those admonishments being flouted around the world.

In Florida, rowdy spring break college students packed state beaches even as many of them had just been sent home by campuses that were closing to prevent the spread of coronavirus. One young bikini-clad woman told television a TV interviewer she was young and had a pretty good immune system as her explanation for being on the beach.

Of course, that doesnt mean she couldnt contract COVID-19, be a carrier and spread the virus when she got back home. And young people werent the only ones flocking to the beaches, there were families and older people as well, judging by television coverage.

After seeing footage of the less-than-cautious beach parties for several days, Florida officials finally closed some of the states most popular beaches. The same thing was happening in Australia where Sydneys famous Bondi Beach was ordered closed after it drew hordes of beach-goers.

In Bavaria, Germany, the governor said young German adults were holding corona parties and coughing toward older people.

After days of non-compliance by people refusing to stay home and only go out for essential tasks, France cracked down and sent security forces to train stations to prevent people from going to their vacation homes and beaches. A curfew was imposed in Nice and in Paris the walkway along the Seine was closed.

Some consider theyre little heroes when they break the rules, said French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner. Well no, youre an imbecile, and especially a threat to yourself.

As Wisconsin embarks on a possibly monthlong Safer at Home lockdown, we dont expect well see such bad behavior here and we hope that if there are instances of lockdown rules being flouted that authorities will quickly step in and educate any scofflaws.

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The Alfred will screen the temperature of every person who enters the hospital and has limited visiting hours after the death of a third cancer patient in its oncology ward.

Several more hospital workers have also been infected as the cluster of COVID-19 cases at The Alfred grows.

A third cancer patient has died at The Alfred in Melbourne after contracting coronavirus while undergoing chemotherapy at the hospital Credit:Luis Enrique Ascui

The death of the woman, who was in her 60s, was the sixth coronavirus death in Victoria and has intensified concerns about how hospitals across the state will shield their most-vulnerable patients from the virus.

Her death on Wednesday night comes a week after two other cancer patients, both men aged in their 70s, died after testing positive to the virus while undergoing treatment at The Alfred.
The lockdown in several countries has prompted many public places to shut down. Chicagos Shedd Aquarium is one such place that has been closed. But that didnt mean residents of the aquarium were left without any visitors. Adorable little Rockhopper penguins visited the aquarium and made netizens fall in love with them. But the adventures of these delightful birds is far from over. Another clip, posted on Twitter by the aquarium, gives a glimpse of a wonderful little resident of the South Pole visiting some citizens of the North Pole.

The clip shows the little Rockhopper penguin, Wellington, strolling in front of the Beluga whale tank in a curious manner. The whales Kayavak, Mauyak and Annik, simultaneously stare inquisitively at Wellington trying to figure out what it was. The whales swim around and one even tries to boop the penguin but squishes its head against the tank in stead.

The confused penguin almost looks like the little kid in Babys Day Out who is trying to figure out what sort of animals were inside the tanks since whales and penguins live on literally opposite poles of the globe.

This weekend, Wellington visited Kayavak, Mauyak and baby Annik, who were very curious about this little rockhopper. Belugas are northern hemisphere animals, so they would likely never see a penguin! reads the caption.

Wellington, meet the belugas!   This weekend, Wellington visited Kayavak, Mauyak and baby Annik, who were very curious about this little rockhopper. Belugas are northern hemisphere animals, so they would likely never see a penguin! pic.twitter.com/XrpF3BlKnu  Shedd Aquarium (@shedd_aquarium) March 30, 2020

The clip has swiftly gone viral with netizens swooning over the curious and confused residents of the sea on both the sides of the tank. The clip has garnered over 2.1 million views till now and over 89,000 likes.

I love this so much! They make perfect characters  pic.twitter.com/0uDPDzzkxn  Michael Trujillo (@Mtrujillo_art) March 31, 2020

THIS IS THE BEST ONE YET

MY HEART  Askewtie (@Askewtie666) March 30, 2020

Oh, that is SO cute! The whales love it too! These are so precious!  Nannette Gunn (@nangunn) March 30, 2020

the forehead squish  pic.twitter.com/jhwTKuhKSg  Em Kovach (@em_kovach) March 31, 2020

What do you think of this adorable encounter?
Calgarys mayor says organizers have done an extraordinary job transforming a downtown convention centre into a temporary homeless shelter during the COVID-19 pandemic, but he believes hotel rooms would have been a better option.

Ive got to say: the convention centre has really stepped up to the plate at making this as good as it could possibly be given the model, Naheed Nenshi said Wednesday.

The shelter at the Calgary Telus Convention Centre is being funded by the Alberta government and operated by the Calgary Drop-In Centre.

Opening Thursday for about two months, it is to serve up to 300 people around the clock, freeing up space in existing shelters to allow for more physical distancing.

Nenshi says the spread of COVID-19 into the homeless community is the top public-health risk. As of Wednesday, there were 527 confirmed cases in the Calgary area, and Nenshi said that could easily double or triple if the virus were to take hold in that population.

Thats ultimately why we had to move forward with the convention centre, because it wasnt helping anybody to continue in arguments about what the right model is while there were still 600 people staying shoulder-to-shoulder at the Drop-In Centre every night, Nenshi said.

Alberta Community and Social Services Minister Rajan Sawhney said it wasnt feasible to transfer 300 people from shelters into hotels because of the work involved in removing objects guests could use to harm themselves.

Speed was a consideration, she said. We needed to have the spaces put in place as soon as possible.

She said Alberta Health Services has signed off on the facility. Like other shelters, it is exempted from the rule that there be no more than 15 people in an indoor space.

For homeless people who are sick or who have tested positive for COVID-19, a hotel is being retrofitted so that they can be properly isolated. Sawhney said that includes removing anything with strings, light fixtures with chains and sharp objects.

Alpha House, which helps men with addictions issues, has moved about 40 clients into a different hotel, Sawhney said. Those rooms have not been retrofitted, but the minister noted staff are better able to supervise those clients than a larger group.

NDP community and social services critic Marie Renaud called on Sawhney to release data and medical recommendations behind the decision not to use hotel rooms for all overflow shelter clients.

Sandra Clarkson, executive director of the Drop-In Centre, said the convention-centre shelter came together in less than 48 hours. That might not have happened so quickly with hotel rooms, and Sawhneys safety concerns are valid, she added.

We are, unfortunately, the largest homeless shelter in North America and that does present really unique challenges, Clarkson said.

Convention-centre president and CEO Kurby Court said cots are being laid out about two metres apart with heads pointing in opposite directions. There are large aisles around the perimeter with wash stations and two-and-a-half-metre tables for two people.

The whole venue is designed around reducing queuing, ensuring social distancing and allowing smooth transitions for our guests, he said.

Tim Richter, president and CEO of the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness, said the convention-centre shelter is the third-best option behind apartment housing and hotels.

Were in the throes of a crisis and at this point, we cant let the perfect be the enemy of the good, he said.

Its not ideal. Nothing in this is ideal. But at this point, anything that will ... make people safer than they were, I think is good.

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Members of the Los Angeles Fire Department wear protective gear as they hand out coronavirus test kits in a parking lot on Stadium Way, near Dodger Stadium. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Dr. Frank Candela, chief of staff at West Hills Hospital in the San Fernando Valley, started a GoFundMe last week to raise money for more safety gear at his medical center, where masks and face shields are running short as coronavirus cases mount.

As of Wednesday night, he'd raised more than $48,000. But he can't find much to buy.

Weve been walking around waving money and there isnt anybody who has supply right now," Candela said, calling it "such a difficult situation."

Like Candela, medical providers and hospital administrations across the state and country are desperate for personal protective equipment and other essential goods as COVID-19 patients hit emergency rooms and intensive care units in growing numbers. Nurses and doctors are pleading for donations online, telling stories of reusing masks and rigging trash bags as gowns.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that the worst was yet to come, both in illness and need. He said he expects the state to require 66,000 hospital beds by the end of May, with 40% of those projected to be patients who may require ventilators  of which the state currently has 4,252.

With the federal government slow to act on obtaining those vital goods and largely pushing the responsibility onto governors, California has been purchasing its own. But some on the front lines say it's not enough to stem the chaos and shortages. The state, they say, needs to step up efforts to both buy and distribute key items and ensure they go to those with the greatest need, not just to those with luck and money.

"We are seeing an incredible ad hoc approach by private hospitals  everybody is trying to go out after the same commodities," said Nick Vyas, executive director of the Center for Global Supply Chain Management at USC. "We should have a SWAT team at the state level coordinating this effort on behalf of our hospital network."

Without such federal or state leadership, "what you create is vacuum and void, and all the vultures will step in and try to pick it apart," he warned.

Story continues

In recent days, Newsom has touted the state's unique buying power as the world's fifth-largest economy, as well as his efforts to procure the protective gear while at the same time working to help other states. Newsom has said he's secured more than 100 million of the coveted N95 masks on order and is working to rapidly increase ventilators through private manufacturing.

After Long Beach-based Virgin Orbit reached out to the state last week, California officials connected the rocket maker with academics who had designs for a simple ventilator that could work for some patients. A Virgin spokesman said Wednesday that the company had already started producing and testing them and was waiting for federal Food and Drug Administration approval before ramping production up to hundreds or even thousands of units a week.

"We are not waiting around for others," Newsom said Wednesday.

But the state does not monitor what supplies each hospital has on hand and instead relies on requests for additional equipment to determine how to prioritize shipments, said Brian Ferguson, spokesman for the governors Office of Emergency Services.

Ferguson said hospitals have been sending their requests to county emergency coordinators, who decide whether they are urgent enough for state attention. If they are, California contacts the Federal Emergency Management Agency to fill those orders.

Los Angeles County, however, is able to circumvent the state's process and directly contact FEMA to order supplies, Ferguson said. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said the city was in good shape on Tuesday, but was concerned about the days ahead. "We can't have certain parts of the country have a big cache and us having nothing," he said.





Ferguson said the state has been prioritizing requests for much-needed masks and ventilators based on the outbreak in certain areas and immediate needs of individual hospitals.

If one has three days of supplies, they are prioritized over another with five days, Ferguson said. There are a lot of folks who make requests for more than they need, but being in short supply we have to prioritize.

Ferguson added: We are sending things out the door as fast as we can get them in order to meet the needs at the local level.

But as competition continues to snowball in the open market, the state is doing little to intervene. Hospitals are competing against each other, fake supplies are flooding the market and price gouging is rampant, said experts and those attempting to buy.

Even with the Virgin ventilators, facilitated by the state, there is no guarantee where they will go. Requests to buy them are already flooding in from across the globe, and they will probably be sold on the open market, though California may have preference.

Heres what I see: I see a disaster on the brink of happening, San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa said at a meeting of the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, speaking of the shortage of personal protective equipment at Seton Medical Center in Daly City.

Seton, recently leased by the state to care for COVID-19 patients, is caring for eight people with the virus and six others who are suspected of having the disease. After a county official said the state had been unresponsive to calls for help, Canepa said: Us not hearing from the state is problematic. Because we dont have the resources  the hospital can only acquire 20% of what they need."

Mike Callagy, San Mateo County manager, said the county had asked the state Emergency Medical Services Authority for the personal protective equipment, and they simply do not have them.... The state really needs to push on the feds to get those supplies in so they can be distributed down through the system thats in place here.

But unfortunately, theyre not fulfilling all those requests, because they themselves are rationing, said Louise Rogers, chief of San Mateo County Health. The state has indicated that eventually that theyre going to try to fulfill them. But that has not happened.

With so many vying for the same supplies, some on the front lines are scrounging for gear one piece at a time.

Ive been working with my staff to go to Sallys Beauty Supply, to go to Autozone, to go to all these types of places," said Crystal Solorzano, the chief executive of ReNew Health Group, which operates skilled nursing facilities in California. "We wouldnt have even imagined wed have to go to these stores just to have a backup supply because were seeing the supplies diminished so much."

John Thomas, president of the newly formed Blue Flame Medical, said the shortages are particularly hard on small organizations, which can't catch the attention of buyers with so many big players in the market.

On top of that, the market is dominated by middlemen who often have little idea if the goods they are selling even exist, he said.

Truthfully, its a  nightmare. Its even worse than you believe, Thomas said.

Thomas' company typically supplies large orders. It also recently turned its attention to smaller buyers, because it saw no one was paying attention to their needs, he said.

Weve got thousands of requests from small agencies saying, 'I need 50 masks, 100 masks,' Thomas said. In this environment, he added, there is no supplier willing "to pay attention to the guy who needs 50 masks.

Thomas said his company has been able to ramp up capacity by building relationships with domestic apparel manufacturers who agreed to convert their factories for full-time production of personal protective equipment.

Those kind of make-do solutions are becoming more common as those with needs and those with know-how combine in a furor of patriotism and increasing panic.

In Long Beach, a distillery has turned from vodka to raw alcohol  another basic in short supply  to make hand sanitizer. A 3-D printer in Oakland is making masks. And Gap Inc. has asked its factories to switch from consumer clothes to gowns and other medical garments.

At St. Johns Well Child and Family Center, a nonprofit that operates 18 health centers and school-based clinics in Los Angeles and Compton, the situation has become so dire that patients have offered to sew surgical masks for the staff.

In a news teleconference Tuesday, St. Johns Chief Executive Jim Mangia said it wouldnt be enough and called on the federal government to mandate the production of protective gear and masks for healthcare workers.

The president invoked the Defense Production Act; hes used it to force [General Motors] to create ventilators , Mangia said. But hes not using it for the production of protective gear and masks for front-line healthcare workers.

Candela, the doctor with the GoFundMe, worries his staff will pay with their lives. He has watched with dread as doctors in other parts of the world and country die from exposure, and he sees the stress building for everyone in the hospitals, including janitors, cafeteria workers and others.

Were literally repeating history," he said, referring to the hospitals overwhelmed in China, Italy, New York and other places. I can see it in their eyes and theyre scared, yet theyre showing up.

Late last week, Candela purchased a box of 25 coveralls, which resemble hazmat suits, for the nurses to wear. The hospital had five COVID-19 patients and many others who had the diseases symptoms, he said.

Candela told the man who sold him the coveralls that he wanted to buy 500 more. But by Monday, the suits had been sold.

Candela believes he was bigfooted by the government or a bigger corporation.

Somebody showed up at the warehouse and commandeered the stockpile, he said. What were finding is these times bring out the best of people and the worst of people."

Times staff writers Adam Elmahrek and Dakota Smith contributed to this report.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell dismissed attempts by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to spearhead talks about a fourth coronavirus relief bill, saying that she should stand down on the proposal.

She needs to stand down on the notion that were going to go along with taking advantage of the crisis to do things that are unrelated to the crisis, McConnell said, calling the speakers suggestions about fourth relief bill premature.

The Senate majority leaders remarks come a week after Congress passed a massive $2 trillion stimulus package to offset the economic destruction caused by the coronavirus pandemic, which continues to spread across the country, causing businesses to shutter and lay off workers.

The historic bill, the third coronavirus-related spending bill passed by Congress, provides $367 billion in loans to help small businesses keep making payroll, $100 billion for hospitals, and $150 billion for state and local governments.

The plan also provides for Americans who make up to $75,000 to receive a one-time payment of $1,200.

A $500 billion fund earmarked for corporations that have been economically damaged by the pandemic will be overseen by an inspector general and a congressional panel, in accordance with Democrats demands. The previous two emergency bills included free coronavirus testing, more funds for states, a mandate that businesses expand paid sick leave, and funds for medical supplies and vaccine research.

In a rare echoing of President Trump, Pelosi has said she would like to see an infrastructure investment in the next coronavirus spending bill to the tune of $760 billion, as well as $10 billion for health centers and housing programs. The speaker said Wednesday that her plan is probably in the same ballpark as the presidents.

The victims of the coronavirus pandemic cannot wait, Pelosi said in a statement responding to McConnell, adding that she hopes both sides in Congress can work together on the next relief legislation. It is moving faster than the leader may have suspected, and even he has said that some things should wait for the next bill.

Story continues

McConnell maintained that spending vigilance was necessary on both sides, especially after the $2 trillion relief bill.

We do have to be mindful of how to pay for it. There has been a lot of fantasizing on both sides about massive packages, McConnell said. Wed all love to do it, but there is the reality of how you pay for it. We just passed a $2 trillion bill, and it would take a lot of convincing to convince me that we should do transportation in a way thats not credibly paid for after what we just passed last week.

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PLEASANT LAKE, MI  Danielle Okley had heard stories of the old Bartletts Resort on Pleasant Lake from her mother.

It had big name rock 'n' roll bands and a busy dance floor, set right on the northeast shores of Pleasant Lake in northern Jackson County, Michigan. Danielle Okleys family had a house within walking distance.

Peek Through Time: Bartletts Resort on Pleasant Lake featured nonstop excitement

The resort closed and burned down before she came around, but she still has fond childhood memories of Poppys boat out on the lake and playing in the neighborhood. So when she and her husband Ryan Okley were looking to build a house of their own for them and their two daughters, Pleasant Lake was the natural choice.

They bought the land, cleared the trees by hand and got the permits. In July 2018, they started digging.

"When they started digging is when they uncovered everything," Ryan Okley said.

They found prohibition-era liquor bottles, paint cans, silverware, broken plates, ketchup bottles, old glass Vicks VapoRub containers, turpentine bottles, bowls and more  going 13 feet deep. All they could hear during excavating was breaking glass, Danielle Okley said.

It looked to be an unregistered dumping site from the old Bartletts Resort. The project halted.

"We were terrified," Danielle Okley said. "We had sold our house. We were, at this point, living with his parents. And we had already closed on the loan. We were all in on it."

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy came out to test the soil. It tested high for a number of metals, including lead, said Sara Nedrich, who was the EGLE district enforcement coordinator at the time. It exceeded drinking water limits and posed a public health concern, she said.

With estimates in the thousands of dollars to remediate, Ryan Okley said they figured they were sitting on a useless piece of property.

But with a few extra dollars in emergency funding available, EGLE stepped in. Because there was no liable party, the state agreed to do the work and clean up the site.

"The cost to complete the project was relatively small," Nedrich said, noting it was about $100,000. "But to the Okley's, this cost put their initial investment in the property and dream home in jeopardy."

The site was cleared of contaminants and the family started building their dream house in May 2019, Danielle Okley said. They moved in by November.

"So many tears were cried and so many doubts were had," Danielle Okley said. "If (EGLE) wouldn't have done what they did, this would still be a hole with dirt in it."

The Okleys didnt keep many artifacts from the site. Most pieces were broken and they were heartbroken, thinking their dream home would go unrealized. But Danielle Okleys aunt and uncle, from across the street, collected a few things.

For the familys first Christmas in the home, her aunt brought over an intact whiskey bottle from the site. It had a flower in it  encapsulating their journey of creating new life on a tainted, old property.
As businesses across New York figure out how they are affected by the states orders to shut down non-essential work to halt the spread of coronavirus, a law professor has some guidance for all of them.

Nobody can do business as usual," Gregory Germain said.

Germain, the director of Syracuse Universitys bankruptcy clinic and an attorney who practiced corporate law for many years, joined syracuse.com for live Q&A on Wednesday on Facebook. Syracuse.com invited Germain to answer questions after receiving hundreds of calls and emails from business owners and workers who wrote to say they were confused or frustrated by the states shutdown order.

Germain shared his opinions as a lawyer interpreting the orders and how courts and law enforcement agencies might deal with businesses during the shutdown.

He emphasized that all businesses, even those deemed essential, should be limiting person-to-person interactions as much as possible to comply with the states social distancing rules.

If you want to use the streetlight as an example, there are no green lights," Germain said. "There are red lights and there are yellow lights, but there are no green lights. Nobody can do business as usual. The extent of precautions are going to depend on the needs of the particular industry  but we all have to take precautions, even if were exempt. 

Germain urged business owners to consider why the state has imposed these orders: to protect people from a vicious, contagious disease.

The purpose of the essential exemptions, he notes, is to ensure peoples basic needs are met -- not to ensure businesses survive.

Under these rules, the fact that you really need to work in order to make a living, to put food on your table, is not an excuse for violating the rules," Germain said "That is hard for a lot of people for except but health and safety come ahead of financial need under these rules.

Germain spoke with syracuse.com reporter Julie McMahon, answering questions from readers for an hour. Scroll down for some highlights from the discussion.

Live Q&A: Answering your questions about essential work Were answering your questions about essential work with Gregory Germain, a business and corporate law professor at Syracuse Universitys School of Law. Submit your questions in the comments! Posted by syracuse.com on Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Consequences for violators

(Hear more at 11 minutes)

Gov. Andrew Cuomos orders mandating non-essential businesses to close or have employees work from home include specific penalties for anyone who violates them.

Fines start at $2,000 per violation and go up to $10,000 if violations result in physical harm.

If you have 50 employees, it could be a lot of money, Germain said. Not just employees, but it could be a violation with respect to every customer that comes into your store.

The most flagrant violators could also face criminal prosecution, or have business licenses permanently revoked.

Finally, according to Germain, any business operating outside the rules faces civil liability or lawsuits from customers or employees.

Imagine that you are in violation of the order for operating a business that is not essential and a customer or multiple customers get the virus," Germain said. "You could potentially be liable for all of the harm to everybody that was affected by that spread of the virus that you caused by not closing your operations.

Germain noted that courts are often sympathetic to businesses acting in good faith that genuinely believe they are complying with the law. Still, Germain repeatedly said he didnt think for many businesses, it would be worth the risk to stay open.

This is not the kind of thing you want to violate," he said.

Syracuse University law professor Gregory Germain (Provided Photo)

Whats essential is changing

(Hear more at 9:20)

Since the state released its essential list, it has added some businesses and services and it has removed others.

Its important to keep looking back at the list, Germain said. Its an evolving situation. You cant rely on looking at the list once as to what will be in effect tomorrow.

Syracuse.com is tracking what the state considers to be essential. Were posting articles as significant changes are made, and updating our full list to include the most recent information.

Germain recommended businesses check the status of their industry at least daily during the coronavirus pandemic.

Should I call a lawyer?

(Hear more at 51:50)

Businesses that are unclear about where they stand have few places to turn for clear answers.

Businesses can apply to Empire State Development for an exemption to continue working if they are not already listed on the states essential business list.

Trade organizations are one place to find guidance, but even they have said they arent always getting straightforward answers from state officials.

So, should businesses seek legal advice?

That is the toughest question Ive had today, because nobody can grant you a license other than the government, Germain said. If you call your lawyer, they will probably give you the same advice as you would find looking at these rules."

Germain emphasized using common sense.

Its all about acting in the most reasonable way you can consistent with the purpose of minimizing social contact," he said. "There is not a hotline you can call and get an answer to your questions that is going to be certain, and binding, and protect you.

If the task can be done at home, it should be done at home.

(Hear more at 15:20)

Many people asked about what to do when they believe their employer should let them work from home or if thats not possible when they believe they should not work at all.

Germain shared information about reporting employers to the New York Attorney Generals Office.

His opinion in general: If the task can be done at home, it should be done at home. Employers need to comply with those rules."

Germain again noted that even exempt businesses with essential functions need to take the appropriate steps to protect their employees from the spread of the disease.

Sole operators

(Hear more at 26 minutes)

Germain observed one change New York state has made to its rules over the last two weeks: Exemptions for sole operators, or one-employee businesses.

In the states initial guidance, these businesses were granted broad immunity from the order. Since that language has been removed from the states guidance except for construction projects.

Germain noted one-employee businesses can also create a high density of customers.

I dont think they thought it through very well when they first put [that] exemption, he said. I think theyve recognized it really doesnt matter if youre a one-employee business or not, but what matters is if you can comply with the spirit of the rules, which is not having people congregating together and spreading the virus.

Essential businesses with non-essential functions

(Hear more 18:45)

The state has addressed what essential businesses, like manufacturers, should do if they also make or sell non-essential products or services.

The nonessential functions have to stop, Germain said. Thats the rule.

So manufacturers that make medical supplies and other supplies can keep some lines up and running, but have to shut down the non-essential work.

Germain pointed out one notable exception: medical billing.

Its one area where financial implications of telling people not to work appear to be prioritized, he noted.

The billing clerk for the hospital is treated as an essential function  its really a financial function and the hospitals could continue to operate without the billing clerks, he said. But obviously they are concerned the hospitals wont continue to operate without the billing clerks because they will have a financial incentive not to do so.

Home renovations

(Hear more at 32:45)

Lots of people wrote to syracuse.com wondering about home renovations that had already begun this season but were not complete.

I think its a very difficult area to navigate, Germain said.

Construction generally had been exempt from the order when it was first announced, but the state ordered all but emergency construction -- and construction related to essential infrastructure like roads and utilities -- to stop Friday.

Residential construction poses a challenge because contractors might be going from one home to the next, potentially spreading the virus, Germain said.

He said skilled trades workers and builders should limit their work to jobs that involve the health and safety of a buildings occupants.

Thats where I would draw the line, he said. If someones heat is out in the cold, that may be necessary for health and safety.

Germain also discussed contractual obligations for builders and other private contractors, who typically work under deadlines.

Germain said in most circumstances, where laws would prevent someone from holding up their end of a contract, the contractor would be granted an extension.

But with so much uncertainty about how this law applies to construction, its a gray area, Germain said.

Those are going to be very thorny questions that are going to be very fact-specific and I cant give you a clear answer, Germain said.

Why the beer truck got shut down

(Hear more at 37:45)

When a Syracuse taproom tried to go mobile, the state shut it down.

Germain said thats a good reminder of the rules put in place to stop the spread of the virus dont "care one whit about your financial situation.

While food and beverage sellers are considered essential, they arent allowed to have people congregating at their businesses.

Is there an argument that beer is food and therefore exempt? Maybe there is, but good luck winning that when you have lines of people getting together and partying in front of your truck, he said.

Contactless delivery, kits, and other innovation

(Hear more at 40:15)

Germain said he thought that didnt have to mean all innovative and creative ways to conduct business were outlawed.

Local hairstylists and bakeries have come up with kits to deliver to customers and clients in lieu of other services.

I dont think it violates the spirit of the law as long as theres not a social interaction, Germain said. If someone wants to sell and deliver products and is not going face-to-face to the doors of peoples homes, leaving them in the post box or leaving them on the side of the house, I dont really have a problem with it.

He strongly cautioned again face-to-face contact during these deliveries.

Residential cleaners

(Hear more at 49:15)

A couple Facebook Live audience members asked about residential cleaning.

Cleaners, janitors and maintenance workers appear to fall under the states exemption for maintenance," but Germain again urged using common sense.

One cleaner wrote to ask about visiting her elderly clients, some of which rely on her for help.

Germain said providing necessities and sanitizing are one thing, but routine cleaning could be very risky, especially for workers who travel from home-to-home and could spread the virus.

I think youd have to be very careful going into peoples homes to do non-essential cleaning, Germain said. Its a very scary time. If youre going into peoples homes that are elderly [even for essential cleaning], youve got to be extra careful."

Have a question about your industry? Contact Reporter Julie McMahon: Email | Twitter | 315-412-1992

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Lawmakers in Shenzhen, China have banned its residents from consuming certain animals including dog, snake, frog, turtle and cat meats...





Lawmakers in Shenzhen, China have banned its residents from consuming certain animals including dog, snake, frog, turtle and cat meats.





According to the notice by the Chinese government, the legislation which was passed on Wednesday will take effect on May 1, 2020.





The law comes after the coronavirus outbreak was linked to wildlife meat, prompting Chinese authorities to ban the trade and consumption of wild animals BBC news reports.





The officials said Dogs and cats as pets have established a much closer relationship with humans than all other animals, and banning the consumption of dogs and cats and other pets is a common practice in developed countries and in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

This ban also responds to the demand and spirit of human civilization.  Residents are only allowed to dine on aquatic animals permitted by law.





The government stated that certain livestock like pigs, cows, sheep, donkeys, rabbits, chickens, ducks, geese and pigeons were safe for consumption.





However, due to the continuous spread of the virus, there are now close to one million confirmed cases of the virus worldwide, and more than 47,000 deaths, according to a Johns Hopkins University tally.





According to the National Health Commission in China alone, there are 81,589 confirmed cases and 3,318 deaths.
Five persons a suspected coronavirus patient and his four family members were caught by the police here on Thursday hours after they fled a hospital in adjoining Munger district where they had been kept in quarantine, a senior official said.

According to Superintendent of Police, Sheikhpura, Daya Shankar, he was informed about the escape by his Munger counterpart Lipi Singh late Wednesday.

The latter said mobile phone locations suggested they were in Sheikhpura, following which the districts borders were sealed and a search operation was launched.

He said the escapees were found inside a car at Sheikhpura by-pass on which a sticker proclaiming that the vehicle belonged to a government official to hoodwink the police was affixed.

All the five, the suspected patient, an old man, a middle-aged woman, a young woman and a young man, were sent back to Munger.

It was not known since when the suspected patient had been in quarantine and what was the status of his test reports.

Munger, which reported Bihars first COVID 19 case on March 22, has emerged as a hotspot of sorts with seven cases so far, in a state where the total number as of now is 28. These include the deceased patient from whom the remaining six are said to have caught the contagion.

The 38-year-old, who had returned from Qatar and suffered from renal failure, also ended up infecting a relative from Lakhisarai district and three others associated with a private hospital in Patna where he was admitted for a brief period.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts have launched an enticing competition targeted at content creators around the globe who are at home and looking for an activity to focus their passions on during Covid-19.



(TRAVPR.COM) THAILAND - April 2nd, 2020 - The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts have launched an enticing competition targeted at content creators around the globe who are at home and looking for an activity to focus their passions on, the 'Curated Journey Video Competition', allowing amateur or professional film-makers an opportunity to win a 7-night stay at one of The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts.

The initiative follows the evolving global circumstances of Covid-19, where people around the globe are looking for a project to work on at home, to inspire creativity and imagination. Entrants are given exclusive access to The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts video and content bank which features footage of all the hotels, locations and experiences; entrants are also allowed to use their own content from the area's which hotels are located.

Tim Sargeant, Group Director of Marketing, is excited to bring the unique competition to the world, "We are thrilled to launch a competition that opens the door to new ideas, creativity and passion. We recently updated the brand identity, which focuses more on the guest journey and experience, with Curated Journeys. We love that we now have the chance to expand on this with those around the world; to see their Journey come to life.''

The competition runs from 02 April - 10 May 2020, with the top 5 videos being shortlisted for a public vote between 12 - 22 May 2020. The winner will be announced on 29 May 2020 and takes away a fantastic 7-night stay, inclusive of breakfast, at one the hotel groups hotels or resorts located in, Phuket, Thailand; Bali, Indonesia; Rome, Italy; Madrid, Spain or Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The project has attracted the support from leading local media publication, The Phuket News, who believe the initiative is a positive display of creativity in a time where most of the world are working and living their days at home.

Jason Beavan, General Manager from The Phuket News, said "With the world working from home, being positive and looking towards the future is essential to our mental health. This positive campaign being run by the team at The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts lets us expand our creative side while giving us a goal to work towards. I can't think of anything better than 7 nights in one of their hotels or resorts when this is all over. Stay safe and see you on the other side."

The competition is open to all content creators, videographers, vloggers and film-makers. Visit the link below to enrol in the competition, terms and conditions apply.

###
Silence is good, but if youve had enough quiet during these isolating times, there are always podcasts to make us think and maybe smile.

Before this part two of our list of happening podcasts during the coronavirus disruption, we want to mention a few online in case you missed it diversions: Actor John Krasinskis at-home online show SGN (Some Good News) and interview with fellow co-star of The Office Steve Carell is very cool; Steinway & Sons has made a bunch of stuff free online, including Francesco Parrino doing Take On Me; and the compilation of symphony orchestras playing pieces from home locations is another lift for the soul.

Now to the podcasts, which you can list enjoy via earbuds as you do light housework or outdoor cleanup. With the help of a tuned-in daughter and some other folks, heres todays picks list:

Starting with Connecticut products, were excited to introduce Exit 43, Hearst Connecticut Media Groups new podcast, which is an in-depth look at local news and issues, focusing on things in and around Connecticut that you probably didnt know about.

WNPRs The Wheelhouse is consistently sharp on Connecticut topics, and has been for some time. Also Nutmeg-based is The Colin McEnroe Show from the Hearst columnists WNPR radio show.

From Fairfield County in our state comes The Mangina Dialogues a comedic/lifestyles pod hosted by stand-up comedian Nick Scopoletti (aka Nick Scopes) and Comedy DJ The Gregalicious (aka Greg Alprin). And Milfords Pantochino Productions has a new podcast  a series of original, mini-musicals voiced by long time Pantochino company members. (It also has a popular online series called Lets Learn Stuff with Victoria Sautee.)

From the not-failing New York Times, comes The Daily with Michael Barbaro, and online site Slate has Political Gabfest with David Plotz, Emily Bazelon and John Dickerson.

For food and cooking, The Splendid Table with Francis Lam from Minnesota Public Radio included one with food science writer J. Kenji Lopez-Alt talking about safe grocery shopping and how to handle take-out in the time of the coronavirus. Theres also The Dave Chang Show.

For outdoors, theres Wild Ideas Worth Living. Its recent entry was Breathwork With James Nestor, talking about the art and science of breathing. Hey, dont knock it; we all aspire to keep breathing in 2020, and this is a geeky treat. For fitness/running (the passion of improbably thin people), theres The Ali on the Run Show.

Want to learn a new language? Try Coffee Break podcast from Radiolingua.com.

You dont look like a person who needs relationship advice, but if you do, theres The Viall Files with Nick Viall of The Bachelor. (If youre a Baby Boomer like me, you just got a little nauseated at that mention).

For women and self-help, try Unlocking Us with Brene Brown, who brings a breezy and brainy break to the brokenhearted.

Two more: West Coast-based 99% Invisible from host/creator Roman Mars and Planet Money from NPR, aka The Economy Explained. Recent episode? America Unemployed. So you can try to avoid the pandemics quiet desperation but you wont be able to avoid its dull roar of wrenching change.
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol remains N133.28 per litre.

Ndu Ughamadu, the NNPC Group Spokesman, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Abuja on Tuesday.

He said Nigerians should ignore any speculations that pump price will soon increase.

The ex-depot price of PMS remains N133.28 per litre as at today and this is according to the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) template.

NNPC remains the sole importer of the product and we have not increased the price we sell to marketer.

There is no plan to increase pump price, Nigerians should know that, he said.

He said the corporation had robust stock pile of products that would last the country for several days, adding that there was no need to engage in panic buying.

He said the corporation over the weekend had strengthen the partnership with Major Oil Marketer Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) to ensure adequate supply of products in the country.

We also told them not to increase price but if they engage in that, it is illegal and we have instructed the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to sanction them.

Members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) had recently warned that the pump price of the PMS may sell above N145.

The IPMAN Chairman of Ore Depot, Shina Amoo, who gave this hint, added that the price of the product has increased at the private depot.

According to him, the private depot owners now sell the product between N136.50 and N137 per litre instead of the former N133.28 per litre approved by the NNPC.

IPMAN may soon start selling beyond N145 per litre if depot owners continued to sell between N136.50 and N137 per litre, he said.

Post Views: 70
As cases rise and more countries order lockdowns, Africas experience with the coronavirus depends on what happens over the next month, said the director of the continents Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.



And why is that so? Because we expect that by the third to fourth week from now, the virus will begin to seed into different communities, or sub-communities. For example, the most vulnerable populations in slums around capital cities, or even expand to remote areas. And then well begin to understand how severe this pandemic will be, Dr. John Nkengasong told journalists during a virtual press briefing on Thursday.



Lockdowns have been declared across the continent as cases mount, including in South Africa, Botswana, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Mauritius, and some cities in Madagascar, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Other countries have imposed travel restrictions and other regulations aimed at stopping the virus from spreading.



Dr. Meredith McMorrow, a medical officer in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Preventions Influenza Division, said what citizens do next is critical.



U.S. health officials are advising African governments on handling the pandemic, as cases soar over 180,000 in the United States amid the prospect that the nation could see 100,000 to 240,000 deaths over the next two months, despite social distancing.

Residents, keeping a distance from one another due to the coronavirus, queue outside a grocery store in the Alexandra township in Johannesburg, South Africa, April 1, 2020.

McMorrow said experts urge people everywhere to do the same.



This is the best thing that we can do to protect everyone, she said. We have a limited amount of time to prevent widespread circulation of this virus in communities. And so, the best thing that we can all do right now is practice good hand hygiene, social distancing and take care of ourselves. I think that the challenges are obviously in areas where perhaps their resources are not great. Not every person can do that on this continent. And in those areas, then that's where governments step in and try and assist people that perhaps can't self-isolate.



The African region, which reported its first case in February, currently has just over 6,000 reported cases, Nkengasong said.



McMorrow said lags in testing probably mean there are many more cases than have been reported.



It is likely that the currently reported laboratory confirmed case counts are a gross underestimate of the true burden of COVID-19 disease because of the issues that you've highlighted, she said. Sometimes, as far as the actual burden, it's difficult to estimate because the symptoms of COVID-19 are very similar to other viruses, and they're very nonspecific. It is somewhat reassuring that we haven't seen or heard of large increases in severe respiratory illness in this time.



Nkengasong noted that even as governments close ranks around their people, this fight is not restricted to one country or continent but the whole world, together. But, he said, keep a safe distance apart.


A beauty therapist is behind bars after being accused of being a major player in a drug trafficking syndicate.

Chloe Victoria Smith, Reece William Luscombe, Jack Michael Thomson and Shannon Matthew Hita faced Mackay Magistrates Court in Queensland charged with various drug offences on Thursday.

The Courier-Mail reported detectives from police operation Romeo Suitcase believe their alleged operation is linked to the Finks Outlaw Motorcycle Gang.

Chloe Victoria Smith has been accused of being a major player in a Queensland drug trafficking syndicate

Reece William Luscombe was refused bail in Mackay Magistrates Court and was remanded in custody

Luscombe was refused bail and was remanded in custody, while the other three accused were granted bail if they could front a $10,000 surety.

None of them have given their surety and all remain in jail on remand.

Police have been following the alleged drug syndicate for more than six months, spanning from the Gold Coast up to Cairns.

Bail conditions prevent the group from having any contact with eleven people.

Smith is in a relationship with Luscombe and is unable to contact him due to the conditions.

Thomson also cannot contact his partner, who is not accused of any crime.

The group must hand their passports in to police during the investigation.

They will return to court on July 20.
Masks are everywhere in Asia, but have they helped?

WORLD: The use of face masks in Asia during the coronavirus outbreak has been far more widespread than in the West, where governments have urged people to reserve supplies for frontline medical staff, so have they helped limit infections?

healthCoronavirusCOVID-19Safety

By AFP

Thursday 2 April 2020, 02:26PM

The World Health Organizations position remains that mask-wearing for the general public is not advised, emphasising a global shortage of masks and the desperate need to route available supplies to frontline health workers. Photo: AFP

Experts agree that the ordinary surgical masks commonly worn in parts of Asia during cold and hayfever seasons are not a foolproof way to prevent coronavirus infection.

But people infected with the virus are advised to wear them to stop the spread to others, and there is evidence that transmission can happen before a person knows they are sick. That has bolstered the argument of mask supporters who believe they can help limit the outbreak.

In parts of Asia, mask-wearing has been a key response to the outbreak, with Japans government announcing yesterday (April 1) each household would get two reusable cloth versions, and Hong Kongers not only wearing them but sending them to relatives abroad.

Keiji Fukuda, director and clinical professor at the University of Hong Kongs School of Public Health, said people in the city see wearing a mask as a way that the individual is trying to protect both the larger society as well as the self.

But where I grew up, in the US, wearing masks is seen by some, if not many, as a personal infringement - an unwanted imposed obligation, he told AFP.

The use of masks in parts of Asia with relatively low numbers of infections and deaths from the virus, including Japan and Hong Kong, has led some to theorise mask-wearing is making the difference.

But experts are sceptical.

Ben Cowling, a professor at the University of Hong Kongs School of Public Health, instead credits a range of public health measures implemented in these countries.

These include identifying cases and isolating them, tracing and quarantining their contacts, and also implementing social distancing in the community, he told AFP.

False sense of security

And Fukuda too cautioned against thinking of mask-wearing as a magic X-factor.

Some places like Singapore have generally done very well without strongly emphasising masks, he noted.

He attributes the smaller outbreaks to measures including contact tracing, good coordination, social distancing and a general public that has been quite worried from the start and willing to work with health authorities.

Its the entire package that is important.

The World Health Organizations position remains that mask-wearing for the general public is not advised, emphasising a global shortage of masks and the desperate need to route available supplies to frontline health workers.

And some experts warn mask-wearing can backfire, even where supplies are plentiful.

Masks may give people a false sense of security, said Simon Clarke, an associate professor of cellular microbiology at the University of Reading.

Better than nothing?

Advocating mask usage, he fears, could also embolden people who are reluctant to adhere to social distancing measures.

I can envisage a situation where people who are infected and therefore shedding virus, think their mask gives them licence to go out to public places or to work, he told AFP.

We all know people who think nothing of bringing colds into work to share with everyone - it will be the same for coronavirus.

Austria and Slovenia among others have already mandated their use, and top US scientist Anthony Fauci said this week that when supply is stable, mask-wearing recommendations may be broadened to help prevent infected people from spreading the virus.

One of the best ways to do that is with a mask, he told CNN.

Cowling said additional research was needed to guide policy on what kinds of masks were useful and how they should be utilised, but that increased mask usage might be worthwhile.

I think countries are looking at every possible measure to slow down transmission, so that even if a measure like face masks could only reduce transmission by a small amount, it might still be worth doing.
Residents of the Indian Ocean island nation Mauritius rushed to supermarkets on Thursday after they had been shut for 10 days under a lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Mauritius, usually a paradise holiday destination known for pristine beaches and coral reefs, has the most cases in eastern Africa with 169 infected and seven deaths -- including a 20-year-old woman with no prior health issues who died on Thursday.

The country was one of the first in Africa to impose a lockdown on March 20 -- when cases still stood at seven -- going so far as to shut supermarkets, bakeries and other shops often kept open in other nations.

Aware that people's stocks were starting to run low, the government decided to re-open under strict rules which divide people into three alphabetical groups to decide on which days they are allowed to shop.

Prakash Beeharry, a primary school teacher, told AFP he was lucky his surname starts with a 'B'.

"My neighbour, Mr Jayen Veerasamy, has to wait two more days before he can access the supermarket," he said.

Like many other mask-wearing shoppers, Beeharry stood in line from 6am to 10am before he was allowed in the supermarket.

"We only had 30 minutes to get all the groceries. Quite a challenge. I'm 45 years old and I've never experienced this... I hope things don't get worse."

Snaking long lines spread out from different supermarkets on the island, where shoppers kept a safe distance from each other and had their temperatures taken as they entered the stores.

"I feel relieved now that I have some supplies," said retired citizen Joseph who was one of the first at the Intermart in central Curepipe.

Other rules put in place allow only one member of a family in the store at a time, and masks are obligatory. The purchase of basics such as rice, flour, milk or oil are subject to restrictions.

Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth had initially shut the supermarkets because the situation was "extremely serious" and he saw the move as "the only way to stop the spread of the virus".

The decision was widely criticised, as while the middle and upper classes were able to prepare and stock food, the poor were not -- and many had yet to receive their salaries.

Tourism Minister Joe Lesjongard explained Tuesday that the government was "aware the population is starting to lack supplies".

"We should never have shut the supermarkets," said former prime minister and prominent opposition leader Paul Berenger.

In a bid to assist the poorest members of society, the government has distributed basic necessities to some 30,000 people.

A solidarity fund has also been created by government officials, with all lawmakers donating ten percent of their annual salaries.

Hotels on the island are now mostly empty, aside from a handful used as quarantine centres, while the renowned smiles of tourism staff have been replaced by the exhausted, defeated expressions of health workers.
BOOK OF THE WEEK

RADICAL WORDSWORTH

by Jonathan Bate (William Collins, 25, 608 pp)

The poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge spent Christmas Day 1806 with his close friend William Wordsworth, together with Wordsworths wife Mary, her sister Sara Hutchinson and Wordsworths own sister, Dorothy.

Two days later, Coleridge bolted from the house. Taking refuge in the nearest tavern, he poured out his anguished thoughts on paper.

He destroyed the pages, but from what he later wrote its clear his distress was caused by having seen Wordsworth in bed with Sara. Coleridge was passionately in love with her, and years afterwards he was still haunted by the vision of the two of them together, her most beautiful breasts exposed.

Jonathan Bate explores the life of poet William Wordsworth, who was born in 1770, in a fascinating new biography. Pictured: William, at 28

It must have been quite a Christmas, because apart from all this domestic drama, Wordsworth spent every night reading aloud to Coleridge and his family from the long autobiographical poem he had been working on for two years. Never published during his lifetime, it became known as The Prelude and is considered his masterpiece.

Although the poem was dedicated to Coleridge, and the two men patched up their relationship, things were never quite the same between them.

And, strangely, their poetry suffered as well. Wordsworth and Coleridge both began writing their best poetry when they met each other. They both stopped writing their best poetry when they fell out with one another, Jonathan Bate writes.

William Wordsworth was born in Cockermouth, in Cumberland, in 1770 and had a difficult childhood: his mother died when he was seven and his father when he was 13.

In 1791, after graduating from Cambridge, he travelled to Paris burning with enthusiasm for the French Revolution. Many years later he evoked the euphoria of that time in the poem which begins:

Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive

But to be young was very Heaven!

In Paris he fell in love with Annette Vallon and in 1792 she gave birth to their daughter, Caroline. By then, Wordsworth had already returned to England, but he stayed in touch with Annette and Caroline, and supported them financially for most of his life.

The first of his poems to be published sold poorly and received unenthusiastic reviews. In 1795 he met Coleridge; they became the closest of friends and William and his sister Dorothy, who was his constant companion, even moved to Somerset to be closer to him.

The poetry of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, was never the same after Samuel found William in bed with Sara Hutchinson. Pictured: Silhouette of Sara Hutchinson

William collaborated with Samuel Taylor Coleridge on Lyrical Ballads, including Coleridges Rime Of The Ancient Mariner. Pictured: William as portrayed by Richard Carruthers

The two poets sparked ideas off each other and in 1798 they collaborated on Lyrical Ballads, which included Coleridges Rime Of The Ancient Mariner. Wordsworth also began work on one of his seminal poems, Tintern Abbey.

A year later, William and Dorothy settled in Grasmere in the Lake District, at the small house which would later be known as Dove Cottage.

Although his work still attracted mocking reviews and sold very little  fortunately, he had inherited money from his father  Wordsworths fame, and that of the Romantic movement of which he was a part, was steadily growing. Grasmere was where the siblings felt happiest and was a never-ending source of inspiration. They walked constantly, and fragments of Dorothys beautifully descriptive nature notes were often echoed in her brothers poems.

One spring day, Dorothy wrote in her notebook that they had passed a huge bank of daffodils.

This prompted Wordsworths most famous poem, so familiar that it has almost become a cliche.

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high oer vale and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils.

William who died in 1850, had a passionate love for the Lake District(pictured) that inspired the newly-formed National Trust

In 1802, Wordsworth married a family friend, Mary Hutchinson. Dorothy continued to live with them, and Marys sister Sara was also there much of the time.

Bate dismisses the widely-held idea of anything incestuous in Wordsworths relationship with his sister.

He is also doubtful that the poets sister-in-law Sara was his lover, offering the rather unconvincing suggestion that when Coleridge saw them in bed, they were simply reading.

Whatever the truth of his domestic arrangements, Williams marriage to the admirably long-suffering Mary seems to have been very happy, and he doted on their five children.

Bate, an Oxford academic, is a pacy writer and he doesnt pull his punches when it comes to Wordsworths later poetry. Hardly any of it is worth reading, he declares, calling it both pompous and turgid. The second half of Wordsworths life was the longest, dullest decline in literary history, he says.

RADICAL WORDSWORTH by Jonathan Bate (William Collins, 25, 608 pp)

Yet paradoxically it was then that his fame blossomed.

He accepted the role of Poet Laureate in 1843  so the young radical who had rejoiced in revolution had become a leading member of the Establishment. Friends began to notice a tendency towards vanity and pomposity, Bate comments.

What lay behind this decline? The breach with Coleridge was one reason. Wordsworths marriage  whether or not there were dalliances  may be another. Could it have been that the price of a quiet life and a happy marriage was the extinction of those sparks of inspiration? Bate wonders.

Wordsworth died in 1850, aged 80. But was he, as Bate claims, the poet who changed the world because of his influence on writers such as Keats, Shelley, John Clare, Matthew Arnold, John Ruskin and George Eliot?

He can certainly be said to have played a big part in preserving part of our landscape. His passionate love for the Lake District inspired the newly-formed National Trust, as well as the author Beatrix Potter, to buy up great swathes of land there in the late 19th and early 20th century, thus preserving this beautiful area for the nation.

How good a poet was Wordsworth? When he was at his best, Bate says, his poems were as powerful as any since Shakespeare and they uphold and feed the spirit of anyone who reads them.

He is surely right: just read the opening of Composed Upon Westminster Bridge, which might have been written for London today in its current crisis.

Earth has not anything to show more fair:

Dull would he be of soul who could pass by

A sight so touching in its majesty;

This City now doth, like a garment wear

The beauty of the morning; silent, bare.
CNN anchor Chris Cuomo has been shivering so severely with coronavirus that he chipped his own tooth, he admitted on air on Wednesday.

Continuing the broadcast from the basement of his home, the younger brother of governor Andrew Cuomo has been describing his symptoms to the public.

Ive never had anything like it, Cuomo, 49, said about the novel Covid-19 disease, which has now infected more than 850,000 people worldwide.

I never experienced any kind of fever like what I have going on all the time, and the body aches, and the tremors and the concern about not being able to do anything about it.

On Wednesday talking to CNNs chief medical correspondent Dr Sanjay Gupta via a virtual interview, Cuomo acknowledged that his shivers had gotten so sever he chipped a tooth from.

You had these rigours  so bad, that I think you chipped a tooth, Dr Gupta said.

Yes, Cuomo confirmed.

The anchor tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday, and has been using his platform to warn people to do everything they can to prevent the spread of the virus.

I tested positive. Scary, yes, as you might imagine. But better me than you, the 49-year-old said on Tuesday.

So lets focus, lets use this example of me having it as proof that you can get it too, God forbid. We have to do everything we can to avoid being sick, he continued.

We have to do it for ourselves, our families, and for those on the front lines who are saving the lives of people like me and many of you. Together as ever as one. That is our remedy.
The novel Coronavirus pandemic has severely affected all walks of life across the world. The only silver lining of this grim situation is the quality time that people are finally spending with their loved ones amid the COVID-19 lockdown. However, Mandana Karimi isn't that lucky! Her family, which includes her mother, two brothers and a close friend, are at home in Iran, and she can't be with them.

The Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3 actress expressed her concern while speaking to Hindustan Times and was quoted as saying, "For my friends in India, the situation hit them for the past two weeks. For me, I've been stressed with this whole situation for 60 days. My mom was supposed to be with me here for Holi, she's been doing this for seven-eight years now. This year, she couldn't. I can't send her anything, they have a lot of problems with hand sanitisers and medicines. The only way we connect is through the internet. The situation is really bad there," she says, adding how the government "isn't supporting" people.

Talking about how the situation is bad in Iran, Mandana continued, "So, the community has decided to shut down places, and have made a hand wash station outside the shops that are open. Even tests aren't available, so literally they take you to the hospital if you need to be in the ICU, there's no getting healed."

The actress revealed that she is constantly in touch with everyone back home in Iran and told the tabloid, "Taking stress doesn't help anyone, you're fighting a virus which has to do with the immune system. I couldn't work out for three-four days in the beginning, as I'd constantly be on the phone. It hit me hard when I sat one day. Then I put myself back together and started working out."

Speaking about how her habit of not stocking on food is affecting her, Mandana said, "I'm still struggling with how to store food, because I'm always travelling, so I didn't used to store food. Now I'm learning how to package chicken and fresh veggies. It's a learning process. I have two dogs at home too. This is how our new life is going to be. I'm not used to staying at home the whole day."

Mandana has starred in films like Bhaag Johnny, Main Aur Charles, Kyaa Kool Hai Hum 3 among others. She was last seen in Star Plus' popular show Ishqbaaz.

Mandana Karimi, Karanvir Bohra, Iqbal Khan And Others React To Ongoing CAA Protests

Mandana Karimi's Tantrums Continue In Real Life; Here's Why She Doesn't Want To Stay With Guptas
President grants penitentiary officers access to medical records of drug-addicted convicts

 RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov

12:08 02/04/2020

MOSCOW, April 2 (RAPSI)  Russias President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a provision permitting officers of penitentiary establishments responsible for controlling convicts obliged to undergo drug treatment to access privileged medical information thereof, the Justice Ministry informs on its website on Thursday.

The law envisages that when exercising their respective duties such officers are to be vested with the right to obtain relevant privileged medical information on demand, without drug-addicted convicts or their legal representatives consent.

Earlier, the requests of penitentiary authorities for privileged medical information could be met only on condition citizens or their legal representatives consented to them with the exception of instances where such requests were made in connection with criminal sentence enforcement and control over those on probation, individuals given suspended or deferred sentences, or persons early released on parole.

Nevertheless, the consent on the part of sentenced persons or their legal representatives to be provided privileged medical information from health care providers is still required in cases where the sentences amount to fines, prohibition to hold certain posts or engage in certain activities, correctional labor, or restriction of freedom.
Jackie Shroff is away from his family, somewhere between Pune and Mumbai, and has shared a video asking his fans to chill and spend time with their families amid lockdown. Jackie shared the video on Twitter with the caption, Stay Home Stay Safe in lockdown bhidus.

He begins the video thanking his fans for giving so much love to him and his son Tiger Shroff. Main ek chaal ka ladka tha, ab bhi mera dil chali ka hai (I was a slum dweller, my heart still belongs in the slum), he says.

Asking everyone to just stay at home, he says, Its your duty to obey the rules of the lockdown, do it for your child, think about your family. Stay at home. I think you all should be staying home, take it easy, do pranayam. Consume mustard oil, salt and turmeric at home. Look into the eyes of your mother, your wife, your kid, your lover or whosoever you love. Listen to your heart, if you plan to go out, you end up taking tension and giving tension to your family. Sudhar jao. Even God is relaxing above. Breathe a bit, just relax at home.

While Jackie is at his house between Mumbai and Pune, his wife Aisha, daughter Krishna and son Tiger are at their residence in Mumbai. The actor said he could have gone home too by getting a permit etc but decided not to flout the lockdown and advised others to do the same.

Jackie has also contributed to the cause of daily workers who are among the worst affected during the nationwide lockdown due to coronavirus outbreak. He took to Twitter to lend his support and wrote, I wholeheartedly support this noble initiative. Happy to contribute for this humanitarian cause. While staying safe at home I urge every one else also to contribute online.

Also read: Mandana Karimi worried for family in Iran amid coronavirus crisis: Tests arent available, theres no getting healed there

The actor recently shared a picture of himself standing in front of a shut door and captioned it, Stay Home Bhidus #HomeQuarantine #FamilyTime.

He had earlier told Radio Nasha that he is staying with his driver and they cook vegetables grown in his backyard. He has also been doing his bit to provide food for daily wager workers and stray animals during the lockdown. He is also working for thalassemia patients who need to get blood transfusions every 15 days.

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Kate Middleton 'has returned to a simpler style' since Meghan Markle left the UK because she doesn't have to 'compete' with the 'intimidating' Duchess any more, a source has claimed.

The Duchess of Sussex, 38, left the UK in November for North America, where she lived in Canada with Prince Harry, 35, and Archie, 1, before moving to LA last month as she officially stepped back from royal duty.

But now a royal insider has claimed the Duchess of Cambridge, 38, has felt more 'relaxed' since Meghan left because she 'does not feel she has to compete now.'

Speaking to The Sun, the source revealed: 'Kate most definitely went through a phase two years ago where she seemed slightly intimidated by Meghan.

Kate Middleton, 38, has 'gone back to a simpler style' since Meghan Markle, 38, left the UK, according to a royal insider

According to the insider, Duchess of Cambridge has opted for simple style choices, cut her hair and worn subtler makeup since Meghan's departure

'She was afraid of comparisons being drawn between them and that Meghan was the one who looked glamorous and popular for a while.'

The source went on to say that the atmosphere had 'noticeably improved' since Meghan and Harry left the UK, with Kate feeling 'very much more relaxed.'

They added that since the pressure had lifted, Kate's makeup had also lightened and been simplified.

They say her makeup artist Arabella Preston was using 'less eye makeup' as well as paler lip colours and more high street nail vanishes in subtler shades.

The source revealed that Kate had felt 'intimated' by the 'glamorous' Meghan and had felt people would compare their style (pictured, at Ascot in 2019)

The source said Kate felt 'afraid' of comparisons being drawn between herself and Meghan after the Duchess of Sussex joined the royal family (pictured, Kate in March 2019 wearing Gucci)

Kate is known and often praised for her love of highstreet clothing and ability to mix affordable brands with designer pieces.

On her most recent public outing, the Duchess donned a blush two piece suit from Marks and Spencer with a simple white t-shirt.

She is also known for cleverly updating and re-wearing pieces from her wardrobe, stepping out in a white Reiss coat that she had from her pre-Duchess days during her tour of Ireland in January.

Meanwhile since joining the royal family, the Duchess of Sussex has become known for her love of designer pieces, and rarely wears the same outfit twice.

She often donned designers like Dior, Givenchy and Victoria Beckham during royal engagements.

Since joining the royal family, Meghan has become known for her love of lavish designers and glitzy jewellery (pictured, in March)

From March 31, Meghan and Prince Harry were no longer be working royals nor use their HRH styles.

The couple have now wound down their UK foundation and shut their Buckingham Palace office.

The duo are now living in California, having carried out their final round of royal duties in Britain, and are planning the launch of their new non-profit organisation for next month.

The Sussexes are yet to flesh out what their new entity will look like, other than outlining it will support their 'global charitable, campaign and philanthropic work'.


A mother of six-year-old twin boys has lost her life to coronavirus after succumbing to the deadly illness despite having no underlying health conditions.

Caroline Saunby died after initially falling ill and collapsing at home before being taken to James Cook University hospital in Middlesbrough by air ambulance.

The family of the 48-year-old mother victim say the symptoms worsened and Caroline soon struggled to breathe before later losing her battle with the infection.

Mrs Saunby, who passed away on Sunday, after showing signs of the illness last Thursday, leaves behind her two twin sons Joseph and Elliot and grieving husband Vic.

Now her devastated twin sister Sarah Jarvis has spoken out in a bid to encourage others to take the coronavirus threat seriously and take all the precautions necessary as laid down by the government.

Caroline Saunby, mother of six-year-old twin boys, has tragically lost her life to coronavirus, succumbing to the deadly illness after struggling to breath and being rushed to hospital

The 48-year-old tragically lost her life at James Cook University hospital in Middlesbrough leaves behind her two twin sons Joseph and Elliot and grieving husband Vic (pictured)

The message of Sarah and the family of 'healthy' mum who died days falling ill states Caroline 'was full of life; the most amazing mum and wife.'

It is believed Ms Saunby, who had no prior health problems, noticed discomfort and she fell ill on Thursday with suspected tonsillitis after developing a sore throat.

However her symptoms worsened over the weekend and she found herself battling sickness and struggling to breathe, before then collapsing at her family home.

In a Facebook post, Caroline's sister added: 'Our lives have been ripped apart forever by this horrendous virus that people still are not taking seriously enough.

Caroline, who had no underlying health conditions, pictured with her husband Vic

'Caroline was 48, fit and healthy with no existing conditions and she was taken from us in four days. When will people start to take this as seriously as it needs to be?'

'She was just the most kind, selfless generous loyal person you would ever meet.

'Nothing was ever too much trouble; she couldn't help being kind to all creatures and was loved by so many.

'My only solace is knowing that she achieved her biggest goals in life meeting the love of her life and getting married and having her beautiful boys.'

Sarah outlined the additional heartache now being suffered by the Saunby family, as they have to remain in isolation due to safety measures around virus are unable to mourn together as a result.

The number of people admitted to hospitals in England with coronavirus has soared in the past 10 days, particularly in London, which is still at the heart of the country's outbreak

She added: 'Every part of our family in lockdown and we can't console Caroline's boys or our parents or each other.

'We can't have a funeral to celebrate her life. This is our reality waiting to see if her husband will get ill.

'Please listen to this and take this as a warning to us all what is happening right now.'

Mrs Jarvis later thanked the NHS staff who fought to try and save her sister's life. She described Caroline as a 'germophobe and obsessive hand-washer' who 'took every precaution under the sun.'

She told the Northern Echo: 'All of the doctors and nurses at James Cook were incredible, as were the paramedics with the Great North Air Ambulance - we are forever grateful for all their efforts.

'People believe that because they are young and healthy they aren't at risk but are the reality of how coronavirus can change anyone's life.'

To ease the Saunby family of any financial worries during this difficult time, a fundraising page has been set up. So far, a staggering 14,000 has been raised in just two days.

Donations can be made on JustGiving, via this link.
[April 02, 2020] Pager's New COVID-19 Solution Aims to Help Flatten the Curve

Pager, a virtual care companion technology that provides a personalized, omni-channel care experience throughout people's healthcare journey, today launched its white label COVID-19 solution globally. The AI-based offering was specifically created to address the unique challenges COVID-19 poses to providers, payers, and the public. Using a zero-integration approach, virtually any health plan or health system can deploy Pager's COVID-19 forward triage solution within a matter of days. With Pager, they can instantly offer their patients and members convenient access to risk assessment services, telemedicine services from licensed clinicians, and designated locations for testing and emergency treatment for COVID-19 if appropriate. Pager's white label service also helps health systems and insurance companies empower their patients and members to bypass the long hold and wait times they would experience when trying to contact a provider or hospital directly. Currently, the average wait time to talk with a nurse via Pager is 30 seconds. The decision to deploy this service to health systems and insurers on a global scale comes as Pager has helped Colombia flatten its curve. When the number of COVID-19 cases began to increase in Latin America, Pager's solution for the disease was deployed through one of Colombia's largest insurers with four million members. Now on a global scale, Pager aims to replicate early success by assisting organizations in ensuring that their patients and members who are symptomatic, elderly or already sick get immediate assistance, while easing the minds of those who fear they could be infected. Pager's service addresses the complexities associated with connecting people to care in the midst of a pandemic. Built on top of its existing sophisticated virtual care platform, Pager has developed a clinical triage protocol that first identifies members at risk for COVID-19 before navigating them to the right point of care according to their needs and symtoms.



Members deemed not at risk after an initial assessment receive clear, detailed instructions and recommendations for self-care while those who present the possibility of risk are routed to a nurse for a live chat consultation via Web, mobile or phone. If the patient requires more care, he or she is then directed to a video visit with a doctor who can best diagnose their condition and treatment needs. And if the physician requests it, Pager then directs the member to the appropriate hospital and informs them of what procedures to follow on site, such as which door to enter or whether they should wait in their car upon arrival. Pager will also connect with the designated hospital to inform its team that a patient is on the way. This assists providers in preparing for potential spikes in volume. This entire process is typically completed in less than 20 minutes. Additionally, Pager's team follows up with patients and plan members to ensure ongoing well-being. Through this comprehensive flow, Pager raises the standard of care while increasing clinician capacity to deal with the most serious cases. "People across the globe are scared and lack consistent, reliable information about symptoms, exposure, and risks. With or without COVID-19, patients are confused, which is why they flock to emergency rooms where two-thirds of cases could have been handled virtually," said Walter Jin, CEO of Pager. "Unnecessary trips to the ER not only put these patients at greater risk for contracting the virus by leaving self isolation, they also place a massive strain on clinical resources which are already in short supply. People want immediate access to an expert who can tell them exactly what's wrong and where to go for help, and that's what Pager allows insurance plans and health systems to offer through a personalized experience. It's just like having a doctor in the family."

Flattening the Curve in Action This game-changing solution was developed earlier this month after the first case of COVID-19 was diagnosed in Colombia on March 6. Almost instantly, a Pager customer and subsidiary of one of the biggest insurance organizations in Latin America, saw a 4x surge in virtual care chats. This overwhelmed its clinicians and healthcare infrastructure. To help, Pager created the COVID-19-specific triage protocol, which was deployed over the course of a weekend. Within the first week, nearly 40% of all member-initiated chats were related to the disease, and those numbers continue to climb. Of those who entered the Pager COVID-19 triage system, approximately one-third were able to stay home and implement specific self-care measures, alleviating the immediate strain on hospitals across Colombia. As it continues to improve on its COVID-19 offering in real time, Pager is rolling out the service in the U.S. where the pandemic is ballooning, and across the globe. Customers of its current virtual care service can add on the COVID-19 AI-powered features while any health system or insurance company has the ability to implement Pager's COVID-19 solution in a matter of days. About Pager Pager is your virtual care companion that provides a personalized, connected care experience throughout your healthcare journey, like having a "doctor in the family." Pager provides people with the right information, navigation and coordination services to access the complete set of virtual care services including triage, telemedicine, prescriptions, appointments, transportation and after-care follow-up. Pager simplifies the healthcare experience by enabling collaboration with multiple healthcare professionals into a unified group conversation through various omni-channel modalities. Pager's embedded SaaS (News - Alert) technology integrates with claims and clinical data systems, in addition to third-party point solutions, to enable AI automation that delivers a personalized, seamless engagement experience. Pager partners with payers, providers and employers to offer this solution to over 10 million people across the United States, in addition to Latin America. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005294/en/

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Asian political party officials have commended China's efforts on the prevention and control of the COVID-19 outbreak and its contribution to the global fight against the coronavirus via an ongoing online conference.





The Asian Political Parties Online Conference, under the theme of "Forging Synergy against COVID-19," was co-hosted by the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee (IDCPC) and the Secretariat of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP) Standing Committee.





Natsuo Yamaguchi, leader of Japan's New Komeito Party, said the measures China has taken to mitigate the epidemic are swift, resolute and proactive. "The effectiveness of the measures is attributable to the concerted efforts of the Chinese people," he added.





Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, chairman of the Pakistan People's Party, said the speed and efficiency with which the Chinese government built makeshift hospitals and other facilities is a testament to China's outstanding capacity to adapt to any challenge coming its way.





"I also want to take the opportunity to appreciate your national unity and unprecedented resilience during times of unexpected crisis," Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said. "Despite onerous odds against an unpredictable and unknown new virus, it is remarkable how your government and people responded to the challenge of protecting your people, as well as Pakistanis located near the hub of the epidemic."





D.Amarbayasgalan, general secretary of the Mongolian People's Party, said the Chinese government has disclosed the real-time developments of the pandemic and worked closely with the international community. "What the CPC and the Chinese government have done are of great significance to protecting the health of the entirety of humanity," he said.





Hoang Binh Quan, head of the International Commission for External Relations of the Communist Party of Vietnam, said, "We highly applaud and sincerely congratulate China for the major positive results achieved in epidemic prevention, mitigation and control." He said China's valuable experience is of great significance to Vietnam's current anti-pandemic work.





Hun Many, the president of Cambodia's Union of Youth Federation, expressed gratitude to the Chinese people for their endurance in the fight against the virus.





"The efforts the Chinese government has made are highly commendable," Hun Many said. "We are now joining the Chinese people and government to prevent and control the outbreak and ultimately exterminate the epidemic."





The online conference, opening Monday, is currently scheduled to run for five days. Its content includes speeches and statements by the leaders of Asian political parties on the fight against COVID-19, presentations on the experiences of various countries and the latest information on cooperation in battling the pandemic.





The ICAPP is an important multilateral forum for political parties in Asia. The online conference can be accessed via the official IDCPC website (http://www.idcpc.org.cn/english) and the official ICAPP website (http://theicapp.org).




If Joe Biden is having a hard time attracting attention for his presidential campaign during the coronavirus pandemic, imagine what its like for Shahid Buttar. The long shot of long shots just saw his odds get worse.

Buttar is the San Francisco democratic socialist trying to unseat Speaker Nancy Pelosi from the House seat she has held since 1987. Thats the steepest of challenges in the best of times, and theres little indication Buttar was poised to pull an upset even before life turned upside down. In the March top-two primary, Pelosi won 74% of the vote to Buttars 13%.

It gets even tougher when Buttars volunteers cant campaign door to door, and when Buttar cant hold rallies or star at one of the DJ parties the campaign hosted in the Mission District before the pandemic struck. Thats no small loss for him  Buttar is perhaps the nations only House candidate who is both a Stanford Law graduate and an accomplished rapper, which he flashed on The Chronicles Its All Political podcast.

To try to replace all that, Buttar is launching something different for a moment when people have more pressing concerns than politics.

He and his campaign volunteers are calling supporters and others in the district just to check on them. No politics. No strong-arming for donations. Instead, they ask people how they are doing. Are they aware of the services the city has made available?

If they need help, Buttar volunteers give them specifics about how to find a food pantry, get health care or learn how to apply for unemployment benefits.

Were not in a position to deliver services, but we can help people find them, Buttar said.

Buttar says hes made many of these calls himself  he helped a low-income college student find a food pantry and directed others to local support services. On Wednesday, he delivered 60 N-95 masks, which his campaign bought during last years wildfires, as a donation to Glide Memorial United Methodist Church.

Its a way of trying to understand the emotions voters are feeling during these stay-at-home times.

The idea is to connect with people, Buttar said. A lot of them basically described how they have felt isolated. They appreciated the human connection.

On Thursday, Buttar will explain his campaigns reboot with an online gathering on Twitch, a platform popular with younger voters and gamers. At noon on April 9, he will be interviewed during an online meeting of San Franciscos venerable Commonwealth Club.

But this reboot doesnt mean Buttar, 45, who left his job as a civil rights activist for the Electronic Frontier Foundation to focus on his campaign, is abandoning his critique of Pelosi. He said she didnt get enough for working people in the $2 trillion stimulus package that President Trump signed last week.

Buttar said Pelosi should have done more to thwart the $500 billion slush fund for corporations that will be administered by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Congressional Democrats inserted a provision for a federal investigator to report to lawmakers on how the money is spent, although Trump already is pushing back on the idea.

The package did little to address the wealth inequality gap, which the pandemic has only widened, Buttar said.

People who have to work during the crisis, such as grocery store employees or transit drivers, are at elevated risk of falling ill. The new law doesnt do enough to help those people, Buttar said.

Pelosi says her priorities for a follow-up bill will include paid family and medical leave for more workers, an increase in food-stamp benefits and more money for states and cities whose budgets are being drained fighting the virus. She also wants the federal government to cover the cost of treating people who contract COVID-19.

Buttar is unimpressed.

What keeps (Pelosi) in office is her presence in the news cycle and simply the name recognition of a figure who frankly hasn't done much for San Francisco in a generation, and frankly has done a lot to undermine the city and our interest in Washington, Buttar said.

Pelosis campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Buttar said the pandemic shows the weaknesses of the health care system to take care of the poor and uninsured. He supports the single-payer model proposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders, whom he endorsed for president. Pelosi favors improving the Affordable Care Act that she pushed through the House in 2010 before moving to a government-administered system.

This pandemic is making the case for a paradigm shift in recent health care policy much more strongly than I, or even Bernie Sanders or anybody else, possibly could, Buttar said.

Buttar has plenty of role models for long-shot candidates who have won. He points to four first-term House members known as the Squad, including fellow democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who he said have pushed Pelosi to be more progressive.

However, none of the Squad members has endorsed Buttar. Even if they were inclined to, siding with the House speakers election opponent would be risky at best. Sanders hasnt endorsed him, either, although local outposts of the Sanders-affiliated organization Our Revolution have.

Buttar has raised nearly $500,000, more than many of the election opponents Pelosi has trounced over the years. Nearly 80% of the money has come from outside the district, a reflection, he said, of a broad national base that is disaffected with the speakers leadership.

But Pelosi has raised $6.6 million for her race and tens of millions more nationally for other Democrats. She doesnt just have 100% name recognition  shes a cultural icon to many Democrats for her work as the first female speaker and her leadership in countering Trump.

Buttar knows that all too well. Hes just hoping to get his message heard during the worst time to run a long-shot campaign.

Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:15:47|Editor: huaxia

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HONG KONG, April 2 (Xinhua) -- An official of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government on Thursday criticized a local public broadcaster's program as breaching the one-China principle, in which a journalist interviewed the World Health Organization (WHO) about the possibility of Taiwan's membership.

"The presentation in that episode of the ... program has breached the one-China principle and the purposes and mission of Radio Television Hong Kong (RTHK) as a public service broadcaster...," Edward Yau, the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, was quoted as saying by a spokesperson in a statement.

RTHK, also a government department, should have a proper understanding that the WHO membership is based on sovereign states without any deviation, according to the statement.

The footage of RTHK showed one of its journalists asking Bruce Aylward, a WHO official, that whether the organization will consider giving Taiwan membership during a video interview.

According to the Charter of RTHK, the public purposes and mission of the broadcaster includes engendering a sense of citizenship and national identity through programs that contribute to the understanding of the community and nation, and promoting understanding of the concept of "one country, two systems".

Yau has urged the broadcaster and the Director of Broadcasting, who is also the editor-in-chief of RTHK, to fully abide by the Charter and stressed that they must handle all programs in a professional and vigilant manner as required, according to the statement.
Centre piece: The relative strength of the Maple Centre is reflected in its annual yield

THE relative strength of smaller shopping centres in the Covid-19 crisis is reflected in one of the investments currently on the market.

Sales agent TWM is quoting 7.1m for the Maple Centre on the Navan Road, Dublin 7, where three units were open on Tuesday this week.

The three account for 50pc of the centre's 550,023 annual rent. They are Maple Pharmacy, Iceland food store and EuroGiant. It also has an ATM.

Other tenants, McDonald's fast food operator, O'Brien's off-licence and Millennium Takeaway, a Chinese food business, have shuttered.

The seventh unit, which is vacant, extends to 2,017 sq ft and has the advantage of planning permission for change of use from retail to restaurant, serving hot and cold food for consumption on and off the premises.

Even before the current crisis, the vendor offered to underwrite the rent for this unit for a full year at 50,000.

Patricia Ward, of TWM, says the rent equates to a strong net initial yield of 7pc and the centre also has future development potential.

An opportunity to increase the value of the investment is possible through an adjoining 0.2 acre development site zoned Z4 - District Centre.

Permissible uses under this zoning include residential, hostel and hotel. Given the site is approximately 1km from the new Grangegorman Campus of Technological University Dublin, it may be of interest for student accommodation or housing development. A planning report carried out by John Spain Associates suggests it has potential for heights of between five and seven storeys.

The entire floor area of the centre's seven units extends to 2,544 sq ft.

It also comes with more than 75 surface car-parking spaces which appeal to people wishing to keep social distancing guidelines. The average time to lease expiry (WAULT) is 7.87 years and 6.9 years to break options.

Surrounding properties include a library and a Tesco.
[April 02, 2020] INVESTIGATION ALERT: Labaton Sucharow Announces a Proprietary Investigation of Securities Claims Against ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. - NYSE Ticker: SERV

On April 1, 2020, Labaton Sucharow LLP, a leading investor rights law firm, announces it is investigating potential securities claims on behalf of shareholders of ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SERV) concerning allegations that ServiceMaster may have issued materially misleading business information to the investing public. ServiceMaster is a leading provider of essential services to residential and commercial customers in the termite, pest control, cleaning and restoration markets. The company's largest and most profitable business segment is Terminix, a termite and pest control business that primarily operates in the United States. ServiceMaster's executives repeatedly assured the market that ServiceMaster was successfully executing upon initiatives to improve the performance in the Terminix segment. We are investigating whether those assurances were false. On October 22, 2019, ServiceMaster announced disappointing preliminary financial results for the third quarter 2019, having missed revenue and earnings estimates. The Company also gave downward adjusted EBITDA guidance of $415 to $425 milion, down from $435 to $445 million. The press release attributed the disappointing results partly to "termite damage claims arising primarily from Formosan termite activity," primarily in Mobile, Alabama. The Company further stated that this had been a known issue, having taken mitigating measures "starting in 2018." Finally, the Company announced the sudden departure of Matthew J. Stevenson in his role as President of Terminix Residential.



On this news ServiceMaster common stock fell $11.44 or 20%, to close at $44.70 on October 22, 2019. If you purchased shares or derivatives of ServiceMaster, and wish to learn more or discuss the issues surrounding the investigation, please contact David J. Schwartz using the toll free number (800) 321-0476 or via email at [email protected] or [email protected].

About the Firm Labaton Sucharow LLP is one of the world's leading complex litigation firms representing clients in securities, antitrust, corporate governance and shareholder rights, and consumer cybersecurity and data privacy litigation. Labaton Sucharow has been recognized for its excellence by the courts and peers, and it is consistently ranked in leading industry publications. Offices are located in New York, NY, Wilmington, DE, and Washington, D.C. More information about Labaton Sucharow is available at www.labaton.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005484/en/

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KBS2's forthcoming drama "How to Buy a Friend" stands out from the others.

Based on the webtoon comic of the same title, it tells the story of the characters Park Chan-Hong (portrayed by Lee Shin Young), Eom Se-Yoon (Kim So-Hye) and Heo Don-Hyeok (Shin Seung-Ho), three high school students who live entirely uncommon lives. Chan-Hong begins the so-called "contractual friendship" with Don-Hyeok after he saved him from a bully.

Further, we bet you've been wanting to see Lee Shin Young in a new project after crushing on him in "Crash Landing on You."

Here are the reasons why viewers should tune in to "How to Buy a Friend."

Poems and mysteries

In "How to Buy a Friend," writing poems are not used as an expression of romance or emotion so much as they are an important instrument to uncover the mystery in this drama. As seen in the trailer that was previously released, Don-Hyeok saw a poem that was penned by Chan-Hong and asked him if he killed Shin Seo Jung. As a consequence of this event, the two characters began the so-called "contractual friendship" and trry find out the truth behind the murder. This drama will at once set forth a very high edge-of-your-seat tension of the thrilling mystery drama and the emotions of a youth drama.

The one-of-a-kind premise: a contractual friendship

Being young eventually brings growth and discovers friendships. The same goes for this particular drama. But the friendship created in "How to Buy a Friend" is unique as made visible by the title. It begins when Chan-Hong and Don-Hyeok, who are quite opposite and don't have anything in common, make a contract stating the rules and the things that they need from one another.

Poems, webtoons and a unique soundtrack

"How to Buy a Friend" is a mixture of poems with the most modern instrument of story-telling these days, which is through webtoons. The story is based on a famous webtoon that takes a story of youth and adds depth with poems. In addition, the music and soundtrack will add another layer to the drama, helmed by director Yoo Young, who is famous for using a peculiar selection of music.

The producers of "How to Buy a Friend" expressed that the three actors casted are all the same in the sense that they were the exact embodiments of their characters during their auditions. In addition to their visuals, the acting that was showcased by these young actors who have plunged into each of their roles will be worth looking forward to.

"How to Buy a Friend" is expected to premiere on April 6 and will be available on Viki soon.
HONG KONG, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Guangdong Land Holdings Limited (GD Land), the organisation at the forefront of GD Holdings' successful integrated hotels, offices, parks, shopping malls, clubs and apartments (HOPSCA) business, continues to be an Honoured Partner of the prestigious JNA Awards in 2020.

An Honoured Partner of the JNA Awards since 2014, GD Land shares the JNA Awards' mission of promoting and upholding innovation, excellence and sustainable advancements in the jewellery and gemstone industry. The renewed partnership reaffirms the company's confidence in the JNA Awards' role as an international awards programme that is well-regarded by the global trade, and as a platform that provides networking and business opportunities for companies and individuals that exhibit innovation and creativity.

Letitia Chow, Chairperson of the JNA Awards and Director of Business Development - Jewellery Group at Informa Markets, shares, "By renewing its partnership with the JNA Awards for the next three years, GD Land has shown a strong commitment and unwavering support for the growth and development of the jewellery industry. Along with other partners, we look forward to making big strides and bringing positivity to the trade, even in challenging times."

GD Land's flagship project, the GDH City, is a sustainable, jewellery-themed multi-functional commercial complex built over an area of 65,000 square metres. The development is surrounded by natural landscape and includes landmark office buildings, an experiential shopping centre, boutique apartments and more. Located in Shuibei Buxin Business Circle in Shenzhen - one of the largest hubs for gold and jewellery in the country - GDH City aims to meet the needs of the trade and beyond with the use of state-of-the-art architecture.

Now on its ninth year, the JNA Awards is supported by Headline Partners Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group, Shanghai Diamond Exchange, and DANAT, together with Honoured Partners KGK Group, China Gems and Jade Exchange and Guangdong Land Holdings Limited.

For more information, visit www.JNAawards.com or contact:

JNA Awards Marketing

Informa Markets (Hong Kong)

+852-2516-2184

marketing@jnaawards.com

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The Seventh Day Adventist Church has denied working with Sakunda Holdings in the refurbishment of Rock Foundation Medical Centre in Mt Pleasant, Harare, which the diversified firm wants to turn into a COVID isolation centre.





Sakunda, owned by fuel mogul Kudakwashe Tagwirei, submitted a letter to the High Court as part of documentary evidence in its case against Harare resident Roger Stringer, claiming the church was involved in the hospital rehabilitation project.





Stringer was contesting the setting up of an infectious diseases hospital in a residential area. Justice Happias Zhou on Tuesday ruled that the hospital would be in the public interest and that Stringer failed to prove how the medical centre would expose him to the deadly coronavirus.





To bolster its case, Sakunda submitted a document to the High Court which was purportedly signed by Health secretary Agnes Mahomva on March 27 with instructions to City of Harare health services director Prosper Chonzi to facilitate the licensing of the hospital as an isolation centre for COVID-19 patients.





The document insinuated that Sakunda and the Seventh-Day Adventist Church were in collaboration and wished to assist the government of Zimbabwe to combat the COVID-19 by leasing the Arundel Medical Hospital as an isolation centre.





But in a letter dated March 30, Seventh-Day Adventist Church executive secretary Zibusiso Ndhlovu denied any involvement with Sakunda, saying matters concerning the development and running of hospitals were the jurisdiction of union conferences, according to their policy.





Ironically, Tagwirei is a member of the same church.





To our concern, it has come to our attention, through social media, that a letter dated March 27, 2020 has purportedly been written by secretary for Health and Child Care to the City of Harare asserting that Sakunda Holdings in conjunction with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church are requesting the use of Arundel Medical Hospital as an isolation centre for COVID-19 patients, Ndhlovu said.





Matters concerning the development and running of the hospitals are the jurisdiction of union conferences of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church according to Adventist church policy.





In this case, it would be the Zimbabwe East Union Conference (ZEUC). While this appears to be worthy cause, the ZEUC has neither collaborated with Sakunda Holdings nor the Ministry of Health and Child Care in this matter. We have also not received any communication to that effect.





The document also caused arguments at the High Court over its authenticity, with Stringers lawyers Jeremiah Bhamu and Obey Shava insisting it was fake. Justice Zhou turned down the request by lawyers to file an affidavit requiring further verifications of the document.




DZ BANK AG Frankfurt am Main - Pre Stabilisation

RNS Number: residue number system

Frankfurt am Main, 2. April 2020

Not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States or any jurisdiction in which such distribution would be unlawful.

Pre-Stabilisation Notice

Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB)

DZ BANK AG (contact: Ralph Ockert; telephone: +49 69 7447 7051) hereby announces, as Stabilisation Coordinator, that the Stabilising Managers named below may stabilise the offer of the following securities in accordance with Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1052 under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU Regulation 596/2014).

The security to be stabilised: Issuer: Council of Europe Development Bank Guarantor (if any): Aggregate nominal amount: EUR benchmark Description: 0.00%, due 9. April 2027 Offer price: 100.33% Other offer terms: Payment 9. April 2020, denoms 1k/1k, soft bullet Stabilisation: DZ BANK AG Stabilisation Coordinator:

Stabilising Managers:





DZ BANK AG

Citi, Credit Agricole, HSBC



Stabilisation period expected to start on: 02.04.2020 Stabilisation period expected to end on: no later than 30 days after the proposed issue date of the securities Existence, maximum size and conditions of use of over-allotment facility. The Stabilising Managers may over-allot the securities to the extent permitted in accordance with applicable law. Stabilisation trading venue: Luxembourg Stock Exchange (Regulated Market)

In connection with the offer of the above securities, the Stabilisation Manager(s) may over-allot the securities or effect transactions with a view to supporting the market price of the securities at a level higher than that which might otherwise prevail. However, there is no assurance that the Stabilisation Manager(s) will take any stabilisation action and any stabilisation action, if begun, may be ended at any time. Any stabilisation action or over-allotment shall be conducted in accordance with all applicable laws and rules.

This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities of the Issuer in any jurisdiction.

In addition, if and to the extent that this announcement is communicated in, or the offer of the securities to which it relates is made in, any EEA Member State that has implemented Directive 2003/71/EC, as amended (together with any applicable implementing measures in any Member State, the "Prospectus Directive") before the publication of a prospectus in relation to the securities which has been approved by the competent authority in that Member State in accordance with the Prospectus Directive (or which has been approved by a competent authority in another Member State and notified to the competent authority in that Member State in accordance with the Prospectus Directive), this announcement and the offer are only addressed to and directed at persons in that Member State who are qualified investors within the meaning of the Prospectus Directive (or who are other persons to whom the offer may lawfully be addressed) and must not be acted on or relied on by other persons in that Member State.
I need to get a few things off my chest regarding social distancing and the coronavirus pandemic that has most of the country in turmoil. While many are still out acting the eejit. People seem to think that a pandemic is just an early summer holiday. Well if thats what they think they are undeniably wrong.

We are in a state of emergency and people are turning a blind eye and going for walks on the beach and socialising in house parties in substantial groups of maybe 10 to 50 people. It is pure and utter stupidity on their part. Fair enough they might not have symptoms or feel ill. That does not mean they are not harbouring this virus or the people they meet arent. What is worse is they are showing complete and utter disregard for the more vulnerable members of their family and society.

No matter who you are you will surely have a person who is at risk. Whether it be a relation or someone very dear to you. Nevertheless, people are still carrying on like savages with no regard for the health and safety of the people around them. Personally, I welcome a complete lockdown. I know it sounds selfish of me as I am lucky enough to still have a job albeit in a lab testing these samples.

Businessmen, employers and employees need to understand the potential severity of this pandemic. If this pandemic takes a bad turn you wont have to worry about closing for a few weeks, it will be permanent. First, it was snubbed when there was a case brought to our attention. Then there was a couple more. Then at an exponential rate, the numbers increased globally.

Oh F**k. Then a death was announced in the north. Ah but its up the north that has nothing to do with us. Listen up, a virus knows no boundaries, borders, country, colour or creed . Wherever there is a viable host it will go. Hopping like a parasitic flea from one host to the next.

Panic has taken over the country as we have seen when the schools were closed on the Friday before St Patrick's Day. Supermarkets were swarmed, people were trampled. Fire officers had to close major supermarkets down in certain areas of the capital. It was like an apocalyptic black Friday sale. Everyone adopted a dog eat dog mentality.

That type of mentality was not what was in the psyche of Irish people when I was growing up. I was born in 88 so I lived through the 90s - in my opinion the last generation where kids and teenagers had an actual childhood. Before internet, Wifi, phones and other devices had came around to steal the possible memories that this generation could have made.

During this time, your neighbours were like family. Your estate wasnt just an area where everybody lived. It was a place of commune where people would lend each other a helping hand in some form or another. Whether it was a cup of milk, sugar or a few teabags. When tragedy or crisis struck a family there was a sense of onus on ourselves or our neighbour to check in on one and other. To seek or provide comfort through times of dread and despair.

After watching the shenanigans that ensued when the schools ceased action I feel like our good Irish nature is being left behind. This pandemic has caused pandemonium and we as a country and as individuals are disgracing all the people who have died and fought for this country through famine, invasion and war.

WATCH | Longford football star Darren Gallagher features in HSE Support our frontline campaign

All we are being asked to do is stay inside and not make any unnecessary visits to family members or to congregate with our peers. We must make sacrifices now that may feel like suffering for a few weeks. Which when you check the history books doesnt compare to the suffering this country has arisen from.

If we make temporary sacrifices today as a united Ireland to eradicate this virus from our shores think of the celebrations that will take place. Imagine the sigh of relief that will be released when you can hug your parents, siblings, friends and if you're lucky enough to have grandparents. It will be like Italia '90. All of our grand slam wins combined together. A Barry McGuigan, Steve Collins, Bernard Dunne, Mick Conlan, Carl Frampton, Conor McGregor and Katie Taylor win all rolled into one big pint of Guinness.

So stop the selfishness. Put the knock you have organised on hold. Put the gaff party on hold. Put meeting up with your mates on hold. Put everything on hold. If it gets to that stage you wont have to worry about work, business, house parties, holidays or not seeing your friends. Your whole life will be on hold. We will be lucky if we are able to enjoy a regular ordinary Christmas at this rate.

I am classed as a member of frontline staff as Im working in a lab during this terrifying time. However, the effect this pandemic has had on myself and my colleagues doesnt hold a candle to the effort the doctors, nurses and the unsung heroes working on the wards have had to go through.

Instead of thinking of yourselves, spare a thought for the people whose lives have been put on hold by this virus. When this is all over the whole country should stand outside the Dail in a round of applause that will be heard around the country for these members of staff. The warriors fighting this virus and protecting the vulnerable. They deserve to be the beneficiaries of the next budget no matter how much of the arse falls out of the country. People are walking out of work afraid of contracting the virus. While these frontline fighters are walking into the flames battling this pandemic head on.

Would you have the bottle for it? I doubt most of you would. So do what you're told, shut the fuck up complaining and enjoy the time you get to spend at home with your family. Because there was plenty of mothers that were putting their health at risk working as nurses and doctors and couldnt even give their kids a hug for mother's day.

So for everyone that thinks Ireland has become a holiday camp. It in fact is a war zone that only a few are brave enough to fight in. For the love of god and the people you have around you in this country, please adhere to the guidelines set out by the governing bodies. If you do this, then you to are fighting alongside the frontline workers to battle this pandemic. You can then look at yourself in the mirror and say you played your part in the fight against Covid-19.

Yours faithfully,

Anonymous

Read next: Rise in disposable gloves littered in shopping trollies and car parks a public health risk
Chief of National Police explained that Rodrigo Duterte's claims are exaggerated, and no one will be shot

Rodrigo Duterte Open source

Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte warned that the police have the right to shoot the citizens who violate the lockdown. Reuters reported that, referring to the leader's TV address.

"It is getting worse. So once again Im telling you the seriousness of the problem and that you must listen. My orders to the police and military ... if there is trouble and theres an occasion that they fight back and your lives are in danger, shoot them dead!", the President said.

At that, Chief of National Police explained that Rodrigo Duterte's claims are exaggerated, and no one will be shot, as he is trying to explain the citizens the tough nature of coronavirus.

The overall number of victims in Phillippines is currently 96; hundreds of new cases of morbidity are observed every week. Currently, there are 2,311 confirmed cases.

As of early April 2, 804 cases of morbidity of Covid-19 were observed in Ukraine. Over the last 24 hours, the number of infected increased by 135. Twenty people deceased, another 13 recovered.
Even as the benchmark indices were down 4 per cent on Wednesday, the Biocon stock jumped 2.8 per cent. The company received a go ahead (EIR) from the US drug regulator after an inspection for its insulin manufacturing facility in Malaysia.

EIR is an establishment inspection report, which is given by US FDA upon closure of its inspection. This paves the way for the launch approval and commercialization of insulin (Glargine) in the US. The company, along with its partner, had already won a patent ligation for insulin Glargine in the US recently and thereafter filed for the launch of the ...
What crime against humanity? Mr. Duterte said in defense of his antidrug campaign. Id like to be frank with you, are they humans?

At the height of the governments crackdown in 2016 and 2017, Market Three, named after the nearest pier, was an epicenter of the killings, even though the majority of the 1,000 or so families living here had nothing to do with the drug trade.

There were bodies found floating in the water, while other people were killed in their homes, as many as five in a night.

While residents blamed the police for many of these summary executions, in most cases, the killers were never identified.

But the police left no doubt it was they who smashed open doors during frequent raids in the middle of the night, wearing masks, carrying guns and shining flashlights into the faces of Market Threes residents.

Because people couldnt quite discern why the police or their proxies were killing some and not others  mistaken identity or disproportionate punishment were frequent guesses  the raids filled the whole slum with a fear that death could happen at any time, for any reason.

Theres less of that now. While the governments deadly antidrug campaign goes on, the police focus has shifted to other areas of the country and to other targets. Just on Wednesday, Mr. Duterte ordered the police and the military to shoot people protesting the nations lockdown over the coronavirus.
The crew of Expedition 62 to the International Space Station is pictured inside a SpaceX Dragon resupply craft, on March 9, 2020. They are wearing portable breathing gear while entering the spacecraft just in case there are any particles or irritants in the air that could have come loose while launching to space. (From top to bottom: NASA astronaut Andrew Morgan, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka and NASA astronaut Jessica Meir)

NASA is calling on its workforce to come up with creative ways that the agency can help fight the coronavirus pandemic.

"For more than 60 years, NASA has overcome a range of unique challenges. Now, the agency is looking to leverage its expertise and capabilities to help the nation with the unprecedented challenge of coronavirus," NASA officials said in a statement, adding that the agency is "tapping into the brainpower and creativity of its workforce."

On Wednesday (April 1), NASA announced a new online platform where its employees can contribute ideas for how the agency can assist in the global coronavirus response. The crowdsourcing platform, called "NASA @ WORK," is an internal website where NASA employees can discuss ideas and come up with solutions together.

Related: Coronavirus pandemic: Full space industry coverage

"I've heard from employees across the agency who want to help the nation combat COVID-19. These comments exemplify the prevailing, can-do spirit of NASA people and our willingness to take on any challenge," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in the statement.

"As the nation comes together to confront this crisis, we must look at every opportunity for NASA to lend a hand and increase our contribution to America's response," Bridenstine added.

Working together with the White House and other government agencies, NASA identified three areas in which the agency could potentially make the most meaningful difference in the coronavirus response efforts: personal protective equipment, ventilators and forecasting the spread and impact of the coronavirus.

Personal protective equipment (PPE)  NASA is requesting ideas for new ways to develop personal protective equipment (such as masks, respirators and gloves) and to make it more readily available for the health care workers who need them. The agency also called for "novel approaches for sterilizing or repurposing personal protective equipment," which could come in handy for hospitals that are short on protective gear.

Ventilators  To help deal with the shortage of ventilation devices needed to help COVID-19 patients breathe, NASA would like ideas for simple and innovative ventilator designs that can be quickly manufactured and delivered to the hospitals that need them.

Forecasting  The third focus area NASA listed is the need for a way to monitor the coronavirus and forecast where and when it will spread. By utilizing NASA satellite data and other sources of information, NASA hopes to curb the spread of the virus and predict which areas will be affected will be the most affected. This can be done with the help of supercomputers, artificial intelligence and other data analytics capabilities, the agency said.

"I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of ideas we receive and how they may be able to propel additional meaningful contributions to the COVID-19 response," Bridenstine said.

NASA employees, with the exception of some "mission-essential" personnel, have been working from home for the past two weeks, but the agency has already been able to contribute to the fight against COVID-19 (the disease caused by the novel coronavirus) in several ways. For example, NASA recently contributed its supercomputing resources to researchers who are studying vaccines and treatments for COVID-19.

But NASA isn't the only space agency battling the coronavirus pandemic. The European Space Agency (ESA) also announced on Wednesday (April 1) that it is seeking proposals for a similar project called "Space in response to COVID-19 outbreak."

While NASA is seeking ideas from its own workforce, ESA is calling for businesses in Europe to submit their ideas for ways to deploy services to combat the pandemic in Europe  especially in Italy, which has seen more cases than any other European country, ESA officials said in a statement.

"We are keen to support European companies in developing and deploying their best ideas to respond to the current crisis, evidencing the contribution that space can bring in these circumstances," Magali Vaissiere, ESA's Director of Telecommunications and Integrated Applications, said in the statement.

ESA is offering 2.5 million euros ($2.71 million) in funding as well as free access to ESA's satellite data and other resources. Companies can submit proposals here.

Email Hanneke Weitering at hweitering@space.com or follow her @hannekescience. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
By the time Florida's stay-at-home order kicks in on 2 April, two weeks after the arrival of thousands of spring breakers on the state's beaches, the number of identified coronavirus cases in the state climbed past 5,000.

Arizona's governor issued a stay-at-home order this week after banning cities from setting their own measure, tying the hands of mayors across the state against the advice of health officials.

Without a nationwide order to keep people indoors and close non-essential businesses in an effort to curb the viral spread through stringent "social distancing" measures, a staggered and patchwork response from state governments has made attempts to quarantine Americans essentially moot.

By April, 12 states have not issued statewide orders to stay at home, and 12 states have not closed so-called "nonessential" businesses.

But there remains a handful of states without either of those orders, on neither state or city levels, as health officials across the US continue to urge people to stay indoors and avoid going outside and risk interacting with infected people or unknowingly infecting others.

Republican governors in Arkansas, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota  the last states standing  said they're not considering virtual "lockdowns" in their respective states.

Asked why he hasn't considered a national order, Donald Trump said "because states are different" and that "some states don't have much of a problem."

At a White House briefing on 1 April, he said: "They don't have thousands of people that are positive or thousands of people that think they might have it, or hundreds of people in some cases." (This week, South Dakota became the last state to report more than 100 cases.)

Whether the White House or local governments put orders in place in coming days, experts say the damage is done. Harvard professor Juliette Kayyem, a former US Department of Homeland Security official in the Obama administration, said it's time for a national stay-at-home measure  at least three weeks ago.

She said: "The fat lady has sung, govs."

Asked whether every state would have a stay at home order, US Surgeon General Jerome Adams told NBC that the White House suggestions ("30 days to slow the spread") are essentially a "national stay-at-home order."

He said that the administration wants "nationally people to understand the importance of social distancing" and is leaving those guidelines to states to determine their plans.

But virologist Joseph Fair told the network that those mitigation efforts only work "if all 50 states are doing the same thing."

He said: "Everybody gets on the same page as far as what they're going to do and everybody implements the same measures."

But even if that starts now, those "social distancing" rules would need to be in place for at least 10 weeks to be effective.

He said: "If everyone is not doing it, there are still going to be people spreading it. There are things we're going to have to do  we have to go to the grocery store, we have to go to the pharmacy. There are people working in hospitals. But we can all do our own part and everyone has to do it."

Arkansas is the last state in the south without any statewide measure. Neither Governor Asa Hutchinson nor any county or city in the state has told residents to stay at home.

She said: "I do not want to go to a shelter-in-place environment."

On 1 April, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts ordered schools to continue operating, without students, but he has refused a statewide stay-at-home order. There are no such orders in the rest of the state.

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

Many Americans fear the consequences of relative martial law under the Trump administration, forcing people in their homes and out of their jobs without the assurance of any social safety nets and as a cover for the administration's more authoritarian impulses.

But several state officials say they delayed or refused to tell their residents to stay home to keep their fragile economies moving, echoing the president's claims to "re-open" the economy and weigh the loss of lives against the loss of business.

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has ordered many, but not all, nonessential businesses to close, but won't issue a statewide stay-at-home order, despite calls from lawmakers and other officials, as 946 cases of the virus were identified in the state this week.

She said: "I can't lock the state down, I can't lock everybody in their home ... We have to make sure the supply chain is up and going. We have an essential workforce that has to be available.

"What else are we doing" by ordering people to stay home "except for potentially disrupting the supply chain, putting additional pressure on the essential workforce, and making sure that we are considering how we bring that back up?" Reynolds said. "And, actually, what's the benefit of taking that additional step?"

She has called for "personal responsibility" instead, saying that limiting "the amount of times that we're going out, what we're going out for, where we're going, and minimising the number of people that we're around, we will start to accomplish, hopefully, what we're trying to do."

Fourteen counties in Missouri have mandate stay-at-home orders and nonessential business closures, but Governor Mike Parson won't issue a statewide order.

He said it's a matter of "personal responsibility."

"When you start talking about shutting the state down for 30 days, 60 days or 90 days, the effects that has on everyday people are dramatic," he said. "That means businesses will close, people will lose their jobs, the economy will be in worse shape than ever."

Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Show all 20 1 /20 Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Top: Nabi Younes market, Mosul Bottom: Charles Bridge, Prague Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Grand Mosque, Mecca Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Sagrada Familia, Barcelona Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Nabi Younes market, Mosul Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Basra Grand Mosque, Iraq Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Charles Bridge, Prague Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Taj Mahal hotel, India Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Dubai Mall, UAE Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Beirut March, Lebanon Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Gateway of India, Mumbai Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Cairo University, Egypt Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Amman Citadel, Jordan Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Church of the Nativity, Bethlehem Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Beirut March, Lebanon Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Cairo, Egypt Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Cairo University, Egypt Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Victoria Memorial, India Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Amman Citadel, Jordan Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Amman Citadel, Jordan Reuters Before and after photos show impact of coronavirus around the world Sidon, Lebanon Reuters

North Dakota and South Dakota, with largely rural and spread-out populations, also don't have orders anywhere in their state telling people to stay at home or close nonessential businesses.

South Dakota  the last state to hit more than 100 cases  only has a ban on gatherings of more than 10 people.

Rural Americans live an average of 10.5 miles from the nearest hospital, while people in urban and suburban neighbourhoods live, on average, five miles away from a hospital, according to Pew Research Center.

But more than 1 million Americans live in rural areas at least 20 miles from the nearest hospital, and a majority of those residents are 60 and older and more prone to chronic illness, putting them in a more acutely at-risk population if exposed to Covid-19.

They largely live in states that do not have any stay-at-home orders in place.

More than 400 rural hospitals across the US are at risk of closing, as Republican-led governments have refused to expand Medicaid in their states leaving health systems to rely on negative margins, according to the Chartis Center for Rural Health.

Since 2016, 41 rural hospitals across the US have closed, mostly in the southeast and Great Plains.

More than 40 per cent of rural hospitals in Florida, Missouri, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas are considered "vulnerable" to closure. Of that group, only Florida and Tennessee have ordered statewide stay-at-home measures.

Those hospitals could be bolstered by $100bn from Congress aimed at hospitals and health providers, though it's unclear how that will be allocated.

Texas, a large and rural state with several massive metropolitan areas, has stay-at-home orders in more than two dozen cities and counties, putting roughly 82 per cent of the state under shelter-in-place orders

Echoing the president's support for "reopening the US" by Easter, a timetable he has since withdrawn, Texas Lt Gov Dan Patrick was slammed for his Fox New appearance in which he suggested that senior citizens should be willing "take a chance on your survival in exchange for keeping the America that all America loves" by putting Americans back to work in the middle of the pandemic.

In a letter to Governor Greg Abbot, Democrats in the state have urged the governor to act: "Despite the hardship, the best science we have is clear that this is the best way forward for our state and our country."

He recently announced that religious services in Texas are considered "essential" after police arrested pastors in Louisiana and Florida for holding large Sunday ceremonies.

After Arizona Governor Doug Ducey barred cities in his state from setting their own orders, Tucson Mayor Regina Romero's office told The Independent that the city was exploring "all options" to set an order at the local level.

The state's emergency management director resigned last month citing a "lack of communication and transparency" through the coronavirus response.

The governor ultimately issued a stay-at-home order this week, but has left in place a broad list of businesses considered "essential" that can remain open.

Several other Democratic mayors in Republican states have issued citywide measures in the absence of statewide orders.

Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves has urged people to stay at home but has not made that an order. Oxford mayor Robyn Tannehill did.

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey has advised residents to "consider" staying home "now and for the foreseeable future" but has not issued a statewide order. Birmingham mayor Randall Woodfin did.

This week, Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon said the state still has no plans for an order. Jackson mayor Pete Muldoon's order went into effect "immediately" last week.

White House officials have praised stringent measures in hard-hit states and cities, but insist on respecting "statehood" in the face of the crisis.

Mike Pence told CNN: "At the present moment, we truly do believe that the strong actions taken in places like California and Washington and New York and New Jersey are appropriate ... We fully support those efforts."

The vice president said the administration is "going to continue to bring the president the best recommendations based on real-time data and science for what every state, what every community should be doing" but is aiming to "reopen" the country by early June and "put America back to work."

He said: "We could well have the coronavirus largely behind us."

UPDATE (07.04.20): A previous version of this article reported that 3,000 cases of the virus had been identified in the state of Iowa.This was inaccurate. The article has been updated to reflect the correct figure at the time of publication.
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Captain Brett Crozier was relieved of his command of the coronavirus-stricken nuclear aircraft carrier USS Roosevelt on Thursday, four days after his plea for help from Navy leaders went public

The US Navy has relieved the captain of the coronavirus-stricken aircraft carrier USS Roosevelt days after his plea for help for his sailors went public.

Acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly announced on Thursday afternoon that Captain Brett Crozier had been relieved of his command of the nuclear aircraft carrier, four days after he penned a scathing letter to Navy leaders calling for stronger action to address the COVID-19 outbreak he said was unnecessarily threatening his sailors lives.

Modly said that the decision was driven by the fact that Crozier shared his letter with at least 20 people before it was leaked in the media on Tuesday.

The secretary insisted that he was not accusing Crozier of leaking the letter himself.

But he did say that the people Crozier shared the letter with included ones 'outside the chain of command'.

Modly said the decision to send the letter 'raised alarm bells unnecessarily' and accused Crozier of 'extremely poor judgment' and creating a 'little bit of a panic' on the ship.

He also accused Crozier of undermining the effectiveness of one of the United States' most important strategic assets in the Pacific.

The Roosevelt is nuclear-powered but it is not known if nuclear weapons are aboard. It is operating in the Pacific where China are the primary naval threats to the US.

Modly said: 'It [sending the letter] raised concerns about the operational capabilities of that ship... that could have emboldened our adversaries to seek advantage.

'For these reasons I lost confidence in his ability to lead that warship.

'We should expect more from commanding officer of our aircraft carriers.

'Captain Crozier allowed the complexity of the COVID outbreak on ship to overwhelm his professionalism.

'Relieving him of command was in the best interest of the US Navy and the nation.'

The news comes as at least 93 members of the USS Roosevelt's 5,000-person crew have tested positive for COVID-19 and results are pending for hundreds of others.

Modly said hundreds of sailors would eventually test positive but insisted that none of them would need hospitalization. He also accused Crozier of creating panic by suggesting sailors would die.

And he insisted that the Department of Defense was already taking the necessary action to protect the sailors of the USS Roosevelt before Crozier sent his letter.

The Navy is in the process of evacuating 2,700 sailors from the ship, which is currently docked in Guam.

Acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly accused Crozier of undermining the effectiveness of one of the United States' most important strategic assets in the Pacific. The USS Theodore Roosevelt is pictured docked in Guam on Friday

Thomas Moldy said Crozier's decision to send Crozier's decision to send the letter 'raised alarm bells unnecessarily' and accused Crozier of 'extremely poor judgement'.

The USS Roosevelt was forced to dock in Guam last week after 25 sailors on board tested positive for coronavirus. As of Wednesday, 93 crew members have tested positive and about 1,000 have been evacuated from the ship (seen in port Friday)

The USS Roosevelt was in the middle of a deployment to the Philippine and South China Seas when the Navy ordered it to cease sail on March 26 after at least 25 crew members tested positive.

In his four-page letter to Navy leaders, Crozier warned that the outbreak was 'ongoing and accelerating' and called for the immediate evacuation and isolation of 90 percent of the USS Roosevelt crew.

'We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our Sailors,' the captain wrote.

Crozier's extraordinary plea was made public on Tuesday - putting the Pentagon on the defensive about whether it was doing enough to keep the USS Roosevelt's crew safe as lawmakers and families of military members express concerns that other ships could be vulnerable to outbreaks.

Acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly had previously said Crozier would 'absolutely not' face retaliation for writing the letter - but indicated that he would be punished if officials found that he was the one who leaked it.

'The fact that he wrote the letter up to his chain of command to express his concerns would absolutely not result in any type of retaliation,' Modly told reporters on Wednesday.

Asked repeatedly about how the letter came to light publicly, he said: 'I don't know who leaked the letter to the media.

'That would be something that would violate the principles of good order and discipline, if he [Crozier] were responsible for that. But I don't know that.'

CAPTAIN BRETT CROZIER'S FULL MEMO TO NAVY LEADERS Advertisement

As of Wednesday 93 sailors on the USS Roosevelt had tested positive for COVID-19 as of Wednesday and around 1,300 had been screened for the disease, with about half of those results still pending, officials said.

About 1,000 sailors, or 20 percent, have already been removed from the ship and a total of 2,700 were expected to be removed by the weekend as officials scrambled to secure enough hotel rooms to house them near US Naval Base Guam.

At a briefing on the island on Thursday, Rear Admiral John Menoni, the region's US Navy commander, insisted that the vessel, despite the outbreak, 'is not incapacitated' and 'could go to sea tomorrow if conditions required'.

He and other officials, including Modly, publicly disagreed with Crozier's assertion that all but 10 percent of the ship's crew could be removed from the vessel if necessary - determining that 1,000 members would need to remain on board.

'This ship has weapons on it. It has munitions on it... It requires a certain number of people on that ship to maintain the safety and security of the ship,' Modly said.

In his letter Crozier emphasized the ship's 'inherent limitations of space' as he insisted that some 4,000 sailors be removed.

'None of the berthing aboard a warship is appropriate for quarantine or isolation,' Crozier wrote.

'Removing the majority of personnel from a deployed US nuclear aircraft carrier and isolating them for two weeks may seem like an extraordinary measure.

'This is a necessary risk.'
Together, with increased manufacturing capabilities and capacity, StatLab can now support the entire US demand for formalin prefills, and expand the reach of our international OEM business.

StatLab Medical Products, a leading developer and manufacturer of diagnostic supplies for the anatomic pathology laboratory industry, announced today that it has acquired Mount Vernon, Washington-based BBC Biochemical. This investment represents StatLabs continued growth and commitment to give anatomic pathology laboratories broader access to high quality products.

BBC Biochemical was founded by a pathologist close to thirty years ago to improve the quality of anatomic pathology supplies in the marketplace, and today sells to anatomic pathology laboratories and OEM partners globally.

"We proudly welcome BBC Biochemical to StatLab said Dan Eckert, CEO of StatLab. We empower anatomic pathologists by providing the highest quality products and solutions to detect cancer earlier to improve outcomes. The acquisition of BBC Biochemical further positions StatLab as a leading manufacturer of cancer diagnostics for laboratories and other diagnostic companies in the United States and around the world, supporting them as a member of their team. Eckert adds, Together, with increased manufacturing capabilities and capacity, StatLab now offers unparalleled access to formalin prefills throughout the United States, and has expanded the reach of our international OEM business.

President of BBC Biochemical, Adrian Biesecker adds, We have worked hard to provide high quality products and excellent service to each laboratory and partner we work with. This partnership with StatLab brings even greater product access, faster delivery, and product support to our customers.

About StatLab Medical Products

Founded in 1976, StatLab Medical Products is leading the way in development and manufacturing of high-quality histology, cytology and immunohistochemistry diagnostic products. We partner with anatomic pathology laboratories to provide easy access to over 3,500 high-quality diagnostic products and equipment at excellent prices, delivered with expert support. When you work with StatLab, were on your team, and youre part of our family. Learn more at StatLab.com.

About BBC Biochemical

BBC has served as a chemical supply company to multiple industries for nearly three decades. Founded with the desire to manufacturer and improve the critical chemical supplies used by clinical and research laboratories, BBC quickly grew into an industry leader in this field and branched into further disciplines. Today BBC Biochemical has multiple manufacturing and shipping locations within the US and BBC products are used in laboratories the world over. Our commitment to Quality, Innovation, and Customer Satisfaction continue to drive growth and improvement.
NEW YORK, April 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (Norwegian or the Company) (NYSE: NCLH) Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888-476-6529, ext. 9980.



The investigation concerns whether Norwegian and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

On March 11, 2020, the Miami New Times published an article entitled Leaked Emails: Norwegian Pressures Sales Team to Lie About Coronavirus. The article described several leaked internal emails indicating that some Norwegian managers asked sales staff to lie to customers regarding COVID-2019 in order to protect the Companys bookings. For example, one such email directed Norwegians sales team to tell customers that the Coronavirus can only survive in cold temperatures, so the Caribbean is a fantastic choice for your next cruise. On this news, Norwegians stock price fell $5.47 per share, or 26.68%, to close at $15.03 per share on March 11, 2020.

The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Paris is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com
CANOGA PARK, Calif.The following warning has been received from the Free Speech Coalition:

Performers should be aware of a "scam" producer fraudulently implying a connection to Kink.com. The bogus "producer" uses a telephone number with an 818 area code and says hes been working with Kink as a freelance producer since the shutdown of the Armory.

Any performers approached by an unknown person claiming to represent Kink.com should be extremely wary. Due to the production shutdown, no producers affiliated with Kink are shooting.

If you are contacted, whether by phone, social media or email, by someone claiming to work for or with Kink.com, Kink asks that you email [email protected] to confirm their identity and association.

The elements of this scam appear to be similar to several other incidents reported in recent years. To protect yourself in any potential booking, Free Speech Coalition recommends the following precautions:

If you have a licensed agent:

have them verify the booking, contacts and details

If you do not have a licensed agent:

Only communicate with new producers or agents through official company email accounts. (If the person does not have an official account, ask them for a contact at the company that you can email to verify the relationship)

ask for references from other models, and verify them

get contracts and other paperwork in advance and have it vetted by an attorney

avoid negotiating or agreeing to shoots via sites like Whatsapp and Facebook, particularly when dealing with a new producer or agent

When in doubt, contact FSC

We ask all existing performers, as well as those seeking to work in the adult industry, to always confirm the identity of any unknown director, agent or other contact by calling or emailing the company they claim to represent. Most companies have publicly available profiles. If you are unable to reach the company, or are otherwise hesitant to do so, please contact FSC, and we can help confirm.

FSC is currently investigating this scam. We encourage anyone who has been approached, or has any knowledge of this scam or others, to report potential incidents to us so that we may alert the community, as well as law enforcement.

Fraud and identity theft are criminal offenses, and can be punishable by prison. Rape by deceptionin which a person agrees to have sex under fraudulent pretenses, such as a bogus adult shootis a state felony.

For further information, contact Free Speech Coalition. To report a suspicious contact, email report@freespeechcoalition.com or call 818-348-9373.
[April 02, 2020] DroneUp Acquires AeroVista Innovations

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- DroneUp, LLC, an end-to-end drone pilot service provider for aerial data collection, is pleased to announce that it has acquired AeroVista Innovations, LLC (AVI) to provide full-service drone training to private and public sector organizations. DroneUp has acquired AVI's assets, employees, and customer contracts, and will transition merged business operations into the DroneUp brand as The DroneUp Training Academy. AeroVista Innovations, founded in 2016, provides training, in-house drone program implementation, and FAA regulatory compliance consultation that aid public agencies and corporations in their drone training, consulting, and sourcing projects. Its collaboration with UAS industry leaders provides a market-leading proposition and ensures complete drone solution programs that minimize risk and maximize safety and results. Brendan Stewart, President of AeroVista Innovations, stated "We are thrilled to integrate our operations into DroneUp's global business model and combine our industry knowledge to accelerate turn-key solutions for drone program adoption with oth public sector and enterprise organizations. AVI's value is rooted in consulting, integrating, and training in-house operations for sectors such as emergency management and law enforcement, offering DroneUp the ability to further serve these markets through its NASPO ValuePoint Multi-State Contract."



Since its inception in 2016, DroneUp's service and business contributions have evolved to meet the demand of dynamic and maturing markets. The DroneUp Training Academy will continue to be led by both Brenden Stewart, Training Director, and Melanie Harris, Sales Director, furthering momentum to offer training and equipment purchases implementing one-stop drone solutions. "DroneUp is looking forward to the expansion through this acquisition. Bringing AVI into DroneUp allows us to extend our capabilities to create valuable solutions for our customers. We have an exceptional network of pilots and an experienced team of leaders," stated Tom Walker, Founder & CEO of DroneUp. "Our training division allows us to enhance the skills of our pilots who fly complex missions for our customers and to assist our clients in problem-solving internal and off-site issues impacting safe and complete drone solutions."

For more information on AeroVista Innovations please visit droneup.com . About DroneUp

Founded by Tom Walker in 2016, DroneUp provides complete drone solution services that include Part 107 pilots, aerial data collection, training, program integration, and equipment sales to commercial industries and public sector organizations. DroneUp operates globally with more than 10,000 certified drone pilots. DroneUp is headquartered in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and a SWaM or Small, Women-owned, and Minority-owned Business certified as a small business by the Commonwealth of Virginia. For more information: droneup.com . Media Contact

Amy Wiegand

757-657-4886 View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/droneup-acquires-aerovista-innovations-301033750.html SOURCE DroneUp

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U.S. President Donald Trump has confirmed that he will meet US oil company executives at the White House on April 3 to discuss the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on their industry.



The industry has been badly affected as demand for energy has fallen parallel with government-imposed restrictions on business aimed at controlling the outbreak.



A dispute between Russia and Saudi Arabia over production cuts has also been a factor in the collapse of oil prices.



Trump, speaking at a White House briefing on April 1, did not specify which companies would be represented at the meeting.



He did, however, comment on the dispute between Saudi Arabia and Russia, saying the two countries are in talks and he believes they will work out their differences.



Trump's national-security adviser, Robert O'Brien, also spoke at the briefing, saying the United States "will work with the world's largest oil producers to address volatility in global oil markets."

Based on reporting by AFP and Reuters
Police on Long Island were searching Wednesday for the photographer Peter Beard, known for creating elaborate collages from documentary images of Africa, after he disappeared on Tuesday afternoon from his home in Montauk, N.Y.

Mr. Beard, 82, has dementia, according to the East Hampton police, who described him as vulnerable and potentially in need of medical attention. On Wednesday afternoon, dozens of police and firefighters, using dogs, drones and thermal imaging equipment, combed the area around Mr. Beards waterfront property, where he maintains his studio and lives with his wife, Nejma Beard, who manages his career.
Fifteen members of a family from



Maharashtra's Pune district have been kept at a government quarantine facility after they violated the home quarantine order, a police official said on Thursday.

The family members went to the state's Osmanabad district on March 22 to attend the last rites of a relative, despite the state government having advised people to avoid gatherings and follow social distancing, the official said.

Following the announcement of 21-day nationwide lockdown last month, the authorities asked them to remain under home quarantine in Osmanabad and stamped their hands.

"After spending a couple of days there, the family members sought permission to return to Pune, which was turned down by local authorities. On Tuesday night, the family hired a mini-bus and a driver and escaped from Osmanabad," the official said.

They used all the minor roads where police personnel were not deployed, but the bus was caught by Pune rural police near Wadgaon on old Mumbai-Pune highway.

"Despite all of them having home quarantine stamps on their hands, they were travelling in a bus. We have now put them under institutional quarantine," the official said.

The state government last month decided to put stamps on the hands of people undergoing home quarantine for suspected exposure to the novel coronavirus.

Maharashtra has so far reported 338 COVID-19 cases and 16 deaths due to the viral infection.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Kashif Bashir shot and seriously wounded officer Peter Laboy at a traffic stop in 2013. But a judge ruled Bashir did not know right from wrong at a 2014 bench trial and ordered him hospitalized instead of imprisoned. Bashir was released in 2018. Eight months later, he was charged in Prince William County with crimes including arson, attempted arson and stalking in which prosecutors say he targeted his mental-health providers.
Intrastate border closures have wreaked havoc on one of the state's major money-spinning industries, forcing tourism businesses primed for a bumper season into an "early hibernation".

According to WA Tourism figures, the state government's decision to implement travel restrictions between regions will see the industry lose out on an estimated $3.81 billion from intrastate visitors alone, and $8.5 billion in total.

Rottnest Island's most famous resident  the quokka. Now, the island is being used to quarantine cruise ship passengers. Credit:Tourism Western Australia

The unprecedented restrictions came into effect on Tuesday morning, with police checkpoints and mobile patrols clamping down on travel between WA's six major regions.

Those travelling will only be allowed across borders for work, freight and construction, medical and compassionate purposes.
A 28-year-veteran correctional police officer at the Hudson County jail died after contracting the coronavirus, union officials said Wednesday.

Bernard Waddell Sr., 56, died after contracting the coronavirus, according to the New Jersey State Policemens Benevolent Association, which represents about 33,000 members around the state. At a Thursday afternoon press briefing, Governor Phil Murphy commemorated Waddell as one of the latest victims of the virus, saying he spoke to Waddells wife and son Wednesday afternoon.

He too was a frontline hero, said Murphy.

As of Thursday morning, the county had not received confirmation of a positive COVID-19 test for Waddell, said county spokesman Jim Kennelly. Waddell had various underlying health conditions and had been out of the jail since March 17, he said.

Hes going to be sorely missed in my department," said Ron Edwards, director of the Hudson County Department of Corrections. He was more than just an officer. He was a gentleman.

Waddell, a senior officer who had attained the rank of corporal, worked in the housing unit, which includes 64 inmates at the jail, said Edwards. Edwards called it the "hardest beat in the country.

Over his nearly three decades of service, Waddell had learned and was familiar with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) courts and the United States Marshals Service, often coordinating transportation for inmates and federal immigration detainees, said Edwards.

Waddell had trained an estimated 50% of the correctional staff at the facility, said Edwards.

He was an individual that would help out any of my officers, he said. He always had a great smile on his face and a kind word to offer someone. He made sure that everybody was safe.

Passing of Correctional Police Officer Bernard Waddell, Sr. The State PBA is sad to announce the passing of Hudson... Posted by NJ State PBA on Wednesday, April 1, 2020

In a separate post, the Hudson County Prosecutors Office sent their condolences to the correctional facility, who lost one of their own.

Waddells death comes as the coronavirus outbreak continues to spread within jails across New Jersey.

At the Bergen County Jail, a corrections officer tested positive for the coronavirus, prompting seven other officers to self-quarantine. A superior officer at the Essex County Jail also tested positive for the coronavirus. A Morris County sheriffs officer working at the Morris County Correctional Facility also tested positive for the virus.

Inmates and federal immigration detainees have called to be released, while employees at the jails have asked for pay boosts and for more testing.

This week, more than 700 county jail inmates across New Jersey were released amid fears of the encroaching pandemic. Many federal immigration detainees at some of the immigrant detention centers housed at county jails have also been released by way of consent orders passed down from federal judges.

New Jerseys major corrections officers unions have asked the state to increase pay for officers working inside the states prisons and for employees own dedicated testing center.

Hudson County jail lost one of our finest, said Edwards. Ive known him 28 years. He never said a bad word about anybody. He couldve retired four years ago. And he stayed because it really is a family.

If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

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Rodrigo Torrejon may be reached at rtorrejon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rodrigotorrejon.
The Army and Air Force Exchange Service is testing curbside order pick-ups at six of its stores as managers seek to find ways to keep shoppers buying while also reducing foot traffic.

The system last year expanded its in-store online order pick-up program to 135 locations. But users had to enter the store to get their items from a designated counter. The new program instead will allow purchases to be delivered to the shoppers' vehicles.

The service will be available starting April 3 at Fort Campbell, Kentucky; Kaiserslautern Military Community, Germany; Camp Humphreys, South Korea; McChord Air Force Base, Washington; and Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas. Fort Benning, Georgia has already rolled it out.

Shoppers will receive a phone call when their order is ready. Then, much like curbside pick-up at off-base retailers, shoppers will park in a designated numbered space, call the phone number on the sign and then wait for delivery to their car.

Related: The Latest on the Military's COVID-19 Response

The AAFES announcement said the plan is to roll the program out worldwide when the test is complete. It did not say how long the test will last.

Meanwhile, the Navy Exchange said it is instead focusing its energy on overseas locations, where it has started a new delivery program to serve sailors who are under quarantine.

The commissary system offers its online shopping program Click2Go at four locations -- Fort Belvoir, Fort Eustis, Oceana Naval Air Station and Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia -- with Fort McGuire, New Jersey, slated to come online April 6, according to its website. No additional locations have been announced.

And the Veterans Canteen Service, which runs retail shops at Department of Veterans Affairs locations, said it is now offering bulk grocery orders. While availability varies by location, items could include frozen food, deli meats and dairy products. Prices, however, are not necessarily competitive.

For example, according to an order sheet, five pounds of raw chicken will cost shoppers about $5 per pound, well above the national average of $3.18 per pound. And a 40-ounce bag of Frosted Flakes is priced at almost $.38 an ounce, above Walmart.com's $.33 per ounce non-sale price. Veterans interested in the service should contact their local VA facility for more information, it said.

-- Amy Bushatz can be reached at amy.bushatz@military.com.

Read More: 'Tens of Thousands' of Guard Personnel to Be Called Up in Coronavirus Response
Hong Kong's High Court ruled on that warrantless searches of arrestees' cell phones could go ahead, as long as a full account of the search was made.



The decision overturned an ruling in a case involving pro-democracy activists, which said police could only scan arrestees' phones in "exigent circumstances," meaning emergencies involving an imminent threat to the public or to police officers.



But three High Court judges found on that no warrant should be required to search cell phones in any other situation, if obtaining a warrant wasn't "reasonably practicable."



Instead, officers only needed to show that they had "a reasonable basis for having to conduct the search immediately," which could include the need to investigate a suspect or to preserve evidence that could be of use elsewhere.



Police first started scanning data on people's cell phones in Hong Kong during the 2014 pro-democracy movement, after seizing them from five protesters arrested during a rally.



The first case involving phone data came to court after the five challenged the admissibility of phone data obtained without a warrant.



's judgment stated that, although the power would interfere with the arrested person in Article 30 of the Basic Law and Article 14 of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance, the power to authorize the police was still "proportional."



It also ruled that refusing to hand over your phone password didn't constitute obstruction of police in the course of their duties.



Vague ruling gives police wide leeway

Civic Party lawmaker Alvin Yeung said the ruling was vague enough to give police huge scope to interpret exactly in what circumstances it would be permissible to scan someone's phone.



"There have been a number of cases [involving phone data] in the past 10 months," Yeung said. "Some young people wearing black [the color of the protest movement] have been stopped on the streets by police, who threatened them with charges of obstructing a police officer if they didn't switch on their phones."



"Even if the police have the power to do this, will they use it in a reasonable manner?"



"There are plenty of real-life examples proving that the police don't respect the rules, or are abusing their power," he said. "The court has now handed the power to decide what constitutes reasonable circumstances to the police, which makes the situation far worse than it was."



Alan Wong of the Progressive Lawyers' Group agreed, saying the vagueness around the concept of a "reasonable" justification was worrying.



"I think the biggest concern is that the police will go through someone's phone if it's not locked," Wong said. "What exactly constitutes a reasonable basis? It's very vague, and open to debate."



"Such a thing can be very subjective," he said.



Police are bringing more than 600 protest-related prosecutions dating from the anti-extradition and pro-democracy protests that began in on a range of charges including "unlawful assembly, assault, arson and rioting.



More than 7,700 people have been arrested since the movement began.



In , the U.S. State Department issued an annual report that cited political arrests of Hong Kong activists as part of a bid to discourage protesters and keep numbers down, as well as "multiple sources" saying that Chinese state security agents were monitoring political activists and academics critical of the ruling Chinese Communist Party.



The report found that the authorities, whether in Hong Kong or Beijing, had "restricted or sought to restrict the right to express or report on dissenting political views, particularly support for Hong Kong independence."



It said the prosecutions of activists and refusals to grant approval for some assemblies had infringed on the rights of Hongkongers to peaceful assembly and protest.



Rights groups have also hit out at the Hong Kong police for using excessive force to disperse crowds or arrest individuals suspected of participating in violent protests on several occasions.



The U.N. Human Rights Office has said there is credible evidence the Hong Kong police had employ[ed] less lethal weapons in ways that are prohibited by international norms and standards when conducting crowd dispersal operations.



Reported by Lau Siu-fung for RFA's Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
A drive-thru testing site at Manet Community Health Center in Quincy could be operational by Monday, according to a spokesperson.

The federally qualified health center started setting up tents outside its Quincy location this week with help from city officials, said Sandra McGunigle, Manet spokesperson. When open, patients who are screened by phone and found eligible to take the test can drive up to the tents.

Testing in a car, rather than entering a facility adds yet another layer of safety for patients, community residents and staff alike, McGunigle said in a statement, adding that the tents are not a walk-in site.

Drive-thru testing centers have popped up across the state to test people for COVID-19 as it continues to spread across Massachusetts. UMass Memorial Medical Center set up a testing site last month for patients who traveled, have compromised immune systems and otherwise face a high risk of infection.

It also could be the type of work they do and the community they live in, Jack Bailey told MassLive at the time. That includes first responders, healthcare professionals, prisoners and even homeless individuals. We really want to manage the community spread.

As of Wednesday, 7,738 people have tested positive for the coronavirus, and 122 people in the state have died, according to the state Department of Public Health.

Statewide testing has ramped up over the past week. Since this weekend, the state has surpassed the Baker administrations goal of 3,500 tests daily. On Wednesday, the state conducted 4,803 new tests, bringing the total of tests conducted in Massachusetts to 51,738.

Still, testing capacity has been a concern across the country as federal agencies got a slow start, health experts say. The Food and Drug Administration approved the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions testing kits for emergency use in February, two weeks after the first coronavirus case was reported in Washington state.

Wisconsins State Laboratory of Hygiene waited to two weeks to receive kits from the CDC only to find that they couldnt conclusively prove the kits worked, Business Insider reported. It took 16 days for the CDC to come up with a solution, rendering the state labs unable to perform effective tests during that time.

Health experts in Massachusetts also complained about the slow rollout of tests, blaming the Trump administration. President Donald Trump has dismissed complaints of a slow response.

As of Wednesday, Manet has tested 200 people with 4.9% of those people testing positive for the coronavirus.

The community will be healthier for this as the testing, along with the follow-up and education before and after an individual has been screened and tested, are the best defenses we have against COVID-19, McGunigle said.

She urged locals who need access to primary care to call 617-376-3000 rather than head to the testing site, noting it is not a walk-in site. The Manet health centers in Quincy, Hull and Taunton remain open.

Related Content:


A man in self-isolation looks out the window

Justin Paget/Getty Images

Juan Perez, Amy Bobchek, Marcus Ferreira were all diagnosed with COVID-19 in March.

"I really wanted to work during my sickness," Perez told Insider. "But the most I could do was catch up on 'Better Call Saul' and take naps."

Ferreira, a 20-year-old sophomore at Vanderbilt University, is already back to his normal schedule, studying and taking exams, from home.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Related Video: How COVID-19 Affects People With Diabetes, Cancer and More

In mid-January, Juan Perez read a CNN article about the emerging novel coronavirus in China. Stunned, he posted a prediction on Twitter: "Remember when I tell you, this will be the next global outbreak."

Perez was right. And within two months, he learned he had contracted COVID-19.

Three Americans told Insider what it feels like to be diagnosed with the virus and recover. Here's what we can learn from them.

Something wasn't right



Juan Perez initially attributed his coronavirus symptoms to seasonal allergies.

Juan Perez

None of them felt serious symptoms at first, but all knew something was "off."

On the night of March 15, Perez experienced intermittent wheezing. But the 40-year-old Brooklynite thought it could be just seasonal allergies.

Amy Bobchek, 52, first felt run down on March 15, a few days after returning from a business trip in New York City to her home in Leesburg, Virginia.

Marcus Ferreira, 20, began feeling lethargic and achy on March 11, while still living on campus at Nashville's Vanderbilt University.

Within a day or two of their initial symptoms, all experienced some of the typical markers of the coronavirus: fever, body aches, chills, headache, cough, and shortness of breath. When those symptoms worsened, they each decided to get tested and, with two to five days, all received a positive result for COVID-19.

Getting tested

While all recall medical personnel wearing masks and other protective gear, Bobchek described her experience getting tested as "almost dystopian."

Story continues

At a makeshift drive-thru area at her local hospital, she recalled, "There were people in beekeeper suits, and signs with all kinds of instructions  including 'Don't roll your window down' and 'Hold your ID up to the window.'" Bobchek's doctor indicated she needed to open her window halfway, though, so he could perform a swab test.

"He said not to look at him, just to look straight ahead, and that he was going to stick a Q-tip up my nose."

Worsening symptoms



Marcus Ferreira was still on campus at Vanderbilt University when he began experiencing coronavirus symptoms.

Marcus Ferreira

The same day Ferreira felt achy and tired, Vanderbilt announced all students had to leave campus. Three days later, his father picked him up and drove them back to their family home in Hilton Head, South Carolina.

"The drive home was my worst day," Ferreira said. "I had a fever, I was shaking, I had body aches and a bad cough."

For Perez, a distance runner, the worst symptoms were extreme fatigue and an inability to focus. "I really wanted to work during my sickness," he said. "But the most I could do was catch up on 'Better Call Saul' and take naps."

For several days, Bobchek had body aches, no energy, and a headache. She spent most of her time in bed, and took only Tylenol to feel better, per instructions from her doctor and the World Health Organization.

The most upsetting symptom, Bobchek said, was a total loss of smell: At the time that wasn't linked to COVID-19, but rhinologists now believe someone experiencing a sudden loss of smell could be a "hidden carrier" of the coronavirus, even with no other symptoms.

Keeping family members at a distance

Perez lives with his wife in a small apartment. After getting tested on March 17, he was told to go home and stay quarantined for 14 days.

"So I went home and divided the house in two," he said. "I slept on the couch for two weeks  I wanted to do everything I could to keep my wife safe."

The day before Bobchek began feeling sick, her father died of natural causes. Instead of going to comfort her loved ones, she decided to follow "advice from professionals" and behave as if she had the virus: She maintained a six-foot distance from everyone, had her husband sleep in another room, and put her mother in the guest house. When she felt up to it, Bobchek spent time "sanitizing, handwashing, and cleaning door knobs."

Those precautions were important: Bobchek's mother is 88 and her husband has asthma, so both were at higher risk for the virus.

Getting better



Coronavirus survivor Amy Bobchek has yet to fully recover her sense of smell.

Amy Bobchek

Ferreira started feeling better a few days after the worst of it, with only a cough remaining. His official recovery day was March 25, two weeks after his initial symptoms appeared. A sophomore engineering major, Ferreira is now back to his normal schedule, studying and taking exams, from home.

Bobchek, chief revenue officer for advertising platform Advocado, has been mostly symptom-free since March 26. But her sense of smell and taste still have not fully returned.

"I can cut onions, and my eyes will water, but I can't smell onions," she said. "My hand lotion has a strong citrus smell, but I can't smell it, either." Sour tastes are also muted, and she has no interest in drinking the occasional glass of wine she previously enjoyed.

Perez was officially finished with his quarantine on March 31. His wife has been coughing frequently for several days, though, so his days of self-isolation may continue.

Moving forward

Thankful that their experiences with COVID-19 weren't too severe, Ferreira, Bobchek and Perez all offered words of advice to those worried about the virus.

"Stay home," Perez said, echoing the group's sentiment. "I think people don't realize how easily it's transmitted."

Ferreira agreed: "You can get the virus anywhere, any time."

And while Bobchek urged caution about where to get novel coronavirus information from, she still advised acting "as conservatively as possible."

"It's hard to stay home and keep your distance from others, but we all have a responsibility to be part of the solution."

Read the original article on Insider
North Platte Planning Administrator Judy Clark and two Wyoming men have advanced to a second round of interviews to succeed retiring City Administrator Jim Hawks.

Clark, Matthew Kibbon of Cheyenne and Stephen P. McGrath of Casper will receive fresh interviews from a six-member selection committee, Mayor Dwight Livingston announced Wednesday.

The three were among 26 original applicants and eight who went through initial interviews last week, the mayor said.

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Hawks, chief legal counsel Terry Waite, Council President Jim Nisley and Councilmen Glenn Petersen and Lawrence Ostendorf will again join Livingston in the interviews.

Livingston cautioned each of the three individuals not to assume that this was a final list of candidates, the mayor said in a press release.

With Hawks set to retire May 1, however, Livingston hopes to conduct the second round of interviews in the immediate future, he added.

Hawks said earlier this week that he would stay on for a time past his retirement date in case the eventual choice couldnt start work for a while in light of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Syracuse, N.Y.  Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon doesnt want anyone to know how much he is paying for face masks, or where he buys them. Same with hospital gowns, goggles, ventilators and booties.

Its a dog-eat-dog world out there, and Onondaga County is competing with buyers around the world to stockpile medical supplies so that Central New York is ready when the worst of the cornonavirus pandemic strikes here.

Beginning this week, the county is getting deliveries of more than $1 million worth of personal protective equipment and other medical supplies. McMahon released figures for how much the county is spending but declined to specify the quantities ordered. He doesnt want to reveal the price per item.

County Comptroller Marty Masterpole, who has records of the purchases, also declined to release details. He said county officials are competing to buy things and dont want to reveal what they are paying while they continue to negotiate for more supplies.

Basically, the executive and the law department have said please dont release the quantity because we dont want people to know the price per item, Masterpole said. If it gets out in public that (an item) cost $5 each, someone who could have sold them for $2 each will then sell them to you for $4 each.

The biggest ticket item? Respirator facemasks. Doctors and nurses in Syracuse  and around the nation  say they are short on N95 masks, the kind that block at least 95% of small airborne particles. The county spent $619,707 on N95 facemasks.

Just dont ask how many.

County emergency management Commissioner Dan Wears said N95 masks, which once cost $1 or less, have been selling for as much as $3 to $5 lately because of heightened demand. County officials would not confirm how many the county bought. At those prices, the recent purchase would represent about 125,000 to 200,000 masks.

The next biggest expense was ventilators, at $173,000. McMahon has said he acquired 70 ventilators, but it seems unlikely he got all of them for this money. Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently complained that ventilator prices have spiked to $50,000 or more and cant be found even at that price.

Heres the full list of how the $1 million was spent:

Gowns: $46,274

Surgical masks: $8,391

Goggles: $24,923

N95 masks: $619,707

Gloves: $85,412

Booties: $1,275

Tyvek suits: $1,127

Face shields: $81,644

Safety glasses: $27,060

Ventilators: $173,000

Total: $1,068,814

The disposable supplies will only last two to three weeks, McMahon said. The county is already shopping for more.

The supplies being stockpiled by Onondaga County will be distributed to local medical providers, said Justin Sayles, speaking for McMahon. Hospitals get first priority. At least two local hospitals  St. Josephs and Upstate  have asked for help acquiring personal protective equipment, or PPE.

Supplies also could be made available to primary care providers, the Syracuse Community Health Center, nursing homes or others, Sayles said.

In addition to nearly $1.1 million in materials expected to arrive this week, the county has spent about $200,000 on other coronavirus-related expenses, Masterpole said. That includes new ultraviolet lighting to kill microbes in the ductwork at the Civic Center and the County Office Building.

With McMahons declaration of an emergency March 14, the county suspended normal procurement processes in order to buy supplies quickly, Masterpole said. Rather than issue RFPs that take weeks to fulfill, the county is seeking bids on a day-to-day basis as prices constantly fluctuate.

This is changing by the day, he said.

Like other states and municipalities, Onondaga County has had to quickly find its way in the marketplace for medical supplies, McMahon said. The county could not wait for state and federal governments to meet its needs, he said.

That has created a helter-skelter scramble for supplies, a situation that should be improved upon for the next pandemic, he said.

The national response to pandemics  after this is all said and done  certainly should be looked at, McMahon said. Everybody should study what everybody did, to see if theres a better way to handle this moving forward.

Masterpole said he agrees with McMahons decision to withhold information on purchase prices, at least for the time being. That gives the purchasing department more flexibility to negotiate.

I think they are trying to protect the taxpayers, he said.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Overwhelmed and with thousands of calls coming in every day, firefighters are being asked to go above and beyond" to help New York City fight the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the union head said in a video to members posted by the Daily News.

We are being asked or ordered to go above and beyond where we never thought we would go and with that we have brought our families in the front line with us because, being out in the field and being asked to do more, thats more exposure where we could be bringing this pandemic home, the United Firefighters Association head Gerard Fitzgerald said in the video.

Fitzgerald said the department plans to use 209 EMTs and 63 paramedics who are firefighters and who still have their certifications valid to assist with medical calls.

We are being asked to help with the outrageous number of calls that EMS is getting," he said. "They will be the next wave of being ordered to come back to help EMS fight this pandemic.

On Tuesday, there was 7,500 911 calls, with 500 in backlog, Fitzgerald added.

"This is all part of a doomsday scenario, he said.

FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro previously said that the bulk of 911 calls are falling on the shoulders of our EMTs and paramedics, and said that firefighters continue to respond to critical calls.

This is unprecedented, Mayor Bill de Blasio said. "Weve never seen our EMS system get this many calls ever.

The union head added that the coronavirus pandemic is the biggest medical emergency that we ever encountered.

Our members are being ordered to go beyond their duties and like we have done in the past we have faced many tough times, Fitzgerald said. The eyes of the world are on us. There is no emergency that our firefighters have not conquered and we will conquer this one also.

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When they announced their intent to step down as senior working members of the British royal family, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry began to plot exactly what they wanted their new life to look like. The pair had struggled under the microscope of the British tabloids and the public. In the end, they decided that it was far too much to deal with.

Following their Megxit announcement in January 2020, the Sussexes left the U.K. to live on Vancouver Island in Canada. Most royal fans assumed that this would become the Sussexes North American headquarters. However, it appears that they had other plans in mind.

Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the pair were unable to properly roll out their post-Megxit plans. Instead, we know that the Sussexes fled Canada for their permanent home base, Los Angeles, California just before Canada and the U.S. shuttered the border between the countries. Many fans and experts are shocked that the royal duo has landed in LA. Now an expert is warning that LA might turn into a nightmare for them.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a deliberate choice to live in LA

The Sussexes were very deliberate in choosing Southern California for their North American home base. Most of it has to do with money and opportunity.

Harry and Meghan have left Canada now for good, an alleged source told The Sun. The borders were closing and flights were stopping. They had to get out. But this move was planned for some time. They realized Canada would not work out for various reasons and they want to be based in the Los Angeles area. They have a big support network there. Its where their new team of Hollywood agents and PRs and business managers are based. Meghan has lots of friends there and, of course, her mum Doria.

Once the pandemic eases and social distancing and self-isolation eases, the Sussexes will be in the epicenter of it all, setting themselves up to be completely financially independent from the British royal family.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were warned against moving to LA

Obviously, the Sussexes are a powerhouse couple, who are extremely visible globally. However, thats the exact reason they were warned against LA. Look, Im done beating around the bush about this, ok? royal commentator Justin Sylvester told Express. First of all, the traffic here is going to be a mess. Dont come here, we love you. We love an interracial couple here but please dont come here. Meghan didnt want people to think that she was as crafty as saying, Im going to take this man from here and go straight to LA and try to run this business and get that money. I am all about her living her best life and doing her thing. I just cant handle the traffic right now.

In addition to traffic, the paparazzi in LA will undoubtedly be an issue for the pair. LA paparazzi dont play by the rules, they will follow them, they are considered fair game, a British photographer told Yahoo U.K. Meghan is an actress, they are in a weird limbo, they have protection and they are trying to make money. They are going to get photographed a lot more and there is not much they can do.

Royal experts think LA could be a nightmare for the Sussexes

Considering the Sussexes fame, and the fishbowl that is Hollywood, LA could be the wrong move for the duke and duchess. They actually moved to CaliforniaI dont know why, its just so alien to me to think of the prince living here, Sharon Osbourne shared on The Talk. If they were fed up with the press in the UK, they are really going to be fed up with the press living in LA. I just think its so foreign. Im kind of disappointed, in a way, that Harry would end up here in LA. I hope they are going to move somewhere like Santa Barbara or something like that so that they can have somewhat of a normal existence. But if they are going to live in LA, right in the center, its going to be a nightmare for them with the press and the paparazzi. They would have no life at all.

We suppose the Sussexes will reveal their complete plan when its appropriate.
Etawah : , April 2 (IANS) One jail inmate who had been injured in a late night clash between prisoners in Etawah jail on Wednesday night, died during treatment on Thursday morning. The deceased is Monu Pahari.

A fierce fight had broken out between two groups of prisoners in Etawah district jail, late on Wednesday night. As many as 14 prison staff members and 18 inmates were injured in the clash.

The fight between the two groups of inmates began over a question of supremacy and the groups led by Munna Khalid, who has come from Agra Jail and Monu Pahari were involved in the clash.

Jailor Raj Kishor Singh said that the inmates attacked the prison staff with sticks and stones when they were being forced back into their barracks.

Fourteen prison staff members, including Deputy Jailor Jagdish Singh, sustained injuries in the attack, he said.

The staff used mild force to control the situation, in which 18 inmates were injured, he added.

Head Constable Purushottam Singh and inmate Chunna Numberdar had suffered head injuries. Chunna has been admitted to the district hospital for treatment. Police force and PAC force of several police stations including SSP were called in to control the situation.

The other injured prisoners are being treated in the jail hospital.

In order to control the situation, the police and police officers of several police stations had to be called in.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Akash Tomar said that the situation was now under control and an inquiry has been ordered into the incident.
This story was produced as part of a joint effort among Spotlight PA, LNP Media Group, PennLive, PA Post, and WITF to cover how Pennsylvania state government is responding to the coronavirus.

HARRISBURG  The state Supreme Court has extended a moratorium on evictions, providing much-needed  if temporary  relief for tenants, many of whom owe rent Wednesday for the first time since the state reported its first coronavirus cases.

To stem the spread of the virus, Gov. Tom Wolf has issued a stay-at-home order until April 30 and shut down businesses that arent life-sustaining, creating an unprecedented surge in unemployment claims.

So far, more than 890,000 Pennsylvanians have filed for relief. With many unable to pay their bills, advocates and public defenders are bracing for a surge in evictions.

Its definitely going to get worse, said Rosamaria Cristello, head of the Pittsburgh-based Latino Community Center. Many of our families are scared because they are losing their jobs.

The Supreme Court order issued Wednesday extends the statewide judicial emergency and court closures to April 30, prohibiting evictions until after that point.

There are an estimated 1.5 million renter-occupied housing units in the state, according to 2018 census data. In 2016 alone, there were more than 29,000 evictions in Pennsylvania, with Philadelphia and Erie cracking the top 100 among large cities nationwide, according to the Eviction Lab at Princeton University.

In theory, all landlords who dont get a rent payment from their tenants can initiate the eviction process as soon as the courts reopen, said Rachel Garland, managing attorney of the housing unit at Community Legal Services in Philadelphia.

Community Legal Services and the citys tenant hotline have received an increased number of calls, with tenants asking what they should do if they cant pay their rent, Garland said. So far, the state has done little to help answer that question.

The state Department of Banking and Securities suggested that people who cant pay their rent due to a loss of income or illness should contact their landlords to work out a plan for their payment. Evictions are costly for landlords, so it is often more cost-effective to work out an agreement, Garland said.

We just need time, Garland added. We just need to buy time. We dont even have time for the safety net to go into place, much less for [the state] to go and put in additional [protections].

Cristello, who works with immigrants and undocumented people, said shes drafted letters to landlords, urging them to be flexible during the coronavirus disaster declaration. Some families, Cristello said, are spending their last dime making sure they pay their bills on time, but I am afraid they are going to waste their final penny on rent.

Some Pennsylvania lawmakers have proposed temporary tenant protections. Sen. Larry Farnese (D-Philadelphia) and Reps. Mary Isaacson (D-Philadelphia) and Summer Lee (D., Allegheny) are drafting a measurethat would make it illegal to evict someone whos unemployed due to an emergency disaster declaration.

Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler (D., Philadelphia) said Monday she and three other lawmakers are working on a bill that would freeze rent and mortgage payments for three months. Small landlords and businesses would also be offered some relief, possibly in the form of a tax credit.

Landlords, too, are concerned about making their mortgage payments if their tenants are unable to make rent, said Mike McKenna, president of Tabor Community Services in Lancaster, which connects people in need of affordable housing with landlords in the public and private sector.

Still, theres pressure on landlords and mortgage companies to provide relief. In a letter Monday, Attorney General Josh Shapiro asked these groups to not let this economic crisis contribute to the public health emergency.

I am urging you and your members to go beyond the Supreme Courts order and pledge not to institute any eviction proceedings against your tenants or mortgage-holders who have been impacted by this crisis  for some additional time period after our courts are re-opened for eviction proceedings, Shapiro wrote.

A spokesperson for Shapiro said the letter is only a request and does not restrict landlords from acting when the state Supreme Court lifts its moratorium on evictions.

At least some relief for certain renters is coming from the federal stimulus package.

The $2 trillion CARES Act, signed by President Donald Trump last week, halts certain evictions for 120 days. It applies to public housing as well units funded by Section 8 vouchers or owned by landlords with federally backed loans.

Thats about 45% of renters nationwide, Dunn said. The act also includes money for rental assistance, housing vouchers, public housing, and housing for the elderly, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Additionally, mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are offering relief for some multifamily property owners who agree not to evict tenants who cant pay rent because of the coronavirus, The Inquirer reported.

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It wasnt how Anna Mitchell wanted to spend her first day as a registered nurse on Wednesday  crying in her car after learning she had come in contact with a potential COVID-19 patient.

For the past two weeks, Mitchell has been making call outs on social media for a cheap place to stay that would be away from her immunocompromised son but without luck. Due to steep prices at rental spaces and hotels, she couldnt find a place at first.

Later that day, a Huntsville nonprofit called Recentered stepped up and is giving her, and any other female medical worker, a place to stay free of charge.

I cannot believe something so incredible is coming just as it's starting to get scary, Mitchell said.

Its a precaution many medical workers nationwide are doing: renting out spaces to live away from their loved ones who are vulnerable to the coronavirus. Mitchell didnt consider herself at the frontlines of the pandemic while working at Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of North Alabama in Huntsville.

But she feels the risks edging closer to coworkers and herself. Mitchells first day as a registered nurse was the same day 1,000 coronavirus cases were confirmed in Alabama.

She said her facility just now received test kits. Wearing masks is now mandatory for all Huntsville Hospital Health Systems employees as of Thursday. Mitchell said she had on the appropriate protective gear when she encountered the possible COVID-19 patient, whose test results havent came back yet. All the facilitys gloves and masks are stored and locked away so no one can steal the items.

It's very eye opening. Like being prepared for the battle we have been waiting for, Mitchell said. It's so close and any moment it will not only be my patients, but also my coworkers. Just dear God, not my family.

People who have pre-existing conditions are more likely to suffer from severe symptoms from COVID-19. Mitchells son, Brantley, had open-heart surgery when he was born due to a defect and was taken home with IVs and feeding tubes.

As a new mother with no medical experience at that time, Mitchell turned her home into a makeshift hospital. She used two large paint cans to elevate one side of her sons crib so it would slope. That way, the fluid in Brantleys lungs would seep down to the base of the lungs. Its those experiences that inspired Mitchell to enroll at Calhoun Community College and join a workforce dedicated to help make the ill well again.

Brantley is now 8 years old, but he still has a lot of preexisting conditions. To protect her only child, Mitchell changes out of her clothes as soon as she gets back home from work and hops in the shower. She washes off with her last bar antibacterial soap because she cant find anymore at the store. Shes distancing herself not just from people but from the mannerisms of motherhood. Thats hard, Mitchell said. Although she has stopped kissing Brantleys face, she finds herself kissing his hair.

Mitchell said she was prepared to live out of her car, which was packed with food, blankets and other essentials like toothpaste, if she didnt find a place to stay.

I broke down in tears at one point, Mitchell said. Im tired of feeling like I have a disease.

Josh Walter, co-founder of Recentered, found out about the need to provided medical workers with a free place to live while he was putting the finishing touches on a five-bedroom-three-bathroom home called the Life House. Walter, his wife and his friends have housed about 20 women in crisis since starting Recentered about seven years ago. After partnering with another nonprofit called the Huntsville Dream Center, Recentered started renovating the Life House in October.

Walter said he didnt know he was preparing the home for medical workers until after a friend told him about Mitchells mission to protect her son on Wednesday. He then reached out Mitchell and gave her a place to stay for free.

I told our partners at the Dream Center, We have the vision for helping women in crisis. We have nurses who are in crisis right now who need a safe place to stay to avoid contacting loved one at risk. Walter said.

Mitchell was able to get a preview of what all the coronavirus can do before it started sweeping across the country because she has family members in Italy, where the disease has left people dying in hospital hallways because hospitals are overwhelmed. Then she started watching viral videos of nurses and doctors speaking out about low Personal protective equipment, also known as PPE, and not having enough ventilators. Shes read about how an ice-skating rink was transformed into a morgue in Spain and how the dead are being loaded into refrigerated trucks in New York City.

She keeps those images in mind when she feels the urge to hug or touch her child.

I dont want to be in one of those trucks. I dont want my child to have to be on life support and Im not even able to go visit them, Mitchell said.

Getting a new place to stay eases her mind as she lives through what was the most frightening lesson in nursing school, which focused on how to prioritize which patients get help during an environmental disaster or pandemic. After semesters of being taught how to save everyone, Mitchell learned how to make hard decisions that arent based on a patients age, but a patients health.

It doesnt matter if you have a 4-year-old versus a 40 year old, if the 4-year-old has a ton of comorbidities and the 40 year old is totally healthy, you give the ventilator to the 40 year old, Mitchell said. To see one of the scariest things I learned in nursing school coming true literally the minute I graduate and I am on my own as a nurse is horrifying.

Walter says he hopes to encourage more women in medical field through Recentered. The organization still has four free rooms left for medical workers. Since Recentered focuses on women in crisis, those who are interested must be female healthcare workers who are currently living with someone who is vulnerable to COVID-19. Walter can be contacted via email at recentered@gmail.com

Just like sickness, negativity and fear can spread, hope and love spread as well and they are contagious in a way that encourages others, he said. When we receive love, we are able to give love. When we receive hope, we are able to give hope.

It will be hard for Mitchell to live away from her son and to place him in the care of her boyfriend and her parents. But there hasnt been a hardship they havent conquered together as mother and son. Shes watched her son endure medical procedure after medical procedure. She will endure this, too.

This is our life. This what we have always known, she said. We are dealt the hand we are given, and we are going to make the best of it.
An alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology Bob Balaram has created a space chopper that will fly over the Martian skies.

The Mars Helicopter created by him will ride to Mars this summer with NASA's Perseverance rover. It is currently at Kennedy Space Center waiting to hitch a ride to the Red Planet this summer.

In the 1990s, Balaram, a robotics technologist with 35 years of experience attended a professional conference, where Stanford professor Ilan Kroo spoke about a "mesicopter," a miniature airborne vehicle for Earth applications that was funded as a NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts proposal.

This led Balaram to think about using one on Mars. He suggested a joint proposal with Stanford for a NASA Research Announcement submission and recruited AeroVironment, a small company in Simi Valley, California.

The proposal got favourable reviews, and although it was not selected for funding at that time, it did yield a blade-rotor test under Mars conditions at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) of NASA. Other than that, the idea "sat on a shelf" for 15 years.

Charles Elachi, then director of JPL, attended a conference where the University of Pennsylvania presented about the use of drones and helicopters. When he returned to JPL, he asked whether something like this could be used on Mars.

A colleague of Balaram's mentioned his previous work in that area of research. Balaram dusted off that proposal, and Elachi asked him to write a new one for the competitive call for Mars 2020 investigation payloads. This sped up the process of developing a concept.

Although the helicopter idea was not selected as an instrument, it was funded for technology development and risk reduction.

Mimi Aung became Mars Helicopter project manager, and after the team worked on risk reduction, NASA decided to fund the helicopter for flight as a technology demonstration.

Balaram described the construction of the chopper as a perfectly blank canvas, but with restrictions. According to him, his physics background helped him envision flying on Mars, a planet with an atmosphere that is only 1 percent as dense as Earth's.

He compared it to flying on Earth at a 100,000-foot (30,500-meter) altitude -- about seven times higher than a typical terrestrial helicopter can fly. Another challenge was that the copter could carry only a few kilograms, including the weight of batteries and a radio for communications.

"You can't just throw mass at it, because it needed to fly," said Balaram.

It dawned on Balaram that it was like building a new kind of aircraft that just happens to be a spacecraft. And because it is a "passenger" on a flagship mission, he said, "we have to guarantee 100% that it will be safe."

The end result was a four-pound (1.8-kilogram) helicopter with two pairs of light counter-rotating blades -- an upper and lower pair, to slice through the Martian atmosphere. Each pair of blades spans four feet (1.2 meters) in diameter.

Once it was built, Balaram said, the question was, "How do you test this beast? There's no book saying how."

Because there is no easily accessible place on Earth with a thin atmosphere like the one on Mars, they ran tests in a vacuum chamber and the 25-foot Space Simulation Chamber at JPL.

About two-and-a-half months after landing at Jezero Crater, the Mars Helicopter team will have a window of about 30 days to perform a technology demonstration in the actual of the planet, starting with a series of vehicle checkouts, followed by attempts of first-ever flights in the very thin Martian atmosphere.

Despite best efforts and the best tests available on Earth, this is a high-risk, high-reward technology demonstration. According to Balaram, he could also fail.

However, if the chopper succeeds on Mars, it will be what Balaram describes as "kind of a Wright Brothers moment on another planet" -- the first time a powered aircraft will have flown on Mars, or any planet besides Earth, for that matter.

This potential breakthrough could help pave the way for future craft that would expand NASA's portfolio of vehicles to explore other worlds.

Helicopter concept was funded, planned, developed and built and is heading to the Red Planet this summer.

"Bob is the inventor of our Mars Helicopter. He innovated the design and followed up on that vision to its fruition as chief engineer through all phases of design, development and test," said project manager Aung.

"Whenever we encountered a technical roadblock -- and we encountered many roadblocks -- we always turned to Bob, who always carries an inexhaustible set of potential solutions to be considered. Come to think of it, I don't think I have ever seen Bob feeling stuck at any point!" Aug added.

The main purpose of the Mars 2020 mission is to deliver the Perseverance rover, which will not only continue to explore the past habitability of the planet, but will actually search for signs of ancient microbial life.

It will also cache rock and soil samples for pickup by a potential future mission and help pave the way for future human exploration of Mars. Even if the helicopter encounters difficulties, the science-gathering mission of the Perseverance rover won't be affected.

Balaram said that in addition to the usual "seven minutes of terror" experienced by the team on Earth during a Mars landing, once the helicopter is on Mars and attempting to fly, "This is the seven seconds of terror every time we take off or land."

"There's been a crisis every single week of the last six years. I'm used to it," Balaram said.

Balaram sheds any stress that may crop up through backpacking, hiking and massage. His career has encompassed robotic arms, early Mars rovers, technology for a notional balloon mission to explore Venus and a stint as lead for the Mars Laboratory entry, descent and landing simulation software.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 40-year-old Oswego man has been arrested and accused of having sexual conduct with a girl younger than 16 years old, according to New York State Police.

Patrick Boykin was charged with second-degree criminal sex act, a felony, and endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor, police said.

The incident happened in Cicero, according to police.

He has been taken to the Onondaga County Justice Center for centralized arraignment, according to police.

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Chris Libonati via the Signal app for encrypted messaging at 585-290-0718, by phone at the same number, by email or on Twitter.
SBS Food series Jimmy Shus Taste of the Territory, which is part funded by the Northern Territory government, begins later this month.

Chef Jimmy Shu will explore the sights, smells and stories of tropical Darwins diverse food scene in the 8 part series.

Jimmy Shu said: The Top End and Darwin in particular, hold some of the best kept food secrets in Australia. I cant wait to share some of these with SBSs audience, and invite them inside the colourful, vibrant and flavourful city I call home.

SBS Commissioning Editor for Food, Josh Martin, said: We are thrilled to have partnered with Screen Territory to bring this gorgeous series to our audience. Taste of the Territory is cinematic in scale, and combines the raw natural beauty of the NT with the personal stories of the characters who make it such a special place. Jimmy brings his humour, warmth and incredible food knowledge to every frame.

Northern Territory Minister for Tourism, Sport and Culture, Lauren Moss said: Through Screen Territory, we are excited to partner with SBS Food to support this fantastic opportunity to showcase our multicultural and innovative food industry and outstanding local production talent with the rest of the country.

We need to celebrate our talent and community strengths now more than ever. Were hoping the delicious recipes will entice viewers to try them at home and the stunning backdrops will remind people just how beautiful the NT is  so when they can visit the Territory again, they will.

The NT Government has invested $200,000 towards the partnership as we recognise the importance in sharing our stories with the world and the significant contribution our vibrant and growing screen sector makes to the local economy.

Screen Territory Director, Jennie Hughes, said: Were delighted to join with SBS in sharing the vibrant and dynamic food scene of the Top End with the rest of Australia. Darwin has an incredible mix of cultures that call the NT home which can be experienced and explored through the breadth of its culinary diversity.

The series was previously announced under another title, Delicious Darwin.

Part travelogue, part food odyssey, part cooking show, Jimmy Shus Taste of the Territory will showcase the kaleidoscope of culture and personal stories of local food producers and experts. Jimmy will lift the lid on the family recipes of Darwins home cooks, taste the street food and local produce of the famous Darwin markets and delve into the amazing flavours of Indigenous bush foods.

Over decades and across generations, a huge variety of migrants have made Darwin their home and contributed significantly to its unique culture and dining scene. Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai, Indian, Cambodian, Malay and Indonesian food are just some of the cuisines loved and eaten everyday by locals.

As Jimmys friends share their food and recipes, they will also share their own stories of resilience, what brought them to Darwin and the childhood memories and culture that inspires their most personal expression of who they are: their food.

Jimmy Shus Taste of the Territory is produced by Indigo Productions and 360 Degree Films. Principal production investment from SBS and Screen Territory.

8.30pm on Thursday 23 April, on SBS Food
Dubais Vision Tech Solutions DMCC, a specialist in IT infrastructure and support, is offering a free technology solution consultancy to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), to enable them to move to remote working arrangements.



Rajab Ali Virani, managing director of Vision Tech Solutions DMCC, said: As the world goes into a lockdown mode to contain the pandemic, cybercriminals will not be curtailing their efforts to access valuable data during the outbreak. They will, in fact, take the advantage of the situation to launch malicious attacks, which can result in errors and outages.



Customer-facing industries, such as airlines, hospitality and healthcare, are particularly in need of effective tech support and solutions. Educational institutions are another sizable sector that needs such support, to replace physical classrooms with online e-learning alternatives.



One of the other challenges of a work-from-home policy is that employees are not being able to connect to appropriate servers that boost their productivity. Vision Tech Solutions highly qualified management team and tech personnel have the expertise and experience to provide the requisite IT infrastructure and support that can resolve this issue efficiently, safely, and cost-effectively.



Millions of workers are now signing in remotely to corporate networks and cloud-software programmes, which could easily open doors to malicious attack by hackers. We will provide free consultancy to SMEs and work closely with them to help connect employees working from home to access office servers remotely, through a firewall, Virani added.



This arrangement will ensure that data privacy and security of the company is not compromised. We will also offer our services to help schools run their e-learning programs and assist with deploying reliable remote access to servers, so people can work or learn at home seamlessly even during this crisis.



The threat of hackers and malicious online actors, who can infect users with malware by duplicating coronavirus tracker-maps, has emerged as a significant risk to businesses. They are using these maps to spread malicious software and gather information on users, including their names, passwords, credit card details and other personal data.



One of the primary reasons we are offering to manage all the IT systems for SMEs is to ensure that these businesses are protected from opportunistic hackers and malicious parties, particularly if they use a network that is not secured said Virani.



The coronavirus contagion might be the key challenge right now, but a companys data, privacy, and security cannot be compromised under any circumstances. Vision Tech Solutions DMCC assures businesses peace of mind, by ensuring they do not have to choose between productivity and security while working remotely.  TradeArabia News Service
Canberra, April 2 : The Australian Parliament will reconvene to vote on the government's wage subsidy package despite border closures across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese agreed on Wednesday that both Houses of Parliament will sit on April 8 to vote on the A$130 billion ($79 billion) scheme, reports Xinhua news agency.

The package will entitle Australians who have their employment status changed by COVID-19 to fortnightly payments of A$1,500 ($912) in an attempt to prevent job losses and stimulate the economy.

Parliament was suspended indefinitely after a skeleton crew of MPs voted to legislate the government's first two economic stimulus packages, which were worth combined A$83 billion on March 23.

With several states having since effectively closed their borders MPs could be subjected to mandatory 14-day quarantine periods after returning home from the parliament.

Attorney-General Christian Porter, who is also the government's Leader of the House of Representatives, has been tasked with getting MPs to and from Canberra along with his Opposition counterpart Tony Burke.

The minimum number of lower house MPs required to convene Parliament is 31.
THE government said yesterday it is activating monitoring measures as it works to contain the transmission of the deadly novel virus that has so far killed one person and infected 20 people in the country.

Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa told the National Assembly here that individuals diagnosed with the coronavirus will be named and quarantined in the state-identified hostels across the country.

The number of on-standby quarantine centres was not immediately established but the premier said authorities had identified some hotels and affordable hostels for those who could not meet hotel costs.

We recorded our first case on March 16 this year. Since the discovery of the pandemic, the government has been taking appropriate steps in addressing the disease, including strengthening inspections and monitoring of all arrivals in the country, he said.

The prime minister was tabling a review of the government functions as well as revenue and expenditures of the prime ministers office, seeking endorsement of 434bn/- for the financial year 2020/21.

Mr Majaliwa said the monitoring was essential to help the State authorities to detect persons with early symptoms of the Covid-19 or those with risk indicators.

Tanzanias battle against the coronavirus, however, took a new twist with the premier categorically warning the general public to beware misinformation and fake news sprouting in social media.

He urged the public to remain vigilant and observe guidance from State authorities as well as medical experts.

Mr Majaliwa took time to explain that the government had so far banned public gatherings, including seminars, workshop and exhibitions as measures to prevent transmission of the diseases that the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a pandemic.

You can recall that the President also suspended the Uhuru torch race, redirecting the budget allocated to support measures to fight the pandemic. We have also suspended schools from nursery to tertiary level, he noted.

Additional measures being implemented by the State include supplying body temperature scanners across all entry points, public awareness campaigns and recruitment of health workers.

The parliamentarians were restless on Tuesday this week when the national assembly resumed its business demanding Speaker Job Ndugai and the government to redirect the entire day to debate and advice the State on measures to implement to contain the deadly virus.

But Ndugai was quick to swat back MPs concern detailing that the prime minister would deliver a national address that would among other things discuss the government measures against the coronavirus in the country.

Meanwhile, the number of confirmed Coronavirus cases yesterday rose to 20 after one more patient tested positive, Minister of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children Ms Ummy Mwalimu has announced.

In a statement that was shared to media yesterday, Ms Mwalimu said the new patient is a United States national aged 42 who was close to a person who travelled outside the country and tested positive of COVID-19 on arrival.

According to the minister, 17 patients out of 20 total cases that had been reported so far were doing well.

In other development, on 31st March this year, one patient who was receiving treatment at the Temeke isolation center recovered from COVID-19 and was discharged, read part of the statement signed by the minister.

Up to now, two patients have recovered, including the first patient who was receiving treatment in Arusha. One patient died on Tuesday when he was receiving treatment at the Mloganzila center, being the first death of the pandemic coronavirus to be reported in Tanzania.

As part of efforts to curb the spread, the government is implementing a mandatory 14-day quarantine to whoever comes to Tanzania from countries that have been affected by coronavirus.

Tanzanians are urged to adhere to recommended preventive measures, including hand washing with soap and moving clean water frequently.

The government is also advising people to avoid mass gatherings since that would help avoid direct body contacts that increase the chances of contracting the virus.

Globally, as of yesterday there were around 885,000 cases with over 44,000 deaths, while the number of those who have recovered stands at around 186,000. The highest death rates are in Italy and Spain.
A former Chinese military officer who sent tonnes of protective equipment from Australia to China during the height of the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has been accused of profiteering from the disaster, with medical supplies allegedly inflated in price by up to 300 per cent.

Warnings circulated by several insiders allege that the company run by former People's Liberation Army officer Kuang Yuanping sold tens of thousands of medical protective coveralls in late February to Australian property developer Risland for $2.2 million. Risland then flew the goods to China.

Former People's Liberation Army officer and businessman Kuang Yuanping.

Leaked documents allege that Mr Kuangs sale price to Risland of $25 for each item was far higher than market value, with identical items on sale in Australia at the time for $10 or less. If the mark-up quoted in the warnings to Risland is correct, Mr Kuang could have made more than $1 million in clear profit.

The documents show that several insiders issued warnings to senior executives at Risland in late February and early March of the alleged profiteering in connection with the COVID-19 humanitarian work. There is no suggestion that Mr Kuang committed any criminal offences.
Elisa Camisciolis research requires her to dig into early 20th-century ship manifests and police reports, translate handwritten letters and use genealogical websites to map lineage connections. She studies immigration to and from France, trafficking between Europe and Latin America, and race and sexual politics in modern France and its empire.

The National Endowment for the Humanities awarded the associate professor of history a $60,000 fellowship in January to complete her research and write her second book. She expects Trafficking, Travel, and Illicit Migration in Early Twentieth-Century French and the Americas to be published in 2022.

Elisas work really touches on central questions of our own day, says Eileen Boris, Hull Endowed Chair and distinguished professor of the department of feminist studies at UC Santa Barbara. She reconstructs the social and political history of people who traversed the Atlantic for a living while studying the ideas of border control, belonging and citizenship, civilian surveillance, racial profiling and policing of sexuality.

While French women were migrating to cities like Vera Cruz, Buenos Aires and Havana to work in commercial sex trade, there were open immigration policies from Argentina up to Nova Scotia until restrictions became the norm by 1930.

Historians usually talk about how the growth of nationalism, race and ethnicity affected these policies, but womens mobility and the problem or perceived problems associated with migratory prostitution play a key role in this development, Camiscioli says. I argue that these early debates about border policing, passport control, repatriating, restrictive immigration requirements  all in association with women working in prostitution and societal fears about womens mobility  helped create current border control regimes and shape understandings of illicit migration today.

Camisciolis work also looks at the distinction between free versus forced migration. Personal letters collected as evidence for police records against prostitutes or their pimps indicate these women generally made the decision to travel abroad. They wrote about feeling seasick or asked for news about their goddaughter. They had tender ties to their families, she says. That doesnt mean they werent dreadfully poor, didnt have violence in their lives, or that they didnt experience degrees of abuse and deception, but there are shades of gray between coercion and choice and I think many of these women fell somewhere in between.

Occasionally, Camiscioli can piece together a rough timeline of one womans travels. For example, a family reported their 15-year-old daughter missing but once the Buenos Aires police found her, she said she was sick and didnt want to tell her family why she was miserable. Consulate records and ship manifests show this individual traveled to several cities before ending up in San Francisco. She reported to the U.S. Census that she was a dressmaker, an occupation often used by women who worked in commercial sex. She traveled to France three times to visit an aunt, and by age 40, she was living in Paris and managing a brothel.

She was entrepreneurial. And by migrating, she experienced a boost within her working-class status, Camiscioli says. Im astounded by how profoundly mobile these people were and the ingenious ways they got around the system. Theres so much tenacity, and while it can be easy to overly romanticize some of these stories, their sense of freedom and adventure does shine through.

Camisciolis first book, Reproducing the French Race: Immigration, Intimacy, and Embodiment in the Early Twentieth Century, was published by Duke University Press in 2009.

She graduated with a bachelors degree in history and French literature from the University of Pennsylvania and received her doctorate in history from the University of Chicago. She is the co-editor of the international Journal of Womens History (along with distinguished professor of history Jean H. Quataert), and serves on research, teaching and granting committees in France, Belgium and the UK.
EASL and ESCMID have issued a Position Paper, providing recommendations for clinicians caring for patients with liver diseases during the current pandemic

2 April 2020 - Geneva, Switzerland: Currently, there are limited data on the impact of pre-existing liver disease and the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection, with many open questions.

However, patients with advanced liver disease and recipients of liver transplants represent vulnerable groups and are likely to be at an increased risk of infection and/or a severe course of COVID-19. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic is placing an increasing burden on healthcare systems across the world, which could negatively impact the care of patients with chronic liver diseases who require ongoing medical attention.

To promote the best possible care in these challenging circumstances, this Position Paper provides recommendations for clinicians treating patients with chronic liver diseases.

Recommendations include: promoting telemedicine in the outpatient setting, prioritising outpatient contacts, and avoiding nosocomial dissemination of the virus to patients and healthcare providers while maintaining standard care for patients who require immediate medical attention. Additionally, the paper includes a flowchart on prioritising patient care in patients with chronic liver disease.

"While the threat COVID-19 poses to our populations is clear, it remains vital to maintain appropriate care for patients with chronic liver disease. Clinicians will need to identify ways to prioritise their care even when healthcare resources are limited. EASL has therefore published this joint Position Paper to help support clinicians facing these difficult challenges," said Prof. Phil Newsome, Secretary General of the European Association for the Study of Liver Disease (EASL) and Director of the Centre for Liver and Gastrointestinal Research & Professor of Hepatology at the University of Birmingham, UK.

The paper provides recommendations on the use of outpatient care, ways to reduce direct exposure to COVID-19, and advice on managing patients with compensated/decompensated liver disease, with hepatocellular carcinoma, and following liver transplantation. It also includes advice on liver-related diagnostic procedures (including endoscopy, ultrasound, and liver biopsy), on the collaboration with local healthcare providers and primary care physicians, and on inpatient care and treatments currently being suggested.

"These recommendations address the specific concerns of patients with liver disease and are meant to provide additional guidance for their care. It is important to stress that all general recommendations and guidelines with regards to prevention, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 from local authorities must be adhered to," said Prof. Thomas Berg, Vice-Secretary General of EASL and Head of the Section of Hepatology Acting Director of the Clinic of Gastroenterology, University Hospital Leipzig, Germany.

"This joint Position Paper is a major EASL-ESCMID collaborative effort on management of liver disease during the COVID-19 pandemic strengthening links between our societies," said co-author and ESCMID Fellow Prof. Mario Mondelli, Professor of Infectious Diseases, University of Pavia, Clinical Lead, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Italy.

"Technical solutions are available to enable remote physician-patient interactions, which can be helpful during the pandemic. Health authorities should be urged to equip hospitals with such systems. This is not only to support COVID-19 patients in quarantine at home, but also to care for and guide patients needing to be protected from a potentially harmful infection in the hospital setting," commented lead author Dr Tobias Boettler, Department of Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Germany.

This Position Paper will also be published shortly in the open access journal, JHEP Reports.

###

Further Information:

Media enquiries:

Karen Mazzoli

Head of Marketing & Communication

European Association for the Study of the Liver

Karen.Mazzoli@easloffice.eu

About EASL - The Home of Hepatology

Since its foundation in 1966, this not-for-profit organisation has grown to over 4,000 members from all over the world, including many of the leading hepatologists in Europe and beyond. EASL is the leading liver association in Europe, having evolved into a major European association with international influence, and with a track record in promoting research in liver disease, supporting wider education and promoting changes in European liver policy.

About ESCMID

Since its founding in 1983, ESCMID has evolved to become Europe's leading society in clinical microbiology and infectious diseases with members from all European countries and all continents. For more than 30 years, ESCMID has been an influential component in the professional lives of microbiologists and infectious disease specialists and now reaches more than 8,500 individual and 30,000 affiliated members around the world. ESCMID, based in Basel, Switzerland, welcomes new colleagues from all nations.

About JHEP Reports

JHEP Reports is the first open access journal of the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL). It publishes original papers, reviews, and letters to the Editor pertaining to clinical and basic research in the field of hepatology. JHEP Reports is now indexed in PubMed Central.
SPRINGFIELD - Beginning Monday, Springfield Public Schools will be adding dinner to the packet of free meals provided to students every day. There have also been two new sites added to accommodate the need across the city.

It gives us great satisfaction to now make dinner available to our students. We are grateful to Sodexo for their unwavering and ever expanding commitment to our community. We believe that having this resource will be beneficial for many of our families and having it as an option, will certainly serve all of our families," said Superintendent of Schools Daniel Warwick.

Sodexo, the districts food service provider, has added Sumner Avenue School, 45 Sumner Ave., as a meal distribution site and Milton Bradley School, 22 Mulberry St., will be added as meal distribution site to replace the South End Middle School location. Additionally, a drive-thru/drive-up feature has been added for meal pick-up at Indian Orchard, Milton Bradley, Sumner, Talmadge and Warner sites. All changes take effect

We know for certain, that for some, school is where they turn for meals and we have such peace of mind knowing that none of our students will go hungry while school is out. We encourage all of families to take advantage of these free meals, Warwick said. When school is in session the district serves 30,000 meals every day.

Meal service next week will be Monday through Thursday only in observance of Good Friday, April 10. However, meal distribution next Thursday will include four breakfasts, four lunches and four dinners so that students will have meals for Friday and the weekend. Sodexo will provide bags to carry the meals home in observance of Gov. Charlie Bakers current order to cease use of reusable bags, which families have been bringing to collect the meals.

The full list of Springfield school meal sites now include: Bowles, Boland, Brookings, Chestnut Middle School, Commerce, Dorman, Glickman, Indian Orchard, Kensington, Liberty, Lincoln, Milton Bradley, Rebecca Johnson, Sumner, Talmadge, Warner and Washington schools. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are distributed together between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. weekdays.

Parents, guardians, and grandparents may pick up meals for school age children in their care at any of the 17 sites across the city. The student does not need to be physically present for the adult to pick up a meal. The adult will be asked at the point of pickup if the meals are for school age students. Identification is not required. Meals are available to persons with disabilities, over age 18, who participate in school programs for people who are mentally or physically disabled.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

By Samir Ali  Trend:

Azerbaijan has confirmed 41 new coronavirus cases, Spokesperson for Azerbaijans Cabinet of Ministers Ibrahim Mammadov said.

Mammadov made the remarks in Baku at the press conference held by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2, Trend reports.

The spokesman said that the condition of eight people out of those 41 people is severe, the condition of 11 people is assessed as moderate, and the condition of the rest is stable.

The spokesman added that these numbers may change during the day.

So far, 400 people have been infected with coronavirus in Azerbaijan. Some 26 of them recovered, five people died. The rest 369 people are being treated in special hospitals.

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their homes, apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence.

To this end, all kinds of operations, except for the vital work and services, have been suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.

Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11.
I do love that I see so many different potential candidates discussing it, she said, the Capitol building over her shoulder looking a little dingy against the blazing white of her suit. I will work with any administration.

As many of us have noticed recently, its hard to get work done when your kids are around. So several times a week, Kardashian West would drive  or be driven by her security team  to #Cut50s Los Angeles offices, in a nondescript, two-story building not far from her home. (That was in normal times, anyway, before she stocked an extra house she owns with food, cleaning supplies and toilet paper.) In the office, she would set up shop with her contracts or crim law binders and a tiny white chocolate mocha, hot, with whipped cream. She said her army green school backpack from Yeezy, her husbands brand, ripped because her books were so heavy.

I was never one to like school  honestly, I hated it, she said. So the fact that I love it is so shocking to me. But everything kind of pertains to me now, like contracts, for example, which would have felt meaningless to her in college, she said. Now, I get contracts all the time. So I read them, and I understand how to read them, and how to write them. And then criminal law, thats just what Im into. Thats super interesting to me.

As an apprentice at #Cut50 (the groups national director, Michael Mendoza, giggled as he called her our intern), she must do at least 18 hours of work for them each week, five of which has to be supervised. So Jessica Jackson, one of the groups co-founders, flies to Los Angeles to study with her, where she is joined by a senior counsel at #Cut50, Erin Haney. Both women split their time between the Bay Area and Washington D.C. They settle into a room where white walls are lined with legal books, while Kardashian West takes notes in what Jackson describes as absurdly good handwriting. Kardashian West pays for their travel expenses, though these days, they make do with FaceTime and phone calls.

In return for Jackson and Haneys effort, #Cut50 gets an apprentice with one of the biggest megaphones on the planet, and access to her tremendous list of contacts.

I know my role, that I can be there at the end to push it through, Kardashian West said. I can also be a silent partner. I think its knowing when to speak out and when not to, and when to privately call, she added. People think you need to shout it out on social media and shame people into making decisions, but thats not how it is.
ANN ARBOR, MI -- As 1,000 emergency meal kits are packaged daily at the Food Gatherers warehouse in Ann Arbor, 10 members of the Michigan National Guard are there to help in the mission to serve hungry Washtenaw County residents.

The guardsmen are there to gather the food, clean the warehouse and more in place of the usual volunteer network for the food bank. Their aid comes at a time of increased need for food assistance resulting from the coronavirus outbreak.

Guardsmen were deployed to four food banks across the state on Monday for at least three weeks while Michigan residents stay home to slow the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. Food Gatherers has stayed open as an essential business providing food to the community, Chief Development Officer Helen Starman said Wednesday.

Michigan National Guard to staff food banks, while restaurants can sell groceries as part of coronavirus response

Were distributing more food than usual to meet the need, Starman said. Our staff is working very, very hard to take on the roles that are usually filled by volunteers. Having the National Guard come and supplement that is tremendously helpful and helps us be much more effective and efficient.

The guardsman are there packaging 10-15 items into an emergency meal kit, sanitizing the warehouse and doing tasks that free up the Food Gatherers staff when needed, said James Everhart, the manager of volunteer programs.

The meal kits contain noodles, sauces, canned protein and cans of fruit and vegetables, Everhart said. Food Gatherers normally distributes a significant amount of fresh produce and proteins, Starman said, but the new model focuses on prepackaging meals so more people can receive them and not shop in a choice pantry, which is set up similar to a grocery store. All the new measures try to follow social distancing recommendations, officials said.

Michigan Medicine and Food Gatherers are partnering in a food drive. Guardsman will sort food accepted at Michigan Medicines drive-up donation site, 2800 Plymouth Road, Dock 90, Ann Arbor. Food Gatherers will accept extra items that residents already have on hand, such as hearty canned soups or toiletries.

TODAY! We start collecting food for @FoodGatherers, as well as protective #PPE gear for our staff & patients, at our donation site @umich's North Campus Research Complex. Open 12-5 Mon. - Sat.



Details & list of most-needed items: https://t.co/9ZS1dFEl22 #DoingMIPart pic.twitter.com/Y1lG5bmwte  Michigan Medicine (@umichmedicine) March 31, 2020

Meal kits will be delivered to Food Gatherers pantries and other community partners. Anyone seeking food assistance can view a list of Food Gatherers-supported pantries here. Pantries have little to no requirements to receive assistance, Starman said.

We are serving people who come and ask for food, she said.

MORE FROM THE ANN ARBOR NEWS AND MLIVE:

Michigan closes in on 10,000 confirmed coronavirus cases with largest single-day jump

Violin Monster unmasked: A changing city through the eyes of Ann Arbors most famous street performer

Ann Arbor city firefighter tests positive for COVID-19

91 more coronavirus cases confirmed in Washtenaw County
Mohammed Atiku, the son of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who tested positive for COVID-19, has expressed optimism about being discharged soon.

Mohammed spoke from isolation today in a video shared by his father on Twitter.

He said, On the 20th of (March), I tested positive for COVID-19 and I was brought over to the Isolation Centre at Gwagwalada University Teaching Hospital where I have been since.

I am currently on my 12th day here and I hope to be out soon  perhaps when my next test is taken and the results are favourable. I should be on my way out, hopefully.



I decided to do this video so that I could speak about my experience to be of help to Nigerians.

I was asymptomatic in my first few days here and nervous; I had a level of anxiety and a little bit of trauma, especially being the index case here in Abuja. That was really the main challenge.

But day by day, I grew stronger, thanks largely to all the goodwill and prayers and support I got from a vast array of Nigerians many of whom I dont know. My family and friends too and a whole lot of people.

I thank God I am well and good.

While thanking the health workers, he also asked Nigerians to pray for them.

My son, @Mo_Atiku shares his experience with #COVID19 . Together, we can learn from his experience and work to defeat this pandemic for our common good. pic.twitter.com/h4lJ7xIPsx  Atiku Abubakar (@atiku) April 2, 2020

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland's Fianna Fail and Fine Gael will need the support of a third party to form a new government and cannot just rely on a group of independent lawmakers for a majority, Fine Gael leader and acting Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Thursday.

The centre-right parties hope to agree a joint policy paper next week and seek the support one of the smaller parties in parliament, Varadkar said. The historic rivals need the backing of at least one other party or 8 independents.

"I am firmly of the view that if Fine Gael is going to participate in the next government, we need a third party. We can absolutely work with independents but a government that relies on nine or 10 independents isn't one that is going to be stable... make the hard calls," Varadkar told a news conference.

(Reporting by Padraic Halpin and Graham Fahy, Editing by Franklin Paul)
A senior NHS scientist has been caught cheating on his academic work  and then tried to blame his computer's spellcheck, a tribunal heard.

Krishnakumar Pillai submitted an essay that was found to be almost 90 per cent copied from other people's work.

But when he was accused of plagiarism, he said it must have been as a result of the software he used to check his spelling.

The 'ambitious' heart specialist has now been suspended for nine months after being found guilty of dishonesty.

Krishnakumar Pillai, an NHS heart specialist, was working at Birmingham Children's Hospital (pictured) when he was caught cheating on academic work  something he tried to blame on spellcheck software

A disciplinary panel at the Healthcare Professions Tribunal Service heard that Mr Pillai, who specialises in cardiac physiology, was working in a senior role in the Heart Investigation Unit at Birmingham Children's Hospital when the incident took place.

The hearing was told that he was studying for a postgraduate diploma at the University of Manchester Business School  a qualification which would have enabled him to apply for a more senior medical role.

As part of the course, he was required to submit a 4,000-word essay in January 2018.

But when he sent it in, a computer programme used by the university suggested the vast majority of it had been copied.

'His assignment recorded an 88% similarity index to material previously submitted to higher educational institutions,' the tribunal heard.

'In early March 2018 (he) was informed that an issue had been flagged... His response was that he had not plagiarised and he stated that he had put his assignment through a spellcheck, something that he suggested may have caused the report.'

Mr Pillai then faked another report that showed that only three per cent of his essay was unoriginal, the tribunal heard. But at a malpractice hearing in June of that year he admitted plagiarism.

The panel accepted that the scientists was having health and personal problems at the time of the incident.

Pillai was studying for a postgraduate diploma at the University of Manchester Business School  a qualification which would have enabled him to apply for a more senior medical role

'However, the fact remains that at the same time he was working clinically to a high level and was continuing to manage a department of 16 people,' the panel said in its judgment following last month's hearing.

'The negative factors did not rob him of the ability to distinguish between right and wrong, and that he did in fact know that what he was doing was wrong.'

The tribunal heard that achieving the qualification would have meant Mr Pillai could have applied for a promotion which would have enabled him to gain considerable financial reward.

It described his actions as 'deplorable' and suspended him for nine months for misconduct.
Author and paramedic Benjamin Gilmour.

The night we encountered our first patients with suspected COVID-19 was surreal. It happened like the flick of a switch.

My fellow paramedic and I walked into an apartment and heard a man coughing violently at the end of a hallway.

Having read the latest COVID-19 updates issued by our employer that evening we backed away. At the ambulance I pulled out the yellow infectious disease kit, sealed with tape. It was the first time in a decade I'd opened it for a reason other than to check the use-by dates.

We put on masks, gowns and gloves, then turned to face each other, triggering a burst of laughter.
To limit community spread of the potentially deadly COVID-19 virus, Attorney General Mike Hunter and Gov. Kevin Stitt released a set of best practices Monday for Oklahoma law enforcement agencies.

At its heart, the set of guidelines asks police to weigh the need to make an arrest against the public health risk of putting someone in jail.

We think that is the question police should ask of every arrest at any time, not just during a pandemic. Oklahoma is a mass incarceration state. Through two initiative petitions and some good legislation, the state has made incremental improvements to reduce the prison population, but we still have a long way to go.

The solution to the problem of too many people in the states jails and prisons is to put fewer people there in the first place. The key to doing that is to make sure the people we arrest, charge, prosecute and convict are true threats to society, not just people who make us angry.

Through policy and training, some police departments and sheriffs offices have bought into those concepts, but not enough.
Mumbai, April 2 : Bollywood star Hrithik Roshan says he is ensuring his children understand the isolation rules, while trying to find news ways to keep them engaged during the lockdown.

"While making sure my kids are adhering to all isolation rules and getting a deep understanding of the situation and responsibilities, I'm also trying many new things to keep them engaged during this lockdown," Hrithik said.

The actor is excited about the launch of Disney Plus (Disney+) in India, and is looking forward to the Disney+ Hotstar Red Carpet premiere on Thursday with "The Lion King".

Hrithik shares two sons -- Hrehaan and Hridhaan -- with former wife Sussanne Khan.

The actor is excited about the launch of Disney Plus (Disney+) in India, and is looking forward to the Disney+ Hotstar Red Carpet premiere on Thursday with "The Lion King".

"Honestly 'Lion King' couldn't have come at a better time. The three of us are blocking our seats on the couch to catch the special red carpet premiere of 'Lion King'. I'm looking forward to spending more quality time with my kids, while interacting with folks online - it's going to be fun," he added.

The special event will be an interactive experience where users will be able to watch the grand premiere of "The Lion King" (in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu) along with their favourite celebrities -- Hrithik, Tiger Shroff, Katrina Kaif, Sonam Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Varun Dhawan, Shahid Kapoor, Parineeti Chopra, Rana Duggabatti, Kajal Aggarwal, Rakul Preet and Dulquer Salman.

Talking about the premiere, Tiger said: "As a child, 'Lion King' was my go-to movie - I would often picture my father as Mufasa and I was Simba... In a time of lockdown, I hope people find inspiration and joy in little moments of the movie." To this, Shraddha added: "'Lion King' has been amongst my favorites and I cannot wait to watch the movie on with the rest of India. I'm also waiting to hear Mufasa's life lessons in Shah Rukh Khan's voice and what makes it even better is getting to watch it virtually with my fans while practising social distancing at home."

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Head of the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) Vietnam, Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung (Photo: VNA)

The event was co-chaired by Head of the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) Vietnam, Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung who is also Chairman of the ASEAN Coordinating Council Working Group (ACCWG), and US Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs David Stilwell.

Participants shared updated information on the developments of COVID-19, and measures to control and constrain the pandemic, while confirming their commitment to further strengthening cooperation in fighting the disease.

They agreed to actively share information and experience, provide technical assistance for one another, and exchange scientific research on ways to control and prevent infection and treat COVID-19 cases; and maintain close coordination among their relevant agencies in the work at all levels in the coming time.

ASEAN member nations applauded the US for its support to them in the fight, including the USs assistance worth 19 million USD and its plan to support ASEAN in establishing a regional disease control centre.

The ASEAN side also asked the US to coordinate in training medical staff, and giving more scholarships to ASEAN students to pursue public health studies major in the US.

The two sides agreed to maintain measures to ensure the safety for citizens of each side that have been affected by the epidemic.

Stilwell spoke highly of ASEAN's efforts and achievements in dealing with the disease.

He thanked the ASEAN countries for creating favourable conditions for US citizens to return from the epidemic areas, affirming that the US will provide support for citizens of ASEAN member countries living, studying and working in the US.

The two sides affirmed that they will actively coordinate to intensify measures in order to minimise socio-economic impact caused by the pandemic, maintain open markets, stabilise the exchange of trade, services and investment, and ensure the supply of essential goods, especially medical supplies.

Deputy FM Dung emphasised that ASEAN's proactive and timely response efforts have brought about initial results in the fight.

He also updated participants on Vietnams policies to effectively combat the disease, adding that with its drastic measures, Vietnam is well controlling the pandemic.

The official also proposed cooperation orientations between ASEAN and the US in controlling and preventing the spread of the disease, as well as in coping with negative socio-economic impact, affirming that Vietnam will actively promote the coordination of ASEANs efforts for this work.
>>> PM orders strict nationwide social distancing rules, starting April 1



>>> Vietnamese people's confidence in Governments response to COVID-19 highest worldwide: German survey



>>> Hanoi conducts large-scale rapid testing to prevent Covid-19

On March 31, the Ho Chi Minh City Business Associations District 1 Branch said that the agency is proposing that the Prime Minister facilitate procedures to receive the ventilators to serve the fight against COVID-19. The association has actively worked with Metran to order 2,000 ventilators with the main sponsorship from Van Thinh Phat Group and Van Lang University.

The two main sponsors through the District 1 Business Association signed a contract with Metran and paid 100% of the value of 2,000 ventilators, which are expected to be donated to the Vietnamese Government for emergency needs in the fight against COVID-19.

It also said that, if approved by the Government, the ventilators are expected to be delivered by the end of May 2020.

Metran was founded by Vietnamese-born scientist Tran Ngoc Phuc, who is also its Chairman of the Board of Directors, an enterprise specialising in the production of ventilators in Japan and around the world.

Within the past two months, Phuc and his colleagues have actively exchanged and worked with the District 1 Business Association and the two sponsors to find solutions to ensure the production of the 2,000 ventilators to donate to the Government of Vietnam.

* On the evening of March 31, Hanoi Municipal People's Committee Chairman Nguyen Duc Chung issued a directive on the implementation of a range of urgent measures to prevent and control COVID-19.

A local declares her health information before being tested at a field test station in Dong Da District, Hanoi, March 31, 2020. (Photo: NDO/Viet Anh)



The Hanoi authorities require all local people to voluntarily abide by an order made earlier on the same day by the Prime Minister on nationwide social distancing measures for 15 days, starting from April 1, in order to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Hanoi leaders also requested that its Department of Health coordinate with the City Police Department and local authorities to muster all resources with all solutions to thoroughly handle the "outbreak" at Bach Mai Hospital, as well as to organise quick testing stations at a number of major gateways in and out of the capital city.

* At 13:30 on March 31, budget carrier VietJets flight VJ933 landed at Van Don Airport in Quang Ninh Province, carrying 195 Vietnamese passengers returning from Japan. After the passengers completed their entry procedures, the local authorities sent them to concentrated isolation facilities according to the approved plan of the Quang Ninh authorities.

Medical examination for returnees from Japan. (Photo: NDO/Quang Tho)



* The same day, Binh Thuan Province General Hospital informed that seven of the nine COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment there have tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 twice. On April 1, the hospital will take samples to test the patients again and if they continue to show negative results for a third time, the hospital will report to the concerned authorities for consideration of discharge.

* The Vietnam - German Centre of Excellence in Medical Research (VG-CARE) in Hanoi has provided 6,000 patient sampling tubes for a clinical COVID-19 drug study project in Germany. On April 1, the University of Tubingen (Germany) in collaboration with Universities of Hamburg and Stuttgart launched a clinical trial of coronavirus medication. To conduct research, scientists need sample tubes. However, at this time in Germany there is not enough tubes to meet the requirements. Therefore, VG-CARE has provided the tools for the research.

Around 6,000 sample tubes have arrived at Tubingen (Photo: Institute of Tropical Medicine/University of Tubingen)



* On March 31, two more COVID-19 patients were declared to have recovered. They are both foreigners, including the 49th patient, 71, a British national treated at Hue Central Hospital, and the 54th patient, 33, Latvian, treated at Can Gio Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. Both will continue to be isolated and monitored for the next 14 days.

* As of 6 am on April 1, the total number of COVID-19 cases has climbed to 212 after five more patients were confirmed, according to the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology. To date, 58 of the confirmed cases have recovered and were discharged.
A sign for Grab Holdings Inc. stands in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Monday, Jan. 6, 2020. Ringgit is poised for its first advance in three sessions, after overseas investors scooped up Malaysian stocks and the risk-off mood in global markets eased. Photographer: Samsul Said/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Grab announced today that it has hired Peter Oey as its new chief financial officer. Prior to joining Grab, Oey was the chief financial officer at LegalZoom, an online legal services company based near Los Angeles.

Before that, he served the same role at Mylife.com, an online platform that aggregates information about people based on public records. Oey also held financial leadership positions at Activision for twelve years, including corporate controller.

Grab, whose services include ride-sharing, food delivery and online financial services provider GrabPay, announced in February that it had raised a total of $856 million from Japanese investors Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and TIS INTEC, to grow its financial services and digital payments infrastructure.

In a statement, Grab said Oey will be based in Singapore and report to co-founder and CEO Anthony Tan. He will also work with Grab president Ming Maa, who took over many responsibilities from Grabs last CFO, Linda Hoglund, when she left in 2016. Grab said Maa will continue to lead its strategic business planning.

Grab, which acquired Ubers Southeast Asia business in March 2018, has reportedly been in discussions to merge with merge with rival GoJek.

In a press statement, the company said that in 2019, GrabFood's gross merchandise volume grew by over 400%, while GrabPay increased payment volume by 170%, thanks to strong performance in Indonesia.

Tan said "Last year, we made tremendous progress in growing our food delivery, payments and financial services business. The growth of these businesses give us a good foundation for achieving long-term sustainable growth for our company. Im excited to welcome Peter to the Grab family where his extensive experience scaling rapidly growing technology companies makes him a valuable addition to our business."

Grab has raised a total of about $9.9 billion from investors including SoftBank Vision Fund, which invested $1.46 billion into the company last year. Tan told CNBC last November that the company will not go public until its entire business is profitable.
CHICAGO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Third Coast Underwriters (3CU) has promoted Peter Vaughn to director, Insurance Operations and Mike Altman to regional director, Business Development. Vaughn and Altman will be based at 3CU's headquarters in Chicago.

Vaughn brings 22 years of complex claim management, product development and multiline underwriting experience to 3CU. He holds a bachelor's degree from Eureka College and Master of Business Administration from the University of Connecticut.

Altman has over 15 years of experience as a commercial insurance broker and underwriter. He holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa.

"Peter and Mike bring diverse insurance backgrounds to their respective positions," said Mike Valiante, vice president of Business Development, Underwriting and Data Analytics at 3CU. "We are confident their expertise will help ensure 3CU's continued dedication to profitable growth and delivering superior outcomes for our agency partners and policyholders. We are excited to welcome Peter and Mike to their new roles within 3CU."

Eleven years after launching as a specialized provider of workers' compensation insurance to complex operations, Third Coast Underwriters (3CU) continues its growth after reaching an important milestone in 2019, when it surpassed $100 million in written premium for the first time in its history. Through geographic and segment expansion of its workers' compensation business, 3CU continues to partner with customers to provide proactive, consultative service to manage complex operations and challenging exposures that require unique workers' compensation solutions.

"After a decade of effective underwriting, innovative loss control and market-leading claims handling, we continue to demonstrate our value through a high-touch service model that always keeps our customers first," said Steve Cooper, president of 3CU and United Heartland. "We wrote our first policy in 2010 with an initial focus on business near our Chicago headquarters. Expansion into the transportation and agribusiness sectors has enhanced our established expertise in construction, energy, longshore and private equity workers' compensation. We continue to see a strong demand for our comprehensive array of workers' compensation solutions and we look forward to continued growth in the months and years ahead as we focus on innovative products to meet the changing needs of our customers."

About Third Coast Underwriters

Third Coast Underwriters is a member of AF Group. Insurance policies may be issued by any of the following companies within AF Group: Accident Fund Insurance Company of America, Accident Fund National Insurance Company, Accident Fund General Insurance Company, United Wisconsin Insurance Company, Third Coast Insurance Company or CompWest Insurance Company.

Contact:

Bob Lapinski

(312) 443-9819 or (517) 331-4890

[email protected]

AFGroup.com

SOURCE AF Group; Third Coast Underwriters

Related Links

http://AFGroup.com


A Pakistani court covered itself with glory by announcing that the al-Qaeda beasts who kidnapped and savagely killed Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl shortly after 9/11 now get their murder convictions overturned and will go free to walk among us again.

Somehow, after all these years, they got it wrong. The murder never happened, at least not by the slimy hands of these Islamist creeps. And it was a very bad murder  Pearl was a bright light at the Journal with wonderful parents (we have since learned) who was kidnapped, blindfolded, forced to recite that he was a Jew to his Jew-hating hostage takers, and then beheaded for a despicable al-Qaeda propaganda movie, the better to recruit scumbags who get excited about this stuff. This dirtbag, 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who's still eating his Froot Loops on Gitmo (why is he even still alive?), is the one who actually did it, but the Pakistani creeps released were the confederates who made it happen.

Look at how bad it is, according to the Washington Post:

"As per the court's judgment, Omar Saeed Sheikh has been found guilty of kidnapping and not of murder. The accused was in jail for 20 years," the defendants' lawyer Khawaja Naveed told The Washington Post. Saeed had been sentenced to death for Pearl's murder but now with just a seven-year sentence for kidnapping, he could be released for the 18 years he has already served. The three other men convicted with Saeed, Fahad Naseem, a computer expert, Salman Saqib, a religious activist, and Sheikh Adil, a police officer, were ordered released by the court. The kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Pearl in January 2002 shocked the world at the time. He had been in Pakistan researching the connection between a radical Islamic preacher and Robert Reid, who attempted to blow up an airliner with explosives in his shoe. Pearl was told he was meeting with the radical cleric when instead he was kidnapped by militants organized by Sheikh, a British-born Pakistani. According to the Center of Public Integrity's Pearl Project, 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed then took over the operation and filmed the beheading of Pearl for al-Qaeda propaganda purposes.

Something bad is going on in that hellhole, some kind of backsliding, some kind of upsurge in Islamist fundamentalism. The release was clearly a sop to these losers.

It's too soon to say what  it might even be simple havoc-wreaking from the Chicoms paying bribes to Pakistani judges  but here are the conditions on the ground that suggest that the place is falling apart:

From Fox News in a report just 20 hours ago:

All hell broke loose in a coronavirus quarantine site in the Pakistani city of Sukkur last week. Those inside, including Shiite pilgrims who had just returned from Iran, brought the doors down in protest. The heated crowd included people who had tested positive for coronavirus mixed in with those who were healthy or waiting for their results. Police propelled the crowd back but many are said to have escaped, shouting that the virus was an American conspiracy. The scene is symptomatic of Pakistan's handling of COVID-19. The country now has the highest number of confirmed cases in South Asia.

Unlike India, which has few cases, Pakistan didn't shut the door. Fox reports that the Pakistanis kept shipping pilgrims to Iran, where the coronavirus is rampant, for religious purposes, and the returning pilgrims brought the disease back with them to spread it at home. The local mullahs whined that Iran didn't treat the ill; Iran just shipped them back to superspread the problem into Pakistan, mullahs being mullahs. Meanwhile, Pakistan's ignorant local religious leaders refuse to shut the mosques, claiming that no harm can come with religious gatherings and telling the locals that praying on the Quran is the one and only way to stop the pestilence, so the religious gatherings go on, and the disease is spreading like wildfire.

And it looks as if Sindh province, where the disgusting judicial ruling came from, is Pakistan's second hardest hit.

According to Anadolu News Agency of Turkey:

According to the Federal Health Ministry, the number of confirmed cases rose to 676 in Sindh province, 708 in Punjab province, 253 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, 158 in Balochistan province, 148 in the Gilgit-Baltistan autonomous region and 58 in the capital Islamabad, while six cases were confirmed in Azad Jammu and Kashmir. More than 80% of the confirmed cases had recently returned from neighboring Iran and Saudi Arabia.

There's also this rubbish going on with nearby Afghanistan:

Many have lamented that the porous 1,500-mile border with Afghanistan has allowed transmission between the two countries. But the warring insurgency itself may have been one of the first to act as coronavirus took root. "The Taliban live in a closed environment and the traffic between their areas and others is very limited," a source close to the group told Fox News. "But even if they did get the virus, which they still say is an American conspiracy that has not come to Afghanistan, they would say people were being killed by the government or by foreigners." According to the source, the Taliban has taken to making videos to share among themselves, illuminating that praying five times a day will eliminate any illnesses  and more.

Hellholes are perfect seeding grounds for the rise of Islamist fundamentalism, and as Pakistan fails to get any sort of grip on the coronavirus  it's just starting its national lockdown and sending troops to enforce it, according to this report here  it's blaming America as it always does, and now this judge is letting these anti-Semitic, anti-American killers out.

Now that the current despicableness has happened, giving the Islamist fundamentalists there just the delight they need and the will to go on trying to Afghanistanize Pakistan, only bad can come of this. As for America, it's time to cut them off from everything they want with this outrageous behavior, find some way to speed up the execution of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed for them and let Iran take care of them.

Image credit: David via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / AEX Gold Inc. (TSXV:AEX) ("AEX" or the "Corporation") is pleased to provide an update on the results of the Corporation's 2019 summer activities aimed at producing an exploration target for the previously mined and processed materials left behind by past operators on its 100% owned Nalunaq license in South Greenland. The exploration target defined in this news release is in addition to the inferred resources of the Nalunaq deposit, and the underground sweepings and existing tailings outlined in the project's technical report entitled "An Independent Technical Report on the Nalunaq Gold Project, South Greenland" dated March 20, 2017 (effective date of December 16, 2016), prepared for Nalunaq A/S by SRK Exploration Services Ltd. (the "Nalunaq Technical Report"). The Nalunaq Technical Report is available on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) under AEX's issuer profile.

Key Highlights:

The additional Exploration Target of remnant mining material at Nalunaq (see Table 1 below) has been estimated within the range of 17,000 - 25,000 tonnes at a grade of 3.0 - 7.0 g/t Au for 1,600 - 5,900 Oz (see the note below for further disclosure relating to this Exploration Target);

This material is in addition to the historically mined and processed materials existing as mine sweepings (435-1,050 ounces Au) and the tailings (5,550 ounces Au) covered in the Nalunaq Technical Report;

AEX intends to undertake further work to upgrade this exploration target into Mineral Resources.

The potential quantity and grade of this exploration target at Nalunaq and reported in this press release is conceptual in nature, and there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource. The range of tonnages, grade and ounces should be considered as an "exploration target", defined under Section 2.3(2) of NI 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. It is uncertain if further exploration will result in this exploration target being delineated as a mineral resource. A discussion on the methodology used to calculate the range of tonnage, grade and ounces is provided at the end of this press release.

Table 1: Volumes, grades and tonnages of the various components of this exploration target separated by material type during the 2019 exploration program at Nalunaq.

The 2019 sampling program did not fully cover other zones which could contribute to this exploration target, such as additional fines in the underground process plant which were inaccessible with the available equipment on site during the 2019 exploration program, and did not include the ramp system in South Block, which is currently submerged up to level 270.

Detailed Summary of Findings

The intent of this section is to provide a general understanding of the source of the historical remnant mining material and to outline the methodologies used to estimate the range of tonnage, grade and ounces that form the Exploration Target. Sampling results are tabulated at the end of this press release in Table 2.

300 Level Pad

During the 2018 exploration program, the 300-level pad in front of the main access portal of the mine was sampled through eight test pits as during previous operations, run-of-mine material was crushed outside of the mine before being shipped offsite (during Crew Gold operations) or fed back to the underground process plant (during Angel Mining PLC operations). As such, AEX believed that the material of the 300-level pad was potentially gold-bearing. Results from the assays from the 2018 campaign indicated that the material constituting the 300-level pad was indeed gold-bearing, and in 2019 AEX sampled materials from six additional shallow test pits. See Figure 1 below illustrating the surface area of the 300-level pad:

Figure 1: Surface area of the 300-level pad sampled. Ball Mill oversize materials are illustrated in red shaded colours, and historically crushed material is illustrated in yellow shaded colours.

The results from the trenching program showed that the first 0.5 meters of material is mineralized with relatively high-grades (between 5 and 9 g/t Au), and the following 1 meter is also mineralized but at a lower grade (around 2 g/t Au). Beyond 1.5 meters in depth, the grades fall below 1 g/t Au, and have not currently been considered in the estimates of Table 1 above.

Sampling of the UG Process Plant Area

As illustrated in section 8.9.4 of the Nalunaq Technical Report, a variety of partially processed materials was left in various stockpiles around the process plant by past operators. Ball Mill oversize materials and fines around the two-stage crushing circuit and near the Carbon-In-Pulp ("CIP") area were identified as potentially gold-bearing. During the 2019 exploration program, AEX removed this material from the underground process plant to estimate its gold-bearing potential.

Fines from Crushing and CIP Areas



Figure 2: Left image: Fines in the crushing area before removal. Right Image: the same crushing area while the material removal activities were ongoing

The assay results on the fine materials from the crushing area yielded high grades, from 30 - 45 g/t Au, while the fines assayed around the CIP area yielded 10 - 15 g/t Au.

It is to note that while most of the fines from the crushing area were removed from the underground process plant, a portion of the fines near the existing fine material bins and around the CIP area could not be removed due to limited access. Notwithstanding, the remaining material can easily be removed once the accessibility issue is resolved. This material was not considered in the calculation of this exploration target in Table 1.

Ball Mill Oversize Materials

As observed around the crushing and CIP areas, ball mill oversize materials (pebbles from the milling process) were left stockpiled aside the existing ball mill by past operators. Given that this coarse material originated from the run-of-mine material, AEX suspected this material to be gold-bearing. The assay results from the ball mill oversize samples inside the process plant indicated grades between 7-10 g/t Au.



Figure 3: Left Image: Oversize materials in the ball mill area before removal. Right Image: The same ball mill area while the material removal activities were ongoing

300-level drive to Mill

The access to the underground process plant is through a 400 meters drive, with a cross section of 4.5m x 4.5m, from the main 300-level portal. See Figure 4 below:

Figure 4: 3D model illustrating the access drive from the portal at level 300 to the process plant, looking North

AEX suspected the material on the drive to the mill to be gold-bearing as the inspection of the drive's material indicated a mixture of coarse crushed material with fine material. During the 2019 exploration program, around half of the full 400m access drive (from the 300-level access drive to the process plant) was removed and stockpiled outside of portal 300. See Figure 5 below illustrating the excavation activities in 2019 on the main 300-level access drive:



Figure 5: Pictures of the excavation activities in the 300-level access drive to the existing process plant

The results on the assay of the samples sent out for analysis indicated that the material is gold-bearing, with grades between 1 - 4 g/t Au. Note that the second half of the 400 meters access drive, closer to the process plant, was not excavated nor sampled. This second portion of the access drive will be assessed in a subsequent program in 2020.

The stockpiles of the four material types (ball-mill oversize, crusher fines, and the material on the floor of the 300 drive and the plant) were stockpiled on the ROM pad at level 300 and are shown in Figure 6 below:

Figure 6: Gold bearing materials taken out of the underground mine during the 2019 exploration program

Sampling of the Ramp System - Target Block and Mountain Block

During past mine operations, poorly sorted silt to cobble size material has built up on the underground ramp at a thickness of 20cm to 40cm. See below Figure 7 illustrating the ramp system in Target and Mountain blocks:

Figure 7: Target and Mountain Blocks Ramp System, looking South

Material was sampled by trenching across the ramp with a mini-excavator at the entrances to each level from 300 Target Block to 720 Mountain Block and collecting composite samples. Samples were also collected at the midpoints between level entrances to better assess any variation in gold grade over this distance of approximately 4 km. Thicknesses were recorded in each location.

The average grade of the assay program on the ramp material returned approximately 4 g/t Au.

QAQC and Sampling Disclosure

Samples were placed in polymer bags with a sample ticket, weighed, and assigned a sample ID. Each sample was sealed with a security tag, which assigns a unique security ID to the sample.

Samples relating to the Ramp System and the 300 ROMPad were analysed by screen-metallics fire assay at ALS Loughrea, Ireland (see QAQC disclosure below). Sample preparation scheme PREP-31BY was used which involves crushing to 70% less than 2 mm, rotary split off 1 kg, and pulverizing the split to better than 85% passing 75 microns. Samples were then analysed by screen-metallics fire assay technique Au-SCR24 which has a detection limit of 0.05 ppm Au. CRMs and blank QAQC samples were inserted routinely within the batch. Each sample had, on average, a weight of 14.04 kg.

Samples relating to the stockpiles on the 300 ROM Pad were analysed by Impact Global Solutions at Delson, QC, Canada using 30g fire assay with AAS finish. A 1kg sample was crushed to 2mm, and a 250g sub-sample was pulverised to 95% passing 75 microns.

Calculation of tonnage, grade and ounce ranges

For the stockpiles on the 300 ROM Pad, volumes were estimated from measuring the dimensions of each stockpile and compared to a count of the number of loader buckets recorded for each material type. Sampling was undertaken using trenching systematically within the stockpile using a small excavator. Bulk density was estimated by measuring the weight of the material in a known volume. A range was calculated to express the uncertainty related to the estimate.

For the 300 ROM Pad itself, the thickness of the pad was recorded using 10 test pits in two main material types; ball-mill oversize and crushed material. Test Pits were dug using a small excavator, and samples were taken at every 0.5m depth. Each material type was mapped and digitised in 2D to produce a calculation of the area. Bulk density was estimated by measuring the weight of the material in a known volume. Assays were composited and weighted by thickness, and a range was calculated to express the uncertainty related to the estimate.

For the Ramp material, the thickness of the ramp material was measured at each sample point (between 0.2 m and 0.4 m thick), and the width of the ramp was also recorded. Samples were collected using a small excavator across the ramp at each sample point. Samples were taken at every level and between levels from the 300 level to the 720 level, totalling 55 samples. The length of the ramp was measured from the 3D solid of the underground survey. Bulk density was estimated by measuring the weight of the material in a known volume. Assays were weighted by thickness, and a range was calculated to express the uncertainty related to the estimate.

Table 2: Sampling results for the gold-bearing material

SampleID Au g/t Au_Dup g/t Area Analysis Method 21301 5.83 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21302 11.55 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21303 2.84 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21304 0.6 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21305 1.15 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21306 4.85 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21307 1.97 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21308 1.17 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21309 7.28 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21310 3.5 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21311 2.45 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21312 2.77 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21313 1.44 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21314 3.79 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21315 3.3 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21316 5.66 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21317 1.48 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21318 5.07 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21319 5.31 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21320 4.59 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21321 3.84 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21322 2.86 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21323 1.31 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21324 16.75 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21325 4.08 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21326 4.87 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21327 1.97 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21328 1.39 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21329 0.94 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21330 0.68 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21331 0.91 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21332 0.92 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21333 3.02 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21334 0.75 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21335 1.24 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21336 0.26 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21337 1.31 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21338 0.98 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21339 0.13 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21340 1.1 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21341 2.82 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21342 1.43 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21343 1.29 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21344 1.5 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21345 2.79 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21346 1.37 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21347 1.32 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21348 0.86 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21349 0.49 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21350 2.03 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21351 8.3 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21352 2.18 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21353 8.91 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21354 23.8 - Ramp Screen Metallics 21355 22 - Ramp Screen Metallics 4880 7.07 - Ball mill oversize Fire Assay 30g 4885 1.15 - Ball mill oversize Fire Assay 30g 4881 15.42 11.32 CIP road material Fire Assay 30g 4886 10.88 11.58 CIP road material Fire Assay 30g 4882 3.7 - 300 portal road material Fire Assay 30g 4883 1.21 1.25 300 portal road material Fire Assay 30g 4887 6.29 - 300 portal road material Fire Assay 30g 4884 35.35 45.33 Fines from plant Fire Assay 30g 4888 29.5 39.05 Fines from plant Fire Assay 30g 4889 4.8 4.03 300 level trench Fire Assay 30g 4890 1.17 1.03 300 level trench Fire Assay 30g 4891 5.98 - 300 level trench Fire Assay 30g 4892 0.63 4.97 300 level trench Fire Assay 30g 4893 25.27 20.93 300 level trench Fire Assay 30g 4894 27.21 8.72 300 level trench Fire Assay 30g 19729 3.78 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19730 1.34 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19731 1.22 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19732 5.67 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19733 2.28 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19734 0.33 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19735 1.58 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19738 8.54 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19739 2 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics 19740 0.46 - 300 level trench Screen Metallics



Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information presented in this press release relating to the exploration target of the gold-bearing materials has been approved by James Purchase, P.Geo. (OGQ 2082), Director of Geology and Resources of G Mining Services Inc. and independent to AEX Gold Inc. for purposes of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"). Mr. Purchase is a member of the L'Ordre des Geologues du Quebec, and a "qualified person" for purposes of NI 43-101. Mr. Purchase has visited the Nalunaq Project and has verified the exploration results reported in this press release.

Contact Information

George Fowlie, Director and CFO

1-416-587-9801

gf@aexgold.com

Eldur Olafsson, Director and CEO

+354 665 2003

eo@aexgold.com

Camarco (Financial PR)

Gordon Poole / Nick Hennis

+44 (0) 20 3757 4980

About AEX

AEX's principal business objectives are the identification, acquisition, exploration and development of gold properties in Greenland. The Corporation's principal asset is a 100% interest in the Nalunaq Project, an advanced exploration stage property with an exploitation license including the previously operating Nalunaq gold mine. AEX is incorporated under the Canada Business Corporations Act and wholly owns Nalunaq A/S, incorporated under the Greenland Public Companies Act.

Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities legislation, which reflects the Corporation's current expectations regarding future events and the future growth of the Corporation's business. In this press release there is forward-looking information based on a number of assumptions and subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Corporation's control, that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those that are disclosed in or implied by such forward-looking information. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to the factors discussed under "Risk Factors" in the Final Prospectus available under the Corporation's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Any forward-looking information included in this press release is based only on information currently available to the Corporation and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Except as required by applicable securities laws, the Corporation assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information to reflect new circumstances or events. No securities regulatory authority has either approved or disapproved of the contents of this press release. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: AEX Gold Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583372/Additional-Exploration-Target-Defined-for-Remnant-Mining-Material-at-Nalunaq
A 104-year-old man, who survived World War II and the Spanish Flu pandemic, is believed to be the world's oldest coronavirus survivor.

Bill Lapschies, who was born in Salem in 1916, first displayed symptoms commonly associated with the deadly virus, on March 5.

He was quickly put into isolation at the Edward C Allworth Veterans' Home in Lebanon, Oregon, where he currently resides.

He was one of the first two residents at the home who tested positive for the virus on March 11. The other, a man in his 90s, has since died.

Bill Lapschies, 104, seen here wearing a protective mask outside the home on his birthday

Getting a bit of TLC here, Bill Lapschies receives a nice warm patterned blanket in recovery

Edward C Allworth Veterans' Home has to date reported 16 Covid-19 cases among its residents.

Eight have recovered, one has no symptoms, two are in a serious condition, and two have died. The remaining three are stable.

Oregon Health Authority announced the states first Covid-19 case in nearby Marion County around the same time Lapschies became symptomatic.

Lapschies had contracted a 'moderate' case of coronavirus, according to his physician, Doctor Rob Richardson, but never developed the severe breathing problems associated.

Had he not been residing at the Edward C Allworth Veterans' Home at the time of catching the virus, he likely would have been transferred to a hospital, Doctor Richardson said.

'This could have easily gone another way,' added Richardson. 'There's not a lot of interventions that can be done.'

In a wheelchair, wearing a WWII cap and face mask, Bill Lapschies on his 104th birthday

Doctor Richardson told Oregon Public Broadcasting he knew it was a matter of 'when, not if' Covid-19 impacted his facility. 'I thought we might have a 30 percent mortality rate here in our facility because all of our veterans have some other medical problems.'

In February, the Edward C Allworth Veterans' Home insisted on screening all people visiting the facility and limiting visitations - however they did not stop entirely.

By early March, residents like Lapschies suspected of the virus began entering into isolation. Doctor Richardson said some in the facility had some sort of respiratory infection he suspected was Covid-19.

Two nurses who had been in contact with Lapschies and the other first infected resident who died also showed similar symptoms.

They were told by the home to get tested, but were turned away with 'mild' symptoms and continued working another week. Both later tested positive.

Veterans Care Centers of Oregon, who oversee the home, declined to comment, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Family of Bill Lapschies, 104, seen here with signs to celebrate the Covid-19 survivor's birthday

On April 1, Lapschies celebrated his 104th birthday at the facility with his family - and 25 days since his first Covid-19 symptoms and 19 days since he developed a fever.

Appearing outside the facility sporting a World War II cap, pale blue protective face mask, and sitting in his wheelchair, Lapschies' granddaughter Jamie Yutzie asked the 104 year old how he beat it.

'I don't know,' he said. 'It just went away. Sit out here and you can get rid of anything.'

To mark his big birthday, and surviving Covid-19, Lapschies' family brought along balloons and cake to the celebration, and carried signs too. Of course, everyone ensured they were spaced out by some six feet, adhering to social distancing.

Salem-born Lapschies came into the world in 1916.

Having first survived the 1918 Spanish Flu that saw between 50 to 100 million people wiped out across the world, Lapschies then had to endure the Great Depression of the 1930s, which began in the US.

Then, in 1939, Lapschies married Alamadean 'Deanie' Buetell, with whom he had two daughters.

The pair would stay married until Alamadean passed away in 2001.

Lapschies was drafted to the US Army in 1943 to fight in World War II. He was to be stationed in the Aleutian Islands, dispatching trucks and heavy equipment for the war effort.

His daughter Carolee Brown described her father as 'a wonderful family man'.

Lapschies is one of the lucky ones. Statistically speaking, Covid-19 is particularly dangerous for elderly persons, especially those with with underlying health conditions.

Older Americans account for 80 percent of coronavirus-related deaths, according to research coming out of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Lapschies joins a cohort of the world's oldest Covid-19 survivors.

Zhang Guangfen, a 103-year-old grandmother in China, recovered from Covid-19 following a six-day treatment in Wuhan. She is so far believed to be the oldest surviving coronavirus patient in China, two years older than the previous record-holder, who is 101.

A 103-year-old unnamed woman in Iran also recovered after being hospitalized in the central city of Semnan for about a week.

Italica Grondona, a 102-year-old woman, recovered in the San Martino hospital in Genoa, Italy. She was nicknamed 'Highlander'  the immortal, after spending more than 20 days in hospital.

And a 96-year-old woman in South Korea became the oldest patient in the country to fully recover from coronavirus. The woman, from Cheongdo County close to the southern city of Daegu, made a full recovery after being treated at the Pohang public clinic.
From the Sweetwater County Historical Museum

The Sweetwater County Historical Museum in Green River is offering its resources to educators and students.

Director Brie Blasi said that while the museum is currently closed to the public, the staff is continuing to handle research requests via telephone and email and prepare and maintain exhibits.

In addition, on March 19 the Museum launched a new digital outreach program called Wyoming and Sweetwater County History Outreach. Through media releases, its Facebook page, website, and its new YouTube channel, the museum is providing links to online videos, websites, articles, and other resources related to Wyoming and Sweetwater County.

The museum is also producing its own ongoing series of video and slideshow presentations, all available online at no charge.

On Tuesday, Blasi highlighted the museums commitment to provide informative, educational, and entertaining historical material county-wide via the Internet with so many Sweetwater County residents staying home and all the schools in the county closed to conventional classes.

With schools now offering online classes, the museum staff wants education professionals and parents who home-school to know they are here to help with, for instance, additions to digital lesson plans and lesson material-indeed, anything that will support schools and home-schoolers online classroom programs. Anyone with requests for particular content is encouraged to contact the museum.

The museum can be reached via email at programs@sweetwatermuseum.org, or by phone at (307) 872-6435.

To view the museums website, go to http://www.sweetwatermuseum.org - its Facebook page is at Facebook@SWCHM , and the new YouTube channel can be found by performing a search on YouTube.
A boy from London has formed an unlikely friendship with a Yemeni girl who was injured in an airstrike, after he decided to write her letter.

Apollo, 6, felt compelled to write to Razan, whose real name has been changed, after hearing of her story in a campaign run by the children's charity Save the Children.

Born in the war-torn city of Hodeidah, Razan and her family were forced to flee their home during an airstrike. In the attack, shrapnel from a bomb seriously injured Razan's eye.

Apollo, 6, writing a letter for his Yemeni penfriend, Razan, aged 8, from his bedroom in London

Once recovered from her injuries, Razan (pictured) sat down to return a letter to her new pen pal. 'I like black and white rabbits,' she replied

Struck by her story, Apollo decided to put pen to paper and write to the eight-year-old. 'How are you?' he asked, adding, 'Do you like animals too?'

Apollo didn't expect to hear anything back. But after being transferred to a specialist hospital with the charity's support, Razan's eyesight was saved, and, incredibly, she wrote back.

Once recovered from her injuries, she sat down to return a letter to her new pen pal. 'I like black and white rabbits,' she replied.

Over the past year, the pair have exchanged touching letters detailing their hobbies, favourite animals and family trips.

A letter written by Apollo to his Yemeni penfriend Razan. Over the past year, the pair have exchanged touching letters detailing their hobbies, favourite animals and family trips

Apollo's compassion towards the people of Yemen goes back a long way, according to Save the Children.

When he first learned of the conflict there, aged just three, he began fundraising with his family. On his third birthday, he held a party and asked his guests to donate to Yemen, rather than give him birthday presents. He's also played the cello at concerts to help raise more funds.

His penpal Razan is still receiving psychosocial support from Save the Children specialists to help her deal with her experiences. However, she said, 'I'm happy. I'm not going back to the hospital and I'm happy that I'm alive.'

Save the Children's Children and Armed Conflict Director, George Graham, said: 'The story of Apollo and Razan's friendship is incredibly humbling.

'Despite their differences, separated by a vicious war and living half a world apart, they are united by their human connection.

'These children serve as a timely reminder to us all that kindness is a universal language.'

A drawing by Apollo, 6, for his Yemeni penfriend Razan, 8. Save the Children's Children and Armed Conflict Director, George Graham, said: 'The story of Apollo and Razan's friendship is incredibly humbling'

Yemen has not yet detected a case of COVID-19, likely because of its weak disease surveillance systems.

Public health experts have been warning of catastrophic consequences if the illness spreads to the Arab world's poorest country, which is mired in a bloody civil war.

Mr Graham said: 'At a time when healthcare in the UK has never been under more pressure, it is sobering to think about the catastrophic devastation that coronavirus could cause in a country like Yemen whose health system has been decimated by war for five years.'
Students at St. Malachy, an Independence Mission Schools elementary school, are shown in this file photo. The network of Philadelphia Catholic schools has laid off 180 workers because of COVID-19 closures and related economic concerns. Read more

The coronavirus and related economic concerns have forced Independence Mission Schools, a network of Catholic elementary schools in Philadelphia, to lay off 180 teachers and staff at its 15 schools.

Bruce Robinson, CEO of the network of independent Catholic schools, said Thursday that the nonprofit is keeping core teachers but released staff not involved in direct instruction, as well as teachers of subjects such as art, music, and gym. The laid-off workers accounted for about 38% of the networks 475 employees.

Our funding comes from tuition, tax credits, and scholarships," Robinson said. We know that some of our families are hurting right now."

The news comes as millions of workers lose jobs because of the pandemic. More than six million Americans filed initial jobless claims for the week ending March 28, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor  a new high for the country. Pennsylvania alone accounted for 406,000 of the new unemployment claims, and has more in two weeks than any state except California.

The network said students at the Independence Mission schools will continue to receive instruction in subjects like math and reading. (Like many of their counterparts, the schools are attempting to develop and deliver online learning during the pandemic.)

The schools are Holy Cross, Our Mother of Sorrows/St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Barnabas, St. Cyril of Alexandria, St. Frances Cabrini, St. Gabriel, St. Helena/Incarnation, St. Malachy, St. Martin de Porres, St. Martin of Tours, St. Raymond of Penafort, St. Rose of Lima, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Veronica, and the DePaul Catholic School.

Formerly run by their parishes, the schools became part the network created in 2012 in an effort to sustain Catholic education in low-income neighborhoods. They are run separately from the much larger Archdiocese of Philadelphia network of schools.

Robinson said the layoffs represent a sacrifice to allow the 15 schools to continue core instruction. We feel terrible about the decision, he said.

Independence Mission Schools will pay the first month of affected employees COBRA insurance costs, Robinson said, and tuition for the children of laid-off workers will be waived for the rest of the school year.

Principals and central office workers at the director position and above are taking pay cuts for the duration of the coronavirus shutdown, Robinson said.

Affected workers will be brought back as soon as schools reopen, he said, or sooner if Independence Mission Schools application gets aid under the federal stimulus package.

The educational network has determined that about a quarter of its 4,000-plus students needed Chromebooks to make dynamic remote instruction possible and is in the process of getting that technology to families.

About $250,000 has been raised to date in a COVID-19 Emergency Fund for the purchase of technology and support to Independence Mission Schools families encountering hardships because of the economic downturn, Robinson said.

The Rev. Christopher Walsh, pastor at St. Raymond in West Oak Lane, said he thought the network handled it well, given these very difficult times.

He said the parish would offer to laid-off staffers the same support it has given others because of this unique time in our world history. We are praying with people, encouraging them, trying to assist with unemployment applications when needed. I am hopeful they will return to employment and our school will be opened as soon as it is safe for that to happen.

Pennsylvania last week passed a law that requires public schools to pay teachers during the coronavirus closures; the law does not apply to teachers at private and parochial schools.
Maggie Farley wants to remember the way her father lived  the Denver probate lawyer's sense of humor, integrity and decades fighting for affordable housing  not how he died of COVID-19 with no family permitted at his hospital bedside.

I don't feel like he died with regrets and I don't feel like we left anything unsaid, but I really would have liked to have been there to hold his hand, said Farley, of Bethesda, Maryland. It's an essential human fear that we don't want to die alone, and the worst part of it for our family was knowing that he was in the hospital alone.

More than 4,000 Americans have died in the outbreak, according to the Johns Hopkins coronavirus database. Federal estimates put the ultimate death toll somewhere between 100,000 and 240,000. That's in addition to the normal mortality rate in the country.

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All of those deaths will require some sort of final rite.

For many, a funeral is a ritual of loss and connection where we remember the dead and comfort the living. But the coronavirus outbreak has altered that ritual and changed the way we say goodbye: the loss remains, the connections change.

Gone are huge public funerals and wakes in funeral homes filled with mourners who cry and laugh, linger and reminisce. In their place across much of the country are family-only funeral home visitations of 10 or fewer, livestreamed memorials and plans to gather when the world gets back to normal.

Farley said shes grateful to the nurses at Denver's Swedish Medical Center who tended to her father and set up FaceTime sessions so the family could talk to him and, two days later, see last rites administered.

Nancy Farley gets together with her family for a virtual wake on her laptop to mark the death of Mike Farley, her husband of 59 years. Mike Farley, 87, died in a Denver hospital on March 23, 2020, with family not permitted to be at his side. The coronavirus outbreak is changing how we grieve, including the way funerals are handled.

Mike Farley died March 23 at 87.

Dying alone is the hardest part, but it's also really hard to grieve alone, Farley said. People think that doing a video conference or talking to the friends on Zoom or Zoom cocktail hour is awkward and alienating, but grieving alone is really isolating."

Story continues

A glimpse at any newspaper's obituary pages tells the story.

"In light of the recent worldwide occurrences dealing with the outbreak of COVID-19, the family would like to have hours of visitation and burial services reserved for immediate family," reads one.

Another: "A celebration of her life will be held at a later date."

Why are airlines still flying in and out of US coronavirus hot spots? And will they continue?

Dizzying change

The outbreak has brought dizzying, near-daily changes to funerals over the past three weeks, said Mark Flower, a third-generation funeral director and owner of Flower Funeral Home in Yonkers, New York.

"We went from having open funerals to having a (maximum) of 50 or 50% of the chapel size, to now where its private only for family members, and, only up to 10 people," he said.

Mark A. Flower, the manager of the Flower Funeral Home in Yonkers, N.Y., says funeral directors are "basically winging it" during the coronavirus pandemic.

"The situation is so fluid," Flower said. "I've never seen anything like this before. We're basically winging it. When you do funerals, you always have to be flexible. But how we handle things is so different than the norm of a traditional funeral."

Flower oversaw the entombment of Robert Terraforte Sr., a native New Yorker who died March 21 in Tennessee, where he was living with his son, Robert Jr.

The arrangements included flying his remains back to New York, a task made more difficult by airlines reducing their flight schedules amid the outbreak. Some Florida funeral homes have opted to ship bodies via ground transportation.

There was no funeral, which would have drawn dozens of Terraforte friends and family from across Westchester County, where the coronavirus first took root in New York.

Robert Terraforte Sr., right, and his namesake, Robert Terraforte Jr., in 2003. The elder Terraforte died on March 21, 2020, at age 89.

Terrafortes live a long time, Robert Terraforte Jr. explained, and no one wanted to have his father's sisters, age 95 and 93, and his 91-year-old brother possibly exposed to the coronavirus. The family will gather in the late summer or fall, he said.

Funerals without hugs

There have been other changes brought on by the outbreak:

The Archdiocese of New York and the Archdiocese of Newark in New Jersey  in the countrys hardest-hit area  have canceled all funerals and now limit the number of graveside mourners to the state-mandated 10 people who must keep their distance as the priest offers a blessing at the grave. All services must be in the open air.

Cemeteries are setting rules for graveside behavior, with mourners kept at a distance until the burial is complete and cemetery workers leave.

With airline travel at a near standstill and mourners reluctant to travel, funeral homes are livestreaming funerals to connect far-flung mourners.

Funeral homes are using digital DocuSign to complete official documents, and handling arrangements over the phone or via email.

In funeral home chapels, chairs have been removed from rows of seats to keep mourners at a distance.

In many locales, the number of mourners has been set to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations: just immediate family of no more than 10 people at a time.

Coronavirus shakes employment scene: Here are the companies that are mass hiring

A toll on businesses

Funerals are big business.

The National Directory of Morticians Redbook reports there were 19,136 funeral homes in the U.S. last year, making up a sizable part of the $16.3 billion industry that includes funeral homes, cemeteries and crematories.

Nearly 90% of the country's funeral homes are privately owned by families or individuals, according to the National Funeral Directors Association.

Dutch Nie, the group's secretary, owns Nie Family Funeral Home & Cremation Service in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where gatherings statewide have been limited to groups of 50 or fewer.

He said funeral directors are having to get creative when it comes to crowd control, asking mourners to stagger when they arrive for visitation and not to linger once they've offered their condolences.

"People are scheduling out the memorial service at a later date," Nie said. "We probably have 12 of them scheduled in June and July, I think our latest one is in September, where they will be able to come back together and have the memorial service at that point."

(The group created rememberingalife.com as a resource. It includes COVID-19 updates.)

Keith Taylor, manager of Hannemann Funeral Home in Nyack, N.Y., says the coronavirus pandemic has turned him and his staff into "funeral director police."

Keith Taylor, owner of Hannemann Funeral Home in Nyack, New York, said the outbreak will take an economic toll far beyond the funeral homes.

"When you have a funeral, people want flowers. Here, there's no flowers," he said. "Then, between the early and late visitations, there's a break where they'll go to a restaurant with the family and have a little reception. That's all cut out. Then after the funeral the next day, they usually have a get together at the house and have a caterer come in or they have it at a restaurant. And that's all cut out."

Taylor said the social distancing rules have turned him and his staff into "funeral director police," tasked with gently reminding mourners of the new reality, one that pits tradition and emotion against a pandemic.

The pandemic is winning.

Smaller and smaller gatherings

State mandates are shifting constantly, reducing the number of permitted gatherings.

When Jonnie B. Wilson Sr., of Newark, Delaware, died March 6, the states gathering limit was 100.

Wilson ran a Wilmington lighting business for 40 years. The Army veteran was a father of four and the youngest of 11 siblings. Limiting the memorial to 100 would be hard. Then, days before the service, the gathering limit dropped to 50.

The family made phone calls, prioritized the closest family, culled mourners from the sanctuary.

"They knew it wasn't personal, but I'm sure it hurt many of them," said Wilson's son Jermaine.

The veterans cemetery halted military honors the day before the service: no flag-draped casket, no ceremonial salute. Mourners sat in their cars as Taps played to an empty cemetery.

There was no other service, Jermaine Wilson said. Im going to try to not let that bother me.

Honoring the dead via Facebook Live

Technology is helping to fill the void, though never completely.

At Holloway Funeral Home in Salisbury, Maryland, Jonathan Holloway said his customers historically have not embraced webcasting of funerals. The coronavirus could change that.

Webcasting is a way we can still tell someones story through funeral service, even under the current restrictions, Holloway said. His and other funeral homes across the country have turned to social media amid social distancing, using Facebook Live to honor the dead.

He said Facebook is better than the proprietary software they had been using: The video is automatically archived on the funeral homes Facebook page and video quality is downgraded automatically to accommodate slow connections, meaning Holloways high-definition broadcast can be seen almost anywhere, even if in a lower quality.

The funeral for Raymond Zipkis was livestreamed Tuesday for family and friends who couldnt attend because of precautions to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

Still, said Michele Howell, associate executive director of the Independent Funeral Directors of Florida, technology can only do so much.

Its difficult. At a time when someone loses a loved one, theres nothing more that they want than to hold hands or give a hug, and its made it really difficult on families, she said.

'Some people will have to mourn in silence'

In Corpus Christi, Texas, Wayne Jackson grieved the loss of his brother, Howlis Magic Scott, with a much smaller group than he would have anticipated.

You just got to accept whats going on now. Its reality, Jackson said. Some people will just have to mourn in silence, like everybody else around the country right now.

In Corpus Christi, memorial services are livestreamed free of charge.

This isnt anything that anybody planned on, said Noe Lopez Jr., a funeral director and co-owner of the Saxet Funeral Home in Corpus Christi. Its not the familys fault that this happened to them. So, were doing the best we can to utilize our resources and our staff to try to help everybody get through this dark time.

There are other high-tech accommodations: Additional mourners can watch the service on a closed-circuit TV in other rooms; register books are fitted with disinfecting UV light; families can use DocuSign for digital signatures.

Then theres the low-tech: removing two out of three chairs in a row and sanitizing register pens after each use. Lopez's staff placed masking-tape Xs six feet apart on the floor of the chapel, to reinforce social distance rules. And the casket is covered in a glass dome so visitors cant touch it.

In Oklahoma, state funeral board director Chris Ferguson said the full extent of the coronavirus outbreak is still the great unknown.

It's hard to say what's going to happen when those bodies start appearing in mass numbers, Ferguson said.

Sitting shiva via Zoom

Jewish and Muslim burial customs, which include more intimate washings and preparations for bodies, are typically performed within 24 hours of a persons death.

When a member of Temple Beth Sholom in Melbourne, Florida, died recently, Rabbi Craig Mayers told the deceaseds out-of-state family members they could watch the graveside burial over the video-conferencing app Zoom.

There will be just a few of us at the gravesite. Well do a proper memorial later, Mayers said, adding that traditional meal of consolation that follows would not be held.

The Jewish custom of sitting shiva, where mourners visit the family in their home, was also conducted via Zoom.

No meal of consolation, no sitting shiva ... these things are suspended for health and safety right now, Mayers said. Its very sad but at the same time we are blessed to live in an age where we have this technology that allows us to still be a community.

The funeral director at The Madonna Multinational Home for Funerals in Passaic, New Jersey, who goes by the name Madonna, said that families are devastated about the minimal personal interaction allowed.

With the rules coming from the governor, we are doing everything one size fits all, she said. It doesnt matter the faith or race, everyone is the same and the cemetery is treating people the same way.

A coronavirus coloring book from St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital: Helping kids understand COVID-19

Longer than 9/11

Jason Toale, vice president of operations for Robert Toale and Sons Funeral Home in Sarasota, Florida, has been in the industry for 52 years and has seen tumultuous times before, but this pandemic stands apart.

After 9/11 there was a lot of upheaval, but that was a short time frame and this is looking like a longer time frame to get back to normalcy, he said.

At Brunswick Memorial Funeral Home in East Brunswick, New Jersey, owner Michael Kulbacki said the changes in funeral arrangements must strike a balance.

The Gate of Heaven Cemetery in East Hanover on March 27, 2020. Cemeteries are closed due to the spread of the coronavirus, limiting the number of immediate family members who could attend a funeral along with funeral directors and clergy.

"Our first priority is always the safety of the living. That's fundamentally what we're dealing with here. Sanctity of the deceased is a priority but we're not going to put the living at risk in order to do that," Kulbacki said.

Together, apart

Maggie Farley has joined her grieving mother in Denver to help her navigate a new reality. They are together, apart.

She's technically quarantined and I can't even hug her because we're supposed to stay six feet apart," Farley said. "And that's excruciating.

When they can hug again, she said, It's going to be a good one. We've earned that one.

Reported by: Suzanne Russell, Julia Rentsch, Vicky Camarillo, Kristie Cattafi, Katie Sobko, Stacey Barchenger, J.D. Gallop, Josh Dulaney, Hannah Morse, Steve Patterson, Deena Yellin, Ryan McKinnon, Xerxes Wilson.

Reach Peter D. Kramer at pkramer@lohud.com or on Twitter at @PeterKramer.

This is what China did to beat coronavirus: Experts say America couldn't handle it

Florida has not issued a statewide stay-at-home order amid coronavirus crisis: Some support Gov. Ron DeSantis' approach. Others don't.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Funerals during coronavirus pandemic: No hugs or big gatherings
A first prisoner in Italy has died of coronavirus, a prison watchdog group said on Thursday, calling for more early releases of inmates from the country's overcrowded system.

Two prison guards have died of the virus, and 19 inmates out of a total inmate population of 58,000 have tested positive, according to Italy's justice ministry.

"The first prisoner death from COVID-19 confirms all our worries about the tragic consequences of a contagion within prisons," said prisoner rights group Antigone in a statement, without providing further details.

Over 120 guards have tested positive, Antigone said. Italy has reported over 110,000 cases of coronavirus. More than 13,000 people have died, representing the world's highest death toll for coronavirus.

Prisons, where small cells are often shared by three inmates, are a particular public health worry, especially since 67% of inmates have at least one already existing health condition, Antigone said.

Pope Francis specifically mentioned prisoners during his prayer on Sunday, saying that coronavirus within the crowded prison system "could turn into a tragedy."



Thousands of masks and gloves have been sent to prisons around the country after guards complained about being unprotected and untested.

Also on Thursday, the justice ministry said that all prisoners and prison staff in the southern region of Campania would be tested beginning next week.

Last month, Italy announced plans to release up to 3,000 low-risk inmates serving sentences of less than 18 months to house arrest to reduce overcrowding.

But Antigone argued on Thursday that another 10,000 prisoners should be allowed to serve their sentences at home, including those with existing health conditions for which a coronavirus infection "could be fatal.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Press Release

April 2, 2020 On the President's 'Shoot' Order and Protests During the Enhanced Community Quarantine

More at: https://pinglacson.net/2020/04/02/on-the-presidents-shoot-order-and-protests-during-the-enhanced-community-quarantine/ Definitely, the President's warning to have "troublemakers" during the enhanced community quarantine shot was exaggerated and harsh. But coming from this President, what else is new? However, having been immersed in intelligence and law-enforcement work for more than two decades in my previous life, I couldn't help but suggest to authorities to thoroughly investigate if the "riot" in Quezon City involving protesters demanding aid - but in violation of the Enhanced Community Quarantine - was indeed a valid "hunger-driven" spontaneous act of people who simply lost their patience out of exasperation, or a politically instigated act of violence by sinister groups out to take advantage and destabilize the administration and duly constituted authority. As such, concerned authorities may opt to look into the possibility that Wednesday's incident could be a "dry run" to test public sentiment as well as the ability of law enforcers to respond. At least one group, Kadamay, has posted on its Facebook page an "invitation" to an event scheduled for April 1. There is no saying however, that all protests during the ECQ should be presumed as politically instigated. Yet, it cannot be denied that there may be groups with motive to exploit the volatility of the situation to advance their own political agenda.
Managing stress, practicing resilience and staying virtually connected to relatives quarantined or hospitalized due to coronavirus are key to weathering a diagnosis in the family. Credit: iStock/fairywong

As COVID-19 continues its spread across the country, more and more Americans will soon grapple with a diagnosis within the family. Isolating infected individuals, frequently washing hands, and covering coughs and sneezes can help cut down on transmission in the home. Reducing the emotional strain a family feels when a loved one comes down with the disease takes an entirely different set of skills. Experts from the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences Center for the Changing Family weigh in on how families can maintain their mental health and stay strong as a unit.

Cool, calm, collected

A coronavirus diagnosis may alarm parents and partners, but they should be mindful of the ripple effects. Research by Darby Saxbe, associate professor of psychology, found that the levels of the stress hormone cortisol rise and fall in sync for couples and for parent-child pairs. For families that report more conflict or more relationship dissatisfaction, the link in cortisol levels is stronger.

"In other words, stress can actually make us more reactive to each other and erode the quality of our relationships over time," says Saxbe.

Reducing personal stress can therefore reduce the chance of corrosive conflict for the whole family as they cope with the ill person. Finding time for stress-busting activities may be difficult, but it doesn't need to be too demanding. As little as 15 minutes of daily meditation boosts positive emotions and a regular 20-minute walk around the block reduces cortisol levels. Or, singing along to songs can release endorphins, the natural calming agents our brain can produce.

Lead with resilience

Children are particularly susceptible to the feelings of their parents, says Gayla Margolin professor of psychology and pediatrics.

"Children take their cues from parents, so the more that parents can convey the spirit of being able to get through unsettling and scary times, the better for children," she advises.

Parents who demonstrate resilience and preparedness can help soothe the anxiety of a child concerned for an ill relative.

"Parents should not undermine the reality of the situation or be dismissive of children's fears. However, conveying specific information about how the family will cope can be reassuring," adds Margolin.

Phone a friend

Maintaining virtual connections to those quarantined or hospitalized is key to uplifting spirits and improving mental health. Group video chats, texts and emails help the family all stay in the loop. Games like Words with Friends or a Netflix Party, where many people watch the same movie from different locations, can entertain and console those staying home in bed.

"Those with a family member hospitalized with COVID-19 will simultaneously be coping with concerns about a loved one's health while they navigate a new reality of being distanced from society," explains Emily Smith-Greenaway, assistant professor of sociology. "So, it's important that that we make an effort to check-in on one another, especially those living alone, and help family members and friends feel emotionally close even while physically separated."

Maintaining social interactions is especially important for children, says Dorian Traube, associate professor of social work. "Without social interaction, children do not get to tap into the social modeling that is vital for their growth. Virtual connection can bridge this gap." A daily FaceTime or phone call with an ill family member can help keep children socialized and also cheer the patient up.

"The caring and concern that parents show for those around, particularly vulnerable persons, provides invaluable lessons for children," says Margolin. A family that delivers groceries and medication for a family member with COVID-19, models kindness and compassion for children.

"Children are always eager consumers of the lessons that parents show their own actions. As has been observed by others, 'We are all first responders during this health crisis,'" she adds.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
Members of Bethany Slavic Missionary Church are baptized Sept. 8 in Sacramento County. (Max Whittaker / For The Times)

A Pentecostal church in a Sacramento suburb is the epicenter of a coronavirus outbreak with more than six dozen confirmed cases, prompting county officials to warn against religious gatherings.

"It's outrageous that this is happening," said Dr. Peter Beilenson, the Sacramento County public health director. "Obviously there is freedom of religion, but when it's impacting public health as this is, we have to enforce social distancing."

The church, Bethany Slavic Missionary Church, did not immediately return a call for comment Thursday. But Beilenson said health officials were concerned that church members may still be meeting in private homes to conduct services, despite county orders.

"Whether or not you have community-wide sermons or meetings in people's houses, they are all dangers and they are very detrimental to the public's health," Beilenson said.

Beilenson said 71 of the church's members who live in Sacramento County have tested positive, and more members who live in surrounding counties also have confirmed cases, though he could not immediately say how many.

Information and sermons on the church's website indicate it stopped holding large gatherings March 18. The church is the largest Russian-language Pentecostal church in the area and has a congregation of more than 3,000 people, according to published reports. Its two-story building is normally packed with congregants, many of them older immigrants, during multiple services each week.

According to a sermon from Sunday posted online, the church's senior pastor, Adam Bondaruk, is hospitalized with the virus, as are two other pastors, who were described as "critically ill" by an unidentified pastor in the video.

"We have many different people in our church, they are ill, so we need to pray. We need to intervene," the pastor continued in the video. "God will hear us, and he will heal us."

Story continues

The church has met with controversy in the past, including for anti-gay rhetoric. This year, a well on the church's property that was used by congregants was found to be contaminated with chemicals from a nearby military base. One of the church's officials was convicted of pedophilia in 2018.

Beilenson confirmed that church greeters shaking hands with congregants as they entered may have helped spread the coronavirus. In the online sermon, the unidentified pastor said that shortly after New Year's Day, the church had a problem with the "greeting team."

"I know we are entering this valley right now," the pastor said during the taped sermon. "When this thing will be over, and when we [are] going to come here and when we are going to shake hands, I think it's going to be a totally different meaning."

As the coronavirus has spread across Sacramento County, infecting more than 340 people and killing nine, health officials said 1 in 3 confirmed cases in the county are linked to church gatherings.

"Sacramento County is urging all residents, from all faiths and all backgrounds, to stay home," the county said in a statement Wednesday.

The disclosure of the mass infection comes as large gatherings across the country have been identified as incidents in which people are infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Such "super-spreading" events can play a major role in widening the outbreak.

It can take two to 14 days after someone is infected with the coronavirus for symptoms to appear. Once the illness is apparent and a patient is hospitalized, it can take 17 to 25 days to either recover and be discharged, or to die from the illness, according to a study of patients in Wuhan, China, the origin of the pandemic.

The first coronavirus case in Sacramento County publicly associated with a house of worship involved a woman older than 70 with underlying health conditions who attended Faith Presbyterian Church in Sacramento. More cases of the virus have since been associated with the church, which has been in operation since 1967 and is in a popular residential neighborhood near schools and shopping.

But that church took a different approach.

The Rev. Jeff Chapman of Faith Presbyterian said Thursday that the church had begun protective measures in late February at the request of a parishioner with an underlying medical condition. The woman asked that the church stop all physical contact during worship events, he said.

"I was hesitant," Chapman said. "The tendency of a religious leader  is to gather people. That is their heart."

But he said the woman persuaded him to stop such things as passing the collection plate and shaking hands. A week later, the church began to see members with symptoms, Chapman said.

"I think again, in retrospect, it may have saved some lives because our folks would have been together  shaking hands and passing plates, and we didnt do any of that," he said.

After discovering the pocket of potential coronavirus patients among the congregation, Chapman said leaders immediately decided to shut down the church on March 12 to prevent the spread of the virus on the advice of a task force made up of three members  an emergency room doctor, a former public health professional and a person who formerly worked at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

One of the church members who contracted the virus, a substitute teacher who worked at Sutterville Elementary School, died three days later, on March 15. Her death was announced by the Sacramento City Unified School District, which closed campuses the day after the woman died.

Three days later, Sacramento County issued a mandatory stay-at-home order. By the end of the day, Gov. Gavin Newsom had issued a similar directive for the entire state.

In all, Chapman said, about six people at Faith Presbyterian have tested positive, with no new cases in more than two weeks. Chapman suspected he might have had the virus but tested negative.

"Ironically, or maybe gratefully, we were more proactive than other churches," he said. "I don't know what I would have done differently, actually."

As the virus has spread across the state, many houses of worship have canceled services, prayer circles and classes or moved them online.

All Saints' Episcopal Church in Beverly Hills began canceling services March 8 after its rector, the Rev. Janet Broderick, fell ill. Broderick, the sister of actor Matthew Broderick, had attended a conference in Kentucky along with more than 500 other Episcopalians from around the country. She later tested positive for COVID-19 and suffered from severe pneumonia.

On March 12, the Ikar synagogue in Los Angeles said it was suspending Shabbat services. A day later, the Orange County Islamic Foundation suspended Friday prayers at the mosque and said no one would be allowed inside apart from employees.

The Diocese of San Jose ordered public Masses at Catholic churches to be suspended starting March 14; the Archdiocese of Los Angeles announced the same March 16, the same day counties in the San Francisco Bay Area released a shelter-in-place order.

While many churches are shifting to digital worship, some around the nation have defied orders to close.

On Sunday, the Life Tabernacle Church in a suburb of Baton Rouge, La., defied the governor's order to stay home and continued to use its fleet of two dozen buses to bring hundreds of congregants to services three times a week.

"We're not going to be intimidated," the Rev. Tony Spell said.

And this week, sheriff's deputies handcuffed a Tampa, Fla., minister for violating local stay-at-home orders by gathering hundreds to worship. Police said the minister, the Rev. Rodney Howard-Browne of the River at Tampa Bay, showed reckless disregard for human life by potentially exposing his congregants to the coronavirus.

Howard-Browne, out on bail, has complained of religious bigotry," and the church maintained it had the right to assemble in worship even in an emergency.

Chabria reported from Sacramento, Greene from Thousand Oaks and Lin from Millbrae. Times staff writer Sarah Parvini contributed to this report.
Sol: In today's time, illness or any disaster both becomes a crisis on human life. One of which is the coronavirus, this is such a disease, which has not been able to break any. More than 42000 deaths have occurred due to the virus, while millions of people have been infected with this virus. It is a bit difficult for scientists to say how long will be able to get rid of this disease. More than a hundred countries in the world have sought help from South Korea in the investigation of coronavirus. This information was given by the South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman on Wednesday. The spokesperson said that the result of a large-scale investigation campaign in his country was very good. We not only identified the infected but also controlled the speed of spreading the infection. Whereas once we had the highest number of cases after China.

Pakistan's problem may increase, new suspect of Corona found

Effective control over the disease created a good image worldwide: According to the information received, the spokesman said that seeing our success and experience, other countries are asking for help from us. So far 121 countries have requested for help from us. This number is continuously increasing. We cannot name them because of diplomatic sensitivity. We have formed a task force that will decide how to help.

Trump warns Iran, not to attack American soldiers

Orders for testing kits have been received from countries such as the US and Italy: The spokesperson may not have listed the names of the countries seeking help, but the countries whose orders have been received by Korean companies making test kits include countries like the US and Italy. US President Donald Trump has last week announced a concession in US regulations to related firms, demanding supply of test kits and other equipment from the Korean president.

Corona doubled in week, WHO expresses serious concern

Probe kit makers increase production threefold: South Korean biotech firms that manufacture test kits have increased production to meet demand from around the world. Some of the top companies have increased their production up to three times. South Korea is currently analyzing test samples sent by Finland's healthcare firm Mehilainen. This firm will send test samples of 18,000 infected to Korea in the next two weeks. This information was given jointly by the firm and the representative of the Korean Health Administration.

Big announcement of US, soon to be distributed ventilators in corona infected countries
Greg Laurie's Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside hosts COVID-19 testing

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Harvest Christian Fellowship Church in California, led by Pastor Greg Laurie, is now hosting COVID-19 testing at its Riverside campus to be as helpful as we can during this difficult season.

Health officials announced that in partnership with Riverside University Health System, Harvest Christian Fellowship Church will be offering drive-through COVID-19 testing as of Wednesday, April 1.

In order to receive a COVID-19 test, residents must show symptoms, such as fever or a sore throat, and call (800) 945-6171 to schedule an appointment. The Harvest Fellowship drive-through, located at 6115 Arlington Avenue in Riverside, marks the third COVID-19 testing location in Riverside county.

Riverside County continues to offer more options for residents to get tested, said Vice Chair Karen Spiegel, second district supervisor. This third drive-up location will help ensure that those who have symptoms have options to get tested.

The church also confirmed the news on its official Facebook page: We want to let you know that the City of Riverside is manning the operation in a safe and secure manner.

Our hope is to reassure you that while we are doing everything we can to aid in combating the effects of COVID-19, the testing will be conducted outside in the patients vehicles. Therefore, our campus will not be affected by the presence of the medical testing. We want to be as helpful as we can during this difficult season and this opportunity is allowing us to do that. We love you, and we are praying for your safety and health always.

On Tuesday, Riverside County added another 80 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, boosting its total to 371. In all, 13 have died from the virus in the county, according to the countys public health website, and 30 have recovered.

The coronavirus, which causes the disease called COVID-19, has infected more than 885,000 people worldwide, including over 190,000 in the United States as of Wednesday morning, according to data by Johns Hopkins University.

A number of churches across the U.S. are currently hosting COVD-19 testing on their campuses.

In March, Church of the Highlands, one of the largest churches in the country, began offering drive-through coronavirus testing at its Grandview campus. In just two days, the church had completed nearly 1,000 tests.

On Sunday, members from the churchs Tuscaloosa Campus gathered in front of the local hospital to pray for protection over medical professionals and healing for the sick.

We love seeing our church family come together to continue to bring hope to each of our communities, the church said on its Facebook page.

In a recent Facebook video, Laurie, senior pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship, urged Christians to start praying for the United States every day at 7:14 a.m. or p.m. amid the pandemic.

Lauries call to prayer is based on 2nd Chronicles 7:14 where the Lord says, If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Is COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, a modern-day plague or pestilence? We call it a 'pandemic,' but thats a relatively modern term, Laurie said. I think it certainly could be. Its been allowed by God. Im not sure why, but I know one thing: God can cause all things to work together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

Im not saying this is a good thing; far from it. Its a bad thing. But God can bring good out of it, and if it gets people praying, if it gets people calling out to God, thats some of the good that can come out of it.

Lets do this together, he concluded. We need an Easter miracle.
KALAMAZOO, MI  Things have been looking a lot different in Kalamazoo since the coronavirus outbreak, which has drastically changed day-to-day life for many around the globe.

Discover Kalamazoo, which promotes activities, attractions, restaurants and lodging in the area, is adapting to the crisis. The organizations staff is looking for new ways to help people access all the community has to offer, despite the stay at home order issued by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Though many local businesses were required to close their doors or suddenly change how they operate, the organization has been working to find ways to continue promoting those Kalamazoo businesses and to offer opportunities for the community to help support those entrepreneurs and their employees.

Alyssa Seedorff, the organizations digital communications manager, is focused on finding new ways to keep the community engaged, including virtual trips to local museums and other activities you can still enjoy while adhering to social distancing advice from public health officials.

Its honestly been a snowball effect, Seedorff said. Weve been finding ways to keep people engaged and curious, then finding ways to do that virtually.

Though the ideas are still coming in, here are a few of the ways the organization has already found to enjoy the things that make Kalamazoo unique without risking the health of yourself and those around you.

Food and drink

Early on, Discover Kalamazoo helped create a Saturday night in event recently to encourage people to order take-out or delivery from a local restaurant and enjoy a Saturday night date night while staying home.

Related: Plan a Saturday night in to support Kalamazoo restaurants during coronavirus emergency

Seedorff said she is still working on promoting the idea. There is a list of restaurants offering carryout and delivery on the organizations website, which also mentions other resources like the Kalamazoo Menu Facebook group, where local people are sharing menus, photos and information about local restaurants.

In addition to food, there are also options for purchasing alcohol to enjoy during a virtual happy hour. A few bars and breweries offer carryout service for beer and wine as well.

Enjoying safe activities

Curious minds can learn more about Kalamazoos landmarks and attractions using an interactive graphic posted on Discover Kalamazoos website. There is also an opportunity to take a self-guided wall crawl scavenger hunt featuring some of the communitys vibrant murals.

Discover Kalamazoo is also offering a list of social distancing approved activities, with links to more information about virtual and real-world opportunities from sites and institutions like the Air Zoo, Kalamazoo Valley Museum, Gilmore Care Museum, Kalamazoo Institute of Art, Kalamazoo Nature Center and the W.K. Kellogg Biological Station. The website invites others to submit similar information for inclusion on the list.

Kalamazoo coloring book

If anyone is looking to tap into their creative side, there is a whole page of printable Kalamazoo-themed coloring pages, with everything from Candy Cane Lane (including both old and new versions of the annual holiday display) to the inside of the Air Zoo.

Seedorff said that the coloring pages have been very popular, and Discover Kalamazoo is taking requests for pages to add to the collection.

An all-Kalamazoo playlist

For a soundtrack to fuel the virtual and at-home festivities, Seedorff created a Kalamazoo playlist on Spotify, called A name like Kalamazoo makes for a great playlist. Each song on the list mentions Kalamazoo.

Its fun to see how creative people have been, Seedorff said. It totally sucks, but its forcing people to think outside of the box.

Complete coverage of coronavirus in Michigan.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus.

Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible.

Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

Also on MLive:

Kalamazoo businesses partner to produce face shields for healthcare workers

Whitmer orders all Michigan schools to remain closed through academic year as coronavirus cases surge

Thursday, April 2: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan
Hudson, NY (12534)

Today

Snow showers this evening. Breaks in the overcast later. Low 7F. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 40%..

Tonight

Snow showers this evening. Breaks in the overcast later. Low 7F. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 40%.
Heathrow will close one of its runways next week as air traffic continues to fall globally amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision comes after furious passengers returning to the UK said there was a lack of medical advice at the airport.

The London hub will operate its landings and takeoffs from one strip from Monday April 6 to 'increase resilience and safety for staff, passengers and cargo' during the pandemic.

The airport has two runways and will alternate which one they keep open on a weekly basis, a spokesman said.

The airport added: 'Although we are seeing significantly fewer flights at the moment, Heathrow will remain open so that we can continue to play a crucial role in helping to secure vital medical goods and food for the nation during this unprecedented epidemic.'

Heathrow Airport will operate its landings and takeoffs from one strip from Monday April 6 to 'increase resilience and safety for staff, passengers and cargo' during the pandemic

Yesterday, passengers returning to the UK from abroad hit out at the lack of testing and medical advice being issued by airport staff amid the pandemic.

Some Britons arriving to London's Heathrow Airport said they were left 'shocked' by the very few health checks being carried out and the lack of medical advice available which left them unsure about whether to go into quarantine.

It comes after British Airways struck a deal with its unions to suspend more than 30,000 cabin crew and ground staff in one of the airline industry's most dramatic moves yet to survive the coronavirus pandemic.

With global travel in turmoil as the virus takes hold around the world, BA's owner, IAG, said it would also cut capacity by 90 per cent in April and May, and scrap its dividend, in a desperate bid to survive the worst crisis in its history.

With BA having already agreed a 50 per cent pay cut for its pilots, the deal focuses on cabin and ground crew, engineers and office staff.

It comes after union chiefs announced that BA will furlough a large majority of its workforce on 80 per cent pay.

The airline will introduce its own modified version of the government's job retention scheme, according to the Unite union.

Unlike the government scheme, there will be no cap on earnings, union chiefs said.

Workers will be able to divert their pension contributions into their pay for a short period of time and there will be no unpaid temporary lay offs or redundancies, said Unite, adding that a redundancy process that had already begun has been halted.

BA boss Alex Cruz also revealed that he wont take a salary for two months.

Despite a surge in the number of coronavirus cases across the country, travellers claimed they were left breezing through security as though it was 'a normal working day'.

One passenger Mete Coban, a 27-year-old charity pioneer and Hackney councillor, who returned to Heathrow Airport from the U.S. on March 16, said: 'Considering just how seriously authorities were treating Covid-19 in the US, I was shocked at just how little the UK authorities seemed to care when arriving at Heathrow.

One passenger Mete Coban (left), 27, who returned to Heathrow Airport from the U.S. on March 16, said it was 'completely irresponsible that we're not at least providing guidance to people about social distancing'

'I think it's completely irresponsible that we're not at least providing guidance to people about social distancing and giving medical advice.'

While Chloe Sloggett, a 24-year-old aesthetics practitioner from north London, who arrived at Heathrow on Saturday with her fiance Toby Hastie, said there were far more medical checks in place in Cambodia and Malaysia than upon her arrival in the UK.

Ms Sloggett, who has been self-isolating since returning home, said: 'As we walked through Heathrow there were posters to explain dos/don'ts and signs to keep two metres' distance, but no-one there was enforcing it.

'We had our temperature checked in Phnom Penh (Cambodia) twice and then again in Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), but nothing when we landed in the UK.'

Meanwhile Marc Wilson, a 33-year-old postman from Southampton, said he was similarly confused by a lack of advice on what to do upon his arrival from Guatemala via Mexico and the US.

Mr Wilson, who landed at Heathrow on Sunday morning, said: 'In the Americas, I was checked at every land border, every flight, I had doctors asking me questions.

'I landed at Heathrow and there was no advice or anything. I couldn't see any answers online whether I had to go in quarantine or not.'

The Department of Health said the advice for all Britons, whether returning to the UK or not, was the same - to stay at home and only leave if essential.

However, other countries have introduced strict quarantine measures for those entering the country.

Meanwhile Marc Wilson, 33, from Southampton, said he was not issued with any advice about whether he needed to go into quarantine when he arrived at Heathrow

This includes in the US and New Zealand, where travellers must isolate themselves for 14 days upon arrival.

Nick Russell, who is due to return to the UK from Auckland in the coming days, said confusion reigned over whether he and his wife would be subject to quarantine.

Mr Russell, from Berkshire, said: 'We have very little idea what happens when we arrive at Heathrow.

'Will we be escorted to some compulsory 14-days quarantine facility? Can we be met by a friend to take us home? What can we do when we arrive home?

'There are simply no written answers we can find on the Government website.'
New publication offers updated maritime security guidance for mariners operating off West Africa

Industry organisations, supported by government and military organisations, have worked together to produce a new publication that will help mariners detect, deter and delay external threats to their safety.

Best Management Practices to Enhance Maritime Security for Vessels & Mariners Operating Off the Coast of West Africa including the Gulf of Guinea (BMP WA) consolidates and enhances existing guidance for specific threats in this region. The publication is free to download from www.maritimeglobalsecurity.org, which also includes links to other maritime security information useful to mariners. Printed copies of the publication will be available later in the year. Industry organisations welcomed the publication. Due to the regrettable lack of efficient law enforcement especially in Eastern Gulf of Guinea, this consolidated antipiracy guidance is a must-read for seafarers operating within reach of Nigerian pirates  Angus Frew, Secretary General & CEO, BIMCO It is unacceptable that pirate attacks in the Gulf of Guinea continue to threaten the lives of our seafarers, especially at a time when we are also having to fend off the threat from COVID-19. This publication shows the shipping industrys firm commitment to the safety and welfare of the men and women who move world trade, and ending the blight of piracy in the region once and for all - Guy Platten, Secretary General, ICS The safety of seafarers is our top priority. Seafarers need our support and with this publication, supplemented by adequate training, we hope seafarers should feel and be safer. Their feedback would also be much welcome for the industry to improve the offered guidance. - Dr Kostas G. Gkonis, Secretary General, INTERCARGO Insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea continues to blight the lives of seafarers working in the region. This new BMP, tailored specifically for local conditions, provides guidance and advice to mitigate the threat. While it is just one small part of a solution, the key remains in the hands of the region.  Katharina Stanzel, Managing Director, INTERTANKO This publication offers practical mitigation measures to keep seafarers & vessels safe, a must read for all. - Rob Drysdale, Director, OCIMF.




TWELVE days after Luzon was placed under enhanced community quarantine, more and more Filipinos both food producer and consumer are suffering from hunger. The lockdown has been hurting both the pockets and stomach of the poor and marginalized especially those who rely on a daily income.

While the Department of Agriculture has issued protocol exempting farmers, fishers and workers in food processing and manufacturing from quarantine to ensure unhampered production and distribution of food supply, farmers from various provinces report otherwise. Farmers either could not harvest their palay or could not sell their harvest.

As we are battling the virus and hunger, Vietnam suspended its rice exports to ensure its peoples food security. And so we are reminded that we are also fighting a losing battle to attain food self-sufficiency and self-reliance as the country has increasingly become dependent on rice imports since our membership to the World Trade Organization 25 years ago. For years, liberalization of agriculture has resulted to the neglect of the sector which is reflected in its decreasing budget allocation and its current state of crisis.

With the implementation of RA 11203 or the Rice Liberalization Law, we became the top rice importer in the world. Last year, the country imported 2.1 million metric tons from Vietnam or 33 percent of Vietnams 6.37 million metric tons total rice exports and 65 percent of the 3.2 million metric tons total rice imports of the country.

Moreover, as palay farmgate prices dropped, some farmers were forced to sell their lands due to bankruptcy while others changed into cash crops. Farmers were long calling for support subsidies to lower the cost of production and yet, they were only given loan assistance, some "lucky" farmers were given a measly P5, 000 cash assistance.

Rice Liberalization Law has likewise limited the function of the National Food Authority (NFA) to buffer stocking, crippling the states power to prevent hoarding and smuggling and ensure sufficient, safe and affordable rice for the poor and marginalized Filipinos.

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The countrys dependence on rice importation is never an assurance of food security. Vietnams move should be a wake-up call for the government to take the issue of rice self-sufficiency and self-reliance seriously to prepare for circumstances such as Covid-19 and other calamities.

We urge the government to repeal the Rice Liberalization Law and enact House Bill 477 or the Rice Industry Development Act (RIDA) which pushes for the strengthening of the NFA and a Rice Development Program which includes socialized credit, irrigation development, post-harvest facilities, and production support, and the House Bill 239 or the Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill which seeks to distribute lands to the farmers for free and provision of support services and subsidies to farmers and protection of agricultural lands from land-use conversion.

The government should take proactive measures to ensure the countrys food security based on self-sufficiency and self-reliance for a battle cannot be won through half-hearted methods. We cannot fight in a war on an empty stomach.

Zenaida Soriano

National Federation of Peasant Women (Amihan)

National Chairperson
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 12:49:15|Editor: huaxia

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CARACAS, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese and Venezuelan experts gathered in Caracas on Wednesday to assess diagnostic procedures to bolster Venezuela's capacity to tackle the COVID-19 epidemic.

Chinese medical and technical experts shared their experience with their Venezuelan counterparts at the capital's Rafael Rangel National Institute of Hygiene.

During the initiative, visiting Chinese experts were able to get a close look at the diagnostic procedures in place, from the arrival of samples to the final results.

"We are pleased to have the Chinese delegation in our country, because we are definitely going to apply their recommendations to improve our approach from a diagnostic perspective," said Pierina D'Angelo, head of the institute's virology department.

"They will be able to provide us with the guidelines to orient and strengthen our technical capacity," D'Angelo added.

D'Angelo stressed the importance of the exchange with medical staff who were on the frontlines of China's battle against the virus, saying "they have the necessary experience, both in the laboratory and in the area of clinical management."

Gregorio Sanchez, a specialist in infectious diseases and public health, described the sharing of experience as "useful" and "nutritive."

Sanchez said he valued the exchange, and the "ability, somehow, to compare the procedures we are using in the laboratory."

Chinese expert Ge Yiyue, deputy head of microbiology at the Center for Disease Control in Jiangsu province, described the discussion as a "success."

"The Venezuelan government has taken the right, timely measures to contain the epidemic," said Ge.

Founded over 80 years ago, the Rafael Rangel institute is certified by the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization to diagnose cases of coronavirus.
London: Britain's Prince Charles, who has recovered after testing positive for coronavirus, praised the selfless devotion of healthcare workers on Wednesday and said it was a strange and distressing time for the nation.

Heir-to-the-throne Charles, 71, came out of self-isolation on Monday after suffering what he said were "luckily ... relatively mild symptoms" and his office said he was now in good health.

Britain is in a state of virtual lockdown, with the public told they must stay at home other than for essential trips, such as to buy food.

In a video address, the prince said although he had recovered, he was still in a state of social distance and general isolation. His wife Camilla, 72, who had tested negative, is remaining in self-isolation until the end of the week in case she develops symptoms.

"As we are all learning, this is a strange, frustrating and often distressing experience when the presence of family and friends is no longer possible and the normal structures of life are suddenly removed," he said.

The number of coronavirus deaths in Britain rose by 27% to 1,789 people, official figures on Tuesday showed, with one of the victims a 13-year-old boy with no apparent underlying health conditions.

"At such an unprecedented and anxious time in all our lives, my wife and I are thinking particularly of all those who have lost their loved ones in such very difficult and abnormal circumstances, and of those having to endure sickness, isolation and loneliness," Charles said from his home in Scotland.

The prince's mother, 93-year-old Queen Elizabeth, is currently with her husband Prince Philip, 98, at her Windsor Castle home, west of London. Buckingham Palace has said she too is in good health.

Charles also paid tribute to doctors, nurses and other staff on the front line in the National Health Service, whom he said were under enormous strain and risk, adding their "utter, selfless devotion to duty" made the nation proud.

It was essential, he added, that these key workers were treated with special consideration when trying to do their shopping, and also singled out store staff for praise for keeping shelves stocked.

"As a nation, we are faced by a profoundly challenging situation, which we are only too aware threatens the livelihoods, businesses and welfare of millions of our fellow citizens," he said. "None of us can say when this will end, but end it will."
Police will allege that the man who hit and killed a group of four children walking at Oatlands earlier this year was driving under the influence of MDMA and driving more than 45 km/h over the speed limit.

Samuel Davidson, 29, was in February charged over a fatal crash at Oatlands in Sydney's north west that killed siblings Antony, Angelina and Sienna Abdallah and their cousin Veronique Sakr.

Sienna, Angelina and Antony Abdallah.

Three other children, all relatives of the children killed, were also injured.

Mr Davidson will on Thursday face 14 fresh charges when he appears in Parramatta Local Court, including four counts of aggravated dangerous driving occasioning death under the influence of MDMA, four counts of aggravated dangerous driving occasioning death going, driving with cocaine in his blood stream and failing to provide his details to police.
The United States has used drones to kill civilians in Somalia, human rights watchdog Amnesty International said on Wednesday.

Amnesty says an 18-year-old woman and a 53-year-old banana farmer were killed in two separate drone strikes, one in the town of Jilib, the other in Kumbareere village. Three others were injured.

The US acknowledged the attacks but said they killed terrorists from the Islamist militant group al-Shabab.

Amnesty analyzed satellite images and video evidence, and interviewed family members and the victims communities, who insisted the dead were not members of the militant group.

Amnesty says US air strikes have in total killed more than 20 Somali civilians since it started its air campaign in Somalia more than a decade ago.

The US carried out its first drone attack in Somalia in 2011. Since Trump took office in January 2017, at least 145 drones or air raids have hit Somalia, according to figures from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the US army.

In just five of those attacks, at least 14 civilians were killed and eight more injured, according to Amnesty International.

The armed Al-Shabab group, an al-Qaeda-linked group fighting to overthrow Somalias internationally recognized government, was pushed out of the capital, Mogadishu, by Somali forces backed by African Union troops in 2011.

Al-Shabab has also lost control of other major towns and cities but continues to carry out attacks in Somalia and the region. In January, the group attacked a military base in neighboring Kenya, killing three Americans  a soldier and two contractors.

On Tuesday, the US military announced it would from next month publish reports on allegations of civilian casualties in its Africa operations.
Nico Rosberg has developed a shrewd and simple method for coping with the coronavirus pandemic - putting his smartphone away.

All over the globe, stress levels about the fate of the world are skyrocketing amid the tsunami of bad news relating to the infectious disease.

But 2016 world champion Rosberg told DPA news agency: "I removed my smartphone from my life. Otherwise you would go crazy at the moment.

"News, reports about the stock market crash - I don't want to know about it. I check my email twice a day and that's enough."

Rosberg, who normally lives with his young family in Monaco, is spending this period of time at his other residence in Ibiza.

He admitted that he was making the comments from the basement.

"It is the safest place to be if you have two children in the house," the German joked.

(GMM)
Recalling Two Famous Hoaxes

Two fake storiesa funny one in the UK, a deadly one in Chinaillustrate the power of media

Commentary

In the early years of television, the BBC ran a sober documentary about the years harvest in Switzerland. The crop: spaghetti grown on trees.

So convincing was the report that the BBCs phones were flooded with calls from credulous British viewers with questions, including where they could obtain their own spaghetti trees.

The date was April 1, 1957.

David Wheeler, the programs producer, told BBC this in 2004, I think it was a good idea for people to be aware they couldnt believe everything they saw on the television and that they ought to adopt a slightly critical attitude to it.

If only every television program came with a warning label like that.

In January 2001, a news report was broadcast in China that caused a sensation and changed peoples opinions, changed their hearts. It was staged, but the CCP-controlled media never admitted to it.

The report purported to show 5 or 7 people (the story changed) setting themselves on fire in Tiananmen Square in protest.

Would there be policemen waiting around in Tiananmen Square with fire extinguishers and fire-proof blankets on most days? These facts and many others are examined in a documentary, False Fire. The award-winning analysis debunks the CCP claims about the event.

The people supposedly setting themselves on fire were claimed to be Falun Gong practitioners.

Falun Gong is a traditional Chinese discipline of meditation and exercise whose practitioners study and strive to live by the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. It grew to have more than 100 million practitioners. Then the CCP began a systematic persecution campaign.

Millions have been detained, where they often endure long hours of slave labor, brainwashing and torture. Thousands have been confirmed as having died from torture, although the true number of such deaths is unknown. In what has been described as a cold genocide, large numbers of practitioners have been killed for their organs, used to supply Chinas burgeoning transplant industry.

In January 2001, most Chinese people were either sympathetic or indifferent to the situation of Falun Gong practitioners. The horrible scenes of people setting themselves alight, and of follow-up interviews with them in hospitals, created a wave of negative opinion toward the practitioners and their practice.

To this day, many Chinese people dont want to believe the goodness of Falun Gong, and a large factor in their aversion is the hoax documentary broadcast 19 years ago.

Television has the power to elicit laughter, and it has the power make or break reputations. That power is sometimes abused terribly.

In China, this has been a real tragedy, as human lives could have been saved if media acting on behalf of the malevolent CCP had not abused their power.

In the comical spaghetti trees we saw the power media can wield, and in the persecution of Falun Gong we have seen that power used for evil.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 11:09:29|Editor: huaxia

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KIGALI, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The Rwandan cabinet on Wednesday extended the lockdown that aims to contain the spread of COVID-19 for two weeks until April 19, as its total confirmed cases reached 82.

The landlocked country has been placed under lockdown since March 21, which bans unnecessary movements and visits outside home and orders the closure of borders.

The decision was announced by the prime minister's office in a communique issued after a cabinet meeting on the COVID-19 pandemic and strategies against its spread in the country.

The government asked all employees, both public and private, to continue working from home, except for those providing essential services, and encouraged education institutions to use technology to continue instruction.

The borders will remain closed, except for goods and cargo as well as returning Rwandan citizens and legal residents, according to the communique.
Here's what the oilpatch wants in financial aid from Ottawa

Finance Minister Bill Morneau made it clear to a Senate committee how dire the financial situation is in the oilpatch and how quickly his government is ready to act to provide some sort of relief to the beleaguered sector to keep companies afloat.

The relief was apparently coming quite quickly, as Morneau told the senators, "I'm not talking about weeks. I'm talking about hours, potentially days."

That was more than one week ago and the federal government has yet to unveil how it plans to help the oil and gas sector.

In recent years, the oilpatch in Western Canada hasn't had a lot of good things to say about the federal government. But executives around the sector these days are voicing few complaints  and even expressing words of encouragement.

As the federal government assembles some sort of relief package, oilpatch leaders are saying how well Ottawa is handling the situation and how communication about the issue has abundant and positive.

Several board members of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers are in weekly conversations with Natural Resources Minister Seamus O'Regan and calls with provincial government leaders.

"They've all been really just excellent in understanding the size of this crisis, and they're all over it and they're basically saying, 'We're making plans and we need your input to get it right,'" said Jonathan Wright, chief executive of NuVista Energy, a Calgary-based oil and gas company with a focus on northwest Alberta.

Wright wouldn't get into the specifics of those conversations, to respect the confidentiality, but said there is no secret about what the oilpatch wants.

"At a time like this, the number one thing is liquidity. The first three things are liquidity," he said.

When commodity prices are so low, oilpatch companies often struggle to obtain financing from banks, investors and the broader finance community.

"The last thing you want to see is, for example, your bank line shrink at a time like this, even though you're a strong company," said Wright. "Where the government can step in is ensuring they are providing liquidity and encouragement to the banks such that we don't get an undue compression of liquidity for strong companies."

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The oilpatch is struggling because of three main factors right now: The decision by Saudi Arabia and Russia to flood the market with oil, problems with accessing funding from equity markets, and COVID-19, which has resulted in demand for oil to plunge.

Oil prices in Alberta are at record lows with a barrel of crude selling for about $4 US this week.

Still, any talk of financial help for the oilpatch will enrage critics who would much rather see government money used to promote renewable energy sources, instead of aiding the fossil fuel sector. If money goes to the oilpatch, they say, it should be aimed at helping workers, not companies.

This federal government has said it needs a strong oil and gas industry to help with the transition to cleaner energy.

The oilpatch doesn't want a handout or bailout from Ottawa, according to Grant Fagerheim, the chief executive of oil producer Whitecap Resources. Instead, industry leaders want the federal and provincial governments to look at ways to reduce expenses for the industry such as providing funding for debt and lowering royalties.

"Then you are not picking winners and losers, you're actually doing it overall for the energy space to help drive down their costs to make it more competitive with other places around the world," he said.

Kyle Bakx/CBC

Richard Masson, an executive fellow at the University of Calgary's School of Public Policy and chair of the World Petroleum Council of Canada, said Ottawa could provide financial relief in many forms such as loans with flexible repayment terms.

"We need to allow the companies to have enough cash so they don't get so much debt on their balance sheets that the creditors won't continue to support them," he said.

"They need enough financial capacity that they can continue to pay all these operating costs, even if they're losing money, and get through to the other side."

Tristan Goodman, president of the Explorers and Producers Association of Canada, which represents junior and mid-sized oil and gas producers, said the sector is also looking for relief in other ways, such as regulatory changes that reduce costs while the industry deals with its current struggles.

"Anything around regulatory support to make sure we can continue to move forward during times of cash flow crisis, as well as making sure the fiscal side of that is also taken care of, meaning taxes and anything on that side," he said.

Goodman said help for the sector will help other industries across the country as well that it does business with, from technology firms to steel manufacturers to finance companies.

"It's really not just about the oil and gas business," he said.

"It really is about the broader Canadian economy and all those sectors, whether they're professional accountants and lawyers, finance people or IT people."

In the past, the federal government has provided funding for the cleanup of orphan oil and gas wells, which provides jobs for the oilfield service sector, and it may look to support more of this type of work.

Morneau's office did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
State lawmakers have asked Gov. Tom Wolf to stop the transfer of juveniles in the justice system from Philadelphia to Perry County, citing concerns of spreading the coronavirus. Read more

Pennsylvania officials have approved moving youth in the juvenile-justice system more than 100 miles across the state, despite a stay-at-home order from Gov. Tom Wolf to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

In a letter to Wolf, two state lawmakers expressed outrage Wednesday that children from Philadelphia were being transported and admitted to a secure state residential program called Loysville Youth Development Center.

With the shutdown of the Commonwealth, it seems incomprehensible that youth from the area known to be a COVID-19 hotbed such as Philadelphia would be moved to an area in Perry County where there is only one case of the virus being reported, wrote Rep. Mark Keller (R., Perry/Cumberland) and Sen. John DiSanto (R., Dauphin/Perry).

The letter was also addressed to Geoff Moulton, court administrator of the Pennsylvania Judicial Center. The lawmakers said their intent was to stop the transfer of court-ordered juveniles to Perry County, and specifically, to the Loysville center. .

 READ MORE: As COVID-19 spreads, advocates ask Pa. Supreme Court to release vulnerable youth from detention centers, jails

Keller and DiSanto said that concerned employees described an intake screening process that consists only of a few questions and a temperature reading.

This protocol seems severely inadequate during a worldwide pandemic, they said. No one, especially children, should be transported to a new area during a mandated Stay-at-Home Order.

This highly irresponsible decision by [state officials] will be putting these children at great risk, in addition to jeopardizing all citizens of Perry County.

A spokesperson for the state Department of Human Services, which operates Loysville and other state juvenile-justice centers, said state officials were working with probation officers and judges regarding what placements and transfers are absolutely necessary given the public health crisis.

Wolfs office said he had no comment beyond DHSs statement.

DHS is now conducting a preadmission screening to try to catch any exposure a youth may have had to the coronavirus before transporting or admitting them to a new facility, said Ali Fogarty, communications director. Additionally, each center like Loysville has designated areas for children who become symptomatic or test positive.

The youths going to Loysville are being transferred from the Philadelphia Juvenile Justice Services Center, where city officials say at least one worker has tested positive for coronavirus.

On Kellers official Facebook page, commenters showed support for his letter: This is a disgrace. There is no reason at all for this kind of transfer. During this time, its criminal, wrote one woman. This could be spreading this virus and thats exactly what the stay at home is for to stay put not to be traveling!! wrote another.

On Wednesday, legal advocates filed an emergency petition to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court asking it to order the release of the 2,000 juveniles in court custody due to the threat of COVID-19. Attorneys said that youths did not have access to soap and hand sanitizer, and could not practice social distancing from beds nailed a few feet apart to the floor.

The subject of inmate transfers has caused alarm at all levels of the states corrections system as public health advocates continue to worry about the risk county jails, state prisons, and federal detention centers pose for a viral outbreak.

Close quarters, shared cells and bathroom facilities, and limited cleaning supplies make detention centers a potential tinderbox for rapid spread. New Yorks Rikers Island has logged more than 300 positive cases among inmates and guards  an infection rate nearly seven times that of the city at large.

In Philadelphia, the mayors office said Thursday that 20 inmates have tested positive for coronavirus, a rate 3.5 times larger than the general population. As the citys death toll rose to 17, Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said Philadelphia was observing clusters of confirmed cases in group settings like the prisons.

The City has been working closely with providers on protocols to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 within these facilities, to ensure proper treatment for infected residents, and to safeguard other residents, Farley said in a statement. Many of these facilities are also receiving direction from the State Department of Health. The clusters were seeing are evidence that despite these thorough and proactive efforts, halting the spread of the virus is a growing challenge.

Pennsylvania lawmakers and the heads of the states corrections officers unions say efforts theyve taken to protect their facilities could all be undone with the introduction of new inmates transferred in from outside detention centers where the coronavirus has already gained a foothold.

In Wayne County, the transfer of several inmates from New York, the epicenter of the U.S. epidemic, to a federal detention center near Waymart, Pa., last week, prompted U.S. Rep. Matt Cartwright (D., Wayne) and 11 House colleagues to call on the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to limit transfers to emergencies only.

I strongly urge BOP and the Marshals to quickly come to an agreement on limiting inmate movements only in cases of extreme need, Cartwright wrote. This is about the health and safety of not just the inmates, but also the essential prison staff and their families that they go home to every night.

The bureau responded Wednesday with new policies limiting such prison-to-prison moves and requiring all new inmates at any facility to undergo a 14-day quarantine.

Larry Blackwell, president of the 11,000-member union whose members work at state prisons, pressed the Wolf administration last week to temporarily suspend inmate transfers from county jails to state prisons as well as moving inmates between state facilities. The governor has called for all nonessential movement to halt, and this isnt essential, he said.

A Department of Corrections spokesperson said halting such moves was not realistic at this time.

Inquirer staff writer Chris Palmer contributed to this article.
Mandatory testing of all foreign arrivals routine as domestic numbers plummet

Health officials and experts are calling for people to remain vigilant against the novel coronavirus and are tightening controls on inbound arrivals and asymptomatic cases as the country still faces the risk of imported infections and the threat of asymptomatic carriers.

The Chinese mainland added 44 imported cases and one domestic case associated with an asymptomatic individual on Saturday, according to the National Health Commission. There were 54 new cases on Fridayall related to overseas traveland 55 new cases on Thursday, one of which was transmitted locally.

As of Saturday, the number of imported infections nationwide had risen to 693 from 42 countries as the virus continues to rage around the world. Meanwhile, domestic spread of the virus has been basically contained, according to health officials.

Commission spokesman Mi Feng said on Sunday that seven countries made up 83.4 percent of all imported cases on the Chinese mainland.

"It is possible that another round of infection spread will occur as a result," Mi said, adding that sporadic domestic infections also pose risks.

Staff in protective suits talks with a passenger at the Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing, China, March 18, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

Vigilance required

Li Lanjuan, a senior adviser to the commission, also said last week that she's been deeply worried that the influx of infected travelers might trigger a second wave of infections in China. "We're confronted with a grim task ahead that is set to test whether we are able to tightly and strictly seal off our line of defense and avert a resurgence of the virus," she said in an interview.

In working to minimize the risk of a widening pandemic, authorities in China have already taken several measures to ramp up monitoring of returnees, reduce international flights and restrict entry for foreign nationals.

If the comprehensive response mechanism that entails proactive and prompt screening and quarantine can continue to be forcefully implemented, the chance of a fresh outbreak in China is slim, according to Zhong Nanshan, a renowned respiratory disease expert and epidemiologist.

"Based on the society-wide approach, new infections will be limited to a very small group, which will not amount to an outbreak. The prerequisite is to stay alert and actively test and isolate cases as some infected arrivals from abroad are highly contagious," Zhong told China Central Television on Friday.

Zhang Wenhong, leader of the Shanghai team of experts in the treatment of COVID-19 cases, also said that the main task of epidemic control for China at the moment is to curb the virus' spread from overseas. He said the task is "much easier compared with bringing the Wuhan situation under control in late January".

Zhang said there is no need for the public to be overly worried that the resumption of production in the country might trigger a reoccurrence of the epidemic.

"People don't need to be overly concerned as the country's fever clinic system and public health monitoring network still work at their highest capacity," he said during a live broadcast during which experts from home and abroad shared their experiences fighting the epidemic in different countries on Sunday.

A medical worker teaches a patient who contracted the novel coronavirus pneumonia to do acupressure massage to help him recover at the Wuhan pulmonary hospital in Wuhan, Hubei province, March 19, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

Asymptomatic group

By contrast, one development that is causing greater concern has been asymptomatic groups testing positive for the virus while exhibiting no symptoms.

The locally transmitted case added on Saturday has illustrated the danger of these carriers. The female patient in Luoyang, Henan province, is believed to have come into contact with a doctor on March 21, and the two then shared a vehicle and dined together. The doctor tested positive for the virus during an organized health check on Wednesday and was classified as an asymptomatic case, according to the provincial health commission.

Both Chinese and World Health Organization experts have said that many asymptomatic individuals are detected when placed under medical observation as close contacts of confirmed cases.

Even though scientists are still working on pinning down the true proportion of asymptomatic individuals, Zhong Nanshan said the epidemic's curve and the current mortality rate suggested that the number of undetected, symptom-free individuals is unlikely to be large in China.

However, Zhong, and the many other health experts, are not downplaying the challenge.
A fairy tale home in millennial pink, to be known as The Cloud House, is the dream of a north London architect.

Peter Morris and his TV producer wife, Emily Kennedy, have applied to Camden council planners for permission to demolish their Victorian house in Gospel Oak and build the extravagantly arched building in its place.

They plan to create the four-bedroom, semi-detached house with a rooftop plunge pool, for themselves and their 14-year-old daughter to live in, and another three-bedroom house next door to sell.

Mr Morris was inspired by the tall, thin arches of the nearby Church of St Martin. Built in 1865, the Grade I-listed church was described by architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner (1902-83) as the craziest of Londons Victorian churches, due mainly to its incomplete-looking towers and William Morris stained-glass windows.

Peter Morris says the church pinnacles resemble those of a classic Disney castle. He adds: The street is very eclectic, theres not one style on the street and that gave me more confidence to be a bit more flamboyant than if it were a street of Georgian terraced houses. A lot of people say the design is quite Art Deco-style, others have said it looks like a mosque. I wasnt directly influenced by either of those things but I can see what they mean.

Digital designs show a house unlike any other in central London, with the multiple arches across the facade giving the building the silhouette of a simplified drawing of a cloud  hence the houses name.

The choice of buff pink walls with teal window frames and metalwork was inspired by the famous Art Deco architecture of Miami, where Mr Morris and his wife spent their honeymoon. The family plan to make the interiors even bolder, with contrasting colours and patterns and polka-dot tiles followed through from the roof.

The roof: there will be a plunge pool and several terraces with polka dot tiles on the roof

My wife and daughter have had a lot of impact on the design. My daughters really keen, shes got lots of ideas how to design her room, although it changes about every fortnight. At the moment its like a trendy cafe with bean bags, cacti and pale blues and pinks, Mr Morris says.

Neighbours have been largely supportive of the scheme, with responses to the planning application commending the flair and creativity of the design.

However, not all residents are in favour. One described the plan as an unsightly eyesore, adding: Ugly, unpopular buildings resulting from the thoughtless whims of architects are appearing all over the borough and all over London, and more cannot be encouraged.
A man has been fined 1,400 after threatening to kill a neighbour who tried to break up a gathering that was in breach of coronavirus social distancing rules, a court heard.

Janis Zalitis, 29, received a note through his letter box stating that police would be called if the group did not leave the property in St Peter Port, Guernsey.

But Zalitis stormed out of his flat to confront his neighbours before launching an alcohol-fuelled tirade while allegedly screaming: 'I don't care about conronavirus.'

Janis Zalitis, 29, was fined 1,400 at Guernsey's Royal Court (pictured) after threatening to kill a neighbour who tried to break up coronavirus lockdown 'party'

Guernsey's Royal Court heard that the neighbour, who lived in a flat in the same building as Zalitis, believed that there were several people in his room and left a note that said everybody needed to leave.

The defendant had then stormed out and began hitting and kicking the neighbour's door.

He demanded that his victim came outside and stated 'then I'll have you'.

Crown Advocate Chris Dunford told the court that the neighbour had been terrified during the incident and called the police.

Officers arrived and found Zalitis in his room with one other man from the same building.

Zalitis had been drinking heavily and had said that he was going to kill his neighbour.

But he insisted that he had meant nothing by the threat during a later interview.

Zalitis admitted behaving in a disorderly manner but Judge Graeme McKerrell said he was not convinced by Zalitis' later apology.

He said: 'It's said that you said to your neighbour that you didn't care about the Covid-19 virus. If that is true and it wasn't just something said in drink, then quite frankly you are an idiot.

'I am struggling to accept that you do understand the seriousness of, not only your situation, but also the danger your idiotic comments pose, because if it is what you believe then you pose a real risk to society.'

Zalitis had received a note through his letter box stating that police would be called if the group did not leave the property in St Peter Port, Guernsey (stock image)

What are the social distancing rules? Social distancing measures are in place to reduce interaction between people to slow the spread of coronavirus. Avoid contact with anyone who is displaying symptoms of coronavirus including a high temperature or new and continuous cough.

Avoid non-essential use of public transport when possible.

Work from home where possible.

Avoid all gatherings in public spaces after all pubs, restaurants, leisure centres were shut.

Maintain a distance of two metres apart from others where possible. Source www.gov.uk Advertisement

There was a previous bind-over still in place on Zalitis from November 2018 for being found drunk in public.

For the defendant, Advocate Samuel Steel said that his client wished to apologise to the court and to his neighbour.

He had been upset since he had just taken up a new job at a restaurant, which had closed due to the coronavirus outbreak, and that he had one friend in his room that night.

He added that when Zalitis has received the note saying 'everybody' had to leave, he took it as an ultimatum to leave his own home.

Advocate Steel asked for the offence to be dealt with by way of a fine.

But the judge said his job situation did not excuse his behaviour and, from what he had been told, the defendant's employer had made the generous offer to keep his job open and provide him with some money during the virus crisis which would have been enough to pay the rent and buy essentials.

The judge added his neighbour had been right to contact the police and was to be congratulated.

He fined Zalitis 1,200 for disorderly behaviour and a further 200 for breaching the bind-over.
By Carolina Mandl

SAO PAULO, April 1 (Reuters) - Brazil's deposit insurance fund plans to double its backing for special certificates of deposit the country's lenders sell to investors, in a move to boost the banks' liquidity amid the coronavirus crisis, according to a document posted on the fund's website.

The move would mean that investors could buy up to 40 million reais ($7.6 million) of the special CDs with the guarantee they would be made whole even if the issuing bank were to fail, up from a current 20 million reais.

The banks that contribute to the fund, such as Banco do Brasil SA, Itau Unibanco Holding SA and Banco Bradesco SA, will vote on the change in an online meeting on Friday, according to the document.

Last week, Brazil's central bank cleared the way for each bank to issue up to 2 billion reais in these special CDs, known as DPGE, limited to an amount equivalent to its shareholders' equity, to generate funding to counteract the effects of the coronavirus outbreak.

Altogether, the central bank estimates the measure will allow banks to extend up to 200 billion reais in new loans to consumers and companies.

Small and mid-sized Brazilian banks made ample use of this instrument to raise funds during the 2008 financial crisis, as investors fled to Brazil's biggest banks as a safe haven. Prior to the latest central bank move, there were 905 million reais worth of the special CDs outstanding.

Roughly 480 million reais have been sold since the central bank announcement roughly a week ago, more than four times the issuance in the year up March 21.

Still, the amount is considered small so far, as investors' appetite is poor amid the turmoil, a source close to the fund said.

Banks were also considering exempting lenders from contributions to the banks' resolution fund by January 2021, but they decided to remove this topic from the meeting.

Brazil's privately funded deposit insurance fund, called FGC, ended October 2019 with nearly 80 billion reais in assets. Among its largest contributors are lenders such as Banco do Brasil SA, Itau Unibanco Holding SA, Banco Bradesco SA and Banco Santander Brasil SA.

(Reporting by Carolina Mandl; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
Doctor Daniel Brenner has had a busy week in the emergency department of Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, seeing dozens of presumed Covid-19 patients. As Maryland and other parts of the United States brace for the kind of surges seen in New York and Louisiana, AFP spoke to the fourth-year resident to gain insight into what medical professionals are learning about the disease in real-time.

Maryland has thus far seen two dozen deaths and around 2,000 cases -- capacity isn't yet stretched, but could soon be. With hundreds of cases now coming in, Brenner said it ...
A court has overturned the death sentence of a British man who had been convicted for the murder of journalist Daniel Pearl in Pakistan nearly two decades ago.

Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh was handed seven years in prison instead for kidnapping, one of his lawyers said on Thursday, but could be freed in the coming days as he has already served 18 years on death row.

He was convicted of murdering 38-year-old Mr Pearl in 2002, who was investigating Islamic militants in the port city of Karachi after the 9/11 attacks.

The Wall Street Journal South Asia bureau chief was researching their links with Richard Reid, a terrorist who tried to set off a bomb in his shoes on a flight to Miami, at the time of his death.

Mr Pearl was kidnapped in January 2002 and confirmed dead several weeks after after footage emerged allegedly showing his beheading.

As well as overturning the death sentence, the Sindh High Court has also acquitted Fahad Naseem, Sheikh Adil and Salman Saqib, who had all been sentenced to life in prison for the case.

Speaking about British-born Sheikh, defence lawyer Khwaja Naveed said: The court has commuted Omars death sentence to a seven year sentence.

Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl was abducted and murdered in Karachi in January 2002 (AFP)

The murder charges were not proven, so he has been given seven years for the kidnapping.

Given his time in prison in southern Hyderabad on death row, he could go free unless the government chooses to challenge the court decision, Mr Naveed added.

A Sindh prosecutor said he would consider appealing against the court decision.

We will go through the court order once it is issued, we will probably file an appeal, Faiz Shah, the provincial prosecutor general, said.

Sheikh, who was born in Britain and studied at the London School of Economics, was previously arrested in India in the 1990s for his involvement in the kidnapping of western tourists in 1994.

He was one of three men released from an Indian prison after militants hijacked an Indian airliner in 1999 and flew it to Afghanistan, where the then-ruling Taliban regime helped negotiate an exchange.
Dr Samuel Amo Tobbin, the Chief Executive Officer of the Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited (TPL), has called on the Food and Drugs Authority to as a matter of urgency, exercise strict measures on the bottling of hand sanitizers.



Although local manufacturers have been encouraged to produce hand sanitizers amid its shortage on the Ghanaian market following the recording of confirmed cases of COVID-19, he said, how some of them bottled the sanitizers was worrying and could serve as a threat to lives.



A lot of them in the markets are bottled like how drinks are usually bottled, so if a hand sanitizer, especially the water-like ones are poured into these bottles, a child could mistake it for a drink and this could cause a big problem, he said.



Speaking about the increment of prices of hand sanitizers, he said, even as the ingredients used for making it has become expensive as a result of their scarcity, manufacturers and retailers had to consider the unfortunate situation at hand and reduce the prices in order to protect the public.



He made the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Accra.



Dr Tobbin said TPL tried to import hydroxyl chloroquine drugs from India, however, the drug which sold at $18 per kilo, was now selling at $ 1,050 dollars per kilo.



Meanwhile, the Indian government has warned companies against exporting them from India.



He believed this proved how valuable the drug was in addition to others as proposed by the World Health Organization in the fight against the pandemic, adding that, he was optimistic the world would soon find a remedy to the global canker.



The Tobinco Pharmaceuticals Limited earlier donated 251,000.00 worth of immune boosting drugs like Tobcee Vitamin C tablets, Zinvite Capsules, Glutamine Plus tablets, veronica buckets, hand sanitizers, nose masks, and disposable gloves to the Ministry of Health in the fight against COVID-19.



Dr Tobbin said the gesture was to give back to society what the company had gained from them.



The Tobinco Group has reached this state due to the contribution of the public. So when the same people are encountering a crisis, it is necessary to give back to them, he said.



The company, he said, would also distribute similar products to traditional rulers at remote areas and district capitals, he said.



He said with the exception of encouraging people to practice personal hygiene, COVID-19 has caused a great damage to every sector of the economy.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with supply chain distributors in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, March 29, 2020.

The Trump administration is tightening rules to prevent China from obtaining advanced U.S. technology for commercial purposes and then diverting it to military use, several sources told Reuters.

Three measures agreed to by senior U.S. officials in a meeting last Wednesday, but not finalized, would introduce hurdles that could be used to stop Chinese companies from buying certain optical materials, radar equipment and semiconductors, among other things, from the United States.

The moves are advancing as relations between the United States and China, a key customer for U.S. technology, sour over the deadly coronavirus pandemic, which originated in Wuhan, and tit-for-tat expulsions of journalists from each country.

They are also a sign of growing nervousness within the U.S. government over China's "civil-military" fusion promoted by President Xi Jinping, which aims to build up its military might and super-charged technological development in tandem.

China hardliners within the administration say it is time to update U.S. rules in light of the Chinese policy, since some U.S. shipments abroad are authorized based in large part on whether they will be used for civilian or military applications.

Since "the Chinese have said to us, 'anything you give to us for a commercial purpose is going to be given to the military,' what point is there in maintaining a distinction in our export control regulations?" said former White House official Tim Morrison, who was involved in drawing up the changes, which have been in the works since at least last year.

It was not clear if President Donald Trump would sign off on them, despite the decision last week to press ahead with their roll-out.

Industry fears the new rules, which include withdrawing license exceptions, could drive Chinese consumers into the arms of foreign rivals.

"There's a chilling effect when they start taking away the availability of these license exceptions for particular exports," said Washington trade lawyer Eric McClafferty. "It makes people more nervous to export to China."

The White House, the Commerce Department, and the Chinese Embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment.
Bangladesh: Steps taken to meet milk, egg, fish, meat demands: minister

April 02,2020 | Source: The Daily Star

Fisheries and Livestock Minister SM Rezaul Karim today said the government has taken all necessary steps to address the demand of milk, eggs, fish and meat amid growing concern over the spread of coronavirus. "According to the World Health Organization, people should take nutritious food for enhancing their immune system and that's why the government has taken all necessary steps to ensure the supply of milk, egg, fish and meat," he said while talking to reporters at his Dhaka residence. Milk Vita authorities have been asked to preserve their pasteurised milk and supply it to consumers under their own management, the minister said.



He also urged Pran, Aarong, Akij and others to come forward from their respective position. "Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the government has taken a plan to provide incentives to farm owners through the World Bank. Besides, the government will consider waiving loan interest of affected farmers," he said. Livestock officials at the division, district and upazila levels have been directed to stand by the farmers, the minister added.
About 12 lakh farmers from Haryana will benefit from the three-month deferment of the date to pay farm loan interest or instalments. This would be applicable to farmers who took loans from co-operative or commercial banks.

Chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday announced to extend the date for repayment of crop loans by farmers to June 30. The decision was taken in accordance with the directions of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to mitigate the burden of debt servicing brought about by disruptions on account of coronavirus crisis.

Haryana agriculture department officials said there were about 25 lakh beneficiaries of the farm loans availed from the co-operative and commercial bank in the state.

About 12.37 lakh farmers who took a loan from primary agricultural societies (PACS) will not get the benefit of deferred loan payment as February 29 was the last date of payment, officials said.

Those who would qualify for the benefit include about 11 lakh farmers who took loans from commercial banks under the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme. They would get an extension till June and can avail three% interest subvention if they repay within the stipulated period of three months from the due date, officials said.

In addition, there are 85,000 farmers who had taken loans of about 2,900 crore from the district central co-operative banks. They would get an extension until September.

Officials said the matter of deferring loan payment for about 7,000 farmers who have taken loans worth 45 crore from Land Development Bank is also being considered by the state government.

The RBI on March 27 had communicated to the banks and financial institutions that in respect of all term loans (including agricultural term loans, retail and crop loans), all commercial banks including regional rural banks, small finance banks and local area banks, co-operative banks, all-India financial institutions, and NBFCs including housing finance companies are permitted to grant a three-month moratorium on payment of all installments due between March 1 and May 31.

The RBI also said that the repayment schedule for such loans as also the residual tenor (the length of time until the loan is due), will be shifted across the board by three months after the moratorium period. However, interest will continue to accrue on the outstanding portion of the term loans during the moratorium period, the RBI communication said.

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A total of 222 German nationals and nationals of other European citizens were airlifted out of Nigeria on Thursday, says the Geman Mission in Nigeria.

This is coming following the increasing cases of Coronavirus in Africas most populous country.

Also Read: Falana Asks Buhari To Stop Soldiers From Enforcing COVID-19 Regulations

The German mission in Nigeria took to Twitter to reveal that the flight categorized as a humanitarian flight will land in Munich.

The German mission went further to express its gratitude for the cooperation of Nigerias Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Federal Ministry of Aviation for ensuring its citizens were airlifted despite the ban on international flights.
Thursday, April 2nd, 2020 (1:10 pm) - Score 632

A new study by Global Wireless Solutions (GWS) has examined mobile network (mobile broadband) performance for business connectivity across 33 UK cities, which among other things attempts to identify the best one for remote working. Overall Liverpool came top, while London only managed to rank 25th and Dumfries was bottom.

The study involved GWS engineers collecting 936,249 data and voice task tests on iOS and Android devices during Q4 2019, which was conducted alongside nationwide business research polling in early 2020 of over 200 businesses (ranging from 100 employees to over 5,000 through Vanson Bourne).

The GWS Business OneScore evaluation process then measured network performance by taking into consideration voice, data, video, coverage and reliability metrics, based on whats important to businesses. Overall the results claim to have found that operators are meeting customer expectations on mobile network speed over 96% of the time, but a lack of great coverage is still claimed to be impacting business productivity.

Summary of Key Findings * 75% of businesses agreed that completing various online activities in 4 to 6 seconds (e.g. loading news and other websites) was an acceptable length of time to wait. * Only 18% of businesses cited speed as a common complaint. * 75% of businesses claim that, as a result of their organisation not receiving excellent mobile coverage, employee productivity suffers. * 45% of businesses consider having reliable and adequate connectivity to enable more employees to work from home, as a priority for mobile telecoms over the next 12 months. * 39% of businesses said their employees have complained about mobile network coverage, closely followed by dropped calls (28%). In addition, 53% of businesses said they would like to see more consistent voice call accessibility and quality from their operator. * 77% of businesses make and receive traditional phone calls daily. * Voice quality, calls connecting and network coverage were the top three most important network performance considerations for businesses.

As for the mobile network testing itself, GWS only provides a very vague ranking and doesnt offer any useful details on the results for each city or by each mobile network operator.

Figure 1. GWS Business OneScore Rankings
Forty four students of the University of Texas in the US have tested positive for COVID-19 after they returned from a spring break trip to Mexico, avoiding social-distancing guidelines amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The university, which is in Austin, had previously confirmed only 28 coronavirus cases.

About 70 students flew on a chartered plane two weeks ago amid the coronavirus pandemic to Cabo San Lucas in Mexico for spring break.

Forty four of them have tested positive for the virus and are self-isolating, university officials said on Wednesday.

Since most of the students have returned home after the classes were shifted online, some could have contracted the virus without reporting it to the varsity officials, University Spokesman J B Bird said.

Health officials, however, said that some members of the spring break party returned to Austin on separate commercial flights, widening the potential spread of infection.

The Austin outbreak is the latest to result from a group of college students who ignored social-distancing guidelines, went on traditional spring break trips and have now tested positive for the coronavirus.

Many of them appeared to be under the mistaken impression that young people are not as likely to get the coronavirus as older people are.

Students at the University of Tampa, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and other colleges have tested positive after returning from spring break trips to Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and elsewhere.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Labor party have called on the government to allow foreign nurses to remain working in hospitals without doing farm work.

There are around 1,000 foreign qualified nurses in Australia who are unable to work in Australian hospitals for a prolonged period because of sanctions on working holiday visas.

International tourists are required to do farm work in a variety of key industries in order to obtain a working holiday visa in Australia and cannot work for the same employer for more than six months.

Shadow Minister for Home Affairs and Immigration Kristina Keneally said we need qualified nurses now more than ever during the coronavirus pandemic.

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The Labor party have called to relax visa restrictions and allow foreign nurses to remain working in hospitals without doing farm work. Pictured: Tanunda War Memorial Hospital staff in the Barossa Valley near Adelaide work with patients at the coronavirus clinic

'We need all hands on deck when it comes to medical support in our hospitals,' she said.

'And quite frankly its not in our best interests if we have fully qualified nurses in our country and willing to work - in fact, many have been working in hospitals - who have been sent out to do other jobs like picking fruit.'

Up to 20,000 registered nurses will be trained online for high demand and intensive care needs, including fitting ventilators, at a cost to taxpayers of $4.1million.

Health Minister Greg Hunt expects all the places to be filled, praising nurses for their hard work during the crisis.

'They are on the front line, along with our doctors and other health and medical staff and they are literally saving lives and protecting lives,' he told reporters in Melbourne on Thursday.

Mr Hunt said a further 3,000 former nurses had also put their hand up to return to the workforce.

Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt announced the new $4.1million scheme where around 20,000 registered nurses will be trained online for high demand and intensive care needs

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

The government previously committed to funding up to 10,000 refresher courses to get out-of-work nurses back into the health sector, while easing visa requirements for student nurses.

Australia's chief nurse officer Alison McMillan said the online courses would be as good as hands-on training.

'The company that we have contracted to do this has got more than 25 years of experience in this type of education,' she told ABC radio.

Ms McMillan said nursing was not necessarily a dangerous job because of coronavirus, but it was challenging.

'We really do appreciate that this is a worrying time.'

Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters in Canberra his advisers are looking into utilising the international work force into our health care system.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said advisers will look into utilising the international work force into our health care system during the coronavirus pandemic

A nurse at the coronavirus clinic at Bondi Pavilion on Wednesday giving hand sanitiser to a patient

'Those who are here as backpackers, they also work in areas of not just healthcare, but in disability care and aged care and a range of different care settings, and they are an important part of that service,' he said.

'We are looking at how we can ensure that they're better utilised during the course of this current crisis.'

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) and National Boards established a new pandemic sub-register to fast-track the return of clinicians who have left the register of practitioners in the past three years.

More than 40,000 'qualified, competent and suitable' doctors, nurses, midwives and pharmacists will be added to the temporary short-term register and called upon to return to the front line as the deadly virus continues to spread.

Final year medical students will also be called on by NSW Health to boost the medical workforce and relieve the mounting pressure on hospitals.

A new pandemic sub-register has been set up to fast-track the return of health clinicians to the medical workforce. Pictured is a clinician testing a woman for coronavirus at Sydney's St Vincent's Hospital on Wednesday

They will work under supervision in non-coronavirus wards to free other clinicians to respond to the pandemic.

The clinical experience will go towards the completion of their degrees.

There is no obligation on eligible clinicians added to the pandemic sub-register to return to the workforce and can opt out if they wish.

Those who accept the call-out could return to the front line as early as next week.

'We want more of our critical health practitioners available to work as part of the health system in responding to the pandemic,' AHPRA chief executive Martin Fletcher said in a statement.

There are currently 5,108 cases of coronavirus in Australia, with 24 deaths.
Patterson's love for senior living began with the start of his career in hospice. His own grandparents were instrumental in his upbringing, instilling his passion to serve seniors, just as his own grandmother had caringly served their family for so many years.

With a transition to marketing director for assisted living and memory care, Patterson witnessed first-hand the impact of the front-line staff as a critical factor in the success of a community. Patterson's success led him to serve as an executive director in assisted living, memory care, and independent living until his promotion to Regional Director of Sales, leading nine communities' sales and marketing throughout the state of South Carolina.

"In my senior living experience, I have found one thing to be consistent, to be a great leader, you must develop the right team to work alongside you," says Blake Patterson, Executive Director of Watercrest Columbia Assisted Living and Memory Care. "I'm so blessed to have found that team in Watercrest, where we strive to bring comfort and joy to our residents and associates each and every day."

Ideally located at 1951 Clemson Road, Watercrest Columbia is a signature Watercrest product offering 75 assisted living and 32 memory care apartments with premium accommodations, resort-style amenities and world-class care. Residents enjoy pampering in elegant Spa W, savor private label Watercrest wines at the wine bistro, and relish the flavors of locally grown, seasonal ingredients whether dining outdoors, bistro-style, or in the chef's private dining room.

Designed by LifeBUILT Architecture, Watercrest Columbia includes a stunning promenade, pool, fireplace, signature water wall, multiple dining venues, children's play space, grand balconies and Southern style outdoor living spaces. Watercrest's uniquely designed Market Street Plaza, showcases an 'outdoor' streetscape with numerous LifeBUILT programming touches; a highlight and crucial element of their multi-sensory memory care programming. For community information, call 803-771-7500 or visit www.watercrestseniorliving.com/columbia/.

Watercrest Columbia is one of two joint venture development projects between Watercrest Senior Living Group and equity partner, Titan Development. Their second project, Watercrest Winter Park Assisted Living and Memory Care is in Winter Park, FL.

Titan Development Real Estate Fund I (TDREF I) is a $200 million private equity real estate fund established in 2017 to raise and invest equity in approximately $600 million of Titan Development's investment opportunities. Visit www.titan-development.com.

A certified Great Place to Work, Watercrest Senior Living Group was founded by Marc Vorkapich, CEO, and Joan Williams, CFO, to honor our mothers and fathers, aspiring to become a beacon for quality in senior living by surpassing standards of care, service and associate training. Watercrest specializes in the development and operations of assisted living and memory care communities and the growth of servant leaders. Visit www.watercrestseniorliving.com.

SOURCE Watercrest Senior Living Group

Related Links

https://watercrestseniorliving.com


olice and paramilitary personnel have locked down Nizamuddin West after the Tablighi event and residents were being tested and put into quarantine.

About 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat members and their primary contacts have been quarantined till now across the country in view of the coronavirus infection, a senior home ministry official said on Thursday.

Punya Salila Srivastava, a joint secretary in the Union Home Ministry, told reporters during a daily briefing that out of about 2,000 such Tablighi Jamaat members in Delhi, 1,804 have been shifted to quarantine centres while 334 symptomatic persons have been admitted to hospitals.

She said these numbers are a result of a "massive effort" that was undertaken by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in coordination with states to identify Tablighi Jamaat workers or members in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

She also revealed that the Centre has asked all states and union territories to immediately trace and quarantine the estimated 2,000 foreign Tabligh-e-Jamaat workers present in India, as a number of them tested positive for COVID-19 after attending a religious gathering in Delhi and six died in Telangana.

The Home Ministry in a letter to all chief secretaries and police heads told them to deport all foreign Jamaat followers who test negative for the deadly virus to their countries "by the first available flights".

The directive comes as many participants of a huge religious gathering organised by the Jamaat this month in South Delhi's Nizamuddin West area complained that they have symptoms of COVID-19.

At least 24 of them later tested positive in Delhi and another six died in Telangana due to the virus. Police and paramilitary personnel have locked down Nizamuddin West and residents were being tested and put into quarantine.

"Presently, it is estimated that about 2,000 foreigners, on tourist visa, from over 70 countries are spread all over the country for Tabligh work. Majority of these foreign nationals belong to Bangladesh (493), Indonesia (472), Malaysia (150) and Thailand (142) and their period of stay in the country is up to six months," the Home Ministry said in the letter.

Some Jamaat members in Erode district of Tamil Nadu and eight Indonesian nationals, part of a Jamaat team in Hyderabad in Telangana, tested positive for the virus recently.

"Possibility of some members of TJ staying at their headquarters at Banglewali Masjid in Delhi's Nizamuddin carrying COVID-19 cannot be ruled out," it said in the letter to states and UTs on 28 March.

It said the Jamaat teams visiting the hinterlands "appear to be potential carriers of COVID-19."

The ministry said the Nizamuddin-based Tabligh headquarters is reportedly in the process of calling the foreign Tabligh teams from different parts of the country and sending them back to their countries.

It advised the states and UTs to thoroughly screen every foreigner part of a Tabligh team for COVID-19 and, if required, quarantined or hospitalised.

"If such foreigner is found to be free from COVID-19, then he should be immediately deported by the first available flights. Till that time, such a person must be confined and quarantined by his host organisation," the ministry said.

The Home Ministry said the Bureau of Immigration had alerted all Foreigner Regional Registration Offices to compulsorily screen people arriving into the country. In this context, it is understood that such activists from India reportedly attended a religious congregation from Feb 27-Mar 1 in Kuala Lumpur.

"Hence, thorough screenings of these (people) who arrived from Malaysia is urgently needed," it said.
Labor and the Greens are pressuring the Morrison government for interventions to keep the regional media sector alive as advertising revenue dries up during the COVID-19 shutdown.

Dozens of local newspapers have suspended printing in recent weeks, including 60 News Corp-owned community titles, as the coronavirus pandemic exacerbates the structural challenges that have pummelled the sector over the last decade.

Deputy Prime Minister and Nationals leader Michael McCormack has been urged to support regional newspapers. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Opposition communications spokeswoman Michelle Rowland wrote to Deputy Prime Minister and Nationals leader Michael McCormack on Wednesday urging the government to allow community media to access a $1 billion fund for vulnerable regions and communities.

"As you well know, local media coverage is vital to communities and performs a critical role in the effective functioning of democracy at all levels of government and society," Ms Rowland said in the letter, sent to Mr McCormack on Wednesday.
Regulatory News:

MERCIALYS (Paris:MERY) will be holding its Ordinary and Extraordinary General Shareholders' Meeting as a closed session, without shareholders or their representatives attending in person, on Thursday April 23, 2020 from 10am CET.

Under these conditions, shareholders are asked to not travel and to take part in the General Meeting by voting on the resolutions online or by post or appointing the Chairman to represent them.

Shareholders will notably be able to express their choices online on the secure VOTACCESS platform, which will be accessible from Wednesday April 8, 2020 (and not Friday April 3, 2020 as initially announced) until the day before the General Meeting, i.e. until 3pm CET on Wednesday April 22, 2020.

All the preparatory documents for this General Meeting can be consulted online and downloaded directly on the company's website (www.mercialys.com), in the "Investors Shareholders Annual General Meetings" section (accessible directly from the homepage), where they are grouped together primarily in the following documents:

General Meeting documents: agenda, presentation and text of the proposed resolutions

agenda, presentation and text of the proposed resolutions 2019 Universal Registration Document: activity of the company and its subsidiaries, comments concerning the accounts, corporate governance, annual financial statements and consolidated financial statements, statutory auditors' reports

These documents are also freely available on request from: BNP Paribas Securities Services - CTO Service Assemblees Grands Moulins de Pantin 9, rue du Debarcardere 93761 Pantin Cedex France.

The documents and information concerning this General Meeting are available to shareholders under the regulatory conditions in force.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005756/en/

Contacts:

Mercialys
Format for print or mobile

Africa: Covid-19, New Africa-Specific Links

AfricaFocus Bulletin

April 2, 2020 (2020-04-02 )

(Reposted from sources cited below)

Editor's Note This AfricaFocus Bulletin is very short, with no long articles, but only a selection of new links that I think very useful and important to share widely. Many of you have shared previous Bulletins, and I hope that you will also share this (and/or the links you find most useful). Particularly notable is the leading role in Africa being played by the AfricaCDC (https://www.facebook.com/africacdc/) and the global Solidarity Response Fund that has been set up by the United Nations (https://covid19responsefund.org/), which as of March 28 had raised over $112 million, which is still only a small fraction compared to the massive sums that will be needed. Make your contribution monthly if you can, since the World Health Organization and other organizations that are leading the fight need predictable funding for their planning. Previous AfricaFocus Bulletins on Covid-19 and other issues are available at http://www.africafocus.org/intro-health.php ++++++++++++++++++++++end editor's note+++++++++++++++++

Priority new links for updates

The most recent updates are available from the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (AfricaCDC).

Africa CDC updates are most accessible on Facebook and Twitter, as links to the website may be very slow. https://twitter.com/AfricaCDC and https://www.facebook.com/africacdc/

Periodic PDF briefs for downloading are available at https://au.int/en/newsletters-0 The most recent newsletter was published on March 31.

BBC News featuring video FB live interview with Dr. John Nkengasong, director of Africa CDC  30 minutes. Background on Dr. Nkengasong available at this link: https://www.virology-education.com/john-nkengasong-phd/

Also useful as a visualization tracking cases in Africa, from BBC  includes overview of cases and of timeline with graph for each country

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-4a11d568-2716-41cf-a15e-7d15079548bc

For a much more detailed update and expert analysis of related issues of health equity, focused on East and Southern Africa, see this April 1 19-page brief from equinetafrica.org.

Global solidarity

While the pandemic is currently peaking in the United States and Europe, the impact in Africa and other developing regions is still only beginning, and the potential is that it will be even worse.

See, for example, articles in the Washington Post and the New Humanitarian.

That is why the recently established UN Solidarity Response Fund is essential now.

If you are able to contribute, please do so now, and pass on this link as widely as possible:

https://covid19responsefund.org/.

A short selection of COVID-19 music videos

https://youtu.be/PUHrck2g7Ic  Bobi Wine, Uganda  2 minutes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q59BB-xIcA8  Jo Choneca, Mozambique  Tudo vai dar certo; Everything is gonna be all right  4 minutes

https://www.sapeople.com/2020/03/28/watch-south-african-schools-mesmerising-version-of-leonard-cohens-hallelujah/ - Roedean School in Parktown, South Africa  4 minutes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoMknhybAhU  Manu Dibango  Soul Makossa  8 minutes

Manu Dibango died of COVID-19 on March 24, at age 86.

And one from Central America

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkkQfY2sBMs  Ruben Blades  Panama

AfricaFocus Bulletin is an independent electronic publication providing reposted commentary and analysis on African issues, with a particular focus on U.S. and international policies. AfricaFocus Bulletin is edited by William Minter.

AfricaFocus Bulletin can be reached at africafocus@igc.org. Please write to this address to suggest material for inclusion. For more information about reposted material, please contact directly the original source mentioned. For a full archive and other resources, see http://www.africafocus.org
S ince the outbreak of coronavirus began in December last year, it has spread internationally, affecting every continent bar Antarctica.

Despite enforcing travel bans and implementing lockdown measures, the United States of America now leads the world in recorded Covid-19 cases.

The number of people to die nationwide from the virus is now more than 18,000, while the number of confirmed infections has soared to more than 500,000.

Meanwhile, New York, the hardest-hit state, has recorded more than 170,000 cases - more than the whole of Italy, while the local death toll currently stands at more than 7,750 people. Global cases have exceeded 1.7 million.

Below you can find a detailed map which outlines the number of cases and deaths that have reported in each state.

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When was the first case of Covid-19 reported in the US?

The first case of coronavirus in the US was reported on January 20.

A man in his 50s in the state of Washington was the first to die of the disease on March 1, before a second person in their 70s fell victim to coronavirus in the same state.

Officials said both victims had underlying health issues, before Mr Trump warned more cases were "likely".

More recently, a six-week-old baby became the world's youngest fatality after tragically contracting Covid-19.

The World on Coronavirus lockdown 1 /60 The World on Coronavirus lockdown Getty Images A UK government public health campaign is displayed in Piccadilly Circus Reuters Chinese paramilitary police and security officers wear face masks to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus as they stand guard outside an entrance to the Forbidden City in Beijing AP A usually busy 42nd Street is seen nearly empty in New York AFP via Getty Images Bondi Beach, Australia Getty Images Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images View of the illuminated statue of Christ the Redeemer that reads "Thank you" as Archbishop of the city of Rio de Janeiro Dom Orani Tempesta performs a mass in honor of Act of Consecration of Brazil and tribute to medical workers amidst the Coronavirus (COVID - 19) pandemic Getty Images Rome AFP via Getty Images An Indian man paddles his bicycle in front of a mural depicting the globe covered in a mask, as India remains under an unprecedented lockdown over the highly contagious coronavirus Getty Images Aerial view of the empty 9 de Julio avenue in Buenos Aires in Argentina AFP via Getty Images A view of an empty Grand Canal Reuters Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Central cemetery in Bogota, Columbia AFP via Getty Images The facade of the Palacio de Lopez (seat of the government palace) AFP via Getty Images Miami, Florida AFP via Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Simon Bolivar park in Bogota AFP via Getty Images An LAPD patrol car drives through Venice Beach Boardwalk AP Venice Beach, California Getty Images Los Angeles, California Getty Images Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images Many shops stand shuttered on the Venice Beach boardwalk Getty Images Empty escalators are seen at a deserted train station during morning rush hour after New South Wales began shutting down non-essential businesses Reuters A nearly empty Times Square in New York AFP via Getty Images Caracas AFP via Getty Images Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador AFP via Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Midland Park in Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Civic Square at lunchtimein Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A policeman rides his motorcycle wearing a face mask in front of a closed shopping mall in Buenos Aires, Argentina AFP via Getty Images Florida Keys AP The historic Channel 2 Bridge closed to fishermen, bikers and pedestrians in Florida Keys AP The Beach on Scenic Gulf Drive near Seascape Resort in south Walton County, Florida sits empty of tourists AP Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images A deserted Rajpath leading to India Gate in New Delhi AFP via Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images Empty roads are pictured following the lockdown by the government amid concerns about the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Kathmandu, Nepal Reuters An empty New York Subway car i AFP via Getty Images The empty pedestrian zone is seen in the city of Cologne, western Germany, AFP via Getty Images Place de la Comedie in the city of Montpellier , southern France AFP via Getty Images An empty street in Kuwait city AFP via Getty Images A building is covered by the Portuguese message: "Coronavirus: take precaution" over empty streets in downtown Sao Paulo, Brazil, AP A general view shows an empty street after a curfew was imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters Parliament of Canada is pictured with empty street during morning rush hour AFP via Getty Images A near empty beach on Southend seafront in England PA Near empty Keswick town centre in Cumbria, England PA

What has been the response in the US?

At the beginning of March, Donald Trump announced a travel ban for those travelling to America from countries within the Schengen Zone in Europe.

In his statement, Trump said: The European Union failed to take the same precautions and restrict travel from China and other hot spots. As a result, a large number of new clusters in the United States were seeded by travellers from Europe.

He continued: "We made a lifesaving move with early action on China. Now we must take the same action with Europe."

While this did not initially include the UK, the President extended the ban later to include Britain and Ireland - although US nationals were still able to return home.

On March 13, Mr Trump declared a national emergency, saying: "I'm officially declaring a national emergency. Two very big words."

He said this will "unleash the full power of the federal government".

We will defeat this threat, Mr Trump said.

When America is tested America rises to the occasion.

The lack of testing in the US has been a major topic of discussion, with the White House admitting the country did not have enough kits to meet demand.

On March 26, a historic bill was passed in the Senate to help provide relief for US citizens during the coronavirus outbreak.

It included $1,200 for every taxpayer on less than $75,000 a year, with $500 for each child.

On March 29, Mr Trump announced he was extending the social distancing guidelines to April 30 which urged Americans to stop social gatherings, work from home, suspend "onsite learning" at schools and more.

In the same week, Mr Trump also advised Americans to wear scarves as face masks to protect them against the deadly coronavirus.

"Use a scarf if you want, rather than going out and getting a mask," he said.

"We're making millions and millions of masks but we want them to go to the hospitals."

On April 2, four new states - Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and Nevada - imposed stay-at-home orders, putting more than 80 per cent of Americans under lockdown.

Mr Trump also issued an order to use the Defense Production Act to make ventilators and the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, announced the formation of a select committee on coronavirus.
By Trend

WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus has sent a sincere letter to President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and other world leaders.

The WHO Director-General praises the policy pursued and steps taken by the President of Azerbaijan to limit the impact and scale of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Addressing the international community, Tedros Ghebreyesus asks to take a number of fundamental steps, including strengthening of coordination between state bodies, suspending public meetings, adapting state authorities to new conditions for conducting testing, isolation and quarantine, providing health facilities and workers at the forefront with appropriate resources, explaining to the population the severity of the disease, hand hygiene, explaining the cough etiquette and the importance of social distance, isolation of all suspects, providing economic assistance to those most affected by the pandemic, strengthening inter-state solidarity, prompt sharing of information with the WHO on cases of infection and control measures and others.

In this regard, it should be emphasized that the WHO proposals have been an integral part of measures taken under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev so far. The fact that the steps proposed in the letter have been applied in Azerbaijan for a long time once again confirms that the fight against coronavirus runs in the right direction in the country. The policy pursued in Azerbaijan can serve as an example for a number of countries in this regard.

Azerbaijan reacted very quickly to the spread of infection. A Task Force was established under the Cabinet of Ministers, coordination between state bodies was established, the importance of measures such as social distance to protect the population from infection was explained in detail, land borders were closed, the number of flights was sharply reduced, schools, kindergartens, universities were closed, restrictions came into force, quarantine regime was applied. A large number of people who returned from abroad was quarantined.

More than 10 hospitals across the country are at the disposal of coronavirus patients.

By the Order of the head of state, AZN 1 billion was allocated to reduce the socio-economic consequences of COVID-19. Thus, the state once again proved that the citizen of Azerbaijan is at the center of its social policy. In the near future, assistance will be provided to employees of business entities mostly affected by the pandemic. Apart from that, a Fund to Support Fight Against Coronavirus was established. It should be emphasized that there was no problem for the state to fully finance this fund. By contributing to the fund, the people of Azerbaijan have had the opportunity to show solidarity with each other and their country in these difficult times, and this is a positive example too.

From the very first days, Azerbaijan has been cooperating with WHO in the fight against COVID-19, and invited experts from the organization to pay a visit to the country. The recommendations reflected in the mission's report are taken into consideration by the relevant government agencies. At the same time, demonstrating global solidarity, Azerbaijan provided voluntary financial assistance to the WHO in the global fight against coronavirus.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
We are in the midst of a social sea change and how we live and work going forward is evolving before our eyes.

Financial introductory platform Hedge Connection announced today a renewed commitment to their virtual events program. The firm has been fielding an explosion of enquiries by potential clients as the realities of conducting business virtually, combined with the necessity of building new relationships, portend geometric user growth.

Over the past twelve months, Hedge Connection has completed four virtual cap-intro events with over 750 managers and 550 allocators participating. The latest event, with over 235 participants including 114 funds and 122 investors, saw 520 interactions. A new administration tool displays real-time engagement tracking of the phone meetings, distribution list requests and downloads of marketing materials occurring during the event. This new software also provides a comprehensive look into the investment needs of the participating investors, such as their strategies of interest, amount they have invested in funds, geographic location and many other analytics. Taken together, the new reporting empowers the event host with a snapshot of the current alternatives landscape.

We are in the midst of a social sea change and how we live and work going forward is evolving before our eyes, says Hedge connection CEO Lisa Vioni. As the weeks go on, we see that we can efficiently work from home while interacting virtually. When life goes back to normal we will find that the psychology of what it means to work remotely will be permanently altered creating a more productive and versatile workforce

Our company is located outside the New York hub of hedge funds, so being able to use Hedge Connections virtual cap-intro platform to connect with a wide variety of managers was hugely beneficial, said Steve Adang, CIO of Anchor Pacific Investment Management Corp., a recent participant in a virtual cap-intro event. I found the system to be easy to use and we were able to analyze a relatively large sample of hedge fund returns to determine which ones we wanted to connect with  all in all, we ended up connecting with 15-20 managers through Hedge Connections virtual summit.

Hedge Connections virtual events utilize their patented online investor-introduction system. Prime brokers, administrators, and other large institutions can license a SaaS solution to facilitate connections between their private fund manager clients and qualified investors. Over the past 15 years, Hedge Connection has helped thousands of managers get connected to tens of billions of dollars within a legally compliant platform. The company stated that they have several more virtual events scheduled for 2020 and that they are investing heavily into additional technology that will include video, chat rooms and live streaming.

About Hedge Connection

Founded in 2005, Hedge Connection is an established patented platform that connects financial products and allocators online and through events. The highly regarded brand has attracted thousands of financial institutions, entrepreneurs, and investors from around the world since inception.
Kenneth Kponor, Volta Regional Director of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has appealed to the public to consider the threat of the novel coronavirus disease to human existence, and fully support efforts towards curbing its spread.



He said the Commission had observed the slow response to measures being implemented by stakeholders, and also the lack of cooperation on the stay-at-home directive, and mandatory quarantine directives.



The Director who was speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said market women, in particular, ignored the gravity of the pandemic, and responded scornfully to sensitization efforts, although they rendered essential services and were always in close contact with the public.



Market women are not taking the pandemic seriously. They scorn efforts to educate them, and some are even asking customers to remove their masks. It is not encouraging people to do what they must do to end the spread of the virus, he said.



Mr Kponor said all must take the health crisis seriously, and adhere religiously to the advice of experts.



I want to believe that everybody is doing his or her best to help end the spread. We must not be ignorant of the enormity of the crisis".



If Italy, with all the health infrastructure, loses not less than 700 people a day, then we must not allow it to spread, least it overwhelms us.



Stay at home please. If you dont have anything to do, please stay at home, he said.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) London, United Kingdom  Thu, April 2, 2020 10:06 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f134fa 2 World UK,assault-case,coronavirus,joke,prank,COVID-19 Free

A man who coughed on a police officer and threatened to infect him with coronavirus was on Wednesday sentenced to six months in jail in Britain, a police statement said.

Adam Lewis, 55, was sentenced under a specific law governing assaults against emergency workers, which was introduced in November 2018 and carries a maximum jail term of 12 months.

He was stopped after allegedly trying the door handles of cars in central London on Tuesday afternoon, by a policeman who then tried to stop and search him.

Lewis smashed a bottle of wine he was holding on the floor and then verbally threatened the officer, according to a statement from London's Metropolitan Police.

"I am COVID [19 positive] and I am going to cough in your face and you will get it," he reportedly said, before coughing on the police officer.

Lewis then tried to spit in the officer's face and threatened to bite him, the Met said.

He was arrested and appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.

Chief Superintendent Helen Harper said: "While these type of assaults are thankfully a rare occurrence, this incident was horrendous and if we do encounter this type of unacceptable behavior we will be robust in our response.

"I hope the sentence today conveys a strong message that it will not be tolerated."
A medical worker directs a patient to enter a COVID-19 testing site at Elmhurst Hospital Center on Wednesday, in New York. Gov. Andrew Cuomo sounded his most dire warning yet about the coronavirus pandemic Tuesday, saying the infection rate in New York is accelerating and the state could be as close as two weeks away from a crisis that sees 40,000 people in intensive care. Such a surge would overwhelm hospitals, which now have just 3,000 intensive care unit beds statewide. Read more

Hope Hallidays daughter  pregnant with her second child  arrived from Brooklyn last week with her husband and 4-year-old son. The young family sought refuge at Hallidays home in Delaware County as coronavirus overruns hospitals in the New York City metropolitan area.

We came down here in hopes of finding a place to have the baby that was safe, said Hallidays daughter, who is 42 and 7 months pregnant.

But she has struggled to find prenatal care. Every OB-GYN practice she called in the Philadelphia region turned her away. Office managers said they werent taking any new patients from New York, the national epicenter of the virus.

I basically cant get in with anyone, she said Tuesday night from her mothers house in Media. I understand that our name is mud as New Yorkers right now and that everyone is scared of this virus, but theres other ways to deal with it besides that. It seems unethical to blanketly state that we are not going to try to help you at all."

Hallidays daughter declined to allow The Inquirer to use her name because her husband was afraid that speaking out would make it harder for them to find an obstetrician. The couple have talked to an Abington doctor who may accept her as a patient. They also may go back to New York, she said Thursday.

She is part of an influx of pregnant women who have fled New York to hunker down with relatives and friends in the Philadelphia region, where the virus has yet to hit its peak.

Joseph M. Gobern, chair of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Main Line Health, said the uptick of pregnant women from New York seeking care from practitioners across his systems four hospitals began about seven to 10 days ago.

We had a number of inquiries by phone of patients who were transferring or intending to transfer their care out of New York, Gobern said Thursday. So thats when we decided to determine what is the best guidance that we have from both our public health state and local officials to ensure the safety of these patients, our staff and our [current] patients as well.

Gobern said he quickly sent guidelines to obstetricians within Main Line Health, advising them that any new patients from New York or other hard-hit coronavirus areas must self-quarantine for 14 days prior to an in-person visit. He advised the same for their support partner, who will be allowed to stay with the mom during labor and delivery, as long as they are properly screened and symptom-free.

Expectant moms began seeking refuge last month after two major New York City hospital networks  New York-Presbyterian and Mount Sinai  banned partners from accompanying women in labor during births. The ban, which was intended to stop the spread of COVID-19, sparked public outcry and stories of women sobbing as their partners dropped them off at hospital lobby doors.

 HELP US REPORT: Are you a health care worker, medical provider, government worker, patient, frontline worker or other expert? We want to hear from you.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo overturned the ban by executive order March 28, but then President Donald Trump said he was considering a quarantine for the entire New York City-metro area. Although Trump decided against doing so, his words prompted more pregnant women to migrate out of the area.

The fear among some pregnant women of giving birth at hospitals swamped with highly contagious COVID-19 patients and faced with drastic staff shortages and an alarming lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) has also kindled additional interest in home births, according to Ray Rachlin, a certified professional midwife and owner of Refuge Midwifery in West Philadelphia.

Ive never in my life experienced the amount of calls and emails that I have in the last few weeks, Rachlin said Wednesday. Ive had five interviews today  three of them due in the next six weeks. Its unprecedented."

Just this week, Rachlin said she took on a new client from New York City who is already halfway through her pregnancy.

Theres this feeling among the folks from New York that this is not going to end anytime soon and this feeling of not wanting to go back, Rachlin said. I do think its very hard to access prenatal care right now.

Hallidays daughter said she initially tried to get an appointment with Scott Bailey, an OB-GYN with Main Line Health in Wynnewood, but was told the practice wasnt taking any New York transfers. Main Line Health spokesperson Bridget Therriault, echoing Gobern, said its providers will take transfers, with the caveat that they self-quarantine for 14 days prior to coming in.

Depending on what the volume is with that particular practice, it may differ a little bit, but generally speaking, as a health system, we are certainly going to care for anybody that is in our region and needs that care," Therriault said Wednesday.

Hallidays daughter said she also called Penn Medicine Ob/Gyn Associates at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. The woman who answered the phone said the practice was not accepting patient transfers from COVID-19 hot spots. She called another Penn Medicine obstetricians office and got the same answer.

In response to an inquiry from The Inquirer, Deborah Driscoll, a physician and senior vice president for the Clinical Practices of the University of Pennsylvania, wrote in an email, As COVID-19 cases increase across the United States, we understand that pregnant women may seek alternative arrangements for prenatal care and the birth of their babies.

At Penn Medicine, we are mindful of our obligation to safely care for obstetrical patients already receiving care in our health system, and to maintain capacity for critically ill pregnant patients, including those with COVID-19 complications, and other high-risk pregnancies requiring medically necessary transfers, Driscoll said. For that reason, we have developed guidance for our obstetricians to evaluate requests for transfers of care by women in their third trimester of pregnancy.

A Penn Medicine spokesperson declined to provide a reporter with a copy of virus-related guidance distributed to its obstetricians.

Robert Field, a professor of law and health management at Drexel University, said hospitals and doctors are not legally required to take new patients from different states.

Legally, a doctor is within their rights to not take a new patient, as long as its not for a discriminatory reason  its not because of their race or their religion, or disability, Field said. Ethically, its a little bit murkier. You could say they have an obligation to be available, but I suppose the response could be that she could pose a threat to other patients.
Tokyo, April 2 : Researchers have discovered single-celled creatures living deep beneath the seafloor -- in tiny cracks inside volcanic rocks millions of years old -- that can give us clues about life on Mars.

Researchers estimate that the rock cracks are home to a community of bacteria as dense as that of the human gut, about 10 billion bacterial cells per cubic centimeter (0.06 cubic inch).

In contrast, the average density of bacteria living in mud sediment on the seafloor is estimated to be 100 cells per cubic centimeter.

"I am now almost over-expecting that I can find life on Mars. If not, it must be that life relies on some other process that Mars does not have, like plate tectonics," said Associate Professor Yohey Suzuki from University of Tokyo, referring to the movement of land masses around Earth most notable for causing earthquakes.

"I thought it was a dream, seeing such rich microbial life in rocks," Suzuki added.

Undersea volcanoes spew out lava at approximately 1,200 degrees Celsius which eventually cracks as it cools down and becomes rock.

The cracks are narrow, often less than 1 millimeter (0.04 inch) across.

Over millions of years, those cracks fill up with clay minerals, the same clay used to make pottery. Somehow, bacteria find their way into those cracks and multiply.

"These cracks are a very friendly place for life. Clay minerals are like a magic material on Earth; if you can find clay minerals, you can almost always find microbes living in them," Suzuki said in a paper published in Communications Biology.

The microbes identified in the cracks are aerobic bacteria, meaning they use a process similar to how human cells make energy, relying on oxygen and organic nutrients.

Suzuki and his colleagues discovered the bacteria in rock samples that he helped collect in late 2010 during the Integrated Ocean Drilling Programme (IODP).

The research ship anchored above three locations along the route across the South Pacific Gyre and used a metal tube 5.7 kms long to reach the ocean floor.

Then, a drill cut down 125 meters below the seafloor and pulled out core samples, each about 6.2 centimeters across.

The rock samples were estimated to be 13.5 million, 33.5 million and 104 million years old.

"The collection sites were not near any hydrothermal vents or sub-seafloor water channels, so researchers are confident the bacteria arrived in the cracks independently rather than being forced in by a current," the study said.

The clay minerals filling cracks in deep ocean rocks are likely similar to the minerals that may be in rocks now on the surface of Mars.

Suzuki's research team is beginning a collaboration with NASA's Johnson Space Center to design a plan to examine rocks collected from the Martian surface by rovers.
The COVID-19 pandemic has paused the United States economy, resulting in historic levels of unemployment, and its unclear how easily the light switch can be turned back on, say Purdue University economists who specialize in public policy and labor markets. (Photo by Tim Mossholder from Pexels)

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.  The COVID-19 pandemic has paused the United States economy and resulted in historic levels of unemployment, and its unclear how easily the light switch can be turned back on, say Purdue University economists who specialize in public policy and labor markets.

Malls and department stores  including Simon Property Group, the nations largest mall owner, as well as Macys, Kohls and other retailers  furloughed hundreds of thousands of workers while moving to online-only sales. Automobile and airline manufacturers, meanwhile, have temporarily shuttered operations.

A record 3.3 million Americans filed unemployment claims in the week ending on March 21, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. In Indiana, 120,331 people filed unemployment claims last week, compared with 2,312 two weeks ago, according to the Indianapolis Business Journal.

The upcoming federal unemployment report on Thursday (April 2) will likely be worse, says Kevin Mumford, an associate professor in the Krannert School of Management and the Kozuch Director of the Purdue University Research Center in Economics. In a normal week, the country sees about 200,000 claims, he said.

Relief in the form of direct payments to every U.S. taxpayer, as part of the recent $2 trillion stimulus package, will allow recently furloughed and laid-off workers to make their rent and mortgage payments. But the money is unlikely to be spent on non-essential goods and recreational activities, which wont help to offset the cascading economic effects of nationwide lockdowns, Mumford said.

People are spending a lot less, he says. Is the reason that they dont have enough money, or is the reason that they are following the instruction to stay at home? Direct payments will not have a large effect on aggregate demand but should instead be thought of as social insurance.

When commerce is allowed to resume for all sectors, its unclear which jobs will still be there, says Timothy Bond, an associate professor in the Krannert School who specializes in labor economics. Certain industries that are temporarily offline are recession resistant and will quickly bounce back, Bond says, such as elective surgeries, dentistry, optometry, weddings, funerals and professional sports.

But thats a small portion of the economy, he says. A lot of middle- and low-wage earners are in industries that are not going to be easy to turn back on, such as the restaurant and durable goods industries.

Some workers may never return to the labor force, says Timothy Moore, an associate professor in the Krannert School who specializes in health economics and social insurance programs. In recessions and periods of high unemployment, the number of people filing disability applications tends to increase, and the rate of people retiring could also rise, Moore says.

If people get sucked out of the labor force now, either through retirement or through disability claims, that can lead to permanent exits in labor force participation that can last for many years, he says. Someone who is 62 years old might decide to retire and claim social security. Someone who is 40 years old, whos got some health conditions, might decide to claim disability now, and then theyre highly unlikely to return to the labor force, even if it gets better in a few years time.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to todays toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 6 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at purdue.edu.

Writer: Joseph Paul, paul102@purdue.edu (working remotely but will provide immediate response)

Sources: Kevin Mumford, mumford@purdue.edu (available for phone and Skype interviews)

Timothy Bond, bond10@purdue.edu (available for phone and Skype interviews)

Timothy Moore, moore839@purdue.edu (available for phone and Skype interviews)
Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is requesting that international financial organisations provide debt moratorium or debt deferment facilities to developing nations such as Sri Lanka, which are adversely affected due to the new coronavirus.

Rajapaksa made the request on Wednesday during a telephone discussion with the Director-General of the World Health Organisation, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Rajapaksa requested Ghebreyesus to speak with the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, president of the World Bank, president of the Asian Development Bank and leaders of the leading bilateral lending nations "to provide debt moratorium or debt re-profiling facilities for vulnerable developing countries like Sri Lanka whose economies depend on tourism, exports, remittances and foreign investment in debt and equity markets".

Ghebreyesus said on Twitter that he discussed with Rajapaksa the health and economic impacts COVID-19 can have on Sri Lanka and the whole region.

"I thanked him for mobilizing the whole-of-government in the fight against the coronavirus," he added.

Sri Lanka has imposed a curfew since March 20, locking down the whole country and banning nonessential travel. Police are strictly enforcing the law and have arrested thousands who have violated the curfew regulations.

Two people have so far died due to COVID-19 while there are 142 positive cases.

The coronavirus has dealt a severe blow to the country's lucrative tourism and garment industries.
The US has agreed to buy from Russia ventilators, medical supplies and other personal protection equipment needed to treat patients infected with Covid-19, a top official has said, as the country wrestles with the coronavirus pandemic that the White House has warned could kill up to two lakh people during the next fortnight.

The move to buy from Russia comes after a telephonic conversation between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on March 30.

Follow latest updates on coronavirus here

As a follow-up to the March 30 phone call between President Trump and President Putin, the United States has agreed to purchase needed medical supplies, including ventilators and personal protection equipment, from Russia, which were handed over to FEMA on April 1 in New York City. State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said on Wednesday.

Both the countries have provided humanitarian assistance to each other in times of crisis in the past and will no doubt do so again in the future, she said.

Also read| How do we know: US Prez Trump casts doubt on Chinese coronavirus figures

This is a time to work together to overcome a common enemy that threatens the lives of all of us, she added.

The countries of the G20 agreed last week to work together to defeat the coronavirus, and we are working closely with these countries and others to ensure that critically needed supplies get to those in need, Ortagus said.

The United States is committed to the global fight against Covid-19, she said, adding that the US is a generous and reliable contributor to crisis response and humanitarian action across the world.

But we cannot do it alone, Ortagus noted.

President Trump told reporters on Tuesday that the US was headed for a very tough two weeks, advising people to be prepared for the hard days ahead, as the country is at war with the deadly coronavirus pandemic that the White House projects could claim one to two lakh lives during the next fortnight.

Click here for complete coronavirus coverage

Deborah Bix, a member of White House Task Force on coronavirus, based on a model from actual data from the ground, said the death toll in the US could be between 100,000 to 200,000, with the strict implementation of the existing mitigation measures including social distancing till April 30.

Across the United States, hospitals are facing shortages of ventilators.

Some medical device makers have agreed to ramp up supplies. But because patients diagnosed with or suspected to have Covid-19 often require breathing support, there is widespread concern that these devices wont be developed and shipped quickly enough.

A total of 932,605 Covid-19 cases have been reported across more than 175 countries and territories with 16,809 deaths reported so far, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

The US has reported 213,372 Covid-19 cases, the highest in the world, and over 5,000 people have died due to the disease.
When an international student from east Asia boarded a Capital District Transportation Authority bus in February, a group of passengers started pushing her around.

Get that coronavirus out of here! they yelled at her.

She got off the bus and broke down into tears.

As coronavirus has spread from China to the rest of the world, infecting and killing hundreds of thousands of people in its path, Capital Region residents from Asia are ready for the public health crisis, donating shipments of medical supplies and monetary assistance to local hospitals and agencies. But they're also bracing for the xenophobia, racism and discrimination that has spread with the disease.

My gut instinct told me this is going to continue to compound the anti-Asian sentiment that has always existed, but that no one really talks about, said Amy Zhang, an undergraduate student at University at Albany who works at the multicultural resource center. I had a feeling that (coronavirus) was going to be racialized.

Here we go

Ho Kwan Cheung has been extra vigilant about keeping her distance from people when she goes grocery shopping  especially when she notices people giving her weird looks and backing away from her.

You see other people and theyre not doing the same thing to them, said Cheung, a UAlbany professor who is Chinese American.

Zhang said shes been avoiding going grocery shopping due to menacing looks she's gotten, and the experiences others have shared with her.

It started with a coronavirus-themed party UAlbany students threw off campus at the beginning of the year, which garnered criticism from the Asian Student Alliance and university officials. As COVID-19 became more present in the U.S., Capital Region residents of Asian heritage reported people reaching for their hand sanitizer upon seeing them, giving them dirty looks if they cough or sneeze, and physically and verbally harassing them in public spaces like the bus.

Theres not much surprise that racism and xenophobia have been on the rise with coronavirus  Zhang said it was her first concern, aside from public health safety, after hearing about the pandemic.

Theres a history of anti-Asian sentiments under the guise of medical concerns, said Cheung. Theres this concept that, You guys eat weird things and therefore propagate these disease issues.

Ji-Won Lee, a UAlbany Ph.D student from South Korea, said he noticed a stark difference in how he was being received in public about three weeks ago. Suddenly, people seemed more cold toward him. And when he and other Asian friends started wearing masks in public before the safety protocol began trending, he noticed it made people uncomfortable.

I just brought the mask and tried to play by ear, Lee said. If I see people wearing the mask, I'm going to wear it. If people dont, Im not going to wear it.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

And even though some agree the region has not seen racism as bad as other cities in the U.S., the videos and stories that have circulated through social media have been enough to cause distress.

It affects us when we see them, said Lily Miaw, a member of the Chinese Community Center. Even the few its scary, because you dont know whats going to happen.

A community response

Feng Chen and other local Chinese immigrants have been hyper vigilant about coronavirus well before it entered the American sphere, paying attention to how the disease was affecting their families back home.

Community members banded together to donate money and medical supplies to China to help them combat the disease and treat the infected. Then, the U.S. had its first cases of COVID-19, and they pivoted toward local efforts.

Thanks to a connection with a certified manufacturer of N95 masks in China, Chen began shipping masks to the U.S. for local donations. So far, hes distributed about 8,000 masks to local hospitals, physician clinics and his local Niskayuna Police Department.

The Asian community can be the bridge to help with what works the best (to combat the disease) in our community here, Chen said. We can share the lessons we learned from China, Japan, Korea, we can bring the best practices to fight and protect ourselves to the local community here.

Miaw said the Chinese Community Center has so far distributed over 17,000 masks to local hospitals and law enforcement agencies, and has raised roughly $50,000 to donate.

As far as our community is concerned, every time something happens we always jump up to try to do something, Miaw said. "It makes things easier for everybody."
Home Depot has ordered all 2,300 of its stores in North America to stop sales of N95 masks to try to free them up for those on the front lines of the coronavirus emergency response, the company said on Wednesday.

The announcement came on the same day that President Trump said that the federal governments stockpile of personal protective equipment had nearly been depleted by the states.

The demand for masks, gowns, face shields and gloves has skyrocketed during the spread of the virus, which has killed at least 4,726 people and sickened more than 209,000 in the United States.

The frantic competition for supplies has resulted in a number of high-profile episodes of hoarding and price-gouging. It has drawn scrutiny to retailers that sell personal protective equipment, commonly known as P.P.E.
Midland County added three new positive cases of coronavirus on Thursday, bringing the total to 15 cases, according to a state report released Thursday afternoon.

Bay County recorded six new cases, bringing its total to 16. Isabella County added one case and now is at 8, with Saginaw County adding 11 new cases, bringing its total to 82. Gladwin County did not record any new cases.

Midland County Public Health Director/Health Officer Fred Yanoski told the Daily News this week that federal health officials expect the pandemic to continue to worsen in the next few weeks and said "the behaviors of our society will impact the severity of disease."

The state added 1,457 new cases, down from Wednesday's high of 1,719. The state reported 80 deaths Thursday and 78 on Wednesday.

Overall, Michigan stands at 10,791 positive coronavirus cases, with 417 deaths. Southeast Michigan remains the hot spot with Detroit City reporting 2,858 cases with 101 deaths; Wayne County, 2,211 and 93 deaths; Oakland County, 2,183 and 119 deaths and Macomb County at 1,332 and 58 deaths.

Here in Midland, MidMichigan Health remains in good standing in terms of supplies and capacity, however, leaders continue to meet daily to address the rapidly changing situations, said Lydia Watson, chief medical officer and senior vice president at MidMichigan Health.

We have an incident command team that is meeting on a daily basis and were monitoring how many positives do we have in the community; whos been showing up in our emergency departments and being admitted to our hospital; and we are working on surge plans right now so that as the volume increases, we know how to ramp up and be ready to take care of a larger number of patients, Watson said in the hospitals latest Health Dose Podcast.

Watson said one way they are conserving supplies and resources is postponing elective surgeries, procedures, and lab work in situations where it won't harm the patient to wait.

As of Wednesday morning, April 1, MidMichigan Health had completed 777 coronavirus tests, of which 24 returned as positive cases throughout the system, which includes Midland, Alpena, West Branch, Clare, Gladwin, Alma and Mount Pleasant. However, of the total, there are 172 pending test results.

The number of people being tested fluctuates daily, however, this week on Tuesday, in a 24-hour period, 48 people were tested from across the whole health system. These tests include inpatients and those coming to the Emergency Departments and Urgent Care locations, as well as Ambulatory Testing Centers.

The state limits who can be tested down to six criteria, which were established in efforts to try and preserve supplies and to maintain capacity for labs to process results.

The six criteria are:

 Hospitalized patients

 Symptomatic healthcare workers

 Patients in long-term care facilities with symptoms

 Patients 65 years of age and older with symptoms

 Patients with underlying conditions with symptoms

 First responders with symptoms

So, if not everyone is being tested, then how many people are actually sick and symptomatic? Watson explained this is a difficult number to calculate, since at MidMichigan Health, they are asking people to call for screenings before they ever step foot on hospital property. The screenings are done by phone and through MidMichigans new virtual clinic system.

So, if they call, even if theyve had travel and even if theyve had mild symptoms, we may not tell them to come in, Watson said. So, if we tell them to come, its usually because we have a slightly higher risk associated with the answers that theyve given us and so by the time that they come to us, theres probably a little higher probability that theyre actually going to get a specimen collected and sent for testing.

Still, not all of the people who are asked to come in get tested, Watson added, and of the people who do get tested, a minority are hospitalized.

Currently, MidMichigan Health is in good standing when it comes to supplies and capacity. The hospitals are getting allotted shipments of things such as masks, gowns, gloves, and other personal protection equipment, enough to keep up with current demands.

However, Watson mentioned in MidMichigans Health Dose Podcast published on Wednesday that the situation is changing rapidly from day to day and that the supplies could deplete if there is a surge in sick patients.

We have enough at the moment, but even though today were fine, there are concerns that if there is a surge thats quicker than expected or quicker than we get supplies, that we could be short of some of those things, she said.

She said specifically, the supplies with the lowest stock are small-sized N95 respirators and medical protective gowns.

However, Watson said because all the hospitals in MidMichigans Health system are communicating daily, they are prepared to share supplies and employees when and if needed.

In the podcast, Watson also talks about the use of Malaria pharmaceuticals and how the hospitals are prepared to bring on more employees, if needed. Listen to the full Health Dose Podcast here: https://soundcloud.com/midmichigan-health/midmichigan-health-gives-an-update-on-covid-19.
Sa-Rang Community Church, located in Anaheim, CA, held a teaching conference for church staff in the education department on April 18, at Sa-Rang's Kingdom Dream Center (KDC). Some 250 staff from both Korean- and English-speaking departments were present, and four speakers were featured: Justin Suh, the CEO of Compassion Korea; Linda Pyun, who formerly taught education at Azusa Pacific University; Sang Nathan Yun, from Yun Law Firm, Inc.; and Alice Lee Choi, who teaches at Fairmont Preparatory Academy. Though sessions were divided into two for Korean and English speakers, the same speakers were featured in both sessions.

Justin Suh, who also has a Ph.D. in Christian Education from Talbot School of Theology, shared four principles teachers can follow to change students' lives.

First, he said, teachers must teach with conviction, and pointed to 2 Timothy 3:16-17, which says, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work."

"God wants to touch our hearts first through the Word and the work of the Holy Spirit," Suh said. "And every moment you spend with His people, take it as a divine moment that God wants to use to minister to each individual."

Second, he said, "teach with passion."

"Did you know it's our passion that motivates our students?" Suh said, and quoted John Wesley, who said, "When you set yourself on fire, people love to come and see you burn."

Suh then expanded on the third point--to teach with preparation. He mentioned that there are five aspects of preparation: preparing your heart and mind; preparing the content; preparing the presentation; preparing the meeting place; and preparing the learners.

"When we prepare on Saturday evening or Sunday morning, we don't have enough time to digest the content or apply it into our own lives," Suh said, and encouraged teachers to prepare in advance, even as early as Sunday night or Monday, and to spent the rest of the week asking God to make the lesson real in each teacher's life.

Finally, Suh said, "teach with love."

"It's impossible for us to be able to love them like Christ does," Suh said, "but we can pray each morning, 'I want to be Your little Jesus,' and ask God to help us to love them."

"Do we want our students to be offensive or defensive players?" said Suh. "Let's teach and pray that they would grow to be more radical and actively desire to be used by God. And let us win the world for Jesus Christ by winning one soul at a time, by the ministry and the work of the Holy Spirit."

Sang Nathan Yun, who has had experience leading workplace harassment and bullying training sessions during his time working at Samsung for over ten years, and Alice Lee Choi shared certain policies that employees of workplaces and schools are required to follow as guidelines for church teachers as well. Yun focused primarily on prevention of harassment and bullying, and Choi focused on safe teaching practices and keeping safe boundaries, especially with minors.

Linda Pyun, who also serves in Sa-Rang's family ministry, expanded on how to deal with difficult students. Pyun noted that oftentimes, the difficulties that arise in class might come from the teacher's personal issues, such as a lack of preparation, a lack of teaching skills, or built up stress in the teacher's life from other circumstances. Pyun also cited Dreikurs' theory on children's misbehavior, which, he said, often comes from children's mistaken goals, such as wanting attention, wanting power, wanting revenge, or wanting encouragement.

"One of the effective ways that teachers can respond to these mistaken goals is to give attention to the child when they do something good, rather than when they're misbehaving," Pyun said. "The child will think, 'Oh, I get attention when I do something right.' And avoid fighting with the child or retaliating to win the child over, but instead affirm and encourage the child,'" she said.

Sa-Rang has been hosting teaching conferences for its staff for over 10 years, and out of a total of 370 teachers, this year's conference had the greatest turnout, according to Pastor Jeremy Kwun, the director of the education department at Sa-Rang.

Kwun added that many smaller churches who lack the resources to offer similar workshops for their teachers have been reaching out to Sa-Rang regarding its teaching conferences, and Sa-Rang plans to begin opening up its annual teaching conferences to other churches starting next year.
Citing First Amendment, outspoken minority of pastors refuse to close churches amid pandemic

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Citing First Amendment rights, an outspoken minority of pastors across the country are resisting calls from federal and local government authorities to close their churches amid the new coronavirus pandemic despite facing fines and arrests.

Some legal experts, however, disagree with using the First Amendment as a defense for disobeying government authorities in the throes of a pandemic.

On Monday, pastor Rodney Howard-Browne, leader of Revival International Ministries and The River at Tampa Bay Church in Florida, became the first high-profile pastor in the burgeoning movement to insist his First Amendment rights were being violated after he was arrested for leading two large worship services on Sunday.

Howard-Browne was charged with unlawful assembly and violation of public health emergency rules  both second degree misdemeanors  for intentionally and repeatedly hosting church services with hundreds of members in attendance, despite knowing he was in violation of a stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Ron DeSantis for South Florida, the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office said.

With legal help from the Liberty Counsel, a nonprofit litigation firm, Howard-Browne has decided to fight the charges.

I know the sheriff said we cant hide behind the First Amendment, but we can because I was sworn in as a citizen of the Constitutional Republic of the United States and I raised my hand to pledge to defend the Constitution of America against enemies foreign and domestic, he said during a Facebook Live broadcast Monday night. The nation is under attack and whatever you give up this side youll never get it back.

He argued that it makes no sense that churches are being closed while stores like Walmart, Costco and Lowes Home Improvement were being allowed to operate. Restaurants, he highlighted, are also being allowed to serve takeout despite a clear risk of spreading the virus.

As long as you can keep Lowe's open and Walmart open and Costco and every other place and you go in there, talk about social distancing. I mean its insane. Theres so many holes in this thing. Even the people who deliver the food  how do you know where the foods been cooked? Whos making it? How do you know that they dont have the virus? he asked.

Somebody said, 'Well, theyre gonna catch it at the church.' I beg to differ, theyre at church one Sunday morning and six-and-a-half days a week theyre everywhere else. How do you know it wasnt the last trolley where you put your groceries in that wasnt infected? How do you know it wasnt the last restroom you went into? You dont actually know. I know America is fighting with each other right now, which its the whole narrative man. Divide and conquer, he said.

The Rev. Tony Spell of Life Tabernacle church in Central, Louisiana, was also hit with a summons for the misdemeanor charge of violating Gov. John Bel Edwards' March 16 order against gatherings of more than 50 people.

If convicted, Spell could face a fine of $500 and up to six months in jail, Central Assistant Police Chief Darren Sibley said in a Los Angeles Times report.

He was very compliant. He signed the summons with no resistance, Sibley said of Spells response to the summons delivered Tuesday. He prayed for us before we left.

Spell said he is not ashamed of being charged with violating the governor's stay-at-home order.

Never been more proud to be persecuted for the faith like my Savior, he said of the charge against him which includes six counts  one for every time he held a gathering since the governors order.

Howard-Browne and Spell are not alone in their conviction that churches should be allowed to stay open to conduct business as usual during the coronavirus pandemic.

A private test poll of 226 pastors conducted by Barna Research on March 2023 showed that while a vast majority of pastors, 67%, have opted to close their churches to observe social distancing orders in light of the pandemic, 5% said their churches will remain open as normal. Another 17% said they plan on staying open for small gatherings or meetings, and 11% will remain open to offer crisis services.

On Sunday, Erik Meares of Evangel Bible College in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, livestreamed a confrontation on Facebook between members of a church who were not practicing social distancing and state police.

The Rev. Alvin Gwynn Sr., the outspoken, 74-year-old leader of Friendship Baptist Church in Baltimore, Maryland, told The Baltimore Sun that he has no plans of canceling his church services despite a directive from Gov. Larry Hogan issued on March 19 limiting the size of gatherings in the state to 10 people or fewer.

He said while he was preaching to 10 worshipers on Sunday four patrol cars containing eight or nine officers attempted to enter his church building but his security guards kept them out until he was done.

You should have seen it, man, it looked like a police raid on a drug deal, Gwynn said.

He explained that he will continue to abide by the 10 person limit for his services on a first-come, first-served basis, even for Easter, because he believes in the First Amendment.

Remember, we have the First Amendment, which guarantees our most fundamental rights, he said.

Can the state stop people from coming out of their homes to worship? Its a constitutional question. Congress cant make laws governing worship or peaceful assembly. Our democracy wouldnt be here if we didnt have those rights, he added.

James G. Hodge, director of the Center for Public Health Law and Policy at Arizona State University, an affiliate of the Network for Public Health Law, told McClatchy News in a recent interview that during a pandemic, asking churches to limit physical meetings is a legal request.

You dont have a right to assemble against the backdrop of known public health risk, Hodge said.

He explained that officials typically have to go through legal processes to close an establishment or shut down public gatherings, but under a state of emergency everything is expedited.

Its not that we dont have time for First Amendment interests, its that we must act fast, he said. What was opened today can be closed tomorrow.

On a call with the heads of the nations largest historically black religious denominations and other faith leaders in the wake of the recent arrests of pastors, civil rights leader Al Sharpton urged them to not hold church services as Palm Sunday and Easter approaches.

I have been arrested over 30 times for civil rights and civil disobedience  twice for 90 days and another 45 days for standing up for peoples civil and human rights. These separate incidents involving leaders of faith putting peoples lives in danger is not a matter of civil or human rights, nor is it a statement of faith. It is self-aggrandizing, reckless behavior of those Shepherds who would risk their sheep rather than lead their sheep, Sharpton said in a statement Wednesday.

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins also responded to churches that have continued to gather as the coronavirus pandemic moves across the county, calling their action a defiance of common sense.

At this point, holding public church gatherings in the midst of a public health crisis is not a defense of religious freedom  it is a defiance of common sense and the care of your congregation. Spread the Good News, not the virus! tweeted Perkins, whose organization works "to advance faith, family and freedom in public policy and the culture from a Christian worldview."

Perkins statement came in the wake of a recent report by The Christian Post about 43 members of The Life Church of Glenview, Illinois, falling ill and at least 10 of them later testing positive for the coronavirus after a revival service in March.
As India faces a severe shortage of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) testing kits, Mylab Discovery Solutions, the first Indian company whose testing kit was approved by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), has tied up with Serum Institute of India, worlds largest vaccine manufacturer by number of doses produced, to scale up the operations and escalate faster delivery of testing kits.

Pune-based molecular diagnostics company Mylab Discovery Solutions Pvt Ltd has partnered with Serum Institute of Indias CEO Adar Poonawalla and Abhijit Pawar, Chairman of AP Globale. Funds invested will be used for scaling production of COVID-19 testing kits and expansion of molecular diagnostic solutions, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

AP Globale, a positive impact business solutions company, will be helping Mylabs scale its operations within India and globally. Abhijit Pawar, chairman of APG, will be joining the board of the company.

Many of the 51 private labs approved by the ICMR for Covid-19 testing in the country have not been able to conduct tests as per their capacity and demand because of the shortage of kits.

The kits are in short supply; the orders are getting delayed and, as a result, we are not able to conduct tests. The manufacturers are overburdened, said Dr Naveen Dang, founder, Delhis Dr Dangs Lab, one of the first private labs to have received ICMR approval for testing.

From the day the first batch of private labs was given approval on March 21, all of them put together so far have done about 1500 tests.

With the tie-up, in the next few weeks, the production of kits is likely to be ramped up from the number that currently can perform about 150,000 test kits per week to at least 20 lakh tests per week.

The shortage of testing kits will come to an end in a month or two, said Serum Institute of Indias CEO Adar Poonawalla.

Mylab is the first Indian company to get commercial approval for its testing kits called Mylab PathoDetect COVID-19 Qualitative PCR kit.

The testing kits that get endorsed by the ICMR are further approved by Indian FDA or Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) for manufacture, sale and distribution in India.

Global innovation is the need of the hour to curb this pandemic that has affected millions across the world. The need for the maintenance and manufacturing of medical and healthcare equipment at the pace required to keep the numbers at bay has never been more important. Mylabs and their team have shown exceptionally innovative capabilities when they were able to develop a time-saving testing kit within 6-weeks of its outbreak. Keeping in mind their resilient approach and quick response, I am certain that the company has a variety of similar innovation-driven projects which will help bring drastic improvements in the healthcare sector. The investment towards Mylab will enable them to build their infrastructure and expand their capabilities further, said Poonawalla.

The Mylab manufacturing facility, approved by FDA/CDSCO is compliant with MDR 2017 regulation for Manufacturing Medical Device of Class A,B,C and D and ISO 13485: 2016 certification, said the company statement.

Sujit Jain, director, Mylab, said, This will help Mylabs create a world class organization, which will help India become a leader in molecular diagnostics.

The ICMR has so far validated four PCR-based testing kits that have not had US FDA or European CE approvals. The US FDA and CE endorsed kits are already eligible for use. However, for the rest, ICMR recommends usage after thorough evaluation.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

Azerbaijan Banks Association (ABA) made a statement based on the announcement by the country's leadership on the priority of protecting public health in Azerbaijan, as well as relevant decisions of the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers in connection with the rapid spread of coronavirus infection in countries around the world, Trend reports.

According to the decision of ABAs presidium, the validity period of all overdue payment cards should be extended by at least one month, taking into account the capabilities of the internal structure of banks and safety standards.

The extension of the validity of bank cards will be carried out unilaterally, that is, by banks. So, citizens will not need to visit them, said the statement.
By Online Desk

Pitching for efforts on a war footing to identify and isolate COVID-19 hotspots, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hinted at a "staggered" exit from the ongoing lockdown after the 21-day period ends on April 14 while the nationwide tally of confirmed cases of the deadly virus infection rose by more than 500 to cross 2,500 with at least 76 deaths.

Meanwhile, many new cases of coronavirus infections have been reported across the country, which witnessed a spike in the confirmed cases tally. The death toll now stands at 53 according to the health ministry. Exactly 2069 positive cases have been reported so far.

Over 150 people have recovered from the pandemic and been sent home from hospitals.

On the other hand, the World Bank on Thursday approved USD 1-billion emergency financing for India to tackle the outbreak.
New cases of COVID-19 have continued to show an increase in several mid-Michigan counties.

Genesee County saw its biggest single-day increase from Wednesday, April 1 to Thursday, April 2 with 100 new cases, placing the total figure at 349.

Figures released Thursday, April 2 by the state Department of Health and Human Services also show two additional deaths in Genesee County, placing the total at 10.

Genesee County ranks fifth among the states 83 counties for COVID-19 cases, behind Wayne (2,211), Oakland (2,183), Macomb (1,332) and Washtenaw (438).

64 new coronavirus cases in Genesee County, 17 newly confirmed in Saginaw County

Other mid-Michigan counties also showed some increases in COVID-19 cases over the last 24 hours, including Lapeer which more than doubled its figure, from 8 to 21 cases.

In Saginaw County, 11 new cases were reported which raised the total number to 82.

Data provided by the Saginaw County Health Department shows 610 tests have been performed -- noting all testing from private labs may not be included in the figure -- with 179 negative results and 310 pending.

Bay County went from 10 to 16 cases; Midland went from 12 to 15; Shiawassee increased from 11 to 15; Tuscola showed a jump from 11 to 14; Sanilac climbed 1 to eight cases and Isabella increased from seven to eight.

Overall state figures showed a dramatic jump -- 9,334 to 10,791 cases -- from Wednesday to Thursday, with 417 deaths, up from 337 the previous day.

Mayor Sheldon Neeley announced Wednesday that a city-wide curfew will go into effect from 9 p.m.-6 p.m. beginning Thursday, April 2 for Flint and run over next 30 days in an attempt to combat the spread of the virus.

City residents are still allowed to travel between the hours of 6 a.m.-9 p.m. each day. Those deemed essential workers are exempt from the curfew.

Anyone found not abiding by the curfew can be punished with a misdemeanor, which can result in 30 days in jail and a $500 fine.

John McKellar, Genesee Countys chief health officer, said Wednesday that he was about ready to begin disclosing the general locations where COVID-19 deaths are occurring inside the county.

Genesee County plans to disclose general locations of COVID-19 deaths

Genesee health officials are also now supplying information about the addresses of those who have confirmed cases of coronavirus to the county 911 center and Fenton 911 dispatchers so that police and other first responders know when they are entering a home in which someone has contracted the virus.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

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Her story has been going viral for all the right reasons. Whod have imagined that someone so young would work closely with Covid-19 suspects and patients? Actor Shikha Malhotra, seen in films such as Fan (2017), tells us what made her decide to work as a nurse.

When I heard the PMs address to the nation about the 21-day lockdown, I couldnt sit at home. As someone with a medical background, I realised the situation was serious. I started visiting hospitals in Mumbai from the very next day, until I found a government hospital. I was directed to the medical superintendent, who was surprised that I wanted to do this. They wanted to place me in the isolation ward for Covid-19, as they required more people for that. My shift lasts around 11-12 hours, I want to put in more, says Malhotra, who has a BSc degree in Nursing.

Also read | Shilpa Shukla on doing fewer films post BA Pass: I never did that project for the reason people assume

Talking about how she is dealing with the situation, given that hospitals are brimming with people infected by the virus, Malhotra, 25, says,Im a little upset as we even have patients as young as seven months as corona positive in our hospital. I feel bad when I see people roaming in the streets, even after the PM requested everyone to take precautions. Weve to wear three layers of dressing, two head covers and two pair of shoes, one cant breathe properly. You have been requested to be at home only to protect yourself. We feel dehydrated after a point.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
A second woman has broken her silence about being groomed and controlled by the disgraced French paedophile writer Gabriel Matzneff.

Journalist Francesca Gee said she was in a relationship for three years with Matzneff in the 1970s, with the then 37-year-old essayist waiting outside her school every day for her when she was 15.

Gee and the often explicit letters the diarist encouraged her to write featured in a number of Matzneff's books against her will including his notorious defence of paedophilia, 'Les Moins de Seize Ans', which translates as 'The Under 16s'.

Gee (pictured) says she wrote a book exposing Matzneff in 2004 but that no French publisher would print it. She claims that an editor at Grasset said the subject was 'sensitive' and Matzneff had influential friends at the publishing house

He even boasted in his diaries, which were regularly published, of having her moved to a prestigious Paris high school so she could be close to him.

Gee said that she had been a victim of 'his predatory behaviour' and had tried unsuccessfully for decades to stop one of his publishers, Gallimard, using a picture of her on the cover of his book, 'Drunk on Lost Wine'.

Gallimard has since pulled all Matzneff's books from sale.

The essayist occupied a niche role in the French literature world and won the Renaudot essay prize in 2013. Matzneff has previously boasted in his diaries of having Gee moved to a prestigious Paris high school so she could be closer to him

The 83-year-old has never made any secret of his sexual preference for adolescent girls and boys.

It did not stop him winning the Renaudot prize in 2013 and being honoured by the French state.

He occupied a privilege niche in the French literary world until January when attitudes toward the writer changed radically after publisher Vanessa Springora revealed her own tortured under-age relationship with him in her bestseller, 'Consent'.

Matzneff - who fled to Italy after the scandal broke - is to stand trail next year on a charge of justifying paedophilia, and prosecutors launched a rape investigation into him the day after Springora's book was published.

Gee, now 63, told the New York Times that she had exposed Matzneff in a book she had written in 2004 but which no French publisher would print.

Paris prosecutors opened a rape investigation into Matzneff in January this year after publisher Vanessa Springora revealed her own under-age relationship with him in the bestseller 'Consent'. Matzneff fled to Italy after the scandal broke

She wrote: 'He never stopped using me to justify his sexual exploitation of children and teenagers'.

Gallimard, one of Matzneff's publishers, has pulled all of his books from sale. Gee says she tried unsuccessfully for decades to stop them using a picture of her on the cover of his book, 'Drunk on Lost Wine'

A number of editors who had read the manuscript at the time praised its quality but told the newspaper that 'clearly it was 15 years too early. The world wasn't ready yet.'

An editor at Grasset, which published Springora's 'Consent' but turned down Gee's earlier book, said the subject was 'sensitive' and Matzneff had influential friends at the publishing house.

Gee, a former journalist, said that Matzneff took her to see gynaecologist Michele Barzach half a dozen times in the 1970s to get contraceptive pills while she was a minor.

Barzach went on to become a French health minister and head of the country's arm of UN's child protection agency, UNICEF.

The Matzneff controversy has shone a light on what many see a permissive attitude towards sexual harassment and abuse in France. Matzneff had described acts of paedophilia in detail in his books. In a diary published in 1985 he wrote that he would regularly have sex with underage boys whilst in the Philippines

She also later helped draft a law tightening French child abuse laws in 1985.

The Matzneff controversy has shone a light on what many see as an overly permissive attitude towards sexual harassment and abuse in France.

The writer claimed that his initiation of young women into sex, art and literature had left them happier and freer.
(Bloomberg) --

Romania is suffering a surge in fatalities caused by the coronavirus after tens of thousands of its citizens returned from Italy and Spain, making it the worst-hit nation in central and eastern Europe.

The death toll surged to 69 in the past 24 hours, with more than 2,100 people infected with COVID-19. Thats almost the combined number of deaths in Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic. The latter two countries -- along with Romania -- were among the European Unions first after Italy to impose strict lockdowns on most aspects of public life earlier this month.

A small historical town in the north of the country, Suceava, is the epicenter, with almost half of the deaths originating from a hospital where most doctors and nurses contracted the illness. The town, renowned for its UNESCO religious heritage status, was placed in full lockdown on Tuesday to try to limit the contagion. Authorities estimate that more than 1,000 more potentially positive cases are still unidentified.

Ukraine also recorded the first cases in its western region bordering Romania. Authorities suspect a woman who returned from working in Italy passed the virus to 15 people in her village. Ukraine has currently registered 549 coronavirus cases and 13 deaths.

Years of underfunding left Romanias health-care system -- ranked one of Europes worst -- among the most exposed to the virus. In the face of the recent outbreak, medical staff at some small hospitals resigned, saying they dont want to take the risk because they dont have the proper equipment to treat infected patients.

I cant issue a decree to force people to stay and fight on the front lines, Health Minister Nelu Tataru said late Monday. Were making efforts to send equipment everywhere. This will give people the confidence they need to stay and fight.

Romania is trying to boost local production of face masks and protective suits, with companies switching production lines with help from the government. The cabinet of Prime Minister Ludovic Orban plans to boost the budget of the Health Ministry and will try to use all funds available at the EU level to confront the crisis.

Story continues

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Shoppers in Spain have been buying more alcohol since the Spanish government declared a state of alarm in a bid to slow the coronavirus pandemic. The sale of beer rose by 77.65% with respect to the previous week, while wine jumped by 62.7% and alcoholic drinks by 36.58%, according to a study in the consumer magazine Inforetail, which is supported by the Spanish Association of Distributors, Self-Service Stores and Supermarkets (Asedas).

The study also shows that the large purchases seen in the lead up to the lockdown eased during the first two weeks of confinement. The peak of the shopping frenzy was reached between March 11 and 14, just before Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced the state of alarm.

In these two weeks, the number of visits made by each shopper has dropped and the size of each individual purchase has increased slightly, in accordance with the recommendations of the health authorities. These shopping purchases reflect the lockdown the Spanish population is under, says Felipe Medina, the secretary general of Asedas, which represents the main businesses in the supermarket sector as well as 19,100 establishments.

If I cant go out shopping, or to the cinema or to dinner, what am I going to do? Claudia, resident of Lavapies

While the demand for toilet paper has stabilized, other products have seen a spectacular rise in sales, such as olives (+93.83%), potato chips (+87.13%), chocolate (+79.04%), ice cream (+76.19%) and anchovies (+60%). Whats more, according to figures from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the sale of flour has shot up by 196% with respect to the previous week. It would appear that people have decided that the best way to cope with the lockdown conditions is to set up a bar and a cake shop at home.

But what is behind this change in shopping habits? Is there a sociological or psychological explanation for it?

From Monday to Thursday we have a beer around 8.30pm and from Friday to Sunday we have some vermouth and spirits as we videochat with friends. Claudia and Raul are both in their 30s and live in a 55-square-meter apartment in the Madrid neighborhood of Lavapies. When asked how they are managing being confined to their homes for a third week, they reply: Were coping. They say they have experienced moments of stress and anxiety. Now they only shop once a week and the last time they went to the supermarket they bought some bottles of wine, beer, potato chips and chocolate. If I cant go out shopping, or to the cinema or to dinner, what am I going to do? I try to have a routine: I get up, I have breakfast, work, eat, do pilates and at 8.30pm I have a glass of beer, says Claudia. I wait eagerly for 8.30pm because thats our small moment to disconnect.

She is not the only one to feel this way. The wine sector saw an extraordinary rise in sales in March in Madrid. We are seeing numbers as though it were Christmas, says Julian Ribalda, the director of the online wine store Lavinia, which is one of the largest in the sector. We have detected a small change: if our wines are normally bought in the 15 to 20 range, now it is in the 8 and 15 range with brands such as Finca Resalso, Vina Real Crianza, Luis Canas Crianza, says Ribalda. Whats more, nearly half (46%) of all Lavinias customers in the past two weeks have been new. They are customers who before normally bought wine from the supermarket or in large shopping centers, and are now moving toward online shopping, he explains.

Carlos Alonso in the wine aisle of a supermarket in Madrid. Manuel Viejo Gonzalez

So what is the psychological reason driving this change? According to Carmelo Vazquez, professor of psychopathology at Madrids Complutense University, this reflects the ability to give ourselves rewards and treats in these times. After the 2001 September 11 terrorist attack on New York and the 2004 Madrid train bombings, Vazquez completed numerous studies on the post-traumatic stress experienced by people in those cities in the aftermath of the attacks.

According to the professor, these two events, in spite of the obvious differences, bear certain similarity to what is currently happening. Despite the widespread thinking that everything is going badly, people are extraordinarily resilient, says Vazquez. Back then, the studies [following the terrorist attacks] showed us that the level of post-traumatic stress did not reach 7%. Now there is a lot of preparatory alarm, but people are handling it very well. One of the phases is exactly that: drink beer, alcohol and eat potato chips. This has a therapeutic effect. The consumption of alcohol and candy increases endorphins, which happens in high moments of stress.

You dont eat steak when you are stressed. What the body wants is sugar and fat Psychologist Olga Castanyer

Olga Castanyer is a specialist in clinical psychology and author of the book La Asertividad: Expresion de una Sana Autoestima (Assertiveness: the expression of healthy self-esteem). She says she also meets up to have some beers with friends on Skype. According to Castanyer, demand for beer has soared in the past two weeks due to the high levels of stress about the coronavirus crisis. You dont eat steak when you are stressed. What the body wants is sugar and fat, she explains. When we are locked up, our brains ask us for a prize: like chocolate, candy or simply beer. We are used to living according to certain paradigms and we have never seen the one we are in. Thats why its good to continue the social customs of before: glass of wine at home, olives, the Mediterranean culture.

Its a theory thats backed by Josep Lobera, a sociologist at the Autonomous University of Madrid. You have to take a good look at the data. The consumption of limeflower tea and chocolate reduces anxiety. Others manage it with alcohol or video games. They are all different forms of escape, he explains.

In the wine aisle of a supermarket in Madrid, Carlos Alonso, 46, is looking at bottles with a face mask on. I came to buy wine for my mom. She has written to me just now and says she wants a Fino. Alonso is an interior designer. I am also buying for myself. I try to escape with a glass. Theres great boredom these days. Supermarket cashiers say they have also noticed that more people are buying alcohol.

There is also more demand for delivery services such as Glovo, where shopping is delivered by cyclists. The past two weeks I have only been buying beer, wine, chocolate and candy, says Colombian Glovo rider Andres Garabito outside a supermarket in Madrid.

Everything we are seeing these days in shopping carts is what distinguishes scarcity from abundance, which are simply small treats at the end of the month, says Vazquez. There will be different peaks. Anchovies and potato chips will be replaced by other products. Its very difficult to know what is going to happen in the next few days, but we have to highlight the solidarity that we are seeing like the activities at home and the things that have spontaneously started.

English version by Melissa Kitson.
WAYMART  The U.S. Penitentiary Canaan is the first federal prison in Pennsylvania to have an inmate who tested positive for the coronavirus.

The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) webpage Wednesday list of prisons at which inmates had tested positive included Canaan with one. The prison in Wayne County has 1,209 inmates plus another 124 in a camp.

Attempts from the prison and the BOP to learn if the inmate had been recently transferred in were unsuccessful.

U.S. Rep. Fred Keller, whose 12th District includes Canaan, has introduced a bill to stop all transfers during the pandemic. The Snyder County Republican has said he is worried about the possible spread of COVID-19.

As of 3 p.m. Wednesday, 57 inmates and 37 staff members throughout the federal prison system have tested positive for the virus, according to the BOP webpage.

None of the staff members are at prisons in the commonwealth.

The two-prison Oakdale complex in western Louisiana has been hit the hardest with 11 inmates and four staff members testing positive.
Help India!

Mahmood Hussain

Let me begin with a disclaimer  I am not a member of the Tableeghi Jamaat and I am not their advocate.

Support TwoCircles



All I care about is that amidst a global health crisis, sections of the media in India, precisely, the Godi Media have given a communal twist to the global threat we are together battling by blowing Nizamuddin controversy out of proportion. By presenting this poisonous narrative, it has not only threatened to undermine the nations efforts in combating Corona but has also shown that the sole enemy of Hindutva band is Islamophobia and nothing  not even a dealy pandemic  can put a hold on their display of sheer hatred for Muslims. In the wake of Delhi riots when Godi Media favorite, Zee News had broadcasted a jihad rant classifying different kinds of jihad, social media warriors seemed to immediately expressed this distasteful stunt through memes and jokes but now these channels have even coined the word  Corona Jihad to extend their campaign of demonizing Muslims.

For those who dont know, volunteers of Tableeghi Jamaat travel across the world, throughout the year urging Muslims to return to their roots by following traditional practices of the Islamic faith. But, it was highly irresponsible and callous on the part of the Tableeghi Jamaat to continue its volunteering activities and congregations even as the virus was spreading its tentacles across the world and we were seeing a domino effect across countries. That a similar congregation in Malaysia in February had helped the virus spread across the entire South East Asian region should have been a red herring. As also the Prophetic guidance on quarantine and social distancing, 1400 years ago.

This irresponsible action has allowed the Godi Media and its fan following to divert attention from the lapses of concerned authorities and their mismanagement to the Jamaat alone, who is now to be blamed for this entire chain of events. Even when WHO declared COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic on March 12, 2020, we, in India had not become fully aware of the threats posed by the virus. Only 80 cases had been reported till March 12. There were no restrictions on travel to and from India (except to China, Iran and Italy) when the congregation had apparently started. The Parliament was still in session. Members of Parliament were attending parties. Celebrations were being held in the ruling party headquarters as their party had captured power in Madhya Pradesh. A chief minister was conducting a religious gathering.

Over the first weekend in March, I had undertaken a field visit to Jharkhand. People were celebrating Holi across the country. Janata curfew happened on March 22 and with the full-fledged lockdown, only the Markaz was directed to shut down. It is surprising that such a congregation was happening right under the very nose of the local police station and no measures were taken to dissuade the organizers. Visitors from foreign countries are required to report to local police stations. The Delhi Government had placed restrictions on gatherings around the same time as the events unfolded. But it didnt have power to implement since Delhi police is under the Central Government. When the Markaz was ordered to shut down, 1500 people  potential carriers  were allowed to walk out without any medical screening or quarantine.

No doubt, the Jamaat should have exercised abundant caution. But, the truth that Godi Media must now focus on is Corona Jihad campaign, which it demonstrates through its highly dramatic special effects prime news, is spreading like wildfire. One must remember that Corona Jihad campaigners and their fingerlings are here to divert attention and plays down lapses by the concerned authorities. At the same time injecting communal hatred into a public health matter when the authorities are most ill prepared to tackle a medical emergency will end up making matters much worse.

May good sense prevail and God protect us all.
Oil punters have been watching unfolding developments in the energy space with bated breath after Saudi Arabia made good on its promise to ramp up production to 12 million bpd, and Russia indicated plans to refrain from further production hikes saying such a move is unprofitable. The declarations have come hot on the heels of a flurry of U.S.-driven diplomacy, with Trump talking to both Saudi and Russian leaders, though the former OPEC+ allies have no interest in speaking to each other, as per the Kremlin.

Any agreements to cut supply by either party at this juncture are, however, likely to be a case of too little too late, with trading house Vitol projecting global demand to fall by as many as 30 million bpd in April amid a crippling global pandemic.

Not surprisingly, Trump has tried to paint the desperate situation in a more positive light:

"People are going to be paying 99 cents for a gallon of gasoline," he has said. "It's incredible in a lot of ways. It's going to help the airlines."

Energy companies might not share his enthusiasm, though.

A prolonged oil price war could threaten the survival of hundreds of U.S. shale companies, with as many as 50% likely to face bankruptcy sooner rather than later.

With oil appearing to be holding steady just above $20 a barrel, Mark Newton of Newton Advisors has told CNBC's Trading Nation that he believes that the low isn't in yet for crude.

Lowest Costs

Lowest cost producers are better placed than most to weather the carnage.

Although U.S. shale companies have been able to cut their average production costs by nearly half to around $43.83 per barrel compared to $82.75 per barrel in 2012, only 16 U.S. shale companies can make money at oil prices below $35 per barrel as per Rystad Energy via Reuters.

Related: $1 Oil: Saudi Arabia's Attempt To Crush U.S. Shale The big-daddy of the space, Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), boasts a break-even point of $26.90 per barrel at its New Mexico oilfields, representing about a quarter of its Permian output. Although the company is yet to make any production cuts, it has closed a crude distillation unit at its 502.5K bbl/day Baton Rouge refinery in Louisiana, citing low demand.

Exxon's current dividend yield of 8.96% ranks as the 5th highest among integrated oil and gas companies. The company's debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25 is considerably lower than the industry median of 0.47 though its fwd price-to-cash flow ratio of 7.37 highlights its rather weak cash flow compared with the sector median of 2.25. Exxon has long been considered the gold standard in the oil-and-gas credit ratings. But that changed (slightly) in November after S&P Global lowered the company's rating to A.A. from AA+ on cash flow concerns.

Exxon appears to be confident of its position, with Pioneer Natural Resource CEO Scott Sheffield recently accusing it of blocking help from the American government for the U.S. shale industry in a bid to kill smaller shale companies.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) recently announced a 20% cut in its FY 2020 guidance for organic capital and exploratory spending of $20B to $16B as well as suspension of its $4B stock buyback program, in a strong response to the oil price crash.

Chevron will end the first quarter, having spent just $1.75B of the $5B earmarked for buybacks in the current financial year with no plans for further repurchases. Meanwhile, much of the CAPEX cuts will come in the Permian Basin--a key engine of Chevron's production growth.

Chevron expects to cut production in the basin by 20%, translating into 125,000 fewer barrels of oil equivalent per day--or 2.5% of the basin's total current production.

Chevron, however, has kept its dividend program intact with management reaffirming that it remains 'very secure, with CVX shares sporting a 7.17% dividend yield, the 7th highest in the integrated energy sector.

The company's debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19 has come down considerably from a multi-year high of 0.32 in early 2017 while its fwd price-to-cash flow ratio of 7.91 is worse than the sector median of 2.25.

EOG Resources (NYSE: EOG) can make money at oil prices below $35 per barrel.

Its debt-to-equity ratio has declined steadily from a multi-year high of 0.60 in 2016 to around 0.24 recently. EOG has maintained its A3 rating on Moody's despite recently cutting CAPEX by 31%.

Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN) is another sub-$35/barrel oil producer. The company has gone on a spending-cut rampage, lowering CAPEX twice in the space of a month by 45%. The company will slash spending by 29% in the current fiscal period and reduce drilling activity in a bid to preserve liquidity. Devon has a healthy 6.37% fwd dividend yield, while its debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, though high, has been improving from 2.60 in 2016 while its and price-to-free cash flow ratio of 2.07 trumps the industry median of 2.25.

Related: What Happens If You Cant Pay Your Electricity Bill?



The Riskier Picks

Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OXY) boasts operating costs below $30 per barrel; however, its debt position has deteriorated considerably, with the debt-to-equity metric jumping from 0.50 in mid-2019 to 1.12 currently thanks mainly to its highly leveraged acquisition of Anadarko in August that left it with a $40-billion debt load.

Denver-based shale producer SM Energy Co (NYSE: SM) has hedged 80% of this year's oil production, which guarantees it oil prices of about $55 to $58 per barrel, meaning it might not be under tremendous pressure to cut production or lower spending quickly. However, the company's high leverage (debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99) and weak liquidity leave it vulnerable to a selloff.

Fat Dividends

For investors hunting for something different other than traditional oil and gas stocks, EQM Midstream Partners (NYSE: EQM), an MLP, or Master Limited Partnership, of Equitrans Midstream Corp., is an interesting proposition. With a 39.3% dividend yield, EQM easily trounces the sector median yield of 10.5%.

Another significant advantage: being an MLP, EQM combines the liquidity of publicly traded companies and the tax benefits of private partnerships because profits are taxed only when investors receive distributions.

Further, MLPs pass on the majority of their earnings to unitholders thanks to their unique hybrid legal structure (they have no employees with general partners providing all necessary operational services) and also transfer deductions such as depreciation and depletion, which lower your cost-basis and your taxable income as well. Their fat distributions can offer a measure of downside protection in choppy energy markets.

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
A storm sitting off of Cape Cod will continue to slowly push west, bringing more clouds in to end the work week. Some showers will fall too, with the best opportunity east of the Hudson River, into the first half of Friday. From there, we'll be in and out of clouds through the weekend with temperatures gradually climbing each day, topping out in the low 60s by Tuesday. Another storm looks to show up thereafter, cooling us off for the second half of next week.

TODAY

There will be more clouds than clear skies this morning, with clouds filling in as we head toward lunchtime. Temperatures are in the 30s-to-40-degrees range. Skies will stay dry through then with a few showers advancing west this afternoon into the Berkshire Mountains in Massachusetts and Green Mountains in Vermont. Showers will continue to push into New York as we get into this evening, although none too heavy. The combination of the clouds and showers will keep our temperatures from rising too much from this morning's lows as we'll stay in the 40s-to-50-degrees range.

TONIGHT INTO FRIDAY

Clouds and showers will hang out tonight into Friday morning. Temperatures will settle in the 30s and low 40s overnight and rise about 10 degrees for tomorrow's highs. The showers will dry up through the day but clouds will hold on into the nighttime hours.

THIS WEEKEND

Clouds Saturday morning will begin to break up early, and sunshine will break out and hang out through the afternoon. Temperatures will respond nicely with highs in the 40s to the middle 50s. The warmer early April sun will make it feel better, too.

More clouds on Sunday with a spotty shower or two, but it'll stay pretty mild with similar temperatures to Saturday.

NEXT WEEK

A mix of clouds and sun for Monday with a few 60-degree readings popping up, a few low 60s on Tuesday with increasing clouds. Those clouds will bring a return to scattered showers on Wednesday with cooler temperatures to follow to close the week out. Pretty typical early April stuff.

On another note, here's your 4th CookingWeather video with a fun way to make your own fries and dipping Campfire Sauce. So easy and so good, I hope you can try it out.

Have a great day!

For more weather information from meteorologist Jason Gough, visit jasonsweather.com.

FROM TODAY'S TIMES UNION

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Looking Back: On this day in Capital Region history

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Coronavirus blamed as judge declares mistrial in Troy quadruple homicide case

Federal funds in limbo as state pursues Medicaid changes

Albany Med taking COVID-19 patients from hard-hit NYC

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#PeruEstaEnNuestrasManos El presidente @MartinVizcarraC informa sobre la situacion del Estado de Emergencia en el #Dia17 y las acciones que realiza el Gobierno para contener la propagacion del COVID-19. En vivo: https://t.co/lildd61Tmb https://t.co/0EFM0bcyRw
Rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine, real name Daniel Hernandez, is trading prison for home confinement. (Luca Bruno / Associated Press)

A federal judge has ordered Tekashi 6ix9ine to be released from federal prison, his attorney said Thursday. He'll serve out the balance of his sentence under home confinement because of the threat of coronavirus. The rapper has not contracted the virus.

"The judge granted the motion basically because of the virus that's ravaging our nation," attorney Lance Lazzaro told The Times in a phone interview. "In prison, you can't practice isolation or containment; it's just not feasible."

The coronavirus pandemic is currently hitting New York even harder than other parts of the country. Prior to his release, Tekashi 6ix9ine had been in a private facility in Queens under the watch of the U.S. Marshals Service.

Lazzaro said the rapper, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, also suffers from pre-existing asthma, which the judge considered in making his decision. That decision was made Wednesday, according to Page Six, but the order was unsealed Thursday.

Hernandez has four months left on his two-year sentence, which was handed down in late 2019. He will serve the full balance under home confinement wearing a GPS monitor.

In January, before the pandemic, his attorney had asked that he be released to home confinement or a community-based facility, citing concerns for his client's safety after he testified against his former associates.

The rapper, who was arrested in late 2018, had faced the possibility of a life sentence for violent gang-related crimes that included assisting in armed robbery and attempted murder. The shorter sentence came after he pleaded guilty to racketeering charges and agreed to become a star witness for the state. He testified against his Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods friends last September.

When the sentence was finally handed down last December, Hernandez had already served 13 months behind bars.

For the record:

6:57 PM, Apr. 02, 2020: An earlier version of this article said federal sentences do not allow time off for good behavior. Qualifying prisoners can earn up to 54 days per year off their sentences for good conduct.


Google Maps screen grab

The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake famously led to the destruction of the Embarcadero Freeway, but it also paved the way for Octavia Boulevard, the wide thoroughfare in Hayes Valley. Planners attempted to design Octavia in the style of a Paris boulevard: space in the center for cars to pass through with narrower, bicycle-friendly streets on both sides of the central lanes separated by islands.

"No one gets everything, but everyone gets a lot," Elizabeth McDonald, a planner who consulted on the design of the boulevard, explained in Hoodline in 2015.
Shares is the leading weekly publication for retail investors. It is packed with investment ideas, news and educational material to help build and run portfolios and get more from your money.

Shares puts on free Investor Events throughout the year across the country. They provide an opportunity for investors to learn more about companies on the stock market and hear from a range of investment experts including fund managers and Shares journalists.
New Jersey is offering state subsidies to help health care workers, emergency responders, and other essential workers pay for child care amid the coronavirus pandemic, under a new program officials announced Thursday.

Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order to create the Emergency Child Care Assistance Program.

It offers $336 to $450 a week through April to those workers  regardless of income  so they can attend to fighting coronavirus.

Last month, Murphy ordered all child care centers in the state to close except for those solely serving children of emergency and essential workers. After he closed all schools in the state to help reduce the spread of the virus, the governor said there needs to be a place for those workers to have their children watched as they battle the virus on the frontlines.

There are nearly 600 childcare centers in the state remaining open for essential employees, state Department of Children and Families Commissioner Christine Norbut Beyer said at the states daily coronavirus press briefing.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Families who meet the definition of essential workers under the executive order can register at childcarenj.gov.

According to the governors order, essential employees also include: law enforcement, state workers who are unable to work from home, people who work for places that provide essential social services, including, but not limited to, group home and shelter staff, and certain critical care workers.

The full-time weekly subsidy is $336 for school-age kids, $415 for preschoolers and toddlers, and $450 for infants, according to the governors office.

New Jersey now has at least 25,590 known cases of COVID-19, including at least 182 known deaths, officials said Thursday. Thats the second-most of any U.S. state, after New York.

Murphy said Wednesday night New Jerseyans should expect the fallout from the virus will drag deep into May.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

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I've been a reporter and editor at Missouri community newspapers for 35 years and joined the Columbia Missourian in 2003. My emphasis at the Missourian is on local government and elections. You can reach me at swaffords@missouri.edu or at 573-884-5366.

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Amazon is taking greater steps to protect warehouse workers following weeks of public outcry.

In a blog post on Thursday, Dave Clark, who runs Amazon's retail operations, said the company will start taking employees' temperatures when they report to work and supply them with face masks.

Temperature checks began last Sunday at select sites in the U.S. and will now begin to roll out to Amazon's entire operations network and footprint of Whole Foods Stores in the U.S. and Europe by early next week, Clark said. Anyone who registers a fever over 100.4 will be told to go home and will only be allowed to return after they've gone three days without a fever, he added.

Previously, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said the company placed purchase orders for millions of face masks for workers. Clark said those orders are now arriving and they're distributing them "to our teams as quickly as possible."

Masks will become available for workers as soon as today in some locations and in all facilities by early next week, Clark added. Any N95 masks ordered by Amazon will be deployed to medical workers or sold at cost to health-care and government organizations, Clark said.

The company also gave an update on its efforts to add warehouse workers and delivery drivers. Last month, Amazon said it would hire an additional 100,000 workers amid a surge in online orders due to the coronavirus outbreak. Clark said Amazon has already hired more than 80,000 people into these roles and has spent more than $150 million to support workers, reflecting its efforts to raise pay by $2 per hour.

The moves come after Amazon faced criticism from legislators, union leaders and warehouse workers about a lack of protective measures for employees who continue to come to work amid the coronavirus outbreak. On Wednesday, workers at a Romulus, Michigan, facility walked out, while workers at a Staten Island, New York, facility staged a protest on Monday.

Amazon has downplayed the walkouts, saying only a small percentage of workers at the two facilities walked out this week and there was no disruption to operations. The company has also touted other safety measures and benefits it has implemented at warehouses in recent weeks, such as increased cleaning and paid leave for employees who are under quarantine after being exposed to someone with the coronavirus.

On Monday, Amazon fired Chris Smalls, the Amazon employee in Staten Island who organized the walkout there. Amazon said it fired Smalls because he violated social distancing rules after being told to go under quarantine for working near someone who tested positive for the coronavirus. Smalls said he was fired in retaliation for organizing the walkout.

On Wednesday, a group of New York lawmakers, union leaders and Amazon workers called on Amazon to close warehouses where employees tested positive for coronavirus.

Amazon has reported cases of the coronavirus at numerous facilities across the country. Workers have called for the company to close down facilities where a case has been reported, provide paid sick leave for employees and take additional measures to protect employees on the job. Some employees say it's impossible for them to follow social distancing rules at Amazon's facilities, which puts them at a greater risk of catching the virus.

In the blog post, Clark said Amazon will continue to conduct daily audits of the new health and safety measures it has announced. The company will also use its "top machine learning technologists" to detect areas where it can improve social distancing in its facilities by relying on internal camera systems.

"With over 1,000 sites around the world, and so many measures and precautions rapidly rolled out over the past several weeks, there may be instances where we don't get it perfect, but I can assure you that's just what they'll be  exceptions," Clark said.

Amazon employees at multiple facilities who spoke to CNBC argued that the company's efforts aren't enough to keep them safe. They say uneven safety precautions at facilities across the country have sown feelings of distrust between workers and their managers. Workers say they've become worried that managers aren't being honest about whether employees are sick with the virus, so that they can keep the facilities open.
Shenzhen has become the first city in China to ban the consumption and trade of dogs and cats as part of its new legislation Shenzhen Special Economic Zone Regulations on the Comprehensive Ban on Wild Animals. The new law, which comes into effect on May 1, also prohibits the breeding, sale, and consumption of protected wildlife species, including snakes and lizards.

Dogs and cats as pets have established a much closer relationship with humans than all other animals, and banning the consumption of dogs and cats and other pets is a common practice in developed countries and in Hong Kong and Taiwan. This ban also responds to the demand and spirit of human civilization, said the new legislation.

"The market supervision department is responsible for supervising and managing the production, operation, advertising, and other activities of banned animals and their products in commodity trading, catering and other places and online trading platforms," it added.

The decision comes amid the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic which is believed to have originated in a wet animal market in Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019.

The new ban does not include animals traditionally raised for livestock such as pigs, cows, sheep, donkeys, rabbits, chickens, ducks, geese, pigeons, and quail, even though many zoonotic diseases such as H1N1 (pigs), H5N1 (geese), and Swine Flu (pigs) have originated from some of these species.

It is to be noted that the Chinese government had announced a permanent ban on the sale and consumption of wild animals in February to curb the spread of coornavirus. However, some reports claimed that wet animal markets - where wild animals are sold - are now reopening in Wuhan and other parts of China.
Technavio has been monitoring the cinnamon market and it is poised to grow by USD 628.84 mn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 12% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. Request a free sample report

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005701/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Cinnamon Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Biofoods, EOAS Organics, Goya Foods, McCormick Company, and Rathna Ceylon Cinnamon are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Rising awareness about health benefits has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Cinnamon Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Cinnamon Market is segmented as below:

Product Cassia Cinnamon Ceylon Cinnamon

Distribution channel Hypermarkets Supermarkets Convenience Stores Online Retail

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30484

Cinnamon Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our cinnamon market report covers the following areas:

Cinnamon Market Size

Cinnamon Market Trends

Cinnamon Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies growing application of cinnamon in pharmaceuticals as one of the prime reasons driving the cinnamon market growth during the next few years.

Cinnamon Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Cinnamon Market, including some of the vendors such as Biofoods, EOAS Organics, Goya Foods, McCormick Company, and Rathna Ceylon Cinnamon. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Cinnamon Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Cinnamon Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist cinnamon market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the cinnamon market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the cinnamon market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of cinnamon market vendors

Table Of Contents :

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT

Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Cassia cinnamon Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Ceylon cinnamon Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL

Market segmentation by distribution channel

PART 09: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 10: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

PART 11: MARKET TRENDS

PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

Competitive scenario

PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Biofoods

EOAS Organics

Goya Foods

McCormick Company

Rathna Ceylon Cinnamon

PART 14: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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NEW HAVEN  Mayor Justin Elicker said there is a difference between the shelter New Haven is planning for homeless patients who are released from the hospital after treatment for COVID-19 and the step-down field hospital set up at Southern Connecticut State University.

Elicker said his understanding is that the field hospital, with 250 beds, which Gov. Ned Lamont toured on Wednesday, is a facility that can provide care between what is needed in an intensive care unit at Yale New Haven Hospital and one that offers general medical care.

The mayor and Lamont had separate press conferences Wednesday. Elickers dealt with a coronavirus update specifically for New Haven, in which he said the number of city residents testing positive for the virus had reached 133, with three residents of Bella Vista hospitalized for COVID-19. Also, a second firefighter has tested positive.

Elicker said there will be three nurses on hand at the Career High School emergency medical shelter for the homeless, while staffing will be more intense at the medical facility at SCSU. At Career, there will be no doctors, but they will be on call 24 hours a day.

Lamont was asked whether a homeless person needing the step-down treatment would they go to the SCSU field hospital.

I think that probably makes good sense to me. Let me think about that, Lamont said.

Yale New Haven Health System Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Christopher OConnor said being homeless is not a factor that would keep an individual out of the field hospital  a patients medical needs are what is considered.

OConnor said the SCSU site does not replace the proposed facility at Career High School. We are very supportive of it and we are trying to find ways we can collaborate with him (Mayor Justin Elicker) to support that work, as well.

I think the key message I would have is collaboration. We are collaborating with the state. We are collaborating with the city and all of the towns our facilities are in. The more we can communicate, the more effective we will be when we actually have those needs, OConnor said.

On the homeless in general, Lamont said the city has have negotiated with a number of hotels and we will be able to take a lot of our homeless into those hotels in a separate quarantine area. He said this would include individuals who have tested positive for the virus and those exposed to COVID-19.

I think that is our priority right now, he said. Lamont said by the end of Wednesday or first thing on Thursday the homeless there would be quarantined.

The governor said it is all part of thinning out congested facilities, which include nusing homes, so COVID-19 doesnt spread throughout them.

OConnor said the current census of all patients across the systems five hospitals was 1,692 with 388 COVID-19 patients.

Bridgeport Hospital had 91 COVID-19 patients, of which 33 were in intensive care. Yale New Haven Hospital had 197 COVID-19 patients with 42 in the intensive care unit .

When asked what was the capacity of the hospitals in its system, OConnor said it is fluid, as they work on plans, at the governors request, to find 50 percent additional capacity above its staffed capacity

The team is actively working on freeing up every potential bed that we could use for these patients, OConnell said. He said they are focusing on finding space on the immediate hospital campus. The second phase will be in nursing homes wich have space and its ambulatory facilities that have such things as medical gases, staffing and equipment as part of the second tier of external locations.

At the mayors press conference, Elicker said Fair Haven Community Health is proving to be a great partner at Bella Vista, as its staff can conduct test for COVID-19 in the elderly tenants apartments,

Elicker always has other administrative officials on his virtual press conference and, Wednesday, Yesina Rivera, president of the Board of Education, asked that people pull together as the pandemic issues are addressed.

At this time, we must all work as a team. Alarmist comments and repeated questions by individuals only serve to divide us at a time when we should band together for the sake of our students and their families. The mayor and the superintendent and her administration needs us all united to ensure that this important work is being done ...and continues in a manner that is safe for all of us, Rivera said.

On another topic, Elicker called the proposed indemnification request by the University of New Haven, which has agreed to house public safety personnel who need a place where they can be isolated if exposed to the virus, a reasonable and typical ask. UNH does not want to be held responsible if someone gets hurt while using its facilities.

mary.oleary@hearstmediact.com; 203-641-2577
STATEN ISLAND BUSINESS STRONG: This is the second in a series of stories about Staten Island small business owners reinventing their products/services to try to remain profitable during the coronavirus pandemic. Each week during this crisis, Business Writer Tracey Porpora will profile how one business is adjusting to the situation.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As soon as Renee Sarno, owner of Yaymaker -- a paint and sip franchise -- learned that restaurants were no longer allowed to have patrons eat-in, her business was shuttered.

Shed been hosting paint nights at local restaurants for the last four years. And Sarno had successfully grown her business to where she was hosting parties at least two to four times each week at some of the boroughs most favorite eateries, including Eggers Ice Cream Parlor at Urby in Stapleton and Millers Ale House, New Springville.

I knew I had to act fast, along with the other Yaymaker local partners across the country and Canada. I knew I could host virtual events, but I was scared to, said Sarno, noting that Yaymaker was previously know as Paint Nite.

A million thoughts started running through my head. How was I going to turn my apartment into a virtual studio? Would people like learning through their computer, phone or tablet? Can I sustain this through this pandemic, she recalled.

Plus, she said she felt that painting could be a stress-reliever for people shut-in during the pandemic.

I knew I had to do this, for my community. People need art right now. They need an escape. They need a creative outlet. Even if theyve never painted before, they would need that stress relief and I want to help the best way I know how to -- through art, she said.

Thats when Sarno made Yaymaker digital.

REINVENTING THE BUSINESS

Sarno now offers Virtual Paint Nite events.

I set up my apartment as a virtual paint studio, and I have started to host live paint night events, she said. I have created a calendar of events that anyone -- and I mean anyone around the world -- can sign up for. But what I would love most is to see my Staten Island community join together to de-stress, escape the world for a few hours and create art together.

Harnessing the power of the internet, we can create art while apart. We have made it easy for anyone to join in on the fun, she added.

Sarno uses Zoom so she can watch her participants as she helps them create a work of art.

I have a calendar of events up on my website where you reserve your virtual seat. We use Zoom to broadcast our live event. Using Zoom has been so great because you are able to see and hear each other and really participate (or not, your choice) in a community activity, added Sarno.

In fact, so far, those who have taken her classes are excited to show the other participants their finished masterpiece at the end of the lesson. And the plus side to going virtual is Sarno has a larger audience reach ever before.

Ive hosted a handful of events already and absolutely love it. Ive had people from different states, such as Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Connecticut, and all across Canada join me, said Sarno, who is hosting virtual paint events four times per week.

And since many families will not be gathering for Easter, shes also planning a special event on Easter Sunday afternoon.

My goal is to teach every Monday, Wednesday and Friday night as well as Saturday afternoon, said Sarno.

People can sign up for a class at yaymaker.com or https://www.yaymaker.com/hosts/renee-sarno-sipaintparty-3503/.

***** CLICK HERE FOR MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE *****

YAYMAKER AT A GLANCE

Website: https://www.yaymaker.com/hosts/renee-sarno-sipaintparty-3503/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yaymakerstatenislandny

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yaymaker_statenisland/

This column will temporarily replace SILive/Advances New Businesses in Focus column.

If you are a Staten Island Business owner who has reinvented services/products/offerings during the coronavirus pandemic, e-mail porpora@siadvance.com. Please put Staten Island Business strong in the subject line of your email.

LAST WEEKS COLUMN: Life amid coronavirus: Yoga studio turns to streaming classes live on Zoom

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Paul, perhaps referencing an Old Testament scripture (Isaiah 59:17), instructed believers to put on salvation as their helmet (Ephesians 6:17a). Soldiers wore helmets to protect from blows to the head. 1 Thessalonians 5:8-11 also mentions the helmetour hope of salvation.

In a time of crisis, many voices claim its the end of the world! Some of these claims are not biblical; and some are directed at the believers hope in Christ. False teachings arise about salvation. But when we wear the biblical helmet of salvationwhen we are rooted and grounded in Christs love by faith and in studying Gods Wordwe can be protected from the stinking thinking in the world.

The truth is, the Bible says the believer is redeemed from the curse of the law and cleansed by the blood of Jesus. We cannot save ourselves; salvation is only in Jesus. The Lord is our salvation and strength, and we never need to succumb to fear (Psalm 3:8; Psalm 27:1).

When struggling with tough circumstances, we must never let the enemy throw our past back at us. In Christ, old things have passed away, and all things have become new. Whatever comes, reflect the power of Gods salvation!

The Sword of the Spirit

The sword of the Spirit, Paul tells us, is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17). It is our powerful offensive weapon against the evils in the world. We can wear every other piece of armor, but if we fail to take up our sword, well simply be a heavily-protected soldier. The sword allows us to move forward and conquer our enemy.

The Roman sword was a dual-edged, close-range weapon, intended to pierce through heavy metal armor. In Hebrews 4:12, the Christians double-edged sword is described as living and powerful. The Word of God is designed to cut through the enemys defensesto divide truth and error. But the Sword must be skillfully used, first to take captive our own unruly thoughts, and then to refute faulty thinking in others.

In a crisis, some negative people will attack believers for their faith in God. Our example of how to wield the Sword is Jesus fighting off the attacks of Satan in Matthew 4. He wisely and skillfully used the scriptures.

Christians too must learn to live by the Word and use it skillfully. In a crisis, counter attackcompassionatelywith appropriate scriptures. Above all, remember, there is power in prayer.

Photo Credit: Pexels/Pixabay
In an unprecedented fifth opening in the last five years, the Army Corps of Engineers will open 20 bays of the Bonnet Carre Spillway Friday morning to reduce pressure on river levees in the New Orleans area and keep the Mississippi River below its official flood stage of 17 feet.

As many as 105 of the structure's 350 bays will eventually be opened, Corps officials said. Friday's 10 a.m. opening also marks the sixth time the spillway has been opened in the past decade because of spring and summer floodwaters traveling south from the Mississippi's huge watershed.

Prior to 2011, the spillway had only been opened an average of once every decade since its completion in 1935.

+2 Mississippi River cities brace for 'fight on two fronts': coronavirus and spring flooding Cities and towns the length of the Mississippi River are preparing for overlapping crises: the coronavirus pandemic and a high risk of spring 

On Wednesday, the river was forecast to rise to 17 feet by April 8, and to continue rising to 17.5 feet by April 12 before beginning a slow fall four days later. The forecast calls for the river to remain over 15 feet through April.

While official flood stage at New Orleans is a river height of 17 feet at the Carrollton Gauge, located at Corps headquarters on Leake Avenue, levees and floodwalls in the area protect to water heights of between 22 and 25 feet.

But the length of time that high water has been pushing on the earthen levees, and the weight and 6 mph speed of all that water flowing past remains a concern.

The Corps opens the 5-mile long spillway, which is 28 miles upriver from New Orleans, to funnel part of the Mississippi's flow into Lake Pontchartrain when its volume at the city reaches 1.25 million cubic feet per second. At a height of 17.5 feet, the river's volume would reach 1.35 million cubic feet.

The Lower Mississippi River Forecast Center on Thursday adjusted its forecast to include the effects of the planned opening. It shows the river at 16.3 feet on Friday, rising to 17 on April 8, and staying there until April 18 before dropping to 14.8 feet on April 30.

Last month, NOAA scientists warned that heavy spring rains, exacerbated by climate-change-fueled wetter autumn weather in the Midwest, would create high river conditions on the lower Mississippi.

Col. Stephen Murphy, commander of the Corps' New Orleans District , said he hopes workers can begin closing the spillway again in as soon as four weeks, when the most recent slug of upper river floodwaters passes through the area. But he warned that goal is based on the present forecast, and that additional rainfall could push back the closing.

As much as 120,000 cubic feet per second of river water will enter the lake when all 110 bays are opened, which could add several hundred billion gallons of freshwater to the lake. Murphy said that if the structure is closed in four weeks, that would represent only 10% of the amount of water that flowed into the lake last year.

But allowing billions of gallons of freshwater laden with nutrients to flow into Lake Pontchartrain and then into both Lake Borgne and the Mississippi Sound has both fishers and tourism officials worried about a repeat of last year's two openings, totaling 123 days. Those resulted in blooms of toxic blue-green algae in the lake and along Mississippi beaches.

Last year, Mississippi coastal counties and cities, joined by environmental and local community groups, filed suit, charging the Corps had failed to conduct needed environmental studies to determine the effects of spillway openings.

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Mississippi officials also complained they were not consulted by the Corps before last year's openings. Corps officials had consulted Louisiana state and local officials before the opening last year. On Thursday, Corps officials held a conference call with officials from both states before making their announcement.

On Wednesday, the executive director of the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources said that his state has been working with Corps officials to find a long-term solution to direct high river water elsewhere.

"Mississippis state and federal representatives have requested a study by the Corps to determine if the excess water could flow in other areas, and if the Morganza Spillway could be opened to help disperse the excess flow of the Mississippi River during extreme flooding conditions," said retired Brigadier General Joe Spraggins, executive director of the department.

Spraggins said there has been only one past opening of the spillway in April: in 2008, when 160 bays were opened, for 31 days. While the impact of that opening and similar openings in February for 30 days or less have been minimal on Mississippi Sound marine resources, longer and later openings have caused significant problems in the past.

"Openings in middle to later May through summer months and longer durations of time usually have tremendous impact on the marine resources due to water temperature and the amount of fresh water," he said.

Officials with the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation also warned of environmental impacts.

"The 7,600-acre spillway offers vital flood protection to the region," said Executive Director Kristi Trail. "However, there are potential short-term environmental effects that should be noted because of the urbanized populations that use Lake Pontchartrain for recreation. For example, alligators, snakes and floating logs may be expected to be more common in and around the lake."

She said the foundation would continue to monitor for adverse lake effects and report their results to the public.

The Corps has refused to open the Morganza Floodway, north of Baton Rouge, to allow part of the Mississippi flow to move into the Atchafalaya River basin, until the volume of water at that floodway reaches 1.5 million cubic feet per second and is increasing. The Corps reasons that the 30% of the Mississippi River's flow that enters the Atchafalaya through the Old River Control Structure upstream will already be creating flood conditions in the river's basin and in Morgan City.

Murphy said the Corps plan for operating the various spillways on the river treats the entire river as a system. The rules the agency follows requires the water levels to reach specific targets before each spillway is opened, and the next one cannot be opened until the next higher target is reached.

In the case of Morganza, Murphy said that both the Atchafalaya floodway and Morgan City are already considered at flood stage, and the additional water that will threaten them over the next few weeks will increase the flood stage to 8 feet in Morgan City. At the same time, allowing higher water levels in New Orleans, where 9 million gallons per second of water are already passing by, threatens more than a half-million people with possible flooding, he said.

Opening of the spillway is done by a crane pulling wooden pins, actually long pilings, from some of the 350 bays in the spillway structure.

The event usually attracts a crowd of onlookers. But because of the coronavirus, St. Charles Parish has closed the Wetland Watchers Park and three spillway boat launches in anticipation of the opening. No access will be provided to the viewing site, officials said.

Along with monitoring the opening's effect on fisheries and wildlife, including the potential creation of toxic blue-green algae, scientists also will be looking for endangered pallid sturgeon and invasive Asian carp, which may be pulled into the spillway by the floodwaters.

In anticipation of the spillway opening, St. Charles Parish has closed the Wetland Watchers Park and three spillway boat launches. The opening itself will not be open to the public, and no access will be provided to the viewing site, officials said.
Connecticut colleges and universities have donated thousands of pieces of equipment to area hospitals that are treating coronavirus patients.

In total, the Connecticut State Colleges and University system has given 184,400 gloves, 11,345 masks, 1,885 gloves and nine ventilators.
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Linkedin Bambang Muryanto (The Jakarta Post) Yogyakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:27 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f338dc 1 National COVID-19,coronavirus,coronavirus-prevention,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,Yogyakarta,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia,outbreak,local-artists,tailor,hazmat-suit Free

Eka Apriyani and Yaorohmi Fauzanah are tailors specializing in kebaya for Yogyakarta boutique Santishop Manufacture Indonesia.

But instead of seaming delicate fabrics, these days they are busy sewing waterproof fabric to produce hazmat suits for medical personnel handling patients with COVID-19 in the province.

Santishop Manufacture Indonesia's owner, Paksi Raras Alit, said the move was made after she learned about the shortage of such essential items in hospitals. For weeks, social media was flooded with videos of medical personnel wearing rain coats to handle suspected COVID-19 patients, exposing themselves to high risk of infection.

Paksi, together with a number of small business owners in Yogyakarta, then decided to produce the protective suits by using the resources they had.

"For the first stage, I personally will produce 100 hazmat suits and subsequently distribute them to hospitals in need for free," Paksi said last Saturday.

In addition to helping medical personnel, some groups are also helping informal workers whose incomes have been heavily affected by the implementation of physical distancing policies to curb virus transmission.

A student distributes food to a seller at Gamping Market in Yogyakarta on March 28. (JP/Bambang Muryanto)

Yogyakarta is the province with sixth-largest number of cases and deaths in the country, with 28 cases and two deaths as of Wednesday.

Despite unclear direction from the central government, the local administration and residents have taken the initiative to block roads, close offices and other public areas to prevent crowds that may trigger virus spread. The move, however, has taken its toll to the livelihoods of low- income workers, such a porters and pedicab drivers at traditional markets.

Civil society groups and students have formed the Solidaritas Pangan Jogja (Yogyakarta Food Solidarity) movement, through which they distribute food, vitamins, protective masks and hand sanitizer to low-income families at Gamping, Legi and Beringharjo markets.

Read also: Public donations for COVID-19 task force in Indonesia top Rp 66.5b

Local artist Iwan Wijono, who operates a homestay and public kitchen, applies a cross subsidy scheme for food items he sells, so customers can buy food at a higher price for donation. The money is then be used to cook hundreds of meals every day for people in need.

"The sustainability of this movement depends on people's donations," Iwan said.

Illustrators and tailors under fashion producers Dagadu, Inteeshirt and Yes No Shop are also working together to produce face masks to be distributed to those who continue to work on the streets to transport people or deliver food.

"We have no power to stop COVID-19 transmission on a larger scale but we can obviously do small things to slow it down," artist Akiq HW said.

"Hopefully, what we are doing can inspire more people to help one another during this health crisis," said activist Budi Hermanto said. (vny)
Underlining that Indias goal is to ensure minimum loss of life and outlining the next steps in Indias strategy to deal with the coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19), Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday indicated that once the lockdown ends, the Centre and the states will together ensure a staggered re-emergence of the population.

Interacting with the state chief ministers over video conference from his residential office at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, the PM emphasised that in the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the focus areas of the local administrations, according to an official statement.

During the interaction, Modi also spoke about formulating a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population once the lockdown ends. The PM asked the state governments to brainstorm and send suggestions to the Centre on how to do this. He emphasised that even after the lockdown ends, the importance of social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19 must continue.

This is the first hint of the governments thinking on what happens after April 14; it suggests that while a complete lockdown will not continue, neither will there be entirely free movement of people, with restrictions in place for certain geographical clusters, demographic groups and on travel.

The video conference with CMs took place two weeks after the first such meeting on the pandemic on March 20. Thursdays meeting focused on the current strategies in force and the next steps in the battle against pandemic.

The PM praised different states for their teamwork which had helped check the speed of the virus, and thanked them for supporting lockdown, due to which, the PM suggested, India had achieved some success in limiting the spread of COVID-19.

He also asked the states to make available dedicated hospital facilities for COVID-19 patients, tap into the resource pool of AYUSH doctors, organise online training and utilise paramedical staff and civil society volunteers. States could consider setting up crisis management groups at the district level, in line with groups of bureaucrats formed by the union government, and appoint district surveillance officers, he suggested.

At a time when there remains a debate about whether India is testing enough, the PM underlined that data for testing must come from accredited labs so that there is congruence in data of district, state and the Centre.

The PM also asked for staggered release of funds to the beneficiaries under PM Garib Kalyan Yojana to avoid crowding at banks.

Talking to the CMs, the PM said that the Centre has provided some relaxation of rules to harvest crops but monitoring and social distancing must take place during harvesting. He also asked the states to think of other platforms for procuring grains apart from agriculture produce marketing committees, and explore the possibility of creating pooling platforms for rural areas, like that in ride sharing apps, which can be used for this purpose.

He also appealed to work on war footing and quick identification of virus hotspots and to encircle them to ensure the virus does not spread out. He emphasised the need to maintain law and order across the country and added that COVID-19 has attacked faith and belief and is threatening our way of life.

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She fled after a few seconds, but in her panic stumbled and fell. While on the ground, she said she focused on the shooter as he continued to fire away. She got up and ran to the backyard of her grandmothers home on the same block, waiting there until the gunfire stopped and a car sped off.
New York: President Donald Trump has said he will meet US energy executives this week to discuss plummeting oil values amid coronavirus and a Saudi-Russian price war.

"I'm going to meet with the oil companies on Friday," he told a news conference.

Trump expressed alarm at the impact on the US energy industry from the twin blows of the economic shutdown caused by the coronavirus and the Russia-Saudi row.

"We don't want to lose our great oil companies," he said.

But he said he had spoken with leaders in both Moscow and Riyadh and "I think that they will work it out over the next few days." Oil prices fell to $21.42 a barrel on Wednesday, as markets pondered the devastation to demand.

The American Petroleum Institute said it was organising the Friday meeting with Trump, but denied the purpose was to ask for financial help.

"Natural gas and oil will be critical to our nation's economic recovery," an official with the industry lobbying group said in a statement.

"We are not seeking any government subsidies or industry-specific intervention to address the recent market downturn at this time." Trump is expected to meet ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods, Chevron chief Michael Wirth, and Vicki Hollub, CEO of Occidental Petroleum, the source said on condition of anonymity.

The heads of Devon Energy, Phillips 66 and Energy Transfer Partners also will be present, the source added.

US shale oil producers, which had made the country self-sufficient, have been particularly hard hit by falling prices and the global economic slowdown.

The American oil group Whiting Petroleum Corporation, which specializes in shale deposits in North Dakota and Colorado, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday, which under US law allows the company protection from its creditors while it restructures.
Councilmember Harris-Dawson Launches Meal Program to Support South L.A Seniors and Small Businesses During COVID-19

City Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson launched an emergency program to provide free healthy meals to homebound seniors during the COVID-19 pandemic. This crisis presents a crucible for leaders and requires quick strategic thinking to preserve our communities. The councilmember launched this innovative program to divert funding from community events that were canceled due to COVID-19, and support two highly vulnerable populations during the pandemic: homebound seniors; as well as small business owners and their employees.

The emergency meal program came to life immediately after the mayor set in motion his Safer at Home order, requiring all residents to remain home with the exception of performing essential tasks. Los Angeles City Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson instantly understood the impact this order would have on South L.A. communities and quickly took steps to protect our most vulnerable residents: our seniors.

Our District has the highest number of African American seniors and I know this is an extremely challenging time for them,  said Harris-Dawson. This program ensures that seniors living alone and those in assisted living facilities that do not serve food, wont have to worry about where their next meal will come from.

The senior meals pilot program launched on March 23, responding to an immediate need in our community: South L.A.s considerable amount of seniors in need of resources and support. Thirty eight percent of South L.A. residents 65 and older have annual incomes of less than $18,735. That percentage is significantly higher than that of the City or County of Los Angeles as a whole, 28.5% and 24.7% respectively.

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Additionally, the current fabric of existing senior service programs has been stretched thin by COVID-19. Various senior facilities like Betty Hill Senior Center were forced to close and cancel programming. On the first day of deliveries, the emergency meals program fed 400 seniors. By the end of the first week, over 1,000 residents from Broadway Villas, FAME, Good Shepherd, Ward Villas, West Angeles, West Angeles Curve, Normandie Sr. Home and numerous others received free meals delivered from the local restaurants.

I think this is a very heartwarming program put together by Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawsons office, said Maria Rutledge, South L.A. senior and community organizer. It is difficult for many seniors to admit that they need help and this program reminds us that someone cares; it reminds us that this community is a family.

In addition to serving seniors, this program makes a real impact in the lives of small business owners and their staff. The emergency meal program engaged a total of 18 small businesses in South L.A., providing the cash flow necessary for each business to keep their doors open and pay their staff to serve our community during this pandemic.

Now is the time for all of us to support one another. Our small businesses contribute so much to the financial and cultural vitality of our communities, said Councilmember Harris-Dawson. The emergency senior meal program allows them to continue giving back to our neighborhoods while also keeping their staff employed.

All of the participating businesses are required to follow strict health department regulations and practice physical distancing while managing door-to-door delivery for the seniors. Whether new or old, all of these businesses have deep community ties. The organizations, seniors, and community as a whole showed loved for the restaurants altruistic food efforts to foster positive relationships with our community. The first cohort of participating businesses are almost entirely small, family-owned restaurants with fewer than 10 employees and includes:

Bocata Kitchen

Caveman Kitchen

Dulans Soul Food

Earles on Crenshaw

El Arca

El Migueleno

Fresh & Meaty Burgers

Grilled Fraiche

Harun

Hot & Cool Cafe

Hotville Kitchen

Jordans

MDears

Mariscos Maria

Mels Fish Shack

Peppers Jamaican Cuisine

South LA Cafe

Swift Cafe

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This program allows local restaurants the opportunity to keep our kitchens open and staff employed, said Kim Prince, owner of Hotville Chicken. We remain resilient and diligent about the health and safety of our customers, staff, and the community at large. We are all in this together.

Being a part of the emergency meal program for seniors has been rewarding and a blessing, said Kyndra McCray, owner & chef of Swift Cafe. My grandma passed away two months ago and its been incredibly difficult. Being able to deliver meals to people who remind me of her has kept a smile on my face. As a newly opened cafe, it has been a struggle to keep my doors open. Providing these meals funded by Councilmember Harris Dawson has allowed me to keep my doors open and do what I absolutely love, which is to cook.

All of these businesses are adapting to survive and continue serving the community. The program will continually grow and engage more seniors. At full capacity, the program will serve an estimated 5,000-7,000 seniors. Beginning this week, Council District 8 residents over the age of 65 can sign up to receive free lunch delivered. If you are over 65 or would like to sign up someone who is, please complete the form at mhdcd8.com.
No longer will commanders let a foe live if they can get him in their sights

The faith-based wars that wracked Europe after the Reformation saw armies casually slaughter noncombatants and fanatics assassinate kings and commanders of the wrong religion. By the mid-17th century, however, a wearierand perhaps wisercontinent began to professionalize its warrior class and regulate conflict. These reforms carried over to fighting in the New World, at least when the combatants were white. Captors treated officers held prisoner with courtesy; grunts, not so much. Even in battle, armies thought it rude to target enemy officers. On the eve of an action at Brandywine Creek, Pennsylvania, in September 1777, Major Patrick Ferguson of the British army observed two American officers, one in a large cocked hat, reconnoitering ahead of their front line. Ferguson, a crack shot, called on the Continentals to dismount. Instead, the pair of Americans turned and rode off. I could have lodged half a dozen balls in or about the man in the cocked hat, Ferguson wrote. But it was not pleasant to fire at the back of an unoffending individual who was acquitting himself coolly of his duty, and so I left him alone. After the Battle of Brandywine, Ferguson learned from captured Americans that his nonchalant almost-target had been General George Washington.

Standards had frayed noticeably by the time of the Civil War, when both Confederates and Union men hatched plans to kidnap and possibly kill one anothers presidents.

A 4,500-rider Union cavalry raid on Richmond in late February 1864 advertised as being to free prisoners of war was intended, according to captured orders, to kill Jefferson Davis and his cabinet. The attack sputtered to nothing, and the Union claimed the orders, which the Confederates ballyhooed far and wide, were forgeries. A year on, John Wilkes Booth, heartthrob thespian and Confederate partisan, plotted to kidnap Abraham Lincoln in order to ransom Confederate POWs. Lees surrender at Appomattox made Booths scheme moot, since there no longer was an Army of Northern Virginia for freed rebels to rejoin. In celebratory remarks two days later, Lincoln called for enfranchising black veterans, inspiring Booth to reframe. That means nigger citizenship, the actor said. That is the last speech he will ever make.

By the mid-20th century, the gloves had come all the way off. In April 1943 the U.S. Navy and the Army Air Force took out the Japanese Navys senior admiral. Isoroku Yamamoto, scion of a samurai family, was 20 when he joined the service in 1904 and lost two fingers fighting the Russians. Yamamoto spent several of his rank-climbing years enrolled at Harvard and serving as a naval attache in the American capital. A keen-eyed guest, he appreciated Americas industrial might and war-making potential. Anyone who has seen the auto factories in Detroit and the oil fields in Texas knows that Japan lacks the national power for a naval race with America, he wrote. Another time he drolly observed, Should hostilities once break out, it would not be enough that we take Guam and the Philippines, nor even Hawaii and San Francisco. To make victory certain, we would have to march into Washington and dictate the terms of peace in the White House. I wonder if our politicians have confidence as to the final outcome. However, Yamamoto was also a gambler, drawn to games of chance and skill Asian (shogi, Go, mah-jongg) and western (poker, bridge). When Japan decided in 1941 to take on the United States, he went all in.

Hoping to avert a long, attritive slog, Yamamoto masterminded the attack on Pearl Harbora surprise that, while stunning, failed to sink any American aircraft carriers. Six months later the master tactician doubled down at Midway. That resounding failure sent Yamamotos own carrier group to the bottom. His fears came true.

After the hellish losing struggle for Guadalcanal, Yamamoto wanted to coordinate air raids against Allied forces on New Guinea and also encourage his men. In April 1943 he made plans to fly from his headquarters at Truk in the central Pacific. His trip would take him to forward positions 1,000 miles south at Rabaul on New Britain and on Ballalae, a speck of an island off Bougainville. The admirals staff prepared detailed itinerariestheir boss believed in planning and punctualityand radioed them in code to the relevant outposts.

Unfortunately, the Americans had excellent code breakersover 2,000 laboring at Pearl Harbor, with more in Washington. Even before Midway, decoders had unscrambled Japanese battle orders; now the Americans knew where the planner of Pearl Harbor would be traveling and when. Did the news go all the way to FDR? There is no paper trail to the Oval Office, but Roosevelt had had a lifelong interest in naval affairs. Admiral Chester Nimitz, commander of the Pacific Fleet in Hawaii, issued a formal order to kill Yamamoto. Passed westward and down the chain of command, the order acquired a belligerent postscript: TALLEYHO LETS GET THE BASTARD.

The Americans hesitated only out of political and practical concerns. Some naval intelligence officers thought Yamamoto, given his history of reluctance to go to war, might become a force for peace. This sounds in hindsight like daydreamingneither side in the Pacific was looking for a settlement. Killing Yamamoto might alert the Japanese to replace their code, sending American cryptologists back to square one. But the presumed damage to enemy morale from his death, and the prospect of vengeance, were too tempting. Military ethics never came up.

The hit was timed for Palm Sunday. The plan was to intercept Yamamotos aircraft as it neared his second stop, Ballalae. A squadron of 18 Army Air Force P-38 Lightningssturdy, deadly long-range fighterswould sally from Guadalcanal. The pilots could not go directly; the crows-flight course would take them over enemy-held islands. Instead, flying by compass, the Lightning pilots would detour across 500 miles of ocean. Technical problems sidelined two fighters at or shortly after take-off. The other 16 arrived punctually, as did their target. Cannon fire sent the bomber carrying Yamamoto crashing in jungle on Bougainville. Japan took a month to reveal his death. Queried about that news at a press conference, FDR feigned surprise: Is he dead? Gosh!

On Friday, January 3, 2020, Major General Qasem Soleimani, commander of Irans military operations in Syria and Iraq, died by American drone near Baghdad Airport. The U.S. State Department had designated Soleimani a terrorist as long ago as 2007. President Donald J. Trump reportedly decided last June that if Soleimani were to be found responsible for yet another American death, he had to die. In late December 2019 a pro-Iranian militias rocket attack on an airbase in northern Iraq cost an Iraqi-American contractor his life. You kill our contractor, we whack your two-star.

Critics complained that the Soleimani strike unnecessarily inflamed Iranian opinion against the United States. A few constitutionally oriented eccentrics raised federalism concerns. In 2002, Congress had authorized use of military force in Iraq, a law aimed at Saddam Hussein and, arguably, his terrorist legatees. Invoking that measure to ambush visiting Iranians might be a stretch. But the consensus, outside antiwar fever swamps, was that Soleimani had gotten what was coming. No American, former Veep Joe Biden declared, would mourn his passing. He deserved to be brought to justice for his crimes against American troops and thousands of innocents throughout the region.

Welcome to the not-so-new world.

This Deja Vu column appeared in the June 2020 issue of American History.
Kuwaitis have laid into a famous national actor after she asked authorities to flash out expats amid coronavirus-linked health crisis, Arabian Business reports.

Hayat al-Fahad, an iconic top artist who starred in several Arabic dramas, caused a controversy Tuesday after she told local television that the Gulf country should prioritize citizens in efforts to contain coronavirus spread.

We are fed up. If we get sick, there are no hospitals (for us), she said during a telephone interview.

Why, if their countries do not want them, should we deal with them? Arent people supposed to leave during crises?

We should send them out put them in the desert. I am not against humanity, but we have reached a stage where were fed up.

Many Kuwaitis took to social media to slam her and branded her comments unacceptable, the Dubai-based media reports.

How many Kuwaitis are outside Kuwait at the moment? Should everyone also apply her logic when it comes to them? one critic said on Twitter.

The Gulf country has registered 340 cases and no fatalities. Eighty people have recovered and discharged from hospital.

Authorities have provided free health care to the population including expats who account for 70 per cent of the entire population of the Gulf nation.
UNODC recognizes the need to promote strong partnerships with civil society organizations in dealing with the complex issues of drug abuse and crime which undermine the fabric of society. The active involvement of civil society, which includes NGOs, community groups, labour unions, indigenous groups, charitable organizations, faith-based organizations, professional associations and foundations is essential to help UNODC carry out its global mandates.

Through GLOU68, UNODC Civil Society Team (CST) is the main entry point for non-governmental stakeholders and serves as a bridge between these stakeholders and UNODC substantive offices, field offices and Member States. Located within the Office of the Director for the Division for Policy Analysis and Public Affairs of UNODC, the CST carries out the following main functions:

Supporting the participation of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in intergovernmental meetings, in line with relevant UNODC mandates and rules of procedure for the respective intergovernmental bodies

Building capacity of non-governmental stakeholders to help them improve their knowledge of the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the Protocols Thereto, and related International Drug Policy Instruments. It does so together with relevant substantive offices

Maintaining a database of non-governmental stakeholders

The CST carries out these functions in close collaboration with relevant UNODC substantive offices, including Crime and Economic Branch, Organized Crime Branch, Drug Prevention and Health Branch, the Secretariat to the Governing Bodies, and relevant Field Offices. The CST also partners with umbrella organizations such as the UNCAC Coalition, Vienna NGO Committee on Drugs, and the Alliance of NGOs on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice.

A guide for NGO participation in the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) and the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ) is available here.
Some coronavirus antibody tests submitted for approval to Public Health England have failed to meet required levels of accuracy, Downing Street has revealed.

Eight days after a senior health official suggested that the tests could be available within days for the public to order from Amazon, Boris Johnsons spokesman was unable to give any timetable for their introduction. He warned that the use of unreliable tests could have significant adverse consequences by giving people false confidence in their own immunity.

And health secretary Matt Hancock acknowledged that early analysis of the tests showed that some were not up to standard.

"We've now bought 17.5 million tests, subject to them working, and we are undertaking tests of those tests," Mr Hancock told a 10 Downing Street press conference.

"The early results of some of them have not performed well, but we're hopeful that they will improve and that the later tests that we've got our hands on will be able to be reliable enough for people to use them with confidence."

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

Nine tests are currently being subjected to analysis to determine whether they can accurately identify individuals who have had the Covid-19 infection and recovered. It is not known whether the failed tests are among these nine.

Antibody testing is regarded as key to eventually lifting the lockdown conditions in place across the UK.

Mr Hancock confirmed today that the government will issue immunity certificates to those with positive tests, indicating that they are highly unlikely to catch the disease again and can therefore resume their normal lives. The procedure is separate from the antigen tests being given to patients with symptoms, and increasingly frontline NHS staff, which are designed to show whether an individual currently has Covid-19.

Hopes of a swift move to widespread antibody testing were raised on 25 March, when PHEs director of national infection Prof Sharon Peacock told a committee of MPs that evaluation of the proposed tests could be complete by the end of last week and kits introduced within days.

She suggested that members of the public would be able to order the pregnancy test-style kits to use at home on a pinprick of blood, sending them off to labs for confirmation of the result.

But Mr Johnsons spokesman today said the approvals process was ongoing and could give no timeline for the introduction of the tests.

We are looking at nine different tests, said the spokesman. We have already set out the importance of these tests being accurate.

Other countries have introduced tests which were not accurate which has had significant adverse consequences, so we must make sure the tests are accurate.

We are working as quickly as we can on that and as soon as a test is approved then we will announce it publicly.

He said the government had been supplied tests which havent met the required levels of accuracy and therefore wouldnt have been safe to use. However it was not clear whether these included any of the nine currently under investigation

Asked if the taxpayer would have to foot the bill for millions of tests which turn out not to be accurate enough to use, the PMs spokesman said: We have been clear in our discussions with manufacturers that we are looking to take receipt of tests which actually work.

Unconfirmed ITV reports earlier this week suggested that the UK has bought two million antibody test kits from Chinese manufacturers Wondfo and AllTest, which already have EU approval for use.

PHE medical director Yvonne Doyle denied the authorities were dragging their feet over the introduction of antibody tests.

This is not a matter of dragging our feet, its important that the test is valid, that it does what it says it does, she said.

As the chief medical officer said, theres something worse than no test - a wrong test or a bad test.

She added: As soon as we can we want to be out there doing these tests.

The director of Birmingham Universitys Institute of Microbiology and Infection, Prof Robin May, said that delays resulted from the need to ensure kits do not deliver false positives.

Antibody tests usually work by isolating a protein produced by the virus and then looking for antibodies in blood which bind to that protein, he explained.

But it is vital to identify a specific protein which is unique to Covid-19 - also known by the scientific name SARS-COV-2 - and which produces an antibody interaction strong enough to allow sensitive detection.

If the protein chosen is not unique, the test could produce a positive reaction for other coronaviruses responsible for innocuous illnesses like the common cold.

Optimising and validating this part of the test is what is currently taking time, said Prof May.

Once such a test is developed, initially the testing process is indeed slow. However, it is often possible to adapt such laboratory tests into simpler point of care devices  rather like a pregnancy test.

If that is achievable for a SARS-COV-2 antibody test, then rapid testing may well become very feasible on a large scale. Once rolled out, such a test would tell us who has had the virus, but not necessarily who has it at the moment, since it takes several days for antibodies to be made, and thus people can have an active infection but no detectable antibodies.
A ustralia will offer parents free child care to prevent workers from having to stay at home during the coronavirus pandemic.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the A$1.6 billion (790 million) package, which would cover the next three months.

The funding, sourced from taxpayer subsidies, would allow thousands of childcare centres to stay open, Mr Morrison said on Thursday.

We will be putting in place support arrangements to the childcare facilities, some 13,000 of them, to ensure they will be able to remain open and will be there for parents to ensure they can do what they need to do each day, he said.

Public areas such as playgrounds, outside gyms and skateparks have closed as Australia introduced tougher rules / Getty Images

Like many countries, Australias financial and jobs markets have been roiled by the outbreak, prompting the government to unveil several stimulus packages.

Mr Morrison said 113,000 businesses had registered for a A$130 billion (65.19 billion) six-month wage subsidy designed to stop spiralling unemployment and business closures.

Before the child care package was announced, the job keeper allowance has brought the countrys coronavirus-related stimulus so far to A$320 billion, or about 15 per cent of Australias gross domestic product.

Economists forecast the countrys first recession in almost three decades.

Australia has confirmed that 5,105 have tested positive coronavirus, 345 have recovered and 23 have died after contracting the virus
Human Rights Watch says refugees subjected to curfews that do not apply to other foreigners or Lebanese citizens.

Beirut, Lebanon  Nearly two dozen Lebanese municipalities have implemented restrictions targeting Syrian refugees amid the coronavirus pandemic, including curfews that do not apply to other foreigners or Lebanons citizens, according to Human Rights Watch.

At least eight municipalities put tight curfews in place in early March, limiting the movement of refugees to about eight hours a day even before the countrys cabinet announced a nationwide 7pm to 5am curfew late last month, the US-based rights group said on Thursday.

There is no evidence that extra curfews for Syrian refugees will help limit the spread of COVID-19, Nadia Hardman, refugee rights researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

The coronavirus does not discriminate, and limiting the spread and impact of COVID-19 in Lebanon requires ensuring that everyone is able to access testing and treatment centers.

As of Thursday, Lebanon had recorded 494 cases of coronavirus and 16 deaths linked to COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Of those cases, 93 percent are Lebanese patients, with just three Syrians testing positive.

The government on March 21 imposed the dusk-to-dawn curfew while some municipalities had already implemented measures limiting the movement of Syrian refugees to just five hours (between 9pm and 1pm) or in another case to eight hours (between 7am and 3pm). As a result, the Syrian refugees face greater limitations on their movement than those imposed under the governments curfew.

Xenophobia

There are just below one million Syrian refugees registered with the United Nationss Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Lebanon, but officials estimate the total number is close to 1.5 million.

Most fled to Lebanon after the outbreak of the Syrian war in 2011, and live mainly in informal settlements dotted throughout the eastern Bekaa Valley and northern Lebanon.

Municipalities that have clamped curfews include Brital in the Bekaa Valley and Darbashtar and Kfarhabou in the countrys north.

Additionally, HRW said at least 18 municipalities in the Bekaa Valley have mandated restrictions other than curfews that solely target Syrian refugees, including restrictions on the numbers of refugees that are allowed to move about freely.

A Syrian refugee woman puts a face mask on a boy as a precaution against the spread of coronavirus, in al-Wazzani area, in southern Lebanon [Ali Hashisho/Reuters]

Aya Majzoub, a Lebanon researcher at HRW, told Al Jazeera: Curfews on Syrian refugees are not new  municipalities have been doing this for many years fueled by xenophobia and discrimination towards Syrian refugees.

We have seen this xenophobia manifest during the COVID-19 crisis, as municipalities once more resorted to discriminatory measures. These curfews are not being carried out under any law. Instead, municipalities arbitrarily implement and enforce them.

Under human rights law, rights cannot be restricted based on nationality. This is a fundamental principle of human rights law that applies even during emergencies, the HRW said.

Lebanon is suffering from a shortage of medical supplies and could quickly see its hospital capacity overwhelmed if there is a moderate increase in the number of cases.

Majzoub urged the government to make efforts to communicate to refugees that they can receive medical help if they experience COVID-19-like symptoms to help contain the spread of the disease.

An outbreak among the refugee community, particularly in very densely populated informal tented settlements will not be limited to refugees. It will very quickly spread to host communities and undermine the countrys response effort, she said.

Lebanese Health Minister Hamad Hassan has called on the international community to shoulder the burden of treating refugees in Lebanon, including the roughly 175,000 Palestinians in the country.

The UNHCR has begun to undertake awareness campaigns in several refugee settlements, where aid group Oxfam found minimal awareness of how coronavirus spreads or what preventive measures could be taken, the HRW said.
Photo credit: RCGS Resolute

From Popular Mechanics

A Venezuelan patrol boat was sent to intercept the cruise ship Resolute, firing warning shots and ramming it several times.



The cruise ship, built to operate in iceberg-infested waters, suffered only minor damage and sailed to safety while the Venezuelan cruiser sank itself.

No one was reported injured in the scrape.

A Venezuelan Navy offshore patrol vessel Naiguata sent to intercept a lowly cruise ship accidentally owned itself. After ramming the cruise ship RCGS Resolute's steel-reinforced hull, the patrol boat sank with no injuries. The Resolute suffered only minor damage because it was reinforced to withstand iceberg-infested waters a cruise ship built to operate ice-laden waters.

According to Maritime Executive, the incident took place 13 nautical miles off the coast of Isla de Tortuga, an uninhabited Venezuelan island. The Naiguata ordered the Resolute to follow it to Venezuela and port, on the pretext of violation of Venezuelan territorial waters. While the cruise ship crew was consulting with the home office, the navy vessel fired several warning shots and began ramming the cruise ship.

What the crew of the Naiguata apparently did not realize was that the Resolutes hull is stronger than the average because of its Iceberg-resistant. The ships website describes the hull as having high density steel plating to allow it to sail in ice laden large waters.

Columbia Cruise Services, operators of the Resolute, tell the ships side of the story :

While the Master was in contact with the head office, gun shots were fired and, shortly thereafter, the navy vessel approached the starboard side at speed with an angle of 135 and purposely collided with the RCGS RESOLUTE. The navy vessel continued to ram the starboard bow in an apparent attempt to turn the ships head towards Venezuelan territorial waters.

While the RCGS RESOLUTE sustained minor damages, not affecting vessels seaworthiness, it occurs that the navy vessel suffered severe damages while making contact with the ice-strengthened bulbous bow of the ice-class expedition cruise vessel RCGS RESOLUTE and started to take water.

Story continues

The Naiguata ended up sinking. Resolute reportedly stayed in the vicinity to render aid, a prospect the captain probably did not relish. According to Columbia Cruise Services, Resolute stayed in the vicinity until the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Curacao, the authority responsible for local incidents at sea, told it to continue on its voyage. Resolute also claims that offers to lend aid to the stricken ship were left unanswered.

The Venezuelan military disputed that , stating the action of the ship Resolute is considered cowardly and criminal, since it did not attend to the rescue of the crew, in breach of the international regulations that regulate the rescue of life at sea. A statement attributed to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro alleged that the cruise ship was actually to blame in an "act of aggression and piracy."

After being released by the MRCC, the Resolute sailed on to safety, docking at the island of Curacao .

The website FleetMon has a photo of damage to the Resolutes hull, which appears minor, as well as a file photo of the Naiguata. The Resolute, built in 1993, is 400 feet long and 59 feet wide. It displaces 8,378 tons and normally carries up to 146 passengers.

Photo credit: Carlucho510 - Wikimedia Commons

The Naiguata was built in 2009 by Spains Navantia shipyards as a coastal patrol ship and displaced 1,453 tons. The Naiguata was 259 feet long and had a top speed of 22 knots. This ship was also armed with a 76-millimeter Oto-Melara rapid fire deck gun, 35-millimeter Oerlikon Millennium close-in weapon system, and two .50-caliber machine guns. As a surface ship, Naiguata typically embarked with a crew of 34.

Its not clear what happened here, but one thing is clear: Venezuelas story doesnt add up. For one, Resolute was 13 nautical miles off the coast of Isla de Tortugaterritorial waters extend up to 12 miles. Also an unarmed cruise ship that takes no aggressive action cannot be an aggressor and commit piracy against an armed navy patrol boat. Finally, the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre is a non-partisan agency that would have records of it giving Resolute permission to leave the scene.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 01:17:38|Editor: mingmei

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A stadium is seen empty in Bologna, Italy, on April 1, 2020. Italy registered a total of 110,574 COVID-19 cases as of Wednesday, and the death toll stood at 13,155, according to fresh figures released by the country's Civil Protection Department managing the national emergency response. (Photo by Gianni Schicchi/Xinhua)

ROME, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Italy registered a total of 110,574 coronavirus cases as of Wednesday, with death toll rising to 13,155, according to the country's Civil Protection Department which is managing the national emergency response.

Overall, the increase in the number of people hospitalized and those died was slowing down, Civil Protection Department Chief Angelo Borrelli told a televised press conference late Wednesday afternoon.

The number of active infections added 2,937 cases from the previous day, now standing at 80,572, official data showed.

Of those infected, some 28,403 people were currently hospitalized, 4,035 were in intensive care, and 48,134, or about 60 percent of those positive for the coronavirus, were under home quarantine, Borelli explained.

Some 727 new fatalities were registered in the last 24 hours.

The number of people recovered rose by 1,118 cases to a total of 16,847 since the pandemic broke out in the northern regions of the country on Feb. 21.
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Linkedin Tri Indah Oktavianti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, April 3 2020

Authorities have dismissed as a hoax a rumor that two volunteers at a makeshift COVID-19 hospital in the Kemayoran athletes village in Central Jakarta died after contracting the disease.

The rumor began on a Facebook account under the name Andriana Nova Grantina, in which the apparent account holder said someone named Sia Ai Hung and that persons sister, Sia Ai, had died of COVID-19 on Monday and Wednesday, respectively.

Both of them were volunteers at the Kemayoran athletes village emergency hospital, said the post, which was published on Wednesday.

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The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Delegation in Ukraine is ready to visit prisoners in detention facilities in Russia-occupied areas of Donbas as soon as access is granted to it, Media Relations Officer of the ICRC Delegation in Ukraine Oleksandr Vlasenko has said.

"Yes, we are ready to carry out this work. This is our work indeed, we have people who are ready to visit detention facilities and they already do this in the territory controlled by the government of Ukraine. In general, we are quite satisfied with the access to detention facilities in the controlled territory we have," he said in an exclusive interview to Interfax-Ukraine.

Vlasenko also said that if the ICRC in Ukraine receives access to people in the uncontrolled territories, who were detained in connection with the conflict, the organization is ready to carry out this mission, which was discussed during the Normandy-format summit, at once.

The conflict in Donbas escalated last week and the civilians suffered from military operations, he said.

"Of course, we are concerned, and we are drawing attention of the sides to the fact that they must observe international humanitarian law, while the critical civil infrastructure facilities should not become targets during military operations, as lives of people living in those territories depend on their operation," Vlasenko said.
Technavio has been monitoring the industrial radiography equipment market and it is poised to grow by USD 465.36 million during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 14% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005302/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Industrial Radiography Equipment Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please request latest free sample report on Covid-19 Impact

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Anritsu, Comet Holding (Comet Group), GENERAL ELECTRIC, Illinois Tool Works (North Star Imaging), and Nikon are some of the major market participants. The advantages of digital radiography will offer immense growth opportunities. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Advantages of digital radiography has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Industrial Radiography Equipment Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Industrial Radiography Equipment Market is segmented as below:

Product Digital Analog

End-user Automotive Aerospace And Defense Power Generation Oil And Gas Others

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download latest free sample report of 2020-2024: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30533

Industrial Radiography Equipment Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our industrial radiography equipment market report covers the following areas:

Industrial Radiography Equipment Market Size

Industrial Radiography Equipment Market Trends

Industrial Radiography Equipment Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies rising demand for portable radiography equipment as one of the prime reasons driving the industrial radiography equipment market growth during the next few years.

Industrial Radiography Equipment Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Industrial Radiography Equipment Market, including some of the vendors such as Anritsu, Comet Holding (Comet Group), GENERAL ELECTRIC, Illinois Tool Works (North Star Imaging), and Nikon. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Industrial Radiography Equipment Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Industrial Radiography Equipment Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist industrial radiography equipment market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the industrial radiography equipment market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the industrial radiography equipment market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of industrial radiography equipment market vendors

Table Of Contents:

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT

Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Digital Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Analog Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY END-USER

Market segmentation by end-user

Comparison by end-user

Automotive Market size and forecast 2018-2023

A&D Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Power generation Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Oil and gas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Others Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by end-user

PART 09: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 10: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

PART 11: MARKET TRENDS

Rising demand for portable radiography equipment

Advent of new types of materials

Growth opportunity for radiography in additive manufacturing

PART 12: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

Competitive scenario

PART 13: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Anritsu

Comet Holding (Comet Group)

GENERAL ELECTRIC

Illinois Tool Works (North Star Imaging)

Nikon

PART 14: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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A Pentecostal church in a Sacramento suburb is the epicenter of a coronavirus outbreak with more than six dozen confirmed cases of the illness, prompting county officials to warn against religious gatherings.

"It's outrageous that this is happening," Sacramento County Public Health Director Peter Beilenson said. "Obviously there is freedom of religion, but when it's impacting public health as this is, we have to enforce social distancing."

The church, Bethany Slavic Missionary Church, did not immediately return a call for comment Thursday. But Beilenson said health officials were concerned that church members may still be meeting in private homes to conduct services, despite county orders.

"Whether or not you have community-wide sermons or meetings in people's houses, they are all dangers and they are very detrimental to the public's health," Beilenson said.

Beilenson said 71 of the church's members who live in Sacramento County have tested positive, and more members who live in surrounding counties also have confirmed cases, though he could not immediately say how many.

Information and sermons on the church's website indicate it stopped holding large gatherings on March 18. The church is the largest Russian-language

Pentecostal church in the area and has a congregation of more than 3,000 people, according to published reports. Its two-story building is normally packed with congregants, many of them older immigrants, during multiple services each week.

According to a March 29 sermon posted online, the church's senior pastor, Adam Bondaruk, is hospitalized with the virus, as are two other pastors, who were described as "critically ill" by an unidentified pastor in the video.

"We have many different people in our church, they are ill, so we need to pray. We need to intervene," the pastor continued in the video. "God will hear us, and he will heal us."

The church has met with controversy in the past, including for anti-gay rhetoric. Earlier this year, a well on the church's property that was used by congregants was found to be contaminated with chemicals from a nearby military base. One of the church's officials was convicted of pedophilia in 2018.

Beilenson confirmed that church greeters shaking hands with congregants as they entered may have helped spread the coronavirus. In the online sermon, the unidentified pastor said that shortly after New Year's, the church had a problem with the "greeting team."

"I know we are entering this valley right now," the pastor said during the taped sermon. "When this thing will be over, and when we [are] going to come here and when we are going to shake hands, I think it's going to be a totally different meaning."

As the coronavirus has spread across Sacramento County, infecting more than 300 people and killing nine, health officials said one in three confirmed cases of the illness in the county are linked to church gatherings.

"Sacramento County is urging all residents, from all faiths and all backgrounds, to stay home," the county said in a statement Wednesday.

The disclosure of the mass infection comes as large gatherings across the country have been identified as incidents in which people are infected with the virus that causes COVID-19. Such "super-spreading" events can play a major role in widening the outbreak.

It can take two to 14 days after someone is infected with the coronavirus before symptoms can appear. Once the illness is apparent and a patient is hospitalized, it can take 17 to 25 days to either recover and be discharged, or to die from the illness, according to a study of patients in Wuhan, China, the global epicenter of the pandemic.

The first coronavirus case in Sacramento County publicly associated with a house of worship involved a woman older than 70 with underlying health conditions who attended Faith Presbyterian Church in Sacramento. More cases of the virus have since been associated with the church, which has been in operation since 1967 and is in a popular residential neighborhood near schools and shopping.

Faith Presbyterian said on March 12 that it discovered "a small number of church members were displaying symptoms potentially associated with COVID-19."

Despite a statement made three days earlier by county health officials saying that people at higher risk should consider staying home "and away from crowded social gatherings where people are within arm's length," Faith Presbyterian was still open.

But after discovering the pocket of potential coronavirus patients among its congregation, worship leaders said they immediately decided to shut down the church on Florin Road to prevent the spread of the virus. Choir practice had been scheduled for that evening.

One of the church members who contracted the virus, a substitute teacher who worked at Sutterville Elementary School, died three days later, on March 15. Her death was announced by the Sacramento City Unified School District, which closed campuses the day after the woman died.

hree days later, Sacramento County issued a mandatory stay-at-home order. By the end of the day, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a similar directive for the entire state.

Church officials released a new statement on March 22, saying that two members had died of COVID-19 and there were a "small number of confirmed positive cases in the congregation." The announcement indicated that the church would remain closed at least until Friday and said that "church elders appointed a task force" of three members to help "guide all decisions."

As the virus has spread across the state, many houses of worship have canceled services, prayer circles and classes or moved them online.

All Saints' Episcopal Church in Beverly Hills began canceling services on March 8 after its rector, Janet Broderick, fell ill. Broderick, the sister of actor Matthew Broderick, had attended a conference in Kentucky along with more than 500 other Episcopalians from around the country. She later tested positive for COVID-19 and suffered from severe pneumonia.

On March 12, the Ikar synagogue in Los Angeles said it was suspending shabbat services. A day later, the Orange County Islamic Foundation suspended Friday prayers at the mosque and said no one would be allowed inside apart from employees.

The Diocese of San Jose ordered public Masses at Catholic churches to be suspended starting March 14; the Archdiocese of Los Angeles announced the same on March 16, the same day the San Francisco Bay Area ordered a shelter-in-place order.

While many churches are shifting to digital worship, some churches around the nation have defied orders to close.

On Sunday, the Life Tabernacle Church in a suburb of Baton Rouge, La., defied the governor's order to stay home and continued to use its fleet of two dozen buses to bring hundreds of congregants to services three times a week.

"We're not going to be intimidated," the Rev. Tony Spell said.

And this week, sheriff's deputies handcuffed a Tampa, Fla., minister for violating local stay-at-home orders by gathering hundreds to worship. Police said the minister, the Rev. Rodney Howard-Browne of the River at Tampa Bay, showed "reckless disregard for human life" by potentially exposing his congregants to the coronavirus.

Brown, out on bail, has complained of "religious bigotry," and the church maintained it had the right to assemble in worship even in an emergency.

Chabria reported from Sacramento, Greene from Thousand Oaks and Lin from Millbrae.

Times staff writer Sarah Parvini contributed to this report.

___

(c)2020 the Los Angeles Times

Visit the Los Angeles Times at www.latimes.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Michigan Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun said residents should strongly consider wearing homemade masks in public to protect themselves and their community from the coronavirus. Should Ohio also encourage masks for all?

Like Ohio officials have, Khaldun stressed that only healthcare professionals should have N95 respirators and surgical masks during the COVID-19 pandemic and said residents should donate medical gear to overwhelmed hospitals. But during a news conference Thursday Khaldun advised people to don face protection if they have access to it, cleveland.coms sister site, mlive.com, reports.

Gov. Mike DeWine on Thursday said employers should allow their employees to wear masks at work and showed examples of home-sewn masks. But he stopped short of encouraging everyone to have their own.

I would encourage anyone in retail, if your employees want to wear one of these, I think that is a good thing, and I think many people are making those.

This week, Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton said she looks forward to new guidance that could come from the CDC, which is considering recommending that everyone wear masks. Many people could be carrying the virus and not know it because theyre asymptomatic, Acton has said.

If these asymptomatic people wear masks when running essential errands, they could work to help slow the spread of the disease.

Michigan on Thursday had 10,791 coronavirus cases, nearly four times Ohios cases. The state of 10 million people had 417 deaths. Ohio, with 11.7 million people, had 2,547 cases and 65 deaths.

In Ohio, hundreds of Ohioans are making fabric masks for people to wear while buying groceries or going to the pharmacy. And hundreds of Ohioans want home-sewn masks but cant make them themselves. Cleveland.com is trying to match those groups.

More mask news

12 simple steps to make a fabric mask to protect from the coronavirus: See the video

Frequently asked questions for mask wearing

Volunteers make hundreds of masks for Mercy Hospital in Canton.
The adage that truth is the first casualty in war sadly becoming a reality as we wage a global battle against the deadly coronavirus. Around the world, media freedoms and rights are being infected by panic  and by politicians.

In Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban pulled off what some are dubbing a coronavirus coup, suspending Parliament and threatening independent journalists who criticize the government with jail terms of up to five years for spreading misinformation. Thailand and the Philippines have passed similar laws.

In India, the worlds largest democracy, the Supreme Court ruled that news organizations have to publish everything the government says about the coronavirus. Turkmenistan went so far to ban the word coronavirus from state media and health brochures going to schools and hospitals

Iran, Jordan, Oman, Morocco and Yemen have cracked down not just on the words but on the actual paper they are printed on, banning the publishing and distribution of newspapers under the pretense that could spread the virus.

Egypt kicked out a Guardian correspondent, while China is expelling journalists from the New York Times and the Washington Post just when outside eyes there are more important than ever.

Autocrats have always used war and crises to widen their powers. But democratic countries are not immune from unhealthy attacks against a free press.

In democracies, the danger is not coercion but compliance. Politicians of all stripes are pushing the idea that in these times of dire crises, journalists need to be team players.

In the U.S., not surprisingly, President Trump continues his campaign against the lamestream media and has taken to vicious attacks  even by his standards  against individual journalists who dare to ask what he considers unfair questions.

But even Democrats like New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently pushed back against probing from CNN about his states unpreparedness, saying the time to deal with these questions is after this war is over.

Meanwhile, Ontario Premier Doug Ford is enjoying somewhat of a mutual honeymoon with the press. He recently tweeted uncharacteristic praise for journalists, stressing that we are all in this together.

Well, no. As citizens we may all need to unite. But the media is not in this together with politicians, scientists or the health industry. And with all due respect to politicians like Cuomo working hard to protect his citizens, the medias role as a watchdog is even more important during war, not after.

Think of the dangers that befall the media when we jump on the collective bandwagon during other wars and crises such as the War Measures Act of 1970 in Canada, the war in Afghanistan, even the Second World War. In those and in other times of difficult battles, we reported too little and too late the abuses, the errors, and the tragedies committed by those on our side.

No matter how evil the enemy (and as opponents go the coronavirus is virulently brutal and unforgiving), it is not our role to be cheerleaders, however popular or noble the cause.

A free and critical media is all the more important today, given the dangerous myths circulating right now about COVID-19. We also need to expose the failures  some of them understandable, some of them negligent  of almost all governments to adequately prepare for and fight the virus. The skyrocketing deaths in nursing homes and the perils of health workers are but two examples that need more investigation.

The good news, so to speak, is that people are hungry for reliable information and analysis from trusted sources. TV news ratings and online news consumption are surging.

Thats why these twin trends of crackdowns and compliance are dangerous to the publics health and the health of a free media.

Journalists are providing an essential service today, much like hospital workers, grocery clerks and caregivers. The difference is we dont fly anyones flag. We are not running in any popularity contests.

We serve the public by remaining independent and critical and asking the tough questions that autocrats and sometimes democratic politicians would prefer we ignore.

Enforced silence by dictators and calls for acquiescence from embattled elected leaders can be just deadly as a virus and the panic it spreads.
For our free coronavirus pandemic coverage, learn more here.

Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size As conspiracy theories go, the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic offered all the right ingredients. Scientists think the virus jumped from wild animals into humans, likely in late 2019 in the bustling Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market of Wuhan, central China. But it just so happens that a half-hour drive from that market, across the Yangtze River, is Chinas highest-security biosafety laboratory. At the Wuhan Institute of Virology, hazard suits are de rigueur for scientists studying some of the worlds most dangerous diseases. Within days of news that a new deadly coronavirus had been identified in humans, unfounded claims that it was really a bioweapon or escaped experiment from this Wuhan lab were spreading nearly as fast as the virus itself. Now the world is in the grip of a new pandemic, this time in the golden age of social media, and conspiracy theorists are in their element. But why do pandemics breed conspiracy theories? What are scientists saying? And is there any right way to argue with a conspiracy theorist? Scientists at the epidemiological laboratory in Wuhan's Institute of Virology. Credit:AFP What are the theories about COVID-19? Some theories claim that COVID-19 is a population-control scheme or a top-secret spy operation gone wrong. Others question whether it exists at all or point to similar (but unrelated) patents for coronavirus vaccines as a sign it's all a cash grab by big pharmaceutical companies. More than one breathless Youtuber has blamed Wuhans recent rollout of 5G Wi-Fi.

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An image of a bamboo rat caged on top of a deer allegedly sold at the Wuhan seafood market has circulated online. Credit:Weibo Back at that lab, scientists were on the frontline of the outbreak in a sense  theirs was the only facility in China able to safely handle the new pathogen. The institute is an offshoot of the state-owned Chinese Academy of the Sciences, and part of a collaboration with France. But it wasnt built for the development of "biological warfare", as has been reported in some corners of the media, and virologists say it's far from top-secret  international collaboration is common. Loading Forced to issue a statement early into the outbreak denying rumours a student from the lab was the so-called Patient X, or first case, researchers said they had been "racing against time", many of them recalled early from their holidays, to help identify and tackle the virus. Still, suspicion lingered  viral leaks from labs are not without precedent. While its researchers had been trained to handle dangerous pathogens as part of a long partnership with the Galveston lab in the US, theWashington Post reported that American officials raised concerns about biosecurity at the Wuhan lab back in 2018. The centre had been studying coronaviruses, as are many such institutes around the world. In fact, one of the team, Chinas "bat woman", respected virologist Shi Zhengli, had been warning another SARS-like coronavirus would jump from bats into humans sooner or later. When the call did come, one evening in early December, she reportedly checked all the lab's samples, just in case something had been mishandled. It hadnt, she said. This virus was new (scientists say it has not been reported before), but analysis found the strain was also 96 per cent similar to one that Shi herself had already identified seven years earlier, in a bat down in Chinas south. A 96% match to a known virus might sound suspiciously close. But in virus years scientists studying its genome say it likely split off from that bat strain about 50 years ago and kept evolving on its own. Shi's work cataloguing wild viruses may have now given the world a headstart on ending this pandemic. Australian intelligence agencies have also looked into the idea of an accidental lab release as well as the notion of a deliberate one - and have turned up no evidence. The Prime Minister has already privately dismissed the lab scenario, as he calls for a global crackdown on wet markets known to pose health risks. Senior sources within the intelligence community say there is growing concern about such speculation being splashed across newspapers and mentioned by politicians when there is zero evidence to support it - a supposedly explosive US dossier supporting the theory trumpeted by the Trump administration has been dismissed as mostly full of news reports - Australian sources who had seen the document under the Five Eyes sharing agreement said it contained no material from intelligence gathering.

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Loading While Australia and reportedly other Five Eyes agencies such as Britain believe China has not been transparent about the initial outbreak, likely concealing early cases, a wet market and, more broadly, the wildlife trade is still considered the most likely cause. "We can't rule [a lab leak] out, we can't rule out a lot of things," one Australian intelligence source said. "It's hard to prove a negative". Still accusations against the Wuhan lab continue to cause headaches for its team  a known US conspiracy theorist and lawyer has filed a multi-trillion-dollar lawsuit against Shi, the institute and the Chinese government over the release of a bioweapon. After a number of the researchers were targeted online and their personal details released, Shi herself was forced to make a statement swearing on her life the virus had not come from the lab. But in late April, more stories surfaced - News Corps Australian media reported Shi and a colleague at the institute had previously studied live bats in Australia in research jointly funded by the Australian and Chinese governments. At the CSIRO where the research took place, scientists defended their safety record and said the work was critical to preventing pandemics. Why are COVID-19 conspiracy theories spreading so fast? But is it really so crazy to believe a story like that? Colin Klein, an Associate Professor of Philosophy at the Australian National University, says when "things are changing rapidly [and] its not actually unreasonable to [assume] some people have more information than others". Conspiracy theories are born out of the murky feeling that not all is being revealed to us, that the truth is still in shadow, and someone else is pulling the strings. During a fast-moving pandemic, where news breaks faster than scientists can make reliable findings, false credibility can attach to seemingly plausible explanations. In this case, real crackdowns by Chinese police on doctors who raised the alarm about early cases of the mystery illness did not help, along with Chinas record of covering up the extent of the SARS outbreak in 2002. This time around, US intelligence says history may be repeating itself, as it queries both the nations total reported cases and deaths from COVID-19.

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Loading Klein specialises in the philosophy of neuroscience, and a research project on misinformation has meant he's spent a lot of time on internet conspiracy theory forums where, for months already, there have been "quite a variety of COVID-19-related stuff". "Nobody has the full story yet," he says. "Government and news outlets [havent] been super-reassuring  it may just be because theres no reassurance to be had." But it's not the first time the high-anxiety narrative of an outbreak has sent imaginations running wild. When the infamous 1918 Spanish flu finished its lethal sweep across the world at the end of World War I, it had claimed more lives than the war itself. And in the absence of a known source, stories quickly spread that the Germans had developed the virus as a new kind of weapon. Loading Nearly 100 years later, Ebola was also wrongly called a biological weapon when it began its major rampage across Africa in 2014; and the Zika crisis of 2015 was blamed on everything from vaccinations to genetically engineered mosquitoes. A recent paper found that attempts to debunk these false Zika theories in Brazil at the time were wildly unsuccessful  if anything they just left people feeling less certain about all information coming to them, even from official channels. But when yellow fever emerged in the same region just a few years later, efforts to counter the same inevitable deluge of misinformation had more impact  suggesting that conspiracies are harder to combat when a disease is new with less reliable information about it. The current Wuhan bioweapon conspiracy theory echoes the famous Cold War-era Operation Infektion when the KGB spread the lie that HIV was created in a US biological weapons laboratory at Fort Detrick in the US state of Maryland  right near where, coincidentally, Klein himself grew up.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:00:03|Editor: huaxia

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MACAO, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Macao's gaming industry revenue plunged by 79.7 percent year-on-year in March 2020, the special administrative region (SAR)'s gaming industry watchdog said here on Thursday.

Macao's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau said in its latest report that the gaming revenue was 5.26 billion patacas (about 659.10 million U.S. dollars) in March this year, a drastic decline of 79.7 percent from March 2019.

The accumulated revenue in the first three months of 2020 reached 30.49 billion patacas (about 3.82 billion dollars), also down by 60.0 percent year-on-year.

The current COVID-19 epidemic has aggravated the slide of gaming industry's performance, as the SAR government had tightened the visitor entry policy to curb the spread of the epidemic since late January this year.

Macao's monthly gaming revenue had kept a year-on-year growth for 29 consecutive months since August 2016. But the trend was ended as it recorded a decrease of 5 percent year-on-year in January 2019.
In this file photo, Easter gifts are displayed in a Manhattan store. Mario Tama | Getty Images

Wooden egg shakers from Amazon, a homemade rainstick made out of an old paper towel roll and some packets of oatmeal will be in 11-month-old Charlie Stackhouse-Frechette's Easter basket this year. First-time parents Jill and Nate Stackhouse-Frechette will be foregoing Easter outfits and pictures, an Easter egg hunt and, of course, visiting with family. "This is our first Easter with a kid, so his Easter basket is made up of things we ordered online," said Jill Stackhouse-Frechette, who teaches English as a second language online from her home in New Hampshire to children in China. "And with a little imagination, and a whole lot of love, his holiday will be magical no matter what," she said. With just over a week until Easter, families like the Stackhouse-Frechettes are starting to plan for how to spend the holiday under the restrictions of the coronavirus pandemic. With bans on large gatherings and stay-at-home orders, extended families likely won't be gathering together or attending church services this Easter holiday. Some may opt for virtual meet-ups or watch livestream services. As for those Easter baskets, in the last month many retailers have shuttered their doors. This leaves consumers with fewer options this year.

'A different Easter'

"It's going to be a different Easter than we've seen in the past," Katherine Cullen, senior director of industry and consumer insights at the National Retail Federation, said. Typically, the NRF releases its Easter spending survey a few weeks before the holiday. Last year, the trade group estimated those celebrating would spend an average of $151 per person, and about eight in 10 U.S. adults were participating in the festivities. This year, the organization has decided not to share that data, which was collected in early March, as the poll was conducted before the coronavirus' massive spread in the U.S. and the unprecendented steps being taken to contain it. Still, Cullen foresees around 80% of people still celebrating the holiday despite the outbreak.

Bunnies are just what we need right now, as long as they're cheap. Kit Yarrow Consumer psychologist

Kit Yarrow, a consumer psychologist, also predicts that consumers will be buying Easter goodies. "Bunnies are just what we need right now, as long as they're cheap," Yarrow said. "In other words, Easter  which is more like a celebration of spring rather than a religious holiday for many  has traditionally been a lower-cost holiday with strong emotional impact." Despite millions of layoffs and furloughs, consumers strapped for cash will make room in their budgets for some treats and decorations for their kids, she said. But they won't be looking for extravagant gifts or experiences. Many will turn to online retailers to source the candy for their baskets or buy items online and pick-up at the store. "We're certainly seeing a shift to online for a lot of people," Cullen said. Both Jelly Belly Candy company and Just Born, the company behind marshmallow Peeps, have said retailers will have plenty of candy available this year, as Easter products began shipping in December. "On JellyBelly.com, sales are almost double what they were this many weeks ahead of Easter last year, indicating more consumers might be shopping for their Easter treats online," a Jelly Belly Candy Company spokesperson told CNBC via email.

Not just jelly beans and chocolate bunnies
A former federal MP has written a profanity-laden storybook to send a message to Australians during the coronavirus lockdown.

Emma Husar has been reading children's books aloud on her Facebook and Instagram accounts for the past week to provide support for school-aged kids in self isolation

But the latest installment doesn't appear to be targeted at children as the video is littered with swear words.

The mother of three shared the video with the acknowledgement the content was not 'G-rated' but contained an 'important message for all those struggling' with how to behave during lockdown.

Her version is titled 'stay the f*** at home' and references ways Australians can keep entertained during lockdown instead of participating in their usual activities

'If anyone shows my Ma I'll be grounded for a month. Which is fine in the circumstances, really,' she wrote.

Ms Husar reads aloud a modified version of the story by Adam Mansback 'Go the f*** to sleep' which is described as a 'children's book for adults.'

Her version is titled 'stay the f*** at home' and references ways Australians can keep entertained during lockdown instead of participating in their usual activities.

'No more raffles for a chook, the pubs have closed their doors, it's time you learn to cook - so you can stay the f*** indoors,' she reads.

The former member for Lindsay placed herself into 14 day self quarantine after returning to Australia from overseas two weeks ago

'No more going to the gym, this virus is invisible and you can't nick down to Bondi for your arvo swim, so stay the f*** at home.

'This virus lives on what you touch, I'll let you do some online yoga, I know it isn't much, you can just do it the f*** at home.'

The former Labor member for Lindsay placed herself into 14 day self quarantine after returning to Australia from overseas two weeks ago.

Ms Husar said while indoors we wanted to use her platform and share the importance of self-isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia.

'I desperately wanted to do something that would help the current situation and spread within my community and protect vulnerable people,' she wrote.

'I know young people don't always like the lecture-y kind of political and health messages. I wanted them to have something that was fun and to the point that was relatable.' she wrote.

The video was well-received by most of her followers, however one was upset by the language used- saying they had to turn the video off because the 'vulgar adverbs' detracted from the message.

Ms Husar represented the Labor party in Western Sydney between 2016 and 2019, before she was removed as a candidate for Lindsay in December 2018.
A Winnipeg couple who had been facing an indefinite stay aboard a cruise ship amid the COVID-19 pandemic say they are grateful to be home.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg couple who had been facing an indefinite stay aboard a cruise ship amid the COVID-19 pandemic say they are grateful to be home.

"Were perfectly happy to be at home, in our house, with our cats," Irene Schwartz said Thursday, while under self-isolation with her husband, Mike.

Were perfectly happy to be at home, in our house, with our cats, Irene Schwartz said Thursday, while under self-isolation with her husband, Mike. (Supplied photo)

The couple boarded French cruise line Ponant ship Le Boreal on March 7. As the spread of the novel coronavirus ramped up around the world, the ship was turned away from its scheduled stop March 20 in Chile.

Le Boreal then set sail around the tip of South America, with the goal of finding a port in Uruguay or nearby Argentina or Brazil. Had the Canadian couple not been able to disembark, they feared they would be at sea for roughly a month before arriving in France, which has gone into lockdown.

According to its online profile, the 126-metre Le Boreal has 132 cabins and suites for 264 passengers and 140 crew members.

Days after initially speaking March 20 with the Free Press about their plight, the Winnipeggers learned they would be allowed to fly home via Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

"When we were first told, we were cautiously hopeful and happy, because we had already been turned away from several ports  four ports in three countries  so once we knew it was happening, we were very, very happy, and we just wanted to get home," Irene said Thursday.

Winnipeg couple seeks way home as cruise ship seeks port Click to Expand SUPPLIED Mike and Irene Schwartz boarded a French cruise ship on March 7. Despite no passengers or crew being diagnosed with COVID-19, the ship had been turned away from Valparaiso, Chile, where it was set to port Friday. Posted: 2:49 PM Mar. 20, 2020 A Winnipeg couple potentially stranded on a cruise ship is racing against border closures and flight cancellations to get home. Irene Schwartz, who boarded French cruise line Ponant ship Le Boreal on March 7 with her husband, said despite no passengers or crew being diagnosed with COVID-19, the ship had been turned away from Valparaiso, Chile, where it was set to port Friday. Read Full Story

"We were still nervous, and werent really happy until we landed in Canada," Mike added.

They left Brazil on March 26, and were back home March 27. Theyre now self-isolating.

The couple had reached out to the media and politicians through email and social media while on the cruise ship, seeking support in their efforts to return to Canada. In turn, the couple said they had received comments from the public criticizing their decision to go on a cruise at that time.

It was indicative of just how fast the COVID-19 crisis spread, Irene said, as there was no concern about it when the cruise began.

Jen Zoratti | Next A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

"We would like people to understand that very likely, when they left home, the world was not like it is today, and the cruise companies and tour companies obviously felt it was safe to travel, or they wouldnt have gone," she said.

"In these kind of times, wed encourage people to be less quick to judge and more supportive of each other," Mike added.

The couple were quick to list the people that helped them get home: from the Canadian consulate in Brazil to a travel agent on board the ship who had helped them book flights home to their house- and cat-sitters.

"Lots of people have been helping us, and were very grateful for that," Irene said.

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: malakabas_
Following are the top stories from the Eastern Region at 9 pm. CAL 8 AS-VIRUS-JAMAAT-QUARANTINED



148 people who attended Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi quarantined in Assam



Guwahati: t least 148 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin last month have been quarantined in different districts of Assam, even as the number of coronavirus cases in the state has risen to 16.

CAL 9 WB-LOCKDOWN-POLICE-ATTACK



9 policemen injured in attacks while enforcing lockdown across West Bengal



Kolkata: Police personnel were attacked and at least nine of them were injured in various parts of West Bengal while enforcing the ongoing lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic, senior officers said on Thursday.

CES 27 MG-VIRUS-CM-PM



States intimate PM about safety equipment shortage for health workers treating COVID-19 patients:CM



Shillong: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said on Thursday that during video conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on COVID-19 situation, almost all the states aired problem arising due to shortage of personal protection equipment for health professionals looking after the coronavirus infected patients.

CES 28 AS-VIRUS-CM-PM



Uninterrupted maintenance of inter-state medical products supply-chain needed, Sonowal to PM



Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Sarbanda Sonowal on Thursday informed Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the state government's preparedness in dealing with the situation arising out of COVID-19 outbreak.

CES 29 BH-VIRUS-NITISH



About 112 Tablighi returnees, 12 traced, many living outside: Nitish



Patna: Bihar is in receipt of details of more than 100 people hailing from the state, who might have attended the congregation of Tablighi Jamaat, the Delhi headquarter of which has emerged as a COVID-19 hotspot, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said on Thursday.

CES 32 WB-VIRUS-BOAT



Man goes on boat quarantine in Bengal



Malda: An elderly man has been staying in a boat on self-quarantine in Habibpur area of Malda district after doctors advised him to go on 14-day isolation.

CES 33 JH-VIRUS-SOREN



PM extended all help to states to combat COVID-19: Soren



Ranchi: Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Thursday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended all help to the states in the fight against COVID-19.

CES 36 BH-VIRUS-POSITIVE



Bihar reports four fresh cases, total number reaches 28



Patna: Four fresh cases of COVID-19 were reported in Bihar on Thursday, taking the total number of people testing positive for the dreaded coronavirus to 28, an official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Middle Eastern airlines cargo demand increased 4.3 per cent in February compared to the year-ago period and capacity also jumped by 6 per cent, according to figures released by the International Air Transport Association (Iata).

However, given the Middle Easts position connecting trade between China and the rest of the world, the regions carriers have significant exposure to the impact of Covid-19 in the period ahead.

Airlines in Europe suffered a sizeable decline in year-on-year growth in total air cargo volumes in February 2020, while North American and Asia-Pacific carriers experienced more moderate falls. Middle East, Latin America and Africa were the only regions to record growth in air freight demand compared to February 2019.

Iata released data for global air freight markets showing that demand for February, measured in cargo tonne kilometers (CTKs), decreased by 1.4 per cent compared to the same period in 2019. Adjusting the comparison for the impact of the Lunar New Year, which fell in February in 2019, and the leap year in 2020, which meant an additional day of activity, seasonally-adjusted demand was down 9.1 per cent month-on-month in February.

By February, the negative impacts of the Covid-19 crisis on air cargo demand were becoming visible. The month witnessed several significant developments:

 Manufacturing production in China, one of the worlds largest air cargo markets, dropped sharply due to widespread factory closures and travel restrictions.

 Global export orders fell to a historically low level. The global Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) is in contraction territory, with all major trading nations reporting falling orders.

 Significant cargo capacity was lost as a result of airlines reducing passenger operations in response to government travel restrictions due to COVID-19, severely impacting global supply chains.

Cargo capacity, measured in available cargo tonne kilometers (ACTKs), dropped by 4.4 per cent year-on-year in February 2020. This is subject to the same distortions as the non-seasonally adjusted demand numbers.

The spread of Covid-19 intensified over the month of February, and with it, the impact on air cargo. Adjusted demand for air cargo fell by 9.1 per cent. Asia-Pacific carriers were the most affected with a seasonally-adjusted drop of 15.5 per cent. What has unfolded since is a story of two halves. The disruption of global supply chains led to a fall in demand. But the dramatic disruption in passenger traffic resulted in even deeper cuts to cargo capacity. And the industry is struggling to serve remaining demand with the limited capacity available. We only got a first glimpse of this in February. Among all the uncertainty in this crisis, one thing is clearair cargo is vital. It is delivering lifesaving drugs and medical equipment. And it is supporting global supply chains. Thats why it is critical for governments to remove any blockers as the industry does all it can to keep the global air cargo network functioning in the crisis and ready for the recovery, said Alexandre de Juniac, Iatas director general and CEO. - TradeArabia News Service
The European Commission proposed on Thursday a package of measures to soften the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the EU economy, including a short-time work scheme and easier access to funds for farmers and fishermen.

The Commission expects the EU to go into a deep recession this year because of the coronavirus outbreak, which has slowed economic activity to a crawl across the 27 members states.

"The depth and the breadth of this crisis requires a response unprecedented in scale, speed and solidarity," the EU executive said in a document outlining the measures.

To prevent firms from laying off workers when there is not enough work, the Commission proposed that all EU countries adopt a German scheme under which employers cut working hours, not jobs, and the government pays for the difference in salaries, so that workers retain their spending power.

"(It) can benefit all the member states who want to use it," Commission president Ursula von der Leyen told a news briefing.

To finance the plan, the Commission would borrow 100 billion euros on the markets against 25 billion euros in EU governments' guarantees using its triple-A rating. It would then lend the money cheaply to member states, many of which have lower credit ratings.

Once asked by a government for help with wage subsidies, the Commission would verify how much extra that country was spending on the scheme and decide the terms of the loan, including the amount, the maximum average maturity and pricing.

A Commission proposal for a loan would then have to be approved by EU governments.

FARMERS, FISHERMEN AND DEVELOPMENT

The Commission also proposed to increase cash advances to farmers under the EU's Common Agriculture Policy and give them more time to apply for support.

It would pay up to 75% of compensation to fishermen under the European Maritime & Fisheries Fund for any temporary loss of work, with the rest being met by national governments. Similar help will be available to salmon farms and similar businesses.

"These measures will help protect thousands of jobs in the EUs coastal regions and maintain food security," the EUs Environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevicius said.

The Commision also proposed waiving any national co-financing normally needed when countries get EU money to build infrastructure projects such as motorways and bridges, making the projects fully paid for by the bloc. Money can also be moved between regions, it said.

"This is an unprecedented move which reflects the need for Member States to use all available means to support their citizens at this moment," the document said.

The proposed measures, which still need the approval of the European Parliament and EU member states, will apply retroactively from Feb. 1 and will be available till Dec. 31.

Member states disagree over how much help should be provided at the EU level to offset the economic impact of coronavirus.

Hard-hit southern nations such as Italy have called for the issuance of joint debt but the fiscally conservative north has urged more restraint in rolling out targeted aid schemes. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
New Delhi: The Times Square in New York stands deserted in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, which is in stark contrast to recovery celebrations taking place 7,500 miles to its east in the Chinese city of Chengdu. Moving ahead to Fujian province, a team of Chinese virus experts can be seen heading to catch a flight bound for Italy reeling under the attack of the deadly virus.

The Wall Street Journal has dug out three images posted on the Twitter feed of Chinas state news agency Xinhua that revealed the "effort by the Communist Party to craft the story of the pandemic and cast China in the role of global saviour".

The observation is not new  a similar one has been put forth by Bloomberg as well as other journalists. Reporters have also been writing about the need to fix the diplomatic board in order to make China answer the doubts over its role in the time of pandemic.

On international forums like G-20, Chinese officials have said their country has made sacrifices in containing the spread of the virus and would take these initiatives forward to other affected nations.

"When the epidemic started to explode everywhere, it was China who the entire world asked for help, and not the United States, the 'beacon of democracy,'" the WSJ quoted a tweet from Chinas embassy in France as saying. "It is China who lent a helping hand to more than 80 nations. Not the United States."

China's conduct, post containing the spread at home, sparked the narrative of how it is using "the global spread of the disease to bolster an increasing vocal, assertive bid for global leadership that is exacerbating a year-long conflict with the US", said the report.

Americas conduct on the world stage has created a void, as observed by senior journalists in the past, enabling China to claim that space and at the same time shape the narrative in its favour on how it handled the early stages of the outbreak. There is a lot of criticism against China, but it has colonised the agencies to tell the world what it wants to tell, the report seemed to indicate.

It recorded that Chinese government agencies, companies and charities have donated more than 26 million face masks, 2.3 million testing kits and other supplies to 89 countries. Chinas Foreign Ministry said the number of countries receiving its coronavirus-related help has reached 120.

There was anger in Italy when help came their way much sooner from distant China than closer nations like Germany or the USA.

Shipments from their shores were marred by rules and whatever help was sent from France was not communicated well while China sent Italy millions of masks. These masks were packaged and printed with the lyrics of an Italian opera aria.

French officials said they struggled to compete with the story of China stepping in for a disjointed Europe, as reported in the WSJ  "In early February, when China was still the epicenter of the outbreak, the European Union and the US donated a combined 30 tons of medical equipment to China with little fanfare."

Emulating the role of USA in tackling Ebola in Africa, the Chinese government sent experts and teleconferenced guidance to medical staff in countries across Europe and Asia.

Andrew Small, an expert on EU-China relations at the German Marshall Fund of the United States think tank, who spoke to WSJ, said, "Its been striking how quickly theyve been able to pivot. But I think basically almost as soon as the crisis started, they had a propaganda battle to win on this."

China is going all out to show that it is bearing the responsibility of a great power.

Countering all these observations, the ministry said in a statement to The Wall Street Journal, "China has no desire to seek credit, but also definitely doesnt accept baseless accusations."

On March 10, amid all criticism President Xi Jinping went to Wuhan, signalling the partys confidence in its approach. This was in contrast with, US President Donald Trump downplaying the crisis in a meeting with senators on the same day. Trump said, "Were doing a great job with it. And it will go away. Just stay calm. It will go away."0

This was followed by Trump calling it a "Chinese virus" and indirectly putting the blame on China for the pandemic. Chinas Foreign Ministry raised doubts about the virus's origin  Wuhan and clarified that it has no scientific basis.

Interestingly, the Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian came up with the theory that US Army members who visited Wuhan in October introduced the virus. In reaction to this the US State Department summoned Chinas ambassador over the claims.

There is information and charges of misinformation in the midst of this global health crisis.

As the work of recovery started picking up, China started sending supplies to hard-hit lands in the Middle East, chiefly Iran. "Now donations and sales spread around the globe, often accompanied by glowing reports in state media. Chinese companies jumped into the effort," reported WSJ.

As per the report, charities connected to Jack Ma, founder of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., have donated more than 14 million masks. Also shipped, along with 500,000 testing kits, from Shanghai to Memphis, Tenn. Chinese telecom equipment giant Huawei Technologies Co. has donated millions of masks to several EU member states including Spain, the Czech Republic, Italy, Poland and Ireland.

It was observed that the largest deliveries from China sent to Europe "have gone to populist, nationalist or euroskeptic leaders who have pushed to play a part in China's big international Belt and Road infrastructure initiative."

About 3 million masks were sent to Hungary with package worded as "Hajra Magyarorszag!" or "Bring It On, Hungary!" This was welcomed by Prime Minister Viktor Orban who found it impressive. "The situation I see can be described as this: In the west, there is a shortage of basically everything. The help we are able to get is from the east."

The Czech Republic got 1.1 million masks from Shanghai. President Milos Zeman pushed to make his country "Chinas gateway to Europe."

US offered press briefings assuring help but the sentiment that ruled was entirely different. "The United States is not offering leadership. Europe doesnt exist. For the first time in decades, the west is lost," said Francesco Sisci, an Italian sinologist and columnist for the Catholic newspaper Settimana News. "In this vacuum, Chinas offering an example. They are there, and they are helpful."

The strongest appreciation for China came from Italy.

EUs foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell reflected on the scenario in his blog post. "We must be aware there is a geopolitical component including a struggle for influence through spinning and the 'politics of generosity,'" Borrell wrote. "Armed with facts, we need to defend Europe against its detractors," quoted WSJ.

However, China also faced criticism from Netherlands and Spain over the quality of Chinese-produced masks and testing-kits. Government spokeswoman Hua Chunying hit back at criticisms that China too got defective material but believed in the good intentions of those who helped.

To ward off suspicion over colonial designs behind China's generosity, she said that China can't be indifferent in times of global crisis.

The country further reminded others that during the 2008 financial crisis, "China unleashed an immense stimulus package that helped buoy the global economy."

Eventually, China and USA picked up the communication on fighting coronavirus together. Trump called Xi last Thursday to discuss cooperation in fighting the pandemic. In the days leading up to the call, Trump said he would stop using the term "Chinese virus."

Barbora Chaloupkova contributed to this article.
"We recognize that now, more than ever, we all want to escape from reality, even if it's just for a moment," said George Aguel, President & CEO of Visit Orlando. "Whether you like floating down a lazy river in one of our resort pools or immersing yourself into The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, we hope these experiences provide a much-needed break from everyday life."

From the comfort of their home, "virtual visitors" can now soar down a 200-ft. roller coaster drop, watch fireworks over the famous Cinderella Castle, zipline over alligators and even learn from experts how to draw Mickey Mouse, all aggregated on Visit Orlando's blog, VisitOrlando.com/blog.

Experience All of Orlando

Try riding the tallest roller coaster, ziplining over alligators, or standing on Main Street in front of Cinderella Castle . The Orlando Virtual Tour takes viewers into 85 experiences throughout Orlando , from theme parks and hotels to dining and shopping hot spots, with a 360-degree perspective.

Even More of the Theme Parks

Walt Disney World  Watch a sneak peek of new rides like Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway and Star Wars : Rise of the Resistance, enjoy character meet-and-greets and much more exclusively from the Disney Parks YouTube channel.

 Watch a sneak peek of new rides like Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway and : Rise of the Resistance, enjoy character meet-and-greets and much more exclusively from the Disney Parks YouTube channel. Universal Orlando Resort  Travel to different worlds virtually like The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley and experience the parks with 360-degree videos of some of the most popular roller coasters, explore holiday events and take a closer look into the restaurants that make up Universal CityWalk from the Universal Orlando Resort's YouTube channel.

- Diagon Alley and experience the parks with 360-degree videos of some of the most popular roller coasters, explore holiday events and take a closer look into the restaurants that make up Universal CityWalk from the Universal Orlando Resort's YouTube channel. LEGOLAND Florida Resort  Explore the LEGOLAND Florida Resort Castle virtually through the twists and turns of The Dragon, an indoor/outdoor steel roller coaster.

Virtual Relaxation

Relax and virtually float through by yourself down the winding lazy river that is part of the 5-acre waterpark located in the luxurious grounds of the Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort.

Explore a lake on a giant swan-shaped boat, through the swan boat ride in downtown Orlando's Lake Eola Park.

Lake Eola Park. Float down the river with gushing geysers at Aquatica's Roa's Rapids at the Aquatica Orlando water park, in a virtual action river experience with high tides and gushing geysers.

Animal Interactions

From Gatorland's School of Croc, a Facebook live every day at 10 a.m. every showcases animals and adventures. In the afternoon, their YouTube channel shares live-action encounters with animals including Burmese pythons, crocodiles, alligators and monitor lizards.

every showcases animals and adventures. In the afternoon, their YouTube channel shares live-action encounters with animals including Burmese pythons, crocodiles, alligators and monitor lizards. Peak into animal habitats through a new daily video series on Facebook live, from the Central Florida Zoo.

Explore a penguin colony at SeaWorld's Antarctica : Empire of the Penguin.

High-Speed Thrills

Virtually experience indoor skydiving at iFLY Orlando inside of their high-energy vertical wind tunnels that allows visitors to float on a column of air.

inside of their high-energy vertical wind tunnels that allows visitors to float on a column of air. Get in the driver's seat for a virtual race through Andretti Indoor Karting & Games' indoor track of turns and high-speed chases.

Virtual Learning  Making Education Fun

You can now stream educational IMAX films typically shown in the cinedome of the Orlando Science Center. Enjoy MacGillivray Freeman IMAX films by streaming, America's Musical Journey on YouTube, and Dream Big, Humpback Whale and National Parks Adventure on Vimeo on Demand.

Learn about living in space, Mars and rocketry or tour Space Shuttle Atlantis during a new series of Facebook lives from Kennedy Space Center .

. From Disney Imagineers, learn real-world case studies and even design a theme park experience through interactive activities and lessons in theme park design and engineering. This free online program is created in partnership with the Khan Academy and Pixar.

Learn to draw Mickey Mouse as Disney shares a complete series of how-to tutorials on how to draw the famous figure on the Disney Parks YouTube channel. Cast member Stephen Ketchum provides expert tips on how to draw Mickey over the years, from vintage 1920s Mickey to the more contemporary "pied-eyed" version.

Music, Movies and Museums

Listen to intimate musical performances at the Timucua Arts Foundation, set in the home grounds of the former music director for Cirque du Soleil. The foundation will post daily videos of previously recorded live performances on its Facebook page, also host a Digital Music Flea Market to help local musical artists.

Get a daily move recommendation and insider info on the film from a cinematic expert on the Enzian Theater's Facebook page.

Explore the museum galleries of the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art via the museum's website, with PDF versions of the object guides that are normally placed in each gallery. Learn the history behind the museum through two films available for streaming: A Legacy for the Community andThe Tiffany Chapel: A Masterpiece Rediscovered.

About Visit Orlando

Visit Orlando is The Official Tourism Association for Orlando, the most visited destination in the United States and Theme Park Capital of the World. A not-for-profit trade association that brands, markets and sells the Orlando destination globally, Visit Orlando represents 1,200 member companies comprising every segment of Central Florida's tourism community.

SOURCE Visit Orlando

Related Links

http://www.visitorlando.com/media


COVID-19: Pregnancy, childbirth and caring for a newborn

On this page

Vaccination for COVID-19

Pregnant people are at increased risk for severe outcomes of COVID-19. Evidence shows that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are safe for people who are pregnant or breastfeeding. The National Advisory Committee on Immunization recommends you get a complete series with an mRNA vaccine if youre pregnant or breastfeeding. If youre not able to receive an mRNA vaccine, for example, because of an allergy, you should consider another approved COVID-19 vaccine.

There's no evidence that any vaccines, including COVID-19 vaccines, cause fertility problems.

Learn more about:

Pregnancy

Being pregnant during the COVID-19 pandemic can be stressful. It's natural to worry about the effects of the virus on your pregnancy and your unborn baby.

Evidence shows that it's rare to pass COVID-19 to your baby during pregnancy.

The latest scientific evidence shows that COVID-19 doesn't impact all pregnancies the same way. There are a number of important factors to consider, including:

your risk of exposure to COVID-19

the risk of more severe disease or outcomes if you get COVID-19 while pregnant

It's important to talk to your health care provider.

If you do get COVID-19 while you're pregnant, you may have an increased risk of more severe disease or outcomes, including the need for intensive care.

The risk of severe disease or outcomes appears to be worse with some COVID-19 variants. It's important to continue regular prenatal visits during COVID-19, even if completed virtually.

Pre-existing conditions If you have a pre-existing condition, you may also be at risk of more severe disease or outcomes. These conditions include: obesity

diabetes

high blood pressure

advanced age during pregnancy If you have a pre-existing condition and are pregnant, you can reduce your risk of getting sick with COVID-19.

Protect yourself and others During pregnancy, it remains important to use multiple personal preventive practices at once, regardless of your vaccination status, such as: getting an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine

wearing a mask

minimizing non-essential in-person interactions with people from outside your immediate household

avoiding closed spaces (with poor ventilation) and crowded places with people from outside of your immediate household

practising hand hygiene often This layered approach is the best way to protect yourself and others from getting COVID-19. Consider asking your doctor, obstetrician or midwife for telephone or videoconference appointments, if possible. Doing so can help you to avoid in-person interactions with others.

Childbirth

Giving birth during the COVID-19 pandemic can be stressful. It's normal to feel sad, scared or confused. Talk to your health care provider about how COVID-19 may affect your birth plan and your family after birth.

If you plan to give birth in a hospital or birth centre, talk to your health care provider about:

your birth plan

how your plan may need to change due to COVID-19

Learn about the COVID-19 policies regarding support and visitors.

If you plan to give birth at home, talk to your midwife about:

precautions to make sure your home environment is safe

whether home births are still an option in your province or territory

If you have COVID-19, talk to your health care provider about how this may affect giving birth. With proper precautions, breastfeeding, skin-to-skin and rooming-in are recommended at birth.

Your health care provider may consult other specialists for you or your baby as required.

Baby care

Once a baby is born, they can get COVID-19 from other people, so it's important to limit their contact with others.

To protect yourself and your baby, you should continue to follow recommended personal preventive practices.

We recommend breastfeeding when possible. It has many health benefits and offers the most protection against infection and illness throughout infancy and childhood. Breastmilk isn't known to transmit COVID-19. Breastfeeding can provide important nutrition for your baby.

If you have symptoms or have tested positive for COVID-19

Precautions during feeding When feeding your baby: put a clean towel on your nursing pillow (if you use one) each time you use it

clean any breast pump equipment carefully before and after each use by: washing the pump and containers after every use with dishwashing liquid and warm water rinsing with hot water for 10 to 15 seconds

don't share bottles or breast pumps You may be too ill to breastfeed or provide routine baby care. If so, ask a healthy adult to feed and care for your baby. Ideally, the baby's caregiver would be someone who is part of your immediate household. As there may be COVID-19 in the home, the baby's caregiver should: avoid being in a shared space (such as the same room) or having in-person interactions with you if this isn't possible, they should: make sure interactions are as few, as brief, and occur from the greatest physical distance possible wear a medical mask or a well-constructed and well-fitting non-medical mask

avoid direct physical contact with you if direct physical contact is expected, they should wear a medical mask if unavailable, they should properly wear a well-constructed and well-fitting non-medical mask

wash their hands frequently Learn more about: COVID-19 mask use: Advice for community settings

Physical distancing

How to wash your hands properly to reduce the spread of COVID-19 (printable poster)

Visitors after your baby is born

After your baby is born, friends and family may want to visit and meet your baby. Visitors should be limited to reduce the risk of possible exposure to COVID-19. This can be very difficult, but it's important to keep your family safe.

Consider celebrating the birth of your baby by having virtual visits and using online tools.

If you do plan to have in-person visits, continue to follow:

the advice of your local public health authority on gathering size limits

other recommended public health measures, including personal preventive practices

Ensure in-person visits occur in lower-risk settings, such as outdoors or in a well-ventilated indoor space. Ask visitors to:

stay home if they're sick

wear a mask

maintain as great a distance as possible from you and your baby

wash their hands when visiting

Layering personal preventive practices is the best way right now to protect yourself and your family from COVID-19, regardless of everyones vaccinations status.

Mental health

Having a baby is a big change for families. Feeling a range of emotions is normal and expected. You know yourself and your baby best. If you think you may need extra help and support, it's important to reach out.

If you or a loved one are experiencing feelings that concern you, seeking help early can help you to feel better sooner. Parenting during COVID-19 can be especially challenging, but there are many resources available.

We encourage parents to talk about their mental health with:

family

friends

community supports

their health care provider

More ways to get help

Postpartum supports and resources Postpartum Support International: Canada

Mental health supports Canadian Mental Health Association provides supports in your local area

Wellness Together Canada has free mental health and addictions supports, information and practical tools, including confidential sessions with mental health professionals for immediate support, text WELLNESS to 741741

Contact your local public health unit to find other supports in your local area

Crisis support and suicide prevention If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call the Canada Suicide Prevention Service at 1-833-456-4566. Visit Crisis Services Canada for the distress centres and crisis organizations nearest you.

Related links
(Bloomberg) --

Going into March, the biggest political question in the U.S. was whether Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden would regain his footing as front-runner for the party nomination.Biden duly delivered, but as we enter a new month U.S. politics is being consumed by very different questions and challenges.

President Donald Trump is warning Americans to brace for a painful two weeks, and scientists on a White House task force are projecting up to 240,000 people could die from the coronavirus outbreak. Biden is expressing doubts that this summers Democratic convention can go ahead.The spread of the virus into America is quickly reshaping daily life and shattering traditional election-year politics.

Its wreaking havoc on the economy  which could be in recession when voters decide on Nov. 3 whether to give Trump a second term. Faced with the staggering death projections, Trump has largely abandoned the optimistic tone that characterized his virus response.

Our strength will be tested, our endurance will be tried, he said.

There's a further issue for the president as April shapes up to be a calamitous month for the oil market. Trump said the U.S. would meet with Saudi Arabia and Russia to try to stanch a plunge in prices.

The world Trump is navigating today is one that would have been unrecognizable to most Americans just weeks ago. These events will influence voters decisions, though for now it's impossible to know how.

Global Headlines

On hold | Saudi Arabia asked Muslims to defer plans to perform the obligatory annual Hajj pilgrimage as it grapples with the virus. Halting the Hajj, which attracts millions to Islams birthplace, would be unprecedented in recent history.

China reported 130 new asymptomatic cases in one day, hours after New York Citys death toll topped 1,000. Spain reported 864 new fatalities from the virus, a slight rise from yesterday. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro shifted gears last night on his relaxed virus approach, saying his main concern was always to save lives. Asias factory activity contracted further in March as the virus crippled supply chains. In China, though, a private survey showed an improvement in manufacturing.

Story continues

Oil impact | Trumps phone call this week to President Vladimir Putin as part of efforts to end the oil war between Russia and Saudi Arabia is being seen by Moscow as a diplomatic win. The view is the U.S. move may strengthen Putins hand in negotiating a climb down. Russia isnt yet holding talks with Riyadh but hasnt ruled them out, an official says, adding Moscow wont boost crude output now given oversupply in the market.

Saudi Arabia faces deep budget cuts due to the double hit from the virus and plummeting crude prices.

Losing points | As the virus sweeps Europe, leaders are turning to China for testing kits  but some are already expressing buyers' remorse. As Andrea Dudik and Radoslav Tomek report, complaints about inaccurate results from the kits could dent Chinas efforts to win favor with a region where it has sought for years to build economic and strategic ties.Merkels moment | After more than 14 years in office, German Chancellor Angela Merkel is having a good crisis: Polls show surging support for her party and widespread public approval of her policies to combat the virus. Yet as Alan Crawford writes, history may judge her less on her custody of Europes biggest economy than on what she does to help the regions weakest member states through a public-health disaster unparalleled in peacetime.

New bond | A firm friendship between Abu Dhabis crown prince and Indonesian President Joko Widodo has put the United Arab Emirates in pole position as Widodo seeks investors for an ambitious $400 billion infrastructure program. As Sylvia Westall and Philip J. Heijmans write, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is looking to expand his countrys presence in fast-growing Asian markets, but there are also potential strategic outcomes from their rapport.

What to Watch

Ethiopia has postponed general elections scheduled for August, becoming the first African country to suspend a nationwide vote due to the pandemic. Trump approved a business-backed proposal to delay payment of certain tariffs by three months and could sign an executive order as soon as this week, Jenny Leonard reports. The White House won't reopen the Obamacare exchanges to let uninsured Americans buy health care coverage during the pandemic, after Trump said last week he was considering a special enrollment period.

Tell us how were doing or what were missing at balancepower@bloomberg.net.

And finally ... While health-care providers in the U.S. and Europe struggle to deal with the influx of Covid-19 patients, theyre also grappling with ransomware attacks. As Ryan Gallagher reports, hackers are seeking to exploit the crisis when medical providers are at their most desperate. They are totally without conscience, said Malcolm Boyce, manager director at Hammersmith Medicines Research in London.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
VIVAT's life and asset management businesses are now part of Athora, a leading life insurance and reinsurance group in Europe

Athora has sold 100% of the shares of VIVAT Non-life to NN Group, via a back-to-back transaction

Successful completion of the transaction establishes Athora as the leading consolidator in the European life insurance market

Athora fully supports VIVAT's efforts to better fulfil customer needs through its leading brands Zwitserleven, Reaal and ACTIAM

All current and future insurance policies from VIVAT's subsidiaries will stay in the Netherlands and remain under Dutch regulation

Broad set of measures introduced to strengthen VIVAT's capital position, including a 400 million injection of new equity capital

To reduce VIVAT's leverage, Athora is supportive of VIVAT's tender for its senior debt as announced today

Athora will ensure VIVAT operates in compliance with the full version of the Dutch Large Company Regime

Combined, Athora group will have approximately 70 billion of consolidated assets and approximately 3 million customers

Athora has 4 billion of total equity capital following its capital raises in 2017 and 2020

Following closing and the injection of capital into VIVAT, Athora will have close to 1 billion of committed equity available to support Athora, VIVAT and existing subsidiaries

Athora Holding Ltd. ("Athora") announces today the closing of the transaction to acquire VIVAT N.V. ("VIVAT") from Anbang Group Holdings Co Limited. VIVAT is now part of Athora's European group of life insurance companies. Athora and NN Group ("NN") have also closed the follow-on sale of VIVAT Schadeverzekeringen N.V. ("VIVAT Non-life") to NN. The finalisation of this transaction results in stronger companies in the Dutch life and non-life markets and enhanced customer offerings. It also confirms Athora's position as the leading insurance consolidator in Europe with approximately 3 million customers, approximately 70 billion in assets, operations in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and Ireland, and an unrivalled regulatory track record relating to large, complex and innovative transactions.

Athora's strategy is to leverage VIVAT's strong capabilities, robust operations and well-invested infrastructure across the group. With Athora's incremental capital and resources, VIVAT is best placed to grow through delivering value to existing and new clients via enhanced customer offerings, continued focus on customer centricity, and a strong commitment to sustainability. Athora will support VIVAT to better fulfil customers' needs by building further upon its leading market positions in life pensions via VIVAT's Reaal and Zwitserleven brands. The combination of VIVAT and Athora results in a strong and diversified insurance group in Europe with a stronger financial position and business outlook to the benefit of VIVAT's customers, employees and partners.

As part of Athora's approved DNO application, Athora will implement measures aimed at ensuring that VIVAT's customers' safety and security are strengthened as a result of VIVAT's transition to Athora. These capital management measures, which will follow after Closing, include:

strengthening VIVAT's capital position through a 400 million injection of new equity capital which will support VIVAT's path to enhanced capital generation;

principles guiding VIVAT's dividend policy to ensure VIVAT's profits are primarily used to support VIVAT's capital position and its customers' security. To this extent, Athora does not expect any dividend distribution from VIVAT in the near-term and, on top of the normal regulatory assessment by DNB, the payment of any future dividends will be based on the long-term sustainable capital generation of the company and the satisfaction of certain risk appetite metrics;

a commitment to maintain the ongoing capitalisation of VIVAT at levels which ensure the long-term interests of customers, also in case of adverse circumstances;

the effect of the combined capital measures provides customers, clients, business partners and employees reassurance that VIVAT's repositioning to financial strength and sustainable capital generation is well underway.

In addition, VIVAT has announced today the launch of a tender of its senior notes. This liability management exercise further shows that Athora is supportive of reducing VIVAT's leverage and enhancing its financial strength, thereby bringing even more security to VIVAT's customers.

Athora recently announced that it had secured a further 1.8 billion in permanent equity capital from new and existing shareholders bringing its total dedicated equity capital commitment from global institutional investors to 4 billion. The new capital raise included a meaningful additional commitment of 500 million from shareholders, Athene and Apollo. Part of the capital will be used to fund the purchase of VIVAT and to strengthen VIVAT's balance sheet. Following Closing, Athora will have close to 1bn of committed equity available to support Athora, VIVAT and existing subsidiaries going forward.

Commenting on the conclusion of the transaction Athora Group CEO Michele Bareggi states: "We are delighted to welcome VIVAT to the Athora family. We have a long-term vision and strategic commitment in the Dutch insurance market and VIVAT is the perfect local business for achieving our goals. Under the leadership of VIVAT's CEO Tom Kliphuis, I am confident that VIVAT is set up to be the leading player in Dutch life pension markets."

Chairman of VIVAT's Supervisory Board, Maarten Dijkshoorn states: "With the additional financial resources committed to VIVAT and the combined capabilities of VIVAT and Athora, we will be best placed to fulfil our customers' needs and to build further upon our already strong market positions. We believe that this transaction is highly beneficial to our valued customers. Together with the dedication and efforts of our employees and business partners, I am confident that VIVAT is well-positioned for the future and will continue to deliver the high service level towards our customers going forward. Additionally, together with Athora and NN Group, VIVAT will work towards a smooth integration of VIVAT Non-life into NN in the coming period."

After Closing, VIVAT will remain a Dutch-regulated entity, its insurance policies will stay in the Netherlands. The use of reinsurance constructions whereby Dutch policies are removed from the Netherlands will not be implemented at VIVAT as this is never part of Athora's policy. VIVAT will operate in compliance with the full version of the Dutch Large Company Regime. VIVAT will be rebranded to Athora Netherlands prior to the end of 2020.

VIVAT's core customer brands Zwitserleven, Reaal and ACTIAM will be maintained in the Dutch market and customers will continue to be served accordingly with a consistent focus on financial security, customer centricity and quality of services. Zwitserleven and Reaal are guaranteeing full continuity for their life customers whose contracts will continue unchanged. Additionally, Athora is supportive of Zwitserleven and Reaal's current strategy for their life portfolios.

COVID-19

Athora continues to closely monitor the development of the coronavirus outbreak and its impact on financial and operational conditions. Its employees and customers are its top priorities at this time. Athora relied on its flexible infrastructure and comprehensive business continuity plans to transition its employees across five countries to a remote working arrangement within days. Minimal operational disruptions have been experienced to date and customer service levels are being met. At the same time, Athora continues to monitor closely its financial position collectively as a group and at the individual operating subsidiary level. Thanks to Athora's risk-driven asset and capital management approach, the capital positions of each of Athora's insurance subsidiaries have strengthened over the past few weeks and increased their surplus in excess of the levels required by regulation. This demonstrates Athora's commitment and ability to ensure its customers' long-term financial security even in unprecedented times like these.

About Athora Holding Ltd.

Athora is a specialised insurance and reinsurance group fully focused on the European market. Athora dedicates its focus, capital, time and technical insights to offering its customers a stable, long-term performance on its products. Athora's principal subsidiaries are VIVAT N.V. (Amstelveen, Netherlands), Athora Belgium N.V./S.A. (Brussels), Athora Lebensversicherung AG (Wiesbaden, Germany), Athora Ireland plc (Dublin) and Athora Life Re Ltd. (Bermuda). The Athora group employs some 2,400 staff and has approximately 3 million policyholders for total consolidated assets of approximately 70 billion. For further information, go to: www.athora.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005733/en/

Contacts:

Athora Media

The Netherlands:

Confidant Partners

Sabine Post-de Jong: +31 6 39 57 63 67

sabine.post@confidantpartners.com

Other Markets:

Kate Campbell

Group Head of Corporate Affairs: +353 86 406 2472

kate.campbell@athora.com

Sean Carolan

Director of Communications: +353 1 588 0748

sean.carolan@athora.com
ALTON  The Jersey County Health Department on Wednesday night announced its first confirmed case of novel coronavirus COVID-19.

Officials are confirming a male in his 50s who is currently hospitalized, the department says in a press release. Jersey County Health Department officials are working to identify close contacts.

Its unclear how many tests for the virus have been administered in Jersey County. More coronavirus cases there, and other Illinois counties reporting few or no confirmed cased, could have been circulating for more than a month. Numbers represent only tested, confirmed cases.

Macoupin County announced its first confirmed case on Thursday.

The Jersey County Health Department recommends practicing social distancing, avoiding contact with other people, staying at home, hand washing, avoiding touching ones eyes, nose and mouth and disinfecting surfaces.

The state of Illinois has mandated a stay-at-home rule for anyone not venturing out for food or medication.

Madison Countys reported cases on Wednesday county jumped from 18 to 27, with no reported deaths.

In Illinois, the number of confirmed cases statewide grew on Wednesday by 986, to 6,980. Deaths increased by 42, up to 141.

In Missouri, St. Louis County has reported 605 cases and five deaths. St. Charles County Wednesday was reported 114 cases and four deaths.

No cases have been confirmed in Greene, Calhoun or counties in Illinois.
Patrick Henry, former Entropic CEO and founding CEO of GroGuru, brings his vast experience of building and growing tech businesses to the Yield Lab accelerator program.

LA JOLLA, CA / ACCESSWIRE / April 1, 2020 / Patrick Henry, former Entropic CEO, and CEO of GroGuru, brings his decades of entrepreneurial experience to the prestigious AgTech accelerator program. GroGuru has been selected as one of six companies as part of The Yield Lab Accelerator Program. The Yield Lab's mission is to enable entrepreneurs to sustainably revolutionize agrifood systems. They do this by investing in, and accelerating, high-impact early-stage companies all around the world. In parallel, they provide education resources and ecosystem building support through their non-profit branch, the Yield Lab Institute.

"Water management and conservation is a critical issue in many growing areas. GroGuru has developed a new sensor and a unique platform to actively manage irrigation," said Pat Pinkston, Managing Director at The Yield Lab. "We're excited to be a part of their efforts to enable strategic irrigation management."

"GroGuru is thrilled to be part of the Yield Lab Accelerator Cohort," said Patrick Henry, president and CEO of GroGuru. "Admission to this program gives GroGuru unprecedented access to key customers and potential strategic partners in the agriculture space."

The Yield Lab accelerator program is slated to begin in St. Louis, MO on the week of March 23, 2020.

About GroGuru

GroGuru is a privately held company based in San Diego, CA that provides precision soil and irrigation monitoring systems to the commercial agriculture industry. GroGuru is focused on enabling farmers to increase crop yields while optimally use water, energy and other scarce resources in a sustainable way. GroGuru sells an innovative hardware-enabled subscription-based solution to farmers that enables optimal irrigation. GroGuru's patented 100 percent wireless underground system (WUGS) enables a permanent installation of soil sensors, even in annual field crops like corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton and sorghum, that have a destructive harvest. GroGuru's WUGS-based systems can be buried below the till depth and communicate through several feet of soil wirelessly, thus eliminating the need for the sensors to be annually installed and removed for seeding and harvesting, respectively, for these annual crops. GroGuru is a portfolio company at the EvoNexus technology incubator, the premier technology incubator in Southern California. You can find GroGuru online at https://www.groguru.com/.

Story continues

About The Yield Lab

The Yield Lab enables entrepreneurs to sustainably revolutionize agrifood tech systems globally in order to sustainably feed the world. We do this through our accelerators in St. Louis, Missouri (North America); Buenos Aires, Argentina (Latin America); and Dublin, Ireland (Europe), and now in Singapore (Asia Pacific). Each accelerator invests $100,000 in early stage agrifood tech companies, provides network focused programming with an emphasis on customers, collaborators, and capital, and provides mentorship from our team of agribusiness experts. For more information, please visit https://www.theyieldlab.com/.

Contact Info:

Name: Amanda Henry

Email: Send Email

Organization: GroGuru

Address: 4250 Executive Square Suite 200, La Jolla, CA 92037, United States

Phone: +1-858-761-2169

Website: https://www.groguru.com/

SOURCE: GroGuru





View source version on accesswire.com:

https://www.accesswire.com/583602/GroGuru-Admitted-by-The-Yield-Lab-to-Its-Next-Accelerator-Cohort




Jean Hayes and her husband Richard: 'Thrilled' to get 9,000 payment from DWP

Two elderly women have received around 9,000 and 5,000 in state pension payments they missed out on due to a government blunder.

Many more retired women could be in line for payouts worth thousands of pounds, plus interest, if the administrative error proves to be widespread.

A probe is now under way into the failure, which went unnoticed for more than a decade until discovered by our pensions columnist Steve Webb and This is Money.

The Government has declined to say if it will also pay compensation to women who were underpaid state pension for years because it was calculated incorrectly.

The bungle occurred because married women who retired on small state pensions before April 2016 should get an uplift to 60 per cent of their husband's payments once he reaches retirement age too.

Since 2008, the increases are supposed to be automatic, but before that women had to apply to get the full sum they were due.

Jean Hayes, 75, pictured above with husband Richard, and Patrica Tonkin, 71, should have seen their payments hiked immediately their husbands started drawing the state pension.

Are you being underpaid state pension? Find out how to check below

They realised they were being underpaid and contacted This is Money after our pensions agony uncle, Steve Webb, raised the alarm in a recent column.

He replied to a reader who found out by accident they had been underpaid state pension for 13 years, but only got a one-year backpayment because uplifts weren't being applied automatically at that time.

What does the DWP say? 'We've reviewed the state pension position in relation to the two cases you highlighted and paid the arrears that were due,' says a spokesperson. 'In addition we've also made a payment of 274.09 to Mrs Hayes and a payment of 73.28 to Mrs Tonkin. 'We're exploring how we can identify if there are other, similar cases. 'If any cases are identified, their state pension award will be reviewed and any arrears paid.'

After reading the column, Patricia's husband Ron rang the DWP's Pension Centre for advice.

But he was referred to staff dealing with a 'change of circumstances' and told a review of his wife's pension would take 'weeks if not months'.

Webb believes the Government must carry out an urgent investigation to uncover any cases of married women who could have missed out on thousands of pounds in state pension - see the DWP's response on the right.

A former Pensions Minister, who is now a partner at Lane Clark & Peacock, Webb adds that the trawl back through the records should include older women who reached state pension age before 17 March 2008.

That is the date when the Government began uplifting married women's payments automatically, rather than writing to those affected and asking them to apply for an increase.

Women who lost out under this old system can still get one year of backpayment, and start receiving a higher state pension going forward, he points out. Read his full comments below.

Jean Hayes and her husband Richard, 76, who live in Hampshire, told us she was getting 60.72 a week in basic state pension instead of 77.45, or 60 per cent of his basic state pension of 129.20 a week.

After we contacted the DWP about her case, the former retail worker received a payment of 8,822.41 the following day, plus 274.09 in interest to cover the period April 2008 to February 2020.

What does Steve Webb say? This is Money's pensions columnist is urging the Government to act after readers missing out on state pension appealed for his help. 'The state pension system is highly complex and many people will have little idea how much they are entitled to. But the DWP knows exactly how much pension people are due,' he says. 'Where people should have had an automatic uplift and this has not happened, DWP should urgently check its records to find all the cases where this has happened and put things right. 'But they should also look at older pensioners who may unwittingly have failed to claim an uplift. Many of these women will be relatively elderly and living on a very poor pension. 'In many cases they will have lost out on thousands of pounds over the years by not claiming an uplift and DWP should be proactive in ensuring these women also get their full pension.'

Mrs Hayes's total state pension has been increased to 94.90 per week.

She said she was 'thrilled' to get the payout and thanked This is Money for intervening on her behalf.

Patricia Tonkin and husband Ron, 70, contacted us to say she was getting 56.85 of basic state pension a week.

When we raised her case with the DWP, it deposited 4,986.12 in her bank account the next day, and also paid her 73.28 in interest for the period March 2015 to February 2020.

The retired teacher, from Wiltshire, will get a total of 82.20 per week from now onward.

This is Money asked the DWP why staff initially told Mr Tonkin it would take 'weeks if not months' to review his wife's case, and whether this was its typical response time.

However, the DWP did not reply to our questions.

Mr Tonkin was unhappy with how the DWP dealt with his phone call, saying: 'When an individual tries to chase up things, they get fobbed off.'

He says his wife will decide what to do with the payout.

'It's money she should have had. I expect she will spend it on our grandchildren, and maybe a holiday. It's our 50th anniversary next year.'

Meanwhile, Audrey and Brian Watson, whose question to Steve Webb led us to investigate cases of married women being underpaid state pension, are still battling to get her more than one year of backpayment.

The couple, from Staffordshire, have lost an appeal against this decision, which is because they reached state pension age before uplifts started being applied automatically in 2008.

The DWP sent out letters about applying for an increase to those affected, but the Watsons are certain they didn't receive one, and insist they would have acted on it if they had.

They are considering their options, and Steve Webb has offered support in their efforts to get Mrs Watson a bigger payout.
With Russia facing the prospect of a surge in Covid-19 infections, President Vladimir Putin took to national television to announce he was extending a "no-work" order for the whole of April.

Mr Putin's vaguely-defined measure means different things across Russia's 13 time zones. In some regions, especially away from major urban centres, citizens will likely continue to do much of their ordinary business. But in Moscow, where the vast majority of Russias coronavirus cases are concentrated, it means prolonging some of the strictest restrictions in place anywhere in the world.

Speaking on Thursday afternoon, the president indicated he would be delegating the most uncomfortable decisions to regional leaders. But he warned some regions would need harsher measures. As authorities struggle to contain the risk of contagion in the capital, he said: "Coronavirus has created a serious risk  in Moscow, where we haven't been able to get on top of the situation despite measures taken by local and national governments."

The capital has been under strict stay-at-home rules since Sunday evening, with outside life restricted to little more than grocery and medicine shopping. At one point, reports even suggested local government was considering introducing a draconian system to enforce the rules  using surveillance apps, temporary QR codes and face-enhanced CCTV.

Vladimir Putins decision to extend the "no-work" order came a few hours after an alarming update on Russias coronavirus predicament. Authorities reported 771 new infections overnight, taking the total number of infections to more than 3,500. Moscow accounted for 595 of the new cases.

These numbers are still reasonably low in a worldwide context, but recent increases have shattered confidence that Russia would somehow bide the epidemic without major disruption.

Privately, officials are now concerned about what could happen if the epicentre of the crisis moved from Moscow to provincial centres. The capital's well-funded health system is largely prepared for the crisis, but some regional hospitals are reporting shortages of intensive care equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE). Face masks have disappeared from the shelves in many parts of the country; antiviral sanitisers are likewise in short supply.

On Wednesday, the liberal Novaya Gazeta newspaper described a particularly dire situation in a hospital near Moscow. There, it said, medical staff were being asked to turn Covid-19 patients onto their sides without the protection of face masks, gloves or goggles. Doctors were also being asked to sew their own masks, the paper noted. Other reports from Yaroslavl, 150 miles north east of Moscow, suggested medical staff there were being asked to do the same.

Such shortages cast a perplexing shadow on the Kremlins decision to send a planeload of in-demand medical equipment to New York this week. With total deaths in the city nearing 2,000, there is little doubt the crisis-hit US city needs the ventilators and PPE onboard. But Moscows description of the flight as humanitarian assistance to the worlds richest nation has raised eyebrows. On Thursday, various speakers on state media suggested it might form a basis for cancelling sanctions.

On Wednesday, the State Department issued a statement insisting that the deliveries from Moscow had, in fact, been paid for. By Thursday, Russias foreign ministry came up with another formula. Yes, Washington had paid for half of the plane's cargo, but Russias direct investment fund had donated the other half.

Speaking to journalists on Thursday, spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Russia had felt compelled to respond to the US request for humanitarian assistance.

This is the time to work together, she said.
| By Laura Lee

At 5 oclock on March 23, the world of clinical research at the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) changed dramatically. Earlier that day, Interim President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, announced in a letter emailed to the UMB community that as of 5 p.m., research restrictions would increase from moderate to severe, effectively shuttering hundreds of clinical research projects in light of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Panelists for the virtual town hall on research were (top, l-r) E. Albert Reece, dean of the University of Maryland School of Medicine and executive vice president of medical affairs, UMB; Laurie Locascio, vice president for research, University of Maryland; and Natalie D. Eddington, dean of the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. Bottom: UMB Interim President Bruce E. Jarrell.

In the letter, Jarrell explained the expectations of the new designation during this time of unparalleled change. We expect that you will curtail all activities not critical to maintaining animals, unique reagents/cell lines, and essential equipment, at which point only 2-3 essential personnel [designated by the Principal Investigator] will be allowed in the lab and should be according to a defined employee schedule that ensures appropriate staggering," he wrote.

He continued, UMB is proud to have some of the world's foremost experts in scientific fields most oriented toward fighting this pandemic and must support that work as much as possible. To that end, there will be further guidance regarding specific laboratories that will remain open while under Severe Research Restrictions. In general, these labs are associated with COVID-19 research, virology, and immunology.

Of course, questions remained about the new restrictions and their implementation. Thats why on March 25, Jarrell was joined by Laurie Locascio, PhD, vice president for research, University of Maryland; E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, dean, University of Maryland School of Medicine, and executive vice president for medical affairs, UMB; Natalie D. Eddington, PhD, FAAPS, FCP, dean, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy; and Scott Bitner, MBA, CPA, senior associate vice president and deputy CFO, for a virtual town hall that drew over 400 participants.

(Watch the video here.)

The informative question-and-answer session  which ran a little over an hour  ranged from administrative questions such as filling out timesheets to broader issues such as how to deal with National Institutes of Health grants.

Participants answered inquiries to the best of their abilities given the fluid nature of the COVID-19 pandemic. When asked when researchers could go back to normal working conditions in their labs, Jarrell, a surgeon, offered, I don't think there's a magic equation. I'm an engineer, I always look for the equation. I don't think there's any equation here, he said. I think this is a judgment that will be based on the advice of well-informed people, he noted, nodding to his fellow panel members.

But its got to be safe, he continued. Were not in the business of hurting people. Were in the business of helping people, so whatever we do, weve got to make it safe.

A transcription of the town hall has been edited for length and clarity.

Q: When will we be able to restart our research?

LOCASCIO: That's the most important question I think everybody has been asking is, when do we get to get back to work? And of course, as everyone knows, there's a lot up in the air right now. And we have to continually monitor the situation around us and watch what the governor is saying. And of course, pay attention to everything going on in terms of the increased numbers and the increased stress surrounding us in our state, and really our country. But when are we going to get back to work? One of the things that we had been discussing, I talked to President Jarrell earlier this morning, and we decided to put together a second task force. As most of you know, last weekend we had a task force, where we looked at what kind of restrictions we're going to lose on our research. And then what would be the trigger points from moving from our existing environment, which is normal operation to a more restricted environment, moving to moderate research restrictions, and then finally to severe research restrictions. And of course, we put that in place, the move to severe restrictions, earlier this week. Now, because the situation is constantly changing, we aren't sure where we're going to go next, or where things are going to end up in the next couple of months. We'd like to put together another task force that can consider: When do we reopen? When do we start having people come back to work? When can the situation be under control? Or when can we be in control, enough control of our own environment to allow people to come in back into work? And so this new task force we're going to put in place probably next week. We're still, honestly, quite in the middle of what I would say emergency operations where we're trying to get all of these new restrictions in place and make sure that we can have everybody safe and secure for the time being. Next week, when we launch this new task force, we're going to be looking at different scenarios for the coming months, depending on how the pandemic progresses and under these various scenarios of dynamic progressing, we'd like to figure out ways what would trigger us to be able to come back to work safely and secure thoroughly on our campus. And so I would say that's where we are right now. Again, a lot up in the air and I know everybody wants more definitive answers. I think that's what I can speak to as far as that topic right now.

EDDINGTON: I think we're looking at the same kind of drivers to help us make those decisions. As you mentioned, it's not going to be easy. But we need to have the data drive the decisions that we're going to make.

REECE: And I would just add that the way I see it is that I'm treating not just research as a scientist myself, but seeing it in concert with other activities. For example, we have reduced non-emergent surgeries significantly. And so the question we're asking today is, when are we going to restore that? Well, you can't, and certainly, it'll be a few weeks hence before we can even do that. It seems to me as if, as Dr. Locascio said, we will have to look at a number of parameters before we can even begin to restore some portion or some aspects of our work, but it certainly is not now, and it will have to be very much tempered by what happens with regard to the expansion or the transmission rate.

EDDINGTON: I agree. I think that we have to look at the data to inform the decision. I know that this is always an active time for research across the School of Pharmacy, and I think it's challenging for those faculty members that are not in their labs on a daily basis. I think we understand that. We understand the issues that we face. So I think it's important to make sure that our research community understands the decisions that we're making, and how we're making those decisions, and be transparent.

REECE: If I could jump in and make one other comment and say that on a positive note the NIH has actually extended the deadline. And so, in my own lab, for example, we're putting on a program project that was due March 13. And they extended it to April 15. And they're willing to do another extension. So I think, from the standpoint of just timetable, the NIH is willing to be very flexible. And if you have any questions, Larry Tabak, who's No. 2 at NIH, said call your program officer and they will be very flexible and they are going to make every effort to accept all grants. So I think that has been a very positive accommodation by the NIH that I think we should take full advantage of.

Q: What is the plan for non-clinical and non-human research projects?

LOCASCIO: In last week's email from President Jarrell, there was quite a bit of discussion in one of the attachments on non-clinical research moving from moderate to severe restrictions. I'd be happy to share that with you again, or share that more broadly, or ask President Jarrell to do that.

I should give my email. It's lel@umd.edu. I'm more than happy to answer any questions directly. But I can also put out some guidance on that. In general, I'm going to say that if your work does not require face-to-face interactions and can be performed remotely and it has been approved by IRB, then yes, everything can continue as normal. I would say that the issue is really with on-campus research activity in a laboratory where people are going to be needing access to space, and they're going to be in close contact with others on campus, obviously. And then the other guidance that we did put out was to do with clinical research because a lot of that involves, of course, face-to-face interactions, and it also requires on-campus access to facilities and so generally what I would say is if it can be done remotely, it's been approved by the IRB, and it can be performed in a way that it doesn't require access to facilities, you should still be able to continue in that research.

Q: How should time be recorded for contracts and grants?

BITNER: All work that is being performed on a contract and grant, whether on site or off site, should be charged to the contract and grant. If faculty or staff are not able to perform any work, they should charge administrative leave, unless they are using another type of leave due to their personal circumstances.

Q: Does it matter whether the sponsor is federal, state, or private?

BITNER: The answer is no. We should follow that same guidance for working on contracts and grants across the board.

Q: Should the employee funding profiles be changed as a result of using administrative leave?

BITNER: For the most part, no. At this time, the employee funding profile should not be changed as a result of using administrative leave.

Q: Should the old administrative leave be charged to contracts and grants?

BITNER: Yes, the administrative leave will be distributed  prorated  across the employee funding profiles accordingly.

Q: Will the sponsors pay for the administrative leave?

BITNER: Currently, we only have approval from the federal government that the administrative leave for COVID-19 and that will be an allowable charge. This should also apply to all pass-through awards through non-federal sponsors that originated with federal funds. We have had some pushback from the Maryland Higher Education Committee that they will not accept these charges, even though they have been allowed by the federal government. We have not received any guidance from the state or private sponsors on whether they will allow administrative leave at this time. So we'll continue to treat these awards like federal awards until further notice.

Q: If the administrative leave will not be covered through the contract, how will it be covered?

BITNER: For those contracts and grants that will not be covered, the administrative leave will be transferred off the grant to a revolving account.

LOCASCIO: I wanted to just add that the federal government is being extraordinarily generous as Dean Reece mentioned, and also Scott. There has been an issue with a few contracts. We've heard from some agencies that people are being asked to stop work on specific contracts. If that happens to you I've been finding that they have been very open to appeal and sort of quick contract lot modifications so that they can accept or allow this to happen under this condition.

If you have questions about any specific contract or grant, a lot of this is general guidance that we're giving you but there are some very much specifics that you're dealing with that we can help with so please send in any questions to the sponsor program office. We will be able to field those questions, send them to the right people and get back specifically to you about issues with your specific contract or grant if you have questions. I'd also encourage you to, as Dean Reece mentioned, reach out to your program officer, reach out to the person who's the program director because right now we are not as a university going back more broadly to the agencies at the university level. But we do encourage you to go back to your specific program officer, program director, and tell them this is what's going on at my university. Is there going to be any issue? So I encourage you to reach out and be in contact.

Q: If we're using social distancing, what's the harm in doing our research?

REECE: We, again, have followed the governor's lead. The government has made a directive that we have to reduce the volume of contact that we have within the workplaces where there is that essential work, high-priority work to do. We have been admonished that people should try to work at home, stay at home as much as possible. So I certainly understand very much that, in fact, that under the moderate restriction we did that. We basically allowed research to continue unimpeded under that rubric, because we thought as long as people were taking the social distancing principle, then working would not be a problem. Under the severe restrictions research is really where the governor increased his directive that we really want to have people stay at home and basically out of contact and not have a lot of interaction. Which really is the attempt to really flatten that transmission curve that we're trying to do in accordance with the public health recommendations and the government mandate.

Q: If you are employed by UMB research, can your PI redeploy you to COVID-19 testing research?

EDDINGTON: This is a difficult one. I think my perspective is this might be something that a staff member is wanting to know now about research that might be going on. So all I can say for this is that I think that research, we don't have research in the School of Pharmacy that is so essential that is also looking at supporting research around the virus. So we don't have any examples of that. I do think that I can respond from my perspective. If the research that's ongoing in a lab in my school, that could be helpful and is high level, I would want to continue that.

REECE: If I think I understand the question, well, then I apologize if I didn't quite understand it. And that is I'm assuming this. We all live in a free country. So if someone is not being compelled to come back and do research or something vital research but I think that is all in support of trying to get to the right answer. I would be very much opposed to compelling someone or trying to insist that somebody must come back, that would be out of line. But I think that you have a number of research programs ongoing in the School of Medicine in particular that has to do with either vaccines or therapeutics or clinical trials related to the COVID virus and if an individual gladly wants to be part of that team, by all means. And if the team could use that person's effort, I fully endorse that. Maybe we could make a breakthrough. And we would all be happy and all been sharing, but it must be with some level of someone's willingness to do and not by compulsion.

LOCASCIO: I'll just back that up and say that everyone knows that we are allowing COVID-19 research to continue. And this is true, I think, across the United States. While there should be research restrictions across the U.S. and all the universities, almost across the board, people are still allowing COVID-19 research. But for a lot of reasons, people may just not be comfortable coming back to work for many reasons. And we all know that we're in the middle of a public health crisis. People have various degrees of pressures externally, various degrees of comfort being outside, various people that they could expose to COVID-19 if they brought it home. That would really be worrisome. And so I think I really would strongly back Dean Reece by saying please, don't feel compelled to be here if that is just not something you can do because of their level of comfort, or because of extenuating circumstances outside of your control. But I would say that we will allow COVID-19 research to continue in the middle of the public health crisis. So whatever we can do as a university to help would be wonderful.

Q: Are there any opportunities for researchers or bench scientists whose projects are not related to COVID-19 to assist in any other research efforts?

REECE: That's a very good question and a very magnanimous offer. And I would say that I obviously couldn't answer by saying yes, there is a particular need here and here, but my suggestion would be for you to contact a few people. I'd suggest you send an email to Dr. Kathy Neuzil. She is the Levine Professor and director of the Center for Vaccine Development. She has a bandwidth that would be able to give you some sense as to the need or possible opportunities. The other person I suggest that you contact is Dr. Matt Frieman.

Q: How do you record your time for grants and contracts during this time?

LOCASCIO: I think just generally, if you are still working and you're working remotely, you record your time as you normally would, because you get credit for working remotely on those projects. Time that you aren't working remotely, you want that as administrative leave. And on the grants, we'll be keeping track of time spent on administrative leave. On federal grants, that time is allowed. You can charge that time. On specific contracts it's unclear, which is why I said it's important to reach out if you have a question about your contract. But I would say continue to charge on your grant either as real time spent, or as administrative leave if you can't access your laboratory unless you receive specific guidance not to.

REECE: As Dr. Locascio said, and that is just to remind everyone that most of us have continued to work and even though you may not be physically in the lab to continue to work. Most of us are lab scientists. We're using this time to write lots of papers that we didn't have time to write. So we have an opportunity, we have an in-built opportunity to either write or rewrite our grants or write publications, manuscripts, that becomes a real-time effort that you can record. So don't undermine all the wonderful work that you're doing. Not necessarily in the lab, but outside the lab.

Q: When do you think this will all be done?

JARRELL: I don't know any better than any of you. I think that Dr. Locascio gave a good answer and that is we need to be prepared to iteratively increase research, as the local environment allows us to do so. And that's going to be a judgment, there's not going to be some magical moment. It will be based also on the number of safety things put into place to make sure that it's safe for people to come back in the labs. So I think we don't want the labs to not be operating in person or only remotely. So obviously we're in a planning process already on what would be the steps and what would we need to put into place to make that happen?

Q: For those of us that are clinically active and will respond to the clinical demands of the pandemic yet have budgeted efforts in time that we would necessarily reduce to meet our clinical duties. Do we have to do anything regarding notifying changes in our percent effort?

REECE: You know, we're funded by the NIH, for example. I wouldn't think you need to do that just now. I think that if this thing goes on for a very long time, then that may be a possibility, but given the fact that it's so unknown, I would advise not to do anything just now. I think you're fine.

JARRELL: If you want to defend yourself, keep records to show the amount of time you're working in the lab, because that would be one other piece of evidence to say yes, I'm taking my research seriously.

LOCASCIO: And depending on the timeline of work and deliverables promised, you know, as it progresses you should probably talk to your program officer if it goes on for an extended period of time, as long as it doesn't go below 25 percent.

Q: So my question pertains specifically to patients who have already been enrolled into a clinical trial and are receiving an investigational drug. Do we need to seek advanced permission to have these clinic visits maintained?

JARRELL: The general response is, you have to balance a number of things and you always have to do the same clinical research. So our first priority is to maintain patient safety and welfare as the driving goal here. If a subject is already enrolled in a clinical research trial, receiving a medication or an intervention, and withdrawing that medication or an intervention would be harmful to them then obviously you should not be stopping that medication, and you should be continuing to care. Now, you might want to ask yourself a question about how frequently do I need to see this subject and follow up, etc., because the other thing you're balancing here is that you just finished commenting that your patient's immunosuppressed. And so you certainly want to limit their exposure to COVID-19, but the same as you want to limit it to yourself, and they're perhaps even more vulnerable than you are. So you need to balance those various things to try to optimize the care. My advice to you would be where there's a question, you ought to talk to the IRB chair and get his advice as to how he would balance these things. And if you're concerned about that, the institutional official, Susan Buskirk, has the authority to make the decision about something makes sense or doesn't make sense. What we didn't want to have happen was business as usual. We're doing clinical research. There's no harm in pausing this, if there's no harm in pausing this, you should pause it, if there's harm in pausing it or if it's a serious disease, and you need to continue the treatment with the hope that it's therapeutic, then that's the position you want to be in. But the bottom line first is subject safety and welfare and withdrawing medication might not support the subject's health and welfare.

Q: Are we looking to research labs that have capabilities to fast track testing, etc., to fill in gaps that the hospital had?

REECE: First of all, let me, I'm always very excited when I hear research faculty want to help out in something that's practical, needed, important, and imminent. And I would say, when he said, email, let me tell you why we are using as a research group working with a clinical group, and trying to fast track testing as we speak. I never want to turn down volunteer work. I mean, the fact that you're eager and willing to either volunteer or give ideas or I don't want to turn that down. So send me an email because at this moment we think we are on something positive, but I always want to have an alternative. You may have a brilliant idea, and I want to hear it. So send me an email and I will make sure that we will incorporate your ideas or your group as well.

JARRELL: One constraint that we have, of course, is if we're actually testing for the virus, or things such as that there are a lot of State Department of Health rules which we have to work with in order to stick with the law. So right now, we do have to be careful about testing that's not in a certain approved kind of situation. So just be aware that there are constraints that the Department of Health puts on us.

Q: Is the IRB continuing to consider requests at this time?

Q: Will there be an extension on the tenure clock for junior faculty?

JARRELL: The IRB was the first group to go completely 100 percent teleworking. They've been teleworking for a long time. In terms of phasing that in, they are fully engaged and they are considering new protocols, etc., with the proviso that when something's approved, it doesn't necessarily qualify under the current restrictions, but as soon as things would change, you'd be able to go ahead with the research.

The second question, I think Dr. Ward answered that yesterday. The regents have been very generous to the chancellor to allow a liberal interpretation of our policy, our policy we just recently changed to allow to, I'm going to put quotes around the word "automatic." So if you have family obligations, like a new child in your family, you're allowed up to two years. We had the liberty to allow a third year. And I think the answer that I would give at the campus level was we would want a very liberal interpretation of extending the tenure clock.

Q: What is the criteria that will be used to bring things back to normal order?

JARRELL: I think it's going to be a combination of things. I think you already heard that we're following the lead of the governor, you should be all very proud of the position that the governor has taken in terms of being in front of this whole process. I've been very pleased with what he's done. And so we've tried very hard to stay in mind with his thinking on this. So one measure would be that the state is taking a more permissive view on this. And the second determinant would be again, the availability of safety equipment. So you all know that there was a huge rush on N95 masks and other protective equipment. And were that to become a lot more available, that would be a second variable. A third variable we would be to look out into the community. So you may have heard Dr. Fauci speaking this morning of how some communities are very hard hit and other communities have not been hard hit and Maryland happens to be one of those where we have done a good job in containing this. And we can liberalize, that would be another way to make that judgment. I don't think there's a magic equation. I'm an engineer, I always look for the equation. I don't think there's any equation here. I think this is a judgment. And it'll be based upon the advice of well-informed people around the group of the people you see on the screen and others, listening to the best advice. Having said all that, you know, research is like the economy. And although I've heard it said, you flip the switch, and it suddenly starts; it doesn't work that way for research, I'm sure. And so the longer we're out of commission, the more difficult it's going to be to get things back up and running and labs working and people efficient and generating the ideas that we need to have, etc., etc. So to me there is a compelling reason to get it sooner rather than later. But it's got to be safe. I mean, we're not in the business of hurting people. We're in the business of helping people, so whatever we do, we've got to make it safe. So that'll be a major, major part of the judgment.
A grandmother in Castelo Branco, Portugal, had a memorable moment of connection on her 61st birthday despite worldwide COVID-19 lockdowns, thanks to a thoughtful group of police officers.

Footage shared to Facebook by the Public Security Polices Castelo Branco District Command on March 29 shows police officers playing Happy Birthday to You from a cruiser  much to the delight of 61-year-old Dona Fatima Graca, who watched the scene unfold from the balcony of her apartment above the street.

The clip shows Graca, her six-year-old granddaughter, and a man wave to police officers as the song blasts from the street.

As of March 31, Portugal reported 7,443 positive cases of COVID-19, and 160 deaths. Credit: Comando Distrital de Castelo Branco via Storyful
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(Kitco News) - Kirkland Lake Gold Ltd. (TSX: KL, NYSE: KL) Thursday announced an additional curtailment of mining activities in Canada as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, including the temporary suspension of operations at the Holt Complex and reduced operations at the Macassa Mine.

The new measures follow the previously announced reduction at the Detour Lake Mine. All of the operations affected so far are located in Ontario. The various actions are in effect until April 30, officials said.

The company said the most recent actions are due to border restrictions between Ontario and Quebec, making movement of workers difficult. A significant number of employees and contractors live in Quebec and travel to jobs in Ontario. Workers impacted by Thursdays announcement will receive their base wages during April, Kirkland Lake said.

In terms of the measures being announced today, we do not make decisions to suspend or reduce operations lightly, recognizing the impact such decisions can have on employment as well as community investment and support, said Tony Makuch, president and chief executive officer. Having said that, the recent developments related to COVID-19has made it increasingly difficult to maintain normal business activities at Macassa and Holt Complex.

Officials also said Kirkland Lake is withdrawing its 2020 production guidance, with plans to update this once operations return to normal at Macassa and Detour Lake. The Fosterville Mine in Australia remains in operation.

A management task force is meeting daily to assess emerging developments and identify measures to protect workers and communities, Kirkland Lake said.
The producer of children's program Bluey was left red-faced when his bare feet were revealed during an appearance on Channel Ten's The Project.

On Wednesday, Daley Pearson spoke with hosts Waleed Aly, Peter Helliar and Carrie Bickmore about Bluey's International Emmy win on Tuesday.

Daley was on the show from his home in Brisbane via video link as there are restrictions on public gatherings amid the coronavirus pandemic.

'Don't pan down!' Daley Pearson (pictured) was left red-faced after his bare feet were revealed during an appearance on The Project on Wednesday

As he signed off and shared his thanks for the support, the camera operator zoomed out to reveal Daley sitting on a tall chair and barefoot.

He yelled to the operator: 'Don't pan down! Pan up! Pan up! No!'

Back in the studio, the hilarious - and seemingly staged stunt - was appreciated by Peter and Waleed who laughed.

'Pan up!' Appearing from his home in Brisbane via video link, Daley signed off and shared his thanks for the support. At that moment, the camera operator zoomed out to reveal Daley sitting on a tall chair and barefoot

Getting a laugh out of it: Back in the studio, the hilarious - and seemingly staged stunt - was appreciated by Peter and Waleed who laughed

Earlier in the interview, Carrie asked if the cancellation of the International Emmy ceremony in France - as a result of COVID-19 - put a dampener on their award win.

'Oh, it was a magical night. It was really the night where stars come out to shine their brightest, and we saw it [the online ceremony] through Zoom,' he joked.

'So I used all my data, I've no data tomorrow! I've used all my Optus prepay, so that is it for the month! But it was worth it, it was a great experience,' Daley quipped.

Winners: In the interview, Carrie asked if the cancellation of the International Emmy ceremony in France - because of COVID-19 - put a dampener on their win. Daley said that he and the team behind the show had a 'magical night' watching the online ceremony through Zoom,' he joked

Carrie, who is a mother of three children, shared her gratitude for Bluey during the coronavirus pandemic, calling it a 'lifeline' for her household.

'We've got a lot of responses [like this]. It's really beautiful. I don't even have a joke for it,' said Daley.

'Just receiving all these lovely comments and letters from kids, you know, it's weirdly been a big thing for me,' he said of the compliments from fans.
 Close Governor blasts Trump for months of delay and withholding equipment: 'He does not understand the word federal'

Donald Trump has said he hopes the US is starting to see light at the end of the tunnel while New York, the epicentre of the countrys coronavirus outbreak, reported a potential "plateau" of cases, as a grim streak of hundreds of deaths appears to have levelled rather than continue to spike.

On Monday, the number of Covid-19-related deaths in the US eclipsed 10,500, including the nation's youngest victim, a one-day-old newborn in Louisiana.



The president optimistic comments came in stark contrast to those of US surgeon general Jerome Adams, who warned Americans to brace for levels of tragedy similar to the September 11 attacks and the bombing of Pearl Harbour in the week ahead, as states continue mitigation efforts and prepare for several more weeks of quarantine and stay-at-home measures.

In a press conference attacking his predecessor Barack Obama, Democrats, reporters and a US Navy captain who alerted officials to a potential coronavirus outbreak on his ship before he was fired for doing so, the president dismissed an inspector general report that outlined the shortages of critically needed medical supplies in US hospitals.

The president also said he has considered "getting involved" with Captain Brett Crozier's case, and said that the captain's emailed letter "shows weakness."

The president said: "We don't want to have letter-writing campaigns where the fake news finds a letter [and] gets a leak. We don't want that."

Mr Trump continued to push for a controversial malaria drug that officials in his own administration have warned is not clinically proven to safely combat the virus. Despite warnings from Dr Anthony Fauci and the federal Food and Drug Administration, the president and his chief trade adviser Peter Navarro have insisted on administering the drug.

Mr Navarro has reportedly clashed with Dr Fauci about the drug's efficacy, though he told CNN he's qualified to measure the drug's effectiveness, despite not having a medical background.

On Monday, Dr Fauci was hesitant to say that mitigation efforts are showing signs of working across the US, but early results in hard-hit areas like New York are starting to show decreasing numbers of hospitalisations requiring ventilator support. He said: "You never want to think about declaring victory prematurely."

He said that health officials may be "overshooting" the models using initial data that showed as many as 200,000 deaths.

Meanwhile, a Democratic primary election in Wisconsin scheduled for 7 April cannot be postponed despite pleas from lawmakers and a last-minute push from the state's governor, which was overruled by the state's Supreme Court. The decision sends the election into chaos, with a drastic shortage of poll workers and an electorate that has been ordered to stay home under threat of the virus.

Ballots include thousands of local races in addition to a crucial race between Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders for the party's nomination to face the president in November.

Follow live updates
(Natural News) The government of Turkmenistan has banned any use of the word coronavirus in the country in a radical move to suppress any information about the global pandemic. According to the Turkmenistan Chronicle, a rare independent news source in this tightly controlled Central Asian nation, the countrys Ministry of Health has recently distributed brochures to hospitals, schools and workplaces about the prevention of viral diseases, but has omitted any mention of the coronavirus.

Reports from the Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty correspondents stationed in Ashgabat, the Turkmenistan capital, revealed that police officers in plainclothes are arresting people who are caught wearing face masks or discussing the pandemic in a public location.

The Turkmen authorities have lived up to their reputation by adopting this extreme method for eradicating all information about the coronavirus, said Jeanne Cavelier, the head of the Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk of the media rights group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in a statement.

Radio silence on coronavirus within Turkmen borders

As of writing, there are no registered cases of COVID-19 reported in Turkmenistan. The surprising lack of any report confirming positive cases of coronavirus infections in the country has already raised suspicions on the countrys data on the pandemic. Turkmenistan is bordered by countries already riddled with dozens of COVID-19 cases like Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. The countrys neighboring country to the south, Iran, is one of the countries most affected by the global pandemic with over 47,500 confirmed cases and 3,036 deaths, as of writing.

According to the RSF, the Turkmen people usually only have access to very one-sided information about the pandemic. Unsurprisingly, Turkmenistan ranks last in the RSFs World Press Freedom Index. Alexander Cooley, director of the Harriman Institute at Columbia University said that Turkmenistan is a place where speaking out against the government can get you punished, and authorities frequently shut down the country for no apparent reason. (Related: Brace yourself for social unrest stemming from coronavirus-related unemployment and shutdowns.)

Banning the term coronavirus might seem to us obscene and extreme, said Cooley. But in reality, when the state controls all of the media and all of the digital nodes coming in and out, its not that outrageous. My sense is that theyll try and keep [the pandemic] under wraps as long as they can.

Very little is being done to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the country. Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov, known as a flamboyant strongman and Father Protector, has only given orders on March 13 to fumigate certain areas with a traditional plant called harmala to prevent various infectious diseases. On March 20, the Turkmenistan government sealed off Ashgabat without any form of public announcement from authorities or state media  with many travelers only finding out about these new restrictions only after arriving at the city entrance. This lockdown heavily restricted travel between the countrys provinces, giving exceptions to vehicles carrying food supplies and other cargo.

On Wednesday, Reuters reported that Turkmenistan already suspended the movement of all freight transport through the countrys territory due to the coronavirus. These restrictions inhibit all freight traffic like transit shipments for the entire month of April and with no exemptions, unlike the previous lockdown.

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty also reported that food prices in the country have reached an all-time high as concern over the outbreak among the locals continue to grow.

This denial of information not only endangers the Turkmen citizens most at risk but also reinforces the authoritarianism imposed by President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, said Cavalier.

We urge the international community to react and to take him to task for his systematic human rights violations.

Keep yourself updated with the latest news about the coronavirus pandemic at Pandemic.news.

Sources include:

NPR.org

Hronikatm.com

RFERL.org 1

RFERL.org 2

AkiPress.com

Coronavirus.JHU.edu

RSF.org 1

RSF.org 2

Reuters.com
A former head of Macquarie Private Bank told a media adviser he suspected his company was being "extorted" by an Australian-based Chinese news outlet after he rejected an offer to enter into a $40,000-a-year sponsorship deal with the media company, the Federal Court has heard.

Guy Hedley, who now heads Sydney-based funds manager Atlas Advisors, is suing online news outlet Australian Financial News for defamation over a September 2019 article he says accused him of running a company that "takes advantage of unsophisticated Chinese investors".

Guy Hedley is suing Chinese language news outlet Australian Financial News.

Mr Hedley says the article also accused him of running a company that "operates an illegal Ponzi scheme".

Atlas Advisors, a small company exempt from legal restrictions in Australia on larger companies suing for defamation, is also suing the media outlet over the same claims.
The government is likely to take a phased approach to open up the skies as and when the lockdown period is over, officials aware of the plan said. The model is going to be followed for both domestic and international flights.

The Indian government had initiated a 21-day nation-wide lockdown, preventing movement of people, including flights, till 14 April, in an attempt to contain the spread of Covid-19, which has claimed thousands of lives worldwide. The plan is to have a phased approach to open air travel. The top 10 airports, in terms of passenger movement, may be opened ...
Last month, residents of Kiryas Joel, a New York village of 35,000 Hasidic Jews roughly an hours drive from Manhattan, began hearing about a promising treatment for the coronavirus that had been rippling through their community.

The source was Dr. Vladimir Zelenko, 46, a mild-mannered family doctor with offices near the village. Since early March, his clinics had treated people with coronaviruslike symptoms, and he had developed an experimental treatment consisting of an antimalarial medication called hydroxychloroquine, the antibiotic azithromycin and zinc sulfate.

STAY POSITIVE: 15 pieces of good news to come out coronavirus pandemic

After testing this three-drug cocktail on hundreds of patients, some of whom had only mild or moderate symptoms when they arrived, Zelenko claimed that 100% of them had survived the virus with no hospitalizations and no need for a ventilator.

Im seeing tremendous positive results, he said in a March 21 video, which was addressed to President Donald Trump and eventually posted to YouTube and Facebook.

What happened next is a modern pandemic parable that illustrates how the coronavirus is colliding with our fragile information ecosystem: a jumble of facts, falsehoods and viral rumors patched together from Twitter threads and shards of online news, amplified by armchair experts and professional partisans and pumped through the warp-speed accelerator of social media.

Zelenkos treatment arrived at a useful moment for Trump and his media supporters, who have at times appeared more interested in discussing miracle cures than testing delays or ventilator shortages.

UNEMPLOYMENT: Macys furloughs most of its 130,000 staff amid pandemic

Sean Hannity, the Fox News host, quickly promoted Zelenkos claims on his TV and radio shows. Mark Meadows, the incoming White House chief of staff, called Zelenko to ask about his treatment plan. And Rudy Giuliani, Trumps personal lawyer, praised him in a podcast interview this week for thinking of solutions, just like the president.

Few people have been as hopeful about hydroxychloroquine as Trump, who has enthusiastically promoted it for weeks as very effective and possibly the biggest game changer in the history of medicine  even as health experts have cautioned that more research and testing are needed.

That has not deterred Trumps supporters, who have vilified public health officials such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the most outspoken advocate of emergency virus measures. Instead, some are pinning their hopes on Zelenko and his unproven treatment plan, which has now been seen by millions.

In a phone interview from his home, where he has been in self-isolation, Zelenko, who goes by Zev, described a dizzying week filled with calls from media and health officials from countries including Israel, Ukraine and Russia, all seeking information about his treatment. Some world leaders, including Brazils president, Jair Bolsonaro, are also talking up some of the same drugs as a cure.

Its a very surreal moment, said Zelenko, who has been practicing medicine for 16 years. Im a simple country doctor, you know. I dont have connections.

The online spread of his treatment plan may have real-world consequences as countries consider testing the drugs he recommends on patients. Their popularity has also spurred shortages of hydroxychloroquine, which is used to treat lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and other chronic diseases.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?: A timeline of the coronavirus pandemic

In New Yorks tight-knit Hasidic community, Zelenkos sudden fame has caused tensions. Shortly after he posted on YouTube, a group of village officials wrote an open letter pleading with him to stop. They said he had exaggerated the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in Kiryas Joel, using a small sample of his patients to predict that as many as 90% of village residents would get the virus.

Dr. Zelenkos videos have caused widespread fear that has resulted in the discrimination against members of the Hasidic community throughout the region, the officials wrote, disputing the figure.

Critics have accused Zelenko of getting ahead of scientific research. Several small studies, including a controversial French one of 20 coronavirus patients, have found that hydroxychloroquine may be effective against the coronavirus. This week, doctors in China said it had helped to speed the recovery of a small number of patients who were mildly ill from the coronavirus. But other studies have contradicted those findings or have been inconclusive.

Anyone who tells you these drugs work, or dont work, is not basing that view on science, said David Juurlink, head of the division of clinical pharmacology at the University of Toronto. Theres reason to be optimistic, and theres also reason to be pessimistic.

Dr. Jeff Paley, an internist in Englewood, New Jersey, who shares some patients with Zelenko, said it was irresponsible for him to promote a treatment without warning people that the combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin can cause severe side effects if not properly administered, especially in patients with preexisting heart problems.

Ive gotten numerous calls from patients demanding the regimen, saying they believe Dr. Zelenko is magically curing his patients, Paley said.

Zelenko, who learned two years ago that he had a rare form of cancer, was not the first doctor to recommend treating the coronavirus with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, although he was among the first to recommend that they be given to patients with only mild symptoms. He said that while he was optimistic, it was too early to tell whether the drugs would ultimately work.

But hopes for a miracle cure have ballooned as the coronavirus spreads, and Trump and his allies are not waiting for the clinical trials to finish. An analysis by Media Matters last week found that Fox News had promoted hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as a coronavirus cure more than 100 times over three days.

Tech companies have begun cracking down on hyperbolic claims about the drugs. Last week, Twitter removed a tweet by Giuliani that said hydroxychloroquine was 100% effective in treating COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Facebook and Twitter this week took down a video by Bolsonaro claiming that the drug is working in all places. YouTube later took down Zelenkos video, saying it violated the sites community guidelines.

Zelenko, who said he supported Trump, declined to discuss his politics in detail, saying they were irrelevant to his medical findings.

STAYING SAFE: How you can avoid coronavirus exposure while shopping

But he appeared to share the presidents initial skepticism about the virus. In early March, he posted several right-wing memes about the coronavirus on Facebook, including one that referred to the pandemic as a Dem panic and another that featured Hillary Clinton on a list of things more likely to kill you than the coronavirus.

When I see something funny, I maybe in a juvenile way posted it without much thought, Zelenko said of the posts. I never thought that I would be in the public limelight.

For more than a decade, Zelenko has been a fixture in Kiryas Joel, where a sign at the village entrance encourages visitors to dress and behave in a modest way. Unlike most of the residents, who belong to the Satmar sect of Orthodox Judaism, Zelenko is part of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement and does not live in Kiryas Joel itself, which has made him something of an outsider.

Ari Felberman, a patient of Zelenkos for years, called him a phenomenal doctor and said that if he had exaggerated the coronavirus threat in Kiryas Joel, it was only out of concern for his patients health.

When he spoke about how many people were affected, it was just to shake up the community and say, Dont take this lightly, Felberman said.

Villagers began experiencing coronavirus symptoms in early March. Days later, after Zelenko began treating patients with his three-drug combination and saw many of them improving, he created a YouTube account and uploaded his video that addressed Trump.

At the time, it was a brand-new finding, and I viewed it like a commander in the battlefield, he said of the video. I realized I needed to speak to the five-star general.

Hydroxychloroquine, which is sold under the brand name Plaquenil, has started selling out at many pharmacies nationwide. Some health systems have begun reserving their supplies for coronavirus patients, depriving those who take it for other conditions. At least four states have restricted hydroxychloroquine prescriptions to prevent hoarding.

HCQ, as hydroxychloroquine is known, is generally considered safe for clinical use. But it can be risky if patients administer the drugs themselves. Last month, an Arizona man died after ingesting a type of fish parasite treatment that listed chloroquine phosphate as one of its ingredients.

You dont want people stockpiling this at home, said Dr. Dena Grayson, a biotech executive who has helped develop drugs for Ebola and other epidemics. If you do get sick, you need to take this under close supervision of a doctor to make sure you dont drop dead.

This week, the Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, allowing doctors to distribute them to coronavirus patients. The agencys chief scientist, Denise Hinton, wrote in the authorization order that the drugs may be effective in treating COVID-19. New York also recently began clinical trials of hydroxychloroquine combined with azithromycin.

While dealing with his newfound fame, Zelenko, who has been practicing telemedicine from his home office, is working to keep his coronavirus patients alive. He said his team had seen about 900 patients with possible coronavirus symptoms, treating approximately 200 with his regimen. None had died as of Tuesday, he said, although six were hospitalized and three were on ventilators.

He is worried about his own health. One of his lungs was removed as part of his cancer treatment, and chemotherapy has weakened his immune system, putting him in a high-risk category for the coronavirus.

I have eight children, and I want to live, he said. Im personally motivated to find a solution.

Zelenko said he understood the need for clinical trials but added that ignoring a hopeful possibility was also risky.

Im a strong supporter of clinical trials, he said. But they take time, and thats one thing we dont have. The virus is here, its World War III, and not everyone has fully comprehended that yet.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Lake County Sheriff Frank Leonbruno gave an update this week on how his department is addressing the novel coronavirus pandemic as the situation evolves with new orders coming down from the state.

Leonbruno said his deputies continue to patrol the townships of Concord, Leroy, Painesville and Perry.

Our intention is to maintain high visibility especially in our areas where people continue to get groceries, gas, and other essential services, Leonbruno said. We are patrolling area businesses, especially those that have been forced to close during COVID-19, to monitor for any criminal activity that might threaten those locations. As well, the safety of our residents is key during this period of self-quarantine. We are prepared to respond to emergencies as they occur.

The sheriff said the Lake County Jail is continuing to accept people who are arrested, but the department has made some changes due to COVID-19.

There is no visiting or outside programming. There are also non-contact visits for professionals such as clergy and attorneys. Additionally, there are no deposits of money through the commissary, which Leonbruno said is being done to limit the number of people coming to the front lobby of the Sheriffs Office.

Inmates can visit with family via the phone, video visitation, and communicate through the United States mail, Leonbruno said. They can send money to the inmates for commissary by mailing a money order.

New inmates coming into the jail now go into a 14-day quarantine to prevent the spread of the virus, the sheriff said. Everyone who enters the jail is subject to temperature checks. That includes staff, to contain any contamination possibilities.

Leonbruno said the concealed carry weapon permit office remains open, as required by law. The department is handling both the issuing of new permits and renewals, but appointments are needed and only one person is taken at a time at the CCW office. No family or friends are permitted to join the applicant.

It is important to note that any CCW renewal after March 9 has had its grace expiration period extended from the 30 days to 90 days, Leonbruno said. We continue to do background checks for employment and other required checks.

The Sheriffs Office is also maintaining sexual predator, violent offender and arson registrations.

Sheriffs deputies are continuing to provide security at the countys common pleas, probate and juvenile courts. Deputies also remained stationed at the county administration building in Painesville.

At these locations they maintain security, and monitor all persons entering these facilities by checking temperatures and asking a series of questions regarding COVID-19 prior to permitting entrance, Leonbruno said.

The Lake County Sheriffs Office Central Communications Center in Kirtland is continuing to provide police, fire and EMS dispatching services for 20 public safety agencies in the county.

Through that center, our Pandemic Influenza Continuity of Operations plan is being implemented and updated as needs arise, Leonbruno said. It is important for everyone to be aware that we work with the Mentor Police Department very closely in providing back-up dispatch services to insure operations at both locations if critical issues arise.

He said that theres been tremendous cooperation between the countys public safety agencies, as well as with the Lake County General Health District, county commissioners and other county offices.

The Sheriffs administrative services office is operating and is available for those who need public documents and police reports. Leonbruno said that when possible, those making requests should do so via email at sheriffwebmaster@lakecountyohio.gov.

Sheriffs sales remain canceled until further notice.
Tekashi69, the rainbow-haired rapper turned government cooperator, was granted early release from prison after a federal judge determined that he faced an elevated risk of severe medical problems if he were to contract COVID-19 disease behind bars. The 23-year Brooklyn-born artist, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, suffers from severe asthma.

In granting Hernandez's release on compassionate grounds, U.S. District Court Judge Paul Engelmayer determined that the circumstances in the case were "extraordinary and compelling."

"The COVID-19 pandemic is extraordinary and unprecedented in modern times in this nation. It presents a clear and present danger to free society for reasons that need no elaboration," Engelmayer wrote in his order. "COVID-19 presents a heightened risk for incarcerated defendants like Mr. Hernandez with respiratory ailments such as asthma."

Lawyers for the platinum-selling artist first raised concerns that Tekashi69 was at high-risk of serious health complications or death in a series of letters to Engelmayer over the last two weeks. Federal prosecutors in New York initially contested an early release on procedural grounds, but told Engelmayer in a letter on Wednesday that they no longer opposed it.

MORE: Rapper Tekashi69 linked to shooting investigation hours after probation sentence, police say

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, people with serious underlying medical conditions, including moderate to severe asthma, may be at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19.

"Mr. Hernandez has been complaining to prison officials this week of shortness of breath, but apparently the warden of his facility will not allow Mr. Hernandez to go to the hospital despite the recommendation of the facilitys medical director that Mr. Hernandez be treated by a doctor at a hospital," attorney Lance Lazarro wrote on March 24.

Lazarro did not immediately reply to an email from ABC News.

Story continues

As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread throughout the United States, leading to unprecedented stay-at-home orders in most of the country, health officials, attorneys and advocates for prisoners have been warning for weeks of an impending crisis in the nation's jails and prisons and urging federal, state and local governments to take urgent action to release high-risk inmates.

MORE: Engineer tried to crash train into USNS Mercy in Los Angeles: Feds

People refer to cruise ships as petri dishes, but nobody has invented a more effective vector for transmitting disease than a city jail, Martin Horn, a former New York City corrections commissioner, told ABC News in March.

At least 29 inmates and 30 staff members have tested positive for COVID-19 in federal prisons across the country. Four inmates have died at FCI Oakdale in Louisiana.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons announced that, starting on Wednesday, "inmates in every institution will be secured in their assigned cells/quarters to decrease the spread of the virus, for the next 14 days.

PHOTO: FILE- In this Sept. 21, 2018, file photo rapper Daniel Hernandez, known as Tekashi 6ix9ine, performs during the Philipp Plein women's 2019 Spring-Summer collection during the Fashion Week in Milan, Italy. (Luca Bruno/AP)

In his ruling made public Thursday, Judge Engelmayer took particular note of the unique dangers faced by high-risk prisoners like Hernandez.

"[T]he crowded nature of municipal jails such as the facility in which Mr. Hernandez is housed present an outsize risk that the COVID-19 contagion, once it gains entry, will spread," Engelmayer wrote. "And, realistically, a high-risk inmate who contracts the virus while in prison will face challenges in caring for himself."

Hernandez, who is also known as "6ix9ine," rocketed to international fame in late 2017 with the release of his debut single "Gummo."

A year later he was arrested by federal authorities and indicted on racketeering, drug trafficking and weapons charges, along with several other members of the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods, a violent New York street gang. Hernandez was facing the possibility of more than 30 years in prison, if convicted. But he struck a deal, which prosecutors say led to the guilty pleas of several of his co-defendants. Hernandez also testified publicly for three days last year at the trial of reputed gang members Anthony Ellison and Aljermiah Mack, who were both found guilty on charges of racketeering conspiracy.

Tune into ABC at 1 p.m. ET and ABC News Live at 4 p.m. ET every weekday for special coverage of the novel coronavirus with the full ABC News team, including the latest news, context and analysis.

Federal prosecutors credited Hernandez with providing "critical insight into the structure and organization" of the gang and described his assistance to the government as "incredibly significant and extremely useful," according to court records. Last December, Engelmayer imposed a two-year sentence on Hernandez, who by then had already been locked up for 13 months. He had been expected to be released in early August. Because of his cooperation with prosecutors, Hernandez has been held at a private prison facility in Queens for his protection from potential retaliation from gang members.

At the request of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan, Engelmayer delayed the public release of his order by a day in order to give federal marshals enough time to safely transport Hernandez from the jail to an undisclosed residence, where he will serve the remainder of his sentence in home confinement. He was due to be released in early August.

MORE: After talk with Trump, Florida reverses course on coronavirus stay-at-home order

The early release of Hernandez due to the coronavirus threat comes as other high-profile inmates, including R. Kelly, Michael Avenatti and Michael Cohen, have petitioned courts to grant temporary release or to convert the remainder of their sentences to home confinement.

Kelly asked a federal judge in Chicago last week to release him pending trial on charges including sexual exploitation of children and child pornography. In a filing in U.S. District Court, attorneys for the 53-year-old R&B star warned of a "coming jail epidemic" and argued that "requiring people to reside in a custodial jail setting" during a worldwide pandemic is "tantamount to making them drink poison."

Kelly has pleaded not guilty to the federal charges.

The court has given federal prosecutors until April 15 to respond to Kelly's motion, along with an explanation as to how the Bureau of Prisons is addressing COVID-19 at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago, where Kelly is detained.

Avenatti, the former attorney for adult film star Stormy Daniels, was convicted earlier this year on charges that he tried to extort millions of dollars from Nike. He has not yet been sentenced. He is also facing two more trials on allegations that he defrauded Daniels and other clients.

Currently housed at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City, the 49-year-old Avenatti has proposed that, if granted temporary release, he would stay with a friend in Los Angeles for 90 days under strict monitoring.

"Mr. Avenatti is at extreme risk of contracting Covid 19 at the MCC," his attorneys wrote in a court filing last week. "His health has been compromised by pneumonia in the last 9 months, and he is more susceptible than most to the Covid 19 respiratory virus."

Prosecutors are opposing Avenatti's motion, arguing in court filings that he is no more at risk than any other pre-trial detainee at MCC and could not be trusted to abide by any conditions of release set by the court.

MORE: Distillers, lawmakers pressure FDA to revise hand sanitizer guidelines to permit excise tax relief

"[Avenatti] is a healthy 49-year-old man who, after he committed crimes and hid assets while on pre-trial supervision, this Court found to be an 'ongoing danger' that was 'real and palpable,'" prosecutors wrote in a court filing last week.

U.S. District Court Judge James Selna wrote in an order last week that "Avenatti has demonstrated that the Covid-19 virus and its effects in greater New York City" constitute a compelling reason to grant temporary release, but he has yet to be satisfied with Avenatti's proposed conditions of release. A decision on Avenatti's request could come at any time.

Cohen, the former personal attorney for President Donald Trump, asked a federal judge earlier this month to end his sentence early or to convert the remainder to home confinement. His attorney argued in a letter to the court that the New York prison where Cohen is housed is ill-prepared to protect inmates from contracting the virus.

MORE: Union demands protection for nursing home staff amid coronavirus pandemic

"Mr. Cohen has had two hospitalizations, and a pre-existing condition of pulmonary issues," wrote Cohen's lawyer, Roger Adler, who argued that Cohen's three-year sentence for financial crimes "should not end up being a capital crime depriving my client of his life."

Cohen's motion was rejected by U.S. District Judge William Pauley.

"That Cohen would seek to single himself out for release to home confinement appears to be just another effort to inject himself into the news cycle," Pauley wrote in a brief order last week. "Ten months into his prison term, its time that Cohen accept the consequences of his criminal convictions for serious crimes that had far reaching institutional harms."

What to know about the novel coronavirus:

How it started and how to protect yourself: coronavirus explained

What to do if you have symptoms: coronavirus symptoms

Tracking the spread in the US and worldwide: coronavirus map

Rapper Tekashi69 granted early release from prison over coronavirus concerns originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Richa Sharma By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: People in 85 major cities across India were able to breathe easy during Janata Curfew and national-wide lockdown as most of the vehicles remained off road and non-essential industrial units were closed, the Central Pollution Control Board said in a report.

The CPCB report assessed quality of air between March 16 and March 29. It found that most of the million plus population cities showed improvement in air quality levels post Janata curfew on March 22. Indo Gangetic cities showed significant improvement in AQI values with levels moving from higher to lower end of category and 17 cities moving in Satisfactory category and 07 cities in Good category. The AQI value in coastal areas slightly improved though not as significantly as noted for Indo Gangetic plains, said the report. On the day of curfew, Chennai and Mumbai remained in Satisfactory category. A slight increase in AQI value was noted in Chennai on the next day, possibly due to local contribution.

The positive impact on air quality was not observed significantly in industrial cities. High AQI value was noted in Vapi, Ratlam, Satna, Singrauli and Chandrapur seemingly due to emissions from industrial areas. Overall, Janata Curfew resulted in general improvement in air quality.

During start of pre lockdown period on March 16, 55 cities were under Good & Satisfactory AQI categories. As days progressed, the number of cities under these categories started to decrease with more moving in Moderate category. The pattern continued till March 21, The situation changed on March 22. On the day of Janata Curfew, 67 cities recorded Good & Satisfactory AQI values, said the analysis.

The trend has continued, with increasing number of cities recording Good AQI value.
Saudi Arabia is considering cancelling the Hajj pilgrimage this year due to coronavirus.

The country has called on pilgrims to defer preparations and travel bookings to the pilgrimage. Some time ago, images of deserted Hajj shocked the world as people were asked to follow the guidelines of social distancing.

Getty Images

Every year around two million people visit Mecca every year to perform pilgrimage. It was set to begin at the end of July and end early August but the plans are in doubt as the country has recorded 1,563 coronavirus cases till now and 10 deaths.

Like many countries around the world, Saudi Arabia has enforced a lockdown and curfew in the country as an attempt to curb the outbreak and the entry to the holy cities Mecca and Medina have been severely restricted. Riyadh has already suspended the lesser Umrah pilgrimage.

According to a report, Muhammad Salih bin Taher Banten, minister of Hajj and Umrah, told a Saudi TV channel that Muslims should wait before concluding contracts. Muslims are expected to perform Hajj at least once in their lifetime.

YouTube

We have asked our Muslim brothers around the world to wait before making contracts until things become clear. Under the current circumstances, as we are talking about the global pandemic, from which we have asked God to save us, the kingdom is keen to protect the health of Muslims and citizens. Banten reportedly said.

When visits to Mecca were suspended late in February, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah refunded the fees of Umrah visas to travel agencies, Banten said.

Hajj has not missed a year since the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932. It was not cancelled even during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1917-18 that killed millions of people worldwide.

Getty Images

However, if the Hajj is in fact cancelled because of coronavirus in 2020 it will be added to the list of almost 40 dramatic cancellations since the first in 629.

Many other holy pilgrimages across religions have been cancelled. The grand event of Ram Navmi, which happens to be today, was cancelled in UP owing to coronavirus. Every year, it sees a gathering of thousands of people. Many temples across India have also shut down to avoid gathering of crowds.

Almost everything in the world from travel to businesses have come to a halt because of COVID-19, religious activities are no exception.
ALBANY  The Capital Region saw deaths linked to coronavirus rise to 11 on Thursday as Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state could see the diseases peak sooner than the 21-day projection he previously predicted.

Those estimates are largely based on how effective New Yorkers are at the social distancing measures that have been in place for nearly a month.

"It's anywhere from seven to 21 to 30 days," the governor said. "We believe it is close to the shorter end of the range with our in-house people looking at the professional modeling that's being done."

Locally, a 68-year-old Sand Lake man and a Columbia County resident became the pandemic's latest Capital Region victims.

The governor on Thursday said the state may still need may between 70,000 to 110,000 hospital beds to handle COVID-19 patients. Under that projection, the number of new hospitalizations for the virus in New York would top 100,000 in the next two to three weeks. The number of new hospitalizations declined Thursday, from 1,297 to 1,157.

Cuomo's hospitalization projection has lowered compared to his March 25 statement that said: "Right now what we're looking at is about 140,000 cases coming into the hospitals. The hospital capacity is 53,000 beds. That's a problem."

Cuomo also said Thursday that the state has enough ventilators in a stockpile for up to six days if the flow of intensive care unit patients continues.

"They all basically say you come down from the apex quickly and then some models have it flattening out ... and continuing through the summer, he said.

Cuomo said the state has purchased 3,000 ventilators from Philips in Pittsburgh and is "in fairly good shape" in terms of having enough ventilators to treat patients in intensive care units. But he said the state is continuing to try and purchase ventilators, including from China. Still, Cuomo has cautioned that the projections vary and New York, as well as all other states, need to prepare for the worst and plan for any potential shortage of ventilators, hospital beds and medical supplies. Cuomo said rural areas will also not be immune to a possible heavy impact.

The total confirmed cases in New York since the COVID-19 outbreak began reached 92,381 on Thursday, although that figure includes people who have recovered from the flu-like illness. More than 13,380 people are hospitalized and 7,434 patients have been discharged from hospitals after treatment for the respiratory illness.

Public health officials have said the number of confirmed cases is likely only a fraction of the true number of COVID-19 infections because without widespread testing, medical providers cant detect people who are asymptomatic or only presenting with mild symptoms.

On Thursday, Albany County Executive Dan McCoy and County Health Commissioner Elizabeth Whalen said they hope to re-open community testing to those who are showing some symptoms within the next few days. Expanded testing will give a clearer picture of the pandemic's spread and ensure that more people know they have it and need to stay away from others.

We know we dont have a true representation of whats going on in the community, Whalen said.

And in a sign that the arrival of downstate patients are having an impact on local hospitals, McCoy indicated Albany Medical Center now has more than 40 COVID-19 patients from the New York City area, a jump from 14 such patients yesterday. St. Marys Hospital in Amsterdam also confirmed on Thursday that it had accepted patients from downstate hospitals.

Speaking at a morning news conference, McCoy threatened to impose a curfew, as well as issue fines, to deter people from holding parties and other gatherings that violate social distancing directives.

McCoy says he still sees people  many of them young  failing to adhere to rules that require people to avoid casual contact with others.

LOCAL CASES UPDATE

Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin said the death of the county's first resident linked to the pandemic was not unexpected but still jarring.

"This is a sad day for all of us at Rensselaer County, and we mourn the loss of one of our residents to the coronavirus outbreak," he said.

The county currently has 18 residents hospitalized, and 360 people in quarantine. So far, 14 people have recovered.

Still small numbers overall, but theyre growing, McLaughlin said.

Columbia County health officials reported Thursday that two people who had tested positive for COVID-19 have since died. But it's unclear when the second death occurred. On Saturday, Columbia County reported its first confirmed death who was a resident of Pine Haven nursing home in Philmont.

Schenectady County leads the region with five deaths from the disease. There are 98 confirmed cases, with 17 people hospitalized and 321 people under quarantine.

Saratoga County has had 139 confirmed cases with 19 people hospitalized. A 95-year-old county resident died at Glens Falls Hospital last week.

Albany County has had two deaths, and the most confirmed cases in the region. The county reported having 238 confirmed cases Thursday, an increase of 10 new confirmations from Wednesday. There are 27 patients hospitalized, 12 patients in intensive care and 401 people under mandatory quarantine.

Two of the new cases in the past two days are Albany firefighters. Chief Joseph Gregory said the department now has five members who have tested positive and 19 who are in quarantine.

Warren County has 19 cases, Washington County has 13 cases, Montgomery County nine cases with 25 people quarantined and Greene County has 25 cases confirmed.

Staff writers Bethany Bump, Kenneth Crowe II, and Wendy Liberatore contributed to this report.
Pastors sue to stop Texas judge's stay-at-home order prohibiting church gatherings

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Pastors are suing a Texas county judge over a stay-at-home order that they believe violates their religious freedom right to continue holding church services. Meanwhile, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott clarified that churches can open during the coronavirus pandemic as essential services.

A petition to the Texas Supreme Court on Monday was filed by Houston attorney Jared Woodfill on behalf of three local pastors and conservative activist Steve Hotze, the CEO of Conservative Republicans of Texas.

The petition seeks to stop an order by elected Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo enacted last month that instructs county residents to stay in their homes except for essential travel to the grocery store and when commuting to work for essential employees. The order required all nonessential businesses to close, including churches.

Relators and those similarly situated are having their constitutional rights and the constitutional rights of their congregants continuously infringed upon as long as Judge Hidalgos Order is allowed to stay in place, the legal filing reads.

According to the plaintiffs, Hidalgos order on March 24 imposes fines and even incarceration for individuals who operate non-essential businesses, congregate outside residences, operate a gun store or attend in-person religious services.

If the Order is allowed to remain in place, the harm to individuals, businesses, the general public, people of faith, and the fundamental rights guaranteed to Harris County residents under the United States and Texas Constitutions would be impossible to undo, the petition argues.

Emergency mandamus relief is necessary from this Court to prevent Judge Hidalgos draconian, unconstitutional Order from further harming and infringing upon fundamental rights guaranteed to those living in Harris County, Texas.

In an online video, Hotze said that the First Amendment dictates that we have the right to practice our religion freely and we also have the right to peacefully assemble.

It doesnt stay anything about whether or not you are sick or well, whether or not you can meet to do these things, Hotze, the CEO of the Hotze Health & Wellness Center and Hotze Vitamins and Hotze Pharmacy, said.

If a church wants to have online services, that is their business to do that. But if we want to meet, that is our choice, not the choice of the government. Its tyranny for the government to impose this upon us. That is why I oppose it.

According to Woodfill, Hotze is joined in the lawsuit by pastors whose rights have been clearly violated by Hidalgos unconstitutional order. Those pastors are Juan Bustamante of City on a Hill Church in Houston, George Garcia of The Power of Love Church in Houston and David Valdez of the World Faith Center of Houston.



It is even more egregious and draconian when you consider the fact that if you are a pastor and choose to hold a service, you are looking at a $1,000 fine and up to 1 year in jail, Woodfill said. If you are an individual and choose to go to church, you are looking at a $1,000 fine and up to one year in jail. That is Harris County today.

That's why they have decided to take a stand, he added. They have requested the [Texas] Supreme Court look at this on an emergency basis and hold this order to be unconstitutional.

Woodfill said that the legal standard requires there to be a compelling government interest. The petition to the Supreme Court outlines how coronavirus compares to the flu and other causes of death to put it all in perspective and determine whether Hidalgos order is narrowly tailored enough to meet this compelling governmental interest.

When a judge decides to trample on fundamental freedoms and liberties that hundreds of thousands of people have given their lives for us to enjoy, that is something that we have to take extremely seriously, Woodfill said.

He added that he hopes that a ruling in their favor will send a clear message to other judges across the state who decide to implement similar orders.



Two days after the lawsuit was filed, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton issued joint guidance defining religious services as essential services under an executive order signed by Abbott calling on Texans to obey social distancing guidelines.

If religious services cannot be conducted from home or through remote services, they should be conducted consistent with the Guidelines from the President and the [Centers for Disease Control] by practicing good hygiene, environmental cleanliness, and sanitation, and by implementing social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19, the joint guidance reads.

CDC guidelines call for people to avoid gatherings of 10 people or more.

KHOU points out that although Harris and other Texas counties have banned church services, Abbotts executive order overrides "any conflicting order issued by local officials," including those related to religious services.

Woodfill told KHOU11 that there are plans to file lawsuits in Montgomery, Fort Bend and Galveston counties as well.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner spoke out against the idea of allowing religious services during the coronavirus pandemic. In Texas, there are over 4,600 confirmed cases of coronavirus as of Thursday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University & Medicines Coronavirus Resource Center.

In Harris County, there have been six coronavirus-related deaths and at least 847 confirmed cases.

"If you're engaging in socializing, hugging, hand-clapping, sitting next to one another, then you are putting yourself in harm's way," Turner said Wednesday, according to KHOU. "I don't care who tells you to go in there. Exercise some common sense."

"This is not the time to change course when you're still in the midst of the storm. And I know the faith-based community understands that. So, you know, I shouldn't have to tell you that if there's a building on fire, don't go into the building."
On the left, a Special Operations warrior prepares to conduct a military freefall parachute insertion at night. At right, a Reactor Operator synchronizes the Watts Bar Unit 2 nuclear power plant to the TVA electric grid. (Lance Cpl. Nicole Rogge and TVA.gov)

The Pandemic Means Grid Operators Must Be Resourced Like DoDs Special Operators, and Now!

Commentary

Members of the U.S. Special Operations Command are among the most well-trained and well-equipped warriors in the world, and our nation is rightly proud of that fact. As these noble combatants work diligently around the world every day to hunt Americas enemies, their service keeps us safe and for that we are grateful.

However, as Americans work hard to adapt to the rapidly changing environment and immense challenges posed by the current pandemic, more of them are beginning to appreciate the service that does more than keep us safe; it is a service that literally keeps us all alive. This is the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricitythe lifeblood of a modern civilization.

Leading defense and policy experts have long warned that a pandemic could result in widespread electrical blackouts and thankfully many in government and industry are rapidly waking up to this reality, with common sense recommendations being made to keep electricity flowing during this crisis.

One of the most well-researched academic papers on this topic was just published by the Foundation for Resilient Societies, titled Preserving Operational Continuity for Electric Utility Control Rooms During the COVID-19 Pandemic. The highly competent authors of this paper point out that electric utility control room operators will have high probability of being exposed and possibly infected, leading to the prospect of high rates of absenteeism and, with it, the prospect of electrical blackouts.

The Foundations work should be required reading, immediately, for government leaders tasked with prioritizing the limited assets needed to defend against the SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19. It makes clear that the type of resourcing and prioritization we often provide our militarys special operators must now be directed toward these control room operators.

This includes routine asymptomatic testing, personal protective equipment, and dedicated medical support teams. The brave men and women working in hospitals around the nation wont be able to perform their lifesaving work without the life sustaining work of the electric utility industryand they know this.

For example, internationally acclaimed epidemiologist, Dr. Michael Osterholm, who serves as the director of the Center of Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota, has been a leading voice in Americas battle against this pandemic.

In his book, Deadliest Enemy: Our War Against Killer Germs, Dr. Osterholm wrote that he believes that the father of modern public health is Nikola Tesla, the inventor of the alternating-current induction motor that enabled the widespread use of electricity. The Doctors justification for this honor is worth repeating verbatim:

The advent of electricity brought about quantum leaps in public health and infectious disease control. With electricity and water pumps, safe water supplies could be realized throughout the world. And with running water, effective sewer systems could be put into place. Electricity also brought us refrigeration, the ability to pasteurize milk, vaccine manufacturing, and air conditioning to keep mosquitoes out of our homes and places of work. It revolutionized medical practice through the invention of X-ray and other imaging technology, diagnostic equipment, mechanical ventilators, and more.

Dr. Osterholms credit to electricity for the public health comes in the wake of nearly two decades of warnings by the blue ribbon and bi-partisan commissions on the importance of electric grid security. This includes work by the Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States of Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Attack, also known as the Congressional EMP Commission, which concluded that a long-term and widespread electrical blackout would result in America losing 90 percent of its population.

The Commissions estimates were based on an observation of Americas population during the pre-electricity era when our land mass supported approximately 30 million people. While some have scoffed at this frightening figure, Dr. Osterholms book further illuminates the miracle that electricity provided humanity:

In 1900 the average life expectancy in the United States was forty-eight years. By 2000, just one hundred years later, it was seventy-seven. For every three days we lived in the twentieth century we gained a day of life expectancy. Consider that in light of the fact that early humans in the form of Homo erectus emerged 2.4 million years ago, and it took until 1900 to achieve our forty-eight-year life expectancy. That means it took 80,000 generations to reach the 1900-era life expectancy, and only about 4 to reach our current level.

It is undisputable that Americas population cannot survive without electricity, so we must immediately protect those who keep it flowing from the SARS-CoV-2 / COVID-19 threat. Then, this generation of citizensand most especially those who work in the utility industrymust commit to protecting the electric grid infrastructure from ALL hazards.

Tommy Waller serves as Director of Infrastructure Protection at the Center for Security Policy. Prior to joining the Center, Waller served as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps in the infantry and reconnaissance specialties, with combat service overseas in numerous theaters, and service on both active duty and in the reserves. Waller currently manages the Secure the Grid Coalitiona group of policymakers, defense professionals, and activists working diligently to secure Americas most critical infrastructurethe U.S. electric grid. Learn more at SecureTheGrid.com

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Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
DENVER, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Journey Inc. has won two prestigious awards from Enterprise Connect, the premier organization focused on enterprise communications and collaboration: Best of Enterprise Connect and Best Innovation in Customer Experience in recognition of the company's groundbreaking Trusted Identity Platform. The Journey Identity Platform is the first and only "no tradeoffs" customer identity platform, enabling companies to deliver on their commitment to security and privacy while simultaneously eliminating customer friction.

Enterprises and customers alike dread the painful authentication processes that are required today for customer interactions, which rely on security questions, social security numbers and passwords. All of those authentication steps are time-consuming, frustrating, and ultimately not as secure and confidential as they should be. Journey's solution removes the need for those frustrating steps so that the identity of a customer is instantly verified with ultra-secure one-in-a-billion veracity without revealing any private information about a customer to the customer service agent, in a matter of seconds.

Journey is the first and only platform that orchestrates authentication, verification, and transactions like payment processing and document signing while also delivering an elegant customer experience that is fast, simple, secure, and privacy-preserving. The platform also works in concert with the existing identity, payment and transaction tools that companies have invested in, and it can be implemented in a matter of days to immediately transform customer interactions.

"I am honored to accept these awards on behalf of the entire Journey team. Enterprise Connect has a long track record of recognizing technologies that go on to have an enormous impact, and our Identity Platform will do exactly that. It is a game changer for the way call centers, retail companies, healthcare providers, financial services companies and other organizations interact with customers," said Brett Shockley, CEO of Journey.

Shockley added: "Organizations will no longer have to make tradeoffs between security, privacy and customer experience. In the past, each step that an organization would make to ensure security and protect privacy would add significant friction to customer interactions. It was a situation that was lose-lose for customers and companies. Our Identity Platform eliminates those tradeoffs by making it possible for the first time to have strong security, robust privacy and an outstanding, friction-less customer experience. Thank you to Enterprise Connect for recognizing how important our platform will be for a long list of industries."

Watch this video for a peek into Journey's approach and some examples of use cases for Journey's technology.

About Journey.ai, Inc.:

Journey reduces operating costs, eliminates fraud, and improves user experience in the contact center and beyond by fundamentally solving digital identity from the network up throughout the complete user journey. Journey is currently working with a number of strategic partners and customers. More details will emerge on the patent-pending, and industry changing, zero-knowledge network in spring 2020. For more information, visit www.journey.ai .

Contact:

Julie Runda

Vice President of Marketing Communications at Journey

[email protected]

SOURCE Journey.ai

Related Links

http://journey.ai


The role of Tablighi Jamaat in the spreading of the Wuhan Coronavirus across numerous states of India has come to light. At least ten people have died thus far after attending an Islamic religious event organized by the Islamic missionary organization in Markaz, Nizamuddin at the national capital. India is not the only country affected by the recklessness of the Tableeghi Jamaat. Other South Asian countries are bearing the brunt of it as well. Under such circumstances, the Tablighi Jamaats links with terrorist organizations such as the Al Qaeda become hugely significant.

Secret US documents released by Wikileaks in 2011 revealed that some Al Qaeda operatives used the Jamaat to get visas and fund their travel to Pakistan. They also lived in and around Delhi, the documents said. Referring to Saudi Arabia national Abdul Bukhary, as a veteran jihadist, the report prepared by US authorities in-charge of Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, said a Jamaat member, whom he met in 1985-1986 helped to procure his visa for Pakistan. One of the JT (Jamaat Tablighi) members procured detainees visa for Pakistan, after which detainee and another Saudi travelled to Lahore, the report prepared on July 25, 2007 said.

While in New Delhi, detainee was introduced to the leader of the JT and asked to make a life commitment to the organisation. Detainee told JT that he needed to think about it because he did not want to commit his life to servitude, pilgrimage, and missionary work. Detainee returned to Lahore for two weeks and then traveled to Saudi Arabia, the document revealed by WikiLeaks said.

A report on Somalian detainee Mohammed Soliman Barre prepared on September 1, 2008, says, JT, a proselytizing organisation, has been identified as an Al-Qaeda cover story. Al-Qaeda used the JT to facilitate and fund the international travels of its members. He was denied UN refugee status in India, but he obtained a visa to travel to Pakistan under the sponsorship of Jamaat Tablighi (JT). Detainee stated he had no intention of performing missionary duties or serving with the JT; he just used the group to get a visa, the report said.

Yet another report mentions the Tablighi Jamaat. A report on Sudan national Amir Muhammad, prepared on the 27th of January 2008, said, In early 1991, detainee flew from Sudan to India (IN) via Kenya. On the flight to India, detainee met a representative of the Tabligh movement who told detainee about a large Tabligh centre in New Delhi where he could go for assistance. Detainee misrepresented himself as an interested Tabligh candidate in order to obtain a Pakistani visa, it said.

Thus, it is clear that the Tablighi Jamaat is used as a conduit by Islamic Terrorist organizations to felicitate travel for their members. Iyman Faris, an Ohio truck driver accused of a terrorist plot to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge in 2003, used the Jamaat to secure travel to Pakistan in order to accomplish an assignment for the Al Qaeda. The Tableeghi Jamaat came under the eyes of federal investigators in the United States following the 9/11 terrorist attack after its name popped up in at least four high-profile terrorism cases. We have a significant presence of Tablighi Jamaat in the United States, and we have found that Al Qaeda used them for recruiting, now and in the past, Michael J. Heimbach, the then deputy chief of the F.B.I.s international terrorism section, is quoted as saying in an NYT report from 2003.

Stratfor, a reputed geopolitical intelligence platform, published a detailed report on the Tablighi Jamaat and its links to the world of Global Jihad. The report says that there is evidence of indirect connections between the Jamaat and anti-Shiite sectarian groups, Kashmiri terrorists and the Taliban. The report said, The TJ organization also serves as a de facto conduit for Islamist extremists and for groups such as al Qaeda to recruit new members. Significantly, the Tablighi recruits do intersect with the world of radical Islamism when they travel to Pakistan to receive their initial training. Once the recruits are in Pakistan, terrorist outfits such as the Taliban, Al Qaeda and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen try to woo them.

Stratfor said further, Because of the piety and strict belief system of the Tablighis and their focus on calling wayward Muslims back to an austere and orthodox Muslim faith, the movement has offered a place where jihadist spotters can look for potential recruits. It added, Although the TJ promotes a benign message, the same conservative Islamic values espoused by the Tablighis also are part of jihadist ideology, and so some Muslims attracted to the Tablighi movement are enticed into becoming involved with jihadists.

Before their great involvement in the spreading of the Wuhan Coronavirus across the world, people associated with the Tablighi Jamaat have featured regularly in terrorist attacks. One of the attackers in the 2017 London Bridge Attack, Youssef Zaghba, was linked to the Tableeghi Jamaat. Mohammed Siddique Khan, the leader of the 7/7 terrorists that committed the London Bombings in 2005, and associate Shehzad Tanweer were linked to the Tableeghi Jamaat as well.

Given the suspicious manner in which the Tablighi Jamaat has aided in the spread of the Wuhan Coronavirus and given their history of links to terrorist organizations, the possibility that it was an act of Biological Terrorism cannot be ruled out. Events of the Tableeghi Jamaat in Pakistan, Malaysia and India have spread the virus across South Asian countries. If it was indeed a case of deliberate spread, then it reflects the most dangerous turn of events that authorities across countries will now have to contend with.

Source : OpIndia
The coronavirus pandemic is wreaking havoc on the United States economy.

As local and state governments put in place social distancing protocols to prevent the spread of the virus, shuttering businesses, laid-off workers are forced to seek unemployment benefits.

The flood of such workers in New York reportedly crashed the state's system.

In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott instructed the Texas Workforce Commission on Wednesday to waive the usual "waiting week" for unemployment benefits. Normally, the TWC does not pay you for the first week of your claim until you return to work.

However, the TWC notes that it could still take approximately four weeks from the date you apply for benefits to know if you are eligible.

The commission is also waiving requirements that previously forced applicants to register for work search on WorkinTexas.com.

Here's how Texans out of work as a result of the pandemic can apply for unemployment benefits online:

1. Log on or create a new account on the Texas Workforce Commission website.

2. You'll need your:

- Social Security number

- Last employers business name, address and phone number

- First and last dates (month, day, and year) you worked for your last

employer

- Number of hours you worked and your pay rate if you worked during the week you apply (including Sunday)

- Military employment (service) start/end dates and a copy of your DD Form 214(s)(member copy 4 through 8), if you served in the military during the past 18 months

- Alien Registration number (if not a U.S. citizen or national)

3. Enter your personal information, most recent employment details, and payment option.

The TWC compiled a detailed step-by-step PowerPoint to guide you through the application process.

4. Review and submit your application. Your application is not complete until you submit it and receive a confirmation number.

5. Confirm your claim and complete the Next Steps section of the application.

6. Check your claim status online.
LAWRENCE  A local packaging facility faces more than $150,000 in fines on allegations it failed to protect employees from machine servicing hazards.

BWAY Corporation, better known as Mauser Packaging Solutions, operated an unsafe workplace and placed untrained machine workers in harms way when an employee suffered an amputation last fall in Lawrence Township, authorities alleged Wednesday in a news release.

The bloody workplace injury occurred on Sept. 26, 2019, at Mausers industrial warehouse off Litho Road near Route 1, according to the U.S. Department of Labors Occupational Safety and Health Administration, better known as OSHA.

Upon learning of the workplace incident, OSHA conducted an inspection of the industrial building and found serious and repeat violations, OSHA said.

On Oct. 4, 2019, The employer failed to provide maintenance employees with training on machine specific procedures, OSHA alleges in a 13-page citation and notification of penalty issued to Mauser on March 23.

The company had similar shortcomings on Sept. 26, 2019, when the worker suffered the amputation, according to OSHA. Furthermore, OSHA says the alleged violations at the Lawrence facility are similar to prior violations that Mauser accrued at other facilities across the United States.

For example, OSHA issued and affirmed a final order on Feb. 6, 2019, citing BWAY Corp. for exposing employees to machine hazards at a workplace in Chicago. BWAY Corp. also received prior citations in 2016 and 2017 for workplace violations in Ohio and Wisconsin similar to the September 2019 violations here in New Jersey, OSHA said.

OSHA found four noteworthy deficiencies at the Lawrence Township worksite:

* Authorized employees did not receive training in the recognition of applicable hazardous energy sources and energy isolation.

* A procedure was not utilized to afford the employees a level of protection equivalent to that provided by the implementation of a personal lockout or tagout device when servicing or maintenance was performed by a crew member.

* The employer did not conduct an annual inspection of the energy control procedure to ensure that the procedure and requirements of this important federal standard were followed.

* The established procedure for the application of energy control was not done in sequence as required by the Code of Federal Regulations, exposing employees to machine servicing hazards.

Workers servicing or maintaining machines are at risk of serious injury, including amputations, if hazardous energy is not properly controlled, Paula Dixon-Roderick, director of the OSHA Marlton Area Office, said Wednesday in a press statement regarding BWAY Corporation. This company must correct the hazards identified to protect workers safety.

Mauser Packaging Solutions must abate the alleged violations at the Litho Road worksite by April 16, according to the citation, but the company may contest the allegations and proposed financial penalties or request an informal conference seeking alternatives.

OSHA issued an invoice and debt collection notice showing Mauser faces $151,329 in penalties for the serious and repeat violations it cited.

The Trentonian on Wednesday could not reach a Mauser company official for comment. The newspaper attempted to reach company officials by telephone and email.
Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE:BUD) won crucial conditional approval from Australian antitrust regulators for the sale of its Carlton & United Breweries to Japanese brewer Asahi (OTC:ASBRF).

The mega brewer is unloading its Australian business in a bid to help lower its massive debt load, and now just needs the country's foreign investment regulators to sign off on the deal.

After Anheuser-Busch's acquisition of SABMiller in 2016, its debt surged to $104 billion and the brewer began shedding assets to raise money to reduce the amount. It spun off its Asian business last year.

Give a little to get a lot

In order to gain regulator approval for the acquisition, Asahi agreed to sell the Stella Artois and Beck's beer brands, as well as the Strongbow, Bonamy's, and Little Green cider brands.

Anheuser-Busch acquired Carlton & United when it bought Miller, so it seemingly has no real attachment to the business, and Asahi already owns the top-selling cider brand in Australia, Somersby. Regulators said Asahi would control 71% of Australia's cider market with the purchase.

They also feared the deal would reduce beer competition because Asahi was an effective check on both Carlton and Mitsubishi's Lion beer, which would be diminished if it acquired Carlton.

While the $11.3 billion deal would help lower Anheuser-Busch's debt, the brewer just maxed out its credit limit by drawing down the full $9 billion amount it had on the facility.

As the coronavirus pandemic worsened, Anheuser-Busch wanted to ensure it had sufficient liquidity available to it during the downturn. Although it looks like a case of two steps forward, one step back, the Australian brewing business sale is still expected to be completed by the second quarter of 2020.
No one knows why Marie Dinou was loitering between platforms at Newcastle Central railway station on Saturday morning.

She did not tell the police who questioned her, the lawyer who saw her in custody, or the court that found her guilty of an offence under new coronavirus laws.

The 41-year-old is not believed to have spoken a word between the moment of her arrest and the moment she was fined 660 in the first known case of its kind.

Her conviction is to be quashed after police admitted that the wrong law was used to prosecute her, and the case shouldnt have happened.

The Independent has learned that Ms Dinou was not even in the courtroom when a judge found the offence proven after reading statements from British Transport Police (BTP) on Monday.

She was in the cells of North Tyneside Magistrates Court as punishment for refusing to give her name and address, after spending two days in police custody.

Ms Dinou is not known to have undergone a mental health assessment, and a nurse was not present at court because of coronavirus.

The court made to formal effort to confirm that she spoke English.

Defendant refuses to identify herself, sent back to cells and proved in absence, read a short official account of the hearing.

Ms Dinou was convicted of committing an offence under Schedule 21 of the Coronavirus Act 2020.

Despite having no record of her income or means, the judge fined her 660 and ordered her to pay a 66 victim surcharge and 85 in costs.

The charge sheet said Ms Dinou had failed to provide BTP officers with [her] identity or reasons for [her] journey, and failed to comply with a requirement under the new law.

 Some police may have gone too far in enforcing lockdown, senior Tory admits

Officers approached Ms Dinou and engaged with her in an attempt to understand her reasons for essential travel, but following several more attempts by officers to explain and encourage she refused to speak to officers, a BTP press release said on Wednesday.

Having explored all options, Ms Dinou was arrested on suspicion of breaching the restrictions imposed under the Coronavirus Act 2020.

But official guidance issued to officers by the College of Policing and National Police Chiefs Council states that there is no power to stop and account under the new laws.

New guidance on the Coronavirus Act 2020 is to be published on Friday.

It came into force on 25 March and had been drafted at a time when the threat was perceived to mainly come from people entering the UK from abroad.

The law enables health officials to direct people to hospitals or testing centres, and gives powers for police to enforce their instructions.

Schedule 21 creates an offence of failing without reasonable excuse to comply with any direction, reasonable instruction, requirement or restriction imposed as part of the act.

But the law can only apply to potentially infectious persons and is separate to the newer Health Protection Regulations that allow police to enforce the UK lockdown.

Matthew Scott, a criminal barrister at Pump Court Chambers, told The Independent that both the charge and court procedure may have been unlawful.

I do not understand how they can say that she has committed an offence under the Coronavirus Act because that act doesnt require somebody to give their details to a police officer, and doesnt require them to state the purpose of their journey, he added.

Mr Scott questioned why police could not have fined Ms Dinou for being away from home without a reasonable excuse under the Health Protection Regulations.

If the district judge decided the case on the basis of written statements because she refused to say anything in court, that on my view is procedurally irregular and incorrect, particularly on a first appearance.

More than half the court buildings in England and Wales have been closed because of coronavirus, and those still operating are only dealing with urgent matters including remand hearings and coronavirus-related cases.

Police have been instructed to use enforcement as a last resort as they grapple with the rapidly drawn up new laws, which underwent little parliamentary scrutiny.

A legal firm routinely instructed by police forces, 5 Essex Court, said in its guidance that the Coronavirus Act only creates a criminal offence if people refuse a direction to a place suitable for screening and assessment.

The document says that officers identifying a potentially infectious person must have regard to public health guidance on symptoms  which Dinou did not have  or contact with infected people.

On Thursday evening, BTP said it had conducted a review with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) that established that Marie Dinou was charged under the incorrect section of the Coronavirus Act 2020.

In response to questions from The Independent, the force said it had asked North Tyneside Magistrates Court for the case to be relisted and the conviction to be set aside.

Having reassessed the matter, BTP will not pursue any alternative prosecution, a spokesperson said.

Ms Dinou had been suspected of a railway ticket offence, but the Coronavirus Act was used to prosecute her instead.

Deputy Chief Constable Adrian Hanstock said: There will be understandable concern that our interpretation of this new legislation has resulted in an ineffective prosecution.

This was in circumstances where officers were properly dealing with someone who was behaving suspiciously in the station, and who staff believed to be travelling without a valid ticket. Officers were rightfully challenging her unnecessary travel.

Regardless, we fully accept that this shouldnt have happened and we apologise. It is highly unusual that a case can pass through a number of controls in the criminal justice process and fail in this way.

The senior officer added: BTP and the CPS will undertake a more detailed review of the case to ensure that any lessons to be learned are integrated into our shared justice processes.

BTP said it has shared official guidance on how to enforce the new laws with officers to help them interpret the new legislation.
It seems that recreational marijuana dispensaries in Massachusetts will remain shuttered during the coronavirus pandemic. The state's governor, Charlie Baker, has emphatically stated that their shutdown, part of a broader set of measures by the state to temporarily close nonessential businesses, would remain in effect.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Baker said, "There is tons of evidence that because Massachusetts is one of the few states in the Northeast that's legalized recreational marijuana, that if we make recreational marijuana available as an essential business ... we are going to have to deal with the fact that people are going to come here from all over the place, across the Northeast, and create issues for us with respect to the fundamental issue we are trying to solve for here, which is to stop the spread [of the coronavirus]."

Numerous advocates for the drug and the state's cannabis commissioner, Shaleen Title, have pushed for recreational weed to be included on the list of essential businesses. Baker, however, said the idea was "a nonstarter" for the state.

Other states that have legalized recreational cannabis (California and Illinois being prime examples) have included this form of the drug in their lists of allowable commerce.

Although recreational-marijuana business cannot be transacted in Massachusetts at present, the sale of medical marijuana is permitted.

The continued ban on the recreational product in the state will have some impact on marijuana companies that actively sell it there. One company worthy of note is Massachusetts-based Curaleaf Holdings (OTC:CURLF), which sells recreational marijuana in two dispensaries in the state. Curaleaf hasn't yet made any public statement about the continued Massachusetts recreational-marijuana shutdown.

On Wednesday, Curaleaf stock fell harder than the major stock indexes, plummeting by over 11%.
The statistical models guiding the federal government response to the coronavirus crisis offer a grim outlook for Louisiana thats in line with warnings from Gov. John Bel Edwards who has said the worst of the crisis is still to come.

But in a disaster with no modern precedent in the U.S., the models  and the charts and graphs they generate about when coronavirus cases could peak  have been among the most critical tools for leaders as they try to understand what needs to be done

One such model, designed to give early warning to public leaders and health officials about how quickly they will need to ramp up the capacity in their hospitals, predicts between 360 and 3,100 residents of Louisiana could die from the coronavirus by early May. And the influx of patients in need of lifesaving care is not likely to peak in the state until next week.

Those projections, which federal authorities said could leave between 100,000 and 240,000 dead across the country, also depend heavily on the success of restrictions on peoples activities: bans on gatherings and the closure of schools and businesses. If those fail or are lifted too early, the death toll could be far higher.

Thats the upper end of uncertainty if we do it well, said Joshua Yukich, an epidemiologist and assistant professor at Tulane Universitys School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine who looked over the projections on Wednesday. Its not the upper end if we say, Lets put Jazz Fest back on and go on with our lives. 

The model, put together by researchers at the University of Washingtons Institute for Health Metrics and evaluation, uses data from Wuhan, China, and Italy to estimate when the number of hospital beds, intensive care units and ventilators will surge and peak. Initially designed as a tool for those juggling those resources, it has gained significant attention in the past week, in part due to a user-friendly website that boils down its data into easily digestible information.

In Louisiana, the model predicts the need for medical resources will peak in about nine days, when up to 1,730 ventilators and 8,000 hospital beds will be needed for coronavirus patients.

Thats more twice the number of ventilators now available statewide and 3.5 times as many as are now being used to treat coronavirus patients.

Vaccine news in your inbox Once a week we'll update you on the progress of COVID-19 vaccinations. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Gov. John Bel Edwards has been pleading with the federal government for 5,000 more ventilators to meet the demands predicted by the states own, in-house modeling. Those estimates now predict the parishes around New Orleans, which has been the epicenter of the crisis in the state, will run out of ventilators on Monday, Edwards said Wednesday afternoon.

There are 574 ventilators in the New Orleans area, which has been the hardest hit by the outbreak, and only 190 were available as of Monday. The federal government has so far pledged only to provide another 150 to Louisiana and those have not yet arrived.

The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate has repeatedly asked the state to release the model it is using, though it has not yet done so.

The model is one of several to try and provide a guess at the overall number of people who will succumb to the coronavirus and also the strains that it will put on hospital systems around the country. Other models, such as one put out last month by the Harvard Global Health Institute, have come up with similar projections of how the virus will overwhelm the health care system.

Experts cautioned that so much is still unknown about the virus that it is difficult to properly model how it will spread or what its effects will be. And while predictions of hundreds of thousands of deaths can hardly be called optimistic, things could be far worse if restrictions are not in place.

Because most of the data about the coronavirus and its lethality has come from places that did put strict measures in place, it is not clear what would happen without those interventions, Yukich said.

Yukich noted there is a wide range in the models predictions, though he said the upper bounds of its estimates did not appear out of line.

I think its certainly possible that it could go that high and really depends a lot on whether were going to successfully turn the corner in the way that other places have and on the timeline that other places have, he said. If that doesnt happen here its very hard to say what will go on.
A worker at an oil processing facility of Saudi Aramco, a Saudi Arabian state-owned oil and gas company, at the Abqaiq oil field. Stanislav Krasilnikov | TASS | Getty Images

April is going to be a hellish month for the oil industry. Already down more than 65% year-to-date, crushed by the coronavirus crisis and the Saudi-Russia oil price war, crude prices are set to tank even further when Saudi Arabia and others turn on the taps following the expiration of the OPEC+ output cut deal on April 1 that had reined in production to boost the market. Oil at $20 per barrel was unimaginable a few months ago; now some forecasters are calling prices as low as $10 or even single digits as the world runs out of storage space and the global economy grinds to a halt. But when the dust settles, many analysts believe it'll be Saudi Arabia  even with its overwhelming reliance on oil revenue  that comes out on top. The kingdom is willingly inflicting pain upon itself by slashing its selling prices and committing to increase production to more than 12 million barrels per day  a record amount  after a bid to cut output together with Russia failed. Its strategy now is going after maximum market share. Its revenue is taking a massive blow and its budget deficit could rise by 40%, prompting plans for spending cuts and borrowing. The IMF estimates the kingdom needs oil at $80 a barrel to balance its budget; Brent crude closed at $22.74 per barrel on Tuesday, ending its worst quarter ever, with the second quarter expected to be even worse.

Despite the dire numbers, however, enduring months of fiscal pain while it pursues greater exports may ultimately pay off. "Saudi will definitely be one of the winners on the other side," Abhi Rajendran, director of research at Energy Intelligence, told CNBC. His call is based on the assumption that oil prices will rebound in 2021 post-coronavirus; his firm sees oil back up to $80 per barrel within three years. Rajendran predicts Saudi Arabia's market share will "definitely grow," adding that "in a year or two they will have to increase production because the market will need it and it will be ahead of the U.S. again in terms of volume."

'Short-term pain for long-term gain'

Still, many analysts expect production to drop after April when it becomes clear that the demand for all that crude just isn't there. Stephen Brennock of PVM Oil Associates described the Saudi policy as one of "short-term pain for long-term gain." "Like all oil producers, they will not be thrilled by the prospect of $30 oil for the foreseeable future... However, the ramp up in output and shipments will safeguard its long-term position in several key export markets," Brennock said. "I would not be surprised, at all, to see the oil market return to a tight supply environment in as soon as two years' time," John Kilduff, founding partner of advisory firm Again Capital, told CNBC.

... But the buyers could disappear

Still, with demand eviscerated by a world in lockdown fighting the spread of the coronavirus, the Saudis could fail to find enough buyers. "If evidence reveals that Saudi Arabia can't move all of that oil due to demand destruction from the coronavirus shutdowns then it could look very bad for the kingdom," said Ellen Wald, president of Transversal Consulting and author of "Saudi, Inc."

Indeed, the full economic blow of the global lockdowns hasn't registered yet. Analysts at Dubai-based bank Emirates NBD warned that it will kick in "this quarter with the level of demand destruction likely to permanently alter the long-term trajectory for oil consumption." The International Energy Agency expects global oil demand to contract by a stunning 20% this year, and Japanese bank MUFG estimates demand in April to plummet by 8.5 million barrels per day.

Austerity for the kingdom?
Jeff Bezos has donated $100million to help food bank Feeding America amid the coronavirus pandemic, days after a manager at one of his Amazon warehouses claimed he was fired for taking part in a walkout over dangerous working conditions during the outbreak.

Bezos announced the news Thursday on Instagram, telling followers that the decision came as volunteers at food banks are busier than ever and putting their own safety at risk on the frontline.

He added that the donation would go directly to supplying more food as the usual donations from catering businesses were scarce due to the forced closure of restaurants to comply with social distancing shutdowns across the country.

'Even in ordinary times, food insecurity in American households is an important problem, and unfortunately COVID-19 is amplifying that stress significantly,' Bezos explained.

'Non-profit food banks and food pantries rely in large part on surplus food from a range of food businesses. For example, many restaurants donate excess food. But during this time of social distancing, restaurants are closed, and many other normal channels of excess food have also shut down.'

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced the news Thursday on Instagram, telling followers that the decision came as volunteers at food banks are busier than ever

The donation will go directly to supplying more food as the usual donations from catering businesses are scarce due to the forced closure of restaurants

'Today, I want to support those on the front lines at our nation's food banks and those who are relying on them for food with a $100 million gift,' he posted on Instagram

'To make matters worse, as supply is dwindling, demand for food bank services is going up,' he added.

Bezos, the richest man in the world with a net worth of $120.4billion, asked others to consider sharing their wealth with the charity.

He explained that due to the disease, that had killed more than 6,000 Americans by Thursday evening, more and more families would be relying on donations from food banks.

'Today, I want to support those on the front lines at our nation's food banks and those who are relying on them for food with a $100 million gift to @FeedingAmerica,' Bezos continued in the social media post. 'Feeding America will quickly distribute the funds to their national network of food banks and food pantries, getting food to those countless families who need it.

Chris Smalls, 31, organized the strike after working for Amazon for five years. He was fired for showing up to the New York facility while he should have been in quarantine, Amazon said

'Feeding America is the largest non-profit focused on food security. Millions of Americans are turning to food banks during this time. If you want to help, the link to Feeding America is in my bio. They'd be excited and grateful for donations of any size.'

His announcement came after Feeding America shared Leonardo DiCaprio, Laurene Powell Jobs, Founder and President of Emerson Collective, and Apple helped launch America's Food Fund with 'an extraordinary gift of $12 million'.

It will benefit World Central Kitchen and help feed the country's most vulnerable populations impacted by COVID-19, including children who rely on school lunch programs, low-income families, the elderly, and individuals facing job disruptions.

Oprah Winfrey on Thursday also announced she was donating $1million to Feeding America, and $10million overall to help Americans during the crisis.

This week Bezos came under criticism after father-of-three, Chris Smalls, 31, a management assistant at Staten Island, New York facility, was laid off from his job following Monday's strike. He had worked for the company for five years.

An estimated 50 to 60 employees joined the walkout at the facility demanding that it be shut down and cleaned after a worker tested positive for the coronavirus.

Smalls had posted on Twitter how the company was not following social distancing guidelines

Smalls had posted on Twitter how the company was not following social distancing measures.

'They pretty much retaliated against me for speaking out,' said Smalls to the New York Post. 'I don't know how they sleep at night.'

'There are positive cases working in these buildings infecting thousands,' warehouse worker Smalls wrote on Twitter.

Amazon said Smalls made 'misleading' statements about conditions and that he was supposed to be in quarantine and had no choice but to fire him after he came to the facility.

The company said Amazon's firing of Small was due to his failure to comply with the company's request that he self-isolate after he came in contact with another employee who tested positive for COVID-19.

By taking part in Monday's demonstration, he put 'the teams at risk. This is unacceptable,' Amazon said in a statement, noting that only 15 of the more than 5,000 employees at the site had taken part in the protest.

New York state attorney general Letitia James called Smalls's dismissal 'disgraceful' and pointed out that the law protects employees' right to protest.

Dave Clark, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Operations at Amazon, said Thursday that they have already hired an extra 80,000 people of an intended 100,000 to help cope with demand and that they've now introduced temperature checks at warehouses

'At a time when so many New Yorkers are struggling and are deeply concerned about their safety, this action was also immoral and inhumane,' she said in a statement.

James said she was exploring options for legal recourse and had asked the National Labor Relations Board to investigate the incident.

Bezos hasn't addressed the controversy directly but Dave Clark, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Operations at Amazon, released a statement Thursday.

'Amazon associates and partners working in our operations network and data centers are among the many heroes of the COVID-19 crisis,' Clark began.

'Whether its fulfilling orders in one of our fulfillment centers, delivering an order to a customers doorstep, or one of the many roles in between, I couldnt be more proud of the critical role our teams are serving by enabling people to stay safe at home while receiving the products they need.

'Nothing is more important to us than making sure that we protect the health of our teams, and weve been working around the clock since the early days of the outbreak to make changes to our processes and procure the necessary supplies for this. To date, weve made over 150 significant process changes to ensure the health and safety of our teams.'

He said they have already hired an extra 80,000 people of an intended 100,000 to help cope with demand and that they've now introduced temperature checks at warehouses.
An animal caretaker who claimed someone shot and killed a puppy last week in North Portland was actually responsible for the dogs death, police said Thursday.

Portland police offered no information about the circumstances of the dogs death, citing an ongoing investigation. But the initial story  that the two-month-old German shepherd mix was apparently killed at random  doesnt check out.

Police initially alerted the public of the dogs death Friday, less than three hours after officers were dispatched to the reported shooting.

Someone allegedly drove up to the dog and caretaker near North Chautauqua Boulevard and North Willis Boulevard, fired a shot at the dog from inside a sedan, then drove away, according to information released at the time.

The caretaker said the supposed shooter did not say anything during the alleged encounter, according to the initial information. A police spokesman said the alleged encounter appeared to be random.

Police took the dog and caretaker to Dove Lewis Animal Hospital, but the dog died.

Investigators used information gathered from emails and phone messages from the public to identify the dogs caretaker as the person responsible, police said Thursday.

The caretaker is not the owner of the dog, and the relationship between the dog owner and caretaker remains unclear.

No arrests have been announced, and the case remains under investigation.

Theres no ongoing public threat.

-- Jim Ryan; jryan@oregonian.com; 503-221-8005; @Jimryan015

Jayati Ramakrishnan contributed to this report.

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
The New Jersey State Police, Office of Emergency Management, and National Guard set up a field hospital at the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus on March 30 and 31, 2020. Photos by Edwin J. Torres for the Governors Office.

As cases of the coronavirus continue to rise and hospitals begin becoming overloaded with patients, New Jersey is preparing to open its first pop-up field hospital to help handle the surge.

The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers has been constructing the site at the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus. Officials say it should open sometime next week.

Three other sites will follow  in Edison, Atlantic City, and another to be determined. Each will have 250 beds.

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It cant come soon enough. New Jersey has at least 22,255 cases of COVID 19, including 355 deaths. Thats the second-most in the U.S., after New York state.

Meanwhile, state Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said Wednesday hospitals in North Jersey are already beginning to see an expected surge in COVID-19 patients, with seven hospitals reporting divert status on Tuesday.

The surge is an influx of patients that tests hospital capacity.

Persichilli continued to express confidence the state will be able to handle the surge, but she stressed the state needs more ventilators.

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She also said the new Secaucus field hospital will be available for lower-acuity patients who can be safely transferred there. That would free up more space at existing hospitals for coronavirus patients.

Gov. Phil Murphy is set to tour the site Thursday morning.

See more photos from inside the field hospital below:

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Photos by Edwin J. Torres for the Governors Office.

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If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Brent Johnson may be reached at bjohnson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @johnsb01.

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Wildlife photographer Peter Beard has been reported missing, according to police in New York.

The 82-year-old is best known for his photographs of African wildlife, along with the journals he wrote to accompany them.

His personal life was just as notorious, and Mr Beard collaborated with and became friends with Andy Warhol and Salvador Dali, among other renowned artists.

He disappeared from his home in Montauk, New York on Tuesday afternoon and is yet to be found by authorities.

In a missing persons press release, the East Hampton Town Police Department confirmed that Mr Beard is suffering from dementia.

In the release, the authorities said that the photographer is a missing vulnerable adult with dementia and may be in need of medical attention.

They added that Peter was last seen wearing a blue fleece pull over, black jogging pants and blue sneakers.

The police scaled back their search on Wednesday, in order to give officers the chance to regroup and be ready to try again on Thursday.

Recommended How Andy Warhol foresaw the 21st century media landscape

Despite the scale back, as of Wednesday night, East Hampton Town police chief Michael Sarlo said that officers are continuing the search by patrolling trails, roads, and access points, according to the East Hampton Star.

The police ask that anyone with information call 631-537-7575.
Sarah Ferguson has hit out against online bullies who 'pit woman against other women' in their 'vicious and hurtful' posts.

The Duchess of York, 60, blasted social media as a 'sewer' where trolls make comments they would never say to someone's face.

Fergie, as she was affectionately known, made the comments to the Australian Women's Weekly, claiming online trolls are to blame for driving a wedge between Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton.

Her daughters Eugenie, 30, and Beatrice, 31, have also been the butt of online jokes - when they were compared to Cinderella's stepsisters at the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding in 2011.

The Duchess of York (pictured in October), 60, blasted social media as a 'sewer' where trolls commented things they would never say to someone's face

And the Duchess of York alluded to the alleged falling out between the Duchess of Cambridge and her sister-in-law Meghan Markle in her comments.

She told Australian Women's Weekly: 'Women are pitted against other women. Trolling online is vicious and hurtful. We have to stand against it.'

The mother-of-two called for those using social media to think before they post, 'be kinder' and 'treat each other a little more gently'.

Sarah also asked for anyone who sees hurtful comments to call out the 'unacceptable' behaviour.

It comes just months after it was claimed Meghan was aware she was being 'pitted against' future queen Kate Middleton and found the situation 'challenging', according to a royal source.

Her daughters Eugenie (right), 30, and Beatrice (left), 31, have often been the butt of online jokes. Pictured, in 2017 at the Ultimate Luxury Travel awards

A friend of the duchess claimed Meghan 'doesn't fit the mould', while Kate was 'groomed' for her role as the future monarch's wife.

They added that Meghan was a 'fully formed person' when she joined the Royal Family, however Kate was still a young student when she met Prince William at the University of St Andrews.

They added that the two women are more focused on their respective families than being competitive with each other.

'Meghan is very aware that Kate will be queen; their roles are very clear,' the friend told People magazine.

The Duchess of York alluded to the alleged falling out between the Duchess of Cambridge and her sister-in-law Meghan Markle in her comments. Pictured at Wimbledon in July

'Meghan doesn't fit the mould while Kate was groomed for this.

'What's challenging is when they are pitted against each other. That's been challenging to both of them. Meghan has her life, Kate has hers.'

Last month The Duchess of York shared an unseen photo of her ex-husband Prince Andrew to wish him a happy birthday.

It sparked a swathe of comments urging the former couple to get back together, despite his involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

Sarah Ferguson took to Instagram to post an intimate black and white snap of the duke relaxing at home, surrounded by his two Norfolk terriers.

At the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding in 2011 Beatrice (right) and Eugenie (left) were compared to Cinderella's stepsisters

It is believed to have been taken at Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park, which the former couple have shared since 2008 despite their divorce in 1996.

Fergie captioned the image with an uncharacteristically subdued, short but sweet message: 'Happy 60th Birthday to Andrew.'

Her post was liked by thousands of fans - as well as daughter Princess Eugenie - and prompted to many to comment on their close relationship.

One commented: 'You guys seriously should get back together! #Britainsbestcouple,' while another wrote: 'Why don't you both just get back together, you're closer now than you have ever been, just do it.'
WITHIN the space of 24 hours Louise Cooney went from the bustling streets of New York with all its skyscrapers and famous dazzling evening skyline to a remote cottage in County Clare boasting panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean and not a sinner in sight.

The fashion blogger from Dooradoyle who is regarded as one of the top influencers in Ireland packed her belongings over the weekend and flew home to Ireland on Sunday morning. Covid-19 is sweeping through the city that never sleeps and Louise knew it was better to be safe than sorry.

Its been fairly stressful, fairly crazy but now were home, Louise told the Leader this Monday after making the journey home with her good friend Charlotte Casey.

Both young women are well-known faces having worked in the fashion and modelling industry in Limerick before pursuing their respective careers in The Big Apple.

Louise moved to New York last September but she took to Instagram at the weekend to reveal the news to her almost 200k followers that she had decided to return home.

Pressing pause on the New York dream for now, she wrote. Not the year I planned, like a lot of people, but NY will always be here.. much bigger things going on in the world right now.

While Louise and Charlotte had both been taking all the necessary precautions, practicing social distancing, hand hygiene and wearing face masks, the nature of New York with its huge population and small living quarters made life difficult and peace of mind out of reach.

Most people live in small apartments so I think for peoples mental health, the governor there is afraid to say stay in one room for the foreseeable. Its very different, thats why I couldnt imagine staying there during this, said Louise.

The fashionista had been following the reports from Ireland of strict restrictions being put in place and says New York is much more relaxed in comparison.

They are taking it seriously there too but the numbers are growing so quickly and the lengths that the government are going to isnt quite as extreme as it is here and it just makes me think that Ireland will get it under control faster.

Its not in lockdown in New York yet. Its social distancing. Its not like Ireland where when youre out in the country you might not meet anyone, in New York you will meet people and all you can do is your best to social distance. I had my dog Cooper over there with me so I had to bring him out for a walk.

The dachshund has come back home with her.

Both Louise and Charlotte had both lived alone but decided to move in together when the coronavirus took hold in the city.

While Louise has health insurance in the US she isnt completely sure of the extent of the coverage in a crisis like this.

The healthcare system is very expensive there. If I use it all there is seven grand deductible. That is what I would have to pay if I went into hospital and if you dont have insurance and are brought into hospital, I heard one report of someone having to pay 35 thousand. The tests are free for coronavirus but being treated for it and a stay in hospital I dont believe is.

Lousie and Charlotte are now self isolating in a lodge in Doolin.

We are here for 14 days. We are both fine but are taking all the precautions.

She is now looking forward to getting home to her family in Dooradoyle - her parents Tony and Grainne, two sisters Grace and Nicole who are both working from home, and her brother Peter who is finishing his college course from home.

I had to stop by yesterday to pick up groceries and stuff but we couldnt go within two metres of each other - we couldnt go in for a hug or anything. Its a weird time.

She feels much safer since arriving back in Ireland.

We can take it at a far slower pace because nobody has any control over this. At least here we can be around family and feel safe and we are in a country where we have citizenship and healthcare.

As a fashion blogger Louises main source of income is sponsorship from wearing clothes and posting videos.

While a good few jobs have been cancelled she can still do some bits.

If I have made commitments in advance and if I can work around it and I can wear clothes that are appropriate, then great. Im lucky that I still have a little bit of work coming in because I actually wouldnt qualify for unemployment in the US or here and I obviously still have rent to pay out.

Like everyone else I have bills and I cant get anything subsidised. So just like everyone else, I am hugely out of pocket so I am just trying to do what I can to make it work.

Louise is very conscious of being sensitive to the situation while at the same time trying to ensure she can continue with some form of her work.

I would be conscious of not taking advantage of any situation. Its just about being realistic - what are people actually wearing and what do people want to see.

While nobody knows how long this crisis will go on for, Louise does hope to return to the States once things turn a corner and the situation settles down.

Weve just no idea when it is going to be over. Thats the thing and thats why you would be nervous about staying there - you just dont know.

Rent is very high over there. You want to get back when the city is up and running again but until then there is not really much point in being there to live in a room.
With more than 18,000 infections reported, Turkey surpasses other G20 nations that discovered the virus weeks earlier.

Ankara, Turkey  Since declaring its first coronavirus case three weeks ago, Turkey has recorded one of the steepest trajectories of new cases in the world, amid fears it could become a hot spot of the pandemic.

The rapid rise in cases  18,135 confirmed infections and 356 deaths as of late Thursday  has seen Turkey overtake other G20 states such as South Korea and Canada that reported cases of the virus weeks earlier.

It has also left Turks asking if the country might be following the path of Italy, which has recorded more than 110,000 cases.

Turkey has the highest acceleration rate for cases, said Caghan Kizil, associate professor of neuroscience and genetics at the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres.

This is because social mobility wasnt prevented. If we look at China, they were successful because they identified asymptomatic patients who werent showing signs of infection. After the lockdown in Wuhan, the number of cases caused by undocumented infected people dropped significantly.

Esin Senol, a professor of infectious disease at Gazi University in Ankara, pointed out that Turkey has now seen the worlds tenth-highest number of cases and is one of the countries at most risk.

It appears to have spread long before the first case was reported, due to trips to Europe, Iran and Umrah, she said, referring to the Muslim pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

Limiting testing to those who had recently been abroad in the early days of the outbreak in Turkey also allowed the virus to spread, Senol added.

On Thursday evening, Minister of Health Fahrettin Koca announced 79 new deaths. Although the figure is far lower than numbers seen in the worst days in countries like Italy and Spain, where daily death tolls have frequently surpassed 800 recently, it was the sharpest increase yet in Turkey.

In a press conference on Wednesday, Koca revealed for the first time the nature of the spread of the outbreak across Turkey, showing that 60 percent of cases had been reported in Istanbul, the countrys commercial hub, which accounts for a fifth of Turkeys population.

Mehmet Ceyhan, chairman of Turkeys Infectious Diseases Association, warned that the country could see its number of infections outstrip others.

If we go at the current rate, our number of cases will be 300,000 in 10 days, he said.

However, closing down public spaces, restricting travel between cities and ensuring people stay at home would avoid such a dramatic scenario.

I look at the measures that have been implemented, and our people have begun to adapt a little better, Ceyhan said.

If we comply with the measures in the same way, we may see a fall in the rate of increase.

Shortages

Despite winning praise for its early adoption of restrictions such as border closures, suspending air travel and quarantining those aged over 65, the government has faced criticism over the relatively low number of tests carried out.

Turkey had conducted just under 107,000 tests and only reached a target of carrying out 10,000 a day on Monday.

This compares with more than half a million tests carried out in Italy.

Professional medical groups have highlighted a shortfall in the equipment, beds and health staff needed to deal with larger numbers of coronavirus patients.

It is evident that hospitals in the city have not prepared adequately in the two and a half months since this deadly virus first came into the spotlight, the Istanbul Chamber of Physicians said in a statement.

As well as a shortage of protective gear such as masks and gloves, the chamber also criticised a lack of organisation and improper testing of health workers, noting that more than 100 staff in Istanbul hospitals had tested positive.

According to the government, more than 600 healthcare personnel have been infected across Turkey.

Thats worrying, said Kizil. The answer to the question of whether we will be like Italy will be determined by how ready our healthcare system is for the high number of cases that appear on the horizon.

Calls for quarantine

Ankara has resisted calls for a full lockdown, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan calling for businesses to stay open and keep the economys wheels turning.

However, the president said Turkey would step up measures if the outbreak continued spreading.

The government has urged people to stay at home; closed schools, cafes and bars; restricted domestic travel; halted international flights; and suspended sporting events and religious gatherings.

The presidency declined to comment on the efficiency of its measures, but Koca on Wednesday defended the governments response and said the health ministry aimed to implement 30,000 tests daily within 10 days.

We have done everything to create a fighting environment in unity and togetherness from the beginning, he said.

We plan to enhance our resources as much as possible and we are planning what to do in situations, such as plan B, plan C, plan D.

Senol, the infectious disease specialist, called for more robust testing and isolation policies as well as greater transparency and information sharing.

Turkey should prevent people from mixing outside their homes, Kizil said.

Turkey is doing the exact opposite of what must be done. This outbreak is in the late stages and we cant be satisfied with early-stage measures like washing hands and practicing social distancing. We need quarantine.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a telephone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday in which the two leaders discussed the COVID-19 pandemic and the importance of international collaboration to fight the health crisis.

A PMO release said that the two leaders discussed the situation in their respective countries relating to COVID 19 and shared views on inadequate availability of medicines and medical equipment required during the pandemic. They agreed to explore avenues of cooperation in this regard.

The German Chancellor agreed with Prime Minister that the COVID-19 pandemic is an important turning point in modern history, and offers an opportunity to forge a new vision of globalisation focused on the shared interests of humanity as a whole.

The Prime Minister informed the German leader about recent Indian initiatives to disseminate simple yoga exercises and immunity-enhancing Ayurvedic remedies for people of the world.

The Chancellor agreed that such practices could be very beneficial for enhancing psychological and physical health, especially under the present lockdown conditions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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More than 6.6 million Americans filed for unemployment last week, the Department of Labor announced Thursday, doubling the all-time record set just one week before, as vast swaths of the economy continued to shut down amid the coronavirus crisis.

That is a catastrophic number. Here are some points to put it in context.

 Until this month, no more than 695,000 people had ever filed for unemployment in a week since the U.S. started measuring this in 1967. Weve thoroughly shattered that mark.

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 During the entire Great Recession, spanning from December 2007 to June 2009, there were about 39.5 million unemployment claims. Over just the past two weeks, weve seen 10 million, a quarter of the amount in less than 1/40th the time.

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 On net, the United States lost 8.7 million jobs during the Great Recession and its immediate aftermath, because while some companies were letting people go, others were hiring. If businesses are not hiring right now, its possible that we have packed an entire was-supposed-to-be-a-once-in-a-generation recessions worth of total job losses into a period of less than a month.

 As Ben Casselman of the New York Times notes, jobless claims may not be capturing all the people who are losing work right now. Many people may not have filed for unemployment because they dont qualify for it, or dont know that they do, among other reasons.

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While the scale of these layoffs is unprecedented, the actual suffering they cause should be mitigated by expanded unemployment benefits that Congress passed last week, which are designed to pay many of the lower-wage workers whove been most severely affected by the shutdowns more than they actually earned on their jobs. People are being kept whole, at least for the next four months.

But the speed of these layoffs is also threatening to overwhelm the creaky, underfunded state bureaucracies that are responsible for administering unemployment benefits. Crashing websites and long phone waits have made it difficult for people to apply for benefits, which means some people may have to wait longer than they should for financial support. Those delays could snowball through the economy as people miss rent and cut back on their spending.

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How much worse could this get? Based on some back of the envelope math, researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis estimated that 47 million Americans could be laid off or furloughed in the coming months, leading to a 32 percent unemployment rate (a rate that peaked at 10 percent in 2009). However, those numbers were based on a scenario where the government didnt intervene to keep people on their employers payrolls. If Congress rescue package works as intended, the numbers might not rise that high. But the St. Louis Feds estimate should give you a sense of the stakes.

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One thing to keep in mind as you read the next wave of economic news is that these past two weeks of layoffs are not going to be captured in the unemployment report the government is set to release Friday, which will be based on a survey conducted the week of March 12. That was right before the job losses really began to mount.

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And, of course, nobody really has any idea whats coming in the long term. The United States has never experienced a sudden economic freeze like this. Its possible that, once this coronavirus outbreak slows down enough, and businesses are able to reopen, well recover quickly. But whether and when that happens depends in large part on how well we contain the virus. If it lingers, and large chunks of the economy are forced to remain on ice, the recovery is going to be slower. And the more businesses that fail during this period, the harder its going to be to rebuild in the aftermath.

For more on the impact of the coronavirus, listen to The Gist.
HAMILTON  Just what the doctor ordered!

A promising treatment for COVID-19 disease will benefit many Mercer County residents suffering from the respiratory illness.

Greenhill Pharmacy has partnered with the townships of Hamilton, Robbinsville and East Windsor to provide hydroxychloroquine sulfate, in combination with the antibiotic Zithromax, to treat COVID-19-positive patients throughout Mercer County at no cost, officials announced Thursday.

Hydroxychloroquine sulfate is a powerful drug commonly used as a treatment for malaria, but research shows it may provide major relief to inpatients sickened with coronavirus.

This Greenhill Pharmacy initiative comes at a time when Mercer County has 386 positive cases of COVID-19 and four deaths as of Thursday afternoon.

On behalf of everyone in Hamilton, Mayor Jeff Martin said Thursday in a press statement, I want to thank Greenhill Pharmacy as well as East Windsor and Robbinsville Townships for their partnership in our joint effort to fight COVID-19 and help the residents in our extended communities.

Greenhill Pharmacy has headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, and operates a local outlet in East Windsor. Effective Friday, the pharmacy will supply COVID-19 patients and area hospitals with key drugs in the fight against the global pandemic, a godsend for Mercer County residents with or without medical insurance.

Thank you to Greenhill Pharmacy for not only helping Robbinsville, Hamilton and East Windsor, but all of Mercer County as we push forward together through this crisis, Robbinsville Mayor Dave Fried said Thursday in a press statement. We are doing everything we possibly can to minimize the damage in this war against a potent, invisible enemy.

East Windsor Mayor Janice Mironov also thanked Greenhill Pharmacy in a statement, saying they are always a pro-active local caring company, which once again has stepped up as our partner in this vital effort to help our communities at this critical time.

Treatment protocol

Dr. Philippe Gautret and other medical experts have drafted an article suggesting that hydroxychloroquine when used in combination with the antibiotic azithromycin or Zithromax is efficient for treating COVID-19 patients.

We therefore recommend that COVID-19 patients be treated with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin to cure their infection and to limit the transmission of the virus to other people in order to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the world, the Gautret team concludes in their article, which was slated to appear in the International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last week granted emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine sulfate to be used as a treatment for certain COVID-19 patients who are hospitalized with the respiratory disease.

Hamilton Township as of Thursday afternoon had 66 active cases of COVID-19, according to the townships website.

Robbinsville has 14 residents who have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, according to Mayor Fried. None are hospitalized, Fried said Thursday, but he didnt know about their conditions.

The number of COVID-19 cases is expected to rise in Mercer County and beyond as the virus spreads and more people get tested.

New Jersey as of Thursday afternoon had more than 25,000 cases of COVID-19 and over 500 deaths as the state maintains social distancing guidelines in an effort to save lives.

Fried expects the number of COVID-19 cases in Robbinsville to go up, he said, particularly because Mercer County is testing scores of county residents at a drive-up test site in Lawrence Township.

Fried said he feels fantastic and has no immediate plans to get tested for coronavirus.

Ewing Mayor Bert Steinmann confirmed he had tested positive for COVID-19, and The Trentonian has learned that Mercer County Freeholder Nina Melker also contracted the disease.

Melker was hospitalized for several days last month before being discharged March 25, she said Thursday in an interview with The Trentonian, adding she now feels great and that hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin helped her recover.

Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora told The Trentonian he got tested as a precaution because of the number of people he interacts with daily. His police director Sheilah Coley tested positive, and his chief of staff Yoshi Manale has been isolating at his home in New York after experiencing mild symptoms of the virus.

Manale hasnt been tested to confirm a diagnosis.
Authorities in Ethiopia should immediately and unconditionally release journalist Yayesew Shimelis and cease detaining journalists without charge, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

On March 27, federal police arrested Yayesew at a relatives home in the town of Legetafo, according to media reports and two of the journalists friends, who spoke to CPJ on condition of anonymity, citing fear that they may face retaliation affecting their employment.

Yayesew contributes a column to the privately owned Feteh magazine and hosts a weekly political program on Tigray TV, a broadcaster owned by the Tigray regional government, according to those friends. He also posts original reporting on his Facebook account and on the Ethio Forum YouTube channel , which he administers, they said.

The friends told CPJ that Yayesew was brought to court on March 28, and that police were granted six days to hold him in custody without charge. One of the friends, who was able to speak with Yayesew in detention, said that the journalist had not yet been interrogated and police had not said why he was being detained.

The arrest came after Yayesew published a report on the COVID-19 virus on Facebook and YouTube on March 26 that was condemned by Ethiopias national Ministry of Health, according to the friends and a series of tweets from the local privately owned outlet Addis Maleda.

Imprisoning a journalist at this time, when the public needs information rather than censorship, is likely to discourage critical reporting and dissenting opinions, said CPJs sub-Saharan Africa representative, Muthoki Mumo. Ethiopian authorities should immediately and unconditionally release Yayesew Shimelis and guarantee that they will not censor reporting on the coronavirus.

In its tweets, Addis Maleda cited an official who said that Yayesew would be tried under the criminal code, but the official did not indicate the specific sections of the law under which the journalist would be charged.

In his report, Yayesew alleged that the Ethiopian government had told religious leaders to prepare 200,000 graves to accommodate deaths from the virus, according to the journalists friends and Addis Maleda.

In a Facebook post on March 26, Ethiopias Ministry of Health said that the report was false, and condemned it as a deliberate attempt to confuse the public.

One of the friends who spoke to Yayesew on the night of March 26 said that the journalist had expressed fear that the national government would take action against him in connection to the report. The report is no longer available on his YouTube channel, and Yayesew wrote in a tweet on March 27 that his Facebook page had been suspended. In that tweet, he apologized, saying he had not realized that it would cause the alarm that it had.

Yayesews friends told CPJ that his journalism has been sharply critical of the national government, and that his association with Tigray TV, which is supported by the opposition Tigray People's Liberation Front party, has not endeared him to national authorities.

In January, Yayesew told CPJ that he had been detained for several hours at the Bole International Airport by federal security personnel, who verbally harassed him and questioned him about his journalism.

In the week prior to his March 27 arrest, Yayesew received calls from federal security personnel questioning him about an interview he conducted with a former Ethiopian foreign minister, according to a report by the Tigray Mass Media Agency, an outlet also owned by regional authorities.

In a statement published on Facebook on March 29, the Ethiopian prime ministers office reminded law enforcement officers that they have been mandated to take action against individuals and groups unleashing terror upon peoples health and sense of safety.

Federal police spokesperson Jeylan Abdi referred CPJ to the attorney generals office for comment, saying he could not speak on cases that were pending in court. CPJ called, texted, and emailed Zinabu Tunu, that offices spokesperson, but did not receive any responses.

One of Yayesews friends said that the journalist has not been allowed visitors since March 29, which authorities said was because of fears of spreading the virus.
P olice have admitted misinterpreting new coronavirus lockdown legislation when charging a woman who received a 660 fine.

Marie Dinou, 41, from York, was arrested at Newcastle Central Station on Saturday after she allegedly failed to tell officers why she needed to travel, British Transport Police (BTP) said.

She was arrested on suspicion of breaking restrictions imposed under the Coronavirus Act 2020 and subsequently fined at North Tyneside Magistrates Court on Monday.

But BTP said that, following a joint review with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), it had established she was charged under the incorrect section of the Coronavirus Act.

Before and during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures 1 /44 Before and during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures AP Buckingham Palace AP Piccadilly Line tube AP Big Ben AP Millennium bridge AP Wembley Stadium AP St Pancras International train station AP Downing Street AP Victoria Station AP Regent Street AP The Mall leading to Buckingham Palace AP London's National Gallery in Trafalgar Square PA Edinburgh's Royal Mile PA Barry Island, South Wales PA Bath PA Bath PA London's Waterloo station PA London Bridge PA London's Canary Wharf Jubilee Line platform PA London's Canary Wharf Station PA London's Buckingham Palace PA London's Tower Bridge PA London's Leicester Square PA London's Millennium Bridge with St Paul's Cathedral PA London's Criterion Theatre PA London's Palace Theatre PA London's Phoenix Theatre PA London's Canary Wharf Station PA Bournemouth beach PA Bath PA Bath PA Barry Island, South Wales PA Bournemouth beach PA

The BTP has now agreed to contact the court and ask for the case to be relisted and the conviction set aside.

In a statement, deputy chief constable Adrian Hanstock said: There will be understandable concern that our interpretation of this new legislation has resulted in an ineffective prosecution.

This was in circumstances where officers were properly dealing with someone who was behaving suspiciously in the station, and who staff believed to be travelling without a valid ticket.

Mr Hanstock said his officers were rightfully challenging her unnecessary travel.

He added: Regardless, we fully accept that this shouldnt have happened and we apologise.

It is highly unusual that a case can pass through a number of controls in the criminal justice process and fail in this way.

Wuhan residents enjoy first steps outdoors after coronavirus lockdown lifted

The BTP confirmed it would not pursue any alternative prosecution in the matter.

Mr Hanstock said frontline officers have since been provided with the latest guidance from the National Police Chiefs Council to help them interpret the new legislation.

I must remind the public that officers will continue to engage with people and seek to understand their reasons for their journeys, Mr Hanstock said.

Where we determine that there is no justifiable purpose for them being on the transport network, we will explain to the public why they should not travel.

TODO: define component type apester

He said the new coronavirus law would be applied as a last resort and where situations develop.

The BTP said it will undertake a more detailed review of the case with the CPS to ensure that any lessons to be learned are integrated into our shared justice processes.

Under schedule 21 of the Coronavirus Act, it is illegal to fail to comply with the instructions of police officers without reasonable excuse.
Image: Youtube

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said around 35,000 construction workers in the city have received the financial assistance announced by the Delhi government due to coronavirus lockdown and the rest will get it soon.

The government in a statement said the amount of Rs 5,000 will be soon credited to the accounts of 9,000 construction workers whose applications for registration with the labour welfare board are pending.

Last week, Kejriwal announced that the Delhi government will give financial assistance to the registered workers through the labour welfare board.

"A total amount of Rs 16.18 crore has been given to the registered construction workers of Delhi. The Delhi government will soon give the assistance amount to nearly 9000 workers as well whose applications are still pending," it said.

An amount of Rs 4.50 crore will be disbursed in this regard. Moreover, pension of 200 construction workers has also been released up to March 31 in the view of COVID-19 outbreak, it added.
Family & Parenting, Community, Charity & Cause

By Ls Cohen Published: April 02 2020

Long Islands KiDS NEED MoRE helps families dealing with pediatric cancer and other trauma with multiple programs including summer camps.

Amityville-based KiDS NEED MoRE is a non-profit that has provided children who are going through a serious illness or trauma along with their families a place to go where they can forget about their troubles for a while and have fun. Every summer they host camps either right here on Long Island or in Upstate New York. But, like many other organizations and local companies theyre finding coronavirus upending their usual way of doing business and have had to adapt.

As soon as this all happened we knew that these are the families that are going to be the hardest hit, Melissa Firmes, president of KiDS NEED MoRE, told LongIsland.com in a phone interview recently. I saw it immediately in our families.

The charity not only hosts camps but they run a bus during the holidays to spread cheer to families coping with serious childhood illness, they do home visits, and many other activities in their work with their families.

Were very hands-on with the kids, said Firmes. Were used to hugging them. We cant do that right now.

Melissa Firmes. Photo: KiDS NEED MoRE website.

Already, Firmes said, her organization has had to cancel their first camp of the year, a mentoring weekend they planned to hold in Warwick, NY in June. This has caused a lot of stress with the families they serve.

Anxiety is through the roof, she said. These kids are already dealing with a lot of fragility.

Right now, the organization would be focused on applications for their summer camps but since this future seems uncertain. So they did what a lot of local businesses have been forced to do: they took their services virtual.

We knew from day one that we had to figure out something else, Firmes said. Weve got to have camp.

So they took their camps onto Zoom, a video conferencing service that seems to be powering many businesses who are going virtual in the era of sheltering-in-place and social distancing.

I cant believe the response.

KiDS NEED MoRE is hosting anywhere from two to three no-cost sessions a day with up to 40 kids involved in each one. They have well-over 50 volunteer virtual camp counsellors of every age helping out to split sessions into small groups to host fun activities with the kids online.

We didnt know if it would work but it's working, Firmes said, clearly excited about the way KiDS NEED MoRE has been able to make a difference in the lives of these families at an already difficult time made worse by the pandemic. I didnt know how much they wanted it.

Sessions arent just for the kids. KiDS NEED MoRE is also giving parents a place to let loose with activities like make yourself laugh class where the parents just start laughing. The mere act of doing it becomes infectious.

Firmes also described a session with kids where they are asked to express themselves by making a drawing of something they like. Theyre then asked to rip it up and make pieces into something new. The activity becomes therapeutic for the children.

We talk about why its scary to rip up that paper, she said. Its a way to talk about illness and fear.

KiDS NEED MoRE has also partnered with another Long Island non-profit called Lindy Community Cares Coalition based in Lindenhurst. The idea is to create a "WARMline"for families, friends, and local businesses to call, text or email, to speak with someone who can recommend local services for things like food delivery, or simply to offer a supportive ear to listen to and address any stress or concerns.

To speak with a KiDS NEED MoRE Listener, call 646-907-8805, or email warmline@kidsneedmore.org.

Firmes said they are hoping that they will still be able to host their summer camps this year. They usually host a July camp at Saddle Rock Ranch in Middle Island.

Then there is the signature sleepaway camp that they host at Timber Lake West in Roscoe, NY. The sleepaway camp is their pediatrics oncology camp especially for children with cancer, their siblings, and also open to grieving siblings. The program attracts kids not only from Long Island but all over the tri-state area.

That camp has been going for over 30 years.

Of course, they are hopeful but unsure if the coronavirus will prevent them from having it this year.

We want to have camp, said Firmes mournfully. Can we have camp? I dont know. If it's safe we will have it. If not, we wont have it.

Instead they will continue on with their virtual meetings and do what they can for their kids and families.

This is impacting all these awesome non-profits and were no different, she said. Were all in the same boat. We just want to keep going.

For additional information, or to make a donation, please visit www.kidsneedmore.org.
Across history, royals had been losing their royal titles for different reasons. Some of the common reasons for losing one's royal title may be for marriage, change of family dynamics, and personal choice, says an article.

Does the recent news about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry leaving their royal duties result in them losing their royal titles?

Meghan and Harry's Royal Titles

After Megxit, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry had retained their HRH titles, says an article. However, the couple had decided not to use them anymore.

Currently, the couple had left Canada to settle in at Los Angeles. However, Harry's royal title may be in jeopardy with the decision.

The issue with Harry's royal title will occur if he decides to apply for citizenship in the United States.

There is a law in the United States that requires anyone who wants to become a citizen of the country should renounce their foreign titles.

In U.S. laws, Meghan Markle is allowed to keep her titles. Although the US Constitution does not allow its citizens to be granted titles of nobility, it does not have restrictions as to the acceptance of titles coming from foreign nations. There was a proposal of an amendment to enforce US citizens who accept foreign titles to renounce their citizenship in the United States. However, it was not ratified.

Since Meghan's royal titles are directly linked to Harry's, if he renounces his royal titles, then Meghan's titles will also cease. The couple will only encounter these issues is Harry applies for citizenship in the United States.

Check these out:

If Harry opts to maintain a permanent resident status in the United States, he will not be subjected to any obligation to renounce his titles. Also, this will allow him to stay in the United States in an indefinite period.

Royals Who Lost their Royal Titles?

Archie Mountbatten-Windsor is the son of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. When the couple announced the coming of their first child, a lot of talks had surfaced about the possible title of the new royal.

Since it is highly unlikely that Archie will be the next in line to ascend the throne, he was not automatically given the entitlement of a prince. During that time the world was anticipating that the Queen may make an exception or give the baby a title such as the Earl of Dumbarton.

Meghan and Harry announced to the public that they will not be giving their son a title. Instead, they called him Archie Harrison Mountbatten Windsor.

Another person with royal blood who lost his royal title is Juan Carlos I. He ruled Spain in 1978. For 40 years he was able to support his country transition to democracy. After a few health issues and scandals, he was left with the decision to abdicate the throne in 2014. He cited that his desire for his son and his age had allowed him to decide on giving up the throne. He officially retired from his royal duties in June 2019.
Pennsylvania has reported 1,211 new coronavirus cases today, raising the statewide total to 7,016.

At least 90 have died, including 16 new fatalities today, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Cases have been reported in 62 of Pennsylvanias 67 counties.

Seven deaths have been reported in the Harrisburg region, including two newly reported fatalities today in Lancaster and York counties.

The health department posted new numbers today. Its the largest one-day increase in cases to date.

The bulk of the cases have been reported in the Philadelphia area. But cases are rising across the commonwealth, including central Pennsylvania.

Most of those who have been screened have tested negative for the virus. There are 47,698 patients who have tested negative. The department no longer reports the number of pending test results since the bulk of the testing is now done in commercial laboratories.

Philadelphia leads the state with 1,852 cases and 13 deaths. Montgomery County is second in the number of cases (735) and tied for third in fatalities with Northampton County (9). Monroe County, with a much smaller population than Philadelphia, is second in fatalities statewide with 10.

In central Pennsylvania, Lancaster County leads the region with 203 cases and 4 deaths. York County has topped 100 cases, the second highest figure in the midstate. Today, York County reported its first death due to the virus, the health department said. Other counties in the Harrisburg region continue to see more cases.

Heres a look at the total number of cases in the rest of the midstate counties: Dauphin (67, including 1 death); Lebanon (45); Cumberland (41, including 1 death); Franklin (23); Adams (18); and Perry (3).

In western Pennsylvania, Allegheny County has topped 400 cases. Other counties in the western part of the state continue to see more cases.

Gov. Tom Wolf has taken aggressive steps to stem the spread of the coronavirus. On Wednesday, the governor issued a statewide order for all residents to stay at home except for essential trips. He had previously issued stay-at-home orders for a host of counties, including the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh areas, but held off on extending the order across the commonwealth.

This virus is spreading rapidly," Wolf said. "Its in every corner of our state.

For perspective, the first coronavirus cases in Pennsylvania were reported on March 6.

Wolf and Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine have urged residents to practice social distancing and limit trips to the grocery store. Theyve said they worry that a surge of new patients could potentially overwhelm hospitals.

The governor has closed schools indefinitely. On Wednesday, Wolf said the state could allow students to move to their next grade level in the fall, based on the work they have completed before schools were shut down. School districts are moving to remote learning to deliver instruction to students.

Wolf has also ordered businesses that arent life-sustaining to shut down. Thousands of businesses have applied for waivers from the state to stay open, arguing that they are providing essential goods and services. Some trade groups have also complained the waiver process appears arbitrary, with some businesses being allowed to open while companies in the same sector are told they must remain closed.

Universities and colleges around Pennsylvania have moved to online instruction and said they wont resume in-person classes for the rest of the semester.

The health department doesnt offer statistics on how many people recover from the coronavirus. The department has said hospitals inform the state about positive cases but dont report when patients are discharged. Most patients who contract the virus do recover.

More from PennLive

When will we be done with coronavirus? Pa. searches, hoping for hint of downward bend

Coronavirus brings Pennsylvanias construction industry to a near standstill

Pa. residents with disabilities worry coronavirus rationing will deem them expendable
The Napa County Office of Education and the countys five public school districts announced Thursday morning that they plan to continue remote learning through the end of the school year.

Students will not be returning to campuses for instruction in the Napa Valley Unified, St. Helena, Calistoga, Howell Mountain and Pope Valley districts. Napa Valley Unified operates schools in Napa, American Canyon and Yountville.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond said on Wednesday that schools should remain closed through the end of the school year, with online learning programs, physical homework packets and other distance learning methods (home-schooling) replacing traditional class time.

The decision to keep Napa County school buildings closed reflects the latest guidance from Gov. Gavin Newsom as well as the ongoing Napa County and state shelter-at-home orders intended to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Napa Countys news release on Thursday said local districts will continue the transition from classroom instruction to remote learning. Only school district personnel performing essential functions will be allowed on campuses. All other school staff are continuing to work remotely. Students and their families can expect to receive specific plans and instructions from their childs school district soon regarding ongoing remote learning.

Barbara Nemko, Napa County superintendent of schools, said, We understand how difficult campus closures are for families. Although our schools will be physically closed, please know that teachers and administrators are working diligently to provide high-quality instruction to your children.

The instruction end dates for Napa County Schools are as follows: Napa Valley Unified, June 5; St. Helena Unified, June 11; Calistoga Joint Unified, June 11; Howell Mountain Elementary, June 11, and Pope Valley Union Elementary, June 11, and Napa County Office of Education programs, June 5.

Resources for Napa County schools and families related to COVID-19 can be found at: nvusd.org/coronavirus, sthelenaunified.org, calistogaschools.org, pvk8.org and hmesd.org.

Editors Note: Because of the health implications of the COVID-19 virus, this article is being made available free to subscribers and non-subscribers alike. If youd like to join us in supporting the mission of local journalism, please visit napavalleyregister.com/members/join/.
The US Trade Ban prevents Huawei to do business with American companies. As a result, Huawei is not allowed to use Google services for its Android smartphones. Now Huawei wishes for an Apple-like deal with Google.

Its been a year since Huawei has been banned from doing business with American companies, which also includes Google. As a result, Huawei is not allowed to use Google services for its Android smartphones, something thats very essential for Android devices to work outside China, especially Google apps.

Google has also pressed for an exception repeatedly from the US government, just like Microsoft has received for allowing the Chinese tech giant to use Windows OS in its notebooks. But for now, Huawei is simply hoping Google would publish its apps on Huaweis very own app store.

After the US trade ban took effect, Huawei started working on its own app store and mobile services, called AppGallery and Huawei Mobile Services respectively. And quite expectedly, Google is not a part of it. There are no Google apps and it doesnt support Google services. Yet, one Huawei executive hopes that might change.

We hope Google services can be available through our AppGallery, just like how Google services are available through Apples App Store. Eric Xu, Huawei Chairman told CNBC in mandarin.

Despite the optimism, chances of that happening in the present scenario arent very high. Because of the legal restrictions in place, just like Google cant license its Play Services to Huawei, it also cant work with Huawei to publish an app for Huaweis AppGallery.

Also, most Google apps are heavily reliant on the Google Play Services framework, so even if Google wanted, it wouldnt be the same as the deal it has with Apple since Google is legally allowed to work with Apple to enable its services and apps for iOS and macOS devices.

With the new P40 series of smartphones, Huawei has been able to nail the hardware, with claims of competing neck to neck with the best of Apple and Samsung in the flagship range, but it lacks the crucial Google support which weaves a thread of familiarity between all Android devices used outside China. In its latest earnings figures, Huawei revealed that the US trade ban has indeed hurt its business. Huawei's year-on-year revenue grew by 19.1% last year as compared to 25 percent in 2018 and 28 percent in 2017.
Kamoa-Kakula Copper Project significantly enhances its on-site medical team and facilities, under the supervision of a world-leading infectious disease specialist

Operational continuity at the Kakula Mine as excellent progress on underground development continues

Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of Congo--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF) Co-Chairs Robert Friedland and Yufeng "Miles" Sun announced today that, given the fast-evolving global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company is providing further details on the rigorous protective measures it has implemented to protect the health and well-being of its employees, contractors and local communities while ensuring business continuity at the Kamoa-Kakula Project.

In response to government-imposed travel restrictions and emergency protocols being introduced, worldwide strict quarantine and lock-down procedures have been implemented at all three of the company's projects - Kamoa-Kakula, Platreef and Kipushi - to prevent the virus from spreading to the minesites. To date, no COVID-19 cases have been discovered.

At Kamoa-Kakula, the minesite has been locked down and all key personnel is on site, except for the supply of food and critical equipment under strict delivery protocols. A total of 881 employees, who were previously based in surrounding communities and Kolwezi, have been moved to permanent minesite accommodation, and up to 250 additional employees will be moved to the minesite once accommodations have been expanded and subject to appropriate and stringent quarantine protocols. At present, a total of 3,532 employees and contractors are based at the minesite, which ensures operational continuity and minimizes the impact on the development schedule.

Platreef has temporarily suspended its shaft-sinking operations until at least April 16th in compliance with the 21-day, country-wide lock down imposed by the South African Government effective March 26th. The project is maintaining a small workforce to conduct care and maintenance activities in order to have the operation ready for when project development resumes.

Kipushi also has temporarily suspended operations in order to reduce the risk to the workforce and local communities. The project is maintaining a small workforce to conduct care and maintenance activities, and to maintain pumping operations.

Following the guidelines outlined by the World Health Organization, while drawing on the experience of its China-based partners - CITIC Metal and Zijin Mining - and well before the situation was declared a pandemic, the company appointed a task team from senior management with overall responsibility for COVID-19 response planning.

The team is led by Dr. Nicolette Du Plessis, a specialist in Paediatric Infectious Diseases and a Professor at the University of Pretoria, and includes specialist doctors, paramedics, nurses, as well as counsel from several external, world-leading epidemiologists. Dr. Du Plessis is president of the Southern African Society of Paediatric Infectious Diseases and president-elect of the Federation of Infectious Diseases Societies of Southern Africa.

The task team, together with its 16-strong and expanding, on site Kamoa-Kakula Project medical response team and its medical service provider, Medical Support Solutions of the United Kingdom, has access to some of the best advice from medical experts from around the globe and has implemented key procedures across the business to ensure minimal disruption to its operations.





Figure 1: Dr. Nicolette Du Plessis, a specialist in Paediatric Infectious Diseases and a Professor at the University of Pretoria, is leading Ivanhoe Mines' COVID-19 response team.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

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At the Kamoa-Kakula Project, the company has implemented strict isolation procedures in the event of higher risk personnel or potential COVID-19 cases. Ten intensive care units, each equipped with a ventilator, and 20 high-care units will be available to treat potential patients, in addition to a quarantine facility for up to 60 potential patients.

The company already has procured abundant critical protective supplies for its minesite medical professionals, including surgical gloves and N95 face masks. In addition, Ivanhoe's largest shareholder, CITIC Metal, has assisted with the procurement of a very substantial number of coronavirus diagnostic test kits. The company will distribute the test kits to its projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Africa to enforce its health and safety protocols during the pandemic and to ensure business continuity at the Kamoa-Kakula Project.

In addition, the company is working closely with its host governments, which have acted swiftly and decisively in legislating measures to curb the spread of the disease. Together with the DRC and South African Ministries of Health, the company is sourcing a number of early-stage treatments that could potentially prevent a country-wide outbreak of the COVID-19 virus.

Robert Friedland said, "We are taking action to support our employees and communities as the COVID-19 situation evolves. Our aim is to keep our operations running safely, and we are monitoring the situation closely."

"The nature of our mine development projects is such that certain work cannot be done remotely, so our focus is on reducing the risk of the virus spreading to our projects. Operational continuity is critical for jobs, the communities around our operations, and the local economies. We will continue to adapt our response as this situation evolves, with our primary focus being the health and safety of our people."

"The Ivanhoe team is comprised of an extraordinary group of people. I have absolute confidence that working together we will meet these challenges and emerge stronger and more resilient than ever," Mr. Friedland added.





Figure 2: Members of Kamoa-Kakula's on-site medical team in place to quickly identify and treat any potential COVID-19 cases and prevent the spread to other personnel.

Front row, L-R: Salva Mujinga Tshimanga (nurse); Augustin Kabedi Mujinga (nurse); Papy Wedialumbele Lumasa (nurse); Asmara Ally (ALS paramedic); Dr. De Delvareine Kabwayi Buyamba (medical doctor).

Second row, L-R: Tresor Kasongo Dibwe (nurse); Paulin Mwanza Umbanga (nurse); Greg Hillen (ALS paramedic); Timothee Bwana Ngoie (nurse); Christian Masengo Ngoy (nurse); Adellard Muyambo Kazenga (nurse); Prince Hlongwane (ALS paramedic); Dr. Patrick Kasongo Ngoyi (health manager); and Alain Sambwe Masengo (nurse).

To view an enhanced version of Figure 2, please visit:

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Figure 3:Dr. Delvareine Kabwayi Buyamba practicing medical response procedures with a ventilator in the intensive care unit (ICU) at the Kakula hospital.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 3, please visit:

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Kakula Copper Mine continues to make excellent underground mine development progress

Underground development at the Kakula Copper Mine continues to advance at a rapid pace. Approximately 12 kilometres of underground development now is complete, which is roughly 3.4 kilometres ahead of plan. In March, the mining team set another new monthly development record of more than 1,350 metres - more than 330 metres ahead of plan for the month. A second owner's crew, comprised of local Congolese miners who were fully trained on site, has begun underground development work as the project transitions towards an all-owner mining team.

Figure 4: Two of the underground mining crews operating semi-autonomous double-boom jumbo drills at the Kakula Mine.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 4, please visit:

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Figure 5: Construction crew extending the wall at Kakula's main underground water storage dam.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 5, please visit:

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Construction on the underground rock-handling system and conveyor belt is progressing, and it is expected to be operational this month. The reaming of Ventilation Shaft 2 at Kakula South has been completed, providing additional ventilation to the southern portion of the Kakula Mine.

Figure 6: The high-volume conveyor system that will transport broken ore from underground up the decline to the pre-production ore stockpiles.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 6, please visit:

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Figure 7: Workers putting the finishing touches on an 'apron feeder' that will load ore from one of Kakula's 5,000-tonne underground ore bins onto the conveyor.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 7, please visit:

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Figure 8: Kakula's underground construction team nearing completion of the bottom structure of the east tip, part of the underground ore handling system at Kakula.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 8, please visit:

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Figure 9: Raise boring machine breaks through to surface, marking the completion of reaming the 5.5-metre diameter Ventilation Shaft 2 at the Kakula Mine.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 9, please visit:

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Construction of Kakula's 3.8 million-tonne-per-annum surface processing plant is advancing rapidly. Initial civil construction has prioritized the run-of-mine stockpiles and ball mills foundation.

Figure 10: Construction workers erecting steel rebar prior to the next concrete pour for the foundations to support the ball mills for Kakula's initial 3.8 million-tonne-per-annum processing plant.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 10, please visit:

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Figure 11: Pouring the concrete foundations for the processing plant's concentrate thickener.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 11, please visit:

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Figure 12: Ongoing construction of the processing plant's flotation circuit.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 12, please visit:

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The Kamoa-Kakula Project sources materials and equipment from companies with manufacturing facilities located in various countries around the globe, some of which have operations impacted by COVID-19. The engineering team is assessing the impact on the procurement schedule, as well as reduced site activity, on the overall development schedule.

About Ivanhoe Mines

Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on advancing its three principal joint-venture projects in Southern Africa: the development of a major new copper mine at the Kamoa-Kakula discoveries in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Platreef palladium-platinum-nickel-copper-rhodium-gold discovery in South Africa; and the extensive redevelopment and upgrading of the historic Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, also in the DRC. Ivanhoe also is exploring for new copper discoveries on its wholly-owned Western Foreland exploration licences in the DRC, near the Kamoa-Kakula Project.



Information contacts

Investors: Bill Trenaman +1.604.331.9834 / Media: Matthew Keevil +1.604. 558.1034

Forward-looking statements

Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company, its projects, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "expect", "believe", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "scheduled", "forecast", "predict" and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. These statements reflect the company's current expectations regarding future events, performance and results and speak only as of the date of this release.

Such statements include without limitation, the timing and results of: (i) statements regarding Ivanhoe's response to the COVID-19 pandemic; (ii) the anticipated resumption of temporarily suspended activities; and (iii) statements regarding the expectation that the underground rock-handling system and conveyor belt at Kakula it is expected to be operational in April.

Forward-looking statements and information involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed under "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in the company's 2019 Year End MD&A, as well as unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations.

Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the company believes are reasonable assumptions, the company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Subject to applicable securities laws, the company does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this news release.

The company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of the factors set forth in the "Risk Factors" section and elsewhere in the company's 2019 Year End MD&A, unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019 and its Annual Information Form.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54045
The Government may be in breach of international human rights law unless it provides own-door accommodation for people living in Direct Provision (DP) during the Covid-19 crisis.

The warning comes as the Department of Justice announced that more than 650 new beds to facilitate greater social distancing and isolation were necessary in the DP system. It has also said that it will pilot an off-site self-isolation facility for people suspected of having the virus.

However, an open letter to the Government signed by more than 920 prominent lawyers, doctors, public health officials and academics claims that the State may be in breach of Article 2 and Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights unless it provides own-door accommodation to people living in DP.

We are concerned that if the State does not take steps which are clearly practicable to ensure own-door accommodation for all single persons and family units in the international protection system, in order to allow them to socially distance from others in the same way as the national population generally is being instructed to do, it may find itself falling foul of these legal requirements.

The letter states that such accommodation could be provided in the "unprecedented number of empty hotel rooms student accommodation units and self-catering holiday accommodation units".

Plans to pilot an off-site self-isolation centre were labelled as having "major flaws" as social distancing is required before a person shows signs of infection as Covid-19 can be transmitted by individuals who are not demonstrating or reporting symptoms.

The letter also points to reports from residents which have claimed that some DP centres are creating self-isolation facilities which do not allow for physical distancing and provide no privacy for the patient in their illness or recovery.

A growing number of health professionals, legal practitioners and advocacy groups have said that many DP centres and emergency accommodation centres do not provide adequate scope for physical distancing and/or self-isolation.

However, justice minister Charlie Flanagan has said that he is satisfied centres are adhering to the required regulations.

In a statement, the Department of Justice said centre managers are, in some instances, introducing staggered mealtimes and allowing residents to take their meals to eat in their rooms.

There is a responsibility on everyone to be aware of and implement social distancing to the greatest extent possible in their day to day lives. We have provided Centres with ongoing guidance, updates and information and written individually to each resident.

The Department also pointed out that in the planned offsite self-isolation facilities, residents will have their own ensuite bedroom.

It said that all of the measures it has introduced for the DP system have been approved by the relevant health authorities.

"At all times, we are guided by the HSE and the National Public Health Emergency Team and we will continue to do everything possible to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all applicants."

"The arrangements for our new temporary accommodation announced on Tuesday have been approved by the HSE and NPHET and we are guided by public health experts in managing these challenges," said the statement.
JOHANNESBURG  Both the Islamic State group and al-Qaida see the coronavirus as a threat, but some of their fighters also see the upheaval from the pandemic as an opportunity to win over more supporters and strike harder than before.

Messages from the Islamic extremist groups show concern about the virus mixed with bravado, asserting that it is punishment for non-Muslims while also urging followers to repent and take care of themselves.

Al-Qaida suggested in a statement Tuesday that non-Muslims use their time in quarantine to learn about Islam.

But in a sharp commentary in its al-Naba newsletter in mid-March, IS urged followers to show no mercy and launch attacks in this time of crisis.

In a commentary Tuesday, the International Crisis Group warned that the pandemic threatens the global solidarity that is key to fighting extremists.

It is almost certainly correct that COVID-19 will handicap domestic security efforts and international counter-ISIS cooperation, allowing the jihadists to better prepare spectacular terror attacks, it said.

Though analysts said it was too soon to say which attacks can be blamed on militants exploiting the coronavirus, Islamic extremists in late March carried out their deadliest assault yet against the military of Chad, a significant contributor to Africas growing counterterrorism efforts, killing at least 92 soldiers near the border with Nigeria and Niger.

In Egypt, two military officials reported a spike in IS attacks in March in the restive northern part of the Sinai Peninsula but security forces foiled at least three other major assaults. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

While Syria and Iraq have seen no uptick in attacks by IS since the virus spread there, the pandemic has prompted the U.S.-led coalition to halt training activities in Iraq amid a planned pullout from several bases.

There are signs elsewhere that the U.S., British and other militaries are pulling back because of the virus, leaving a possible opening for the extremists.

Thats a danger in Africas hot spots of the Sahel, the Lake Chad region and Somalia, where the U.S. military already worried allies in recent months by contemplating cuts to focus on threats from China and Russia.

Any state that was interested in pulling back in Africa will take the opportunity to do so, said Clionadh Raleigh, executive director of the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which tracks extremists activities worldwide. That will be unbelievably bad.

A U.S. Africa Command spokeswoman, Lt. Christina Gibson, told The Associated Press that while the size and scope of some AFRICOM activities have been adjusted to ensure the safety and protection of forces  both U.S. and partner nation  our commitment to Africa endures. She did not give details of affected operations but said AFRICOM still has about 5,200 forces on the continent at any given time.

The British army mission in Kenya, which provides counterterrorism training and other skills, this week announced that all army families are returning to the U.K. because of the virus.

But Frances largest overseas military mission, Barkhane in West Africas sprawling Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert, is keeping its 5,100 troops there, the French Defense Ministry said. A pro-al-Qaida French organization issued a statement Tuesday urging French forces to stay home and save lives instead.

African military units, already stretched thin and under attack, are likely to take protective measures as the virus threatens their ranks.

In Nigeria, which has struggled against the Boko Haram extremist group and an assertive IS-linked offshoot, the military has called for suspending much of its activities including large gatherings and training.

A leaked memo signed by Nigerian armys policy chief says its vehicles might have to be used for mass burials or transferring the sick to hospitals as the virus spreads.

While security forces are targets, under-guarded prisons could be too, said Laith Alkhouri, a counterterrorism adviser who researches extremists in West Africa. Both IS and al-Qaida-linked fighters have turned the Sahel into Africas most urgent extremism crisis, and even have engaged in some unprecedented cooperation.

Their fighters are likely to exploit the pandemic by accusing governments of mismanaging the crisis to try to win popular support, he said.

Alkhouri said that under another scenario, individuals may believe that only religion can keep them safe from the virus and ignore scientific advice, which could lead to an increase in infections.

Some extremist groups are showing signs that, like the rest of the world, they are trying to understand the coronavirus and respond.

In Somalia, the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab held a rare five-day meeting of its leaders in March that discussed the virus. In a communique, the group recognized its emergency threat to the world, including Muslims.

An al-Shabab spokesman later told the AP it was too soon to comment on whether the group would heed a U.N. plea to halt attacks, which have continued, or whether it would allow health workers access to areas it controls.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban have gone even further, putting out videos on disinfection and photos of its fighters handing out face masks and soap. It also has offered security guarantees to any aid group assisting victims of the virus or helping to stop its spread.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed told the AP that if, God forbid, the outbreak happens in an area where we control the situation, then we can stop fighting in that area.

___

Kathy Gannon in Islamabad, Pakistan; Haruna Umar in Maiduguri, Nigeria; Sam Mednick in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso; Abdi Guled and Tom Odula in Nairobi, Kenya; Samy Magdy and Maamoun Youssef in Cairo; Samya Kullab in Baghdad and Sylvie Corbet and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed.

___

Follow AP news coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
Russian leader Vladimir Putin has decided to handle his duties remotely, the Kremlin said Wednesday, after the head of the country's main coronavirus hospital tested positive following a meeting with the president. Denis Protsenko, who met with Putin last week as the Russian leader visited the Kommunarka hospital in Moscow, said Tuesday he had been infected with the coronavirus but was feeling well. "The president prefers these days to work remotely," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists, shortly before Putin was due to hold a cabinet meeting by videoconference. "We are taking all precautionary measures," he said, adding that Putin was at the presidential residence in Novo-Ogaryovo outside Moscow. Putin donned a bright yellow hazmat suit for the visit last Tuesday to the hospital. He was also seen talking to Protsenko without any protective gear but the Kremlin said there is no reason for concern about the president's health. "All of those who were with the president at Kommunarka are being tested daily for the coronavirus," Peskov added, after saying on Tuesday that "everything is fine" with Putin. Asked if Putin continued to shake hands with those he is meeting, Peskov said: "Of course everyone is now social distancing." Almost 70 percent of Russia's 147 million population has been ordered into strict confinement over the pandemic, following a first announcement by the mayor of Moscow on Sunday. Russia has so far registered 2,777 cases of the coronavirus and 24 deaths, mostly in Moscow.
Bhadrak Town police on Wednesday arrested three persons including a woman on charges of spreading rumours on social media platforms against a coronavirus positive person.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier announced a 21-day lockdown in the entire country to deal with the spread of coronavirus, saying that "social distancing" is the only option to deal with the disease, which spreads rapidly.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
FIGHTING THE WAR AGAINST THE CORONAVIRUS | Potential Drugs and Treatment

Written by Steve Blechman

02 April 2020

FIGHTING THE WAR AGAINST THE CORONAVIRUS

Potential Drugs and Treatment

By Steve Blechman

In my MD Rants published on March 23, DAMN: CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC: DONT PANIC! Antiviral Drug Combo Available Now! I reported that researchers and doctors in France, South Korea, and the United States are using the anti-malarial drug hydroxychloroquine in combination with azithromycin (brand name: Zithromax or Z-Pak), which is prescribed for upper respiratory infections. President Trump had announced a national trial, and emergency medical supplies of this drug combo were coming to New York on Tuesday, March 24th. The President was criticized at first but now he has the support of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. There is now new data supporting this drug combo to treat the disease by doctors and major medical centers.

A team of researchers in China published results that hydroxychloroquine was effective in the test tube but researchers in France did a small human study with hydroxychloroquine combined with azithromycin. The study was published March 17, 2020 in the International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents. The results of the study found that 100% of the patients were cured by day six of the treatment with the combo drug compound compared to 57.1% of patients just treated with hydroxychloroquine alone. The authors of the French study most recently reported 80 hospitalized coronavirus patients receiving the drug combo. After 8 days of treatment, 93% of patients tested negative for the virus.

There is now new data supporting this drug combo to treat the disease by doctors and researchers from major medical centers. On Sunday, March 29,2020 the FDA fast-tracked with emergency approval. The United States Department of Health and Human Services reported on Sunday, March 29, 2020 the drug company Novartis donated 30 million doses of hydroxychloroquine and pharmaceutical company Bayer contributed 1 million doses of chloroquine to the federal government and distributed to most in need. The FDAs emergency authorization will allow more doctors to prescribe the drug outside of clinical trials by doctors and hospitals.

Recently, Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan told the Swiss newspaper that its malaria drug hydroxychloroquine is the drug makers biggest hope against COVID-19. Also, it was reported that on Tuesday, March 31 the state of Louisiana shipped 400,000 of hydroxychloroquine for clinical trial. It was reported recently that Louisiana is an emerging hot spot and had a 30% increase in the coronavirus incidents in one day this week!

The World Health Organization (WHO) lists hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin as an essential medicine and considered to be most effective and safe to meet the important needs in the health system. Hydroxychloroquine has been available as a drug since 1995 and azithromycin since 1988; the drug combination has only been used recently. The drug combo can slow viral replication and regulate the overreaction of the immune system and lower the inflammation in the lungs. Sure, more controlled clinical trials and studies are needed but why wait if we can save lives!

Johnson and Johnson announced Monday, March 30 that its COVID-19 vaccine plans to begin Phase 1 clinical trials by September. J&J CEO Alex Gorskysaid if it works it can be available early next year. He said that the key is after it is available to ramp up production to millions of doses early next year and billions later in the year!

Other existing anti-viral drugs and new unapproved drugs are under investigation at this time and being fast-tracked and brought to market as quickly as possible against the COVID-19 virus. These drugs include Remdesivir, an anti-viral drug from Gilead Sciences. Also, the anti-flu drug favipiravir. Drug maker Regeneron Pharmaceuticals is doing a clinical trial with an arthritis drug Kevzara as a coronavirus treatment in the U.S. and overseas.

Meanwhile, at least half a dozen biotech companies are working on antibody treatments against COVID-19. Blood is collected from coronavirus recovered patients who carry antibodies to COVID-19 and then would donate the plasma through someone who is seriously ill with the virus.

Whats known as convalescent plasma treatment was recently tested in five clinically ill patients with very promising results. The results of the study were most recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA, March 27, 2020). In March, doctors at St. Johns University began testing convalescent treatment for COVID-19 until a safe and effective vaccine is on the market.

Patients in New York with severe cases of COVID-19 may start reviewing experimental treatment of COVID-19 as early as this week. Many doctors and health authorities are hoping that people who are infected with COVID-19 and recovered develop antibodies against the virus and are protected by being infected again.

Henry Schein, Inc. announced on March 26, 2020 a rapid antibody test: The availability of an antibody rapid blood test, known as standard Q COVID-19 test, intended to be administered at the point of care. The test delivers results within 15 minutes from a pinprick with no instrumentation required.

Henry Schein is working through multiple channels to distribute the tests in the United States as quickly as possible in response to the urgent need for a rapid accurate testing. The company started distributing the tests to health care professionals on March 30th. According to Henry Schein CEO Stanley Bergman, millions of tests will be available next week.

Another area of research is anti-inflammatory drugs that inhibit or lower cytokines in the body. In reaction to coronavirus infection, whats known as cytokine storm can occur in the body. A cytokine storm is an immune reaction to infection in the body, in which the immune system overproduces cytokines such as interleukin 6, which can damage the lungs and cause inflammation of the air sacks of the lung, which inhibits oxygen levels in the body.

We are at war with the coronavirus! This review provides the latest drugs and treatments being tested now to attack the coronavirus. These are not proven miracle cures or treatments but may save lives, lower the infection rate and spread of the virus until we have a vaccine hopefully in the next 12-15 months. For now, more testing, social distancing, shutdowns and properly washed hands are all vital to help win the coronavirus war to contain this virus and end this tragic pandemic.

Sources:

1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

2. World Health Organization (WHO)

3. National Institutes of Health (NIH)

4. Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security

References:

1. Gautret et al. (2020) Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin as a treatment of COVID19: results of an openlabel nonrandomized clinical trial. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents  In Press 17 March 2020  DOI: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2020.105949

2. French study finds anti-malarial and antibiotic combo could reduce COVID-19 duration. Darrell Etherington@etherington/March 19, 2020.

3. Chris Baraniuk. Chloroquine for COVID-19: Cutting Through the Hype. Mar 20, 2020. The Scientist.

4. Andrew Dunn. A malaria pill from the 1940s has caught the eyes of doctors, analysts, and even Elon Musk as a potential coronavirus treatment. Mar 19, 2020. Business Insider.

5. Aude Lecrubier. COVID-19: Could Hydroxychloroquine Really Be An Answer? March 18, 2020. The MedScape.

6. Eric J. Rubin, M.D., Ph.D., Lindsey R. Baden, M.D., and Stephen Morrissey, Ph.D. Audio Interview: New Research on Possible Treatments for Covid-19. March 19, 2020. N Engl J Med 2020; 382:e30. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMe2005759

7. COVID-19 Incubation Period: An Update by Stephen Baum Stephen G. Baum, MD reviewing Lauer SA et al. Ann Intern Med 2020 Mar 10, 2020

8. COVID-19 treatment might already exist. Nevan Krogan - Professor and Director of Quantitative Biosciences Institute, University of California, San Francisco. March 26, 2020. Live Science.

9. Jeff Colyer and Daniel Hinthorn. These Drugs Are Helping Our Coronavirus Patients. March 22, 2020. Wall Street Journal.

10. Richard S. Hotchkiss, M.D. and Steven M. Opal, M.D. Activating Immunity to Fight a Foe - A New Path. March 26, 2020 N Engl J Med 2020; 382:1270-1272

DOI: 10.1056/NEJMcibr1917242

11. Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. et al. Covid-19 - Navigating the Uncharted. March 26, 2020

N Engl J Med 2020; 382:1268-1269 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMe2002387

12. John L. Hick, M.D. and Paul D. Biddinger, M.D. Novel Coronavirus and Old Lessons - Preparing the Health System for the Pandemic. New Eng J Med. March 25, 2020 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMp2005118

13. Shen C, Wang Z, Zhao F, et al. Treatment of 5 Critically Ill Patients With COVID-19 With Convalescent Plasma. JAMA. Published online March 27, 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.4783

14. Roback JD, Guarner J. Convalescent Plasma to Treat COVID-19: Possibilities and Challenges. JAMA. Published online March 27, 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.4940

15. Arturo Casadevall, Liise-anne Pirofski. The convalescent sera option for containing COVID-19. Published April 1, 2020; First published March 13, 2020. Citation Information: J Clin Invest. 2020;130(4):1545-1548. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI138003.

16. Henry Schein Announces the Availability of a Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) Point-of-Care Antibody Rapid Test. BusinessWire March 26, 2020 https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200326005310/en/

17. Nicole Lurie, MD. Developing COVID-19 Vaccines at Pandemic Speed. New Eng J Med, March 30, 2020.

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A new wireless giant has entered the scene.

T-Mobile and Sprint announced the closing of their $30 billion merger on Wednesday, the result of a long-in-the-works effort by both companies to speed the progress of wireless technology and put up a fight against AT&T and Verizon, the two companies that have long dominated the industry.

As part of finishing the deal, John Legere, the boisterous, magenta-clad chief executive who led T-Mobile for nearly a decade, handed over leadership reins to his longtime second-in-command, the more buttoned-up Mike Sievert.

The new business, called T-Mobile, will have about 100 million customers. To keep them and add to their ranks, the company plans to quickly develop the fifth-generation wireless technology that will bring broadband-style service through the air and is seen as a critical component of the nations infrastructure. T-Mobile has said that deploying 5G would have taken much longer and cost much more without the addition of Sprint.

Upgrading the networks also makes T-Mobile a formidable challenger to AT&T and Verizon, Mr. Sievert said in an interview. It used to be that customers were forced to choose: Do you want a better network? Or a better value? Now you dont have to choose, he said.
Michael D Higgins has addressed the nation through local radio stations during the Covid-19 lockdown.

This is his speech in full:

Knowing how important local media  local, community radio stations and local newspapers  is to all of our citizens and those, in particular, who are housebound, I am availing of this valuable resource to send a message to our citizens.

"May I send my best wishes to you all as we face, together, the challenge of responding to the global health emergency, Covid-19.

"In particular, Sabina and I offer our deepest sympathies to those who have been bereaved in recent days and weeks as a result of the pandemic. To those of you, too, who have loved ones in intensive care or who are waiting for results of a test, we offer our solidarity.

"The pain of losing a loved one to this cruel disease has been compounded for so many by the inability of friends and family to offer consolation and support in the way we usually would. The shake of a hand, a sympathetic touch, a comforting embrace, even our physical presence for those few days following a sudden loss, are not available to us for the very good reason that we are all involved in slowing and overcoming the virus.

"To all of those I have mentioned may I say while Sabina and I cannot share your grief, please know that we are with you, in thought and in spirit, and that we are thinking of you especially at this most difficult time.

"May I take this opportunity again to express my deep gratitude, mar Uachtaran na hEireann, on behalf of the Irish people, to our health care workers, GPs, pharmacists and their staff, Defence Forces, and An Garda Siochana, all of whom are working tirelessly and selflessly to ensure the best care possible is being made available for those affected by the Coronavirus and also for the safety of all our citizens.

"We owe all of you an enormous debt of gratitude. We owe, too, a debt of gratitude to the many others who are risking their safety in order to ensure the continued delivery of necessary services  those who work in food production and essential retail, those who continue to care for the vulnerable, and the many others who are making an extraordinary and exemplary contribution to our country at this difficult time.

"This is a time when each and every one of us has been asked to make temporary but significant changes to our lives, so as to enable us to protect as best we can those who are most vulnerable to this virus. Further restrictions were introduced over the weekend and difficult as they are, I urge you to abide by them, for all of our sakes.

"For some of you, these changes have led to serious financial concern as you face the loss of income or even livelihoods. These are all issues that must be addressed. For others, social distancing and quarantine may have prevented you from being able to attend to sick relatives or to say final farewells to loved ones. My thoughts are with all of you who face such difficult circumstances.

"This is a global pandemic which challenges us. In recent years we have become familiar with the use of the term globalisation  usually in relation to trade. We are now living through what is the globalisation of a common, shared vulnerability. This moment demands much of us as citizens but I believe that we are discovering within ourselves new capabilities in terms of human decencies of empathy and compassion.

"In recent days so many of you have been giving real, practical meaning to such terms as inclusion and equality.

"Molaim sibh agus iarraim oraibh leanuint leis an sar-obair.

"This is a time, too, when all of us can reflect on how best our individual and collective actions can shape the new Ireland that will emerge from this global crisis. At this critical turning point in our history, we are invited to re-imagine and reconstruct, drawing on the great spirit of generous citizenship that has thrived, flourished, been given expression in recent weeks.

"We know it is through that generous compassion, and our sense of shared humanity with all those with whom we share this vulnerable planet, that we will be enabled to navigate our way forward to a better and more humane world.

"We may have more dark days ahead of us, but in the midst of the worry and fear that now shade our lives, it is important that we do not lose sight of the opportunity we have today to draw on those great Irish instincts of solidarity, empathy and kindness to allow us to help each other through this ordeal.

"As we continue on this journey, let us walk in unity, supporting each other, carefully and fully following the advice that we have been given, thus keeping each other safe.

"Casann an roth  the wheel turns. This virus will pass and when it does we can show our appreciation by supporting even more what is local  radio stations, newspapers and the local economy in every way, including retail and services.

"Go raibh mile maith agaibh go leir agus beir beannacht.
A lot of Israeli top officials went for a lockdown after Healthcare Minister and his wife had their test results defined as positive

Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu haaretz.com

Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu and Mossad special service commander Yossi Cohen went for a lockdown after the recent confirmed case of Covid-19 in the government. Haaretz reported that on April 2.

A lot of Israeli top officials went for a lockdown after Healthcare Minister and his wife had their test results defined as positive. They feel fine but they'll stay in isolation until the tests are repeated.

For Netanyahu, it's going to be the second quarantine, as he recently met with Litzman; his previous lockdown came to an end on Wednesday.

Meir Ben-Shabbat, the head of the National Security Council will also stay in isolation.

Israel introduced reinforced lockdown measures due to the Covid-19 coronavirus; the gathering of more than two people is banned, but it does not concern people who live together. No guests are allowed on weddings, the ceremony may only be performed in presence of closest relatives of the groom and the bride. No collective prayers are allowed.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday assured doctors and nurses to provide them necessary protective equipment to ensure their safety in the battle against coronavirus, as the number of the COVID-19 patients rose to 2,112 in the country.

The assurance came amid reports about shortages of protective gear for the medical staff and some doctors and nurses getting infected by the novel coronavirus that has killed over 43,000 people worldwide.

"Doctors, nurses and other medical staff are in the frontline of battle against coronavirus and they will be provided with the necessary protective equipment to ensure their safety and health," Khan said while inaugurating the upgradation of the Cantonment General Hospital in Rawalpindi.

Khan said that the trend of the pandemic in Pakistan would become clear in about a week. He said he was satisfied that the country was not seeing the sort of escalation of cases as seen in the Western countries.

He also said that China was providing protective equipment and ventilators to Pakistan on priority basis after controlling the virus in its own worst-affected Hubei province.

Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus cases in Pakistan rose to 2,112 on Wednesday, indicating an upward trend despite efforts by the government to contain the pandemic.

According to reports, Punjab province had 748 cases, Sindh 709, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa 253, Balochistan 158, Gilgit-Baltistan 184, Islamabad 54 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir 6. So far, 26 people have died due to the virus and 82 have recovered, while another 10 are in critical condition.

The increase in the number of cases showed that there was little impact of the measures, including partial lockdown, taken so far to reduce the spread of the disease.

Officials in Pakistan are scrambling to contain the disease by appealing to the public to remain inside homes and go out only in cases of emergencies. But there was little impact on the masses and in several cities, people were seen roaming out while security officials were trying to convince them to go back to their places.

Prime Minister Khan has already announced Rs 1,200 billion package to deal with the economic challenges posed by the coronavirus crisis.

Addressing the media after the meeting of the National Core Committee, Minister for Planning Asad Umar said that it was decided to continue the current level of lockdown and restriction for another two weeks.

We decided to keep the restrictions until April 15, as we have seen it is helping to contain the virus, he said.

The Prime Minister's Adviser on National Security, Moeed Yusuf, said that the ban on international flights will be partially lifted from April 3 but domestic flights will remain suspended.

"It is decided that 17 flights will fly from April 3-11 from Pakistan to different countries and bring stranded Pakistanis, he said, adding that maximum 2,000 passengers would be brought to Pakistan.

The Prime Minister's Adviser on Heath, Dr Zafar Mirza, said that the implementation of the current restrictions will be improved as it was helping.

He said the number of suspected cases were 17,325 and 1,436 were added in the last 24 hours. Mirza said 8,893 people were in quarantine and out of them 5,190 were tested, and 19 per cent were positive.

Separately, Prime Minister Khan attended a live telethon to collect donations for his Corona Relief Fund that he launched this week. "People should generously donate funds and I assure you that your money will be used honestly, he said.

As Pakistan struggled to finance its efforts against the virus, Japan announced to give USD 2.16 million assistance to Islamabad. A sum of USD 1,620,000 will be provided to Pakistan through the United Nations Children's Fund and USD 540,000 through the International Organization for Migration.

Also, Sindh province has decided to impose a curfew-like' lockdown on Friday from 12 noon to 3pm in a bid to maintain social distancing at the time of weekly Friday prayers.

"Ulema (clerics) have been asked not to allow common people other than mosque staff to offer the prayer in their mosques, according to an official of the provincial government. Separately, registration for a volunteer force announced by Prime Minister Khan started on Wednesday.

"I want our youth to play their role in helping our fight against the COVID-19 by joining our Corona Tiger Force which will be organised to do jihad against the suffering caused by this pandemic, Khan said in a tweet.

Meanwhile, opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz criticized the government for failing to take timely action to contain the virus. This government has yet to decide if it wants to properly shut down the country or not. We demand that lockdown should be imposed without any further delay, PML-N leader and former premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said.

Also read: Coronavirus in Pakistan: China builds makeshift hospital to treat patients

Also read: Coronavirus Cases in India Live Updates: Assam reports 3, Rajasthan records 9 new COVID-19 positive cases
It has been nearly 40 years since Dorila Marquez survived the horrific attack that left hundreds dead, including her brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews.

It was purely a miracle I survived, she said. Marquez and a few others had hidden in her home when the soldiers came. It was by some miracle that the group of soldiers divided in front of her home, one group going one side, one to the other, ignoring her house. Over the course of the day, Marquez heard the screams, the gunshots the explosions. It wasnt until she exited her home the next day that she saw the scale of the violence  burnt out homes, burnt fields, dead livestock, and so many burnt bodies.

We smelled the burnt body smell all day. She paused to take a shuddering breath. El Mozote was flooded with black smoke and bullets.



Over the course of three days in December 1981, soldiers who were part of the El Salvador Army murdered nearly 1,000 civilians in El Mozote and other towns in the northeastern part of the country. El Salvadors civil war lasted just over 12 years, from 1980 to 1992.

However, survivors and families have spent years fighting for recognition, justice and reparations. Decades of denial of the massacre by former government, a new administration and bureaucratic mazes have left expected reparations stalled.

Into this bureaucratic puzzle stepped the UN Human Rights Regional Office for Central America (ROCA), which since 2016 has worked in El Salvador to provide technical assistance and support through the twists of transitional justice. The Office has provided technical and legal support to the countrys Attorney Generals Office and to civil society for the investigation and criminal prosecution of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in the context of the armed conflict.

It was only after the rejection in 2016 by the Supreme Court of the 1993 amnesty law that victims and family members could see the light to get some justice and dream of the truth hopefully being known indicated Marlene Alejos, who was recently Regional Representative for Central America and Head of the UN Regional Office.

Overturning Amnesty

In 2016, El Salvadors Supreme Court struck down an amnesty law approved in 1993. The law had made it impossible to prosecute those involved in massacres, such as what occurred in El Mozote, as well as other gross human rights violations and war crimes. Julio Cesar Larrama, from the Attorney Generals Office, said this not only opened up the chance for prosecutions of military and non-state officials for war crimes, but it also showed the need to better training on handling such cases.

We know perfectly well that these events occurred many years ago, but if you talk to a victim of a serious violation of human rights that occurred in the context of war [for those victims] it is as if those events occurred yesterday, he said. We do not want to cause double suffering, and that is why we asked the UN Human Rights Office to train us in this.



Alejos said that one of the Offices main contribution was the adoption at the end of 2018 by the Attorney General of the Policy on Investigations and Criminal Prosecutions of Crimes against Humanity and War Crimes, a policy document elaborated with the technical support of the Office after consultation with survivors, civil society and prosecutors. The policy contains an action plan and tool kit to assist the Attorney Generals Office in transitional justice cases.

Larrama, who is the coordinator for prosecutors working on the cases stemming from the armed conflict, said the UN Human Rights Office facilitated important information exchanges with counterparts from other countries in similar situations, such as Colombia and Guatemala. They had a war much longer than ours, and have obtained very good results in the cases they have aired.

This work has been welcomed by civil society. The Office meets on a monthly basis with 16 NGOs that are part of an advocacy to combat impunity. Sonia Rubio, an advocate and lawyer with Due Process of Law Foundation (DPLF), is from one of those NGOs. She said the transitional justice landscape looked bleak in El Salvador. Although the amnesty law was overturned, a new measure that would grant a level of impunity to for crimes against humanity from the civil war was making its way through the legislature.

In El Salvador, I believe that it is necessary to mobilize not only human rights defenders, but other sections, both nationally and internationally and that is why we believe the support of the UN Human Rights Office can  bring the situation of transitional justice to light and generate a hope that can battle impunity, Rubio said.

In February this year (2020), El Salvador President Nayib Bukele vetoed the bill that had been approved by lawmakers. He said he would not support any measure that did not contain three fundamental elements: truth, justice and reparations.

Live for justice

The back and forth over recognition, justice and reparations is becoming increasingly frustrating each passing year. Many survivors are in their 70s and 80s  fighting not just the government, but the clock.

Virgilio Cruz is 79 and from El Mozote. Although he was not in the village at the time of the massacre, he did lose family and friends. He said he has little trust in the judicial process and does not expect to live long enough to see any sort of justice for those who died.

I doubt very much that this a proper or transparent legal process, he said, standing in front of the granite wall memorial to those who died in El Mozote 38 years ago. I do not see it as positive.

Miriam Abrego lives and fights to see justice. She was cooking soup in her home when soldiers came into her tiny village of San Francisco Angulo, called out to her, and shot her twice. She managed to survive, but 45 others were not as lucky. More than 30 years on, she advocates for those who survived like her and the families of those who died or are missing, pushing for their voices to be heard.

We are in a pretty sad situation that we keep having to talk about this, she said, standing before a memorial where the remains of those who died are interred. [The government and others] keep telling us to shut up. But me, I wont shut up. We victims are tired. We want to be recognized as victims. We want to be heard. There are people who are dying and still there is no justice. So tell this, to society, to the United Nations, to the world. We need support. Hear our pleas.

2 April 2020
A team from MIT has designed disposable face shields that can be mass produced quickly to address hospitals' needs nationwide.

The shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) available to healthcare professionals has become increasingly problematic as Covid-19 cases continue to surge. The sheer volume of PPE needed to keep both doctors and their patients safe in this current crisis is daunting - for example tens of millions of disposable face shields will be needed nationwide each month. This week, a team from MIT launched mass manufacturing of a new technique to meet the high demand for disposable face shields.

The single piece face shield design will be made using a process known as die cutting. Machines will cut the design from thousands of flat sheets per hour. Once boxes of these flat sheets arrive at hospitals, healthcare professionals can quickly fold them into three dimensional face shields before adjusting for proper face.

"These face shields have to be made rapidly and at low cost because they need to be disposable," explains Martin Culpepper, professor of mechanical engineering, director of Project Manus, and a member of MIT's governance team on manufacturing opportunities for Covid-19. "Our technique combines low cost materials with a high-rate manufacturing process that has the potential of meeting the need for face shields nationwide."

Culpepper and his team at Project Manus spearheaded the development of the technique in collaboration with a number of partners from MIT, local-area hospitals, and industry. The team has been working closely with the MIT Medical Outreach and the Crisis Management Unit established by Vice President for Research Maria Zuber and directed by Professor Elazer R. Edelman.

Initial fabrication of the shields will be done by Polymershapes, based in Boston, Massachusetts with plans to expand across the country through fifty-five additional Polymershapes locations.

Extending the life of face masks

When used correctly, face masks should be changed every time a doctor or nurse treats a new patient. However, over the past month many healthcare professionals have been asked to wear one face mask per day. That one mask could carry virus particles on them - potentially contributing to the spread of Covid-19 within hospitals and endangering healthcare professionals.

"The lack of adequate protective equipment or the idea of reusing potentially contaminated equipment is especially frightening to healthcare workers who are putting their lives, and by extension the lives and well-being of their families, on the line every day," explains Edelman, Director of MIT's Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Edward J. Poitras Professor in Medical Engineering and Science, and leader of MIT's PPE task force that Culpepper serves on.

Face shields can address this problem by providing another device for protection covering the entire face, adding a layer of protection the covers masks and more while extending the life of face masks and respirators. The shields are made of clear materials and have a shape similar to a welder mask. They protect the healthcare professional and their face mask from coming in direct contact with virus particles spread through coughing or sneezing.

"If we can slow down the rate at which healthcare professionals use face masks with a disposable face shield, we can make a real difference in protecting their health and safety," explains Culpepper.

Culpepper and his team at Project Manus set out to design a face shield that could be rapidly produced at a scale large enough to meet the growing demand. They landed on a flat design that people could quickly fold into a three dimensional structure when the shield was ready for use. Their design also includes extra protection with flaps that fold under the neck and over the forehead.

As much of MIT's campus came to a halt in light of social distancing measures being put in place, Culpepper started prototyping using a laser cutter he had in his house. Along with some design input from his children, he tested different materials and made the first ten prototypes at home.

"When you're thinking of materials, you have to keep supply chains in mind. You can't choose a material that could evaporate from the supply chain. That is a challenging problem in this crisis," explains Culpepper. After testing a few materials that cracked and broke when bent, the team chose polycarbonate and polyethylene terephthalate glycol - known more commonly as PETG - as the shield's material.

In addition to making more prototypes at the Project Manus Metropolis Makerspace using a laser cutter, Culpepper worked with Professor Neil Gershenfeld and his team at MIT's Center for Bits and Atoms (CBA) on rapid-prototyping designs for testing using a Zund large-format cutter.

Gershenfeld's team at CBA is working on a number of projects for coronavirus response using its digital fabrication facility at MIT as well as the global Fab Lab network it launched. "The coronavirus response site is a great resource for those that are interested in working on solutions for PPE and devices for the Covid-19 pandemic," Culpepper adds.

"It's been a pleasure in this difficult time collaborating with such an impressive group, drawing on all of the Institute's strengths to quickly define and refine a solution to an urgent need," says Gershenfeld. "The work at MIT will be valuable beyond its immediate local impact, as a best-practices reference for the many other face shield projects emerging around the world."

Testing the shield at local hospitals

With a number of working prototypes built, Culpepper and his team moved to the testing phase after consultation with, and practical feedback from, Edelman, who is a physician himself.

"The single greatest insecurity of a healthcare provider is the thought that we will become infected and in doing so be unable to perform our duties or infect others," adds Edelman.

Edelman demonstrated how to store, assemble, and use the face shields to nurses and physicians at a number of local-area hospitals. Participants were then asked to use them in real-life situations and provide feedback using a one-page survey.

The feedback was overwhelmingly positive - participants found that in addition to being easy to assemble and use, the MIT-designed shields provided good protection against coming in contact with virus particles through splashes or aerosolized particles.

Armed with this feedback, Culpepper's team made a few minor adjustments to the design to maximize coverage around the sides and neck of users. With the design finalized, the project has this week shifted to high-rate mass manufacturing.

High-rate mass manufacturing

Starting this week, fabrication company Polymershapes will start the mass production of the face shields. The die cutter machines used in mass manufacturing will produce the flat face shields at a rate of 50,000 shields per day in a few weeks. The manufacturer will continue to ramp up and increase the rate of manufacturing further with the ability to fabricate in more than eighty facilities nationwide.

"This process has been designed in such a way that there is the potential to ramp up to millions of face shields produced per day," explains Culpepper. "This could very quickly become a nationwide solution for face shield shortages."

MIT plans on purchasing the first 40,000 face shields to donate to local Boston-area hospitals this week and Polymershapes will donate 60,000.

"Having an adequate and perhaps even endless supply of PPE is absolutely critical to ensuring the safety of the entire population, especially those who care for Covid-19 patients," adds Edelman.

Throughout the process, Culpepper's team received help from a number of colleagues and departments across MIT. This includes MIT's Office of the Vice President for Research, Professor Elazer Edelman, Tolga Durak, Managing Director, MIT Environment, Health & Safety Office, The Center for Bits and Atoms, MIT Procurement Operations, MIT's Office of the General Counsel, MIT's Department of Mechanical Engineering, and colleagues from MIT Lincoln Laboratory who helped source material to build the face shields and supported design iterations. They also received advice from MIT colleagues working with the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, which is helping organize manufacturers to respond to Covid-19 needs.

"This project was a great example of collaboration across MIT and the employment of mind-heart-hand. When we reached out to others, they dropped everything to put their minds and hands to work helping us make this happen quickly," says Culpepper. "It is also a great example for others to look to safely and rapidly innovate PPE for COVID 19."

###

Related Media:

Video: 1 Piece Face Shield Assembly

https://youtu.be/WFjBvpcP2cE

Video: Zund cutter makes face shields

https://vimeo.com/402220729/70bd7ab2a1
What is it that makeup wouldnt hide? Malaysias state-sponsored sexism.

Many governments and experts are telling people to pursue their hobbies, which can be pursued while remaining indoors - cook, read, eat, watch, talk - but Malaysia is asking people to stop nagging, to deal with the lockdown. Not all people. Just women.

Google the word nagging, click on images, and you would know why Malaysia is giving that advice. All images that Google throws up at you are of women nagging men. Some pictures even use little girls nagging young boys.

So, basically what Malaysia seems to be telling its women is: Stop nagging because it troubles men in the house. In other words, Dont forget, your job No. 1 to 10 is to keep the men comfortable. That is, of course, after you have finished all other jobs of cooking, cleaning, washing and drying.

This could have been dismissed as a mens pity party had the advice not come from Malaysias Women's Development Department. Also, thats not the only tip the government offered women. Just in case balancing work from home along with repeated visits to the kitchen to ensure the food didnt burn wasnt enough, the government has advised Malaysian women to put on makeup while at home.

Women have been told to avoid home clothes, put on makeup and dress neatly.

Avoid wearing home clothes. Dress up as usual, put on make-up and dress neatly. OMG! This is what Rina, our Minister of Women, Family & Community Development thinks is important during the #COVID19 lockdown? No tips on how to deal with #DomesticViolence? Just state DV is a crime. pic.twitter.com/FfswtPBIPH  Honey Tan (@honeyean) March 31, 2020

Faced with criticism from Malaysian All Women's Action Society, the Women's Development Department has apologised for its advisory. Instant apologies in the face of criticism over everything sexist, is the safest road people prefer to avoid criticism.

But Malaysia isnt the only country to assign the word nagging to women.

A scene from Pyaar Ka Punchnama (2011), which is touted as the best from the movie, is also at its sexist best. Every discussion with a woman is an argument, says Rajat (Kartik Aaryan). If shot in one go, Kartik Aaryan deserves credit for remembering the five-minute-plus monologue.

The scene tickles myriad men even today. It was met with loud cheers and whistles when screened in cinema halls. Thousands of kilometers away and several years later, the Malaysian government is echoing a similar sentiment. Neither inspired the other.

Such sexism finds inspiration in patriarchy that perpetuates itself through slaps, belts, punches, abuses, and even humour.

At a time when the world is dealing with a problem as big as the coronavirus, women are being told on social media to not rake up their women issues. The world is tired of hearing about them, hearing of them.

The women, it is being presumed, arent tired of dealing with them, first-hand, then second-hand.

To be told to put on makeup and not disturb the husband is a small ask when the world is making great sacrifices to fight Covid-19. Having faced domestic violence for centuries, whats the big deal if women shut up for a few more days and do their bit to mitigate the miseries of the lockdown?

It doesnt matter what they have already done, how much they have endured. It also doesnt matter if staying at home with abusive, uncooperative partners is sucking life out of their bodies.

None of it matters as long as the men are allowed to throw around wet towels, demand food every few hours, tea and coffee in between those hours. It doesnt matter if men are not helping with household chores. It doesnt matter if bored and frustrated through endless hours of sitting at home, they raise their hands on you.

Endure. If endurance begins to rebel in your gut, put on a lipstick, the brighter the better. Let the brighteness overshine your miseries.

No not retort. (Photo: Reuters)

Purse those bright lips hard, if you get the urge to retort. Do not nag. At no cost should you do that.

Also read: DailyOh! Saudi Arabia asks people to put hajj plans on hold, but where is Thai King with his 20 concubines?
Power giant NTPC and financial services major HDFC Group have committed Rs 275.5 crore and Rs 150 crore respectively to the PM-CARES Fund to support Covid-19 relief and rehabilitation measures.

"NTPC feels honoured to be a part of the contribution from the public sector undertakings which have contributed Rs 925 crore so far to the PM fund.

"Rs 11 crore are being spent additionally by NTPC for protective measures at various locations as of March 31 towards awareness and health camps for people in the vicinity," the Maharatna firm said.

Announcing the aid, HDFC Group Chairman Deepak Parekh said, "These are trying times for all of us.The group's support to the fund is to commend the exemplary efforts of the Centre and the states, the armed & paramilitary forces, the police, healthcare professionals and sanitation workers, who are working tirelessly day to fight the pandemic."



NTPC said of the Rs 257.5 crore, Rs 250 crore has been given by the company, while its employees have contributed Rs 7.5 crore as their one-day salary.

NTPC has also committed Rs 25 lakh each to the district administrations at Kawas and Jhanor in Gujarat, Solapur and Mauda in Maharashtra and Anta in Rajasthan to fight the pandemic.

Meanwhile, Toyota Kirloskar Motor announced more support to healthcare professionals and daily wagers by providing personal protective equipment kits to the medical staff and public health workforce in Karnataka.

Further, the company will distribute daily food rations and essential kits to daily wage workers through the local district administration in Ramanagara near Bengaluru.

Meanwhile, private sector financial services firm Shriram Group and logistics firm Allcargo have announced funds to fight the pandemic.

While Shriram Group has committed Rs 10 crore to the PM-CARES Fund, Allcargo has offered Rs 1 crore to the Maharashtra chief minister's relief fund.

The company will also provide food support to migrant workers and daily wagers in Maharashtra and Delhi, apart from collaborating with the Sion Hospital in Mumbai to provide assistance to doctors and paramedics.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Conakry, Guinea (PANA) - The ruling People's Rally of Guinea (RPG Rainbow) won 79 of the 114 seats in the National Assembly, according to provisional results of the March 22 legislative elections published by the National Electoral Commission (CENI) on Wednesday
Spokesperson to Nigerian Ruler, Muhammadu Buhari, Garba Shehu has urged Nigerians to disregard playwright and Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinkas reservations on the lockdown in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun states.

Shehu said Soyinkas qualifications are in English literature and not medicine or science, stating that he does not qualify to be judged as a professional on the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

The presidential aide said:

Recall that Soyinka, had questioned Buharis decision to lock down Lagos, Ogun and Abuja amid the coronavirus outbreak.

In a statement on Monday, Soyinka said Nigeria is not in a war, demanding answers on whether Buhari has such powers to declare the curfew.

In his nationwide broadcast on Sunday, the ruler announced restriction of movement in the two states and the nations capital to curb the spread of the virus.

But Soyinka asked federal lawmakers among others to intervene in the situation, saying: The worst development I can conceive is to have a situation where rational measures for the containment of the corona(virus) pandemic are rejected on account of their questionable genesis. This is a time for Unity of Purpose, not nitpicking dissensions.

The playwright added: So, before this becomes a habit, a question: does President Buhari have the powers to close down state borders? We want clear answers. We are not in a war emergency.

Appropriately focused on measures for the saving lives, and committed to making sacrifices for the preservation of our communities, we should nonetheless remain alert to any encroachment on constitutionally demarcated powers.

We need to exercise collective vigilance, and not compromise the future by submitting to interventions that are not backed by law and constitution.

A President who has been conspicuously AWOL, the Rip van Winkle of Nigerian history, is now alleged to have woken up after a prolonged siesta, and begun to issue orders.

What happens when the orders conflict with state measures, the product of a systematic containment strategy  `including even trial-and-error and hiccups  undertaken without let or leave of the centre?
Tripura CM Biplab Kumar Deb on



Thursday said that all the chief ministers who attended the video conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed that the primary task now was to control the coronavirus in 63 districts of the country.

Deb said this while talking to reporters in the state civil secretariat here after attending the video conference with prime minister.

All chief ministers have agreed that the primary duty was to control the spread of coronavirus in 63 districts of the country where the virus has been found till now.

"Its not like the entire country is affected. 63 districts of the country have been affected. Controlling the disease here is our primary task," Deb said.

He said everyone has agreed that prominent leaders of all religions would be requested to appeal to their followers to stay indoors and maintain social distancing during the lockdown.

Deb said Tripura is prepared to tackle any situation arising out of COVID-19, adding that not a single positive case has been detected in the state till now.

"Today visited GBP Hospital to check the preparedness on COVID-19. Interacted with medical officials. A mock drill has also been conducted by concerned Health staff. We are fully prepared to deal if any unwanted situation arises in Tripura following the COVID-19 pandemic, he tweeted.

Deb said the promulgation of prohibitory order in the entire state on March 13 much before the lockdown was announced and stopping of inter-state bus services helped to check the spread of COVID-19 in Tripura.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The US Navy is evacuating thousands of sailors from the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in Guam after its captain warned a coronavirus outbreak was threatening the lives of the crew. There have been 93 COVID-19 cases discovered among the 4,800-strong Roosevelt crew so far, according to the US Navy. Pentagon officials said Wednesday they were rapidly arranging hotel rooms on the Pacific island for many of the personnel, while organizing a skeleton team of uninfected sailors to keep the ship operational. "The plan at this time is to remove as many people off the Teddy Roosevelt as we can, understanding that we have to leave a certain amount of folks on-board to perform normal watch-standing duties that keep the ship running," Rear Admiral John Menoni, commander for the Marianas region, told reporters in Guam on Wednesday. Speaking in Washington, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said that almost 1,000 of the crew had been removed, and that that number would rise to 2,700 within a couple days, and more after that. But they need to retain around 1,000 on board just to maintain the vessel, as it undergoes a thorough sterilization. "We cannot and will not remove all the sailors from the ship," Modly said. "This ship has weapons on it, it has munitions on it, it has expensive aircraft, and has a nuclear power plant," he said. -'Sailors don't need to die'- Earlier this week the Roosevelt's captain Brett Crozier told his superiors that the virus was spreading uncontrollably through the ship and called for immediate help to quarantine its crew. "The spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating," Crozier wrote. "We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die." "Removing the majority of personnel from a deployed US nuclear aircraft carrier and isolating them for two weeks may seem like an extraordinary measure," Crozier said. "This is a necessary risk." As of Wednesday more than 1,400 Defense Department employees, contractors and dependents had been infected by the novel coronavirus, including 771 military personnel, the Pentagon said. - Balancing health and security - The Roosevelt's docking in Guam on March 28 left both of the Pentagon's western Pacific aircraft carriers in port, with the USS Ronald Reagan berthed in Japan, also reportedly suffering an unknown number of virus infections. Modly admitted it was a challenge for US forces' defense readiness. "Right now the Teddy Roosevelt is a frontline theater in this new battle," he said. However, he added, "If the ship needs to go, if there's a crisis, the ship can go." He stressed that the Roosevelt was the only US Navy ship out of 94 deployed at sea that had active COVID-19 cases. There were scattered cases in vessels that are not deployed, he added, but in each case only in the single digits. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said that while the military was following guidance on social distancing and sanitation, the Roosevelt's plight and the broader pandemic was not eroding the US military's war-fighting abilities. "There seems to be this narrative out there that we should just shut down the entire United States military and address the problem that way. That's not feasible," he said in the White House. "We have a mission: our mission is to protect the United States of America and our people. And so we live and work in cramped quarters, whether it's an aircraft carrier, a submarine, a tank, a bomber -- it's the nature of our business." Guam governor Lou Leon Guerrero said military officials had assured her all sailors who set foot on the island would have tested negative for the virus. She acknowledged some locals were concerned about allowing the sailors into Guam -- which has 77 confirmed COVID-19 cases, including three deaths -- but said there was a "moral obligation" to help those in need. "We ask them to go out and sacrifice their lives for our protection, they are asking us to help them get over this god-awful virus," she said. Coronavirus is spreading uncontrollably through the crew of the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier, its captain said US Defense Secretary Mark Esper says he does not see US military adversaries taking advantage of the coronavirus pandemic to threaten the United States
They then built an injection mold in the lab of Ben Terry, an associate professor of mechanical and materials engineering at UNL, allowing liquefied plastic to be shot at high pressure into the shape of a face shield.

The entire process takes about 30 seconds, Farritor said, which is slow by injection-mold standards, but will ultimately allow Innovation Studio to meet the demand in the coming days.

"The plan is by noon to be at that 1,500 units-per-day production level," Farritor said early Thursday. "We'll do that until the wheels fall off."

More shields are being printed at Kawasaki, where engineers have been running the company's 3D printer around the clock even while the plant is idled to produce a dozen per day.

Employees with their own 3D printers are also making shields to donate to area hospitals, Kawasaki said in a statement. On Thursday, the company donated 86 face shields to Bryan Health and 34 to the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

Final assembly and packaging will be done at Innovation Studio at UNL's research park before the personal protective equipment is shipped off to the health care workers who desperately need it.
Modern humans in Eurasia carry genetic material inherited from Altai Neanderthals, according to a study published in the journal Genetics. This is noteworthy because past research has shown that Neanderthals connected to a different location  the Vindija Cave in Croatia  have also contributed DNA to modern-day Eurasian populations.

Its not a single introgression of genetic material from Neanderthals, said University at Buffalos Dr. Omer Gokcumen, senior author of the study.

Its just this spider web of interactions that happen over and over again, where different ancient hominins are interacting with each other, and our paper is adding to this picture.

This project will now add to an emerging chorus  weve been looking into this phenomenon for a couple of years, and there are a couple of papers that came out recently that deal with similar concepts.

The picture in my mind now is we have all these archaic hominin populations in Europe, in Asia, in Siberia, in Africa.

For one reason or another, the ancestors of modern humans in Africa start expanding in population, and as they expand their range, they meet with these other hominins and absorb their DNA, if you will.

We probably met different Neanderthal populations at different times in our expansion into other parts of the globe.

Dr. Gokcumen and colleagues analyzed the DNA of hundreds of people of Eurasian ancestry.

The goal was to hunt for fragments of genetic material that may have been inherited from Neanderthals.

The researchers found that the Eurasian populations could trace some genetic material back to two different Neanderthal lineages: one represented by a Neanderthal whose remains were discovered in the Vindija cave in Croatia, and another represented by a Neanderthal whose remains were discovered in the Altai mountains.

They also discovered that the modern-day populations they studied also share genetic deletions  areas of DNA that are missing  with both the Vindija and Altai Neanderthal lineages.

The DNA of the Vindija and Altai Neanderthals, along with the modern human populations studied, were previously sequenced by different research teams.

It seems like the story of human evolution is not so much like at tree with branches that just grow in different directions. It turns out that the branches have all these connections between them, Dr. Gokcumen said.

We are figuring out these connections, which is really exciting. The story is not as neat as it was before. Every single ancient genome that is sequenced seems to create a completely new perspective in our understanding of human evolution, and every new genome thats sequenced in the future may completely change the story again.

_____

Ozgur Taskent et al. Analysis of Haplotypic Variation and Deletion Polymorphisms Point to Multiple Archaic Introgression Events, Including from Altai Neanderthal Lineage. Genetics, published online March 31, 2020; doi: 10.1534/genetics.120.303167
India has witnessed a sharp spike in Covid-19 cases in recent days with several cases being linked to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhis Nizamuddin. As of Thursday morning, 389 people linked to the religious conference were found positive for the novel coronavirus. The event was attended by several foreigners who later dispersed across India.

News18 takes a look at the number foreigners engaged in Tabilighi Jamaat works in India and examines India's screening strategy prior to the event.

How many foreigners attended the event and from how many nations?

An estimated 2,000 foreigners from 70 countries were in India in connection with the Tablighi Jamaat as per an internal advisory of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) which was accessed by CNN-News18. Majority of these foreigners belong to Bangladesh (493), followed by Indonesia (472), Malaysia (150) and Thailand (142). People also came from Kyrgyzstan, Belgium, Tunisia, Sri Lanka and Myanmar. Their period of stay in India is up to six months, as per the MHA advisory and they were in India on a tourist visa.

How many of them travelled for Tablighi Jamaat activities outside Delhi?

According to a note released by the MHA on March 31, Tablighi activists, both foreigners as well Indians, carried out Tabligh works (Chilla) across the country throughout the year. All such foreign nationals normally report their arrival at Alami Markaz Banglewali Mosque in Hazrat Nizamuddin in New Delhi. From there, they travel to different states for Chilla activities. As many as 824 foreigners had been, as on March 21, carrying out Chilla activities in various parts of the country, according to the home ministry.

These 824 foreigners were present across Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, Rajasthan Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Telangana.

What was India's screening strategy when the congregation met in Nizamuddin and prior to the event?

Questions have been raised as to why these foreigners were not screened or quarantined despite the Covid-19 outbreak in China and southeast Asian countries being widely reported. Specific information on when these Tablighi affiliates entered the country was not available with News18, but the Nizamuddin event was conducted between March 10 and 13 so the affiliates arrived in India before March 9.

In a note it released on March 31, the home ministry said the Bureau of Immigration has been sharing (since February 1) with state authorities details of all international arrivals from affected countries based on a self-declaration form. However, India began universal screening only from March 5.

What were the travel advisories issued by the central government?

India began issuing travel advisories from January 17 to alert Indians about the coronavirus risk. An analysis of all travel advisories issued and made public by the government showed that until February 26, nearly a month after the first Covid-19 case was detected in India, all advisories pertain only to China.

Also, until March 3, seven days before the Nizamuddin event, the government had not issued any travel advisory asking for screening of travellers (Indian and foreigners) coming from United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and EU countries other than Italy.

It is noteworthy because between February 27 and March 1, a Tablighi Jamaat event similar to the one in Delhi was conducted in Malaysia and the country saw a spike in cases following that event. The Indian government has not clarified if Indians and foreigners who may have been present at the Malaysian event also participated in the Delhi conference.

Between January 17 and January 25, all advisories merely alerted travellers going to China about the novel coronavirus and issued guidelines to be followed with regards to hygiene and maintaining distance. The first advisory asking Indians to refrain from going to China and mentioning quarantine for those returning from China was issued on February 5, six days after India's first Covid-19 case in Kerala.

On February 26, Indian citizens were further advised to refrain from non-essential travel to Singapore, South Korea, Iran and Italy. People coming from South Korea, Iran and Italy or those with a history of travel to these countries may be quarantined for 14 days on arrival to India, the advisory had said. Japan was added to this list in an advisory issued on March 2.

On March 3, the government suspended, with immediate effect, visas granted to nationals of Italy, Iran, South Korea, Japan and issued on or before March 3. On March 10, travellers coming from France, Spain and Germany were put on airport screening lists and an advisory asked them to self-quarantine.

It was only on March 16 that the government extended quarantine advisory to travellers coming from UAE, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait and on March 17, travel of passengers from Afghanistan, Philippines and Malaysia to India was prohibited with immediate effect.

On March 19, all international flights were grounded.

What is the importance of containment (screening) and mitigation (quarantine)?

India adopted screening, quarantine and lockdown measures to break what ICMR scientists called the chain of transmission of the novel coronavirus. However, in January and February when the outbreak had not affected India in large numbers, the focus of Indias strategy was on closing borders and airport screening. Indian officials have said in the past that the advisories and screening measures were based on how the epicentre of the Covid-19 outbreak was shifting, from China to Iran and then to Italy.

An Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) paper had found that if symptomatic arrivals alone were screened, the epidemic could be delayed only by a maximum of 47 days. The paper had concluded that quarantine & isolation was the best bet.

An optimistic scenario to reduce cases was to quarantine 50% of symptomatic cases within three days of developing symptoms. This would reduce the cumulative incidence by 62% and the peak prevalence by 89%, the paper said. As a consequence, the intervention has the effect of flattening the epidemic curve and will distribute the cases over a longer duration and reduce cumulative incidence by 62 per cent, the paper added.

With inputs from Arunima, CNN-News18
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 00:09:46|Editor: huaxia

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CHENGDU, April 1 (Xinhua) -- A 5.6-magnitude earthquake hit Shiqu County in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Garze, southwest China's Sichuan Province, at 8:23 p.m. Wednesday Beijing Time, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

Qin Liuxin, deputy head of the emergency management bureau of Shiqu, said no casualties or collapsing houses were reported, and power and communication were not interrupted. Officials have been dispatched to evaluate the situations in villages and townships.

A citizen living in Shiqu told Xinhua over the phone that mild tremors were felt and the ceiling lamps were gently shaking during the quake.

The quake struck at a depth of 10 km. The local government said the epicenter is sparsely populated and has an average elevation of 4,661 meters in the surrounding areas.

The epicenter is 77 km from Shiqu, and 559 km from Chengdu, the provincial capital. The road transportation bureau of Garze said local traffic was not affected by the quake.

The provincial emergency management department has initiated a third-level emergency response and sent a working team to guide relief efforts in the affected area.
The houses Levi Rodgers rents out on Airbnb were usually packed with parents and siblings of Air Force recruits, in town to celebrate their loved ones graduation from basic training.

Thousands of family members and friends attended the ceremonies, held most weeks of the year at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland. But to prevent the coronavirus from spreading, officials recently suspended family gatherings at the graduations.

The cancellations started immediately, said Rodgers, a retired Green Beret and Purple Heart recipient who owns a local real estate company. Reservations for April evaporated.

The income has come to a screeching halt, he said.

Rodgers plans to hang on until the end of April and decide what to do with the houses after that. In the meantime, hes offering the space to first responders and medical personnel.

We were booking at 90 to 95 percent occupancy (before the outbreak), he said. It completely fell off.

On ExpressNews.com: As more evacuees arrive in San Antonio, Air Force tells families not to attend Lackland graduations because of coronavirus risk

The pandemic has upended the lodging industry in San Antonio. Flights have been canceled, tourism attractions shuttered, restaurant dining rooms closed and locals ordered to stay home.

As a result, hotels have shut down and laid off or furloughed hundreds of workers, and properties that remain open are operating with skeleton crews.

The economic slowdown has also punished companies such as Airbnb, Vrbo and HomeAway, with travelers scrapping reservations at short-term rentals listed on the platforms. The outbreak thwarted San Francisco-based Airbnbs plans to go public this year.

In San Antonio, there are 2,165 short-term rentals registered with the city. Owners who rent out properties to supplement their income have seen their revenue dry up.

Some hosts were also frustrated after Airbnb overrode their cancellation policies, which provided for partial compensation in some cases, and refunded guests in full. This week, the company announced it would give $250 million to aid hosts affected by the pandemic.

When the World Health Organization declared a pandemic, we were faced with a dilemma. If we allowed guests to cancel and receive a refund, we knew it could have significant consequences on your livelihood, said Brian Chesky, Airbnbs co-founder, CEO and head of community. But we couldnt have guests and hosts feel pressured to put themselves into unsafe situations and create an additional public health hazard.

We determined that we had to allow your guests to cancel and receive a full refund  including all our fees. Please know this decision was not a business decision, but based on protecting public health, Chesky added. However, while I believe we did the right thing in prioritizing health and safety, Im sorry that we communicated this decision to guests without consulting youlike partners should.

On ExpressNews.com: Two historic San Antonio hotels closing temporarily

Eric Perez, who rents out five properties near downtown San Antonio, said bookings have plummeted since the outbreak began. Taxes and other bills are looming.

Its quite a burden to carry five mortgages, he said.

Perez, who works in health care, started using Airbnb a few years ago as a side gig. But revenue from the rentals now comprises more than half his income, he said.

The loss of bookings also means the housekeepers he hired to clean the properties arent working. For now, Perez said he plans to hold onto the houses and try to weather the loss of business.

When Kelly Martinez and her husband started renting out a house in Alta Vista on Airbnb in December, little did they know a pandemic would begin months later.

Martinez used to work as a travel guidebook editor and enjoys visiting new places. She created an electronic guide highlighting local coffee shops, restaurants and attractions for guests staying at the house.

We were doing great up until the end of February, Martinez said. Then boom, boom, boom  everyone canceled. Business has completely dried up.

Along with the mortgage, there are also utilities to pay for and loans they took out to furnish the house, she said. But its a tough time for everyone.

This is a lot extra, she said. Its disappointing that all this happened, but I realize everybodys struggling.

madison.iszler@express-news.net
A nurse strangled his doctor girlfriend before telling police officers that he unleashed the attack because she gave him Covid-19, prosecutors say.

Student doctor Lorena Quaranta, 27, was found dead after her boyfriend Antonio De Pace allegedly called them to say he had killed her.

Both had been working in Messina, Sicily, but were drafted in to help out with the coronavirus outbreak.

Lorena will be awarded her medical degree posthumously as a tribute, Messina University says.

Antonio De Pace, left, reportedly told police he killed Lorena Quaranta because she gave him coronavirus

De Pace, 28, called officers in the early hours of Tuesday to tell them that he had murdered his partner, according to reports in Italy.

Police then called paramedics because they found De Pace had cut his wrists and discovered him on the floor of the apartment, officers said.

He was saved by Lorena's colleagues at the hospital and stunned police say he then told them: 'I killed her because she gave me coronavirus.'

However, nothing could be done to save Lorena, sparking a murder probe by the Messina prosecutor.

Authorities are doubtful about De Pace's story. Early indications from testing carried out last night suggest that neither he nor his girlfriend had the virus.

One report by Zoom24 said a swab test had come back negative yesterday.

De Pace has already been the target of a barrage of social media anger since the news of his girlfriend's death emerged.

Lorena Quaranta was allegedly killed by her student nurse lover

Just two weeks ago De Pace wrote, 'To reach our dreams you have to work hard with determination and you are proof' in tribute to Lorena passing exams

CORONAVIRUS KILLS SIX NUNS AGED 82 TO 98 AT CONVENT Six elderly nuns from the same Italian convent have died from coronavirus while another nine are in hospital after being infected. Maria Annetta Ribet, 85, was the latest to die at a hospital in the commune of Tortona, in Italy's hard-hit north, on March 27. An outbreak at Little Missionary Sisters of Charity was first reported on March 12, with 19 of the 40 nuns living there testing positive for coronavirus. The sick were evacuated to be treated at hospital, while two sisters stayed behind to care for six others who did not have symptoms but have other health issues, the Catholic Herald reported. The remaining nuns were placed under quarantine in a separate facility in case they develop symptoms. The victims range in age from 82 to 98, with the first death reported on March 15. Advertisement

Lorena had posted just days before her tragic death about 41 Italian doctors dying during the pandemic.

Linking to a news report on the deaths that have hit Italy due to a lack of personal protective equipment, she branded the situation 'unacceptable'.

'Now more than ever we need to demonstrate responsibility and love for life. You must show respect for yourselves, your families and the country,' she wrote.

'You must think and remember those that dedicate their lives daily to looking after our sick.

'Let's stick together everyone staying at home. Let's avoid the next one falling sick is a loved one or ourselves.'

The 27-year-old was originally from Favara in Sicily, but the couple had lived together for the last few months in Messina where she died, Italian media says.

Salvatore Cuzzocrea, the dean of Messina University, told Giornale di Sicilia that Lorena would be awarded her medical degree posthumously as a tribute.

Cuzzocrea said he would speak to the family about how to hand over the degree, saying it was a difficult time for Lorena's relatives.

De Pace, who is originally from Vibo Valentia in Calabria, had just weeks ago posted a tribute to his girlfriend ahead of her expected graduation.

He wrote: 'To reach our dreams you have to work hard with determination and you are proof.

'I wish you to keep chasing your dreams, always live the life you always imagined. Well done! Congratulations on your brilliant graduation doctor.'

Italy sees number of deaths rise by its lowest in almost a week - 727 - but number of new infections sees sharp spike with 4,782 new cases

Italy's coronavirus death toll has risen by 727 today, the lowest daily rise since March 26.

The country's total death toll now sits at 13,155, the Civil Protection Agency revealed, with today's increase significantly smaller than Tuesday's.

The percentage rise in daily deaths in Italy - 5.8 per cent - is also the lowest since the crisis began in the country.

However, the number of new cases rose more sharply than a day earlier, growing by 4,782 against a previous 4,053, bringing total infections since the outbreak began to 110,574.

In Lombardy, the epicentre of the outbreak, the daily tallies of deaths and cases were both up compared with those the day before, reversing the recent trend.

Italy has registered more deaths than anywhere else in the world and accounts for around 30 per cent of all global fatalities from the virus.

A graph showing Italy's daily death figures going up until April 1

A graph showing Italy's daily infection figures up until April 1

Italian army doctors work in the intensive care at Celio Military Polyclinic Hospital in Rome

Italian soldiers and law enforcement officers carry out controls during the country's lockdown near Milan, in the hardest-hit north

Health workers collect swabs to conduct tests on motorists for coronavirus disease at a drive-through centre near Rome

Italy's largest daily toll from the epidemic was registered last Friday, when 919 people died.

There were 889 deaths on Saturday, 756 on Sunday, 812 on Monday and 837 on Tuesday.

Of those originally infected nationwide, 16,847 had fully recovered on Wednesday, compared to 15,729 the day before. There were 4,035 people in intensive care, up from a previous 4,023.

Meanwhile, critics warn the Italian government is falling seriously behind on strategies to lift the punishing nationwide lockdown and reboot the economy.

Poverty and unemployment numbers are already skyrocketing and analysts have warned the eurozone's third-largest economy will suffer its worst recession in decades, contracting six percent in 2020 should the lockdown last through to May.

'It's horrible to have to choose between putting the economy in a corner or exposing many people to the risk of dying,' US expert Paul Romer told Italy's Fatto Quotidiano daily Wednesday.

The government needs 'a credible plan to revoke the shutdown very soon, while guaranteeing the safety of workers even if the virus is still present,' said the co-winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize for Economics.

The torrent of Italian death data reveals that the region around Milan with a population of 10 million reported almost as many coronavirus fatalities in March as it would normally have done from all other causes.

The Mediterranean country of 60 million people is living through its worst disaster since World War II.

It registered 12,399 COVID-19 related deaths last month - thousands more than officially reported by any other country.

But the tolls being read out daily by health officials in Rome can often seem hard to quantify.

The civil protection service disclosed a record 969 deaths for last Friday.

Italian Army doctors work in a tent set up for triage operations at Celio Military Polyclinic Hospital in Rome

Italian officials acknowledge that their coronavirus data are incomplete with deaths from COVID-19 related causes outside hospitals often not counted.

The number of people who died after catching the virus without ever being tested is unknown.

So is the number of people who died of other causes because they could not get treatment from hospitals dealing with a ceaseless flow of COVID-19 patients.

Some newspapers are asking why jumps in March deaths reported individually by some cities do not appear to be reflected in the national tally.

'The death count does not add up,' the Il Fatto Quotidiano said Wednesday.
Legislation offering relief to workers and employers suffering economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic was signed by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear on Monday.

The bill was put on the fast track by lawmakers last week as the Bluegrass State deals with rising numbers of coronavirus cases and deaths linked to the illness.

The Democratic governor thanked the Republican-led legislature for its quick action. The legislation reinforces many of the emergency actions already taken by his administration, Beshear said.

The relief bill comes amid a dramatically shrinking economy as businesses statewide are closed or scale back operations and tens of thousands more Kentuckians file for unemployment benefits.

The virus-relief bill has several layers to it but it includes putting relaxed access to unemployment insurance into law. It waives the seven-day waiting period for Kentucky residents to access unemployment benefits. It also extends benefits to the self-employed and others normally ineligible for assistance. And it allows workers cut back to part-time status to draw a partial benefit.

The bill also allows state licensing, renewal and application fees and administrative requirements to be waived for people or businesses. It also prevents a business owners unemployment insurance rate from being impacted by layoffs due to the virus.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics COVID-19 Legislation Commercial Lines Business Insurance Kentucky
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Heartbroken dad Andrew McGinley has released a short movie his sons had been working on before their deaths.

Conor (9), Darragh (7) and three-year-old Carla McGinley were found dead at an address in Parsons Court, Dublin, on January 24.

Their mother, Deirdre Morley, has been charged with their murders, but has been too unwell to attend court.

In recent weeks, Mr McGinley has been keeping the memory of his children alive by posting videos of them on YouTube.

Lego

In his latest upload, he shared a video of Conor and Darragh experimenting with the camera and using film techniques with Lego.

Expand Close Mr McGinley has received many letters after revealing he was struggling with lockdown isolation / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Mr McGinley has received many letters after revealing he was struggling with lockdown isolation

"Before they filmed their movie with Lego, Conor and Darragh had to learn to use the camera, and I bring you their pilot which features Patrick from Sponge Bob working in a Pizza Place," he tweeted.

"If you have an old camcorder or phone, getting the kids to make home movies will occupy plenty of their time.

"This pilot was the rehearsal for their movie with Lego, and then we didn't see them for a whole week while they filmed."

Mr McGinley received nearly 1,000 letters after he revealed he was struggling with being isolated during the coronavirus lockdown.

"If you want something to do, or to give your kids something to do, then I'd be delighted to get cards or letters about anything," he said.

"I'm struggling with isolation like you all, but really missing the company. I was also enjoying most of the letters that I received, so I have a request.

Humbled

"Can you write to me? If you feel like using one of your An Post postcards, great. Letters welcome."

He has since posted a photo of two containers full of letters and postcards that he received.

He even won 10 on a scratch card that one woman sent him.

"I'm humbled by the letters I have received from hospital and medical staff who thought to write. The delay in posting was caused by me trying to read the doctors' writing," he joked.
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Amid the ongoing 21-day lockdown, the churches in Odisha's tribal-dominated Koraput district are live-streaming masses to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

"Adhering to the government guidelines on maintaining social distancing, people have been barred from coming to churches," the bishop of Jeypore Evangelical Lutheran Church (JELC), Asish Paul, said.

According to the bishop, the 45-minute prayers on Sundays and Wednesdays are being live-streamed and people are attending the online masses from home.

Churchgoers have expressed their happiness at the arrangements.

Around 500 churches function under the JELC in Koraput, Rayagada, Malkangiri and Nabarangpur districts, sources said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BJP president J P Nadda on Thursday slammed Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's criticism of the lockdown as "insensitive and indecent", saying this is not the time for when the entire country is fighting the coronavirus unitedly under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership.

Nadda said Modi is taking along all state governments to lead the fight of "team India" against the pandemic and asked the Congress to play the role of a responsible political party in this difficult time.

The Indian government's efforts are being praised across the world, he tweeted.

"The entire country is today fighting against COVID-19 unitedly under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At such a time, Congress president Sonia Gandhi's statement is insensitive and indecent. This is not the time for but to serve the nation unitedly," Nadda said.

Top Congress leaders on Thursday discussed the situation arising out of the coronavirus outbreak, with party chief Sonia Gandhi criticising the Centre for "unplanned" implementation of the lockdown and calling for "solidarity" in meeting the challenge posed by the pandemic.

"The 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India," she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Europe's top court ruled on Thursday (April 2) that Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic had broken the law by refusing to host refugees to help ease the burden on southern states after a surge in migrant arrivals from 2015.

The governments of each state cited national security reasons in refusing to take in any refugees and migrants who had fled the Middle East and North Africa.

Italy and Greece complained about the lack of European solidarity as they struggled with mass arrivals, overwhelming their security and welfare systems.

Germany also criticized the east for refusing to help while continuing to benefit from generous EU financial aid.

European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen, says it's a significant ruling.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT, URSULA VON DER LEYEN, SAYING:

"All member states were required to participate in a temporary relocation scheme. Hungary, Poland and Czechia did not and today the court found that, as a consequence, they did not fulfil their obligations. This ruling is important. It is referring to the past but it will give us guidance to the future."

The EU has since cracked down on immigration since 2015, fortifying its external borders and offering support to countries including Turkey to help prevent migrants from heading to Europe.

The three states face no immediate penalty.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday said all the CMs had a positive discussion with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of combating coronavirus.

The chief minister said all governments are working as a team in dealing with the COVID-19 spread.

The prime minister on Thursday held a meeting with the chief ministers of different states via video conference to take stock of the situation in the aftermath of the COVID-19 outbreak.

"All the chief ministers had a positive discussion with the prime minister. All governments are working as a team.

"I sincerely hope that with the strength of this solidarity, we will soon be able to defeat coronavirus," Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

The number of coronavirus cases went up to nearly 300 in Delhi on Thursday, with 141 fresh cases and two deaths reported in a day.

According to the health department, the total number of 293 cases includes 182 people who took part in a religious congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area last month.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
02.04.2020 LISTEN

Changing World

We are living in strange times, very strange times indeed. It has been reported that a group of Mexican protesters have shut a US Southern Border crossing amid fears that untested American travellers will spread coronavirus. Let me quote from the BBC Website: Residents in Sonora a border town in Southern Mexicowore face masks and held signs telling Americans to stay home. Hey, folks who would have thought a month ago that this deadly virus would create an invisible wall more dangerous than the visible wall being built by the USA to protect itself from illegal migrants. Something is changing.

Coronavirus seems to have changed all the normal rules, laws, regulations and norms controlling our daily lives. My little world, was completely turned upside down when I was instructed by the care providers of my old mum in Manchester, United Kingdom to stay home for the next 4 weeks and care for my mum as they had staffing problems. This directive was totally out of the blue and made me realised the contagion effect of this virus.

United as One Nation

Anyway, back to my beloved country Ghana. First, we need to express our appreciation and thanks to our Government and our President His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo Addo for working in tandem with state institutions, the traditional authority and ordinary folks in his efforts to come to grips with this deadly pandemic.

At this critical time when almost a quarter of the worlds population is in lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, it is pleasing and extremely gratifying to see our country coming together as one nation

More satisfying, is the constant harping on by our traditional authority, encouraging everyone to listen and follow the advice of our Government. It is therefore encouraging to see the President of the National House of Chiefs(NHoC) adding his voice to the call for all and sundry to obey the instructions of the Central Government and leading by example.

It was heartening and unifying to listen to the advice of the President of the (NHoC) when donating Ghc100,000 and 2,200 hand sanitizers to two hospitals and communities in the Volta Region. It must not be business as usual. Let us be each others keeper. Lets show love. We have done enough politics. Its time we come together and be each others keeper. What a wonderful and unifying advice. Thanks.

Lockdown

Now to the effect and consequences of the deadly virus. First, His Excellency the President Nana Addo Dankwah Akuffo Addo was right to announce a lockdown in some specific areas of the country based on the advice given to him by his scientific and medical advisers. By the way the lockdown towns include my hometown of Nkawie.

My advice to my folks at Nkawie  Please stay indoors. It is also appropriate and proper that the army has been called upon to help enforce the decision of the Government- Thanks Your Excellency.

Realities on the Ground Must Determine the Actions of the Military

When I am in Ghana, I live in Zenu, - Ashiaman and I can confidently say on empirical evidence that a minority, possibly a majority of the people in Ashiaman will struggle to comply with a total lockdown if even authorised by Adolf Hitler.

The realities on the ground in some of the communities being asked to lockdown is dire and miserable.

Practical Difficulties.

Let us take a suburb like Ashiaman as an example. It shares the characteristics of most shanty and urban towns. For readers who do not know Ashiaman, it is a shanty town near Tema in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana.

It can be described as a melting pot of diverse cultures, ethnic groups and people of all backgrounds co-existing in the harsh reality of a metropolitan slum. Residents of Ashiaman are made up of almost all the tribes in Ghana, including some foreigners. Ashiaman is home to more than 500,000 people (officially) maybe the figure is around (700,000). The area has nonexistent good quality roads, squalid housing, poor drainage systems and brutally under resourced education and healthcare facilities.

It is well known for its notoriety and other forms of social vices. There is high unemployment, literacy, poverty and a lot of disillusioned and disaffected young men making it a fertile ground for recruiting the young into criminality. It is estimated that more than 60% of houses in Ashiaman have no running water, and many residents have no in - house public toilet facilities. These are the realities facing many communities.

How on earth are residents of Ashiaman going to ease themselves?

Where would they secure clean affordable drinking and washing water?

How are they going to stock up on foodstuffs when the average daily incomes are just sufficient for a days shopping?

Inevitably, one or two good decent folks may walk the thin line.

My Direct Plea to the General Officer Commanding the Ghana Armed Forces.

Lieutenant General Obed Akwa, I am fully aware that we have stubborn, church leaders, idiotic funeral contractors, gun-ho individuals and outright foolish gangsters who would try and test the will and resolve of your soldiers.

But on the whole the majority of our folks are peace loving people and deserve compassion and understanding. You must also be aware that despite the high integrity, dedication and commitment of your men/women years of military rule and some unfortunate incidents has led to some Ghanaians questioning the professionalism of the Army and tagging them as gang leaders of brutalization. Others see your men/women in uniform as bullies in arms.

Undoubtedly Sir, that is not the truth but it is very difficult to erase old memories from the minds of Ghanaians. Most of us who have had the privilege to be a tommy before knows the pride and honour of getting into that uniform.

Also, the majority of Ghanaian soldiers are fair- minded, hardworking and nationalistic. Indeed, in January this year the state of Israel named a street after the late Major General Francis Vib- Sanziri a great honour to all of us.

Sir, this may be the right time for the Ghanaian Army to prove to the civilian population that we are on your side. Maybe, the time to enhance the reputation of your service among the civilian population. Sir, please do not let your men act ate-up.

Sir by all means, your men/women should not spare the idiots who flagrantly disobey the rules putting the lives of the rest of community in danger?

They should not give an iota of inch to the demonized and fake pastors or the arrogant funeral directors hell bent on breaking the regulations imposed by His Excellency the President.

They should not allow young hooligans keenly interested in congregating and indulging in stupidity to spread the virus

However, they should and must act with compassion, generosity, and kindness to our mothers, aunties, brothers and the poor folks who may genuinely fell foul of the lockdown rules.

Dont Blame the Poor.

Let us all bear in mind, that the inability of some of the slum dwellers or even town folks in Nkawie (my hometown) to obey the regulations and rules is due to the inaction of successive governments to provide welfare goods. The failure by Governments of all shades of color and opinion to invest in basic infrastructure, human resources, welfare and social goods, boreholes, in house toilets, affordable low cost housing, local transportation systems, rudimentary education facilities have created a huge infrastructural deficit in all public services provision.

This disgraceful, shameful and institutional neglect of poor rural/urban areas by successive governments have led us to this pitiable state of affairs where families have to queue for hours to use public toilets.

Most of those residing in rural and urban poverty still live in filth, squalor and degradation, daily humiliated, maltreated and dehumanize.

Conclusion- Is Coronavirus a Game Changer?

I pray to the Almighty God that maybe, just maybe, coronavirus have tipped the balance in favour of the wretched of the earth both in sub- Sahara Africa and the entire universe. Maybe, for the first time we are learning to be each others keeper.

Hopefully, sub-Sahara Africa leaders have learned 3 bitter lessons.

First, all Governments have a moral, social and economic duty to improve the basic living standards of their citizens. CO-VID 19 is a levelling virus no respecter of status.

Second, that flying over to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota (USA), Singapore General Hospital, Lausanne University Hospital (Switzerland), Sheba Medical Center Tel Aviv (Israel), St Thomas Hospital (United Kingdom,) University Hospital of Bordeaux (France) is not an option for any sub-Sahara Africa leader.

Sadly, the Western World have closed the shutters- Nowhere to escape.

The last and bitterest lesson of them all is Brighten the Corner where you are. There is a very good Akan saying If the back of your teeth does not taste nice it is the only place that you would lick
Younan's untitled painting sold for GBP 93,750 in the recent Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern auction

Egyptian artist Ramses Younan's untitled painting (created in approximately 1935) sold for GBP 93,750 in the recent Modern and Contemporary Middle Eastern, the first-ever Sotheby's auction held only online on 31 March 2020 in London, UK.

The sale exceeds the estimate set for Younan's oil on canvas (50 by 37.4 cm), which was GBP 50,000 - 70,000

For the past few years, the painting had been exhibited in several renowned museums, including Centre Pompidou (Paris, France); Kunst Sammlung (Dusseldorf, Germany); Museo Reina Sofia (Madrid, Spain); Liverpool, and Tate Liverpool (UK). It also took part in Stockholm's Moderna Museet's exhibition titled "Art et Liberte: Rupture, War and Surrealism in Egypt (1938-1948).

Younan (1913-1966) was one of the most renowned Egyptian painters, and a representative of the Egyptian surrealist movement.

Younan's work has been considered among the auctions' highlights, while several of Younan's paintings were sold at Sotheby's auctions, with the highest price for the artist given to another untitled work sold for $137,500 in 2015.

In its first auction held online, Sotheby reports that the participating buyers hailed from 23 countries, with half of the activity attributed to the buyers from the Middle East.

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety has issued guidelines for construction during the pandemic. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

The virus that has spread across the globe has put Kevin Contreras out of work as a security guard, cut the hours that his mother Gloria works cleaning houses, and cooped up their family of four in their one-bedroom apartment in Echo Park.

But for the crews renovating vacant units at their apartment complex, "it's like it hasn't affected them," Contreras said, complaining of dust, noise and workers streaming into the building.

Under a state order, construction workers have been deemed essential during the COVID-19 pandemic, along with plumbers, electricians and others who maintain homes and keep construction sites humming. New houses and buildings are continuing to rise in L.A. neighborhoods during the crisis  work that officials argue is needed to tackle the housing crisis.

Some tenants have been alarmed, however, that hammering and drilling has also continued inside existing buildings as vacant apartments are renovated. Many worry not only about themselves but the safety of construction workers, questioning why such renovations are still being permitted to proceed.

"If it's empty units you're going to profit off of," Contreras said, "I don't see that as essential."

Contreras said their water has been shut off repeatedly for much of the day, making it impossible to scrub their hands clean or shower. White dust has forced them to close their windows, his mother said. And so many workers are coming in and out of the building, Contreras said, that they worry about stepping outside.

"We're basically in jail in our apartment," the 30-year-old said.

Representatives of TriWest Development, identified as the owner of the property by the real estate data provider CoStar, did not respond to messages seeking comment.

The housing department said Wednesday that renovating vacant units is still permitted, provided that it does not turn off utilities in occupied apartments, cause excessive dust or noise, or involve "extensively invasive" interior work such as removing walls. The department said it is fielding complaints about such issues and will order work to stop if needed.

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Such work, ordinarily a headache for neighbors, has become a much bigger frustration as more residents remain in their apartments during the day. In reaction to questions about building renovations during the pandemic, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has warned that city inspectors will be checking to make sure people are at least six feet apart. New guidelines released Tuesday require construction sites to create plans for preventing COVID-19 exposure.

"We will not be shy about shutting down construction sites that do not comply," Garcetti said Tuesday.

Some renters have questioned why renovation work is continuing during the crisis. "It's not like they're making lower-income housing," said Los Feliz resident Jackie Gonzalez-Durruthy. "They're renovating and flipping units to hike up the rent and continue gentrifying this neighborhood."

Gonzalez-Durruthy said that drilling and hammering in empty units in her building has made it impossible for her husband, whose job involves recording videos, to do that work until crews wrap up. At one point, their water was shut off for several hours to repair a pipe. A property manager for the Los Feliz building declined to comment.

Elena Popp, executive director of the Eviction Defense Network, said that disruptive construction can be a deliberate tactic to get tenants to move. Such "eviction by jackhammer" practices could be even more pernicious when people are stuck at home, Popp said.

"People are at home and their nerves are already completely frayed. Not being able to escape the noise is causing even greater amounts of stress for those that are going through it," Popp said.

Daniel Yukelson, executive director of the Apartment Assn. of Greater Los Angeles, said that major renovations seem to have slowed, not accelerated, during the pandemic because it is harder for landlords to find contractors to do the work. His association has advised landlords to delay "routine maintenance" when possible and "take care of emergencies first."

But tenants who hear drilling "often do not know the difference between a minor unit rehab and a major renovation," Yukelson said. With so many people at home, "any noise may be considered bothersome."

In Westlake, Alexis Lewis knows she is lucky to still be working from home during the coronavirus crisis, taking phone calls and video chats for her marketing job. But Lewis said the dust and the din from work in the vacant apartment next door were grating on her nerves  and "honestly I'm losing it."

At one point, she said, she had to close her windows to keep dust from streaming into her home. "When there's a respiratory illness going around, it seems really counterproductive," Lewis said.

A building representative says the work is needed: Brian Massie, a principal in the company that owns the Westlake property, said the only apartments that had been undergoing work there were units that had been "pre-leased" to people already expecting to move into the building, ensuring they were ready to be turned over to tenants.

"We've already committed to providing that housing for those future residents," Massie said. "Once those units have been completed, renovations will cease indefinitely until such time we deem it safe and appropriate to continue."

Massie added that they were "taking every possible precaution to prevent noise and dust and disturbance to the residents who we know need to stay at home," including equipping workers with face masks and gloves and taping off doors and windows to limit dust. "We care about our residents."







Some tenants have also raised concerns about new construction, questioning if it is truly essential at this time. In Koreatown, Sae Hee "Keshy" Jeong has been aggravated by the work proceeding on a site overlooked by their window.

"I can't escape the noise. I can't escape the dust. I'm home all day. I can't focus on anything," said Jeong, who said they are at higher risk during the COVID-19 pandemic because of a childhood illness that affected their lungs.

Jeong wants construction to be halted and the workers to get paid leave. At one point, the 23-year-old Cal State L.A. student staged a protest outside the site.

Other parts of California have put stiffer restrictions on construction. In Santa Clara County, construction is only allowed to continue if it falls into eight specific categories, including building affordable housing or crucial infrastructure or doing repairs needed to ensure that residences are "safe, sanitary, or habitable." San Francisco advises on its website that if a remodeling project is "purely cosmetic and can be safely delayed, it may not continue."
New Delhi : Even as the Delhi Police was evacuating hundreds of people from Tablighi group's international headquarters Nizamuddin Markaz, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval visited the southwest Delhi area to take stock of the situation.

According to Delhi Police sources, Doval arrived around 2 am on March 28 and 29 night at the Markaz and interacted with police officials involved in evacuation.

The source said that Doval convinced Tablighi group leader Maulana Saad to get all stuck persons tested for coronavirus infection and quarantine.

According to the sources, the NSA chief knew about the situation building up since the security agencies had tracked down nine corona positive Indonesians in Telangana's Karimnagar with travel history to the Markaz on March 18.

Doval's visit to Nizamuddin area came after the intervention of Home Minister Amit Shah, the sources added.

The sources claimed that Doval spoke to Markaz officials and appealed them to held the administration tackle the spread of novel coronavirus.

The NSA also spoke to Police Commissioner S.N. Shrivatsava and took updates on the situation.

The Tablighi Jamaat found itself in the eye of a storm for holding a religious programme during prohibitory orders issued amid the coronavirus scare in the country.

The Markaz has since been evacuated by authorities and evacuees sent into quarantine as 24 of them have tested positive for coronovirus till late Tuesday night.

The Delhi Police registered a case against Maulana Saad, who led the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi and others on charges of violating government orders and exposing many persons to the threat of coronavirus.

Maulana Saad and others members of the Tablighi Jamaat have been booked under the Epidemic Disease Act, 1897 and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.

The government had directed for restrictions on social, political and religious gatherings and safety measures, including social distancing, for prevention and treatment of corona cases.

Delhi Police Crime Branch filed the FIR under Section 3 (penalty for offence) of the Epidemic Disease Act, 1897 and Sections 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease), 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease), 271 (disobedience to quarantine rule) and 120b (punishment of criminal conspiracy) of the IPC.

Maulana Saad, Dr Zeeshan, Mufti Shehzad, M. Saifi, Younus, and Mohd Salman have been named in the FIR. Police has since traced Maulana Saad's house in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar district.

Around 2,100 persons were stuck in the Markaz and it took five days to evacuate the place, the sources said.
The World Bank has granted $1 billion emergency funding to India for strengthening infrastructure to contain coronavirus. These funds are meant to develop the machinery required for fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

The first group of projects, amounting to $1.9 billion, will assist 25 countries, and new operations are moving forward in over 40 countries, World Bank said in statement on Thursday. Efforts are being made to redeploy resources in existing World Bank financed projects worth $1.7 billion. The World Bank said it is ready to infuse $160 billion over the next 15 months that will help address immediate health consequences of the coronavirus pandemic and bolster economic recovery.

"This fast action to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and we already have health response operations moving forward in over 65 countries," said World Bank Group President David Malpass. "We are working to strengthen developing nations' ability to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and shorten the time to economic and social recovery. The poorest and most vulnerable countries will likely be hit the hardest, and our teams around the world remain focused on country-level and regional solutions to address the ongoing crisis."

World Bank said there will be a strong poverty focus in these operations, with an emphasis on policy-based financing, and protecting the poorest households and the environment. The broader economic program will aim to shorten the time to recovery, create conditions for growth, support small and medium enterprises, and help protect the poor and vulnerable, it added.

Out of the 25 countries, India has received the biggest grant at $1 billion. "In India, $1 billion emergency financing will support better screening, contact tracing, and laboratory diagnostics; procure personal protective equipment; and set up new isolation wards," World Bank said.

The World Bank granted $200 million to Pakistan, which will support its "preparedness and emergency response in the health sector and include social protection and education measures to help the poor and vulnerable cope with the immediate impacts of the pandemic". Emergency financing of $100 million went to Afghanistan help the country check the spread of COVID-19 through enhanced detection, surveillance, and laboratory systems, as well as stronger essential health care delivery and intensive care. World Bank has also approved $7.3 million for Maldives and $128.6 million for Sri Lanka.

Moreover, International Finance Corporation (IFC) is providing $8 billion in financing to help private companies affected by the pandemic and preserve jobs. It is already working to rapidly deploy a pipeline of approximately 300 companies across emerging markets to shore up private sector activity, World Bank said in its statement.
HALIFAXNova Scotias chief medical officer of health says the province is considering a call from the provinces nurses to let them decide when they should don N95 respirator masks as they treat COVID-19 patients.

Dr. Robert Strang told reporters Thursday that a request by the nurses union concerning the masks would be assessed by the provinces public-heath department.

Were aware of the position of the unions on masks, Strang said. We are putting that information in front of our infection-control experts and getting their opinion as to (the) validity of what the health-care unions are asking for.

Janet Hazelton, president of the Nova Scotia Nurses Union, had been seeking an answer on whether a written commitment would be provided.

We believe nurses are responsible and theyre not going to ask for N95s unless they need them. And if they believe they need them, they should get them, Hazelton said.

Nurses in Manitoba have also asked for permission to use their clinical judgment to determine access to personal protection equipment, or PPE, pointing out that health workers in Alberta, British Columbia and Ontario have already signed such an agreement with health agencies.

The Alberta memorandum notes that if a health-care worker determines on reasonable grounds that the tightly fitted N95 respirator mask is needed, they wont be unreasonably denied by their employer.

Hazelton said its currently standard practice to issue N95 masks to nurses in situations where particles of the virus could be projected in aerosol form, such as during intubations and CPR. However, the nurses also want access to the masks at their discretion for other situations where theyre exposed to patients with COVID-19, she said.

Debbie Forward, president of the Registered Nurses Union Newfoundland and Labrador, made a similar request in a conference call with her provinces health officials last week.

On Thursday, Newfoundland and Labrador Health Minister John Haggie referenced productive discussions between nurses unions, respiratory therapists and other at-risk health-care workers about collaborating to ensure there is enough protective equipment to go around.

There are always options there and we are encouraging people to take those choices, but to do so conscious of the fact their use of PPE is done in the context of limited supply and constraint, he said.

Until we can guarantee unlimited supplies, we have to make sure that we are really rigid about the appropriateness of the use of the particular mask or the particular gown or the particular set of gloves that is used.

Haggie said the current concern is around gowns rather than masks, though stocks of essential equipment will fluctuate as the outbreak continues.

In New Brunswick, chief medical officer Dr. Jennifer Russell said the province is in discussions with the unions and WorkSafeNB about proper use of PPE.

We do not have an indefinite supply, so we just have to be really careful about that judgment and when to use the proper PPE for the right situation, for the right patients, she said.

A memo sent out to New Brunswick health-care staff Wednesday warns about excessive use of N95 masks, saying, liberalizing use of PPE beyond our current guidelines will only serve to provide a false sense of security.

Prince Edward Islands chief of nursing, Marion Dowling, said the province is conserving PPE now so it will be available when the Island starts to see more COVID-19 hospitalizations.

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A Nigerian man charged with helping to run a $1 million phishing scheme that targeted the Government Services Administration and other federal agencies, has been extradited to the U.S., where he has pleaded not guilty to a wire fraud charge, the Justice Department announced.

Olumide Ogunremi, 30, was extradited from Canada and appeared in federal court in Newark, N.J., on Wednesday. Hes being held in federal custody without bail, prosecutors says.

If convicted, Ogunremi faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison a fine of up to $250,000, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of New Jersey, which is overseeing the case.

Phishing for Credentials

In the phishing campaign, which ran from July to December 2013, Ogunremi, who also went by the name Tony Williams, and others allegedly targeted employees of the U.S. Government Services Administration  which provides a wide range of services for the federal government, including transportation, office space and other supplies  to harvest credentials, such as user names and passwords, according to federal prosecutors.

The group also allegedly targeted employees at other federal agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Census Bureau, according to a September 2018 indictment.

In addition to phishing emails, federal prosecutors say that Ogunremi and others allegedly created fake or spoofed websites designed to look like the official sites of these agencies. When the phishing emails were sent to government employees, the messages contained a malicious link that would lead back to one of these phony landing pages, prosecutors say.

The indictment doesnt specify the type of lure that the criminal gang used to entice government workers to enter their user names and passwords into these spoofed sites. Once they did, however, those credentials were harvested and emailed back to Ogunremi and other gang members, prosecutors say.

Printing Money

Once Ogunremi and other members of the criminal gang received the stolen credentials, they allegedly began contacting vendors who had government contracts with the agencies, prosecutors say.

In most cases, the scammers allegedly used the credentials to order printer toner cartridges from the vendors using phony emails and invoices, prosecutors say. The cartridges were shipped to addresses in New Jersey and other locations in the U.S., where Ogunremi and other members of the gang would pick them up, repackage them and ship them overseas, typically to Nigeria, the Justice Department alleges. The cartridges then were allegedly sold on the black market, raising about $1 million in six months.

A second Nigerian allegedly connected to this scheme, Abiodun Adejohn, pleaded guilty to wire fraud charges in 2014 and was sentenced to three years in federal prison, authorities say.

Outgrowth of 419 Scams

According to a recent report by Phishlabs, the U.S. remains the most popular target for phishing scams, with about 84 percent of all attacks taking place in the U.S. in 2018.

In most cases, the attackers deploy phishing emails to conduct credential stealing and rely on socially engineered 419 scams  better known as Nigerian Prince schemes  to target victims, according to the report. The 419 scams typically involve fraudsters promising the victims a large amount upon payment of relatively smaller up-front payment.

Another common form of phishing fraud is known as a business email compromise. Recently, researchers at the security firm Agari uncovered a cybercriminal gang that uses tweaked business emails to target vendors or suppliers with phishing emails

Researchers at Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 recently released an analysis that ties the surge in business email scams to Nigerian threat actors, with some gangs even incorporating malware into their schemes.
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The outbreak spreading on the USS Theodore Roosevelt, one of the Navys 11 aircraft carriers, reveals yet another victim of the coronavirus pandemic: the American militarys ability to patrol the worlds oceans and deter or fight wars.

The Roosevelt is the most heavily afflicted ship in the U.S. fleet93 of its more than 4,000 sailors have tested positive, 86 are showing symptoms,, and, after some delay, 2,700 are being evacuated to facilities in Guam, where the ship was ported. But it isnt the only ship to be hit by the virus. At least two sailors have tested positive on the USS Ronald Reagan, another aircraft carrier and the only one forward-deployed in the Pacific Ocean. On the USS Coronado, a much smaller littoral combat ship, nine sailors tested positive as far back as March 18.

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Warships and submarines, even more than cruise ships, are breeding grounds for viruses. Crew members are packed into narrow confines, working and sleeping within inches of one another.

And the Navy is not the only service getting walloped. According to official figures released today, 893 U.S. military personnel across all the services have tested positive, as have 306 Defense Department civilian workers, 256 dependents, and 95 contractors. Of them, 85 have been hospitalized; five are dead.

The point is, military lifewhether in boot camp, routine peacetime deployments, training exercises, or combat operationsis inherently a close-contact business. If one person in a unit is infected, others soon will be tooprobably many others, since they cant follow the guidelines that most of us civilians are observing to flatten the curve. Social distancing, much less working from home, is impossible.

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Since the outbreak on the USS Theodore Roosevelt hit headlines earlier this week, military chiefs have taken pains to assure the countryand warn our adversariesthat nothing has changed. Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly told reporters, I would like to emphasize that if the ship needs to go, if theres a crisis, the ship can go. Adm. Michael Gilday, chief of naval operations, chimed in: It is fully operational now, he said of the Roosevelt, and it will remain so. The top Air Force spokesman, Brig. Gen. Edward W. Thomas Jr., similarly warned, If any adversary believed that our defenses were weakened, it would be a serious miscalculation.

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Maybe so. Many U.S. soldiers, sailors, marines, pilots, and missile launch crews havent been affected by the virus at allbut still, the effect is clear. Its having an impact on readiness, Gen. David Goldfein, the Air Force chief of staff, acknowledged to reporters on Wednesday.

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The outbreak on the Roosevelt came to light only after the ships commanding officer, Capt. Brett Crozier, wrote a four-page letter to the Navys top admirals on Monday, pleading for an order of evacuation and quarantining as soon as possible.*

The spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating, Crozier wrote. We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted assetour Sailors.

Writing such a letter to his superiors was an extraordinary stepa career-risking move. It probably would have been kept bottled upno point alerting the enemy to our weaknesses, some admiral might have saidif someone hadnt leaked it to the San Francisco Chronicle, which published the letter in full on Tuesday. Even then, the same day, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper said on CBS News that he hadnt yet read the letter. Finally, on Wednesday, the top Navy officers expanded and accelerated the evacuation.

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And yet, amid this crisis, the Trump administration has ordered U.S. military commanders to prepare a campaign to destroy Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, as part of an overall effortspearheaded by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and national security adviser Robert OBriento weaken the regime in Tehran.

According to the New York Times, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Robert White, wrote a rare dissenting memo, objecting that the campaign would require sending thousands of additional troops to Iraq and would distract from the main U.S. mission in the country: training Iraqi troops to fight ISIS.

Since Whites memo, other Pentagon officials and officers have raised concerns about another problem with the plansending U.S. armed forces, some of whom may already be infected with the coronavirus, to a region where the virus is spreading like wildfire.

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Trump, at least rhetorically, has so far sided with the hawks, tweeting on April 1: Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!

Quite apart from the many other risks of ginning up a war with Iran, the health risks to our service members are unacceptably high. Americans arent the only ones at a disadvantage right now. Its time to step up diplomatic efforts to deal with our various crises and conflicts. Too bad we have so few diplomats.

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Update, April 2, 2020 at 4:39 p.m.: A Reuters correspondent is reporting that the Navy will relieve Capt. Brett Crozier, the commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt who wrote the leaked letter, asking his superiors to deal more speedily with the pandemic spreading across his ship. The navy bosses are citing a loss of confidence in the captain for his presumptuousness. One wonders how many sailors, to say nothing of their anxious families, will lose confidence in the Navy. A truly responsible president or defense secretary should fire the admiral who made this decisionand replace him with Crozier.
Law Offices of Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP For more information about the lawsuit against Vitamin Shoppe Inc., call (800) 568-8020 to speak to attorney Nicholas J. De Blouw today.

The Santa Clara employment law attorneys at Blumenthal Nodrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP filed a lawsuit against Vitamin Shoppe Industries Inc., alleging the company violated Labor Code  2699, et seq. seeking penalties for DEFENDANT's alleged violation of California Labor Code  201, 202, 203, 204, 210, 226(a), 226.7, 510, 512, 558(a)(1), 558(a)(2), 1194, 1197, 1197.1, 1198, 2802, and the applicable Wage Order No. 4-2001 Section 14. The lawsuit against Vitamin Shoppe Industries Inc. is currently pending in the Santa Clara Superior Court, Case No. 20CV365150. To read a copy of the Complaint, please click here.

The lawsuit filed against Vitamin Shoppe Industries Inc. alleges PLAINTIFF and other AGGRIEVED EMPLOYEES were from time to time unable to take thirty (30) minute off-duty meal breaks and were not fully relieved of duty for their meal periods. California labor laws require an employer to provide an employee, who is required to perform work for more than five (5) hours during a shift, with a thirty (30) minute uninterrupted meal break prior to the end of the of the employee's fifth (5th) hour of work.

According to the Complaint, PAGA is a mechanism by which the State of California itself can enforce state labor laws through the employee suing under the PAGA who do so as the proxy or agent of the state's labor law enforcement agencies. The Complaint alleges, An action to recover civil penalties under PAGA is fundamentally a law enforcement action designed to protect the public and not to benefit private parties. Further the Complaint states, the purpose of PAGA is not to recover damages or restitution, but to create a means of "deputizing" citizens as private attorneys general to enforce the Labor Code.

For more information about the lawsuit against Vitamin Shoppe Inc., call (800) 568-8020 to speak to an experienced California employment attorney today.

Blumenthal Nordrehaug Bhowmik De Blouw LLP is a labor law firm with law offices located in San Diego County, Riverside County, Los Angeles County, Sacramento County, Santa Clara County, Orange County, and San Francisco County. The firm has a statewide practice of representing employees on a contingency basis for violations involving unpaid wages, overtime pay, discrimination, harassment, wrongful termination and other types of illegal workplace conduct.

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Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey received more than 200 questions and comments from the public about the states response to the coronavirus pandemic via her Twitter feed.

The Twitter session, which ran from noon to 1 p.m., featured a steady stream of criticism aimed at the governor.

The most frequently asked question was why the governor has not issued a statewide shelter-in-place order, as many other states have.

The governor responded that she is in communication with officials on a daily basis and is taking a measured approach to keep Alabamians health, safe and working wherever possible.

Many questions have also concerned Alabamas decision not to expand Medicaid coverage for low-income workers as allowed under the Affordable Care Act. Iveys response was that all health care options were being considered.

Overall, Ivey posted answers to about a half-dozen questions. But the governors responses were not satisfactory to many of those who participated in the discussion.

Each state has to weigh their own set of factors. Im in communication with local, state & federal officials on a daily basis. We are taking a measured approach to keep Alabamians healthy, safe & working, wherever possible. #alpolitics #AskGovIvey https://t.co/WCaP6YBZuY  Governor Kay Ivey (@GovernorKayIvey) April 2, 2020

Many of the Twitter respondents are harshly critical of the governors handling of the crisis and the decision not to order a shelter-in-place.

@GovernorKayIvey how many confirmed cases and/or deaths are needed for a stay at home order to be issued for the state of Alabama? Are you waiting to hit a certain number? If so, what is that number? #AskGovIvey  is this thing on? (@mozzadoor) April 2, 2020

Some questions have concerned problems people have encountered in trying to file unemployment claims since the economic slowdown has caused a surge in job losses.
SINGAPORE, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Over 320,000 local jobs across the Asia Pacific region and a $36bn industry are at risk of being overlooked by politicians as they devise financial rescue measures to cope with the COVID-19 crisis.

The Asia Pacific Travel Retail Association (APTRA) is calling on governments in over 45 countries across the region to support 320,000 local and front-line employees in the region by including the duty free and travel retail industry in the same financial support packages as airlines, airports and maritime industries.

'The Economic Impact of Duty Free and Travel Retail in Asia Pacific' (October 2019), details a US$36bn industry providing 320,000 jobs, contributing almost US$15bn to GDP across Asia Pacific.

Airport Retail and commercial services, including food and beverage, constitute a crucial business sector providing up to 60% vital commercial income for airport owners, outpacing aeronautical revenue streams. It is the most significant direct contributor to the investment in Asia-Pacific's aviation infrastructure and ongoing development of world-class national gateways, the region's hubs to the world.

Grant Fleming, President of APTRA, comments. "The dynamics of duty free and travel retailing are intrinsically linked to the aviation and maritime industries and its viability is entirely dependent on the return in passenger traffic. This means 320,000 jobs are at risk that could be safeguarded if governments extend financial support packages to the industry.

"The travel ecosystem is multifaceted and, beyond airports, the duty free and travel retail industry integrates deeply with the region's vital tourism market  directly with operators such as airport retailers, airlines, cruise-lines and downtown shopping malls and also indirectly with everything from hotels to travel agents and tour guides. We are calling on over 45 governments across the region to recognize the unique economic contribution of the entire Travel Retail industry and to prioritize support packages to our channel and the many that are, and will be, affected financially by COVID-19."

https://www.aptra.asia/

Notes: The Asia Pacific Travel Retail Association (APTRA) is a not for profit membership organisation whose mission is to strengthen, nurture and protect the duty free and travel retail industry In over 45 countries in APAC, across airports, maritime, retailers, food & beverage operators and consumer brands.

PDF - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1139893/ASIA_PACIFIC_TRAVELS_RETAIL_ASSOCIATION.pdf

SOURCE ASIA PACIFIC TRAVEL RETAIL ASSOCIATION (APTRA)

Related Links

https://www.aptra.asia/


LOS ANGELES - A British man accused of smuggling a phoney coronavirus cure into the United States was charged Wednesday with a federal crime, prosecutors said.

Frank Richard Ludlow, 59, of West Sussex was charged in Los Angeles federal court with introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce and could face up to three years in federal prison if convicted, according to the U.S. attorneys office.

He was arrested last week on drug charges in the United Kingdom and remains in custody there, authorities said. It wasnt immediately clear whether he had an attorney.

Prosecutors alleged that Ludlow, who isnt a doctor, had been selling people in California and Utah via mail a concoction called Trinity Remedy that he touted as a miracle cure for various ailments, according to a court affidavit.

This cure  later rebranded as Trinity Mind, Body & Soul  allegedly contained vitamin C, an enzyme mix, potassium thiocyanate, and hydrogen peroxide. Consumers were instructed to add 18 ounces of water, say a prayer, drink half of the solution, take a probiotic along with bee pollen, and then ingest the remainder of the solution, the U.S. attorneys office statement said.

Authorities say Ludlow sold between 300 and 400 of the treatment kits but in February or March of this year, as the coronavirus pandemic worsened, he began selling the kits under a new name: Trinity COVID-19 SARS Antipathogenic Treatment.

The treatments havent been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for any medical use.

Every major health authority has warned that there is no specific antiviral treatment for COVID-19 and no vaccine to prevent coronavirus infection, according to the U.S. attorneys office.

Hucksters who hawk treatments for this deadly disease put consumers lives at risk by peddling unapproved drugs, U.S. Attorney Nick Hanna said.
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Members of the coronavirus task force are expected to hold a press briefing Thursday as global cases cross the 1 million mark, according to Johns Hopkins University.

At the briefing, President Donald Trump is expected to urge Americans to wear face coverings to stop the spread of the virus, Reuters reported.

White House officials are projecting between 100,000 and 240,000 deaths in the U.S. with coronavirus fatalities peaking over the next two weeks.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday announced a new House select committee to oversee the Trump administration's handling of the $2 trillion package signed into law last week to stem the economic damage of the coronavirus outbreak.

The legislation offers relief to individuals, businesses and health facilities. It includes direct payments to individuals, enhanced unemployment insurance, loans and grants to businesses and more health-care resources for hospitals, states and municipalities.

Since then, there has been talk of a "phase 4" deal to address the crisis. Trump said on Tuesday that he wants to restart talks on a massive infrastructure package to help get Americans back to work. Pelosi on Wednesday signaled that she would be on board with an infrastructure deal and will push her own plan after the chamber's April 20 return.

"I think we come back April 20, God willing and coronavirus willing, but shortly thereafter we should be able to move forward," she said.

Trump initially downplayed the outbreak's impact but has since stepped up his administration's response. On Sunday, Trump extended federal social distancing guidelines to April 30, after previously suggesting at least parts of the country could be reopened by Easter. In recent days the outbreak has intensified in areas around the nation including New York City and New Orleans.

Task force members include Vice President Mike Pence; Alex Azar, secretary of Health and Human Services; Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Ken Cuccinelli, acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, among others.

The coronavirus, which is believed to have originated in Wuhan, China, has spread to dozens of countries, with more than 965,246 confirmed cases worldwide and at least 49,180 deaths so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. There are at least 217,263 cases in the United States and at least 5,137 deaths, according to the latest tallies.

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Ervin Johnson walks his bike across Market Street at 15th Street in Philadelphia, on the first day of the shutdown of non-essential businesses. Read more

About 377,000 Pennsylvanians filed unemployment claims during the first week of coronavirus shutdowns, more than twice as many people as in any other state. As bad as the first week was, even more Pennsylvanians  406,000  filed for benefits last week.

Nationwide, initial unemployment claims soared to 6.6 million for the week ending March 28, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Labor. That marks the highest level of seasonally adjusted initial claims ever recorded by the government, breaking the record of 3.3 million set just a week earlier.

Before the world ever heard of the coronavirus, the previous high was 695,000 in October 1982, which lends some scale to the unprecedented pace of the economic paralysis triggered by the public health emergency.

 READ MORE: Laid off workers battle outages, jammed phone lines as Pa. unemployment system buckles from coronavirus surge

Pennsylvania had the second highest total for last week, as weekly unemployment claims in California soared to 879,000. New Jersey reported 205,515 new claims last week, up from 115,815 (a number that was adjusted down from the states previous report of 155,000).

Pennsylvanias two-week total of 783,331 new claims is still the second largest number nationwide since March 14. One of the few states that reports daily tallies, Pennsylvania says 195,000 workers filed initial claims during the first four days of the reporting week, through Wednesday. It is on pace to surpass by Thursday a million new claims since the outbreak arrived.

The states unemployment claims from the last two weeks are higher than all of last years. When measured as a percentage of the workforce, almost 12% of Pennsylvanias workforce has filed for benefits in the last two weeks, making it the hardest-hit state in the nation, according to an Inquirer analysis. (Only two other states are in double digits: Rhode Island is second at about 11.5%, and Nevada is third at 10.5%.)

Why is Pennsylvania, which is neither the most populous state nor the hardest hit yet by the pandemic, outpacing most other states?

And is joblessness really worse here? To that question, experts say: Yes. And maybe not.

Pennsylvanias big numbers are the consequence of early and aggressive action by Gov. Tom Wolf to shut down the states economy to curb the spread of the virus, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moodys Analytics in West Chester.

 READ MORE: Workers in the poorest big city in America are reeling as coronavirus leaves thousands jobless

Gov. Wolf was early in requiring businesses to shut down, particularly here in Southeastern Pennsylvania, long before many other parts of the country began to lock down their businesses, so we were early going into this, Zandi said.

Wolf on Wednesday extended the stay-at-home order to all 67 counties.

Wolfs order idled most major construction sites in Pennsylvania except those involving health-care facilities, said Gene Barr, president of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry. In other states with coronavirus lockdowns, construction has continued largely unabated, though New York state recently shut down construction.

Pennsylvania arguably has the most restrictive provisions as it relates to businesses continuing to operate, Barr said.

The Wolf administration has since granted waivers to some other construction projects, but the industry is largely idle. And construction workers, whose jobs are often seasonal or cyclical, typically know how to tap into the unemployment insurance system without delay, labor experts said.

 READ MORE: Its like we are just a piece of garbage: Laid-off Philly workers face life without health insurance

The Wolf administration acknowledged that the states early shutdown played a big role in boosting the tally. It also encouraged workers to file unemployment claims. More than two weeks ago, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry began temporarily waiving some requirements to speed up the filing process.

Pennsylvania was one of the first and largest states to take action to save lives and stop the spread of COVID-19 with aggressive mitigation efforts, therefore an increase in unemployment compensation applications would be expected, Penny Ickes, spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, said in an emailed response to questions.

Pennsylvanias numbers also may have run up quickly because unemployment insurance is often a jobless workers first line of defense in the state. Some large states have other programs in place  mandatory paid sick leave, short-term disability, paid family and medical leave  that may kick in initially and mask the severity of job losses there.

California, New York, and Washington all have such programs, allowing them other means of paid leave for workers who may temporarily be unable to work due to COVID-19, Ickes said.

 READ MORE: Hes laid off. Shes sick in the house with their paralyzed son and wondering about paid leave. | Helen Ubinas

Though Pennsylvanias unemployment compensation system is choked with 25 times more applications than it received on a weekly basis in early March, and has been the subject of much criticism from frustrated workers, it did not suffer major disruptions like those reported in California and New York, economists said.

Zandi, the Moodys economist, also said Pennsylvanias numbers may have been boosted because its economy was particularly frail going into the coronavirus outbreak  its manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, and energy sectors had already suffered from trade war damage.

People were on edge and probably went over the edge faster than other parts of the country just because they were already struggling, he said.

Most experts said Pennsylvanias quick start out of the gate was a harbinger of worse things to come as other states begin to catch up this week, and the federal numbers released Thursday seemed to bear that out. New York state, the epicenter of the COVID-19 outbreak in America, reported 366,000 new claims last week, up from 80,000 the previous week. Its reasonable to assume New Yorks numbers will eventually surpass most other states'.

The detached analysis of hard data may be little solace to individuals and small business owners who are struggling with joblessness, and have received no response from their states overwhelmed unemployment systems.

 READ MORE: Emergency coronavirus loan not approved yet? SBA will now advance $10,000 to small businesses

Steven Mavros, an acupuncture therapist and co-founder of the Healing Arts Center in Philadelphia, was forced to largely shut down his business because its work involves close contact with patients. The acupuncturists are self-employed independent contractors, but they pay fees to the center. The loss of revenue forced Mavros to lay off six of his eight administrative employees on March 17.

Friday was going to be payday for those people, and they were hoping to get their unemployment by then, Mavros said. So Im thinking I might have to hand my staff, like, cash out of my pocket just so they have something until unemployment starts coming through.

The employees applied for unemployment benefits by March 20, but not none of them had received a response from the state by Wednesday, Mavros said. According to Pennsylvanias Office of Unemployment Compensation, those employees should be receiving benefits this week.

None of them have gotten a single response, Mavros said. So I dont  you know, I dont know where to guide them or what to tell them.

Staff writers Chris A. Williams and Dylan Purcell contributed to this article.
In an unprecedented event in Peru's history, thousands of reservists returned Wednesday to the barracks to help control the quarantine aimed at stopping the spread of the new coronavirus.

Peru had never called reservists, even during an internal armed conflict with the Shining Path terrorist group between 1980 and 2000 or when the cholera plague occurred in 1991.

Those who don't return will have to pay a $1,200 fine.

President Martn Vizcarra said last week that he was seeking to rally more than 10,000 reservists to help 140,000 other members of the security forces control the ban on leaving home for 32 million Peruvians in order to slow the spread of the virus.

Vizcarra declared a state of emergency as deaths began to mount and ordered people to stay home, but each day some 2,000 people leave their home during the non-permitted hours of between 6 a.m. and 5 a.m.

Peru has 1065 cases of coronavirus and 30 deaths from it, according to health ministry figures.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
Saudi Arabia called for an urgent OPEC+ meeting on Thursday in an attempt to stabilize the oil market during the coronavirus pandemic, Arab News reports.

We previously tried to reach an agreement in the OPEC + group, and a consensus could not be reached at the time, an official said, adding that The invitation to the OPEC + meeting comes in appreciation of President Trump's request and friends in the United States.

The announcement comes after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and US President Donald Trump held a phone call to discuss the matter.
BERWYN, Pa., April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Triumph Group [NYSE: TGI] today announced that Richard Goglia will join its Board of Directors as an independent director and as a member of the Audit and Finance committees.

Mr. Goglia served as Raytheon Company's Corporate Treasurer for seventeen years and was an integral part of the team who executed a successful transformation effort that resulted in the company's return to a solid investment grade credit rating. Rich's work included debt restructuring and equity issuances, lender renegotiations, asset sales, and asset liquidations to reduce debt. Raytheon is a premier aerospace and defense company with global manufacturing capabilities.

From 2004 to 2008, Rich also was head of corporate development, leading the completion of the divestiture of Raytheon Aircraft in 2007, which enabled the company to further retire debt and focus on its defense portfolio. Rich also served as Raytheon's Chief Investment Officer from 2004 to 2015, a role in which he was responsible for approximately $34 billion in retirement assets. He was nominated by Institutional Investor for their Alpha Generation award in 2013. Prior to joining Raytheon, Rich served as a Senior Vice President at GE Capital, where he extended corporate loans for restructuring and acquisition activities.

Since 2015, Rich has been an active board member, currently serving on the board of Natixis/Loomis Sayles mutual funds, where he has served as a member of the audit, governance and contracts committees. While at Raytheon, he served on the joint venture boards of Space Imaging and Flight Options. Mr. Goglia received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Bucknell University and an MBA in Corporate Finance and Strategy from the Wharton School of Business.

"We are pleased to welcome Rich and know that his expertise in corporate finance and aerospace will make him a valuable independent director on the Triumph Group Board," said Daniel J. Crowley, Triumph's president and chief executive officer. "As we complete our transformation and work through global and industry challenges on our path to improved shareholder value, the addition of Rich will complement an already strong board."

"The Board welcomes Rich Goglia to Triumph and looks forward to drawing upon his relevant experience in our industry, financial acumen, and governance skills" said General Ralph "Ed" Eberhart, Triumph's non-executive chairman.

Triumph Group, Inc., headquartered in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, designs, engineers, manufactures, repairs and overhauls a broad portfolio of aerospace and defense systems, components and structures. The company serves the global aviation industry, including original equipment manufacturers and the full spectrum of military and commercial aircraft operators.

More information about Triumph can be found on the company's website at www.triumphgroup.com.

Statements in this release which are not historical facts are forward-looking statements under the provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties which could affect the company's actual results and could cause its actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf of, the company. Further information regarding the important factors that could cause actual results to differ from projected results can be found in Triumph Group's reports filed with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2019 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2019.

SOURCE Triumph Group

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www.triumphgroup.com


The 10-month-old daughter of the NRI couple from Sector 33 also tested positive for coronavirus disease on Thursday. The NRI mans 59-year-old mother was also confirmed to have contracted the infection, taking the tricity count to 30.

The couple had tested positive on March 30. The results of the mans father are awaited.

The husband-wife duo had arrived at their parents house in Sector 33 from Canada on March 13 and got admitted to Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Sector 32, on March 28.

On Wednesday, the NRI womans 76-year-old mother and the elderly womans 10-year-old granddaughter, both residents of Phase 9, Mohali, had tested positive.

All six positive patients are undergoing treatment at GMCH. Results of seven other samples from the city are awaited.

Meanwhile, the hospital administration took another sample of Chandigarhs first positive patient after she completed 14 days in quarantine. The 23-year-old Sector 21 resident had tested positive on March 18, three days after she returned from London on March 15.

103 SAMPLED IN JAGATPURA, DHAKOLI

In Mohali, no fresh case was reported on Thursday. Out of the 103 samples taken from Jagatpura and Dhakoli on Wednesday and Thursday, 25 tested negative, while the remaining results are awaited.

A 55-year-old man of Jagatpura had tested positive on Wednesday. He was in direct contact with a 22-year-old resident of Sector 30, Chandigarh, who had returned from Dubai on March 11 and had tested positive for coronavirus on March 27.

Civil surgeon Dr Manjit Singh said the reports of samples from Jagatpura and Dhakoli were crucial as both areas were densely populated, with people staying in close proximity.

Meanwhile, the administration has sealed Jagatpura and Dhakoli, and restricted the entry to Phase 9, where the elderly woman and her granddaughter tested positive on Wednesday.

Deputy commissioner Girish Dayalan said three health teams were focusing on Jagatpura in Mohali and Dhakoli in Zirakpur. We have also collected four samples on Wednesday of people who attended Tablighi Jamaat in Delhis Nizamuddin area. The results are awaited, he added.

11 COLLEAGUES OF PKULA NURSE TESTED

In Panchkula, two days after a 36-year-old staff nurse at the Sector 6 civil hospital tested positive, hospital authorities collected samples of 11 other staff members, including nine nurses and two Class-4 employees. Their families are home quarantined in Chandigarh, Zirakpur and Dera Bassi.

The nurses mother-in-law, father-in-law, two children and two landlords have tested negative. The nurse had attended to Panchkulas first case, a 38-year-old salon worker, who lives in Kharak Mangoli village near Sector 2. The woman, who tested positive on March 21, had come in contact with Chandigarhs first coronavirus patient when the latter visited her in a salon on returning from London.

Deputy civil surgeon Dr Saroj Aggarwal said till now 85 people had been sampled of which two tested positive, 55 negative and reports of 18 samples were awaited. As many as 10 samples were rejected. Among the 30 cases in tricity, 18 were confirmed in Chandigarh, 10 in Mohali and two in Panchkula.
But what is most worrisome is the racial disparity in prior health conditions that exist in the United States. As Bloomberg reported about a study of the deaths in Italy: Almost half of the victims suffered from at least three prior illnesses, and about a fourth had either one or two previous conditions. More than 75 percent had high blood pressure, about 35 percent had diabetes and a third suffered from heart disease.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, high blood pressure is most common in non-Hispanic black adults (54 percent), and black people have the highest death rate from heart disease.

As for diabetes, the 2015 National Medical Association Scientific Assembly, held in Detroit, where my friend died, delivered these stark statistics:

African-American patients are more likely than white patients to have diabetes. The risk of diabetes is 77 percent higher among African-Americans than among non-Hispanic white Americans. The rates of diagnosis of diabetes in non-Hispanic African-Americans is 18.7 percent compared to 7.1 percent.

The group went on to say that in 2006, African-Americans with diabetes were 1.5 times more likely to be hospitalized and 2.3 times more likely to die from diabetes than non-Hispanic whites.

In addition, many Southern states refused to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, and there is a rural hospital crisis in this country. But that crisis is compounded in the South, where, as the magazine Facing South points out, the rural areas have higher poverty rates, higher mortality rates, and lower life expectancies than other rural regions of the country.

This all worries me, because I take a lesson from the H.I.V./AIDS crisis. In the beginning, it was largely seen as a New York and San Francisco problem affecting white men who were gay. Over the decades, treatments became available, and those cities saw their new infection rates plummet.

But the disease remained very much alive, particularly in the South, particularly among black people, where it has reached epidemic proportions. In the United States, more than 40 percent of people living with H.I.V. and 40 percent of people with new infections are black, according to the C.D.C., and African-American men accounted for three-quarters of new H.I.V. infections among African-Americans in 2016, and 80 percent of these were among African-American gay and bisexual men.
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Statistics reliably show that men have fewer close friends than women and that these numbers steeply drop off as guys reach fatherhood and head into retirement. As dads are faced with the prospect of working from home surrounded by kids, and older men can't go out to their local footy club for some banter, we'll have to make do with what we have. Consider it a survival kit for mateship in the time of COVID-19.

Men need to make the call. They need to make the call to look after themselves and those around them. That means finding a productive outlet for the inevitable anger and frustration at the changes in your daily life. That means putting your energy into home renos, cleaning or looking after the kids to ease the pressure on your partner, who might be struggling with their own monumental balancing act. That means checking in with those more vulnerable, those less fortunate in your community, to see where you can lend a hand. That means accepting that while there might not be a solution for a problem just yet, there's still a way to utilise your strengths to build up those around you.

Thanks to modern tech, we can also bring that 'doing' style of support to social distancing. We can build things together while on the phone or laptop, from puzzles to cabinets. There are plenty of guys out there setting up weekly happy hours with their mates and a beer over the phone. Long-lost friends reconnecting on social media.

There is no excuse for not calling your mate if he just lost his job. While you probably can't get it back for him, and you might not be able to give him a loan right now  that doesn't mean you shouldn't check-in. You don't need to know what to say: as uncomfortable as it might be, it's fine not to have all the answers. Just let him know you hear him, you're with him, and you'll get through this together.
A garage industry making 3D-printed visors for face shields, needed in the treatment of COVID-19 patients, is operating around the clock thanks to a Durham College teacher and volunteers who include his students.

Chris Daniel, a mechanical engineering professor, got the colleges permission to relocate six of its 3D printers to his garage. He then reached out to his students and graduates to join him in making the visors for healthcare workers face shields.

Its been crazy! Im been completely blown away by the response. Nobody anticipates this, said Daniel of the community outreach hes received for his initiative. He prints visors between 12-16 hours a day, receives hundreds of daily emails and phone calls. Its been challenging but my team at the college has been incredibly supportive and my dean has loaned me an administrative assistant from her office to book meetings and schedule stuff.

Daniel first saw the visor design, by Czech Republic company Prusa, on the internet and learned that Kitchener, Ont. firm Inksmith needed makers for the PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) using the design.

Now Daniel and 36 others are using 46 machines to make a collective 200 visors a day in their homes to enable Inksmith, OntarioTech University, in Oshawa, and CAD MicroSolutions, in Etobicoke, to use to produce face shields. About two-thirds of the volunteers are current or former Durham College or ONTech students; the rest are community members.

Some of the ONTech shields have been donated to Northumberland Hills Hospital in Cobourg; CAD MicroSolutions is making shields for SickKids Hospital that will be delivered April 7.

I had six days of materials (the plastic used by 3D printers) left and I decided to start a GoFundMe to raise $1,000 to buy supplies for a week, said Daniel.

I was totally nervous, as Id never done this before. In two minutes, some old friends from high school donated to the fund and it went viral. In one day, it raised $7,000. Its crazy and very, very exciting!

Teacher Chris Daniel met with his students earlier this week in the parking lot of Durham College's Oshawa campus to collect the 3D-printed visors for delivery to companies making face shields. From left, Andrew Kay, Marlon Alleyne, Chris Daniel, Paul Burgess and Adeshpal Singh. Chris Daniel

The GoFundMe has now raised more than $10,000  enough to buy 1-1/2-months supply capable of producing 8,750 visors, said Daniel.

Karen Doukas, mother of a primary-care doctor working at an inner-city Toronto clinic, saw Daniels post about the visor initiative on Facebook. She says shes been distraught to know her physician daughter, and her colleagues, have been contending with a lack of PPE and they fear bringing the virus home to their children or infecting patients due to the shortage.

I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for what you are doing, she posted on Daniels Facebook wall.

Please pass along this heartfelt message to your team and tell them how much it is appreciated. The work you are doing is literally saving lives.

One of Daniels former students, Brent Lessard, graduated from the Mechanical Engineering Technology program in 2014 and a year later co-founded a collaborative engineering community called rLoop. When the pandemic hit Ontario, Lessard began printing parts for PPE at home. When he learned that his former professor had swung into action, he joined Daniels effort.

I have family who are healthcare workers, and an immense respect for all healthcare workers. My wife and son have recently been deemed high-risk for coronavirus, said Lessard.

If there was any way that I could support them, I will do it  and I think this is the best way, given my resources and knowledge.

Currently, the shields made from the 3D printed visors are not certified by Health Canada, said Daniel, since the plastic used in the visors making them one-time use. However, the shields are being provided free to frontline workers who request them. And, he points out, with medical grade PPE in short supply in the province, the free 3D printed visor versions are a better option than having no PPE at all. Daniel added the certified shields require a minimum purchase order of 50 from Inksmith, which may be challenging for a small agencys budget.

Chris Gillis, manager of Applied Research Business Development, who is helping to co-ordinate Daniels effort and working with community organizations, said the need for PPE is huge. That may be relieved somewhat as large companies come online to make more face shields, he noted.

But there is an immediate need and we are trying to get these out to frontline workers. Chris hopped on this and is trying to collaborate with as many people as possibly. Its very inspiring, said Gillis.

He said hes fielded queries from a hospice and an emergency room physician and adds that grocery store workers and police could also benefit from the shields.

With his GoFundMe campaign continuing to raise funds and his volunteer printer crew growing, Daniel is exploring how they might print ventilator components. Whether they succeed in that venture or not, Daniel said all money raised will be directed to providing PPE or ventilator support.
An Italian political cartoon, going viral on Facebook, pretty much sums up the Italy, China, EU relationship amid coronavirus pandemic. The cartoon shows Italy as a suffering princess, receiving assistance from China- portrayed as a prince, while the EU stands as Grim Reaper.

In the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, when Italy and Iran were still coming to terms with the virus scare, it was noted how the countries most affected by the pandemic were those with close ties to China.

Indeed, Italy, most severely affected by the coronavirus outbreak in Europe, was one of the first Western countries and first G-7 to join Chinese President's Xi Jinping's dream project -- Belt and Road Initiative.

Now, as Italy struggles to deal with pandemic which has left thousands dead, Beijing has offered help to Rome, although that comes with wide publicity.

The country has reported more than 1 lakh cases of coronavirus while the death toll has surpassed 10,000.

According to an Al Jazeera report on March 14, a planeload of medical supplies, including masks and respirators, arrived in Italy from China.

"A batch of medical supplies have arrived in Belgium; 1.8 million masks and 100,000 reagents are on the way. The supplies will then be delivered to Italy & Spain and to the frontline," reads a tweet on the timeline of Hua Chunying, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, Director General, Department of Information, Chinese Foreign Ministry dated March 11.

The Al Jazeera report, noted, how "in contrast to China, Italy's partners in the European Union (EU) earlier this month refused Rome's requests for help with medical supplies as they looked to stockpile face masks and other equipment to help their own citizens."

Last year, Italy joined the BRI -- the project critics say is a debt trap, resisting pressure from US and EU. The move threatened to wedge rift between Rome and its traditional allies.

The coronavirus outbreak has brought into play several geopolitical equations apart from China-Italy relations.

European Commission President Ursula praised Taiwan for donating millions of mask to help the bloc battle the coronavirus pandemic.

"The European Union thanks Taiwan for its donation of 5.6 million masks to help fight the #coronavirus. We really appreciate this gesture of solidarity," Ursula von der Leyen tweeted.

The move is expected to rile Beijing which considers Taiwan as a part of itself.

A report in South China Morning Post noted how the bloc has grown "concerned about China's massive but selective donations to European countries, prompting its top diplomat to accuse China of practising the "politics of generosity"."

The report, citing a diplomatic source, said the bloc made its manoeuvre "in such a way that the EU could hit China with the same argument it uses all the time: that mask donations should not be politicised".

China's 'politics of generosity' has led to critics saying that Europe has lacked solidarity to fight the outbreak of the virus.

According to DW report dated March 20, a group of Chinese medical experts arrived in the region to advise Italian public health officials with the first team from China arriving on March 12 itself in Rome with 31 tons of essential supplies and equipment which were donated by both by Chinese government and private donors.

Another Chinese team flew directly to Milan on March 18.

DW cited, Thorsten Benner, director of the Global Public Policy Institute (GPPI) in Berlin as saying that the "crisis has damaged the image and credibility of the EU and Germany as guarantors of European solidarity.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After donating to UNICEF to combat COVID-19, actor Kareena Kapoor Khan on Thursday announced that she will also contribute to PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra's CM Relief Fund along with her husband Saif Ali Khan and son Taimur Ali Khan.

Kareena made the announcement through an Instagram post and also urged others to do their bit by doing whatever is possible.

"We extend our support to the PM CARES Fund and the Chief Minister's Relief Fund (Maharashtra)," read an official statement post by Kareena on Instagram.

"In times like these, every helping hand and every rupee raised matters. Do Help wherever possible," the statement further read.

However, the amount of donation hasn't been revealed in the post.

The star couple has joined a list of celebrities including Akshay Kumar, Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Vicky Kaushal and others who too have extended support to PM CARES Fund to fight against coronavirus.

Earlier on March 31, the 'Jab We Met' actor had announced their contribution to UNICEF, GIVE INDIA and the International Association of Human Values (IAHV).

There are 1764 active coronavirus cases in the country, while 150 people have been cured and 50 have died, as per the Union Health Ministry.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended his controversial decision not to close Australia's borders immediately when COVID-19 hit.

He also warned that the tough restrictions affecting Australian's everyday lives might last until at least October, but could be even longer.

Australians must be braced for the unprecedented lockdown to be 'the new normal' for the foreseeable future, the prime minister said.

Questioned about the delay in closing the border on A Current Affair on Thursday night, Mr Morrison said he had to act on the expert medical advice offered at the time.

'Everything we have done is to take actions based on medical expert advice,' he said.

'That was the advice of the time and we took it, we continue to be guided by that advice for critical decisions.

Australia has since closed its borders, with NSW also blocking any more cruise ships from docking after the Ruby Princess (pictured on Thursday off the coast) infected hundreds

A Bondi resident (pictured) is seen wearing a face mask as she leaves a dedicated testing clinic at Bondi Pavilion, usually filled with happy beachgoers

'There were countries in Europe that did not [close borders].'

The Australian borders were not closed until March 21, despite the country's first case being recorded on January 25.

Mr Morrison explained that while around two-thirds of cases were coming from overseas, they were often Australians returning home.

'About three quarters or two thirds of the cases we have have been imported from overseas,' he said.

'They have been from Australians coming home, we could never stop that.

'The cases we have had haven't been from visitors, they've been from Australians.'

Speaking on Seven News on Thursday night, Mr Morrison (pictured) warned Australians they need to get used to 'the new normal'

Health care workers (pictured) are seen outside the Tanunda War Memorial Hospital, which has a dedicated COVID-19 testing clinic, on Tuesday

As of Thursday night, Australia had 5,136 confirmed cases of COVID-19, a deadly respiratory infection which originated in a market in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

New Zealand closed its borders on March 19, while America has closed its land borders with Canada and Mexico.

It has also stopped flights from many affected countries, including China, Iran and most of Europe, as well as the UK.

So far, 24 people across the country have died - with nine of them infected on cruise ships which later docked in Sydney.

The global pandemic has prompted the introduction of harsh social restrictions, including the closure of bars and restaurants.

Mr Morrison has previously said such measures could be in place for six months, but he admitted that the restrictions could last much longer.

'I said at least six months, it could be longer,' he said.

'What I am trying to do is make it very clear to those who think this can all be done in a couple of weeks, with the lockdown, as they call it, that that is not true.

'I am the only leader in the world at the moment talking about a much longer time frame.

'I am trying to get Australians to understand there is no quick fix.

'The six-month period is based on early modelling, which shows how we move through a peak and go through to the other side, it returns to lower levels.

Australia has 5,136 confirmed cases of coronavirus so far, with 24 deaths across the country

'What I am trying to get across to Australians, we are in this new normal for some time, we have to do things that we can keep doing, and when we are doing it, stay positive, stay connected, and we have to stay strong.'

Speaking about the issue again on Seven News, the prime minister reiterated his calls for Australians to get used to the 'new normal'.

'It's very difficult to provide any other timeline,' he said.

'Even that six months is indicative.

'This is going to be a whole new normal for Australians for some time to come yet.

'We think six months is the most reasonable estimate of that at the moment.

'I certainly hope that it may be sooner than that, but it could also be longer.'

Police patrol Double Bay in Sydney on Thursday (pictured) after people were warned to stay home unless buying food, going to a medical appointment or doing exercise

NSW Police are seein asking a woman sat on a park bench in Rushcutters Bay to move on on Wednesday (pictured) after new restrictions came into place

He said that while the government was trying to provide an accurate timeline, the virus 'followed its own rules'.

'This virus will follow its own rules,' he said. 'It won't follow ours.

A woman is seen attending a COVID-19 pop-up clinic in Bondi on Wednesday (pictured)

'That means we need to adapt and change to ensure we can both manage the devastating health impact this can have, taking so many lives already not just in Australia but, of course, all round the world.

'But also the devastating economic impacts it has.'

It comes after the government announced yet another multi-million dollar endeavor to keep Australia moving through the crisis.

Working parents across Australia will be entitled to free childcare during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Thursday, the government declared childcare centres an essential service that will continue to operate to help support parents who still have jobs.

The new plan is expected to help one million Australian families over the next six months.

Free childcare will be available to all parents regardless of their jobs or whether they are full-time or part-time workers.

Those in the healthcare sector or other essential jobs will be given priority.

Returning passengers (pictured) are seen leaving a special Nepal Air flight repatriating Australian and New Zealanders from overseas at Brisbane airport on Thursday

French nationals (pictured) queue to enter Sydney's international airport to be repatriated back to France on Thursday
Stores and services that want to re-open during Pennsylvanias coronavirus shutdown of non-essential businesses need to get waiver applications into the state by the end of the week.

The National Federation of Independent Business decried the short notice and called Gov. Tom Wolfs order two weeks ago to close non-essential businesses to stem the spread of the coronavirus chaotic.

Two weeks ago, Gov. Tom Wolf ordered non-essential businesses to close their locations to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

Since that announcement, businesses that are determined to be non-life sustaining, but that may provide a life-sustaining service, have been able to request an exemption from the state in order to re-open.

The exemption application process will close at 5 p.m. Friday, April 3, Department of Community and Economic Development Secretary Dennis Davin announced Thursday evening.

A list of what the state considers a life-sustaining businesses, and some of the non-life-sustaining businesses, can be found here.

There was mass confusion created when the order first came down, then the Administration backpedaled, making many changes to their listand now as those problems are just being ironed out, the Governor prematurely shuts down the waiver process, Gordon Denlinger, Pennsylvania director for the National Federation of Independent Business, said in a news release. We are asking Governor Wolf to reconsider the shutdown of the waiver program and to explain the reason the decision to end it. If this crisis lasts longer than we expect, keeping the supply chains open is a priority.

The DCED has been inundated with requests since Wolf announced the order. Enforcement was set to begin at 12:01 a.m. March 21, but was postponed until March 23 due to the high volume" of waiver requests.

As of Tuesday, the state has received 32,474 requests for exemptions. Pennsylvania State Police have issued 136 warnings to business owners as of Thursday, but no citations yet.

The exception application is available online. Davin said business owners should check the departments Life-Sustaining Business FAQ before filing.

Business owners will be notified via email if they may re-open; businesses must remain closed until a decision is made about the application.

Owners should not to apply for a waiver more than once, or re-apply because they have not received a response from a prior submission, Davin said in a news release.

Businesses looking for guidance or clarification from the Department of Community and Economic Development can email its customer service resource account at ra-dcedcs@pa.gov.

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. If theres anything about this story that needs attention, please email her. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook
Read The Stars live coverage of the novel coronavirus pandemic here. This story is no longer updating.

11:45 p.m.: Health officials in Peel Region say that they accidentally mailed letters to 16 residents saying that their COVID-19 test results were negative when they were in fact positive.

Officials say that several positive test slips were mixed in with a batch of negative results and the error was not noticed until the letters were mailed out.

I know the relief those residents felt for a few moments has sadly been transformed into feelings of fear and uncertainty. Our team is working quickly to notify these residents and make sure they have what they need to manage this difficult situation, said Peel interim medical officer of health Lawrence C. Loh in a news release.

8 p.m.: Two cruise ships with Canadian passengers aboard have docked in Florida after weeks at sea, The Canadian Press reports.

Their arrival also comes after days of negotiations with initially resistant local officials.

The MS Zaandam and a sister ship, the MS Rotterdam, were both given permission to unload passengers at Port Everglades.

Officials had feared the ships would divert needed resources from a region that has seen a spike in virus cases.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said the Canadians would stay in isolation upon their return to Canada.

6.15 p.m. There are 11,283 confirmed and presumptive cases of COVID-19 in Canada, according to The Canadian Press. Fifteen are presumptive, 11,268 are confirmed, including 138 deaths, and 1,968 resolved cases.

Quebec 5,518 confirmed cases, including 36 deaths, 224 of which were resolved

Ontario: 2,793 confirmed, including 53 deaths and 831 resolved

British Columbia: 1,121 confirmed, including 31 deaths and 641 resolved

Alberta: 968 confirmed, including 13 deaths and 174 resolved

Saskatchewan: 206 confirmed, including three deaths and 36 resolved

Nova Scotia: 193 confirmed, including 16 resolved

Newfoundland and Labrador: 183 confirmed, including one death and 10 resolved

Manitoba: 152 confirmed, including one death and 11 resolved, 15 presumptive

New Brunswick: 91 confirmed, including 22 resolved

Prince Edward Island: 22 confirmed, including three resolved

Repatriated Canadians: 13 confirmed

Yukon: Six confirmed

Northwest Territories: two confirmed

Nunavut reports no confirmed cases.

5 p.m. Ontarios COVID-19 epidemic has grown to 3,210 cases and 92 deaths, according to the Stars latest count, based on public tallies and press releases issued by Ontarios regional public health units.

Several regions announced deaths Thursday afternoon, including three more in Durham Region, which has now seen nine total deaths including four among residents of long-term care or retirement homes. Thursday has also seen the first COVID-19 deaths in Brant County, a woman in her 60s with pre-existing health issues, and in Guelph, a patient in their 80s.

At an afternoon news conference, Dr. Eileen de Villa, Torontos medical officer of health, cautioned that she was aware of more deaths in Toronto, although they had not been announced yet. The city will be releasing more information soon, she said. For the time being, the toll remained at 11 dead.

The province says its most recent tally of 2,793 COVID-19 cases is accurate to 4 p.m. the previous day. The province also cautions its count of deaths  this was 53 as of its Thursday morning update  may be incomplete or out of date due to delays in its reporting system.

4.01 p.m. Eileen de Villa, the medical officer of health for the City of Toronto, provided an update on the number of COVID-19 cases in the city: 897 confirmed and probable cases, 86 people in hospital, 39 of them in intensive care. Just over a quarter of Toronto cases are the result of community spread. Death toll now stands at about 11, but public health are aware of other deaths and are confirming details.

Mayor John Tory, using his emergency powers, has signed a by-law to make being within two metres of someone in a park or public square who is not a member of your household punishable with a fine up to $5,000. The by-law will be in effect for at least the next 30 days. Tory said the by-law maxes out the powers Toronto has to effectively lockdown the city.

2:30 p.m.: More than 40 health-care workers at a Winnipeg hospital have been sent home to self-isolate after two staff members tested positive for COVID-19.

Health officials say it will have an impact on services at the Health Sciences Centre and some patients are being moved to a different area.

Manitoba officials also report nine residents at a nursing home in Gimli have developed symptoms of respiratory illness and are being tested for COVID-19 after a staff member there tested positive.

The province is reporting an additional 40 probable or confirmed cases, bringing the provincial total to 167.

2 p.m.: Health care workers in Canadas federal prison system are on the verge of walking off the job in the next few days over a lack of personal protective medical gear, according to their union.

The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada says there is a real, escalating danger that prison nurses wont show up for work, citing provisions of the Canada Labour Code that allow workers to refuse unsafe work.

Union president Debi Daviau says her members understand there is a shortage of much-needed equipment as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. But she says there is no need to have every medical staffer at work in every institution as the pandemic spreads.

Public Safety Minister Bill Blair has asked the federal prison service and parole board to look at early release for some offenders.

1:59 p.m.: New Brunswick is reporting 10 more cases of COVID-19, for a provincial total of 91. The provinces chief medical officer of health, Dr. Jennifer Russell, says there is one community where five members of a church have tested positive.

1:35 p.m.: Canada and Ontario need a homegrown PPE industry so Canadians are never short on masks, gloves, gowns and other front-line medical supplies such as ventilators in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, says Premier Doug Ford.

1:30 p.m.: Ford warns the new reality is hard. He says it is hard to deal with and hard to comprehend. Expressing concern about the toll on mental health, he says $12 million will be invested in online mental health care.

1:20 p.m.: Ford says Ontario residents deserve to see what hes seen on various modelling scenarios in the COVID-19 outbreak. Top doctors will provide briefing on modelling numbers Friday on where Ontario was, is and could be, he says. You deserve to know what I know, Ford says.

1:15 p.m.: The B.C. government is increasing the monthly amount that people on income and disability assistance receive to help them with COVID-19.

Anyone on those programs who is not eligible for the federal governments emergency support programs will get an automatic $300 monthly supplement for the three months, starting this month.

Social Development Minister Shane Simpson says the supplement will also go to low-income seniors.

As well, he says people who are getting assistance from the province will not see a reduction in their benefits if they also qualify for the new $2,000 Canada Emergency Response Benefit.

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1:15 p.m.: Quebec Premier Francois Legault is encouraging police to be less tolerant with people refusing to follow the COVID-19 rules of engagement.

Legault says hes hearing of people who are flouting physical distancing rules or companies that remain open and is warning who arent following public health regulations will be hit with fines ranging between $1,000 and $6,000.

Quebec has seen another spike of the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19, reporting 5,518 cases in the province today.

That number represents an increase of 907 cases in the province since Wednesday.

Authorities also reported three more deaths, bringing the provincial tally to 36.

1:15 p.m.: Melania Trump says she has spoken with Sophie Gregoire Trudeau to wish her good health as she recovers from COVID-19.

The U.S. first lady says on Twitter that she spoke with her Canadian counterpart earlier today and expressed gratitude for what she calls the special relationship between the two countries as they address pandemic-related challenges.

A readout of the call from the White House says Trump and Trudeau discussed the importance of maintaining the economic links between Canada and the U.S., and noted the $1.7 billion US worth of daily trade that crosses their shared border.

The two also discussed the repatriation efforts that are ongoing to get Americans and Canadians home from cruise ships and other places around the world.

1 p.m.: Nova Scotia is reporting 20 new cases of COVID-19 for a total of 193 confirmed cases. Health officials say five people are currently in hospital, while 16 people have now recovered and their cases of COVID-19 are considered resolved.

Most cases in Nova Scotia are connected to travel or a known case, with one confirmed case of community transmission to date.

1 p.m.: Prince Edward Island has one new case of COVID-19 Thursday, bringing the provincial total to 22. Chief medical health officer Dr. Heather Morrison says the latest case is a man in his 50s and is related to international travel. Three cases on the Island are considered as recovered.

12:30 p.m.: There are eight more positive cases of COVID-19 in Newfoundland and Labrador, bringing the total to 183 in the province.

Dr. Janice Fitzgerald, the provinces chief medical officer of health, says 143 cases have been linked to a funeral home in St. Johns where someone with the illness attended a service earlier this month.

The eight new cases are in the Eastern Health region. Fitzgerald says 11 people have been hospitalized and four are in intensive care.

12:33 p.m.: TTC workers union says it has advised its bus drivers to limit the number of passengers on vehicles to 10 on regular buses, and 15 on the larger bendy buses.

12:20 p.m.: In Dr. Theresa Tams daily update, Canadas chief public health officer says there are 10,466 COVID-19 cases across the country with 111 deaths (50 connected to long-term care homes). She says 260,000 tests have been completed with 3.5 per cent confirmed positive.

12:20 p.m.: Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller says 15 people living in Indigenous communities have been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Miller says the virus is a unique challenge in communities that are remote and he says the government is trying to get equipment there to help.

But he says COVID-19 is just one of the challenges Indigenous communities are facing this spring, including the risk of flooding.

11:30 a.m.: More than 11 million face masks have arrived in Canada in recent days, including a shipment of one million masks that arrived at a Hamilton warehouse overnight, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

He said workers are trying to quickly assess that they meet the needed standards, and that 10 million masks are already being distributed to provinces and territories.

He also said the government has ordered hundreds of thousands of face shields from Bauer, the company that normally makes hockey equipment.

11:25 a.m.: Trudeau says he will host a first ministers meeting tonight to discuss Canadas ongoing response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The premiers were to meet in person on March 13 but that meeting was cancelled when Trudeau was forced into isolation because his wife tested positive for COVID-19.

Trudeau says the meeting, which will be held remotely, will include discussions about the continued need to share data and modelling between jurisdictions.

11:20 a.m.: Trudeau says well have more information soon on the various modelling scenarios on the number of potential COVID-19 cases and deaths in Canada. Governments at all levels have been reluctant to share such projections.

10:45 a.m.: According to the Stars tally from the provinces local health units as of 10:30 a.m., there are 2,965 confirmed or probable COVID-19 cases in Ontario, including 85 deaths.

Since Wednesday at 10 p.m., thats an additional 115 cases and two more deaths.

Thursday morning saw the fourth reported death in Haldimand-Norfolk, which has had multiple patients die following an outbreak at a Hagersville, Ont., nursing home, and the second reported death in Waterloo Region.

The Stars count of COVID-19 cases and deaths is based on the public tallies and press releases issued by Ontarios 34 regional public health units.

The province says its tally is accurate to 4 p.m. the previous day. The province also cautions its count of deaths  53 as of its Thursday morning update  may be incomplete or out of date due to delays in its reporting system.

In the governments latest report, there are 2,793 cases in Ontario, an increase of 401 (or 16.8 per cent) from Wednesdays report.

The government reports that 405 people are hospitalized with COVID-19, including 167 in intensive care with 112 of those patients on ventilators.

Ontarios backlog of pending test results continues to drop as more testing capacity is added  from 3,135 Wednesday to 2,052 today.

The province is also reporting that 831 cases have been resolved with 62,733 patients tested overall.

10:40 a.m.: Ontario is reporting 401 new cases today, bringing the provincial total to 2,793. The number is lower than the figure reported by the Star earlier today because the provinces tally is accurate to 4 p.m. the previous day. The Stars number was as of the end of day Wednesday.

10:25 a.m.: Two more residents at Pinecrest Nursing Home died overnight, bringing the number of COVID-19 deaths at the facility to 16 residents. Dr. Michelle Snarr, medical director at the Bobcaygeon long-term care facility, confirmed the deaths Thursday morning.

The local health unit believes the outbreak at the 60-bed long-term care home is the largest in the province, with at least 24 staff members also infected.

Jean Pollock, the wife of one of the residents there, also died over the weekend.

9:50 a.m.: Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease official, said Thursday he feels safe despite reports hes received online threats and has had uncomfortable personal encounters with admirers that prompted the Trump administration to assign him a security detail.

9:30 a.m.: Spain recorded its deadliest day on Thursday, with 950 fatalities lifting the total to more than 10,000. The country is dealing with the second-most severe outbreak in Europe after Italy and the government has struggled to check the spread of the disease.

The number of confirmed cases increased by 8,102, a bigger gain than Wednesdays 7,719, to 110,238. The daily death toll in Italy  where more than 13,000 have died  dropped to 727 on Wednesday, the lowest in six days, and the number of new cases is below highs in mid-March.

9:17 a.m.: Some African countries will have more than 10,000 coronavirus cases by the end of April, health officials projected Thursday, as the continent least equipped to treat serious infections has an enormous gap in the number of ventilators and other critical items.

8:30 a.m.: According to the Stars tally from provinces local health units, there are 2,850 confirmed or probable COVID-19 cases in Ontario, including 83 deaths.

Case counts have grown rapidly in Ontario in recent days. The Stars tally of COVID-19 cases, compiled at 10 p.m. Wednesday, has more than tripled in a week; deaths have risen more than six-fold. A week earlier, Ontario had seen just 832 cases, with 13 deaths.

Wednesday saw the number of COVID-19 victims jump dramatically in Toronto  with eight new deaths reported in the city, many tied to nursing homes across the city. Provincewide, 22 more deaths were reported Wednesday.

The Stars count of COVID-19 deaths is based on the public tallies and press releases issued by Ontarios 34 regional public health units.

The province says its tally is accurate to 4 p.m. the previous day. The province also cautions its count of deaths  just 37 as of the latest update  may be incomplete or out of date due to delays in its reporting system.

8:13 a.m.: Political opponents, scientists and even usually supportive newspapers lambasted British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday over his governments broken promises on wider testing for the COVID-19 virus.

Johnsons Conservative government vowed weeks ago to rapidly increase the number of tests for the new coronavirus to 10,000 a day, then 25,000 a day by mid-April. But progress has been slow. The government says 10,412 tests were performed Tuesday, the first time the daily target was met.

7:54 a.m. Ellis Marsalis Jr., the jazz pianist, teacher and patriarch of a New Orleans musical clan, died Wednesday after battling pneumonia brought on by the coronavirus, leaving six sons and a deep legacy. He was 85.

7:38 a.m. British Open organizers say postponement is an option for this years tournament at Royal St. Georges because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The 149th edition of the Open Championship is scheduled to take place July 16-19. The last time the Open wasnt played was in 1945 because of World War II.

6:30 a.m.: The head of the World Health Organizations office in Europe says figures show that more than 95 per cent of people who have died of coronavirus on the continent have been aged over 60.

But Dr. Hans Kluge said age is not the only risk factor for severe disease, adding: The very notion that COVID-19 only affects older people is factually wrong.

In an online news conference Thursday in Copenhagen, Kluge said young people are not invincible  echoing similar recent comments from WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

The U.N. health agency says 10 per cent to 15 per cent of people under 50 with the disease have moderate or severe infection.

Severe cases of the disease have been seen in people in their teens or 20s with many requiring intensive care and some unfortunately passing away, Kluge said.

He said recent statistics showed 30,098 people have been reported to have died in Europe, mostly in Italy, France and Spain.

We know that over 95 per cent of these deaths occurred in those older than 60 years, he said, with more than half aged over 80.

Kluge said more than four in five of those people had at least one other chronic underlying conditions, like cardiovascular disease, hypertension or diabetes.

On a positive note, there are reports of people over the age of 100 who were admitted to hospital for COVID-19 and have now  since  made a complete recovery, he said.

6:20 a.m. A survey by a Canadian not-for-profit says that over 300,000 restaurant jobs have been lost in Ontario as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Restaurants Canada estimates that 800,000 jobs have been lost in the sector nationwide.

The company, which represents restaurants nationwide, said nearly one in 10 restaurants in Canada have already closed and nearly one in five expect to close if conditions dont get better in a month.

The companys CEO and president said the numbers are the worst hes seen since Restaurants Canada was founded 75 years ago.

6:20 a.m.: The new coronavirus is forcing more top Israeli officials into isolation after the countrys health minister, who has had frequent contact with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, tested positive, the Health Ministry said Thursday.

Israeli Health Minister Yaakov Litzman and his wife, who also contracted the virus, are in isolation, feel well and are being treated, the ministry statement said.

The Middle East has over 81,000 confirmed cases of the virus, most of those in Iran, and over 3,600 deaths. Irans Health Ministry said Thursday that the new coronavirus killed another 124 people, pushing the countrys death toll to 3,160.

5 a.m. Canada Revenue Agency employees brace for the floodgates to open Monday. Thats when they begin the monumental task of delivering on historic federal benefits meant to mitigate the disastrous economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Normally at tax time the agency has between 3,000 and 4,000 employees working the phones at call centres across the country.

Now they will be working from home and more than 1,000 CRA employees have volunteered to bolster those numbers and take calls from an estimated 300,000 Canadians per day who are expected to inquire about the governments $2,000-a-month Canada Emergency Response Benefit.

4:01 a.m.: The new coronavirus has spawned an increase in online and telephone crime, targeting anxious Canadians who are self-isolating at home in front of their computers, experts say.

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre has received over 100 recent complaints linked to COVID-19, said Jeff Thomson, a senior RCMP analyst.

The Public Health Agency of Canada, World Health Organization, federal agencies, Canadian government, you name it, theyre mimicking anybody and everybody that is an authority on this matter, said Thomson.

The list includes false ads for face masks, hand sanitizers or virus home test kits, charity fraud, extortion and so-called phishing scams, where fake emails are sent out from what appears to be a reputable agency.

4:01 a.m.: There are 9,729 confirmed and presumptive cases in Canada.

Quebec: 4,611 confirmed (including 33 deaths, 155 resolved)

Ontario: 2,392 confirmed (including 37 deaths, 689 resolved)

British Columbia: 1,066 confirmed (including 25 deaths, 606 resolved)

Alberta: 871 confirmed (including 11 deaths, 142 resolved)

Saskatchewan: 193 confirmed (including 3 deaths, 21 resolved)

Newfoundland and Labrador: 175 confirmed (including 1 death, 10 resolved)

Nova Scotia: 173 confirmed (including 10 resolved)

Manitoba: 109 confirmed (including 1 death, 4 resolved), 18 presumptive

New Brunswick: 81 confirmed (including 9 resolved)

Prince Edward Island: 21 confirmed (including 3 resolved)

Repatriated Canadians: 13 confirmed

Yukon: 5 confirmed

Northwest Territories: 1 confirmed

Nunavut: No confirmed cases

Total: 9,729 (18 presumptive, 9,711 confirmed including 111 deaths, 1,649 resolved)

4 a.m.: One of Canadas largest veterans organizations is urging the federal government to automatically approve roughly 44,000 outstanding applications for disability benefits to help injured veterans better deal with the COVID-19 crisis.

The call from the National Council of Veteran Associations, which represents more than 60 groups, comes amid fears about the financial and emotional toll the pandemic is having on veterans with mental and physical wounds.

1:16 a.m.: Amid fears bootleggers could introduce COVID-19 into N.W.T. communities, the Dene Nation is examining how the territory might handle liquor and addictions.

Weve got to take actions into our own hands and let people know to stay home, Dene National Chief Norman Yakeleya said. And if youre coming into the community from Alberta or a mining company, self-isolate. (At the moment, the N.W.T.s order on travel restrictions doesnt require mine workers to self-isolate.)

Yakeleya said the N.W.T.s grand chiefs want to look more closely at liquor store closures, a subject that could be controversial for both larger centres and smaller communities. The N.W.T. has said the stores should stay open, while concerns have been expressed about bootleggers inadvertently bringing COVID-19 into communities.

9:32 p.m. U.S. President Donald Trump says there are plans to remove nearly 250 Canadians from two cruise ships and get them back to Canada.

The U.S. Coast Guard has directed all cruise ships to remain at sea where they may be sequestered indefinitely during the coronavirus pandemic, but Trump said Canada is coming to get the Canadians from the MS Zaandam and its sister ship the Rotterdam.

Trump said the same is true for citizens of the United Kingdom on the ships.

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Camillus, N.Y. -- Every afternoon when Dr. Vincent Scialdone gets home from work, he pulls into his garage.

He steps out of the car, strips off his clothes, puts them in a garbage bag. He closes the bag, rubs his hands with sanitizer, then goes into the house. The clothes, old hospital scrubs, go immediately into the wash. Scialdone goes directly to the shower.

The rule for his three girls and wife: No hugs until after the shower.

Scialdone, a doctor at Family Care in Medical Center West in Camillus, has had this routine for two weeks. Thats when the doctors switched from shirts and pants to scrubs to avoid bringing coronavirus home to their families.

Like most doctors, most parents, we fear that were going to bring this back to the house, to our wives and our kids, Scialdone said.

The hundreds of family practice and primary care doctors in Central New York have found themselves suddenly with a spot on the frontlines in the fight against coronavirus.

The goal is the same as always: to help their patients feel better. But so much else is completely changed in an attempt to contain the risk of spreading COVID-19 to other patients, staff, themselves and their families.

In-office visits are being cut to a bare minimum. Most patients are seen online or over the phone. Severely ill patients, or patients who sound clearly COVID-19 positive, are sent to backdoors or parking lots.

Many offices screen over the phone and then, again, at the door, for COVID-19 symptoms. And because many medical offices are seeing fewer patients, some have had to cut staff or furlough employees.

At some practices, doctors have decided to forgo their own salaries so they can pay staff, said Erika Barry, executive director of the Onondaga County Medical Society.

At the same time, family doctors are shifting into the role of becoming a triage system for the hospitals and emergency rooms, Barry said.

Now, his day is built around seeing patients in a pyramid of risk. The day starts with scheduling and doing telemedicine visits. This is something most practices, including his, didnt do much before. The state, though, relaxed reimbursement rules to allow doctors to continue practicing during the pandemic.

More seriously ill patients who need to be seen are seen later in the day, and they are seen in isolation rooms. If they appear to have COVID-19 symptoms, Scialdone or another doctor in the practice sees them in the parking lot that is nearly empty these days.

Scialdone has done many of those parking lot tests at this point. Several, he said, have come back positive.

Dr. Brian Smiths practice, Family Practice Associates in Clay, is testing people for COVID-19 in the parking lot, too, to avoid bringing the virus that can live for days on some surfaces inside. They have a limited supply of tests and so are only doing a few a day. A handful have come back positive.

The wait for patients is long and agonizing. Smith said they soon may decide to send patients to the countys testing site, instead, if that spot starts getting the tests back promptly.

For now, testing duty at Smiths practice is limited to one doctor and one nurse. That way, they dont use as much protective gear  the masks, gowns, goggles and gloves that guard against COVID-19 but are in short supply in some places.

As Smith and the other doctors in his practice are trying to navigate COVID-19 risks and telemedicine, theyre also starting see financial strain from the loss of patients.

Smith has been in practice for more than 30 years. Hes never had to lay off staff. Friday, they had to put staff on a rotating furlough.

In family practice, you never have to do that. There is always work, he said.

Smith hasnt switched to scrubs. But he wipes his clothes down with Clorox wipes before he heads into his house and then tosses the clothes into the wash. Hes been wearing a different pair of old shoes each day. At the end of the day, he leaves that pair of shoes in the garage for a week and moves to a different pair.

Smiths son, who is currently living with him and his wife, works as an ICU nurse at Crouse Hospital. So far, he hasnt treated a COVID-19 patient. But the family realizes the risk, and he strips off his scrubs in the garage before coming inside, like Scialdone does.

Even with all that, the family worries about COVID-19 hitch-hiking on them. Smith and his wife went to see their new grandbaby recently. They showered right before going to see the baby. And they wore masks for the visit.

Doctors across the state are facing the same choices and struggles, said Dr. Thomas Madejski, the past-president of the Medical Society of the State of New York. Madejski knows first-hand: Hes a family practice doctor in Medina, between Rochester and Buffalo.

He and a nurse did a COVID-19 test on a patient last week whose results came back positive. He and the nurse decided to self-quarantine for a few days, just to be safe.

Madejski was able to see all of his patients online. That included his rounds at a nearby nursing home. One resident had stomach pain that may have sent her to the ER in different times. But through instructing a nurse what to do, and then carefully asking questions and observing, Madejski was able to diagnose the problem.

He would never have thought to do that before, but this week, that was the only choice. And it worked.

It certainly is baptism by fire, he said.

Everyone is still bracing for the worst.

One night at Scialdones house recently, his wife, Carolyn, showed him his youngest daughters journal entry. Tucked in next to a dramatic story about the toilet overflowing was her fear that her father could get the virus everyone is staying home to avoid.

She is right. They have a plan if he does get sick. He will move into the living room. Theres a door that closes. A bathroom. And a TV (with no Yankees games on it, Scialdone jokes).

The rest of the family will use the front door and try their best to stay away.

He cant imagine listening to the commotion of the girls and the dog without joining in.

But three weeks ago, he couldnt have imagined any of this.

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

Coronavirus: Its not just the elderly who are at risk of severe illness

Parents make heart-wrenching decision to not visit newborn until coronavirus scare passes

Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst day for hospitalized, critical patients. Sobering,' county exec says

When will the peak of the coronavirus pandemic hit CNY? What to watch for

Marnie Eisenstadt is a reporter who writes about people and public affairs in Central New York. Have an idea or question? Contact her anytime: email | twitter| Facebook | 315-470-2246
Maybe youve never had the time, or perhaps studying some of them at school put you off, but there has never been a better chance to tackle the classics by the worlds greatest authors.

With memorable characters, meaty themes and, most important of all, beautiful writing, there are plenty of reasons why these books have entranced generations.

So discover for yourself the utter joy of being transported to another world

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald was adapted for a 2013 film by Baz Luhrmann, starring Leonardo DiCaprio (who is pictured above) and Carey Mulligan

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

If lockdown puts you in the mood to take some time out with the kind of plus-sized masterpiece that the everyday nine-to-five grind rarely leaves room for, where better to begin than with this 17th-century Spanish epic?

The first ever novel is about a down-at-heel country gent who, hopped up on tales of knightly derring-do, dubs himself Don Quixote and sets off a-roaming on a series of muddle-headed escapades with his loyal sidekick Sancho Panza.

A charming comic caper that doubles as a poignant case study in wild self-delusion.

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

There has been a spike of interest in Defoes startling 1722 novel A Journal Of The Plague Year, but if that seems just a little on the nose right now, you could do worse than take a few tips from Robinson Crusoe, English literatures number one self-isolator.

Shipwrecked on a remote Caribbean island with only a dog and two cats for company, the Yorkshire sailors chatty, thoughtful reflections on morality, the meaning of life and the virtues of perseverance remain engaging and endearing.

Stick with it and theres a high dose of drama, too, in the shape of cannibals and mutineers.

Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen

Pride And Prejudice by Jane Austen

While a list such as this could rightly feature any or all of Austens six novels, Pride And Prejudice is undoubtedly the most iconic.

This is a shrewd and sparkling comedy about the choices on offer to well-to-do young Englishwomen of the early 19th century.

Its the story of Elizabeth Bennet, a landowners daughter who shuns her familys strictures on marrying for advantage in favour of a love match with the one and only Mr Darcy. Who also happens to be very wealthy with a stunning stately home

Its subtle, supremely readable and bloody funny to boot  just the tonic we need right now.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Mary Shelley was miraculously still in her teens when she wrote this spine-tingling tale as her entry in a parlour game with the poets Lord Byron and her lover and future husband Percy Bysshe Shelley.

They competed to see who could concoct the scariest story.

Its the cautionary tale of a young Swiss doctor, Victor Frankenstein, whose hunger to outdo the latest cutting-edge science gets catastrophically out of hand  as witnessed by an Arctic explorer, Robert Walton, who sees the result running amok in the wild.

All the meatiest questions about humanity and the limits of technological progress are asked in this, the first science- fiction novel.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

The only novel published by the most mythologised of the Bronte sisters, this Gothic melodrama shocked and baffled Victorian readers but has inspired cult-like devotion ever since  not to mention a chart-topping single by Kate Bush.

Named after the Yorkshire manor house at its heart, its a tangled tale turning on the incestuous passion between a gruff, brooding landlord, Heathcliff, and his foster sister Catherine, whose decision to marry for status, not love, sets off a thunderous chain reaction felt through the decades.

Its an unruly cocktail of ghostly goings-on, savage violence and shivery romance.

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

Published in France in 1856, this is the tragic story of the original desperate housewife, Emma, who lands herself in hot water after doing the dirty on her husband, a hapless country doctor who fails to live up to her Prince Charming ideals.

Beautifully written, the books almost wicked genius lies in its coolly impassive narration, which leaves us unsure what Flaubert himself thinks about the characters (his refusal to pass explicit judgment on Emma landed him with a charge of obscenity).

Every time I read this novel I see it anew  its viciously satirical but also achingly tender.

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

Crime And Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

While the heyday of Victorian serialisation meant that Dickens wrote any number of great novels perfect for whiling away these quarantined days, many of them (whisper it) do carry a fair bit of timber.

Sleeker than his usual fare is this 1861 rites-of-passage book about an orphan who finds himself within touching distance of his dream of becoming a gentleman, thanks to a windfall from an unexpected source that is not wholly welcome.

Tonally wild, and full of light as well as brutal darkness, its a twisty tragicomedy that teaches you to reconsider what really matters in life.

Crime And Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Published in Russian in 1866, this is the tale of impoverished former law student, Raskolnikov, who lives in St Petersburg.

He fools himself into thinking that hes above the law when he reckons that he can solve his money worries, and maybe even do some good in the world, by murdering a predatory old pawnbroker.

Naturally the guilt-racked reality fails to live up to the plan in his head.

Ill always remember the cold sweat in which I first read this darkly philosophical crime story about free will, redemption and God  I was utterly gripped by its dream-like ambience of mounting dread.

War And Peace by Leo Tolstoy

War And Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Middlemarch by George Eliot

Tess Of The DUrbervilles by Thomas Hardy

Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad

Of all the big beasts that are more talked about than read, this one is perhaps the biggest.

Set in Russia amid the Napoleonic Wars, and portraying everything from St Petersburg high society to the bloodshed of Borodino, it tells the story  among many others  of Pierre Bezukhov, an aristocrats illegitimate son, and Natasha, a counts daughter.

Packed with duels, high-stakes card games and elopements, it mixes scalding drama with essayistic digression, and is populated by characters who feel as real (and as maddening) as your own family.

If you werent inspired to try it when Andrew Davies BBC adaptation aired in 2016, nows the time.

Middlemarch by George Eliot

Widely regarded as the finest English novel ever written, this rich social tapestry unfolds in the Midlands in the early 19th century.

Its pegged to the stories of a go-getting young doctor, Lydgate, and 19-year-old Dorothea Brooke, who is eager to use her inheritance to make a difference in the world but is stuck in a stifling marriage to a dull older man.

The almost impossibly wise narrative voice of Eliot (real name Mary Ann Evans) constantly pops up to remind us theres another side to the story whenever she finds herself getting too cosy with any one character.

Tess Of The DUrbervilles by Thomas Hardy

This 1891 masterpiece follows a downtrodden milkmaid pressured by her peasant family to search for extra work following an accident that leaves them in danger of destitution.

When Tess falls in with a rich playboy, Alec, she gets the income she needs, but at a terrible cost  not least to her doomed relationship with another man who piously takes the view that shes damaged goods.

Hotly disputed in its day, this stinging broadside against the double standards of Victorian morality is terrifically, almost horribly, dramatic.

Even just thinking about Tesss fate feels too much to bear.

Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad

Conrad, who was born in Poland and wrote some of the greatest novels to be found in English, drew on his seafaring days for this morality tale published in 1900.

Its the confession of a sailor who decides to save himself rather than the hundreds of passengers below deck when his steamship starts letting in water.

While the passengers are saved, its no thanks to him, and the guilt is ruinous.

Emerging through a nest of narrative layers designed to complicate simplistic notions of truth, this is a provocative examination of shame, salvation and British identity at the height of the Empire.

In Search Of Lost Time by Marcel Proust

This is made up of 3,000 pages, containing hundreds of characters and more than one million words  most of them written in bed in a cork-lined room.

French writer Prousts seven-volume mega-work (also known as Remembrance Of Things Past in C. K. Scott Moncrieffs landmark translation) follows a narrator who, dunking his cake in a cup of tea, finds himself flooded with nostalgic memories of the ins and outs of aristocratic life in Belle Epoque France.

Push past the slowish start and his reminiscences become an addiction you wont want to shake, but if you get stuck, theres always the 150-hour audiobook.

In Search Of Lost Time by Marcel Proust

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

Ulysses by James Joyce

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

Fancy something shorter?

Try Kafkas 1915 story, perhaps the finest ever written, in which a travelling salesman, Gregor Samsa, wakes to find himself turned into a cockroach and shunned by his family.

While Samsas nightmarish fate can be read as a skin-crawlingly apt symbol of all manner of psychological ills, from sexual anxiety to wage-slave ennui, the storys timeless brilliance comes down to Kafkas decision to play an entirely straight bat.

The scenario, thrillingly alive on its own terms, can bear almost any allegorical interpretation but doesnt need one.

Blackly funny, tragically moving: its perfect.

Ulysses by James Joyce

The best way to think of Joyces playful but daunting magnum opus, set over a summers day in 1904, is to see it as a picknmix of freewheeling exercises in style.

Since many readers dont get past the wordy initial chapters about a pompous teacher, Stephen Dedalus, why not skip to part four, which introduces the novels true hero, Leopold Bloom?

The joyous heart of the book consists of his random thoughts as he cooks breakfast, buys soap, pops to the post office so dont fret too much: its only the story of two blokes taking a stroll around Dublin.

Middlemarch by George Eliot: Widely regarded as the finest English novel ever written, this rich social tapestry unfolds in the Midlands in the early 19th century/ A film version is pictured above

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Oozing Jazz Age glamour, this 1925 novel can seem to endorse the culture it sends up, but really its about the murky reality behind the glittering American Dream, prior to the Great Depression.

The ultimate story of lost illusions, its narrated by wide-eyed Nick Carraway. He is in awe of his multi-millionaire neighbour, the Gatsby of the title, who is a Long Island party host whose riches come from an uncertain source. Fitzgerald, unbelievably, first thought of naming the book Trimalchio In West Egg.

It was adapted for a 2013 film by Baz Luhrmann, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan.

To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

A group of people plan to sail in a small boat to a lighthouse. At the end some of them reach the lighthouse in a small boat, ran one dismissive review of this Modernist gem.

Well, yes, but Woolf, the most refined of English writers, always knew that a plot need not be at the centre of a novelists work.

This experimental family story, set before, during and after World War I in a Skye holiday house, toys ingeniously with how to portray the passing of time and the incommunicable nature of consciousness.

Woolf wrestles with how each of us ultimately sees the world through our eyes only.

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

Newspeak, Big Brother, doublethink  few novels can have matched the reach of this genre-defining 1949 dystopia.

Its set in a future Britain run by a totalitarian regime whose power hangs on the redefinition of language. We follow the pointedly named Winston, employed to churn out fake news by the Ministry of Truth.

Written at light-speed while Orwell was dying of tuberculosis, it remains incredibly fresh, luring you with crystal-clear prose into an austere nightmare world thats both chilling and, in a very dark way, hilarious. Often imitated, but never bettered.

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Nabokov created perhaps the most notorious of unreliable narrators in Humbert Humbert, a New England academic who cultivates a relationship with a widow to get closer to her 12-year-old daughter, Dolores, or Lolita.

A succes de scandale on publication in Paris in 1955, its subtler than you might expect if you know the book only by name  the Russian-American writer coaxes us into the narrators twisted world view before delivering a sucker punch that tests to breaking point the cosy notion that novels serve to generate empathy.

One Hundred Years Of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

One Hundred Years Of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

No quarantine jokes please... Nobel prize-winner Marquez rewired expectations of literary fiction with this dizzying multi-generational saga, which follows one family through war, political turmoil and natural disasters in the invented town of Macondo.

The high watermark of magic realism, it defined an era of Latin American storytelling and got writers all over the world thinking big.

Marquez, who died in 2014, always refused offers to film the book, apparently telling Harvey Weinstein any movie would need to be released in two-minute instalments over 100 years.

Now theres a Netflix adaptation in the works, executive-produced by Marquezs sons.
Mumbai, April 1 (IANS) Moving swiftly, the Maharashtra government has identified at least 700 persons, including around 450 from Mumbai region, who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event held in Nizamuddin area of New Delhi last month, officials said here on Wednesday.

Deploying a mix of human and technical intelligence, the Mumbai Police and State Intelligence Department plus health authorities, have zeroed in on a majority of those who attended the religious event and started acting on it as it adds a whole new dimension to the state's anti-Covid-19 war.

The police have collated data from the Bureau of Immigration to track those who arrived in the country at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, mostly from Indonesia, Malaysia, Mauritius and the Philippines.

In Mumbai, of the estimated 450, the police and health authorities have managed to track 32, including 11 Indonesians, and shunted them to compulsory quarantine in Bandra.

In Thane's Mumbra town, 23 have been sent to quarantine, including 12 Bangladeshis and 35 have been isolated in Ahmednagar, though none have exhibited coronavirus symptoms.

According to Pune Divisional Commissioner, Deepak Mhaiskar, 182 have been traced in Pune Division, including 136 from Pune, 5 from Satara, 3 from Sangli, 17 from Solapur and 21 from Kolhapur, who attended the event.

"Of these, 120 have been traced so far and sent to quarantine, and a search is on to track the others," Mhaiskar told media persons.

Nagpur Municipal Commissioner Tukaram Munde said that 54 from the city had attended the Nizamuddin event and have been quarantined now.

At least 200 from different parts of India and abroad, who had attended the religious congregation have tested Covid-19 positive and 10 have died so far.

With an estimated 700 people from Maharashtra also attending the same event, it has added a new front to the struggle against Covid-19.

According to official sources, Besides Pune and Mumbai, several others have attended from Bhandara, Wardha, Yavatmal, Akola, Buldhana, Washim, Osmanabad, Nashik and Aurangabad.

Police and health authorities are seeking the help of various Muslim clerics, religious leaders and social organisations to ascertain and pinpoint those who attended the event as they could pose a 'high-risk' category for the local population.

Complicating the issue are reports emanating that some of them may have attended other religious events within the state before the lockdown was announced on March 25, and a few have yet to return to the state with their current whereabouts not clear.

"It's a complex issue. Those who attended the event and their families/relatives are considered 'high-risk contacts', but the bigger challenge is that most may have used public transport like trains and buses in their pan-India travel," said an official.

Among those who were hosted by an Ahmednagar mosque, two - one from France and one from the Ivory Coast --have turned Covid-19 positive - and now action has been initiated against the mosque authorities.

A 10-member group of Fillipinos had lived in a mosque in Vashi, Navi Mumbai and later one 68-year old was found positive, but died due to other causes after he turned negative.

However, a mosque official, his son, grandson and a female help were found positive but are now on the way to recovery.

--IANS

qn/vd
CHANTILLY, Va., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Ridge Networks today announced that it will provide proven endpoint and critical infrastructure cyber security solutions for Qatar's private and public sectors through its partners Clearspan Strategic LLC and Al Mana Computer Services (ACS).

Blue Ridge Networks solutions are currently deployed by high profile government agencies and private entities in more than 120 countries. As part of this deal Blue Ridge Networks will provide ACS, through Clearspan, with its core products AppGuard and LinkGuard. The introduction of these proven products will provide companies in the region with unprecedented protection against cyberattacks, and the protection necessary to Qatar's growing reputation as a regional leader and global influencer.

"Our suite of network infrastructure, remote access and endpoint cybersecurity solutions have been trusted to prevent cyberattacks and eliminate vulnerabilities for more than 20 years without experiencing one reported breach," said Srini Mirmira, President of Blue Ridge Networks. "We are proud to bring these proven offerings to Clearspan and ACS and provide their customers with advanced solutions to protect against the increasing volume of cyber threats."

Nabil Al Otaibi, ACS General Manager said, "Cyber security is evolving quickly. Its importance grows by the day in Qatar. Our partnership with Blue Ridge Networks and Clearspan Strategic shows our dedication to providing clients with best-in-class cyber security. Blue Ridge Network's patented products will positively disrupt the way cyber security is practiced here."

"The purpose of this alliance is to serve the users' security needs effectively and seamlessly. Blue Ridge Networks' products are unsurpassed, as is Al Mana's reputation for service, and we are delighted to help expand Blue Ridge Networks' international footprint and introduce impregnable cyber security for enterprises in the region," said Michael Stellwag, Clearspan Strategic's Principal in Doha.

Al Mana Computer Services W.L.L. helped bring the digital age to Doha. Founded in 1983, it is a member of Al Mana Group of Companies, which was established in 1960. ACS provides total quality Information Technology (IT) solutions, providing IT products, consulting and technical services to more than 200 prominent business in the Qatar economy. This partnership ensures its leadership in cyber security in Qatar.

For more information about Blue Ridge Networks visit the company website, or contact us here.

ABOUT BLUE RIDGE NETWORKS, Inc.

Blue Ridge Networks is a proven cybersecurity isolation and containment technology innovator delivering network segmentation, remote access, and endpoint cybersecurity solutions that eliminate vulnerabilities to critical network infrastructure and prevent exfiltration of mission critical data. The company has successfully provided resilient, scalable, and affordable cybersecurity systems, software, and managed services for over 20 years, protecting critical operations of its government and enterprise customers with no reported breaches of its technologies  ever.

ABOUT CLEARPSAN STRATEGIC LLC

Clearspan Strategic LLC is a Chicago, Illinois-based business advisory consultancy with a primary aim of building international links for new technologies and foreign business entities. With a footprint that spans across the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia, Clearspan Strategic is advising some of the most exciting companies in the US in their global expansions. With clients ranging from game-changing pharmaceuticals to one of the top cyber security firms in the world, Clearspan Strategic is emboldening business opportunities for enterprises that have an eye on building global markets. Its team consists of former investment bankers, marketing & communications consultants, and end-market specialists, all with one aim of building your business to even greater heights.

SOURCE Blue Ridge Networks

Related Links

http://www.blueridgenetworks.com


The West Bengal government on Thursday announced that all students studying in Class 1 to 8 will be automatically promoted to the next class in view of the emergent situation due to coronavirus outbreak.

Education minister Partha Chatterjee told reporters on Thursday the School Education department has decided there will be no detention of students from class 1 to 8.

The department is passing on instruction to the schools (state-run and state-aided) to fully enforce the no detention policy in all institutions for those studying up to the eighth standard, in view of the present situation, Chatterjee said.

The School Education department had ordered the closure of all educational institutions from March 16 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

This resulted in suspension or inordinate delay in holding class exams in different schools apart from suspension of classes.

Chatterjee said the Education department is working on a mechanism to ensure classes from nine to 12 can be held with the help of technology (net), mail and through video conferencing. We want to ensure classes can be held through modern technology. We are working on the mechanism. We will roll it out after getting the consent of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, he said.

Presently many private schools, under ICSE and CBSE curriculum, are already holding online classes from classes 5 to 12.

On April 1, Union HRD Ministry directed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to promote all students of classes 1 to 8 to the next class in view of the situation due to the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

In view of the current situation due to #COVID19, I have advised @cbseindia29 to promote ALL students studying in classes I-VIII to the next class or grade, Union HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank had tweeted on Wednesday.
COVID19 has spread its tentacles across continents and while countries continue to grapple with the pandemic by following strict lockdowns and closures, our sixth wave of poll shows that while anxiety is palpable, global citizens are more concerned about the vulnerable and the weak. At least 1 in 2 fear for the weak and vulnerable and 1 in 3 are experiencing some bit of anxiety, due to the virus.

Interestingly, while India is amid a 21-day nationwide lockdown, anxiety apart, Indians are experiencing path breaking new positive experiences, amid the pandemic and lockdown.

74% urban Indians are hoping to learn a new skill during COVID19, and 72% urban Indians foresee themselves becoming closer to family and friends, due to COVID19.

Corona mortality is more among the elderly and those with weaker immune systems. And that is bothering a sizable chunk of urban Indians, says Amit Adarkar, CEO, Ipsos India.

Government has taken stern measures in terms of a 21-day nationwide lockdown and with rigorous advisories on prevention across print, TV, radio and digital, for containing corona virus. So, majority of the urban households are without a domestic help, due to emphasis on social distancing and are learning to navigate through household chores, including cooking. Consequently, new skills stem from here and from the fact that due to being closeted at home 24X7, urban Indians are doing new things to kill time and to overcome boredom, said Amit Adarkar, CEO, Ipsos India.

Corona Virus outbreak will bring families and friends closer, as they support one another in tiding over these tough times. Among Indians too we see a fair degree of concern for the vulnerable, at the cost of disregard for oneself, though anxiety is highly palpable, added Adarkar.

What do the global results reveal?

Most people surveyed across the world are most concerned for people who are vulnerable or weak amid the coronavirus pandemic even as lockdowns and closures force millions to isolate themselves.

In 13 of the 15 countries, majorities cited concern for those who are weak and vulnerable at the top of a list of 10 options when asked what best describes how they are feeling today. People in Brazil (70%), Spain and the United Kingdom (66%), Mexico (61%) and Canada, France and Italy (60%) are mostly likely to express concern for others, while those in Japan (23%) and China (30%) are least concerned.

Fewer people are anxious about their own health, which ranked in the middle of the list of the 10 scenarios.

Darrell Bricker, Global Service Line Leader, Public Affairs, said the findings show that while we may be alone because of social distancing measures, there are signs this crisis is pulling us closer together.

Even though many of us are avoiding physical contact with other people, it hasnt diminished our desire to be emotionally connected to them or to the wider world, said Bricker.

Added to this, a majority (53%) of people surveyed said its likely the pandemic will bring them closer to their family and friends. This sentiment is strongest in Asian countries of India (72%), Vietnam (70%), and China (67%). Those in Japan (19%), South Korea (32%) and Germany (41%) are least likely to agree with this.

Many of us are trying to put our new found alone time to good use during this crisis. Two in five (44%) of those surveyed are optimistic they will likely learn a new skill as a result of the outbreak. This sentiment is highest in emerging markets of Vietnam (75%), India (74%), Mexico (64%), China (63%) and Brazil (60%), while those in Germany (42%), South Korea (33%), Spain (32%) and the U.K. (31%) said it was unlikely.

Almost half of us are looking at this as a glass half full situation thats freeing up space for personal growth, said Bricker.

These are the results of an Ipsos survey conducted March 26th to 30th, 2020 on the Global Advisor online platform among 28,000 adults aged 18-74 in Canada and the United States and 16-74 in Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, Italy, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, Vietnam and the United Kingdom. Where available, tracking results from Wave 3, conducted February 28-29, February 14-15, and February 7-9 are presented. Sample sizes in previous waves were 1,000 per country.
New Delhi, April 2 : Moody's Investor Service on Thursday changed the outlook for the Indian banking system to negative as stress on the sector is likely to rise with the coronavirus outbreak and higher defaults.

The Moody's report said that banks' asset quality will deteriorate across the corporate, small and medium enterprises and retail segments, leading to pressure on profitability and capital.

While funding and liquidity at public sector banks (PSBs) will be stable, growing risk aversion in the system following a default by a private sector bank will increase funding and liquidity pressure on small private sector lenders, it said.

"We have changed the outlook for the Indian banking system to negative from stable. Disruptions to economic activity from the coronavirus outbreak will exacerbate a slowdown in India's economic growth,a it said.

According to Moody's, a deterioration of global economic conditions and a 21-day lockdown imposed by the Indian government in an effort to slow the spread of coronavirus will weigh on domestic demand and private investment.

Further, it said, "credit supply to the economy will be hampered by volatility in global financial markets and heightened risk aversion among Indian banks and debt market participations after a default by privately owned Yes Bank Limited (Yes Bank, Caa1 positive, ca)." Stress among non-bank finance institutions will also curtail their capacity to lend and these factors will further hinder India's economic growth, which already had been weakening prior to the coronavirus outbreak, the report noted.

A sharp decline in economic activity and a rise in unemployment will lead to a deterioration of household and corporate finances, which in turn will result in increases in delinquencies, it said.

Growing solvency stress among non-bank financial institutions will also increase risks to banks' asset quality because banks have large exposures to the sector.

If the government makes more capital infusions into public sector banks, as it has in the past few years, it will mitigate capital pressure for them, according to the Moody's report.

"However, the government so far has not announced any new plan to provide capital support for PSBs. Most rated private sector banks will maintain strong capital buffers." It said that funding and liquidity at PSBs will be stable because public trust in them will remain strong thanks to sovereign backing, unaffected by the Yes Bank default.

Funding and liquidity at large private sector banks will also be stable, given their well-established franchises and strong depositor bases.

However, the default of Yes Bank will lead to risk aversion among depositors and creditors, creating funding and liquidity challenges for smaller private sector banks with weaker franchises.

Government support for PSBs will remain strong, which will contain the risk of any contagion of their balance sheet weakness to the system.

"By contrast, the Yes Bank default indicates the government will not provide support a failing private sector banks without imposing a moratorium on depositors and creditors, although government support will mitigate losses to depositors and senior creditors after the failure," it added.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
For too long, Washington has focused on the wrong threats in its foreign and domestic policies, fighting wars in Afghanistan (above) and Iraq rather than focusing on the full range of potential dangers. (Brennan Linsley / Associated Press)

For the last two decades, Washington has focused on preventing 9/11-style attacks, considering that to be our most urgent national security concern. But the latest threat to American life has come not from a terrorist with a dirty bomb, or from rogue states like North Korea or Iran but, rather, from a microbe too small to see.

Expanding the focus of national security to encompass the broad array of internal and external dangers actually facing us wont be easy. But the lesson of the COVID-19 pandemic is that the United States has been myopic in understanding what counts as a priority threat.

It now seems abundantly apparent that rather than building hospitals in Afghanistan, we should have focused on producing masks and ventilators here at home. Rather than building schools in Iraq, we should have invested in scientific breakthroughs to treat disease.

Instead, Washington foreign policy has focused on a standard list of threats, most of which are exaggerated and disconnected from Americans day-to-day lives. At the heart of our foreign policy has been a commitment to sustaining American primacy through the frequent use of military power worldwide while deprioritizing domestic needs.

The result? An expanding and expensive batch of security commitments to wealthy countries and a massive defense budget of $738 billion for the 2020 fiscal year.

The endless wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have cost more than 7,000 American lives and consumed nearly $6 trillion. Americans pride themselves on efficiency; but how many of us would say that the Iraq war or the nation-building project in Afghanistan exemplify effective uses of money or that they have made either the countries we invaded or our own more secure?

By any reasonable metric, both wars have been failures. Yet as they have dragged on, this country has become inured to them.

Thats not surprising. Though our leaders have insisted both wars were essential to safeguard the United States, the costs have been borne by a small segment of Americans  soldiers and their families. Most Americans were not directly affected or called upon to make sacrifices, so didnt ask questions as Washington relied on the countrys credit card to pay for the military conflicts, helping to run up a national debt totaling $23 trillion in the process.

Story continues

Meanwhile, our preoccupation with global primacy has utterly failed to protect Americans from some of the biggest threats to their well-being, none of which have military solutions.

Here at home, we have a national suicide epidemic. Every twelve minutes or so someone in this country kills himself or herself. The suicide rate has jumped by a third since 1999, from 10.5 to 14 per 100,000 people.

In 2018, 4,680 people in the United States died from opioid overdoses. States like West Virginia, Delaware, Ohio and New Hampshire (to name but a few) report staggering death tolls, ranging as high as 50 per 100,000 people.

Suicide and opioid overdoses are, however, seldom described as grave national security threats. Nor do we consider the threats from such things as job displacement by automation, steep increases in premiums for health insurance, or the spiraling costs of higher education (average college tuition has increased by 37% during the last decade and student debt by a third just since 2014, now totaling $1.6 trillion -- about $31,000 per head -- last year). Yet all of these pose great threats to the well-being of Americans.

Less dire, but critical to success in a global economy in which the United States faces increasing competition, is our crumbling infrastructure  rail lines, highways, bridges and ports. The cost in lost productivity from inadequate infrastructure totals $160 billion.

In 1930, 4.2% of GDP was spent on infrastructure; by 2016 the proportion had fallen to 2.5%. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) gives our infrastructure a D-plus grade and, in 2016, estimated a $4.6-trillion investment was needed through 2025 for a comprehensive upgrade.

Now we face what could be the biggest public health calamity since the 1918 influenza pandemic, and everything from protective masks and gowns to ventilators are in short supply. Hospitals may be forced to decide who lives and who dies. We dont have a system in place ensuring all Americans have adequate access to healthcare. The resulting economic downturn has already been severe.

The havoc wrought by COVID-19 should prompt a long overdue reassessment of our antiquated views on national priorities so we can focus resources and policies on the biggest and most salient threats to Americans. A foreign policy that fails to take those into account cannot sustain support on the home front and will, therefore, fail abroad.

Rajan Menon is a professor of international relations at the Powell School at the City College of New York. William Ruger is the vice president for research and policy at the Charles Koch Institute and is a veteran of the Afghanistan War.




BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

Special permits allowing citizens to go outside will be prepared in Azerbaijan, said spokesman for the Cabinet of Ministers Ibrahim Mammadov, Trend reports.

Mammadov made the remark at briefing held by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2.

According to him, the permit template will be prepared in the coming days, and respective information be announced to the citizens.

"Since the permit template is not yet ready, we cannot provide the information. The permit will clarify the rules, cases in which a citizen can leave his house, as well as the control mechanism," Mammadov said.

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their homes, apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence.

To this end, all kinds of operations, except for the vital work and services, have been suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.

People are allowed to leave houses and apartments only if it is necessary to provide emergency medical care, if there is a directly dangerous situation for life and health, in order to visit authorized retail and public services, to perform official duties in cases of household waste, as well as in organizations operating during the special regime.

In order to minimize peoples communication with each other and thereby reduce the rate of infection, activities in a number of areas of the economy and services are prohibited during the announced period.
The Military Aviation Museum in Pungo, Virginia announced last night that they are postponing their annual air show, Warbirds Over the Beach. Originally scheduled for the weekend of May 15  17, the event is now planned for October 2  4, 2020. The museums press release continues

All those who have purchased tickets will be automatically issued tickets for the new date. If attendees wish to cancel their tickets to receive a refund they may do so by contacting the museum directly at (757) 721-7767 or by email at operations@aviationmuseum. us

The October 2  4 weekend has been a fixture on the museum calendar in recent years, and home to the successful Biplanes & Brews event which combined World War I air show performances with beer tastings. The Museum Staff is working to incorporate fan favorite features from Biplanes & Brews into this years Warbirds Over the Beach schedule so that attendees who have enjoyed our October event in the past can still do so this year!

At the present time Flying Proms 2020 is still set for June 20, with tickets expected to go on sale later this month. We continue to monitor the health situation, and will share updates as they become available.
An 85-year-old coronavirus patient died and 13 others, including three who had attended a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area, were tested positive in Rajasthan on Thursday taking the total number of positive cases to 133.

Three of the 13 new positive cases are from Udaipur, Dholpur and Bharatpur (one each) and they are the first case in their respective district.

The octogenarian who died was Sohan Lal, who was also suffering from brain hemorrhage, and was admitted to the SMS Hospital on Tuesday.

"One person who had tested positive and was from Alwar, admitted in SMS has died. He was a known case of brain stroke paralysis,"Additional chief secretary medical and health Rohit Kumar Singh said.

This is the third coronavirus death in the state.

Two coronavirus deaths have occurred in Bhilwara but officials maintained that they died due to co-morbid conditions.

Earlier, an Italian man, who was the first one to be tested positive for COVID-19 in Rajasthan, also died due to cardiac arrest and he had recovered from coronavirus.

Meanwhile, 13 new persons, including a woman, were tested positive for coronavirus till Thursday evening.

Seven of them are from Ramganj area of Jaipur, which has become a new hotspot of coronavirus positive cases, two are from Jodhpur, and one each is from Jhunjhunu, Dholpur, Bharatpur and Udaipur.

Three men from Jhunjhunu, Dholpur and Bharatpur, who have been tested positive on Thursday, are those who had attended a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi.

Of the two persons tested positive in Jodhpur is a 26-year-old woman with a travel history to Ahmedabad and a 16-year-old boy in Udaipur.

The Udaipur boy has a travel history of Indore, Madhya Pradesh.

So far, 14 persons who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation have tested positive in the state.

Of the total 133 positive cases, 18 are those who were evacuated from Iran and are in the Indian Army's isolation facility.

Rest 115 cases are in 15 districts of Rajasthan.

With 41 cases, Jaipur is on the top in the state in coronavirus cases and 33 of them are from Ramganj area only.

Twenty-six are in Bhilwara, 10 in Jodhpur, nine in Jhunjhunu, eight in Churu, five in Ajmer, four in Tonk, three in Dungarpur, two each in Pratapgarh and Alwar and one each in Pali, Sikar, Bharatpur, Dholpur and Udaipur.

Udaipur, Dholpur and Bharatpur were on Thursday added to the list of districts having coronavirus cases.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Renaissance woman Diane Thomas-Rupert won the Ruby Award for Soroptimist in Ravalli County.

Thomas-Rupert has many talents, areas of knowledge and has helped women throughout her life.

According to Bitterroot Valley Soroptimist Mary Lyn, the Soroptimist Ruby Award is given for women helping women.

The Soroptimist Ruby Award honors women who, through their professional or personal efforts, are making extraordinary differences in the lives of women or girls, Lyn said. Honorees are women who have worked to improve the lives of other women or girls. Their work has had a significant impact and also inspires and encourages other women.

Lyn presented the award to Thomas-Rupert at an awards luncheon where valley Soroptimists gave away nearly $20,000 to women helping women.

A ruby is a gemstone, also associated with wisdom, importance, vitality, strength, power and love  all words embodying this year's recipient, Lyn said.

Thomas-Rupert said she was honored to receive the award.

I think it was very special and I really appreciated it, she said.

Thomas-Rupert said that in her 74 years her greatest impact on others was teaching women and children how to disarm bullies.

That was something that I learned about at 6 years of age while attending rural school, she said. You probably cannot even imagine what seventh-and eighth-grade girls can cook up to try to do to little first-and second-grade girls.

She developed a disarmament strategy from those experiences and has shared that information.

Having spent most of my professional career in a mans world when that was not very well accepted, I have had many opportunities to perfect my strategy, Thomas-Rupert said. Domestic violence de-escalation training has been very useful. It is also helpful to have a fixer.

Thomas-Rupert earned a bachelor,s in education from Minot State College, a masters in education from University of Hawaii (where she learned to be an activist during the Vietnam War) and post graduate work at University of North Dakota and University of Southern California. She also received training to deal with excessive power and control behavior as it affects domestic violence.

In her professional career she taught special education and was honored as Nebraska teacher of the year, served as a school psychologist and taught graduate classes at the University of Montana and organized statewide conference to encourage women to seek non-traditional positions in education. She served as a consultant to large school districts throughout the US on individualized teaching and learning curriculum.

Thomas-Rupert was the first woman in the state of Montana to serve as assistant superintendent of a AA school and was responsible for Bozeman School Board hiring their first woman elementary principal.

She worked with the Montana Legislature to develop laws that governed programs for special education, served on the Montana Governors task force to evaluate special education programs in Montana and served as advocate for special education students.

Thomas-Rupert served in various professional organization positions such as executive director of Missoula YWCA and worked with Missoula law enforcement to de-escalate domestic violence situations.

Thomas-Rupert also served 35 years as a financial adviser, with 25 of those years as co-owner of the branch office. She served as consultant on Charitable Remainder Trusts with other RJ branches and was the first recipient of the Raymond James Circle of Life Award. The award is to honors associates throughout the firm who exemplify the Raymond James mission specifically those who go above and beyond their normal business responsibilities to enrich the lives of others in their communities.

Thomas-Rupert also helped nonprofits. She worked with development of many nonprofit organizations, served in various charitable organization positions and advised nonprofit organizations on gifting to nonprofits through planned giving. She currently serve as board member of Rapp Family Foundation and is responsible for grant applications, board history and policies. She also currently serves as President of RSC Foundation (supporting Ravalli Services Corporation.)

Other accomplishments by Thomas-Rupert include co-owning and operating a gourmet restaurant and guest ranch where top executives in corporate America were hosted, managing White Feather Ranch for 35 years and encouraging women to apply, raising and showing Clydesdale horses and traveling with an eight-horse hitch of Clydesdales. She raised registered sheep with the help of a wonderful working border collie and has sold registered Wensleydale rams.

Currently, she shows knitted items at fairs, sells fleece, yarn and finished items. Some of her fleece was selected as the spinners choice and won grand champion at Ravalli County Fair. She has shown rams and fleece at large shows on the west coast and her fleece has received first place in each class at the Trailing of the Sheep Festival.

She also grows lavender and extract essential oil with a real whiskey still and restores and sells old houses.

Thomas-Rupert said she has had a great and interesting life full of bold choices.

My mother once said doing the right thing is the hardest decision youll ever make, Thomas-Rupert said. I think that is true and I dont think you always get appreciated for doing the right thing. I think you tend to get more appreciation for doing what other people want you to do. Ive never been a person to do what other people wanted me to do unless I thought it was right.

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CLIFTON HEIGHTS >> Police in Clifton Heights are asking for help in locating the suspect in the recent murder of an Aldan resident.

According to police, Jamal Aaron Denniston, 23, of Aldan, was found dead March 20 inside an abandoned property on the first block of Rockborne Road in Clifton Heights. He had been shot multiple times.

Following the investigation by both Clifton Heights police and the Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division, an arrest warrant has been issued for Rasul Ali Ryan, 18, with a last known address on the 2600 block of North Eighth Street in Philadelphia.

Ryan, who also goes by Shizz and Sul, was also known to have lived in Sharon Hill and Drexel Hill. Police said he also has contacts throughout Delaware County.

Ryan will be charged with criminal homicide, first- and third-degree murder, a firearms offense, and related charges, according to court records.

Anyone with information on Ryan is asked to contact either Clifton Heights police at 610-623-3242 of the Delaware County CID at 610-891-4197.
The American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Vietnam - Ho Chi Minh City has donated 250,000 surgical face masks to local frontline health workers as support for the fight against the novel coronavirus diease (COVID-19) in the metropolis.

In its press release, AmCham Vietnam-HCMC commended the effectiveness of actions taken by the Vietnamese government in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To support these efforts, the organization donated 250,000 surgical face masks to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health to assit frontline workers directly involved in managing the COVID-19 response at the citys hospitals and quarantine camps.

The donation was made possible thanks to numerous contributions from AmChams members and friends, namely Intel Products Vietnam, Pharmacity, MSD (Merck Sharp & Dohme), Samtec Vietnam, Kimberly-Clark Vietnam, and Fulbright University Vietnam faculty and staff.

AmChams Healthcare Committee, led by co-chairs Chris Blank from Pharmacity and Jonathan Moreno from Diversatek, also played an important role in the donation.

I want to convey the deep appreciation of AmCham Vietnam-HCMC for the effectiveness of pragmatic and decisive actions taken by Vietnamese government leaders and the incredible dedication of Vietnamese officials, including representatives of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, in controling the spread of COVID-19 and keeping those of us who live in Vietnam safe and informed of developments, Mary Tarnowka, executive director of AmCham Vietnam-HCMC, remarked.

AmCham is a non-governmental, non-profit, and non-partisan organization that works to promote trade and investment between the United States and Vietnam and serves as the voice of American business in the Southeast Asian country.

AmCham Vietnam-HCMC is one of the largest foreign business associations in Vietnam with over 500 corporate members and more than 1,500 business representatives, representing U.S., Vietnamese, and multinational enterprises, as well as individual entrepreneurs.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Photo: James Willamor/Flickr

Here's what you need to know about what's happening in Charlotte. NC EMS worker tests positive for coronavirus Read the full story on WNCN. Fraternal Chapter of Police asks City of Charlotte for hazard pay for officers, essential workers Read the full story on WCNC. Here are three good things that happened in the Charlotte area Wednesday Read the full story on WCNC. Charlotte moms build furniture showroom to help formerly homeless people Read the full story on WCNC. Compared to last March, CMPD has seen an 80% increase of shootings into occupied homes Read the full story on WCNC. This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.

Mecklenburg EMS tweeted Wednesday that one of its field care providers has tested positive for coronavirus.

FOP Lodge #9 is asking the City of Charlotte to start paying hazard pay to all essential city workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.

People in the area have found ways to "be the good." Here are three good things that happened in the Charlotte area Wednesday you might've missed.

The idea is to take people who were homeless and moving into new homes and make sure they have a completely furnished home when they get in there.
A baby seal appeared reluctant to leave one of its injured fellows as a wildlife rescue tried to remove a fishing hook from the stricken animal at Pelican Point, Namibia, on March 27.

Conservationist Naude Dreyer posted a video on his Instagram page showing the fishing hook rescue. He wrote in the post that it was a bit of sad/funny situation.

The video shows Dreyer rushing to capture a baby seal whose mouth had been caught by a fishing hook. Another baby seal can be seen rushing up to the rescuer, whose offsider Antoine steps in to shoo the second aninal away.

Even though they are small, their teeth are very sharp, and they are prone to biting, Dreyer told Storyful. Antoine had to keep pulling and ushering him away and only afterwards could help me extract the hook.

The video goes on to show Antoine pulling the hook from the seal as Dreyer holds the animal.

Its for catching snoek, Dreyer says in the video, observing the fishing hook. Luckily, since the barb has been pushed flat, we can get it out without too much effort.

He urged the fishermen to flatten the barbs to avoid hurting seals. Credit: Naude Dreyer via Storyful
Brock uses a double thumbs-up system to indicate when he is dying and in Hell. // Photo by Vivian Kane My nurse backed away from me in abject horror. Seemingly out of viable options, we'd reached a point where there were no solutions to the long list of needs my doctor had demanded.
Thousands of weddings have been postponed or cancelled due to the coronavirus crisis.

Government restrictions means that large gatherings are banned for the foreseeable future.

We postponed our #wedding because of #coronavirus. It's the right decision. Luckily our issue is manageable. The Health & safety of people come first.

We talked about our decision here & how we came to it in our video https://t.co/pJEAyUmSfz#coronavirusNederland #changethedate  F A T E N  (@Fatenhbu) April 2, 2020

Change the dates are the new save the dates, with thousands of weddings cancelled or postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Couples who have been planning their spring and summer weddings for up to two years are now scrambling to reschedule dates and re-book suppliers.

The latest restrictions in operation since Friday, March 27 mandate that everyone should stay at home, only leaving to: Shop for essential food and household goods;

Attend medical appointments, collect medicine or other health products;

Care for children, older people or other vulnerable people - this excludes social family visits;

Exercise outdoors - within 2kms of your home and only with members of your own household, keeping 2 metres distance between you and other people

Travel to work if you provide an essential service - be sure to practice social distancing

Jennifer Connolly, who was due to get married on April 17, said: "When I was going for my last fitting of the dress on the Thursday, we had made the call on the Wednesday, so obviously I didn't go for that fitting.

We were actually in the middle of our table planning on St Patrick's Day when we got the phone call from the venue.

Couples who are due to get married in July, August and September are now unsure if their big days will go ahead.

Eddie Condon from Boyne Hill House in Navan had some advice.

Mr Condon said: "Obviously engage with the venue, discuss the options, I suppose the reality is April is a write-off. Look for alternative dates. I know it is hard to say hold tight, but it is the best option you have got at the moment."

Couples who are still in the planning stages are unable to make bookings with uncertainties around whether suppliers and venues will still be in business and whether they can still afford the day they had envisioned.

Oraith Cruise has just got engaged and does not know where to start.

She said: "Ideally we'd probably have seen a few places by now, possibly have put a deposit down somewhere. I would have hoped to have spoken to my bridal party and chosen bridesmaids."

Many couples who have had their weddings cancelled have lost out on deposits from smaller suppliers, while people who are still in the planning stages are advised to get wedding insurance.

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Most of the world calls this year's deadly respiratory disease outbreak COVID-19 and attributes it to a novel coronavirus. When U.S. President Donald Trump described the virus last month as "Chinese" because of its origin, China fumed and Trump eventually dropped it.

All along, Taiwanese officials, media and the public have been using the term "Wuhan pneumonia" in Mandarin Chinese, a reference to the central Chinese city where the disease was first reported in December. Local media sometimes call it "China Wuhan pneumonia."

The label will eventually create a new fissure in already strained relations between Taiwan and China, analysts say. "Relations between the two sides have become even worse since COVID-19," said Chao Chien-min, dean of social sciences at Chinese Culture University in Taipei. "If you keep using a location-based name, it's unfriendly toward others."

Taiwanese came up with the term "Wuhan pneumonia" because they were talking about it in December and needed a descriptor before the World Health Organization gave it an official name in mid-February.

But Taiwan and China are at odds politically. Use of the earlier term instead of the formal WHO one pivots Taiwanese people's attention back to where COVID-19 was discovered and stands to sour their impression of China. Trump dropped the "Chinese virus" in late March and said it was important to avoid blaming Asian Americans for the outbreak.

In Taiwan, the government's Central Epidemic Command Center uses the term "Wuhan pneumonia" on its daily news releases in parentheses after the English word COVID-19 and the foreign ministry uses the term "Wuhan pneumonia" only in some of its statements.

Taiwan's government-funded Central News Agency calls the disease "Wuhan pneumonia" in its many news flashes every day about the disease outbreak in other parts of the world. On the streets, people speak of the disease almost always as "Wuhan pneumonia."
Youve washed your hands too many times to count, maintained so much social-distancing that you forgot what it felt like to hug a friend and left the house only for trips to the grocery store and walks around the neighborhood.

Basically, youve done everything you can to stay healthy and safe during the coronavirus pandemic.

But what if you get sick anyway? And what if you get sick and happen to be one of the millions of Americans who live alone?

The idea of facing a crisis by yourself can seem scary, especially when that crisis involves a once-a-lifetime virus, which only figures to exacerbate the feeling of loneliness created by coronavirus-induced quarantines. But there are ways to be prepared for such a scenario and tips for managing self-isolation to help ward off anxiety and boredom.

First  and this should go without saying  if youre so sick you need medical attention, seek it out immediately. Dont hesitate. Reach out to your health-care provider, call urgent care or dial 911. And if for some reason that sounds too daunting, call a friend or family member, explain whats happening, and have them call for you.

Call 911 immediately if you have any of these symptoms: increased or sudden difficulty breathing or shortness of breath; a persistent pain or pressure in the chest; new confusion; bluish lips or face.

But outside of an emergency, there are things you can do by yourself to help outlast COVID-19 while living alone.

BE PREPARED, PLAN AHEAD

People who live alone should be prepared and have a plan in place, just in case they develop symptoms or become sick and/or face an emergency.

Right now, before symptoms arrive, coordinate with a neighbor, a friend or family member, and share contact information that might be useful in an emergency. This should include phone numbers for health-care providers, local public health departments, your preferred hospital and so forth. Look at it like youre setting up a support system in the event you become sick.

If you live alone and become sick during a COVID-19 outbreak, you may need help, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance says. If you have a chronic medical condition and live alone, ask family, friends, and health care providers to check on you during an outbreak. Stay in touch with family and friends with chronic medical conditions.

Do you take medication? Do you have allergies? Do you have any other special needs?

Make sure to detail them with your family member or friend, in case you run out while in self-isolation.

Health officials recommend a 14-day quarantine for those diagnosed with COVID-19. Hopefully youve stocked up on essential food and supplies (see below) in preparation. If not  or if you simply need need additional rations  your friend or family member will have to make a stop to the grocery store or pharmacy to pick-up the items for you. How will you pay for them? Should they leave the items on your front porch or near your front door? Somewhere else? Work out the details ahead of time so everyone is on the same page.

STOCK UP ON FOOD, SUPPLIES

At this point in the pandemic, youve likely gathered enough essentials to help survive self-isolation. But if you live alone, its a good idea to keep items on reserve in case you get sick.

Dont overdo it. Dont be that person who hoards toilet paper. But make sure you have a solid mix of produce and nonperishable food items to keep you sustained. If you have a pet, keep a stash of extra pet food on hand. And be sure to collect essential items like prescription medications and toiletries, in addition to hand soap and basic cleaning supplies.

Also, dont forget to pick-up a treat or two. If you end up quarantined for two weeks, youll likely experience a range of emotions amid the solitude. An occasional indulgence could go a long way toward helping you maintain positive mental health.

STAY CONNECTED TO OUTSIDE WORLD

The good news about the timing of this pandemic is that there is no shortage of ways to keep in touch with friends and loved ones.

And now, since youre confined to your home, it seems like the perfect time to reach out to them for a chat or even just to say hello.

So phone a friend. FaceTime your mom. Text your sibling. Check in with someone youve been meaning to talk with.

And dont be afraid to get creative.

In these weird and unprecedented times of self-isolation, people are connecting in new and unique ways, hosting virtual happy-hours, cyber birthday parties and online game nights using apps on phones and tablets. (Heres a handy list of your choices)

Staying connected with the outside world could help you feel less claustrophobic and stave off loneliness. Plus, it can be a lot of fun. What better way to pass a little time during a two-week quarantine?

And while its important to stay on top of local news and keep up with coronavirus updates, dont overdo it. Mental health experts say its easy to become overloaded with the constant developments and recommend taking a break from your trusted news source and go-to social media apps.

KEEP YOURSELF ENTERTAINED

In addition to the virtual ways to stay connected with friends and family listed above, make sure to lose yourself in the things that bring you joy.

Read a book. Binge-watch the movies and shows tucked away in your Netflix queue. Play your favorite video game. Finish knitting that Christmas sweater. Listen to your favorite podcasts.

Heck, even mix in a little exercise.

Make plenty of time to dive into whatever hobbies and diversions you normally enjoy. Itll help pass the time and keep you sane while youre cooped up alone.

STAY PRODUCTIVE

The range of symptoms for those who contract COVID-19 are vast. If the virus knocks you out, by all means lay low and take care of yourself by following your health care providers medical advice.

But its also possible to possess only mild symptoms  or even be asymptomatic  which might allow you to carry on a normal life (relatively speaking). If thats the case, stay on top of things.

Mental health experts say keeping a routine and staying productive are critical elements in maintaining strong mental health during these trying times.

So if your job has temporarily relocated to your house, stick with your obligations and continue to work way in your new office. Also, make sure you dont let your house devolve into disarray. Its easy to let dishes stack up in the sink and watch mounds of clothes pile up in your bedroom. But its a good idea to mix in a few chores with those Netflix binge-watching sessions to keep your home tidy and maintain a modicum of normalcy.

 Joe Freeman | jfreeman@oregonian.com | 503-294-5183 | @BlazerFreeman | Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories
Manitoba is making changes to allow former nurses to come back to work to help fight COVID-19 and bolster the provinces health-care system, Health Minister Cameron Friesen announced Wednesday morning.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Manitoba is making changes to allow former nurses to come back to work to help fight COVID-19 and bolster the provinces health-care system, Health Minister Cameron Friesen

announced Wednesday morning.

The province issued an order under The Regulated Health Professions Act to let the College of Registered Nurses to waive some requirements for nurses who retired or left the college in the last five years to come back to work.

Brandon Universtiy Faculty of Health Studies professor Dr. Kathryn Hyndman. (Submitted)

The move was made in light of the "incredible strain" COVID-19 is putting on health care and front-line workers. Friesen said retired nurses could be put to work in a variety of positions, including in medical or in support positions.

Any nurse who wants to return to work must be a member of the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba in good standing, retired or left the college in the last five years and be capable of providing care.

"I have no doubt that many retired nurses are going to want to come forward and support their colleagues and I thank them for that," Premier Brian Pallister said during the announcement.

"This is a difficult and unprecedented time, but I know that nursing is a caring profession and I know that nurses are caring people."

There will be no fee charged to nurses who want to return to work, Friesen said. He did not have an estimate of how many nurses could return to the workforce, but the measures are about removing barriers for those who want to.

"We are saying at this point All hands on deck  we know that many nurses at this point are going to say All hands on deck, Im willing to join this fight," he said.

System administrators will decide how best to deploy the returning nurses, he said, and they could be used in hospitals directly or answering phones on Health Links.

"We know that now is the time to broadly solicit for help," Friesen said.

Kathryn Hyndman, a Brandon University professor in the Faculty of Health Studies and a retired nurse, said she questions the effectiveness of the provincial governments decision to allow recently retired nurses to come back to work, considering the ages of many.

"It seems to me this recent call to come back to work is calling on a cohort of nurses who are in the most vulnerable groups, 65 and over. To me, I think that this is the most vulnerable group of people the government is asking to come back to work," she said.

Its difficult to predict how many former nurses will answer the call, but Hyndman said it will likely appeal to people who left the profession in their early 50s.

Katherine Stanfield, registrar and CEO of the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba, said the nurses who come back wont be just those who recently retired and are in their 60s, but people who left the college for another job or had taken a leave of absence.

"They could be any age, really  I think every nurse will have to make that decision for themselves when they decide whether or not they are willing to come back into practice. There are going to be risks that they have to assess for themselves," Stanfield said.

There are practices and protections in place for those who do come back, so she said it will be a balance for the nurses to make.

There is also concern over the ability of retired nurses to rejoin the workforce, Hyndman said. There are ordinarily many steps nurses have to take to rejoin the college to assess competency and their skills, she said, but many are being waved in the face of the ongoing pandemic.

"If I were to offer to come back into practice, I doubt very much that the college would be interested in looking at someone who is way out of clinical practice for over three years. If youre out for a year, youre old," she said.

Stanfield said there are clear conditions for nurses who do want to come back, including being in good standing with the college and having left in good standing. They must also have liability protection.

Nurses who do choose to come back to work could be back in the field within a matter of days, she said.

Prairie Mountain Health directed questions on the measure to the College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba.

 dmay@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @DrewMay_
SPIG S.p.A. (SPIG), a subsidiary of Babcock Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. (B&W) (NYSE: BW), has been awarded a contract by BASF Antwerp NV for more than $3 million to design and supply two cooling towers for the company's plant in Antwerp, Belgium. BASF Antwerp NV is one of the largest European producers and exporter of chemicals, plastics and performance products.

All cooling equipment, including six cooling towers cells, is scheduled to be delivered and erected in the first half of 2021. Four of these cells will be part of the general cooling water system, while the remaining two will be dedicated to an ethylene oxide plant.

"This contract demonstrates the SPIG team being able to maintain a strong focus on its business and customers during these unprecedented times as well as the importance SPIG plays in critical industries," said SPIG Managing Director Alberto Galantini. "We look forward to providing BASF new cooling towers for this critical infrastructure project. We appreciate this opportunity and are committed to helping our customers keep their facilities operating efficiently and effectively."

"With this new order, which follows other projects we completed in 2019, SPIG continues to maintain its very strong relationship with BASF," said SPIG Aftermarket Sales Global Service Director, Giovanni Pappalardo. "We look forward to a long-lasting partnership for this new project and for opportunities to come."

SPIG's specialized services include preventive maintenance, equipment upgrades, replacement and spare parts, online performance monitoring, and a commitment to research and development to continually seek new and more efficient cooling system solutions.

About SPIG

SPIG, S.p.A is a subsidiary of Babcock Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. and a global turnkey cooling systems supplier. Since 1936, SPIG has provided customers with an extensive range of high quality cooling towers, air-cooled condensers and related services.

Forward-Looking Statements

B&W cautions that this release contains forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements relating to the execution and completion of SPIG's contract for equipment supply and erection at a customer plant in Belgium. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. For a more complete discussion of these risk factors, see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent annual report on Form 10-K. If one or more of these risks or other risks materialize, actual results may vary materially from those expressed. We caution readers not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, except to the extent required by applicable law.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005824/en/

Contacts:

Investors:

Megan Wilson

Vice President, Corporate Development Investor Relations

Babcock Wilcox

704.625.4944 investors@babcock.com



Media:

Ryan Cornell

Public Relations

Babcock Wilcox

330.860.1345 rscornell@babcock.com
Deaths related to COVID-19 in Turkey have risen to a total of 277, while the total number of cases has reached 15,679, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said Wednesday, during a press conference following a Science Council Meeting on the deadly disease outbreak.

Koca today broke down the regional variations in the figures for the first time, adding that positive cases had been detected in all 81 of Turkeys provinces, including 43 cases across the province of Mugla.

Heres a map of the number of cases of coronavirus in the 81 provinces of Turkey.

This is a war regarding public health, Koca said, asking every citizen to closely adhere to hygiene and social isolation rules, while hinting to tighter travel restrictions.

READ: COVID-19 deaths in Turkey rise to 277, cases reach 15,679

Source: https://t24.com.tr/foto-haber/iste-saglik-bakani-koca-nin-ilk-kez-acikladigi-il-il-koronavirus-vakalari,9521/3

First death from coronavirus confirmed in Fethiye

Mehmet Saltk, with his wife Sevinc

The first death from Coronavirus has now been confirmed in Fethiye.

Mehmet Saltk, an elderly man from Akarca,who had lived in Hamburg, Germany, for 45 years, died from the virus in the Fethiye State Hospital yesterday (1 April).

His wife, Sevinc, who also tested positive for the virus, is in intensive care undergoing treatment.

The funeral took place at Fethiye Catalark Cemetery last night.

Source: https://gercekfethiye.com/fethiyede-koronadan-ilk-olum/26352/?fbclid=IwAR24KZvqkEHHbSmTHkwgIthqxbFFw1SLcIgHRXhXWl95QfW7ErIFOGUoM2k

Coronavirus control checkpoint on Fethiye-Seydikemer highway

A checkpoint for Coronavirus control is creating queues of traffic at Crp on the Fethiye -Seydikemer highway.

District Traffic Supervision Station, Jandarma and health teams are carrying out detailed checks on vehicle occupants including, checking temperatures and IDs to make sure there are no citizens of over 65 in the vehicle.

Checks are carried out to make sure the social distancing rules for vehicles are also being followed.

The precautions issued by the Ministries of Health and Interior are explained and citizens recommended to stay in their homes as much as possible.

During the checks, a number of people wanted for other reasons, were apprehended.

Source: https://gercekfethiye.com/fethiye-girisinde-korona-onlemi/26322/?fbclid=IwAR2da9DJf_uAETED8MCw-4IEIe6mYiaJcMuQrkj7SDgqiZuLl7iYBwzpPng

Meanwhile, in Milas, police were present at the busy Tuesday market ensuring the precautions for markets were taken and a thermal camera drone was used to identify anyone with a high temperature . The drone also made public announcements such as reminding people to throw masks in the trash.

Source: http://www.muglaturk.com/haber/milas-belediyesinden-dronelu-onlem-1968.html?fbclid=IwAR1XlT6ugwsgHBVE_LMPPjxoOOyfCVmui4k_cbk46NCPxsDqynvr1BcILtg

Turkeys tourism season postponed until after May

Turkeys tourism season is expected to be postponed until after May due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the countrys culture and tourism minister said on Thursday.

Hopefully, we will see that activities will start again with domestic tourism during the Ramadan Feast, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy noted.

Eid ul-Fitr, or Ramadan Feast, will be celebrated at the end of May in 2020.

READ: Turkeys tourism season postponed to post-May

A basket for the needy in time of outbreak in Turkey

Jeffrey Tucker stands next to his basket, in Istanbul, Turkey, Thursday, April 2, 2020. (IHA Photo)

Inspired by a similar practice in Italy, Jeffrey Tucker, a British expatriate living in Istanbul, decided to give back to the community during the coronavirus outbreak.

Tucker, a resident of Istanbuls historic Balat neighborhood for the past six years, lowers a basket full of food from his apartments window. A sign placed atop the basket reads Those who can give can put it into the basket, those who need can take them. So far, someone put a loaf of bread into the basket crammed with pasta, eggs and fruits by Tucker.

READ: A basket for the needy in time of outbreak in Turkey

Global statistics

There are now 962,882 confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally, of which 203,274 have recovered. The number of fatalities stands at 49,191.

Source: Worldometer.

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#EvindeKalTurkiyem
By Jagannath Panda





Major powers such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France and China, where the pandemic had its roots, have struggled nationally to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.



On the contrary, South Korea has effectively managed to control the spread of the disease without restricting the movement of people. Unlike other countries that have employed heavy travel restrictions, Seoul implemented a compulsory quarantine and a "special immigration process" directed at countries with severely affected populations like China.



Despite a surge in cases, Seoul managed not only to check the curve but also flatten it. This has prompted many countries to view the South Korean response to COVID-19 as a model to emulate.



What has made South Korea successful in handling the pandemic?



The answer is simple: its domestic crisis management system and strong social accountability practices, which draw from its ambition to emerge as a middle power on the global stage, have been key in handling the pandemic. The strong sense of civic duties, institutional accountability, public response and framework of national transparency have been the backbone of South Korea's response.



Even though the South Korean response replicates a strong middle-power model in the manner in which the crisis has been handled, the debate continues on whether Seoul is truly a middle power in ranking. It is important not to forget that at one point South Korea was second to China in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases.



Now the United States leads the tally, followed by Italy and Spain. The World Health Organization, which is facing a credibility dilemma due to its pro-China stance, has appealed to countries to "apply the lessons learned in Korea." It noted that Seoul had been successful due to its effective data management and testing modules. The huge amount of data South Korea collected has allowed authorities to locate and isolate infectious clusters to solidify quarantine practices; this methodology can be implemented globally for faster and safer quarantine practices.



In an evolving international structure, South Korea has over the years tried to develop a national capacity for contingencies that allows it to be actively involved and responsive to transnational issues. This makes the South Korean case unique. Even as the debate continues on the effectiveness of the South Korean middle-power model to meet governance-oriented challenges, it is certainly a time that South Korea can use to gather confidence as a power.



Seoul has used its middle-power status to the advantage of its domestic constituency by building universal health coverage for the entire population and making healthcare extremely affordable for different strata's of society. Testing pertaining to COVID-19 is, therefore, affordable and easily accessible. Widespread infrastructure for testing and access to testing clinics allowed Seoul to effectively constrain the spread of the disease.

The access to data and capability to identify and analyze trends helped authorities to locate and isolate infectious clusters to solidify the quarantine process. In other words, the response to the crisis flowed from a foundation of anticipation and effective mitigation.



To what extent middle powers influence the global governance architecture is a matter of debate though. Notwithstanding their competencies in regional and global forums, middle powers possess tremendous national capabilities with enormous national interest to pursue a pro-active diplomacy to make a statement internationally.



Their average geographical size often offers limited geo-political advantage to them; yet, their new international vision, along with solid national planning, makes them a potent power in the global governance architecture. South Korea is one such emerging middle power that has acted as an important player in Asia, even though it still falls short of being an influential one. Its solid response to COVID-19 consolidates its image not only as a middle power but goes to show how middle powers can emerge as reference powers to shape global governance architecture.



For Seoul, the pressing dilemma is how to transform that middle-power image and move toward being a major power in the global theatre. A contradiction exists in Seoul's foreign policy, whereby it aims to act as a major power internationally with a capacity that ranks it more as a middle power. The single-term five-year presidency also comes as a limitation; as the new presidency always comes in with new policy measures rather than building confidence and capacity on the back of previously launched policies. The lack of continuity in policy measures is one of the biggest drawbacks for Seoul in its international campaign.



Further, rebuilding "Korea Inc." will be a challenge in the post- COVID order. Korea Inc. is a nationalized interpretation of South Korea's "middle-power" approach in a tightly contested regional and international environment. The Korea Inc. model is unique to South Korea and is a symbiotic relationship between the business and government power structures of the country.



These structures form the very basis of the developmental state at the core of Korean policies. State-led macroeconomic planning is a key feature of the developmental state and this is promoted by Korea Inc., encouraging Seoul's "middle-power" testimony by allowing stronger state intervention in political-economic aspects of South Korea. In other words, irrespective of whether South Korea is a middle power in the making or not, COVID-19 has truly explicated a case in its favor.





Dr. Jagannath Panda is a research fellow and Centre Coordinator for East Asia at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi. He is also the series editor for "Routledge Studies on Think Asia."


The General Secretary of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has said people who spread false rumours on social media about Irish nurses dying from Covid-19 are extraordinarily callous.

On Tuesday, the HSE hit back at distressing social media rumours that a number of its nurses have died from the virus.
Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday wrote to various religious institutions and organisations and pledged support and help of Congress workers in Uttar Pradesh in their efforts to combat the coronavirus threat.

According to a statement issued by the party, she wrote letters to prominent people associated with many mutts, temples, gurdwaras, ''idaras'', churches and other religious institutions and organisations.

In her letter, Priyanka Gandhi said that religious institutions can take help of Congress workers in serving the public in the fight against the the deadly virus.

"Our country is going through a terrible crisis of the coronavirus pandemic. People from every corner of the country are returning to their homes hungry and thirsty. People are losing jobs. Workers have lost work," she said.

"If you need volunteers for public service, you can contact our district team. They will be ready to cooperate with you in works related to relief and rescue operations in fighting against the corona disaster," Priyanka Gandhi said in the letter.

The Congress leader said that she has asked party workers in Uttar Pradesh to help the needy by building a volunteer team of ''Congress ke sipahi'' in every district.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) has officially postponed its presidential convention until August 17 from July 13 after presumptive nominee Joe Biden called for the convention to be rescheduled in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Im confident our convention planning team and our partners will find a way to deliver a convention in Milwaukee this summer that places our Democratic nominee on the path to victory in November, convention CEO Joe Solmonese said in a statement.

This is the right decision for the safety of those involved in the convention and for Milwaukee. An August convention will provide a much-needed economic boost for Milwaukee and Wisconsin as we come out of this unprecedented time, said Alex Lasry, senior vice president of the Milwaukee Bucks, who supported the Milwaukee election bid.

Biden himself had recommended as recently as yesterday that the convention would have to move to August.

I doubt whether the Democratic Convention is going to be able to be held in mid-July or early July. I think its going to have to move into August, Biden told Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon. We just have to be prepared for the alternative and the alternative, we dont know what its going to be unless we have a better sense of whether this curve is going to move down or up.

The Republication National Committee (RNC) is also looking to reschedule its own convention in light of the pandemic. Mandi Merritt, a spokeswoman for the RNC, said the organization is working closely with state parties, ensuring that they have the resources needed to get their presidential nomination processes done, and offering incredible flexibility in these circumstances.
One in four NHS doctors is currently sitting at home, unable to work because they or someone they're living with is displaying symptoms of coronavirus.

For any doctor living through a public health crisis such as this, that is incredibly frustrating. And I should know: I'm stuck at home myself.

Yesterday, at work, I suddenly developed a cough. I'm pretty confident it's not Covid-19 - I don't have a fever or sort throat; and to me, this feels much more like a typical upper respiratory tract infection.

But the symptoms of coronavirus can vary greatly. Given the incredibly sick people I work with, I couldn't risk it and was ordered home by a manager. So I'm sitting here, trying to work remotely, while the ward I was covering is woefully understaffed with just one junior doctor. Everyone else is at home.

A sign saying 'Thank You NHS' is displayed as people shop in Manchester during the lockdown

One of the senior doctors in my service is self-isolating because her daughter - who has asthma - also had a cough. She is as sure as she can be that there's nothing seriously wrong, but as her daughter can't be tested, she has had to stay off work for 14 days.

Another friend, a surgeon, also had to spend 14 days off, along with her husband who is a surgeon too, purely because their son had a fever for just one day. They were being driven to distraction by sitting at home with absolutely no symptoms, while their colleagues were almost overwhelmed by their workload.

The situation really is terrible: Recently, out of my trust's 184 doctors, over 50 were stuck in self-isolation with minor symptoms. This week, the membership organisation NHS Providers said that as many as 85 per cent of the staff self-isolating at home may not have the virus.

Although this was based on a small-scale study, it suggests there are potentially tens of thousands of staff who could and should - as soon as it is shown to be safe - go back to the front-line.

Ambulances outside St Thomas' Hospital, London, during the coronavirus lockdown

DR MAX PEMBERTON: As the Daily Mail's campaign makes clear, they must sort this out as soon as possible. The country's health depends on it

A sign thanking NHS staff and key workers outside The Westbourne pub in Bournemouth

None of us wants to be watching the epidemic unfold on TV from our living rooms: We became doctors to help patients. But thanks to well-meant fears around public safety and saving lives, anyone with symptoms similar to those of Covid-19 must stay at home for seven days, and anyone living with a symptomatic person must self-isolate for 14 days.

It's a simple fact, however, that many of the thousands of doctors now stuck at home with mild symptoms probably do not have coronavirus.

This means that, just as the NHS has become more stretched and understaffed than at any time in its recent history, doctors like me have been told to sit at home, effectively to twiddle our thumbs, while our colleagues work night and day trying to put out the fire lit by this virus.

In the long run, the Government's approach risks toppling our very NHS, as more and more staff showing mild symptoms are sent home, away from the front-line where they are so desperately needed. That is why testing far more people is so vital and must be rolled out urgently.

Ambulance crews and military personnel await the first patients at the ExCel centre in London

In my work, I've seen barely any testing for coronavirus at all. NHS officials promised weeks ago to increase testing to 10,000 a day - but numbers have fallen far short. Only 2,000 front-line NHS staff who are off work because of Covid-19 symptoms have been tested, according to Downing Street.

Even more frustrating is that when the Government has been asked about this - repeatedly - at daily press briefings, it hasn't given a clear answer as to why this hasn't happened yet.

There have been concerns that some tests for coronavirus can provide 'false negatives' - meaning they wrongly give the all-clear. But one quick way round this is to test the same person two or three times: Repeat testing reduces the risk of getting the wrong result.

As the Daily Mail's campaign makes clear, they must sort this out as soon as possible. The country's health depends on it.
The European Unions top court ruled on Thursday that Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic had broken the law by refusing to host refugees to help ease the burden on southern states such as Greece and Italy after a surge in migrant arrivals from 2015.

The ruling underscores Europes bitter divisions over migration, though the three ex-communist nations face no immediate penalty as the relocation of tens of thousands of people agreed by the EU was only envisaged until 2017.

By refusing to comply with the temporary mechanism for the relocation of applicants for international protection, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic have failed to fulfil their obligations under European Union law, the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union said in its ruling.-

The eurosceptic, nationalist governments on the EUs eastern flank had cited national security reasons in refusing to take in any of the mostly Muslim refugees and migrants who had fled wars and poverty in the Middle East, North Africa and beyond.

Frontline states such as Italy and Greece complained angrily over the lack of European solidarity as they struggled with mass arrivals that overwhelmed their security and welfare systems.

Wealthy northern European states such as Germany also criticised the ex-communist east for refusing to help while continuing to benefit from generous EU financial aid.

More than a million people reached Europes shores from across the Mediterranean in 2015, catching the EU unprepared as they trekked across the continent and triggering a new wave of support in some quarters for far-right, anti-immigrant parties.

The EU has since cracked down on immigration, fortifying its external borders and offering money and aid to countries such as Turkey to help prevent migrants from heading to Europe.

But the internal EU divisions on migration are far from healed. The 2015 mass influx of migrants at least partly contributed to Britains 2016 decision to leave the EU, in the worst setback for European integration since World War Two.

The EU now faces a fresh test of its unity from the coronavirus pandemic, with member states mostly pursuing their own strategies to counter the spread of the disease and the worst affected nations  Italy and Spain  again complaining of a lack of European solidarity and aid.

SOURCE: REUTERS






WASHINGTON  Just two months after taking office, President Donald Trump in March 2017 traveled to Michigan to announce that he would undo ambitious vehicle emissions standards mandated under his predecessor Barack Obama, portraying the reversal as a boost to the U.S. auto industry centered in the Midwestern state.

"The assault on the American auto industry is over," the Republican president said at the time.

It took Trump's administration three years to follow through on his promise. And an expected court challenge led by California could delay implementation until after the Nov. 3 election in which Trump is seeking a second term in office, meaning it is possible his successor could scrap the plan without it ever having taken effect.

"The federal government's math still doesn't add up after all these months of trying to retool and rework their rule," California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said, accusing the administration of failing to comply with federal law in the plan announced on Tuesday.

The challengers getting ready to sue  a coalition of more than 20 Democratic-led states as well as environmental groups  are planning to target much of the analysis and underlying assumptions used by the administration in crafting the plan, which ditches the Obama-era requirement of 5% annual increases in efficiency for cars and trucks through 2026 in favor of 1.5% annual increases.

The plaintiffs are expected to challenge the administration's contentions that the weaker efficiency standards will reduce future vehicle prices by $1,000 by reducing automaker compliance costs. The administration contends that less expensive sticker prices will entice motorists to more quickly buy new cars that are safer than their older vehicles.

The litigation is expected to be filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit once the 2,000 pages of rules are formally published in the coming weeks. Seven of that court's 11 active judges were appointed by Democratic presidents, suggesting it may be unfriendly territory for the administration.

The new policy means the U.S. vehicle fleet will be required to average 40.4 miles (65 km) per gallon rather than 46.7 mpg (75 km) under the Obama rules.

Story continues

Trump's administration, which has erased a series of Obama-era environmental initiatives that it deemed burdensome to industry, said the new rules will result in about 2 billion additional barrels of oil being consumed and 867 to 923 additional million metric tons of carbon dioxide being emitted.

Automakers have yet to announce how they will approach the coming litigation.

They must decide whether to intervene and, if so, on which side. Most automakers intervened on behalf of Trump's administration when states sued to block its decision to revoke California's ability to set its own emissions standards or require a rising number of zero-emission vehicles, while some have sought to broker a deal with California. That case is still pending.

'Significant weaknesses'

In the coming legal fight, the challengers can cite as evidence the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency science advisory board's January finding of "significant weaknesses in the scientific analysis" of the proposed rollback.

Acting National Highway Traffic Safety Administration chief James Owens called the administration's analysis "very cautious" and said it "best reflects what our experts are telling us."

Trump administration officials also said the Obama-era rules, announced in 2012, included many assumptions that turned out to be wrong including on fuel prices and the mix of passenger cars and SUVs.

"Basically the automakers have to be living under a lot of uncertainty over the outcome," said David Doniger, a lawyer with the Natural Resources Defense Council environmental group. "If I were in their shoes, I would say you don't have a very secure basis for relying on this rule."

One of the strategic questions facing the challengers is whether to file a stay application seeking to put the rule on hold while the litigation continues, a decision lawyers working with the potential plaintiffs have said they have not yet made.

Among the considerations is how likely they would be to obtain such a court order and if they do, whether the Supreme Court, with a 5-4 conservative majority including two justices appointed by Trump, would overturn it.

Trump's administration has had considerable success in filing emergency applications at the Supreme Court on such issues as implementing his hardline immigration policies and his restrictions on transgender people joining the military.

In 2016, the Supreme Court blocked the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan aimed at limiting greenhouse gas emissions mainly from coal-burning power plants from taking effect. Trump subsequently scrapped the initiative.

Trump's presumptive Democratic election challenger is Joe Biden, who served as Obama's vice president and could quickly seek to re-impose the Obama-era standards if he wins  even if the litigation is still ongoing.

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Digicel is asking creditors to write-off $1.7bn (1.5bn) of the companys debt that it owes them.

Digicels debt pile currently stands at around $7bn (6.4bn). Were creditors to agree to the write-off, the debt would fall to about $5.3bn (4.8bn).

Denis OBriens company, which operates across 32 markets in the Caribbean, Central America and Asia Pacific, has asked investors in certain bonds to exchange them for those of a lower value.

Despite many years of significant investment in its world-class networks and infrastructure and solid underlying performances across its markets, Digicels current debt levels remain high, the company said in a statement.

Digicel has indicated for some time its commitment to reducing its debt to more sustainable levels and the tender offers and consent solicitations are a key step in that process.

Earlier this week the company said it was in talks with bondholders aimed at cutting some of its debt.

It marks the second time in two years the telecoms group has had to negotiate with its lenders.

Digicel spent much of the second half of 2018 in talks that eventually saw bondholders owed $3bn agree to swap their paper for debt falling due much later.

More to follow
WARSAW, April 2 (Reuters) - The Hungarian forint firmed in early trade on Thursday after the central bank used what analysts labelled an "implicit rate hike" to halt the slide of central Europe's worst performing currency. Hungary's central bank (MNB) announced a new one-week deposit for banks at 0.9% on Wednesday, a move it said could help reduce commercial banks' stock of overnight deposits and manage liquidity more efficiently. The rate on the one-week deposit facility is equal to the bank's base rate and far more than its overnight deposit rate which is at -0.05%. By 0856 GMT the forint had strengthened 0.36% on the day against the euro to 361.75, after setting a fresh record low of 369.54 on Wednesday. "The HUF fell so drastically yesterday that NBH carried out an effective rate increase," Erste Group analysts said in a note. "The EURHUF immediately reversed, albeit it remains to be seen how effective this move will be in the longer run." Hungarian short-term Budapest interbank market rates jumped about 40 basis points after the central bank's move. The first tender for the new one-week deposit will be held on Thursday. Other central European currencies also firmed, rebounding after a difficult session on Wednesday, when PMI data across the region fuelled worries of a deep recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The Polish zloty firmed 0.34% against the euro to 4.5760, The Czech crown gained 0.66% to 27.405. The Romanian leu was little changed at 4.8295. Stocks were mixed, as investors continued to fret over the effects of the coronavirus on businesses ahead of U.S. jobless claims data later in the day. "There is only one topic - the virus. When the lockdown will end and what are the probabilities of this ending in May or in April," said Kamil Stolarski, Head Of Equity Research at Santander Bank Polska. Warsaw's WIG 20 index was down 0.29% and Budapest's main index was down 0.34%, while Prague's PX index rose 1.15%. In Warsaw, shoe retailer CCC SA fell more than 4.5% after the effects of the coronavirus pushed it to a first quarter loss and it announced plans to cut costs. Benchmark Polish 10-year bond yields rose just under 3 basis points to 1.747%, while Czech 10-year yields fell just under 6 basis points to 1.404%. Poland's Finance Ministry will offer bonds worth 4.0-7.0 billion zloty ($956 million-$1.7 billion) at tender on Thursday. The Czech Finance Ministry sold a record 87.4 billion crowns ($3.50 billion) of three bonds at auctions on Wednesday, following up on massive debt sales last week as it accelerates borrowing to combat the coronavirus outbreak. CEE SNAPSHOT AT MARKETS 1057 CET CURRENCI ES Latest Previous Daily Change bid close change in 2020 Czech 27.4050 27.5860 +0.66% -7.20% crown Hungary 361.7500 363.0700 +0.36% -8.46% forint Polish 4.5760 4.5914 +0.34% -6.98% zloty Romanian 4.8295 4.8268 -0.06% -0.85% leu Croatian 7.6283 7.6300 +0.02% -2.40% kuna Serbian 117.4200 117.5200 +0.09% +0.13% dinar Note: calculated from 1800 CET daily change Latest Previous Daily Change close change in 2020 Prague 779.57 770.6700 +1.15% -30.12% Budapest 32251.07 32361.34 -0.34% -30.01% Warsaw 1478.05 1482.42 -0.29% -31.26% Bucharest 7536.73 7425.44 +1.50% -24.46% Ljubljana 721.77 727.00 -0.72% -22.04% Zagreb 1501.36 1471.92 +2.00% -25.58% Belgrade <.BELEX15 641.11 658.97 -2.71% -20.03% > Sofia 417.46 417.64 -0.04% -26.52% Yield Yield Spread Daily (bid) change vs Bund change in Czech spread Republic 2-year <CZ2YT=RR 1.0810 0.0570 +174bps +6bps > 5-year <CZ5YT=RR 1.2490 -0.0100 +183bps -5bps > 10-year <CZ10YT=R 1.4040 -0.0580 +183bps -10bps R> Poland 2-year <PL2YT=RR 1.0170 -0.1450 +168bps -14bps > 5-year <PL5YT=RR 1.3720 0.0380 +196bps +0bps > 10-year <PL10YT=R 1.7470 0.0280 +217bps -2bps R> FORWARD 3x6 6x9 9x12 3M interban k Czech Rep < 0.41 0.43 0.48 1.03 PRIBOR=> Hungary < 0.82 0.86 0.99 0.47 BUBOR=> Poland < 0.62 0.51 0.48 1.17 WIBOR=> Note: FRA are for ask prices quotes ************************************************** ************ (Reporting by Alan Charlish in Warsaw, Gergeley Szakacs and Krisztina Than in Budapest; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum announced a bobblehead to honor Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the lead members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force.

The museum, located in Milwaukee, said it will donate $5 from every Dr. Fauci bobblehead sold to the American Hospital Association in support of the 100 Million Mask Challenge.

The bobblehead features Fauci wearing a suit and the museum says it illustrates how the nation needs to "flatten the curve."

The bobbleheads are now available for pre-order exclusively through the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museums Online Store. They are $25 each plus a flat-rate shipping charge of $8 per order and are expected to ship in July.

Related video: Officials prepares for U.S. death toll from coronavirus to exceed 100,000

As head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease since 1984, the 79-year-old Fauci has advised six presidents. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the U.S., by President George W. Bush in 2008.

"Bobbleheads are the ultimate honor, and we think Dr. Fauci deserves it given what he has done and continues to do for our country and the world in the battle against COVID-19, National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum co-founder and CEO Phil Sklar said in a statement. We received a lot of requests for a bobblehead of Dr. Fauci and are excited to be able to use the bobblehead to raise funds for a vital organization that is helping limit the spread of the coronavirus while making people smile during these unprecedented times.


T iger Kings Joe Exotic is reportedly in coronavirus isolation in jail, according to his husband.

Exotics fourth husband, 24-year-old bartender Dillon Passage, told Andy Cohen on his SiriusXM show on Wednesday that Exotic was in isolation due to cases at his previous jail.

Passage did not say if Exotic, the subject of Netflixs gripping new true crime series Tiger King, had tested positive for the virus.

Since hes been moved to this new facility, they are putting him on a Covid-19 isolation because of the previous jail he was at, there were cases, said Passage.

"Ive yet to speak to him since he moved, he said.

Exotic has reportedly been transferred from the Grady County Jail in Oklahoma to a prison in Texas.

Netflix: Tiger King - In pictures 1 /22 Netflix: Tiger King - In pictures Netflix Netflix Netflix netfliix Netflix Netflix Netflix Netflix Netflix Netflix Netflix JoeExoticTV/YouTube Netflix Netflix TigerKingTV/YouTube Netflix Netflix

57-year-old Exotic, real name Joseph Maldonado-Passage, is serving a 22-year sentence after being found guilty of paying a hitman to kill animal rights activist and Big Cat Rescue owner Carole Baskin.

Exotic reportedly paid a hitman $3,000 (2,416) to kill Baskin.

Passage told Andy Cohen that he still loves Exotic.

Hes been with my through my darkest times, and Im not going to just dip out and abandon him when he needs me most."

Passage also revealed the pair married very soon after meeting: Oh god, I think it was like, a little over two weeks? We definitely jumped the gun, I can say that. But I'm not ashamed of it whatsoever.
Disappointed but not surprised. Nor in disagreement.

That was the prevailing reaction of local educators interviewed by the Daily News Thursday following an executive order issued by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for all K-12 schools in Michigan to cease face-to-face instruction for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year.

Asked if he agreed with the governor's decision, Midland Public Schools Superintendent Michael Sharrow replied, "Yeah, I probably do. We haven't hit the peak (of the coronavirus crisis) yet, and the safety of our kids comes first. ... This is probably the right call."

Bullock Creek Public Schools Superintendent Shawn Hale agreed.

"Yes, I trust Gov. Whitmer, and I know she has the science behind her decision, so, at this point, I really need to trust that and move forward with a plan for our district," Hale said.

Sarah Cooper, a first-grade teacher at Central Park Elementary in Midland, had understandably conflicted feelings about the governor's order.

"It makes me sad, but I know it has to be done for the safety and health of other people," Cooper said. "It just saddens me that we're done seeing the kids face to face and being able to interact with staff and students."

Sharrow said the next step is to "figure out how to serve these kids best," while noting the Midland school district is in a good position to continue its students' education remotely.

"We're fortunate with the resources we have that we can do 60 to 70% (remotely) of what we do in a classroom," Sharrow said. "I feel bad for our colleagues in other parts of the state, because that's not the case in a lot of other districts."

Sharrow said that, in anticipation of schools being closed for the remainder of the year, MPS officials began planning a new learning model a few days ago.

"Now, we have to try to replicate full learning in a different environment. ... We're getting there. I think we have a pretty good plan, and our goal is to be able to release that plan on April 13 to parents and students," he said. "I'm sure we'll find some flaws and errors as we go, but we have a good team and good resources in place, and we're moving along quickly on that (plan).

"We don't want our kids to miss too much," he added. "We've got to move them forward in the curriculum."

Likewise, Hale was busy perusing Whitmer's executive order early Thursday afternoon in preparation to meet with his team and start hashing out a plan for continuing learning remotely. Part of the process, Hale said, is to come up with a plan that lets students receive the education they need in order to move on to the next grade.

"We're responsible for developing a plan that has to be approved by our ISD, and within that plan, we have to spell out what it looks like as far as grade promotion," he said. "Our administrative team has to work together to finalize that plan ... and figure out how that affects Bullock Creek and our kids. We have to make the best decisions we can to get our students through this highly unusual circumstance."

Ensuring all children are online

Meridian Public Schools Superintendent Craig Carmoney said while learning remotely can't possibly compare to in-class instruction, he is confident his district is ready for the adjustment.

"I think we have to put 'learning' in quotes when you're talking about (remote instruction), because that's certainly not going to be the same as if you were in a classroom," Carmoney said. "All of us understand that working and learning from home is a lot different than actually going someplace and being surrounded by peers and coworkers and friends."

With that said, Carmoney noted surveys have shown that 93 percent of families within the Meridian school district who responded do have internet access and should be ready for remote instruction.

"About two-thirds of our families have responded to that survey, and all trends seem to be holding steady in terms of the data not changing," he said.

For those Meridian families who do not have internet access, Carmoney said the district intends to provide them with the needed technology, such as computers.

"We're probably going to be doing a variety of things, from utilizing online resources to making (homework) packets that students can pick up or which can be mailed to families," he said.

Both Sharrow and Hale emphasized that high school seniors who are on track to graduate this year will still be able to do so, although Sharrow pointed out that organizing some sort of graduation ceremony will be a challenge.

"We have to figure out what to do with graduation. We might look at holding something later in the summer or maybe doing a blended option (including seniors from both Dow High and Midland High)," he noted.

As for the rest of the MPS student body, Sharrow said it is the district's goal to make sure every single student continues to receive the education he or she needs.

"Every one of our kids  from preschool to post-secondary to special needs to high academic needs; we're going to have to meet the needs of all of those kids," he said, noting MPS is fortunate in that each student has been issued a Chromebook that can be used for at-home learning.

" ... We're ahead of some districts there, and we're a city which has a lot of (internet) connectivity," he added. "And we can buy hotspots for those kids who do not have internet access. We've issued 60 or 65 of those hotspots already, and we may need to find out if more kids need them."

Sharrow said MPS will continue to not only provide hotspots for those in need but it will work with local cable providers to help get underprivileged students online. In a pinch, he noted, parents could even bring their kids to an MPS parking lot to take advantage of the school buildings' expanded wifi.

According to Hale, his district has sent out surveys in an attempt to assess which families might need help accessing the internet for remote learning.

"Once we have all that data, we'll look at what's feasible. We have yet to find out if we can digitally connect with everyone in our district," he said. " ... That's our challenge now."

Connections already made

Cooper, for one, has been using technology to stay in contact with her students.

"I've been trying to do some daily suggestion things and giving them ideas of how they can keep busy," she said. "I'm also showing them what I've been doing at home and finding out what they've been up to."

Cooper said she has also been holding Zoom video conferences with students a couple of times a week.

"Usually, only a handful of them join in (the conference), but the time spent with them is so meaningful. They get all excited and want to tell me, 'Look at the picture I made,' or 'Look at the book I'm reading,' or 'Look what I accomplished,'" Cooper said, adding she hopes to eventually see her students again face to face and achieve some semblance of closure.

"The way we left off, thinking it would be three weeks and then we'll be back to school, we didn't get to prepare them (for extended time off) or say our final goodbyes or anything," she noted, adding she would like to do an end-of-the-year party sometime in the summer, if possible.

Food distributions to continue

As for the food distribution programs that have been going on in their districts since Whitmer's initial executive order closed schools temporarily, the superintendents said that kids will continue to get fed.

Sharrow said MPS plans to continue distributing food to students at least through the end of June, while adding the district is considering extending food distribution to all students regardless of income throughout the summer.

Hale, meanwhile, said Bullock Creek's current method of food distribution will continue at least through April 13. He added he expects the provision of food to be extended beyond that date but possibly via a different method.

"It may look differently than what it does currently, but ... we want to continue some form of that (food distribution)," he said. "We want to make sure we feed the kids who have a need."

Carmoney said food distribution at Meridian will continue through the end of the school year and, hopefully, into the summer.

"We're going to do whatever we can to support our families," he said.

'Children are pretty resilient'

With any possibility of seeing students in person during the remainder of the school year now gone, Cooper said she is going to miss "the little things" about her classroom.

"I'll miss how they come in all super excited about something they did or wanting to show you something they made," she said. "It's just the little stuff that you take for granted that I'm going to miss most."

For his part, Carmoney said he has a lot of faith in children's ability to adapt and adjust.

"We'll figure something out in order to get through this and help our students down the road. ... Children are pretty resilient and able to learn things quickly. They certainly will be missing some things, but I've learned over the years that students are resilient and will pick things up, and all will not be lost. I think we'll be OK," he said.

"We're all in this mess together, and we'll all learn from it together. No one will have this figured out (anytime soon)," he added. "This is not what any of us would prefer. We miss our students and our colleagues, and we'll be spending a lot of time over the next few weeks and even months to decide on the best course of action."

Coleman Community Schools Superintendent Jen McCormack could not be reached by phone prior to Thursday's deadline.
By Akbar Mammadov

The Azerbaijani community of Azerbaijan's Nagorno-Karabakh region has issued a statement on the 27th anniversary of the occupation of the Kalbajar region by the Armenian armed forces on April 2.

The community stressed that the occupation of the Kalbajar by the Armenian armed forces brought the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh to a new level of occupation.

"As as a result of this military aggression, about 60,000 people in Kalbajar were subjected to ethnic cleansing and were forced to leave their native lands, 511 civilians were killed, and 321 people were taken prisoner and went missing. At present, the population of Kalbajar region have settled in 707 settlements of 56 regions and cities of Azerbaijan, the community said.

At the same time, architectural monuments in the Kalbajar region were completely looted, burned, destroyed and obliterated.

The community further spoke about the gold, mineral reserves located in the region.

The statement also notes that the Sarsang water reservoir, which is currently under occupation, was built in 1976 on the Tartar River. Since the occupation of the Sarsang Reservoir, Armenians have deliberately discharged 85-90 percent of their annual water consumption when water is not needed, especially in the winter months. When necessary, they release 10-15% of the annual water norm, which leads to a decrease in water levels and the impossibility of irrigation. Sown fields are severely damaged, greenery dries up due to drought, and serious environmental tensions arise. The 400,000 people living below the damaged reservoir are in constant danger.

The community reminded that on April 6, 1993, the UN Security Council adopted a statement by the President of the Security Council, acknowledging the attack on Kalbajar and demanding the immediate withdrawal of troops. The statement said that the Security Council reaffirmed the sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of the borders of all states in the region.

The Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region also stated that violation of the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan by Armenia, destruction and misappropriation of architectural monuments that are examples of world culture, mass, gross violation of human rights, including cultural rights, are completely contrary to the norms and principles of international law.

The Azerbaijani state and people will never reconcile with this occupation. The successful counter-offensive operations of the Azerbaijani Army on April 2-5, 2016 gave our country great advantages from a military-strategic point of view. First of all, Azerbaijan has won a very important psychological victory. The Azerbaijani Army delivered crushing blows to the enemy and liberated the strategically important heights in the northern and southern parts of Karabakh. Thus, Azerbaijan has demonstrated its ability, potential and determination to liberate its lands, the statement reads.

On the 27th anniversary of the occupation of the Kalbajar region by the Armenian armed forces, more than 80,000 Azerbaijanis in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan, including more than 76,000 in the Kalbajar region, call the international community for support of our countrys fair position to give an objective political and legal assessment, the community said.

"We demand that all international organizations take effective measures to expose Armenia's policy of aggression. At the same time, the voices of more than one million victims of Armenian aggression should be heard and the criminal actions of Armenians should be condemned at the international level in order to restore our violated rights, the statement said.

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Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
In the light of Nizamuddin Markaz incident, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday prohibited all gatherings including religious in the state, and said the state government will impose a ban on all congregations, irrespective of the religion.

As per an official statement, the Chief Minister also ordered 21 days of quarantine for all those, who had returned to the state from Nizamuddin, Delhi, since January this year, and asked the police and administrative officials to move aggressively to track, trace and isolate all such people.

The Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after many positive cases across India were linked to the gathering, including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Telangana.

As many as 400 coronavirus patients have been found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster at Nizamuddin, the Centre said on Thursday.

Chief Minister Singh has directed the Police and Health Departments to constitute special teams to track and follow up on those, who had returned to Punjab from Nizamuddin.

Singh on Thursday discussed and reviewed the current situation through a video conference with DCs and other senior officials of the civil administration and police department.

According to DGP Dinkar Gupta, some 200 persons from Punjab had visited Nizamuddin and returned here, at different times, with 12 districts believed to be affected. They were being tracked along with some from other States, who had arrived in Punjab for Tabligh Jamaat work.

Singh further said: "We need to be prepared for what looks like a long-drawn battle." He also warned the officials against any complacency in terms of curfew enforcement and law and order, as well as relief measures and management of essential supplies.

Ludhiana, with 5.25 lakh migrant labourers, has built 60 camps though only two were occupied. Food is being supplied there regularly. The state has so far recorded 46 confirmed cases and five deaths.

The total number of COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday rose to 2069 in India including 1,860 active cases, 155 cured, discharged or migrated patients and 53 deaths, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Call Center Agents on the Front Lines in Coronavirus War

Call center agents typically make up the "front end" in customer service and communications. As the war against COVID-19 rages on and many U.S. agents have been deemed "essential" employees, they are now finding themselves on the front lines of battle, often in potentially dangerous and terrifying conditions.

The call center industry is already fraught with problems ranging from low pay, lack of employee incentives, and one of the highest rates of turnover and churn in the country. And for all the incredible technology that exists to enable remote work for agents, most call centers still typically operate like farms, with hundreds of agents packed into small spaces to maximize efficiency.

These types of call centers fail to meet the social distancing and health and safety regulations mandated throughout the country because of COVID-19. And in many cases, the companies running them are not allowing employees to work from home nor offering any concessions to allay their fears and uncertainty surrounding the spread of the coronavirus.

Beyond being terrified of working in crowded buildings, in close proximity to their coworkers, many call center employees claim they are being denied leave and are unable to care for children, who are home because of school closures. An employee at a call center in Kansas for Maximus, a government contractor, recently told In These Times that the process for applying for leave was not working.

"After applying online I immediately received an email from Maximus saying that I didn't qualify for the leave," said the agent, who remained anonymous. "My supervisor told me to talk to human capital (that's what they call HR now) about it, but they wouldn't speak to me. They said they would only take appointments. I applied for an appointment twice and got no response."

"We were also told to tell our supervisors if we were sick," added the worker. "I have symptoms of a cold right now, which I relayed to my supervisor. We assumed they were going to send everyone who was sick home, but human capital never responded. And I'm still scheduled to go into work tomorrow."

Considering the vast quantity of remote work technology and tools available to call centers, the trend of keeping employees on premises amidst the global coronavirus pandemic is troublesome. Many solutions, like Serenova's CxEngage Rapid Response program, are specifically designed to help call centers move their employees to a remote work model quickly and efficiently.

States throughout the country have been overwhelmed by complaints that call centers and other businesses are operating under unsafe conditions amid the COVID-19 crisis. Hopefully those complaints will prompt systemic changes throughout the call center industry and enable employees to work remotely throughout the pandemic and well beyond it.

Edited by Maurice Nagle
There will be no exemptions to COVID-19 restrictions for Christians who normally gather to celebrate Easter, ending more than a millennium of religious tradition.

Open church services, egg hunts and big family lunches will be banned on Easter Sunday, with believers live-streaming mass in their homes instead.

For many people who are not particularly religious, Easter - and Christmas - may be the only times they physically attend a church in any year.

Anzac Day, another sacred date on the calendar, will also effectively be cancelled by coronavirus as services, marches and two-up are barred on the day the nation remembers its war dead.

For many people who are not particularly religious, Easter - and Christmas - may be the only time they physically attend a church in any year. This year measures to prevent the spread of coronarirus means services will be live-streamed

Big family Easter lunches and egg hunts are out this year. Instead, Christians will be able to live-stream services and are being encouraged to pray at home

The RSL is asking Australians to observe Anzac Day by lighting a candle and walking down their driveway or standing on a verandah or balcony in an initiative called Light Up The Dawn

This year measures to stop the spread of COVID-19 through the community mean they will both Easter and Anzac Day have to be marked in unfamiliar ways.

Major churches will be promoting quiet prayer and contemplation, the RSL will encourage Australians to hold up a candle in tribute to fallen diggers.

Coronavirus social distancing regulations mean no more than two people, other than households, can gather in public in most circumstances and they must stay 1.5m apart.

The Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, asked all Australians to stay home unless absolutely necessary when he announced these latest so-called 'stage three' lockdown rules this week.

Some accommodation is made for activities such as weddings and funerals but New South Wales and Victorian police forces confirmed there would be no exceptions for Easter or Anzac Day.

'The message is very clear to the Victorian community,' a Victoria Police spokesman said.

'There are only four reasons why you should leave home - to get essential goods and services, for care and other compassionate reasons, to work or study, or to exercise.

Catholic and Anglican congregations have been using technology to overcome not being able to physically gather in churches and will do so over Easter. The Munday family of Sydney are pictured watching a live-stream service from St Paul of the Cross in Dulwich Hill

Bishop Richard Umbers is seen on a laptop in a live-stream service being broadcast from the St Paul of the Cross Catholic Church in Sydney's Dulwich Hill and watched by the Munday family

'Outside of these reasons, people need to stay home. We are asking the community to use common sense to stop the spread of this deadly virus.

'These are unprecedented times.'

Easter Sunday, which marks the Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, falls on April 12 this year and Anzac Day is held on the anniversary of the Gallipoli landings of April 25, 1915.

A NSW Police Force spokesman said the current coronavirus public health order which began on March 30 would be in place for 90 days unless revoked earlier.

'There will be no exemptions for Easter,' the spokesman said. 'Anzac Day will also not be exempt.'

All places of worship are closed to the public and religious gatherings restricted, with the exception of weddings of up to five people and funerals of up to ten.

In states including NSW live-streaming and broadcasting of religious services in places of worship that are closed to the public can still go ahead.

'We understand how difficult and unprecedented these restrictions are for religious communities, as well as everyone wanting to go away and spend Easter with family and friends,' a NSW Government spokesman said.

'Religious leaders continue to adapt during the COVID-19 pandemic to help their communities practice their faiths, especially in the lead up to Easter, Orthodox Easter, Passover and Ramadan.

'Congregations are increasingly connecting to their faith and prayer through technology, including online streaming and dedicated radio and video channels.

'More than ever, this is a time to look out for each other and stay connected with our community.'

Hundreds of Anglican congregations have being using technology to overcome not being able to physically gather in churches and will do so over Easter.

Larger churches have live-streamed services conducted by a minister without a congregation via Facebook or You Tube, while some others have used interactive video conferencing on platforms such as Zoom.

The Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, asked all Australians to stay home unless absolutely necessary when he announced these latest so-called 'stage three' rules this week. Mr Morrison is pictured at The Australian Hotel in Townsville on Anzac Day last year

RSL Australia general manager Kim Henshaw hoped Australians would still embrace Anzac Day. 'We get thousands and thousands of people to dawn services in a normal year and a very great proportion of those are from the general public,' he said

Kanishka Raffel, Anglican Dean of Sydney, said Christians had been celebrating Easter in their own homes for centuries and today's believers would adapt to COVID-19.

'The inability to gather together to celebrate Easter is a great disappointment for Christians this year, the Very Reverend Raffel said.

'But Easter is Gods act of sacrificial service for the hope and security of the world, and church communities are gladly committed to playing our part to promote the health of the community and contain the spread of coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

'Coronavirus will not quieten Easter joy but make it all the more urgent and precious.'

Channel 7 will broadcast services live from St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, streaming the Commemoration of the Lord's Passion at 3pm on Good Friday and Easter Sunday mass from 10.30am.

'This will be particularly welcome news for those living in nursing homes and aged care facilities who may be separated from family over Easter due to restrictions on visits during the current pandemic,' a spokesman for the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney said.

'To help Catholics prepare for Easter, many parishes have also established online prayer groups via digital platforms such as Skype, Zoom and WhatsApp to ensure that Catholics can still come together as a community in prayer while churches are closed.'

The Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Anthony Fisher, said this was the first time since the Spanish flu epidemic of 1919 that Australian priests had been unable to say mass.

The Archdiocese was already live-streaming daily services and providing on-demand liturgies and that would continue over Easter amid COVID-19.

'All Australians are experiencing hardship at this time as we seek to limit the spread of the Coronavirus,' Archbishop Fisher wrote in a letter to clergy and parishioners.

'As Catholics, our greatest sacrifice is being unable to gather to celebrate the sacraments or even to spend time praying in a church.

'We make this sacrifice in solidarity with all our fellow citizens.

'There was no suggestion in the Prime Minister's latest announcement or in the NSW application of this decision that this affects indoor live-streamed services.

Anzac Day is considered the country's most significant secular holiday, uniting Australians of all backgrounds, ages and beliefs. It will not be marked this year by dawn services, marches or playing two-up due to COVID-19

Coronavirus cases in Australia have topped 5,000 with 23 deaths recorded as of Thursday

'The PM and some other civic leaders have previously praised religious groups for live-streaming in these circumstances and acknowledged the importance for people of religious services in times like these.'

To encourage observance of Anzac Day the RSL has endorsed a suggestion that Australians stand at their gates, on balconies or verandahs and hold up a candle.

Musicians have also been called on to take to their front yards and play the Last Post and Reveille for their neighbours.

Residents are urged to dress windows and mailboxes with poppies and children at home in isolation to make wreaths to hang on front doors.

RSL Australia general manager Kim Henshaw said state branches had decided on Monday to call the candle initiative Light Up The Dawn.

'We get thousands and thousands of people to dawn services in a normal year and a very great proportion of those are from the general public,' Mr Henshaw told AAP.

'So this gives them a way that they can have their own private commemoration. We see it as very positive indeed.'
Earlier this week, Tara Waters made her will.

She's just 42 years old and the mother of two young children.

But amid the climate of uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic that is sweeping the nation, she, like people of many ages and walks of life, is grappling with the difficult subject and not taking any chances.

"Obviously with the coronavirus, everyone is kind of susceptible to it," Waters, a police officer from Weymouth, Massachusetts, told ABC News.

"I feel like in this day and age everyone is kind of thinking about their mortality," she added. "I think people are seeing for the first time they are very vulnerable everybody is."

MORE: Will coronavirus break the Internet? Here's what the experts say.

The coronavirus has spread rapidly in the U.S. and led to a skyrocketing demand for wills, even for those who aren't senior citizens. What once appeared to be a scourge that was primarily affecting the elderly and those with underlying health issues has now been revealed to hospitalize and kill those who are younger, seemingly at an alarming rate.

"I'm not loaded, I don't have a fortune for people to fight over, but I have two small kids," Waters said. "I definitely want to make sure that if something happens to my husband or I, our wishes are put down in legal form."

She said in speaking to different police officers and other first responders, "Everyone is saying, I should probably get a will done just in case."

PHOTO: A person fills out a document to create a will. (STOCK PHOTO/Getty Images)

Marked increase

Renee Fry, the CEO of Gentreo, an online estate-planning platform, told ABC News that they saw a 143% increase week-over-week in people creating wills with them last week, and she predicts it will be an event larger uptick this week, estimating it's "probably closer 220%."

"In the past, people thought this was only for the wealthy, it's not," she said.

Fry emphasized that her service is legally-binding and state-specific, which is something you need to be especially cognizant of if you choose an online service.

Story continues

"There might be things online, but if it's not what your state requires, then you don't have the documents you need to hold up in court," she said. "Each state has a separate requirements."

MORE: Brooklyn bar operator the 1st person arrested for violating COVID-19 executive order

Ann-Margaret Carozza, an estate planning and asset protection attorney based in New York said in recent weeks she's seen an approximately 50% increase in inquiries about "all estate planning aspects."

"I've had a lot of calls and email questions about doing healthcare-advanced directives," she said. "This pandemic is causing us all to think about or it ... who we are naming to make healthcare decisions for us in the event that we are unable to speak."

"The calls about healthcare proxies were so great that I just put the PDF-downloadable form on my website," she added. "It's good in all 50 states, it does not have to be notarized."

In addition to healthcare proxies (giving someone the power to make medical decisions on your behalf in the event you are unable) and wills, Carozza said clients have been reaching out to create all sorts of often-overlooked legal documents amid the pandemic.

"There is one very interesting aspect to this and I think it may come from the very solitary nature of the most severe cases, where patients don't have interaction with family members at the end, that people are asking me for guidance on doing what I call ethical wills," she said. "A normal will simply distributes my property at my death, an ethical will is where someone can put forth words of wisdom for their family members and loved ones."

Carozza said she has also seen an uptick in inquiries for creating trusts.

"I feel like there is a general sense that parents want to make things easier and smoother for their children, and in many cases that might be doing a trust instead of a will," she said. "A trust takes effect immediately upon a parent's death and is really like a gift to the next generation in terms of simplicity."

There are several key differences between wills and trusts. Wills set forth how a person wishes to dispose of his or her property upon his or her death. Trusts, which can vary some what, hand the legal title for property to someone else -- they can be more flexible and have a wider range of uses, according to FindLaw, a provider of online legal information for consumers and small businesses.

Another key difference is that wills can face challenges in probate court, whereas a trust is not subject to probate.

'Critically important' for young parents

While in the past people may have thought wills were only for older, terminally ill or wealthy people, Carozza said it is "critically important" for parents of young children to make one.

"Especially when we have minor children, it's critically important to have a will to name guardians, otherwise it would be a court coming up with who they think would be in the best position to raise children," she said. "Anyone who has children should have a will done."

One of the most surprising aspects of the pandemic, Carozza added, is that it is making people rethink who they want to take care of their children.

"I've had calls where people have named siblings as guardians, but they don't like how cavalier people are taking the social distancing," she said.

MORE: How businesses are adapting to a coronavirus pandemic economy

While online will services have exploded in popularity in recent years, Carozza says she still discourages people from using them for the most part because of the "room for error."

"Yes, you can do an online will and you can do a will on a paper towel, and technically it's effective, but your family will be in court with that document," she said. "I would strongly encourage a person to do a will under the presence of an attorney."

"The probate laws of all 50 states state that a will executed under the supervision of an attorney is presumed to be legitimate," she added. "The do-it-yourself will will be in the probate court for twice as long."

'How fast can I get a will done?'

Drew Hall, a financial adviser in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, has recently redirected his services amid the pandemic to focus on helping people get their wills in order.

Hall told ABC News that he received a surprise text a little over a week ago from a friend who was a doctor saying simply: "How fast can I get a will done?"

"I just went 'Oh man,'" Hall said. "For me it was like a lightning bolt hit. I have to do things differently for right now."

He said he then reached out to eight other people, including friends who work in the medical field, urging them to get their wills in order and not to wait until it's too late.

Currently he is working as a liaison between estate attorneys and his clients and friends to help them create wills, something he says he is not getting paid for.

PHOTO: Documents including Will, Power of Attorney, and Healthcare Proxy. (STOCK PHOTO/Getty Images)

But what about notarizing?

Hall said many people, however, are struggling to get their wills notarized due to government-mandated stay at home orders. He said he is currently calling in personal favors to notaries to get the wills authenticated as soon as possible.

MORE: Hard-hit cruise lines may not see much of stimulus bailout funds

In Louisiana and elsewhere, many attorneys have been in talks with local authorities to allow estate planning to be deemed an essential service amid the pandemic, according to Hall.

State representative Selene Colburn, of Vermont, tweeted that she is working on legislation that would allow "remote notarization processes for legal documents such as wills" amid the COVID-19 crisis.

A handful of states currently already allow remote online notarization, according to the National Notary Association.

Because of the "coronavirus emergency," and the many stay-at-home orders, more than a dozen states have authorized temporary remote notarization services with state-specific guidelines.

"Notaries in these states must follow any rules set by the governor or state commissioning officials for these emergency authorizations," the NNA states on its website.

Rules for each of the states can be found on the NNA's website.

ABC News' Kaylee Hartung contributed to this report.

Coronavirus leads to surge in wills: 'Everyone is thinking about their mortality' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
The World Health Organisation is reviewing its evidence on the effectiveness of people wearing face masks in public amid suggestions the widespread practice in some Asian countries may have helped contain outbreaks.

Many people are already wearing face masks. Credit:Paul Rovere

The WHO currently recommends only wearing a mask if you are ill, caring for the sick or if you are a front-line healthcare worker.

However, at a March 30 briefing, WHO officials said that the agency did not criticise countries that advised people to wear masks.

The Australian government said people who are well do not need to wear surgical masks, advising there is little evidence supporting the widespread use of surgical masks in healthy people to prevent transmission in public.
Bollywood couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan on Thursday announced that they will be donating money to the PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra Chief Minister's Relief Fund to help combat coronavirus pandemic in the country.

Kareena posted a statement on Instagram, saying that she, along with Saif and their son Taimur, have extended support to the two relief funds.

"We extend our support to the PM-CARES and Chief Minister's Fund (Maharashtra). In times like these, every helping hand and every rupee raised, matters. Do help wherever possible," the statement read.

According to the Union Health Ministry, the number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,965 in the country on Thursday while the death toll rose to 50.

The star couple had recently pledged support to UNICEF, GIVE INDIA and the International Association for Human Values (IAHV).

At the time, the couple was criticised by social media users for not donating to the PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra Chief Minister's Relief Fund, unlike their Bollywood counterparts.

Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations or the PM-CARES Fund was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to combat health contingencies like the coronavirus.

In the last week, the relief funds have received donations from a number of Bollywood celebrities, including Akshay Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar, Varun Dhawan, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Katrina Kaif, Alia Bhatt and others.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The government's decision to accept foreign contributions to a fund set up to fight COVID-19 is in sync with the policy of receiving similar contributions to the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) since 2011, official sources said on Thursday.

The government has taken a decision to accept contributions to the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES) from individuals and organisations based in foreign countries, sources had said on Wednesday.

Following reports about this, several people on Twitter reminded the government about its decision to not allow Kerala receive any foreign financial assistance when the state was reeling under massive floods which claimed lives of 231 people and rendered over 14 lakh homeless.

On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced setting up of the PM CARES fund. The prime minister is the chairman of the trust and its members include the defence minister, the home minister and the finance minister.

"What has been announced is that PM CARES fund will simply accept donations and contributions from individuals and organisations who are based in foreign countries. This is consistent with India's policy with respect to PMNRF," said a source.

The PMNRF has also received foreign contributions as a public trust since 2011, the source added.

On the criticisms of the government's refusal of foreign funds to some states, the sources referred to a statement by a government spokesperson in August 2018.

"In line with the existing policy, the government is committed to meeting the requirements for relief and rehabilitation through domestic efforts," the spokesperson had said.

"Contributions to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund and the Chief Minister's Relief Fund from NRIs, PIOs and international entities such as foundations would, however, be welcome," he said.

Political leaders, corporates, defence personnel, employees of PSUs such as Railways and Bollywood personalities are among a cross-section of organisations and people who have announced their contribution to the PM CARES fund.

All officials of the external affairs ministry are also donating a day's salary while some of them are voluntarily donating more, said an official.

The Army, Navy and the Indian Air Force as well as employees of the Defence Ministry have decided to donate one day's salary totalling around Rs 500 crore.

The number of coronavirus cases increased rapidly in the country in the last few days. India has recorded over 1,965 positive cases of coronavirus and at least 50 deaths so far. Globally, the virus has infected more than 850,000 people and claimed around 42,000 lives.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
UPDATE, Thursday, April 2, 8:05 p.m - Staff from the Redding Civic Auditorium announced on Thursday the US Army Corps of Engineers picked the auditorium as a location for a field hospital in Shasta County.

The medical station will arrive on April 6.

Advance Redding, the managing agency of the auditorium, says it is working closely with the Shasta County health officials during this time.

Any questions regarding this matter should be directed to Shasta County Health and Human Services Agency at (530) 225-5591.

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REDDING, Calif. - Shasta County could be getting some help in the fight against the coronavirus.

Governor Gavin Newsom says he's considering Shasta County as one of the sites for a temporary field hospital to treat patients.

Shasta County Health officials say the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been in Shasta County.

They're looking at three possible sites to set-up the makeshift hospital.

These sites include: Shasta County Fairgrounds in Anderson, Shasta College, and the Redding Civic Auditorium.

Health officials say the hospital would treat both coronavirus and regular patients.

" Were continuing to develop those partnerships and waiting to hear back from the government about what were going to receive and when," says Dr. Karen Romstrom of Shasta County Health and Human Services. "Were anticipating it will be in the next week or so if thatll happen."

Health officials say the temporary field hospital would have over 200 beds along with medical equipment to provide the necessary care.

The Army Corps of Engineers hasn't decided which site it'll choose, but the hospital would be able to serve thirteen counties north of Sacramento.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:05:47|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has signed a State Council decree to publish a decision on amending seven administrative regulations and abolishing 10.

The changes were made to promote the reform of streamlining administration and delegating power, improving regulation and upgrading services, said the decree.

The regulations include those required by the reform on abolishing and delegating government permits, as well as those that are no longer applicable in practice.

For example, the regulations on the development and management of urban real estate were amended to reduce the requirement of certificates, so as to improve the business environment.

Among the abolished regulations are the regulations on the implementation of the Administrative Supervision Law, which have been replaced by the National Supervision Law.

The custody and education measures for prostitution-related offences were also abolished, following the termination of the "custody and education" system by a decision of the National People's Congress Standing Committee in December 2019.
Bhopal, April 2 : In a strongly worded tweet that appears to be aimed at the stone pelters ina few pockets of Indore, targeting medical staff, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan took an unusually tough position, issuing stern warning.

He said, "This is not just a tweet. This is a stern warning ...Human rights are only for humans." This is a rare outburst for Chauhan who is known for his mild demeanors. In what appears to be a clear message to the incident of stone pelting, Chuhan suggested that human right rules won't come in the way of taking action against them.

A health department team on a visit to locate persons reportedly infected with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Indore's Tat Patti Bakhal area was pelted with stones earlier. The health team consisted of five persons including three doctors. Video of the stone pelting and how the medical team left in a rush to save themselves went viral on social media, sparking outrage.

"The moment we started enquiring about a particular person's health, people began protesting and were joined by others who resorted to stone pelting. Policemen standing nearby came to our rescue," a woman doctor said.

Indore's Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) Pravin Jadia said: "Our team is working to protect people from the coronavirus infection. But people threw stones at them. It was an unfortunate incident." "Two women doctors somehow protected themselves by hiding in tehsildar''s vehicle," added Jadia.

A complaint was filed at Chhatripura police station. A police officer said that during the incident the protesters also broke the barricade. A case of rioting will be pursued against them.

And now with the CM taking an unusually strong stand on the issue promising 'stern' actions, the matter has assumed even more significance.
Amid chants of 'Jai Shri Ram' and a total mockery of the nationwide lockdown, thousands of devotees assembled in temples in various parts of West Bengal on the occasion of Ram Navami on Thursday.

In a thumbs down to social distancing norms prescribed by the government during the ongoing nationwide lockdown period, the devotees went to temples risking their lives and the lives of several others.

Long queues of devotees were seen outside temples across the state, while the annual Ram Navami rallies were not held this year as the VHP and other saffron groups have called off the programmes due to the coronavirus pandemic.

PTI

People in huge numbers were seen queuing up outside temples in several districts and sought blessings from the 'Lord Ram' to get relief from the coronavirus pandemic sooner than later.

Police, in several districts, asked devotees to return to home immediately after offering pujas and instructed them to avoid gatherings and strictly follow social distancing norms, a senior officer said.

The Kolkata police also asked priests of the Ram temples to adhere to social distancing and not to allow the assembling of devotees outside the temples, news agency PTI reported.

Thousands of devotees gather in temples in various parts of West Bengal on occasion of Ram Navami defying lockdown imposed across country due to #coronavirusoutbreak, police ask them to return home immediately  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 2, 2020

The gates of many temples were closed and devotees were asked to stand in a queue maintaining safe distance from each other, a senior officer of the city police said.

In another worrying development, several police personnel were attacked and their vehicles were ransacked by locals in Goaltore area of West Midnapore for stopping them to assemble in a tea stall, a senior officer of the district police said. Two police officials were badly injured and admitted in a hospital, he said. A ration shop owner in Birbhum district was also beaten up by people, after stocks of foodgrains dried up in the outlet.





Just a day ago, India witnessed a spike in coronavirus positive patients after several Tabhlighi Jamaat members, who were stranded in a building, were tested from Delhi's Nizamuddin area.
Some African countries will have more than 10,000 coronavirus cases by the end of April, health officials projected Thursday, as the continent least equipped to treat serious infections has an "enormous gap" in the number of ventilators and other critical items.

While cases across Africa are now above 6,000 at what has been called the dawn of the outbreak, the continent is "very, very close" to where Europe was after a 40-day period, the head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. John Nkengasong, told reporters.

The virus "is an existential threat to our continent," he said. All but four of Africa's 54 countries have cases after Malawi on Thursday reported its first, and local transmission has begun in many places.

Nkengasong said authorities are "aggressively" looking into procuring equipment such as ventilators that most African countries desperately need, and local manufacturing and repurposing are being explored.

"We've seen a lot of goodwill expressed to supporting Africa from bilateral and multilateral partners," but "we still have to see that translate into concrete action," he said.

The World Health Organization doesn't know how many ventilators are available across Africa to help those in respiratory distress, regional director Dr. Matshidiso Moeti told reporters. "We are trying to find out this information from country-based colleagues. ... What we can say without a doubt is there is an enormous gap."

Some countries have only a few ventilators. Central African Republic has just three.

A small percentage of people who are infected will need ventilators and about 15% may need intensive care, said WHO official Dr. Zabulon Yoti.

The health officials pleaded for global solidarity at a time when even some of the world's richest countries are scrambling for basic medical needs, including face masks.

"Countries like Cameroon just reached out yesterday, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, asking, 'Look, we need tents because we're running out of hospital beds already,'" Nkengasong said.

Even if equipment is obtained, getting them to countries is a growing challenge with Africa's widespread travel restrictions, though countries have made exceptions for cargo or emergency humanitarian flights.

Simply gauging the number of coronavirus cases in Africa is a challenge, even in South Africa, the most developed country on the continent, where authorities have acknowledged a testing backlog.

Other countries suffer from the widespread shortage of testing kits or swabs, though 43 countries in the WHO Africa sub-Saharan region now have testing capability, up from two in early February.

As more African countries impose lockdowns, both the WHO and Africa CDC expressed concern for the millions of low-income people who need to go out daily to earn their living. That's a "huge challenge," Moeti said, noting that hundreds of thousands of children are now out of school as well.

It is too soon to tell how the lockdown in places like South Africa has affected the number of cases, she added.

The lockdowns are causing unease. Police herded several hundred homeless people into a stadium in South Africa's capital, Pretoria, where tents were erected for shelter and methadone was provided for many. There were complaints about the lack of sanitizer or soap.

The first sub-Saharan African nation to impose a lockdown, Rwanda, has now extended it by two weeks, a sign of what might be to come for other nations. Botswana imposed its own, effective Friday.

"Don't lock down the whole country," Nkengasong said. "Lock down cities or communities where there's extensive community transmission so .. social harm is minimized. But if infection is spreading across the entire country, you have no choice."

Health experts in Africa are rushing to understand whether factors such as Africa's youthful population - some 70% of the continent's people are under age 30 - will be a benefit in fighting off the virus and how the widespread problems of malnutrition, HIV, tuberculosis and malaria might affect people's ability to fight off infection.

"Our greatest fear" is that programs tackling those perennial issues will be sapped by the current crisis, Nkengasong said. "The time to advocate for those programs is not when COVID-19 is over. The time is now."

Dr. Meredith McMorrow, Medical Officer in the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's influenza division, acknowledged to reporters that the US is "suffering right now" and that limits the US ability to respond with overseas aid. But she said the US is helping African nations procure overseas equipment "as rapidly as possible."

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Over the past few decades, the critically endangered whooping crane (Grus Americana) has experienced considerable recovery. However, in a report appearing April 2 in the journal Heliyon, researchers found that habitat loss and within-species attraction have led whooping cranes to gather in unusually large groups during migration. While larger groups are a positive sign of species recovery, the authors say that these large groups mean that a disease outbreak or extreme weather event could inadvertently impact a substantial portion of this still fragile population.

"Whooping crane conservation is one of North America's great success stories," says Andrew Caven, Director of Conservation Research at Crane Trust, a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of critical habitat for whooping cranes and other migratory birds. During the 1940s the whooping crane population fell to 16 birds, largely due to overhunting. However, after concerted conservation efforts, their numbers have increased 30-fold. "We had this species at the brink of extinction, and now there are over 500 birds. As conservation biologists, we've been extremely inspired by that."

Even with this boom in whooping crane numbers, researchers are observing larger migratory flocks than they would expect from population growth alone. Historically, groups of migrating whooping cranes seldom exceeded a family unit. "Twenty years ago, a group of nine was notable; something you'd write in your natural history notes about. But now it's becoming something quite regular. In the recent years we've seen bird groups over seventy multiple times."

With a total population of only around 500 birds, groups of this size could potentially put the whole species at risk. "The largest group detected was about 150 birds near Marcelin, Saskatchewan, which represents over one-fourth of the population. In a group that size, extreme weather like hailstorms or an outbreak of avian cholera could be catastrophic for the species," says Caven.

So Caven and his research team set out to understand why traveling groups of whooping cranes had grown so large. They collected sightings data from state, federal, and private conservation organizations as well as the public along the whooping cranes migratory path from their Texas wintering grounds to their breeding grounds in Alberta, Canada.

Results indicated that the larger flocks of whooping crane roosted most frequently in the Southern Great Plains, where wetland habitats are sparse, but a few, high-quality conserved wetlands still stand.

"Many wetland habitats in the Great Plains have disappeared due to sedimentation or have been drained for farming" says Caven. "The rate of wetland loss has actually been quite high, particularly in these basins south of the Platte River." With limited access to quality habitat in the southward part of their migration, it appears whooping crane have adjusted by gathering in proportionally larger assemblages.

As a sort of snowball effect, the authors say these gatherings can also be promoted by conspecific attraction or attraction to like individuals. The presence of birds in a location can make it more desirable for other cranes. "Conspecific attraction helps birds indicate optimal forging resources in these patchy environments and provide vigilance in situations that could be risky. These benefits could be a major reason we are seeing the emergence of these new behaviors as the cranes recover from near extinction," he says.

Based on these findings, Caven suggests the best way to disperse these groups is to provide more wetland habitat throughout their migration path. "Supporting conservation groups that are restoring habitats south of the Platte River, particularly wetlands, can have a serious impact. Increasing the scale of wetland restoration within the migration corridor could break up these aggregations and provide foraging space for a ton of birds, not just whooping crane."

The Crane Trust research team also plans to evaluate how habitat quality affects the length of time whooping cranes stay at stopover locations before continuing on in their migration. This will help determine those sites that are most essential in providing necessary resources for the birds to complete their 3,000-mile journey.

###

Heliyon, Caven et al.: "Trends in the occurrence of large Whooping crane groups during migrations in the Great Plains, USA" https://www.cell.com/heliyon/fulltext/S2405-8440(20)30394-7

Heliyon (@HeliyonJournal), part of the Cell Press family, is an open access journal publishing scientifically accurate and valuable research across life, physical, social, and medical sciences. Visit https://www.cell.com/heliyon. To receive Cell Press media alerts, contact press@cell.com.
Babies with brain tumors could benefit from targeted treatment

Tumours in infants biologically distinct from older patients

Study finds genetic vulnerabilities to existing targeted drugs

Clinical trials to offer hope for families of youngest patients

Brain cancer in infants is biologically distinct from other childhood brain tumours and could be successfully treated with targeted drugs, a new study has shown.

An aggressive type of brain tumour, called high-grade glioma, is almost always fatal in older children - with only 20 per cent surviving for more than five years.

Babies and very young children, diagnosed when they are less than 12 months old, tend to have a better outcome - with around two thirds surviving five years or more.

In the largest and most comprehensive study of infant gliomas to date, scientists found that these tumours are molecularly different from those in older children, helping explain why they tend to be less aggressive.

The new results could help pick out babies with brain tumours who could be spared chemotherapy - which can have devastating side-effects and be particularly harmful while their brain is still developing.

The study found that brain tumours in babies often had specific molecular weaknesses which could be targeted by existing targeted drugs - and clinical trials to assess these are now set to open.

Scientists at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, carried out a large-scale study of 241 infants from around the world diagnosed with glioma brain tumours - working with colleagues at the Hopp Children's Cancer Center Heidelberg in Germany, the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in the US.

The researchers found that 130 of the 241 tumour samples - or 54 per cent - had an entirely different genetic make-up from other forms of childhood brain tumours, despite looking highly similar under the microscope.

Some 65 cases, or half of children with the distinct form of infant brain tumours, had specific molecular weaknesses - including ALK and NTRK gene fusions, which can be targeted with existing precision medicines.

The study is published in Cancer Discovery today (Thursday), and was funded by charities including the CRIS Cancer Foundation, The Brain Tumour Charity, Children with Cancer UK, Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity, and Cancer Research UK.

Next, the team looked at mice with brain tumours caused by ALK gene fusions to compare the effect of a targeted drug, lorlatinib, which works by blocking ALK, with temozolomide chemotherapy.

They found that lorlatinib significantly shrunk tumours in seven out of eight mice, or 88 per cent, while tumours in mice given chemotherapy kept growing, though at a slower rate.

The researchers also grew three-dimensional 'mini tumours' in the lab from patient samples, and found those that had fusions of NTRK with other genes were particularly sensitive to drugs blocking NTRK. Tumours with these fusion mutations were between two and nine times more sensitive to the targeted treatments entrectinib, crizotinib and milciclib than those without.

A small number of children whose tumours were analysed in the study were successfully treated with ALK or NTRK targeting drugs, offering further evidence for the promise of targeted treatments for infant brain tumours.

Clinical trials are due to open to test the benefit of targeted drugs blocking the ALK and NTRK gene fusions in infant brain tumours - and to better understand the biology of tumours which don't have these faults.

The new results are also set to change the World Health Organization's diagnostic guidelines, with brain tumours in infants to be classed separately from other childhood brain tumours.

Professor Chris Jones, Professor of Paediatric Brain Tumour Biology at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said:

"We found that glioma brain tumours in babies are biologically completely different to those in older children, even though under the microscope they look much the same.

"Our study offers the biological evidence to pick out those infants who are likely to have a better outcome from their disease, so these very small children and their families can be spared the harmful effects of chemotherapy.

"We showed that brain tumours in infants have particular genetic weaknesses that could be targeted with existing drugs - and clinical trials are planned to test the benefit of these precision medicines as a first-line treatment in clinical trials as soon as possible."

Dr Matthew Clarke, Clinical Research Fellow in the Glioma Team at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said:

"Brain tumours that arise in the very youngest children tend to have better outcomes from those in older children - and our new study explains that difference on a biological level.

"Chemotherapy is currently a good treatment option for babies with brain tumours - but our study has found that some children could be spared this treatment. With further testing, I'm hopeful that existing targeted drugs could expand our arsenal of options to treat these smallest of patients."

Professor Paul Workman, Chief Executive of The Institute of Cancer Research, London, said:

"It's especially cruel when cancer affects such small children, so it is encouraging that this study offers some hope for very young patients and their families. The research offers a better understanding of the biology of brain tumours in infants, and finds that they might potentially be treated with new targeted drugs. That's vitally important because infants are particularly vulnerable to the side effects from standard treatments such as chemotherapy, and we need much better, kinder options."

###

Notes to editors

For more information please contact Sarah Wells in the ICR press office on 020 7153 5582 or sarah.wells@icr.ac.uk. For enquiries out of hours, please call 07595 963 613. The Institute of Cancer Research, London, is one of the world's most influential cancer research organisations. Scientists and clinicians at The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) are working every day to make a real impact on cancer patients' lives. Through its unique partnership with The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust and 'bench-to-bedside' approach, the ICR is able to create and deliver results in a way that other institutions cannot. Together the two organisations are rated in the top centres for cancer research and treatment globally.

The ICR has an outstanding record of achievement dating back more than 100 years. It provided the first convincing evidence that DNA damage is the basic cause of cancer, laying the foundation for the now universally accepted idea that cancer is a genetic disease. Today it is a world leader at identifying cancer-related genes and discovering new targeted drugs for personalised cancer treatment.

A college of the University of London, the ICR is the UK's top-ranked academic institution for research quality, and provides postgraduate higher education of international distinction. It has charitable status and relies on support from partner organisations, charities and the general public.

The ICR's mission is to make the discoveries that defeat cancer.

For more information visit http://www. icr. ac. uk

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Engulfed by the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. economy continues to rack up job losses the nation has never seen before.

A record 6.6 million Americans filed for new unemployment claims for the week ended March 28, according to a Department of Labor report released Thursday. The staggering number of people seeking help was double the previous record of 3.3 million new claims, set just a week earlier.

Even the stunning 10 million jobs lost in two weeks likely is just the start of a crescendo of joblessness, economists said, as the nation reels from stay-at-home orders designed to curb the spread of the virus. Stores, hotels, factories, schools, airlines, restaurants, nightclubs, film sets, construction sites and more have shuttered or drastically curtailed business while consumers are cloistered at home.

Were in the Great Depression neighborhood here, said Michael Merrill, professor of labor studies and employment relations at Rutgers University.

Economists at the St. Louis Federal Reserve predict that the country will lose 47 million jobs in the second quarter, reaching a 32.1% unemployment rate. During the darkest days of the Depression, unemployment was about 25%.

But there are some major lifelines now that werent offered then. The government is pouring money into additional unemployment benefits and other assistance to try to keep people and businesses afloat.

The stimulus just passed will make a difference, although there will be casualties from economic disruption, Merrill said.

Many restaurants and shops may go belly up, leaving their workers  generally lower-paid people  stranded.

Theres still the hope that the economy could bounce back once the virus subsides.

Since this slowdown is largely self-imposed, rather than the result of deep structural problems in the economy, the eventual recovery should be swift, write Michael Farren, an economist at George Mason University, in an opinion piece in the Hill, a political publication, on Thursday.

Todd Trumbull

The official report showed that 878,727 Californians filed new claims for the week of March 22-28, compared to 186,333 the week before. While more than twice the claims reported in any other state, thats just a hint at the true figure. It includes only claims that were fully processed. The states count of claims received is many times larger.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday that more than 1.9 million state residents had filed for unemployment since mid-March, including a record 150,000 on Monday alone. Unemployment claims are averaging 111,000 per day, he said.

The state is putting $50 million into a program for small-value loans. It will let small businesses defer paying up to $50,000 in sales taxes for one year with no fines or penalties  essentially a no-cost loan.

We all recognize were going to have to do more to meet this moment for employees and employers, he said on Tuesday.

Every single state recorded its highest-ever unemployment toll during the week ended March 28 or that ended March 21.

The pain of layoffs rippled through entire families.

Elena Duran and her husband, Carlos Narvaez, both 65, both lost jobs at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco on March 16, the day several Bay Area counties issued shelter-in-place orders. Their hours had previously been cut. All three of their adult sons were laid off, too, including Victor Narvaez, 28, who lives with them in a Mission District apartment along with Carlos 87-year-old mother, who has dementia. Duran expects at least one of her other sons may need to move in soon.

It is going to get tight, yes, Duran said. Still, she likes to look on the bright side. From something bad, something good can come, she said. We spend more time all together.

The extra $600 a week of unemployment benefits that Congress included in the stimulus package passed last week will help, she said. Shes hopeful that her union, Unite Here Local 2, will persuade Marriott, the global hotel chain that operates the Palace, to share some of its stimulus money with its workers, and to cover health care after the current reserve fund is exhausted in July.

The hospitality industry has endured some of the biggest cuts. More than 12,000 Unite Here Local 2 jobs in hotel, airport and food service work in San Francisco and San Mateo counties have vanished; the union is raising funds to support its workers.

Some newly laid-off workers said it was clear that the state unemployment system is swamped.

Larrilou Carumba, 47, was laid off in early March after eight years as a housekeeper at the San Francisco Marriott Marquis.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

I applied for unemployment the first week, but it took me four days, she said. Day and night I tried to apply, but the website kept crashing.

She was notified last week that her application was approved, but she hasnt received her benefits.

Every day Im waiting and wondering when it will come, she said. A single mother of three, she and her children are staying in a room in her sisters San Leandro house, but she still has a lot of bills to juggle. Her sister, a mother of two, also was laid off, although her brother-in-law is still working.

The California Employment Development Department said it had massive around-the-clock staffing and IT efforts to handle the overwhelming volume. Its enlisted 850 additional staff to process claims.

Still, the state Legislative Analysts Office said the onslaught of applications likely will delay people receiving their benefits, which usually takes about three weeks after submitting an application. During the crisis, California will pay benefits before making final eligibility decisions, it said.

An extra $600 a week included as part of the $2.2 trillion stimulus package should be added to Californians unemployment benefits next week barring any big surprises in guidelines from the federal government, EDD said. Its also waiting for guidelines to start granting a 13-week extension of benefits included in that package. Ordinarily California unemployment is 26 weeks within a 52-week time period.

The EDD is working to create an application for the new Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program, which will provide unemployment benefits to gig workers, freelancers and the self-employed. It didnt say when this will be ready.

Key questions Q: Am I eligible for unemployment benefits? A: If your employer has reduced your hours or shut down operations due to the coronavirus, you can file for unemployment insurance. Benefits in California generally range from $40 to $450 per week for up to six months (or possibly more than six months if you are working reduced hours and getting reduced benefits). The $2 trillion stimulus bill provides federal funding to significantly expand unemployment benefits. It will extend them by 13 weeks and add an extra $600 a week until July 31. They will also be offered to people not eligible for regular benefits, because they are self-employed, haven't worked long enough or already ran out of regular state benefits. The California Employment Development Department has not yet provided guidance on how people will apply for these new benefits. Normally, state unemployment and disability benefits do not begin until a week after you file, but Gov. Gavin Newsom's March 12 executive order waived the normal one-week waiting period for people who are unemployed or disabled because of the virus. The state of California has an FAQ on its coronavirus website about this and other benefits. For the latest information on unemployment benefits in California related to the coronavirus, see https://www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019.htm. Q: What if I'm self-employed? A: Self-employed people are generally not eligible for state disability, paid family leave or unemployment benefits, unless they or an employer has contributed to the programs on their behalf. Most self-employed people do not opt into these programs. However, self-employed workers will be able to receive unemployment under the CARES Act enacted on March 27. EDD has been encouraging people who should be classified as employees under state law but are still being treated as independent contractors to file for regular unemployment benefits. For the latest information on unemployment benefits in California related to the coronavirus, see www.edd.ca.gov/about_edd/coronavirus-2019.htm . Q: What if I can't pay my mortgage? A: Wells Fargo, Citibank, JPMorgan, US Bank and about 200 state-chartered banks and credit unions have agreed to a 90-day grace period on mortgage payments in California, according to Newsom. The federal government is negotiating with the financial industry on similar forbearance for all mortgage borrowers whose incomes were hurt by the pandemic. Newsom's order also asks banks to halt foreclosures and related evictions through May 31, at least. More financial questions and answers at sfchronicle.com. See More Collapse

Updates will be posted on the EDD website, which has a special coronavirus information section, as soon as more details are available.

Carolyn Said is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: csaid@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @csaid
A Pakistan appeals court has overturned the murder conviction and death sentence of the man convicted of killing U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl, the Wall Street Journal reported early Thursday.

The big picture: Pearl, who was the Journal's South Asia correspondent, was abducted in Karachi in 2002. British-born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh had his sentence reduced to seven years, and three other men, who were originally given life sentences for helping him, were acquitted, per the BBC. A report by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University alleged Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who is being held in Guantanamo Bay over the 9/11 attacks, carried out the journalist's beheading.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.
US Launches Counter-Narcotics Operations to Halt Flow of Illicit Drugs Amid Pandemic

Sputnik News

21:40 GMT 01.04.2020(updated 22:31 GMT 01.04.2020)

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper announced on Wednesday that the US was beginning "enhanced counter-narcotics operations" in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean, saying "many criminal organizations are attempting to capitalize" on the COVID-19 crisis.

"Today the United States is launching enhanced counter-narcotics operation in the Western Hemisphere to protect the American people from the deadly scourge of illegal narcotics," US President Donald Trump told reporters on Wednesday.

"We must not let the drug cartels exploit the pandemic to threaten American lives. In cooperation with the 22 partner nations US Southern Command will increase surveillance, disruption and seizures of drug shipments and provide additional support for eradication efforts which are going on right now at record pace," Trump said, indicating the operation would involve US Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force assets, as well as the Drug Enforcement Administration and other agencies.

General Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that the US was not only at war with COVID-19 and with terrorists, but with "the drug cartels" as well, and characterized the deployment of US Navy, US Coast Guard and other forces in the region as an act of self-defense.

"This drug war has gone on for many decades," Attorney General William Barr told reporters. "The cartels have to be defeated."

Earlier on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported that several US Navy vessels were being deployed off the coast of Venezuela to engage in counter-narcotics operations.

Last week, the Department of Justice unveiled "narco-terrorism" charges against 14 members and former members of the Venezuelan government, alleging their involvement in a drug-running operation and connections to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - People's Army (FARC-EP). The State Department placed rewards of up to $15 million for the capture of those charged, including Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, whom the US government regards as an illegitimate ruler.

When asked about a reported interdiction of an attack being plotted against US troops in Iraq, Trump said, "We just have information that they were planning something  it was led by Iran - not necessarily Iran, but groups led by Iran  it would be a very bad thing if they did it."

Esper said that while he empathized with the enormous suffering of the Iranian people amid the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 3,000 Iranians, if Tehran wanted help from Washington it should end its "malign activities" against US forces in the region.

 Sputnik

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Consider the nightmare scenario youve heard many times by now: Twelve patients with COVID-19 arrive in the ICU needing emergency mechanical ventilation. Only six ventilators are available. Which patients should the doctors place on ventilators? Which patients should be left to die?

This is a nightmare in two parts: One is the overflowing hospital, the vision of sick patients waiting for the medical care or equipment that they might not get in time. The other is the decision-making, in which doctors must choose who lives and who dies.

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The U.S. is now closer to this scenario than we have ever been in the history of modern medicine. But there might be a way to avoid it, or at least substantially mitigate ita strategy that has nothing to do with testing, treating, or containing the coronavirus. It is a strategy that is cheap, and fast, and not actually that radical: Make sure every American has an advance directive.

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An advance directive (sometimes called a living will) is a document that details a patients wishes in the event that he or she becomes critically ill. They can vary quite a bit, but a standard advance directive always addresses the question of whether or not the person desires life supporti.e. medicines and machines to keep the person alive when organ systems are failing.

The most critical component of life support in many cases, and certainly in the case of COVID-19, is mechanical ventilation.

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How would you respond if you were asked the following question: In the next 12 months, in the event that you develop a life-threatening respiratory illness requiring mechanical ventilation (whether from COVID-19 or another illness), would you prefer:

A) Mechanical ventilation and intensive care , with the goal of sustaining life by all medically effective means

B) A time-limited trial of mechanical ventilation, then transition to other, less burdensome treatments

C) No mechanical ventilation or burdensome treatments of any kindjust focus on comfort?

This question may seem hard or complicated to answer, and for most people it is. Multiple factors will likely influence your choice, including your age, how much longer you expect to live, your religious or spiritual beliefs, your family and other relationships. In light of this difficulty, and the rapid escalation of the COVID-19 crisis, experts are rightfully urging us to bring up the subject with our families and loved ones. But to have a real impactboth for individuals and the wider populationthis conversation cant just be between family members. We have to go one step further, and make sure everyone is having this discussion with a healthcare provider. Now.

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A doctoror in some cases a nurse practitioner or physicians assistantcan usually answer important questions that family members cant. For example, what its like to be on a mechanical ventilator, what complications and risks are involved with ventilation, and how likely it is that you (with your particular combination of risks and health conditions) would survive a severe respiratory illness. A doctor should also screen for untreated depression and suicidality. Most importantly, a doctor or healthcare provider must document the decision for other doctors, so that those doctors can be certain the decision is well-informed and that they should make every effort to honor it.

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Such conversations could start happening right now over the phone. Emergency and ICU physicians may be inundated with patients, but there are many physicians whose clinics have been effectively shuttered by the COVID crisis: ophthalmologists, surgeons, perhaps even your own primary care provider. Many of these MDs were trained in medical school to have end-of-life discussions, even if they no longer do it on a regular basis. Its not a perfect scenario, but its a whole lot better than forcing doctors to make life-or-death decisions without knowing patients wishes, or without giving patients adequate time to consider those wishes.

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State governments, who certainly have an interest in keeping their hospitals and ICUs from overflowing, should take the lead on this. State departments of public health could start by sending a postcard to every registered address, as well as stocking postcards for pickup at grocery stores and doctors offices. The card would include a multiple-choice question like the one above, a space for your name and signature, and a space to fill in the name of the doctor with whom you discussed your decision. (Something similar to this postcard already exists in most states. although it is intended only for people at high risk for a life-threatening event. In my state of California, its called a POLST, and its printed on bright pink paper.)

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State departments of public health could then create online registries where healthcare providers could sign up to participate and document their phone calls. Individual doctors offices could also take the initiative to call their established patients, then document them on the central registry. After all, the ideal advance directive conversation always takes place with a doctor whom you already know and trust. But because we know that ideal wont be possible for everyone, we can instead aim to make the broadest, fastest impact on a population level.

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Even in this current setting of vast uncertainty, an advance directive gives us time to consider our options thoroughly, before the urgency and fear of critical illness have taken over our ability to think clearly about our values, goals, and plans for the futureboth life and death. Its important to emphasize that everyone has the right to choose Option Awhether it will be available to everyone is a different matter. But if we all take some time to reflect, talk, and ask questions, I suspect many of us will choose something else.

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Imagine if every patient across the country who fell ill with COVID-19 started showing up in the emergency room with their advance directive in hand. Done on a massive scale, this effort could drastically reduce the burden of this disease on our nations hospitals, particularly ICUs. It would help triage patients in the emergency room and direct ongoing bed assignments in the hospital. Patients who want and require immediate ventilation can be transferred to the ICU (Option A). Those who want comfort care only (Option C), or those who have been in the ICU and are clearly not getting better (Option B), could be transferred to standard hospital beds, or even to a non-hospital setting (perhaps even to their homes) for hospice care.

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You may not think the COVID crisis will impact you or your family, and depending on where you live and how lucky (not just careful, but lucky) you are, you may be right. But these questions arent going to go away. Talk to any healthcare worker whos spent time in an ICU, and most of them will tell you how important it is to have an advance directive, whether its for the current crisis or another futurebut inevitablecause of death.

The bottom line is this: Doctors will need to make these tough decisions. But we would vastly prefer to make them with our patients helpnow more than everto ensure that everyone gets the care they not only need, but want.
Southwest Airlines flight with healthcare workers before takeoff from Atlanta (ATL) to New York (LGA) to assist in response to the COVID-19 pandemic

Southwest Airlines

Letha Love is a registered nurse who usually works at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta Georgia

Last Friday, she boarded a plane to fly to New York City, along with 28 other healthcare workers, to help out with the coronavirus pandemic there. Before her flight departed, a Southwest Airlines employee snapped a photo of the workers, which has since gone viral with over 31,500 likes on Instagram.

Love arrived in New York on Friday and her first shift at a hospital in New York City was Sunday.

"One of reasons why it was easy for me to accept this position was because everyday I was going back home from the hospital and if I were exposed, I would have exposed my children," Love said.

Read live updates about the coronavirus here

On Friday, Southwest Airlines Flight 979 was set to depart from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta to LaGuardia Airport in New York City.

On board were 29 healthcare workers who were flying to New York to help with the coronavirus pandemic in the city.

'Please come help us in New York now'

New York state has been hit hard by the virus with over 76,000 confirmed cases as of Tuesday evening. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has been calling for healthcare workers to volunteer to help.

"As governor of New York, I am asking health care professionals across the country: If you don't have a health care crisis in your community, please come help us in New York now," Cuomo said at a briefing of the crisis on Monday. "We need relief."

New York has also been surveying students and faculty at medical schools to see if they are willing to supplement the state's healthcare system as it battles coronavirus, as previously reported by Business Insider.

Last week, several medical schools in New York City announced that they would graduate fourth year medical schools early to help on the frontlines of the virus.

According to NurseFly, a staffing agency that flies healthcare workers to fill vacant spots in areas in the US, demand on the company's platform increased more than 90% in March amid the COVID-19 crisis and demand in New York state doubled during the month.

Story continues

The photo that went viral

Before the flight departed, a Southwest employee snapped a photo of the workers, which has since gone viral with over 31,500 likes on Instagram.

The healthcare workers on board "were in good spirits and wanted to do their part to help those in need," a spokesperson for Southwest Airlines told Business Insider. "Our Crew thanked them for their service and sacrifice and wished them well on their journey ahead."

Letha Love is a registered nurse who usually works at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. She told Business Insider she took a leave of absence to help healthcare workers in New York, where the hospitals have become overwhelmed with patients and reportedly undersupplied with proper personal protective equipment.

With kids at home, Love said that she was concerned about exposing her family to the virus if she were to get infected.

"One of reasons why it was easy for me to accept this position was because everyday I was going back home from the hospital and if I were exposed, I would have exposed my children," Love said. "If I'm exposed here, I can't expose my kids. I would be able to quarantine and get better and go home."

Read also: The next wave of coronavirus outbreaks is threatening cities from New Orleans to Philadelphia, and it reveals the US is on pace for a national epidemic

Love currently works the night shift at a hospital in New York, from 7 p.m. to 7:30 a.m. and said she plans on staying in New York for a month or two, though she is seeing how things play out on a day to day basis. If things get worse in Georgia sooner than expected, Love says she plans to return home to help out with the crisis there.

"You never know," she said. "I don't want to get stuck in New York when my kids are at home."

The first day: 'It shocked me when I first walked into the hospital'

Love arrived in New York on Friday and after an orientation on Saturday, she took on her first shift at the intensive care unit on Sunday night.

"That was when shock came for me," she said. "It shocked me when I first walked into the hospital."

Love said that the sheer number of patients with COVID-19 at her hospital was unexpected. It seemed like every patient she was coming in contact with either had the virus or was trying to recover.

Based on her conversations with the other healthcare workers who flew to New York with her, who are working in hospitals around the city, Love says it seems they're all experiencing similar situations.

"It's a shock at first but shock goes away real quick because we have to take care of these people, we're trying to recover people, not trying to let people die," Love said. "We want to get people to recover. We do."

'This is traumatic'

Love said because she's worked in ICUs and hospices before, she's seen people die. But she describes her current experience as something on a completely different level. "I've just never been in a place where there was that much death at one time where death is just around you," she said.

"I kind of feel like when I go back home, or anyone working in this environment, when all of this is over, everyone will have PTSD." Love continued. "I'm not a psychiatrist but I am saying this is traumatic, very traumatic."

"It doesn't have a face, it doesn't have a color, it doesn't have an age, it doesn't have a creed," she said. "It's just a virus that is there and waiting and we have to protect ourselves from it."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Matts and Stephens career accomplishments embody the excellence that defines a Robinson Bradshaw lawyer.

Robinson Bradshaw is pleased to announce that former North Carolina Solicitor General Matthew W. Sawchak and prominent litigator Stephen D. Feldman are joining the firm as shareholders. Both will work in the firms Research Triangle office, joining an accomplished litigation team that already includes two former U.S. Supreme Court clerks.

We are thrilled to welcome Matt and Stephen to Robinson Bradshaw, as we continue our steady growth in the Triangle area. Matts and Stephens career accomplishments embody the excellence that defines a Robinson Bradshaw lawyer. They add firepower to what is already one of the strongest litigation teams in the southeast, said Managing Partner Allen Robertson. And, I believe we now have the strongest antitrust and appellate teams in the state, as well.

Sawchak joins Robinson Bradshaw after serving as North Carolinas solicitor general for three years. In that capacity, he oversaw all civil appeals for the state and served as lead counsel in the highest-stakes civil appeals, including appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court. Sawchak is a state bar certified specialist in appellate practice and has extensive experience in appeals, antitrust and other complex litigation. He chairs the editorial board of the Antitrust Law Journal and is an elected member of the American Law Institute. Sawchak graduated cum laude from Harvard University and with honors from Duke Law School, where he served as editor-in-chief of the Duke Law Journal. He clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas during Justice Thomas first term on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Feldman is widely recognized for his expertise in complex litigation, antitrust and appeals. He partners with businesses on their most important legal matters, and his recent experiences include successfully representing government agencies in federal and state antitrust litigation, defeating claims of unfair and deceptive trade practices in state and federal court, and defending shareholders in corporate-control disputes. Feldman serves as vice chair of both the North Carolina Bar Association Appellate Practice Section and the North Carolina Business Court Rules Committee. He also serves on the leadership of the American Bar Associations Antitrust Law Section and previously chaired the ABAs Appellate Practice Committee. He graduated summa cum laude from Washington University and received his law degree from the University of Chicago Law School, where he was a comment editor for The University of Chicago Law Review. After law school, Feldman clerked for Judge Pasco Bowman on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit.

Robinson Bradshaw is a Carolinas-based corporate law firm celebrating 60 years of providing comprehensive legal services to our clients. We represent businesses across the country ranging from startups to Fortune 100 companies. Visit robinsonbradshaw.com for more information.
Dateline: Accra, April 1, 2020: There was more energy in the pace of security personnel supervising the partial lockdown imposed on the Greater Accra Region, as the restricted movement regime to control the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic rolled into Day 3, on Wednesday.



Suddenly the number of checkpoints Wednesday morning increased several folds from what pertained on Days 1&2, and with it came cane-wielding, no-nonsense security officials.



This time, one needed a really good reason to go through the roadblocks, and from 10am, commercial vehicles  taxis and trotros, appeared to have only one fate in the Tema area, stay home or U-turn.



One trotro after another got the Go back orders, just as the taxis did, as the canes menacingly pointed the way.



From Afienya to the Tema end of the Motorway Roundabout, then through the Motorway to Tetteh Quarshie intersection, to the 37 Military Hospital to the Greater Accra Regional Hospital and then to the Accra Psychiatric Hospital down to Adabraka, one counted no less than nine checkpoints.



Each of these stops had some sort of a heavy vehicular traffic, but the Accra end of the Motorway was special. Traffic built up all the way to the Manet area, beyond ones view, with a good number of them being taxis and trotros.



As they come in, they are shown the way back, and market women and others with good reason to continue their journey, grudging alighted and crossed over to hope for some good Samaritans to pass their way.



Some of the orders degenerated into mini arguments, but the police prevailed.



We deserve all this, when the president (President Akufo-Addo) announced the lockdown, he said on critical issued can be allowed but we are living our lives as though nothing has happened. Why wont they be asking us to go back, quipped an obviously unenthused woman.



At Apolonia Junction, Afienya, two young men who attempted a brawl with the police following orders for them to return home were whisked away to the police station. They were insisting on going to fend for themselves in Tema and should be allowed to go.





The police disagreed.This disease is killing people all over the world, stay home so the situation can be managed too you say no, why are we so difficult? A police man at one of the check points complained, as he ordered people aboard a private vehicle to return home.Some who claimed to be attending hospital had nothing at all to show, while some motor riders simply rode on while other vehicles were being attended to.There are indications that the coming days will see a tighter monitoring of movements, especially as Ghana announced an increase of over 200 per cent confirmed cases on Wednesday.The new situation is that Ghana has 195 confirmed cases, and people in their thousands are being tracked all over the country in a bid to curtail the spread before it gets out of hand.The lockdown is in effect for two weeks, and affects Greater Accra and Kumasi and its environs.

Source: Daily Graphic









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Golden Arrow Resources Buying Back 10% Of Outstanding Shares; Exploration Temporarily Halted By Pandemic

Posted by Publisher Internet

The Corona virus pandemic together with the Saudi Arabia-Russia oil production increase took its toll on the equity markets the last few weeks. The commodity markets in particular got hit too, as main end user China got hit by a halt in manufacturing plants across the economy. Precious metals like gold rose initially, but after the virus spread globally it got sold off ruthlessly like any other asset class. Golden Arrow Resources (GRG.V, GARWF.US, G6A.FSE) as a gold explorer didn?t come out completely unharmed either, as the following chart shows:?Figure 2

The drop in the share price for Golden Arrow is relatively comparable to that of SSR Mining, the company Golden Arrow holds roughly 1M shares of (and which are the bulk of tangible assets at the moment):?Figure 3.

At a current market capitalization of just C$14.3M, Golden Arrow trades below the value of their SSR Mining holding, which attributes to C$16.2M. Besides this, Golden Arrow has a modest cash position and their exploration assets among which the promising Indiana gold project in Chile, so it is safe to say that the company has reached decent support levels technically and fundamentally speaking. Management decided this was the case as well, and came to the conclusion that it was probably easier to buy back shares in order to create accretive value for shareholders instead of trying to create value through the drill bit on their projects.

For that purpose, management announced a normal course issuer bid on March 12, 2020, to purchase up to 10,658,050shares being equal to 10% of the float. This bid commenced on March 17, 2020 and will end on the earlier of March 16, 2021. The shares will be bought in the open market by PI Financial on behalf of Golden Arrow Resources. Management and the Board clearly think this will be advantageous for shareholders, as they commented as follows:

?The board of directors of the company are of the opinion that the recent market prices of its shares do not reflect the underlying value of its property portfolio and its strong financial position. Accordingly, the purchase of shares through the bid is in the best interests of the company and its shareholders, as it will increase the proportionate share interest of remaining shareholders. The bid will afford an increased degree of liquidity to the company?s shareholders. The directors also believe that there will be long term benefits to the company with fewer shares issued and outstanding.?

This news release was followed a few days later on March 16, 2020 by a statement of the President, Chairman and CEO Joseph Grosso, of which a few highlights are presented here:

?I believe that today?s market sentiment has resulted in a share price that does not reflect the Company?s asset value, or our future potential value. At this time, our asset value includes:

An extremely strong treasury of cash and cash equivalent securities.

100% control of a large property portfolio in Argentina with substantial geological values and work in progress. The yearly compliance fee to hold these properties in Argentina is amongst the lowest in the world. Three of Argentina?s most significant metal deposit discoveries had origins in this portfolio: Chinchillas, Gualcamayo and Navidad. Golden Arrow has devoted considerable time, expertise and investment into advancing the portfolio to include a pipeline of mineral projects at various stages of exploration.



In addition, our potential value includes:

Upside in our stock portfolio.

The discovery potential of the multiple mineral projects that we are currently exploring in Argentina, Chile and Paraguay.Any of these projects has the geological potential to generate significant discoveries and value in the near future.

I believe that the current market is creating the significant disparity seen between the share price and the combination of our asset value and exploration potential. This has created the opportunity for management to initiate an economical buyback of up to 10% of the public float of our shares, as approved by the TSX Venture Exchange. This will benefit the shareholders by increasing their proportionate share interest, increasing liquidity provide long-term benefits afforded by a tighter structure.?

After reading this, I wasn?t immediately convinced if this was the best possible action for a junior explorer with a lot of current assets to its disposal, in a bear market. I have several reasons for this.

For juniors, cash is king in my view, and any available dollar should be guarded with their lives in bear markets, and preferably assigned solely to increase the value of their exploration assets.

Besides this, in a bear market it often doesn?t matter what you do as a junior mining company, it is very difficult to get rewarded for your actions/results as everything gets dragged down no matter what. On the other hand, a bull market lifts up all boats as they say, and you get the most bang for your buck, so it seems more efficient to undertake share price enhancing actions during a bull market. Applying the kind of cash being used now for the buyback but instead aimed at for example marketing programs and market makers during better times would likely generate more significant results.

Furthermore, junior mining is a high risk, high reward sector, where share prices and market caps often fluctuate a lot, often based on nothing fundamental, and buyback programs are normally specifically based on enterprise values remaining the same in a more or less reliable and quantitative way, and resembles actions of blue chip multinationals.

Notwithstanding this, because of the current rout for oil companies, even the likes of Shell have halted their share buy back programs to save cash now, for harsh times to come. So, why Golden Arrow management decided to initiate a buy back program at a point where its SSR Mining shares are valued at about 40% lower levels compared to the highs of a few weeks ago, whereas Golden Arrow lost just 33% and already recovered towards a 20% loss from the share price right before the outbreak (probably caused partially by the buyback program itself), wasn?t really clear to me. If 10% of the float will be bought at an average price of 13c, this means C$1.38M of precious cash will be gone. Therefore I asked them for more clarity on the subject.

Joseph Grosso commented himself as followed: ?Golden Arrow has been trading at a discount to not only?value, but to its cash (and cash equivalent) ever since the sale of Puna Operations to SSR Mining. Many investors had purchased Golden Arrow\-\-s shares as a production story; even though we were a fairly passive investor in that project. The recent general market sell-off has exacerbated the discount. I believe that by initiating the repurchase of up to 10% of the company\-\-s public float, we can show to the market that we firmly stand behind the value underpinning Golden Arrow. Since the announcement of our buyback program, the company\-\-s shares are up by 20%. By reducing some of the outstanding shares, Golden Arrow is in effect mopping up excess stock held by investors with different investment objectives, and increasing the inherent value held across all remaining shareholders.?As the bull market in gold continues to advance this should provide great leverage to all of our investors.?

One could wonder if investors who were in it for the leveraged production play didn?t already leave, and the sell-off wasn?t connected to a higher degree to the broader market sell-off itself, but let?s see what happens. At least they are buying back at an absolute low, and the leverage is optimized.

Exploration

In the meantime, Golden Arrow progressed on their ongoing exploration programs, and the one at the Flecha de Oro project in Argentina delivered the first sampling results at the Esperanza and Puzzle properties. Sampling and mapping continued throughout the month of January at the Esperanza property, identifying high-grade and visible gold hosted in epithermal quartz veins. Especially the results at Esperanza were encouraging in my view, as shown here in this table:?Figure 4.

Everything topping 1g/t Au at surface is showing high potential in my view, so if about 40 of 500 samples show these results, the sampling program was successful in my opinion. Several samples also involved visible gold, as can be seen at these pictures (in green):?Figure 5.

At Esperanza, Golden Arrow?s target is to define high grade mineralized zones within the 16 kilometers of identified quartz and chalcedony veins that display epithermal textures. The mapping program is continuing to gain greater understanding of the structural plumbing system and distribution of classic epithermal vein textures which can provide formation temperature information, which are both important in targeting thicker and higher-grade zones.

The company is using the Cerro Vanguardia district as an exploration model for the Esperanza property. There are geological similarities between the two areas, in particular the presence of swarms of low sulphidation epithermal quartz veins in an area of?

approximately 100 square kilometres. The Cerro Vanguardia district is located in Santa Cruz province in southern Argentina, and includes over 100 gold and silver-bearing epithermal veins. The district has a cumulative exposed vein strike extent of more than 240 kilometres, and has produced more than 4.5 million ounces of gold over the last 20 years.

Golden Arrow Resources also received sampling results for the Puzzle property, but these were, despite establishing a trend of 6.5km, of much lower grade, and therefore of lower interest/potential in my view, especially since it is not heap leachable potential:?Figure 6.

The trend can be seen here:?Figure 7.

Despite these low grade sampling results at Puzzle, the company made applications for additional concessions around both the Esperanza and Puzzle properties.

I also wondered if the Corona pandemic had any influence on the ongoing exploration programs, and McEwen had this to say about this subject: ?The Corona pandemic is a global phenomenon. Our first priority is the safety of our staff and?personnel. Our?organization is abiding by all the local regulations in every jurisdiction to keep our people safe. Although our exploration programs have been placed on a temporary holding pattern, we expect to pick up when this pandemic has passed us. We will provide updates, as?appropriate.?

Conclusion

The share buyback program of 10% of the Golden Arrow Resources float came a bit as a surprise for me, as this is unusual for junior mining companies. After contacting Joseph Grosso, the reasoning became more clear, as they figured there were still investors with the objective of holding a (leveraged to silver) production play selling their shares, and they wanted to clean those up. The Corona virus seems to have a delaying impact on operations, according to Brian McEwen, as they paused their exploration programs in order to comply with all pandemic related regulations. It seems investors have to wait out the pandemic and its fall out, but in the mean time these share price levels trading below cash seem an interesting time to entry (or re-entry).

I hope you will find this article interesting and useful, and will have further interest in my upcoming articles on mining. To never miss a thing, please subscribe to my free newsletter on my website www.criticalinvestor.eu, in order to get an email notice of my new articles soon after they are published.

Disclaimer:

The author is not a registered investment advisor, currently has a long position in this stock, and?Golden Arrow Resources?is a sponsoring company. All facts are to be checked by the reader. For more information go to www.goldenarrowresources.com and read the company?s profile and? official documents on?www.sedar.com, also?for important risk disclosures. This article is provided for information purposes only, and is not intended to be investment advice of any kind, and all readers are encouraged to do their own due diligence, and talk to their own licensed investment advisors prior to making any investment decisions.
The defence ministry on Thursday announced that it is mobilising thousands of ex-servicemen (ESM) to assist state governments and district administrations, wherever required, to supplement the countrys efforts to fight the Covid-19 pandemic.

A ministry spokesperson said the department of ex-servicemen welfare has taken the initiative to mobilise the services of veterans. Rajya Sainik Boards, Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ESM volunteers to assist the state and district administration in performing public outreach activities such as contact tracing, community surveillance, management of quarantine facilities or any such tasks assigned to them, the ministry said in a statement.

More than 8,500 military doctors and support staff are ready to help the government in the fight the Covid-19 pandemic. Besides, 9,000 hospital beds have been prepared to meet emergency requirements, the armed forces told the government on Wednesday.

The ministry said on Thursday that it is heartening that veterans across the country have risen to the occasion, in keeping with the motto of service before self, to fight the outbreak. ESM are disciplined, motivated and well trained to operate in adverse situations and they have pan-India presence in all the districts and villages across the country, the statement said.

It said more than 4,200 ESM are assisting in data collection from villages in Punjab, Chhattisgarh has employed veterans to help the police, district collectors in Andhra Pradesh have sought the assistance of ESM volunteers and retired medical personnel have been kept on standby in Uttar Pradesh.

In addition, Sainik rest houses are being readied in Uttarakhand to act as isolation/quarantine centres if the need arises. In Goa, a control room has been established and ESM have been asked to remain on standby for any assistance to the local administration, the release said.

The ministry also said the National Cadet Corps (NCC) has issued guidelines for temporary employment of its cadets to augment relief efforts and the functioning of various agencies involved in battling the pandemic under Exercise NCC Yogdan.

The tasks envisaged for NCC cadets include manning of helpline/call centres, distribution of relief material/medicines/ food/essential commodities, community assistance, data management and queue and traffic management, the ministry said in another statement, adding that guidelines make it clear that cadets should not be employed in the handling of law and order situations or in active military duties, or deployed at hot spots.

Only senior division volunteer cadets, over 18 years of age, will be roped in. They should be employed in small cohesive groups of eight to 20 under the supervision of permanent instructor staff or and an associate NCC Officer, it said. The ministry said on Wednesday that around 25,000 cadets are being mobilised.
'We are Not at War!' Captain of Coronavirus-Stricken US Navy Vessel Calls for Urgent Rescue Measures

Sputnik News

14:20 GMT 01.04.2020

After docking at the Vietnamese port of Da Nang, during which the crew went ashore and interacted with locals, the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt pulled into Guam last week amid reports of several cases of COVID-19 registered among the crew.

The commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, a US Navy aircraft carrier consumed by an outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus, has urged the Navy's Pacific Fleet in a memo to take immediate action to save the lives of his crew, according to three US defense officials cited by CNN.

Stating that the spread of the disease is "ongoing and accelerating," Capt. Brett Crozier appealed:

"We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our Sailors."

The commander of the vessel, which docked in Guam last week after several members of its crew tested positive for COVID-19, continued:

"Decisive action is required. Removing the majority of personnel from a deployed US nuclear aircraft carrier and isolating them for two weeks may seem like an extraordinary measure This is a necessary risk. It will enable the carrier and air wing to get back underway as quickly as possible while ensuring the health and safety of our Sailors. Keeping over 4,000 young men and women on board the TR is an unnecessary risk and breaks faith with those Sailors entrusted to our care."

CNN cited a US Navy official as confirming that the commanding officer of the Theodore Roosevelt had warned the Navy's Pacific Fleet on Sunday evening that there were "continuing challenges in isolating the virus."

The official was cited as saying:

"The ship's commanding officer advocated for housing more members of the crew in facilities that allow for better isolation."

Regarding the number of registered coronavirus cases, another Navy official was cited as saying it had soared to at least 70 as of 31 March.

In response to the news, the commander of US Pacific Fleet Adm. John Aquilino declined to share specific numbers regarding the infected sailors aboard the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.

"What I will tell you is I have no sailors hospitalized, I have no sailors on ventilators, I have no sailors in critical condition, no sailors in an ICU status on the Theodore Roosevelt," CNN quoted the Admiral as saying.

On the memo dispatched by Capt. Brett Crozier, Aquilino responded by saying:

"We're welcoming feedback. ... We want to make sure we understand exactly what the leader on the ground needs."

The commander of US Pacific Fleet continued:

"We are on the same sheet of music and I am really trying to make it happen more quickly but there are some constraints we are operating around."

Among issues potentially delaying the measures urged by Capt. Brett Crozier the Admiral reportedly underscored lack of capacity to house, isolate and quarantine sailors in Guam, where the ship is currently in port.

Previously, US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper was quoted by CBS as responding to the letter by saying he would "rely on the Navy chain of command" to assess the volatile situation and make sure they provide the captain and the crew all the support they need to get the sailors healthy and the ship back at sea."

Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly was quoted by CNN as saying he was aware of the letter from Captain Crozier and the chain of command had been working throughout the past seven days to move the sailors who had tested positive for the virus from the vessel, however, Guam lacks adequate accommodations.

"We don't disagree with the (Commanding Officer) on that ship and we're doing it in a very methodical way because it's not the same as a cruise ship, that ship has armaments on it, it has aircraft on it, we have to be able to fight fires if there are fires on board the ship, we have to run a nuclear power plant, so there's a lot of things that we have to do on that ship that make it a little bit different and unique but we're managing it and we're working through it," added Modly.

Based in San Diego, California, the USS Theodore Roosevelt with about 5,000 personnel onboard is presently docked at Guam, in the Philippine Sea, after having made a port visit to Da Nang, Vietnam, earlier this month.

After the visit, several cases of COVID-19 were identified among the sailors, who were subsequently transported ashore to the US Naval Hospital on the island that is a US territory and which houses several large US military bases.

 Sputnik

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Money Heist, more elegantly titled La Casa de Papel in the original Spanish, is Netflixs most popular non-English language series, but is bafflingly underappreciated in the UK and US. When I first watched it I had the feeling of discovering some little-known indie film, because nobody else had heard of it. Then I would look up the stars and discover it had 10 million followers on Instagram.

This wasnt just Anglophone arrogance. The default setting was a dreadful English-language dub, rather than subtitles. If you chanced upon it you would think it was stilted trash, rather than what it is: the silkiest, most perfectly constructed trash on TV. A master criminal called The Professor (Alvaro Morte) assembled a team of eight master criminals to take over the royal mint in Spain, dressed in red jumpsuits with Dali masks. They named themselves after international cities: there was Rio (Miguel Herran), an IT whizz; Nairobi (Alba Flores), a forger; Moscow (Paco Tous), an former miner turned criminal; etc. Once inside, they could print money for as long as they can hold out against the police, their hostages and their own internal strife.

The series was as slickly executed as the heist. It had everything a heist needs; wild ingenuity, loveable rogues and a clear sense of physical geography. Except for The Professor, the gang were inside, surrounded by the cops. It was a post-crash thriller, with a Robin Hood moral angle. Not only were we rooting for them, but they might actually be the good guys. Flashbacks gave context to the gangs travails as they played cat and mouse with the police, led by Raquel Murillo (Itziar Ituno). Each revealed hidden depths, especially the psychopathic aesthete Berlin (Pedro Alonso). It was nonsense, but very enjoyable. I craved new episodes.

So did the rest of the world, evidently. We are up to season four, and the programme has become such a worldwide phenomenon that a documentary is being released at the same time. The gang are locked into their new target, the Bank of Spain. Nairobi is in trouble, and so is Palermo, a new character who was introduced in the previous series as a foil to Berlin. Although supremely watchable, Tokyo (Ursula Corbero), the unreliable narrator, has always been a dramatic weak link, a lunatic supermodel with no discernible skillset, and the script stretches itself to justify her presence.

I wont give away too many spoilers. There is no point watching Money Heist if you dont begin at the beginning, and the twists are the fun of the thing. The star rating here is for the series as a whole, which is peerless escapism. But ennui is setting in. It was intended to be a two-part limited series for a Spanish network, Antena 3, before it blew up and Netflix stepped in. The problems it has are familiar to every programme that becomes a sacred cow for its network, kept alive beyond its natural lifespan. The early episodes were characterised by a rush of twists and new ideas. Now they are being dragged out to fill airtime. Plot dynamics are being reheated and repeated, with diminishing returns. All the joy in the heist format is wondering how the robbers will escape. With Money Heist, Im starting to dread the new ways the producers will find to keep me locked in.
SPRINGFIELD  The state public health director on Wednesday issued a somber warning that Illinois residents can expect mounting numbers of illness and death in the new month from the vicious spread of the coronavirus.

The 6,980 cases of COVID-19 reported by Dr. Ngoze Ezike are double the state's total just last Saturday. Along with 986 new cases reported Wednesday were 42 deaths, the largest single-day increase since the first was reported March 17, bringing the state's total to 141.

"The coming weeks are going to get more and more difficult as the number of cases and deaths continue to rise ...," Ezike said. "Let's be strong and courageous. Don't be terrified, don't be discouraged."

In Macon County, the number of positive cases remained at two. First confirmed last week, they are a woman in her 50s and man in his 60s. Thirty-eight tests have been completed, with 20 negative results and 16 pending.

Additionally, 13 Macon County residents have been tested elsewhere. Twelve results were negative and one is pending.

Ezike urged the public to maintain stop-the-spread tasks such as staying home and frequently washing hands. While simple, Ezike said, "these are the courageous actions that are going to save lives and eventually end this pandemic."

Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Tuesday extended his stay-at-home order through month's because of the continued steep climb in cases expected. The order to stay home unless reporting to a job deemed essential or to buy groceries or prescriptions was supposed to end April 7.

Pritzker's extension came the same day President Donald Trump braced the country for similarly alarming numbers across the nation. U.S. cases topped 200,000 Wednesday afternoon as the global total raced toward 1 million, according to Johns Hopkins University.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.

In addition to programs for low-interest loans and other programs to help businesses shut down by the pandemic, Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced a fundraising effort to assist artists and arts organizations. Respondents to a survey said they expected to lose as much as $84 million their stages and galleries are dark.

U.S. Census

Pritzker also noted that Wednesday was Census Day in the United States. All people are required to report where they resided on that day. But the numbers are also used to determine how hundreds of billions of dollars in federal spending are distributed, including roughly $34 billion per year that flow to Illinois for things like education, child care, workforce training, transportation and health care.

The U.S. Constitution requires a census of all residents be conducted every 10 years in order to apportion representation in the U.S. House of Representatives.

The state of Illinois is spending $29 million as part of an effort to get an accurate count, and Pritzker said because of the outbreak, the state is now focusing that money mostly on outreach programs that target hard-to-count populations  rural communities, minority communities and low-income individuals and families, among others.

He also noted that because of the pandemic, the U.S. Census Bureau has temporarily suspended sending census workers into the field to do door-to-door canvassing of people who have not yet filled out their census forms.

People can fill out their census forms online this year, even by using a smartphone, by visiting My2020Census.gov. It can also be completed by phone at 844-330-2020.

I want to remind everyone that there is no citizenship question on the census, Pritzker said. Let me repeat that there is no citizenship question on the census form. You will not be asked your immigration status and your information will not be shared with anyone.

Health care coverage and workforce

Pritzker also said Wednesday that more than 1,100 former health care professionals and those who practice out of state have responded to his call to renew or apply for licenses in Illinois so they can join the workforce treating COVID-19 patients.

He said many of the out-of-state practitioners are actually Illinois residents who practice in border communities just outside the state.

Right now those numbers are running about half-and-half, with more applications coming in every day, he said. It's really incredible to watch. The people of this state are truly so deeply genuinely caring.

But Pritzker had less kind words to say about Trump, who reportedly has refused requests by Democratic and Republican governors to reopen the enrollment period for people seeking insurance coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

Some White House officials are saying that the president will not be reopening the insurance marketplace in response to the coronavirus, Pritzker said. Frankly, this is leadership malpractice. Now more than ever, we need as many people as possible to have access to health care to seek out testing if we're ever going to be able to fight COVID-19 and eliminate it as a major risk to our people.

The Herald & Review contributed to this story.
A group of former judges is urging Australia's parliament to set up a bipartisan committee to scrutinise the government's epidemic responses as it faces one of the longest shutdowns on record.

The six judges, including former High Court justice Mary Gaudron, have proposed Canberra adopt New Zealand's approach of setting up an all-party select committee of parliament to scrutinise the government's epidemic responses.

Parliament is heading for an unusually long recess of about 125 days. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

The New Zealand committee, which had its second meeting on Wednesday, meets by video conference several times a week and will live-cast its proceedings publicly as long as the parliament is suspended.

New Zealand's Epidemic Response Committee has the power to question government ministers and demand documents. Like Australia's, New Zealand's parliament was sent into unscheduled recess because of the risk that it would spread the new coronavirus.
The Ministry of Finance on Thursday auctioned treasury bills at a total value of EGP 21 billion.

In an online statement, the ministry said it sold 182-day T-bills worth EGP 10 billion, with an average yield of 12.996 percent.

The ministry also sold 364-day T-bills valued at EGP 11 billion, with an average yield of 12.967 percent.

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New Jersey-based commercial lab giant Quest Diagnostics had thousands of coronavirus test orders waiting to be completed, leading to days of delays, CNN reported Wednesday, citing internal company documents.

Quest, headquartered in Secaucus, had about 160,000 coronavirus tests waiting for processing on March 25, according to CNNs report. The company has 320,000 orders for tests in all.

Health experts across the country have called for increasing testing capacity as a crucial step in controlling the spread of the coronavirus. Many states, including New Jersey, also conduct tests at health department facilities, though private lab companies have more capacity for testing.

Quest did not immediately return a message from NJ Advance Media late Wednesday. Company spokesperson Wendy Bost told CNN the backlog for tests recently dropped. Quest can do more than 30,000 tests daily and return results in about four to five days, according to the company.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Advancements in testing can help health officials quickly identify outbreaks. New Jersey was selected as one of the states to use a testing technology by Abbott Labs, which can detect coronavirus in five minutes. The Abbott test will be deployed in Bergen County, the county hardest hit by the virus in the state with 3,494 confirmed cases.

It was unclear how Quests reported backlog impacted New Jersey tests. Spokespeople for the governors office and health department did not immediately comment late Wednesday.

Recent interviews with several New Jersey residents showed frustration over lack of access to testing.

Labs have conducted at least 29,822 coronavirus tests during the outbreak with a positive rate of 35%, New Jersey Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said Saturday. Persichilli and Gov. Phil Murphy noted the importance of expanded testing, but said the state must prioritize the sickest or highest-risk people.

State officials opened two drive-thru testing centers, one in Bergen County and the other at PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel. Both were quickly flooded with people seeking tests, forcing the facilities to close early.

At least 22,255 individuals were confirmed positive for the virus in New Jersey as of Wednesday, according to the state health department.

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With all educational institutions facing closure owing to the nationwide lockdown, most of the private schools in the capital city are now contemplating using digital platforms to kick-start this years academic session, informally, soon.

Many schools have asked the students to install a digital learning application in their smart phones to facilitate online classes, beginning this week. Usually, the new academic session in schools begin in the first week of April.

Prarambhika, a private CBSE school in Patna, rolled out its first interactive online learning class on Wednesday for students of classes nursery to 10.

Sumit Prakash, director of Prarambhika, said, Thanks to virtual classrooms, we started the new academic session using these digital platforms. We began the online class with the school prayer as per the custom. The teachers have designed online content, including study material and video lectures following the CBSE curriculum.

The school will carry out interesting activities such as storytelling and other fun games to break the monotony and facilitate better learning to students, he added.

Students, when contacted by the HT, said they had downloaded different online learning platforms such as Diksha, SWYAM, and e-Pathshala in accordance with their respective schools directives. However, some schools are yet to introduce the electronic mode of teaching.

Bishop Scott Group of Schools has come up with a 360 degree virtual curriculum engaging students in academic and extracurricular activities while sitting at home, overcoming the factor of physical absence.

Ashfaque Iqbal, vice- principal of Bishop Scott Boys School, said, Anticipating the closure, the school had already prepared interactive study material online in systematized manner for conducting classes. We have prepared a daily timetable for carrying out the lessons. We have also integrated study material, video lectures, and worksheets for comprehensive understanding of the students, followed by revision notes, online assessments and doubt clearing sessions. Apart from this, we have encouraged students and teachers to join Diksha , e-pathshala and other such CBSE forums.

The extracurricular departments have also switched to online mode for keeping the students fit and entertained. Music classes, dance classes, and yoga classes are facilitated daily through the portal, he added.

Similarly, St. Michaels High School is all set to employ the online learning method. Principal Father Armstrong Edison said, In the first phase, we have started with online worksheets for primary to secondary students. Later, we will introduce pre-recorded video lectures for the higher classes.

Principal of Don Bosco Academy, Mary Alphonsa, said, We have designed e-content for classes four to 12. The online study material available at the schools smart-class is being shared with students so that they become familiar with the new syllabus. Teachers are giving assignment worksheets online that students need to submit within a stipulated deadline.

Meanwhile, parents have also welcomed this move. Vinay Kumar, whose son studies in class nine, said, Digital learning tools were much needed during this time. At least, children are now utilising their free time and internet for productive work instead of playing online games. This will also help them to cover their syllabus without getting overburdened after the schools reopen.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - SLANG Worldwide Inc. (CSE: SLNG), (FSE: 84S), ("SLANG" or the "Company"), a leading global cannabis consumer packaged goods (CPG) company with a diversified portfolio of popular brands, today announced that its District Edibles brand is now available to licensed retailers across Oregon. The initial launch includes the flagship District Gummies product line in Blue Raspberry, Watermelon, and Strawberry flavors, to be sold in discreet, child-resistant, 10-piece blister packs containing a total of 50mg of THC.

The District Edibles launch will establish a new revenue stream for SLANG in Oregon, where the Company currently competes successfully in the concentrates category. SLANG has also signed an exclusive licensing and distribution agreement to bring California-based cannabis and lifestyle brand Cookies to the Oregon market. SLANG's network partner in Oregon is manufacturing the District Edibles line and selling the products through its statewide distribution channels.

"We continue to execute on our strategy of portfolio diversification by entering the edibles category in Oregon," said SLANG CEO Peter Miller. "As one of our core markets, this launch leverages existing SLANG network assets in a market where we already have a presence. With many of our brands like O.penVAPE Craft Reserve and the Bakked Dabaratus already on the leaderboard in Oregon, we look forward to bringing high-quality edibles to an established market."





Image: Popular cannabis brand District Edibles is now available to licensed retailers in Oregon.



To view an enhanced version of this image, please visit:

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The Oregon market had retail cannabis sales of $810 million USD in 2019, according to BDS Analytics. More than $10 million USD of cannabis ingestibles were sold in Oregon in February 2020, a 15% year-over-year growth rate, with candy representing more than half of the category's sales. After competing in Oregon primarily in the concentrates segment, SLANG's recent transactions position the Company to address all of the major categories including flower in 2020.

District Edibles is a popular cannabis edibles brand first launched in 2017 and now sold in multiple U.S. states. According to BDS Analytics 2019 sales data, District Edibles was a Top 10 performing brand in the gummies category in Nevada, Colorado, and California.

All District Edibles products are hand-mixed in small batches to ensure a consistent flavor and dose in every batch. High-quality ingredients result in a low-fat, low-sugar and gluten-free product containing less than 10 calories per serving. The use of fully-activated cannabis oil ensures that your body is able to fully absorb the active cannabinoids without any after-taste.

In addition to its gummies line, District Edibles also manufactures and distributes THC-infused chocolate in three flavors: Orange Chocolate, Cookies & Cream and Roasted Espresso. The Company anticipates launching further District Edibles products in Oregon in the future.

Media inquiries

Media@SLANGworldwide.co

Investor inquiries

Investors@SLANGworldwide.co

About SLANG Worldwide Inc.

SLANG Worldwide Inc. is a global leader in the cannabis CPG sector with a diversified portfolio of popular brands distributed across the United States. The Company specializes in acquiring and developing market-proven regional brands as well as launching innovative new brands to seize global market opportunities. SLANG is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the ticker symbol SLNG and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the trading symbol 84S. For more information, please visit www.slangww.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains statements that constitute "forward-looking statements." Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements, or developments in the industry to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the financial impact to SLANG of the launch of the District Edibles brand in Oregon and the distribution the District Edibles and Cookies brands in Oregon.

Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management of SLANG at this time, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive risks, uncertainties and contingencies that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Applicable risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to regulatory risks, risks related to the COVID-19 global pandemic, changes in laws, resolutions and guidelines, market risks, concentration risks, operating history, competition, the risks associated with international and foreign operations and the other risks identified under the headings "Risk Factors" in SLANG's final long form prospectus dated January 17, 2019 and "Risks and Uncertainties" in the management discussion and analysis for the year ended December 31, 2018, each as filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. SLANG is not under any obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the content of this news release.

###

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54054
MONROE, La., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL) will release its first quarter 2020 results on May 6, 2020. The company will broadcast a live conference call on its Investor Relations website at http://ir.centurylink.com at 5 p.m. ET.

Additional information regarding the first quarter 2020 results, including the company's earnings release, investor presentation, and related materials will be available on CenturyLink's Investor Relations website. If you are unable to join the call via the web, the call can be accessed live at +1 877-283-5643 (U.S. Domestic) or +1 312-281-1201 (International).

The call will be archived and available as an audio replay on CenturyLink's Investor Relations website starting at 7 p.m. ET May 6, until 6 p.m. ET Aug. 4, 2020. The replay can be accessed by dialing +1 800-633-8284 (U.S. Domestic) or +1 402-977-9140 (International), reservation code 21955730.

For additional information, please call +1 800-833-1188.

About CenturyLink

CenturyLink (NYSE: CTL) is a technology leader delivering hybrid networking, cloud connectivity, and security solutions to customers around the world. Through its extensive global fiber network, CenturyLink provides secure and reliable services to meet the growing digital demands of businesses and consumers. CenturyLink strives to be the trusted connection to the networked world and is focused on delivering technology that enhances the customer experience. Learn more at https://news.centurylink.com/.

SOURCE CenturyLink Inc.

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Chandigarh, April 2 : A day after testing positive for coronavirus, Padma Shri and former Hazoori Raagi of the Golden Temple, Nirmal Singh Khalsa, died of cardiac arrest in a hospital in Amritsar city of Punjab in wee hours of Thursday.

With this the death toll owing to Covid-19 rose to five in Punjab.

Nirmal Singh, 62, had recently returned from the UK and was undergoing treatment at the Guru Nanak Dev Hospital in Amritsar.

He was hospitalised on March 31 with complications of breathlessness and dizziness.

On March 29, tests were carried out in Shri Guru Ramdas Research Institute of Medical Sciences after which he was referred to the Guru Nanak Hospital for advanced diagnosis.

The local police have sealed the nearby residences of Nirmal Singh in Amritsar to contain the spread of the virus.

Nirmal Singh was the first Hazoori Raagi of the Golden Temple to be bestowed with the Padma Shri award in 2009. He had held large religious gatherings in Delhi and some other places after returning from abroad.
B BC Radio DJ Gilles Peterson was harassed by a stalker who shouted you will die at him as he left the corporations central London HQ, a court heard.

Peterson, 55, and his wife Atsuko, 53, were bombarded with abuse by a woman who repeatedly turned up outside their family home, it is said.

Thames magistrates court heard she allegedly struck the renowned DJ and music producers car with a pole and hurled abuse through the front door.

Mr Peterson, whose real surname is Moehrle, also found a torn-up picture of himself clipped to the windscreen of his car as he left the gym, while his wife said she was called a Hiroshima bitch in one torrent of abuse.

The French-born music producer, who presents a weekend show on BBC Radio 6, told police the woman had continued to approach him even after appearing in court on harassment charges. She is also accused of approaching him as he left the BBC studios in Portland Place, shouting out you will die.

Prosecutor Callum Morgan said the DJ, who was awarded an MBE in 2004, had been left feeling threatened, harassed, and intimidated while his wife was frightened and fearful.

He is a pioneer of the acid jazz music scene, and founded his own record label in the 1980s that counted the Brand New Heavies and Jamiroquai among its roster of stars.

Sarah Rook, 43, is accused of harassing the couple at their home and studios in north London between February 15 and March 16, and then stalking them over three days between March 21 and 24.

She is further accused of racially aggravated harassment towards Mrs Moehrle and a racially aggravated public order offence against a police officer. Rook has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against her. She told the court yesterday: Ive never met these people at all.

Mr Morgan said in one incident, Rook posed as a charity worker to try to get Mrs Moehrle to speak to her, before shouting: You dont care about people, open the door bitch.

Rook, from Surbiton, was remanded in custody yesterday by District Judge Louisa Cieciora until a trial scheduled for May 19.
Text of Press Statement Released by PEN Delhi (April 2, 2020)

PEN Delhi on the Importance of Press Freedom in India in the time of Coronavirus

In a democracy, cracking down on a pandemic requires the active support of a free press and must not include a crackdown on it. This is essential because fighting a pandemic requires a free media not just to inform the people likely to be affected by it but also to act as a watchdog for them, ever more important in a time of crisis.

It is in this context that PEN Delhi notes with concern the attitude of the Indian government, state governments and police authorities towards the media in India, during the ongoing battle against CoVid 19 and the nationwide lockdown it has led to.

Just hours before announcing a national lockdown, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked over twenty owners and editors of print media to publish apositivea stories, according to this report. While no one denies that publishing positive and inspirational stories in a time of crisis is important, this cannot be the only narrative and it is equally the mediaas responsibility to give voice to the pain of the people, as well as to provide a critical perspective on the handling of crises. In the past, it is the mediaas critical reporting on other disasters that has provided much needed information to the State to act.

Instead, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, in the lockdown that ensued, journalists were assaulted by police forces. This was despite journalists being exempted from the ongoing lockdown to enable them to cover it on ground.

Further, journalists who have published reports critical of governments have been targeted: both offline and online. In UP, Vijay Vineet, news editor of Jansandesh Time was served a notice by the police for a story on the Musahar community, a Dalit community, having to eat grass as a consequence of their plight having worsened during the lockdown (many of the communityas members are daily wage earners).

Journalists, especially those writing for foreign publications, have also been subjected to abuse, and worse, on social media. Vidya Krishnan, a freelance journalist reported death and rape threats to Twitter for her article in The Atlantic.

It was also suggested on social media that Krishnan be prosecuted under some of Indiaas disturbing anti-free speech laws, including aSeditiona under Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code. Regrettably social media trolling has become another way of silencing free speech and branding any critical writing anti-national, discounting the fact that journalists who are critical write not out of hate but out of a deep concern for the country and its people.

On March 31st, the central government sought a direction from the Supreme Court that no media outlet should print, publish or telecast anything on COVID-19 without first ascertaining facts from the amechanisma provided by the government. Thankfully the Supreme Court has denied this request, saying it would not interfere with athe free discussion about the pandemica but concern over a government actively seeking prior censorship of news remains.

On April 1st, the Uttar Pradesh Police registered an FIR against the aeditora of the news portal, The Wire, for what the complainant called aan objectionable commenta which has acaused anger among peoplea .

Meanwhile, questions posed by health journalists regarding basic information on the Stateas response to the coronavirus remain unanswered.

PEN Delhi appeals to the central and state governments to heed and respond to the media in this time of crisis instead of attacking it, and to not try and curb the powers of the press. This is the time to support a free and vibrant media.

Microblogging and social networking services like Twitter, too, need to be cognisant of accounts that pose and publicise violent threats to journalists, bearing great risk to do their jobs during such demanding times.

Media, in its turn, must stick judiciously to reporting the facts but the best way to avoid fake news and prevent panic in this dark hour is not to muzzle the watchdog, but encourage it. To strengthen the freedom of the press on one hand, and the transparency of the state on the other.
This article originally appeared in The Inquirer on Dec. 29, 1994.

By Russell Gold, INQUIRER CORRESPONDENT

After a snowfall crippled the porch roof last winter, Connie Bastek-Karasow, director of a halfway house for women recovering from addiction, couldnt afford to take money away from her budget for repairs. But help came from what she considered an unlikely source.

She never believed we were going to do it, said Harry McGuckin, business manager for the Bucks County carpenters local. Starting earlier this month, dozens of unionized carpenters, electricians, and floor-layers have donated their time and expertise to Libertae, the halfway house for 21 women on Bensalem Boulevard that dates back to the Civil War.

Unions are always criticized for everything, McGuckin said. But the public gives us work when they build their schools, so we try to give back a little. He said he hopes the money saved on labor costs can help more women recover.

In a couple of weekends, the $30-an-hour skilled laborers have put down the new floor, built a storage shed, started a 45-foot-long winterized porch, and tackled other assorted odd jobs. After the holidays, unfinished work will be completed, McGuckin said.

It still amazes me. All I have to do is pick up the phone and they come over, Bastek-Karasow said. Most of the residents have been abandoned by the men in their lives. Yet the workers volunteering their time for Libertae are all men.

Under the kitchen floor were four layers of maple wood, tile, plywood and more tile dating back for decades. Three members of the local floor-layers union took all day to tear out layer after buckled layer, all the way down to the joists. They then put down a solid, new linoleum covering.

No one at Libertae even blinked. They have done their share of digging themselves, looking for a solid foundation on which to rebuild their lives.

Women live in the large stone house for up to six months. They receive addiction counseling and life-skill training to help them after their treatment is over.

So often you hear, good girls dont or moms dont, Bastek-Karasow said. When a women is addicted, people tend to look away. Women become isolated. People move away from them and dont confront them.

Because of this, women who make it into a detoxification process usually are in the advanced, potentially devastating stages of addiction, Bastek-Karasow said.

Libertae is one of only 17 halfway houses statewide, according to Bruce Caldwell, president of the Pennsylvania Halfway House Association.

Halfway house residents are referred from detoxification programs, where they are weaned off the addictive substance.

Last year, Libertae housed 76 women, Bastek-Karasow said. She has compiled some statistics about residents that demonstrate what she says is the ''stigma" and rejection that chemically dependent women experience.

Only 4% of the women were married. Women will stand by their man, but men will not necessarily stand by their addicted women, she said. Two-thirds were homeless, living on the street or with family when they entered a detox program.

Bastek-Karasow plans to build a second, free-standing house that would accommodate an additional 16 women and 32 children. She said she wants to treat women with their children because addictive behavior is often passed from one generation to the next, so any treatment needs to include the whole family.

So far, Bastek-Karasow has raised two-thirds of the $1.8 million she estimates is needed for the building. Many of the financial commitments have come from state and local government. Three-quarters of her annual operating budget is from the state.

McGuckin admits that he wouldnt mind getting some of the contracts for the new building, but he is adamant that thats not the reason the laborers are helping out.

The men keep coming back because they feel there is not enough goodness in everyones heart today, he said.

Its not that we get sentimental. I just got a bunch of guys who are willing to do it.
Emirates Airline said Thursday it is to resume a limited number of outbound passenger flights from April 6, less than two weeks after its coronavirus-enforced stoppage.

"Emirates has received approval from UAE authorities to restart flying a limited number of passenger flights," its chairman, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, said on Twitter.

"From April 6, these flights will initially carry travellers outbound from UAE," he said, adding that details would be announced soon.

Dubai-owned carrier Emirates, the largest in the Middle East with 271 wide-body aircraft, grounded passenger operations last week as the UAE halted all passenger flights to fight the spread of coronavirus.

The UAE, which groups seven emirates including Dubai, has declared 814 coronavirus cases along with eight deaths. It has imposed a sweeping crackdown, including the flight ban and closure of borders.

Sheikh Ahmed said Emirates, which owns the world's largest fleet of Airbus A-380 superjumbos with 113 in its ranks, was looking to gradually resume passenger services.

"Over the time, Emirates looks forward to the gradual resumption of passenger services in line with lifting of travel and operational restrictions, including assurance of health measures to safeguard our people and customers," he said.

When Emirates suspended flights, it cut between 25 percent and 50 percent of the basic salary of its 100,000-strong staff for three months, saying it wanted to avert layoffs.

Dubai's crown prince, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum said Tuesday that Dubai will support the airline by injecting new capital. Tourism, aviation, hotels and entertainment are key contributors to Dubai's mostly non-oil economy.
Wyoming currently has no statewide shelter-in-place order, though the governor has ordered the closure of schools and many types of businesses. The Town of Jackson and Teton County have enacted their own stay-at-home orders.

Much of the reservation is in Fremont County, one of the Wyoming counties hardest hit by the virus. As of Wednesday morning, the county had 25 of the states 130 cases of COVID-19, with 10 of those among Ethete residents, according to county health officials. Ethete is one of the reservations largest communities.

The Inter-Tribal Councils order will take effect Wednesday and remain in effect until further notice, according to the council.

Tribal leaders will continue to consult with medical professionals to determine when the stay-at-home order can be lifted and public activities may safely resume, the council said in a news release.
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece has quarantined a migrant camp after 20 asylum seekers tested positive for coronavirus, the migration ministry said on Thursday, its first such facility to be hit since the outbreak of the disease.

Tests were conducted after a 19-year-old female migrant living in the camp in central Greece was found infected after giving birth at an Athens hospital last week. She was the first recorded case among thousands of asylum seekers living in overcrowded camps across Greece.

None of the confirmed cases showed any symptoms, the ministry said, adding that it was continuing its tests.

Greece recorded its first coronavirus case at the end of February. It has reported 1,415 cases so far, and 50 deaths.

It is the gateway to Europe for people fleeing conflicts and poverty in the Middle East and beyond, with more than a million passing through Greece during the migrant crisis of 2015-2016.

Any movement in and out of the Ritsona camp, which is 75 kilometres (45 miles) northeast of Athens and hosts hundreds of people, will be restricted for 14 days, the ministry said. Police would monitor the implementation of the measures.

The camp has an isolation area for coronavirus patients should the need arise, sources have said.

Aid agencies renewed their call for more concerted action at the European level to tackle the migration crisis.

It is urgently needed to evacuate migrants out of the Greek islands to EU countries, said Leila Bodeux, policy and advocacy officer for Caritas Europa, an aid agency.

WARNING SIGNAL

EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson said it was a stark warning signal of what might happen if the virus spilled over into less organised facilities on the Greek islands.

(This) may result in a massive humanitarian crisis. This is a danger both for refugees hosted in certain countries outside the EU and for those living in unbearable conditions on the Greek islands, she said during a European Parliament debate conducted by video link.

More than 40,000 asylum-seekers are stuck in overcrowded refugee camps on Greek islands, in conditions which the government itself has described as a ticking health bomb.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has said Greece is ready to protect its islands, where no case has been recorded so far, but urged the EU to provide more help.

The conditions are far from ideal but I should also point out that Greece is dealing with this problem basically on its own... We havent had as much support from the European Union as we wanted, he told CNN.
New York, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - HempAmericana, Inc. (OTC PINK: HMPQ) ("HempAmericana" or the "Company"), an emerging leader in the CBD products market, is pleased to announce the Company has launched its new ecommerce sales platform.

The Company is inviting its customers and new visitors to explore its new and improved e-commerce sales platform at www.hempamericana.store. The new website has been designed to offer the ultimate user-friendly experience with an improved "ease of use" and functionality while allowing customers to see the wide variety of full spectrum CBD oils the Company offers. "We upgraded the website with our customers in mind, the site includes more information about our products such as our COA's, to help buyers find the right CBD product they need, and to instill better Confidence in this age of uncertainty" stated Company CEO Sal Rosillo.

For a few months the Company was not able to process orders due to a change in Policy with the PayPal Platform not allowing Hemp related product sales. The Company has retained an Industry leading payment processor that accepts payment for Hemp products. The Company is very pleased to have been approved to accept credit cards through First Direct Financial. We recognize that this process took more time than we liked, but now we are ready to meet the ever-growing market demand and are fully ready to sell, process, and ship orders more efficiently than ever.

Mr. Rosillo, a former Artillery Surveyor Forward Observer for the United States Army said, "I am still committed to pursuing my vision of building a company that captures 5% of the total CBD market which is projected to be approximately $22 billion in the next few years."

As our country goes through this Corona Virus Crisis, we wish to note, Hemp is known to hold properties that help build a stronger Immune system and the demand for such products have spiked per recent reports. In closing, we wish everyone a safe period and we are offering customers a 20% discount for our full spectrum CBD to help deal with the anxiety of this pandemic. We wish everyone well and hope they stay safe.

About HempAmericana, Inc.:

HempAmericana is an emerging leader in the CBD products market. The Company owns and operates a high-capacity, state-of-the-art CBD extraction and processing facility located in Augusta, Maine. This facility is armed with a supersized supercritical CO2 extraction system, centrifugal partition chromatography refinement technology, and a mechanized fully-automated CBD bottling system. The Company's CBD oil business uses the brand designation, CBD Oleum. HempAmericana also researches, develops, and sells products made of industrial hemp, including a popular brand of hemp rolling papers marketed under the brand name, "Rolling Thunders".

Safe Harbor Provision: Cautionary statement for purposes of the "Safe Harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Information in this news release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. If such risks or uncertainties materialize or such assumptions prove incorrect, the results of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries could differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements and assumptions. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. Risks, uncertainties and assumptions include the execution and performance of contracts by the Company and its customers, suppliers and partners. Please also review Hemp Americana annual and quarterly financials for a more complete discussion of risk factors. The Company disclaims any obligation to update or revise statements contained in this news release based on new information or otherwise. This communication shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification of these securities under the laws of any such state.

Corporate Contact:

HempAmericana.com

Salvador Rosillo

HempAmericana, Inc.

Phone: (888) 977-7985

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54041
Health Minister Simon Harris said the Dail should now be sitting remotely (PA)

Irelands Health Minister has criticised the decision to hold a sitting of the Dail parliament to discuss coronavirus, claiming it had put public health at risk.

Simon Harris said holding the session in Leinster House in Dublin ran contrary to the advice the Government is trying to drive home to people  to stay at home.

Mr Harris said there is no reason the Dail cannot meet remotely using digital technology, and he noted that is how the European Parliament is currently conducting business.

He told TDs: Days we dont lead by example are days we should regret.

Amid calls to postpone the session, the Dails business committee met ahead of the start of proceedings and decided to go ahead as planned.

I am deeply uneasy from a public health point of view that we are meeting in this session todaySimon Harris, Health Minister

Committee members agreed to adjourn further sittings until the middle of April  a move subsequently agreed by the Dail.

Social distancing measures were in place inside the chamber as a limited number of TDs met to make statements on the Covid-19 emergency on Thursday afternoon.

At the outset, several opposition TDs stressed the importance of the parliament still sitting during the crisis, highlighting the need to scrutinise Government decisions.

Mr Harris said he agrees the work of the Dail is of paramount importance and needs to be carried out in a transparent way.

But he added: I am deeply uneasy from a public health point of view that we are meeting in this session today.

That does not mean that the Dail cant meet  the European Parliament has met digitally virtually for quite a number of weeks.

So Im sure its not beyond us with a little bit of ingenuity and a little bit of innovation to do what workplaces all across the country are doing, but be clear  we are risking public health by being here today.

Watch Statements on Health (Covid-19) LIVE from the #Dail here or at home on #OireachtasTV #seeforyourself https://t.co/SUOqeKv6Za  Houses of the Oireachtas - Tithe an Oireachtais (@OireachtasNews) April 2, 2020

No-one in this room is a close contact of me, nor me of you. You might be close contacts of your staff, youre close contacts of your family.

Were all travelling from different households today, beyond our close contacts and coming into contact with each other, with officials, with ushers, with clerks  who dont have an option in relation to whether they are here or not.

Their safety and their health is of paramount importance to us.

And I think this house in sitting here today in this session Ceann Comhairle (speaker Sean O Fearghail), and I appreciate the huge work youve done in discharging your duties, but this house, sitting in this fashion today, is sending out a message that runs contrary to the public health message  stay at home.
[April 02, 2020] Spirits360 Lifts Distillery Spirits During Pandemic

SARASOTA, Fla., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Recent stay-in-place orders and quarantine directives have hastened changes related to the way consumers shop for and obtain distilled spirits. But while consumers adjust to this new reality, one Sarasota-based eCommerce company is introducing a solution. Due to landmark legislation and an innovative payment and shipping platform, Spirits360 LLC is uniquely positioned to provide high-quality bourbon to those waiting out the cornonavirus outbreak at home. It all started last year when Account Manager Tom Langenkamp needed help shipping spirits in the wake of two key bills passed at the Kentucky statehouse. House Bill 400 allowed Kentucky distillery visitors to ship spirits home, provided home was in an allowed state. House Bill 415 eliminated the need for the visit to the distillery and instead allowed customers to place their orders online. Because of the previous measures being pursued to support Kentucky distilleries in the direct-to-consumer market, Spirits360 was uniquely poised to immediately offer assistance as more states opened direct-to-consumer channels in an effort to support distilleries and provide a safe means for consumers to obtain spirits during this crisis.



Mark Hume . "I was born and raised in Louisville and went to school at the University of Kentucky. I already knew quite a bit about the industry and jumped at the opportunity. Unfortunately, the coronavirus has put additional pressure on distilleries across the country as visitor traffic continues to decline. Consumers want to be able to stay at home and order online. We really wanted to find a way to help the industry by using the work we had already done to support the Kentucky legislation changes. Because we are already set up to handle the direct-to-consumer channel, Spirits360 was able to immediately offer a solution to impacted distillers. We have received multiple requests for our services as states found creative ways to address the delivery of spirits to keep business alive and to continue to collect much-needed tax revenue." Pat Dorsey, who recently sold fintech company First Billing Services and has worked with Hume on numerous projects over the years, joined Spirts360's board at a critical time.

"I think these guys have a home run on their hands in a critical time when businesses need help," he said. "It's amazing how quickly UPS and Spirts360 have developed a platform that can ship, collect taxes for states and safely verify the age of the recipient. When you build businesses from the front line based upon a culture of great customer service with the right people, success will follow." The Spirits360 Distillery network currently includes Kentucky, California, New York, as well as international shipping and will continue to grow as laws change. Media Contact: Gary Friedman

888-589-2491 x103

[email protected] For more information: spirits360solutions.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/spirits360-lifts-distillery-spirits-during-pandemic-301033719.html SOURCE Spirits360

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Global Pharma Contract Sales Market Forecast 2020-2030

Contract Detailing, Contract Non-personal Promotion, Medical Education Services, Sample Management Services, Tele-detailing Services, E-detailing Services, Cardiovascular Disease, Metabolic Disorders, Oncology

LONDON, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The global pharma contract sales market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.9% in the first half of the forecast period. In 2019, the contract detailing segment held 76% of the global pharma contract sales market.

How this report will benefit you

Read on to discover how you can exploit the future business opportunities emerging in this sector.

In this brand new 244-page report you will receive 77 tables and 62 figures- all unavailable elsewhere.

The 244-page Visiongain report provides clear detailed insight into the global pharma contract sales market. Discover the key drivers and challenges affecting the market.

By ordering and reading our brand-new report today you stay better informed and ready to act.

To request sample pages from this report please contact Sara Peerun at sara.peerun@visiongain.com or refer to our website: https://www.visiongain.com/report/global-pharma-contract-sales-market-forecast-2020-2030/download_sampe_div

Report Scope

 Global Pharma Contract Sales Market forecasts from 2020-2030

 Along with revenue prediction for the overall world market for pharma contract sales market, our investigation shows forecasts to 2030 for the following submarket by leading services:

 Contract detailing (personal promotion/field sales)

 Contract non-personal promotion, with further sub-forecasting for teledetailing, eDetailing and others

 Medical education services

 Sample management services

 This report also breaks down the revenue forecast for pharma contract sales market by therapeutic segments:

 Cardiovascular disease

 Metabolic disorders

 Oncology

 Other

 This report provides individual revenue forecasts to 2030 for these regional and national markets:

 US

 Japan

 EU5: Germany, UK, France, Italy and Spain

 BRIC: China, India, Brazil and Russia

The US, Japan, EU5 and BRIC markets are further segmented by therapeutic segments and leading services

 Our study discusses the SWOT and STEP factors of the global pharma contract sales market

 Our study also discusses factors that will drive and restrain the global pharma contract sales market

 Our study discusses issues affecting the pharma contract sales industry and market:

 Outsourced and in-house sales reps - trends and emerging sales models, including multiple channels (multichannel marketing to medical professionals)

 Services CSOs offer and benefits to drug companies outsourcing medical sales

 Maturing brands and product launches, including flexibility in field sales teams

 Legislation and new market access requirements for pharma sales representatives

 Changes to online marketing and potential for IT technologies Risk-sharing agreements

 Key account management (KAM) and medical science liaison (MSL)

 This report discusses the leading companies in pharma contract sales:

 Apodi

 CMIC

 inVentiv Health (Syneos Health)

 IQVIA

 Marvecs

 OnCall, LLC

 Publicis Healthcare Communications Group

 Sofip

 Star Healthcare

 UDG Healthcare

 Key questions answered by this report:

 How much is the global pharma contract sales market currently worth, and how much will it be worth during the period 2020-2030?

 What are the leading therapeutic submarkets from 2020-2030?

 What are the leading services submarkets from 2020-2030?

 What are the leading national markets and the leading emerging markets from 2020-2030? What are the regulatory landscapes in these nations?

 What are the main trends that will shape this market over the next ten years, and the main drivers and restraints?

 Who are the leading CSOs in this market?

To request a report overview of this report please contact Sara Peerun at sara.peerun@visiongain.com or refer to our website: https://www.visiongain.com/report/global-pharma-contract-sales-market-forecast-2020-2030/

Did you know that we also offer a report add-on service? Email sara.peerun@visiongain.com to discuss any customized research needs you may have.

Companies covered in the report include:

AbbVie

Actavis

Actelion Pharmaceuticals

Addison Whitney

Adheris Health

Akrikhin

Alexion

Allergan PLC

Amgen Inc.

Andrx Pharmaceutials, Inc.

Apple

Aralez Pharmaceuticals

Arbor Pharms Ireland

Arena Pharmaceuticals

Argon Global Healthcare Network

ARIAD

Arista

Ashfield Healthcare

Ashfield Healthcare Communications

AstraZeneca

BASF Schweiz AG

Bayer Healthcare

Berkshire Sterile Manufacturing (BSM)

Biogaran

Blue Earth Diagnostics, Ltd

Boehringer Ingelheim

Bristol-Myers Squibb

Brusilow Enterprises LLC

Campbell Alliance

Cegedim

Celesio

Celgene

Clovis Oncology, Inc.

CMIC Ashfield

Create NYC

Daiichi Sankyo

Dendreon

Depomed

Eisai

Eli Lilly

Encore Health Resources

Endo Pharmaceuticals

Expansis

Galliard

Genentech

GlaxoSmithKline

Grey Healthcare Group

Group DCA

GSW

Haymarket Media

Health Kare Pharma International

In2Focus

INC Research

Ingelheim

inVentiv Health

inVentiv Health Public Relations Group

inVentiv Health Selling Solutions

inVentiv Medical Communications

inVentiv Recruitment Solutions

inVentiv Therapeutics Institute

Invida

IQVIA

J&J

J. Knipper & Company Inc.

Janssen Biotech

Kadrige

Knowledge Point360

Kos Pharmaceuticals

Marvecs

Medical Communications Group (MCG)

MediMedia Health

Menarini

Merck & Co.

Merrimack

Microsoft

Millennium Pharmaceuticals

Mylan N.V

Navicor

Neurocrine Biosciences

NovaMed Pharmaceuticals

Novartis

Novella Clinical

Novo Nordisk A/S

OnCall

Oracle

Otsuka/Bristol-Myers Squibb

PALIO

Parexel International

PDI

Pegasus

Pfizer

Pharmagistics

Pharmexx

Polpharma

Promius Pharma

Publicis Healthcare Communications Group (PHCG)

Publicis Selling Solutions

Publicis Touchpoint Solutions

Qforma

Quantia

Quintiles

Ramco Import Export

Regulus Therapeutics Inc.

Roche

Salesforce.com

Sanofi

Sanofi Aventis

Schering-Plough

Scientific Voice

Sermo

Servier

Sinclair IS Pharma

SmartAnalyst

Smithkline Beecham

Sofip (Societe de Franchise pour l'Information Pharmaceutique)

StayinFront

Symplmed Pharmaceuticals

Syneos Health

Synopia Rx

Taiho Oncology

Takeda

Tardis Medical

Temas

Tesaro

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries

The Medicines Company

United Therapeutics

Veeva

Vivus

Zuellig Group

Zuellig Pharma



List of Organizations Mentioned in the Report

Agence Nationale de securite du Medicament et des produits de sante (ANSM)

Agencia Nacional de Vigilancia Sanitaria (ANVISA)

Brazilian Ministerio da Saude

Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)

European Commission

European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA)

European Promotional Product Association (EPPA)

Gesamtverband der Werbeartikel Wirtschaft e.V. (GWW)

Institut fur Qualitat und Wirtschaftlichkeit im Gesundheitswesenis (IQWiG)

L'Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco (AIFA)

Medical Council of India (MCI)

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)

Organization of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI)

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)

To see a report overview please e-mail Sara Peerun on sara.peerun@visiongain.com

Related reports:

Global Rheumatoid Arthritis Drugs Market Forecast 2020-2030

Cell Therapy Technologies Market Forecast 2020-2030

Translational Regenerative Medicine Market Forecast 2020-2030

The Global Respiratory Inhalers Market 2020-2030

Global Contract Research Organisations (CROs) Market Report Forecasts 2020-2030

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/523989/Visiongain_Logo.jpg
Police in New Jersey broke up a funeral attended by up to 70 people and issued summonses to 15 of them, including a 100-year-old man, in the predominantly Orthodox Jewish town of Lakewood on Wednesday.

It was the fourth consecutive day in which police were called to Lakewood to cite members of the secluded religious community who were found to be flouting stay-at-home orders aimed at stopping the spread of the coronavirus.

Officers in Lakewood needed to call backup on Wednesday after receiving reports of a large gathering that took place at around 6:30pm.

Officials said that about 60 to 70 individuals gathered for a funeral on the corner of Eighth Street and Madison Avenue.

Police on Wednesday said they broke up a funeral attended by up to 70 people on the corner of Eighth Street and Madison Avenue in Lakewood, New Jersey (above)

The street corner is very close to a Jewish synagogue and a cemetery.

This gathering was in violation of (Gov. Phil Murphys executive order), which bans gatherings of individuals, whether they be at weddings, parties, celebrations, or other social events including funerals, read a statement from Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer and Police Chief Gregory Meyer.

As officers tried to disperse the crowd, the crowd became unruly and argumentative.

So police had to ask for assistance from the Ocean County Sheriffs Office and the Ocean County Prosecutors Office.

Officers charged 15 men, including 100-year-old Nossom Strulovic, of violating the state ban on public gatherings.

One of the men refused to give police his correct name and social security number, according to NJ Advance Media.

That individual has been identified as Samuel Manheim, 27, of Brooklyn.

He was charged with hindering his own apprehension and violating the governors executive order during a state of emergency.

Lakewood has emerged as the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Ocean County, New Jersey, which alone has reported more than 1,200 cases as of Thursday

The men who received summonses have been identified as Joel Jakubowitz, 36, of Brooklyn; Shimon Hus, 18, of Brooklyn; Marcus Strulovic, 43, of Lakewood; David Kaf, 37, of Lakewood; Moshe Friedman, 20, of Lakewood; Solomon Strulovic, 21, of Lakewood; Joel Strulovic, 39, of Lakewood; Yosef Kohn, 35, of Lakewood; Mitchell Strulovic, 24, of Lakewood; Alexander Ellison, 64, of Lakewood; Mordechi Strulovic, 18, of Lakewood; Shimon Cardozo, 25, of Lakewood; and Bernard Strulovic, 45, of Lakewood.

Billhimer pleaded with Lakewood residents to stay at home.

This ban applies to everyone, Billhimer said.

To be blunt, ignoring the governors order places lives at risk - not just the lives of everyday citizens, but the lives of our brave men and women in law enforcement who are required to respond in order to break up these unlawful gatherings.

As of Thursday, New Jersey officials said 25,590 cases of coronavirus were confirmed.

So far, 537 people have died.

Police in Lakewood broke up an engagement party attended by 16 people, including a 99-year-old man, at this residence on Spruce Street

Lakewood has emerged as the epicenter of coronavirus cases in Ocean County.

As of Thursday, Ocean County has reported more than 1,200 cases  40 per cent of which are in Lakewood.

The day before the funeral was broken up on Wednesday, police in Lakewood broke up an engagement party attended by 16 people.

Ten of those in attendance, including a 99-year-old man, received summonses.

On Monday, police charged two people after 35 men were found studying at a Jewish school in the town despite both public and private schools being mandated to shut down during the crisis.

On Sunday, police were called once again - this time to break up a bar mitzvah with around 50 guests. Eliezer Silber, 37, and Miriam Silber, 34, were charged with one child endangerment count for each of their five children.

At the engagement party, Yaakov Kaufman, 47, and Eti Kaufman, 45, were charged with six counts of child endangerment for each of the six kids who were present at the party.

The Kaufmans were also charged with violating the governor's emergency order.

Joshua Lichtenstein, 54; Brocha Lichtenstein, 22; Tzipora Wolfe, 24; Shmuel Kaufman, 23; Syril Lichtenstein, 54; Samuel Wolfe, 27; Michael Zimmerman, 99; and Ruky Zimmerman, 21 were also charged with violating the order for attending the party.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy banned weddings and social events to curb the COVID-19

The governor continues to warn people over Twitter and in press conferences not to have parties

Murphy has said that while the vast majority of people are observing the stay-at-home order to slow the spread of the virus, he is frustrated that some parties still appear to be taking place.

'We're not happy,' Murphy said during a news conference. 'I assume there's some amount of ignorance. The more swift, visible action that is taken the more quickly we can bring this non-compliant behavior to zero.'

Police are warning that they are going to become more aggressive in issuing summons for people found to be breaching the order.

'Everybody at that gathering is now going to be cited,' Col. Patrick Callahan, acting superintendent of the State Police, said.

Earlier in March, police broke up celebrations at a event space in the town and two weddings as well.

The recent sightings of public gatherings have already exacerbated long-running tensions in Lakewood, where a large Orthodox Jewish population has relocated in recent years.

As wedding halls were ordered to shut down, residents simply moved the ceremonies to backyards on their residential properties.

Orthodox community leaders in Lakewood said that all 200 local synagogues and 130 yeshivas in the area have either shut down completely or limited prayer to small groups.
Haryana on Thursday reported first death in the state due to COVID-19 infection as a 67-year-old Ambala resident, also having multiple ailments, passed away at the PGIMER here, amid a rise in corona-positive cases to 35, a senior official said.

Six new corona-positive cases were reported in the state on Thursday, taking the total count of infection to 35.

"The man had multiple underlying health conditions including diabetes and associated kidney disease and a heart ailment. He had reported to Ambala civil hospital with acute respiratory distress and acute pneumonitis from where he was referred to PGIMER, Chandigarh," Ambala's Chief Medical Officer, Dr Kuldeep told PTI on phone.

"He tested COVID-19 positive at PGIMER (Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research) around midnight Thursday and passed away around the same time," he added.

According to the doctor, the patient had no contact history.

Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus positive cases in Haryana increased from 29 to 35 on Thursday, as per the state health department's bulletin.

Thirty-five positive cases, however, do not include those of 14 Italian tourists who were earlier admitted to a private hospital in Gurgaon after they were found COVID-19 positive.

Meanwhile, five of the 1,277 attendees of Tabligh Jamaat meet, traced in Haryana, have tested positive for coronavirus infection, state Home and Health Minister Anil Vij said.

Of the 1277, 107 are foreigners, he said, adding the rest 1,170 people are from outside the state.

Two of these in Ambala and three in Palwal district have tested positive for Covid-19, said Vij.

According to the Health Department bulletin, nine 9 Covid-19 patients from Gurugaon, two from Panipat and one each from Faridabad and Palwal have been discharged.

The result of 182 samples was still awaited.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Donald Trump and Boris Johnson

Getty

The UK's original plan to deal with the coronavirus by achieving "herd immunity" within the population, would have been "catastrophic" and caused "a lot of death," President Donald Trump has said.

The UK reportedly abandoned its original plan for the UK population to achieve 'herd immunity' after experts warned it would result in up to 250,000 deaths.

Trump said a similar strategy in the US would result in millions dying across the country.

Boris Johnson's government is under growing pressure domestically to defend its lack of preparation for the current crisis.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Donald Trump has said that Boris Johnson's abandoned plan for creating "herd immunity" to the coronavirus in the UK would have been "catastrophic" and caused "a lot of death."

The president said that the UK government's original coronavirus strategy plan, which involved allowing the virus to spread in order to achieve resistance to the virus in the population, would have caused millions of deaths if adopted in the US.

"If you remember, they were looking at that concept - I guess it's a concept if you don't mind death, a lot of death - but they were looking at that in the UK, remember," Trump told a White House press briefing on Tuesday.

"And all of a sudden they went hard the other way because they started seeing things that weren't good, so they put themselves in a little bit of a problem."

He added: "It would have been very catastrophic I think if that would have happened."

Watch Trump label original UK coronavirus plan 'catastrophic'

At the same briefing, Dr Deborah Birx, the White House's coronavirus response coordinator, said the UK had a dangerously low number of ventilators, which are respiratory machines being used to treat patients suffering from the worst effects of the virus.

Story continues

"We are worried about groups all around the globe," she said.

"I don't know if you heard the report this morning, there are 8,000 ventilators in the UK.

"If you translate that to United States, that would be like the United States having less than 40,000 ventilators. We have five times that."

Trump last week claimed that Boris Johnson pleaded with the president for the US to send ventilators to the UK.

"Before he even said hello, he said, 'We need ventilators,'" Trump told reporters.

The president's comments are politically embarrassing for Johnson, who is currently struggling to answer questions about why it is testing for the coronavirus at a significantly lower level than other developed nations.

Boris Johnson initially resisted calls to close schools or mass gatherings even as deaths in other European countries including Italy surged.

The comparatively relaxed measures reflected the fact Downing Street was pursuing a strategy of "herd immunity," according to multiple reports, a concept which the UK's chief science advisor openly discussed in a television interview.

However, scientists advising the government subsequently warned that the UK's strategy could result in up to 250,000 deaths, which persuaded the UK to change course abruptly and announce strict lockdown measures in line with most other European countries.

Johnson's government is under growing pressure to explain its slow response to the outbreak and its lack of testing and vital medical equipment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
WASHINGTON  At least 15 million Americans are at risk of not receiving their $1,200 coronavirus relief check because they do not file tax returns, according to estimates from the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

These people are not flouting the law. Theyre low-income earners, senior citizens, disabled individuals and some veterans who are not required to file taxes.

In order to get their relief checks, they must now complete a simple tax return online, according to guidance released by the IRS Monday . But many lawmakers worry that these vulnerable populations will not get their aid either because theyll be unaware they must complete the return or they wont know how to do it on their own.

Lawmakers of both parties have called upon the IRS to ensure that these individuals get their checks. Many Democrats say there is an easy solution - talk to the Social Security Administration, which already sends benefits to millions of these Americans each month.

These people havent filled out taxes in forever and the very organizations that would normally assist with something like this are prevented from doing so because they are shut down due to the covid-19 virus, said Rep. John Larson, D-1, who leads a House subcommittee on Social Security, on Wednesday. The SSA has all this information.

RELATED: Is the U.S. National Stockpile empty? Lamont and Trump spar.

Thirty-nine Democratic senators  including Connecticuts Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy  and two Independents wrote to Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin and Social Security Administration Andrew Commissioner on Wednesday urging them to resolve the situation.

We strongly urge you to ensure that economic stimulus payments are automatically sent to vulnerable seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, without these individuals needing to file a tax return, the senators wrote.

Larson and 32 other House Democrats sent a similar letter to Mnuchin and IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig sent a similar letter Wednesday.

Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., who represents a district with one of the highest populations of seniors in the country, also called on the IRS to remove this added burden from seniors immediately.

During this unprecedented time of need, requiring seniors to go through the confusing and laborious tax return filing process before receiving desperately needed stimulus checks is unacceptable, Stefanik said. Thousands of seniors across my district do not file tax returns because their main source of income is Social Security.
HKMC chose Nebbiolos Fog/Edge Computing platform because it provides diverse Industrial IoT solutions for a variety of plant and R&D environments, and an efficient global administration infrastructure, said Jung-Sik Suh, Senior Vice President, ICT Division, HKMC

Hyundai-Kia Motors Corporation (HKMC) selects Nebbiolo Technologies Intelligent Edge Computing Platform for Industrial Digitization and Insights into their Automotive Manufacturing Plants. As strategic partners, the two companies, in collaboration with SPK, a Korean systems integrator, will develop and integrate edge-based solutions for manufacturing floors.

The partnership establishes a large-scale initiative to address uplifting the aging fleet of hardware and software systems, currently deployed on automotive manufacturing floors, onto virtualized edge computing products enabling consolidation, centralized management, upgraded security and high availability, thereby improving overall operational efficiency.

Furthermore, this collaboration aims at deploying secure data connectivity to industrial machines supported by the Nebbiolo edge infrastructure on the floor. The objective is to enable comprehensive asset and life cycle management of these systems, as well as in-line predictive product quality control supported by advanced data analytics and machine learning at the edge.

This announcement is a significant endorsement for a movement towards the modernization of automotive plants based on the progressive adoption of distributed and virtualized computing, featuring advanced data management capabilities and the implementation of cloud inspired software management models at the edge.

Nebbiolos hardware agnostic, edge computing platform, based on fogNodes distributed on the Industrial Floor, powered by the highly functional fogOS stack, centrally managed by the fogSM system manager deployed on-premises or in the Cloud, addresses many of the current Industrial Automation challenges. It virtualizes and converges hardware and software components; and, it provides centralized software lifecycle management for distributed applications. It supports modern software defined networking, distributed security, software SDK/APIs, IT-like data management, and opens the path to the future of Industrial Control. It enables the deployment of centrally orchestrated and distributed data connectivity, data management and advanced AI/ML based analytics capabilities across the Industrial Floor.

An edge-based architecture makes it possible to implement a modern industrial infrastructure progressively, with minimal disruption, and as a beneficial complement to todays deployed systems.

Nebbiolo has received numerous awards and recognition for its technology. Recognition includes Gartners 2017 Cool Vendor in IoT Edge Computing and winning first place at the Fog Tank Competition during the 2018 Fog World Congress, as well as Frost & Sullivan 2019 Value Leadership Award.

HKMC chose Nebbiolos Fog/Edge Computing platform because it provides diverse Industrial IoT solutions for a variety of plant and R&D environments, and an efficient global administration infrastructure, said Jung-Sik Suh, Senior Vice President, ICT Division, HKMC. HKMC also valued that the Nebbiolo solution provides Virtualized PLC data collection on the shop floor, the ability to collect and analyze various data on production line in real time to improve efficiency and controls for administering worldwide factory data on the hybrid cloud.

We are pleased to have Hyundai-Kia Motors Corporation as an early proponent of new edge architectures for Automotive Manufacturing and as a strategic partner for our Industrial IoT fog infrastructure., said Nebbiolo CEO Chandra Joshi. We are very happy to partner with SPK, whose strategy is to deliver innovative technology paired with outstanding customer support and systems integration. This is very important for our customers and allows us to accelerate the development and deployment of hyper-converged infrastructure for Industrial IoT edge applications in Korea. Hyper-convergence of compute, storage, security, machine learning, and fieldbuses is essential to achieve the desired customer outcomes with deep integration of OT and IT. We look forward to working closely with Hyundai-Kia Motors Corporation and SPK as we expand our presence in Korea and throughout the world to drive the Industrial future.
Turkish citizens donate $82.4 million to combat corona

Earlier this week, President Erdogan launched National Solidarity Campaign to aid fight against the disease.

Turkey has collected 552.5 million Turkish liras ($82.4 million) so far as part of a National Solidarity Campaign to aid the fight against the novel coronavirus, according to its official website.

ERDOGAN DONATED 7 MONTHS OF HIS SALARY

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched a National Solidarity Campaign on Monday to aid the fight against the novel coronavirus, donating seven months of his salary to the initiative.

He underlined that the aim of the campaign would be to provide additional support to low-income workers who are suffering financially due to measures taken against the spread of the disease.

A total of 277 people in Turkey have died from the coronavirus, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca announced in a press conference.
Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum is donating $170,000 to COVID-19 relief efforts.

McCollum with give $70,000 to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Portland Metropolitan Area to help with meal distribution, staff retention, virtual counseling and other programming for children and families. McCollum has a long history of supporting the Boys and Girls Clubs of Portland. In 2016, he worked with the Boys and Girls Clubs to open the CJ McCollum Dream Center, a learning room for local children.

McCollum will also donate $100,000 to the Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank. That money is expected to provide 400,000 meals to families in McCollums hometown of Canton, Ohio and other towns in Stark and Tuscarawas counties.

Earlier this week, Blazers guard Damian Lillard announced that he was donating $100,000 to the Blazers COVID-19 relief fund to support local non-profit organizations that have been impacted by the coronavirus crisis.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
2 April 2020

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 7 OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATIONS (EU) NO. 596/2014 ("MAR"). UPON THE PUBLICATION OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT, THIS INSIDE INFORMATION IS NOW CONSIDERED TO BE IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN AND SUCH PERSONS SHALL THEREFORE CEASE TO BE IN POSSESSION OF INSIDE INFORMATION.

Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc

("Conroy Gold" or the "Company")

Update on Placing & Subscription

Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc (AIM: CGNR), the gold exploration and development Company focused on Ireland and Finland, announced on 18 February 2020 a combined Placing and Subscription to raise 302,500 (before expenses). The Placing component of the fundraise, totalling 250,000, was arranged by Brandon Hill Capital Limited, the Company's broker ("BHC"). Admission of the New Ordinary Shares in connection with the Placing and Subscription occurred on 21 February 2020.

The Company has become aware that one of the Placees still has a balance of 163,000 outstanding for settlement, having already part settled 12,000 of its placing participation. The settlement date for this Placee was 20 March 2020. The Placee has reconfirmed to BHC its intention to settle in full this outstanding balance within a reasonable timeframe. In addition, 25,000 is currently outstanding from one subscriber who participated in the Subscription. This Subscriber has reiterated his commitment to settling his outstanding Subscription to the Company as soon as practicable.

The outstanding New Ordinary Shares subscribed for by both investors have been issued and allotted although as yet not allocated to the investors. The Placee's placing participation is due to be settled on a delivery versus payment basis in CREST and at the current time BHC hold the remaining New Ordinary Shares with regard to the Placing in its designated client account pending settlement. The Company's registrars are currently holding the share certificate in relation to the Subscription Shares subject to settlement.

BHC has been in regular dialogue with both investors and reasonably expects settlement in full on the basis of assurances received from both parties. BHC continues to work with both investors to resolve the settlement issues that stem from the extraordinary circumstances in the financial markets at this current time. Given current economic uncertainties, there may however be a material risk that the full funds may not be received.

Given the current restrictions on operations and movement as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company do not believe the delay in settlement will have any material impact on its working capital position or operational activities, assuming the funds are forthcoming in the short term.

The Company will provide a further update as soon as practicable.

For further information please contact :

Conroy Gold and Natural Resources plc Tel: +353-1-479-6180 Professor Richard Conroy, Chairman Allenby Capital Limited(Nomad) Tel: +44-20-3328-5656 Nick Athanas/Nick Harriss Brandon Hill Capital Limited (Broker) Tel: +44-20-3463-5000 Jonathan Evans Lothbury Financial Services Tel: +44-20-3290-0707 Michael Padley Hall Communications Tel: +353-1-660-9377 Don Hall

Visit the website at:www.conroygold.com
Texas radio host, William Neil 'Doc' Gallagher (pictured), 79, who admitted to conning elderly listeners out of $29.2M in a Ponzi scheme received 25 years in prison

A Texas radio host and financial consultant who admitted to conning elderly listeners out of millions of dollars in a Ponzi scheme has been sentenced to 25 years in prison.

The sentence was imposed as part of a plea deal that William Neil 'Doc' Gallagher, 79, agreed to on Friday with Dallas County prosecutors.

Gallagher, of North Richland Hills, was ordered to pay more than $10million in restitution.

Prosecutors said Gallagher targeted older, Christian listeners of his show, called The Money Doctor, and met with them to discuss what he said was risk-free income.

He guaranteed annual returns of 5 per cent to nearly 9 per cent if they invested in securities with him, according to the criminal complaint.

Authorities said he described it as a 'retirement income you'll never outlive'.

Gallagher, who wasn't licensed to advise clients on securities, received up to $29.2million from about 60 investors between December 2014 to January 2019, authorities said.

By January 31, 2019, those accounts contained just $821,951.

Under the plea deal, Gallagher was convicted on one count each of theft of more than $300,000, money laundering of more than $300,000 and securities fraud exceeding $100,000.

Gallagher (pictured, during his show), who wasn't licensed to advise clients on securities, received up to $29.2million from about 60 investors between December 2014 to January 2019, authorities said

Following his plea, authorities said Gallagher apologized to his friends and family

'He took advantage of some of the most vulnerable people in our society,' lead prosecutor Alexis Goldate said in a written statement.

Goldate said 'he targeted elderly investors and individuals attracted to his Christian ideals and then stole from them'.

Authorities said Gallagher dished out roughly $5.9million to early investors by using newer investors capital.

He also used several million dollars for payroll, radio and website costs and personal outlays such as legal fees.

Gallagher has been behind bars since his March 2019 arrest.

After the indictment, the Gallagher Financial Group's assets were frozen and a lawyer was appointed to manage the funds.

Following his plea, authorities said Gallagher apologized to his friends and family. He faces more charges in Tarrant County.
Shui On Lands approach of work resumption

By:Wu Qiong | From:english.eastday.com | 2020-04-01 15:43

Shui On Land runs office projects in Shanghai, including 5 Corporate Avenue, KIC, The HUB, Shui On Plaza and INNO KIC. As the city pushes forward with the resumption of work amid an effective control of COVID-19, Shui On has formulated a Process and Mechanism for Public Health Emergencies and a plan for epidemic prevention and work resumption, tightened up the measures of prevention and control in line with the epidemic situation, and integrated resources to help small, medium and micro enterprises to pull through hardships and enhance the confidence of corporate and commercial tenants in returning to work.

People-oriented measures in office building management

A safe environment is the top priority for companies to resume work. Prior to February 10, the first day of work resumption in Shanghai, Shui On had fully prepared in terms of prevention and control measures for the office buildings and personnel.

(People pass by a thermal imager before entering a building)

(An infrared thermometer is placed between a metro station exit and a shopping mall entrance)

As the number of the corporate tenants staff is on the rise, in addition to conventional measures such as frequently disinfecting public areas, equipment and facilities, cleaning air-conditioning systems, taking personnels temperature every day, strengthening the disposal of discarded masks and the management of food deliveryman and couriers, the company has also set up infrared thermometers and thermal imaging safety inspection gates in entrances with a large flow of people. It has placed great emphasis on the epidemic prevention in areas connecting office buildings or shopping malls with the subway station.

For tenants who have no access to protective and disinfection supplies, Shui On actively helped them to purchase these supplies and meet the standards of work resumption.

In light of employees demands for parking and lunch and health consultations after returning to work, Shui On has integrated resources in multi-functional communities consisting of shopping malls, office buildings and residences, to offer people-oriented services.

First of all, based on the statistics of available parking spaces in these communities, Shui On offers multiple discounts on fixed and temporary parking. For example a certain number of free parking spaces during a certain period, or within a limited time, and a monthly package at a low price.

Secondly, while caring about the food safety of enterprise employees, it has made a take-out list of high-quality merchants around the office buildings for the employees to choose from. For example Guidelines for Safe Food on Weekdays in XINTIANDI, Take-out Guidelines for White Collar Workers in The HUB, and Safe and Delicious Take-Out Food in Ruihong Tiandi. Every food item in KICs List of Safe Take-Out Food is even attached with an assurance card, allowing consumers to track the safety of the food, packaging and delivery. Moreover, Shui On has also provided employees with psychological consultation on WeDoctor, an online platform, helping them to alleviate their mental stress and depression resulting from excessive concern about the epidemic.

Restarting a large-scale construction site in Hongkou

In 2020, Shui On has two projects under construction in Shanghai. Hall of the Sun (Ruihong Tiandi Lot 10), a multi-purpose complex, resumed construction on February 21, making it the first site to resume construction in Hongkou District and the second one in Shanghai.

Work resumption on the construction site involves issues such as establishing health checks of workers, on-site precautionary and protective measures, and providing isolation areas, and protective supplies. Ruihong Xincheng established an epidemic prevention and control team on January 24, immediately locked down the construction site, and actively communicated with the relevant departments of the Hongkou District Government to make contingency plans. At the same time, it collected the information of workers managed by the general contractors and subcontractors, checked if workers or managers came from regions severely hit by the epidemic, and determined the key processes and jobs in the construction. Protective supplies were also prepared in advance, including 10,000 masks, 800 disposable gloves, 60 disposable ponchos, 50 kgs of 84 Disinfectant, infrared thermometers, and electric sterilization chambers.

(Workers on the construction site of Hall of the Sun)

To ensure the safety of the dorm, food and construction, under the guidance of the Hongkou government, Shui On has taken innovative preventive and control measures. It has divided the dorm space into quarantine and dormitory areas, and turned multi-directional roads into one-way routes, which guarantee a single entrance open to all the staff. Guardians are required to be on watch 24 hours a day monitoring the daily temperature records of workers, and publicizing the health status of all personnel. It has also set up additional disinfection areas and warehouses for protective supplies at the construction site, and regularly disinfects different areas every day. In addition, thanks to a healthy red card system with special management, every worker can only access the construction site with the card. Staff responsible for delivering food have also been arranged to avoid cross infection.

(Facial recognition technology is deployed to ensure safety)

There is a fixed process with eight steps for site admission. Workers can only enter the site after finishing the eight steps, namely face recognition, hand sterilization, body spray disinfection, temperature measurement, health information record, changing masks, finishing safety knowledge courses, and entering the operation area. As more and workers have been returning to Shanghai, the site is also equipped with the first automatic thermal imaging temperature measurement and screening system in Hongkou. If the body temperature of a worker passing through the system is abnormal, the system will auto-save his portrait and send an alert. Then, the management staff will use the infrared thermometer to take a second temperature measurement. The Hall of the Sun has therefore become the model of Hongkou in terms of its preventive and work resumption measures.

It is also worth mentioning that in the early stage of the epidemic, the company announced to exempt or reduce the rents of all commercial tenants during a certain period of time. To help them attract potential customers, it has been publishing the information of commercial tenants on WeChat and membership platforms. It has also negotiated with food delivery platforms to help all the tenants to address the issue of food delivery.
For many, the last semester of college is a time to make our final memories of school, say goodbye to our favorite professors, visit our "spot" on campus for the last time and finally make that walk across the stage at graduation. It is a bittersweet time filled with reflection.

But for students all across the country with graduation dates in May 2020, that all changed in the last few weeks.

coronavirus college classes (Callie Patteson)

I attend The King's College in New York City. Going to college here allowed me to work several internships, study as a journalist in a major news hub and attend art classes at some of the most famous museums in the world. But as my last semester of college comes to a close, I am finishing it from my parents' kitchen in New Hampshire.

On March 10, it was announced students at my school would transition to remote learning through the month of March starting the following day due to increased risk of the coronavirus. Three days later, that was extended through the rest of the semester.

Coronavirus college (Callie Patteson)

While it didn't come as a surprise exactly, there was still shock. Our school, which had always prided itself on the fact New York City is our campus, told students that it no longer was. International students from Brazil flew home while students from Alaska stayed in the city to avoid having to wake up at 5:00 a.m. for classes. Our once tight-knit community scattered and it was nearly impossible to say goodbye to everyone.

The weight of this moment didn't hit me for several days. I was already taking one class online  why would it feel any different than that? But it did. I realized I couldn't go on campus when I wanted to escape the "real world." I wouldn't get to have that late-night study session with friends where hardly any studying was done. And after putting in four grueling years of work, I might not get to walk at my graduation.

Coronavirus senior year of college (Callie Patteson)

On March 16, I transitioned to working from home in my shoebox apartment. It took less than 24 hours for my last remaining roommate to book an unexpected flight home after all restaurants and bars closed for sit-down service. New York started to feel empty.

Story continues

Two days later, I packed up my things and headed to catch a bus to my parents' home. By the time I was home with my family, buses to and from New York were suspended, leaving me here in the granite state until further notice.

Being home, my day to day has changed less than I expected it to. My mom often asks me if I am getting stir-crazy or bored. Thankfully, I'm not. Between a part-time job, classes and extracurriculars that can happen remotely, my schedule has remained pretty full. That does come with a downside: I'm not able to help around the house during the day as much as I'd like, but I just have to remind myself that I do still have a job to do.

It's hard to salvage experiences like Spring Formal or celebrating the night before graduation at your favorite bar. We do the best we can through Zoom parties, group calls and social media but when it comes down to it, it is very different.

It's never easy to leave a city or school you love. While I am upset my senior year was cut short and graduation is up in the air, I still fully support my school's decision. As young adults, we have a duty to protect our families and neighbors from contracting COVID-19. Staying home and attending remote classes is one way to do that. Having a college graduation or one last party would never be worth contributing to the loss of someone in my family or neighborhood.

Coronavirus senior year of college (Callie Patteson)

I never expected to finish college in New Hampshire, but here I am. If it means I get to help keep others safe, it will always be worth it.
Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Puri said on Thursday that the government would like to ensure that international flights are resumed on a case by case basis after the ongoing 21-day nationwide lockdown, which was enforced on March 25 to contain the spread of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak, ends on April 15.

All modes of conveyance, including rail traffic, road and air transport, have been suspended after the lockdown came into effect. Initially, international flights were suspended for a week from March 22 but later extended until April 15 coinciding with the lockdown. Domestic flights were suspended from the day the lockdown started on March 25.

We can think of resuming international flights after the government examines the situation. Both the health and home ministries have to assess that the Covid-19 outbreak is under control in other affected countries before international flights become operational again, said Pradeep Kharola, secretary, ministry of civil aviation.

The minister said incoming flights to bring back Indian nationals will remain suspended until the lockdown ends on April 15.

Were under lockdown till April 15. Any incoming flights to bring back Indian nationals will have to wait until the lockdown is lifted, Puri said. We can start considering the resumption of (international) flights on a case by case basis depending on where they are coming from, he added.

Airlines are open to start advance bookings as per their own discretion and contingency plan, the minister said.

The ministry is proceeding on the understanding that the lockdown is in place till April 15. There is no directive from the ministry about the contingency planning of airlines. But, as an eternal optimist, I am hoping that on April 15, flights can at least start, if not all, then in a calibrated manner. But that is a decision that we still need to take, Puri said.

India has also established an aerobridge with China for setting up medical cargo freight services. Rajiv Bansal, chairman and managing director (CMD) of the national carrier, Air India, said flights to Shanghai will operate on April 4 and April 5. Weve also got approval to operate flights to Hong Kong, he added.

India has also signed a contract with Germany, France, Canada, and Ireland to repatriate their citizens on commercial charges, he added.

The government has operated 84 flights to date to carry essential medical supplies and goods. A total of 76 tonnes of cargo has been transported so far, according to the ministry.

Carriers involved in Lifeline Udan operations include Air India, Alliance Air, Indian Air Force (IAF) and Pawan Hans. Private carriers such as IndiGo, SpiceJet and Blue Dart are also operating medical cargo flights on a commercial basis.

The Centre has granted special permission to conduct cargo operations using passenger aircraft for ferrying medical equipment and essential goods during the lockdown. Aviation regulator Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in an order issued on Wednesday said there has been an additional demand for transporting essential cargo services due to the viral outbreak.
The COVID-19 crisis has affected every sector and every living being across the globe. Due to this pandemic the entire world is facing serious crisis and our country India is also on the verge of the same, Government of India with the support of the 1.3 billion population is taking serious measures to curtail the deadly virus. While the Government of India has announced several health packages to fight the pandemic, private organisations such as Reliance and Vedanta have also stood up to help India fight the situation.

Meanwhile the budding private sector of India is also joining hands with the Government to overcome this deadly virus.

Lalamove; an on-demand logistics company is supporting the delivery of essentials in the cities that they operate in and are currently under lockdown. They have reached out to various businesses involved in food, groceries, pharmacies, etc., offering their support in helping them deliver their goods to the people in need.

Digital Jalebi, an experiential design studio has also been very proactive and has taken the corona situation very seriously. Currently, our entire team is practicing social distancing and has been working from home. To better prepare for this situation, we had already started training our entire team on collaboration tools like Google Meet & Basecamp right from February last week and as a result, today we are able to collaborate & work very efficiently. On the work front, as a lot of our conventional business is being affected, our team is not resting one bit and is taking this time to reflect on our business model, crafting strategies for the upcoming months, strengthening our team in other verticals and preparing ourselves for a better tomorrow

Another tech-based logistics company 72 Networks has availed a Corona Specific Medical Insurance policy for all our employees in the event of any casualty to cover their financial burden. In case of any casualty (Corona specific), the medical insurance company will bear the total cost of the test & treatment and a payment of 1000 Rs will be given to the infected person during his time of quarantine on a daily basis so that he can meet his daily requirements (as a part of policy).

Apart from the Logistics sector; Edtech platforms like Edubrisk are also rising up to the occasion to help solve the educational crisis in the country. They are running free learning sessions for teachers/institutions so that they can take online classes for their students. Also, they are providing free demo entries for students who need to finish their courses on their platform.

Another reputed institute in the country for skilled-based courses i.e The Academy of Pastry & Culinary Arts is taking classes on Zoom for their students and are also doing a Insta Live/Facebook Live session daily for the normal crowd and are teaching them home friendly recipes so that they are occupied in this time of lockdown. These recipes are taught by world renowned and award winning chefs.

The dating industry is also not far behind as during this time of lockdown, dating apps like Gleeden are providing alternatives for individuals to spend their time at home doing something that they find pleasurable. The platform has registered a hike of over 70% on its platform during this period.

The mobility sector which has been affected the most is also not shying away from helping its employees. One of such mobility platforms YOLO Bus; has extended monetary support towards transportation and the test costs of not only their employees but also their immediate family members. A provision of advance salary is also made applicable incase of any requirements towards the medical expenses.

Also, moving in the same direction, a product based IT company, AppitSimple Infotek Pvt Ltd is also taking serious measures to help its employees. The company has ensured to provide all employees with a laptop and a remote work setup, so that they can manage remote work seamlessly. The company strives to provide the right virtual work culture by promoting employee engagement, and offering constructive feedback at regular intervals.

Another important sector Fintech; whose importance is only going to increase with the coming time as due to the lockdown less and less people will venture out of their homes and the facility to avail handy loans from your homes or through your mobile phones is going to garner traffic soon. Shubh Loans; a fintech lending company (NBFC) is also fully prepared for the future challenges and is more than willing it play its bit in supporting the Government of India and its people. They are also encouraging their employees to work & stay at home and support the Governments initiative fully. Apart from this they have also provided comprehensive medical insurance plans that include coverage for parents which will prove to be extremely valuable at times like these.
The Morrison government has rejected calls for politicians and public servants to take a pay cut as the country deals with the economic fallout of coronavirus.

The federal government has asked the Remuneration Tribunal to put a pay freeze in place for 12 months.

But a cut is not being contemplated.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said salaries made up a tiny percentage of the federal budget, however, he would consider changes if necessary.

'I know people are taking a hard hit every day in their businesses,' he told Sydney radio 2GB on Friday.

'But I don't think it's actually helpful in a crisis to start having people turn on each other about who's getting what.'

A number of Australian workers have agreed with their employers to take cuts of around 10 per cent of their wages during the crisis, while others have lost their jobs.

But Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said a pay cut for politicians and bureaucrats wouldn't make much of a difference.

'I think MPs and public servants are working very hard right now,' Senator Cormann told Sky News.

'I'm not sure how this sort of suggestion would help - in the context of the budget challenge it's essentially at the margin.'

Liberal senator Eric Abetz, who froze politicians' pay when he served former prime minister Tony Abbott in 2015, a cut should be considered.

'Without being prescriptive, the government will need to tighten its belts and consider its priorities,' he said.

NSW Liberal MP Jason Falinski also said a pay cut would remain a live issue, but noted that many MPs were working longer hours to help constituents hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
Author James Patterson announced he is donating $500,000 to indie bookstores. (Steve Mitchell / Associated Press)

In an effort to keep struggling bookstores afloat, author James Patterson is offering some relief in the form of a hefty sum of money.

The bestselling writer of "Along Came a Spider" and "NYPD Red" announced on Thursday a personal donation of $500,000 to help save independent bookstores across the country. Many have been forced to shut their doors indefinitely or drastically change their business models to comply with measures imposed to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Patterson also partnered with Hollywood star Reese Witherspoon and her platform Reeses Book Club, the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc) and the American Booksellers Assn. to promote the #SaveIndieBookstores campaign, which will run through April 30. Binc will then distribute the funds raised to eligible independent bookstores. ABA members can apply for the grants April 10 through April 27 on the #SaveIndieBookstores website. The size of individual grants will depend on how much money is raised.

"I can't imagine anything more important right now, in terms of the book world, than helping indies survive," Patterson said on a phone call Thursday morning. "It's just so important culturally that we're paying attention to the written word, that people are communicating with the written word," he said, adding that teaching children to read competently is a high social priority. By combining forces with Witherspoon, he hopes the initiative will spread widely.

Patterson's donation is the latest of several large outlays he's made in recent years, including a $1-million gift in 2014. It's also one of several valiant efforts nationwide to help ensure that indie bookstores  which are not considered essential businesses  survive the pandemic. Many of those that have stayed open are taking orders by phone and online, offering curbside pickup and deliveries, and making in-store private browsing appointments.

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Still, across the country, hundreds of bookstore employees have been laid off, including more than 30 from Los Angeles' Last Bookstore (about two-thirds of the staff). Portland, Ore.'s beloved Powell's Books, meanwhile, reportedly rehired more than 100 workers after online orders soared. But even before the pandemic, only a third of indie bookstores were profitable, according to the American Booksellers Assn.

Though bookstores have seen online sales grow since nonessential businesses were ordered to close under stay-at-home measures, many booksellers have said that online orders and deliveries alone doesn't come close to physical sales on a typical day.

"It feels like we're working five times as hard for five times less money," said Joshua Spencer, owner of the Last Bookstore. Though online sales are four to five times higher than they were before the COVID-19 pandemic, "it's enough to keep paying our staff, but it's not enough to keep paying our rent."

That's why publishing giant Simon & Schuster and Bookshop.org, which partners with indies and media, also joined forces this week to lend struggling bookstores across the country a hand.

"The affiliate fees that we make in directing sales to bookshop.org, we're donating those affiliate fees to Binc so that that goes to independent booksellers," said Liz Perl, Simon & Schuster's executive vice president and chief marketing officer. Among other efforts, the publisher also added bookshop.org buy buttons to all of its websites and encouraged its authors to add the link to their websites and social media profiles.

The campaign will run at least until the end of the calendar year, but that could be extended depending on the situation, said Perl.

Chevaliers Books in Hancock Park launched an online sales platform soon after the pandemic with bookshop.org. The website is aggressively pushing memberships and gift cards, said assistant manager Theresa Le Phung in an email.

"We're off to a good start with this new model, but were not out of the woods," said the Last Bookstore owner Joshua Spencer about adjusting to the pandemic, "and we have a lot of looming expenses that we need to figure out how to cover." (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

"As of now, online orders and phone orders are just barely keeping us afloat," said Le Phung. "The real problem, however, is unpredictability. Sales might be good this week, but who knows what the next week will bring. Not having a clear finish line to this ordeal is perhaps the most excruciating part of this."

The Montrose children's bookstore Once Upon a Time is hanging on, thanks to the surge in online orders. "We'd get one or two, maybe three [online] orders a month, now we're getting three an hour," said the store's owner Maureen Palacios, who's navigating the new orders with her daughter, Jessica. (Palacios said she's paying her employees at least through the end of April, but she's not asking them to go into the store.)

Vroman's bookstores and West Hollywood's Book Soup have also gone solely digital. Before the pandemic, their online sales accounted for 1% of the business; now they're 100%. "We are incredibly grateful to our community for continuing to support us," said Julia Cowlishaw, chief executive of the bookstores, in an email. "[H]owever the volume isnt equal to our business when the stores are open."

"Using [leading books distributor] Ingram to fulfill orders limits the selection to just books and doesnt include the puzzles, games, newspapers and periodicals sitting on our shelves. Events are also an important part of our business," added Cowlishaw, who is a Binc board member and a partner in the #SaveIndieBookstores campaign.

The cancellation of larger events is also a major financial drain. Once Upon a Time depends heavily on The Times' Festival of Books, which was postponed until October. "We have three booths there," said Palacios. "April is the second biggest month of our year, and without any of that and all the associated events, this month is going to be devastating."

But news of Patterson's donation and the bookshop.org drive sparked joy for some local booksellers.

"That is tremendous," Palacios said, adding that Patterson has generously helped them in the past. The bookstore's storage unit and new front-store display windows were paid for with a Patterson grant, and he even gave Jessica a collage scholarship.

Jenna Spencer, the Last Bookstore's brand and marketing director, called the news "incredibly generous ... everyone is on a thin line right now, so it's going to take some outside help for many of us to continue."

The Last Bookstore has had some success with a creative new business model. Customers can schedule private browsing appointments during business hours to ensure social distancing (employees will even offer gloves and masks for shoppers). They've also started offering curated bundles. "Customers give us, on phone or email, their genre preferences and staff will take out a bundle of books worth $25 and up," said Spencer. They can choose their own books or be surprised. "Those have been a real big hit."

Still, the future is uncertain.

"We're off to a good start with this new model, but were not out of the woods," said Spencer, "and we have a lot of looming expenses that we need to figure out how to cover."

But with the outpouring of love and support from the community, Spencer remains hopeful.

"Im optimistic that we'll get through this."
By Trend





Russian and Turkish Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan have had a phone call to exchange opinions on the issues of Syrian settlement, including implementation of Russian-Turkish agreements to stabilize situation in Syrias Idlib, the Kremlin press service said Wednesday, Trend reports citing TASS.

"Substantive exchange of opinions on issues of the Syrian settlement was carried out, including implementation of the Russian-Turkish agreements reached on March 5, 2020 to stabilize the situation in the Idlib zone. Libyan issues were also touched upon," the statement says.

The Turkish leaders office issued a communique, saying, "the negotiations discussed <> bilateral ties and regional issues."

Putin and Erdogan held talks in Moscow on March 5 and agreed a ceasefire and other measures to settle the situation in Idlib. The agreements reached stipulate that hostilities in this region should stop along the whole line of contact as the ceasefire comes into effect on March 6. Moscow and Ankara reaffirmed commitment to preserving Syrias sovereignty and agreed to continue fighting terrorism.
The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has today been informed that 13 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 in Ireland have died.

 9 deaths located in the east, 1 in the south, 3 in the west of the country.

 The patients included 4 females and 9 males.

 10 patients were reported as having underlying health conditions.

There have now been 98 COVID-19 related deaths in Ireland.

The median age of deaths in Ireland is 82.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre has been informed of 402 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland, as at 1pm, Thursday 2nd April.

This includes one new case for Louth, bringing the total in the county to 52.

There are now 3,849 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ireland.

The HSE is now working to identify any contacts the patients may have had to provide them with information and advice to prevent further spread.

Dr. Tony Holohan, Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, said; We have a more detailed ICU report available this evening. Of 148 cases admitted to ICU, 25 of those cases have been discharged, sadly there have been 14 deaths from ICU and 109 remain in ICU. The median age of ICU admission is 62.

I would also like to highlight a worrying scene I witnessed during my visit to hospital on Tuesday evening; empty waiting rooms and empty beds. While protecting yourself from COVID-19 is a priority, no one should ignore signs that they may need medical attention for other ailments such as lumps, chest pain or other concerns. Please do not ignore any symptom outside of COVID-19. The hospitals are there for all ailments, not just COVID-19.

Todays data from HPSC, as of midnight, Tuesday 31st March 2020 (3,282 cases), reveals:

 48% are male and 50% are female, with 160 clusters involving 659 cases

 Median age of confirmed cases is 48 years

 932 cases (28%) have been hospitalised

 Of those hospitalised, 134 cases have been admitted to ICU

 841 cases (26%) are associated with healthcare workers

 Dublin has the highest number of cases at 1,838 (56% of all cases) followed by Cork with 272 cases (8%)

 Of those for whom transmission status is known: community transmission accounts for 60%, close contact accounts for 23%, travel abroad accounts for 17%
TROY, N.Y. (AP)  An upstate New York judge declared a mistrial in a quadruple-murder trial Wednesday amid concerns over the coronavirus pandemic.

James White, 40, will remain in county jail until he is retried on charges in connection to the brutal stabbing of four adults, including two children, in December 2017, the Times Union reported.

White's case has been dubbed one of the county's most horrific and high-profile cases in years.

He is accused of bounding and gagging the victims in a Lansingburgh home before stabbing them in their necks with a large knife.

The case's outcome is a result of the state's court system delay as administrators weigh the impact of the virus. Deliberations were postponed Monday and again Tuesday after one of the jurors got sick. At least two other jurors have become reluctant to come to court over the fear they will contract the virus.

"This is something that is completely unprecedented, not just here but worldwide," Whites attorney, Kurt Haas, told reporters after the trial's abrupt ending.

Haas said White was happy with the judge's decision and will prepare for the new trial.

White will need to be retried on allegations that he murdered Brandi Mells, 22, Shanta Myers, 36, and Myers two children: Jeremiah, 11, and 5-year-old Shanise.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS:

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Crouse Hospital losing $300K per day as coronavirus slams NY hospital finances

Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst cases double in 2 days, total hospitalized down; 277 total cases
Nurses in Florida and Tennessee were photographed praying on the rooftops of their hospitals as they continue to risk their lives to help others during the coronavirus pandemic.

'This is how we started our morning today. Our team said a prayer, asking God for guidance and protection while we are at work, and to keep us and our families safe,' said Danny Rodriguez, a senior ER tech, at Jackson South Medical Center in Miami, Florida.

The image that was shared on the hospital system's Twitter page shows eight medical professionals kneeling on a rooftop while praying.

'This is how we started our morning today. Our team said a prayer, asking God for guidance and protection while we are at work, and to keep us and our families safe,' said Danny Rodriguez, a senior ER tech, at Jackson South Medical Center (pictured) in Miami, Florida

Meanwhile in Tennessee, Vanderbilt University Medical Center also shared a photo of nurses praying (pictured)

'We are so proud of our staff working tirelessly on behalf of our patients and community,' hospital staff wrote

Officials from the Jackson Health System hospitals said on Wednesday evening that they have 82 inpatients who have tested positive for COVID-19.

Florida Gov Ron DeSantis finally issued a shelter in place order for the entire state on Wednesday after facing harsh criticism for only shutting down South Florida.

The Sunshine State currently has more than 8,000 confirmed cases between residents and visitors who tested positive for the coronavirus. The state's death toll increased to 128 overnight.

Meanwhile in Tennessee, Vanderbilt University Medical Center also shared a photo of nurses praying.

'We wanted to share this beautiful moment that was captured by a staff member when members of our team spent a few extra minutes on our helipad praying for their unit, Vanderbilt employees, patients and families & all of our colleagues around the world taking care of patients,' representatives tweeted on Wednesday.

The image shows four medical professionals standing and one kneeling as they gathered in a circle to pray.

There are more than 216,000 cases of the coronavirus in the US and more than 5,100 deaths

Thousands of nurses, doctors and other medical professionals have been asked to come out of retirement to help with the crisis, especially in hotspots (pictured) in New York City, New Orleans and cities in California

'We are so proud of our staff working tirelessly on behalf of our patients and community,' hospital staff wrote.

'This journey is unlike anything we have experienced. Each day we are impacted by the kindness and grace of our colleagues and this community. Thank you for all the ways you are lifting us up.'

In Tennessee, there are more than 2,400 confirmed coronavirus cases. The state has reported a death toll of 23.

Earlier this week, Tennessee Gov Bill Lee announced a shelter in place for residents of the state.

Hospitals across the country are seeking to hire nurses temporarily in clinical roles as they battle the coronavirus.

Thousands of nurses, doctors and other medical professionals have been asked to come out of retirement to help with the crisis, especially in hotspots in New York City, New Orleans and cities in California.
Peter Alsharif, of Bergen County, N.J., will graduate from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School next week and start his residency in emergency medicine early at University Hospital in Newark. Read more

Next Friday, fourth-year students from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School  many likely sitting at home  will take part in a virtual graduation ceremony, held nearly six weeks early.

Theyll raise their hands and cite the Hippocratic Oath, pledging to exercise my art solely for the care of my patients. Then theyll be off to face a pandemic, perhaps the greatest medical challenge of their lifetime.

Rutgers, like some other medical schools around the country, is sending off its 192 graduates early so they can start their residencies if hospitals need them.

David Raile, 31, who is headed to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, said just graduating and becoming a doctor was something weve all been pining for. He added, "Now were all going to graduate and be part of this super team of medical providers.

 READ MORE: Its Match Day: Newest crop of medical students to begin their residencies in the age of the coronavirus

As the coronavirus spread last month, most medical school students nationally were pulled off clinical rotations for their safety, but also because there wasnt enough protective gear.

Now, largely by their own initiative and desire to help, theyre staffing patient hotlines, raising money to buy face masks for their health-care colleagues and in some cases babysitting for them. At Thomas Jefferson University this week, medical and nursing students and others assembled 10,000 face shields for hospital staff out of plastic, foam cushioning and elastic products provided by a local manufacturer.

Another group of students from local colleges raised more than $38,000 to buy and deliver protective gear to hospitals, paramedics, and the Department of Public Health in Philadelphia.

We felt pretty helpless sitting at home when we know so many people just a year or two ahead of us in school are attacking this pandemic at the core, said Gabrielle Yankelevich, a third-year medical student at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. We all just wanted to help.

Yankelevich, 25, of Malvern, said the effort started with a Facebook group and her landlord, who knew a company that sells face masks. They raised $1,000 in less than an hour for 20 boxes and kept going, she said. Theyve provided more than 7,000 masks, she said, and also are starting to supply gloves, thermometers and other equipment.

Mary White, 24, a third-year medical student at Jefferson, has volunteered to call patients scheduled for non-virus medical appointments  to check on their condition, field their concerns and encourage them to consider a virtual visit.

 READ MORE: Colleges stand to lose millions because of the coronavirus

White is one of more than 200 volunteers, mostly medical and nursing students, filling roles needed by Jefferson.

Increasingly, these students and others may find themselves back on the front lines, along with their counterparts from Rutgers. Alison Whelan, chief medical education officer for the American Association of Medical Colleges, said nearly every medical school around the country is considering graduating students early so they can begin hospital residencies. (Residents are supervised by attending physicians. They have passed two of three parts of their medical licensing exams and will take the third part after their first year of residency.)

Its important to recognize as students graduate with an M.D. degree, they are graduating ready for supervised practice, not independent practice, Whelan said. So they will need appropriate supervision.

New York University, in an area hit hardest by the virus, was one of the first to announce early graduation. Other local colleges, besides Rutgers, said they had not decided to do so.

We have considered the possibility  for those students who have met all graduation requirements" and who are serving their residencies at Temple University Hospital (TUH), said Jeremy Walter, a Temple health spokesperson. We will continue to review the potential  should the clinical need arise.

Rutgers began considering the possibility six weeks ago when it became clear the virus would strike the area, said Robert L. Johnson, dean of Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Students complete their requirements in April, but normally wait until mid-May to graduate.

It became obvious that maybe we could do it another way, said Johnson, who also still practices medicine and has treated patients with the coronavirus. They can begin and be a very important part of a workforce that is tackling the infection at a point when we really, really need increased numbers of persons.

Of the 192 graduating this month, 38 will begin residencies early at University Hospital in Newark and the VA hospital in East Orange, he said. Hes not sure how many other hospitals will call upon students to start early.

Nearly 60 were matched to hospitals in New York  43 of them in New York City  and 62 to hospitals in New Jersey.

Among them is Peter Alsharif, 27, of Bergen County. First he was pulled off his clinical rotation at University Hospital last month. Then he learned in an email hed be graduating early and heading back there for his residency in emergency medicine, one likely to put him on the front lines.

Hes not sure exactly when hell start, but hes ready, he said.

I can finally get back in there and see patients, and get involved in this national effort," he said.

Certainly he has some fear, he said. But its mixed with the knowledge that medical students are younger, healthy people who know how to take precautions.

Were worried for our loved ones, our classmates and colleagues, and for our future patients and also for ourselves," said Raile, of Minneapolis, whose Penn residency will be in internal medicine. Were just wondering what the next few weeks and months are going to be like.

Hes not sure whether Penn will ask him to report early.

If they call us, well go, he said.
Is it a lack of will or a lack of means? Belgian investigations into the case of Martina Johnson, a Liberian suspected of having been commander in a major armed faction during the Liberian civil war, is worryingly slow, and many fear the consequences for the trial that is expected to take place.

Alain Werner, director of Swiss NGO Civitas Maxima which investigated Martina Johnsons alleged crimes in 2011, regrets the death of a witness he considers key, and fears that others will die.The suspects lawyer, Jean Flamme, also says certain witnesses he wanted to interview for the defence are now dead. Meanwhile, he says Martina Johnson, 50, has been subject to strict rules of house arrest for the last six years and is suffering from a serious liver disease.

Johnson is suspected of having herself killed, tortured and maimed several people at a military checkpoint at the Dry Rice Market on the edge of the city.

Martina Johnson is suspected of having served as a commander in the National Patriotic Front of Liberia, a rebel group led by Charles Taylor that sparked Liberias first civil war between 1989 and 1996. The rebels launched an assault on the capital city of Monrovia on October 15, 1992, known as Operation Octopus, which claimed the lives of hundreds of civilians and members of foreign humanitarian organizations. Johnson is suspected of having herself killed, tortured and maimed several people at a military checkpoint at the Dry Rice Market on the edge of the city.

An anonymous picture allegedly showing Martina Johnson in Belgium.

French and Finns go to Liberia, not the Belgians

After the fall of Charles Taylor in 2003 (he became president in 1997, before being forced by a new armed rebellion to flee the country), Martina Johnson went to Belgium. She settled in Ghent with her husband, a Belgian of Liberian origin, and their son. It was there that the police came to arrest her on 17 September 2014. Two years earlier, three Liberian victims had filed charges against Johnson for acts she allegedly committed during the assault on Monrovia.

Why has the investigation not yet been concluded? The rogatory commission has not yet been able to go to Liberia. We are waiting for a positive message from the competent Liberian authorities, replies the Belgian Federal Prosecutors Office, which says three requests to investigate at the scene of the crimes have been sent to the Liberian authorities and have remained unanswered.

It is therefore incomprehensible that the Belgian judicial authorities are unable to obtain authorization [to investigate in Liberia].

But Alain Werner, whose NGO has helped victims bring this and other cases linked to crimes committed during Liberias two civil wars (1989 to 2003), finds this argument hard to understand. Indeed, things were blocked until last year. Liberia had not acceded to requests from foreign authorities to come and investigate in the country. But the situation has changed since 2019, he says. The French, the Finns and a third European country have received authorization to go to Liberia, and have already gone there. It is therefore incomprehensible that the Belgian judicial authorities are unable to obtain authorization, when the indictment of Martina Johnson dates from 2014, before investigations started in those other three countries.

The impression we have from our investigative work in Liberia is that Johnsons crimes are known in Monrovia, continues Werner, who has acted as prosecutor and counsel for victims in several international war crimes trials. So if the Belgian investigators go there, they will find much more than we did at the time under more difficult conditions.

Defence demands

Johnsons lawyer also thinks for different reasons that the investigators should travel to Liberia. My client denies that she was in the military, but its true that she was one of the security officers who were responsible for the close protection of Charles Taylor, says Flamme. We are faced with written testimonies [brought via Civitas Maxima and its Liberian partner, the Global Justice and Reseach Project] from people who were children at the time of the events. They say they recognized Commander Martina Johnson. I highly doubt that. How do they know it was Martina Johnson? These witnesses need to be heard directly, in person.

There is also a photographer who took a picture of a woman sitting on a cannon, claiming that it was her [Martina Johnson] and that she was an artillery general in Taylors army, continues the lawyer, who has already asked several times for his clients case to be dropped. We obtained authorization four or five years ago to hear defence witnesses, but that required a trip to Liberia. First we were told it was impossible to go there because of the Ebola virus. Then one of the federal prosecutors told a hearing [in the Ghent indictment chamber] that there was no money to go there. Now, four or five of the witnesses who were asked to testify have died. The damage is irreparable. And were getting to the point where it is no longer a reasonable time before trial.

Investigating nonetheless

Lawyer Luc Walleyn, who represents the civil parties, is nevertheless optimistic. The contacts between the Belgian and Liberian authorities seem to be changing since these other European countries last year obtained authorization to carry out rogatory commissions on Liberian territory, he explains. And other important investigative duties have nevertheless been carried out. The investigation is continuing, at its own pace. He nevertheless hopes the investigation will be completed by the end of 2020, at the latest. Walleyn notes that Liberian exiles and refugees have been heard in other countries. The federal prosecutors office also says Belgian investigators have travelled to the United States to consult records from the Liberia Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Between 2006 and 2009, the Commission gathered some 20,000 testimonies of abuses committed during the armed conflict that ravaged the West African state. According to the NGO TRIAL International, Martina Johnsons name appears on the Truth and Reconciliation Commissions list of the main alleged perpetrators of these crimes.

Yet given the initiatives taken by other European courts handling Liberian cases, it seems Belgian judicial authorities can hardly avoid travelling to Monrovia to gather direct testimony, almost 30 years after the events. The current health crisis due to the coronavirus is likely to complicate such a visit a little more.
Liberal MP Dave Sharma has long held a more expansive share portfolio than most of his Canberra peers. Australias former ambassador to Israel has stakes in everything from Afterpay to Wesfarmers, according to parliamentary register disclosures.

And its good to see the coronavirus hasnt slowed him down. Despite the serious market turbulence of late, Sharma has been snapping up shares in ASX blue-chips Macquarie, ANZ, Sydney Airport Holdings and Qantas. Yep, Qantas.

Liberal MP Dave Sharma Credit:Golding

Airlines, of course, have been particularly badly affected by the pandemic. Qantas shares have fallen more than 40 per cent since the end of February. Sharma  through his family trust  bought in on March 17 when shares were trading between $3.02 and $2.86. Either way, hes already in the money. Qantas shares closed at $3.20 on Thursday.

March 17, for the record, was the day Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack announced a $715 million relief package for the aviation industry. That package, of course, was public knowledge by the time Wentworth MP Sharma bought into the airline. And plenty were at it.
PHILIPSBURG: --- The meeting of parliament called to discuss the reconstruction of the Princess Juliana International Airport and the resignation of the Dutch appointed Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of PJIAE ended abruptly on Wednesday when the members of parliament representing the Party for Progress Melissa Gumbs and Raeyhon Peterson left parliament abruptly without informing the chair.

The Parliament of St. Maarten is lacking four MPs since they resigned to take up Ministerial posts in Government.

On Wednesday morning the credentials of the incoming members of parliament were vetted and they will soon be sworn in.

However, St. Maarten like the rest of the world is on lockdown and Members of Parliament are also on lockdown and are currently working remotely from their homes. While St. Maarten workers stand to lose their jobs, some may not have a roof over their heads or meals on their tables with the current crisis Members of Parliament will be enjoying their full salaries, yet the two members of the PFP chose to abscond their duties and to begin playing politics at a time when the people of St. Maarten needs their elected representatives.

Also leaving the meeting was MP Sarah Wescot Williams a veteran in the political field, Williams like many others are working from home and the country is under lockdown yet she indicated to parliament that she was leaving early.

The second agenda point for the meeting was about the Dutch appointed Chief Financial Officer Gerban Stevast who quit his position and returned to the Netherlands. Stevast informed management of PJIAE last 2019 that he would resign for personal reasons since then a new candidate have been selected and is currently working at PJIAE as a financial advisor.

Members of Parliament asked the Prime Minister and CEO of PJIAE to provide answers as to reason Stevast left and the reason why he left. They also asked the CEO Brian Mingo if he was directly involved in the selection of the current candidate. While Mingo provided some answers to Parliament, two members of parliament namely MP Claudius Buncamper and MP Christophe Emmanuel asked the CEO through the chair to provide specific answers to their questions since according to them their questions were not answered.

It was when the meeting resumed the chair of parliament realized that three of the MPS that sat through the meeting left and leaving them no choice but to close the gathering due to the lack of a quorum. The meeting will be rescheduled next week.
Coronavirus Outbreak LIVE Updates: Another person tested positive for coronavirus in Mumbai's densely populated Dharavi area on Thursday.

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Authorities across states identified over more than 6,000 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin as more than 437 fresh cases of infection emerged on Wednesday to take the tally to 1,834 with 41 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare website.

Authorities said that more than 5,000 of those identified to have attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation have been quarantined, including in hospitals across states, while efforts are on to trace another 2,000 including in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Telangana.

Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi were among the places to report a large number of new cases till Wednesday. While more than 450 confirmed cases were reported by all states put together, they also reported at least 14 new deaths due to COVID-19.

The list includes foreigners as well, while some of those identified by the state authorities are yet to return from Delhi to their respective native places.

Authorities said that more than 5,000 of those identified to have attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation have been quarantined, including in hospitals across states, while efforts are on to trace another 2,000 including in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Telangana.

The other UP victim was the 72-year-old father-in-law of a Maharashtra man, who had come to Meerut on a visit and infected 16 relatives, district officials said.

He was admitted there on Sunday, but was being treated at Basti's district hospital and other places for liver and kidney ailments for the last three months.

A 25-year-old Basti man had died at Gorakhpur's BRD Medical College on Monday before his test reports had come in, Principal Secretary (Medical and Health) Amit Mohan Prasad said.

Uttar Pradesh reported its first coronavirus deaths on Wednesday with one casualty each in Gorakhpur and Meerut as the total number of positive patients rose to 113 in the northern state.

A person also tested positive from Mumbai's Dharavi  home to 15 lakh people and considered to the largest slum in Asia.

Maharashtra reported six deaths and 33 new cases taking the tally to 335. Thirty of the new cases were found in Mumbai alone, two in Pune and one in Buldhana, PTI quoted a health official as saying.

Eight more people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Gujarat, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 82 (including 6 cured and 6 death) in the state. All the eight positive cases are from Ahmedabad. The condition of 66 persons out of the affected persons in the state is stable while three persons are on ventilator support.

"This is absolutely heartbreaking. We believe this is one of the youngest lives lost anywhere due to complications relating to COVID-19," he said.

Governor Ned Lamont tweeted that the newborn was brought unresponsive to a hospital late last week and could not be revived. "Testing confirmed last night that the newborn was COVID-19 positive," Lamont said.

A six-week-old infant has died of complications relating to COVID-19, the governor of the US state of Connecticut said Wednesday, in one of the youngest recorded deaths from the virus.

The bank said its debit card holder customers can now withdraw cash from any ATM without charges till 30 June.

"In line with the RBI guidelines and to show our solidarity, HDFC Bank is offering its customers EMI moratorium as a relief measure. You can defer your EMIs/loan installments and credit card dues up to 3 months," the bank said.

HDFC Bank on Wednesday offered to defer EMIs in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The bank in an email said to its customers said the prevailing situation may pose a huge challenge for people at large.

Nirmal Singh, former Hazoori Ragi of Golden Temple, passed away on Thursday morning at 4.30 am after testing positive for the novel coronavirus on Wednesday, India Today reported.

State Governor Ron DeSantis, who issued a stay-at-home order on Wednesday for Florida's 21 million residents, had earlier stated he didn't want the ships to come into port.

"We're taking the Canadians off and giving them to Canadian authorities," Trump said, adding, "Same thing with the UK. But we have to help the people. They're in big trouble."

Both the cruise ship Zaandam, where dozens of people have fallen ill, and its sister ship Rotterdam are due to enter US waters early Thursday ahead of their expected docking in Fort Lauderdale.

US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that US authorities will evacuate passengers from a stranded cruise ship due to dock in Florida after being barred from several South American countries because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The agency has repeatedly said that ordinary citizens do not need to wear masks unless they are feeling sick. But with the new data on people who may be infected without ever feeling sick, or who are transmitting the virus for a couple of days before feeling ill, Redfield said that such guidance was being critically re-reviewed.

This helps explain how rapidly this virus continues to spread across the country, the director, Dr Robert Redfield, said in an interview broadcast on Tuesday.

In particular, the high level of symptom-free cases is leading the CDC to consider broadening its guidelines on who should wear masks.

As many as 25 percent of people infected with the coronavirus may not show symptoms, the director of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention warns  a startlingly high number that complicates efforts to predict the pandemics course and strategies to mitigate its spread.

"We will begin a steadier flow of flights out of New Delhi and Mumbai in the coming days, really beginning toward the end of this week and into the weekend," he said in response to a question.

"We began our repatriation efforts from India on Wednesday with a flight that brought in some 170 US citizens," Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs Ian Brownlee told reporters during a conference call.

The repatriation from India is part of the massive effort being undertaken by the US for its citizens from across the world. So far, the US has repatriated over 30,000 citizens from over 60 countries on more than 350 flights.

The US has begun repatriation of its stranded nationals, who want to return home, from India which is undergoing a 21-day lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus pandemic, a senior American diplomat has said, praising the Indian government for extending full support to undertake this "important mission".

The total number of positive cases in the National Capital on Wednesday climbed to 152, with 32 fresh cases being reported in a day, according to Delhi government authorities.

"A person from markaz tried to commit suicide, but doctors foiled his suicide attempt, putting their lives in danger," the doctor said.

During an interaction over a video link with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the doctor from Rajiv Gandhi Super Specialty Hospital said people, who were brought from the markaz, were "not cooperating" with the medical staff of the hospital.

A person from Nizamuddin's markaz infected with coronavirus tried to commit suicide at a hospital in New Delhi, a doctor said.

All the fresh cases and the deceased had a history of attending the religious meeting at Nizamuddin in south Delhi in March, it said.

Thirty new COVID-19 cases were reported in the state, a press release from Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao's office said on Thursday.

Three persons, who had attended a religious congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin, died due to novel coronavirus in Telangana, taking the toll in the state to nine on Wednesday, a statement said.

"Some of the attendees are at quarantine centres and under observation," said Singh.

Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh tweeted that one more case of COVID-19 was detected in the state, taking the tally to two. The infected was one of the attendees in Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz.

There will be no trading activity in the forex and commodity futures markets, too. The markets will resume for trading on 3 April.

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) is closed on Thursday on account of 'Ram Navami'. The wholesale commodity markets, including metal and bullion, will remain shut.

About 30,000 people, including 200 world leaders, had been due to attend the 10-day conference for crucial talks to halt rising global temperatures.

The UN's COP 26 climate change summit due to take place in the Scottish city of Glasgow in November was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, reported AFP.

Trump, struggling to fill shortages of ventilators and personal protective equipment, accepted Putins offer in a phone call on Monday. A Russian military transport plane left an airfield outside Moscow and arrived at New Yorks John F Kennedy airport in late afternoon on Wednesday.

Russia sent the United States medical equipment on Wednesday to help fight the coronavirus pandemic, a public relations coup for Russian President Vladimir Putin after he discussed the crisis with US President Donald Trump.

An indigenous woman in a village deep in the Amazon rainforest has contracted the novel coronavirus, the first case reported among Brazils more than 300 tribes, the Health Ministrys indigenous health service Sesai said on Wednesday.

In the next few days we will reach 1 million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths worldwide," he said.

"I am deeply concerned about the rapid escalation and global spread of infection," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a virtual news conference on Wednesday.

The head of World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said that the number of confirmed coronavirus cases would hit one million "in the next few days."

So far, the total COVID-19 toll in the United States reached 4757.

The toll from COVID-19 in the United States jumped by 884 over the past 24 hours, setting a new one-day record for the country, according to Johns Hopkins University on Wednesday evening.

"This takes the total number of positive cases in the state to 129," ANI reported.

Rajasthan has reported nine more cases related to the novel coronavirus, the state health department said. Of these, seven are from Ramganj, and one each from Jodhpur and Jhunjhunu.

Twelve more coronavirus cases were reported in Indore thereby taking the total number fof confirmed cases in Madhya Pradesh to 98, PTI reported.

"The instrument has been manufactured under Rs 1000, through in-house resources (which is a fraction of the cost of the temperature guns in the market)," the Indian Navy said.

The sensor was built to undertake screening of a large number of personnel at the entry gates of the yard, reducing the load on the security sentries at the gate.

Naval Dockyard in Mumbai has designed and developed its own handheld infrared-based temperature sensor in view of coronavirus, the Indian Navy said.

Three more Covid-19 cases have been reported in Maharashtra - two from Pune and one from Buldhana, taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 338, said Maharashtra Health Department.

All nine members had allegedly attended controversial meeting at Nizamuddin in Delhi from Goa have now been taken to a quarantine facility in Mayem residency, informed Ponda Police.

After Centre's directive to States on Islamic sect members over rising COVID-19 Cases, Ponda Police in Goa on Wednesday has found around nine members from Tablighi Jamaat, who are natives of Gujarat and were hiding in Madrasa based at Ponda South Goa for last 11 days.

"At the time of a pandemic, if anyone tries to make religious divide it will be strongly dealt with. Coronavirus does not affect a person after checking his religion. Everyone will have to be united to fight this pandemic," he said.

The Kerala chief minister further warned that anyone trying to create a religious divide will be dealt with strongly in the state.

"The situation is under control and there is no need for any concern. A purposeful campaign is being run particularly on social media targeting those who attended Nizamuddin Markaz gathering in Delhi and their community," Vijayan told reporters on Wednesday.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan Thursday said that a social media campaign is underway to identify all those who participated in the Tablighi Jamaat gathering at the Nizamuddin Markaz from the state and added that currently many of them are under observation.

The state government had on Monday said sweet shops will be allowed to operate from 12 noon to 4 pm, after the apex body of sweetmeat outlets flagged concerns over wastage of milk and jobless staff.

Around 30-35 percent of sweet shops opened in the two days since getting a go-ahead from the West Bengal government to remain open for four hours during the lockdown period, officials said on Wednesday.

A 52-year-old COVID-19 patient died in Vadodara on Thursday morning. He had a history of travel to Sri Lanka, and was admitted to SSG Hospital, Vadodara on 19 March. Four members of his family have also tested positive for the virus and are undergoing treatment, said S Agarwal, Vadodara Collector Gujarat.

The number of calls to Dial 100 rose after Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had recently said that people can use the service for assistance relating to health emergencies and following his instructions to officials that no person should be allowed to go without a meal in the state.

"Imagine the stress levels the #Dial100 staff have undergone, who received 6,41,955 calls in just 3 days during this #LockDownInTelangana. In this regard, a #StressManagement session held by #BOURGEON to reinforce them to keep their spirit up & enabling them to take up even more beyond," the DGP tweeted.

The Telangana police have received more than 6.41 lakh distress calls to Dial 100 service in the last three days of the ongoing coronavirus lockdown. A stress management session was held for the Dial 100 staff on Wednesday to help keep their spirits up, Telangana Director General of Police (DGP) M Mahendar Reddy said.

Indore, which is an industrial hub, is the worst affected by coronavirus in the state. Majority of COVID-19 patients in Indore have no travel history and they contracted the infection at the local level, the official said.

Out of the total 98 coronavirus cases in the state, 75 have been reported from Indore, eight from Jabalpur, six from Ujjain, four from Bhopal, two each in Shivpuri and Gwalior and one from Khargone, health department official said.

The 12 new patients include an 80-year-old woman and three from a family whose nine members earlier tested positive for coronavirus, an official of the Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial college in Indore said.

Twelve more coronavirus patients have been found in Indore, taking the total number of such cases in Madhya Pradesh to 98, an official said on Thursday. Of the total cases in the state, 77 percent are from Indore, he said.

These officials were making an announcement for the people to stay inside their houses during the lockdown. A few people were seen on roads and got into an argument with the patrolling officials. As the police officials tried to intervene, the miscreants resorted to stone-pelting.

Deputy District Magistrate Gaurav Kumar (IAS), Tehsildar Mahendra Bahadur Singh, police station in-charge Durga Singh, along with other officials, were patrolling in the area on foot.

Three people were detained during the incident and cases have been registered against six people, including a woman, under relevant Sections.

"A group pelted stones at the police team from their terrace. A case has been registered and action is being taken to arrest them," said Arun Kumar Singh, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Rampur.

Three people have been detained after a group of miscreants pelted stones at officials in Rampur's Tanda area on Wednesday. The incident occurred while the security personnel were patrolling the area to ensure that people stay in their houses during the COVID-19 lockdown. None of the officials were injured in the incident.

According to the ministry's data, there has been an increase of 131 cases in the last 12 hours, with 1764 active cases.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Affairs on Thursday reported that the toll due to COVID-19 rose to 50 in the country, while the number of cases spiked to 1,965. Out of these, 151 have been cured/discharged, according to the ministry.

Sai Hospital in Mumbai's Chembur area was completely sealed, while Saifee Hospital, Jaslok Hospital, Bhabha Hospital and Hinduja Hospital were partially affected due to exposure to COVID19 patients reported ANI.

"We got in touch with doctors to develop the ventilators who briefed us as to what exactly happens to a COVID-19 patient. A COVID-19 patient develops acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) which causes the lungs to collapse. The lungs are weak and one can't rely on a person's muscles to help him breathe so to avoid that fatigue, the patient needs invasive ventilation," he added.

Nikhil Kurele, one of the founders of NOCCA Robotics told ANI, "Our objective is to build a portable ventilator. The ventilators that we are developing will cost less than Rs 50,000. It is not a full-fledged ventilator. It has features for COVID-19 patients specifically."

The invasive ventilators being developed by the engineers at NOCCA will cost less than Rs 50,000. A ventilator is a device that helps a patient breathe, giving them time to fight off infections and recover. NOCCA, a two-year-old start-up which was co-founded in 2017 by IIT Kanpur graduates, makes water-less robots that clean solar plants.

Engineers at NOCCA Robotics Private Limited, a start-up in Pune are working on developing low-cost ventilators in a bid to help the country in its fight against coronavirus and eventually save hundreds of lives.

The newborn was delivered at the Chembur-based hospital on 26 March. On Tuesday, the mother and son were shifted to Kurla Bhabha hospital and later to Kasturba Hospital. The family claimed no pediatrician had visited the baby and the mother at Kasturba Hospital  the nodal center for COVID-19 cases in Mumbai  since they had been admitted there.

Indian Express reported that a three-day-old boy on Wednesday tested positive for COVID-19, suspected to have caught the virus from the bed occupied by an infected patient before it was allotted to his mother at Sai hospital in Mumbai. While the mother has also tested positive, the boy is the states youngest COVID-19 patient.

"40 people have been placed under quarantine. Further action will be taken after their report comes," he added.

Meanwhile, Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij told ANI, "All SPs in Haryana have been told that all those places where they (those who attended Markaz event) could be checked. Police did checking in Ambala yesterday and four possibly infected people were found. They have been admitted to hospital and their samples sent for test."

The state has reported forty-three coronavirus positive cases so far, out of these, 23 have been cured/discharged.

A 67-year-old COVID-19 patient from Haryana passed away at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Chandigarh, informed Dr Kuldeep Singh, Ambala Chief Medical Officer on Thursday.

"A total of 700 possibly infected and confirmed cases of COVID-19 are in different hospitals in Delhi," said Jain.

Of the 32 people who tested positive for COVID-19 in Delhi on Wednesday, 29 had had attended Tablighi Jamaat event in Nizamuddin, said Health Minister Satyendar Jain.

Speaking to ANI, Karnataka Health Minister said, "We are monitoring 362 people who had attended Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi. Out of 27 people from Bidar who had attended, 11 have tested positive for COVID-19, while results of 16 others are awaited. Total positive cases in the state are 121."

Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu on Thursday confirmed that 11 people of 27 in Bidar, who had participated in Tablighi Jamaat at Delhi's Nizamuddin Markaz have tested positive for COVID-19.

This will be the second such interaction in less than two weeks on the critical issue of the COVID-19 outbreak and related matters and the first after the Central government imposed a 21-day nationwide lockdown from 25 March.The last interaction took place on 20 March.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a video conference with all chief ministers on Thursday during which issues such as ways to contain the spread of COVID-19, movement of migrants and contact tracing of Tablighi Jamat participants are likely to come up for discussion, sources said on Wednesday. The availability of essential items will also be discussed during the conference, they added.

"The three accused were booked under IPC Section 188 after they were found roaming in Baramati city of Pune district without any reason, thus violating the lockdown and orders imposed under Section 144 of the CrPC," Baramati''s Deputy Superintendent of Police Narayan Shirgaonkar said.

Judge JJ Bachulkar on Wednesday ordered that the accused - Afzal Attar (39), Chandrakumar Shah (38) and Akshay Shah (32) - serve three-day imprisonment or pay a fine of Rs 500 each.

A Baramati court in Pune has awarded three-day imprisonment to three individuals for violating the lockdown imposed by the government to contain the spread of coronavirus. This is, perhaps, the first case of conviction for violating the lockdown order, police claimed.

The online booking systems of private airlines, including SpiceJet, Indigo and GoAir, were showing bookings from 15 April onward for domestic travel. However, there is no official statement so far from the airlines on the same.

Reservations on the webste of IRCTC, the online ticketing subsidiary of Indian Railways, were already open as per the 120-day advanced reservation period (ARP).

"It is to clarify that reservations for journeys after 14 April were never stopped and is not related to any new announcement," said Ministry of Railways.

According to some media reports , Indian Railways and private airlines are allowing passengers to make travel reservations from 15 April onward, after the 21-day nationwide lockdown period concludes.

India reported 437 new Covid-19 cases between 31 March and 1 April. The toll in India climbed to 50 on Thursday, the health ministry stated. The total number of coronavirus cases in the country to now stands at 1965 including 1764 active cases, 150 recoveries and 50 deaths.

The COVID-19 cases breached 1000-mark in 44 days, from 15 February to 29 March in India. However, within four days, from 29 March to 1 April , the number of those infected by the novel coronavirus almost doubled.

"No document in medical literature supports such a prescription of alcohol to persons with alcohol withdrawal syndrome", the judge added

"We are concerned that the State Government has taken a unilateral decision to administer more alcohol to persons suffering from alcohol withdrawal syndrome. This is disturbing," Justice Nambiar said, adding, "This is a recipe for disaster."

A bench comprising Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Shaji P Chaly passed the interim order on petitions filed by Congress MP TN Prathapan, Indian Medical Association and Kerala Government Medical Officers Association.

The Kerala High Court on Thursday stayed the order issued by the state government to allow alcohol supply to an individual on submission of doctor's prescription that shows the person is suffering from withdrawal syndrome, Live Law reported. The stay has been ordered for three weeks.

Mr Deepak Parekh, Chairman, HDFC Limited said, "These are uncertain and trying times for all of us. The HDFC Groups support to the PM-CARES relief fund is to commend the exemplary efforts of the Central and State governments, armed and paramilitary forces, local police, healthcare professionals and sanitation workers across the country, who are working tirelessly day in and out to fight the pandemic. In the aftermath of COVID-19 and with the good intent of over 130 crore Indians, I am certain we will emerge a stronger, more conscious & compassionate nation."

Financial services conglomerate HDFC Group on Thursday committed Rs 150 crore to the PM-CARES fund to support the Centre for its relief and rehabilitation measures towards the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

"The patient is a resident of Worli area but was posted at Dharavi for cleaning," said an official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)

A second COVID-19 case has been registered in Mumbai's Dharavi after a 52-year-old BMC sanitisation worker tested positive for the virus on Thursday, ANI reported.

"Many of them (attendees of Tablighi Jamaat event) are objecting against testing and feel that they do not need admission. So, this put security of our staff at risk. Now, police have been deployed around three blocks where they have been kept," said the doctor.

Medical Director of Delhi's LNJPN Hospital, Dr JC Passey on Thursday said that the 216 COVID-19 patients in the National Capital have been divided into groups - 188 attendees of Tablighi Jamaat event and the rest. Dr Passey also said of the 24 reports from the Tablighi group, 23 patients have tested positive for the virus.

As many as 71 people from the state attended the congregation, Mamata told the media in Kolkata.

The West Bengal government has quarantined 54 persons, including 40 foreigners, who attended the religious congregation organised by the Tablighi Jamaat in New Delhi, IANS quoted chief minister Mamata Banerjee as saying on Wednesday.

"We have carried out preemptive and scientific measures such as inspections and quarantine for all personnel entering our country and thoroughly disinfecting all goods, as well as closing borders and blocking sea and air lanes.

"Not one single person has been infected with the novel coronavirus in our country so far," Pak told AFP.

Pak Myong Su, director of the anti-epidemic department of the North's Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters, insisted that the efforts had been completely successful.

North Korea remains totally free of the novel coronavirus, a senior health official in Pyongyang has insisted, despite mounting skepticism overseas as confirmed global infections near one million.

Abhinav Kumar, Vice President - Paytm said, "Ensuring that healthcare workers are provided with comfortable temporary accommodation is the least what we can do for them. We will keep on adding cities as well as properties who share our belief and help these heroes in every way possible."

Few of the most prominent chains in the country including OYO, Treebo, Ginger Hotels are participating in their initiative.

This initiative will enable medical practitioners to search and book a room in hotels nearest to the hospitals, clinics and other medical facilities they are working in. The list would be available on the app under the '#WESALUTEYOUALL' tag.

Paytm on Thursday announced that it has launched a special hotel listings page on its app to support temporary accommodation needs of the medical frontline forces fighting COVID-19. The company has rolled out this initiative in partnership with more than 300 hotels including acclaimed chains and star-rated properties that are pitching in to support healthcare heroes in 60 plus cities.

Schlesinger was nominated for 10 Emmys for writing comical songs across several television shows, winning three.

Schlesinger died at a hospital in upstate New York, his longtime lawyer Josh Grier told The Associated Press. It is not clear where or how Schlesinger, a 52-year-old father of two daughters, contracted the virus. He had been sedated and on a ventilator for several days.

Emmy and Grammy-winning musician and songwriter Adam Schlesinger , known for his work with his band Fountains of Wayne and on the TV show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, died Wednesday after contracting the coronavirus.

For Class 9 students, promotion to Class 10 will be on the basis of summative (SA) and formative assessment (FA) evaluation. If any student failed to clear the internal process, the school will utilise the present vacation period for providing remedial intervention.

"Karnataka State Board has cancelled exams for Class 7 and 8 students standard. Children will be promoted to the next standard without exams," said Kumar.

The schedule for SSLC examination and decision on PUC English exam will be announced after 14 April, said S Suresh Kumar, Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Minister.

The advisory also said that the Police warned the Police and other authorities to deal with nthe migrant workers in a humane manner.

"The migrant workers in relief camps/shelter homes should be provided adequate mediacl facilites besides proper food, clean drinking water and sanitation," read the advisory.

Preeti Sudan, Secretary at Ministry of Health & Family Welfare issued a directive to chief ministries of all States and Union Territories on redressal of grievances of migrant labourers in different parts of the nation.

Calling for availability of all necessary equipment for medical professionals, she said the onus lies on the government to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday criticised the government for "unplanned" implementation of the countrywide lockdown that she said had caused "chaos and pain" to millions of migrant workers.

The sources further said that the doctor's His family will also be screened.

A resident doctor of the Physiology Department of All India Institute Of Medical Science (AIIMS), Delhi has tested positive for the novel coronavirus. According to hospital sources, the doctor has been admitted to a new private ward for further evaluation and multiple testing.

Modi also asked the chief ministers to reach out to Community Leaders and social welfare organizations to adopt a community-approach in the battle against the pandemic.

The chief miisters praised the leadership of Modi in the time of crisis and briefed about steps taken to contain spread of cases arising from Tabligha event in Delhi.

"Our goal is to ensure minimum loss of life:," said Modi during video interaction with the chief ministers on tackling COVID-19.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday praised the efforts taken by state governments to ensure the curb of COVID-19 and stressed on the formulation of a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of population once the nationwide lockdown concludes.

Sport could play a huge role in uplifting the world and peoples perspective on things. Isolation encourages idle minds and I think sport can create that theatre and level of expectation around what its like to be outside again and be active," Morgan said.

If medical experts advised us it was okay to play behind closed doors and it was on TV, I think that would be a huge step forward for the game, the World Cup winning captain told reporters in a conference call.

The England and Wales Cricket Board has suspended all professional cricket until 28 May but is looking at the possibility of playing internationals behind closed doors.

Englands limited-overs captain Eoin Morgan says giving fans the chance to watch live cricket on television, even if the matches took place without spectators, would help boost morale during the coronavirus pandemic.

"I have appointed Pulikeshi Nagar ACP Tabarak Fathima to investigate the matter. A case will be registered and action will be taken. ASHA workers will be protected by the police to carry out the their functions," said Bengaluru Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao.

An ASHA worker in Karnataka, Krishnaveni, said she was attacked in Byatarayanapura, Bengaluru while collecting data on coronavirus. She said, "The problem started when an announcement was made against us from a mosque, whoever made that announcement should be arrested".

The congregational event conducted by the Tablighi Jamaat organisation in Delhi has become a "hotspot" for the coronavirus after attendees from several states tested positive for COVID-19.

The MHA on Thursday said that around 9,000 primary contacts of the Nizammudin congregation attendees have been identified so far.

The Aviation secretary also said, "The governemnt direction is very clear that the lockdown is till 14 April so far. If the lockdown is extended , then airlines will have to reschedule the flights they are booking now."

"Most airlines are following this  they're not charging cancellation fee, they are offering options to reschedule the flight. We had imposed restrictions on international flights arriving from specific destination even before the lockdown. After the lockdown ends, we will consider the resumption of flights on a case by base basis after assessing the situation," the statement said.

The Aviation ministry on Thursday said that airlines have been given a "clear advisory" to not take cancellation charges.

"We have released the flying allowance of pilots for the month of January (which was due to be paid in March)," they added.

Air India CMD on Thursday said that the entire range of personal protective eqipment (PPE) has been made available for the staff which is flying the relief flights.

An elderly man from Nabadwip in West Bengal's Nadia district has quarantined himself on a river boat. He said, "I had fever after visit to a relative's place in Habibpur. Villagers here didn't allow me to enter the village. On doctor's advice to quarantine for 14 days, I took shelter on the boat."

The Indian Medical Research Council (ICMR) is likely to recommend the Rapid Antibody Tests in COVID-19 hotspot areas, India Today reported. The report said that a National Task Force meeting is scheduled for 5 pm on Thursday to finalise this recommendation.

Union health ministry on Thursday said that order has been place for more than 1.5 crore pieces of protective gear like N-95 masks.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after two addresses to the nation over the coronavirus situation over the past few weeks, tweeted that he will share a video message at 9 am on Friday morning.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal addressing a video press conference on Thursday said that the state government will give Rs 5,000 to autorickshaw, Gramin-Sewa, and e-rickshaw drivers amid the lockdown over coronavirus.

The Maharashtra government on Thursday declared 30 government hospitals as dedicated COVID-19 facilities, India Today reported. 2,305 beds are available in the hospitals, the state health ministry said.

Meanwhile, The Indian Express reported that another case has been reported in the area on Thursday. "A 52-year-old man who worked in Dharavi as a sweeper has been tested positive for the coronavirus. He is admitted in Seven Hills hospital," the report said.

"I visited Dharavi and took stock of situation after the first coronavirus case was reported here. Also, held meetings with police and municipal officers. There is no need to panic but the lockdown should be strictly followed," she said.

Maharashtra minister and Dharavi MLA Varsha Gaikwad on Thursday visited the area after a coronavirus case was reported in the densely populated area on Wednesday. The 53-year-old patient died succumbed to the infection later in the evening.

Of these, 758 have been traced and tests have been conducted on all of them from which 91 were found positive for coronavirus. The cases are now at 135 in the state.

The Andhra Pradesh government said that around 1,085 people from the state travelled to Delhi for the congregation conducted by the Tablighi Jamaat organisation in the Nizammudin area.

Meanwhile, the total cases of coronavirus in the state have risen to 53 after 16 positive cases were reported in the last 24 hours.

The West Bengal government on Thursday said that 57,901 people have been kept in home quarantine in the state while 1,014 were in hospital isolation so far.Of these, except for 280, the rest have now been released.

"75 have tested positive for COVID-19 in Tamil Nadu of which 74 are those who participated in the Tablighi Jamaat event. Total positive cases in the state are 309 including 264 who attended the Tablighi event," she said.

Tamil Nadu health secretary Beela Rajesh on Thursday said that 74 of 75 new cases of COVID-19 in the state attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi.

Eight cases have been reported from the Kasargode district, five from Idukki, two from Kollam, one each in Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta, Malappuram, and Thrissur.

"A pregnant woman from Kollam district is also among the 21 new COVID-19 positive cases in Kerala," he added.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that 21 more people, including a pregnant woman in the Kollam district, have tested positive for coronavirus in the state. The total cases in the state are 286 of which 256 are active cases, he said.

Thirteen new cases of coronavirus have been reported in Rajasthan which brings the total to 133, which including the two Italians and 14 attendees of the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi. The number of active cases in the state are 115.

The BMC has uploaded a map that shows the containment zones in Mumbai. These are zones in which people have tested positive for coronavirus.

ANI reported that 40 health workers of the Shatabdi hospital in Mumbai's Kandivali have been quarantined after a patient undergoing treatment at the hospital was found to be COVID-19 positive.

The total deaths in the state are 19, while 42 people have been discharged after recovery.

The Maharashtra health department on Thursday said that the total cases of coronavirus rose to 416 after 81 new patients were reported in 24 hours. Of these, Mumbai has 57 cases, Pune has six, Pimpri Chinchwad has three, Ahmednagar has nine, Thane has five and Buldhana has one.

"Lakhs of migrant workers were forced to return to their villages in the absence of transportation services. This has hurt many people," she added.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday said that the way the 21-day complete lockdown was imposed by Centre "with few hours of prior information has created problems for common people".

Foreigners who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizammudin without missionary visa will be blacklisted for visa violations, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.

INTUC-affiliated trade body INMF has put forth a demand before Coal India that all workers irrespective of activities they are involved in, should have an insurance cover of Rs 50 lakh in case of death due to COVID-19.

Two people on Thursday tested positive for coronavirus in Morena in Madhya Pradesh, taking total in state to 100. 

"Out of 35 cases, 10 were reported in Gurugram, six in Faridabad, four in Palwal, three each in Sirsa and Ambala, two in Panchkula, and one each in Hisar, Sonipat, and Rohtak. Out of which, nine patients of Gurugram, two patients from Panipat, one patient each from Faridabad and Palwal have been discharged," the statement said.

The Haryana government on Thursday said that the total positive cases in Haryana are 35.

A 59-year-old woman and her 10-month-old granddaughter on Thursday tested positive for COVID-19 in Chandigarh, ANI reported. They are primary family contacts of an NRI couple (Positive for COVID-19). Total cases in the union territory is 18, so far, the health department said.

Mumbai Police on Thursday arrested one person on charges of hoarding over one lakh three-ply face masks worth Rs 35.84 lakh in the Santacruz west area, the arrested person has been sent to police custody by Court.

Twenty-seven positive new COVID-19 cases were reported in Telangana on Thursday, taking the number of active cases in the state to 128.

Odisha chief minister on Thursday said, "It is time for everyone to be there for each other as the entire country is under lockdown & fighting an unprecedented pandemic of COVID-19. Appeal house owners to be compassionate to poor & waive off or at least defer the rent by 3 months. Lets show the world that Odisha cares."

The global toll due to the coronavirus pandemic on Thursday crossed the 50,000-mark with 50,255 deaths reported worldwide.

The Tamil Nadu chief secretary said that the delegation of power to issue movement passes for the posts of district collectors, commissioners of corporation, tehsildars and deputy commissioners is cancelled with immediate effect. It was not working satisfactorily as too many people were on roads:

People who returned from Nizamuddin dont have any symptom so far, the state government said.They have been quarantined and 72 samples have been tested in this connection and all the reports found to be negative.

6. Arrangements have been made for a separate unit for COVID-19 patients in GBP hospital. Besides, another 50-bed ward is being prepared for COVID-19 patients in the new building of IGM hospital.

4. 161 samples have been tested and all reports have been found to be 'negative'

In Tripura, there is no positive case of COVID19 so far.

As per inputs received from the Tripura health department, the latest quarantine status as of Thursday is:

"Violent attacks being committed against doctors & paramedical staff providing healthcare by risking their lives is condemned in severest of terms & anyone resorting to violence against them will be liable to strict legal action. All DGPs to take immediate action against culprits," the MHA said.

A resident doctor of AIIMS who tested positive for COVID19 earlier on Thursday and his nine-month-pregnant wife who is also a doctor posted at Emergency has also tested positive. She has been isolated and her delivery will take place at AIIMS.

With this, the total cases in the state are 124, which includes three deaths and 11 discharges.

Karnataka reported a rise of 14 COVID-19 cases on Thursday, of which 11 are from Bidar district and had visited the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizammudin area.

Four people of these have been found positive until now in the state. Two are from Pimpri-Chinchwad and two from Ahmednagar.

According to a bulletin by the Maharashtra government on Thursday, of 1,062 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi, 890 have been contacted and 576 out of them have been put in isolation wards.

Reports added that the building of his residence will be quarantined and contact tracing will be done.

One more person tested positive for the coronavirus in Mumbai's dense-populated Dharavi area. According to reports, the patient is a doctor and authorities are investigating his travel history and other details.

Ministry of Home Affairs issues 3rd Addendum to lockdown guidelines, given measures with SOP on the evacuation of foreign nationals and release from quarantine facilities. pic.twitter.com/QhTKzS0C4n

Ministry of Home Affairs on Thursday issued the third set of guidelines on the lockdown, given measures with SOP on the evacuation of foreign nationals and release from quarantine facilities.

District Collector of Palghar in Maharashtra said that a 67-year-old COVID-19 patient passed away on Thursday and that he was also suffering from tuberculosis. The total number of deaths in the state due to COVID19 rises to 21.

The Madhya Pradesh government on Thursday put the National Security Act on Md Mustafa, Md Gulrez, Shoaib and Majeed who were involved in stone-pelting on health workers in Indore's Tatpatti Bakhal area, ANI reported.

"The current Lockdown on both domestic & international passenger flights is till 15 April. A decision to restart the flights after this period remains to be taken. If required, we will have to assess the situation on a case by case basis," Aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri said.

"Violent attacks being committed against doctors & paramedical staff providing healthcare by risking their lives is condemned in severest of terms & anyone resorting to violence against them will be liable to strict legal action. All DGPs to take immediate action against culprits," the MHA said.

Coronavirus Outbreak LATEST Updates: Another person tested positive for coronavirus in Mumbai's densely populated Dharavi area on Thursday.

Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday reportedly led a sanitisation drive and got himself sprayed with disinfectant in Guwahati, India Today reported.

"The state government has conducted sanitisation drive across the state to ensure cleanliness and contain and control the novel coronavirus outbreak. Sonowal led the sanitization drive at Fancy Bazar area and Minister for Guwahati Development Department, Siddhartha Bhattacharya, and other top officials of the state government were also present during the sanitization exercise," the report said.

The number of coronavirus cases in India crossed 2,000 as 2,069 confirmed cases were reported across the country till Thursday. Additionally, there have been 156 patients who have recovered and 53 patients who have succumbed to the infection.

The total active cases are 1,860.

Foreigners who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizammudin without missionary visa will be blacklisted for visa violations, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.

The Maharashtra health department on Thursday said that the total cases of coronavirus rose to 416 after 81 new patients were reported in 24 hours. Of these, Mumbai has 57 cases, Pune has six, Pimpri Chinchwad has three, Ahmednagar has nine, Thane has five and Buldhana has one.

The total deaths in the state are 19, while 42 people have been discharged after recovery.

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that 21 more people, including a pregnant woman in the Kollam district, have tested positive for coronavirus in the state. The total cases in the state are 286 of which 256 are active cases, he said.

"A pregnant woman from Kollam district is also among the 21 new COVID-19 positive cases in Kerala," he added.

Eight cases have been reported from the Kasargode district, five from Idukki, two from Kollam, one each in Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta, Malappuram, and Thrissur.

Tamil Nadu health secretary Beela Rajesh on Thursday said that 74 of 75 new cases of COVID-19 in the state attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi.

"75 have tested positive for COVID-19 in Tamil Nadu of which 74 are those who participated in the Tablighi Jamaat event. Total positive cases in the state are 309 including 264 who attended the Tablighi event," she said.

Arvind Kejriwal provided information about the situation of coronavirus in Delhi, especially in the context of the Tablighi Jamaat event which has become a hotspot for the coronavirus.

He said that 55 new patients linked to the congregation in Nizamuddin have been detected, adding that 108 patients from the event have been reported in the National Capital. He also said that two attendees have died of COVID-19 so far.

"We are testing all the 2364 evacuated from Markaz. Patients from the Markaz appear to be more serious. It is possible that Delhi figures will see a spike in the next one or two days," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after two addresses to the nation over the coronavirus situation over the past few weeks, tweeted that he will share a video message at 9 am on Friday morning.

The MHA on Thursday said that around 9,000 primary contacts of the Nizammudin congregation attendees have been identified so far.

The congregational event conducted by the Tablighi Jamaat organisation in Delhi has become a "hotspot" for the coronavirus after attendees from several states tested positive for COVID-19.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday praised the efforts taken by state governments to ensure the curb of COVID-19 and stressed on the formulation of a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of population once the nationwide lockdown concludes.

"Our goal is to ensure minimum loss of life:," said Modi during video interaction with the chief ministers on tackling COVID-19.

The chief miisters praised the leadership of Modi in the time of crisis and briefed about steps taken to contain spread of cases arising from Tabligha event in Delhi.

Modi also asked the chief ministers to reach out to Community Leaders and social welfare organizations to adopt a community-approach in the battle against the pandemic.

A second COVID-19 case has been registered in Mumbai's Dharavi after a 52-year-old BMC sanitisation worker tested positive for the virus on Thursday, ANI reported.

"The patient is a resident of Worli area but was posted at Dharavi for cleaning," said an official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

The Kerala High Court on Thursday stayed the order issued by the state government to allow alcohol supply to an individual on submission of doctor's prescription that shows the person is suffering from withdrawal syndrome, Live Law reported. The stay has been ordered for three weeks.

A bench comprising Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and Shaji P Chaly passed the interim order on petitions filed by Congress MP TN Prathapan, Indian Medical Association and Kerala Government Medical Officers Association.

"We are concerned that the State Government has taken a unilateral decision to administer more alcohol to persons suffering from alcohol withdrawal syndrome. This is disturbing," Justice Nambiar said, adding, "This is a recipe for disaster."

Arunachal Pradesh reported its first confirmed coronavirus case on Thursday after a 31-year-old who attended the Tablighi jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz tested positive for the virus, said chief minister Pema Khandu.

"At present he is asymptomatic and kept in isolation. His condition is stable," said the chief minister.

According to local reports, the patient from Tezu in Lohit district has been kept in strict quarantine. The report also mentioned that seven people have been kept in quarantine - six in Namsai and one in Lohit. Their samples were sent to Dibrugarh in neighbouring Assam on Wednesday.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Affairs on Thursday reported that the toll due to COVID-19 rose to 50 in the country, while the number of cases spiked to 1,965. Out of these, 151 have been cured/discharged, according to the ministry.

After Centre's directive to States on Islamic sect members over rising COVID-19 Cases, Ponda Police in Goa on Wednesday has found around nine members from Tablighi Jamaat, who are natives of Gujarat and were hiding in Madrasa based at Ponda South Goa for last 11 days.

Three more Covid-19 cases have been reported in Maharashtra - two from Pune and one from Buldhana, taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 338, said Maharashtra Health Department.

Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh tweeted that one more case of COVID-19 was detected in the state, taking the tally to two. The infected was one of the attendees in Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz.

On the intervening night of 1-2 April around 12. 15 am, Assam Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma tweeted about three fresh positive cases of COVID-19 detected in Goalpara, taking the state's tally of positive cases up by 16 in the state.

Sarma also stated that all the three individuals had a travel history traced to Nizamuddin in Delhi, where they had attended a religious conglomeration.

Authorities across states identified over more than 6,000 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin as more than 437 fresh cases of infection emerged on Wednesday to take the tally to 1,834 with 41 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare website.

The MOHFW figure includes 1,649 active cases, 143 cured or discharged and one migrated case.

But figures announced by states and union territories totalled 1,949 with at least 59 deaths, PTI reported.

The Ministry officials also said that cases have increased largely due to Tablighi Jamaat congregation, which took place in mid-March, and therefore technically it does n
The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) on April 2, as part of an operation to exchange cash currency for non-cash in the amount of up to $280 million, fully satisfied the applications of 11 systemically important banks for $241.5 million, the regulator said on its Facebook page.

"In the near future, the banks will be able to replenish their cash desks with cash currency and satisfy pent-up customer demand. The problem with a cash dollar deficit that arose due to interruptions in air traffic after the outbreak of coronavirus should be resolved soon," the central bank said in a statement.

It is noted that the National Bank is ready to consider the possibility of conducting another operation to replenish the banks' cash offices with cash if necessary.
Phoebean Ogundipe

Renowned educationist and author of English grammar books, Phoebean Ogundipe, has died at the age of 92, a report by PREMIUM TIMES has shown.

The author who was famous for her co-authored English grammar series, Brighter Grammar, passed away last Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.

She was buried on the same day but her death was announced days later, in a statement signed by her family.



We are sad to announce that on March 27, 2020, we had to say goodbye to Phoebean Ajibola Ogundipe (Charlotte, North Carolina).

Family and friends can light a candle as a loving gesture for their loved one. Leave a sympathy message to the family in the guestbook on this memorial page of Phoebean Ajibola Ogundipe to show support, the statement read.

The cause of her death was not stated.

Until her death, she co-authored the New Practical English for Senior Secondary series with P.S. Tregidgo and wrote other books, including Up-country Girl: A personal journey and truthful portrayal of African culture.

She is survived by four sons and ten grandchildren.

Short bio



Mrs Ogundipe (nee Itayemi) was born on May 16, 1927, in Esa Oke, Osun State.

She was educated at the University of St Andrews in Scotland and the Institute of Education, University of London and married Mr Adebayo Ogundipe in 1954.

She returned to Nigeria to begin her education career as a Senior Education Officer and later the Inspector of Education in the defunct Western State of Nigeria.

She was later named the Principal of the Adeyemi College of Education in Ondo State.

The author also served as Deputy Chief Federal Adviser on Education and National Secretary for UNESCO and became the acting director in the Federal Ministry of Education at the time of her retirement.

Upon retirement from public service, she co-founded a remedial educational institution, Top Tutors.

She was awarded the National Honour of Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) in 1979.
Coronavirus: Greece seals off refugee camp near Athens After first case of positive woman who had just given birth

(ANSAmed) - ATHENS, APRIL 2 - Greece has isolated a refugee camp near Athens after 21 refugees tested positive for coronavirus, including a woman who had just given birth - the first case reported in a migrant camp, the Greek immigration ministry said in a statement.



"Starting today, the facility has been placed in sanitary isolation for two weeks", the ministry said in the note.



According to local sources, the woman, an immigrant from Africa, tested positive after giving birth at a hospital in Athens at the beginning of this week.



The ministry said 20 people out of the 63 who were subsequently tested for the virus at the camp of Ritsona were positive, although asymptomatic. The camp is located some 80 km north of Athens. Medical personnel was not infected, according to the ministry. Access to the camp has been limited and food will be delivered to residents, the ministry said. Additional medical personnel will be sent to the area and all residents will be screened, according to the statement. (ANSAmed)
South Africa: Confirmed COVID-19 cases rise to 1 462

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country, as of Thursday, stands at 1 462.

The Minister of Health, Dr Zweli Mkhize, announced the increase in cases at Universitas Hospital in the Free State, where he met with the COVID-19 task team in the province. A mass screening and testing is now underway there.

Five deaths have been recorded, with two yet to be confirmed.

The Free State became a hotbed for COVID-19 infections after several people, who attended a Divine Restoration Ministries church conference, tested positive.

Mkhize, who attributed the restraint of the spread to the nationwide lockdown, warned against complacency, and emphasised that the country is only on the cusp of the outbreak.

Our current projections are still indicating that we need to get out and find those who could be infected in the community.

We are ready to fight. We are prepared. We must not be lulled into complacency, he said.

Of the 82 new confirmed cases on Thursday, the Eastern Cape reported 2; Free State 8; Gauteng 18; KwaZulu-Natal 20; Limpopo 2; Mpumalanga 1; Western Cape 27, with four cases that were unallocated.

On the number of COVID-19 deaths, the Health Minister said the department was still awaiting verification on two cases. He also announced 45 Coronavirus recoveries in the country.

On contact tracing in the Free State, Mkhize said of the 1 700 contacts identified from COVID-19 positive patients in the province, 1 600 contacts have been traced thus far.

State of readiness

With 86 Coronavirus cases in the Free State, the COVID-19 task team outlined its state of readiness for the imminent influx of patients.

Universitas Hospital Infectious Disease Specialist, Dr Samantha Potgieter, said about 70 ward beds have been prepared.

This includes areas where we will be able to isolate patients, who are under investigation, she said.

Potgieter outlined that patients will be tested and deviated accordingly following tests to ensure patients are protected.

Additionally, the procurement of personal protective equipment for healthcare professionals and staff is underway, and 16 COVID-19 Intensive Care Units have been set up, with plans for expansion.

COVID-19 task team chairperson, Nicholas Pierce, said the task team has introduced a concept that they will roll out at Universitas -- a PEEP [positive end-expiratory pressure] unit.

Procurement, for the unit, which will assist COVID-19 patients with oxygen, is also underway.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
#PeruEstaEnNuestrasManos El presidente @MartinVizcarraC informa sobre la situacion del Estado de Emergencia en el #Dia18 y las acciones que realiza el Gobierno para contener la propagacion del COVID-19.

??En vivo: https://t.co/J1oJUxY8eU https://t.co/6Eu8fT7Pwx
The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, on the left, on North Broad Street. Students in the master's in fine arts programs there graduate with highest debt-to-earnings ratio in the region. Read more

On Feb. 21, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts hosted its annual open house. Visitors nibbled on cheese squares and grapes. Noses tingled from paint smells in the artists studios on the eighth floor. Lovely was a common refrain from visitors looking at student art.

But one thing not much discussed on that upbeat night was the scourge of PAFA graduates and those of other art schools: student debt.

Graduates of the masters program in fine arts at PAFA, the nations oldest art school with $120 million in assets, had the highest student debt-to-personal-income rate in the region, a trove of recently released federal data shows.

The records detail graduates median earnings one year later and their federal student debt, broken down by degrees and colleges. It all can be searched on a new Inquirer tool that includes 3,460 colleges and post-secondary training programs in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

Right out of PAFA, a graduate with a masters in fine arts owed $93,008 in federal student loans and earned just $20,900 a year, The Inquirers tool shows.

Not only did those PAFA masters graduates stagger under the highest debt-to-income ratio in the three-state region, it carried the third-highest ratio in the nation for the same degree, according to the national data. The other masters of fine arts in the top five: the New York Academy of Art in Tribeca; Academy of Art University in San Francisco; Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, and the University of Pennsylvania.

The Penn fine arts masters graduated with a median federal debt of $86,257, while earning a paycheck of $21,700.

I dont know where the money goes, said a PAFA student contacted after the open house and who asked that her name not be used because shes still enrolled there. We dont even have a meal plan.

Art careers are notoriously elusive.

PAFA has created two new majors, illustration and animation, which can offer a more defined career path in the contemporary job market than other traditional areas of study in the fine arts, said Clint Jukkala, dean of the School of Fine Arts.

PAFA said it realizes that art schools are expensive. To help students, the institution has added millions for scholarships over the last decade for a total now of $5 million a year, Jukkala said. As a result of PAFAs scholarship programs, 28 PAFA students are paying no tuition this year, representing more than 10% of PAFAs undergraduate and graduates, the institution said.

.

PAFAs career services department advises students on personal finance, budgeting, career-path development, competing for contracts and other opportunities, resume development, self-promotion, and other essential career skills, the school said.

This year, about one-third of PAFAs students graduating with a masters in fine arts will leave without debt, and slightly more than half of the bachelors in fine arts will also graduate without student loans, the arts school said.

In 2016, the average national federal student loan default rate was 10.1% while PAFAs rate was 2.7%, Jukkala noted, putting the "institution significantly below the national average and lower than any of the colleges of art and design that PAFA views as peers.

Robert Kelchen, associate professor at Seton Hall University, said that default rates are not a good measure of a students ultimate outcome because students can avoid default by enrolling in an income-driven repayment program that let graduates with low-paying jobs cut their monthly payments. Then, after 20 years of payments, the federal government can forgive the taxpayer-backed loan. "Avoiding the worst possible outcome of default is important, but it doesnt mean that a student is doing well, Kelchen said.

Art and liberal arts majors generally fared poorly in the government data that tracks degrees and earnings and debt. But experts say that students may not be pursuing those degrees solely for the immediate financial return and could transition to other more lucrative occupations later in their career.

We have to consider that there is a payback of earnings over a lifetime, said Laura Perna, a professor of education at the University of Pennsylvania and an expert in college affordability.

So the value of a college education will be realized over a career because of the types of skills and critical thinking one learns in college, she said. We have to pay attention to other benefits in addition to earnings.

Another factor in art schools is the expansion of for-profit institutions that have stocks traded on Wall Street. They expanded dramatically in recent decades, offering alternatives to traditional nonprofit colleges such as PAFA, Penn and Temple. But for-profit colleges have drawn the attention of state and federal investigators for predatory, or misleading, marketing and lending to students.

For bachelors degrees in fine and studio arts, the for-profit Art Institute of Philadelphia and the Art Institute of Pittsburgh had the worst federal debt-to-earnings ratios.

Both were part of the Dream Center chain of schools. The Philadelphia campuses closed in 2018 and the Pittsburgh campus closed last year.

James Brawner 3rd, 47, graduated from the Art Institute of Philadelphia in 1999 with about $38,000 in federal debt but he couldnt land a job with his associates degree in visual communications and deferred his loan payments.

Over the years, he has worked as a security guard, customer service rep, and overnight stocker at Lowes. He complained about his rising debts to the state and federal education departments, city officials, former U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah and the attorney general, but said no one responded.

His federal loan now stands at $114,000.
A Padma Shri awardee and former 'Hazuri Raagi' at the Golden Temple who was undergoing treatment for coronavirus here died early Thursday morning, taking the COVID-19-related death toll to five in the state, a health official said.

The 62-year-old 'Gurbani' exponent had recently returned from abroad andtested positive for coronavirus on Wednesday, the official said.

Principal, Government Medical College, Sujata Sharma said his condition started deteriorating on Wednesday evening and he was put on ventilator support. He died at 4:30 AM on Thursday.

The man was admitted to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital here for chest infection after he had complained of breathlessness and dizziness, she said.

According to officials, he had held a large 'sammelan' (religious gathering) in Delhi and some other places after he returned from abroad.

He had also performed a 'kirtan' at a house in Chandigarh on March 19 along with his family members and other relatives.

The samples of his two daughters, son, wife, a driver and six others, who went along with him to Chandigarh, would be taken for testing for the virus, officials said.

The Chandigarh administration has also been informed about the religious gathering at sector 27 in Chandigarh to take necessary steps in this regard, they said.

The man was awarded the Padma Shri in 2009. He had the knowledge of all the 31 'Raags' in the Gurbani of the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of Sikhism.

With his death, the total count of COVID-19-related deaths rose to five in the state.

Punjab has so far reported total 46 coronavirus cases -- 19 from Nawanshahr, 10 from Mohali, six from Hoshiarpur, five from Jalandhar, three from Ludhiana, two from Amritsar and one from Patiala.

Of the 46 cases, one patient was discharged from hospital after his second test results came to be negative.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(TNS)  Nine broadband providers will receive a total of $9.5 million in grants to bring high-speed internet access to Alabama communities.Gov. Kay Ivey awarded the grants under the Alabama Broadband Accessibility Fund, which was created by the Legislature in 2018 to help rural and under-served areas. The coronavirus pandemic has drawn attention to the need to expand broadband access, partly because public schools are closed and schools must begin using online instruction or other methods of teaching children at home.Availability of high-speed internet has always been vital, but the events of the past several weeks magnify just how imperative it is that all Alabamians have access to broadband, Ivey said in a press release. I am pleased to support these projects and look forward to the day when every household, school, healthcare facility, emergency service and business throughout Alabama is afforded broadband availability.The grants announced today are in response to applications submitted in late December. Additional awards from this round of applications could also be announced, the governors office said.
CHICO, Calif. - One Northern California company is stepping in with efforts to protect healthcare workers from coronavirus exposure.

"Idea Fab Labs" in Chico wants to protect people on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.

"We're producing both fabric face masks and also plastic face shields," said Erin Banwell, Director of Idea Fab Labs. "Right now we're doing 700 a day."

Banwell says he started production on March 20. He has a laser machine that cuts fabric for the masks. He also has a machine that cuts the plastic to make the shields.

It's all a part of the assembly line. In one room alone there's another assembly line where one station involves cutting nylon chords in order to make the fabric masks. A person in a second station cuts straps for the face shields and another station involves assembling the face shields.

The company is usually a hub for people to use their high tech tools, but they got a call to change their business model temporarily.

"We were originally reached out to by Debra Lucero a county supervisor," Banwell said.

Lucero requested the masks for social service health workers.

"Then a few days after that we were reached out to by Enloe hospital," Banwell said.

Representatives at Enloe Medical Center wanted the shields for its staff, it's a cause Banwell is happy to get behind.

"I hope I'm making a huge positive difference," Banwell said.

His company will continue to produce the gear -- with the help of donations from the North Valley Community Foundation. The donation allowed Banwell to hire seven employees. Before this, Banwell ran the company on his own.

He says he has already delivered some shields to Enloe Medical Center.

If you would like to help, "Idea Fab Labs" is looking to hire sewers who can make those masks from home, CLICK HERE.

Banwell says this really all kick-started with a generous donation from Chico Start. The company typically creates science exhibits for museums.

Please do not call Idea Fab Labs on the phone. To order masks, CLICK HERE

If you would like to ask about sewing opportunities, email chicoideafablabs.com and in the subject line say "sewing."
With the number of coronavirus positive cases in Ramganj area rising to 33 on Thursday, the densely populated area in Jaipur's walled city now accounts for nearly one fourth of all COVID-19 patients in Rajasthan.

The entire walled city, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has been sealed by authorities with essential items being delivered to homes by a network of volunteers including beat constables and NGO workers.

The state has recorded a total of 133 cases with 13 fresh cases reported on Thursday.

The maximum cases in the state are from Jaipur with Ramganj area in the city accounting for 33 cases out of 41 in the district and has become a hotspot with the surge in cases over the last few days.

The first case in the area was reported on March 26 when a 45-year old man who had returned from Oman on March 12 tested positive for the virus.

From the time he returned to the city, many of his family members and close contacts also contracted the virus.

Subsequently, curfew was clamped in seven police station areas falling under the walled city. More restrictions have been imposed as the entire walled city has been sealed.

Ration, milk and vegetables are being supplied door-to-door with survey and screening of suspects also going on across the walled city.

We are ensuring door-to-door supply of milk, vegetables and ration. Movement of people is restricted except for those who have permission to move. Sanitisation work and screening of suspects are being done, Jaipur District Collector Jogaram said.

Police are monitoring the entire walled city through 15 drones, making announcements for people to maintain social distancing to avoid the spread of the virus and extending a helping hand to those who are in need.

To ensure door-to-door supply of milk, vegetables, medicines and ration goes without any disruption, Manak Chowk police station devised a mechanism by involving NGO workers, locals, ration, vegetable, and milk vendors.

A house-to-house survey was conducted to collect data about residents, their daily needs of milk, ration and vegetables through beat constables and NGO workers.

In every street under the police station area, six volunteers (two each for ration, vegetable and milk) coordinated with vendors and locals.

When ration, vegetables and milk vendors reach the corner of every street, it is the duty of the vendor to ensure that people living in their street do not assemble at one place and remain at their entrance so that door-to-door supply is made, Manak Chowk police station SHO Jitendra Singh told PTI.

We have made WhatsApp groups and added all such volunteers, district supply officers, district administration officials and ration vendors, Singh said. There is a separate group of grocery shop owners and if anyone needs ration, it is being supplied by dealers to their homes, the SHO added.

Besides, a helpline number has been issued by the police station and staff has made arrangements for those who need medicines or any other kind of help.

Our policemen have supplied medicines to nearly 25 households so far. On receiving requests on the helpline, our constable purchases the medicines and supplies it to the patient living in the area, the SHO pointed out.

Apart from Manak Chowk, the curfew has been imposed inRamganj, Kotwali, Brahampuri, Nahargarh, Galta Gate and Subhash Chowk police station areas of the walled city.

Collector Jogaram said medical teams were doing intense screening in the area. We are ensuring that everyone cooperates during the screening, he said.

The walled city of Jaipur became a UNESCO World Heritage Site last year.

The total number of positive cases in Rajasthan stands at 133, which includes 18 people who were evacuated from Iran and are presently lodged in the Army's isolation facility in Jodhpur.

The rest of the 115 patients are spread across 15 districts in the state.

With 41 cases, Jaipur is on the top in the state in coronavirus cases with 33 of them in Ramganj area of the walled city.

Twenty-six cases are in Bhilwara, 10 in Jodhpur, nine in Jhunjhunu, eight in Churu, five in Ajmer, four in Tonk, three in Dungarpur, two each in Pratapgarh and Alwar and one each in Pali, Sikar, Bharatpur, Dholpur and Udaipur.

Udaipur, Dholpur and Bharatpur were added on Thursday to the list of districts having coronavirus positive cases.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Washington, April 2 : After being slammed by legislators, unions and employees about health safety across its workforce at warehouses amid the coronavirus pandemic, Amazon on Thursday said that it is taking major steps to protect the workers.

In a blog post, Dave Clark, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Operations at Amazon, said the company will begin taking employees' temperatures when they report for work and supply them with face masks.

"We are now temperature checking more than 100,000 employees per day. The complete rollout of temperature checks across our entire US and European operations network and Whole Foods Market stores is expected by early next week," said Clark.

The firing of an Amazon employee who organised a protest demanding more protection for workers amid the new coronavirus pandemic has not gone down well with the US Senators and the general public.

Earlier this week, Amazon had fired Chris Smalls, a worker at its Staten Island, New York warehouse, for allegedly breaking pandemic rules.

According to the retail giant, the company "terminated his employment for putting the health and safety of others at risk and violations of his terms of his employment." However, Small said in a statement that "Amazon would rather fire workers than face up to its total failure to do what it should to keep us, our families, and our communities safe." Clark said in the blog post that the company is conducting daily audits of the new health and safety measures it has put into place.

"With over 1,000 sites around the world, and so many measures and precautions rapidly rolled out over the past several weeks, there may be instances where we didn't get it perfect, but I can assure you that's just what there'll be -- exceptions," said Clark.

On March 16, Amazon announced that it would be hiring an additional 100,000 people to help meet demand and will be investing more than $350 million to support employees and partners during the ongoing crisis.

"We have already hired over 80,000 people into those roles, and have spent more than $150 million to support our team of associates and partners," said the company.
After Morocco imposed a confinement to contain the coronavirus outbreak, some 700,000 workers in 113,000 companies whose activity came to a halt will receive 1000 dirhams in March and 2000 for the next three months, Labor Minister Mohamed Amekraz said.

He said the employees affiliated to the pension fund CNSS will return to their job once normalcy is established after the confinement.

The employees will receive payments from the fund that was set up at the order of King Mohammed to upgrade hospitals, mitigate economic and social impact of coronavirus and keep jobs.

The same beneficiaries will continue to receive family allocations during this period, the minister said.

As for households whose head is not affiliated to the CNSS and who had to stop economic activity during the confinement, they will receive stipends ranging from 800 to 1200 dirhams depending on the household members.

Morocco has also offered companies easy loan access as well as tax and loan deferral to help them survive this crisis.

Total coronavirus cases in Morocco rose on Thursday at around 6:00 pm to 691, including 44 deaths and 30 recoveries, as the confinement is planned to be eased on April 20.
The latest:

White House coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx says incoming infection data suggests not enough Americans are abiding by guidelines in the national call to action to stem the spread of the virus.

Administration officials say the United States' infection and death rate from the virus is akin to what hard-hit Italy is facing. Italy has a population of about 60 million and has recorded nearly 14,000 deaths and 115,000 infections. The United States, with a population of about 327 million, has recorded more than 5,900 deaths and more than 243,000 infections.

Birx noted that Spain, Italy, France, and Germany have begun to bend their curves. But she says Americans will need to do a better job abiding by social distancing guidelines issued by the White House so the U.S. can do the same.

The White House issued its social distancing guidelines on March 16. Americans were advised to work from home when possible, cancel onsite learning and frequently wash hands.

President Trump takes second COVID-19 test

President Donald Trump said Thursday he took another coronavirus test earlier that day.

It literally took him a minute and gave a conclusion of negative about 14 or 15 minutes later, he said.

He took the test out of curiosity, he said, to see how long it would take.

The president also took a test March 13 after coming into contact with two individuals who tested positive for the virus.

1 million cases confirmed worldwide

At least one million cases of the virus have been confirmed worldwide, according to numbers from Johns Hopkins University.

As coronavirus spreads across Europe, governments and the European Union are focusing much of their economic rescue efforts on containing a boom in joblessness, particularly by helping companies not fire workers.

Unions estimate, based on reports from local branches, that at least one million Europeans lost their jobs over the past two weeks - and say the actual number is likely far higher - as a shutdown of schools, businesses and social gatherings froze large parts of the economy.

While the rise in unemployment is devastating and rapid, it is still far below that of the U.S., where nearly 10 million people applied for jobless benefits in two weeks. The contrast highlights Europes greater social safety nets, in particular schemes where governments help companies put workers on shorter hours instead of firing them - in the hope of bringing them back quickly once the pandemic fades.

Aggressive measures needed to avoid projected deaths

The nation's top infectious disease expert stressed Thursday the U.S. can still defy alarming projections of coronavirus deaths with aggressive measures.

Models had showed that the U.S. death toll could be at least 100,000 with aggressive social distancing, White House experts said earlier, and as high as 2.2 million without them. But, "it's within our power to modify those numbers," Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told "CBS This Morning" Thursday.

"If you really push hard on mitigation ... you can modify the model," Fauci said. "We need to push and push with the mitigation to try and get that number lower than the projected number."

With the CDC estimating 25% of coronavirus carriers have no symptoms, health officials like Fauci have said they're considering whether to recommend the general public wear non-hospital-grade masks to prevent the virus's spread.

President Trump announced Thursday that his administration will soon make a nationwide recommendation on if Americans should wear masks.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Wednesday recommended that people there wear non-medical-grade masks or face coverings such as bandanas when they're in public.

"Please do not get medical grade or surgical masks, or N95 masks. We must not contribute to the shortage of these essential personal protective equipment for medial personnel and first responders," he said.

Record high number of Americans file for unemployment

Millions more Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week, as businesses continue to lay off and furlough workers amid the coronavirus outbreak.

A record 6.6 million workers filed for their first week of unemployment benefits in the week ending March 28. Economists polled by Refinitiv had expected 3.5 million claims.

Deaths in US top 6,000

Coronavirus deaths across the U.S. have topped 6,000 and all but 11 states have issued sweeping orders for residents to stay home  affecting nearly 90% of the country's population.

Related video: Gov. Newsom says California's stay-at-home order appears to be working

Even if Americans follow mitigation measures closely, the U.S. death toll could be at least 100,000, White House experts said this week. But without those measures in place, that death toll could be as high as 2.2 million, said Birx.

PGlmcmFtZSBpZD0iaHR2LWNvdmlkLW1hcCIgc3JjPSJodHRwczovL2NvdmlkLTE5LWFzc2V0cy5odHZ0b29scy51cy9pbmRleC5odG1sIiBzY3JvbGw9Im5vIiBzdHlsZT0iYm9yZGVyOm5vbmU7Ij48L2lmcmFtZT4=

"The good news is that states like Washington, like California, countries like Italy, when they leaned into aggressive mitigation, they're being able to flatten their curve," Adams told NBC.

Trump said Wednesday he would not issue a national stay-at-home order because different states have different infection rates.

"You have to look  you have to give a little flexibility. If you have a state in the Midwest, or if Alaska for example doesn't have a problem, it's awfully tough to say close it down. We have to have a little bit of flexibility," he said.

The 11 states that have not issued statewide stay at home orders include: Alabama, Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah and Wyoming.

Up to 16,000 New Yorkers could die

In hard-hit New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered all non-essential workers home last month.

On Wednesday, he cited a model that showed as many as 16,000 New Yorkers could die from the virus.

"If you believe these numbers, 16,000 deaths in New York, that means you're going to have tens of thousands of deaths outside of New York," the governor said. "So to the extent people watch their nightly news in Kansas and say, 'Well this is a New York problem,' that's not what these numbers say."

"It says it's a New York problem today. Tomorrow it's a Kansas problem and a Texas problem and a New Mexico problem. That's why I say to my fellow governors and elected officials across this country, look at us today, see yourself tomorrow," he said.

New York, now the epicenter of the outbreak, has reported at least 84,025 cases and 2,219 deaths.

At least 45,707 of those infections and 1,374 of the deaths are in New York City.

This week, the Federal Emergency Management Agency sent hundreds of ambulances, EMTs and paramedics to New York City to help assist first responders.

New York City hospitals still need 3.3 million N-95 masks, 2.1 million surgical masks, 100,000 isolation gowns and 400 ventilators by April 5, Mayor de Blasio said Wednesday.

The mayor has warned that this Sunday will be a crucial day for the city and that demands will continue to rise in the following weeks.

W2lmcmFtZSBzcmM9Imh0dHBzOi8vZDJjbXZicTdzeHgzM2ouY2xvdWRmcm9udC5uZXQvZW1haWwvcHJvZF9jb3JvbmF2aXJ1c19pZnJhbWVfYXJ0aWNsZS5odG1sIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjQxNCIgc3R5bGU9IndpZHRoOjEwMCU7Ym9yZGVyOm5vbmU7b3ZlcmZsb3c6aGlkZGVuIiBzY3JvbGxpbmc9Im5vIiBmcmFtZWJvcmRlcj0iMCIgYWxsb3dUcmFuc3BhcmVuY3k9InRydWUiXVsvaWZyYW1lXQ==

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
By Ofeliya Afandiyeva

The volume of Azerbaijans non-oil exports increased by 5 percent year-on-year in the period of January-February to reach $296 million, local media reported referring to the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication on April 2.

During the reporting period, the bulk of exports fell to raw cotton - $29.9 million (an increase of 15.4 percent), gold - $27.3 million (an increase of 35.1 percent), tomato - $24.7 million (an increase of 38.8 percent), refined hazelnut - $22.2 million (a decrease of 10.1 percent), electricity - $17.8 million (a decrease of 41.6 percent), polypropylene - $14.5 million (an increase by 6.6 percent), persimmon - $14.1 million (a decline of 19.4), computing machines and parts for their blocks - $11.5 million (an increase of 115 times), polyethylene - $8.3 million (a decrease by 44.7 percent).

The five leading countries that imported Azerbaijani non-oil products in the reporting period are:

Russia - $88 million (an increase of 7.4 percent); Turkey - $75.3 million (an increase of 18.5 percent); Georgia - $34.9 million (a decline 5.7 percent); Switzerland - $28.8 million (an increase of 39.8 percent); China - $ 7.6 million (an increase of 20.6 percent).

Russia accounted for 29.7 percent of the export of non-oil products.

It should be mentioned that Azerbaijan's non-oil exports totaled $1.9bn in 2019.

Earlier, the government informed that it plans to allocate $11.8 million to promote the country's non-oil exports in 2020. Azerbaijans non-oil industry is expected to demonstrate an 8.8 percent growth in 2020.

According to the estimates by the Ministry of Economy, by 2024, non-oil exports of Azerbaijan will exceed $3 billion.

The steps made for diversification of the economy and the state program Socio-economic development of regions of Azerbaijan in 2014-2018 made a huge contribution to the non-oil sector, because the main potential for production of non-oil products is concentrated in the countrys regions.

In addition, the opening of Azerbaijani trade houses abroad and organizing export missions to foreign countries to promote the Made in Azerbaijan brand in foreign markets have helped to develop the share of non-oil products in the structure of the countrys exports.

Furthermore, the increasing number of plants operating in the non-oil sector promises very good prospects for Azerbaijan to diversify its economy, reduce oil and gas dependency and increase the inflow of foreign currency into the country.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Tony Ferguson has labelled rival Khabib Nurmagomedov a 'b***h* for pulling out of their UFC 249 showdown due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Russian lightweight Khabib confirmed the fight was off on Wednesday as he is stranded in his homeland due to the current pandemic.

California-born Ferguson, 36, believes Khabib is running 'scared' as it is now the fifth time a fight between the duo has been cancelled.

Tony Ferguson has hit out at UFC rival Khabib Nurmagomedov for running 'scared'

Khabib confirmed on Wednesday that his fight with Ferguson has been called off

Ferguson was due to take on Nurmagomedov this month but his opponent is stranded

Travel bans in Russia and the USA would have made it hard for Khabib to make it back for UFC 249 on April 18 but Ferguson believes he is hiding behind that excuse.

Ferguson said in a Twitter video: 'Khabib, I believe he knew already that he wasn't going to fight.

'We scared him. He had the opportunity to come back from Abu Dhabi. He has the power to take a plane and come back.

'This is the second time we punked him out. I've been doing the exact same thing for eight years. To and from work, going in there and busting my ass, making sure I'm taking care of business.

'I'm a hitman. Khabib and Conor [McGregor] running around with their tails between their legs like a f***ing dog. I run with the dog's man, and these guys ain't dog. They're a bunch of p*****s. Khabib's a b***h.

'I told him I was gonna mop the f***ing floor with his hat, the dude jammed out.'

Ferguson has called on the UFC chiefs to strip Khabib of his title for failing to attend the upcoming UFC 249.

He told ESPN's Ariel Helwani: 'Obviously I was very upset, I feel more for everybody else that's actually going through some hard times.

'It's a little bit different, of course I'm a little bit p****d.

'He had the opportunity to stay here, he was in Abu Dhabi, but had the opportunity to come back before the borders were closed in Russia. He decided to go back to Dagestan to finish his camp.

'The guy does not want to fight, he was scared, he's running, he should be stripped of his title.

'I'm always down to fight anybody, anytime anywhere. The fight's against Khabib, man, this is the guy, everybody just wants to fight him.'

Khabib's withdrawal has left UFC chief Dana White scrambling around for a replacement

Justin Gaethje is reportedly ready to replace Khabib to take on Ferguson at UFC 249

Khabib wrote on Wednesday: 'Staying home in quarantine and reading the reaction of people to the situation around my fight, it turns out that the whole world should be in quarantine, governments of all countries, famous people around the world urge people to follow all safety requirements in order to limit the spread of the disease, to save people, and Khabib is the only one relieved of all obligations and must demonstrate free will and train flying around the world, for the sake of fight?

'I understand everything and I'm definitely upset more than you to cancel the fight, probably like all others, I had many plans after the fight, but I can't control it all.

'But Khabib still has to fight, is that what (you're) saying?

'Take care of yourself and put yourself in my shoes.'

With Khabib's participation in doubt in recent weeks, it had been reported that Justin Gaethje was in place to replace the MMA superstar.

Although his replacement is yet to be confirmed, Gaethje is considered the favourite to step in despite Ferguson still considering his options according to ESPN.
With schools across California expected to remain closed until the fall, district officials this week started looking toward an ominous future, one filled with fiscal calamity and academic losses from the fallout of the coronavirus crisis.

It could take years for districts to recover, they said.

Without a significant increase in state or federal funding, schools across the state could face emergency layoffs and severe budget cuts next year, said Bill Clark, Contra Costa County Office of Education deputy superintendent.

Forget summer school or an extended academic year to help kids catch back up.

The schools would be eager to do that and willing to do that, Clark said. Its just not going to be fiscally possible.

Many districts were already stretched financially, preparing to cut budgets to make it through the next fiscal year. Closing schools has only increased current spending on technology, meal distribution, cleaning and other needs.

The state budget  funded by income, sales and corporate taxes  is likely to suffer significantly from revenue losses caused by the shelter-in-place orders. Rather than the 2% cost-of-living increase proposed in the governors budget, or about $496 more per student, schools could see no increase, officials said.

Under one recessionary scenario, the state could lose $50 billion in revenue over two years, out of an annual budget of $222 billion.

Many districts could resort to emergency layoffs in August or other ways to cut staff, officials said.

Many districts throughout the state are talking about an early retirement incentive, said Lynn Mackey, Contra Costa County superintendent.

More money is going out than expected now because of expenditures related to the closure and less is expected to come in next year  a double whammy, education officials said.

The $100 million provided by the state to help schools with distance learning during the closure is a welcome sign, but ultimately equals $16 per student in the states schools, Mackey said.

Still, the immediate focus is on the needs of students and teachers so that teaching and learning can continue in some form through the end of the school year even if classrooms remain closed, she said.

I think all the educators in our state and our counties have done a miraculous job getting in to place whats in place so far, she said.

What happens after the state gets through the next couple of months, however, is still a big question mark for schools.

District officials are waiting on guidance about grading  or what to put on student report cards so that students arent penalized academically because of the closure. The state is expected to provide additional guidance in the coming days, although universities and colleges are already easing admission standards to accommodate the absence of letter grades on transcripts.

The closure has wreaked havoc on the system, said state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond.

Were not allowing that to punish students beyond their control, he said.

In a letter to county officials Tuesday, Thurmond acknowledged that schools will be unable to reopen this year, given the safety concerns and ongoing social distancing that comes with the coronavirus response.

District officials said there are many questions, like the status of summer school or rescheduling graduation and prom, that they still cant answer.

The only thing official at this time is that summer school registration has been postponed until further notice, said Brian Kilgore, spokesman for Fremont Unified. We believe there will be credit recovery available to students in some form and are waiting to receive guidelines from the state.

Brian Feulner/Special to The Chronicle

Kai Sanchez, 14, would like greater clarity on grading. The Half Moon Bay High School freshman has a 4.0 grade-point average and is worried about a pass-fail report card.

I just think its wrong for the students that dont try and dont do their homework to get the same grade as me, she said. I put time and effort in the things I do.

Her mom, April Joy Sanchez, worries for the juniors who are applying to college, who dont know if all colleges will waive the SAT and ACT test requirement like University of California schools did Wednesday.

More Information Online extra Get answers to your questions concerning the extended school closures and other coronavirus related topics: www.sfchronicle.com See More Collapse

The lack of information is confusing and frustrating, especially when everyone is cooped up all day long, Sanchez said.

Theres nowhere to escape, the mom said.

For districts and teachers across the state, the unknowns stretch even further. They wont know for some time what the academic impact will be from the closures. Low-income students, English learners and students with special needs are likely to be disproportionately affected.

What if students miss critical math concepts needed for the next course in the fall? Will teachers have to backtrack for weeks or months before moving forward, while facing larger class sizes because of layoffs?

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

Currently, many students still dont have computers or online access to participate in digital instruction, and its unclear how many of the states 6.2 million students will never log on or fail to continue learning during the closure.

Money will be scarce to help them get back on track, officials said.

Its also likely that many students in special education programs will require what is called compensatory services for what they didnt get during the closure, like occupational therapy or personalized academic instruction. Providing those additional catch-up services next year could add significantly to districts already strapped budgets.

The financial challenges facing districts are certainly on our radar, Thurmond said.

The state is already monitoring where districts have financial challenges and brainstorming ways to support them, he added, including additional funding for school meals provided during the closure.

But Thurmond said his message to families and educators is to focus on the present because school is not over.

Students might not be able to return to campus, but this year is not over, he said. I think people are trying to get through the basics of day-to-day right now.

Half Moon Bay High School senior Raven Fortin is trying to make it through each of those days, but shes also focused on a future that is not what she thought it would be.

Its so disappointing, she said of not being able to wear a cap and gown and walk across a stage as planned. Weve been working toward that for four years.

She doesnt know if her diploma will just show up in the mailbox or if maybe there will be a ceremony in the summer.

But so far, it feels like shes being forced to skip a big chapter in her life.

Its a huge letdown that we wont be able to say goodbye to each other, she said of her classmates. It seems every day this whole thing gets exponentially more intense.

That said, the 17-year-old, who plans to study public health at Oregon State University in the fall, said shes living through what will be a different set of memories.

Were all living through history, she said. Well look back on it and go, Yeah, I was there.

Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jilltucker

Editors note: This story has been corrected with the accurate number for Californias annual education budget, which is $222 billion.
Mr. Rogers said:

As of spring, we sold to three stores: Net-a-Porter, Forty Five Ten and McMullen in California. We did a showroom in Paris for fall 2020 and had a lot of great international stores, which we thought could really help move us to the next stage of the business. But with the store closures and people not going to events, that is all on hold. We were planning on adding eight to 10 new stores, but all except one said they could no longer commit to fall orders.

Then Forty Five Ten announced they were closing for the foreseeable future, so their fall order was canceled, too  and they have only paid for half of spring, which has been delivered. We are still trying to get the other half of the payment. Bergdorf Goodman was the new store that didnt cancel fall, and we have sent an order confirmation to them, but we havent heard back.

We dont have our own direct-to-consumer, so we are really dependent on Net-a-Porter, which has as online exclusive with us. Their buy for fall was smaller than for spring, but its enough.

In a way, I think being small has protected us because we have so few employees and no store, and we do only two seasons: fall and spring. Also we ask everyone to give us a deposit so we have some initial budget to work with. My feeling is: If you cant at least pay for me to make your clothes, we cant make them. The problem is figuring out the future.

Im still paying health benefits and salary to my employees, and I would rather invest in that than putting on a show. My studio costs $5,500 a month, and I have asked my landlord if I can pay half that because we cant be in there. He hasnt responded yet. We make everything here and fit it on a model, so we know how much fabric to buy, but to do that you need a person, which obviously we dont have now.

I have asked to push fall deliveries back, initially to August but now September. That would be OK with a shutdown through the end of April, but if it lasts longer than that, I dont know. Weve been applying for some small business grants, but because I started taking in money only last year, I dont qualify for all of them. I might have to break quarantine. We have to do fall orders if we are going to have a business. I cant afford to miss a season."
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc talked over the phone with his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang on April 2, discussing cooperation in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc talks on the phone with his Chinese counterpart

The two sides informed each other on the prevention and control of the epidemic in their respective countries.

PM Phuc spoke highly of the great outcome of the anti-COVID-19 fight that China has made under the leadership of the Communist Party of China with Party General Secretary and President Xi Jinping at its core, and the effective governance of Premier Li, as well as with the active involvement of Chinese people; and of Chinas active international cooperation in this work.

The Vietnamese government leader stressed that Vietnam is fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in the spirit of fighting an enemy. He noted that following the positive results in the first phase, the fight has entered a new phase amidst complicated developments in the world. Vietnam is still in control of the situation and taking the initiative in curbing the spread of the disease, striving to ensure social security and safety for both Vietnamese and foreign citizens living in the country, Phuc said.

PM Phuc thanked China for its support in the form of experience sharing and supply of medical supplies. He stressed that the good cooperation in the fight against epidemic will be a bright point in bilateral ties this year, the year the two countries mark the 70th anniversary of their diplomatic relationship.

Premier Li hailed Vietnams effective anti-epidemic measures and thanked Vietnam for its support when the epidemic was at its peak in China, with PM Phuc extending his sympathy very early, and Vietnamese ministries, sectors and localities providing help in various form.

He informed PM Phuc that China will provide Vietnam with aid and medical supplies and equipment within its possibilities.

The two leaders reached the consensus on the importance of ensuring the health and legitimate rights and interests of each others citizens living in the other country.

Regarding international cooperation in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, PM Phuc affirmed that as Chair of ASEAN, Vietnam has been leading discussions and coordination in anti-epidemic efforts among ASEAN countries and between the ASEAN and partner nations, including the ASEAN plus Three mechanism.

The Chinese government leader affirmed that China has always been making proactive efforts in international cooperation in this regard. He expressed support for Vietnams initiatives and efforts in the field, and called for the international community to join hand in fighting the pandemic.



The two PMs underlined the importance of the relationship between the two countries, and affirmed the wish to develop the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership towards more practical and greater achievements. They vowed to instruct ministries, sectors and localities to continue coordinating closely in maintaining trade and investment activities, while preparing to resume tourism, aviation and people-to-people exchange immediately after the pandemic ends./.VNA
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 10:44:18|Editor: huaxia

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LOME, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Togolese President Faure Gnassingbe has declared a three-month nationwide health emergency and major socio-economic measures to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I am addressing you in a very particular context where the world is faced with an unprecedented coronavirus-caused health crisis," Gnassingbe said in an address to the nation on Wednesday.

The address came at a time when Togo reported 36 cases of COVID-19, of which 24 were under medical treatment, 10 had recovered while the other two had died. The first case in the West African nation was registered at the begining of March.

"In view of the seriousness of the situation and in keeping with the constitutional provisions, I declare a three-month health emergency in Togo," Gnassingbe said, highlighting that the pandemic poses "exceptional challenges" and calls for "bold measures."

Gnassingbe declared a nationwide curfew between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time starting from Thursday until further notice, and set up an anti-pandemic special unit of 5,000 people from defense and security forces to observe the measures to fight the epidemic.

The operational capacities of the health sector have been reinforced and mobile laboratories will be deployed to provide "confidential, rapid and free tests for COVID-19" for people across the country.

During the health emergency, the charges for water and electricity supplies will be free for the population and a special measure is taken to support farming so as to ensure food self-sufficiency in the country.

A national fund of 400 billion CFA francs (about 665 million U.S. dollars) is allocated to carry out the socio-economic measures, Gnassingbe said.
Afghan government, Taliban hold face-to-face talks for first time

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 4:38 PM

Afghan government representatives have held face-to-face talks with a Taliban delegation in the capital, Kabul, for the first time to discuss a prisoner exchange, in what would pave the way for peace negotiations between the two sides.

"The two sides held face-to-face negotiations about the release of Afghan National Defense and Security Force personnel as well as Taliban prisoners" on Tuesday, the Office of Afghanistan's National Security Council said on Twitter on Wednesday.

The talks were observed by the International Committee of the Red Cross, the council said, adding that another meeting between the two parties had also been scheduled for Wednesday.

The direct talks between Kabul and the Taliban were the first since a Taliban regime was toppled by US-led international forces in 2001.

They had discussed the prisoner issue previously in a videoconference.

Earlier, the Taliban had rejected Kabul's negotiating team.

It was unclear what led to the change in the militant group's position.

The US reached an agreement with the militant group in February. Kabul was not a party to the negotiations that led to that deal. The Taliban would refuse at the time to recognize the Afghan government.

The agreement between the US and the Taliban called for the completion of an exchange of prisoners before the start of dialog between the Taliban and the Kabul government on March 10.

The swap was delayed amid a power struggle between incumbent President Ashraf Ghani and his main rival in Afghanistan's 2019 presidential election, Abdullah Abdullah, who disputed the results of the voting.

Under the agreement involving the US, the Afghan government was required to release 5,000 Taliban prisoners, and the militant group to free 1,000 government captives.

The talks on the prisoner exchange come despite a deterioration in the security situation in Afghanistan.

At least seven civilians, including six children, were killed on Wednesday when a roadside bomb went off in Helmand Province, which authorities blamed on the Taliban. On Sunday, a series of Taliban attacks claimed the lives of at least 20 Afghan security forces.

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Avani Hotels & Resorts has announced a number of key appointments for its new hotels in Thailand, Indonesia and the Maldives.

Avani Ao Nang Cliff Krabi Resort and Avani+ Koh Lanta Resort, Thailand

In Thailands south - Avani Ao Nang Cliff Krabi Resorts newly renovated 178-keys completed in January 2020 and Avani+ Koh Lanta Krabi Resort which will offer 87-keys and secluded access to the stunning white sand Klong Dao Beach which is scheduled to open by end of 2020 will be managed by Farah C. Jaber as Cluster general manager.

Jaber started his career with Minor Hotels in 2013 as an executive assistant manager at Anantara Rasananda Koh Phangan Villas in Thailand. In 2016, he was promoted to resident manager of Anantara Sathorn Bangkok Hotel and Oaks Bangkok Sathorn before moving to Vietnam as general manager of Anantara Mui Ne Resort in 2017. More recently, Jaber spearheaded the successful opening of Anantara Quy Nhon Villas as cluster general manager along with Avani Quy Nhon Resort also under his leadership.

Avani+ Khao Lak Resort, Thailand

Scheduled to open in late 2020, the brand new Avani+ Khao Lak Resort will offer 328-keys and direct access to the pristine beaches of Khao Lak, just north of Phuket. Stephan Moonen has been appointed as general manager and Karun Cornell as director of sales and marketing for the property.

Moonen brings 15 years experience within the hospitality industry, beginning his hospitality career with a degree from The Hotel Management School Maastricht, The Netherlands. After graduating, Moonen was appointed assistant hotel manager at the luxury hotel and Michelin star awarded de Echoput before joining the Intercontinental Hotels Group. In 2011, Moonen began a nine year journey with Marriott International in the UK, undertaking senior leadership roles at the Edinburgh Marriott and the Residence Inn Edinburgh followed by a transfer to London to work at The London Marriott Hotel and Executive Apartments Canary Wharf. During this time, Moonen also supported other prestigious hotels such as Ritz-Carlton Riyadh in Saudi Arabia and St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel London in taskforce assignments, his most recent role was as general manager at the London Marriott Park Lane.

Cornell also brings more than 10 years hospitality experience and is a graduate of Thailands Mahidol University International College in Travel and Hospitality Management; upon completion of his study, he started his career with Bandara Hotels & Resorts while undertaking his Master degree prior to joining Fair House Group in Koh Samui as a group director of sales and marketing.

Avani+ Fares Maldives Resort, The Republic of Maldives

Scheduled to debut in 2021, the 200-key Avani+ Fares Maldives Resort is located in the Maldives Baa Atoll which is a Unesco Biosphere Reserve that is home to unique species of marine, fauna, and flora. Marlon Abeyakoon has been appointed as general manager for the property.

Abeyakoon has spent almost two decades in hospitality with multiple international hotel brands in UAE, UK, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Fiji. He started his career with One&Only in Dubai in 1999 before moving to the UK with glh Hotels and Hilton in 2013 at DoubleTree London as hotel manager. A move to Sri Lanka in 2018 with Reethi Beach Resort as general manager before his final stop, before joining Avani+, in Fiji as general manager with the Sheraton Fiji Resort.

Avani Seminyak Bali Resort, Indonesia

Scheduled to be rebranded in mid-2020, Avani Seminyak Bali Resort will introduce 21 residence-style accommodations and 16 private pool villas to the popular holiday island with the announcement of I Made Subrata as the new general manager.

Subrata began his career in hospitality on his home-island Bali as the pre-opening team of InterContinental in 1993. In 2004, he joined Conrad Bali as guest activities manager and worked his way up to rooms division manager. He then moved to Sheraton Bali Kuta Resort as executive assistant manager, before joining The Elysian Boutique Villa Hotel as resort manager. In 2015, he joined Anantara Vacation Club as cluster general manager and his role will also include the upcoming Avani Seminyak Bali Resort.

Avani currently operates 30 hotels and resorts in 17 countries. The brand recently debuted in Australia, New Zealand, and Laos. Avani currently has 15 new hotels in the pipeline, including a recent signing in Kota Kinabalu, Dubai, and a second Avani in Busan. - TradeArabia News Service
(Bloomberg) -- After closing an industry-altering U.S. wireless deal, Deutsche Telekom AGs Chief Executive Officer Tim Hoettges now wants to change telecommunication markets closer to home.

Europes phone industry needs mergers if it wants to build the kind of superior infrastructure needed to compete with bigger rivals in Asia and the U.S., Hoettges said Wednesday. He indicated hes willing to get the German carrier involved in M&A to achieve that goal.

Europe is too fragmented, Hoettges said in a phone interview. Wherever I see a deal or an opportunity for European market consolidation thats convincing, then I would always look at that with the partners.

Deutsche Telekoms U.S. unit T-Mobile US Inc. on Wednesday completed its $26.5 billion acquisition of Sprint Corp. after a years-long saga that included a standoff with antitrust officials and a court battle with U.S. states. Hoettges pushed for the combination for years to give the company a stronger vehicle to expand in the profitable U.S. market. T-Mobiles importance for Deutsche Telekom has grown steadily and it now accounts for about half of sales, up from around a third in 2014.

Our goal is to become the number-one in the U.S. market, Hoettges said.

T-Mobile and Sprint scrapped a previous plan to merge in 2014 after meeting resistance in Washington. Their second attempt failed in late 2017 when Hoettges and Masayoshi Son, the chairman of Sprints parent company SoftBank Group Corp., couldnt agree on how to structure control of the combined entity, people familiar with the matter said at the time.

Hoettges brought the merger back from the dead a few months later. On Jan. 1, 2018, he took out his phone and tapped out an SMS to Son, wishing him a happy New Year and expressing regret that the merger hadnt happened. It reignited a conversation that culminated in Wednesdays deal.

It frees Hoettges to focus on markets in Europe, where more than 100 wireless carriers vie for airwaves and customers. Outside Deutsche Telekoms business in Germany, where it competes with Vodafone Group Plc and Telefonica SA, Deutsche Telekom has units in countries from Poland to the Netherlands and Romania.

Story continues

Of course I was very much focused on America, Hoettges said. But I will work with verve on changing the regulatory and antitrust-law framework in Europe to help bring about the consolidation the region needs, he said.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

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2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Russian and Turkish Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan have had a phone call to inform each other about the measures undertaken to curb spread of the coronavirus pandemic and hashed over cooperation in bringing Russians currently stranded in Turkey back home, the Kremlin press service said Wednesday, TASS reports.

"The situation emerged amid the coronavirus pandemic spread was considered. The leaders informed each other about the measures taken to fight the infection. Particular attention was placed on the cooperation in bringing home Russian citizens staying in Turkey," the statement says.

The Turkish leaders office issued a communique, saying, "the talks discussed issues of cooperation to fight coronavirus."
We've lost count of how many times insiders have accumulated shares in a company that goes on to improve markedly. The flip side of that is that there are more than a few examples of insiders dumping stock prior to a period of weak performance. So shareholders might well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling shares in BabyTree Group (HKG:1761).

What Is Insider Selling?

It's quite normal to see company insiders, such as board members, trading in company stock, from time to time. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market.

Insider transactions are not the most important thing when it comes to long-term investing. But equally, we would consider it foolish to ignore insider transactions altogether. For example, a Columbia University study found that 'insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own companys stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers'.

See our latest analysis for BabyTree Group

The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At BabyTree Group

There wasn't any very large single transaction over the last year, but we can still observe some trading.

The chart below shows insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

SEHK:1761 Recent Insider Trading April 2nd 2020

BabyTree Group is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership of BabyTree Group

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. From what we can see in our data, insiders own only about HK$870k worth of BabyTree Group shares. But they may have an indirect interest through a corporate structure that we haven't picked up on. This level of insider ownership is notably low, and not very encouraging.

Story continues

So What Does This Data Suggest About BabyTree Group Insiders?

The fact that there have been no BabyTree Group insider transactions recently certainly doesn't bother us. However, our analysis of transactions over the last year is heartening. While we have no worries about the insider transactions, we'd be more comfortable if they owned more BabyTree Group stock. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. At Simply Wall St, we've found that BabyTree Group has 3 warning signs (1 is concerning!) that deserve your attention before going any further with your analysis.

If you would prefer to check out another company -- one with potentially superior financials -- then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions, but not derivative transactions.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Ranchi, April 2 : Jharkhand has got its second confirmed case of coronavirus as a 50-year-old man of Hazaribagh district has been tested positive.

The man had attended a marriage party in Kolkata. His sample was sent to Rajendra Institute of Medcial Science (RIMS), Ranchi for test. On Thursday his sample was found positive. He will be brought to Ranchi for treatment.

Earlier a Muslim woman who had come Ranchi along with her husband from Malaysia was tested was tested. She was part of 24 Muslims who were hiding in a Ranchi mosque and they were sent in quarantine. Of the 24 Muslims 19 were foreigners.

A screening team of health department was sent to Hindpiri for conducting tests of the people had to face protest from Muslim community members. The Malaysian woman tested positive had visited many homes of Hindpiri. The medical team was forced to return.

Curfew has been also imposed by the administration in Hindpiri. After the team reached the area, residents of Hindpiri did not agree to undergo any test and created a scene. The efforts of districts administration to pacify them failed.
Growing anger as constitution handicaps coordinated response to Covid-19

As the country settles into what may be a long period of lockdown, this week saw the coronavirus crisis highlight some of the damage done to the UKs ability to respond effectively by the wholesale devolution of health.

For starters, the Scottish Government are facing claims that their own poor testing regime is creating a misleading picture of Covid-19 deaths north of the border, according to the Daily Record. Their official figures record only those who died after testing positive for the disease, and not those who pass away after developing symptoms but going untested.

The SNP are also under fire for their decision not to follow the Nightingale naming convention for the new emergency hospitals. Whilst the styling will be used across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, the Nationalists have decided instead to name their first field hospital after a Scottish nurse.

But anger is more acute in Wales, where voters are growing increasingly unhappy about their exclusion from various relief and support programmes the Government has rolled out in England, such as the ability for vulnerable people to sign up for priority supermarket deliveries. This is on top of the growing outcry over the Welsh Governments insistence on setting up (and then botching the setting up of) a separate volunteer scheme to the GoodSAM programme, which we covered last week.

Some Welsh Conservative MPs are apparently starting to get worried by the tone of their constituency post. But any call for more intervention by the Government would almost certainly spark a furious row with the Assembly group, who will naturally oppose any move which might diminish the importance of their institution (and thus, of themselves).

Nor is this problem confined to the UK. Politico reports that the left-wing government in Spain is apparently finding it extremely difficult to corral regional leaders behind a nationwide response, with devolved governments reportedly viewing the declaration of a state of emergency as a power grab.

This should serve as a warning sign to those who believe the British constitution can be balanced by more devolution: Spains strategy of cafe para todos  coffee for all  was supposed to achieve precisely this outcome by devolving power equally to regional units and hasnt got close.

Meanwhile in an interview given before the outbreak of Covid-19 Jackson Carlaw, the Scottish Conservative leader, launched a broad-spectrum assault on Sturgeons domestic record.

Scottish justice: SNP retreat from bid to suspend jury trials and more reading on Salmond

This week saw an important defeat for the Scottish Nationalists when opposition parties united to force them to abandon proposals to suspend trial by jury in response to the Covid-19 crisis.

Ministers advanced the plan in order to help clear an apparently substantial backlog of cases. But it was attacked by senior lawyers as a sinister attack on justice, and the other opposition parties joined Tory MSPs in blocking the move.

Whilst were on the subject of courts

Last weeks column reported on the augeries of a civil war inside the SNP on the back of Alex Salmonds acquittal. Although coronavirus rightly dominates the headlines, this week has seen the publication of some great pieces on it for those of you who want to know more.

Top of the list must be this piece by Dani Garavelli at Tortoise Media, Scotland after the Trial of Alex Salmond. Its a great overview of how the trial was conducted and a cold first look at what the impact is and might be both on the women who brought the allegations and on Scotland more widely.

Next Id recommend Ian Smarts threepart series, Grope over Fear, examining what happened from his perspective not only as a long-time political opponent of the SNP but also as a trial lawyer. Finally, following Ians recommendation, this piece by Maurice Smith at the Scottish Review is worth your time too.
Police patrolled the streets of Guayaquil, Ecuador, as authorities encouraged residents to stay at home amid the coronavirus pandemic on April 1.

There were 2,240 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Ecuador and 75 people had died from the virus by April 1, according to the World Health Organization.

There were reports of corpses being left in peoples homes due to strict lockdown requirements in the city. Authorities said they would create a task force to deal with the issue. Credit: Policia Ecuador via Storyful
Shibu BS By

Express News Service

KOCHI: The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the Malayalam film industry into a major crisis and it is now staring at a bleak future. Three weeks have passed since the state government ordered the shutdown of cinema halls, which will not open in time for the attractive Vishu season. And even if the lockdown ends on April 14, producers, distributors and exhibitors will have a Herculean task in rescheduling the release dates of the new movies.

Production controllers too have a tough task on hand in terms of rescheduling artists' dates and getting the locations ready.

When the lockdown was announced, nearly 30 Malayalam films were at various stages of production. They included some big-budget movies, those helmed by woman directors and the ones produced by the Kerala State Film Development Corporation. Artists' dates and availability of locations are the major worries. We need time to plan and finalise everything, said senior production controller Aroma Mohan.

For instance, Mammootty does not need much time to complete The Priest, but his dates have to be reworked for Amal Neerad's Bilal (sequel to BigB), the fifth project in the CBI Diary sequel, and the films helmed by Sathyan Anthikkad, Vysakh and Joshiy.

The release of Mohanlal's big-budget movie Marakkar Arabikkadalinte Simham will be put off to May or August, in time for Onam. The actor will have to first complete Jeethu Joseph's Ram while he also has his directorial debut to deal with.

Producers are expecting the support of the state government and film bodies to overcome the crisis.

Most producers have borrowed huge amounts from private financiers in Chennai for their projects. They're paying a monthly interest of Rs 3 lakh for every Rs 1 crore, said a producer.

Kerala Film Producers Association (KFPA) office-bearers said they are waiting for the lockdown period to end to assess the situation.

Only a collective effort can save the Malayalam film industry from the present crisis. But right now, the priority is to support the government to contain the virus, said KFPA president Rejaputhra Renjith.
A head constable in the Mumbai Police on Thursday donated Rs 10,000 to Chief Minister's relief fund to tackle the menace of coronavirus, which has claimed the lives of at least 50 people across the country.

Head constable Bapu Saheb Dangre handed over a cheque of Rs 10,000 to State Home Minister Anil Deshmukh here.

The highest number of COVID-19 positive cases have been reported from Maharashtra at 335.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1,965 on Thursday after 131 people tested positive in the last 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had, on Wednesday, held a telephonic conversation on the prevailing coronavirus situation in the state.

This comes as the country is under a 21-day lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Visiting the Worcester arena thats being turned into the states first COVID-19 field hospital, Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday disclosed plans to set up a similar operation at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center to bolster the capacity of the health care system as the state prepares for a surge in coronavirus infections in the coming days.

Baker has projected a surge will arrive in Massachusetts between April 7 and April 17. He said during a Wednesday press conference at the DCU Center that testing for the virus is a key part of determining where resources will be needed.

In addition to the DCU Center and the BCEC, Baker said state officials are involved basically in daily conversations about other sites that could provide extra hospital beds and skilled nursing capacity. Theyre looking at capacity regionally, he said.

There are going to be ultimately strategies for the Cape, for the South Coast, for Western Mass., for Merrimack Valley and for Boston, and each strategy is going to be based on the existing capacity that exists in each of those places, and what peoples anticipated requirements in a surge are going to demand, Baker said.

Baker said the state will do everything we can to make sure that we put in place the capacity that people believe they need to treat both COVID-19 patients and those with other acute health needs.The governor said hed have more to say Thursday about efforts to acquire personal protective equipment, a major focus of those on the front lines, and that hes expecting dormitories and hotels in part of the state to be used for a variety of purposes relating to the coronavirus.

As Baker spoke and uniformed National Guard members moved behind him setting up cots and other equipment between full-length curtains, the Department of Public Health published new data showing that the total number of COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations linked to the virus all continued to climb.

For the second day in a row, 33 deaths were reported, and at least 682 COVID-19 patients have been hospitalized. A total of 7,738 cases have been confirmed, and more than 50,000 people have now been tested. More than half of those tests were conducted through Quest Laboratories.

Baker said Massachusetts is now a leader among states in the number of tests it has conducted, behind New York and Washington. He said testing helps make clear where a lot of the positives are landing so that we can make decisions around things like how were going to organize our health care capacity to deal with the surge.

Sign up for free text messages about important updates on coronavirus in Massachusetts

But, he said, somewhere between 20 percent to 25 percent of people infected with the virus are asymptomatic.

The whole point behind all this work that were doing, all the disruption were creating for people, all the major changes in the way we live, is about keeping people far enough away from each other for a long enough period of time that people dont pass this on from one person to the next, he said. And I cant express how important that is, not just for people who are symptomatic, but also for people who are asymptomatic.

Massachusetts has been in a state of emergency around the coronavirus for more than three weeks, and schools and most businesses are slated to remain closed throughout the entire month of April. Many people are working from home -- Baker said everybody is trying to upgrade telecommunications capacity to account for about 50 times as much traffic running through it as they had running two or three weeks ago -- while others have been laid off or furloughed.

Its hard to believe that a few weeks ago, the governor declared a state of emergency, and it seems, Im sure for all of you, that a few weeks ago, our lives were very different and seem so far away from where we are today, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito said. Like you, I wake up and feel mixed emotions.

Polito, who lives in Shrewsbury, said she was proud to see Worcester host the states first field hospital. The 250-bed facility will be managed by UMass Memorial Health Care.

Polito said UMass Memorial is recruiting volunteers to step up and devote their time to help with this effort.

Baker said the Army Corps of Engineers presented him almost like a cookbook of options for adding medical capacity, and that large spaces with open floor plans like the Worcester arena and South Boston convention center provide a lot of flexibility for replicating models that have been used successfully elsewhere.

And thats a much easier answer than trying to find a way to work within the confines and the framework of either dormitories or hotels, he said. I will say this -- we expect and anticipate that in parts of Massachusetts dormitories and hotels are going to be used for a variety of purposes that have to do with supporting health care workers and, in some cases, probably used for isolation and quarantine opportunities.

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A 5-year-old girl was bit by a coyote at Dublin Hills Regional Park on Wednesday, park officials said.

The East Bay Regional Park District Police Department wrote in a Wednesday night tweet that the girl was bit by the animal at 2:22 p.m., and was subsequently transported to UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital Oakland to receive treatment for non-life-threatening injuries.

California Department of Fish and Wildlife officials are working with park district police to "resolve the situation," and the park is closed at this time. Dublin Hills Regional Park and Donlon Point Staging Area are not listed on the park district's list of closures due to the spread of coronavirus.

This story is developing and will be updated as more information is made available.

RELATED: Coyotes are being seen on the empty streets of San Francisco

Eric Ting is an SFGATE digital reporter. Email: eric.ting@sfgate.com | Twitter:@_ericting
WASHINGTON, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the Law Offices of Leah V. Durant PLLC applauded a newly released open letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar from noted orthopedic surgeon Uma Srikumaran, that criticizes a proposed rule that would remove Shoulder Injury Related to Vaccine Administration from the list of injuries covered by the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.

"The federal government has long acknowledged that routine vaccines, including the annual flu shot, can cause severe shoulder injuries in rare cases," said Leah Durant, principal at the Law Offices of Leah V. Durant PLLC. "Preventing those who have been injured by vaccines from seeking the compensation they're entitled to could discourage people from getting vaccinated -- to the detriment of public health."

Congress created the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program to compensate individuals for certain vaccine-related injuries. Shoulder Injury Related to Vaccine Administration, or SIRVA, was added to the list of eligible injuries in 2017. SIRVA can result in rotator cuff tears, bursitis, tendinitis, paresthesia, and other symptoms that can require painful surgeries or other invasive therapies.

In February, the Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a proposed rule to prevent people who have suffered SIRVA from seeking compensation. It's the first time federal officials have proposed removing an injury from the Vaccine Program. Today, SIRVA accounts for more than half of all claims filed. In the past decade, thousands of people have received compensation for shoulder injuries.

Dr. Srikumaran, who heads the Shoulder Fellowship program at Johns Hopkins, argues that the proposed rule could drive up the cost of delivering vaccines and reduce the number of people willing to administer them.

"The program was created specifically to overcome the limitations and difficulties of civil litigation as well as the ramification of increased litigation against pharmaceutical companies," Srikumaran wrote in his letter to Azar. "Considering the current COVID pandemic crisis, shifting the risk to private providers and pharmaceutical companies does not seem to be a reasonable proposal."

For more information or to speak with a representative of The Law Offices of Leah V. Durant PLLC, please contact Micah Ezekiel at 202-471-4228 ext. 118 or [email protected].

About the Law Offices of Leah V. Durant PLLC

Founded by a SIRVA survivor, the Law Offices of Leah V. Durant PLLC has been successful in helping hundreds of individuals obtain financial compensation for cases of SIRVA linked to vaccines. To learn more about how to combat this proposed rule, contact the Law Offices of Leah V. Durant PLLC, or visit our website today: www.vaccinelaw.com.

SOURCE Law Offices of Leah V. Durant PLLC

Related Links

http://www.vaccinelaw.com


The two Columbus, Ohio, vice cops who led the 2018 arrest of AVN Hall of Famer Stormy Daniels at a strip club in that city face a whole new round of legal charges this week. This time, Steven Rosser and Whitney Lancaster (pictured above, l-r) face federal charges for allegedly violating suspects civil rights, and bilking a client for whom they worked a moonlighting job out of extra cash.

According to a report by the Law & Crime legal site, Rosser and Lancaster were arrested this week and charged with conducting warrantless searches and seizures, and detaining individuals without cause.

Both charges stem from incidents at Columbus strip clubs. But their most infamous strip club incident was the July 2018 bust of Daniels, which the Columbus Police Department later ruled to be improper. The cops were then disciplined and, in January of this year, fired for gross neglect of duty and incompetence in the arrest of Daniels on charges that were dropped less than 24 hours later.

Daniels later sued the city over the arrest, winning a settlement of approximately $400,000 late last year. Daniels claimed that the arrest was politically motivated, due to her then-active lawsuit against Donald Trump.

The two vice cops have also been sued by six women who worked as strippers at another Columbus club, alleging that Lancaster and Rosser arrested them wrongly as part of a revenge scheme against the clubs owner.

But legal issues for the now former vice cops continue to pile up. Federal prosecutors this week also charged them with wrongly double billing the owner of an indoor water park who hired them to monitor the facility for fire-related issues. But according to the charges against them, Rosser and Lancaster billed the water park owner for their time at the same time they were working paid, regular shifts in their jobs as Columbus police officers.

Photo by WBNS TV Screen Capture
The Iraqi cabinet met on Wednesday via an online video call to discuss the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The meeting was headed by Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs and Minister of Oil and discussed efforts to combat the virus and the overall health situation in Iraq.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has told security forces they should shoot dead anyone causing trouble in areas locked down due to the coronavirus pandemic.

About half the countrys roughly 110 million people are currently under quarantine  including millions in deep poverty, left jobless by tough restrictions on movement.

Hours before Duterte gave the order in a speech late yesterday, nearly two dozen people from a slum community in the capital Manila were arrested for holding a protest that accused the government of failing to provide food aid to the poor.



My orders are to the police and military, also village officials, that if there is trouble or the situation arises that people fight and your lives are on the line, shoot them dead, Duterte said.

Instead of causing trouble, Ill send you to the grave, he said, adding that the outbreak is getting worse more than two weeks into the lockdown.

The Philippines has so far detected 2,311 cases and reported 96 deaths, but the country has only begun ramping up testing and so the number of confirmed infections is expected to keep rising.

Duterte, who came to power in a landslide 2016 election victory, is known internationally for his foul-mouthed tirades and the deadly crackdown on drugs, which is overwhelmingly supported by Filipinos.

But critics allege that Dutertes drug war targets the poor and leaves the rich and powerful untouched while reinforcing a culture of impunity.

The presidents latest comments drew an immediate rebuke from rights groups who urged the government to provide much-needed relief supplies instead of issuing threats of violence.

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The Washington Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs and the ACLU of the District of Columbia were among advocates representing the plaintiffs in the case, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia one week after D.C. Council member Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) asked the Bureau of Prisons to provide halfway house residents with supplies and release as many as possible to home confinement amid the coronavirus crisis.
(Newser)  Wall Street pushed higher Thursday after a surge in oil prices helped resuscitate beaten-down energy stocks. The gains helped overshadow another report showing the coronavirus outbreak is forcing a record-breaking number of Americans into the unemployment queue, per the AP. The S&P 500 rose more than 2% in morning trading after flipping between small gains and losses shortly after the open. At midday, the Dow was up more than 400 points. The markets took off with the price of oil, which surged immediately after President Trump tweeted that he expects Saudi Arabia and Russia to back away from their price war.

story continues below

The two sides have continued to pull oil out of the ground to maintain their market share, even as demand for energy cratered because of stay-at-home orders and other economy-damaging restrictions wrought by the coronavirus outbreak. The resulting buildup of oil supplies sent crudes price spiraling by roughly two thirds in the first three months of the year. Benchmark US crude oil was up 25% at $25.58 per barrel, rallying back after dropping below $20 last month to its lowest price since 2002. At the year's start, oil was above $60. That helped energy stocks in the S&P 500 rally 11%, by far the biggest gain among the 11 sectors that make up the index. Read the full story for more.

(Read more stock market stories.)
S ix novels have been whittled down from 124 considered titles to make the International Booker Prize shortlist for 2020.

Judges announced the six contenders for the prize, which celebrates the worlds finest translated fiction, in a digital announcement today.

The shortlisted authors span origins from North and South America, the Middle East, South-East Asia and Europe and the winning author and translator will split the 50,000 prize between them, and each of the shortlisted books will receive 1,000 for both the author and translator.

The novels included in this years shortlist have been translated from five languages: Spanish, German, Dutch, Farsi and Japanese. Common themes in these books include examining trauma, loss and sweeping illness.

The International Booker Prize Shortlist for 2020 The Enlightenment of The Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar (Farsi  Iran), with an anonymous translator

The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezon Camara (Spanish  Argentina), translated by Iona Macintyre and Fiona Mackintosh

Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann (German  Germany), translated by Ross Benjamin

Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor (Spanish  Mexico), translated by Sophie Hughes

The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa (Japanese  Japan), translated by Stephen Snyder

The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld (Dutch  Netherlands), translated by Michele Hutchison

A panel of five judges selected the works in this years shortlist. Chaired by Ted Hodgkinson, Head of Literature and Spoken Word at Southbank Centre, it also includes Lucie Campos, director of the Villa Gillet, France's centre for international writing; Booker International Prize-winning translator and writer Jennifer Croft; LA Times Book Prize for Fiction-winning author Valeria Luiselli and writer, poet and musician Jeet Thayil, whose novel Narcopolis was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2012.

Hodgkinson said in a statement: Each of our shortlisted books restlessly reinvents received narratives, from foundational myths to family folklore, plunging us into discomforting and elating encounters with selves in a state of transition. Whether capturing a deftly imagined dystopia or incandescent flows of language, these are tremendous feats of translation, which in these isolating times, represent the pinnacle of an art-form rooted in dialogue. Our shortlist transcends this unprecedented moment, immersing us in expansively imagined lives that hold enduring fascination.

Three of the shortlisted novels have been inspired by its respective nations history. The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar looks at the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran; The Adventures of China Iron by Gabriela Cabezon Camara explores gaucho culture in 1870s Argentina and Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann examines the Thirty Years War in Germany.

The other shortlisted titles, Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor, The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa and The Discomfort of Evening by Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, all explore how the effect of trauma, whether caused through emotional loss or acts of violence, shapes our experiences and how we approach the world.
Australians won't be entitled to a full refund if coronavirus causes their wedding, holiday or theatre show to be cancelled, the consumer regulator has ruled.

Bans on pubs and clubs and large indoor gatherings have forced many function centres and performing arts venues to close their doors.

Guests have been turned away from weddings under new rules stipulating a limit of five people at the nuptials, which includes the couple marrying, the celebrant and two witnesses.

Australians won't be entitled to a full refund if coronavirus causes their wedding, holiday or theatre show to be cancelled, the consumer regulator has ruled. Pictured are newlyweds at Sydney's Circular Quay holding some minimalist nupitals in late March under COVID-19 rules

Qantas and Virgin Australia have also suspended international flights until mid-year, leaving many holidaymakers stranded or at least scrambling to organise a return flight home.

Cruises have also been cancelled with ocean liners among the biggest carriers of coronavirus.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has ruled businesses won't be required to give customers a full refund if COVID-19 had forced an event to be cancelled.

'If cancellation occurs due to government restrictions, it is unlikely the customer will be entitled to a refund under the consumer guarantee provisions of the Australian consumer law,' it said.

Even if customers weren't refunded, the ACCC said they were still entitled to some compensation.

'You may agree to another remedy with the customer, such as providing a partial refund, a credit note or voucher, or postponing the services until a later date if possible,' it said.

Cruises have also been cancelled with ocean liners among the biggest carriers of coronavirus. Pictured are passengers in limbo at Fremantle in Perth aboard MSC Magnifica

In cases where a voucher is provided, the ACCC said it need to have an expiry day 'which is long enough to allow your customer to use'.

Why you won't get a coronavirus refund The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has told small business operators they won't have to give full refunds if coronavirus caused an event or service to be cancelled. They referred to the Competition and Consumer Act of 2010, which covered extraordinary circumstances. Nonetheless, it is advising businesses to at least offer a partial refund, a voucher or a postponement of the product a customer had paid for. Vouchers also had to have an expiry that was long enough for a consumer to redeem. Advertisement

Consumer laws also require businesses to honour existing terms and conditions regarding cancellation policies.

The ACCC has warned businesses to avoid being tricky.

'The relevant terms and conditions are those in effect at the time your customer made their booking, i.e. you cannot retrospectively change these,' it said.

'The customer may also have rights under contract law where the contract has not been performed.'

Businesses are being urged to 'contact customers wherever possible to advise them of how you are handling various circumstances'.

Gyms have been told to avoid charging membership fees as fitness centres are shut down for six months, in a bid to slow the spread of coronavirus.

'If your members make regular or recurring payments for membership and you cannot continue to provide the service, you must not process further payments without the member's consent,' the ACCC said.

Gyms have been told to avoid charging membership fees as fitness centres are shut down for six months, in a bid to slow the spread of coronavirus. Pictured is the ClimbFit gym in Sydney

'The Australian consumer law prohibits businesses from taking payments for services when there are reasonable grounds to believe the services won't be supplied.'

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Insurers Suncorp, Allianz, and QBE Insurance are also deferring by six months premiums for small businesses suffering COVID-19 hardship.

That means employers won't have to pay premiums due on June 30.

Economists fear Australia's unemployment rate will more than double overnight, from 5.1 per cent to double-digit levels unseen since 1932 during the worst part of the Great Depression.

Even before the World Health Organisation declared COVID-19 to be a pandemic, the number of job vacancies had already fallen by 2.2 per cent in the year to February.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics's chief economist Bruce Hockman hinted unemployment was likely to worsen, with official labour force figures for March still a fortnight away.

'The period since the February survey has been a difficult time for the Australian community,' he said.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has ruled businesses won't be required to give customers a full refund if COVID-19 had forced an event to be cancelled. Pictured is Melbourne's Regent Theatre on March 18, which was closed for coronavirus

Westpac chief economist Bill Evans has today updated his forecasts to have unemployment peaking at nine per cent in the June quarter instead of 17 per cent.

'We expect the beneficial effects of the government's Jobkeeper policy to restrict the rise in the unemployment rate to a peak of nine per cent at June 2020 and to then see it fall back to around seven per cent at year's end,' he said.

He credited the government's third stimulus package, worth $130 billion, with containing the likely rise in unemployment.

It includes a Jobkeeper program where six million workers, through their employer, will be paid $1,500 a fortnight to be kept on the books.

Deloitte Access Economics partner Chris Richardson estimated one million Australians lost their jobs last week.

That would see the jobless rate more than double from 5.1 per cent in February to 12.4 per cent in March, which would be the highest level of unemployment nationally since 1932.
MIAMI, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- United in Movement, a newly launched initiative, focuses on harnessing the power of fitness to bring the world together during a time of global isolation. In addition to uniting the community and lifting its spirit, the end goal is to raise relief funds for those severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Its viral launch earlier this week has already netted thousands of reposts, including influencers, brands, actors and professional athletes showing their solidarity for the cause. Absent of text, the simple graphic of multi-colored arrows was meant to elicit curiosity and symbolize the diversity of the global participants all moving "forward, together." The launch quickly took over social media, amounting to hundreds of millions of impressions. Support has been shown from the likes of global brands like Reebok, Chipotle, Yeti, Rogue, and NoBull, athletes such as the reigning CrossFit Games champions, Mat Fraser and Tia-Clair Toomey, MLB World Series winner & Yankee legend Jorge Posada and pitching great Javier Vazquez, as well as Oscar winning actress Anna Paquin, and prominent movie & television actors Wilmer Valderrama & Max Greenfield.

More than simply raising awareness and inspiring fitness, the financial donations for United in Movement is expected to exceed its target of one million dollars (US), with 100% of the proceeds disseminated to several notable non-profits. Among other areas of support, the funds raised will assist humanitarian and relief efforts across the globe, as well as fitness related small businesses & local gyms. The non-profits include Action Against Hunger, known as the "hunger specialists," and whose global efforts save hundreds of thousands of lives each year, Red Cross Global, who provide emergency assistance & disaster relief, and the CrossFit Foundation, which supports the work of its international gyms and other charitable organizations that use fitness to serve the needs of their diverse communities on a global level.

United in Movement is truly a global movement and fundraising effort, organized by professionals, elite athletes, fitness event owners, brand leaders, and organizations from across 6 different continents who are volunteering their time & resources to help move the world while staying at home as part of the social distancing efforts to combat the pandemic. "We aim to unite & support the world through the most natural and essential characteristic of a human being: movement. Delivering solidarity to the global population will be a monumental achievement done by a unique, caring and committed community. United we will move the world, and move it forward" said an official United in Movement representative.

The format of the fundraising initiative has two components: an at-home free to the public fitness challenge, and a live media platform, which commences with a 24-hour live broadcast starting on Friday, April 3rd at 8pm ET. Consisting of compelling interviews with celebrities and influencers across varying industries, including sport, fitness, cinema, brand marketing, with a heavy focus on fitness-focused activities & instructional demo's to keep a diverse audience engaged throughout. The livestream will culminate with the announcement of the first of seven workouts released over the ensuing seven days for the global community to participate and compete against each other. With different variations based on an individual's fitness and skill level, the focus is on the fact that anybody and everybody can participate and move together.

If the viral campaign's strong start is any indication, the United in Movement initiative is set to become a historic movement that will help change the world during these unprecedented and challenging times. To learn more, participate, volunteer or donate, head to unitedinmovement.org.

About United in Movement:

United in Movement seeks to use fitness as a vehicle to bring the global community together during a difficult time of isolation and uncertainty. Our mission is to unite the entire planet in movement, and rally together to improve the world through the raising of awareness, the raising of spirits, and the raising of relief funds to support those affected by the pandemic. https://unitedinmovement.org/ | www.instagram.com/unitedinmovement/ | https://twitter.com/unitedinmvmt | https://www.facebook.com/unitedinmvmt/

SOURCE United In Movement

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Life has been thrown completely out of gear amid this Covid-19 and with travel being out of question, people are unable to meet their families, who are stuck in different countries. Jacqueline Fernandez, too, is in a bit of misery, as her parents are in Bahrain and she cant be with them because of restrictions.

I wanted my parents to really be with me right now; Im concerned about their health and how they are doing. The funny thing is that theyre concerned about me and are like youre all alone there. But Im worried about my parents being on their own, shares Jacqueline as she talks about her father Elroy and mother Kim.

Originally from Sri Lanka, the actor, emotionally, adds that she feels people, who have their parents by their side at present, rather lucky.

She explains, Right now they do need all the love, care and attention. They are vulnerable at this point, we need to be there for them.

Further, sharing an update on the other members of her family, the 34-year-old says that her sister in North Carolina in the US is having a very tough time. The supermarkets there are completely out of stock there are no products and medicines. My brothers, who are in Australia, are pretty sorted because they are in a very remote part in the country, she shares.

On her part the actor admits that the whole lockdown situation was a bit difficult for her to process because she felt a bit disoriented, however social media has come to a great rescue to her. The actor has been keeping busy with sharing workout tips videos with her followers as well as serenading them with her piano skills.

It just took me a sometime to realize what was happening and the first week was difficult. I felt a bit lost thinking about what I would do. However, I realised that I may not able to go on a film set but I have my audiences and a platform and I decided to be as creative as possible, she shares.

Besides that the actor is making the most of this forced break to do things she otherwise did not get a chance to do, while also prepping her for whats to come next, career-wise.

I am brushing up my Hindi and Urdu. I am reading, catching up on world cinema besides of course keeping fit and eating right, she says.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

An emergency situation may be declared in Azerbaijan, spokesperson for the Cabinet of Ministers Ibrahim Mammadov said at a press conference held by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2, Trend reports.

Infections are recorded within the country. A special quarantine mode has been announced. In view of this, we urge citizens not to leave home, as only 26 people have been recovered, while infection cases exceed 300. If this continues, the emergency situation may be declared in the country. However, we have to try so that the number of infections does not increase, Mammadov said.

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their homes, apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence.

To this end, all kinds of operations, except for the vital work and services, have been suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.
Manila: The Philippines' president has threatened to order police to shoot "troublemakers" and stop a massive food and cash aid if people resort to riots and defy a lockdown imposed on millions to fight the coronavirus outbreak.

President Rodrigo Duterte said in a televised speech that he also would ask the police to punish people who attack doctors and health workers with toxic chemicals by dousing the offenders with the potentially lethal substance or force them to drink it. Troublemakers would starve in jails, he warned.

A man wearing a protective mask walks past an image of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in Manila. Credit:AP

Duterte, who has been condemned for his brutal anti-drugs crackdown, which has left thousands of mostly poor suspects dead, issued the warnings hours after police broke up a rally by slum dwellers pleading for food aid and arrested 21 of them in suburban Quezon city.

"My orders are for the police, the military and the villages, in case there's trouble and there's an occasion where they fight and your life is threatened, shoot them dead," Duterte said, adding that the viral outbreak "is getting worse".
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / International Mining Corp (CSE:IMCX) (OTC PINK:IMIMF) (the "Company" or "IMC"), is pleased to announce, further to its news release dated March 18, 2020, that it has completed the acquisition (the "Acquisition") of 100% of the issued and outstanding share capital of Thane Minerals Inc. ("Thane"). Thane holds a 100% interest in an approximately 206 km2 (50,904 acres) land package (the "Land Package") located in north-central British Columbia, which includes six highly prospective mineralized areas identified to date including the Cathedral prospect'.Purchase ConsiderationAs consideration for the Acquisition, IMC has issued to the former shareholders of Thane (the "Vendors") an aggregate of $2-million CAD worth of common shares in the capital of IMC, at a deemed price of $0.38 per common share, for a total of 5,263,158 IMC shares (the "IMC Shares"). The IMC Shares will be escrowed and released over a 36-month period.In addition to the foregoing, if, through additional exploration programs, a resource calculation of at least 800,000,000lbs of copper-equivalent, as determined based on a National Instrument 43-101(Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects) ("NI 43-101") compliant resource estimate, is determined to be indicated within the Cathedral prospect area, then IMC will issue an additional aggregate of $2-million CAD worth of common shares (or cash in lieu, at IMC's option) to the Vendors.Changes to the BoardIn connection with the completion of the Acquisition, Mr. Thomas Greg Hawkins has been appointed as a Director and Chairman of the Board of IMC.Mr. Hawkins holds a BSc in Geology from the University of Alberta and an MSc in Mineral Economics from McGill University. He has been involved in the Mining Exploration and Investment industries since 1969 and has been variously responsible for the identification and/or delineation of 10 mineral deposits in Canada, USA, Chile, Ghana, Mali and Zaire (DRC).Mr. Hawkins is currently a Director of New Pacific Metals Corp. (NUAG) and was the Founding Project Consultant and/or Founding Director of seven public and private Exploration/Development ventures (Brohm Mining, Dayton Mining, Nevsun Resources, Banro Resource Corp., Tagish Lake Gold Corp., African Gold Group, Yellowhead Mining Inc.) and has participated in or been responsible for the definition of at least one resource/reserve in every case, with six of those cases resulting in production in the USA, Chile, Ghana, Mali and DRC. These ventures collectively have accounted for over $2.1 billion in market cap at the companies' respective peaks.In 1990 Mr. Hawkins co-founded CME Consulting Ltd., an international full service consultancy and contracting firm that has served over 100 clients in 25 countries and has employed over 3000 people. He has authored and presented a number of papers on exploration, exploration philosophy and mineral economics since 1979. In 2004 he was awarded the Frank Woodside Past Presidents Award by the British Columbia and Yukon Chamber of Mines in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the mining industry.ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORSBrian ThurstonChief Executive Officer and PresidentABOUT INTERNATIONAL MINING CORP.IMC International Mining Corp. is a junior exploration and development company. It is focused on creating shareholder value through the acquisition, exploration and development of gold assets, which include the Company's 100% owned Bullard Pass Property in Arizona.IMC continues to evaluate additional properties to add to its portfolio of mining assets.INVESTOR RELATIONS:ir@ internationalmining.ca 1 (604) 588-2110Forward-Looking Information: This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws relating to statements regarding the potential delineation of mineral resources within the Cathedral prospect area, and the Company's business and plans, including with respect to undertaking further acquisitions and carrying out exploration activities in respect of its mineral projects, including the Cathedral Project. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance and developments to differ materially from those contemplated by these statements depending on, among other things, the risks that no mineral resources are delineated within the Cathedral prospect area, that the Company does not complete any further acquisitions; that the Company does not carry out exploration activities in respect of its mineral projects, including the Cathedral Project, as planned (or at all); and that the Company may not be able to carry out its business plans as expected. Except as required by law, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation and does not intend to update any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information in this news release. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct and makes no reference to profitability based on sales reported. The statements in this news release are made as of the date of this release.The CSE has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the content of this press release.SOURCE: International Mining Corp
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 15:39 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f3c19d 1 Business Indonesia,satellite,PSN,Indosat-Ooredoo,Nusantara-Dua,Palapa-D,China,PSNS Free

Satellite communication provider PT Pasifik Satelit Nusantara (PSN), in cooperation with telecommunication service provider PT Indosat Ooredoo and another telecommunication company, PT Pintar Nusantara Sejahtera (PNS), plans to launch a newly built satellite from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan province later this month.

The Nusantara Dua satellite, built by China Great Wall Industry Corporation, would replace the Palapa-D satellite to serve broadband internet access and high-quality broadcasting services, PSN said in a statement on Thursday.

"We hope Nusantara Dua will further strengthen the position of the PSN business group as a major and leading player in the Indonesian satellite industry," PSN president director Adi Rahman said in the statement.

PSN, Indosat Ooredoo and PNS established a joint venture called PT Palapa Satelit Nusa Sejahtera (PSNS) in 2017 to buy the satellite from the Chinese satellite maker. PSNS will operate the new satellite.

"The Nusantara Dua satellite program is our long-term program, and it is a form of the company's commitment to customers throughout Indonesia," PSNS president director Johanes Indri Prijatmodjo said.

Johanes said the Nusantara Dua satellite would replace Indosat Ooredoos Palapa-D satellite located at 113 East Longitude (BT).

The Nusantara Dua, which weighs 5,550 kilograms, will have a capacity of 20x36 MHz C-band FSS transponders and 9.5 gigabit-per-second (Gbps) HTS. The satellite can cover regions throughout Asia Pacific and to Australia for C-band transponders and throughout Indonesia for HTS.

Meanwhile, the chief business officer of Indosat Ooredoo, Bayu Hanantasena, said, "We are committed to continuing to provide the best telecommunication services for business customers.

In line with Indosat Ooredoo's three-year strategy to make business-to-business services a new growth engine, the Nusantara Dua would further expand Indosat Ooredoos business portfolio, he added.

According to Johanes, the satellite with a lifetime of up to 15 years has the same technology as its predecessor, the Nusantara Satu, which carries the Classic Fixed Satellite Service in Cband and HTS in Ku-band. With that, satellites are more efficient while still adding value to link reliability. This satellite can also be used for VSAT, broadcast, broadband, backbone, and backhaul, Johannes said.

"We hope the launch will go smoothly, so that it is estimated that in June 2020, it will be ready to serve the community, Johanes said. (hen)
The novel coronavirus could spread faster in overcrowded refugee and displaced persons camps than it has anywhere else so far, including on cruise ships, an aid group warned Wednesday. The International Rescue Committee said its analysis showed that COVID-19 transmission rates in some of the worst camps on the globes could outpace that witnessed during the dramatic quarantine of the Diamond Princess cruise ship off the coast of Japan. "Refugees and displaced people in camps in Syria, Greece and Bangladesh face a heightened risk of COVID-19 due to living conditions that are even more cramped and densely populated than the Diamond Princess," IRC said. It said transmission of the virus on the cruise ship, where 712 passengers contracted the virus during a two-month quarantine in Yokohama, was four times faster than at the peak of the outbreak in China's Wuhan province, where the virus originated. "The rapid spread of COVID-19 on the Diamond Princess showed how the virus thrives in confined spaces but for millions of displaced people their conditions are far more cramped and poorly serviced and the risks are far deadlier," IRC's Marcus Skinner said. The NGO, which was founded in the US in 1933 at the suggestion of Albert Einstein, cited three camps in three countries where population density is higher than the ratio of 24,400 people per square kilometre on the Diamond Princess: - Cox's Bazar, a Bangladesh port with a large population of Rohingya refugees (a ratio of 40,000 people / square kilometre) - Al-Hol, a camp in northeastern Syria housing families of Islamic State jihadists (ratio of 37,570 people / square kilometre) - Moria, a camp for some 20,000 people on the Greek island of Lesbos (ratio of 203,800 people / square kilometre) Marcus Skinner said that, provided adequate funding came forward, some measures could be taken to mitigate the risk in those overcrowded camps. He cited increasing access to running water, identifying isolation areas, redesigning and building new shelters to support social distancing. The COVID-19 pandemic has killed more than 40,000 people worldwide since the virus first appeared in China late last year.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K



Palaniswami on Thursday pitched for Central government support to the state's initiatives tied to coronavirus pandemic like prevention and relief measures during his meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi through video conferencing.

Palaniswami, in the second such meeting convened by the Prime Minister to discuss ways to check the spread of coronavirus with all Chief Ministers, detailed the initiatives being pursued by his government in thwarting the contagion in Tamil Nadu which occupies the third slot in the country in terms of the total number of infections.

As many as 110 new cases were reported in 15 districts of the State on April 1 bringing the total count to 234.

A brief release here said Palaniswami detailed Modi "about the preventive and relief measures being pursued by the state government and the Central help needed for such initiatives."



Health and Revenue Ministers C Vijayabaskar and R B Udhayakumar respectively, top officials including Chief Secretary K Shanmugam, Director General of Police, J K Tripathy were also present when Palaniswami deliberated with Modi from the Secretariat at Fort St George here.

Issues like migrants welfare, availability of essentials and contact tracing of Tablighi Jamat participants were also likely to have been discussed and information on such aspects are expected.

In Delhi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah and top bureaucrats were present along with the Prime Minister.

This is for the second time the prime minister is holding a video conference with the chief ministers after the spread of coronavirus, and the first after the 21-day lockdown came into force.

The lockdown was enforced on March 24.

According to the union health ministry, death toll due to coronavirus touched 50 on Thursday.

Total number of positive cases has risen to 1,965 in the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A masked tourist takes a selfie with a security guard in Xixi Wetland Park in Hangzhou, China, on 24 March. (Getty Images)

China appears to have successfully exited [its] stringent social distancing policy amid the coronavirus, scientists have said.

The previously-unknown strain is thought to have emerged at a seafood and live animal market in the city Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, at the end of last year.

Strict social distancing measures were put in place in Wuhan on 23 January, quickly followed by similar polices in other provinces.

At the peak of Chinas outbreak, between 2,000 and 4,000 new cases were confirmed every day.

Up to 23 March, the country had no new domestic incidences for five consecutive days.

Latest coronavirus news, updates and advice

Live: Follow all the latest updates from the UK and around the world

Fact-checker: The number of COVID-19 cases in your local area

Explained: Symptoms, latest advice and how it compares to the flu

This indicates social distancing measures have controlled the outbreak in China, the Imperial College London scientists claimed.

Once these were relaxed somewhat, the number of new cases remained reassuringly low.

After very intense social distancing which resulted in containment, China has successfully exited [its] stringent social distancing policy to some degree, said the scientists.

A man is sitting while wearing a mask at the Maschsee lake near Hanover on 25 March. Germany has had more than 33,500 confirmed cases. (Getty Images)

Since the outbreak was identified, cases have been confirmed in 170 countries across every inhabited continent.

More than 425,400 patients have been noted worldwide, of whom over 109,100 have recovered to date, according to John Hopkins University.

Cases have been plateauing in China since the end of February, with Europe now the epicentre of the pandemic.

The UK has had more than 8,100 confirmed cases and 422 deaths.

Globally, the death toll has exceeded 18,900.

The coronavirus shares some, but not all, symptoms with colds and flu. (Yahoo UK)

Chinas containment strategies are continuing to be effective

The Imperial scientists measured the number of coronavirus cases arising daily in every province of mainland China.

Within-city movement data was collected between 1 January and 17 March for major metropolitan cities.

Story continues

GPS tracking allowed the scientists to gauge the number of trips taken per person, compared to 2019.

The team then calculated the virus basic reproduction number, the number of people a patient statistically goes onto infect.

For example, a number of three means every patient is expected to pass the virus to three others.

This has proved tricky to calculate, with Professor David Heymann  from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine  previously telling Yahoo UK basic reproduction numbers change daily as new information comes in.

Nevertheless, the Imperial scientists found that as travel restrictions were put in place, inner-city movement declined alongside the coronavirus basic reproduction number.

Reassuringly, once these restrictions were relaxed somewhat, the basic reproduction number stayed low.

These results provide evidence that Chinas containment strategies are continuing to be effective as they restart their economy, said the scientists.

Hubei, excluding Wuhan, lifted travel restrictions completely overnight. Wuhan will partially ease its measures on 8 April.

Many are worried about the coronavirus impact on the economy, with the FTSE 100 down 34.1% on 19 March.

Shutting borders worldwide has hit the travel industry hard, while draconian measures forcing Britons to stay in their homes has driven down spending.

Boris Johnson announced on Monday evening Britons are only to go outdoors to buy essentials, for exercise or if they are unable to work from home.

He previously urged the public to avoid social contact, ditch non-essential travel and work from home, if possible.

Different countries are at different stages of the pandemic, with the outbreak appearing to have peaked in China.

Its strategy may help inform decision making processes for [other nations] once containment is achieved, said the Imperial scientists.

The team stressed they only looked at confirmed cases. These are more likely to be severe, with many patients being diagnosed in hospital.

Early research suggests four out of five cases are mild, with most likely going undetected in the community.

Professor Brendan Wren from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: The latest data from Wuhan is encouraging and points the way to implementing strict social distancing measures in getting the epidemic under control.

However, we still have no idea of the proportion of the population who are immunologically naive to the virus and still susceptible to the potential re-emergence of the virus.

A reliable antibody test to sample a large cross-section of the population for [the coronavirus] infection/carriage is a current global imperative.

A woman's temperature is taken before entering a shopping centre in Yangon, Myanmar, on 25 March. Myanmar has had no confirmed cases. (Getty Images)

What is the coronavirus?

The coronavirus is one of seven strains of a class of viruses that are known to infect humans.

Others include the common cold and severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars), which killed 774 people during its 2002/3 outbreak.

The coronavirus mainly spreads face-to-face via infected droplets that have been coughed or sneezed out.

There is also evidence it may be transmitted in faeces or urine and can survive on surfaces.

While most cases are mild, pneumonia can come about if the infection spreads to the air sacs in the lungs, causing them to become inflamed and filled with fluid or pus.

The lungs then struggle to draw in air, resulting in reduced oxygen in the bloodstream and a build-up of carbon dioxide.

The coronavirus has no set treatment, with most patients immune systems fighting off the virus naturally.

In severe cases, hospitalisation may be required if a patient needs supportive care.

This may include ventilation while their immune system gets to work.

Hand-washing and social distancing are thought to be the best ways to ward off infection.
The German government is supplementing its existing uncapped aid for businesses to survive the ongoing coronavirus crisis with  2 billion directed specifically at the countrys startups.

The government will support venture capital investors who make funds available to creative fledgling firms.

Commenting on the aid package, Germany Minister of Economic Affairs and Energy Peter Altmaier said on Wednesday, April 1: Classic credit instruments are often a poor fit for young, innovative companies. For this reason we are offering a tailor-made support package.

With this two-billion-euro aid package, we are ensuring that this innovative growth sector with its many thousands of jobs gets through the crisis in good shape, said Finance Minister Olaf Scholz.

The initiative also aims to enable the umbrella funds KfW Capital from Germanys national development bank and the EUs European Investment Fund (EIF) to use public funds to replace money withdrawn by other investment funds.

In addition, the German Economics Ministry hopes the measure will give startups and other small firms without venture capital support access to it for the first time.

FinSMEs

01/04/2020
Schools across the nation closed on March 20 in a bid to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

And Amanda Holden left her daughters Lexi, 14, and Hollie, eight, stunned when she joked they'll have to attend their institutions 365 days a year once they reopen in a hilarious April Fool's Day prank shared to Instagram on Thursday.

The Heart Radio host, 49, pulled out all the stops to deceive her girl as she penned a fake letter from UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, causing her youngest child to storm off in anger.

Gotcha! Amanda Holden left Lexi, 14, and Hollie, eight, stunned when she joked they'll have to attend school 365 days a year once it reopens in a hilarious April Fool's Day prank

Calling her brood to the kitchen, the presenter appeared stern as she read off her laptop: 'Listen to this, thank you all for all you've done so far by keeping your child at home during this quarantine period.

'Thanks to you, we will beat this virus quickly and return to normal by early 2021. This means your child would have missed nearly 200 days of school by the time we return to normality.

Dropping the shock news, Amanda, who shares her daughters with husband Chris Hughes, detailed: 'I'd like to take this opportunity to reassure you we're doing everything we can to ensure your child's education is not spoilt anyway by this pandemic, and they will still grow to become world leaders.

(Non) official! In a post shared to Instagram on Thursday, the host, 49, pulled out all the stops to deceive her girl as she penned a fake letter from UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson

'You're not going to like this!' Calling her brood to the kitchen, the presenter appeared stern as she read off her laptop

'For this reason, when the schools do reopen we will quickly make up for lost time, by not only teaching your children from Monday to Friday, but also making it compulsory that your child to attend school on Saturdays, Sundays, half-terms and holidays.

'We will review this in 2025, and hopefully your child will be back at the level of education we expect. Your sincerely, Boris Johnson.'

'So I have to go school every weekend?', a confused Hollie asked her mother, with the Britain's Got Talent judge repeating: 'Starting from September, you go to school with no breaks.'

Different reactions: 'So I have to go school every weekend?', a confused Hollie asked her mother, while Lexi claimed she wasn't 'bothered' by the news

Lexi appeared briefly unfazed by the message as she said: 'What about Christmas Day? It doesn't not bother me!', before realising: 'It's not that bad... wait, no summer holidays?'

'Yes! That's what I'm saying. No summer holidays, no Easter, no half-term', media personality Amanda said, with an upset Hollie slamming the kitchen door.

The amused star captioned her post: 'Yesterday... When the #Boris sends mummy an official letter about new school hours ...#AprilFools.' [sic]

Since school closed, many celebrities have taken on the role of teachers as they educate their children at home.

Last week, Boris ordered the immediate closure of all non-essential shops and threatened people with fines or even arrest if they do not 'stay at home' amid the global crisis.

The shutdown will last for a minimum of three weeks and the UK's new state of emergency is unprecedented in modern history.

Gatherings of more than two people have been banned in the most dramatic curbs on freedom ever seen in Britain in time of peace or war, as the government goes all out to stop the spread of the killer disease, which has claimed nearly 3,000 lives.
The hospital, one of Vietnams largest, has been locked down since Saturday morning. The first two cases at the hospital, two nurses, were confirmed positive on March 20. As of Thursday, 40 Covid-19 cases linked to the hospital have been confirmed.

The hospitals emergence as the nations largest infection hotspot has prompted many localities to search for residents who had visited it since March 10.

Most people whove visited the hospital have come from the north of the country, and a few have been identified in central Vietnam.

In the northern province of Nam Dinh, about 2,610 people visited the hospital between March 12 and 27. Of these, 308 people received inpatient treatment, while the remainder went for a check up and left the same day.

Bui Thi Minh Thu, director of the Nam Dinh Health Department, said the province is planning a campaign to quarantine everyone who has visited the hospital and those whod had close contact with them.

The province had also sent 31 officials to the Bach Mai Hospital for a study trip. Twenty have returned and are being quarantined at home and the others are still in Hanoi.

In another northern province, Hai Duong, nearly 2,390 people visited the hospital between March 10 and 27. 250 received inpatient care. The inpatients have returned and have been isolated, and samples have been taken from half of them for testing.

Pham Manh Cuong, director of the Hai Duong Health Department, said the province had only found 1,500 people as of Monday.

Thai Binh, yet another northern province, has recorded 1,030 residents as receiving outpatient treatment and 125 being inpatients at Bach Mai during the period under consideration. Thirty-five people have so far been quarantined in the province. Local health officials said that the number of visitors to the Bach Mai Hospital is very large. They are scattered everywhere throughout Thai Binh, making it a challenge for the authorities who are still in the process of identifying them.

In the northern province of Ninh Binh, 616 people visited the hospital between March 15 and 26, according to Vu Manh Duong, director of the provincial health department. 225 are awaiting Covid-19 test results and the others are being placed in a centralized quarantine area.

In Yen Bai, 321 people have been identified and 253 quarantined at home. Fifty-seven have already completed a 14-day mandatory home quarantine stint. Eleven others are at isolation facilities in the province.

The province has taken samples from 181 people. Of these, 85 have tested negative for the coronavirus and results for the remaining are pending. The province is also collecting samples of everyone associated with the hospital and those whod come in contact with them.

One of Hanois neighbors, Vinh Phuc Province, has identified more than 1,000 people whod been to the hospital, said Nguyen Thanh Hai, director of the provincial health department. They have been isolated from the community and their samples are being tested.

"Because the province is right next to Hanoi, we have also asked local authorities to search for taxi drivers who took people to the hospital," Hai said.

Elsewhere in the northern highlands, the provinces of Lang Son, Ha Giang, Hoa Binh and Tuyen Quang have respectively identified 236, 106, 441 and 270 resident with links to Bach Mai and isolated them at home. Some have got their samples tested, but the results are not known yet.

In central Vietnam, Da Nang City authorities are still searching for Bach Mai Hospital visitors. Ten residents who visited the hospital and several doctors and apprentices who went there to study have tested negative for the virus, said Ton That Thanh, director of Da Nang Center for Disease Control.

"We are waiting for local authorities to compile a specific list [of people] so samples can be taken for testing, and to ensure every visitor to the Bach Mai Hospital is monitored," Thanh said.

In Quang Nam Province, Da Nang's neighbor, seven people have been identified, including patients, doctors and people who visited family members being treated at the Bach Mai Hospital. Everyone has been quarantined at home and some have had their samples tested. Results are unknown at this point.

Other northern and central localities including Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Hai Phong, and Quang Ninh have identified and are monitoring over 4,600 people.

Of the 222 Covid-19 patients confirmed in Vietnam until now, 64 have been discharged from hospitals.

Most of the active cases are those who have returned from Europe and the U.S. and people whove had close contact with them.

The Covid-19 pandemic has spread to 203 countries and territories, claiming over 47,000 lives.
As of this week, the Australian government's strategy now includes an unprecedented $130 billion wage subsidy, paid directly to financially-distressed employers to pass onto employees they retain rather than sack. In both magnitude and design, its unlike anything weve ever seen before. So dont feel too bad if it all seems a bit novel to you.

Indeed, the playbook on how best to respond to economic crises is being re-written by the hour, if not the minute.

Every day of this COVID-19 crisis, it becomes necessary to rip out a new page and start again. Take your line graph predicting the future for the economy, and turn it on its head. Take the standard rules for good public policy-making and chuck them in the bin.

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The basic idea is to effectively "staple" workers to their jobs. Without the scheme, more firms would simply retrench their workers, sending them off to the Centrelink queue, from where, conceivably, theyd be retrieved when normal economic conditions return  whenever that might be. To avoid that dislocation, the government has decided to step in and give businesses suffering a big downturn in revenues the cash flow they need to keep paying their employees.

In Britain, a similar scheme offers 80 per cent of your salary, up to a cap. Here, weve gone for a flat $1500 per fortnight payment to cover all employees of a distressed business.

If all goes according to plan, after a period of six months, when all COVID-19 related restrictions have been lifted, our economy can emerge from effective hibernation with nearly 7 million workers in the same jobs as before, thanks to the scheme.

By far the biggest disadvantage of the scheme is that it is enormously costly. It helps, in this regard, that the government has set a clear time limit of six months for the subsidy. But make no mistake: they will be under significant pressure to extend it if the social dislocation of COVID-19 is still with us after that.
Ongoing disputes between Turkish-held groups and the SDF exacerbate the situation. On March 24, Turkish-backed groups shut off water to the city of Al-Hasakeh, creating increased risks of coronavirus and other disease outbreaks for some 460,000 residents, including tens of thousands living in the Al-Hol displacement camp.

The immediate challenge for Northeast Syria is access to outside coronavirus experts. While WHO officials can reach Idlib via U.N.-approved borders, they cannot cross from Iraq into northeast Syria. The push by China and Russia to end the Syria cross-border aid mechanism under Resolution 2449 in January left the northeast out of reach of U.N. assistance.

Obtaining testing kits and expanding the region's healthcare capacity depends heavily on whether WHO can access northeast Syria from Damascus, a process that historically has been fraught with political challenges for U.N. agencies. The U.N. Security Council could opt to grant WHO authorization for cross-border assistance at all official crossings - allowing aid to arrive via Iraq and Jordan. This might give the peripheral areas of Syria access to life-saving medical care as the coronavirus spreads - which seems inevitable, given the experience of other countries.

- What happens now?
Tucker Carlson did a segment discussing COVID-19's origins. While saying the virus probably started in a laboratory, he was careful not to accuse China of deliberately creating or releasing the virus. China's long history of shoddy products and disregard for human life makes it a good bet that China didn't weaponize the virus. Instead, COVID-19 is probably just another shoddy Chinese product.

Back in the 1960s, Japan was synonymous with cheap, but not shoddy products. By the 1980s, though, Japanese people's meticulous habits meant that, if it came from Japan, it was well made and worth the price.

When China started selling cheap products in the West, most people assumed that it would follow the same trajectory that Japan did. That never happened because China is not Japan (nor is it Korea, which also makes meticulous products). Unlike Japan and Korea, it's neither clean nor orderly. From chaos comes garbage.

Nor is China's chaotic manufacturing limited to the cheap products that make stores such as Walmart and Target so blessedly affordable. When California finally got around to retrofitting the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, around 25 years after the Loma Prieta earthquake revealed fatal flaws, Caltrans made the terrible decision to buy Chinese parts:

The Chinese company hired to build key parts of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge had never built a bridge. Shanghai Zhenhua Port Machinery Co. Ltd., after all, was a manufacturer of giant cranes for container ports. The California Department of Transportation agreed to contract the company known as ZPMC in 2006 because it had established a reputation as fast and cost-effective, offering savings of about $250 million compared to the competing bidder. Key findings  Caltrans approved a Chinese firm to build the roadway and iconic tower. When the company ignored quality requirements and fell behind schedule, Caltrans paid hundreds of millions of dollars to induce faster work.  Caltrans permitted an unknown number of cracked or suspect welds in the suspension span. After two senior engineers challenged quality assurance practices, Caltrans reassigned one and let the other's contract lapse.

The Bay Bridge is just a large version of what we all know: China manufactures lousy products. The clothes disintegrate, the tools don't work, the pet food kills.

The Chinese visit this same carelessness on themselves. Do you remember the 2008 milk scandal in China? Dairy companies were putting melamine (the same poison that kills pets) in milk to give it the appearance of more protein, and, as always, they tried to cover it up:

Of an estimated 300,000 victims in China,[1] six babies died from kidney stones and other kidney damage and an estimated 54,000 babies were hospitalized. [snip] The World Health Organization in 2009 called the incident one of the largest food safety events the UN health agency had needed to deal with in past years. ... [snip] In 2012, Jiang Weisuo, a 44-year-old general manager of a dairy products plant in Shanxi province, was rumoured to have been murdered in Xi'an city. It was Jiang who had first alerted authorities to the scandal. According to the Xi'an Evening News, Jiang died in hospital on 12 November from knife wounds inflicted by his wife, Yang Ping, but the purported murder by his wife was subsequently reported to be incorrect.

China is a magnificent country, but it's also a dirty country that's often criminally careless, with limited respect for individual well-being and a totalitarian government that obsessively hides mistakes (as it has with COVID-19). China, therefore, was always going to be the perfect vector for the next pandemic.

Tucker Carlson's Sunday-night segment makes a good case that COVID-19 originated not in a Wuhan wet market, but in a Wuhan laboratory:

The big takeaway is that there's no evidence that the Chinese intended to weaponize COVID-19. Therefore, at a guess, the disease's genesis was a research laboratory that didn't have good safety protocols.

In Japan, America, Switzerland, and any number of other countries, there would be double and triple protocols in place, and employees would follow them. In China, you can bet that the protocols were poorly conceived and infrequently followed. China didn't release the plague intentionally; it released it because its culture breeds negligence.

We see that same thing with all the recent reports about the defective masks and tests that China is sending around the world. It's unlikely that China intends to harm other nations. Instead, it's doing what it has successfully done for 35 years: sending us the same stuff that always sold well in more carefree times.

There's going to be a reckoning with China, not because it's malevolent (although it frequently is), but because the world can no longer afford to tolerate the cheap gewgaws and knickknacks that it once could. In today's interconnected world, there's too much at stake to allow a country to be so cavalier with anything it produces.
The coronavirus outbreak in New Jersey continued to accelerate with a big jump in new deaths Thursday, bringing the statewide total to 537 deaths and 25,590 coronavirus cases.

Officials reported 182 new deaths and 3,489 new positive tests in the last 24 hours.

The former marks a new one-day high in coronavirus deaths for the state, doubling the 91 officials reported Wednesday.

We have lost another 182 members of our New Jersey family, Gov. Phil Murphy said at the Trenton War Memorial during his daily coronavirus press briefing. Our prayers and thoughts and sympathies go out to their family and friends.

New Jersey, a state of 9 million people, has the second-most cases among U.S. states, after New York.

Murphy stressed that the new deaths and cases reported did not all come in the past 24 hours, noting theres a backlog of test results as long as two weeks.

But the 182 new deaths are more than the sum of the first 15 days since the state reported its first death.

I know these numbers are stark, Murphy said. They are certainly sobering. We can lower these numbers, and we will. The way we do that is aggressively and continuously practicing our social distancing."

Of the states 537 total deaths, 47% have been people over the age of 80, officials said. And 76 of the deaths have been from residents of long-term care facilities. New Jersey has 375 long-term care facilities, and 110 of the have at least one confirmed coronavirus case.

Today's context behind the numbers:

206,000 new unemployment claims = Populations of Perth Amboy + Plainfield + Bloomfield + Jackson.

25,590 total coronavirus positives = ~Population of Ridgewood.

537 total coronavirus deaths = ~Population of Deal.  Kevin Whitmer (@kevinwhitmer) April 2, 2020

The state also said 33,520 people in the state have tested negative for COVID-19.

That, Murphy said, means about 6 out of 10 people have gotten negative results  though he conceded New Jersey so far has been testing only people showing symptoms of the virus.

The positive test results do give us a window into how best we can manage this, the governor said.

Theres a backup at getting test results that could be 10 to 14, state Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said.

All of the labs are overwhelmed at this point, Persichilli said.

Murphy also noted that its been only 12 days since he instituted his most stringent social-distancing move: his stay-at-home order.

Were still a week or so away from really knowing what those last set of actions we took, what impact those have on the positives, the governor said.

Meanwhile, Murphy said the state has to continue testing only symptomatic people, even though the federal Centers for Disease Control has said asymptomatic people can spread the disease. He said the state doesnt have the supplies it needs to do so.

In a perfect world, thats probably something wed be doing, Murphy said. We have to play the hand weve been dealt.

Persichilli said she did not have figures for how many people who have tested positive for COVID-19 in the state have been hospitalized, compared to how many are home or recovering.

Once we have that, I can share that, she said. We just dont have it now.

Officials say about 80% of people with the virus have mild symptoms and are likely to recover, while about 15% of cases are more serious.

The partial county-by-county breakdown of COVID-19 cases in New Jersey includes:

Bergen County: 3,494 with 75 deaths

Essex County: 2,262 with 69 deaths

Hudson County: 1,910 with 29 deaths

Union County: 1,661 with 29 deaths

Passaic County: 1,494 with 15 deaths

Middlesex County: 1,493 with 27 deaths

Monmouth County: 1,301 with 24 deaths

Ocean County: 1,209 with 23 deaths

Morris County: 942 with 25 deaths

Somerset County: 472 with 15 deaths

Mercer County: 333 with 3 deaths

Camden County: 289 with 3 deaths

Burlington County: 255 with 5 deaths

Sussex County: 158 with 6 deaths

Gloucester County: 149 with 2 deaths

Hunterdon County: 117 with no deaths

Warren County: 96 with 3 deaths

Atlantic County: 40 with no deaths

Cumberland County: 27 with 1 deaths

Cape May County: 22 with no deaths

Salem County: 19 with 1 death

The breakdown does not include 4,866 cases and 4 deaths that are still under investigation to determine where those people reside.

Officials said they also dont have hard numbers for how many people in the state have recovered from the virus  though Murphy stressed that up to 85% those infected get only moderate symptoms and overwhelmingly get better, while about 15% are more high-risk.

Well fight to save every single one of them, Murphy said. But no question people are getting better.

Officials said they may be able to supply more data on that in the future. But Murphy said: We dont want to give you data we cant hang our hat on.

The update comes a day after officials announced a spate hospitals in the northern half of New Jersey were beginning to see a surge in patients days earlier than expected.

That has caused numerous hospitals to reach divert status  meaning whole hospitals or units temporarily reached capacity and had to direct new patients to other facilities.

Persichilli said there were four hospitals Wednesday night on divert status  down from seven the day before.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

The health commissioner said she expects New Jersey to be able to handle the surge, but she stressed that more ventilators are needed. President Donald Trumps administration has supplied the state with 650 ventilators, but officials say they need 1,650 more.

Murphy announced Thursday that he signed an executive order to give Col. Patrick Callahan, superintendent of New Jerseys State Police, the authority to commandeer much-needed medical supplies and equipment from companies and people in the state that have not yet donated it to health-care facilities to help battle the outbreak.

Meanwhile, Murphy on Thursday morning toured the first of four pop-up field hospitals the federal government is building in New Jersey to help create more hospital space. The site, at the Meadowlands in Secaucus, will have a soft opening Monday, Murphy said.

A second field hospital, in Edison, is slated to open April 8, while a third, in Atlantic City, is scheduled for April 14, Callahan said.

Murphy has put New Jersey into near-lockdown to increase social distancing, help slow the virus spread, and prevent hospitals from becoming overloaded. Hes ordered residents to stay at home, banned social gatherings, closed schools, and mandated all non-essential businesses close.

The governor said Wednesday night that New Jersey residents should expect the fallout from the virus to drag deep into May.

During an interview Thursday afternoon on CNN, Murphy was asked if he expects effects of the virus to linger through August, like New York says is likely.

I dont know I got a specific date for you, he said on The Situation Room. "But we know this is not gonna be tomorrow or next week or even probably a month from now. This is a marathon.

As of Thursday morning, COVID-19 has infected more than 956,000 people across the world, according to a running tally by Johns Hopkins University. Of those, more than 48,000 have died and more than 202,000 have recovered.

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SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Costa Rica Treatment Center, an evidence-based, residential drug rehabilitation treatment center located in San Jose, Costa Rica, has announced it has secured $400,000 in funding to expand its facility by purchasing a neighboring property. The purchase was completed on Feb. 26, 2020. The acquisition paves the way for Costa Rica Treatment Center to expand its scope of services by including an on-site 24/7 emergency detox unit and health and fitness center, among other benefits. Costa Rica Treatment Center has already begun its remodeling of the space to include a detox room, more counseling spaces, a custom yoga and meditation studio, and many more amenities.

Costa Rica Treatment Center

In addition to the recent expansion, Costa Rica Treatment Center intends to continue increasing its clinical team and open up volunteer options for professionals from abroad looking to intern with the center's program and learn about its practice methodology. The staff intends to remain working with no more than 18 clients at a time to remain true to its philosophy of intimate and individualized recovery programs. The center has recently hired four new staff members, including one new operator, two registered nurses and one licensed psychotherapist certified in hypnotherapy and meditation practices. This brings the current staff-to-patient ratio to approximately 1.5 to 1.

"Mental health professionals estimate that approximately two out of 10 addicts recover from the disease of addiction, which is why the quality of care is so essential," said Gernot E. Holtz, Director of Costa Rica Treatment Center. "Every aspect of our rehabilitation center was mindfully developed to complement our treatment philosophy. Our facility is no exception."

Caring about the safety of its clients, Costa Rica Treatment Center is close to major infrastructure including emergency rooms, hospitals, and intensive care units. It's location also provides clients the opportunity to engage with the "real world" while receiving quality care, better preparing them for future reintegration into society.

While there are many different types of rehab centers in Costa Rica, very few maintain North American standards. The Costa Rica Treatment Center is one of the most recommended alternatives in the country, catering to English-speaking clients. It is fully accredited by the country's Ministry of Health.

At $4,950 per month for a shared occupancy room and $7,650 per month for a private room, Costa Rica Treatment Center is significantly more affordable than residential programs in the United States and Canada, which regularly cost upwards of $20,000 for equivalent care. Costa Rica Treatment Center staff is so confident in the program that they offer a guarantee with its 120-day program.

For more information and to learn about the drug addiction residential treatment programs offered, visit costaricatreatmentcenter.com and "Like" Costa Rica Treatment Center on Facebook.

About Costa Rica Treatment Center

Costa Rica Treatment Center offers individualized treatment programs in all areas of substance abuse and addiction. As part of its integral and holistic treatment model, the center provides a specialized multidisciplinary team dedicated to ensure all clients receive the highest standard of professional care. More information is available at costaricatreatmentcenter.com.

Contact:

[email protected]

USA 1-800-708-3656

CR (506) 4033 7830

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SOURCE Costa Rica Treatment Center

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Vertical Flight Society logo Those being recognized this year have made invaluable contributions to all manners of vertical flight aircraft  past, present and future.

The Vertical Flight Society today announced the 2020 individual recipients of its prestigious awards program. Since its establishment in 1944, VFS Awards have paid tribute to the outstanding leaders of vertical flight and served as a catalyst for stimulating technological advances. This years winners will be recognized at the Grand Awards Banquet on Oct. 7 during the VFS 76th Annual Forum and Technology Display in Virginia Beach, Virginia (http://www.vtol.org/forum).

Since Igor Sikorsky and Gen. H. Franklin Gregory were first honored in 1944, the Vertical Flight Society has been recognizing the leading contributors to advancing vertical flight, said VFS Executive Director Mike Hirschberg. Those being recognized this year have made invaluable contributions to all manners of vertical flight aircraft  past, present and future.

Lt. Col (Dr.) Arvind K. Sinha, of the Defence Aviation Safety Authority for the Australian Department of Defence, is this years honored recipient of the Dr. Alexander Klemin Award, the highest honor the Vertical Flight Society bestows on an individual for notable achievement in advancing the field of vertical flight aeronautics. Sinha was recognized for more than 45 years of contributions, while in various roles in the military (including the elite 17 Parachute Field Regiment as its Para Eagle), academia and government (as Director of Engineering) for vertical flight operations, training, engineering, safety and service, providing enthusiastic leadership and promoting exemplary international collaboration.

The title of Honorary Fellow is granted to highly distinguished Society members who have made exceptional leadership, innovative or other meritorious contributions that have significantly advanced VFS and the vertical flight community during their career. This years Honorary Fellow is Andy Keith, Chief, Propulsion Engineering for Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company. In more than 30 years at Sikorsky, Keith has provided outstanding leadership and technical expertise. Over the same time period, he has similarly made substantial contributions to the Society, notably on the VFS Propulsion Technical Committee, followed by assuming the role of the VFS Deputy Technical Director for Vehicle Design from 2012-2018, and has been since serving as the VFS Technical Director.

The title of Technical Fellow is granted to Society members whose career-based accomplishments towards the goals and objectives of the vertical flight technical community constitute an outstanding technical achievement. The 2020 Technical Fellows are:



Dr. Mahendra Bhagwat, Aeromechanics and Basic Research Focus Lead, US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (CCDC), Aviation & Missile Center (AvMC), Technology Development Directorate  Aviation (TDD-A), for his pioneering contributions to the fundamental understanding of transient wake dynamics.

Prof. Carlos Cesnik, Clarence Kelly Johnson Professor of Aerospace Engineering, University of Michigan, has pioneered the development of the active twist rotor, advanced the state of the art in structural health monitoring, and has made landmark contributions to the coupled aeroelasticity-flight mechanics of very flexible long endurance aircraft.

Dr. Changjian He, Vice President of Research and Development, Advanced Rotorcraft Technology, Inc., is an internationally recognized authority on rotorcraft aerodynamics and modeling and simulation; he is the technical leader of the comprehensive rotorcraft modeling and simulation program, FLIGHTLAB.

John Schillings, Technical Fellow for Handling Qualities, Bell Textron, Inc., for 40 years of contributions to rotorcraft aerodynamics, handling qualities and comprehensive flight simulation.

The John J. Schneider Historical Achievement Award is given in recognition of distinguished achievement by an individual in encouraging appreciation of, and enhancing access to, the history and legacy of vertical flight aircraft. This years recipient is Kenneth M. Bartie, The Boeing Company. A Society member since 1981, Bartie has made significant contributions to documenting and preserving the history of The Boeing Companys vertical flight heritage, support to the American Helicopter Museum & Education Center during its creation and founding, leadership in the VFS History Committee and creation of the annual VFS History Calendar since 2009.

The annual Francois-Xavier Bagnoud Award is given to an individual Society member under the age of 35 for career-to-date outstanding contributions to vertical flight technology. This years winner is Patrick O. Bowles of Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company, for his numerous contributions to vertical flight while at the University of Notre Dame, United Technologies Research Center (UTRC), and Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company. Most recently, Bowles was one of the leads in the extensive computational fluid dynamics (CFD) effort that solving the exhaust gas reingestion (EGR) issue for the Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion.

The Societys Paul E. Haueter Award is given for an outstanding technical contribution to the field of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft development other than a helicopter or an operational vertical flight aircraft. The 2020 Haueter Award is being awarded to Gwen Lighter, the CEO of GoFly. Over the past five years, Lighter has been a force of nature  formulating and inspiring others with her vision of personal flying devices, securing over $2M in sponsorships, and launching an international competition that drew 3,800 innovators participating on 854 teams (100+ university teams) from 103 countries on six continents. The GoFly Final Fly Off on Feb. 29, 2020 drew dozens of the worlds most inventive vertical flight innovators; the Grand Prize was not claimed, so the competition continues.

The Vertical Flight Society previously announced in October 2019 that Dr. Mark B. Tischler, US Army Senior Scientist, had been selected for the 2020 Alexander A. Nikolsky Honorary Lectureship; this award will also be presented at the VFS 76th Annual Grand Awards Banquet on Oct. 7, 2020.

The Vertical Flight Society was founded as the American Helicopter Society in 1943 by the pioneers of the helicopter industry, who believed that technological cooperation and collaboration was essential to advance vertical flight. VFS is the global non-profit society for engineers, scientists and others working on vertical flight technology. For more than 75 years, the Society has led technology, safety, advocacy, and other important initiatives, and has been the primary forum for interchange of information on vertical flight technology. Descriptions of the awards and past recipients are available at http://www.vtol.org/awards
About 70 students in Delta Colleges nursing program will soon be able to enter the workforce thanks to regulatory changes in the required clinical time needed to graduate. The temporary changes were announced March 30 in an executive order signed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and supported by the Michigan Board of Nursing.

The state will now allow 100 percent of online education to count for completion of studies, which was previously not allowed. All students, including nursing majors, transitioned to online learning March 18 after Delta suspended labs and closed buildings as part of a statewide effort to decrease the spread of COVID-19.
Back in 2011, Kate Middleton and Prince William's fairy tale wedding was watched by billions of people across the globe. However, their union was threatened when the two broke up in 2007.

While the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge now have three children and are in a state of wedding bliss, the future Queen was forced to accept one thing about her husband before she would take him back.

In an old article by the Daily Mail, a source told the publication that Kate was ready for Prince William to propose when they got back together in 2007 after breaking up for four months.

However, at that time, the former playboy royal wasn't ready to settle down with her yet.

Their source furthermore added that in addition to Kate playing the waiting game for her then-boyfriend to put a ring on it, she had to deal with another fixation of her actual Prince Charming.

"He has always had a roving eye, far more so than Harry, who is meant to be the family playboy," as per the source, adding, "That's something Kate has always known and accepted - it was part of the deal."

Prince William's "roving eye" played a considerable role in the couple's breakup in 2007, according to Express.

Their four-month trial separation during their final year at St. Andrew's University "deeply hurt" Kate Middleton because of the prince's behavior during their split.

Royal expert Katie Nicholl wrote in her 2010 book, "William and Harry," that the older prince knew he wanted to spend some time apart from Kate and planned a boys-only yachting holiday in Greece.

The expert revealed that Kate was reportedly questioning Prince William's commitment to their relationship. Apart from that, Kate also had doubts creeping to her about their future once they graduate.

One reason why Kate was questioning their relationship was because of one girl that was once involved - an American heiress named Anna Sloan.

As per Nicholl, Prince William and Anna had a lot of things in common, and Kate was worried that their connection might include "romantic feelings."

At that time, the heiress reportedly lost her father George Sloan in a tragic shooting accident in their estate in Nashville, and Anna and Prince William have allegedly connected over the loss of their parents.

"When Anna invited William and a group of friends to Texas for a holiday before he went to Greece, it hurt Kate deeply. She suspected William might have feelings for the 22-year-old heiress."

However, nothing romantic ever happened to the two since Anna was not interested in the prince, romantically.

During their time apart, Prince William was also linked to socialite Isabella Calthorpe but has spurned his advances because she doesn't want to date a royal.

In May 2007, Prince William came to his senses and realized that his break up with Kate Middleton was a mistake.

"She had been badly hurt and told William she needed some time," that later in June at a party, the then-Prince of Wales reportedly followed her around like a lost puppy.

Recently, their family friend Rose Hanbury was reportedly the Duke of Cambridge's mistress, but the duke has vehemently denied it, and the rumors were never proven.

Though they already have three children, their relationship is still going strong. They are now at the forefront of their royal duties after Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have stepped down as senior members of the royal family and with Prince Charles, who has recently been diagnosed with the coronavirus.

READ MORE: Kate Middleton Stops Wearing Princess Diana's Ring During Coronavirus Outbreak - But Why?
Dr Amir Feily: A sought-after doctor in dermatology, the world needs to know more about

Doctor accused of illegal abortion gets bail for medical duty amid coronavirus pandemic

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Mumbai, Apr 02: The Bombay High Court granted temporary bail to a doctor, accused of causing death of a woman after performing an illegal abortion on her, and directed him to serve at a government hospital in Aurangabad amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Aurangabad bench of Justice T V Nalawade on Monday was hearing an application filed by Dr Suraj Rana, seeking temporary bail on the grounds that he would serve the needy. Rana was arrested in August 2019 for allegedly performing an illegal abortion despite complications, causing the death of the woman.

The doctor was booked under sections 314 (death caused by act done with intent to cause miscarriage), 201 (destruction of evidence), 203 and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. "In view of the circumstances, this court is granting temporary bail to the applicant.

800 quarantined after Delhi Mohalla clinic doctor tests positive for coronavirus

The applicant shall approach the Dean of the Aurangabad Government Medical College and Hospital and submit an undertaking that he is ready to discharge services as per the directives of the Dean," the court said. The court granted Rana bail on a bond of Rs 15,000 and directed him to not tamper with the prosecution witnesses in the case. The temporary bail shall continue till April 30, the single bench held.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 11:22 [IST]
The League of Women Voters reminds citizens that coronavirus concerns need not keep any citizen from registering to vote or from voting in the June 2 primary election.

Anyone who is not yet registered or who wants to vote by mail can do so by contacting the county clerks office or by going to the League of Women Voters of New Jersey website (lwvnj.org).

To vote in this years primary, you must register by May 12. If you are already registered but would like to change your party affiliation, you must do so by April 8. (In a primary election, a voter can vote only in the party of his or her choice.) The last day to apply by mail for a vote-by-mail ballot is May 26. You can apply in person for vote-by-mail ballots until June 1.

Ada Brunner, League of Women Voters, Union Area

Column was selfish and narcissistic

It was depressing and horrifying to read Jessica Remos selfish and narcissistic ramblings (My Instacart shopper braved the supermarket so I didnt have to).

While she and her family entertain themselves giggling over their unrepentant hoarding of food and toiletries they dont actually need (by their own admission), food banks and service organizations are struggling to feed and care for thousands of our food-insecure neighbors in the face of recommended contact restrictions.

Further, she apparently cant picture the possibility that Shania may also have an elderly/seriously ill family member and that she may not have the option of skipping her job to protect them. Remos conscience doesnt even blink at the thought of sending this total stranger to the store to take a risk in her place, even though she herself bristled at the thought of going in.

We can only hope that required social distancing will give her enough alone time for soul-searching and digging deep within herself to find empathy and social conscience. The entire family should start by donating their excess.

Donna Fugit, Brielle

Amid virus, free immigrants in detention

We should remember the 52,000 immigrants being held in detention nationally and the three detention camps in New Jersey that cage thousands of people  someones children, parents, siblings, friends  merely for seeking asylum. With the outbreak of COVID-19, these detention camps will be turned into death centers, even as they continue to earn millions in contracts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

To honor the upcoming Passover holiday, we call upon Gov. Phil Murphy to use his emergency powers to release these innocent, harmless detainees and prevent their needless deaths.

Laura Morowitz, Verona

Toxic site for school opposed

I am one of the activists that Dale Caldwell was critical of in his letter about the Lincoln Annex School (Self-focused activism hurts community).

In 2014, New Brunswick taxpayers paid $22 million to purchase, remediate and upgrade the Lincoln School Annex. Now the Board of Education plans to demolish it and build a new school at 131 Jersey Ave. That property is so toxic that even after 10 years of cleanup attempts at the site, many dangerous chemicals remain in the soil and the groundwater, and in 2014 the state required the land to be covered over with concrete and monitored annually for at least 30 years. The backup site, 50 Jersey Ave., is also contaminated.

The cleanup for either one of these sites will not be minimal, and the taxpayers of New Brunswick will be footing the bill.

We are not against improving public schools or building a new hospital. We just believe that the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey could find a better location other than tearing down a community school and building a new one on a toxic site.

Marge Kerber, New Brunswick

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(Bloomberg) -- Amazon.com Inc. is planning to open a new grocery store in Irvine, California, the second confirmed location for an as-yet-unnamed retail concept separate from the companys Whole Foods Market chain.

Amazon job postings listed this week show the retailer is hiring for managers and grocery staffers for a store in the city, located southeast of Los Angeles in Orange County. An Amazon spokeswoman confirmed plans to open a store in Irvine this year.

Amazon last year said it would launch a new supermarket, also distinct from the Amazon Go cashierless convenience stores, starting with a store in the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles. The companys plans in nearby Irvine had been the subject of speculation since Amazon began renovating a former Babies R Us there. The company has received a liquor license for the location under the name Amazon Fresh, the same name as its grocery delivery service.

Photos of the Woodland Hills store and planning documents appear to show a conventional supermarket layout, with space for a pickup-and-returns counter. Industry analysts still expect Amazon, which has tried to avoid copycat ideas as it moves into physical retail, to bring to the store an element of high-tech shopping or automation.

Amazon has also leased grocery store space in the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Encino and Thousand Oaks, sources familiar with the deals have told Bloomberg.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

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The Western Cape Government has published a new article which gives clarity to businesses on the rules related to the lockdown.

Central to our strategy to support businesses and the economy in the Western Cape is helping businesses understand and adapt to the lockdown regulations, said David Maynier, minister of finance and economic opportunities in the Western Cape Government.

He said their strategy is aimed at helping as many businesses as possible to continue to operate during this challenging time.

He has therefore been in regular contact with the national government and the South African Police Service in the Western Cape to get clarity on the regulations.

CIPC certificate not required for an essential service

Maynier informed businesses which provide an essential service in the Western Cape that a CIPC certificate is not a legal requirement for them to operate.

The CIPC certificate, which can be obtained on the bizportal.gov.za website, is not compulsory and is not a requirement of the lockdown regulations, he said.

He warned that if your business continues to operate during the lockdown and is not providing an essential service, however you are committing a criminal offence.

Law enforcement will close your business and may even arrest you, regardless of whether you have the CIPC certificate or not, he said.

Businesses can continue to operate if their your staff can work from home during the lockdown, though.

Clearing up uncertainty

To clear up prevailing confusion about which stores are able to remain open to provide essential goods, Maynier provided the guidelines below.

Grocery stores can stay open and include large retail chains, smaller corner grocery stores, fruit and veg shops, butchers, and convenience stores at filling stations.

Cigarettes may be sold during the lockdown, but only together with essential goods.

Pet and veterinary stores are permitted to be open. They may only sell animal food and animal medicines.

Health food shops that sell food, hygiene products or cleaning products are permitted to be open. If open, these stores may only sell essential goods.

Cellphone shops are not allowed to be open. They would only be allowed to sell airtime, and this can be bought at any grocery store, spaza shop, or online.

Money lending businesses are not permitted to be open.

Businesses can deliver essential goods to peoples homes, but they cant deliver hot meals or any non-essential goods to peoples homes.

Now read: Confusion about wearing masks and gloves in South Africa
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Martial law declaration in the Philippines is not being discussed now, the Inter-Agency for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases said Thursday.

Hindi natin pinag-u-usapan ang martial law. Hindi yan pinaguusapan ngayon, task force spokesperson Karlo Nograles said during a televised briefing after being asked if continued lawlessness could push the government to place the county under military rule.

[Translation: We are not discussing martial law. We are not talking about that right now.]

Nograles was made to react to President Rodrigo Dutertes directive for law enforcers to shoot to death violators of the enhanced community quarantine.

The quarantine requires most people, except those rendering vital services, to stay at home, in a bid to stem the spread of COVID-19. The restrictions are in effect until April 13.

Dutertes statement came hours after some residents in Quezon City took to the streets on Wednesday to demand the government for food and aid, which they said they had yet to receive at that time. As a result, at least 21 of them were arrested by city police.

Nograles said that what Dutertes directive implies is that during a crisis and state of calamity, there has to be order.

Importante po kay Pangulo (It is important to the President) that we maintain order especially in this time of crisis and state of calamity, Nograles said.

The official promised that the government will not let anyone create trouble and take advantage of the countrys current public health problem.

He also appealed to the public not to "complicate things by making it a peace and order problem."

It is hard and difficult as it is. Anything else, please stop. We ask for the cooperation of everyone, he said.

Duterte has preferred appointing former military men to the government, and the country's battle against the coronavirus disease outbreak is no exception.

He recently named Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez, Jr., a former Armed Forces chief as leader of the implementing arm of the IATF, which is the policy-making body for COVID-19 response.

Galvez is under Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, who heads the national task force against COVID-19. Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano, also a former top soldier, is vice chairman.

It has been almost 50 years since late dictator Ferdinand Marcos put the Philippines under military control.

Around 70,000 people were imprisoned, 30,000 tortured, more than 3,000 killed, and hundreds disappeared, according to a data from international human rights group Amnesty International.
By mid-February, Burr had dumped hundreds of thousands of dollars of stock in various companies, including some hotel chains that would soon lose much of their value in the face of a growing pandemic. He also told a private lunch gathering on Feb. 27, in a speech obtained by NPR, that coronavirus was much more aggressive in its transmission that anything we have seen in recent history. It is probably more akin to the 1918 pandemic. Publicly that same month, he was assuring Americans that the United States was well-prepared for any outbreak.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a meeting with Chief Ministers, through video conferencing, to review the COVID-19 situation in the country.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah were also present at the meeting.

Earlier on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray held a telephonic conversation on the prevailing COVID-19 situation in the state.

There has been an increase of 131 COVID-19 cases in the last 12 hours.

The total number of COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday rose to 1965 in India, including 1764 active cases, 151 cured, discharged or migrated patients and 50 deaths, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Gov. Charlie Baker, offering updated projections, said Thursday that the coronavirus surge is predicted to hit Massachusetts between April 10 and April 20, potentially infecting up to 172,000 people.

The latest projections also show the need for acute care need and ICU capacity during the surge.

A version of the graph on screens here show the dates. Baker says Mass could see 47,000 and 172,000 cases during the course of the pandemic. Peak could be between April 10 and 20. pic.twitter.com/FvM4YJgL9W  Steph Solis (@stephmsolis) April 2, 2020

Baker said that Massachusetts could see between 47,000 and 172,000 cases, infecting up to 2.5% of the population.

There have been 7,738 people who tested positive for the coronavirus, and 122 people have died, according to figures released by the state Department of Public Health on Wednesday.

Baker initially projected the surge to hit the state between April 7 and April 17. The Republican governor said the latest projections came from data collection and analysis from the Command Center and the advisory group.

He urged people to stay home, wash their hands and take the advice on social distancing seriously to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

It is a powerful weapon and has been proven in most cases to be the most powerful weapon, Baker said on Thursday. If everyone plays their part, we can flatten the curve and reduce the strain on our health care systems and our communities.

Baker also confirmed that the MassMutual Center in Springfield would serve as a field hospital to help local hospitals handle the surge, joining the DCU Center in Worcester, the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center and Joint Base Cape Cod in Bourne.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misstated the maximum number of cases Massachusetts could see, according to the governors latest projections. The story has been updated to correct that.

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A Darwin-based Labor senator has had to repay taxpayers more than $17,000 for almost 40 wrongly claimed domestic flights, hotel charges, road tolls and taxi rides while travelling to Sydney for medical treatment.

An extensive Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority audit of Malarndirri McCarthy's travel itineraries has on Thursday revealed multiple breaches of Commonwealth-funded travel expenses during a three-year period.

Senator Malarndirri McCarthy "self-reported" the travel expense claims. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

The audit focus primarily on domestic travel connections through Sydney from July 2016 to April 2019.

The audit reveals Senator McCarthy herself had asked the parliamentary expenses watchdog to audit hundreds of travel claims since she was elected to Parliament, including claims for travel allowances and "especially my stopovers in Sydney".
2.4 million guns sold per month 2 million guns In the January after Obamas re-election and the Sandy Hook shooting 1.9 million guns During the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020 2 1.6 1.1 million guns Month of Obamas election 1.2 754,000 guns Month of Sept. 11 attacks 0.8 0.4 Unadjusted Estimated gun sales per month (seasonally adjusted) 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2.4 million guns sold per month 2 million guns In the January after Obamas re-election and the Sandy Hook shooting 1.9 million guns During the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020 2 1.6 1.1 million guns Obamas election 1.2 754,000 guns Sept. 11 attacks 0.8 0.4 Unadjusted Estimated gun sales per month (seasonally adjusted) 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2.4 million guns sold per month 2 million guns In the January after Obamas re-election and the Sandy Hook shooting 1.9 million guns During the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020 2 1.6 1.1 million guns Obamas election 1.2 754,000 guns Sept. 11 attacks 0.8 0.4 Unadjusted Estimated gun sales per month (seasonally adjusted) 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2.4 million guns sold per month 2 million In the January after Obamas re-election and the Sandy Hook shooting 1.9 million During the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020 2 1.6 1.1 million Obamas election 1.2 754,000 Sept. 11 attacks 0.8 Unadjusted 0.4 Estimated gun sales per month (seasonally adjusted) 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2.4 million guns sold per month 2 million In the January after Obamas re-election and the Sandy Hook shooting 1.9 million During the coronavirus outbreak in March 2020 2 1.6 1.1 million Obamas election 1.2 754,000 Sept. 11 attacks 0.8 Unadjusted Estimated gun sales per month (seasonally adjusted) 0.4 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020

Americans bought about two million guns in March, according to a New York Times analysis of federal data. It was the second-busiest month ever for gun sales, trailing only January 2013, just after President Barack Obamas re-election and the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

With some people fearful that the pandemic could lead to civil unrest, gun sales have been skyrocketing. In the past, fear of gun-buying restrictions has been the main driver of spikes in gun sales, far surpassing the effects of mass shootings and terrorist attacks alone.

Sales rose sharply in December 2015 after Mr. Obama sought to make it harder to buy assault weapons after the terrorist attack in San Bernardino, Calif. And in January 2013, the heaviest sales came after a call for new restrictions in the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting.

But last month was different. As they prepare for an uncertain future, Americans have been crowding grocery stores to stock up on household essentials like canned beans and toilet paper. A similar worry appears to be driving gun sales.

People are nervous that theres a certain amount of civil disorder that might come if huge numbers of people are sick and a huge number of institutions are not operating normally, said Timothy Lytton, a law professor at Georgia State University and an expert on the gun industry. They may have an anxiety about protecting themselves if the organs of state are starting to erode.

Several recent gun-related incidents have been linked to fears surrounding the pandemic. Last week, police in Alpharetta, Ga., arrested a man they accused of pointing a gun at two women wearing medical masks and gloves because he feared he might contract the virus. A man in New Mexico was charged with the accidental shooting death of his 13-year-old cousin with a gun he told police he was carrying for protection amid the outbreak. And in Maine, a man with a felony conviction who claimed he needed guns to protect himself during the outbreak was charged with illegally possessing a firearm.

The monthly sales figures are estimates based on the number of background checks reported by the F.B.I., which has been publishing the data since 1998. Many sales, especially in states where background checks are not required or at gun shows where buyers may not be subject to background checks, could have gone uncounted.

In recent weeks, lines have been snaking out of gun stores throughout the country. In many states, estimated sales doubled in March compared with February. In Utah, they nearly tripled. And in Michigan, which has become a hot spot for virus cases, sales more than tripled.

The run on firearms has raised public health concerns and prompted local officials to debate whether gun stores should be temporarily closed. Advocates for stricter safety measures argue that the surge in purchases could pose a safety threat if buyers arent trained properly, new guns arent stored safely and background checks arent completed.

But after lobbying from the firearm industry, the Trump administration said this week that the stores qualified as essential businesses and should stay open during the lockdown alongside pharmacies, gas stations and grocery stores.
Written and directed by Chinonye Chukwu

Clemency, from Nigerian-American writer-director Chinonye Chukwu, is a sober, hard-hitting drama about the death penalty in the US. Certain sequences are harrowing and difficult to watch, and constitute an indictment of a social order capable of organizing such barbarism.

Alfre Woodard plays Bernadine Williams, the warden of a prison in an unspecified location where inmates are executed via lethal injection. Bernadine presides over every detail of the agonizing, inhuman ordeal.

The film opens with a botched execution. The condemned man (Alex Castillo) is strapped, crucifixion-style, to a table. Bernadine nods to a health care professional who attempts to insert an IV line. When the effort fails on both arms and feet, the line is then cruelly forced into the mans groin. The prisoner screams in pain.

Alfre Woodard in Clemency

Prior to the fatal drugs being administered, a curtain is drawn back, exposing the tortured man to a gallery of onlookers who will bear witness to his demise. It is a horror-provoking, surreal spectacle.

At her job, on an everyday basis, Bernadine maintains a stony, mask-like composure. But she is an insomniac, an after-work drinker and emotionally unavailable to her husband, Jonathan (Wendell Pierce), a schoolteacherI need a pulse, he complains. The prisons deputy warden (Richard Gunn) is transferring to an institution that does not carry out the death penalty.

Bernadine walks down the prison corridors as though haunted by the 12 prisoners whose executions she has presided over. Her life becomes dominated by these conflicting impulses, this raging civil war inside her.

Next in line for the needle is Anthony Woods (Aldis Hodge), an African-American man accused of shooting a police officer. Marty Lumetta (Richard Schiff), Anthonys attorney, stubbornly maintains his clients innocence. At one point, Bernadine listens to an audio tape offering evidence that seems to back up this contention. Marty has been Anthonys only ray of hope in the excruciating appeals process, and has himself become worn down and morally exhausted by it.

Protests mount outside the prison walls. I am Anthony Woods rings out, audible to Bernadine as she sits uncomfortably in her office.

Clemency is hauntingly effective. Woodard, a fine actress, does most of the heavy lifting. Hodge, another gifted performer, is convincing both in his internal and external-physical torment. His character is a constant reminder to Bernadine and the prison authorities that they are terminating a life in crude, medieval fashion. Veteran actor Schiff is the voice of their own consciences, their own better selves, emotionally drained by the far-reaching impact of an execution. What could be worse than deliberately snuffing out a life?

At one point in Clemency, Bernadines husband reads a portion of the following passage from Ralph Ellisons Invisible Man (1952): I am an invisible man.  I am a man of substance, of flesh and bone, fiber and liquidsand I might even be said to possess a mind. I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard, distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my surroundings, themselves, or figments of their imaginationindeed, everything and anything except me.

Aldis Hodge in Clemency

Ellisons novel was directed specifically toward the situation of African Americans in the US. Whether Chukwu has exclusively racial connotations in mind is not clear. In any event, the invisibility of those condemned to die in the US, white, black and Latino, is a fact of life.

More than 1,500 men and women have been executed in the United States since the late 1970s. This, despite the fact every state, obviously including all those that carry out the death penalty, has a provision in its constitution allowing the governor to grant clemency. However, there have only been 294 clemencies since 1976. Currently, some 2,500 prisoners face execution in America.

There is increasing popular opposition to the death penalty, fueled in part by the thousands of cases of individuals who have been exonerated and released from prison on the basis of DNA and other evidence. More generally, the awareness is growing that state-sponsored murder is a stark expression of social inequality. The vast majority of those put to death of every race and ethnicity are the poor and oppressed. Conversely, the great criminals in America, including those responsible for the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, go free.

Chukwu has explained the impetus for the film was provided by the execution of Troy Davis in Georgia in 2011, a case that aroused widespread, global protest. Davis, who suffered 22 years on death row, was accusedlike Woods in Clemencyof shooting a police officer. The WSWS commented at the time: There is a great deal of evidence that points to Troy Daviss innocence. But the state parole board denied him clemency Tuesday despite the fact that seven out of nine witnesses in his trial recanted their testimony, citing police intimidation, and jurors publicly repudiated their opinions.  The legal lynching of Troy Davis brings into focus the remorseless brutality of American society in the 21st century.

Aldis Hodge

Chukwu told Collider that retired prison wardens had protested against Daviss execution. These were wardens, she went on, who, collectively, had overseen over a hundred executions, and they spoke, firsthand, about what its like to have you and your prison staff carry out these executions, and they spoke to the emotional and psychological consequences. And so, the morning after Troy Davis was executed, I really was just obsessed with the question, what are those consequences? Whats it like for your livelihood to be tied to the taking of human life? Thats really where it started. Weve never seen this perspective before, in American cinema, and I wanted to investigate.

In an interview with NPR, the director explained that making Clemency has transformed me. Writing, directing, researching, committing my life to thisnot just film, but to the people who are represented in the film has changed me in that it has expanded my capacity for empathy. It has really made me redefine what justice and mercy really are. It has really pushed me to not define people by their worst possible acts. It has really made it clear to me that directing is empathy. And so its made me a better human, it has made me a more compassionate person and its made me a better storyteller.

All good reasons why Clemency is a successful film, directed against the extermination of individuals of substance, of flesh and bone, fiber and liquids.
Gov. Tom Wolf had resisted a statewide order, saying he wanted to take a measured approach to limiting people's movements. Read more

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HARRISBURG  As the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise in Pennsylvania, Gov. Tom Wolf on Wednesday extended his stay-at-home order to all 12.8 million people in the state.

This virus is spreading rapidly. Its in every corner of our state. Its gotten into our nursing homes and our prisons. And its filling up our hospital beds, Wolf said in announcing the order, which will remain in effect through April 30.

Every day we wait, the coronavirus spreads further and becomes more difficult to suppress. We need to act now, he added.

Wolfs move to enact a statewide order comes as COVID-19 continues its unrelenting spread into more counties. On Wednesday, state health officials reported 962 new cases, the largest single-day increase, bringing the statewide total to 5,805.

Sixty of the states 67 counties have confirmed cases, and 74 people have died after becoming infected with the virus. Among the infected: 286 health care workers and 200 nursing home residents.

It is critical that we follow all the mitigation and the prevention efforts and the stay-at-home orders, Health Secretary Rachel Levine said Wednesday, adding: If we do not do this correctly, then there is going to be a significant surge of patients that could overwhelm hospitals.

Over the past week, Wolf had issued stay-at-home orders for counties where the virus spread was most acute. As of Tuesday, 33 counties were on that list, covering large swaths of the state. But the governor had stopped short of a statewide order, saying he wanted to take a measured approach to limiting peoples movements.

The governor has so far opted against enforcement of the orders, relying instead on voluntary compliance. He reiterated that stance Wednesday, saying all Pennsylvanians have a vested interest in staying home.

I am optimistic that people across the state will comply and remain in their homes, he said. We will all work together in this. Its our only choice.

Under a stay-at-home order, residents are urged to only leave their homes for items that are essential for living. They can go out to buy groceries for themselves, family members, or as a volunteer effort; take a walk, hike, or run, as long as they practice social distancing; or care for family members or pets in another household.

Also permitted is travel to care for seniors and people with disabilities. Travel to or from schools or other educational institutions to obtain meals or pick up materials for distance learning is also allowed.

Since the first cases of coronavirus were reported in Pennsylvania on March 6, the governor has shut down schools statewide and ordered all but life-sustaining businesses to close their physical operations.

The closures have taken a toll, with the states economy already taking a beating.

Officials from the Department of Revenue said Wednesday that tax revenues fell 6% short of what the state had been estimated to collect in March. That trend is widely expected to continue  and accelerate  in the coming months, especially if businesses begin to close and more people lose their jobs.

And the states unemployment compensation system is already buckling under the weight of a sudden and steep surge in claims. In the last two weeks in March, more than 830,000 Pennsylvanians applied for unemployment benefits  a number that surpassed the total for all of 2019.

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The lawsuits noted that the crisis is not just of concern to prisoners. If infection spreads, staff members, social workers, attorneys and others who visit the facilities could unsuspectingly carry the virus back to the communities surrounding the prisons, which are often rural areas ill-equipped to deal with an onslaught of patients needing intensive care, according to the suits.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:02:46|Editor: xuxin

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Members of the Philippine Coast Guard, policemen and volunteers wearing face masks prepare relief goods as aid for communities under enhanced community quarantine at a government warehouse in Pasay City, the Philippines on April 2, 2020. The Philippines on Thursday required all those living in areas under enhanced community quarantine to wear face masks or other forms of protective equipment when they leave their homes to slow the spread of COVID-19. (Xinhua/Rouelle Umali)

HONG KONG, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Asia-Pacific countries on Thursday stepped up measures to combat COVID-19 as the number of infection and death kept increasing.

The number of COVID-19 cases in Malaysia totaled at 3,116 after 208 new cases were recorded, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.

The number of fatalities had risen to 50 after another five deaths were recorded, with the victims aged between 37 and 85, three of them having suffered from other health problems prior to being infected.

The Philippines on Thursday required all those living in areas under enhanced community quarantine to wear face masks or other forms of protective equipment when they leave their homes to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles announced the new measure in a virtual media briefing as the Philippines reported 322 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of the confirmed cases to 2,633.

A Bhutanese student who returned from the United States has tested positive for COVID-19, the Ministry of Health said on Thursday.

This took the number of confirmed cases to five in Bhutan and was the third Bhutanese national to test positive for the coronavirus.

The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Bangladesh rose to 56 on Thursday, and the country's death toll remains unchanged at six.

The cases increased by two since Wednesday and no more deaths were reported Thursday.

The Indonesian government said Thursday the death toll of COVID-19 in the country climbed to 170, the highest in Southeast Asia.

At a press conference, the government's spokesperson for COVID-19 Achmad Yurianto said that the number of confirmed cases jumped to 1,790 and 112 patients had recovered.

The total confirmed cases in Japan has reached 2,524, according to the latest figures released Thursday morning.

The death toll in Japan from the pneumonia-causing virus currently stands at a total of 82 people, according to the health ministry, with the figure including those from the virus-hit Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined in Yokohama, close to Tokyo.

The first casualty from COVID-19 in Asia's largest slum located in India's financial capital of Mumbai was reported on Wednesday night, according to local media.

The 56-year-old patient, who died at the Mumbai civic hospital, had no foreign travel history and used to run a local garment retail outlet, said media reports quoting health department official.

The death toll due to COVID-19 in India Thursday morning rose to 50 as the number of confirmed cases in the country reached 1965, the federal health ministry said.

Thailand has imposed a nationwide curfew starting on Friday to prevent people from leaving home at night to curb the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha said on Thursday that the curfew is effective nationwide between 10.00 p.m. and 4.00 a.m. local time daily, beginning on Friday.

Thailand earlier declared an emergency rule to contain the COVID-19 spread but the number of confirmed cases has been growing on a daily basis, totaling 1,875 on Thursday.

China has handed over its first donation of humanitarian aid and medical supplies to Sri Lanka to strengthen the solidarity between the two countries as Sri Lanka fights the COVID-19 pandemic, the Chinese Embassy in Sri Lanka said on Thursday.

The aid, which includes 50,000 medical masks and 1,008 COVID-19 test kits, was handed over by Hu Wei, charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy, to Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo, and the materials were later handed over to Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi and her team at a formal ceremony held on Wednesday.

According to the Health Department of the Australian government, as of 3 p.m. Thursday, there have been 5,133 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Australia.

The number of deaths in Australia has increased to 24 after two women in their 60s and 70s respectively became the fifth and sixth people to die in Victoria on Thursday.

The country will spend 4.1 million Australian dollars (2.4 million U.S. dollars) on online courses for 20,000 nurses to prepare them for deployment in intensive care units.

It has also rolled out a plan to quickly add over 40,000 former health practitioners to join the frontline battle against COVID-19.

Pakistan on Thursday resumed its international flight operations at a limited scale only for special flights subject to the prior permission from the Aviation Division.

Following the resumption, a flight of the Pakistan International Airlines carrying over 350 passengers of Canadian origin departed for Toronto from the Allama Iqbal International Airport in the eastern city of Lahore on Thursday.
A fifth Victorian has died from coronavirus and health authorities have revealed a "concerning" spike in cases of local person-to-person community transmission.

A woman in her 70s has died in Victoria from COVID-19, bringing the national death toll to 23.

She is the fifth person to die from the virus in Victoria.

Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said the woman was in a Victorian hospital for a number of days, but said she had no further details.
The Coronavirus has impacted agents who market Medicare Supplement insurance but not as much as expected. The findings of a new survey was released today by the American Association for Medicare Supplement Insurance.

"Nearly one-third of the agents participating in the online poll reported no impact on their business," explained Jesse Slome, director of the organization. "In fact 10 percent of the surveyed agents reported an increase in business over the past month."

The Association's mini-poll queried Medicare Supplement insurance agents about both business as well as other relevant details. "A very small percentage are not working but most are still working between 6 and 10 hour days," Slome noted. "The virus hasn't impacted the 11,000 Americans who turn 65 every day and need to make a decision regarding their Medicare insurance."

Just over one in five of the agents (22.5%) reportyed knowing someone who had contracted the Coronavirus.

In addition to keeping in contact with clients and prospects, the survey participants reported plans to use the month of April to organize their offices. Some 72.5 percent planned to spend the time watching educational videos or participating in webinars.

The American Association for Medicare Supplement Insurance hosts the leading online directory of local Medicare insurance agents. The free directory allows consumers to instantly see agents in their immediate area. No personal information is required to access the information. To learn more go to www.medicaresupp.org.

To access the full survey results, go to https://medicaresupp.org/coronavirus-impact-medicare-supplement/
Joe Exotic may be languishing in jail, but the Tiger King still has big dreams.

It has emerged that the former zookeeper is hoping that either Brad Pitt or David Spade sign up to play him in a movie adaptation of his life.

In an interview with The Hollywood reporter, the filmmakers behind the Netflix documentary sensation, Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin, revealed Exotic's movie plans.

'He would like Brad Pitt or David Spade to play him,' said Chaiklin, adding, 'He doesn't refer to David Spade as David Spade  he refers to him as 'Joe Dirt.''

Tiger King Joe Exotic wants Brad Pitt or David Spade to play him in movie adaptation of his life

Aspirational options: Joe has said he would like either Brad Pitt, seen left in 1991, or David Spade, seen in 2013, to play him on the big screen

Joe Dirt was Spade's mullet-wearing character in the 2001 American adventure comedy film.

While Pitt and Spade have not yet publicly admitted to being fans of the cultural phenomenon that is Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, there are plenty of celebs who have.

Dax Shepard made his feelings clear when he tweeted: 'If I don't get cast as Joe Exotic in the eventual biopic, Hollywood is broken.'

But Pitt's Fight Club costar Edward Norton replied: 'Um, step aside, pal. You're way too young and buff and you know it.'

Got the Oscar, now for the Tiger: Brad, seen at February's Oscars, is Joe's top pick

Dax, 45, wasn't put off, replying: 'I'll go Machinist for this.' He was referring to Christian Bale's weight loss for the 2004 film.

Even Zach Braff tried to get in on the action, jokingly replying: 'I heard a rumor he has a Jewish twin brother that was cut out of the series.'

Meanwhile, SportsBetting.ag has asked people to bet on who might play controversial Exotic if a movie were made about the man.

So far the favorite is Kevin Bacon.

Another name mentioned has been Margot Robbie, an inspired suggestion by Robert Moor, who spent four years covering Exotic and his nemesis Carole Baskin for the Wondery podcast Joe Exotic: Tiger King.

Meet Joe Dirt: Joe refers to David, seen at the People's Choice Awards in November, by the name of his mullet-wearing 2001 character

But whoever lands the role, Joe is sure to be happy with the resultant film.

The 57-year-old is currently serving a 22-year prison sentence for 17 counts of animal cruelty and for conspiring to murder his arch nemesis, Florida-based big cat lover Carole Baskin.

While he has yet to see the seven-part series as he sits out a 14-day coronavirus quarantine in jail, his fourth husband Dillon Passage said he was a fan.

'Joe's the type of person,he loves the attention obviously,' he told Andy Cohen on Friday.

'Any kind of fame or spotlight that he has, it was greatly appreciated.'
New Delhi, April 2 : ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) on Wednesday announced new gaming laptops with new 10th Generation Intel Core processors.

The 'ROG Spring 2020' collection is led by the Zephyrus Duo 15 along with refreshed Zephyrus S, M, and G models.

The company is yet to disclose price and availability of these new products.

ROG Strix SCAR laptops are built with up to RTX 2080 SUPER GPUs along with 300 Hz panels and ROG Strix G15 Electro Punk laptop aims at opening new possibilities for personal expression, the company said in a statement.

These ROG laptops feature a range of the GeForce RTX 20-series GPUs from NVIDIA, including the RTX 2070 SUPER and the range-topping RTX 2080 SUPER GPUs.

According to the company, based on the latest NVIDIA Turing architecture, these GPUs take NVIDIA's already-successful formula and dial it up.

Armed with CUDA cores for programmable shading, RT cores for ray tracing, and Tensor cores for AI-powered functions, RTX 20-series GPUs provide dedicated hardware for the acceleration of real-time, lifelike lighting, shadows and reflections.

To make sure that 10th Gen Intel Core CPUs perform up to their potential, ROG has introduced factory-applied liquid metal thermal compound across all 2020 Zephyrus and Strix models.

Additionally, after launching 120 Hz display laptops, this time company has introduced first 300 Hz laptop displays promises the best gaming experiences yet.

These displays will provide lightning-fast, crystal-clear visuals that heighten immersion while delivering the most fluid and responsive gameplay to date.
State and local leaders are scrambling to provide childcare for emergency healthcare workers and public school buildings have become the likely targets for setting up childcare centers.

But some school officials are asking politicians to reconsider using K-12 buildings as staffing and cleaning costs associated with the pandemic continue to pile up for districts.

Because federal and state officials are restricting gatherings to no more than 10 people, childcare centers can take up several rooms in a building, depending on how many children are being cared for.

With every room thats in use, district officials have to pay janitors to clean and sanitize every nook and cranny of those spaces daily. Many of these janitors, because of their contracts with the district, are now deemed essential workers and must be paid either overtime or double time.

Now that federal officials expect the shutdown to last at least for another month, cleaning costs, which werent factored into this years budget, are expected to climb into the hundreds of thousands (and possibly millions) of dollars for some districts.

If the governor says theyre going to provide us funds to keep everybody employed, that doesnt include all the extra cleaning, repairs and maintenance costs that we have to do, said Sharie Lewis, the director of business services and operations of the Parkrose school district in Oregon. Lewis had attempted to lock up most of her school buildings once they were cleaned, but reopened them to allow a local provider to run a childcare center for healthcare workers.



In Maryland, county executives have gone to war with State Superintendent Karen B. Salmon who doesnt want to reopen schools to serve as emergency childcare centers.

Every one of our counties includes the use of school buildings as part of our disaster response plan, executives of the states largest counties said in a letter to Salmon. Please dont prevent us from using them in this instance.

But Salmon said using school facilities is dangerous since the coronavirus can spread through schools HVAC systems, requiring the cleaning of every room in the building (experts disagree with that assessment).

Salmon has instead identifed more than 1,200 locations across the state that she says can be used as childcare centers, including YMCAs, libraries, recreation enters, and other facilities.

Washington D.C. officials are paying the traditional public school system $150-$200 per child per day to provide childcare services for emergency workers, according to the Washington Post .

Indianas state superintendent has encouraged , but not required, every district in the state to reopen one school for childcare services.

And in New York, private childcare centers are taking up the call to reopen and watch over emergency workers children, though their facilities are having a hard time paying the associated labor and cleaning costs, according to local media reports. The states Health and Human Services have promised to pick up some of the costs.

School districts are also seeing technology and food service costs rise and are bracing for a recession , which they expect will result in significantly less revenue in the coming years.
The Telegraph turns on Johnson as the Government is savaged by Fleet Street over testing

Ministers were on Wednesday night unable to answer basic questions about when Britains testing regime for coronavirus is to be increased dramatically in scale to allow the country to plan its exit from lockdown. After days of mounting concerns over the growing testing crisis, it is still unclear when NHS workers are to be tested, when mass testing for the population is to be rolled out or even whether the Government has a plan to end the nations quarantine. Wednesdays death toll from the virus was 563, overtaking Frances highest daily figures and bringing the total number of deaths in the UK to 2,352. Asked repeatedly at the Downing Street press conference about why Britain lags behind other nations in testing, Alok Sharma, the Business Secretary, said increasing testing capacity is absolutely the Governments top priority, but failed to explain when the numbers would increase.  Daily Telegraph

Only 2,000 NHS staff tested for virus, UK government admits  FT

UK medicines watchdog warns over unsafe coronavirus tests  FT

Deputy Chief Medical Office says testing is a side issue  ITV

Fears grow over provided PPE  Daily Express

Latest advice  HM Government

Hancock returns to mobilise private labs

Boris Johnson has been forced to shift strategy on the governments testing regime for coronavirus after criticism of the slow pace of checks being carried out on frontline NHS staff. Private laboratories are now being drafted in to do the tests where before these were being performed through a centralised process Last night Matt Hancock, the health secretary, spoke to industry bodies about using private labs to expand testing as he moved away from relying on standardised procedures. He told them: I want industry and government to come together to build a UK diagnostic capability that hasnt previously been seen. I am entirely open-minded about how we do this, but I am determined that it should happen.  The Times

Hundreds of little labs ready to fill NHS coronavirus test gap  The Times

Staggering incompetence of public health fat cats  Daily Mail

Officials urged to abandon strict rules hampering introduction of mass testing  The Guardian

More:

Coronavirus vaccine hope from makers of cigarettes  The Times

Oil firms profiting from crisis  The Sun

and the rise in transport use has officials worried about a lockdown rebellion

Britains coronavirus lockdown began to fray on Wednesday night as official figures showed an uptick in the number of people using transport. The number of those using their cars and public transport, which had been consistently dropping since strict social distancing measures were introduced, rose for the first time at the beginning of this week. It is feared that the sunny forecast for the weekend, which could see temperatures of 20C in London, will prompt more people to go break the rules and go outside and socialise as the Easter holidays begin Many self-employed people who have been told that they will not receive money from the Government until June now feel that they have no choice but to return to work, a Government adviser told The Telegraph.  Daily Telegraph

Rise in number of people driving too  Daily Express

King warns ministers of limited public appetite for restrictions  The Times

Lockdown could be relaxed in weeks if everyone plays part  Daily Express

>Yesterday: Dr Luke Evans MP in Comment: Communicate, organise, problem-solve. My three principles for local action to help combat the virus.

while Johnson beefs up his communications team to sharpen the Governments coronavirus messaging

Boris Johnsons revamped communications strategy to combat coronavirus will be run like a political campaign after he drafted in a new team of advisers spearheaded by his Australian former elections chief, senior sources have said. Following criticism over mixed messages and selective briefings in recent weeks, the prime minister and his key adviser Dominic Cummings recruited Isaac Levido, 36, who ran the Tory general election campaign in December. Having already a grid of communications centred on the daily press conference, the government is now looking to bring in more experienced campaigners to sharpen the message  with the aim of boosting both public health and the prime ministers standing.  The Guardian

Latest: 29,474 cases, 2,352 dead  Daily Mail

Editorial:

Confusion over the Governments strategy has worsened delays  The Times

Testing is the only way to end this purgatory  Daily Mail

>Today: MPs Etc.: Coronavirus Count

Sharma attacks banks withholding business loans

Alok Sharma has said it is completely unacceptable for banks to refuse loans to good business, amid reports many firms have been unable to receive support. The Business Secretary said the Chancellor had written to the chief executives of UK banks to urge them to make sure that the benefits of the loan scheme are passed on to businesses and people. He also confirmed that the Government is looking at ways to respond to concerns from businesses who say they are not getting the support they need. It follows reports that up to a million firms are unlikely to get the cash they need to survive the next four weeks. The Corporate Finance Network of accountants predicts four million staff could lose their jobs in May, adding that as many as 42 per cent of small firms could go bust if the lockdown lasts for four months or more.  Daily Telegraph

Million firms could shut if they dont receive vital support  The Sun

Bailout scheme to be overhauled for small businesses  The Times

Editorial:

Greedy banks wont be forgiven if they fail to rescue small firms now  The Sun

>Yesterday: Video: WATCH: Sharma  Banks must not refuse funds to good businesses. Todays Government press conference.

Huge take-up of furlough support could see much higher costs than Treasury planned for

About half of UK companies are planning to furlough many of their staff because of coronavirus, according to surveys that threaten a much higher cost to the Treasury than expected. The prospect of a higher than expected take-up of the furloughed workers programme comes as the government seeks to improve the terms of the loan scheme to help banks lend to more companies The Treasury has estimated that about 3m people, or 10 per cent of the private sector workforce, would be laid off temporarily and thus their employers would be able to take advantage of the government job retention scheme, which covers four-fifths of wages up to 2,500 a month. However, in a survey by the British Chambers of Commerce, about 44 per cent of companies said that at least half their staff would be paid through the scheme, and one-third said that they were planning to furlough more than 75 per cent of their workforce over the next week.  FT

Union fears firms could make people work despite furlough subsidies  Daily Telegraph

A million universal credit claims in past two weeks  The Times

UK blocked from claiming EU unemployment rescue cash despite budget contributions  Daily Express

Profile: the Coronavirus Chancellor  FT

More:

Treasury to suffer 5bn tax hit as coronavirus stalls housing market  The Times

UK charities call for 10bn debt write-off to help the poor  FT

>Today:

Allister Heath: The coronavirus recession will shift British politics  but not to the Left

It will be self-evidently unaffordable for the Government to continue paying for half the jobs in the country when the crisis ends, and some of the abuse of furloughing that can even now be detected will remind the public of the dangers of generous welfare. Rishi Sunaks superstructure will be dismantled: extremely elevated levels of benefits essential during total war cant continue in peacetime without massive incentive problems. The greatest change AC will be to our culture, and this wont help the Left: we will rediscover the advantages of economic growth and have to relearn to live with unemployment. The BC (Before Coronavirus) obsession with frivolous first world problems will be gone: there will be no interest in identity politics, just in hard-headed policies that can boost growth and jobs and put money in peoples pockets.  Daily Telegraph

This virus is a shot in the arm for science  David Aaronovitch, The Times

Inquiry into the UKs coronavirus response would find a litany of failures  Anthony Costello, The Guardian

>Yesterday:

UKs largest hospital to open after nine-day building programme

NHS Nightingale, the UKs largest hospital, is due to open this week in Londons Docklands just nine days after military logistics teams were first scrambled to build a new facility for coronavirus patients. The temporary hospital at the cavernous ExCeL conference centre, which will be managed by Barts Health NHS Trust, will open to a small number of patients this week and will expand to accommodate up to 3,500 people when fully operational, according to NHS England. The Nightingale  built jointly by civilian contractors and military specialists  is the first in a series of field hospitals under construction across the UK to provide extra capacity for virus sufferers requiring ventilation and critical care. There are plans to build other medical facilities in Birmingham, Manchester, Harrogate, Glasgow, Cardiff and Llanelli in Wales and at a former prison near Belfast in Northern Ireland.  FT

Coronavirus cases could be in half of its care homes, leading charity warns  The Sun

Law and order: woman fined 660 for crime that doesnt exist

Police have been accused of using the wrong law to prosecute a woman and fine her 660 in the first arrest on the railways under the lockdown. Marie Dinou, 41, from York, was arrested and fined after failing to tell police why she was at Newcastle Central station on Saturday morning. British Transport Police said she was detained because she refused to speak to officers after being seen loitering between platforms. Dinou was fined at North Tyneside magistrates court on Monday after she was found guilty of failing to provide identity or reasons for travel to police, and failing to comply with requirements under the Coronavirus Act. The Times has established, however, that Dinou appeared to have been prosecuted after police asked for information that their own guidance cautions against.  The Times

Officers can use reasonable force against children  The Sun

Intimidated pharmacists call in police  The Times

Would you squeal on a neighbour?  Daily Mail

Comment:

Plod have seized the chance to push us around  Rod Liddle, The Sun

>Yesterday: Local Government: Coronavirus: some councils are doing better than others. And where are the Police and Crime Commissioners?

as SNP ministers forced to u-turn on draconian proposals to suspend jury trials

SNP ministers were today forced to perform a u-turn on draconian proposals to temporarily suspend jury trials in Scotland amid the coronavirus pandemic. Less than 24 hours after the idea was first proposed, the Scottish Government announced the policy to allow serious criminal verdicts to be decided by judges rather than a jury has been removed from emergency legislation. Lord Carloway, Scotlands Lord Justice General, said the plan was necessary to deal with the heavy delays in bringing the accused to trial which would stretch into years rather than months. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon described the proposal as an exceptional measure to deal with exceptional times.  Daily Telegraph

Sturgeons six huge failures spark Nationalist concern  Daily Express

MPs should sit virtually during lockdown, says Speaker

Britains MPs would end up debating with each other via video link after the Easter recess under plans put forward by Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, in order to allow continued scrutiny of the government during the pandemic. Parliament has been shut down from March 25 until at least April 21 to help prevent the spread of coronavirus, with citizens urged to work from home and all pubs, restaurants and non-essential shops forced to close. But with growing expectations that the current lockdown might continue for much longer, Sir Lindsay suggested that the House of Commons should operate virtually if the UK is still in the grip of Covid-19 after that date Any such decision, however, lies in the hands of Boris Johnsons government.  FT

>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Home abortions, sunset clauses  and the importance of votes in Parliament

US death toll jumps 884 in 24 hours  the worst day yet

The death toll in the United States has jumped by 884 in just 24 hours, its worst day yet. The US now has more than 213,000 cases and more than 1,100 people have died in New York alone. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he is considering a ban on domestic flights to coronavirus hotspots around the country. In total, more than 5,000 Americans have died and the US has the highest number of reported cases in the world US President Donald Trump said arrangements had been made with the UK Government to evacuate British passengers on two cruise ships set to soon dock in Florida after being hit by the coronavirus.  Daily Telegraph

Global cases near million mark as US federal stockpile of medical equipment dwindles  The Guardian

Spanish coronavirus cases rise past 100,000  The Times

China accuses Britain and the US of spreading lies about its response  The Sun

Japan bans foreigners amid coronavirus surge fears  The Times

Comment:

Cuomo wont ride to the Democrats rescue  Gerard Baker, The Times

>Today: ToryDiary: Trumps mishandling of the virus crisis confirms that he is an impudent opportunist

European law will hold sway for years to come, say senior judges

Europes highest court will continue to rule over British legal disputes until a final Brexit deal is agreed, the UKs most senior judges said. Courts in the UK will be obliged to refer cases involving unclear EU laws to the European Court of Justice until the country fully leaves the union, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously yesterday in a case relating to a mistake over VAT charges. The ruling will infuriate Brexiteers who have demanded that EU legal jurisdiction over cases is brought to an end. Lord Hodge, the deputy president of the Supreme Court, said, however, that current case law did not provide a clear answer in a dispute over EU law. Some lawyers have been lobbying the government not to budge on leaving the jurisdiction of the ECJ.  The Times

News in Brief:
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When the Internet Archive announced last week that it would respond to the historic shuttering of brick-and-mortar libraries across the country by creating a National Emergency Library, the news was initially met with praise from outlets like NPR and the New Yorker, the latter calling it a gift to readers everywhere. But over the weekend, authors including Colson Whitehead, Alexander Chee, and Chuck Wendig condemned the move as comparable to piracyand then received pushback in turn from some readers who wondered how this is any different from a regular library offering an e-book.

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The Internet Archive is a nonprofit perhaps best known for its Wayback Machine, which has archived over 400 billion webpages. In addition to being able to find digital copies of your old LiveJournal entries, users can access somewhere around 4 million books through the Internet Archive, of which about 2.5 million are in the public domain. The rest, which the organization says are acquired through purchase or donation, are usually available through a lending system similar to that of a regular library, where there are a limited number of copies that can be checked out at one time.

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Last Tuesday, the Internet Archive announced that it would suspend its waitlists for 1.4 million digitized books in its lending library so that copies can be checked out by an unlimited number of borrowers at the same time, calling it a National Emergency Library to take the place of the physical locations that have shut down. The moratorium on lending limits is scheduled to last through June 30, or the end of the US national emergency, whichever is later, though books are available not just to Americans but borrowers around the world. Librarians at institutions like Dartmouth, MIT, and Brown signed a letter of public support for the measure.

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By Saturday, however, writers had taken to social media to express their displeasure with the Internet Archive and criticize laudatory coverage of a website that they say engages in piracy. (NPR has since appended its original post with one covering the controversy.)

They scan books illegally and put them online. It's not a library. https://t.co/CBOZIMx90U  colson whitehead (@colsonwhitehead) March 28, 2020

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As a reminder, there is no author bailout, booksellers bailout, or publisher bailout. The Internet Archives emergency copyrights grab endangers many already in terrible danger. https://t.co/MJjZltH8Ce  Alexander Chee (@alexanderchee) March 27, 2020

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What the Internet Archive is doing right now--allowing unlimited downloads of books under copyright, for which they have not paid, and have no legal right--is not serving as a library. It's piracy.  Seanan McGuire (@seananmcguire) March 29, 2020

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Guys. Not helpful.  Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) March 29, 2020

There really ought to be a special hell for people who steal from artists, who already have to struggle to get by in this capitalist hell. I'm doing okay for now, but yeah, shit, they've got some of my books, too. https://t.co/85XUWqarck  N. K. Jemisin (@nkjemisin) March 29, 2020

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The Authors Guild, an organization that advocates for and provides legal assistance to writers, also condemned the Internet Archive in no uncertain terms:

We are shocked that the Internet Archive would use the Covid-19 epidemic as an excuse to push copyright law further out to the edges, and in doing so, harm authors, many of whom are already struggling. With mean writing incomes of only $20,300 a year prior to the crisis, authors, like others, are now struggling all the morefrom cancelled book tours and loss of freelance work, income supplementing jobs, and speaking engagements. And now they are supposed to swallow this new pill, which robs them of their rights to introduce their books to digital formats as many hundreds of midlist authors do when their books go out of print, and which all but guarantees that author incomes and publisher revenues will decline even further.

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The guild was joined in its criticism by the Association of American Publishers, whose president and CEO wrote that the AAP is stunned by the Internet Archives aggressive, unlawful, and opportunistic attack on the rights of authors and publishers in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The Internet Archive released a lengthy response to both of those statements, which, it says, contain falsehoods that are being spread widely online. The statement reiterated that there are still two-week borrowing limits on books, so lending is limited by duration, if not by the number of borrowers, and drew parallels between its lending library and the e-book lending system that traditional libraries use. The only difference here, the logic goes, is that multiple people can check out a copy of a digitized book at a time, expanding access during an extraordinary period of time in which most people cant travel to a brick-and-mortar library.

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The Internet Archive also says it gets its copies of contemporary books through purchase or donation, much like traditional libraries do. This has been true and legal for centuries. The idea that this is stealing fundamentally misunderstands the role of libraries in the information ecosystem, Internet Archives director of open libraries Chris Freeland wrote in his response, invoking the first sale doctrine that allows libraries to lend books in the first place. But how the Internet Archive acquires those books is not exactly analogous to the process that traditional libraries go through.

The first clue is that the digitized books in the National Emergency Library are, as Freeland acknowledges, not e-bookstheyre scans of physical pages. Thats because when a traditional library lends out an e-book, it means it bought a license to an individual copy of that e-book, and each copy can only be accessed by one person at a time (a fact that has caused friction between libraries and publishers when only one e-book copy of a popular title is made available). The license lasts for a limited number of lendings, at which point the library must pay to relicense the book so that it can still lend the book out. Most importantly, because libraries negotiate the terms of their e-book licensing with publishers, authors can receive royalties based on how often their book is relicensed.

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What the Internet Archive does is different. It acquires books like Whiteheads The Underground Railroad by purchasing a physical copy, scanning the book into its system, and then lending that copy out. Whitehead would receive royalties from that one initial sale but not for any of the additional innumerable times users check the book out from the National Emergency Library. The Internet Archive points out that libraries are allowed to and do sometimes digitize books this waybut not, usually, for this purpose. Libraries can scan books, for example, to make the physical copies accessible to visually impaired readers.

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The Internet Archive also points to fair use as the legal basis for its project, but Adam Kessel, a lawyer at Fish & Richardson who specializes in intellectual property and copyright law, told me that a fair use defense of the National Emergency Library probably wouldnt hold up in court. The definition of fair usewhich means that the usage doesnt constitute copyright infringementis pretty flexible, and a lot of boundaries around digital fair use are still being drawn. But according to Kessel, the main factor that courts are using to determine whether something qualifies as fair use is whether the use of the copyrighted material is transformative. Is it making a different use than was previously available? With the Internet Archive, its a difficult argument to make because theyre not transforming the copyrighted work. They dont have a lot of support in case law to suggest that their use would be found fair in a court.

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There is also reason to believe the first sale doctrine wouldnt apply here, said Kessel, who told me that the closest comparable case is Capitol Records v. ReDigi, which involved people trying to resell MP3s that they had purchased.* If someone buys a CD, theyre allowed to resell it. But the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the same doesnt apply to an MP3 file, because the seller isnt physically giving it to someone but making a copy of it. The first sale doctrine doesnt get much latitude when youre talking about everything being digital and virtual because youre actually making copies rather than moving physical property around, said Kessel.

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Kyle Courtney, a copyright lawyer whom the Internet Archive cited in a defensive tweet, disagreed in a blog post, writing that in an emergency scenario like the COVID-19 pandemic, libraries and archives have superpowers under copyright law if the purpose of releasing copyright materials is for educational purposes. Kessel said that defense might workand conceded that universities do typically have broad leeway in terms of distributing copyrighted materialbut only if the Internet Archive were making its National Emergency Library available specifically to educational institutions. But because the archive is distributing entire books to anyone, anywhere, the likelihood of this qualifying as fair use would be low.

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Kessel added that another significant factor for fair use is whether its impacting the market for the work. If the Internet Archive were only making available books that didnt already have digital versions available for sale, or if physical bookstores and libraries were the only places to access these books, then its argument that the National Emergency Library qualifies as fair use would be stronger. But distributing books that already have e-books and whose sales would rather obviously be affected by an easily accessible free version being available like Whiteheadswhich was taken down after he emailed the archivelikely wouldnt pass muster in a court case, according to Kessel.

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Still, other than asking the Internet Archive to take down their books, authors and publishers have little recourseand this is perhaps where the national emergency framing makes the most sense. The way the pandemic plays into this most significantly is the optics, Kessel said. This service is making cultural content available during a time when people are stuck inside their homes. I would think that the major publishers would be reluctant to look like bad actors. And because courts are largely closed for nonessential business, its very unlikely a case against the Internet Archive would even see a courtroom until after the pandemic is over, if ever.

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Meanwhile, readers who are bored at home but want to support their favorite writers can continue buying from local bookstores that still deliver or check out Bookshop.org, which donates a portion of proceeds to indie bookstores. (Slate has an affiliate partnership with Bookshop.org and may receive a commission from books you buy through our links.) You can also still buy e-books or check them out from libraries, many of whose digital lending systems are still operating.
Consumer Reports has no financial relationship with advertisers on this site.

When it comes to COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, it turns out not much is simple. Not even fever.

Yes, it's clear that a fever, along with fatigue and a dry cough, is a hallmark of the infection. But how high, exactly, is too high? What should you do if your temperature spikes? How do you know when you need medical help?

As someone who has reported on healthcare for years, I thought the answers to these questions would be relatively straightforward. But after speaking to experts, I came to learn that in the context of COVID-19, how to respond to fever varies based on the person and the circumstance.

Heres what you need to know.

Why We Develop Fevers

We tend to think of normal body temperature as a static number, but in fact a persons body temperature can vary throughout the day, says Georgine Nanos, M.D., a family physician and CEO of the Kind Health Group, a telemedicine service. Nor is there a single number that constitutes normal for everyone. Recent research has even found that the average body temperature has changed over the years. Scientists say it is now around 97.5 F, not 98.6 F.

A fever is technically defined as a body temperature of 100.4 F or higher, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is true for both babies and adults.

And a fever isnt necessarily a bad thing. It indicates that your body is doing what it should do in response to an infection, Nanos says. Indeed, its a sign that your immune system is doing its job, fighting off an invader, like a virus or bacteria, in an attempt to prevent it from overtaking your body.

But a fever can be concerning. Aside from how miserable it may make you feelwith sweating, chills, headaches, and fatigueit could indicate that a serious illness is developing. And an uncontrolled fever could cause seizures or brain damage. So it's important to pay attention to fevers and respond appropriately.

Story continues

What the Thermometer Number Means

There are different types of thermometers and ways to use them. Most used today are digital and can be used orally, rectally, or under the arm. But there are also some designed to be used in ears, called tympanic thermometers, or on your forehead, called temporal artery thermometers.

More important than which kind you use is using it according to the directions that come with it, experts say.

They also caution that you shouldnt get too focused on the exact number on your thermometer. "A temperature in the low 99s could be a cause for concern in some people, while someone with a fever of 102 may be feeling and doing okay," says Mary E. Schmidt, M.D., an associate professor of clinical medicine at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond and president of Schmidt & Libby Health Advisory Group.

Whats more, how healthcare professionals treat fever depends on age, accompanying symptoms, and any individuals underlying conditions.

For example, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that you call your doctor right away if your infant 3 months and younger develops a fever of 100.4 F. (Rectal readings are the most accurate for babies and tend to be a degree higher than oral readings.)

For babies older than that and for adults, there is no exact reading that dictates that you need to call the doctor. Instead, you should consider your overall health along with your temperature reading.

So, for instance, an otherwise healthy adult with a fever of 101 F and only mild discomfort may be just fine at home with rest and fluids. But an adult with a fever of 101 F who also has heart disease and diabetesparticularly if the fever is accompanied by severe aches and chillsshould call a doctor for guidance.

Fevers and COVID-19

At this point in the COVID-19 outbreak, scientists have not identified a specific fever pattern tied to this disease.

The same is true of the illnesss other main symptoms. People are reporting an array of symptoms with varying degrees of severity, so there is no one set of signs that can tell us for sure, yes or no, this is COVID-19, says Elissa Perkins, M.D., associate professor of emergency medicine at Boston Medical Center who is treating the influx of patients there. It would make everybody's lives much easier if that were possible, but its not.

To decide who may need to be seen by a healthcare professional or tested for COVID-19, Perkins says doctors evaluate a fever along with other symptoms, a persons age, health history, and any underlying conditions. Then, based on the capacity of local hospitals and the limited availability of tests and other supplies, public health professionals may advise people with symptoms of COVID-19 to stay in touch with a doctor on the phone rather than go directly to the emergency department.

We are giving our best advice based on what we know, and how somebody is doing right now, Perkins says.

What to Do If You Don't Have a Thermometer

One of the issues confronting people during this outbreak is that many physical and online stores are sold out of thermometers.

If you dont have one, the CDC says that a fever may be considered to be present if a person . . . feels warm to the touch or gives a history of feeling feverish. In other words, Moms method of placing the back of her hand on your forehead may be a decent fallback. But given the contagiousness of this coronavirus, remember to wash your hands thoroughly afterward.

And dont worry if you dont have someone at home who can do a touch check of your forehead. Schmidt notes most adults are fairly good at gauging when theyre feeling hot and unwell.

You could also look in the mirror. The CDC states that the appearance of a flushed face, glassy eyes, or chills could indicate a fever.

As a last resort, if you have a meat thermometer (preferably a digital one, which shows decimal points), you could experiment by placing it under your tongue to get a general sense of your temperature, and whether its going up or down. Though the method is certainly unorthodox, and not specifically recommended, I asked two doctors to test it out and they kindly obliged.

Schmidt says that her meat thermometer read about the same as an oral thermometer over three takes, but was 1 to 1.5 degrees lower than a temporal artery reading via her forehead. Nanos also humored my request and says that her meat thermometer is too variable, and the temperature drops as soon as you start pulling it out of your mouth.

I gave my meat thermometer a try, too. I found that it gave a comparable reading to my oral thermometer. It took a couple of minutes for the meat thermometer to show a significant rise, but it indicated that I was in the 98 range, just like my oral thermometer reading.

Granted, the meat thermometer reading was not exact and it did drop down as soon as I took it out of my mouth, but if youre trying to track trends in your temperature and you have no other option, that meat thermometer could be better than nothing.

If you do call a doctor to report your temperature, be sure to note which type of thermometer you used. Healthcare professionals know that different types of thermometers tend to yield slightly different numbers, so they will want to consider that information in assessing how youre doing.

How to Treat a Fever If You Suspect COVID-19

There is no rule that says you need to lower a fever with over-the-counter medication if youre feeling only mild symptoms and are not uncomfortable. You may be able to manage with rest (for fatigue), a cold compress (for sweating), blankets (for chills), and lots of liquids (for dehydration).

There is even evidence behind the adage that you should let a fever run its course. Animal studies have found that a fever may help the immune system do its job, and lowering a fever with medication may suppress your bodys ability to fend off the illness, says Matthew J. Kluger, Ph.D., a scientist and retired professor of physiology at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Kluger's groundbreaking research in the 1970s suggests that fever is an adaptive biological response to infection and it may boost the effectiveness of disease-fighting cells. "Treating a fever with medication may make you feel better, but my contention is that it's not because it lowers your temperature; it's because the medication is an analgesic, a pain reducer," Kluger says.

For the most part, healthcare providers say that if youd like to take a fever-reducer (and it does not interact with any medications youre taking or worsen any underlying conditions you may have), by all means do so, because it could make you feel more comfortable.

But if your fever is running at or above 103 F, you should call a doctor. A high fever could lead to a seizure or brain damage.

Tylenol vs. Advil

There are two main categories of over-the-counter drugs available to reduce fevers: acetaminophen, most well-known by the brand name Tylenol; and a class of drugs called nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories, or NSAIDs, which includes ibuprofen (Advil and others) and naproxen (Aleve and others).

In the past weeks, there were reports out of China and Europe suggesting that NSAIDs could make a COVID-19 infection worse. As a result, some healthcare providers had suggested avoiding NSAIDs for fevers during this time.

But experts say that theory is based on anecdotal data, and that for now, there is no reason to avoid ibuprofen or other NSAIDs. The Food and Drug Administration, for example, says it is not aware of scientific evidence connecting the use of NSAIDs, like ibuprofen, with worsening COVID-19 symptoms. And the World Health Organization notes that based on currently available information, WHO does not recommend against the use of ibuprofen. We are also consulting with physicians treating COVID-19 patients and are not aware of reports of any negative effects of ibuprofen, beyond the usual known side effects that limit its use in certain populations.

Perkins, at Boston Medical Center, says that concerns about ibuprofen and NSAIDs could reflect the lack of solid medical research available on the quickly developing health problem. "Theres just a paucity of good, reliable data to inform the medical decisions that we make now, so that is a challenge were all facing when we try to decide how to manage these patients, Perkins says. Still, she has not yet seen any compelling reason to avoid NSAIDs like ibuprofen if you suspect COVID-19.

When to Get Medical Help

If you think you have a temperature that is worrisome, the first step in most cases is to call a healthcare provider. That's because a high temperature on its own might not warrant an in-person evaluation right now, depending on your overall condition and risk factors.

Were telling patients that if you have mild symptoms and no underlying medical conditions, stay home and self-isolate, for 14 days, Nanos says. If you can, have one person care for you so that you will minimize exposure to others in the house." After 14 days, the CDC says you can discontinue home isolation if you've been fever-free for 72 hours and it's been at least seven days since your first symptoms appeared.

Go to the hospital or urgent care clinic if you develop any of these emergency warning signs for COVID-19, per the CDC: trouble breathing, persistent pain or pressure in the chest, bluish lips or face, or new confusion or fainting.

Perkins reiterates the importance of seeking medical help if you experience emergency warning signs, and says that if you can, call the emergency department to tell them you are on your way, so they can prepare for you.





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Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. CR does not endorse products or services, and does not accept advertising. Copyright  2020, Consumer Reports, Inc.
As the world grapples with the coronavirus pandemic, Kotaku reports southeastern U.S. game retailer Game X Change is keeping its stores open and giving its employees bogus advice on how to avoid getting sick.

This is significant because many people are dying every day due to complications caused by the coronavirus, and Game X Change's decision to remain open in the face of urging by federal and state authorities to shutter all non-essential businesses may well lead to more deaths.

In fact, Kotaku reports that a Game X Change employee wrote an anonymous letter to company owner Grant Wetherill this week complaining about Game X Change's guidelines for keeping stores open during the pandemic (which include curbside pickup options and limiting the number of customers in stores) and begging for him to reconsider.

Some of your employees have families at home they need to be worried about, reads a portion of the email, a copy of which was obtained by Kotaku.

They may already have children at risk of sickness, some have infants on the way, and some of us even personally have or knows [sic] someone close with auto-immune disorderswhich are some of the people who are extremely susceptible to contracting the COVID-19 virus. This is almost a guaranteed fatality. Is this something you condone? Just for the store to earn a few extra dollars at the end of the day?

Kotaku reports that Wetherill responded and pushed the employee to reveal their identity, but did not promise to make any changes.

Worse, Kotaku reportedly obtained a copy of an email sent out Tuesday by a GXC VP which purports to give GXC employees advice on how to diagnose and prevent coronavirus. While some tips seemed sound, others (like gargling with antiseptic daily, avoiding eating or drinking "cold things", and using sunlight to help sterilize clothing) have been debunked by the World Health Organization and other medical authorities.

Game X Change chiefly maintains storefronts across the southeastern U.S. (in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and elsewhere), though it also has several locations in Connecticut.

By remaining open in the face of calls from authorities to shutter, the business is following in the footsteps of GameStop, which ruled itself "essential retail" last month. Under mounting pressure from authorities and employees, GameStop quickly recanted and announced it would temporarily suspend in-store operations in favor of retailing games via online channels and curbside pickup.
The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, has announced a spiritual cleansing against the ravaging Coronavirus, thereby imposing curfew on...





The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, has announced a spiritual cleansing against the ravaging Coronavirus, thereby imposing curfew on the ancient city.





According to a public service announcement made by Chief Oyelami Awoyode, on behalf of the monarch, the curfew takes effect from 8 am on Thursday till 6 pm, warning residents to remain in their homes within the stipulated period.





It explained that the spiritual cleansing would be carried out through the instrument of a deity, known as Oro in Yoruba cultural parlance.





It added that the deity is no respecter of any individual irrespective of social status, saying whoever flouts the order would bear a grave consequence.

Meanwhile, some of the areas specifically announced as points of significant attention during the spiritual exercise include, Sabo, Ilare, Iremo, Oja-ife, Ita-Osun, Ita-agbon, Iloro, Ilode, Iwara, Isale-agbara, Arubidi, and Ondo-road among others.





Recall that the revered monarch, recently addressed a world press conference, where he emphasised the potency of some African herbs to cure some dreadful ailments around the globe.





He cited Cuba, a Latin American country as an example of a nation with Africa-oriented culture with enviable achievement in her health sector, which manifested in the role played by the country in the fight against the novel Coronavirus.




Lockdowns to halt the spread of the coronavirus have brought an uncanny silence to some of the world's busiest places. Reuters photographers have captured the hush that has descended on some of the world's best-known sites on the same day, at noon. An almost empty intersection with low traffic is seen at noon on Jalan M.H. Thamrin, one of the main roads in Jakarta, during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Jakarta, Indonesia. (Image: Reuters)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 02:52:23|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WASHINGTON, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Democratic National Convention to be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, at which the Democratic Party's presidential nominee will emerge, has been delayed until August due to the coronavirus pandemic, the event's organizers said Thursday.

"After a great deal of scenario planning and giving thought to how it is this event can have the greatest impact in the electoral process and the greatest impact in terms of what we can bring to Milwaukee, we felt the best decision, not knowing all the answers, was to delay this," Democratic National Convention CEO Joe Solmonese was cited by the Journal Sentinel as saying.

Solmonese said it was determined that "the week of August 17 was the best week to move it to," without elaborating on how many days the gathering will last, according to the Journal Sentinel.

"More than anything we continue to monitor the public health landscape," Solmonese said.

The Democratic National Convention was originally scheduled for July 13 to 16. The purpose of the event is to choose a Democratic presidential nominee, now a choice between former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, to take on President Donald Trump in the general election later this year.

"In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds so we can best position our party for a safe and successful convention," Solmonese later confirmed the postponement in a statement.

"During this critical time, when the scope and scale of the pandemic and its impact remain unknown, we will continue to monitor the situation and follow the advice of health care professionals and emergency responders," he added.

The formal announcement of the delay came after Democratic front-runner Biden's appearance on NBC's "The Tonight Show" on Wednesday, during which he called for pushing back the convention to August.

"I doubt whether the Democratic convention is going to be able to be held in mid-July, early July," Biden told host Jimmy Fallon when asked how the coronavirus outbreak would impact the nominating process. "I think it's going to have to move into August."

This was the second time Biden, 77, had voiced concerns over a possible rescheduling of the convention. He said in an interview with MSNBC on Tuesday that "it's hard to envision" the convention taking place as planned, adding that "the fact is it may have to be different."

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) said it has confirmed that Fiserv Forum, the arena where the convention will be held, is available that week, and that hotels in southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois are able to accommodate the expected 50,000 visitors coming for the event.

"The convention planning team will now use the coming weeks to further explore all options to ensure nominating the next president of the United States is done without unnecessary risk to public health," the DNC said in a statement. "These options include everything from adjusting the convention's format to crowd size and schedule."

Solmonese anticipated a shrink in the number of attendees at the forthcoming convention after the rescheduling because of either the participants' health concerns or their other plans for mid-August. "It could potentially be smaller," he said.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett called the decision to postpone the convention "absolutely the right move" by the organizers and the DNC, the Journal Sentinel reported.

"It underscores the commitment that they have made to Milwaukee," he said. "It underscores the commitment they have made to Wisconsin and it is my hope that by having it in August it will be a much needed shot in the arm for our restaurants, hotels and other businesses."

As of Wednesday, positive tests for COVID-19 in Wisconsin amounted to 1,550, with total deaths reaching 24, according to the state's Department of Health Services.

Now with the change in the timeline, the convention will come just one week before the Republican Party holds theirs between Aug. 24 and 27 in Charlotte, North Carolina, where Trump will be nominated as the Republican presidential candidate seeking re-election.

Trump has said the plan for the Republican National Convention will not be disrupted by the coronavirus. The event is also expected to draw a crowd of as many as 50,000.

"We are definitely planning -- it's toward the end of August," the president told Sean Hannity of Fox News last Thursday. "Somebody was asking today, 'Will you cancel your convention?' I said no way I'm going to cancel the convention. We're going to have the convention, it's going to be incredible ... I think we're going to be in great shape."
South Africas Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has clarified that network operators must close their physical stores during the coronavirus lockdown.

This information comes from a letter which MTN circulated to its stores today to inform them of the instruction from the minister.

In a letter from Ndabeni-Abrahams to MTN CEO Godfrey Motsa, the minister said the Disaster Management National Command Centre deliberated on questions raised by MTN, and it came to the following decisions:

Cellular shops in malls and shopping centres are to be closed to ensure more employees remain at home during the lockdown period to curb the spread of COVID-19. Call centres must continue to operate during the lockdown period.

MyBroadband contacted MTN for comment, and the mobile network operator confirmed the authenticity of the letter.

We did reach out to the Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams for clarification as to the status of mobile operator stores under these COVID-19 regulations, MTN SA executive for corporate affairs Jacqui OSullivan told MyBroadband.

We appreciate the swift response and clarity from the minister and, with immediate effect, we have communicated to all our stores that they need to close.

The feedback from the minister echoes guidance from the Western Cape government to businesses regarding the national lockdown regulations.

Cellphone shops are not allowed to be open. They would only be allowed to sell airtime, and this can be bought at any grocery store, spaza shop, or online, the guidance stated.

Call centres may remain open

New amendments to the Disaster Management Regulations that were released on 2 April made it clear that a mobile operators call centres may continue to function, as long as they deal with telecommunications services.

As an essential service, it is MTNs priority to keep South Africans connected through these difficult times, OSullivan said.

We certainly welcome these amendments as it will allow us to continue to support our customers, at least through call centre capacity.

Currently, all of MTNs internal call centre operators are working from home.

We will now be guided by the amendments as to the terms and conditions within which our outsourced call centres may operate, stated OSullivan.

We will continue to do all we can to keep our customers connected to their friends, family, and work.

Now read: How the South African government will track you if you have the coronavirus
Home Depot has ordered all 2,300 of its stores in North America to stop sales of N95 masks to try to free them up for those on the front lines of the coronavirus emergency response, the company said Wednesday.

The announcement came on the same day that President Donald Trump said that the federal governments stockpile of personal protective equipment had nearly been depleted by the states.

The demand for masks, gowns, face shields and gloves has skyrocketed during the spread of the virus, which has killed at least 4,726 people and sickened more than 209,000 in the United States.

The frantic competition for supplies has resulted in a number of high-profile episodes of hoarding and price-gouging. It has drawn scrutiny to retailers that sell personal protective equipment, commonly known as PPE.

The N95 respirator, a type of mask that protects against airborne droplets from sneezes or coughs, is among the most sought-after supplies.

We stopped restocking stores a couple weeks ago to prioritize shipments for hospitals and first responders, Sara Gorman, a spokeswoman for Home Depot, said in an email Wednesday night. As an extra precaution, we locked them down with a stop sale beginning last week.

Gorman said that the company had donated millions of dollars in PPE equipment and redirected shipments of N95 masks to hospitals, health care workers and emergency responders across the United States.

Home Depot was not the only major retailer to redirect supplies because of the crisis. On March 20, the home improvement retailer Lowes said it would donate $10 million of products to medical professionals.

Lowes is currently delivering essential items, such as respirators and other protective gear, to hospitals nationwide by working with national health care supply distributors to allocate product where its needed most, the company said on its website.

On the companys site, product pages for N95 masks said Wednesday night that they were not available for purchase online. It was not immediately clear if the masks could be purchased at the stores. Lowes did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday night.

During an appearance on CNBC last week, Mike Roman, chief executive of 3M, which makes N95 masks, expressed concern over some retailers continuing to sell protective gear.

Its disappointing when you see that, because were trying to redirect everything to health care workers, he said.

Amazon has restricted the sales of some medical supplies, but not all of them. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Last month, Target apologized after a shopper in the Seattle area shared on Twitter a photograph of store shelves filled with boxes of N95 masks, which the company said was an error. Washington state was an early epicenter of the pandemic in the United States.

Were removing & donating them to the WA State Dept. of Health, Target wrote on Twitter. Were also reviewing inventory for additional masks to be donated.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
War: Members of Al Shabaab which is fighting to overthrow the US-backed government in Somalia

American air strikes in Somalia killed two civilians and injured three in February, Amnesty International said yesterday.

US Africa Command said it was assessing the allegations and goes to great lengths to avoid civilian casualties.

US forces have been fighting a decade-long struggle against the al-Qa'ida-linked militant group al Shabaab, which is trying to overthrow Somalia's shaky, internationally backed government.

Africa Command says air strikes are a key weapon against al Shabaab, but Amnesty says they also mistakenly target civilians.

A US air strike in the town of Jilib on February 2 hit a family having a meal, Amnesty said, killing 18-year-old Nurto Kusow Omar Abukar, injuring her two younger sisters - aged seven and 12 - and her 70-year-old grandmother. Amnesty cited an interview with the girls' father, who was present but uninjured in the strike.

"He was very devastated, he didn't know why his family was targeted," Amnesty researcher Abdullahi Hassan said. "He said, 'I'm now in my farm, alone in an open place, if they want to kill me.'"

Mohamed Omar Abukar, the son of the 70-year-old woman, said his family had been devastated by the strike.

"She is OK and walking. My mum and my niece Fatuma... are too seriously injured to be brought by car to Mogadishu."

Another strike on February 24 on the village of Kumbareere, about 10km north of Jilib, killed Mohamud Salad Mohamud, a 53-year-old father-of-eight who ran a banana farm, Amnesty said.

Africa Command - also known as Africom - issued statements after both strikes saying it had killed militants.

Amnesty researcher Mr Hassan said Africom should be more transparent about how it investigates allegations of civilian deaths.

"They seem to be living in denial that the air strikes actually kill civilians," he said.

Last year, Amnesty issued a report alleging 14 civilian deaths in five US air strikes in 2017 and 2018.

At the time, Africa Command rejected the report but later said a review had concluded that two civilians had been killed in a 2018 strike.
As more COVID-19 cases come to the surface, our public health system is strained to breaking point. Doctors in state and municipal hospitals are complaining of lack of protective gear and medicines. After a ward boy in a private hospital in Patna tested positive for coronavirus, the stepmotherly treatment being accorded to paramedic staff has come to the fore. Many are forced to work with raincoats as protective gear! The frontline requires protective gear, testing kits and ventilators to revive the sick. The Centre and states are leading the battle, but it is time the private sector mobilised too.

There has been a steady trickle of commitments. The Tata Group has pledged Rs 1,500 crore to buy protective gear and testing equipment. ITC has set up a contingency fund of Rs 150 crore. Reliance Industries is contributing Rs 500 crore to the privately registered PM-CARES Fund. Holistically, the private sectors contribution so far is just Rs 2,700 crore, a pittance compared to the task at hand. The private sector also needs to keep salaries flowing to their employees, especially casual workers, even where production has stopped. In this regard, L&T setting up a Rs 500 crore fund for paying casual workers is exemplary.

The lack of resources to fight COVID-19 has brought to the fore our woefully inadequate outlay on health. The Centre and states put together spent a miserable 1% of GDP in the last few years, much lower than the global average of 7.4%. Hopefully the coronavirus jolt will now ensure more money flows to the health sector. Many international corporations are focusing on direct supply of medical equipment to hot spots. Alibaba is sending out 1.1 million testing kits, 6 million masks and 60,000 protective suits to Africa. Swiss pharma giant Roche is concentrating on producing 4 lakh testing kits a week to meet demand, and fashion-luxury brand Louis Vuitton has turned to producing sanitisers. Taking a leaf from their international peers, maybe Indian companies should divert capacity to producing medical essentials.
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Nearly $30m in drugs have been seized from a tunnel connecting the US and Mexico.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement described the tunnel as sophisticated in a statement and confirmed that it led from Tijuana to a warehouse in San Diego.

The tunnel was 2,000ft long and 3ft wide, with an average depth of 30ft and was equipped with reinforced walls, ventilation, lighting and an underground rail system.

Authorities confirmed that the drugs were worth at least $29.6m and that agents seized approximately 1,300 pounds of cocaine, 86 pounds of methamphetamine, 17 pounds of heroin, 3,000 pounds of marijuana and more than two pounds of fentanyl from the tunnel.

Cardell Morant, acting special agent in charge of HSI San Diego, said that they hope the bust sends a strong message to those transferring drugs over the border.

I hope this sends a clear message that despite the ongoing public health crisis, HSI and our law enforcement partners will remain resilient and continue to pursue criminal organisations responsible for the cross-border smuggling of narcotics into the United States, he said.

The coronavirus outbreak is stopping people from working all over the world, but DEA Special Agent in Charge John Callery added that despite the current Covid-19 pandemic, DEA employees continue to work tirelessly to serve and protect the community.

Recommended Trump closes Canada and Mexico borders as part of coronavirus response

In January, US and Mexican authorities uncovered the longest smuggling tunnel ever found at the two countries border.

The tunnel was 4,309ft in length and was significantly longer than one uncovered in 2006 that was the previous longest at 2,966ft .

Authorities also highlighted the sophistication of the that tunnel, with Mr Callery saying that the sophistication of this tunnel demonstrates the determination and monetary resources of the cartels.

Mr Morant added that the sophistication and length of this particular tunnel demonstrates the time-consuming efforts transnational criminal organisations will undertake to facilitate cross-border smuggling.
C oronavirus-linked deaths have topped 10,000 in Spain after 950 died in 24 hours - the country's biggest daily jump since the outbreak began.

Spain's death toll is second only to Italy, where more than 13,000 people have died after contracting the virus.

Like many other countries, Spain has been on lockdown for several weeks to try to slow the spread of the virus.

And there have been signs that the quarantine may be having an effect.

Coronavirus-linked deaths have reached 10,000 in Spain / Getty Images

Around 110,000 people have tested positive for the virus in Spain, below only the US and Italy.

But the number of new cases increased by just over 8,000 in the last 24 hours, a lower increase in terms of percentage.

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Spanish health minister Salvador Ella said that Spain was in the "stabilisation phase" on Wednesday.

But Fernando Simon, a senior epidemiologist for the Spanish Government, warned that the days ahead would be the hardest for Spanish doctors and nurses.

A health worker handling a swab to test a police officer in Madrid / Madrid City Hall/AFP via Getty Images

There have been more than 940,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 across the world since the start of the outbreak.
The surge in unemployment claims continued in Massachusetts last week, with nearly 200,000 more workers filing for relief as the coronavirus shutters businesses across the state and country.

Figures released for the U.S. Employment and Training Administration for the week ending March 28 show the number of new claims rising to 181,062 from a revised number of 148,452 for the week of March 21.

In the last 20 years, no other week has seen more than 30,000 new claims filed. The March 28 figure represents nearly 50 times the number of new claims filed in the same week last year.

The state has processed 329,514 unemployment claims since March 14, the day after Gov. Charlie Baker issued sweeping directives aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

The number of new claims since March 14 is equal to about 9% of the total Massachusetts workforce eligible for unemployment insurance.

Nationally, another 6.6 million Americans filed for unemployment last week, double the 3.3 million initial claims from a week earlier as efforts to halt the virus hamper the U.S. economy.

This marks the highest level of seasonally adjusted initial claims in its history.

The previous weeks level of new claims was revised up, from 3.28 million to 3.3 million.

The disease, and the social-distancing measures taken to combat it, have put the country into what economist Robert Nakosteen described last week as a full stop economy.

Even health care providers have furloughed or laid off employees.

The federal government recently added $600 a week to the unemployment insurance payment.

Unsurprisingly, consumer confidence in the economy is already shattered.

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index declined sharply in March, following an increase in February. The Index is now 120.0, down from 132.6 in February.

The Expectations Index  based on consumers short-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions  declined from 108.1 last month to 88.2 this month.

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Chandigarh, April 2 : A day after testing positive for coronavirus, Padma Shri Nirmal Singh Khalsa, former Hazoori Raagi of the Golden Temple, died of cardiac arrest in Amritsar on Thursday morning.

With this, the Covid-19 toll increased to five in Punjab that has registered 47 cases.

Singh, 67, had visited Britain in November, was was admitted to hospital with complications due to breathlessness and dizziness.

After tests at Shri Guru Ramdas Research Institute of Medical Sciences on March 29, he was referred to the Guru Nanak Hospital for advanced diagnosis. He was admitted to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital in Amritsar on March 30.

According to civil surgeon Prabhdeep Kaur Johal, Singh was put on ventilator on Wednesday night as his condition worsened due to bronchial asthma.

The police have sealed houses in the neighbouhood of Singh's residence in Amritsar and a Chandigarh locality he visited recently.

Singh, one of the most celebrated Ragis who had command over all 31 raags associated with the Gurbani, was the first Hazoori Raagi of the Golden Temple to be bestowed Padma Shri in 2009.

A health department team visited Singh's residence in Amritsar on March 3 when it came to know that he had two guests from the US.

"When the 14-day home isolation of the guests was over on March 17, they were found asymptomatic. After that Singh went to Chandigarh for a kirtan samagam on March 19 that had a gathering of nearly 100," said a health official.

The 10-member family along with three servants in Chandigarh's Sector 27 has been isolated.

Singh had also met eco warrior Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal in the Kapurthala district on March 13.

"Deeply saddened to learn of the unfortunate passing away of Hazuri Ragi Padma Shri Bhai Nirmal Singh Ji. My deepest condolences to his family and his large family of followers across the globe," Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh tweeted.
Cafes, corner stores, gyms and even boutique accommodation providers will be among the small businesses in NSW eligible for $10,000 cash grants to cover overheads and bills during the coronavirus crisis.

The Berejiklian government will put $750 million into its Small Business Support Fund as the centrepiece of a third round of stimulus measures to keep small businesses afloat.

Businesses that have been "highly impacted" by public health restrictions banning gatherings will be eligible if they have between one and 19 employees and a turnover of more than $75,000.

More assistance: cafes, gyms and corner stores can apply. Credit:Rob Homer

A government source said it was likely that the definition of highly impacted would be for a business to have suffered revenue loss over a certain period of about 75 per cent. Many businesses have already closed.
LEHI, Utah, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Young Living, the global leader in essential oils, today announced its community support efforts in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, leading with a donation of $233,767 to Meals on Wheels. Young Living's donations and programs were created to help those individuals who are most vulnerable and facing significant challenges within our community.

Meals on Wheels delivers healthy food to the homes of senior citizens, a service needed now more than ever. Young Living donated one percent of all North American proceeds from the Thieves product line through the month of March 2020 to Meals on Wheels. The total donation was given directly to the Meals on Wheels COVID-19 Response Fund, which benefits the program in both the U.S. and Canada. This fund will focus on supporting efforts to replenish the supply of food for the program, subsidizing additional transportation, enabling the implementation of telephone reassurance to connect with isolated seniors and other initiatives caring for seniors in need.

"We are tremendously grateful to Young Living for supporting our critical effort to ensure homebound seniors continue to receive the nutritious meals they need amid this national crisis," said Ellie Hollander, president and CEO, Meals on Wheels America. "This significant donation provides certainty for Meals on Wheels during this uncertain time and a vital lifeline on which vulnerable older adults rely."

In addition to this significant donation, the company has embarked on a number of other community-focused initiatives, with others on the horizon. These include:

Food Donations

The D. Gary Young Young Living Foundation donated 1,728 boxes of Gary's True Grit Einkorn Flakes Cereal to The Cereal Project, which were distributed via the Jordan Education Foundation Central Principals Pantry to aid local school children and families.

The company donated over 400lbs. of food to the Utah Food Bank after it temporarily closed the on-site cafe in the Lehi office.

Baby Care Donations

The company is working with Baby2Baby to fulfill needs for baby essentials and personal care items in family resource centers, homeless shelters, health clinics and head start centers across the nation. To date, Young Living has donated 500 packs of Seedlings Baby Wipes, 500 bars of soap and 500 packages of Thieves Toothpaste. In addition, the company donated 500 packs of its Seedlings Baby Wipes to the Silicon Slopes Serves, which will benefit the One Utah Child Care program.

Face Mask Fabrication

Upon hearing the need for fabric face masks, the company activated employees across the business to sew thousands of masks for use by workers in the company's Spanish Fork warehouse. To-date, 2,000 fabric masks have been sewn, with additional masks being donated to local community organizations.

Young Living employees have also leveraged its 3D printers at its Lehi office to create masks for local entities in Salt Lake and Utah Counties. An initial run of 30 masks will be donated to the Utah County Sheriff's Department.

"It's been heartwarming to see the resourceful and creative ways that organizations have answered the call to service during this worldwide crisis, and Young Living is honored to do the same," said Jared Turner, president and COO at Young Living. "Thanks to our members, customers and employees, our business is strong, and we are able to leverage our talent and resources to fill several needs that will serve our community  from seniors to small businesses to first responders."

About Young Living Essential Oils

Young Living Essential Oils, LC, based in Lehi, Utah, is the world leader in essential oils, offering the highest-quality oil-infused products available. Young Living takes its industry leadership seriously, setting the standard with its proprietary Seed to Seal quality commitment, which involves three critical pillars: Sourcing, Science, and Standards. These guiding principles help Young Living protect the planet and provide pure, authentic products that its members can feel confident about using and sharing with friends and family. Young Living's productswhich all come from corporate-owned farms, partner farms, and Seed to Seal-certified suppliersnot only support a healthy lifestyle but also provide opportunities for over 6 million global members to find a sense of purpose and whole-life wellness by aligning their work with their values and passions. For more information, visit YoungLiving.com, follow @youngliving on Instagram, or like us on Facebook.

SOURCE Young Living Essential Oils

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Coronavirus cases around the world climbed to one million on Thursday. The infection has claimed over 40,000 lives across the globe as the pandemic spreads at a near-exponential rate. A six-week-old baby became one of the youngest known victims of the contagion.

Nearly half of the planet is under some form of a lockdown. While China takes baby steps on the path to recovery, the United States, Italy, France, Spain and Iran continue to grapple with the rise in the number of Covid-19 cases and deaths.

Here are top global developments in the coronavirus situation.

1. In an unprecedented move, the Australian government has announced free childcare during the coronavirus pandemic.

2. The United Kingdom records over 500 deaths in a single day.

3. President of Philippines Rodrigo Duterte said that violators of lockdown could be shot dead.

4. White House has said that the projections show the number of Covid-19 deaths could go up to 100,000 to 240,000 in the country.

5. Chinas Shenzhen has banned the consumption of wild animals, dog and cat meat.

6. The United States now accounts for almost a quarter of reported global infections. The country reported its 5,000th death, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The total number of infections rose above 216,000.

7. Britain and France reported their highest daily death tolls from coronavirus on Wednesday.

8. Italys total death toll turned the highest in the world, jumping past 13,000. Spain has witnessed over 9,000 deaths so far.

9. The Food and Agriculture Organization, WHO and World Trade Organization said panic buying amid coronavirus pandemic could threaten food supplies across the globe.

10. India witnessed the number of cases nearly double in the past week. The number of Covid-19 cases in the country stands at 1,925 including active cases, recoveries and fatalities.
For many investors, the main point of stock picking is to generate higher returns than the overall market. But its virtually certain that sometimes you will buy stocks that fall short of the market average returns. Unfortunately, that's been the case for longer term Singapura Finance Ltd. (SGX:S23) shareholders, since the share price is down 35% in the last three years, falling well short of the market return of around -18%. And more recent buyers are having a tough time too, with a drop of 24% in the last year. Furthermore, it's down 19% in about a quarter. That's not much fun for holders. But this could be related to the weak market, which is down 24% in the same period.

See our latest analysis for Singapura Finance

To paraphrase Benjamin Graham: Over the short term the market is a voting machine, but over the long term it's a weighing machine. One way to examine how market sentiment has changed over time is to look at the interaction between a company's share price and its earnings per share (EPS).

What About Dividends?

It is important to consider the total shareholder return, as well as the share price return, for any given stock. The TSR is a return calculation that accounts for the value of cash dividends (assuming that any dividend received was reinvested) and the calculated value of any discounted capital raisings and spin-offs. It's fair to say that the TSR gives a more complete picture for stocks that pay a dividend. In the case of Singapura Finance, it has a TSR of -29% for the last 3 years. That exceeds its share price return that we previously mentioned. The dividends paid by the company have thusly boosted the total shareholder return.

A Different Perspective

The total return of 21% received by Singapura Finance shareholders over the last year isn't far from the market return of -23%. So last year was actually even worse than the last five years, which cost shareholders 5.5% per year. Weak performance over the long term usually destroys market confidence in a stock, but bargain hunters may want to take a closer look for signs of a turnaround. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. To that end, you should be aware of the 2 warning signs we've spotted with Singapura Finance .

Story continues

Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking elsewhere. So take a peek at this free list of companies we expect will grow earnings.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on SG exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
New Delhi, April 2 : On screens big and small, actor Chetan Hansraj has often essayed dark roles and he loves it.

"I love playing negative characters. According to me, negative characters are interesting and are not bound to any restrictions. It helps an actor to go all out in his performance," Chetan told IANS.

In fact, if given a chance he would love to play superhero Batman's most famous nemesis Joker.

That's one role he craves for. But he had a good time acting in a show that's based on "Arabian Nights", which is a collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian folk tales.

"I was honoured to be part of Dangal TV's, 'Alif Laila' since the stories being narrated through the serial are fabulous. 'Alif Laila' is a show based on the folk tales of 'Arabian Nights', which makes one feel nostalgic and is liked by people of all age groups," said the "Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii" actor.

"I believe in exploring different characters. Playing the role of a magician helped me explore the world of magic. To play this role, I improvised on my imagination skill as it is the most important requirement," he added about his role in the show.

Meanwhile, he is using the quarantine time to learn new things.

"I am a tech-savvy person. Therefore, I am utilising my time by learning a new computer programming language called 'python'. I hope to learn and develop programs and applications for myself by the end of this lockdown," he said.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
As the ruling Chinese Communist Party increasingly claims victory over the coronavirus epidemic in mainland China, residents of the central province of Henan say there has been a local outbreak of COVID-19 in Jia county.



County authorities imposed travel restrictions on after lockdowns in neighboring Hubei province eased, according to an official document seen by RFA.



Non-essential travel remains banned between villages and communities, with anyone coming in and out of villages and residential compounds required to wear a face mask, take a body temperature check and show a health certificate, the document said.



All businesses remained closed with the exception of supermarkets and farmers' markets.



Curfew-like measures came into effect on , with some 600,000 people told to stay home, the county government's Weibo account said.



Officials have been telling people to stock up on daily necessities and get ready for another lockdown since , one resident said.



"Everything's locked down; it just started," the resident said. "All households are locked down. Nobody can go into town, or if you do, you won't be able to leave again."



The lockdown came after a fresh cluster of coronavirus cases was reported among medical staff at Jia County People's Hospital, one of whom had been in 14 day quarantine after returning from Wuhan.



Testing remains limited to those on an official list, however, according to a staff member at the hospital's testing division.



"Not just anyone can come; you have to be on a special list," the employee said. "You can only get it done with official approval from higher up, when we get notification from them."



"Nobody's getting tested if they're not on the list."



The hospital is carrying out "several hundred" tests a day, the staff member said, adding that this was an estimate.



"We are all working overtime here in the testing division, anyway."



Asymptomatic carriers

All three doctors were asymptomatic but a nucleic acid test showed a positive result in all three cases. They had had close contact with 53 people in recent days, all of whom are currently under observation.



Concerns over the continued spread of coronavirus by asymptomatic carriers are running high in China, as the authorities try to convince people that it's safe to end the lockdowns and return to work.



A cleaner who had eaten and shared a vehicle with one of the doctors remains under isolation.



The renewed lockdown came as China reported a decline in cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.



The National Health Commission claims that the majority of newly confirmed cases are now imported from overseas.



A Henan resident surnamed Hong said the county is just two hours away from Zhengzhou, a national railway hub with connections to just about everywhere else in China.



"[The route goes] Zhumadian, Xuchang, Luoyang, then Xuchang via Pingdingshan [near Jia county]," Hong said. "After Xuchang, the next stop is Zhengzhou. It takes about two hours."



"Zhengzhou is the economic center of the whole province, and an important transportation hub with routes radiating out to all parts of China," he said.



He said the authorities had clearly started to relax after President Xi Jinping and other high-ranking officials claimed the epidemic was "basically under control" in central China.



"Many people believe that the epidemic has been brought under control due to government propaganda, which is false," he said.



"Basically life has gone back to the way it used to be, just with some people still choosing to wear face masks on the streets," he said. "But some people stopped wearing masks too, so this news is a good thing, because it will keep people on the alert."



Claims challenged

Chen Bingzhong, former director of the China Institute of Health Education under the ministry of health, said the government's claim that around 1,000 asymptomatic cases have been recorded is highly dubious.



Zhong Nanshan, top epidemiologist and coronavirus epidemic adviser to the ruling Chinese Communist Party, has claimed that the proportion of asymptomatic cases has been very low.



"Zhong Nanshan believes that the proportion of asymptomatic people is very low," Chen said. "This is wrong, but how do we prove it?"



"The most reliable way to achieve early detection is a nucleic acid test, but are these tests 100 percent reliable? No, they're not, but they're the most reliable method we have right now," he said.



He said the authorities fear that the more people they report as infected, the more people will hold them to account.



"It'll get to the point where they lose legitimacy, because they just try to cover everything up and pass the buck," he said. "They are doing this to cling onto power."



According to official figures, 55 new cases of asymptomatic infections were reported on , while 1,075 people were under medical observation.



However, China has concealed the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in its country, under-reporting both total cases and deaths from the disease, according to a report submitted by the the U.S. intelligence community to the White House, Bloomberg reported.



The report found that Chinas public reporting on cases and deaths is intentionally incomplete.



China has publicly reported only about 82,000 cases and 3,300 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. That compares to more than 189,000 cases and more than 4,000 deaths in the U.S., which has the largest publicly reported outbreak in the world.



Reported by Wong Siu-san and Sing Man for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by Gao Feng for the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by

Luisetta Mudie.
It accuses former South Suburban President Donald Manning, who is white, of engaging in a pattern of discriminatory conduct that was known and agreed to by the colleges board of trustees, who set the tone that allowed the incidents to occur by failing to hold Manning accountable and investigate allegations of misconduct against him or his subordinates.
A healthcare worker attends to a person in the back of a vehicle at the Scripps Clinic as they provide drive-up care due to the global outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in La Jolla, California, U.S., March 17, 2020. Mike Blake | Reuters

San Diego-based hospital system Scripps Health is preparing for coronavirus cases in the city to "spike" in what CEO Chris Van Gorder describes as a "slow-moving tsunami"  even as it is already running out of surgical masks and doctors prepare to convert anesthesia machines into ventilators in a pinch. "We know it's coming," he continued. "We can actually see it. We've got the early stages of it already coming ashore. You can see that with the positive patients we have in our hospital. But we don't know how big that tsunami is actually going to be." Scripps Health operates five hospitals with 1,453 beds, 28 outpatient centers and treats roughly 600,000 patients each year. As of Monday, it had processed 4,822 coronavirus tests, identifying 217 COVID-19 patients, Van Gorder said. They had just nine coronavirus patients in the intensive care unit and five of them were using ventilators as of last week, he said. San Diego is lucky. San Francisco Bay-area officials issued a stringent shelter-in-place order for roughly 7 million residents in Northern California on March 16, helping to slow the outbreak there. California Gov. Gavin Newsom expanded the order across the state three days later  when California had around 800 cases and New York had more than 4,100 cases  requiring all nonessential workers to stay at home except to obtain food, health care or go to the bank. It appears to have worked, giving hospitals some much needed time to prepare for an onslaught of cases and drawing praise Tuesday from President Donald Trump's coronavirus task force.

Medical workers remove a body from a refrigerated truck outside of the Brooklyn Hospital on March 31, 2020 in New York, United States. Stephanie Keith | Getty Images

California currently has the third-highest number of COVID-19 cases in the country at 9,399, behind New Jersey at 22,255 and New York at 83,948, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Newsom and other governors are trying to flatten or "bend the curve"  meaning the curve of a line graph that shows when cases will peak  using partial lockdowns and social distancing measures to keep cases from surging all at once. The worry is that it will stretch a hospital's capacity to treat patients, a dire scenario that's already starting to play out in New York City where 1,374 people have already died. The city currently has 20,000 hospital beds but is projected to need roughly 60,000 by the end of April when the outbreak is projected to peak. Newsom said there are 416 hospitals in California with 78,000 fully staffed beds, and the state can add an additional 10,000 if needed. "If we change our behaviors, that inventory will come down, if we meet this moment, we can truly bend the curve," he said.

California Governor Gavin Newsom (R) and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (L) listen as Admiral John Gumbleton, of the United States Navy, speaks in front of the USNS Mercy hospital ship after it arrived into the Port of Los Angeles on March 27, 2020. Carolyn Cole | AFP | Getty Images

Scripps Health has 1,453 beds in California and says it is working to expand its capacity even more. In addition to the nine COVID-19 patients in the ICU, five patients were in the medical-surgical unit, Van Gorder said. It had a total of 34 people under investigation as of last week, with six of those on ventilators. Van Gorder, watching the outbreak rapidly expand in New York over the past month, said the health system has been preparing to get hit for quite a while. He said the staff has a "sufficient" number of N95 masks, which filter out about 95% of all liquid or airborne particles. "But once we get into our heavy time, we anticipate our supply could go very, very quickly," he said. "We're continually working with our physician operating executives and doctors across the system and our staff to use them appropriately," he said. "Nobody is at risk. They all have sufficient supplies and protection to be able to take care of themselves. But we're also asking to be wise about the use because obviously there are communities like New York and others that are really suffering from that now." Surgical and procedural masks are already in "very short supply," and "occasionally" staff is running out of those, he said. Hand sanitizer, bleach wipes, sandy wipes, and masks with eye shields are completely out of stock, he said.

Medical personnel collect a sample from a patient at a drive-thru COVID-19 testing clinic at a Kaiser Permanente facility in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Thursday, March 12, 2020. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

"Face shields, full and three-quarter [length], are out of stock, but we're ordering more. And isolation gowns are in stock. We have about one- to three-days supply depending upon how much we use," he said, adding that staff is now directly sourcing some of its supplies from China. Scripps has about 131 ventilators, he said, but hospital staff members are strategizing what other machines they could use as ventilators they predict will be "a real issue" for them. "We have about 100 anesthesia machines and those machines can be used to be converted as a [ventilator]," he said. "And then BIPAP machines. They are not as good as ventilators but they could be used in a pinch."

Getty
Owing to the lockdown in the country, the situation is pretty grim with many needy people left with no shelter and food. With this crisis hovering on our heads, a few people have come out to do some noble deeds for the society. In Punjab, Gurudwara Haa Da Naara Sahib in Malerkotla is feeding some students in the nearby Madrasa.

Due to the lockdown, those students were stuck and Bhai Narinder Pal Singh, Head Granthi of the Haa Da Naara Sahib Gurudwara came forward to help them with food.

A Gurudwara in Malerkotla, Punjab feeding Madrassa students who couldnt go home after lockdown was announced. pic.twitter.com/BWR8Rk0Yrc  Barkat Lone (@barkatklone) April 2, 2020

When the lockdown was about to be imposed, some of the students at the madarsa were sent away to their respective homes but about 40 of them, mostly from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar were stuck here. We heard that they were having difficulty feeding them. So we decided to take up the responsibility of feeding them. No child should go hungry, he told the Quint. Janab Salim, the Maulvi in-charge of the Madarsa, is indeed thankful to the Gurudwara committee for stepping in and helping them out in a situation like that of lockdown. Janab Salim told Tribune, After the imposition of curfew, the trains were canceled. Since we did not expect sudden curfew, we couldnt make the required arrangements. But we are thankful to the gurdwara committee for taking care of it. They always help whenever anyone is in trouble.

Another Gurudwara in Malerkotla, Punjab, is helping the migrant labourers who are stuck because of the lockdown. Kuldeep Singh, the in-charge of the Gurudwara told The Quint, These people are extremely poor and have no supplies. They were unable to go back home because of the curfew. We ensure that they get food every day. We have a team that distributes food in various bastis twice a day.

All over the world, the Sikh community has come forward to help everyone whos in need. Even in the UK, Australia and the US, the community is making sure that they deliver the basic necessity that is food.

The Langar tradition of the Sikh community is one of the many reasons India is Incredible. Langar is now a term that will be used Universally. Thank you for making us proud. pic.twitter.com/A17DAyrPXt  anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) March 30, 2020

With this, we can say that theres no religious differentiation when it comes to fighting a pandemic thats a global crisis. After all, humanity is the biggest religion of them all.
Married At First Sight producers went to extreme lengths to rile up the participants while filming Tuesday night's reunion dinner party on January 15.

Daily Mail Australia can reveal that while alcohol was limited to prevent any physical fights, the crew found another way to get the stars hot and bothered.

They cranked up the heaters until the couples were physically sweating as they sat around the table, making sure things looked appropriately heated.

Sweatshop: Married At First Sight producers went to extreme lengths to rile up the brides and grooms while filming Tuesday's reunion dinner party on January 15. Pictured: Ivan Sarakula

A source said: 'The cast were told beforehand there could be no drink-throwing and alcohol would be limited, so producers had to find another way to rile them up.

'Having all the heaters on really agitated them. By the end of the night, they were sweating their makeup off. They all complained, but the temperature didn't change.

'Hayley [Vernon] walked out near the end of the night and was told to go have a cigarette and get some air. She didn't return and got a taxi back to her hotel.'

Flustered: The crew cranked up the heaters until the couples were physically sweating as they sat around the table, making sure things looked appropriately heated. Pictured: Mishel Karen

Burning up! The cast appeared hot and bothered on set. Mikey Pembroke (pictured) even had a coughing fit, but this wasn't necessarily caused by the stuffy atmosphere

When asked why producers had limited alcohol, the source said they didn't want a repeat of last year when Cyrell Paule and Martha Kalifatidis had a physical fight.

The insider explained: 'They feared they could lose sponsors if things got as wild as last year with drinks being thrown - but they still needed to deliver drama.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment.

She's gone! Hayley Vernon (pictured) left the shoot early because she couldn't handle the heat. She chose to return to her hotel after being allowed outside for some air and a cigarette

During Tuesday's reunion, most of the cast appeared to be sweating profusely.

As the episode progressed, they started to look red in the face and the women's makeup started to smudge on their faces.

Married At First Sight's season finale airs Sunday at 7pm on Channel Nine
Three COVID-19 positive cases were found in Goalpara, taking the state tally to 16.

"These three new cases were part of the group who joined Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi," Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Earlier, he said, " 8 more #COVID19 positive cases in Assam, taking the total to 13. All eight new cases are of people who also participated in Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi."

Moreover, some people defied lockdown orders and police personnel took action against the violators of Coronavirus Lockdown in Guwahati. Movement of only those availing/providing essential services are allowed.

Earlier, 110 people in Tamil Nadu and 43 in Andhra Pradesh who had attended the gathering have tested positive for coronavirus. Six attendees from Telangana have also died due to the deadly virus.

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the gathering. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Idris Elba, had in March revealed that he and his wife had contracted coronavirus

Los Angeles: Actor Idris Elba says he and his wife are clueless about the next step in their treatment for coronavirus after they passed their quarantine period.

(Click here to follow LIVE updates on coronavirus outbreak)

The 47-year-old actor, who is in New Mexico, had in March revealed that he had contracted coronavirus. His wife, Sabrina Dhowre, also tested positive for the disease a few days later.

Since then, the actor has been regularly giving updates about his and Sabrina's health through social media.

In the latest video, posted on his official Twitter account, Elba said their self-quarantine period is over but they are yet to be tested again for COVID-19.

"We're both doing okay, still asymptomatic. We've passed the quarantine period but we're a little bit stuck in limbo  we can't get a flight back home. So we just have to sit still for a little bit."

Check out the post

"Other than that, were OK, and were so thankful for that. I think the worst of it has probably passed," Elba said in the video.

The actor said he and Sabrina are both finding it difficult to deal with the self-isolation period.

"Its weird because I never sit still, Sabrina never sits still either and I think shes finding it harder. Shes getting cabin fever," Elba added.

The couple is staying mentally strong and optimistic, the actor further said.

"I hope you guys are too, keeping yourselves sane and not getting too worried or panicked. I thought I was definitely going to see the worst of it as an asthmatic. But thankfully I came through and you can too," he added.

The actor then gave a shout out to all the health personnel who are leading the fight against coronavirus, which has claimed the lives of over 42,000 people globally.

"To everyone thats going through some hard times financially, just bear up. Its going to be a tough time for everyone, but keep your head up basically. Hope youre good. Were going to fight this thing and everythings going to be cool, man," Elba said.

The actor had recently told Oprah Winfrey during her new Apple TV Plus show that Sabrina and him were under quarantine in New Mexico, where he was shooting for his next movie The Harder They Fall.
MOSCOW, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- PhosAgro CEO Andrey Guryev took part in an online conference hosted by the Skolkovo business school on sustainability scenarios for large businesses during crisis situations.

The moderator Evgeny Kaganer, Dean of Academic Affairs at the Skolkovo Moscow School of Management and a professor at the IESE Business School, discussed the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and market volatility on the activities of large companies with Ruben Vardanyan, an investor and entrepreneur, and with Mr Guryev, who is also the President of the Russian Fertilizer Producers Association.

"We are now, for the first time, in a new crisis that still needs to be acknowledged. This is a crisis on a global scale; this is a versatile, multifaceted crisis that is happening to everyone at the same time. In this sense, what makes it unique is not the fact that it is the most serious or most profound crisis, but that it is happening on all fronts simultaneously. With this in mind, how businesses conduct themselves, how they make decisions and respond to the crisis must be suited to the reality of the situation," said Mr Vardanyan.

He noted that the current situation poses four challenges for businesses at once: the need to adapt to strict quarantine measures, the onset of negative economic and social consequences on the ground, the possibility of a long-term global recession and the acceleration of new economic trends, such as the digitalisation of business processes.

PhosAgro's Mr Guryev stressed that the world has entered "into unknown and uncharted territory, where things that previously seemed unimaginable and impossible now appeared to be necessary and effective measures."

He spoke about the rapid implementation  in cooperation with local and regional authorities  of quarantine measures in the cities where the company operates: Cherepovets, Kirovsk, Apatity, Volkhov and Balakovo.

"The sooner we take the necessary measures, the faster we will get out of this crisis situation and the less severe the consequences will be. These rather stringent measures are absolutely vital to stopping the spread of the virus," said Mr Guryev.

He added that in a crisis, the key to the sustainable operation of any large company is preserving all the links in existing supply chains. In this regard, large companies should have operating regulations in place in case of the development of any sort of epidemiological situation, as is the case at PhosAgro. Redundancy schemes need to be worked out for key personnel involved in ensuring the uninterrupted operation of production facilities. In developing these schemes, companies should take into account the successful experience of businesses in those countries that were first hit by the epidemic: in China, South Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong.

"The Coordinating Council of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RUIE) on combating coronavirus infection will provide businesses with access to the epidemic response measures developed by leading Russian and international companies. This will help ensure that efforts are coordinated, that task forces fighting the epidemic exchange experiences, and that the best preventive practices to maintain production continuity are replicated," said Mr Guryev, who is co-Chairman of the RUIE Coordinating Council.

Mr Guryev also heads the central PhosAgro task force for preventing COVID-19 at the Group's enterprises. Local coronavirus task forces in place in all the Company's structure divisions report to the central task force. PhosAgro's CEO is the head of a similar task force within the Russian Fertilizer Producers Association, and he is involved in the work of the Coronavirus Alliance.

All PhosAgro enterprises are operating under special regulations. Employees taking part in the uninterrupted production cycle must undergo a medical exam before starting work. Their body temperature is measured on a regular basis using non-contact thermometers, and streaming thermal imagers have been purchased for installation at the main entrances to facilities. All other employees began working remotely well in advance.

All internal meetings are conducted through video conferences, and a ban on business travel has been in place for more than a month. Additional measures to disinfect workplaces and vehicles are being carried out. Antiseptic dispensers and air decontamination equipment have been installed at production facilities. All employees of Company enterprises have been provided with a full supply of masks. A section has been created on PhosAgro's corporate intranet for sharing relevant materials on the topic of disease prevention.

The Company is providing assistance to medical institutions in the cities where it operates: ambulances are being purchased that are equipped with the necessary medical equipment and ventilators, and ventilators, oxygen concentrators, disposable syringes, test tubes for blood and biomaterials, filter masks, protective goggles and hazmat suits, air disinfectants and decontamination equipment are being purchased for healthcare facilities.

PhosAgro has been acquiring tests and reagents for conducting rapid coronavirus testing for residents of the cities where it operates and its employees. Together with the Russian Direct Investment Fund, PhosAgro is implementing a pilot system for implementing the latest rapid testing system. The first batch of rapid tests was delivered to Kirovsk and Apatity several days ago.

About PhosAgro

PhosAgro (www.phosagro.com) is one of the world's leading vertically integrated phosphate-based fertilizer producers in terms of production volumes of phosphate-based fertilizers and high-grade phosphate rock with a P2O5 content of 39% and higher. PhosAgro's environmentally friendly fertilizers stand out for their high efficiency, and they do not lead to the contamination of soils with heavy metals.

The Company is the largest phosphate-based fertilizer producer in Europe (by total combined capacity for DAP/MAP/NP/NPK/NPS), the largest producer of high-grade phosphate rock with a P2O5 content of 39% and one of the leading producers of MAP/DAP globally, one of the leading producers of feed phosphates (MCP) in Europe, and the only producer in Russia, and Russia's only producer of nepheline concentrate (according to the RAFP).

PhosAgro's main products include phosphate rock, 39 grades of fertilizers, feed phosphates, ammonia, and sodium tripolyphosphate, which are used by customers in 100 countries spanning all of the world's inhabited continents. The Company's priority markets outside of Russia and the CIS are Latin America, Europe and Asia.

PhosAgro's shares are traded on the Moscow Exchange, and global depositary receipts (GDRs) for shares trade on the London Stock Exchange (under the ticker PHOR). Since 1 June 2016, the Company's GDRs have been included in the MSCI Russia and MSCI Emerging Markets indexes.

More information about PhosAgro can be found on the website: www.phosagro.com.

SOURCE PhosAgro
RTE has announced that they will screen a collection of classic productions of William Shakespeares plays.

The screenings will be aimed at Leaving and Junior Cert students and will be broadcast on RTE2.
Coronavirus Outbreak: A resident doctor from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday, AIIMS sources confirmed. Meanwhile, the source of his infection is not yet known but the doctor does not have any foreign travel history. The medic from the Physiology department is the seventh doctor in Delhi to get COVID-19.

Also Read: Coronavirus in India Live Updates April 3: PM Modi to address the nation at 9 am on Friday on COVID-19 crisis

India recorded a spike in COVID-19 positive cases by over 400 in the past 24 hours as the contagion continues to spread across the country. The sudden jump in cases is linked to the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin which was attended by around 3,400 people in early March. The authorities are also working to trace more of these people who attended the event in order to prevent the jump in confirmed cases. The total number of active novel coronavirus cases in the country stand at 1,764 in the country while the death tally is at 50, according to latest information on the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's website. Globally, too the picture remains grim as the US reported its largest single-day death toll on Wednesday. The UK also reported around 550 deaths.

Also Read: Coronavirus in India: State-wise COVID-19 cases, trends, list of testing facilities

Follow BusinessToday.In for all the COVID-19 live updates:

8.00 PM: Himachal Pradesh ropes in private hospital in fight against coronavirus

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur has directed health authorities to dedicate Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Government Medical College and Hospital in Mandi district for treatment of coronavirus cases.

7.46 PM: Second coronavirus case in Jharkhand

Second positive case of coronavirus in Jharkhand has come from Hazaribagh district. The patient had returned recently from Asansol, West Bengal and has been put in quarantine, informed Jharkhand Health Secretary Nitin Madan Kulkarni.

7.41 PM: Coronavirus update: Patanjali Ayurved promises 1 crore hand sanitisers

Baba Ramdev-led Patanjal Ayurved has promised to manufacture 1 crore bottles of hand sanitisers soon. The company said it has already supplied 10 lakh bottles at Rs 55 for a 120ml bottle, which is below the government-mandated price.

At 9 AM tomorrow morning, Ill share a small video message with my fellow Indians.



  9            Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 2, 2020

7.30 PM: Coronavirus in Delhi: Notices sent to Maulana Saad, others

Crime Branch has sent notices to Tablighi Jamat's head Maulana Saad and 6 others named in the FIR in the Nizamuddin Markaz matter, news agency ANI quoted Delhi Police sources as saying. They have been asked to furnish a written statement on why the lockdown rules were not followed by them.

7.25 PM: Coronavirus crisis: Delhi govt seeks adequate forces at hospitals, quarantine centres

In a letter to Commissioner of Delhi Police, Delhi Government has asked for deployment of adequate police force at hospitals and coronavirus quarantine facilities. "COVID-19 patients, particularly those transferred from Markaz are creating a law and order problem and commotion in the hospitals which is becoming very difficult for hospital staff to handle," the letter says.

"Medical Superintendents of designated COVID-19 hospitals reported that patients, particularly those transferred from Markaz, are creating law and order problem and commotion in hospitals which is becoming difficult for the hospital staff to handle," Delhi government further said in the letter

7.19 PM: Nizamuddin Markaz row: MHA directs legal action action 960 foreigners

Ministry of Home Affairs has asked Delhi Police and DGPs of other states to take legal action against 960 foreigners, who attended the Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin Markaz, for violating the provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Disaster Management Act, 2005, ANI reported. These 960 foreigners have been black-listed and their tourist visas have been cancelled after they were found involved in activities related to Tablighi Jamat, the news agency reported.

7.08 PM: Coronavirus in India: 1,965 infected, 50 dead due to COVID-19

According to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 1,965 confirmed cases and 50 deaths have been reported in India so far due to novel coronavirus. 328 new confirmed cases and 12 new deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours.

7.06 PM: Coronavirus in Delhi: Coronavirus patrols begin in New Delhi

After South Delhi district, Delhi Police has started COVID-19 patrolling in New Delhi district too. A squad of 40 motorcycle-borne policemen will patrol the district and detain lockdown violators. They will also help people facing troubles and spread awareness about coronavirus.

7.04 PM: Nizamuddin Markaz row: 46 Tablighi Jamaat attendees went to Goa from other states

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant informed that 46 Tablighi Jamaat attendees have been identified and quarantined in the state are from other states. "We don't know why have they come to Goa. Their reports will come tomorrow. Search for more attendees is still on," Sawant said.

6.50 PM: Coronavirus in India: Chandigarh woman, granddaughter test positive

According to Chandigarh Health Department, a 59-year-old woman and her 10-month-old granddaughter in the union terrritory have tested positive for coronavirus. They are primary family contacts of an NRI couple who have tested Positive for coronavirus earlier. So far, number of cases in the Chandigarh is 18.

6.30 PM: Coronavirus impact: Air India suspends contract of 200 pilots

Air India has suspended contracts of around 200 pilots, who were re-employed after retirement, on temporary basis. The action came on the back of severe revenue loss as all domestic and international passenger flights in the country have been grounded due to the nationwide coronavirus lockdown.

6.15 PM: Kalyan Dombivali Mayour under quarantine on coronavirus suspicion

Three more positive coronavirus cases have been found in Dombivali. These patients came in contact with the 25-year-old who had returned from Turkey on March 15 and then hosted his brothers wedding on March 19. Kalyan Dombivali Mayor Vinita Rane had also attended the wedding and is under quarantine since last week.

6.00 PM: Coronavirus: PM Modi talks to state govts

Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked to chief ministers across India via video conferencing as the country saw coronavirus cases and deaths rise substantially in the past few days. PM Modi said the nationwide lockdown across the country should be lifted in phases to avoid crowding. He also asked CMs to focus on COVID-19 containment measures - testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine - over the next few weeks with to ensure minimum loss of life.

5.55 PM: Bollywood stands with daily wage workers in Corona times

Bollywood celebrities have collaborated with Art of Living Foundation for #iStandWithHumanity to help 1 million daily wage workers families facing troubles in times of coronavirus outbreak. Local administration authorities like BMC and other organisations have also joined the initiative. This initiative has been started by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of The Art of Living Foundation, filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani and Producer Mahaveer Jain.

5.47 PM: Coronavirus outbreak: US senators seek suspension of sanctions against Iran

Nearly 30 senators and Members of US Congress have written to US Secretary Micheal Pompeo and Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin to temporarily suspend sanctions against Iran in view of coronavirus pandemic. The letter states US cannot afford to be callous when 2,000 have died and 25,000 are infected with the deadly in Iran.

5.32 PM: Coronavirus in Delhi: 55 new patients traced back to Nizamuddin Markaz

55 new coronavirius patients in Delhi were found to be attendees of Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin Markaz. Two patients from brought from Nizamuddin Markaz have died in Delhi during the last 24 hours. As of now, total number of patients from the Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi is 108.

5.28 PM: PM Modi will release a video message at 9am tomorrow

#WATCH Health Ministry briefs media on COVID 19 situation (2nd April) https://t.co/XA5Dwe329I  ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020

5.21 PM: MHA asks states to publicise penalties on lockdown violations

The Ministry of Home Affairs has asked state governments to publicise the penalties on violation of the lockdown. MHA had earlier written to all states requesting them to strictly implement lockdown measures by exercising their powers under the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

5.17 PM: Naval dockyard designs temperature gun

Naval Dockyard, Mumbai has designed and developed its own handheld IR based temperature sensor to screen large number of personnel at the entry gates. The instrument has been manufactured under Rs 1,000 through in-house resources.

5.13 PM: 5,000 railway coaches to be made into corona isolation wards

Indian Railways is converting 5,000 coaches to coronavirus isolation wards. The southern railway has been assigned with 473 on 5000. The Chennai Perumbur carriage workshop has to make 110 coach corona isolation units. Authorities have ten days to complete this project.

5.02 PM: India may change testing guidelines

India might change testing guidelines. ICMR has recommended Rapid Antibody Tests in hotspot areas. Antibody positives will be confirmed by RT-PCT test (Corona Confirmatory Test). Antibody negatives will be quarantined at home.

The National Task Force is scheduled to meet at 5 pm today to finalise this recommendation.

4.59 PM: 'Don't crowd places after April 15': Uddhav Thackeray Office

The Uddhav Thackeray government has shared pointers on what people should do once the lockdown is over. "Once lockdown is over on April 15th, people should not crowd the places immediately. State government should have proper management plan to open the lockdown step by step ," it said.

4.55 PM: Govt to launch Aarogya Setu AN APP to track cases

Governemt is planning to launch Aarogya Setu AN APP to track coronavirus infectives. The app, available in 11 Indian languages will be available on Play Store on Android and App Store on iOS.

4.45 PM: Ladakh patients stable

The Directorate of Health Services, Ladakh said that the condition of 10 positive cases is stable. One repeat positive case has been isolated and one new positive reported from Kargil district.

4.40 PM: Tier-1 cities more coronavirus-aware

In a study conducted by IIT-Hyderabad and IIT-Bombay, it was found that residents of Tier 1 cities are more aware of coronavirus outbreak than people in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. The respondents spoke on the impact of daily commute. A majority -- 93 per cent -- of respondents said that private mode of commute is safer than public mode.

4.37 PM: Lowdown of Tablighi Jamat attendees from each state, except Delhi:

Tamilnadu -Attended Gathering - Around 1500 , Corona Positive -190 Karnataka - 1500; coronavirus positive - 143 tested Telangana - 1030, coronavirus positive - 53 including 9 death Andhra Pradesh - 1085, coronavirus positive - 97 UP - 157, coronavirus positive - 2 Rajasthan - 550, coronavirus positive - 14 Bihar - 162, coronavirus positive - none( Awaited) Jharkhand - 37, coronavirus positive - none West Bengal - 71, Quarantined - 54, no test conducted Gujarat - 72, coronavirus positive - 1, who died JK - 855, coronavirus positive - results awaited Assam - 456, coronavirus positive - 16 Manipur - 11, coronavirus positive - 1 Arunachal - 7, coronavirus positive - 1 Odisha - 20, coronavirus positive - 5 test result awaited MP - 84, coronavirus positive - none Kerala - 60, coronavirus positive - None Haryana - 927, coronavirus positive - 3 Himachal - 107, coronavirus positive - none

4.32 PM: AIIMS doctor's wife tested

Wife of senior AIIMS doctor who has been found coronavirus positive is being tested for COVID-19. Her results are awaited. Authorities are tracking down everyone the doctor met. The doctor had no history of travel.

4.28 PM: Air India clarification

"We are providing all the essentials things like sanitisers, gloves, personal protective equipment to the cockpit crew, cabin crew and the ground staff. Our cabin crew has been advised to quarantine themselves after flights," says Air India CMD Rajiv Bansal.

4.21 PM: Health ministry on Tabligi Jamat

As many as 9,000 have been quarantined, 1,300 foreigners have also been identified. Contact tracing of Tabligi Jamat is being done. A total of 400 have tested positive in different states. Numbers are increasing.

4.15 PM: As many as 328 new cases of COVID-19 and 12 new deaths reported since Wednesday, says health ministry official.

4.10 PM: 2-year jail for spreading fake news

Misappropriation of money or material in disaster-like situation invites 2 years of jail with fine; anyone making false claim on any matter can be punished up to two years of jail with fine, says the home secretary

4.09 PM: Health Ministry update on COVID-19

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla writes to Chief Secretaries of all states, asking them to take strict action on violation of lockdown measures. "The penal provisions under the DM Act and IPC should be widely circulated and for violation of lockdown measure, actions under provisions of DM Act and IPC shall be taken by law enforcement authorities," says the health ministry officials.

4.07 PM: Watch health ministry briefing on COVID 19 situation in India

Prime Minister @narendramodi interacts with CMs to bolster efforts to tackle COVID-19.



Press release:https://t.co/vtVqPxvB8spic.twitter.com/jtx2iudsyr   , HMO India (@HMOIndia) April 2, 2020

4.02 PM: Update from Maharashtra: Over 1400 people from Maharashtra attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. Out of which, around 1300 have been traced till now and are being quarantined in Maharashtra. Their samples will be collected for COVID-19 testing.

3.50 PM: CWC meet highlights

All state governments need to issue special advisories for categories of people vulnerable to COVID-19, says Rahul Gandhi

Lockdown may be necessary but its unplanned implementation has caused chaos and pain to millions of migrant workers

Govt needs to put in place a comprehensive strategy to manage this crisis arising out of coronavirus lockdown

3.45 PM: 'It's our duty to help administration'

Musharraf Ali Khan, advocate of Tablighi Jamaat Chief Maulana Muhammad Saad on FIR against Saad says: "People who visited Tablighi Jamaat (Delhi) should come forward & tell authorities about themselves. As responsible citizens it's our duty to help the administration & follow their orders."

3.40 PM: Highlights of PM Modi's talk with CMs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi asks chief ministers to formulate a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population after the 21-day lockdown ends. The PM also asks CMs from provide suggestions on how to exit the lockdown.

3.33 PM: Prime Minister outlined the common goal for the country is to ensure minimum loss of life. In the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the areas of focus, he said.

3.28 PM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with CMs to bolster efforts to tackle COVID-19. He practiced social distancing while talking to the CMs.

{blurb}

3.18 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: Govt extends extend validity of health and motor vehicle insurance policy till April 21

The government has extended the validity of health and motor vehicle insurance policy between March 25 and April 14 till April 21 in the view of 21-day nationwide lockdown due to novel coronavirus.

3.12 pm: Coronavirus cases in India: Govt identifies 20 existing, 22 likely critical COVID-19 hotspots in India

The government has identified 20 existing and 22 potential novel coronavirus hotspots in India, PTI reported. It had earlier identified 10 such critical areas in the country.

3.04 pm: Coronavirus in India live updates: PM Modi's video conference with states! prime minister discusses foodgrain supply with state CMs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi who held a video conferencing meet with the chief ministers of all the states discussed the implementation of Garib Kalyan scheme involving Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) and foodgrain supply. Meanwhile, the state CMs asked the prime minister to ensure greater supply of personal protection equipment (PPE) for health workers and also sought quick payments of arrears. They requested PM Modi for financial help as the revenue collection has dropped due to the nationwide lockdown and sough clarity on the lockdown tenure.

2.55 pm: Mumbai coronavirus cases: First critical COVID-19 patient goes home

A 38-year-old techie from Kalyan, Mumbai who was critically ill due to COVID-19, a disease caused by coronavirus has recovered at Jaslok Hospital. The man was one of the youngest to be put on a ventilator in the city despite being a non-smoker, having no underlying ailments.

2.45 pm: Coronavirus in Delhi: AIIMS doctor tests COVID-19 positive; 7th medic in the city to get the virus

A resident doctor from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday, AIIMS sources confirmed. Meanwhile, the source of his infection is not yet known. The medic from the Physiology department is the seventh doctor in Delhi to get COVID-19. The doctor does not have any foreign travel history.

2.35 pm: Coronavirus in India: Sonia Gandhi calls nationwide lockdown necessary but unplanned

Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi said on Thursday that the nationwide lockdown is a necessary step to combat the further spread novel coronavirus but lashed out at the government for unplanned implementation. Addressing party members at a Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, she said that the lockdown "may be necessary but its unplanned implementation across the country has caused a lot of chaos and pain to millions of migrant labourers.

2.20 pm: Coronavirus updates: Delhi Police preparing list of attendees of Nizamuddin event

Delhi Police has identified around 800 people who visited the religious gathering at Markaz building in Delhi's Nizamuddin area earlier this month. The police according to India Today TV is in the process of preparing a list of the people who attended the religious assembly.

2.10 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: In Pics: disinfectant process in process in Nizamuddin

The authorities are carrying out the disinfectant procedure at Markaz in Nizamuddin area of Delhi which has developed as the hotspot of COVID-19.

2.00 pm: Gujarat coronavirus cases: D-Mart superstore closed after staffer tests COVID-19 positive

D-Mart superstore shut down its store in Surat after a staffer in its packaging department was tested positive for novel coronavirus. Over 1500 people were asked to go under home quarantine. Meanwhile, the health officials will also carry out door-to-door survey in Bamroli and Pandesara areas of Surat.

1.45 pm: Coronavirus updates: Lot of misinformation on foreign donations to PM-CARES Fund: Govt sources

There has been a lot of misinformation on the news of PM-CARES Fund accepting foreign donations, government sources said clarifying that the PM CARES Fund will accept donations and contributions from individuals and organisations based in foreign countries. "This is consistent with India's policy with respect to PMNRF. PMNRF has also received foreign contributions as a public trust since 2011," the government sources said.

1.30 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: Critical shortage of life saving medicines, says DR DS RANA senior nephrologist, Sir Ganga ram hospital

Dr DS Rana, senior nephrologist, Sir Ganga ram hospital said on Thursday that there is an "extreme shortage of Immuno Suppressant Drugs and Life saving medicines needed for Transplant , Cancer and other critically ill patients in India's far flung areas and Delhi NCR." He added that, "SGRH is getting desperate calls of patients about non-availablity of life saving medicines. Hospital is arranging transport and other means to send medicines in Delhi NCR but is helpless in far flung areas like Assam , Bihar and north east. Due to their co-morbid conditions , these patients are also in high risk group for catching Covid-19."

1.18 pm: Coronavirus in India updates: Nizamuddin event's permission was cancelled on March 6

The Tabliqi event that happened in Delhi's Nizamuddin earlier this month was earlier allowed to be organised with authorities' permission which was given in the month of January but the permission was withdrawn in March due to the growing number of COVID-19 cases. IG Niket Kaushik and SP Gaurav Singh withdrew the permission for Tabliqi Jamaat on March 6 and the event was cancelled. Over 50,000 people were supposed to attend the event on the outskirts of Mumbai with several foreign delegates in Vasai.

1.10 pm: Coronavirus in India latest news: Andhra Pradesh govt takes over private hospitals

The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to take over all the private hospitals by invoking the powers under the Disaster Management Act to combat the novel coronavirus pandemic. The YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government has issued an order concerning this in the state to contain the contagion.

1.00 pm: Madhya Pradesh coronavirus cases: Police arrests 4 people for attacking doctors in Indore

The Madhya Pradesh Police have arrested four people for attacking doctors in Indore. The police officials are now identifying the rest of the people who were reportedly involved in the attack.

12.57 pm: Coronavirus latest news: Provide hazmat suits, N-95 masks to doctors, nurses fighting COVID-19, says Sonia Gandhi

Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi said on Thursday that the doctors, nurses and other health workers who are fighting the novel coronavirus pandemic should be provided with Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) such as hazmat suits, N-95 masks.

To fight #COVID19, there is no alternative to constant & reliable testing. Our doctors, nurses, & health workers need all the support. Personal Protection Equipment such as hazmat suits, N-95 masks must be provided to them on a war footing: Congress Interim President Sonia Gandhi https://t.co/nwYwcvyGKb - ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020

12.53 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: DGCA allows use of passenger aircraft for cargo operations during COVID-19 lockdown period

The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in its circular on Wednesday permitted the use of passenger aircraft to conduct cargo operations during the COVID-19 lockdown period. "Considering the extra-ordinary situation the country is facing, permission may be given to scheduled/ non-scheduled operators to use the available passenger category aircraft (without configuration change) for carriage of cargo," DGCA said in its circular.

12.45 pm: India coronavirus lockdown updates: Air India clarifies the flight with COVID-19 positive crew was a regular flight

Air India clarified on Thursday that the cab crew which has been tested positive for COVID-19 was a part of a regular flight to the US and not an evacuation flight.

12.38 pm: Coronavirus updates: Gautam Gambhir donates 2 years' salary to PM-CARES Fund

Former cricketer and BJP MP Gautam Gambhir said on Thursday that he has donated his two years' salary to PM-CARES Fund. "People ask what can their country do for them. The real question is what can you do for your country? I am donating my 2 year's salary to #PMCaresFund. You should come forward too," he tweeted.

People ask what can their country do for them. The real question is what can you do for your country? I am donating my 2 year's salary to #PMCaresFund. You should come forward too! @narendramodi@JPNadda@BJP4Delhi#IndiaFightsCorona - Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) April 2, 2020

12.29 pm: Coronavirus latest news: PM Modi holds virtual meet with state CMs on COVID-19 situation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a crucial meeting with state chief minister to come up with a plan to combat the COVID-19 crisis. PM Modi discussed several measures to tackle and prevent the further spread of novel coronavirus with the state CMs in the meeting. This is the second such virtual meet between the prime minister and the state chief ministers after the nationwide lockdown was announced.

12.15 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: Railways denies reports of starting reservation for post lockdown period

The Indian Railways clarified on Thursday that it never stopped the reservation for journeys post April 14 as opposed to some media reports claiming that it has started reservation for post-lockdown period. "Certain media reports have claimed that Railways has started reservation for post-lockdown period. It is to clarify that reservation for journeys post 14th April was never stopped and is not related to any new announcement," tweeted the Ministry of Railways.

Certain media reports have claimed that Railways has started reservation for post-lockdown period. It is to clarify that reservation for journeys post 14th April was never stopped and is not related to any new announcement. pic.twitter.com/oJ7ZqxIx3q - Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) April 2, 2020

12.02 pm: Coronavirus in India news: Varun Gandhi donates salary to PM-CARES Fund

BJP MP Varun Gandhi said on Thursday that he has donated his salary to PM-CARES Fund and has also started sending 10,000 food packets to feed the hungry in Pilibhit everydayd. "In the face of this horrific tragedy, it's heartening to see all of us Indians coming together as one & doing our best to help one another.Donated my salary to the PM Cares Fund & started with sending 10,000 food packets (to be scaled up) to feed the hungry in Pilibhit everyday," he tweeted.

In the face of this horrific tragedy, it's heartening to see all of us Indians coming together as one & doing our best to help one another.Donated my salary to the PM Cares Fund & started with sending 10,000 food packets (to be scaled up) to feed the hungry in Pilibhit everyday. pic.twitter.com/LCSKvHrLpN - Varun Gandhi (@varungandhi80) April 2, 2020

11.48 am: Coronavirus in Ladakh: New COVID-19 cases reported in Kargil

A woman from Sunjaak village of Kargil in Ladakh tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday. The village is already under quarantine since last 15 days. Meanwhile, two more positive cases were recorded from the adjoining Sankoo village earlier.

11.36 am: Coronavirus updates: AIIMS RDA writes to Home Minister over attack on doctors in Hyderabad

The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of AIIMS has written to Home Minister Rajnath Singh over the recent attack on doctors in Hyderabad. The AIIMS RDA has put forward the following demands:-

1) Filing case against the perpetrators according to ACT 11 of 2008

2)CRPF Deployment to ensure doctors are able to safely work.

3)Provision of PPE to all health care providers.

4)Assurance from Home Minister/Chief Minister on this issue Kindly address the issue on an emergency basis and revert back at the earliest.

11.25 am: Coronavirus in Mumbai: Sanitation worker in Dharavi tests positive for COVID-19

A 55-year-old sanitation worker from Dharavi tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday. The sweeper stayed in Worli ,but worked near Mahim Fatak road in Dharavi, which is Asia's largest slum.

11.19 am: Coronavirus update worldwide: Pakistan extends nation lackdown till April 14

The Imran Khan government in Pakistan has taken the decision to extend the nationwide lockdown till April 14.

11.14 am: Coronavirus in Andhra Pradesh: State reports 21 new COVID-19 positive cases

Andhra Pradesh reported 21 new COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday. With this the total number of novel coronavirus cases has climbed to 132 in the state.

11.03 am: Coronavirus updates: Home Affairs Ministry writes to states to take steps to tackle fake news on COVID-19

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has written a letter to all the states and union territories asking them to take appropriate steps to fight the spread of fake news on COVID-19 in order to prevent panic among the people.

10.54 am: Coronavirus in Noida: Police arrests one person, books 12 for group namaaz despite lockdown

The Noida Police said on Thursday that it arrested one man and booked around 12 people for allegedly assembling for a group namaaz violating the lockdown restrictions imposed due to novel coronavirus.

10.45 am: Coronavirus latest updates: Air India crew test positive for COVID-19

The Air India cabin crew, which was part of an evacuation flight tested positive for COVID-19.

10.37 am: Coronavirus in Haryana: State reports first death due to COVID-19

Haryana on Thursday reported its first death due to novel coronavirus after a 67-year-old man from Ambala died.

10.24 am: Coronavirus in Arunachal Pradesh: State reports first COVID-19 positive case

Arunachal Pradesh on Thursday reported its first COVID-19 positive case. The person tested positive had reportedly participated in the Tablighi event in Nizamuddin's Delhi.

10.15 am: Delhi police's two teams in western UP to trace Markaz chief Maulana Saad

Two teams of Delhi Police are in Western Uttar Pradesh to trace the Markaz chief Maulana Saad. One team is looking for Saad at different places/mosques in Delhi while, other team is preparing a list of Indian nationals who were present at the gathering and left the Markaz before March 24. The details are being shared with police of other states as well. The police are also in touch with 14 hospitals where people who were inside the mosque have been admitted. Once released from hospital, their statements will be recorded by police.

10.05 am: Coronavirus in Gujarat: Another death reported in the state

A 52-year-old person who had tested positive for COVID-19 died on Thursday morning. The man had a history of travel to Sri Lanka and was admitted to a hospital recently. S Agarwal, Vadodara Collector said that four members of his family have also tested positive and undergoing treatment.

9.56 am: Coronavirus latest news: Tablighi Jamat visits to Shaheen Bagh under authorities' scanner

A novel coronavirus patient from Andaman and Nicobar islands who is said to be critical and was a part of the religious gathering at the Markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin is reportedly key to the link between the Tablighi Jamaat members who visited Shaheen Bagh. This has added to fears that thousands sitting in the protest could have come in contact with them. The patient was reportedly a one of the members who visited Shaheen Bagh but the same is to corroborated as the patient is undergoing treatment and is in quarantine due to which it is not possible to record his statement, an official said.

9.47 am: Coronavirus United States news: Six-week-old dies of COVID-19

A six-week-old baby girl died due to coronavirus in the US state of Connecticut on Thursday, Governor Ned Lamont said. He added the death of the young infant is a reminder that "nobody is safe with this virus". The number of COVID-19 death cases has crossed 3,500 in the US. (PTI)

9.38 am: Coronavirus in Maharashtra: State reports 3 new COVI-19 positive cases

Maharashtra on Thursday reported three new novel coronavirus cases which include one from Pune and one from Buldhana.

9.27 am: Coronavirus in Assam: State reports 3 more COVID-19 positive cases, total tally rises to 16

Assam reported three more COVID-19 positive cases in Goalpara district on Thursday. With this, the total number of novel coronavirus cases in the state have increased to 16, Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said. He added that all the patients had participated in the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin earlier this month.

9.16 am: Coronavirus in India live updates: PM Modi to hold virtual meeting with all state CMs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a virtual meeting with the chief ministers of all the states on Thursday to take stock of the situation and discuss ways to tackle and contain the further spread of COVID-19- a disease caused by coronavirus.

9.10 am: Coronavirus in India live: Pune-based company develops 'virus-killer' air purifying technology

A Pune-based firm has developed an air purifying technology which reduces the virus load in infected areas. According to Dr Rajendra Jagdale, Director General of Science and Technology Park (STP), the firm that came up with the technology, explained that the machine called Scitech Airon generates 10 crore negative ions every second that react with water present in the air and form two molecules, Hydroxyl Iron (OH-) and Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2). He added that both of these then instantly react with other molecules in the air. The OH-molecules then break the lipid wall of the COVID-19 such as soap and reduce the virus load in the air.

9.04 am: Coronavirus in India: Padma Shri awardee dies of COVID-19 in Amritsar

A Padma Shri recipient and former "Hazuri Raagi" at the Golden Temple died in Amritsar on Thursday morning after being tested positive for novel coronavirus, a health official told PTI. 62-year-old Giani Nirmal Singh had recently returned from abroad and had tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, the official added.

8.55 am: Coronavirus latest news: Authorities grappling to trace Tablighi Jamaat event attendees

Indian authorities are grappling to trace and identify thousands of people who attended the Nizamuddin Tablighi Jamaat congregation as the religious event seems to be the highest novel coronavirus hotspot in India as of now. The authorities have already traced over 6,000 people who participated in the religious gathering. As a lot of these attendees have scattered across the country, there has been a sudden spike in cases from states such as Delhi, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

8.43 am: Coronavirus in Mumbai: COVID-19 cases in Dharavi a matter of concern, says Maharashtra minister

After the first COVID-19 case was confirmed from Asia's largest slum, Dharavi, authorities in Maharashtra are faced with a herculean task to contain the deadly virus. A 56-year-old patient from the slum died later on Wednesday night at Sion Hospital after being tested positive for novel coronavirus. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope, told India Today TV that the virus which was earlier seemed to be classist is now being among the masses as well and is a matter of concern once it reaches a congested place such as Dharavi.

8.30 am: Coronavirus in Rajasthan: State reports 9 COVID-19 positive cases

Nine more people were reported to have been confirmed for novel coronavirus infection from Rajasthan, taking the total tally in the state to 129. The new cases include seven from Ramganj in Jaipur, one from Jodhpur and one from Jhunjhunu.

8.15 am: Coronavirus in India: Highest single-day spike in COVID-19 cases

India is faced with a herculean task of containing the increasing novel coronavirus cases after around 300 new COVID-19 cases were reported on Wednesday. The spike was the highest single-day increase in the number of positive cases in India. The authorities are grappling to contain the deadly virus from spreading. The sudden spike comes after several people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin in early March were tested COVID-19 positive. the total number of active novel coronavirus cases in the country is at 1,649 with 41 deaths, according the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's website.
Virgin Australia could be allowed to collapse and a new carrier enter the market as the government has no intention of bailing out the troubled airline.

Virgin CEO Paul Scurrah requested a $1.4billion the loan last week, telling the government the carrier didn't need the cash immediately, but it would if the pandemic continued beyond six months.

But while the Australian government suggested it would rather the airline survived the COVID-19 crisis, it would not provide the bailout package.

Tom Youl, an aviation analyst from IBISWorld, told Daily Mail Australia the government wants two strong airlines running in the country.

But if Virgin doesn't survive the pandemic, the government would ensure another quickly took its place.

If Virgin doesn't survive the pandemic, the government would ensure another quickly took its place. Pictured: People at the Brisbane domestic terminal on March 25

It is believed that Virgin Australia only has enough cash reserves to last another three months. Pictured: A passenger in a face mask at Brisbane domestic terminal on March 25

'Air New Zealand would be a good choice,' he said.

'They're struggling at the moment like all airlines so the Australian government would have to entice them with money, but it could be that or start a new airline.'

The New Zealand government previously said up to NZ$900 million (AU$890 million) could be loaned to the airline over the next two years as a result of the global pandemic.

British budget carrier Ryanair would be a strong contender, according to the The Australian Financial Review.

Mr Youl agreed, but said introducing another budget airline into the Australian market would give Qantas control over the corporate market as the nation's only full-service airline.

With one airline in control of the nation's aviation market, the cost of flights could rise.

'Virgin and Qantas were in competition with each other which kept costs lower.

'Budget carriers offer a service to people who don't care about all the extras full-service airlines like Qantas provide. If another budget carrier came in, there wouldn't be much competition.'

Tom Youl, an aviation analyst from IBISWorld, aid Air New Zealand would be a good option to replace Virgin Australia if it collapsed

Passengers are seen waiting for a Virgin Australia flight in Perth on Monday as the company struggles to navigate economic downturn as a result of the coronavirus

But he also said the nation's flagship carrier would be unlikely to raise prices immediately after the pandemic, should Virgin collapse.

'In an average world they probably would raise the cost of flights, but what's happening now isn't average and they potentially have a lot to gain in terms of public popularity and PR by keeping costs low.'

Virgin Australia Holdings annual losses 2009: $160million 2011: $67.8million 2013: $98.1million 2014: $353.8million 2015: $93.8million 2016: $224.7million 2017: $185.8million 2018: $653.3million 2019: $315.4million Source: Virgin Australia Holdings annual reports showing the statutory net loss after tax for the full year Advertisement

The Australian Financial Review reported that the government does not believe it's their role to bail out specific businesses.

'But support can't be specific for one business. It must be systemic,' a government source told the publication.

'There comes a time when the government can't run every business around the country.'

They also said the government would lower barriers to support another airline entering the market.

A new airline would be able to access Virgin's existing hangars, terminals and existing workforce, along with guaranteed take-off and landing times.

It is believed that Virgin Australia, which was struggling financially before the pandemic, only has enough cash reserves to last another three months.

Virgin's main rival Qantas could survive for 11 months.



Under the $1.4billion plan, the government would take an ownership stake in Virgin if the airline was unable to repay its debt within three years.

Virgin boss Mr Scurrah said the situation is unprecedented after the airline was forced to ground its entire fleet of 125 planes and stand down around 8,000 staff members without pay.

Virgin CEO Paul Scurrah (pictured) requested the financial bailout last week, telling the government the carrier didn't need the cash immediately, but it would if the pandemic continued beyond six months

'There has never been a travel environment in Australia as restricted as the one we see today and the extraordinary steps we've taken have been in response to the Federal and State Governments' latest travel advice,' he said recently.

'We are now facing what will be the biggest grounding of aircraft in this country's history.'

The government suggested the company make the most of the $1,500 per fortnight wage subsidies for employees who have been stood down or are working at struggling companies.

More than 45,000 businesses applied for the cash injections under the $130billion Job Keeper program.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg previously declined to comment on any 'specifics', saying 'we support strongly, the aviation industry'.

Virgin redundancies to top 1,000, CEO says Virgin Australia boss Paul Scurrah says more than 1,000 of the workers it stood down last week will probably be made redundant during the coronavirus pandemic. Virgin Australia had said it would suspend 8,000 of its 10,000 workers as it slashed domestic flights. Mr Scurrah last Thursday gave more detail to ABC TV and said: 'This is the worst airline crisis the world has ever seen.' All 8,000 affected staff have been encouraged to take leave, and consider leave without pay. Qantas CEO Alan Joyce (right) and Virgin Australia boss Paul Scurrah (left) Those to be made redundant could include pilots at Tigerair's Melbourne base. About 220 pilot jobs could go. About 500 crew and pilots in New Zealand could suffer the same fate, according to Virgin. Remaining workers are providing essential services such as transporting critical freight. Mr Scurrah said Virgin was talking to major employers about finding work for affected employees. The airline had already announced 750 layoffs late last year in a bid to turn around its flagging financial performance. Elsewhere in the travel industry, Qantas earlier this month stood down 20,000 of its 30,000 workers, while bookings agency Flight Centre says an initial 6,000 sales and support staff will either be stood down or made redundant. Another travel agency, Helloworld, said it will be sack 275 people and stand down another 1,300 workers. The federal government two weeks ago provided a $715 million rescue package for airlines, which will involve forgoing fuel excise, air service charges and regional security fees. Advertisement

'I've been in close contact with leaders of the business community including the aviation sector (Virgin boss) Paul Scurrah and (Qantas chief) Alan Joyce,' he told ABC radio.

'But we have already illustrated our commitment to having a viable, sustainable aviation sector with more than $700 million in fees being waived.'

Mr Frydenberg said the transport of freight and people was important to the economy.

'We'll continue that dialogue with key stakeholders,' he said.

A Virgin Australia spokeswoman however said at the time the airline 'strongly rejected' suggestions its future was at risk, citing the listed company's $1billion cash balance and the retention of the B+ S&P credit rating.

The airline recently cut its workforce by 80 per cent and its capacity by 90 per cent.

Meanwhile, Virgin accused Qantas last week of spreading rumours it would collapse amid the coronavirus crisis.

Both carriers have suspended international flights until mid-year.

Virgin Australia complained to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission after Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce told Sky News it would be unfair for the government to effectively nationalise Virgin to stop it from being placed into administration.

'The government can't pick winners and losers,' Mr Joyce said on Friday last week.

'Whatever aid is given to one company has to be given to every company in that sector.'

ACCC chairman Rod Sims confirmed Mr Scurrah had launched a complaint against Qantas, following Mr Joyce's comments.

'The complaint that we've had from Paul Scurrah is that Qantas is engaging in anti-competitive conduct, designed to damage Virgin as a competitor,' he told the ABC.

'We have to look at whether the behaviour has the purpose or the effect of substantially limiting competition.'
Photo: Artur Widak/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Well. This is awkward. According to a report by Axios, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu may have addressed government officials on the topic of the coronavirus by  showing footage from a Hallmark Channel disaster TV series. A pair of Netanyahus cabinet ministers told Axios that the legally embattled PM shared with his cabinet a video he claimed was evidence of Iran concealing coronavirus deaths by dropping bodies in garbage dumps, before Netanyahus office realized several hours later that they were actually looking at a clip from the 2007 show Pandemic starring Tiffani Thiessen. (She plays a CDC doctor trying to stop a bird-flu outbreak in Los Angeles.)

According to Axios, Israeli intelligence reportedly believes Iran is concealing the countrys real COVID-19 death total, and Pandemic footage was seen as an example of the cover-up. The prime minister is said to have told his ministers he saw video of Iranian soldiers disposing of bodies, and that it was brought to his attention by national security adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat. Cabinet members naturally asked to see the video, which had been passed around on Iranian social media, and it was then passed on to Netanyahu without any confirmation of its authenticity. The PMs office has not denied the footage was shown, and we can only wonder if the clip viewed by the cabinet included Faye Dunaway, French Stewart, or Eric Roberts, who also co-star in the movie, and if everyone just failed to recognize any of them.
A New Jersey-based herbal extracts manufacturer has donated more than 20,000 pieces of personal protective equipment to local hospitals in New Jersey, California, and North Carolina in the effort to fight the spread of COVID-19.

Jiaherb, Inc., based in Pine Brook, donated surgical masks and coveralls to Morristown Medical Center, along with two other hospitals in California and North Carolina, the company announced in a release.

After learning how our local and national healthcare workers are in jeopardy due to shortages of personal protective equipment, we put our own rapid supply chain capability to work on their behalf, said Chris Oesterheld, the companys vice president.

Morristown Medical Center, which is part of Atlantic Health System, received 5,000 masks and 2,000 coveralls from the company on Tuesday.

Given the growing shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) in medical facilities, we have an opportunity and an obligation to help," said Scott Chen, the companys president.

Oesterheld said the current donation includes surgical masks, but the company is working on getting another shipment of PPE, including N95 respirators and other supplies, to make another donation.

Jiaherb, Inc. also has an office in Anaheim, California, along with two manufacturing facilities in Xian and Yangling, China.

Oesterheld said the company is utilizing its resources, including its supply chain connections in China, to help nurses, doctors, and health care workers during this pandemic.

Theyre doing all the dirty work, he said. They should definitely be protected.

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Norske Skog and Burgo Restart Paper Machines in Europe after COVID-19-Related Downtime Norske Skog's Golbey newsprint mill in France has resumed full operation after temporarily shutting down PM 2 for two weeks after a worker tested positive for the coronavirus. April 2, 2020 - Trade news publisher EUWID reported that Norske Skog's Golbey newsprint mill in France has restarted PM 2. Norske Skog told EUWID that the machine was put back into operation on April 1 after a two-week stoppage. The machine had been shut down due to one confirmed case of coronavirus, which required a 14-day quarantine for co-workers. The Golbey mill has two newsprint machines. PM 2 is the larger one with a capacity of 350,000 tpy. The other machine, PM 1, has the capacity to produce 250,000 tpy of newsprint. EUWID said that a company spokesperson expressed concerns about the future workload of the machines. He said he feared shrinking orders for newsprint as many printing companies in France had suspended operations due to the coronavirus crisis. In Belgium, Burgo Group has restarted production at its Ardennes mill after a 10-day stoppage. The company reports that production of woodfree paper as well as pulp restarted on March 30. According to EUWID's news story, the site had been temporarily shut down on March 20 amid Covid-19 concerns. The mill is located in Vitron, Belgium, close to the border to France's Grand Est departement which is heavily affected by the spread of coronavirus. During the downtime, Burgo says it "carried out certain activities to improve safety working conditions in order to prevent the Covid-19 diffusion". Burgo operates one paper machine at the Ardennes site with a capacity of 350,000 tpy of woodfree coated paper. The site also has a fiber line, with the capacity to produce 360,000 tpy of bleached mixed hardwood kraft pulp. EUWID is a specialist trade publisher with a team of approximately 40 journalists, covering a wide range of industries, including pulp and paper. For further information, visit: www.euwid.de . SOURCE: EUWID
SoftBank has decided it will not buy $3 billion in WeWork stock from other shareholders, a board committee of the office space company said Wednesday night, dealing a blow to shareholders, including Adam Neumann, the companys co-founder and former chief executive, who had hoped to sell their stock.

SoftBank, a Japanese conglomerate and the dominant shareholder of WeWork, had offered to buy the shares as part of its rescue of WeWork, which withdrew its initial public offering last fall and came close to running out of cash. Since the coronavirus spread widely in recent weeks, WeWorks buildings have been virtually empty, raising questions about demand for its locations when the pandemic is brought under control.

Two weeks ago, SoftBank, which has already poured billions of dollars into the company, threatened to pull out of the stock purchase in part because of government investigations into the company. SoftBanks payment for the shares would not have gone to WeWork but to the selling shareholders. The offer had an April 1 closing date.

WeWork leases vast amounts of space in office buildings and then sublets it to freelancers, small businesses and large corporations. But the cost of the leases and the expense of converting the locations has consumed billions of dollars. WeWorks financial burdens were expected to increase this year, as the company continued its breakneck expansion, opening spaces it had already agreed to lease.
SriLankan Airlines has announced the cancellation of flights from April 8 to 21 in view of the travel restrictions imposed by the destinations it operates to.

"The airline is constantly reviewing the market conditions and the restrictions imposed by the various authorities and will be ready to recommence its operations at short notice even before April 21 in the event such restrictions are lifted," the carrier said in a statement.

"The airline is willing to operate special flights during this period to repatriate Sri Lankans who are wanting to return to the country if required," it said.

The airlines cargo services will continue to operate from its worldwide network special flights as and when required.

In view of providing maximum ease to its valued passengers, the airline has implemented a re-booking and reissue policy, which is available on www.srilankan.com

For further information and clarifications, passengers are requested to contact their travel agents, nearest SriLankan Airlines Office or the Airlines Global Contact Centre on +94117771979. - TradeArabia News Service
A relatively obscure video conferencing app has found itself the go-to way for people and businesses to connect while under lockdown.

In the space of just a few weeks, Zoom has seen its user numbers sky-rocket as hospitals, schools and even governments make use of its free service to host virtual meetings and remain operational.

The huge surge in popularity has brought with it a new level of scrutiny, with the US-based firm now forced to juggle lawsuits and federal warnings alongside the massive strain on its servers brought about by new users.

Questions have inevitably been raised about how safe Zoom actually is and whether it can be trusted.

Is Zoom secure?

Zooms website and security white paper state that security is the highest priority in the operations of its suite of products and services. It boasts Firewall compatibility, role-based user security and end-to-end chat encryption.

The question is how well these buzz words stand up to actual security threats in the real world. A recent report by investigative news outlet The Intercept claimed that Zoom is guilty of misleading marketing, as it does not provide end-to-end encryption to protect the privacy of its users during video meetings. (Text chats do appear to be end-to-end encrypted.)

A separate investigation by Vice alleged that Zoom is leaking personal information of at least thousands of users, by treating their personal email addresses as if they all belong to the same company. This apparently allows strangers to start video calls using a persons email address and photo.

Zoom has also admitted to sharing user data with Facebook through its Login with Facebook feature for iPhone and iPad users, however this this has since been discontinued.

(Getty Images)

Cyber security specialist Jake Moore, who works for antivirus firm ESET, recommends using other end-to-end encrypted video platforms to ensure privacy.

For social and light business meetings they are fine as long as users realise what data is being shared by Zoom to third parties, he says. I certainly wouldnt recommend using free software for sensitive or private meetings.

Can Zoom be hacked?

Nearly all online apps and services are vulnerable to being compromised through attacks like phishing, whereby login information is elicited through duplicitous websites and emails. The open nature of Zoom means it is particularly vulnerable to other types of sabotage.

One attack method has become so widespread that it has led to a new term being coined: Zoom-bombing. This is where strangers join conference calls and hijack them by broadcasting pornographic images, shouting profanities, or issuing threats to the people involved in the call.

Multiple reports have been filed to the FBI, including incidents that happened during online school lessons. To prevent it from happening, users are urged to make meetings or classrooms private and password-protected.

The video conferencing tool has seen a big increase in users, amid the coronavirus pandemic (Reuters)

The question to ask, according to some experts, is not whether Zoom can be hacked, but whether it is even worth it for cyber criminals to target it.

Many controversies now exist around Zooms security and privacy, though it is extremely far from dominating the plethora of emerging security risks, Ilia Kolochonko, founder and CEO of web security firm ImmuniWeb, tells The Independent.

Few attackers will ever bother to intercept Zoom communications, even fewer will extract any value from the alleged data sharing with Facebook.

How to use Zoom safely

While there will always be risks with any online app, there are ways to ensure the maximum level of security by adjusting the platforms settings.

Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty

To avoid being Zoom-bombed, users should avoid sharing the link or meeting ID on social media or other public websites.

This was done by Prime Minister Boris Johnson when he shared a screenshot of his virtual cabinet meeting on Twitter, though fortunately the meeting was password protected.

Along with using a strong meeting password, users should also set screen sharing to host only where possible.
An octogenarian patient, previously captured watching a sunset from his hospital bed with a doctor standing by his side in Wuhan, bid farewell to Shanghai medics who treated him with a special violin performance, Beijing Daily reported on April 1.

(East Hospital Branch of the Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University/Gan Junchao)

Knowing the medics were returning to Shanghai on Monday, the 87-year-old man used music to express gratitude to the professionals from Zhongshan Hospital, affiliated with Fudan University, Shanghai.

When he was hospitalized, the senior was severely ill due to the COVID-19 disease. In the beginning he couldnt take care of himself, refusing to eat and remaining uncooperative, the Shanghai medics decided to cheer him up. With sincere help and patience, the healthcare workers gradually gained trust from the man.

After arriving at the Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University on Feb. 7, the medical team of 136 people took over two inpatient zones of the hospitals east branch containing 80 beds for severe and critical COVID-19 patients.

On March 5, while escorting the 87-year-old patient to the CT department for screening, Liu Kai, a member of the Shanghai medical team, seized the opportunity to savor a glorious sunset, something he had not seen in a long time. Asking the patient whether to stop and watch for a while, the gentleman said, "sure."

Thanks to the treatment and care of the medics, the patient can take care of himself, walk, and do some rehabilitation exercises, almost meeting the standards for discharge at the hospital.

As Im recovering now, I can play the violin again, the man said, while inviting doctor Liu to his home in the future, he expresses gratitude to doctors who spared no effort to treat him.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer asked Michigan lawmakers Wednesday to extend the states current state of emergency for COVID-19 into mid-June, but Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey said he favors a much shorter extension.

In a statement responding to Whitmers request to extend the current state of emergency another 70 days, Shirkey, R-Clark Lake, said Senate Republicans are prepared to support a reasonable extension.

But because the circumstances surrounding the virus have changed so rapidly, we feel a much shorter extension is logical to help protect our citizens and support our health systems, he said.

We agree that emergency circumstances persist in our state and are prepared to support an extension of the Governors emergency declaration, but feel a 70-day extension is too long," he said.

Related: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer asks lawmakers to extend Michigans state of emergency during coronavirus pandemic

Whitmer initially declared a state of emergency on March 10. That order is due to expire Tuesday, April 7.

Any emergency extension wouldnt impact other individual orders set to expire on different dates, including the stay-at-home order set to run through April 13 - although those orders could still be extended.

Shirkey added support for an emergency declaration extension "does not transfer to support for a lengthy extension of the current Stay Home, Stay Safe order.

In addition to the extension request, Whitmer announced Wednesday she was formally declaring a state of disaster in Michigan due to the ongoing spread of the coronavirus.

To meet the steep, varied, and ongoing demands created by the COVID-19 pandemic, my administration must continue to use the full range of tools available to protect the health, safety, and welfare of our state and its residents," Whitmer wrote to lawmakers. "I welcome you and your colleagues continued partnership in fighting this pandemic.

Lawmakers have not met for in-person session since Tuesday, March 17.

Rep. Tyrone Carter, D-Detroit, tested positive for COVID-19 last Thursday and has continued to self-isolate at home.

On Sunday night, Detroit Rep. Isaac Robinson died suddenly from complications family members believe were caused by the coronavirus.

There have been 9,334 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Michigan, according to statewide data, and 337 people have died from the disease.

Read all of MLives coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus.

Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

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Mahavir Chopra

Who would have thought a 0.00016 mm sized virus would cause unprecedented havoc, locking down practically the entire world?

Even as we all stay confined to our respective homes, healthcare workers at hospitals are attending to the infected, exposing themselves to the dreadful virus. They are rightfully described as warriors by many.

All the recognition and cheering from our windows, balconies, and mobile phones may have brought smiles on their faces. With the news streaming around healthcare workers contracting the virus across the world (14 per cent of coronavirus patients in Spain are healthcare workers) and closer home in India, most of these overworked personnel are under overwhelming stress, aggravated further by the lack of enough protective gear in the country.

The New India Assurance has initiated immediate risk coverage for healthcare workers on March 30, 2020, following the announcement by the Finance Minister recently.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

Here is an attempt to answer important questions related to this insurance cover.

Will the government fund the premium?

Yes. This is a government-funded scheme under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package. This coverage begins on March 30, 2020 and does not require any premium payment or registration.

Will it also cover private healthcare workers dealing with COVID cases?

The insurance policy, besides covering public and community healthcare workers, also covers private hospital staff. It also includes volunteers, daily wage, ad hoc, outsourced staff requisitioned by state or central hospitals, including autonomous hospitals, AIIMS and INIs, as per MOHFW's press release of March 29, 2020.

What is the insurance cover provided to these healthcare workers?

In the case of death due to complications arising out of contracting the COVID-19 pandemic, while treating or attending to jobs relating to patients suffering from the same illness, the insurance policy will pay Rs. 50 Lakhs to the workers legal heir. This cover would be over and above any other insurance cover that the healthcare worker holds.

Does it cover hospitalization expenses?

This needs to be understood really well. Many news articles have described this cover as health insurance. Unfortunately, it is not your regular health insurance policy that covers hospitalization risks. The insurance amount will be paid only in case of death. It does not cover the risk in case a healthcare worker is quarantined or hospitalized for COVID-19.

In my personal opinion, in these testing times, the government should extend comprehensive financial protection to healthcare workers that cover all kinds of healthcare risks while they attend to the COVID-19 patients. The insurance cover should ideally include a smaller lump-sum benefit (20 per cent or around Rs. 10 Lakhs) against diagnosis, quarantine, or hospitalization for COVID-19.

Till when is the cover effective?

The cover is valid till June 30, 2020. However, in case this virus outbreak does not get controlled by then, the coverage is likely to get extended further.

Should they buy a separate health cover in any case?

Yes. Whether you are a healthcare worker are not, it is essential that you have a personal cover for your family and yourself under a comprehensive health insurance policy that also covers pandemics such as COVID-19.

Will health insurers charge a higher premium, treating them as riskier cases?

It will always be tricky to buy insurance when there is an urgent need for the cover. Insurers are likely to get nervous for precisely the same reasons that you desperately want financial protection.

Insurers will always look at risk trends and data to price insurance covers, and unfortunately, the trend around healthcare workers being vulnerable to this pandemic has not been good.

Honestly, if you are a healthcare worker, without any directive from the government in place, you would be lucky if insurance companies don't demand a higher premium or worse even decline covering your family and you under a health insurance plan.

(The writer is an independent health and life insurance expert)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a telephonic conversation on Thursday with the Prince of Wales, Prince Charles who is next in line to the British throne.

Earlier, in March the Prince had tested positive for the coronavirus and had been in self isolation along with his wife-- the Princess of Wales.

The two leaders discussed the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic in both countries-India and the United Kingdom. Prime Minister Modi conveyed his condolence for the loss of lives in the United Kingdom over the past few days. He expressed satisfaction that the Prince of Wales had recovered from his own indisposition and wished him lasting good health.

The Prince expressed his appreciation for members of the Indian diaspora in the UK, including many members of the National Health Service, who were playing a vital role in fighting the pandemic. He also referred to the selfless work being done by religious and social organisations of the Indian community in the UK.

The Prince thanked the Indian Prime Minister for the facilitation and help provided for British citizens stranded in India during the ongoing health crisis.

Prime Minister Modi in turn expressed his gratitude to the Prince for the keen interest he has always taken in Ayurveda.

He explained the recent Indian initiative aimed at teaching basic yoga exercises through short animation videos, and disseminating easy home-made traditional remedies for enhancing immunity.

The Prince of Wales appreciated the potential of these initiatives for enhancing health and wellbeing, especially during the current health crisis the world is facing.

Prince Charles is the longest-serving Prince of Wales and is the eldest son of Elizabeth II, the British monarch.
New Delhi: Sonia Gandhi, the interim president of the Congress said on Thursday said that while the ongoing 21-day lockdown may have been required to fight the spread of the coronavirus disease, the unplanned manner in which it was implemented caused chaos and pain, provoking an immediate reaction from BJP president JP Nadda who accused the Congress of politicising the issue.

Gandhi was speaking at a meeting of the Congress Working Committee, which also found fault with the relief package announced by the government. The Financial Action Plan (FAP) I announced on March 25 was miserly, hopelessly inadequate and left out several vulnerable sections. It failed to instil confidence in the poor and, as a result, we witnessed the tragic spectacle of thousands of migrant workers desperately trying to go back to their villages by any means whatsoever, including on foot, it said in a statement.

Gandhi also hit out at the Centre over the exodus of migrant workers following the imposition of the three-week lockdown , saying the tragic spectacle of thousands of them walking back to their villages will forever remain a blot on the Modi government.

Information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar said the comments were unfortunate, false, and unnecessary.

Thousands of migrant workers left jobless by the lockdown began fleeing cities for their homes on foot last week in absence of public transport. The Centre last week announced an economic stimulus plan to provides direct cash transfers and food to the poor hit by the lockdown.

The CWC, which is the Congresss highest decision-making body, demanded FAP II to reassure the poor and also to provide adequate financial support to the sections left out earlier.

The NYAY [minimum income guarantee] scheme put forward by the Congress [as a pre-poll promise last year] offers a useful model that can be adapted and implemented, said the resolution, which was passed after Gandhi chaired a CWC meeting via video conferencing.

The CWC said the government has not given any thought to the deteriorating economic situation and demanded constitution of a task force of world-renowned economists to suggest three plans to deal with the crisis. ...firstly an emergency plan within one week, secondly a short to medium term plan within one month and thirdly a medium to long term plan within three months in order to protect and revive the economy.

The CWC said it is conscious that India and the world face an unprecedented crisis due to the rapid spread of Covid-19 while pledging its support to the government.

The statement said the order of priorities before the government should be to contain the spread of virus, medical treatment to the infected, livelihood support to the poor and maintenance of supply of essentials and measures to deal with a sliding economy.

The CWC regretted that the government has miserably failed to provide adequate livelihood support to the poor. The party said supply chains to crores of people, especially those living in towns, cities and remote villages have been severely disrupted by poor preparation and thoughtless orders and notifications.

Gandhi said there is no alternative to constant and reliable testing to fight Covid-19 and demanded Personal Protection Equipment for doctors, nurses and health workers as also ventilators and breathing equipment, isolation beds and designated hospitals for patients. The onus lies on governments to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness.

She urged the government to prepare a Common Minimum Relief programme, and insisted that Covid-19 does not differentiate between political ideology, religion, caste, age or gender.

The choices we make today will have a direct impact tomorrow on our family, neighbourhood, community, environment and nation. How effectively we meet this challenge, how we protect all sections of our society, especially the most vulnerable among us, will define us for generations to come. Only if we act together in solidarity, we will overcome.

Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi said the country has to fight Covid-19 with a specific strategy and consultation, and stressed the need to ensure that the most vulnerable and the poor as also aged people are protected .

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said the Congress stands one with the nation to take on the challenge posed by the pandemic.

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Vu Manh Linh, a 32-year-old youth union leader from Nam Dinh City, donates blood every four months as he wanted to share his blood for a more healthy community.

Vu Manh Linh (in red shirt, first on the left) talksto volunteers about blood donation activities.

Linh said the first time he registered for blood donation was 10 years ago when he was a student at Nam inh College of Industry and Textiles.

Back then when he knew less about donating blood, he was afraid doing so would affect his health, work and even daily life. However, he still did it as he knew how much it would help someone in need.

His perception quickly changed after talking with staff from the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion and Nam inh Provinces Red Cross. He learned that blood donation wouldn't harm his health but would save other's lives.

Linh has so far donated blood 27 times but one donation, in particular, stands out in his memory.

The incident occurred five years after he had graduated.

At 9pm that night, I received a phone call from a doctor working at Nam inh General Hospital informing that there was a critical illness requiring blood type B++ for an urgent transfusion. Without hesitation, I went to the hospital for blood donation although I didn't know who the recipient was and where he came from, Linh recalled.

Later he felt glad after being told the patient had recovered thanks to the timely blood transfusion.

This was the most unforgettable memory and also motivation for me to continue my good deeds, Linh said.

Through that story, he understood many people faced high risk if they do not receive blood transfusions while blood reserves in hospitals do not always meet demand, especially rare blood types.

A year later, with the consent from Nam inh General Hospital, Linh set up the Live Blood Bank club, which has had 80 members at times.

Today, it has more than 20 members, mainly students.

Besides acting as a head of Thong Nhat Wards Youth Union, he has also joined the provincial Red Cross.

To encourage more people to donate blood, Linh and other volunteers have launched publicity campaigns and put leaflets in public spaces like parks, bus stations and markets to raise peoples awareness of the issue.

They also post articles and information on blood donation activities on social media to get people better informed.

As a result, the quantity of blood collected has leapt remarkable from 20-40 units to more than 100 units at each event over the past five years.

Apart from blood donation, Linh has also volunteered to register for platelet donation. According to him, platelet donation is different from giving a whole blood donation. Blood donors can only give every three months, while it takes only 10 days for platelet donors to recover. The demand for platelets is high and platelet deficiency is a problem at hospitals.

Nguyen Van Thanh, a local youth union member, said Linh was an exemplary blood donor and was always one of the first to help in any blood donation campaign.

No matter what time, circumstance, whenever he hears about a patient who needs blood, he is always ready. He is a big motivation for young people like us.

Following his example, I have donated many times, he said.

Nguyen Thi Huong Que, head of Hematology and Blood Transfusion department at Nam inh General Hospital, said the Live Blood Bank Club operates very effectively, helping the hospital be proactive in finding blood for patients who need it.

With his dedication, Linh was among 100 frequent blood donors honoured for their outstanding humanitarian efforts in 2018.

He also received merit certificates from the Ministry of Health and National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion.

However, he's still humble when talking about his humanitarian work.

Compared to other donors who have donated blood up to 60-70 times, my achievement is very small.

In the future, he said he wanted to encourage more people to donate blood.

As for himself, Linh isn't stopping at donating blood 27 times

Once I am healthy enough, I will continue to donate.   VNS

Nguyen Lanh

Vietnam faces acute shortage of blood The outbreak of the new coronavirus has worsened critical blood shortages encountered by hospitals nationwide after the Tet holiday, as local people have been discouraged from joining blood drives.
Reported COVID-19 cases around the globe surpassed 1 million on Thursday, doubling in a week as the virus spreads across Europe and North America with an increasing number of cases emerging in Africa.

The United States leads the world with 236,339 cases; followed by Italy with 115,242; and Spain with 110,238, according to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, which is actively monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic.

So far, more than 51,000 people worldwide have died.

Nearly 200,000 people have recovered from the virus so far, according to Hopkins.

In Massachusetts, the state DPH reported 8,966 cases resulting in 154 deaths.
As soon as she put it on Ashley Allan knew it was the one.

It has little flowers all over it. Its black and long and form-fitting, she tells me on the phone, her mom, Colleen, beside her in their Burlington home.

The form-fitting part matters because Allan, a high school student in Grade 12, isnt usually allowed to wear tight clothing. This was supposed to be her debut in what her mother calls her daughters first grown-up elegant dress.

Unfortunately though, that dress  Allans prom dress  will remain hanging in a closet, because like everything else these days, prom is cancelled.

So is graduation in spring, not just for Allan, but for millions of high school, college and university students across the country and around the world.

No thanks to COVID-19, cancellation announcements are pouring into post-secondary students inboxes on a weekly basis with news that they wont be throwing their caps in the air in unison this spring (Fanshawe College, University of Toronto, and Dalhousie University are just a few of the institutions to cancel or postpone ceremonies recently.) On Wednesday, the city of Toronto announced a stringent, 12-week lockdown plan; Ontarios public schools will remain closed until at least May. This makes it highly unlikely that teens will be posing for prom photos on their parents front lawns at the end of the school year.

Its easy to brand this misfortune a trivial one. Allan and the majority of her peers arent, thank God, on the front lines of the pandemic: falling ill, working essential jobs, caring for the sick, even mourning the dead.

But they are mourning something that is not insignificant, milestone moments that I and most of you have had, and they wont: proms, convocations, the transitions from ends to beginnings that bracket segments of a life that is, above all else, normal. And we know now perhaps more than ever before, that saying a proper goodbye to normalcy is not something to be shrugged at.

Since Grade 5 you hear about getting all dolled up and getting your hair done and going with your friends [to prom], Allan says ruefully. Its always been a fairy tale to me, honestly. Im extremely disappointed. This isnt an exaggeration.

Allan has Aspergers syndrome and she says routine is fundamental to her well-being. Part of that routine, until recently, was going to school everyday and planning for prom and a graduation ceremony. This was the year she got her marks up, she says. Pardon my language but I busted my ass this year. Now the two things that mean the most to me as a senior have been ripped away from me. Its heartbreaking.

But it isnt the end of the world, of course, and she knows that. Like most of her friends, Allan is practising physical distancing. Contrary to the popular portrayal of young people as cavalier about COVID-19, Allan and her peers are aware lives are at risk. Allan herself is supportive of the decision to call off prom. We know its for the greater good. If anything it means a lot that the [school] board and our teachers looked out for us and our health.

Amy Posel, a Grade 12 student in Toronto, has similar feelings. Posel also owns a dress that she will never wear to prom. It was a bit of a shock, she says, learning that she wouldnt. But, like Allan, shes realistic. I wouldnt want school to be going on knowing that it puts everyone at a greater risk to get sick, she says. I dont doubt the fact at all that this was the right decision. Its just unfortunate.

Also unfortunate is the cancellation of students culminating projects. If things had gone according to plan, this week, 4th-year Ryerson student Will Flood would be overseeing the opening night of a play he wrote and co-directed for his acting programs New Voices Festival. Now those new voices will go unheard. Flood is naturally disappointed about this, but understanding. I dont think anyones life is worth a night of theatre, he says.

At the University of Toronto, 4th-year student Rachel Lucas says her classmates arent upset with the school for cancelling convocation in June; theyre upset that it has no plans to reschedule it. Nobody is asking to walk in June, says Lucas, a French and Biology major currently battened down at home with her roommates. Theyre asking, she says, to walk at a later date, when its safe. Right now a change.org petition demanding U of T postpone rather than cancel convocation has more than 24,000 signatures. (U of T said recently its exploring alternative means to celebrating our students achievements.)

This doesnt mean, however, that all rituals associated with end-of-year celebrations will go unobserved. Ashley Allan may have nowhere to go on what would have been her prom night, but she isnt letting her first form-fitting dress sit on a hanger forever. Im just going to wear it around my house, she says.

It goes without saying that milestones lost are nothing compared to lives lost. But if you think they mean nothing to the young people missing out, youve forgotten what it was like to be young yourself. Or maybe you were part of the crowd that looked down on prom as a shallow sham. But even you would have felt its absence: after all, you cant claim to be too cool for an event if it never happens.

Do you know a high school student who would like to share a photo of themselves in their prom dress/tux/or any outfit they would have worn to prom? If so please, reach out at eteitel@thestar.ca
Representative image

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, consumer internet startups are preparing to cut salaries and fire staff to stem the impact of the nationwide lockdown, according to a Business Standard report.

India is currently in a 21-day lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19. Several startups have had to halt operations since only essential services are allowed during this period.

Companies such as Bounce, Shuttl, Fab Hotels, Instamojo, Zomato, Curefit, and HealthifyMe are cutting their staff's compensation, sources told the publication.

Follow our live coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the story.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

"Pay cuts will ensure no jobs are lost irrespective of the economic situation, and the company improves its runway to over 30 months," Bounce said in a response to Business Standard.

Bounce co-founders Vivekananda Hallekere, Varun Agni and Anil Giriraj are taking a 100 percent deduction in compensation. For the rest of the staff, the cuts range from 20-60 percent, the report said.

The scooter-sharing company said it would restore the salaries once the situation improves, the report said. Bounce's staff has been offered ESOPs (employee stock ownership plans, so that they can benefit once business comes back to normal.

At Droom, 15-30 employees were asked to leave after the annual appraisal cycle, based on their performance, Sandeep Aggarwal - the founder of the online car marketplace - told the paper.

The staff of Droom will take a 15 percent salary cut, Aggarwal told the publication.

"I have taken a 100 percent cut from March 16. The salary cuts for other staff are effective from April 1. No person has been laid off," Aggarwal added.

Follow our full coverage of the Coronavirus pandemic here
New Delhi, April 2 : The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking immediate relief for the telecom operators, including rationalisation of regulatory levies and liquidity support due to the adverse impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

"We request for refund of the unutilised input tax credit immediately. Else, we request that soft loan at MCLR rate should be given to companies, using the GST input credit as collateral," the COAI letter said.

Urging the government to rationalise the burden of the regulatory levies on the telcos with immediate effect, the industry body sought reduction of the Spectrum Usage Charge (SUC). The effective rate of the SUC should be reduced by 3 per cent for all the TSP, it said.

Further, it also said that the licence fee contribution should be immediately brought down from 8 per cent to 3 per cent.

The COAI, in its letter also said that the telcos should be exempted from the levy of GST on license fees (LF), spectrum usage charges and payment of spectrum acquired in auctions.

"Exempt service tax on amount of LF/SUC payable by telecom operators in compliance with the Supreme Court order," it added.

Outlining the issues faced the market players, COAI said: "On behalf of telecom service providers i.e Bharti Airtel Ltd, Reliance Jio and Vodafone IDEA Ltd, we wish to highlight that in the current situation, despite the outbreak and spread of the Covid-19 pandemic across the country, telecom companies are playing a critical role in addressing the challenges faced by individuals, corporates, governance services, emergency and utility services etc." Ensuring continuity of these services is of utmost importance in these challenging times, it added.

In the last few days, the load on the Indian telecom networks has seen an exponential surge, primarily driven by 'work from home' and extensive usage of telecom networks by all government agencies and private companies to remain 'virtually connected' due to lock-down, it said, adding that telecom service providers have invested and will continue to invest significantly in the telecom infrastructure (CAPEX and OPEX) and it has enabled to meet the increased demand for telecom services.

It noted that there has been a severe disruptive impact on the global supply chain, demand and supply elements and most importantly, on the cash flows of the companies due to the slowing economic activities and this downturn will have an impact on all payments including those of employees, interest, loan repayments and taxes.
The United Kingdom has halted its proposed mass testing for coronavirus after discovering that some of the kits being imported into th...





The United Kingdom has halted its proposed mass testing for coronavirus after discovering that some of the kits being imported into the country were contaminated with COVID-19.





According to Telegraph UK, laboratories across the country were on Monday asked to shelve the earlier fixed tests after traces of the virus were seen in the testing kits ordered from overseas.





The development comes days after the British government had engaged the services of private firms to facilitate mass production of kits to improve testing capacity for the virus.





This, the government had explained, would help surpass its current capacity of 11,000 tests per day to 25,000 daily by mid-April.

The government, had however, suspended the mass testing after key components ordered from Eurofins, a company based in Luxembourg, had been contaminated with coronavirus.





A spokesman for Eurofins said such contamination was likely during mass production but can be resolved by proper cleaning and production segregation procedures.





In rare occasions, delays in some orders may occur if based on Eurofins Genomics stringent quality and environmental control procedures, manufacturing of a product may not meet the quality or purity criteria set by Eurofins Genomics, the spokesperson was quoted as saying.





We are aware that contaminations of the nature you mentioned have been observed by several primers and probes manufacturers around the world after they produced SARS-COV2 positive controls.





Those initial problems can be easily resolved by proper cleaning and production segregation procedures.





As of April 1, the deadly disease has spread across 203 countries, infected close to 900,000 people worldwide, with 44,169 deaths recorded so far.





The World Health Organisation (WHO) had called on countries to test, test, test as a key part of its strategy to tackle the virus.




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Even though we didnt have masks to give we wanted to do something to lift spirits and let them know they are appreciated

Family owned luxury jeweler, J.R.Dunn Jewelers, launched a social media giveaway to show support for healthcare workers on the frontline fighting COVID-19. The giveaway was launched the evening of Friday, March 27th, asking users on Facebook and Instagram to tag people they know who are nurses and doctors fighting through this pandemic. Every healthcare worker tagged will be given a white or black freshwater cultured pearl Hope Bracelet by Honora absolutely free to wear as a reminder that their communities stand behind them in support.

Over just three days, the entire supply of 200 hope bracelets were allocated to their local South Florida healthcare workers as well as to many other areas across the country from New York City to California on the frontline.

The idea was inspired by a local ICU Nurse, Mary McNerney, at Broward Health whose Facebook post* about how the shortage of N95 masks was affecting those on the front line that went viral. The doctors and nurses are putting their patients' needs first and it really hit home the sacrifices they are making for all of us. Even though we didnt have masks to give we wanted to do something to lift spirits and let them know they are appreciated, says Sean Dunn, the Vice President of J.R. Dunn Jewelers. (*Reference social media post below.)

Accompanied in the gift box along with the hope bracelet is a handwritten thank you note from Ann Marie Dunn, Co-Owner of J.R. Dunn Jewelers, thanking them for protecting our friends, families, and communities. Throughout the giveaway, several stories and photos were shared of what they were going through in emergency rooms, ICUs, clinics, and doctor offices across the country.

The J.R. Dunn Team hopes that everyone continues to show their support and thanks for our healthcare workers on the frontline and their families as we go through this together. Whether you can contribute supplies and protective equipment or show your support in a different way, every little bit counts.

For additional information, please contact Sean Dunn at marketing@jrdunn.com.

I am an ICU nurse at Broward Health Medical Center.

As I am writing to you, tears are filling my eyes because I am frustrated, disappointed, but mostly, scared. And if you know any ICU nurses, we don't scare easily. I am writing to you because we desperately need your help.

In the wake of the mask shortage, Broward Health has had to limit our use of the N95 respirator masks we use to care for COVID-19 patients. Recently, we are ONLY allowed to use this mask if we are doing a procedure where droplet particles could be dispersed. May I remind you, these particles can be dispersed while we're NOT doing a procedure like when a patient coughs or sneezes. We are told to use a "simple mask", like what you can purchase at the drugstore.This does not seal around a healthcare provider's face as the N95s do and by no means provides protection against these airborne particles!

As the frontline of this pandemic, we are doing our absolute best in caring for our Broward community. The reality is nurses, doctors, and paramedics are starting to get sick and no longer able to care for our patients. I am writing to ask if you or your company has ANY N95 masks or similar respirators if you could please donate them to Broward Health. We would be eternally grateful.

This is not just about protecting us. It's about NOT spreading the virus to our spouses, kids, and parents. This is about protecting our community.

Thank you to all those who can help.

#PleaseShare #Covid #MaskCrisis #ICURN

-Mary McNerney, ICU Nurse at Broward Health Medical Center

Photos: Click here to download.

About J.R. Dunn Jewelers

J.R. Dunn Jewelers is a second-generation luxury jeweler that has been family owned and operated since 1969 celebrating over 50 years of business. The flagship store is located in the heart of South Florida, well known for being an Official Rolex Jeweler as well as carrying the top designers in luxury jewelry and timepieces like John Hardy, Gucci, Breitling, Tag Heuer, and more. J.R. Dunn is one of the first successful omni-channel retailers in the industry, with a leading e-commerce website serving clients worldwide. J.R. Dunn Jewelers prides itself on providing a superior client experience for each and every person, celebrating lifes most joyous occasions. To learn more about us, read our story.

Facebook: facebook.com/jrdunnjewelers Instagram: @jrdunnjewelers
OEC is excited to continue growing our relationship with Gulf States Toyota by helping implement our industry-leading parts sourcing solution across its dealer network, said Kyle McChesney, OEC General Manager, Supply Chain, Data and EPC.

OEConnection LLC (OEC), the leading automotive technology provider for original equipment manufacturers (OEM) distribution networks, will provide Gulf States Toyota (GST) with its part sourcing platform, D2DLink, for its extensive dealer network.

D2DLink will provide GST dealers with shared inventory access across the dealer network, allowing dealers to find and obtain parts with greater speed, while helping reduce idle inventory and improve OEM part sourcing and sales.

OEC is excited to continue growing our relationship with Gulf States Toyota by helping implement our industry-leading parts sourcing solution across its dealer network, said Kyle McChesney, OEC General Manager, Supply Chain, Data and EPC. By adopting D2DLink, GST can leverage its inventory and continue to grow OEM parts sales.

With 158 dealers in the GST network, implementing a new shared inventory solution across our dealer network will offer greater visibility into inventory and streamline part sourcing, said Rick Martinez of GST. This means improved sales and, most importantly, an enhanced customer experience.

D2DLink will be implemented in the GST dealer network later in 2020.

About OEC

OEConnection (OEC) is the leading automotive technology provider for OEM distribution networks. We enable automakers and dealerships around the world to deliver parts and service information quickly and accurately into the hands of repairers. Our solutions cover the collision, fleet, mechanical and retail segments, as well as the dealers own service lanes, through a suite of parts cataloging, supply chain, pricing, ecommerce, service, data and business intelligence solutions. OEC serves 37 international auto brands, 30,000 dealers and more than 135,000 repair customers worldwide. OEC is headquartered in the greater Cleveland area at 4205 Highlander Parkway, Richfield, Ohio, USA, 44286. Additional information is available at http://www.oeconnection.com or by emailing Heather King at Heather.King@OEConnection.com.

About Gulf States Toyota

Houston-based Gulf States Toyota is one of the worlds largest independent distributors of Toyota vehicles and parts, serving 158 dealers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas. Gulf States Toyota was founded in 1969.
Cereals is to move online for the first time ever as the Covid-19 crisis caused the cancellation of the Cambridgeshire-based event.

Cereals, the UKs technical event for the arable industry, was cancelled last month due to the impact caused by the coronavirus.

Over 18,000 farmers, agronomists, and industry experts visit the event each year to discover the latest arable innovations.

The event was due to take place on 10 - 11 June in Cambridgeshire.

In a move to soften the blow, event director Alli McEntyre said farmers will still see most of the content and key features in a 'virtual sense'.

These are challenging times and while we are disappointed to have had to postpone the event, we are determined to do our utmost to support the industry, she said.

Its really important to us that we deliver all of the content we had lined up for visitors so they can keep up-to-date with the latest information, products and innovations in the arable sector.

The seminar sessions will now be run as video-based webinars, enabling attendees to collect BASIS and NRoSO points.

Farmers will be able to hear from top speakers covering a range of subjects, from the impact of coronavirus on trade to new plant breeding technologies, adapting to climate change, digital innovation and agricultural career options, Ms McEntyre added.

Accessing the event via an interactive map on the Cereals website, producers will be able to visit exhibitors and watch machinery demonstrations on 10-11 June, with live chats.

It comes as an online agricultural event is set to launch in May to fill a hole left by the cancellation of dozens of farming shows and events due to the coronavirus.

In a bid to offer something to British people locked-down, 'The Greatest Online Agricultural Show' will commence on 2 May.
By Geoffrey Smith

Investing.com -- Europes oil and gas majors surged on Thursday amid growing talk of a peace deal to end the price war in global markets.

Royal Dutch Shell (LON:RDSa), BP (LON:BP), Total , Eni, Repsol (MC:REP) and Equinor (OL:EQNR) all rose to their highest levels in nearly a month after President Donald Trump said he thought Saudi Arabia and Russia could strike some kind of deal within a few days. His comments came after telephone calls in recent days to both President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Royal Dutch Shell (AS:RDSa) shares rose 8.2%, while BP (LON:BP) shares rose 7.4%, ENI (MI:ENI) stock rose 5.7% and Total (PA:TOTF) stock rose 3.6%. They were all helped by a Goldman Sachs research note arguing that the group should still be able to pay their prized dividends this year, in contrast to most of the rest of the stock market. Goldman analysts argued that the groups breakeven price for covering capex and dividends has fallen to around $44 a barrel, from as high as $60 after the last negative price shock.

Their heavy weightings in local indices helped the FTSE to a gain of 0.5%, and the CAC 40 and FTSE MIB to gains of 0.4% each. The benchmark Stoxx 600 was up 0.3%

Trump has styled the price war a dispute between Russia and Saudi, but that is misleading as the real target of both countries has been the U.S., which has increased production by some 5 million barrels a day in recent years, grabbing global market share from both.

On Wednesday, the two big exporters saw the clearest evidence yet that their strategy is working, as Whiting Petroleum, the biggest shale producer in North Dakota with output of over 120,000 barrels a day, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. BP also said it would cut its capex at its U.S. shale subsidiary by half this year, leading to a drop of around 14% in that units output.

Trump is set to meet with U.S. oil bosses on Friday. As Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE:PXD) CEO Scott Sheffield said repeatedly last week, the U.S. industry is split three ways between distressed shale producers who are so indebted that they have to keep pumping no matter what, majors like Exxon (NYSE:XOM) who are happy to see weaker rivals go to the wall so that they can pick up the pieces afterwards, and a group in the middle  including Pioneer  who risk falling into the first category if crude prices dont stabilize soon.

Story continues

Trump may find it easy to dress up a cut in U.S. output as a peace offering to Russia and Saudi, given that the U.S. is fast running out of places to store all the oil that cant be sold at present. Crude oil stocks rose 13.8 million barrels last week, while U.S. gasoline stocks rose by 7.5 million barrels. Texas Railroad Commissioner Ryan Sitton tweeted that producers are already being asked by pipeline companies to shut in production, given the lack of offtake.

On the surface, Saudi and Russia are still toughing things out, but the strain on both is showing. Saudi Arabia confirmed its output would rise above 12 million barrels a day this month, but storage at its key Fujairah facility is also nearly maxed out, according to Argus Media, which may complicate that plan.

Russian news site RBC, meanwhile, reported on Thursday that the price Russian export prices no longer cover the combined cost of production, transportation and taxes, meaning that they are losing money on every barrel exported now.

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SAN FRANCISCO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Governors Association (NGA) is partnering with Nextdoor, a trusted name in local communities, to ensure that important state-specific resources are available at the neighborhood level. Given social distancing and telework requirements in many states, neighbors are increasingly turning to Nextdoor for real-time, credible COVID-19 updates. Twenty-five states are already working in partnership with Nextdoor, including California, Arizona, Virginia, Michigan, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Florida, and Washington.

Governors are keenly focused on the widest possible dissemination of credible, state-specific news and resources to counter misinformation. According to the National Governors Association , all 50 states, U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia have declared a public health emergency, which requires a whole-of-government and whole-of-community response.

"Accurate information is critical in our fight against the spread of this virus," said LeAnne Wilson, NGA chief operating officer. "Working to ensure families can get accurate information from trusted local sources will help engage a stronger community response."

Nextdoor is the neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services, and it is the only platform that enables public agencies to reach people at the neighborhood level. During this unprecedented time, the number of public agency posts on Nextdoor has tripled since the beginning of March. Nextdoor has partnered with thousands of public agencies, including regional and state departments of health across the country, FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency), the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), and the American Red Cross. Additionally, Nextdoor has launched new product features to better help neighbors stay connected during this challenging time.

"Nextdoor was built to bring neighbors togetherthis is important in good times and essential in times of need," stated Nextdoor CEO Sarah Friar. "Neighbors are turning daily to Nextdoor to receive critical, real-time information from public agencies. We are honored to partner with the National Governors Association to ensure all neighbors have access to critical information and resource capabilities. And we are thankful for the efforts of Governors and all emergency services providers during this unprecedented crisis."

For more information and examples of using Nextdoor, please visit: https://www.nga.org/nextdoor .

About NGA

Founded in 1908, the National Governors Association (NGA) is the bipartisan organization of the nation's 55 governors. Through NGA, governors share best practices, address issues of national and state interest and share innovative solutions that improve state government and support the principles of federalism.

About Nextdoor, Inc.

Nextdoor is the neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services. We believe that by bringing neighbors together, we can cultivate a kinder world where everyone has a neighborhood they can rely on.

Building connections in the real world is a universal human need. That truth, and the reality that neighborhoods are one of the most important and useful communities in our lives, have been a guiding principle for Nextdoor since the beginning. Today, neighbors rely on Nextdoor in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Australia, and Canada, with many more to come.

Nextdoor is a privately-held company based in San Francisco with backing from prominent investors including Benchmark, Shasta Ventures, Greylock Partners, Kleiner Perkins, Riverwood Capital, Bond, Axel Springer, Comcast Ventures, and others. For additional information and images: nextdoor.com/newsroom .

SOURCE Nextdoor, Inc.
Nestled in South Africas Cradle of Humankind, the Drimolen paleocave is an amphitheater hosting the remains of ancient ancestors of humans. Most famous among the hominins found there are Orpheus and Eurydice, a pair of Paranthropus robustus unearthed in 1994 and named after the lovers from Greek mythology. They are just two of more than 160 fossilized specimens of our extinct early relatives dug up at the roofless cave.

Now, archaeologists excavating the site have discovered even more remains that could transform our understanding of when and where our human ancestors and their relatives lived millions of years ago in this part of Africa.

In Science on Thursday, they published a paper identifying the skullcap and teeth of another Paranthropus robustus, as well as the cranium of our direct ancestor, Homo erectus. Both specimens date to between 1.95 and 2.04 million years ago. If confirmed, the findings would be the oldest known Paranthropus robustus, as well as the oldest known Homo erectus, nudging out the next oldest known specimen by 150,000 to 200,000 years.

The discoveries offer evidence that Homo erectus trekked from the bottom of South Africa, across the African continent and into the Caucasus region within only a couple of hundreds of thousands of years.
Benjamin Netanyahu mistakenly shared a clip from TV series Pandemic with Israels cabinet as evidence that Iran was concealing coronavirus deaths by throwing bodies away, according to Israeli media reports.

It came as the prime ministers office announced that Mr Netanyahu will self-isolate for a week after another senior official, Israels health minister Yaakov Litzman, 71 tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday.

Over 6,000 people have been infected with the disease, while 33 have died in Israel. The country has rolled out some of strictest measures including banning Israelis from moving more than 100 metres from their homes.

During a cabinet conference call on Monday, Barak Ravid of Israels Channel 13 said that Mr Netanyahu told cabinet ministers he had seen a video of Iranian authorities loading bodies onto trucks and dropping them at rubbish dump.

According to Mr Ravid, who said he spoke to two ministers about the matter, Mr Netanyahu said he was shown the video by his national security adviser, Meir Ben-Shabbat, who forwarded the footage to the attendees during the call.

The video turns out, however, to be a clip of 2007 Hallmark Channel mini-series Pandemic.

Mr Netanyahus office declined to comment when contacted by The Independent. The office has not publicly denied the story. Mr Ravid said he spoke to two ministers who confirmed the story.

Israeli intelligence believes Iran is woefully under-reporting the number of deaths from coronavirus, saying the true number is five times higher.

The World Health Organisation has raised similar concerns.

Iran is suffering from the worst outbreak of coronavirus in the region, reporting over 47,500 cases and 3,160 deaths. The authorities have yet to roll out full lockdowns like those currently in place in other parts of the region and have struggled to enforce social-distancing regulations.

Back in Israel, on Thursday Mr Netanyahu, as well as mossad chief Yossi Cohen and the head of the National Security Council, Meir Ben Shabbat, said they would enter isolation as they had been in contact with Israeli health minister Liztman.

The health ministrys director-general Moshe Bar-Siman-Tov also announced via Twitter his own self-isolation at a facility at Sheba Medical Centre in Tel Aviv.

Mr Litzman, 71, whose wife also tested positive, has appeared regularly alongside the premier to give coronavirus updates.

Mr Netanyahu has tested negative for the virus twice before, the last time on Monday after close aide, Knesset affairs advisor Rivka Paluch, was diagnosed with the virus.

Israeli regulations usually require a 14-day self-isolation for anyone in proximity to a carrier.

The greatest outbreak for Israel has been among the ultra-orthodox community where the areas are often impoverished and crowded.

There have also been several reports of ultra-orthodox groups not following social distancing guidelines, including attending mass funerals and weddings in the towns of Bnei Brak and Beit Shemish.

Mr Netanyahu announced new curbs on Wednesday to deter movement around Bnei Brak.
HEBRON  As senior pastor at the local Emmanuel Baptist Church, Frank McClure said he has encouraged members to stay home during the current COVID-19 pandemic and take part in the church's live online streaming of its services.

But for those who want to take part in person, he is keeping the church doors wide open with modifications that he said keep the church in compliance with the governor's "stay-at-home" order.

"We respect the rights of individuals to make their own choices," McClure said an open letter to members. "We believe that these rights are endowed by our Creator, even when their choices do not agree with ours."

"The church for 2,000 years has had its doors open wide during wars, floods, earthquakes, famines and, yes, even pandemics," he wrote. "We will continue as we have for almost 50 years to encourage, support, pray for, and love those that we live with and serve together with."

Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb's March 23 order includes churches among the essential businesses and operations that allow for residents to venture outside their homes "provided they adhere to the CDCs guidance on social gatherings," McClure said.
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. Armenian President Armen Sarkissian continues discussions with international partners, famous Armenian and foreign specialists and scientists on issues relating to the prevention and treatment of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the Presidents Office told Armenpress.

This time the President had a telephone conversation with famous American-Armenian doctor, Health Sciences Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Eric Esrailian. Mr. Esrailian is also an active public figure, member of the Central Board of Directors at the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), and the producer of the movie on the Armenian Genocide  The Promise.

During the phone talk the Armenian President and Dr. Esrailian discussed the global coronavirus pandemic and the cooperation opportunities in fighting the disease in Armenia. President Sarkissian highlighted uniting efforts to overcome the current situation, as well as the exchange of experience and mutual support. In this context the officials discuss how the opportunities of charity programs can be used more effectively in Armenia and Artsakh.

Eric Esrailian informed that starting this March a cooperation aimed at preventing the COVID-19 outbreak has been established between the UCLAs Public Health School and Armenias ministry of healthcare through one of the projects of the Universitys The Promise Armenian Institute chaired by Professor Alina Dorian.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about an outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, central China. WHO declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a global pandemic and named the virus COVID-19.

According to the latest data, the number of people infected with the novel coronavirus in Armenia has reached 663. 4 death cases have been registered so far. 33 patients have recovered. 2490 people tested negative for the virus. The number of active cases is 626.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan




CONWAY, Ark. (April 2, 2020)  Hendrix College students Claire Fleming 20, an interdisciplinary studies (innovation and entrepreneurship) major from Bliss, Michigan, and Mackenzie Gearin 20, an interdisciplinary studies (social economics) major and mathematics minor from Star Prairie, Wisconsin, have been announced as members of the 52nd class of Thomas J. Watson Fellows.



The Watson Fellowship is a one-year grant for purposeful, independent study outside the United States, awarded to graduating seniors nominated by one of 40 partner colleges. Fleming and Gearin are the 36th and 37th Hendrix students to receive a Watson Fellowship. (See the full list)



Flemings Watson Fellowship project, Enhanced Livelihood: Seeking Intentional Workplace Practice, will take her to Uganda, Kenya, India, and Colombia as she pursues her interest in studying how individuals socioeconomic status at birth influences their prosperity and quality of working life.



Fleming first learned about the Watson Fellowship early in her time at Hendrix from previous Watson Fellow Jessa Thurman 16 and Bailey Library Director Britt Anne Murphy, who serves as the Colleges Watson liaison. I realized there was an entire community of people embodying the ideals I had always held as sacred and inaccessible inside my head, Fleming said. With that inspiration, I have sought to push past fear and try to embody the spirit of the fellowship in every step of my journey, which has led to many breakdowns and failures. I am so grateful failure has faithfully led to small pieces of invaluable wisdom for me. The most important thing I have gained is a community of friends and colleagues I owe every success to and still depend upon entirely. I am so ready and excited to join with international comrades to see standard-defying solutions to haunting workplace issues. I hope for this experience to expand my understanding of community and its role in working spaces.



Gearins project, From Persecution to Refuge: Grassroots Peacebuilding in Displacement, includes travel to Colombia, Kenya, Uganda, India, and Sri Lanka to immerse herself in communities that have been displaced by conflict. She finds herself both thrilled and incredibly nervous about the opportunity.



When lots of people think about migration, they often picture refugees and migrants scrambling to Europe and North America. The reality is that a less than 1% of all displaced peoples are resettled in the West each year, and the vast majority remain displaced, Gearin said. I look forward to being confronted each day with the challenge of re-thinking justice and reconciliation, and working alongside communities to re-imagine futures for the millions of displaced people with whom I inhabit this planet. I am so excited to do this project, and I am so thankful to my professors and peers who supported and encouraged me during my years at Hendrix and throughout the application process.



Both Fleming and Gearin have spent much of their time at Hendrix pursuing experiential learning opportunities.



Fleming has worked with the Hendrix Society of Innovators, founded Lay of the Land Designs with a fellow student, collaborated with the Department of Physics to bring a CO2 laser engraver to campus, traveled to Africa and Colorado to study social entrepreneurship through the Hendrix Odyssey Program, connected with alumni in nonprofit and community loan arenas for mentorship, and chaired the Campus Sustainability Fund Committee, which is currently working on a solar panel installation project and setting up students to live in a new Hendrix ECO Living Community for 2020-2021 school year. She also participated in the Hendrix Rowing Club and, in her senior year, joined the Hendrix Diving Team.



Gearin has worked with a local nonprofit as a volunteer tax preparer for individuals and families with low incomes, spearheaded a new program to register undocumented immigrants and international students for Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs) so they can file taxes, participated in two Odyssey Program-funded summer internships working with immigrants and refugees on the citizenship process and microfinance and entrepreneurship projects, and used her Murphy Scholars Program stipend to conduct a research project with exiled writers in London and study abroad for a semester in Valparaiso, Chile. She also helped organize a grassroots student group called Times Up, Hendrix, which began conversation with administrators to advocate for changes to the Colleges gender-based misconduct policies and to design programs for a safer campus.



All of our four candidates worked so well together this year  David Samuel and Megan Bellfield were the other two finalists the Honors Committee selected to put forth applications for the national competition, said Murphy, the Colleges Watson liaison. Most years our Watson candidates know each other, and I encourage them to work together as a team from the start: sharing their writing, offering critiques and advice, and getting to know each other over dinner. This year the five of us formed very strong bonds throughout the process, which is one of the most rewarding aspects for me as liaison, and also a critical piece of the process so that I can bring forth aspects of their lived experiences that will make their applications more meaningful, and consequentially, successful.



Murphy said that the current coronavirus pandemic will be taken into account as the new Watson Fellows schedule their travel. Claire and Mackenzie will be working with the Watson Foundation on their plans for next year, she said. I have no doubt that all Watson Fellows will be taken care of by the Watson Foundation, who puts the health and safety of their Fellows first in any situation.



About Hendrix College



A private liberal arts college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as one of the countrys leading liberal arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.
As part of their deployment to the Black Sea, the five Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) ships exercised with the Romanian Navy and Air Force on Monday, 30 March 2020 just off the waters of Constanta.

As part of their deployment to the Black Sea, the five Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) ships exercised with the Romanian Navy and Air Force on Monday, 30 March 2020 just off the waters of Constanta.

Romanian corvette Zborul during a lead through exercise in the Black Sea, on 30 March 2020 (Picture source: Romanian Navy)

As part of the training, Romanian Navy minesweeper Lupu Dinescu and the corvette Zborul joined the group to conduct a lead through exercise. In this simulated scenario, it means guiding the surface vessels through an area with a suspected high level of risk for sea mines. At the same time, the frigates from SNMG2 would provide force protection from any other threats, as two MiG-21 aircraft of the Romanian Air Force simulated multiple attacks against the ships. A sail past by ROS Zborul concluded the series.

After the exercise, Rear Admiral Paolo Fantoni, Commander of SNMG2, stated: Today's exercise has given both the NATO Group and the Romanian Navy and Air Force an invaluable opportunity. It allowed the participants to maintain and strengthen their capabilities and demonstrated how we can integrate readily with assets not belonging permanently to the force. Training exercises like the lead through in anti-mine warfare are critical and challenging: all opportunities like this one must be seized. I really have to thank the Romanian Navy and Air Force for what weve achieved today.

Earlier this week, the NATO group spent three days nested in the port of Constanta, Romania. During the stopover, all measures against the on-going COVID-19 pandemic were applied.

The chance of this stop in Constanta provided the force with the necessary re-fuel and re-supply in view of our next commitments in the Black Sea. Our crew rested and prepared the mission to reassure freedom of navigation in a very sensitive area for the Alliance, affirmed Rear Admiral Fantoni.

The NATO group now continues its activity of High Readiness Patrol in the Black Sea and will visit the port of Poti, Georgia, at the beginning of April.

Standing NATO Maritime Group Two is currently deployed to the Black Sea and consists of five units: ITS Fasan (Italy), HMCS Fredericton (Canada), TCG Salihreis (Turkey), ROS Regina Maria (Romania) and BGS Verni (Bulgaria). SNMG2, with the other Standing NATO Forces, conducts regular deployments and complex multinational exercises to maintain the highest level of readiness and warfighting capabilities.
CAD systems pre-process the image data and focus on removing the differences between data from different sources or obtained with different protocols. In later stage, CAD segments an image into anatomic regions. This is followed by candidate detection, which is the most application-specific step in a CAD system. The step identifies a number of locations such as potential tumors, microcalcifications, polyps, and regions with diffuse abnormalities.

U.S. computer-aided detection (CAD) market is estimated to account for US$ 679.9 Mn in terms of value by the end of 2027.

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This report sample includes

Brief Introduction to the research report.

Table of Contents (Scope covered as a part of the study)

Top players in the market

Top players in the market Research framework (presentation)

Research methodology adopted by Coherent Market Insights

U.S. Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) Market: Drivers

High efficiency of CAD devices in detecting small size and low-density nodules is expected to fuel growth of the U.S. computer-aided detection (CAD) market market. CAD offers high detection of pulmonary nodules including the small size and low-density nodules. The approach assists and improves radiologist performance as a second reader, especially for nodules located in the central and hilar region and for small nodules by saving radiologists time even with relatively high false-positive rate.

U.S. Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) Market: Opportunities

Increasing geriatric population that is prone to several chronic diseases is expected to offer lucrative growth opportunities for players in the market. For instance, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, geriatric population in the U.S. is expected to reach 77 million by 2035.

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U.S. Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) Market: Restraints

High price of CAD software is expected to hamper growth of the market. CAD software is available with a one-year license and end users require to renew it on an annual basis. The introduction of single reading with CAD, in place of double reading, may lead to an additional cost of around US$ 350 per 1,000 women screened in high and average volume units, respectively. Moreover, the high cost of purchasing the equipment may result in an additional cost of around US$ 700 per 1,000 women screened in low volume screening units.

Key Takeaways:

The Mammography segment in the U.S. computer-aided detection (CAD) market was valued at US$ 309.5 Mn in 2019 and is expected to reach US$ 453.5 Mn by 2027 at a CAGR of 66.0% during the forecast period. The growth of the segment is anticipated to increasing awareness for breast cancer in developing and developed economies during the forecast period.

The Breast Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) segment held dominant position in the U.S. computer-aided detection (CAD) market in 2019, accounting for 71.9% share in terms of value, followed by Chest Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) and Abdominal Computer-Aided Detection (CAD), respectively. Increasing incidence and prevalence of breast cancer is anticipated to assist the growth of the market during the forecasted period.

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Market Trends

Major hospitals are offering mobile mammography services. For instance, in January 2020, Mercy Health Cincinnati started its annual screening mammogram through its mobile mammography program that offers screening mammograms in 15 minutes at locations convenient to home or workplace.

Key institutes and universities are focused on using deep learning and CAD for diagnosis of colorectal cancer. For instance, in December 2019, researchers from the Washington University in St. Louis began the development of a deep learning-based pattern recognition (PR)-OCT system that is expected to automate image processing and offer CAD of colorectal cancer.

U.S. Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) Market: Competitive Landscape

Major players operating in the U.S. computer-aided detection (CAD) market include, iCAD, Inc., Koninklijke Philips N.V, Hologic, Inc., Carestream Health, Inc., ScreenPoint Medical BV, Siemens AG, GE Healthcare, EDDA Technology, Inc., Qlarity Imaging, and Fujifilm Holdings Corporation.

U.S. Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) Market: Key Developments

In July 2019, ScreenPoint Medical BV signed an agreement with Volpara Solutions under which Volpara will sell ScreenPoints Transpara products to breast imaging clinics in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Asia

In June 2019, FUJIFILM Medical Systems U.S.A., Inc. announced to present REiLI, the companys global Medical Imaging and Informatics Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology initiative, at AIMed Radiology 2019.

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Segmentation

U.S. Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) Market, By Product Type: Breast CAD Chest CAD Abdominal CAD Prostate CAD Cardiovascular CAD Others

U.S. Computer-Aided Detection (CAD) Market, By Technology: Mammography X-Ray Imaging MRI Computed Tomography Ultrasound Others

Company Profiles iCAD, Inc. * Company Overview Product Portfolio Key Highlights Financial Overview Strategies Koninklijke Philips N.V Hologic, Inc. Carestream Health, Inc. ScreenPoint Medical BV Siemens AG GE Healthcare EDDA Technology, Inc. Qlarity Imaging Fujifilm Holdings Corporation



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Chance has been Netflixing and Chilling a lot during quarantine. Photo: Getty Images/2019 Barry Brecheisen

On Wednesday night, Chance the Rapper dropped something weve (apparently) all been waiting for  a mixtape a list of his favorite character actors. Yes, The Big Day rapper and host of Punkd on Quibi took to Twitter to provide some insight into how hes been spending his quarantine  watching a ton of movies and television. Here is the thread of my favorite character actors/lesser known actors that everyone asked for he wrote, gorgeously explaining what a character actor is (i.e., lesser known), before launching into the well-researched, highly curated thread.

Some usual suspects make the list, like John Turturro, Michael Shannon, and Paul Giamatti, of course, but there are more than a few unexpected surprises ,like Hawaii Five-0s Chi McBride, Revolutionary Roads Dylan Baker, and White Men Cant Jumps Tyra Ferrell. If you look closely, you can also glean a little bit about Chance the Rappers life from the thread. Does Chance watch HBO? Well, The Wires Michael K. Williams, Boardwalk Empires Steve Buscemi, and Westworlds Jeffrey Wright all make the list. Did Chance grow up watching the WB and UPN? Probably, as The Wayans Bros Anna Maria Horsford and The Parkers Kym Whitley both make the thread, although Chance refers to Kym Whitley as Kym Whitfield, potentially confusing her with fellow character actress Lynn Whitfield, but we digress.

A few questions remain, however. Did Chance pick photos for each actor randomly or is he (understandably) a really big fan of Geoffrey Rush in The Pirates of the Caribbean and Stanley Tucci in The Hunger Games? Who was on the bubble but didnt make the cut? Is William H. Macy fuming right now that he was left off this list? Should Character Actress Margo Martindale call her agent and ask what happened? Also, would Chance want to Netflix Party with us? Because the taste really jumped out.
Indian Oil Corp (IOC), the countrys biggest refiner and fuel retailer, has declared a force majeure on oil imports from some of its top oil suppliers, including Saudi Arabia, which has been promising a supply surge as of today in the price war it leads with Russia.

After India  population 1.3 billion people  went into a nationwide lockdown, IOC slashed refinery runs and declared a force majeure on imports from four key Middle Eastern suppliersSaudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Indias Economic Times reported on Wednesday, citing sources.

The top Indian refiner has asked these four suppliers to defer some of the cargoes they were set to deliver to India in April after the country went last week into a three-week-long nationwide lockdown, and demand for transportation fuel, as well as demand from businesses, craters. Saudi Arabia has not responded to IOCs request for deferral of cargoes yet, according to Economic Times sources.

India, the worlds third-largest oil importer, and key growth driver together with China, put a spoke in Saudi Arabias wheel just as the Kingdom pledges to boost its oil exports to record-highs in the coming weeks.

The Saudis have discounted deeply their oil for April, aiming to grab market share from Russia, and from everyone else for that matter, after Moscow refused to continue playing ball in the OPEC+ production cut deal. Unfortunately for Saudi Arabia, theres no demand for its oil right now, regardless of how cheap it is. Major economies, including Indias, went into lockdown to try to flatten the curve of the coronavirus spreading, which crippled global oil demand. Analysts expect 20 million bpd demand loss in the coming weeksthis would be a 20 percent drop compared to the worlds 100-million-bpd typical oil consumption.

Its not only India that is not rushing to buy ultra-cheap Saudi crude because of plunging demand. Saudi Arabia has promised a flood of cheap oil to Europe as it aims to hit its former ally Russia in its own backyard, but it looks like demand for the ultra-cheap Saudi crude doesnt exist after all.

Despite the flood of cheap oil Saudi Arabia has promised, some refiners in Europe, including supermajor Shell, are set to take less crude from the Kingdom in April amid plummeting demand in the coronavirus pandemic, Reuters reported last week, quoting industry sources.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
Innoson Motors has approached the Nigerian government for a loan as it prepares to start producing ventilators and other medical equipment to support the countrys beleaguered public health infrastructure, the company told PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday.

The company this week asked for N4 billion to help fast-track its production of ventilators and protective gears that may prove critical in Nigerias battle to mitigate COVID-19 casualties, Obinna Chukwuma, an executive director at Innoson, told PREMIUM TIMES.

We plan to add the loan to our existing financial and technical resources to produce a good number of ventilators within a short period of time, Mr Chukwuma said. The time is running out and our available resources cannot be sufficient for what the country would require in critical medical equipment.

To secure the facility quickly, Innoson has approached the Central Bank of Nigeria, through the presidential task force on coronavirus, and a private bank, officials said.

We made it a two-way approach with the hope that either would work out quickly for us to start producing these life-saving equipment for the Nigerian population, Cornel Osigwe, Innosons chief spokesperson, told PREMIUM TIMES.

Innoson has built cars locally in Nigeria for more than a decade. The indigenous manufacturer has its sprawling production line in Nnewi, a major trading community in Nigerias southeast.

To produce ventilators, an automated equipment that pumps air in and out of the lungs of patients unable to breathe on their own, the company would have to install a separate production line or retrofit its existing factory to manufacture medical equipment rather than cars and trucks.

It is very complex engineering, but if we are able to get the loan we have been pursuing, we can roll out production within 90 days, Mr Chukwuma said. Then we can start supplying hundreds of ventilators to medical facilities where they might be needed across the country.

Isaac Okorafor, chief spokesperson for the CBN, and health minister Osagie Enihare, did not respond to requests for comments.

Innosons decision to secure a loan from either the government or one of its bankers came more than a week after the company told PREMIUM TIMES it was ready to produce ventilators and other equipment.

READ ALSO:

Although some government officials at federal and state levels reached out to the company to explore potential areas of partnership, no concrete agreement had yet been reached, PREMIUM TIMES learnt from Innoson and government sources.

Severe shortage

The world has been grappling with shortages of ventilators and reliable safety equipment for several weeks, with countries like the United States compelling private industries to manufacture medical equipment for bedridden citizens.

In Nigeria, however, authorities have only started taking it seriously.

Since its first case was reported on February 27, Nigeria has confirmed a total of 175 cases and two casualties as of Tuesday night. Yet, there are concerns that far more of the countrys 200 million people had already been infected and the low confirmed cases came from under-testing.

Federal health officials claimed they have capacity to conduct 500 tests per day, yet only 2,000 have been tested as of March 30 after more than a month of daily testing activities.

As of Monday, senior administration officials, including the disease control chief and the health minister, dismissed concerns about ventilator shortages in Nigeria, saying the few that are available in the country may not even be put to use.

The controversial position of senior health officials came as Nigerians on social media began raising concerns about potential caseloads that could further overwhelm the countrys long-moribund healthcare system. If exposed to COVID-19, elderly and other immunosuppressed patients may lose the ability to breathe on their own.

In an awkward tweet Tuesday night, the ministry of finance, which has been coordinating funding and logistics with health officials since the outbreak in January, sought urgent support for hundreds of ventilators from Teslas CEO Elon Musk. The ministry later disowned the request, saying it was unauthorised.
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Washington, D.C., April 2, 2020In response to the decision of the Sindh High Court in Pakistan to overturn the murder convictions of four men accused in the 2002 killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement:

The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply disappointed to see justice in the murder case of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl denied by a Pakistani court today, said Steven Butler, CPJs Asia program coordinator. We urge prosecutors to appeal the decision, which found Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh guilty only of kidnapping Pearl in a crime that led directly to his murder.

Sheikh, who had previously faced a death sentence, had his sentence reduced to seven years for the crime of kidnapping, which could lead to his release shortly since he has been in prison since 2002. The court also overturned the convictions of three others in the case.
Around 32 migrant labourers, including women and children, were packed on a truck like sardines in a tin can and covered by a tarpaulin, as the vehicle stopped at a compressed natural gas (CNG) pump for a refill at Lucknows Gomtinagar around midnight on Tuesday.

The labourers were trying to evade the 21-day nationwide lockdown enforced since March 25 to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak. They were travelling on a truck with a Delhi registration number to their native villages in violation of the strictly enforced social distancing norms to combat the contagious viral outbreak.

The labourers, who were travelling at the dead of night would have got away unnoticed, had it not been mandatory for all passengers to get off their vehicle at a CNG pump for a refill.

The migrants were employed at a Delhi factory and whiled away their time chatting among themselves during the refill. Some even lit up their beedis during the brief timeout. A few children in the group gawked wide-eyed, as their parents stretched themselves out in the open.

Some of the labourers were wearing masks, but most were ignorant of the threats that their travel posed to them and the community at large.

Vijay, who identified himself as the leader of the group, said, Its been two days since we left Delhi. We managed to enter UP, despite the border being sealed because we knew alternative routes to sneak in. Weve managed to reach Lucknow with great difficulty. We didnt choose to leave Delhi. The factory, where we worked, has shut. Were left high and dry without any food, water and other essential commodities. Weve somehow managed to come this far and now not too far from our destination, he said.

I belong to Bhatpura village in Barabanki district. Please call me later. I will answer whatever you want me to ask, but right now we need to reach our villages safe, he said as the truck hurriedly sped away after the refill, barely before he could share his mobile phone number with the reporter.

He responded to the call only once since the last conversation at the dead of night.

Asked over the phone, how they were doing and how did his neighbours treat them, he said, All of us are doing well and are quarantined at our homes.

He, however, glossed over whether they have been discriminated by their neighbours.

Well, there are all kinds of people in a village. Some would say whatever they want to. The gram pradhan knows that were back at our homes, he said.

I will call you later, he said before disconnecting the phone. Neither did he call back, nor answered his phone later.

Crazy rush for govt buses

There has been a mad scramble for buses ever since the UP government announced that it would provide transport facilities to ferry stranded migrant labourers back home. The rush is palpable from Lucknow to Bahraich and from Barabanki to Bualandshahr. The migrants, who have defied the lockdown with impunity because of the sudden loss of livelihood and depleted savings, travelled hundreds of kilomteres by foot in a bid to reach their native villages. Most of them claim they are not aware of community kitchens and the financial help announced by the UP government for the daily wagers. Consider the case of an eight-month pregnant woman, who accompanied by her labourer husband, travelled around 500 kilometres from Delhi to Mahoba on foot to reach her native village. The desperate movement is fraught with fears of community transmission of Covid-19, which the Central government is still maintaining hasnt reached that stage yet.

Manning villages

Local youths at Prahladpur and Dhikoli villages in western UPs Baghpat district have taken the responsibility to check the entry of outsiders.

If theyre from our villages, well ensure that they are quarantined for 14 days as advised by the government, said Mahendra, a village youth.

UP chief secretary Rajendra Kumar Tiwari said hundreds and thousands of people from other states have entered the state. We have set up over 300 shelter homes to screen migrant workers who are on their way back to their respective native villages, he said.

Were appealing to them to stay wherever they are as chief minister Yogi Adityanath has spoken to his counterparts from other states to ensure that theyre safe. But for those whove travelled here, were making sure that they are screened and quarantined, he added.

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Congress leaders attend the party's Working Committee Meeting chaired by party President Sonia Gandhi via vdeo conferencing on Thursday during the 21-day nationwide lockdown (that entered its 9th day) imposed as a precautionary measure to contain the Image Source: IANS News

Congress President Sonia Gandhi chairs the Congress Working Committee (CWC) Meeting via vdeo conferencing on Thursday during the 21-day nationwide lockdown (that entered its 9th day) imposed as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of coronav Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, April 2 : The Congress working committee met on the backdrop of country facing the coronavirus pandemic and took feedback from the congress-ruled states, as party has been suggesting various measures to help the marginalised sections and daily wagers. Party president Sonia Gandhi slammed the lockdown as "unplanned" and emphasised that testing could only combat this disease which the country is "lacking" and demanded the government to prepare and publish a "Common minimum relief package".

Sonia Gandhi in her opening remarks slammed the government, saying "the 21-day National Lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India." "The magnitude of the challenge before us is daunting but our resolve to overcome it must be greater," she said.

"Our doctors, nurses, and health workers need all the support possible. Personal Protection Equipment such as hazmat suits, N-95 masks, etc must be provided to them on a war footing. Equally important are Ventilators and breathing equipment, isolation beds and designated hospitals to treat Covid-19. The onus lies on Government to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness," she added.

Sonia Gandhi said that the pandemic has already caused untold suffering across the world, but it has also reaffirmed the bonds of brotherhood that unite humanity and those who are most vulnerable to the consequences of this pandemic are the poor and disadvantaged.

"We must come together for their sake and do all we can to support them through the difficult days that lie ahead," said Sonia.

The Congress President hit out at the government for inefficient handling of the migrants. "It has been heart-breaking to see lakhs of people walking for hundreds of kilometres towards their villages without food or shelter." Sonia Gandhi in her speech said special benefit should be given to the Farmers, who have faced the wrath of inclement weather this season, are now confronted with having to cope with the harvesting season. This,at a time when the entire country has been locked down. They urgently require the availability of fertilizers and pesticides, access to easy lines of credit, forward guidance in preparing for the planting of the kharif crop and proper remuneration prices are essential for them to be able to survive the present economic onslaught.

Medium and Small-Scale Enterprises, are now gravely threatened. Close to 90 percent of our fellow Indians toiling in the unorganised sector are also extremely vulnerable. The middle classes too are vulnerable. Wage cuts, job losses across all sectors of the economy, high petrol diesel and gas prices are causing them acute distress. If this was not enough, while EMIs have been deferred, no interest subvention or relief has been provided. This offsets the entire purpose of the deferment, she said.

"I urge the Central government to prepare and publish common Minimum Relief Programme," said Sonia Gandhi. This is vital and will help alleviate several of the concerns that currently afflict all people, she added.
Couples are often told to prepare for anything when it comes to their wedding, but a global pandemic isn't typically on the list of things to consider.

Now that most Americans have been ordered to stay at home and avoid nonessential travel to slow the spread of the coronavirus, many couples  including those who were only days or weeks away from getting married  have had to abruptly postpone their special days, while many others are in limbo, unsure of how to proceed.

For them, industry experts spoke to NerdWallet to share tips and advice for what to do next.

Special day: Many couples have been forced to cancel or postpone their weddings due to the pandemic (stock image)

Couples around the world are finding themselves heartbroken, stressed, and confused by the change of plans.

'Postponing our wedding has opened up an entire different category of stress that I didn't know was possible,' says Allison Hayes, a newly unemployed hairstylist in Ohio who delayed her May wedding.

'It was a lot of stress in a really short amount of time,' says Elliott San, a Los Angeles-based screenwriter who moved his March wedding to November. 'It felt like 48 hours of crisis management response.'

The scale of postponements is also unprecedented for vendors and planners.

'We've never seen such major sweeping postponements in the wedding industry,' says Renee Dalo, owner and lead wedding planner of Moxie Bright Events in Los Angeles.

Dalo has already rescheduled six weddings and expects that number to grow.

In addition to the logistical headache of moving a tightly-coordinated event at the eleventh hour, there are also potential financial implications for couples. Some may lose deposits with vendors; others are suddenly without jobs and are juggling wedding payments with other bills.

Here are a few things to keep in mind if you and your partner are in a similar predicament.

LOOK FOR WAYS TO PARE BACK

If the pandemic has had an impact on your wages, the wedding will likely need to take a back seat to more pressing needs.

The hair salon where Hayes works has been shuttered temporarily, so she is also feeling anxiety about paying for the wedding.

'My partner and I had been budgeting and saving our money to pay for a significant portion of our wedding costs, but we just lost the weekly payments my income was putting into our wedding account,' she says.

We're all doing what we can to stay afloat and navigate the crisis together Renee Dalo, owner and lead wedding planner of Moxie Bright Events in LA

If your job has been affected, take steps to get control of your finances in the short-term. Look into expanded unemployment benefits as a way to help cover things like rent or groceries. Your bills should take priority over wedding plans. If money is an issue, Dalo suggests contacting vendors directly to see if you can split up payments moving forward.

'If a client came to me asking to make smaller, more spread out payments, I would be 100 per cent on board with that,' she says. 'We're all doing what we can to stay afloat and navigate the crisis together.'

Regardless of your current job situation, i's a good time to reevaluate wedding costs that have't already been paid and see where you could scale back, if necessary.

Hayes now plans to cut back on decorations. She had been holding off on purchasing them and has decided to have fewer since she'll have less time to decorate on her new date.

'I was financially confident at the beginning of wedding planning, but I work in freelance and have lost a lot of opportunities,' says Katy Colloton, an actress and screenwriter in Los Angeles. Colloton says she was originally planning to 'go all-out' with things like table favors, bridal party gifts, and welcome bags, but will adjust her approach if the job market continues to decline.

The new I do: A couple marries with just a few friends and family  many wearing masks  in Hong Kong on March 29

CONTACT YOUR VENUE

Vendors, planners, and couples all agree that if you're in the process of postponing, your first call or email should be to the venue.

'Get in contact with the venue first since that is the biggest investment, then get in touch with vendors to see how everything aligns,' says Laura Yap, who runs a floral business in Austin, Texas.

Dalo echoes this advice, but notes that venues may have different approaches depending on their contract and schedule.

'One private club is switching the wedding to another Saturday with no fees, while another venue has asked for a $7,000 surcharge to keep it on a Saturday,' she says. 'It really depends on the venue.'

San says his Palm Springs venue was understanding and accommodating, while Hayes laments that hers had only two days open for the rest of 2020  and one was the day after Christmas.

Start those conversations with your venue as soon as possible and try to be realistic. If you're set on not paying any more than you already have, you may have to make some trade-offs.

'Some venues can't give you another Saturday, but they'll give you a Friday or Sunday,' Dalo says. 'I think that's a good compromise.'

START PRIORITIZING VENDORS

While many vendors are trying to be flexible, the reality is that they may not all be available on your new date, especially as more weddings are rescheduled for fall and winter.

'We have paid nonrefundable deposits for all of our vendors, and the most stressful part is trying to either line all of them up or choose which ones to take a loss with and potentially hire someone else,' Hayes says.

Delia Turner, a criminal attorney in Missouri, wasn't able to keep her photographer and hair and makeup artist.

'The photographer is a good friend of mine, but she wasn't available. She will subcontract someone for me. I also lost a $100 deposit on a hair and makeup artist.'

As you begin the postponement process, prioritize the vendors that matter the most to you as you work with your venue to find a new date. Cost could be a factor  replacing a videographer will likely be more expensive than finding a new hair and makeup artist  but also keep in mind that your vendors are dealing with personal and professional upheaval now, too.

'Remember that everyone is human. Small-business owners have already invested so much work, and half of that work is administrative,' says Yap, who is temporarily pivoting to weekly flower deliveries to maintain a positive cash flow. 'Spring is my largest season. I had ramped up with staffing and invested time into planning, so I'm figuring out how to make that all work.'

CHECK OUT WEDDING INSURANCE

'Our biggest regret is not purchasing wedding insurance,' says Crystal Ramirez, whose New Orleans wedding was postponed a week before she and her fiance lost their jobs. (She was an industrial insulator and he worked at an oil refinery.)

If your wedding is several weeks or months away, you may have time to get wedding insurance. There are two main types of coverage, liability insurance and cancellation or postponement coverage, and you can get one or both. Some venues already require liability insurance, but Dalo recommends taking the extra step of getting cancellation insurance as well.

However, be sure to read the fine print and consult your insurance provider. Whether cancellation coverage will reimburse events postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak may depend on city and state restrictions.

'One of my clients' cancellation coverage kicked in once the shelter-in-place order became mandatory. A recommendation from the local government wouldn't cover it, but a mandate did,' she says.

Continue to keep an eye on restrictions in the location where you're getting married and contact your insurance providers directly with any questions.

KEEP THINGS IN PERSPECTIVE

It's upsetting to have to reschedule an event you've been planning for months or even years, but make sure you're giving yourself mental space to concentrate on your day-to-day needs.

For San, that means shifting focus to his fiancee Emily, who is returning to her job as a nurse after taking some time off for their now-delayed wedding.

'Once the dust settled and we rescheduled, we pivoted to being more concerned about her going back to the hospital. I have something new to worry about besides this wedding,' he says.

Ultimately, it also helps to maintain some perspective and know you're not alone. Some couples are finding comfort in realizing they have a lot to be thankful for.

'Remember what's important: your health and your family and friends' health,' Colloton says. 'A wedding is a special day, but its one day and one party. This seems so small compared to what is happening in the world.'
Mohammad Mosaed.

Farid KamranNia

Iran arrested and interrogated a journalist after he criticized their handling of the coronavirus outbreak.

Mohammad Mosaed told BBC Persian that the hardline Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) detained him on February 22, 2020, and said his social media posts constituted "crimes."

Mosaed had posted criticism both of Iran's lack of readiness for a pandemic, and their response when the virus hit in January, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

The IRGC made Mosaed delete his Twitter and Telegram accounts, the CPJ said.

Mosaed was already awaiting trial after he was arrested in November 2019. He had tweeted criticism of the government's internet shutdown, and supported anti-government protests.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Iran arrested and detained a journalist who criticized the state's response to the novel coronavirus outbreak on social media.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) interrogated Mohammad Mosaed on February 22, 2020, according to an interview he gave to BBC Persian shortly after he was let go.

In a series of tweets, Mosaed accused the government of failing to prepare for an outbreak such as the coronavirus. He also slammed the government's response to it when it struck in January, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Mosaed, who is from Rasht in northern Iran, told BBC Persian that the IRGC warned him that "his social media activities can be examples of crimes."

The IRGC then banned Mosaed from reporting, and suspended his Telegram and Twitter accounts, according to Iran Wire.

A member of the Iranian army walks past rows of beds at a temporary 2,000-bed hospital for COVID-19 coronavirus patients set up in northern Tehran, Iran, on Thursday, March 26, 2020.

Associated Press

In another tweet, Mosaed said that two candidates running in February's general election in the city of Rasht, northwestern Iran, were linked with the IRGC, the CPJ reported.

Mosaed told BBC Persian he was ordered not to conduct any interviews with media outlets.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani speaks during a meeting of the Iranian government task force on the coronavirus, in Tehran in March 2020.

Reuters

"Right now, I'm waiting for my trial date to be announced to appear before the court for the case that was opened against me in November," he told BBC Persian.

Story continues

In November 2019, Mosaed was jailed in Iran's notorious Evin prison, which is run by the IRGC, after he was arrested over two earlier tweets which criticised the regime. He was let out on bail after 16 days.

Iranian authorities arrested Mosaed on November 22 in Rasht for tweets that he sent amid Iran's internet shutdown and subsequent protests, the Committee to Protect Journalists reported, citing a person familiar with his case.

"Knock knock! Hello Free World! I used 42 different proxy to write this! Millions of Iranians don't have internet. Can you hear us?," he tweeted on November 19.

Mosaed is one of many journalists arrested, questioned, silenced, or threatened by Iranian authorities during the coronavirus outbreak.

Others include Fardin Mostafaei, editor of the Saghezrud news site, who called for authorities to release infection data for the city of Saghez, according to Voice of America.

The Iranian documentary filmmaker Hussein Dehbashi was also questioned by intelligence ministry officials for publicly casting doubt on the epidemic, according to Reporters Without Borders.

Iran is ranked 170th of 180 countries in RSF World Press Freedom Index.

"Corona or no corona, there is no press freedom in Iran," Mohsen Behzad Karimi, an Iranian journalist based in the UK, told Voice of America.

Insider is covering Mosaed's case in conjunction with The One Free Press Coalition, which raises awareness of the world's persecuted journalists.

Read the original article on Insider
An Australian man has thought up an ingenious way to share a drink with his mates while still following coronavirus lockdown rules.

Joe Mignone, from Adelaide, posted a video to his Facebook page on Saturday showing him using a drone to deliver two glasses of scotch to a nearby backyard.

'Sharing a drink with our neighbours while keeping a social distance,' Mr Mignone wrote, adding that 'alcohol is a sanitiser' for those concerned about the glasses.

An Australian man has used a drone to deliver drinks to his neighbours in the coronavirus lockdown

Joe Mignone posted the video online on Saturday

The video shows the scotch being poured over ice into two glasses positioned in a container attached to the drone by a pink ribbon.

The glasses of Johnnie Walker are then delivered to two neighbours waiting outside their house without spilling a drop.

People commenting on the video were suitably impressed.

'This is gold!' one person said.

'Love this, so clever guys,' another person said.

'Very cool. Could you be my neighbour?' added a third.

Earlier this week Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that Australians should only be leaving their house for four reasons.

These are to go shopping for essential items, to exercise, to go to an essential job, and to get medical care.

Even when venturing out for these reasons people should still only be gathering in groups of no more than two and keeping 1.5 metres apart.

The drone delivered its cargo without spilling a drop and then returned to Mr Mignone's house
The Victoria Falls are thundering once again, just months after a severe drought brought the world's largest waterfall to a virtual trickle.

Heavy rainfall upstream means the Zambezi River, which feeds the falls, is now at its highest level for 20 years and has seen the amount of water cascading over the rocky outcrop increase by ten times since January.

A second deluge of water which fell in Angola in recent weeks near the source of the river, some 480 miles away, is on course to top up the torrent to levels not seen since the Seventies.

Victoria Falls, which sits on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe in southern Africa, has come roaring back to life thanks to heavy rains upstream (file image)

Just four months ago the falls, thought to be the largest in the world, had been reduced to a mere trickle amid the worst drought in the region for 100 years

Video taken by writer and photographer Peter Frost shows water gushing over the falls on Wednesday.

Trevor Lane, 68, a conservationist based in the town of Livingstone close to the falls, told The Times: 'It looks very much like we are going to exceed the record set in the Seventies in the next fortnight.'

However, almost nobody will get to witness the sight firsthand after Zimbabwe, on whose border the falls sits, closed viewing sights amid a lockdown over coronavirus.

The Victoria Falls - named by Scottish Explorer Robert Livingstone in 1855, but known as Mosi-oa-Tunya or 'The Smoke That Thunders' to locals for much longer - are neither the world's tallest, nor widest falls.

However, they are known as the world's largest due to a combination of width, height, and volume of water cascading over them.

For comparison, they are almost twice the height of America's Niagara Falls and more than twice the width of the Horseshoe Falls.

The falls sit on the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, and were formed by the Zambezi river washing away soft sedimentary rock to expose hard basalt beneath.

The falls are set to reach levels not seen since the 1970s after a second deluge in recent weeks, but few will get to see it after Zambia and Zimbabwe closed viewing areas due to coronavirus

News of heavy rainfall will also come as a relief to the citizens of Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa who rely on the Zambezi for power which is generated at the Kariba dam downstream of the falls (pictured, the falls at a trickle in November last year)

The river itself originates close to the border where Zambia, Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo meet.

It then flows through Zambia, Angola and Namibia, then back along the border of Zambia before discharging into the Indian Ocean in Mozambique.

The river is dammed at two points, the first of which - the Kariba - is located a short distance downstream from the falls.

While river levels have hit historic highs, the reservoir that feeds the dam is only 16 per cent full after the region suffered through its worst drought in 100 years.

The dam provides power for large parts of Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa, which have suffered blackouts as the river dried up.

Seeing the falls disappear also meant a drop in tourist revenues for Zambia and Zimbabwe, which typically attract millions of visitors each year.

Tallest waterfall in Ecuador runs dry after mysterious sinkhole opens up under the river that feeds it

The San Rafael waterfall in Ecuador has run dry.

Local officials have traced the cause to a large sinkhole that opened beneath the river that once fed the falls.

Located in Cayambe Coca Park, part of the Ecuadorian Amazon near the border with Colombia, the falls ranked as the tallest in the country at more than 500 feet.

The government has restricted access to the site of the falls and surrounding area as a team investigates what caused the sinkhole, according to a report in Mongabay.

Some have pointed to a hydroelectric plant 12 miles upstream as a possible cause.

'A waterfall that has been there for thousands of years does not collapse, coincidentally, a few years after opening a hydroelectric project,' Emilio Cobo, coordinator at the South America Water Program with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, told Mongabay.

'These are processes that are in scientific papers and there is sufficient evidence that a dam can cause effects of this type on a river.'

The plant, which was built by the Chinese company SinoHydro and opened in 2016, isn't directly on the river, but it has a diversion reservoir that's designed to remove between 90 and 100 percent of the sediment from the river before its waters reach the plant.

The San Rafael waterfall (pictured above) was the tallest waterfall in Ecuador, at over 500 feet, before a sinkhole formed underneath the river that feeds it, causing the falls to run dry

Sediment acts as a protective layer in riverbeds, helping to insulate the ground below from water erosion.

Without a steady flow of new sediment from upstream, the older sediment is eventually washed away, leaving more of the riverbed susceptible to erosion, a condition researchers describe as 'hungry waters.'

Geologist and former secretary of Natural Capital at Ecuador's Ministry of Environment Alfredo Carrasco argues that the 'hungry waters' phenomenon could also have been caused by seismic activity in the region.

'There are many quite intense earthquakes here. In March 1987, a very strong one appeared that caused tremendous damage to the trans-Ecuadorian oil pipeline that passes right through it,' Carrasco said.

'For me, the phenomenon is eminently of natural origin.'
Nob Hill

Photos: Carrie Sisto/Hoodline

A 36-year-old man is in life-threatening condition after an apparent shooting last night in Nob Hill.

Around 8:16 p.m. on April 1, San Francisco Police officers responded to reports of shots fired on the 1000 block of Pine Street (near Taylor).

Two suspects, both men said to be in their twenties, are believed to have driven alongside the victim in a sedan, while one of them fired several shots out of the car window, striking him in the chest. The suspects are said to have fled the scene in the same vehicle.

Officers found the man with apparent gunshot wounds. He was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.

1000 Pine is near the intersection with Taylor Street.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the SFPD 24-hour tip line at 415-575-4444 or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the text message with SFPD. Any tipster can remain anonymous.
How far off is China Isotope & Radiation Corporation (HKG:1763) from its intrinsic value? Using the most recent financial data, we'll take a look at whether the stock is fairly priced by projecting its future cash flows and then discounting them to today's value. I will be using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model. Don't get put off by the jargon, the math behind it is actually quite straightforward.

We generally believe that a company's value is the present value of all of the cash it will generate in the future. However, a DCF is just one valuation metric among many, and it is not without flaws. Anyone interested in learning a bit more about intrinsic value should have a read of the Simply Wall St analysis model.

Check out our latest analysis for China Isotope & Radiation

What's the estimated valuation?

We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second 'steady growth' period. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

A DCF is all about the idea that a dollar in the future is less valuable than a dollar today, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 Levered FCF (CN, Millions) CN427.0m CN722.0m CN508.2m CN396.7m CN337.7m CN304.1m CN284.3m CN272.7m CN266.1m CN262.9m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ -21.93% Est @ -14.89% Est @ -9.96% Est @ -6.5% Est @ -4.09% Est @ -2.4% Est @ -1.21% Present Value (CN, Millions) Discounted @ 7.7% CN396 CN622 CN407 CN295 CN233 CN195 CN169 CN151 CN136 CN125

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = CN2.7b

Story continues

We now need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all the future cash flows after this ten year period. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 10-year government bond rate of 1.6%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 7.7%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2029  (1 + g)  (r  g) = CN263m (1 + 1.6%)  7.7% 1.6%) = CN4.3b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= CN4.3b ( 1 + 7.7%)10= CN2.1b

The total value is the sum of cash flows for the next ten years plus the discounted terminal value, which results in the Total Equity Value, which in this case is CN4.8b. In the final step we divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Compared to the current share price of HK$17.6, the company appears around fair value at the time of writing. Valuations are imprecise instruments though, rather like a telescope - move a few degrees and end up in a different galaxy. Do keep this in mind.

SEHK:1763 Intrinsic value April 1st 2020

Important assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. Part of investing is coming up with your own evaluation of a company's future performance, so try the calculation yourself and check your own assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at China Isotope & Radiation as potential shareholders, the cost of equity is used as the discount rate, rather than the cost of capital (or weighted average cost of capital, WACC) which accounts for debt. In this calculation we've used 7.7%, which is based on a levered beta of 0.972. Beta is a measure of a stock's volatility, compared to the market as a whole. We get our beta from the industry average beta of globally comparable companies, with an imposed limit between 0.8 and 2.0, which is a reasonable range for a stable business.

Next Steps:

Although the valuation of a company is important, it shouldnt be the only metric you look at when researching a company. The DCF model is not a perfect stock valuation tool. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. For China Isotope & Radiation, We've put together three essential factors you should look at:

Risks: Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for China Isotope & Radiation you should know about. Future Earnings: How does 1763's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the SEHK every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
The Ondo State Government has said the two suspected Coronavirus cases, who were subjected to test, have come out negative.

This was contained in a statement issued by the state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Donald Ojogo, and made available to journalists on Thursday in Akure, the state capital.

Ondo State is delighted to announce that the two suspected COVID-19 cases subjected to tests came out negative today, April 2.

The suspected cases, who had contacts with confirmed cases, are from Ondo town and Akure, the state capital, respectively.

Our current status, as one of the states free from the pandemic, should engender sobriety rather than complacency, Mr Ojogo said.

The state government, therefore, urged all people in the state to be vigilant and ensure strict adherence with the directives put in place to stem the tide of COVID-19.

READ ALSO:

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the state government had earlier ordered the closure of all markets and motor parks, while fumigation of major markets across the state has also commenced.

The government also ordered the closure of all link roads to neighbouring states, with effect from 6 pm on Thursday, as part of measures to contain the spread of Coronavirus in the state.

(NAN)
South Africa: Citizens called to understand plight of those with Autism

As South Africa marks day 7 of the COVID-19 lockdown, Minister in the Presidency Maite Nkoana-Mashabane has called on citizens to observe and support people with Autism.

This as today the world marks World Autism Day under the theme The Transition to Adulthood.

While the worlds attention is focussed on stopping COVID-19, the department calls on all South Africans to take the time to understand and accept people with Autism Spectrum Disorder, in order to foster tolerance and inclusivity, said the Minister on Thursday.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a condition related to brain development and has the most noticeable impact in the way a person communicates and socialises with others resulting in mis-communication, misunderstanding and a core difference in processing information.

Nkoana-Mashabane encouraged citizens to empower themselves with knowledge on autism and the diverse support needs of persons with disabilities, particularly in light of South Africas current national lockdown.

This as the country is on day 7 of a national lockdown aimed at stopping the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Effect on COVID-19 lockdown

The Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities added that in the time of a lockdown, vulnerable groups face increased isolation through their physical, neuro-developmental and psycho-social conditions.

The department wishes to reiterate that persons with disabilities are among those who are particularly vulnerable to the negative impact of COVID-19, especially during the State of Disaster and the national lockdown that we are currently under. Persons with disabilities, the elderly, those in frail care and children with disabilities continue to remain at the periphery of society and are isolated from activities during the best of times, she said.

This years theme focuses on the significant challenges persons with autism face when transitioning to becoming a full and equal participant in the social, economic and political spheres of society.

The theme seeks to reveal how a lack of understanding and acceptance by society in general, impedes the inclusion of persons with autism into everyday life. While there are no accurate statistics for South Africa, the World Health Organisation estimates that one in sixty children globally are autistic.

Furthermore, due to persons with autism requiring varying levels of support, and many dependent on caregivers, many are still at increased risk of contracting COVID-19. Therefore, persons with disabilities and caregivers must take special precautions to minimise risk of transmitting the virus, said Nkoana-Mashabane.

During the lockdown period, persons with autism can experience heightened levels of frustration and anxiety due to a break in routine, and a lack of resources and appropriate engagement.

Protecting the vulnerable

Due to their communication challenges, persons with autism are also considered a vulnerable group when it comes to gender-based violence. This as they may not be able to report incidents of abuse. In addition, children with autism may not understand that they are being abused or that they need to signal that something is wrong.

Autism affects the way a person interacts and learns. The condition also includes limited and repetitive patterns of behaviour which can result in huge difficulties with change and the need for sameness and routine.

People with autism also experience sensory processing differences. Being a spectrum condition, levels of support for persons with autism may range from requiring high levels of support, to minimal levels of support.

There is a wide variation in the type and severity of symptoms persons may experience, and so there is no one-size fits all for support.

The department encourages all South Africans to continue to combat stereotypes, prejudices and harmful practises that hurt in any way, persons with disabilities and prevent their participation in all spheres of life, said Nkoana-Mashabane.

To ensure that persons with disabilities receive accessible information during this critical time, the Gender Based Violence Command Centre (GBVCC) which can be reached on 0800 428 428, also has a Skype Line (add Helpme GBV to your Skype contacts).

A Please Call Me facility is also available on *120*7867# while an SMS Based Line is also available on 31531.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
The seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic has won a Pennsylvania man convicted of distributing child pornography a delay in starting his stint in federal prison.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit in an opinion issued this week outlined its reasons for overturning a lower courts decision that would have required Calvin Roeder to begin his 6 -year jail term this past Monday, no ifs, and or buts.

Roeder, who pleaded guilty, received the March 30 report date in February, before the virus hit its stride in the Keystone State. He was supposed to report to a federal lockup in Allentown.

The situation is much different now, the circuit judges noted. COVID-19 has been declared a global pandemic. In Pennsylvania, the court observed, governments, schools, businesses and life in general are in lockdown mode to try to curtail the spread of the disease.

The circuit court took up Roeders issue after he filed a petition last week asking that his prison report date be pushed back to either May 4 or until the COVID-19 crisis subsides, in the interest of the health and safety of Mr. Roeder and every member of the staff of the federal prison at Allentown, in addition to their families, and other inmates.

Federal prosecutors didnt object to Roeders request. U.S. Eastern District Judge Wendy Beetlestone rejected it anyway.

In reversing Beetlestones order, the circuit judges cited the state Department of Healths position that social distancing is the best means of containing the virus. It goes without saying that prisons generally are crowded spaces and therefore are less than conducive to the practice of social distancing, the appeals court judges wrote. During this rapidly evolving public health emergency, there are many valid concerns about the possibility of contagion in prisons.

They noted the Federal Bureau of Prisons already is limiting outside contact with inmates and is screening them vigorously for signs of infection. It is unclear to what extent these measures have been or will be effective in mitigating spread of the disease. The BOP, like the rest of the country, is still learning how best to deal with this public health threat, they wrote.

They noted Beetlestone denied Roeders request for a reporting delay without giving a reason, even though he was not deemed to be a flight risk. She should have explained why (she) denied Roeders request for an extension of his self-surrender date in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the circuit court said, and so should any other judges considering similar requests.
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte announced that those who will violate the coronavirus lockdown measures could be shot for causing trouble, Reuters reports.

The President said abuse of medical workers was a serious crime that would not be tolerated.

In a televised address, Duterte said it was vital everyone cooperates and follows home quarantine measures, as authorities try to slow the contagion and spare the countrys fragile health system from being overwhelmed.

It is getting worse. So once again Im telling you the seriousness of the problem and that you must listen, Duterte said, adding: My orders to the police and military ... if there is trouble and theres an occasion that they fight back and your lives are in danger, shoot them dead.

The Philippines has reported over 2,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus and more than 100 deaths.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about an outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, central China. WHO declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a global pandemic and named the virus COVID-19. Cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in more than 200 countries.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:33:37|Editor: Yurou

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BANGKOK, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Thailand has imposed a curfew nationwide starting on Friday to prevent people from leaving home at night to curb the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha announced on Thursday that the curfew is effective nationwide between 10.00 p.m. and 04.00 a.m. (local time) daily, beginning on Friday.

Thailand earlier declared emergency rule to contain the COVID-19 spread but the number of confirmed cases has been growing on daily basis, totaling 1,875 on Thursday.

The Center for the COVID-19 Situation Administration has repeatedly called on people to stay home either in the daytime or at night to reduce the risks of infection.

In Bangkok, all retail stores, convenience stores and cell phone shops were on Wednesday ordered to close between midnight and 05.00 a.m. (local time), according to Bangkok Governor Aswin Kwanmuang.

Department stores, discount stores and marketplaces throughout the capital were earlier ordered to temporarily shut down, except for restaurants and food shops which have promised to remain open only for to-go orders.

In several provinces, including Bangkok's adjacent province of Nonthaburi, a curfew has already been effective before Thursday.
By Jeff Mason and Timothy Gardner

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said he has invited U.S. oil executives to the White House to discuss ways to help the industry "ravaged" by slumping energy demand during the coronavirus outbreak and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Trump also said he had talked recently with the leaders of both Russia and Saudi Arabia and believed the two countries would make a deal to end their price war within a "few days" - lowering production and bringing prices back up.

"I'm going to meet with the oil producers on Friday. I'm going to meet with independent oil producers also on Friday or Saturday. Maybe Sunday. We're going to have a lot of meetings on it," Trump told reporters at a media conference.

"Worldwide, the oil industry has been ravaged," he said. "Its very bad for Russia, its very bad for Saudi Arabia. I mean, its very bad for both. I think theyre going to make a deal."

Global oil prices have fallen by roughly two-thirds this year as the coronavirus has slammed global economies at the same time major producers Saudi Arabia and Russia have started to flood the market with oil.

Speaking to Reuters on Thursday, a senior Gulf source familiar with Saudi thinking said the Kingdom supports cooperation between oil producers to stabilize prices but Russia's opposition to a proposal last month to deepen supply cuts has caused market turmoil. [L4N2BQ0U7]

The collapse in prices has threatened the once-booming U.S. drilling industry with bankruptcies and massive layoffs, and Washington has scrambled for ways to protect the sector.

In the coming meetings with oil executives, Trump is expected to discuss a range of options to help the industry, including the possibility of tariffs on oil imports from Saudi Arabia, according to the Wall Street Journal, which was first to report the planned meetings.

Major drillers expected to participate in the initial meeting on Friday include Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp, Occidental Petroleum Corp, and Continental Resources, according to the Journal.

Occidental said it had no comment, while officials at the other companies did not respond to requests for comment.

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A source familiar with the plan told Reuters that oil refiners and small producers would also be represented and the issue of potential waivers for royalties on existing federal offshore and onshore leases would be discussed.

The American Petroleum Institute, which represents the U.S. oil and gas industry, said its president Mike Sommers would attend the initial meeting, but added: "We are not seeking any government subsidies or industry-specific intervention to address the recent market downturn at this time."

The API, many of whose members operate globally, has said in the past it opposes trade tariffs because it can complicate projects and business relationships in other countries.

The group on March 20, however, sent a letter to the Trump administration requesting relief from some regulatory requirements to ensure steady supplies during the coronavirus. The administration has since announced it will temporarily ease some environmental enforcement.

Trump this week called Russia and Saudi Arabia's price war "crazy" and spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the issue. Top energy officials from the two countries later spoke and agreed to continue discussions alongside other major global oil producers and consumers, according to the Kremlin.

The Trump administration said it is also planning to send a special envoy to Riyadh to push for lower output.

Saudi Arabia's crude supply rose on Wednesday to a record of more than 12 million barrels per day, two industry sources said, despite a plunge in demand triggered by the coronavirus outbreak and U.S. pressure on the kingdom to stop flooding the market.

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu, Jeff Mason, Timothy Gardner and Valerie Volcovici in Washington and Gary McWilliams in Houston, and Rania el Gamal in Dubai; Editing by Tom Brown, David Gregorio, Lincoln Feast & Simon Cameron-Moore)
Idris Elba has said he is in stuck in limbo having got through the quarantine period for coronavirus (COVID-19) but is now unable to get a flight home.

The Luther star previously revealed he and his wife Sabrina Dhowre Elba had tested positive for coronavirus while in New Mexico where he had been shooting a new film for Netflix. His home is in London.

Elba, 47, revealed in a video message on Twitter: Were both doing okay, still asymptomatic.

Weve passed the quarantine period but were stuck in limbo. We cant get a flight back home so we just have to sit still for a little bit. But other than that were okay and were so thankful that the worst of this has probably passed.

Latest coronavirus news, updates and advice

Live: Follow all the latest updates from the UK and around the world

Fact-checker: The number of COVID-19 cases in your local area

Explained: Symptoms, latest advice and how it compares to the flu

Idris Elbahas been in quarantine in New Mexico since testing positive for coronavirus. (Getty Images)

He added: I thought I was definitely gonna to see the worst of it as an asthmatic, but thankfully I came through. And you can too.

The Thor star admitted he was struggling with cabin fever in self-isolation.

He said: Its weird because I never sit still. Sabrina never sits still either, I think shes finding it harder. A bit of cabin fever. But were both good mentally - just trying to stay optimistic.

Elba added: Just a note to say were still here, hope youre good. Were going to fight this thing and everythings going to be cool. Thank you to everyone who sends us the love and the thoughts.

Idris Elba married Sabrina Dhowre Elba in 2019. (AP)

Hundreds of thousands of UK citizens stranded abroad face an anxious wait for details of rescue flights to be announced. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has set aside 75 million to charter flights from destinations where commercial routes have been severed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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Repatriation flights operated from Peru and Tunisia on Tuesday, but details of further flights have not been revealed. On March 23, the FCO advised all UK residents who were travelling abroad to return home.

Hundreds of thousands of people have since travelled back on commercial flights, but Transport Secretary Grant Shapps estimates around 300,000 are still overseas.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Monday that only 1,400 UK nationals had been repatriated on flights chartered by the Government.

Elba previously revealed doctors told him he would be immune to the virus for a period of time.

Hoping everyone is coping with this $@@!! Currently still quarantine.. Sab and I still feel ok so far with no changes. Dr told us that after quarantine we will be immune for a certain time since our antibodies fought this. At some point wed like to go home to London. Bsafe pic.twitter.com/M9wppoSa7i  Idris Elba (@idriselba) March 25, 2020

He tweeted: Dr told us that after quarantine we will be immune for a certain time since our antibodies fought this.

Since the actor revealed he had tested positive for coronavirus has used social media to address several fake news stories circulating.

In one video he said: There are so many stupid, ridiculous conspiracy theories about black people not being able to get it...

This disease does not discriminate Stop sending that s*** out  it's dumb, silly, and it's going to get more people sick. People need to know facts, need to understand the truth, so they can protect themselves.

Read more: Idris Elba praises Tom Hanks for 'transparency' over testing positive for COVID-19

Another message rubbished a conspiracy theory that celebrities were being paid to say they had the virus.

Elba said: This idea that someone like myself is gonna be paid to say Ive got coronavirus? Thats absolute bulls***.

Idris Elba has recovered from coronavirus. (Getty Images)

Its the quickest way to get people sick because theres no benefit to me and Sabrina sitting here saying weve got it if we aint got it. I dont even understand the logic of that.

The British actor - who first found fame on HBO show The Wire before becoming a Hollywood star - faced some criticism after it was claimed he had paid for a private test to confirm if he had the virus.

He said: I think the debate about rich and poor and whos getting it and whos not, I think, is not a healthy debate. Its like, I got a test but I also got Covid. Does that make me preferential? I dont understand that.
TORONTO, April 2, 2020 /CNW/ - Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corporation ("LIORC") (TSX: LIF) announced today that it has been advised that Iron Ore Company of Canada ("IOC") is adjusting its production to focus on meeting the demand for iron ore concentrate. The COVID-19 pandemic situation caused a slowdown in demand for pellets in various markets and industries across Europe and North America. LIORC understands that IOC is temporarily halting production of two pellet machines in Labrador City to respond to market demand for additional concentrate for sale. Currently, the demand for concentrate remains strong. IOC is in a unique position to be able to adjust its supply of product to align with changing market conditions.

IOC has advised LIORC that no IOC employees will be laid off as a result of this decision. IOC advises that it is focused on keeping its employees, contractors and local communities healthy and safe while protecting its business and continuing to support the local economies.

About Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corporation

The Corporation holds a 15.10% equity interest in IOC directly and through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Hollinger-Hanna Limited, and receives a 7% gross overriding royalty and a 10 cent per tonne commission on all iron ore products produced, sold and shipped by IOC.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains "forward-looking" statements that involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Words such as "may", "will", "expect", "believe", "plan", "intend", "should", "would", "anticipate" and other similar terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements reflect current assumptions and expectations regarding future events and operating performance as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to vary significantly, including iron ore price and volume volatility, exchange rates, the performance of IOC, market conditions in the steel industry, mining risks and insurance, relationships with aboriginal groups, changes affecting IOC's customers, natural disasters, severe weather conditions and public health epidemics, competition from other iron ore producers, estimates of reserves and resources and government regulation and taxation. A discussion of these factors is contained in LIORC's annual information form dated March 5, 2020 under the heading, "Risk Factors". Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of LIORC believes are reasonable assumptions, LIORC cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and LIORC assumes no obligation, except as required by law, to update any forward-looking statements to reflect new events or circumstances. This news release should be viewed in conjunction with LIORC's other publicly available filings, copies of which can be obtained electronically on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE Labrador Iron Ore Royalty Corporation

For further information: John F. Tuer, President & Chief Executive Officer, (416) 362-0066, E-mail- [email protected]

Related Links

http://www.labradorironore.com


President Donald Trump warned that the US is headed for a 'tough two weeks', advising people to be prepared for the 'hard days' ahead, as the country fights the fast-spreading coronavirus pandemic that the White House projects could claim one to two lakh lives in the coming weeks.

New York : The United States has reported 865 coronavirus deaths in one day, setting a one-day record, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Trump's remarks came as Deborah Bix, a member of White House Task Force on coronavirus, based on a model from actual data from the ground, said the death toll in the US could be between 100,000 to 200,000, with the strict implementation of the existing mitigation measures including social distancing till April 30.

If no steps were to be taken, the death toll could range between 1.5 million and 2.2 million, Brix said on a day when the confirmed number of coronavirus infections in the US, according to the Worldometer website, skyrocketed to over 188,000, adding more than 24,000 new cases in a single day and the fatalities rose to 3,867.

"I want every American to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead," Trump told reporters on Tuesday at a briefing which has now become his daily coronavirus press conference at the White House for more than 10 days.

"We're going to go through a very tough two weeks and then, hopefully, as the experts are predicting, as I think a lot of us are predicting after having studied it so hard, we are going to start seeing some real light at the end of the tunnel. But this is going to be a very painful, very, very, very painful two weeks," Trump said.

In this grim scenario, where the daily death toll keeps on jumping at an unprecedented rate, and more than 250 million of the American population has been forced to stay inside their homes, the president asked his countrymen to be positive and cooperate in this war against the invisible army of coronavirus.

"I want to give people hope. I'm a cheerleader for the country," said Trump who is the seeking his re-election in the November presidential elections.

Campaigning has come to a standstill and it is unlikely to revive in the next few months.

The social distancing measures now have been extended for another 30 days till April 30.

The country is expected to face the peak in coronavirus around middle of April.

"We're going through the worst thing that the country has probably ever seen. Look, we had - the Civil War, we lost 600,000 people, right? Here's a thing, had we not done anything, we would have lost many times that. But we did something, so it's going to be, hopefully, way under that," he said.

"But you know, we lose more here potentially than you lose in world wars as a country. So there's nothing positive, there's nothing great about it, I want to get people in this country hope. I think it's very important," Trump said.

The United States is in the midst of a great national trial, Trump said.
Hinting that the state's revenue



has fallen to an abysmal low of Rs 2 crore a day, the Andhra Pradesh government on Thursday made a desperate plea to the Centre to extend liberal financial assistance to tide over the "grave crisis" under the impact of COVID-19 and the consequent lockdown.

"We are facing a grave financial crisis, so much so that we could not even pay full salaries for the month of March to our officers and employees.

Our revenues have fallen to negligible levels," Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy told Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a videoconference on Covid-19 management.

"We have promised Rs 1,000 to each BPL family as relief because of the lockdown and we immediately need 1,500 crore for this on April 4," the Chief Minister said.

He urged the central government to extend liberal financial assistance to overcome the pathetic situation and bail out the state.

Official sources, who took part in the videoconference, said the Chief Minister also requested that the Centre supply coronavirus testing kits and personal protection equipment in view of the spurt in the number of cases.

Noting that the state recorded 132 coronavirus positive cases so far, the Chief Minister informed the Prime Minister that 111 of them were related to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi.

Reddy said the patients and suspects were being kept in home isolation and quarantine facilities and provided all necessary medical help.

"We require a lot of PPEs and also test kits. Kindly ensure their supply to AP," the Chief Minister said.

He also explained about the door-to-door survey being undertaken in both rural and urban areas to keep a tab on Coronavirus patients and also identify possible carriers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
From WhatsApp forwards that claim to have come from medical practitioners to self-proclaimed advisors on Twitter, there are many causing damage to the society with false information.In an attempt to cut the clutter around the information, the Government of India has listed some of the most common myths and has busted them using information from the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the MyGov website.The most common myth which has been doing rounds is that coronavirus cannot thrive in hot temperatures and therefore, hot baths and hand dryers are helpful in killing the virus.However, MyGov.in quoted WHO and denied any such claims. According to the organization, the virus can be transmitted in hot and humid climates and hot baths and hand dryers do not have any impact on them.Another temperature-related myth is that snow and cold weather can kill the virus which is also false as per the information on the government website.Though many viral diseases like dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis, and West Nile fever are transmitted through mosquito bites, coronavirus can only be spread through human communication.One piece of misinformation which is harming the society in the most significant manner is that of pets and animals spreading the disease.Getting influenced by it, many pet parents are abandoning animals in an attempt to keep themselves and their families safe.However, both the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have denied any such claims."CDC has not received any reports of pets or other animals becoming sick with COVID-19," read a statement by CDC.Another myth that is doing rounds on the internet is that consumption of certain vegetables like garlic can protect people from coronavirus but according to WHO, no such evidence has been found related to the claim.Sterilisation which is an important precaution to stop the spread of the highly contagious virus too has a lot of misinformation surrounding it.According to a pointer on MyGov.in, while many microorganisms can be killed through Ultraviolet light, it should not be used for sterilisation processes related to coronavirus.Once the virus once enters the human body, it cannot be killed by sanitization on the outside of the body with alcohol or chlorine or any other solution.Also, according to WHO, there has been no evidence that regular rinsing of the nose with saline has protected people from infection with the coronavirus.Some other myths busted on the government website are that antibiotics can kill the virus and consumption of garlic can protect from its infection.While garlic is healthy it cannot protect people from contracting coronavirus and antibiotics can only work against bacteria.To date, there is no specific medicine recommended to prevent or treat the coronavirus, the WHO has asserted.As airports, government offices and multiplexes adopted thermal scanning before letting people enter or leave the premises, a lot of people have the belief that thermal scanning can detect if the person has contracted coronavirus.While thermal scanners can detect if people have a fever, it cannot detect whether or not someone has coronavirus.Amidst a global healthcare crisis caused by COVID-19, there are chances of false information being spread in different parts of the country.Therefore, verifying each piece of information from WHO and other government websites is the best way to deal with the issue.According to the World Health Organisation, COVID-19 has affected over seven lakh people globally. (ANI)
Many quarantined Vietnamese students returning from Europe and the U.S. are adapting to online learning to catch up with their programs.

Around 4 a.m., after completing two hours of online learning in quarantine, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Lan, 23, from northern Hai Duong Province put away her laptop and fell asleep for the first time after four nights awake.

Studying a masters program at Bristol University in the U.K., Lan returned to Vietnam on March 20 and entered quarantine in Ninh Binh Province, around 60 kilometers south of Hanoi.

In her hand luggage, weighing 12kg, Lan brought nothing but books and her laptop for study purposes. Attending Bristol on the Think Big Scholarship Program, Lan is required to attend all online classes.

In order not to miss her first online lesson and submit an essay before the deadline, Lan must buy a special wifi ticket valid for 12 hours. In quarantine, she spends two to three hours one each subject per day.

Earlier, Lan could not adapt to the time zone change since most classes took place during U.K local time.

After four white nights, Lan lost three kilograms. Not until the fifth did she manage to finally adapt.

One of her main challenges was having to study between 1-3 a.m, followed by only two hours of sleep before everyone else wakes at 5 a.m.

Even though students have to log in an register attendance, teachers cannot keep them from falling. To cope, teachers usually arrange individual Q&A sessions.

On Monday, Lan joined a group meeting with three friends, two in the U.K. and the other in China. They had difficulty in deciding a specific time for a group discussion because "each person was in a different time zone.

In addition, because the quarantine zone has no wifi, she has to rely on her unstable phone connection.

Despite preparing to exit 14 days of isolation, Nguyen Minh, 22, from Hanoi, is still not used to learning online.

As a senior student at a university in Tennessee in the U.S., Minh decided to return to Vietnam as soon as her school reported the first positive infection on March 14. For Minh, the most difficult thing was to access online classes.

Minh is studying two majors in Applied Mathematics and Human Development and is in dire need of direct support.

"It is difficult to engage with something like Math without direct contact with my professors," Minh said, prepared to see scores drop during this period.

Like Lan, Minh also had difficulty adapting to different time zones, with Vietnam 12 hours ahead of the U.S and online classes usually occurring at 3-4 a.m.

For the moment, online learning is strictly controlled as professors can see who is logged into the online learning system.

Majoring in Communications at a university in Leeds of the U.K., Vu Ngan, 23, from Hanoi, returned home on March 19 and encountered many inconveniences in online learning while in quarantine.

Ngan must attend classes at either 9 p.m. or 1 a.m., some days attending both shifts. In bad health, she feels worn down.

"I asked my teachers to extend some deadlines one or two weeks. If I can go home, I will have better conditions in which to study," she said, confirming she had gained consent.

Vietnam currently has about 190,000 international students. Since the Covid-19 pandemic worsened in many parts of the world, many overseas Vietnamese students have flown home and been under quarantine for 14 days.

Of the 222 Covid-19 patients confirmed in Vietnam until now, 64 have been discharged from hospitals.

Most of the active cases are those who have returned from Europe and the U.S. and people whove had close contact with them.

The Covid-19 pandemic has spread to 203 countries and territories, claiming nearly 47,000 lives.
The views expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of FreightWaves or its affiliates.

April Fools' Day jokes span from the funny to the mean spirited. In the case of the Phase One trade deal the results are a joke but at the United States' expense. Based on the movement of containers, cargo and tankers, China has been making "huge" purchases but not from the U.S.

China's appetite for energy continues but not with the United States. Russia's relationship with China has strengthened since the start of the trade war and shows no signs of weakening. What validates this is the increase in the tons of oil purchases. According to Reuters, on March 25, China made a record purchase of 1.6 million tons of Russian oil. Traders told the wire service China was taking advantage of the collapsed oil price to beef up its strategic oil reserves. In January, Russia's Urals supply to China surpassed 1.2 million tons. The United States is still waiting for that energetic bump in oil purchases from China.

The wait also continues for liquified natural gas (LNG) purchases. China is outpacing LNG buys with other countries and Russia.

(Photo credit: Flickr/Jens Schott Knudsen)

"Backloaded phase-one energy purchases and a long dispute process always meant Beijing could buy slowly and wait for U.S. political tea leaves in November," explained Kevin Book, Managing Director of Research at ClearView Energy Partners, LLC. "If China did want to make good, low energy prices mean less compliance credit per cargo purchased, putting commodities that have retained more of their value ahead of energy."

The recovery of the agriculture industry is a tale of the haves and have nots. U.S. soybeans are still more expensive than the competition, resulting in small purchases. "China's Brazilian soybean demand is at a pre-African Swine Fever [ASF] level," explained Jesper Buhl of BullPositions. "A full reversal of the sharp price premium on U.S. soybeans over Brazilian beans is not in sight."

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Buhl mentioned in his note the record pace in grain and bean exports in March 2020 has the momentum to spill over into April and the start of the second quarter of 2020. "We estimate that the record strong export of soybeans from Brazil will last well into May, while other major North Atlantic export regions will slow exports as they near their end of crop-season supply squeeze."

While beans and grains have not seen a pop, the tail of the piggy is wagging positively. According to the National Hog Farmer, ASF, the driver behind China's export demand, will continue.

The pullback in China's purchases cannot be replaced. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau show while the U.S. has been successful in selling goods that were once consumed by China to other countries in the world, it's not making up for the lost volumes. Comparing 2019 volumes to 2017, total U.S. seaborne exports of goods are down 2.6%. It is also important to highlight the increases in goods exports were to every region of the world except Asia and Europe. Why? Trade wars.

FreightWaves SONAR

"'Phase One' of the trade agreement may reverse some of the lost volumes in exports to China but it will not necessarily provide a large boost to U.S. exports, as all tariffs on Chinese imports from the U.S. remain in place as well as the majority of those on U.S. imports from China," explained Peter Sand, BIMCO senior shipping analyst in his March 26th note. "It also comes in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak which is affecting both demand for the goods in China and their production in the U.S., hampering higher exports."

Just like the punchline of an April Fools' joke which is not real, so are the results of the U.S. Phase One trade deal with China. Actions speak louder than words.

See more from Benzinga

 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Isolation facilities will help support Ontario hospital with COVID-19 assessments

Ottawa, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rampart International, one of BLU-MED's Canadian distributors, has supplied Southlake Regional Health Centre with two BLU-MED Negative Pressure Isolation Facilities to increase their capacity to treat more patients.





BLU-MED Negative Pressure Isolation Facilities



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/7034/54038_BLU-MED-negative-pressure-isolation-system-4%201.jpg

"The isolation facilities we have procured from Rampart will allow us to provide more care for patients," said Stephen Trafford, manager of emergency and disaster preparedness, Southlake Regional Health Centre. "This will allow us to rapidly increase our negative pressure bed capacity not just in response to this pandemic, but any future potential health emergencies."

Each BLU-MED Negative Pressure Isolation Facility is capable of housing up to 10 patients within an environment that meets the US Centers for Disease Control guidelines on Airborne Infectious Disease prevention protocols. The goal is to reduce the exposure of hospital staff and patients, prepare for the potential influx of infected patients, and establish patient isolation facilities that prevent the spread of the COVID-19 while effectively treating those infected.

"Rampart is proud to ensure that Canada's frontline health care workers and first responders have the equipment they need to succeed," said Mike Klein, president of Rampart International Corp. "Systems such as this have the potential to make a significant difference in the fight against COVID-19."

The facilities are expected to be delivered and operational by early April 2020 at Southlake Regional Healthcare in Newmarket, ON.

About Southlake Regional Health Centre

Southlake Regional Health Centre is a full-service hospital with a regional, clinically advanced focus. We provide our communities with care right from birth to end of life and delivers top-notch services such as cardiac and cancer care across York Region and Simcoe-Muskoka. With a team of more than 3,000 employees, 580 physicians, and more than 900 volunteers, Southlake is committed to creating an environment where the best experiences happen. For more information, www.southlake.ca.

About Rampart International Corporation

Rampart is Canada's leading supplier of Operational Equipment to Public Safety, First Responders, Law Enforcement, and the Canadian Armed Forces. Established in 2010, our mission is to offer the world's finest equipment supported by unmatched customer service and dedication to the end-user.

For more information about Rampart's Pandemic Response Equipment, visit https://rampartcorp.com/covid-19-preparedness

About BLU-MED Response Systems

BLU-MED Response Systems (BLU-MED) is the world's leading provider of medical shelter systems and mobile field hospitals. Their medical shelters allow government agencies (of all levels; federal, provincial, city, and local municipality), hospitals, healthcare facilities, emergency management and response agencies, and aid organizations the ability to establish advanced-level care facilities quickly when and where needed.

For more information about BLU-MED, visit www.blu-med.com/

- 30 -

Media inquiries can be directed to:

Jeremy Stobo

jstobo@rampartcorp.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54038
Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope on Thursday said that the government is taking the responsibility of all migrant workers in the state and promised them to provide all facilities, including food and medical facilities amid the nationwide lockdown.

"We are taking the responsibility of all migrants workers here in the state. We will provide them all facilities including food and medical facilities," Tope said.

Earlier today, the Maharashtra government declared 30 government hospitals in the state as COVID-19 hospitals to deal with the rising number of patients, an official in the state health ministry said.

Meanwhile, officials said that 81 fresh coronavirus positive cases were reported in Maharashtra today, taking the total number of confirmed cases in the state to 416, including 19 deaths.

Out of the 81 cases, 57 have been reported in Mumbai, six from Pune, three from Pimpri Chinchwad, nine from Ahmednagar, five from Thane and one from Buldhana.

So far, 42 people have been discharged after being treated for COVID-19 in the state.

The country is under a 21-day lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country rose to 2,069 on Thursday, after as many as 235 new cases were reported in the last 24 hours, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. So far, at least 53 people have lost their lives due to the virus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US Moves Air Missile Defense Systems to Iraq Amid Iran Threat

The United States is moving air missile defense systems into Iraq, the military confirmed, hours after President Donald Trump said intelligence indicated Iran is planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops in Iraq.

The U.S. is moving defensive systems into Iraq to protect Iraqi, coalition, and U.S. service members from a variety of air threats seen at Iraqi bases that host coalition troops, Capt. Bill Urban, spokesman for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), said in a statement on April 2.

It is important to note that repeated attacks on Iraqi bases, which violate Iraqi sovereignty, have killed and injured Iraqi, coalition, and U.S. service members.

Because of security reasons, the U.S. military hasnt disclosed when the systems will come online. U.S. forces are continuing to work closely with Iraqi officials and troops as they focus on deterring Iran and Iranian-backed groups as well as making sure the terror group ISIS remains decimated.

Gen. Frank McKenzie, CENTCOM commander, told Congress in March that Iranian proxies in Iraq have increased attacks on U.S. interests there since May 2019, including the launching of more than a dozen ballistic missiles in January. He told reporters that the military had begun to prepare for the movement of Patriot missile systems into Iraq.

President Donald Trump speaks about the coronavirus in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on April 1, 2020, in Washington, as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley, listens. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

The last tit-for-tat between Iran and the United States came in March when an Iranian-backed group hit Camp Taji in Iraq. U.S. forces responded by attacking five sites held by Iran-supported groups.

That was a very big response. We knocked out a lot. They hit one site, we hit five big ones. I wont say how many people were killed, but some bad people were killed, and a lot of them, Trump told reporters at the White House during a press briefing on April 1.

The information U.S. officials received in recent days showed that Iran, or groups it supports, was planning something, Trump said.

He threatened on Twitter that Iran will pay a very heavy price if an attack happens.

Were just saying dont do it. It would be a very bad thing for them if they did it, he said at the White House press briefing.

Military leaders appeared with Trump on April 1 as the United States announced the deployment of warships to the eastern Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea to prevent drug cartels from exploiting the pandemic and smuggling more drugs into America.

Members of the Iranian Red Crescent test people for CCP virus symptoms outside Tehran, Iran, on March 26, 2020. (STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Irans Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif responded to Trump on Twitter, telling Trump, Dont be misled by usual warmongers.

Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of proxies Unlike the USwhich surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinatesIran only acts in self-defence, he wrote. Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do.

Iran has been hit hard by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. Officials have officially reported 50,468 cases and 3,160 deaths. Many experts say the true death toll is much higher.

The United States has repeatedly offered humanitarian assistance to Iran, but Iranian leaders have rebuffed the offers.

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper told reporters at the White House: I think if the Iranian regime put more interest in terms of taking care of their people in the context of this virus, they would be better served. Instead, the Iranian regime continues to want to spread its malign activities throughout the region.
Magnus Nicolin, the head of protective suits and glove manufacturer Ansell, says Beijing needs to crack down on Chinese companies that have substantially lifted the prices of face masks during the COVID-19 crisis.

"There's been an enormous price escalation. Some of the Chinese companies who are claiming to be doing so much good for mankind have taken prices up two, three, four, or even 10 times what it was before. So it leaves a little bit of an ugly taste," he told The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.

At the same time, he said the ASX-listed personal protective equipment (PPE) maker had "not changed our pricing one bit".

Ansell CEO Magnus Nicolin says governments must consider global needs when defining their essential industries and facilitate, not hinder the movement of personal protective equipment. Credit:Peter Rae

Asked if Chinese authorities needed to crack down on the price hikes, Mr Nicolin said "I think they need to". While it was up to all parties to crack down on price hikes, China had "a big role to play here", he said.
Mylab Discovery Solutions, the first Indian company to get commercial approval to supply COVID-19 test kits, on April 2 said it received funding from Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum Institute of India, and Abhijit Pawar, Chairman of AP Globale (APG).

The company didn't disclose details like the quantum of funds.

The Pune-based company said it will deploy the funds to scale up operations and quicken delivery of testing kits for COVID-19.

The investment towards Mylab will enable them to build infrastructure and expand capabilities further, said Adar Poonawalla, CEO, Serum Institute of India.

In the next few weeks we will be ramping up the production of the COVID-19 testing kits, taking from 1.5 lakh tests to 20 lakh tests per week. The shortage of testing kits will come to an end in a month or two, Poonawalla noted.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

We are honoured to stand by our prime minister and the government, while supporting them during these trying times. This partnership will ensure we do our bit to help in this time of crisis," said Abhijit Pawar of APG. The group is into education and impact investing. Pawar also heads Pune-based Sakal Media Group.

Mylab's time-saving testing kit, named Mylab PathoDetect COVID-19 Qualitative PCR kit, was developed within six weeks of the outbreak.

The kit was approved by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) after Indian Council of Medical Research's evaluation.

This will help Mylabs create a world class organisation, which will help India become a leader in molecular diagnostics, said Sujit Jain, Director, Mylab.

In 2019, Mylab became Indias first FDA (CDSCO) approved manufacturer for RT-PCR-based molecular diagnostic kits for detection and quantification of HIV, HBV and HCV. The company's manufacturing facility, approved by the CDSCO, is compliant with MDR 2017 regulation for manufacturing medical device of Class A,B,C and D and ISO 13485: 2016 certification.

Hitesh Jain, Managing Partner, Parinam Law Associates, was the legal advisory for the deal partnership.
Sammezzano Castle among endangered European sites Committee, only Italian location among '7 Most Endangered'

(ANSAmed) - FLORENCE, APRIL 2 - The castle of Sammezzano in Reggello (Florence) has been listed among the '7 Most Endangered', a European program to protect the seven cultural sites most at risk in Europe and mobilize public and private institutions to guarantee their restoration. The announcement was made by Francesco Esposito, the spokesman of civic movement 'Save Sammezzano', promoter of the awareness campaign, contacted by Europa Nostra, the pan-European federation for cultural heritage that included the Tuscan castle in the European project, the only case in Italy.



The initiative will take action through a team of specialists including cultural heritage experts of Europa Nostra and finance experts of the European Investment Bank. After visiting the castle, they will identify possible sources of funding and adequate intervention plans, helping raise funds to restore Sammezzano. Technical and financial recommendations will also be drafted for a series of future actions.



The other six sites that will take part in the program are: National Theatre of Albania (Albania), Castle Jezei (Czech Republic), Y-block - Government Quarter (Norway), Szombierki Power Plant (Poland), Belgrade Fortress and its surrounding (Serbia), Plenik Stadium (Slovenia). (ANSAmed).




A 58-year-old man from Pensran village in Hoshiarpur district was referred to Guru Nanak Dev Hospital, Amritsar, after he tested positive for Covid-19 on Wednesday.

Amritsar civil surgeon Dr Prabhdeep Kaur Johal said, A new patient referred from the Hoshiarpur civil hospital is Covid-19 positive as reported from the Viral Research and Diagnostic Laboratory of Government Medical College, Patiala, on April 1. The patient has diabetes besides fever, cough and breathlessness. The patient is a high risk case.

Punjab special chief secretary Karan Bir Singh Sidhu also confirmed the news by tweeting, He is a primary contact of a UK-returned woman, his sister. They were under home quarantine.

REST OF FAMILYS SAMPLES SENT FOR TESTING

The patient was referred to Amritsar as he was not showing improvement since he was admitted to the civil hospital in Hoshiarpur on March 29.

Hoshiarpur civil surgeon Dr Jasbir Singh said that the man had received his sister and her family at Delhi airport on March 13.

The four members of his sisters family were asymptomatic but now that their contact has been diagnosed with coronavirus, their samples have also been sent for examination, the civil surgeon said.

So far, six people, including Harbhajan Singh of Moranwali who died last week, have tested positive for Covid-19 in Hoshiarpur district and all belong to Posi block.

Pensran village in Garshankar has been sealed and the samples of 41 contacts of the infected person have been collected.

69-year-old woman is Ludhianas 5th case

A 69-year-old woman from Shimlapuri in Ludhiana has been tested positive for Covid-19. She is undergoing treatment at a private hospital on Chandigarh Road. According to civil surgeon Dr Rajesh Bagga, the woman had visited Mohali on March 17 to meet her niece. On March 23, she was rushed to a private hospital for fever, dry cough and respiratory issues. She was tested for Covid-19 on Thursday in which she was found positive for the virus. She is the fifth Covid-19 case from Ludhiana.
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Linkedin Dzulfiqar Fathur Rahman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 18:51 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f4e434 1 City COVID-19-Indonesian-patients,COVID-19-Jakarta,anies-baswedan,Maruf-Amin,death,Funeral Free

The Jakarta administration is reporting a worsening trend in the number of funerals using the protocols for people who died from the fast-spreading COVID-19.

Between March 6 and Wednesday, 401 corpses were buried using the protocols: They were sprayed with disinfectant, covered in plastic and put inside coffins, according to Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan.

Anies said the number of COVID-19-related funerals began to pick up on March 12, nearly a week after the first such funeral.

On Thursday before 12 p.m. alone, the administration reported 38 bodies were buried using the protocols.

Read also: Jakarta extends COVID-19 state of emergency to April 19

We were looking into data not only from the Health Ministry but also from cemeteries because some people with COVID-19 had not finished their test processes [] before they died, Anies said during an online video conference with Vice President Maruf Amin on Thursday. Hence, we could not declare them COVID-19 patients.

Jakarta, the national epicenter of the outbreak, has started to conduct rapid tests across the province as the recent wave COVID-19 cases showed no signs of slowing down.

It had performed rapid tests on 18,077 people by Tuesday, according to the Jakarta Health Agencys head of disease control and prevention division, Dwi Oktavia Handayani.

The test, which analyzes blood to detect whether a person has contracted the virus, found that 299 people were positive for COVID-19 while the remaining 17,778 people returned negative results.

As of Thursday, the COVID-19 coronavirus, first discovered in December in Wuhan city in Hubei province in China, had infected 885 people in Jakarta  nearly half of the countrys confirmed cases.

Read also: COVID-19: Jakarta awaits certainty from govt on quarantine

Of the confirmed cases in the capital, 90 people had died of the disease while only 53 had recovered.

The situation is very concerning, said the governor. This was the reason we wrote a letter to the President proposing an extreme restriction measure.

Speaking with the Vice President, Anies requested support from the government in the form of testing kits that use throat swabs to detect whether a person has contracted the coronavirus.

Jakarta badly needs support to speed up the testing so we can detect people with the disease earlier, said Anies. Many cases were treated late. It has severe consequences if we are late in detection. They may already transmit the virus to others.

Maruf said he would recommend the government support Jakarta in improving its testing.
LANSING, Mich. (AP)  President Donald Trumps allies are trying to contain a politically risky election year fight with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer as he struggles to balance presidential politics with a global pandemic in one of the nations most important swing states.

Both sides have tried to de-escalate the feud this week, although Trump's supporters in particular sought to downplay tensions that ratcheted up over the weekend when the Republican president unleashed a social media broadside against Whitmer, a Democrat who had been critical of the federal government's response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Trump has clashed with other Democratic governors as well, but he saved his most aggressive insults for the first-term female governor, who is considered a leading vice presidential prospect for his opponent.

"Everyone should be shedding the partisanship and coming together," Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said in an interview, suggesting that some of Trump's criticism had been mischaracterized.

"I am rooting for Gov. Whitmer," said McDaniel, who lives in Michigan. "I think she's done good things. ... I just didn't like her trying to lay every problem at the president's feet."

The backpedaling underscores the nature of the dispute, which comes seven months before Election Day in a state that could make or break Trump's reelection bid. Michigan is an elite presidential battleground that has historically celebrated bipartisanship and pragmatism while rewarding candidates who rally behind key institutions in crisis. Four years ago, Trump eked out a win by about 11,000 votes out of more than 4.5 million cast in the state.

Michigan Rep. Paul Mitchell, a Republican, said he raised concerns about Trump's political attack with the administration directly.

"I did relay to the administration that I didn't think it was helpful and why play that game," Mitchell said in an interview. "These are times when the American people look for leaders. Leaders don't whine. Leaders don't blame."

He said he raised similar concerns with Whitmer's office, suggesting that her criticisms about the federal response have not necessarily been accurate.

"This is not the time where we need more drama in this country," Mitchell said.

While political fights are common for Trump, Whitmer's rise in Democratic politics has been defined by her decision usually not to attack the president.

Whitmer, a 48-year-old longtime state legislator and attorney, ran for governor as a pragmatic liberal, emphasizing her bipartisan work while pledging to fix Michigan's crumbling roads. She rarely talked about Trump before the election or after.

But as a frequent guest on national media in recent weeks, Whitmer has criticized the federal response while pleading for ventilators, personal protection equipment and test kits as Michigan has emerged as one of the hardest-hit states. Republicans were especially upset after she implied during a Friday radio interview that the Trump administration was intentionally withholding medical supplies from Michigan.

In a weekend tweet storm as the coronavirus death toll surged, Trump called her Gretchen Half Whitmer, charging that she was in way over her head and doesnt have a clue about how to handle the health crisis. Two days earlier, Trump said publicly that he had instructed Vice President Mike Pence, the leader of the White Houses pandemic response, not to call the woman in Michigan.

Trump has since deleted the tweet. And in a press briefing on Tuesday, he said he had a productive conversation with Whitmer earlier in the day.

Whitmer is on Joe Bidens list of potential vice presidential candidates, he said in an interview Tuesday.

The former vice president made the remarks during an appearance on MSNBC, after host Brian Williams asked if Whitmer had lengthened Bidens shortlist due to her performance during the pandemic.

She hadnt lengthened the list  she made the list, in my mind, two months ago, Biden said in a brief clip released by MSNBC.

By STEVE PEOPLES and DAVID EGGERT, The Associated Press
More than 10 Victorians have been fined in the past day for breaching stage 3 coronavirus restrictions, as well as a Geelong brothel which was so busy on Wednesday it caused a local traffic jam.

Police have also confirmed they are investigating a Portsea couple who allegedly visited shops in Sorrento and played golf after returning from a skiing trip to Aspen, breaching self-isolation guidelines.

"I understand we are looking into the report from the Portsea alleged breach of isolation guidelines and if it is determined that there were we would take action. But at this stage we don't have an outcome on that," Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton said on Thursday.

Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton. Credit:Scott McNaughton

Dozens of infections can be traced to a group of Australians who visited Aspen and attended an annual cocktail party at the ski resort hosted by Flexigroup founder and Liberal Party powerbroker Andrew Abercrombie.
Hong Kong: HA gives update on isolation beds

(To watch the full press briefing with sign language interpretation, click here.)

The Hospital Authority today said it is working on various plans to ensure it can provide enough isolation beds to accommodate the increasing number of COVID-19 cases.

The authoritys Chief Manager (Quality & Standards) Dr Lau Ka-hin emphasised that even though there are more than 1,000 isolation beds, not all of them are being used to treat those infected with the virus.

"(As) for isolation beds, yes, we are running out of isolation beds because (for) the 1,033 isolation beds (that we have) - some of them are in the intensive care units, in pediatric units and general wards - not (all) are (being) used for the purpose of isolating patients with COVID-19.

"Up to 3pm, there are four confirmed cases that are waiting to go to hospitals for treatment."

Dr Lau explained that second-tier isolation wards are currently being set up to free up space for new cases.

"We are preparing the second-tier isolation wards now. We hope that patients can be transferred from the first-tier isolation wards to the second-tier isolation wards in order to retain more beds and more room in first-tier isolation facilities to accommodate the confirmed cases."

Dr Lau added that the authority is looking at alternative locations for setting up more isolation facilities.

"There is no definite plan. We are looking for any kind of possible facilities which can help the Hospital Authority to accommodate the recovering confirmed cases so that we can have more isolation facilities inside the hospitals."

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this





Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here
Ryan Welch, Beaumont Enterprise / The Enterprise

All of us are faced with challenges from the coronavirus, but for some this crisis is especially hard. People dealing with addiction or those in need of mental health counseling face difficulties that others can only imagine, as our story on Thursday illustrated. These people need our support during the best of times, and they also need it during the worst of times, like this.

The sudden shutdown of nonessential businesses and public meetings has cut them off from most personal contact with counselors and the support groups they were relying on. But their daily struggle isnt put on hold, making it even harder to cope with the strange new normal that has been forced upon us.
A man wearing a mask to prevent contracting the coronavirus waits for his flight next to an empty check in booth at Incheon International Airport in Incheon

By Hyonhee Shin

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea will allow coronavirus patients to vote by mail or as absentees in parliamentary elections this month, as a two-week campaign kicked off on Thursday in a country grappling with a steady rise in new infections.

Voters go to the polls on April 15 to elect 300 members of the National Assembly for the next four years, in an exercise posing challenges over how to rein in the virus at polling places while ensuring people's right to vote.

Roughly 4,000 patients receiving treatment will be able to case ballots by mail or absentee voting ahead of time, Interior Minister Chin Young said.

"We will guarantee the confirmed patients' right to vote as much as possible," he told a briefing, adding that the government was still exploring measures for those who had not tested positive but were in self-quarantine.

The two-week campaign launched with candidates wearing masks and shunning handshakes and large rallies.

The National Election Commission has urged all voters to wear mask in polling stations, make use of sanitisers and gloves available there, and keep a distance from others.

Officials will run temperature checks at the entrance and perform regular disinfections.

More than 87,000 citizens living in 55 countries suffering major epidemics, including the United States and Europe, or about half of eligible voters abroad, will not be able to vote as South Korea does not allow mail ballots for those overseas.

With 89 new infections on Thursday, the tally of case rose to 9,976, while the death toll rose by four to 169, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said.

A total of 5,828 have recovered from the virus, with 3,979 still receiving treatment, it added.

Interactive graphic tracking global spread of coronavirus: open https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser.

(Reporting by Hyonhee Shin; Additional reporting by Sangmi Cha; Editing by Michael Perry and Clarence Fernandez)
The government of Hassan Diab has overcome its first serious challenge by adopting during a meeting on March 31 a plan to repatriate Lebanese expatriates who wish to return home. The plan was drafted by a ministerial committee, made up of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Zeina Acar, Foreign Affairs Minister Nassif Hitti, Interior Minister Mohammad Fahmi, Health Minister Hamad Hassan, Transport Minister Michel Najjar and Minister of Social Affairs Ramzi Moucharafieh.

When it comes to the coronavirus, the ministers are completely aware of the need to act quickly, as every hour counts. According to ministerial sources, the adopted plan will be implemented in two phases. The first phase will take place between April 5 and April 12 and the second between April 27 and May 4. The intention is to implement the first phase, then wait two weeks to study the epidemic curve in order to be able to deal with any possible gaps in the plan.

The sources explained that a specific mechanism will be adopted. First of all, Lebanese embassies will call on Lebanese living abroad and wishing to return to their homeland to register their names. Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti has asked two weeks ago the embassies abroad to start advising Lebanese who want to be repatriated to respect confinement measures where they are. Those who want to return will have to fill out specific forms describing among others the reasons for their stay abroad and their health condition. According to the ministerial sources, about 22,000 people have already registered their names, but the repatriation plan will start with "a first wave" of 10,000 expatriates.

Those who have registered their names will have to undergo a quick test for the coronavirus to determine whether they were infected. Then, they will be divided into two groups: those who are infected and those who are not. It should be noted that the expatriates wishing to return will be subjected to quick antibody and antigen tests (which are able to detect antibodies to determine whether an individual has been exposed to the virus and not if he is sick right now), because Lebanon does not have enough PCR tests (conventional tests which take several hours to provide results).

The government will then charter planes, one for the sick and one for the healthy. The plane that will transport people infected with the virus should carry special equipment and have a medical team on board, noting that Middle East Airlines (MEA) will handle negotiations with the airports of the countries concerned in order to obtain the necessary authorizations for take-offs.

Those who test negative and board the plane should leave an empty seat between them and wear surgical masks throughout the flight. General Security agents will also be present and will ensure that the passengers sign a document whereby they undertake to comply with the instructions. A diplomat from the Lebanese embassy of the country concerned will supervise the boarding of the passengers. Once in Beirut, the passengers will be separated: those who are in good health and those who have (health) problems prior to the coronavirus outbreak. All passengers will then be re-tested. Those suspected of being infected with the virus will be taken to hospitals, the others will have to respect confinement instructions, some at home and others in places prepared for this purpose in all Lebanese districts. Each healthy passenger will be greeted by only one person who will be picking him up from the airport. The Interior Security Forces will arrange transportation for any group of passengers.

The plan, which came in response to pressing demands by House Speaker Nabih Berri and a number of political parties, was designed to allow expatriates return home without endangering the lives of the local residents. The plan also takes into account the risks and calls for extreme caution.

Since the treasury coffers are practically empty, the passengers themselves will cover all related costs while local banks were asked to facilitate transfers. The sources, however, noted a real sense of solidarity, as some Lebanese living abroad have offered to help those who cannot afford to pay their flight tickets.





Medical monitoring

However, there remains a risk that those who return may not strictly comply with the confinement instructions. The plan provides for medical monitoring by hospitals, under the supervision of the Ministry of Health, to verify that confinement instructions are indeed respected; for the Lebanese are known for their unruly behavior.

It is for this reason that the government had some reservations concerning a massive repatriation, but without ever questioning the right of the Lebanese living abroad to return to their country.

The government handled the coronavirus crisis by putting in place a two-phased plan. First, it closed the land, air and sea borders for two weeks (from March 14 to 29) to end contamination from abroad. It moreover gave those who wanted to return a 4-day deadline to decide before the airport closed on the evening of March 18. Then came the extension of the "general mobilization" for two more weeks, with strict containment measures, to help limit the spread of the virus and flatten the curve of the coronavirus infection.

That is why when the Speaker of the Parliament raised the issue of repatriating the expatriates, PM Hassan Diab had replied: Not before April 12, when the extended containment measures expire. But Diab had to change his position, given the importance of the issue, while trying to take all measures that would keep as much as possible the spread of the virus under control. This government is taking on a new challenge, by relying on the cooperation of the Lebanese. The ministerial committee is scheduled to meet again on Thursday April 2nd to set the timetable and practical details of the expatriates' return.





(This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour on the 1rst of April)




With just two days left until the series finale, Hawaii Five-0 star Ian Anthony Dale teased that there is one ongoing story thread that won't be resolved.

Dale, 41, spoke with E! on Wednesday, where he said that the friction between his character Adam Noshimuri and Alex O'Laughlin's Steve McGarrett will not get better.

He also shared a touching behind-the-scenes moment that happened on the last day of production.

Ian speaks out: With just two days left until the series finale, Hawaii Five-0 star Ian Anthony Dale teased that there is one ongoing story thread that won't be resolved

Dale's character Adam Noshimuri debuted in the second season, and he developed a rapport with McGarrett at first.

'Throughout the series, Adam and McGarrett developed a really strong bond built on mutual respect and trust,' Dale said.

'Some of the more troubling decisions Adam made in the final season really placed his and McGarretts relationship in jeopardy,' Dale added, teasing it won't be resolved.

Rapport: Dale's character Adam Noshimuri debuted in the second season, and he developed a rapport with McGarrett at first

'By the series end, there is still friction between them, and the audience never gets to see them fully reconcile. I really wish we couldve seen that happen before it was all said and done,' he added.

When asked about his favorite behind-the-scenes memory during his nine-season run on the show, Dale said it happened on the final day on set.

'We were filming in a residential neighborhood and had the roads blocked off, and at wrap our entire crew spilled out into the street and formed a big circle,' he began.

Friction: 'By the series end, there is still friction between them, and the audience never gets to see them fully reconcile. I really wish we couldve seen that happen before it was all said and done,' he added

'The mountains [were] in the background and the sun [was] setting in the distance, we all held hands and sang a Hawaiian song, giving thanks to the island and to each other for the many blessings and good fortune our time together has brought us,' he added.

'It was a beautiful and profoundly appropriate way to say goodbye,' he added.

The actor also added that the one prop he got to take home after filming wrapped was his badge.

Souvenir: The actor also added that the one prop he got to take home after filming wrapped was his badge

'I got to take home my Five-0 task force badge. I can't think of a better keepsake to commemorate my time on the show,' he said.

'And what makes it all the more special is the fact that it was handed to me at the beginning of each day and collected at the end of each day by one of my most cherished friends in the crew,' he said.

It will serve as a constant reminder of him and all the wonderful people I've grown so close with here over the last nine years,' he added.

The Hawaii Five-0 series finale airs Friday, April 3 at 10 PM ET on CBS.
Photo credit: Erin Simkin/Hulu

From Harper's BAZAAR

WARNING: Spoilers for Little Fires Everywhere ahead.

Episode 5 of Little Fires Everywhere reintroduces a character from Elena Richardson's (Reese Witherspoon) past in a scene that wasn't originally in the book.

Jamie, her former boyfriend and now a journalist at The New York Times, reenters the picture when Elena travels to New York City to snoop into Mia Warren's (Kerry Washington) history.

In this week's episode of Little Fires Everywhere, the differences between Celeste Ng's novel and the Hulu limited series become more apparent. Right from the beginning, a flashback to Elena Richardson's younger years sheds light on her former serious relationship with her ex, Jamie Caplan, in a way we didn't originally see on the page: They're together in Paris in 1976. After a night out dancing, they're caught arguing about their futureElena has her life planned in their hometown of Shaker Heights, Ohio, while Jamie, an aspiring journalist, wants to explore bigger thingsso they break up.

Photo credit: Erin Simkin/Hulu

In the book, Jamie goes on to fight in the Vietnam War and Elena never sees him again. But the screen adaptation changes that.

In the show's '90s present day, Elena enlists Jamie's help when she travels to New York to snoop on her housekeeper and tenant, Mia Warren, after a portrait of Mia lands in The New York Times. Mia and Elena have been clashing lately, as Mia is helping her coworker Bebe regain custody of her child, who was adopted by Elena's close friend Linda.

Photo credit: Erin Simkin/Hulu

Leaving her husband and four kids back in Shaker, Elena travels to NYC, meets with Jamie (played by Australian actor Luke Bracey), now a journalist for the Times, and asks him to use his connections to help her gather information about Mia. Their rendezvous involves a fancy dinner, late-night drinks, and an evening stroll through Manhattanbut things quickly go sour.

Elena wants to be friends with Jamie again and says she wanted to know if he regrets anything about how his life played out, because she does. When she asks him back to her hotel, he takes offense and calls her a narcissist. "It's not my job to make your life bearable," Jamie jabs at Elena before walking off.

Story continues

Photo credit: Erin Simkin/Hulu

Further deviations from the book in the episode? Mia sells her portrait for $400,000 to fund legal representation for Bebe and the image appears in the Times rather than a museum, as it did in the written version. And later on, after Elena's daughter Lexie gets an abortion and covers it up by using the name of Mia's daughter, Pearl, Mia reprimands her rather than generously comforting her, like she does in the book.

Stream Little Fires Everywhere now on Hulu. New episodes arrive on Wednesdays.

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No business is staging a grand opening or a big picnic for employees right now  and that is a big problem for San Antonio manufacturer Dixie Flag and Banner Co.

The flag- or banner-draped events that had been the companys lifeblood are on indefinite hold in the midst of the coronavirus crisis.

Spirits were low after having to cut a few people and cut hours. No business owner feels good about that, said Vanessa Van de Putte, the 60-year-old Dixie Flags president and CEO. Its not how you want to start the year.

Shed spent several sleepless nights worrying about the family business  shed taken day-to-day control of Dixie Flag from her father, Pete Van de Putte  and her employees. Three generations of Van de Puttes have owned and managed the company.

Van de Putte soon settled on a plan: Make face masks, a product thats in short supply as the coronavirus spreads across the globe.

Many hospitals and clinics are desperate for more, and the White House is expected to soon recommend that Americans wear the masks whenever they leave home.

In other words, the demand for face masks, already straining the capacity of their manufacturers, is about to detonate.

Dixie Flag has joined a growing number of companies that are re-tooling their operations to produce face masks and other personal protective equipment for health care workers  instead of products for which demand has dropped. Toyota supplier Reyes Hayashi Automotive said Wednesday it would begin making face shields.

To get started, Van de Putte called her mother, former state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, who runs a high-powered lobbying firm. She put her daughter in touch with city Metropolitan Health District officials.

An idea emerged from talks with health officials  produce washable, reusable cloth face masks to replace the disposable masks that many hospitals have been running out of.

So far, Dixie Flags switch has preserved the full-time hours of her 12 seamstresses, all of whom had been cut to half-time. It is also kept most of the companys administrative staff on the payroll, except for four who were furloughed.

Van de Putte said her company could produce as many as 1,500 face masks a week.

Yet her move is a gamble. The manufacturer has sold about 100 masks so far to local doctors offices at $15 per mask, but profits to make the operation sustainable will depend on much larger orders.

Dixie Flag is still trying to convince a major potential buyer, University Health System, that its masks meet hospital standards.

Weve been making several prototypes and taking their suggestions as to improve the mask, she said.

The first masks were smaller than University officials wanted and were made from the same material as hospital gowns, which took a long time to cut up.

Now the mask size is larger, and its made from a cotton polyester blend. Dixie has partnered with local Division Laundry & Cleaners, which supplies the material, and the San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind, whose workers cut the material.

The company sent a new prototype went to UHS on Tuesday.

We want to make sure the masks are not causing harm, said Amita Shah, a UHS plastic surgeon who sits on a committee that evaluates face masks from Dixie and other companies. Everything from size to comfort to flammability is part of the screening.

The committee is working with San Antonio-based Southwest Research Institute to vet the masks.

An SwRI official said the institute is determining the pros and cons of each mask, and forwarding the information to UHS officials.

Shah said the hospital system has several thousand disposable masks in stock and isnt in imminent danger of running out. However, she said, the hospital system wants to stockpile tens of thousands of masks for use if necessary to deal with a potentially larger coronavirus outbreak in the region.

She said University is also evaluating face masks from two other San Antonio concerns: Niche, a clothing design company, and Alternations to Go.

Carmen Gonzalez, who owns Alterations to Go, said UHS gave her a go-ahead Tuesday to produce 3,000 reusable face masks. A UHS spokesperson could not confirm the order.

Gonzalez isnt attempting to make a profit on the face masks. Shes producing them at cost.

Another local business owner Quincy Barnes, president of Rex Formal Wear, has put three of his eight laid-off employees back to work producing reusable masks. Barnes has sold the masks through social-media sites.

He has produced 500 masks priced at $6.00 each, making an estimated profit of $1 per mask.

Van de Putte hasnt set the final price for the masks yet, but she wants to earn at least a small profit to keep workers on the payroll.

In addition to UHS, she said, Dixie Flag is marketing the masks to more doctors offices. It remains to be seen whether the company will market the masks to the public.

It gives us something meaningful to do, she said.

Randy Diamond covers energy and manufacturing in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. To read more from Randy, become a subscriber. randy.diamond@express-news.net
WHY DONT YOU READ THESE?
San Francisco, April 2 : Slammed for the lack of users privacy and security by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and cybersecurity experts, video meeting app Zoom is also prone to hacking, a new report has claimed, saying an unpatched bug can let hackers steal users Windows password.

The 'Zoom client for Windows' is vulnerable to the 'UNC path injection' vulnerability that could let remote attackers steal login credentials for victims' Windows systems, reports TheHacckeNews.

The latest finding by cybersecurity expert @_g0dmode, has also been "confirmed by researcher Matthew Hickey and Mohamed A. Baset,' the report said late Wednesday.

The attack involves the "SMBRelay technique" wherein Windows automatically exposes a user's login username and NTLM password hashes to a remote server, when attempting to connect and download a file hosted on it.

"The attack is possible only because Zoom for Windows supports remote UNC paths, which converts such potentially insecure URLs into hyperlinks for recipients in a personal or group chat," the report claimed.

Besides Windows credentials, the vulnerability can also be exploited to launch any programme present on a targeted computer.

Zoom has been notified of this bug but the flaw is yet to be fixed.

"Users are advised to either use an alternative video conferencing software or Zoom in your web browser instead of the dedicated client app," said the report.

Another media report claimed that Zoom doesn't use end-to-end encryption to protect calling data of its users.

As businesses, schools and colleges and millions of SMBs use video conferencing tool Zoom during the work-from-home scenario, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has warned people about porn material being popped up during the video meetings.

The Boston branch of the law enforcement agency said it has received multiple reports of Zoom conferences being disrupted by pornographic and/or hate images and threatening language.

The video conferencing app late last month updated its iOS app to remove the software development kit (SDK) that was providing users' data to Facebook through the Login with Facebook feature.
As a kind of hush settles deeper across the expanse of India and thousands of towns and villages shut down to ward off a pandemic, life goes on as it must and so does death.

In times of social distancing, thousands of people are dying alone without a last glimpse of their loved ones who are unable to reach them. Mourning, too, is about isolation with no extended family, friends or even neighbours to share your grief in person.

In a dystopian present, imagined as a distant future only in fiction perhaps, the affluent and connected are mourning with each other through video conferencing and attending virtual funerals. Others, in villages and towns without easy access to technology, are left to grieve, alone with their thoughts and no one to help with the healing process.

Delhi-based journalist Ritika Jain, who lost her her 85-year-old grandfather in Palitana, Gujarat, during the 21-day lockdown, which began on March 24 to curtail the spread of the coronavirus, couldn't get to meet him that one last time.

Her father managed to take the last flight from Mumbai to Bhavnagar just before the lockdown came into force but none of the others could. They attended the funeral through the Zoom mobile application.

"In the evening, the entire family met virtually through Zoom, paid last respects to my grandfather and consoled each other," Jain said as the number of COVID-19 cases crossed 1,900 with 50 fatalities.

Actor Sanjay Suri did the same when his wife lost her grandmother.

it was so strange attending a funeral via Zoom. Strange times! he wrote on Twitter.

With governments limiting the number of people who can attend a funeral to 20 or less, no way to travel from one city to another and passes needed to leave the house, deaths have become complicated beyond belief. And the emotional trauma is just one of the many things to deal with.

When 77-year old Kesavan, who lives in a Chennai suburb, heard of the deathof his 94-year old mother at his sibling's home in a distant corner of the city, his first thought was the commute.

Finally, he told PTI, he just left home without waiting for the pass.

"The spectre of coronavirus is horrible as it punishes even those who are not affected, added K Veeraraghavan, also from Chennai, who lost his father recently. No members of the family could join the cremation.

Funerals have always been a time for social bonding in Indian society. But not any more with crematoriums and burial grounds strictly limiting the number of people allowed.

According to Rakesh Kapoor, caretaker of the Shamshan Ghat (Mukti Dham) in Punjab's Ludhiana town, the number of people at a cremation have come down sharply from 100 to just 20.

As soon as the body arrives, we allow people to pay their last respects for just one or two minutes and then start the process of performing last rites, he said.

In Haryana, too, rules are being strictly followed.

Sukhbir Singh, from Gorakhpur village in the state, lost his uncle to cancer recently and said the family followed all the regulations.

But it all came at an emotional cost.

"The kind of support one gets from friends, neighbours and relatives is not there these days due to the restrictions," he said.

For many families, the lockdown has also meant coming to terms with the fact that everything cannot go as they had always planned.

In Odisha, for instance, many Hindus believe that those cremated in Swargadhar in Puri will get moksha.

On normal days, about 60 bodies are cremated at Swargadwar each day, said Bjay Kumar Das of the Puri Municipality. But this has come down to less than 10.

B Dhai, from Banki village in Cuttack, went to Swargadhar for his mother's last rites in accordance with her last wishes and a handful of family members accompanied the hearse to the seaside town.

However, the post death rituals have been done away with.

Church leaders are being equally strict.

Normally, over 100 people are present at the burial ground during funeral of any member of our community. However, we will have to reduce the number to less than 20 during this 21-day period, said Paresh Das of the Church of Christ (Union Church) in Bhubaneswar.

In Mumbai, Bhaskar Gurav, deathregister officer of the Bandra-Kherwadi Crematorium said not everybody is following lockdown rules.

We want one police constable should be there to control and restrict the crowds because they are putting other lives in danger, he said.

Shoeb Khatib, trustee of the Juma Masjid Trust which also looks after Mumbai's biggest graveyard, said about 120 bodies come into the Bada Kabrastan every month but due care is being taken.

We have identified three spots for only COVID-19 dead bodies to be buried. For 15 years no one will touch their graves, Khatib told PTI.

Kerala's Palayam Juma Mosque has also cut down the number of family members allowed during the burial of any deceased.

"The health department has given strict instructions not to allow more than 10 people to be present during the burial ceremony, a mosque official said.

And the state-run Santhi Kavadam crematorium in the capital city of Thiruvananthapuram is only allowing six to eight people during funerals.

In Telangana, the number is capped at 20, said a Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation official. Besides, social distancing is being followed, only one body is being cremated at a time and the management is ensuring the availability of hand sanitisers, gloves and masks.

Irrespective of faith, family members of the deceased are forced to cut short their rituals in Karnataka and leave as soon as the bodies are disposed of.

The burning of bodies using logs has stopped at the Harishchandra Ghatin Chamarajpet.

"We are not getting logs, camphor, ghee or diesel to perform the last rites. As a result, we are directing people to take the bodies to the electrical crematorium," Kiran Kumar, who arranges last rites at the Ghat, told PTI.

"We have announced that in the event of thedeathof a person, people should straight take the bodies to the burial ground instead of the mosque," said Maulana Maqsood Imran of Bengaluru's Jama Masjid.

Churches in the Karnataka capital have also directed family members to take the bodies directly to the cemetry and not organise any mass.

Business around the grounds has also been impacted.

Like in Bihar, which has a tradition of feeding those who carry a dead body to the place of cremation. Several shops close to the 'Baans ghaat' in Patna are now closed.

Surendra Kumar, who runs a small eatery in the area, pointed towards the many closed shops on either side of his stall.

Business used to be brisk But the lockdown has changed it all. Now only four or five people are coming to the ghat with dead bodies. Our businesses may have suffered but my heart goes out to the bereaved ones. A sizeable gathering lends strength to those who have lost a loved one, he added.

In Kolkata, too, there were reports of many families not finding enough people or vehicles to carry their dead ones to the burial ground or cremation.

A family member of a close friend passed away. His relatives couldn't come due to the lockdown and there were only two men in the house, So three friends had to go and help them, said Arshad Ahmed, a resident of Belgachia in the city.

The family of Aziz, a 70-year-old who died in Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit district last week, can give some clues on how to conduct a funeral of a loved one.

His family members carried the body in a handcart and not on shoulders to the burial ground as is the ritual, strictly maintaining the laid down guidelines of social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The government of Quebec is developing a fleet of airships to deliver goods to the province's often difficult to reach northern territories.

The government signed the agreement, worth $23million ($30million Canadian), with the French company Flying Whales and expects the first deliveries to begin in 2022.

The airships from Flying Whales will be able to carry up to 60 metric tons of cargo and travel at speeds of up to 62mph.

The Quebec government is partnering with the French company Flying Whales to develop airships that will be used to supply some of the province's more remote norther territories, part of a new resurgence in interest in airships as an alternative to cargo planes and ships

The ships are held aloft by individual pockets of helium, and propelled forward by small diesel or electric engines, while also taking advantage of jetstreams for an extra, energy efficient push.

The deal could be a signal that the long dormant airship industry is ready for a comeback, according to a report in Foreign Policy.

Market analysts have predicted the airship industry could grow significantly over the next decade as an energy efficient alternative to commercial cargo ships.

Unlike commercial planes, airships don't require large airstrips or airports to operate, they can ascend and descend vertically, hovering in place on a range of surfaces, including ice sheets, deserts, beaches, forest clearings, and even on water.

Airships were once a thriving part of the cargo transportation industry and a mainstay of military industrial production in the early 20th century, but the gradually fell out of common use for a range of reasons, including high-profile disasters like the Hindenburg crash of 1937.

Even Goodyear, which was once a leader in the airship industry, has consigned its famed blimp to being an Airbnb rental.

A resurgence in the industry started in 2010 when Northrop Grumman signed a $517million contract to build an airship the US military hoped to use to conduct surveillance missions.

A working prototype was built but the contract was abandoned in 2013.

In 2015, Raytheon signed a $3billion contract to develop airships for surveillance, but abandoned the project after a prototype crashlanded in Pennsylvania.

Lockheed Martin is developing its own airship technology, including an air cushion landing system (ACLS), that will make vertical ascent and descent easier, while also using reverse airflow to 'anchor' airships in place while being loaded or unloaded

In 2016, Lockheed Martin announced its own airship technology, an air cushion landing system (ACLS), which uses hoverpads placed beneath an airship surface to keep it stable as it descends.

The ACLS system can also be used to keep airships anchored in place above the ground, by reversing the flow of air through the hoverpads.

In 2019, a company called OceanSky announced plans to use airships to offer commercial cruises to the Arctic, with service planned to begin in 2023.

While many industry watchers are excited about the return of airships as an alternative to cargo ships, which are responsible for an estimated three percent of the world's carbon dioxide emissions, one potential longterm challenge is their reliance on helium to provide lift.

Industry watchers believe airships offer an energy-efficient alternative to traditional cargo transportation methods, as they can be powered by small diesel or electric motors and take advantage of jetstreams to propel them

Natural stores of the gas have run low in the United States, Qatar, and other region's where it's harvested.

Some hope that these shortages could be offset by natural gas production, which creates helium as a waste product that could potentially be harvested for a burgeoning airship market.

Even with potential future challenges, industry watcher Barry Prentice of the University of Manitoba believes the growing number of airship initiatives should be embraced.

'It's worth the risk to try,' Prentice told CTV News.

'We're not talking about an anti-gravity device--this is a technology that was proven 100 years ago and we know it worked, just like wind turbines and electric cars.'
An employee works on a mask production line for exports in Xiangyang, Hubei province, March 27, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

Medical supplies sent overseas must prove they meet countries' standards

China has adopted new measures to ensure the quality of medical supply exports such as COVID-19 test kits and surgical masks, which are expected to offer more robust guarantees on these products, experts said on Wednesday.

Starting on Wednesday, exporters of COVID-19 test kits, surgical masks, protective gowns, ventilators and infrared thermometers must provide extra documentation when they go through customs clearance, in order to prove their products have obtained China's registration certification for medical devices and met the quality standards of the importing country or region, an official document said.

The customs authorities will release the exports based on a registration certificate approved by medical product administrations, said the document, which was jointly released by the Ministry of Commerce, the General Administration of Customs and the National Medical Products Administration.

Zhang Yan, CEO of Willingmed, a Beijing-based a diagnostics firm, said the government's new regulation will further ensure product quality.

"Although certificates from the National Medical Products Administration have no legal effect overseas, the certificates are trustworthy across the world as the administration has a strict review process to register drugs and medical equipment. Some Southeast Asian countries even take the administration's certificate as their own import license," he said.

Chen Qiaoshan, a medical analyst at Beijing-based market research consultancy Analysys, said by offering a higher threshold of registration, the Chinese government has strengthened supervision and control of exported medical drugs and equipment.

China accounts for about one-fifth of the global production of multifunction ventilators and for about 50 percent of global face mask output.

To meet soaring overseas demand for ventilators, manufacturers in China have been working overtime, said Xu Kemin, an official with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Eight of China's 21 multifunction ventilator makers have obtained the European Union's compulsory CE quality mark, Xu said at a recent news conference.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Wednesday that it is true that anti-epidemic materials involve detailed issues such as the different recognition standards in different countries and regions. "But such issues should not become barriers for cooperation on anti-epidemic materials," Hua said.
South Africas wind energy producers are questioning the legality of a decision by the state-owned power utility to curtail purchases of their output due to low demand stemming from a national lockdown.

The South African Wind Energy Association said Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd.s decision to invoke a force majeure in its contracts with the independent power producers caught them by surprise and was invoked without consultation.

Eskom has said the producers will be compensated for lost revenue by having their contracts extended by the amount of time lost.

The industry is seeking legal counsel on whether the reduced electricity demand as a result of Covid-19 does in fact constitute force majeure, as declared by Eskom, SAWEA said Wednesday in a statement.

Some experts consider reduced demand as a normal system event and dont give the utility the right to renege on its obligations, the association said.

South Africa has called for renewable energy producers and coal miners to lower their prices in order to help Eskom, which is struggling financially and was implementing intermittent power cuts before the lockdown began because it couldnt meet demand.

The three-week lockdown was instituted from midnight on March 23 to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

The industry will approach Eskom and attempt to resolve the issue amicably, according to SAWEA Chief Executive Officer Ntombifuthi Ntuli. According to the agreements in place, energy producers must be paid a deemed energy fee in line with the philosophy that all power that would have been generated is paid for, he said.

South Africa has 22 operational wind farms that have a combined generation capacity of almost 2,000 megawatts, while another 12 are under construction.

Now read: Eskom fights for massive price increases
The wholesale commodity markets, including metal and bullion, will remain shut. There will be no trading activity in the forex and commodity futures markets, too.

The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) is closed today on account of 'Ram Navami'.

The wholesale commodity markets, including metal and bullion, will remain shut. There will be no trading activity in the forex and commodity futures markets, too.

The markets will resume for trading on 3 April (Friday).

On Wednesday (1 April), the markets closed trading on a negative note.

On the first day of the financial year of 2020-21, the stock market indices ended lower with Nifty slipping below 8,300-level. All the sectoral indices ended lower. BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices shed 1-2 percent.

The Sensex tanked 1,203.18 points or 4.08 percent to 28265.31 while the Nifty was down 343.95 points or 4 percent at 8253.80 at close.

As many as 1,098 shares advanced, while 1,067 shares declined, and 167 shares remained unchanged.

Tech Mahindra was the top loser in the Sensex pack, crashing over 9 percent, followed by Kotak Bank, Axis Bank, TCS, Infosys and HUL.

On the other hand, Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, Bajaj Finance and Titan were the gainers.

Sumeet Bagadia, Executive Director, Choice Broking said: A day after logging healthy gains, Nifty ended the session with a huge loss of 3.97 percent at 8254.75 back in the negative territory, tracking weak global cues. The Nifty opened on gap down note and continue the same sentiment throughout the session and closed below 50 percent.

"The retracement level, i.e. 8,272 of previous up move support comes at 8,100 level i.e 61.8 percent FR level. Technical support also comes at 8,100, while resistance comes at 8,600.00. If index manages to give breakdown below 8,100 level then we can see 7900 and 7600 levels," he said.

According to traders, domestic equities plunged in tandem with global stocks as no respite from the coronavirus pandemic seemed in sight.

Asian stocks slip

Asian equities fell for a second session on Thursday, after a dire warning about the US coronavirus death toll had investors looking to the safety of dollars and bonds and bracing for more bad news from U.S. jobless figures.

MSCIs broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 1.2 percent. Japans Nikkei extended Wednesdays heavy drop with a 1.5 percent fall, and investors are beginning to worry that equities may re-test last months lows.

Markets in Hong Kong, Sydney, Shanghai and Seoul fell, though futures for the S&P 500 bounced following Wall Streets 4 percent plunge overnight.

Difficult days are ahead for our nation, US President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday.

Were going to have a couple of weeks, starting pretty much now, but especially a few days from now, that are going to be horrific.

Trump had initially played down the virus severity, but White House medical experts now forecast that even if Americans follow unprecedented stay-at-home orders, some 100,000 to 240,000 people could die from the respiratory disease.

The World Health Organization said the global case count will reach 1 million and the death toll 50,000 in the next few days. It currently stands at 43,412.
Motley Fool

Shares of GameStop (NYSE: GME) were plummeting 12.7% in morning trading Monday on no news specific to the video game retailer, but it follows the 22% spike in its stock last Friday (it closed up 7% at the end of the day) after it announced it was getting into the non-fungible token (NFT) market in a big way. The markets are reacting to expectations the Federal Reserve will start hiking interest rates as soon as March -- meaning there could be as many as four rate hikes this year -- as inflation continues to spiral higher. GameStop is looking to build partnerships in the cryptocurrency world and said it would be launching an NFT exchange for gamers by the end of the year.
Twelve more coronavirus patients have been found in Indore, taking the total number of such cases in Madhya Pradesh to 98, an official said on Thursday.

Of the total cases in the state, 77 per cent are from Indore, he said.

The 12 new patients include an 80-year-old woman and three from a family whose nine members earlier tested positive for coronavirus, an official of the Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial college in Indore said.

Out of the total 98 coronavirus cases in the state, 75 have been reported from Indore, eight from Jabalpur, six from Ujjain, four from Bhopal, two each in Shivpuri and Gwalior and one from Khargone, health department official said.

Indore, which is an industrial hub, is the worst affected by coronavirus in the state.

Majority of COVID-19 patients in Indore have no travel history and they contracted the infection at the local level, the official said.

However, the health department has denied that the pandemic has entered the community transmission phase in Indore.

"The current situation of coronavirus in the city cannot be termed as community transmission stage. So far, majority of the affected persons are relatives or acquaintances who got the infection after coming in contact with each other, Indores chief medical and health officer (CMHO) Dr Pravin Jadia said.

The moment health department officials come to know about any coronavirus patient, they immediately try to find people who came in contact with the person and shift them to a quarantine facility, he said.

Since the outbreak of coronavirus infection in Indore, more than 600 people have been quarantined as a preventive measure.

Curfew has been imposed in Indore since March 25 after the coronavirus cases were detected in the city.

Six patients have so far died in the state, including three from Indore, two from Ujjain and one from Khargone, the official added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As cases of the coronavirus in New Jersey keep rising, hospitals in the northern half of the state are already starting to see a surge in patients, the states top health official said Wednesday.

State Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said the state had been preparing for a surge by the second week in April.

But seven hospitals in the north notified the state they reached divert status Tuesday, Persichilli said. That means either the whole hospital or a unit cant accept new patients temporarily.

It looks like the surge is beginning in the northern part of the state, Persichilli said at the Trenton War Memorial during the states daily coronavirus press briefing. Were beginning to feel the real stress and strain on the critical care.

Persichilli said some hospitals went on divert status due to overcrowding in their emergency rooms and some due to general overcrowding. She said the state is "looking at possible alternative care sites.

Persichilli did not list the names of the hospitals, but the states website shows eight hospitals with either full or partial divert status as of Wednesday at 3 p.m.: Englewood Hospital And Medical Center, Hoboken University Medical Center, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at Rahway, CentraState Medical Center in Freehold, Trinitas Regional Medical Center in Elizabeth, St. Marys Hospital in Passaic, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset, and Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck.

Technically, Freehold and Somerset are in the central part of the state.

Two of the seven hospitals that reported divert status requested additional ventilators, and the state was able to supply them, Persichilli said.

The health commissioner continued to express confidence New Jersey will be able to handle the surge, though she stressed the state needs more ventilators, which are required for the most seriously ill coronavirus patients.

Persichilli said hospitals are repurposing anesthesia machines, which has helped.

On a statewide basis, we are not feeling the same capacity issues in the central to south part of the state, she said.

We believe the beds will be there, Persichilli added. We want to make sure the supplies and the ventilators will be there. We dont believe were going to run out of IV pumps and everything else you would need to take care of a critical care patient. The guidelines are focused specifically on ventilators."

So far, the state has received 650 of the 2,300 ventilators its has asked President Donald Trumps administration to provide.

Gov. Phil Murphy announced Wednesday that Trumps administration sent 350 more ventilators to the state. But 1,650 more are still needed, he said.

We believe we are going to be okay," Persichilli said. But we do believe we are going to be moving ventilators around.

Murphy echoed the cautious optimism during a radio interview Wednesday afternoon.

So far, were staying ahead of this, he said on 1010 WINS. But it is growing by the day.

New Jersey  a state of 9 million people  now has at least 22,255 cases of COVID-19, including 335 deaths, officials announced Wednesday. Only New York has more cases among U.S. states.

Persichilli said Wednesday that 80 percent of people that test positive have mild to moderate symptoms and can stay home, while 15 percent may need to be admitted to the hospital. And 50 percent of those may need ventilators, though that could go up, she said.

Persichilli said hospitals are reporting to the state the number of ventilators are in use. She said officials are planning a ventilator for every patient.

The federal government is constructing four pop-up field hospitals across New Jersey to help increase hospital space. The first one  at the Meadowlands in Secaucus  is likely to open sometime next week, Persichilli said.

She said the site will be available for lower-acuity patients who can be safely transferred there. That would create more space at existing hospitals for coronavirus patients.

Officials say they expect the number of coronavirus cases in the state to keep increasing. Murphy has said the pandemic is likely to bleed meaningfully into May, at least.

The governor has put the state in near-lockdown to help halt the spread of the virus and protect hospital capacity, ordering residents to stay at home, banning social gatherings, and mandating non-essential businesses close.

Persichilli said Wednesday that the increased demand on hospitals "just underscores how important social distancing measures are."

When you stay home, you are all helping us slow the spread of this virus and you are doing your part to help save lives, the health commissioner said.

NJ Advance Media staff writers Matt Arco and Susan K. Livio contributed to this report.

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CLAIM: We will test 100,000 people each day by the end of the month.

REALITY: Unfortunately, the detail on this is woefully lacking.

How will the Government hit this target, how many tests will be the vital antigen swab tests that detect the presence of a virus, and how many will be the as-yet-unproven antibody tests that tell if someone is immune?

The Government has already set several targets on this issue. On March 18 we were told it would test 10,000 patients a day by the following week  a threshold that has only just been met, more than a fortnight later.

We were then told 25,000 people would be tested daily by mid-April.

Now we are told we will test 100,000 a day by the end of the month, and 250,000 by some date in the future.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock who has tested positive for coronavirus, answering questions from the media via a video link during a media briefing in Downing Street, London on Thursday

CLAIM: We didnt have a big diagnostics industry like Germanys when the outbreak started.

REALITY: It is true Germany has a large network of laboratories it can use to process tests.

The German city of Mannheim also hosts the logistics base of the Swiss firm Roche Diagnostics, one of the biggest medical testing companies in the world.

But the UK has been very slow to utilise the capacity of the British testing firms it has  or the many universities and research labs that could boost centralised testing efforts.

CLAIM: It was vital to reserve all testing capacity for sick patients.

REALITY: Doctors agree it is crucial that all hospital patients with respiratory symptoms are tested for coronavirus so clinicians know how to treat them.

But the decision to deny hospitals the ability to test NHS staff may have been too restrictive.

Testing figures show the few centralised labs at the countrys disposal were not even at full capacity  suggesting NHS staff could have been tested alongside hospital patients.

In fact, those restrictions were only lifted last weekend.

CLAIM: Ministers did the right thing at the right time on the basis of the best available science.

REALITY: Britains war on coronavirus started very strongly  and experts were impressed by the decision to put respected academics such as Patrick Vallance and Chris Whitty front and centre of the national response.

But scientists were shocked by the decision on March 12 to abandon widespread testing. It went against the central tenets of public health epidemic planning  that every case must be tested, isolated and all contacts tracked and traced. This has not been fully explained, with a blame game in full swing.

A person is swabbed at a drive-through coronavirus testing site in a car park at Chessington World of Adventures, in southwest London on Thursday

Another 569 deaths have been declared in the UK on Thursday, taking the total death toll to 2,921

CLAIM: Mass testing offers the key to the coronavirus puzzle.

REALITY: Experts agree that without a vaccine, testing is key. Without it experts have no idea how the virus is spreading, other than by tracking deaths and hospital admissions.

A widespread surveillance testing programme  which Mr Hancock announced last night was being co-ordinated at the Porton Down military lab  could start to provide crucial insights that may eventually lead to a lifting of restrictions.

CLAIM: Getting antibody tests rolled out takes time.

REALITY: Officials made a huge mistake last week when they prematurely announced that millions of people would be able to get an antibody test within days that would tell them if they were immune from the virus.

This boosted hopes  dashed within hours  of a quick end to the lockdown.

Finally Mr Hancock is being realistic with his promises. He confirmed last night he had sourced 17.5million antibody tests, but pointed out that some had already failed in initial checks.

The example of Spain, which had to return 9,000 faulty tests to China, is beginning to hit home.
The Russian authorities for more than a week have been blocking the transit through their territory of humanitarian convoys with medical supplies necessary to combat Covid-19 in Ukraine.

"The United Nations, [U.S. President] Donald Trump, the Department of State should be aware that for more than a week now Russia blocks transit through its territory of humanitarian convoys with medical goods directed to Ukraine for fighting COVID-2019," Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Yehor Bozhok wrote on Twitter.

Bozhok emphasized that "this is the real face of Putin and the Kremlin regime."

Earlier, the U.S. Department of State said that the U.S. paid for the supply of Russian medical supplies and personal protection equipment to the country, but Moscow called it "humanitarian aid."

ish
: Paint manufacturer Kansai



Nerolac Paints Ltd on Thursday said it has come forward to paint the new isolation ward that is being set up at the Stanley Medical College here to treat coronavirus patients.

Nerolac would supply paint to the hospital's 50,000 square metre isolation ward that has been created to treat Covid-19 patients, a press release said.

"...we are thankful to Stanley Medical College for extending us an opportunity to do our bit. Continuing our support for the initiatives built under My Hospital My Pride in Tamil Nadu and the patients' well-being the utmost importance, the ward will be transformed into a sanitised and healthy space with the use of our painting products," Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd, representative, Sudhir Rane said in a release.

The ward would have over 400 beds, the release said.

Stanley Medical College Dean Dr P Balaji said, "we are hopeful that this new isolation facility being created will be helpful to fight the Covid-19 virus and aid in the recovery process.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
FORT COLLINS, Colo., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As restaurants and bars make the shift to selling online, they're not the only businesses that will need to shift quickly to allow customers to order from wherever they are.

Madwire and Marketing 360 today announced the launch of their All-In-One Online Ordering Solution for restaurants, cafes, bars, and all other businesses who want to enable customers to order online for pick-up at their location or have it delivered locally. The new Websites 360 Shop App by Marketing 360 makes it possible.

Madwire/Marketing 360 Madwire/Marketing 360

With this solution, consumers can order from the business' website, Facebook, or Instagram and come pick up their order when it's ready, or, if the business is able, have it delivered.

The All-In-One Online Ordering Solution includes:

The online ordering platform for in-store pickup or delivery

Ability to leverage discount coupons

Ability to sell digital gift cards

Next-day payouts for payment processing

A website builder (CMS) for a full website or for online orders only

The Websites 360 Shop App provides all the technology needed to create a menu or store online, set up secure payment processing (with flat rates that never change), and a drag-and-drop website builder that is easy for businesses to create and update their menu or catalog of offerings.

Marketing 360 is offering the first 2 months of the Websites 360 Shop App for free to all business owners who sign up before April 30th. To learn more, visit https://onlineordering.mywebsites360.com/

About Madwire and Marketing 360

Madwire is a technology company that provides business management and marketing software and services for SMBs and franchises. Through it's brands - Marketing 360, Websites 360, SpaceCraft and Top Rated Local  they enable SMBs to do everything from build a website to accept payments, manage leads and customers, appointments, online reviews, social media, business listings, content marketing, multi-channel digital advertising campaigns and more. Marketing 360 was founded in 2009 with the mission of enriching communities by helping small businesses grow. Marketing 360 is headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado, with an additional office in Austin, Texas.

Contact:

Farra Lanzer

970-541-3284

[email protected]

Additional Sources:

https://www.marketing360.com/blog/online-ordering-for-your-restaurant/

SOURCE Madwire
The arts-and-crafts chain Hobby Lobby was accused of defying stay-at-home orders in at least four states during the coronavirus outbreak, prompting officials to take action against the retailer.

The moves by state and local authorities in Colorado, Indiana, Ohio and Wisconsin to shut the stores down came as governors across much of the United States have signed stay-at-home orders and health authorities have urged Americans to practice social distancing. Still, some havent heeded the advice, from spring breakers to some megachurches. In Florida, a pastor was arrested after defying virus orders.

W. Eric Kuhn, the senior assistant state attorney general of Colorado, where there are 10 stores, sent a cease-and-desist letter to the company after it had reopened its stores in the state this week. The letter said the companys actions violated a March 25 executive order signed by Gov. Jared Polis directing Coloradans to stay at home and requiring all businesses to close that were not designated by state health officials as critical.

Lawrence Pacheco, a spokesman for the State Attorney Generals Office, said on Friday that the company notified the office it would comply and closed all of its stores on Thursday.
Ireland Active, a representative body for more than 300 gyms and health and fitness companies, says its members want partial refunds on pre-paid insurance policies - because empty gyms are at no risk of personal injury claims.

Public liability makes up the biggest element of insurance policies that can cost 80,000 to 100,000 annually per gym, according to Joe Cosgrove, chairman of Ireland Active and managing director of the Kingfisher Fitness Clubs in Galway and Waterford.

"I am hopeful that insurance companies will move on this," Mr Cosgrove said.

"We need insurance long beyond this crisis and they need long-term customers. There's a balance of interests and we'll have to come to an arrangement."

Insurers are facing similar calls from publicans, restaurateurs and hoteliers - all of whom pay hefty premiums to protect themselves from customers' injury claims.

Many businesses have also claimed that insurance cover they took out against the threat of being closed for health reasons has not paid out as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak.

Insurers have yet to confirm whether they will offer prorated refunds of public liability cover for sectors where the public is barred from entering their clients' premises.

But industry group Insurance Ireland said at least some of its member firms are open to discussing this with individual clients.

"Business policies tend to be complex and insurers need to review them on a case-by-case basis. While it is not possible to be definitive at the moment and each insurer may respond differently, insurers are reviewing some of the key issues... including liability insurance premiums," it said.

"Customers can discuss their policies directly with their insurer or broker."

Allianz Ireland, one of the biggest providers of public liability coverage, said it is "working closely with the insurance industry and in particular with our brokers to address concerns raised".

It pledged "additional initiatives in the coming days to support businesses" and said firms seeking partial refunds for public liability cover should "liaise with their broker".

Mr Cosgrove said he has been raising the issue with his two primary insurers via his broker for weeks. "We've had no progress," he said.

Kingfisher's three leisure complexes - including at the National University of Ireland (NUI) Galway - have 25-metre pools and annual comprehensive policies each costing 100,000 or more.

He said at least half of the bill reflects public liability cover.

Many of the 400 private and public facilities with pools pay similar premiums, he said.

Their wider plans provide protection against claims by any of the 300,000 people who normally swim in them in a typical week.

All have been closed since mid-March.
A watchdog said banks should freeze credit card repayments. (PA)

Lenders could be urged to offer a temporary freeze on loan and credit card payments, targeted at struggling borrowers affected by the coronavirus and its economic fallout.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced on its website on Thursday it is likely to issue new guidance to banks and other lenders to give customers a three-month payment freeze.

A package of measures set out by the regulator include ensuring all overdraft customers are no worse off on price compared with before recent overdraft changes came into force.

It may also order companies to charge no interest on existing arranged overdrafts of up to 500 ($620) for up to three months for customers affected financially by the pandemic.

Customers benefiting from such temporary measures would not have their credit rating affected.

Read more: Banks told to repay the favour from 2008 bailout with COVID-19 support

The FCA announced a rapid consultation on the proposals, asking stakeholders to reply by Monday. If the plans are then signed off, they would come into effect by 9 April. But the FCA said it may then take a short period of time before lenders put the measures in place.

Christopher Woolard, interim chief executive of the FCA, said: Coronavirus has caused an unprecedented financial shock, with far-reaching consequences for consumers in every corner of the UK.

If confirmed, this package of measures we are proposing today will help provide affected consumers with the temporary financial support they need to help them weather the storm during this challenging time.

The FCA said in a press release the proposals were aimed at ensuring an expected minimum of support for consumers who were previously financially stable.

Stephen Jones, chief executive of UK Finance, which represents leading banks, said all lenders were ready to support customers and already helping with relief on overdrafts and over unsecured debts.

He said the changes should enable lenders to give customers further support, but cautioned that customers needed to be able to manage their borrowing after the crisis.

Story continues

It is critical that the FCAs proposals do not disrupt the provision of credit to borrowers and takes account of the business models of all credit providers including those outside the mainstream market, he said.

Lloyds Banking Group, which owns Halifax and Bank of Scotland as well as Lloyds, welcomed the proposals.

Its retail director Vim Maru said it had already helped thousands of customers through its temporary support measures. Customers can apply for payment holidays on mortgages and loans using a new online application that provides a decision in days; this will also be available for credit cards this week.

Maru said missed payment fees would also be scrapped on mortgages, credit card and loans for three months, and mortgage offers were now valid for an additional three months.

Read more: Banks forced to axe dividends and may cut bonuses over coronavirus crisis

It comes a day after shares in leading UK banks dropped sharply after they gave in to pressure from regulators to also scrap their dividends for the year.

HSBC (HSBA.L), Lloyds (LLOY.L), Barclays (BARC.L), Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L), Santander, and Standard Chartered (STAN.L) released separate statements on Wednesday saying they would cancel any outstanding dividend payments.

Several of the announcements from banks referenced formal requests from the Bank of England and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), a division of the central bank that oversees lenders.

Watch the latest videos from Yahoo UK
Media personality Daddy Freeze has explained his reason for speaking for people obeying the sit at home rule until the COVID 19 is curbed.

Daddy Freeze had shared the video of some soldiers punishing a young man by ordering him to swim in a gutter due to his refusal to obey the stay at home rule.

Read Also: Coronavirus: Daddy Freeze Slams Hypocrites Who Call Themselves Christians

Not long after he said this, a follower called him out saying she finds it unbelievable that he would support such.

Replying, Freeze said;

@nigerianyouthdev although I find this mode of punishment harsh and dont condone it, how hard is it to obey instructions? 2 people were shot dead by police in Rwanda for disobeying the lockdown instructions.



We need to take this more seriously, if we dont flatten the curve in 2 weeks we would need to sit at home even longer.



Disobeying the sit at home order, is in my opinion, the equivalent of murder! Someone can die if they get the virus, especially if they have an underlying condition and anyone can fall into this category including yourself and your loved ones.



We have lost prominent athletes, musicians, doctors and actors to COVID19 so if flogging dingbats who refuse to use their peanut brains to think of the consequence of their stupid actions will save a life, then so be it.



The Scriptures gives the right to governing authorities to punish disobedience, so if you dont like the punishment, dont disobey!



Now, dont even think you can run to God if you get whipped for your own foolishness, the scriptures are useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16), so if you disobey them, you disobey God!



 Romans 13 

NLT

[1] Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. [2] So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. [3] For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. [4] The authorities are Gods servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are Gods servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong.



 1 Peter 2:14 

NLT

or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right.
As many as 13 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi were on Wednesday picked from a mosque in Barwalan area here.

Amit Kumar Anand, Superintendent of Police (SP) City sais,"They are all from Assam. They will be placed under quarantine."

"Police were informed about these people and their primary test has been conducted. Investigation will be conducted," he added.

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the gathering. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh government has identified as many as 569 persons who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event at the Nizamuddin Markaz in the capital early this month along with 218 foreign nationals suspected of being infected by coronavirus and were quarantined.

UP Police identified 218 foreign nationals, who had come to Uttar Pradesh at different stages on tourist visas but some of these foreigners joined the Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin Markaz.

Police have seized the passports of these foreigners and have got them quarantined. Along with this, they are being investigated. The Police have also filed an FIR against people who provided shelter to foreigners.

On Tuesday, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held a meeting with the police officials at his official residence.

He said that it should be kept in mind that the common people should not bear the brunt of the mistakes of the people of the Jamaat. Chief Minister Yogi said that no conspiracy against humanity will be tolerated. Those who have acted against humanity will have to face action, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
European hospitals could run out of essential medicines needed for Covid-19 patients in intensive care in less than two weeks, officials have warned.

The European University Hospital Alliance said that without countries cooperating to ensure a steady supply of these drugs, doctors and nurses might no longer be able to provide adequate intensive care for people critically ill with coronavirus.

In a statement published this week and sent to national governments, the group said that aside from the need for protective gear and ventilators, the most urgent need now is for the drugs that are necessary for intensive care patients.

They wrote that existing stocks of muscle relaxants, sedatives and painkillers were likely to run out in two days in the hardest-hit hospitals, and in two weeks in others.

The shortage has led some hospitals to buy alternative drugs or try other doses on patients.

It is extremely worrying that overworked and often less-experienced nurses and doctors-in-training, drafted to fill the gaps, have to use products and dosages that they are not used to, the group wrote, on behalf of hospitals in Austria, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden and Spain.

The hospital group noted that some governments had reacted to the shortages by refusing to export drugs elsewhere, and warned this would prevent drugs from reaching hospitals in dire need of the medicines.

No single country in Europe has the production facilities to provide all the drugs (or protective gear or ventilators) needed, they wrote. Coordinated European action will be of vital importance.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen

Meanwhile, The European Commission will propose a plan supporting short-time work across the continent in a move aimed at helping businesses and workers weather the economic shock of the coronavirus pandemic.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said the blocs executive arm will unveil the new tool dubbed Sure.

Ms Von der Leyen said the plan will mitigate the effects of the economic downturn by helping workers keep their jobs. She says companies should not lay off workers, even if duties have decreased because of the coronavirus.

Ms Von der Leyen said the plan will also help the economy restart without delay once lockdown measures will be lifted across the continent.
Gov. Greg Abbotts statewide order requiring people to stay at home except for essential activities took effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, and residents have questions about how it will work.

Even local governments and individual businesses still are figuring out how to interpret the new order. Robert Soard, first assistant at the Harris County attorneys office, said the county still was working to reconcile differences between the statewide order and the one enacted by Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo.

Abbotts order closed nonessential businesses until the end of the month.

Any business that believes it should be allowed to stay open can ask the Texas Department of Emergency Management for guidance.

FOR THE LATEST: Interactive maps, charts show spread of coronavirus in Texas

In general, though, for Harris County residents who already were living under a countywide stay-at-home order, not much will change.

Heres what you need to know about how life will  or, more likely, wont  change under the statewide order:

Whats a stay-at-home order, and is Texas under one?

A stay-at-home order generally requires residents of a particular geography to do just that and lays out the exceptions to the rule. Governors have broad authority under state laws to set up their orders however they see fit.

And yes, Texas is under a stay-at-home order.

While Abbott has resisted the label, which had become a familiar term to Texans after many urban counties and cities had passed their own in the days prior, his order is, for all intents and purposes, a statewide stay-at-home order.

Texas Take: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

Abbott has said he didnt want to call his order a shelter-in-place, so as to avoid comparisons to hurricane or tornado advisories, or stay-at-home, to avoid sending the message that Texans couldnt leave their home at all.

In a video released Wednesday, Abbott stated it simply: the order requires all Texans to stay at home except for essential activities.

How does this vary from local versions?

Abbotts order, as with many local orders, including the one in Harris County, follows federal guidelines from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency defining whats considered essential to keep the country running.

The biggest difference is that the statewide order considers houses of worship, such as churches, to be essential. Abbott has said that houses of worship must, whenever possible, conduct their activities from home or through remote audio or video services, which he reiterated Wednesday in a joint guidance with Attorney General Ken Paxton.

In places where substantial community spread of coronavirus has not yet occurred, Abbott and Paxton wrote that in-person gatherings are allowed as long as they follow all Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, such as instructing the sick to stay home and keeping 6 feet of distance between people.

The exception for churches contradicted many local orders, including those in Harris and Bexar counties, which had banned in-person religious services. Many churches in both areas have said theyll continue to hold services remotely.

The statewide order overrides any local orders that are inconsistent with it; however, Abbott said cities and counties may issue stricter provisions in areas not mentioned in the statewide order, if they choose.

Can I go to  ?

Texans still can go out for essential activities  that includes obtaining health care, going to the grocery store, pharmacy or bank or outdoor exercise.

The statewide order names specific businesses that must close: bars, gyms, massage parlors, tattoo studios, piercing studios and cosmetology salons.

Other businesses must close unless they fall under one of the sectors named in the federal guidelines for essential critical infrastructure, which includes health care, emergency services, information technology, water and dams.

So many of these things are pure judgment calls, Soard said, adding that attorneys are trying to match up the documents because its important that people have a general understanding of whats OK and whats not OK.

taylor.goldenstein@chron.com
CHICAGO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ARCH Venture Partners today announced the closing of two new funds, ARCH Venture Fund X and ARCH Venture Fund X Overage, with a combined $1.46 billion to invest in transformative, early stage biotechnology companies.

"ARCH has always been driven to invest in great science to impact human health. There isn't a better illustration of our principles than our all-in battle against COVID-19. The healthcare revolution will be accelerated by the changes that are happening now and we are excited to continue to invest aggressively in risk takers doing truly transformational science," said co-founder and Managing Director Robert Nelsen.

ARCH will deploy Fund X and Fund X Overage to invest in early stage companies. While ARCH will frequently co-invest in a company with both funds, Fund X Overage will be utilized in fewer deals requiring larger investments. Limited partners include endowments, family offices, sovereign wealth funds and other institutional investors.

"Our companies bring cutting-edge science, tools and talent to bear in developing medicines for a wide range of diseases and conditions faced by millions. With these two new funds, we are continuing that work with urgency and a deep sense of purpose. We invest at all levels, whether it's fifty thousand dollars or hundreds of millions, so that each company and each technology has the best chance to advance and change the landscape," said Managing Director Kristina Burow.

Fund X and Fund X Overage follow ARCH Venture Fund IX and ARCH Venture Fund IX Overage, which closed in 2016 with a combined $1.1 billion. ARCH Venture Fund VIII and ARCH Venture Fund VIII Overage closed in 2014 with a combined $560 million.

"ARCH remains committed to our mission of the last 35 years, advancing the most promising innovations from leading life science and physical sciences research to serve the worldwide community by addressing critical health and well-being challenges. ARCH has been privileged to found, support and invest in groundbreaking new companies pursuing advancements in infectious disease, mental health, immunology, genomic and biological tools, data sciences and ways of reimagining diagnostics and therapies," said co-founder and Managing Director Keith Crandell.

Early stage ARCH investments have included Illumina, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Juno Therapeutics, Receptos, Agios Pharmaceuticals, Vir Biotechnology, Sage Therapeutics, bluebird bio, Codiak Biosciences, Denali Therapeutics, GRAIL, Karuna Therapeutics, Beam Therapeutics, Lyell Immunopharma, Sana Biotechnology, Brii Biosciences, Twist Biosciences, Aviron, Ikaria, Gossamer Bio, Fate Therapeutics, Array Biopharma, Adolor, Quanterix, 908 Devices, Unity Biotechnology, Hua Medicine, deCODE Genetics, Homology Medicines and others.

In the battle against COVID-19, ARCH companies Vir Biotechnology, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, VBI Vaccines, Brii Biosciences and Sana Biotechnology are currently working to develop COVID-19 therapeutics; Quanterix is advancing technology that can help with clinical testing needs and support clinical trial continuity; Twist Biosciences is advancing genomic and gene engineering tools used in COVID-19 therapeutic and vaccine development; and Bellerophon's inhaled nitric oxide (iNO) delivery system recently received emergency expanded access approval from the Food and Drug Administration for treatment of COVID-19.

"ARCH is still willing to sit down with a scientist with a lab notebook to develop and translate great science into great companies. Fundamental science is what drives us and creating new diagnostics and disease modifying and curative therapies is what motivates us," said Managing Director Steve Gillis.

ARCH's Managing Directors include:

About ARCH Venture Partners:

ARCH Venture Partners invests in advanced technology companies and is one of the largest early stage technology venture firms in the United States. The firm is a recognized leader in commercializing technologies developed at academic institutions, corporate research groups and national laboratories. ARCH invests primarily in companies it co-founds with leading scientists and entrepreneurs, bringing innovations in life sciences and physical sciences to market.

For more information, visit www.archventure.com.

Contact:

Morgan Warners

[email protected]

202-337-0808

SOURCE ARCH Venture Partners

Related Links

http://www.archventure.com


Tiger King star Joe Exotic once asked Marilyn Manson for an endorsement for his failed campaign to become the Governor of Oklahoma.

Exotics  real name Joseph Maldonado-Passage  unsuccessful 2018 campaign to be elected as the Oklahoma Governor is covered in the bonkers Netflix documentary.

But it is only now that we learn the controversial private prison owner reached out to Manson in a bid to gain support.

Manson received a Twitter message from Exotic on January 16, 2018 which read: Hey, Thanks for the follow. Im running for Governor of Oklahoma and trying to speak for the real people for a change and get some help for addiction in this State that no one cares about.

Would you endorse me? Not asking for money. Just to use your name as an endorsement.

Manson shared a screenshot of the DM and shared it on his Instagram yesterday (April 1) under the caption Nope. Dont F*** With Cats.

According to his husband, Joe Exotic is currently in coronavirus isolation in prison after there were cases in the previous facility he was held in.

Earlier this week, Tiger King star John Finlay claimed that Michael Jackson once owned alligators that perished at a fire in Joe Exotics zoo back in 2015.
More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week  doubling a record high set just one week earlier  in a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the new coronavirus, which has now infected more than 1 million people worldwide.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is resisting calls to issue a national stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the coronavirus despite his administrations grim projections of tens of thousands dying. But the administration planned to recommend most Americans wear face coverings.

States are increasingly pushing shutdowns: Florida, Nevada and Pennsylvania have all added or expanded stay-at-home orders.

Here are some of APs top stories Thursday on the worlds coronavirus pandemic. Follow APNews.com/VirusOutbreak for updates through the day and APNews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak for stories explaining some of its complexities.

WHATS HAPPENING TODAY:

 The number of confirmed coronavirus cases worldwide passed the 1 million threshold Thursday in the latest indication of the pandemics growing foothold around the globe, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The count represents confirmed cases, but the true numbers are believed to be much higher. White House coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx said incoming infection data suggests not enough Americans are abiding by guidelines in the national call to action to stem the spread of the virus.

 The economic damage from the coronavirus crisis is piling up, with an unprecedented 6.6 million Americans filing for unemployment benefits in a single week. The Congressional Budget Office projected the U.S. economy could shrink by an annualized rate exceeding 28%. About half of all working Americans report some kind of income loss affecting themselves or a member of their household, with low-income residents and those without college degrees especially likely to have lost a job, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

 Calls amplified for people to cover their faces when they go outside. The Trump administration was formalizing new guidance to recommend that most Americans wear face coverings such as T-shirts or bandannas to cover their nose and mouth. Medical-grade masks would be reserved for those dealing directly with the sick. New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio also asked city residents to wear homemade face coverings when they leave their homes.

 Major construction projects moving forward along the U.S. borders with Canada and Mexico are raising fears the coronavirus could race through temporary work camps and spread to rural communities unable to handle an outbreak. Despite a clampdown on peoples movements in much of the country, groups of workers travel every day from camps in New Mexico to build President Donald Trumps border wall.

 In the South American country of Ecuador, hospitals were turning away patients and bodies were being left on streets and in homes for days in Guayaquil, a normally bustling city that has become a hot spot in Latin America as the coronavirus pandemic spreads.

 Some Americans without direct deposit wont get their payments until mid-August or later from a U.S. economic stimulus package. The IRS will make about 60 million payments to Americans through direct deposit in mid-April, and then paper checks will start going out May 4 at a rate of about 5 million per week, according to a memo obtained Thursday by The Associated Press.

___

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. The vast majority of people recover.

Here are the symptoms of the virus compared with the common flu.

One of the best ways to prevent spread of the virus is washing your hands with soap and water. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends first washing with warm or cold water and then lathering soap for 20 seconds to get it on the backs of hands, between fingers and under fingernails before rinsing off.

You should wash your phone, too. Heres how.

TRACKING THE VIRUS: Drill down and zoom in at the individual county level, and you can access numbers that will show you the situation where you are, and where loved ones or people youre worried about live.

___

ONE NUMBER:

 ONE MILLION: The New England Patriots team plane is expected to return to Boston from China on Thursday carrying more than one million masks critical to health care providers fighting to control the spread of the coronavirus.

___

IN OTHER NEWS:

 BOUNCY FAUCI: The United States top infectious disease specialist is getting his own bobblehead. The creation from the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum in Milwaukee features Dr. Anthony Fauci wearing a suit as he makes a motion showing how the nation needs to flatten the curve in the coronavirus pandemic.

 MUSIC GOES ON: Even with its members scattered far and wide by the coronavirus, an orchestra in France has managed to make sweet music in lockdown. Musicians with the National Orchestra of France filmed themselves playing Bolero alone at home.

 AMAZING TECHNICOLOR AT HOME: Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber is making some of his filmed musicals available for free on YouTube. On Friday, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will be streamable followed a week later by the rock classic Jesus Christ Superstar.

 TEDDY BEAR HUNT: Teddy bears are popping up in the unlikeliest of places. New Zealanders are embracing an international movement in which people are placing the stuffed animals in their windows during coronavirus lockdowns to brighten the mood and give children a game to play by spotting the bears in their neighborhoods.

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Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
Emelda Ezinne Remi winner of Mrs (not Miss) Nigeria Universe has escaped death at home. She took to Instagram to explain how her generator caught fire from over working.

She said they had to keep the generator on to preserve perishable items in her fridge. She was home with her family not knowing the generator already caught fire and her street was already filled with smoke.

A very angry Emelda took her anger on social media to criticize the government, saying even during this lockdown, Nigeria cant provide electricity for its citizens.

Sharing the very ugly experience accompanied with photos, via her handle  @ladyemelda, she wrote;



NIGERIA I hail thee,

LAGOS state, I hail thee ooo,

EKEDC come and see.

- Generator completely burnt because ,NO LIGHT!

Generator is overworked, because we are preserving perishable items that were stocked for this period.

Its crazy how a country like Nigeria cannot generate enough power for her citizens neither can they find a way to compensate us this Lockdown period.

Just 3 states are on complete lock down, yet the welfare and sanity of the people dont matter to you guys in power. 

This is exactly what @adaameh was frantically talking about yesterday on @instablog9ja

One day this wickedness would end and all you underserving leaders would exist no more. 

I thank God for preserving our lives and house (where would we have been this period?).

It could have been worse, as we were indoor, didnt know the entire street has been filled with smoke coming from our house.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and others scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Workers unload a cargo plane at Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens, Tuesday, March 31, 2020. Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and other states scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP Photo-Thanassis Stavrakis

Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and others scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.

Sixty-eight countries  Canada is not among them  have curbed exports of personal protective equipment or medicine, according to Simon Evenett, a professor of international trade at Switzerland's University of St. Gallen.

He called the policies "inhumane" and a potential "death sentence" for some of the world's most vulnerable patients.

"It means they're going to go without. And you don't want to think about what going without a medical ventilator means when you're seriously ill with COVID-19," said Evenett, who runs the Global Trade Alert nonprofit, which tracks protectionism.

"Countries which use (the restrictions) are essentially grabbing a small number of supplies for the moment and denying sick people in other countries the possibility of treatment," he said in phone interview, highlighting France and India as hoarders.

"If you think that this is going to have a happy legacy for international relations, think again."

On Tuesday, China responded to complaints from Europe about ineffective coronavirus test kits by tightening standards around certification of medical goods for export.

The decision seeks to clamp down on defective products, but could have the effect of further slashing supply from a country that produces half of the world's personal protective equipment  also known as PPE.

Omar Allam, who heads an Ottawa-based global trade consultancy, said the move aims to bolster China's reputation, but effectively severs Canadian wholesalers from some reputable Chinese manufacturers by tacking on red tape that trips up the supply chain.

"You could have a reliable provider with a great track record, but if they don't have the required medical certificate, it could take them up to a year to get this," said Allam, who is working pro bono to connect the Canadian government with foreign suppliers.

This is a major blow to countries like the U.S. and Canada."

Officials across the country this week warned that equipment shortfalls are placing health-care workers and vulnerable Canadians at growing risk of exposure to the virus.

A lack of supply and surging demand have sent prices soaring for goods from gowns to gloves, swabs and face shields.

"One government had placed an order for 200 million masks from China. And what this did overnight to the price of masks was to treble them," Evenett said.

Air cargo rates have also shot up as airlines park planes  which often carry freight as well as passenger luggage  due to plummeting travel demand.

"I would say that theyve more than doubled, even tripled," said Gary Hopkins, managing director of U.S.-based Air Charter Service's Toronto office.

A cargo flight between Beijing and Vancouver carrying 100,000 kilograms in freight might typically cost $300,000, but is more likely to go for $800,000 this week, Hopkins said.

"Theres a lack of availability of the aircraft. Each one is like gold dust to get those slots," he said, noting taxpayers often foot the bill. "Governments are stepping up all over the world to pay for that."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised Wednesday that federal health authorities will not cut any corners when it comes to making sure masks provided by China meet the necessary standards.

The comments followed an announcement from the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa that the country is sending 30,000 medical masks along with thousands of gowns, gloves and goggles to Canada.

The shipment was announced amid reports that the Dutch government is recalling around 600,000 defective masks that were recently shipped from China. Spain has also raised concerns about Chinese-made COVID-19 testing kits that were faulty.

On Tuesday night, China's Ministry of Commerce announced that PPE  which includes COVID-19 test kits, N95 respirator masks, ventilators and infrared thermometers  can only be exported if its manufacturers show certification by a national registry and documentation proving it meets the import country's standards. The exports will be checked at customs in China to confirm the paperwork, according to the government release.

At the height of the crisis there, Beijing sought to buy virtually all of the countrys medical supplies and withhold exports, Evenett said.

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"Now the government is letting selected Chinese medical suppliers ship abroad. But because it's a pretty ad hoc and non-transparent system, its pretty much tantamount to an informal export ban," said Evenett.

"This is the worst type of short-term thinking," he said.

Since the start of the week, more than 11 million face masks have arrived in Canada, including a shipment of one million masks that reached a Hamilton warehouse overnight, Trudeau said Thursday.

The government has spoken with nearly 3,000 companies to secure "millions of pieces of vital equipment," he said.

Ottawa has also co-signed a statement with partners including Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and others to keep supply chains open.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2020.
Police is shifting around 210 people stranded at Majnu-ka-Tila Gurdwara since March 28 due to the national lockdown, to a school in Nehru Vihar. All those rescued have been put in quarantine.

Earlier, Manjinder S Sirsa, President of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) had requested the Chief Minister of Punjab to help the people stranded at the Gurudwara.

"My earnest request to CM @capt_amarinder Ji - More than 300 people of Punjab are here at Gurdwara Majnu Ka Tila Sahib. They need help from @PunjabGovtIndia to reach their homes. It would be a disaster if anyone of them is COVID positive. Kindly respond & take immediate action" he had tweeted.

bccl

The Gurdwara had earlier offered to provide quarantine and isolation facilities for the treatment of coronavirus-affected people, and allotted 12 neat and sanitised rooms along with round-the-clock service to cater to the needs of the patients.

bccl

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1637 on Tuesday. The death toll due to the COVID-19 rose to 38 while 133 cases were cured or discharged after treatment, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.

The evacuation happened a day after more than a thousand people were evacuated from a building in Delhi's Nizamuddin area. A congregation of Tablighi Jamaat participated at a mega event in a mosque where several of those who were present have tested postive for coronavirus and have passed on infection to hundred others leading to a spike in positive cases in the cases.
Balloons for the final night of the 2016 Democratic National Convention wait to be lifted to the ceiling during preparations at the Wells Fargo Center. Read more

Democrats said Thursday they will delay their 2020 presidential nominating convention from mid-July to mid-August in hopes that the coronavirus pandemic will have subsided enough to allow the party to gather in person for a traditional celebration.

The Democratic National Convention Committee said the convention, which had been scheduled to take place in Milwaukee, would be postponed until the week of Aug. 17, though the committee did not specify whether it would be in person or virtual.

"In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds, said Joe Solmonese, CEO of the committee.

The postponement came as pressure was mounting from Joe Biden, the Democratic front-runner, and party leaders to consider alternatives.

The new date would have Democrats meeting just a week before Republicans are scheduled to renominate President Donald Trump in Charlotte, N.C.. The president has vowed that will go on; the RNC has given no public indication of delays or modifications.

Veterans of the 2016 Democratic convention in Philadelphia said their party officials are certain to confront logistical challenges as they try to move the nationally televised event, which was expected to draw at least 50,000 delegates, journalists, party officials, donors, and supporters.

Describing a sometimes seat-of-the-pants scramble even in the best of times, they said it could be tough for organizers to raise money, lock down hotel space, and make sure the arena is available.

 READ MORE: Pennsylvania just postponed its primary due to coronavirus. Heres what it means for voters and 2020 campaigns.

Milwaukees mayor and several aldermen had cast doubt on a traditional convention this summer, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Even before Thursdays announcement some advocated a virtual gathering in which delegates vote electronically and prominent speeches are broadcast on TV and streamed online.

Conventions typically bring fanfare and an economic boost. Given the coronavirus-driven downturn, it could be an opportunity for a rebound in Milwaukees hospitality and retail sectors  but only if its deemed safe. A Marquette University poll of Wisconsin voters released this week showed that 62% think the convention should be virtual. Only 22% said it should occur as it had been planned before the virus hit.

The months leading up to the convention are typically active with promotional events and fund-raisers. By April of 2016, Philadelphia had already covered the city in painted donkeys, placed at tourist sites and hotels assigned to the state delegations. A program to sign up volunteers had launched in January.

For the candidates, especially challengers trying to unseat a sitting president, the conventions offer a rare week of unfettered prime-time television to deliver a vision to the country. Democrats were hoping the Milwaukee event would serve as a unifying moment after a primary that pit various factions against one another. In their ideal scenario, they envision Biden receiving a warm endorsement from rival Bernie Sanders, with Barack Obama giving a major address.

The selection of Wisconsin  a state Trump won narrowly in 2016 and expected to again be crucial  was intended to boost Democrats there.

 READ MORE: These Pennsylvanians love Bernie Sanders. What will they do now that he probably cant win?

Presidential candidates typically receive a polling bounce after the weeklong infomercial of a party convention, and both parties rely on the events to kick off the sprint to Election Day.

Republicans, already unified, have advantages. As president, Trump can dominate the airwaves with or without a convention. The party that holds the White House typically has a fund-raising edge.

Milwaukees host committee said as of January it had raised $25 million of its $70 million goal. It has not provided an update since then. The months just prior to the 2016 convention were important for bringing in money, said former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, who chaired the Philadelphias host committee.

There was more enthusiasm built up for the convention and we had very good fund-raising months. Theyre not going to have that," Rendell said. "If a company cant pay its workers, if it has to lay off 40% of its workforce, are they going to buy a box or cut a huge check?

Rendell predicted Milwaukee would fall short of its fund-raising goals. "The DNC would have to step in and put up the money needed to run the convention, but thats hard because thats money the DNC wants in the fall to persuade the electorate or spike turnout, he said.

Planning a convention is a collaborative dance between the city and its host committee, the national party and the campaign of the nominee.

Anna Adams-Sarthou, former communications director for Philadelphias host committee, said these next few months were when DNC members, state delegations and the media flocked to Philadelphia for site visits. Youre thinking about meeting your budget. You have to hit benchmarks for construction. And how do you plan if things arent normal in June or July? How do you physically get the arena ready?

A slightly smaller, stripped down show might be an option though, said Kevin Washo, former executive director of Philadelphia 2016 DNC host committee, especially if timelines get crunched.

Maybe the production value isnt as grand, Washo said. If you look back at 1980 compared to 2016 or 2012, the production quality has gone off the charts in terms of slickness, but that wasnt always the case. A lot of times they were big wooden stages, banners and drapes. So maybe they go bare bones.

 READ MORE: Voting by mail is a safe option during coronavirus. Heres what you need to know about absentee ballots in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

One reason the Democrats had scheduled their nominating convention earlier than in past presidential election years was to avoid conflicting with the summer Olympics in Tokyo, an event that now wont take place until 2021. But moving the convention presents additional uncertainties  like whether the Milwaukee Bucks home arena will still be available if the NBAs season has returned.

At this time in 2016, Philadelphia Democrats were making hotel reservations for all the convention guests, said Bob Brady, the citys Democratic chairman.

The Democratic National Convention Committee said Thursday that it had confirmed that the host arena, the Fiserv Forum, and hotels in the area are available in August. Still, with the coronavirus path uncertain, its not clear if even in August such a large gathering will be possible.

In the end, Brady argued, it would not be a tremendous loss if the convention didnt happen, especially weighed against health concerns.

It becomes postponing a party, and people want to have a party and they deserve to have a party," he said, "but its a party.
OTTAWAWord came March 22 via a text message from Perus foreign affairs minister to his Canadian counterpart, Francois-Philippe Champagne.

A week earlier, Peru had locked down its borders and airspace after martial law was declared. Only approved flights to one military airbase near the capital Lima could land.

The text message flooded Champagne with relief.

Canada would get three flights  Tuesday, Thursday and Friday  Gustava Meza-Cuadra agreed. Champagne pressed for more and secured three more flights this week.

Canadas earlier attempt at a joint airlift with Australia had already collapsed when local authorities wouldnt permit different nationalities on the same flight.

So we had to go back to the drawing board, said Champagne in an interview Wednesday.

With internal movements barred, and the international community scrambling to airlift citizens out, as many as 2,000 to 3,000 Canadians may yet be stuck in Peru.

Still Champagne is grateful many will be able to leave. He says a European colleague still has some 18,000 citizens stuck in the South American country.

In response to the global pandemic, the largest peacetime repatriation of Canadians in the countrys history began slowly, nearly two months ago, with the airlift of a few hundred locked down in Wuhan, China.

In the past few weeks it hit a fever pitch.

There are other concerns as well.

The pandemic has shaken multilateral relations and is driving a wave of protectionist sentiment across the globe, Champagne acknowledged Wednesday.

There are worrying signs that people are looking inward, he said, which represents a longer-term threat to economic security, food security and global public health.

Ottawa has so far facilitated 42 commercial flights from 29 countries in the last 10 days. On Tuesday alone, flights arrived from Algeria, Ecuador, Senegal, Democratic Republic of Congo, Hungary and Spain.

And where there were once as many as 3,500 to 4,000 Canadians at sea on cruise ships, the number is down to about 400 Canadians on 12 ships still not docked at ports, an official said Wednesday.

To date, up to 8,000 Canadians and their families have returned, with another 7,000 to 8,000 expected to arrive from 20 more destinations, including India and Pakistan, in the coming days.

Ive become like the travel agent of Canada, Champagne chuckled on the phone. He said moving all the pieces around is like a giant chess game with countries trying to barter airplanes, permits to move through quarantine corridors for their nationals, and coveted landing rights.

Champagne counts the returnees as small victories, saying many dont understand the unprecedented complexities of the consular operation. He also says he knows many are feeling stress and anxiety.

Champagne himself felt mild symptoms a few weeks ago after returning from a European trip, and self-isolated before testing negative for the coronavirus. He chalked it up to jet lag.

Now what keeps him up at night is the realization that the window to return for many others is closing, and there will be many who wont be able to return. The stark truth is theyll have to ride it out abroad, with whatever support Canadian consular staff can provide.

Weve been clear from the beginning that despite our best efforts  there will be Canadians that we wont be able to bring back home, he said. Its not a matter of days but certainly a matter of weeks.

Global Affairs says there are about 400,000 Canadians registered abroad, but thats likely only a fraction of the ex-pats and travellers scattered around the globe.
A pub has been shut down after flouting coronavirus lockdown rules to hold "lock ins" for regular drinkers.

Police said The Blue Bell, in Nottinghamshire, had been "putting lives in danger" by deliberately ignoring the rules for non-essential businesses to close amid the Covid-19 outbreak.

Following the Government's social distancing measure announcement on March 20, all non-essential businesses, including pubs and restaurants, were told to close.

But, unbeknownst to the owners of the pub in Mansfield Road, Sutton-in-Ashfield, the licence holder was continuing to serve drinks, police said.

Nottinghamshire Police officers were called to reports that the venue was still operating and, working with Ashfield District Council, shut it down.

Ch Supt Rob Griffin said this "sends a very clear message" that "police and our partners will not tolerate those people who deliberately break the rules and put other people's lives in danger".

He said: The Government has been very specific that rules need to be followed so that lives can be saved. Those who choose to ignore these rules run the risk of swift action like has been taken here.

"People have got to take this seriously. This is about saving lives."

Before and during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures 1 /44 Before and during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures AP Buckingham Palace AP Piccadilly Line tube AP Big Ben AP Millennium bridge AP Wembley Stadium AP St Pancras International train station AP Downing Street AP Victoria Station AP Regent Street AP The Mall leading to Buckingham Palace AP London's National Gallery in Trafalgar Square PA Edinburgh's Royal Mile PA Barry Island, South Wales PA Bath PA Bath PA London's Waterloo station PA London Bridge PA London's Canary Wharf Jubilee Line platform PA London's Canary Wharf Station PA London's Buckingham Palace PA London's Tower Bridge PA London's Leicester Square PA London's Millennium Bridge with St Paul's Cathedral PA London's Criterion Theatre PA London's Palace Theatre PA London's Phoenix Theatre PA London's Canary Wharf Station PA Bournemouth beach PA Bath PA Bath PA Barry Island, South Wales PA Bournemouth beach PA

Lee Anderson, MP for Ashfield, was "instrumental" to the closure and reported the pub to the authorities after the problem was brought to his attention.

He said: At a time when the vast majority of residents are obeying Government advice we have a small majority who think the rules do not apply to them.

"Make no mistake, if anyone else thinks its a good idea to break the rules and risk life then I am sure they will be getting a visit from Nottinghamshire Police.

Daily coronavirus briefing: 2,352 people admitted to hospital have died

Councillor Helen-Ann Smith, cabinet member for community safety, added: The irresponsible actions of the bar manager were the root cause of this incident.

"The Government has restrictions in place for a reason. It beggars belief why this group of people thought it was acceptable to have a private party when the majority of residents were staying home to help save lives."

Nottinghamshire Police said officers and licensing officials will visit any businesses thought to still be flouting the rules and will order them to close.

Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast:
FILE PHOTO: General view of Kaaba at the Grand Mosque, which is almost empty of worshippers, after Saudi authority suspended umrah amid the fear of coronavirus outbreak, at Muslim holy city of Mecca

RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia imposed a 24-hour curfew on Thursday in the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina, extending measures to combat coronavirus, while other Gulf Arab states locked down districts with large migrant worker populations.

The Saudi interior ministry stipulated exceptions, including for essential workers and to allow residents to buy food and access medical care. Cars may only carry one passenger.

Saudi Arabia has recorded 1,885 infections and 21 deaths, the most in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council. It has already halted international flights, suspended the year-round umrah pilgrimage, closed most public places, and heavily restricted internal movement.

The eastern oil-producing province of Qatif, where the kingdom's first coronavirus cases were reported among Shi'ite Muslim pilgrims returning from Iran, has been on lockdown for nearly four weeks.

Entry and exit to Riyadh, Mecca, Medina and Jeddah is limited. Some neighbourhoods in Mecca and Medina were already under full lockdown, but in the rest of those cities the curfew was previously from 3 p.m. to 6 a.m.

In other Gulf Arab states, lockdowns targeted neighbourhoods with large numbers of low-wage foreign labourers.

Kuwait's health minister said authorities were considering sealing off some areas after Qatar announced late on Wednesday it was extending a lockdown on an industrial area and Oman closed off Muttrah, home to one of the sultanate's oldest markets.

Dubai in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday sealed off Al Ras, an area famous for its gold and spice souqs and where many migrant workers reside.

Millions of migrant workers, mainly from Asian countries like Nepal, India and the Philippines, are among the large expatriate population in the six Gulf states, where confirmed infections have risen to above 4,700, with 36 deaths.

Bahrain's health ministry reported 66 new cases on Thursday, all in the industrial zone of Salmabad.

Story continues

"The expat labourers had been under precautionary quarantine in their residence and yesterday were placed in a dedicated quarantine facility and there is no outbreak among labourers," it said.

Oman's health minister said the coastal commercial district of Muttrah was sealed off due to the discovery of a community spread of the virus. "Such decisions are not easily taken ... but it is for the public good," state media quoted him as saying.

Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it was working to enable foreign residents to return home even as passenger flights remain suspended.

(Reporting by Stephen Kalin in Riyadh and Alaa Swilam and Ghaida Ghantous in Dubai; Editing by Toby Chopra and Giles Elgood)
A foreign traveller convicted of smuggling 57 endangered tortoises with an estimated market value of HK$340,000 has been jailed for two years, the heaviest penalty ever imposed using Hong Kongs animal protection laws.

The 47-year-old man arrived at the citys airport on September 28 last year from Moroni in the Comoros Islands, via Addis Ababa in Ethiopia.

Customs officers found a total of 57 endangered tortoises, comprising 55 radiated tortoises and two Madagascar tortoises in plastic tape in his baggage.

An investigation by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department concluded the tortoises had been subjected to unnecessary suffering, and their health and welfare had been severely neglected.

He was convicted at the District Court on Monday, and sentenced to 24 months and eight months behind bars on Wednesday, under the Protection of Endangered Species of Animals and Plants Ordinance and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance respectively.

The jail term was the severest penalty ever handed out in Hong Kong for the illegal import of live endangered species.

Under the first law, the maximum penalty for those offences is a HK$10 million (US$1.3 million) fine and 10 years in prison, while the cruelty law carries a maximum fine of HK$200,000 and three years behind bars.

This article Smuggler jailed for two years after he was caught by Hong Kong customs officers with 57 endangered tortoises first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
Mark Manley, 35, of no fixed address, was jailed for six months at Croydon Magistrates Court for stealing PPE equipment from an ambulance. (Pictures: PA/Getty)

A man has been jailed for six months for stealing personal protective equipment (PPE) from an ambulance amid the coronavirus crisis.

Mark Manley, 35, of no fixed address, was handed the sentence at Croydon Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to stealing equipment from a stationary ambulance and assaulting a security guard, the Metropolitan Police said.

Police were called to reports of a man having stolen equipment from an ambulance at St Thomas Street in south-east London at 9.19pm on Saturday night, the force said.

He had taken a bag containing PPE, which included masks, paper suits and hand gel, and when he was challenged by security staff, he assaulted one security worker and racially abused another, police said.

Some of the items taken were left unusable because they had been contaminated, police said.

The shortage of PPE for NHS frontline workers is an ongoing issue amid the coronavirus crisis, with many calling for the government to do more to get them the equipment they need.

Following the theft, Manley was detained by the security guards and patrolling British Transport Police, the Met Police said.

Latest coronavirus news, updates and advice

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He was arrested on suspicion of theft, actual bodily harm and a racially-aggravated public order offence and later charged with theft from a motor vehicle, a section 4 Public Order Act offence (causing fear or provocation of violence) and a racially aggravated Public Order Act offence.

Manley was jailed at Croydon Magistrates Court on Monday, according to Scotland Yard.

Police said he was also charged with assault against an emergency worker in relation to the security guard, who sustained facial injuries which were not life-threatening.

Coronavirus: what happened today
I would like to respond to Brian Hicks March 25 column on closing local barrier islands to outside access.

Considering the effects of spring break in Florida or Mardi Gras in New Orleans had on the spread of the coronavirus, the only prudent action is to close our beaches by restricting access.

Florida and Louisiana are now hot spots for the virus.

The inconvenience to beachgoers is nothing compared to the public health.

Kudos to the Isle of Palms, Sullivans Island and Folly Beach for acting before it is too late.

JAN ANDERSON

Seagrass Lane

Isle of Palms

Stem child abuse

With our social distancing and staying home, we are in a time we have never experienced.

This is a time and an environment in which child abuse is likely to occur. Abuse crosses all social and economic levels of society. Even some in the upper echelon are abusers.

Stress, drugs or alcohol, communication problems, culture, poverty and loss of control or anger are all underlying causes of abuse.

A note to society: Please try to understand your children, watch your words, get control of yourself before disciplining a child, take a time-out yourself or call a friend to talk things over.

If you, as a parent, are depressed or have a medical condition or a substance-abuse problem, call the appropriate hotlines for help.

The effects of abuse are devastating and life-lasting whether a child, an adult or anyone in the way of anger.

Remember, child abuse includes physical, sexual and emotional abuse, as well as neglect.

Social forces today also play a pivotal role in shaping an abusers values and attitudes, as well as creating an environment where abusive behavior is even rewarded.

Speak to your children as if they are the wisest, kindest, most beautiful and magical humans on Earth, for what they believe is what they will become.

LYNN YOUNG

Founder, Lowcountry Orphan Relief

River Reach Way

Charleston

Read stimulus bill

In response to the March 26 Post and Courier letter to the editor Dems held us hostage, I would suggest the letter writer read the stimulus bill.

None of the proposals listed by the writer made it into the bills final version.

Further, I would ask this of all those who have railed against government for so many years: Will you tear up the check you will be receiving as part of this bill, and will you decline unemployment pay?

To not decline government assistance would be hypocritical.

DAN HOLLEY

Wedgepark Road

Charleston

Turn on the light

The quote in the March 27 Post and Couriers Thought for Today says, Fear grows in darkness; if you think theres a bogeyman around the corner, turn on the light.

This made me think about our shared reality with this horrible coronavirus. Maybe we can turn on a light and look at things a bit differently to find something good.

Lets look at a very real positive. We are giving Mother Nature a break. This worldwide phenomenon is keeping millions of exhaust-spewing vehicles off the road, plane pollution out of the skies and industries from pumping pollution into the air and our waterways.

We live near a busy railroad, and even trains are not rolling with the same frequency. My allergies have not been as bad this spring. It may be a combination of staying inside and recent rains.

If we had been told to stay inside for two or three days for the good of our planet, would we have done it? With COVID-19 on our doorstep, we are beyond that.

Maybe we have given our planet time to heal itself in some small way. I think all this sacrifice will be applied to the debt we all have accumulated.

Let something good come of it, whether it be renewed faith in the beauty of family or of faith itself.

For some, it might be to realize just how small this world is and how very similar we all are. Or a keener sense in seeing how simple acts of kindness can make a difference in someone elses life. Maybe thats what turning on the light really is about.

GWEN FISH

Tall Sail Drive

Charleston

Praise for VA hospital

Once again, I want to sing the praises of the Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center.

I have never experienced anything less than excellent care, service and friendliness.

I compliment the care team to which I am assigned. It is overall a wonderful facility and Charleston is so blessed to have it here.

RICKY G. MARTIN

Dogwood Road

Charleston
With respect to Laila Fozounis article No mask for our fears (SFChronicle.com, Open Forum, March 29), she rightly points out that, More than ever, we need solidarity and compassion for one another. This principle applies globally, since were dealing with a worldwide pandemic.

What she did not mention is that her home country of Iran has been under draconian sanctions imposed by the U.S. government for the past two plus years.

If you think health care conditions are bad in this country, imagine what theyre like in Iran, an early coronavirus hot spot along with Spain and Italy, which reported 41,495 cases and 2,757 deaths as of March 31. Trenches had to be dug so its dead could be buried.

The punitive sanctions against Iran should be lifted at least temporarily so we can offer whatever assistance is possible. Then we should see how best to help the other countries currently under U.S. sanctions.

It makes no sense to keep these sanctions in place for political reasons and presidential chest-thumping. We should be offering whatever humanitarian assistance we can to our neighbors around the world because were all in this together.

Michael ODaniel, El Cerrito

Tireless heroes

Ive heard it said that the past few generations of Americans do not possess the heroic qualities that the previous generations did.

The coronavirus has blown that theory to pieces. I believe Gen. George S. Patton would be as proud of the doctors, nurses and emergency transport personnel as he was of the soldiers he led into combat. Both groups have raced toward the danger as only exceptional people do. They are looking down the barrel every day at an enemy that threatens their health, family and very existence.

They work tirelessly to try and stop this invisible enemy from exhausting the lives of their fellow human beings. When this scourge has been removed, please remember one thing: There are heroes and heroines who walk among us every day, not asking for fame or acclaim. They help because they are imbued with the humanitarian instinct to aid others. God bless them all.

Hayward Simpson, Lake City, Fla.

Disappointed in closure

I was disappointed but not surprised that the state superintendent of public instruction, Tony Thurmond, announced his intention that schools remain closed for the remainder of the school year and that students continue to engage in distance education.

The superintendents announcement, while not a directive, will make it difficult for local school boards to not follow this advice. Im disappointed because distance learning is not in the best educational interest of our students.

I expected the superintendent to not be an advocate for the governor, the legislators, public health officials, teachers or parents. I expected the superintendent to be an advocate for the students. Denying students an education is never the right thing to do and using as a justification that distance learning is an acceptable alternative is misguided at best and disingenuous at worst.

All the superintendent did was deliver on a promise that Gov. Gavin Newsom made at the start of the crisis. Hes closing schools. I believe the governor, superintendent and educational establishment will regret these actions. While the public health crisis is serious, closing schools is never in the best interest of students. Extending the school year, alternating school days or minimizing personal contact were other alternatives.

Joseph Morello, San Francisco

Learn the hard way

Regarding Dont downplay pandemic (Letters, April 1): I read the comment about Republican leaders downplaying the scope of this health crisis.

Their constituents will learn the hard way, but can and should vote them out! Americans historically have learned the hard way: the Civil War, the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, Vietnam, now this virus; Bill Gates warned President Trump and us years ago to prepare for next pandemic, but no one listened.

Peter Grenell, San Francisco

Keep the lots closed

Unlike the writer of Parking lot closures (Letters, April 1), I dont view the closure of car lots next to trails for parks and beaches as a knee- jerk reaction to the coronavirus pandemic. Many residents, particularly those younger and healthier than those of us over 60 and have long-term respiratory or other medical problems, have not been observing social distancing advisories.

The only way to ensure that the crowding of beaches or park trails does not continue is by closing the lots that enable easy access to them. And while this action might seem draconian, it will help to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

As the ancient Greek physician, Hippocrates, was believed to have said, Desperate times call for desperate measures.
An Italian commune has printed its own local "currency" to help residents get by during the coronavirus crisis.

The mayor of Santa Marina, in the southern Campania region, said the authority will hand out its own notes worth a total of 100,000 (87,800).

This money can be used within the commune and will work like classic vouchers, the mayor said in a Facebook post.

The commune said the notes can be used for buying groceries, medicine and for any other personal necessity.

The initiative aims to support people who need extra support to make it through this extremely difficult time, Giovanni Fortunato said, adding around 5,000 (4,400) would also go to help a local hospital.

The 50 cent, 1, 5 and 10 notes contain a different iconic picture of the area in southern Italy, the mayor said.

Giuseppe Conte, the Italian prime minister, recently approved a new package of measures including food parcels and shopping vouchers for those struggling financially during the coronavirus pandemic, which has slowed down economic activity in the country.

People have been ordered to stay at home unless it is deemed necessary, such as to buy groceries or medicine, while all non-essential businesses have been told to close during the nationwide lockdown.

In Campania, elderly people have reportedly been targeted by young muggers on motorbikes for their shopping during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Italys minister for southern regions has expressed concerns about potential social tensions and civil unrest in poorer areas if the epidemic moves south as expected.

I am afraid that the worries that are affecting large sections of the population over health, income and the future, with the continuation of the crisis, will turn into anger and hatred, Giuseppe Provenzano told the national newspaper La Repubblica.

Italy has been one of the hardest-hit countries in the world by the coronavirus pandemic, with its lockdown  set to end on Friday - being extended until at least 13 April as authorities work to contain the outbreak.

More than 110,500 have tested positive for the virus in the country to date, according to official figures.

The death toll stood at around 13,100 on Thursday, while more than 16,800 people have officially been beaten the disease.

Additional reporting by Reuters
West Bengal government was



taking all precautionary measures for migrant workers such as putting them under home or institutional quarantine, strict surveillance and daily monitoring in its bid to combat COVID- 19, an official said on Thursday.

If any migrant labourer who returned to the state from outside show any symptoms of the coronavirus, necessary medical tests would be conducted after isolating that person at a special isolation centre of a hospital nearby, the official told PTI.

"We have taken up strict measures in this respect. migrant labourers are kept in quarantine centres and they are under strict surveillance. Health officials are monitoring them in the quarantine centres. In case anybody report of having fever or cough or breathing problems, symptoms of COVID-19 we will immediately conduct a test after putting him or her in a special isolation centre of a hospital," he said.

Special isolation wards have been set up in the state-run hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients.

All the district administrations have set up temporary shelters for the poor and needy people, including migrant workers stranded due to lockdown measures in the respective areas.

"In case of any violation of home quarantine protocols by any migrant labourer or foreign returnee, the authorities should move them into institutional quarantine facilities for a minimum of 14 days," the official added.

Directions from the Chief Ministers Office (CMO) have been sent to all district administration requesting them to ensure strict compliance of the protocols meant for migrant workers returning home to combat the spread of the COVID-19.

Several thousands of labourers from West Bengals district like Murshidabad, Malda, Nadia, Uttar and Dakshin Dinajpur, Medinipore besides, other districts work in different other states of the country.

Incidentally, the state government on March 29 has been issued directives to deal with migrant workers in the backdrop of ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

In the order, the state government has also directed that landlord of those properties where workers, including the migrants, are living in rented accommodation, should not demand payment of rent for a period of one month.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Maksym Stepanov announced that the ministry had approved the protocol of treating people infected with coronavirus and detailed the list of emergency doctors whose salaries will be increased

Maxym Stepanov Open source

Ukraines Minister of Health Maksym Stepanov turned to the Ukrainians in connection with the epidemic of coronavirus, saying that the hardest weeks are ahead. The address was published on the official Facebook page of the Health Ministry.

The hardest weeks are ahead. But I am sure that, united, Ukrainian people will defeat any misfortune, including the coronavirus ... For your safety, we have strengthened quarantine measures. Stay at home. Quarantine is not a vacation," Stepanov said.

He also reported on the ministrys activities. In particular, the Unified State Treatment Protocol for Covid-19 patients has been approved.

It took us two days to do this, and now all the doctors in the country have a clear algorithm for treating patients. Unfortunately, there is no vaccine or medicine for this virus. Moreover, no one is safe and everyone can get sick. But many countries that have experienced this invisible enemy before Ukraine already have effective achievements in the fight against the coronavirus disease. And we have set a standard of treatment based on the experience of these countries, Stepanov said.

He added that few weeks would not be enough to build a modern medical system, but they were simultaneously working on reform.

The ministry detailed the list of primary emergency doctors who would receive a pay increase and entered it in an order.

Earier, Maksym Stepanov became Ukraine's new Minister of Health.




By Jung Min-ho







Eight foreigners have been denied entry to Korea for refusing to comply with the country's mandatory self-isolation rule.





The Ministry of Justice said Thursday that it returned eight foreigners to their countries after they refused to follow its coronavirus containment measure.





The rule, which came into force April 1, requires all people arriving in Korea from overseas to quarantine themselves at their residences or government-designated facilities for 14 days.





According to the ministry, the foreigners from six countries, including Kazakhstan, refused to follow the rule when they arrived at Incheon International Airport even after they were notified of it before leaving for Korea.





Under the measure, those who do not have a place to stay here have to pay around 100,000 won ($82) for using the government-designated facilities. They also must install a mobile app that allows authorities to monitor their locations in real time.





According to government data, 35 percent of the country's newly confirmed COVID-19 cases over the past two weeks are from overseas, as an average of fewer than 10,000 people have arrived here a day since March 22.





As of Thursday afternoon, the virus has infected 9,976 people and killed 169 in Korea.
Pennsylvanias second-in-command is holed up with his family at home in Braddock, outside Pittsburgh, where he once was mayor.

But John Fetterman, the states larger-than-life lieutenant governor, known for straight talk and public service, is pushing messages via facetime on TV news and on social media.

We are doing what every Pennsylvanian is doing, he said, And Im working remotely promoting critical themes during this pandemic and trying to stay ahead of where I think things are going.

Hes removed from Harrisburg and his normal duties of presiding over the state Senate for the practical purpose of protecting state governments line of succession. If necessary, he would succeed Gov. Tom Wolf.

But hes constantly underscoring the need for folks to avoid hoarding, stay-at-home, wash their hands and practice physical distancing.

He and his wife, Gisele, continue to collect and box-up food for pickup at the Freestore she founded years ago. She continues her work promoting compliance with Census 2020. And she just wrote an op-ed piece for PennLive urging people to come together to help each other while staying physically apart.

Their three children -- 11, 8 and about to turn 6 -- are doing well but, he said, They miss their friends. They miss their life. Like we all do.

And, in a far-ranging telephone interview, Fetterman hammered on a few issues, from personal to policy, that are very much on his mind.

He urged high praise for frontline workers, especially in health care, farming, trucking and grocery stores: No ones getting rich doing these jobs. No one signed up for this. I hope they all get ticker-tape parades when this is over.

Gisele Fetterman, the Second Lady of Pennsylvania, works at The Free Store in Braddock, Pa. She's shown here in a file photo from last September in the store, which she founded years ago. The store is closed due to the coronavirus but she and her husband, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, have dropped off food at the store for those who need it. Sean Simmers | ssimmers@pennlive.com

He spoke of the hard truth that the coronavirus pandemic and its effects are far from over, and the need to face that reality:

My state of mind these days is resolve. We gotta make it through this. If that means channeling your grandparents or whatever, then do that because were there, were at that point.

Channel somebody in your blood who got through tough times. I channel my grandmother Edith who raised three kids alone in Berks County during WWII while my grandfather, Lt. Commander Donald Fetterman, fought in the Pacific Theater.

And Fetterman, long a champion of LGBTQ rights (as Braddock mayor, he married same-sex couples before gay marriage was legal), also linked the impressive daily briefings of state Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine to the fact Pennsylvania has no law protecting LGBTQ people from discrimination in employment or housing.

I dont know how there could be any Pennsylvanian with a heart watching Dr. Levine (who is transgender) and think its OK to deny legal protection under the law to the LGBTQ communitymy hope is people see her and say, 'Maybe Ive been on the wrong side of this issue. I hope this is a watershed moment for our state, Fetterman said.

He also suggested the next annual state budget, technically set to take effect July 1, could be a vehicle for policy issues that hes pushed for years.

The budgets going to be epic, and not in a good way, he said.

The $36 billion budget proposed by Wolf in February calls for lots of new spending based on larger-than-normal revenue growth driven by a pattern of revenue increases from higher collections of sales taxes and income taxes.

Seems pretty certain that wont pan out.

As a result, Fetterman said hell push at least two of his long-time favorites, legalized (and taxable) recreational marijuana and a dramatic reduction in the state prison population.

In 2018, a state Auditor Generals report estimated new revenue from legal weed would total $580 million a-year.

And Fetterman said the state could cut its inmate population by one-third by releasing non-violent offenders and older convicts. Such a move, he said, would save close to $1 billion in a criminal justice budget of $2.7 billion (mostly for prisons).

Im putting it out there, Fetterman said, We are reaching a point where such proposals are no longer optional.

He added he hopes that Harrisburgs too-often partisan politics is no longer optional either.

John Baer may be reached at baer.columnist@gmail.com

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NEW YORK, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As the world struggles with the COVID-19 pandemic, World Animal Protection reveals the abhorrent cruelty of bear farming, and the unacceptable illegal US sales of bear bile products in a new report  Cruel Cures.

The report comes just days after disappointing news that people in China are using a bear bile product, alongside a number of plant-based traditional medicines (TM), to treat severe symptoms caused by COVID-19. This shocking development is described in the report as both 'tragic and ironic' given that the handling of wild animals is believed to be the source of the COVID-19 pandemic. World Animal Protection is calling on the Chinese government to make the use of bear bile illegal and only include plant-based traditional medicines as recommended remedies for the symptoms of COVID-19.

The report states approximately 24,000 bears are currently kept caged and farmed for their bile for traditional medicine products across Asia - in China, Vietnam, Myanmar, Lao PDR, and South Korea. This should ring alarm bells in the wake of the COVID-19 contagion, as 60%1 of emerging infectious diseases are zoonotic, and of these 70% are thought to originate from wild animals. While the COVID-19 is a pandemic like no other, collectively, zoonotic diseases cause over two million human deaths annually, as a result of people coming into close proximity with animals.

Bear bile is predominantly used for traditional medicine. However, the report discloses numerous other products containing bear bile, including toothpaste, cosmetics, and alcohol.

The bile is extracted from live, suffering unhealthy bears, and is one of the most extreme forms of animal abuse in the world. The bears are largely bred into captivity, trapped in small, barren cages in factory farm style conditions for the duration of their long, miserable lives.

They suffer unthinkable traumas on a regular basis. Most commonly, their bile is drained from their gallbladder using a metal tube through a surgically created opening in the bear's abdomen. The report describes how the intense, agonizing process that the bears are forced to endure causes them to moan and quiver throughout.

Recent developments in China and Vietnam have been encouraging, where both countries have banned the consumption of wild animals. Yet, the ban must be extended to include the use of wildlife in traditional medicine, preventing animals such as bears, tigers, and pangolins from being abused. Not only will this drastically reduce the human health threat, it will prevent animal suffering too.

World Animal Protection is calling for the Chinese government to make bear bile illegal and only endorse plant-based medicines to treat COVID-19 symptoms. On a global level, World Animal Protection is urging governments, organizations, and nations to unite to end the global trade in wild animals forever.

While the use of bear bile continues in China, it is also being used illegally in the United States. A 2018 investigation revealed that bear bile products are on sale in more than a dozen traditional Chinse medicine stores in New York City and San Francisco despite legal prohibitions on the importation, production, possession, and sale of bear bile products.

In New York City, undercover investigators visited 44 Chinese medicine stores and found products containing bear bile in 10 stores. In San Francisco, undercover investigators visited 33 Chinese medicine stores and found products containing bear bile in five stores. Store owners in both cities acknowledged to the investigators that it is illegal to sell bear bile products. While most products were produced in China or Japan, store owners in New York City reported that they purchase bear gallbladders and bear bile powder from hunters in the United States and Canada. [Photos of the products are available here.]

Section 3372 of the Lacey Act criminalizes the importation of bear bile products into the United States. State laws in New York State and California also prohibit the possession and sale of bear bile products [More information about the illegal sale of bear bile products in the United States and authorities' ongoing investigations are available on request.]

1 Jones KE, Patel NG, Levy MA, Storeygard A, Balk D, Gittleman JL, Daszak P; Global trends in emerging infectious diseases; Nature, 451(990-993), 2008

Notes to editors:

Bear bile is believed to treat inflammation, reduce cholesterol, ocular, liver and gall bladder diseases. Although non-bear bile and herbal alternatives are all readily available, the industry has continued to flourish over the past 36 years with poaching leading to less numbers of bears in the wild.

We are committed to ending the exploitation of bears in the bear bile industry, and to protect wild bears from a lifetime of suffering in captivity. Our work includes:

Joining with partners, including governments, global bodies, local partners and individuals, to stop bears being exploited and to create lasting change



Promoting better welfare for captive bears, while we move to end the bear bile industry for good



Seeking laws, policies, monitoring and enforcement to ensure that captive bears are given space to move, provided with richer environments and are protected from all forms of bile extraction and exploitation

to ensure that captive bears are given space to move, provided with richer environments and are protected from all forms of bile extraction and exploitation

Raising awareness of alternatives to bear bile, including herbal and synthetic products, which are readily available, affordable and effective



Working with local organizations to urge governments to live up to their international commitments to protect bears and other wild animals.

SOURCE World Animal Protection

Related Links

http://www.worldanimalprotection.us.org


Photo: The Canadian Press

President Donald Trump is resisting calls to issue a national stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the new coronavirus despite his administration's projections that tens of thousands of Americans are likely to be killed by the disease. One by one, though, states are increasingly pushing shutdown orders of their own.

Trump said Wednesday he wants to give governors' flexibility on whether a stay-at-home policy is the best option for their constituents but acknowledged that he's looking at limiting air and rail travel between hot spots within the United States. The Republican president remains hesitant to press a unified policy even after the White House released sobering new projections on Tuesday that 100,000 to 240,000 Americans will likely succumb to the coronavirus even if current social distancing guidelines are maintained.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams said Wednesday the nation's federalist system leaves much of the authority on how to properly respond to catastrophes to state governors and local officials.

We trust the governors and the mayors to understand their people and understand whether or not they feel like they can trust the people in their states to make the right decisions, Adams said on ABC's Good Morning America.

On Wednesday alone, five more states  Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Nevada and Pennsylvania  added or expanded their stay-at-home orders.

But the invocation of federalism in the midst of a crisis that threatens a nationwide body count on par with some of the deadliest American wars suggests that Trump and his advisers are cognizant of the political ramifications of their response. Republican governors in states like Florida, Texas and Nebraska have questioned the necessity of applying strong social distancing rules to rural or exurban areas that haven't reported much evidence of the virus.

The lack of a unified, 50-state response also collides with evidence emerging that coronavirus infections are being spread by people who have no clear symptoms, complicating efforts to gain control of the pandemic. A study conducted by researchers in Singapore and published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday is the latest to estimate that around 10% of new coronavirus infections may be spread by people who were infected with the virus but not experiencing symptoms.

Even while deferring to governors. the Trump administration has issued guidelines that have urged Americans to work from home if possible, cancel on-site instruction at schools and avoid large gatherings. The resistance to a more robust response comes even as Vice-President Mike Pence said White House models for the coronavirus toll show the country on a trajectory akin to hard-hit Italy.

Speaking to CNN, Pence said, We think Italy may be the most comparable area to the United States at this point." Italy, which has already recorded more than 13,000 deaths, has issued a nationwide quarantine, shutting down almost all industrial production and offices and largely prohibiting residents from leaving their homes. The U.S. has recorded more than 5,000 deaths, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

The White House's best-case projection for loss of life assumes statewide stay-at-home orders, according to a senior administration official familiar with Trump's thinking. Trump, the official said, is a believer in federalism and that it is up to governors to set restrictions for their states. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal discussions.

More than 285 million people live in the 40 states where governors have declared statewide shelter-in-place orders or have recommended that residents stay home. In other states  places like Iowa and Nebraska, among others  governors have resisted state-level decisions, but some localities have declared residents should stay at home.

According to a poll published Wednesday by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 78% of U.S. adults, including 84% of Democrats and 76% of Republicans, favour requiring Americans to stay in their homes except for essential errands. Americans in states that already had stay-at-home orders in place when the survey began are more likely than those in states that did not to approve of their state's response, 63% to 51%.
(Natural News) As cities all over America have placed stay-at-home orders in response to the coronavirus, high-end retailers are worrying about potential civil unrest. Several shops, including those in one of Hollywoods most famous shopping districts, are taking measures to protect themselves against possible looters.

Shops on or around Beverly Hills Rodeo Drive seem to be preparing for the worse possible scenario during this current outbreak. Photographs have surfaced online of several of these stores having their doors and storefront windows boarded up with giant slabs of plywood. This is in addition to said stores clearing out their shelves of expensive merchandise.

When interviewed by TMZ, construction workers boarding up the Pottery Barn off Beverly Drive and Dayton Way, right near Rodeo, stated that what they were doing was only a temporary measure to protect that specific branch from bad actors. However, other photographs have now come in showing other stores in other major cities also doing the same.

The defensive measures by retailers come after police departments have been hit hard by the ongoing pandemic. In some cities, hundreds of police officers have tested positive for the disease, while thousands have called in sick or are in isolation.

High-end stores anticipating looting and civic unrest all over

Rodeo Drive isnt the only high-end shopping district thats seeing it stores board up due to fears of possible looting and civil unrest. Numerous photographs have popped up over Twitter, showing shopping districts in cities around the country such as Chicago, San Francisco and more boarding up their windows.

Closures of high-end retailers such as Dolce & Gabbana and Hermes at Chicagos Magnificent Mile have prompted Luigi Zingales, professor of finance at the University of Chicagos Booth School of Business, to compare the situation to the 2019-20 Chilean protests where rioters looted shops and even churches in the capital of Santiago and other cities.

The Magnificent Mile in Chicago today. It looks like Chile in November. All fancy stores boarded up. Are they afraid of #Covid19 or of something else? @DMatamala pic.twitter.com/Ag2SU2iJ2a  Zingales (@zingales) March 29, 2020

Meanwhile, stores boarding up in San Francisco have caused others to compare the situation to hurricane preparations  something that normally doesnt have to be done in California, which rarely, if ever, experiences direct landfall from storms.

https://twitter.com/EsmeAlaki/status/1244452461747691521

Other cities where shops have been photographed boarding up include Kansas City and New York City. The latter is currently facing shortages of police officers due to the coronavirus.

Couple of @ThePlazaKC stores now boarded up during the shelter in place order pic.twitter.com/qq77n7JE9Q  Joyce Smith (@JoyceKC) March 30, 2020

Pausing Luxury | NY SoHo boutiques boarded up as #COVID19 cases surge MORE: https://t.co/IxojbpzbvY pic.twitter.com/8YzStWFzyQ  RT (@RT_com) March 29, 2020

A shortage of police officers is a worry in the U.S.

While open civic unrest and rioting have yet to happen in the U.S., retailers arent taking any chances. One of the reasons for this is that police departments themselves are being walloped by the coronavirus.

A survey of over 40 law enforcement agencies done by the Associated Press shows that over 690 officers nationwide have been quarantined because of the virus. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) has been the hardest hit of all the departments surveyed. When the survey was conducted, 512 NYPD police officers had tested as positive for the virus. City officials, however, now expect the number to have ballooned to over 900 NYPD officers by March 30. (Related: Police officers are starting to die from coronavirus in US cities what will happen if law enforcement cant function?)

One of the officers who tested positive has since died over the weekend, bringing the total of NYPD officers whove succumbed to it to three. Meanwhile, an even larger number of officers are in out sick or in isolation, with NYPD Police Commissioner Dermot Shea confirming that 5,000 officers were out sick as of Sunday.

With police being hit as hard as they are, its no wonder that business owners are looking to other means to protect their stores. Should any mass riots occur, police departments may be too depleted to handle them. As such, more businesses are likely to follow suit and board up their storefronts to protect themselves.

Sources include:

ZeroHedge.com

TMZ.com

APNews.com

NYPost.com
President Donald Trump's approval rating is up  a little bit.

In the Real Clear Politics average of all polls, it sits now at 47.3 percent, the highest mark since he took office.

There are a few ways to look at this. Certainly, it's a dramatically smaller boost than past presidents have received at the onset of crises. For that matter, it's far lower than the boost that Gov. Andrew Cuomo has gotten in New York during this crisis.

Then again, Trump's approval rating just hasn't budged much at all during his presidency. Public opinion on him is deeply entrenched, on both sides. So a simple jump of a few points in his approval rating to the high-40s is significant. It elevates Trump to a level at which he could very plausibly win re-election.

Beyond all of this, though, is the most important fact: We're only in the early stages of a pandemic without modern precedent. No one knows how this will unfold, let alone what effect it will ultimately have on how Americans view their president. We just have no idea what this story will look like when it's ultimately written.

But we do know how the stories turned out for other modern presidents who've faced sudden crises. There may not be any great coronavirus parallels in them, but here are three that might still be useful to keep in mind as the current crisis unfolds:

1. Iran hostage crisis (1979-80)

Jimmy Carter was a deeply unpopular president when on Nov. 4, 1979, Iranian revolutionaries seized the United States embassy in Tehran and claimed 52 Americans as hostages, triggering what would become a 444-day saga.

At first, an outraged American public rallied behind its president. Just before the siege, Carter's approval rating had been a feeble 32 percent, and polls showed him in grave danger of losing his own party's nomination to Ted Kennedy.

Almost overnight, though, Carter's approval soared to 54 percent, a level he hadnt reached in nearly two years. And he vaulted into a solid lead over Kennedy in the Democratic race.

Story continues

Image: Demonstrators perched atop of the United States Embassy wall burn an American flag, the fourth American flag to be burned since the students seized the embassy and more than 60 hostages (Bettmann Archive / Getty file)

Carter tried to cement his newfound status by swearing off politicking and announcing that hed remain in the White House  and away from all campaign activity  to deal with the crisis. For the next three months, his approval remained over 50 percent. It was in this time that Carter crushed Kennedy in the critical early wave of primary contests.

But as the hostage crisis lingered with no resolution (and a Carter-authorized rescue mission failed), Americans grew impatient. And the domestic complaints that had been undermining Carter before the embassy siege returned to the fore. By May, his approval was back under 40 percent for good. He did hold on to win the Democratic nomination and continued frantically trying to secure the hostages' release, but to no avail.

Deeply unpopular, Carter lost in a general election landslide to Ronald Reagan.

2. The Gulf War (1991)

When Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in the summer of 1990, George H.W. Bush vowed that "this will not stand." Over the next months, he dispatched hundreds of thousands of American troops to Saudi Arabia and assembled an international alliance. Bush set a deadline of January 15, 1991, for Hussein to relinquish his control over Kuwait  or face military action.

American public opinion was deeply divided. Vietnam was a fresh memory and many feared another bloody quagmire. The Senate vote to authorize war was narrow, 52 to 47. Bushs domestic standing had been weakening too, with a recession underway, and he'd recently broken his "Read my lips!" anti-tax pledge.

The deadline passed without Hussein budging and the war began, an aerial bombardment at first followed eventually by the launch of a ground war, which took just 100 hours. In total, the war claimed 146 U.S. troops, a vastly lower count than the dire forecasts Americans had absorbed in the run-up.

Image: A destroyed Iraqi tank rests near a series of oil well fires (David Longstreath / AP file)

With Iraq's quick surrender, all of that public anxiety transformed into a jubilant explosion of patriotic glee. Months of parades followed to welcome home triumphant troops. Even Bush's political adversaries hailed his wartime leadership. His approval rating climbed to an unheard of 89 percent in the spring of 1991 and he was assumed to be a shoo-in for re-election the next year  so much that every big-name Democratic leader opted to sit out the race.

And yet, there was still the matter of the recession. The revelry died down in the summer of 1991, and by the fall, Bush's approval rating was in the 50s. By the end of the year it was under 50. And by the summer of 1992, after five straight months of rising unemployment, it cratered at 29 percent. There were signs of economic life by Election Day, but it was too little, too late to save Bush, who finished with just 38 percent of the vote in a three-way race with Bill Clinton and Ross Perot.

3. 9/11

It had taken a 5-4 Supreme Court ruling to shut down a Florida recount and seal George W. Bush's victory in the 2000 election, making Bush the first person in 112 years to become president despite losing the popular vote.

Eight months into his presidency, Bush's approval rating sat at 51 percent and Democrats remained deeply resentful of the circumstances that had brought to office.

And then, on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, came the deadliest attack ever on American soil, with nearly 3,000 lives lost in the span of about an hour. For days, a stunned and paralyzed nation remained still, processing its grief and bracing for what seemed like an inevitable follow-up attack. Americans looked to their president for guidance, and when Bush visited the devastation at Ground Zero, he seemed to lift the entire countrys spirit with an impromptu pledge to seek vengeance.

Image: Early morning light hits the smoke and wreckage of the World Trade Center on Sept. 13, 2001. (Chris Hondros / Getty Images file)

Within a week, Bush's approval rating had jumped to 90 percent. He vowed a "war on terror" and soon authorized an invasion of Afghanistan to topple the Taliban and pursue Osama bin Laden. He embraced the role of wartime leader and Americans embraced him. Bush's approval rating wouldn't fall below 60 percent for more than year, until early 2003 when his push for war with Iraq was coming to a head.

By 2004, as he sought re-election, Bush's approval rating was hovering around 50 percent, and the occupation of Iraq was proving to be far more difficult  and deadly  than he'd predicted. But memories of 9/11 remained raw and anxiety about further attacks endured. Bush portrayed himself as unwaveringly focused on preventing another 9/11 from ever happening.

Despite strong concerns with the war, 51 percent of voters agreed to give him four more years.
An individual who has tested positive for the COVID-19 virus visited a UPS Store in Boerne on Saturday, according to Kendall County officials.

The Texas Department of State Health Services and local officials are working to identify anyone who came into close contact with the patient while the person was sick, so those who were exposed can be isolated, monitored for symptoms and tested if needed.

UPS Store officials are in the process of having the store professionally sanitized by 8 a.m. Thursday, officials said.

"It is possible that individuals who visited the UPS Store at 215 W. Bandera on March 28 at approximately 12 noon may have been exposed," officials said in a statement.

The individual is one of seven Kendall County patients who have tested positive.

"This patient is under quarantine orders and is being monitored by the State health department," said Boerne Police Captain Steve Perez, the citys emergency management coordinator.

Officials said the risk of contracting the virus from this possible exposure is low. Isolation is not required for anyone that does not have symptoms.

People who believe they have been exposed are asked to monitor themselves for symptoms such as fever, cough sore throat, and shortness of breath for 14 days after the exposure.

"If you experience any of these symptoms and do need urgent medical attention, isolate at home and contact your healthcare provider," officials said.

A manager at the UPS Store said employees have been following CDC guidelines  wearing masks and gloves and disinfecting all surfaces every 30 minutes  to help prevent the spread of the virus.
EUGENE, Ore.  Lane County Public Health announced two new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, in addition to the cases announced by the Oregon Health Authority.

The new cases include a man in his 20s from the Eugene-Springfield area who lives in a private residence and a woman in her 50s from outside that area who also lives in a private residence. Officials said they were both hospitalized but are now at home.

Anyone who had contact with these people will be contacted by public health officials. The investigation is ongoing. If a public exposure point is identified, more information will be released to the public.

Lane County now has 20 cases.
Prof. Alex Wai, and Prof. HC Man, announce the launch of two new reusable face shields, namely General Use Face Shield and Extra Protection Face Shield

In February 2020, PolyU designed and started producing disposable face shields for the Hospital Authority in order to alleviate the immediate need for protective gear amongst frontline medical professionals. PolyU today announced the launch of two new reusable face shields, namely General Use Face Shield and Extra Protection Face Shield, both of which will soon be available at affordable prices. It is hoped that the face shields could provide enhanced protection for the public in their daily lives and working environment thus minimising the risks of virus transmission in the community.

Together with his team, Professor HC MAN, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering, Director of the University Research Facility in 3D Printing, PolyU, has designed the General Use Face Shield for the public. The specially designed face shield, which provides full-face coverage, will help to protect from the spread of droplet-transmitted diseases. Currently, the government urges the public to practise social distancing, but for those who need to go to work or attend an essential event, wearing a face shield would definitely help to reduce the risk of infection. Also, it is important for frontline staff of those service industries which serve their customers in close proximity, and care-givers who take care of elderly people living alone, to wear a face shield in addition to a regular face mask for maximum protection. While for schoolchildren who tend to rub their eyes unintentionally, wearing a face shield would help prevent them from touching their face with their hands and subsequently reduce the risk of them getting infected.

Professor Man pointed out that his team has taken into account not only the functionality but also the cost-effectiveness of the material used when designing a face shield for general use. He explained, Both types of face shield are reusable after cleaning as they are made of lightweight and environmentally-friendly PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) plastic material using the vacuum forming technique, which helps to lower production costs. Our research team used 3D printing technology to develop a prototype and has conducted multiple rounds of tests and modifications. We then invited frontline staff from the social welfare sector to try out the new face shields. We are delighted that our team has received positive feedback from users. In the fight against this months-long pandemic, we hope that these face shields designed will benefit more people in need. Professor Man expressed gratitude to the social welfare organisations involved for providing valuable feedback, which helped in modifying the designs. He said the design of General Use Face Shield and Extra Protection Face Shield would not fog up easily, thanks to their unique designs that help to maintain visual clarity, while also providing a comfortable wearing experience for users. The General Use Face Shield is suitable for everyone; while the Extra Protection Face Shield offers broader protection by covering the forehead and hair. PolyU has handed over the designs to a manufacturer for mass production and is expecting the first delivery in late April 2020. The first batch of face shields will be dispatched to the PolyU community, including staff, students and frontline workers on campus. Donations to various social welfare partners will also be made in due course.

Professor Alexander WAI Ping-kong, Deputy President and Provost of PolyU, said, As the second wave of COVID-19 has swept the globe, it is unlikely that the epidemic will subside in a short time. While we are seeking sustainable measures to cope with the situation, we also have to learn to live with the virus until we have an effective antiviral drug available in the market. We are particularly concerned about the needs of medical professionals with regard to protective gear, and we understand the challenges encountered by the frontline workers in the social welfare sector and service industries. Designing face shields is not rocket science, but PolyU will strive to do whatever we can to contribute to the community and work hand in hand with Hong Kong people to fight against the outbreak with our innovative minds and pragmatic solutions.

Earlier, care-givers and frontline staff of the Christian Family Service Centre and the Hong Kong Christian Service were invited to try out the new face shields. All users expressed appreciation with regard to the comfortable wearing experience, saying that the face shields are especially suitable for staff working long hours. When providing care for their patients, the provision of a face shield would also help set at ease the minds of frontline staff. They hoped that the face shields would be made widely used in the community soon, so that more frontline staff would enjoy a better protection during the epidemic.
Market forces rained on the parade of Shanghai Industrial Holdings Limited (HKG:363) shareholders today, when the analysts downgraded their forecasts for this year. Both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) estimates were cut sharply as the analysts factored in the latest outlook for the business, concluding that they were too optimistic previously.

Following the latest downgrade, the four analysts covering Shanghai Industrial Holdings provided consensus estimates of HK$28b revenue in 2020, which would reflect an uncomfortable 13% decline on its sales over the past 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are supposed to dive 27% to HK$2.25 in the same period. Before this latest update, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of HK$34b and earnings per share (EPS) of HK$3.25 in 2020. Indeed, we can see that the analysts are a lot more bearish about Shanghai Industrial Holdings' prospects, administering a measurable cut to revenue estimates and slashing their EPS estimates to boot.

See our latest analysis for Shanghai Industrial Holdings

SEHK:363 Past and Future Earnings April 2nd 2020

The consensus price target fell 15% to HK$17.12, with the weaker earnings outlook clearly leading analyst valuation estimates. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. There are some variant perceptions on Shanghai Industrial Holdings, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at HK$21.10 and the most bearish at HK$12.60 per share. This shows there is still some diversity in estimates, but analysts don't appear to be totally split on the stock as though it might be a success or failure situation.

One way to get more context on these forecasts is to look at how they compare to both past performance, and how other companies in the same industry are performing. These estimates imply that sales are expected to slow, with a forecast revenue decline of 13%, a significant reduction from annual growth of 12% over the last five years. Compare this with our data, which suggests that other companies in the same industry are, in aggregate, expected to see their revenue grow 6.7% next year. It's pretty clear that Shanghai Industrial Holdings' revenues are expected to perform substantially worse than the wider industry.

Story continues

The Bottom Line

The biggest issue in the new estimates is that analysts have reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds lay ahead for Shanghai Industrial Holdings. Regrettably, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and the latest forecasts imply the business will grow sales slower than the wider market. With a serious cut to this year's expectations and a falling price target, we wouldn't be surprised if investors were becoming wary of Shanghai Industrial Holdings.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Shanghai Industrial Holdings going out to 2021, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Another way to search for interesting companies that could be reaching an inflection point is to track whether management are buying or selling, with our free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
(Corrects Breton's title in headline)

* Breton says companies have duty to help in crisis when asked

* Countries should show solidarity in fighting virus crisis

* No virus delay in plans to boost industries, curb US tech giants

By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS, April 1 (Reuters) - EU industry chief Thierry Breton on Wednesday said he did not see any ulterior motive behind Huawei's donations of face masks to the bloc and that solidarity was the best way to tackle the global coronavirus outbreak.

Chinese network equipment maker Huawei, the world's No. 1, has drawn criticism from some quarters in recent days after giving millions of protective masks and gloves to Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Lithuania, Poland, Greece and Switzerland.

Dubbed by some as mask diplomacy, critics say the move could be a ploy to win lucrative 5G contracts following EU guidelines announced in January which block the company from core infrastructure networks.

Chinese online retailer Alibaba and other Chinese companies have also given face masks and medical supplies to coronavirus-hit EU countries while the Chinese government has provided protective gear.

Asked whether the donations suggested that the companies were looking for a quid pro quo, Breton said: "Absolutely not. I have been a CEO myself and I know it doesn't work this way."

In a telephone interview with Reuters he said CEOs had a duty to help countries where their businesses operate if governments seek their help.

"I don't know one single CEO ...thinking that this is because...you will get something in return. No one," said Breton, a former CEO at French telecoms provider Orange and French IT giant Atos.

He noted that European companies with Chinese subsidiaries also did their bit at the peak of the virus outbreak in China.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell kicked off a debate a week ago with comments on the politics of generosity and China's attempt to shape the global narrative on who is helping who.

Story continues

Breton, who wanted to visit China in January to offer help but was constrained by security and safety issues, said it was better to join hands to fight the crisis rather than squabble about who is doing more.

"We will overcome this situation only if we are all together, only if solidarity will apply everywhere, solidarity first between people themselves, solidarity within a country, solidarity within a continent, solidarity between continents," Breton said.

He said the virus crisis, which has slowed the European Commission's work as officials work from home, had not hampered his plan to build technology powerhouses to catch up with Silicon Valley and state-backed Chinese heavyweights.

Legislation scheduled for this year includes rules which could force Google, Facebook and Amazon to take on more responsibilities for content hosted on their platforms, and others making better use of industrial data held by companies such as Siemens and Alstom . Breton said he did not envisage delays. (Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
The drum, muffled; the piano, plaintive; as the grand poet goes home

Two years before he died on March 25 at the age of 97, Gabriel Okara participated in a celebration of his literary celebrity. The Institute of Arts and Culture of the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, organized the Gabriel Okara Literary Festival to mark the giants birthday. The four-day event, held in April 2017, was testimony to Okaras recognition.

Introducing the event, the institutes director, Prof Julie Okoh, said: We strongly believe that we should not only celebrate our heroes when they are dead, but that they should also be part of that heroic celebration Gabriel Okara will feature prominently in all the programmes of activities of Gabriel Okara Literary Festival. He will read, sing and dance as much as his health and strength will permit. The festivals theme was Nigerian Literature since Gabriel Okara: Continuities and Departures.

Okara, a literary pioneer, attracted attention with his poem The Call of the River Nun, which won a prize at the Nigerian Festival of Arts in 1953. The poem was adjudged the Best All-Round Entry in Poetry. By 1960, he had gained recognition for his poetry, some of which had been published in the literary magazine, Black Orpheus, and his poetry had been translated into several languages. He was among the prominent African writers who attended the historic African Writers Conference, held in June 1962 at Makerere University College in Kampala, Uganda.

There was no doubt about Okaras poetic power. His collection, The Fishermans Invocation, won the Commonwealth Poetry Prize in 1979. In 2005, Okaras The Dreamer, His Vision, won Nigerias biggest literary prize, the NLNG Prize for Literature.

Okara also wrote fiction. Indeed, his linguistically experimental novel, The Voice (1964), is a tour de force in which he translated directly from the Ijo (Ijaw) language, imposing Ijo syntax onto English in order to give literal expression to African ideas and imagery. He wrote juvenile literature as well, notably Little Snake and Little Frog (1981) and An Adventure to Juju Island (1992).

His poetry and prose were vehicles for his unapologetic Africanism. His works explored the clash of cultures arising from Africas experience under European colonialism and colonization. The question of African cultural identity was a leitmotif in his creative works. He was described as the Nigerian Negritudist, which reflected his Africanist perspective.

Born in Bumoundi in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Okara attended Government College, Umuahia, and Yaba Higher College. He started writing during his stint as a printer and bookbinder in colonial Nigerias government-run publishing company in the 1940s. In the beginning, he translated poetry from Ijaw into English and wrote radio scripts. He later studied journalism at Northwestern University, United States, in 1949.

He was Information Officer for the Eastern Nigerian Government Service before the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War in 1967, and was roving ambassador for secessionist Biafra during the war, which ended in 1970. It is said that many of his unpublished manuscripts were destroyed during the war. After the war, Okara was director of the Rivers State Publishing House in Port Harcourt from 1972 to 1980.

Interestingly, a 2017 book, Gabriel Okara, situates the writer in the context of African literature. The book, a compilation of symposium essays on Okaras body of work, according to its editor, Prof Chidi Maduka, addressed Okaras place in African literature and the fact that he has not been given his full due in African literature.

Okaras well-anthologised poems, including Piano and Drums and You Laughed and Laughed and Laughed, carried his name far and wide. His place as a literator, and a significant voice in the evolution of African literature, is beyond question.
Government officials and the business community in Bauchi State on Thursday began donations of money, medical kits, and food to support the state government in managing the COVID-19 pandemic.

The deputy governor of the state and chairman of the state action committee on COVID-19, Bala Tela, stated this at a press briefing at the Government House in Bauchi.

Mr. Tela said the state government had received about N70 million from banks and business people in cash and material in donations.

Speaking after a meeting with a delegation of the Bauchi business community, the deputy governor said the state government is open to all kinds of support and donations needed towards managing the cases and curbing the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Mr. Tela said so far Alhaji Yakubu Shafa, an oil and gas businessman who led the delegation, pledged to donate N20 million worth of beds, BPEs, thermometers and sanitizers.

He also mentioned other donations by different local businesses which range from N2.5 million to N250,000.

He said the state government has also received N28.5 million from United Bank for Africa and N10 million from the First City Monument Bank.

We have also received a contribution of 3,600 bags of rice worth N36 million.

He added that the Northeast Development Commission and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control also assisted the state with consumables comprising 1,800 personal protection commodities, 2 ventilators, surgical gloves, face masks, and hand sanitizers.

READ ALSO:

So far we have received about N100 million since after launching the appeal fund for COVID-19; our doors remain open for well-meaning individuals and philanthropists for more donations, he said.

Officials donate salary

The deputy governor has also announced that members of the Bauchi state government, especially the close aides of governor Bala Mohammed have also donated their salaries to the fight against COVID-19.

Last week, the state governor, Bala Mohammed, tested positive for coronavirus.

A member of the Bauchi State House of Assembly, Musa Nakwada, has taken the lead in donating the whole of his March salary, N470,000, as his contribution towards managing the spread of COVID-19 in the state.

We also have my humble self, the SSG and the chief of staff contributing our next salary for three months towards this course of curbing the spread of COVID-19, he said.
General Motors (NYSE:GM) and Honda (NYSE:HMC) said Thursday that they will work together to develop two new electric vehicles for Honda using GM's vehicle architecture and proprietary batteries.

The companies announced that these two new electric Hondas will be built at GM factories in North America. Both will go on sale in the U.S. and Canada in the 2024 model year.

The new Hondas will be built on a new, highly flexible electric vehicle architecture developed by GM to underpin a wide range of future electric models. Like those upcoming GM electric vehicles, the two new Hondas will be powered by GM's proprietary low-cost Ultium battery packs.

The new electric Hondas will also incorporate GM's OnStar connected-vehicle services, the companies said.

It's not clear where the new Hondas will be built. GM said in March that it will build its own upcoming electric vehicles at its Detroit-Hamtramck factory, which is currently being revamped for that purpose. The battery packs, developed with LG Chem, will be made in a new factory in Ohio.

GM and Honda have been working together for several years on a number of projects related to zero-emissions vehicles and future technologies. Their work has included a joint venture to develop hydrogen fuel cells for electric vehicles, as well as a self-driving taxi in collaboration with GM's self-driving subsidiary, Cruise Automation.

The two companies may soon announce additional joint efforts. Rick Schostek, a senior executive in Honda's American unit, said that Honda and GM are discussing the possibility of extending their partnership further.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

Azerbaijans Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a statement the on the anniversary of the occupation of the Kalbajar district of Azerbaijan in 1993 and April escalation of 2016, Trend reports.

The statement reads:

On April 2, 1993 the Kalbajar district of Azerbaijan was occupied by armed forces of Armenia. Kalbajar located beyond the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan was occupied as a result of an offensive operation mainly carried out from the territory of Armenia by use of heavy weaponry, Mi-24 helicopter gunships and advanced fixed-wing aircrafts of Armenia.

As a result of the occupation, up to 60.000 inhabitants of Kalbajar were subjected to ethnic cleansing and expelled from their native lands, 511 innocent civilians were killed, 321 persons were taken hostage or went missing. Currently, more than 70,000 Kalbajar residents are temporarily residing in different regions of Azerbaijan as internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Armenian occupation destroyed the rich historical-cultural heritage of Kalbajar.

The original architectural features of cloisters belonging to the ancient Albanian Christian heritage of Azerbaijan and having no connection with the Armenian Church were changed and armenianized.

Natural mineral resources of Kalbajar are subject to illegal exploitation. Armenia, in blatant violation of the international humanitarian law, transfers settlers of Armenian origin to the occupied Kalbajar district, with a view to change demographic features of these territories.

In response to the occupation of the Kalbajar district, on 6 April, 1993 UN Security Council adopted Resolution 822, which reaffirmed the inviolability of international borders and the inadmissibility of the use of force for the acquisition of territory and demanded immediate withdrawal of all occupying forces from the Kalbajar district and other recently occupied areas of Azerbaijan. Following the adoption of this, the CSCE Minsk Group worked out the timetable of urgent steps to implement the resolution.

Armenia until now continues to disregard the implementation demands of the UN SC resolutions.



Escalation of the situation along the line of contact on April 2, 2016 as the result of attacks by the armed forces of Armenia on settlements densely populated Azerbaijani civilians with heavy weapons once again demonstrated that the illegal presence of armed forces of Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan remains a major threat to regional peace and security. In response to the attacks of Armenia, the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan have taken countermeasures, which resulted in providing security for the Azerbaijani civilians residing in close vicinity of the line of contact through the liberation of strategically important territories and heights from occupation.



Armenia has to understand that the occupation of Azerbaijans lands, including Kalbajar district is temporary. Armenia is responsible for all the illegal activities in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and sooner or later the aggressor state will respond for its unlawful actions.

The Armenian side must cease its policy of annexation and ethnic cleansing, and comply with its international obligations, as well as the demands of the UN SC resolutions and decisions of other international organizations.

The only way to achieve a durable and lasting peace is to ensure the unconditional and complete withdrawal of the Armenian armed forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, the exercise by the forcibly displaced persons of their inalienable right to return to their places of origin in safety and dignity.
Oil tanks at an oil processing facility of Saudi Aramco, a Saudi Arabian state-owned oil and gas company, at the Abqaiq oil field.

Saudi Arabia supports cooperation between oil producers to stabilize the oil market but Russia's opposition to a proposal last month to deepen oil supply cuts has caused market turmoil, a senior Gulf source familiar with

Saudi thinking told Reuters.

International crude prices have fallen over 50 percent to under $26 a barrel since March 6, when Saudi Arabia,

de facto leader of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, and non-OPEC producers led by Russia failed to agree on a joint supply policy in response to the precipitous fall in fuel demand caused by coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had talked recently with both Saudi and Russian leaders and believed the two countries would make a deal to end their price war within a few days - lowering production and bringing prices back up.

"Saudi Arabia has always welcomed and supported cooperation among oil producers in their efforts to stabilize the oil market during the current crisis based on the principles of fairness and equity," the Gulf source said on Thursday.

But there is little evidence yet of Russia and Saudi Arabia bridging their differences after the collapse last month of

their three-year pact to curb oil supplies.

Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Wednesday for global oil producers and consumers to address "challenging" oil markets.

But Russia's opposition to a proposal to deepen oil supply cuts by OPEC and other allies, a group known as OPEC+, at a meeting in early March sparked the turmoil, the source said.

"It was Russia's position that triggered the collapse of the OPEC+ agreement... this caused massive instability in oil markets," the Gulf source said.

In response to Russia's rejection of deeper oil cuts, Saudi Arabia slashed its export prices and said it would raise

production to maximum capacity.

Producers were left with little choice but to end all voluntary supply restraint, the source added.

The kingdom is flooding the market and has tried to sell cheap oil to refiners that buy Russian crude.

The speed and aggression of the Saudi response has shocked the industry. Russia has responded by saying it would boost output to capacity, too.

The U.S. Energy Department on Wednesday urged Saudi Arabia and Russia to calm oil markets after the kingdom's crude supply rose to a record of more than 12 million barrels per day even as oil demand falters on the coronavirus pandemic.

The flood of Saudi oil comes amid an unprecedented fall in demand as billions of people stop using cars and taking flights because they are under lockdowns to prevent coronavirus from spreading.

Already, tens of millions of barrels of oil have gushed into storage because refiners do not need it.

Putin and Trump spoke on Monday. Trump on Monday said Saudi Arabia and Russia "both went crazy" with their production after the supply deal failed.

"I never thought I'd be saying that maybe we have to have an oil (price) increase, because we do," Trump said.

Low oil prices are threatening to put U.S. shale oil producers out of business. They cannot compete with cheaper Saudi and Russian oil.
In the wake of the impact of COVID 19 on the industrial scenario, SpendEdge, a global procurement market intelligence firm, has announced the release of its whitepaper that enlists the alternate sourcing strategies to address the supply chain risks in the medical device market.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005050/en/

Get your free access to our digital procurement platform to see how SpendEdge can help you with your alternate sourcing objectives to address the impact of COVID 19 on the medical device market.

Supply chain disruption is perceived as the most aggravating impact of COVID 19 on the medical device market. While buyers are struggling to sustain their business continuity in a highly uncertain market scenario, the impact of COVID 19 is reinstating the importance of leveraging alternate sourcing strategies to restore harmony in their supply chain management during hours of an emergency.

What are the emerging risks triggered by the impact of COVID 19 on the medical device market

Supply Bottlenecks

Countries in APAC, China, in particular, are among the highly favored sourcing destinations for enterprises in the medical device market. China houses some of the major manufacturing hubs of critical medical equipment. However, the eventual shutdown of these manufacturing facilities to contain the impact of COVID 19 in China is resulting in severe supply bottlenecks for enterprises in the medical device market. This is resulting in production down-time that is ultimately taking its toll on the scopes of revenue generation for these enterprises.

A decline in the supply of lithium battery

China is also home to major lithium producing companies. The lithium battery is an essential component used in the building of a range of critical medical equipment such as wearable oxygen monitor, sphygmomanometer, and other medical devices. For the lithium producing companies in China, the impact of COVID 19 will take the form of major challenges such as limited supply channels, exorbitant transportation fees, production costs, liquidity problems, among others. These challenges will either restrict the supply of lithium or will compel them to increase the market prices of their battery-grade lithium.

Request a free demo of our procurement platform to know how alternate sourcing measures will help you tackle supply chain risks caused by the impact of COVID 19 in the medical device market.

How is Alternate Sourcing an Answer to the Imposing Challenges Triggered by the Impact of COVID 19 on the Medical Device Market?

Engage with suppliers for inventory planning of spare parts and products

Considering the current impact of COVID 19 on the medical device market, a critical alternate sourcing objective for buyers is to engage with suppliers who can assist in efficient demand and inventory planning of spare parts and products. It will help to overcome expenses associated with the excess holding of products. It primarily ensures the adequate availability of spare parts and products during emergencies.

Engage with suppliers who can meet demand variations

The current pandemic situation is creating the necessity of ad hoc procurement of medical components. During these instances, engagement with suppliers will prove beneficial who have sufficient spare production capacity to meet any ad hoc variations in product demand. This will, in turn, enable buyers to reduce procurement time in such cases, that would otherwise be required for selecting a new supplier and check adherence of its products to quality and regulatory norms.

Prefer suppliers based on their logistics capabilities

Buyers must choose suppliers who have the necessary logistics capabilities to ensure an uninterrupted supply of medical components to their facilities. The criticality of these equipment in the functioning of buyer's facilities requires on-time and uninterrupted delivery. This necessitates engagement with suppliers who have adequate logistics facilities. Buyers should also choose suppliers who have associations with well-established logistics partners capable of carrying out the delivery on behalf of suppliers.

Request a free demo of our digital procurement platform to know more about our alternate sourcing solutions that can help your procurement team address challenges posed by the impact of COVID-19 on the medical device market.

You may also like:

Has the Corona Virus Pandemic Called for a Re-course of Your Business Perspective? -Quick Insights into Risk Mitigation Measures Imperative at This Moment

Is the global pharmaceutical industry held hostage by the deadly Coronavirus? SpendEdge's Tridib Bora offers insightful answers to this imposing query

About SpendEdge:

SpendEdge shares your passion for driving sourcing and procurement excellence. We are the preferred procurement market intelligence partner for 120+ Fortune 500 firms and other leading companies across numerous industries. Our strength lies in delivering robust, real-time procurement market intelligence reports and solutions. To know more, https://www.spendedge.com/request-free-proposal

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005050/en/

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RIYADH, Saudi Arabia

March 31, 2020

Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

USD 10 million

Ahmed Al Baiz

Saudi Arabia

ten million dollars

Saudi Arabia

Abdullah Al Rabeeah

/PRNewswire/ -- In response to an urgent appeal from the World Health Organization (WHO) and under the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King, King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) has signed an agreement forin financial support to WHO for urgent action needed to minimize the spread of COVID-19 by supporting countries with vulnerable health infrastructures. The agreement was signed between KSrelief's Assistant Supervisor General of Operations and Programs, Engineer, and the WHO Country Representative for, Dr. Ibrahim El Ziq.Dr. El Ziq, in a press statement following the signing of the agreement, said that "theprovided byto the World Health Organization will contribute to the implementation of the COVID-19 National Health Plan. With this contribution, we will purchase preventive equipment for health workers, and laboratory equipment needed for investigations on the virus. The grant will also assist in carrying out scientific research towards developing a vaccine to prevent COVID-19, and will fund the purchase of medications to treat cases of the virus." He ended his remarks by expressing his appreciation for the Kingdom's generous ongoing support to crisis-affected countries around the world.Dr., Supervisor General of KSrelief, stated that this royal directive reflected the Kingdom's commitment to applying its significant resources to help alleviate the suffering of all in need. KSrelief, he added, continues to work in cooperation with United Nations agencies and other leading humanitarian organizations to safeguard public health and address a wide range of global humanitarian issues. Dr. Al Rabeeah added his appreciation for this generous gesture from the Kingdom's leadership, which demonstrates its willingness to act quickly to support for the world community in times of urgent crisis.Dr. Al Rabeeah also mentioned the extraordinary virtual G20 Summit meeting recently headed by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques; during this summit, the Kingdom also confirmed its commitment towards helping countries affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This leadership, he stated, demonstrated how seriously the Kingdom takes its responsibility to join with the rest of the world in fighting and overcoming the dangerous health and economic effects of COVID-19.

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/who-ksas-support-of-usd-10-million-will-support-covid-19-national-health-plan-301032658.html



SOURCE King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre




The South China Morning Post has joined two other leading Asia-Pacific newsrooms in Singapore and Sydney for the worlds first international Facebook Watch media event to analyse and share lessons from the front lines of the war against Covid-19.

The 45-minute show, which was broadcast on Friday at noon Hong Kong time, features interviews with renowned local and international experts who took questions from some of the regions most experienced journalists as well as from viewers.

Covid Frontline: Experts bring you insights from the front line of the #coronavirus battle in an exclusive Facebook event, presented with 7NEWS Australia and The Straits Times. Posted by South China Morning Post on Thursday, 2 April 2020

Titled Covid Frontline, the show is now available on demand through Facebook Watch.

The experts include Professor David Hui Shu-cheong of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, an authority on respiratory diseases and a top health adviser to the citys government, and Professor John Nicholls of the University of Hong Kong, a veteran pathologist behind breakthroughs in studying the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) outbreak of 2003, and now the coronavirus that causes Covid-19.

Also part of the discussion are Professor Alexander Cook from the National University of Singapores school of public health, Australias Professor Mary-Louise McLaws, an adviser to the World Health Organisation, and Professor Sanjaya Senanayake of the Australian National University.

The Hong Kong session is anchored by chief news editor Yonden Lhatoo of the Post, while Australian anchor Michael Usher of 7NEWS and senior health correspondent Salma Khalik of The Straits Times host their respective segments.

Covid Frontline is available on demand through Facebook Watch after it was broadcast at noon on Friday. Photo: Handout

The discussions cover aspects of the global health emergency, ranging from how different countries and jurisdictions have been tackling their respective outbreaks and what they have learned so far, to understanding what the coronavirus is all about and what the world can expect in the coming months as it continues its relentless spread across the globe.

Story continues

More from South China Morning Post:

This article Asia-Pacific medical experts offer insight from front lines of Covid-19 battle in online discussion with Post, other newsrooms first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
Most southern states continued to



witness surge in their respective COVID19 numbers for the second day in a row on Thursday, with a majority of the infected being returnees from the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in a New Delhi locality last month, officials said.

Governments in Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, among the badly affected with virtually all of the new patients having link with the Nizammudin West event in Delhi, stepped up efforts to identify all those who participated in the religous meet and screen them.

Telangana has seen the most fatalities with the COVID-19 toll rising to nine in the state late on Wednesday with the death of three more persons who returned from the Delhi congregation.

All the nine deceased had a history of attending the religious meeting at Nizamuddin in south Delhi.

With 75 new cases -- all but one had taken part in the Tablighi event, Tamil Nadu on Thursday moved ahead of Kerala (256) to the second spot in the country with a total of 309 COVID-19 patients behind Maharashtra (416).

On Wednesday, Tamil Nadu had reported a whopping 110 people, all returnees from the jamat event, testing positive.

The Karnataka government has screened nearly 1,000 people who had attended the congregation, with 11 of them testing positive for the deadly virus, when reports last came.

Nizamuddin West has emerged as an epicentre for the spread of coronavirus in different parts of the country after thousands of people took part in the Tablighi Jamaat congregation from March 1-15 and returned to their states.

Tamil Nadu, which like many states has put in an aggressive mechanism to tackle the spread of coronavirus, however continued to witness steep increase in daily addition to the aggregate number of positive coronavirus cases.

Of the 75 new cases reported, as many as 74 were returnees from the recent congregation held in Nizamuddin and another was a contact of a person infected earlier, Health Secretary Beela Rajesh said.

A total of 264 people among those who had attended the religious conference from the state in the national capital have tested positive for the contagion, she told reporters.

Andhra Pradesh too saw an upswing in the number, with 32 coronavirus cases being detected since Wednesday night, taking the state's tally to 143.

All the fresh cases in the state too were related to the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi, from where COVID19 has been spreading fast.

"About 16 per cent of those who attended the Jamaat event tested positive in the state," the state nodal officer for COVID19 Arja Srikanth said.

Also, 20 of their contacts too got afflicted with the disease.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The City of Midland Health Department is currently conducting their investigation on three new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Midland County, bringing the overall case count to nineteen.

The seventeenth confirmed case is a female in her 50s that was tested by Midland Health. The female is currently an inpatient at Midland Health. The source of exposure is currently unknown.
Kim King-Smith, an electrocardiogram technician at University Hospital in Newark, died Tuesday from complications of the coronavirus, officials said Wednesday.

King-Smith is the first employee at the hospital to die from the illness, CEO and President Shereef Elnahal told NJ Advance Media.

Our health care workers are superheroes, but they are also human. We all mourn Kims tragic death along with her family, friends, and @UnivHospNewark family as they continue their heroic work to save lives. https://t.co/moFFASZXac  Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) April 1, 2020

He announced her passing in a tweet Wednesday afternoon that was later shared by Gov. Phil Murphy, who added: Our health care workers are superheroes, but they are also human. We all mourn Kims tragic death along with her family, friends, and @UnivHospNewark family as they continue their heroic work to save lives.

King-Smith, a 53-year-old Piscataway resident, had worked for the hospital since 2007, a spokesman said. A stalwart on the night shift, she monitored patients who reported chest pain or who had other heart problems.

Elnahal, the previous state health commissioner, started in the hospitals top job in May 2019. He had done some tours while on the night shift but did not get a chance to meet King-Smith - though he has heard much more about her recently. Employees were told the news earlier Wednesday before it was made public.

She was the best team player you could imagine, from what everyone tells me, Elnahal said.

Everybody that Ive talked to about this said she had one of the most positive attitudes of any employee in the hospital," he added. She always put the patients first and did her job diligently, reliably.

Relatives he quoted in his tweet said King-Smiths smile was more infectious than the virus that took her life.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Elnahal said there was no evidence she contracted the virus while in the hospital, which is dealing with an increased volume of patients. While the number of confirmed positive tests is in the high 90s, likely 100 or more patients there have the virus.

The hospital is also taking precautions as employees might bring in the virus from their community -including being screened for their temperature before coming into work. The first University Hospital health worker to test positive got it from their home community, he said.

Hospitals everywhere are going to have to deal with that reality and be diligent about sending folks home.

As of Wednesday, all staff are being offered masks, no matter what section of the hospital they work in, even the executives.

This is overtaking all hospitals in North Jersey unfortunately, he said.

Essex County had 2,220 cases of the coronavirus, with 57 deaths, according to the countys latest numbers. That includes 661 cases in Newark with 21 deaths.

While things have changed already, with the extra precautions, mask policy and even staff from human resources and finance stepping up to help where they can, Wednesdays news emphasized the urgency of the virus issue.

This really hit home for everyone in ways that werent necessarily there before, Elnahal said. It highlighted the importance of our role in fighting this war, because its taken one of our own.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Sign up for text message alerts from NJ.com on coronavirus in New Jersey:





-This post was updated later Wednesday with different information about the mask policy. They are not mandatory, but are an option for all staff - almost all of whom are wearing them, a spokesman said.

Joe Brandt can be reached at jbrandt@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JBrandt_NJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 09:07:01|Editor: huaxia

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HEFEI, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Kangmei Chinese medicinal material price index, a barometer of the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) material market, rose 0.01 percent to 1,292.87 points Thursday.

Covering more than 500 TCM materials including herbs and minerals from six major markets nationwide, the closely-watched index reflects the overall price trend in the country's TCM material market. It is released daily by Kangmei Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, one of China's major TCM companies.

The index was approved by the National Development and Reform Commission of China in 2012 to offer more timely and accurate reference for TCM material growers, traders and pharmaceutical companies.

Traditional Chinese medicines, often given as oral liquid, granule and pills, typically use the combination of a number of medicinal materials, mostly herbs, to address health problems.
<! RMD >

Veteran Nollywood actor, Richard Eyimofe Evans Mofe-Damijo, popularly known as RMD, has urged the government to ask the Customs to share food items they seized during the lockdown.

Some states in Nigeria are currently on lockdown, due to the recent coronavirus outbreak, as the government tries to curb the spread of the virus in the country.

Earlier, House of Representatives member, Honorable Gudaji Kazaure asked President Buhari to order the Nigeria Customs Service to release all the bags of rice seized to Nigerians.

In the same vein, veteran actor, Richard Mofe Damijo, who shared the same view, as he stated that this seems to be the best time for the customs to share the seized food items.

See what he wrote below;

Sitting here wondering if this wont be a good time for government to ask Customs about all the plenty seized rice, tomato, vegetable oil and all the other food items they have in their possession and give out to our people in need.

Whilst thanking them for reduced fuel prices at this time (inject smiley face)and all the other efforts so far, food is a major part of this lock down. I know sometimes the agencies of govt dont work as a team but please this is the time for customs to step and tell us how much relief they can bring to Nigerians.
Major businesses serving Hong Kongs airport have called on the government to follow Singapores example in subsidising the wages of workers, warning that job losses in the sector amid the Covid-19 crisis could double to 4,000 in a fortnight.

Third-party firms, which offer services outsourced by airlines said they were facing catastrophic difficulties as the substantial reduction in flights meant little to no revenue from airlines, placing jobs at risk.

Like the carriers, the sector was left reeling from protests and is now grappling with the pandemic which has crippled air travel worldwide.

What HASPA and the industry need is government support to continue, David Walker, chairman of Hong Kong Airline Service Providers Association (HASPA), said in an exclusive interview with the Post. Businesses will be doing all they can to reduce those costs and labour is the last thing we would turn to, but we are at that point now at the airport.

Cash is being burned down incredibly fast, Walker added. Some of the groups members are paid per flight. We have really got limited time to save people.

Check-in counters at Hong Kongs airport. Photo: Jonathan Wong

More than two months into the citys struggle against the coronavirus, HASPA said its members were down to the bare bones, and had switched to only essential spending, including freezing all investment, capital expenditure, as well as putting most staff on unpaid leave and scrapping overtime.

The association represents 18 companies and 24,000 workers at Hong Kong International Airport, including baggage handlers, check-in and passenger handlers, aircraft refuellers, maintenance staff, cleaners and in-flight caterers under major companies such as Cathay Pacific Catering, Asia Airfreight Terminal, Gate Gourmet Hong Kong and more.

Air traffic is down by around 90 per cent and the largest carriers such as Cathay Pacific, including its subsidiary Cathay Dragon, have cut flights in April and May by 94 per cent, with some airlines even reducing schedules until September.

Story continues

[An extra] 2,000 in the next few weeks is quite reasonable [in terms of job losses], given 24,000 people work across businesses where volume is down 90 per cent, Walker said. About 2,000 jobs have been cut in the sector since the public health crisis erupted.

Last week, Singapore announced a wage support scheme covering 75 per cent of salaries in the aviation industry for the first S$4,600 (HK$25,000) per employee. HASPA said Hong Kong  which like the Lion City, also has a top-rated global airport  needed to match its rival hub until normal business resumed.

The association said 70 per cent of expenses incurred by companies in its sector came from employee costs, which were fixed.

Fleets of airlines parked at the airport amid massive flight cuts. Photo: Winson Wong

Pressure has been mounting on the government to do more. Along with the Airport Authority, the administration has rolled out a relief package of HK$2.6 billion in two tranches. Cathay Pacific said at the time it needed significantly more immediate help to match the scale of the crisis.

Industry players have said more widespread support would have a profound impact on the aviation industry, which supports 330,000 jobs in the city and contributes 10.2 per cent of Hong Kongs gross domestic product.

The airport services industry said the relief measures to date would save less than 5 per cent of its costs up to the end of June. HASPA added that less than 6,000 workers were needed at the moment to keep its members services afloat.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has also warned of a risk over the aviation value chain collapsing around struggling airlines.

Governments must help airlines [and] help the whole travel industry and aerospace industry because everybody is suffering, said IATA chief Alexandre de Juniac on Tuesday. The association warned a recovery could take longer than expected and stretch into 2021.

Last week, aviation services firm, John Menzies, cut 17,500 jobs  more than half of its jobs worldwide  because of the collapse of air travel. The Scottish firm has a presence at 200 airports in 37 countries and jurisdictions, including Macau but not Hong Kong.

For HASPA members, they fear losing skilled workers, amid difficulty recruiting such staff and putting them through a training process already considered lengthy.

The Airport Authority referred the media to a press release on March 23, declining to comment on the prospect of a third round of more substantial financial aid.

A Transport and Housing Bureau spokeswoman said: We will continue to closely monitor the latest situation and review measures to support the industry in due course.

More from South China Morning Post:

This article Coronavirus: airport service firms call on Hong Kong to follow Singapore in covering wages of aviation workers, warning of further job loss first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2020.
Celebrated Ghanaian actress who is also a philanthropist Jackie Appiah has showed love to the people of Accra by donating some sanitary items to market women a section of needy people in the capital city to protect them from been infected with the deadly Coronavirus.

Among the items she donated include Veronica buckets, gallons of liquid soap, tissues for hand drying, hand sanitizers, protective masks among others.

Jackie Appiah demonstrates to the women how to wash their hands properly with soap under running water and also use hand sanitizers and use protective masks to cover their mouths and noses.

In an interview with Attractivemustapha.com the dynamic actress, she emphasized the need to show love and care to people and educate them in such unfortunate situations to stop the spread and save more lives.

She urged all well-meaning citizens to show kindness and give back to society. My name is Jackie Appiah, an actress. I make it a point to always give back to society in one way or the other. The coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) has taken the world by surprise and its almost like the entire world is upside down so a little act of kindness is expected of every citizen of the world.

Attractivemustapha.com
The German government and the countrys credit insurance industry have agreed to help to maintain insurance cover for trade despite economic hardship related to the coronavirus outbreak, three people with knowledge of the plan said on Wednesday.

Under the plan, the government would guarantee up to 30 billion euros ($32.8 billion) for the commercial credit insurance industry, the sources said.

In return, the credit insurers are committing to maintain or even extend their coverage and to pay two-thirds of their premiums to the government this year. The credit insurers, along with the government, would also absorb the first 500 million euros in losses.

Credit insurance helps to ensure the smooth flow of trade in goods at home and abroad, especially in the retail sector, protecting suppliers against the risk that customers cannot pay.

Germanys biggest trade credit insurer Allianz-owned Euler Hermes declined to comment, as did the GDV insurance lobby, the Finance Ministry and the Economics Ministry.

The EU Commission is yet to approve the aid program. It is expected in the next few days, one source said.

($1 = 0.9155 euros) (Reporting by Alexander Huebner and Christian Kraemer; writing by Tom Sims; editing by Thomas Seythal and Jane Merriman)

Related:

Topics Germany
The Quiet Heroism of Communities Pulling Together

What were dealing with as a nation in this moment is unprecedented in modern history. We have fears about our health, our families and friends, fears about our jobs and our finances, and about what this crisis will mean for the economy. What will the world look like in recovery from the novel coronavirus?

One thing I do knowfrom what Im seeing already, communities will be part of defining our new world. In the absence of strong national leadership, states and local communities are taking action, planning and executing, and along the way defining what it means to be heroic.

Hospitals across the country right now are planning and preparing and getting the supplies we need, to help us provide the best possible patient care in every way we can. At MLK Community Hospital, we are talking to hospitals in New York and Washington that have already experienced a surge of COVID-19 patients with serious illness that strained their health care delivery system.

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We are preparing for what we know is coming, taking lessons of priority, innovation and courage from them.

The state has asked every hospital to increase bed capacity by at least 40%, and we are doing that and more.

Weve stood up a daily command center to manage how were responding to the crisis. We are adding beds through use of alternative locations within and outside of the hospital. We are adding equipment, supplies, and staffing for those beds. We have added medical tentsfield hospitalswith gurneys and IV poles at the ready, to triage patients with symptoms. We are looking at how we can use our new medical office building to house and treat patients.

Testing is also going to get better soon. We are repurposing lab space, creating our own capability on-site for COVID-19 testing. Once testing is more available, well see more people in the emergency department, including higher numbers of people who are infected.

The most important way were preparing are the steps were taking to keep our doctors, nurses and clinical staff on the front lines safe, to protect the health of our patients, workers and their families.

Our most urgent needs are for supplies, particularly personal protective equipment for providers (called PPE). This includes N-95 masks, surgical and procedure masks, gowns, gloves, face shields, goggles, disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer. All of these critical items are in short supply. Many doctors and nurses are terrified that they will catch coronavirus from a patient and take it home to their families. But, they show up for work every day.

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Because we are a small community hospital, we are in a lower tier for allocations from the national strategic reserve, which means we get fewer PPE items than larger hospitals (even considering our high patient volume). The distributions from the reserve are unpredictable, dont include all items, and are not enough volume to meet the need.

We are pursuing supplies from every source at state and local levelsand our resourceful staff and our community are stepping up to help fill the gaps.

The silver lining is that this has become a time of innovation and creativitya time of quiet heroism among a growing tribe of committed health care workers and volunteers who are working together.

An emergency department nurse at our hospital took the initiative to reach out to the Target Corporationand received a quick response of nearly 6,000 N95 masks gathered from local stores.

Over 100 volunteers in South LA and across the city have mobilized to make gowns and masks for hospital staff on the frontlines. Sharing patterns, sourcing fabric and putting their mothers and grandmothers to work at their sewing machines while isolated at home is resulting in a valuable addition to our PPE supply.

Small businesses are coming to us with donations of their PPEveterans associations, a tattoo parlor, beauty supply stores, construction and warehouse workers. Feed the Front Lines has organized among our local restaurants as a food drive to ensure that our first responders, on night and day shift, have nourishing meals. And our philanthropic supporters are funding local hotel and Airbnb rooms for front line workers to shower and change, or stay overnight, to help keep their families safe.

We are so grateful for this outpouring of support. It shows the initiative and strength of community. This is what strong communities do to pull through a crisis.

We are each doing our part. Those of us who are staying home right now are also taking a life-saving action, to slow down the spread of this virus so that our hospitals have the capacity to take care of the people who need it.

If youre feeling sick and think you need to see a doctor, call your doctor first. Please take advantage of your health plans 24-hour medical advice line. These hotlines have doctors and nurses standing by to advise you on what to do. Weve published a list of them on our website: https://www.mlkch.org/telehealth-services.

Most visits are being handled by telemedicine now. And if you do need an in-person visit, the advance notice will help protect you, your doctor and your community.

We are living through a historic time. Theres a lot of uncertainty, our routines are disrupted, and each day can bring a challenging range of emotions to navigate.

But amid all of this, theres also something beautiful happening. We are taking collective action, all of us making sacrifices and sharing our resources, in order to protect the most vulnerable among us. Theres something very powerful and hopeful in thatit helps me in the challenging moments.

There will be many more of those moments to come for those of us in Los Angeles. The stories Im seeing and hearing about assure me well get through this together, as a community.

Dr. Elaine Batchlor is the chief executive officer of Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital in Watts.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday asked citizens to follow social distancing and other guidelines issued by the government during Ram Navami celebrations to defeat the coronavirus pandemic.

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday asked citizens to follow social distancing and other guidelines issued by the government during Ram Navami celebrations to defeat the coronavirus pandemic.

In a message to the nation on the eve of Ram Navami, he extended his greetings and best wishes to fellow citizens.

"Ram Navami celebrated as the birth anniversary of Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram, is also an occasion for our toiling farmers to celebrate new crops," Kovind said.

"Shri Ram's ideal life gives us the message of virtue, tolerance, warmth, and harmony.

"We should sincerely follow these eternal values in the course of our duty, he said.

The president asked all citizens to resolve to follow Lord Rama''s ideals and build a glorious nation.

"Also, follow all government guidelines including social distancing while celebrating the festival to combat and defeat the pandemic of COVID-19," Kovind said.
Mexican cement plants to close due to coronavirus

ICR Newsroom By 02 April 2020

Mexicos National Cement Chamber (CANACEM) has announce that cement plants are ceasing operation. However, cement companies will carry out dispatches until 3 April and halt supplying public works and 62,000 hardware stores from 4 April onwards. The measure has been taken due to the spread of COVID-19.



"It is necessary to carry out technical, operational and administrative actions in each of the plants whose activity will be suspended in order to be able to completely stop operations in a safe and technically orderly manner so that damage to machinery and equipment is avoided, in particularly the kilns that are used in the production of cement, and to take care of the physical integrity of the people who participate in these technical actions to stop operations, "says CANACEM President, Jaime Rocha Font. It is expected that the shutdowns will take place over the next seven days to reduce the impact on equipment, the environment and the fulfillment of third-party obligations.



CANACEM will also suspend operations since it is not considered an essential activity, according to the agreement published in the countrys Official Gazette on 31 March.



Companies affiliated to the cement industry association will maintain all their personnel with full salary and benefits during the period 30 March-30 April 2020, outlined in the Agreement.

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Palm Sunday is a significant day on the Christian calendar, marking the start of Holy Week and the arrival of Jesus in Jerusalem.

The day is observed by Christians from various denominations of the religion, including Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists and Presbyterians.

The practices of Palm Sunday, such as processions, singing and carrying palm leaves, can be traced back for centuries. However, as the first religious occasion to fall during the coronavirus pandemic, this year's celebrations may look slightly different.

Heres everything you need to know about Palm Sunday:

What is Palm Sunday?

Palm Sunday, otherwise known as Passion Sunday, is the first day of Holy Week  the last week of Lent which starts on Palm Sunday and ends on Easter Sunday.

The day celebrates Jesus arrival in Jerusalem riding on a donkey days before he was crucified.

When is Palm Sunday?

Palm Sunday always falls on the Sunday before Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

This year, Palm Sunday is on 5 April, Good Friday falls on 10 April and Easter Sunday is celebrated on 12 April.

What is its significance?

The day marks Jesus arrival in Jerusalem riding on a donkey days before he was crucified, according to Christian teaching.

As Jesus approached Jerusalem, he told two of his disciples to go into a nearby village and bring a donkey on which he would ride into the Middle Eastern city.

2016 Easter celebrations around the world Show all 20 1 /20 2016 Easter celebrations around the world 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Willy Salvador, 59, hangs from a cross as part of his penitence during a reenactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan, Pampanga Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines articipants lie on the ground after whipping their bloodied backs with bamboo as part of their penitence during a ceremony reenacting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines articipants whip their bloodied backs with bamboo as part of their penitence during the re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ for Good Friday celebrations ahead of Easter in the village of San Juan. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Hungary Dancers of 'Matyo Folklor Art Association' in traditional clothes, react as boys throw water in Mezokovesd, some 130 km east of Budapest. Getty images 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines A resident carries a statue of Jesus Christ to the church in preparation for the Good Friday procession during Holy Week celebration in Gasan, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Ruben Enaje, who is portraying Jesus Christ for the 30th time, screams while a resident acting as a Roman soldier pulls up a nail on his palm Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitent Ruben Enaje, who is portraying Jesus Christ for the 30th time, is carried on a stretcher by rescuers after he was nailed on a wooden cross during a Good Friday crucifixion reenactment in Cutud town, Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Mexico A man holding a rabbit looks at men dressed as ancient Romans as they take part in a procession, during Holy Week celebrations, in Taxco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world South Africa Nuns carry a cross during a silent march celebrating Good Friday in Durban. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Mexico Masked penitents prepare before the start of a procession, a part of Holy Week celebrations, in Taxco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitents locally called "Morions" wear masks and centurion garbs as they take part in a Good Friday procession as part of Holy Week celebration in Gasan, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world El Salvador Members of the El Jesus Nazareno brotherhood participate in the Los Cristos Procession as part of Holy Week celebrations in the town of Izalco. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Paraguay Actors take part in a re-enactment during a Holy Week procession to prepare for Good Friday celebration in Luque city. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Paraguay Actors take part in a re-enactment during a Holy Week procession to prepare for Good Friday celebration in Luque city. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Peru Local and foreign inmates participate in a performance of the play Jesus Christ Superstar to celebrate Holy Week at Sarita Colonia prison in Callao. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Penitents wearing masks, known locally as "Morions" take a selfie during the start of Holy Week celebrations in Mogpog, Marinduque. Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Hungary Hungary Reuters 2016 Easter celebrations around the world Philippines Resident portraying Roman soldier pulls up a nail on a foot of penitent Ruben Enaje in Pampanga, Philippines. Reuters

The Bible states the messiahs procession was welcomed by people waving giant palm leaves.

"They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, 'Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!'" reads John 12:13.

How is it observed?

There are many traditions that take place on Palm Sunday but one of the most common is for individuals to give out or receive small crosses made from palm leaves, as a reminder of Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem and his death on the cross, the Salvation Army states.

While some Christians keep these in their homes all year as a symbol of their faith, other congregations burn them at the end of the day and save the ashes to use on Ash Wednesday of the following year.

Processions symbolic of the one Jesus undertook are also commonplace on Palm Sunday, typically ahead of a church service. However, as the first religious occasion to fall during the coronavirus pandemic, this year's celebrations may look slightly different.

How can I watch Palm Sunday services?

Many countries around the world are currently living under strict lockdown measures to help curb the spread of Covid-19, including the UK.

The UK government has advised everyone to stay at home at all times unless they need to buy supplies, help the vulnerable or exercise once a day.

As a result the Church of England is having to adapt to the ongoing situation and has decided to hold a national virtual service for Palm Sunday 2020.

The service will be led by the Bishop of Manchester with the Holy Communion service being broadcast at 9am on the Church of Englands Facebook page and Church of England website. The service will include readings from the Archdeacon of Manchester, Karen Lund and prayers by Lucy Hargraves from St Peters Church in Bolton.

All three will record contributions from their own homes in keeping with the rules on physical distancing.
Joe Biden has said he 'doubts' that the Democratic National Convention will be held in July and suggested that voters may have to cast their ballots remotely in the November presidential elections.

'I think (the DNC) is going to have to move into August,' the former Vice President told Jimmy Fallon last night as the US coronavirus death toll soared to 5,139, with more than 216,000 infected.

The convention is scheduled for July 13 to 16 in Milwaukee but in a recent poll 62 percent of registered voters in the state said the event - a media circus with thousands of spectators - should be scrapped.

Biden told MSNBC Monday night that the secretaries of state ought to already be planning for remote voting for the November 3 presidential election.

The 77-year-old Democrat frontrunner, who has all but beaten Bernie Sanders, said: 'We ought to be able to do what we were able to do in the middle of the Civil War all the way through to World War II: have Democratic and Republican conventions, and primaries, and elections, and still have public safety.

'I think it's going to have to move into August,' the former Vice President told Jimmy Fallon last night as the coronavirus death toll soared

'And we're able to do both. But the fact is that it may have to be different.'

Biden suggested that drive-thru voting was one option available for those who did not wish to submit their ballot by post.

However, President Donald Trump claimed this week that this 'vote-by-mail' proposal would ensure that no Republican was ever elected again.

Biden called Trump's claim 'absolutely ridiculous' and suggested the November election 'may be virtual.

Mail voting has already been brought in for primary contests this week in Alaska, Hawaii and Wyoming. Meanwhile states like Georgia and Ohio have postponed their primaries until June to prepare for 100 percent postal voting.

Aides to Biden said yesterday they would arrange a call with the president to discuss the country's response to coronavirus.

Biden has been critical of Trump's response to the coronavirus, saying he had been too slow to marshal federal resources to get equipment and funds to governors responding to the highly contagious respiratory disease.

'Our teams will be in touch and we will arrange a call,' Biden's deputy campaign manager, Kate Bedingfield, said in a statement.

During his daily press briefing on the virus, Trump said he would be happy to talk to Biden.

President Donald Trump speaks during a daily briefing on the novel coronavirus, COVID-19 with members of the coronavirus task force in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House

'Oh absolutely, I'd love to speak to him,' the Republican president said. 'I always found him to be a nice guy.'

Biden, one month on from an historic comeback after nearly imploding in the early primaries, has seen his campaign sidelined by the global pandemic.

Suddenly, Biden is struggling for attention during what would normally be a critical, high-profile point in a campaign.

Meanwhile, the president is center stage, holding daily White House press breifings with his coronavirus task force which often run past 90 minutes.

Biden, by contrast, is broadcasting from his basement, clamoring for air time even while acknowledging he is a former insider with no knowledge of current operations or access to internal administration reports.

His viewing figures for last night's YouTube interview with Jimmy Fallon stand at a paltry 20,000.

Trump, meanwhile, has dominated the airwaves. His job approval rating, underwater for years, has ticked up in the past 10 days, a common phenomenon for US presidents in the grips of a crisis.

Sanders, who remains in the race for the Democratic nomination but has an increasingly narrow path to victory, speaks about coronavirus in Burlington, Vermont last month

Biden released a spot with just such a message Wednesday on Twitter, showing Trump attacking a reporter for asking about COVID-19 response efforts, juxtaposed with Biden's poised call to help those afflicted and to expand drive-through coronavirus testing.

'This moment calls for a president,' the spot concludes. 'In November, you can elect one.'

Biden and Sanders, who remains in the race for the Democratic nomination but has an increasingly narrow path to victory, have been holding their own regular coronavirus briefings and town hall meetings about the pandemic.

They are seeking to face Trump in the November 3 election.
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Finance informs that a total of 856 million and 253 thousand drams has been donated to the Armenian government for its anti-coronavirus efforts, ARMENPRESS reports the government said.

The treasury account (900005001947) was opened on March 17th for citizens and organizations willing to make donations.

The government said a total of 3239 payments were made since.

Edited and translated by Tigran Sirekanyan
Pilot Company's top priority right now is protecting the safety of team members and guests, while continuing to provide essential goods and services. During this time, the company is taking several extra precautions , such as following social distancing guidelines and disinfecting frequently used surfaces, including gas pumps, door handles, restrooms and showers.

"We are extraordinarily grateful to the everyday heroes  from professional drivers to first responders and health care providers  who are working tirelessly to provide the care, services and supplies we need through this challenging time," said Jimmy Haslam, CEO of Pilot Company. "Thank you to our incredible team members for working together to keep our travel centers open, clean and fueling. We are committed to doing everything we can to support our communities, the industry and professional drivers to help keep North America moving."

More than 80% of communities rely solely on trucks to move their goods, and hardworking professional drivers deliver nearly 71% of all freight tonnage in the U.S. To thank drivers for their incredible dedication to supplying our country, Pilot Company issued a "Thank You" video celebrating their impact and is also providing ways to save money on food, showers and supplies at its travel center locations using the Pilot Flying J app.

Last week, the company announced new measures to thank team members, including its fuel drivers and those working in stores, for everything they're doing to keep vehicles fueled, showers and restrooms clean, and shelves stocked with food and drinks. These initiatives include:

"Thank You Pay" for all store hourly team members to earn an additional $2 /hour.

for all store hourly team members to earn an additional /hour. Free Meal for store team members and company fuel delivery drivers to receive a free meal during every shift.

for store team members and company fuel delivery drivers to receive a free meal during every shift. Emergency Pay Plan for 14 days of paid time off for quarantine and recovery.

for 14 days of paid time off for quarantine and recovery. Manager Bonus expedited and paid at 100% for eligible managers.

To ensure the company's facilities are staffed and open, as an essential business, Pilot Company is still hiring and accepting applications online at jobs.pilotflyingj.com.

Pilot Company is continuing to work closely with its suppliers, partners and customers to supply fuel, food and essential goods. The country's fuel supply continues to be strong, and Pilot Company's logistics team is working hard to keep fuel supply levels high across its network of travel centers.

For the latest information on Pilot Company's COVID-19 efforts and response, including updates on operations, please visit: https://pilotflyingj.com/covid-response.

About Pilot Company

Pilot Company is a growth company focused on innovative solutions across its retail, energy and logistics operations. Headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, Pilot Company supplies more than 11 billion gallons of fuel per year. Its industry-leading network of more than 900 retail and fueling locations provides travelers with convenient stops that offer a variety of amenities and products to make road travel easier. The Pilot Flying J travel center network includes locations in 44 states and six Canadian provinces with more than 630 restaurants, 73,000 truck parking spaces, 5,200 deluxe showers, 6,200 diesel lanes and 35 Truck Care service centers. The One9 Fuel Network connects smaller fleets and professional drivers to the services they need at a variety of fueling locations. The energy division optimizes the sourcing and supply of fuel, DEF, bio and renewables and provides critical hauling and disposal services in our nation's busiest basins as the third largest tanker fleet in North America. Pilot Company is currently ranked No. 10 on Forbes' list of America's Largest Private Companies. Visit www.pilotcompany.com for more information.

SOURCE Pilot Company

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Thursday, April 2, 2020

My mother is not expendable, and your mother is not expendable, and our brothers and sisters are not expendable, and were not going to accept a premise that human life is disposable, and were not gonna put a dollar figure on human life. The first order of business is save lives, period. Whatever it costs. Governor Andrew Cuomo (NY-D).

New York Governor Andrew Cuomos powerful statement about the value of human life reminds us that good can come out of the most unexpected circumstances, including the coronavirus that has devastated New York. His bold statement, recognizing the sanctity of human life, represents a sea change from his position on Jan. 23, 2019, when he signed into law the most liberal abortion law in the nation.

Amid much applause and with the stroke of a pen, Cuomo that day proudly decriminalized New York State law that made it illegal for doctors and medical personnel to perform abortions on women past 24-weeks of pregnancy. His support of the new law meant that abortion could now be performed in his state at any stage of the pregnancy, and for any reason. A pregnant woman wanting an abortion needed only to find a doctor who would state that her physical or mental health would be impaired by the birth of her child.

Many Americans were horrified by Cuomos lifting of all abortion restrictions in his state. The new law went beyond the liberties granted in the case decision as codified in the landmark Roe v. Wade case. Within days, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam made it a one-two punch and took the spotlight off Cuomo by endorsing infanticide as he championed a similar law for his state: Speaking of cases where a baby might be born with a disability or other defect, Northam said: If a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen. . . . The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if thats what the mother and the family desired. And then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.

The coronavirus pandemic, with its equal-opportunity nature spreading and striking at Americans nationwide, should change the hearts of pro-abortionist politicians. They now have to make the case for the value of human life. As of March 25, 2020, New York was leading the nation in the number of coronavirus infections and deaths. Governor Cuomo reported 199 dead in New York City and 30,000 infected across the state. Think about this: given the population of New York State at 19.5 million, the number of deaths there pale in comparison to the devastation caused by its abortion rate.

According to Planned Parenthoods Guttmacher Institute, New York has also led the nation in the number of abortions. More than 105,000 abortions were performed in the state in 2017, representing 12.2 percent of all abortions in America. The state had 252 facilities offering abortions. In a 2018 op-ed, Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Reilly wrote:

In New York City, thousands more black babies are aborted than born alive each year, and the abortion rate among black mothers is more than three times higher than it is for white mothers. According to a city Health Department report released in May, between 2012 and 2016 black mothers terminated 136,426 pregnancies and gave birth to 118,127 babies.

Perhaps life becomes more precious when your own life or those you care about is at stake.

In seeking to encourage New Yorkers, Cuomo gave a heartfelt statement that could have far-reaching implications. Thats only so, however, if he applies this newly-expressed concern for the sanctity of life to all healthcare situations affecting his state and the rest of the nation. He said:

New York loves all of you. Black and white and brown and Asian and short and tall and gay and straight. New York loves everyone. Thats why I love New York. It always has, it always will.

There are challenges ahead. Governor Cuomo must deal with a shortage of ventilators and the uncertainty we all face about the course of the disease. Undoubtedly, there will be a need for rationing. What will be the criteria for getting ones needs met? Will it be first-come, first-served? Will the sickest people regardless of age and mental handicap get their needs met? We dont know the answer.

We do know that the governor of New York now recognizes the value of human life. He is being praised as presidential material. I would not be surprised if there is a move in place among Democrats to find a way to substitute Cuomo for Joe Biden as the presumptive Democrat Partys presidential nominee.

It is a bit unsettling. New York: No. 1 in abortions, No. 1 in coronavirus deaths. As we look at the situation objectively, there is a need to make sure that decisions about who gets what is balanced against the needs of Americans in other states. Coronavirus cases are fewer in those other 49 states, but the potential lives saved from having enough ventilators in those states is every bit as sacred as it is for New York.

Article was released in the Tennessee Star  click here
Stephanie Nebehay, Kate Kelland

GENEVA (Reuters) - The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) voiced deep concern on Wednesday about the rapid escalation and global spread of COVID-19 cases from the new coronavirus, which has now reached 205 countries and territories.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that his agency, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) backed debt relief to help developing countries cope with the pandemics social and economic consequences.

In the past five weeks there has been a near-exponential growth in the number of new cases and the number of deaths has more than doubled in the past week, Tedros told a virtual news conference in Geneva where the U.N. health organization is based.

In the next few days we will reach 1 million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths worldwide, he said.

China, where the coronavirus outbreak first emerged in December, reported dwindling new infections on Wednesday and for the first time disclosed the number of asymptomatic cases, which could complicate how trends in the outbreak are read. Its latest figures excluded 130 new sufferers of the highly contagious disease who do not show symptoms, its statistics showed.

Asked about the distinction, Dr. Maria ver Kerkhove, a WHO epidemiologist who was part of an international team who went to China in February, said WHOs definition included laboratory-confirmed cases regardless of the development of symptoms.

From data that we have seen from China in particular, we know that individuals who are identified, who are listed as asymptomatic, about 75 percent of those actually go on to develop symptoms, she said, describing them as having been in a pre-symptomatic phase. The new coronavirus causes the respiratory disease COVID-19.

The outbreak continues to be driven by people who show signs of disease including fever and cough, but it is important for the WHO to capture that full spectrum of illness, she added.

Tedros, referring to proposed debt relief, said: Many countries, developing countries cannot really support their societies especially during lockdowns, especially those community members who work for their daily bread. That is why we call on the international community to have debt relief to support those countries.

We are proposing an expedited process to support countries so their economies are not getting into crisis, (and) their communities are not getting into crisis, he said.

Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay and Kate Kelland; Editing by Franklin Paul and Jonathan Oatis
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. Esmeralda Dallakyan, who currently lives in China and studies at the Tsinghua University, is more than confident that Chinese people manage to overcome the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) thanks to self-quarantine.

The Armenian student introduced the current situation in China to ARMENPRESS and informed that students currently are under quarantine and only go out in extreme cases.

When the virus outbreak started, we were only allowed to go out for buying some food, but the restrictions were further tightened due to the increase in the number of confirmed cases. We were not allowed to go outside, cafes were banning two or more people sitting together, the social distance was mandatory. Disinfection works are carried out everywhere several times a day, all are wearing face masks. Going out from the room without a mask is not allowed. I am more than confident that here people manage to overcome the virus firstly with the self-isolation. We even didnt contact with our classmates for weeks, she said.

The student said the situation in Beijing is gradually improving as cafes, restaurants start their operations, and almost no cases of the disease are being reported in the city.

Esmeralda Dallakyan says when the disease started spreading she got sick, but not due to the coronavirus. However, she was locked in the room and was not allowed to go outside for a week. The specialists were trying to understand what kind of a virus it was. I didnt tell my family about my situation in order not to get them worry. My friends were also not here, I felt very alone. One day we received a call from the Armenian Embassy in China to get information whether we have received a scholarship or not, whether we have financial difficulties or not. I told them that I got sick. And every day they were calling me and asking how I feel. I would really go crazy alone if there wasnt their attention and support. No matter how mature you are and made a decision to study abroad, in such situations you feel very lonely, but it turns out your home country stands by you. Armenias Ambassador to China Sergey Manasaryan personally telephoned me. He was holding phone talks with the local Armenians, giving respective advice and support. I am very grateful to him and the Embassys whole staff for supporting us, the student said.

Esmeralda, together with her Armenian, Chinese and other foreign classmates, is under quarantine till now.

Being in isolation in a foreign country is twice as difficult, but it is the only way to fight the novel coronavirus. Will, strength for several weeks and everything will end, she said, urging all her compatriots in Armenia to stay at home.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about an outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, central China. WHO declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a global pandemic and named the virus COVID-19. Cases of coronavirus were confirmed in more than 200 countries.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
CLEVELAND, Ohio  The fog of apprehension that shrouds the novel coronavirus matched the gray mists recently cloaking Cleveland, as bags of food were packed and delivered to some of Northeast Ohios newest, and most vulnerable residents.

Refugees Liliane Bora, who is Congolese, and Shabeer Halim, who is Afghan, drove down nearly deserted city streets in a white delivery truck, found an address, then grabbed smiley-faced, Have a Nice Day bags filled with fruits, snacks and vegetables for the children of fellow refugees.

Bora and Halim dropped the bags at the door, knocked, then left.

Local nonprofit aid group Refugee Response started the food delivery program last week. The group partnered with Urban Community School, which provides a kitchen and dining areas for preparation of bagged meals intended to last 2 to 3 days.

The effort illustrates one way that it, and similar groups, are helping area immigrants and refugees, even as the organizations have been forced to curtail face-to-face services.

Refugees and immigrants are facing challenges that include language barriers to understanding COVID-19 health implications and the mandated shutdowns; job layoffs and small business shutdowns; incomprehensible English-only unemployment compensation forms; and a bombardment of misinformation and scams.

Refugee Response also has created animated YouTube videos in 12 different languages that explain the coronavirus, and its symptoms.

We see the confusion around the messaging of what people are supposed to do, what theyre not supposed to do and the ability to access information [in different languages] is not really available for a lot of our parents, said Patrick Kearns, executive director.

Upcoming videos will provide information on virus-related mental health issues and countering misinformation on message boards and text-mail chains, said Kearns.

Theres a lot of crazy stuff going around, all kinds of fake home remedies, end-of-time prophecies, one guy who said theyre going to be dropping industrial-strength virus-killer on the city, and a whole host of scam sites to register for unemployment [compensation] and a lot of data-grabbing stuff, Kearns said.

Many of their clients worked in the hospitality industry and lost their jobs. Kearns said Refugee Response hired two recently laid-off refugees as workers for the food delivery program. He said the group is also coordinating with a local business to get five unemployed refugee women jobs, sewing masks for those working on the front lines of the crisis.

These people have been through a lot of stuff before. Its not like they dont know how deal with a crisis, Kearns said. This population has had a lot of recent trauma [in coming to America], and now youre bringing in a new, very stressful situation to their lives.

Managing the stress

Some refugees and immigrants handle that stress in different ways.

When Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine encouraged everyone to fly the flag as a sign of solidarity, Vietnamese community leader Gia Hoa Ryan planted assorted American and South Vietnamese flags in the front yard of her Cleveland home, with the sign: Please Pray for the World.

We really need to do that, she said. As Cleveland has emptied, with people staying indoors, the whole city reminds me of 1968, when war was going on in my city [in Vietnam], Ryan said.

One of the hardest parts of the current shutdown is that it runs counter to a strong Vietnamese cultural tradition of regularly socializing with family and friends, said Ryan. They get together, they cook. We try to tell them dont do that, she said.

Kha Duong, president of the Vietnamese Community Center of Greater Cleveland, a popular gathering place for social and educational programs, said the center has been shut down for a month. The same applies to the nail salon that he owns.

Customers still come to me, they say Come to my house. I say, No,  he said. I dont do any customers at home.

In some ways were all in the same rocky boat, Vietnamese refugee Toan Huynh observed, The biggest challenges facing us are that we dont know how long we will have to wait before we can go back to normal life.

Huynh teaches a citizenship class at the community center and has advised his students to use audio instruction on their own, and practice answering naturalization questions.

The Vietnamese Community has provided help via phone calls, online resources and Facebook to help people conduct business, such as grocery stores, carry-out restaurants, he said.

Another refugee resource, Joseph House of Cleveland, offers a clothing bank, which has been closed since March 13, and affordable housing, operated by four churches in the Cleveland Catholic Diocese.

Recently, the organization reached out to a new family from the Congo that is living in one of their apartments.

Its been very confusing for them, they dont speak the language, and theres a whole hurdle trying to explain to them why were not able give them the type of [in-person] support other families would have gotten, said Maureen Powers, director of operations.

They have supplied the family, including four children, with food, clothing, games, movies and personal hygiene products.

They say theyre fine, she said. They feel safer and more secure and happy to be here, even in these circumstances.

Global Cleveland, an immigrant support group, has assembled more than 40 translators from around the area, many of them international students, to translate state and federal government announcements about the coronavirus into 30 languages. The results are posted on its web site, and members of the international community in Northeast Ohio have passed along that information via social media, according to Joe Cimperman, Global Cleveland president.

He said the organization is also working on translation of new rules and programs issued by the government for small businesses because of the coronavirus.

The point is to get as many people engaged in the recovery as possible, and they can do better and faster in the language they understand, Cimperman said.The Hope Center for Refugees and Immigrants, operated by Building Hope in the City, has been forced to shut down its English language instruction, citizenship instruction, childcare and other programs utilized by about 250 to 300 people per week.

The group serves refugees from 18 to 20 different nations. Since the onset of the coronavirus, it has been distributing information about the virus, printed in different languages, at area grocery stores, delivering food to at-risk clients and just checking-in on people, asking how theyre doing, said Eileen Wilson, director of refugee ministries and the Hope Center.

And generally, Theyre doing OK. They are nervous, not truly understanding everything thats going on, but helping each other by passing on information, Wilson said.

They fled from bombs and armies, so theyre a little more resilient. Theyre lonely, but I dont think theyre as stressed as some Americans are.

DOING WHAT THEY CAN

Communities are coming together to help each other, said Elaine Tso, CEO of the refugee support group Asian Services in Action.

While her group has had to curtail walk-in appointments at its health centers in Cleveland in Akron, it still provides primary care. After-school tutoring and health programs have been canceled, but the group is maintaining an emergency food pick-up service. Staff members once involved in interactive programs are now working the phones, making health checks, helping with unemployment claims, providing virus information and encouraging refugees and immigrants to respond to the U.S. census.

We dont know what future holds beyond just doing the best we can under not ideal circumstances, Tso said.

The Greater Akron Hindu Sewa Samittee, which serves the Bhutanese refugee community in Northeast Ohio, has canceled all classes, workshops and meetings.

Now, during this silent time, were asking every family to make homemade masks and give them to hospitals, said Mahananda Luitel, president.

The group is distributing virus information at area groceries and arranged to have a doctor who speaks Nepali available for phone consultations.

Elderly Bhutanese residents were the recipients of a mask donation arranged by the Cleveland nonprofit group, Listen Share Learn Grow, which organized donation of protective medical equipment to doctors fighting the coronavirus in China earlier this year, said David Zhou, chairman.

The organization focused on the elderly Bhutanese because a lot of the elders are not able to go to grocery stores or afraid to go out, he said.

At La Borincana Foods, a Cleveland grocery popular with refugees because it offers products from 22 nations, customers were initially nervous when the virus shutdown started, and didnt understand why store signs warned them to keep a 6-foot distance from other people, or why employees were wearing protective masks.

They really didnt understand what was going on, but now were starting to see the panic ease off a little bit, said owner Enrique Muniz Jr.

With a growing number of customers laid off or running short of money, Muniz is extending credit to those in financial straits.

Were trying to work with them. Some dont have any money, and well just throw some extra stuff in [their shopping bags], he said.

A refugee support effort has been launched by musician Bassel Almadani, whose family emigrated from Syria to Kent. He now lives in Chicago, touring nationally with the band Bassel and The Supernaturals.

Twenty percent of proceeds from sales of their latest album Smoke and Mirrors, and merchandise will be donated to the Karam Foundation, a nonprofit supporting Syrian refugees and families.

Almadani has family members spread across Ohio, but said his mother has been stuck in Syria for six weeks, unable to get a return flight home after visiting relatives, as borders and airports have closed due to coronavirus concerns.

Shes holding up, in good spirits, but were all worried, just trying to stay positive, he said.

From his talks with Syrians here and abroad, Almadani said that in America, they are definitely anxious, but there is gratitude in having a safe haven and being alive.

In the Middle East there is an unfortunate denial that [the coronavirus] is happening in that region. Theyre so used to war for last decade that anything compared to that seems like an improvement. Theyre just grateful that there arent barrel bombs coming from sky. They dont see [the virus] as the threat that it truly is.

Refugees and immigrants, like everyone else, are waiting and wondering where were all headed.

There is hope and optimism, as when Refugee Response and Urban Community School workers packed food bags for delivery, and someone turned on some music.

A chorus of Oh, yeah! rose from the workers as a tune from Destinys Child filled the school cafeteria. Some sang along. Others danced.

And for a moment, a glimmer of sunshine shone through the fog of coronavirus uncertainty.

Read more coronavirus coverage:

Coronavirus shutdowns limit options for Clevelands homeless

Oriana House releases hundreds of residents

Do you have loved ones in the hospital you cant visit?

Scarcity, health care rationing and coronavirus

How and where to get tested for coronavirus

Childcare centers, parents grapple with tough choices

Acts of kindness amid coronavirus pandemic

Workers at highest risk

Health care workers, whats it like handling coronavirus cases
Home  Just In  Nepals two Covid-19 patients test positive for coronavirus in second tests

Kathmandu, April 2

Two of four active coronavirus infected people of the country have tested positive for the virus in their second tests, according to the Shukraraj Tropical and Infectious Disease Hospital in Kathmandu.

The 19-year-old lady from Kathmandu, who had recently returned from France, and the 32-year-old man from Dhading, who had recently returned from the United Arab Emirates, are currently undergoing treatment at the hospital.

With both the people testing positive for the second time, their stay in the hospital apparently lingers. If the second reports had come negative, the hospital could have discharged them this week.

The hospital had collected throat swab samples of both the patients on Tuesday and sent them to the National Public Health Laboratory for the test. The results were announced on Wednesday. However, their health condition is normal now.

They were confirmed as the infected on Monday and Wednesday respectively last week. They had returned home from other countries on March 17 and 19 respectively.
MEXICO CITY  There were major hurricanes, and the global financial crisis of 2008. There was 9/11, and an array of regional health scares, from SARS to Zika.

But during the decades that hes been involved in the tourism business in the Caribbean island nation of Sint Maarten, Emil Lee has never seen anything remotely like the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

A switch got flipped, said Mr. Lee, whose family manages a hotel on Sint Maarten, which shares a 34-square-mile island with the French territory Saint-Martin. And now theres no tourism.

The global travel and tourism industry is in peril.

Layoffs in the sector are mounting at the stunning rate of one million jobs a day, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council, an industry group based in London, with as many as 75 million jobs at immediate risk. The industry could lose as much as $2.1 trillion in business by the end of the year, the council said.
Beijing: Chinese workers returned to factory floors in March, but operations remained slow due to sluggish demand, dampening hopes for a speedy recovery as the coronavirus pandemic continues to paralyze the global economy.

Chinese factory activity expanded in March, following sharp contractions in January and February, when Beijing locked down much of central Hubei province and took other drastic measures to contain the virus. However, smaller companies appeared to lag behind larger companies, many of them state-owned enterprises, in the recovery, according to new private and official surveys of Chinas manufacturers.

The Caixin China manufacturing purchasing managers index, which is tilted toward smaller private manufacturers, rose to 50.1 in March from 40.3 in February, Caixin Media Co. and research firm Markit said Wednesday. The March result is just above the 50 mark, which separates contraction from expansion.

A day earlier, on Tuesday, Chinas official manufacturing PMI, which focuses more on larger state-owned companies, showed a jump to 52.0 in March from a record low of 35.7 in February.

Though the official survey of 3,000 manufacturers, which is conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics, covers a much larger sample size than the private Caixin surveys 500 manufacturers, the surveys for the most part paint a similar picture of the broader trend. Both surveys recorded their lowest readings in February.

The bounceback in the March readings offered some hope for the economy, said Yang Weixiao, an economist at Founder Securities, though there is still cause for concern after such a severe disruption to industrial activity.

The good news is that things are recovering; the bad news is the recovery path ahead of us is going to be slow and long," Mr. Yang said.

The rebound in the manufacturing PMIs is more of a reflection on sequential recovery in March compared with February, and does not suggest a strong activity level," Goldman Sachs analysts wrote in a note to clients Wednesday.

That is especially true for Chinas smaller businesses, which will likely struggle more to recover from the coronavirus shock than their larger competitors, since Chinese lenders have long favored larger companies with state ties, which are seen as more reliable borrowers, Mr. Yang said.

The March data also highlighted a new challenge for Chinas manufacturing sector: Even as the tapering off of new coronavirus cases in China allowed for some business activity to resume, worsening external demand and soft domestic consumer spending are emerging as longer-run concerns and keeping a lid on production, said Zhong Zhengsheng, an economist at CEBM Group, in a statement accompanying the release of Wednesdays manufacturing data.

Subindexes measuring production in both the official and private manufacturing surveys rose in March from the previous months. But new export orders, a measure of external demand, still showed contraction in both surveys.

Wang Liping, sales representative for a smaller private steel-product maker in southeastern Zhejiang province, said her company started resuming manufacturing its products, which include rolled steel plates, on Feb. 14making it one of Zhejiangs first enterprises to come back online.

Even so, Ms. Wang said the company was still struggling to deliver on its orders.

Internally, for our workers and staff, we have resumed normal working conditions, but externally, things like supplies, sales and logistics are only gradually getting back to normal," she said.

Suppliers of raw materials, especially hot rolled steelmakers, couldnt guarantee delivery in the first quarter of the year, making it difficult for her company to deliver its products on time. Also, many ocean shipping firms were only just restarting their services. All those issues need to be dealt with slowly, she said.

Beijing policy makers concerned about the coronaviruss hit on employment in the manufacturing sector have been offered a mixed picture.

A subindex in Wednesdays data release measuring employment signaled a continued reduction in head count across the industry in March, though the rate of decline was slower than in February, Caixin said, pointing to a combination of workers voluntarily leaving and employers seeking to cut costs.

A day earlier, the official PMI release showed employment climbing out of contraction territory for the first time in three years.

To counter the shocks from the deadly virus and anticipating worse times, Beijing has in recent weeks rolled out measures including tax cuts and cheaper loans to support the economy.

On Tuesday, Chinas State Council, or cabinet, said it would offer fresh funds for banks to lend and let local governments issue more bonds. To stimulate consumption, the cabinet also vowed to extend subsidies and tax waivers for purchases of electric vehicles for two more years in a bid to boost auto sales.

Despite the measures, economists widely forecast the Chinese economy to post a year-over-year contraction in the first quarter, a scenario unseen since the days of the Cultural Revolution from the mid-1960s to mid-1970s.

Such a pullback would complicate Beijings year-end goal of doubling the overall size of the economy from a decade earlier. Economists say a growth rate of roughly 5.5% in 2020 is needed for Beijing to meet that goal.

Liyan Qi contributed to this article.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

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Approved resolutions include SES's 2019 financial accounts, a dividend of EUR 0.40 per A-share, reduction in the Board size from 14 to 12 Directors, re-election of three Board members, and first-time election of four Board members

SES S.A. held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) today in Betzdorf, Luxembourg, in which all resolutions were approved by shareholders.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005503/en/

Shareholders Approve All AGM Resolutions and SES Board Elects Frank Esser as Chairperson (Photo: Business Wire)

The meeting was held based on the rules set out in the Grand Ducal Regulation of 20 March 2020 with shareholders participating remotely by appointing SES designated proxyholders to represent them at the meeting and to carry out their voting instructions given ahead of the meeting. Compliance with voting instructions was verified by the bureau of the AGM.

The approved resolutions included the company's 2019 financial accounts and the proposed dividend of EUR 0.40 per A-share which will be paid to shareholders on 23 April 2020. Accordingly, SES's 2019 Annual Report has been published and is available to download at http://www.ses.com/annual-report.

Shareholders also approved a reduction in Board size from 14 to 12 Directors.

In addition, shareholders elected Beatrice de Clermont-Tonnerre and Peter van Bommel for an initial two-year mandate and elected Paul Konsbruck and Frank Esser for another three-year mandate. They also re-elected Ramu Potarazu, Kaj-Erik Relander and Anne-Catherine Ries for three years.

In the context of the reduction in Board size, shareholders also noted the resignations of Victor Casier, Hadelin de Liedekerke Beaufort, Marc Serres and Francois Tesch as Directors of SES. The AGM thanked those Directors for their contributions.

Consequently, the Board is now composed as follows: A-shareholders are represented by (all of them independent) Romain Bausch, Beatrice de Clermont-Tonnerre, Frank Esser, Tsega Gebreyes, Ramu Potarazu, Kaj-Erik Relander, Peter van Bommel, Katrin Wehr-Seiter; and B-shareholders are represented by Serge Allegrezza, Paul Konsbruck, Anne-Catherine Ries, Francoise Thoma.

At the AGM, Romain Bausch, Chairman of the SES Board and former President and CEO, informed the shareholders that he would not seek a new mandate as Chairman. Mr Bausch will remain on the Board as an independent Director.

Accordingly, in its meeting following the AGM, the Board of Directors elected Frank Esser as Chairperson of the Board for a period of one year and re-elected both Tsega Gebreyes and Anne-Catherine Ries as Vice-Chairpersons of the Board, also for a period of one year.

"Having been at the helm of the company for 25 years, firstly as CEO and latterly as Chairman and with the company now entering an exciting period of transformation under Steve Collar's leadership and with a newly invigorated and streamlined Board, I consider it to be the right time to pass the baton to a new Chair in the renewed Board," said Romain Bausch. "It has been a true privilege to serve SES in these different roles and I want to thank our shareholders for their continued support."

"I am honoured to be elected Chairperson at this important and exciting time for our company with SES being in a great position for further development," said Frank Esser. "I am delighted to be joining the Board with several new Directors who will each bring strong competencies, complementing those of the rest of our Board colleagues. I would also like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to Romain and his contribution, commitment and on-going service to SES with his continued presence as a Director."

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The endangered whooping crane could be wiped out if it continues to migrate in large groups  an unusual behavioural trend that could be due to habitat loss.

The five-foot-tall crane (Grus Americana), which is North Americas tallest bird, is distinguishable by its unusual whooping sound.

The cranes travel more than 3,000 miles from Texas to Alberta, Canada, each year after the winter season to find a new home.

But US researchers believe that this small population of only around 500 individuals are increasingly gathering in larger numbers.

This means a disease outbreak or extreme weather event could impact a big portion of this still fragile population, which nearly went extinct in the mid-20th century.

Researchers found that habitat loss and within-species attraction have led whooping cranes to gather in unusually large groups during migration. This image shows such a gathering along the Platte River, Nebraska, USA

We had this species at the brink of extinction, and now there are over 500 birds, said Andrew Caven, Director of Conservation Research at US-based non-profit Crane Trust.

As conservation biologists, we've been extremely inspired by that.

The largest group detected was about 150 birds near Marcelin, Saskatchewan, which represents over one-fourth of the population.

In a group that size, extreme weather like hailstorms or an outbreak of avian cholera could be catastrophic for the species,' said Caven.

Crane Trust says the best way to disperse gathering groups of whooping cranes in the long term is to provide more wetland habitat throughout their migration path

WHAT IS THE WHOOPING CRANE? The Whooping crane (Grus americana) is the tallest American bird and one of the worlds rarest. It is almost 5 feet (150cm) tall and has a wingspan of about 7 feet (210cm). It is white with black-tipped wings, black legs and a bare red face and crown. It has a whooping call purported to be audible for 2 miles (3.2 km). Courtship displays include a 'leaping dance' consisting of flapping, bowing, and other movements, Encyclopedia Britannica says. Hunting and cultivation of land beginning in the 19th century threatened the whooping crane. Numbers reached a low of just 16 birds in 1941, according to the US Fish & Wildlife Service. With the addition of captive and non-migratory birds, the total whooping crane population as of February 2020 is more than 800, the USFWS says. Advertisement

Crane Trust is a Nebraska-based organisation that works to restore the ecosystem of the state's Platte River  a stopover for the whooping crane, the sandhill crane and other migratory birds.

The Crane Trust team collected sightings from the state and private conservation groups to investigate why these long legged birds like to gather in large groups  a behaviour that has only recently been observed.

'Twenty years ago, a group of nine was notable  something you'd write in your natural history notes about,' said Caven.

'But now it's becoming something quite regular. In the recent years we've seen bird groups over seventy multiple times.'

The Trust found that larger flocks of whooping crane rest in South Great Plains, where there are only a few high-quality wetlands for breeding.

As a result, the birds naturally form a large group as a way of adjusting to finding a new home in patchy environments.

Many wetland habitats in the Great Plains have disappeared due to sedimentation or have been drained for farming, said Caven.

The rate of wetland loss has actually been quite high, particularly in these basins south of the Platte River.

Whooping Cranes in flight around Effingham, Illinois, USA. Whooping cranes are the tallest bird native to North America

Big groups of the tall birds may also be attracting other cranes, almost as a survival technique during risky situations, similar to how humans protect themselves in greater numbers.

Conspecific attraction helps birds indicate optimal forging resources in these patchy environments and provide vigilance in situations that could be risky, said Caven.

These benefits could be a major reason we are seeing the emergence of these new behaviours as the cranes recover from near extinction.

The whooping crane (Grus americana), the tallest North American bird, is an endangered crane species named for its whooping sound

The study  which has been published in the journal Heliyon  suggests the best way to disperse these groups is to provide more wetland habitat throughout their migration path.

Supporting conservation groups that are restoring habitats south of the Platte River, particularly wetlands, can have a serious impact, said Caven.

Increasing the scale of wetland restoration within the migration corridor could break up these aggregations and provide foraging space for a ton of birds, not just whooping crane.
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More than ever, access to medical innovation for all patients is a major economic and societal challenge.The fund will actively contribute to building a stronger and sovereign healthcare ecosystem in France and Europe to accelerate access to healthcare solutions for all patients.PARIS, FRANCE / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / A new patient-centered endowment fund, HealthTech For Care, launched by France Biotech, to accelerate patient access to healthcare solutions and contribute to building a stronger healthcare ecosystem in France and Europe from academic research to entrepreneurship, manufacturing and commercialization of innovative medical solutions. Healthtech For Care's approach involves the opening up of all ecosystems involved in health tech innovation, such as research departments, healthtech companies, pharmaceutical companies, and public and private investors. To this end, the fund wishes to increase exchanges between these key players in order to bring therapeutic solutions under development to market more quickly, to benefit all patients.HealthTech For Care has three main goals:Facilitate a stronger understanding and coordination between health professionals' practice areas, to further medical research and benefit patients;Promote exchanges and dissemination of information on innovative therapies, treatments and therapeutic approaches through dedicated, patient-focused conferences and events with patient associations;Provide all patients with access to more efficient care.The HealthTech For Care fund was founded by France Biotech; Maryvonne Hiance, VP and co-founder of OSE Immunotherapeutics; and several key industry leaders; and will foster access to innovative healthcare solutions for all patients through the organization of Europe-focused initiatives and events. These events will bring together academic researchers, entrepreneurs, manufacturers and leaders in the commercialization of new medical technologies and treatments.HealthTech For Care's first event will be the HealthTech Innovation Days (HTID), which will be held in Paris, October 5th-6th, 2020. This event, which was launched in 2019 by France Biotech, brings together leaders in health tech, international pharma, patient associations and public and private investors to advance and accelerate the development of healthcare solutions. The HTID will support the development of European health tech companies through thematic roundtables on new life sciences trends, networking opportunities and private meetings between entrepreneurs, international pharma companies, global healthcare investors, KOLs and other experts in the field. For more information, visit the event website: http://www.htid-paris.com/ "More than ever, we are aware that access to medical innovation for all patients is a major economic and societal challenge. To address this, we have created HealthTech For Care, which puts the interests of patients first. We are convinced that the quality of interactions between key industry players is a determining factor in accelerating the transition from research to market and enabling faster access for all patients to new medical solutions. The endowment fund will push the goals of the HTID forward by funding an event that contributes directly to the sustainable future of healthcare, and advancing access to cutting-edge," said Maryvonne Hiance, President of HealthTech For Care."France Biotech has developed the HealthTech For Care fund to strengthen the ability to federate, structure and encourage cooperation between the various stakeholders in the health tech sector in France and Europe. The actions carried out with the help of this endowment fund are ultimately aimed at ensuring that the innovative solutions we develop, benefit patients as quickly as possible," said Franck Mouthon, President of France Biotech.About HealthTech For CareThe HealthTech For Care endowment fund is designed to support and promote access to care for all and, more specifically, to new medical technologies and drugs. The missions of the endowment fund are structured around three main areas: Supporting the development of the entire health ecosystem, accelerating the development of innovative therapies and treatments, and promoting better access to healthcare for patients in the French healthcare system and more widely throughout Europe. HealthTech For Care is administrated by Maryvonne Hiance, Elsy Boglioli, David Caumartin, Pierre Courteille, Eric Falcand, Marc Le Bozec, Cedric Moreau, Franck Mouthon, Christian Pierret and Christian Policard.About HTIDThe purpose of the event is to drive and foster collaborations within the European healthcare and life sciences ecosystems. The HealthTech Innovation Days bring the European healthcare community together to discuss new trends in research & development. This symposium also features conferences and panel discussions, networking and private meetings between innovative European HealthTech companies, pharmaceutical companies, life sciences-specialized investors, healthcare experts, KOLs and institutional representatives. In addition to the ongoing private networking, attendees can expect roundtables focused on critical economic and political issues that impact health technology developments. The HealthTech Innovation Days are intended for publicly listed companies whose market capitalization is at least 20 million, or for privately held biotech firms whose drug candidates are currently undergoing late Phase I studies. For MedTech companies, medical devices must have already obtained the CE mark in Europe or FDA approval in the United States. Details of the roundtables will be announced in the coming weeks. HTID 2020 will be held on October 5&6 in Paris. http://www.htid-paris.com/ About France BiotechFounded in 1997, France Biotech is an independent association that brings together HealthTech entrepreneurs and their expert partners. It actively contributes to meet the many challenges of the HealthTech industry (i.e. companies' financing, innovation-related taxes, regulatory and market access related issues) and offers concrete competition and solutions through its commissions and working groups. The goal is to help startups and SMEs become international leaders capable of rapidly developing and bringing innovative solutions to patients.Press Contacts:HTIDNathalie Donne
Japan Data

It took Japan 65 days to reach 1,000 COVID-19 cases, but only 11 more to reach 2,000, suggesting the country may soon face its own serious outbreak.

Wuhan, China, was the first place to experience a major COVID-19 outbreak. At the beginning of March, Chinas 80,000 cases were far ahead of the rest of the world, as the below graph shows. The few thousand cases in South Korea raised concerns that it would soon face a major rise. Other countries had at most only a few hundred cases.

The first spike in the West came in Italy, and it may have seemed initially that it was exceptional. Until the middle of March, many countries appeared to be maintaining infections at a low level. However, the second half of the month was different. As COVID-19 spread rapidly through Western nations, the number of cases in the United States, Italy, and Spain soon overtook the China figure.

From the graph, Japan seems to be keeping infections to a low level, far below other countries.

Looking at Japan alone, however, makes it clear that the number of cases here has been increasing more quickly since late March. While it took 65 days for the country to reach 1,000 confirmed cases, it only needed 11 more to reach 2,000.

As of now Japan has fewer cases than many Western countries, but this is no time for complacency, as another half a month might bring a major outbreak on the scale of the United States, Italy, Spain, or Germany.

National and prefectural governments are calling on residents to avoid poorly ventilated spaces, places with large crowds, or those where people are packed closely together. Efforts to increase social distancing can reduce the risk of an exponential rise in infections.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo: Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko.  Jiji.)
ASHGABAT -- Turkmenistan has banned the withdrawal of cash in foreign currencies in banks as of April 1, a sign the Central Asian energy-rich nation may be cash-strapped.

Several bank officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told RFE/RL that all banks in the country received a verbal order from the Central Bank of Turkmenistan that holders of bank accounts in foreign currencies can withdraw money only in Turkmen manats, and at the official exchange rate.

Turkmen.news, an independent online news source, quoted employees of international energy companies operating in Turkmenistan -- Petronas, Dragon Oil, and Bouygues -- as saying that starting April 1, employees of foreign organizations and companies who receive their salary in foreign currencies such as U.S. dollars and euros will be able to withdraw money from their bank accounts in manats only.

Turkmenistan's Central Bank established an official rate of 3.5 manats per dollar in 2015, and has not changed it since. Meanwhile, the rate on the black market is more than five times higher. Since January 2016, all currency exchange in cash has been banned.

Last month, Turkmenistan tightened controls over foreign currency in the country after China, the main buyer of its natural gas, slashed imports and global energy prices plunged.

The central bank reduced the amount of foreign currency that citizens are allowed to purchase and have deposited onto their bank cards to $300 per month from $500, while the limit on outgoing wire transfers was cut to $200 per month from $300.

Turkmenistan's tightly controlled economy has been struggling for months, with government revenues depleted in part to unsuccessful energy deals and low global prices for natural gas, the Central Asian country's main export.

Government critics and human rights groups say Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has suppressed dissent and made few changes in the restrictive country since he came to power after the death of autocrat Saparmurat Niyazov in 2006.

Like Niyazov, Berdymukhammedov long relied on energy revenues to subsidize prices for basic goods and utilities to help maintain his grip on power.

With reporting by Turkmen.news and Reuters
GILROY (BCN)

The Gilroy Police Department warned residents that it received a report of an adult or adolescent mountain lion sighting near Cydney Casper Park on Thursday morning.

A resident contacted the department about 9:30 a.m. Thursday to report seeing the lion in a wooded area near Cimino Street and Charles Lux Drive. Officers searched the area but did not find the lion and reported the sighting to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, which will assist the department in finding the big cat.

Until they can locate the mountain lion, officers advised residents and people in the area of the park to avoid hiking alone, approaching or running from the lion and crouching or bending over near the lion, which the cat could mistake as a four-legged prey animal.

Children should be kept nearby out of precaution. If spotted by the lion, officers recommended taking steps to appear larger by waving one's arms or opening a coat or a jacket. If attacked, residents should attempt to fight back, as people attacked by the cats throughout the state have fought them off with a stick or a rock in the past.

Mountain lion sightings can be reported to Gilroy police at (408) 846-0350 or the state Department of Fish and Wildlife at (707) 944-5500.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
CALGARYYoure at home, alone, and trying to feed your caffeine addiction in the midst of a global pandemic. But take heart  the best barista in Canada believes in you.

I think that it is quite possible to make really good coffee with whatever equipment you have, says Jill Hoff, who works for Monogram Coffee in Calgary and took home top honours at the Canadian National Barista Champions last month.

I think its really cool actually, that people are going to be learning how to do this for themselves at home out of necessity, and I think a lot of people are going to really love that theyve adopted this new ritual, she said.

So what do you need to know as you embark on this journey?

Your key ingredients are good coffee beans (many places are still selling online, Hoff says), a grinder and water  she says tap water is fine as its pretty good in most Canadian cities.

One of the easiest ways to make coffee at home is with a French press, which doesnt require a lot of extra equipment besides the press itself.

Hoffs basic recipe is pretty simple: Measure 30 grams of coffee (about four tablespoons), add 500 millilitres of boiling water (or two cups), and let it sit for four minutes.

Stir, plunge and serve.

When thats done, you go ahead and enjoy your cup of coffee, she says.

Hoff says shes looking forward to getting back into the ritual of making coffee at home as Monogram shuts its doors for the duration of the pandemic.

She says she loves making coffee at home, but got out of the habit when she was working early mornings as a barista, so she got used to just drinking coffee at work. Thanks to isolation, shes getting back into it.

I love to wake up, make myself some coffee, and then go find a spot in my living room that has a bit of sun and just, like, sit there and kind of just take a few moments, she said. I think thats really important, just to kind of like, slow down and enjoy what youre drinking.

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By PTI

NEW DELHI: Terming the coronavirus pandemic as a "crisis of a magnitude that we have never faced before" Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra on Thursday asked employees of the conglomerate to use the lockdown period to relook at personal and professional way of life to prepare for the future and to serve the "post corona world".

In a letter to over two lakh employees of the group, Mahindra reiterated what he had suggested during the last global recession on how to use the "down time to Reboot, Reinvent and Reignite" through introspection of the way things are currently done and then doing them better.

He asked them to use the time available to come up with new ideas and innovations; and taking advantage of the crisis "to dream bigger dreams about the future and raising ambitions once the crisis has passed".

Stating that these are not normal times on the work front, he said, "we are facing a crisis of a magnitude that we have never faced before. We are all worried, about our families, about our business, about our economy and about our country. Despite that, we are all doing whatever we can to carry on and are learning to live with uncertainty without letting it weigh us down." Mahindra said, the present "circumstances have given us a break which we can put to good use" and the exercise of "Reboot, Reinvent and Reignite" must also be done today "both in our work and in our personal lives".

"Staying at home has brought home to me how neglectful we have been in overburdening our environment," he said adding, he has "never seen Mumbai look as beautiful as it has during these Lockdown Days" with the skies bluer, air cleaner and no garbage on the streets.

"Do we need a health crisis to teach us that? Can we not keep it that way, even after the crisis has passed? Can we use transport more efficiently? Can we travel less and leave less of a carbon footprint? Can we increase the use of long-distance ways of meeting and communication to work more efficiently and enhance our work life balance? Essentially, can we Reboot our personal and professional way of life?," Mahindra questioned.

Stating that the same goes for reinvention and innovation, he said, "I think we are already reinventing the way we socially interact. Italians are singing to each other from their homes. Delhi residents are playing housie from their balconies. These seem to be trivial examples, but they all demonstrate how we human beings work around seemingly impossible barriers to reinvent how we connect with each other."

He further asked the employees, "can we reinvent our business processes so that we halve the time we normally took to reach a decision, build a product or deliver a service? Can we dramatically lower the cost of products and services by doing radical re-designs?" Stressing that it is also a time to "Reignite our dreams", he told the employees that with time in hand, they can do things they always wanted to do but never had time -- such as learning a language, brush up on a musical instrument or sharing stories with children.

He further said it is also time "to think of the future of our business, of new ways to serve the post corona world".

"What will be the new needs of people in such a world? What new experiences, products and services will they crave? Will they want a more comprehensive form of home healthcare? Will they want even more personalised and socially-distanced' experiences? Will they want a shared mobility experience that is also 'virus-proof'?," he asked.

Mahindra also reminded the employees to think of others in this time of crisis, specially for the underprivileged.

"It's also a time to think of others, those who don't have a comfortable home to isolate themselves, those who don't have a regular income flow, those whose lives will be shattered because they depend on daily wages. It is heart-breaking to think of the devastation that that they will face," he said.

Reiterating that the group is setting up a fund for voluntarily donations to support such people, he said,"But over and above that, each of us has an individual responsibility to mitigate the misery of those around us.

We can continue paying wages to domestic helpers who are unable to turn up for work. We can supply food, soap, sanitisers to BOP families. We can share some of our good fortune with those who have none."

Thanking the employees on how they have responded during the outbreak, he said, "I am proud of the way our organisation, in the true Mahindra spirit, has risen to the challenge and moved seamlessly into new ways of working. Work from home is going to be the new normal for some time to come, and you are all doing your bit. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart."

He said the lockdown has one unexpected benefit of having time to spend with loved ones and asked the employees "to take advantage of this to strengthen the family bonds even further because our families are the bedrock upon which our ultimate happiness is founded. Please make their wellbeing, and yours, the first priority."
Mining billionaire Andrew Forrest has used his contacts in China to secure $160million worth of much-needed medical supplies for Australia.

The coronavirus pandemic has seen Australia scrambling to secure protective equipment to prevent the spread of the disease and protect frontline staff.

Frontline healthcare workers must wear gowns, gloves, eye protection and masks when treating patients to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Mr Forrest's philanthropic Minderoo Foundation has stepped up to help by fronting the cash for the 90 tonnes of medical supplies, with state governments to reimburse the organisation for any goods used.

There will be 33 ICU grade ventilators flown to Perth from China this week after mining billionaire Andrew Forrest stepped up to help

One million N95 equivalent face masks, 400,000 surgical masks, 2.3 million medical-grade gloves, 100,000 nasal swabs, 200,000 medical coveralls, 10,000 medical goggles, 5000 touchless thermometers and more than 33 ICU grade ventilators will be flown to Perth from China this week.

The supplies will be offered to Western Australia first before they are distributed throughout the country.

Speaking to the Today show on Thursday, Mr Forrest said he offered to help after receiving a number of desperate calls from hospitals around Australia that were in short supply.

He said Chinese suppliers were under immense pressure from other organisations to secure the products and he had to use his connections to ensure Australia 'had a seat at the table'.

'China is a big manufacturer of these goods in the world, and they are being wanted by every other country and I want to make sure that Australia is right up in Chinese priorities and I think we have achieved that.

'We're making sure Australia is in there. We're utilising our personal friends and ensuring these critical things...so our frontline workers are getting looked after well.

Mining billionaire Andrew Forrest has used his contacts in China to secure $160million worth of much-needed medical supplies for Australia

The relief mission comes as doctors express concern there is a supply issue, with some healthcare workers turning to hardware store Bunnings to supply masks to protect themselves (pictured: A woman wears a protective mask in Adelaide)

'This is relationship driven...there's more than money at stake here, long term relationships matter. We're helping Western Australia and the common wealth through our ability to procure cash on the spot.

'There's high-risk procurement to say hey ''put Australia first''.'

The relief mission comes as doctors express concern there is a supply issue, with some healthcare workers turning to hardware store Bunnings to supply masks to protect themselves.

WA so far appears to have avoided any significant community spread, particularly compared with NSW and Victoria.

Mr Forrest's Minderoo Foundation has stepped up to help by fronting the cash for the equipment, governments will reimburse the foundation for any goods used

Authorities will get a fuller picture from Thursday when testing is made available to anyone showing signs of fever (a temperature above 38 degrees) and acute respiratory infection symptoms, including shortness of breath, a cough and sore throat.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

WA residents previously needed to have travelled overseas, or been in contact with someone who had travelled internationally or a known case to be checked.

Tests will also be made available to healthcare workers and WA police officers who present with a fever or respiratory infection symptoms.

The same will apply to high-risk settings including aged care homes, detention centres and remote indigenous communities where two or more people experience one of those symptoms.

Among the 28 new cases confirmed on Wednesday were a four-year-old and nine healthcare workers.

'We still don't have hard evidence that we have community spread,' Health Minister Roger Cook said.

'But obviously we're very concerned about making sure we have all our eyes open across the landscape to ensure that we can get a good idea of when it does occur.'
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

So-called elections in Nagorno-Karabakh were strongly condemned by the international community, said Head of the Press Service Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan Leyla Abdullayeva, Trend reports.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan has already expressed its position on the so-called elections in its occupied territories. Having familiarized with the statement of the Armenian Foreign Ministry - the aggressor country on this issue, involuntarily the associations appear with the fairy tale Alice through the looking glass, whose heroes are in their fictional world of dreams and lusts. The reality is completely different and quite well known to the world community.

Illegal elections organized by the Republic of Armenia in the occupied territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan on March 31 this year were strongly condemned and rejected by the international community.

In the context of the still ongoing military occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and the adjacent regions of Azerbaijan, as well as the forced expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis from their homes as a result of ethnic cleansing, violation of the fundamental human rights of the local Azerbaijani population of the occupied territories, there can be no other position with regard to this illegal action, organized by the Republic of Armenia.

In accordance with international standards for conducting elections, including in the OSCE commitments, elections in any state should be held in accordance with the Constitution and the Electoral Code of the country. The so-called elections held in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of our country violate the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan and, therefore, have no legal force.

International and regional organizations, including the European Union, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, NATO, GUAM, the Turkic Council, as well as the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, many states made statements condemning these so-called elections and emphasized that they cannot be recognized as legally valid. We are grateful to international organizations and individual countries for their principled position and for the message sent to Armenia that the forced acquisition of territories by force cannot be recognized as legitimate; the occupation of territories cannot be used to impose their international recognition or change their legal status.

It is regrettable that Armenia has not yet been able to realize that the military occupation of the internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan will not bring the political results desired by Armenia. What did Armenia achieve by organizing a fiction in Nagorno-Karabakh under the name of election, allocating considerable financial resources for this chimera from its budget? Speaking of democracy under conditions of military occupation and ongoing ethnic cleansing is nothing more than insinuation and self-deception. By the way, the very fact of a separate statement by the Armenian Foreign Ministry on the so-called "elections" show in Nagorno-Karabakh once again proves the absence of the need for the participation of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh in the negotiations.

I would like to emphasize once again that elections in the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan are held in accordance with the Constitution of the country, and any act organized in violation of this Supreme Law is not legitimate and cannot be so, said Abdullayeva.
Representative image

Million-dollar wire transfers to strangers. Rumors of hidden supplies in forgotten warehouses. Wheeler-dealers trying to talk regulators and customs officials into letting that one precious shipment through.

Global desperation to protect front-line medical workers battling the coronavirus epidemic has spurred a mad international scramble for masks and other protective gear. Governments, hospital chains, clinics and entrepreneurs are scouring the world for personal protective equipment they can buy or sell  and a new type of trader has sprung up to make that happen.

The market has become a series of hasty deals in bars, sudden calls to corporate jet pilots and fast-moving wire transfers among bank accounts in Hong Kong, the United States, Europe and the Caribbean.

The stakes are high, and so are the prices. Wholesale costs for N95 respirators, a crucial type of mask for protecting medical workers, have quintupled. Trans-Pacific airfreight charges have tripled.

Its a global free-for-all, trying to get capacity, said Eric Jantzen, vice president for North America at Vertis Aviation, an aircraft and air cargo brokerage based in Zurich. And the prices reflect that.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

The hurdles keep rising. On Tuesday, after complaints from Europe about shoddy Chinese masks and ineffective test kits, Chinas Ministry of Commerce ordered manufacturers to provide further assurances that their products met standards.

World leaders are moving to get supplies, but they are still grappling with the vast scope of the problem. The White House announced over the weekend that it had organized 22 flights to airlift personal protective equipment. They are aimed at resupplying hospitals that are within 72 hours of running out of protective equipment, said Gregory Forrester, chief executive of National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, a group that works with U.S. federal and state officials.

If any one of these planes dont take off, Forrester said, thats going to be an issue.

China vacuumed up a big share of global supplies after the outbreak emerged in January. It imported 2 billion masks in a five-week period starting then, according to Chinese customs data, roughly equivalent to 2 1/2 months of global production. It also imported 400 million pieces of other protective gear, from medical goggles to biohazard coveralls.

Now, China has become a major part of the solution. Already a giant in mask manufacturing, it has ramped up production to nearly 12 times its earlier level of 10 million a day. It was a huge mobilization effort that involved redesigning freight train routes and sending large numbers of workers across the country in sealed buses.

The Chinese government has encouraged global deals, but buying and selling masks is no easy feat. Traders, some just weeks into their unstable careers, have to navigate confusion, fraud attempts, byzantine customs laws and other barriers.

Many say they sell directly to hospitals and others who need the equipment, not to speculators. Altruism aside, hospitals are also less likely to default on payments and more likely to know precisely what is in demand.

It becomes so much easier when you deal with the procurement professionals, because they know exactly what they need, said Blake Noah, a private banking art consultant who now arranges mask shipments in Shanghai.

Some factories make products of suspect quality and some sellers will even try to swindle buyers. Last Thursday, a court in the Chinese city of Shaoxing sentenced a man to over 10 years in prison for repeatedly selling what looked like a cargo of masks but had only tree branches inside.

Mask traders in Shanghai say they have wasted time bargaining over rumored caches of masks before concluding that the only reliable suppliers are top managers at the factories themselves.

Im still being put in touch with people who claim to have caches of 3M-branded masks, Noah said. But Im skeptical such caches exist after looking at four or five phantom caches.

Some Chinese factories remain reluctant to sell to foreign buyers. National government agencies and local officials often give conflicting advice and say the factories should meet local needs first.

When we try to place larger orders, some are saying theres a limit or there are restrictions, said Noah Silverman, a Chicago banker who has jumped into trying to help hospitals in the United States.

Some Chinese companies say they are ready to sell masks globally. Henan Doria Mechanical Equipment, a company in Zhengzhou that once made overhead cranes and electric hoists, has reinvented itself as a maker of N95 respirators and tells traders that it can meet orders for up to 2 million masks within 15 days.

Once masks are found, they have to be transported. Chinas cancellation of almost all of its international passenger flights to slow the spread of the virus has made it hard to move goods quickly. Half the worlds air cargo used to move in the bellies of passenger planes.

Jason Yuan, a manager at a state-owned trading company in Beijing, said his company had sent out small samples of N95 respirators to Europe, Cambodia, the Philippines and the United States.

In other countries, the packages have arrived, he said, but in the case of the U.S., the package is still in Hong Kong.

Zhang Qing, a senior Chinese aviation regulator, said the Chinese government was making it easier for air freighters to move in and out of the country. Airlines are even operating passenger aircraft as freighters, she said.

But China wants the United States to provide the planes for any large-scale shipments of personal protective equipment. Ren Hong, an infrastructure development inspector at the National Development and Reform Commission, said China had only 173 air freighters while the United States had more than 550.

The development of all-cargo aircraft in China is only in the initial stage, she said.

Regulations can cause confusion. For example, importers are still parsing shifting U.S. regulations regarding respirators designed for use within China.

Fredrik Barner, a Shanghai freight agent, said he refused to arrange shipping last week for a cargo of respirators because the American buyer did not have a Food and Drug Administration license for importing medical supplies. He reversed course this week after learning that the cargo involved an industrial grade respirator that the FDA is now allowing to be imported in most cases without a license.

Transportation of respirators or masks, Barner said, is more complicated than auto parts.

Even though many hospitals in the United States are desperate for masks, selling to them isnt always easy.

Deals have stalled because hospitals, accustomed to paying for supplies after they reach their loading docks, have balked at the stiff terms now being demanded by factories, mask traders said. They also fear fraud.

Producers of N95 respirators and surgical masks now insist that orders come with a 50% down payment, with the rest of the money due before the masks ever leave the factory gate, said Michael Crotty, the founder and president of Golden Pacific Fashion & Design in Shanghai. The company has switched from manufacturing curtains to placing orders for respirators and masks with its Chinese fabric suppliers.

Factories sometime fill orders out of sequence, moving the highest-paying customers to the front of the line, he added.

Its a sellers market, Crotty said. You dont see this very often.

The fractious nature of the American medical system, which lacks a centralized purchasing authority, adds to the problems. In the United States, President Donald Trump told state governors on March 16 that they should find respirators and ventilators themselves.

Crotty said he had been working on a request from the state of New York but had struggled to figure out the paperwork.

Its nuts because weve had to fill out the form two different times, he said, and they call and say we need to fill out the form again.

Crotty is a 70-year-old chief executive who grew up in a family-owned curtain business in Ohio and never left the industry. When a supply crisis erupted for N95 respirators, he knew whom to call: His companys nearby curtain factory previously used almost the same kind of fabric found in N95 respirators to make the bottom liners of pet beds.

Several factories with which Golden Pacific had been working switched to making masks, he said, and they asked us to help market them.

In the former French Concession neighborhood of Shanghai, some of the traders who handle masks gather several nights a week at a Western bar that specializes in grilled-cheese sandwiches.

One regular is Noah, a 37-year-old Iowan who used to shuttle among Shanghai, Singapore, London and Hong Kong to advise the super wealthy and their private bankers on art investments. He started learning everything he could about masks after hearing false rumors that private banking clients had stockpiles of them, then realized he could make a business out of representing foreign buyers in transactions with Chinese factories.

After eating his sandwich, he goes home and stays up until 5 every morning, working the phones. I havent been sleeping more than a little for days, he said.

c.2020 The New York Times Company
RICHMOND, Va. - Gov. Ralph Northam is considering whether to delay raising Virginia's minimum wage and postpone pay increases for public employees as the state wrestles with a coronavirus pandemic that could drain more than $2 billion from its coffers over the next two years.

The crisis will cost Virginia hundreds of millions of dollars this fiscal year, which ends June 30, and is likely to carve $1 billion from each year of the two-year budget the General Assembly approved last month, Finance Secretary Aubrey Layne said.

"That is the minimum, and I would suggest it's worse than that," he said.

Northam, a Democrat, is in discussions with lawmakers about how to address the shortfalls and whether to delay long-sought priorities passed by the state's new Democratic majority just weeks ago - at a time when the state budget was overflowing and the outbreak was something happening far away in China and Italy.

"I haven't made any definite decisions," the governor said Wednesday, adding that he's consulting business and labor leaders across the state. "And what I will do . . . after getting input from these individuals, is make a decision that's in the best interest of Virginia and the best interest of our economy."

Raising the minimum wage was a signature accomplishment this year for Democrats, who settled on a plan to increase it from the current $7.25 an hour to $12 by 2023. Business owners have petitioned Northam to delay the increase, as has the Virginia Municipal League, a coalition of local governments.

But organized labor argues that workers need the extra pay now more than ever, given the near-total shutdown of the economy during the coronavirus crisis. And many Democrats are loath to back down from promises they made to voters ahead of last fall's elections.

"We ran on that issue, and we won on that issue," said state Sen. Janet Howell, D-Fairfax. "So I think we have an obligation to follow through to the extent that it's at all possible."

Northam stressed that he is determined to address the public health crisis first and then worry about the crater being blown into the state's economy and finances.

The pandemic comes at a time when Virginia had seemed flush with cash, with Amazon building its East Coast headquarters in Arlington and other businesses flooding in. Northam projected an unexpected windfall of more than $200 million as recently as early March, when lawmakers were putting the final touches on the $135 billion biennial budget. They expanded state agencies and boosted funding for a host of social programs.

The unemployment rate was down to 2.6 percent last month; since then, record numbers of people have filed jobless claims as Northam declared a public health emergency and ordered residents to shelter at home, leading many businesses to shut down. Last week, 112,497 Virginians filed initial unemployment claims, up from a record 46,277 the week before, the Virginia Employment Commission said Thursday.

The pandemic is devastating finances for localities, as well. Fairfax County budget officials this week projected a loss of at least $72 million in sales, business and other tax revenue by the end of the year. Prince William County officials projected a $28 million budget gap from economic damage caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

One bright spot: The state has nearly $2 billion in rainy day and reserve funds, the most ever.

Northam is still reviewing the state budget, and the General Assembly is scheduled to return to Richmond on April 22 to consider any amendments he might suggest. But it's unclear how they'll do that at a time when gatherings of more than 10 people have been prohibited.

Republicans - and some Democrats - had warned about the pending crisis when the General Assembly adjourned on March 12, the same day Northam declared a state of emergency.

Del. Ibraheem Samirah, D-Fairfax, drew audible groans when he delayed adjournment by arguing for a special session to address the coronavirus. Sen. Stephen Newman, R-Bedford, asked the Senate to hold off voting on the budget to let the crisis take shape.

"There's been a dramatic change in our economy," he said on the Senate floor on March 12. "I'm concerned for Virginia."

But Democrats who control the Senate voted against the delay. Three weeks later, conditions are even worse than Newman anticipated.

"This is not one of the items I wanted to be right about," he said glumly this week.

To address the crisis, Newman wants to throw out the new budget entirely and revert to the two-year spending plan adopted two years ago. He would scrap legislation that could strain small businesses, such as increasing the minimum wage, imposing stricter environmental regulations and boosting the power of unions.

"I believe that businesses in Virginia have been damaged in a very deep way, and we're going to have to do something extraordinary for them," Newman said. "The first thing you do when you're in a hole is stop digging."

Many Republicans had supported this year's budget, and Newman said he was proud to offer raises to law enforcement workers and teachers. But now, he said, it would be better to cut raises than furlough state employees.

As a member of the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, Newman was asked to convey his suggestions to the committee staff this week. Howell, who chairs the panel, will review the suggestions along with Layne, the finance secretary.

"We're preparing priorities and contingencies," Howell said in an interview. "It's a little bit early to be making any decisions." She noted that the state is still trying to determine how much of a revenue hit it will take, how much federal funding the state will receive and what that money can be spent on.

Howell was not receptive to Newman's idea of reverting to the 2018-2020 budget, which was approved when the General Assembly was under GOP control, saying, "It gets rid of all our priorities." She said she hopes to avoid across-the-board cuts to agencies. But no matter what, "it's going to be very painful."

House budget writers are going through the same process, although House Appropriations Chairman Luke Torian, D-Prince William, noted that the state has historically high reserve funds. "At the end of the day, my priorities for Virginia remain the same, and I will work to protect them," Torian said in a statement.

House Speaker Eileen Filler-Corn, D-Fairfax, said she would push to keep the minimum wage increase. "It is imperative that we stand with the grocery store workers, janitors, home health care providers and other frontline essential workers who are risking their lives during this pandemic," she said in a statement.

Twelve Democratic delegates wrote to Northam on Thursday urging him to ensure that K-12 teachers receive full pay and benefits through the end of the academic year.

Layne said he is continually adjusting his revenue projections for the state. "Right now, if we were to do a formal forecast I suspect it would be very, very bad," he said.

For now, the governor's office is focused on the costly process of ramping up its coronavirus response - securing protective gear for health-care workers, setting up temporary bed space and supporting emergency responders as they prepare for a surge in patients. "You're talking in the hundreds of millions of dollars," Layne said.

The federal stimulus package passed by Congress and signed by President Trump will provide about $3.3 billion for the state and its localities to help offset some costs, Layne said, "but it doesn't help with the lost revenues, it doesn't help with some of the other expenses we have to do to support that."

At the same time, localities and businesses are clamoring for relief from state taxes. The problem, Layne said, is that the state collects many taxes on behalf of localities, which are facing their own budget crises. "So it's a balancing act," he said.

Eventually, the state will shift emphasis to restoring its business sector.

"The governor has made it clear that it's an economic crisis also - there'll come a time for that," Layne said. "But that's not what we're focused on right now."

The Washington Post's Antonio Olivo contributed to this report.
Harpreet Bajwa By

Express News Service

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab government on Thursday completely prohibited all gatherings, including religious and said the state government will impose a total ban on such congregations irrespective of the religion involved.

The move comes after it was found that around 200 people from Punjab have attended a religious congregation of Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin in Delhi.

Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh ordered 21 days of quarantine for all those who had returned to the state from Nizamuddin (Delhi) since January this year and asked the police, administrative officials to move aggressively to track, trace and isolate all such people.

He directed the police and health department to constitute special teams to track and follow up on those who had returned to Punjab from Nizamuddin.

The CM also said that he would personally talk to the Acting Jathedar of the Akal Takht, said the Chief Minister, while directing the Chief Secretary to discuss the matter with the SGPC, in view of the upcoming Baisakhi festival.

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Punjab DGP Dinkar Gupta said some 200 persons from Punjab had visited Nizamuddin and returned here, at different times, with 12 districts believed to be affected.

They were being tracked, along with some from others states who had arrived in Punjab for Tabligh Jamaat work. The Health Department was debriefing and contact tracing them, though, so far, no coronavirus confirmed cases had come to light.

Punjab Health Secretary Anurag Aggarwal said that the department had so far received a list of 125, out of which 73 had been tracked and 25 samples collected. Some of these cases had come to Mansa as late as March 19.

As a precautionary measure, all of them had been placed in quarantine and none had been so far found symptomatic, he added.

While in Kapurthala some 31 people who had returned from Nizamuddin had been quarantined though they had been found to be asymptomatic so far.

In Patiala, 29 of them have been quarantined but there were no symptoms shown by them.

In Sangrur, the district authorities have tracked and collected samples of all the attendees whose names they have received and the incubation period had ended in most cases already.

Amarinder ordered quarantining of the Pakistani nationals who were in Amritsar saying the state could not afford to take any chances at this critical juncture.
The forced closure of businesses nationwide because of the novel coronavirus would seem to be the perfect scenario for filing a "business interruption" insurance claim.

But most companies will probably find it difficult to get an insurance payout because of policy changes made after the 2002-2003 SARS outbreak, according to insurance experts and regulators.

SARS, which infected 8,000 people mostly in Asia and is now seen as foreshadowing the current pandemic, led to millions of dollars in business-interruption insurance claims. Among the claims was a $16 million payout to one hotel chain, Mandarin Oriental International.

As a result, many insurers added exclusions to standard commercial policies for losses caused by viruses or bacteria. Now, the added policy language will potentially allow insurance companies to avoid hundreds of billions of dollars in business-interruption claims because of the covid-19 pandemic.

"Insurers realized they would not be able to cover such a broad-scale event," said Robert Gordon, a senior vice president at the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.

Other types of insurance policies may still have to pay out. Personal travel and event cancellation policies are expected to face huge claims from the coronavirus pandemic, according to industry reports. But few successful claims are expected to come from traditional business insurance lines because of the exclusion of virus-related damages.

The insurance industry said that its policies are tightly regulated by state authorities and that the exclusions were necessary given the overwhelming number of claims that can come from a single disease outbreak.

"This is a scale that only the federal government can bridge," said David Sampson, president of the insurance trade group.

A global pandemic presents unique problems for insurers because, Sampson said, "by its very definition, you can't diversify the risk."

But property and casualty insurance companies are facing growing pressure to tap the industry's $822 billion in cash reserves.

Lawmakers in New Jersey, Massachusetts and Ohio are considering forcing retroactive policy changes to cover coronavirus business-interruption claims. Insurers said they object to this move because the additional cost of such claims were not included in policy premiums.

Attorneys said they expect disputes over the precise wording of business insurance policies to generate court fights - similar to the battles with insurers after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when homeowners and insurance companies fought over whether damages were caused by flooding or wind.

Making the current insurance situation even more complicated are the many different kinds of business insurance policies, some with boilerplate language and others filled with personalized exclusions and endorsements.

"We're going to see a tidal wave of litigation over the business interruption," said Ross Angus Williams, an attorney with the Bell Nunnally & Martin firm in Dallas. "It's really a Wild West situation for a lot of businesses as to whether they'll have coverage."

About one-third of U.S. businesses have "business interruption" insurance, which is intended to cover losses from an event that forces companies to suspend or stop operations. Many policies also have "civil authority" clauses that cover losses when a governmental agency stops a business from operating. A common example would be a fire that damages a restaurant and leads the fire marshal to close it down.

But most insurance policies require a physical loss to trigger coverage. A fire. A tornado.

"You can expect to hear, does contamination from a virus cause physical damage?" said Stephen Avila, professor of insurance at Ball State University.

That's the argument being made by Oceana Grill, a restaurant in New Orleans's French Quarter that, like every other restaurant in the city, has been ordered to stop offering sit-down service by an emergency declaration from the mayor.

Oceana Grill filed a lawsuit in a local court last month claiming the insurer should be required to pay a business-interruption claim because coronavirus had caused property damage by contaminating surfaces. An attorney for the restaurant did not respond to a request for comment.

A Native American tribe in Oklahoma, the Chickasaw Nation, also has sued insurers claiming that its losses from shuttering its casinos should be covered by its business-interruption insurance.

A well-known restaurant in California's Napa Valley, the French Laundry, also filed a lawsuit recently making similar claims.

State insurance commissioners are looking into the potential limitations of business insurance coverage for coronavirus-related claims - with differing viewpoints.

"We understand the desire to have coverage in this space," said North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Jon Godfread, "but many existing policies have specific exclusions to 'viral pandemics,' and business disruption coverage is generally triggered by actual physical damage. At this point, a pandemic is not considered physical damage."

"This is really a contract issue and will ultimately be settled in the courts," said Mississippi's insurance commissioner, Mike Chaney.

Christina Haas, a spokeswoman for Delaware's insurance office, recommended that business owners discuss their policies with insurers.

Avila, the Ball State professor, said the insurance disputes caused by coronavirus shows the need for a government-supported solution, such as a national pandemic insurance program, similar to the National Flood Insurance Program.

Pandemic business insurance, complete with virus coverage, is offered by the broker Marsh.

Interest in its PathogenRx insurance product has exploded in recent weeks - "it's exponential," said Chad Wright, the company's head of risk analytics and alternative risk transfer.

The company began thinking about the problem several years ago and modeled the risks of different diseases. It launched its outbreak insurance in 2018.

A few companies in the hospitality and gaming industries showed interest.

But not a single policy was sold.

- - -

The Washington Post's Michael Majchrowicz in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Kate Harrison Belz in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Sheila Eldred in Minneapolis contributed to this report.
The nonprofit Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston had more than 15 tabling events planned over the next several weeks where volunteers were going to post up at festivals, fairs and other community gatherings and educate people about the value of filling out the census.

Then the coronavirus crisis hit. One by one, gatherings were canceled, and Texans increasingly became subject to stay-at-home orders.

This is a very challenging census, said Ana Mac Naught, census coordinator of the Houston in Action coalition, a collaboration between the city of Houston, Harris County and more than 50 local organizations, including Interfaith Ministries. We are focusing on what were able to do at this moment.

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Local governments and nonprofits knew they already had their work cut out for them when Texas  in keeping with many other Republican-led states  declined to approve funding for grassroots census outreach.

Initial returns show Texas is already behind the rest of the nation: The self-response rate statewide is 31.3 percent compared to 36.2 nationally, as of Monday, the most recent data available. Most households have responded online. After the last census in 2010, Texas tied for the 7th lowest response rate in the country at 64.4 percent.

How to fill out the census Online: Visit my2020census.gov. By phone: For English speakers, dial 844-330-2020, and for Spanish speakers, dial 844-468-2020. The Bureau also offers 11 other languages. For a full list of phone numbers by language, visit www.2020census.gov/en/ways-to-respond/responding-by-phone. The phone lines are open every day from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. Central Time. By mail: Most households should have received their invitation to respond to the 2020 Census as of March 20. The invitation contains information on how to respond and a Census ID for completing the census online. Homes in areas that are less likely to respond online will eventually receive a paper questionnaire. The Census Bureau will never ask for a Social Security number, bank or credit card account numbers, money or donations, or anything on behalf of a political party. In 2020, it also will not ask for citizenship status; all U.S. residents regardless of immigration status may fill out the census. Source: U.S. Census Bureau See More Collapse

Now, leaders of groups helping with the count say they're facing a whole new set of challenges as the coronavirus crisis thwarts their efforts to engage people face-to-face, and theyre forced to quickly pivot to digital and phone-based alternatives.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

The census, conducted once every 10 years, determines the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives as well as how much federal funding local communities receive for programs in an array of critical areas including health care, education and housing.

The George Washington Institute of Public Policy estimated that even a 1 percent undercount could cost Texas nearly $300 million in federal funding  more than any other state. Harris County officials have estimated that the federal government sends about $60 billion to Texas tied to census figures.

Last week, the Census Bureau announced it was again suspending field operations because of the pandemic, this time until April 15, and extending several deadlines, including one that will give Americans two additional weeks, until Aug. 14, to fill out the survey. The census can be filled out and submitted by mail, online or over the phone in English and 12 other languages.

BEHIND FROM THE GET-GO: Texas leaves Census outreach to cities, counties

The health and safety of our staff and the public is of the utmost consideration and importance, the agency said in a statement at the time. We must fulfill our constitutional obligation to deliver the 2020 census counts to the President of the United States on schedule, and we must adhere to our core task of counting everyone once, only once, and in the right place.

Harris County trails the rest of the state with a 30.7 percent response rate while Bexar County is ahead at 32.7 percent. So far, the more affluent, suburban parts of both metropolitan areas are participating at higher rates than the urban cores. Thats something local leaders say they are watching closely, as they try to target the large Hispanic and other hard-to-count communities in both cities.

Its too early to tell whether the decline is related to coronavirus, but Texas has faced an uphill battle.

According to the Center for Urban Research, one in four Texans belong to a hard-to-count population, which includes racial and ethnic minorities, people experiencing homelessness, immigrants and refugees, renters, college students, children under the age of 5, and the LGBTQ community.

ICE BREAKER: 'Salaam alaikum...yall familiar with the census?' How Houston fights undercounting ahead of census

This time period of self-response is especially important, local leaders say, because the more households participate now, the fewer people that stand to be missed later and the fewer households that will require a visit from a census taker.

People definitely understand that the census is not on the top of peoples priority list, said Katie Martin-Lightfoot, coordinator of Texas Counts, a statewide initiative from the left-leaning Center for Public Policy Priorities. We are trying to look for these very non-intrusive ways to get the message out there about the census.

On Wednesday, known as Census Day, officials lit Houston City Hall and Montrose bridges and announced a number of efforts planned for the next nine days and beyond, including phone-banking and text messaging teams, placing digital advertising, and social media events with key audiences and in a variety of languages.

Staying home is crucial to the short-term health and safety of our community, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said in a statement. But filling out the census is crucial to the long-term health and safety of our community. Federal resources for healthcare, transportation, education, and even post-COVID recovery resources will be allocated according to population counts.

The city and county also unveiled the second of five murals in undercounted neighborhoods.

Houston Rep. Sylvia Garcia acknowledged Tuesday that the coronavirus pandemic could have a negative effect on participation in this years census but said she hoped people take advantage of the extra time at home to ensure their communities receive federal funding they deserve.

All of us in Houston are getting creative about how to make sure everyone gets counted in this years census, even in the midst of this public health emergency, Garcia said in a statement. As many of us adapt to this new normal of social distancing and stay-at-home orders, it is important for every person to take ten minutes out of their day to fill out the census online, by phone, or by mail. It is a family friendly activity we can all do together as we spend a lot more time at home.

Most of San Antonios previously planned strategies had also been high-touch, from one-on-one meetings to tabling at events, said Berta Rodriguez, the citys census administrator.

The reason why its become challenging is that we know there are certain individuals in our community that really do need that high-touch engagement: individuals with language barriers, individuals that are in the digital divide, individuals that fall into the category of immigrant and refugee status, Rodriguez said. We have had to start to ask ourselves: How can we still get into these communities without the ability to engage them face-to-face?

Some of the alternate methods that San Antonio has in the works include distributing door hangers and putting up ads at gas stations and 103 Dollar Tree stores cash registers.

For all the havoc that coronavirus has wreaked on outreach efforts, however, it also provides a highly relatable reason for Texans to fill it out, Mac Naught said.

Emergencies like COVID-19 are precisely why the government needs accurate census data, Mac Naught said. If we dont have a complete count of the community that we live in, how do we know how many more hospitals we need to build?
The Afghanistan government on April 2 said that it will release 100 Taliban terrorists from jails adding that in exchange the group will release 20 Afghan security force members. According to reports, the prisoners' swap is part of the confidence-building exercise between the two major stakeholders in the country. The prisoners' swap was part of the peace deal that was signed between the United States and the Taliban on February 29 in Doha, Qatar.

Read: Taliban Meets International Diplomats After Signing Peace Deal With US

Taliban had earlier declined the intra-Afghan talks with the government after President Ashraf Ghani refused to release prisoners, which he said was never part of their agenda. Ghani later agreed to release 1,500 prisoned Taliban terrorists in order to initial talks. Late on March 10, Afghan President's spokesperson announced, "President Ghani has signed the decree that would facilitate the release of the Taliban prisoners in accordance with an accepted framework for the start of negotiations between the Taliban and the Afghan government."

Read: Afghan Peace Deal: Ashraf Ghani Agrees To Release 1,500 Taliban Prisoners To Initiate Talk

The US-Afghan peace deal

The United States and the Taliban signed the peace deal after 20 years of war and 18 months of negotiations. The deal which was signed in the presence of leaders from Pakistan, Qatar, Turkey, India, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan would see the gradual withdrawal of US and NATO troops from Afghanistan under a timeline of 14 months. The deal also requires Afghanistan to guarantee that their land will not be used as a launchpad that would threaten the security of the United States and its allies.

Read: Days After The Peace Deal, US President Donald Trump Had 'good Talk' With Taliban Leader

The deal was signed by US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban political chief Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar with Mike Pompeo as a witness. As per reports, more than 1,00,000 Afghan citizens have lost their lives or wounded since 2009 when the UN Assistance Mission began documenting casualties, while the US has lost over 2,000 personnel to the war since 2001.

Read: Taliban Declines Intra-Afghan Talks Without Prisoners' Release After Peace Deal

Read: Taliban Ready To Begin Cease-fires In Virus-hit Afghan Areas

(Image Credit: AP)
The global number of confirmed deaths from the coronavirus surpassed 50,000 and cases edged toward 1 million, according to tracking by Johns Hopkins University, as the outbreak continued to hit the United States and Europe especially hard.

Elsewhere, officials battled to maintain earlier successes in the fight against the novel coronavirus, weighing the desire to resume normal business operations against the risk of triggering new cases.

Other developments Thursday:

-- A record 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment last week, a stunning sign of an economic collapse triggered by the pandemic.

-- The Democratic Party will delay its presidential nominating convention in Milwaukee from July until mid-August to increase chances the party can hold an in-person gathering. The decision to reschedule puts the gathering one week before the Republican convention in Charlotte, which is set to start Aug. 24.

-- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the creation of a select bipartisan committee to oversee the Trump administration's response to thecoronaviruspandemic, and its management of the new $2 trillion economic rescue package. "Where there's money there's also frequently mischief," Pelosi, D-Calif., said.

-- About 60% of fatalities reported worldwide have come from four European countries: Italy, Spain, France and Britain. In Spain, where the health system has been overwhelmed, officials reported 950 new coronavirus-related fatalities Thursday; Italy reported 760.

- - In China, a county of 600,000 people in Henan province has been placed on lockdown, illustrating the dangers of declaring victory too soon as authorities grow anxious to restart economic activity without unleashing a new wave of infections.

-- The Coral Princess cruise ship, which told all passengers to stay in their rooms Tuesday following a "higher-than-normal number" of people reporting flu-like symptoms, has 12 positive cases of coronavirus on board.

In Washington, President Donald Trump lashed out at state leaders, saying that some have "insatiable appetites" for supplies to respond to the coronavirus outbreak and calling some "complainers."

"Massive amounts of medical supplies, even hospitals and medical centers, are being delivered directly to states and hospitals by the Federal Government," Trump said in tweets. "Some have insatiable appetites & are never satisfied (politics?). Remember, we are a backup for them. The complainers should have been stocked up and ready long before this crisis hit."

His tweets come as governors express concerns about being prepared to cope with rapidly growing coronavirus cases.

In earlier tweets, Trump charged that New York "got off to a late start" in combating the outbreak, and he lashed out at Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), claiming that Schumer should have "pushed harder" to help his state.

Trump's attack on Schumer took place shortly after a television appearance in which the senator said he plans to write to the president to call for the appointment of a "czar" to oversee the production and distribution of medical supplies under the Defense Production Act.

Democrats have assailed Trump for not making broader use of the measure, which allows him to direct private companies to manufacture products. Schumer said his preference would be a "military man."

In his tweets, Trump said such a person is already filling that role, apparently referring to Navy Rear Adm. John Polowczyk, the head of a new federal "supply chain task force."

"Somebody please explain to Cryin' Charles E. Schumer that we do have a military man in charge of distributing goods," Trump tweeted. "New York has gotten far more than any other State, including hospitals & a hospital ship, but no matter what, always complaining.  Unlike other states, New York unfortunately got off to a late start. You should have pushed harder."

The Italian and Spanish ambassadors to the United States on Thursday reported signs of improvement in the coronavirus situation in their countries, where numbers of confirmed infections, hospitalizations and deaths remain high but are beginning to stabilize.

"These are just the first positive signs, and they have to be taken cautiously," Italian Ambassador Armando Varricchio said. "But they show that measures taken both nationally and at the local level have started to pay off."

Both Varricchio and Spanish Ambassador Santiago Cabanas, speaking from their Washington homes, stressed the need for international solidarity and cooperation.

Elseshere, Ali Larijani, Iran's parliament speaker and one of the country's most prominent political figures, has tested positive for covid-19 and is receiving medical treatment in quarantine, Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported Thursday.

Larijani, who has served as parliament speaker since 2008 and hails from a powerful political family, is among dozens of Iranian officials and lawmakers who have been infected during Iran's outbreak, the most severe in the Middle East and among the worst in the world.

More than 50,000 people have been infected and 3,160 people have died, according to the health ministry. Among the dead are dozens of members of parliament and a senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In London, he British government announced its aim to carry out 100,000 daily coronavirus tests by the end of the month, a massive boost from current levels.

The announcement follows days of mounting criticism that the British government hasn't done enough testing, which currently runs at about 10,000 people a day. Some reports say that Germany is conducting 50,000 tests per day.

"I'm now setting the goal of 100,000 tests per day by the end of this month," Matt Hancock, Britain's health secretary, said at the government's daily news briefing. Hancock spent last week in self-isolation after testing positive for coronavirus.

He said that the goal would include swab tests to see if people have the virus as well as antibody blood tests, which would test to see if someone had previously had it.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is in self-isolation after testing positive for covid-19, said in a video message Wednesday that testing was "how we will unlock the coronavirus puzzle. This is how we will defeat it in the end."
The Lagos State Government on Thursday shut Agege Central Mosque over an attack on officers of the state joint task force monitoring compliance with the social distancing directive of the government.

The central mosque was shut down indefinitely by the officials of the Agege Local Government Council, PREMIUM TIMES was informed.

Worshippers at the mosque in their large number allegedly attacked the task force officials out to ensure public gatherings do not exceed 25 people.

Bola Ajao, the spokesperson of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), said over 300 worshippers launched the attack on the officials, throwing pebbles at their vehicles as well.

The team saw the Muslim faithful observing their solatul ishal in a large congregation contrary to the directive of total lockdown order of President Muhammad Buhari in order to stem the tide of the pandemic.

A drama, however, ensued at the sight of government officials, the youth became aggressive and unruly with targeted attack on the officials. The crowd numbering about 300 rushed out of the mosque, chanting ALLAH Akbar and started throwing stones and hitting the vehicles. All entreaties to talk to the imam failed as the youth were unabated. The police were able to curtail the atmosphere and ensure safety of the team, she said.

The enforcement exercise was carried out on Tuesday by the state Special taskforce on COVID-19 consisting of LASEPA, Lagos Safety Commission, the Rapid Response and the Task force.

The agency said the team paid a visit to the mosque last week to sensitise on the pandemic and solicit compliance with measures.

Dolapo Fasawe, the General manager of LASEPA, while condemning the attack on the officials, said the gathering failed to comply with the executive order as the mosque was filled to capacity.

The essence of social distancing is to curtain the spread of coronavirus. The people are endangering their lives and those of their neighbors. The government has a duty to protect the lives of the people, she said.

Lanre Mojola, the Director-General of the Lagos Safety Commission, said the task force will not relent in ensuring compliance with the governments directive and urged residents to comply with the directive.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-02 22:40:06

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fortuna Silver Mines, Inc. (NYSE: FSM) (TSX: FVI) provides an update on the status of its operations (refer to Fortuna news release dated March 17, 2020 ), production and cost guidance for 2020 and its financial position in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.



Caylloma Mine, Peru

On Sunday, March 15, 2020, the Government of Peru introduced a series of measures to contain the rapid spread of COVID-19 which included: the closing of international borders and a declaration of a fifteen-day period of mandatory national social isolation. The period of social isolation has been subsequently extended to April 12, 2020.

The Company is working under the regulatory framework issued by the Ministerio de Energia y Minas (MINEM) and the Ministerio del Interior (MININTER), which allows mines to operate during this period with essential personnel. The Caylloma Mine continues to operate with a reduced task force drawing ore from its coarse ore stockpile. The transportation of concentrates and essential supplies continues to be permitted, and the operation has sufficient stock of critical supplies, consumables, and camp provisions to cover the extended isolation period.

San Jose Mine, Mexico

On March 31, 2020, the Government of Mexico announced extraordinary measures in response to the spread of COVID-19, which includes the suspension of all non-essential activities, including mining, until April 30, 2020. As a result, the Company has initiated the orderly temporary suspension of mining and processing activities. A reduced task force will remain on site to safeguard critical infrastructure and maintain environmental monitoring through the suspension period.

Lindero Project, Argentina

On March 19, 2020, the Government of Argentina declared effective at midnight a period of mandatory national social isolation in relation to COVID-19, effective until March 31, 2020. The period of isolation has been subsequently extended until April 13, 2020. All construction activities have been temporarily halted at Lindero and a reduced task force remains on site to maintain critical activities including security and environmental monitoring over the extended isolation period.

The Company is assessing the impact of the temporary suspension of construction on the projects timeline and budget.

2020 Production and Cost Guidance

As a result of the government-mandated constraints on business in the countries that host our operations and the uncertainties related to these constraints, the Company is currently unable to determine the impact on its production and cost guidance for 2020. Therefore, the Company is withdrawing production and cost guidance for 2020 (refer to Fortuna news release dated February 20, 2020 ) until further notice.

Financial Position

As of the financial year ended December 31, 2019, Fortuna had total liquidity available of $123.4 million, comprised of $83.4 million in cash and an undrawn amount of $40 million (subsequently drawn) under its $150 million credit facility. An aggregate of $30 million matures on December 31, 2020, with the balance maturing in January 2022.

The credit facility requires the Company to maintain a debt to EBITDA ratio of not more than 3:1. As of the financial year ended December 31, 2019, the debt to EBITDA ratio was 1.7:1.

The Company has implemented measures to reduce spending and capital expenses consistent with the current uncertain business environment. These measures include the postponement of approximately 40 percent of sustaining capital budgets, a 60 percent reduction in the Brownfields exploration budget and reductions in senior executive annual compensation and other corporate expenses.

About Fortuna Silver Mines Inc.

Fortuna is a growth oriented, precious metals producer focused on mining opportunities in Latin America. Our primary assets are the Caylloma silver Mine in southern Peru, the San Jose silver-gold Mine in Mexico and the Lindero gold Project, currently under construction, in Argentina. The Company is selectively pursuing acquisition opportunities throughout the Americas and in select other areas. For more information, please visit our website at www.fortunasilver.com .

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Jorge A. Ganoza

President, CEO and Director

Fortuna Silver Mines Inc.

Trading symbols: NYSE: FSM | TSX: FVI

Investor Relations:

Carlos Baca

T (Peru): +51.1.616.6060, ext. 0

Forward-looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements which constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, Forward-looking Statements). All statements included herein, other than statements of historical fact, are Forward-looking Statements and are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the Forward-looking Statements. The Forward-looking Statements in this news release may include, without limitation, statements about the duration and effects of COVID-19 and any other pandemics on the Companys workforce, business, operations and financial condition, and the risks relating to a global pandemic, which unless contained could cause a slowdown in global economic growth and impact the Companys business, operations, financial condition and share price; the duration of the suspension of operations at the San Jose mine and the Lindero Project and the reduced operations at the Caylloma mine, the production and cost forecasts and guidance for 2020 . Often, but not always, these Forward-looking Statements can be identified by the use of words such as estimated, potential, open, future, assumed, projected, used, detailed, has been, gain, planned, reflecting, will, containing, remaining, to be, or statements that events, could or should occur or be achieved and similar expressions, including negative variations.

Forward-looking Statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the Forward-looking Statements. Such uncertainties and factors include, among others, the worldwide economic and social impact of COVID-19, the duration and extent of COVID-19,changes in general economic conditions and financial markets; the duration of government restrictions on business related to COVID-19; changes in prices for silver and other metals; technological and operational hazards in Fortunas mining and mine development activities; risks inherent in mineral exploration; uncertainties inherent in the estimation of mineral reserves, mineral resources, and metal recoveries; changes to current estimates of mineral reserves and resources; changes to production estimates; governmental and other approvals; changes in government, political unrest or instability in countries where Fortuna is active; labor relations issues; as well as those factors discussed under Risk Factors in the Company's Annual Information Form. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in Forward-looking Statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results to differ from those anticipated, estimated or intended.

Forward-looking Statements contained herein are based on the assumptions, beliefs, expectations and opinions of management, including but not limited to the management of the worldwide economic and social impact of COVID-19, that the duration and extent of COVID-19 is minimized and not long-term, the expected trends in mineral prices and currency exchange rates; the accuracy of the Companys current mineral resource and reserve estimates; that the Companys activities will be in accordance with the Companys public statements and stated goals; that there will be no material adverse change affecting the Company or its properties; that all required approvals will be obtained; that there will be no significant disruptions affecting operations and such other assumptions as set out herein. Forward-looking Statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any obligation to update any Forward-looking Statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by law. There can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in its legal proceedings or that these Forward-looking Statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, investors should not place undue reliance on Forward-looking Statements.
People get exercise outside on the lake shore path along Lake Ontario in Toronto on April 2, 2020. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press)

Trudeau Rejects Mandatory Stay-at-Home Order for Now

TORONTOAn already grim employment toll looked set to worsen Thursday as authorities pondered further tightening restrictions on people and businesses to slow the spread of COVID-19 and keep the pandemic from suffocating the health-care system.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said too many Canadians were still going out needlessly, potentially spreading the CCP virus and putting health-care workers at unnecessary risk. At the same time, Trudeau said he was leaning on restrictions provinces have put in place rather than issuing a mandatory national stay-home order.

Were not quite yet at that point, Trudeau said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a news conference at Rideau cottage in Ottawa, Canada, on March 13, 2020. (The Canadian Press/Fred Chartrand)

The virus has now officially infected more than 11,000 Canadians and cost 130 their lives.

Ontario on Thursday reported 16 more deaths bringing its total to 53, while a hard-hit nursing home in Bobcaygeonpossibly the site of the worst outbreak in the provincereported two new fatalities. Sixteen residents have died and at least 24 staff members at Pinecrest Nursing Home have been infected.

Quebec saw its caseload rise about 20 per cent since Wednesday, with three more deaths. COVID-19 has killed at least 36 people in the province and another 25 in British Columbia. Dr. Theresa Tam, Canadas chief public health officer, said almost half the deaths have occurred among especially vulnerable residents of long-term care homes.

Manitoba said more than 40 health-care workers at a Winnipeg hospital had been sent home after two staff members tested positive.

Experts say keeping a physical distance from others, along with frequent hand washing, is the most effective way of curbing the pandemic.

Governments everywhere have shut non-essential businesses and public facilities such as parks, beaches and playgrounds. All have repeatedly urged people to stay home except for essential outings.

Police in several jurisdictions have already arrested or fined alleged quarantine scofflaws or people disobeying limits on gatherings. Leaders warned Thursday of more to come if people didnt smarten up.

Forcing people to stay inside was still an option, albeit a drastic one, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said.

Thats the last thing someone wants to do, is the police marching around telling people to stay in their homes, Ford said. I just dont believe in that. Were responsible. Do the right thing.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault urged police to clamp down on those flouting COVID-19 rules. He warned of fines of up to $6,000.

In Toronto, Mayor John Tory was blunt as he announced a new bylaw imposing a two-metre spacing rule for people in parks and squares for next 30 days, with fines of up to $5,000. People from the same household are exempt.

Lives are potentially at stake, and we will turn up the heat in the hopes that the few who still dont get it, or pretend not to get it, will get with the program, Tory said.

The restrictions, which could last weeks or even months, have taken a hideous toll on employmentmore than one million Canadians reported as having applied for jobless benefits. Liberal government measures designed to help the unemployed weather the crisis could cost more than $250 billion.

A survey by Restaurants Canada, which speaks for the industry, indicated 800,000 jobs have been lost to the pandemic. Almost one in 10 restaurants have closed and nearly one in five expected to close if conditions didnt improve soon, the survey suggested.

The billions the government planned to inject into the economy to mitigate the devastation was the subject of reports from Parliaments spending watchdog Thursday. Just three federal measuresaimed at helping lowincome earners, families and seniorswill cost more than $8 billion, budget officer Yves Giroux said.

However, an analysis from the leftleaning Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives estimated 862,000 unemployed workersabout onethird of the totalarent eligible for aid.

Were looking at ways to help everyone in Canada that needs it, Trudeau said. We know there are many vulnerable people.

On Monday, the Canada Revenue Agency will begin delivering the federal aid, with as many as 300,000 Canadians expected to inquire a day about the $2,000-a-month benefit. The agency usually has up to 4,000 employees at call centres for tax season, but more than 1,000 others have volunteered to help, many working from home.
Cllr James Mustoe represents Mevagissey on Cornwall Council.

At some point before the weekend I was approached by the managers of a large campsite in my division and asked if I thought they should close due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

This conversation would have been unthinkable only weeks earlier, as would have been my response, which was a resounding YES.

A bit of background. Cornwall has always been a land of contrasts. Our beautiful coastlines and rolling vistas along with an amazing heritage and culture make us a prime destination for visitors not just from the UK but around the world. The tourism and hospitality industries are a huge part of our economy, along with farming and fishing.

But with this comes the contrasts. Literally stuck out on a limb, Cornwalls infrastructure has always been stretched, our rural geography not suitable for effective delivery of services that can be delivered much more efficiently over smaller, urban areas. The massive numbers of visitors we have in the holiday seasons can see this infrastructure, transport, and particularly health, stretched to the breaking point.

Which is why my answer to this large employer in my division, whose visitors bring in millions of pounds every year to Cornwalls economy, was a difficult but necessary one.

People coming away from our urban centres looking to escape the COVID-19 pandemic will only spread it further into Cornwall. We have seen this happen in Italy and it will happen here too. Our health infrastructure will not cope. People will die.

In short, for now, people need to stop travelling to Cornwall unnecessarily. The Government has already advised against unnecessary travel. Coming on holiday at this time is not vital and should be avoided.

As a Conservative Cornwall Councillor, I have always prided myself on being business friendly, and have always gone out of my way to support, promote, and grow our tourism sector. But these are not normal times. This is primarily a health crisis and we need to realise that only by taking these drastic measures and strictly following the Government guidance, we will get through this.

The Cornish community has always been a strong and welcoming one. I have already been humbled by the way our communities have come together to form volunteer networks. Support groups have come together on a village by village, parish by parish level, to help the vulnerable and make sure no one is forgotten. We will welcome you back when times are less hard.

The Cornish motto is Onen hag oll, Cornish for one and all. I think if we apply this motto and way of life to our country at this difficult time, we will come through it stronger than before.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI  With Spectrum Healths hospitals largely closed to visitors amid the coronavirus pandemic, music therapist Bridget Sova wanted to find a way to bring the communitys voice  and a little cheer  directly to patients.

So Sova, who works at Helen DeVos Childrens Hospital, decided to create a virtual choir. She posted a message on the hospitals Facebook page asking residents to record a video of themselves singing along to Bill Withers Lean on Me song.

In just a few days, she had received responses from 64 people, from Michigan and beyond. She then wove the clips together, creating a video that shows snippets of each participant singing along to the classic 1972 soul song.

I was totally overwhelmed by the responses that we got, Sova said. We definitely didnt think we were going to get as many responses as we did. It just goes to show how close the West Michigan community is and how caring the West Michigan community is.

The video features an assortment of people, young and old, male and female. Some are holding pets, while others play along on pianos and guitars. One participant even joins in while working in his tool shop, hammering a piece of metal.

Sova, who has worked at Spectrum for just over five years, says she hopes the video shows patients that the community cares about them and is rooting for their recovery.

The community is very worried about patients at the hospitals right now, she said. So I was hoping for a way for people to reach out in a really positive way and for patients to feel that love and support.

The video is available on YouTube and has been posted on Spectrums social media accounts. Sova said the goal is also to broadcast it on the hospital systems in-house television network that is accessible to most patients.

Music really does have healing powers, and we all could benefit from a smile right about now, she said. My hope was that the virtual choir would lift spirits for patients inside the hospital and create a sense of community for friends and family who arent able to visit right now.

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Vietnams beauty and wonder lie in her variety  the magnificent mountains of the north, the pristine beaches and islands of central Vietnam, the calming beauty of the Central Highlands, and the abundance and vitality of the south.

But despite all the regional differences, what unites us is our common bond.

Whether we are from the northern, central or southern regions, Vietnamese are known for our national spirit under any circumstances.

During good times, we celebrate our diverse cuisine and culture in a country with 54 different ethnic groups.

However, when it comes to difficult times, Vietnam leaves no one behind.

We believe in and live the mantra of solidarity is strength.

Inspired by both the incredible variety in Vietnam and this unified spirit, Bia Viet was created to honor the national spirit that unifies this great country.

Bia Viet is the latest member of HEINEKEN Vietnams brand portfolio.

Bia Viet is a cold brew lager at 4.3% ABV, using only natural ingredients including water, malted barley, hops, cereals, and yeast.

Brewed with cold fermentation techniques at 8-10 degrees Celsius, Bia Viet preserves the essence of hops and delivers long-lasting refreshment.

Given the rich and varied cuisine and taste preferences across Vietnam, Bia Viets Master Brewers had to create this new beer to cater to and match perfectly all of Vietnams different palates.

Trained and certified by HEINEKEN, these three Master Brewers come from different regions in Vietnam and share the same passion for quality.

Bia Viet was born for Vietnamese beer lovers, by Vietnamese beer masters.

Bia Viets packaging reflects the Vietnamese spirit of its name, with symbols of Vietnams history and heritage  Lac bird and Dong Son bronze drum - proudly featured in red, yellow and silver.

Bia Viet is available in 355ml bottles and 330ml cans.

Commenting on the launch of Bia Viet, Mr. Alexander Koch, Commercial Director of HEINEKEN Vietnam said: 2020 is a very different year than what anybody expected. What hasnt changed is our commitment to support our consumers and customers. Bia Viet honors the unified spirit of Vietnamese people across the country. We are proud to stand by Vietnam, especially during this time. Instead of holding events right now to launch Bia Viet, we have adjusted our launch support budget to donate VND 10 billion to support COVID-19 relief efforts in Vietnam.

Bia Viet has committed to donate VND 10 billion to support healthcare and emergency service workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic through the Vietnam Fatherland Front.

Bia Viet is currently available for purchase in all retail channels nationwide and on e-commerce platforms.

About HEINEKEN Vietnam

HEINEKEN Vietnam is a subsidiary of HEINEKEN, the worlds most international brewer. Originating in the Netherlands, this family-owned business, with a history of over 150 years, brews and distributes over 300 beer and cider brands in more than 190 countries.

HEINEKEN Vietnam was established in 1991 and operates six breweries in Hanoi, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau, Tien Giang and nine sales offices across Vietnam.

From humble beginnings with only 20 employees in Vietnam, HEINEKEN Vietnam is now the second largest brewer in the country with more than 3,500 employees.

HEINEKEN Vietnam makes a significant annual economic contribution to Vietnam, amounting to approximately 0.9 percent of the nations total GDP.

In Vietnam, HEINEKEN produces and distributes Heineken, Tiger, Larue, BIVINA, Bia Viet, Sol, Affligem, and Strongbow cider.

In 2017, 2018 and 2019, HEINEKEN Vietnam was recognized among the top most sustainable companies in Vietnam by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and as a best place to work in Asia by HR Asia Magazine, one of Asias leading publications for HR professionals.

More information about HEINEKEN Vietnam is available on its website: http://heineken-vietnam.com.vn/.
OUR article of last week completed the events of the year 1978. But thereafter, the war against Iddi Amins invading forces from Uganda, continued.

Although by January, 1979; The invading forces had been repulsed from Tanzanian Territory. But the Tanzania Army commanders wanted to go all the way to Kampala to give President Iddi Amin the punishment of his lifetime.

Whereas on his part, President Nyerere was initially hesitating to grant them that permission, on grounds that cannot find sufficient space in this article.

For the purpose of this article, suffice it to say that eventually, the requisite permission was granted, and the Tanzania Army, with the tacit support of the Ugandan population, fought all the way to Kampala, where they arrived in early April, 1979, and removed President Iddi Amin from power.

He fled into exile to Saudi Arabia. Mission accomplished, and objective achieved That war ended on 11th April, 1979. It was Mission accomplished, and objective achieved.

President Nyerere had done nothing more than what he had aimed to do. For, President Nyereres sole purpose was to repulse aggression and remove the aggressor, in order to prevent any such future recurrence. He had no territorial ambitions whatsoever.

Thus, when it became clear that Iddi Amin was being defeated, President Nyerere immediately started making arrangements to get the several Ugandan Liberation movements (based in Uganda and others outside Uganda), to come together and agree on a common coalition to take over the governance of that country.

He thus convened a meeting of all of them at Moshi in Tanzania; Which was held from 14th to 26th March, 1979. Tanzanias Foreign Minister, then Benjamin Mkapa, was sent by President Nyerere to Moshi, to deliver to them the crucial message, that: Look, your country is just about to be liberated.

We dont want to occupy Uganda, and we dont want to rule Uganda. You have been fighting Amin separately for all this time.

Now that we have almost done it for you, you must come together and work out a leadership arrangement to take over from Iddi Amin.

The Moshi meeting eventually agreed on an interim leadership arrangement until when they could hold their general elections; With Professor Yusuf Lule chosen as their leader.

Yoweri Museveni was given the portfolio of Defence Minister. After the war was over I arranged, in my capacity as Chief Executive Secretary, a special tour of all the Regions for President Nyerere, to thank the people of Tanzania for the unflinching support they had provided to our armed forces, during the whole combat period; Particularly in terms of constant contributions of food and meat supplies to the soldiers who were fighting in Uganda.

I personally had participated in mobilising some of these food contributions, and I also accompanied Mwalimu Nyerere on his thanksgiving tour of the Regions.

The events of 1980 1980 was another general election year in Tanzania. In 1975, President Nyerere had announced that he was accepting nomination for the last time. Well no, he changed his mind and accepted nomination again in 1980.

There were good, cogent reasons that easily convinced him to stay on: There were the crushing economic problems arising out of the Iddi Amin war which had just ended; Specifically the consequential heavy reconstruction financial requirements; Plus those other problems arising from the collapse of the East African Community, and from the sudden rises in world oil prices. Plus there was also the undesirable political perception that people might hold, that he was deliberately running away from these problems!

So, he decided to soldier on; But only for another five years; At the end of which in 1985, when the CCM leaders tried again to persuade him to accept further nomination, he flatly refused by saying : No, please, this time no. In the first place, I am a human being, and I will die one day.

Secondly, if I dont step down and just continue until I die as President, the one who becomes President after me will also want to remain President until he dies, why shouldnt he?

Thirdly, I need to put in place a succession plan; So as to build a culture of peaceful succession. I have finally decided, that I am leaving this office. Let us therefore now talk about the real issue, namely how we can get a proper successor who will maintain the stability of the country.

Structural reforms introduced in CCM The party National Executive Committee which met during the last quarter of 1980, appointed a small Task Force which was tasked with the responsibility for drafting new election Rules for the partys internal elections.

I was appointed Secretary of that Task Force. At the same time, two major changes were introduced in the structure of the party.

These were (a) the introduction of a new category of ninety national members of the National Executive Committee, who were to be elected by the Partys congress; and (b) the reintroduction of the post of CCM Secretary General.

We were therefore required to propose suitable election rules for these new officials. An additional (administrative) structural change, was the separation of the positions of Regional/District Commissioner from that of Regional/District Party Secretary; Which had hitherto always been held by one person.

New features in the 1980 elections An important new feature that surfaced for the first time in our election history, was the issuance of an Election Manifesto by CCM, the ruling party.

This is the five-year blueprint (which would be issued at every general election thereafter), giving details of the partys pledges to the electorate.

Furthermore, there was the unexpected announcement by first-time Prime Minister Edward Sokoine, (who had been appointed only three years earlier in 1977), that he was not going to seek re-election in his constituency during those elections, explaining that he was going for treatment abroad in Yugoslavia.

This created considerable speculation and excitement, regarding who would be appointed as his replacement in that office. But otherwise the elections were held as scheduled, with Julius Nyerere emerging the winner of the Presidential election, who then appointed Cleopa David Msuya as Prime Minister.

The events of 1981 On 1st January I assumed a new appointment back in the Government Service, as Regional Commissioner for Tabora Region.

During the week before Christmas, President Nyerere had called me to his office, to inform me of his intention to appoint me to that position, effective from 1st January, 1980. Accordingly, I had already taken the required oath of office.

But in addition, Regional Commissioners in those days also became ex-officio members of the Union Parliament. That new appointment therefore brought me back inside Karimjee Hall, which I had left in 1970 when I was appointed Vice-Chancellor of the University of Dar es Salaam.

But, these new responsibilities notwithstanding, I continued with my responsibility as Task Force Secretary, for drafting the new CCM election Rules.

The work on these Rules was completed, submitted and approved, and were used for the first time during the 1982 party general elections, in which veteran Rashidi Kawawa was elected Secretary General.

President Nyereres endeavours to detoxify the economy, and politics One major event that was set in motion right at the beginning of 1981, was President Nyereres endeavours to detoxify the countrys economy and politics.

The difficult economic problems of those times had created a class of business people and public officials, who lived in total laxity; lacking in accountability, austerity, and frugality, plus impunity in mismanaging or careless spending of public funds; and/or practicing widespread corruption.

The President established a small but very high-level CCM team of investigators, headed by Vice President and Party Vice-Chairman Aboud Jumbe, and operating from the CCM Sub-head offices in Lumumba Street, Dar es Salaam.

The sole task of this special team was to investigate and report to him, any accusations or allegations of corrupt transactions, and/or other breaches of ethics, or laxity in the transaction of public business; for him to take the necessary corrective measures.

To the best of my knowledge and recollection, many heads did roll as a result of the work of this special team. But alas, the damage had perhaps already gone beyond remedy.

Thus the economic situation continued to deteriorate, to the extent that some conspirators even hatched a plot to kill President Nyerere, by shooting him when he was coming out of his regular church services at St Peters catholic church, Oysterbay.

They were of course discovered before they could carry out their evil intentions.

The events of 1982 As we have already seen, the year 1982 was one in which two major constitutional changes were introduced in the structure of Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM), of vastly increasing the size of the partys National Executive Committee, and re-introducing the post of Secretary General.

These constitutional changes were effected by the CCM congress meeting in October 1982; when a meeting of the National Executive Committee which was held immediately thereafter, elected Rashidi Mfaume Kawawa as the CCM Secretary General; and abolished the post of Chief Executive Secretary.

The events of 1983 We have already referred to the administrative changes which separated the posts of Regional/District Commissioners from those of Regional/District Party Secretaries.

This change was implemented in March 1983, when I was transferred to Kilimanjaro Region only as Regional Commissioner, while retired General Silas Mayunga was appointed Regional CCM Secretary for that Region.

In the meantime, Edward Sokoine had returned from Yugoslavia, having fully recovered from the disease that was troubling him.

That is also the time when President Nyerere re-appointed him Prime Minister, to replace Cleopa Msuya who, apparently, had been only housewarming that position in Edward Sokoines absence.

Msuya became Minister for Finance. Premier Sokoines anti-economic sabotage campaign Premier Edward Sokoine is still remembered to this day, for his initiative and sterling performance in his gallant fight against perceived economic saboteurs.

He first had an anti-economic sabotage act enacted by Parliament, and thereafter quickly settled down to managing the campaign himself.

The Regional Commissioners were, of course, the main actors in this campaign, and I was therefore very closely involved in it from my new base in Moshi.

But because I was CCMs Chief Executive Secretary during Edward Sokoines first term in office as Prime Minister, and he had apparently developed a large amount of trust and confidence in me; He decided to maintain a similarly close working relationship with me during his second term in that office.

He thus shared many of his thoughts with me during that campaign.

The events of 1984 The year 1984 immediately brings to mind the sad memories of the tragic death, by road accident, of Prime Minister Sokoine; which produced equally tragic consequences; particularly regarding President Nyereres envisaged succession plan.

We have referred above to Mwalimu Nyereres reasons for refusing to accept nomination for the Presidency in 1980; when he said :  I need to put in place a succession plan.

When he re-appointed Edward Sokoine to the Premiership, he was, in fact, putting his succession plan in place. Thus, a major consequence of Sokoines sudden death, was the total frustration of this grand plan..

piomsekwa@gmail.com /0754767576.
The Navajo Nation's leaders began sounding the alarm about the coronavirus in February. They broadcast radio bulletins to their tribal members, dispatched community health representatives to far-flung homes on the reservation and translated COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, into the Navajo language: Dikos Ntsaaigii-Nahast'eits'aadah.

But it was not enough.

Two weeks after the tribe reported its first confirmed case of COVID-19 on March 17, there have been at least 213 others who tested positive and seven deaths in Navajo communities in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, the three states where the reservation sprawls across dusty deserts and pine-covered plateaus. The tribe, with roughly 175,000 residents, has more cases than five states.

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

Overwhelmed by the spread of the disease and fearing it could ravage a population already grappling with insufficient health care and generational poverty, the tribe secured the help of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Arizona National Guard, which set up a 50-bed medical facility in the community of Chinle, where staffing remains inadequate.

Navajo leaders say they welcome the assistance, which began streaming in last weekend.

"There are not enough beds, all over the Navajo Nation and all over the country, as you know," tribal President Jonathan Nez told NBC News. "Here, on the Navajo Nation, we don't have the best health care."

Image: Arizona National Guard (Ross D. Franklin / AP)

"We shouldn't be the last to get equipment," he added. "We are the first citizens of this country, our nation. And we just got to remind our federal partners out there that we are still here and we're resilient and we'll overcome this."

In addition to Chinle, the National Guard flew in two Blackhawk helicopters to Kayenta, where there's a clinic, to distribute 300 sets of personal protective equipment, or PPE, including gloves, gowns and masks. The guard also deployed a medical go-team to Tuba City, east of Grand Canyon National Park, where medical aid and PPE are essential at an Indian Health Service facility after it was deemed that there were "more patients that needed acute care than staff available," Gen. Michael McGuire, director of the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs, told reporters Monday.

Story continues

"This is a war on this virus," Arizona National Guard spokesman Maj. Aaron Thacker told NBC News. "We plan on doing more and more for the Navajo Nation. We just need to make sure we have provided them the essential resources."

Download the NBC News app for full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

Tuba City is the reservation's only true hospital in the region, and a plan is developing to move patients who require the most care to other facilities.

"We'll take whatever we can right now," Nez said, "and we're even trying to purchase those PPEs from outside the country as well, so we do need help."

The tribe's relationship with FEMA became necessary after a winter storm in February 2019 dumped about 2 feet of snow in northern Arizona, requiring federal emergency assistance.

Image: Navajo Nation (Navajo Nation)

The Navajo, like other Native American tribes, have been waiting for funding from the federal government to help combat the coronavirus since the beginning of March. According to Indian health officials, more than $1.5 billion has been set aside by Washington for health care as part of the $2 trillion stimulus package, but there's been a lack of distribution of funding, which could pay for more equipment and testing. The Indian Health Service, a federal agency, has historically been underfunded.

"Most Tribal health facilities are already operating on a slim budget, so this funding is vital to Tribes' ability to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak safely and effectively," said Victoria Kitcheyan, the chairperson of the National Indian Health Board, which advocates for all 574 federally recognized tribes. "Tribes need this money now," she added.

Myron Lizer, the vice president of the Navajo Nation, which controls the largest Native reservation in the United States, said he's worried that all of Indian country will be "jockeying" to get money first.

"We don't want the federal government to pin us against one another. Sometimes it becomes a competition," Lizer said.

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Like other tribes, Nez added, the Navajo has a significant elderly population, as well as higher rates of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Staving off diseases is made even more difficult since the more isolated corners of the reservation lack running water and electricity.

In 2009, amid the H1N1 flu outbreak, Native populations died at a rate four times all other racial and ethnic groups combined, according to a study by the National Institutes of Health.

"When you think of medicine on reservations, think of third-world type medicine," said NBC News medical correspondent Dr. John Torres, who served numerous Native American populations while in practice in Albuquerque and Chama, New Mexico. "You'll have some good facilities with good care, but these reservations are huge. They don't have the outreach they need. They have a lack of providers and lack of equipment, and they have chronic health conditions they need to take care of."

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Nez is determined to keep this pandemic from ravaging his tribe.

"This is a serious public health emergency on the Navajo Nation, and we're doing everything we can to get the message out to our folks to stay home," he said.

The tribe experienced an outbreak in early March after reports of a church gathering where at least one person who later tested positive was in attendance. The reservation has also been a popular tourist destination, and operates four casinos that have been shuttered.

Leaders have stressed the need for social distancing, instituted a shelter-in-place order March 20 and began a curfew this week from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., which is being enforced through road blocks.

Tribal health officials have warned that a peak in cases may not hit until mid-May, but with more effort by residents, that could arrive sooner at the end of April, Lizer said. If that happens, he added, that would mean people are adhering to the leadership's message.

"We're hoping for the best," Lizer said, "but fearing the worst."
The coronavirus infection continues to increase its horizon and claimed the lives of 509 in France on April 1, bringing the death toll to 4,032. The number of deaths registered on April 1, made it the darkest day of France with such a huge number of casualties in a single day from COVID-19. There are now 24,639 people hospitalized in France with infection, out of which 6,017 are currently being monitored under intensive care, health official Jerome Salomon reportedly told the media outlets.

The figures put forward by the health authorities on April 1, makes France the fourth country to pass the 4,000-casualties threshold after Italy, Spain, and the US. With 13,155 deaths to date, Italy contributes to 30 per cent of the global death tally. Spain has 9,053 deaths and, just like France, the US death tally has also crossed the 4,000-mark, surpassing the death toll of the horrifying 9/11 terror attack which happened in 2001.

Read: Coronavirus France: Former Marseille President Pape Diouf Dies Due To Coronavirus

Read: Secrecy And Suspense Over Tour De France's Fate

Coronavirus pandemic in Europe

The coronavirus pandemic which has tightened its grip has claimed more than 30,000 lives in Europe alone, a global tally showed on April 1. After seeing the loss of life everywhere, the United Nations has described this epidemic as humanity's worst crisis since World War II. Italy and Spain have currently borne the brunt of the crisis, accounting for three cases of fatalities in every four on the continent, as the grim tally hit another milestone even though half of the planet's population is under quarantine or self-isolation to battle the deadly disease.

Owing to the dangerous virus, on one hand, several companies have shut down for undetermined periods and entire workforces are working from to halt the spread of COVID-19, while on the other hand, scenes of economic desperation and unrest are emerging all across the world. In Italy, long queues of people were lengthening at soup kitchens while some supermarkets were reportedly crowded.

Read: US To Send Medical Supplies To Italy, France, Spain To Help Battle COVID-19 Pandemic

Read: Biggest Jump In COVID-19 Cases, Count Reaches 1,834; Death Toll Rises To 41: Health Ministry

Seeing the rapid pace of rising in cases, US President Donald Trump warned Americans of a very painful two weeks as the state registered its deadliest 24 hours where the upsurge in the death toll was more than that from a "plague." The outbreak in the US has mushroomed rapidly. There are around 190,000 known cases, making the figure just double in five days. Currently, 47,249 cases of casualties have been registered across the world from more than 936,204 infection cases since the disease emerged in China last year in December.

(Image credit: AP)
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stress, depression and anxiety can increase during times of crisis.

Residents around the greater Houston area face additional weeks of the Stay Home-Work Safe order after Judge Lina Hidalgo announced its extension following President Donald Trumps extension of social distancing guidelines to April 30.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Coronavirus live updates: Houston reports two more deaths, 48 new cases

As people remain cooped up indoors, mental health is an important aspect of their lives to keep in mind.

Mental health service providers in the northwest Houston area are allowing clients to stay at home and meet their counselor through a telehealth session, which is conducted through a video chat online or a phone call. Greater Houston Counseling and Shield Bearer, as well as other counseling providers, have begun online-only appointments with clients.

Thad Cardine, CEO of the nonprofit counseling organization Shield Bearer, said Shield Bearers multiple locations all began getting their counselors telehealth certified in order to provide service in a time of crisis. Shield Bearer has nine locations in the Houston area, including Tomball, The Woodlands and Cypress.

MORE FROM CHEVALL PRYCE: Northwest Houston nonprofits see an increased need for services during pandemic

(Telehealth certification) occurred when we first heard that the virus was approaching back in January and February, Cardine said. We had two counselors who already provided telehealth as part of their therapy but we have over 30 counselors. We started the process of providing training and getting the counselors ready just in case. We never anticipated that wed be in this situation like I am right now.

All counselors at Shield Bearer were approved to provide telehealth appointments a full two weeks before the Stay Home-Work Safe order went into place, Cardine said. Clients with severe problems, like human trafficking victims or people with suicidal thoughts, still come to the office for in-person appointments although they constitute a minority of the patients seen.

Cardine said some counselors and clients were hesitant to begin conducting appointments online only due to the difficulty of building rapport between patients and their counselors.

After the fact Ive heard nothing but positive feedback as people get more comfortable with the technology and utilizing the technology and getting everything set up in their home, Cardine said. Individuals who dont have access to public transportation or their own vehicle to receive services, this allows people, no matter where theyre located, to receive services.

GIVE BACK: Here's how to help Houston during the coronavirus pandemic

Telehealth regulations have relaxed when it comes to restrictions on the medium for appointments. This allows counselors to have phone appointments or use third-party applications like Skype, Facetime and Zoom to conduct appointments, Cardine said, in order to give more patients access to mental health services.

Greater Houston Counseling has closed its Spring office and shifted to all online appointments for their clients, making exceptions for autistic patients and patients dealing with suicidal thoughts.

Their types of sessions dont work well for online based on the nature of what theyre looking to accomplish therapeutically, Christina Runnels with Greater Houston Counseling said. We really talk with them through those questions and we ask if anybody at home has any respiratory issues, kind of go through the screening to identify if it is potentially safe to come into the office. It is at that point that we would allow them to come in under those circumstances.

Greater Houston Counseling also began a mother support group the week of March 30.

It is facilitated by one of our counselors but its just for moms that are trying to navigate working from home, cooking every meal, trying to figure out how to become a homeschool mom overnight, Runnels said. I think moms by and large know you get into a little routine, going on walks with their mom friends in their strollers and creating sense of community. Were trying to help moms create a new sense of community right now.

Runnels said clients and counselors are adjusting well to the online appointments, but does not see it as a permanent option for intellectually disabled or autistic clients that need hands-on instruction.

We work with kiddos as young as 3 so anywhere from 3 to Id say about 7 really isnt a good fit for teletherapy, she said. Were sitting on the floor, were playing through different things and so its not very feasible. We do constantly try to figure out in what ways we can incorporate some of those things into teletherapy but right now thats the only issue were seeing.

Both Cardine and Runnels said their offices are encouraging new clients to enroll since the next available in-person appointment is an unknown factor. While in-person meetings with counselors can help clients build a better relationship with them, Cardine said therapy cannot wait.

This is a challenging time for everybody and what weve always known about mental health is its one of the last things that people address, Cardine said. They look at all their other many, many issues that theyre dealing with and mental health goes on the back burner. This is a time when theres a rise in suicides, a rise in relapses if you have addictive personalities, or behaviors from the past.

chevall.pryce@chron.com
Afghan Government, Taliban Team Discuss Prisoner Swap In Kabul

By RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan April 01, 2020

KABUL -- Afghan government representatives have met with a three-member Taliban team in Kabul to discuss a prisoner swap as part of a peace deal signed by the Taliban and the United States in late February.

It is the first time an official Taliban delegation has been in the Afghan capital since the group was driven from power by U.S.-led forces in November 2001.

The two sides held "face-to-face" talks on March 31 and will meet again on April 1 for further discussions being observed by the International Committee of the Red Cross, Afghan National Security Council spokesman Javid Faisal tweeted.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the delegation was holding technical talks with government officials related to the prisoner release and the provision for medical checkup for those being freed.

Mujahid said that 100 captured Taliban fighters "will be released in [the] first batch."

"Then both sides will assess whether releasing 100 per day is working out well or not," he added.

Afghan officials and Taliban representatives had spoken previously in video conferences to discuss the planned prisoner exchange, which is part of the deal signed by the United States and the Taliban in Doha on February 29.

It calls for the Afghan government to release 5,000 detained Taliban fighters as a confidence-building measure ahead of formal peace talks.

The Taliban has vowed to release 1,000 Afghan government troops and civilian workers it is holding.

Under the U.S.-Taliban agreement, Taliban representatives also agreed to commit to direct talks with the Afghan government aimed at ending the country's 18-year conflict.

In return for the start of talks and a series of security commitments from the Taliban, all U.S. troops and other foreign coalition forces are meant to withdraw from Afghanistan within 14 months.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/afghan-government- taliban-team-discuss-prisoner- swap-in-kabul/30523620.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa



on Thursday said 14 COVID-19 cases in Karnataka have been reported in the state, taking the total to 124.

"In Karnataka, 124 people have been infected by coronavirus and we are in the ninth place in the country for number of cases," he said.

Reporting no fresh cases, the state health department in its mid-day bulletin on Thursday said, till date 110 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed, and this includes 3 deaths and 10 discharges.

Karnataka has already either implemented or is following most of the suggestions made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in implementing the lockdown to control virus spread, the Chief Minister said.

"Tthe decision on future (of lockdown) will depend on how we conduct ourselves till April 14 (last date of 21 days lockdown). After April 14 a task force will be formed and decide on what needsto be done in the days to come," he added.

Yediyurappa was speaking to reporters after participating in thePrime Minister's second video conference with Chief Ministers to review the lock down situation in the states and preventive measures taken by the States.

Briefing about the video conference, he said, the Prime Minister advised Chief Ministers to implement the lockdown effectively without affecting the essential services and deal stringently with curfew violations.

The Prime Minister also advised to isolate migrant workers and provide basic amenities to them, and appreciated states for effectively implementing lock down by good governance and discipline, Yediyurappa said.

He said the Prime Minister while noting that the situation in the world due to Covid-19 pandemic is worrying, stressed the need to minimise losses, and added this could be achieved only if we tackle effectively and unanimously.

Stating that exclusive Covid-19 hospitals shall be notified and people should be made aware of this, the Chief Minister quoting Modi said, incoming days, we should not face shortage of doctors and therefore AYUSH doctors shall be roped in and trained online, and advised to popularise AYUSH guidelines to improve immunity.

According to Yediyurappa, the Prime Minister while make it clear that social distancing must be maintained in banks while people go there to withdraw money transferred under PM-Garib Kalyan Package, said, agriculture activities are exempted from lockdown, but farmers should practice social distancing strictly.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A woman who was fined 660 had been wrongfully charged with a crime under new coronavirus laws, police have admitted.

Marie Dinou, 41, had refused to give police officers her name, address or reasons for travel.

They questioned her because she was loitering between platforms at Newcastle Central station on Saturday.

She was convicted of an offence under the Coronavirus Act 2020 at North Tyneside Magistrates Court on Monday, despite not being present at the hearing.

A judge fined her 660 and ordered her to pay a 66 victim surcharge and 85 in costs.

Following concerns raised by legal professionals, the conviction is to be quashed and police admitted it shouldnt have happened.

It comes amid confusion over the extent of the new coronavirus laws and concern about inconsistent enforcement between different police forces.

British Transport Police (BTP) said it had conducted a review with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) that established that Marie Dinou was charged under the incorrect section of the Coronavirus Act 2020.

In response to questions from The Independent, the force said it had asked North Tyneside Magistrates Court for the case to be relisted and the conviction to be set aside.

The miscarriage of justice came after police were criticised for setting up roadblocks (AFP/Getty)

Having reassessed the matter, BTP will not pursue any alternative prosecution, a spokesperson said.

Ms Dinou had been kept in police custody for two full days between her arrest on Saturday morning and the court hearing on Monday.

Ms Dinou had been suspected of a railway ticket offence, but the Coronavirus Act 2020  which only applies to potentially infectious persons was used to prosecute her instead.

Deputy Chief Constable Adrian Hanstock said There will be understandable concern that our interpretation of this new legislation has resulted in an ineffective prosecution.

This was in circumstances where officers were properly dealing with someone who was behaving suspiciously in the station, and who staff believed to be travelling without a valid ticket. Officers were rightfully challenging her unnecessary travel.

Regardless, we fully accept that this shouldnt have happened and we apologise. It is highly unusual that a case can pass through a number of controls in the criminal justice process and fail in this way.

The senior officer added: BTP and the CPS will undertake a more detailed review of the case to ensure that any lessons to be learned are integrated into our shared justice processes.

BTP said it has shared official guidance on how to enforce the new laws with officers to help them interpret the new legislation.

Mr Hanstock said officers would continue to engage with people to establish their reasons for journeys during the lockdown and could still enforce the law.

New guidance on the Coronavirus Act 2020 is to be published on Friday.

It came into force on 25 March and had been drafted at a time when the threat was perceived to mainly come from people entering the UK from abroad.

The law enables health officials to direct people to hospitals or testing centres, and gives powers for police to enforce their instructions.

Schedule 21 creates an offence of failing to without reasonable excuse to comply with any direction, reasonable instruction, requirement or restriction imposed as part of the act.

But the law can only apply to potentially infectious persons and is separate to the newer Health Protection Regulations that allow police to enforce the UK lockdown.

More than half the court buildings in England and Wales have been closed because of coronavirus, and those still operating are only dealing with urgent matters including remand hearings and coronavirus-related cases.

Police have been instructed to use enforcement as a last resort as they grapple with the rapidly drawn up new laws, which underwent little parliamentary scrutiny.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - April 1, 2020) - GoviEx Uranium Inc. (TSXV: GXU) (OTCQB: GVXXF) ("GoviEx" or "Company"), today provides a Market Update.

As governments world-wide are faced with the dynamic challenges of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, many jurisdictions have either mandated or strongly recommended business closures, as well as self-isolation protocols for their population in an effort to stem the infection rate of this disease. GoviEx, like many other businesses, has transitioned to a remote work from home environment, which has its own set of challenges as technical systems are adjusted and new work procedures adopted.

The increased volatility of equity and commodity markets coupled with the global interruption of businesses is causing major challenges in the near to medium term and will require organizations to adjust plans and schedules as necessary based on the safety guidelines outlined by their applicable public health authority.

During these disruptive times, GoviEx remains firm in our resolve and we continue to believe in the strong underlying fundamentals of the uranium and nuclear industry, and deep value in GoviEx's asset base.

Despite these temporal challenges, GoviEx is focusing diligently on the updated pre-feasibility study ("PFS") for the Madaouela project in Niger (the "Madaouela Project"). We take note that one of our PFS consultants is affected by the recently announced government imposed lockdowns in the Republic of South Africa ("RSA") where PFS test work is currently underway. The test work was targeting areas that are believed to have a potential to reduce both operating and capital costs relative to the current technical report(1) on the Madaouela Project and have now been suspended until these RSA lockdowns are lifted.

As a result, while we remain optimistic that our PFS consultants may be able to complete the PFS and for GoviEx to provide an update on the Madaouela Project economics during the first half of 2020, as previously announced, but this may change depending on the extent and duration of the RSA lockdowns and we will continue to monitor the situation closely and will provide further market updates as and when the situation evolves.

Notes:

1. See: An independent NI 43-101 technical report was prepared for the Madaouela Project in 2015 to a prefeasibility level of confidence. The report titled "An Updated Integrated Development Plan for the Madaouela Project, Niger" has an effective date of August 11, 2015, and a revision date of August 20, 2015, and is available at GoviEx's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

In addition and further to its news release of March 10, 2020, GoviEx continues to forbear collection procedures to allow Linkwood Holdings Pte Ltd. ("Linkwood") time to liquidate assets and repay the loan, together with default interest at a rate of 11.5%. GoviEx notes that Linkwood only made a portion of the scheduled payment due for the month of February 2020 and was unable to make the scheduled payment due for the month of March 2020.

Linkwood continues to work cooperatively with GoviEx and makes payments when they are able to liquidate securities that are collateralized by the loan, the majority of which currently have regulatory trade restrictions placed upon them. Based on the foregoing and on prevailing market conditions, the Company believes there is significant uncertainty as to when and in what amount future payments will be made by Linkwood. The Linkwood loan remains in default and GoviEx maintains its rights over the collaterized securities. GoviEx will continue to work with Linkwood toward maximizing recovery of the loan. This change in status of the loan will require GoviEx to consider the validity of the holding value of the loan in the Company's consolidated financial statements.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

About GoviEx Uranium

GoviEx is a mineral resource company focused on the exploration and development of uranium properties in Africa. GoviEx's principal objective is to become a significant uranium producer through the continued exploration and development of its flagship mine-permitted Madaouela Project in Niger, its mine-permitted Mutanga Project in Zambia, and its other uranium properties elsewhere in Africa.

Information Contacts

Govind Friedland, Executive Chairman

Daniel Major, Chief Executive Officer

+1-604-681-5529

info@goviex.com

www.goviex.com

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release may contain forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. All information and statements other than statements of current or historical facts contained in this news release are forward-looking information.

Forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties concerning the specific factors disclosed here and elsewhere in GoviEx's periodic filings with Canadian securities regulators. When used in this news release, words such as "will", "could", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "intend", "may", "potential", "should," and similar expressions, are forward- looking statements. Information provided in this document is necessarily summarized and may not contain all available material information.

Forward-looking statements include those that PFS consultants may be able to complete the PFS and for GoviEx to provide an update on the Madaouela Project economics during the first half of 2020 and that the Company will be able to continue to work with Linkwood to recover the full repayment of the loan and default interest at a rate of 11.5%.

Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurances that its expectations will be achieved. Such assumptions, which may prove incorrect, include the following: (i) Linkwood will continue to use best efforts to make loan repayments; (ii) the value of the Linkwood assets to be liquidated for repayment of the loan will be sufficient to repay the loan and related interest in full; (iii) the extent and duration of the RSA lockdowns will not dramatically affect the PFS completion timeline; and (iv) the price of uranium will remain sufficiently high and the costs of advancing the Company's mining projects will remain sufficiently low so as to permit GoviEx to implement its business plans in a profitable manner.

Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from expectations include (i) the inability or unwillingness of Linkwood to repay the loan; (ii) the value of the Linkwood assets to be liquidated for repayment of the loan will be insufficient to repay the loan and related interest in full; (iii) Company's failure to make effective use of the proceeds of the loan repayment; (iv) the extent and duration of the RSA lockdowns materially affecting the ability to complete the PFS in the first half of 2020; (v) the failure of the Company's projects, for technical, logistical, labour-relations, or other reasons; (vi) a decrease in the price of uranium below what is necessary to sustain the Company's operations; (vii) an increase in the Company's operating costs above what is necessary to sustain its operations; (viii) accidents, labour disputes, or the materialization of similar risks; (ix) a deterioration in capital market conditions that prevents the Company from raising the funds it requires on a timely basis; (x) a deterioration in capital market conditions that prevents Linkwood from realizing sufficient funds from the liquidation of its assets to meet its loan repayment obligations; and (xi) generally, the Company's inability to develop and implement a successful business plan for any reason.

In addition, the factors described or referred to in the section entitled "Financial Risks and Management Objectives" in the MD&A for the year ended December 31, 2018, of GoviEx, which is available on the SEDAR website at www.sedar.com, should be reviewed in conjunction with the information found in this news release.

Although GoviEx has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements, there can be other factors that cause results, performance, or achievements not to be as anticipated, estimated, or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate or that management's expectations or estimates of future developments, circumstances, or results will materialize. As a result of these risks and uncertainties, no assurance can be given that any events anticipated by the forward-looking information in this news release will transpire or occur, or, if any of them do so, what benefits that GoviEx will derive therefrom. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements in this news release are made as of the date of this news release, and GoviEx disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise such information, except as required by applicable law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54047
A medical staff member carries a digital inverter generator into Cedar Mountain Post Acute nursing home after 51 residents and six staff members tested positive for the coronavirus on Wednesday in Yucaipa. Two of the residents have died. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles County health officials Thursday confirmed 13 new coronavirus-related deaths, bringing the toll to 78.

Twelve of the victims were over the age of 65 and of those, 11 had underlying health conditions, according to Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

The other person who died was between ages 41 and 65 and also had underlying health conditions, Ferrer said.

Los Angeles County officials also announced 534 new COVID-19 cases. Long Beach, which has its own health department, announced 14 new cases, bringing the citys total to 153. There were 49 confirmed cases in Pasadena, which also has its own health department.

There were more than 4,000 confirmed cases overall in L.A. County as of Thursday afternoon. The daily count has increased by more than 1,000 in the last 48 hours.

"We are all in this together, so it makes sense that we work together to get through this," Ferrer said. "Please dont lose hope, and please dont stop following all of the directives that you are following right now to slow the spread of COVID-19."

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues its march across California, the number of cases in the state swelled to more than 11,000 Thursday  with the death toll topping 200. Of those cases, 40% have occurred in L.A. County.

Amid the surge, officials are continuing to urge the public to carry on with unprecedented social-distancing measures while also rushing to get more supplies to hospitals amid a rise in sick patients.

The rapid spread of the virus brought new concerns about whether the state's healthcare system can handle the inflow of patients. Many California hospitals and local medical centers are grappling with shortages of supplies amid a scramble to prepare for what is expected to be a deluge of patients in the coming weeks.

The case count comes from a continuous Los Angeles Times survey of the dozens of local health agencies across California.

Story continues

While the number of infections continues to swell statewide, Gov. Gavin Newsom said he believes the state's social-distancing efforts have made a difference.

"The ICU numbers and the hospital numbers, while they're growing, are not growing as significantly as youre seeing in other parts of the country," he said Thursday. "Were not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination."

In recent weeks, a fierce debate has erupted between hospitals and nursing homes over the fate of elderly patients.

Hospitals are desperately trying to discharge patients to clear space for an expected wave of people infected with COVID-19. But nursing homes are reluctant to accept any new patients  or even returning residents  until it is proved that they are virus-free.

On Monday, the California Department of Public Health sided squarely with the hospitals, ordering skilled nursing facilities to accept residents even if they have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. After an outcry from elder advocates, one of whom called the directive nothing less than a death sentence for nursing home residents, state officials issued new guidance late Wednesday.

The final determination lies with the local health department, the states Department of Public Health said in an email to The Times. Local public health officers have this authority in an emergency.

Elder advocates, who say most nursing homes lack the equipment and training to properly quarantine patients with the virus, are not satisfied. Many want the state to set up entirely separate living spaces for nursing home residents with the virus, like empty hotels, dormitories or cruise ships.

The state's constantly shifting positions are confusing and will lead to bad outcomes," said Michael Connors, a spokesman for California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform. "Which guidance are facilities expected to pay attention to?

The confusing signals come as the number of suspected coronavirus infections at communal living institutions, including nursing homes, is skyrocketing. On Thursday, Ferrer announced her department was investigating potential outbreaks at 54 institutions, dozens more than the day before.

Eleven of the 78 people who have died of COVID-19 in Los Angeles County have been nursing home residents, officials said.

Los Angeles County public health officials continue to reiterate pleas for Angelenos to stay at home in an effort to stem the virus' spread and give hospitals a chance to treat the ill without becoming overwhelmed.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti went as far as advising the Department of Water and Power to shut off utilities to nonessential businesses violating the citys order to close amid the pandemic.

Slowing the spread of this virus and flattening the curve on new infections demands that we all do our part, and thats the bottom line, Garcetti said. Yet still some nonessential businesses continue to operate, putting everybody at risk.

Garcetti said Thursday night that eight businesses had been referred for criminal prosecution, but that the process will take time because courts are closed.

"We had a smoke shop that just refused to close," Garcetti said. "And even when police officers were there, they said, 'Forget you'  probably not in as nice words  'we're not going to do it.'"

The city is moving to shut off the smoke shop's power, he said.

"We want to let people know that we are serious about this, that businesses that flagrantly violate this will be shut down short term and prosecuted in the medium term as well," Garcetti said.

Orange County saw its biggest single-day increase in coronavirus infections Wednesday, as officials announced 107 new cases and three additional deaths. On Thursday, officials added 56 new cases to the list and three deaths, bringing the county's death toll to 13.

Of the more than 7,790 people who have been tested countywide, 656 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed. More than 100 people are hospitalized, with 47 in intensive care units, according to county officials.

State officials announced Wednesday they will use the Fairview Developmental Center  a state-owned property in Costa Mesa  as an alternative care site to relieve stress on other regional hospitals. Repurposing the center, which long housed adults with developmental and behavioral disabilities, is part of an overall effort to boost the number of hospital beds available statewide.

The facility will provide up to 1,100 new hospital beds that should be available this month, according to Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Laguna Beach).

Around the world and in other states, we have seen the horrific images and heard the heartbreaking stories of COVID-19 patients dying in hospital corridors because there are not enough beds, she said in a statement. We are aggressively preparing for Californias surge to try to avoid that nightmare.

Santa Barbara County recorded its first death from the virus Wednesday. The person was in their 60s and had underlying health conditions, according to public health officials.

Twelve additional COVID-19 cases were confirmed throughout the county, bringing the number of confirmed infections to 111.

Meanwhile, Tehama County in Northern California announced its first case of the virus late Wednesday.

Riverside County Sheriffs Deputy Terrell Young died from complications of the coronavirus, the department said Thursday. He had served in the department for 15 years and was its first member to succumb to the virus. He is survived by his wife of 31 years and four children.

In a news briefing Thursday, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco described Young as a compassionate deputy who worked with the public and inmates.

"He was a fantastic role model for his kids, especially for his daughter," Bianco said. "Employees knew they could count on him for good advice. Terrell was always on time and very well liked by his peers and supervisors and always willing to lend a hand. According to many, he was known for his smile and he will be deeply missed."

Bianco said he believes Young contracted the virus after escorting an inmate to a Riverside University Health System hospital during the week of March 16. On March 22, Young went home from work after coming down with a fever. The next day, 10 employees, including Young, called in sick. The inmate Young had escorted also began experiencing symptoms that day. The inmate has tested positive for the virus, although it's unclear if he tested positive before or after contact with Young.

Bianco said all employees and inmates who have exhibited symptoms have been quarantined and tested. So far, 25 employees and 11 inmates have tested positive for the virus, some of whom did not show any symptoms. Several employees have been or are in the hospital. One is in critical condition.

"It should be an eye-opener for the general public," he said. "We are seeing the drastic and the viral aspects of this and it's not pretty."

The number of COVID-19 cases in Alameda County rose by 34 overnight, from 339 to 373. The number of deaths also rose from eight to nine, according to the Alameda County Public Health Department.

A person in neighboring San Joaquin County died from the virus Thursday, bringing the county's death total to nine. The county also saw an increase of 12 cases, rising to 173, according to its Public Health Services department.

Health officials warned it could get much worse if Californians dont adhere to the stay-at-home orders, which now could last well into May.

Some officials have begun recommending that people wear face coverings when going out in public. However, Ferrer cautioned against using N95 and surgical masks, which are already in short supply for healthcare providers.

She said people could use a bandanna or piece of fabric to cover their nose and mouth while out in public doing essential errands, but she warned: Wearing a mask is not a shield. It does not replace frequent hand washing and social distancing efforts.

Ferrer said the face coverings were intended for interactions with other people.

If a person goes on a run alone, she said, a face covering is not necessary. If a person runs with other people, which should only be done if they are spread out, or stops to chat with someone while exercising, a covering is advised.

Garcetti said he had been awaiting advice on masks from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but with the COVID-19 rate surging, he decided to wait no longer on weighing in on the mask debate.

He said everyone performing essential tasks outside the home such as food shopping should wear homemade, nonmedical face coverings, or even bandannas, as people in other countries have done.

"Data shows many folks who are infected are aysmptomatic and can become super-spreaders, infecting people that they come into contact with," Garcetti said Thursday evening.

"And together with physical distancing and staying at home, adding a protective face covering is another tool to slow the spread. We want you to keep your respiratory droplets to yourself."

Times staff writers Joseph Serna, Kailyn Brown, Priscella Vega and Nicole Santa Cruz contributed to this report.
New Jersey residents fearful of spreading or contracting the coronavirus are leaving their homes wearing gloves and face masks, but too many are returning empty-handed.

Angered police and municipal officials have issued orders to residents asking them to stop dumping their personal protective gear on the ground  particularly in the parking lots of grocery stores and shopping centers.

East Brunswick police issued a statement Wednesday stating they will be actively patrolling and issuing summonses to anyone found discarding their protective materials on the ground, including latex gloves, face masks and tissues. Fines for littering vary between $50 and up to $2,000, according to Patch.com.

Police described the dumping of these materials as a careless and selfish action that puts others at risk."

Many people across New Jersey are wearing protective gloves and masks while grocery shopping," the statement reads. "While the East Brunswick (police) strongly support and encourage this, it is very unfortunate that some people are taking the masks and gloves that they are using to protect themselves and simply throwing them on the ground.

In nearby Edison  Middlesex Countys largest town  Mayor Thomas Lankey also released a statement Wednesday declaring the illegal dumping of these materials on the ground simply unacceptable."

He added these actions are not only inconvenient but also dangerous to those responsible for cleaning the lot by exposing them to "potential contamination issues.

We recognize that these are unprecedented times, but I am asking for everyone to take into consideration the people working at our supermarkets and grocery stores and please refrain from dropping trash in the parking lots of these essential businesses, Lankey said.

Now, more than ever, we need to respect the fact that many are making sacrifices to serve our community and we all need to do our part to not increase that burden, he added.

The dumping is not only happening in central New Jersey, but in some parts of North Jersey as well.

In Essex County, Nutley officials reported increasing complaints on Tuesday regarding disposable gloves being disposed of on sidewalks and streets.

Doing this not only is illegal and pollutes our town, but also puts our employees and neighbors at risk when they need to clean it up," the statement reads. Please respect our environment and our neighbors and properly dispose of gloves in the nearest garbage can.

In Hudson County, Bayonne Mayor Jimmy Davis similarly shared on Tuesday that too many used protective gloves and masks are being tossed onto the citys streets and sidewalks.

Do not toss your trash on the ground during this crisis, especially protective gloves and masks! the statement reads. Besides the mess it makes, think about the safety of your fellow residents. Make sure that you dispose of gloves and masks properly, in a garbage bag, tightly secured.

If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

Have a tip? Tell us.nj.com/tips.

Caroline Fassett may be reached at cfassett@njadvancemedia.com. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
[April 02, 2020] Empower Retirement Waives Fees on New Loans and Hardship Withdrawals

Empower Retirement is waiving fees on all new retirement plan loans and hardship withdrawals in an effort to support the financial needs of American retirement investors resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak and the related fallout in the economy. Empower will not charge origination fees on any new plan loans and will suspend charges for all hardship withdrawals. These changes cover all tax-qualified workplace retirement plans administered by Empower that permit such distributions, and include new provisions allowed for under the recently enacted Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. "We must do everything we can to accommodate the immediate financial needs of our customers," said Empower Retirement President and CEO Edmund F. Murphy III. "Some are already in financial distress right now and need access to their retirement savings to support their loved ones. We are taking these steps to help those families." The historic downturn in the financial markets and related economic uncertainty, coupled with elevated jobless claims reported by the Department of Labor on March 26, may foretell high levels of demand for loans and hardship withdrawals over the next several months. "Empower serves individuals across the economy and at all income levels. Some will need every ounce of support that we can offer them," he said. "We're all in this together we will need to offer a helping hand where it's needed." The fee waiver will remain in place until further notice, depending on circumstances in the economy and financial markets. Waiving loan and withdrawal fees is the latest action taken by Empower in response to the unprecedented events since the outbreak began. Over the last month, Empower has taken numerous steps to protect and support the interests of customers, employees and other stakeholders. Empower has suspended all in-person meetings, canceled travel and shifted nearly its entire employee base to work-from-home status in an effort to adhere to social distancing standards. On March 17, Empowr wrote to U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin seeking support for retirement provisions in legislation that became law 10 days later. Last week, Empower announced $250,000 in donations to community organizations fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the company has amplified communications to clients, advisors and individuals through market commentary, research and operational and business continuity updates about the firm-wide response to the virus and resulting market and economic volatility.



In addition, Empower has bolstered all call center capacity and elevated the availability of one-on-one counseling sessions to meet the needs of retirement investors seeking advice. About Empower Retirement

Headquartered in metro Denver, Empower Retirement administers $686.5 billion in assets1 for more than 9.4 million retirement plan participants, as of Dec. 31, 2019. It is the nation's second-largest retirement plan record keeper by total participants (Pensions & Investments, April 2019. Empower serves all segments of the employer-sponsored retirement plan market: government 457 plans; small, midsize and large corporate 401 (k) clients; non-profit 403 (b) entities; private-label recordkeeping clients; and Individual Retirement Account customers. For more information please visit www.Empower-retirement.com. 1As of Dec. 31, 2019. Information refers to the business of Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company and its subsidiaries, including Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company of New York and GWFS Equities, Inc. GWLA's consolidated total assets under administration (AUA) were $686.5B. AUA is a non-GAAP measure and does not reflect the financial stability or strength of a company. GWLA's statutory assets total $48.8B and liabilities total $47.3B. GWLANY statutory assets total $1.6B and liabilities total $1.5B. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005120/en/

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Three Indian Americans, including an IT professional and a doctor, have been tested positive for coronavirus in Houston this week and are in critical condition in a hospital here.

The families of Rohan Bavadekar, 42, an IT professional, and Lavanga Veluswamy, a doctor, have urgently appealed for blood donation from anyone who has recently recovered from COVID-19.

Rohan contracted the disease during his business travel recently. He needs blood group A or AB. His wife Manasi and three children have also contracted the virus and are quarantined at their home.

Veluswamy's wife Rama, herself a physician, has urgently appealed for the blood group A or AB. The doctor couple have been long time resident of Houston, before moving to Beaumont, in Texas.

The third COVID-19 patient, has preferred to stay anonymous and is waiting for the plasma transfusion at Memorial Hermann hospital here.

According to doctors at the St Lukes and Memorial Hermann, who are treating them, "the best match in such circumstances would be someone who has recovered from COVID-19 in the past two weeks and is now healthy".

The hospitals are trying their best to find a plasma match for these patients. Friends and well-wishers of the family are spreading the word in the Houston area to try and look for a possible match that can save their lives.

Sewa International, a non profit humanitarian charity, which has been working with these affected families, is consolidating all potential donor information.

"Sewa International is collecting information of all potential donors and only the doctors can say if the donor matches or not after due testing and evaluation, Achlesh Amar, a Sewa volunteer, said



Plasma from someone who has recovered from COVID-19 contains antibodies made by the immune system to attack the virus. The hope is that transfusing such plasma into a patient still fighting the virus may transfer the power of the antibodies into a healing, possibly life-saving therapy.

Houston Methodist Hospital is the first hospital in the the US to try the experimental convalescent serum therapy.

Convalescent serum therapy could be a vital treatment route because unfortunately there is relatively little to offer many patients except supportive care, and the ongoing clinical trials are going to take a while, Dr. Eric Salazar, a physician scientist with Methodist's Research Institute, said in a statement. We don't have that much time, Salazar said.

Sewa has appealed to the entire community through its 40-plus chapters in the US and via Facebook for donors of plasma to come forward for these patients treatment.

SEWA is also helping those on the front lines to stop the spread of coronavirus and treat the sick by supplying them with personal protection equipment, which is in dire need due to scarcity throughout America.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Bloomberg) -- SoftBank Group Corp. scrapped an agreement to spend $3 billion to buy WeWork stock from former Chief Executive Officer Adam Neumann and other shareholders, despite threats of legal action from some members of the companys board.

SoftBank had agreed to buy the shares from Neumann, Benchmark Capital and others as part of a bailout package last year, but notified stockholders in mid-March that conditions for the deal hadnt been met. On Thursday, after the deals deadline passed, SoftBank confirmed it would end the offer, citing five conditions that were not satisfied by the closing date.

SoftBank remains fully committed to the success of WeWork and has taken significant steps to strengthen the company since October, including newly committed capital, the development of a new strategic plan for WeWork and the hiring of a new, world-class management team, said Rob Townsend, chief legal officer at the company. The tender offer was an offer to buy shares directly from other major stockholders and its termination has no impact on WeWorks operations or customers.

SoftBank shares rose 2.5% while the broader Japan market fell.

A WeWork committee of two independent directors voiced disagreement over SoftBanks decision and suggested there may be legal action.

The Special Committee is surprised and disappointed at this development, and remains committed to reaching a resolution that is in the best interest of WeWork and its minority shareholders, including WeWorks employees and former employees. The Special Committee will evaluate all of its legal options, including litigation, the committee, made up of Benchmarks Bruce Dunlevie and another director, Lew Frankfort, said in an emailed statement.

The share purchase was hammered out in October as part of SoftBanks rescue of WeWork, after the co-working companys failed initial public offering left it weeks away from running out of money. In the deal, the Japanese conglomerate would have taken a stake of almost 80% in the company and buy $3 billion in shares from investors as well as current and former employees. Neumann, ousted in the deal, was set to sell up to $970 million in shares. The generous exit package angered many of his employees, thousands of whom had their jobs eliminated in the following months as WeWork parent We Co. tried to cut its expenses.

Story continues

WeWork signs long-term leases with landlords around the world and then rents that space to smaller companies and freelance workers, a business that has been particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus and economic slowdown. In a letter to bondholders, the company warned it didnt expect to hit its financial targets for 2020.

Given our fiduciary duty to our shareholders, it would be irresponsible of SoftBank to ignore the fact that the conditions were not satisfied and to nevertheless consummate the tender offer, Townsend said.

In the past few weeks, the shareholder buyout deal has become increasingly contentious. SoftBank sent the letter to WeWork investors saying it could withdraw from the agreement if certain conditions werent met by the deadline. SoftBank cited regulatory concerns and a handful of government investigations into WeWork, including from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department.

The two WeWork independent board directors responded, saying they would consider legal action if SoftBank pulled out. Its excuses for not trying to close are inappropriate and dishonest, a spokeswoman for the directors had said in a statement.

The latest deal is separate from SoftBanks bailout of WeWork itself, a package that included $5 billion in new financing and the acceleration of an earlier $1.5 billion commitment. Most of the money would have gone to five shareholders, including Neumann and the venture capital firm Benchmark, which was looking to sell $600 million in shares, Bloomberg has reported. Less than 10% of the proceeds would have gone to current WeWork employees, SoftBank has said.

Still, the transaction has repercussions for WeWork. As part of the deal, the company would have gotten $1.1 billion in debt financing from SoftBank if the share purchase was completed. The Japanese company has decided it is not legally obligated to provide that capital, although it may yet do so, according to a person familiar with the matter.

SoftBank and its affiliates have committed more than $14.25 billion to WeWork to date, including $5.45 billion since October, the company said in its statement. WeWork had $4.4 billion in pro forma cash and cash commitments at the end of 2019, SoftBank said.

Separately, SoftBank said it completed the sale of its U.S. unit Sprint Corp. to T-Mobile US Inc. The deal removes about $40 billion in net debt from the Japanese conglomerates balance sheet.

(Updates with details on financing in 13th paragraph)

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Manitoba politicians are not ruling out issuing fines to people who refuse to practise physical distancing to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba politicians are not ruling out issuing fines to people who refuse to practise physical distancing to stop the spread of COVID-19.

On Wednesday, Premier Brian Pallister was asked about instances in which people gather in groups larger than 10, which is the maximum allowed under social distancing guidelines  for example videos share on social media showing people playing sports.

"I won't take off the table the possibility of further actions if people are blatantly abusing the rights and freedoms they have come to take for granted in some cases," Pallister said. "We respect those rights, but we also respect the right of people to be protected at times like these."

"I won't take off the table the possibility of further actions if people are blatantly abusing the rights and freedoms they have come to take for granted in some cases. We respect those rights, but we also respect the right of people to be protected at times like these." Premier Brian Pallister

Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman said the city would back any effort by the provincial government to enforce social distancing.

"As the premier indicated earlier today, handing out fines is not a desirable outcome," Bowman said. "On that point, I want to be clear: if the province decides to increase enforcement measures like theyve done in other provinces and initiate fines, Ill be in full support."

Bowman said the city would take action if the province were to issue a health order.

"At this stage, were working to support the provincial governments efforts, we are seeing other provinces take some unprecedented measures to do their best to ensure citizens are respecting provincial orders," he said.

Some cities have taken enforcing social distancing into their own hands. The City of Brampton, in Ontario, enacted a bylaw Tuesday that prohibits people from being within two metres of each other on public property unless they are from the same household. They would be subject to a minimum $500 fine. The bylaw prohibits businesses from allowing people to break the two-metre rule.

The Manitoba government declared a state of emergency on March 20. Winnipeg city council will meet on Friday to discuss the possibility of declaring a local emergency.

Jason Shaw, the city's emergency operations centre manager, said the declaration would give the city "a host of powers."

"Theres a whole list of powers, but the ability to stop egress and access to certain areas for transmission reasons, theres the ability to have buildings and locations secured so that we can provide more services if we need to," he said.

Jen Zoratti | Next A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Bowman said the city would use the power as needed.

"The state of local emergency would be intended to provide the public service with additional tools that they could implement if and when necessary, if the situation worsens in the coming weeks," Bowman said.

City councillors Kevin Klein and Shawn Nason called on the city to stop issuing charges for late payment of property taxes, reverse the increase to water and sewer rates and suspend the business tax for local companies that have closed. They want those changes to be in effect until Oct. 31.

They say they have identified $65 million in adjustments that could be made to the budget to mitigate financial losses to the city, including a hiring freeze and cancelling any projects that would incur debt, not including roads and bridges.

 with files from Carol Sanders

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca
* War has left Yemen at high risk from coronavirus

* U.N. pushes for online consultations on ceasefire

* U.S. voices concern to Saudi foreign minister

* Peace negotiations have stalled since Dec. 2018

By Aziz El Yaakoubi and Stephen Kalin

DUBAI, April 2 (Reuters) - The United Nations and Western allies are pointing to the threat of coronavirus to push Yemen's combatants to agree to fresh talks to end a war that has left millions vulnerable to disease, the U.N. and sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

The world body has sent a proposal to the internationally recognised government, the Saudi-led military coalition that supports it and the Iran-aligned Houthi movement that holds the capital Sanaa and most major towns, said two of the sources.

They said U.N. special envoy Martin Griffiths is working to convene the parties via video conference soon to discuss the working document that calls for a nationwide ceasefire, including halting all air, ground and naval hostilities, and for the parties to ensure compliance by forces on frontlines.

Griffith's office said the need for peace talks was urgent.

While the World Health Organisation has said that there have been no confirmed coronavirus cases yet in Yemen, cholera, dengue, malaria and poor sanitation are rife in the country and around 80% of Yemenis are reliant on humanitarian aid.

"The Office of the UN Special Envoy for Yemen is engaging the parties on reaching agreements on a nationwide ceasefire... and the urgent resumption of the political process aimed at comprehensively ending the war," a statement by his office said.

"This process further aims to foster joint efforts to counter the threat of COVID-19," it said, adding it was also contacting a broader range of Yemenis to consult on how to help Yemen's capacity "to avert and mitigate a COVID-19 outbreak."

The five-year-old conflict, largely seen in the region as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and its arch-foe Iran, has killed more than 100,000 people and unleashed an urgent humanitarian crises that has pushed millions to the verge of famine and forced thousands to seek shelter in displacement camps.

Story continues

A spokesmen for the Saudi-led military coalition and the Houthi movement did not immediately respond to a Reuters' request for comment.

The U.N. envoy has been trying to restart broad political negotiations last held in December 2018.

Saudi Arabia launched indirect talks with the Houthis late last year which led to a temporary lull in military operations, but a recent spike in violence has threatened fragile peace deals in main Yemeni ports that handle imports and aid flows.

U.S. VOICES CONCERN

Three sources, including the first two, said Riyadh recently proposed hosting a meeting between the coalition, the Houthis and U.N. officials at a military base in the kingdom but that Houthi officials rejected the offer due to deep mistrust.

"The main challenge is that every party wants to have more control before starting any talks, hence escalation of violence," one of the sources told Reuters.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a phone call with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan on Wednesday expressed concern over the coronavirus pandemic and discussed the Yemen war, the State Department said, without elaborating.

The warring sides all welcomed a call last week by U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for a ceasefire, but on Sunday the Houthis fired missiles at Saudi cities, including the capital Riyadh. Saudi Arabia intercepted them and responded on Monday with heavy air strikes on Sanaa and Hodeidah province.

It was the first time Riyadh had been attacked by Houthi missiles since last summer. The group in late September offered to stop launching missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia if the coalition halted air strikes on Yemen, but has since struck Saudi border areas and no official truce was agreed.

The Houthis ousted Abd-Rabbu Mansour's government from power in Sanaa in late 2014, prompting the Western-backed, Sunni Muslim coalition to intervene in March 2015 to restore him to power, but there has been a military stalemate for years. The Houthis say they are fighting a corrupt system. (Reporting by Aziz El Yaakoubi and Stephen Kalin; Editing by Ghaida Ghantous, William Maclean)
The cargo includes drugs and equipment to be used in the fight against the pandemic. Basij members provide the material. Last month the young people produced up to 200 thousand masks and thousands of liters of disinfectant. Help to be given to the poorest Americans without health coverage.

Tehran (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Groups of Iranian students have sent a load of medical and health supplies to the US people, to counter the rapid spread of the new coronavirus pandemic that has also affected over 210,000 people in the US.

The material, which includes equipment and specific drugs for the fight against Covid-19, is supplied by the university students of the Islamic Republic who are members of Basij, the so-called "volunteers of the revolution".

The collected goods, to be distributed to the poorest part of the US population without medical insurance or health coverage, were crammed into two trucks and delivered to the Swiss embassy, which represents the interests of the United States in Iran. University students from the Basij of various provinces of the country have joined the initiative, engaged since the first days of the epidemic in the production of masks and other health products.

Interviewed by the semi-official Fars agency, student representative Ali Kian confirmed that the material was delivered on March 31 to the embassy in conjunction with the national holiday in Iran. Last month, the university students contributed to the production of sanitary articles, to meet the huge requests related to the pandemic, making up to 200 thousand masks and thousands of liters of disinfectant.

Kian says the material will be "distributed to hospitals and the population, especially in the poorest areas of the country". When we saw the "painful conditions" of the most "vulnerable" fringe of the Americans, the decision was taken to "donate part of the internal production of medical supplies", in particular to those who gravitate around "the New York area".

The youth also sent a letter to Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, calling for a renewed diplomatic effort to ensure that the cargo reaches its destination and is distributed to the population. It contains various types of masks, disinfectants, visors, gowns and sanitary towels. The cargo, Kian concludes, "has been properly sterilized and also contains a humanitarian message" to the US people.

Iran is the nation most affected in the Middle East by the new coronavirus epidemic, with almost 48 thousand infections, over 3 thousand victims and 15 thousand people recovered. Some observers say, however, that the data are underestimated and the real toll is far greater. The United States is the country with the highest number of cases in the world according to the latest updated estimates, at least 216,721; there have been 5 thousand deaths and just over 8600 recoveries.

Appeals to the White House have recently been repeated to ease the policy of head-on confrontation with sanctions against Iran, which also end up causing blockages and restrictions in sending medicines and basic necessities to the Islamic Republic. To stem the sanctions, in recent days three European nations have used the Instex system for the first time in sending aid.
Male nurses wearing a face mask and overalls bring a patient on a stretcher into the newly built Columbus Covid 2 temporary hospital to fight the new coronavirus infection at the Gemelli hospital in Rome on March 16, 2020. (Andreas Solaro/ AFP via Getty Images)

Italy Reports 760 New COVID-19 Deaths as Authorities Say Death Toll Is Far Higher

Health authorities in Italy said Thursday that 760 people died of the CCP virus in the past 24 hours, as some authorities have warned that the countrys death toll might be even higher than reported.

Another 4,668 cases of the virus were confirmed Thursday, said Italys Civil Protection department in an update. So far more, than 115,000 cases of the virus and 13,915 deaths have been confirmed, according to ANSA.

The number of people being hospitalized has decreased, said Angelo Borrelli, the head of the Civil Protection agency. He added that 61 percent of the total infected people have no symptoms or have mild symptoms.

Borrelli said earlier this week that Chinese Communist Party (CCP) virus infection rates in some parts of Italy have reached their peak but said southern Italy is still at risk.

It would be a mistake to let our guard down now, he said, referring to a nationwide lockdown that was implemented in early March. The government extended Italys lockdown to April 13, The Local reported.

If we started to loosen the measures, all of our efforts would have been in vain and we would pay a very high price, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Wednesday.

Two nurses walk in front of the Emergency Room of the local hospital in Cremona, near Milan, Italy, on March 20, 2020. (Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images)

In his address, Conte said he is not sure when the lockdown might end.

The moment the data is consolidated and the experts give their response, well be able to identify an end date. But I cant give it today, he said.

Higher Than Reported?

However, some officials said that many more people have died in Italy than what is recorded by the government in daily updates.

There are many more dead than are officially declared. But this is not a jaccuse. People died and they were never tested because time and resources are limited, Eugenio Fossati, deputy mayor of Coccaglio, told the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday. We know the real number is higher, and we mourn them, knowing full well why they died, he continued. Its a hard truth to accept.

And Bergamo Mayor Giorgio Gori wrote on social media that the death toll may be twice as high.

I fear that the real figure is higher, he said this week.

Medical professionals have said that the healthcare system around hard-hit Lombardy is so overwhelmed that doctors cannot treat all CCP virus patients. Many who have died outside of hospital care typically are not tested for the virus.

They are not receiving postmortem tests, Eleonora Colombi, a family doctor based near Brescia, told the Journal. Many of those who die and arent tested are old, but you normally dont have so many people all dying at the same time. Its corona.

She added that in some cases, an ambulance wont come if you are 94 years old and there are 50 other people waiting.

High Health Institute president Silvio Brusaferro, who has been giving updates daily, stated on Tuesday that he believes the real figure is greater. They dont include people who died at home, in nursing homes, or people who died from the virus and werent tested.

It is plausible that deaths are underestimated, he said. We report deaths that are signaled with a positive swab. Many other deaths are not tested with a swab.
All amounts expressed in US dollars



ELKO, Nevada, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nevada Gold Mines (NGM) is working with the state of Nevada and its stakeholders to identify immediate needs and provide financial and logistical support to mitigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on its local communities.

Executive Managing Director Greg Walker said NGM, the largest global gold producing complex and a joint venture between Barrick Gold Corporation (61.5%) and Newmont Corporation (38.5%) and operated by Barrick, was a committed partner of the state, the region and the community, and recognized that extraordinary times called for extraordinary measures.

We have ensured that our operations are working as safely and responsibly as possible but it is not only our employees that we are concerned about  we are also using our resources to support our friends and neighbors, and particularly the seniors, the homeless and Native Americans, he said.

At the State level, NGM has committed an initial $1.5 million to the Nevada Covid-19 Response, Relief and Recovery Task Force, as well as offering to support the effort through our supply chain and other resources. Recently announced by Governor Steve Sisolak, the Task Force brings together community and business leaders to help find solutions to the pandemic.

In Northern Nevada, it is developing a framework for an I-80 Fund to assist small businesses along the I-80 Corridor affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as seeking to support solutions to the childcare and rural health care challenges in the region.

In Elko, Battle Mountain, and Winnemucca, the closest towns to NGMs operations, the JV has to date committed a total of $275,000 to support these local communities with food supplies and other basic necessities, particularly those most impacted including seniors, the homeless and Native Americans.

In Southern Nevada, it has committed $100,000 to Three Square Food Bank.

Enquiries:

Catherine Raw

COO, North America

+1 416 307 5157

Email: craw@barrick.com

Greg Walker

Executive Managing Director, Nevada Gold Mines

+1 702 526 3194

Email: gwalker@nevadagoldmines.com

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Investor and media relations

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Email: barrick@dpapr.com

Website: www.barrick.com

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The ACLU said subjecting prisoners to an unreasonable risk of harm also violates their Fourteenth Amendment rights.

"People in jails and prisons have little ability to inform themselves about preventive measures, or to take such measures if they do learn of them," said Jane Henegar, executive director at the ACLU of Indiana. "We must drastically reduce the number of people who are arrested and detained pretrial. Locking people up unnecessarily amid this pandemic, especially those who are medically vulnerable, threatens their health and, potentially, their lives."

Porter County Sheriff Dave Reynolds, who also serves as president of the Indiana Sheriff's Association, said there are 2,200 fewer inmates in custody at the county level across Indiana now when compared to January.

Porter County has done its part by releasing the inmates who were appropriate to release and keeping the jail population down at this time, he said.

There are currently 185 to 190 inmates at the county jail, not counting the federal inmates being held, he said. This compares with about 330 in January and 450 in 2002.
Tech pastor launching Miamis oldest church in virtual reality format as evangelistic tool

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A Presbyterian pastor in Miami is set to launch a fully immersive virtual reality worship service in a digital replica of Miamis oldest organized congregation.

Christopher Benek, who pastors First Miami Presbyterian Church and is the CEO and pastor of the tech nonprofit CoCreators, believes a virtual reality service is an effective evangelistic tool to reach gamers and others with the Gospel.

"I think that it is important to understand that creation of CHVRCH+ (pronounced Church Plus) is not to displace the local congregation. Thats part of why we called it CHVRCH+  because it is meant to be an additional complement to the existing physical church," Benek told The Christian Post in an interview Tuesday.

Benek loves his local congregation, which is located in the heart of Brickell community and has nearly doubled in membership in the past year.

"But we also realize that we, like the rest of the church universal, have a lot of work to do. We live in one of the highest population densities south of New York City, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only intensified our understanding that we need to meet peoples needs both physically and digitally," he said.

Digital and virtual spaces are no less Gods territory than our physical spaces, he continued, and when Christ called His followers to Make disciples of all nations he was not excluding digital ones.

"'There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!'" Benek said, referencing the words of the Dutch Reformed theologian Abraham Kuyper.

"Certainly this applies to digital spaces as well."

Creating virtual spaces is not a way to escape our present reality or ignore incarnational blessings, but rather a way to extend our understanding of reality and open our minds to the new possibilities that might exist in Jesus, the pastor elaborated.

"I think that it is the destructive flaw of many armchair theologians to assume that when faced with new ministry options that we can only experience God in one way. God is the Creator of the cosmos. Certainly, we are not so prideful as to assume that we know all of the ways that God might reveal Gods-self to us?" he said.

This is especially true given the public health crisis with COVID-19, he added, as it has disrupted our preconceived notions as to how the church must do ministry.

"It has also freed church leaders to experiment, fail fast, and live into their creative giftedness. Many churches have been doing ministry in ways that havent produced fruit now for decades. The present crisis is a digital wakeup call and I think that churches and congregants are eager to rise to the occasion."

Approximately 3.5 billion people are online today and the universal church has to have a sustainable long-term strategy, he stressed.

"We want churches to have new ways of engaging community online that pay homage to their current, sacred physical spaces while also allowing for the expression of the creativity that humanity has as creatures made in the image of the Creator God. As churches move into the exponentially advancing technological future we want them to have the tools to both acknowledge that they are standing on the shoulders of the saints who have gone before them, and they are building a digital legacy that the saints of the future will use to reach future generations for Christ," Benek said.

"Moreover, it is essential that churches take advantage of the current crisis in order to build sustainability plans. We know that COVID-19 will eventually pass. But when I speak around the world on artificial intelligence I remind people that the coming automation crisis will not have an end, he said, noting that 11% to 22% of the U.S. population is forecasted to lose their jobs by 2030 and that percentage only increases over time.

Thus, his new tech church provides a way for churches to start expanding their digital base, increase online giving, and meet the needs of people around the globe while they still have the time.

Asked how his congregation is responding to the idea of a VR church, Benek said they've been very enthusiastic.

"We are widely multiethnic, relatively young, and very entrepreneurial. Additionally, South Florida is also a hotspot for start-up culture. So our congregation generally understands and supports the ingenuity and creativeness of that culture."

When he preached during his Easter sermon last year he spoke of artificial intelligence and had a long line of people in the receiving line afterward who wanted to talk about emerging tech and theology. It was after that day when membership began growing.

"What that indicated to us is that people want the pastors to talk about tech more because it is impacting their greater sense of ultimate meaning. If there was ever a time for pastors to do so, it is right now," Benek said.
Yves here. While you were busy with impeachment and then coronavirus, the EU has been moving forward with a Green Deal. But what to make of it?

By Servaas Storm, Senior Lecturer of Economics, Delft University of Technology. Originally published at the Institute for New Economic Thinking website

The unstoppable global health emergency has ripped away the fabric of normality. Every day brings news of developments which, only a few weeks ago, would have felt utterly impossible. Who would have believed, in mid-February, that schools and universities would be closed by mid-March, public gatherings cancelled, cities and whole nations and billions of people would be put under lock-down, and hundreds of millions of people around the world would be out of work? Who would have predicted that many governments would work tirelessly to put together some of the largest economic stimulus packages in history, to support (big, and sometimes also small) firms and give income protection to workers and households, that central banks would (again) provide emergency liquidity, commercial banks would be waiving mortgage payments, and landlords would refrain from collecting rents?

Who could have imagined that the majority of people, forced to remain at home, are glued to their computers and/or smart phones, more dependent than ever on the Big Tech companies, feeding them  willingly or unwillingly  with ever more private information, thereby putting the already fast growth of surveillance capitalism on steroids? Or that governments would be using drones to impose social distancing on their populations and/or using mobile phone tracking to do the same?

While the world will not be the same once this is over, we must recognize that novel disasters and emergencies do not remove or resolve older, existing problemsthe biggest one of which is, without doubt, accelerating climate change. Despite clear differences, the Covid-19 calamity and global warming share important similarities: both problems present catastrophic risks to humanity which were long identified by scientists and both have been willfully neglected by governments and most political parties unable to see beyond the next election; both problems require unprecedented levels of global co-operation to be sorted and both demand transformative change today in order to prevent catastrophic outcomes in future; and redressing the risks of pandemics and global warming will require new innovative effective forms of coordinated, government-led action worldwide, rather than reliance on the logic of the marketplace and private-sector initiative.

This brings me back to the future: if we manage to get to a post-covid-19 world, humanity still will have to confront the problem and risks of global warming. The one credible strategy to bring about climate neutrality is the European Unions Green Deal, which is almost forgotten in the corona-tragedy and the coming global recession. It is deserving of a closer look.

The European Unions Man-on-the-Moon Moment ..

The European Union (EU) has done it, or so it appears. Its Green Deal, an ambitious rethinking of the European economy, transport, building and energy sectors, unveiled by the European Commission in December 2019, has been hailed as the first comprehensive plan to achieve climate-neutrality at a continental scale. It involves a 1 trillion, 10-year investment plan to fund a drastic reduction of the EUs greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2030 by 55% compared with 1990  and to realize zero (net) emissions or climate neutrality by 2050. The investment programme of 1 trillion is to be financed from leveraged public and private funds and to be channelled into greening the economy. Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission calls the Green Deal Europes man-on-the-moon moment and has outlined a detailed roadmap of more than 50 actions the EU will have to take over the next decade to reach its emissions goal.

The Green Deal has received a mostly warm welcome. Most commentators see it as a courageous, bold and even visionary step in the right direction of a prosperous, socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable economy. Jeffrey Sachs hails it a demonstration of European social democracy at work. A mixed economy, combining markets, government regulation, the public sector, and civil society, will pursue a mixed strategy, combining public goals, public and private investments, and public support.

Predictably, business interests and centre-right economists fear the Green Deal will cripple European industries, as the new rules will raise cost of production, the proposed carbon border tax will hurt international trade, and the EUs moral grandstanding on a go-it-alone transition to a carbon-neutral economy will do nothing to stop global warming from accelerating. Perhaps surprisingly, strong critiques have been voiced by climate scientists, environmental activists and critical economists, to whom Europes Green Deal is not ambitious and transformative enough, offering too little, too late.

The latter critics are, in turn, accused of not offering constructive engagement with the Green Deal and, by burning down what is in essence a far-reaching reform of the EU policy orientation, they are accused of promoting fatalism and cynicism. Indeed, this is the dilemma: if Otto von Bismarck was right that politics is the art of the possible, the attainable  the art of the next best, then the Green Deal does constitute a major advance and all efforts should be concentrated on expanding what is attainable.

I am not so sure. First, all the evidence is telling us that business-as-usual is over, as the climate emergency is building fast: on present trends, humanity will have exhausted the remaining global carbon budget in a decade. Either we act decisively, or we dont  in which case we have to brace ourselves for the damage coming from runaway warming, and adaptation to climate change becomes a must. Half-hearted tinkering will not bring us anywhere. Second, the Green Deal is the new signature mission of the Union, its new raison detre, and a failure to bring about a green and economically inclusive and just transformation of the EU economy cannot but give the project of European unification a fatal blow. The stakes are high, therefore, and a dispassionate, constructive look at the Green Deal is needed in light of the climate reality. This is what the Working Paper does.

Ambition and speed

To achieve the Green Deal emission reduction target of 55% by 2030, GHG emissions by the EU-27 have to decline by as much as 5.2% per year during the next decade  which is three times faster than during 1990-2020. The ambition level is certainly commendable, yet it still falls short of what is, according to climate science, needed to prevent the global mean temperature from rising above the safe threshold of 1.5 Celsius (with a probability of 66%). The EU-27 have an obligation and ability to do more, in order to protect enough the carbon development space for the more than six billion people in the developing countries. Bigger reductions in GHG emissions will require even faster decarbonisation and a shift toward 100% renewable energy of the EU as soon as possible  the binding target of achieving a renewable energy share of final energy use of at least 32% in 2030 falls short of what is necessary.

Scale of the Green Deal

The European Commission estimates that the EU27 need  260 billion of green investments per year over the next decade to bring down GHG emissions by 40% in 2030. 260 billion amounts to around 2% of GDP of the EU27. These numbers do not take into account the new stricter target to reduce GHG emissions in 2030 by 55% (and not 40%). The higher reduction target will require higher capital expenditures; the investment requirement for a 55% emission reduction target would roughly be around 3% of GDP (or 400 billion) each year, and for a more ambitious goal to cut emissions by 65% in 2030 investment would amount to around 4.5% of GDP per annum. The current Green Deal is under-funded.

Furthermore, almost all of the public Green Deal funding is money reshuffled from existing EU funds or based on national co-financing or founded on promises to leverage private-sector capital by taking away the risk for these investors, whose investments will be guaranteed by the EU budget. National co-financing is unlikely to involve additional spending, because member states have to stick to the deflationary straightjacket of the Stability and Growth Pact. All in all, the Green Deal will generate only  1.1 billion per year in newexpenditures by the European Commission under the Just Transition Mechanism (JTM).

This reprogramming of already projected expenditures makes it a bit of a stretch to call the Green Deal a growth strategy. The extent to which it will spur private investment is highly uncertain. The transition to a carbon-neutral economy will lead to massive disinvestment and stranded assets (in fossil-fuel based industries) and the destruction of large numbers of jobs in extractive industries (coal mining), fossil-fuel energy-producing and manufacturing industries (such as automobiles). True, the Green Deal will be creating new jobs in renewable energy generation, housing renovation, building and maintaining low-carbon energy infrastructures and in services. But the transformation will be upsetting, massive and risky, and the slower the radical restructuring and the reallocation of labour across industries, and the larger the distributional impacts, the higher will be the overall transition costs and the more economic growth will be hurt. The European Commission takes too narrow a view of the distributional consequences of the Green Deal, which makes it look rather badly prepared to guide the process of structural transformation  and this is careless in view of the rather low level of popular support for the climate transition.

Substance of the Deal

On paper the Green Deal looks impressive: it includes a farm-to-fork sustainable agriculture strategy and plans for a carbon-neutral circular economy; it proposes to start a renovation wave to improve energy efficiency of the building stock; it favours the rapid development of renewable energy generation; it proposes a carbon border tax on carbon-polluting foreign firms in an effort to provide space to EU firms to decarbonize; and it wants to reform the EU Emissions Trading System (EU-ETS) and raise carbon prices to make it more effective. All this makes sense, but the capacity to bring about a structural transformation of the EU27 economy and society is compromised by the under-funding of the investment plan, an unwillingness to envision how the green transition can be made to generate significant co-benefits (in terms of job growth, improved health outcomes and a more fair income distribution) and an under-estimation of restructuring costs, distributional impacts and uncertainties.

Consider the Green Deals Just Transition Mechanism (JTM), which was put forward as a pledge of solidarity and fairness. The JTM will mobilize 100 billion over 10 years, mostly to support the economic restructuring of the regional coal-producing economies of the EU. However, the proposed JTM budget likely falls short of what will be needed to shoulder the social restructuring cost of the coal exit and destruction of mining jobs in the EU27. But the EU climate transition is not just affecting the more than 400,000 miners, but is estimated to lead to the destruction of around 4.7 million jobs in so-called brown industries (including in automobile manufacturing). What, if anything, does the Green Deal promise these workers in terms of solidarity and fairness?

To be clear, the job destruction is only one side of the transition. The shift to EVs will create jobs in building the (fast) charging infrastructure and in producing EV components and batteries (which are now mainly imported from China). There is enormous potential for the growth of green jobs in energy-saving renovation of the building stock and in smart public transport (zero-emission electric buses, trams and light-rail). Hence, when managed properly, the Green Deal will create new jobs in renewable energy generation, housing renovation, and transport. According to ILO (2018), green job growth in the EU during 2020-2030 could exceed brown job destruction by around 2 million jobs. But to achieve the green job growth, the EU would need to considerably broaden its current focus  on building charging and refuelling infrastructures for the 13 million zero- and low-emission (mostly private and very expensive) vehicles expected to be on Europes roads by 2050  to smart (and cheap) public transport systems, and from imposing the cost of energy-efficiency renovation on households to socialize the investment cost of housing stock renovation.

Rapidly phasing out fossil fuels in power plants (burning coal), industrial facilities, buildings and vehicles will improve air quality by reducing ambient air pollution and this could reduce premature deaths in the EU27 by 300,000 persons each and every year and also drastically lower morbidity, lost working days, and healthcare care (Boyce 2020). The relatively high additional mortality in Europe caused by air pollution has much to do with burning coal. Thirty-three of the 50 most polluted towns in Europe are in Poland, where burning coal is deemed patriotic by the government. In a back-of-the-envelope calculation, using the official EU default value of  3.387 million for the value of a statistical life (VSL), an in itself dubious concept to put a euro-value on human mortality, I estimate that the co-pollutant cost of carbon in the EU27 would amount to 1 trillion per year.

Strategic Reliance on Green Finance

The European Commission puts its faith in private finance to fund the climate transition by promoting green capital formation through a favourable regulatory treatment of green finance, de-risking and credit subsidies. Having lost the battles for tougher regulation and higher taxation and spending, the Commissions hope is that private finance will do the job of greening the economy. Hence, the idea is to do whatever it takes to persuade institutional investors to redirect the trillions of money they are managing to specific activities that are officially labelled as being green or sustainable according to an official EU Taxonomy. Global finance will only do this of its own accord if it serves its interest. What makes these green investments attractive for private finance is the fact that such green assets will be de-risked through EU subsidies and ECB guarantees to support the liquidity of these assets (Gabor 2020a). The EU provides a first-loss guarantee, enabling the EIB to fund riskier (climate-related) investment under the heading of the InvestEU programme.

The problem with this periphrastic strategy is that it relies heavily on private global financiers  such as BlackRock and Goldman Sachs  who are all waist-deep in fossil-fuel investments and, as large shareholders, have been routinely voting against shareholder motions directing corporate boards to take climate action and to integrate environmental concerns in their activities (Gabor 2020a). The Green Deal will be subsidizing carbon financiers, allowing them to make a profit from the climate transition, rather than holding them liable for the GHG emissions (see Richard Heede 2017). The Green Deal offers long-time fossil-fuel financiers a rather easy way out, by providing a cushioned, subsidized exit from fossil-fuel investments toward de-risked green assets.

The new class of highly liquid de-risked assets, which will be as safe as German Bunds because they are guaranteed by EU (German) taxpayers and the ECB, will be in high demand. After all, the global shadow banking system is permanently short of safe securities, which it can use to collateralize global institutional cash pools (Storm 2018). That is, the de-risked assets will further enable the already excessive liquidity preference of global financial investors, who have parked at least $ 5 trillion in collateralized spaces within the global shadow banking system, ready for immediate use in privately very profitable, but socially unproductive financial speculation in short-term exotic derivative instruments. The Green Deal thus rewards an already malfunctioning global financial system, rather than punishes and regulates it in ways which make brown assets more expensive and liable for the (environmental, social and economic) damage it is causing.

Incentivizing private finance will not be enough to bring about the fast and just transition to climate neutrality promised by the European Commission  which requires green industrial policies to catalyze and support private-sector investment and leaning in zero-carbon activities, and proper management of aggregate demand. Industrial policy will be indispensable if the Green Deal is to exploit the considerable potential for energy savings and job growth of large-scale energy-efficiency renovation in buildings. Further, smart public transport requires building up the (charging) infrastructure, using public procurement (of electric buses, trams and trains) to promote the new mobility model, and investing in the development and demonstration of early-phase (battery) technologies and electro-fuels. However, large multinational corporations could, after benefiting from public money, offshore their clean-tech innovations to low-wage countries; indeed, battery production for EVs is currently concentrated in Asia (in China, Japan and South Korea). Green Deal spending should therefore include social clauses, requiring companies to base their production in countries with certain wage levels and labour and environmental legal standards (Gaddi and Garbellini 2019).

Another issue is that the Green Deal spending will require European planning in order to promote the construction of integrated European value chains (to make the most of economies of scale) and to actively reduce the existing regional imbalances in employment and industrial capabilities between Member States (Gaddi and Garbellini 2019). These tasks cannot be delegated to green financial markets, but require an actual industrial planwhich, so far, is missing. Finally, the industrial plan must include tougher (national) regulation and standards. Regulation should not be regarded as a cost, a hindrance or an obstruction. This is a very static view, and a view which neglects the potential technology-forcing impacts of norms, rules, standards which may well force firms to become more innovative; the EU should use this potential in support of the climate transition.

Greening the Economy Will Not Lower Living Standards ..

The EUs Bismarckian approach to the Green Deal is best illustrated by the following comment by European Commissioner Josep Borrell, a leading Spanish social democrat:

I would like to know if young people demonstrating in Berlin calling for measures against climate change are aware of what such measures will cost them [.] and if they are willing to lower their living standards to offer compensation to Polish miners, because if we fight against climate change for real, they will lose their jobs and will have to be subsidized.

Mr. Borrells comment brings out the Commissions view that the massive investments needed for the climate transition can only be financed by raising taxes on and lowering living standards of ordinary citizens. This argument is not just bereft of any political vision or plan, but it is also disingenuous, because it is supposes (and wrongly so) that there are no other sources than higher income taxes for the 99% to finance the climate investment. If Mr. Borrells statement reflects the mood in Brussels, it is indistinguishable from sentiments in Eastern-European Member States, where conservative parties are framing the debate on the climate transition as a hard choice between investments in infrastructure and growth versus greening the economy while lowering living standards. Quite like centre-right politicians in Poland, Hungary and Romania, Mr. Borrell is ignoring the considerable potential for job growth, health co-benefits as well as income growth for ordinary citizens.

But let me help Mr. Borrell and highlight a couple of realistic sources of funding the Green Deal, which do not put the burden on ordinary people nor give preferential treatment to global private finance:

 Abolishing existing fossil-fuel subsidies of 250 billion per year. This will raise Member States government revenue by an estimated 100 billion per year.

 Introducing a tax on carbon of 75 per tonne of CO 2eq . This will generate some 270 billion as annual tax revenue  of which 200 billion can be used to compensate the one-third poorest households, most affected by higher energy prices.

 Raising the rate of corporate profit taxation back to the level of the late 1990s (and being tough on corporate tax evasion). This will raise annual tax revenues by 55 billion. Doing this makes sense: corporations will, without doubt, be major beneficiaries of the Green Deal investment programme and industrial policy.

 Introduce a modest wealth tax to channel some of the mostly unearned capital and wealth gains into the public coffers to fund the Green Deal. This could generate around 175 billion per year for the EU27 as a whole. Note that tax revenues can be increased by a similar amount, even without higher or new taxation, by reducing or eliminating exemptions, loopholes and shelters and reducing (corporate) tax avoidance.

Hence, contrary to Mr. Borrells claim, the Green Deal could be financed without lowering the living standards of 99% of European citizens. On top of all this, the European Commission can leverage more funding without begging private financiers for money. Pension funds in the EU27 hold assets worth more than 4 trillion. The European Commission could oblige European pension funds to channel (say) one-fourth of their assets (i.e. 1 trillion or 100 billion per year during 2020-30) into officially approved Green Deal activities with the risk-free guarantee of a net return of (say) 4%.

Concluding Observations

Investing these resources (some 500 billion per year) in renewable energy, housing renovation and public transport will create millions of extra jobs, reduce emissions and save hundreds of thousands of lives  each year. Compared to the 250 billion of annual fossil-fuel subsidies paid by the EU and to the (fossil-fuel caused) negative public health externality of 1 trillion per annum, this package looks like a bargain.

This is not the mind set in Brussels, unfortunately, where Mr. Borrell and some of his colleagues in the European Commission worry about the need to choose between paying for climate action versus maintaining or raising living standards. The inconvenient truth is that a transition to climate neutrality is a condition for sustainable economic prosperity. A failure to decarbonize and transit to a zero-carbon economy will inflict considerable economic damage, drastically reduce living standards and increase inequality within the EU, as is clearly shown by the scenarios developed in the European Commissions PESETA III study (2018).

In addition, when properly managed, this Green Deal would generate massive co-benefits in the form of millions of well-paid jobs, an improved quality of life (because of lower air pollution and lower mortality), and reduced inequalities in mobility, life expectancy, and incomes and wealth. The failure to recognize an existential threat (global warming in this case) for what it is and the incapacity to envision an inclusive strategic response to achieve climate neutrality while improving living standards are, to say the least, not very Bismarckian. We cannot leave it to social democrats such as Mr. Borrell or to conservative governments in Central and Eastern Europe to define what is politically possible.

Despite of all good intentions, the Commissions Green Deal (as it is) will not work, because the Commission decided to work with and through (financial) markets, taking what Gabor 2020b has called a politics as usual, third-way approach that seeks to nudge the market towards decarbonisation. By choosing to make the Green Deal dependent on global finance, the European Commission itself is closing down all avenues for systemic change through tougher regulation, higher taxation and higher spending, as well as for an ambitious green macroeconomics and green industrial policies, which would enable achieving climate neutrality in a socially and economically inclusive manner. Jeffrey Sachs assessment is wrong, in other words: what ails the EU Green Deal is exactly what troubles the Union in general  an absence of social democracy at work. Public finances should be made to work for the common good and be protected from carbon financiers.

Post-script The way the European Union is responding to the covid-19 pandemic, or failing to respond, does not augur well for its Green Deal. The coronavirus crisis response so far was a complete car crash: the request for the one-off issuance of corona bonds as a means of European solidarity by the most crisis-struck countries Italy and Spain was rudely rejected by the frugal four  Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and Finland  who argued that the issuance of a common debt instrument would punish the frugal countries, which (arguably) had saved to create sufficient fiscal policy space to respond to the pandemic, but would encourage further fiscal mismanagement by those spend-thrift countries which did not. Solidarity creates just moral hazard, is what my compatriot Wopke Hoekstra, the Dutch minister of finance, incorrectly claims. As a Dutch citizen, I apologise for the disturbing lack of international solidarity as well as the alarming absence of basic political, historical and economic understanding of the process of European economic unification shown by the Dutch government. Italys prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, has it right, when saying: If Europe does not rise to this unprecedented challenge, the whole European structure loses its raison detre to the people. We are at a critical point in European history. If the Union cannot solve the covid-19 catastrophe in a rational, and therefore solidaristic, manner, the Green Deal will be doomed.
At the start of his research in Harar, Baynes-Rock contended with difficult conditions, stone-throwing children, intransigent bureaucracy, and wary hyena subjects intent on avoiding people. After months of frustration, three young hyenas drew him into the hidden world of the Sofi clan. He discovered the elements of a hyenas life, from the delectability of dead livestock and the nuisance of dogs to the unbounded thrill of hyena chase-play under the light of a full moon. Baynes-Rocks personal relations with the hyenas from the Sofi clan expand the conceptual boundaries of human-animal relations. This is multispecies ethnography that reveals its messy, intersubjective, dangerously transformative potential.

Biologists studying large carnivores in wild places usually do so from a distance, using telemetry and noninvasive methods of data collection. So what happens when an anthropologist studies a clan of spotted hyenas, Africas second-largest carnivores, up closeand in a city of a hundred thousand inhabitants? In, Marcus Baynes-Rock takes us to the ancient city of Harar in Ethiopia, where the(hyenas of the city) are welcome in the streets and appreciated by the locals for the protection they provide from harmful spirits and dangerous mountain hyenas. Theyve even become a local tourist attraction.

Introduction

I followed the old man up a rickety staircase, taking care not to put too much weight on any steps that were split or rotten. He led me along a deteriorating hallway to room number 7. A second-floor room with a single digit number is not unusual in Harar; the preceding number 1 had either fallen off or been unscrewed long ago, and its shadow had faded almost completely to the overall color of the door. The hotel clerk shoved it open and I dragged my bag through the doorway. I was greeted with an aesthetic slap in the face. There was a swarm of flies staging a circuit race beneath a ceiling fan that had ceased working when electricity was invented. The bed looked like it was stolen from an orphanage, after which time the original sheets had been removed in favor of a soiled set. The clerk gesticulated toward the bathroom and I went to see. I should have been more explicit at the front desk when I asked if there was a bathroom; I should have asked if there was a bathroom with running water. A small bucket sat beside the toilet, while opposite, the shower floor lay hidden beneath a layer of dried grime. It had been a long while since that shower had seen anything other than cockroaches disappearing down its drain. The clerk decided that he had no further reason to be there, so without a word he turned and walked out, leaving me to sit on the bed watching flies race around my head. Staring numbly at the stained walls, I called into question everything I had done over the past five years.

It was during the course of my honors year that I unwittingly set myself on a path to Harar. At the time, I was studying evolutionary relationships between humans and large carnivores and how these were reflected in modern humans. Because of this, I needed to find out as much as I could about large carnivore ecology, and that included reading up on hyenas. It was then that I found an intriguing passage in a seminal work on spotted hyenas by Hans Kruuk: Only rarely are the scavenging habits of hyenas viewed with gratitude, and the most interesting example I know is the town of Harar in Ethiopia, where they walk in the streets without being molested. Occasionally they are even fed by the inhabitants and they become extremely tame.

Kruuks account of Harar describes an exception to a rule: hyenas are not well liked. In general, hyenas are loathed, vilified, feared, derided, persecuted, and, where people have the wherewithal, eradicated. Time and again I encounter negativity when I tell people about my research. They cant resist telling me how hyenas are disgusting or ugly, and they question why Id bother studying such a hideous beast. This is a little unusual for a large carnivore; other species of this order evoke awe, admiration, and adoration, at least among people whose livelihoods are not affected by livestock predation. Even wolves have overcome public relations challenges of the highest order to enjoy a mystical fondness in the eyes of those whose forebears once sought their extinction. But spotted hyenas are something altogether different: they draw the ire of Westerners as easily as that of the locals, and few ever question why this second-largest of Africas carnivores should so excite peoples prejudices. Those who do raise this question wind up scratching their heads. Under the light of cultural analyses, the reasons for peoples strong, almost fanatical antipathy become lost in the emulsion of comparison with other species. But theres something were missing here. These modern attitudes are in fact germinated and grown out of the detritus of human/hyena evolutionary history. Hyenas are the old enemy. Both of our species bear the marks of millions of years of hyena predation on humans and conflict over resources. There are some unsettled scores scratched in the backs of our respective psyches.

More than four million years ago, when our arboreal ancestors thought they might do well fossicking for food on the ground, they put themselves in the path of ancestral hyenas. The hyenas soon began crunching the bones of our diminutive bipedal ancestors, favoring freshly killed specimens over desiccated carcasses. Indeed, the efficiency with which hyenas demolish carcasses is a major reason why fossil evidence of the origins of our species is so scarce on the ground. Were it not for the bone-crushing capabilities of hyenas, skeletal evidence of human evolution would be everywhere. Instead, much of the story of human origins and human/hyena coexistence has been consumed, leaving only tantalizing traces of clues. Here, a collection of teeth that survived an ancient hyenas digestive juices; there, footprints in cemented volcanic dust where hominins and hyenas crossed paths. What scant evidence there is of the first few million years indicates a somewhat one-sided relationship in which hyenas benefited from the presence of elusive but edible primates. But that relationship was transformed when those primates descendants acquired a taste for the marrow of freshly killed medium-sized ungulates. At that point in prehistory, our ancestors cut in on hyenas ancestral turf.

Enter Homo habilis. The appellation Homo confers a nonanimalness; these hominins are the first of our line to be considered and designated human. While comparatively small in stature, Homo habilis were well endowed with manual dexterity and tenacity; they modified stone cobbles and used the flakes and cores to process the carcasses of freshly killed ungulates over which they competed with hyenas. At least this is the origin story that comes to us from the fossil assemblages of Olduvai Gorge. While limited geographically and temporally, one assemblage of bones at OlduvaiFLK Zinjanthropuspaints an intriguing picture of an ancient coming together of meat eaters. Scratched into the bones are carnivore tooth marks overscored with cut marks from stone tools overscored with yet more carnivore tooth marks. Considerable debate surrounds the taphonomic processes evidenced by the marks, but the simplest explanation is that large carnivores killed the prey, after which hominins and hyenas competed for the lipid-rich marrow contained in the bones. Needless to say, this was a direct imposition on the adaptive niche of hyenas and a direct challenge to hyenas dominion over the dead. Homo habilis adopted carnivory, becoming, as David Quammen said, more human by acting like hyenas, competing over the bodies of hoofed animals and establishing sour relations with hyenas for millions of years to come.

Current evidence suggests that at the Plio-Pleistocene boundary, around 1.8 million years ago, the ranges of hyenas and hominins expanded into the Eurasian landmass. This concurrent dispersal from Africa of some adaptable hominins and some giant hyenas of the genus Pachycrocuta was no coincidence; the two were intrinsically linked to the movements of saber-toothed cats who left large quantities of scavengeable flesh and bones for which hominin and hyaenid scavengers competed. The members of this predator/scavenger guild came to occupy the entire Eurasian landmass, from modern-day Ireland to Mongolia, from Germany to Java. In combination with the already established spotted hyenas, these meat and bone eaters established a continuous human/hyena presence that persisted through dynamic climate changes and variable faunal compositions until the end of the Pleistocene ten thousand years ago. By that time, modern humans had even made art of spotted hyenas in ochre and antler. This is not to say that humans tolerated their subjects; the appearance of modern humans in Europe coincided with the rapid disappearance of hyenas. Mary Stiner suggests that wolves outcompeted hyenas in newly forested environments, but let us not discount the capacity of the bipedal ape to shove other species aside. Just prior to ten thousand years ago, spotted hyenas disappeared from Europe and Asia. A dwarfed variant emerged in the Middle East, perhaps representing a last effort to adapt and persist, before spotted hyenas completely disappeared from the lands beyond the African continent.

Under the shadow of millions of years of conflict, is it any wonder that relations between humans and hyenas in Africa are generally strained? No wonder, considering how our two species have such large range requirements and the same fondness for cows, goats, and sheep. Competition between humans and hyenas over livestock resulted in the complete eradication of spotted hyenas from southern Africa, their extinction in several other countries, and the contraction of their range all over the continent. Despite numbering twenty to forty thousand in Africa, current circumstances and the general trend indicate that hyenas are on their way out.

The way that hyenas comport themselves doesnt help their cause. Their times of greatest activity, vocalizations, physical attributes, and ecologies combine with peoples fears and prejudices to produce some extremely negative conceptions. Often, hyenas are associated with what are called witches. Hyenas nocturnal habits, humanlike giggles, and propensity to exhume and consume human corpses make them obvious companions to people who use supernatural means to malevolent ends. Often, the hyenas are believed to do the bidding of witches, bringing home fresh human meat, or else they are ridden through the night sky with flames shooting out of their anuses. In some places, witches transform themselves into hyenas and prowl around at night looking for victims to eat. In this respect, killing a hyena is not always about pest control. It is a way of killing or disempowering malevolent humans.

Beyond the association with witches, hyenas necrophagy is dangerous in other ways. Where people dispose of the dead by leaving them out for hyenas to consume, a hyenas defecating in the villagereturning the dead to the livingcan be a serious concern. Hyenas also prey on the living. They attack people sleeping outdoors in the hot summer months, or they break into huts and tents and drag their victims away to be eaten. They are especially adept at preying on children, and unfortunately for the victims, the usual method of attack is to bite the face. Even when children survive, they bear the scars of the attack for the rest of their lives; they are walking reminders of the dangerous creatures lurking outside the village.

Hyenas are also loathed and derided for their confusing sexuality; the enlarged genitalia of the females lead people to see them as hermaphrodites. And hyenas are a joke, a hated joke. African folktales consistently portray them as loathsome, greedy, and above all stupid. No doubt their appearance influences such conceptions. Ungainly heads, perched on the ends of overly long necks, bob up and down as they lope off into the long grass; falsetto voices call out to nowhere in particular, while hard feet designed for long-distance running slip out from under their bodies on wet surfaces. During a safari in Kenya, Ernest Hemingway shot a hyena who tumbled to the ground and tore at her wound. He gave an account of the reaction of his Kenyan guide:

Fisi, MCola would say and shake his head in delighted sorrow at there being such an awful beast. Fisi, the hyena, hermaphroditic, self-eating devourer of the dead, trailer of calving cows, ham-stringer, potential biter-off of your face at night while you slept, sad yowler, camp-follower, stinking, foul, with jaws that crack the bones the lion leaves, belly dragging, loping away on the brown plain, looking back, mongrel dog-smart in the face; whack from the little Mannlicher and then the horrid circle starting. Fisi, MCola laughed, ashamed of him, shaking his bald black head. Fisi. Eats himself. Fisi.

And yet there remained Kruuks account of Harar: a town where hyenas walked the streets at night and were encouraged by the local population, a town where men sat outside the town wall at night, handing scraps of meat to hyenas. It was an inconspicuous passage, but it stuck in my mind. When the time came for me to plan my doctoral research, I was interested in large carnivores and antipredator adaptations in humans. While I thought I should at some stage go to Harar and collect some limited data on attitudes toward hyenas, it was my honors coordinator, Marcus Barber, who thought this was worth a bit more of my attention. He convinced me to write a research proposal for a dedicated ethnographic study of hyenas and humans in Harar. At the same time, Macquarie Universitys Centre for Research on Social Inclusion made a scholarship available for doctoral research into human/animal relations. My proposal fit nicely with what they were looking for, so under the supervision of Debbie Rose, I began making plans to spend a year in Harar doing ethnographic research on people and hyenas. Its funny the places life takes you.

As far as ethnographic research goes, Harar is a pretty good choice of field sites. Just north of the equator and 1,850 meters above sea level, the weather is near perfect. There is power, phone, internet, and banking to make things easier for the researcher. But over and above that, the Harari people are fascinating. They claim that Harar is the fourth-holiest city in Islam, after Mecca, Medina, and Jerusalem. Supporting their claim, eighty-eight mosques and 121 Sufi shrines are located within the half square kilometer that is Harars Old Town. The Harari people retain their own language, clothing style, architecture, and traditions amid a large population of settlers and settler descendants from among the eighty other ethnic groups in Ethiopia. In the Harari language, the town is known as Gey, meaning the City, and nearly everything associated with Harar is prefixed with gey to denote that it is of the city. Hararis are gey usu, the Harari language is gey sinan, local baskets are gey mot, houses are gey gar, and indeed the local hyenas are gey waraba. These last seem incongruous, though, in a modernized city with a population of a hundred thousand and a history dating back more than a thousand years.

In the accounts of Harar by various writers since the nineteenth century, the hyenas often lurk in the shadows, carnivorous functionaries appearing here and there but never central to the texts. Both Richard Burton and Philipp Paulitschke, who visited Harar in the nineteenth century, mentioned the presence of hyenas. Burtons mention sits within an account that reads as a precolonial reconnaissance mission on behalf of an expanding empire. Alongside his description of Harars inadequate defenses and of a populace needing a colonial power to step in and save them from themselves, Burton wrote that the hyenas in Harar were lured into the town, after which the gates were closed behind them and they were safely speared, a pest easily eradicated according to the fashion of the era. Paulitschke related his own experience of hunting hyenas in the hills around Harar. He was told that in times of famine, hyenas entered into the town and attacked people in the streets. Paulitschke also described how emirs in former times organized hunts, not to kill hyenas but to worry or dislodge (beunruhigen) them from their hiding places.

Later, in the 1960s, Wolf Leslau compiled and translated some accounts of Harar written by Harari men attending the University of Addis Ababa. In an account of Harars hyenas, one of Leslaus informants relates that the hyenas emerged from their dens at night and ruled the land outside the towns defensive wall. Whether they entered the town at night is not clear. The compilation also includes an account of the festival of Ashura and the tradition of feeding porridge to hyenas during the celebrations.

The most recent mention of hyenas in an ethnographic account of Harar comes from Camilla Gibb, who conducted fieldwork there in 1994. Gibb wrote that Hararis regarded the hyena as a curious sort of half brother, half wild, half civilized, roaming the hills around the city yet familiar with the tangled streets of the town. She also wrote about the practice of feeding hyenas in Harar. There was a man who entertained paying tourists by feeding scraps of food to hyenas at a place just outside the town wall. According to Gibb, the practice was sold as a tradition but was really only a money-making venture. If there were no tourists at the feeding place, the hyenas were not fed.

I didnt realize it at first, but my decision to include hyenas in an ethnography made for some unexpected theoretical and methodological challenges. Anthropology by definition is the study of humans, and anthropologys tool kitethnographyis designed for recording and interpreting the beliefs and behaviors of humansand only humans. Traditionally, animals feature in ethnographies as things that people hunt, eat, ride, think about, or use as symbols; they are almost never considered as participating members of human societies.

In the early 1990s, the Dutch anthropologist Barbara Noske criticized this state of affairs. She argued that representations of animals in anthropology were drawn from assumptions based on biobehavioral accounts rather than firsthand empirical observations. Noske called for an anthropological approach to the study of animals. She argued that an inter-subjective non-reductionist approach was necessary before social scientists could decide what animals were or were not. Furthermore, the field of anthropology, with its intersubjective methods of understanding, was well situated to adopt such an approach.

After deciding on balance to include hyenas as members of the society that I was studying, I immediately encountered difficulties. It turned out that I had to apply for two sets of ethics approval and get two sets of permissionone for human research and one for wildlife research. I also had to come up with some research questions that pertained to relations between humans and hyenas. I struggled with that for some considerable time before letting it go. I was faced with the difficult task of collecting data from two different species and bringing those data together in a dissertation with some kind of theoretical underpinning, when there was no established theory other than Noskes call to bring in the animals. I also needed some kind of methodology. Normally, biologists follow hyenas around in vehicles making observations, but even if I could have included a four-wheel-drive vehicle in my budget, it would have been useless. Of the hundreds of lanes and roads in Harars Old Town, only five are wide enough to allow the passage of vehicles. In the farmland outside Harar, gullies, woods, streams, and thorn hedges break up the landscape, making it traversable only on foot. While I was struggling with methodology, I was given a timely copy of Elizabeth Marshall Thomass book The Hidden Life of Dogs. In order to gain insight into the nocturnal movements and activities of a dog named Misha, Marshall Thomas simply followed her subject around the neighborhood with a notebook. This sounded like it could work. I could spend a lot of time at the place where hyenas were being fed for tourists and habituate them to the point where theyd let me follow them around Harar recording my observations.

To that end I packed a bag full of technology for making nocturnal observations, recording interviews, and taking notes on the fly. I brought a handheld voice recorder, a flashlight, a camcorder with night-vision capability, an infrared searchlight, a night-vision monocular, a laptop with external memory, a tripod, and an SLR camera with three lenses suited to varying degrees of closeness. I think that if the customs officers at Addis Ababa airport had bothered to inspect my bags, they would have arrested me for spying. I had neither intention nor sufficient training to use tranquilizer darts and radio collars. While I can understand how radio collars and receivers make it extremely easy to locate hyenas, and how GPS devices provide very revealing data that would otherwise be almost impossible to obtain, I have reservations about imposing a device on an animal who would rather not have to wear it. There were also cultural issues I needed to consider; in light of what I had read in other ethnographies, putting a collar around the neck of a hyena might have been offensive to some people in Harar.

So it was that with a suitcase full of equipment and very little else, I stepped out of Dire Dawa airport into the dry heat of the Rift Valley. After the temperate vegetation in Addis, the acacia trees surrounding Dire Dawa appear almost as an African cliche. Whereas cold and rainy Addis seems anomalous, you really feel like you are in the stereotypical Africa when you arrive in Dire Dawa. The airport terminal is a sparse building in the style of the 1960s, complemented by the old Peugeot taxis waiting in the car park for the infrequent flights to arrive. I shared a taxi with a local doctor who was being stationed in a rural clinic, and went to a hotel where I left my bags. Before I traveled on to Harar, I had to visit the immigration department and apply for a residence permit, so I rode a three-wheeled Bajaj taxi through the tree-lined streets to the first of many frustrating and inevitably fruitless encounters with Ethiopian bureaucracy. After being told that I could not have a permit but could simply return every month and have my business visa renewed, I collected my bags and went to the bus station, from which I could get a minibus to Harar.

The minibus from Dire Dawa to Harar ascends a mountain range and crosses a verdant plateau to its eastern edge, whereupon Harar sits on a rocky spur. In my ignorance of what was standard practice, I protested that the minibus I was on was overcrowded and insisted on being let off to take another. My protest was greeted with much hilarity as the ticket collector slid the door shut and we were off. Consequently, I glimpsed only parts of the journey through the spaces between the bodies of my fellow sardines. I saw wattle-and-daub huts lining the roads, alongside which little earth-dusted children played; men whacked oxen with sticks as they carved furrows with wooden ploughs roped to the necks of the beasts; women balanced handwoven baskets on their heads as they followed their donkeys to market. It was like a journey into the Middle Ages on a minibus, but with modernity tacked on in all sorts of places. The women talked into mobile phones as they marched along; some of the wattle-and-daub huts had shiny tin roofs, and the children played with the lids of Coca-Cola bottles.

Arriving in Harar, I was ejected from the crowded minibus like a cork. I immediately looked to the roof of the vehicle and was amazed to see my bag where I expected to see only a dangling rope. It took three of us to drag the bag down from the roof successfully, and I wondered how much of the technological contents had survived the journey. I was already beginning to draw the attention of the locals, and Id only been on the ground a few seconds. Some children prodded me and a leper waved the stump of his wrist in my face. I pretended to ignore them and hailed a taxi, asking the driver of the old Peugeot to take me to the Tewodros Hotel. I had read good things about this hotel. It was close to the Old Town, it had bathrooms, and it was relatively cheap. I was optimistic, even when I found reception a dingy office with a table and little else. I waited a few minutes in the office until a dusty-looking clerk emerged from the bar and went solemnly behind his desk. When I inquired about a room, he regarded me with a mixture of suspicion and pity. He shrugged his shoulders, told me the price, and led me upstairs to my room of flies. As I said, its funny the places life takes you.
THE Department of Defence has launched a new scheme which will enable former members of the Defence Forces to re-enlist for up to three years.

The Minister with responsibility for Defence, Paul Kehoe, says the scheme, which is part of the Government response to Covid-19, will allow personnel who have the skills and expertise required to fill identified vacancies. The scheme will allow for initial re-enlistment for a minimum of six months and up to three years.

The focus of this scheme will be on those with skills and expertise required to fill specialist vacancies that currently exist in the Permanent Defence Force. This includes technicians, fitters, chefs, communications and IT specialists and naval staff. These returning personnel will assist in delivering Defence Forces supports in the COVID 19 response and beyond, he said.

Applicants from Limerick and elswhere, will be able to register their interest by clicking on the how to re-join link on the careers page of the military.ie website.

A scheme to re-commission former PDF officers already exists and my department is also inviting expressions of interest from those with specialist skills who wish to be re-commissioned. I know that there are individuals who previously served in the PDF and would like to serve again. I would encourage such individuals to register their interest and to re-join the Permanent Defence Force, added Mr Kehoe.
Kolkata, April 1 (IANS) The West Bengal government has quarantined 54 persons including 40 foreigners who attended the religious congregation organised by the Tablighi Jamaat in New Delhi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Baneree said on Wednesday.

71 people from the state attended the congregation, Banerjee told the media here.

"Yesterday (Tuesday) we quarantined 54 of the participants at the quarantine centre. The central government earlier informed us that 71 had attended the religious programme from our state," the chief minister said.

Banerjee said 40 of those quarantined were foreigners who came from Myanmar, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. "We identified and picked them up."

The state government has received information of more participants from Bankura, North Dinajpur districts. "We have got two names form Magrahat in 24 Parganas (South) district also".

"We will enquire. If any of them had gone to Nizamuddin, I hope they will report to police on their own. No need to panic over this congregation," she said.

Banerjee hoped that 30 more people who attended the congregation would be quarantined on Wednesday.

The chief minister said the information about foreigners are maintained by the external affairs and home ministries at the centre.

"We came to know of it very late. But those who came here are cooperating," she said.

Banerjee appealed to all those who attended the congregation or came in contact with those who had participated to come forward and report to the government.

"Then we can put you in quarantine either at home or at a quarantine centre. You don't have to worry about the quarantine centre. It is just like another home for you," she added

--IANS

ssp/kr
A biotechnology company based in Ohio has announced that it is already working with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to fast track an experimental stem cell treatment for the coronavirus disease or COVID-19, which could save lives and also improve its quality.

Cleveland-based biotech firm, Athersys, Inc said that they already have clinical trials underway with the use of "MultiStem" therapy in treating Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrom or ARDS.

According to Dr. Gil Van Bokkelen, Chairman and CEO of Athersys, Inc., ARDS is the primary cause of death in most of those who are dying with COVID-19 infection. Also adding that it is also the reason that patients need to be hospitalized, intubated and placed on ventilators.

Furthermore, he said that ARDS has extremely high morbidity and mortality rate among elderly patients who have underlying health conditions and that clinical trials showed that a single dose of MultiStem had positive results and can turn things around for these people quickly.

Read also: Chloroquine Not Yet Proven as Anti-Viral, Other Drugs May Be Better for Coronavirus

What is MultiStem?

A "special class" of stem cells which were harvested from consenting adults who were heavily screened and were very healthy were used in the creation of MultiStem.

Similar to the Type O blood type which is considered the universal donor for all blood types, these "special class" stem cells underwent a process that makes them work and compatible in the same way.

According to Dr. Van Bokkelen, MultiStem is the kind of stem cell that can be largely produced and can be administered from off the shelf.

How does MultiStem work?

When the MultiStem is introduced in the body of the patients, they directly target the damaged areas, in the case of ARDS, the lungs and start the process to begin the healing.

Furthermore, Dr. Van Bokkelen said that when these cells are administered, they have years of evidence that prove that MultiStem is capable of homing to the sites of inflammation, injury and tissue damage and start repairing the cells.

He also added that based on their data, patients when got MutliStem within the first four days of being on a ventilator, evidence suggests that there is reduced mortality, as well as improvements on the pulmonary function, and these people spend less time in intensive care.

In addition, patients treated with MultiStem also showed that in the majority of cases, the lung damage and scarring caused by ventilators also healed which improved their quality of life and helping them fair better in the long run.

According to the biotech company, they released the results of their studies in January and they were immediately fast-tracked by the FDA to enter Phase 3 of their clinical trials.

At the moment, in cooperation with the FDA and other health institutions including hospitals in Cleveland, Athersys will begin testing MultiStem on COVID-19 patients within a few weeks.

Dr. Van Bokkelen said that he, along with everyone in Athersys believes that they are in the right place at the right time to help the world survive this pandemic that has already caused tens of thousands of lives.

Related article: COVID-19 Cure Found? Hepatitis C Drug Reportedly Helped 11 Coronavirus Patients Recover

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Engagements with government agencies, healthcare organizations and academic institutions around the world including in Arkansas, California, Georgia, New York, Texas, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Spain and UK

ARMONK, New York, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- With COVID-19 affecting 206 countries, areas and territories, IBM (NYSE: IBM) is helping government agencies, healthcare organizations and academic institutions throughout the world use AI to put critical data and information into the hands of their citizens.

With a flood of information requests from citizens, wait times in many areas to receive answers can exceed two hours. Available for no charge for at least 90 days and available to our client's citizens online or by phone, IBM Watson Assistant for Citizens on the IBM public cloud brings together Watson Assistant, Natural Language Processing capabilities from IBM Research, and state-of-art enterprise AI search capabilities with Watson Discovery, to understand and respond to common questions about COVID-19.

"While helping government agencies and healthcare institutions use AI to get critical information out to their citizens remains a high priority right now, the current environment has made it clear that every business in every industry should find ways to digitally engage with their clients and employees," said Rob Thomas, general manager, IBM Data & AI. "With today's news, IBM is taking years of experience in helping thousands of global businesses and institutions use Natural Language Processing and other advanced AI technologies to better meet the demands of their constituents, and now applying it to the COVID-19 crisis. AI has the power to be your assistant during this uncertain time."

Watson Assistant for Citizens leverages currently available data from external sources, including guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and local sources such as links to school closings, news and documents on a state website. IBM already is delivering this service across the United States, as well as engaging with organizations globally in Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Italy, Poland, Spain, UK and more.

Here are examples where IBM is engaging with government and healthcare agencies on Watson Assistant for Citizens:

ARKANSAS : University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences - In 9 days, deployed a virtual agent so citizens can get their questions answered quickly about testing, symptoms or resources. Information is automatically sent to a mobile COVID-19 triage clinic electronically to help speed response. Average registration time has been reduced by fifty percent for those using the agent.

- In 9 days, deployed a virtual agent so citizens can get their questions answered quickly about testing, symptoms or resources. Information is automatically sent to a mobile COVID-19 triage clinic electronically to help speed response. Average registration time has been reduced by fifty percent for those using the agent. CALIFORNIA : City of Lancaster in Los Angeles County - COVID-19 information for citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection.

- COVID-19 information for citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection. GEORGIA : Children's Healthcare of Atlanta - The "COVID-19 Pediatric Assessment Tool" walks parents through a series of questions and results in suggested next steps that a parent should take. Recommendations on next steps are made according to the healthcare system's established protocols.

- The "COVID-19 Pediatric Assessment Tool" walks parents through a series of questions and results in suggested next steps that a parent should take. Recommendations on next steps are made according to the healthcare system's established protocols. NEW YORK: County of Otsego - COVID-19-related information will be available within the next few days for citizens to help them quickly get their health and non-health related questions answered regarding the pandemic. Otsego County's COVID-19 virtual agent will be able to answer citizen's questions like: "How do I apply for unemployment?"

- COVID-19-related information will be available within the next few days for citizens to help them quickly get their health and non-health related questions answered regarding the pandemic. COVID-19 virtual agent will be able to answer citizen's questions like: "How do I apply for unemployment?" TEXAS : City of Austin - COVID-19-related information will soon be available for citizens with interactive conversation on where to get testing and other information.

- COVID-19-related information will soon be available for citizens with interactive conversation on where to get testing and other information. CZECH REPUBLIC : Czech Ministry of Health - COVID-19 virtual agent called "Anezka" advises citizens about prevention, treatment and other related topics on the coronavirus.

- COVID-19 virtual agent called "Anezka" advises citizens about prevention, treatment and other related topics on the coronavirus. GREECE : Hellenic Ministry of Digital Governance - COVID-19-related information for citizens and interactive conversation on preventive and precautionary measures issued by the Greek Government.

- COVID-19-related information for citizens and interactive conversation on preventive and precautionary measures issued by the Greek Government. POLAND : Polish Ministry of Health - COVID-19 information for Polish citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection.

- COVID-19 information for Polish citizens on common questions such as symptoms and recommended procedures to follow in case of infection. SPAIN : Andalusian Government - A virtual agent to help respond to citizen's queries about COVID-19 is available through the app "Salud Responde" and the Public Agency for Health Emergencies (EPES) website, built also in collaboration with the Andalusian Health Service (SAS).

- A virtual agent to help respond to citizen's queries about COVID-19 is available through the app "Salud Responde" and the website, built also in collaboration with the Andalusian Health Service (SAS). UK: National Health Service Wales: Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board - CERi, an English and Welsh speaking virtual assistant, will soon go live to support healthcare workers and the general public in Wales who need information or have questions on the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 along with general information about the virus.

"Austin residents are counting on us to provide timely updates on COVID-19 response," said Tauseef Khan, Chief Technology Officer, City of Austin, Texas. "The City is pleased to use artificial intelligence technology to respond to that need, with a tool that quickly and easily helps residents find the information they need 24/7."

"The AI solution from IBM will be a great resource for the county's residents and will help alleviate call center volume to allow county employees to dedicate efforts elsewhere," said Brian Pokorny, Director of Information Technologies, County of Otsego, New York.

Using information provided by clients, Watson Assistant for Citizens automates responses to frequently asked questions about COVID-19 that come in via phone call or text, such as "What are symptoms?", "How do I clean my home properly?" and "How do I protect myself?"

State and local government agencies, hospitals or other healthcare organizations can choose to customize the solution to address questions specific to their area or region, including "What are cases in my neighborhood?", "How long are schools shut down?" and "Where can I get tested?"

IBM is offering Watson Assistant for Citizens for no charge for at least 90 days and will assist with initial set up, which can typically be done in a few days. The initial solution is available in English and Spanish and can be tailored to 13 languages.

The offer includes access to 15 pre-trained COVID-19 "intents" or queries. "Intents" are purposes or goals that are expressed in a customer's input, such as answering a question. By recognizing the intent expressed in a customer's input, the Watson Assistant service can choose the correct dialog flow for responding to it.

Clients can also work with IBM to customize the offering on top of the base model and intents to include information related specifically to a city or region for specific information that is pertinent to those citizens or constituents, as well as integrate with client's back-end ERP systems.

IBM is also working with global businesses in other industries to apply AI to help them respond to COVID-19 and reimagine the way work will get done in this new operating environment.

For more information about IBM efforts around COVID-19, visit https://www.ibm.com/covid19 and https://newsroom.ibm.com/covid-19.

For more information about Watson Assistant for Citizens, visit https://www.ibm.com/watson/covid-response.

For more information about how businesses in any industry can use Watson Assistant, visit: https://www.ibm.com/cloud/watson-assistant/.

Media Contact:

Hanna Smigala

IBM Media Relations

1-203-512-5497

smigala@us.ibm.com

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An educational activity and creative outlet for home schooled kids turned into an outdoor community event in the Brittany Bay neighborhood in League City.

Resident Samantha Thomas was searching online for an activity for her daughter when she found a mosaic-pattern coloring activity that could be drawn with chalk outdoors.
SAGINAW, MI -- A local company is stepping up to the plate to help medical personnel who are on the front lines battling the coronavirus pandemic.

Saginaws Duro-Last is switching gears to produce personal protective equipment for medical staff such as isolation gowns and face masks. The company is headquartered at 525 W Morley Drive in Saginaw and has additional manufacturing facilities in Oregon, Mississippi, Iowa, Texas, and Massachusetts.

Duro-Last normally produces custom-fabricated, thermoplastic roofing systems. Company engineers, product development and manufacturing staff collaborated to fabricate and manufacture the PPE products by reformulating their current products and retooled their processes.

This is about helping health care professionals in any way we can and at the same time keeping people employed, said Tom Saeli, Duro-Last CEO.

The gowns are made from a flexible PVC material that makes them water- and fluid-repellant. The face masks are made from polyester and PVC and are washable and reusable.

According to Duro-Last, the companys expertise in managing flexible PVC and fabrics allowed its team to rapidly move into the development and production process. The company stated that the team moved from prototyping all the way to delivering products within one week.

I am very proud of and impressed by the people in our company who quickly developed these products," said Saeli. Our country is full of tremendously smart, entrepreneurial people who can bring timely solutions to this unprecedented need. The need is real and I believe its our obligation to act now. If the efforts of our team inspire just one other company to join this fight, it will be worth it.

Related news:

Mid-Michigan hotels offer discounts for front line coronavirus workers

Saginaw foundation offering $300,000 to help small businesses during coronavirus crisis

Nexteer Automotive 3D printing mask components for health care workers

Bay County issues order for collection of personal protection equipment, warns of coronavirus test scams
SPRINGFIELD, Mass., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Multiple failures by the national hospital chain Trinity Health to protect and support frontline nurses and other healthcare workers at Mercy Medical Center and Providence Behavioral Health Hospital has prompted nurses represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association to sound the alarm about the health system's inability to effectively respond to the unprecedented coronavirus (COVID-19) public health crisis.

The latest blow to nurses and healthcare workers on the front lines came this week when Trinity Health told staff it would no longer provide N95 masks to those caring for patients in an intermediate care unit that has had positive and suspected COVID-19 patients.

"Nurses are not being supported by Trinity and it is putting us and everyone else at risk," said Alex Wright, RN and Co-Chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee at Mercy Medical Center. "Healthcare professionals are being thanked on TV every day, but behind the scenes we are being bullied to put our lives on the line without the protection we need. There seems to be no concern on Trinity's part for worker protection or spreading this pandemic."

"When we should all be joining together to fight this dangerous outbreak, Trinity needs to make supporting staff the number one priority," said Jaime Dorunda, RN and Co-Chair of the MNA Bargaining Committee at Mercy Medical Center. "Our communities need more healthcare services, and Trinity is cancelling nurses when the hospital really needs all hands-on deck during this crisis. Trinity should not be looking at the numbers of patients in regard to staffing because the acuity is so much higher."

Trinity Health COVID-19 Issues

Lack of protective equipment. Nurses and healthcare professionals at Mercy Medical Center and Providence Behavioral Health Hospital are not being provided sufficient personal protective equipment (PPE) to guard against COVID-19 infection and safely care for patients. Nurses are being told one N95 mask is okay for multiple use all day long. This was not accepted practice a month ago. This has been proven to spread infection from patient to worker, which would then spread to other patients, expanding the infection.



Nurses were initially told by management not to wear masks if they were not taking care of isolation patients. Trinity enforced this by needing to call the nursing manager to obtain masks as opposed to the storeroom clerk. Hospitals are the epicenter for COVID-19. Nurses have resorted to making/disinfecting our own masks to bring to work with us.



The MNA's recommendation is that all healthcare workers who come into contact with patients now have PPE available because COVID-19 can be present in patients without symptoms. We know there is an inadequate PPE supply throughout Massachusetts and globally, but it is critical that Trinity Health work with our nurses, state and federal officials, and anyone else who is able to obtain the PPE needed to combat this public health crisis.



Inconsistent guidance on outside PPE. Nurses and healthcare professionals are being told by Trinity management in some cases that they cannot wear PPE that they bring in on their own. We need a clear message from Trinity that with PPE in such short supply, they will work with nurses and other healthcare workers to ensure that any appropriate PPE, whether hospital provided or not, can be used to protect against exposure.



Cancellations during a crisis. Nurses and healthcare professionals are being canceled during this unprecedented crisis at Mercy and Providence . We appreciate Trinity and other employers abiding by the governor's order to halt elective procedures to help stop the spread of this virus, but the healthcare workers who would have been caring for patients during those procedures should be available, as appropriate, to help these hospitals get through this outbreak. Trinity is also violating MNA contracts by cancelling nurses. The MNA has encouraged all nurses to cross-train to other units if they are willing and able.



Trinity is threatening to refuse unemployment for any nurse that could be repurposed into a job they don't work in. An example would be an outpatient endoscopy nurse now being told they have to be an ICU nurse. Trinity is disregarding the months of training that transition normally takes. They are also disregarding the desire of the individual.



Lack of support for front line staff. MNA nurses are being told by Trinity management that they have to use their own time off, unless they are kept out by Trinity's occupational health department. This fails to reach the standards set by other Massachusetts hospitals during this crisis and shows a lack of support for the very frontline healthcare workers who are battling this outbreak. Any nurse who is furloughed because of this crisis must be provided regular pay by the hospital and not have to use their own time. Trinity has threatened to fire staff who do not comply with its terms during this crisis, deny unemployment and refuse to allow nurses to use paid time off.



Closures of Essential Services. Trinity is moving ahead with its plans to close 74 child and adult mental health beds at Providence and a detox unit in Springfield . We have recently seen Trinity actually trying to expedite these closures.



No healthcare services should close during this public health crisis. These beds are a critical resource amid an ongoing behavioral health crisis. In addition, there are patients languishing in emergency departments and hallways waiting for mental health beds. That is terrible at any time, and especially now when the current outbreak means we need EDs and other hospital units available for the surge in COVID-19 patients. Mental health is public health and Trinity should immediately halt these closures.

More information about the proposed mental health closures and a recently launched "Mental Health is Public Health" campaign can be found at: https://www.massnurses.org/news-and-events/p/openItem/11618.

The MNA has called for a halt to all hospital and hospital unit closures amid the COVID-19 outbreak, among other measures. Read letters to the governor and other MNA information at: www.massnurses.org/COVID-19.

Hospital Corporation Background



Trinity Health operates 92 hospitals and 106 continuing care facilities in 22 states. Trinity has a workforce of 131,000, annual operating revenues of $19.3 billion, and assets of $27 billion, according to Trinity. The organization had more than $650 million in offshore accounts as of fiscal year 2017.

In a letter from Trinity to DPH dated February 28, 2020, the Michigan-based hospital chain said it has "proposed discontinuation of the licensed 50-bed inpatient Psychiatric Service and 24-bed inpatient Pediatric Service at its Providence Hospital Campus." Trinity said it plans to submit the 90-day closure notice required under law to DPH on or about March 31, 2020. After that, DPH can schedule a public hearing to decide if the services are essential. The MNA has proposed legislation to strengthen the state's hospital closure law.

MassNurses.org  Facebook.com/MassNurses  Twitter.com/MassNurses  Instagram.com/MassNurses

Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 23,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association

Related Links

http://www.massnurses.org


Therell be time enough, once the pandemic is behind us, to count up the cost and figure out how things could have been handled better. For now, fighting the battle must be the highest priority.

But theres already one area where the mistakes are so glaringly obvious that we dont need the benefit of hindsight to point them out: the shameful shortage of medical masks, face shields, gowns and other personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline healthcare workers.

Were sending far too many doctors, nurses and technicians into the front lines without an adequate supply of the most basic protective gear. This isnt sophisticated equipment; were talking about such things as masks that ordinarily can be churned out for less than a dollar apiece.

Until this week, governments insisted there was no overall shortage. But Quebec Premier Francois Legault now warns his province may run out of crucial equipment within days. And it was only on Wednesday that federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu admitted the obvious: that Ottawa likely didnt have enough PPE in the national stockpile.

But all along there had been a stream of stories from healthcare workers about rationing in hospitals  about nurses being handed two masks at the beginning of their shift to get them through the day. Or a memo to staff in Hamilton telling them to keep using surgical masks until theyre grossly soiled or wet.

We owe health workers who are literally risking their lives and the well-being of their families much better than this. And we owe it to ourselves to do everything we can for them; if they start to fall by the wayside, the health system will be overwhelmed all the quicker and will find it even harder to cope with the coming wave of COVID-19 patients.

Governments at all levels, and on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border, are now scrambling to catch up.

The federal government earmarked another $2 billion this week to buy more PPE in Canada and abroad. And its signing contracts with Canadian companies to produce more equipment in this country instead of relying on overstretched global supply chains. But those supplies wont be ready for weeks, or even months.

The Ontario government, too, plans to spend $50 million through its Ontario Together Fund to procure more masks, gowns, sanitizers, face shields and ventilators. Some companies are retooling to turn out PPEs, and others are donating supplies out of their own stockpiles.

Good for them for responding to the call for urgent help. We should all do what we can. But the hard truth is that we shouldnt be relying on random donations of potentially lifesaving items, especially not when were already deep into the crisis.

We dont send armies into battle and then scout about for weapons to give them a fighting chance of survival. Nor should we send healthcare workers into the fight of their lives (indeed, the fight of our lives) without the tools they need.

This is all the more tragic because the warning signs were there long before the coronavirus raised its ugly head. With the experience of SARS and other global health scares behind them, governments had years to prepare for the inevitable next time. Yet they failed.

An audit of Canadas National Emergency Stockpile System in 2011, for example, found that some of the stored equipment was out of date even then. Likewise, Ontarios auditor general reported in 2017 that 80 per cent of the provinces stockpile of PPE was out of date, and there was no system for rotating old equipment out and replacing it with fresh gear.

More broadly, virtually every study of pandemic readiness, including those in the U.S. and other countries, identified shortages of PPE as a major issue. It was, as they say, one of the known unknowns for anyone knowledgable about this area.

Yet governments everywhere grew complacent. They squeezed health budgets and allowed their emergency stockpiles to moulder away. They were like fire departments that dont bother to check their hoses for holes until a big blaze is roaring out of control.

Theres another sobering lesson in all this: relying on global supply chains for strategically important equipment on short notice is foolish.

Most of the worlds supply of medical masks, for example, is made in China. And of course that country needed everything it could produce when COVID-19 first struck there, making it very hard for other countries to obtain supply.

Canada relies heavily on a 3M plant in Britain for its supply, and that company likewise met demand in Europe before sending equipment further abroad. It will be weeks, in many cases months, before Canadian suppliers can gear up local production.

In the meantime, Canada is left bidding on the world market for scarce emergency supplies at a time when every other country is doing the same.

Theres plenty of blame to go around. Governments that are now scrambling to make up for lost time inherited the mistakes of their predecessors. Finger-pointing wont fix anything.

But its worth remembering: much of this crisis is out of our control. But ensuring an adequate supply of masks and gowns is something we could have done, with only a bit more money and care.
A strong message has been painted on a wall of the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast to support those on the front line inside (Niall Carson/PA)

Health Minister Robin Swann is coming under increasing pressure to allay concerns over the safety of frontline NHS staff who are putting their lives on the line to care for coronavirus patients.

In a dramatic series of admissions at the Stormont health committee on Thursday, it emerged that Northern Ireland has not received any personal protective equipment (PPE) from a delivery of 400m items that was to be shared across the UK or from a batch of PPE that has arrived in the Republic of Ireland from China.

In a further blow to Mr Swann's repeated claims that there is no shortage of PPE in Northern Ireland, one of his most senior officials also told the committee that one of the biggest issues she is facing is getting a special type of face mask to protect her clinical staff from the virus.

Cathy Jack, chief executive of the Belfast Trust, said she had been expecting a share of 60,000 of a specialist respiratory mask but a shipment had been "turned back".

When she was asked about the reason for this, Ms Jack told the committee said she didn't know why the masks were not delivered.

A spokesman from the Department of Health last night refused to provide an explanation and said there was "no comment to make at this stage".

It comes as a number of organisations have said a range of health professionals are being expected to care for Covid-19 patients without proper PPE.

The lack of protection is having a direct impact on the ability of the health service to meet the growing demand on services, they have said.

Nurses and other health care workers are confronting an unimaginable situation and they are worried. The very least they can expect is for honesty and clarity about what is being done to support and protect them Pat Cullen, RCN (NI) director

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in Northern Ireland has written to the First Minister, Deputy First Minister and Mr Swann to demand answers after Thursday's explosive health committee briefing.

Pat Cullen, RCN (NI) director, said: "We know our members are very concerned that they are not getting access to the PPE they need.

"We must as a matter of urgency get absolute clarity about how much stock we have, where it is, how is it being distributed and how much is definitely on the way.

"We will no longer accept promises - we must now deal in facts.

"Nurses and other health care workers are confronting an unimaginable situation and they are worried.

"The very least they can expect is for honesty and clarity about what is being done to support and protect them."

Meanwhile, it has emerged that staff at care homes across Northern Ireland are still being expected to work without adequate PPE - one week after Mr Swann said he was looking at the situation.

Care homes are taking patients that have been discharged from hospital and they are being told to assume that they have coronavirus and isolate them, but then the homes aren't getting the PPE they require for them to be cared for safely Pat Shepherd, Independent Health & Care Providers

Staff at one Co Antrim care home are being given one face mask each day despite the fact they are caring for more than 30 vulnerable and elderly residents, who are considered among the most at risk in society.

Pauline Shepherd, chief executive of the Independent Health & Care Providers, said: "We are being told there is no shortage of PPE in Northern Ireland, but if that is the case, then care homes must be at the bottom of the pile because it isn't working its way into them, it isn't going where it needs to be.

"In the last couple of weeks we have begun to procure our own PPE to distribute to members because it isn't coming from the trusts.

"Our members are going to their suppliers and are being told they can't provide any PPE because it is all going to the health service.

"Care homes are taking patients that have been discharged from hospital and they are being told to assume that they have coronavirus and isolate them, but then the homes aren't getting the PPE they require for them to be cared for safely.

"Last week, there was another care home that received an envelope sent by courier from the trust and it contained four face masks for the entire care home."

Meanwhile, it has been claimed that a third of community pharmacy staff across Northern Ireland are self-isolating due to Covid-19 symptoms.

I fully understand that staff on the frontline need reassurance. I believe the updated guidance and securing greater quantities of PPE for Northern Ireland will both play a part in allaying concerns Robin Swann

This includes staff in at least 100 high street chemists who have had to remove themselves from the network, to keep colleagues and patients safe.

Community Pharmacy NI has said PPE must be made more widely available to ensure as many community pharmacy staff, who are providing a vital service ensuring patients can continue to receive their medication throughout the pandemic, can remain at work.

Mr Swann has denied there is a shortage of PPE in Northern Ireland, although at Thursday's Stormont briefing he told the health committee he has not seen a leaked document that has shown some items will be out of stock until July.

Speaking afterwards, Mr Swann said: "Our health service has significant levels of PPE in stock at present but need to boost these quantities given the expected level of demand in coming weeks.

"I fully understand that staff on the frontline need reassurance. I believe the updated guidance and securing greater quantities of PPE for Northern Ireland will both play a part in allaying concerns."
In most cases yes. If the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. (Freddie Mac) or the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) backs your mortgage  and they do for about 80 percent of all mortgages  the mortgage giants may waive your payments for up to 12 months. It's called forbearance: You and the lender agree to temporarily reduce or suspend mortgage payments, and the lender agrees not to foreclose during that time. Both Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have also agreed to suspend evictions and foreclosure sales through June 30.



The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has also imposed an immediate halt to evictions from Federal Housing Administrationinsured single-family properties. What's more, it has halted new foreclosures and suspended those in process. The moratorium on foreclosures also applies to FHA-insured home-equity conversion mortgages (commonly known as reverse mortgages). Both moratoriums end June 30.

In September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a four-month, nationwide eviction moratorium that would have ended Dec. 31. The CDC extended that deadline to March 31, and, on March 29, extended the deadline again until June 30. According to the Census Bureau, 9.6 percent of the population age 55 and above had no confidence in their ability to pay their next months rent. The extension also provides criminal penalties for violation of the CDC order by a person of up to $250,000 or one year in jail, or both; and of up to $500,000 for a violation by an organization. These penalties are new. In a letter to the CDC, AARP senior vice president Bill Sweeney urged the CDC to extend the moratorium beyond its current deadline, and to make the moratorium to be automatic and universal, rather than depending on tenants to make the first move.

Does forbearance mean I never need to make up the missed mortgage payments?

No, the deferred payments still need to be made in the future, as a lump sum or tacked on to the end of your mortgage. Forbearance is not the same as loan forgiveness.

How do I know if Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac owns my mortgage?



You can check online to see if one of the mortgage giants owns your mortgage:

Search Fannie Mae: knowyouroptions.com/loanlookup

Search Freddie Mac: ww3.freddiemac.com/loanlookup/

What if my loan isn't owned by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae?



Contact your lender, explain the reason for your financial setback  perhaps you lost your job because of the coronavirus outbreak  and try to negotiate a forbearance plan. While not obligated to follow the lead of Fannie and Freddie, many lenders may be willing to negotiate during this difficult time.

Are big banks offering mortgage relief?



Yes, on a case-by-case basis. Bank of America, for one, says that mortgage borrowers can request to defer payments, with payments added to the end of the loan. Wells Fargo is suspending residential property foreclosure sales and evictions. Wells Fargo is telling its mortgage customers, If youre unable to make your payment due to COVID-19 related hardships, were offering a 90-day payment suspension. And Chase bank asks worried mortgage holders to call to work out a plan. If you need help, be proactive and give your bank a call.

Will making mortgage payments late affect my credit rating?



Under the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae plans, loan servicers will not report late payments resulting from forbearance to credit bureaus. They will also waive all late fees and penalties. Again, if you don't have a loan with Fannie or Freddie, you'll have to negotiate directly with your loan services. In any case, if you're struggling, be sure to contact your loan servicer sooner rather than later, and be sure to document your coronavirus hardship, such as proof of job loss.

What if I'm a renter?

There's some good news for renters, too. If you live in an apartment and your landlord gets mortgage relief because of the coronavirus outbreak, you can't be evicted for 90 days if you can't pay rent due to your own coronavirus hardship. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, in coordination with the Federal Housing Finance Agency, have announced a nationwide relief plan for borrowers who own multifamily properties, as well as their tenants. Under the program, landlords whose Freddie and Fannie loans are in good standing can defer their loan payments for 90 days by showing hardship as a consequence of COVID-19. In turn, Freddie and Fannie are requiring landlords not to evict tenants facing hardship based solely on nonpayment of rent during the forbearance period. Freddie Mac estimates that the program can provide relief for up to 4.2 million U.S. renters at more than 27,000 properties.

That still leaves 40 million renters without protection, primarily those who rent from smaller landlords. Some cities, such as Los Angeles, Boston and New York, are putting halts on evictions. But if youre not covered by a state or municipal ban on evictions, talk to your landlord as soon as possible to discuss your options.

Rates are low. Should I refinance my mortgage?



The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 2.79 percent the week ended January 21, according to Freddie Mac. The rule of thumb is that you should consider refinancing only if the new mortgage rate would be 1 percentage point lower than your current rate.

But there are plenty of variables, such as fees and points. (A point is an upfront fee equal to 1 percent of the loan; the more points you agree to pay, the lower your rate.) Will you stay in your home long enough for the lower rate to offset the cost of fees and points? You can crunch the numbers using mortgage calculators such as those offered by Bankrate, NerdWallet, HSH, SmartAsset and others.

Refinancing demand is high, and it may take longer than usual to get appraisals and title searches as government offices shut down because of the coronavirus epidemic. You may also have to do a virtual closing via videoconference, to maintain social distancing safety guidelines. Ask your bank how long their refinancing process takes, and whether they are reasonably sure that they can close the deal in a reasonable amount of time.

(Editor's note: This article was updated with additional information.)
Early on in the year, the University of Auckland began preparing for various business continuity scenarios.

Jason Mangan, the universitys chief technology officer, used this time to test the capability of his division for full remote working.

Thus, his team of over 400 staff worked from home for one day in mid-February, without adjusting or rescheduling any of their meetings.

Part of the quick preparation was to ensure that everyones identity and access management records were checked and updated, and to gather information around our staffs mobility posture, says Mangan.

Through this, they identified only 20 recorded issues, such as access to certain databases, and these were remediated.

One thing we knew if we were going to be in a lockdown situation, we were going to be in a position where our staff would be able to work remotely, he says. We had confidence we were well-placed to support the university under this scenario, if it eventuated.

The lockdown became a reality when New Zealand stepped up to Alert 4 due to the coronavirus.

University of Auckland Jason Mangan

In an exclusive interview with CIO New Zealand, Mangan discusses how the ICT and digital team supported the en masse transition to virtual learning and remote working.

It is a major undertaking, as the University of Auckland is the countrys largest university, with more than 33,000 equivalent full-time students.

He shares a key insight from the migration  the importance of digital equity  of ensuring staff, teachers, and students would not be technologically disadvantaged in the new digital environment.

Business continuity planning before the lockdown

Mangan says key to the success of all their activities is being able to pivot quickly across all teams and focus on new priorities.

Just over a year ago, the university restructured its IT services and renamed it Connect. What used to be teams coming from different faculties and divisions are now working similarly to a shared services environment, with customer service teams assigned across the university.

How can we make sure that personal or social circumstances are not obstacles to achieving educational potential? Not all of our students have computing equipment or network connectivity at home

He says their transition to Connect has made it easier for them to respond to the impact of COVID-19. As we are all in one organisation now, it probably provided a better platform to react holistically and in a much more organised way than it would have done previously.

As the COVID-19 unfolded, Mangan says the university considered the initial impact to more than 2000 students who may not be able to travel back to New Zealand, to the full execution of the business continuity plan.

Within Connect, we set up a working group with 10 streams of activity early on to ensure we would be able to quickly pivot to emerging needs and changing priorities.

These streams are: people, health, and wellbeing (focused on our people and teams); teaching transition and support; research support; student and staff provisioning; student and staff channels support; service management (this includes transition to and return from remote working); cybersecurity; service capacity and assurance; collaboration; new capability build; and value stream support (this includes BCP resourcing to support rapid priority changes).

Our primary objective has been to support the continued delivery of teaching, learning, research, and administrative outcomes through enabling technologies; and to assist our staff and students through the transition from onsite, to remote delivery, states Mangan.

He says all ICT and digital staff are working remotely, but they have also identified a small number of team members who could be called on to go onsite for certain issues.

Why digital equity is a critical component of online learning

A particular concern around the required move to remote teaching and learning was digital equity, says Mangan. How can we make sure that personal or social circumstances are not obstacles to achieving educational potential? Not all of our students have computing equipment or network connectivity at home.

Under normal circumstances, these students would be able to use the university provided technologies, such as the Information Commons. These are student-centred facilities that provide study spaces, computers and access to information resources.

In order to ensure that we were able to provide a solution for this immediate digital equity gap, we worked quickly to enable a pool of 500-plus laptops that could be loaned to students along with mobile wi-fi routers to provide network connectivity, he explains.

They also reached out to the students to see who would like to take up the offer of a loan laptop. The laptops were distributed prior to the lockdown, while some were sent via courier afterwards.

Agenda: Enable work from home, learn from home

In the transition to remote teaching, Mangan says a foremost concern is staff mobility, as all university staff shifted to teleworking.

With the very short timeframes that we were all working with as a country, we had the challenge to rapidly enable the mobility of 5,500-plus staff from working onsite to working remotely. A key focus for us here was to ensure that our teaching and research community were as well equipped as possible, both from a hardware and software lens, but also from a capability lens.

To support this rapid shift, he says the team quickly set up Connect kiosks across the university campuses in 10 locations. We had to ensure that staff have the hardware and software to work remotely, in whatever context that may take  teaching, research, and administration.

He says the kiosks were very popular and effective, and helped reduce demand in the staff service centre. They also provided all university staff with cloud meeting and collaboration technologies, with a specific focus on the teaching community.

A new VPN capability was introduced to provide for 10-times lift in capacity and also integrate with their two-factor authentication capability. They also provided staff with desktop computing devices, loaning the equipment for some of them to use at home.

The university also announced a week of non-teaching to allow the teaching staff to get ready for remote delivery of classes. Midway through that week, the lockdown was announced.

We scrambled really to get everyone in a position where they can work remotely, productively, with a big focus on our teaching staff.

He says the university is encouraging lecturers to record sessions so these would be accessible to students from home. Mangan says the lectures are posted within the hour of when these would normally be delivered. This provides structure in the students schedules and allows them to participate in polls and tests that some lecturers run.

Focus on the student experience

Mangan says the Connect team also considered how the shift would impact student experience. Given the shift from onsite to remote learning, the key challenge we have tackled is how can we support a very rapid change from onsite to remote learning, and ensure the best possible experience for students?

During the early days of the COVID-19 event and when teaching was still on campus, we quickly equipped an additional 160 university teaching rooms with audio and visual recording capabilities, he shares. This was done so students who would not be able to return to camps could view recorded class sessions.

They then redesigned the lecture recording service, which supports recording and playback of all teaching content, regardless of room or location. The goal was to ensure students could also stream or download media with improved performance.

We were able to do this by moving to a hybrid design incorporating a new content delivery network within AWS to host international traffic, explains Mangan.

They also redesigned the transcoding engine to improve file processing times, uploading and playback.

We also launched and rapidly augmented our FlexIT capability which allows students and staff to access university applications anywhere, from any device at any time, and at scale, he says. Typically, the students only had access to these applications through the computers in various labs across the campuses.

He says the team rapidly expanded their cloud contact centre technology to allow key student and staff support channels to work remotely, and service the significant uplift in demand to these channels. They re-prioritised value stream delivery to support business continuity plan priorities within each portfolio, such as CRM, student management, learning and teaching, and research. Mangan says the team also worked on capacity and assurance, given the rapid change in demand profiles for critical services across the university. We have leveraged our cloud capabilities across multiple service lines to ensure we can burst where needed, he states. These range from large consumption services like FlexIT or lecture playback to ensuring they have increased wi-fi density in the student accommodation. The team expected greater demand from these areas given the lockdown scenario.

Mangan stresses that it is important to support the teams as they transition to remote working. Thus, twice a week, he holds 30-minute virtual meetings with the wider leadership group within ICT. Every fortnight, he holds a one-hour virtual technology all hands for the whole staff. We want to keep staff engaged in different activities and give them updates, because things are moving so fast. It is also a great forum for staff recognition.

The ICT team imperative: Continuous upskilling

Part of the shift to Connect was the launch of the IT academy ConnectEd which uses the skills framework function for the information age (SFIA) .

We have deployed new channels within ConnectEd, he says. We emphasised to all staff that time should still be set aside for learning and development during our long intermission from campus. We curate our own courses in cloud technology, and we have utilised that now for getting ready for remote working.

Keeping the fun going is key and we have some great ideas we are working on to connect our people more than ever, he says. It is a very dynamic environment we all find ourselves in. It is changing by the day.

How education CIOs can help their institutions prepare for online learning

By 2022, 75 per cent of all higher education institutions will have an online learning strategy and strategic plan that will guide their actions in this arena. The online learning strategy will become as common as an overall IT strategy.

Gartner analyst Glenda Morgan predicted this in July 2019, when the sector had no inkling this possibility could be happening two years earlier, with the rise of coronavirus.

The online learning strategy will become as common as an overall IT strategy

Morgan says developing an online learning strategy before launching online programmes in higher education is critical.

Without this strategic plan, she says institutions run the risk of excluding important stakeholders  including IT  in plans and discussions for these programmes.

This can have serious repercussions, she reports. By not thinking through and developing an online strategy, institutions may develop relatively low-quality online programmes that are digital versions of online courses.

Some questions educational institutions can ask as they develop their online learning strategy are: What is the institution doing in the online learning space? What are the medium- to long-term trends for enrolment and recruitment of students? Who is your target student audience? What are medium- to long-term trends for funding from both tuition and government? What are the current areas of demand for skills in the communities that you typically serve? What are emerging areas of demand for skills in the communities you serve? What are your institutional strengths in areas of study or expertise?

CIOs, she notes, can act as a catalyst to guide their institutions towards developing a coherent and enterprise-level online learning strategy that links to the broader institutional and IT strategy. Do so even if you are not directly responsible for online learning.
In the 2018 Democratic primary election for New Yorks 14th Congressional District seat in the US House of Representatives, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), defeated the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House, Congressman Joseph Crowley. The upset victory generated massive media coverage and made her one of the highest-profile political figures in Washington.

Ocasio-Cortezs campaign was largely orchestrated by a political action committee called Justice Democrats, whose stated aim was to create a left-wing populist movement to support alternative Democratic candidates who were ideologically aligned with the organizations core values.

The promotion of Ocasio-Cortez was pushed most heavily by the DSA, which went so far as to proclaim her election and that of a handful of other progressive Democrats the rebirth of the American socialist movement.

There was no substance to the claim that the election of Ocasio-Cortez was a transformative event. As the World Socialist Web Site wrote at the time, [A]nyone who suggests that her victory marks a shift to the left in the Democratic Party should be told, in no uncertain terms: Curb your enthusiasm! The DSA is not fighting for socialism, but to strengthen the Democratic Party, one of the two main capitalist parties in the United States.

Less than 18 months later, the analysis of the WSWS is being fully borne out by Ocasio-Cortez herself. The freshman congresswoman has moved to ingratiate herself with the Democratic Party establishment, dismissing leading progressives on her staff who were instrumental in her election, and, most recently, abandoning the majority of the Justice Democrats-backed insurgent candidates.

The shift of Ocasio-Cortez to the right comes at the very point that the global coronavirus catastrophe is demonstrating the bankruptcy of the capitalist system and discrediting all of its political parties and representatives. As illusions that have persisted for decades among masses of people shatter in the face of the criminally negligent and incompetent response of the ruling class to the pandemic, Ocasio-Cortez seeks to restore the credibility of and shore up support for the Democratic Party.

She is doing so under conditions where the Democratic Party just voted with virtual unanimity in both houses of Congress to pass the Trump administrations massive corporate bailout, which funnels more than $6 trillion dollars to cover the losses of the corporations and banks from the pandemic, and then some, while providing only limited and temporary assistance to workers who are losing their jobs and sources of income.

On Monday, Politico published an article headlined, AOC breaks with Bernie on how to lead the left, which outlines Ocasio-Cortezs shift to the right. It states:

Of the half-dozen incumbent primary challengers Justice Democrats is backing this cycle, Ocasio-Cortez has endorsed just two. Neither was a particularly risky move: Both candidates--Jessica Cisneros in Texas and Marie Newman in Illinois--were taking on conservative Democrats who oppose abortion rights and later earned the support of several prominent national Democrats.

Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Sanders and made joint appearances with him before the Vermont senator halted active campaigning. But among those candidates Ocasio-Cortez is not backing is Cori Bush from St. Louis, whom Sanders has endorsed. Bush was one of four candidates featured in last years Netflix documentary Knock Down the House, which touted the supposed transformation of American politics through the election of progressive Democrats, first and foremost, Ocasio-Cortez. She flew out to St. Louis shortly after her 2018 victory in New York to campaign for Bush, whom she called her sister in the fight.

The Politico article continues:

Ocasio-Cortezs reluctance marks a break with the outsider tactics of the activist left, represented by groups like Justice Democrats. This election cycle, the organization is trying to boot not just conservative Democrats but also some liberal Democrats and to replace them with members who are more left-wing. In other words, to replicate what it pulled off against Rep. Joe Crowley in 2018 by recruiting Ocasio-Cortez Ocasio-Cortezs endorsement moves are not a fluke but part of a larger change over the past several months. After her disruptive, burn-it-down early months in Congress, Ocasio-Cortez, who colleagues say is often conflict-averse in person, has increasingly been trying to work more within the system. She is building coalitions with fellow Democratic members and picking her fights more selectively. Politico notes that Ocasio-Cortezs break with Justice Democrats comes on the heels of her dismissal of two top aides in her congressional office, including her chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti (one of the cofounders of Justice Democrats), and her communications director, Corbin Trent.

The removal of the two aides came after a series of public disputes on Twitter between Chakrabarti and leading House Democrats. In one instance, Chakrabarti criticized Democrats who voted to fund Trumps border wall, referring to them in a tweet as the new Southern Democrats. Around the same time, Chakrabarti also tweeted that Representative Sharice Davids from Kansas was among a group of Democrats voting as a block to criminalize immigrants.

The official House Democratic Caucus Twitter account responded to Chakrabarti: Who is this guy and why is he explicitly singling out a Native American woman of color? This was followed by a series of public back and forth denunciations between the House Democratic Caucus Twitter account and Chakrabarti.

Both of the top aides have since been replaced with more entrenched political operatives. Ocasio-Cortezs new communications director, Lauren Hitt, has worked for many Democrats, including former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper and former Texas congressman Beto ORourke, both of whom were early contestants in the race for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, running as moderate alternatives to Sanders.

James Carville, a top strategist for Bill Clintons 1992 campaign and a right-wing critic of Sanders during the primaries, told Politico: Ive observed her. I think shes really talented, that shes really smart. Maybe she isI dont speak for hercoming to the conclusion that she wants to be part of the coalition.

Neera Tanden, president of the pro-Democratic think tank Center for American Progress and a longtime Hillary Clinton aide, called Ocasio-Cortez's shift a sign of leadership.

Despite Ocasio-Cortezs snubbing of their slate of candidates, Justice Democrats aides continue to promote the congresswoman, saying in a recent statement that Ocasio-Cortez remains the most anti-establishment Democrat in Congress. Her brief tenure in Congress has already demonstrated that her politics are entirely compatible with those of the Democratic Party establishment and entirely incompatible with socialism. Within days of her primary victory, she disavowed all isms. In a revealing interview with NBC News Chuck Todd last year, she was asked if one could be a socialist and capitalist at the same time, to which she replied that she thought it was possible.

She quickly repudiated previous criticisms of Israel, pledged her support for US border security, and voted for the US war budget. She has lined up behind the Democratic Partys anti-Russia campaign and joined the sickening praise of arch warmonger John McCain following his death.

Only a few weeks ago, Ocasio-Cortez lovingly called Pelosi the mama bear of the Democratic Party. When multi-millionaire Mama Bear Pelosi ushered Trumps corporate bailout through the House last week, Ocasio-Cortez failed to go through with a threat to stall passage of the bill by calling for a roll call vote, demonstrating her subservience to the financial elite that runs both big business parties.

While the political form of Ocasio-Cortezs shift to the right involves a distancing of herself from the Justice Democrats and the Sanders campaign, there are no principled differences between the Sanders wing and the Democratic Party leadership.

Sanders role in the presidential campaign is essentially the same as that of Ocasio-Cortez in Congress. With the support of the DSA and similar groups, Sanders is seeking to keep social and political opposition and growing anti-capitalist sentiment, to which he appeals with talk of democratic socialism, political revolution and the billionaire class, within the confines of the Democratic Party. In 2016, he concluded his campaign by supporting the right-wing, pro-war candidacy of Hillary Clinton, and he has already made clear that he will support the eventual right-wing candidate of the Democratic Party in 2020 as well.

Both Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez, in their own political maneuvers, demonstrate the fraud of their central claim: that the Democratic Party, the oldest capitalist party in the world, can be transformed into an instrument of progressive change.

Workers and young people who were under the mistaken impression that Ocasio-Cortez represented some sort of opposition to the status quo, or even a force for socialism, must draw the necessary conclusions. She and her fellow progressive Democrats speak not for the working class, but for privileged sections of the middle class. The fight against inequality and capitalism will not come through such figures, but in irreconcilable opposition to them and the pseudo-left politics they promote.
EUGENE, Ore. -- With limited supplies slowing coronavirus testing, Lane County Public Health officials say they are looking to get machines that can produce test results in minutes.

Lane County Public Health spokesperson Jason Davis said the chemicals used in testing are in high demand. He said supplies that Oregon was going to get had been redirected to New York City where hospitals are overflowing with cases.

Davis said the decision was made on the federal and state level. He said they will continue to advocate for resources but knows they need to be good partners with the rest of the country.

"Fortunately, we are still in a spot, Lane County wise, where our medical systems are not being overrun," Davis said. "We are still at a manageable rate of infection, and so we can absorb a slow down in some of these areas."

Right now, five labs are doing testing for COVID-19 in Oregon and getting those results can take days. But Davis said they have been speaking with a company to get machines here locally.

Davis said the machines can give positive results in as little as five minutes, and negative results in 13 minutes.

A Californa-based company makes rapid testing machines. Davis said they would put the machines in hospitals, doctors' offices, and other care facilities.

Davis sad they are in line to get some once they become available, and it could happen as early as next week.

Morgan Rich works at the Goodyear tire store. He said his hours have been cut in half and he is hoping for a solution.

"All the things I have saved up for, all that the stuff that I have worked up for is down the toilet now," Rich said. "So we're in desperate need of a solution. We are in desperate need for these tests."

Davis said the machines could expand the criteria of who gets tested.

But with chemicals needed to do the testing in short supply, he said it wouldn't mean tens of thousands of people getting tested, but possibly hundreds.
A city in China has banned its residents from eating dog and cat meat with a groundbreaking new law in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Animal activists have demanded the Chinese government prohibit the consumption of pets for years, and the new accord is the first of its kind in the country.

The legislation was yesterday passed by lawmakers in Shenzhen, a city of around 13 million people, and will take effect on May 1, according to a government notice.

One charity group hailed the passage as a historic decision which marked a watershed moment in the animal protection in China.



The annual Yulin Dog Meat Festival is one of the most controversial food festivals in China and sees thousands of dogs cruelly killed, skinned and cooked with blow-torches before being eaten by the locals.

Apart from dogs, the regulations bar snake, frog and turtle meat from the dinner table.

The news comes after China banned all trade and consumption of wild animals, a practice believed responsible for the countrys deadly virus epidemic.

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Members of the medical staff listen as Montefiore Medical Center nurses call for N95 masks and other critical PPE to handle the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on April 1, 2020 in New York (AFP Photo/Bryan R. Smith)

Washington (AFP) - A senior US official on Thursday rejected allegations from French politicians that Americans have been snapping up Chinese masks previously ordered by France during the coronavirus crisis, calling the stories "completely false."

The leader of the Ile-de-France region, which includes Paris, accused unidentified Americans of swooping in with cash at the last minute to secure shipments already promised to French buyers.

"We lost an order to the Americans who outbid us on a shipment that we had lined up," said Valerie Pecresse, the chief of France's most populous region.

Pecresse claimed that while France pays on delivery for such supplies -- crucial in the global fight against the pandemic -- "Americans pay cash" without bothering to see the goods.

They "are just looking to do business on the back of the whole world's distress," she told LCI television.

A similar accusation was made by Jean Rottner, the leader of the Grand Est region in northeastern France on Wednesday, although he did not explain where he got his information from or identify the people supposedly involved.

"There on the runway, the Americans take out cash and they pay three or four times more for the orders that we had made," Rottner told RTL radio.

In Washington, a senior administration official told AFP "the United States government has not purchased any masks intended for delivery from China to France."

"Reports to the contrary are completely false," said the official, asking not to be named.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday asked officials to look into similar claims that masks were being diverted from his country, calling such reports "concerning."

"We need to make sure that equipment that is destined for Canada gets to and stays in Canada, and I've asked ministers to follow up on these particular reports," he told a press conference.

Story continues

Ottawa has recognized that its stockpiles of protective medical equipment are not enough to meet demand, as it looks to care for a surge of infected patients and slow the spread of the virus.

Canada has earmarked Can$2 billion (US$1.4 billion) to buy medical equipment while asking local companies to pivot assembly lines to make masks, medical scrubs and ventilators.

Health Minister Patty Hajdu said more than 12 million masks were received from abroad, donated locally or released from government stockpiles this week.

"We understand that the needs in the US are very extensive, but it's the same in Canada, so we have to work together to ensure that we can control the spread of this virus," Trudeau concluded.
The Facebook group RVs 4 MDs to fight Corona Virus has more than 14,000 members in it that are offering RVs to health care workers on the frontline of combatting the coronavirus.

Many health care professionals are exposed to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 daily and are looking for temporary housing options to keep them from spreading germs to family members or roommates. That is where the Facebook group comes into play. The group works to connect RV owners with health care workers all throughout the country and assist them in their pairing.

The group describes itself as "for Frontline Health care Workers in need of an RV and RV Owners willing to lend out an RV.

Those with an RV interested in lending it out for use must post a picture of it and list the city, state, and are advised to read the group disclaimer ahead of doing so.

Health care providers in need of an RV are instructed to post a comment requesting an RV with some details on why and the city and state they reside in.

All RV Owners and Health care Workers in need are required to fill out this form in order to be properly matched.

As of Wednesday afternoon, there are 236,339 cases of the coronavirus in America.

RVs 4 MDs to fight Corona Virus, a Facebook group, has over 9,000 members in it that post daily offering RVs to borrow for health care workers on the frontline of combatting the coronavirus.

Related Content:
Andhra Pradesh Panchayati Raj and Rural Development Minister Peddireddy Ramachandra Reddy on Thursday donated Rs 200.11 crores to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to combat coronavirus.

"Out of Rs 200 crores, the district mining department contributed Rs 187 crores, APMDC contributed Rs 10.62 crores and mines and geology department employees contributed Rs 56 lakhs," the Chief Minister's Office said.

On the other hand, the employment guarantee and watershed department employees contributed Rs 1.50 crores and Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP) employees donated Rs 50 lakhs.

In the state, the total positive cases of coronavirus stands at 143.

The total number of COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday rose to 2,069 in India, including 1,860 active cases, 155 cured or discharged, 53 deaths and one patient has migrated, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Thursday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Captain Who Raised Alarm on COVID-19-Infected Carrier Could Face Punishment - US Navy Secretary

Sputnik News

22:28 GMT 01.04.2020

Earlier this week, the captain of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, which has reported dozens of COVID-19 cases while at sea, wrote a scathing letter to US Navy leaders demanding support in quarantining his crew. Now, the acting Navy secretary has said he might face a reprimand for it.

"I don't know who leaked the letter to the media. That would be something that would violate the principles of good order and discipline, if he were responsible for that. But I don't know that," acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly told reporters on Wednesday about the Monday letter from Capt. Brett Crozier.

"The fact that he wrote the letter up to his chain of command to express his concerns would absolutely not result in any type of retaliation," Modly further noted.

That letter was published Tuesday by the San Francisco Chronicle and addressed to Navy Personnel Command (NAVADMIN), which functions similarly to a human resources department in a private corporation.

"Request all available resources to find NAVADMIN and CDC [US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] compliant quarantine rooms for my entire crew as soon as possible," Crozier wrote in the letter. "This will require a political solution, but it is the right thing to do. We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset - our sailors."

Modly indicated Wednesday that he did not agree with Crozier's conclusion that all but 10% of the ship's crew could be removed for several weeks. The Roosevelt departed Da Nang, Vietnam, two weeks before its first cases of COVID-19 were detected last week, and soon after, it put into port on Guam and evacuated the positive cases to a military hospital on the island.

On Tuesday evening, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper rejected the notion of an evacuation at the present time, saying the situation was not "at that point" yet. A Nimitz-class carrier like the Theodore Roosevelt carries roughly 5,000 crew members, most of whom live in cramped berths, sleeping just inches from one another.

Modly changed the tune on Wednesday, however, when he announced that nearly 1,000 personnel had already been removed from the carrier and another 2,700 would be evacuated in the next several days.

"We cannot and will not remove all the sailors off the ship," Modly said at a Pentagon briefing. "Our plan has always been to remove as much of the crew as we can while maintaining for the ship's safety."

Modly indicated there were 93 positive cases on the ship and that 1,273 members of the crew had been tested.

 Sputnik

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Companies around Northern Ireland are joining what they are calling the "war effort" to help make much-needed equipment to protect NHS staff treating patients with Covid-19.

From multinational giants like Collins Aerospace in Kilkeel to small family firms, up to 40 businesses are now involved in producing items including scrubs and visors.

Around 150 O'Neills staff at the company's premises in Strabane have turned their hand from making GAA jerseys to stitching scrubs for nurses and doctors on the front line.

Following the creation of a prototype last week, BlocBlinds in Magherafelt has now repurposed its production line and will be able to produce 22,000 FaceShield visors per day.

And Portview Fit-Out in Belfast has made a donation of FFP3 face masks to the NI Hospice. The masks are used on construction sites but are also used by medics, and are in short supply due to the need for masks when treating Covid-19. Portview has donated 1,800 masks and 43,000 to the hospice.

It's good to be doing something positive. It's very, very depressing with all the news out there Paul Crossen, Crossen Engineering

Crossen Engineering in Belfast has a small number of staff working on what they have started calling 'halos' - the ring over which plastic is placed to make a visor, guarding NHS staff against droplets carrying the virus.

Crossen Engineering is part of a massive operation to manufacture visors, led by baby products manufacturer Shnuggle in Newtownards.

Expand Close Member of staff at O'Neills in Strabane works on scrubs after the business has diversified from GAA jerseys Lorcan Doherty / Facebook

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Whatsapp Member of staff at O'Neills in Strabane works on scrubs after the business has diversified from GAA jerseys

Crossen managing director Paul Crossen said he had felt compelled to get involved to create something positive out of a very sad time.

Its plastic moulding machine will be working around the clock and will need to be replenished by staff every two hours, even overnight. And this week the daughter of a member of staff who works in A&E at the Ulster Hospital trialled one of the first visors to come off the production line. "For us, it's personal," Mr Crossen said.

"It's good to be doing something positive. It's very, very depressing with all the news out there. If you go on Facebook it's all doom and gloom, so it's good to do something constructive.

"We've been working around the clock. It would normally take us six to eight weeks to deliver that tool, and we did it over six days."

Crossen Engineering also makes parts for Armstrong Medical in Coleraine, a medical devices company also working to fight coronavirus.

Mr Crossen said it was a worrying time for business, though Crossen was in a good place financially. He added: "We've been in business 42 years. There have been recessions and tough times but this is another level. It's comparable to a war but without fighting."

Its machinery is now optimised to produce 5,000 halos a day, with the machines running overnight.

Collins Aerospace is using machinery to cut through fabric for scrubs, and a small team of engineers led by associate director Richard McBride also created a prototype face shield, 135 of which were delivered to Craigavon Hospital on Wednesday night, while more will go to the NI Children's Hospice.

Expand Close Stuart McKee, managing director of Collins Aerospace / Facebook

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Stuart McKee, managing director of Collins Aerospace, said: "A number of employees, extremely mindful of their family and the wider community, are going that extra mile to ensure that they play a small part in helping those in need including the NHS, NI Children's Hospice and the wider Kilkeel community. Collins Aerospace Kilkeel will continue to do what we can, where we can."

A super seamstress is, meanwhile, pulling in hundreds of top stitchers from across Northern Ireland to work on the scrubs, as part of the same drive. Co Down's Angeline Murphy, who appeared on the BBC's Great British Sewing Bee, is working alongside a host of other stitchers, suppliers and producers.

She has raised 10,000, including receiving a 5,000 donation from her employer, gas supplier firmus, and brought together a team of more than 4,000 people online to produce, deliver and request scrubs.

"We had the ability to buy fabric, removing barriers for people," she said. "I liaised with contacts here locally, buying in rolls, cutting, packaging and attaching cord. It's now going to every county in Northern Ireland and we have had lots of volunteers from people offering to drive rolls of fabric to households."

Adam Murphy, co-owner of Shnuggle, which also came up with a design for a visor, as well as coordinating a project to get the visors out to those who need them, said it felt like a war effort.

"We have our own business making baby products but everything was quietening down, so we had a good research and development team with nothing urgent to do," he said.

"We saw messages on doctors and nurses doing without protective equipment so we decided to look into it."

It has developed a face shield and is also working with Crossen Engineering.

Mr Murphy said the shields are being made as cheaply and effectively as possible.

A website has been set up for NHS workers to order them free of charge. Today it will ship out 25,000 face masks, which have been funded through a Justgiving page that has now raised 18,000.

He added: "We've set up a not for profit limited company called Hero Shield Ltd. We'll wrap it up in six weeks I hope, but if there is further demand we'll keep making them."

Kieran Harding, managing director of Business in the Community Northern Ireland, said the need to link business support to community has never been more urgent.

"We're encouraged that businesses such as Armstrong Medical, Portview Fit Out, Bloc Blinds and Queen's University - to name a few - are already stepping up to help those affected by the pandemic, by producing and offering products, providing skills support, and making donations to ensure vital services provided by the NHS, local charities and community organisations can continue, but there is still much to be done."
Lee Ann Wentzel, the superintendent of the Ridley School District in Pennsylvania, said her staff had been reviewing thousands of records, connecting with hundreds families and finding creative ways to offer one-on-one services like speech therapy through platforms like Google Hangouts.

But, she conceded, even with accessibility devices, there are some times when features will come up short for some children.

We have to acknowledge the fact that were not going to be 100 percent compliant, and not for not trying, she continued. But we decided to do whats best for all kids.

But parents and special education advocates fear the waivers could mark the beginning of the end of student disability rights.

Ms. Gratzer said she did not expect the same level of services that her son received in school. He could not see let alone follow what was happening on the screen during a recent meeting over Zoom, she said. But she said she hoped to take advantage of a benefit under the virus relief law that required schools to make up for lost time.

Its easy to do what they want and steamroll right over our kids, Ms. Gratzer said. My fear is that while parents like myself are trying to survive, people like Betsy DeVos will be out there pulling the rug from underneath us.

The stimulus bill provision gave Ms. DeVos 30 days to submit recommendations for any waivers from the law she believes are necessary. Angela Morabito, an Education Department spokeswoman, said the department was reviewing the congressional request, and will respond as appropriate.
We're excited to bring the learning and success we've seen with brands in North America to the South African market to help advertisers drive higher engagement from their campaigns. Building a high-quality user experience in the ad itself allows brands to use our conversational format for a wide range of purposes  from upper-funnel objectives like awareness to lower-funnel activities like product recommendations, to drive conversion. It all takes place in a simple, intuitive messaging format, familiar to consumers.  Michael Gramlow, co-founder of AdChat.

Fusing the interactivity of a chatbot with the vast reach afforded by programmatic display advertising, AdChats revolutionary conversational ad units allow consumers to communicate in real-time with brands, without having to leave their browsing environments.While bots have long been available within social media environments, were now able to take them out of the walled gardens and see how they perform in the wild. Im really excited to see how the market uses this tech to create new experiences for their customers, says Shauna Carter, sales and operations partner at RebelRebel.Using AdChat conversational ad units, brands will be able to host live conversations between their chatbots and their customers across all display environments, within the ads themselves. The AI-powered messaging system accepts input via text and voice command (on mobile), and can help brands answer questions about the product/service theyre advertising, direct consumers to the appropriate page on their website, or capture data for more intricate lead generation campaigns or competitions.Handling production, media buying and implementation, RebelRebel is working closely with the AdChat team in Toronto to ensure that each client testing the new medium is carefully guided on best practices gleaned from rigorous testing in both the US and Canadian markets.With it being a brand-new product for most markets around the world, were investing a lot of time in guiding our clients around the key learnings that have come from this revolution in advertising technology. The case studies were seeing so far from abroad are showing that there is some serious value to be unlocked by giving the consumer an opportunity to interact as soon as theyre exposed to the ad, concludes Mike Carter, commercial partner at RebelRebel.For a look at one of these ad units in action, please click here AdChat ad units are available exclusively through RebelRebel for the South African market.For further information on AdChat and RebelRebel, please contact latigid.leberleber@olleh
Kim Dong-sung on "Bad Fathers" blog





By Kim Se-jeong







Kim Dong-sung, a short track speed skater who won Olympic medals, was featured on a private blog that posts a list of "bad fathers" who failed to provide child support.







Founded by a group of activists, the blog, "Bad Fathers," became famous in January after a lower court in Suwon sided with the activists in a defamation case.







The athlete married in 2004 and was divorced in 2018. Reportedly, Kim's former wife has custody of their two children and he is required to pay 3 million won per month for child support.







Speaking to a local media outlet after Kim's profile was posted on the blog, his ex-wife said Kim has not been paying the money since January and the court's ruling in January motivated her to contact the bloggers.







"You're still a parent. Although you are not physically raising children, you have a responsibility to share the burden and Kim is failing to do this," the mother was quoted by the media outlet.







In response, Kim, estimated to owe 15 million won, apologized and said that he was experiencing a financial crunch because he earned less and was helping his older brother who fell sick.









The blog (

) is currently revealing identities of 198 fathers and 31 mothers with childcare support payments overdue.







The blog is drawing huge attention because the current law in Korea doesn't enforce court orders against those who neglect to make child support payments. To address the problem, the government launched the Child Support Agency, a separate body, in 2015 but the agency has been ineffective. Kim's ex-wife said she had sought assistance from the agency but to no avail.







The bloggers say they are also pushing for legislative changes to ensure single parents can receive support payments.






[April 02, 2020] First BanCorp. Announces Payment of Dividends on Preferred Stock

First BanCorp. (the "Corporation") (NYSE: FBP), the bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico, announced today that its Board of Directors has declared the following monthly cash dividends on its outstanding shares of Series A through E Noncumulative Perpetual Monthly Income Preferred Stock (the "Preferred Stock"):







Series Monthly

Dividend Per

Share Outstanding

Shares Record Date Payment Date A $0.14843750 197,386 April 28, 2020 April 30, 2020 B $0.17395800 296,146 April 15, 2020 April 30, 2020 C $0.15416670 249,852 April 15, 2020 April 30, 2020 D $0.15104167 285,522 April 15, 2020 April 30, 2020 E $0.14583330 415,240 April 15, 2020 April 30, 2020

About First BanCorp. First BanCorp. is the parent corporation of FirstBank Puerto Rico, a state-chartered commercial bank with operations in Puerto Rico, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands and Florida, and of FirstBank Insurance Agency, LLC. Among the subsidiaries of FirstBank Puerto Rico are First Federal Finance Limited Liability Company and First Express, Inc., both small loan companies. First BanCorp's shares of common stock trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "FBP." Safe Harbor This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" concerning the Corporation. The words or phrases "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "look forward," "should," "would," "believes" and similar expressions are meant to identify "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are subject to the safe harbor created by such sections. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Corporation's ability to declare dividends on the Corporation's Preferred Stock in any future periods. Such statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and contingencies that may cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations, intentions, beliefs, plans, estimates or predictions of the future expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and contingencies include, but are not limited to the factors described in the Corporation's Annual Report on Form 10-K, in its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and in other filings with the SEC (News - Alert). The Corporation does not undertake, and specifically disclaims any obligation, to update any "forward-looking statements" to reflect occurrences or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements, except as required by the federal securities laws. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005082/en/

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Kansas City Coronavirus Nurse Protest Amid Desperate Need

Some nurses at Research Medical Center protest over safety, working conditions Some nurses at Research Medical Center protested Wednesday over safety and their working conditions."Give us the proper protective equipment that we need to keep ourselves safe and to keep the community safe," said Angela Davis, an ICU nurse.There are more than 700 nurses working at Research Medical Center and 100 of them working in the intensive care unit."The No.

Show-Me COVID-19 Cuts

Parson announces $180 million in cuts to cover spending to combat COVID-19 (From Gov. Mike Parson) In today's press briefing, Governor Mike Parson announced $180 million in expenditure restrictions to ensure a balanced state budget and the necessary funds to combat COVID-19 going forward. Governor Parson was joined by State Budget Director Dan Haug at the briefing.

Discounting Kangaroos

UMKC confirms discounts for student fees UMKC administration has confirmed they will credit 45% of the costs of parking permits, student activity fees, housing and meal plans back to student accounts. In an email sent to the student body, the university stated that they are presenting the discounts as a form of financial relief for students during the coronavirus pandemic.

Hotness Reconsidered

How Tara Lynn is redefining body positivity It seems like we could be coming away from the "cult of thinness". How do you feel about this? In your opinion, is this a passing trend or evidence of real societal change? Tara Lynn: Ten years ago it was easy to wonder if this move toward inclusivity in the media was a trend.

COVID-19 Changes Everything

D.C. leaders fear an outbreak that cripples the country Imagine New York City now, except with hundreds of thousands of federal workers tasked with running the nation's response to coronavirus living there. That's where government officials and health experts across the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area fear the region is heading.

Prez Trumps Warns Iran

Trump says Iran planning 'sneak attack' on US troops, assets in Iraq President Trump said Wednesday that Iran is planning a "sneak attack" on U.S. troops or "assets" in Iraq, warning the country will pay a "heavy price" if this happens. The president made the abrupt announcement in a tweet Wednesday afternoon, coming amid lingering tensions between the two countries over past confrontations as well as the coronavirus pandemic.

China Blame Game Cont'd

Beijing's coronavirus lies have badly deepened global suffering Bloomberg News reports that the US intelligence community has concluded that China is "intentionally" hiding the true numbers of its coronavirus cases and fatalities - a fact that should surprise no one, and is yet another way Beijing has made the pandemic a bigger problem for the rest of the world.

Sprint Aquistion Aftermath

What's next for Sprint customers now that the T-Mobile merger has gone through? After years of negotiations and legal battles, Sprint and T-Mobile have finally completed their merger into a single carrier. While the shift from four carriers to just three - AT&T, Verizon, and the newly expanded T-Mobile - will have huge implications in the coming months and years, there are more immediate questions for Sprint customers: what will happen next for them in the short term now that their mobile carrier is technically T-Mobile?

Meet The New Veep???

Joe Biden confirms he's considering Gretchen Whitmer for VP as she battles pandemic and Trump attacks Gretchen Whitmer has walked a fine line in recent weeks, fighting for her state to receive crucial medical resources amid the worsening coronavirus pandemic in Michigan, while pushing back against Donald Trump's insults on Twitter.

Kansas City Scrubs Donated

Goodwill donating scrubs, button down shirts to local health care workers facing shortages KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Just like masks, area health care workers are reporting there's a shortage of other gear like scrubs, smocks and personal protective equipment. It's affecting doctors, nurses and all types of health care workers as they battle coronavuris, and that's why Goodwill is stepping in to support those on the front lines.

Newspaper Needs Advert Leads

The Kansas City Star offers local businesses a way to reach customers. And it's free. The Kansas City Star is establishing an online directory to allow businesses in Kansas City and surrounding areas to better communicate with their customers during the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. The directory will also be a resource for residents who frequently seek information about the status of the places they shop and now look to for takeout food options.

Local Weather Right Now

Your Storm Track 5 Daily Forecast No fooling - this will be a nice evening. Skies will gradually increase with clouds through the evening while the wind remains rather brisk favoring a south southeasterly direction which will hold temperatures in the 60s until the late evening hours. Skies will then cloud over offering a warm but overcast start to the day Thursday.

One more time we take a look at pop culture, news and info from across the nation . . .And this is thefor right now . . .
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Linkedin Riska Rahman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 16:38 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f43b59 1 Business bank-mandiri,AXA-Mandiri,insurance,healthcare-services,medical-workers,state-owned-enterprises,erick-thohir Free

State-owned lender Bank Mandiri is giving out life insurance plans with potential payments totaling Rp 1 trillion (US$60 million) to 35,000 frontline healthcare professionals fighting the COVID-19 pandemic in the country.

Bank Mandiri president director Royke Tumilaar said doctors would receive life insurance plans of Rp 50 million and nurses would receive plans of Rp 25 million. Other medical professionals would receive plans of Rp 10 million per person. The insurance will be channeled through AXA Mandiri Financial Services.

He said that the insurance would be available for one year, from April 1 to March 31, 2021.

We realize that healthcare professionals at the hospitals are working in a high-risk environment, and although the amount is nothing compared to their sacrifice, we hope this protection plan can help ease their burdens, said Royke during a video conference.

The COVID-19 pandemic has put a massive strain on Indonesias healthcare system. There are reports of inadequate medical supplies and deaths of hospital workers as patient numbers continue to grow.

Read also: Indonesian medical workers threaten to stop COVID-19 treatment if protective gear not provided

State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Erick Thohir lauded Bank Mandiris effort, saying that the medical workers deserved the protection as they were working on the front lines of the pandemic. He said the public needed to work together to face the pandemic and support healthcare workers.

What we do to stop the spread means nothing compared to their work, Erick said during the video conference.

The effort from Bank Mandiri adds to a government plan to provide financial incentives and protective gear for health workers.

The government plans to provide a Rp 15 million incentive to medical specialists, Rp 10 million to physicians and dentists, Rp 7.5 million to nurses and Rp 5 million to other medical staff members, President Joko Jokowi Widodo said in March.

We will also provide a total of Rp 300 million of compensation in case of death. This applies to regions that have declared a state of emergency, Jokowi said.
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. -- Health officials in Klamath County are currently investigating seven new positive case of the coronavirus, now bringing the county total to 12. One of those individuals, the first case confirmed in the county, has since made a full recovery.

With the latest cases comes a warning about potential exposure on two airplane flights.

"While it is now known that Klamath County is experiencing community spread, Klamath County Public Health remains committed to identifying additional exposures when needed to best protect our community," the agency said.

According to the agency, two flights have been identified as possible areas of exposure to COVID-19: Alaska Airlines Flight 583 from Santa Ana to Portland and Alaska Airlines Flight 2059 from Portland to Medford on March 21.

"This was determined through contact tracing and investigation. Anyone associated with these flights who develops symptoms should contact their local public health agency," Klamath County Public Health said.

The agency says that it is working with Jackson County Public Health to make sure everyone in the region is notified about the possible exposure on these flights.

"Once Public Health is aware of a positive case, it works with the individual to determine close contacts who might be at risk," the agency said in an earlier statement. "Possible times and areas of exposure are also announced when known. Those individuals who may have been exposed are given instructions and next steps to prevent further exposure within the community."

Last week a roundabout warning from public health officials in Humboldt County, California identified a Delta Flight from Seattle to Medford as a possible exposure risk, information that was later confirmed by Jackson County.

RELATED: Second Klamath County COVID-19 case was Sky Lakes employee, medical center says

People who have had a fever, dry cough, or difficulty breathing are asked to remain home until 72 hours after the symptoms stop, without the use of medication. Anyone needing medical help is asked to call ahead so protective measures can be taken. Individuals with life-threatening symptoms should go to the emergency room.

Our highest priority is the health and safety of our community. We will take all steps necessary to ensure safety while also holding to our core value of integrity. We will not release the name, address or other identifying information about these people, said Jennifer Little, KCPH director. It is a matter of patient confidentiality.

Though Klamath County has been loathe to release any identifying information about local cases, it has now started to release some demographics about them. So far, three cases have been in the 20-29 age group, one case 30-39, three cases 40-49, two cases 50-59, and three cases 60-69. No one age 70 or older has yet to test positive for COVID-19.

Three of the total cases have been in men, the rest are all women. Only two of the cases have been hospitalized, each in the 40 or older range. There are still no deaths reported in the county from COVID-19.

The agency said that in Klamath County "the expectation is that these individuals and their families be able to recover without being the targets of social media attacks and the stigmatization that has occurred in other Oregon communities."

Oregon Tech announced on Thursday that a staff member at the Klamath Falls campus had tested positive for COVID-19.
Actor Juhi Chawla shared fascinating pictures of a few peacocks and peahens taking over a residential area in Mumbai. The picture, clicked at Khareghat Colony in Babulnath, showed the birds roaming the streets and sitting on peoples porches.

Juhis followers were intrigued by the pictures and even made some funny jokes. They are out to find where the humans are, wrote one while another imagine the birds thinking, where are those two legged monkeys. Others also tweeted pictures of wild animals and birds taking over their own streets while the entire human population remains under lockdown to fight the coronavirus.

Khareghat Colony , Babulnath ...  pic.twitter.com/GKkOXAXvOO  Juhi Chawla (@iam_juhi) April 1, 2020

Also Watch | Covid-19: Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Deepika-Ranveer thank heroes

Not just in India, the phenomenon is being seen worldwide. Wild boars have descended from the hills around Barcelona while sika deer are nosing their way around the deserted metro stations of Nara, Japan. Indian social media has gone wild about footage of a stag scampering through Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

I frankly have no problem at all in seeing deers on the street (in fact I am happy), just wanted to tell these kids that Reindeer are NOT found in #India.

Probably more work on environmental awareness required. Noted for myself. #haridwar pic.twitter.com/8X1WGziqyV  SAKET (@Saket_Badola) March 27, 2020

Also read: On Kapil Sharmas birthday, his 5 most hilarious episodes that will leave you in splits once again

Gangs of wild turkeys have been strutting the streets of Oakland, California, while a puma turned up in the centre of the Chilean capital Santiago, which is under curfew. Stuck indoors, with their worlds reduced to a few square metres, confined urbanites, like Juhi, have suddenly become avid birdwatchers.

Planet of the goats? A herd of Kashmiri goats have invaded the empty streets of Llandudno in Wales https://t.co/NyhQdOq6eJ pic.twitter.com/LVrplSLg1V  Reuters (@Reuters) March 31, 2020

Juhi was on a vacation in Austria earlier in March when Europe began putting different regions in lockdown as the infection spread across the continent. She returned to India on March 20 and has been in quarantine with her family since.

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The value of Bahrains exports of national origin increased by 11 per cent to BD196million ($516 million) during February, compared to BD177million for the same month of the previous year, said the Information & eGovernment Authority (iGA) in its foreign trade report.



The top 10 countries in terms of the value of exports of national origin purchased from Bahrain accounted for 85 per cent of the total value, with the remaining countries accounting for 15 per cent.



Saudi Arabia ranked first among countries receiving Bahraini exports of national origin, importing BD57 million from Bahrain. Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates was second with BD28millionand Oman third with BD19million.



Agglomerated Iron and Concentrates as the top products exported during February with BD29 million; bridges and bridges-sections was second with a value of BD16million; and aluminium wire not alloyed third with BD15million.



The total value of re-exports increased by6 per cent to reach BD75 million during February, compared to BD71 million for the same month of the previous year. The top 10 countries accounted for 90 per cent of the re-exported value, while the remaining countries accounted for the 10 per cent.



The United Arab Emirates ranked first with BD23million, Saudi Arabia second with BD17million, and the US third with BD8million.



Gold ingots emerged as the top product re-exported from Bahrain with BD15million, four-wheel drive cars came in second place with BD8million, and parts for Aeroplanes came third with BD7 million.



The trade balance, difference between exports and imports, the value of the deficit of the trade balance reached BD123 million during February of 2020 versus BD102million for the same month of the previous year with an increase of 21 per cent.



The value of imports increased by 13 per cent, reaching BD394 million during February2020compared to BD350 million for the same month the previous year. The top 10 countries accounted for 68 per cent of the value of imports, with the remaining countries accounting for 32 per cent.



According to the report, China ranked first when it came to imports to Bahrain, with a total of BD57million; Brazil was second with BD38million; and Saudi Arabia was third with BD30million.



Aluminium oxide as the top product imported into Bahrain with a total value of BD31 million, while Non-agglomerated iron ores and concentrates emerged was second with BD24 million, and four-wheel drive cars third with BD15 million.  TradeArabia News Service
A pumpjack operates above an oil well at night in the Bakken Formation on the outskirts of Williston, North Dakota, U.S., on Thursday, March 8, 2018. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Wednesday's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing for Colorado-based Whiting Petroleum is a grim omen of things to come, experts say, as oil prices face historic collapse amid the coronavirus crisis and the Saudi-Russia oil price war. The company is the first U.S. shale producer to go under since the start of the year, when oil prices began to fall. "I don't want to be a doomsayer, but I think Whiting is just simply the first domino that's going to fall," John Driscoll, chief strategist at JTD Energy Services, told CNBC's Capital Connection on Thursday. "It's a fairly substantial company, but the smaller producers, if they don't have the hedging in place, it's going to be a tough route  Chapter 11 might be the only way to go." The shale industry, responsible for America's vault to become the world's largest oil producer in 2018, already faced problems generating cash and holding investor support. In 2019, 42 oil companies with more than $25 billion in cumulative debt filed for U.S. bankruptcy protection, according to restructuring law firm Haynes & Boone. The U.S. shale patch also bears some of the highest production costs in the world, requiring a breakeven price of between $50 and $55 per barrel.

Now, with Saudi Arabia and Russia's planned production increases to battle for market share exacerbating the price crash brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, the sector faces what may well be a bloodbath: U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate is now trading at around $22 per barrel, down more than 60% year-to-date, and forecasters expect it to fall further. "U.S. shale is now economically unviable," Chris Midgley, global head of analytics at S&P Global Platts, told CNBC. "Some areas will come back as prices return. First hit will be the more capital intensive crudes." Just 16 U.S. shale firms operate fields where production costs are less than $35 a barrel, according to research firm Rystad Energy. Producers have scrambled to close rigs, lay off staff and cut capital spending. Oil major Chevron is cutting its 2020 capex budget by 20% and is halving its spending in Texas's Permian Basin. "I do suspect there's a wall of these issues about to hit the market," said Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ. "And clearly banks are going to be running the ruler over a lot of these clients now and looking at credit limits and the like. So I do think (Whiting) is the tip of the iceberg."

'No one's ever seen this'

This isn't the first time shale has fallen victim to a Saudi-led price war. In 2014, when the kingdom and its OPEC allies refused to cut output amid falling prices in order to undermine shale and expand market share, more than 100 small independent shale companies in the U.S. were forced into receivership. But the scale of today's market shock  a global economy on lockdown amid a pandemic, prompting an estimated oil demand drop of as many as 20 million barrels a day in April and a projected 20% demand contraction this year  is unprecedented. "There are guys here that have done this for 20, 30 years  no one's ever seen this. They could never have imagined this," a Houston-based commodities trader, who asked to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of the situation, told CNBC. "You couple a global pandemic with Saudi Arabia and Russia walking away from the OPEC+ table... you can't make this stuff up. It's crazy." A deal between OPEC and non-members led by Russia  known as OPEC+  to cut oil production in order to stabilize prices collapsed in early March when Moscow refused to agree to Riyadh's terms. This set off the dramatic U-turn in Saudi oil policy and an "each man for himself" race to pump more crude to more customers.
Natrona Countys ability to handle future coronavirus cases depends on the strength of the expected surge of patients, a health official here said Wednesday, hours after a Casper hospital confirmed three of its patients and one of its staffers had tested positive for the respiratory disease thats sickened more than 213,000 and killed nearly 4,800 Americans.

We dont know yet what the surge will be and depending on the model you look at, we may be pushed to the brink, Dr. Mark Dowell, the Natrona County health officer, told reporters, but we may be able to handle the surge beautifully.

There are different projections for how mild or severe the potential wave of coronavirus patients will be, and the state has yet to release its own estimates. What most officials, including Dowell, agree on is that this is the beginning of the virus spread around the state. Cases statewide have jumped significantly in the past week alone, spiking from 49 on March 25 to 137 by early Wednesday evening.

While Natrona County continues to have fewer cases than hotspots in Teton, Laramie and Fremont counties, officials confirmed Wednesday that three patients and one staff member at the Wyoming Behavioral Institute have tested positive for the disease.

Dowell reiterated Wednesday that the cases that have been confirmed to date are not necessarily current numbers. Testing takes a few days, and the virus can be spread for several days after a person first becomes infected.

Were at the very beginning of this, from my side, Dowell said, repeating a message he gave to the Natrona County school board a week ago. I think were entering to a rapid phase for the next, perhaps, three to four weeks, at a minimum. I think we may flatten the curve in May, maybe early May, but we dont know that yet. The problem is were a rural area and a rural state. Were really not sure how this is going to play out compared to New York and Detroit. So right now, Id say consider this impacting this area a lot through May, but well see.

Dowell said Wyoming Medical Center, which serves as a referral hospital for smaller facilities across the state, has access to 30 ventilators and that no COVID-19 patients are on one of the machines at WMC. But he said the challenge would be having enough nurses qualified to manage them; it all depends on the strength of the surge.

He noted that the county was taking steps to mitigate any anticipated crush. For those populations like the homeless or elderly who cant self-isolate at home, health officials here have set up a medical facility staffed by health care workers that can act as a location for potential patients to quarantine.

Ventilators and hospital beds are not the only shortage of medical equipment facing providers here. The most acute shortage is of protective gear  masks, gowns, face shields and gloves  that providers wear to stave off infection. Officials in Wyoming and across the country have warned that if doctors and nurses start getting infected, conditions will deteriorate rapidly. The federal government, which has been doling out supplies from a national stockpile, said last week that it had effectively exhausted its stores.

Its unclear just how many of Wyomings 137 known cases are of health care workers, but at least several are, including one at Wyoming Medical Center and another at WBI. Not only is the concern about medical providers getting sick but also about exposure of non-COVID-19 patients in the hospital.

At WBI, the three patients and one staff member have all been isolated and the hospital has enacted strict screening measures to stave off any further spread, an official told the Star-Tribune. The small outbreak there is at least the second to come from a health care facility in Wyoming, after the illness blossomed from an assisted-living facility in Lander last month.

Dowell said Wednesday that the shortage of equipment is desperate everywhere. He said that while state and federal officials are doing everything they can to supplement hospitals stores, shipments have been disappointingly low.

Were grossly low in everything, he said, calling protocols for preserving equipment extremely tight. I applaud everything thats going on at the county and city level in engaging industry, the community trying to help make cloth masks, potential gowns thatll protect providers. Were looking everywhere we can and under any rock in the world trying to find things that we can protect our county so we can keep everybody healthy.

In previous conversations, including with the school board last week, Dowell has warned against loosening social restrictions imposed in Wyoming. Schools have been closed, as have many commercial and public businesses. Gatherings of 10 or more people are forbidden.

But Gov. Mark Gordon has not instituted a shelter-in-place order, as most states in the country now have. The Wyoming Medical Society wrote the governor a letter late last week urging him to do so, and Dowell said Wednesday that he supported that recommendation.

I believe its better to do it early than after were behind the 8-ball, he said. When 41 out of 50 states have already done it, I think its time to strongly consider that.

Potential cases

While cases across the state continue to climb, officials in various communities have started advising patients with symptoms to self-isolate and essentially assume theyre ill.

In Campbell County, for instance, there are four confirmed positives. But 183 people have been directed by their healthcare provider that they should be considered a possible positive because they do not meet the testing priorities outlined by the state Health Department, county spokeswoman Ivy McGowan said in an email.

In Fremont County, where there have been 25 confirmed cases, more than 400 residents with COVID-19 symptoms are in self-isolation, with another 23 under quarantine. Dr. Brian Gee, the countys health officer, told media that the hundreds of residents in isolation have been told to assume theyre sick even though they havent been tested because of supply shortages.

In Natrona County, Dowell said providers here are being urged not to tell people with symptoms to simply self-isolate. He said providers are asked to communicate with infectious disease experts, to get tested and not simply stay home and not report their sypmtoms. That way, the state can better get a handle of the extent of the disease here.

Editor's note: A previous version of this story suggested Dr. Dowell was recommending patients with symptoms don't isolate. He was in fact recommending patients don't just simply self-isolate if they have symptoms but to consult with their doctors in an effect to improve the county's ability to track the disease's spread.

Photos: Casper copes with COVID-19

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Britons believed NHS staff should get an honour or a pay rise to mark their heroic efforts to combat coronavirus.

An exclusive poll for MailOnline found nearly nine in ten people believe the government should recognise the contribution made by those on the front line.

Some 41 per cent back plans to award frontline workers a special coronavirus medal, while 46 per cent back a permanent pay rise.

Awarding the George Cross to all doctors, nurses and staff was supported by 16 per cent.

NHS workers have been facing a grim task as they face mounting numbers of virus cases, with the UK death toll now at 2,921 and the situation expected to get worse before it improves.

There have also been fears that many medics are being asked to put themselves at risk by being so close to infected people - with complaints about shortages of personal protection kit. Several have already died from the virus.

The survey of 1,500 people, conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies yesterday uncovered public anger at the government's approach to the crisis, with ministers now under pressure to go further to combat the spread of the deadly disease.

Some 41 per cent back plans to award frontline workers a special coronavirus medal, while 46 per cent back a permanent pay rise

The nation is split on how long they believe the lockdown will last but 58 per cent think restrictions will still be in place at the end of May

The research found 55 per cent believe the decision to implement the nationwide lockdown should have been taken earlier.

Just 34 per cent believe the decision was taken 'at about the right time'.

Regardless of the timing issue, many people want the government to now go further with 38 per cent of the belief that the current measures have 'fallen short'.

Some 81 per cent of respondents said they believe all commercial flights into and out of the UK should be stopped for the duration of the lockdown.

The government is adamant such a move is not necessary because there is 'no evidence' that closing borders or implementing a travel ban 'would have any effect on the spread of infection' given it is already prevalent in the UK.

The survey found there is overwhelming backing for the nationwide lockdown with almost nine in 10 people supporting the move.

The poll suggests the nation is braced for long term disruption with almost two thirds of adults - 58 per cent - believing the lockdown will still be in place at the end of May.

However, the numbers suggest some people are not anticipating lockdown being imposed much beyond that with just 13 per cent saying it could still be in place by the middle of June and 15 per cent beyond the end of June.

Downing Street said lockdown will be reviewed after three weeks but the direction of travel suggests measures could be kept in place for longer than that.

Mr Johnson has repeatedly said the situation in the UK will get worse before it gets better and a majority of people agreed with that assessment.

Just shy of two thirds of the nation said they expected the situation to deteriorate before it improves with 48 per cent believing a majority of the UK population will inevitably contract coronavirus.

Almost one fifth of the nation believes they have already had the disease and seven per cent 'think I have the coronavirus now'.

Just over half of people believe coronavirus will have a 'negative impact' on their personal finances.

The nation is seemingly divided on the police approach to enforcing the lockdown amid criticism of some forces being heavy-handed.

An overwhelming majority of people believe the government should introduce a ban on all commercial flights into and out of the UK during the lockdown

A majority of Briton believe Boris Johnson's decision to lockdown the UK was taken 'too late'

The nation is also split on Mr Johnson's response to the crisis with just over 50 per cent backing the PM as 'adequate' but more than 30 per cent saying he had fallen short

Seven per cent of the nation believes they currently have coronavirus

Some 40 per cent believe the police measures have been 'about right' but 33 per cent say they have 'not been enough'.

Just 18 per cent said the police had been 'excessive' in their use of the powers to break up gatherings and stop people making non-essential journeys.

The current crisis also appears to have harmed many people's view of the Chinese government.

Almost two thirds of respondents said they believe 'the Chinese government is dishonestly reporting the number of coronavirus cases and deaths in China' where coronavirus originated.
A lmost 100 critically endangered sea turtles hatched on a deserted beach in Brazil as the country's coronavirus restrictions prohibit people from gathering on the shore.

Ninety-seven hawksbill sea turtles hatched last Sunday in Paulista, a town in the north-eastern state of Pernambuco.

Government workers were the only people to see the sea turtles emerge. They took photographs of the new-born creatures first steps down to the beach and into the Atlantic Ocean.

Local residents have been banned from gathering on Pernambucos beaches since last weekend when Paulo Camara, the state governor, ordered a partial shutdown because of Covid-19.

He urged people to stay indoors to slow the spread of the virus.

Camara told the Guardian last week that extreme measures were needed in order for Brazil to avoid a crisis on the scale of the one that has taken hold in Europe.

Before and during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures 1 /44 Before and during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures AP Buckingham Palace AP Piccadilly Line tube AP Big Ben AP Millennium bridge AP Wembley Stadium AP St Pancras International train station AP Downing Street AP Victoria Station AP Regent Street AP The Mall leading to Buckingham Palace AP London's National Gallery in Trafalgar Square PA Edinburgh's Royal Mile PA Barry Island, South Wales PA Bath PA Bath PA London's Waterloo station PA London Bridge PA London's Canary Wharf Jubilee Line platform PA London's Canary Wharf Station PA London's Buckingham Palace PA London's Tower Bridge PA London's Leicester Square PA London's Millennium Bridge with St Paul's Cathedral PA London's Criterion Theatre PA London's Palace Theatre PA London's Phoenix Theatre PA London's Canary Wharf Station PA Bournemouth beach PA Bath PA Bath PA Barry Island, South Wales PA Bournemouth beach PA

Only isolation will stop the curve growing at the speed it is growing in other places, he said.

Camara said Pernambucos government was racing against time to make hospital beds available for patients.

All of our efforts are now geared towards delaying its profileration [so that] when this curve grows, and it will grow, we are as ready as we possibly can be to care for people, he said.

Pernambuco, which has a population of nine million, has recorded five Covid-19 deaths and more than 60 cases of the virus.

Camara said he hoped the coronavirus restrictions could eventually be relaxed in his state  but added that they are necessary at the moment.

According to Brazils Tamar conservation project, hawksbill sea turtles  which are considered a critically endangered species  lay their eggs along the countrys north eastern coast.

Hawksbills can weigh up to 85kg, and measure up to 110cm in length. Their Portuguese name, which means comb turtles, derives from the fact that their shells were previously used to make combs and glasses frames.

According to the WWF, the sea turtles English name comes from their narrow, pointed beaks.

More than 300 sea turtles have hatched in Paulista this year. The towns environmental secretary, Roberto Couto, said sea turtles normally lay their eggs from January each year, and the hatchlings emerge in April or May.
The Calcutta High Court has



directed the West Bengal Police to immediately return a seized mobile phone and a sim card of a doctor who made some social media posts highlighting the alleged shortage of protective gear for fellow professionals treating coronavirus patients and suspects.

Indranil Khan, an oncologist, moved the court on Wednesday alleging harassment by police after an FIR was filed at Mahestala police station in South 24 Parganas district for some of his Facebook posts concerning the allegedly deficient protective gear supplied by the state government to doctors attending COVID-19 patients in its hospitals.

The doctor was charged under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for allegedly causing disharmony and feeling of hatred which disturbed public tranquility and was called by the police for a lengthy interrogation on March 29 over the social media posts and his mobile phone and sim card were seized, Khan's lawyer Lokenath Chatterjee told the court of Justice I P Mukerji during video conference hearing of the petition.

In view of the nationwide lockdown, the Calcutta High Court is hearing very urgent matters only via video- conferencing.

Justice Mukerji, who went through the posts made by the doctor, noted in his order that to a tweet made by the writ petitioner, there was a reply by the Department of Health and Family Welfare thanking him for highlighting the matter.

Holding that freedom of speech and expression which is granted under Article 19 of the Constitution has to be scrupulously upheld by the state, the court observed that "if an expression of opinion brings the government into disrepute, it cannot defend this allegation by intimidation of the person expressing the opinion".

Justice Mukerji said the state can do so if a citizen tries to utilise this freedom by trying to circulate alleged facts maliciously with a view to causing damage to another person or to the public at large or the nation.

He directed that there shall be no further interrogation of the petitioner without the leave of a proper court.

Justice Mukerji ordered that the police "may start a criminal case against the petitioner without arresting him, if at all the evidence prima facie discloses an offence".

He held that the liberty of the petitioner can only be curtailed by orders of the court to be passed in a properly instituted proceeding.

Disposing of the petition, Justice Mukerji restrained the doctor from making any posting on social media concerning the above issue for the time being.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
South Africa: Over 2000 arrests for non-compliance with COVID-19 rules

Law enforcement agencies have arrested 2 289 suspects for non-compliance with COVID-19 National State of Disaster regulations, Police Minister Bheki Cele said on Thursday.

Speaking at a media briefing held in Pretoria, the Minister urged the public to observe and comply with the regulations.

They must stick with them so that we are not forced to enforce the law. From the 27 [March 2020], until midnight, 2289 people have been arrested for breaking those regulations, especially alcohol and traffic offenses, said the Minister.

The arrests come as South Africa today marks day 7 of the 21-day national lockdown announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa last month.

Cele said about 24 389 law enforcers made up of the South African Police Service (SAPS); the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), and metro police units have been deployed to enforce the regulations.

He urged the public to observe and comply with the regulations in place.

The Minister also urged provincial governments not to formulate their own regulations, saying national Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) Minister is the sole custodian of the regulations.

These regulations are national regulations. There are no provincial or municipal regulations, so what is done in Limpopo, is also done in the Western Cape. We hear that some provinces will relax some regulations  they shouldnt complain because police will not implement the so-called provincial regulations, theyll stick to the national regulations.

The Minister emphasised that police would not hesitate to arrest those who are not complying with the regulations.

The Ministers comments come as South Africa now has 1 462 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with five recorded deaths. Two other deaths are yet to be confirmed.

GBV

At the briefing, Cele also announced that at least 87 000 cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) have been reported to police stations across the country in the last seven days.

If not mistaken, the last number weve received as the NATJOINTS [ National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure] is that since it started,[the national lockdown] 87 000 people have phoned in reporting that there might be gender-based violence in their houses, said the Minister.

However, Cele could not say how many arrests had been made in this area.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
As the country braces for a surge in cases amid the coronavirus pandemic, tropical meteorology researchers released data on Thursday that predicts the east coast should also prepare for a hurricane season that will be feature more powerful storms than usual.

Looking at storms specifically in the Atlantic Ocean, researchers at Colorado State predicted eight hurricanes, with four becoming major." The storms will threaten the east coast in 2020.

A major storm is defined as hurricanes grades Category 3 or higher. The odds of a major hurricane striking the U.S. was 69% researchers said. Researchers said there is a 95% chance a hurricane of any strength strikes the country.

The eight predicted hurricanes is two more than average while the four major storms is about one more than average. Colorado State also predicted 16 named storms in the Atlantic Ocean, which is four more than usual.

The forecast is based on 38 years of past data using extended-range early prediction indicators.

Researchers cited the tropical Atlantic waters are warmer than normal. A relatively warm winter also led to the far North Atlantic Ocean becoming not as cool as usual.

While a cold far North Atlantic is typically associated with a cold tropical Atlantic, that has not occurred this winter, the report said.

Researchers also looked at the temperature of reefs, wind conditions and more.

Hurricane season begins in June and extends through November, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Weather predictions this far out come with uncertainty, but researchers told CNN this year they are confident.

Id say that this year, were pretty confident, researcher Philip Klotzbach told the cable news station. Klotzbach said the lack of El Nino conditions offers more certainty and creates more difficulty in predicting weather patterns.

Last year, Colorado States April forecast predictions included five hurricanes. Six were observed. They forecasted two of those to be major hurricanes; three were observed, CNN said.

The next round of predictions from Colorado State researchers will be in June with another followed in July before its final research being published in August.
It was a random act of kindness that surprised and delighted the residents at a group home in Toronto for intellectually disabled people.

In the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak, staff at the group home in the Mount Dennis neighbourhood in Torontos west-end opened the front door one day last week to find a package of toilet paper sitting outside.

The home was stocked up, but it sure was nice of have neighbours who care, says Brad Saunders, chief executive officer of Community Living Toronto, which operates the facility.

The gift of toilet paper was a bright spot in what are extremely unsettling times for people who are intellectually disabled, their families and the staff who support them.

Indeed, the outbreak is the challenge of a generation for everyone in this forgotten sector.

Community Living Toronto (CLTO) serves 4,000 people, including 600 people in residential facilities, of which 300 are in group homes scattered across the city. Normally, about 700 people participate in day programs. Also, it employees some 1,400 staffers and countless volunteers. (Full disclosure: I am a member of the Community Living Toronto Patrons Council, which supports and advises on the work of CLTO)

Across Ontario, there are more than 100 Community Living organizations serving 12,000 people with intellectual disabilities.

Without exception, front-line workers throughout the province working in Community Living facilities are facing tremendous stress and anxiety about their own health and safety and that of the people they serve.

Unlike workers in hospitals and health clinics, though, Community Living staff are not considered health-care workers. That means they have to scramble for protective gloves, masks and extra help for their clients.

Theyre experiencing shortages of personal protection equipment and must also deal with trying to explain to their clients why they cant have their normal routines or why they must practice social distancing.

Group homes pose particular concerns. With day programs, schools and community centres closed, group home residents have few places to go. As well, residents have difficulty understanding why they cant go outside, why they cant go to work, no longer visit their families or have their families visit them.

And while some professions can work from home, people supported by Community Living staff have no choice  theyre needed to help with tasks such as shopping for groceries, preparing meals, ensuring proper medications are taken and assisting with personal hygiene.

Still, staff is coming to work, leaving their families to help the people who rely on them for support, many of whom are facing increased challenges during this unprecedented period of forced closures of day programs, supervised excursions and simple pleasures, such as going bowling or to a movie.

We are lucky to have so many committed individuals who are not able to work from home, Saunders said this week in an interview.

Sadly, no one seems to see them. Theyre invisible, under the radar while performing tough jobs in tough times.

Worse, the longer this situation goes on, the greater is the risk to the stability of this critical workforce.

One bright spot is the Ontario government, which has stepped up to help, acknowledging of the impact of COVID-19 on the developmental services sector and pledging $40 million in additional financial support for immediate relief. Another is the private companies that have provied supplies, such as much-needed hand sanitizers and disinfectants.

Still, like the person who brought a package of toilet paper to the Mount Dennis group home, theres much individuals can do to lend a hand in small ways, such as offering to help cook a meal. Or by being patient when people with intellectual disabilities, who are receiving their monthly support payments this week and will be in stores buying food and supplies, dont fully understand the idea of social distancing.

At the same time, theres a desperate need of supplies for front-line workers, including hand sanitizers, gloves, masks, disposable gowns, new and unopened crafts supplies, board and card games plus coupons and gift certificates.

Such help is needed to show this important sector that it is no longer forgotten.
[April 02, 2020] MATEON THERAPEUTICS TEAM PUBLISHES A NEW PEER-REVIEWED ONCOLOGY ARTICLE ON THE POSITIVE CLINICAL STUDY RESULTS FOR OT-101 AGAINST RECALCITRANT RESISTANT ANAPLASTIC ASTROCYTOMA - A RARE FORM OF MALIGNANT BRAIN TUMOR

AGOURA HILLS, Calif., April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mateon Therapeutics Inc. (OTCQB:MATN) today announced the publication of a peer-reviewed research article co-authored by Fatih Uckun MD PhD, Sanjive Qazi PhD, and Vuong Trieu, PhD in the oncology journal Cancer Reports and Reviews.

We previously reported the preliminary findings of a Phase II study (NCT00431561) confirmed its favorable safety profile and showed that OT101 can offer early disease control to R/R high-grade glioma patients at 6 months at a rate comparable to that achieved with the standard alkylating chemotherapy drug temozolomide. We are now reporting our analysis of the long-term follow-up data on the recalcitrant/resistant anaplastic astrocytoma (R/RR AA) patient subpopulation treated in the NCT00431561 study as proof of concept for the clinical utility of the Convection Enhanced Delivery of OT-101 platform (CEDOT). Notably, OT101 administered intratumorally via the CEDOT platform exhibited clinically meaningful single-agent activity and induced durable complete response (CR), partial response (PR) in more than half of the treated R/R AA patients. The median overall survival of patients receiving the CEDOT-delivered experimental therapy 1136 (95% CI:811 - 1743) days which was significantly better than the 590 (95% CI:287 - NA) days median OS (Log Rank ?2=6.5, P-value=0.011) of the TMZ-treated patient population. This work demonstrates superiority of OT-101 against an approved chemotherapeutic agent against AA and emphasizes our commitment to find effective new therapies for difficult-to-treat cancers, stated Dr. Vuong Trieu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Mateon Therapeutics. OT-101 has received orphan drug designation for glioblastoma, melanoma, and pancreatic cancer. Furthermore, FDA recently granted Rare Pediatric Designation for OT-101 against diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). OT-101 is also effective against coronavirus including COVID-19 and being deployed against the COVID-19 epidemic. About Mateon Therapeutics

Mateon was created by the recent reverse merger with Oncotelic which became a wholly owned subsidiary of Mateon Therapeutics Inc. (OTCQBMATN) creating an immuno-oncology company dedicated to the development of first in class RNA therapeutics as well as small molecule drugs against cancer. The founding team members of Oncotelic were responsible for the development of Celgenes Abraxane as a chemotherapeutic agent for breast, lung, melanoma, and pancreatic cancer. Abraxane was approved in 2005 and has more than $1B in sales annually. The same team was also responsible for the development of Cynviloq, a next generation Abraxane, which was acquired by NantPharma for $1.3B. Mateon/Oncotelic is seeking to leverage its deep expertise in oncology drug development to improve treatment outcomes and survival of cancer patients with a special emphasis on pediatric cancer patients. For more information, please visit www.oncotelic.com and www.mateon.com .



The Chief Executive Officer of Mateon, Dr. Vuong Trieu, PhD is a very experienced biotech executive and a KOL in the field of immunotherapy. He is best known for his seminal contributions to the development of Abraxane ( https://www.linkedin.com/in/vuong-trieu-3a64aa3b ). Mateon's Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, included in this communication regarding strategy, future operations, future financial position, prospects, plans and objectives of management are forward-looking statements. Words such as may, expect, anticipate hope, vision, optimism, design, exciting, innovative, promising, will, conviction, "estimate," "intend," "believe", quest for a cure of cancer, innovation-driven, paradigm-shift, high scientific merit, impact potential and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements contained in this press release include, but are not limited to, statements about future plans, the progress, timing, clinical development, scope and success of future clinical trials, the reporting of clinical data for the companys product candidates and the potential use of the companys product candidates to treat various cancer indications. Each of these forward-looking statements involves risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Many factors may cause differences between current expectations and actual results, including unexpected safety or efficacy data observed during preclinical or clinical studies, clinical trial site activation or enrollment rates that are lower than expected, changes in expected or existing competition, changes in the regulatory environment, failure of collaborators to support or advance collaborations or product candidates and unexpected litigation or other disputes. These risks are not exhaustive, the company faces known and unknown risks, including the risk factors described in the companys annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on April 10, 2019 and in the companys other periodic filings. Forward-looking statements are based on expectations and assumptions as of the date of this press release. Except as required by law, the company does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in expectations, whether as a result of new information future events, or otherwise.

Contact Information:

For Mateon Therapeutics, Inc.:

Amit Shah

Email: [email protected]



[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Seabridge Gold (NYSE:SA) announced today that it has secured a non-brokered private placement from an existing shareholder for 1.2 million common shares of the Company at a price of $11.75 per share for gross proceeds of $14.1 million.

The company said it is raising funds due to tax liabilities.

"The main use of proceeds is to make deposits to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) which cover potential tax liabilities stemming from re-assessments of its Canadian Exploration Expenses by the CRA as disclosed in the company's 2018 and 2019 financial statements. Making the deposits enables Seabridge to proceed with its legal challenge of the CRA," said the company in a statement.

The company said it has an obligation to reimburse investors who purchased its flow-through shares and face the potential of re-assessment by the CRA. Seabridge said CRA decisions can be appealed to the courts and it intend to do so.
She's joined the nation in lockdown in a bid to stem the spread of coronavirus.

And Amy Hart pined for life before the pandemic as she shared a throwback snap of her holiday to Barbados as she lamented missing the beach amid the pandemic.

The Love Island star, 27, looked incredible in the snap uploaded to Instagram on Wednesday as she showcased her figure in a bright blue bikini.

Beach life: Amy Hart pined for life before the pandemic as she shared a throwback snap of her holiday to Barbados as she lamented missing the beach amid the pandemic

The beauty looked happy and content in the picture as she posed on an idyllic beach in the blue floral-patterned two-piece.

Amy shielded her eyes with oversized dark shades while her blonde tresses were left to loosely cascade over her shoulder.

Captioning the snap, she wrote: 'Id even take the clouds if this could all be over and I could be back on the beach.'

Amy's post was flooded with several comments from her fans praising her bikini picture.

Throwback: Captioning the snap, she wrote: 'Id even take the clouds if this could all be over and I could be back on the beach'

Amy's throwback post comes shortly after she revealed that she is still having therapy nine months after her ex half-boyfriend Curtis Pritchard dumped her on Love Island.

The former air steward was left heartbroken over the summer and decided to leave the villa after Curtis ditched her and pursued a romance with now-ex Maura Higgins.

Curtis, 24, and Maura, 29, split in March amid claims they had 'rows over her friendship' with married Dancing On Ice partner Alexander Demetriou.

Talking about their separation, Amy told The Sun: 'Break ups are hard for everyone and look, I genuinely hope theyre both alright.

Candid: Amy revealed that she is still having therapy nine months after her ex half-boyfriend Curtis Pritchard dumped her on Love Island

'Ive been out of Love Island for nine months and it has been hard. Im still having therapy.

'People thought what I said on Love Island when I left was scripted but it wasnt, that was me being me. And I know now that I have been true to myself and I am still being true to myself.'

It comes after Amy revealed she is taking a break from social media last month after being sent nasty messages from trolls about her appearance.

The Love Island star decided to take the step back after critics took aim at her veneers, with one telling her that her 'pony had better teeth' than her.

Upset: The former air steward was left heartbroken over the summer and decided to leave the villa after Curtis ditched her and pursued a romance with now-ex Maura Higgins (pictured on the show)

Split: Curtis, 24, and Maura, 29, split last month amid claims they had 'rows over her friendship' with married Dancing On Ice partner Alexander Demetriou (pictured on Love Island over the summer)

Amy shared a message on Twitter saying she no longer wanted to read the comments and said that the 'be kind' message only lasted 'two days'.

Celebrities and social media users encouraged 'kindness' online in the wake of late Love Island host Caroline Flack's death, after she took her own life in February.

Amy wrote on Twitter: 'Well after a day of really positive messages about helping each other and being kind, I think I'm gonna take a break from social media.

'I don't need to read stuff like this everyday. The whole be kind thing literally lasted 2 days. [sic]'

Upsetting: 'Ive been out of Love Island for nine months and it has been hard. Im still having therapy,' Amy told The Sun (pictured with ex Curtis during their break-up on Love Island)

Underneath the message, Amy shared a selection of the comments she had received both underneath her Instagram pictures and private.

One message read: 'Those veneers [crying face emoji]'

While a reply said: 'Literally the worst I've ever seen. My ponies have better teeth.'

In response to the trolls, Amy said: 'Thanks gals. Actually have 20 veneers/crowns on my teeth, the front 6 are just more prominent as they are bridges as I have teeth that never appeared. Thanks for your comments though. With all the #bekind movement at the moment maybe just keep it to your group chats? (sic)'
Thiruvananthapuram: With the coronavirus lockdown in place, liquor would be delivered home by state-run retail outlets in Kerala after the left government has decided to issue special passes to tipplers, who exhibit withdrawal symptoms and have doctors prescription.

Protesting the government decision, the Kerala Government Medical Officers Association (KGMOA) wore black badges on Wednesday, but attended duty and seeking immediate withdrawal of the order, saying it was "anti-people".

As per guidelines issued by the Kerala State Beverages Corporation managing director G Sparjan Kumar, for the supply of liquor, a service charge of Rs 100 would be collected from each pass holder for meeting the delivery expenses.

Each person would be entitled to 3 litres of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and sale of wine and beer was not envisaged, the order stated.

Those not willing to undertake the home delivery, the name and details of the employee should be reported to the Head office for submission to the government, it said.

A civil police officer will have to accompany the distribution vehicle.

The sale of liquor should be only to the pass holders, limiting it to the quantity mentioned in the pass.

Any excess sale to pass holders or sales to non-pass holders is strictly prohibited, the order said.

In the order issued on Monday, the government said, following the lockdown and the closure of liquor outlets in the state, there were many instances of social issues, including suicidal tendencies shown by those who consumed liquor regularly and the state government has decided to initiate steps to resolve the matter.

Speaking to reporters, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said his government has not forced anyone to prescribe liquor to addicts.

He was responding to a query on the indifference of doctors towards the matter of prescribing liquor to addicts.

"If the doctors are not ready to prescribe liquor, it's fine. We are not forcing anyone to do so. We were just following the protocol which are prevalent at many places. It's been over a week. The family and friends of the addicts can gently persuade them to approach the de-addiction centres," he said.

Sparjan Kumar said the order on home delivery was just a modality, as part of the earlier order issued by the government to provide liquor under prescription.

"We have worked out a modality. We have a meeting tomorrow. Some new order has been issued by the Centre today. The meeting will discuss the implementation of the orders," Kumar told.

A person showing withdrawal symptoms has to get a doctor's prescription on his condition so that he could be provided liquor in a "controlled manner", the order added.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has also come out against the government's move.

Meanwhile, Vimukthi, an anti-narcotics campaign launched by the state government, has till now admitted 64 patients since March 24.

"Since March 24, the day lockdown started, we have 64 patients admitted due to withdrawal symptoms. We have also registered at least 200 out patients at various de-addiction centres across Kerala," K Mohammed Resheed, Joint Excise Commissioner in charge of awareness told.
With over 3 million Americans losing their jobs, and many more forced into lockdown, utilities are facing lower demand and more consumers that cant afford to pay the bills At a time when over 3 million Americans have already lost their jobs, and as many as 47 million may be added to the unemployment roster, all that virus-forced staying at home will increase energy bills for people with limited means of paying them--at least until unemployment benefits and the stimulus checks come in.

Until then, a number of states are moving to ensure that basic utilities arent shut off due to non-payment in this time of crisis--but not everyones on board, and the picture gets exponentially more complicated for the utilities that could face bankruptcy as a result.

The Energy Cost of Being Unemployed

Overall, energy consumption is expected to fall, with electricity demand during the week looking more like weekend demand, according to Genscape analyst Adam Jordan, who spoke to Bloomberg. Bars, restaurants, industry, and commercial businesses are closing up shop, denting power demand.

But this has also resulted in millions of workers throughout America being sent home. Some have been sent home to work from their couch in the comfort of their pyjamas. Others have simply been sent home.

Either way, residential electricity usage (as well as water consumption) is likely to increase. Between Zoom and Netflix, laptops, phones, and lights--even extra freezers to keep all that hoarded food--residential electricity consumption is set to increase.

This will result in higher bills for the average consumer. But do you have to pay it now? The answer to that depends on where you live.

State-by-State, Whos Being Energy Kind?



At the national level, health officials have advised state and local authorities against shutting off water services to households in order to maintain the national guidelines that include frequent handwashing.

Related: Shale Giant Files For Bankruptcy As Oil Price War Rages On

While states are not necessarily forgiving utility bills or offering free electricity or water, many states have taken up the charge to at least refrain from shutting off services during these difficult economic times. Some states, however, have been slower than others to hand down those executive orders.

North Carolina: On Tuesday, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper issued an executive order that prohibited electricity, gas, water, and wastewater companies from discontinuing services due to nonpayment. The order will last for 60 days, and residents will have six months to make good on any back bills. The utilities also may not collect any interest, late fees, or penalties associated with the late payments during that time.

Michigan: Michigan water utilities have been instructed to not shut off anyones water, and theyve been instructed to turn on anyones water that had previously been shut off. For matters of power, many individual electric companies are suspending shutoffs due to non-payment. Some are extending this only to low-income and senior households, and dates vary as to how long their measures last.

New York: All utilities in the state of New York--which has been hardest hit of anywhere in the country--have voluntarily agreed to keep services going, regardless of payment status.

Texas has also banned shut-offs during the crisis to residential customers but allows shut-offs to businesses. It also provides interest-free loans (on the backs of customers) to electricity providers--something Texas decided to do to keep utilities from going bankrupt.

The Fate of the Utilities

Thankfully, because the grid and utilities are considered a critical infrastructure, planning has already been done by utility companies in advance of any pandemic. SARS, Ebola and other scares have prompted many to become preppers of sorts, even storing food on-site for workers should they need to isolate from the public to keep critical workers from getting sick.

According to the Los Angeles Times, some utility company employees are working from home. Maintenance work is being pushed off into are friendly time, and control staff are being seated further apart--generic pandemic plans that existed prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

NBC detailed that outside Albany, New York, electrical grid operators are living two-to-a-trailer, completely cut off from the outside world that might infect them, all to keep New Yorks power on. This has been a hypothetical drill that they have practiced on a yearly basis, but have never had to put into practice, according to Rich Dewey, president of the New York Independent Systems Operator, which oversees New Yorks energy grid.

These are just a few of the extraordinary measures that utilities are taking to keep the lights on, all the while forgoing service lockouts if you cant pay.

Related: U.S. Drillers Face Doomsday Scenario As Some Crude Blends Hit $1



But this doesnt mean its all smooth sailing for utilities.

Like companies in other industries, much about how well any given utility company is expected to fare in this difficult environment of increased costs and lowered revenue can be predicted by how well they were doing prior to the pandemic.



The five largest U.S. energy utilities are Pacific Gas & Electric Company of California, Southern California Edison, Florida Power & Light, Commonwealth Edison Company of Illinois and Consolidated Edison Company of New York.

PG&E, the largest of the large, wasnt doing well going into the coronavirus crisis, coming off bankruptcy proceedings. It was also facing an extra $462-million fine over the California wildfires. For PG&E, its been one crisis after another of late. But one positive effect of COVID-19 may be a regulatory decision to back off that extra fine. Nothing has been decided, but talks to that end are in progress.

Overall, the utility sector is in big trouble, and its always been a safe haven investment in the U.S. Thats because, well, everyone needs utilities so demand is always there. Some reports put the sectors loss, year to date, at nearly 30% so far, and they predict it will get much worse. Critical infrastructure or not, someones got to foot the bill.

And whats worse, utilities havent yet experienced the significant reduction in demand for power because businesses have only recently been shut down. Itll start catching up to the utilities within the next couple of weeks, though.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com



More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
02.04.2020 LISTEN

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) says, it is saddened by the molestation of security personnel on civilians amid a partial lockdown in some parts of the country.

The Two weeks partial lockdown by President Akufo-Addo covers Greater Accra, greater Greater Kumasi and Awutu Senya East Constituency in the Central Region.

In a release by the Greater Accra Regional branch of the party, it said, "We all understand the imperatives of the lockdown and our shared responsibility to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease. It is our conviction however that the execution of the lockdown must be done with a human face."

The statement added, "In as much as we support the security services in maintaining law and order and ensuring that the directives as stipulated in the Presidents speech are adhered to, the NDC as a Party in Greater Accra is calling on the Security Services to treat the citizenry with decorum and in a humane manner. Civilians and members of the security services should see themselves as partners in ensuring the success of the exercise and not opposing forces or enemies."

According to the biggest opposition party, it appears the security personnel are oblivious to the specific directives by the President.

Director of Public Relations for the Ghana Police Service (GPS) Sheila Kesse Abeyia Buckmer in an earlier interview on Adom Fm's Badwam said, the imposition of restrictions of movement is not tailored to the specified areas but a nationwide with emphasis on Greater Accra and Kumasi and Awutu Senya East Constituency in the Central Region and that must be observed as such. However, the President announced a partial lockdown in specific areas.

The NDC said, "It goes without saying therefore, just as those enforcing the directives themselves require briefing, so does the civilian population need round -the- clock public education and constant reminders.

"The primary responsibility of giving public education on the dos and don'ts has been largely insufficient to the extent that, even some govt officials appear not to know what exactly the Lockdown Protocol entails. This obviously is the reason why govt officials keep clarifying, in vain the Presidents directives since the announcement was made. It goes without saying therefore, just as those enforcing the directives themselves require briefing, so does the civilian population need round -the- clock public education and constant reminders."

The release signed by the Greater Accra Regional Chairman Joseph Ade Coker stated that the security personnel must be briefed to ensure they engage with a human face rather than brutalities.

"Let us face it, those deeply affected economically by the lockdown are the poor market women, Kayayei, Artisans etc, the statement said.

Read Full Statement Below:

NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC CONGRESS(NDC)-GREATER ACCRA REGION.

1st April, 2020

PRESS STATEMENT.

TO: ALL MEDIA HOUSES.

GREATER ACCRA NDC DECRIES THE ALLEGED MOLESTATION OF CIVILIAN POPULATION BY THE PERSONNEL OF THE SECURITY SERVICES

The Greater Accra Regional NDC wishes to register its resentment over the reports of molestation and intimidation of the civilian population by some security personnel detailed to enforce the lockdown protocol announced by His Excellency the President.

We all understand the imperatives of the lockdown and our shared responsibility to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease. It is our conviction however that the execution of the lockdown must be done with a human face.

The primary responsibility of giving Public Education on the dos and don'ts has been largely insufficient to the extent that, even some govt officials appear not to know what exactly the Lockdown Protocol entails. This obviously is the reason why govt officials keep clarifying, in vain the Presidents directives since the announcement was made. It goes without saying therefore, just as those enforcing the directives themselves require briefing, so does the civilian population need round -the- clock public education and constant reminders.

We believe that whenever security personnel encounter persons they consider to have breached any part of the directives, the first thing to do is to explain what is expected of us all and offer advice where necessary. Resorting to instant physical punishment of the civilian population should never be the order of the day.

Let us face it, those deeply affected economically by the lockdown are the poor market women, Kayayei, Artisans etc. If the lockdown isnt managed properly these are the people most likely to bear the brunt of the exercise. In this vein, it is important we are guided by the old adage that "a hungry man is an angry man" in order to avoid the unpleasant consequences of otherwise a Useful exercise.

In a related development, some individuals who have stepped out to purchase electricity prepaid, buy basic items such as food, fetch water or use public laterines have been arrested and allegedly brutalized by the Security personnel. That should not be countenanced in this day and age.

In as much as we support the security services in maintaining law and order and ensuring that the directives as stipulated in the Presidents speech are adhered to, the NDC as a Party in Greater Accra is calling on the Security Services to treat the citizenry with decorum and in a humane manner. Civilians and members of the security services should see themselves as partners in ensuring the success of the exercise and not opposing forces or enemies.

We wish to pray for a spirit of partnership between us, the civilian population and the security services so that together we can help make Accra a virus-free place to live.

Thank you.

Sgd.

Mr Kobina Ade Coker.

(Regional Chairman)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 15:00 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f37237 1 National ClassActionLawsuit,lawsuit,Central-Jakarta-District-Court,small-and-medium-enterprises,Jokowi,Terawan-Agus-Putranto,COVID-19,coronavirus,Wuhan-coronavirus-in-Indonesia,outbreak-in-Indonesia Free

A group of small and medium business owners have filed a class-action lawsuit against President Joko Jokowi Widodo and Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto for what they perceive to be the governments negligence in handling the COVID-19 pandemic, which has taken a toll on their livelihoods.

The lawsuit was filed by group representative Enggal Pamukty at the Central Jakarta District Court.

Its true that I submitted a lawsuit against President Jokowi for [the governments] fatal negligence in handling COVID-19, Enggal said on Wednesday as quoted by kompas.com.

He said the government had failed to take the necessary precautions in the early stages of the viral outbreak as it had allocated its resources to promoting tourism instead.

Read also: Turf war undermines COVID-19 fight in Indonesia

If only the central government had been serious in mitigating the COVID-19 situation from the start, fellow business owners and I would have still been able to make a living, Enggal said. [The situation] has deprived us of income, yet the government has yet to provide support.

The six plaintiffs demanded financial compensation of Rp 12 billion (US$710,757) for material losses and Rp 10 million for immaterial losses.

Jokowis response to the current health emergency has previously been met with criticism among the public. A recent report compiled by Staqo Analytics showed that, from March 23 to 30, around 59 percent of coverage and discussions on online media and news sites using the keyword Jokowi received negative responses from the public.

The President has repeatedly rejected the idea of imposing a lockdown on Jakarta, the epicenter of Indonesia's COVID-19 epidemic, despite mounting calls from scientists and public health experts ahead of the approaching Idul Fitri holiday.

As of Wednesday, Indonesia had reported a total of 1,677 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 157 deaths. (rfa)
Facing financial crisis amid lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak, the Hotels and Restaurant Association of Northern India has demanded a relief package from the state government.

Apart from demanding deferment of the last date for making payments, including licence fee payment, the association has also demanded the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and the Value-Added tax (VAT) holiday for a year.

Citing a slump in industry in coming years as an after-effect of the lockdown, the association members wrote a letter to chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and the excise and taxation department. They demanded a two-month extension for the renewal of licences in Punjab. They also demanded that the state government should waive-off the excise fee for the next six months.

The members further said that the validity of licence fee paid for the 2020-21 be extended till September 30, 2021. They asked the state government to defer the payment of loans and compensate 50 percent of the salaries. In addition to this, they also asked the government to waive-off the fixed electricity charges.

Association secretary Amarvir Singh said, Neighbouring states, including Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, have already announced relief for the hospitality industry. They have also extended the dates for renewal of licences.

Singh said the industry is in deep crisis and it is suspected that it will also have to bear the after-effects of this lockdown in the next few years. Therefore, to save the industry from further slump, we have sought relief from the state government, he said.
A PLANNED hearing next month of an appeal by Latvia's Dermot Desmond-backed Rietumu Banka against an 80m fine levied against it by French authorities could now be delayed due to the continuing coronavirus lockdown.

Mr Desmond owns a third of Rietumu, with the billionaire having first taken a stake in the bank in 2005.

Rietumu Banka was found guilty in 2017 of aggravated money laundering by providing assistance, as a bank, to placement, concealment or conversion operations of the proceed of an offence.

A Paris court ordered the bank to pay an 80m fine and damages, jointly and severally with other defendants, of 10m to the French state and 100,000 in court expenses. Rietumu was also ordered to cease operations in France for five years.

Rietumu appealed the ruling, with a hearing due to have taken place last September. It was pushed back to next month, with hearing dates due on May 18, 19 and 20.

But with France now in lockdown, it is possible the appeal hearing will be delayed. "The bank believes to have a meritorious defence, and so it intends to vigorously defend its position," Rietumu told shareholders in its annual report published this week.

It expects the appeals process to last two or three years.

It added: "Among other things, the amounts the bank was sentenced to pay appear inflated and ungrounded, based on the understanding of the French criminal law by the bank and its legal advisers."

It said that if the ruling against it is upheld in France and Latvia, a "significant amount of judgment would be required" to estimate the amount of fines the bank would be ordered to pay in the Latvian court.

Rietumu has made a 34m provision in relation to the action.

In 2018, Rietumu terminated its banking relationship with more than 4,000 corporate customers it classified as being a 'prohibited risk'.

The move came after the United States accused the Baltic country's then third-largest bank, ABLV, of "institutionalised money laundering".

In its latest annual report, Rietumu said that it is now opening dozens of accounts every month for Latvian companies across all sectors.

"All of this confirms the correctness of the measures and plans that our bank has consistently put into practice over the last one and a half years, according to the new conditions and requirements implemented in the Latvian financial sector, taking into account the position of regulatory bodies and international partners," it added.

The group made a 21m profit last year. It said the bank "remains resilient" in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
The government on Thursday blacklisted 960 foreigners and cancelled their visas after finding they were involved in Tablighi Jamaat activities violating their visa conditions.

The Home Minister's Office asked Delhi Police and police chiefs of other states, where these foreigners are currently living, to take legal action under the Foreigners Act and the Disaster Management Act.

"The home ministry has blacklisted 960 foreigners and their Indian visas have also been cancelled for their involvement in Tablighi Jamaat activities while coming on tourist visas," the home minister's office tweeted in Hindi.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As Iran struggles with a devastating coronavirus outbreak, a broken economy and a severe shortage of medical equipment, it says that US trade sanctions are taking Iranian lives and has called for the United States to lift them on humanitarian grounds.

As Iran struggles with a devastating coronavirus outbreak, a broken economy and a severe shortage of medical equipment, it says that US trade sanctions are taking Iranian lives and has called for the United States to lift them on humanitarian grounds.

Irans plea is gaining traction around the globe, winning support from allies like Russia and China, but also the European Union, the United Nations secretary-general, rights groups and nearly three dozen members of Congress, who have appealed to the Trump administration to suspend the sanctions for as long as Iran is battling the coronavirus.

Iran, a global epicenter of the virus, has confirmed more than 47,000 cases and more than 3,000 deaths, although public health experts estimate the real toll to be several times higher.

We had always said the sanctions are unjust, but coronavirus revealed this injustice to the world, Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said in a recent video message, which he began by removing a surgical mask from his face with blue latex gloves. He referred to the sanctions as economic terrorism.

The issue has raised questions about the collision of punishing US sanctions with a deadly pandemic, including whether Iran is trying to exploit the crisis to achieve a long-held goal of lifting sanctions, whether the United States is using the virus to squeeze Iran beyond what sanctions alone could do, and what responsibility the United States has for a disaster caused at least partly by Irans own inept response.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been unequivocal, saying in a tweet Saturday that Irans concerted effort to lift US sanctions isnt about fighting the pandemic. Its about cash for the regime leaders.

He has accused Irans leaders of trying to avoid responsibility for their grossly incompetent and deadly governance.

When Zarif accused the United States of waging medical terror, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus tweeted Stop lying, adding, Its not the sanctions. Its the regime.

If anything, the United States has doubled down, imposing fresh sanctions as recently as two weeks ago, even as it offered Iran medical aid to help combat the pandemic; aid Iran has refused.

The United States frequently reiterates that the sanctions exempt the sale of medicine and medical devices, however US secondary sanctions on financial institutions and companies that do business with Iran have made it nearly impossible for Iran to buy items like ventilators to treat coronavirus patients.

The sanctions have largely deterred international banks and firms from participating in commercial or financial transactions with Iran, including for exempted humanitarian transactions, due to the fear of triggering U.S. secondary sanctions on themselves, Human Rights Watch found in a report last year, months before the coronavirus emerged.

Now the need for such equipment is urgent.

US sanctions are stopping medical equipment from being sent to Iran, Senator Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said in a tweet Tuesday. As a result, innocent people are dying.

Irans leadership also bears a share of the blame for its fumbling response to the crisis.

The virus was first detected in Iran in late February, but the government, ignoring the advice of its own health experts, took no action to enforce social distancing or lock down affected areas until this week, allowing the virus to spread unchecked and turning Iran into a regional hub for the outbreak.

The government came under fire for under reporting the number of cases and playing down the threat, while rivalries between the government and the military left the country wondering who was in charge of containing the pandemic.

On top of that, Irans supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, rejected the US. offer of humanitarian assistance, claiming that the virus was created by America. Analysts said that accepting US aid was also seen as politically untenable  it would not fix the economy or end sanctions but would have the undesirable effect of making the United States look benevolent.

Turning the focus to US sanctions diverts attention from Irans own failings and aligns with Irans policy objectives.

Iran sees an opportunity to leverage the coronavirus to pressure the US to ease its maximum pressure policy because they are at a deadlock with the economy, said Siamak Ghasemi, an Iran-based economist. Of course sanctions relief will give the government more financial resources to battle coronavirus, but they are also thinking long term.

But some analysts say that the Trump administration also sees the virus as an opportunity, an additional tool that in tandem with sanctions could force Iran to capitulate to US demands, including a renegotiated, tougher nuclear agreement and a curb on its regional activities.

The Trump administration believes that the outbreak has succeeded where sanctions failed to weaken the economy even further, said Ali Vaez, Iran director for International Crisis Group. They think that the timeline for bringing Iran to its knees has shortened because of the coronavirus.

Theres no question that the virus has slammed Irans already teetering economy.

Most small businesses, restaurants and hotels, and other service industries have been closed for over a month during what is usually their most lucrative season, around the Persian new year. Factories have scaled down production, and unemployment has spiked, with economists saying Iran is losing at least 1 million jobs per month.

Economists said the coronavirus would shrink Irans GDP by a third and create at least a $10 billion budget deficit this year. Before the virus, sanctions had already cost Iran about $200 billion in revenue, mainly from decimated oil sales, and devalued the currency by half in the past two years. And oil sales to the few countries that still flout US sanctions, like China, have plummeted as the price of crude oil has plunged.

When government has no access to its resources, it cant bail out businesses, it cant quarantine, and it cant provide economic support for people to not work, said Pooria Asteraky, a tech entrepreneur who occasionally consults for Irans M Telecommunications Ministry..

In a sign of desperation, Iran requested a $5 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund, the first time it has applied for such a loan since the 1960s. The European Union has said it would support the loan, but the United States is expected to block it.

Economic distress brought Iranians to the streets in November, and the government is aware that it could do so again now that the economy is even worse. Blaming the United States could deflect some of that anger.

Whoever is to blame, the sight of overflowing hospitals, mass graves and doctors pleading for medical supplies has won some international sympathy, especially among countries already opposed to the Trump administrations unilateral withdrawal from the Iranian nuclear agreement and imposition of sanctions.

The European Union donated $22 million in humanitarian aid to Iran last week, and Japan sent $23.5 million. On Tuesday, the European Union exported medical goods to Iran in its first use of a financial mechanism set up last year to allow European companies to work around U.S. sanctions.

On Tuesday, 33 American senators and representatives sent a letter to the Trump administration, urging it to suspend sanctions as a humanitarian gesture to the Iranian people and to find a way to deliver direct aid.

US sanctions should not be contributing to this humanitarian disaster, Senator Bernie Sanders, one of the signatories, said in a statement Tuesday. He added: Every country on Earth is going to be affected by the coronavirus. We are all in this together. If there was ever a moment to show each other unprecedented cooperation and support internationally, this is that moment.

Farnaz Fassihi c.2020 The New York Times Company
Simon Coveney has said communities working together will be key to beating coronavirus (Niall Carson/PA)

The government has launched a major initiative which aims to see a volunteering response across Ireland during the coronavirus crisis.

Tanaiste Simon Coveney said the Community Call project is a partnership with national and local government, and will also involve the community and voluntary sectors to help the vulnerable.

Community Call will aim to co-ordinate community activity, direct community assistance and marshal a volunteering response in every town, parish county and city.

Speaking at Government Buildings on Thursday, Mr Coveney said that he has an unshakeable belief in the resilience of Irelands society and in the power of community.

He said the work of Community Call will be focused on specific needs and it will be broad-ranging in its reach and scope.

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On Thursday it was confirmed that another 13 patients with Covid-19 died in the Republic of Ireland in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths to 98.

Authorities said there had been another 402 cases of coronavirus confirmed in the country in the past day.

Mr Coveney said the focus will be on the elderly, vulnerable communities and people most affected by the new restrictions announced by the Irish government last week.

Community has never been more important than it is right now, Mr Coveney said.

In the end, community is what will get us through this crisis on a local and on a national level.

I cant overstate the importance that the Government attaches to the power of community action in this crisis.

Were asking the most senior public servants in every county and every city to oversee a new initiative that were announcing today.

He explained that volunteers will help pick up groceries and collect medicines, and that people will be vetted before being allowed to participate.

.@MichaelRingFG "We have made substantial progress in co-ordinating and responding to the needs of our communities and I want to praise the outstanding contribution of the community and voluntary sector to the national effort to address the effects of the COVID-19 crisis." https://t.co/ew4j9IP6fi  Department of Rural and Community Development (@DeptRCD) April 2, 2020

Mr Coveney added: In the coming weeks we will focus on broader well-being issues in our society with a range of new initiatives as the crisis continues.

At national level, Community Call will be overseen by a group from the Department of the Taoiseach, the Department of Housing, the Department of Rural and Community Development, the Department of Health and the County and City Management Association.

At a local level, Community Call will be overseen and managed by our local authorities.

It will be a network of 31 community call offices, stretching from Kerry to Donegal from Dublin to Mayo.

Its happening now. and its happening everywhere from today.

Every local authority has now established a community forum to co-ordinate and connect to a wide range of services and supports.

In the face of this national emergency it will be how we respond as communities, how we look after our friends and our neighbours that may well be decisiveSimon Coveney

The forum involves an extensive lists of state and voluntary and community organisations and sporting organisations.

Mr Coveney added: This is an unprecedented mobilisation of State and voluntary resources to combat the effects of a crisis that has come on us, so suddenly and so unexpectedly.

I am convinced, though, that our communities will be the decisive factor in protecting and restoring our society and our economy in the weeks and months ahead, bringing us to a better future.

In the face of this national emergency, it will be how we respond as communities, how we look after our friends and our neighbours that may well be decisive.

In my view, Ireland has stronger communities than any other country in the world.

The initiative will involve the gardai, local volunteers, local development companies, the Red Cross, Civil Defence, the GAA, the IFA (Irish Farmers Association), the Public Participation Network, age-friendly networks and church organisations.

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Minister for Rural and Community Development Michael Ring said that nobody will be left behind in the fight against coronavirus.

Mr Ring pledged that the Government and communities will be there to help the vulnerable and the elderly.

In a direct message to pensioners and vulnerable people, he said: We will be there to help you.

Do not be afraid. The most important aspect in this is neighbours, because every neighbour knows each other and people trust their neighbour.

Im asking neighbours today to take up the phone, and everybody has a phone, and ring your neighbour to see that they are OK.

Mr Ring also said that 80,000 people will be involved in a new senior alerts scheme which will see volunteers making regular calls and checks on the elderly.

In a short time we have scaled up on, testing centres, testing kits, contact tracers, nbr of Labs, hospital beds, ICU, ventilators, PPE, staff.

Our current major issue is "reagents" for labs. A worldwide shortage. We are working hard to fix this. Bear with us @HSELive #COVID19  Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) April 1, 2020

He added: I also want to say to people to stop putting up messages on Facebook that is not true. Do not frighten our vulnerable people in our country.

It comes as the chief executive of the Health Service Executive said officials are working hard to resolve a shortage of testing materials for coronavirus.

Paul Reid appealed to the public to bear with us as the HSE tries to address the worldwide issue.

He was speaking after it emerged that Ireland is falling short of the target number of tests being carried out each day.

In a tweet, he said: In a short time we have scaled up on, testing centres, testing kits, contact tracers, nbr of Labs, hospital beds, ICU, ventilators, PPE, staff.

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Our current major issue is reagents for labs.

A worldwide shortage. We are working hard to fix this. Bear with us.
More than 20,000 cases of COVID-19 were registered in Latin America and the Caribbean by Wednesday -- double the figure from five days ago, according to an AFP tally.

As infections spread across the region, a Guatemalan migrant died and more than 20 were wounded in a riot over coronavirus fears at a holding facility for Central American migrants in Mexico, officials said.

A protest by mostly Honduran migrants at the facility in southeastern Tabasco state turned violent late Tuesday after those inside set bedding ablaze.

Authorities had registered 537 deaths and 20,081 cases across Latin America by Wednesday afternoon.

Ecuador said Wednesday the bodies of 150 people were retrieved from homes in the port city of Guayaquil after the coronavirus crisis put a strain on resources.

A joint military and police task force created to deal with the emergency removed the bodies in the past three days, government spokesman Jorge Wated said.

Authorities have not confirmed how many COVID-19 victims were among the 150 dead.

Brazil recorded Latin America's first infection on February 26. With a population of 210 million, the South American giant is now the most affected country with 5,717 cases, including 201 deaths.

President Jair Bolsonaro -- who has repeatedly railed against social distancing measures he says are needlessly hurting the economy -- found himself at the center of a row over spreading misinformation.

Bolsonaro posed a video online of a market supposedly hit by shortages caused by the pandemic, but he was forced to remove it hours later after journalists found it well stocked.

Bolsonaro has compared the coronavirus to a "little flu," and condemned the reaction to it as "hysteria," statements which have left him increasingly isolated, in Brazil and beyond.

Another leader criticized for taking the pandemic lightly, President Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua, replaced his health minister. Nicaragua's government has yet to enforce preventive measures common in other countries, including closing borders or prohibiting crowds.

It has reported five infections, with one death. The minister, Carolina Davila, will remain as an advisor to the presidency however, the government said.

More than 300 Bolivians and dozens of Peruvians were stranded at a makeshift camp at Huara in Chile on Wednesday, after their countries' borders were shut due to the coronavirus.

Chile's Interior Minister Gonzalo Blumel pleaded for understanding, saying "all countries have to face this from a humanitarian perspective, especially with regard to the return of people who are in a position to return."



The pandemic has compounded an already desperate situation facing millions of refugees and migrants who fled Venezuela's economic collapse, said Eduardo Stein, the UN special representative for Venezuelan migrants and refugees. The UN refugee agency and the International Organization of Migration jointly called on the international community to boost aid for millions of Venezuelan migrants threatened by the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.

Nearly five million people have left since 2015, most ending up in Colombia and other neighboring South American countries, overwhelming healthcare systems. Mexico adjusted its economic forecast for 2020 on Wednesday due to the negative effects of the epidemic, in line with other pessimistic estimates by analysts.

The finance ministry said in a statement that the performance of the economy will be in a range of between minus 3.9 and 0.1 percent, well down from its previous estimate of growth, ranging between 1.5 and 2.5 percent.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A long line stretched out the door of Trader Joes in Orange on Thursday afternoon, as customers waited several feet apart from each other for their turn to enter the grocery store and employees monitored the number of people inside.

At the New Haven Stop & Shop, customers were offered wipes as they entered and were tallied by an employee instructed to allow no more than 240 people inside. Bright blue and pink duct tape arrows designated one-way aisles, though several shoppers seemed to disregard them in search of their purchases. Tape also marked the floor of Home Depot, where yellow squares and crosses showed customers where to stand while they waited to check out.

Those measures, some of which had already been in place at many local grocery and retail stores, will become mandatory Friday, when new Safe Store rules take effect in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus in some of the few remaining places where groups of people can gather. More than 100 Connecticut residents have died from the coronavirus, including 27 new deaths reported on Thursday.

The latest restrictions require stores to limit capacity to half of their legal occupancy, and must take measures to keep customers apart and enforce social distancing. That includes restricting aisles to one-way where possible, maximizing space in checkout lines and high-traffic areas, and using plexiglass shields to separate employees from customers at checkout lines, where practicable.

Employees are also instructed to wear gloves and facemasks whenever possible when interacting with customers or handling products. Sourcing those materials is a challenge, Connecticut Food Association President Wayne Pesce said. Theyre in high-demand for health care workers, but grocery stores are working to get more of their own, he said.

The heightened restrictions come as concerns about safety at grocery stores and other retailers continue to rise: a Stew Leonards employee in Norwalk tested positive for the virus and others have been quarantined, and Trader Joes in Fairfield closed temporarily Thursday for cleaning after a worker there tested positive.

Gov. Ned Lamonts directives for stores followed Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling issuing similar instructions on Saturday, and supermarket chains following suit. While the statewide Safe Store Rules dont address the number of customers shopping together, Rilling, Pesce and many stores are encouraging people to come alone, sending only one family member rather than shopping together.

But whether that will truly help slow the spread of the coronavirus depends largely on stores enforcement and on the behavior of shoppers.

Jessica Rua, who waited outside Trader Joes in Orange, said the distancing system seemed to be working because employees were monitoring and enforcing it, ensuring the store wasnt excessively crowded. On a trip to another store last week, social distancing seemed to be nowhere in sight, she said.

An employee at Home Depot, who asked for her name to be withheld, said customers for the most part have respected the spacing, or if I step back, theyll step back, she said.

She wore gloves that were provided by the store, and a mask of her own, though she said the company was planning to also start providing those. There are still times when the store gets crowded, which makes her anxious, she said.

I have to talk myself through it, she said.

While shes mostly pleased with the restrictions that have been established so far, she worries the store should be open fewer hours, and that people are coming in for non-essential purchases too frequently.

She said some employees who are over 60 years old are taking time off, which means more work and more cleaning for those who are still working. Stew Leonard Jr. said his stores are also dealing with staffing gaps that hes seeking to fill with new hires because some employees are quarantined after being exposed to the coronavirus.

Pesce, whose association includes more than 200 retailers and distributors, said stores are taking the restrictions very seriously and complying however and wherever and whenever we can.

At some point, it becomes the customers understanding and willingness to make that happen, Pesce said. Some of this is about a social contract here.

Stores can put up signs and add restrictions, but customers also need to take seriously the need for space.

Most folks coming in are bring really, really good about it, he said.

Customers and employees can also limit risks by monitoring their own behavior, said John Nwangwu, an epidemiologist at Southern Connecticut State University. The biggest risk comes from contracting the virus from other people, as well as from shared surfaces, but that can be mitigated if people avoid touching their face and clean their hands.

Even if you make a contact, if you dont touch your face, mouth, eyes, ears, etc., and youre able to clean your hands, youre not going to get infected, he said.

He also cautioned that wearing masks and gloves shouldnt provide a false sense of safety: while they can help, including by preventing people from touching their faces, theyre not a substitute for hand hygiene.

It would seem to me that knowledge is more important than those kind of regulations, Nwangwu said. If people are well-educated and know exactly the risk, I think that would be better than putting extra burden on stores.

Some of the distancing efforts do just that: they remind people, in bright colors and large letters, that they should be changing their behavior.

Its made a lot of difference, said Noah Villot, an electrician who shopped at Home Depot on Thursday. He said the tape markers on the floor inside the store were a reminder of the distancing requirements, which otherwise might be overlooked. Theyre doing a good job, he said.

Things like signs, tape marks and physical barriers are key, said Jean Breny, who chairs Southerns Public Health and works on behavioral changes to promote health.

People get used to doing things a certain way. We all know, at some level, were supposed to stay six feet away from another person, but its not really happening, she said. In a crowded grocery store, people unintentionally will end up close together. These kinds of guidelines may seem like an inconvenience, but theyll help people keep their distance and adjust their habits to include keeping their distance, she said.

Lamont so far has resisted calls to tighten the limits on essential businesses, including requests on social media to shutter everything other than pharmacies and grocery stores.

Liz.teitz@hearstmediact.com
The army has started to ramp up its aid to the HSE in Cork by erecting tents outside a hospital, ferrying suspected Covid-19 cases to test centres and providing additional ambulances and personnel to the National Ambulance Service.

Meanwhile, the crew of the Naval Service flagship, LE Eithne, which is docked in the citys Albert Quay, are gearing themselves up for any tasks the health authority should ask them to fulfil.

As part of Operation Fortitude, members of the Armys Corps of Engineers (ARC) erected two tents outside Mercy University Hospital (MUH) yesterday.

ARC Capt Paul Finnegan said the tents, measuring 7.3m x 6.3m were similar to ones they have used in overseas missions in Chad and Liberia as accommodation and first aid units.

His soldiers ensured the tents were rigged up to electrical generators and heaters. It is understood the tents have been configured to accommodate six patients each  thereby increasing hospital capacity.

Military Police were deployed to direct traffic in the area as the soldiers assembled the tents.

Commandant Denise Burke said that members of the transport corps based at Collins Barracks are now using their fleet of transit vans to ferry people suspected of having the virus from around the city and county to the regions largest testing centre at Pairc Ui Chaoimh.

She confirmed that operation started on Wednesday morning and will continue for as long as the HSE requires.

Meanwhile, Comdt Burke said Defence Forces ambulances and Emergency Medical Technicians have been deployed to the National Ambulance Service local headquarters off the Kinsale Road roundabout to help out.

She said all of the 1,500-strong members of 1 Brigade, based in Collins Barracks, are ready to play whatever part they could to help the HSE in the battle against the virus.

Comdt Burke said the Defence Forces are in constant contact with HSE officials and are reconfigerating their personnel to help with any requests for assistance.

Were looking at all eventualities, including utilising the reserves (Reserve Defence Forces) if necessary. All of our assets are at the disposal of the HSE, the officer said.

Some RDF personnel from Limerick and Waterford have already volunteered for duty with the Naval Service and are onboard LE Eithne.

There is a great sense of camaraderie. Its inspiring to see it on the ground, Comdt Burke said.
Top Expert at Chinas CDC: Epidemic Is Not Over in China

The current epidemic in China is not over and has now entered a new phase, the chief epidemiologist at Chinas Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on April 2, representing a rare contradiction to Beijings official narrative that the virus has been contained.

Zeng Guang told Chinese state-run newspaper Health Times that the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus is likely to infect more people.

The novel coronavirus has spread to more than 200 countries, and infected much more people than SARS [severe acute respiratory syndrome]. In the end, the virus may infect more than 100 times the number of people during SARS, he said.

SARS was first discovered in Chinas Guangdong province in 2002, and then spread to Hong Kong and other cities after Chinese authorities concealed information about the outbreak. The official global death toll is about 800, but the true figure is likely much higher due to Chinas coverup.

Zeng said the epidemic in China is still severe.

Now is the phase to prevent infected people from entering China, and to control new domestic infections, Zeng said. [We should] maintain our capacity to find patients at an early stage, control the outbreak when it first starts, and prevent the next big outbreak.

On April 2, Beijing authorities claimed that there were no domestic infections and 35 imported cases. However, Chinese citizens are incredulous about the figures, based on interviews with The Epoch Times.

A man wearing a protective suit rides a bicycle on a street in Wuhan, China on April 1, 2020. (HECTOR RETAMAL/AFP via Getty Images)

Contradictory Comments

After initially dismissing concerns about asymptomatic carriers spreading the virus further, Beijing regime started announcing the total number of asymptomatic carrierspeople who test positive for the virus but dont show symptomson April 1.

The following day, Wu Zunyou, a chief epidemic disease specialist at Chinas CDC, said a central-government-operated press conference: Theres a small possibility that asymptomatic carriers will cause an outbreak [in China]. The asymptomatic carriers wont spread the virus in society.

Wu claimed that a study performed in Ningbo of eastern Chinas Zhejiang province showed that each asymptomatic carrier can only infect less than one person.

This contradicted comments by top Party officials emphasizing the importance of detecting asymptomatic carriers.

State-run media Yicai also reported about the Ningbo study, which has since been removed from its original publication website. The media report quoted researchers from Ningbo who said: From a statistical perspective, the infection rate [between diagnosed CCP virus patients and asymptomatic carriers] has no significant difference.

On March 31, Chinas National Health Commission also acknowledged the risks of asymptomatic carriers in a Q&A post on its website: There are diagnosed patients who were infected by asymptomatic carriers in our national research and some provinces studies. During an epidemiological investigation, we found asymptomatic carriers caused clusters of infections.

A passenger shows a green QR code on his phone to show his health status to security upon arrival at Wenzhou railway station in Wenzhou, Zhejiang on February 28, 2020. (NOEL CELIS/AFP via Getty Images)

The reality on the ground also reflected how asymptomatic carriers could infect others.

On March 31, Jia county in Henan province enacted a lockdown again, after three doctors were diagnosed as asymptomatic carriers. The county government didnt publicize how many people were infected by them, but a woman from Luohe city, also in Henan, was infected after she was in close contact with one of the asymptomatic carriers in Jia county for a day. The countys quarantine measures were lifted in late February.

The Epoch Times refers to the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, as the CCP virus because the Chinese Communist Partys coverup and mismanagement allowed the virus to spread throughout China and create a global pandemic.
Each of the five provinces Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Kien Giang, and Ca Mau in Vietnams Mekong Delta region that have declared a state of emergency due to drought and saline intrusion will receive VND800 million (US$34,000) to cope with the natural calamities, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

The relief package, totaling VND4 billion ($170,000), will come from the countrys Environmental Protection Fund, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Tran Hong Ha said on Wednesday.

On the same day, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment also reported to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the situation of saline intrusion in different Vietnamese areas.

Accordingly, drought and water shortage occurred on a large scale in the central and Central Highlands regions, with most rivers having run out of water from the beginning of the dry season.

The dry season in these regions normally extends from November until the end of April the following year, according to the official Vietnam News Agency.

Major resevoirs in these regions are currently filled up to only between 15 and 70 percent of their capacity.

Meanwhile, water levels are at 40-80 percent the capacity of small- and medium-sized irrigation reservoirs.

The ministry forecasts that the drought and water shortage may last until August and can become more serious in the next months, with low flow persisting and getting more severe than it was in last years dry season.

For the Mekong Delta region, it is forecast that the saline intrusion in areas near the Mekong Rivers estuaries will weaken, but the salinity level will remain high. Hot weather and drought will continue.

Specifically, saline intrusion in Vam Co River, which snakes through Long An and Tien Giang, and Cai Lon River, which flows in Kien Giang, will stay severe until the end of April before gradually subsiding.

Reporting to the prime minister on solutions for mitigating the impacts of the drought, Minister Ha said his ministry has handed over to local authorities wells that can be used to build centralized water supply facilities in the affected localities.

The ministry has also sent results of surveys and searches for groundwater, observation data, forecasts, and warnings of water resources to local agencies in order to implement short- and long-term measures on preventing drought and water shortage, with a special focus on ensuring water supply for people in scarcity-hit regions.

Last month, Prime Minister Phuc approved a plan to provide VND70 billion ($3 million) to each of the same five provinces to respond to ongoing problems with seawater intrusion and drought.

The funding was meant for use in pumping water, dredging temporary dams, digging ponds, extending pipelines and water-transporting equipment, and assisting people in need.

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Spain has the worlds highest reported rate of COVID-19 infection for doctors and nurses. 15,000 health workers are now sick or self-isolating, making up 14% of confirmed cases in the country, according to the health ministry. In Italy the figure is below 10%. No other country has reported a double-digit percentage of cases affecting doctors.

Spanish doctors and nurses say they lack protective equipment they need to treat patients safely in crowded hospitals. The governments emergency health chief admitted last week that the shortage may have fuelled a high rate of infection among medical professionals.

In recent days, labor unions representing health workers have filed a series of lawsuits against the government across Spains regions and in the Supreme Court, in an attempt to force improvements to authorities to improve provisions.

Meanwhile, doctors have shared images of colleagues using disposable raincoats, garbage bags, and other improvised materials to protect themselves from the virus.

Sara, 42, is an emergency room doctor in Madridthe epicenter of Spains outbreak, where one union says that over a fifth of COVID-19 cases are health workers. Sara asked TIME to only use her first name because she feared professional repercussions for speaking candidly. She believes poor coordination by authorities and a slowness to take drastic measures against the virus have put those on the front line at risk. Sara spoke to TIME over the phone from her home in Madrid on March 31.

It feels like were being played for fools. As the COVID-19 pandemic has advanced, and the number of cases has gone up, and the cases have gotten more severe, authorities are somehow telling us we need a lower level of protection.

A month ago, it was compulsory to wear impermeable overalls and a high quality mask even for lower risk tasks. Not anymore. If youre not getting close to a patient and youre not doing certain tasks, they say you just need a surgical mask and normal overalls. Now we reuse overalls again and again when normally wed change every time we go on a break or see a new patient. It greatly increases the risk that youll get infected. I dont think about it when Im treating patients. But the falling standards make me feel unsafe. I worry about infecting my husband and my kids.

Story continues

Were doing what we can: colleagues are improvising ways to make masks and suits. A few days ago my hospital got a donation of protective trousers from a company. Volunteer groups have been giving us 3-D printed plastic sheets as protective screens for faces. We can disinfect them and use them several times before they break.

But still, many of us are getting sick. I have colleagues who are in the ICU, with serious cases of COVID-19. Right now Im isolating myself at home because I have a slight fever. Ive tested negative, but since Ive been exposed I cant go back to the hospital until my fever comes down.

Keep up to date with our daily coronavirus newsletter by clicking here.

Health workers at Sara's Madrid hospital use improvised masks made of plastic screens, donated by volunteers, to protect themselves from the virus that causes COVID-19.

A doctors job is to look after patients. The role of managers is to manage. I know it must be really difficult for authorities to ensure we have resources at the moment. But its their job. There should be a better way to do it. Other countries have been able to do it better. When you see images of health workers in Chinathough perhaps these are the ones they want us to seethey have full protective suits and they wear two separate layers. We only wear one layer, when we have it.

There has been a lack of coordination in Spain. Individuals are managing to get hold of resources. Celebrities have been donating them to hospitals. Why cant the government get those things in the first place?

The fact those in charge have been slow to act has also led to more doctors getting sick. Because its an illness that expands gradually, governments have taken decisions gradually. And its too little too late. We should have been acting like a bomb had fallen.

When the first few cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Spain, they said they were all imported from Italy and China. We were seeing an unusual number of respiratory infections and they werent letting us test them. They didnt let us use a mask and a protective suit for the patients we suspected of having the virus, because Madrid wasnt yet considered an area of community transmission. Those restrictions led to more doctors getting sick.

In Spain, weve never had to work like this before. Maybe in other countries where there arent many doctors or much equipment, doctors will be used to that. But in Spain were not used to working like that and were not trained to do it either. Its really hard.

Doctors in the U.S. should prepare for a war. In terms of the number of protective suits youll have, the number of hospital beds, the number of ventilators in the ICUits like being a war medic. Try to prepare for that.

Please send any tips, leads, and stories to virus@time.com.
Specimens from CCP virus tests are logged to processed for a positive or negative result at the UW Medicine Virology lab in Seattle, Washington state, on March 18, 2020. (Brian Snyder/Reuters)

FDA Approves First Antibody Test for COVID-19

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first blood test for seeing if patients were infected with COVID-19 in the past but have since recovered, a key component of many plans looking at restarting the U.S. economy amid the pandemic.

Dr. Stephen Hahn, commissioner of the administration, announced the approval during an interview with CBS News Radio on Thursday.

The serology test will allow laboratories to determine exposure in the antibodies, detecting which people have been exposed to the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19.

It has a really important role to play in the surveillance of the disease, particularly because this virus is different from others in that we suspect that theres a large percentage of people who are asymptomatic but who have had it and gone over without even knowing they had it, Hahn said.

Its going to help us determine what is what we call the attack rate of the virus, how many people it could attack and what was the spread like.

The test is not a substitute for a diagnostic test, Hahn cautioned.

President Donald Trump listens to FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn during a news conference with members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on March 19, 2019. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Most tests for the CCP virus are focused on looking for signs of the illness while antibody tests focus on the bodys response to the virus. Patients who had the virus and have since recovered can be detected through antibody tests, suggesting an immunity to the illness.

Cellex Inc., a North Carolina-based company, was informed on Wednesday of the emergency use authorization for its test, which detects immunoglobulin M and immunoglobulin G antibodies against the CCP virus.

Antibodies are generated as part of the immune systems response to the virus and are generally detectable in blood several days after initial infection, Denise Hinton, the FDAs chief scientist, wrote in a letter (pdf) to the company. But, she added, levels over the course of infection are not well characterized.

Positive results could occur after infection and can be indicative of acute or recent infection, she wrote.

The FDA approved the test based on scientific evidence it was presented.

It is reasonable to believe that your product may be effective in diagnosing COVID-19, and that the known and potential benefits of your product when used for diagnosing COVID-19, outweigh the known and potential risks of your product, Hinton wrote.

A lab technician begins semi-automated testing for COVID-19 at Northwell Health Labs in Lake Success, New York, on March 11, 2020. (Andrew Theodorakis/Getty Images)

Emergency use authorization lets the FDA sidestep normal regulatory procedures to speed up approval of key items during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The authorization came after a different company, BodySphere, claimed its serology test received FDA approval. The administration denied the claim and the company later retracted its statement.

Reports based on a press release BodySphere were also deleted, including reports from Axios and Reuters.

Other companies are also developing serology tests, as is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The federal agency said its test will assist with efforts to determine how much of the U.S. population has been exposed to the CCP virus.

The serology test will look for the presence of antibodies, which are specific proteins made in response to infections. Antibodies can be found in the blood and in other tissues of those who are tested after infection. The antibodies detected by this test indicate that a person had an immune response to the virus, whether symptoms developed from infection, or the infection was asymptomatic. Antibody test results are important in detecting infections with few or no symptoms, it stated.
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A state senator from Georgia who travelled to his Florida beach house to recuperate from a case of Covid-19 has headed home after the local sheriff called him irresponsible  and assigned a police detail to enforce a two-week quarantine.

Bruce Thompson, who represents Georgias 14th state senate district, was hospitalised with symptoms of Covid-19 in mid-March. He spent several days in intensive care, and was at one point unable to breathe unassisted.

In a Facebook post on 22 March summarising the experience, he wrote: Thank you to the amazing healthcare workers at Northside Cherokee who provided first class service  they and thousands of others across the country are on the frontlines in this battle.

I ask everyone to join me in doing your part to #FlattenTheCurve and #StayHome as we fight the spread of Covid-19.

It was after this that Mr Thompson went to his vacation home in Floridas Franklin County, despite restrictions on travel. Local residents, who are on orders to stay at home to help slow the viruss spread, raised the alarm with the authorities when they saw out-of-town visitors arriving in a convoy of three cars.

In a video released on Facebook after Mr Thompsons arrival, Franklin County sheriff A.J. Smith said it was particularly upsetting that someone from another county who has the virus or had the virus would come here and expose us in a county that has had no positive reactions to it yet.

In an exchange with the Tallahassee Democrat, Mr Smith put it more sharply: His drivers licence is in Georgia. His voters registration is in Georgia, so just practice what you preach and dont come here. Its ridiculous. Its so selfish of this person to do this.

Shortly after Mr Smith assigned the police watch on the gated residence, Mr Thompson departed. As the Franklin County Sheriffs Office told the paper: As a result of surveillance on Senator Bruce Thompsons residence on St. George Island, Senator Thompson called Sheriff A.J. Smith to advise he would return to Georgia.

As of 1 April, Georgia had confirmed 4,748 cases of Covid-19, with 154 deaths; Florida, meanwhile, 7,765 cases and 100 deaths. Franklin County has yet to confirm a single positive diagnosis.

In his video chastising Mr Thompson for choosing to recuperate in his county, Mr Smith acknowledged that life under coronavirus control measures is not easy, and that the stakes for his county are high.

I understand a lot of people are going through hard times right now, and this is what I tried to explain to the senator yesterday, is that were scared, a lot of people dont want to contract this disease, a lot of people are sacrificing major now, theyre out of jobs, theyre not working, and its a very critical time for us, a very scary time for us.

Again, were asking people not to come to the county, we closed vacation rentals down, restaurants and bars are closed, so were asking people not to come here, so again, I dont really understand why he would choose this time to come.

Other Georgia state senators besides Mr Thompson have tested positive for coronavirus, among them the 21st districts Brandon Beach. When it transpired that Mr Beach had come to the statehouse to vote despite showing symptoms, a fellow senator said he was shaking with rage.

Mr Thompson has been contacted for comment.
The Delhi Police on Thursday said they had arrested a PhD scholar from Jamia Millia Islamia in connection with a case of rioting and criminal conspiracy pertaining to Februarys riots in north-east Delhi that claimed the lives of 53 people and left over 400 injured. His alleged involvement in the conspiracy to instigate the riots, funding the violence and the agitation against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) in Shaheen Bagh is also being probed, officers privy to the case said.

Joint commissioner of police (special cell) Neeraj Thakur confirmed the arrest of Meeran Haider but did not share further details.

A senior police officer from the special cell, who did not want to be named, said that Haidar is the president of Bihar-based political party Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)s youth wingChhatra RJDDelhi unit. Haider is currently being interrogated at the special cells Lodhi Colony office.

According to the officer, Haider, a resident of Jamia Nagar, was served a notice on March 31, asking him to join the probe in the case of rioting and criminal conspiracy that was registered by the crime branch after the north-east Delhi riots. Haider was asked to reach the special cells Lodhi Colony office at 10am on April 1 (Wednesday).

We arrested Haider in the case, as we have enough evidence to prove the charges against him. His role in funding the riots and anti-CAA protests is being probed, the special cell officer cited above said.

The Jamia Coordination Committee (JCC) alleged that Haider was called for interrogation by the Delhi Polices special cell at their office in Lodhi Road on Wednesday.

Yesterday around 10pm, men in uniform had approached his local residence enquiring about him. He was taken into custody around 10.30pm on Wednesday. The JCC demands that he must be immediately released as all charges against him are baseless, said the committee in a statement.

The University administration said they have not been informed about the incident by the police and denied to comment further.

The JNU unit of RJD on Thursday also issued a statement demanding his release. Delhi Police had asked Meeran Haider, the president of the young RJD, Delhi, to join the investigation and then arrested him without giving any valid reason. Today, when the whole country and the whole world is busy dealing with this pandemic, the government is arresting innocents like him. We demand his immediate release, the statement read.

On March 9, the special cell had arrested Mohammad Danish, a 33-year-old member of the Popular Front of India (PFI), in connection with the case on similar charges.

Danishs arrest came a day after the special cell arrested a coupleJahanzaib Sami,36, and his 39-year-old wife Hina Bashir Beighfor their alleged links with the Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISKP), instigating protests against the CAA and spreading hatred between communities in the country.
Home-based medical device firms closing gap with foreign rivals

From:ChinaDaily | 2020-04-01 10:56

Chinese medical device companies are enhancing their presence in the domestic market and closing the gap with foreign peers in terms of innovation, industry insiders said.

One of the most important factors driving the rapid growth of domestic medical device companies is the country's innovation-driven development strategies and policies, which urge Chinese companies to focus on innovation and research and development as well as pay close attention to intellectual property protection, said Xu Shan, secretary-general of the China Association for Medical Devices Industry.

From central government departments to local governments, many policies have been implemented to promote the development of the medical device industry.

Health authorities have established fast-track review and market approval processes for medical device innovations, and medical device companies that have promising innovation and R&D capabilities enjoy favorable financial, policy and service support, especially if they are located in industrial parks or development zones, Xu said.

That is especially important considering the fact that medical devices were often only a part of the overall pharmaceutical industry in China's development guidelines and policies in the past, she said, stressing that in recent years many national-level policies specifically targeting the medical device industry have been issued and carried out.

She added that the rapid growth of Chinese medical device companies in terms of both quantity and quality is laying roots in the fast expansion of the domestic market.

"Domestic demand for medical devices is growing exponentially as Chinese people care more about health and living standards," Xu said.

"For companies, that means great investment return prospectsespecially because such demand is persistent and is not likely to fade like many other sectors including catering and services due to periodic external shocks."

Wang Sizhen, co-founder and CEO of Genetron Holdings Ltd, a Beijing-based company with expertise in genetic solutions, said China has unique advantages in developing its medical device industry because the development of new products relies heavily on quality data from clinical practice and clinical experiments. In the most populous country in the world, it is relatively convenient for Chinese companies to collect and make use of data efficiently.

Also because of China's large population, the huge medical device demand from clinical practicetogether with supportive government policiescreates a favorable environment for domestic companies to grow, he added.

"Although China started late in developing its own high-end precision medical devices, it is obvious that we are making rapid progress driven by growing clinical demand and enhanced government regulations. Many Chinese medical device companies, especially in the in vitro device and biotech sector, are no longer followers, but are increasingly making innovations that take a lead in the industry," he said.

The genomics sector is a good example of this, Wang added.

Companies such as BGI Group, Genetron Healthcare and Berry Genomics are not only pioneers in the genomics industry in China, but also are becoming highly recognized outside of the country.

Some Chinese companies are already ranking among a select number worldwide that can develop and produce the industry's most cutting-edge next-generation sequencing systems and kits, while the genetic testing service market in China is already dominated by Chinese firms.

In the application of genetic engineering to the pharmaceutical sector, Chinese companies have participated deeply in the entire industry chain, from drug testing and development to clinical trials and diagnostics.

Such integration into the whole industry chain is a major advantage for Chinese companies to advance their development, he said.

Xu also said the gap between domestic medical device companies and foreign rivals is shrinking.

Although multinational companies have a majority share in the high-end market in China, Chinese medical device companies already have a strong presence in the mid to high-end of the domestic market.

As domestic companies strengthen innovation, IPR protection and international cooperation with the ever-improving regulatory environment, they are catching up with foreign companies in the high-end market, she said.
A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction for the killer of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, as well as three other men who had taken part in Pearls kidnapping.

Most of the evidence against these men was not collected, but created, defense attorney Khawaja Naveed Ahmed told theA Journal. It was concocted.

The charges against Pearls murderer, Omar Saeed Sheikh, were reduced from murder, terrorism, and kidnapping for ransom, to a simple charge of kidnapping.

While Sheikh and his accomplices were originally sentenced to death, the courts decision reduces Sheikhs sentence to seven years, which he has already served since being convicted in 2002. Pakistan state prosecutors could appeal the Thursday decision to the countrys supreme court, in which case Sheikh would be held in prison until a final ruling is delivered.

Pearl was reporting on religious extremism following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks when he was kidnapped by Sheikh and the group of terrorists in southern Pakistan in early 2002. Sheikh beheaded Pearl on video, over a decade before ISIS terrorists began filming the murders of prisoners for propaganda purposes. Pearls murder directed international attention to various jihadist cells operating out of Pakistan, including Al Qaeda and Taliban networks.

Sheikh, a British national who initially studied at the London School of Economics, dropped out of school after having an apparent religious awakening. He became involved with Pakistani militants in the 1990s.

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captain amarinder singh

Chandigarh : Taking a tough stand on the issue in the light of the Nizamuddin incident, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday completely prohibited all gatherings, including religious, in the state, and said the state government will impose a total ban on all congregations, irrespective of the religion involved.

He would personally talk to the Acting Jathedar of the Akal Takht, said the Chief Minister, while directing the Chief Secretary to discuss the matter with the SGPC, in view of the upcoming Baisakhi festival.

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The Chief Minister also ordered 21 days of quarantine for all those who had returned to the state from Nizamuddin (Delhi) since January this year, and asked the police and administrative officials to move aggressively to track, trace and isolate all such people. He directed the police and health department to constitute special teams to track and follow up on those who had returned to Punjab from Nizamuddin.

Captain Amarinder was discussing and reviewing the current situation through a video conference with DCs and other senior officials of the civil administration and police department.

According to DGP Dinkar Gupta, some 200 persons from Punjab had visited Nizamuddin and returned here, at different times, with 12 districts believed to be affected. They were being tracked, along with some from others states who had arrived in Punjab for Tabligh Jamaat work. The Health Department was debriefing and contact tracing them, though, so far, no Corona confirmed cases had come to light.

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Health Secretary Anurag Thakur informed the Chief Minister that the department had so far received a list of 125 of these persons, of whom 73 had been tracked and samples collected in 25 cases some of whom had come to Mansa as late as March 19. As a precautionary measure, all of them had been placed in quarantine, he added.

DC Kapurthala told the Chief Minister that 31 people who had returned from Nizamuddin had been quarantined though they had been found to be asymptomatic so far. In Patiala, too, 29 of them had been quarantined but there were no symptoms shown by them. SSP Sangrur said they had tracked and collected samples of all the attendees whose names they had received, and the incubation period had ended in most cases already.

On a suggestion from DGP Dinkar Gupta, Captain Amarinder ordered quarantining of the Pakistani nationals who were in Amritsar, saying the state could not afford to take any chances at this critical juncture. Amritsar DC said Pakistan had given permission to allow entry of four of its citizens who had come from Delhi, of whom three had tested positive. The BSF and immigration staff who handled them had been quarantined, he said, but added that there were a few more Pakistanis still stuck in Amritsar.

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Some medical students from Jammu and Kashmir were also stranded due to the lockdown even though they had completed their quarantine period, according to the DC. The meeting was further informed that the families of Hazuri Ragi Padma Shri Bhai Nirmal Singh ji, who passed away today, had been quarantined. Those who had come in contact with him at a wedding he attended in Moga have also quarantined though they were found to be asymptomatic.

The Chief Minister, who is personally monitoring the fast-moving situation closely, stressed the need to minimise the impact of the unprecedent crisis and asked the top officials to intensify their efforts and hard work even more. Even as he appreciated the work being done by each one of them in this critical time, Captain Amarinder said we need to be prepared for what looks like a long-drawn battle. He asked the officials to identify lodgings and suitable places for treating patients, adding that he did not want to be pessimist but it was important to be realistic in the given circumstances.

Captain Amarinder warned the officials against any complacency in terms of curfew enforcement and law & order, as well as relief measures and management of essential supplies.

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The DGP informed the Chief Minister that the law and order situation was in control across the state but suggested continuation of the curfew restrictions for some more time. He further disclosed that the Thikri Pheras (volunteers in villagers) were contributing significantly to the enforcement and relief operations. At present, around 2000 such volunteers had been appointed to assist the police and civil administration.

To prevent rush at the banks, they were being asked to give appointments on phone, and to ensure that ATMs have distance markers for queue, Chief Secretary Karan Avtar Singh told the meeting. He suggested quarantine for those found travelling between districts too, as a precautionary measure, but made it clear that movement of harvest combines and trucks carrying essentials was allowed.

The Chief Minister inquired about the steps being taken to protect and provide for the migrants who are stranded in Punjab due to the sealing of the borders and other restrictions.

The Amritsar DC informed the meeting that the migrant labourer issue in the district was not significant as most of them had been engaged to work in Transport, Railways and other departments. Those who had no jobs were being fed, he said. DC Pathankot said some 111 migrant labourers from J&K were stuck and had been accommodated in marriage palaces and other places, with strict social distancing norms being maintained. Three had been quarantined as they had fever and cough.

Ludhiana, with 5.25 lakh migrant labourers, had built 60 camps though only two were occupied, said the DC, adding that food was being supplied there regularly.

DC Gurdaspur said while Radha Saomi bhawans were available, the migrant labourers were currently being housed by the owners of the brick kilns where they were working. In Tarn Taran, four centres had been opened to house the migrants. SSP Gurdaspur said flag marches were being conducted in urban areas to keep the morale high among the people, who had been cooperating fully with the police.

In the worst affected Mohali (SAS Nagar) district, the Jagatpura area had been totally sealed off after confirmation of Covid outbreak, with mass sampling being done in this and Nayagaon area, according to the Civil Surgeon. The district administration was in the process of securing exclusive rights for use of some beds and about 140 ventilators available in private hospitals, the Chief Minister was informed.

In Kapurthala, two quarantine centres had been set up with a total of 150 beds, and the district administration had taken university hostels to set up isolation ward , according to the DC.

The Ludhiana DC said the administration was in the process of acquiring the wings of some private hospitals for Covid patients. Sampling had been increased in Ludhiana after three positive cases came up in the urban areas.

In response to a concern expressed by the Civil Surgeon Pathankot regarding availability of PPE kits, Health Minister Balbir Sidhu assured of a stock of 100 kits to be supplied by tomorrow.
A 65-year-old man, who attended a congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin West last month, tested positive for COVID-19 in Manipur, taking the total number of coronavirus cases in the state to two, Chief Minister N Biren Singh said on Thursday.

He said the development was "very sad and very serious" for a small state like Manipur.

The man, a resident of Lilong area in Thoubal district, is undergoing treatment at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) here.

"Appropriate containment measures and surveillance activities in the patient's locality has been taken up promptly," said an official statement.

The state-level control room on COVID-19 said ten people returned to Manipur after attending the religious congregation in Nizamuddin and of them, eight have tested negative.

Earlier, the control room had said 14 people from the state had links to the congregation.

The first case in the state was reported on March 24 when a 23-year-old woman with a travel history to the UK had tested positive.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Midland County has two more confirmed coronavirus cases, according to a Wednesday state report that saw the number of new Michigan cases jump by more than 1,700. Overall, Michigan now has 9,334 recorded cases of coronavirus and 337 deaths.

Locally, we learned that the local demand for COVID-19 relief outweighs resources: Although over 600 individuals have already been directly assisted by the COVID-19 Relief Fund, we still have over 800 more applications to process and resources to only fulfill roughly 250 more grants," said Sharon Mortensen, MACF president and CEO.
Uttar Pradesh has identified a total of 1,172 people of the state who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat meet at Nizamuddin in New Delhi last month and has traced and quarantined 884 of them.

The mid-March Islamic religious discourse was attended by thousands of Jamaat members, along with hundreds of foreigners -- many of them suspected coronavirus-positive -- and has triggered a nationwide scare of community spread of the virus.

Of the 1,172 jamaat meet attendees identified so far in the state, 884 have been traced and quarantined and their native districts have been informed about the same, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish Awasthi told reporters here on Thursday.

Stressing that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has given clear directives to maintain utmost care with regard to those who attended the Jamaat meet and others linked to them, Awasthi said a total of 287 foreigners have been found in the state and action will be initiated against them under the Epidemic Act and Disaster management Act.

Of these 287, 286 have been quarantined, said Awasthi, adding 32 FIRs have been registered so far in 13 districts against such people.

The passports of 211 foreigners too have been seized so far, he said.

The lockdown is being enforced in the state properly with the all the borders, including inter-district ones and the international one with Nepal, having been sealed completely, said the additional home secretary, adding the movement has been sealed effectively.

The checkup and scrutiny of people returning from Tablighi Jamaat is going on strictly and action will be taken against all those found hiding information.

He also urged people to provide information about such people if they are not coming forward and identifying themselves.

Giving district-wise break up of the Tablighi Jamaat people in the state, he said, 304 people have been identified in Meerut, 145 in Bareilly, 197 in Varanasi, 187 in Gorakhpur, 104 in Agra, 70 in Gautambudh Nagar, 69 in Lucknow, 40 in Allahabad, 33 in Kanpur and 24 others in districts falling in Lucknow zone.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Everything is official for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry.

It was just reported that their U.K. based office was officially shut down as they transitioned out of their roles as non-royal starting April 1.

Daily Mail's royal editor Rebecca English shared a screenshot of an automated response from the Sussexes, stating their transition is in full effect.

"Many thanks for your email. The office for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex has now closed."

Meghan and Harry Axed 15 Staffers

In February, reports say that the Sussexes have axed their 15 staff as they exit the royal family.

The couple broke the devastating news to their staffers in January following the announcement that they were stepping down as senior working royals.

Although some were re-assigned into other royal households, most of their aides have negotiated redundancy packages.

The Sussexes' Final Instagram Post

Moreover, before they officially closed their U.K. office, the couple posted a farewell post via their Instagram account @SussexRoyal.

In their final IG post, they re-assured their supporters that although they may have ended their royal duties, they will still continue their patronages and charities.

"While you may not see us here, the work continues."

Meghan and Harry also acknowledged their 11.3 million IG followers for their undying support and promised that they will be back in a new way.

"Thank you to this community - for the support, the inspiration and the shared commitment to the good in the world. We look forward to reconnecting with you soon. You've been great!"

"They Must Pay!"

Moving on with their life outside the British monarchy, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have sought their independence in the U.S.

According to a British news outlet, Meghan and Harry fled to Los Angeles just before the borders in the U.S. and Canada closed for non-essential travel due to the COVID-19 crisis.

The former "Suits" star and the 35-year-old Duke had been staying in a secluded compound in LA.

Now that the pair, together with their almost one-year-old son Archie, are residing in America, US President Donald Trump did not offer a warm welcome to the family.

In his Twitter account, he cleared that the country will not pay for their security protection and that "they must pay."

"I am a great friend and admirer of the Queen & the United Kingdom. It was reported that Harry and Meghan, who left the Kingdom, would reside permanently in Canada. Now they have left Canada for the U.S. however, the U.S. will not pay for their security protection. They must pay!"

Prince Of Wales To The Rescue

The Sussexes, on the other hand, had no plans to ask the U.S. government for security resources.

According to multiple reports, Meghan and Harry's $2.5 million security cost will be shouldered by Prince Charles, saying he has "agreed to pay a private contribution."
Part of it is realizing that celebrations are really, truly, just about love, said Sarah Frantzreb, a nurse practitioner in New York. For her daughter Sloanes first birthday, the family planned to decorate her high chair, put a glitter hat on her and wrap toys that had belonged to Ms. Frantzrebs older child. They invited relatives in three states to a B.Y.O.C. (bring your own cake) party online.

Each year, really, is a gift that should be celebrated, Ms. Frantzreb said.

Staying connected while keeping your distance

In times of high anxiety and stress, as during a war or a pandemic, adult behavior becomes more ritualized, said Dimitris Xygalatas, a professor of anthropology and psychology at the University of Connecticut. The meaning of birthday parties becomes more poignant, and the more effort they take and more witnesses they have, the greater the sense of importance, he said.

When you cant have the celebration that you usually have, you are missing the human connection, Dr. Xygalatas said. People are finding ways to make up for it, synchronizing activities so it feels like we are one.

Among the ways people have found: the drive-by party, in which children wave from cars rolling past the house of the birthday boy or girl, who is watching from inside. There is also the walk-by party, such as the one Zane Chester, a 6-year-old in Illinois, had on March 24.

His mother, Kimberly Chester, thought of the idea while on the daily stroll her family had been taking through their Deerfield neighborhood since the shutdown. A day before Zanes birthday, she asked neighbors on Facebook to put signs in their windows in bold letters, so he could see them as he walked by.

Image Zane Chester, left, celebrated his sixth birthday while social distancing in Deerfield, Ill., with his brother, Kellen, on March 24. Credit... Jonathan Chester

The community responded. On their walk through the neighborhood on the big day, the Chester family found cars festooned with balloons and birthday messages in chalk on the sidewalk. One woman left a cake, with Batman in fondant, on her porch. Some greeted Zane from the threshold of their front doors.
As the number of Coronavirus cases continue to soar across the country, the state of Goa is believed to have curtailed the spread of the virus as it has reported only 5 cases till date. Speaking to Republic TV, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant informed that out of the 5 cases reported in the state, four were of individuals who have a travel history to abroad and one is of local transmission. Sawant added that the state has implemented a strict lockdown effectively and will continue to do so till April 14, as ordered by the Centre.

'We have sealed all boundaries'

Speaking to Republic Tv on Thursday, CM Pramod Sawant said, "We have sealed all boundaries. We are not letting anyone inside. We have also tested everyone who had come in contact with infected individuals. We believe that we are very much in a safe zone. As mandated by the Central Government, there will be a complete lockdown till April 14."

Furthermore, he added, "We have imposed a strict lockdown since the Janta Curfew. Even the migrants and tourists in Goa have been practising social distancing. Those who were suspected were placed under home quarantine. Even those who came to Goa from other regions were strictly placed under home quarantine."

Sawant also stated, "Around 1,000 foreigners who are from Russia, Portugal and Germany have been evacuated through a special flight. In the next few days, approximately 800 foreigners will be evacuated from Goa. We have also started a special COVID-19 hospital in the state."

46 Markaz attendees quarantined

Reflecting upon the Tablighi Jamaat incident, Sawant informed that 46 attendees of the Markaz have been traced and quarantined. He said, "46 attendees of Nizamuddin Markaz were quarantined today. Their report is yet to come. Once their report comes, then only we can declare Goa a safe zone. They had come to Goa before March 15."
Last Thursday, while she was still in quarantine after returning home from a vacation in Costa Rica, Norfolk County Mayor Kristal Chopp posted a message to social media telling residents that she had been inspired by a certain video making the rounds online.

Make no mistake, I am going to start taking my cues from the Italian mayors, Chopp said of the widely shared video of Italian politicians berating their citizens for going outside during the pandemic.

This isnt made up. This isnt a joke, Chopp said. This is real life, and none of us want this to be our reality.

The reality one week after the mayor issued that warning is that COVID-19 has taken root in the region of Haldimand-Norfolk, with 27 confirmed cases, including 23 at Anson Place Care Centre in Hagersville.

Physical distancing to control the spread of the pandemic has become the new normal, with beaches, parks, piers and playgrounds off-limits and gatherings restricted to five or fewer.

While residents can for now still seek solace on the areas nature trails, they are required to keep a safe distance from passersby.

Late Tuesday, the Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit announced that anyone who spots residents flouting these restrictions can report them via a new COVID-19 enforcement hotline at 519-428-8019.

The hotline can also be used to let the health unit know about non-essential businesses that are still open and essential businesses that arent following physical distancing restrictions.

Tips will be forwarded to the relevant countys enforcement office or the OPP.

Haldimand County announced that building inspectors and enforcement officers would be out in greater force.

Both council and staff continue to receive reports of people violating provincial orders and disregarding instructions from public health authorities, said Haldimand Mayor Ken Hewitt.

Weve had to barricade the Port Maitland Pier/Esplanade Park because people just arent listening. There is absolutely no excuse for this behaviour and we will be acting within the fullest extent of our authority to penalize violators. Stay home, stay safe and take this seriously.

Chopp assured residents that as long as they are not in quarantine or showing symptoms of COVID-19, it remains safe to go to the grocery store and pharmacy when needed.

However, she warned those choosing to leave their homes unnecessarily to think again.

I dont care what time of day it is. There are no excuses. Stay at home, the mayor said. No longer are we asking  we are telling you. You are breaking the law, and we will prosecute you.
(TNS)  In January, the Rockford, Ill., Region 1 Planning Council held a news conference to announce plans to be face to face with residents to ensure every person understood the importance of being counted by the 2020 census.Then the coronavirus pandemic took hold, and every event meant to encourage census participation was either canceled or postponed.Now, government officials in the region and the state are worried that the effects of the pandemic will result in less participation in the census. At stake is nearly $1,535 per person per year in federal funding for any Winnebago County resident who goes uncounted. Illinois could lose $195 million a year in federal funds for every 1 percent undercounted, Gov. JB Pritzker says.Programs like Medicaid, foster care, Pell Grants, SNAP, highway construction funding, Section 8, and the free and reduced-price lunch and breakfast program would all be at risk without a timely and accurate count.Pritzker opened his daily news conference on Wednesday, which was National Census Day, by stressing the need for people to stay at home and participate in the census online, by mail or by phone."The census is far more than just a survey," he said. "It will determine how much of your tax dollars we get back from the federal government and it will help decide how much power Illinois will have in terms of congressional representation and Electoral College votes for the next decade."The state is redirecting its $29 million in census outreach spending to social media and expanded phone banking, texting and virtual assistance programs.The planning council initially planned to host events to raise awareness and discuss the importance of participation in the census. The stay-at-home order has forced the group to adjust."Oh my gosh, it has been a really radical change," said Region 1 Planning Council program manager Ivy Hood. "The best way to communicate with somebody is usually to have a conversation with them, get out there and meet them where they are. This has forced us to entirely, almost exclusively, turn our operations online. And nearly everybody is working remotely."Instead of events like town halls and open forums, the planning council and government officials have shifted their marketing focus and money to television campaigns, digital billboards and radio and social media advertising."We're going to be moving some dollars that we would have been spending on some of the forums and town halls and we're probably going to be upping our media buys," said Wester Wuori, chief of staff for the city of Rockford. "We're going to hope to allocate some additional spending now that we would have spent on public events and move those into electronic and other media."Social media was a primary marketing tool for the planning council. On Thursday, Hood, state Rep. Maurice West, D-Rockford, and Mustafa Abdall, an English-as-a-second-language teacher at Lincoln Middle School, hosted a Facebook live event on West's Facebook page to educate residents on the importance of filling out the census.Last week, the U.S Census Bureau announced the deadline for self-response would be extended from July 31 to Aug. 14 because of the coronavirus pandemic.Despite the extension, Hood says that an inaccurate count is inevitable."It would be optimistic to suggest that we might only have a small impact. I think the COVID-19 will really impact the results that we see come back," Hood said.Enumerators typically would go door to door to follow up with residents who have not yet completed the census. As of right now, the U.S Census has postponed the canvass by at least two weeks.However, an increase in participation is also possible. This is the first year that the census has been made available online, which makes it more accessible than previously. Go toto complete the questionnaire online.Wuori timed himself taking the online census and it took him only six minutes to complete, consistent with census promotions saying that the online version takes less than 10 minutes."We all spend far more time checking out what we're going to watch on Netflix or purchasing something from Amazon," Wuori said. "So it's really simple. It's formulated for whether you're getting on it by computer, by smartphone, on your tablet. It just automatically adjusts to whatever device you are using. And it is super simple."
A royal expert called out Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for being such huge disappointments to Queen Elizabeth II and the monarchy.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex seems to have an endless list of bombshell news after they surprised the public with their sudden move to Los Angeles from Vancouver Island in Canada.

This decision, once again, left Queen Elizabeth II speechless and disheartened, according to a royal expert.

The Sun's royal editor, Dan Wootton, sat for an interview at Talkradio where he revealed that aside from the move disappointing Her Majesty, it also put "a lot of pressure" on Prince William and Kate Middleton due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"I can tell you that, within the royal family, there is serious disappointment about this decision from Harry and Meghan to go from Canada to Los Angeles rather than, at least during this crisis period, move back to Frogmore Cottage in Windsor," Wootton said.

He added that the couple could have chosen to jet back to the U.K. and be near Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip who are currently isolating at Windsor Castle.

What made their relocation even more infuriating to the members of the royal family was that they decided to move further from the monarchy while Prince Charles was suffering from the coronavirus disease.

In addition, Prince William and Kate have to do all the engagements while the other royals are practicing social distancing.

"I can tell you Samantha, that there was absolute shock and horror within the British royal family that Harry and Meghan had not at least temporarily decided to return to Frogmore Cottage," Wootton told Meghan's half-sister, Samantha Markle.

He also told her that the Sussexes could have helped the Cambridges during the crisis.

However, the relationships between the members of the monarchy seem to be so strained that the Sussexes could not just extend their arms to help them out.

Queen Still Supported Them ... Somehow

When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex expressed their intentions to step down as senior members of the royal family, Queen Elizabeth II wrote a statement with a heavy heart to support the couple's decision.

"I want to thank them for all their dedicated work across this country, the Commonwealth and beyond, and am particularly proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family," the Queen penned that time.

Her Majesty also said that the whole royal family hopes that their agreement would soon allow them to have a happier and more peaceful new life.

Meanwhile, Prince Harry and Meghan left their last post on Sussex Royal's Instagram page on March 30.

"Thank you to this community -- for the support, for the inspiration, and shared commitment to the good in the world," reads the text on the Instagram photo posted by Harry and Meghan.

They also wrote a lengthy message along with the photo that reminds their fans and followers to remain helpful with one another amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
As volunteers across the country stitch up protective masks and gowns for hospital staffs under siege, theyve been joined by small but swelling squads of residents and restaurant workers who are donating or cooking meals for doctors and nurses on the front lines.

Initiatives are popping up across Connecticut and the nation, including in Westport where Nicole Straight organized the Gofundme.com campaign Food for the Front Line, which has steered nearly 2,000 meals from three dozen restaurants to Bridgeport Hospital, Greenwich Hospital, Norwalk Hospital, Stamford Hospital and St. Vincents Medical Center in Bridgeport.

That effort inspired a group of Darien residents to create their own initiative with Corbin Cares. And about 75 people in the Danbury area have since chipped in more than $3,500 for a Gofundme initiative to order meals for first responders from Augies Numero #1 and West Side Deli , as well as Biscottis in New Fairfield and Frankies Family Restaurant in Brookfield.

With Fairfield County hospital workers already stretched caring for patients who have contracted the novel coronavirus, Gov. Ned Lamont predicted on Tuesday a horrible April for Connecticut.

Weve received an outpouring of support from the community through food donations for front line staff, personal protective equipment ... and monetary gifts that are helping us continue to effectively prepare and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, said Amy Forni, a spokesperson for Nuvance Health, which runs Danbury Hospital, Norwalk Hospital, New Milford Hospital and Sharon Hospital. Many people are asking, What can I do to help? If youre able to provide financial support or an in-kind donation ... please consider making a difference at this critical time when the demands on our healthcare system are immediate and growing.

Nuvance has created a page for people to consider cash or in-kind donations at nuvancehealth.org.

Among other efforts to support healthcare workers, a Boy Scout troop in Newtown is collecting funds and unused gift certificates to area restaurants to benefit Danbury Hospital staff.

In addition to providing some relief to medical professionals, the combined efforts are supporting restaurants at a time when it is critically needed.

Straight, who formerly led Norwalk-based Food Rescue US, said Food for the Front Line is paying restaurateurs between $12 and $15 for each meal, which are packaged individually for distribution to hospitals.

We have been getting it out as quickly as we can, Straight said Wednesday. Other people have been looking at this and saying, How do I do this for Hartford? How I do this for New Haven?

Although restaurants are hurting too, a small but growing lunch-bucket brigade is prepping meals for hospitals and other groups, including Planet Pizza which has eight locations in the triangle formed by Danbury, Greenwich and Shelton.

Restaurants despite their own troubles have been reaching out in many ways. After Ron Herman, owner of Wooster Hollow Cafe in Ridgefield, posted plans on Facebook to start providing free breakfast and lunch to anyone who has lost their job, he received cash and commitments of more than $2,000 within a few days. He added another $10,000 from his own pocket. Other donors are providing individually wrapped cookies and brownies to include with the meals.

Through a new nonprofit called Sunrise Meals, Herman is providing meals weekly to the Alfa Y Omega Church in Danbury and the Pivot Ministries substance-abuse recovery center in Bridgeport, with barbecue chicken with rice and pasta with chicken and broccoli among the early offerings.

Were going to focus on making our donations go as far as they can go, Herman said. Chicken, beans, rice, pasta  we want to provide healthy food (with) calories as well as protein.

A Support Bethel and Beyond drive is similarly focused on food insecurity, having banked more than $11,000 in commitments through Wednesday. Mothership Bakery in Danbury has about half that amount for food and donations of toilet paper, which has been in short supply on local store shelves.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; @casoulman
PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-02 08:00:08

NOXXON Announces Completion of Patient Recruitment for the First Dose Cohort in the Phase 1/2 Brain Cancer Study Of NOX-A12 Plus Radiotherapy

NOXXON Pharma N.V.

Aram Mangasarian, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer

Tel. +49 (0) 30 726247 0

amangasarian@noxxon.com

Trophic Communications

Gretchen Schweitzer or Joanne Tudorica

Tel. +49 (0) 89 2388 7730 or +49 (0) 176 2103 7191

schweitzer@trophic.eu

NewCap

Arthur Rouille

Tel. +33 (0) 1 44 71 00 15

arouille@newcap.fr

Regulatory News:

NOXXON Pharma N.V. (Paris:ALNOX) (Euronext Growth Paris: ALNOX), a biotechnology company focused on improving cancer treatments by targeting the tumor microenvironment (TME), announced today that all three patients of the first dose cohort have been enrolled into the brain cancer clinical trial testing the CXCL12 inhibitor, NOX-A12, and have already received the planned initial treatment. The study investigates three dose regimens of NOX-A12 (200, 400 and 600 mg/week), each combined with external-beam radiotherapy in newly diagnosed brain cancer patients in a Phase 1/2 clinical trial.

Once the last patient in the first cohort reaches four-weeks of therapy of NOX-A12 combined with radiotherapy, the independent Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) will determine whether it is safe to proceed from the low to the middle dose level of NOX-A12. Under the approved protocol, it is planned that each patient is treated with NOX-A12 for up to six months.

The combination of NOX-A12 and radiotherapy has so far been well-tolerated by the patients that participated in this clinical trial. This is a very important first step in the clinical assessment of a new treatment option for these very difficult-to-treat patients with highly aggressive brain cancer, said Dr. Frank Giordano, Chairman of the Department of Radiation Oncology at the University Hospital Bonn.

Due to the seriousness of the disease we are studying, recruitment into this trial continues in two of our three study centers, despite the challenges that hospital staff face as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Provided the next safety analysis after four weeks of treatment confirms the benign safety profile NOX-A12 has shown thus far, the trial will progress so the next patients can receive a higher dose as planned in the protocol, commented Aram Mangasarian, CEO of NOXXON. Six months of data from the first cohort of patients should be available in October 2020, and from the second and third cohorts in the end of Q1 2021 and mid-2021, respectively. As a measure to ensure the timely completion of the study under the current challenging conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, we are planning to include additional clinical sites to increase recruitment capacity.

About NOXXON

NOXXONs oncology-focused pipeline acts on the tumor microenvironment (TME) and the cancer immunity cycle by breaking the tumor protection barrier and blocking tumor repair. By neutralizing chemokines in the tumor microenvironment, NOXXONs approach works in combination with other forms of treatment to weaken tumor defenses against the immune system and enable greater therapeutic impact. Building on extensive clinical experience and safety data, the lead program NOX-A12 has delivered top-line data from a Keytruda combination trial in metastatic colorectal and pancreatic cancer patients and further studies are being planned in these indications. In September 2019 the company initiated an additional trial with NOX-A12 in brain cancer in combination with radiotherapy. The combination of NOX-A12 and radiotherapy has been granted orphan drug status in the US and EU for the treatment of certain brain cancers. The companys second clinical-stage asset NOX-E36 is a Phase 2 TME asset targeting the innate immune system. NOXXON plans to test NOXE36 in patients with solid tumors both as a monotherapy and in combination. Further information can be found at: www.noxxon.com

Keytruda is a registered trademark of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp

https://www.linkedin.com/company/noxxon-pharma-ag

https://twitter.com/noxxon_pharma

Disclaimer

Certain statements in this communication contain formulations or terms referring to the future or future developments, as well as negations of such formulations or terms, or similar terminology. These are described as forward-looking statements. In addition, all information in this communication regarding planned or future results of business segments, financial indicators, developments of the financial situation or other financial or statistical data contains such forward-looking statements. The company cautions prospective investors not to rely on such forward-looking statements as certain prognoses of actual future events and developments. The company is neither responsible nor liable for updating such information, which only represents the state of affairs on the day of publication.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005
The Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) and the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) have collaborated to pull banks back to Apapa port.

The Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of CRFFN, Sam Nwakohu, made this known in a statement in Lagos on Thursday.

According to Mr Nwakohu, the move was necessitated due to the difficulties being faced by freight forwarders in the area of payments through commercial banks during the lockdown in Lagos.

He added that the banks had closed shops in accordance with the directive of President Muhammadu Buhari that all businesses in Lagos, Ogun and Abuja should close shops for 14 days and that there should be restriction of movements.

As you are aware that this is a challenging and complex period and there is a limitation on financial activities being done in the state.

This has brought a halt to the services performed by banks as they are no longer operating as usual.

Nonetheless, the Executive Secretary of Nigerian Shippers Council and l have been able to appeal to some commercial banks to open shops in compliance with the Presidential directives, he said.

Mr Nwakohu listed the banks that would open to provide skeletal services within the vicinity of the ports, between the hours of 9 a.m.  2 p.m. daily for payments of duty on cargo.

The banks are United Bank for Africa, Zenith Bank Plc., First Bank of Nigeria, and Access Bank.

He added that the banks are situated at Wharf road, Warehouse road, Burma road, Abebe Village road, Apapa-Oshodi Expressway, and Mobile road.

Mr Nwakohu pointed out that two additional banks are also expected to open in no distant time.

He also urged everyone to stay safe and healthy.

(NAN)
A South Jersey health system bracing for the impacts of coronavirus said it has had to furlough workers and reduce executive salaries due to financial losses from the pandemic.

AtlantiCare, which operates numerous hospitals, urgent care centers and other medical offices from Cape May to Ocean County, is working to balance the budget without the income usually generated by more routine medical appointments and procedures that have been canceled.

Each member of the health systems executive leadership team is taking a 25% voluntary salary reduction, said Jennifer Tornetta, a spokeswoman for the company. At the same time, some workers have been asked to reduce their hours or take furloughs days until business returns to normal, she said.

While our dedicated team focuses on caring for our community, we also face the economic impact of COVID-19. The cancellation of elective procedures, a reduction in ambulatory procedures, and the increasing costs to provide critical care services related to coronavirus are having an unprecedented impact on healthcare organizations, including AtlantiCare, Tornetta said. We are committed to assisting all members of our team through this transition. Our priority is to serve our patients and community. To do this, we needed to make this incredibly difficult decision. We thank our entire AtlantiCare Family for its selflessness and dedication.

State officials have acknowledged that hospitals are being asked to come up with vastly more beds, staff and equipment to deal with a crush of coronavirus patients, all while they are struggling with the revenue loss.

Health Commissioner Judith Persichilli said Tuesday that while hospitals with many coronavirus patients will be reimbursed by their insurance providers, those in other parts of the state not yet walloped with an influx of sick patients are in especially tough financial positions.

On Monday, Shore Medical Center in Somers Point sent a memo to all staff about voluntary layoffs, citing the lost revenue and the additional cost of purchasing in personal protective equipment needed to treat COVID-19 patients. A spokesman for the center clarified Tuesday that no doctors or nurses would be laid off.

A spokeswoman for the New Jersey Hospital Association said she is not aware of any other health system in the state considering layoffs.

Hackensack Meridian Health CFO Robert Glenning said the company is not considering layoffs despite the financial loss. The current situation isnt sustainable for any of the healthcare organizations in the long run," he said.

AtlantiCare has already made operational changes, including reducing hours and closing some offices. The staff who are taking furloughs and having their hours cut generally work in areas that have been closed or seen business reduced, Tornetta said. They include the fitness center, business office, registration area for ambulatory care, and Life Connection, AtlantiCares in-home elderly care.

As we have adjusted our care models to include more telephone and less in-person face-to-face care to meet the CDC guidelines for treatment and social distancing, we have different staffing needs, Tornetta said. We continue to evaluate where there are needs and opportunities to redeploy staff and providers to other areas.

Gov. Phil Murphy has called for retired nurses or doctors, medical and nursing students, EMTs, and anyone else with medical training to register with the state as potential volunteers to help overtaxed hospitals, as well as the four field hospitals FEMA will be erecting across the state. He said Wednesday that over 5,000 people already had volunteered.

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This is financially devastating to all community health centers, with the decline in visits, with the shuttering of our dental clinics, she said.

This means that at a time when front-line health care workers are vital  and when some states are begging retirees to return  community health centers are facing tough choices about staffing.

Revenue is declining at such a fast rate that some health centers are going to start making decisions about laying off or furloughing staff, Pierle said.

Most centers in Missouri have made plans for layoffs if things become really bad, he said.

Highlands Health Care has furloughed most of its dental staff and nonessential administrative workers, White said. And if its smaller clinics dont have patients, staff get sent home for the day.

White said decisions like this are painful  in all sorts of ways. Many of her about 200 employees are single moms whose only income comes from their job at the clinics, she said.
The British Royal Family have paid a tribute to the nation's teachers, volunteers and support workers who have continued to work amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Today, the Queen's social media account shared snaps of the UK's children taking part in past engagements and projects on their Instagram story.

The account, which has over 7 million followers, has been used to send messages of encouragement and to highlight the work of those on the frontline, since covid-19 began changing everyday life.

Schools across the UK have closed as part of Boris Johnson's lockdown regime, however many have remained open to key workers and have provided supplies for children who are continuing to learn from home.

The British Royal Family paid a tribute to the nation's teachers, volunteers and social workers on their Instagram story. Pictured: The Queen and Prince Philip visit to a primary school, 2017

One photo shows the Countess of Wessex, during a visit to Portesbury school who have volunteered to look after children during the Easter holidays. Pictured: Sophie Wessex opening the severe learning disabilities centre, 2017

The Royal Family began their tribute with a photo of the Queen, 93, and Prince Philip, 98, believed to have been taken during their visit to Mayflower Primary School in East London in 2017.

The snap was captioned: 'Thanking all teachers, childcare, SEN support and social workers who are helping to look after the UK's [kids emojis] #thankfulThursday'

Elsewhere, the royals posted a photograph of school children who once lined the streets waving Union Jack flags.

A photo of the Countess of Wessex, praised the staff at Portesbery school who've volunteered to look after students throughout the Easter holidays.

Sophie Wessex opened the facility's severe learning disabilities centre in 2017, having toured the school and taken part in a sign language assembly.

Before she left the premises, an eight-year-old member of the school council presented her with a posy.

The Royal Family have used their social media accounts to share encouragement amid the ongoing pandemic. Pictured: School children wave Union Jack flags

Among other projects that the Royal Family highlighted on their Instagram story, was efforts from New Battle High School to make protective face masks for the NHS.

The school based in Scotland have been using 3D printers to create the much needed items.

A photo taken of the learning packs at Drumachose Primary school in Northern Ireland, reveals the hard work teachers have had to put in to support children's learning remotely.

The touching social media tribute from the royal family, comes just days after the Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down from their duties.

It is feared the ongoing pandemic could derail their plans for an announcement in April to reveal the direction that their work will take.

New Battle High School in Scotland, were praised by the Royal Family for creating face shields (pictured) for the NHS using 3D printers
Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Dennis Davin on Wednesday announced that the exemption application process for businesses created in response to Gov. Tom Wolf and Department of Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levines orders to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, will close at 5 p.m. Friday.

The information was released in a press release.

With just a few days remaining to apply for an exemption, we encourage businesses who think they may be applicable to look at our Life-Sustaining Business FAQ and file before the end of the day Friday, Davin said in the release. We appreciate the cooperation of businesses making sure they are operating appropriately during this time. As the business exemption period ends this week, our staff continues to work tirelessly to organize and assess the data associated with submissions.

Per the orders of the governor and Levine, businesses that are non-life sustaining were ordered to close their physical locations on March 19. Businesses that determine from DCEDs business guidance that they are non-life sustaining but may provide a life-sustaining service have been able to seek an exemption, which is available online , according to the release.

By the end of the day Tuesday, DCED had received 32,474 requests for exemptions from Pennsylvanias businesses, according to the release. DCED asks that businesses do not apply for a waiver more than once or because they have not received a response from a prior submission, the release said.

DCED will review each request and respond based on the guiding principle of balancing public safety while ensuring the continued delivery of critical infrastructure services and functions, according to the release. It added that those requesting an exemption will be notified via email if their operations may re-open.

Businesses applying for an exemption must remain closed until a decision is made about their application, according to the release.

In addition to the Frequently Asked Questions, DCED offers guidance for other business types about operations that are authorized to continue.

Helpful resources available include:

Businesses seeking further guidance and clarification from DCED can also contact its customer service resource account at ra-dcedcs@pa.gov , the release said.
N adiya Hussain shared a resourceful cooking tip on Good Morning Britain after revealing she uses banana skin to make 'pulled pork'.

The Great British Bake-Off winner revealed that she and her family have been avoiding waste by using the fruit peel to make burger fillings.

Instead of throwing banana peel away, the mother-of-three told the programme that she uses the banana peel as an ingenious way to cut down on waste, and that she combines it with onion, garlic and other ingredients to create a vegan, no-waste version of pulled pork or chicken.

Hassain, 35, said: "We need to stop and think about what we throw away.

"I've been cooking banana peel forever. We've always been cooking banana peel.

Nadiya Hussain - In pictures 1 /29 Nadiya Hussain - In pictures Nadiya Hussain, winner of The Great British Bake Off 2015 BBC Nadiya Hussain in The Chronicles of Nadiya BBC Nadiya Hussain and Carrie Fisher appearing on the Graham Norton Show So TV The Queen nto a birthday cake baked by Nadiya Hussain winner of the Great British Bake Off, during celebrations of her 90th birthday in Windsor John Stillwell/AP Abdal and Nadiya Hussain attend the 21st National Television Awards at The O2 Arena Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images Nadiya Hussain puts some finishing touches to the Disneyis day long Alice Through The Looking Glass tea party in London Joel Ryan/AP Images Nadiya Hussain wears limited edition HomeSense aprons designed by celebrated British photographer Rankin to support Red Nose Day 2017 Rankin for Red Nose Day 2017 Nadiya Hussain poses with a Great Fire of London inspired bake during a photocall opening a new experience at The London Dungeon, which marks the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London, Ben A. Pruchnie/Getty Images Nadiya Hussain (L) and Paul Hollywood attend the 21st National Television Awards at The O2 Arena Dave Benett Nadiya Hussain has risen to the occasion to be crowned the winner of this year's Great British Bake Off 2015 pictured at Waterstones Piccadilly Alex Lentati Nadiya Hussain attends the MOBO Awards at First Direct Arena Dave J Hogan/Getty Images Nadiya Hussain attends the Cosmopolitan Ultimate Women Of The Year awards at One Mayfair Dave Benett Nadiya Hussain attends the Women of the Year Awards 2015 at the InterContinental hotel, London Anthony Devlin/PA Nadiya Hussain on the cover of HELLO! Magazine Hello! Magazine Nadia Hussain in The Chronicles of Nadiya BBC Nadia Hussain in The Chronicles of Nadiya BBC BBC A tense looking Nadia Hussain, the winner of The Great British Bake Off. BBC Nadiya Hussain, winner of The Great British Bake Off 2015 BBC Nadiya Hussain, winner of The Great British Bake Off 2015 BBC Keen butcher: Nadiya Hussain reveals baking isn't her only culinary skill Anthony Harvey/Getty Images Nadiya Hussain with The Great British Bake Off class of 2015 BBC

"It's something completely natural to me, and I thought to myself, 'hold on a second, you need to share this'.

"Because you literally use ripe banana peel you would use when making banana bread, and everyone is making banana bread at the moment.

"Don't chuck the peel away, cook it up with some onion, garlic, some bbq sauce, stick it in a burger and you have pulled pork, pulled chicken."

Hussain was on the show to offer some tips on how to cut down on waste while families are stuck indoors in self-isolation, adding that it's important that the public now thinks about the way we consume food during the crisis.

Aside from telling a nation that they've been eating bananas all wrong, she also revealed that cooks can use potato and vegetable peelings to make 'scrap soup' too.

Banana peel 'pulled pork' recipe
Paris, France (PANA) - The UN Security Council Wednesday condemned the terrorist attack against the Chadian army on 23 March in Boma, a military garrison held by Chadian soldiers in the Chad Lake Region, that claimed the lives of 100 Chadian soldiers
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Automotive Wheel Coating Market - Overview:

Apart from the aesthetic aspects, the automotive wheel needs to be protected against mechanical, physical and chemical attack is the reason why we coat the automotive wheel. There are verity of demands on automotive wheel coatings. To fulfil this demand, several types of binders and additives are available. Furthermore, the application technology used depends on both the binder and the market. Improvement in sustainability, reduction of harmful substances and reduction of volatile organic compounds (VOC) are some of the general trends as per the requirement and regulations in global automotive wheel coating market. The relative importance of the various trends in automotive wheel coating market depends on the governmental regulations in regions and on consumer need.

The growth in the Automotive Wheel Coating Industry is primarily be driven by a rising concern regarding the corrosion of wheels in the world and growing automotive industry in the Asia Pacific region. In addition to this, increasing spending capacity of people in turn is expected to benefits the major applications in which automotive wheel coatings and preservatives are used  namely metals like steel, aluminium, titanium among others.

Access Complete Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/automotive-wheel-coating-market-3144

Industry/ Innovation/ Related News:

May 2016  Winona PVD Coatings LLC, a provider of bright finish coatings for the automotive wheel industry, announced plans to expand its operations in Warsaw, Indiana, creating up to 50 new jobs by the end of 2016. Winona PVD planned to invest more than USD10 million in high-tech equipment and machinery in order to add a new production line and enhance the companys clean room at its manufacturing complex in Warsaw. The new line will be housed in the companys newest 83,000-square-foot building, marking Winona PVDs third expansion since its establishment in 2007. The company began in one 66,000-square-foot facility and now operates in three buildings with a 320,000-square-foot footprint. Winona PVD currently coats more than 1 million wheels per year using its non-hazardous G-Chrome finish, and expects to increase production capabilities by 30 percent with this latest expansion.

June 2015  Accuride planned to expand steel wheel finishing. To help secure the project, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority preliminarily approved Accuride to receive up to USD600,000 in tax incentives. The performance-based incentive will allow Accuride to keep some portion of the investment over an undefined term, through corporate income-tax credits and wage assessments.

June 2016  TIGER Drylac U.S.A., Inc. introduced to the North American market a limited edition powder coatings kit that includes 24 colors and finishes grouped under the Wheel Line for the Automotive Aftermarket segment. The kit includes three primers, nine blacks, six metallic and clears powder coating finishes. TIGER Drylac automotive primers are fine-tuned for automotive special application conditions to provide the best possible basis for subsequent coatings, according to the company. TIGER Drylac clears are acrylic-based top coats that provide particularly impressive transparent and brilliant finishes fulfilling the specifications for smooth top coat systems in the wheel industry. The blacks and metallic are high quality finishes that meet the demands and requirements of the automotive aftermarket industry. They are also suitable for other industrial applications.

Automotive Wheel Coating Market - Regional Analysis:

Asia Pacific region accounted largest market share in the global automotive wheel market and expected to dominate during the forecast period due to rising population, automotive and growing residential and non-residential activities in the region. China being largest consumer, manufacturer and exporter of automotive wheel coating. Chinese manufacturers are mostly small manufacturers and some of the prominent manufacturers. In addition to this, North America & Europe have witnessed healthy growth in automotive wheel coating market owing to a growing non-residential repair, renovation and new construction activities in the region.

Competitive Landscape:

The report analyzes the degree of competition among the industry players as well as industry growth and market scenario. The global automotive wheel coating market is at a growing stage, which represents moderate stats in terms of market value and overall volume. Over the past few years, automotive wheel coating market has witnessed healthy demand due to increasing spending capacity of people which has stoked sales of furniture. However, the degree of competition among the market players is still less owing to limited major market players across the globe. Globally market for automotive wheel coating is fragmented and it is moving towards growth expansion by specifically adopting partnership, expansion and joint-venture strategies and product launch strategies.
British online newspaper Byline Times has published a long story on how Morocco was prompt to adopt precautionary measures to curb the spread of contaminations by the coronavirus and how Moroccans showed cohesion and solidarity to face the health crisis.

In the story titled Moroccos Cohesion and Solidarity is a Lesson to us All, Jonathan Fenton-Harvey reports all the steps taken by Morocco since the first coronavirus case was confirmed in the country on March 2 and focuses on the countrys widespread solidarity and the sense of oneness in Moroccan society amid the lockdown to combat the spread of the Coronavirus.

While there is an abundant focus on the inevitable healthcare and economic damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Moroccos widespread solidarity  which breaches all societal divisions  is a shining example of how those in society can help one another in such a period of crisis. A profound sense of hospitality and productive patriotism within Morocco has driven people from all backgrounds to come together to combat this virus and care for those who will be impacted.

Amid scenes of panic-buying and the hoarding of goods in supermarkets and lax compliance with social distancing advice in Western countries, Morocco has shown the strength of decisive action and consideration for one another, to minimize the virus spread and damage, especially towards societys most vulnerable, the author of the article points out.

Meanwhile, driven by an urge to help those in desperate need in these uncertain times, Moroccans are taking part in civil society initiatives, many of which are independently motivated gestures, the author of the story stated noting that in major cities such as Rabat and Marrakech, people are also offering empty houses to doctors near hospitals. In Casablanca, restaurants are offering meals to medical staff.

Because of the lockdown, people are providing food and medicine to each other, especially to elderly people and those suffering from a chronic disease, while others have also used cars and motorbikes to deliver food to families and those who cannot leave their homes, Jonathan Fenton-Harvey stated. He noted that tourists left stranded due to international flight restrictions are also benefitting from Moroccans hospitality and help.

The author of the article also detailed the decisive and progressive measures adopted by Morocco to limit the spread of the virus, but also to alleviate the inevitable economic burden resulting from lockdown.

Morocco announced on March 19, it will pay a stipend to people who lose their jobs, while defer tax and debt payments to small businesses, the paper noted, after it recalled the setting up of the special fund for the management of the coronavirus crisis, that it described as a most significant measure.
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Linkedin Yunindita Prasidya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 13:11 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f29327 1 Business Indonesia,Inclusive-Internet-Index,57th-rank-2020,EIU,Facebook,India,broadband-internet-service Free

Progress on creating widely accessible and affordable internet access in Indonesia is slow, with a recent study placing Indonesia 57th among 100 countries on the Inclusive Internet Index, indicating there is still a huge amount of work to be done when it comes to building a fully functioning digital economy.

The study, titled The Inclusive Internet Index, produced annually by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and commissioned by Facebook this year, placed Indonesia in the lower half globally and fourth among other lower-middle-income countries when it comes to its internet inclusiveness.

The index measures four aspects: availability, affordability, relevance and the readiness of people in using the internet. Out of 100 points, Indonesia scored 66.4 in 2020, a disappointing increase from the 65.4 the country scored in 2017, as reported by a similar study commissioned by Internet.org.

To put it into perspective, Indonesia was placed 35 out of 75 countries on the index in 2017, just one spot above India, which scored 64.4 that year. However, in the span of three years, India managed to improve by 7.3 points to rank 46 out of 100 countries in 2020. It is a far cry from Indonesias one point improvement between 2017 and 2020.

Read also: Indonesia taxes tech companies through new regulation

The results of this years index and survey demonstrate that even as internet access increases globally, the pace of growth is slowing, particularly in lower-income countries where expansion is needed most, the 2020 report says.

In describing Indonesia, the study wrote on its site, theinclusiveinternet.eiu.com that: This populous Southeast Asian country experiences considerable difficulties in supporting internet inclusion in every area of the index except for trust and safety.

Wahyudi Djafar, a researcher and deputy director of the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM), told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday that many factors contributed to Indonesias sluggish growth.

Inequality in telecommunications infrastructure between regions  with network expansion programs still heavily focused in Indonesias more populated areas  is still a major issue. Unequal access to mobile devices and a lack of sufficient public policy to guide the growth of a digital nation were some others that Wahyudi pointed out.

Intervention from the government to ensure the right of access for every citizen is still non-existent, Wahyudi said, adding that local providers were the ones dictating the price of data in the market based on their calculation and the competition between providers.

Using the Hirschman-Herfindahl index, an index that measures the concentration of markets, the EIU reports that Indonesias broadband operators market share is at 6,570, which indicates a highly concentrated market. That means that the broadband industry, which provides digital subscriber line (DSL), fiber optics, cables and satellites, is near-monopolistic. It contributes to why, in terms of its fixed-line monthly broadband cost, Indonesia is ranked 74th out of 100 countries, according to data provided on the EIU site.

Read also: Executive Column: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella shares vision, tech potential

The country does better in terms of its mobile phone cost for its prepaid tariff. The price of 1 GB of prepaid mobile data in Indonesia is around 1 percent of monthly gross national income (GNI) per capita, already within the range of affordable internet as described by the United Nations Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development, wherein 1 GB of mobile broadband data is priced at 2 percent or less of average monthly income.

Wahyudi also noted that a policy founded on the idea of internet access as a fundamental right was still not present in the country, hence policy implementations in the country still lagged behind others who had built their digital agenda based on that idea.

Sweden, for example, which has ingrained the notion that internet access is an enabler of exercising human rights, tops the 2020 Inclusive Internet Index as it has implemented progressive internet inclusion policies over the years, among them being promoting competition between Internet Service Providers (ISPs), as described in a journal on internet regulation.

Moving into a digital society is already within the Indonesian governments agenda. On the 2020-2024 National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN), the government highlighted the importance of mainstreaming the agenda of digital transformation to help achieve national development targets.

The digital transformation project, listed as one of the country's major projects according to the RPJMN, will receive an estimated Rp 50 trillion. The funds will be sourced from the state budget (APBN), regional budget (APBD), government-to-business cooperation (KPBU), state-owned enterprises and private entities.

Read also: Jokowi promises Microsoft simple regulation for data center investment

Despite the concerted effort, the government should be reminded that there is more to inclusion than internet availability, as the EIU report suggests, hinting at other important issues that needed to be addressed to create an inclusive digital society, including the issue of access gap between genders.

Although narrowing, the gender gap in access remains stubbornly wide, the 2020 EIU report says, with men being on average 12.9 percent more likely than women to have internet access across the indexed countries.
By Express News Service

NEW DELHI: The National Investigation on Wednesday registered its first overseas case and began probing the terror attack on a gurdwara in Afghanistans capital Kabul last month that left 27 people, including an Indian citizen, dead.

This is the first case of its kind which the agency has registered after the recent amendments in the NIA Act which empower it to investigate terror cases that are committed at any place outside the country against Indian citizens or affecting the interest of India, the agency said in a statement.

The FIR has been registered under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Banned terror group Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), an offshoot of ISIS, had claimed responsibility for the gurdwara attack on March 25.About 150 persons were inside the gurudwara when the attack took place.

According to the preliminary investigation, one Muhsin from Trikkaripur, Kasargod, Kerala and others who had joined ISKP, are suspected to have been involved in the attack.

Sources said the NIA will immediately start with the technical part of the investigation as suspected suicide attacker Mushins family had received a message on Telegram from Islamic State, informing them of his death.

In the wake of Covid-19 outbreak, there may not be an immediate foreign travel. A source in the home ministry said that the investigations will begin from India. In due process, Afganistan police and authorities would be contacted.
A person, who recently attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi, has tested positive for coronavirus.

Chief Medical Officer Dr Sameerveer Sikarwar confirmed that the person has tested positive and he is being referred to Jaipur Hospital from Dhaulpur district hospital.

As many as 400 coronavirus patients have been found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster at Nizamuddin, the Centre said on Thursday.

Thirteen more people tested positive for COVID-19 in Rajasthan on Thursday, taking the total number of those infected by the novel coronavirus in the state to 133.

Jaipur has a total of 41 coronavirus patients, the highest in Rajasthan, followed by Bhilwara with 26 cases. There are 10 cases from Jodhpur, nine from Jhunjhunu, eight from Churu, five from Ajmer, four from Tonk, three from Dungarpur, two each from Alwar and Pratapgarh and one each from Pali and Sikar.

The total cumulative positive cases include two Italian nationals and 14 people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat meet in Delhi and had tested positive earlier.

The total samples received in the state are 7,984 of which 115 are positive. Eighteen of the evacuees from Iran, who are housed in the Army camp in Jodhpur and Jaipur have tested positive.

The total number of negative samples is 7,219 while 650 are under process, and 11 people have been discharged.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Seven persons were arrested for



the alleged attack on health workers in Taatpatti Bakhal area of Madhya Pradesh's Indore city, an official said on Thursday.

A five-member team from the health department had gone to Taatpatti Bakhal on Wednesday to quarantine relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient, when an unruly mob attacked them with stones, injuring two women doctors.

The video of the attack went viral on social media.

"Based on the video footage, we identified seven persons who were involved in stone pelting and arrested them," deputy inspector general (DIG) Harinarayanchari Mishra told reporters here.

The investigation has also revealed that the attack may have been caused by rumours spread on social media and the mob was incited by some anti-social elements.

The health department was carrying out an intensive exercise to identify relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient to isolate them as a precautionary measure to contain the outbreak, the senior official said.

Although the attack wasn't pre-planned, rumours were spread on social media against the health departments campaign, he said.

"We are also tracking down people who are spreading these rumours on social media and taking legal action against them," the DIG said.

The police have arrested seven men, between the ages of 21 to 50 years, three of whom have criminal record, Chhatripura police station in-charge Karni Singh Shaktawat said.

The accused have been charged under sections 147 (rioting), 188 (disobeying order issued by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and other relevant provisions of the IPC, he said.

The police are on the lookout for at least 15 accused, who were involved in the attack, he added.

Meanwhile, Indore collector Manish Singh warned that the district administration will not tolerate such incidents and misbehaviour.

"After all, who are we working for," he asked?



The administration has requested the deployment of five Special Armed Force (SAF) companies in the city, he said.

Taking note of the attack, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan warned that anti-social elements involved will not be spared at any cost.

Chouhan said he salutes health workers for their dedication and assured to take care of their security.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
MILAN (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said Rome would not nationalise businesses during the coronavirus crisis on Thursday as the European Commission's head promised affected countries up to 100 billion euros ($110 billion), starting with Italy.

Conte's pledge in an interview with Il Fatto Quotidiano newspaper reflects concerns in his ruling coalition government that investors could try to take advantage of collapsing share prices to snap up assets such as banks or insurers.

Rome has the option of using "golden powers" which give the government the right to veto stake building in strategic industries and Conte reiterated he would use such instruments, which should also "be strengthened at the European level".

At the moment the golden powers apply to companies in the infrastructure, defence, energy and telecoms industries, but Rome is considering extending them to other sectors.

Meanwhile, European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen, in a separate letter to daily la Repubblica, called for more solidarity at the EU level to fight the health crisis.

And she added that the EU would allocate up to 100 billion euros ($110 billion) to the hardest hit countries, starting with Italy, to cover wage cuts and to help preserve jobs, she added.

The EU executive proposed the wage-subsidy scheme on Wednesday, but did not give financial details.

Conte said he felt "the wind was changing" and called on Germany and the Netherlands, which have so far blocked calls from Italy, Spain and France for joint debt to help finance a recovery, to "think with a European perspective".

Von der Leyen said too many countries had focused on their own problems in the initial days of the coronavirus emergency, which "was harmful and could have been avoided".

Italy, the epicentre of the coronavirus emergency in Europe, was the first Western country to introduce sweeping bans on movement and economic activity, having first confirmed the presence of coronavirus almost six weeks ago.

Since Feb. 23, when Rome imposed the first set of measures to contain the outbreak, Milan's blue chip index has fallen more than 30% and the lockdown, which will be extended until at least April 13, has brought the economy on its knees.

Story continues

Conte added that he would like a planned second emergency decree that will include additional measures to mitigate the impact of the health crisis on Italy's economy to be passed before the Easter holiday in mid-April.

Von der Leyen said the European Commission had also proposed that "every euro still available in the EU's annual budget" be spent on tackling the coronavirus crisis.

"Only solidarity will allow us to emerge from this crisis," she said. "The distance between European nations ... puts everyone at risk".

(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Alexander Smith)
The couple involved in the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? cheating scandal came on set during the filming of a television series about the event, according to the writer of the programme.

James Graham, who also previously wrote a play about the incident, said that the makers of the programme spoke to all sides while producing the series.

Army major Charles Ingram, dubbed the Coughing Major, and his wife Diana, along with their accomplice, Tecwen Whittock, were found guilty in a 2003 trial of cheating their way to the top prize in the quiz programme.

Michael Sheen stars as Chris Tarrant in the series (Matt Frost/ITV/PA)

Graham said: Ive mainly done political dramas in the past where theres a level of expectation, I think, from politicians that they will face that kind of scrutiny and theyll be dragged through the mud a little bit.

That didnt feel fair with the Ingrams, who might not necessarily want this story to re-emerge, so we deliberately engaged with them very early on when we were in rehearsal for the play.

He added that the couple were invited onto the set of the TV programme, where they met the characters who were playing them.

I think, I hope, that we are at least raising the possibility that maybe all is not quite as it seems, they seem quite pleased that this conversation is being had, he said.

He added that the makers of the programme wanted to be fair and balanced and so also spoke to people at ITV about the incident.

Clifford plays Diana in the ITV series (Ian West/PA)

Video of the Day

Sian Clifford, who plays Diana, said they had been so generous with their time throughout this.

She added: Theyve been so sweet, and it was really important for me to not engage at all with what was written about them at the time.

She was painted as this Lady Macbeth character and though thats a character Id love to play, I dont think thats who she is.

She struck me as an introvert and a nerd and someone who is actually quite shy, very sweet, definitely naive, and I really wanted to get that and protect them and be sensitive towards them.

But also protect the integrity of James remarkable script, which I think is completely balanced.

Matthew Macfadyen plays the Coughing Major (Ian West/PA)

She added that the programme has made her see the human side of the couple, which she hadnt considered before.

And that is the one thing when I met her, that she does radiate this sweetness and shes incredibly quiet and Charles sort of commands the room.

She doesnt say very much. But they were really thrilled that Matthew (Macfadyen) and I were playing them.

Quiz will begin on ITV on April 13.
M ore than 40 food distribution hubs have been established in 31 boroughs as the extraordinary humanitarian effort to get food to more than 150,000 vulnerable Londoners gets under way.

The hubs are being supplied daily with truck-loads of fresh produce by the capitals three largest surplus food distribution charities, including The Felix Project, the Evening Standards Food For London Now campaign partner, alongside FareShare and City Harvest.

The hubs include the Sobell Leisure Centre in Islington, a museum in Barnet, and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in Haringey.

As donations to our appeal for The Felix Project rose to 920,000, including 38,000 from more than 500 members of the public, a fleet of 22 bright green Felix vans began ferrying 20 tonnes of food to three of the community hubs  Barnet, Haringey and Enfield  as well as 61 charities and schools across London.

Among them was Food For All in Holborn where, in an impressive culinary feat, 2,000 portions of vegan curry were cooked in a giant aluminium pot, large enough for five adults to stand in, and delivered to the Spurs Stadium and homeless shelters in Kings Cross, Camden and Kentish Town.

The charitys founder, Peter OGrady, 56, said the pot was the biggest in the western world and that he had bought it at a factory in Agra next to the Taj Mahal. You can put five of us in it and sail down the Thames, he laughed.

The massive operation starts at 4.30am every morning when kitchen manager Sofia, 37, turns on the gas hobs.

We have a team of volunteers who have peeled and chopped 200 kilos of potatoes and 100 kilos of carrots the night before and they get added in first, she said.

Mr OGrady arrives between 6am and 7am and starts to work his magic, adding dahl, a wheelie bin of cabbage and another of cauliflower and spinach. Finally he throws in tomatoes, turmeric, ginger and cumin.

By 9am it is ready to serve and so begins the massive operation of decanting the piping hot contents into 2,000 Tupperware-size portions and shipping them out.

I have been doing this mass cooking since 1989, said Mr OGrady. I have cooked for Glastonbury and Extinction Rebellion and now I am doing it in response to Covid-19.

The food comes from The Felix Project and FareShare and the ingredients we use are carefully chosen to boost your immune system  its probably the healthiest meal you could eat.

As he finished cooking, a Felix van drove up with another 350 kilograms of fresh fruit and vegetables, and another unloaded four tonnes of food at the Barnet hub.

A Barnet council spokesman said their hub was gearing up to support 4,000 vulnerable residents, one per cent of the boroughs population. We will also support anyone who requests urgent help and those put forward for help by family, friends, neighbours, or community groups, he said.

Dan Thomas, the leader of Barnet council, called for volunteers to help the effort.

He said: If youre in a fortunate position, I ask you to volunteer to help those less fortunate. Together, we will get through this.

Donations yesterday included 10,000 from The Lehman Brothers Foundation Europe.

Chairman Peter Sherratt said: We are starting to scale up our assistance to vulnerable children and are thrilled to support the Food For London Now appeal and The Felix Project.

If you are in need of food, please go to your boroughs website to get on their list and food will be delivered to your doorstep.

Donate at virginmoneygiving.com/fund/FoodforLondonNOW
San Francisco, April 2 : Google-owned YouTube is reportedly working on a TikTok rival called Shorts, to be introduced by the end of this year.

Shorts will allow people to upload brief videos into a feed inside the mobile app, much like TikTok, and take advantage of licensed music that YouTube Music has in its catalog, reports The Information.

The Shorts feature will make use of all the music that YouTube has licensed already, with songs to be available to use as soundtracks for the videos created by users, according to the report.

After the success of TikTok, there has been a race to launch short-video apps.

Dom Hofmann, co-founder of the now defunct six-second video platform Vine, has also announced the release of its successor called Byte.

Byte has an uncanny resemblance with almost everything that made Vine unique.

To take on TikTok's growing popularity, Facebook-owned Instagram has launched a new video-music remix feature called "Reels".

"Reels" will let users make 15-second video clips set to music and share them as Stories.

In November last year, Facebook quietly released a stand-alone app called "Lasso" to compete with TikTok.

Google has also launched short-form video app Tangi which is focued on creativity and Do It Yourself (DIY) space. The app is a product from Google's in-house incubator titled Area 120.
Srinagar, April 2 : Militants on Wednesday shot and killed a civilian in Anantnag district.

Police sources said militants fired at him from close range in Fathepora Larkipora village of Anantnag district.

"He was shifted to Anantnag medical college hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival. He has been identified as Muhammad Saleem Dar", police sources said adding that the area has been surrounded for searches.

Militants yesterday killed two civilians in Nandimarg village of Kulgam district.
Victorias Chief Medical Office, Dr Brett Sutton, revealed yesterday that over 80 healthcare workers in the state have tested positive for COVID-19 since infections from the coronavirus pandemic began to rapidly grow in Australia last February.

Sutton, speaking to the 3AW radio station, said that the affected health workers include doctors and nurses, along with ancillary, support and administrative staff. Together, they comprise roughly 10 percent of all confirmed infections in Victoria, Australias second most populous state.

Among those cases are six staff at Eastern Health, one of metropolitan Melbournes largest public health services, whose infections were reported this week. According to some reports, those cases were all at Box Hill Hospital.

Four workers at Werribee Hospitals emergency unit acquired the virus last week, as did several staff at the Alfred Hospital. Four emergency department workers, including doctors, tested positive at Mercy Hospital. This morning, it was reported that a staff member at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre had returned a positive test, sparking fears of an outbreak among the facilitys highly vulnerable patients.

Sutton stated that in many instances, the health workers had not contracted the virus at their workplaces but in the community or as a result of travel. Even if this is the case, it demonstrates that COVID-19 is circulating within the hospital system, and points to growing community transmission of the virus.

The revelation comes amid ongoing complaints from medical professionals across the country that they lack sufficient quantities of personal protective equipment (PPE), including masks. It coincides with warnings that supplies of ventilators and intensive care unit beds are insufficient to cover even a fraction of anticipated demand as the pandemic spreads over the coming weeks.

Suttons comments undermine claims by state and federal governments that a minor reduction in the rate of growth of new confirmed cases over the past days means that the curve of infections is being flattened.

Today, the national death toll rose to 23, with two fatalities confirmed this morning. On March 16, there had been just five deaths. The number of confirmed cases passed 5,000 today. Of those, only around 345 have reported a full recovery. At least another 50 victims of the pandemic are in hospital in a serious or critical condition.

Senior state and federal ministers this week asserted that they are successfully tackling the pandemic as a result of widespread testing. They have touted a figure of over 256,000 tests across the country and claimed that this level of testing, per capita, compares favourably with countries such as South Korea and Singapore, which appear to have slowed the spread of infections.

These claims, however, are misleading. South Korea rolled out mass testing to broad sections of the population almost immediately when large clusters of cases emerged in February. It then tapered off the number of tests, when the outbreak apparently slowed. By contrast, Australias testing regime was slow to be deployed and remains restrictive. In an article in The Conversation last Thursday, Professor Raina MacIntyre, an expert in biosecurity, noted that only the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test has been widely used in Australia, as opposed to blood tests.

MacIntyre wrote that: PCR tests have some shortcomings. Throat swabs in particular can give you a false negative, so it may be necessary to repeat the test in someone who seems to have COVID-19. She noted that testing regimes are most effective when PCR and blood tests are used in conjunction.

In follow-up comments to The Age this week, MacIntyre warned she was absolutely certain there are undocumented cases in the community, some who might think they have a cold, some with no symptoms, who are out there spreading infection. She noted that between 35 and 50 percent of infections are asymptomatic.

Unlike in Japan and South Korea, Australias testing criteria remain highly restrictive. The national cabinet, composed of the federal government and state leaders, only expanded eligibility last week to allow aged care and healthcare workers with flu-like symptoms to receive tests.

Prior to that decision, only individuals who had returned from overseas or had come into contact with a confirmed case were entitled to be tested. While states have flagged further changes, the restrictions still mean that most people who do not work in at-risk sectors will not be able to be tested even if they have symptoms.

The attempts to limit the number of tests are the result of shortages of supply. Like their counterparts internationally, governments across Australia did nothing to prepare for the pandemic, despite warnings from health experts over many years that such an event was likely.

Testing is also uneven. Over 100,000 tests have been conducted in New South Wales. In Victoria, which has a population 80 percent that of NSW, only 47,000 tests have been carried out over the past two and a half months. Chief Medical Officer Sutton bluntly told the media earlier this week that the low number was because there were not enough kits.

State and federal ministers have declared that they are purchasing more tests. Last week, however, federal authorities were reduced to appealing to universities to find materials on their campuses that could be used to manufacture them.

The criminally negligent official response is exemplified by dire shortages of PPE across the country, which is threatening the safety of health workers and a further spread of the virus.

On Monday, two anonymous anaesthetists at a Sydney hospital told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that they had been told by management to use the same N95 masks continuously. Doctors and nurses at the facility were being told to write the date on the masks at the end of the day, before placing them in a communal bin for reuse. The World Health Organisation has explicitly warned against such practices.

The NSW Health Department denied the claim. This morning, however, the Sydney Morning Herald published emails from a nursing director at Cumberland Hospital, advising staff to reuse supplies such as thermometer supply covers.

One email reportedly stated: Please be very, very careful with your use of all types of [personal protective equipment] as stocks are in very, very short supply... Westmead [Hospital] has run out of visors and are using goggles."

In Adelaide, doctors at major hospitals have said that they are being pressured to work without adequate PPE. In Sydney, a cancer clinic was forced to make its own hand sanitiser. Staff in some dialysis units have been compelled to work without any protective equipment. Patients with compromised kidneys are among those at a high risk of developing a critical illness or dying if infected with COVID-19.

Experts have also warned of a potentially dire shortage of Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds and ventilators, which allow critically ill patients to continue breathing. Nationally, there are just 2,300 ICU beds in public and private hospitals equipped with ventilators, sparking fears of a shortage as early as April 11.

According to official modelling, and rates of severe COVID-19 illnesses among the general case load, some 80,000 people may require intensive care beds in New South Wales alone over the coming months. Australias average of 8.9 ICU beds per 100,000 people is lower than Italys, where the hospital system has been completely overwhelmed by a massive spike in critical cases.

What is to come was revealed by an article on the ABCs Drum website on Tuesday which reported that the Sydney Health Ethics centre at the University of Sydney was approached by an ICU doctor with a request to develop an ethics guideline for medical professionals.

Dr George Skowronski, who contributed to the guidelines, told the Drum: What were doing at this stage is looking at the best evidence we can find from the experience overseas to try to be able to predict who is likely to benefit, who is likely to survive, who is likely to get the best long-term outcomes.

In other words, because of the state of the hospital system, doctors are being compelled to discuss who will receive treatment and who will not, including critically ill patients.

The government response to the looming crisis has been woefully inadequate. Federal government tenders have been issued with private companies for ventilators; however, it is unclear how many have been ordered or when they will be produced.

The shoddy character of the operation was demonstrated by the New South Wales governments decision to tender 500 companies to retool their operations to produce medical supplies and equipment. Veterinary clinics have already been asked to turn over machines that have previously been used on animals for use as the pandemic spreads.

Hospitals have been compelled to scramble for additional spaces and beds. Federal authorities took the unprecedented decision to issue an appeal to 40,000 retired doctors, nurses and pharmacists to return to work beginning this Monday.

State governments are fast-tracking nurse training to enable students to work in ICU wards over the coming months. Student paramedics and doctors are being given some of the same responsibilities as their fully qualified colleagues.

On Tuesday, federal health minister Greg Hunt announced that the Coalition government will provide half of the funds required to integrate the nations private hospitals into the public COVID-19 response. He forecast that this would cost $1.3 billion but declared that there would be no cap on the funds available.

The government is effectively opening the spigots and providing healthcare businesses and corporations, many of which are highly profitable, with unlimited public funds. The existence of a large network of private health providers, which account for almost a quarter of all ICU beds in the country, is the outcome of decades of cuts to the public sector by successive state and federal governments, Labor and Liberal alike.

While the details of the plan are unclear, it will involve private hospitals allowing public patients the use of beds, conducting public elective surgery and opening up wards to public hospitals. There is no indication that the cash handout will result in the creation of any additional capacity in the healthcare system, given that its stated focus is on integrating existing public and private facilities.

The policy is of a piece with the vast sums of public money that have already been funnelled to the corporate elite since the pandemic began, in the form of three federal Coalition packages and other handouts by the state governments.

The federal wage subsidy, announced earlier this week, for instance, will provide the largest corporations with $130 billion, even while they are sacking or standing down hundreds of thousands of workers and slashing conditions. The figure is greater than annual federal spending on healthcare and education.
Whether youre spending time scrolling social media or socializing online with wine during the COVID-19 quarantine  and lets face it, who isnt  youll have spotted a new trend: Booze to go. To offset the sting of the state-mandated closures for dine-in service restaurants and bars, liquor laws have been loosened on a temporary basis for those pivoting to takeout and delivery. If it seems likely the hospitality industry has been forever changed by the shutdown, theres a good chance these laws may be forever altered too.

In New York, restaurants and bars can now deliver wine from their bottle lists, and beer and cocktails to go. Suddenly, its not only miso soup that comes in plastic tubs but also signature craft cocktails labeled with tape or black Sharpie. And if you want a 16-ounce Bloody Mary instead of an iced coffee with your takeout breakfast sandwich, its yours to go.

Luckily for us, many local restaurants and bars have risen to the challenge, selling wine from their house lists with delivery food, often at a steep discount, and adding signature cocktails. Some offer batch cocktails in larger containers while others are sealing glass miniatures  the perfect personal pour to sip during yet another Instagram Live quarantine kitchen show. While your depleted home bar may be down to that dusty Grand Marnier and an obscure German digestif someone brought to your holiday party, things dont need to stay that way. In the coming weeks, Ill be featuring local bars and restaurants offering cocktail delivery or curbside collection, so you can practice the Japanese art of on-nomi  drinking socially online  and support the local hospitality industry at the same time.

Bard & Baker, Troy

As rapidly as Bard & Baker rolled out a board game rental and delivery, they began bottling boozy boba cocktails made with tea from the local company Short and Stout Tea. Resembling fresh juices in an assortment of vibrant colors, each cocktail is available in 16- or 32-ounce individually sealed bottles. Flavors rotate weekly but include some of their best-sellers like a juniper-lime gin gimlet paired with kiwi boba, or the Tipsy Thai Tea with black tapioca pearls. Among my new favorites is the Spicy Pineapple Paloma with chile-pepper boba, though a new release, Butterscotch Bourbon Coffee, also caught my eye. Order a six-pack for 10 percent off. In compliance with the new rules, booze must be sold with food. Bard & Baker offers a takeout/delivery menu as well as head chef Bryan Connors cakes and pastries. My go-to? A dozen brown butter butterscotch cinnamon cookies. bardandbaker.com

Hamlet & Ghost, Saratoga

It feels as if bottled cocktails are something Hamlet & Ghost was destined to do. The speakeasy-style restaurant and purveyor of craft spirits has one of the most popular cocktail lists in the area, and it was an easy decision for owner Brendan Dillon to batch some signature drinks for online sale along with their wine, beer and Hamlet & Ghost dinner menu to go. While you can order the house Old Fashioned, Negroni or Manhattan in 750 ml containers, everyone is after the signature Gin Gin (No) Fizz, made with gin, lemon, grapefruit cordial and ginger syrup. Since they cant bottle grapefruit foam, whip up an egg white with a splash of juice at home. Batched cocktails (three to four cocktails) range from $30 to $45. hamletandghost.com

The Cuckoos Nest, Albany

Hammering the sudden shift to takeout, The Cuckoos Nest has been selling out of their fried chicken dinners thanks to the creative preordered meal drops at locations from Schenectady to Delmar. Owners Devin and Kaytrin Ziemann are selling a selection of wine at a flat rate of $15 a bottle and some popular cocktails, including the Cardi Bs Knees (gin, lemon, cardamom, clove and star anise), Kentucky Negroni with an orange twist and Ginger Pear Bourbon Smash served with thyme. Pour over ice and enjoy. cuckoosnestalbany.com

Albany Distilling Co., Albany

While you can pick up Albany Distilling Co. spirits and canned Cocktail Club mixed drinks in supermarkets and liquor stores all over the Capital Region, their tasting room staff has whipped up the bars popular cocktails in glass bottles that fit snugly in your hand. My favorite is the potent Smoky Manhattan  with a Maraschino cherry youll need to coax from the neck of the tiny bottle  but you can choose among a Brooklyn Bourbon, Queens City Gimlet, Sorrel Caribbean Punch and Cranberry Grapefruit Cobbler bottled with cranberries and rosemary. Preorder your selections online, stock your fridge and live out a Thelma and Louise moment in your living room. A mixed four-pack is $45. Curbside delivery, limited hours. albanydistilling.com

Plumb COVID-19 Cocktail Club, Troy

Like other restaurateurs, Heidi Knoblauch faced the agonizing decision to close Plumb Oyster Bar in Troy but made the ultimate interim comeback by launching The COVID-19 Cocktail Club. Prepaid membership includes six craft cocktails  three classics and three Plumb signatures in individual 5- to 8-ounce bottles  each week for four weeks, and although the club is underway, new members can join at a prorated rate until the club is full. Kelly McNamee, cocktail guru and Knoblauchs wife, rotates best-sellers like Plumbs citrusy Sinsabaugh (vodka, pamplemousse, lemon and Prosecco) and obscure classics including a pineapple-and-rum Jungle Bird and Scotch-based Rob Roy. If the $300 price tag for four weeks sounds steep, it works out at $12.50 per cocktail with free delivery. Best of all, it gives the restaurant a critical infusion of cash upfront to stay afloat in hibernation mode. plumb.bar

As one business owner told me after liquor stores were deemed essential like restaurants and allowed to stay open. The shutdown didnt stop anyone from wanting to drink.

Susie Davidson Powell is a British freelance food writer in upstate New York. Follow her on Twitter, @SusieDP.
First-grader Blakely Sarles finally got to wear the dress her mother bought for Hamilton Elementary Schools father-daughter dance. Its white satin with purple flowers and a rhinestone belt. When she twirls, the skirt makes a tulip shape.

Blakely, 6, has wanted to wear that dress every day since they bought it, and that was months ago.

Last year, before her first father-daughter dance as a kindergartner, she and her dad, Les Sarles, posed for pictures together in their front yard before driving to school.

This year was a little different.

Under Harris Countys stay-at-home order, celebrations  father-daughter dances, anniversary dinners and baby showers  have been canceled. While that means Houstonians have to stay put, it doesnt mean they cant have fun. The resourceful have found new ways to celebrate.

On March 28, Les and a slightly taller Blakely took their pre-dance annual photo. Afterward, instead of hopping in the car, father and daughter headed back inside. With schools shut down across the state through April to prevent the spread of COVID-19, an intimate, masquerade-themed dance party was about to go down in their living room  instead of the Hamilton Elementary cafeteria.

I wanted to make a night of it, since were stuck at home, said Les, assistant principal at Goodson Middle School in Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District. My daughter was all excited to dress up, and as a dad, you dont want to miss out on those things. Shes only little for so long.

On RenewHouston.com: Crystal Wall, other Houston fitness pros help you avoid the coronavirus 15

Their big night out became a family night in.

Blakely extended invitations to her 2-year-old brother, Hayes, and mom, Shannon, a teacher at Spillane Middle School, under one condition: They had to dress up, too.

My daughter cut up masks and colored them for us to wear, Les said. My son likes Spiderman right now, so he got a Spiderman mask. My daughter loves unicorns, so hers was a unicorn.

The foursome dined in style, sharing a fancy dinner together before hitting the dance floor. Well, the kids had hot dogs and fruit. My wife and I had a nicer meal, Les joked.

Later, in the living room, he pushed the coffee table aside and turned on a strobe light. Electric red and blue flickered off the walls.

For the first dance, Blakely requested Lil Nas Xs Old Town Road featuring Billy Ray Cyrus. She and her brother also got a kick out of going under the limbo stick, so Les set Limbo Rock to repeat on his BeatBox Portable.

Sure, its not the same as being surrounded by teachers and classmates, though there are perks to have your dad play disc jockey.

You dont want to let something like this make you miss on something thats special, Les says. There are only so many of those moments.

Ericka Graham, Project 88 founder and an expectant mother, admits that she only showered twice during the first week of stay-at-home isolation. She didnt see the point of washing her hair or putting makeup. Not when the weddings on her calendar and school visits for her non-profit (which prepares under-served students for college) had been canceled.

Besides, she was too busy consuming all the COVID-19 information and podcasts she could find.

Im pregnant, which is exciting, but everyone whos pregnant is kind of freaking out, she said. I felt this existential dread, just sad for the world, and wasnt taking care of myself at all. And then I saw this tweet.

On March 22, Twitter user Jeff Kasanoff posted: If you arent wearing black-tie for the duration of the quarantine, youre letting the virus win.

That struck a chord.

On PreviewHouston.com: Restaurants-as-markets trend thrives in Houston

Ericka and her husband, former Texans player Garrett Graham, had struggled to conceive. Now that shes more than three months along with their first child, the couple have much to celebrate.

Refusing to participate in basic hygiene and daily plans is apparently not the solution for escaping negative emotions, the mom-to-be posted on her Facebook page. So I went to another extreme and planned a black-tie dinner with Garrett this week.

On March 26, while her husband whipped up turkey meatloaf and coconut rice, Ericka curled her blond hair and dusted her face with extra bronzer. Then she shimmied into her favorite gown  a slinky, bodycon number by Rachel Zoe  and finished the look with extra-large flower earrings. Though arguably, her baby bump on proud display was the outfits most compelling accessory.

It felt like an act of rebellion against COVID-19, she said. We needed something ridiculous baked into our daily life right now.This date night was exactly that.

Emily Lunstroth couldnt agree more. She and her boyfriend Mike Hammer are self-professed foodies. They met two years ago on a dating app, and like to frequent Under the Volcano, their go-to watering hole in Boulevard Oaks, for a nightcap.

Though lately, with the stay-at-home order in effect, Emily says the romance had gotten a little stale. So she devised a plan to spice things up.

Wed been cooking or ordering in, but eating at the counter and not sitting, says the founder of Edith Hour, a lifestyle brand that promotes one hour of daily self-care.

She set some ground rules. I told Mike, Youre moving your work stuff at the dining room table because I want to make it cute. And no phones allowed.

On Sunday night, Emily swapped her leggings for a blue wrap-dress. She blasted Beyonce to get ready, and switched to filmmaker Nancy Meyers legendary playlist  Leon Bridges, that kind of vibe  for dinner.

We just sat and chatted, it was so nice, she said of their properly plated takeout from Roka Akor. We almost forgot we couldnt go out to the bar afterward.

Instead, the couple poured roadies  champagne for her and a whiskey with just two ice cubes for him  and strolled around their neighborhood.

Out of nowhere Mike says, Id give anything to be at the bar at Armadillo Palace, Emily said. So come May 1, thats where well be. Hopefully, she added.

amber.elliott@chron.com
Bengaluru, April 2 : Eleven of 91 Tablighi Jamaat followers who returned to Karnataka from the Delhi headquarters of the group have tested positive so far for coronavirus, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa said on Thursday.

"Of the 91 Jamaat members who returned from Nizamuddin Markaz in March, 11 tested positive at Bidar in northern Karnataka, while 80 tested negative," Yediyurappa told reporters here.

Of over 350 Jamaat members who returned last month, about 150 have been identified and efforts were on to trace the remaining.

"Of the 31 Jamaat members tested in Bengaluru, all are negative. Reports of others tested are awaited. Efforts are on trace the remaining members," Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai said on the occasion.

The Chief Minister appealed to all the Jamaat returnees to report to the Health Department and undergo tests.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Automobile manufacturer MG Motor India on Thursday said it has launched a hunt for a quick-to-produce ventilator design to serve patients affected by coronavirus with the company earmarking Rs 10 lakh grant for the best design concept.

The carmaker will also provide production support for the proposed ventilator prototype at its Halol manufacturing facility to ensure swifter market deployment, MG Motor India said in a statement.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has given rise to a dire need of ventilators to take care of the growing number of patients. There is an extreme shortage of ventilators in the country and those available are very expensive for mass adoption," MG Motor India President and MD Rajeev Chaba said.

Stating that MG Motor India is committed to fighting this pandemic, he said, "Incentivising medical innovation through a financial grant to the most viable prototype is the most effective channel to do our bit for the community."



After evaluation by a team of medical experts, the best ventilator design concept will receive a grant of Rs 10 lakh from MG Motor India, the company said.

The carmaker has called for submission of these entries under the MG Developer Program & Grant on its website.

"In keeping with the critical need for swift deployment of affordable ventilators, the last date of submitting applications is April 15, 2020," the company said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Aurobindo Pharma on Thursday said the $900 million deal to acquire Sandoz Inc's US-based generic oral solids and dermatology businesses, has been mutually called off

New Delhi: Aurobindo Pharma on Thursday said the $900 million deal to acquire Sandoz Inc's US-based generic oral solids and dermatology businesses, has been mutually called off.

"The decision was taken as approval from the US Federal Trade Commission for the transaction was not obtained within anticipated timelines," Aurobindo Pharma said in a regulatory filing.

In September 2018, Aurobindo Pharma had said its US subsidiary has entered into a pact to acquire commercial operations and three manufacturing facilities in America from Sandoz Inc, USA, for $900 million.

The acquisition was to be made through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Aurobindo Pharma USA Inc.

The transaction if completed would have positioned the Hyderabad-based firm as the second largest dermatology player and the second-largest generics company in the US by prescriptions.
PLAINSBORO, N.J., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- We recognize that people with chronic diseases, including diabetes, obesity and hemophilia, are at increased risk during this pandemic and Novo Nordisk is taking measures to support the communities we serve throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Patients who rely on our medicines every day, our employees who serve them, and the heroes trying to address the outbreak in our backyard demand our singular focus. Now, during these really challenging times, is when we all have to work together to keep our communities, loved ones and those we care about safe and healthy," said Doug Langa, Executive Vice President, North America Operations and President of Novo Nordisk Inc. "We take these responsibilities to heart and want people to know what we are doing and how we can help."

Availability of medicines

We have ample supplies of medicines, including insulin, and we expect to be able to fulfill orders and replenish pharmacies in the US throughout this pandemic. However, because of periodic increases in demand, there may be times when local pharmacies are temporarily out of stock of diabetes medicines. We are working with our distributors to ensure that there is enough inventory to fill prescriptions quickly. Updates on product supply and other COVID-19 resources are available at NovoNordisk-US.com/covid19 .

We encourage patients to plan ahead and know that it may take some extra time to get a prescription filled.

There are currently no delays in obtaining growth hormone or medicines for rare bleeding disorders.

Affordability support at NovoCare.com

This pandemic brings economic uncertainty, as well, and we have a variety of offerings on NovoCare.com to help ease the burden so many are facing. Available 24 hours a day, NovoCare.com has information, including eligibility details, on our lower-cost cash program, our free medicines assistance, and an option for those in immediate need of insulin. Help is also available at 1.844.NOVO4ME (1.844.668.6463).

If those with a rare bleeding disorder are looking for support, please visit myNovoSecure.com for options.

Supporting local relief efforts

On April 1, 2020, Novo Nordisk in the US made a commitment to donate $500,000 to national relief organizations as well as to New York City/New Jersey/Philadelphia relief efforts, including Direct Relief, AmeriCares, the NYC Emergency COVID-19 Relief Fund, the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund and the Philadelphia COVID-19 Relief Fund. We are also supporting emergency assistance requests from our patient/advocacy organizations and our local communities to address basic needs of individuals and families. We're also expanding our matching gifts program until June 1, 2020.

We also know that small businesses are significantly affected by this outbreak. To support that, we have temporarily suspended our standard contractual payment terms and we will be paying submitted invoices immediately for nearly 500 small and diverse companies working with Novo Nordisk across the United States.

Keeping our employees safe

Serving patients means that our family of more than 5,000 employees has to be available and healthy to ensure our continued operations. Starting on March 13, following the guidance from the CDC and local health authorities, our teams began working remotely, allowing them to help those who count on us and their own families.

At our manufacturing facilities, we have implemented procedures to support the health and safety of our employees so they can continue production of our medicines 24/7.

Novo Nordisk is supporting other efforts globally to control the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). More information can be found at novonordisk.com.

About Novo Nordisk in the US

Novo Nordisk is a global healthcare company that's been making innovative medicines to help people with diabetes lead longer, healthier lives for 95 years. This heritage has given us experience and capabilities that also enable us to help people defeat other serious diseases including obesity, rare bleeding disorders and growth disorders. We remain steadfast in our conviction that the formula for lasting success is to stay focused, think long-term and do business in a financially, socially and environmentally responsible way. With U.S. headquarters in New Jersey and production and research facilities in six states, Novo Nordisk employs more than 5,000 people throughout the country. For more information, visit novonordisk.us, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

SOURCE Novo Nordisk Inc.

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Truth be told, there are African women who are still doing these things in 2020, but we, the African women who are no longer doing these things in 2020  or were never even doing these things  are standing in faith, with and on behalf of the African women who are still doing these things. Ladies, when youre ready, please join us over in the dark side, but dont take too long.

20 Things African Women Are Not Doing In 2020

1. Being afraid of being called a bitch: Just like Lizzo, we have taken our own DNA test, and we, too, have discovered that we are one hundred percent that bitch. Or those bitches. And we dont mind. We quite like it.

2. Staying in relationships that no longer serve us: Be it romantic, be it family, be it platonic friendship, or be it work, we dont care. Toxic is toxic, no matter who its coming from. In 2020, we are saying goodbye.

3. Not securing the bags: In 2020, were securing all of the bags, and if you stand in our way, we will secure you too. We are not depending on people; we are going out there and securing our bags for ourselves.

4. Avoiding conflict because were ladies: We will not start the conflict, but if you send for us, we will come, and we will answer. And we will still be ladies.

5. Being a ride or die chic: Where are we riding to? And why must we die there? Supporting a partner who does not support us is no longer a benefit that we offer. We are evaluating our partners work performance on a quarterly basis, and there are only two scores: pass or fail.

6. Being afraid to ask for more: We want more. We know we want more. We know what we want. We are no longer afraid of asking for it. If you cannot give it to us, we will get it somewhere else.

7. Accepting less because our African men dont know better: We now know that this is a lie from the pit of hell, and we rebuke it accordingly. We see you, African men. We see you when you buy flowers for your Oyibo girlfriends. We see you when you take them on vacation to exotic islands. And we see you when you give them your credit cards to go shopping. Henceforth, we are no longer accepting your stuffed animals from Walmart. And we are no longer accepting your zero point five ounce fragrance from Burlington. You know better, so you should do better. We are women too. We were not gotten from firewood.

8. Not speaking until were spoken to: Speak to us or not, we will speak when we want to. We are leading meetings, putting people in their place, and when necessary, telling people to take a seat. Or the whole couch.

9. Dumbing ourselves down to make you feel better: We are smart. We are intelligent. We are sophisticated. We cannot help it if you arent. We will not be attempting to stoop to your level so you dont feel so little. We cannot all be big, after all. Someone has to be little. It cant be us, so it might as well be you.

10. Waiting to be saved: You are not Christ, our Savior, so there is no need for us to wait for you. We have learned that no friend, family, or lover can want it for us more than we want it for us, so we are doing the work it requires to get us where we need to be.

11. Waiting for him to leave us first: We are not waiting for him to chase us out of his house because (1) It is OUR house, not his house, (2) We will leave when we are good and ready to, and (3) We are not waiting for him to decide that he does not want us. We are serving papers and storming off  in slow motion, of course.

12. Waiting to invest: We will no longer wait to get married before we invest. We will buy stocks now. We will buy houses now. We will drive the big cars now. Unless we dont want to. But if we want to, we will do it now, and if it intimidates anyone, they should stay far away from us because we are only just beginning.

13. Waiting for validation: Find us beautiful or find us ugly. Find us intelligent or find us stupid. None of it matters. We is smart. We is kind. We is beautiful. And we is important. What you think is your personal problem.

14. Putting our lives on hold to wait for you to catch up: We have plans. Either you get with it or you dont. Its okay if you dont, but we will no longer step on the brakes to give you time to catch up. Were on our way. Meet us where we are. Or dont meet us. Its fine either way.

15. Putting up with unruly and ungrateful inlaws: After taking a poll of fed-up wives, we have come to the decision that unruly and ungrateful inlaws can never be satisfied, and it is not our job to do so. We will be ceasing communication from and evicting all unruly and ungrateful inlaws. We are not here to serve them. We are not even here to serve you either.

16. Settling because good men are hard to find: Good men are hard to find, yes. But so are good women. A friend recently told me that all the good women are taken, and the way to get a good woman these days is to wait for her man to mess up, and then you swoop in and take her. Well, the same applies for the good man. We will not settle. Instead, we will wait, and we will swoop in.

17. Staying in bad relationships for the children: Our mothers did this. Our grandmothers did this. We are not doing this. We have learned that a woman staying in a bad relationship for her children is not beneficial for the children, and it is definitely not beneficial for the woman. So we are not staying for the children anymore. Actually, we are leaving for the children.

18. Watching War Room when our relationship is in trouble: Since we are not in the relationship alone, we kindly reserve our right to defer and delegate the watching of War Room to our parner.

19. Not calling the police when our men become physically violent: We have been told that calling the police on our partner when hes physically abusive is unlike a good woman. We thank everyone who has contributed to this fuckery, but we choose to speed-dial the police and and continue to be unlike a good woman. Good women never make history anyway.

20. Pretending to orgasm so we dont bruise his ego: Unless faking orgasms is a way to secure the bags, we, the African women, have decided not to fake our orgasms anymore. We found out that a real orgasm feels a lot better than a fake one, and we found out that the men whose ego we are trying to protect do not know that we are trying to protect their ego. So we have decided that we will no longer fake it. We would rather actually make it.

And thats a wrap. If you are an African woman who is still doing any of these things, dont worry, were keeping your seat warm for you. Join us when youre ready. Make it sooner than later.

In other news, the reviews are coming in about this weeks episode of the I Am African podcast. Apparently, it is a hot one! Havent listened? Its about womens sexual desires, intimacy, and so much more, and its embedded below for you.
Cape Coast, 1st April 2020. - The head of the Local Government Service, Dr. Nana Ato Arthur has reiterated that, critical staff of the service are being asked to rotate on weekly basis in order to ensure that they can adhere to social distancing as announced by President Nana Addo-Danquah Akufo-Addo.

He said this in an interview with Benjamin Tetteh Nartey on GBC Radio Central, Central Morning Show(CMS) today Wednesday, 1st April 2020.

He explained that the rotational principle works in a situation where there are about 5 or more people in an office, 2 of the staff should come to work for three days in a week while the remaining colleagues come for two days and then reverse the trend the following week. He said all these is being done to ensure social distancing and to protect the staff against COVID-19.

He further added the clogging machine has been put on hold till further notice and his office has directed that, Veronica buckets with water, soap and hand sanitizers must be provided for both staff and any other person who comes to various assemblies to do business.

He continued by explaining further that, the rationale behind why all Regional, Metropolitan, Municipal and District coordinating directors must be at post in Lockdown areas was to help the executive officers who would be at post to work for government. He added that even situations where these officers cannot be at the office, they must make themselves available whenever they are called upon or needed at the office.

When he was asked that, was he aware that his kit and kin from Elmina normally mass up at the beaches to buy fish, he bemoaned that practice and cautioned that "no one is saying they shouldn't do their fish business but must try hard to observe social distancing".

Dr. Nana Ato Arthur ended his conversation by admonishing Ghanaians to strictly adhere to all the protocols as given by government in order to stay safe

He concluded his interview by saying that all of us should be very careful and stay safe because "COVID-19 is no respecter of person and that in some countries prominent citizens have been infected with the virus".
World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday (April 1) expressed deep concern over the near-exponential escalation of the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, with the number of deaths due to the deadly virus doubling in a week.

Ghebreyesus urged people across the world to join hands to defeat the coronavirus. "As we enter the fourth month since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, I am deeply concerned about the rapid escalation and global spread of infection," he told a virtual news conference.

"Over the past five weeks, we have witnessed a near exponential growth in the number of new cases, reaching almost every country. "The number of deaths has more than doubled in the past week. In the next few days we will reach one million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths," added the WHO chief.

"While relatively lower numbers of confirmed cases have been reported from Africa, and from Central and South America, we realise that Covid-19 could have serious social, economic and political consequences for these regions," Tedros warned.

"It is critical that we ensure these countries are well equipped to detect, test, isolate and treat COVID-19 cases, and identify contacts," he noted.

The WHO chief urged governments to implement social welfare measures to safeguard poor people from going hungry during the crisis. He also sought debt relief for poor nations.

"Many developing countries will struggle to implement social welfare programs of this nature. For those countries, debt relief is essential to enable them to take care of their people and avoid economic collapse," said Tedros.

The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic infected 905,279 people worldwide and increased the death toll to 45,371 till 11.45 pm (IST) on Wednesday even as the head of the United Nations has described this crisis as humanity's worst since World War II.

The US has recorded the highest numbers of cases worldwide at 199,092 including 4,361 deaths. Italy has a total of 110,574 positive cases including 13,155 deaths, the highest fatalities globally. Spain followed Italy with 102,136 cases and 9,053 deaths.
Biden said he thinks his party's nominating convention will have to be pushed back from July into August because of the coronavirus threat.

"It's going to depend on what kind of action is taken between now and the middle of the summer to change this curve," Biden said in a Wednesday interview with NBC late-night comedian Jimmy Fallon.
Elvira Pignal

Kekst CNC has named Elvira Pignal, Nathan Riggs and Anntal Silver partners of the firm, effective immediately. Pignal leads Kekst CNCs Paris office, specializing in managing complex mandates and covering corporate affairs as well as crisis and issues management. She also established and ran CNCs Mumbai office from 2016 to 2018 Before coming to the agency, she was with Brunswick Group in London and Brussels. Riggs was previously chief of staff to Kekst CNCs co-CEO in New York, working on some of the firms highest profile mandates, as well supporting the combination of Kekst and CNC in 2018. In addition to supporting clients in strategic communications and investor relations efforts, he has significant experience in M&A, shareholder activism, and crisis communications. Silver was previously a prinicipal of the firm, advising ompanies on corporate and financial public relations matters. Prior to joining Kekst CNC, she was a member of the alternative capital markets team within Goldman Sachs investment management division.

Lance Lambert

Cannabis education platform Green Flower Media has hired Lance Lambert as vice president of marketing. Lambert was previously director of business development at Boveda, which makes humidity control products. At Boveda, he oversaw the companys cannabis-centered portfolio, and was responsible for expanding the brand into Europe, South America and APAC. Before coming to Boveda, he was director of media operations at tech platform Weedmaps, and served as director of digital operations and general manager of The Cannabist, a news site operated by the Denver Post. In his new post, Lambert will focus on building Green Flower Medias brand, audience and revenue.

Jon Tilton

Subject Matter has named Jon Tilton senior strategist, integrated campaigns, based in its Washington, DC office. Tilton joins Subject Matter from TogoRun, FleishmanHillards global strategic healthcare communications and public affairs group, where he was senior vice president, digital strategy and global partnerships. Before that, he served as account director, integrated and digital marketing at MXM Social and deputy director of digital communications and grassroots advocacy at Americas Health Insurance Plans. He has counseled corporate and agency clients across such industry sectors as agriculture, auto, energy, food, health, manufacturing, tech, wellness and life sciences. At Subject Matter, Tilton will focus on helping clients solve complex organizational brand and policy communications challenges.
LOS ANGELES  Like legions of immigrant farmworkers, Nancy Silva for years has done the grueling work of picking fresh fruit that Americans savor, all the while afraid that one day she could lose her livelihood because she is in the country illegally.

But the widening coronavirus pandemic has brought an unusual kind of recognition: Her job as a field worker has been deemed by the federal government as essential to the country.

Ms. Silva, who has spent much of her life in the United States evading law enforcement, now carries a letter from her employer in her wallet, declaring that the Department of Homeland Security considers her critical to the food supply chain.

Its like suddenly they realized we are here contributing, said Ms. Silva, a 43-year-old immigrant from Mexico who has been working in the clementine groves south of Bakersfield, Calif.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr.2

Trend:

The Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan has issued a statement on the 27th anniversary of the occupation of the Kalbajar district by the Armenian armed forces, Trend reports on April 2.

Armenia has been openly pursuing its aggressive policy for more than 30 years and the world community sees it, the statement said.

"Azerbaijans Kalbajar district, the area of which is 1,936 square kilometers, was occupied by the Armenian armed forces twenty-seven years ago as a result of a large-scale offensive operation conducted from March 27 through April 2, the statement said. Kalbajar district is located outside the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

During the period of the occupation, Kalbajar district consisted of one city, one settlement and 122 villages with a total population of up to 60,000 people, the document reads.

The occupation of Azerbaijans Kalbajar district by the Armenian armed forces, in fact, brought the conflict to a new level," the statement said.

Moreover, architectural monuments were looted, burned or destroyed on the territory of the Kalbajar district as a result of the occupation.

There are such gold deposits as Soyudlu (Zod) with 112.5 tons of reserves, Agduzdag and Tutkhun with over 13 tons of reserves on the territory of the Kalbajar region.

Furthermore, there are Agyatag, Levchay and Chorbulag deposits with total reserves of industrial mercury of 850 tons, Gamyshly and Agyar with reserves of more than 200 tons, Kilseli tuff deposit suitable for stone production with a reserve of more than 10,941 cubic meters, clay deposit in Keshdek with a reserve of 1,312 cubic meters suitable for making bricks, a perlite deposit in Kecheldag with a reserve of 4,473 cubic meters used as lightweight aggregate of concrete, two facing stone deposits with total reserves of 2.2 million cubic meters, mixed sand and gravel deposits of Chapli field with a reserve of 2,540 cubic meters, four deposits of marble onyx with decorative properties (reserves of 1,756 tons), a nephroid deposit (801 tons), one obsidian deposit with reserves of 2,337 tons, one foliage deposit with reserves of 1,067 tons.

"There are such sources of mineral water in the occupied territory as Yukhara Istisu, Ashagi Istisu, Keshdak, Garasu, Tutkhun, Mozchay, Goturlusu, which have valuable medicinal and balneological properties (3,093 cubic meters) thanks to which Kalbajar gained world fame. Kalbajar city is surrounded by mountain ranges of Murovdag, Shahdag, Vardenis, Mykhtoken, Karabakh and Karabakh highlands. The highest points are Jamysh dag (3,724 meters) and Delidag (3,616 meters). There are volcanic rocks belonging to the Upper Cretaceous, Paleogene, Neogene, and Anthropogenes in the district. The biggest river is Tartar (the upper reaches) and its branches - Lev, Tutgunchay and others, the document said.

The statement reads that the Sarsang reservoir, which is currently under occupation, was built in 1976 on Tartarchay river. From the moment when the reservoir was occupied, Armenians intentionally dump 85-90 percent of water in winter when there is no acute need for water.

When there is a need, then they dump 10-15 percent. This leads to a decrease in water level, which makes irrigation impossible. Great damage is being caused to the sown areas. Green areas are ruined without water. The great environmental tension arises. The population of 400,000 people living below the reservoir, which is in disrepair, is under constant threat, said the statement.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Great Wall Motor Company Limited (GWM) reported an annual net profit attributable to shareholders of 4.497 billion in 2019, a year-on-year decline of 13.64%.



Its total operating revenue slid 3.04% from a year ago to RMB96.211 billion. To be specific, the revenue from the sale of automobiles shrank 5.84% year on year to roughly 86.251 billion, while the value generated from the sale of auto parts and others soared 42.78% to RMB8.857 billion. The significant growth owes much to the increase in the revenue of export sales of auto parts, and the fee of transportation services stripped out from revenue from the sales of complete vehicles at market price and reclassified as part of transportation income.

Despite the decrease in totals, the revenue from overseas business still zoomed up 66.61% from the year-ago period to RMB5.522 billion, the automaker said via its WeChat account.



The full-year R&D expenses surged 55.8% to RMB2.716 billion. GWM said it is building an open innovation platform to jointly advance the R&D of key technologies such as 5G, Internet of Things, self-driving, and V2X, etc., to speed up industrialization of generic technologies.

In the field of intelligent network, in July 2019, the group teamed up with eight firms, including Tencent, AutoNavi, Baidu, China Telecom, China Mobile, Huawei, and Qualcomm, to found a GTO (GreatWall Totally Online) intelligent ecosystem, and to develop 5G+AI-enable technologies and experience-driven robots.

GWM is primarily engaged in production and sale of pickups, SUVs, sedans as well as relevant auto parts. The annual report shows that the group sold 1,058,648 vehicles in 2019, achieving a year-on-year increase of 1.43%.

This is a rare blooming trend against the downturn in overall auto market, which faced strong headwind from the slowdown in domestic economic growth and political factors like the Sino-U.S. trade dispute.



Striving to maintain a sale growth, GWM kept launching more new models last year, including the Haval H6 GT, the Haval F7x, the 2020 Haval H9, and the 2020 VV6. In the second half of 2019, the group introduced an all-new pickup brandGreat Wall Pao, under which both PV and CV models were launched.



Additionally, the automaker stepped up its overseas offensive with its vehicle exports leaping 44.93% year over year to 65,404 units in 2019. During the year, the Tula factory in Russia was completed and put into operation.

Regarding the external cooperation, Spotlight Automotive, a 50/50 joint venture between GWM and BMW, officially kicked off on November 29.

Involving a total investment of RMB5.1 billion, the project is designed to have an annual standard production capacity of 160,000 vehicles and around 3,000 employees. According to the plan, the products will go into, by brand, the respective marketing and service networks of GWM and BMW.
Following the discovery of five cases of coronavirus in a neighbouring state, Akwa Ibom, the Cross River State governor, Ben Ayade, has reeled out new measures to help prevent the virus into the state.

In a statement released last night, the state governor, Ben Ayade stated that among other things, no resident of the state will be allowed to move around without a face mask.

The directives are set to begin from 12 am on Friday, April 3rd.

READ ALSO  Coronavirus: Ben Ayade Orders Complete Lockdown Of Cross River

According to the statement, the state-owned garment factory has been mandated to produce face mask en-mass for residents of the state.

The statement reads: Following the prevalence of coronavirus infections in neighboring states, the Cross River State Governor, Sir Ben Ayade on Wednesday issued the following executive orders:

1. Starting from 12am on April 3rd, 2020, no person will be allowed in public without a nose or face mask.

2. The Cross River State Garment Factory is directed to work round the clock to produce masks, while observing industrial safe distancing

3. Government to distribute masks for free to residents of the state

4. The Ministry of Humanitarian and Welfare Services, in conjunction with the state Food Bank, to deliver free food to the vulnerable in the state.

5. All exit and entry routes into the state are now completely shut against all human and vehicular movements.

6. All commissioners, special advisers, chairmen, Director Generals, directors and members of boards and commissions as well as special assistants, are hereby co-opted to assist the COVID-19 task force, in ensuring the enforcement and compliance with the guidelines aimed at keeping the state free of the pandemic.

7. Consequently, all those mentioned above are directed to report at the U.J. Esuene Stadium on Friday, April 3rd, 2020, to receive their kits and commence full enforcement along with the Nigerian Police, Military, the Homeland Security Services and the Border Patrol Agency.

8. All commissioners from local governments that border our neighbouring states, are directed to retire back home and take charge of enforcement

9. The state power company operating the 23megawatt power plant, is directed to power street lights from 6pm to 6am daily

10. Public spirited individuals and organizations willing to serve as Volunteers to support enforcement of COVID-19 guidelines, should register by sending their names and addresses tel no: 08039302693

11. For nose masks, residents should call 08099911011

12. For free food supply, residents should call 08037210284

13. The Cross river state microfinance bank to work for 24 hours.
A top Iranian commander on Thursday said Iran has nothing to do with attacks against bases housing U.S troops in Iraq.

Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, chief of joint staff for the Iranian armed forces, said the attacks were a "natural reaction" to the killing of Ge. Qassem Soleimani, former head of Iran's Quds force, and Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who both were killed by the U.S in an attack in January.

"Our country has nothing to do with those attacks," said Bagheri, who is Iran's most senior commander.

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Tehran should expect a bold U.S. response if Iran or Iranian-backed groups attack American forces or assets in Iraq.

U.S.-Iran tensions soared following the Jan. 3 Washington-directed strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani outside Baghdad airport.

Iran has been blamed for an uptick in rocket attacks targeting Iraqi military bases hosting U.S. troops.

Three separate attacks in the span of a week struck Camp Taji and Basmaya bases, killed three coalition servicemen, including two Americans, and injured scores of others.
You do you.

That seems to be the answer by Secretary of State Ruth Hughs to calls that Texas expand vote-by-mail in the face of the coronavirus outbreak, including one by this editorial board. This is about as useful as her previous silence and continues to represent zero official guidance to county elections officials.

Right now, not just anyone can vote-by-mail in Texas. The state requires an excuse from voters younger than 65 who want to submit an absentee ballot.

The law allows those who are disabled to vote by mail only if in-person voting would pose a threat to their health. Responding to a petition by Progress Texas, Hughs seemed to support the argument that the risk posed by the pandemic allows anyone to claim a condition that justifies casting a ballot by mail  but she leaves it up to voters to decide.

If a voter believes they meet this definition, they can submit an application for ballot by mail, the response read. As the situation changes, we will be updating our guidance. We hope this information has been helpful.

No, it hasnt, actually. As the chief elections officer in Texas, the secretary needs to be clear, not only on what voters can do to protect their health but also on what county officials can expect in upcoming elections. This is not something that can be done on a wait-and-see basis.

As Harris County Clerk Diane Trautman told the editorial board, her office can handle an increase in voting by mail  which they already expect for the July 14 runoff as older, more vulnerable populations skip the polls  but if more people are eligible, the county needs to know soon to acquire additional ballot scanners and recruit staff for signature verification. Soon, as in this month.

Theres also the matter of training that staff. Last year, the Texas Civil Rights Project sued on behalf of two voters whose mail-in ballots were rejected by local officials who determined the signatures on their ballots were not theirs. The suit alleges the state allows untrained local election officials to arbitrarily and subjectively reject signatures.

Making sure that mail-in ballots are accurately counted is one of the recommendations in a letter sent to the secretary of state by more than 30 voting rights groups, which advocate for adequate training as well as a timely process that would allow voters to verify their signature if it is rejected.

Vague advice that puts the onus on voters and leaves local election officials as uncertain as before is unacceptable. The secretary of state or Gov. Greg Abbott need to decide and directly communicate that decision.

Election Day is coming up fast. Texas voters deserve clarity.

First Word pieces are short commentaries by individual members of the Houston Chronicle editorial board. While they tend to reflect the board's values, they may exhibit the author's perspective rather than the institutional view. Carrasco is an editorial writer and columnist.
Pressure group, Mass Action Committee (MAC) is calling on the government to ensure that members of the public who deliberately disregard lockdown measures initiated this week, face the full rigours of the law.



The group is however unenthused by reports of some security officers abusing citizens for flouting the lockdown directives announced by the president.



MAC, in a statement issued on Thursday and signed by its Executive Secretary, Atik Mohammed condemned the act and described it as unacceptable.



"This trend of affairs is objectionable and we condemn it in the strongest words possible," the statement read.



As part of measures to prevent further spread of the deadly Coronavirus, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo announced a two-week restriction on movement within the Kasoa township, Greater Accra Region and Greater Kumasi and some municipalities in the Ashanti Region, effective 1 am on Monday, 30 March 2020.



Essential service providers and some other business enterprises have been exempted from the lockdown.



Some Ghanaians flouted the lockdown directive and were seen going about their duties as in normal times.



Their action resulted in some members of the joint police-military team enforcing the lockdown to unleash mayhem on them.



Some sections of the public have openly spoken out against the conduct of this uniformed personnel; not excluding the MAC.



But while the pressure group is warning against abusing human rights in the name of fighting COVID-19, it also called for the application of the relevant laws against anyone who flouts the lockdown rules.



Our view, therefore, is that, culprits must be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the law. When they are found guilty, we admonish that, the courts be prayed to exact only the penalty of fines in lieu of imprisonment given the COVID 19 situation. We further suggest that an escrow account be created for these fines so that, they can be used specifically to support the governments anti-corona efforts," portions of the MAC statement read.





Read below full statement



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE



1. The Mass Action Committee (MAC) has noted with concern, the growing number of video footages showing some security personnel subjecting civilians to all forms of abuses, ostensibly to enforce directives of the lockdown. This trend of affairs is objectionable and we condemn it in the strongest words possible.



2. It cannot be gainsaid that, the lockdown is a painfully necessary measure meant to ensure our individual and collective safety. To this end, laws have been enacted to govern this process namely; the Imposition of Restrictions Act 2020, Act 1012, and the corresponding Imposition of Restrictions Coronavirus Disease (COVID 19) Pandemic (No.2) Instrument, EI 65. And that, everyone within the jurisdiction of Ghana is required to strictly observe the lockdown in accordance with these laws.



3. However, it will be naive to assume that, all will obey the lockdown rules. That is why in the wisdom of authorities, it became imperative to deploy our security personnel to ensure compliance. It must be underscored that, this task does not even remotely, suggest our security officers can resort to the use of extralegal means in dealing with suspected offenders. In fact, Section 6 of ACT 1012, clearly specifies the penalty regime for offenders. It states, A person who fails to comply with a restriction imposed under the Executive Instrument issued under subsection (1) of section 2 commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of not less than one thousand penalty units and not more than five thousand penalty units or to a term of imprisonment of not less than four years and not more than ten years or both.



4. Our view therefore is that, culprits must be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the law. When they are found guilty, we admonish that, the courts be prayed to exact only the penalty of fines in lieu of imprisonment given the COVID 19 situation. We further suggest that, an escrow account be created for these fines so that, they can be used specifically to support governments anti-corona efforts.



5. We cannot, in fighting this crisis create another tragedy- the tragedy of human rights abuses. Our history is punctuated with unpleasant experiences of civilian brutalities by men in uniform who had little regard for peoples rights. We cannot allow a return to that chapter even if it is in the name of fighting COVID 19. Our security men must use the law to its full effect in dealing with people who flout the restriction laws.



6. Meanwhile, we like to reiterate our call to all Ghanaians to observe the restriction or lockdown directives in order to ensure, we slow and hopefully break the chain of spread of COVID 19.



7. We also wish to applaud the relentless efforts of government, our frontline health workers and all Ghanaians who have variously contributed to this fight.



God bless our homeland Ghana and together we shall overcome!



SIGNED

Atik Mohammed

(Executive Secretary)

Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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With the cancellation of several annual events and activities due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, the Rotary Club of Plainview is stepping forward to help the community. With the money that was budgeted for these events and activities freed up, members of the organizations board agreed in an online meeting to allocate more than $2,000 for community support.

According to Club President Jay Givens, the Rotary board voted to begin its public support by paying the caterers who normally provide lunch for the weekly meetings $100 for any missed meeting over the next several weeks. It is the hope that the payments will soften the blow on these local businesses as they see their normal routines scrambled.
Bats were already in severe decline worldwide, even before they were blamed in the media, without evidence, for the COVID-19 pandemic. This verdict has led to the demonization eviction, and slaughtering of bats even where they are most needed.

My Malaysian colleague Sheema Abdul Aziz has spent years documenting the role of flying fox bats as essential pollinators of Southeast Asias multi-billion-dollar-a-year durian crop. Growers were planning to join her in a public education campaign explaining the value of bats, but now, fearing backlash, are reluctant to support her efforts. Private citizens have even asked the government to stop her from handling bats and to support eradication, something already reported in neighboring Indonesia.

Even in my home city of Austin, where we have safely shared a downtown bridge with 1.5 million bats for decades, more people are asking about disease risks. Despite warnings from poorly informed health officials that our bats were rabid and dangerous, theyve yet to transmit a single case of disease. They simply attract millions of tourist dollars each summer and control tons of crop pests each night. Texas bats are worth more than a billion dollars annually.

Exaggerated warnings of bat disease risks arent just misguided. They threaten the health of entire ecosystems and economies. In Mexico, tequila and mescal production worth billions annually relies on bats that pollinate agaves. From Southeast Asia to the Mediterranean, bats provide pest control for rice growers. In South Africa, macadamia growers benefit from bat control of stink bugs.

Perhaps because of their nocturnal habits and erratic flight, bats have an outstanding record of living safely with humans. I have never been attacked and am still healthy after more than 60 years studying and handling hundreds of species worldwide, sometimes surrounded by millions in caves. Because, like veterinarians, I am occasionally bitten by unfamiliar animals I handle, Im vaccinated against rabies.

For anyone who simply avoids handling bats, the odds of contracting any disease from one is incalculably small.

However, these facts typically go unreported, while risks are often magnified. The March 11 Scientific American has a COVID-19 article with a subhead: Wuhan-based virologist Shi Zhengli has identified dozens of deadly SARS-like viruses in bat caves, and she warns there are more out there. The use of deadly is unjustified speculation.

The article additionally claims that the Wuhan outbreak is the sixth outbreak caused by bats in the past 26 years. In fact, the first four listed (SARS, MERS, Hendra and Ebola) appear to have been transmitted to people by animals other than bats  yet bats still receive primary blame. The fifth, the Nipah virus, which likely is spread to people from flying fox bats, is easily prevented by simply covering collection containers or pasteurizing contaminated palm juice.

Two possible scenarios have been hypothesized for the COVID-19 outbreak. The first is that a new coronavirus entered an intermediate host animal, such as a pangolin, where it evolved to become a threat to people. Alternatively, the new coronavirus could have been harmless when it first entered humans, but later evolved to become virulent. A publication currently under review even points to mice and domestic pigs as possible sources.

So why has the media almost universally blamed bats? In part because scientists have disproportionately focused on sampling them.

Since 2005, when coronaviruses in horseshoe bats were first hypothesized to be the ancestors of the coronavirus that caused SARS, bats have received far more scrutiny than any other group of animals. In the study on which the scariest headlines were based, researchers sampled nearly twice as many bats as rodents, shrews and nonhuman primates combined and didnt even include carnivores or ungulates.

Not surprisingly, more viruses have been found in bats than in less-surveyed species, so biased speculation has become a self-fulfilling prophecy. We dont yet know if bats have more viruses than other animals because we havent similarly sampled others.

To secure funding, some experts now argue that the best way forward to prevent future outbreaks is with surveys to find and catalog wildlife viruses globally, focusing particularly on high-risk groups such as bats.

But such surveys would be costly and have little practical value.

Viral-caused outbreaks are exceedingly rare, and their emergence is unpredictable. MERS, for example, jumped to humans from a seemingly unlikely source, camels, in Saudi Arabia. The evolutionary virologist Edward Holmes and associates note that even if all current viruses could be cataloged, new variants of RNA viruses are constantly evolving.

So instead of throwing money at bats, public health funds would be much better directed toward improved early detection in humans.

Tuttle is a leading bat researcher who founded and directed Bat Conservation International for 30 years. He now directs Merlin Tuttles Bat Conservation and is a research fellow in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Texas at Austin. He wrote this for Zocalo Public Square.
U.S. Attorney J. Douglas Overbey of the Eastern District of Tennessee on Thursday announced that nearly $60 million in Department of Justice grants is available to help communities address public safety by supporting successful reentry of adult and juvenile offenders into their communities.

Our nation is facing difficult public safety challenges that demand strong and immediate action," said Katharine T. Sullivan, principal deputy assistant attorney general for the Office of Justice Programs. "The high rate of recidivism poses a dire threat to community safety and is being met with a robust response by this Administration. The Department of Justice is front and center in the fight to meet this persistent challenge. OJP is making historic amounts of grant funding available to ensure that our communities have access to innovative and diverse solutions.

The U.S. Attorneys office will continue to make a concerted effort to cooperate with our law enforcement and community partners to be both smart and tough on crime," said U.S. Attorney Overbey. "Our office components include crime prevention, prosecution of serious and violent criminals, and the successful reentry of ex-offenders."

The funding is available through OJP, the federal governments leading source of public safety funding and crime victim assistance in state, local and tribal jurisdictions. OJPs programs support a wide array of activities and services, including adult and juvenile reentry initiatives and research projects designed to improve our knowledge of what works in reentry programming. A number of funding opportunities are currently open, with several more opening in the near future.

Correctional Adult Reentry Education, Employment, and Recidivism Reduction Strategies

Program

https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/bja-2020-17104

Total Available $7.2 million Deadline April 27

Improving Community Supervision Outcomes Through Swift, Certain, and Fair Responses

https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/bja-2020-17096

Total Available $3 million Deadline April 28

Improving Reentry for People with Substance Use Disorders Program

https://bja.ojp.gov/SCASUD20

Total Available $13.2 million Deadline April 27

Innovations in Reentry Initiative: Building System Capacity & Testing Strategies to Reduce

Recidivism

https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/bja-2020-17281

Total Available $4 million Deadline May 4

Research and Evaluation on Promising Reentry Initiatives

https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/nij-2020-17295

Total Available $6 million Deadline May 5

Review and Validation of the First Step Act Risk Assessment Tool

https://nij.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/nij-2020-fsa

Total Available: Determined after selection Deadline April 10

Second Chance Act Community-Based Reentry Program

https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/bja-2020-17110

Total Available $13.5 million Deadline May 4



Second Chance Act Evaluation Participation Support

https://bja.ojp.gov/funding/opportunities/bja-2020-17680

Total Available $4 million Deadline April 28



Second Chance Act Youth Offender Reentry Program

https://ojjdp.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh176/files/media/document/ojjdp-2020-17350.pdf

Total Available $7 million Deadline April 28



For more information regarding all OJP funding opportunities, visit

https://www.ojp.gov/funding/explore/current-funding-opportunities
NEW YORK, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Credit Suisse AG ("Credit Suisse") announced today that the intraday indicative value of its 3x Inverse Crude Oil ETNs (the "ETNs") was equal to or less than zero on April 2, 2020.

On April 2, 2020 the intraday indicative value of the ETNs was equal to or less than $0. As disclosed in the pricing supplement relating to the ETNs, because the intraday indicative value was equal to or less than $0, the closing indicative value of the ETNs on April 2, 2020, and on all future days, will be $0. Accordingly, because the amount of any payment due to holders at maturity, upon early redemption or upon acceleration is determined by reference to the closing indicative value of the ETNs, holders of the ETNs will not receive any payment on the ETNs.

Because the Closing Indicative Value of the ETNs will be $0 on April 2, 2020 and on all future days, investors who buy the ETNs at any time at any price above $0 will likely suffer a complete loss of their investment.

None of the other ETNs offered by Credit Suisse are affected by this announcement.

Title of ETN IV Ticker Symbol ETN CUSIP VelocityShares 3x Inverse Crude Oil ETNs linked

to the S&P GSCI Crude Oil Index ER due February

9, 2032 DWTIF 22542D548

Press Contacts

Karina Byrne, Credit Suisse AG, telephone +1 212 538 8361, [email protected]

Credit Suisse ETNs

Telephone +1 800 320 1225, [email protected]

Credit Suisse AG

Credit Suisse AG is one of the world's leading financial services providers and is part of the Credit Suisse group of companies (referred to here as 'Credit Suisse'). Our strategy builds on Credit Suisse's core strengths: its position as a leading wealth manager, its specialist investment banking capabilities and its strong presence in our home market of Switzerland. We seek to follow a balanced approach to wealth management, aiming to capitalize on both the large pool of wealth within mature markets as well as the significant growth in wealth in Asia Pacific and other emerging markets, while also serving key developed markets with an emphasis on Switzerland. Credit Suisse employs approximately 47,860 people. The registered shares (CSGN) of Credit Suisse AG's parent company, Credit Suisse Group AG, are listed in Switzerland and, in the form of American Depositary Shares (CS), in New York. Further information about Credit Suisse can be found at www.credit-suisse.com.

SOURCE Credit Suisse AG

Related Links

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A senior figure from the world of intelligence and defence, who specialised in China and cyber warfare, has been appointed to one of the top posts in the governments nudge unit, which is involved in the campaign against the coronavirus outbreak.

Rachel Coyle, who has received an MBE for services to defence, is the new managing director of the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) helping to develop strategy for the pandemic at the Cabinet Office.

The work of the nudge unit was relatively little known until its role became more widely publicised over Covid-19, especially over the concept of herd immunity to combat the virus and the effect this had on the timing of the eventual lockdown ordered by Boris Johnson.

Ms Coyle, who has a masters in Chinese studies from Cambridge, spent six years at the Ministry of Defence, where she started as analyst with Mandarin language skills before being promoted to policy advisor at the Permanent Joint Headquarters, then private secretary to the deputy chief of defence staff (military strategy & operations) General Sir Richard Barrons, and finally assistant head of cyber operations policy.

After receiving her MBE in 2013, Ms Coyle joined Salamanca, a business intelligence and investigations group, where she became head of corporate intelligence in charge of the companys international offices.

Starting her job with the nudge unit at the end of last month, Ms Coyle stated in a social media post: Im really proud to have started a new role as managing director for the Behavioural Insights Team.

General Barrons, who went on to become chief of joint forces command, said: Rachel was one of the sharpest civil servants I have ever come across. I found her very impressive and she will no doubt do a very good job at a very difficult time.

As deputy chief of defence staff, General Barrons was in charge of the military support for national resilience and security in natural or man-made disasters as well as conflicts.

He told The Independent: The potential risk of global pandemic has been with us for a very long time. Questions have to be asked of the government, industry and civil society on the level of preparedness when this pandemic occurred.

We cant have been completely surprised. In the future we obviously need to be better prepared. But we must not make the mistake of thinking that its all just about pandemics. There will be a whole range of challenges ranging from climate change, the rise of China and the role of Russia. There needs to be a focus on strategy.

The strategy of nudging is based on the premise of changing behaviour through coaxing and pointing out positive outcomes to actions rather than through coercion. It was set up 10 years ago by the Cameron government and ownership is shared between its staff, the Cabinet Office and the charity Nesta which deals with innovations.

David Halpern, BITs chief executive, and a member of the Governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) outlined to the BBC on 11 March the approach of shielding vulnerable people until enough of the countrys population had been infected with Covid-19, and immunity would be acquired to halt its spread.

Theres going to be a point, assuming the epidemic flows and grows as it will do, where you want to cocoon, to protect those at-risk groups so they dont catch the disease. By the time they come out of their cocooning, herd immunity has been achieved in the rest of the population, he said.

On the same day Dominic Cummings, the chief advisor to Boris Johnson, is reported to have brought up the issue of herd immunity in a discussion with tech industry leaders. Two days later the governments chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, told BBC Radio 4 that one of the key things we need to do is to build up some kind of herd immunity so more people are immune to this disease and we reduce the transmission.

Matt Hancock, the health secretary, insisted a few days later that achieving herd immunity was not a stated policy. Instead, he said, in the coming weeks people over the age of 70 will be told to self-isolate.

Richard Horton, editor-in-chief of the medical journal Lancet told the Commons Science and Technology Select Committee at the end of last month that SAGE, despite being chaired by the chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, and the chief scientific officer, Sir Patrick Vallance, had little input from public health doctors and medical officers. The dominant voices advising the government, he said, were mathematical modellers and behavioural scientists, including Dr Halpern.

There is evidence on modelling and on behavioural science, but I dont see the evidence from the public health community or from the clinical community, he said.

We thought we could have a controlled epidemic. We thought we could manage that epidemic over the course of March and April, push the curve to the right, build up herd immunity and that way we could protect people. The reason why that strategy was wrong is it didnt recognise that 20 per cent of people infected would end up with severe critical illness. The evidence was there at the end of January.

A senior Whitehall official involved with Covid-19 planning held, however, that Dr Halpern was explaining the theory of herd immunity, not advocating it. He said a lot will come out in the future about what happened, not just the role of advisers, but politicians as well, I have no doubt that a lot of it very interesting for the public.
SIPTU Health representatives have today welcomed the call from leading infectious disease specialists calling on the Government to prioritise the testing of all health care workers for Covid-19.

SIPTU Health Divisional Organiser, Paul Bell said: "We urgently need to ramp up testing and to work towards a policy that safeguards our health workers, patients and community. We have looked to other jurisdictions where mandatory testing of health workers proved to be a positive factor in defeating the virus. South Korea, Hong Kong and health authorities in Taiwan committed to this policy early and with some success.

Since SIPTU representatives first issued our demand to rigorously monitor and test all health workers for Covid-19, our concerns have proven to be well founded as official figures show 22 nursing homes have been confirmed as Covid-19 positive clusters.

"The need for COVID-19 testing of community health workers is also essential as numerous older people receiving home care have been refused access to their home due to concerns that their carer might carry the virus.

"Our members working as Home Helps and Home Care Support Assistants need support to keep people safe and well in their homes, as the majority of the people for whom they care, are in the high risk category. This will allow hospitals to concentrate on treating COVID-19 patients and give people the assurance and comfort that they are safe in the hands of our carers."

He added: SIPTU representatives have also expressed deep concern about the increasing number of health workers waiting for tests or test results and are alarmed that the Department of Health has confirmed that almost 600 health care workers have tested positive for the virus and are off duty. We need all hands on deck so regular monitoring is essential and our members believe that the testing of all health care workers can only help our collective effort to overcome the coronavirus.
Nigerias Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning on Wednesday headed to Twitter to beg the founder of the electronic automobile company, Tesla Inc., Elon Musk, for ventilators.

The official handle of the ministry responded to a tweet by the South African-American billionaire to supply ventilators to hospitals worldwide.

We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device & shipping cost are free. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse. Please me or

@Tesla know, had tweeted.

We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device & shipping cost are free. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse. Please me or @Tesla know.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 31, 2020

The verified handled of the Ministry of Finance had subsequently replied that the government was in need of between 100  500 ventilators.

Dear @elonmusk @Tesla Federal Government of Nigeria needs support with 100-500 ventilators to assist with #Covid19 cases arising every day in Nigeria.

There is a global scrambling for ventilators following the outbreak of the coronavirus. The coronavirus pathogen particularly affects the respiratory organs then the need for ventilators to treat the critically sick. Countries like the United States and China have ramped up the manufacture and supply of ventilators to deal with the growing cases of the disease in their countries.

Though the exact number of ventilators in Nigeria is unknown, the number of functional ones in the country is estimated to be under 100. As the number of coronavirus patients in the country continues to grow, there are concerns that the number of fatalities from the virus in the country may be above the global average because of inadequate ventilators.

On Tuesday, the health minister, Osagie Ehanire, said Nigeria may not need many ventilators for her coronavirus patients. On Wednesday, Akin Abayomi, the Lagos State commissioner for health, told journalists that none of the active cases in the state required a ventilator,

Despite advice from the World Health Organisation and African Union for countries to dedicate between 13 and 15 per cent of their national budgets to the provision of healthcare, the Nigerian government has continued to budget far less.

The government budgeted a paltry 4.5 per cent of its 2020 budget to health. A marginal increase from 4.1 per cent in 2019 and 3.95 per cent in 2018.

Who approved this tweet?

The ministrys appeal for help from the billionaire has drawn a lot of angry reactions from Nigerians, many of who have described it as cringeworthy and embarrassing.

Others wondered why the ministry decided to do this via social media rather than exploring available diplomatic and official channels.

Who approved this tweet? asked Uncle Dave with the handle @ebonyslim.
John OConnell is the Chief Executive of the Taxpayers Alliance.

After the Governments significant coronavirus interventions of the last few weeks, Brits are adapting to life under lockdown. The public health response is underway, and the NHS is facing up to a big challenge over the next few weeks; financial support is already arriving (at least for those who arent self-employed); and the public information campaign is in full swing, complete with daily press conferences and a personal letter from the Prime Miniser to every household. Most are wondering aloud how long it will be before we can get back to normal.

Current circumstances are, of course, very far from normal. Last week, the TaxPayers Alliance issued our response to the unprecedented measures that have been taken. Naturally, the very idea of some of these interventions makes us wince, not least given the degree to which it equips ministers with powers much of the public would never accept in normal times. But in the debate of the Oxford vs Imperial models, its understandable that the Government has veered on the side of caution, and rolled out a plan based on the worst case scenario.

With that choice made, the policies to tackle the public health emergency have been stringent, thereby meaning that Rishi Sunak had to step in to prevent the economy from collapsing. We do not want to lose capital in businesses which are normally viable, but demand for their output has been temporarily suppressed. Preventing contagion means encouraging people not to go into work. That means totally different policies from those that any reasonable person would usually suggest 0 let alone those sensible in a typical recession.

We know about the 330 billion loan package, the furlough scheme to provide 80 per cent of salaries for PAYE staff, measures for the self-employed and the 1.1 billion handout for Britains charities. Adding to this any future action  of which there is sure to be plenty  it is entirely reasonable for a fiscal conservative to be worried about the next decade.

Some things havent changed. One is that money must be spent well. Not all measures need to be at odds with the TaxPayers Alliance agenda and, while there may be a lot more money going around, wasted cash is still intolerable.

Another is that taxes make up a significant proportion of the cost of living, meaning reductions will help families get through these hard times.

A third is that regulations hinder delivery and cost taxpayers a fortune. Indeed, there have been some reassuring reports of bureaucracy  particularly in the NHS  simply falling away to let staff get on with their jobs and ensure every penny of taxpayers money is reaching the frontline services that are desperately needed. Wards have been prepped in a matter of days, when such a task would normally have taken months. While appreciating that this is a time of crisis, maybe afterwards those delivering public services can tell politicians that they would rather not have those regulations back.

With those three principles in mind, the TPA has recommended to the government three more policies which would also help in this effort: divert the aid budget to help fight the virus; freeze council tax and focus money on frontline services; and suspend Sunday trading restrictions.

In the past decade, we have consistently highlighted the level of waste in Britains overseas development spending. We have called out spending on space programmes and Spice Girls. Focusing the funds on genuine emergencies is a far better use of cash, and there is no more acute emergency in the world today than the coronavirus. That is why, if we insist on keeping the 0.7 per cent target, almost all of the UKs 14.6 billion overseas aid budget should be immediately reallocated to combating the coronavirus both in developing countries and in the UK, with all non-humanitarian development operations suspended.

That could mean, for instance, allowing aid funds to be used for the rapid deployment of hospital ships to provide temporary critical care facilities. In order to ensure this can be done swiftly and effectively, the International Development Act 2002 should be altered to ensure that spending moves beyond merely that which is likely to contribute to a reduction in poverty.

A move like this would undoubtedly be popular with the public. Polling last year from this sites James Frayne showed almost three quarters of working class voters backed reallocating aid money to priority areas like the police and NHS. It would certainly make good on the governments word that it was doing whatever it takes to combat coronavirus.

Unfortunately, regardless of what measures the Government takes, the economic shock of the coronavirus is going to hit living standards in the UK. Council tax is a significant proportion of the cost of living, particularly the poorest households, costing them eight per cent of their income. Instead of rises of close to four per cent across the board, a nationwide freeze on council tax rates would mean one less worrying bill for anxious residents.

At the same time, of course, councils must be able to assist with the public health and social care efforts needed to combat coronavirus. To that end, all non-statutory and low-level council spending should be suspended. Councils should take up this call: alongside the necessary cancellation of any planned trip, conference or event, a recruitment freeze and an immediate end to extras like hard copy council tax letters, council newspapers, canteen subsidies and councillor allowances and pensions could send a powerful signal that local authorities really were pulling out all the stops.

Unnecessary regulations must be suspended, particularly if they stop us tackling the outbreak. Sunday trading rules are currently doing this. Supermarkets, including those with premises of over 280 square metres, should be encouraged to open for as many hours as possible on Sundays as possible, to reduce overcrowding and the spread of the coronavirus. Social distancing is threatened when people are on top of each other in supermarkets.

With bookings for online delivery slots permanently full at present, large physical stores can help to clear the backlog and spread the demand. Moves such as this will allow the heroes in the private sector to play their part in the national effort. See, for example, firms moving heaven and earth to produce ventilators for the health service, produce hand sanitiser and keep the shelves stocked for desperate shoppers. The Government must let them do what they do best.

The extraordinary economic measures announced by the Chancellor are justifiable, but at some point soon they will no longer be  and they will need to be reversed. Significant fiscal repair will be needed in the coming years: debt levels will need to be brought back down rapidly through growth-enhancing measures and spending restraint. It is clearer than ever that sound public finances are needed during good times to ensure the country is ready in case of a crisis. Taxpayers cannot afford this pause in fiscal conservatism becoming permanent.
A coronavirus death has been reported at UPMC Hanover, York County Coroner Pam Gay told the York Dispatch on Thursday.

While reports indicate the death occurred at UPMC Hanover, it was not immediately clear whether or not that person lived in York County.

WellSpan Health also reported a death at one if its hospitals, though it was not immediately clear, either, if the death occurred in one of its York County locations, according to reports.

As of Thursdays press briefing from the state Department of Health, York County had one coronavirus death and 102 cases.

Pennsylvania reported 1,211 new coronavirus cases Thursday, raising the statewide total to 7,016. Statewide, there have been 90 deaths.

Around the region, Dauphin County has 67 cases with one death, Cumberland County has 41 cases with one death, Lancaster County has 203 cases with four deaths and Perry County has three cases with no deaths, according to the Department of Healths latest statistics.

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"The government is constantly reviewing the situation," said Prayut, "Looking at the present situation, the government is unlikely to lift the state of emergency soon."

Prayut announced the state of emergency, which took effect from March 26 and goes on until April 30.

The Ministry of Public Health on Tuesday reported 127 new COVID-19 cases, raising the total number of infections to 1,651 and and one more fatality, with total of 10, with Bangkok leading with 796 cases.

At the Government House on Tuesday, Prayut said that some rules under the emergency decree can be relaxed if the situation gets better.

However, state agencies are empowered to tighten some rules in areas that show no improvement, Prayut said.

Prayut warned that if most people still fail to follow the guidelines of the government, then he will suspend all public transportation systems.

Bangkok's adjacent province of Nonthaburi has imposed a curfew from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m., effective on Tuesday, to contain the spread of COVID-19.

Nonthaburi Province reported two confirmed patients on Tuesday, bringing the total number in the province to 63, including one death two days ago, 48 of which are hospitalized.

Also, Thailand's Phuket International Airport will be shut from April 10 to April 30 after Phuket Province sealed its entry points by land and sea amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
New Delhi: Actress Kareena Kapoor Khan on Thursday announced that she and actor husband Saif Ali Khan have pledged their support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiative PM-CARES Fund to fight the deadly coronavirus pandemic that has brought the world to a standstill. The couple has also announced to donate to Chief Ministers Relief Fund (Maharashtra).

In a statement shared by Kareena on Instagram, the actress, on behalf of herself, Saif and son Taimur, wrote, We extend our support to the PM-CARES Fund and Chief Ministers Relief Fund (Maharashtra). In times like these, every helping hand and every rupee raised, matters. Do help wherever possible.

Earlier, Kareena and Saif had said they would donate to UNICEF, GIVE INDIA and the International Association for Human Values (IAHV) for their efforts to fight the coronavirus. While a section of the internet appreciated them for their efforts, others criticised the star couple for choosing to help other organisations and not PM-CARES Fund.

Meanwhile, actress Karisma Kapoor, Kareenas sister, also announced her support to PM-CARES Fund and CM Relief Fund (Maharashtra). She said, Every life matters, which is why my children Samaira, Kiaan and I pledge our support to the PM-CARES Fund and Chief Ministers Relief Fund (Maharashtra). A small contribution can go a way long Do your bit  For country, for humanity.

Several Bollywood celebrities including Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif, Varun Dhawan, Kartik Aaryan, Vicky Kaushal, star couple Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli and others have come forward to support the government in the tough time. Akshay has pledged to donates Rs 25 crore.
PORTLAND, Ore.  Oregon public health officials have identified 47 new cases of the new coronavirus in the state as of 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 1, as well as one more fatality.

The latest death brings the state total up to 19.

We want to keep you informed about #COVID19 in #Oregon. Data are provisional and change frequently. For more, visit https://t.co/HOiXqGkygF #coronavirus pic.twitter.com/cbX0uJtfLy  OR Health Authority (@OHAOregon) April 1, 2020

The Oregon Health Authority said that there are now a total of 736 people in the state who have been diagnosed with COVID-19 through a positive test.

One case reported on Tuesday in Hood River County was "later determined to be a Washington State case," OHA said. The agency adjusted the total number accordingly.

OHA is reporting 47 total new cases in the following counties: Benton (1), Clackamas (6), Deschutes (3), Douglas (1), Jackson (1), Lane (2), Lincoln (1), Marion (10), Multnomah (18), Washington (3), and Yamhill (1).

Samples for 14,868 people have tested negative for COVID-19 in the state so far.

SPECIAL SECTION: Coronavirus Watch

Oregons nineteenth COVID-19 death was a 70-year-old woman in Multnomah County who tested positive on March 27 and died at her home two days later. She had underlying medical conditions, OHA said.

OHA says latest COVID-19 projections show social distancing can cut coronavirus infections if Oregonians keep current measures in place into May

Updated projections from health researchers show that there is strong evidence that measures currently in place in Oregon are reducing transmission, according to the latest models from the Institute of Disease Modeling (IDM). According to OHA, the data suggests that current social distancing measures could cut transmission rates between 50-70 percent if Oregonians maintain these limitations on virus-spreading interactions into early May.

"If Oregonians can maintain current social distancing efforts and the current projections hold true, the state could meet the likely demand for hospital beds under current strategies," OHA said.

Researchers estimated that Oregon has slightly higher numbers of current infections than previously assessed, based on an increase in reported cases from earlier time points:

COVID-19 infections: Under current social distancing conditions with the cooperation of most Oregonians to Stay Home, Save Lives, it is estimated that in early May Oregon would have over 4,000 cumulative infections and 200-1,200 active infections. However, if the state were to reopen non-essential businesses (while keeping schools closed), the number of new infections would spike to as many as 3,500 active infections by early May

Under current social distancing conditions with the cooperation of most Oregonians to Stay Home, Save Lives, it is estimated that in early May Oregon would have over 4,000 cumulative infections and 200-1,200 active infections. However, if the state were to reopen non-essential businesses (while keeping schools closed), the number of new infections would spike to as many as 3,500 active infections by early May Hospital beds needed: Researchers found expected demand for hospital beds is predicted to remain relatively constant before decreasing, assuming current or strengthened interventions and continued high compliance

Researchers found expected demand for hospital beds is predicted to remain relatively constant before decreasing, assuming current or strengthened interventions and continued high compliance Uncertainty: Researchers highlighted that the projections remain uncertain. In coming weeks, state public health officials and researchers will get a better picture of current actual infections and how they affect the projections, as well as more data on the publics continued adherence to social distancing measures.

OHA said that the state's emergency response continues to focus on strengthening the health care systems ability to meet the coming surge. State health officials are working with hospitals and other health care partners to mobilize the health care workforce and keep workers safe, expand bed capacity and secure more ventilators.

However, OHA says that the publics ability to maintain social distancing will still be the most important factor in determining whether Oregon prevents local hospitals from becoming overwhelmed by COVID-19 admissions.

We know coronavirus has brought painful disruption and distress for Oregonians. However, these numbers tell us that what were doing can work," said Dr. Dean Sidelinger, state health officer at OHA. "We know social distancing is tough and comes with incredible sacrifices. But steps were all taking to maintain social distancing could save the lives of people we know and people who are important to us. As Oregonians, we all must continue to put Stay Home, Save Lives into practice.
DESTIN, FL / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Destin, Florida based Books by Schmidt is pleased to announce that they will be offering assistance and information regarding the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. Led by Kevin Schmidt, an entrepreneurial bookkeeper who has worked in all aspects of accounting and bookkeeping, the company advises businesses to contact Books by Schmidt directly to receive guidance regarding their concerns.

From April 1, 2020 through to December 31, 2020, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act obliges employers with fewer than 500 employees to provide paid leave to employees who are impacted by COVID-19. The Act offers tax credits to employers who do so, and, for compliance purposes, Books by Schmidt advises that employers seek the advice of a professional to review their policies and practices to ensure that compliance with the Act is undertaken. This will also ensure that they receive the relevant credits.

Kevin Schmidt says, "The specific circumstances surrounding company employment contracts and personnel policies and practices mean that every business, no matter how large or small, needs to address their own situation. We can help any business understand their obligations, and indeed have been helping our own clients come to grips with how it impacts them in the period since it passed through the Senate last month. Our experience can help any business get a head start on making sure that they are both compliant with all their policies and practices as well as ensuring they claim their tax credits with the evidence they require."

The Families First Coronavirus Response Act contains three specific sections that are relevant to employers: Emergency Paid Sick Leave Act, Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act and Paid Family Leave And Paid Sick Leave Tax Credits. There are two main exception categories for parts of the Act. The first is for an employer of a healthcare provider or emergency responder that can choose whether to exclude the employee from the paid sick leave requirement. The second category is for employers with fewer than 50 employees (for exemptions from certain aspects of the sick leave requirement) if the requirement would jeopardize the viability of the business.

Schmidt continues, "Our goal is to save our clients time, money and stress. Our response to the COVID-19 situation is completely in line with those goals. Depending on your unique circumstances, businesses may find it advantageous to collect the tax credits for helping safeguard their employees. On the other hand, for those with less than 50 employees who need to consider the ongoing viability of their business, we can help them understand their options. Employers need to assess and balance the wellbeing and goodwill of employees and communities along with the economic reality facing their company."

Books by Schmidt, located at 34990 Emerald Coast Pkwy Suite 3016 Destin, FL 32541, is open from 8am to 4pm, Mondays through Fridays. They recommend that clients, new and existing alike, contact them by phone or online channels whenever possible until it is safe to meet in person. They emphasize that everyone should always practice safe social distancing. As companies adjust to using more technology to enable their staff to work from home and share information online, Books by Schmidt wants to assure all their clients that their records are safe in their cloud-based document management system. Crucially, they can also maintain 24/7 access to their online accounting system.

The firm can provide a full suite of accountancy services, including Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Payroll, Tax Submissions, W2/1099 Issuance and much more. They can also provide Expense Document management for companies that simply want to generate a picture of their expenses and a few details. As part of their service, Books by Schmidt speaks with each of their clients each month to review their Statement of Cash Flows, Income Statement and Balance Sheet. Furthermore, they can provide tax filing support to ensure that everything is ready for tax season.

As everyone comes to terms with the impact that COVID-19 has had on families and companies across America, Books by Schmidt invites everyone to stay abreast of their latest news and advice. Interested parties are welcome to view the company Facebook page to learn more. Further information about Books by Schmidt is available on their website, and Kevin Schmidt can be reached for further details.

For more information about Books by Schmidt, contact the company here:

Books by Schmidt

Kevin Schmidt

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kevin@booksbyschmidt.com

Books by Schmidt

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View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583673/Bookkeeping-Firm-Helps-SMBs-Navigate-the-COVID-19-Families-First-Coronavirus-Response-Act
Conjunctivitis, also known as pink-eye, generally presents as redness, swelling and watering of the eyes.

As of April 2, over 9.5 lakh people all over the world have been infected with the novel coronavirus - SARS-CoV-2. Over 48,000 of those infected have died while over 2 lakh have successfully recovered. Researchers all over the world are working tirelessly to find out more about SARS-CoV-2 (which causes COVID-19) since we cant hope to fight something we dont fully understand. This is why, as we go along, we learn something new about COVID-19 almost every day. Today, it happed to be a new symptom of the infection caused by the novel coronavirus - pink-eye.

What we knew so far

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), common symptoms of COVID-19 include dry cough, fever and tiredness. This combination of symptoms is why many parallels are drawn with the flu, even though COVID-19 seems to be more deadly. Other symptoms include runny nose, sore throat, body ache and diarrhoea. Severe cases can also develop breathing problems.

Many infected might also have extremely mild or no symptoms at all - they are referred to as asymptomatic cases. Identifying these cases can be a challenging task.

Over a week ago, a statement by the presidents of the British Rhinological Society and of ENT UK, suggested that loss of smell may be another symptom of COVID-19. The American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery presented a similar theory, adding that there may also be a subsequent loss of taste in COVID-19 patients.

New symptom: pink-eye

The latest study, conducted in China, included 38 patients and was published in JAMA Ophthalmology on March 31.

The only relation between COVID-19 and the eyes so far has been that eyes can be a transmission route for the virus. The ocular mucous membrane makes it possible for the novel coronavirus to be transmitted into the body through the eyes. Nothing about how the disease may present or affect the eyes had been established yet.

Conjunctivitis generally presents as redness, swelling and watering of the eyes. Of all the participants, 12 showed the symptoms of conjunctivitis, which is also known as pink-eye: 11 of the 12 also tested positive for COVID-19 through a nose swab. And of these, two tested positive through both nose and eye swabs.

What may be of even more relevance is that these symptoms often occurred in more severe cases. The study also raises questions about whether the virus could be shed through ocular secretions (tears).

For more information, read our article on COVID-19: Symptoms, Causes, Transmission, Prevention and Treatment.

Health articles in Firstpost are written by myUpchar.com, Indias first and biggest resource for verified medical information. At myUpchar, researchers and journalists work with doctors to bring you information on all things health.
Congress leader Siddaramaiah on



Thursday objected to BJP MPs from Karnataka donating Rs 1 crore from their MP LAD funds and one month salary to PM Cares fund to fight COVID-19, and said instead it is their responsibility to give money to Chief Minister's relief fund for the same purpose.

Accusing the BJP-led Central government of betraying Karnataka in its devolution of taxes through 15th Finance Commission and also in distribution of disaster relief funds, the former Chief Minister said by contributing to PM Cares fund, the ruling party MPs from the state want us to beg in front of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for COVID-19 relief also.

"MP LAD funds are intended towards the development of the constituency. Giving MP LAD funds to PM Care is not just a violation of norms but also an act of betraying people of their own constituency," Siddaramaiah tweeted.

"The direction given by @BJP4India President to give Rs 1 Cr from MP LAD & one month salary to PM Care fund is the reflection of his irresponsibleness," he said adding it is more sensible, and also responsibility of Karnataka representatives to give money to CM relief fund.

Several BJP MPs including Union Minister Sadananda Gowda, Pratap Simha among others have announced their one month salary and Rs 1 crore from their MP LAD fund to PM Cares fund to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic sweeping through the country.

Siddaramaiah who is Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly said, COVID-19 is not limited to one state or region and it has spread across the country, so it is more sensible to use MP LAD funds, through Deputy Commissioners of districts to take measures in their constituency.

"Central govt has already betrayed Karnataka in its devolution of taxes through 15th FC & also in distribution of disaster relief funds. Now @BJP4Karnataka MPs want us to beg again in front of @narendramodi for #Covidrelief which otherwise can be directly spent in Ktaka," he said in another tweet.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NEW YORK: Blood donation centres across the United States will collect plasma from people who have recovered from the deadly COVID-19 that will be used for treating others infected with the pandemic disease.

AABB, an international non-profit agency focused on transfusion medicine and cellular therapies, has issued a new set of guidelines under which dozens of community blood centres in US will collect plasma from COVID-19 survivors that would become a key source for the century-old treatment known as convalescent plasma therapy.

According to NBC report, the convalescent plasma therapy uses blood products taken from people who have recovered from a viral infection and injects them into those still suffering.

The practice was used during the devastating 1918 flu, as well as to treat measles in the 1930s. In recent years, plasma therapy been used to treat victims of Ebola, SARS and H1N1 influenza. Recent studies suggest that using the plasma help in reducing symptoms and death in past outbreaks to some extent. However, its true efficacy has not been proved in rigorous clinical trials as yet

In the current COVID-19 outbreak, anecdotal evidence from China shows that passive antibody therapy appears to help sick patients fight off COVID-19 until they can develop antibodies on their own. Given that theres no treatment or vaccine for COVID-19, experts say there is no harm in using this option.

The new guidelines come a week after the federal Food and Drug Administration authorized the emergency use of convalescent plasma by doctors for individual patients who are critically ill with COVID-19.

This holds significance sine the number of confirmed global cases of coronavirus infections and fatalities due to the deadly virus has seen a rapid escalation in the past 24 hours, with over 1 lakh new cases reported in the past 24 hours.

According to the data provided by the Johns Hopkins University, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases rose by over 1 lakh from 8 to 9 lakh in just 24 hours. The spread of the deadly virus, since it first originated in China, has reached 205 countries now, it said.

More than 900,000 cases of coronavirus have been officially detected worldwide since the pandemic emerged in China late last year, according to Johns Hopkins University. As of now, there are 937,170 confirmed cases of coronavirus with 47,235 fatalities globally.

According to the latest figures, the US has crossed 2 lakh and Spain 1 lakh. Italy crossed 1 lakh cases Wednesday evening. The US now has 216,515 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 5,119 deaths. Italy with 110,574 detected cases has the highest number of fatalities with 13,155 deaths. Spain has 102,136 cases including 9,053 deaths and China has 81,554 cases and 3,312 deaths.

The death toll from COVID-19 in the US jumped by 884 over the past 24 hours, setting a new one-day record for the country, according to Johns Hopkins University. US President Donald Trump has launched an all-out war to defeat the "horrible" coronavirus.

The World Health Organization said on Wednesday it was deeply concerned about the near-exponential escalation of the new coronavirus pandemic, with the number of deaths doubling in a week. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged citizens around the globe to stand together to fight COVID-19, as he braced for the millionth confirmed case.

Since emerging in China in December, COVID-19 has spread across the globe, claiming more than 43,000 lives, and infecting more than 860,000 people, according to an AFP tally of officially confirmed cases. The coronavirus pandemic has killed more than 30,000 people in Europe alone. Italy and Spain account for three in every four deaths on the continent. However, the virus is expected to gain a greater foothold in parts of the world that have not, so far, seen such large numbers of cases and deaths.
Reliance Industries on Thursday said it will raise Rs 25,000 crore through non-convertible debentures to fund its operations.

The company in a regulatory filing said the company board of directors approved "the proposal for raising of funds through the issuance of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) up to Rs 25,000 crore in tranches from time to time, on a private placement basis."



The company did not give the purpose of the fundraising.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Russian-Saudi feud over oil production has destabilized the market even as the industry faces anemic demand and the potential for a legion of layoffs because of the coronavirus pandemic.

On the heels of plummeting prices, the market rallied April 2 after US President Donald Trump, perhaps prematurely, announced via Twitter that Saudi Arabia and Russia appeared ready to compromise on production cutbacks. But some analysts warned that the Saudis seemed "much more measured" in their statements.

Russia has withdrawn from the OPEC+ deal among oil-producing nations to cut production and regulate the market, and Saudi Arabia announced earlier this week it would increase its oil output. The breakup not only sent the market into a spin, but it also triggered a controversial reaction in Russia. Al-Monitor previously reported the ambiguity in positions between captains of the Russian oil business and the Kremlin.

Rosneft, Russias primary state-run oil company, has long lobbied for Russia to pull out of the deal, and Lukoil, Russias major private oil company, has been counting its losses.

OPEC+ has definitely made its own contribution to the overall balancing of the [oil] market through [agreements on] production cuts," Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin said in a recent interview with the Rossiya-24 state news channel. "But just how significant was this influence [on the market]? Because in parallel, the United States has been increasing its production, which eventually made it the [world's] No. 1 producer. It increased its exports to Europe by six times and to India 10 times.

Lukoil Vice President Leonid Fedun observed in an interview with Russian business daily RBK, There were no real economic reasons for Russias participation or nonparticipation in the deal with OPEC. The very idea of abandoning the OPEC+ deal was not discussed by Russian leadership with the top national oil producers, though I know some [Russian] state companies lobbied for this decision.

He added, But even those who lobbied for Russias departure from the deal couldnt imagine in their worst nightmares that today oil would be traded at $25 per barrel and lower."

One way or another, just as Russia initially calculated, the Saudi decision to increase its production to 13 million barrels per day (bpd) crushed market demand. The Saudis offered generous discounts for markets where it traditionally competes with Russia, but given expensive logistics, the Saudi offer wasnt embraced the way Riyadh expected. Besides, pushing Russian companies out of the market also proved difficult, given that they relied on their own pipelines for supply. If this was the Saudi plan to bring Russia back to the negotiating table, it had obvious flaws.

That said, Russian companies still can't compete with Saudi Aramco and OPEC partner companies in production. Should the price of oil remain below $40 bpd in the mid-term, Russian companies would not have sufficient resources to invest in sustaining the desired production level. Some companies have already given up on the idea of investing in the development of new oil fields and asked the government for substantial tax cuts. This, in turn, may have strategic implications for the oil industry in Russia. All of this gives hope that pragmatism on both ends will eventually prevail.

Russia thus keeps the door open and doesnt miss a chance to tout its "good" relations with Saudi Arabia.

Moscow will continue its cooperation with OPEC within the framework of the charter signed by the 24 OPEC+ countries in Vienna in July 2019, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said in early March.

Another driver that is likely to push Russia and Saudi Arabia back together is the need for both to fund their budgets. To balance its budget, Russia needs the price of oil to be at least $42 a barrel; the Saudis need $83.

The current situation also creates a number of domestic challenges for both nations. Russia faces the ordeal of implementing its so-called national projects and is undergoing a complex process of changes to its constitution and future power structure. The national projects largely define the quality of life for ordinary Russians, many of whom are experiencing a radical drop in their incomes between the oil crisis and coronavirus quarantines.

In Saudi Arabia, in turn, the ongoing turbulence challenges its implementation of Vision 2030 and amasses potential for destabilization of the elites  recent arrests in the Saudi royal family attest to just that.

This not to mention other oil-supplying countries whose gold and currency reserves are much more modest than those of Russia and Saudi Arabia.

We [Russians] have a big enough safety margin to finance our obligations.  The current prices in the oil market suggest our reserves could be enough for six years, Russias Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said in a recent interview with the Rossiya-1 state-run news channel.

The oil market urgently needs to be stabilized. Today the market is heavily influenced not only by the pandemic and the breakup of the OPEC+ agreement, but also by US sanctions. These sanctions, for instance, hamper Iran's presence in the market, and the other players currently are taking advantage. Venezuela is another case in point: In early 2020, the United States sanctioned Rosneft Trading and TNK Trading. On March 28, Rosneft decided to leave the Venezuelan market, and Moscow had to set up another state company to purchase the assets.

As an international public company, we have fulfilled our commitments with our shareholders and now have a right to expect the American regulators to fulfill theirs, Rosneft spokesperson Mikhail Leontiev said, according to Russia's Tass news.

Evidently, Rosneft thus seeks to avoid US trade sanctions and maintain a window of opportunity for talks with US companies. This move, however, creates more uncertainties, since the newly formed Russian company may not have the needed production capabilities, and Venezuela will have to cut its market presence, which the United States might use to its favor.

It remains to be seen if the market rally spurred by Trump's optimistic statements will hold up. If not, the low price of oil over the long haul could put a lot of American shale companies on the brink of bankruptcy or worse. Some may choose to limit production to help stabilize the markets. The question is whether the United States is prepared to do so of its own volition via agreements with Moscow and OPEC. This also would create a set of incentives to negotiate a new pact. Whether this could be a long-term deal is questionable, but the tactical effect may indeed help the world economy.
Uber and Lyft driver Adama Fofana sprays disinfectant in his car in New York City.

Reuters

Rideshare drivers for Uber and Lyft say their income has collapsed amid coronavirus, and support from the rideshare companies has been sparse.

Business Insider surveyed over 1,000 rideshare drivers and gig workers. Drivers who are still working said their weekly earnings have dropped by anywhere from 50% to 80% in the past month.

Many have stopped driving altogether due to safety concerns. Others are pivoting to delivery work, which they say has remained more profitable amid the quarantine.

Uber and Lyft have promised to give drivers disinfectant supplies, and Uber promised paid sick leave, but drivers say those benefits are unreliable and difficult to access.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Eddie, a 66-year-old Honolulu Uber driver, regularly works 10 hours a day on the app.

A month ago, he could net $200 per day from Uber. But by late March, his income had plunged to just $25 per day spread across 10 hours. The money has become so negligible that Eddie finally decided to stop driving altogether.

"I currently earn $2.50 per hour, on top of the exposure to riders who possibly carry the virus," he told Business Insider. "I cannot for my own sanity justify to myself why I would jeopardize the health and well being of other riders and of course my own family's."

Lockdowns amid the coronavirus outbreak have been financially devastating for rideshare drivers across the country. More than 1,000 rideshare and delivery workers responded to a Business Insider survey this week  drivers quoted in this article, whose employment Business Insider has verified, described drops in income that mirror Eddie's.

Both Uber and Lyft, which have near-identical business models and pricing, have rolled out measures to support drivers through the coronavirus outbreak  both companies say they provide free disinfectant supplies to drivers, and Uber has vowed to cover two weeks of paid sick leave for drivers. But drivers told Business Insider that the free cleaning supplies are often hard to find, and that Uber's sick pay is unreliable.

Story continues

A Lyft spokesperson told Business Insider that cleaning supplies are delivered in bulk shipments, and drivers will be notified when they arrive.

An Uber spokesperson told Business Insider that the company is "committed to working with drivers and delivery people around the world to help support them," but declined to answer specific questions about cleaning supplies or sick payments. Uber SVP Andrew Macdonald tweeted Thursday that shipments of disinfectants are "now starting to make their way to drivers."

In the immediate term, drivers are poised to get some relief from the newly-passed CARES Act, which extends unemployment benefits to gig workers for the first time ever. Some drivers also told Business Insider they're pivoting to delivery work, which they say has remained profitable amid social distancing measures.

Here's exactly how much of a financial toll coronavirus is taking on rideshare work, according to drivers.

Drivers have watched their incomes evaporate as travel came to a screeching halt due to coronavirus prevention measures.

uber passenger driver

Robert Alexander/Getty Images

Daniel, a full-time Uber driver in Edmonds, WA, said he made roughly $1,000 per week in February. That dropped to $700 per week for the first two weeks in March.

The state of Washington ramped up preventative measures in the second half of March, and Gov. Jay Inslee issued a statewide stay-at-home order on March 23.

In the second two weeks of March, Daniel averaged a mere $16 per week. He has since stopped driving altogether. He added that, while he read online that Uber would provide free cleaning supplies to drivers, he never received any.

Some drivers have started ramping up their work for delivery apps, which they say provide more reliable income.

lyft driver

Mike Coppola / Staff/Getty Images

Adam, a driver in Fairfield, CT, used to work for Uber and Lyft part-time, bringing in about $200 per six hour shift.

He has now started working for delivery apps like Grubhub, Doordash, and Postmates, too  between all the apps, he says he makes roughly $100 in six hours.

"The pay for DoorDash is pretty solid and you can 'cherry-pick' the best deliveries," he said. "But we're even more disposable to all of these companies right now."

Some people recently laid off from previous jobs due to coronavirus have turned to gig work as a backup, only to find that the income was nearly nonexistent.

lyft driver

Madeline Stone / Business Insider

Chicago resident Michael Sanchez was laid off from his full-time job at Dunkin Donuts in the first week of March as his branch scaled down its operations due to coronavirus.

That week, Sanchez started working as a Lyft driver to make backup income. In the three weeks that followed, he watched his average income as a driver sink from over $100 per day to roughly $40 per day.

"I'm doing at most eight rides per day if I'm lucky," Sanchez said. "It goes up and down, but it's mostly been going down."

Uber promised to provide up to two weeks of sick pay for drivers, but many have said the company suspended their account and refused to answer questions when they requested pay.

Uber Driver

Latina Young

Latina Young, an Uber driver in Los Angeles, has been driving for over 5 years and has built up a 4.92-star rating in that time.

Earlier this month, Young had a rider with a persistent cough who joked that "everyone has coronavirus." Within a week, Young herself started experiencing symptoms, and visited a doctor who advised her to self-isolate for two weeks.

In messages back and forth with Uber reviewed by Business Insider, Young attached the letter from her doctor and requested that Uber provide two weeks of sick pay the company had publicly promised. Instead, she received a generic message informing her that her account had been suspended for 14 days without further explanation.

"I have been driving during this crisis suffering with long hours and making less than $500 a week," Young said. "No financial assistance, no explanation."

Young's experience fits a broader pattern described by Uber drivers who have been unable to get sick pay.

For drivers with preexisting health conditions, there's no option but to forego driving entirely. Even then, they say financial support from Uber is unreliable.

uber driver passengers

Leonard Ortiz/Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty Images

Nate, an Uber driver in Las Vegas, told Business Insider that he stopped driving in early March because he has an autoimmune disorder and wants to avoid catching COVID-19 at all costs.

But when he asked Uber to provide two weeks of sick pay, providing a note from his doctor recommending social distancing due to his condition, the company told him that the pay doesn't cover conditions outside of a COVID-19 diagnosis.

"I really thought that due to my disease and the higher risk I have of getting sick, as well as with an official document from my doctor, they would easily listen and help," Nate said. "The whole thing was shady and misleading."

Drivers now see unemployment benefits provided by the CARES Act as a glimmer of hope, but it's still unclear how states will provide the benefits.

Uber Lyft protest

REUTERS/Brian Snyder

"The saving grace in this is that the government has just extended unemployment benefits to rideshare drivers and gig workers," Nate said.

While the $2 trillion stimulus bill does provide benefits to gig workers for the first time, it's not clear exactly how drivers will access those benefits.

Many states have been rejecting applications filed by gig workers, according to a CNBC report, and the exact amounts drivers will be paid is set to be determined on a state level.

"None of us wants to collect unemployment. We'd rather be working, but we're all currently making about 50% less [than before coronavirus] right now, some even less," Adam said. "And we're on the front lines."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Los Angeles

There are cooking shows hosted by celebrities, some of whom may know a fricassee from a frittata, and shows that feature arrogant chefs and bad cooks. There's an upcoming digital series in which blindfolded chefs get smacked in the face with a dish and compete to identify and make it.

Then there's the gimmick-free "America's Test Kitchen," in its 20th season of expertly guiding viewers through well-vetted steps for savory sauces, perfectly grilled fish and flaky pie crusts, among the 1,000-plus recipes it has demystified to date. Also on the menu are reviews of a range of ingredients, from anchovies to baking chocolate to pasta, as well as cookware.

No need to sample more than a half-dozen styles of yogurt, including Australian and Bulgarian, because "America's Test Kitchen" has done it for us. Being practical, not trendy, has its benefits: It boasts of being the longest-running U.S. cooking series. (Japan's "Today's Cooking," which debuted in 1957, has it beat internationally.)

The show's unwavering focus explains its success, said Jack Bishop, chief content officer for America's Test Kitchen and on-screen host of the product comparison segments.

"There's a lot of food content on television and on video platforms, especially in either the competition genre or in the travel genre," Bishop said. With the public TV series, "it's first and foremost the content and the utility of the show, that it helps people cook."

After "America's Test Kitchen" airs on PBS stations (check local listings), weekend traffic surges to its website as viewers decide, "hey, I want to make that recipe," he said.

The average weekly audience is 2.25 million, holding steady and even climbing a percentage point or two in the past two years. The show has expanded its reach  and appeal  online, with a YouTube subscription channel whose audience includes cooking-curious young men who hadn't discovered the series on TV, according to the America's Test Kitchen company.

The company publishes the "Cook's Illustrated" and "Cook's Country" magazines, which are ad-free like the public TV series.

The series "is public television personified. It's all about life-long learning, being educated while entertained" and empowering viewers to develop their passion and skills, said Cynthia Fenneman, president and CEO of American Public Television, which distributes "America's Test Kitchen" to public TV stations nationwide.

Recipes are tested dozens of times by more than 50 full-time cooks who are aided by a panel of 40,000 home cooks. The goal is to create a reliable blueprint that can be followed by viewers, with the average cost of testing for one recipe about $10,000, according to America's Test Kitchen.

It all happens in the vast, industrial-looking kitchen in Boston seen on TV. Taping on this season's 26 episodes were completed before the coronavirus epidemic forced a widespread shutdown of TV and movie production.

A key ingredient for the show is the chemistry between the hosts-cooks, Bridget Lancaster and Julia Collin Davison, and the ensemble of fellow test cooks and Bishop. The vibe is friendly cooperation, not culinary one-upmanship.

"All the research we do about the shows indicates people like to just turn it on and spend time with us," Bishop said. "We actually like each other. I've done the shows since day one. I've known Bridget since 1998, Julia since 1999, and Adam (kitchen equipment expert Adam Ried) since, I think, 1995."

Christopher Kimball, who co-founded America's Test Kitchen in 1980, hosted the program until a contract dispute led him and the company to part ways in 2016.

There are talking points but no scripts or prompters, Bishop said, which means that viewers are getting accomplished chefs and other experts sharing their knowledge in a relaxed way.

Perhaps the biggest change over the years can be found in the recipes themselves. "When America's Test Kitchen" launched, there was an emphasis on traditional family fare that mom or grandmom made. That interest has all but evaporated, Bishop said, and people instead are choosing to re-create the dishes they enjoy when eating out.

"They want to make Thai food, Mexican food, Italian food, and do it well. So the recipe selection has really evolved over the 20 years of the show and reflects the audience tastes," he said.
Donald Trump at a White House briefing on the coronavirus pandemic: AFP via Getty Images

US unemployment figures have again shattered records, with 6.6 million Americans filing for benefits as the coronavirus pandemic brings society to a grinding halt and threatens economic collapse.

Donald Trump attempted to pivot away from the deadly outbreak in his latest press briefing on Wednesday  a day on which the countrys death toll hit 5,000 from 216,000 cases - threatening Iran, questioning Chinas figures and attacking Fox News reporter John Roberts for asking him about a false story.

The latest horror stories from the US include the tragic death of a six-week-old infant in Connecticut, New Yorks death toll doubling in 72 hours and the state of Michigan surpassing Californias case numbers, reporting 2,000 fresh instances in just one day.

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New Delhi: The National Commission for Women has received over 250 complaints since the country-wide lockdown was imposed to control the spread of coronavirus out of which 69 were cases of domestic violence, which it said has been increasing since then.

Since the lockdown was imposed, a total of 257 complaints related to various offences against women were received, out of which 69 complaints are related to domestic violence, the data released by the NCW showed.

NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma said the number of cases of domestic violence must be much higher but the women are scared to complain due to constant presence of their abuser at home.

She said from March 24 till April 1, the NCW has received 69 domestic violence complaints and it is increasing by the day.

"Women are not approaching the police because they think that if they take her husband away, the in-laws would be torturing her. Because of the lockdown, women are not able to reach out to the police. They don't even want to go to the police because they are afraid that once their husband comes out of the police station, he will again torture her and she can't even move out.

"Earlier women could go to their parents place but now they are unable to reach. The NCW is in touch with these complainants," she said.

Women rights activists said they have also received numerous complaints of domestic violence from women since the enforcement of the lockdown.

Rights activist Kavita Krishnan, also the secretary of the All India Progressive Women's Association, said vulnerable women could have moved to safer places if the government had given some warning of the lockdown.

"All the women (domestic violence victims) who contacted me said had they known (about the lockdown), they would have tried to get out earlier and be somewhere safer," she said.

"The only thing to do is help and rescue domestic violence survivors. Their situation is worse now in the lockdown," Krishnan added.

According to Vani Subramanian, a member of the women's group Saheli Trust, "captivity anyway drives people crazy and abusive situations only make it worse".

Ranjana Kumari, the director of the Centre for Social Research, said everyone was at home due to the lockdown and women were not getting the courage to contact for help. "It is not a good situation for women," Kumari said.
These past few weeks, more and more companies are stepping up and using their resources to create the much-needed vaccine to help fight COVID-19. Even cosmetic companies are making hand sanitizers and fashion designers are making protective masks for front liners.

But the companies that the public is waiting to hear from are those from the pharmaceutical industry who have brilliant minds who can work on ways to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Just recently, Johnson & Johnson has announced that they are starting to research and develop a possible vaccine.

Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine

On March 30, Johnson & Johnson did a press release and they stated that they are working with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority or BARDA to create a vaccine for COVID-19 since the virus sequence became available. They also stated that they will begin to test the lead vaccine candidate on people in clinical studies by September and if the data shows that it is safe and efficient by the end of 2020, it could become available to the public in less than a year.

The statement from Johnson & Johnson reads, "The company expects to initiate human clinical studies of its lead vaccine candidate at the latest by September 2020 and anticipates the first batches of a COVID-19 vaccine could be available for emergency use authorization in early 2021, a substantially accelerated timeframe in comparison to the typical vaccine development process."

Also read: Church Sells 'Plague Protection Kit' Against Coronavirus

According to their statement, the development process of the vaccine can last five to seven years before it can be considered for approval. The company is also currently working on making sure that the vaccine will be available worldwide. They are expanding their manufacturing capacity in the U.S and other countries.

The statement reads: "The additional capacity will assist in the rapid production of a vaccine and will enable the supply of more than one billion doses of a safe and effective vaccine globally." The company plans to begin production at risk imminently and is committed to bringing an affordable vaccine to the public on a not-for-profit basis for emergency pandemic use.

Aside from the vaccine, the company also shared that they will be committing another $50 million for immediate coronavirus response for the health care workers. This is following their announcement in January that they committed to $250 million to support the front liners.

Other companies working on coronavirus vaccine

On March 17, Pfizer Inc. announced that they are going to develop and distribute BioNTech SE's coronavirus vaccine candidate, but the deal excludes China. BioNTech plans to put their vaccine candidate into clinical trials in April. The clinical trials will be done in the U.S and Germany. They are testing the vaccine and they are collaborating with the Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd. in China. This is not the first time that BioNTech and Pfizer have partnered up, they also teamed up in developing mRNA-based influenza vaccines.

Another company that pledged to develop a vaccine for COVID-19 is Heat Biologics. They have announced that they are creating a vaccine with the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. On March 17, they disclosed in a financial filing that their coronavirus vaccine candidate has been forwarded to the World Health Organization's list of 41 candidate vaccines. Heat Biologics also joined the Alliance for Biosecurity, and the partnership could help them secure government funding to support the development, production, and distribution of the vaccine.

Related article: Coronavirus Vaccine May Be Out in 18 Months, But California Lab Claims Making It in 3 Hours

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Iran has denied that the head of the Quds Force was killed in an Israeli airstrike that targeted the Shayrat military airport report Enab Baladi.

The Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) denied the killing of its commander Brigadier Esmail Ghaani in an Israeli raids that targeted Syria.

Recent rumors claimed that Ghaani and several Iranian officers were killed following Israeli raids on Shayrat military airport in eastern Homs, however, the Iranian Fars News Agency denied the reports on Wednesday.

Ghaani replaced former commander General Qassem Soleimani after the latter was killed in a US raid in Iraq last January.

On Tuesday, Israeli warplanes attacked Syrian regime military sites in the eastern countryside of Homs, according to SANA, citing a regime military source. This marked the second Israeli attack against Syria in March.

The Israeli army did not release an official statement regarding the attacks, however, Israeli media reported the offensive citing SANA.Israel attacked Syria six times in 2020 including three offensives in February and one in January.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
CHICAGO  Three federal lawsuits were filed Thursday seeking the release of thousands of Illinois prisoners amid the alarming spread of coronavirus in state lockups that has already killed one inmate and sickened dozens of others.

The lawsuits, filed in U.S. District Court by a consortium of Chicago civil rights attorneys and community activists, included a proposed federal class action suit against Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Illinois Department of Corrections officials, a habeus corpus action, and a direct appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court.

The suits stated that as many as 12,000 prisoners could be eligible for release, including many who were convicted of non-violent offenses, are elderly, at elevated risk to get ill, or have already served most of their sentences.

As of Wednesday, a total of 52 inmates and 25 prison staff members in lockups across the state had tested positive for COVID-19. One inmate from Stateville Correctional Center near Joliet died as a result of the infection. The Chicago Tribune has reported he was Russell Sedelmaier, 59, who was serving a life sentence for a double murder near Buffalo Grove.

The lawsuits alleged that IDOC and political leaders have dragged their feet in the face of the pandemic, putting prisoners, prison staff and the general public at greater risk of severe illness and death.

Nearly 37,000 people are incarcerated in Illinois, living in close quarters where all aspects of daily life, including healthcare and food service, take place, the lawsuits stated. The suits alleged the prisons are petri dishes for spreading deadly epidemics.

Pritzker, meanwhile, announced Wednesday that he had activated 30 additional Illinois National Guard members to provide medical support at Stateville. The soldiers, who are military medics, will perform health screenings that include taking blood pressure, temperatures and other vital signs. They will report to IDOC medical teams.

The Illinois National Guard is also provide 30 sleeping cots. The 24-hour-a-day operation will be run out of the prison gym.

This brings the total number of Illinois National Guard service members directly supporting the COVID-19 response to about 430.

The Tribune reported earlier this week that measures outlined by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to prevent the spread of the coronavirus -- including staying 6 feet away from others, washing your hands repeatedly, and using hand sanitizer when you cant --have been almost impossible to abide by inside a prison or jail.

Some facilities were reportedly on lockdowns that were restricting movement, limiting the ability for inmates to get to showers, the Tribune reported. Others were hearing about inmates getting a quarter-cup of soap handed out every other day, no sanitizer or cleaning supplies, and lack of protective gear for staff.
China has approved the use of bear bile to treat coronavirus patients, angering activists and raising fears it could undermine efforts to stop the illegal animal trade which is blamed for the emergence of the disease sweeping the globe.

The move comes just weeks after China banned the sale of wild animals for food, citing the risk of diseases spreading from animals to humans.

But the National Health Commission in March issued guidelines recommending the use of 'Tan Re Qing' - an injection that contains bear bile powder, goat horn and three other medicinal herbs to treat critically ill coronavirus patients.

The Asiatic Black Bear is commonly and illegally traded for its body parts throughout Asia. Experts believe more than 12,000 bears are kept on bear bile farms in China and Vietnam today

It is one of six traditional Chinese medicine products included in the directive.

President Xi Jinping has been keen to promote traditional medicine and saying it should be given as much weight as other treatments.

The active ingredient in bear bile, ursodeoxycholic acid, is used to dissolve gallstones and treat liver disease but has no proven effectiveness in treating COVID-19.

The drug (pictured) is produced by a Shanghai pharmaceutical company following traditional Chinese medicine theories. It is made from bear bile powder, goat horns and different herbs. President Xi Jinping has been keen to promote traditional medicine and saying it should be given as much weight as other treatments

The medicine can treat patients with respiratory diseases, including pneumonia, acute bronchitis and chronic bronchitis, according to its producer.

China has used both traditional and Western medicine in its battle against the novel coronavirus, which has killed more than 3,000 and infected more than 82,000.

But activists say greenlighting a treatment that uses an animal product is 'both tragic and ironic' given that the origin of the deadly coronavirus is linked to the trade and consumption of wild animals.

Brian Daly, a spokesman for the Animals Asia Foundation, said: 'We shouldn't be relying on wildlife products like bear bile as the solution to combat a deadly virus that appears to have originated from wildlife.'

The coronavirus is believed to have come from bats, but researchers think it might have spread to humans via an intermediate host mammal species.

Chinese disease control officials have previously identified wild animals sold in a market in Wuhan market as the source of the coronavirus pandemic.

Residents given a green health code are allowed to leave their homes. The central Chinese city of Wuhan will lift its lockdown on April 8, and has had its first full week of no new cases

Conservationists have long accused China of tolerating a cruel trade in wild animals as exotic menu items or for use in traditional medicines whose efficacy is not confirmed by science.

Scientists say Severe Acute Respiratory System (SARS) - another deadly coronavirus - likely originated in bats, later reaching humans via civet cats.

Daly added: 'Promotion of bear bile has the propensity to increase the amount used, affecting not only captive bears, but also those in the wild, potentially compromising an already endangered species in Asia and across the world.'

There are about 20,000 bears being held in tiny cages under cruel conditions across China to cater to the demand from traditional medicine suppliers, said Kirsty Warren, a spokeswoman for World Animal Protection.

People wearing face masks wait for a supermarket to open in Wuhan, which was the epicentre of China's coronavirus disease

Bile farming is legal in China - but exports of the product or treatments made from it are banned under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, which China is a signatory to.

Richard Thomas from animal rights NGO Traffic said: 'Across Asia, bear bile trade is widespread, although it is illegal in most countries.'

He added that the active ingredient ursodeoxycholic acid is readily synthesised in laboratories, so even if it did prove to be popular there should be no need for bear bile to be included in medicines.

How is bear bile extracted? Bears in their cages prepare to have their bile drained at a traditional Chinese medicine farm in Hui'an. Activists have expressed fears that approving the use of bear bile to treat Covid-19 could undermine efforts to stop the illegal animal trade The Asiatic Black Bear is commonly and illegally traded for their body parts throughout Asia, including Myanmar, China, Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia and Indonesia, according to Jill Robinson MBE, founder of the Animals Asia charity. It is farmed in China and Vietnam for its bile, which is thought to have high medical values. The bear's paws, teeth and gall bladders are desirable ingredients for traditional medicine practitioners. According to Animals Asia, hunters obtained bear bile in the past by killing bears in the wild and removing their gall bladder. In the 1980s, bear bile farming emerged and workers started to constantly extract bile for the duration of a bear's life. Experts believe that more than 12,000 bears are kept on bear bile farms in China and Vietnam today. The Asiatic Black Bear is listed as Appendix I by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, an international agreement between governments aimed to protect endangered animals and plants. Appendix I is the highest category for endangered species, and according to the convention, animals in the category are threatened with extinction. Advertisement

China in February declared an immediate and 'comprehensive' ban on the trade and consumption of wild animals that was welcomed by environmentalists.

Beijing implemented similar measures following the SARS outbreak in the early 2000s, but the trade and consumption of wild animals, including bats and snakes, made a comeback.

But in signs that the measures are being taken more seriously this time, the southern city of Shenzhen also passed a law banning the consumption of wild animals - including cat and dog meat.

The move was welcomed by animal rights activists, with Humane Society International saying the trade kills an estimated 10 million dogs and four million cats in China every year.
The NYPD has considered looking at creating specific 'DOA Teams' which would go around the city collecting bodies during coronavirus crisis.

Although no specific team has been created, the police department has been considering establishing dedicated teams that would focus solely on the gathering of bodies.

The NYPD was apparently going to tempt officers to join the DOA Team by offering participants up to 60 hours of overtime for the grisly task, which is twice the amount of OT usually allowed by the department under normal circumstances.

The NYPD was thinking about creating 'Dead on Arrival' teams whose sole purpose would be to travel around the city collecting corpses

Refrigerated trucks are lined up behind NYU Langone Hospital in New York City. Due to a surge in deaths caused by the coronavirus, hospitals are using the trucks as makeshift morgues

NYC prepares for the worst: The military sets up makeshift morgue using tents and refrigeration trucks outside Manhattan's Bellevue hospital in preparation for a surge in coronavirus victims

The details were outlined in an email seen by the New York Post which was sent to precinct detective units.

Police chiefs asked for volunteers to form citywide teams which would help collect those who were designated 'dead on arrival'.

'The idea of creating a Borough DOA Team is being look [sic] at and we only want volunteers for it  no forcing anybody,' the email read. 'It would be three teams (2 investigators per team).'

The police officers involved would have been given specific training to help perform the morbid task.

A new makeshift morgue is set outside Lenox Health Medical Pavilion. The NYPD was thinking about making DOA teams to entice officers to sign up with huge amounts of overtime

NYPD says the idea was 'tabled' and is not proceeding at the current time

'It's what we did after 9/11,' Ed Mullins, president of the Sergeant's Benevolent Association union, said.

'A lot of people got sick and a lot of them are dead. It's part of our job with the proper training, with the proper equipment and with the proper protocol.'

A spokesperson for the NYPD has said that although the department has considered forming DOA teams, none have been created.

'The police department is not considering this plan,' he said.

On Wednesday it was revealed the virus has claimed another 391 lives across the state of New York.

Between Tuesday and Wednesday, the number of infections in New York State rose to 83,712 - an increase of 7,941 - and the death toll surged from 1,550 to 1,941.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the 'apex' - when the most will die and become infected - has still not hit and that it will come at the end of April.

Officials say that 84 percent of the city's ICU beds are already filled with just 392 remaining for critically ill COVID-19 patients.
Bay Area political events that are happening online during the coronavirus pandemic:

FRIDAY

Rep. Ro Khanna: Fremont Democrat holds Facebook Live Q&A town hall meeting. Noon. Submit questions here; join here.

THURSDAY

Shahid Buttar: House Speaker Nancy Pelosis challenger in the November election in conversation with Michelle Meow in a Commonwealth Club online event. Noon. Join here.

Supervisor Catherine Stefani: Q&A with San Francisco District Two supervisor. Hosted by Mannys. 1 p.m. More information is here; join here.

Tom Steyer: Former Democratic presidential candidate on what he learned from his campaign. Hosted by Mannys. 5 p.m. More information is here; join here.

APRIL 20

Dan Pfeiffer: Pod Save America co-host on how President Trump is handling the coronavirus crisis. Hosted by Mannys. 6 p.m. More information here; join here.

APRIL 21

Change during a pandemic: Remote access-study group discusses possibilities for social change during the pandemic. Hosted by Freedom Socialist Party. Sessions on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. (register here) or Wednesdays at 3:30 p.m. (register here). Reading list here. $3-$5 suggested donation per session.

To list an event, please email Chronicle politics editor Trapper Byrne at tbyrne@sfchronicle.com
Some states are planning to dramatically expand their use of mobile voting in response to the coronavirus pandemic - even as cybersecurity experts warn such systems are unproven and too vulnerable to hacking.

Two states will soon announce that they'll offer voters who have disabilities the option to cast ballots using mobile phones in upcoming primary elections so they don't have to risk going into polling places, said Sheila Nix, president of Tusk Philanthropies, which is funding the efforts. The option will extend to voters in the military or state residents who are based overseas.

"With coronavirus and the uncertainty about what the situation will be in November, a lot of states and jurisdictions are looking for a solution," Nix told me, but declined to name the states or the mobile voting vendor they'll be using, because memorandums of understanding aren't complete yet.

Those states will join West Virginia, which became the first to try statewide mobile voting for military and overseas voters in 2018 and has already announced it will expand to voters with disabilities during its upcoming primary June 9. Nix said she's also talking with about half a dozen other states about potentially using mobile voting for some residents, which would be a significant expansion for a system that has otherwise been tried for just a handful of counties since 2018 and typically just for military and overseas voters.

As states scramble to expand voting-by-mail and early-voting days so voters don't have to risk their health by crowding into polling sites, mobile voting could be an additional solution. The states are offering mobile options to voters with disabilities partly because some conditions make it impossible for them to vote by mail without assistance, which would undermine the secrecy of their ballots. Voters who are blind or have advanced Parkinson's disease, for example, would be unable to fill in the ovals on a voting form.

But there have been dire warnings from cybersecurity experts that mobile voting lacks basic protections to ensure votes haven't been manipulated by hackers. This trade-off for access to voting during a pandemic could undermine the sense of security around the 2020 contest that officials have worked for years to achieve following Russian interference efforts in 2016.

The critics' strongest objection is that, by definition, mobile voting doesn't produce a paper record that is verified by the voter and that auditors can use to ensure votes were tallied correctly. That's basically the same problem with the paperless voting machines that state and local election officials have been replacing across the nation since Russia's 2016 election interference operation.

There's also no way of ensuring a mobile vote was cast by the person that was supposed to cast it rather than a hacker that compromised the phone. And adding new technology to the voting process also creates other risks, such as that hackers from adversary nations will force mobile networks offline on Election Day or overwhelm them with traffic so voters get frustrated and give up.

"There's a remarkable consensus among the scientific community that voting on mobile apps just cannot be made secure," Marian Schneider, president of the voting security group Verified Voting and a former state election official in Pennsylvania, told me. "Election officials are under enormous pressure right now to deliver an election where everyone can vote, but Internet voting is not the solution."

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a longtime voting security advocate who has been pushing for states to expand voting by mail during the pandemic, described mobile voting companies as "snake oil salesmen" in a statement and warned "it's not worth risking our democracy on unproven, insecure technology."

Voatz, one of the main mobile voting vendors, has also been pummeled by researchers who say its app contains too many vulnerabilities, and the company has battled with researchers who say it isn't transparent enough about its security practices.

Even Nix and other mobile-voting supporters acknowledge the systems need to develop better security protections before they're deployed more broadly and say it will be several years before they're ready to be tried across an entire state's population. Tusk also funded security reviews of the major mobile voting vendors that it shared with states and localities and that pointed out some of the security problems with the Voatz system. The companies ShiftState Security and Trail of Bits also vetted the company Democracy Live, which will be used in the West Virginia primary.

But supporters also argue there could be massive benefits to mobile voting, including raising voter turnout and making it far easier for elderly and rural people and people with disabilities to vote - and to use in situations such as now, when in-person voting is difficult for everyone.

"We still have a lot of work to do from the technology standpoint, but I think five to 10 years from now we'll in a better place solving a lot of these issues," Jay Kaplan, a former National Security Agency technologist and co-founder of the cybersecurity testing company Synack, told me. "There are so many advantages in doing electronic voting that it's important the industry rallies behind this."

They're also urging other technologists and election officials to start working on ensuring the systems are secure rather than criticizing them from the sidelines.

"This technology is going to exist no matter what, so it's important that we insert security best practices on the front end," Andre McGregor, a former FBI cyber special agent and chief security officer at ShiftState Security, told me. "[Cybersecurity experts] should be pushing down the door saying, 'We accept this is coming and we have to figure out how we create something that's secure.' "

West Virginia Republican Secretary of State Mac Warner, who's one of the strongest state-level advocates for mobile voting, also sent a letter March 19 to Defense Secretary Mark Esper urging that the department assist in developing a mobile voting system that could be used by troops stationed abroad and warning that situations similar to the coronavirus pandemic could one day make it impossible for those troops to vote by mail.

"If soldiers can bank electronically, shop by internet, and rely on tele-medicine, they should be able to participate in the very democracy they fight to defend by voting by mobile device," he told Esper, according to a copy of the letter that Nix shared with me.

Warner told me mobile voting is "an appropriate place for the federal government to be involved" and said he worried voting by mail is often too costly and burdensome for military voters overseas.

"We should be using the power of today's technology to make sure democracy can run smoothly," he said.
Washington

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he is weighing grounding domestic flights between coronavirus hot spots as he ramps up efforts to try to contain the pandemic's spread.

"We're thinking about doing that," Trump told reporters at a White House briefing, a day after he warned the nation to brace for a "hell of a bad two weeks," with 100,000 to 240,000 coronavirus deaths projected, even if current social distancing guidelines are maintained.

Limited flights continue to run between cities like New York and Detroit, though passenger counts have plummeted across the nation. The Transportation Security Administration screened just 146,348 passengers Tuesday, down from 2,026,256 the same day last year.

Nonetheless, Trump said he was looking at new restrictions, even as he voiced concern about the impact on already-struggling airlines, saying that, once you do that, "you really are clamping down" on "an industry that is desperately needed."

Trump, however, offered mixed messages. He seemed to suggest that he was looking to temporarily ground all domestic flights, saying, "We're looking at the whole thing because we're getting into a position now where we want to do that, we have to do that ... and we may have some recommendations."

But pressed later on whether that was his intention, he said he was thinking of something less restrictive.

"I am looking where flights are going into hot spots," he said. "Closing up every single flight on every single airline, that's a very, very, very rough decision. But we are thinking about hot spots where you go from spot to spot, both hot. And we'll let you know fairly soon."

Trump also said he was considering similar restrictions on train travel, while claiming, incorrectly, that anyone boarding a plane or train is currently subjected to "very strong tests for getting on, getting off."

Trump in the past has said he was reluctant to ground flights because of challenges in getting the system back up and running once the threat posed by the virus fades.

Over the course of the crisis, Trump has been criticized for acting too slowly and for mixed messages from his administration. Over the weekend, he floated but then pulled back on the idea of a mandatory quarantine for residents of New York, New Jersey and parts of Connecticut. In the end, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a travel advisory urging residents of the states to refrain from nonessential travel for the next 14 days.

Indeed, Trump seemed to acknowledge Wednesday that perhaps he should have acted sooner.

"It's a very big decision to do that, and we're pretty late in the process from the standpoint that this is starting," he said. "You're going to start seeing, I think over the next couple of weeks, you're going to start to see us hit a top and start coming down."
The 107 Zimbabweans who had travelled to the East African country early last week aboard Air Zimbabwe, met horror upon landing at the airport when they were ordered to go into self-isolation for 14 days at own cost, a measure taken by the John Magufuli-led government to stop the spread of the deadly virus that has killed thousands worldwide since December last year.
Initially, there was this foolish idea that Black folks couldnt get the coronavirus. The real questions shouldve been not only why arent we seen as a particularly vulnerable population, but what happens when we get it?

Data suggests that Black Indianapolis is more vulnerable to health issues in general.

We already know our life expectancies are different.

According to a 2015 Indiana University Richard Fairbanks School of Public Health study, most Black neighborhoods have an average life expectancy of 69.4 years, which is more similar to Iraq (70 years) than the average life expectancy of 78.8 years for the U.S.

Marion County overall had a life expectancy of 76.4 years, while Hamilton County enjoyed an average life expectancy of 82 years in the same study.

The studys authors suggested that roughly 75% of population health factors are connected to social determinants of health, like  quality childcare and quality education, safe and affordable housing, a secure job with decent pay, air and soil free of toxic pollutants, and a place to play, shop, or socialize with neighbors without fear of crime and discrimination is extremely difficult in some communities.

They go on to note, All of these differences in opportunity contribute to variations in the number of years certain populations can expect to live.

Even after Obamacare, 12% of Blacks do not have health insurance, compared to 8% of whites. (Nearly 27% of the Latinx community does not have health insurance).

We also know that according to the IU Center for Research on Inclusion and Social Policy, which I am affiliated with, 48% of Black Indianapolis live in majority Black neighborhoods.

Since roughly a third of the Black community lives in food deserts, we also know that our community is susceptible to obesity, diabetes and other underlying conditions.

The academic literature on Black-white disparities on health outcomes is also substantial.

Other communities such as Charlotte-Mecklenburg, North Carolina have already asked the questions and made the observation based on data. As of March 30, the Black community, which represents roughly 33% of the community there, accounted for 43% of the positive cases for coronavirus.

In other cities such as Milwaukee, where the first eight people to die were Black, segregation and COVID-19 have proven to be a deadly combination.

Milwaukee is the most segregated city in America based on the most recent American Community Survey data; Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson was 25th  making us more segregated than New Orleans, Houston, Washington, D.C., and Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, North Carolina-South Carolina.

But more than segregation, spreading of the coronavirus can be a result of Black people just deciding to be together in large numbers.

In Albany, Georgia, 90% of the people who have died from the coronavirus were Black. Public health officials believe the February 29 funeral of a janitor was a super spreading event.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams suggested Indianapolis is an emerging hotspot for COVID-19.

Why anyone thought COVID-19 didnt present a serious threat to the Black community seems ridiculous.

By now, we all should know that Black folks can get the coronavirus. The next question is what happens when we get it?

In an environment where disparities and their impacts are likely to be exacerbated, the debate for the Black community cant be whether or not Black people can get COVID-19, but rather, when we experience significant symptoms, will we have access to tests?

If we test positive, will we receive the treatment we need? And once we are treated, what will be the outcomes? Will we be sicker because of the propensity of having additional underlying conditions that complicate treatment? Will there be disparities in morbidity?

And how are our health care providers leveraging the factors I outlined and data they no doubt collect to combat racial disparities in outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic?

The equity discussion health systems leaders should also be having now may literally be a matter of life and death.

What Im hearing

There is universal and well-deserved respect for frontline service providers at hospitals, including doctors, nurses and administrators, law enforcement officers and workers at places such as grocery stores for their tireless efforts to keep us safe and continuing to serve in dangerous conditions.

Folks are risking their health and possibly their lives. We owe them everything  including staying home and washing our hands.

From the northwest area to Brightwood to the far east side, grassroots leaders have demonstrated their capacity to rise to the occasion to take care of the community.

From developing food delivery and drop-off sites to wellness checks to neighborhood watch systems, grassroots leaders and pastors are protecting, feeding and sustaining the village. Their leadership has been essential for the Black community.

Finally, I get after Marion County superintendents for the racial achievement gap  and those concerns still remain  but we all need to acknowledge that they stepped forward to make sure kids who needed it were fed. Pushing school district leaders on an issue should not be misconstrued as an accusation that they dont care about kids.

The superintendents who stepped up big are to be commended for their service to the community.

See ya next week

Marshawn Wolley is a lecturer, commentator, business owner and civic entrepreneur. Contact him at marshawnwolley@gmail.com.
On March 31, Elon Musk wrote on his Twitter page that Tesla was willing to send artificial lung ventilation machines to hospitals worldwide.

"We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. Will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Device & shipping cost are free. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients, not stored in a warehouse. Please me or Tesla know, the American businessman stated.

Former Healthcare Minister of Ukraine Ulana Suprun responded to Musks tweet, asking for help.

My name is Ulana Suprun and I am the former minister of health of Ukraine. Ukraine is in dire need of ventilators. We have only 3500 in the ICUs and we have a population of 37 million. Please help us! the message reads.

As we reported earlier, a cargo plane from China delivered another batch of medical supplies to Ukraine on March 31.

It was loaded with 100,000 PCR tests for coronavirus, 40,000 multiple-use glasses, medical masks and the facilities for lung ventilators.
Two Chinese nationals who were kidnapped in Ebonyi State, South-east Nigeria, last week, have regained their freedom.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how the victims were kidnapped at a mining site operated by Green Filed Nigeria LTD in Ishiagu, Ivo Local Governnent Area.

The police confirmed the release of the victims on Thursday.

The police spokesperson in Ebonyi, Loveth Odah, said the victims were released unharmed as a result of the sustained pressure mounted by police operatives.

Ms Odah said: It would be recalled that on March 29 the Command confirmed a kidnapped incident of two Chinese Nationals one Shen Gushen m and Mao Ximnim m which took place at Green Filed Nigeria ltd company site Ishiagu Ivo L.G.A of the state.

The victims were released unharmed as a result of the sustained pressure mounted by the Police operatives.

The victims have been since reunited with their community. Meanwhile, Police is on manhunt for the bandits.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

Currently, a pandemic of coronavirus pneumonia is spreading around the world, which threatens the life and health of people and also creates great problems for global security, Chinese ambassador to Azerbaijan Guo Min said.

Min made remarks in Baku during a speech at the ceremony of transferring medical supplies from China to Azerbaijan as part of the fight against the spread of coronavirus, Trend reports.

Amid the sudden emergence of coronavirus from the beginning of the year, the Chinese government and people, who are not afraid of any difficulties, launched the people's war against the epidemic, the ambassador said.

After hard efforts and numerous victims, the situation in China continues to improve, production activity and people's lives are quickly recovering, Min said.

"On the 28th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Azerbaijan, we have gathered here to conduct a ceremony of transferring China's anti-epidemic materials to help Azerbaijan, Min said.

This event is of particular importance and also demonstrates deep and close friendship, high mutual trust between China and Azerbaijan," the ambassador said.

During the most difficult period for China, the Azerbaijani government and friendly people from different countries rendered great support to China, Min said. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev sent condolences to Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The executive branch of Sumgayit city has sent the necessary assistance to prevent outbreak in Mianyang city of Yichuan province and Xi'an city of Shaanxi province, the ambassador added.

Such Azerbaijani public organizations as the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Nizami Ganjavi International Center actively cooperate with China through relevant channels, Min said.

We will always maintain friendly relations, which are especially significant in this difficult situation, the ambassador said.

As a result of the aggravation of the global epidemiological situation, the Azerbaijani government and people also have faced this problem, Min said.

To stress the friendship between China and Azerbaijan, the Chinese government decided to donate 5,000 new types of tests to Azerbaijan to diagnose coronavirus, the ambassador said. China will also soon supply the second batch of aid to Azerbaijan, including non-invasive respirators, protective clothing and other items.

The Chinese embassy in Azerbaijan will actively carry out relevant work, Min said. Moreover, Xi'an city of Shaanxi province, Mianyang city of Yichuan province, Zhejiang city of Guizhou province and other local provinces and cities of China, as well as Azerbaijans Huawei Technologies Co. LTD take active measures for as many materials as possible for the prevention of epidemics to be supplied to Azerbaijan. We hope that the abovementioned funds may effectively help Azerbaijan in the work to prevent and control the epidemic.

During the recent extraordinary G20 leaders summit, Jinping stressed that the main infectious diseases are the enemies of all mankind, the ambassador said. The international community must build trust, jointly respond to the difficulties, work together, comprehensively strengthen the international cooperation, unite the efforts to overcome the pandemic and to overcome the main infectious diseases.

I believe that with the participation of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, China and Azerbaijan will work together to eliminate difficulties, to prevent a pandemic as soon as possible for the sake of great tomorrow!" she stressed.
Ottawa is being urged to rapidly reform its COVID-19 emergency job-loss fund after a new analysis says 862,000 unemployed Canadians will get nothing from either Employment Insurance or the special benefit during the pandemic crisis.

A full one third of unemployed workers will fall through the cracks and receive no income support unless changes are made quickly to ensure no one is left behind, said David Macdonald, author of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives analysis released Thursday.

Macdonald, the CCPAs senior economist, said the bulk of workers left behind lost their jobs before the March 15 start of eligibility for payments under the Canada Emergency Response Benefit program, usually because they were self-employed or lacked enough hours to qualify for EI before eligibility rules were liberalized after the pandemic took hold.

Philip Ferguson, a self-employed worker not covered by the emergency package, said he will be forced to continue working on a job site where Im at a high risk of getting sick even when taking precautions. I am under so much pressure to pay debt, rent and expenses to continue working.

In response to the viral outbreak that has hit transport, services and hospitality sectors especially hard, the federal government quickly established the CERB program to offer $2,000 per month for a maximum of four months to help pay for rent and groceries. Ottawa expects four million Canadians to apply for the emergency job-loss fund.

Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough has also said that the benefit could be a model for future aid programs. This could be the impetus to really, radically simplify how people access income support from the federal government.

The CCPA analysis says about 1.2 million Canadians were unemployed before COVID-19 started to significantly impact the Canadian economy, and they were joined by another 1.5 million in the initial round of COVD-19 layoffs. Of those who lost their jobs before COVID-19, 604,000 are not eligible for EI but also cant get the CERB because their employment didnt cease due to the virus.

Fourteen per cent of unemployed people (390,000) are receiving some support from EI, but less than the $500 a week others will get under CERB, the analysis finds. Macdonald notes that, based on comparable EI numbers, three per cent of laid-off workers (or about 47,000) wont get the CERB even though theyd likely qualify, because they dont know about the program, due to its rapid deployment. Another 175,000 workers wont get CERB despite being laid off after the virus hit because they didnt make the required minimum earnings of $5,000 in 2019.

The CCPA says immediate changes to the emergency program should include extending access to CERB to all unemployed persons, even if they lost their job before the onset of COVID-19; eliminating the annual earnings requirement; and topping up all present EI recipients to the CERB flat rate.

The federal government should also co-ordinate with the provinces and territories to ensure the CERB isnt clawed back dollar-for-dollar from social assistance going to some of the most vulnerable workers, the non-profit CCPA says.

Macdonald said fulfilling the recommendations would add about $431 million in costs per week on top of the one-billion-dollar weekly price of the emergency program, but he says the focus should be on keeping people in their homes and making sure food is on tables. He also said indications are that the Trudeau government is very open to tweaks to improve this program. A spokesperson for the employment minister did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The CCPA analysis follows calls for reform to the emergency benefit from groups representing students, the disabled and seasonal workers who do not qualify under eligibility rules.

Whether we are undocumented, whether we are eligible for or receiving EI, or whether we are part of the gig economy, we all deserve immediate access to income supports. If theres one thing weve learned from this pandemic, its that we cant protect ourselves unless we protect everyone, said Pam Frache, co-ordinator of a group called Fight for $15 and Fairness that is also calling call for 21 paid emergency-leave days for all workers during pandemics.

Canadas unemployed workers are sacrificing their pay in order to stop the spread of the virus, Macdonald added. We need to recognize that and give them the support they need to survive on the economic front lines.
Russia starts testing corona vaccines

More than 3 million residents are currently in quarantine in Russia, while the number of cases rose to 2,777.

Russia has been testing several vaccines and eight drugs to treat severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, or SARS-CoV-2 commonly known as COVID-19, an official said Wednesday.

SEVERAL VACCINE PROTOTYPES HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED

Doctors found antibodies for the virus in the blood of 11 patients who recovered at the end of March, Vice Prime Minister Tatyana Golikova said at a virtual government meeting with Russia's President Vladimir Putin.

A test-system that allows scientists to study the efficiency of vaccines has been produced and several vaccines prototypes have been developed with pre-clinical studies expected to be finished by June 22, and there are already 60 volunteers ready to participate in clinical tests, said Golikova.

In addition, eight drugs that are already in use are being studied to potentially fight the virus with final conclusions announced by April 10, she said.

To stem the spread of infections, Russia imposed lockdowns, including in Moscow and the second city of St. Petersburg, with more regions added every day.
The WhatsApp universe would have us believe that Nostradamus predicted the coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) and that the authors Sylvia Browne and Lindsay Harrison, too, foresaw this in their book End of Days: Predictions and Prophecies about the End of the World.

In a life-imitating-fiction moment, people are amazed at how prescient Steven Soderbergs 2011 masterly science fiction film, Contagion, foreshadowed just such a pandemic with wide-ranging effects. That Dr Lipkins, the virologist consultant for the film tested positive for Covid-19 adds to an eerie feeling about the virus surreal reach and power across time and space.

Foretold or not, the scale, scope and rapid spread of Covid-19 has taken the world by surprise and caused a tectonic shock to global public health, economy and society. The United Nations called it the most challenging crisis since World War II.

Our deepest fears about individual and collective vulnerability and the mortality of the human race itself in the face of this highly-contagious pandemic have been stoked. This is especially because there is no immediate vaccine or proven cure yet.

Theories about whether it was a spontaneous, accidental or deliberately perpetrated outbreak, and about the origin of the virus from animal-to-human being a blow back from nature are abound. We may perhaps never find out, but we must learn lessons. The need for a truly global, empowered and effective bio-surveillance and forewarning mechanism to prevent, detect and track viruses at inception within countries for the global public good has been underlined.

The biggest dilemma in shaping and executing public policy to contain the pandemic is to banish an apocalyptic sense of doom and gloom. At the same time, a morale-raising message about the seriousness of the pandemic and the do-or-die socioeconomic choices people need to make to win the war against Covid-19 need to be conveyed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has managed to do just that with the media playing a largely positive role.

The coronavirus outbreak began in China and gripped its Hubei province of 60 million people and Wuhan, its glittering capital, in December 2019. It then spread as a global pandemic to 163 countries in all continents with nearly 858,000 infected and over 40,000 dead, and counting.

It went on to affect the rest of Asia and particularly affected Europe and the United States. The latter is now the country with the highest number of cases and fatalities, outstripping China .

It is being reported that after being secretive and in an initial state of denial about gravity of the outbreak, China moved to curb its spread within China with iron-curtain efficacy, military ruthlessness and logistical prowess. It has now declared that it has flattened the curve with only a few new cases and deaths. A video of the Governor of Wuhan claims it as a victory of the Chinese system of discipline and control over peoples behaviour.

While it is comforting that China, the original epicentre of the virus, has been able to flatten the curve, it owes the world some answers . How did China reach the present stage? What lessons were learnt? How did Chinese authorities manage to lock off huge parts of the country affecting 800 million people? And now, how are they opening up Wuhan once again domestically and internationally? Equally important: How are they using pharmaceutical and virological knowledge and capital to find and share data, a possible cure and vaccine with the rest of the world?

Can democracies  developed countries like those in Europe and North America and a large, developing, densely-populated country of 1.3 billion like India with a federal polity, socioeconomic and cultural complexity and plurality  discipline their populations into complying with social distancing norms to flatten and bend the curve? As the Nizamuddin case shows, one dereliction can trigger a cluster contagion and be one too many.

Countries like India have mounted unprecedented and comprehensive prevention, transmission control, mitigation and response efforts. It has forced the government to impose a total lockdown affecting 1.3 billion people. This is a truly staggering, but necessary, response.Transformational behaviour change is the key to success.

The impact of Covid-19 is being acutely experienced at the community, province and national levels. Governments have the primary responsibility. It is a time when we erect walls, fences and ensure border controls, but it is also a truly global existential crisis requiring a concerted global response, action and solidarity. The World Health Organization and the United Nations along with all countries must work to make sure that end-of-the-world prophesies about the pandemic do not come to pass.

Lakshmi Puri is a former assistant secretary general, United Nations, former deputy executive director of UN Women and former acting deputy secretary general of UNCTAD. This is the first of a series of three articles by the writer.

The views expressed are personal
Bachelor couple Anna Heinrich and Tim Robards are making sure to keep their romance alive while in quarantine.

On Wednesday night, the couple dressed to the nines for a 'date night in' during Australia's coronavirus lockdown.

Despite ordering takeaway burgers and fries, the 33-year-old blonde bombshell went braless in a sultry Rebecca Vallance pant suit worth $1128.

'Haute COUCHture': The Bachelor's Anna Heinrich donned a sultry Rebecca Vallance pant suit worth $1128 for a 'date night in'

The stunning ensemble featured a bold low-cut neckline and slim-fitting trousers.

Anna's blonde locks flowed just past her shoulders and she wore makeup that included a muted pink lipstick and dark eyeshadow.

'We've spent the last four days living in either pyjamas or workout gear,' Anna explained on Instagram.

'Get up and glam up'; Anna and husband Tim Robards (pictured) know how to keep the romance alive while in quarantine, dressed to the nines for a 'date night in' amid the coronavirus pandemic

'Tonight we decided to make an effort and have a date night in complete with takeaway burgers and fries.'

She added the hashtags #GetUpAndGlamUp and #HauteCOUCHture.

It comes after rumours Anna is pregnant with her first child.

Romantic: 'We've spent the last four days living in either pyjamas or workout gear,' Anna explained on Instagram

According to Woman's Day magazine, the blonde beauty attended an event recently, and sparked whispers when she noticeably steered clear of the bar.

An insider told the publication that Anna was seen 'avoiding free-flowing cocktails at an event and opting for soda water instead'.

Anna and Tim refused to comment on the pregnancy rumours when approached for comment by Daily Mail Australia.

As of Thursday morning, there have been 5049 cases of coronavirus in Australia, including 22 deaths.

Rumours: It comes after rumours Anna is pregnant with her first child. According to Woman's Day magazine, Anna attended an event recently but noticeably steered clear of the bar - opting for 'soda water' instead. Anna is pictured on March 3
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Birds swarmed over a Texas parking lot on January 8, perching on the cars in a scene worthy of Alfred Hitchcock.The unnerving sight was captured by Kenna Mitchell outside the Stonebriar Mall in Frisco.The footage shows birds perched atop parked cars, while others circle above in the foggy evening sky.We went to Stonebriar Mall just after dusk and the entrance by the Cheesecake Factory was overrun with thousands of birds, she told Storyful.These grackles were perched on cars, in the trees, and swarms were everywhere you looked. Other people in the lot were just amazed at the sheer number of birds, Mitchell said.Very loud and very gross, but still quite a site to see! Definitely in need of a car wash now! she added. Credit: Kenna Mitchell via Storyful
Daniel Hernandez, aka Tekashi 69, aka 6ix9ine, at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court on July 11, 2018.

New York Daily News/Jefferson Siegal via Getty Images

The rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine has been released from prison to serve the remainder of his sentence in home confinement after a ruling from Judge Paul Engelmayer.

The rapper, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, had cited fears over the coronavirus outbreak when requesting to finish his sentence in home confinement.

Hernandez has asthma and feared it would put him at a higher risk if COVID-19 spread in his prison facility, the rapper's lawyer, Lance Lazzaro, said in a court filing.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

The rapper Tekashi 6ix9ine has been released from prison early on compassionate release to serve the remainder of his sentence in home confinement after a ruling by the judge overseeing his case.

The rapper, whose real name is Daniel Hernandez, requested home confinement last month over fears of the novel coronavirus. Hernandez has asthma, a respiratory issue that could put him at a higher risk than others with COVID-19.

US District Judge Paul Engelmayer ruled on Wednesday that Hernandez would spend four months under home incarceration, set to be enforced by a GPS monitor, and said the rapper would not be allowed to leave unless seeking necessary medical treatment.

Engelmayer ordered a delay in filing so court papers wouldn't become public until after Hernandez was home, according to a filing reviewed by Insider.

Hernandez, 23, was sentenced to 24 months in prison in December after pleading guilty to several crimes related to his involvement with the Nine Trey Gangsta Bloods gang. Thanks to good-behavior credits, his sentence is set to end by August.

Lance Lazzaro, his lawyer, said in a letter to Engelmayer that Hernandez had gone to the hospital multiple times for "serious asthma attacks" and also had a history of bronchitis.

"It seems like just a matter of time before all prisons in the area are hit with the virus, both inmates and guards," Lazzaro said in a letter to Engelmayer in March. "Mr. Hernandez has been complaining to prison officials this week of shortness of break, but apparently the warden of his facility will not allow Mr. Hernandez to go to the hospital despite the recommendation of the facility's medical director that Mr. Hernandez be treated by a doctor at a hospital."

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Engelmayer initially denied Hernandez's request, saying that deciding the rest of the sentence was up to the Bureau of Prisons.

He did say, however, that he "did not know and could not have known that the final four months of Mr. Hernandez's sentence would be served at a time of a worldwide pandemic."

"Had the Court known that sentencing Mr. Hernandez to serve the final four months of his term in a federal prison would have exposed him to a heightened health risk, the Court would have directed that these four months be served instead in home confinement," Engelmayer wrote.

Tekashi 6ix9ine performing in Stockholm on September 19, 2018.

Redfern/Michael Campanella via Getty Images

When Lazzaro requested home confinement from the Bureau of Prisons, department officials said they could not release Hernandez because he wasn't in their custody, noting he was in the custody of US Marshals at a private facility.

US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Geoffrey Berman issued court filings Wednesday saying Lazzaro had exhausted all routes of trying to get Hernandez out of prison and could again request that Engelmayer release him through a court order.

"In the event the Court finds 'extraordinary and compelling reasons' presented by the defendant's medical condition, placing him at high risk during the COVID-19 outbreak, the Government does not oppose the defendant's motion for compassionate release," Berman said in his filing.

Hernandez is not the only high-profile prisoner to request home confinement for the rest of his sentence because of the coronavirus pandemic. Michael Cohen and Michael Avenatti, among others, have made similar requests. But in those other cases, judges have so far held firm on keeping the criminals in prison.

This article has been updated.

Read the original article on Insider
The head of Tablighi Jamaat, Maulana Saad, on Thursday (April 2) released an audio message saying he is in isolation following the advise of doctors. It is to be noted that Maulana Saad has been booked by the Delhi Police for a congregation linked to a coronavirus case cluster at Tablighi Jamaat's Markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin.

Delhi Police has launched a manhunt to find Maulana Saad, who enjoys the support of over 100 crore Muslims living in over 200 countries across the globe.

Efforts are on to trace hundreds of invitees to the Tablighi Jamaat Markaz in New Delhi, which is emerging as one of the coronavirus hotspots in India. The nationwide hunt across states have identified more than 6,000 people who attended the congregation.

According to government, the number of coronavirus cases have increased largely due to Tablighi Jamaat congregation, which took place in mid-March, and therefore technically it does not show a national trend. The government has urged people to follow guidelines during the lockdown period and avoid congregations, including religious gatherings. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Delhi were among the places to report a large number of new cases.

In Delhi, the authorities said coronavirus cases have risen to 152, including 53 who attended the Nizamuddin congregation, while the number in Maharashtra increased by 33 to 335 on Wednesday, including 30 in Mumbai alone. The tally can increase further as nearly 5,000 quarantined persons are in the high-risk category, according to the state government. The state reported six deaths on Wednesday, taking the total to 16, maximum in the country.

Meanwhile, the total number of coronavirus COVID cases in India jumped to 1965 on Thursday and the number of deaths due to this deadly virus has touched 50.
Australian businesses struggling through the coronavirus outbreak have been thrown a lifeline by energy companies.

Energy networks across NSW, Victoria and South Australia have outlined several key measures to support customers doing it tough.

Small businesses will not need to pay gas or electricity bills from April until June if their consumption is less than a quarter of what it was last year.

Network charges will be repaid to small businesses that have been hit by COVID-19, as well as residential customers who go into default.

Energy companies have also promised not to cut residents off who can't pay their bills if they lose their jobs.

No residential or small business customers in financial distress will be disconnected without their consent until at least July 31.

Energy networks across NSW, Victoria and South Australia have outlined several key measures to support customers doing it tough

Large retailers that go onto payment plans or hardship arrangements will have their network charges deferred.

Big businesses which on-sell energy to places like residential parks or retirement village have been promised the same timeline.

Disconnection and reconnection fees will not be imposed on small businesses that have temporarily closed, and they will not pay daily supply charges.

Planned outages will also be kept to a minimum over the next few months.

The electricity and gas network relief package complements other initiatives across the gas and electricity sector and will take effect from April 1.

Energy Networks Australia CEO Andrew Dillon said the comprehensive package was aimed at small business and residential customers.

He hopes the relief package would help ensure energy retailers can better assist those facing hardship.

'Networks understand these are extraordinarily tough times for small business and energy bill relief will really help,' Energy Networks Australia chief executive Andrew Dillon said on Thursday.

Australian businesses struggling through the coronavirus outbreak have been promised genuine relief on their power bills (Pictured: Staff outside a COVID-19 testing clinic)

No residential or small business customers in financial distress will be disconnected without their consent until at least July 31 (A food-delivery rider pictured)

'Networks will work with energy retailers to ensure the benefits of this package flow through to customers smoothly.'

'Networks know it is in everyone's interest to support small businesses through what is an extremely challenging period,' he said.

The package also includes measures to support households by helping energy retailers provide further assistance to those who fall into hardship as a result of COVID-19.

'Networks will be deferring or rebating electricity and gas network charges for impacted customers,' Mr Dillon said.

'This assists impacted customers and helps energy retailers, who administer energy hardship programs.'

Mr Dillon said energy network crews across the country were continuing to do critical works during this crisis to keep the power on, the gas flowing and the energy system safe and reliable.
Gurugram, April 2 : Despite having large number of residents having foreign travel history, the COVID-19 cases in Gurugram are not increasing as compared to other states including neighbouring Delhi.

The officials of health department in Gurugram claim that strict implementation of prohibitory orders and timely measures by resident welfare associations of upscale residential complexes and societies have put breaks on spread of deadly coronavirus.

Initially, 10 residents were infected with coronavirus. The figure is still highest in Haryana but officials claim that there is no fresh positive case reported in last 9 days. Sources have said that the infected persons who are recuperated well and discharged from hospitals were in initial stage of infections and they are not having other illness.

"Majority of infected persons are foreign returnees, residing in New Gurugram. Since, they are living in housing complexes, we have asked RWAs to take street measures to implement self isolation. It has made the difference. Even, the foreign returnees have timely gone to hospitals for treatments," said J.S. Punia, civil surgeon of Gurugram.

Another health official said that almost all residential societies have strictly implemented guideline of lockdown to protect themselves. Such a practice and awareness among residents has prevented virus to spread in community, including most vulnerable sections like domestic helpers associated with condominiums.

"Majority of residents have given paid holidays to domestic helpers. Besides, they also banned entry of outsiders. They are cooperated with district administration to implement the social distancing formula, the officer said.

"District police has also played its part by putting barricades in shortest distances and sealing entry and exit points of adjoining cities. This has also applied pressure on residents to avoid coming on roads without any valid reasons," he said.

"We have acted swiftly in case of sealing houses and Helimandi and Dhankot and put 33 persons under quarantine after received information about they would have direct or indirect connection with Tabligi Jamat of Hazrat Nizamudin," Punia said.

"Their samples have been sent for testing and result awaited," Punia added.
St. Louis was fast to act against the 1918 flu pandemic but lifted its social distancing measures too soon and suffered a second wave of death.

Wikimedia Commons

Philadelphia and St. Louis were both hit by the flu outbreak of 1918-19, but one city suffered a death rate of approximately 358 per 100,000 people, whereas the other suffered 748 deaths per 100,000.

1918 was a very different time from today, but there are still lessons that we can draw from how Philadelphia's slow action to respond to the pandemic left its citizens dangerously vulnerable.

We spoke with a social epidemiologist who said that policymakers should prolong social distancing measures or else suffer St. Louis's mistake of lifting them too early and enduring a second wave of infection and death.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

On September 28, the city of Philadelphia hosted its "Liberty Loan" parade in the midst of the flu outbreak of 1918-19  sometimes referred to as the Spanish flu. Shortly thereafter, hospitals were at capacity and 2,600 people had died.

Around the same time, the city of St. Louis was closing schools, libraries, courthouses, churches, playgrounds as well as limiting the number of people on streetcars and staggering work shifts to minimize contact.

Eventually, Philadelphia followed suit. But according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, it was just two days  from October 5 to October 7  between when the first cases showed up in St. Louis to closures being enacted. In Philadelphia, it was over two weeks.

These very different actions against the flu pandemic in 1918-19 led to very different outcomes for the two cities. At its height, the death rate in St. Louis was one-eighth what it was in Philadelphia. In fact, from September through February of that winter, the flu death rate was approximately 358 per 100,000 people in St. Louis and 748 per 100,000 in Philadelphia, according to a study in JAMA.

While we live in different times compared to 1918, there are lessons we can learn from this history to advise how we deal with the current coronavirus pandemic.

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"Closing schools, theaters, and other locations where a lot of people come together is essential, as respiratory viruses, including both the 1918 pandemic flu and SARS-CoV-2 are easily spread when people are in close proximity to each other and when they touch the same surfaces, even hours apart," said Jennifer Toller Erausquin, a social epidemiologist and assistant professor in the department of health education at UNC Greensboro.

"The goal of social distancing and isolation is to lower the peak mortality rate. A secondary goal is to lower cumulative excess mortality. Taken together, this is what epidemiologists mean when we talk about 'flattening the curve.'" St Louis was able to do both of these things, she said.

It's important for leadership to be on the same page

When it comes to St. Louis, the fact that many places closed at the same time was important. "Having multiple institutions involved also underscored for the public that the flu outbreak was something to take seriously  that it was important to take these actions for the collective good," said Erausquin.

Another advantage that St. Louis had was that their cases "started a few weeks after Philadelphia's, so they had additional lead time to plan and to have at least some communication between public health authorities and physicians."

In Philadelphia, the fact that leaders weren't on the same page didn't help matters. "Philadelphia's response was also impacted by challenges of leadership," says Erausquin. "The mayors of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh disagreed with the governor of Pennsylvania on the appropriate pandemic response." Neither of the mayors were on board with social distancingand ultimately, though the measures were put in place (and Philadelphia's mayor did allocate money to help fight the pandemic), the mayors likely contributed to the fact that it happened later and didn't last long enough, she said.

Social distancing shouldn't end too soon

Right now, many are probably wondering when social distancing measures will be lifted and we can return to our normal lives.

"Interestingly, if you look at the data from St. Louis, you notice that their epidemic curve shows two peaks in the fall and early winter of 1918-19," said Erausquin. "Once the pandemic seemed to be declining, the city rolled back its social distancing measures. It did this too early, and flu deaths went up again. Health officials then put the measures back in place."

And this can provide some insight as cities and states struggle to figure out when to lift social-distancing measures. "I think this is a key lesson for us with the current pandemic: We need to keep social distancing measures in place long enough. How long will it take? That's going to be hard to judge," she said.

Erausquin also said that social distancing can "create some major challenges," particularly for those whose income depends on their ability to leave home and go to work, such as service workers.

Do you lift social distancing sooner so that they can go to work sooner and make the money they need to survive, or do you prolong social distancing as an extra precaution to prevent spread? "These are difficult decisions for policymakers, as either choice has potentially serious negative consequences."

We can adapt

"The lessons from these two cities is that early, multi-sector, and sustained social distancing measures can dramatically reduce deaths in a viral pandemic," said Erausquin. "Leadership is critical, and the public benefits from clear messaging."

Also important? We can adapt. "We also learn that the public is willing and able to dramatically alter their daily lives in order to protect the most vulnerable. Collective action for the common good is absolutely possible."

After all, what we have going for us that our 1918 counterparts did not is technology. "Make use of technology and social media to stay connected to your friends, family, and community and contribute your ideas and talents to combating both this pandemic and the inequities it exposes."

Read the original article on Business Insider
U.S. SOCOM (Special Operations Command) has ordered the disbanding of the five CRF (Crisis Response Force) companies. These units were established after September 11, 2001, and were based on small units Special Forces Group commanders had already created for emergency situations that involved classical commando-type skills. This included Direct Action, as in hostage rescue or difficult raids or any operation that would involve combat situations where success was very important but difficult to achieve. The CRF companies were small, under a hundred men, and were heavily used for about a decade. But after American troops left Iraq in 2011 the war on terror, while not over, saw less demand for the skills that the CRF operators had in abundance. Acquiring those skills was time consuming and expensive. CRF members had to attend a number of special courses and excel in all of them. At the same time after 2011 counter-terrorism technology and tactics changed. There was more use of SOCOM operators for collecting intelligence and letting a missile-armed UAV take care of the direct action. The few CRF type missions were easily taken care of by the two elite direct action units; Delta Force and SEAL Team 6. These included the raids that killed Osama bin Laden and ISIL leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi. Same with hostage rescue and unexpected threats to embassies, where security had been improved since 2001 and other types of emergencies that did not occur as much anymore. As a result, the several hundred CRF personnel will be used to fill key vacancies in Special Forces units.

SOCOM is now concentrating more on traditional (pre-2001) functions which includes training troops of allied nations that are in desperate need of improving their ground forces. That was one task SOCOM has been dealing with since its beginning. One of the World War II organizations SOCOM evolved from was OSS (Office of Special Services) which, among other things, provided needed training and support for resistance units in enemy (German and Japanese) territory. Many countries are still threatened by Islamic terrorists, drug gangs and Chinese aggression and want to quickly upgrade their ability to deal with this. SOCOM has always had the ability to do that and the demand is stronger than ever.

SOCOM has greatly expanded since 2001 and evolved considerably. After 2001 SOCOM personnel strength has increased from 42,000 to 67,000. The budget went from $3.1 billion to nearly twelve billion dollars a year with plans to increase that to $16 billion. SOCOM personnel were 1.9 percent of Department of Defense personnel in 2001 and are now nearly three percent. But when you factor in the additional support and personnel involved, SOCOM is getting the use of over five percent of Department of Defense personnel. Spending on SOCOM is actually higher if you take into account additional spending on American special operations not part of the SOCOM budget. This non-SOCOM spending on SOCOM operations varies but in some years goes as high as $8 billion a year. The reason for this is that other services were always obliged to provide SOCOM with things like supplies, transportation, artillery and air support when SOCOM is carrying out a mission that aids the regular forces, or simply because SOCOM needs the extra help to get the job done.

One of the more telling statistics is the average number of SOCOM deployed on operations. In 2001 (before September 11) is was 2,900. By 2014 it was 7,200. So while overall SOCOM personnel has increased 48 percent the number of operators overseas has gone up three times as much. This has made it more difficult to keep the fighters (operators) in uniform since more frequent trips to combat zones make married life difficult and increase the likelihood of stress-related problems. At the same time, the greater number of SOCOM operators out there in combat means SOCOM more frequently must call on non-SOCOM units for support. While SOCOM does have its own support troops, SOCOM cannot afford to maintain such support forces for the high intensity of operations in wartime. Since 2001 the fighting has been the sort that SOCOM does best at and that is why SOCOM is so much in demand and non-SOCOM army, air force, navy and marine units are willing to help out. This is often because the supporting organization called on SOCOM to provide specialized troops to deal with a local situation. Thus while SOCOM strength has increased the need for the kind of people the CRFs had is even greater. So is the need to provide SOCOM operators with more dwell time at home with families or just away from a combat zone. While back in their American home bases the SOCOM personnel also have the opportunity to acquire new skills and help train new operators. It is also important to keep teams (the twelve-man ODAs or A-Teams) together and all this is easier to achieve it you dont have chronic personnel shortages.
By Barani Krishnan

Investing.com - Can Donald Trump achieve what OPEC itself couldnt? The U.S. presidents tweets on Thursday that he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to resume production cuts sent a market battered on demand destruction and a supply gut soaring about 25% in early New York trade. But analysts remained skeptical that any cuts achieved will be enough.

"Just spoke to my friend MBS (Crown Prince) of Saudi Arabia, who spoke with President Putin of Russia,&I expect&hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil&gas industry!" Trump said in his first of two tweets on the matter.

His subsequent tweet read: ....Could be as high as 15 Million Barrels. Good (GREAT) news for everyone!

West Texas Intermediate, the New York-traded benchmark for U.S. crude, was up $5.01, or nearly 25%, at $25.32 per barrel by 12:57 PM ET (16:57 GMT), responding to Trumps remarks. It hit a session high of $27.30 earlier. Just on Monday, WTI hit 18-year lows of $19.27.

Brent, the London-traded global benchmark for crude, rose $5.43, or 22%, at $30.17 per barrel. The session high was $35.99.

Oil prices have been having their worst year from demand destruction caused by the coronavirus crisis and a collapse in the production cut pact between Saudi Arabia and Russia under the OPEC+ initiative. WTI had lost 66% in the first quarter and Brent 61%.

Some analysts had trouble though with the production cut numbers espoused by Trump.

Obviously not a whole lot of details here (is this 10 million barrels PER DAY?), said Ellen Wald, president of Transversal Consulting and an oil columnist for Investing.com. Is it spread across OPEC+? Etc?

Others were skeptical of what any agreement would do for supply-demand of oil, with the market widely believed to be imbalanced by a daily glut of some 20 million barrels.

The market was hyper-bearish to begin with, so definitely this has taken prices through the roof, said John Kilduff, founding partner at New York energy hedge fund Again Capital. Its not going to offset the demand destruction thats coming.

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The Saudi Press Agency in a series of tweets, confirmed the talks between Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. It also said MBS father, King Salman, had requested the enlarged OPEC+ group, that includes ally Russia, to gather for a new discussion on how to support the market amid the demand destruction caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Kingdom calls for an urgent meeting for OPEC+ states and another group of countries, with aim of reaching a fair solution to restore a desire balance of the oil markets, the press agency tweeted. This invitation comes within (the) framework of the Kingdom's constant efforts to support the global economy in this exceptional circumstance, and in appreciation of the US President's request and the US friends' request.

The Saudi response to Trump came a day after Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov Russia said President Vladimir Putin has no immediate plans to have a phone call with Saudi leadership. But such talks could be set up quickly if necessary, Peskov added.

Putin originally spoke to King Salman more than a month back before deciding not to extend Russias cooperation under the OPEC+ arrangement, which began in 2016 and had been renewed twice before being suspended in early March.

An enraged Saudi Arabia has since ramped up its production, aiming to hit a record 12.3 million barrels per day from this month onward, or 30% above March levels. It has also slashed the selling price of its crude in an apparent bid to poach clients from Russian and U.S. oil exporters.

The production-hike-and-price-cut war has proven disastrous for U.S. shale oil drillers, many of whom produce a barrel at or above $35. On Wednesday, Whiting Petroleum, one of the largest drillers in North Dakotas Bakken Shale, filed for bankruptcy protection, becoming the first sizable fracking company to succumb to the Covid-19-induced oil price crash. Industry experts said they expect more U.S. shale bankruptcies unless prices recover fast.

Trumps tweets on Thursday seemed to be in response to shales urgent need for market recovery. The president is scheduled to the heads of some of the largest U.S. oil companies to discuss measures to help the industry as it fights for survival. The Wall Street Journal said the chief executives of Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM). and Chevron (NYSE:CVX) were expected to attend, along with the CEO of shale driller Continental Resources (NYSE:CLR), Harold Hamm, who originally called for Trumps intervention in the Saudi-Russian price war.

The Journals Middle East correspondent Summer Said tweeted separately that Saudi Arabia was mulling an oil output reduction to below 9 million barrels per day  that would take it back to levels below its recent production hike  if others joined in the effort.

Said also tweeted that the Saudis want U.S., Canadian, Mexican and other oil producers in the G20 to join in any cuts.

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As the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases soar, B.C. health officials are starting to consider whether the wider use of face masks could curb the spread.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has so far recommended against widespread community use. That's consistent with advice given by the World Health Organization, the Government of Canada and the nation's chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam: Unless you are exhibiting symptoms, you don't need to wear a face mask.

Henry also warned that wearing a mask improperly could lead people to fiddle with it and contaminate it, especially if they do not wash their hands before removing and donning the mask.

But the stance against face masks softened Wednesday when Henry said her team is now looking into community use.

"Obviously, this is something we've been considering as well," she said at her daily press conference Wednesday.

Henry said masks might have some benefit for people who don't have any symptoms.

"The use of non-medical masks ... may reduce, in some cases, the touching of your face [and] they can have some benefit in keeping your droplets in," she said.

"But we need to be careful ... what is not proven is that they provide you with any protection. That's the really critical part."

Mike McArthur/CBC

Lack of consensus

There is currently no global consensus on whether a widespread use of face masks would slow down the spread of COVID-19.

But European countries like Austria and Czech Republic are now making it mandatory to wear masks. And the practice is common in several East Asian countries that have seen some success in keeping transmission low.

Benjamin Cowling, professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the University of Hong Kong, says there is evidence that face masks are just as effective as hand hygiene in preventing the spread of respiratory viruses.

And while physical distancing appears to be most effective in curtailing the spread of COVID-19, "it would make sense that if everybody was wearing face masks, there would be less chance of transmission to occur than if people are not wearing masks," Cowling said.

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"There is definite recognition that some infected persons have been able to spread infection before their symptoms appear. So if everybody wears a face mask, it also reduces the chance that if you're infected, you're going to spread infection to other people."

Patrick Wu

Reserving limited supply

Henry maintains that B.C.'s health-care workers are a priority to receive the province's limited supply of masks.

After hearing that health-care workers are facing a shortage of personal protective equipment, Vancouver dentist Patrick Wu says he and other volunteers started collecting face masks and other supplies to donate to local hospitals.

But while he agrees health-care workers have the most urgent need for masks, Wu also makes sure to wear one when he is in a public space.

Wu, who was born in Taiwan and grew up in Vancouver, says people in other Asian countries also do the same.

"During this pandemic, we're all fearful of the airborne disease, so [we believe] wearing a mask gives us some protection," he said.
BEIJING, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sunlands Technology Group (NYSE: STG) ("Sunlands" or the "Company"), a leader in China's online post-secondary and professional education, today announced Mr. Steven Yipeng Li, the Company's Chief Financial Officer, has tendered his resignation for personal reasons, effective April 30, 2020. The board of directors of the Company (the "Board") has appointed Ms. Selena Lu Lu, Sunlands' Chief Strategy Officer and director, to serve as Chief Financial Officer, effective April 30, 2020. Ms. Lu will also continue to serve as Chief Strategy Officer of the Company. Mr. Li and Ms. Lu will work together to ensure a smooth transition. Ms. Lu has served as Sunlands' Chief Strategy Officer since joining the Company in July 2015 and has been an instrumental part of the senior management team leading three rounds of private financing and the Company's IPO. Prior to joining Sunlands, Ms. Lu served as a Partner at Taihe Capital and as an Executive Director at Hina Investment Group, two leading boutique investment banks.

Mr. Peng Ou, Founder and Chairman of the Board, said, "On behalf of the Board and executive team, I would like to thank Steven for his contributions during his time at Sunlands, and wish him the best in his future endeavors. Looking ahead, I am excited to have Ms. Lu as our CFO. Ms. Lu's impressive track record in strategic planning and extensive corporate finance and investment experience make her an excellent choice to lead our finance team. We look forward to her continued strong contributions to Sunlands in this new role."

Mr. Li said, "It has been a tremendous experience working at Sunlands. Sunlands is well positioned with a solid operational and financial foundation to continue to achieve its strategic goals and create shareholder value."

About Sunlands

Sunlands Technology Group (NYSE: STG) ("Sunlands" or the "Company"), formerly known as Sunlands Online Education Group, is the leader in China's online post-secondary and professional education. With a one to many, live streaming platform, Sunlands offers various degree and diploma-oriented post-secondary courses as well as online professional courses and educational content, to help students prepare for professional certification exams and attain professional skills. Students can access its services either through PC or mobile applications. The Company's online platform cultivates a personalized, interactive learning environment by featuring a virtual learning community and a vast library of educational content offerings that adapt to the learning habits of its students. Sunlands offers a unique approach to education research and development that organizes subject content into Learning Outcome Trees, the Company's proprietary knowledge management system. Sunlands has a deep understanding of the educational needs of its prospective students and offers solutions that help them achieve their goals.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements made under the "safe harbor" provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "confident" and similar statements. Sunlands may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its reports filed with or furnished to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Any statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Sunlands' beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements that involve factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Such factors and risks include, but not limited to the following: Sunlands' goals and strategies; its expectations regarding demand for and market acceptance of its brand and services; its ability to retain and increase student enrollments; its ability to offer new courses and educational content; its ability to improve teaching quality and students' learning results; its ability to improve sales and marketing efficiency and effectiveness; its ability to engage, train and retain new faculty members; its future business development, results of operations and financial condition; its ability to maintain and improve technology infrastructure necessary to operate its business; competition in the online education industry in China; relevant government policies and regulations relating to Sunlands' corporate structure, business and industry; and general economic and business condition in China Further information regarding these and other risks, uncertainties or factors is included in the Sunlands' filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. All information provided in this press release is current as of the date of the press release, and Sunlands does not undertake any obligation to update such information, except as required under applicable law.

For investor and media enquiries, please contact:

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The Piacente Group, Inc.

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Ross Warner

Tel: +86-10-6508-0677

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SOURCE Sunlands Technology Group

Related Links

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coonerty-extremes-cover.jpg

The best and worst moments in public life center around the same reality  that each of our communities is like a tree clinging to a cliff in a storm. Some days, the good days, we can inch our tree's roots deeper or provide shelter to a small animal or insect that would otherwise be swept away. We survive and make things a little better against difficult odds.The bad days are when the storms, driven by the forces of culture, global economics, conflict and unexpected disruptions such as pandemics, relentlessly strip our tree  our community  of its protective bark and leaves, no matter how hard we struggle to protect ourselves. We finish the day battered by forces too big and too harsh to fight.These days, even when not facing an emergency like the coronavirus outbreak, it feels as though the storms are getting stronger and more relentless, and that there are more bad days than good. It was against this backdrop that I read Richard Davies' remarkable new book, Extreme Economies: What Life at the World's Margins Can Teach Us About Our Own Future . This is a book about what happens when the tree is finally ripped from the cliffside and crashes into the turbulent sea. It's about how life ends or is renewed after the extreme  a reality that we all are now facing with the coronavirus pandemic.Davies, an economist by training with the soul of a travel writer and the knowledge of a university professor, explores societies around the globe that operate in the extreme  an Indonesian village destroyed by a tsunami, Syrian refugee camps, Louisiana's Angola prison, Kinshasa's kleptocracy and Estonia's all-in commitment to digital government, just to name a few.What can a first-world suburb learn from Angola's prison economy? A lot, Davies argues. In section one of the book, he demonstrates that economies, especially informal ones, are more resilient and creative than we realize. Prisoners, refugees and destroyed communities have developed markets, trading systems and currency despite having no access to most goods, services or money. It's vital that we, as policymakers, understand and respect the role of these informal economies as an essential component of a community's resilience.Section two of the book looks at extreme failures in Congo, Panama and Scotland. The stories are bleak and made more dispiriting by Davies' demonstration of how close these places were once to success. Rich with resources, economic opportunity and strategies to win in the global marketplace, they made big bets that were ill-advised or badly timed, and they have paid a high economic and psychological price for generations. The details of how Congo, supremely blessed by natural resources, let itself be ravaged economically by grifters, both homegrown and from around the world, is heartbreaking. Panama and Glasgow provide a lesson in caution for policymakers who mandate a single approach  tree planting and antiquated shipbuilding, respectively  instead of allowing room for people, companies and global economics to respond nimbly to opportunities and threats.In the final section, Davies explores how communities have attempted to navigate the three macro drivers of the future: aging societies, disruptive technology and rampant inequality. He looks at places in Chile, Estonia and Japan that have been impacted early by the trends that we are all destined to negotiate. The successes and failures in responding to these macro-trends for these communities (nor for the rest of us) are not clear. Luck and foresight played a role in the successes, such as Estonia's with e-government, but those aren't easily replicated. An ill-timed downturn, a bad leader, a natural disaster and all of these places could just as easily be in the section of failed communities.might be one of the most entertaining efforts to enliven the dismal science of economics. We are invited into places most of us will never see  dangerous places where people, despite their suffering, find ways to adapt and survive. The places that do it best, Davies argues, are where social capital and smart policies give people freedom to make their own choices, while constraining the worst impulses of greed and exploitation.Davies risked his life and traveled more than 100,000 miles to write this book. We would all do well to find the people living in desperation, at risk or unusually well in our local communities and see what we can learn from our own extremes.GoverningGoverning
KAMPALA  One person has tested positive for coronavirus out of the total 302 samples that were tested at Uganda Virus institute (UVI), Dr. Henry Mwebesa, the Director General Health Service at Ministry of Health announced in a statement.

This brings the total number of COVID-19 cases in Uganda to 45.

Dr Mwebesa said the case is a 22 year old Ugandan female, resident of Nkokonjeru, Wakiso District and a wife to a previously confirmed case who arrived from Dubai on 20th March 2020.

Dr Mwebesa in a statement added that the patient didnt have any sign and symptoms consistent with COVID-19.

A total of 1,026 individual are under follow-up in institutional quarantine while 962 contacts to the confirmed cases are under follow-up.

Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng in a statement released earlier said all the confirmed cases are in stable condition at Malago National Specialized Hospital, Entebbe Grade B Hospital, Adjumani and Hoima Hospitals.

She also clarified that Uganda has not registered any COVID-19 related death.

Related
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant



Soren on Thursday urged the residents of Hindpiri in the state capital to cooperate with the administration in getting themselves tested after a woman in the area tested positive for COVI-19 on Tuesday.

After a 22-year-old Malaysian woman tested positive to the coronavirus, the Ranchi district administration is making efforts to get the people of the area tested for the virus.

"At Hindpiri, a woman on March 31 tested positive. Under such circumstances, tests of the people in the area have become essential. Tests will be carried out on larger numbers (of people) and the government is pondering over setting up a camp in the area... I urge the people of Hindpiri to cooperate with the administration, an official release said quoting Soren.

The chief minister appealed to the people that it was their responsibility to keep themselves, their families and the society safe.

"One has to understand and realise these measures," he added.

The Malaysian woman was among the 17 foreign nationals traced to a mosque in Ranchi and all of them, including six local people, quarantined or kept in isolation.

Meanwhile, a Pakur resident, who attended Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin in New Delhi, on Thursday volunteered for a test for COVID0-19, a senior official said in Pakur.

Pakur district Deputy Commissioner Kuldip Choudhary said that the swabs of the man was collected and sent to Ranchi for results while he was quarantined.

East Singhbhum district Senior Superintendent of Police Anoop Birtharay said that seven people from the districts, who had been to Nizamuddin were kept at an isolation centre.

"We have identified the persons, who went to Nizamuddin and took them to an isolation centre. Swab samples have been taken and sent for testing," the SSP said.

Birtheray also said that 80 people, including people from outside states, have been quarantined as they had taken shelter in the same place in the East Singhbhum district.

Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Rai Mahimapat Ray tweeted, "Distribution of rice for Rs 1 (one) (per) kg is being ensured across the district #Ranchi, among people whose #RashanCard application is on hold.

"No one should stay hungry, no one will stay hungry. All the BDOs/Cos have been directed to ensure this with immediate effect."



Dumka district Deputy Commissioner Rajeswari B. said that FIRs were lodged against a total of 20 persons for allegedly breaking lockdown orders.

The chief minister also greeted the people of the state on the occasion of Ram Navami.

In his message, Soren expressed hope that the people will inculcate the values of Lord Ram.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
HOUSATONIC, Mass.  William F. Grady, 53, from Housatonic passed away at home on March 25, 2020, surrounded by family and Pastor Tara Tetzlaff.

William was born November 23, 1966, in Great Barrington, Mass., the son of William and Gladys Franklin Grady. He graduated from Mt. Everett Regional High School, class of 1985, and attended Berkshire Community College and Mildred Elley, receiving a degree as a medical assistant. William worked giving care as a CNA, helping people live life to the fullest.

Bill was a family man who enjoyed spending time with his family going to the beach in Rhode Island and Maine. He loved spending time with his grandson, Kingston, going to the movies, playing video games and eating pizza. He also enjoyed nature activities and painting miniatures.

He is survived by his wife, Helen; three children that he loved so much and was proud of, Theo (Caitlin), Elizabeth (Shaun) and Blythe (Marcus); two grandsons, Kingston and Teddy; his brother, Robin (Cami); and aunts, uncles and cousins.

Funeral notice: A celebration of Bills life will be held at a later date. To send remembrances to his family please go to www.finnertyandstevens.com.
Free people and free markets. For over 130 years, this was the principle that guided the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal.

Until March 9. That evening, the Journal posted Now Comes the Oil Shock, in which it called for the United States government to protect American oil producers by pressuring Saudi Arabia to end its price war with Russia. It also called for Saudi to resume indirectly fixing the price of crude oil at an artificially high level through a new production quota agreement with Russia and the other Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

On March 31, like Britney Spears (Oops! I Did It Again), the Journal posted Pain in the Oil Patch, in which it took the same position.

How exactly is support for production quota agreements by a cartel of foreign governments that set prices at artificially high levels remotely compatible with advocacy for free markets?

If this policy is right for the oil industry, does the Journal support similar cartels, production quotas, and price-fixing for the auto industry? The steel industry? The textile industry? The semiconductor industry? And every other American industry?

To put it another way, does the Journal now support a national industrial policy that would have the government adopt policies to favor particular businesses and industries that it deems winners at the expense of other companies, industries, and consumers?

Will the Journal next advocate for a new version of the New Deals National Recovery Administration that used price-fixing and industry codes to limit competition and benefit selected businesses at the expense of consumers and competitors?

The Journals position is all the more shocking because in recent weeks it has posted several editorials proposing a very different policy to aid the economy and industry in dealing with the economic harm caused by the coronavirus pandemic: extensions of credit to essentially all businesses. A policy of very broad extensions of credit has its costs and benefits, but at least it would involve neither market-distorting price-fixing, nor picking winners among businesses and industries at the expense of others.

The Journal has long been an indispensable warrior for free markets in the policy arena. If the editorial page has now crossed over the policy divide to support national industrial policy, the cause of free markets will suffer and the nation and the world will be poorer.
Legal Pot, More Regulation

Agile Aerospace

Environmental Stress

Stemming the Tide

Better Outcomes on Earth

Saving and Avoiding Costs

Humboldt County, Calif., part of an "Emerald Triangle" that is the nation's largest cannabis-producing region, has gone above and beyond  literally  to deal with the challenges of a Green Rush brought on by the legalization of recreational marijuana use. Satellite imagery has enabled the county to identify hundreds of unpermitted and illegal cannabis-cultivation operations and drive abatement efforts to reduce renegade growers' impact on some of the nation's most unique and beautiful natural resources.The county has partnered with Planet , a San Francisco-based satellite imaging and analytics startup, in an effort to stay ahead of both changing regulatory requirements and expanding markets. "Humboldt is huge and it's remote and it's rugged and it's hard to access," said Paris Good, who works with Planet's customers. "They had a small team of people trying to drive around to find illegal marijuana grow sites. It wasn't scalable and it wasn't sustainable in the long term."Even so, things might have continued as they were had not the need for government oversight shifted, for both public health and environmental reasons, when recreational pot use moved out of the shadows and into the mainstream.Legalization meant more freedom for recreational users, but it brought new restrictions for growers. In 2016, California voters approved Proposition 64 , the Adult Use of Marijuana Act. While the law made it legal for those 21 and older to use marijuana, it also required "robust standards" for cultivation of cannabis.As a result, growers are required to obtain permits and licenses from multiple state agencies, including the Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Water Resources Control Board and the state's cannabis division, CalCannabis. In addition, local jurisdictions in areas where cultivation is common have passed their own land-use regulations. Humboldt County's 2016 ordinance requires permitting officials to actively identify and to take action in regard to unpermitted cultivation sites."It was a daunting task," recalled Bob Russell, deputy director of the county's Planning and Building Department. "We needed to foster a climate of compliance and we didn't have an army of folks to do it.""That's when they started to explore what satellite imagery could do for them," said Good. "It has the scale. It has the resolution they needed, it's efficient and it was able to give them coverage over their entire county."In April 2018, county permit officials began to use imagery from Planet to guide enforcement. By the end of the year they had issued almost 700 citations, up from the previous yearly average of less than 100. The dramatic increase reflected both the precision that satellite images afforded and the county's shift away from complaint-driven enforcement.Public-sector use of satellite imagery is not new, of course, but Planet has worked to improve both the resources available to clients and their affordability. The company, founded in 2010 by three former NASA scientists, has focused on designing ultra-compact satellites  as small as 10 x 10 x 30 centimeters (about 4 x 4 x 12 inches)  that are cost-effective to manufacture and launch.This approach also enables Planet to "refresh" its satellites, de-orbiting existing ones and replacing them with improved models in an approach the company calls "agile aerospace," reflecting the iterative nature of software development.Planet's satellites are small enough to piggyback on other rocket-launch missions. To date it has deployed more than 360 satellites, with about 150 of them currently in orbit, the largest-ever constellation of Earth-imaging satellites. Using high-powered telescopes and cameras, they are able to capture images of the entire surface of the earth on a daily basis, almost six terabytes of data.The company also has paid attention to making the images easy to use. "We have a platform called Planet Explorer where users can download the imagery that they're interested in," said Good. "Every image has location information in it."Marijuana legalization raises multiple issues for governments, and those concerns are magnified by the rapid expansion of the business. The worldwide market for legal cannabis, which was $9.5 billion in 2017, is projected to grow to $31.3 billion by 2022 , a compound annual growth rate of 26.7 percent over that period. California is the biggest legal-marijuana market in the world Public officials and medical professionals have raised concerns about the public health impact of increased availability and use of cannabis, from unintentional ingestion of products by children to impaired driving and health problems resulting from more frequent use. In 2014, then-California Gov. Jerry Brown expressed more philosophical reservations about legalizing recreational use. "The world's pretty dangerous, very competitive," he said on NBC News' "I think we need to stay alert, if not 24 hours a day, more than some of the potheads might be able to put together."Although such issues are likely to be top of mind in other states have that are considering legalization or have already done so, the environmental impacts of marijuana cultivation also deserve attention. These are the focus of Humboldt County's efforts, and they have the potential to arise in any part of the country where outdoor cultivation increases. (Indoor cultivation in urban warehouses has its own set of concerns, including intense energy demands .)There is, for instance, the impact on places where water resources are scarce. Marijuana is a relatively thirsty crop, requiring nearly twice as much water per square kilometer than wine grapes, for example. In some cases, growers' needs have been met with illegal diversion of water.Trespassing growers on private and national forest land employ large quantities of rodenticides to keep animals from chewing through irrigation lines, leading to the deaths of fish, birds and mammals . Grading undertaken for the siting of "hoop houses," tent-like greenhouses, can cause problematic sediment accumulation in streams and rivers.Cannabis plants emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) called terpenes. VOCs are associated with a variety of adverse health effects . In addition, terpenes can mix with sunlight and nitrogen oxide to form an ozone-destroying aerosol.While local permitting alone can't resolve all of these issues, it is an important tool. In addition to keeping legal growers in compliance, Humboldt's active and visible permitting program can help discourage illegal cultivation, which continues despite the changes in California law."Local zoning, permitting, and enforcement is probably more important than state-level initiatives, although collaboration across units of government is also key," said Van Butsic, co-director of the Cannabis Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley.In fact, every available strategy is needed as California works to implement the "robust standards" that it envisions for cannabis cultivation. For one thing, growers who are willing to play by the rules still face competition from illicit operations. In 2019, sales of illegal cannabis products in California were expected to hit $8.7 billion, more than twice the total for legal sales."Larger producers have been able to navigate the system," said Butsic. "Many smaller growers are going out of business, or staying illegal." Costs are also part of the equation. "The illegal market is competitive because legal marijuana is so expensive to produce under Prop. 64," Dale Gieringer, director of Cal NORML, toldLegal growers also chafe at having to deal with regulation by multiple levels of government. "Every place is a bit different in terms of their vision for cannabis," noted Butsic. "These different visions get played out in local governments. It is frustrating for producers who want constant rules across the state, but it also gives local communities more control. There are trade-offs between statewide regulations and local control, and cannabis is a great example of this."Operating at this intersection of policy and unintended consequences, Humboldt County's permit department is finding that Planet's satellites help them keep moving upstream. When Russell gets a new set of images from Planet, his team goes to work. "We take the imagery and we digitize it," he said. "Then we combine it with other datasets from our permitting software and other databases that we have, and we create overlays."If something unexpected shows up, he adds, "we'll evaluate that parcel to see what was permitted on the parcel. If there was no building permit or agricultural exemption for the greenhouse that we can see in the image, that'll be a violation. If they did grading for new structures without the grading permit that's required, that's another violation."Paris Good of Planet has found satisfaction in seeing the satellite data improve real-world outcomes. "One of the statistics they shared was that in the two years since they started doing this program with us, they identified a thousand unpermitted cannabis locations and then sent notices of violation to these sites," she says.The county's enforcement actions are not necessarily heavy-handed or draconian. "We have settled 70 percent of all cases through abatements or compliance agreements with property owners completing ongoing abatement actions," said Russell. "This has significantly reduced the environmental impact from these existing unpermitted cannabis operations, and also served as a viable and substantial deterrent for many others."As with other technologies, the cost of satellite imaging has continued to decrease. "At a certain price point, satellite imagery is a very affordable option for a jurisdiction, depending on the application," said Russell. "In this case it was the right tool for the job and we found a partner in Planet that could do what we needed."Also, he said, "there's a return on investment just in the operations and maintenance of the department. The number of people we have assigned to code enforcement can be much smaller. You're saving manpower costs, you're saving vehicle and fuel and repair costs. It's a significant tool for cost avoidance."Other jurisdictions have used satellite imagery for purposes including tax assessment, law enforcement and emergency response, drought management, and monitoring construction. "There are a lot of use cases yet to be explored," said Good. "Satellite imagery can help farmers understand crop health and make better decisions about their fields. I worked with a researcher who was monitoring polar glacial melt in Greenland to see how fast that's happening compared to prior years. The number of possible applications with this kind of data are just incredible."Russell is clear about Humboldt's need for tools like the ones supplied by Planet. "We're a pretty rural and rough country area," he said. "There are a lot of hills, mountains, streams, rivers, and forests here that were being significantly impacted. Wildlife was significantly impacted by pesticides, rodenticides and sediment delivery."The county's success in reducing those environmental impacts, Russell added, "is the biggest payoff, and the results have been substantial."




Vietnam buys almost 55,000 tonnes Ukrainian corn

In the past days, importers in Vietnam have made an unusual purchase of roughly 55,000 tonnes of corn from Ukraine, according to European traders on Monday.

Some traders put the purchase higher at over 100,000 tonnes.

The price was estimated at about US$204 to US$205 a tonne c&f, one trader said.

"The purchase was said to be part of a move to diversify Vietnam's corn supplies, with concern about availability of South American corn during the coronavirus crisis while US corn grades are not favoured in Vietnam," one European trader said.

Ukraine is a major exporter of corn to Asia, especially to China.
Its a disappointment that the City of St. Louis may apparently not benefit from this first round of federal relief related to COVID-19, St. Louis Comptroller Darlene Green said in a statement. We are hopeful that the City of St. Louis will qualify for a second round of federal relief.

We had a conference call with the governor the other day and impressed upon him the fact that we are already well into our reserves trying to finance our effort to stop this epidemic, St. Charles County Executive Steve Ehlmann said. Weve got to order more things, and weve got to get those things as soon as we can and we just dont want to have to wait any more or any longer than necessary for him to decide how to distribute these funds. ... The things we need to order are flying off the shelves.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

The Head of the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs left his post due to retirement, Trend reports with reference to "Turkmenportal" Information Portal.

Aleksandr Dadayev was the head of Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs since the first day of its establishment.

The decision on his retirement was made on April 1, 2020 at the session of the Union of Industrialists and entrepreneurs of Turkmenistan. Dadayev transferred his duties to the Deputy Head of the Union of Industrialists and entrepreneurs Dovran Khudayberdiev.

The issues of further development of private business in Turkmenistan were also discussed at the session of the union.

The Union of Industrialists and entrepreneurs is a public organization that supports and unites small and medium-sized businesses in Turkmenistan. It was created on March 17, 2008. The first exhibition of entrepreneurs who got acquainted with business opportunities in Turkmenistan was held on March 17-18 of the same year. Since then, an exhibition has been held every year to reflect the achievements of its members in various fields.
Technavio has been monitoring the smart kitchen appliance market and it is poised to grow by USD 15.99 bn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 23% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. Request a free sample report

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005481/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Smart Kitchen Appliance Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Haier Group, LG Electronics, Robert Bosch, Samsung Electronics, and Whirlpool Corporation are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Growing demand for premium innovative appliances has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Smart Kitchen Appliance Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Smart Kitchen Appliance Market is segmented as below:

Product Smart Large Cooking Appliance Smart Refrigerator Smart Small Cooking Appliance Smart Dishwasher

Distribution channel Offline Online

Geographic Landscape Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30452

Smart Kitchen Appliance Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our smart kitchen appliance market report covers the following areas:

Smart Kitchen Appliance Market Size

Smart Kitchen Appliance Market Trends

Smart Kitchen Appliance Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies advent of multi-cooking functionalities in smart cooking appliances as one of the prime reasons driving the smart kitchen appliance market growth during the next few years.

Smart Kitchen Appliance Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Smart Kitchen Appliance Market, including some of the vendors such as Haier Group, LG Electronics, Robert Bosch, Samsung Electronics, and Whirlpool Corporation. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Smart Kitchen Appliance Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports.

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Smart Kitchen Appliance Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist smart kitchen appliance market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the smart kitchen appliance market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the smart kitchen appliance market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of smart kitchen appliance market vendors

Table Of Contents :

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT

Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Smart large cooking appliance Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Smart refrigerator Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Smart small cooking appliance Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Smart dishwasher Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL

Market segmentation by distribution channel

Comparison by distribution channel

Offline Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Online Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by distribution channel

PART 09: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 10: DECISION FRAMEWORK

PART 11: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

PART 12: MARKET TRENDS

Increased adoption of modular kitchen

Advent of multi-cooking functionalities in smart cooking appliances

Integration with voice-controlled personal assistants

Other trends

PART 13: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

Competitive scenario

PART 14: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Haier Group

LG Electronics

Robert Bosch

Samsung Electronics

Whirlpool Corporation

PART 15: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

PART 16: EXPLORE TECHNAVIO

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005481/en/

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A gun dealer has warned Australia could run out of bullets during the coronavirus pandemic.

People who use weapons to do their jobs will have access to arms dealers in Queensland, the state's chief medical officer announced on Tuesday.

But Gympie gun dealer Ron Owen said the exception wouldn't matter in the long-run as they were quickly running out of ammunition due to increased demand across the world.

'The firearm factories in the US have three years of orders on their books now, within the USA,' he told Gympie Times.

People who use weapons to do their jobs will have access to licensed armourers and arms dealers in Queensland, the state's chief medical officer announced on Tuesday

'No-one's going to bother with us, because their dollar buys twice what ours does and we're too small to be worth considering. We're just a pimple on the other side of the world.

'European manufacturers will also be directing their products to the US, where 100 million shooters are the biggest market in the world.'

Farmers, commercial pest and feral animal controllers, vets, shark control contractors and a number of other state and federal bodies will have access to the services.

The businesses had been categorised as non-essential without exception by Queensland Health on Sunday.

Both Katter's Australian Party and the Queensland Liberal National Party opposition called for the decision to be reviewed.

They said it could hinder farming operations, cause animal welfare issues, cripple businesses and create a public safety concern.

Gympie gun dealer Ron Owen said the exception wouldn't matter in the long-run as they were quickly running out of supplies due to demand across the world

On Tuesday, Chief Health Officer Jeanette Young updated directions allowing licensed armourers and dealers to store, modify, repair, acquire or supply weapons and ammunition to specific groups.

In Victoria people will no longer be able to buy guns or ammunition until the end of the pandemic after a spike in panic buying.

Authorities said it was concerning that applications for firearms had doubled recently and the ban on gun sales only impacts sport and recreational use.

On Tuesday the Public Health Association of Australia said it supported changes to gun shop and firearm dealerships across the country amid the coronavirus outbreak.

'We need to restrict sales because this is an unprecedented and volatile mix,' PHAA CEO Terry Slevin said.

'Families are feeling enormous pressure, and are spending more time together in close quarters where disagreements can easily escalate.

'With the report of increased sales of alcohol now is the right time to reduce access to firearms.'
Khwaja Naveed, lawyer of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh who found guilty of the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, speaks to reporters outside a court in Karachi, Pakistan. Read more

ISLAMABAD - A regional Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction and death sentence of Omar Saeed Sheikh, the man convicted in the 2002 killing of U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl. The court also overturned the convictions of three other men connected to Pearl's death.

Prosecutor Faiz Shah said he would appeal the decision in Pakistan's Supreme Court. All four men will remain in custody for at least 90 days on the grounds of "public safety," according to a ruling issued by the Home Department of Sindh province.

Pearl, a Wall Street Journal reporter, was kidnapped in January 2002 in Pakistan, where he was researching the connection between a radical Islamic preacher and Richard Reid, who attempted to blow up an airliner with explosives in his shoes.

Saeed, a British-born Pakistani who was implicated in other kidnappings, had been sentenced to death for Pearl's murder and kidnapping. The High Court of Sindh on Thursday overturned the murder conviction and downgraded the kidnapping charge, which carries a seven-year sentence.

Because Saeed has served 18 years, he is eligible for release, as are the other three men whose convictions were overturned: Fahad Naseem, a computer expert; Salman Saqib, a religious activist; and Sheikh Adil, a police officer.

The defendants' lawyer, Khawaja Naveed, said the evidence against Saeed "was very weak" and could prove only kidnapping, not murder.

In a statement Thursday, The Wall Street Journal said: "We continue to seek justice for the murder of Daniel Pearl. Danny was a cherished colleague and we will always honor his memory and service."

Pearl was told he was meeting with a radical cleric. Instead he was kidnapped, held for days and beheaded. When Saeed was convicted months later, he was sentenced for planning Pearl's kidnapping and murder.

But a 2011 investigation by the Center for Public Integrity's Pearl Project found that 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed killed Pearl. Mohammed was captured in Pakistan in 2003 and is being held at Guantanamo Bay. He is not charged in the journalist's killing.

Pakistan was under immense pressure in 2002 to find the people responsible for Pearl's killing. At the time of Saeed's conviction, defense attorneys raised questions about the weight of evidence against him.

The murder has been seen as marking the beginning of a trend of militant groups targeting journalists in conflict zones. In 2014, the Islamic State filmed the beheadings of several its hostages, including journalist James Foley.
Major General Ahmed Al-Mismari, spokesperson of the Libyan National Army (LNA), revealed Wednesday that a Turkish warship fired missiles from Libyan waters at Al-Ajaylat area, but that there were no casualties , reported Libyan newspaper Al-Marsad.

He said there were no casualties.

In a press statement, Major General Al-Mismari said that the intervention of the Turkish navy continues. Previously, Turkish warships accompanied cargo ships carrying weapons, military equipment, and Syrian terrorists and mercenaries, asserted Armed Forces spokesperson, added Al-Marsad.

Firing missiles is a dangerous development in the ongoing military operations in the west of the country, he said.

According to the Libyan paper, several citizens have taken pictures of the Turkish warship and the wreckage of a US-made RIM-66E-5 surface-to-air missile that landed south of the city of Al-Ajaylat. This type of missile is part of the armament of the Turkish Navy.

Libyan news websites suggested that the Turkish warship may have intended to target Al-Watiya Air Force Base, which is located in the south. However, the missiles were aimed and fired in the wrong direction.
When the Harris County shelter-in-place order was issued, Eric Dolan noticed one restaurant across from his print shop, PostNet, was already hurting from the lack of business.

Talking to the restaurants owner, Dolan said he offered to help by making him banners to put outside to promote curbside and delivery options.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Coronavirus live updates: Houston reports two more deaths, 48 new cases

It felt good for me to do it but also it helped him to promote his business, Dolan said. Were all hurting. The only reason were open is because we have post office boxes.

Dolan and his wife Natalie Dolan have kept PostNet in Tomball open for anyone who wants to avoid the crowds at the post offices. They are now offering free 24-inch by 36-inch banners for restaurants during the pandemic, advertising drive-thru, delivery, curbside pick-up or carry-out.

HEARTWARMING VIDEO: First responders, neighbors hold parade to help Tomball boy celebrate birthday

Everybodys hurting, especially in Tomball, Dolan said. Theyre free to whomever needs them, I thought it was a good thing to do.

If someone comes by his shop at 27708 Tomball Parkway, Dolan said they will can have signs printed out the same day of order, for as long as there is still a need for them. The free banners are limited to one per restaurant.

The shop will also be selling picket yard signs during the crisis supporting the effort to beat COVID-19 for $12 each, Dolan said, with $2 of each sold to go to the local Meals on Wheels, which helps provide meals to senior citizens who cant leave their homes.

CORONAVIRUS CLOSURES: Tomball German Festival canceled due to Coronavirus concern

My mom is old, Meals on Wheels would come by once a day and it would make her day for someone to come by to see her, Dolan said. Meals on Wheels still has to run and I think itd be great if they could get some support.

They have sold around 20 signs so far, and Dolan said the Hayden Lakes neighborhood just called asking for some as well.

Part of his need to help came from 22 years of being in the military, Dolan said.

Me being ex-military, now its time for us to thank the doctors and nurses who are putting their lives on the front line fighting this disease, he added.

His business has seen some downturn as well, Dolan said: about $15,000 less in revenue so far this year than at the same point last year.

Weve had a good strong month starting off until the shelter-in-place order, Dolan said. Next month, April is probably gonna be worse.

Dolan said he was considering applying for a loan certain companies can get if they maintain their employees and not let them go, approved as part of a package by Congress last week.

Their business has been open since Easter of 2017, Dolan said.

We like Tomball, Dolan said. Its a big town with a small-town feel, and we live right down the street.

paul.wedding@hcnonline.com
Addition to the Board will further infrastructure and utilities insight

VANCOUVER, Wash., April 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Northwest Pipe Company (NWPX), an industry leader of engineered pipeline systems for water infrastructure, recently added William Yearsley to the Board of Directors.



On March 26, 2020, the Companys Board of Directors elected Mr. Yearsley to the Board as an independent director in accordance with Company guidelines, and appointed him to the Boards Audit Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee.

Mr. Yearsleys background includes leadership at companies focusing on developing new technologies in engineering, utilities, and the environmental sector as well as corporate mergers, acquisitions, and restructuring. He served as an endowed professor at the University of Colorado Boulder Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering; was co-founder of American Civil Constructors; and has served on several boards of privately-owned construction-related businesses.

Bills experience in civil engineering and industrial markets will provide key skills that will support our future growth plans in the water infrastructure market, said Scott Montross, President and CEO of Northwest Pipe Company. We are very pleased that Bill is joining our Board of Directors.

About Northwest Pipe Company  Founded in 1966, Northwest Pipe Company is the largest manufacturer of engineered steel water pipeline systems in North America. The Company produces high-quality engineered steel water pipe, bar-wrapped concrete cylinder pipe, Permalok steel casing pipe, precast and reinforced concrete products through Geneva Pipe and Precast, as well as custom linings, coatings, joints, and one of the largest offerings of fittings and specialized components in North America. Northwest Pipe Company provides solution-based products for a wide range of markets including water transmission and infrastructure, water and wastewater plant piping, trenchless technology, and piping rehabilitation. Strategically positioned to meet growing water and wastewater infrastructure needs, the Company is headquartered in Vancouver, Washington, and has manufacturing facilities across North America. Please visit www.nwpipe.com for more information.

Contact:

Aaron Wilkins

Chief Financial Officer

Northwest Pipe Company

360-397-6294  awilkins@nwpipe.com
Blakely tells CNBC Make It that she will loan out her second dress.

Blakely had two dresses for her October 2008 wedding to entrepreneur Jesse Itzler  one was her grandmother's restored 1918 wedding gown and the other was a lacy, strapless, tea length number.

"Calling all brides to be... do you want to borrow my wedding dress from me? I have already loaned it out twice... once to a good friend and once to a girl I just met," Blakely said in her Instagram post on March 19.

Sara Blakely, founder and CEO of Spanx, recently made an offer on Instagram: Brides who postponed their wedding due to COVID-19 can borrow her wedding dress. And it's not even the first time she's lent the dress to a stranger.

The first time she loaned out her dress was to her childhood friend in 2010.

"She had been looking for dresses and just couldn't find anything that she liked," Blakely told CNBC Make It. "She was struggling with the cost of the dresses and budget and I just said, 'Well wear mine,' and she said, 'Great, I will!'

"It fit her perfectly. She didn't have to do anything to it, and she just looked stunning."

The second time in 2016 was a bit different. Blakely offered her dress to a woman she had just randomly met on a hike in Sun Valley, Idaho.

"I got to talking to one of the girls," Blakely recalled, "and she said, 'I'm newly engaged.' And I didn't even plan to say it, but it just came out: 'Oh really? Well, I'm happy to loan you my wedding dress.' And she just kind of looked at me like, 'Wait what?'"

The woman politely declined in the moment, but exchanged contact information with Blakely. About a year later, Blakely says she got a message from the woman asking if the offer was still on the table.

"She emailed me and said, 'This is so unbelievable and a little bit awkward, but can I borrow your dress? My dress came back completely ruined. It doesn't fit me at all. My wedding is in two days,'" Blakely recalled. "I overnighted her my wedding dress and she wore it and looked absolutely stunning."

Now, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Blakely wants to share her dress again.

"When COVID-19 happened, I shifted my thinking to, 'How can I use my social platform right now to be helpful?' I had remembered that I did this with the wedding dress, and I thought, 'This is a really feel-good post that should make other people feel good right now,'" she said.

"And I also wanted to hopefully start a trend and spark an idea in other women that maybe they hadn't thought of loaning their wedding dress out and now they will."

So Blakely found a photo of her dress and "threw it up on [Instagram]" with the offer, she says.

Thirty-one women responded to Blakely's post, she said, asking to borrow her dress. Another 72 commented saying they would also loan their wedding dress out.

"We reached out to those 31 women and said that when the time comes, we'll send the dress," she said.

"One of the women that I'm going to end up loaning my dress to is another female entrepreneur. I am excited to loan it to another female entrepreneur. Another one of the women that reached out is a nurse, and that was also really exciting," Blakely tells CNBC Make It.

But not everyone reacted positively  some users commented, "You're a billionaire and in a time of America in crisis you post about helping people out by offering them one preowned dress?" and "Sara, can your company help in pandemic by making face masks?"

However offering up her wedding dress isn't the only thing billionaire Blakely is doing to help.

Blakely and the Center for Civic Innovation (CCI) in Atlanta (where Blakely lives) funded meals through Goodr, a food waste management company, to "feed hundreds of families in Atlanta over the next four weeks that are food insecure," she said.

In addition, "We have been feeding the ER doctors at the hospitals here in Atlanta by ordering takeout for lunch and dinner from local restaurants in the last three weeks," Blakely says. "Every lunch and every dinner we've been delivering to the hospitals. We see this as a win-win because we're supporting the local restaurants and giving them some income, as well as feeding the front line folks that are making a really big difference."

On Friday, Blakely announced that she will also donate $5 million to help female entrepreneurs.

"I am a business owner. I've been one for the past 20 years. I understand what it feels like and so I'm going to be giving 1,000 different female-owned businesses $5,000 each," Blakely told NBC's "TODAY with Hoda and Jenna."

"And I actually started Spanx with $5,000, 20 years ago and I'm just very excited to be able to offer a hand and help women who have bet on themselves, and now I find it a right time to bet on them."

Check out: The best credit cards of 2021 could earn you over $1,000 in 5 years

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Three Bangladeshi men who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhis Nizamuddin area last month tested positive for coronavirus in Palwals Huchpuri village on Thursday, taking the count in Haryana to 33, said Palwals chief medical officer Dr Braham Deep Sindhu.

Dr Sindhu said that they had collected samples of 12 people including 10 Bangladeshi nationals who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Nizamuddin from March 13 to 15.

Three Bangladeshsi nationals have been confirmed positive for coronavirus pandemic ,7 of them tested negative at the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS), Rohtak. Today, we had sent samples of the remaining two persons to a private laboratory in Gurugram. The three who tested positive are in their early 30s. All of them have been kept at the civil hospitals isolation ward, he said.

Follow coronavirus live updates here.

The Tablighi Jamaat has been in the eye of a storm after a large number of its members were infected with the coronavirus from foreigners visiting its Markaz (centre) in Nizamuddin last month.

The chief medical officer said that the Bangladeshi nationals had stayed in the various mosques of 5 villages - Chhainsa, Mathepur, Durenchi, Mehlka and Huchpuri in Palwals Hathin area.

The district administration and health teams have been pressed into service in these five villages, where the Bangladesh nationals stayed and interacted with people. A team of 5 medical officers and overall 50 health staff have been sent to five villages. To avoid community spread, we have asked the health officials and nurses to check each member of these villages. We have kept 56 people from these five villages in the isolation ward of the civil hospital, 90 in a private health centre in the district and nearly 300 people have been home quarantined, he said.

Vakil Ahmed, Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Hathin said that they have sealed the entire villages and their borders.

We have deployed the police team and health officials in these five villages. The administration has asked the people not to panic and stay inside their homes, he added.

The Bangladeshi nationals have been staying in these five villages of Palwal district since attending the religious event in Delhi on March 13.
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Linkedin Tri Indah Oktavianti (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:55 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f36932 1 National COVID-19,coronavirus,COVID-19-Indonesian-patients,COVID-19-Jakarta,hoax Free

Authorities have dismissed as a hoax a rumor that two volunteers at Jakarta's makeshift hospital for COVID-19 in the Kemayoran athletes village had died after contracting the coronavirus disease.

The information began with a post on a Facebook account set up under the name Andriana Nova Grantina, in which the apparent account holder said her senior, named Sia Ai Hung, and the latter's sister, Sia Ai, had died of COVID-19 on Monday and Wednesday, respectively.

"Both of them were volunteers at the Kemayoran athletes village emergency hospital," said the post published on Wednesday.

The post, which also featured purported photos of the two, was later taken down, but a screengrab of the Facebook post has since been circulating through other social media platforms, including Twitter.

Human rights activists Nursyahbani Katjasungkana reposted the screenshot of the Facebook post on her Twitter account on Wednesday.

Jika relawan saja tdk memperoleh perlindungan yg cukup, trus gimana pak Menkes? pic.twitter.com/x64AGu8SvZ  Nursyahbani K (@kicaunuri) April 1, 2020

The head of the makeshift hospital's COVID-19 task force, commander Brig. Gen. Agung Hermawanto, said authorities had not received any report regarding the information.

"We currently have approximately 300 volunteers working at the emergency hospital, and so far, we have received no report on the death of volunteers," Agung told The Jakarta Post.

Echoing Agung, the Joint Defense Area Command I commander Vice Adm. Yudo Margono said the information was a hoax.

"We have checked the information through the BPPSDM's [Board for Development and Empowerment Human Health Resources] database, and there are no volunteers under the names [Sia Ai Hung and Sia Ai] in the athlete village's emergency hospital," Yudo Margono told the Post.

Yudo also assured the public that any information related to the makeshift hospital would be directly reported to him, so there would not be any missing information on the situation in the field.

He went on to deplore circulating fake news regarding the hospital in social media in recent days.

Read also: Why the novel coronavirus became a social media nightmare

Last week, information purportedly telling people how to get into the emergency hospital at the Kemayoran athletes village through a designated doctor's phone number was also circulating on social media, and later turned out to be a hoax.

Jakarta Military Command chief Maj. Gen. Eko Margiyono, who has been appointed to lead the operation of the makeshift hospital, has also spoken out against circulating hoaxes, calling on residents to trust the government's information and advice in the battle against COVID-19.

"I demand that whoever is making such hoaxes stop their actions, as it will only make the situation worse," Eko said as quoted by news agency Antara on March 26.

He also advised people to not panic over information circulating on social media and reassured the public that the hospital was properly equipped with supporting facilities, including a safe-handling service and self-quarantine facility.

Jakarta Police spokesperson Yusri Yunus said that 43 hoaxes regarding COVID-19 were under police investigation and had resulted in the arrest of seven suspects so far, all of whom were charged under the 2016 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law, kompas.com reported.

Since it began operations last week, the makeshift hospital at the athletes village has treated some 428 patients, 111 of whom have tested positive for COVID-19. The hospital has also reported three deaths of patients suspected to have contracted COVID-19.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Indonesia has confirmed 1,677 coronavirus cases with 157 fatalities, making the country's mortality rate of 9.3 percent among the highest in the world. (nal)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Mar. 31

By Ilkin Seyfaddini  Trend:

Uzbekistan will spend almost 90 billion soum ($9.4 million) to purchase medicines, personal protective equipment and special equipment abroad, as part of the fight against the spread of COVID-19, Trend reports citing Uzbek media.

In the near future, the government will purchase medical equipment worth 61 billion soum ($6.4 million). The procurement will be carried out in two stages.

Cargo with medicines worth 16 billion soum ($1.7 million) is expected to be delivered on March 31. Additional goods for 45 billion soum ($4.7 million) will arrive in Uzbekistan on April 3. The cargo will include special clothes for medics working in the "red zone" (infection risk zone).

The expenses are covered by budget funds allocated for the fight against coronavirus. The Ministry of Defense will take care of the delivery.

Earlier, Uzbekistan created an anti-crisis fund in the amount of 10 trillion soum (over $1 billion).

As reported, recently, military planes delivered to Tashkent 20 tons of humanitarian aid from China. The cargo also included goods purchased from China by Uzbek administration. In particular, these were 200,000 test systems to detect coronavirus and 50,000 disposable protective overalls worth about 28 billion soum (almost $3 million).

---

Follow author on Twitter: @seyfaddini
Rio De Janeiro, April 2 : Brazilian midfielder Willian has revealed that he is likely to leave Chelsea this summer after seven years with the Premier League club.

Willian, whose contract with the Blues expires in June, said he is open to offers from other clubs after talks about a new deal broke down, reports Xinhua news agency.

"I have a beautiful story at Chelsea. I have a great relationship with the fans and everybody at the club. But my contract is ending and it's going to be difficult," the 31-year-old was quoted as saying by Brazilian news service Uol.

"Chelsea offered me (a contract of) two years. I asked for three and they said it was impossible. I don't know if they can change their mind but, with the end of my current contract, I'm free to negotiate with any team." Willian has made 329 first-team appearances for Chelsea since joining the London club from Anzhi Makhachkala in August 2013.

He ruled out a return to Brazil in the near future, believing he still has plenty to offer for clubs in Europe.

"My goal is to continue in Europe for a while longer," the former Corinthians player added.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:07:21|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping said Thursday China is willing to help Belgium overcome the current shortage of medical supplies within its capacity.

Xi, in a telephone conversation with King Philippe of Belgium, also said China is ready to share useful COVID-19 prevention and control experience with the European country, and promote cooperation in vaccine and medicine joint research and development, and other areas.

Noting that the coronavirus disease is spreading across the world and posing a serious challenge to Europe, including Belgium, Xi, on behalf of the Chinese government and people, conveyed sincere sympathies and firm support to the Belgian royalty, government and people.

During the critical phase of China's fight against the epidemic, various sections of Belgian society extended sympathies and support in various ways to China, which has demonstrated the profound friendship of mutual support between the two peoples, Xi said.

China is willing to help meet Belgium's urgent needs, Xi stressed, adding that he believes that under the leadership of the Belgian royalty and government, the Belgian people will definitely defeat the virus.

Meanwhile, Xi voiced the hope for the Belgian side to pay close attention to and take measures to guarantee the safety of the Chinese nationals living in the European country, especially Chinese students.

Reiterating that viruses recognize neither borders nor races, and pose a common challenge to all humanity, the Chinese president pointed out that only by joining forces can the international community prevail over them.

Guided by the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, China is enhancing international cooperation in a comprehensive fashion, he said, adding that at the recent extraordinary leaders' summit of the Group of 20 major economies, he laid out a set of proposals on pooling global efforts against the pandemic and stabilizing the world economy.

On the basis of reinforcing the results of its COVID-19 prevention and control, China will speed up the resumption of work and production throughout the country, Xi said.

China, he added, will overcome difficulties to prioritize the restoration and expansion of the production capacity in medical and anti-epidemic supplies, tighten up quality control measures, and provide as many resources as it can for the global fight against the disease.

Hailing King Philippe's efforts to boost China-Belgium ties, Xi stressed that China is willing to work with Belgium to overcome the pandemic's influence and promote cooperation in various fields in a coordinated manner, so as to further advance China-Belgium and China-Europe relations.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbanda Sonowal on Thursday informed Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the state government's preparedness in dealing with the situation arising out of COVID-19 outbreak.

Participating in a video conference with the PM attended by other chief ministers, Sonowal said so far 16 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the state.

They have been put in isolation at government hospitals and so far 67,436 people quarantined at various government facilities or home, he said.

Sonowal highlighted the need for uninterrupted maintenance of inter-state supply-chain of medical products from states where such products are manufactured to other states so patients could be treated effectively, an official release issued by the Chief Minister's Office said.

He informed Modi that five new COVID-19 hospitals have been planned to be set up at Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Lakhimpur, Silchar and Bongaigaon.

Besides, medical colleges are being converted to COVID-19 hospitals after diverting other patients to private hospitals and the state government would bear expenses of such patients.

Modi was also appraised of other programmes such as training of doctors and paramedical staff, 1,000- bedded quarantine facility at the Sarusajai Stadium here.

The state government has taken steps to cover 58 lakh families by the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and to provide rice to them free of cost from April 1.

Apart from them, 5 lakh poor, destitute and homeless families who are presently not covered under the NFSA are being provided Rs 1,000 per family and Rs 2,500 are being transferred to the bank accounts of 6 lakh marginal and small farm families under Chief Ministers Krishi Sa Sajuli Yojana.

He also said Rs 1,000 will be transferred to the bank account of 2.78 lakh construction workers registered under Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board.

Further, the state government has also decided to transfer 2,000 dollars to the residents of the state who are stranded abroad for a month, he said.

State police machinery and para-military forces have been deployed to ensure complete compliance of the lockdown norms in the State.

He also said each minister of the state government has been assigned two districts to guide district administrations in their preparedness.

Besides, Sonowal said he personally had visited 13 districts during the past one week while Health and Family Welfare Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma visited all the medical colleges, district hospitals to oversee preparedness.

Highlighting the steps taken for migrant daily labours from other states who are stranded in Assam due to lockdown, the chief minister said they have been provided shelter and ration by the Assam Government.

Moreover, people from Assam who are stranded in other states due to lockdown are being provided assistance like food, accommodation, medical support, transportation in coordination with Assam Bhawans and Assam Houses and concerned district administrations of those states, Sonowal said.

The chief minister also informed that more than 1,000 under trial prisoners have been released on PR bond as per the recommendation of the High Power Committee, besides, quarantine facilities were arranged in every jail.

The prime minister appreciated the steps taken by the state government, made several suggestions to be followed by the state governments and appealed to all to work as a team to tide over the present crisis.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
While there is a massive manhunt to identify those attended the religious gathering in Delhi's Nizamuddin which has since emerged as the biggest Covid-19 cluster in India, the attendees who are currently in quarantine are reportedly misbehaving with the medical staff.

Some of the 160-odd Tablighi Jamaat attendees quarantined at a railway facility in southeast Delhi misbehaved with and even spit at doctors and healthcare personnel attending to them, a railway spokesperson said on Wednesday.

BCCL

A total of 167 attendees were taken to the makeshift quarantine centres set up on the railway property in Tughlakabad on Tuesday evening after being evacuated from the Nizamuddin Markaz, the Tablighi Jamaat headquarters in south Delhi which has emerged as a COVID-19 hotspot.

There was also an incident at the Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi on Tuesday after one of the quarantined men attempted to jump off the building. Some patients also turned aggressive, doctors said.

#WATCH A person related to Markaz Nizamuddin, admitted at Rajiv Gandhi Super Speciality Hospital, Delhi attempted to commit suicide today. He was saved by the hospital authorities. pic.twitter.com/qHSGIYaTJn  ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

Attacks on doctors were also reported from Telangana where a man admitted at the government Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad attacked the doctors, after learning about his elder brothers death in the same COVID-19 treatment block. Both the deceased and his brother have returned from the Delhi Markaz event and had tested positive for COVID-19.

AFP

Another hugely important task to prevent the spread of COVID-19 across the country has also run into trouble due to the non-cooperation of the event attendees. Despite appeals by the central and state governments for them to report at nearby health facilities, not many have come forward.

What is even more shocking is that health workers and cops trying to trace them are being attacked. A medical team that had gone to check on a patient with suspected coronavirus symptoms was attacked and pelted with stones in Indores Tatpatti Bhakhal on Tuesday.

#WATCH Madhya Pradesh: Locals of Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore pelt stones at health workers who were there to screen people, in wake of #Coronavirus outbreak. A case has been registered. (Note-Abusive language) (1.04.2020) pic.twitter.com/vkfOwYrfxK  ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

A similar incident was reported from Bihar's Madhubani district where stones were pelted at search party who were trying to find out if anyone had participated in the Tablighi Jamaat event.

"Stones were pelted at police when they went to check if any attendee of Delhi's Tablighi Jamaat event was staying at the mosque," Jhanjharpur DSP Amit Sharan said.

AFP

Meanwhile, Tablighi Jamaat chief Muhammad Saad Kandhalvi who has been booked has been untraceable for days now.

Since the controversy broke, several audio clips have emerged online purportedly of Saad, asking his followers to not abide by government guidelines about the coronavirus outbreak. "Where will you run from death? Death is in front of you... This is an occasion to seek penance from God. Not an occasion where one comes under the influence of doctors and stops Namaz, meeting each other... Yes, there is a virus. But 70,000 angels are with me and if they can't save me, who will? This is the time for more such gatherings, not the time to avoid each other... Who says if we meet then disease will spread? The disease will pass, but eating from the same plate, it will benefit us... This is a plan to end amity between Muslims, to alienate them from each other," he is heard in the audio clip.
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Shes a goddess of a ship

Ships have always had a feminine reference, i.e., Shes headed to port or Shes flying her colors, etc.

But the USS Comfort, docked at Pier 90 in New York City, is so much more than a she. This is a goddess offering aid to the sick and needy and visual reassurance to all who see her.

Jeanette Kronick, North Bergen

Humbled by first responders

I am truly saddened to read about Councilman Michael Yun being sick with the coronavirus. I wish him a speedy recovery.

Indeed, the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted our normal lives. Yet, we are fortunate to have a special group of heroes to help us during this period of confusion, panic and uncertainty.

I am truly humbled by the dedication and courage of our first responders and medical professionals during this national crisis. In the truest, most purest form of sacrificial love for humanity, these devoted professionals put their lives on the line each and every day so others can have a fighting chance to survive this horrible virus.

Dante Alighieri tells us that Amor, cha nullo amato amar perdona (Love, that releases no beloved from loving), which captures the thoughts and feelings that society has for our first responders and medical professionals. Truly, these individuals bravely show their unconditional love for society by doing the jobs that they do. And, as a society, we love them for it.

Sir Winston Churchill said it best: Never before have so many owed so much to so few. Verily, we owe a debt of gratitude to our first responders and medical professionals.

Hopefully, within a short span of time, well have better tests and treatments. When these come to pass, once again, quoting Dante: E quindi uscimmo a riveder le stele (And thus we come out to once again see the stars).

Igor LaManna, Jersey City

Trumps inaction reprehensible

Im mad as hell and Im not going to take it anymore.

This is for you, Donald Trump:

You invoke a type of anger in me that I have never felt before in my life. I have Primary Immune Disorder, Crohns disease, and bronchial asthma; accordingly, I am immuno-suppressed, which makes the coronavirus especially frightening to me. I have a family I love more than life itself, and I want to be around to see my grandchildren grow and prosper. My family needs me, and I want to be around for a long time.

Only two weeks ago, you were telling Americans that the coronavirus was a hoax, nothing but a cold and that everyone should go to work and continue like nothing was happening, but I knew that wasnt the truth. You never deal with facts.

For weeks I have been listening to the experts that this coronavirus was real and that we needed to get prepared to hunker down and get supplies, and I dont mean hand sanitizer or toilet paper. I mean coronavirus tests, masks, gloves, gowns and ventilators.

In January you were told by experts in the field and everyone around you that this is real and to get prepared and lead our country. But what you did was nothing, which made matters worse. We had all the stats from China and South Korea. But you still did nothing. China was testing 200,000 daily and South Korea 15,000 daily, but as of the week of March 16, we had only tested about 5,000 people.

We are in the greatest country in the world, and I am sure if you contracted the virus or any of your family members or friends, they would get a ventilator. We could have been so prepared, if not for your ignorance and arrogance. Your inaction, Mr. Trump, is reprehensible, and you have Americans blood on your hands. Youre fired!

Catherine Dwyer, Howell

Submit letters to the editor and guest columns for The Jersey Journal to jjletters@jjournal.com.
COLLINGWOOD, ONT.  Is the coronavirus crisis causing small town Ontario to roll up the welcome mat?

Last week, Collingwood council voted 5-4 in favour of asking the province to restrict Ontarians from travelling outside their own communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Theres migration of large urban populations into our small urban catchment area and putting extra pressure on our resources for our residents, Coun. Kathy Jeffery said during a special remote meeting of council.

The province should make a statement that prohibits people with no connection to the community, from visiting this vacation mecca, along the shores of southern Georgian Bay, in order to prohibit the derailment of our small community resources, she said.

Throughout Canada, small communities that typically attract large numbers of seasonal visitors are grappling  like the rest of the world  with how to deal with the highly infectious deadly virus that knows no borders.

Mayors are torn about how to tell those who own cottages not to travel to their second homes to ride out the pandemic, while short-term rental platforms still have listings that advertise places to isolate in rural areas.

Last week, Premier Doug Ford asked people to stay away from cottage country, in response to local mayors who are worried that an influx of visitors will put a strain on healthcare facilities in their region.

But Ford stopped short of following Quebecs lead, which banned non-essential travel within the province this week, enacted an immediate ban on short-term rentals and closed off rural areas. The province also added checkpoints to limit travel to four regions to essential services only.

Collingwood Mayor Brian Saunderson said he and the other councillors who voted in favour of the travel ban were merely echoing what Ford and others have said about the need to stay put.

Dr. Theresa Tam, Canadas chief public health officer, stated in no uncertain terms that this is not the time to head for a cottage, cabin or camp, Saunderson wrote in a tweet.

Saunderson said there is good reason to tell weekenders  and daytrippers  to stay home. The towns permanent population is between 22,000 and 24,000, with between 6,000 and 8,000 part-time residents.

If you are here, and somebody gets the illness, youre away from your primary care  out of your natural support structures and youre going to be in a foreign hospital in potentially life-threatening circumstances, he said.

If you do get ill, where do you want to be treated?

The Simcoe Muskoka health unit had 71 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of Friday. That compares to 812 confirmed cases in Toronto as of Friday, according to that citys public health.

The North Simcoe Muskoka health network, which includes hospitals in Collingwood and Barrie and stretches up to Huntsville, normally has 48 critical care beds. Hospitals in central Toronto, meanwhile, normally have a combined 373 beds.

A few kilometres down Highway 26 in Thornbury, Town of the Blue Mountains Mayor Alar Soever said he has no issue at all with weekenders coming to self-isolate in a beautiful setting  even if it is from inside the confines of their second homes.

He can tell by the amount of garbage being put out for weekly collection that there is a noticeable influx of people to the area, particularly during what is now the shoulder season between winter and summer.

That unexpected surge in the population did put a run on the grocery store. Last week the shelves were pretty bare  but theyre pretty much caught up now.

But seasonal residents  who pay the same property taxes as full-time residents  are not only entitled to be here many of them volunteer with local organizations and donate to the local hospital and theyre all part of our community. I dont think when you have something like this, and theyre up here being responsible, you say no you cant come.

Goderich Mayor John Grace said hes heard of many cottagers wanting to spend their self-isolation in the cottages near Lake Huron, in the community of 8,000.

People who have cottages may want to retreat from the city. If I was in their circumstances, I probably would too, he said. Its a fine edge, because yes, you are a taxpayer in this area and so you are entitled to come.

He said if they do come, the best thing is for them to bring food supplies and medication with them, follow the rules of social distancing, and have an exit plan in case they get sick when theyre there.

The best-case scenario would be to stay at home, but if you cant, put these measures in place that doesnt burden the smaller communities that are already feeling stressed and have limited capacity, said Grace, who said hes been getting calls from concerned residents. We would love you to be here, but not today.

The Federation of Ontario Cottagers Association (FOCA), which represents people who live at the waterfront, has delivered the same message of staying local, but if you come, bring your own provisions.

Many are concerned that any transiting increases the chance for spread of illness, FOCA says online. Many of us wouldnt ordinarily open the cottage until nearer to the May long weekend. As we already know from our local grocery experiences, parts of the supply chain are under strain.

Transient tourists, or daytrippers, on the other hand, are something else, Blue Mountains Soever said: Tourism at this point in time should be the least of anybodys priorities.

Yet to his dismay, some property holders in the region  and beyond  appear to be using the crisis to lure guests, even if it is to augment their rental income losses due to coronavirus cancellations.

Get out of the city and isolate you and your family  $1200 for the week, reads an advertisement on short-term rental platform VRBO. The listing also boasts a year-round hot tub, and seasonal pool for use in a community near Blue Mountain ski resort.

Isolate in private quiet Cottage with newer HotTub, reads a listing for a cottage in Gravenhurst.

Thats very deplorable that people would use peoples fear to try and generate business for themselves, said Soever.

According to Fairbnb, a national coalition of organizations calling for fair regulations for short-term rentals, there were around 80 postings up last week in Ontario using the terms isolation and/or quarantine in their descriptions.

The majority of these listings are in rural areas, marketed towards urbanites seeking to escape COVID-19 in cities, but this creates a new risk vector in regions and communities that may not yet have been exposed, said Thorben Wieditz, a spokesman.

Wieditz said his group was calling on the province to ban short-term rentals during the pandemic.

The Ministry of Municipal Affairs said it was up to municipalities to decide whether or not to restrict the use of short-term rentals.

Airbnb said it has updated its rules so that hosts cant refer to COVID-19, coronavirus, or quarantine in listing titles, or encourage guests to ignore health or travel advisories, among other restrictions.

We are still in the process of addressing some of the listings and welcome any flags from the community on listings that should be reviewed under this new policy, said spokesman Charlie Urbancic.

VRBO has also advised hosts to avoid terms like COVID-free or other language that may result in a traveller viewing it as any kind of guarantee or official status for a property.

Correction  April. 3, 2020: This article was edited from a previous version that mistakenly said the Muskoka region has 48 critical care beds. In fact, that is number of critical care beds in the North Simcoe Muskoka health network. In fact, the local Muskoka hospital has 9 critical care beds with the potential to add two more.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A pretreatment medication for women who suffer miscarriagescalled mifepristoneis not only more clinically effective when combined with the standard of care drug, but also more cost effective, according to researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. A new economic analysis found the average health care cost for a woman to receive mifepristone with the standard miscarriage drug misoprostol was roughly equal to the cost for a woman to receive only misoprostol, while the costs, from a societal perspective, for mifepristone plus misoprostol was about $1,000 less than misoprostol alone. Researchers published their findings this month in JAMA Network Open.

"Strict federal regulations and concerns over the high cost of mifepristone have made it harder for some women with early pregnancy loss to gain access to the drug through their providers," said study lead author Courtney A. Schreiber, MD, MPH, chief of the division of Family Planning and an associate professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Penn. "Showing this regimen's economic value is one important piece to help lower a barrier for patients seeking a safe and more comfortable closure to a painful experience. Physicians, payers, and health systems should be encouraged by these findings."

Schreiber is also the director of Penn's PEACE Program, which provides access to compassionate care for women and couples seeking family planning care and management of early pregnancy complications.

Each year in the United States, approximately one million women have miscarriages. When the body does not expel the pregnancy tissue on its ownthe final part of a miscarriagewomen need to undergo a surgical procedure or take the drug misoprostol. However, misoprostol does not always work, and many women who use it are still left with no option but to undergo an invasive procedure they wished to avoid, prolonging an already physically and emotionally difficult situation.

A landmark 2018 study in the New England Journal of Medicine, also led by Schreiber, showed that combining misoprostol with mifepristone more reliably completed the miscarriage, known as gestational sac expulsion, and reduced the need for surgical intervention, when compared to misoprostol alone.

Mifepristone is a highly regulated medication because it is also used with misoprostol to induce abortion in early pregnancy, which has limited its access for women. At present, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires that the drug be dispensed only in registered hospitals, clinics, and doctor's offices, but not in retail pharmacies. Providers in the U.S. may also be hesitant to use mifepristone due to its average cost of $90 per 200 mg pill. Misoprostol can cost less than one dollar.

For this study, researchers investigated both the clinical and cost effectiveness of the drug regimens in 300 women enrolled in a clinical trial between 2014 and 2017. They found that the treatment success rate for women who received the combination of drugs was 83.8 percent, while the success rate for patients who received only misoprostol was 67.7 percent.

To analyze the cost-effectiveness, the researchers collected economic data of the cost of miscarriage care from the health care and societal perspectives from the same 300 women. They compared the incremental cost per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) gainedessentially a measure of years of "perfect" healthas well as the cost per complete gestational sac expulsion between the two regimens. That evaluation assesses the value of a medical intervention based on cost and the number of years it would add to a patient's life.

Health care costs included those incurred by payers and participants for the therapies and for early pregnancy loss-related health care costs after one month, using average Medicare reimbursement rates or published hospital prices. Costs from the societal perspective included the time costs to patients receiving care, transportation costs, lost wages, and other costs, all based on the 2018 dollar.

From the health care sector perspective, the mean cost per patient was similar among the two groups: $697 for those receiving mifepristone and misoprostol versus $691 for those receiving misoprostol alone after one month. From the societal perspective, the mean costs per patient were $3,846 for mifepristone and $4,846 misoprostol alonea $1,000 difference.

The mifepristone pretreatment group had an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $4,225 per QALY gained in comparison to misoprostol alone, the researchers found. Interventions below the $100,000 to $150,000 threshold are considered cost effective in the United States, the researchers report. The authors also found that if mifepristone's cost increased from $90 up to close to $300 per dose, it would still remain cost effective.

The cost-effectiveness of misoprostol alone may be diminished because of its higher failure rate, resulting in a prolonged treatment course with multiple doses of medication or ultimately in surgical management, which would increase both time and costs.

"The findings further underscore the importance for mifepristone to be made widely available for physicians to prescribe and for insurers to cover it, so women with early pregnancy loss have expanded options," Schreiber said.

Explore further Drug combination offers more effective care for patients suffering miscarriage
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 09:31 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f10ed7 4 Lifestyle COVID-19,#COVID19,coronavirus,#coronavirus,hospital,COVID-19-medical-supplies,Indonesia,NIVEA,BLP-Beauty Free

Joining the many individuals, communities and organizations who have launched initiatives to support medical workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic, several Indonesian beauty companies have followed suit.

Nivea Indonesia, for instance, announced on social media on Tuesday that it had developed a new hand sanitizer product at its factory in Malang, East Java.

According to kompas.com, the brand's manufacturer PT Beiersdorf Indonesia had altered half of its factory in order to produce 40,000 bottles of hand sanitizer, all of which would be donated to COVID-19 hospitals.

Read also: Perfume giant LVMH to make hand gel for French hospitals

We want to contribute to ease the burden on those working as front-liners during this health crisis. Therefore, we have created an initiative to donate hand sanitizer to all hospitals that are experiencing a shortage of [the product], said PT Beiersdorf Indonesia president director Holger Welters.

The company is said to start distributing the product next week.

Makeup brand By Lizzie Parra (BLP) Beauty has also joined the cause by producing 250 aerosol boxes that will be distributed for free to hospitals across Greater Jakarta.

Procedures to apply for an aerosol box by BLP Beauty. (BLP Beauty on Instagram/File)

Said to be inspired by a Taiwanese doctor named Lai Hsien Yung, the acrylic aerosol box can be used by doctors to prevent droplet transmission from infected patients during endotracheal intubation, one of the procedures carried out on COVID-19 patients who suffer from respiratory failure.

Hospitals may send a request for the product by contacting hello@blpbeauty.com with "Aerosol box untuk RS []" as the email subject.

Meanwhile, Jakarta-based beauty-tech company Social Bella Indonesia has delivered 1,100 packages of personal care products to medical workers in COVID-19 hospitals across the capital city.

Comprising toiletries, dry shampoo, moisturizer, hand cream and face masks, the packages aim to aid medical personnel in maintaining their self-hygiene, including those working at Sulianti Saroso Infectious Diseases Hospital in North Jakarta, Gatot Subroto Army Hospital in Central Jakarta, Persahabatan Central General Hospital in East Jakarta and Pasar Minggu General Hospital in South Jakarta.

"We understand that a number of doctors, nurses and other medical workers have to work long shifts and stay overnight in the hospitals or other places to ensure their patients' recovery. Most of them also have to wear protective gear for hours, which could affect their skin," said Chrisanti Indiana, cofounder and CMO of Social Bella in a statement.

The company, which runs popular beauty e-commerce site Sociolla, also donated to Indonesia PASTI BISA, a collective crowdfunding movement initiated by venture capital firm East Ventures to support R&D of COVID-19 test kits in Indonesia. (wir/kes)
Beleaguered transit systems in New Jersey will have $1.625 billion in federal funding to help recoup ridership lost to the coronavirus pandemic and expenses to sanitize trains buses and stations after federal transit officials announced federal grants levels a day earlier than expected.

The money is part of $25 billion allocated to transit agencies and is almost triple what is normally budgeted through Federal Transit Administration programs. That money is available to states and those officials decide how much is allocated to individual transit agencies.

Under the funding announcement made by U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, New Jersey will have a total of $1.625 billion available for transit agencies, which breaks down to $1.5 billion as part of the New York-Newark-New Jersey Connecticut region and another $125 million through the Philadelphia-New Jersey Pennsylvania region.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

New York will receive $3.8 billion, under FTA formulas that take population into consideration. State officials will decide on funding levels for each transit agency, which will apply to the FTA for reimbursement of expenses and ridership losses due to COVID-19.

NJ Transit officials requested $1.25 billion and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey asked for $1.9 billion for losses and expenses due to coronavirus.

The grants were part of $25 billion in federal funding as part of the $2 trillion federal CARES act to help individuals, businesses and states cope with the economic affects of COVID-19.

NJ Transit CEO and President Kevin Corbett requested $1.25 billion in a March 19 letter to cover losses the agency expected to incur by the end of fiscal year 2021. Revenue from fares makes up more than 40% of NJ Transits operating budget.

Port Authoritys PATH rail system and NJ Transit officials said they experienced a 90% drop in ridership, due to advisories telling commuters to work from home and avoid unnecessary travel to lessen the spread of COVID-19. New Jersey and New York later restricted travel to essential workers and tasks.

In a March letter to federal officials, the Port Authority details ridership and traffic losses at all its airports, bridges and tunnels, on PATH and at the port of New York and New Jersey due to that coronavirus. Authority officials further detailed those losses last Thursday, 85% passenger drop at the airports, 90% on PATH and 50% at the bridges and tunnels, compared to March 2019 levels.

Transit agencies have reduced regular weekday service to cope with ridership losses and still continue to get essential employees to and from their jobs. PATH and NJ Transit buses reduced service starting last weekend, NJ Transit rail service has been modified twice.

Bus service reductions have been more difficult for NJ Transit because it is a statewide system and serves a diverse community of travelers.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share. If you would like updates on New Jersey-specific coronavirus news, subscribe to our Coronavirus in N.J. newsletter.

Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @commutinglarry. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips.Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
There were no new cases of coronavirus reported in Catawba County on Wednesday, according to Catawba County Public Health. Two new cases were reported in Burke County on Wednesday.

That leaves Catawba Countys total number of reported cases at 16. It is not known how many of those people have recovered from the virus because Catawba County is not tracking whether people have recovered, Community Engagement Specialist Emily Killian said.

We are focused on identifying people who may have had close contact with individuals who have the disease and people who are at risk of exposure and getting sick, Killian said.

The new cases in Burke County bring the total there up to eight cases. Caldwell County has three total cases. Alexander County did not report any new confirmed cases, leaving the county total at two cases.

There are at least 1,584 total cases statewide, according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services website. At least 204 of those people are hospitalized.

There have been nine reported coronavirus-related deaths in North Carolina.
As the COVID-19 pandemic sweeps across the globe, it has the potential to touch all 7.8 billion of us. Most of us have not lived through another crisis so permeable to the boundaries of nationality, race, creed and social class. COVID-19 has already taken tens of thousands of innocent lives around the world and, in the process, exposed our common hopes and fears.

People around the world are self-isolating and physical distancing. Communities are working across boundaries to care for each other in ways that were unimaginable a few weeks ago. Brave essential services workers are holding the line. And we have stepped up as caregivers, neighbours, and, quite frankly, human beings.

The human rights movement was born in a similar moment. After collectively experiencing the atrocities of war, people came together to say never again. Never again would hatred, discrimination and inequality triumph over our common humanity. The United Nations Declaration of Human Rights was the wars silver-lining.

But memories and good intentions fade. In the decades since 1948, human rights have been undermined and attacked by rogue states, multinational corporations and powerful dictators. Despite technological advances that connect us like never before, xenophobia and greed divide us and fuel hatred and violence.

And while our immediate focus is on taking appropriate precautions and caring for those who are directly affected, today I feel hopeful. I cant think of another time in my life that families, neighbours, communities and countries have put aside ideology to work together to face a common threat.

Never again was a message sent by our forbearers to heed in times of hardship; a clarion call to remember the most vulnerable people in our society. Now, once again glimpsing the interconnectedness of humanity, will we recommit to freedom, equality and justice for all? And will we do so, not in the aftermath of this crisis, but in the very face of it?

This pandemic has starkly revealed how vulnerable groups in our society do not benefit equally from public health guidance because of the precariousness of their employment or housing, their limited access to water or internet, or because they are in state care. The sad reality is that in Canada many vulnerable communities were living in crisis before the pandemic and can no longer cope.

Without a deliberate and long-term commitment to human rights, COVID-19 and future pandemics will further exacerbate existing vulnerabilities and inequalities in our society. We can expect that this pandemic will have a particularly devastating impact on Indigenous peoples and racialized communities, precarious workers, people experiencing poverty and homelessness, women and children fleeing domestic violence, people with disabilities, mental health needs and addictions, older people living alone or in institutions, and people living in custody.

With the release of its Policy statement on a human rights-based approach to managing the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) calls on governments to put human rights at the centre their short- and longer-term management of COVID-19. This means adopting policies grounded in international human rights law, including the rights to health, life, liberty and equality. It requires taking concrete action, now and after the pandemic, to permanently address the historical and ongoing inequality of the most vulnerable groups in our society. And it requires strong human rights accountability and oversight.

There is a transformative power in our momentary solidarity. Canada and Ontarios COVID-19 response has already included social policies aimed at keeping people housed, reducing income inequality, guaranteeing safe jobs, helping caregivers, and releasing non-violent prisoners back into the community. This is an impressive start and so much more progressive change is possible.

Through its response to this pandemic Canada has a unique opportunity to say never again to the social and economic inequality that has made some of us more vulnerable to this deadly illness than others. By upholding the full range of civil, political, economic, social, cultural and Indigenous rights, Canada can send a strong message to the world: human rights are a beacon of light in times of darkness and uncertainty. Our actions during these unprecedented times may very well be our legacy. Let future generations remember that we put human rights at the centre of our COVID-19 response.
HUNGRY is uniquely designed to safely create and deliver high quality, affordable food during a time when food safety and hygiene-consciousness are at an all-time high.

HUNGRY Marketplace Inc., the celebrity-backed platform connecting top chefs with people looking for local chef-made meals, today launches its direct-to-your-door delivery service HUNGRY@Home in Washington D.C. and Boston. The startup plans to roll out HUNGRY@Home in New York City, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Austin and Dallas later this week.

HUNGRY@Home extends the companys already successful business and event catering model into the consumer market, giving people much-needed access to healthy, family-style meals without ever leaving their homes.

All HUNGRY@Home meals are made with the utmost care and packaged by food safety trained professional chefs. Meals are sealed and delivered in a temperature-controlled environment by a food safety trained Delivery Captain. HUNGRYs Delivery Captains are required to wear fresh gloves at all times, including before and after a no-contact meal drop-off.

HUNGRY is uniquely designed to safely create and deliver high quality, affordable food during a time when food safety and hygiene-consciousness are at an all-time high, said Jeff Grass, HUNGRY CEO. Families are also facing several new challenges when trying to prepare healthy meals at-home. In fact, many parents are taking on more responsibilities in the wake of school closures and others are still adjusting to a home-centric lifestyle that doesnt include frequent grocery trips or dining out.

HUNGRY@Home is a subscription-based, family-style food delivery concept that gives families both flexibility and peace-of-mind. Each menu item is chef crafted and designed to incorporate locally sourced ingredients shown to boost peoples moods, immunity and overall well-being. As part of its initial rollout, HUNGRY@Home is currently waiving delivery fees in all markets.

Our distinct ability to create and deliver safe and delicious food will help ease the burden of families living within our communities during this uncertain time, notes Eman Pahlavani, HUNGRY co-founder and COO. What started as a mission to feed people great food, wherever they are, is proving to be a lifeline for certain groups of people. Its also allowing local chefs and hourly workers to continue to collect a paycheck - a life-changing scenario for some of the hardest hit individuals in our communities.

A HUNGRY@Home family meal plan starts at just $100 and every HUNGRY@Home meal provides up to eight individual servings. For every two meals sold, HUNGRY donates one meal to help people in need, including local first responders. To date, the company has donated close to 500,000 meals.

For more information and to place an order, visit http://www.TryHungry.com/Home.

About HUNGRY:

HUNGRY was founded by serial entrepreneurs Eman Pahlavani, Shy Pahlevani and Jeff Grass, as a revolutionary way for independent chefs to connect with the $60 billion business and events catering market. HUNGRY is committed to improving the communities it serves. Through its Fight Against Hunger program, HUNGRY donates one meal to those in need for every two purchased. Additionally, its WeRecycle program promotes environmental waste reduction by offering biodegradable plates and cutlery with its delivered meals. HUNGRY is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and has rapidly growing operations in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Boston, New York City, Austin and Dallas. For more information, visit tryhungry.com.

About HUNGRY@Home:

HUNGRY@Home is a direct-to-door food delivery subscription service available in the cities HUNGRY already serves. The ultra-safe, family-style food delivery concept features chef crafted menu items that incorporate locally sourced ingredients, providing up to eight individual servings of delicious, good-for-you food in every meal. For every two meals sold via HUNGRY@Home, HUNGRY donates one meal to help someone in need. For more information and to place an order, visit http://www.TryHungry.com/Home.
More than 3.9 billion people, or half of the world's population, are now being called on to remain in their homes to combat COVID-19, according to an AFP tally on Thursday.

The measures -- which include compulsory or recommended confinement, curfews and quarantines -- are in place in more than 90 countries and territories. The introduction of a curfew in Thailand, which takes effect on Friday, pushed the number past half of the global population.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Computer vision techniques used for commercial purposes are turning out to be valuable tools for monitoring people's behavior during the present pandemic. Zensors, a startup that uses machine learning to track things like restaurant occupancy, lines and so on, is making its platform available for free to airports and other places desperate to take systematic measures against infection.

The company, founded two years ago but covered by TechCrunch in 2016, was among the early adopters of computer vision as a means to extract value from things like security camera feeds. It may seem obvious now that cameras covering a restaurant can and should count open tables and track that data over time, but a few years ago it wasn't so easy to come up with or accomplish that.

Since then Zensors has built a suite of tools tailored to specific businesses and spaces, like airports, offices and retail environments. They can count open and occupied seats, spot trash, estimate lines and all that kind of thing. Coincidentally, this is exactly the kind of data that managers of these spaces are now very interested in watching closely given the present social distancing measures.

Zensors co-founder Anuraag Jain told Carnegie Mellon University  which the company was spun out of  that it had received a number of inquiries from the likes of airports regarding applying the technology to public health considerations.

Software that counts how many people are in line can be easily adapted to, for example, estimate how close people are standing and send an alert if too many people are congregating or passing through a small space.

"Rather than profiting off them, we thought we would give our help for free," said Jain. And so, for the next two months at least, Zensors is providing its platform for free to "selected entities who are on the forefront of responding to this crisis, including our airport clients."

The system has already been augmented to answer COVID-19-specific questions, like whether there are too many people in a given area, when a surface was last cleaned and whether cleaning should be expedited, and how many of a given group are wearing face masks.

Story continues

Airports surely track some of this information already, but perhaps in a much less structured way. Using a system like this could be helpful for maintaining cleanliness and reducing risk, and no doubt Zensors hopes that having had a taste via what amounts to a free trial, some of these users will become paying clients. Interested parties should get in touch with Zensors via its usual contact page.
The NSW workplace safety authority is investigating Qantas for suspending an employee who raised concerns about workers being exposed to the coronavirus when cleaning an aircraft that had returned from China.

Qantas stood down the cleaner, who is an elected health and safety representative, on February 2 after he advised colleagues it was unsafe to clean the jet arriving from Shanghai.

Qantas suspended the worker after he raised concerns about cleaning aircraft that had returned from China. Credit:AAP

The airline said this was "against the advice of health authorities and despite additional safety equipment being provided to employees".

SafeWork NSW confirmed on Thursday it was investigating Qantas for alleged discriminatory conduct against the health and safety representative. The regulator has written to the airline to inform it the investigation is underway.
Whether you were a regular to Eckhardt's world and his noble cause or a one-timer who admired his humility, his genuineness stood out. Nothing was ever about him, but simply paying respect to those who protected us. Few, if any, could generate care for cause like Eckhardt. By example, he turned strangers into friends and non-believers into believers.

"He would drop everything in his world and make sure a soldier or first responder  no matter where it was  was honored in the right way," Seefeld said of Eckhardt. "When someone loses a loved one, there is nothing you can say or do. It's just the way things are. You might be that person who couldn't make it to a visitation or you weren't close with the person who passed but you wanted to honor them for their service. Larry gave everyone that chance. He made it easy on everyone. I never saw anyone not happy to jump in and help when Larry was involved."

The passing of someone so dedicated to honoring the lives of others leaves more than a personal loss. For years everyone knew The Flag Man would answer the call, make things right, step forward and rally others to pay a proper tribute.

Now, though, that beacon of hope, the light that always shined, has dimmed.
The Uttar Pradesh government has shunted out the chief medical officer (CMO) of Gautam Buddh Nagar Anurag Bhargava, according to an official order.

Bhargava is the second high-level officer to be shifted in Noida after the district magistrate was shunted out earlier this week after a meeting with chief minister Yogi Adityanath on the coronavirus situation.

A P Chauturvedi has been appointed as the CMO replacing Bhargava with immediate effect, stated the order that was issued on Tuesday night by Principal Secretary (Medical and Health) to the UP government Amit Mohan Prasad.

Bhargava is being attached with Narendra Bhooshan, the chief executive officer of the Greater Noida Authority, who has been appointed by the state government as the nodal officer in-charge of Gautam Buddh Nagar for efforts to control the coronavirus infection to provide him support, the order stated.

Bhargava is directed to immediately hand over the charge to Chaturvedi and offer his services to the nodal officer (Bhooshan), it added.

Gautam Buddh Nagar, including Noida and Greater Noida, has emerged as one of the hotspots for coronavirus cases in the country with 48 COVID-19 positive patients so far and has reported the maximum cases for any district in UP.

Prior to the CMO, Brijesh Narain Singh was abruptly shunted out as the district magistrate of Gautam Buddh Nagar on March 31, within hours of a high-level meeting chaired by the chief minister to review the situation in the wake of the pandemic.

The chief minister had reprimanded the officers for their inability to contain the spreadof the virus and particularly handling of a private company in Noida which is suspected to have triggered a chain of infections.

The company, Cease Fire, was on March 29 booked for endangering the lives of people and other charges on a complaint by Bhargava and has now been sealed, even as the local Health Department officials said that the source of infection to over 30 people could be traced to this firm located in Sector 135.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A leading Islamic cleric on Thursday issued a fatwa (religious edict) asking Muslims to get tested for coronavirus if they show symptoms of the disease and undergo treatment.

"It is not permissible to hide it (disease). If people do not get their treatment and tests done...it is absolutely against Sharia law," according to the fatwa issued by Maulana Khalid Rashid Farangi Mahali of the Darul Uloom Farangi Mahal.

Stressing that saving the life of one human being in Islam is like saving the lives of many, the fatwa said that people who show coronavirus symptoms should get tested.

The fatwa comes amid a 21-day nationwide lockdown enforced to prevent the spread of the virus that has killed at least 50 people in India and thousands worldwide.

Several leading clerics have asked people to avoid congregation in mosques and offer prayers, including the weekly Friday prayers, at home in the present situation to avoid spread of the disease.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Four members of "Jamaat", three of them foreign nationals, tested positive for the coronavirus here on Thursday, taking the tally in Madhya Pradesh to 111, officials said here.

All four are believed to have attended a religious gathering in Delhi's Nizamuddin area last month.

They were staying in two mosques of the city, a senior official said.

However, it was not clear if they belonged to Tablighi Jamaat, the organisation which is in after its mega congregation in Delhi last month turned out to be a hotspot for the spread of coronavirus in the country.

A large number of "Jamaat members" arrived in Bhopal recently and samples of 65 of them were sent for tests, Bhopal collector Tarun Pithode said in a statement.

The samples of four -- three foreign nationals and an Odisha resident -- tested positive for the viral infection, he said.

Among the three foreign nationals, two are from Myanmar and one from Ivory Coast, all of them living in Rahmaniya mosque in the Aishbagh area, a public relations department official said.

The fourth patient, a resident of Bhubaneswar, was staying in Ahata Rustam Khan Masjid in the Shyamla Hills area, the official said.

All four were quarantined at the Chirayu Medical College and Hospital here, he added.

The official said these four 'Jamaat' members were staying in Bhopal since the first week of March and were asymptomatic to the coronavirus and their samples were taken as a precaution.

They came to Bhopal in the first week of March from Delhi. They are living here since then.

"We came to know that they visited Tablighi Jamaat Markaz(centre) in Delhi and further details about their travel history are being sought, said a senior police officer on condition of anonymity.

Famed for the shrine of the 14h century Sufi mystic Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya, the south Delhi locality has emerged as an epicentre for spread of the coronavirus in different parts of the country after thousands of people took part in a Tablighi Jamaat congregation there from March 1-15.

Meanwhile, the district administration has declared areas falling within 1 km radius of both the mosques as containment zones.

People living in these zones would be screened and those who came in contact with the four COVID-19 patients will be quarantined, officials said.

Out of the total 111 coronavirus cases in the state, 82 have been reported from Indore, eight each from Jabalpur and Bhopal, six from Ujjain, two each in Morena, Shivpuri and Gwalior and one from Khargone, a health department official said.

Eight patients have so far died in the state - five from Indore, two from Ujjain and one from Khargone - the official added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu: Of the seventeen people that attended the Tablighi Jamaat religious gathering in Delhi, two have tested positive for COVID-19, here on Thursday, according to Ramanathapuram district collector K Veera Raghava Rao.

The two COVID-19 positive patients have been admitted to the District Government Hospital, and the remaining fifteen are being monitored under isolation.

The Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi has emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after several positive cases across India were linked to the gathering, including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana.

Delhi health minister Satyendar Jain had said that the officials are not certain of the number of people who participated in the event but it is being estimated that 1,500-1,700 people had assembled at the Markaz building.
An Israeli official said that as the entire government shifted to a crisis footing, senior leaders tapped the Mossad to take a leading role in procurement, not because of the agencys secret agents but because of its logistical prowess. This official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, said Israel would not divert supplies earmarked for other countries.
By Donald Kirk





WASHINGTON D.C.  Here's an oddity about the American response to the coronavirus crisis that foreigners will find difficult to understand.







In most of the U.S.A., factories, shops, theaters, restaurants, schools and many others are shut down. Here in the nation's capital, and in the neighboring states of Maryland and Virginia, essential places like pharmacies, grocery stores, and restaurants selling food "to go"  no sitting  remain open.







So guess what else is deemed "essential?" If you would believe it, gun shops. That's right, no joke. The powerful National Rifle Association and other gun-rights advocates have persuaded President Donald Trump and his people that the ability to purchase a rifle, a pistol and the ammunition needed to blast away enemies and animals alike is absolutely necessary for the good of the country and its citizens.







It's not at all clear to me what these people think is so essential about weapons and ammunition in the midst of a global pandemic that is afflicting the United States more than most other countries and is likely to get worse before it gets better. It will never be possible to kill off the coronavirus by shooting at it. A rifle or a pistol will do no good for self-defense against the bug.







So how is it that ever more weapons are vital when you consider that nearly 400 million of them are already in the hands of the American public, a number that absolutely dwarfs the 4.5 million floating around the American armed forces?







The best answer that I can get, once we've gotten past the mumbo-jumbo of the constitutional right of every U.S. citizen to bear arms, is that millions of Americans think they will need to defend themselves against other angry citizens who might try to rob them of food and shelter.







No, there's been no sign yet of a popular uprising, no indication that hungry people are about to attack anyone for food, but you never know. Anyway, the people who sell weapons would definitely like their customers to think they need to be armed for self-defense  an argument strangely similar to North Korea's insistence on producing nuclear weapons for self-defense against its enemies, notably the United States.







But self-defense may not be the only reason why millions of God-fearing Americans feel they need weapons. If the food runs out, if the stores have no more, if people are really facing the worst pangs of hunger, say gun enthusiasts, a weapon might come in handy for hunting down wildlife ripe for slaughter. Does not every American have the right to be able to shoot a deer or a bear or a pheasant or a duck or any kind of varmint in order to stave off starvation?







If these arguments seem more than a little absurd to foreign readers, they are articles of faith for a large portion of the American public.







If Trump is going to win reelection as president in November, he's got to have the support of a vast conservative if not rightist electorate that's not going to be influenced by all the anti-Trump rhetoric that sloshes around daily on the editorial pages of The Washington Post and The New York Times.







On a much higher order of magnitude, though, the U.S. does have reason to worry about the need for weapons. While the coronavirus rages, the entire U.S. military establishment is under siege. Soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen are told not to report for duty, not to stage exercises, not to engage in routine training for fear the virus will rapidly spread among them.







For proof of the point, look what happened to the crew of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt after calling at the central Vietnamese port city of Danang. More than 100 sailors among the 4,000 crew have come down with the virus, and the captain has told his bosses in the Pentagon the ship should suspend its mission in the western Pacific until everyone's sure the bug is gone.







The danger of the virus compromising U.S. defenses around the world is obvious. It's a lot easier to understand the concerns of military commanders than the demands of gun nuts for more and better arms to fend off imaginary ghosts that are really only a pretext for gun manufacturers to exploit the menace of COVID-19 for their own private profits.







) has covered war and peace from Washington to Asia and the Middle East for decades.



Donald Kirk ( www.donaldkirk.com
Veteran actor Nafisa Ali, who is a cancer survivor, says she is currently staying with her daughter in Goa and finding it hard to access her medicines due to the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

The actor said there was a scarcity of essential food items during the initial days of the 21-day lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 24.

"Everybody is facing difficulties. The first week was very hard here in Goa but now vegetable shops are open. Goa was in a bad situation. Everything was locked down so there was nothing available, no water, vegetables, ration. One couldn't go out to buy anything because the cops would stop you and hit people, like whoever was trying to go anywhere would get hit, Ali told PTI in an interview.

The actor, who stays in Delhi, had come to meet her daughter in Goa for over a week but they could not get back after the lockdown.

"My daughter said because I am under cancer remission so I am at a big risk so she told me to come to Goa. Now, my medicines are running out slowly. For my cancer treatment, I have some medicines which are not available anywhere in Goa. They are all lying in Delhi and the courier services are closed so they cannot be sent.

As and when my medicines finishes I will stop taking them because they are not available. What to do? I understand the situation is such one can't help, Ali added.

In November 2018, Ali had revealed on social media that she was diagnosed with stage three cancer. She is now cancer-free.

Ali said the situation has improved in the state with vegetable shops opening in the last two days.

"Ideally, when you say lockdown, you should give 24 hours to stock up essential things," she said.

The 63-year-old actor also shared that her niece, who had been to Switzerland, had tested positive for Coronavirus and was undergoing treatment at a hospital in Bangalore. She has now recovered.

"My niece, who came from Switzerland tested positive, she was in isolation at a Bangalore hospital. For hours, nobody comes to see you, or gives you water or food There should be a kit ready with essential items. This is unfortunate. That is why I sent a tweet to Prime Minister Narendra Modi... Hospital authorities should have a kit with food and water.

Meanwhile, the actor is staying positive by spending time with family and painting.

I am alone here so in the evening I meet my grandchildren, besides that I paint. One has to live and learn and be helpful to each other during crisis.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
FILE - In this Tuesday, May 23, 2017 file photo, a bride and groom pose for wedding pictures at the Bethesda Terrace in New York's Central Park. Now that most Americans have been ordered to stay at home and avoid nonessential travel to slow the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus in 2020, many couples  including those who were only days or weeks away from getting married  have had to abruptly postpone their special day, while many others are in limbo, unsure of how to proceed. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) Read more

This story appeared in some editions of Sundays paper.

At the end of March, Stefanie Bucholski and Mike Reisman got married on a date they picked out nearly a year ago. But the celebration looked nothing like the big Jewish ceremony they had in mind. Thanks to a new worldwide wedding crasher, COVID-19, theyre among the many couples in the region who have had to change their plans.

It was Saturday afternoon. Bucholski, dressed in a white gown, walked alongside her soon-to-be husband, four blocks over to her sisters house. There, in the backyard, they joined hands to marry before a small group of three: Bucholskis sister, brother-in-law, and a friend of her sister who happens to be an ordained minister. Everyone stood spaced out, except, of course, Bucholski and Reisman. An iPad live-streamed the ceremony through Zoom, allowing 40 friends and family members to join in, shed tears, and cheer from afar. The crowd would gather again later in the evening for a Zoom happy hour, when Bucholskis dad delivered a short toast.

In December, the couple will host a reception to celebrate with a much larger crowd.

It was a really sweet, intimate ceremony. A little strange, but not in a bad way, says Bucholski, 32. "All the little squares on the [Zoom] screen was actually really cute.

If you, too, have a wedding planned in the coming weeks, weve put together a guide to help navigate the situation. With a statewide stay-at-home order in place, even small gatherings are not allowed. As such, most couples will be advised to postpone their wedding until thats lifted.

However, there are some caveats. If you need a legal marriage for health insurance, visa, or other emergency reasons, you may be able to move forward. Heres what to expect as you consider your options:

Can you make your marriage a legal one right now?

Courthouses are currently closed, making it impossible to apply for a marriage license in person as youd normally do. Yet, if you had a wedding scheduled for this month, youve likely already tackled that step.

In PA, a marriage license is valid for 60 days, so I tell couples to apply six weeks before so they dont have to stress out about it during their wedding week, says local celebrant and ordained minister Alisa Tongg.

If you have the license, any qualifying officiant can complete it and return it to the courthouse by mail. Once the courthouse reopens, the paperwork will be processed.

Its official as soon as its signed, you just wont get the certificate until after the courthouse opens up, explains Tongg.

If youve opted for a self-uniting license, Philadelphia is allowing you to send it yourself by mail to the Register of Wills (City Hall, Room 181). It must first be signed by two witnesses. The date that its signed will be the official date of your marriage. As with a traditional license, you will receive your marriage certificate once the Register of Wills office reopens.

(Marriage laws vary state by state, and emergency modifications vary by county. Self-uniting licenses are not an option in New Jersey. In other Pennsylvania counties, self-uniting procedures may be different or temporarily not permitted. Contact your local Register of Wills office to confirm.)

What if I dont have a marriage license?

You cannot get married without a license. However, in Philadelphia, there are some exceptions.

Starting April 6, the following individuals can apply for an emergency marriage license:

Concerned citizens with health issues that could lead to a fatality cause by COVID-19 symptoms

Frontline first responders

Military members

Individuals who were planning to marry but are now considering an accelerated timeline to add health insurance options for a couple facing immediate medical concerns

Individuals on a visa with a departure date approaching

At least one marriage license applicant must be a Philadelphia resident. You must have video-conferencing capabilities, and only self-uniting marriage licenses ($100) will be issued. Instructions for how to apply are posted to Philadelphias Register of Wills website, secureprod.phila.gov/wills.

Heres how it will work: Youll need to write an email explaining your circumstances. If your request for an emergency marriage license is approved, youll get an application sent to you by email. Once its filled out, youll be scheduled to attend a Zoom video conference to review your situation with a clerk. From there, youll mail your signed, completed application and $100 payment (money order only, payable to the Clerk of Orphans Court), along with one self-addressed, stamped envelope, to the Register of Wills office, which will review your documentation. The Register of Wills office will issue a self-uniting license by mail. Its valid for 60 days.

When you get married, youll need signatures from two witnesses. Then youll mail the duplicate (bottom portion) of the self-uniting license by USPS overnight delivery with tracking with another self-addressed envelope to the Register of Wills.

After the office gets your paperwork, a marriage certificate will be mailed to you.

Can I get married by video?

If you already have a license or qualify for an emergency marriage license, its time to plan your ceremony. With the stay-at-home order in place, gathering with those outside your household is not allowed. But that doesnt mean you cant use video to throw a party with family and friends.

Your officiant, however, cant be behind a screen. To make a marriage official, theyll need to join you in-person, even if that means theyre standing six, 10, or 20 feet away. If youre self-uniting, youll need two witnesses present.

Its a legality of all ceremonies  to ask someone if they have come here freely to marry this other person. And if youre in a video situation, you simply cant see if theyre being coerced," says Tongg.

Am I even allowed to host an in-person ceremony?

On April 1, a statewide stay-at-home order was announced. So what does that mean if you want to get married with, say, just your partner? If your officiant or two witnesses arent already your roommates, its not advised unless your marriage qualifies as an emergency situation. In other words: If you can postpone, you should.

What about joint health insurance?

Once your marriage is legal, you become eligible to change your health insurance or add your spouse. Those without a marriage license in hand will need to wait for the Register of Wills office to reopen to retrieve a wedding certificate.

If youve already acquired a license pre-COVID-19, Tongg suggests getting married with an officiant and then calling your insurance company.

You wont have your certificate yet, but you can take scans of your return  the copy of the signed license that you receive  and call the HR department of the insurance company to see if they can make an exception, says Tongg.

If its an emergency situation, you should apply for an emergency marriage license (see above).

Should I reschedule?

The answer is likely yes. With the stay-at-home orders in place, even small gatherings are discouraged  as small as just you and two witnesses.

Talk with your current vendors and discuss their policies on rescheduling.

Im sending out a spreadsheet to all my clients that shows the remaining dates Im available this year and next," says local wedding photographer Lily Szabo. They can pick one of those dates, and reschedule free of charge.

Its a common policy among both photographers and venues.

Nows the time to be flexible with change, whether its the date, the venue, the vendor, or your guest list, and to remember what matters most  starting your life with someone and the health of your family, says Tongg.
Update Friday: Trey Monaco and his girlfriend have been cleared by Onondaga County to end their quarantine.

Earlier article:

Syracuse, N.Y.  Trey Monaco woke up last month with a 101.8-degree fever.

His body ached. It hurt to move his eyes. Monaco suspected he had been stricken by the coronavirus.

Monaco, 32, of Syracuse, said he called Upstate University Hospitals COVID-19 hotline on March 16 and was told to get tested. He stayed inside just in case and got tested the next day.

Monaco and his girlfriend then holed up inside their Tipp Hill apartment  quarantining themselves as they waited for Monacos test results.

On Friday, Monaco got back his test results, he said, and learned hed tested positive for the coronavirus. Eleven days had passed since he got tested, he said, and he felt fine.

But the couple still stayed inside, expecting to spend four more days in quarantine. Monday was the couples 14th day in quarantine, the time experts have said people need to stay in quarantine if they have the virus.

But on Sunday, the couples 13th day in quarantine, the couple got an unsettling warning from Onondaga County: If you leave home, you could be fined or face jail time.

Its a little scary, Monaco said.

Two Syracuse police officers dropped off the notice at the couples home, Monaco said.

The five-page letter  provided by the couple to Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard  orders the couple to stay inside until county officials determine the couple can be discharged without danger to the health or life of others."

The letter, signed by county Health Commissioner Indu Gupta, warned the couple that violating the order is a misdemeanor crime punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.

But the order gave no timeline, no date on when their quarantine ends.

Despite calling every department they can think of, Monaco said they havent been able to get any answers.

After 18 days indoors, the couple wonders: When can we step outside without fearing were committing a crime?

County officials do not release information about specific cases. In a statement, county spokesman Justin Sayles said the health department reviews hundreds of cases every day to determine if residents can be released from isolation or quarantine.

Our team in the health department understands that being in isolation and quarantine can be a stressful situation, Sayles said.

But he said everyone  not just people in isolation or quarantine  should stay home to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Spending over two weeks inside without even being able to take a walk has not been easy, Monaco said. There are only so many records you can listen to, he said, and only so much you can do to stay occupied within the confines of one apartment.

While in isolation and quarantine, work came to halt for the couple, whose jobs are considered non-essential. Like others, their drop in income has not stopped bills  like rent, utilities and student loans  from piling up.

The couple wants to know if they could still, after 18 days, pass on the coronavirus to others. Monaco said they dont want to put anyone in danger.

But if its safe, he said they would simply like to take a walk outside.

Editors note: This article was updated on Friday afternoon.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

New York City hospitals begin transferring patients to Upstate NY (report)

Medical exams in a parking lot: Family doctors fight on coronaviruss frontlines and worry about the homefront

Syracuse hospital to furlough workers amid coronavirus surge

Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst cases double in 2 days, total hospitalized down; 277 total cases
Board of Supervisors Urges Residents to Be Counted Safely from Their Homes

Today, the L.A. County Board of Supervisors join national and state government officials to observe National Census Day, urging residents to fill out and return their census forms, reinforcing the importance of being counted.

Today, we take the opportunity to remind L.A. County residents that during this unprecedented time, your participation in the census must continue, said Supervisor Kathryn Barger. Participation is quick and easy, and being at home provides the opportunity to safely complete the form in three ways  online, by phone or by mail  while avoiding further spread of coronavirus in our communities.

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The County of Los Angeles is helping lead the regions Get Out The Count efforts, which are designed to urge residents to take part in the 2020 Census. Unlike other years, this year the census faces a challenge  a worldwide pandemic  which means millions of L.A. County residents are under Safer at Home orders and has forced a shift in outreach strategy.

Filling out the census form is simple and fast. Census forms can be completed online at my2020census.gov, by phone at 844-330-2020 (a list of in-language options is available here) or by mail if you receive a paper form.

Census data helps fund research and programs that strengthen our public health system. Our communities depend on the census for hospital and medical resources that keep our families safe in times like these, said Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda L. Solis. In critical moments, no one stands alone. We are all one community preserving our collective health. We can ensure L.A. Countys recovery in the months ahead is robust by ensuring everyone participates in the 2020 Census. Every person in L.A. County counts.

The census influences billions of federal dollars for local hospitals, parks, schools and affordable housing programs in L.A. County. Census data guides significant funding for vital programs including the Title I School Funding, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, WIC, Head Start, and community health centers funded through the Health Resources and Services Administration Health Center Program. All of these programs have an impact on the most vulnerable communities, especially in times such as these.

L.A. County leadership and our community partners remain committed to the census and encourage our residents to do the same, said Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas. COVID-19 has demonstrated firsthand how crucial the census is to our ability to react to a national crisis. We must remain steadfast in our efforts in ensuring every member of every household is counted.

The 2020 Census officially kicked off on March 12, with the U.S. Census Bureau sending letters to all households in the county, inviting residents to participate in the census either online, by mail or by phone.

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The census is already underway and, even in the midst of this crisis, it is critically important that everyone is counted, said Supervisor Janice Hahn. The census will determine our ability to invest in our hospitals, emergency services, and provide for our residents for years to come. Dont miss this opportunity to be counted. Fill out and return your census form, online, by phone, or by mail, safely from your home.

The U.S. Constitution mandates a census of the nations population every 10 years. Census statistics are used to determine the number of seats each state holds in Congress and how much in federal funding is allocated to state and local communities for the next 10 years. Local government officials use the census to ensure public safety and plan new schools and hospitals. Businesses use census data to decide where to build factories, offices and stores, which creates jobs. Real estate developers and city planners use the census to plan new homes and improve neighborhoods. Residents use the census to support community initiatives involving legislation, quality-of-life and consumer advocacy.

Completing the census is private. Responses are protected by federal law, specifically Title 13 of the United States Code. They cannot be shared with any other government agencies or other entities, including your landlord.

For non-English speaking residents, the L.A. County 2020 Census website offers county-specific information in 16 languages and the U.S 2020 Census website offers general information in 59 languages including in-language guides. Visit https://census.lacounty.gov/ and https://2020census.gov/ for more information.

In response to the evolving situation around COVID-19, the U.S. Census Bureau has extended the official deadline to participate in the census. The last day for households to self-respond online, by phone or by mail is August 14.

We are calling on our residents to pay attention, come together and do their part to ensure that our neighborhoods have access to all the services they deserve, such as health, schools and housing, said Supervisor Sheila Kuehl. Now more than ever, this is an important way to support our communities and keep them safe.
Several major retailers  including Kroger, H-E-B, Target and Walmart  are now allowing employees to wear face masks and gloves while working during the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The move comes as retailers nationally are rethinking policies banning employees from wearing masks and gloves, fearing customers might find them unsettling or worse, that stores are forcing sick employees to work.

After facing pressure from the public and employee unions  and as federal health officials consider recommending more widespread use of masks  several retailers are now permitting and even providing masks and gloves to employees.

Target on Thursday said it will supply its more than 350,000 employees with face masks and gloves at the beginning of every shift and strongly encourage that they are worn at work. These high-quality, disposable masks will be made available to employees at its stores, distribution centers as well as Shipt delivery workers within two weeks.

The measures were announcing today are aimed at ensuring we are creating a safe environment for the guests who continue to turn to Target, while also providing our team with additional resources as they fulfill an essential service in communities across the country, John Mulligan, Targets chief operating officer, said in a statement.

H-E-B on Wednesday said employees may wear face masks and gloves, provided masks are kept clean and gloves are changed frequently. Employees must wash their hands before and after each use.

While at work, some partners may choose to wear gloves and masks for their own peace of mind; however, this does not indicate they are sick, Winell Herron, H-E-Bs group vice president of public affairs, said in an email. In fact, if a partner feels ill, they are immediately directed to stay home.

Walmart on Tuesday said it is sending face masks and gloves to arrive in one to two weeks at all of its stores, discount clubs and distribution centers. Once the masks arrive, any employee who wishes to use them may do so. The masks are not N-95 masks, which filter out 95 percent of airborne particulates, but are high-quality masks, the retailer said.

While the CDC and other health officials do not recommend masks or gloves for healthy people who don't ordinarily use them for their jobs, we will make them available  as supplies permit  for associates who want to wear them, Walmart and Sams Club executives John Furner and Kath McLay said in a joint statement. We encourage anyone who would like to wear a mask or gloves at work to ask their supervisor for them, while keeping in mind that it is still possible to spread germs while wearing them.

Kroger over the weekend said its employees are permitted to wear face masks and gloves and are advocating that government officials prioritize access to personal protective equipment for grocery workers after health care workers.

Our associates are on the front lines, ensuring Americans have access to the food, services and products they need during this unprecedented pandemic, Kroger spokeswoman Clara Campbell said in a statement. We are committed to protecting the health and safety of our associates.

UNSUNG HEROES: Grocery workers are the unsung heroes of the coronavirus pandemic

Public health officials have repeatedly discouraged average Americans from using a face mask to prevent catching the coronavirus, instead encouraging people to wash their hands frequently, disinfect surfaces and cover their mouths while sneezing or coughing. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization advise people to wear masks only if they are displaying symptoms of the coronavirus or are taking care of someone suspected of having the virus.

However, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in a recent interview with CNN that federal officials are looking at more widespread use of masks to reduce community transmission, particularly among those infected with the virus but are showing no symptoms.

Meantime, retailers have taken several steps to protect employees from the coronavirus, which has sickened more than 857,600 people and killed more than 42,000 people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization.

The retailers have installed hand sanitizing stations, Plexiglas partitions at cash registers and floor decals at checkout lanes to promote social distancing. They have also reduced store hours to allow employees more time to rest, clean stores and restock inventory, and in some cases have limited the number of customers shopping in a store at one time.

In addition, the retailers have temporarily raised hourly wages and expanded sick leave during the outbreak. Curbside pickup customers are asked to stay inside their vehicles while their grocery orders are being loaded into the trunk.

Walmart is also sending infrared thermometers to all of its stores, discount clubs and distribution centers. Once the thermometers arrive, the retailer said it will begin taking the temperature of its employees as they report to work. Any employee with a temperature of 100 degrees or higher will be paid for reporting to work but asked to return home and seek medical treatment if necessary. The employee will not be able to return to work until they are fever-free for at least three days.
The Management of the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly (STMA) and Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipal Assembly (EKMA) have introduced new measures in the public transport sector to observe the social distancing protocol to control the COVID-19 pandemic.



The two assemblies reached the decision after careful deliberation with the various transport unions and market associations within their operational areas.



After the meeting, it was agreed that Taxis and urban buses that took three passengers on a row shall now take at most two passengers on a row with one passenger in the front seat with immediate effect.



Other commercial vehicles taking four or five passengers on a row shall take not more than three passengers on a row.



Mr. John Laste, the Metropolitan Public Relations Officer in a statement copied the Ghana News Agency said there would however be no changes in lorry fares.



The statement encouraged passengers to as much as possible reduce talking while in commercial vehicles, wash and/or sanitize their hands before boarding and after alighting.



It advised passengers to insist on the new seating directives and report recalcitrant drivers to the Assembly concerned.



The statement directed that all bulk trading activities have been relocated to the Takoradi Jubilee Park with effect from Wednesday, April 1, 2020, and that no trading activities would be permitted at the inner and outer perimeters of the Market circle.



Traders affected by the exercise at the Market circle have been given a temporal space at the Jubilee Park.



The statement added that all second-hand cloth and shoe dealers have also been relocated to Ekuasi Park at Sekondi with effect from Tuesday, 31 March, 2020, while traders selling within the median from Commercial Bank to Star Night have been relocated to Enamasi also in Sekondi.



Similar plans had been instituted for the Kojokrom market.



Meanwhile, the joint security and STMA monitoring team to arrest and detain children selling in and around the various markets and transport terminals have commenced operation.



As a result, in the Central Business District of Takoradi, the team arrested thirty-two children while forty-one children were arrested in Kojokrom.



The statement said particulars of the children who were arrested and their parents were taken and cautioned, while those who repeated the offence would be arraigned before court.



The Security team would also ensure enforcement of directives on public gatherings, closure of beaches, provision of handwashing facilities and compliance of social distancing at banks, restaurants, transport terminals and all other institutions.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A fuel made from the main ingredient of tequila could one day be used to power your car across the country, according to new research.

A team of researchers at the University of Sydney, University of Exeter and University of Adelaide has examined the potential for agave as an environmentally-friendly solution for Australia's transport fuel needs.

It could also be used to produce ethanol for hand sanitiser, which is in high demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A fuel made from the main ingredient of tequila could one day be used to power your car across the country, according to new research (stock picture)

'The agave plant, used to make Tequila, could be established in semi-arid Australia as an environmentally friendly solution to Australia's transport fuel shortage,' the research says.

In the article published this week in the Journal of Cleaner Production, University of Sydney agronomist Associate Professor Daniel Tan together with his research colleagues analysed the potential to produce biofuel from agave.

They found it could be grown in semi-arid Australia using less water than other biofuel crops such as sugarcane and corn, and without interfering with food production.

The RACQ motoring body says biofuels such as ethanol are commonly produced from grain and sugarcane through a fermentation process.

At the bowser, drivers can opt for a biofuel blend from petrol and ethanol, but some cars can operate on 100 per cent ethanol.

Professor Tan said the research showed agave had some 'significant advantages' over existing sources of bioethanol such as sugarcane and corn.

'It can grow in semi-arid areas without irrigation, and it does not compete with food crops or put demands on limited water and fertiliser supplies,' Prof Tan said on Thursday.

'Agave is heat and drought tolerant and can survive Australia's hot summers.

'This shows agave is an economic and environmental winner for biofuel production in the years to come.'

A team of researchers at the University of Sydney, University of Exeter and University of Adelaide has examined the potential for agave as an environmentally-friendly solution for Australia's transport fuel needs (stock picture)

He added economic analysis suggested a first generation of bioethanol production from agave is currently not commercially viable without government support, 'given the recent collapse in the world oil price'.

'However, this may change with the emerging demand for new ethanol-based healthcare products, such as hand sanitisers.'

Report lead author Dr Xiaoyu Yan, from the University of Exeter, said the results suggested bioethanol derived from agave was 'superior to that from corn and sugarcane in terms of water consumption and quality, greenhouse gas emissions, as well as ethanol output'.

The plant is now being grown on a pilot agave farm in Kalamia Estate on the Atherton Tablelands near Ayr in Far North Queensland as a biofuel source by MSF Sugar.

The report said a bioethanol yield of 7414 litres a hectare each year was achievable with five-year-old agave plants.

This compared to 9900 litres a hectare each year from sugarcane.

The study also noted agave used 69 per cent less water than sugarcane and 46 per cent less water than corn, for the same yield.
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Linkedin Veeramalla Anjaiah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, April 3 2020

No more crowded places: A policeman disperses people at a cafe in Kademangan in Blitar regency, East Java, recently. Social distancing, which has seen peoples behavior change with many doing their best to keep a 2-meter distance from others, has become a way to slow the spread of COVID-19. (JP/Asip Hasani)

In the past, we only heard about apartheid in South Africa, untouchability in India, Nazism in Germany and fascism in Italy.

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At least 10 shops were gutted when a fire broke through Bengalurus Shivaji Nagar on Wednesday night

At least 10 shops were gutted when a fire broke through Bengalurus Shivaji Nagar on Wednesday night, PTI reported. However, no casualties have been reported.

The fire started in the Bamboo Bazaar and spread to other shops, even as 17 fire tenders were pressed into action to ensure the flames do not spread to the nearby residential areas, Times Now reported. The report further added that the fire resulted in an estimated loss of Rs 15 crore.

The shops in the area sold plywood, other furniture and related items.

The fire broke out around 3.25 am (on Thursday). Over 13 shops are severely affected, some of which are as old as 50 years, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao told Indian Express. A godown which stocked air-conditioner, washing machines and refrigerators was also gutted, according to the report.
Senate Leader Mitch McConnell said Speaker Nancy Pelosi's plans for a fourth stimulus bill are 'premature' as she has ramped up talk of the next coronavirus rescue package.

'She needs to stand down on the notion that we're going to go along with taking advantage of the crisis to do things that are unrelated to the crisis,' McConnell told The Washington Post, calling it 'premature.'

His comments came as a record 6.6 million people filed for unemployment due to the coronavirus, which has shuttered restaurants, gyms, hotels and other businesses.

Pelosi pointed to those numbers when she pushed for a phase four bill, telling reporters during her weekly press conference that the 'need for job-creating actions, again, is even more critical.'

She said she spoke with Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin about it Wednesday night.

Senate Leader Mitch McConnell said Speaker Nancy Pelosi's plans for a fourth stimulus bill are 'premature'

Speaker Nancy Pelosi is pushing for the next round of economic aid

But the signs of a congressional clash on the matter are already taking shape.

McConnell and Pelosi play separate but equal roles in driving legislation through Congress - each in charge of getting it passed in their respective chamber.

But the priorities of the Republican McConnell and the Democratic Pelosi don't always align as was shown during negotiations for the $2.2 trillion rescue package that President Donald Trump signed into law on Friday.

Pelosi has begun to lay out Democratic priorities for the next round of legislation, including more funding for states and cities, including the District of Columbia, which was classified as a territory in the last legislation and got shut out of millions in funds.

'I think this bill has to, definitely has to have more for state and local governments. They cannot handle their purpose of what they do anyway and carry this without going seriously, seriously into debt,' she told reporters on a conference call on Wednesday.

'We are all Americans. Federal tax dollars are there for the American people. We need to do more, again, for the District of Columbia, which was cruelly treated in this past bill. We want to correct that,' she said.

President Trump has also weighed in, saying he'd like to see a large infrastructure component in the next round of legislation. He's pushing for a $2 trillion plan to update roads, bridges and other infrastructure.

'With interest rates for the United States being at ZERO, this is the time to do our decades long awaited Infrastructure Bill. It should be VERY BIG & BOLD, Two Trillion Dollars, and be focused solely on jobs and rebuilding the once great infrastructure of our Country! Phase 4,' he tweeted.

McConnell said he wants to know how everyone's wish list will be paid for.

'We do have to be mindful of how to pay for it. There has been a lot of fantasizing on both sides about massive packages,' he told The Post. 'We'd all love to do it, but there is the reality of how you pay for it. We just passed a $2 trillion bill, and it would take a lot of convincing to convince me that we should do transportation in a way that's not credibly paid for after what we just passed last week.'

Congress has passed three bills this month tackling the coronavirus: $8.3 billion on testing and research; a $100 billion bill addressing paid sick days, unemployment benefits and food aid; and the $2.2 trillion economic relief package.

Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana described Speaker Pelosi's wish-list as 'spending porn'

Most of McConnell's Republican senators are echoing his wait and see approach, agreeing with concerns on how it would be paid for.

Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana described Pelosi's wish-list as 'spending porn.'

'That's not Louisiana ditch water we're spending, that's taxpayer money,' Kennedy said on Fox News. 'Deficits matter, so I think we need to slow down here and be mindful of what we're doing and let's see if what we just did works.'

Lawmakers are not scheduled to return to Washington D.C. until after April 20th.
Midway through the latest weekly press conference held by Mason City Mayor Bill Schickel, MercyOne North Iowa Senior Vice President Teresa Mock and Cerro Gordo Public Health Executive Brian Hanft, the latter gave a succinct summary of where things currently stand in addressing COVID-19 concerns and where things are headed.

"We recognize that the work is only beginning," Hanft said.

One bit of immediate work and concern for MercyOne is the fact that a second employee has tested positive for COVID-19, according to Mock.

"The colleague that did test positive did not have any symptoms," Mock confirmed. "After being tested, they did not see any patients in the clinic."

That revelation follows news from almost a week ago of a different staff member, who did not have contact with patients, testing positive for COVID-19. As for the second employee, Mock said that everyone that has come in contact with them has been notified.

At the same time that MercyOne is responding to staff concerns, it's also been planning to up the number of ICU beds and ventilators if needed.

Mock said that, at this time, MercyOne has beds for 45 patients available but is holding daily discussions about expanding that. One such plan that's been floated would see dorms at North Iowa Area Community College converted into a makeshift hospital but that hasn't been enacted.

The current ventilator number is a little bit lower than that, at 38 total, but Mock said that hospital officials are also chatting about re-purposing others that the hospital system has. Neither of those numbers have changed for MercyOne from a week ago when President and CEO Rod Schlader updated the public about where things stood.

However, in the past week, the number of tests that MercyOne and the Public Health Department have helped to administer through the mobile site at the North Iowa Event Center has increased by more than 200 from the past week and now stands at 576.

While health concerns account for a significant chunk of the puzzle that local officials are trying to sort through, there are other pieces, too.

Particularly the economic impact.

Near the start of the press conference, Schickel shared word from North Iowa Corridor Economic Development Corporation President and CEO Chad Schreck that 40% of the area businesses that his group surveyed are "looking at the possibility of layoffs but doing everything they can to avoid that." Forty percent are projecting lower revenue in the future quarter and a majority are reporting lost revenue already.

To begin ameliorating those problems, Schickel said that the city and the corridor are putting together packages to fill in gaps for businesses. One development, just yesterday, from Main Street Mason City and others, will make it easier for area residents to support local owners by buying gift cards through the Iowa Love site.

Going forward, one thing that everyone at the conference acknowledged still needed to change is the number of area residents still out and about for what seems to be non-essential travel.

According to the data company Unacast, which provides cellphone location data and analysis to various companies, Cerro Gordo County has a D rating in non-essential visits and a C minus rating overall. That's compared to B ratings for neighboring counties such as Hancock and Winnebago.

The best way to change such mediocre rating as all three stated and restated in their own ways: "Be very very conscious of our social distancing."

Reach Reporter Jared McNett at 641-421-0527. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @TwoHeadedBoy98.

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A Pakistani court has overturned a death sentence and murder conviction imposed on a British-born militant over the 2002 killing of American journalist Daniel Pearl.



Defense lawyer Khawja Naveed said that, in handing down the decision, a two-member bench of the High Court of Sindh Province reduced Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh's sentence to seven years in prison for kidnapping, in what international media freedom watchdogs called a "denial of justice."

The United States said the decision was an "affront to victims of terrorism."

Since Sheikh has been in prison since 2002, he was expected to be released, but the court had yet to issue such an order, Naveed added.



Pearl, 38, was The Wall Street Journal's South Asia bureau chief when he was abducted and beheaded in Karachi in 2002, while researching a story about Islamist militants.



A video showing Pearl's decapitation was delivered to the U.S. consulate in Karachi nearly a month later.



Sheikh, a former student at the London School of Economics, was arrested in 2002 and sentenced to death by an anti-terrorism court, while three other defendants were sentenced to life imprisonment.



Naveed said those three had been acquitted by the court in its new ruling.



Faiz Shah, the provincial prosecutor-general, said he intends to appeal the ruling.



"We will go through the court order once it is issued, we will probably file an appeal," Shah told Reuters.

Alice Wells, principal deputy assistant secretary for South and Central Asian affairs at the U.S. State Department, said on Twitter that the overturning of the convictions was "an affront to victims of terrorism everywhere."

"We welcome Pakistans decision to appeal the verdict," Wells added. "Those responsible for Daniel's heinous kidnapping and murder must face the full measure of justice."

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said it was deeply disappointed to see justice in the murder case of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl denied by a Pakistani court today."

Reporters Without Borders condemned the court's "incoherent" ruling, which the watchdog called "a shocking denial of justice" for Pearls family and "a symbol of impunity for crimes of violence against journalists in Pakistan.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project, an investigative journalism team at Georgetown University in Washington, claimed that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.



The investigation claimed the reporter was murdered by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the September 11, 2001, attacks.



Mohammed was arrested in Pakistan in 2003 and is being held in the U.S. facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, and AP
Faridabad, April 2 : On the eighth day of the nationwide lockdown to fight Covid-19, as the police struggle to convince people to stay home at many places across the country, the story here on the Faridabad-Sohna highway, 59 km from Delhi, is quite different.

Deepak Sharma from Ground Zero Faridabad, April 2 (IANS) On the eighth day of the nationwide lockdown to fight Covid-19, as the police struggle to convince people to stay home at many places across the country, the story here on the Faridabad-Sohna highway, 59 km from Delhi, is quite different.

Most of the villages located on this busy highway have set up their own 'bandobast' committees (security volunteers) which have erected checkposts and barricades to restrict the entry of outsiders into the villages.

The volunteer groups, mostly village youths, offer a mandatory hand rub and register the phone numbers and addresses of visitors provided they are allowed entry. Some of the youths also carry lathis to respond to any untoward incident.

One of the densely populated villages, Gothda Mohbtabad, has round the clock operational checkposts where one can see at least 8-10 youths guarding the entry point to the village.

The youths, with the consent of the gram panchayat, work in shifts and are served tea and snacks by their fellow neighbours.

"At the first sight we do not allow strangers to step into the village. If they (visitors) have some urgent work or have been invited by someone in the village, we consider their entry," said 22-year-old Jitendra, who has volunteered to be a committee member.

"We also ask everyone to wear a mask, especially the visitors," Jitendra said, adding, "We do serve a hand rub to all those who pass through the main entrance of the village. Several 500 ml bottles of sanitisers are kept on the table, which have been provided free of cost by the gram panchayat to the vigilante groups." Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a countrywide lockdown from the midnight of March 24, most of the village panchayats in this Jat-Gurjar dominated belt of Haryana held general meetings and decided to secure their homes as well as villages from the spread of coronavirus.

In Mohbtabad village, the panchayat is dominated by women, which includes Sangeeta, Dharamwati, Mamta and Mukesh Devi. Sarpanch Birendra Singh, the leader of the village administration, was quick to decide to set up a checkpost on the main entrance while blocking other entries to the village.

"With the consent of the police, our panchayat decided to set up a 24-hours checkpost. We all volunteered to help the panchayat in stepping up the vigil," said 24-year-old Satyendra, who aims to be a bodybuilder.

All the nearby villages have similar arrangements.

"We are also educating our grandparents to stay indoors and not venture into the fields as it is the harvest season. The virus is more dangerous for elderly people. So we all are taking precautions, " said Ram Avtar, a prominent farmer having significant acreage in the area.

According to him, for the last three days, everyone is busy as the harvesting season has begun.

"Though we are trying to maintain social distancing, I prefer to wear a mask," said Ram Avtar, who has also requested the gram panchayat to provide free masks to the villagers.

Haryana has hitherto reported 35 positive Covid-19 cases, including 10 in Faridabad and six in Gurugram. However, official reports suggest that the dreaded infection is still far away from reaching the villages.
[April 02, 2020] IMU Fiber Makes Working From Home Viable on Broadband Services With Calix

Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX) today announced that Indianola Municipal Utilities (IMU) is deploying a next-generation fiber broadband network to deliver vital communications services to telecommuters in central Iowa. To address the limited residential broadband options, the local utility established IMU Fiber to build and maintain a city-wide fiber to the home (FTTH) network. The response has been remarkable, as IMU Fiber is close to 75 percent of the way to its 2023 subscriber goal as of the end of March 2020. With increasing numbers of subscribers working from home, broadband services are proving so vitally important to new telecommuters that daytime usage has more than doubled, climbing to 65 percent of network capacity. Fortunately, its AXOS enabled FTTH network is more than capable of handling the spike in demand. In response to the challenging economic environment, IMU Fiber has also suspended any service disconnects due to missed payments for 60 days. "Our residents view high-speed broadband access as an expected utility, like water or electricity-something that must be available and reliable at all times," said Kurt Ripperger, communications superintendent for Indianola Municipal Utilities. "As the municipal utility for the city of Indianola, it is our mission to deliver the best services possible to ensure our residents and our community are well served. With the growing number of business professionals calling Indianola home and the recent need to work remotely, meeting those needs means ensuring we deliver amazing and reliable broadband connectivity." The local utility has been turning up subscribers rapidly and cost effectively with the AXOS Intelligent Access EDGE solution. IMU Fiber is leveraging the E7-2 Intelligent Modular System and Services Management Connector (SMx) to dramatically simplify their network operations. With AXOS and its ability to support an everyPON strategy, IMU Fiber has a clear upgrade path to 10G PON as network demand continues to grow.



"By connecting Indianola residents using AXOS, IMU Fiber is significantly increasing the quality of life for its subscribers, especially those working from home, while simplifying its operations," said Mark Dressler, senior VP of global sales for Calix (News - Alert). "IMU Fiber is a great example of a municipal utility listening to its residents and taking it upon itself to ensure the vitality of the community it serves. We look forward to growing our partnership with IMU Fiber as it continues to innovate and improve the broadband experience for Indianola residents." Visit us online for more information on AXOS Intelligent Access EDGE and solutions for municipalities.

About Calix Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX) - Innovative communications service providers rely on Calix platforms to help them master and monetize the complex infrastructure between their subscribers and the cloud. Calix is the leading global provider of the cloud and software platforms, systems, and services required to deliver the unified access network and smart premises of tomorrow. Our platforms and services help our customers build next generation networks by embracing a DevOps operating model, optimize the subscriber experience by leveraging big data analytics and turn the complexity of the smart, connected home and business into new revenue streams. This press release may contain forward-looking statements that are based upon management's current expectations and are inherently uncertain. Forward-looking statements are based upon information available to us as of the date of this release, and we assume no obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking statement to reflect any event or circumstance after the date of this release, except as required by law. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from current expectations based on risks and uncertainties affecting Calix's business. The reader is cautioned not to rely on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Additional information on potential factors that could affect Calix's results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed in its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC (News - Alert) and available at www.sec.gov. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005190/en/

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LOS ANGELES, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Docupace, the leader in cloud-based fintech digital operations software for the wealth management industry, is announcing the availability of a suite of Digital Adoption Bundles that lower the cost of and barriers to digitizing operations.

"We've seen early indicators from our customers that digitizing their operations eases some of the challenges presented by the current COVID-19 pandemic," said Mark Tapling, Chief Executive Officer of Docupace. "We want to support the industry during this time, and our partners have rallied with us to do so. I hope that everyone will be able to consider banding together as a Wealth Management Team and receive our Digital Adoption Bundles in the positive spirit in which they are offered. Our sincere thanks to all of our Partners who have joined the Team early."

Docupace collaborated with several of their key partners, including OS33, WalkMe, Quik!, SIGNiX, and Beacon Strategies, to design a wide range of offerings for Wealth Management firms seeking to digitize their operations. Mark Tapling, Chief Executive Officer of Docupace, outlines the full Digital Adoption Bundles in his Open Letter to the public posted on Docupace's blog.

"Our customers are more than ever working remotely during this period," said Joel Friedman, Chief Customer Officer of Docupace. "We want to make sure we do our part to not only assist our customers to increase their productivity through digitizing operations but also provide the same opportunities to the industry as a whole. We're going to continue to work with our customers and partners to identify more Digital Adoption Bundle opportunities.

About Docupace

Docupace is a leading digital operations technology provider that simplifies how wealth management firms process and digitize data, increasing efficiency, productivity, and profits. With the secure, cloud-based Docupace Platform, the Docupace team provides a suite of digital solutions that helps broker-dealers, RIAs, and their advisors streamline and automate client onboarding, document management, advisor transitions, cybersecurity, and other critical workflows while maintaining SEC and FINRA compliance.

With headquarters in Los Angeles, California, Docupace is proud to serve a variety of firms, including some of the largest in the financial services industry, through a combination of proven technology and hands-on service. For more information, please visit www.docupace.com.

Media Contact:

Rickey Bijlani

Docupace

424-273-8939

[email protected]

SOURCE Docupace Technologies, Inc.

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Hollywood star and former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has donated 1 million USD in personal protection equipment to hospitals dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak.

According to Fox News, the 73-year-old actor, in a video shared on Facebook, stated that he went down to make sure the shipment had arrived, cheekily tearing open a box and verifying that there were N95 masks inside.

The 'Terminator' star has been urging people to socially isolate themselves in a number of videos and social media posts, some of which show backyard workout tips.

Schwarzenegger said that he had donated the 1 million USD to a GoFundMe set up for hospital workers in a post on Instagram earlier.

He wrote, "This is a simple way to protect our real action heroes on the frontlines in our hospitals, and I'm proud to be part of it. I never believed in sitting on the couch and complaining about how bad things are.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SILVER SPRING, Md. - Immigrants rights advocates on Thursday urged a federal judge to order the release of two people from Maryland immigration detention facilities, saying their medical conditions carry a high risk of death or serious illness from a coronavirus infection.

U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang didnt immediately rule after hearing arguments from attorneys for the federal government and the two men who sued U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Chuang said he would issue a written decision as soon as possible.

Judges in other states have agreed to free people from ICE detention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Chuang asked plaintiffs attorney Sirine Shebaya if a ruling in this case could benefit any ICE detainee who has a serious medical condition. She said the lawsuit only seeks the release of these two men and that each detainees case must be evaluated individually.

The two plaintiffs in the Maryland case have been held in civil detention at the Worcester County Detention Center and the Howard County Detention Center while awaiting resolution of their immigration cases.

Practicing social distancing and better hygiene is impossible in crowded detention centres, plaintiffs lawyers claim. Even with the measures ICE has purported to take to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in its facilities, immigration detention centres are a hotbed for spread of the virus, the March 24 lawsuit says,

Neither Maryland detention centre has a single confirmed or suspected COVID-19 case, Justice Department attorney Vincent Vaccarella said Thursday. A purely speculative risk of contracting COVID-19 doesnt entitle the plaintiffs to immediate release, Vaccarella said in a court filing this week.

Federal authorities say they are taking precautions to protect inmates and staff. The judge asked Vaccarella if the facilities could or will do more to help prevent the medically vulnerable detainees from an infection. Vaccarella said he didnt know.

Were not supposed to wait until someone gets sick, the judge said during a hearing held by video conference.

The Maryland plaintiffs are represented by attorneys from the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, the Capital Area Immigrants Rights Coalition, the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Maryland.

One of the plaintiffs, a 52-year-old citizen of El Salvador, has diabetes. The other, a 54-year-old citizen of Guatemala, has hypertension and prostate problems.

They were among more than 35,000 people who were in ICE custody as of Saturday.

Similar lawsuits have been filed in other states, including California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Washington state, according to the ACLU.

Earlier this week, federal judges in California and Pennsylvania ordered ICE to release several detainees who sued.

Our Constitution and laws apply equally to the most vulnerable among us, particularly when matters of public health are at issue. This is true even for those who have lost a measure of their freedom, U.S. District Judge John Jones III wrote in the Pennsylvania case.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and those with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness and be life-threatening.

___

Follow AP coverage of the virus outbreak at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  The warden hired to help reform the troubled Cuyahoga County Jail resigned Thursday, two days after a county investigation found he retaliated against corrections officers, slammed a handcuffed inmate into a wall and forced an employee to drive him to the airport on the clock.

Gregory Croucher, who resigned just shy of eight months into his tenure, also created a hostile work environment, according to a Cuyahoga County Inspector Generals report.

Crouchers resignation came after his boss, Jail Director Ronda Gibson, ordered him to self-isolate at his home on March 25 due to fears of spreading the coronavirus at the jail. Croucher returned from a trip to Costa Rica on March 20 and walked into the jail without getting mandatory health and temperature screenings.

His resignation also happened as jail and court officials and the Cuyahoga County Prosecutors Office are making swift reforms aimed at stemming a possible case of the virus from entering the jail.

Crouchers resignation letter said, in part: Im proud of the progress and the accomplishments that have been achieved during his eight months as warden.

Croucher was hired in August and replaced Eric Ivey as the person in charge of day-to-day operations inside the jail. Ivey pleaded guilty in March to charges that accused him of ordering officers to turn off their body cameras during a death investigation.

His hiring was one of several in a shakeup of top jail personnel after a string of nine inmate deaths between 2018 and 2019, a U.S. Marshals Service investigation that found inhumane conditions for inmates and an Ohio Attorney Generals Office criminal probe.

The countys inspector generals report says officers began complaining about Croucher in large numbers in late January.

The inspector general found sufficient evidence that Croucher retaliated against officers who complained about him and that he improperly used his authority.

Investigators also found that he slammed a handcuffed inmate against the wall, but that they didnt have enough evidence to establish that he used excessive force. The inspector general recommended that jail officials should shore up and any blind spots in the video surveillance system.

Retaliation

At a January labor-management conference, a monthly meeting where jail staff, jail supervisors and human resources officials discuss issues involving the jail, officers relayed complaints about Croucher watching jail surveillance video to target employees he didnt like.

Croucher sometimes watched the video from his home in the middle of the night, according to the report. Croucher found out the names of the officers who complained and emailed their names to supervisors.

Several supervisors who got the email intimidated the employees by calling them snitches and warning them to watch your back.

The employees said the intimidation caused them to be fearful of reporting issues to their superiors, according to the report.

Croucher told investigators that he asked for the names so he could address any issues head-on and out in the open. He also complained during the interview that human resources employees have too much control of the jail and that the jail professionals should be allowed to do their jobs.

Forced airport drop-off

Croucher used an on-duty corrections officer on Dec. 20 to drive him to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport so Croucher could fly home to Minnesota.

The officer told investigators that Croucher asked him to give him a ride and never told him to clock out. The officer drove Croucher to the airport in his own car.

Croucher told investigators he mentioned he was flying home to the employee, and the employee offered to drive him to the airport. Croucher also told investigators he believed the two were friends; the employee said he was not friends with Croucher.

Croucher slams inmate into wall

The inspector generals office concluded that they could not find sufficient evidence that Croucher violated the countys excessive use of force policy. The report says the lack of surveillance video is the main reason, and that some of the witness statements are inconsistent.

The inspector generals office recommended that the sheriff continue investigating.

The incident happened March 3, after two U.S. Marshals Task Force officers brought the woman into the jail in handcuffs. She hurled insults at officers, but none of those interviewed by the inspector general said she appeared to be physically threatening.

Most said they regarded the womans outburst as typical for inmates who are brought to the jail and need time to calm down.

The woman told investigators she tried to slip off her handcuffs. That drew attention from several officers who stood nearby. She said that triggered her anxiety about being surrounded by a group of men.

Croucher walked up as at least nine other officers were already surrounding the woman. Croucher told investigators that the woman swung her arms at him, but others who witnessed the incident said that didnt happen, according to the report.

The woman tried to back away from Croucher and told him not to touch her. Croucher grabbed her by the arm, spun her around and slammed her face into the wall. He also kneed and elbowed her back, according to the report.

One witness said he believed Croucher was trying to stop the woman from attacking a nurse. Three people interviewed by the inspector general said they thought Croucher stepped over the line.

A medical official also pointed out the size difference between the two  Croucher is about 6-foot and 250 pounds and the woman 5-foot-4 and 108 pounds.

Read more from cleveland.com:

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PARIS - Rafael Gomez Nieto, the last surviving member of a company of Spanish soldiers that fought with French forces in liberating Paris from Nazi occupation in 1944, has died of the new coronavirus, the French presidency said Thursday. He was 99.

The presidency said Gomez Nieto died in Strasbourg, a city in eastern France that he fought to liberate in November 1944. Frances eastern regions have been hit particularly hard by virus infections and deaths. French media said Gomez Nieto died Tuesday.

While growing up in Spain, the soldiers son was still a teenager when he fought in the Spanish Civil War, joining the Republican forces that battled the Nationalists led by Gen. Francisco Franco. More than 500,000 people died in the 1936-1939 conflict.

As Francos forces advanced, declaring victory on April 1, 1939, Gomez Nieto and his family joined the exodus of hundreds of thousands of Spanish refugees who fled over the Pyrenees to France, hoping to find safety, the French presidency said. But like many others, Gomez Nieto was locked up in one of the harsh and rudimentary internment camps that were hastily thrown together for refugees in the south of France.

Gomez Nieto later managed to join up with Free French troops in North Africa. He enlisted in 1943 and became part of La Nueve, a company that reunited veterans of the Spanish war. The company was part of French Gen. Leclercs famed 2nd Armored Division that fought in the Allied liberation of France and took Paris on Aug. 25, 1944.

These stubborn freedom fighters were determined to root out oppression everywhere, from their cradle in Spain and under the sun of Africa and the skies of Paris. After taking up arms against Franco, they fought against Hitler, the presidency said in a statement. Everywhere, they sowed liberty.

La Nueve gave Spanish names to its armoured vehicles and was at the forefront of the thrust into Paris. In an interview published by the French newspaper lHumanite in 2014, Gomez Nieto said the half-track he drove was nicknamed Guernica, after the Spanish town bombed by Nazi planes in 1937.

The soldiers took City Hall as ordered, and Gomez Nieto parked the vehicle in front of the building, he recalled.

When you enter an oppressed city, the girls jump on the liberator! the newspaper quoted him as saying.

The presidency said France will be eternally gratefully to Gomez Nieto and his comrades.
BRUSSELS - As the new coronavirus spreads across Europe, ravaging economies and killing thousands, governments and the European Union are focusing much of their economic rescue efforts on containing a boom in joblessness, particularly by helping companies not fire workers.

By one count, at least one million Europeans lost their jobs over the past two weeks as the continent entered a lockdown, with schools, businesses and social gatherings shut down, effectively freezing large parts of the economy.

While the rise in unemployment is devastating and is likely to turn out higher than that, it is still far below that of the U.S., where nearly 10 million people applied for jobless benefits in two weeks. The contrast highlights Europes greater social safety nets, in particular schemes where governments help companies put workers on shorter hours instead of firing them - in the hope of bringing them back quickly once the pandemic fades.

In this coronavirus crisis, only the strongest of responses will do, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday as she unveiled a 100 billion-euro ($110 billion) EU plan to help companies to not fire employees.

With a new solidarity instrument, we will mobilise 100 billion euros to keep people in jobs and businesses running. With this, we are joining forces with member states to save lives and protect livelihoods.

Even before lockdown measures were extended across almost all of Europe, the economy was expected to fall into recession because of the virus. To weather the downturn, governments have unveiled trillions of euros in credit for companies and aid for small businesses and families, including cash handouts. The EU commission, its executive body, made available 37 billion euros from the EU budget and the European Central Bank said it will buy as much as 750 billion euros in financial assets to calm markets.

With her new lending tool, Von der Leyen wants to ensure skilled workers are kept by their companies until the moment the economy picks up again.

It would help fund schemes that have already been put in place in many countries to avoid layoffs.

According to the European Trade Union Confederation, some 18 EU countries as well as Norway and the U.K. have already introduced jobs-protecting measures.

France is spending 11 billion euros on a scheme to keep people in partial employment. Germany has a program that fills in lost wages when companies must put workers on shorter hours due to an interruption that is temporary and beyond their control, which can be up to 100% of their work time. The program pays 60% of employees lost net pay, and 67% for those with children.

Many companies have labour agreements under which they can bring workers even closer to full salary. The German scheme helped limit unemployment in the 2009 recession, when companies put some 1.5 million workers in the program. About 2.35 million workers are expected to make use of it during the current crisis.

The idea is to preserve the employment relationship so that companies can immediately resume full operations when trouble passes without having to recruit and train new staff. It also helps keep other businesses afloat across the economy since the workers still have money to spend in shops.

In Europe, Spain and Italy have been the hardest hit by the outbreak of the virus, which has killed more than 33,000 people in the region, though most people only suffer moderate symptoms. They are also suffering some of the biggest economic damage.

Nearly 900,000 workers lost their jobs in Spain since authorities ordered people to stay home to slow down the spread of the virus, which has killed more than 33,000 people in Europe. The job loss was higher than in January 2009, when 350,000 workers were laid off as the global financial crisis hit the southern European country.

In Italy, social security agency computers crashed on the first day individuals could apply for aid to cover lost income due to the coronavirus, with up to 300 requests coming in every second at the peak on Tuesday. Some 18 million Italians are eligible for short-term unemployment schemes, or a payment of 600 euros in March. The monthly handout is expected to be raised to 800 euros in April, as the government has extended the lockdown through at least April 13. The aid in Italy is even being offered to sectors not usually covered, including the self-employed and seasonal workers.

In Britain, the number of people applying to claim welfare benefits increased nearly tenfold to almost one million in the past couple of weeks. Economists think that the unemployment rate of 3.9% could double.

The International Labour Organization last month estimated that nearly 25 billion jobs could be lost globally as a result of the pandemic, though that figure is likely to be revised up.

___

Follow AP news coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.

___

David McHugh in Frankfurt, Carlo Piovano, Pan Pylas and Danica Kirka in London, Sylvie Corbet in Paris, and Colleen Barry in Rome contributed to this report.
Mick Fuller said he doesn't want 8000 crew members quarantined in Sydney

Peter Dutton claimed the ship lied about the health of crew currently on board

A police investigation will be launched to probe why 3,000 passengers exposed to coronavirus were allowed to disembark the Ruby Princess cruise ship in Sydney.

New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian ordered Police Commissioner Mick Fuller to launch an investigation into the deepening saga.

More than 500 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and seven deaths are linked to the ship after passengers got off in Sydney on March 19 without any medical checks.

The Australian Border Force and the NSW Health Department had been locked in a bitter blame game for the security blunder.

But on Thursday, Ms Berejiklian accused the ship's operator, Carnival Australia, of not providing accurate information to health officials.

The highly-infected cruise ship is still floating off the NSW coast (pictured)

New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian ordered NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller police commissioner to launch an investigation into the fiasco

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said he doesn't want 8000 crew members quarantined in Sydney for the risk of them infecting Australians or exhausting the state's hospitals

'I appreciate how upset everybody is. Don't you think I'm upset? I've lived this and breathed this every day of my life,' she told Sydney's 2GB radio station.

'There were several authorities involved and I'll be the first one to look someone in the eye if they've done the wrong thing and make them accountable.'

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton pointed the finger at the Ruby Princess, alleging its operators weren't transparent about the health of crew currently on board.

Mr Dutton said it was 'clear that some of the companies have been lying about the health of passengers and crew on board'.

'I need to get an honest picture of what's happening,' he said.

Eight cruise ships have been locked in a stand off with the New South Wales government for nearly three weeks after refusing to leave Australian waters and go back to their country of origin.

Cruise companies Carnival Australia and Royal Caribbean International haven't budged after the Federal Government on March 16 banned cruise ships from docking at Australian ports to stop the spread of coronavirus.

The Pacific Explorer, Carnival Splendour, Ovation of the Seas, Spectrum of the Seas, Radiance of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas, Celebrity Solstice and the highly-infected Ruby Princess remain off the coast of NSW.

NSW Police said a 66-year-old crew member was also taken off the Ruby Princess for medical treatment on Thursday

More than 500 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and seven deaths are linked to the ship after passengers were allowed to disembark in Sydney on March 19 without any medical checks

There are between 800 and 1300 people stranded on board each ship.

Mr Fuller told The Australian he doesn't want 8,000 crew members quarantined in Sydney for the risk of them infecting Australians and overwhelming the state's hospitals.

He is weighing up a military-style medical extraction for people on the ships who need treatment for coronavirus.

The operation could take place on Monday if the vessels still refuse to move out of Australian waters.

Ship operators could face fines of up to $63,000 and five years behind bars if the vessels don't leave, according to Australian Border Force Commissioner Michael Outram.

Ms Berejiklian asked Mr Fuller to investigate the information the Ruby Princess gave to NSW health authorities.

'The question remains, and I've asked the police commissioner to look into this, what information was provided to health and authorities and why did this occur?' she said.

On Thursday police escorted doctors to the Ruby Princess cruise ship after a seventh passenger died from coronavirus.

The Marine Area Command helped NSW Health and an independent medical team board the ship. Police did not board the vessel.

There are nearly 600 infections linked to cruise ships, including more than 500 cases from the Ruby Princess and 74 from the Ovation of the Seas.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

An 85-year-old patient from Darling Downs, in regional southern Queensland, became the seventh Ruby Princess cruise passenger to die from COVID-19.

He died in Toowoomba Hospital overnight.

NSW Police said a 66-year-old crew member was also taken off the Ruby Princess for medical treatment on Thursday.

'The NSW Police Force is also assisting with a number of medical evacuations and transfers of Australian crew members from several cruise ships anchored off Sydney,' police said.

Carnival Cruises, which operates the Ruby Princess, on Monday called on the government to adopt a humanitarian approach and enable the company to repatriate the foreign crew left onboard.

Grandmother, 67, dies alone in a hospital cubicle after contracting coronavirus on the Ruby Princess cruise - and her heartbroken husband couldn't even say goodbye

A healthy Australian grandmother died alone in hospital from coronavirus aged just 67, as her infected husband lay isolated a few doors away.

Janet Lieben, from Blayney, New South Wales, caught the deadly respiratory infection on a once-in-a-lifetime cruise on the doomed Ruby Princess ship.

Her husband Jerry, a Vietnam veteran, was also infected, and was in the same hospital when Ms Lieben died alone in an ICU cubicle on Wednesday.

'He was absolutely distraught, he's inconsolable,' a hospital source told the Daily Telegraph.

'He couldn't comfort her, he's sick himself with the virus, there was nothing he could do but let her go, it's broken his heart.'

Jerry (pictured, left) and Janet Lieben (right) had been enjoying a special 11-day cruise with old army friends around New Zealand on the doomed Ruby Princess

The couple, who friends said shared a 'special bond', were among the 440 passengers who caught COVID-19 while sailing on the Ruby Princess.

She died at Orange Base Hospital in rural NSW, making her the first patient to die in the state outside of Sydney.

The virus-stricken ship docked in Sydney on March 19 after an 11-day trip to New Zealand.

Ms Lieben is the seventh person to die from the ship, which was allowed to freely dock in Sydney with passengers spilling out into Circular Quay.

Janet Lieben (pictured) with her beloved dog Benny. The doting grandmother died on Wednesday after suffering complications from COVID-19

At least six more people who had not been on the cruise have since caught COVID-19 from its passengers, with that number expected to rise.

On Monday, health officials revealed there were 211 cases of coronavirus from the Ruby Princess in NSW, 70 in Queensland, 71 in South Australia, 43 in Western Australia, 18 in Victoria, 22 in ACT and two in the Northern Territory.

Ms Lieben, a retired factory worker, had been on the cruise with her husband, a former officer with the Australian Army, for a reunion with his former colleagues.

They were among 25 Australians on board the ship for the event, organised by the Air Dispatch Association Australia (ADAA).

ADAA president Nick Nicolai said Mr Lieben had been 'very worried' about his wife's condition earlier this week, while he suffered a 'rasping cough' and chest tightness.

Cruise ship passengers are seen leaving the Ruby Princess (pictured) in Sydney's Circular Quay on March 19

Australia has 5,136 confirmed cases of coronavirus so far, with 24 people dead. Nearly half of those cases are in New South Wales

'Janet was a vibrant, wonderful woman and was very healthy, he said.

'We're a very tight knit community; Janet's death has affected us all.'

NSW chief medical officer Kerry Chant said the ship had been considered 'low risk' before the diagnoses, meaning it could freely dock in Sydney.

The ship had more than 1,100 crew and close to 2,700 passengers, New South Wales health minister Brad Hazzard said last month.

Mr Hazzard said those on board were quickly told to self-isolate, with authorities scrambling to contact thousands of passengers after some tested positive.

The Ruby Princess cruise ship (pictured) is seen from Kurnell National Park in Sydney on Thursday, with around 1,000 crew members still aboard

Three quarters of coronavirus deaths in Australia can be linked to cruise ships, an aged care centre in Sydney and a cancer treatment ward of a Melbourne hospital

It has now been linked to seven deaths in Australia, including Ms Lieben.

The other victims from the ship are all in their 70s and 80s, and died between March 24 and March 31.

Following the Ruby Princess fiasco, NSW banned all cruise ship passengers from disembarking until new protocols are in place.

Three other Australians died after getting off cruise ships.

James Kwan, 78, died at a Perth hospital on March 1 after returning to Australia from the highly-infected Diamond Princess in Japan.

Garry Kirstenfeldt, 68, died in a Toowoomba hospital on March 25. He was on the Voyager of the Seas which docked in Sydney 11 days earlier.

The crew member, 66, (pictured) had become sick on board and was rescued by an ambulance helicopter

Ray Daniels, 73, died in Joondalalup Hospital in Perth six days after arriving back in Sydney from a New Zealand cruise onboard the Celebrity Solstice.

Five of Australia's 24 deaths came from the same aged care home in Sydney, the Dorothy Henderson Lodge.

Two other deaths came from an outbreak at the oncology ward at Melbourne's Alfred Hospital.

The source of infection for the remaining six people who lost their lives has not been confirmed.

But there are fears the toll from the Ruby Princess could still rise, with many passengers still in hospital - and around 1,000 crew members still onboard.

The Ruby Princess cruise ship (pictured) is seen from Kurnell National Park in Sydney on Thursday, with around 1,000 crew members still aboard

On Thursday night, another crew members was removed from the embattled ship as it remains anchored near Sydney Harbour.

The 66-year-old man was evacuated from the ship, which has become an epicentre of Australia coronavirus outbreak.

It is one of eight cruise ships sitting off the coast of NSW, with officials considering a military-style operation where medics fly to the vessels to test passengers and crew.

They are not allowed to dock, with authorities fearing a further outbreak.

The Australian Border Force and the NSW Health Department both blame the other for allowing passengers to disembark without medical checks, infecting more than 400 people around the country with coronavirus.
Lockdown, what lockdown? London's social scene might have been put on the backburner, but its movers and shakers are refusing to let the fun come to an end.

Everyone from the Duchess of Cornwall to Health Secretary Matt Hancock and, reportedly, David Cameron is now socialising via Houseparty, the social network which allows group video calls.

Society magician Archie Manners  named by Tatler magazine as one of its top 'power networkers'  has revealed the highs and lows of rubbing virtual shoulders with the elite.

'If I was at a normal party in normal life and a celebrity was there, I would never go up to them and interrupt their conversation  that would just be rude,' Archie tells me.

Party trick: Archie Manners

'But the great joy of Houseparty is that you can just barge into conversations  it's considered socially acceptable.'

The 26-year-old, who has performed for the Duke of Cambridge and counts Alexander Warren, the son of the Queen's beloved racing manager, John Warren, among his close friends, admits his first foray into Houseparty did not go smoothly.

He has also stumbled into a 'room' with pop star Boy George

'When I downloaded the app, I accidentally opened it while trying to turn on some music after getting out of the shower,' he says. 'I was just in a towel with a face mask on looking like Casper the ghost. But as I was looking at the screen expecting it to be playing Les Miserables, I saw former culture minister Ed Vaizey smiling back at me!

'He said: 'Hi Archie, how are you?' We spoke about quarantine life and he asked me to come on again to show his children some magic tricks  which I haven't actually done yet, but will do.'

'It's quite normal for me to come into a conversation with someone who's on Made In Chelsea. I'm sure Lottie Moss is probably on it but I haven't got round to adding her yet.'

He has also stumbled into a 'room' with pop star Boy George. 'I saw a mutual friend in conversation with him. I thought someone had just signed up with his name, but I clicked on it and found I was in the room with the actual, genuine Boy George.

'He was even wearing his special hat. It was hilarious.'

'It's quite normal for me to come into a conversation with someone who's on Made In Chelsea. I'm sure Lottie Moss is probably on it but I haven't got round to adding her yet'

Harry's ex Sarah Ann wins high honours

Burberry model Sarah Ann Macklin, who reportedly courted Prince Harry at the same time as he was trying to woo Meghan, has a spring in her step.

She has just been named by the London Metropolitan University as one of its highest-achieving students of Human Sciences.

The Harley Street nutritionist, 30, whose exes include model David Gandy, achieved a first-class honours BSc in Human Nutrition.

'We need to be there for each other more than ever,' she says, 'and champion all the scientists who are working on a future cure to help us in years to come.'

Burberry model Sarah Ann Macklin, who reportedly courted Prince Harry at the same time as he was trying to woo Meghan, has a spring in her step

Best known for tootling around ancient ruins, classicist Mary Beard is having to acquire more modern skills for her new TV series Front Row Late. 'It's being filmed in my study  just me, as engineer, floor manager, presenter . . . and make-up artist,' Cambridge University's classics professor tells me from her home where she will film the BBC2 show.

'I am going to be linked virtually to the rest of the team. 'It's a challenge, but we're very committed to keeping arts discussion on TV  and we think people will understand if there are a few flaws.'

Edward Fox has worked with such legends as Dickie Attenborough, John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier. But today he's saluting two men whom he considers the greatest talents he has ever seen in action  Fred and Bill Hannington. The brothers  owners of Tyre & Wheel garage in London  are laying down their grease-guns in favour of retirement.

'They sold me a Skoda, second-hand, for 2,000 when it had done about 30,000 miles,' Fox tells me. 'And they've kept it going for 2,000 and it's now done about 120,000.' Awesome!

Prince Charles's former flame, actress Susan George, 69, says she is finally ready to enjoy male companionship, ten years after losing her beloved husband, actor Simon MacCorkindale to cancer.

'The other day, I listened to a new recording of the Whitney Houston song, I Wanna Dance With Somebody,' she says. 'It made me think 'yes, I want to dance with somebody, I want that feeling of dancing with someone again'. 'I'm not saying I'm ready for a relationship  |\I just wanna dance . . .'

Jenny Boyd, the original Sixties rock chick, who was married (twice) to Mick Fleetwood, has forgiven the errant drummer for his philandering. 'I remember calling him and a woman answered the phone. We laugh about it now,' she says. Former model Boyd even grants Fleetwood absolution for his affair with band member Stevie Nicks. 'He was married to Fleetwood Mac and I was the mistress.'

Comic turn with ukulele Neill

Just because actors can't appear on stage or at film shoots doesn't mean they can't continue performing.

Jurassic Park star Sam Neill has been treating his fans to online videos of him singing and playing the ukulele as well as reciting poetry.

'I just pluck things out of the air,' he says. '[I'm] finding things that I've put aside for a rainy day. Well, this is a rainy day.' Neill, 72, adds: 'There's so much doom and misery around that someone being a little cheerful comes as a comic relief. I've been terribly touched, and also heartbroken by so many of the responses I've had.'

Fake news? Helen knows the real story

Peaky Blinders star Helen McCrory, who has a daughter Manon, 13, and a 12-year-old son, Gulliver, with Homeland actor Damian Lewis, is teaching her children to distinguish between real and fake news.

'We all know now that anything we say and hear, once it goes online it can go anywhere. Everyone knows that now, but if you don't, it can be quite dangerous,' says McCrory, who is appearing in the ITV drama, Quiz.

'My children are being taught to look at news, about what is real and what you go to  and what you don't go to. We realise this is becoming a real problem.'

Perhaps she should read the Daily Mail.

Peaky Blinders star Helen McCrory, who has a daughter Manon, 13, and a 12-year-old son, Gulliver, with Homeland actor Damian Lewis, is teaching her children to distinguish between real and fake news

When Tilda plants an idea

Oscar-winning actress Tilda Swinton tells locals in the Highlands village where she lives that her work is just like farming.

'There aren't that many filmmakers who live there,' she says. 'If I'm talking to somebody who doesn't know what I do, I say my work is like being a farmer.

'You're planting all these things: some of them come up really fast, some of them take a long time  and some of them don't come up at all.'
International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach has thanked India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his unflinching support to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which has now been shifted to 2021 because of the global coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to Modi, dated April 1, Bach said he was "grateful" to the Indian Prime Minister for his support to the Tokyo Games during the recent G20 Leaders' Summit which was held via video conference in the wake of the pandemic, which has left the world in disarray.

"Please accept my sincere thanks for the support you have given to the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, expressed in the Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit Statement, commending the International Olympic Committee for contributing to the containment of the COVID-19 virus," Bach wrote in his letter.

"I am really grateful for your support for the Olympic Games and their unifying role, which the G20 Leaders' Summit had already expressed at your meeting last year in Osaka."



After their initial reluctance, the IOC and Tokyo Games orgainsers were forced to bow before the unprecedented challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, and reschedule the 2020 Tokyo Games to 2021.

As per the revised schedule announced by the IOC, the Tokyo Olympics will now be held from July 23 to August 8, exactly a year after the global sporting event was originally scheduled.

The deadly COVID-19 outbreak has taken a gigantic shape with over 47,000 deaths reported worldwide so far while positive cases rose to nearly 9,40,000.

The IOC chief firmly put his support behind Tokyo, saying despite the pandemic, the Japanese city is well-prepared to host the quadrennial Games.

"Given the great work having been done by our Japanese partners and friends, Tokyo is the best-ever prepared Olympic city."



He is confident that with the support of the global leaders, the Tokyo Games next year will be a grand success.

"Thanks to the excellent and trustful cooperation we are enjoying, like from the G20 Leaders' Summit, we are confident that these Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 will be a great success," Bach said.

"Like you, we are confident that the Olympic Games 2020 will be a symbol of human resilience. They will again show the unity of humanity in all our diversity by bringing together the world's best 11,000 athletes from all 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team."



"As humankind currently finds itself in a dark tunnel, together with our Japanese partners and friends we want to make these Olympic Games a light at the end of this tunnel," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
First Minister Arlene Foster says the current modelling which suggests 3,000 deaths due to coronavirus in Northern Ireland over a 20-week period is a "sobering statistic".

Mrs Foster told the daily briefing by the Stormont Executive that this death toll "would be about 500 people short of the lives lost during the Troubles".

She was speaking after the Health Minister Robin Swann earlier set out the key findings of the expert Northern Ireland modelling study which will be used in hospital planning for the forthcoming Covid-19 surge.

Referring to the figures, the DUP leader said: "The loss of each of those lives is a huge blow, not only to their families, but of course to the communities from which they come from.

"In a small tight-knit society like ours we are all likely to know someone who will be impacted and it will be a cruel blow. We will need to do everything we can to comfort and support their relatives and indeed each other in the difficult weeks and months ahead," she added.

Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill said there was no doubt that this modelling work will alarm and concern people.

"It's a scary prospect for all of us but particularly for those older people and those who are vulnerable," she added.

"It only serves to reinforce how crucially important it is that people keep doing the things that are asked of them at this time in order to allow us to be able to save lives.

"The actions of each and every one of us are crucial in reducing the death toll.

"These are frightening times and I think everyone shares that fear about what is upon us. No one feels that more acutely than our healthcare workers.

"They are worried too about the risk to themselves and to their families and patients.

"They are terrified of not being able to continue in their jobs.

"I acknowledge that fear and we have to build confidence right across the health service, among our staff and make sure they are protected and supported in the lifesaving work that they are doing.

The Sinn Fein deputy leader again stressed that healthcare workers are "crying out" for personal protective equipment (PPE) and more testing, a message she said was relayed to her earlier during discussions with the Royal College of Nursing.

She said: "They are concerned that the NHS guidance on the use of PPE during this pandemic doesn't align with the World Health Organisation's advice.

"We have to listen to our healthcare workers on the frontline who are telling us all of this."

Professor Ian Young, chief scientific advisor at the Department of Health, also attended yesterday's briefing, and said that the predictions of 3,000 deaths would be "an extraordinary event to occur in the life of Northern Ireland and really terrible for everyone who might be impacted". He added: "I hope that if people stick to the social distancing measures that we will do significantly better than that."

Professor Young also warned that recurrence of coronavirus is "almost inevitable" once restrictions end, until enough people build up immunity through vaccination or surviving infection.

"Once you relax restrictions it is almost inevitable that there will be a recurrence of the virus and that will occur until a substantial proportion of the population have immunity," he said.

Professor Young added that no decisions had been made about when social distancing recommendations would be relaxed.

"We will be looking carefully at the likely impact of relaxing those recommendations, either singly or as a group," he said.
Andrew Harrer

In any normal election year, the email sent Sunday from Joe Bidens campaign would be innocuousasking volunteers to host an event in their home, or even let a Biden staffer snag their spare bedroom for a while.

But of course, this year isnt normal. And at least two of the requests outlined in the otherwise ordinary blast would violate the former vice presidents own stay-at-home guidance.

The newly antique missive illustrates the latest challenges that the isolating nature of coronavirus can present for both volunteers and the voters that Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, needs to reach. The campaign acknowledged that difficulty, but said they are adapting accordingly.

In an organizing context, the most important thing you can do in the space is having strong senses of community among volunteers, Rob Flaherty, Bidens digital director, said. "People are able to take a lot more action at home."

A senior Biden official told The Daily Beast the campaign has seen explosive growth in their online communities the past two weeks as people have been self-quarantined at home, with more sign-ups than they have seen in previous months. (The official declined to provide specific numbers).

In particular, the campaign says it has seen increased engagement in its proprietary peer-to-peer texting tool, which allows for conversations between potential volunteers and organizers, and its Team Joe app, which offers a similar feature intended to build relationships digitally.

Biden organizers are also hosting a series of trainings intended to reach those interested in learning how to volunteer virtually for Joe. There are currently 150 training time slots between March 31 and Nov. 4, Election Day. The senior Biden official also said organizers are now throwing virtual book clubs and digital brunches, and calling their supporters for wellness checks in an effort to keep them emotionally plugged-in to the election. Theres also a campaign-run Slack channel to stay connected to fellow Democrats who have expressed interest in volunteering.

Story continues

Thomas Jenson, a sophomore at the University of Connecticut, has been in the Slack channel. Having signed up to volunteer with Bidens team the day before the primaries in Illinois, Florida, and Arizona, which Biden won handily, Jenson said he was off texting potential supporters after an hour-long Zoom training with the campaign.

Essentially what Ive been a part of is Joe Bidens text team, Jenson, 19, told The Daily Beast. Our biggest concern is trying to figure out how we can help people to vote safely. The focus now is Wisconsin, he said.

Just two weeks into texting, Jenson said the process has been fairly easy to adjust to. Having never door-knocked in person, virtually connecting to people through a tool called Pencil, which includes a database of names and phone numbers, seemed natural.

I personally am not getting anyones numbers, he said, discussing the process of using the campaigns texting tool. It sends out a stock message at first, but everything past that is Biden campaign staffers and volunteers replying. In many cases, they do let us use our own judgement, he said.

The campaigns call for volunteers comes as Bidens enthusiasm has stagnated during an increasingly fraught time nationally. A new ABC News/Washington Post poll released Sunday found that just 24 percent of Democrats expressed strong enthusiasm for the former vice president, representing the lowest number on record for a Democratic presidential candidate in the 20 years that the poll has been conducted. Meanwhile, a new Morning Consult poll released Monday found that Biden is currently leading Trump by just 4 points, with 46 percent compared to 42 percent, just over half of the 7-point lead he had over the president during the week of Super Tuesday.

Obviously the public health crisis has added new dimensions to this race, said Kyle Kondik, a longtime elections analyst. The challenge is that if Biden is not generating great enthusiasm, is he going to get people to come out in the fall when voting might be a more hazardous activity?

During much of the Democratic primary, Biden failed to attract the types of crowds, a traditional marker of enthusiasm level, as some of his top opponents, including his chief progressive rival Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Sanders, who has indicated a desire to remain in the race for the near future, has had a large and loyal volunteer army for several years. But as the contest winnowed to just the two Democrats, the former vice president was able to amass a sizable delegate lead over the Vermont senator, securing his status as the presumptive nominee and throwing the idea enthusiasm in a primary into question.

If the Democrats were selecting a nominee based on who can best fill an auditorium, certainly Sanders would be it, Kondik said. Elections are about more than that.

Now, as Biden begins to devise a strategy in hopes of facing President Donald Trump in the general election, he would hypothetically be up against an incumbent whose campaign is both well-organized digitally and not lacking in enthusiasm. Being remote full-time can present an additional hurdle for any candidate.

Theres nothing quite like the experience of being together in person, said Teddy Goff, who served as digital director for former President Barack Obama's 2012 re-election campaign. Its not the same to be on a Zoom call.

But as Biden continues to tweak his overall strategy to fit the current digital reality, including adding more televised appearances and written communications, hes already integrated other virtual organizing improvements too. (The senior campaign official said expanding its digital organization strategy was always part of their planned transition into general election mode).

The tools are there and every campaign should be reasonably equipped to be using their phones instead of going door-to-door, Goff said. It will be incumbent on any campaign to find a sense of solidarity in this kind of crisis.

As recently as Sunday, Bidens campaign updated its existing online offerings for voters to engage and recruit new supporters, including linking to a digital voter guide with a state-by-state rundown with new information about current primaries that have been affected by the virus. The first section lists Wisconsin, which is currently scheduled to vote on April 7, with information about requesting voting my mail ballots, among other precautions.

The campaign has also posted social media guidance, including a seven bullet point list about what messaging to emphasize on Facebook and Twitter, as well as sample text to copy to paste. The best way to show your support for Joe Biden is getting out there and volunteering for him, or casting your ballot, the last bullet point reads.

Jenson said in just two weeks during the pandemic, hes been surprised at how many people have expressed a genuine interest in talking at length over text, especially about their basic needs.

There are people who will go into full conversations, he said. Very often there are people who will just reply with questions like how do I apply for unemployment in all of this, trying to see if there is anything within our campaign that we have that we can help them. People are looking for hope.

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Man's direct ancestor Homo erectus could be 205,00 years older than previously thought and may have emerged in South Africa, researchers have said.

Analysis of ancient skull fragments found near Johannesburg push the origin of the species back further than was believed.

It also moves the site of the species' origin to South Africa, as it was previously thought to be further east.

The previous theory stated the primitive hominin emerged in East Africa 1.8 million years ago but fresh research moves this to between 2.04 and 1.95 million years ago.

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Analysis of ancient skull fragments (pictured) found near Johannesburg push the origin of the species back further than was thought, to between 2.05 and 1.95million years ago

The researchers, from US, South Africa and Australia, believe H. erectus lived alongside two other hominins at this time  Australopithecus and Paranthropus.

They said their discovery, detailed in the journal Science, may have implications for the origins of modern humans as H. erectus is a direct human ancestor.

It is best known for migrating out of Africa into the rest of the world.

The H. erectus skull bone named DNH 134 was unearthed in Drimolen - one of the archaeological sites in the Cradle of Humankind, 30 miles from Johannesburg.

They believe the skull DNH 134 was 'likely aged between two and three' and was dated to between 2.04 to 1.95 million years old.

Before the discovery of DNH 134, the oldest H. erectus in the world was from Dmanisi in Georgia, dating to 1.8 million years ago, the researchers said.

Professor Andy Herries, head of the department of archaeology and history at La Trobe University in Australia and lead author on the study, said: 'The age of the DNH 134 fossil shows that Homo erectus existed 150,000 to 200,000 years earlier than previously thought.'

The researchers believe their discovery could have implications for the evolutionary timeline of modern humans.

This 3D rendered digital painting shows an example of a modern human and a Homo Erectus man side-by-side. Experts now believe Homo erectus were the longest surviving humanoid species (stock image)

Stephanie Baker, a PhD candidate at the Palaeo-Research Institute at the University of Johannesburg, said: 'Until this find, we always assumed Homo erectus originated from eastern Africa.

'But DNH 134 shows that Homo erectus, one of our direct ancestors, possibly comes from southern Africa instead.

'That would mean that they later moved northwards into east Africa. 'From there they went through north Africa to populate the rest of the world.'

The researchers said the DNH 134 skullcap also shows that three species of early human ancestor lived in South Africa at the same time.

Professor Herries said: 'We can now say Homo erectus shared the landscape with two other types of humans in South Africa, Paranthropus and Australopithecus.'

According to the researchers, H. erectus was tall, walked upright, was more human-like in comparison to the other two species and ate things which are easier to digest - like fruits and berries.

Ms Baker added: 'We also know that they were eating meat, but we aren't exactly sure how they were getting it yet.

'We can say that at least these early Homo erectus weren't hunting with any weaponry yet.'
The Mitsubishi Outlander Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) SUV has now sold more than 50,000 units in the UK, according to Mitsubishi Motors Europe. The new sales milestone is a remarkable feat for the PHEV unit, considering that it was only six years ago, in April 1, 2014 to be exact, that the vehicle was launched in European Union. To say that the PHEV SUV was an instant success is an understatement, and Mitsubishi calling it the UKs, Europes and the worlds most popular plug-in hybrid vehicle is hardly an exaggeration.

MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER PHEV

The Outlander PHEV already surpassed 50,000 units sold in Europe back in 2015, less than two years after its initial release in region. The latest-generation Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV comes powered with Mitsubishis latest 2.4-liter, Atkinson-cycle gasoline engine combined with an improved higher-capacity EV powertrain to help it achieve WLTP CO2 emissions of just 46g/km and a 45-km EV range. That makes it entirely possible for most owners traveling an average of under 45 kms daily to drive to and from work without ever using a drop of gasoline during the back-and-forth commute. Competitively priced with high standard specification and powered by an advanced plug-in hybrid powertrain, the Outlander PHEV boasts an electric motor on each axle that delivered true all-wheel-drive EV performance. The car amassed 10,000 registrations within the first ten months, boosting the UKs plug-in hybrid market tenfold in the process.

MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER PHEV

As the world becomes more environmentally conscious, the role of the plug-in hybrid has never been more important. In a recent survey of Outlander PHEV customers, Mitsubishi found out that 90 percent charge regularly, 68 percent charge daily, and overall, more than half the average daily mileage is driven in Electric Vehicle mode, reducing fuel use, lowering emissions and improving air quality in urban areas where conventional internal-combustion engines are at their least efficient. Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. (MMPC) earlier announced that the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is set to arrive at our shores this year. However, with the rate things are going, we are hoping that things would still go as planned. Back in 2017, MMPC turned over to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources(DENR) five units of the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and five units of the Mitsubishi i-MiEV electric car, along with four quick charger units, which the government agency will then distribute to its offices nationwide to be used for official business only.

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Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A new month of social distancing has begun, and Winnipegs museums and galleries are generating plenty of brand new content to keep visitors engaged from the comfort of their own homes.

Norman Criddle was the first provincial entomologist. (Ruth Bonneville / Winnipeg Free Press files)

On Saturday, the Manitoba Museum launched ManitobaMuseum@Home, a virtual museum experience delivered by email. The first offering celebrates the nature and wildlife of the Prairies in springtime.

"Manitobas provincial flower, the Prairie Crocus (Anemone patens) is a harbinger of spring," says Diana Bizecki Robson, curator of botany at the Manitoba Museum, in a media release.

"Crocuses can live up to 50 years, producing more and more flowers with age."

The virtual exhibit focuses on the Criddle family, which includes Norman Criddle, the first provincial entomologist of Manitoba. The family, who moved to Manitoba in 1882, recorded weather, painted wild plants and collected local specimens as part of their work as naturalists.

The museum is also presenting a diorama contest in honour of its 50th anniversary.

"We are encouraging classrooms and families to join in the celebrations by creating their own mini dioramas," says executive director and CEO Claudette Leclerc. "To celebrate, we want you to create your own moment-in-time diorama featuring the diversity of Manitobas history, nature and science."

Other museums in Winnipeg are also continuing to expand their virtual offerings, including the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, which is calling for Canadians to share videos of their experiences during the pandemic.

The Share Your Story program encourages participants 18 years of age and over to record videos of up to two minutes. Prompts and questions are available on the CMHR website, with the overarching theme relating to the current pandemic and how it has changed lives across the world.

"This new initiative has been launched at a time when people around the globe are dealing with a broad spectrum of challenges that we could not have imagined only a few short weeks ago," said CMHR president and CEO John Young in a media release. "At this difficult time, we hope to encourage a focus on compassion and community, which are fundamental to human rights."

Videos of the Manitoba Museum exhibits and galleries are available on YouTube at ManitobaMuseum, and you can sign up for the ManitobaMuseum@Home newsletter or learn more about the diorama contest on the museum website at manitobamuseum.ca.

A virtual tour of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, and access to the Share Your Story prompts, are available online at humanrights.ca.

Frances.Koncan@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @franceskoncan
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-01 14:06:57|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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People stand in a queue to buy face masks outside a pharmacy during lockdown as a preventive measure against COVID-19 in Rawalpindi of eastern Pakistan's Punjab province on April 1, 2020. The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan rose to 2,039, with 26 deaths reported across the country, according to the newest data released on the website of the Health Ministry. (Xinhua/Ahmad Kamal)

ISLAMABAD, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan rose to 2,039, with 26 deaths reported across the country, according to the newest data released on the website of the Health Ministry on Wednesday.

The country's eastern Punjab province and southern Sindh province were the worst-hit areas with 708 and 676 cases respectively, followed by the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which has 253 confirmed cases.

The number of cases reached 184 in north Gilgit-Baltistan region, 158 in southwest Balochistan province, and 54 in capital Islamabad.

The data said 82 people have been discharged from hospitals after recovery.

At the end of February, Pakistan had a total of four confirmed cases, but the numbers started to grow after Pakistanis came back from pandemic-hit countries like Iran.

Earlier on Tuesday, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Zafar Mirza told media that the government is enhancing strict prevention measures and social distancing policy while reviewing the international guidelines.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Imran Khan also chaired a high-level meeting to review the coronavirus control efforts and analyze factors including diagnosing facilities, resumption of the industrial sector, economic packages for common people and industries, supply and distribution of essential items.
Photo credit: Amy Wolff

From Popular Mechanics

It has become a ubiquitous mantra in the time of COVID-19: Wash your hands. Cheap and easy to do, it's one of the few pieces of advice that is essentially without controversy. And yet, hand-washing is a more recent development than you might expect, and the habit did not catch on quickly.

Instead, the shift took many decades to happen, and it occurred in the context of a variety of society-wide changes through the end of the 19th century and into the 20th. Among them: the discovery of germs, a wholesale shift in diseases theory, heavy marketing by soap manufacturers, and the rise of a scientific infrastructure that allowed researchers to document discoveries and share ideas.

In the maternity ward of the Vienna General Hospital in the 1840s, the period after childbirth was a particularly fraught time. To put it bluntly: Women were dying in droves. Regardless of their social status or how healthy they were to begin with, mothers who had recently had babies often developed a rapid heart rate, fever, shivering, and extraordinary abdominal pain that was often followed by death.

The condition, known as childbed fever, would sometimes occur in clusters. During epidemics, mortality rates spiked as high as 80 percent. Nobody knew why.

To get to the bottom of such high rates of postpartum mortality, a Hungarian obstetrician named Ignaz Semmelweis conducted a series of investigations that suggested patterns of transmission. Based on his observations, he proposed that doctors washing hands to save the lives of new mothers. Although few people took his advice at the time, he is often credited as the father of handwashing, which has become a mantra for staying healthy in the time of COVID-19.

The true story of Semmelweis is more complex. But his thought processes offer a window into a widescale cultural transition in the way people think about the connection between cleanliness and health.

The Vienna General Hospital had three maternity clinics operating in the 1840s. One was staffed by midwives. The other two were run by physicians. Semmelweis noticed that deaths from childbed fever, also known as puerperal fever, were much less frequent in the ward supervised solely by midwives. There, according to a history of hand hygiene published by the World Health Organization, Semmelweis found that 7 percent of new mothers died from the fever, compared with 16 percent in the doctor-led clinics.

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Photo credit: Museum of the City of New York/Byron Collection/Getty Images

As he looked into those trends, Semmelweis noticed something about the doctors, says Peter Ward, a historian, emeritus professor at the University of British Columbia, and author of The Clean Body: A Modern History. Unlike the midwives, whose sole job was to deliver babies, the physicians were doing other tasks around the hospital. That included dissecting cadavers. They didnt wash their hands, Ward says. The midwives may not have washed their hands very often either, but they didnt have the broad range of medical practice.



In other words, the midwives were encountering and transferring fewer germs. Germ theory, the idea that tiny organisms get into our bodies and make us sick, had yet to take hold, and among the many hypotheses for how diseases spread at the time, one dominant idea was that diseases came from miasmas, or toxic odors emitted by decomposing organic matter. Once in the air, these poisons could be transmitted to people and make them sick. There was a belief that in cases of overcrowding or poor hygienic conditions, miasmas could cling to people like smoke, allowing for diseases to spread more rapidly, including from doctors to patients, says Dana Tulodziecki, PhD, a philosopher of science at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, who has written papers about Semmelweis, cholera epidemics, and 19th-century thinking on disease.

When it came to death-rate discrepancies in the Vienna maternity wards, in particular, Semmelweis considered and ruled out several competing theories, Tulodziecki wrote in a 2013 paper. To test the idea that birth position explained the difference, for example, he altered birth positions in the clinics and found no difference in mortality.

According to another hypothesis, maternal deaths were a result of psychological terror caused by a bell-ringing priest who came through one of the wards to bear last sacrament to dying mothers. But when Semmelweis sent the priest on a different route, death rates remained unchanged.

A moment of clarity came in 1847, when one of Semmelweis colleagues cut his finger with a scalpel during an autopsy. The wound became infected, and the doctor died. Hypothesizing that his colleague had acquired puerperal fever from the cadaver, he began requiring physicians to wash their hands with chlorinated lime after conducting autopsies. After that, mortality rate in the maternity clinic dropped to 3 percent.

Semmelweis got some things right, including his idea that something external caused childbed fever: the cause would turn out to be Streptococcus bacteria. But his theories contained errors that met valid criticism, Tulodziecki says.





He proposed that the source of childhood fever came directly from cadavers, for example, which clearly wasnt true, as childbed fever had been around longer than autopsies had. He also proposed various iterations of this theories without addressing criticisms. And his communication style was often rambling and confusing. Ultimately, his ideasincluding those on handwashingwere dismissed.

That may have been hard on Semmelweis. He was committed to a mental institution, where he died at the age of 47. Although experts still debate the cause of his death, according to one hypothesis, he died from the thing he had sought to eradicatea wound on his hand became infected, leading to sepsis.

Semmelweis was not the only person who believed in the contagiousness of disease. The idea had been around for centuries. In 1795, British obstetrician Alexander Gordon proposed that puerperal fever could be transmitted from doctors and midwives to patients. He basically said he could foretell who the next victims would bethat when one midwife or doctor had fallen ill with childbed fever, then the chances were that the women this person would attend to next would also fall sick, Tulodziecki says. Hes got these really amazing tables where he traces the path of infections.

During the Crimean War in the 1850s, the renowned British nurse, Florence Nightingale was a major proponent of handwashing. And in 1843, a few years before Semmelweis conducted his studies in the Vienna maternity wards, the Boston physician Oliver Wendell Holmes published an essay called The Contagiousness of Puerperal Fever, where he also proposed handwashing as a viable solution to person to person transmission.

Meanwhile, scientific methods were becoming more sophisticated. In the second half of the 19th century, scientists were beginning to use statistics, data collection, and other strategies that are now considered standard, Ward says. Simultaneously, universities in Europe and the U.S. were building up their science programs.

Within that context came a series of advances by researchers such as French biologist Louis Pasteur, who helped link microorganisms to disease; and British surgeon Joseph Lister, who pioneered the use of antiseptic in surgeries.

As doctors grappled with childbed fever and scientists developed new ways of understanding disease, cultural developments also changed the way people thought about hygiene, Ward says.

The work of Semmelweis, Pasteur, and others was simultaneous with the rise of Big Soap. In the late-19th century, Proctor & Gamble, Colgate Palmolive and other businesses launched major marketing campaigns for their soap products, primarily for use on laundry at first. Originally, soaps for body care were made by separate companies that promoted the role of soap for beauty purposes and targeted middle- and upper-class markets. And while public-health officials promoted personal hygiene for health on a smaller scale, soap companies tapped into mass-circulation newspapers and then magazines, radio and TV to spread their messages about soaps benefits from the late-19thcentury through the middle of the 20th. Their popularization of personal hygiene and domestic cleanliness reached into all segments of society. The soap manufacturers were zealous in promoting their products, Ward says. They shouted it a lot louder than the doctors did because they wanted to sell.

Progression from Semmelweiss time to the present has not been a steady march so much as a series of steps forward and then back. Handwashing has received spikes in attention in times of crisis like the World Wars, Ward says, when public health officials promoted handwashing as a form of peoples patriotic duty to be healthy and clean.

Photo credit: Created by Amy Wolff using Getty Images

And although current generations wash their hands more than their predecessors, it wasnt until the 1980s that the CDC published the first national guidelines on hand hygiene. In 1995, the CDCs Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee began to recommend that healthcare providers clean their hands with antimicrobial soap or a waterless antiseptic agent when they leave the rooms of patients with bacteria and other microorganisms that are resistant to medications. In 2002, guidelines added alcohol-based hand sanitizers as standard of care for keeping hands clean in healthcare settings.

In the privacy of peoples homes, too, the routine washing at multiple times throughout the day is relatively new. Its only within our lifetimes that the repeated habitual washing of hands has become a universal practice, Ward says.

Scientists are also still adding new insights into what handwashing, among other hygiene practices, can and cannot accomplish. In one 2017 meta-analysis, researchers looked at 16 studies and found that hand washing with soap or hand-sanitizer was more effective than coughing etiquette (like coughing into an elbow) or wearing face masks at preventing the transmission of influenza.

One randomized controlled trial included in the analysis found that elementary-age students missed less school as a result of influenza when schools adopted hand-sanitizer routines. Another study found that influenza infection rates dropped with every 10 percent increase in adherence to hand-hygiene recommendations among healthcare workers.

Photo credit: Created by Amy Wolff using Getty Images

Nobody can say how many illnesses are stopped by hand-washing, says Patrick Saunders-Hastings, an epidemiologist at Gevity Consulting, a healthcare consulting firm, and one of the authors of the meta-analysis. But the spread of disease would certainly be worse without it. A lot of our actions are imperfect and designed to be layered one on top of the other, he says. So, by taking a number of semi-effective steps, were able to reduce the overall impact.

In Semmelweis time, a dirty and bloodstained lab coat was a badge of honor, Saunders-Hastings says. And while that ethic has changed, handwashing has faced backlash in recent years. Too much cleanliness, suggests some research, has been responsible for increasing rates of allergic diseases and asthma. Even healthcare workers, studies show, arent all that great at washing their hands.

Despite the protective effects of handwashing, rates of compliance, both in the public and in healthcare settings, remains low, Saunders-Hastings says. Perhaps COVID-19 is the start of a new era in hand-washing: one where more people actually do it.

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Back when KCMO wasn't social distancing, we still couldn't play nice . . . Here's a worthwhile report on the nightlife that has now been shut down under a far greater threat . . . Read more:
Missed the most recent top news in Pittsburgh? Read on for everything you need to know. Pastor slams coronavirus precautions, plans Easter gathering Read the full story on CBS13 CBS Sacramento. Woman charged in head-on DUI crash Read the full story on Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh DJs keep the party going with virtual dance events Read the full story on Pittsburgh City Paper. Allegheny County Jail releases inmates in response to pandemic Read the full story on Pittsburgh City Paper. House, car struck by bullets on Erin Street Read the full story on CBS Pittsburgh. This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.

A Pittsburgh-area pastor says he plans to organize an outdoor "Woodstock"-like Easter service to protest the stay-at-home orders to prevent coronavirus.

The head-on collision in January critically injured Nathan E. Edwards of Clairton. Police say the car Shawna M. Carapella was driving crossed the center line.

In Pittsburgh, as with many cities dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, bars and clubs are now closed, leaving DJs with no place to play.

As of March 31, 622 inmates had been released, according to county officials.
BRUSSELS (AP)  As the new coronavirus spreads across Europe, ravaging economies and killing thousands, governments and the European Union are focusing much of their economic rescue efforts on containing a boom in joblessness, particularly by helping companies not fire workers.

Unions estimate, based on reports from local branches, that at least one million Europeans lost their jobs over the past two weeks - and say the actual number is likely far higher - as a shutdown of schools, businesses and social gatherings froze large parts of the economy.

While the rise in unemployment is devastating and rapid, it is still far below that of the U.S., where nearly 10 million people applied for jobless benefits in two weeks. The contrast highlights Europe's greater social safety nets, in particular schemes where governments help companies put workers on shorter hours instead of firing them - in the hope of bringing them back quickly once the pandemic fades.

In this coronavirus crisis, only the strongest of responses will do," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday as she unveiled a 100 billion-euro ($110 billion) EU plan to help companies to not fire employees.

With a new solidarity instrument, we will mobilise 100 billion euros to keep people in jobs and businesses running. With this, we are joining forces with member states to save lives and protect livelihoods."

Even before lockdown measures were extended across almost all of Europe, the economy was expected to fall into recession because of the virus. To weather the downturn, governments have unveiled trillions of euros in credit for companies and aid for small businesses and families, including cash handouts. The EU commission, its executive body, made available 37 billion euros from the EU budget and the European Central Bank said it will buy as much as 750 billion euros in financial assets to calm markets.

With her new lending tool, Von der Leyen wants to ensure skilled workers are kept by their companies until the moment the economy picks up again."

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It would help fund schemes that have already been put in place in many countries to avoid layoffs.

According to the European Trade Union Confederation, some 18 EU countries as well as Norway and the U.K. have already introduced jobs-protecting measures.

France is spending 11 billion euros on a scheme to keep people in partial employment. Germany has a program that fills in lost wages when companies must put workers on shorter hours due to an interruption that is temporary and beyond their control, which can be up to 100% of their work time. The program pays 60% of employees' lost net pay, and 67% for those with children.

Many companies have labor agreements under which they can bring workers even closer to full salary. The German scheme helped limit unemployment in the 2009 recession, when companies put some 1.5 million workers in the program. About 2.35 million workers are expected to make use of it during the current crisis.

The idea is to preserve the employment relationship so that companies can immediately resume full operations when trouble passes without having to recruit and train new staff. It also helps keep other businesses afloat across the economy since the workers still have money to spend in shops.

In Europe, Spain and Italy have been the hardest hit by the outbreak of the virus, which has killed more than 33,000 people in the region, though most people only suffer moderate symptoms. They are also suffering some of the biggest economic damage.

In Italy, social security agency computers crashed on the first day individuals could apply for aid to cover lost income due to the coronavirus, with up to 300 requests coming in every second at the peak on Tuesday. Some 18 million Italians are eligible for short-term unemployment schemes, or a payment of 600 euros in March. The monthly handout is expected to be increased to 800 euros this month, as the government has extended the lockdown through at least April 13. The aid in Italy is even being offered to sectors not usually covered, including the self-employed and seasonal workers.

In Spain, over 300,000 more people registered for unemployment benefits in March. And in Britain, which tends to have easier hiring and firing laws than other parts of Europe, the number of people applying for welfare benefits increased nearly tenfold to almost one million in the past couple of weeks. Economists think the unemployment rate of 3.9% could double.

The International Labour Organization last month estimated that nearly 25 billion jobs could be lost globally as a result of the pandemic, though that figure is likely to be revised up.

___

Follow AP news coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.

___

David McHugh in Frankfurt, Aritz Parra in Madrid, Carlo Piovano, Pan Pylas and Danica Kirka in London, Sylvie Corbet in Paris, and Colleen Barry in Rome contributed to this report.
Soon Mee Kim

ColorComm, which represents women of color in PR, advertising and media, today condemned anti-Asian racism triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.

There were more than 650 incidents of verbal harassment, physical assault and shunning during the first week of tracking by the Stop APPI Hate research center that launched March 19.

"As professional communicators, we know the power and influence our words have. 'Chinese virus,' 'Chinese coronavirus' and 'Wuhan virus' are terms that fuel xenophobia and racism," according to a statement by ColorComm's Soon Mee Kim, executive VP & global diversity & inclusion leader at Porter Novelli.

ColorComm urges media professionals to stop using such hateful language.

The group "stands in solidarity with our sisters and fellow citizens of Asian descent," according to the statement.

"Our battle against the coronavirus pandemic requires our full attention, as it already disproportionately impacts women and people of color, small businesses and members of the gig economy, and the industries we serve. It is no time for hate," wrote Kim.

ColorComm launched nine years ago to "help strengthen the voices, work and accomplishments of those who are often underrepresented in the overall business and political discourse."

The group's PR firm board members are Melissa Waggener Zorkin, CEO of WE Communications; Judith Harrison, senior VP at Weber Shandwick; Trisch Smith, global chief diversity & inclusion officer at Edelman; and PN's Kim.
Retired U.S. District Judge James A. Redden, who presided over the Northwests biggest salmon lawsuit for nearly a decade and served as a former Oregon state representative, state treasurer and attorney general, died Tuesday night at the age of 91.

He died at an adult foster care home, where he was being treated for congestive heart failure, according to a story in the Portland Tribune, which employs his son.

One of his biggest legacies was the fight he waged to force the government to recover wild fish. He rejected three federal recovery plans and pushed government agencies charged with protecting threatened and endangered salmon to spill more water over dams rather than through fish-killing turbines. He pushed the government to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on technical fixes to dams and commit to habitat work across hundreds of miles of rivers and streams in the Columbia basin.

Jim was a superb judge  and a superb person, U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon said, in an email to other judges announcing Reddens passing. He also had such a great reputation as Oregon Attorney General. Jim was special and will be missed.

Redden was born in Springfield, Mass., and attended Boston College and Boston College Law School. He moved to Oregon in 1955. He worked for a year as a title company clerk and a claims adjuster in Portland before moving to Medford where he built a law practice. In 1963, he won a Jackson County seat in the state House of Representatives. He was elected House minority leader in the 1967 session. He helped draft the bipartisan Oregon beach bill that guaranteed public beach access as a matter of zoning, according to the Oregon U.S. District Courts Historical Society.

Redden was elected state treasurer in 1973. He made an unsuccessful run for governor in 1974, and two years later was elected attorney general. He was nominated to sit on the U.S. District Court by President Jimmy Carter in 1979 and took the bench on Feb. 20, 1980. He assumed senior status on March 13, 1995 and then retired in March 2017.

The judge donated his personal correspondence, including hundreds of letters he sent and received, to the historical society. The records revealed his long-standing love of the Boston Red Sox and his humor.

In his judicial chambers, he prominently displayed a photo of himself photoshopped into a Red Sox uniform and huddle. Early in his judicial career, he also kept a large calendar in his chambers, noting the Days Since Last Reversed.

His high school sweetheart and wife Joan Redden passed away in 2018. He is survived by his sister Mlou Thompson of Portland and his two sons, James A. Redden III, a Portland Tribune reporter, and William F. Redden.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212

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LOS ANGELES, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Barco's Nightingales Foundation (BNF) today announced that it will be donating 350,000 masks to five California hospital organizations that are treating patients infected with COVID-19.

Masks have been procured and paid for by BNF. Hospitals receiving the mask donations include:

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center

UCLA Hospitals

Keck Medicine of USC Hospitals

Hospitals Stanford Health Care

Kaiser Permanente of Northern California

"It's our privilege to pay honor to the nurses and healthcare professionals who sacrifice so much to help keep the rest of us safe. Our mission now is to support them through this crisis, and we're grateful to have located and purchased these 350,000 masks to be donated to some of the most vital medical organizations in our state," said BNF Founder Michael Donner.

In 2008, Michael and Frida Donner founded Barco's Nightingales Foundation to support the vitality and courageous heart of nursing and, through its philanthropic efforts, to honor the spirit of those women and men who choose nursing as a profession. By increasing awareness and appreciation for the work of nurses, the Foundation hopes to inspire more young women and men to enter the profession. It continues to do life-changing work for children around the world, including sending kids with cancer to camp, building solar water wells and providing children in Haiti with hot lunches. The Foundation also actively supports the work of Camp Ronald McDonald for Good Times.

Barco's Nightingales Foundation is supported by an Advisory Board of business professionals and volunteers and a Nurse's Advisory Council that provides insight and guidance into the critical needs of the nursing profession as well as counsel on programs designed to help children and their families across the world.

In addition to supporting organizations and individuals making a dramatic difference in people's lives, Barco's Nightingales Foundation is committed to honoring nurses who have made Barco Uniforms a part of their profession for nearly 90 years. For more information, visit www.barcosnightingales.org/nurses and www.facebook.com/BarcosNightingalesFoundation.

Keeping Hope Alive.

In 2008, Barco's Nightingales Foundation (BNF) was founded by Barco's Chairman of the Board, Michael Donner and his wife Frida in hopes of lifting-up the lives of children around the world, in honor of Healthcare Professionals. http://www.barcosnightingales.org/ and www.facebook.com/BarcosNightingalesFoundation.

About Barco Uniforms

Founded in 1929, Barcoa Uniforms is a leader of design innovation in the premium professional apparel industry, designing award-winning premium uniforms that elevate and honor the individual in the healthcare, food service and hospitality industries. Barco Uniforms is headquartered in Los Angeles with approximately 250+ local employees across multiple disciplines including design, product development, marketing, sales, supply chain, and distribution. For more information, visit www.barcouniforms.com or https://www.linkedin.com/company/barco-uniforms-inc. You can follow the company at www.instagram.com/barco.uniforms/, www.facebook.com/barcouniforms/, https://twitter.com/BarcoUniforms and www.pinterest.com/barcouniforms/.

SOURCE Barcos Nightingales Foundation

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http://www.barcosnightingales.org


Photo: NBC

How would TVs most beloved characters navigate social distancing? We asked dozens of showrunners and writers to answer that question. Below, 30 Rock creator and star Tina Fey and writer Sam Means imagine what a coronavirus episode would look like for Liz, Tracy, Jack, Jenna, and TGS.

Tracy has already contracted and survived the virus (My snakes eat bats and then I use my snakes to practice French kissing, so it was inevitable, Liz Lemon!), so he would declare himself an immune green person and set out to help. Tracy: Like Mister Rogers said, Look like the helpers. So, dressed as a firefighter, he would volunteer his time delivering illegal box jellyfish to the elderly.

Jack would try to get Liz to go to the secret GE island off the coast of Connecticut: It will just be the top executives, any wives under 40, and yes, Lauer will be there, but only because it was built into his deal years ago. Liz refuses to go because of her desire to be egalitarian but also because everyone would probably be barefoot. Pass. She would shelter in place like nobodys business and still somehow dodge sex with James Marsden.

Kenneth would be the most prepared, having grown up Eighth Day Resurrected Covenant of the Holy Trinity and observing its End of Days Countdown Calendar, which is different from most calendars. For example, weve only had Christmas twice, but Easter is every four hours. Jack would offer to buy Kenneths cupboard of canned chickpeas for a million dollars, but Kenneth would just give him two cans for free. Hoarding is a sin, sir! Just like skateboarding or riding a horse youre not related to!

People would piece together that Pete actually disappeared ten days ago with all of the snacks and hand sanitizer from craft services.

Lutz would refuse to do social distancing because he believes this is an election-year hoax. Hed turn out to be the asymptomatic carrier that infected everyone at spring break even though hes almost 60.

Jenna would be upset when a photo of her butt in jeans is used as a CDC flatten the curve meme. Also, she might try to blow Governor Cuomo. Also, shed try to worm her way into that Imagine video.

Dr. Spaceman would be tapped to replace Dr. Fauci. Trump has been very impressed with Leo since 2002, when he helped rebuild Rush Limbaughs ears out of discarded prostates.

Dennis Duffy would be selling masks made out of foam St. Patricks Day visors. Personal protective equipment is so scarce that a doctor is seen on the news wearing a shamrock mask that reads Fit Shaced!

Frank would be freaking out because his awareness of social distancing is ruining porn for him. I know they filmed this in the 90s, but I cant help feeling concerned for them.

The cast of Queen of Jordan would all create competing PSAs that become increasingly catty to each other. Dfwan directs his Stay Home PSA directly at Portia because she upstaged his dogs christening with the emergency recall of her new fragrance.

Hank Hooper would rather die than stop hugging people. RIP, sweet Hank Hooper.

Jump back to the full list of coronavirus episodes 
A LIMERICK man who is wanted in the United States for the alleged trafficking of endangered black rhino horn, is willing to have himself extradited to America, the High Court has heard.

John Slattery, 30, who changed his name to John Flynn by deed poll in recent years, is currently in custody awaiting his surrender to US officials. However, the handover cannot occur at present due to the Covid-19 crisis.

Mr Slattery, from Old Barrack View, Fairhill, Rathkeale is accused of committing three offences in the US relating to wildlife trafficking.

US authorities allege that he and two others travelled to a taxidermy shop in Austin, Texas, to buy the horns.

It is alleged that the men bought the horns for $18,000 and then travelled to New York and sold them for $50,000.

The men were initially unable to buy the horns because they were not local residents so they enlisted the help of a Texas man - a straw buyer - to complete the purchase, according to US authorities.

It is alleged that between April 2010 and November 2010 Mr Slattery bought two further horns from an individual for $10,000.

US authorities claim that in 2010 Mr Slattery and his co-accused travelled to an auction house in Macon, Missouri, where they allegedly obtained a consignment of horns from endangered white and black rhinos. In early 2011 six of these horns had been sold for $260,000.

During a hearing on Wednesday, Mark Lynam BL, told the High Court that his client had consented to being extradited but that his surrender could not occur within the required time-frame given the current Covid-19 crisis.

Mr Lynam said his client had obtained the services of a lawyer in Texas who was currently smoothing things out in relation to a potential plea bargain.

Both of Mr Slatterys co-accused have already been sentenced in the US and it is virtually certain that Mr Slattery will face a one year sentence in America, the court heard.

Mr Lynam said his client had spent around nine months on remand throughout the process. By May it will have been 11 months which will be close to time served.

He said the plea bargain process itself took several months and Mr Slattery could spend several months in a US detention centre where conditions have been described as tough.

Mr Lynam asked the court to use its constitutional powers to grant Mr Slattery bail until his surrender can be finalised. Otherwise, he said, his client could spend longer in custody than any potential sentence.

Counsel for the Attorney General, Lisa Dempsey BL, said May 22 was the outside date for potential surrender and Mr Slattery could well be extradited before then.

She called Detective Garda Anthony Keane to outline the gardais concerns in relation to bail.

Mr Justice Tony Hunt said he wished to consider Mr Slatterys bail application and he put the matter back to this Friday.
A few weeks after Wilhelm Rontgen discovered the X-ray in 1895, following experiments with cathode-ray tubes, he captured an image of his wife's left hand on a photographic plate. Looking at the ghostly outline of her finger bones, Mrs. R. is said to have shrieked, "I have seen my death!" All entrepreneurs have to deal with risk, but for most of them it's about capital risk, market risk, and execution risk. Formidable, yes. But for a few others, a startup poses lethal risk. Call it karma or irony or just atrociously bad luck, but the pedal-to-the-metal, never-say-die attitude that entrepreneurs are known for can, sometimes, leave them a bit...well...dead. A few case studies of the perils of innovation follow.

A Businessman's Rocky Road

If Baskin-Robbins had merely given us Jamoca Almond Fudge, it would have been enough. But the in-law entrepreneurs who founded the chain in the 1940s also turned the franchising model into a veritable military operation: Baskin-Robbins was among the first food companies to offer shopowners standardized products created at a central location. It grew from a handful of California-based scoop shops in the late 1940s to about 500 nationwide in 1967, when it sold to United Fruit Company for a tidy sum. But, just months later, defeat was snatched from the jowls of victory when Burt Baskin died of a heart attack at age 54. Irv Robbins's son John, who turned his back on running the family business partly because of what he saw as the negative effects of mass-produced ice cream on both humans and cows, attributed the untimely death to the very product Baskin created: "He was a very big man," Robbins once said, "who ate a lot of ice cream."

Icarus at the Wheel

Some 32 years after the first Model T, its inventor, Henry Ford, said: "Mark my words--a combination aeroplane and motorcar is coming." And he was right. Sort of. In 1973, Henry Smolinski, an aeronautical engineer, was on the verge of bringing a flying car to the masses. His company, Advanced Vehicle Engineers, created the Mizar by grafting the wings and tail of a Cessna onto what is perhaps the most unsightly car ever produced: the Pinto. (The Ford compact would win greater fame for its tendency to ignite in rear-end crashes.) Flying car models were made. Test flights were undertaken. A production run was scheduled. But then, during a late-stage test flight in September 1973, poor design met bad welding, and disaster struck. A strut failed. A wing folded. The aerocar crashed and Smolinski, who was at the controls, was killed, along with an associate. The Mizar? Permanently parked.

The End of a Standup Guy

At 15, James Heselden dropped out of school to work the coal mines in the north of England. When he lost his job in the mid-1980s, he used his meager severance to invent an easy-to-assemble, wire-mesh-and-fabric container--the Hesco barrier--that later became de rigueur in flood zones and as a substitute for sandbags in hot spots like Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2009, Heselden, then one of England's richest men (and among its most generous philanthropists), bought the Segway company, started by entrepreneur Dean Kamen. That, quite literally, was Heselden's downfall: A year after the purchase, he was Segwaying around his West Yorkshire property when he plummeted off a 30-foot cliff to his demise.

Dark Days Ahead

In 1914, a young chemical scientist turned businessman had what seemed like a bright idea: Paint the hands of a clock with radium, Sabin Arnold von Sochocky posited, and you could tell the time even when the lights were off. In 1917, von Sochocky's company, the United States Radium Corporation (founded with George Willis), introduced Undark, a radioluminescent paint. It was a boon for pilots and soldiers in World War I, who could now read their dials and gauges in the dead of night. Demand was strong. There was just one itsy-bitsy, blink-and-you'll-miss-it problem: Radium, it turned out, causes cancer. While von Sochocky envisioned a world with glowing piano keys and Ping-Pong paddles, the workers he'd hired to apply the radium--mostly young women--began getting sick. Very, very sick. By 1927, 50 of them would be dead. A medical examiner in New Jersey, where the factory was located, identified the paint as the cause. In 1928, von Sochocky died of aplastic anemia, a rare condition directly attributable to his glow-in-the-dark dream.

Hot Off the Presses
By Trend

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 24 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry on Apr. 2.

The Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding regions.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding regions.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
A mother of three young children has lost her appeal over an order for the sale of her family home arising from the bankruptcy of her husband, from whom she says she has separated.

The house, valued at some 275,000, was registered in the sole name of the man in 2002, before his marriage in 2009. He was also registered as the sole owner of farmlands surrounding the house, valued at some 1m in 2017, which he is still working.

When adjudicated bankrupt in July 2016 on the petition of Danske Bank arising from a judgment for some 1.3m against him in 2013, the property was still registered in his sole name.

A receiver has been appointed over the lands but the man has said he will not co-operate with the receiver's bid to sell any assets of his bankruptcy estate.

As a result of his bankruptcy, his assets were vested in bankruptcy trustee Chris Lehane who in 2018 secured an order from the High Court permitting him to sell the family home.

In a recently published judgment, with the woman's name redacted, the three-judge Court of Appeal (COA) dismissed her appeal against that order.

Giving the judgment, Ms Justice Marie Baker noted the woman is herself not a bankrupt and not a creditor of Danske Bank or any other entity.

She herself had never created any security over the house and there was no other security over it apart from the mortgage in favour of Danske Bank.

The judge also rejected her claim she had a beneficial interest in the property for reasons including she had contributed to renovations.

The woman had produced no evidence to support that and no evidence of her assets, the judge said.

The woman alleged changed circumstances in that she had had a baby since the High Court case and since she had initiated separation proceedings but refused to say whether that child was a child of her marriage or to produce the matrimonial civil bill, the judge noted.

She offered no explanation for her refusal to explain the circumstances of her separation, other than her desire for privacy in her family life, the judge said.

Even when orders were made prohibiting her identification, she had still refused to answer questions from the court in that regard.

The woman had said she and her husband have separated since the High Court hearing, she is a home-maker and does not have gainful employment outside the home in which she claimed a beneficial interest.
Internal migrants form crucial part of Indias economy, but many say they have been forgotten in the coronavirus crisis.

Mumbai, India: Like many people under lockdown during the coronavirus pandemic, Pramod Sahu has been spending a lot of time on his phone to loved ones far away. But the 36-year-old laid-off textile worker in Surat, in Indias western Gujarat state, is fast running out of money, food and options.

Im used to working 12 hours a day, but now I have nothing to do but sit here, stare at this screen and worry, he told Al Jazeera. Were trying to make one persons food feed four, but right now I feel we will soon die of hunger, he said by phone from a cramped room he shares with eight other men.

Sahu is one of an estimated 100 million internal migrants in India. Travelling long distances from remote villages seeking work in Indias bustling cities to support families they usually leave behind, they form a crucial lifeline for the economic wellbeing of hundreds of millions more,

According to the Indian governments 2016-17 Economic Survey, internal migrants make up about 20 percent of the workforce. And they contribute an estimated 10 percent of Indias economic output, according to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

But, without formal work contracts, they are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. Many earn little more than a subsistence wage and have no social security to protect their incomes if they lose their jobs.

A growing number of aid agencies that help to support internal migrants fear the governments response to the coronavirus  which since March 24 has involved the closure of businesses and other public spaces  may lead to a humanitarian and economic disaster far larger than the medical emergency the measures are meant to control.

And economists say the governments recent economic stimulus measures are not nearly enough to mitigate the effects of the lockdown, especially for Indias poor, including its internal migrants.

The lockdown has forced thousands of people like Sahu out onto urban streets. With most transport links shut down, many have been trying to walk the hundreds of kilometres back to their rural homes to ride out the crisis with their families.

Many of Indias internal migrants travel from poorer states such as Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in the north to work in the industrial hubs of more developed states like Gujarat and Maharashtra in the south. Most do the low-paid or dangerous jobs that wealthier Indians refuse to do.

Enormous contribution to Indias economy

Their contribution to the economy is enormous, Jayati Ghosh, an economist at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi, told Al Jazeera. But we dont actually know to what extent industries like construction and manufacturing comprise these workers.

Accurate data is hard to come by due to the groups high mobility and exclusion from official surveys.

But what is clear is that the money these workers send home is a key source of income for those they have left behind. In Odisha, for example, Sahus home state, domestic remittances form 55-60 percent of annual incomes, according to a study by the Centre of Labour and Migration Studies.

Pramod Sahu, 36, is under lockdown in Surat, a textile hub in Gujarat state, about 1,500km away from home [Pramod Sahu via Tish Sanghera/Al Jazeera]

The loss of this income threatens to worsen already precarious rural livelihoods, Nivedita Jayaram, a researcher at Aajeevika Bureau, a labour research and legal organization, told Al Jazeera.

Just like in the cities, all work has stopped and people already cant afford to buy groceries, so there is a high risk of rural impoverishment increasing without these remittances, Jayaram said.

Though India currently has approximately 1,700 active coronavirus cases, Prime Minister Narendra Modi defended the lockdowns extreme measures as absolutely necessary in a radio address on Sunday, and asked for forgiveness for the hardships inflicted on his poor countrymen.

But effectively halting the production of all goods and services, except some essential items, and enforcing a strict lockdown that keeps people indoors, and many out of work, comes at a high price for an already sluggish economy.

Growth in gross domestic product  the sum of all finished goods and services produced in a country  is currently at a six year-low, while Indias unemployment rate is already at 7.8 percent, its highest since October 2019 according to the Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE).

The lockdown is not just an attack on demand, but an attack on supply too, which is a problem for an economy in freefall, says JNUs Ghosh. I fear that in order to prevent a catastrophe, they have created one.

While some analysts draw parallels to the economic disruption wrought by demonetisation in 2016  when 80 percent of Indias currency was taken out of circulation overnight  the long-term effects of the lockdown are already looking much worse, says Ghosh.

The events are similar in the sense that policymakers now seem just as unprepared for the consequences as they were back then, and again the poorest are suffering  but at least during demonetisation not every part of the economy came to a grinding halt.

A political blindspot

Though Indias migrant labourers are significant in number, this group is a political blindspot, Reetika Khera, an economist at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, told Al Jazeera.

We should be setting up community kitchens and converting schools into welfare centres, but sadly our policymakers seem to be watching out more for the middle and upper classes, she said. They clearly didnt anticipate any of this, and now everything feels like an afterthought.

The central government in New Delhi had asked regional states to prevent a migrant exodus by providing food and shelter, but too little time was given to implement this before the lockdown was imposed, turning a public health crisis into a larger humanitarian one, says Aajeevika Bureaus Jayaram.

Migrant worker Sahu, centre, says the governments economic relief package ignored people like him [Pramod Sahu via Tish Sanghera/Reuters]

While we warned overseas Indians in advance and chartered flights to bring them back home, weve left our internal migrants to fend for themselves, she said.

Under pressure to address the growing emergency, the central government last week announced a $23bn welfare scheme for the poor. This included doubling the amount of free food rations under an existing national programme, $10 to tide over senior citizens, and raising wages by $0.27 per day for those working under the governments rural employment scheme.

But analysts warn that this outlay of less than 1 percent of GDP, is not enough to stem the crisis and is mostly a repackaging of existing schemes.

The increase to the [rural employment scheme] was notified a couple days before, so its not new  and anyway worksites are currently shut, notes the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabads Khera.

There was an urgent need to ensure this vulnerable population was given economic protection, but theres really nothing here for the landless, daily wagers and migrant workers.

Sahu, whose rural home is some 1,500 kilometres (932 miles) from where he has been working, says many workers in cities are unable to access food via the governments Public Distribution Service since all their identity documents show their out-of-state address.

I have a ration card, but its registered to the village, and no use here, Sahu said.

Enough to go around?

Ironically, India currently has a huge stock of excess grain which could be used to feed those struggling to get by, says Khera.

In a way, this is a perfectly matching crisis for the governments current problem of how to store this years bumper winter crop.

Indian migrant workers and their families trying to board a truck to return to their villages [Amit Dave/Reuters]

State governments could also simply remove the need for a ration card, and just distribute food packets to everyone, she added.

Many countries have used cash transfers to support falling incomes during the pandemic. Though India followed suit by announcing an extra $20 spread over three months paid directly into Jan Dhan bank accounts  free accounts provided under the central governments financial inclusion programme  the amount is small, worth only approximately three days of wages for an inner-city construction worker.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said the relief package was designed to reach out to those who are most requiring of such measures  the poorest of the poor. At the launch of the rescue package last month, she also said: We do not want anyone to remain hungry.

But economists say it falls short in light of the severity of the situation.

Im not sure how an amount like this could be seen as viable in the kind of crisis were in, says JNUs Ghosh. If we are cutting off incomes for a month or probably longer, the amounts provided should reflect that. The cash transfers should not just be to Jan Dhan accounts either, she added, since many migrants are unlikely to be covered by those.

With just 300 rupees ($4) left in the bank and another two weeks of lockdown stretching ahead of him, Sahu is similarly reflecting on how decisions that affect millions like him are made. Why couldnt the government just give us advance warning? We could have bought more food and made plans for how to get through this, he said.

They may have saved some lives with this coronavirus lockdown, but they didnt think about us.
The US Navy has relieved the captain of the aircraft carrier on which 100 of the crew have been contracted the coronavirus.

Captain Brett Crozier, who commands the USS Theodore Roosevelt and its crew of 5,000, was relieved of his command on Thursday after his superiors lost confidence in his ability to lead, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Earlier this week Captain Crozier sent a letter to the Navy pleading for help with the outbreak of coronavirus aboard the ship, which was forced to dock in Guam last week.

We are not at war, Captain Crozier wrote in a four-page letter to bosses detailing how the ship did not have enough quarantine facilities. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our sailors.

The letter was leaked to the media putting the Pentagon on the defensive as to whether they were doing enough for the crew.

The captains pleas for help were answered and more than 1,000 people had left the ship for isolation in Guam by Wednesday.

More than half of the total crew are expected to disembark the ship this week, leaving approximately 2,300 sailors to maintain the carrier.

Admiral John Aquilino, head of the US Navys Pacific Fleet, told reporters that the plan was to disembark some of the crew, test and quarantine them, clean the vessel and then rotate them with those on the carrier.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that when asked multiple times whether the captain faced disciplinary action, acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said: I dont know who leaked the letter to the media. That would be something that would violate the principles of good order and discipline, if he were responsible for that. But I dont know that.

Captain Crozier will reportedly keep his rank and remain in the Navy.
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam issued a stay-at-home order Monday for everyone in the state.

Although the order is rife with exceptions and allowances, make no mistake  violation of Executive Order 53 is considered a Class 1 misdemeanor and with it are penalties of up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine.

Businesses owners who choose not to comply could lose their license to operate.

But just how will this temporary law be enforced?

The Martinsville Bulletin reached out to the law enforcement leaders in our community to find out.

We just want everyone to understand how serious this highly contagious illness is and follow the guidelines in place, Henry County Sheriff Lane Perry said. We are not stopping vehicles just to check on where people are going, but we do want everyone to understand we all need to do our part to hinder the transmission of the coronavirus.

If we all dont work together on this, its impact of deaths, illness and effects on society will continue to worsen.

Patrick County Sheriff Dan Smith said there were rumors going around in his jurisdiction that his deputies were pulling over people and knocking on doors of possible violators.

We are not looking for people to pull over. We are not going door to door to try and enforce the order, Smith said. Those are all rumors. Do not believe them.

We have a skeleton crew as it is.

Smith said he had limited sources to fight criminal activity and that is where the efforts of his department will continue to be focused.

Martinsville Police Chief Eddie Cassady said his department would not be conducting traffic stops to determine if the driver or occupants were violating the stay-at-home order.

I would also just like to tell our citizens that we all need to work together as a community to help slow or stop the spread of this virus, Cassady said.

A similar order was issued last week in North Carolina, and Rockingham County Sgt. Kevin Suthard said his department had fielded many phone calls from residents in his jurisdiction.

Deputies from the Rockingham County Sheriffs Office will not be randomly stopping cars to check the drivers destination, Suthard said. Deputies will continue to enforce traffic and criminal law violations during this time as normal.

A statement from the Virginia State Police said, Governor Northam had directed state and local law enforcement to initially address violators with education and warning, but persistent violations can result in an individual or business being charged.

The statement said the VSP will assess violations on a case-by-case basis, and that state troopers, for their personal protection and for the safety of the public, are minimizing their direct contact with the public.

The order does not restrict anyone living in Virginia from traveling out of the state, but the VSP recommends anyone doing so to check for travel restrictions along their route. Northam is advising anyone who has travels out-of-state to self-quarantine for at least 14 days when they return. The order will expire on June 10 unless extended by the governor.

Please follow the orders handed down and use precautionary measures such as social distancing and hand washing, Perry said. Also, although its allergy season, please dont take anything for granted.

If you are experiencing symptoms, monitor your temperature closely and call your physician for guidance.

Bill Wyatt is a reporter for the Martinsville Bulletin. He can be reached at 276-638-8801, Ext. 236. Follow him @billdwyatt

Bill Wyatt is a reporter for the Martinsville Bulletin. He can be reached at 276-638-8801, Ext. 236. Follow him @billdwyatt

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Because an economy-wrecking pandemic isn't enough to deal with, the Trump administration is making aggressive noises at Iran.

"Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq," President Trump tweeted on Wednesday. "If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!"

The White House didn't provide any additional information about Trump's tweet or his claim of a "sneak attack" being planned. But it should go without saying that going to war with Iran right now would be a terrible thing.

January's near-miss of open war with Iran  triggered when the United States assassinated General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's elite Quds Force  seems like a million years ago at this point. But even as the COVID-19 pandemic has escalated, White House officials have reportedly been pushing behind the scenes to escalate military action against Iran, despite warnings from military commanders that doing so could destabilize the Middle East and require the commitment of thousands of additional U.S. troops to the region.

The pandemic is ravaging both countries. The United States has the most confirmed cases of coronavirus in the world  and is facing shortages of critical equipment and medicines  while the death rate in Iran is so steep that the country has dug mass graves that can be seen from space. Meanwhile, the United States has refused to ease up on sanctions in Iran, making that country's efforts to fight the disease that much more difficult. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said this week there was a chance the sanctions could be loosened, but given this administration's overall history of hawkishness toward Iran, it is probably unwise to expect such a positive development.

Iran isn't totally innocent in all of this. Its proxies really are attacking and otherwise making trouble for U.S. troops in Iraq. But going to war with the regime in Tehran was an awful prospect in January, and it's an even worse idea during the health emergency facing both countries, for a number of reasons.

Story continues

First, the Trump administration can't walk and chew gum at the same time. Don't take my word for it  the president's allies have recently been floating the idea that Trump was slow to react to the threat of the virus because he was occupied during the early part of this year with impeachment proceedings. The idea is that it is really Democrats' fault the president didn't keep his eye on the ball.

"It came up while we were, you know, tied down in the impeachment trial," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a radio interview last week. "And I think it diverted the attention of the government, because everything, every day, was all about impeachment." The president didn't distance himself from that theory.

The assertion is nonsense. Impeachment didn't keep the president from golfing or holding rallies after the virus emerged in China. And he seems to be easily diverted from the life-or-death business at hand, regardless of what Democrats do  he bragged during Wednesday's press briefing that he was "No. 1 on Facebook," once again betraying his obsession with popularity metrics. But maybe we should take Republicans at their word: Trump can't concentrate on two things at once. Washington should forget Iran for a few months and focus exclusively on the virus.

In addition, the military is having its own troubles fighting the pandemic. In recent days, a debate has been flaring up in military circles: Should the military spend its energy fighting the spread of the virus in its ranks  the armed services have reported more than 1,300 cases including five deaths  or should it prioritize being ready to deploy and fight?

Captain Brett Crozier, commander of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, is apparently in the former camp. Dozens have fallen sick in the ship's tight conditions, and Crozier wrote a letter begging superiors to allow the evacuation of 4,000 sailors from the aircraft carrier so they can be quarantined under "social distancing" conditions. "We are not at war," he wrote. "Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our sailors."

But his request has proven controversial because standing down means the United States will be less able to go into battle at a moment's notice. "Just as the COVID-19 threat becomes a priority, it does not mean that other threats disappear or enemies stand down," a former defense official told The New York Times.

Escalating tensions with Iran is a choice, however. And it is difficult to imagine an uglier choice than sending sick and dying sailors, soldiers, and marines to confront sick and dying Iranian troops. Our service members know they may be called upon to make sacrifices, but they shouldn't have to do so when there are better options available.

Finally, we must remember that President Trump is a chronic liar. You should never take his word as truth. His rationale for killing Soleimani  that he was supervising "actively developing plans" for attacks on U.S. troops  dissolved upon scrutiny. His sudden public pivot to Iran this week, coming while he is under fierce criticism for his handling of the COVID-19 crisis, might well be a distraction. The New York Times reported last week the Pentagon had been ordered to plan for military action because some Trump administration officials "see an opportunity to try to destroy Iranian-backed militia groups in Iraq as leaders in Iran are distracted by the pandemic crisis in their country." That suggests administration officials are less interested in defending American troops and more focused on seizing an advantage against a disliked regime. That's a nasty kind of opportunism.

There is simply no reason to ever trust this president with matters of life or death.

We don't really have a choice, though, do we? Hundreds of millions of Americans are depending on Trump's decisions to protect them from sickness. This is a terrible moment in our history. There is no good reason to compound it by going to war with Iran.

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You know theres something amiss in the ether, a corner piece in realitys puzzle just askew or a wire crossed between daily life and some dream you had once, when, on a Thursday morning in early spring, you find yourself sitting cross-legged on your bed wearing last nights pajamas, glugging echinacea tea, and talking on the phone with Emmy-nominated actress Rose Byrne about bidets?

Im just so glad we bought one, with all the hoarding, I very sincerely disclose to the Australian screen star, who Ive watched my whole adult life in iconic projects from Bridesmaids to Damages to, most recently, Mrs. America, FXs new feminist miniseries in which Byrne portrays a young Gloria Steinem. Because that distinctive Steinem look, the long 70s hair with the middle part and the tucked-in aviators, is so fresh in my memory that for a second my own wires get crossed and it feels like Im telling the legendary activist herself about my COVID-19 derriere maintenance plan. Which would only be mildly less absurd. A bidet! Thats brilliant, Byrne responds with a generous laugh, her Aussie accent bringing me back to the (admittedly surreal) present moment. Its March 12, 2020, a global pandemic is now swarming the U.S., and Rose Byrne and I are on opposite coasts, deciding whether or not to panic.

At the precise hour of our call, 40-year-old Byrne is headed out to run an errand in Manhattan, where she lives with her husband, fellow actor Bobby Cannavale, and their two small children. Errands. Remember those? Theyre unthinkable now, even just two weeks later with New York under mandatory lockdown and case counts doubling every three days. Bobby was saying it feels a bit like 9/11. To me, it feels like the calm before a storm. Or are we in the storm? Its hard to tell, Byrne offers, evenly. I bet Rose Byrne is good in a crisis is a thought I never predicted Id have.

Though the internet has definitively canceled 2020, under less cataclysmic circumstances, I might be calling it Byrnes year. Ive been incredibly lucky, the actress confesses, referencing her career in general but also this oddly timed season when so many of her major projects are either coming out or just wrapped. This winter, Byrne and her husband performed in a play together for the first time, starring off-Broadway as a murderous wife and adulterous husband in a modern retelling of the Greek tragedy Medea. It was the highlight of my career, Byrne effuses.

Story continues

Just a week before Medea opened in January, Byrne attended the premiere for her latest big-budget comedy, Like a Boss (co-starring Tiffany Haddish and Salma Hayek), donning a showstopping flamingo-pink gown by Alexis Mabille and a platinum bob, like Elle Woods gone couture. As Byrne enters her 40s, her style has taken a turn for the eccentric, thanks in part to her new stylist, Beth Fenton, whos brought out the whimsical power-clasher in Byrne. Shes graced recent carpets wearing vibrant suiting, audacious patterns, and unexpected fabrics by New York designers like Veronica Beard and Ulla Johnson. (The other week in New York, she sported head-to-toe orange leather. Shell no doubt be wearing sweats for a while now, but at least she went out with a bang.) The clothes have been really fun, says Byrne. I take myself a lot less seriously as Ive gotten older, and thats been a relief. I take my work seriously, but not myself, which is a very Australian trait.







In her next big-screen turn, Byrne will play opposite Steve Carell as an icy Kellyanne Conwayesque character in the political satire Irresistible (slated for a May release, which might happen digitally given the circumstances). Its a character Byrnes other political on-screen alter ego, Gloria Steinem, would certainly hold in contempt. Though, traversing type and genre has always been Byrnes specialty. Looking back, most of her characters probably wouldnt get along.

Growing up in a Sydney suburb, Byrne says she was a very shy kid, not an extrovert in any sense. She started performing as a teenager in Australia and over the next six or seven years made the transition to Hollywood. In the two decades since, Byrne has been able to nimbly evade pigeonholing, transitioning from war dramas like Troy to sci-fi thrillers and superhero flicks like 28 Weeks Later and X-Men to raunchy Apatow comedies like Neighbors and Spy. She does so with a curious grace that even the industrys biggest A-listers dont typically pull off. How Did Rose Byrne Become One of Our Best Comedic Actresses? remarked a 2016 Decider.com headline.

Byrne credits her creative agility to those early years she spent acting in Australia. Its such a small industry there. You really have to flit between film, TV, and theater to sustain a career, and I think thats helped, she explains. Most Australian actors have done it all because theres only so much work to go around. With earnest humility, she adds, But Im so lucky. Plenty of actors are just as talented as I am, or much better, who havent been able to have this career.

At this point in her filmography, and with two young sons at home, Byrne is enjoying the luxury of choosing her projects more critically than ever. Medea and Mrs. America are evidence of her most recent career pivot: realistic dramas. Gloria Steinem was easily the most intimidating role shes ever played, Byrne tells me, and not only because Steinem is still alive (and thank goodness for that). A historical depiction of the 1970s second-wave feminist movement, Mrs. America follows the eras key political players, including the first black woman elected to Congress, Shirley Chisholm; the author of The Feminine Mystique, Betty Friedan; and their opponent, anti-feminist conservative Phyllis Schlafly. These figures are portrayed by a prodigious ensemble: Cate Blanchett, Uzo Aduba, Tracey Ullman, Elizabeth Banks, and Sarah Paulson. It meant so much to me, getting to work with these incredible actresses, and to be a part of this story about how hard women fought to get reproductive rights and healthcare rights, what they achieved and didnt achieve, and how it led to feminism now, Byrne reveals, breathless. Im gushing, but only because its deserved.

During shooting in Toronto, the nearly all-female cast bonded closely. Byrne hosted her Oscar- and Emmy-winning co-stars for weekend pizza parties and kid playdates. It was a thrill, she smiles through the phone. I mean, just getting to play Gloria was such an honor. So I hope I didnt screw it up! I reassure Byrne that shes fantastic in the show, my favorite character, actually, and I cant wait until April 15 when it comes out so everyone can have something new to fall in love with as they sit at home in quarantine. I gushed, admittedly, but only because it was deserved.

Of course, the second half of 2020 will be up in the air for Byrne, like the rest of us. She and her husband were supposed to team up for another play in Sydney at the end of the year, Arthur Millers A View From the Bridge. And shes attached to a pilot, a dark comedy called Physical about a woman who discovers aerobics in the 1980s. Hopefully we start that in the summer, but I dont know. Everythings been canceled. Were just like everyone else, waiting to see what our next move is, Byrne says with a sense of calm I find heartening. The world is crazy! Theres not much we can do, obviously, except for look out for ourselves and each other. One more thing to add to Byrnes resume: decidedly good in a crisis.

Watch Rose Byrne in FX's Mrs. America on Hulu April 15 and Irresistible in theaters May 29.

This article originally appeared on Who What Wear

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Belfast City Hospital's tower block will be Northern Ireland's first Nightingale Hospital for the anticipated surge of Covid-19 patients requiring intensive care in the weeks ahead.

It will have beds for 230 patients and be staffed by a team drawn from across Northern Ireland, the Department of Health said.

Surge plans will also see a boost to the critical care capacity at Altnagelvin and Ulster Hospital.

Establishing this Nightingale facility will require significant temporary reconfiguration of existing critical care provision across our hospital network, the Department said.

Work is in motion to make necessary infrastructure alterations within the tower block.

Some current non-Covid patients in the tower block will be moved to receive their care elsewhere.

The Department is continuing to assess the potential of the Eikon Centre at Balmoral Park - on the former Maze Prison site -as a second Nightingale facility to further increase bed capacity later this year in preparation for a second wave of coronavirus.

At present the Mater Hospital in north Belfast is taking the city's coronavirus patients.

Read More

The Department confirmed last night that Northern Ireland's health system has now increased its ventilator total to 165. Further orders are in place and being actively progressed. The surge planning is being informed by the Covid-19 modelling made public by the Department.

Health Minister Robin Swann said: "It is important to emphasise again that this modelling work is not a prediction or forecast.

"All modelling necessarily carries a level of uncertainty. It is therefore prudent to plan for a scenario beyond the reasonable worst case. That is what we are doing.

"The best way to ensure our health service can cope remains for everyone to stick firmly to the social distancing measures now in place. That message cannot be repeated too frequently or too forcibly."

Staff will be briefed by their respective Trust management, ahead of reconfiguration plans being made public.

Mr Swann added: "I fully recognise the challenges these emergency arrangements will present for staff, with new ways of working and in many cases a new workplace location.

"I am determined that we will do everything possible to support them and their colleagues across the HSC as they take on the many challenges that Covid-19 brings. We owe them all a debt that can never be repaid.

"I also give a commitment that trade unions will be kept informed as the plan is rolled out."

Meanwhile, it has emerged that more than 16,000 members of staff could be needed to run London's new NHS Nightingale Hospital to treat coronavirus patients should it reach full capacity.

The new 4,000-bed temporary facility at the ExCel convention centre in east London is due to open this week despite building work only starting last Wednesday.

Split into more than 80 wards containing 42 beds each, the Nightingale will become one of the biggest hospitals in the world, according to its chief operating officer Natalie Forrest. The facility will be used to treat Covid-19 patients who have been transferred from other intensive care units (ICU) across London.
One of my childhood favorites, Mr. Rogers, used to tell a story about how when he was a child and he saw something disturbing on the news, his mother would comfort him by telling him to look for the helpers. They were always there, she assured him, in the background, looking out for their neighbors.

Those words have always brought me comfort, but in these difficult and uncertain times, it is not enough to simply look for the helpers, we all must become the helpers ourselves. The world will look very different after this pandemic passes, and we will have the opportunity to build a brighter future. That work has to begin today with simple acts of kindness and care.

I worry about the most vulnerable among us as we navigate this unprecedented situation and I fear that they will be left behind. I worry about those who have lost their jobs and are wondering how they will feed their families. I worry about small business owners, restaurant workers and all others who suddenly find their worlds upside down. I worry about those experiencing homelessness, and how they will manage under circumstances even more difficult than those they already face.

I especially worry about our frontline healthcare workers, our first responders, those keeping our grocery stores stocked and running, and all the other workers out there risking their lives to keep all of us safe. I stay up most nights worrying about Pennsylvanians making it through this. If you are up nights worrying too, there is a number you can call for help.

It is for all of these brave souls that we must rise to the occasion of being the helpers in our own ways. The most important thing we can do for them is staying home and maintaining proper social distance until our health care system can fully prepare to care for the patients who will fall ill in the coming weeks or months.

Social distancing isnt easy. Trust me, I get it. I am a hugger, and it would be impossible to exaggerate how difficult it is for me to stay 6 feet apart. Even though it goes against my very nature, I know how important it is, and how staying away now means the day when I can once again hug my friends and neighbors will come more quickly.

I also worry about the millions of undocumented immigrants in this country, because I know exactly how they must be feeling. My mother fled violence in Brazil and brought my brother and I here with nothing when we were only children. Unlike the soothing advice that Mr. Rogers mother offered him, my mother warned us every day to be invisible, because the future we were fighting to build for ourselves in America could be snatched away at any moment if we werent careful.

This virus doesnt care who you are and it doesnt care where you came from. It affects all of us the same and that is why we all need to come together to make it to the other side. It scares me to see people reacting to their fears by lashing out at immigrants. It scares me when I see the president insist on calling COVID-19 the Chinese virus. It scares me when I see immigrant families crammed into detention centers that were already unsafe, being exposed to additional danger during this pandemic, and it scares me when I see ICE conducting raids using personal protective equipment that our health care workers so desperately need to keep them safe.

These things scare me because I know all too well that they will all make the pandemic worse for all of us. If we scare our immigrant neighbors into taking my mothers advice and trying to be invisible, they wont seek out the medical care that they need, and the virus will spread even further throughout our communities. We are all in this together, and that means every single one of us.

It is time for all Pennsylvanians to come together and become the helpers. There are plenty of things you can do to help make our community stronger while social distancing. Blood banks are in need of donations. You can donate to organizations working to ensure that everyone has enough to eat. You can make sure that your voice is heard by registering to vote, and signing up to vote by mail, and you can make sure that you are counted by completing the 2020 Census.

If we all come together but stay physically apart, we can save lives, and we can ensure that we will get back to normal as quickly as possible. Until that day comes, stay safe, be extra kind, look out for one another, stay home and please wash your hands.

Gisele Barreto Fetterman is second lady of Pennsylvania, as well as an access and equity advocate. She is the founder of Freestore 15104, where surplus and donated goods are redistributed to those in need; co-founder of 412 Food Rescue, which aims to end hunger and reduce food waste; and co-founder of For Good PGH, which works to advocate inclusion and inspire kindness.
Bay Area health care workers are growing desperate for protective medical equipment to treat a growing number of COVID-19 patients, and the situation got bad enough at one Oakland hospital this week that nurses created their own protective equipment by cutting holes in trash bags and placing them over their uniforms.

Nurses on the night shift in the telemetry unit at Highland Hospital in Oakland said they were not given protective gowns when they reported to work Sunday.

Supervisors told them they would have to wear woven, short-sleeved patient gowns, which are not designed to protect people from infectious material, putting them at risk of contracting COVID-19, said John Pearson, an emergency room nurse at Highland and president of the Alameda Health System chapter for the SEIU local 1021 union.

The nurses instead placed trash bags over their bodies, thinking they would be more effective than the patient gowns. Their actions are a troubling sign of how poorly the regions medical professionals are equipped to handle the coronavirus outbreak, which health experts say is bound to worsen in the next two weeks due to an alarming shortage of personal protective equipment, or PPE.

California had nearly 9,600 coronavirus cases, including 2,645 in the Bay Area, as of Wednesday afternoon.

I think were going to start seeing more things like that, Pearson told The Chronicle. Weve already had a manager telling people to spray down their masks with cleaning fluid and re-wear them, people being told theyre only getting one mask per week or per day.

It forces us to be in situations where we have to cut corners, often in ways that are not safe for patients, he continued. We are used to having to make due. But none of us want to be in a position of being a vehicle for transmitting disease.

A spokesman for Highland Hospital said medical personnel are working tirelessly to establish best practices and implement critical guidelines to provide the best care amid the outbreak.

We, along with hospitals across the country, are deeply concerned about our ability to sustain a significant surge in patients as a result of the coronavirus, said Terry Lightfoot, spokesman for the Alameda Health System, in a statement. For those reasons we are conserving the use of personal protective equipment and other resources consistent with CDC guidelines to ensure their availability to protect our patients and staff.

Jim Morrissey, EMS Medical Health Operational Area Coordinator for Alameda County, said the agency recently obtained 1.5 million N-95 masks from state and federal agencies. It sent 48,000 N-95 masks, 3,000 surgical masks and nearly 500 gowns to Highland last week, Morrissey said.

I know for a fact that we are far better off than a lot of our surrounding counties and other counties in the area that have much less available, he said. Were doing everything we can to support them in every way we can. If we have it, they get it.

Now Playing: Jessica Boykin, 32, had stuck plenty of people with needles by the time she graduated from the nursing school at Los Medanos College in 2018, but nothing prepared her for the coronavirus pandemic. Now she's an ER nurse on the front lines, where equipment and staff are short. Many nursing students who are just inches away from graduation are hoping to join her, and begging the state to bend its licensing rules so they can work. Video: SFGATE

Health care workers across the U.S. have been protesting in their off hours and taking to social media to call for more protective equipment. They fear a shortage of proper masks and gowns will put them at risk of contracting the illness, exacerbating the coronavirus outbreak.

One of the biggest challenges across the board is that (emergency) staff doesnt feel like theyre getting the full picture in terms of what the status is with equipment, said Liz Miller, a Chicago resident whose sibling, Rebecca Gonsalves, is a doctor in the emergency room at Highland.

Miller has raised nearly $50,000 to buy Highlands emergency room more powered, air-purifying respirators, which are filtered masks that completely cover the head and are essential for intubating patients with serious cases of COVID-19.

Theres not a lot of transparency and not a lot of communication, Miller said of the supply shortage. A lot of the ER staff just feel so blind and ill-prepared. Thats a sick feeling when youre walking into a dangerous workplace.

Dozens of health care professionals have shared their frustrations online, posting pictures of makeshift PPE and calling on hospital administration and politicians to get them the equipment needed to protect themselves while treating patients diagnosed with the highly contagious coronavirus.

In New York, one physician tweeted that hospital staff gave her a Yankees rain poncho to use for protection.

Our federal government has completely failed its health care workers, she said.

On Thursday in the Bay Area, nurses at UCSF and Seton Medical Center plan to protest the lack of PPE available to health care workers on the front lines.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Meanwhile, 2,000 members of Healthcare Workers United union have signed a petition asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to increase supplies and equipment in California hospitals.

We face the worst global health emergency in a century and healthcare workers are on the front lines, the petition said. Decades of underfunding and neglect of our public services have left us without the equipment, capacity, or personnel to fight this crisis.

Newsoms office did not reply to a request for comment Wednesday. The governor has said tens of millions of N-95 masks are on their way to California hospitals.

Officials in Daly City are scrambling to meet a critical shortage at Seton Medical Center, a 177-bed hospital designated by the state to treat COVID-19 patients. The hospital may run out of PPE in as little as five days, according to hospital staff.

Without that equipment we face the choice of how were going to treat these patients, said Debra Amour, 62, a registered nurse at Seton who is a California Nurses Association member. Do you go into a room and then expose yourself, potentially getting sick and not being able to work to treat anybody? Or do you not go into the room? If we get sick, were part of the problem.

Only 20% of the hospitals equipment orders are being met, said San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa. The county sent 500 N-95 masks to the hospital on Tuesday, but it may be a while until staff receives more PPE from the state, he said.

Canepa blamed the shortage in part on President Trumps slow response to the crisis.

At the federal level, theres a lack of leadership, he said. If theres an issue, you have to be aggressive and you have to take extraordinary measures. Were not seeing that.

The people who are saving people, we need to have their back.

Editors note: This story has been updated with comments from a Highland Hospital spokesman and an Alameda County official. An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the hospital did not respond for comment.

Tatiana Sanchez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tatiana.sanchez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TatianaYSanchez
A new COVID-19 vaccine that fires proteins in the body that destroy the virus within two weeks is just a few months from human trials.

The 'highly scalable' vaccine is the first peer-reviewed antidote to the coronavirus that currently has much of the world in lockdown or isolation.

Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh say the new treatment would be delivered through a 'painless jab' similar to the annual flu vaccine.

The team from the US have tested the vaccine on mice and estimate that it should be able to neutralise the deadly virus for at least a year.

It will be between 12 and 18 months before the test is publicly available but when it is approved tens of thousands of doses could be produced every day.

The vaccine is delivered into the skin through a fingertip-sized patch of microscopic needles made from sugar - which scientists describe as 'painless' and feeling like velcro

An industrial-style production process has been used to produce the Pittsburgh Coronavirus Vaccine - PittCoVacc - making it 'highly scalable'.

This is the first COVID-19 candidate vaccine that's been scrutinised by independent scientists. The findings are published in The Lancet's EBioMedicine journal.

HOW WOULD THE VACCINE BE DELIVERED? The vaccine would be delivered to the skin via a tiny fingertip-sized patch. This is enough to let the body produce quantities of antibodies high enough to neutralise the virus for a year. The novel delivery system is called a 'microneedle array'. It has 400 tiny needles that deliver the spike protein pieces into the skin and increase the potency. It goes into the skin as that is where the immune reaction is strongest. The patch goes on like a plaster and then the needles dissolve into skin. The needles are made of sugar and protein pieces containing the antibody triggering vaccine. It was a method used to deliver the smallpox vaccine - but more high tech. Doctors say it is 'pretty painless - it feels like Velcro'. Advertisement

The researchers are now applying for approval from the US Food and Drug Administration and aim to start the first human trial and hope to be able to begin those trials within months.

Senior study author Professor Louis Falo, from the University of Pittsburgh, said getting to human tests stage would usually require at least a year or more.

'This particular situation is different from anything we've ever seen, so we don't know how long the clinical development process will take.

'Recently announced revisions to the normal processes suggest we may be able to advance this faster.'

The Pittsburgh team were able to act quickly because they had already laid the groundwork during earlier coronavirus epidemics.

Senior study author Professor Andrea Gambotto, also at Pittsburgh, said they knew exactly where to go in terms of ways to fight the virus.

'We had previous experience on SARS-CoV in 2003 and MERS-CoV in 2014,' the study author said.

'These two viruses, which are closely related to SARS-CoV-2, teach us that a particular protein, called a spike protein, is important for inducing immunity against the virus.'

She added: 'That's why it's important to fund vaccine research. You never know where the next pandemic will come from.'

The PittCoVacc vaccine is more conventional compared to the experimental mRNA vaccine that has just begun clinical trials.

It works like a flu jab, penetrating the skin with lab-made pieces of viral protein to build immunity, the researchers explained.

The team also used a new approach to deliver the drug, called a microneedle array, to increase potency.

This array is a fingertip-sized patch of 400 tiny needles that delivers the spike protein pieces into the skin, where the immune reaction is strongest.

The patch goes on like a plaster and then the needles - which are made entirely of sugar and the protein pieces - simply dissolve into the skin.

Professor Falo added: 'We developed this to build on the original scratch method used to deliver the smallpox vaccine to the skin.;

Falso said it is a high-tech version that is more efficient and reproducible patient to patient. Adding: 'It's actually pretty painless - it feels kind of like Velcro.'

A 'cell factory' produces multiple layers of cultured cells engineered to grow the spike protein, that can be stacked further to multiply the yield.

This makes the vaccine 'highly scalable', according to the Pittsburgh team.

Researchers estimate the vaccine will provide protection for a year and hope to start human trials within the next few months

'For most vaccines, you don't need to address scalability to begin with, but when you try to develop a vaccine quickly against a pandemic that's the first requirement,' said Professor Gambotto.

Once manufactured, the vaccine can sit at room temperature until it is needed, eliminating the need for refrigeration during transport or storage.

When tested in mice, PittCoVacc generated a surge of antibodies against the coronavirus within a fortnight.

Those animals haven't been tracked long term yet, but the researchers point out that mice vaccinated for a much-smaller coronavirus outbreak in 2014 produced enough antibodies to neutralise the virus for at least a year.

The team said that so far the antibody levels in animals vaccinated for COVID-19 seem to be following the same trend.

Importantly, the COVID-19 micro-needle vaccine still works even after being thoroughly sterilised with gamma radiation - which is key if the product is suitable for use in humans.

It will take up to 18 months to complete the three stages of the human trials to ensure the vaccine is safe for the public.

Once it is approved for sale by the FDA tens of thousands could be produced per day, according to researchers, who say 'manufacturing really isn't the rate limiting step'.

They can already produce hundreds of doses per day with one technician working on a small centrifuge in an academic lab.

At an industrial scale they could spin thousands of molds for the test at a time.

It comes as both traditional drug makers and outsiders alike contend for the lead in an intensifying race for an antidote.

Johnson & Johnson, the world's biggest pharmaceutical company, says it is confident it has a COVID-19 vaccine and wants to start producing 'a billion vaccines' by early next year.

Meanwhile, British American Tobacco (BAT), the world's second-biggest cigarette producer, has announced it would be ready to start mass production within three months.

The findings have been published in the Lancet journal EBioMedicine.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday requested the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for an assurance that inter-state goods movement would not be affected by the lockdown.

"Neighbouring states should not create hurdles during this crisis period and all states should fight this pandemic together. Inter-state goods movement should not be restricted during the lockdown," the chief minister said during a video-conferencing with the Prime Minister today.

The Chief Minister also sought the intervention of the Central Government in ensuring the safety of the Malayalee workforce spread across the world.

"Indian embassies should provide assistance in setting up quarantine centres in countries which has a large number of Indian expatriates and especially nurses from Kerala. It is our duty to ensure their personal safety too," he said.

He informed the prime minister about the steps taken to curb the spread of the virus in the state. "We have implemented all directives from the Central Government in this regard," he said.

The chief minister demanded an increase in the borrowing capacity of the state from the current 3 per cent to 5 per cent. He also requested the prime minister to make the necessary transport arrangements for the migrant labourers to go back home after the lockdown period.

During his daily media briefing today, CM Vijayan said that as suggested by the Prime Minister, all NCC cadets and NSS volunteers will be allowed to join the State's Community Volunteer Force. Those who left NCC and NSS in the last five years will also be allowed to join.

Chief Minister said that 21 fresh cases of coronavirus infection were confirmed from various parts of Kerala today. Eight of the new cases from Kasargod District, five from Idukki District, two from Kollam District, and one each from Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta, Thrissur, Malappuram, Kozhikode, and Kannur districts. Nine of these fresh cases have been contracted through local (primary) contact with an affected person. The patient in Thrissur was someone who returned from Gujarat.

"Of the total 286 cases confirmed so far, 256 patients are under treatment in different hospitals in the State," he said.

"Overall, 1,65,934 persons are under observation throughout the State. Of these, 1,65,291 are under observation at their homes and the rest 643 under hospital observation. This includes two persons who returned after attending the Tablighi Jamaat at Delhi's Nizamuddin. A total of 157 persons from Kerala who attended the Tablighi Jamaat at the Nizamuddin Markaz has been identified and the government has collected details about them. All of them are under observation at home and few in hospitals. Some of them are yet to return from New Delhi," he added.

CM further said that a total of 145 persons were hospitalised today. 8,456 samples were sent for testing and 7,622 have reported negative.

"So far, 200 non-resident Keralites who came from overseas back to the State, seven foreign nationals (tourists) and 76 persons who got the infection through primary contact are the confirmed cases. 28 patients including four foreigners have recovered completely and tested negative.

Meanwhile, Kasargod, Kannur, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Ernakulam, Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram Districts have been identified as hotspot districts.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the nation grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic, families across Montana are counting on our elected officials to act in the best interest of our state. While all communities are threatened by the spread of this virus, folks living in rural Montana will face significant additional challenges.

In an effort to contain COVID-19, schools and universities are closed across the state, forcing students at all levels to transition their studies to online learning. Undoubtedly, this disruption will impact all students, but students in rural Montana will be significantly disadvantaged because many still lack access to the high-speed broadband required for any type of online streaming or video conferencing.

U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte voted against a grant that is now providing rural broadband access for communities in southwest Montana. And while its great to see him embracing telemedicine as a tool to expand health-care services across rural areas, he should realize that Montanans without internet access cant access the telemedicine that hes touting!

This latest crisis demonstrates how critical high-speed broadband is to communities across our state, yet Gianforte voted against this grant which appropriated $3.3 million for a high-speed broadband project in rural Beaverhead County. Gianforte may do his best to claim credit for the grant (he voted against) by showing up for photo ops, but rural Montanans wont forget his betrayal that easily.

Likewise, the coronavirus crisis is going to test the limits of Montanas health-care system, and our rural hospitals will be stretched especially thin. As more COVID-19 cases are confirmed across the state, Montanans and their families will increasingly rely upon their medical providers for COVID-19 testing and treatment. In the midst of an outbreak that doesnt discriminate, our rural hospitals will become more critical than ever.

Which is why Congressman Gianfortes continued assault on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicaid Expansion is totally unacceptable. Our state is navigating an emerging public health crisis and our rural hospitals and the communities they support need Medicaid expansion for survival. Now is the time to strengthen all Montanans access to quality, affordable health care, not weaken it. Gianfortes attacks on rural hospitals and patients are downright wrong.

This November, Montana needs to elect a governor who stands for all Montanans. Greg Gianfortes votes against rural broadband and Medicaid expansion has left rural families vulnerable in the face of a national public health emergency. Rural Montana deserves better.

Ron de Yong was director of Agriculture for Montana for over nine years, taught agricultural policy and economics at Cal Poly State University for seven years and operated a family farm near Kalispell for over 30 years.

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Eleven Kazan University projects receive funding from the Russian Science Foundation. The results were published on 1st April 2020.

Two of them are in the category "Research in accordance with the orders of the President of Russia":

Ayrat Kayumov, "New approaches to reducing the resistance of microorganisms to antibiotics in mixed infections: the search for new antimicrobial substances based on semi-synthetic thioterpenoids, the characterization of molecular targets and mechanisms of action, the development of an effective system for the delivery of antimicrobial agents and its visualization using conjugates with BODIPY phosphors"';

Marat Yusupov, "Structural basis of the protein synthesizing apparatus of Candida albicans."

Seven more projects are in the category "Research undertaken by autonomous research groups":

Yury Nefedyev, "Creating a dynamic simulation selenographic model taking into account the parameters of the internal structure of the moon based on methods of space geodesy, planetology and multi-parameter analysis";

Rawil Fakhrullin, "Hair surface engineering: modification of fibrous materials of biological origin using functional ceramic nano containers";

Yvon Maurice Masson Patrick, "Cholinesterase as active components of nano reactors for detoxification of organophosphorus compounds. Interactions with new medications";

Ramziya Kiyamova, "Tumor-specific membrane protein folding";

Guzel Sitdikova, "Cellular and network mechanisms of homocysteine toxicity in migraine";

Larisa Frolova, "The evolution of the natural environment and climatic changes in the Polar Urals and the north of Western Siberia in the Holocene: reconstruction based on paleolimnological studies";

Oleg Zholobov, "Distributive-quantitative analysis of semantic changes based on large diachronic corpuses."

Two projects received prolongation funding:

Gennady Yevtyugin, "New generation supramolecular polymers based on functionalized macrocycles for medical diagnostics: design and use as part of electrochemical sensors";

Rustem Khazipov, "Neuroprotective screening system in a model of focal ischemia of the cerebral cortex."
* Philippines secures Vietnam commitment to continuous rice supply

* Thai rates jump to $560-$570/t this week from $468-$495/t

* Bangladesh domestic rice prices hit 2-year high

By Swati Verma

BENGALURU, April 2 (Reuters) - Thai rice export prices soared to their highest in seven years this week on expectations of a sales boost after top exporter India went into a lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus and main rival Vietnam temporarily banned new export contracts.

Thailand's benchmark 5% broken white rice <RI-THBKN5-P1> was quoted around $560-$570 per tonne on Thursday, its highest level since April 2013.

"The situation in Vietnam, India, and Cambodia have us prepared for the unexpected, so Thai rice prices are going up and up," a Bangkok-based trader said.

"Where is anyone going to buy rice now if not from Thailand?"

Cambodia said on Monday it will ban exports of white rice and paddy rice to ensure local food security during the coronavirus pandemic.

But even as anticipation of demand ran high among Thai exporters and traders, they said they were afraid higher prices might discourage regular customers.

Thai prices jumped from $468-$495 per tonne quoted last week on speculation that the Philippines might have to import some rice from Thailand to meet its target of 300,000 tonnes announced on Tuesday, traders said.

But later on Thursday, the world's top rice buyer, the Philippines, said it has secured Vietnam's commitment for continuous supply of the staple food.

The announcement came even as Vietnam banned signing new export contracts under a review to ensure domestic supplies are sufficient during the coronavirus outbreak.

"We are still waiting for the final decision from the prime minister to lift the ban so that we can resume rice shipments as domestic supplies are abundant," a trader based in Ho Chi Minh City said.

Rates for 5% broken rice <RI-VNBKN5-P1> were unavailable for a second straight week.

Story continues

Bangladesh will begin selling cut-price rice from next week to help the poor as domestic prices of the staple grain hit two-year high amid panic buying due to the virus fears.

Millions of marginalized people are in a tight spot amid the nationwide lockdown that has been extended to April 11 to combat the virus' spread.

Indian rice exporters were not quoting prices this week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a 21-day nationwide lockdown on March 24 to protect India's 1.3 billion people from the fast-spreading coronavirus.

Top exporter India's 5 percent broken parboiled variety <RI-INBKN5-P1> was quoted $361-$365 per tonne last week, its lowest in three months.

Exporters were not operating this week due to the lockdown, said a Mumbai-based exporter. (Reporting by Patpicha Tanakasempipat in Bangkok, Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai, Ruma Paul in Dhaka and Khanh Vu in Hanoi; Editing by Amy Caren Daniel)
Ben Schecter, 23, and his friends wanted to find a way to help the local community amid the rapidly escalating novel coronavirus pandemic. With many people and organizations jumping in wherever they can, they wondered where their efforts would have the most impact.

They brainstormed ideas to help restaurants  which are struggling to keep the lights on and support their staff because of overwhelming losses in revenue  and eventually settled on a two-in-one initiative that would help hospitals as well.

What seemed to be the best idea is to connect the restaurants with another population in need, Schecter said. Healthcare workers are being extremely heroic during this time. Theyre overworked, theyre stressed, theyre putting themselves in danger.

Operating in both Houston and Dallas, the group is raising funds to place large takeout orders with restaurants and deliver the meals to workers at area hospitals and clinics. They registered the resulting organization, Feed the Front Line, as a 501(c)3 nonprofit last week, with the help of a Houston-based law firm working pro bono.

CORONAVIRUS UPDATES: Stay informed with accurate reporting you can trust

More Information Feed the Front Line donations can be made at ftfl.org. See More Collapse

They started with nine volunteers  all under 25 and with day jobs  and now have 15, Schecter said. Fundraising started with friends and family and is slowly expanding to the larger Houston community. They reach out to restaurants to coordinate orders and contact hospitals to ensure the food will be delivered in the safest way way possible to medical personnel. They make sure restaurants adhere to current guidelines and that the organizations volunteers comply with hospital standards.

La Guadalupana, Kenny & Ziggys, Goode Company, Common Bond, Katzs and Phoenicia Specialty Foods are among the Houston restaurants participating in the drive, and the growing list of hospitals and clinics receiving meals include three Harris Health facilities, Memorial Hermann TMC and Southwest, and Houston Methodist.

Our goal, throughout Houston and Dallas, is to be able to work with and support as many restaurants as possible and as many healthcare workers as possible, Schecter said. That is largely a function of how much money were able to raise.

To date, Feed the Front Line volunteers have delivered 1,500 meals in Houston and nearly 800 in Dallas, and will continue doing so as funds come in. Well see how that evolves over time, says Schecter. Right now, were very much focused on how to help restaurants, hospitals and people looking to give in their community during this crazy time were facing.

CORONAVIRUS IN HOUSTON: All of the latest news, numbers and analysis to keep you up-to-date, only on HoustonChronicle.com
President Donald Trump has said that Tehran should expect a bold US response if Iran or Iranian-backed groups attack American forces or assets in Iraq.

US-Iran tensions soared following the January 3 Washington-directed strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassim Soleimani outside Baghdad airport.

Trump said at an evening White House briefing that his administration has received intelligence that Iran is planning a strike, but did not provide additional details.

Iran has been blamed for an uptick in rocket attacks targeting Iraqi military bases hosting US troops. Three separate attacks in the span of a week struck Camp Taji and Basmaya bases, killed three coalition servicemen, including two Americans, and injured scores of others.

Earlier in the day, Trump tweeted: "Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on US troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!"



Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018 and has steadily reimposed US sanctions on Iran that had been eased or lifted under the terms of the deal.

Last week, the administration slapped new sanctions on 20 Iranian people and companies for supporting Shia militia in Iraq held responsible for attacks on bases where US forces are located. Currently, there are about 7,500 coalition troops in Iraq assisting and providing training to their Iraqi security counterparts to fight the Islamic State group.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Reuters) - The United States would lift its sanctions on two units of Russian oil company Rosneft <ROSN.MN> if it is clear the company is no longer involved in Venezuela, two U.S. officials said on Thursday.

Washington sanctioned Rosneft Trading in February for acting as an intermediary for Venezuelan state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela [PDVSA.UL], which in turn was sanctioned last year as part of the Trump administration's efforts to force out socialist President Nicolas Maduro, whom it calls a dictator.

In March, the United States followed up with sanctions on TNK Trading, another Rosneft subsidiary that traded Venezuelan oil.

Rosneft said on Saturday it was selling its Venezuela assets, which include several upstream joint ventures with PDVSA, to another Russian state-run company. Tankers it had chartered to lift Venezuelan crude then left Caribbean waters empty after waiting off the country's coast for weeks.

"If Rosneft Trading has nothing to do with Venezuela, then the sanctions that are based on its conduct in Venezuela or with respect to Venezuela should be lifted," U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela Elliott Abrams told reporters. "I don't know if that's true yet."

A second U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the sanctions relief would also be extended to TNK Trading if it ceased involvement in Venezuela.

The U.S. government has given companies a deadline of May 20 to wind down existing business with Rosneft Trading and TNK Trading.

Abrams added that it was not yet clear if the transfer of funds and activities between the Russian state and Rosneft related to the Venezuela deal had taken place.

Neither Russia nor Rosneft has disclosed the name of the company that will be buying the Venezuela assets from Rosneft. But Russia set up a new oil company, Roszarubezhneft, just as Rosneft was leaving Venezuela.

Maduro has called on the United States to lift its sanctions, and accuses Washington of seeking his ouster to assume control over the OPEC nation's vast oil reserves.

(Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick in Washington; Editing by Franklin Paul and Peter Cooney)
Southwest Airlines Co. LUV will be offering cargo-only flights for the first time in its 48-year history as air-travel demand continues with the downward trend amid rising coronavirus concerns.



The cargo flights will be offered on a charter basis with only those needed such as the pilots and other crew members, on board. The Dallas, TX-based low cost airline will carry the freight in the bellies of its Boeing 737 aircraft.



With passenger demand plummeting, the cargo-only operations should help Southwest recoup a bit of the lost revenues. Due to significant drop in passenger bookings as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, the Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company issued a bearish view for total revenue per available seat miles (TRASM: a key measure of unit revenues) for first-quarter 2020 (detailed results will be available on Apr 23). The carrier expects first-quarter TRASM to have either dipped 2% or increased up to 1% (previous expectation: increase in the 3.5-5.5% range) from the year-ago figure. Moreover, first-quarter operating revenues are expected to have declined between $200 and $300 million. You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.



Due to falling demand, shares of Southwest have plunged more than 41% since the beginning of February compared with the industrys 49.7% depreciation.

Price Performance Since February





Coming back to the cargo operations, Southwest joins the likes of American Airlines AAL, Delta Air Lines DAL and United Airlines UAL in offering the cargo-only services. American Airlines is operating two cargo-only flights from the United States to Germany. Further, Delta recently started offering cargo-only flights between Shanghai and Detroit, carrying medical supplies.



Additionally, last week, United Airlines launched several cargo-only flights, such as those from Los Angeles International Airport to Hong Kong, London and Shanghai. Freight and mail were some of the cargoes that these planes carried.



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BOUQUETS >> To Lorain police Sgt. Jake Morris, who is the community liaison for the Lorain Police Department, for starting a Facebook group called Lorain Food Spots to help local restaurants during this novel coronavirus pandemic.

While the current stay at home order due to the coronavirus pandemic is in effect, some Lorain restaurants still are open for pick up and delivery.

Morris said, Its important for the public to know that these food options are still here and open in downtown Lorain. The idea is going to celebrate the businesses that do stuff to help the smaller businesses in the city. There are like 50 or so small businesses in the area that we are aiming to help by raising awareness.

Broadway Marys restaurant, 939 Broadway is open and serving meals.

Mary Fields, owner of Broadway Marys and Brew & Stew, at 603 Broadway, was in a unique situation because she was in soft opening mode when Gov. Mike DeWines order went into effect.

Fields said its great to see some of the employees from other businesses in the area, who are now nonessential, come by.

She also said, We will deliver to Amherst, Berea or wherever in the area. We dont only want to be your restaurant, we want to be your partner and your friend. Were all in this together.

We applaud Morris for showing that he truly is a link between the city and the residents.

And we commend Fields for making the extra effort to supply meals for people.

BOUQUETS >> To ThinkStretch, the Lorain-based company that is helping students stay sharp in reading, writing and rithmetic while schools are closed due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

ThinkStretchs headquarters is inside the City Center, 300 Broadway, where a printing press and staff assemble learning kits for elementary students.

The company has printed off thousands of workbooks for grade school students and expects to ship more across the country in the coming days due to shutdowns for COVID-19.

ThinkStretch focuses on aids for parents and caregivers to help their students learn during summer breaks.

The company has about 10 employees, with field representatives in Ohio, Maryland and Georgia.

Bruce Henson, company president and chief executive officer of ThinkStretch, said, Its a terrible thing thats going on right now, but we were well prepared for this.

Indeed.

Henson previously focused on academic turnaround plans for low-performing schools, and Erik Thorson, chief academic officer and chief operating officer, has worked as a teacher, principal and school superintendent.

The company works with the Kaplan Early Learning Co. and sends customizable, prepackaged books and kits to 325 school districts across Ohio and around the country.

Youngsters still need to learn during this extended time away from the classroom.

Were pleased ThinkStretch is helping students to continue learning at home.

BRICKBATS >> To Paul W. Dempsey, the 32-year-old Elyria father facing felony charges after his child allegedly was exposed to a suspected drug abuse instrument and was hospitalized.

Dempsey was charged with endangering children, a third-degree felony, two counts of possession of a controlled substance, a fifth-degree felony, drug abuse instruments, a second-degree misdemeanor, and drug paraphernalia, a fourth-degree misdemeanor.

Elyria police Sgt. Bill Lance said officers responded at 11:23 a.m. to an apartment building in the 1800 block of Middle Avenue for the child, who is younger than a year old, being unresponsive.

The child was taken to UH Elyria and then to Rainbow Babies and Childrens Hospital in Cleveland.

Lance said Dempsey, who was not at the scene when police arrived, was arrested at 7:53 p.m. in the 38000 block of Chestnut Ridge Road and admitted that the drug use equipment was in a spot where a child could get a hold of it.

Dempsey is innocent unless proven guilty.

Based on these serious allegations against Dempsey, he will have a lot of explaining to do.

BRICKBATS >> To the 39-year-old Lorain man who was arrested in Avon on a theft allegation, and then was charged March 24 with violating Gov. Mike DeWines stay at home order.

This man likely was the first person in Lorain County charged with the violation.

Avon officers were called at 1:27 p.m. to Target, 35830 Detroit Road, for a man shoplifting.

The man grabbed items and tried to run away from the store, but was arrested by Avon police.

He was charged with violating the stay-at-home order which went into effect March 23.

The charge is a second-degree misdemeanor and a conviction is punishable by up to 90 days in jail.

He also was charged with theft, obstructing official business and drug paraphernalia.

This man created problems that could have been avoided by him staying home.
Banks have assured the Goa



government that there is enough cash reserve in the state for the next six months, a senior official said on Thursday.

The state finance department on Wednesday convened a meeting with bankers to discuss the position of liquid cash in the state amid the COVID-19 lockdown, he said.

As per the minutes of the meeting, a copy of which is with PTI, the Reserve Bank of India and other bankers clarified that there is sufficient cash reserve for the next six months.

Over 85 per cent of ATMs in the state are functional and adequate cash liquidity is maintained, representatives of the banks stated.

The State Bank of India has started operating a mobile ATM and its was requested to introduce one more mobile ATM in a week's time," the minutes stated.

Three banks, namely HDFC, Canara Bank and Bank of India, need to get their ATM cash replenished from Sawantwadi in Maharashtra, the bankers told the state government.

The district collector of North Goa was requested to tie up with Sindhudurg Collector and facilitate the movement of cash replacement agency (CRA), it was stated.

The meeting also discussed the possibility of crowding at the banks and ATMs due to various transfers by Government of India and State government to salaried individuals.

The state registrar of Cooperative Societies was instructed to direct cooperative banks and cooperative credit societies to keep their branches open.

Public and private sector banks were also directed to keep all their branches in the state functional.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A father-of-seven nearly lost his arm after his dog scratched him and caused a potentially deadly sepsis infection.

Jon Lewthwaite, 50, was playing with his children and their dog, three-year-old Penny, when she left a small scratch on his arm.

The scratch nearly cost him his life, with doctors performing emergency surgery on his infected arm within days of the cut.

Jon, an IT manager, originally from Thurso, Scotland, and now living in Swindon, decided to have his arm looked at after it began to swell.

Jon Lewthwaite, 50, was told he is lucky to be alive after a scratch from his dog Penny turned into a serious case of sepsis

The IT manager, living in Swindon, was in hospital for three weeks and had five operations

He was urgently admitted to hospital and began losing function in his kidneys as the pain in his arm became agonising.

He is now regaining the use of or his arm after three weeks in hospital and five operations, but says he and Cavachon Penny are still best friends.

He said: 'One day my dog Penny got too excited, jumped up to hug me, I put my arm around her to scoop her and her paw scratched me on the left arm.

'I thought nothing of it, it's a little dog scratch, it happens, so I carried on.

'The next day I realised my arm started to swell and after speaking to my partner we decided to get it checked out.

'We were at the hospital, discussing dinner plans, we weren't expecting what was going to happen. When the doctors told me it was caused by a scratch I couldn't believe it.

'It's easy enough to accept there was an infection but realising it was making me sick was something we couldn't see coming.

'It was a bit of a shock and my other half was incredibly worried.

'It wasn't until after I got discharged I had time to think about it and thought "what just happened".

'Best friend' Penny (pictured, right) has been forgiven by her owner for the scratch and he revealed that he gave his Cavachon a 'cuddle' once he was discharged from hospital

'Penny was definitely missing me and the first thing she did when I got home was jump up for a cuddle. We are best friends.

'Of course I forgave her. It wasn't a deliberate act on her part, we still love cuddling together in the couch.'

The father-of-seven went to Accident and Emergency when the swelling in his arm became concerning and while waiting to be seen his temperature jumped.

He was quickly admitted after tests showed his kidney function was starting to fail, which is a clear sign of sepsis.

'My resting heart rate was 125 and my temperature 38.3,' he said. 'I had a very badly swollen arm that began to hurt.

'I was in agony, I felt like someone was trying to stomp on my arm - my symptoms were getting worse very quickly.'

The swelling in his arm began to cut off his blood supply and he was diagnosed with compartment syndrome, which is common in athletes.

Surgeons at the Royal United Hospital, Bath, cleared the infection by opening up his arm and leaving the wound open.

Lewthwaite had two skin grafts on the arm and two more surgeries before returning home

He underwent two partial-thickness skin grafts and two further surgeries before being discharged.

He said: 'There was a large infection that had gone beyond the skin, to some of the muscle. They had to wash it all out and leave it open.

'Although it's pretty much healed, I still got a problem with the tendon, and still learning how to use it.

'It will come back but it will take months - I can't use it for anything right now.

'It was fortunate that the time I went to A&E they were able to see me so quickly, identify the infection and immediately give me antibiotics.'
South Africa: Taxi capacity capped at 70%

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has rescinded the directions allowing 100% loading capacity for taxis with immediate effect.

The decision follows concerns raised about the 100% loading capacity and the utilisation of masks as a mitigation measure.

The public was without comfort with these measures and urged that we reconsider. After our announcement of catering for 100% [loading capacity], there was a public outcry about the impact of such an arrangement to the health safety of public transport users.

We took these issues seriously and engaged with key stakeholders, resulting in a consensus of maximising the loading capacity to 70%, the Ministry of Transport said in a statement on Thursday.

The regulations for the COVID-19 nationwide lockdown prescribed a 50% loading capacity.

The unintended consequence of this reduction was an industry operating at a loss as a result of these regulations, the Ministry of Transport said.

The Ministry has urged members of the public and taxi operators to take preventative measures to mitigate against the spread of the virus.

Government will undertake a programme to assist with the distribution of masks. We also urge operators to continue to sanitise taxi surfaces and to provide hand sanitisers to the public, the Ministry of Transport said.

New Ministerial Directions to this effect will be published in due course for immediate implementation.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
How do we keep our color up when we can't get to the salon? We get tips from local experts. Read more

Social isolation hasnt just upended our work and personal lives. Its also disrupted a lot of our self-care and beauty routines. No more hairstylists, manicurists, and aestheticians, no more brow waxings or faux lashes. And Botox? Forget about it.

Some might say, so what? Beauty regimens hardly matter when we are in the middle of a pandemic. After all, were worried about the health of our loved ones and whether we actually still have a job after this, not necessarily our graying roots, even if theyre staring us in the face with every video call we make to work colleagues and distanced loved ones.

But there is truth in the old adage: When you look good, you feel good. Keeping up with these little  and what some might call insignificant  details may help us emerge whole when we get to the other side of this. So weve answered a few of your pressing beauty questions to help you keep it together, so you can feel good and keep going.

What should I do about my graying roots?

Local hair stylists were pretty clear when it came to answering this question. Leave your hair color to the professionals. If you already use box color, thats fine says Drea Richard, owner of Andre Richard Salon in Old City. But if you keep a standing appointment with your colorist, dont take a chance on messing up your stylists hard work, says Frank Rizzieri of Rizzieri Salons and Spas. You might pick the wrong color, you might leave it in too long or get distracted, then you are in danger of your hair breaking. And that will take a lot of time and money to fix it.

If your roots are driving you nuts, both Rizzieri and Richard suggest spray-in hair color. Trusted brands include Oribe, LOreal, R + Co, and Bumble and Bumble. Its the safest thing to do and you wont damage your hair, Richard said.

You can also reach out to your stylist, says Giovanni Mele, owner of Center Citys Giovanni & Pileggi Salon. Mele is offering already existing customers a root touch-up kit that includes the customers hair color, developer, a pair of gloves, a mixing bowl and a brush to mix and apply color, and a set of instructions. Everything is pre-measured, you just have to take the products and stir them together," Mele said. This way we are hoping our customers get a little bit of excitement in their lives.

Should I take out my weave?

If your weave is less than a month old, try to keep the hair pulled back in a ponytail or wrapped under a silk scarf, advises Philadelphia-based hair stylist Carla Clarkson. You can also keep it in pin-curls, flex rods. The idea is not to wear it down constantly. If its dirty from exercise and excess oils on the skin and hair, then condition it before washing with a sulfate-free shampoo. What that does is that it helps give an extra layer of protection and moisture on the hair. You can very lightly blow out the hair, taking special care with any of your hair that is exposed. "

If your weave is older than a month, it may be time to take it out so you can let your natural hair breathe. This takes a steady hand and a lot of care. If you have a sew-in, make sure you are cutting the thread and not your hair. Take the time to detangle. This is a good time to wash your hair, apply a hair mask, or use an overnight conditioning treatment. Your hair hasnt been touched in four to six weeks, Clarkson said. This is a good time to let it breathe.

Clarkson also suggests that you reach out to your stylist, as many are putting together kits complete with products for DIY maintenance. Clarkson partnered with another local company, Unique Organix, to offer An Essential Home Hair Kit that includes a scarf, comb, shampoo and conditioner, a preconditioning treatment, a gloss, plastic cap, gloves, mask, gloves, and Sanek strips to tie down the edges.

How do I care for my natural hair?

Its important that you keep your natural hair washed and conditioned, says Syreeta Scott, owner of Duafe Salon & Spa in North Philly. Make sure to sleep with a satin cap or scarf to keep your style longer, Scott says. And if you have braids or locks that you want to freshen up in between visits to the salon, Scott suggests pouring this conditioning rinse onto the hair: 1 4-oz. cup of apple cider vinegar with 10 drops of lavender essential oil (to mask the scent of the apple cider vinegar) It will remove the mildew odor that can creep up after exercise and it will also control dandruff.

Can I cut my own bangs?

Why not, Richard said. But you definitely want to err on the side of leaving them too long than snipping off too much. Richard suggests that you face yourself in a mirror and squeeze your hair between your middle and forefinger at the desired length. Then take a pair of sharp scissors  not the one you cut chicken with  and cut as straight across as you can.

My gel and my acrylics are growing out. Help.

To take off your gel, first you will need to lightly buff the top coat, explains Michele Rene, a manicurist with Rizzieri. Then you will need to dip cotton balls in pure acetone and wrap them around each nail, securing them with aluminum foil. Let them sit for 20 minutes. They will slide right off. Once you get the color off, apply cuticle oil and a little nail protein. Buff them. File them and Rene suggests keeping them short. Any enhancements like gels or acrylics damage the nail. So this is a good time to let them rest. File them down and keep them short.

My lash extensions are looking spacey, what to do?

Deneen Marcel, owner of Deneen Marcel Lashes, suggests dipping a small lash brush in brow powder and lightly brushing the base of the lash line as if you were putting on eyeliner. That will give you the illusion that your lashes are full," Marcel said. After about three weeks, your lashes will start to fall out. Let them just fall," Marcel says. Dont yank them. As your lashes fall out, keep your natural lashes moisturized with castor oil. Or, says Candice Reid, an aesthetic registered nurse, try I Beauty Brow Lash Enhancement Serum. It will help to make brows and lashes stronger and help with the growth that was inhibited by the fake lashes, she says.

How do I tame unruly brows?

This is a good time to let those brows grow out, said Onisha Claire, a licensed aesthetician and owner of Bossy Brows. Thick brows are in, but they can be hard to achieve without looking wonky, Claire said. But if you are desperate and feel out of control  perhaps you have a unibrow that needs separation  gather a pair tweezers and a straight razor. Put your pinky perfectly in between your eyes, mark the width and remove hair on either side of that width. If the extra brow hairs are driving you crazy, clean them up in natural light. And, says Ursula Augustine of Ursulas About Phace, do not use a magnifying mirror, but a standard handheld one. The less you see, the less you take.

Any do-it-yourself skincare tips?

Take this time to perfect your skincare routine, said Kelley Hughes, of Parlour Beauty in Fishtown. And try these masks made from kitchen ingredients.
The Irish family of the first NHS front-line doctor to die from coronavirus have paid tribute to the heroic health worker.

Amged El-Hawrani (55), a consultant at Queen's Hospital Burton, in England, passed away on Saturday night after testing positive for the virus.

His wife Pamela is from Tullow, Co Carlow, and the couple met when he was studying at the Royal College of Surgeons in the 1980s.

Francis Foley, Dr El-Hawrani's brother-in-law, told the Irish Independent that his sister was devastated.

"She is heartbroken," he said. "We are all devastated over Amged's death. You couldn't meet a kinder or more selfless man. Anyone that met him was richer for the experience. His passion was for his family and his work and that's what he dedicated his life to.

"He was known for his dedication to his patients everywhere and it is just so hard to believe. He is gone too soon."

Dr El-Hawrani, who died at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester, was described as being "fit and healthy" before he contracted the virus.

Dr El Hawrani and his wife, who worked in the Indian Embassy, were married in 1996. He worked in Beaumont Hospital, in Dublin, for a time, before taking up various posts in the UK, where the couple settled. They have one son, Ashraf (18).

The funeral of the consultant ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgeon took place in Bristol on Tuesday.

"It's been very tough not being able to be there to support our sister and Ashraf," said Mr Foley. "We couldn't be there for them at a time when we all wanted to be. The whole family here in Carlow will miss Amged immensely. There are no words."

Ashraf also paid tribute to his father, saying: "Most of my dad's time was dedicated toward his family, and the rest of that time was dedicated towards his profession."
A doctor in the frontline of the COVID-19 treatment at the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Edo State, has contracted the disease, the President of the National Association of Resident Doctors, Dr. Aliyu Sokomba, has confirmed.

Sokomba revealed this on Channels Televisions daily magazine programme Sunrise Daily and in a series of tweet by the doctors colleagues on Twitter.

Sokomba said six doctors had died of Lassa fever while one unnamed doctor had been infected with COVID-19.



He said, At the moment, as health workers continue to play their part in containing the spread of the disease, the health workers are not protected. One of our colleagues died just yesterday from Lassa fever. This is the state of our health care institutions and that is the fate of most health care workers in the country.

According to him, Dr. Philp Dzuana is the sixth doctor to have died of Lassa fever in the country and very little is being done to getting this kind of situation under control.

Just yesterday again, one of our doctors in Irrua Specialist Hospital Irrua Edo State had tested positive for the COVID-19 disease. What that means is that these doctors that are testing positive to various diseases are being left alone to take care of themselves.

He continued: There is no form of life insurance for them. There is no form of compensation. To say the least, what these doctors benefit at the end of every month as hazard allowance is N5,000. So, we are worried that if victory against COVID-19, Lassa fever outbreak in the country is to be achieved, the welfare and wellbeing of doctors and other health workers who are on the frontline must be secured.

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New Delhi, April 2 (IANS) The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has mobilised services of ex-servicemen community of armed forces as a part of augmentation of precious human resources to assist the state administration in fight against COVID-19. (File Photo: Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, April 2 (IANS) The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has mobilised services of ex-servicemen community of armed forces as a part of augmentation of precious human resources to assist the state administration in fight against COVID-19. (File Photo: Image Source: IANS News

New Delhi, April 2 : The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has mobilised services of ex-servicemen community of armed forces as a part of augmentation of precious human resources to assist the state administration in fight against COVID-19.

"As the nation continues to fight the challenges posed by COVID-19 pandemic, Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (ESW), Ministry of Defence (MoD) has taken the initiative to mobilise services of Ex-Servicemen (ESM) community," the ministry said.

Rajya Sainik Boards, Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ex-servicemen volunteers to assist the state administration in performing public outreach activities such as contact tracing, community surveillance, management of quarantine facilities or any such tasks assigned to them.

The ministry said that in Punjab, an organisation called 'Guardians of Governance', comprising 4,200 ex-servicemen, are assisting in data collection from all the villages.

Chhattisgarh government has also employed some ESM to assist the police. Similarly in Andhra Pradesh all the District Collectors have asked for ESM volunteers.

In Uttar Pradesh, all Zila Sainik Kalyan Adhikaris are in touch with District Control Rooms and retired Army Medical Corps personnel have been identified and kept ready.

In addition, Sainik rest houses are being readied in Uttarakhand to act as isolation and quarantine Centres if need arises.

In Goa, a control room has been established and ex-servicemen have been asked to remain on standby for any assistance to the local administration.
One of the immediate effects of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic on the oil and gas industry has been a global glut of crude oil supply amid already weak demand, resulting in a significant drop in oil prices, saisd a report.

Ongoing projects across the industry will likely be impacted, which could potentially put further stress on the global economy, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

The companys report: Impact of Covid-19 on Emerging Economies analyses the effect of the Covid-19 outbreak on the oil and gas industry in emerging economies, with China as the focal point.

As a result of the lockdowns in key provinces, industrial production in the country has slowed down.

This, in turn, has led to a decline in demand for petroleum products. Chinas national oil companies (NOCs), PetroChina and CNOOC, have also cut down on refinery output due to labor shortages. In February 2020, Chinas state-owned refiners announced a cut in the refining throughput of 940,000 bpd for said month.

Ravindra Puranik, Oil & Gas Analyst at GlobalData, comments: "China has around 190 active refineries, of which three active refineries are situated in the Hubei province of China. The lockdown in Hubei will most likely impact the throughput of these refineries, which account for around 2.2% of the total Chinese refining capacity as of March 2020."

"The other major affected provinces by Covid-19 in China, adjacent to Hubei province, include Zhejiang, Guangdong, Henan, Hunan, Anhui and Jiangxi. These provinces account for another 25% of Chinas total refining capacity. However, it is unclear what the extent of the impact of Covid-19 will be on the production of refineries in these provinces," stated Puranik.

Chinese firms have also invested in the oil and gas sector in several other emerging markets, especially Russia, Brazil, Nigeria, and Mexico.

These countries may also witness a decline in their oil and gas income due to the faltering energy consumption in China and the subsequent spread of the disease in different parts of the world.

Chinese firms have collaborated with Russian oil and gas firms on several key projects of late, particularly in the Arctic region. The ones that are under construction, such as the Arctic-2 LNG liquefaction terminal, may be hampered. Brazil and Nigeria also export significant volumes of their crude oil production to China, which are likely to drop over the short term.

Puranik said: "India is one of the beneficiaries of the prevailing low oil prices due to Covid-19 outbreak."

"Following Chinas cancelation of some crude oil imports through force majeure, an availability of high grade crude from Mediterranean and Latin American regions came to light. Refining companies such as Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) in India managed capitalize on this availability to purchase crude oil from these stranded consignments at discounted rates," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Congressman Anthony Brindisi has created a section on his website where his constituents can find resources and information about coronavirus.

Several links are available at: brindisi.house.gov/coronavirus.

Information is so important right now and we need to all work together to fight back against the coronavirus. I want to make sure you have the best available information to protect and care for yourself and your loved ones as we continue to learn more about the coronavirus disease, said Brindisi.

The website has resources for small business owners, veterans and farmers. There is also information on unemployment, tax relief and food assistance.

Brindisi has also been hosting virtual town hall meetings to stay connected with residents. To register for a town hall session, visit: brindisi.house.gov.
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. is giving away 100,000 burritos to healthcare workers, who are at present fighting in the front line against coronavirus or Covid-19 pandemic. The food chain has asked healthcare teams to submit their application by Thursday, April 2, which is this year's National Burrito day. The offer is valid for a free preconfigured Burritos by the Box order of 25 burritos, with free delivery. The offer is available from April 6 through April 10, during World Health Worker Week. On Wednesday, Chipotle had announced its offer of up to 50,000 burritos to healthcare workers, noting that any hospital division could receive up to 50 free burritos per order. The Mexican food chain said any healthcare team can order for 25 free burritos that will be delivered free by DoorDash at a time and day of their choice. The free burritos will be delivered to a licensed or certified hospital or other medical facility, within the United States, and within 15 miles of a participating U.S. Chipotle restaurant. The company asked the healthcare teams submitting application to confirm that their facility will be permitting receipt of outside food deliveries. In a statement, Chris Brandt, Chief Marketing Officer said, 'We want to express our extreme gratitude by fueling the frontline workers at healthcare facilities across the country with real food. It is our goal to bring joy and provide a little something extra for both the medical staff and our everyday guests.' Additionally, Chipotle will continue to offer free delivery on any Chipotle order $10 or more via the Chipotle app and Chipotle.com through April 30. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
For the last number of weeks, the provincial government and the media have been locked in a daily back and forth as public health officials announce the latest statistics on the COVID-19 infection rate, and the general districts where infections have been found. And media try to pry more information out of them.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For the last number of weeks, the provincial government and the media have been locked in a daily back and forth as public health officials announce the latest statistics on the COVID-19 infection rate, and the general districts where infections have been found. And media try to pry more information out of them.

While these daily media briefings are useful in terms of relaying new COVID-19 policies that change from day to day, its rather clear that our health officials regard this daily ritual  and the written information bulletins that are emailed daily  as a way to guide the public rather than fully inform the public.

As Winnipeg Free Press columnist Dan Lett noted in his column this week, details have been scant regarding Manitobas first virus fatality  a 60-something woman named Margaret Sader who worked at a Winnipeg dental supply company.

"Last week, Manitoba chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin refused to tell us anything about the 60-something woman who passed away after being treated in a hospital intensive care unit," Lett wrote. "This included a blackout on all details of how, when and where she may have contracted the virus, and whether she could have passed it on to anyone else."

Roussin has offered no explanation for his refusal to provide further information about this case, which is problematic in the bigger picture. As Lett points out, "a lack of information in a pandemic can lead to tragic results," as the public does not then have the necessary information to make informed decisions.

To be fair to Dr. Roussin, this is an ongoing debate around the world  how much information is too much information? And by releasing more information, would the government only increase Manitoban anxiety over the spread of the disease? Is too little giving us a false sense of security, by making us think the situation is not as bad as it is elsewhere?

In the last few days, however, we have to wonder why some information regarding the virus seems to be slow to come to the public consciousness.

On Saturday, the province updated its list of flights and events with confirmed cases of the coronavirus, and on that list was WestJet flight WS 3256, which flew from Calgary to Brandon on March 15. Two separate sets of affected rows were listed on the flight, including rows 2-8 and rows 9-15. These rows were considered as being in close contact with the virus and were at risk of exposure. But keep in mind this information was only released one day before any 14-day isolation that could have been imposed upon landing would have ended.

But that information suddenly changed on Sunday evening, and now there were two separate WS 3256 flights that were affected between Calgary and Brandon  one on March 14, with seat 12A affected according to the provincial website, and the second on March 15, with rows 2-8 affected. So, were passengers in rows 9-15 on March 15 exposed or not? We do not know.

On Monday, we learned that of the 96 total cases of COVID-19 that day (the province announced a new total of 103 on Tuesday morning) nine were found in Prairie Mountain Health Region. But information about more precise locations  in Brandon? Dauphin? Melita?  has not been forthcoming. And while there is likely a good explanation for withholding this information, absence of detail has also had the effect of raising anxiety throughout the region.

Also on Tuesday, it was announced that a health-care worker at Selkirk Regional Health Centre had not only been diagnosed with COVID-19  likely contracted through travel within Canada  but that the person had also reported for work on four separate days between March 19 and March 22 without self-isolating themselves.

While it was noted this persons return to the province came before the province ordered people to self-isolate for 14 days following interprovincial travel, we should question why that information only became public nine days after the persons last shift. There is no telling how many people they interacted with, and how many could have been infected as a result.

We understand that this is an unprecedented time for our health officials and we have to be cognizant of the fact that they are under duress to get information to ministers and decision-makers in a timely fashion, while trying to limit giving out private details about individual cases. It is no doubt a difficult position in which to find themselves.

And while we, too, want to avoid causing Manitobans unnecessary anxiety and stress about the movements of the virus, we also believe that people have a right to timely and useful information that could affect their health, or the health of someone they care about.

At the very least, the province must avoid confusing people, and must ensure that situations like what happened in Selkirk do not happen again.
India has used the peace clause of the WTO to provide excess support measures to rice farmers for marketing year 2018-19 in order to meet the domestic food security needs of its poor population.

Under the Peace Clause, WTO members refrain from challenging any breach in prescribed subsidy ceiling given by a developing nation at the dispute settlement forum of the Geneva-based organisation.

Subsidies over and above the prescribed ceiling are seen as trade distorting. The limit is fixed at 10 per cent of the value of food production for developing countries like India.

In a notification, India has informed the World Trade Organisation (WTO) that the value of its rice production was USD 43.67 billion in 2018-19 and for that it provided subsidies worth USD 5 billion, which is in access of prescribed 10 per cent ceiling.

"India's breach of commitment for rice, a traditional staple food crop under a provision of the Agreement on Agriculture arises from support provided in pursuance of public stockholding programmes for food security purposes, which were in existence as of the date of the Bali Ministerial Decision on Public Stockholding for Food Security Purposes," the notification said.

It said that the country's public stockholding programmes for food security purposes (covering rice and a number of other commodities) have been consistently reported to the WTO.

The stocks under the programme are acquired and released in order to meet the domestic food security needs of India's poor and vulnerable population, and not to impede commercial trade or food security of others, the notification said.

"For these reasons, the breach of the limits for rice is covered by the peace clause set out in the Bali Ministerial Decision on Public Stockholding for Food Security Purposes and the General Council Decision," it added.

Before the harvest during each Rabi / Kharif crop season, India announces the minimum support prices (MSP) for procurement on the basis of the recommendation of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), which along with other factors, takes into consideration the cost of various agricultural inputs and a reasonable margin for farmers for their produce.

The Centre and state governments, through their agencies such as Food Corporation of India (FCI), National Agricultural Cooperative Federation of India (NAFED) and others, procure foodgrains from farmers at the MSP in order to meet the overall demand of different welfare schemes.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
02.04.2020 LISTEN

One of our greatest gems on the continent is human resources. The continent holds many innovations, creative and talented individuals who should be propelling the continent forward and being competitive with some Eastern and Western counterparts.

Ms. Nadia Takyiwaa -- Mensah, the author of self - published book "How to Get Ahead in Ghana, stated that the challenge of access to quality education, lack of nutrition, illiterate parents, culture and indoctrinated religious beliefs, made many people fall short of being able to tap into, let alone reach their potential.

"The biggest challenge is that people don't see themselves as the problem, but rather the government and everybody else." Adding that "this, in turn, causes resentment, anger, disrespect, and everybody for themselves' attitude."

The author who is a British - born Ghanaian who after a spiritual calling moved to Ghana in 2010 and has successfully established two businesses Sixth Sense and Sai Wine Cafe in the ten years.

Ms.Takyiwaa -Mensah said this in a press release issued in Accra.

The book How to Get Ahead in Ghana is made of ten steps that people can take to be able to get on their way to being a better version of themselves.

She said one needs to acknowledge and understand that change needs to start and come from within and is definitely the first step one needs to take.

According to her, in this order for one to be able to appreciate the book and be able to apply it to their lives.

Each of the ten steps has an action point placed at the end of the chapter to allow readers to take their time and think about what they have read and assessed the best way to apply the step to their life.

The book "How to Get Ahead" has eighty-six pages with regular-sized font making it easy for readers took digest and finish.

The book also takes into consideration the environment and cultural nuances allowing readers to relate and comfortably apply.

"There is a really a thin line for people to go from a limited mindset and place in life to absolute greatness and I pray the book would contribute to their greatness," Ms. Takyiwaa-Mensah indicated.
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Linkedin News Desk (Reuters) Bangkok, Thailand  Thu, April 2, 2020 21:34 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f54be4 2 SE Asia Thailand,curfew,coronavirus,COVID-19,pandemic,health,Gathering,stay-at-home Free

Thailand will impose a nationwide night curfew from Friday to try to curb the spread of the coronavirus, the prime minister said on Thursday, adding that people had to adapt to survive.

The 10 p.m.-4 a.m. curfew, which will run indefinitely, is the latest measure by the government to curb gatherings and have people stay at home as much as possible.

Exceptions include those people transporting medical supplies and health workers travelling to and from work, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said.

"We prioritize health over freedom," said Prayuth, a retired army general who seized power in a 2014 coup and was re-installed as a civilian prime minister after a disputed general election over a year ago.

"We might not feel as comfortable as before, but we all need to adapt for survival and have social responsibility, so that we can make it through this crisis."

Prayuth also said he would ensure that hospitals get the supplies they need, describing medical staff as the "vanguard" against an "invisible enemy".

In a televised address, Prayuth also asked all Thai citizens abroad to "delay" returning to Thailand until after April 15 in a bid to stop imported cases.

Since March 1, Thailand has seen rising numbers of cases who became infected abroad before returning to Thailand and has put nearly 2,000 people who came into contact with them into quarantine.

Last week, Thailand closed all border crossings for everyone except for Thai nationals, diplomats and their families, and foreigners with permits allowing them to work in Thailand.
India captain Virat Kohli will have a chat session with former England batsman Kevin Pietersen, he told his social media followers on Wednesday.

Tomorrow at 7 PM IST my good friend @KP24 and I are going live on Instagram. Tune in to catch us chatting about whats happening world over at the moment and also about all the years weve known each other, Kohli said in a tweet.

Tomorrow at 7 PM IST my good friend @KP24 and I are going live on Instagram. Tune in to catch us chatting about what's happening world over at the moment and also about all the years we've known each other.  pic.twitter.com/19ghv6Bp1B  Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) April 1, 2020

Pietersen has been doing social media lives with the likes of Kohlis limited-overs deputy Rohit Sharma and South Africa pace ace Dale Steyn over the past few days as the world observes virtual lockdown to beat the coronavirus pandemic.

Kohli and actress wife Anushka Sharma recently pledged to support the Prime Ministers Relief Fund and Chief Ministers (Maharashtra) Relief Fund in the ongoing battle against the coronavirus pandemic. A source in the industry had told IANS that Virat and Anushka have jointly donated Rs 3 crore towards the cause.

The batting icon also made an appeal to all to strictly follow the guidelines that have been set by not just the government, but also medical experts in our fight against the coronavirus outbreak.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced a 21-day lockdown in the country to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. He said this is an essential step to fight coronavirus decisively. He added that saving lives is priority as of now.
Another 27 fatalities occurred in state hospitals into Thursday, bringing Connecticuts total deaths in the pandemic to 112.

During his daily briefing Thursday afternoon in the State Capitol, Gov. Ned Lamont said there have been another 267 people who tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the state total to 3,824, while 827 people are now hospitalized with the virus. He said that while there are more than 1,000 ventilators in the state, another 1,500 are needed.

While the gender breakdown for those infected is about even between men and women, the governor said that more men have died, possibly because of pre-existing conditions. It just reminds you that social distancing and taking all those precautions can make a difference, he said. Maybe in a week or so well know whether its making a difference in Connecticut.

At 7:45 p.m., the latest executive order was released, limiting statewide hotel rooms and short-term rentals to essential workers. Not leisure travel, not vacationers, Lamont said. Trying to make sure thats not just prioritized, but exclusively for essential workers and that takes effect tomorrow.

In an attempt to maximize social distancing while keeping alive the states liquor stores and restaurants, home delivery of alcoholic beverages will now be allowed.

He said that the next week will be crucial in finding out whether the state has succeeded in slowing the spread of the coronavirus.

State Police have visited dozens and dozens of retail establishments, checking to see if they are obeying new orders to cut down on crowds, by cutting in half the previous attendance limits set by local fire departments, Lamont said. While most businesses are observing the social distancing policies, other businesses did not and got a friendly talking to from the state troopers. It wont be a friendly talking to next time, Lamont said. Penalties could include Class D felonies punishable with $5,000 fines and five years in prison.

Renee Coleman-Mitchell, commissioner of the state Department of Public Health, said that COVID-19 infections have been found in 57 of the states 215 nursing homes.

Lamont said that the state has about 1,033 ventilators, but needs another 1,500 because of the anticipated peak need calculated two months ago. Its a source of endless frustration for me, Lamont admitted.

The governor and Melissa McCaw, his budget chief, estimated that the pandemic is likely to create a cascade of red ink in the state budget deficit, which a month ago was about $60 million in deficit. The shortfall is now likely to top $500 million in the current fiscal year that runs through June 30, plus another $1 billion in the next budget year, even with an expected $1.45 billion in federal relief. Lamont said he was glad that the state has generated a budget reserve fund  the so-called rainy day fund  of about $2.5 billion.

In other pandemic developments, Chief Medical Examiner James Gill on Thursday confirmed that the six-week baby, who was found to have COVID-19 in an autopsy, was pronounced dead at St. Francis Hospital in Hartfords North End. After an initial report from Hearst Connecticut Media, the hospital confirmed the fatality Thursday afternoon.

The infant did test positive for the COVID-19 virus and an autopsy was done at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, Gill said in an email Thursday morning. At the current time, we have not issued a final cause of death. There are numerous tests that we must do on infant deaths before issuing a final cause of death. It will be a few weeks before the investigation is done.

He declined to give other details, including whether the baby was a boy or a girl. A source familiar with the case said it was a girl whose mother said the baby was having trouble breathing when she brought her to the hospital.

The hospital confirmed the fatality.

We are deeply saddened by this loss and we offer our sincere condolences and prayers to the family, a hospital spokesperson said in a statement, citing federal privacy protections that limit further details. Although children have made up a small fraction of COVID-19 cases, it can impact anyone. As a community, we must do everything we can to prevent the spread of the virus.

Dan Haar contributed to this report.
The Navy deployed warships to the eastern Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea at the direction of President Donald Trump on April 1 as part of an operation to counter drug cartels. The cartels, according to intelligence, are actively planning to exploit the global CCP virus pandemic to smuggle more drugs into the United States.

The mission involves sending additional Navy warships, surveillance aircraft, and special forces teams to nearly double the U.S. counter-narcotics capacity in the Western Hemisphere, with forces operating both in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said 22 partner nations would support the mission.

As governments and nations focus on the coronavirus, there is a growing threat that cartels, criminals, terrorists, and other malign actors will try to exploit the situation for their own gain, Trump said. We must not let that happen.

U.S. authorities have long been short on resources in the area to interdict all of the drug traffic heading along naval routes to the United States. The intelligence community has long been aware of the routes, according to Attorney General Bill Barr. Last year, authorities seized about 309 tons of drugs in the area.

Trump made the announcement one day after the White House advised Americans to brace for the deadliest days of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus.

According to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, the United States has intelligence showing that the cartels are looking to exploit the crisis to smuggle more drugs into the country.

The enhanced mission has been months in the making. The formal launch comes days after the Justice Departments indictment of Nicholas Maduro, Venezuelas illegitimate socialist dictator, and members of his inner circle and military. They are accused of leading a narcoterrorist conspiracy responsible for smuggling up to 276 tons of cocaine a year into the United Statesabout half of it by sea.

If I was just indicted for drug trafficking by the United States with a $15 million reward for my capture, having the U.S. Navy conducting anti-drug operations off my coast would be something I would worry about, said Sen. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican who has been among those calling for a tougher stance against Maduro.

It also comes as Maduro steps up attacks on his U.S.backed rival, Juan Guaido. Maduros chief prosecutor ordered Guaido to provide testimony Thursday as part of an investigation into an alleged coup attempt.

Guaido, the head of Venezuelas congress, who is recognized as his countrys legitimate leader by the United States and almost 60 other nations, is unlikely to show up, raising the possibility he could be arrested. The United States has long insisted it will not tolerate any harm to Guaido.

No matter where you sit ideologically, any move to try to bring democracy back to Venezuela requires first recognizing the criminal nature of the Maduro regime, and making moves that scare the regime into negotiating, said Raul Gallegos, a Bogota, Colombia-based director in the Andean region for Control Risks, a consulting group.

Maduro blasted the Trump administrations offer of a $15 million reward for his arrest, calling it the work of a racist cowboy whos aiming for the United States getting control of Venezuelas vast oil reservesthe worlds largest. He also points out that the vast majority of cocaine leaves South America from Colombia, a staunch U.S. ally.

The Trump administration has long insisted that all options are on the table for removing Maduro, including military ones. Still, theres no indication that a U.S. invasion is being planned.

Rather, the sending of ships fits into a longstanding call by the U.S. Southern Command for additional assets to combat growing narcotics and other security threats in the hemisphere.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
By Rania El Gamal and Dmitry Zhdannikov

DUBAI/LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump says he has brokered a deal with Saudi Arabia and Russia that would see sweeping oil output cuts. Riyadh has called for emergency talks, and Moscow has said it no longer plans to hike production in a battle for market share.

But the question remains: even if the world's top three producers reach an unprecedented pact to curb oil output, can any deal remove enough oil when the coronavirus has destroyed a third of global demand for crude?

One thing, however, has become clear: as oil prices in the past three months made some of their biggest gyrations in history, taking action will prove a severe, if not impossible, test for OPEC+, the informal grouping that had propped up crude prices for three years until their agreement collapsed in March.

An OPEC source briefed on Saudi oil policy said the scale of the fall in demand might require action beyond the scope OPEC+ could take alone. "This is an extraordinary situation that needs extraordinary measures," the source said.

Oil demand has dropped by as much as 30 million barrels per day (bpd), roughly equivalent to the combined output of Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States.

The fall is also more than the total production of all members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, the group that for decades was the most powerful player in the oil market.

"The magnitude of the current disruption is far beyond what OPEC can deal with alone," the Saudi state King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center wrote this week.

It said "greater international cooperation was needed" and predicted U.S. and other higher cost producers could suffer.

Neither Saudi Arabia nor Russia has directly asked the United States - which has become the world's biggest oil producer on the back of the shale revolution helped by OPEC+ support for prices - to join the any output cuts, a move prohibited by U.S. antitrust law.

But, in reality, some degree of U.S. participation would be essential for any deal that hoped to make a difference to market fundamentals.

Story continues

MISCALCULATIONS

"If the number of OPEC+ members increase and other countries join, there is a possibility of a joint agreement to balance oil markets," one of Russia's top oil negotiators, Kirill Dmitriev, who heads the nation's wealth fund, told Reuters.

Still, how to respond revives the acrimonious debate in early March in Vienna, where Moscow and Riyadh fell out and the OPEC+ deal on supply curbs came to an abrupt end.

Saudi Arabia had pushed for deep additional cuts, saying it was no longer ready to shoulder the biggest burden of reductions and wanted others - with a finger pointed firmly at Russia - to take a more equitable share.

Moscow's response was that deeper cuts made no sense until the full extent of the fallout from the coronavirus was known, given measures to combat the virus were bringing the world to a standstill, sending demand for jet fuel, gasoline and diesel into a nosedive.

Instead of finding a way to overcome their differences. Both sides misread the determination of the other to stick to their guns. Even as the finances of both nations took a pounding, they left the meeting promising to open the taps and grab market share with the inevitable result that oil prices crashed.

"Russia had miscalculated the Saudi response," a veteran Russian oil insider said. "Moscow had never thought the Saudis would threaten to raise production so steeply. We thought they would just carry on with existing cuts."

Saudi Arabia for its part also misjudged the magnitude of the oil demand collapse that sent oil prices to their lowest in almost two decades.

Riyadh quickly found that, in a market awash with crude, even usually reliable buyers don't want more and steep discounts do little to change this. Oil majors and big importing nations alike have spurned the extra cargoes.

CLAIMING VICTORY

Now both sides may now have a chance to reconsider - and possibly a way to claim they were both right. If a deal is reached, Riyadh can say pumping more crude forced Russia back to the table. If others join in, Moscow can say the virus has had a bigger impact than anything OPEC+ alone could have dealt with.

Trump, who has said Moscow and Riyadh "went crazy" by pumping more after their supply deal fell apart, stunned the market on Thursday by saying he had brokered a deal with Saudi Arabia and Russia.

"I expect and hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be great for the oil & gas industry!" Trump wrote on Twitter, citing a figure for cuts that would be equivalent to 10% of global supply.

Trump was due to meet U.S. company executives on Thursday, but a senior administration official said U.S. domestic producers would not be asked to chip in with their own cuts.

However, even if U.S. producers don't voluntarily take part, they may be forced to. With oil at such low prices, they may have to shut down a lot of higher cost oil production -- or they will have ask for state funds to keep them afloat.

Any formal agreement to cooperate with OPEC would be complex because of the antitrust laws. But some U.S. shale producers in Texas have requested the energy regulator mandate cuts for the first time in 50 years - and one of the three commissioners at the U.S. energy regulator has said it might make sense to do so.

The commissioner, Ryan Sitton, held a call with OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo last month.

"There is so much oil and in some cases it's probably less valuable than water ... We've never seen anything like it," Trump said after speaking to Putin.

U.S. officials have discussed a number of ideas about how the country can help manage global oil markets.

But in a nod to Moscow, Washington offered this week to begin lifting Venezuela sanctions if the opposition and members of the government agreed to form an interim government, shifting on a policy Moscow has called unfair.

The OPEC source said it was not clear what Washington could propose to Riyadh to alleviate the crisis.

It is also far from clear if the producers can act fast enough to make a swift difference in these turbulent times.

"You can see every now and then when Trump says he will talk to Putin about energy, the market picks up a bit," said Saad Rahim, chief economist at trader Trafigura. "But ... it's too late."

(Editing by Edmund Blair)
By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Despite restrictions imposed across the city in view of COVID-19, paedophiles have been lurking, targeting children within their own homes. Since the lockdown was announced, the Childline Divya Disha in Hyderabad has received two reports of child sexual abuse and lodged complaints with the police.

The first complaint was received from Langar Houz where a father abused his pre-teen daughter. The victim and her mother, in order to avoid the trauma, went to a relatives house. But the filing of the case was delayed due to the lockdown.

"The lockdown caused some delay. However, when we got to know of the case we provided support for them to file the case and all related procedures like medical examination and statement has been taken of the victim," informed an official of the childline.

In another case reported from Chikdapally police station limits, involved a five-year-old who along with her family visited their relatives living in the vicinity, where a 15-year-old male abused the girl. The complaint reached Childline who then linked up with police officials and rescued her.

Owing to the current situation, the delinquent minor has been placed at home, to ensure there is no exposure to the infectious virus. Experts note that considering the long duration of the lockdown, the government should also take into account children and their needs during the period.

"In a situation like this, vulnerable sections tend to be more at risk. The government must take into account the scope of such violence against them and also educate parents on vulnerability," explained Divya Disha founder Philip Issador.

He further stated that parents must be more cautious of their children spending more time online and offline with nothing to do, exposing them to vulnerable situations. The childline helpline 1098 has also been receiving calls from distressed parents unable to take their children for critical medical intervention owing to the lockdown.
A nurses representative body has urged Northern Irelands health minister to explain mixed messages around personal protective equipment supplies.

Robin Swann has insisted the health service has significant levels of PPE in stock, but said every effort is being made to secure more ahead of the expected surge of coronavirus cases.

Chief nursing officer Charlotte McArdle also said there was sufficient stock at the moment.

Expand Close Health Minister Robin Swann has been urged to allay nurses concern over stocks of PPE (PA) PA / Facebook

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However Dr Cathy Jack, chief executive of the Belfast health trust, earlier told the Stormont health committee that while there are sufficient basic masks, gloves and aprons, securing respiratory FFP3 masks was a challenge.

We are making sure that we match our requirement to make sure our staff are protected but PPE, and in particular the FFP3, is a real challenge for us, and we are doing everything we can to protect our staff, make sure they are fit tested and have the right equipment at the right time, she added.

Pat Cullen from the Royal College of Nursing has asked for clarity over both supplies of PPE and Covid-19 testing.

The number of people who have died in Northern Ireland after contracting the virus has risen by six to 36, health officials said.

Testing has resulted in 85 new positive cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the region to 774.

Belfast City Hospital is being set up as Northern Irelands Nightingale hospital ahead of the expected surge in the region and will include 230 intensive care beds for the most seriously ill.

Ms Cullen has urged Mr Swann to allay nurses concerns.

Please just come out and say to them, it is here nurses, weve got it in our stocks, its in our supply chain and you will definitely have it for every single procedure that you will carry out. We will not expose you or we will not place you at any risk, she told the BBC.

Thats all we want to hear.

Dr Jack told the health committee that the trust had expected to get 10,000 1895 masks for intensive care staff this week, but just 1,000 arrived.

She said the trust has 8,000 of another type of mask in stock and an assurance from the department that 30,000 more are on the way, but cautioned there are only 666 employees in high-risk areas fit tested for it.

Dr Jack was as straight forward as she could be, where she said shes got concerns so can you imagine what that concern is like when you translate it to the front line, it is more than concerning, it is very concerning with an extra 230 beds coming to the City Hospital that require the highest level of PPE, Ms Cullen said.

Under our legal obligations to our members last night we did write to each and every one of them to say they will not be expected to carry out care where they are not provided with the proper and correct PPE  we have taken our legal advice on that today.

The minister for health and the department for health  I would ask them again tonight, if there has been mixed messages today, perhaps they have got lost in translation, just come out, either issue a letter to them, do that this evening, send it to them and absolute support for people trying to do their job.

At the daily ministerial press conference at Stormont, finance minister Conor Murphy said there was a huge scramble for PPE across the world.

He said the situation had been exacerbated by the fact the US and India had woken up to the catastrophe and were now actively trying to source supply, moves that were overshadowing efforts by smaller countries.

Those are challenges but those are challenges that nonetheless we are working on every single day, he said.

Ms Cullen also expressed concerns over the supply of coronavirus tests and urged that the promised ramping up of testing is made to happen.

Mr Swann gave evidence to the health committee on Thursday morning and was asked by acting chair Pat Sheehan (Sinn Fein) how many of the 400 million items of PPE referred to as being distributed in the UK in the last two weeks had come to Northern Ireland.

Mr Swann responded: We havent received any of that as of yet but we are in the supply chain so that is on the way to us.

We still have our own stocks and supplies, and what I wouldnt want to do here is get into any sort of political discussion about who has supplied or who hasnt supplied. The order is in its on its way, its not that it is being denied to us, or its not that we havent got it, it is in the distribution chain.

Mr Swann also said testing facilities are being prepared in a car park at the SSE Arena and MOT centres.

Expand Close A drive-thru coronavirus testing facility being built in the car park of the SSE Arena in Belfast. (Niall Carson/PA) PA / Facebook

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Whatsapp A drive-thru coronavirus testing facility being built in the car park of the SSE Arena in Belfast. (Niall Carson/PA)

He said authorities have been trying to get testing improved as hard and as fast as we can.

We havent pushed it as hard or as fast as I would like it to have been, but every day we see changes and developments in our testing capability, he said.
An online marketplace has been launched in France to centralise the distribution of critical supplies needed by hospital staff and other key workers on the front lines fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

Paris-based startup Mirakl dubs its StopCovid19.fr platform as the Amazon for coronavirus supplies and has provided more than 300,000 litres of hand sanitiser and 320,000 face masks, gloves and other protective gear to healthcare facilities, transport workers and supermarket clerks in less than a week.

With the backing of the French government, Mirakl is able to source the products from manufacturers and deliver them to hospitals and other facilities within 24 hours of the request being made.

The platform is already working with 60 sellers, including cosmetic giants Clinique and Shiseido, and hopes to launch to more countries.

We are offering this service for free to every government, Adrien Nussenbaum, founder and co-CEO of Mirakl, told The Independent.

Our people are working diligently to reach out and make them aware of this project. The need is global. We have been in talks with the NHS and hope to be able to help the UK in the same way weve been able to help France.

NHS staff have complained that a lack of protective gear is putting them at risk, with the chairman of the Doctors Association lobbying group revealing that doctors felt like lambs to the slaughter.

Health secretary Matt Hancock acknowledged challenges with the supply chain, saying that he is determined to ensure the right kit gets to the right hospital, the right ambulance service, the right doctors surgery, right across the country.

In March the UK government enlisted the help of the Army to manage and offload supplies at NHS facilities.

Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Show all 15 1 /15 Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A rose is delivered by drone to a woman on Mother's Day in Jounieh, Lebanon AFP/Getty Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Women dance on their balcony as a radio station plays music for a flash mob to raise spirits in Rome Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A skeleton stands on a balcony in Frankfurt, Germany AP Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies The film Le ragazze di Piazza di Spagna is projected on a building in Rome AP Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A woman uses a basket tied to a rope to pull a delivery of groceries up to her balcony in Naples, Italy EPA Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies DJ Francesco Cellini plays for his neighbours from the rooftop terrace of his flat block in Rome Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A woman gestures from her balcony in Barcelona EPA Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Cellist Karina Nunez performs for her neighbours at the balcony of her flat in Panama City Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies DJ Nash Petrovic live streams a set from his roof in Brooklyn Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies People applaud medical workers from their balconies in Modiin, Israel Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A Brooklyn resident relaxes in a hammock hung on their balcony Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Residents toast during a "safe distance" aperitif time between neighbours in Anderlecht, Belgium Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Musician Adam Moser plays for neighbours from his balcony in Budapest, Hungary Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A man and his son on their balcony in Brooklyn Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A man sits alone on a roof terrace in Rome Reuters

There have been nearly 57,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in France, resulting in more than 4,000 deaths. The UK is following a similar infection rate trajectory to France and currently has close to 30,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19.

In the US, where cases have now topped 200,000, private companies are being ordered under the Korean War-era Defense Production Act to manufacture products needed to treat patients.

General Motors and Ford are both building tens of thousands of ventilators for hospitals in the US, while Tesla CEO Elon Musk has offered to manufacture and deliver ventilators for free to countries suffering from shortages.

If Elon Musk wants to help, by all means, lets talk. We are eager to work with any manufacturer wanting to be part of the solution, Mr Nussenbaum said.

The need is urgent. To any manufacturers or suppliers out there, please get in touch if you think you can help. To those who need help, we have a solid platform in place thats ready to be used.

Mirakl's platform offers vats of hand sanitiser and other critical supplies to front line workers (Mirakl)

Co-CEO Philippe Corrot added: This platform is a testament to the power of collaboration: bringing together tech, government, producers and distributors into one place.

Most importantly, this platform is a testament to the people who, in times of great need, have come together to do great things.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday criticised the government for "unplanned" implementation of the countrywide lockdown that she said had caused "chaos and pain" to millions of migrant workers.

Calling for availability of all necessary equipment for medical professionals, she said the onus lies on the government to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness.

Addressing a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) through video conferencing, Gandhi said the country was in the midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis which can be overcome only if everyone acts in solidarity.

"The magnitude of the challenge is daunting but our resolve to overcome it must be greater," she said, calling upon Congress governments, frontal organisations, leaders and workers to offer help to those at risk during the pandemic.

The Congress chief noted that the COVID-19 crisis has caused suffering across the world but it has also "reaffirmed the bonds of brotherhood" that unite humanity.

She said in India, the poor and disadvantaged have been most vulnerable to the consequences of the pandemic. "We must come together for their sake and do all we can to support them through the difficult days that lie ahead," she said.

Describing as "heartbreaking" the sight of lakhs of people walking for hundreds of kilometres without food or shelter, she criticised the government for its "unplanned" implementation of the nationwide lockdown and causing hardships to the poor.

"The 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India," she noted.

She said that as far as the COVID-19 virus is concerned, there is no alternative to constant and reliable testing. "This is the most effective way to combat it. Our doctors, nurses, and health workers need all the support possible," she said.

Gandhi also called for the provision of Personal Protection Equipment to doctors and paramedics "on a war footing", besides ventilators and breathing equipment, isolation beds and designated hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients.

"The onus lies on governments to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness," she said.

The Congress president said COVID-19 does not differentiate between political ideology, religion, caste, age or gender.

"The choices we make today will have a direct impact tomorrow on our family, neighbourhood, community, environment and nation. How effectively we meet this challenge, how we protect all sections of our society, specially the most vulnerable among us will define us for generations to come. Only if we act together in solidarity, we will overcome," Gandhi said.

She also called upon the Centre to publish and make available details of



designated hospitals, number of beds, quarantine and testing facilities, as well as information regarding the availability of medical supplies to the general public.

Highlighting the plight of farmers who have faced the wrath of inclement weather this season, she said they are now confronted with having to cope with the harvesting season.

They urgently require availability of fertilizers and pesticides, access to easy lines of credit, forward guidance in preparing for the planting of the kharif crop, she said, calling upon the government to provide remunerative prices for their produce to survive the present economic onslaught.

Gandhi said Medium and Small-Scale Enterprises are now gravely threatened as they have been hit hardest by the economic fallout of coronavirus and the related lockdown.

The livelihood of crores of our citizens has been imperiled, she noted.

"The government needs to put in place a comprehensive strategy to manage this crisis," she said.

"They are already facing tremendous hardship due to hunger and lack of health facilities. As a nation, we owe them our full and constructive support," she said, highlighting the plight of workers in the unorganised sector.

The Congress president also said the middle classes are vulnerable amid wage cuts, job losses across all sectors of economy, high petrol diesel and gas prices are causing them acute distress.

"I urge the Central government to prepare and publish a Common Minimum Relief Programme," she said, adding that this is vital and will help alleviate several of concerns that currently afflict all people.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
[April 02, 2020] Quectel continues to lead the field in 5G technology as its 5G sub-6GHz module becomes available for mass deployment

SHANGHAI, April 2, 2020 /CNW/ -- Quectel Wireless Solutions, a leading global supplier of cellular and GNSS modules, today announced that its RG500Q-EA 5G NR module has achieved commercial readiness and is now available to support global customers with mass deployment starting now. Featuring the Qualcomm Snapdragon X55 5G modem, the RG500Q-EA is ideal for a variety of industrial and consumer IoT applications, including business routers, home gateways, customer premises equipment (CPE), MiFi, industrial IoT (IIoT), industrial laptops, PDAs, video surveillance, digital signage, 4K/8K live streaming and many other bandwidth-intensive use cases. The Quectel RG500Q-EA supports major sub-6GHz frequency bands as well as worldwide LTE-A and WCDMA network coverage, allowing customers to deploy their IoT solutions flexibly in Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. Other key features of the RG500Q-EA include:

LGA form factor, 41.044.02.75mm

5G sub-6GHz module, both NSA and SA modes

DL 44 MIMO for 5G sub-6GHz and LTE Cat 16

PCIe 3.0, USB 3.1 and RGMII interfaces

Multi-constellation GNSS receiver "We are very excited that the RG500Q-EA is now ready for commercial use as it reflects our continuing leadership in 5G tehnology. This step forward is a major milestone, accelerating and simplifying the roll-out of 5G applications across the globe," said Patrick Qian, CEO of Quectel. "As a world leader in IoT innovations, we have been offering 5G modules with best-in-class wireless performance and simple to integrate designs."



A pioneer of IoT innovation, Quectel was one of the first vendors to offer 5G NR modules and has a market-leading 5G portfolio covering both sub-6GHz and mmWave technologies, delivered in LGA and M.2 form factors to perfectly cater for the differing demands of a wide range of IoT applications. The full text is available on Quectel website: https://www.quectel.com/infocenter/news/quectel-5G-sub-6GHz-module-becomes-available-for-mass-deployment.htm

About Quectel: Quectel is the leading global supplier of cellular and GNSS modules, with a broad product portfolio covering the most recent wireless technologies of 5G, LTE/LTE-A, NB-IoT/LTE-M, UMTS/HSPA(+), GSM/GPRS and GNSS. As a professional IoT technology developer and cellular module supplier, Quectel provides one-stop services for IoT cellular modules. Quectel products have been widely applied in IoT/M2M fields including smart payment, telematics and transport, smart energy, smart cities, security, wireless gateways, industry, healthcare, agriculture, and environment monitoring. For more information: www.quectel.com, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Contact: Ashley, +86-551-6586 9386*8016, [email protected] View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/quectel-continues-to-lead-the-field-in-5g-technology-as-its-5g-sub-6ghz-module-becomes-available-for-mass-deployment-301034089.html SOURCE Quectel

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By Kirsty Needham SYDNEY (Reuters) - Beijing has ramped up its diplomatic push into the Pacific, pledging coronavirus aid and medical advice, although its efforts are being impeded as islands close borders to stop the spread of the disease from hotspots including China. Chinese embassies have held cheque presentation ceremonies in multiple Pacific islands, after Beijing pledged to provide $1.9 million for testing kits and protective equipment this week. 'This is a global effort by China to change the perception of early January that China was the source of the virus, to China is the source of the solution,' said Richard McGregor, senior fellow with Australian foreign policy think tank the Lowy Institute.

By Kirsty Needham

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Beijing has ramped up its diplomatic push into the Pacific, pledging coronavirus aid and medical advice, although its efforts are being impeded as islands close borders to stop the spread of the disease from hotspots including China.

Chinese embassies have held cheque presentation ceremonies in multiple Pacific islands, after Beijing pledged to provide $1.9 million for testing kits and protective equipment this week.

"This is a global effort by China to change the perception of early January that China was the source of the virus, to China is the source of the solution," said Richard McGregor, senior fellow with Australian foreign policy think tank the Lowy Institute.

"If their system is mobilised to not just sending these materials to New York and Italy but even tiny countries, it gives you a sense of how galvanised they are to use this moment to build China's reputation."

The Pacific islands have grown as a strategic priority for China and the United States and its allies, including Australia, who are keen to lock in relationships with countries that control strategic waterways between the Americas and Asia.

Australia is the region's biggest aid donor but Pacific islands have turned to China in recent years for budget assistance.

A World Health Organization (WHO) spokeswoman said New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Fiji and Guam can test for COVID-19, but other countries need to send specimens to Australia, New Zealand or the United States for testing.

China's ambassador to Papua New Guinea (PNG), Xue Bing, said 2,000 testing kits, face masks and goggles were ready to be shipped from China, although flight restrictions prevented their delivery, PNG's Post Courier newspaper reported.

FACE MASKS

PNG's health minister Jelta Wong told Reuters: "If China sends it down we will receive it."

"We have not opened our borders as yet and we won't open until we are sure we have protocols in place," Wong said.

PNG, with one confirmed case of COVID-19, tests at a local medical institute using two machines donated by Australia, he said.

"We only have aid coming from Australia," said Wong.

The Solomon Islands, which switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to Beijing last year, said it received $300,000 from China and was advised by the Chinese embassy in Honiara to buy equipment from the Beijing Genomics Institution.

The office of Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare said it was trying to charter a flight from French Polynesia to China to return with medical supplies.

The Chinese embassy had also organised for a ship from Guangdong to carry several thousand face masks and protective suits donated by Guangdong province.

The secretary of Kiribati's ministry of health and medical services, Kaaro Neeti, told Reuters the island was unable to test for COVID-19 but a Chinese donation "is in the pipeline".

China has also offered test kits and medical supplies to Vanuatu, Tonga and French Polynesia.

McGregor, from the Lowy Institute, said China's capacity to organise a teleconference for health officials from 10 Pacific nations on March 10 with Chinese medical experts in Beijing was "astounding" and the Australian government would be concerned its aid effort was being surpassed by China.

"If they are sending much-needed equipment it is a good thing, but it also has a geopolitical aspect."

At a G20 leaders videoconference last week, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison urged other nations to contribute to the Pacific.

"Australia is assisting Pacific Island governments with laboratories, medical equipment, health expertise, public information campaigns and support for national preparedness plans and the World Health Organization's regional plan," Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said in a statement.

Payne said Australia "faces its own immediate challenges" with COVID-19, but its partnership with the Pacific was essential for regional health security and its long-term interests.

China's Foreign Ministry didn't immediately respond to questions.

(Reporting by Kirsty Needham, Editing by William Maclean and Lincoln Feast.)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
by Hocine Drouiche *

The epidemic affects all of Abraham's children and questions those who wonder if Islam is the only true religion, because the virus affects Muslims. The extremists are silent and the joint initiatives between the faithful of the three religions are multiplying.

Paris (AsiaNews) - The coronavirus has been able to do in just a few days what religious leaders have failed to achieve in numerous decades. The fear and danger of the virus are stronger than interreligious ideas and debates.

Yesterday, in Jerusalem, the three monotheistic religions prayed together for the salvation of humanity. Within Islam, a discussion has started and the majority of the imams are questioning themselves.

The virus has touched all of humanity and there is no people spared from this deadly plague. The fatwas have changed and Muslims are questioning themselves and have naturally asked the question: if Islam is the only authentic religion, the coronavirus should not target Muslims.

Now rationality is being imposed.

The extremists have been silenced by virus. Their manipulative speeches are no longer convenient. Every day, death visits thousands of people and makes no distinction between humans in their color or religion.

In Arab countries, neighborhoods and cities have never been as clean as they are now. Many people have repented for not sharing love and faith, but only fear of punishment and fear of the Lord.

The imams themselves are trying to use the virus to scare young people who have not yet repented. Instead of cultivating the culture of the love of the Lord in our hearts, we reproduce the same mistakes that have hurt us so much for many centuries.

Suddenly, the virus has become the best imam of Muslim societies! The virus that causes death and loss has become stronger than the Prophet's Quranic verses and hadiths that insisted on cleanliness and hygiene.

For several days Muslims, Christians and Jews prayed together and individually against the virus without any protest from the extremists, all addressing the same God and all with fear of the same danger. How surprising is it? As we discover for the first time that we are truly similar. No one is better than another! For many Muslims, the sermons of some imams need to be reviewed!

The coronavirus crisis has awakened a Muslim reason that has been anesthetized for a long time and many have started to ask essential questions about Islam which has been transmitted to us for several centuries in a violent and sometimes inhuman way. Islam, which has been written during so many wars, places Muslims before a crisis of reason.

In Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan, South Sudan, Egypt, Iraq, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and many other Arab, Muslim and Christian countries have left their differences to one side thanks to the fear of the virus.

Since the beginning of the crisis, joint humanitarian initiatives have multiplied in these countries. They agreed to put human life first. Was this not the fundamental aim of all monotheistic religions? The Syrie pour tous foundation, chaired by the Franco-Syrian Mohamed Izzet Khettab, has increased its humanitarian actions to bring together Muslims, Jews and Christians in Paris, Brussels and Damascus to fight the virus by distributing food packages, gels and masks to elderly and vulnerable families . In French neighborhoods and suburbs, several French Christian associations have supplied thousands of Muslim families in need with food and hygiene products. These associations are accustomed to carrying out these humanitarian actions towards needy Muslims in France and elsewhere.

If some Muslim extremists like other non-Muslims wanted to end the world, the coronavirus crisis has been able to ignore their lies.

All of Abraham's children, including Muslims, are affected by the contagious and deadly force of the virus. Most imams have questioned themselves. Fatwas have changed and the debate between imams about coronavirus and its effects is alive and vibrant. Muslims are questioning themselves. Some say it clearly: if Islam is the only true religion, why does the virus touch Muslims? Many thought that the epidemic was a punishment against non-Muslims.

There are many within Islam who have written that sacredness, purification and humanism are not exclusive to Muslims and who no longer think they have a monopoly on truth. This monopoly of truth has been the main cause of Islamist fanaticism for several centuries: thousands of Christians, Jews and even Muslims have been victims of this obscurantist dictatorship in the name of a God who instead whould represent love and forgiveness.

Despite the destruction it has caused, the coronavirus shockwave has been of tangible use within Islam in fostering a greater humanization and human brotherhood in this world.

* Imams of Nimes - Vice-President of the Conference of Imams of France
The United States eased its policy on gay and bisexual men donating blood on Thursday due to rising concerns about blood supplies during the coronavirus crisis.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, said it was reducing a 12-month ban on men who have had sex with men to three months.

'This guidance is being implemented without prior public comment because the FDA has determined that prior public participation for this guidance is not feasible or appropriate,' the FDA said in a statement.

The announcement came after a long-running campaign by LGBT+ rights groups and some U.S. lawmakers for parity with heterosexuals regarding blood donations.

The United States eased its policy on gay and bisexual men donating blood on Thursday due to rising concerns about blood supplies (stock photo)

The FDA also relaxed rules about people with recent tattoos and piercings. Now, the ban only applies to people who have had tattoos and piercings in the past three months, instead of the past 12.

Explaining the change in policy, the FDA said that the pandemic 'has caused unprecedented challenges to the U.S. blood supply.'

'Donor centers have experienced a dramatic reduction in donations due to the implementation of social distancing and the cancellation of blood drives,' the agency said in a statement.

Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Carolyn Maloney had written to FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn asking him to revise the policy, calling it 'antiquated.'

The restrictions date back to the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the 1980s, when it was suggested that blood banks not accept donations from men who had been sexually active with other men in the past year.

'This antiquated policy is not based on current science ... and undermines crucial efforts to increase the nation's blood supply as the United States grapples with the coronavirus crisis,' Ocasio-Cortez and Maloney wrote.

'We urge FDA to act swiftly in revising its policy so every person who can safely donate blood in the United States has the opportunity to do so,' they wrote.

Democratic Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (above) and Carolyn Maloney had written to FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn asking him to revise the policy, calling it 'antiquated'

Blood supplies have dwindled across the country as workplace blood drives and other avenues for donating blood have been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The bigger concern is that blood has a short shelf life and the regular donations needed to replenish expiring stocks are drying up.

Retirees, among the most reliable blood donors, are heeding calls to stay home. With college campuses closed and corporate blood drives called off as employees work from home, younger people aren't filling the void.

'It's lost in the shuffle of everything else now,' said Dr. Brian Williams, who co-directs the University of Chicagos surgical intensive care unit. But 'trauma and emergency surgeries are not decreasing as a result of the pandemic.'

The industry has counted more than 12,000 blood drives canceled, some immediately and others set for coming months.

So far, 355,000 fewer blood donations are projected because of the coronavirus outbreak, AABB, formerly called the American Association of Blood Banks, said Thursday. Its website lists donation centers.

Red blood cells last for 42 days, platelets just five days, and some blood types are more rare than others. Already, blood centers have sent hospitals tips on how to stretch supplies.

The new coronavirus can't be spread through blood, either getting or giving it. And the message for would-be donors: Answering a call for a local blood drive isn't violating the message to avoid crowds.

'A blood center environment is going to be safer than another more public area like a grocery store,' said Dr. Suchi Pandey, chief medical officer of Stanford University's blood center, which filled appointments Thursday for a mobile drive.

Just like before the outbreak, would-be donors must be healthy, with no fever or other signs of illness.
MINISTER Josepha Madigan has been criticised for claiming TDs they should be ashamed for insisting that the Dail sat today amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

Fianna Fail's Barry Cowen said ministers should be answering questions on the coronavirus crisis and not taking a "cheap pop" at the Opposition.

Independent TD Catherine Connelly branded Ms Madigan's remarks as "embarrassing", adding that they "fail to grasp the necessity of democratic institutions functioning."

Separately Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said: "Ill accept no shame for representing my constituents".

It came after Ms Madigan wrapped up a debate on the health response to the coronavirus emergency by claiming that TDs who demanded that the Dail meet had "shown a complete disregard for our national fight to contain Covid-19."

She added: "Shame on you. You have forced us to stray from home rather than stay at home, which is completely contrary to public health guidelines and nothing to do with any public representative shirking responsibilities.

"Theres no reason why we couldnt have this done remotely."

Fianna Fail health spokesperson Stephen Donnelly complained that the minister was not answering questions he posed earlier.

Among other questions he had asked why only 1,500 tests are being carried out a day, why healthcare workers are waiting so long for test results and why modelling work on the number of projected coronavirus cases are being withheld from the public.

Ms Madigan said that Mr Harris was absent because he was briefing Opposition leaders on Covid-19 but he will get back to TDs with responses to their queries.

Later during a session on social protection measures, Mr Cowen hit out at Ms Madigan's contribution saying he was surprised at her suggestion that "we should be shameful for our actions today" given that she is serving in a caretaker government.

He said it's the duty of ministers to answer questions on the thoughts and worries of the people that TDs represent.

"I hope we don't see anything of that nature again, in the course of this debate or indeed this crisis."

He said the Dail currently "does not have the level of accountability that we would like" and there is a need to elect a stable government.

He suggested that whichever minister responds to the social protection debate should answer questions "rather than take a pop and a cheap pop at that at those of us that are here trying to get answers in a time when we dont have the level of transparency and the level of accountability that would be associated with a functioning Dail."

This comes after Health Minister Simon Harris said TDs are "risking public health" by meeting in Leinster House today.

It came as a row erupted over whether or not the Dail should meet next week.

The Dail Business Committee decided that TDs won't come back to Leinster House until April 16.

There had been concern over the Dail meeting today due to the coronavirus crisis and there had been claims it should be cancelled.

Read More

A series of TDs including Richard Boyd Barrett, Mick Barry, Michael Healy-Rae and Verona Murphy objected to the plan to for TDs not to assemble next week.

People Before Profit TD Mr Boyd Barrett said the government should be subject to questions in the midst of a public health crisis and claimed there's "no reason that couldnt take place next week".

He said TDs are inundated with public queries expressing fear and anxiety and the Dail meeting to debate such issues is "not non-essential work".

Fianna Fail's Marc MacSharry said it's regrettable that parliament is being seen by some as "an optional extra" and he sympathised with TDs seeking more Dail sessions.

He also said there should be a remedy that honours the requirement for the safety of staff and that April 16 is "not too far away".

Mr MacSharry said he hopes a government can be formed within that time.

Mr Healy-Rae agreed with the objections to the plan to put off meeting for a fortnight.

He said that services like home help are being cut as a consequences of decisions being taken.

While he commended Mr Harris's response to the crisis he also said: "we have to be able to hold you to account in a working together way Minister."

Mr Harris said the government is providing a significant level of briefing to Opposition TDs and that some officials "haven't seen their families in weeks" due to the level of work.

He said he takes the point about the importance of the Dail but he added: "I am deeply uneasy from a public health point of view we are meeting in this session today."

Mr Harris suggested the Dail could follow the lead of the European Parliament which has used technology to meet remotely.

He added: "We are risking public health by being here today."

Mr Harris said that TDs are coming into contact with each other, and with officials, ushers and clerks and this "runs counter to public health message stay at home".
Pell, who once helped elect popes, is the highest-ranking Catholic Church official ever convicted of child sex crimes.

Australias High Court will deliver its ruling next week on whether to overturn the convictions of Cardinal George Pell, the most senior official in the Catholic Church ever to be convicted of child sex abuse.

The 78-year-old Pell is one year into a six-year sentence for molesting two 13-year-old choirboys in Melbournes St Patricks Cathedral while he was the citys archbishop in the late 1990s.

The High Court said on Thursday its seven judges will give their verdict at 10am (00:00 GMT) on Tuesday in the east coast city of Brisbane.

Judges heard Pells appeal on March 11-12 before hearings were cancelled due to the coronavirus risk. They could yet deny his appeal, order a retrial or quash the conviction altogether.

The former Vatican treasurer maintains his innocence and the courts decision could be his last chance to clear his name.

A Victoria state County Court jury convicted Pell on all charges in December 2018. The Victoria Court of Appeal in August last year rejected his appeal against the jury verdicts in a 2-1 majority decision.



FAULT LINES I In Bad Faith: Child Sex Abuse and the Catholic Church (26:01)

The case relied largely on the testimony of Pells surviving victim.

Now in his 30s with a young family, the man first went to police in 2015 after the second victim died of a heroin overdose at the age of 31. Neither can be identified under state law.

Two of the judges found the mans account very compelling, saying he was someone who was clearly not a liar, was not a fantasist and was a witness of truth.

The third judge, however, found the mans account contained discrepancies and there was a significant possibility Pell did not commit the offences.

In court submissions, Pells legal team argued the majority judges applied an erroneous judicial method that required the cleric to establish actual innocence as opposed to merely pointing to doubt.

Pells lawyer Bret Walker told the court last month that a key factor that made Pells alleged offences implausible was that they took place after Sunday mass in a busy area of St Patricks Cathedral, not in secretive or private settings, unlike so many appalling historical sexual misconduct cases.

Walker told the High Court if it found the Victorian appeals court had made a mistake in upholding the convictions, Pell should be acquitted.

In response, the prosecution called the grounds for appeal problematic, saying the argument glosses over evidence that supports the victims account.

Prosecutor Kerri Judd told the seven judges that if there were a mistake, they should send the case back to the appeals court to hear it again.

Otherwise, the High Court should hear more evidence and decide itself whether the convictions should stand, Judd said.
The Union health ministry on Thursday said it has identified 20 existing and 22 potential hotspots of COVID-19 in the country and asserted that although there is no evidence of widespread community transmission, containment measures will require large human resource.

IMAGE: A coronavirus graffiti drawn at a junction in Bengaluru to create awareness during a nationwide lockdown. Photograph: Shailendra Bhojak/PTI Photo

The ministry said this in an advisory on human resource management of COVID-19 to provide guidance to the states on manpower that can be mobilized for the management of the disease along with possible role assignments and their training requirements.

"Although there is no evidence to widespread community transmission, 20 existing and 22 potential hotspots have been identified. The containment measures to break the cycle of transmission and clinical management of those affected would require large human resource," it said in the document.

The advisory stressed on capacity building, saying identified human resource needs to be trained online using online training programs developed by the ministry.

The training for different target groups shall cover areas like field surveillance, contact tracing, sampling, packaging and shipment of specimen, hospital infection prevention and control, including use of appropriate PPEs and biomedical waste management, clinical case management including ventilator management, training on managing quarantine and isolation facilities and community based training in pyscho social care, the document said.

The ministry advised states to identify and designate a nodal officer for training who will coordinate all these activities.

For COVID-19 management, it advised the district administration to pool-in the requisite human resources who would stay in the containment zone till such operations are over.

"For isolation areas, in addition to training, all hospital staff, dentists and AYUSH practitioners available should also be trained. Retired doctors and other healthcare professionals should be identified to work in non-COVID areas in hospitals in case of emergencies," the advisory stated.

For surveillance activities, the ministry said COVID Warriors @ 1 per 250 population may be identified and trained.

It stated quarantine facilities are meant to house asymptomatic cases and the number identified and trained manpower should be equal to the number of COVID Warriors.

The advisory highlights major areas where enhanced deployment of human resource is required such as surveillance activities at grass root level, supervisory management of containment operations, laboratory testing and clinical management of suspect/confirmed cases in isolation wards.

It also listed out critical care management of Severe Acute Respiratory Infection cases in ICUs, patient transportation and referral, cleaning, disinfection and waste management, management of quarantine, isolation facilities and pyscho-social care as some of the important areas.
[Updated: Thank you for your submissions. You can read a selection of them here.]

The coronavirus pandemic has upended all parts of life, including some of the most sacred: religious holy days.

The stay-at-home orders and safety measures are forcing many Jewish families to adapt their plans for Passover, a sacred celebration that remembers how God redeemed his people from 10 plagues. For many today, the coronavirus feels like another plague.

If you celebrate Passover, we would love to hear from you. Please share your reflections in the following questions, and our religion correspondent may be in touch to hear more about your story.
Health workers and the police officials who went to collect the blood samples of the suspected COVID-19 patients were allegedly attacked by a mob here.

The stones were pelted at the medical staff and the cops at the Hazrat Ganj Chowk of Qasim Bazar police station area in Munger. The ambulances were also damaged.

Locals alleged that the quarantine facility provided by the administration is like a prison.

A medical officer Zafar Ahmed, told ANI that some of the patients also ran away from the quarantine facility but were later caught by the police.

"In this case, the police will register a case against the miscreants and take action against them," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the COVID-19 pandemic sweeps the world, governments are being forced to offer enormous stimulus packages to try and bolster the economy. Australia has delivered $189 billion to keep the workforce afloat, the UK has unveiled $706 billion of fiscal measures, and the US has signed a $2 trillion stimulus package, which is the largest in modern American history.

But despite these unprecedented amounts being pumped in to the economy, the stock markets have still been in freefall. Theres been a global downturn of at least 25 per cent, and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has likened the current economic crisis to the Great Depression.

But big stimulus packages dont work in times like this, explains eToros Popular Investor Joe Milazzo. Imagine a snowball rolling down a hill, picking up snow and growing along the way until its too big to stop. The only thing that will stop it is that it runs out of steam on flat ground, or something stops it dead in its tracks and it disintegrates, he says. This is the analogy for todays bear market. This is no longer a virus pandemic, this is an economic recession. The government cant stop this bear market  they can only minimise the impact on everyday people. Its like installing a little jump in the path of the snowball. Sure, the snowball will hit the jump and get some air (the market will go up) but its going to come back down and continue going down the hill. Government intervention is essentially guiding the market to the bottom. It cant stop it, only slow it down to reduce the impact.

Investors are expecting more than just monetary policy to tackle the global pandemic. Even though the Reserve Bank of Australia has pulled some extraordinary measures, such as cutting the cash rate to a record low of 0.25 per cent, and setting up its first ever quantitative easing program in a bid to encourage lending and investment, its still not enough for some industries. The market is in freefall, it cant suddenly bounce back to normal, says Milazzo. Whole towns, countries even, have been locked down. Factories shut down. Employees fired and sent home because they simply couldnt work. All public events cancelled.

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The tourism industry, including many airlines, is now teetering on collapse, meaning governments will have to decide whether to step in and help, or leave them to go under. If this happens, markets will fall again. The uncertainty of how long the pandemic will last is adding to the volatility of the market.

Here are some tips to help you weather the storm:

1. Think long term.

Investments are designed to be long-term, so if your investments are based on a solid plan, dont sell anything you wouldnt sell if there wasnt a crash. Its only worth cutting your losses if youre invested in a company that is clearly not going to recover.

2. Consider your risk tolerance

Risk tolerance is about how much uncertainty you are willing to live with in order to achieve potential gains. Think about your investment goals, the timeframe youre hoping to achieve these goals in, and the experience you have in reading the market. Times like this can make you re-evaluate how risk tolerant or averse you are. When the market recovers, you can re-think your portfolio and if it suits your risk profile.

3. Think carefully before investing

Although the market is low, dont rush in to investing immediately. If you want to take advantage of low prices but dont want to risk your security, consider dollar-cost averaging. This means investing a fixed-dollar amount in to an investment every month, no matter what is happening within the market. Investing like this can afford you some volatility protection, rather than investing one large sum at a time.

4. Trade with confidence

eToro is the world's leading social trading platform. Join millions who've already discovered smarter investing by automatically copying the leading traders in our community, or get copied yourself to earn a second income.
Detectives have launched a murder inquiry following the death of a woman in hospital after a serious assault at a property in Northern Ireland.

Natasha Melendez, aged 32 and originally from Venezuela, was hurt last month in Lisburn and died on Wednesday evening.

Detective Chief Inspector Michelle Shaw said: Natasha Melendez, formerly from Venezuela, was subject to a serious assault last month and was being treated in hospital for her injuries.

Sadly she has now died and my thoughts today are with her parents and wider family circle.

A 30-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman who were arrested in connection with her death have been released pending further investigation.

She appealed for anyone with information to contact police.
PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-02 07:31:01

Press Release

Nicoxs Partner Fera Pharmaceuticals Files Application for Orphan Drug Designation for Naproxcinod in Sickle-Cell Disease





April 2, 2020  release at 7:30 am CET

Sophia Antipolis, France







Nicox SA (Euronext Paris: FR0013018124, COX), an international ophthalmology company, and Fera Pharmaceuticals, a privately-held, U.S. specialty pharmaceutical company, announced today that Fera has filed an application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for an Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) for naproxcinod in sickle-cell disease.



Following results from in vivo primary pharmacodynamics studies of naproxcinod in models of sickle-cell disease, Fera has decided to focus its development on the treatment of painful vaso-occlusive crisis in sickle-cell disease. Fera plans to conduct further studies and other development activities in preparation for entering directly into a clinical efficacy trial of naproxcinod in sickle-cell patients, subject to being granted an ODD.



Naproxcinod, a Cyclooxygenase-Inhibiting Nitric Oxide (NO)-Donating (CINOD) naproxen, is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory product candidate engineered to release NO, originally discovered and developed by Nicox. Nicox and Fera entered into an agreement in December 2015, amended in September 2018, which granted Fera exclusive rights to develop and commercialize naproxcinod for the U.S. market. Nicox is eligible to potentially receive a single $40 million sales-based milestone if naproxcinod reaches $1 billion yearly sales (for any indication) in the U.S. as well as royalties of 7% on net sales of naproxcinod in the U.S. Fera is responsible for all clinical development, manufacturing, regulatory and commercialization activities.



Role of nitric oxide in sickle cell disease



Sickle-cell disease is a rare, inherited blood condition where defects in hemoglobin result in red blood cells adopting a sickle shape. Rupture of these cells in the bloodstream can lead to inflammation, a reduction in NO and a subsequent endothelial cell wall thickening as well as platelet activation. In this inflamed environment and reduced volume, sickled red blood cells, leukocytes (white blood cells) and activated platelets aggregate to create a vascular log-jam (vaso-occlusion), leading to a painful vaso-occlusive crisis.

About naproxcinod

Naproxcinod is a nitric oxide (NO)-donating naproxen combining the cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitory activity of naproxen with that of NO (COX-inhibiting NO donor, CINOD). While the inhibitory COX component provides the analgesic and anti-inflammatory efficacy, the NO part may play a significant role in maintaining vascular endothelial cell function and integrity, blood pressure homeostasis and microvascular circulation. A broad clinical package already exists for naproxcinod in osteoarthritis, including three phase 3 trials with over 2,700 patients.

About Fera Pharmaceuticals

Fera Pharmaceuticals is a privately held company. The company goal is to realize opportunities via acquisitions, in-licensing, developing and marketing abbreviated new drug applications (ANDAs), new drug applications (NDAs) and 505(b)(2) NDA products. Areas of interest include products that could benefit from lifecycle management with a special focus on niche markets. For more information visit www.ferapharma.com .





About Nicox

Nicox S.A. is an ophthalmology company developing innovative solutions to help maintain vision and improve ocular health. Nicoxs lead program in clinical development is NCX 470, a novel, second-generation nitric oxide-donating bimatoprost analog, for lowering intraocular pressure in patients with glaucoma. The company is also developing NCX 4251, a proprietary formulation of fluticasone, for acute exacerbations of blepharitis. Nicox generates revenue from VYZULTA in glaucoma, licensed exclusively worldwide to Bausch & Lomb, and ZERVIATE in allergic conjunctivitis, licensed in multiple geographies, including to Eyevance Pharmaceuticals, LLC, in the U.S. and Ocumension Therapeutics in the Chinese and Southeast Asian markets.



Nicox is headquartered in Sophia Antipolis, France, is listed on Euronext Paris (Compartment B: Mid Caps; Ticker symbol: COX) and is part of the CAC Healthcare, CAC Pharma & Bio and Next 150 indexes.



For more information on Nicox, its products or pipeline, please visit: www.nicox.com .

Analyst coverage





Bryan, Garnier & Co Victor Floch Paris, France

Cantor Fitzgerald Louise Chen New York, U.S.

H.C. Wainwright & Co Yi Chen New York, U.S.

Oppenheimer & Co Hartaj Singh New York, U.S.

The views expressed by analysts in their coverage of Nicox are those of the author and do not reflect the views of Nicox. Additionally, the information contained in their reports may not be correct or current. Nicox disavows any obligation to correct or to update the information contained in analyst reports.

Contacts

Nicox

Gavin Spencer

Executive Vice President, Chief Business Officer

& Head of Corporate Development

T +33 (0)4 97 24 53 00

mailto:communications@nicox.com

Investors & Media

United States & Europe

LifeSci Advisors, LLC

Hans Herklots

T +41 79 598 71 49

hherklots@lifesciadvisors.com Media

France

LifeSci Advisors, LLC

Sophie Baumont

M +33 (0)6 27 74 74 49

sophie@lifesciadvisors.com

Disclaimer

The information contained in this document may be modified without prior notice. This information includes forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. These statements are based on current expectations or beliefs of the management of Nicox S.A. and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Nicox S.A. and its affiliates, directors, officers, employees, advisers or agents, do not undertake, nor do they have any obligation, to provide updates or to revise any forward-looking statements.



Risks factors which are likely to have a material effect on Nicoxs business are presented in the 3rd chapter of the Document denregistrement universel, rapport financier annuel et rapport de gestion 2019 filed with the French Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF) on March 6, 2020 which are available on Nicoxs website ( www.nicox.com ).
In a sweeping nationwide hunt, authorities across states have identified more than 6,000 people who attended the Nizamuddin Tablighi Jamaat congregation, the biggest Covid-19 hotspot in India, as more than 450 fresh cases of infection emerged on Wednesday to take the tally over 2,000 with at least 58 deaths. More than 5,000 of those identified have been quarantined, including in hospitals across states, while efforts are on to trace another 2,000 including those in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Telangana.

Dear Reader,

Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.

We, however, have a request.



As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.



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Digital Editor
(Newser)  California's 6 million students won't be going back to school this academic year, but that doesn't mean school is out, officials say. Gov. Gavin Newsom confirmed Wednesday that schools won't reopen before summer, KGO reports. Two weeks ago, the Democrat warned that schools were likely to remain closed to stop the spread of the coronavirus. "This in no way suggests school is over for the year, but rather it will continue education through distance learning," state superintendent Tony Thurmond said in a letter to school districts. "School is not out for the year, in fact, we're asking everyone to accelerate everyone gets a great education," he said.

story continues below

Thurmond said the state will provide anything districts need to help with distance learning, KRON reports. Newsom told reporters that Google is stepping up in a "big way" and will provide thousands of free Chromebooks and Internet access points to help students get online. The extended school closure was criticized by Republican Rep. Devin Nunes, who represents a Fresno-area district, the New York Times reports. "Look, the schools were just canceled out here in California, which is way overkill," he told Fox News. "Its possible kids could have went back to school in two weeks to four weeks, but they just canceled the rest of the schools." The Republican, contradicting health experts and even President Trump, said the US should focus on getting people back to work "over the next week to two weeks." (Read more California stories.)
Air India is planning to conduct multiple special flights to London between April 4 and April 7 to fly out foreigners stranded in the country amid the lockdown to combat the spread of coronavirus, said senior officials on Thursday.

India is under a 21-day lockdown till April 14 and all domestic and international commercial passenger flights have been suspended for this time period.

However, cargo flights and flights specially permitted by the aviation regulator DGCA can operate during this time period.

Senior Air India officials said the national carrier will conduct four flights on Delhi-London route between April 4 and April 7.

The officials added that the national career will also be conducting flights on Mumbai-London route on April 5 and April 7.

When asked if these flights to London from India will bring back Indians on their return, a senior Air India official responded, "It is unlikely. As per the plan till now, these flights will return empty from London".

In a letter to Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday, one of the airline's pilot unions had alleged that crew members of Air India are being provided with substandard, ill-fitting and flimsy personal protective equipment (PPE) on flights that are being operated amid coronavirus pandemic to either bring Indians from abroad or take foreigners to their countries.

The Executive Pilots Association (EPA) stated, "Our pilots and cabin crew are being provided substandard, ill-fitting and flimsy PPE that tear/disintegrate easily on rescue flights. Sanitizers are not provided in sufficient quantities and disinfection processes are short of industry best practices.

The EPA also told Puri that their flying allowances, which comprises almost 70 per cent of their total salary, have not been paid since January this year.

Air India has already conducted special flights to Israel and Germany to fly out foreigners stranded in India amid the lockdown.

Till now, 1,914 people have been infected by the novel coronavirus while 50 people have died due to it in the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
North Wales police were left red-faced this week after on duty officers pulled over their own Chief Constable during a random check, to ensure he was adhering to coronavirus restrictions.

The incident comes in the same week that police forces up and down the country came under intense criticism for being increasingly overzealous in their lockdown tactics, including the use of drones for public filming and rigorous checkpoint systems.

The North Wales Chief Constable, Carl Foulkes, commended the meticulous work of his team, after being personally pulled over to see if he was complying with regulations of only venturing out for essential travel.

Chief Constable Carl Foulkes took to social media to explain how he had been pulled over by his own team, carrying out coronavirus restriction checks in the North Wales area

Chief Constable Foulkes was driving to Wrexham in order to go out on patrol in the local area when officers working stopped his vehicle to check what he was doing.

Mr Foulkes said the officers' 'faces were a picture' when they realised who they had pulled over the head figure of the North Wales force, before carrying on about their business.

In a post on Twitter, he said: 'This morning travelling to Wrexham to go out on patrol and pulled over by my own local policing officers, doing a great job, although their faces were a picture.

'Keep up the good work.'

Restrictions put into place by the Government mean that people can only leave their homes for specific reasons.

This includes going to work if you cannot work from home, going food shopping, getting medicines and exercising once a day.

Last week Mr Foulkes said measures such as arresting people who were not complying with the measures were being considered 'as a last resort'.

For now, he said police are concentrating their efforts on engaging with any members of the public they see out and about to encourage them to stay at home.

The chief constable, who is keen to provide 'visible leadership' to his frontline officers, has been on patrols alongside them.

Last week Mr Foulkes said measures such as arresting people who were not complying with the measures were being considered 'as a last resort'

Scotland Yard anti-terror chief Neil Basu has demanded officers maintain the British tradition of 'policing by consent' and said their conduct would be remembered for generations after they were accused of abusing their powers.

Yet despite this, measures are now cranking up regarding travel and outside activity, after Government pleas for the nation to strictly follow social isolation rules in order to save both lives and the NHS.

It emerged on Wednesday that police will be able to use force on children if they flout the coronavirus lockdown.

Guidance from the College of Policing says 'reasonable force' can be used if a youngster is believed to be 'outside of their premises without reasonable excuse'.

Officers also have the power to fine parents 60 for failing to stop a child from going out.

The guidance spells out that officers can remove a youngster from the streets and anyone with them if they refuse to go home.

The briefing drawn up by the National Police Chiefs' Council urges officers to make sensible decisions and use enforcement as a last resort.

It also says checks on every vehicle are 'disproportionate' and the public should not be punished for travelling a reasonable distance to exercise.
Garba Shehu, senior special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, has called on Nigerians to disregard Nobel...





Garba Shehu, senior special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, has called on Nigerians to disregard Nobel laureate Wole Soyinkas reservations on the lockdown in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun states.





Shehu said Soyinkas qualifications are in English literature and not medicine or science, stating that he does not qualify to be judged as a professional on the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.





The presidential aide said perhaps Wole Soyinka may write a play on the coronavirus pandemic, after this emergency is over. In the meantime, we ask the people of Nigeria to trust the words of our doctors and scientists  and not fiction writers  at this time of national crisis.





Yesterday, the esteemed Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka made comments on the legal status and description of 14-day lockdown announced by President Muhammadu Buhari, Shehu wrote in a statement.

Professor Soyinka is not a medical professor. His qualifications are in English literature, and his prizes are for writing books and plays for theatres. He is of course entitled to his opinions  but that is exactly all they are: semantics, not science. They cannot  and should not  therefore be judged as professional expertise in this matter in any shape or form.





Across the world  from parts of the United States and China, to countries including the United Kingdom and France, government  mandated lockdowns are in place to slow and defeat the spread of coronavirus.





All have been declared, and all have been made necessary, based on medical and scientific evidence. The guidance of the Nigerian Governments medical specialists is to advise the same.





SHEHU FAULTS SOYINKAS ASSESSMENT

Soyinka had said Nigeria was not at war, questioning the powers of the president to close state borders.





Reacting to Soyinkas statement, Shehu said: Professor Soyinka has also declared, doubtless based on his specialism as a playwright, that: We are not in a war emergency'.





Eminent scientists say otherwise: Dr Richard Hatchett, Head of the International Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (and former Director of the US Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority) has said, War is an appropriate analogy.





Professor Anthony Fauci, Director of the United States National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force has said of the battle against the pandemic: Its almost like the fog of war.





As for the legality of the lock down, the Government of Nigerias primary duty in law and action is the defence of the people of Nigeria. We face a global pandemic. Nigeria is now affected. The scientific and medical guidance the world over is clear: the way to defeat the virus is to halt its spread through limitation of movement of people.





Nigeria has recorded nearly 200 cases of COVID-19 since the index case was reported in February, 2020.




COVID-19 is a medical emergency, but its impact goes far beyond the healthcare industry. It has accelerated the global recession, impacting many key sectors in Singapore like retail, aviation, tourism and more. I mean, the fact that the government had to roll out a second stimulus package  which was more than twice more generous than 2003s to combat SARS, by the way  says a lot.

Many measures announced in the supplementary resilience budget focused on helping businesses retain staff and stay afloat, as well as provide support for those whose incomes were affected by COVID-19. Read more about it in this article: COVID-19 Resilience Budget 2020: Up to $900 GST Vouchers, $1,000 Monthly Payout for Self-Employed & More

5 Part-time job opportunities during the COVID-19 pandemic

If you were retrenched or took a pay cut and want to take on a side gig to supplement your income during this difficult time, here are 5 jobs to consider.

Job opportunity Commitment Salary Social distancing ambassador At least 3 months, full-time contract $1,800 to $2,500 Temporary / contract admin assistant Varies $8 to $10 per hour or $1,800 to $2,000+ monthly Temperature checkers / healthcare screeners Part-time shift work $8 to $16 per hour or about $1,900 monthly Contract data analyst at STB 11 months, full-time contract Undisclosed Food delivery rider Varies Varies

Bonus  SportSG announced over 500 new openings to be rolled out soon. Read more about it below.

1. Social distancing ambassador job ($1,800 to $2,500/month)

If you are keeping up with the news  although this one may fall under goss instead  theres been a story circulating the internet (and our families WhatsApp chats) about how someone was fined $300 by a safe distancing ambassador at Compass One.

This came after establishments started marking out alternate seats to encourage patrons to keep a safe distance.

As it turns out, the part about issuing fines is fake (as confirmed by statutory board Enterprise Singapore), but the social distancing ambassadors are real. In fact, you can apply to be one for some extra cash as well.

Story continues

I saw 2 job ads for these roles (on Fast Jobs and My Careers Future), both for hawker centres, paying up to $2,500 monthly.

social distancing ambassador

The job scope is the same: to encourage customers to sit on the unmarked seats and keep a 1-metre distance while queuing up. Almost anyone can apply for this, you just need to be at minimum a higher Nitec or diploma holder and have good communication skills  you know, so you dont scare people away.

2. Temperature checker / healthcare screener jobs ($8 to $16/hour)

For those who can spare some time to do shift work  think insurance agents or those who work flexible hours  you can consider being a part-time temperature checker. The entry requirements are low, so even undergraduates can apply (min. N/O/A level or diploma).

temperature screener

The job is straightforward: help take peoples temperatures at malls, office buildings and even clinics. Most of these jobs pay about $8 to $10 per hour, but Ive noticed that the ones at clinics and healthcare facilities (they call them healthcare screeners) pay $12 to $16 instead.

healthcare screener

If youre interested, Ive also seen full-time temporary temperature screener jobs, which may be better for those in between jobs. The one I saw on Jobs Buddy pays from $1,900 monthly for a 3-month contract.

Do note that social distancing will be difficult with this job, and you will be exposing yourself to a lot of people.

3. COVID-19 response admin jobs ($8 to $10/hour)

For many businesses, COVID-19 is not only causing a dip in revenue, but a logistical nightmare as well. Therein lies your opportunity  I saw many job ads for temporary admin assistants to help with things like data entry, contract tracing and customer service.

Some are temporary full-time gigs, and those typically pay about $1,400 to $2,000+ monthly. For the part-time ones, the rate is around $8 to $10 per hour.

4. Temporary food delivery rider jobs (salary varies)

If you have a bike or drivers licence, nows the best time to make some money out of it. With everyone being encouraged to stay home, food delivery numbers are soaring. So if youre thinking of applying to GrabFood, FoodPanda or Deliveroo, go for it.

But thats not all. Many restaurants are also starting to implement their own in-house delivery services. Thats expected, since the third-party food delivery platforms take a significant cut from their earnings. If you search for food delivery jobs, quite a few should come up.

In addition to the mass hiring post pictured above, I saw ads for Pizza Hut, KFC, McDonalds and Khansama.

5. Contract data analyst at Singapore Tourism Board (STB) (salary undisclosed)

When I searched for COVID-19-related jobs, I also found that Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is hiring. At the time of writing, there are 2 contract data analyst openings. The salary is undisclosed, but since STB is a statutory board, I expect it to be quite competitive.

The first one (Contract Data Analyst, Analytics & Insights) is to track and monitor the effectiveness of the companys COVID-19 recovery efforts. It is quite niche, so unlike the others on this list, youll need to come from a data background and have the relevant technical skills to qualify. Youll be expected to create dashboards and produce statistical analysis. This is a junior role.

The second one (Contract Data Analyst, Data Transformation & Data Science) seems more to do with post-COVID-19 forecasting. According to the job description, in the short-term, youll be expected to provide stakeholders with a sensing on the industry performance / outlook post-COVID-19 by empowering them with insights on the visitors to facilitate their business recovery efforts. This is a mid-senior role, and applicants should have 5 years of relevant experience.

Bonus: SportSG announced 500 new job openings till end-2020

Yesterday, Sport Singapore (SportSG) announced that they are creating over 500 new temporary job openings and over 5,000 training vacancies from now till the end of the year. This is to help those in the industry who have lost their jobs because of stringent social distancing measures.

The job listings will be progressively posted on SGUnited and SportSGs job portals. According to a report by The New Paper, there were over 180 applications when SportSG first launched some 200 jobs, and almost 40 successful applicants started work yesterday.

At the time of writing, there were over 34 listings on SportSG. From what I saw, the openings covered many roles including human resources, marketing, administration support, accounting, and more. So even if your previous job was not reeaally sports-related, you can still give it a go.

Do you have any more gigs to recommend those in need? Share them in the comments below.

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Sam Neill looks grizzled, even a bit dishevelled as he speaks and sings to camera, accompanying himself on ukulele.

He reads New Zealand kids' stories and poems by Seamus Heaney. He sings songs by Cole Porter or Randy Newman or Radiohead. What a sign of the times: one of our best screen actors, streaming bits and pieces, broadcasting a miscellany out of his isolation.

Sam Neill imitates a kookaburra for social media followers.

I dont really know what Im doing, he says, I just pluck things out of the air. And its coming really from me just being shut away for a while - and thats going to go on. [I'm] thinking of possible things to do myself and finding things that Ive put aside for a rainy day. Well, its a rainy day.

Neill's manner is, as usual, a study in self-deprecation. He's clowning against the gloom. He's the light relief.
CHICAGO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Citizens Utility Board (CUB) on Thursday announced free services for Illinois utility customers during the public health crisis and shared tips on how consumers can protect their bottom line in these uncertain times.

"In the middle of this unprecedented public health and economic crisis, the last thing anyone needs to worry about is high utility bills," CUB Executive Director David Kolata said Thursday. "The CUB team is working from home, but we're still serving consumers throughout this emergency."

Kolata offered these consumer tips:

Reach out. Call CUB, at 1-800-669-5556, if you have a question or complaint about your utility service. CUB also will hold virtual events on utility and clean energy topics for Illinois community groups that request it.

Know your utility's policy. The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) has directed electric, natural gas and water utilities to suspend shut-offs and late-payment charges during the emergency. Many telecom companies are offering similar consumer protections. Check out CUB's fact sheet, or call the companies yourself to make sure your account is in good standing and to find out what protections they are offering.

Get your bills reviewed. Send us your electric, natural gas and telecom bills. A CUB specialist will look them over to see if you're signed up with an alternative supplier or if you're paying for unnecessary products and services. CUB also will tell you if you're eligible for money-saving programs, including financial assistance and energy efficiency programs. Email a copy of your most recent electric, natural gas, and telecom bills to CUB at [email protected]. (Put "Attn: Virtual Utility Bill Clinic" in the subject line.) Feel free to redact your personal information, but be sure to include the account holder's name.

Practice Energy Efficiency. At times like this, it's more important than ever to keep your bills reasonable.

Unplug unnecessary devices: Items like your coffee pot with an LED clock, your phone charger, a DVD player are constantly drawing power and can account for as much as 10 percent of household energy use.

Items like your coffee pot with an LED clock, your phone charger, a DVD player are constantly drawing power and can account for as much as 10 percent of household energy use. Take advantage of your windows: Don't waste electricity on extra lighting when you could just open the curtains. Choose the brightest room in your apartment or house to work.

Don't waste electricity on extra lighting when you could just open the curtains. Choose the brightest room in your apartment or house to work. Use your technology's built-in energy savings features. Some devices have sleep mode, low-battery mode, or idle mode that can reduce energy consumption.

Some devices have sleep mode, low-battery mode, or idle mode that can reduce energy consumption. Lower the temperature on your water heater to the warm setting (120 degrees).

to the warm setting (120 degrees). Cook efficiently. Use properly sized cookware for burners and the most energy-efficient appliances you have (such as a microwave). Remember, microwaves work more efficiently when the inside is clean.

Use properly sized cookware for burners and the most energy-efficient appliances you have (such as a microwave). Remember, microwaves work more efficiently when the inside is clean. Switch to cold cycles. When doing laundry, only run full loads. Use cold water. Skip the dryer entirely and air-dry if possible.

Beware of scams. There are a lot of fraudsters trying to use this crisis to steal our money and personal information. Just this week, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul warned residents to exercise caution with phone, text and email solicitations for money or personal information that are tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Watch out for emails claiming to be from healthcare organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or World Health Organization (WHO). Don't open attachments or click links, because that could be a scheme to infect your device with malware and leave you vulnerable to identity theft.

Remember, government agencies won't send emails asking for personal information for you to receive economic stimulus funds.

Delete text messages from unknown sources that appear to hyperlink to information about the pandemic. This may be a trick to install malware on your mobile device.

Hang up on robocalls. Telecom scams are peddling phony COVID-19 cures, bogus testing kits and work-from-home schemes. Don't engage, even if the recording instructs you to press a number to be removed from the call list. That might just signal to the robocaller that a live person has the numberand it may lead to more calls.

To report scams connected to the COVID-19 outbreak visit the Illinois Attorney General's website. If you want accurate information about COVID-19, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

CUB is Illinois' leading nonprofit utility watchdog. Created by the Illinois Legislature, CUB opened its doors in 1984 to represent the interests of residential and small-business utility customers. Since then, it has saved consumers more than $20 billion by helping to block rate hikes, secure refunds, and fight for clean, low-cost energy. For more information, call CUB's Consumer Hotline, 1-800-669-5556, or visit its website, www.CitizensUtilityBoard.org.



SOURCE Citizens Utility Board

Related Links

http://www.citizensutilityboard.org


A Turkish military aircraft has left today Wednesday from Ankara with medical aid for Italy and Spain, two worst hit European countries by the Covid-19 disease, Turkish state-run news agency Anadolu reports.

Italy is the far affected country with 12,428 deaths and 15,729 recoveries out 105,792 overall cases.

Spain on the other hand has over 95,000 confirmed cases with 8,464 deaths and 19,259 recoveries as of Tuesday.

Turkey itself have reported 13,531 cases on Tuesday, 214 deaths and 243 recoveries.

The outbreak rebranded pandemic by the World Health Organization has spread to at least 180 countries with the U.S being the country with largest number of infections.

Over 860,100, with the death toll over 42,300 and more than 178,300 recoveries according to data posted by U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University.
Brian Kelly, founder and chief executive of the Points Guy, said he was not surprised by the tweaks the travel industry is making to its loyalty programs. When travel is robust, he explained, airlines and hotels push members toward less pricey items issued by their partners  a $250 Amazon gift card is much better for the bottom line than, say, a $1,400 plane ticket to Hawaii. But with the curb on nonessential travel, the companies are desperate for loyalty members to use their miles and points on future trips and start filling up empty planes and guest rooms.
Governor Gavin Newsom live address 4-1-2020 View Photo

Sonora, CA  Governor Gavin Newsom in his Thursday live address reported on new help for small businesses and workers as the COVID-19 outbreak has forced people to stay home and many shops to close.

Noting that those filing for unemployment in the state has skyrocketed with more than 1.9 million Californians filing for unemployment benefits since March 12, Newsom disclosed, Weve averaged 111,000 unemployment insurance claims on a daily basis over just the last seven days. The economic consequences are profound. He detailed that has overwhelmed the Employment Development Departments call center and noted that 200 additional staff have been added to deal with filings.

To address that issue the governor announced a new sale tax receipt loan for small businesses. He explained, It is a one-year reprieve for small businesses. Where no fines or penalties would be attached. Where they can take upwards of $50,000 as a loan and not have to pay the state those sales tax receipts.

The proposal could have a significant impact on Californias more than $200 billion budget. Most of the states revenue comes from sales and income taxes. Already the income tax deadline has been delayed by three months to July 15. It remains uncertain whether this move will require approval from the state Legislature that is on recess through at least April 13th.

Another loan/grant program the governor touted comes from the recent federal stimulus packages. Beginning tomorrow, California small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 crisis can apply for a loan from the federal government for up to $10 million. It is a first-come, first-serve program, so the Governor encouraged all eligible businesses to contact their lender to learn more.

The state is also allocating $50 million to the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank for loan guarantees to small businesses that do not qualify for federal funds, including low wealth and undocumented immigrant communities.

Newsom concluded, We want to give an overall sense of what were [the state] trying to do to highlight those federal supports, advance some state relief through sales tax and then provide some micro-lending opportunities.

For those looking for work, the state has partnered with three companies  LinkedIn, Salesforce and Bitwise  to launch a website with job listings in California. It is onwardca.org and already has more than 70,000 job listings with most in the health care, agriculture, logistics and grocery industries  essential businesses not affected by the statewide stay-at-home order.

Many Governors across the nation are wrestling with what businesses can stay open and which ones can close. In New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered non-essential construction sites to shut down. Officials in the San Francisco Bay area have followed suit. But Newsom instructed he is not planning on changing the states guidelines listing construction workers as an essential business exempt from the statewide stay at home order.

The conditions in New York are very different than the conditions in the state of California, Newsom said. Were not naive about magnitude of challenge ahead of us. All of this is subject to change. But currently, Im satisfied with those state directives.
UK allows at-home medical abortions amid lockdown; Christian group to challenge

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Pro-life organizations are contemplating legal action against guidance issued by the United Kingdom government allowing women in England to undergo medical abortions in their homes as the coronavirus pandemic continues.

The U.K. Department of Health and Social Care temporarily changed regulations last Friday, allowing women who need an abortion before the 10th week of pregnancy to take abortion-inducing pills mifepristone and misoprostol at home during the national lockdown.

The new regulations effectively add the home of a pregnant woman who is undergoing treatment for the purposes of termination of her pregnancy to a list of approved places where medical abortions may be carried.

The new policy will only be in effect for two years or until the coronavirus outbreak is over. The policy change was confirmed by an agency spokesperson to Time.

The policy specifically clarifies that a medical abortion can only be carried out in a pregnant womans home if the patient had a consultation with an approved place via video link, telephone conference or other electronic means or had consultation with a registered medical practitioner via video link, telephone conference or other electronic means.

Under the previous policy following a change of law last year, medical abortions could only happen at hospitals or abortion clinics approved by the secretary of state. According to U.K. Christian organization CARE, Women would take the first pill  mifepristone  at a clinic or hospital and then take the second pill  misoprostol  later at home.

The new policy comes after the department said last week that it made an error by publishing earlier guidance that allowed at-home medical abortions. A spokesperson last week had assured that there would be no changes to abortion regulations.

The Christian Legal Centre, an evangelical conservative legal organization also known as Christian Concern, is accusing the U.K. government of making a double U-turn by announcing the most significant change to abortion law since 1967.

In a statement, the group explained that doctors will be allowed to prescribe mifepristone and misoprostol over the phone or digital platforms like Facetime or Skype. The organization warns that the change will allow women to take the drugs in their own homes without onsite medical supervision.

Health Minister Lord Bethell last month rejected proposed changes to abortion law in the House of Lords. On March 25, Bethell stressed at the time that it is an essential safeguard that a woman attends a clinic to ensure there are no issues with her medical abortion. He also warned that at-home medical abortions could make women in abusive relationships more vulnerable to pressure to abort their child.

Christian Concern voiced concern with the fact that the change in policy comes without prior or parliamentary debate. Christian Concern CEO Andrea Williams confirmed to The Telegraph that the organization will file a legal challenge against the policy in the hope that it will become subject to a judicial review.

Our legal team has started working on a judicial review claim today, she said, adding that the policy change is a scandalous act.

In an online statement, Williams warned that the government appears to be pushing through a back-door policy that will put thousands of women at risk during a time of national and global crisis. She called the idea of allowing the medical profession to prescribe such powerful drugs without seeing the patient first disturbing.

Abortion has nothing to do with coronavirus, and abusing public trust to advance a different agenda undermines trust in the government and effectiveness of response to the epidemic, Williams said. There are no proposals to our knowledge to use abortion clinics capacity or personnel to respond to coronavirus.



The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children said that it is also weighing the possibility of a legal challenge to the policy change.

It is our understanding that such a policy is beyond the scope of the Abortion Act, SPUC CEO John Deighan said in a statement. However, we will closely examine the policy and take appropriate action based on the best legal advice.

The temporary policy was also criticized by Catholic Bishop Bishop John Sherrington of the Westminster Diocese. In an interview with the Catholic News Agency, Sherrington said he was shocked.

He warned that increasing access to medical abortion at home diminishes the seriousness with which these decisions should be taken as well as the psychological dangers of the administration of these drugs at home.

These measures fundamentally change access to abortion in England and Wales for the foreseeable future, Sherrington said.

Pro-abortion rights groups in the U.K. have celebrated the decision.

Over a dozen medical associations, including the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of Midwives and the British Pregnancy Advisory Service have pushed for medical abortions to be allowed in homes so that women dont overload the countrys overworked health system.

Giving women the option of taking both abortion pills at home following a video consultation is safe and effective and has rightly been judged as a vital and necessary step if we are to limit the spread of COVID-19, RCOG President Edward Morris said in a statement.

Many women will no longer be forced to make the difficult decision between leaving their home and continuing with an unwanted pregnancy. This change in practice will reduce pressure on the health system while limiting the unnecessary risk of infection for women, their families and health workers.

The health ministries in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland told BBC that they are also considering changes to their medical abortion policies during the pandemic.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  A medical team from China will arrive in Manila this weekend to help the country contain the spread of the coronavirus disease, the Chinese Embassy in Manila said Thursday.

The team is composed of 12 experts which will provide technical guidance and share their experience in controlling the outbreak.

"They are good at both traditional Chinese and Western medicine, involving COVID-19 treatment, testing, disease control and other aspects, and will practically share the 'China experience' in the fight against COVID-19, the Embassy said in a statement.

The Embassy said China will be sending the team as requested by the Philippine government.

The experts come from the First Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Fujian Provincial Hospital, Fujian Peoples Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Fujian Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The COVID-19 pandemic originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan in Hubei province back in December. China has since reported significantly fewer COVID-19 cases in ground zero and has moved to lift the lockdown on Wuhan by April 8.

Mainland China is currently ranked fourth among countries with the most number of infected patients. The East Asian giant recorded 81,588 confirmed cases with 3,318 deaths.

Meanwhile, the Philippines coronavirus death toll has exceeded 100, with more than 2,600 confirmed cases.
With much confusion around what the social distancing rules mean and how strictly they will be enforced by police, people have been assured fines will only be issued for "blatant and wilful breaches" in Queensland.

The effective closure of the state's border, not seen since the Spanish Flu more than a century ago, is also a significant shift from life as we know it  particularly along the busy Gold Coast corridor.

A police officer speaks with sunbathers on Surfers Paradise Beach at the Gold Coast. Credit:AAP/Dave Hunt

More than 2700 quarantine orders have been handed to people crossing the border in the week since the first control measures came into effect, with almost 71,000 vehicles intercepted.

Weve collected details of the latest advice and restrictions here.
Trade and various services will see setbacks as exit and entry controls remain tight Photo: Le Toan

Last week, Hapulico  one of the largest wholesale medicine markets in Vietnam  continued all operations as normal, even after the EU decided to close external borders for a month. At Hapulico, many kinds of pharmaceuticals and medical equipment are imported from Europe as well as elsewhere.

A wholesaler at the market said, For the time being, the pharmaceutical market is stable and witnessing no disorder. We have worked with international partners to ensure the stable supply of drugs and medical devices.

Like Hapulico, many wholesale drug markets across Vietnam are reported to be proceeding with business as usual thanks to sufficient storage, imports, and contingency plans from domestic and international pharma businesses.

Risk management readiness

In the wake of the serious developments of COVID-19 and possible impacts on trade from the EU, international pharma firms such as Sanofi and Zuellig Pharma Vietnam (ZPV) have built risk management plans to ensure business continuity. ZPV chief executive Marc Franck told VIR, For the time being the lockdown of several European countries has not impacted the supply of medicine to Vietnam and we are monitoring the situation carefully.

Franck said that ZPV is taking every possible step to be able to continue to operate even in the most challenging situation. As such, ZPV Vietnam has a strong business continuity plan in place to ensure imported stock is well preserved and sold to declared Vietnamese wholesalers.

In a similar vein, in order to ensure the supply of innovative medicines, Sanofi, Adamed Pharma, and Novartis have taken actions too.

Haissam Chraiteh, general manager of Sanofi Indochina, said, We formed an internal crisis team in February to put in place a comprehensive business continuity plan, to plan in advance and prepare shipments accordingly, so that we can avoid a shortage of drugs.

As well as importing drugs to Vietnam, Sanofi has two manufacturing sites here and 80 per cent of its production is for the local market. At present, taskforces at these sites are still working while strictly complying with Vietnams Ministry of Healths recommendations.

Novartis has also built a risk management framework, which is regularly reviewed and updated, and ensures adequate business continuity and recovery planning.

This planning includes the availability of safety stock, pandemic preparedness plans, and the implementation of dual sourcing strategies as applicable.

Short-term impacts

Businesses in many sectors recently expressed concerns at the news that the US and EU member states were shutting their borders. While the closures are intended to control the spread of the virus by curbing individual travel, not trade activities, the restrictions may have a negative impact on the supply chains of many companies around the world.

According to the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam, its members face difficulties in a range of sectors and industries, from tourism and transport to logistics and healthcare.

For instance, Adamed Pharma has a dual presence in the Southeast Asian nation via its representative office and portfolio of EU-produced imported medicines and through its local manufacturing company Davipharm, providing generic locally-made drugs.

Magdalena Krakowiak, head of Public Affairs and CSR at Adamed Vietnam, told VIR, Neither our imported drugs supply nor local medicine production have been impacted by the virus outbreak for the time being.

She continued, Of course, it impacts daily operations by delaying, postponing, or cancelling some meetings which cannot be organised via teleconferences, implementing travel restrictions, and other safety measures, as well as delaying some processes. Procuring face masks for all of our employees  almost 300 people  is also becoming a real challenge.

As COVID-19 strengthens its grip, businesses are becoming increasingly concerned about the trade situation as countries take stricter measures.

Ta Hoang Linh, head of the European-American Markets Department under Vietnams Ministry of Industry and Trade said that border closures do not mean a lockdown of all trade activities, but tightened exit and entry controls mean trade and services will experience delays.

Krakowiak of Adamed added, The situation also requires from us permanent monitoring of suppliers of active ingredients and other raw materials, and addressing and managing any potential risks related to it. We actively search for alternative supply sources and we have increased inventories.

She said that as long as most business operations continue to run in Vietnam, they are able to maintain production stability. However, the situation in the EU is worrying, since the lockdown of many countries has a direct impact on long-term supply security.

Elsewhere, Novartis, despite having risk management systems in place, is still worried over the dynamic situation, with many factors that are beyond any one manufacturers control.

We continue to monitor the situation closely and will adapt measures as the situation evolves, emphasised Roeland Roelofs, country president of Novartis Vietnam.

Industry insiders have said the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry is among the rare beneficiaries of the pandemic. If it is adversely affected, this will threaten the fight against COVID-19. Therefore, countries worldwide will do their utmost to ensure that does not happen.
SIKONGE Member of Parliament (MP-CCM), Joseph Kakuda has alleged that telecommunication towers in eight Wards of the constituency have become ineffective thus slowing communication in the area.

The legislator told the National Assembly here on Thursday that Vodacom, Airtel, Tigo and Halotel signal networks have not been working well, hence result in poor communication of the residents communication devices.

Besides, three more Wards of Nyahua, Igigwa and Ngonjwa have no communication signals, he said, naming the eight affected areas as Kipili, Kilumbi, Kiloli, Kitunda, Kisanga, Mole, Kiloleli and Ipole areas.

When shall the government deploy better communication network for Sikonge people residing in areas with awful communication signals, he asked.

The MP further asked the government to provide a timeframe in which it will restore mobile network coverage in the three wards with poor communication networks.

In response, the Deputy Minister for Transport and Communication Eng. Atashasta Nditiye on-behalf of his Minister said the government through the Universal Communication Access Service Fund (UCSAF) has issued grants for the construction of communication tower in Sikonge District.

The grants, according to the deputy minister would construct the towers in Kiloli, Igigwa, Kipanga, Kipili and Kitunda, adding: The initiative involves the state-own Tanzania Telecommunication Corporation TTCL and Vodacom under phase one and three communication project.

On Igigwa Ward, Eng Nditiye said the UCSAF announced a tender, where TTCL won to fix some, adding that so far they have started preparations to build one.

In the exercise, the UCSAF is expected to include Nyahua and Ngonjwa Wards in the construction in the fifth phase during the 2020/21financial year.

Expounding, he said that the Tanzania Communication Regulatory Authority (TCRA) will also conduct quality assessment for the communication services network signal as required by the State to enable citizens have better communication services.
By Trend

Iran can export new coronavirus diagnostic tests to neighboring and regional countries, said Alireza Biglari Director General of Pasteur Institute in Iran, Trend reports citing IRNA.

Biglari added that currently, five startup companies produce coronavirus diagnostic tests in Iran. The weekly production of one of these companies are 80,000 tests. Other companies have about the same amount of production.

The official said that the diagnostic test currently used in Iran has been approved by the World Health Organization. If the analysis process is carried out correctly, the results of the analysis can be trusted by more than 90 percent.

Biglari said that immediately after the first coronavirus diagnosis in Iran, the Qom and Tehran laboratories began operating and 60 laboratories were commissioned in 10 days.

The director said that more than 10,000 blood samples are analyzed daily in 90 laboratories in Iran at present adding that it is possible to increase this figure to 20,000 analyzes per day.

Iran is one of the countries heavily affected by the rapidly-spreading coronavirus. According to recent reports from the Iranian officials, over 47,500 people have been infected, 3,036 people have already died. Meanwhile, over 15,400 have reportedly recovered from the disease.

The country continues to apply strict measures to contain the further spread. Reportedly, the disease was brought to Iran by a businessman from Iran's Qom city, who went on a business trip to China, despite official warnings. The man died later from the disease.

The Islamic Republic only announced its first infections and deaths from the coronavirus on Feb. 19.

--

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The Morrison government appears to be resisting the pleas for bailouts from Virgin Australia and industry super funds caught short of liquidity. It should continue to do so.

At a superficial level it could be argued that the plight of Virgin and some industry funds has been caused by government actions and therefore it is reasonable for the government to help alleviate the damage it has created by closing borders and restricting travel. Also, for the super funds, the government's decision to allow fund members access to up to $20,000 of their balances over two years.

It should be noted, however, that only Virgin of the two Australian carriers, and only a handful of the plethora of super funds in the $3 trillion sector have put their hands out  Virgin for a $1.4 billion loan and the funds for a liquidity facility from the Reserve Bank.

While Qantas Alan Joyce might have demanded $4.2 billion if Virgin gets $1.4 billion (as Qantas revenue is three times that of Virgins) thats posturing to convince the government not to bail out his domestic competitor.
Gov. Kay Ivey is not ready to issue a shelter-in-place order as other governors have, a spokeswoman said Wednesday, arguing the state has already taken aggressive action to curb the spread of coronavirus.

Republican governors in Florida, Mississippi and Georgia on Wednesday reversed course and issued stay-home directives after previously resisting such a statewide order. But Ivey's office said Wednesday that the governor is not ready to follow suit.

A spokeswoman for Ivey said the governor has not ruled anything out, but hopes the state will not have to issue a statewide shelter-in-place order.

The governors priority is protecting the health, safety and well-being of all Alabamians, and their well-being also relies on being able to have a job and provide for themselves and their families," spokeswoman Gina Maiola said. "Many factors surround a statewide shelter-in-place, and Alabama is not at a place where we are ready to make this call."

Alabama last week announced the closure of non-essential businesses, such as salons, gyms and many retail stores and a prohibition of gatherings of 10 people or more that are not work-related where people can't stay at least 6 feet (2 meters) apart. The previous limit had been 25. The state had earlier announced the closure of public and private beaches, on-site restaurant dining and that students would finish the school year by doing distance learning at home.

Alabamas safer at home policy urges people to stay home but does not order them to do so.

The stay-home directives vary from state to state. The Mississippi order that was announced Wednesday includes some measures Alabama had taken, but also includes a directive for people to remain home unless going out for essential activities. Alabama has not done that.

Alabama on Wednesday reached more than 1,100 cases of the coronavirus.

The Alabama Department of Public Health said that 28 deaths have been reported in COVID-19 patients, and the state has so far confirmed that 17 of those were caused by the respiratory illness.

We passed a not-welcome milestone today. We are now over a thousand cases with deaths in the mid-20s," Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, director of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Alabama at Birmingham said during a press briefing.

Marrazzo said the hospital is caring for about 50 patients who have tested positive for COVID-19, and about one-third are in intensive care and requiring ventilatory support.

Marrazzo said she believed the city had done a good job at social distancing measures but it was too soon to tell if it had flattened the curve of the outbreak.

Alabama nursing homes this week expressed alarm that they may be forced to take back still-ill residents who were hospitalized for the virus.

The Alabama Nursing Home Association released a statement responding to a letter from the Jefferson County Health Officer Mark Wilson saying that the patients can be released back to nursing homes under certain conditions. The letter cited concerns about the need to preserve hospital bed capacity as infections spread.

For the past month, Alabama nursing homes have been doing everything they can to prevent COVID-19 from entering their buildings," the Nursing Home Association said in a statement. The group said nursing homes should not be forced to accept patients who have tested positive for COVID-19 even though they still exhibit symptoms and have not fully recovered."

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks, and the overwhelming majority of people recover. But severe cases can need respirators to survive, and with infections spreading exponentially, hospitals across the country are either bracing for a coming wave of patients, or already struggling to keep up.
WhatsApp is being used to spread dangerous disinformation during the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo illustration by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Instant messaging application WhatsApp is cracking down on COVID-19 misinformation on the app as a result of videos, photos and texts being forwarded by users about the cures for of the coronavirus.

The parent company of WhatsApp, Facebook announced the move saying theyve limited the ability to forward a message which has already been forwarded on the application to only one user.

Gurgling warm water, eating fennel flower seeds or steaming your nose will not protect you from COVID-19, no matter what the scholars of WhatsApp University tell you.

After widespread WhatsApp disinformation was shared in India by Hindu extremists, leading to a pair of deadly attacks against Muslims in November 2018, Facebook eliminated mass-forwarding and quick-forward messages of media in South Asia.

At that time of the killings, WhatsApp users could forward messages to up to 250 people, which resulted in quick-fire misinformation spreading, and rumours which couldnt be controlled.

For the past three weeks, South Asian parents like mine have told me of suspicious messages theyve received regarding the ongoing pandemic.

For most Canadians, WhatsApp is a rather innocuous instant messaging application, which provides the user with more security than regular text messaging. But it has also become the home to some of the most damaging disinformation and rumours regarding COVID-19.

Right when this crisis hit, I immediately thought, oh my god, this [app] is going to be rife with misinformation especially for South Asians, said Sunny Hundal, a British journalist and founder of Barfi Culture.

First the conspiracy theories popped up regarding how China had created the virus in a lab, then it jumped to how governments were trying to control people, and now were at the stage where videos of cures are being shared by thousands of users.

A WhatsApp message tells users to drink tea to ward off COVID-19.

Facebook, which has been besieged by governments around the world for not doing enough to combat disinformation around major events like elections.

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It's not the first time WhatsApp disinformation entered Canadian life. During the 2019 federal election, it was used to target South Asians living in Canada, according to Hundal.

Ive seen it happen with elections in India and elections in Canada and the U.K. by the Indian government, he said.

Almost two million people in Canada have cultural ties to Pakistan and India where there are 200 million WhatsApp users, the largest of any region.

As a result of its popularity, its become the best way for South Asians in the diaspora to connect with those in their homelands. With the quick learned knowledge of how to beat the virus, theyve since been facetiously dubbed as scholars and graduates of WhatsApp University.

My mom and all her friends graduating from WhatsApp University with a Ph.D. in coronavirus science pic.twitter.com/FXiwlrhReg  Saurabh Chowdhry (@SaurabhCh7) March 23, 2020

In Canada the messages are spreading like wildfire unbeknownst to most of the population, whereas South Asians are receiving debunked methods of how to beat COVID-19.

Jaskaran Singh Sandhu, a senior consultant with Crestview Strategy, says the major problem is that everyone who is messaging on the app already has a modicum of trust with the user.

With WhatsApp youre contacting people who are almost exclusively in your phone book, theyre people you trust... theyre friends, colleagues and extended family and onwards, youve got everyone there, said Sandhu.

According to Hundal, the fallacy some less advanced users fall into is the idea that everything on the internet must be true.

People trust too easily what comes into their phone from a friend, and they shouldnt do that, they should do a quick google search and establish facts with a reputable news organization, he said.

Anecdotally speaking, Sandhu feels most of the forwarded messages tend to come from the older generation, usually people who fall into either the Gen X or Baby Boomer demographic.

The poorly put together videos, bad writing, sloppy photoshop may be a dead giveaway for someone who has spent their entire life on the internet, but for casual users they may not be able to discern what theyre looking at, he said.

Why Whatsapp could be particularly dangerous

Social media apps like Twitter and Facebook have far more users, but they dont offer the inherent personal relationships WhatsApp does.

I think WhatsApp is particularly dangerous when it comes to misinformation because its coming from people you know, said Hundal.

But unlike Facebook the disinformation, which sometimes is filled with hate, has been taken to another level resulting in dozens of deaths.

Misinformation on WhatsApp in India has gotten people killed, its a big problem. We have families with lots of links there, who are used to this, and through this app it easily comes here, said Hundal.

Last year data journalists at IndiaSpend, a public journalism initiative, estimated more than 30 people had been killed since 2017 as a result of rumours started and forwarded through WhatsApp.

British journalist Sunny Hundal says disinformation on WhatsApp has led to deaths in India.

Hundal fears the videos of people believing they can make their own sanitizer at home, or that the virus will be killed within 14 hours of being in the heat could result in people getting seriously hurt.

The outright lies and bad information, if you dont know what youre looking at and you trust it, it could be bad. People need to trust the experts with [information about] the pandemic, he said.

What can be done?

At the start of 2019, India began considering the idea of regulating WhatsApp, which included holding those who spread disinformation to account. But Facebook said that would effectively kill the end-to-end encryption the app specializes in.

WhatsApp is a closed universe, its not like Facebook which is open... its hard to police that, a lot of people would be uncomfortable with that idea, said Sandhu. People would not use the app.

Hundal agrees with Sandhu, but is of the belief that Facebook is content dominating the market and isnt doing as much as they should to curb disinformation.

Facebook bears huge responsibility to figure out how to stop misinformation on all their platforms -- they simply dont do enough, he said.

The company has teamed up with the World Health Organization (WHO) to allow users to receive a daily health update with the latest COVID-19 cases and tips.

The company has also donated $1 million to the International Fact-Checking Networking so organizations could increase their footprint on the app and have users send them rumours.

This is an evolving crisis, so as world health officials issue new guidance and warnings about COVID-19, well continue working with them to ensure people have access to accurate and authoritative information across all of our apps, wrote Nick Clegg, VP of Global Affairs and Communications for Facebook in a press release,

The company announced a plan to invest $100-million into journalism initiatives to ensure people are continuing to gain access from reputable sources.

Before WhatsApp, Hundal said email forwarding used to be the big scam, which leads him to believe South Asians lack of media literacy coupled with their urge to gossip could make WhatsApp volatile in times like this.

The gossip culture weve all grown up with in our culture is a big part of this, but its also a problem of media literacy, said Hundal. People dont know what theyre looking at is fake.

A WhatsApp message tells users they can click the link to conduct COVID-19 tests on themselves.

Media literacy is two-fold in Canada according to Hundal, who believes users may have distrust in media as a result of past experiences back home, and that Canadian outlets have not done enough to earn their trust.

Media organizations have taken that trust for granted, and many of them dont really reach out to South Asian communities, so they have less trust with that community, he said.

Hundal is hoping the Canadian government and media organizations start to cater more towards the South Asian diaspora with information about COVID-19.

You have to speak to people in a way that makes them trust you, tell them youre there to look out for their interests, and build that trust, he said.

But even if the media does their job, Sandhu hopes that people genuinely start to question the accuracy of what theyre being sent.

Theres an element of self-responsibility that we have to be critical of the media we consume or the information that were getting regardless of whom its from, said Sandhu.

Hundal doesnt believe this is the end of WhatsApp and that the days of distributing disinformation through instant messaging are far from over.

Were just at the beginning of the WhatsApp misinformation problem, and I dont think enough people have caught onto this issue. Its a huge problem, said Hundal.
The latest analyst coverage could presage a bad day for Texas Pacific Land Trust (NYSE:TPL), with the covering analyst making across-the-board cuts to their statutory estimates that might leave shareholders a little shell-shocked. Both revenue and earnings per share (EPS) forecasts went under the knife, suggesting the analyst has soured majorly on the business.

Following the latest downgrade, the current consensus, from the one analyst covering Texas Pacific Land Trust, is for revenues of US$298m in 2020, which would reflect a sizeable 39% reduction in Texas Pacific Land Trust's sales over the past 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are supposed to plummet 45% to US$22.49 in the same period. Previously, the analyst had been modelling revenues of US$444m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$38.40 in 2020. It looks like analyst sentiment has declined substantially, with a sizeable cut to revenue estimates and a large cut to earnings per share numbers as well.

Check out our latest analysis for Texas Pacific Land Trust

NYSE:TPL Past and Future Earnings April 1st 2020

The consensus price target fell 24% to US$721, with the weaker earnings outlook clearly leading analyst valuation estimates.

Another way we can view these estimates is in the context of the bigger picture, such as how the forecasts stack up against past performance, and whether forecasts are more or less bullish relative to other companies in the industry. These estimates imply that sales are expected to slow, with a forecast revenue decline of 39%, a significant reduction from annual growth of 48% over the last five years. Yet aggregate analyst estimates for other companies in the industry suggest that industry revenues are forecast to decline 0.4% next year. The forecasts do look bearish for Texas Pacific Land Trust, since they're expecting it to shrink faster than the industry.

The Bottom Line

The biggest issue in the new estimates is that the analyst has reduced their earnings per share estimates, suggesting business headwinds lay ahead for Texas Pacific Land Trust. Unfortunately they also downgraded their revenue estimates, and our aggregation of analyst estimates suggests that Texas Pacific Land Trust revenue is expected to perform worse than the wider market. With a serious cut to this year's expectations and a falling price target, we wouldn't be surprised if investors were becoming wary of Texas Pacific Land Trust.

Story continues

Still, the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. We have analyst estimates for Texas Pacific Land Trust going out as far as 2022, and you can see them free on our platform here.

Another way to search for interesting companies that could be reaching an inflection point is to track whether management are buying or selling, with our free list of growing companies that insiders are buying.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
LAKE COUNTY -- The local economy in Lake County and the surrounding areas depends a great deal on tourism to keep small businesses going and to add to the tax base.

In 2018, Lake County generated $144 million in visitor spending, with a state and local tax revenue of $14 million, according to a report from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC).

With the summer tourist season about to get into full swing, business owners and community leaders worry that an extended stay-at-home order due to the concern over the spread of the coronavirus will have a devastating effect on the local economy.

Jane Allison, chair of the Lake County Community Foundation (LCCF) and the Downtown Development Association (DDA), said, "Speaking both as a small business owner and chair of the LCCF and the DDA, I believe the impact, unfortunately, will be huge."

The LCCF has already canceled one of its annual fundraising events, the baked potato supper, and others may be in jeopardy depending on whether or not the order is extended, Allison said.

"While closures and cancellations are necessary, they cannot help but effect the local economy," she said. "The cancellations, and the inability to conduct 'business as usual' will surely have a negative economic impact."

Local business owners are already feeling the pinch, with some having to shut down completely and others having to go to limited service.

Nick Miller, owner of Baldwin Bowling Center, said he has been closed since Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's executive order March 16.

Miller said most of his business is league play, and, with that, he would not be able to comply with the social distancing order, so he decided to just close for the time being.

"I tentatively plan to reopen on April 13, depending on further restrictions by the governor," Miller said. "Even being closed for these two weeks will have a great impact on the business, and the longer this goes on, the greater the odds are of not re-opening."

Miller said he counts on tourism to help his business, as well, and hopes the stimulus package will get money out to people for discretionary spending.

"That's a market I depend on," he said, "and if people don't have the money to go out and do things like bowl, that won't do any of us any good."

Many small business owners live week-to-week, he said, and not having that revenue coming in will make it hard for them to meet their obligations.

"Right now, I am maxed out on what I can pay out in loan payments," he added. "I can't afford anymore, so hopefully the government will offer some kind of grants or low-interest loans for reconsolidating finances at a lower payment.

"I'll take it one day at a time," he said. "If I come out of this in the end and am doing okay, well then that's great."

Bridgette Lamoreaux, owner of the Government Lake Lodge restaurant in Baldwin, echoed those same sentiments, saying small businesses struggle normally, and with this added to it, it only makes it harder for them to survive.

They have had to go to take-out service only since the governor's order to restrict places of "public accommodation."

"We depend on tourism a good bit," Lamoreaux said. "We are already coming off a rough winter with the limited snowfall, now coming into the summer tourist season, with the shutdowns everywhere, sales will definitely fall off. People will be limited as to what they can do financially, as well.

"We are hoping tourism will eventually pick back up," she said. "I feel like it will be a big bounce, once it does, but I don't know how long it will go like this.

"Right now, we have a few people passing through stopping for food and eating in the parking lot," she added. "And some are already at their cabins just to get away, but they are not out and about a lot. If the governor allows us to go to 50 percent capacity for inside dining, that will help."

Lamoreaux said they have had to let all their employees go. She works the restaurant by herself and they are using the time to do some remodeling and repairs that they didn't have time to do when they were busier, she said.

"We can only do what we can do," Lamoreaux said. "The outlook is uncertain, and only time will tell how it will work out."

Linda Ringler, owner of Chase Creek Smokehouse in Chase, said her sales are drastically down since they have had to go to take out only service.

"Our goal is to keep as many employees on as possible, so we are trying to get enough sales to make payroll and cover our food purchases," Ringer said. "We are keeping one server and three cooks on every day and trading off shifts trying to make this work. Once we are past all of this, we will be calling everyone back."

Ringer said they have reduced their hours of operation and may possibly go to opening for just the dinner hour to save on expenses.

"We feel confident we will survive it all," she said. "We don't owe a lot of money, and we are making cautious financial decisions. If we have to shut down temporarily, we think we can recover.

"We are hoping for a surge once all this is over and tourism picks up again," she added. "People from downstate are looking to vacation and come to stay in the cabins, so we are hopeful that things will get better."

Matt Bearup, Lake County Economic Alliance Board chair and owner of Best Bear Lodge and Campground in Irons, said he believed the stay at home order will have a lasting, devastating effect on the local economy.

"Many businesses in Lake County will not be able to recover from the shut down," Bearup said. "After a soft snowmobiling winter, lodging resorts and restaurants were counting on a busy spring. Although ATV and hiking trails remain open, the stay at home order is preventing travelers from coming to Lake County.

A post on the Lake County Chamber of Commerce Facebook page said the Chamber and the Para Dice Motorcycle Club made the decision to cancel the annual Blessing of the Bikes event due to COVID-19.

"We are looking out for the safety of our community," the post read.

Bearup said that's a loss of around $200,000 to the local economy.

"If the stay at home order continues indefinitely, or the coronavirus continues to spread, there will be several area businesses that are forced to close," Bearup said. "Many area tourism businesses will not be able to make up the losses caused by the slow down."

A $2-trillion stimulus package passed by Congress last week will provide small business loans up to $10 million, at 4 percent interest, to businesses with fewer than 500 employees. If used for payroll, rent, mortgage payments and/or utilities, the principal amount may be forgiven, leaving the business owner liable for only the interest on the loan.

The Economic Policy Institute is projecting a possible loss of around 400,000 jobs in the hospitality and leisure industry in Michigan because of the coronavirus pandemic.

For displaced workers, the stimulus package provides an additional $600 per week in addition to any state unemployment benefit, up to four months, and extends the eligibility period up to 26 weeks.

Workers who are let go are encouraged to contact the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA) at michigan.gov.
Representative image

The Maharashtra government last week acknowledged a new problemslums. The coronavirus that had sickened the relatively affluent had now percolated into the Mumbais slums, where the highly contagious virus can spread and hit with several times the earlier intensity. This even as Dharavi, Asia's largest slum, saw one dead and one infected by the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic.

A couple of days later, the Centre also changed its strategy by focusing on hotspots. A few days earlier, former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan, in an interview to Bloomberg, had said a lockdown was not enough to contain the virus, especially in slums, where people would end up spending a lot of time in close proximity.

More slums, more graft

Maharashtra is obviously the most perturbedit is the slum capital of India. And this is borne out by the Census data (Primary Census Abstract for Slum, 2011 Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India).

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

In just one decadefrom 2001 to 2011Indias slum population swelled by 25.1 % against average population growth of 17.6%. Since law-abiding folks, too, look for jobs and flock to cities, the growth rate for slum dwellers and the rest of the population should have been the same. The difference suggests that someone incentivised people to form slums.

And it is common knowledge that one reason politicians love creating slums is to change the demographics. It ensures that the ruling partys candidates get elected. It is like stuffing ballot boxes.

Slums offer politicians another advantagea conduit for diverting funds. Nothing highlights this better than the Census data, which shows that the rate of growth of slum households at 37% was higher than the growth of the slum population.

It can be deduced that the primary reason why households grew faster than the population is that almost all government incentives (subsidised electricity, gas cylinders, rations, etc) are given to households. Thus, it makes more sense for siblings to call themselves separate households. Since this is not possible without the collusion of the authorities, it is possible that they, too, shared the spoils.

How big could this subsidy amount be? That can be gauged from yet another figure---the number of people per household. In slums across India, against a normal density of 5.3 people per household, slums had an average size of 0.5. This means that ten times the normal subsidy was billed to slums. The pickings would be unbelievably large.

Sins become a nightmare

And now slums have become the biggest danger to politicians. Unlike cholera, malaria and diarrhoea which have been around for decades and which largely affect the poor, the coronavirus sickens the affluent as well.

In initial stages, it was largely confined to people who travelled by plane or cruise ships. Now it has reached the slums. A recent Mumbai Live report said four people, living in different chawls and slums of the city had tested positive. These are the hotspots that can ravage an entire city.

This is because there is just no way to lockdown a slum or maintain social distancing. Many people to a room, unsanitary conditions of living, common toilets that are not cleaned for days (in Mumbai, many slum dwellers have gone back to open defecation) and poverty. And in this cheek-by-jowl existence is a fertile ground for the spread of the virus.

The only solution is more and more testing  random testing  the way Singapore, Japan and Korea have done. But, as all state government officials have said, there are few testing kits.

The Centre has restricted the import of kits to only government hospitals and 12 licensed private testing laboratories. And contrary to the recommendation of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) that the tests be free, private laboratories will charge Rs 4,500 per test--a price that slums cannot pay.

The government can charge a patient Rs100 and pay the remaining Rs 4,400 to the private labs. It will make tests affordable, but the government should involve a price to prevent indiscriminate and irresponsible testing. But so far, the Centre is unwilling to foot the bill.

State governments will also not pick the tab till they are sure that they will get their share of goods and services tax and other amounts right away, so that they can pay for the tests. More significantly, they want the right to import testing kits themselves, so that they can find more cost-effective alternatives.

For instance, last week American medical devices company Abbott Laboratories announced it had come up with a testing kit that can analyse a coronavirus infection in five minutes and a negative result in 13 minutes. It has received emergency FDA approval and will begin producing 50,000 kits a day this week, media reports said. The pricing is not yet known.

Similarly, UK-based Mologic Ltd in collaboration with Senegalese research foundation Institut Pasteur de Dakar has promised to bring down in three months the cost of kits to $1 and testing time to10 minutes.

The Centre should immediately allow state governments to tie up with such entities and import in bulk equipment to allow large-scale testing of slum dwellers (even repeatedly, if required).

Such a move will ensure that those testing positive are immediately isolated for treatment. The spread of the virus can only be stopped by immediately identifying the infected.

The Centre does not permit state governments to import or to licence its own testing centres. This must change because states must deal with slums, which they created in the first place. Similarly for drugs like Hydroxychloroquine, which the ICMR has identified as a prophylactic for frontline warriors like doctors and paramedic staff , the government should immediately licence production of larger quantities. Most stores do not have the drug, as it has got sold out.

All this is required in slums. This is because the growth of slums in cities has been an epidemic by itself. Go back to the Census and you will find that the number of cities with slums increased from 1,743 in 2001 to 2,613 in 2011. Today there could be at least double the number. The focus on hotspots is understandable. The urgency is palpable. The only solution is more testing, and affordable (even free) testing.

If the Centre does not do this, the result could be a wildfire that no one will be able to control.
The first human trial of a vaccine to prevent the coronavirus could advance to the next step this spring, Moderna Chairman Noubar Afeyan said Thursday.

"It's difficult to put a specific date on things just because it's a very dynamic situation," Afeyan told CNBC's Meg Tirrell. "We've entered phase 1 trials. ... We'll enter hopefully phase 2 trials, we expect that to happen in the spring, perhaps early summer."

"And success there will hopefully lead us to phase 3 trials," Afeyan added on "The Exchange."

Moderna partnered with the National Institutes of Health to accelerate the development of the vaccine to prevent COVID-19. Phase 1 human trials of the potential vaccine began in the Seattle area in mid-March.

The trial was launched in "record speed," Dr. Anthony Fauci said at the time. Fauci, a White House health advisor and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Wednesday that the trial was "on track" and public distribution was still projected in 12 to 18 months.

The development of a vaccine to prevent COVID-19 continues to grow in importance as more than 981,000 people worldwide have been infected by the disease. More than 50,000 people have died, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

Afeyan, who is also CEO of venture capital firm Flagship Pioneering, helped co-found Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna in 2010.

Afeyan said he expects other companies working on a vaccine, such as Johnson & Johnson, could also be successful in developing an effective one.

"We hope that everybody succeeds because the worldwide demand for these types of interventions is far in excess of what any one player can deliver," he said.

Johnson & Johnson said Monday that it hoped to begin human trials of its experimental COVID-19 vaccine by September.

Other companies are attempting to develop a drug to treat COVID-19.

Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb told CNBC on Thursday that he hoped to see the same urgency around a vaccine be applied to a COVID-19 drug.

A vaccine is the long-term solution, but an effective drug could be developed more quickly, contended Gottlieb, a CNBC contributor who sits on the boards of Pfizer and biotech company Illumina.

"This virus isn't going away. It's going to continue to bounce around the world," Gottlieb said. "And it's going to change our lives until we have a therapeutic that can vanquish it or really take the fear away from this virus spreading in the background."
Relationship rumours of celebs often keep doing rounds on social media. Sometimes, they turn out to be true, sometimes not. In one such case, rumours of Jasmin Bhasins relationship with Punit Pathak became the talk of the town.

However, the Naagin: Bhagya Ka Zehreela Khel actress, in a candid Instagram live session with PinkVilla, cleared the air over her rumoured link up with Punit, saying she is single.

Replying to a social media users question about their relationship, she said Listen, guys, thank you for so much love that every male friend you see and pair me up with. Punit and I look good with each other, but the fact is that I look good with everyone.

She added that people are free to pair her up with anyone but it was not a good thing to do. She also said that she should be comfortable making male friends.

She told all her fans, who participated in the live session, that when she enters into a relationship with someone, she would inform people about it.

For the uninitiated, the two met on the sets of Rohit Shetty hosted reality show Khatron Ke Khiladi 9 and eventually developed a good bond during their stint on the show. Punit emerged as the winner of the show.

She had also been paired up with another Khatron Ke Khiladi 9 co-contestant Aly Gony, who was recently seen on Nach Baliye 9 with his ex-girlfriend Natasa Stankovic, Indian team all-rounder Hardik Pandyas fiance.

Follow @News18Movies for more
>>> European Council passes final procedure for EVFTA

A proactive approach to mastering the market and coping with the challenges in terms of strict requirements will enable businesses to seize the opportunities from this trade deal.

The European Council recently passed a decision to ratify the EVFTA and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA). The EVFTA will need ratification from the Vietnamese National Assembly (scheduled for the next few months) to officially come into force. The new-generation FTA will eliminate more than 99% of the tariff lines according to the roadmap, thus facilitating the export of Vietnams goods of strength to the EU market, such as garments & textiles, leather & footwear, agro-fishery and wood products. Vietnams exports are expected to increase by 20% within the next two years.

EVFTA  a trade deal with the highest-ever level of commitment

Europe is one of the most important trading partners of Vietnam, with two-way trade reaching US$56.39 billion in 2019, including US$41.48 billion worth of exports and US$14.91 billion in import turnover. Given that fact, the EVFTA is considered to be a lever for growth, opening great opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises to penetrate into the potential market with a population of 508 million and a gross domestic product (GDP) of roughly US$ 18 trillion.

According to research by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the EVFTA will help increase Vietnams export revenue to Europe by about 42.7% in 2025 and 44.37% in 2030 compared to a no-deal scenario. At the same time, the countrys imports from the EU are also expected to surge by about 33.06% and 36.7%, respectively. Experts also predicted that the EVFTA will contribute to hiking Vietnams GDP by 2.18-3.25% per year on average in the 2019-2023 period, 4.57-5.3% between 2024 and 2028, and 7.07-7.72% in the period from 2029-2033.

With its commitment to eliminating nearly 100% of import tariffs, the deal promises to strengthen export opportunities for Vietnams products of strength, such as garments & textiles, leather & footwear, rice, sugar, honey, fruit and vegetables, and wooden products. The level of commitment in the EVFTA is the highest level that Vietnam has reached among the signed FTAs so far.

A proactive access needed for enterprises

According to experts, to overcome technical barriers and maximise the benefits that the EVFTA can bring, domestic firms, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, need to proactively research information to make active preparations. The preparation should be carried out comprehensively from researching opportunities and challenges of the European market to developing solutions, such as improving the quality and design of products and promoting competitive advantages. In particular, businesses need to ensure their products meet the EUs requirements concerning rules of origin, technical standards and plant & animal health safety and hygiene.

Phung Thi Lan Phuong, head of the FTA Department under the Centre for WTO and Economic Integration at the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), said that the biggest requirement for businesses is how to understand the complicated commitments in the EVFTA as well as their impacts on business activities, thus making appropriate preparations and adjustments to take advantage of opportunities and cope with challenges from the agreement.

More broadly, enterprises should be proactively involved in the process of state agencies internalising EVFTA commitments to achieve the most favourable regulations for them. It is difficult to do this for every single business, but it will be much more effective if many businesses connect together and join business associations to offer their voices to state agencies.

Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh said that in addition to providing information, explaining commitments as well as connecting with the people and businesses concerning the EVFTA, the ministry organised specialised seminars and training courses in almost all provinces, cities and regions, focusing on the localities with units authorised by the ministry to grant certificates of origin (C/O) and the places which accommodate large industrial parks and businesses operating in the fields of manufacturing, imports and exports.

On the other hand, the work of researching the market, supply-demand and prices has been constantly updated to enable enterprises to orientate their production and business activities and take advantage of tariff preferences when the deal formally comes into force. In addition, the ministry continues to accelerate the advertising of products and the building of trademarks for Vietnamese goods in EU member countries markets.

Confronting challenges

According to lawyer Nguyen Kieu Anh from the NSN lawyer office, the EVFTA also features strict regulations and rules on investment procedures, customs, trade facilitation, technical standards, animal and plant quarantine measures, intellectual property, government procurement and sustainable development. Fully complying with these regulations requires the legal system to be continuously perfected in line with the requirements of international integration and commitments in the new-generation FTAs in a comprehensive and synchronous manner, regarding both economics and politics, with special attention paid to contents such as government procurement, intellectual property, labour and the environment.

Not just enterprises, state management agencies must also adjust policies to fully tap into the advantages from the EVFTA, including promoting the grant of C/O towards simplification and modernisation, accelerating the C/O issuance via the Internet, and improving the investment and business environment with stable and transparent institutions. These solutions require the synchronous effort of both the State and businesses through long-term and methodical plans. Moreover, it is necessary to have a mechanism for early warning so that enterprises can proactively avoid trade remedy lawsuits.

At the same time, Vietnam should accelerate the development of national standards and brands, while developing and replicating the grant of production area codes and the traceability of origin to meet the competitiveness in international integration trends. Trade promotion policies for each market are also needed, both in the medium and the long term.
The top U.S. general in South Korea said he does not accept North Koreas claim that it has no coronavirus cases.

I can tell you that is an impossible claim based on all of the intel that we have seen, General Robert Abrams told VOA and the U.S.-based cable news network CNN in a wide-ranging joint interview Thursday.

North Korea has repeatedly insisted it remains virus-free, even as the disease ravages countries around the world.

"Were not going to reveal our sources and methods. (But) that is untrue. How many, I couldnt tell you," Abrams said.

North Korea closed its borders in late January, just after the coronavirus emerged in neighboring China. But completely sealing the border with China would be almost impossible, since North Koreas economy relies on both formal and informal trade with China.

Abrams said North Koreas military was also locked down for about 30 days in February and early March. They took draconian measures at their border crossings and inside their formations to do exactly what everybody else is doing, which is to stop the spread, he said.

A major outbreak could lead to a humanitarian disaster in North Korea, which lacks proper medical supplies and infrastructure.

North Korea itself has called coronavirus prevention a matter of national survival" and implemented strict quarantine measures. Its state media have portrayed the efforts as one hundred percent successful and instead highlight sprawling death tolls in other countries.

With the worlds focus on the coronavirus, North Korea also has been testing an unprecedented number of missiles. Last month, the country test-fired eight short-range ballistic missiles, a record high for the country.

All they do is cause increased tension, Abrams said of the tests, which he said were part of a four- or five-year plan by North Korea to develop solid fuel missile capability with increased accuracy. If they perfect it, then bringing these types of systems online into a fully operational, capable status only serves to increase the threat to the Republic of Korea and other countries around the region.

North Korea is banned from any ballistic missile activity under United Nations Security Council resolutions. But U.S. President Donald Trump says he is not concerned about North Koreas short-range tests.


Some might consider it far-fetched for people with disabilities to fear they wont be given a ventilator if theyre near death because of COVID-19. Or that the ventilator they use daily might be given to someone else if they are critically ill and resources are scarce.

But such possibilities dont feel far-fetched to those who live their lives struggling against people and policies that devalue them or treat them as expendable.

Its always in the back of my mind  will they value me as a woman, as a wife, as a mother, as a professional? Or will I be looked at differently because I have a disability?, says Shona Eakin, 50, who lives in Erie County and has cerebral palsy. Its a fear. Its a fear generated by experience.

That fear has escalated as the exponential rise in critically-ill COVID-19 patients threatens to overwhelm the supply of ventilators and intensive care beds. Suddenly, theres serious discussion of how to choose who gets life-saving equipment and care when theres no longer enough to go around.

That keeps us up at night, says German Parodi, 35, a Philadelphia-area resident and quadriplegic.

Government officials from the Trump administration on down have been side-stepping the issue, stressing the way to prevent such worst-case scenarios is for everyone to follow social distancing practices intended to limit spread of the coronavirus and minimize the number of people who need hospitalization and intensive care.

At the same time, its clear state officials and hospital administrators around the country are circulating policies for the rationing of ventilators and ICU beds

There are signs such situations are near, if not already happening. The Washington Post this week reported that some New York City hospitals, flooded with critically-ill coronavirus cases, have told staff not to resuscitate some patients, such as those in cardiac arrest. At another hospital, doctors were cleared to designate, based on their own judgment, certain patients as do-not-resuscitate or do-not-intubate, the Post reported.

For people with disabilities, the frightening possibilities became vivid as it recently came to light that some states have policies that name disabilities as possible criteria for deciding who gets a ventilator.

Pam Auer, who has spina bifida, rejects such criteria for many reasons, including the fact people with disabilities have histories of beating the odds and proving doctors wrong.

Look how many healthy people are dying [of COVID-19], says Auer, the director of Living Well With A Disability at Center for Independent Living of Central PA. Weve lived this long. Give us a chance.

Gov. Tom Wolf responded to such fears this week, issuing a statement promising that things such as disability, financial status, age, race or sexual orientation will have no bearing on medical decisions.

Eakin says she trusts Wolf is sincere and well-intended. Still, his statement doesnt assure her that on the front lines, in times of extreme stress, overwork and desperation, flawed perceptions about a disabled persons survival prospects, quality of life, or ability to contribute, wont weigh against them. The devil is in the details, she says.

Dr. Douglas White, a physician and ethicist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, has been receiving national attention for a model policy he developed, and which he says is being adopted by other hospitals.

He says some of the widely-endorsed policies of the past are problematic in excluding certain groups of people by default, such as people with congestive heart failure and the very old.

While his policy does not exclude any individual or groups from eligibility for critical care, it prioritizes patients most likely to receive benefit from ventilator support, both in terms of the likelihood of surviving the hospitalization and longer-term survival. It also tilts toward decisions that benefit the most people, and preserve the most life-years.

The policy uses a scored-based system to decide who is most likely to benefit from critical care. In the case of ties, preference is given to people including the young, based on the rationale theyve had less time to experience life, and people who contribute directly to addressing the present crisis.

The person denied a resource will still receive the best available medical care and comfort, according to the policy.

The policy also calls for a triage committee, rather than front-line caregivers, to handle the decisions. It includes an appeal process. Further, the triage committee is expected to have up-to-the-minute knowledge of the critical supply inventory across hospitals. The purpose is to prevent situations such as a person being denied a ventilator when one has just become available elsewhere.

The Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund has responded to the situation with a brief to inform hospital and government officials and other decision-makers. It stresses that numerous laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Affordable Care Act, make it illegal to:

Deny or limit care to any person because of their disability;

Deny or limit care based on the fact that a person with a disability may have a lower likelihood of survival or require more intensive care;

Rely on quality of life judgments when deciding whether to deny or limit COVID-19 treatment

Deny or limit treatment to a person with a disability because they may require reasonable accommodations.

A Pennsylvania organization, The Partnership for Inclusive Disaster Strategies, is involved in daily conference calls with advocates and people with disabilities. Long before the pandemic became a U.S. crisis, they saw potential for emergency-driven policies and decisions to obliterate hard-won civil rights.

Hospital bed shortages, for example, create the possibility of people with disabilities in medical crisis being taken to a nursing home rather than a hospital, potentially institutionalizing them in violation of the law, according to Shaylin Sluzalis, the partnerships co-executive director.

The coronavirus crisis also creates the potential for disruption of life-sustaining home health care services that people with disabilities need to stay healthy and independent, creating another path to illegal institutionalization, she says.

Sluzalis is especially worried about people with disabilities in rural areas, where hospital resources are perpetually stretched, making them especially vulnerable to shifting priorities and shortages.

Eakin, the Erie County resident, is CEO of Voices for Independence, which advocates for people with cerebral palsy.

Every day at 4:30 a.m., she says, an aide helps her rise and prepare for the day. Her husband, Mike, has muscular dystrophy and requires a ventilator at all times and full-time care. All told, three caregivers come to their home daily.

The one that helps her in the morning feared the pandemic would isolate the Eakins without caregivers. So she moved in, along with her children and dog. With her home so crowded, Eakin, who uses a wheelchair, has been working from her car via cell phone and video conference.

The pandemic raises a range of problems and threats for people with disabilities, she says. Their home caregivers need personal protective equipment, now in short supply. Two of theirs work in multiple homes, creating risk they will bring the coronavirus in her home, where it could cause life-threatening illness for her husband. She says home care workers take great care to prevent that, and calls home health workers unsung heroes of the coronavirus crisis.

Regarding life-and-death triage decisions, she says they shouldnt be based on any condition that existed before the coronavirus pandemic.

She adds, The thing I dont want is to be judged based on someones perception of what my quality of life is.
The Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq has disclosed that the Nigerian government is paying N20,000 each to 5,000 households in the Federal Capital Territory, to help them cope with the difficulties the coronavirus pandemic might bring.

Sadiya who disclosed that the initiative was under the ministrys Conditional Cash Transfer program, added that the N20,000 given to each of the beneficiaries covers a period of four months and was in line with President Buharis directive.

She revealed that beneficiaries are entitled to N5,000 every month.

READ ALSO  Coronavirus: Lagos, Abuja, Ogun Markets To Open Between 10:00am and 2:00pm Daily: FG

The Minister who addressed newsmen after disbursing money to some households in Kwali Area Council of Abuja said over one million Nigerians located in 34 states will be benefitting from the initiative.

Speaking, Sadiya said: The CCT is for poor and vulnerable households in the country. Beneficiaries are entitled to N5,000 every month. Todays payment of N20,000 to each beneficiary is for four months. It is going to happen all over the country, but we are starting with FCT, Lagos, and Ogun. These are the frontline states. Other states will follow.
Shimla, April 2 : Three people in Himachal Pradesh who have returned to the state after attending a religious congregation of Tablighi Jamaat markaz in the Nizamuddin area of Delhi were tested coronavirus positive on Thursday, an official said.

A total of 190 people have been identified to have returned to the state after attending the congregation.

The three positive cases relating to Tablighi Jamaat attendees were reported in a masjid in Una town and sent to the medical college in Tanda in Kangra district, Additional Chief Secretary (Health) R.D. Dhiman said.

Five others, who were staying three, were quarantined to prevent the spread of the disease, the official added.

With the three cases, the total number of positive cases in the state rose to six with the death of one patient.
Max Rose is a freshman member of the United States House of Representatives. He represents the 11th District of New York, made up of Staten Island and part of Brooklyn. A Democrat, he is considered to be moderate.

Before going into politics, Rose was a Ranger in the United States Army. He has since transferred to the Army National Guard and currently holds the rank of captain. As noted by CNN, he temporarily left the campaign trail in 2018 for training exercises. Rose is now being called to duty once again.

Deploying as part of the effort against the novel coronavirus

Max Rose is being called to duty by the New York Army National Guard. Instead of being sent overseas, Rose and his unit are to remain stateside. They are being deployed as part of the ongoing effort to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Rose had previously been spotted volunteering at a testing site for the virus. He's allowed to step aside from his military duties if need be for a Congressional vote. As such, Rose downplayed his role. According to Axios, he stated 'I am just trying to do my duty and my small part.'

Tomorrow, I will be deploying to the National Guard to do my small part to assist in the response to the coronavirus on Staten Island.



Wanted you to hear from me what this means. We will get through thistogether. pic.twitter.com/ycwNtGi4ty  Rep. Max Rose (@RepMaxRose) March 31, 2020

As an officer in the United States Army, Rose was wounded while serving in the War in Afghanistan.

He later became a member of the elite Army Rangers. Rose's decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, and the Combat Infantryman Badge.

Rose is a member of the House Committees on Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs. He currently chairs the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism.

Discuss this news on Eunomia

Several members of Congress also serve in the military

Many members of Congress also concurrently serve in the military as members of the National Guard and Reserve. They include Steve Stivers and Trent Kelly. Stivers, a Republican from Ohio, is a Brigadier General in the Ohio National Guard. Similarly, Mississippi Republican Trent Kelly is a Brigadier General in the Mississippi National Guard.

Other members have retired from the military either before or during their Congressional careers. Scott Perry, a Pennsylvania Republican, has been a member of the House since 2013. He retired from the Pennsylvania National Guard in 2019 as a Brigadier General. Jack Bergman retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 2009 as a Lieutenant General. Since 2017, he's been a member of the House from Michigan as a Republican.

Perhaps one member of the modern Congress to at the same time serve in the military stands out. That being Lyndon B. Johnson. The Texas Democrat was a member of the U.S. Navy Reserve throughout his Congressional career. As a member of the House, Johnson served under General Douglas MacArthur in World War II.

He remained in the Navy Reserve while in the Senate. Which included time as the majority whip, the minority leader and the majority leader.

Johnson was a member still of the Navy Reserve during his time as vice president of the United States. It wasn't until 1964, almost two months into his first term as president, that Johnson resigned from the Navy Reserve. He held the rank of Commander. Which might have been a conflict with his role as commander-in-chief of the U.S. military.
By William Schwartz | Published on 2020/04/01

On April 1st the South Korean government revealed that Jang Keun-suk's mother had been remanded into jail over tax evasion charges. The arrest happened on March 30th and concerned hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of unreported earnings.

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The alleged crime was perpetrated through TreeJ Company, which Jang Keun-suk's mother heads. The relevant transaction, which occurred in 2012, involved transferring a large amount of money from Japan to Hong Kong. There is also evidence that a similar attempt at offshore tax evasion occurred in 2014.

It is not known whether Jang Keun-suk himself had any relationship to the crime, though he is also represented by TreeJ Company. Officials have been unsure about the extent to which the case should be treated in the public sphere, as Jang Keun-suk's mother is not, in her own right, considered a celebrity.

Written by William Schwartz
Covid-19 poll: Only 13 pct of Vietnamese say government not doing enough

Of 45 countries and territories surveyed, Vietnam has the highest satisfaction about their government's measures to fight the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sixty two percent of Vietnamese said their government was doing the "right amount" in response to the outbreak, the survey by Germanys Dalia Research found.

The survey, done between March 23 and 27, asked 32,631 respondents in 45 countries and territories around the world about their perception of their governments reaction to the epidemic.

Thirteen percent of Vietnamese said their government was doing "too little" while 25 percent said "too much."

Globally, 43 percent of respondents said their government was doing "too little" in response to the pandemic which has spread to 203 countries and territories and claimed more than 47,000 lives.

Two fifths of the global population believed their government was doing the "right amount."

China and Italy, hit hardest by the pandemic, fared well in this survey, with 56 percent of people in China saying their government was doing the right amount, and 49 percent in Italy.

Thailand had the lowest approval rating, with 79 percent of respondents saying the government has been doing "too little."

As the number of infections in Vietnam began to rise again on March 6 after 22 straight days with no new cases, the government has been taking unprecedented actions to contain the spread.

From April 1 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has imposed a 15-day nationwide social distancing campaign, banning gatherings of more than two people and asking people not to leave their homes.

The government also suspended all inbound international flights and halted road transport services until April 15 to limit travel in the country of 94 million people.

It has also shut down all "non-essential" services until April 15 and closed its borders with neighboring countries Cambodia, China and Laos.

It declared Covid-19 a national epidemic on Wednesday afternoon when the infection tally reached 212.

Many of the active cases are people, both Vietnamese and foreigners, coming from Europe and the U.S., and others who came into contact with them.

As of Thursday, the number of infections in the country has gone up to 222, including 64 who have recovered and been discharged from hospital.
An unsurprising consequence of the COVID-19 outbreak and the resulting flood of easy money (dwarfing even that of 2008) is a surge in demand for physical gold and silver. The spike in demand for bullion coins is so strong, some mints sold their entire inventories in record time. This has happened before, but this time, mines around the world are shutting down as whole countries go on lockdown.

Suddenly, theres a shortageand it may last much longer than the current relatively low pricesespecially for silver. Some buyers are panicking.

And not without reason. I tried to buy some physical silver when prices dipped below $12 two weeks ago. I found that even high-volume dealers like Kitco were out of stock. (I dont work for Kitco, and they dont pay me to mention them; I simply cite them as a well-known dealer familiar to readers.)

Today, I can buy a tube of 20 1-oz US Silver Eagles for $480. Thats a 66.7% premium over the current spot silver price as I type. Its $500 if I use a credit card.

What Does This Mean?

The US Mint sold 152,000 ounces of Gold Eagles in 2019. The World Gold Council estimates that global gold trade over the last 10 years was been between 130 million and 160 million ounces of gold per year. There are other coins and other mints, of course, but the fact remains that the entire bullion coin market is a tiny fraction of the global gold and silver markets.

The big ETFs and central banks arent popping down to their local coin shop for Eagles and Krugerrandsthey buy gold bars by the truckload.

This means that gold and silver enthusiasts should not expect the shortages and high premiums theyre facing to have any significant impact on the spot price of gold or silver.

All the bullion coins in the world are little more than trinkets to the paper-gold traders in New York. Theyre still distracted by things like the apparent strength of the USD in foreign exchange markets. They couldnt care less if the US, Canadian, and Australian mints were all out of stock at once.

That doesnt mean gold and silver prices wont go upjust that they wont do it because of the shortages retail investors are experiencing.

Fortunately, the fundamentals are on our side. Thats assuming youre as keen to buy monetary metalsgold and silverand related stocks as I am.

What to Do?

I think silver is going to $25 per ounce or more this yearand much higher over the next couple years. So should I just go with the current reality and pay $20 per ounce now, even though silver is still under $15 as I type?

To each his or her own but I have not done so.

For one thing, just because mints were caught flat-footed and sold out doesnt mean there wont be any more bullion coins until after the COVID-19 outbreak passes. The mints have inventory of metals for fabrication that they are surely digging into now. Theyll also have contracts for delivery, not all of which will be subject to shutdowns. What if the mints themselves shut down? That could happen, but such shutdowns wouldnt last as long as the pandemic itself.

For another, just because I think gold and silver will head higher this year doesnt mean theyll go straight up from here. Thats especially so for silver, which is also an industrial metal, subject to selling on bad economic news. Thats what took prices under $12 last month. And it could easily happen again.

I might pay a high premium if I have to, but I wont do it until gold and silver are on a strong upward trend, making the odds very much against me getting in at lower prices.

One more thing

Some readers have asked if they should sell some of their bullion in order to load up on gold and silver stocks in what looks to be shaping up to be the buying opportunity of the decade.

Personally, I see my bullion as savings. Savings have many uses. We tend to think of them as rainy day fundswhich they arebut thats only one use. Dipping into savings to buy a new home or to invest in a new business is a perfectly normal and potentially profitable thing to do.

The same could be said of liquidating savings in order to buy into what could be a life-changing speculative investment opportunity.

I confess Ive been tempted to do this myself but I have not done so.

One reason is specific to me: I poured most of my savings into starting my own company in 2018. Its still a high priority for me to rebuild my savings, so Im very reluctant to dip into them.

The general reason is that selling bullion to buy stocks is exchanging safe-haven holdings for risk assets.

Honestly, this weighs more heavily in my mind than my own specific reason. Gold and gold stocks are completely different things. I own one for prudence and the other for profit. These purposes are not interchangeable.

So again, to each her or his own. But anyone who dips into their savings to speculateeven if its the speculation of a lifetimemust be fully aware that theyre trading the security of physical wealth for possibilities that include much greater and much reduced wealth.

Thats my take,

P.S. To be kept abreast of more dangers, opportunities, and issues affecting us all, please sign up for our free, no-spam, weekly Speculators Digest.
The World Health Organization warns against the use of Chloroquine, but some Senegalese doctors say it is a cheaper solution.

An anti-malaria drug is being given to patients with COVID-19 in Senegal.

The World Health Organization (WHO) warned against the use of Chloroquine, but some Senegalese doctors say it is a cheaper solution.

Al Jazeeras Nicolas Haque has more from the capital, Dakar.
A Delhi hospital said on Thursday that many members of the Tablighi Jamaat, suspected of carrying coronavirus infection, are resisting testing for the disease and feel they do not require to be admitted to the hospital. A hospital official quoted by news agency ANI said this was putting the security of the medical staff at the hospital at risk.

Medical director of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narain Hospital (LNJPN) in Delhi, said 188 out of 216 Covid-19 patients at the hospital were from the Tablighi Jamaat from Nizamuddin and 23 out of the 24 samples tested from the group had come out positive. He called the situation alarming.

Weve 216 Covid-19 patients, out of which 188 belong to one group (attendees of Tablighi Jamaat event). We had received reports of 24 patients from the group out of which 23 tested positive. This is alarming, said Dr JC Passey, Medical Director of Delhis LNJPN Hospital

He added that police has been deployed around the three blocks were the attendees of the Jamaat were admitted to prevent them from causing any trouble.

Many of them (attendees of Tablighi Jamaat event) are objecting against testing and they feel they dont need admission (to the hospital). So, this puts the security of our staff at risk. Now, police have been deployed around 3 blocks where they have been kept, Dr JC Passey was quoted as saying by ANI.

The Indian railway authorities, too, had reported alleged misbehaviour by some of the members of the Tablighi Jamaat admitted at its quarantine facilities on Wednesday. The authorities had complained that some members had made unreasonable demands related to food and raised a din at the centre that also included threatening behaviour towards the nursing staff.

In another related incident in Madhya Pradesh, two doctors are reported to have suffered injuries in an incident of stone-pelting in Indore when they were out to screen and identify possible Covid-19 patients in the city, which is among the worst affected in the state.

Roughly, 8,800 members of the Jamaat, who had attended a three-day religious meet at the Tablighi Jamaat headquarters in Nizamuddin, are being traced by Indian authorities after it emerged that several of them were infected with coronavirus and could spread the disease further in the local communities in different states. The congregation is being called the single largest source of infections in the country, as of now and efforts are on to trace, test and quarantine its members.
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We arent the first Christ-followers to face times of plague and pestilence. History tells of several devastating pandemics that swept Europe in the early days of Christianity and, during all of them, Christ-followers distinguished themselves by their counter-cultural responses.

During the second-centurys Plague of Galen, the diseases namesake (who was also Romes foremost physician) fled to his country estate. Helpless before the onslaught of the unknown contagion, he and many others ran, hoping to save their own lives.

During the third-century Plague of Cyprian, Dionysius, bishop of Alexandria, wrote that the Romans pushed the sufferers away and fled from their dearest, throwing them into the roads before they were dead and treated unburied corpses as dirt

Christians, however, behaved differently. As sociologist Rodney Stark famously put it, they ran into the plague.

Cyprian of Carthage, the bishop who gave his name to the third-century outbreak, described the response from his fellow Christians this way: we have begun gladly to seek martyrdom while we are learning not to fear death.

Heedless of the danger, he wrote, followers of Christ took charge of the sick, attending to their every need and ministering to them in Christ, and with them departed this life serenely happy

Though their deaths likely seemed pointless to many Romans, Stark argues in the book The Triumph of Christianity, that Christians may very well have decreased the death toll by administering basic nursing care to those strong enough to recover. Their work, in many ways, was analogous to modern healthcare.

In the most recent episode of the BreakPoint Podcast, historian Dr. Glenn Sunshine describes how Christians repeated this kind of response not only in these two plagues, but in all the pandemics that followed.

Whether in Justinians Plague of the sixth century or the Black Death of the fourteenth century, many believers sought to imitate Christ, who, as Isaiah wrote, took on our infirmities and carried our sorrow. Sunshine even notes that during the Black Death, clergy died at a higher rate than the general population, because they were unwilling to forsake parishioners who had fallen sick.

Its clear how our Christian forbears dealt with the plagues of their cultural moment. Whats not as clear is how Christians today should run into the plague in our cultural moment, one with a dramatically increased knowledge of viruses and pandemics and how to handle them, which includes knowing how the spread of coronavirus can be dramatically slowed by social distancing.

The sort of care Christians personally offered in the past is now widely available and, by minimizing the risk to particularly vulnerable members of our churches and community, we can ensure the system that provides such care is not overwhelmed. The love of neighbor in this cultural moment, given the incredible knowledge and resources we now havewhich are gifts of Godwill look a bit different.

In the podcast, Dr. Sunshine pointed to a letter by Martin Luther that helps us reconcile this dilemma of loving neighbor while being wise. Addressing the question of Whether One May Flee from a Deadly Plague, the reformer argues that All of us have the responsibility of warding off this poison to the best of our ability because God has gifted humans with their bodies [and] so too he has gifted the medicines of the earth. Our duties to our neighbors, congregations, or (if were in healthcare positions) our patients are best fulfilled in ways consistent with expert medical advice.

In other words, our principles need not change in order to love and serve our neighbor, though our behavior will. Dr. Sunshine offered a few suggestions we might put into practice today: picking up groceries for shut-in neighbors, ensuring they have vital medications, and using technology to encourage and comfort Christians in ways that in times past could only happen in person.

And on Wednesday, our podcast will feature a Christian who is creatively running into the plague in Colorado Springs, where I live, right now. Its an amazing story. Come to BreakPoint.org to find the podcast or subscribe to the BreakPoint podcast on iTunes or whatever service you use.

Originally posted at breakpoint.org
A landmark United Nations climate change summit, originally scheduled for November in Glasgow, Scotland, is being delayed until next year.

Why it matters: This isn't just another major convention scuttled by coronavirus. This is a make-or-break moment as countries face pressure to increase their ambitions to tackle climate change.

Where it stands: The conference, now set to be held in spring 2021, is the most important of these perennial U.N. gatherings since the 2015 event in France, which resulted in the Paris Climate Agreement.

The Glasgow summit is meant to be where nations present the first batch of more ambitious plans, as called for every five years in the 2015 deal.

The big picture: A variety of countries were already falling behind increasing commitments to that deal, whose goal is to limit Earths temperature increase below 2 degrees Celsius over the next century. The economic recession roiling the world is likely to only make these commitments less central to governments priorities.

One level deeper: The shutdowns associated with coronavirus are already resulting in less heat-trapping emissions and other kinds of pollution.

The ensuing recession is also likely to temper emissions throughout much of this year.

But past economic recessions, including the 2008 crash, indicate these trends will dissipate as economic activity picks back up.

Yes, but: Some energy and environmental leaders, including the International Energy Agency, are calling on governments to incorporate policies into economic recovery plans that are more supportive of clean energy and action on climate change.

The intrigue: The planned site of the climate conference in Glasgow  the SEC Arena  is being turned into a temporary hospital to manage patients with COVID-19.

Go deeper: 10 ways coronavirus is changing energy and climate change
The Massachusetts governor struck a deal for N95 masks from China, but he needed a way to transport them. The New England Patriots plane ended up making the delivery. Photo: New England Patriots
A Santa Fe man is accused of setting his own car on fire near the intersection of St. Francis Drive and Agua Fria in Santa Fe on Monday afternoon.

Ryan Ruppert, 46, allegedly set his 2007 Honda Accord on fire by placing a burning piece of paper in the gas tank and using a lighter under the hood of his car, according to a criminal complaint filed in Santa Fe Magistrate Court on Tuesday, which includes eyewitness accounts.

A tow truck driver arrived at the scene and put out the flames coming out of the cars hood, the complaint states. The fire was mostly out by the time officers arrived.

Santa Fe Police Department officers eventually arrested Ruppert, who first attempted to run away from police on Alameda Street by jumping into a nearby arroyo and hiding underneath a bridge. He was soon taken into custody.

When arrested, Ruppert claimed the car was already on fire when he left it and that he had not done anything to start the flames.

An eyewitness reported that he saw Ruppert use his lighter near the windshield wiper part of the Accord, then leaving the vehicle once it had become engulfed.

Ruppert was charged with a fourth degree felony for arson and could serve up to 18 months in prison if found guilty.

Police say no motive has been found so far for why Ruppert would have set his own car on fire.
PRIVATE sector associations and corporates in the East African Community (EAC) have called upon partner states to take action to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the business sector.

Under the umbrella of the East African Business Council (EABC), the associations and corporates have asked for interventions in that the central banks in the region to lower the rates so as to incentivize commercial banks to lend at lower rates to the private sector.

The business community has also asked the central banks to consider lowering the reserve requirement ratio as that would allow commercial banks to have more liquidity and enough lending capacity.

Central banks, it is pleaded, need to extend lending facility to commercial banks by releasing special fund that would enable commercial banks to have sufficient funds for lending to the private sector.

They have been asked also to review existing treasury bonds/securities rediscount  open market operations through buying back bonds at the prevailing market rate so as to provide liquidity to the economy through commercial banks and other entities.

EABC Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dr Peter Mathuki summed some of the deliberations as asking the central banks to restructure loans by allowing a considerable period for non-performing loans to give relief to both lenders and borrowers at the time of COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the fraternity has also asked the governments of Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan to prioritize payment of domestic debts as that will inject liquidity in the market and enable businesses, especially Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sustain the businesses.

EABC has asked the EAC governments to increase minimum taxable salary income to at least 250 US dollars so as to increase the disposable income of low earning workers to enable them to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

There is also a need for reduction of income tax rate for companies to 20 per cent as this will increase the net salary of employees to enable workers to have extra money to spend on the advent of COVID-19 pandemic. Reduction of Corporate Tax Rate to 20 per cent will enable businesses/companies have cash that can be invested back to the businesses to boost the working capital in order to sustain businesses, said the former East African Legislative Assembly.

Dr Mathuki noted that the private sector has also pleaded with the governments to consider temporary removal of employment taxes and levies (Skill Development Levies) so as to encourage employers to retain the existing workers and do away with downsizing in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic.

EAC governments are asked to allocate enough funds to cater for outstanding Value Added Tax (VAT) refunds, paying all outstanding VAT refunds will give businesses the needed liquidity to boost their working capital during the COVID19 period.

There is a need for removal of all other charges of equivalent effects, such as Import Declaration Fees (IDF) and Railway Development Levy (RDL) for imports of raw materials, capital goods, intermediate goods and essential goods. This will provide relief to manufacturers/producers and make such goods available at affordable prices, noted the CEO.

The associations and corporates further want partner states to reduce standard VAT rate to at least 12 per cent at this stint so as to protect consumers across the EAC against high prices and enable them to access consumable goods and services at affordable prices.

They have also asked for a zero-rate VAT for all essential products such as staple food items, soaps, disinfectants, sanitizers, water and electricity.
Soldiers patrol along a street in Dhaka during a government-imposed lockdown as a preventive measure against the coronavirus pandemic, March 26, 2020.

Authorities in Bangladesh have moved to block several websites, a minister said Thursday, two days after the police warned of a clampdown on sites whose reports are based on rumors amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Bengali and English editions of BenarNews, a U.S. government-funded online news portal, were not accessible in Bangladesh on Thursday, and officials would not confirm that they were among those blocked by the government action.

There was also no official notification from the government that it had blocked the website of BenarNews, whose mission is to provide readers with accurate news and information adhering to a strict code of journalistic ethics.

BenarNews is an online affiliate of Radio Free Asia, a U.S.-funded private, nonprofit corporation that provides uncensored and reliable news and information to audiences in Asia.

The Bangladesh action came amid concerns expressed by U.S.-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) this week that the government appeared to be cracking down on those who were expressing concern over the governments handling of the epidemic.

Health authorities in the nation of 165 million people are testing for COVID-19 at an alarmingly low rate compared with many other countries, according to a local news report this week that cited testing data from the state-run Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR).

When contacted by BenarNews on Thursday, Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar said a number of sites had been blocked by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), which his ministry oversees. But he refused to say whether BenarNews was among them.

Actually I cannot specifically tell you that BenarNews is blocked, he said. I cannot remember whether BenarNews is in the list of blocked sites.

It is not the duty of the minister to remember the names of the sites listed for closure, he told BenarNews. We ask the BTRC to block the sites, which the intelligence agencies examine and suggest for blocking. You better contact the intelligence agencies.

On Tuesday, Bangladesh police said they had detained an undisclosed number of people in various parts of the country over allegations of spreading rumors about the coronavirus, and indicated that action was being planned against more than 100 websites and social media accounts.

The police said in a statement that a list of 50 social media accounts had been sent to the BTRC for action against them and we are also working at the moment to identify and locate people involved in spreading rumors from 82 other accounts, pages and sites.

So far, Bangladeshi health authorities have confirmed 56 cases of the coronavirus and six deaths from the contagious disease, but critics have suggested that the actual numbers of infected people in the South Asian nation could be significantly higher.

A leaked draft of a United Nations memo has warned that up to 2 million people could die of the coronavirus in Bangladesh if the government does not take appropriate action to stem the virus in the densely populated country, according to a report from an investigative website.

BenarNews had carried the report, which was published over the weekend by NetraNews, a Sweden-based non-profit news portal covering Bangladesh. NetraNews quoted the World Health Organizations country chief, Bardan Jung Rana, as saying that the memo was written jointly by U.N. agencies including WHO, the Bangladesh government and development partners.

The memo was reportedly circulated last week among diplomats in Dhaka.

BenarNews interviewed Bangladesh Foreign Minister A.K. Abdul Momen on the memo and he called the leak a total violation of the U.N. charter.

According to its rules, the U.N. should have consulted the host government before finalizing any statement, Momen told BenarNews.

They can only circulate [the document] if the host government approves [it], he said, adding, They have not shared the document with us.

Since mid-March, the authorities have apparently arrested at least a dozen people, including a doctor, opposition activists and students for their comments about coronavirus, most of them under the draconian Digital Security Act, HRW said in a statement on Tuesday.

While the government has a responsibility to prevent the spread of misinformation about COVID-19, this doesnt mean silencing those with genuine concerns or criticism of the governments handling of the crisis, said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

The government should stop abusing free speech and start building trust by ensuring that people are properly informed about plans for prevention, containment, and cure as it battles the virus.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal rejected the statement from Human Rights Watch, telling BenarNews that the government was engaged in fighting coronavirus and not aiming to suppress free speech.
Organizations that represent farmers are working on getting an accurate count of this years census.

The Illinois Farm Bureau equipped each county farm bureau with an iPad as a part of the effort to assist both members and non-members of the Illinois Farm bureau with getting access to the internet in order to complete their census survey. This year will be the first year where the survey can be done online and online surveys could become increasingly important if field work is further postponed due to COVID-19. The U.S. Census Bureau has already suspended field work until April 1.

Lindsay McQueen, manager of the Cass-Morgan Farm Bureau, said her bureau is trying to reach out to farm bureau members and other members of the community through social media in order to explain the importance of filling out the census for rural communities.

McQueen said that filling out the census is important for residents of rural communities in order for them to have representation in Congress. The count from this years census will help the U.S. government decide how it will apportion seats in Congress. Current projections suggest that Illinois population loss will result in the state losing one or possibly two seats in House. Analysts are predicting that those lost seats could come from the southern, more rural parts of the state.

I think for every person that does [the census] downstate, McQueen said, That maybe will help us keep our local representation.

The census also plays a role in the allocation of $675 billion in federal funds in year. Agencies use census information when they make decisions about allocating the money. McQueen said that education, fire and emergency response services, employment, housing and road work are some of the sectors that the funding could impact. She said that improving transportation will be important for farmers.

In rural areas, access to broadband presents an issue for taking the online survey. McQueen said that while the Census Bureau wants everyone to do the census online, a hard-copy version is available in the packet and a person can call the census hotline to conduct the survey over the phone.

Kristin Jamison, president of the Jacksonville Regional Economic Development Corp., said the corporation is involved in the census in its role as a regional partner to municipalities in Morgan and Scott counties.

Jamison said the JREDC worked on a plan of action to make sure that there is awareness of the census. They have worked on an advertising campaign for both traditional and social media. Jamison said that she is finding that the online survey has been an efficient and effective means of getting people to do the census,Were getting a lot of feedback that folks are already completing the census online.

Jamison said that Morgan County officials took part in the Local Update of Census Address Operation to make sure that every Morgan County address are electronically documented bu the Census Bureau so every resident could receive an invitation to respond to the census.

McQueen said that doing the online survey is not timely. She used the iPad provided to the Cass-Morgan Farm Bureau to do her own survey and she completed it in two minutes and 30 seconds.

The Cass-Morgan Farm Bureau office is a census access center  which means that it is assured that it will have internet access and a tablet available for anyone in the community that needs to do the census. McQueen said that residents should know that the information they put in will be confidential. Disinfectant wipes will be used to wipe down the iPad to protect against the spread of coronavirus.
Healing Hands: a heartwarming book that contains the authors moments of pain, yearning, and finding joy in God that guided her to a victory of overwhelming toils. Healing Hands is the creation of published author Marilyn Diane Grenion C., a prayer warrior, Gospel sharer, avid reader, poet, and writer who attended Central Assemblies of God in Georgetown, Guyana.

Marilyn Diane Grenion C. shares, Healing Hands is a part of my life story how I was able to overcome the challenges that Ive faced as a child and up into adulthood. Growth is a natural process of life but if the foundation is not set right, your growth can be impaired.

Parental separation; family disintegration; verbal, mental, and physical abuse; sexual molestation; abandonment; hunger; false accusations; feeling rejected; low self-esteem; depression; marital problems; betrayal; anger; bitterness; and resentment, but yet, desperation for change drove me into the arms of Gods loving embrace where I found a sense of meaning, purpose for living, healing, and the ability to forgive by exchanging my will for Gods will for my life. Our gifts, talents, and abilities do not always come wrapped in pretty packages but sometimes hidden and then revealed through the seemingly harsh experiences of life.

There is purpose in your pain. There is a testimony and a message in your test and mess. There is a crown for your cross and there is compassion for the poor and sick soul. My prayer is that you will experience a sense of peace and healing as you read Healing Hands.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Marilyn Diane Grenion C.s new book is an enriching testament of redemption from the throes of darkness that greatly proclaims the love and mercy of the Lord for those who seek His face and will in their lives.

This book enraptures the readers hearts with its relatable circumstances that teach a resounding lesson of unyielding faith in the Lord, especially in times of doubt, that assures lifes fulfillment.

View the synopsis of Healing Hands on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase Healing Hands at traditional brick-and-mortar bookstores or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Healing Hands, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
A federal judge in Oregon on Wednesday denied a request by six immigrant advocacy groups to order the nations 69 immigration courts to hold hearings by phone or video during the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. District Judge Karin J. Immergut ruled she cant issue a broad sweeping remedy affecting immigration courts across the country when she has few details about whats happening in each of the courts or without individual plaintiffs before her.

Immergut said she must defer to the immigration courts on how to respond to the crisis in their jurisdictions but noted that her ruling shouldnt in any way be taken to minimize the concerns raised by the immigrant advocates.

Six nonprofit organizations that provide legal services to immigrants had urged the judge to order all immigration courts to require remote hearings for detained people to protect public health and to make sure participants rights are preserved during the immigration courts response to the pandemic.

They argued the immigration courts are still requiring lawyers, judges, staff and subjects of cases to appear in person, refusing to extend court deadlines and arent providing immediate notice of court closures. Immigration judges also are fast-tracking deportation orders in the absence of lawyers and their clients, they said.

We are asking the court to keep people alive, to keep people who are navigating the immigrant court system alive, said attorney Nadia Dahab, senior litigation attorney at Innovation Law Lab. Plaintiffs are not asking the court to shut down the immigration courts. Were asking the court to preserve and protect the operation of the nations immigration laws in the course of a pandemic.

Immigration courts in El Paso, Texas, for example, arent making remote appearances available, Dahab said. While a video conferencing system is available in El Paso, lawyers have been told it cant be used because of security reasons, Dahab said.

Immergut asked why the plaintiffs arent addressing problems directly to the specific immigration courts where they allege the problems are occurring.

Were not going to individual courts because the problem is systemic.  We need a systemic remedy to fix it, Dahab said. In the face of a rapidly escalating global pandemic, it is now or never.

The plaintiffs in the case are the Southern Poverty Law Center, Innovation Law Lab, Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. and Santa Fe Dreamers Project.

They sought a 28-day temporary restraining order that would have barred the nations immigration courts from requiring any participant or lawyer to appear in person for a hearing. It also would have barred throwing out any application for relief because of a missed deadline or late filing during the global pandemic.

In December, the organizations filed suit in U.S. District Court in Portland, arguing the nations immigration court system has been coerced to serve the Trump administrations anti-immigrant agenda. That case is still pending.

In their request for an emergency temporary restraining order, they asked Immergut to order the immigration courts to extend deadlines, adopt appropriate safety measures and ensure that immigrants cases arent prejudiced by court policies during the national public health emergency.

Nobody should become infected by Covid-19 by participating in the immigration system, Dahab argued.

Brian Ward, an attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice, defended the steps taken to respond to the pandemic and called the plaintiffs request an extraordinary step that that would effectively shut down all immigration-court operations everywhere, including essential court functions.

The request also is outside the scope and authority of the district court under the Immigration Naturalization Act, Ward said.

The Executive Office for Immigration Review, which oversees the immigration courts, has adopted thoughtful plans and policies to respond to the pandemic, yet also needs to retain flexibility to respond to individual local immigration court issues, Ward said.

The overwhelming majority of hearings over the last couple of weeks have been done by video or phone, he said, and more local policies are being developed to allow that to occur more frequently.

According to James McHenry, the director of the Executive Office for Immigration Review, 75 percent of removal hearings have been done by phone or video between March 18 and March 26.

Immigration judges are waiving certain appearances, granting continuances in cases, limiting physical presence in the courtroom and encouraging hearings through video or phone to the maximum extent practicable consistent with the law, McHenry said in a declaration to the court.

A number of former immigration judges and members of the Board of Immigration Appeals filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the motion and urged a more comprehensive and scientifically sound policy that respects due process and the public health.

They said the Executive Office for Immigration Reviews steps have included a chaotic and confusing series of tweets, emails, notifications, memos, and orderssome of which raise serious questions of legality, many of which contradict one another, and none of which seems to be based on any semblance of an actual plan that accounts for the science of public health.

Dangerous, last-minute orders have occurred to first close then reopen courts in Seattle and Newark and elsewhere during the pandemic, according to the friend of the court brief by the former immigration judges.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212

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The United Nations says it needs $21 million to ease food insecurity in Zimbabwe as the country deals with measures imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

The government says it is going to release funds to help people most affected by the COVID-19 lockdown, such as the old and the unemployed.

In a recent analysis, United Nations experts said 45 percent of Zimbabwes rural population is either in crisis or emergency mode in terms of food security.

The analysis said the situation is likely to worsen with the coronavirus pandemic.

The World Food Program is stepping in to try to ease the impact.

Via Whatsapp, Claire Nevill, the WFP spokeswoman in Zimbabwe, said the U.N. agency has increased the number of food distribution points to limit overcrowding and distributed protective clothing, among other hygienic measures, to curb the spread of the disease.

But Nevill said the WFP needs more funding.

In order to provide food assistance to almost four million vulnerable Zimbabweans, in the context of these new health and safety measures, WPF requires an additional $21 million for the next six months. This funding shortfall is on top of an existing gap of $130 million faced by WFP Zimbabwe for the next six months. Our assessments show that the harvest will be much later this year. Until then this food assistance is critical to save millions across the country, she said.

On Wednesday, Zimbabwe Minister for Social Welfare Paul Mavima said, while the WFP will mainly feed the rural population, the government will give cash to vulnerable people in urban areas affected by the 21-day lockdown, which started Monday.

We have new vulnerables as a result of loss of income. The new cash transfers are for urban areas. We are estimating that initially we may be getting a million in these urban areas. But we will review as we go along, he said.

Since the start of the lockdown, vendors have been asking for the Zimbabwean government to compensate for lost revenue.

Thirty-eight-year-old Patience Rugare, who usually runs a stall selling second-hand clothes in Harare, said she needs immediate assistance.

Rugare said that when this lockdown started, she had no food in stock as she lives hand to mouth. We are going to die of hunger as we are just seated at home. I wish they would assist us with cash so that we can survive.

The United Nations says Zimbabwes food insecurity is caused by a combination of recurring droughts and a moribund economy. Fortunately, the country has seen only one death from coronavirus so far, and only eight confirmed cases of the virus overall.
A Chicago doctor has described life as a medical professional on the front line of the coronavirus outbreak.

Dr Scott Samlan, who works at the Mount Sinai Hospital on Chicagos west side, spoke to CBS News David Begnaud from the heart of the crisis, giving the interview directly from the emergency room of the hospital.

I deal with gunshots every day and trauma and crazy stuff and this is the only thing that scares me, the doctor said as he began the powerful virtual interview.

This is the most scared Ive ever been being an ER doctor, and its not just because of me. Its because I have a wife and a 2-year-old and a 1-year-old at home and I dont want to expose them, he told Mr Begnaud.

Dr Samlan explained how doctors were being forced to diagnose all patients coming into the ER with respiratory problems as having Covid-19, as theyre unable to risk waiting for the three days it takes to get test results.

If their white count is normal and theyre lymphopenic, which is something that we look at, and their x-ray looks like Covid, and theyre influenza-negative, its Covid, he told the broadcaster.

When asked by Mr Begnaud if the doctor was seeing evidence that the disease was only severely affecting older patients, Dr Samlan replied: you can tell that to the 27-year old I intubated last week who had no medical problems.

Dr Samlan referred to the ERs self-made physician protection box which CBS said the doctors had made at a plastic manufacturer. The report said the doctors place the Perspex box over the patients head to afford physicians makeshift protection from the patients mouth, intending to lower the risk of infection.

During the interview, another doctor, Dr Chris Scodeller, conveyed frustration with lack of supplies, including Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), which allows the doctors to carry out their job as safely as possible.

There was the CDC that said we could use bandanas as a form of protection for ourselves instead of masks, so I got one that I carry in my pocket, Dr Scodeller said.

Its frustrating, it feels like the government let us down.

Last week, a nurses union hit out at New York governor Andrew Cuomo for insisting that nursing staff have enough protective equipment for the immediate future.

A nursing manager who cared for coronavirus patients at a Mount Sinai hospital died of the virus last week and staffers alleged to The New York Post that PPE shortages could be tied to the nursing managers death.

A spokesperson for Mount Sinai has vehemently denied the claims to The New York Post.

Dr Scodeller has reportedly been using a respirator he got from a previous job and a filter his father gave him from his job in construction.

He expressed to the CBS reporter solemnly that patients are dying alone because of the isolation measures necessary in hospitals to try to contain the spread of the virus.

Dr Samlan finished the interview by urging people to listen to the governments stay-at-home orders to help stem the spread of the virus in the US, which now has just short of 200,000 cases on Wednesday according to a running tally by John Hopkins University.

I want people to stay home, this is the real deal, he said.

If you have a friend or a colleague or anyone you know in the healthcare industry whos working the front lines, just send them a text saying god bless you, love you, thank you for what youre doing, thats all we need.
An Air China plane takes off from Beijing Daxing International Airport on Sept 25, 2019. [Photo by Zou Hong/chinadaily.com.cn]

Chinese Foreign Ministry coordinating with other departments to arrange flight to Britain

More Chinese students in the United Kingdom will be able to return to their homeland later this week following an arrangement struck between the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

Speaking at a daily news briefing, ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the foreign ministry is coordinating with the CAAC and other departments to arrange a flight to the UK on Thursday to bring back Chinese students in need.

"The Communist Party of China Central Committee attaches great importance to and cares deeply about Chinese students abroad, and has taken major measures to protect their safety and health," Hua said.

"After COVID-19 broke out in many places around the world, China arranged temporary flights to bring back people... (in difficulty) in an orderly manner from Iran and Italy."

She went on to say, "The CPC and the Chinese government closely follow and care for the health and safety of overseas Chinese students.

"In accordance with the directions of the CPC Central Committee, the Foreign Ministry instructed over 280 Chinese embassies and consulates overseas to maintain close contact with overseas Chinese students, get to know their requests and difficulties, and help them solve practical problems."

While the UK has more than 220,000 Chinese students at 154 universities, around 15,000 Chinese teenagers are studying at more than 1,000 British private schools, making China the top source of overseas students in the UK, according to the Chinese embassy in London.

The embassy has provided Chinese students in Britain with "health kits" containing essential epidemic prevention materials and guidelines. The number of COVID-19 cases in the UK reached more than 25,000 on Wednesday.

China still faces the risk of a rebound of novel coronavirus pneumonia at home, with the spread of the pandemic overseas posing new challenges. Experts in disease control, based on the World Health Organization recommendations, suggested reducing cross-border movement as much as possible.

Chinese civil aviation authorities reduced the volume of international passenger flights in response to the pandemic's spread, with all foreign airlines to maintain only one air route to China and operate no more than a single flight per week starting last Sunday. Chinese domestic airlines are also asked to retain just one air route to each foreign destination and fly the route only once a week.

Noting that some overseas Chinese students face various difficulties and need to return home, the CAAC said the major air transportation guarantee mechanism will be activated to arrange extra flights and charter flights to cities with viable destinations where a large number of people in need are concentrated.
Pakistani police surround handcuffed Omar Sheikh as he comes out of a court in Karachi. (AFP file photo)

Karachi: A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the death sentence for British-born militant Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who had been convicted over the 2002 killing of American journalist Daniel Pearl.

Sheikh's defence lawyer Khawja Naveed told that his client's sentence had been reduced to seven years in prison.

Since Sheikh has been in prison since 2002, he was expected to be released, but the court had not yet issued that order, Naveed added.

Prosecutors did not immediately comment.

Pearl, 38, was the South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal when he was abducted and beheaded in Karachi in 2002, while researching a story about Islamist militants.

A graphic video showing Pearl's decapitation was delivered to the US consulate in the city nearly a month later.

Sheikh was arrested in 2002 and sentenced to death by an anti-terror court, while three other co-accused received life imprisonment.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University following an investigation into his death made chilling revelations, claiming that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.

The investigation, led by Pearl's friend and former Wall Street Journal colleague Asra Nomani and a Georgetown University professor, claimed the reporter was murdered by Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, the alleged mastermind of the September 11 2001 attacks, not Sheikh.

Mohammed better known as KSM was arrested in Pakistan in 2003 and is being held in Guantanamo Bay.

A US psychologist who interviewed KSM said the prisoner had told him that he had beheaded Pearl.
MANILA, April 2 (Reuters) - The Philippines, the world's top rice buyer, said on Thursday it has secured Vietnam's commitment for continuous supply of the staple foood, which may include a 300,000-tonne importation, under an existing bilateral trade agreement.

The announcement comes after Vietnam, the world's third-largest rice exporter, stopped signing new deals as it checks whether it has sufficient domestic supplies to cope during the coronavirus outbreak.

Agriculture Secretary William Dar said he had received a letter from Deputy Minister Le Quoc Doanh of Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Development expressing Hanoi's commitment to honour its existing supply contracts with Philippine importers.

"The government of Vietnam always considers rice trading with the Philippines is not only of economic importance, but also of significance for our good diplomatic relations between the two nations," Le said in the letter, according to Dar.

The letter was sent after Dar early this week said about 1.38 million tonnes of rice imported by Philippine traders have yet to be delivered, including 1.25 million tonnes ordered from Vietnam.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said on Tuesday his country needs to sell rice but exports must be controlled to ensure food security.

Dar has sought to allay concerns about a tightening of domestic supply at a time when many parts of the country have been locked down to contain the spread of the coronavirus, while the world's top rice exporters have also been hit by the pandemic.

"Le also said that Hanoi is also working on possible governmental agreement with Manila on rice trade," Dar said in a statement, without mentioning any volume.

The Philippine government this week said it was looking to import 300,000 tonnes of rice to ensure sufficient domestic supply of the staple while it seeks to contain the spread of the coronavirus in the Southeast Asian country.

(Reporting by Enrico dela Cruz; editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
Unemployment is likely to peak at 25% by early summer, as the economy tanks at an unprecedented rate, but the outlook could get a lot worse if the Government needs to extend the Covid-19 lockdown, the Central Bank has warned.

The banks latest quarterly report focuses on the up to 500,000 jobs, including construction workers, threatened temporarily by the pandemic.

Such is the severity of the economic hit that the Central Bank said there is huge uncertainty about the potential depth and persistence of the downturn currently underway, in particular if the lockdown is required to extend through the summer months.

"An extraordinary number of individuals have been laid off and the economy faces more persistent scarring effects should the lockdown be prolonged, it said.

A 25% peak unemployment rate was not matched even during the worst of the years of the banking and property crash of over a decade ago, as the global Covid-19 crisis delivers a double whammy by hitting household spending as well a depressing demand for Irish exports.

In terms of the economic hit, the Central Bank assesses that under a 12-week shutdown that unemployment falls back to around 12.5% by the end of the year.

GDP nonetheless posts a drop of 8.3% in 2020, while output under an alternative measure could slide by 25% in the quarter, it said.

And the Central Bank starkly warned that under under a number of scenarios the economic fallout will be much higher  if the pandemic is not controlled relatively quickly.

If the measures were to remain in place for a longer period in 2020, the output losses would be larger than calculated, it said, suggesting that a further 12 weeks of restrictions could potentially mean that the fall in output almost doubles.

It said the costs of the Government measures to protect the economy and additional spending on health was around 8.2bn, while the final cost will, of course, depend on factors such as the length of the crisis and the uptake of various schemes.

Last years budget surplus turns into a deficit of over 10% under the modified measure of Irish output, or a deficit of 6% of GDP.

The States debt accelerates to 112% of economic output from 97% last year, equivalent to a debt load of 66% of GDP, up from 58% in 2019.

The overall fiscal costs of dealing with the pandemic runs out at 21.8bn  as the exchequer suffers from a loss of tax revenue and from additional expenditure.

The near-term outlook for the economy is very unfavourable and, beyond that, the path ahead for the economy depends on the path of the virus, both domestically and globally, the Central Bank said.

On financing the costs, it said the NTMA had large positive cash balance" although there are a number of debt issues which are due to mature this year.

Possible additional sources of finance to bridge the expected gap between Government revenue and expenditure this year include", using the the Rainy Day Fund, it said.

On the banks, the Central Bank said the crisis will affect their loan losses but they have built up reserves and their resilience in recent years.
Two more persons, who attended the Nizamuddin congregation recently in the capital, have been found positive for the coronavirus in Pimpri-Chinchwad of Pune city.

According to Shravan Hardikar, Municipal Commissioner of Pimpri-Chinchwad, a total of 23 people from the city were identified, who attended Nizamuddin Markaz in New Delhi. They were traced and were put under quarantine facility.

There has been an increase of 131 COVID-19 cases in the last 12 hours.

The total number of COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday rose to 1965 in India, including 1764 active cases, 151 cured, discharged or migrated patients and 50 deaths, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The reason the federal government and most provincial governments are not releasing COVID-19 death and illness projections is because whatever modelling they do have is not credible information. Its little more than guess work. Releasing it would be a pointless exercise.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Opinion

The reason the federal government and most provincial governments are not releasing COVID-19 death and illness projections is because whatever modelling they do have is not credible information. Its little more than guess work. Releasing it would be a pointless exercise.

The federal government and some provinces are being criticized for not sharing whatever estimates they have on the number of deaths and illnesses they expect from the novel coronavirus. Supposedly, by not sharing this critical information, Canadians arent being told the truth about the magnitude of the pandemic. As a result, they may not be preparing or reacting the way they should.

Its a nonsensical argument.

No government in the world has the foggiest idea of how many people will die from this highly infectious disease. This isnt the flu, a respiratory illness that kills about 3,500 Canadians a year. Epidemiologists know a great deal about influenza and can make reasonable assumptions about it from year to year, including how many people it will kill.

They can make very few assumptions about the virus that causes COVID-19 because its brand new and they know little about it. Theyre still learning how its transmitted, how it affects people in different age groups and how it may be treated.

Its precisely why the governments chief message at this stage in the pandemic is for people to stay home, keep their distance from others and wash their hands frequently. When science has no idea how to fight a communicable disease using traditional methods, the best it can do (other than to work feverishly to find treatments and a vaccine) is to tell people to stay home. Thats where were at right now.

Do governments have spitball numbers around best-case and worst-case scenarios? Of course they do. Are those projections useful in any way shape or form? If released, would they help the public protect themselves against the virus? Would it help slow the spread?

No to all of the above.

Thats because whatever data they are looking at is based on extremely dubious assumptions. Its essentially useless.

The projections released in the United States recently, that up to 240,000 Americans could die from the disease if they all follow rigid social distancing rules (much higher if they dont) is constructed on so many unknown variables, it has virtually no meaning. Health officials have no idea how many people will die from a virus they know so little about. Even they admit their numbers could be way off. Releasing that data is little more than an attempt to satisfy curious minds. Its not a scientific projection.

Anyone can do the ballpark calculations on death rates and illnesses from COVID-19. Somewhere between 30 per cent and 70 per cent of people may become infected, they think. Perhaps one per cent to four per cent of those infected will die, according to some of the case-fatality numbers weve seen around the world (which differ widely between countries and depend in large part on testing). But what purpose would it serve to make those calculations, especially when the assumptions could be wrong?

Jen Zoratti | Next A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Thursday his province will release its projections so people can have a better idea of what the outcomes may be. It appears hes doing so because he believes Ontarians, some of whom are ignoring social-distancing rules, need to be shocked into compliance. However, the projections will either be so broad in scope that theyll be useless, or theyll be based on a narrower range that will not be credible.

Governments would love to have reliable modelling they could use to fight this pandemic. It would allow them to better prepare hospitals and other aspects of the health-care system for the inevitable wave of COVID-19 patients. But no reliable estimates exist.

There is no team of advanced statisticians locked in a government room somewhere with crystal-ball powers that government officials are hiding from the people.

The best health-care officials can do is test as many people as possible, prepare hospitals for the worst human calamity imaginable and implore people to stay home and follow all of the recommended precautions.

At a time when the public needs credible scientific information, releasing unreliable  possibly misleading  data would be the worst thing they could do.

tom.brodbeck@freepress.mb.ca
By Associated Press

JOHANNESBURG: Both the Islamic State group and al-Qaida see the coronavirus as a threat, but some of their fighters also see the upheaval from the pandemic as an opportunity to win over more supporters and strike harder than before.

Messages from the Islamic extremist groups show concern about the virus mixed with bravado, asserting that it is punishment for non-Muslims while also urging followers to repent and take care of themselves.

Al-Qaida suggested in a statement Tuesday that non-Muslims use their time in quarantine to learn about Islam.

But in a sharp commentary in its al-Naba newsletter in mid-March, IS urged followers to show no mercy and launch attacks in this time of crisis.

In a commentary Tuesday, the International Crisis Group warned that the pandemic threatens the global solidarity that is key to fighting extremists.

"It is almost certainly correct that COVID-19 will handicap domestic security efforts and international counter-ISIS cooperation, allowing the jihadists to better prepare spectacular terror attacks," it said.

Though analysts said it was too soon to say which attacks can be blamed on militants exploiting the coronavirus, Islamic extremists in late March carried out their deadliest assault yet against the military of Chad, a significant contributor to Africa's growing counterterrorism efforts, killing at least 92 soldiers near the border with Nigeria and Niger.

In Egypt, two military officials reported a spike in IS attacks in March in the restive northern part of the Sinai Peninsula but security forces foiled at least three other major assaults.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

While Syria and Iraq have seen no uptick in attacks by IS since the virus spread there, the pandemic has prompted the US-led coalition to halt training activities in Iraq amid a planned pullout from several bases.

There are signs elsewhere that the US, British and other militaries are pulling back because of the virus, leaving a possible opening for the extremists.

That's a danger in Africa's hot spots of the Sahel, the Lake Chad region and Somalia, where the US military already worried allies in recent months by contemplating cuts to focus on threats from China and Russia.

"Any state that was interested in pulling back in Africa will take the opportunity to do so," said Clionadh Raleigh, executive director of the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which tracks extremists' activities worldwide.

"That will be unbelievably bad."

A US Africa Command spokeswoman, Lt. Christina Gibson, told The Associated Press that "while the size and scope of some AFRICOM activities have been adjusted to ensure the safety and protection of forces -- both US and partner nation -- our commitment to Africa endures."

"She did not give details of affected operations but said AFRICOM still has about 5,200 forces on the continent at any given time.

The British army mission in Kenya, which provides counterterrorism training and other skills, this week announced that all army families are returning to the UK because of the virus.

But France's largest overseas military mission, Barkhane in West Africa's sprawling Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert, is keeping its 5,100 troops there, the French Defense Ministry said.

A pro-al-Qaida French organization issued a statement Tuesday urging French forces to stay home and save lives instead.

African military units, already stretched thin and under attack, are likely to take protective measures as the virus threatens their ranks.

In Nigeria, which has struggled against the Boko Haram extremist group and an assertive IS-linked offshoot, the military has called for suspending much of its activities including large gatherings and training.
Mexico President Andres Manual Lopez Obrador turned up the heat on firms during this COVID-19 crisis telling them that they should continue paying their workers or face public contempt even as his economic management's criticism grows among the opposition and business leaders.

The President, who has stimulated concern among the company owners, as well as the foreign embassies for letting major contracts with companies to be summoned into query, urged bosses "to act with their conscience" in compensating their staff.

Speaking during the morning news conference which is done regularly, Lopez Obrador, a leftist leader, said that some of the leading companies in Mexico have committed to holding on to their respective workers during this time of crisis.

In addition, he also told the reporters that without identifying specific companies, indeed, there are some, he said, that don't behave accordingly. However, he continued, they still have "time to change," because, he warned, "they'll look bad."

READ: The US Outlines Recommendation to Lift Venezuela Sanctions

Full Payment of Wages Mandated

The President also said there's no point in spending an ample amount of money on advertising if, in an emergency or crisis, these companies act in a selfish or usurious manner.

The political leader explained, in a public health emergency, the labor law in Mexico allows companies to put their staff on minimum wages for one month.

On Tuesday, President Lopez Obrador said, a similar law had a rule, as well, to obligate a full payment of salary, and urge firms to do it out of unity.

First off, he said, there is no need to bring the appeal to tribunals as it should be done for humanitarian reasons. In addition, the president stated, he is presenting a plan on Sunday for the fueling of the economy.

Although so far, he said he has pushed back from the business lobbies' proposal to spend more money to moderate the misfortune of what the economic experts are expecting to be as a sharp recession.

Rather, President Lopez Obrador has taken a message that he delivered a message that his administration is ready to support the small businesses, as well as the poor.

However, he said he is not going to stage the "neo-liberal" kind of bailouts he refers to which his successors orchestrated for those on top.

READ NEXT: How American Lives are Likely to Change After COVID-19

Reckless Speech, According to Business Executives

Business owners who feel they are the ones being targeted by the President's use of the "neo-liberal" term, not to mention his tendency of demonizing money, consider his speech as reckless at a period when there is already an economic recession, and the peso has fallen to several record lows.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, the President upset on Saturday, some renewable-energy advocates after he slammed wind turbines in Mexico's remote areas as "neo-liberal" eyesore which came from corruption, just as he gets ready to reveal a major energy plan envisioned for the lifting of the company.

READ MORE: Chris Cuomo, News Anchor, and Brother of Governor Andrew Cuomo Tested Positive for COVID-19

The economic management of this Mexican President has provided the opposition politicians with an opportunity to begin appearing from his shadow. In addition, the western state of Jalisco governor Enrique Alfaro said on Wednesday, the administration was neglecting the needs of companies.

Businesses, he added, are not requesting for tax breaks, and that, they literally desire for oxygen so they can portray their respective roles.
The Nigeria government on Thursday announced its plans to engage citizens in digital activities from the comfort of their homes during the restriction of movement due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement signed by the technical assistant (Information Technology) to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Femi Adeluyi, the initiative would empower innovators and entrepreneurs with skills required to thrive in the emerging digital economy.

The statement highlighted websites for accessibility to the online activities.

Read the full statement below

His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, launched the Digital Nigeria Programme on the 19th of March, 2020 as one of Federal Governments key initiatives that will empower innovators and entrepreneurs with skills required to thrive in our emerging digital economy.

In furtherance to this, the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, FNCS, FBCS, FIIM, is promoting options for digital training for Nigerians. This is especially important at a time when the world stays home to combat the spread of COVID-19.

The Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy is partnering with a number of institutions to enable Nigerians acquire cutting edge digital skills within the comfort of their homes. One of such partnerships is based on the MoU signed with IBM on the 16th of January, 2020.

Through this partnership and as part of the IBM Digital Nation Africa programme, the Ministry will be providing Nigerians with over 280+ hours of free learning & 85+ courses on key emerging technologies like:

Blockchain;

Artificial Intelligence;

Big Data; and

Cloud Computing.

Nigerians are encouraged to register today at http://idna.digitalnigeria.gov.ng.

Users can also access the programme through the IBM Digital Nation Africa App on Google Play Store.

The Ministry will be sharing similar opportunities in the coming days on its social media pages, website and on www.digitalnigeria.gov.ng . These programmes will include training courses provided as a result of our collaborations with the following partners:

African Development Bank (Coding for Employment programme); and

Huawei (ICT Academy Telecom and Information Technology Skills programme).

The Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy is committed to developing the capacity of Nigerians to use technology to solve problems. We will also deploy technology to limit the disruption to education and the economy caused by COVID-19.

Through the Digital Nigeria programme, we will empower Nigerians to develop skills and build innovative solutions to tackle challenges within our community. #DigitalNigeria.
Ant McPartlin is set to close his 20 million television business after reportedly finalising his divorce from Lisa Armstrong.

According to Companies House, the presenter's production business Teecourt Limited has filed paperwork to cease trading in the coming weeks.

It comes after records revealed that Ant, 44, cashed in on his presenting commitments with hosting partner Declan Donnelly, as both earned an average of 15,124 a day.

Shutting down: Ant McPartlin is set to close his 20 million television business after reportedly finalising his divorce from Lisa Armstrong

Companies House records show that Teecourt Limited retained earnings of 20 million, including 9 million in cash and 11 million in investments.

The company is used to pay Ant his share of earnings for his television commitments with partner Dec.

MailOnline has contacted representatives for Ant McPartlin for comment.

Over: The presenter has reportedly filed paperwork to cease trading, amid claims he handed over 31 million to wife Lisa during their divorce settlement

Earlier this year, Saturday Night Takeaway host Ant was reported to have handed over 31 million to Lisa in their divorce settlement, including their 5 million home in West London, after an 'eight-hour negotiation'.

The beauty expert was said to have been the 'peacemaker' during a recent eight-hour long discussion about her divorce from the TV star, claimed The Sun.

The publication first alleged the TV veteran offered up more than half of his estimated 50m fortune, but was 'delighted' that the case has come to an end as he can 'move on', two years after announcing their split.

However, as the news broke, the former Deuce musician took to Twitter to deny the reports, posting: 'Nope a load of nonsense AGAIN....'

Cashing in: It comes following reports Ant and Dec cashed in at least 15,124 a day last year after making an epic return to the small screen together

It comes following reports Ant and Dec cashed in at least 15,124 a day last year after making an epic return to the small screen together.

According to records, the hefty sum was paid into just one of their firms, Hurley Promotions Ltd, with the company's profits increasing from 4.5 million to 5.5 million between 2018 and 2019.

Dec also managed to bank 5.2 million for solo work while his sidekick, also 44, took a year-long break from his TV commitments to focus on his recovery from prescription drug addiction in rehab.

Powerhouse: Dec, 44, managed to bank 5.2 million for solo work from June 2018 to June 2019 while his sidekick, also 44, was in rehab (pictured with Holly Willoughby for 2018's I'm A Celeb)

The iconic hosting duo joined forces at the Britain's Got Talent auditions for the first time in January 2019 following nearly a year off from TV together.

Ant's personal issues saw him sit out the last few episodes of BGT, as well as Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, in spring 2018.

As Geordie presenter Dec was forced to front the latter episodes of their famous shows alone, as well as I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! with Holly Willoughby, he made 5,289,051 from June 2018 to June 2019.

Back together: The iconic hosting duo joined forces at the Britain's Got Talent auditions for the first time in January 2019 following nearly a year off from TV together (pictured)

According to The Sun, more than 4 million came through his company Deecourt Limited, while the remaining profit was paid into firms he co-owns with Ant.

Ant first sought rehab treatment in June 2017 after becoming addicted to prescription drugs and alcohol following a botched knee surgery in 2015.

He entered rehab for a second time in March 2018 after he was involved in a three-car collision in Richmond and was discovered to be over the limit behind the wheel.

The TV veteran pleaded guilty to drink-driving the following month and he received a record-breaking 86,000 fine, as well as a 20-month ban from driving.

His divorce to wife of 12 years Lisa was finalised in October 2018, and the TV star has since found romance with her former PA Anne-Marie Corbett.

Ant and Dec, who have been presenting together since 1994, are estimated to be worth a whopping 62 million.

MailOnline has contacted Ant and Dec's representatives for further comment.

The faces of British TV: The pair, who have been presenting together since 1994, are estimated to be worth a whopping 62 million (pictured at the NTAs in January)
Assam Health and Family Welfare



Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday visited Mahendra Mohan Choudhury Hospital (MMCH) here to check the condition of a patient, with suspected symptoms of COVID-19.

After visiting the hospital, which has been turned into an exclusive COVID-19 facility, the minister said in a twitter post that the test result of the patient is awaited.

Assam has reported three new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday in Goalpara, taking the total to 16, with all the three persons having attended a congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin West, he said in a separate tweet.

On Wednesday night, the health minister along with Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Pijush Hazarika, had visited Sonarpur civil hospital, another dedicated novel coronavirus facility - where three COVID-19 positive patients are being treated.

"Along with MoS @Pijush_Hazarika visited Sonapur Civil Hospital to enquire about the 3 #COVID19 patients here, and met doctors, he said in another tweet.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
CLEVELAND. Ohio  Unemployment claims continued to skyrocket in Ohio after Gov. Mike DeWine issued a statewide stay-at-home order to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The state reported 272,117 initial unemployment claims in the week ending March 28, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor and the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Nationally, the U.S. reported more than 6.6 million jobless claims, double what it reported the previous week.

The latest Ohio figures represent a record for the state, and a significant increase over the revised total of 196,309 unemployment claims filed during the week ending March 21. That week began with DeWines order to close bars and restaurant dining areas and also included orders closing other non-essential businesses, such as gyms and hair salons.

The 468,414 claims filed in Ohio in the past two weeks is more than 364,603 claims filed during all of 2019, the ODJFS said in a statement.

Ohio issued more than $45 million in claims to 108,000 people over the past two weeks, the ODJFS said.

The claims filed in the past two weeks have shattered the states previous record for weekly unemployment claims since 1987, the earliest date such data is public available. The prior high of 49,321 came during the week ending July 25, 1982.

The unemployment claims during the coronavirus crisis easily eclipse the highest total for a single week during the Great Recession. During that economic downturn, jobless claims peaked at 40,829 for the week ending Jan. 10, 2009.

Its important to keep in mind that during previous economic downturns, claims came in waves as the recession worsened and businesses closed gradually, over time, the ODJFS statement says. In this case, the claims came in all at once and created a tsunami.

As the need for unemployment benefits has spiked, DeWine and state lawmakers have moved to temporarily waive requirements for applicants, such as actively seeking work and waiting one week to start receiving benefits.

An Ohio Department of Job and Family Services spokesman told cleveland.com last week that the state had more than $1 billion in its unemployment insurance fund. Officials said its unclear how long those funds will last, but the federal government will loan money to the state if needed. Ohio borrowed $3.4 billion from the federal government during the Great Recession, and repaid the money in 2016 with $257.7 million in interest.

The states unemployment website saw a 31-fold increase in traffic the week DeWine ordered bars and restaurant dining areas to close, and many job-seekers complained of technical issues. Lt. Gov. Jon Husted apologized last week for reports the site had crashed, and state IT staff have said they are working to rapidly expand bandwidth to meet the increased demand.

Ohio released several unemployment updates in the days after DeWine began ordering businesses to close, but stopped after the Trump Administration ordered states to stop releasing daily updates amid the coronavirus crisis. Ohio will now release unemployment statistics every Thursday morning, when the federal government releases its figures, Husted said previously.

Husted said last week that he was really troubled by the U.S. Department of Labors directive to withhold unemployment data until the weekly release, but he said Ohio needed to work together with the federal government. An ODJFS spokesman pointed to the Department of Labors authority to oversee and regulate state unemployment programs through the Social Security Act and the Code of Federal Regulations as the reason Ohio complied with the Trump Administration request.

Read more Cleveland.com stories:

Ohio, national unemployment claims amid coronavirus pandemic shatter previous records

FAQ: Everything you need to know about getting Ohio unemployment amid coronavirus outbreak

Ohios unemployment insurance fund will still pay benefits despite years of near-insolvency, officials say

Ohio IT staff strain to keep up with surging web traffic amid unemployment spike, coronavirus crisis
The Cachar district



administration has ordered an inquiry into the alleged incident of abuse and harassment of a doctor on duty by Barkhola's BJP MLA Kishore Nath, a National Health Mission (NHM) official said on Thursday.

The inquiry will be conducted by the in-charge of Barkhola primary health centre Dr M Singh, NHM's media official Suman Choudhury said.

The Assam Branch of Indian Medical Association (IMA) has also sent a memorandum to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal demanding action against the MLA for allegedly abusing doctor Sujit Singh.

The doctor has filed an FIR against the MLA, his guards and associates for abusing him in the hospital on March 28.

A video showing that the doctor on duty in Borkhala Primary Health Centre being abused, humiliated and punched by the BJP MLA also went viral on social media on March 31.

The Officer-in-Charge of Barkhola police station, Surajit Choudhury confirmed that a case has been registered under various sections of the IPC on the same day.

Choudhury said that the police has started an investigation into the matter and no one has been arrested so far.

The argument between the doctor and MLA along with his guards began over the treatment of a newborn baby.

During the argument, the MLA, his guards and supporters scolded, abused and humiliated him, the doctor alleged. The parents of the baby had raised a hue and cry and called the MLA who used vulgar and objectionable words, he said.

The BJP MLA Kishore Nath, in turn, alleged that the doctor was in an inebriated condition and the FIR was filed against him three days after he met the doctor in the hospital.

Nath claimed the video has been sent to the media to tarnish his public image.

It is a political conspiracy against him, the MLA claimed.

Meanwhile, in another incident, Cachar Deputy Commissioner Barnali Sharma suspended a government employee for making "highly irresponsible comment on Facebook".

The employee had posted derogatory comments against a particular community for attending a religious congregation in New Delhi, an official said.

The deputy commissioner in an order said, being a government servant, he should not have commented on the social media.

"Prima facie, it appears to be highly irresponsible. He has been placed under suspension with immediate effect," the deputy commissioner said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Its week No. 3 of sheltering in place in San Francisco, and what is there to say except that Im still drinking?

Like many of you, Im adapting to a new routine, settling into a different relationship with my work and trying to remain calm despite the constant fear of loss. Ive been busy; theres been plenty to report on at the nexus of the coronavirus and the world of wine, beer, spirits, bars and restaurants. But reporting on it  and reading the rest of the news that my colleagues are putting out  can feel exhausting.

So in this weeks newsletter, were not going to rehash the latest news or address any big questions about what the coronavirus means. Instead, Im just going to share some of the wines that Ive been enjoying while sheltering in place. Somehow, the bottles seem to be getting empty more quickly than normal these days.

A note: All of these wines can be purchased directly from the producers web sites  theres never been a better time to order wine for home delivery! But dont forget that most of the Bay Areas great wine shops are still open for business, and many of them are offering delivery or curbside pickup options too.

What Im drinking

Ernest The Farmer Chardonnay Cleary Ranch Sonoma Coast 2017 ($46, 12.66%): Ive enjoyed getting to know the wines of Ernest Vineyards, a label owned by San Francisco residents Erin Brooks and Todd Gottula, with winemaker Joseph Ryan, focused on single-vineyard wines from cold, coastal Sonoma County sites. Cleary Ranch, in Freestone, is a prime example of what Ernest does so well: Its a wine of contrasts, packing powerful flavor into a taut, compact frame, with layers of texture. Laser-sharp acidity cuts through flavors of almond skin, Fuji apple and melon.

Ernest has got a couple of interesting sub-labels, too, including one called Edaphos that produces the only domestic version of Petite Arvine, a Swiss grape variety, that Ive ever encountered. The Petite Arvine is lovely, but sold out.

Three Sticks Castenada Rose Sonoma Coast 2019 ($45, 14%): One frustration  very minor, in the grand scheme of things  of sheltering in place right now is that the weather in San Francisco is just so beautiful. It feels cruel to be stuck inside for so much of the day. Rose has helped me bring a little bit of springtime into my apartment. This pink wine, mostly a saignee from Three Sticks Castenada red Rhone blend, has the color and juiciness of a ripe watermelon. Its a bold, full-flavor rose  not the pale-onion-skin versions that have been flooding the market in recent years  and on a sunny, warm, late afternoon last week, that was exactly what I needed.

Reeve Lower Block Pinot Noir Kiser Vineyard Anderson Valley 2017 ($85, 13.8%): I was familiar with the Kiser Vineyard, in the chilly, far-northern stretches of the so-called Deep End of Anderson Valley, through the wines that Copain had made from it. After the Copain brand sold to Jackson Family Wines in 2016, the Kiser family began selling all of the fruit to winemaker Noah Dorrance, who had recently launched Reeve Wines. Copain used to bottle block-designate wines from the vineyards upper (en haute) and lower (en bas) blocks, and Dorrance has done the same. He also bottles a sub-block designate of the lower portion, the Suitcase Block. All three Kisers will confound any drinker who assumes that California Pinot Noir always tastes as saccharine and juicy as a maraschino cherry: These are restrained, savory, elegant. But despite being from the same vineyard, the wines are remarkably distinct, which Dorrance attributes to their differences in soil depth, clonal material and temperature.

Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

I loved all three wines, but on the night I opened them, the Lower Block in particular spoke to me. Its fruit profile is dark, with a deep, brambly concentration. Yet for all its intensity of fruit, the wine feels lithe and delicate, with piercing acidity. Save it for a contemplative moment.

Ridge Blasi Zinfandel Chalk Hill 2018 ($36, 15%): I adore Ridges Zinfandels, which are the specialty of its Lytton Springs winery in Healdsburg. (Many of its other wines are made at Ridges original Monte Bello winery in Cupertino.) But this was my first time ever trying the Blasi. Its from a vineyard called Metcalfe, in the Chalk Hill AVA  a subregion of the Russian River Valley  and the wine is named for its longtime farmer, Gary Blasi. Aromatically, it almost reads as a Pinot Noir, full of red cherries and floral perfume. The dominant flavor recalls Red Vines: bright, fruity, licorice-y, a little bit candied. For all that exuberance, and its considerable alcoholic weight, the wine feels well proportioned. I found it to be perfect with pizza.

Esther Mobley / The Chronicle

Jaimee Motley Argillet Mondeuse Santa Maria Valley 2018 ($38, 12.3%): I loved Jaimee Motleys inaugural release of Mondeuse so much that I named her a Winemaker to Watch two years ago. Last week I tasted her latest Mondeuse, the 2018, and it was just as delicious as Id remembered. The grape variety, best known in versions from the French Alps, shares some of the savory-floral characters of Syrah. This vintage shows a heady mix of crushed blueberries, dried flower petals and pine needle. For a thick, tannic red wine, its uncommonly expressive on the nose. Maybe its the suggestion of the Alps, but it brought to my mind a sense of fresh, cool air.

Drinking with Esther is a weekly newsletter from The Chronicles wine critic. Follow along on Twitter: @Esther_Mobley and Instagram: @esthermob
Months before Nextdoor announced a new mobile app to help public agencies with citizen engagement, it had quietly acquired a competitor in that space, Colorado-based Neighborland Both companies have made the GovTech 100 since launching in 2011, but the overlap in business interests between Nextdoor and Neighborland boils down to citizen engagement, being only part of the former and the entire focus of the latter. Nextdoor started with a website in 2011 followed by an app for the general public in 2013, building a social media platform that now serves 260,000 neighborhoods across all 50 states and 10 other countries. As Head of Product Tatyana Mamut explained tolast year, Nextdoors public agency users have long been able to communicate with members through the website, but the new mobile app in February was intended to make that easier.Neighborland is not a social media platform but a software tool for creating an organized dialog with citizens around specific proposals or issues. As of last year, it had been involved in over 200 projects and about 50 government agencies as of last year, and it recently launched an app for transportation agencies as well.Neighborland co-founder and CEO Dan Parham confirmed in an email that talks between the two companies started in September. He said he is now leading Nextdoors public agency team, and his co-founder Tee Parham is leading a new product and engineering team in Colorado.Nextdoor spokeswoman Edie Campbell-Urban said in an email that the acquisition occurred in late 2019 and will help the company build out its products for public agencies.Nextdoor and Neighborland share a passion of empowering people to build strong communities and shape the development of their neighborhoods, and together will deliver even more tools to our public agency partners, she wrote. Dan Parham  brings extensive experience working directly with local, state and federal agencies. Dan is now head of public agencies at Nextdoor and leading the charge in working with all of our agency partners.The transaction followed Nextdoors massive fundraising haul of $170 million in 2019, according to Crunchbase . Terms of the sale are not yet public.In what may be a busy spring for Nextdoor, the company has entered into two other significant partnerships: last week, with the office of Californias Gov. Gavin Newsom, which will use Nextdoor to disseminate information during the COVID-19 crisis; this week, with the National Governors Association, for the same purpose.A news release from Nextdoor said the number of public agency posts on its platform has tripled since the beginning of March, while the company partnered with thousands of public agencies, from regional and state departments of health to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Red Cross.Accurate information is critical in our fight against the spread of this virus, said NGA Chief Operating Officer LeAnne Wilson, in a statement. Working to ensure families can get accurate information from trusted local sources will help engage a stronger community response.
Many online publications in South Africa have seen a dramatic increase in readership as people look for reliable news about the coronavirus outbreak.

This is according to the latest figures from Narratiive, the official traffic measurement partner of the IAB South Africa.

Narratiive showed there has been a 32% increase in unique browsers and 26% increase in page views of prominent publishers since the coronavirus outbreak started.

This, the company said, illustrates the importance of domestic publishers in times of crisis as they are the main trusted source of news.

People, in general, move away from obtaining the latest facts on breaking news from social channels and instead rely on their local domestic publishers, said Greg Mason, Narratiives regional lead for Sub-Saharan Africa.

Social media becomes peoples crutch and support structure, while domestic publishers become their trusted source of news.

Mason also urged companies to support publishers during this time. Companies should rally behind local publishers and support the fantastic work they are doing, he said.

The chart below shows the publisher traffic growth over the past few weeks.

Top publications in South Africa

In March, News24 was the top publisher with over 12 million unique browsers and 135 million page views. Other top performers included IOL, TimesLive, and BusinessTech.

The tables below show the readership of top South African publications during March 2020.
At School Today announced this morning that the mobile app will offer their communication platform free of charge to all schools, parents and teachers during the COVID-19 crisis. The announcement was made by AST President, Geoff Jordan.At School Today is a mobile app created to improve teacher-to-parent communication and parent-to-child engagement. It is the only app that provides auto-fill permission forms and payment on a smartphone.This pandemic is causing huge challenges in peoples lives, families and communities, said Jordan. More than ever, we need to work together to find safe, innovative and intelligent solutions to continue education and learning.AST allows parties to communicate better with all materials organized in one simple-to-use app. Share homework, links, lessons, files and manage multiple electronic class resources (Google Classroom, Facebook pages, YouTube channels, and online learning portals) for parents all in one place. It also allows teachers to send reminder notifications to keep their classes on track. The dashboard syncs with Google Calendar and the mobile app syncs with mobile device calendars.Teachers: Sign up on our webpage at www.atschooltoday.net and invite parents to your classroom.Parents: Sign up on our webpage at www.atschooltoday.net and ask your teacher to start using At School Today.As we all adapt to our new normal, juggling working from home and supporting our childrens education, At School Today has decided to offer our communication platform free to schools, teachers and parents during this difficult time, continued Jordan. We would like to especially acknowledge our partner, Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP. Nitro Program. Without their support, we would not be able to offer this service worldwide.
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Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine professor and noted neurology researcher Dr. Doug Martin has been named the recipient of the Southeastern Conferences 2020 Faculty Achievement Award for Auburn, announced today by the SEC.

Martin, a professor in the colleges Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology and the Scott-Ritchey Research Center, will receive a $5,000 honorarium from the SEC, and he becomes Auburn's nominee for the SEC Professor of the Year, who will be selected from 14 nominees representing SEC universities.

In a conference known for triple-doubles, triple plays and three-peats, Dr. Martin scores big in each of our three-part mission of groundbreaking research, innovative instruction and impactful service, Auburn President Jay Gogue said. He personifies the best of Auburn faculty, and were grateful for his dedication.

The SEC Faculty Achievement Awards, created to recognize faculty accomplishments, scholarly contributions and discoveries, were established by SEC presidents and chancellors and are administered by the SEC provosts. The awards were first presented in 2012.

Through his commitment to pioneering discovery and saving lives, Dr. Martin exemplifies how profoundly Auburn University cares about, invests in and is transforming research to advance our society, said Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Bill Hardgrave. By inspiring future generations of scholars, Dr. Martin continues to make a difference in the lives of students, both at Auburn and around the world.

Each recipient of the SEC Faculty Achievement Award must be a full professor at an SEC university, have a performance history of extraordinary teaching and a record of scholarship that is recognized nationally or internationally. Martins life-changing research has garnered over $10 million in external funding to Auburn from sources including the National Institutes of Health.

It is a remarkable and unexpected honor to receive this award, said Martin, who received his biology degree in 1989 and his doctorate in biomedical sciences in 1999, both from Auburn. The award signifies the hard work and expertise of my many collaborators and lab members, and I hope to represent Auburn well among the SEC universities.

Martin has 25 years experience in developing therapies for fatal neurologic disorders such as Tay-Sachs disease, Sandhoff disease and GM1 gangliosidosis. He and his colleagues have demonstrated the profound therapeutic effect of engineered viruses as gene transfer agents, dramatically improving the quality of life and lifespan of affected animals. Their results have led to the first-in-human gene therapy clinical trials for children with GM1, currently underway at the National Institutes of Health.

Our treatment is extremely promising because it has worked well in cats suffering from GM1, and it is delivered by a single IV injection that takes less than an hour, Martin said. We hope the therapy helps children as much as it has helped the animals.

Parents of a child with the disease each carry one copy of the mutated gene, but they do not show signs and symptoms of the condition. Porter Heatherly, the son of Auburn graduates Sara and Michael Heatherly of Opelika, Alabama, was the first known case of GM1 in Alabama and died in 2016 at age 4.

I have been inspired by heroic families like the Heatherlys and Porter who fought the disease, Martin said.

In his teaching role, Martin works with numerous veterinary, graduate and undergraduate students. Among his chief accomplishments, he says, is helping to train the next generation of researchers who are shaping a better, healthier world through their own careers.

Martin has served on numerous review panels for the National Institutes of Health and international foundations and he has received many awards, such as the Above and Beyond Award from the National Tay-Sachs and Allied Diseases Association and the Zoetis Award for Veterinary Research Excellence.

He and his wife, and numerous pets, reside in Opelika and he has two step-daughters who live in Phoenix and New York City.
One has to presume the government hoped it might hold out a little longer in the fight against coronavirus before reaching for the old, old cliches traditionally reserved for the war dead.

Doctors and nurses in NHS hospitals are already dying, many of them immigrants. These were people, the health secretary Matt Hancock told us at the daily Downing Street press conference, who came to this country wanting to serve. And now, apparently they have given their lives in sacrifice.

Do we even need to ask whether any doctor, any nurse, has ever come to the UK, hoping, or even merely willing, to give their lives in sacrifice?

They came, hoping to use their qualifications to get on with their noble careers, which they are now no longer doing.

Funny how people only tend to have given their lives retrospectively, when it is too late for anyone to check whether they really wanted to give it in the first place. How the sacrifice always tends to be made on their behalf.

Stranger still that the first people to thank them for this incomparable act of generosity are always those who gain the most from it.

In the still recent early days of the Covid-19 outbreak, nurses in hundreds of hospitals were told that there was a shortage of protective masks, and that they should only wear one if they were dealing with a confirmed coronavirus patient, not a suspected one. These were instructions that they knew meant they were being not asked, but told, to risk their lives.

These are not the terms under which gifts are given, sacrifices made.

It is, incredibly, not even nearly a year since Theresa May stood on a beach in Normandy, to honour the bravery, the courage, the sacrifice, of those men who had run into the sea from the landing craft and into machine gun fire.

It didnt matter to her, nor to anyone of the politicians present, that the day before, one such veteran, by the name of Eric Chardin, had been interviewed on the very same beach. Hed spoken of how, in those landing crafts, there was a sense of latent anger. It had been barely 25 years since the last war, in which most of them had lost fathers, uncles, brothers, and here they all were again, waiting in line to be killed, and they had no choice in the matter.

At a memorial service on the first anniversary of 9/11, George W Bush listened to a US military band sing a specially commissioned song called the last full measure of devotion, its titular line taken from the Gettysburg Address, as if 3,000 murdered Manhattan office workers somehow nobly laid down their lives for the betterment of their country.

Lincoln is so often the go to man for such occasions. It was he who wrote to the mother whose four sons had all been killed in the Civil War, to praise her for the solemn pride that must be yours for having laid so heavy a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.

The sacrifice claimed by Matt Hancock for himself could hardly have come at a cheaper price. The right mask, the proper clothing. The effort to procure these things is still being ramped up, we are told. Who knows when the ramping will ever be done, but whenever it is, one things certain, it will be too late for some people to get a refund on that very expensive gift they never wanted to give.
Kerala on Thursday reported 21 new COVID-19 cases, including a 26-year-old pregnant woman who recently returned from a Gulf nation, taking the total number of active cases in the state to 256.

Two people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat religious congregation at Delhi were among the fresh positive cases, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters here.

At least 157 people from the state had participated in the jamaat event and they were all under observation, he said.

Official sources said the pregnant woman from Kollam, had returned from Qatar recently.

The state government on Thursday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure unrestricted movement of essential goods through the inter-state borders during the lockdown to check the spread of coronavirus.

Making the point during a video conference with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Vijayan also requested the Centre to approve more testing centres in the state.

In a related development, the Kerala High Court stayed the state government's order to issue special passes to tipplers, who have withdrawal symptoms due to non-availability of liquor in view of coronavirus lockdown, to get it on doctor's prescription, saying it was a "recipe for disaster."



"This is disturbing... This is a recipe for disaster," the court said in its oral observations and also questioned the state government whether it could prove withdrawal symptoms can be treated by the use of alcohol, while staying the order for three weeks.

Citing instances of social issues including frustration and suicidal tendencies shown by those who consumed liquor regularly, the government early this week issued order to provide liquor to tipplers under prescription during the 21- day lockdown.

Kasaragod, one of the hotspots of the virus, reported eight more cases, while five were detected from Idukki, two from Kollam and one each from Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur Pathnamthitta, Malappuram, Kozhikode and Kannur, Vijayan said after a meeting where he reviewed the COVID-19 situation.

At least 1.65 lakh people are under surveillance in the state with 643 in various hospitals.

Kerala has reported a total of 286 COVID19 cases so far, of whom 200 people had come from abroad. Presently, 256 people are undergoing treatment for the virus. Samples of two persons tested negative on Thursday.

"Today, 145 were admitted in hospitals, Government had sent 8,456 samples for testing of which 7,622 have returned negative", he said.

Meanwhile, police arrested 1,570 people for lockdown violations, registered 1,699 cases and seized 1,205 vehicles.

The state government also decided to extend the quarantine period to 28 days for those who had come to Kerala from March 5-25 either from abroad or other states, and those who had come in contact with them.

So far, 28 patients, including four foreigners, have recovered completely and tested negative.

With seven districts in Kerala-- Kasaragod, Kannur, Malappuram, Thrissur, Ernakulam, Pathnamthitta and Thiruvananthapuram being declared as "hot spots", the state needs to excercise extreme caution and vigil, Vijayan said.

The chief minister also said the government was not considering salary restriction for its employees as of now in the wake of the severe financial crisis being faced by the state due to the pandemic.

He was answering a question about a Facebook Post of state Finance Minister Thomas Isaac indicating a possible salary cut.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
R esidents of Wuhan  the Chinese city where the coronavirus pandemic began  have been able to go outside for the first time in months after the city finally reopened.

Parks, rivers and outdoor spaces were visited by careful streams of people once more after officials eased lockdown measures.

The towns population of 11 million people were among the first to be placed into home quarantine at the end of January, following the outbreak of the deadly virus.

But now, the day after China reported just 36 new Covid-19 cases, citizens are starting to return to work, tracked by a smartphone app that shows if they are free of symptoms.

A resident dries his body after dip in the Yangtze River as the city eases its lockdown measures / AFP via Getty Images

Shops and other businesses have also reopened, as have the citys borders  allowing people to travel in and out.

The outbreak began in December and has resulted in tens of millions of people being prevented from leaving their homes.

AP

The UK, France, Spain and Italy are among a number of European countries to bring in restrictive measures to try to stem the infection rate.

The number of global cases of the disease is approaching one million, with more than 50,000 people confirmed dead.

The World on Coronavirus lockdown 1 /60 The World on Coronavirus lockdown Getty Images A UK government public health campaign is displayed in Piccadilly Circus Reuters Chinese paramilitary police and security officers wear face masks to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus as they stand guard outside an entrance to the Forbidden City in Beijing AP A usually busy 42nd Street is seen nearly empty in New York AFP via Getty Images Bondi Beach, Australia Getty Images Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images View of the illuminated statue of Christ the Redeemer that reads "Thank you" as Archbishop of the city of Rio de Janeiro Dom Orani Tempesta performs a mass in honor of Act of Consecration of Brazil and tribute to medical workers amidst the Coronavirus (COVID - 19) pandemic Getty Images Rome AFP via Getty Images An Indian man paddles his bicycle in front of a mural depicting the globe covered in a mask, as India remains under an unprecedented lockdown over the highly contagious coronavirus Getty Images Aerial view of the empty 9 de Julio avenue in Buenos Aires in Argentina AFP via Getty Images A view of an empty Grand Canal Reuters Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Central cemetery in Bogota, Columbia AFP via Getty Images The facade of the Palacio de Lopez (seat of the government palace) AFP via Getty Images Miami, Florida AFP via Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Simon Bolivar park in Bogota AFP via Getty Images An LAPD patrol car drives through Venice Beach Boardwalk AP Venice Beach, California Getty Images Los Angeles, California Getty Images Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images Many shops stand shuttered on the Venice Beach boardwalk Getty Images Empty escalators are seen at a deserted train station during morning rush hour after New South Wales began shutting down non-essential businesses Reuters A nearly empty Times Square in New York AFP via Getty Images Caracas AFP via Getty Images Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador AFP via Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Midland Park in Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Civic Square at lunchtimein Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A policeman rides his motorcycle wearing a face mask in front of a closed shopping mall in Buenos Aires, Argentina AFP via Getty Images Florida Keys AP The historic Channel 2 Bridge closed to fishermen, bikers and pedestrians in Florida Keys AP The Beach on Scenic Gulf Drive near Seascape Resort in south Walton County, Florida sits empty of tourists AP Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images A deserted Rajpath leading to India Gate in New Delhi AFP via Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images Empty roads are pictured following the lockdown by the government amid concerns about the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Kathmandu, Nepal Reuters An empty New York Subway car i AFP via Getty Images The empty pedestrian zone is seen in the city of Cologne, western Germany, AFP via Getty Images Place de la Comedie in the city of Montpellier , southern France AFP via Getty Images An empty street in Kuwait city AFP via Getty Images A building is covered by the Portuguese message: "Coronavirus: take precaution" over empty streets in downtown Sao Paulo, Brazil, AP A general view shows an empty street after a curfew was imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters Parliament of Canada is pictured with empty street during morning rush hour AFP via Getty Images A near empty beach on Southend seafront in England PA Near empty Keswick town centre in Cumbria, England PA

On Tuesday, China reported just one new death from the disease and dozens of new cases, claiming that all new cases came from overseas.
Among the employees who were surveyed, 94% believe New American Funding is a great place to work. They also indicated they are proud to tell others they work for New American Funding and they are made to feel welcome when they join the company.

"Making Best Workplace in Financial Services and Insurance list for the fifth consecutive year is such a great honor," said Rick Arvielo, CEO of New American Funding. "This award recognition reflects our NAF360 company culture that our employees strongly promote, and we go above and beyond to not only support our borrowers, but also each other as well."

New American Funding's NAF360 company culture surrounds everything they do and embodies who they are. It's their commitment to nurturing an atmosphere of 360 degrees of trust and respect.

To determine the Best Workplaces in Financial Services and Insurance list, Great Place to Work surveyed more than 782,000 employees at lending financial organizations across the nation. Employees responded anonymously to the Trust Index survey with more than 60 survey questions rating their employers. The main key areas of the survey included:

Leadership strength

Pride in their organization

Opportunities for professional growth

Work-life balance

In recent months, New American Funding has received notable accolades including the Better Business Bureau (BBB) International Torch Award for Ethics and National Mortgage News Best Companies to Work for.

For those interested in a career at New American Funding, visit their career page to learn more!

About New American Funding

New American Funding is a family-owned mortgage lender with a servicing portfolio of over 127,000 loans for approximately $31 billion, 196 branches, and about 3,200 employees. The company offers several niche loan products and has made Inc. 5000's list of Fastest-Growing Companies in America six times. It has a state-of-the-art career training facility and develops innovative technology, including the GoGo LO mobile application.

SOURCE New American Funding

Related Links

www.newamericanfunding.com


Collibra, a Brussels, Belgium-based data intelligence company, raised $112.5m in funding at a post-money valuation of $2.3 billion.

The round, which brought total venture funding to $345.5m, was led by existing investors ICONIQ Capital and Index Ventures, and new backer Durable Capital Partners LP, with participation from existing investors Battery Ventures, CapitalG and Dawn Capital.

The company intends to use the funds to expand its business reach.

Led by Felix Van de Maele, co-founder and CEO, Collibra provides a cloud-based data intelligence platform that accelerates business outcomes by connecting the right data, insights and algorithms to all Data Citizens. The platform connects IT and the business to build a data-driven culture for the digital enterprise. The company a diverse global presence, with offices in the U.S., Belgium, Australia, Czech Republic, France, Poland and the U.K., serving 450 customers.

FinSMEs

02/04/2020
[April 02, 2020] VMW INVESTOR ALERT: Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC Notifies VMware, Inc. Shareholders of Class Action and Encourages Investors to Contact the Firm

Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC reminds investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against VMware, Inc. ("VMware " or "the Company") (NYSE: VMW) and certain of its officers, on behalf of shareholders who purchased or otherwise acquired VMware securities between March 30, 2019 and February 27, 2020, inclusive (the "Class Period"). Such investors are encouraged to join this case by visiting the firm's site: www.bgandg.com/vmw. This class action seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The Complaint alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements that: (1) VMware's reporting with respect to its backlog of unfilled orders was not in compliance with all relevant accountingand disclosure requirements; (2) the foregoing subjected the Company to a foreseeable risk of heightened regulatory scrutiny and/or investigation; and (3) as a result, the Company's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.



On February 27, 2019, VMware disclosed a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC (News - Alert)") investigation into its backlog of unfilled orders. Specifically, VMware advised investors that the SEC requested a series of documents and information related to the Company's backlog and associated accounting and disclosures in December 2019. On this news, VMware's stock price fell $15.11 per share, or 11.14%, to close at $120.52 per share on February 28, 2020. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to review a copy of the Complaint you can visit the firm's site: www.bgandg.com/vmw or you may contact Peretz Bronstein, Esq. or his Investor Relations Analyst, Yael Hurwitz of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC at 212-697-6484. If you suffered a loss in VMware you have until June 1, 2020 to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as a lead plaintiff.

Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a corporate litigation boutique. Our primary expertise is the aggressive pursuit of litigation claims on behalf of our clients. In addition to representing institutions and other investor plaintiffs in class action security litigation, the firm's expertise includes general corporate and commercial litigation, as well as securities arbitration. Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005085/en/

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An estimated two million people with some form of self-employment income will not benefit from the governments coronavirus financial support measures, while some workers will fall through the gaps completely, an influential think tank has warned.

Analysing measures fast-tracked by Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, to help individuals and businesses through the crisis, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said it was inevitable they were not as well targeted as we would expect in normal times.

The organisation said that both the job retention scheme and the self-employment income support scheme (Seiss) were generous on average, replacing more than 80 per cent of net family income for workers, but there was a lot of variation.

While the IFS added that some self-employed people will be financially better off due to the coronavirus measures, it claimed others will get no support at all.

They estimated 1.3 million people would not benefit from the self-employment scheme because they received less than half of their income from self-employment, while a further 225,000 would be ineligible as their profits exceeded 50,000 per annum. A further 650,000 would not be able to use the new financial support scheme as they started their business after April 2019.

The IFS added: These three groups overlap, so our rough estimate is that in total around two million people with some self-employment income will not have it covered by the Seiss.

It comes after The Independent revealed earlier this week the governments eligibility cut-off date for the job retention scheme left potentially thousands of workers having no choice but to apply for benefits through the universal credit system.

Under the new system, those not on an employers PAYE system before 28 February  three weeks before Boris Johnson imposed stringent restrictions on public life  will not qualify for furlough.

Senior research economist Stuart Adam said: Under pressure to come up with a workable scheme to support the self-employed at speed, the chancellor has erred on the side of generosity for most. Being able to claim the full amount even if profits are affected only marginally will leave some self-employed benefiting substantially.

The delay in payments will cause financial hardship for some, but the fact that they can claim benefits for the next three months, and then also claim the earnings replacement in early June, will mean many will ultimately lose little or no income overall.

But some will fall through the gaps completely  including high earners and the newly self-employed  and others will see only part of their overall earnings covered, including many who combine self-employment or whose business is set up as a company.

In response to the analysis, Labours John McDonnell said the government must urgently revisit both schemes, adding: It is unacceptable that carers, those on shorter working hours, and new starters who began work after 28 February are not covered by the job retention scheme  and that two million self-employed are not covered by the self-employment package.

We urge the government to consider proposals that we have put forward to adjust the support schemes so that no workers are left behind in this time of deep anxiety for so many.

A Treasury spokesperson said: We are taking unprecedented action at unprecedented speed to support businesses, jobs and our economy.

Those who do not qualify for the scheme will be able to access a range of other support  including an increase in the universal credit allowance, income tax deferrals, 1 billion more support for renters and access to three-month mortgage holidays."
Millionaire Brexit-backing businessman Arron Banks has lost a bid to use European human rights law to overturn a six-figure inheritance tax bill on political donations to Ukip.

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) assessed Mr Banks - one of the self-styled 'Bad Boys of Brexit' - as owing just over 160,000 on almost 1 million in donations to Ukip between October 2014 and March 2015.

Donations to political parties which had two MPs elected at the last general election, or one MP elected and a total of 150,000 votes, are exempt from inheritance tax.

Arron Banks (pictured) has lost a bid to use European human rights law to overturn a tax bill of 160,000 on almost 1 million in donations to Ukip

The 54-year-old argued the law on political donations being exempt from inheritance tax breached his human rights and breached EU law

While Ukip received 919,471 votes across the UK in the 2010 general election, the party did not return a single MP to the House of Commons, prompting HMRC to bill Mr Banks for 162,945.34.

Mr Banks, 54, challenged the decision at the first-tier tribunal (FTT), arguing the law on political donations being exempt from inheritance tax breached his human rights and breached EU law.

He claimed the provisions of the Inheritance Tax Act were unlawfully discriminatory under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), as well as breaching his - and Ukip's - right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly under the ECHR.

Banks, known for bankrolling Nigel Farage's (right) campaign to leave the EU, was appealing the original dismissal of his challenge in November 2018

Banks (second-left) with President Donald Trump just after his election victory in 2016, alongside Nigel Farage (third-right) in New York

Who is Arron Banks - the man who 'bought Brexit'? The multi-millionaire (pictured) has donated millions to Ukip and in 2016 he backed Mr Farages Leave.EU group Arron Banks has been dubbed the man who bought Brexit for the way he bankrolled Nigel Farages campaign to leave the EU. The multi-millionaire has donated millions to Ukip and in 2016 he backed Mr Farages Leave.EU group. He was pictured alongside Donald Trump when the President met Nigel Farage in New York just days after his shock US election victory. Mr Banks made his fortune from the Bristol-based insurance broker Brightside which he founded. He then went on to found another firm, GoSkippy. He is married to Russian Ekaterina Paderina and has five children. Originally a modest Tory donor, in 2014 he defected to Ukip in desperation at David Camerons stance on Europe. William Hague made the mistake of describing Mr Banks as somebody we haven't heard of following his defection  prompting him to up his donation to Ukip from 100,000 to 1million. Advertisement

The FTT dismissed his challenge in November 2018 and Mr Banks took his case to the upper tribunal, which rejected his appeal in a written judgment delivered on Wednesday.

Mrs Justice Falk ruled that the difference in treatment between Mr Banks and an individual who donated to a political party with two MPs, or one MP and which received more than 150,000 votes, was not discriminatory under European human rights law.

She also ruled that the FTT was wrong to have found that the difference in treatment was discriminatory on the grounds of his political opinion.

The judge said the provisions of the Inheritance Tax Act were proportionate in the pursuit of 'a rational and legitimate aim', namely 'to provide tax relief on donations to political parties that are participating in Parliamentary democracy by being represented in the House of Commons'.

Mrs Justice Falk also dismissed Mr Banks' contention that the law on inheritance tax exemption unlawfully interfered with his rights to freedom of expression and assembly.

She said: 'The existence of a tax charge does not obviously restrict the expression of any opinion or the ability to associate, whether with Ukip or anyone else.

'There was also no evidence to support the argument that Mr Banks was in fact deterred from expressing opinions or supporting Ukip, whether by making donations or otherwise.'

Reacting to the judgment, Jo Maugham QC, a barrister at Devereux Chambers specialising in tax law, said: 'Our sovereign Parliament, in an area within its sole competence, chose what donations it wanted to privilege through the tax system.

'Mr Banks's attempts to undermine that sovereignty have, quite properly, failed.'
KARACHI, Pakistan - A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction of a British Pakistani man found guilty of the 2002 kidnapping and killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.

Instead, the court found Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and sentenced him to seven years in prison.

Pearl disappeared Jan. 23, 2002 in Karachi while researching links between Pakistani militants and Richard C. Reid, who became known as the shoe-bomber after he was arrested on a flight from Paris to Miami with explosives in his shoes. Prosecutors said Saeed lured Pearl into a trap by promising to arrange an interview with an Islamic cleric who police believed was not involved in the conspiracy.

One of Saeeds lawyers, Khwaja Naveed, said Saeed could go free unless the government chooses to challenge the court decision. Faiz Shah, prosecutor general for southern Sindh province, said the government will appeal to the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a statement expressing disappointment at the court decision and supporting an appeal.

The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply disappointed to see justice in the murder case of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl denied by a Pakistani court today, said Steven Butler, CPJs Asia program co-ordinator.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric, asked for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres response, said: We stand against the use of the death penalty. We do, however, strongly believe that there needs to be accountability for people who take the lives of others, especially in this case of a journalist.

Saeed has already spent 18 years in prison in southern Hyderabad on death row. The seven-year sentence for kidnapping was expected to be counted as time served, said Naveed.

The Sindh High Court also acquitted three others accused in the case: Fahad Naseem, Sheikh Adil, and Salman Saqib, who were earlier sentenced to life in prison. The defendants were also collectively fined $32,000.

Justice has been done for my clients, said Naveed.

Saeed, a former student at the London School of Economics, and the others were convicted in 2002.

A videotape received by U.S. diplomats in February, 2002 confirmed that Pearl, 38, was dead. He had been beheaded.

In court testimony and emails released during the 2002 trial, Saeed said he developed a personal relationship with Pearl, with both sharing their concerns about their wives, who were both pregnant at the time. Marianne Pearl gave birth to their son Adam in May 2002.

The Pearl Project, an investigative journalism team at Washingtons Georgetown University, carried out a three-year investigation into Pearls kidnapping and death. They concluded the reporter was beheaded by Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, who was arrested in Pakistan in 2003 and later described as the architect of the 9-11 terrorist attacks on the United States. Mohammad is a prisoner at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Soon after Pearl disappeared, Pakistani and U.S. news organizations received emails from the previously unknown National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty. The group demanded better treatment for Taliban and al-Qaida prisoners at Guantanamo.

FBI agents traced the emails to Saeed, who admitted his role in the kidnapping during his first court appearance but later recanted.

Right or wrong I had my reasons, Saeed told the court at the time. I think that our country shouldnt be catering to Americas needs. The statement was ruled inadmissible because it was not made under oath.

Saeed had been arrested in 1994 by Indian authorities, accused of kidnapping three Britons and an American, who were all freed unharmed, in Indian-ruled Kashmir, Hindu Indias only Muslim- dominated region. Kashmir is divided between Pakistan and India but coveted by each in its entirety.

Since 1989, an insurgency in Indian-held Kashmir has been demanding either outright independence for a united Kashmir or union with Muslim-majority Pakistan.

In 1999, India freed Saeed and two other militants in exchange for the release of 155 passengers and crew aboard an Indian Airlines plane hijacked to Kandahar, Afghanistan.

The Pearl kidnapping was the first of five attacks against Westerners in Pakistan in 2002. A grenade attack against a Protestant church in Islamabad on March 17 killed five people, including two Americans and the attacker.

___

Gannon reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.
The Karnataka government has moved the Supreme Court challenging a Kerala High Court order asking the Centre to intervene and remove the blockades erected by it on the national highways connecting the two states for ferrying essential goods amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The plea will be taken up for hearing by a bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Deepak Gupta on Friday.

The state government's plea filed by advocate Shubhranshu Padhi said, "The issue involved in the present SLP (special leave petition) is with regard to the closure of a road between the State of Karnataka and State of Kerala in order to combat the spread of the pandemic COVID-19...from the bordering Districts of the States."



The plea said that the order of the Kerala High Court has been passed wholly without any jurisdiction and is thus liable to be set aside.

"The said direction has been passed despite the earlier observations in the same Impugned Order that the High Court had no territorial jurisdiction to issue any direction to the State of Karnataka to remove any impediments which are located in the State of Karnataka. On the face of it, the Impugned Order has been passed wholly without any jurisdiction and is thus liable to be set aside on this ground alone, the plea said.

The state government said that Karnataka has locked down its borders in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 except the movement of essential commodities.

The State of Karnataka had specifically closed the Makutta Check post on the Mysore-Virajepat-Kannur highway. However, the High Court vide the Impugned Order has directed Central Government to intervene and remove the closure on the said road, it said.

The plea said that the order passed by Karnataka is based on adequate material as the existing facilities in the Mangalore district would not support patients from outside the state and there was every possibility of a serious outbreak of COVID-19 in the border districts of Karnataka, if free ingress and outgress of patients is allowed.

The High Court had on April 1 gave the order on a PIL seeking directions for opening of the roads connecting Kasaragod in Kerala and Mangaluru in Karnataka, which had been closed by Karnataka in view of the lockdown to check the COVID-19 outbreak.

"...we feel compelled to issue directions to the Central Government today because we are of the view that any further delay could entail loss of precious lives of our citizens", the Court had said in its order delivered on Wednesday night after a detailed hearing earlier in the day.

The order came amid reports of deaths of at least seven seriously ill persons after the ambulances carrying them to hospitals in Mangaluru, 15 kms from Kasaragod, were allegedly not allowed by Karnataka police on the borders.

The court had said the national highways come under the administrative jurisdiction of the Central Government and that the provisions of the National Highways Act clearly provide for the maintenance of such highways by it.

The act even provides for penal measures to be taken against anyone blocking such a highway, it said.

The arterial roads that connect Mangaluru in Karnataka, to Kasaragod in Kerala were part of the National Highway network and it is therefore the duty of the Central Government to ensure that the said roads are kept free of blockades, the court had said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Colorado court has denied a defendants motion to exclude expert testimony regarding DNA evidence produced by STRmix -- sophisticated forensic software used to resolve mixed DNA profiles previously thought to be too complex to interpret.

The DNA evidence generated by STRmix indicated very strong support for the prosecutions contention that DNA from the defendant, Trinidad Nunez, was present on a handgun linked to distribution of methamphetamine. Both the handgun and the illegal narcotics were found during a motor vehicle search following a traffic violation.

Relying on the standards for determining admissibility of expert testimony established in People v. Shreck (22 P.3d 68 Colo. 2001), Colorados District Court of Weld County ruled in Colorado v. Nunez (Case No. 18CR 515, Div: 11) that STRmix has been sufficiently tested and found reliable; It has been subjected to significant peer review and publication; And the potential rate of error  are reasonably reliable.

The court continued, Suffice it to say, STRmix is generally accepted in the field of DNA and there exists the specialized literature dealing with the technique to determine NOC [the number of contributors] from multiple experts in the field of forensic science. Moreover, Colorado and other states have determined that probabilistic genotyping software, including STRmix, is reliable and admissible.

Since its introduction in 2012, STRmix has been used to interpret DNA evidence in more than 120,000 cases around the world. It has also been used successfully in numerous U.S. court cases, including 35 successful admissibility hearings.

STRmix is currently being used by forensic labs at 55 U.S. agencies  including the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)  and is in various stages of installation, validation, and training in more than 60 other U.S. organizations.

John Buckleton, DSc, FRSNZ, one of the developers of STRmix, points out that forensic labs increasingly are turning to STRmix because it greatly improves the usability of DNA to produce evidence in a wide range of criminal cases. Organizations using STRmix are reporting an increase of interpretable DNA in gun cases from about 40% to more than 70%.

According to Buckleton, STRmix is also proving to be highly effective in delivering a significantly higher rate of interpretable results in sexual assault cases.

A new version of STRmix, STRmix v2.7, was introduced late last year. STRmix v2.7 includes several new features in response to improvements recommended by forensic labs to better address the on-the-job needs they regularly encounter.

DBLR, an application used with STRmix, was also introduced last year. DBLR allows users to undertake superfast database searches, visualize the value of their DNA mixture evidence, and carry out mixture to mixture matches.

For more information about STRmix visit http://www.strmix.com.
Patrick Carpentier, a Canadian racing driver, thinks it is basically "impossible" that Montreal will be able to host its grand prix in June.

Race promoter Francois Dumontier estimates the probability of a Canadian GP this year at 50-50, but Carpentier told La Presse that he is much less optimistic.

"Ferrari is an important part of F1, so if they cancelled Melbourne because McLaren was affected by the coronavirus, they will not come to Montreal because Ferrari will not be there," he said.

Carpentier is referring to the terrible epidemic that is occurring in Italy.

"Right now, it would be very, very, very frowned upon for Ferrari to go racing while nearly 1000 people die there every day," he said.

"I hope for Francois that it will happen, but in my opinion it is impossible," Carpentier added. "He says it's 50-50 but in my view it's 10 percent."

(GMM)
Copyright  2020 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  With coronavirus spreading through nearly all parts of New Mexico, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said Thursday that state health officials are now strongly encouraging residents to wear masks when they venture out in public.

While the face coverings are not required and should not be viewed as providing complete protection against COVID-19, the Governors Office suggested that masks could mitigate the spread of germs amid an outbreak that has led to 403 confirmed coronavirus cases statewide.

Seven New Mexicans have died of COVID-19, nearly all of them elderly individuals with underlying health issues. The most recent death  that of a Bernalillo County woman in her 70s  was reported by state health officials on Thursday.

Our guidance to the public will be that face coverings may provide some additional benefit and are encouraged  but of course they do not replace the important actions of staying home, washing your hands, and aggressive social distancing as far as reducing the spread, Lujan Grisham spokesman Tripp Stelnicki told the Journal.

Specially designed masks for doctors and nurses should not be used by members of the public, however, to ensure there are as many as possible for front-line health care workers.

Specifically, the Governors Office said its important that state residents do not use the snug-fitting N95 face masks that protect medical workers from coronavirus.

There is a statewide stock of only about 44,000 such face masks, the Associated Press reported.

Meanwhile, the new state-level recommendation came as President Donald Trumps administration was reportedly finalizing guidance urging most Americans to wear face coverings when leaving home.

The federal recommendations would apply at least to those who live in areas hit hard by community transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19, according to the Associated Press.

While some health care experts have questioned how effective the wearing of masks in public is when it comes to combating the coronavirus, theres been recent movement nationwide toward face coverings in grocery stores, pharmacies and other public places.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti on Wednesday urged the citys 4 million residents to wear masks when they go out, even homemade cloth masks or makeshift bandannas.

Were going to have to get used to seeing each other like this.  This will be the look, Garcetti said while donning a black mask.

Other countries have also issued mask recommendations, and Austria said this week that it would require masks for grocery shoppers.

In New Mexico, many state residents have already begun wearing masks, bandannas and other types of face coverings in grocery stores, and some have begun making their own masks at home.

Wearing a face covering is no guarantee, but it can help, and you are encouraged to do so, the governor tweeted Thursday during an online question-and-answer session.

The new recommendation from New Mexico health officials marks a shift in stance when it comes to mask-wearing in public places.

Department of Health Epidemiologist Michael Landon said in February  before the first reported case of coronavirus  that masks were unnecessary and that New Mexicans should be more concerned about catching the flu.

The COVID-19 outbreak has spread quickly since New Mexicos first case was announced March 11, though top state officials have said social distancing strategies  including a ban on large public gatherings and the closure of businesses deemed nonessential  appear to be helping slow the spread.

Lujan Grisham has said the states death tally will likely increase, even though most people who test positive for coronarivus have only mild to moderate symptoms  including fever, cough, fatigue and shortness of breath  and do not require hospitalization.

As of Tuesday, COVID-19 cases had been confirmed in 21 of New Mexicos 33 counties.

There were 34 individuals hospitalized due to the coronavirus, while the state Department of Health had designated 31 state residents as having recovered from the virus after testing positive.
How do you produce millions of coveralls (a key part of personal protective equipment or PPE) that health care workers need when dealing with something as infectious as the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), when, till last month, they were mostly imported ?

How do you do so, and quickly, when no one had a design specification till February 27?

For 17 firms that have been tasked with making the coveralls -- Hindustan Times spoke to six of them -- it is a race against time that involves dealing with raw material shortage, workers worried about their safety, and learning to quickly produce under the watchful and anxious eyes of the government.

And for the only laboratory that tests them, it simply means working around the clock.

Its an experience that Tanmay Singhal, a recent graduate of OP Jindal School, didnt anticipate in the first year of joining his fathers business. Their Haryana-based firm, Sai Synergy, was a supplier of fire protective gear that was used by oil rig workers in West Asia, till February. Thats when it received an SOS from the textile and health ministries of the Government of India. Director of Research and Development in the textiles ministry, Balram Kumar, reached out to the company to attend a meeting.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

At the meeting, there were a handful of other companies; all had one thing in common: they worked with or made unwoven fabric (used to make the protective clothes).

The agenda of the meeting was simple: could these companies make PPEs?

We were ready but it took some time and paperwork for the manufacturing to start, said Singhal. The work started two weeks ago and, on a good day, when trucks arent stuck at the highway because of the lockdown, the unit produces 12,000 to 15,000 of these suits.

The raw material is coming from Bangalore for us and so many times they get stranded, else we didnt have any problems delivering our order, said Singhal. Neither Singhal, nor the other firms, were willing to specify the exact orders that the government had placed with them. However, supply of raw materials is a common challenge for all of them.

Nisheeth Dand of the Vadodara-based firm, Sure Safety, which is also involved in the production of these coveralls, said that the company is slowly trying to increase the pace of production but the lockdown isnt helping. His raw materials also come from different parts of the country and their flow is proving to be a bottleneck. There is help, though -- in the form of nodal and field officers that the government has assigned to each of these firms, so that they can troubleshoot, call the local administration in the area that a particular truck is stuck in, but the delays are inevitable.

Then, there are other obstacles.

I have 180 workers in my unit but right now only 44% are coming to work, said Dand. Their families wont allow them, they are scared so the only thing I can offer them is higher pay.

So for coming to the factory in times of lockdown, Dand says, he pays a worker who would usually get Rs 15,000 , Rs 25,000. Its not just labour, even the raw materials have become expensive. I know banks have been told to help us but they are totally unresponsive. They should be giving us interest-free credit.

Despite these hurdles, Sure Safety is producing more and more kits every day. If it was 500 earlier, it is now 700 and the company hopes to be able to increase it to 1,500 soon.

If it isnt a supply problem, its the problem of learning to run a factory with social distancing, to take care of workers needs and concerns. At the Mumbai-based Venus Safety and Health Private Limited factory, which is the only one of two producers of N 95 masks in the country, this involves free food, free medical camps and upping the hygiene conditions for the 700-800 workers that work there.

The companys chief marketing officer, Ravi Shinde, said: We have increased the space thats occupied by individual workers and even though I am sure they have concerns, they know that this is for the country and so havent really objected to working. Earlier the company was producing 2.5 lakh masks daily and now it is hoping to amp up their production to 3.5- 4 lakh per day.

Every step of the way, the textile ministrys officials are keeping an eye. Vijay Shankar of Shree Hari Healthcare in Chennai said that several ministry officials arrived at his unit on March 20, the day production started. We normally wouldnt work with the government but this was an urgent moment and we felt we had to pitch in, said Shankar. He has been lucky with raw materials for his coveralls, with the ministry suggesting alternative sources when his were stuck. However, the challenge has been to take care of his workforce, majority of which are women.

We are working at a feverish pace but we cant do so at the cost of their health, he said. The company has mandatory hand wash hygiene breaks every hour and a compulsory Sunday off but the pace of production is satisfactory.

The Kolkata-based Frontier Protective Wear has just started production of its coveralls in its Gurugram unit and will start in the Kolkata unit on Monday. The ministry has assured us that we will continue to get all supplies that we need, so I am confident that we can deliver on time, said Sweta Chaudhry Singh, one of the promoters.

The one place that is stretched is Sitra, the government testing lab in Coimbatore that is receiving each of the samples from the manufacturers. Before, we would get one sample a week, said Prakash Vasudevan of Sitra. Now we are getting 15-20 samples a day. Considering that the lab has only four or five people working during the lockdown, it means that workdays go on till 2 or 3am. We need to clear each sample that comes in daily and so we are really stretched.

So when all 17 of these firms have fulfilled their orders and they are tested and ready to go, will this fulfil Indias protective gear deficit? Last week, Reuters reported that India needed around 38 million masks and 6.2 million pieces of PPE to take care of Covid-19 patients, quoting an internal report from Invest India. Invest India said it had contacted 730 companies for ventilators, ICU monitors, protective equipment, masks and testing kits, of which 319 firms had responded.

An official of the textile ministry, which is tasked with the all important coveralls and masks, said that they are hopeful of hitting peak production by the middle of the month.

Last week, the government issued a statement detailing its plans to procure 6.2 million PPEs desperately needed across the country. The three-week lockdown in India till April 14 will, if successful, flatten the curve of the diseases spread -- giving the administration enough time to stockpile enough medical equipment, including masks. People like Singhal are at the forefront of that effort.

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As the deadly coronavirus is spreading rapidly in Portugal, the authorities have reportedly given all migrants and asylum seekers full citizenship rights. The recent move by the Portuguese government will give migrants access to the countrys healthcare and it will also unequivocally guarantee the rights of all the foreign citizens with applications pending with immigration. The Portuguese Council of Ministers reportedly said that the migrants and asylum seekers are now in a situation of regular permanence in National Territory until June 30.

Furthermore, the authorities explained that that decision was taken in a bid to reduce the risks for public health of maintaining the current scheduling of appointments at the immigration office, for border agents as well as migrants and asylum seekers. Currently, Portugal has more than 7,400 coronavirus cases. The deadly virus has also claimed nearly 160 lives in the country.

READ: China Plans To Conduct Coronavirus Vaccine Trials In Severely Affected Foreign Countries

Last week, Portugals President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, declared a national state of emergency in a bid to contain the spread of the virus. The emergency allowed the government to also place temporary limits on civil liberties, such as freedom of movement and the right to protest and grants it special powers, including requisitioning private property. Furthermore, the government can also fix prices, stipulate what goods are manufactured and armed forces can also be deployed to enforce the measures.

READ: Google Scraps April Fools' Day Plans This Year Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

True war

Marcelo reportedly also called the coronavirus pandemic a true war and said that it would bring true challenges to the countrys way of life and economy. Moreover, he also praised the behaviour of Portuguese citizens. He said that the citizens have been exemplary in imposing self-quarantine, reflecting a country that has lived through everything.

Meanwhile, coronavirus, which originated in China in December 2019, has now claimed over 39,000 lives worldwide as of March 31. According to the tally by international news agency, the pandemic has now spread to 199 countries and has infected more than 805,405 people. Out of the total infections, 172,463 have been recovered but the easily spread virus is continuing to disrupt many lives. Major cities have been put under lockdown in almost all countries including Spain, and the economy is struggling.

READ: Iran's Death Toll Soars To 2,898 Due To Coronavirus, Total Cases Jump Over 44,600

READ: Thailand: Elephants Suffer As Tourism Drops Amid Coronavirus Pandemic
Ever since COVID-19 was discovered in China and subsequently found its way into the U.S. and other countries, we are learning to live in a new normal.

The U.S. tourism industry was hit the hardest due to COVID-19. Although we think of large hotel chains when it comes to tourism, 80 percent of the tourism industry consists of small to medium-sized companies. In San Antonio, the hospitality and leisure industry  a major driver for the regional economy  has seen its revenues drop substantially.

It was initially thought that the impact from the outbreak would mainly be confined to operations in Asia, but the virus has spread globally and with great speed.

Two of the top tourist destinations in Texas include the Alamo and the River Walk, and these attractions appeal to tourists from across the country. San Antonio tourism drives air fares, conference venues, restaurants, hotel room bookings and provides jobs to a large percentage of our population, not just in the downtown area.

The connectedness of these industries is positive in good times and a problem when times are difficult. In the face of an unprecedented challenge, the World Tourism Organization, with the support of the World Health Organization, is calling on innovators and entrepreneurs to put forward new solutions to help the tourism sector recover from COVID-19.

Most manufacturers will be hit by their interconnectedness to other companies and countries. Toyota Motor Corp. chose the San Antonio area as the location for one of its newest truck manufacturing plants and relies on parts from around the world, as part of the Just In Time manufacturing that all manufacturers subscribe to for their components. Even though China states it is recovering from COVID-19, it is still constrained by needed circuit boards and other manufactured parts from U.S. suppliers. Having just enough inventory on hand to do a days work was considered smart business and good for balance sheets. Just In Time manufacturing will impact the technology, automotive, consumer goods and pharmaceutical industries, among others.

Even our hospitals keep minimal supplies on hand in order to be seen as efficiently managed. For pharmaceuticals, India produces half of our generic drugs and China produces over 90 percent of our antibiotics.

For Texas and the San Antonio area, low oil prices also serve as a double whammy during the pandemic. Saudi Arabia and Russia chose this time to get into a bidding war for market share. Low oil prices, while good for the consumer, are bad for Texas. Many small companies are involved in drilling for shale oil. Texas has been a real star in driving national revenues the last few years but may serve as a drag on the economy this year. These are the risks of an interconnected economy.

In the past 20 years, coronaviruses have caused three major outbreaks (SARS 2002-2004, MERS 2012-2015 and COVID-19) around the world, although it may not seem that way to the parts of the world that were unaffected at the time. Even more concerning, the time lapse between outbreaks seems to be growing shorter. It is the opinion of virologists around the world that these outbreaks will continue.

As we recover from this pandemic, all companies need to be rethinking their supply chains. What components are critical and what supplies need to have a deeper level of inventory? This is not just true at the national level, where supplies of drugs, rare earth and military components will need to be reconsidered. It also applies to companies and governments at the state and local level. Who should own or control these supplies is a major issue.

This goes beyond pandemic plans to the heart of the supply chains. The U.S. outsourced its manufacturing due to lower costs in other countries. Now it will need to achieve a balance between cost reduction and supply chain safety via strategic outsourcing.

San Antonio is a well-managed city and we will all get through this temporary crisis. Life will not be the same, though, as we rethink our business and personal plans for the future.

Hamid Beladi is the Janey S. Briscoe Endowed Chair in Business at The University of Texas at San Antonio.
Afghan government representatives have met with the Taliban in Kabul for the first time to discuss a prisoner swap aimed at jump-starting a floundering peace process, officials said Wednesday. The two sides met Tuesday and again for several hours Wednesday in talks being observed by the International Committee of the Red Cross, Afghanistan's Office of the National Security Council said on Twitter. "The two sides held face-to-face negotiations about the release of Afghan National Defense and Security Force personnel as well as Taliban prisoners," the security council said. It was the first time the hardline Islamists had been invited to the Afghan capital to meet directly with government officials since they were toppled in the US-led invasion of 2001. The two sides had spoken previously in a videoconference to discuss the prisoner issue. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP that a "technical team" was in Kabul purely to facilitate the prisoner swap, and not for additional negotiations. "The prisoners to be released should be those whose names are on the list... that is why our technical team is there... it is not a negotiation, and there will be no political talks there", Mujahid said. Two Taliban sources -- one from the group's leadership council and the other from their political office in Doha -- told AFP the three-member Taliban delegation travelled from Quetta in Pakistan to Kandahar late Monday, and then flew to Kabul. The Doha source said there was still some dispute over the initial prisoner release numbers. If the two sides can reach an agreement, the release would begin Saturday, the source said. - Continued bloodshed - The teams met in the Serena Hotel, a luxury facility in central Kabul that has been the scene of several Taliban-claimed attacks during the 18-year-old war. Washington signed a deal with the Taliban in late February that promised the withdrawal of US and foreign troops from Afghanistan by July next year, provided the Taliban start talks with Kabul and adhere to other guarantees. The deal required the Afghan government -- which was not a signatory to the accord -- to free 5,000 Taliban prisoners, and for the insurgents to release 1,000 pro-government captives in return. The imbalance is one of many aspects of the agreement that observers say give the Taliban the better bargain. The Taliban source in Doha said the Afghan government had agreed to the initial release of 1,300 Taliban prisoners, but the insurgent delegation is insisting on the full 5,000. The swap was supposed to have taken place by March 10, at which point peace talks between the Taliban and the government were meant to have begun. But Kabul has been gripped by fresh political bickering and infighting, and the prisoner release was delayed. The security situation has deteriorated, with a series of Taliban attacks killing at least 20 Afghan security force personnel on Sunday. And on Wednesday, a roadside bomb killed at least seven civilians including six children in southern Helmand province. Authorities blamed the blast on the Taliban.
Rodney Howard-Browne, pastor of The River church in Tampa, Florida, strongly believes that God wants his church to continue holding live services for hundreds of parishioners even in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister and Atate Attorney Andrew Warren strongly believe that theyre entitled to threaten Howard-Browne with arrest for holding those services, then follow through on that threat.

Howard-Browne is obviously willing to go to jail for his belief. Are Chronister and Warren willing to go to prison for theirs?

Whether Howard-Browne is correct in his assessment of Gods commands isnt something Ill pretend to know. But Chronister and Warren are, beyond a shadow of a doubt, incorrect in their claims of authority.

The First Amendment to the Constitution protects both the free exercise of religion and the right peaceably to assemble. While that amendment initially bound only Congress, the 14th Amendment has generally been construed to extend its strictures to the state and local levels of government.

And then theres 18 United States Code, Sections 241 and 242.

Section 241 provides for up to ten years of imprisonment if two or more persons [for example, Chad Chronister and Andrew Warren] conspire to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution or laws of the United States, or because of his having so exercised the same.

Section 242 adds another potential year of imprisonment for doing the above under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, including stay-at-home or lockdown orders issued by local and state political officials.

I double-checked, just to make sure. Neither the First Amendment nor either of those US Code provisions include an unless someone jumps up and down and screeches that theres an emergency exception.

Rodney Howard-Browne may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer (many churches are holding services online and I havent heard of any divine smite-downs over it), but hes within his rights.

Chronister and Warren may be genuinely concerned about the spread of COVID-19, but theyre also lawless hooligans operating well beyond any reasonable claim of legitimate authority.

Sadly, theyre far from unique. Once the immediate danger is past, we should proceed immediately to Nuremberg-type tribunals to deal with them and the hundreds or even thousands of temporarily over-empowered scofflaws like them.

Thomas L. Knapp (Twitter: @thomaslknapp) is director and senior news analyst at the William Lloyd Garrison Center for Libertarian Advocacy Journalism (thegarrisoncenter.org). He lives and works in north central Florida.
A street with a poster calling for joint efforts in the COVID-19 combat in Vietnam (Photo: VNA)

The radio quoted experts as saying that the nationwide epidemic announcement at a time when the number of COVID-19 cases in Vietnam stands at only more than 200 has demonstrated the governments timely reaction.

The declaration has helped the government, agencies and people make preparedness for the disease combat, experts said, adding that the announcement at such an early date has also enabled the government to use strict quarantine measures in order to curb the spread of the pandemic.

Thanks to the decision, Vietnam has completely barred imported cases via roads, waterways, air and sea routes, the radio said.

According to Sputnik, Vietnam has done well in the disease control, quarantine and treatment work, with the participation of the army, public security force and health workers.

With such drastic measures as well as cooperation, solidarity and law observance of Vietnamese people, and great efforts of the forces involved, Vietnam is likely to contain the pandemic and stamp it out at the approach of the summer, the radio said.
Newly discovered letters show how Thomas Hardy's second wife, Florence, 38 years his junior, was overjoyed at her marriage despite continued ridicule from the press about the age difference.

At the age of 73, Hardy married a 35-year-old Dugdale in Enfield, north London, in 1914, which led to newspapers to comment on his 'old-age matrimonial venture' while pointing out that 'her father and mother have been friends of Mr Hardy for many years'.

Hardy's early romance with his first wife, Emma Lavinia Gifford, who died in 1912, forms the background to several of his novels while it was also the inspiration for over a hundred of his poems, including the elegiac Poems Of 1912-13.

But his marriage to Dugdale received less attention.

Thomas Hardy's (right) second wife Florence Dugdale (left) reveals their marriage was a 'genuine love match' despite the 38-year age gap between them

Ian Nicol (left) reads through letters from Miss Dugdale to a former student, Harold Barlow (R)

In the three letters to a former student, Harold Barlow, the children's author and teacher writes that her marriage is a 'genuine love match' and her husband is 'one of the kindest, most humane men in the world'.

They had been kept by Mr Barlow's daughter, Josephine Barlow, and were discovered by his grandsons Ian and Colin Nicol.

Ian recently passed the letters to Professor Angelique Richardson, from the University of Exeter, who is leading a project documenting Hardy.

The first letter was sent to Mr Barlow on February 10 1914, not long after Miss Dugdale's marriage to Hardy.

'Perhaps you have read, if you have the English papers, that I am now the proud and very happy wife of the greatest living English writer - Thomas Hardy,' she wrote.

Hardy's second marriage came two years after the death of his first wife, Emma Lavinia Gifford (pictured)

'Although he is much older than myself it is a genuine love match - on my part, at least, for I suppose I ought not to speak for him.

'At any rate I know I have for a husband one of the kindest, most humane men in the world.'

Miss Dugdale also described how she was weary of celebrity culture and the media.

'Accounts of me & my portrait have been printed in every paper, I think, in England,' she wrote.

'I have been shown in the Cinematograph, written about all over America & Europe. I am tired of this publicity. I will send you a paper or two I think if you care to see them.'

Miss Dugdale had been introduced to Hardy late in 1905 and by 1910 she was typing up a novella, The Maid On The Shore, by Hardy's first wife.

Prof Richardson said: 'It is rare to find such significant letters. They give an intimate glimpse into life at Hardy's home, Max Gate, and the loves and losses Florence shared with Hardy.

Hardy (left) and his second wife Dugdale (right) enjoy a day out at Aldeburgh beach

'It also shows us more about Florence, how self-deprecating she was and how devoted she was to her husband.

'We are very grateful to Ian and Colin Nicol for sharing these with us and delighted they can now form part of the collection at Dorset Museum, and be seen on the Hardy's Correspondents project website.'

Ian Nicol added: 'I am delighted that the letters are joining the Hardy Collection. This would have meant a great deal to Josephine, to my mother and, I'm sure, to Harold.'

Hardy died in 1928 aged 87 and Florence nine years later of cancer aged 58.
The transition to ring seine fishing in India is examined, paying special attention to the implications of legal pluralism. Ring seine fishing developed in niches and spread swiftly throughout the subcontinent, dividing the fisher population into fervent protagonists and antagonists. It is argued that sociotechnical innovations are often contested, and that rival parties apply alternative legal regimes to advance their rights. Fieldwork in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu suggests that regimes function as arenas for deliberating and battling alternative futures in fishing and mask deep sociolegal divides.

This paper makes use of sociotechnical transition studies, and particularly, a multi-level perspective (Schot and Kanger 2018), to understand contemporary developments in Indian capture fisheries. This study adds the concept of legal pluralism (Bavinck and Gupta 2014) to transition literature and examines the complications that pluralism creates for innovation dynamics. A case study on the rise of ring seine fishing in southern India, it examines the implications of legal pluralism for sociotechnical transitions.

Capture fisheries are known not only for their diverse harvesting technologies, but also for their propensity to evolve over time (Valdemarsen 2001). Major collective changes to fishing technologies are, therefore, analysed as sociotechnical transitions (Geels 2004). The empirical focus of this paper is the emergence of a new, downsized form of purse seine technology in India, known locally as ring seine fishing. This practice has spread along the entire East Coast, replacing other forms of fishing, and it is now moving up the East Coast. However, this process of spatial dissemination is far from smooth, as the technology is heavily disputed by fishers and is even prohibited by state governmentsfor instance, in Tamil Nadu and parts of Odisha (Bavinck et al 2017; Nair and Mohammed 2015; Sridhar et al 2005). The district of Cuddalore, located in the upper reaches of Tamil Nadu, is a contemporary hotspot for ring seine fishing. I analyse the sociotechnical transition taking place there to build a general argument about the effects of legal pluralism on the stability of such transitions. Rather than viewing transitions as smooth processes, I view them as undetermined, contested, and occurring at multiple, yet linked, levels.

Theoretical Perspective on Sociotechnical Transitions

World fisheries are infamous for the crisis in which they are currently enveloped, generally known as overfishing (FAO 2018). Overfishingthe unsustainable exploitation of fish stocksis the result of a process of technical modernisation that commenced in the 19th century (Bavinck 2011; Garcia et al 2014; Smith 2000). The transition to ring seining that is now occurring in South India is a related development.

Sociotechnical transition studies investigate patterns and mechanisms in technological change processes (Geels 2002), highlighting transition pathways (Geels and Schot 2007) as well as, for example, issues of space and scale (Raven et al 2012). Presented as a middle-range theory (Geels 2010), scholars in this field view tensions and mismatches that occur within systems as windows of opportunity for innovation (Geels 2011: 29); here, innovation is generally perceived as a desirable phenomenon. In this paper, which centres on disputes, I take a more nuanced position, allowing for unwanted innovation and sociopolitical contestation.

Sociotechnical transition studies divide sociotechnical systems into three levels: niche, regime, and landscape (Geels 2004; Schot and Kanger 2018). Technical innovations, arguably, commence in nichesprotected space[s] where promising new technologies are developed (Hermans et al 2013: 614). Niche activities develop in reference to regimes, which are defined as the semi-coherent rule sets directing the behaviour of a set of actors in a single sociotechnical system (Schot and Kanger 2018: 1,055). Both niches and regimes are embedded in landscapes, which include larger macro processes and conditions. Sociotechnical transition theory has been applied in a variety of settings, including fisheries (Haasnoot et al 2016).

For the purpose of analysis, and in line with contemporary sociolegal scholarship, we adjust the above framework and specifically allow for the pluralisation of regimes. Legal pluralism scholars point out that societies and societal sectors, rather than enjoying coherent legal systems, are frequently characterised by normative plurality (Benda-Beckmann 2002; Bavinck and Jyotishi 2014). Depending on the interactions that occur among legal systems and the pertinent power equations, a field may be characterised by fragmentation, conflict, or

mutual support.

Legal pluralism prevails in many aquatic regimes (Bavinck and Gupta 2014). Fisheries in South India too have been fruitfully investigated from a legal pluralism angle (Bavinck 2001; Jentoft et al 2009; Bavinck et al 2013; Karnad 2017). Legal pluralism creates dilemmas for governors in charge of steering sociotechnical developments (Jentoft and Bavinck 2014), and for citizens who engage in forum shopping (Benda-Beckmann 1981).

In the following sections, I trace the transition to ring seine fishing in Tamil Nadu, distinguishing several phases in the change process. The data are from a two-year research project (201618), in which I led a team investigating fisheries in Cuddalore. In total, I spent four months in the region (AugustSeptember in 2016 and 2017), walking the coastline from north to south, joining a ring seine fishing trip, and talking to a variety of stakeholders about the issues affecting ring seine fishing.

History of Ring Seining: An Overview

The rise of ring seining in India must be viewed against the backdrop of fisheries development, which the Government of India took up with urgency after independence. Scholars note that marine fishing is an age-old occupation in India, and that countless fishing castes have specialised in the trade (Subramanian 2009). At the time of independence in 1947, the country had 5,00,000 marine fishers; according to the government, their main problem was low productivity (Chopra 1951). The Blue Revolution that the Government of India subsequently initiated hinged on the introduction of a new fishing technology. Fundamental to the effort was the IndoNorwegian Project (INP), which commenced in 1953 and continued until 1972; it introduced the modern techniques of bottom trawling and purse seining in India (Sandven 1959; Kurien 1985). Bottom trawling was the first of these techniques to catch on, especially after trawl operators discovered foreign markets for shrimp in the late 1960s and prices went up manifold (Kurien 1978). Semi-industrial trawl fishers, however, soon entered into a serious conflict with the large population of small-scale fishers, who felt that their livelihoods were under threat. This conflict prompted the rise of what became a national fisher movement (Sinha 2012) and the first round of legislation curbing trawling operations. Meanwhile, INP was experimenting with purse seine technology, the result of which was the development of a fleet of large purse seiners along the East Coast, which pursued schools of fish that travel up and down the coast (Edwin and Dhiju Das 2015; Pravin and Meenakumari 2016). A purse seine is a large surrounding net, the bottom of which closes after encircling a shoaling school of fish. The early fleet of purse seiners too came into conflict with small-scale fishers over resources (Nair and Jayaprakash 1983; DCruz 1998), thus triggering some attempts at government regulation (Pravin and Meenakumari 2016).

Bottom trawling and purse seining marginalised the small-scale fishing population in India, a process which was offset, to some extent, by the motorisation of small craft. Motorisation increased the range and speed of small-scale fishers, and provided them with countervailing power against trawlers and purse seiners (Bavinck 1997). While the fishing populations along many coastlines were already acquainted with encircling techniques (such as the shore seine), the motorisation of small craft facilitated the downsizing of purse seine technology. As such, the mini purse seine, also known as the ring seine, came into use among small-scale fishers along the Southeast Coast of India in the early 1980s (Edwin and Dhiju Das 2015).

There are two accounts of the genesis and subsequent spread of the ring seine. The first connects it to an initiative of the ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (ICAR-CIFT) in Kochi, Kerala, in 1982 (Edwin and Dhiju Das 2015; Pravin and Meenakumari 2016). The other more detailed account links the development of ring seining to ingenious small-scale fishers in various parts of Kerala. They were inspired by their new knowledge of large-scale purse seining, probably acquired from working on purse seiners, and by prevailing fishing practices in their native regions (DCruz 1998). Starting in Kerala, where it is now the dominant mode of fishing (Edwin and Dhiju Das 2015: 90), ring seining has veritably spread across the Northwest and East Coasts of the country (Pravin and Meenakumari 2016).

Cruz (1998) divides the rise of ring seining along the East Coast into three phases: the origin or innovation (19851986), growth, and development (19871990). A census by the South Indian Federation of Fishermen Societies (SIFFS) reveals that at the end of the latter period, there were 2,259 ring seine units in Kerala, equivalent to 4.5 ring seines per kilometre of coastline (Pravin and Meenakumari 2016: 14, 45). As ring seining spread along the coast of Kerala, so too did tensions with small-scale fishers who were not party to this shift; I shall return to this in the next section.

Sociotechnical transitions, such as ring seining, occur in response to prevailing conditions in the marine environment, on the one hand, and the market, on the other. Inshore and offshore waters were relatively rich in demersal and pelagic species, so the various modernisations that occurred increased the fish catch spectacularly, in turn boosting marine fish production almost eightfold, from approximately 47,000 MT in 1948 to 35,83,000 MT in 2015 (Government of India 2017). In later decades, however, harvesting levels have stabilised, and catches per unit of effort have decreased; there is significant evidence of fishing down the foodweb (Bhathal and Pauly 2008). Indeed, the National Policy on Marine Fisheries recently concluded that fisheries resources from near-shore waters are fully utilized (Government of India 2017: 14) and that only the deep sea offers opportunities for intensification.

The decline of inshore fisheries, as noted in this recent policy document, was already evident to fishers in the 1990s (Bavinck 2001); indeed, scientists have occasionally issued warnings on the dangers of uncontrolled innovation. The respected fisheries scientists, Silas and colleagues (1980: 3), writing about the rise of purse seine fishing on the East Coast, argued that [s]uch wasteful and destructive fishing could irreparably damage the fish resources, and strongly recommended better regulation. We encounter similar voices in our discussion on ring seining in Tamil Nadu.

The market too was receptive to the introduction of new fishing technologies in inshore waters. I have already mentioned the impetus of international demand, first for shrimp and later for other seafood products. The continual increase in seafood prices, both internationally (Delgado et al 2003) and locally (Government of India 2014: 152), has been a strong incentive for entrepreneurs in India to invest in fisheries.

Now, mention needs to be made of the state-based regulatory regime governing marine fisheries and its relation to technical innovation. I have already mentioned the Indian governments interest (at the central- and state-level) in modernising fisheries. The Constitution provided the foundation for this effort by assigning the regulation of fisheries in territorial waters (within 12 NM [nautical miles] from shore) to state governments; the central government is in charge of fisheries in the rest of the exclusive economic zone. Importantly, the Constitution (Article 19[g]) stipulates that every citizen of India is allowed to engage in any profession; this provision afforded non-fishers the opportunity to invest in fishing. Non-fisher investments took place frequently, especially during the early innovation phases of trawling and purse seining (Kurien 1978; Bavinck 2001).

Jurisdiction for regulating marine fisheries was established only in the 1980s, after violent conflict erupted along the entirety of the Indian coast. In response to a model bill circulated by the central government, state governments began to formulate legislations for regulating marine fisheries, with a focus on separating the two warring parties. The Tamil Nadu Fisheries Regulation Act came into force in 1983; while it has repeatedly been supplemented by government orders, it recently underwent a comprehensive revision in 2017.

For this paper, another government notification (GO No 40 of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, Tamil Nadu) is relevant. It states:

In exercise of the powers conferred by [] the Tamil Nadu Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1983 [], the Governor of Tamil Nadu hereby prohibits fishing [] with Purse-Seine nets by any fishing vessel/craft, whether country craft or mechanised boat, irrespective of their size, and power of the engine, in the entire coastal areas of Tamil Nadu in the territorial waters, as a measure to conserve the fishery.

Not only does this notification pertain to the entire coastline of the state, it also relates to all kinds of fishing activity, by small-scale and semi-industrial (or mechanised) vessels alike. It is motivated by conservation needs, which, as we shall see, are contested (as is the ring seine fishery as a whole).

State law is not the only source of regulation for Tamil Nadu fisheries, where legal pluralism is the rule. The fisheries on the Coromandel Coast, which stretches over approximately 400 km (kilometres), are well-known for their caste-based fisher councils, or ur panchayats, which have traditionally played a role in ensuring the well-being of hamlet populations (Bavinck and Vivekanandan 2017). Rooted in patrilineal kinship structures, and based on principles of equality, ur panchayats are strong, local decision-making platforms, handling dispute resolution, representation, community welfare, and fisheries management (Bavinck 2001). The last activity hinges on the widely-shared notion that adjacent land and water belong to the local ur panchayat, which is, therefore, in charge of making decisions on the acceptability of new fishing technologies and practices. Ur panchayats evaluate such technologies and practices according to their potential to cause three types of harm: to the marine environment, to the majority style of fishing, and to the community as a social entity. An unfavourable judgment by an ur panchayat could lead to the banning (tadai, in Tamil) of certain gear (Bavinck and Karunaharan 2006). Each fisher settlement along the Coromandel Coast has an ur panchayat in addition to a system of regional cooperation through panchayat circles or head villages (talai nagar, in Tamil).

Zooming in on Cuddalore

Cuddalore is situated halfway along the Coromandel Coast of Tamil Nadu (Figure 1, p 39)this is an area notorious for natural and man-made disasters. While the former include cyclonic storms and rare tsunamis, the latter are often linked to the establishment in the 1980s of a large Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) that has been involved in multiple pollution scandals.

The Cuddalore coastline is 57 km long. It is dissected by two major rivers and extensive backwaters which separate the coastal belt from the interior. According to the fisheries department, there are 47 marine fishing hamlets here, partially clustered around three urbanising harbour locations (Cuddalore Old Town, Parangipettai, and Mudasal Odai) and otherwise spread out along the coast (Department of Fisheries 2010). It estimates the marine fishing population to be approximately 45,000 individuals, the majority of whom

belong to two fishing castes: Pattinavar and Parvatharajakulam. The latter are located primarily in the central part of the coast, and the former dominate settlements in the northern and southern reaches.

Several events and processes have left marks on the marine fishing population in Cuddalore: the tsunami of 2004, the rapid industrialisation of the coastal zone, and the ongoing modernisation of fisheries. The tsunami that swept the low-lying Cuddalore shore in December 2004 caused many deaths, particularly in the fishing population, and extensive material damage. Following the tsunami, the government relocated a number of fishing hamlets to the interior, while others were provided with seawalls and ecosystem-based protection measures.

While most chemical industries in the region operate near the backwaters and not along the coast, coastal populations have nonetheless experienced negative side effects. For example, numerous jetties and pipelines have been constructed in order to import raw materials and discharge of waste. These infrastructures inevitably occupy coastal land and water, interfere physically with fishing operations, and affect the health of fish stocks and marine ecosystems. In order to compensate the fishing populations, ur panchayats have negotiated deals with industrial companies, whereby the latter make annual contributions to temple festivals and reserve a limited number of low-paying jobs for people from the adjacent hamlets.

The blue revolution, launched by the Government of Tamil Nadu, affected the fishers of Cuddalore in similar ways as in other parts of the country. While large-scale purse seining activities never developed as on the East Coast, two large trawling centres emerged in the district (Cuddalore Old Town and Mudasal Odai)here, trawling activity centred on the resource-rich inshore zone, where small-scale fishers also plied their craft (Lawrence and Bhalla 2018). A section of the small-scale fishing population subsequently transitioned to trawl fishing, either as owners or, more frequently, as crew. Sometimes, they migrated permanently to harbour towns in or around the district for this purpose. The majority, however, continue to engage in small-scale fishing, making use of a range of drift netting technologies (Bavinck 2001). These small-scale fishers target the various, marketable species available in the Bay of Bengal in different seasons; it is important to note that the species that ring seines currently target are largely the same as those that regular small-scale fishers catch.

Many fisher respondents in Cuddalore expressed pessimism about the future of marine fisheries. Along this entire coastline, there is a strong drive to educate children, in the hope that the younger generation will abandon the dead-end occupation of fishing. Meanwhile, ongoing research indicates that many older fishers are currently spending a varying number of years in Gulf countries or in Singapore, having been pushed out by the poor conditions of the local fisheries, and pulled abroad by the opportunity to earn good money. In all, these developments show that Cuddalore fishers are broadening their perspectives beyond the hamlet, the coastal strip, and the fishing profession. Ring seine fishing has emerged in this reality.

Regulations governing ring seine fishing in Cuddalore come from two sources. The first is the district administration, headed by the collector, who depends strongly on the assistant director of fisheries and their small staff for matters concerning fisheries. Both are based in Cuddalore. Fisher law also emanates from the ur panchayats in each hamlet. Although the ur panchayats still possess considerable power, recent research demonstrates variability with regard to structure, scope, and activity (Bavinck and Vivekanandan 2017); these factors are probably related to changes in the macro-environment, as sketched above.

Fishers in the district recognise two head villages that correspond with two caste groups: Devanampattinam (for the Pattinavar) and Samiyarpettai (for the Parvatharajakulam). Both villages figure in the transition to ring seine fishing, to which I now turn.

Contestations over Ring Seine Fishing

Ring seine fishing technology swept up the coast from southern Tamil Nadu, reaching the fishing port of Pazhayar, at the border of Cuddalore, in the late 1990s. United under the Devanampattinam flag, a large fleet of irate Cuddalore fishers travelled to Pazhayar and set fire to the ring seine nets (surukkuvalai, in Tamil) being used there. This incident demonstrated the widespread resistance to ring seine technology and temporarily put its adoption on hold. Respondents point out, however, that in the years that followed, fishers in Cuddalore became increasingly aware of the financial advantages associated with ring seine fishing. Thus, as a former official of the fisheries department pointed out, other fishing methods were not generating big catches, and ring seining provided new opportunities for small-scale fishers (anonymous personal communication, 15 September 2016). Interestingly, the fishers of Devanampattinam converted firstand wholeheartedlyto the technology, and those from other villages followed suit. Respondents agreed that this transition gained momentum especially after the tsunami of 2004.

Various encircling techniques for capturing passing schools of pelagic fish were, at the turn of the millennium, already in use along the Coromandel Coast. Ring seine gear, however, was an upgrade to these earlier techniques; small-scale fishers found it attractive as it was possible to share ownership. As the labour requirement for ring seining was high (normally 3060 people), it made sense for fishers to form investment or labour groups. Thus, shareholder groups of 2030 fishers purchased small ring seine nets (approximately 400 m long; Tamil: adantavalai)either new or second-handand committed to collectively operating the gear. Members split the returns equally. The advantage of ring seine fishing was that it did not require the immediate purchase of a new vessel; instead, motorised crafts, which had become plentiful after the tsunami and were normally used for small-scale fishing, could be used for this purpose.

This form of collaborative fishing is still practised in several fishing villages along the Cuddalore coastline. Small ring seine nets cost between `5 lakh`7 lakh (second-hand) and `10 lakh (new), and a share normally costs less than `25,000 per member. In addition to this democratic and rather simple form of ring seining, however, new, more capital-intensive and harbour-based fishing forms have emerged; the pertinent core technology is, once again, being imported from Kerala.

The first so-called kanaa boata high-prowed vessel, 1520 m longfitted with winches and specifically designed for ring seine fishing, was probably brought to Cuddalore town in 2006 (personal communication Taniyavelu, 12 September 2016). The investment required was not large (a second-hand kanaa boat currently costs `20 lakh); this kind of vessel made offshore fishing for larger fish species possible, and allowed for more sizeable nets (1,500 m long). For kanaa fishing too, shareholdership is a regular phenomenon. Interestingly, respondents agree that the number of shareholders in a kanaa group has declined from an average of 20 to just 510. This is indicative of the increasing wealth of fishers involved in kanaa fishing. Cuddalore now counts among the major fishing ports, with a substantial number of kanaa boats in Cuddalore Old Town (an estimated 150 vessels) and Parangipettai (fewer than 20 vessels). The owners/operators of these vessels hail from fishing villages along the coast; respondents all agreed that Devanampattinam is the centre of trade. Kanaa boats operate both inshore and offshore, and, as such, come into conflict with small-scale fishers.

Recent additions to the ring seine fleet are the large steel boats that go on multi-day fishing trips to offshore watersthey can be considered regular purse seine vessels. These large boats target the most valuable pelagic species, such as tuna, and cost `12 lakh each, including gear. Operating costs are estimated at `3 lakh per voyage. Although shared ownership prevails in this case too, the original system of shareholder/crew participation has largely been abandoned. Workers now come from agricultural professions, and owners often do not personally go fishing. Moreover, wealthy shareholders seem to invest in more than one vessel.

The transition to ring seine fishing that occurred in Cuddalore has several defining features. First, there was a move from small-scale ring seine technology to larger, more capital-intensive forms; all these forms of fishing still coexist along the coast. Second, while collective shareholdership is still the norm, the size of ring seine operating groups is reducing as the wealth of individual fisher investors increases. Traders appear to have played a role in funding the initial shift to ring seining, but their role has declined over time. Although ring seine fleets largely operate in the same locations as the trawling fleets of Cuddalore, there seems to be limited interaction between these fleets; indeed, there is a certain degree of animosity between trawling and ring seine fishers. Third, ring seine fishing is now often considered to be the fishing populations mukkiyamaana tozhil (primary work), in contrast to small-scale fishing (Tamil: sinna tozhil, or small-time work). In this, it differs from trawl fishing, which has always been regarded as a sector in which small-scale fishers cannot easily participate. Finally, I have shown how ring seine fishing has been contested by the fishing population, even from its inception.

I will return to this point after sketching the disparate and often emotionally charged opinions that fishers, government officials, scientists, and activists have about ring seining in Cuddalore and the region at large. Opponents of ring seine fishing in the district tended to emphasise two aspects. First, ring seine fishing tends to result in the overall depletion of inshore fish stocks. Harvesting entire schools of fish (including juveniles and egg-bearing females) arguably causes overall fish stocks to decline. This might have other negative consequences; for instance, predator fish no longer come inshore. Second, ring seine fishing arguably benefits a certain segment of the fishing population to the exclusion of others. Small-scale fishers in the region, who use drift nets, have observed that their catches of sardine, mackerel, and other schooling species have reduced. Theirs is an argument of fairness and social justice. Meanwhile, proponents of ring seine fishing point to the extreme fecundity of many pelagic species and the lack of scientific evidence on overfishing. They also emphasise that there is a general crisis in the fishing sector and an unavailability of income-generating alternatives. Finally, they point out that other state governments in India, such as the one in Kerala, have even encouraged fishers to adopt ring seining.

Debates on the potential harmfulness of purse or ring seine fishing have been around for a long time; the counsels of Silas and co-authors (1980) were noted earlier. Such warnings, in addition to the vehement protests of fishers along the coast of Tamil Nadu, undoubtedly inspired the government notification banning ring seine fishing in the state. In Cuddalore, the effort to limit ring seine fishing was taken up by the chief administrator, Singh Bedi, who had gained popularity within fishing communities because of his excellent handling of the tsunami disaster. In the wake of his efforts, the Fisheries Department held a number of meetings in the district, warning fishers of the dire consequences associated with ring seine fishing (anonymous personal communication, ex-AD Fisheries, 15 September 2016). Today, fishers still talk about Bedis spirited opposition to ring seining (personal communication Devaraj, 7 August 2016).

The fishers of Cuddalore also took remedial action. Once the Devanampattinam inhabitants and village council abruptly gave up on opposing ring seine fishing and joined the band wagon, the Samiyarpettai head village led the protest against incipient ring seine activity. This precipitated in a peace meeting (in the district collectors office on 12 March 2004), which fisher representatives from both sides and several government officials attended. The meeting ended with a resolution, signed by all those present, that ring seine nets should no longer be used.

While ring seine fishing in Cuddalore increased in the post-tsunami period, and many ur panchayats stopped opposing this technique, a group of 23 villages headed by Samiyarpettai persevered. They did not allow their members to engage in ring seining, and continued to lobby against the use of this technology with each ur panchayat sending a letter to the district collector asking for the government ban to be enforced. This led to another peace meeting on 21 June 2016; once again, fisher representatives from both sides and a number of government officials attended. The decision taken at the meeting was to limit the number of ring seine units employed in the district, and to terminate ring seining altogether within a year. The latter clause was added so as to allow those who had invested in ring seining to recover their investments. However, the decisions made during this meeting have not been honoured; indeed, at the time of my fieldwork in 2016, new ring seine units were being established. Moreover, fishers from Samiyarpettai complained that, in retribution for their opposition to ring seining, fish traders in Cuddalore had stopped purchasing their fish. A year later, a young fisher from Samiyarpettai voiced disappointment in the fact that the decisions made at the peace meeting had essentially been ignored, complaining that the government should have more actively ensured their implementation.

The government should have restricted the use of ring seine nets much sooner. Now, they cannot do anything because people have invested large sums of money. Now, the only thing to be done is to raise awareness among fishers and inculcate changea form of slow action. The government should be doing more now, as fishing practices are so poor. (personal communication, Saktivel, 3 September 2017)

Next, I reflect on the troubled transition to ring seine fishing, as it occurred in Cuddalore.

Discussion

The sociotechnical transition to ring seine fishing in India had several features. First, the technologya radically modernised version of existing encircling techniqueswas introduced and developed in niches along the East Coast of India. It subsequently spread to what might be termed subordinate niches along the East Coast, before it entered Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu.

The landscape of this transition was multidimensional, broad-based, and anchored in a policy of innovation for growth (Schot and Steinmueller 2018). The technology originated in Europe and was introduced in India through multilateral development cooperation projects. Indian governments embraced the technology in order to enhance fish production, as did individual fishers who were eager to offset the decline in catches, which was caused at least partly by overfishing.

The regime governing the introduction and practice of ring seine fishing, however, is not so straightforward. Subsequent governments in India, which have each claimed a monopoly over regulating fisheries in the country, have taken different standpoints, sometimes allowing ring seining, and sometimes not; in any case, the government failed to provide a nationwide regulation framework. Thus, while the Tamil Nadu government has officially prohibited ring seining, Kerala permits it. Therefore, much of the equipment used in Cuddalore was purchased legally in Kerala. Moreover, even though the Tamil Nadu government has officially banned ring seining, it makes no efforts to implement this regulationthe most glaring example is in the harbour of Cuddalore Old Town, which houses a large, active fleet of illegal ring seine vessels.

Parallel to the fractured and ineffectual nature of government regulation, there is a strong, but increasingly variable, system of customary law at the village level, which is anchored in ur panchayats. Panchayat members and ordinary fishers share the opinion that, based on historical precedence, they have a moral right to govern inshore fishing spaces. The main way in which ur panchayats do so is by banning harmful fishing practices (Bavinck and Karunaharan 2006). Thus, at the inception of ring seining in the region, ur panchayats on this part of the coast joined for a punitive expedition against perpetrators in Pazhaiyar, a fishing town across the border in Nagapattinam district.

In subsequent years, however, fisher opinion in the Cuddalore district became divided; one group of panchayats was in favour of an overall ban of ring seines, while another group strongly supported the use of the technology. Peace meetings organised under the auspices of the district collector brought no solace. In fact, the number of ring seine units continued to rise, much to the dismay of a section of the fishing population and many members of government, scientists, and members of civil society.

In Conclusion

Besides the niche and the landscape, sociotechnical transition studies emphasise the importance of the prevailing institutional regime. The assumption is that regimes are semi-coherent, thereby accounting for the stability of [sociotechnical] configurations (Geels 2002: 1,260; Schot and Kanger 2018). The case of ring seine fishing in India demonstrates, however, that transitions sometimes occur in contexts of legal plurality. This paper questions the effects of legal pluralism on sociotechnical regimes and transition processes, with a focus on ring seine fishing.

Legal pluralism causes institutional fragmentation, which has an impact on ordinary citizens and authorities. Three points stand out. First, the quality of legal pluralism plays a role in the stability of sociotechnical transitions. Legal pluralism scholars distinguish between weak and strong (or deep) forms of legal pluralismthe former falls under the umbrella of, for example, a state legal order, and the latter denotes the coexistence of distinct legal systems (Griffiths 1986). A strong legal pluralism perspective draws attention to fundamental tensions occurring in the very field in which a sociotechnical transition is taking place. Such tensions are evident in the case of ring seining in Tamil Nadu, particularly because of the differing stances of ur panchayats and government authorities.

Second, power equations and politics play important roles in the stability of any sociotechnical transition (Kenis et al 2016), as they do in conditions of legal pluralism (Jentoft and Bavinck 2014). If one legal system and its members dominate the field, long-term stability is more likely than when legal systems rival each other in strength. In the latter case, such as with ring seining in India, the stability of the transition is questionable. With the existence of many different perspectives, ring seining is currently shaky at best.

Finally, when societal systems, such as fisheries, rely heavily on ecological services for their existence (Costanza et al 2017), a degradation of these services may negatively affect whatever stability is supposed to exist in a sociotechnical transition. The changes that are occurring in the marine ecosystem as a result of multiple human interventions, including ring seining, may eventually limit its practice. The future of ring seining in India is, therefore, yet to be decided.

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WASHINGTON (AP)  Spending on U.S. construction projects fell 1.3% in February with housing and nonresidential construction both showing weakness even before the coronavirus struck with force in the United States.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that the February decline followed a 2.8% rise in construction in January. Economists are forecasting more declines to come, especially in housing activity as the stay-at-home orders in much of the country crimp home sales.





. . .
KANSAS CITY, Mo., April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC) announced additional measures for members to ease the treatment of COVID-19.

Effective April 1, Blue KC is waiving all member cost sharing and copayments for inpatient hospital admissions due to the diagnosis of COVID-19. This policy will remain in place through June 30, 2020 and applies to insured Blue KC plans.*

"Our top priority is to ensure that our members with COVID-19 can receive the care they need," said Greg Sweat, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, Blue KC. "These additional measures will reduce barriers to care for our members."

In addition to this expanded coverage, Blue KC has taken the following measures to assist our members and providers through this unprecedented time:

Waived cost sharing for COVID-19 testing including the related office visit and related services

Waived early medication 30-day refill limits

Expanded access to in-network telehealth for all covered services and waived member cost sharing for virtual office visits and behavioral health therapy

Blue KC has enhanced telehealth offerings to support members' health and wellbeing during this uncertain time. Members can meet with virtual care doctors trained to evaluate COVID-19 conveniently through their smartphone, tablet or computer. Both Urgent Care Visits and Behavioral Health Therapy visits provided in the Blue KC app are at no cost for members through June 30, 2020. Members may also connect with in-network providers for virtual, telephone, e-mail or text visits for medical services or behavioral health therapy at no cost. Members can download the app from the Apple App Store and Google Play or go to bluekcvirtualcare.com to access the virtual care portal.

"During these extraordinary times, Blue KC is working in collaboration with city officials, healthcare providers, nonprofit organizations, regulators and other key partners to care for the people who work and live in our community," said Erin Stucky, Blue KC President and CEO. "As a local healthcare company, we are in a unique position to support our community through this national public health pandemic and will continue to do so to the best of our ability."

Blue KC is dedicated to protecting the health and safety of our members through the prevention, testing and treatment of COVID-19. Visit bluekc.com/consumer/covid-19 to learn more.

*Minimum Premium and ASO customers may opt out by April 10, 2020.

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, the largest not-for-profit health insurer in Missouri and the only not-for-profit commercial health insurer in Kansas City, has been part of the Kansas City community since 1938. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City provides health coverage services to more than one million residents in the greater Kansas City area, including Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas and 30 counties in Northwest Missouri. Our mission: to provide affordable access to healthcare and to improve the health of our members. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information on the company, visit its website at BlueKC.com.

SOURCE Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City
On Jan. 7, 1960, Elmo Smith of Bridgeport in Montgomery County was charged with the murder and rape of a 16-year-old girl.

Maryann Theresa Mitchell of the Manayuk section of Philadelphia was an 11th grader at Cecelian Academy.

She disappeared on Dec. 28, 1959, when she was returning home after going to the movies with a friend.

Her body was found on Dec. 30 in a muddy gully.

Smith was the last person to be executed in Pennsylvania by the electric chair. He was executed on April 2, 1962, after being found guilty of the rape and murder of Mitchell.

According to stories in The Patriot by the Associated Press, Smith was on parole at the time of his arrest for the murder. He also was being charged with burglary, larceny and arson in connection with the theft of a car from a Norristown couple. Their car was found abandoned on a Bridgeport street with bloodstains on the back seat and on a bumper jack found in the car trunk. Embedded in the blood on the jack were three strands of auburn hair.

Philadelphia police chemists established those hairs were similar to Maryanns hair and that the blood stains were of Type A blood. Maryann had Type A blood. The district attorney said the car was used in the murder of Mitchell.

In January 1960, the Associated Press reported that Smith confessed.

In his confession, Smith said he spotted Maryann alone on a street corner as he drove a stolen car. He told police he snatched the girl, attacked her, crushed her skull with five blows then dumped her body an hour later, still alive and begging to be taken home, into the ravine.

One psychiatric exam at the same time, revealed Smith showed sexual tendencies which led to caveman tactics.

Smith was scheduled to trial on the charges on Aug. 22 in Gettysburg. He had been granted a change of venue because of pretrial publicity and he had changed his plea.

According to news stories, Smith was a handyman who had been convicted twice for sex offenses.

The cover of the book "Murdered Innocence" about the murder of Maryann Mitchell by Donna Persico, from Amazon.com.

On the first day of the trial on Aug. 25, 1960, the Associated Press reported that Montgomery County District Attorney Vincent A. Cirillo said Smith struck the girl over the head with a bumper jack and dragged her into a stolen car as she waited on a foggy, rain-drenched street corner for a bus.

Cirillo said the defendant threw her clothes from the car as he drove her to a lonely spot, parked the car, raped her and viciously beat her again over the head several times, and dumped her body down an embankment. He also marked her body with lipstick, putting on it the symbols TB and 101. We will show that after Elmo Smith dumped her body there, he drove home to Bridgeport, where he discarded her underwear.

On Sept. 1, 1960, Smith was convicted after the jury deliberated for just 90 minutes.

The Associated Press reported, tears streamed down the cheeks of the 39-year-old Bridgeport handyman, after the verdict.

Smith had served 10 years of a 10-20 year sentence for a series of burglaries and assaults on women in January 1946. He was released on parole then sent back to prison for violating parole. He was paroled again on Oct. 1, 1958.

On Sept. 3, 1960, Smith was sentenced to death. The state asked for the death penalty to make an example of Elmo Smith to deter all others who would commit rape and murder.

Multiple appeals by Smith were rejected. In February 1962, the governor of Pennsylvania ordered Smith be executed the week of April 2.

On March 22, 1962, the Associated Press reported that Smith had asked the state Board of Pardons to commute the death sentence saying the state was partly to blame. One of Smiths lawyers said that the state knew that Smith was a sexual psychopath with caveman-like tendencies.

The board denied the request.

On April 1, 1962, the Associated Press reported, Elmo Lee Smith, 40-year-old convicted murdered, waited silently in a prison cell yesterday, less than 48 hours away from death in the electric chair.

The Bridgeport handyman, spending his last hours in the state correctional institution at nearby Graterford, refuses to see or talk to anyone.

Today, being April Fools Day, hell be transferred under heavy guard to Rockview Penitentiary at Bellefonte, Centre County. Barring a last-minute reprieve, itll be his last Sunday on earth.

Late Monday night he is scheduled to die in the electric chair for the 1959 Christmas week killing of Maryann Mitchell 

His last meal was potatoes, lima beans, peach short cake and coffee.

On April 3, 1962, the Associated Press reported that Smith remained calm and cool as he was strapped into the electric chair. He was pronounced dead two minutes later at 9:04 p.m.

The electric chair was dismantled and put into storage in 1971 by Gov. Milton J. Shapps administration, just before the death penalty was ruled unconstitutional in 1972. It was reassembled in 1985. In 1990 it was replaced with death by lethal injection. The electric chair, nicknamed Old Smokey, is in storage at the State Museum.

The last execution in the state of Pennsylvania was July 6, 1999, when Gary Heidnik was put to death by lethal injection.

The electric chair and control panel at the State Correctional Institution at Rockview, Dec. 5, 1990. (Allied Pix for The Patriot-News)

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Charities across Canada remain hopeful that promised federal funding for COVID-19 relief will help them, because the government has recognized their unique qualities.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau provided more details Wednesday on a 75 per cent wage subsidy for businesses that show a minimum 30 per cent drop in revenue compared to the same month last year.

But Canadian charitable organizations and non-profit agencies seeking some of the $71 billion relief package worried that they might not qualify, despite tens of thousands of layoffs in the charitable sector during the pandemic. Industry leaders say they need $8 billion to $10 billion to remain viable.

Morneau didnt lay out specific funding for the sector, but some direction from Ottawa is expected soon.

While organizations such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada and YMCA say its too soon to know if the layoffs can be rolled back, they remain cautiously optimistic.

Now we are hearing measures announced that explicitly include non-profits and charities and thats a good thing, said Owen Charters, CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada, after Morneaus announcement.

He added, however, that proving a 30 per cent decline will be a problem for some.

Some charities work on a fee-for-service model  for instance, some clubs charge for child-care fees  but many others, especially clubs in high-need areas, rely on fundraising, said Charters. Fundraising will dry up later in the year because businesses and individuals who normally give will say no, due to COVID-19. So, the capacity to demonstrate a 30 per cent drop in revenue at this time, or next month or so, is probably not provable or knowable.

Unlike small businesses, which were hit hard immediately, the effect on charities will be felt more down the road.

I think thats where were hoping that when the government says they recognize unique factors in the non-profit and charitable sector, it will take that into account, Charters added.

His organization is one of many lobbying for federal funding, an effort led by Imagine Canada, which represents 170,000 non-profits and charities. Imagine Canada CEO and president Bruce MacDonald said the pandemic has hurt on several fronts. Many spring fundraisers are on hold, for example, and charities dont typically have reserve funds to fall back on.

Combine that with the inability of organizations to get bank loans  most dont own buildings, dont have big collateral assets, dont have equity, etc.  while revenues are going to go down. Theres a cash issue coming for charities and non-profits. Organizations wont have the ability to draw down on cash reserves for the next four to six months, MacDonald said.

The sector expects to lose $9.5 billion and lay off 117,000 staff, he said, most of them women  70 per cent of the 2.4 million workers are female.

Ensuring there is support for our workers is important, MacDonald said.

In recent weeks, YMCAs have had 20,000 layoffs across Canada. The Boys and Girls Clubs have laid off 6,000 of 7,000 staff. The Canadian Cancer Society laid off a third of its staff, 300 jobs.

Peter Dinsdale, CEO of YMCA Canada, said he was unsure how Ottawa would treat charities when it comes to funding: We certainly understand we arent a hospital or a library, but we receive federal funding, so where is that line?

Canadian Cancer Society CEO Andrea Seale says her organization is facing the greatest threat in our 80-year history and expects a decline in donations of $60 million to $100 million over the coming months. She called the wage subsidy plan a step in the right direction.

We are very supportive of the federal governments efforts to help non-profits. Like all charities right now, we hope to see greater stabilization support for the sector to ensure that we can continue to support Canadians with cancer, Seale said.

Charters said his organization hosts a variety of programs for young people  60 per cent of them from ages 6 to 12, many in high-risk categories  including: after-school homework, sports, crime rehabilitation, addiction treatment, food supports, housing assistance and help for those in difficult domestic situations.
Boyd Cohen, CEO of Iomob: "A key element in the containment of the coronavirus is to ensure that people in transport systems are kept at an appropriate distance so that the risk of infection is minimized.

Equipped with additional filtere, the Iomob app makes public and private transportation systems safer in corona times.

On 13 March, the EU urged start-up companies to come up with ideas and concepts to help tackle the coronavirus crisis. "48 hours later we had sent in a complete concept, our management had worked virtually non-stop to complete 30 pages including a financing model," said Dr. Boyd Cohen, co-founder and CEO of Iomob, in an interview with Markt&Technik. "And that's despite the fact that we're all in quarantine at our Barcelona office and working from home." During this time, Iomob has even succeeded in gaining the support of 16 other European transport organizations for the concept. By the following Friday, the number of supporters had even increased to 22.

Because Boyd Cohen immediately felt addressed and saw it as a great opportunity for his company: "At the moment there are many advisors who recommend to start-ups to reduce staff and to survive the crisis period in hibernation if possible. But this does not correspond at all to the mentality of the American: "Innovate don't hibernate" is his motto. As CEO of a start-up company that offers Mobility as a Service (MaaS), he felt he was in exactly the right position to do so. After all, transport companies, whether private or public, are very interested in designing their systems to be as safe as possible for people who rely on public transport despite the corona crisis.

"A key element of this is to ensure that people in transport systems are kept at an appropriate distance from each other so that the risk of infection is minimised," says Cohen. The good news is that this is relatively easy to accomplish, as long as only one additional filter is added to Iomob's existing MaaS app. This is because the company, founded in 2017 and headquartered in Barcelona, launched its first MaaS platform five months ago and has now expanded it with "COREMaaS" (COvid19-REsilent Maas). Iomob (the name comes from IoT Mobility) wanted to differentiate itself by being able to integrate practically all companies involved in passenger transport: From scooter and bicycle service providers and taxi companies to buses, subways, trains and airlines. These are precisely the customers of Iomob, the operators of passenger transport services, says Cohen. "Our platform is targeted at business-to-business and business-to-government customers, we don't offer business-to-consumer systems."

Many small private transportation providers are interested in being integrated as well as possible into the larger systems, such as those of ice rink operators. That's exactly what the platform does: end users can plan, order and pay for their journeys using all available means of transport. "From the very beginning, we have attached great importance to this deep integration, because this makes the system so easy for the end users that they actually use it. They don't have to leave our app for either ordering or payment, across the boundaries of all transport systems". The fact that it is a robust and operational system has already been demonstrated by its use at the Spanish railway company Renfe, and Skane Trafiken will soon be using "COREMaaS".

In order to obtain information about the occupancy of the respective means of transport quickly, Iomob relies on crowdsourcing. While Boyd Cohen admits that the reliability of the information is controversial, it is based on the fact that the individual users send corresponding messages in the first place, and if they do, they do so truthfully. That's why Iomob sought the advice of a specialist company, Six Fingers, to develop a system that users would be happy to use. Also, at the moment, everyone is very interested in helping as much as they can. In addition, self-interest plays a role: if you can rely on everyone providing honest information about the occupancy of the means of transport, you will benefit from it yourself in the end. And the operators who use "CORE MaaS" would also have an interest in ensuring that the transport systems function reliably for all users.

Whoever uses the system will be able to see the occupancy rate: Green stands for 20 percent, yellow for 20 to 40 percent and red for an occupancy rate of over 40 percent. The system only suggests alternatives that are safe for the user. For example, if someone is waiting for the next bus at a bus stop, a heavily occupied "red" bus is not even displayed; instead, they wait 10 minutes for the next bus. Or he is shown other routes where the means of transport are less busy. Or only those means of transport in which disinfectants are available.

But Boyd Cohen is already thinking beyond the crisis: "It turns out that there are a number of other possible applications for our CORE MaaS extension. For example, people with a weak immune system can use the app to reduce their risk of infection, and people who suffer from claustrophobia can use it in the same way as people who want to avoid large crowds for other reasons.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday that New York could see up to 16,000 deaths as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Cuomo pointed to the Gates Foundation-funded charts from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation that show approximately 93,000 nationwide deaths resulting from the disease.

The governor used those numbers to show it will become clear that this isnt just an issue New York is facing.

We have rural areas and just the way its gone through rural New York it will go through rural America, Cuomo said. To the extent that people watch their nightly news in Kansas and say this is a New York problem, thats not what these numbers say.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

As of his Wednesday press conference, Cuomo said the number of confirmed cases in New York continued to climb, and sits at 83,712. At least 1,941 New Yorkers have been killed by the disease.

Most projections expect the virus outbreak in the state to peak by the end of April, but for the aftermath to last for months. Cuomo said he expects change as a result of the pandemic.

This is going to be transformative. Its going to be transformative on a personal basis, on a social basis, on a systems basis," the governor said. Were never going to be the same again. Were not going to forget what happened here. I dont think we get back to normal.

Continuing his push to get as many people tested for the disease as possible, Cuomo praised private companies Regeneron for providing 500,000 kits, and Corning for providing 100,000 tubes free of charge.

Cuomo also announced his decision to close all playgrounds in city parks, because people were continuing to ignore social distancing mandates from the government. He said that the NYPD needs to step up enforcement, even though the mandates are not official laws.

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In 1837, an extract from Lewis Topographical Dictionary of Ireland painted a quaint picture of Maghera in 1798.

It read: During the disturbances of 1798 it enjoyed comparative tranquillity.

Anyone living in the County Derry town at the time of the ill-fated United Irishmen rebellion would no doubt disagree.

The ins and outs of the 1798 rebellion were played out at a local level across the country, something local historian Joseph McCoy thinks is not mentioned enough in schools.

He says: I understand the necessity to look at the First and Second World Wars, but they have so little about the place were living in, particularly the local stuff.

The story of 1798 in Maghera is complex. Theres a whole plethora of different writers on the subject but no two stories are the same. That tells me that they are pulling a lot from folklore.

Troops had been stationed in the town before the rising began in June 1798 and the rebellious plans were being drawn up around them.

An account of how recoat army captain Francis Lamont met and married the daughter of hotel proprietor Jack ONeill bears testament to this.

Captain Lamont, second in command to Colonel Leith, had been passing what is now known as Walshs, when he found himself transfixed by a young girl working in the hotel.

When she returned his glance, the captain turned to his superior and told him in no uncertain terms that if she were not yet married, she would be his wife.

The pair were married in May 1798 and Lamont was named on a list of people who donated to the building of Glen chapel, where the couple rest in the graveyard.

It was certainly not the last time love flourished with a meeting of eyes in Walshs Hotel.

History and folklore have weaved a rich tapestry of tragedy, violence, compassion and love at the foot of the Glenshane in 1798.

The town was so involved in the skirmishes that after the uprising failed, Colonel Leiths redcoat army may have planned to reduce it to rubble in retribution.

In an article for the Maghera Times, a local historical paper, Joseph McCoy wrote:

Initial suggestions tell us that the army was prepared to blow the town to pieces with a detachment of cannon, which had been placed on top of a hill overlooking the town.

However, Maghera was spared, and the people lived to pass on the tales of the rebellions leaders in the town, many of whom suffered reprisals in its aftermath.

Rev. John Glendy

Rev. Glendy provided leadership to the volunteers in the years leading up to 1798, which led to James Spottswood of the Salters Company in Magherafelt admonishing him in print in 1794.

He wrote: Glendy of Maghera is tainted with the blackest principles of revolution. His many sermons are but discourses containing treason.

We have seen him on diverse occasion with the Popish priest of Magherafelt in that union of the Romish Church with whom he does conspire against this Realm.

Glendy composed the oath sworn by all members of the United Irishmen, and at some meetings, stood behind a pulpit bearing the legend; vive la Republique, in a nod to the French revolution.

As expected, the hunt for Glendy in the aftermath of the rebellion was an earnest one. He fled to a place called the Grove where he stayed with a man named Wilson for a fortnight.

One popular account of how Glendy evaded capture was by borrowing a petticoat, cloak, bonnet and stockings from a woman named Sarah MacQuirken and escaping dressed as a woman.

His escape was almost foiled when a local magistrate called Forrester recognised him, but his Presbyterian colleague, Clark, restrained him from making an arrest.

The unusual attire also helped him evade a passing redcoat patrol in Tobermore, but his fate was sealed when troops surrounded a friends house and he was forced to hand himself in.

Glendy was imprisoned on a barge moored in Belfast Lough before being exiled in America, where he became chaplain to the US House of Representatives in 1806 and the Senate in 1815.

He passed away in Philadelphia in October 1832 and is buried in Baltimore.

Walter Watty Graham

Synonymous with the GAA tradition in Glen, the name Watty Graham is familiar in Maghera and its surrounds.

Graham was an Elder in the local Presbyterian church and had been central to organising the rebellions activity in Maghera.

After it was quelled, his house was set on fire in reprisal and after a bounty of 500 was placed on his head, he set off for Magilligan, from where he intended to travel to Moville.

En route, he stopped at the Rectory of Tamlaght, where he intended to collect 400 that the occupier, Mr Church owed him.

Mr Church said he would have to go to Maghera to get the money but, in truth, intended to turn him into the authorities in a bid to clear his debt and collect a handsome reward.

A servant girl overheard Church telling his wife of the plan, and he swore her to secrecy, but the girl found a way to warn Watty Graham of the betrayal.

In his book Famous Maghera Men, Eoin Walsh writes how the girl warned Graham using the phrase; A herring was never taken on bait.

Graham attempted to evade capture by grabbing a shovel from a nearby workman and telling him to run instead.

The soldiers followed the workman, but the Rector spotted the ruse and alerted the soldiers to Grahams presence. He was swiftly arrested.

Watty Graham was executed, decapitated and his head carried through the town of Maghera in an intimidatory warning to local supporters of the United Irishmen.

His relatives are thought to have retrieved his remains and buried them.

Mr Chuch did not live long to enjoy the fruits of his betrayal and was bludgeoned to death at the entrance to his avenue while attending a call to tend to a dying parishioner.

William Billy Cuddy

In the swirling air of mistrust that prevailed after the rebellion, suspicion was easily aroused, and it cost the life of an innocent man in Billy Cuddy.

An unseasonable jest cost him his life, wrote Joseph McCoy in his Maghera Times article.

Cuddy, a wheelwright and blue dyer by trade, had been employed to insert a pane of glass into a leaden window-frame and remarked that it would not be difficult to turn the lead into bullets.

The owner of the house reported him to local clerical magistrate called Clotsworthy Soden, who had him arrested and sentenced to death.

Billy Cuddy had a fairly good relationship with the townsfolk, even the soldiers, says Joseph.

Colonel Leith, commander of the royalist forces in Maghera, understood that Clotsworthy Soden was maybe overstretching his authority, but it was authority he had.

As they were taking him to his death, he recited the 52nd psalm at the top of his voice referring to the Rector being to blame for his downfall.

Colonel Leith asked Cuddy on the gallows if he wanted to leave the case in his hands. Many watching on considered it to be an act of mercy, but Cuddy tragically misunderstood the offer.

He declared he would leave it to a Higher Power. Leith deemed that this was a rejection of his offer and William Cuddy was hanged.

No further indignity was inflicted on his body though, and local tradition has it that he was cut down from the rope while still alive, nursed back to health and spirited away to America.

A mock funeral is said to have been held in Maghera, and a weathered stone in the old St Lurachs church bears the inscription The Burying Place of William Cuddy.

The names of Glendy, Graham and Cuddy will not catch the eye of many modern-day history students, but they are ingrained in the town of Maghera and its rich history from this period.

Their heroic and tragic stories will continue to be passed from generation to generation and the tangible history of Magheras United Irishmen will endure.
In the final few minutes of a spacecraft landing it is moving at hypersonic speeds through many layers of atmosphere. Knowing the air density outside of the vehicle can have a substantial effect on its angle of descent and ability to hit a specific landing spot. But air density sensors that can withstand the harsh hypersonic conditions are uncommon. A student from The Netherlands, working with an aerospace engineer at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, developed an algorithm that can run onboard a vehicle, providing important real-time data to aid in steering the craft, particularly during the crucial entry, descent, and landing stage.

"The algorithm we created can run in-flight, onboard the vehicle and estimate what the atmosphere outside is like," said Hamza El-Kebir, an undergraduate at Delft University of Technology. "So this is a complete game changer, because now you can use prior knowledge about the vehicle's motion to estimate the air density, inform your decisions in flight, and make minor alterations in your course. This can provide more certainty that you're going to hit that spot, instead of dealing with really conservative guidance."

El-Kebir conducted the research with Melkior Ornik, assistant professor in the Dept. of Aerospace Engineering at U of I, during a semester abroad program and will begin graduate school at Illinois in the fall. He said his work is new because it uses data from sensors that weren't intended to provide air density data. "It extracts that density information from it by using really nifty algorithms that don't require any real knowledge of the aerodynamics or the atmosphere."

Ornik explained how the algorithm learns the air density. "The algorithm starts from almost nothing. It doesn't know anything about the air density. It gathers data from accelerometers and gyroscopes available on any vehicle to gather data, and combines it with prior knowledge about maximal rate of acceleration to obtain a time-varying estimate of air density. And it gets, in a sense, smarter over time. It changes its estimations onboard, based on the input data it receives."

El-Kebir and Ornik used data acquired from the entry, descent, and landing of the Phoenix lander--a Mars science probe--representing the last 220 seconds, the ballistic phase, until parachute deployment.

"There's no steering at the later portion of that stage, so it's really important to immediately know the air density in the rarified flow regime--from about 80 kilometers and up. When it enters that later portion, its flight path angle gets fixed and the vehicle just descends, and is barely affected by the direction of the wind," El-Kebir said.

What if the Phoenix had the algorithm?

"If you know the air density, you can estimate your angle of attack with respect to the wind. You could also predict what the density will be like in the future, so you can make decisions. There was no control on Phoenix during the ballistic stage. If it had the knowledge of air density, it would have had an edge. They could have leveraged the data and landed more accurately."

Ornik said there is often an assumption that there exists a fixed model that we know in advance and we figure out control methods that lead the vehicle to land. "That is often a strong assumption. It's often wrong because it's not just about air density. Due to the speed and the impact with air, hypersonic vehicles change shape slightly during the flight and that changes their dynamics during flight."

"So we don't have a unified model that describes the whole flight because the dynamics change gradually over time. We know the maximal rate of change, so with this algorithm, we can exploit that knowledge to create an estimate," Ornik said.

El-Kebir said there are other fields this knowledge can be applied to, even outside of aerospace and even vehicles. He is looking at ways to use it in electrosurgery to predict the temperature field during a surgical operation so that the surgeon can know how deep the cut is.

###

A pdf of the paper is available on Ornik's website under the heading "other conference papers." H. El-Kebir, M. Ornik. In-flight air density estimation and prediction for hypersonic flight vehicles. It was published in the proceedings of the 23rd AIAA International Space Planes and Hypersonic Systems and Technologies Conference, 2020. The work was funded by Sandia National Laboratory.
A public health advocate Samuel Arthur has described as shameful the health ministers claim that the Bank of Ghana Hospital has been reserved for only VIPs and its staff in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic in Ghana.

A lot of people have been blaming government as to why the Bank of Ghana Hospital is not being used for coronavirus treatment despite the facility being well equipped to treat coronavirus. Let me say that, the Bank of Ghana health facility is not under the entire control of the government.

We had to go into an agreement with them and the bank has agreed in addition to their own staff to have VIP people at their facility, the minister said at a press encounter on Wednesday.

The Bank of Ghana has however clarified that the hospital is open to the general public and not just for VIPs as claimed by the minister.

Commenting on the development, Mr. Arthur said the excuse by the minister is not acceptable.

 Its a shame for the minister to give us that excuse. Its a shame that it has to take Covid-19 to make us put that hospital to use, he told Francis Abban on the Morning Starr Thursday.

He also raised concerns over the decision by Ghanaian authorities to repatriate some Guineans who have tested positive for the virus in Ghana.

Dont they have right to healthcare? Cant we give them healthcare and repatriate them when they are cured?.

Ghanas current active cases of the novel coronavirus is 195 with five deaths.

About 58 infected persons are receiving treatment at home after 20 of them were recently discharged.

---starrfmonline
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - InZinc Mining Ltd. (TSXV: IZN) (the "Company" or "InZinc") is pleased to announce amendments to the option agreement dated October 17, 2016 (the "Original Agreement") between the Company and Pac Shield Resources Inc. ("PSR") on the Indy Sedex project in central British Columbia (see news release NR2016-6) which frees the Company of any cash commitments until at least January 31, 2021 and extends the total option term by an additional year. The Company has the right to earn a 100% interest in the Indy project.

The Company believes that the Indy project provides multiple opportunities for discoveries of large-scale sedimentary hosted exhalative (Sedex) type deposits in an easily accessible and unexplored region of central British Columbia. The project comprises a large claim position (25km strike) with discoveries of shallow mineralization in the 2018 drill program and over 5 km of high-quality drill targets remaining to be tested. Highlights from the expanded 2019 exploration programs include the definition of a large new Sedex target called the Delta Horizon. The new target is located 5 km northwest of the B-9 Zone, where shallow Sedex style mineralization was discovered in 2018, including 12.33% Zn, 2.98% Pb, and 24.46g/t Ag (14.98% ZnEq) over 6.3m in hole IB18-009, and remains open for expansion.

Amended Agreement

To date, under the terms of the Original Agreement the Company has made cash payments totaling $105,000, issued a total of 1,100,000 common shares to PSR and incurred exploration work commitments of approximately $1,050,000. Due to the Company's accelerated pace of exploration at Indy, 100% of exploration work commitments for year-4 of the amended option have been satisfied and approximately $100,000 of the amended year-5 work commitment has been met. Pursuant to the amended option terms, to exercise the option and earn a 100% interest in the Indy project the Company must meet the Year 4, 5 and 6 commitments as follows:



Cash Securities Exploration Work Commitments

($) (common shares) ($) Paid, issued and incurred 105,000 1,100,000 600,000 Year-4; prior to January 31, 2021 35,000 400,000 350,000

(incurred) Year-5; prior to January 31, 2022 50,000 400,000 400,000

(~100,000 incurred) Year-6; prior to January 31, 2023 125,000 500,000 1,250,000 Total: 315,000 2,400,000 2,600,000 Original Agreement 305,000 2,100,000 2,600,000

All other terms of the Original Agreement remain unchanged. The amendments to the Original Agreement are subject to TSX Venture Exchange acceptance.

The amendments to the Original Agreement constitute a related party transaction under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101") as Mr. Kerry Curtis, a director and the Chairman of the Company, is a director and holds a controlling interest in PSR. The transaction is exempt from the formal valuation and minority approval requirements under MI 61-101 pursuant to sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101 on the basis that the transactions contemplated by the amendments has a fair market value of less than 25% of the Company's market capitalization.

About InZinc

InZinc is focused on growth in zinc through exploration and expansion of the advanced stage West Desert project (100%) in Utah and exploration of the early stage Indy project (100% option) in British Columbia. West Desert has a large underground resource open for expansion and has district scale exploration potential. A West Desert preliminary economic assessment completed in 2014 forecasted 1.6 billion pounds of zinc production over 15 years. Byproducts would include copper, magnetite and indium, the latter being identified by the United States in 2017 as a critical mineral. West Desert is well located with easy access and existing infrastructure. The Indy Sedex project comprises near surface discoveries, large untested exploration targets and regional discovery potential. Indy is readily accessible by road from Prince George, the major hub for transportation and heavy industry in central British Columbia and is located 85km south of the Canadian National Railway.

InZinc Mining Ltd.

Wayne Hubert

_____________________________

Chief Executive Officer

Phone: 604.687.7211

Website: www.inzincmining.com

For further information contact:

Joyce Musial

Vice President, Corporate Affairs

Phone: 604.317.2728

Email: joyce@inzincmining.com

Qualified Person

Brian McGrath, B.Sc., P.Geo. a Qualified Person as defined in NI43-101, has approved the technical content of this news release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and US securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements regarding the Company's next shareholder meeting. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, plan, design, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements by the Company are not guarantees of future results, performance, or actions and that actual results and actions may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, those risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2019 filed with certain securities commissions in Canada and other information released by the Company and filed with the appropriate regulatory agencies. All of the Company's Canadian public disclosure filings may be accessed via www.sedar.com and readers are urged to review these materials, including the technical reports filed with respect to the Company's mineral properties.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54040
A Georgia man who sought to obtain an anti-tank missile pleaded guilty this week to plotting terrorist attacks on the White House, the Statue of Liberty and other landmarks, federal prosecutors said.

The man, Hasher Jallal Taheb, 23, of Cumming, Ga., faces up to 20 years in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of five years after accepting a plea agreement on Wednesday in United States District Court in Atlanta, the authorities said.

Mr. Taheb emerged as a suspect in March 2018, when local police received a tip from someone in his community saying that Mr. Taheb had become radicalized, changed his name and planned to travel abroad, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said.

When Mr. Taheb later advertised his vehicle for sale, an F.B.I. informant said he was interested in buying it. That is when Mr. Taheb revealed his plans to carry out terrorist attacks on targets that included the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and a synagogue in Washington, D.C., the authorities said.
The recommendations, still being finalized Thursday, were expected to apply to those who live in areas hard-hit by community transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19. A person familiar with the White House coronavirus task force's discussion said officials would suggest that non-medical masks, T-shirts or bandannas be used to cover the nose and mouth when outside the home  for instance, at the grocery store or pharmacy. Medical-grade masks, particularly short-in-supply N95 masks, would be reserved for those dealing directly with the sick.
South Africa: Contact tracing will not be used to spy on citizens

Minister of Communications, Telecommunications and Postal Services Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has assured South Africans that contact tracing in COVID-19 cases will not be used to spy on citizens.

Addressing the COVID-19 National Command Council media briefing on Thursday in Tshwane, the Minister said contact tracing will be used to attain information that can assist government in minimising the spread of the virus.

When we say we are going to use cell phone numbers, it doesnt meant we are going take anybodys number. Those that test and are found to be positiveit is those people that the Department of Health will seek permission from the Electronic Communications Network Service (ECNS) licences to access their geolocation," the Minister said.

In turn, people who have been in contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19 will be identified through the process of contact tracing.

I know that people have been concerned that government wants to spy on people. This is not spying on anyone. We do respect that everyone has the right to privacy, but in a situation like this, our individual rights do not supersede the countrys rights. The most important and critical right is ensuring the safety of South Africans.

We are on lockdown because of the virus that is spreading. It is in our interest as government as well as South Africans to ensure that we minimise the spread of the virus, the Minister said.

By doing this, she said, government will not intercept phone calls of citizens in its process of contact tracing.

Globally there are 896,450 confirmed cases of COVID-19 (Coronavirus), a total of 45,526 confirmed deaths and 206 countries, areas or territories with cases.

Centralisation of water services

Meanwhile, the Department of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation has established a command centre that has taken over most of the work of water boards.

We have established a command centre where you can call to get access to water. The command centre ensures that all the water tanks that we have procured are taken to places that have been identified to be in need, Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Lindiwe Sisulu said.

Municipalities will be responsible for identifying areas where water tanks will be placed.

These, she said, will be provided centrally by the centre.

All water tankers will be reporting on a regular basis to the command centre which is situated at the premises of Rand Water in Johannesburg.

Should anybody experience a shortage of water, this is the place where we will be able to direct our tankers to. This is the place that will direct people who own irrigation schemes in our farming communities to direct some of their water to where there is a need for water, said Sisulu.

The briefing came on day 7 of the South Africas 21-day national lockdown announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa last month.

According to the latest figures, South Africa now has 1 462 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with five recorded deaths. Two other deaths are yet to be confirmed. SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Liberal MP Dave Sharma. Illustration: Matt Golding Credit:

Liberal MP Dave Sharma has long held a more expansive share portfolio than most of his Canberra peers. Australias former ambassador to Israel has stakes in everything from Afterpay to Wesfarmers, according to parliamentary register disclosures.

And its good to see the coronavirus crisis hasnt slowed him down. Despite serious market turbulence of late, Sharma has been snapping up shares in ASX blue-chips Macquarie, ANZ, Sydney Airport Holdings and Qantas. Yep, Qantas.

Airlines, of course, have been particularly badly affected by the pandemic. Qantas shares have fallen more than 40 per cent since the end of February. Sharma  through his family trust  bought in on March 17 when shares were trading between $3.02 and $2.86. Either way, hes already in the money. Qantas shares closed at $3.20 on Thursday.

March 17, for the record, was the day Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack announced a $715 million relief package for the aviation industry. That package, of course, was public knowledge by the time Sharma bought into the airline. March 17 also saw the biggest one-day gain on the ASX since 1997 as investors rushed back into the market looking for bargains.
Mobile-based healthcare technology company CPSI has a new telemedicine platform that its offering to doctors for free through the end of the year, in a response to the coronavirus epidemic.

CPSI, one of the Mobile areas largest private-sector companies, was founded in 1979. Its core business has been providing information technology systems and support to rural hospitals and other healthcare institutions, helping them manage electronic health records and administrative functions.

The company says its new Talk with Your Doc platform, primarily developed by its Get Real Health subsidiary, is a telecommunications solution that can replace face-to-face visits between doctors and patients. According to CPSI it also acts as a monitoring tool, allowing doctors to receive alerts when patients update medical records, add data from medical devices, complete surveys, and more. Plus, its secure, EMR-agnostic and HIPAA-compliant. (Translation: it works well with a variety of Electronic Medical Record systems and conforms to the legal standards for patient privacy.)

Speaking about the product in a YouTube presentation, CPSI Chief Growth Officer David Dye said there are two ways the platform may be particularly relevant during the current epidemic: It can make it easier for doctors to safely screen patients worried they might have COVID-19, and it can help patients with chronic conditions receive consultation without having to visit facilities where they could be exposed to a higher risk of infection.

The platform is CPSIs entry into a competitive growth market. Less than a year ago, a study projected that telemedicine would grow from a 38.3 billion business in 2018 to $130.5 billion by 2025. Dye said he thinks Talk With Your Doc will stand out. This one primarily was developed from the point of view of the patient, from a patient-engagement standpoint, he said.

According to information released by CPSI, licensing Talk with Your Doc normally could range from $10,000 to $30,000 per year for small clinics and practices up to millions per year for larger hospital systems. More information about the platform can be found at TalkWithYourDoc.com. According to the site, it is Free for the rest of 2020 for any healthcare provider in the US with absolutely no obligation.
Help India!

By Iqbal Salahkar

Exactly six years back, in the first week of April 2014, the polling for Lok Sabha elections began. BJP-led-National Democratic Alliance, registering almost two-third majority in the Lower House of Indias Parliament, won with a sweeping victory. BJPs tenure saw an increasing attack on Muslims in various forms, with the most visible form being mob lynching. Five years later, BJP returned to the Centre with an even greater majority. The anti-Muslim bias of this government, now, became much clearer this time with the abrogation of special status of Jammu and Kashmir, passage of Citizenship Amendment Act in 2019 and the announcement of preparation of a National Register of Citizens.

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That BJP has an anti-Muslim bias is crystal clear. But in the process of blaming BJP, what is forgotten is that this anti-Muslim bias has been manifested by the Indian State for a very long time. Both the legislature and the executive have time and again displayed their Islamophobic nature over the years. Muslims must remember that Islamophobia has manifested itself in virulent forms earlier as well, even when the BJP did not have a majority in Parliament. And now with the Modi government in its sixth year of absolute power, it is essential for the Indian Muslim community to understand this because a failure to do so will be equivalent to undermining numerous reasons for their suffering today.

Among the most vivid examples of Islamophobia straight from the Legislature are the Anti-Conversion laws. Despite Article 25 of the Constitution giving all persons the right to profess, practice, and propagate religion, several Indian states have anti-conversion laws in place. At the central level, the Backward Communities (Religious Protection) Bill was introduced in the Parliament in 1960, barely 10 years after the enactment of Indian Constitution. The Bill aimed at checking the conversion of Hindus to non-Indian religions, which according to the Bill were Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism. Its compatibility with Article 25 aside, the Bill singled out four religions, including Islam, to be non-Indian. The Bill couldnt make it through the Parliament but nevertheless, it showed the active presence of Islamophobic elements in the Temple of Democracy.

After a failure to clear through the Parliament, such laws began to be enacted at state level. Odisha became the first state to enact the Anti-Conversion law in 1967. Subsequently at least seven other state legislatures have cleared anti-conversion laws. By making it essential to notify, or in some cases even seek permission from the State authorities before conversion, these laws bring religion into the public sphere and thus have the potential to create uncomfortable or even threatening conditions for the individual who wants to convert.

Many of these laws have undeniable elements of Islamophobia and Christophobia. In Odishas Anti-Conversion Freedom of Religions Act, for example, the penalty for unlawful conversion of a minor, a woman and a member of a Scheduled Caste (SC) is much more severe than the penalty for the unlawful conversion of an adult, thus promoting the narrative that Muslims and Christian Missionaries target SCs and women (love jihad in the modern parlance) for conversion. Some of these laws do not consider reconversion to the religion of forefathers (read Hinduism) as conversion, and thus outside keeps such conversions outside the ambit of these laws.

In 1978, Freedom of Religions Bill was introduced in the Parliament by the ruling Janata Party and was supported by Prime Minister Morarji Desai. Even this Bill emphasised the necessity of protection of women, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and minors from coerced conversion. The Bill failed to make through, but the fact that it received support from the Prime Minister was a visible enough support of Islamophobia and Christophobia from the State. Indira Gandhi went a step further when as Indias Prime Minister in 1982, during her visit to the United States, she told James Reston of New York Times that Enormous amount of Arab money are coming. And they have made a conscious effort to convert the very poor, mostly Harijans.

Political Scientist Jeniffer R Coleman writes that the passage of these anti-conversion laws reflected a wider sense of political concern over conversions, already evident in the passage of laws more indirectly geared toward eliminating the right to propagation and conversion. The passage of Hindu Law enactments in 1955-6 stipulated increased penalties for conversion away from Hinduism and were designed to keep the lower caste and untouchable communities from leaving the fold.

From the 1970s, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) launched drive to convert Muslims among Rajasthans Cheeta-Merat community to Hinduism. They claimed to have converted thousands of Muslims to Hinduism. Diplomat-turned-politician Syed Shahabuddin wrote to the Union Home Ministry seeking its opinion over these mass conversions. In response, as quoted by Economic and Political Weekly (EPW), the Home Ministry in its letter dated 29 December 1983 wrote that Cheeta-Merats who had come under the influence of VHP had only thereby reaffirmed their faith in Hinduism. The choice of words, in an official reply by Home Ministry speaks volumes about its Islamophobic nature.

In stark contrast is Meenakshipuram mass conversion case of 1981 when thousands of lower caste Hindus converted to Islam in the village of Meenakshipuram in Tamil Nadu. Arthur Bonner, a former New York Times Reporter, writes in his book Averting the Apocalypse: Social Movements in India that Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was reported to be unhappy. He further mentions that Parliament appointed a thirteen member committee to visit Meenakshipuram and also to inquire into mass conversions of Dalits in other parts of the country. In the context of the same incident, Coleman notes that the reports indicate that the Ministry of Home Affairs under the Congress (I) government advocated the passage of anti-conversion legislation at the level of the states along the lines of the existing Acts in Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Arunachal Pradesh.

More than the Legislature, it has been the Executive which has exhibited its Islamophobic nature most blatantly as seen among the security forces. Justice Srikrishna Commission, which was set up by the Maharashtra government in January 1993 to enquire into the 1992-93 communal riots in Bombay explicitly brought out this bias. It said that The Commission is of the view that there is evidence of police bias against Muslims which has manifested itself in other ways like the harsh treatment given to them, failure to register even cognizable offences by Muslim complainants It further added a testimony of a senior official and said That there was a general bias against the Muslims in the minds of the average policemen which was evident in the way they dealt with the Muslims, is accepted by the officer of the rank of Additional Commissioner, V.N. Deshmukh.

Another example of a deeply entrenched anti-Muslim bias of the police were the numerous communal riots in Uttar Pradesh in 1972. In an article in EPW on November 1990, renowned historian A G Noorani, quotes a correspondent regarding the 1972 riots in Uttar Pradesh that investigations have revealed that the atrocities on Muslims in most of the recent riots in UP were committed not by members belonging to the majority community by the police The police and the para-military forces did not only commit atrocities, but behaving like typical rioters, also looted Muslim houses. Hindustan Times reported on August 15, 1972 that A single PAC (Provincial Armed Constabulary) man, it is reported, has made Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 6,000 from the loot. During the riots, Indira Gandhi was not just the Prime Minister but also held the portfolio of Union Home Minister. In a poetic parallel to the past few months, after a plague of riots in various parts of UP in 1972, there were riots in Delhi in May 1973.

Cut to the present, the facts and footages surrounding the Delhi riots is fresh and available everywhere, thanks to social media. With Modi regime spending fortunes on its IT cell and media channels, Islamophobia has visibly reached its peak. But Muslims must remember that Islamophobia has manifested itself in virulent forms earlier as well, even when the BJP did not have a majority in Parliament. This indicates that it is not just the failure to keep checks on the political powers of BJP which has brought Indian Muslims to this point. There must be commonalities between the pre-Modi era and the Modi era was well which made it possible for the anti-Muslim bias to play then, as it is happening now.

Upon little reflection, one can find that commonality in their meagre representation in judiciary and media, a dismal representation in the bureaucracy, police and army, and complete absence from several areas of business and entrepreneurship. The months following the passage of Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 have served to stimulate Muslims to come out on roads. In the field of agitational politics, perhaps they have performed well  better than the past at least. Now it is imperative for them to work towards enhancing their performance in all other fields as well.

Iqbal Salahlar is an undergraduate student at Aligarh Muslim University
Drivers have been urged to fill up their cars as the coronavirus pandemic causes the cost at the pump to reach near historic lows - but many petrol stations across Australia are still refusing to drop their prices.

The cost of E10 fuel at Metro Petroleum in Earlwood in Sydney's inner-west fell to just 49.9 cents per litre on Wednesday.

Petrol stations across Sydney and Melbourne though are still charging 120 cents per litre despite global oil prices reaching an 18-year low.

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Pictured: Low petrol prices in Thomastown in northern Melbourne on Wednesday night. Drivers have been urged to make the most of the plummeting price per litre at the pump as the coronavirus pandemic drives oil prices down

Unleaded fuel for under a dollar a litre at a petrol station in Ballan, Victoria. The NRMA is campaigning for fuel prices across Australia to be under 90 cents per litre

The National Roads and Motorists' Association has called on the country's fuel providers to 'do the right thing' and pass fuel savings onto the consumer.

'The wholesale price is about 86 cents a litre so that's what the oil companies are buying petrol for,' the NRMA's spokesperson Peter Khoury told the Today show.

'So the fact they're currently still selling it in the 120s and in many cases the 130s gives you an idea of how far off they are.

'We're sick of having to tell them [fuel providers] to drop their prices to where we know they should be. We think should it get down to below 90 cents and the fact we're not there yet is an outrage.'

Mr Khoury said while in Adelaide prices were largely around the 90 cents per litre mark, in Melbourne and Sydney the price was as much as 40 cents higher.

In Fairfield in western Sydney on Thursday morning, multiple petrol stations were selling E10 fuel for less than 90 cents per litre.

Pictured: Fuel prices in Endeavour Hills in south-eastern Melbourne. Fuel prices in Melbourne and Sydney are still commonly sitting at more than 120 cents per litre though despite oil price falls

The National Roads and Motorists' Association's spokesperson Peter Khoury (pictured) has called on the country's fuel providers to 'do the right thing' and pass fuel savings onto the consumer

In Fairfield in western Sydney on Thursday morning, multiple petrol stations were selling E10 fuel for less than 90 cents per litre

But closer to the CBD, prices are commonly above 120 cents per litre and as much as 149.9 cents per litre in Edgecliff in the city's inner west.

The gap between Australia's cheapest and most expensive petrol stations represents a price difference of about $40 for a standard tank of unleaded fuel.

CommSec senior economist Ryan Felsman said earlier this week average prices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane prices were set to fall to $1 a litre within a fortnight as coronavirus keeps motorists at home and the discounting cycle kicked in.

But prices in Sydney's CBD are mostly above 120 cents per litre. The NRMA said the wholesale price for fuel is about 86 cents a litre

'The collapse in demand due to the coronavirus is really impacting the prices for oil,' he told Daily Mail Australia on Monday.

A spat between key crude oil suppliers Russia and Saudi Arabia has also boosted reserves, with flow-on effects for motorists the world over.

'That agreement to limit supply, that collapsed about a month ago and really what we're seeing at the moment is a price war,' Mr Felsman said.

'That price war is all about a battle for more market share.'
Open source

The overall volume of gas transit across Ukraine in January-March 2020 fell twice in comparison with the same period in 2014-2019. Operator of Ukraine's GTS reported that on Thursday.

In March, 4.6 billion cubic meters of gas passed through Ukraine; that's 18 percent more than in February 2020, but less than in March 2019.

In the first quarter of this year, the volume of gas transit across Ukraine made 53 percent less than last year's index.

"The volumes of transit, in fact, dropped twice in comparison with the average index of January-March 2019. At that, in early 2020, JSC Gazprom fully paid for the work of power output of the gas transit, which is in line with the new transit agreemend, with the account for 65 billion cubic meters per year", reads the message.

As is known, Ukraine, Russia and the EU signed the new gas cotract for five years with the opportunity to extend in by ten years. The deal guarantees the minimal pumping pf gas in the amount of 65 billion cubic meters over the first year; another 40 billion will be pumped over the course of the next four years.

The GTS operator works on the pump or pay basis, which was previously introduced in the Ukrainian energy legislation in accordance with European norms.
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Doctor Daniel Brenner has had a busy week in the emergency department of Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, seeing dozens of presumed COVID-19 patients.

As Maryland and other parts of the United States brace for the kind of surges seen in New York and Louisiana, AFP spoke to the fourth-year resident to gain insight into what medical professionals are learning about the disease in real time.

Maryland has thus far seen two dozen deaths and around 2,000 cases -- capacity isn't yet stretched, but could soon be.

With hundreds of cases now coming in, Brenner said it becomes "very tricky to tease out who needs to be in the hospital, the people who are at high risk for developing severe symptoms and needing supplemental oxygen" versus those who can recover from home.

Making the right call is crucial, but the problem is compounded by a lack of data to help rationalize choices.

"Is it older people? Is it people with medical conditions?" asked Brenner, adding that doctors were desperately trying to keep up with the latest medical literature as it gets published to stay better informed.

Different physicians have different views, "and there's really no consensus across the country or the medical community which approach is right yet because this disease has only been studied for two months," he said.

The most significant complication for coronavirus patients is Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) in which the lungs stiffen and become inflamed and the body is starved of oxygen.

Doctors have found placing patients on the stomach in the "prone" position helps prevents fluid from building up in the relatively more healthy area in the back of the lung, said Brenner.

The technique is commonly used on preterm babies requiring ventilators, but for adults it is labor intensive and requires constant monitoring to make sure the breathing tube isn't displaced.

COVID patients also seem to require higher levels of air pressure on their ventilators than people who have developed ARDS by other means, added Brenner.

While hospitals in overwhelmed regions such as New York are in dire lack of personal protective gear, such shortages haven't yet hit other parts of the country. But the virus is forcing medical staff to change the way they work.

In the US, assisted breathing machines called Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAPs) and Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (BiPAPs) are not being used out of concern that they "might make a giant field of virus" by spraying droplets out of the patient's mouth and nose under pressure, said Brenner.

Ventilators, which place tubes down a patient's air passage, don't have the same problem because the exhaled air is sealed.

But this creates its own issues -- BiPAP was typically used for heart failure patients in the emergency room, but now these patients must go on ventilators.

This is a more invasive procedure which requires making them unconscious and giving them drugs to temporarily paralyze the body.

In addition to coronavirus cases "we also have everybody else who's critically ill who still has to come to the hospital -- so your heart attacks, your strokes, people who have been hit by a car, those people are still coming," said Brenner.

Their care has to be managed in the context of the virus -- meaning that if a patient comes in with a heart attack and has a cough, they are considered a suspected COVID-19 case. If they are unconcious, they are also presumed positive.

That means donning protective gear even when a heart patient experiences cardiac arrest -- and losing precious time when every second can mean the difference between life and death.

"We all do this because we want to help people, so instinct is 'The patient is in trouble, I have to go in right now, I don't have time to deal with protective equipment,' but we keep telling everyone and keep reminding ourselves that if we get infected we can't help anyone else."



Morale remains high among the medical staff, said Brenner, 36, even as "people are wrapping their heads around the magnitude of this a little bit" and turning to each other for support.

Some staff have been infected at the hospital, but thankfully there haven't yet been any serious cases.

One thing that helps, he says, is support from the community in the form of meals sent by local businesses and individuals.

"Sometimes taking a moment and eating a sandwich can make you a much better doctor," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
KYODO NEWS - Apr 2, 2020 - 23:53 | All, Japan

(File photo)

[Getty/Kyodo]

TOKYO - The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Japan has found 16 cases of sexual abuse against minors spanning from the 1950s to the 2010s in its internal probe of churches in the country, sources familiar with the matter said Thursday.

The Tokyo-based organization has been investigating all its 16 dioceses and other convents in Japan since last May, calling for people to come forward with reports of sexual abuse regardless of when it occurred.

The investigation found some elementary school students -- both boys and girls -- as well as a child under the age of 6 were among those who had been subjected to sexual abuse, which took place in a priest's room, church buildings and other facilities run by convents including foster homes, according to the sources.

Some cases were brought to light for the first time since they occurred around 70 years ago, while others happened too long ago to verify in detail.

The organization plans to make the findings public soon, the sources said.

The findings have also revealed cases in which perpetrators were not adequately punished, raising questions about the culpability of the church, which has remained passive in addressing the problem for many years.

The probe found that while some of the perpetrators were defrocked or ejected from the church, other cases involving perpetrators who denied the accusations were resolved with a simple apology from higher-ranking clergymen.

Katsumi Takenaka, 63, one of those who made a report in the investigation, told Kyodo News that as an elementary school student in the 1960s he would be called into the priest's antechamber after mass and made to touch the lower half of the priest's body.

"I've thought about committing suicide many times," said Takenaka, who publicly came forward as a victim in 2018 after long suffering from flashbacks and other conditions caused by the abuse by the now-deceased German priest.

According to Takenaka, the abuse occurred when he was a fourth-grader. At the time, he was living in a Catholic facility for children.

The priest would summon him every Wednesday night. Takenaka could not say no to the priest, as he threatened he would "go to hell" or he would "no longer be able to live in the facility" if he told someone about what the clergyman had been doing to him.

As if paying the boy some sort of hush money, the priest gave him candies and stamps of foreign countries after the abuse. The ordeal lasted about a year until the priest was transferred to a different facility.

Five reports of sexual abuse were made when the bishops' conference conducted questionnaire surveys in 2002 and 2012 throughout its dioceses, but details were not elicited at the time.

The Roman Catholic Church has been facing accusations of child sexual abuse and coverups around the world, and condemnation for not acting quickly enough. Thousands of people are thought to have been abused by priests over many decades.

In an unprecedented conference held last year by the church, Pope Francis recognized sexual abuse of minors as a "widespread phenomenon" and called for stronger measures to prevent it.

Although there are plans to set up a consultation line in Japan over the issue, some have questioned whether it would be effective as many cases would involve investigation by the clergymen themselves.

Takenaka said he had long put the lid on the memory of abuse without telling anyone about it. But when he got married and had a child, the memory started to haunt him, giving him flashbacks that tormented him a long time.

He said he decided to come forward because he "doesn't want anyone else to suffer a similar abuse."
President Akufo-Addo has approved GHC10 daily allowance to all Kayayies during the period of the partial lockdown.

Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Hajia Alima Mahama announced the package when she presented money to some kayayies who returned to Accra after their failed attempt to escape the lockdown.

According to the minister the president has directed that all Kayayies be given GHC 10 per day throughout the lockdown period to buy food.

Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia had dispatched the minister to donate GHC500 to each of the stranded kayayies who were stopped at Ejisu in the Ashanti Region on their way to the Northern Region.

The head porters, numbering about 76, had attempted to flee from Accra back to their hometowns in the wake of the Presidents order for a partial lockdown of COVID-19 Accra, Tema, Kasoa and Greater Kumasi.

However, their journey back home was unsuccessful as it fell within the lockdown time on Monday, March 30.

Their attempted mass crossover to the north was seen as a danger that could spread the virus in other parts of the country and they were stopped by security officials and returned to Accra.

Despite the temporary provision of shelter for them by the Accra Metropolitan Assembly, many have raised concerns over the plight of the Kayayies under the current circumstance, as business activities in the heart of Accra have come to a halt.

It was in response of their plight that the Vice President donated GHC500 to each of them to ameliorate their predicament during the period of the lockdown.

The Minister was accompanied by Member of Parliament for Walewale Dr Sagare Bambangi and Chief Executive Officer of the National Service Secretariat Mustafa Ussif, who is also the NPP parliamentary candidate for Yagaba Kobori in North East region where the Kayayies come from.

---Daily Guide
As the country's industry takes a big hit due to the coronavirus outbreak, many companies from pharmaceuticals to textiles in Andhra Pradesh are operating at a lower capacity with safety measures and the government support, according to the state's industries, commerce and IT minister.

However, South Korean company Kia Motors (India) has voluntarily suspended its operation at the Anantpur plant in Andhra Pradesh even though the state government had not asked them to do so, the minister added.

"We have officially not asked any industries to shut down in the state," Industries, Commerce and IT Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy told PTI in a telephonic interview from his home district Nellore.

Rather, the state government is "encouraging" the industries to continue operation by bringing down the number of work shifts and by strictly following social distancing and the safety protocols so as to avoid any infection, he said. "We are encouraging industries to please continue the production. You bring down the number of shifts. We have told them that if you have migrant labourers, we will take care of them and their essential requirements."



Apart from the industries, manufacturing essential goods which the central government has been allowed to function during the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown, several other industries like pharma and textile/garments are functioning in the state, he added.

Asked why the government was taking risk by allowing the industry to operate, Reddy said the state government has laid down safety norms for the industry to follow. Many industries are voluntarily doing it to protect their staff and business.

"They have not fully shut the operations but they have brought down the capacity," he said and added that the industries have been told to sanitise the factory premise and maintain social distancing at work place.

However, Kia Motors has suspended its operation voluntarily. "We have not asked them to shut," he said.

On the state's preparedness to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, the minister said the Andhra government has a capacity to handle up to 10,000 positive cases as of now.

There are about 3,555 doctors/specialists and 5,612 paramedic and nurses in the state. There are 267 COVID-19 hospital facilities with ICU facilities, while 2,012 hospitals with non-ICU facilities. The state has 18,885 isolation rooms with toilets, while 1,867 halls for quarantine purposes, he added.

"Medical infrastructure is under tremendous stress. We have requested private hospitals to provide their doctors and nursing staff as the number of cases increase," Reddy said.

The minister said the number of coronavirus positive cases is on the rise in the state after fresh cases were reported from those who had last month attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi. There are about 132 positive cases in the state at present.

About 130-odd people from the state had attended the congregation in New Delhi, he said.

Sharing about his home district, Reddy said, "In Nellore, 34 people had attended the congregation in Delhi. These 34 people have come in contact with 400 people. The government has traced 103 people and the rest are hiding."



The Nellore district has seen a significant jump in the number of cases as 17 were reported overnight. The district now has an overall 20 coronavirus positive cases.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
[April 02, 2020]

Patton Announces the Industry's Most Flexible High-Density FXS VoIP Gateway

Boasting FXS lines that can reach six miles or more, the SmartNode SN4740 VoIP Gateway (News - Alert) integrates up to 128 analog handsets with ALL-IP communications







GAITHERSBURG, MARYLAND: Patton -US manufacturer of world-renowned SmartNode VoIP solutions-announces the first-generation release of the SmartNode SN4740 series of analog high-density VoIP Gateways.



Patton's new multi-port FXS VoIP gateway can IP-enable and interconnect existing Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) private branch exchange ({C}PBX (News - Alert)) phone systems or telephony key systems to advanced ALL-IP and unified communications systems.





Patton's new-generation IP-Channel-Bank covers analog port-counts from 16 to 128 to satisfy diverse market needs. The SN4740 series offers flexible combinations of 16, 24, 32, 48, 64, 72, 96 and 128 FXS interfaces.



'The SN4740 goes the extra mile,' said Marc Aeberhard, VoIP Product Manager at Patton (News - Alert). 'The units can immediately provide dial-tone for lots of phones installed in hotels, apartments, military bases, parking lots, automotive, railway, or mining tunnels, or campus environments-reaching handsets installed more than 6 miles away.'



The SN4740 provides Message Waiting Indicator (MWI) support, which is essential for hotels, motels, multi-tenant-units and multi-dwelling-units (MTU/MDU) and similar business operations. In today's ALL-IP telephony market, such legacy capabilities are exceptional.

A redundant power supply option is an available option on every SN4740 SKU. For a system designer, integrator, or network engineer deciding on a VoIP gateway manufacturer, the redundant power supply makes vendor selection a no-brainer.



Finally, as a SmartNode-brand product, all services can be provisioned, orchestrated, monitored, managed, and scaled up or down-in real time-all from the Patton Cloud.



'The ALL-IP revolution has landed,' said Marc Aeberhard, VoIP Product Manager. 'Still, certain analog equipment will remain business-critical well into the future. For crucial business processes and workflows, MDU/MTU operations (for example) will rely on legacy POTS-based equipment and services, probably forever.'

As Mr. Aeberhard indicates, ruggedized campus phones, outdoor emergency phones, factory handsets, power-plant phones, and the like, will probably never go away either.



The 16, 24 and 32 port units are shipping now. General availability (GA) on the 48, 64, 72, 96 and 128-port models is expected by June 2020.



In related news, Patton recently won TMC's 2019 Communications Solutions Products of the Year Award for its Virtual SmartNode (vSN) virtualized enterprise CPE platform.



About Patton



Patton is all about connections. In today's fast-moving All-IP market, Patton has been diligently innovating, leading the future of communication. It is our joy to connect with our customers and business partners in this mission of network transformation, building on more than four decades of technology expertise in Unified Communications, Network Access, and Network Connectivity. Incorporated 1984, Patton designs and manufactures high-quality, right-priced products and services that connect you to the cloud and the Internet of Things, leveraging virtualization, SDN, NFV, and SD-WAN. Patton is uniquely qualified to help connect carrier, enterprise and industrial networks to these advanced new-generation technologies, while preserving investments in legacy TDM and serial communications equipment. Patton's world-class customer and technical support is eager and able to help you get your solution connected and running smoothly. Headquartered in Gaithersburg, MD, USA, Patton is connected with an ever-growing network of technology, business, and sales-channel partners. To connect with local-market requirements, Patton operates training and support centers in locations spanning the globe.



PATTON Contact: Glendon Flowers | +1 301 975 1000 | [email protected]
Tanaiste Simon Coveney has said that restrictions in place to help curb the spread of coronavirus may remain in place for some time.

Last week, the Irish Government announced further coronavirus restrictions on public life.

The measures were ordered by the Government amid fears that critical care hospitals will soon be overwhelmed by cases.

People have been ordered to remain in their homes in all but a limited set of specific circumstances until Sunday April 12.

We set an initial period but I think it may well be that we will need to go beyond that initial deadline. That will be a decision taken with the best public health advice we can getSimon Coveney

Mr Coveney said on Thursday: As you know, the government takes its advice from the chief medical officer and his team in the National Public Health Emergency Team.

I think people do need to realise that these restrictions may go on for some time and its wrong to put a timeline on it.

We set an initial period but I think it may well be that we will need to go beyond that initial deadline.

That will be a decision taken with the best public health advice we can get.

Mr Coveney also warned against any complacency in the fight against coronavirus.

Last week, the Government said that Ireland would not reach the 15,000 cases of coronavirus by the end of March as previously predicted.

One of the best ways to keep yourself and others safe from #coronavirus is to wash your hands. Take a look at our video to find out more about washing your hands correctly #ItsInOurHands #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/Nrrp7E1k9T  HSE Ireland (@HSELive) April 2, 2020

There are currently 3,447 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the Republic.

Mr Coveney said: We have certainly seen the spread of this virus staying below what the expectation might have been a few weeks ago.

I think it would be wrong to be complacent. Weve seen in other countries how quickly the spread can accelerate and thats why our focus has been on as much testing as we can do backed up by intensive contact tracing.

He said there are 1,400 people trained to work in contact tracing.

Mr Coveney added: I think the important thing is that the message goes out that if you have symptoms, regardless of whether you have tested positive or not, you self-isolate and you behave as if you have tested positive, and the State infrastructure that has been put in place around contact tracing also kicks in.

We know that the best advice from WHO, and from any other trusted sources, is the more you test, the more you contact trace, the more you understand where the clusters are and how they are growing, the more accurate your response can be to contain that spread.
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Latin American governments have reacted with different degrees of urgency and efficacy to the coronavirus pandemic. Some did so early on. Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele quarantined El Salvador before it even had confirmed cases. In Peru, President Martin Vizcarra locked down his country in mid-March and then worked on a vast economic stimulus package. Others took longer to act on the coronavirus threat but eventually chose to enact strict curfews and social distancing measure to curb the spread of the pandemic. After some initial hesitance, Chilean President Sebastian Pinera set his country on a progressive quarantine, while Argentinas Alberto Fernandez called on his country to shelter in place at least until the end of Easter. Colombias Ivan Duque followed a similar path. Others havent been as diligent. Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno had to replace his health minister after a severe outbreak in the country exposed grave flaws in basic health care. Brazil has seen its president, Jair Bolsonaro, turn into a denier and conspiracy theorist around the disease.

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And then there is Mexicos Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

Mexicos president downplayed the threat of the virus for weeks. He suggested social distancing recommendations should be ignored. He soon showed he was willing to lead by (bad) example. Over the past few weeks, as the number cases began to grow, Lopez Obrador kept to his schedule across the country, traveling on commercial airplanes, and went out of his way to flaunt his contempt for the most essential preventive measures. He kissed children and posed for selfies with adoring crowds. He sat down for lunch at a public restaurant. He even declined to use hand sanitizer. All of this while suggesting, astonishingly, that amulets and religious stamps could work as protection against the virus.

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Lopez Obradors recklessness would perhaps be less damaging if his administration hadnt followed his lead. Mexicos government chose to delay most of the quarantine measures other Latin American countries had already implemented. It finally changed course last week, when the authorities called on Mexican citizens to voluntarily quarantine to flatten the rate of contagion.

This is our last chance, deputy health minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell said. Lopez-Gatell, an eloquent epidemiologist who has become the governments public face during the crisis, outlined the emergency in a television broadcast on Tuesday alongside foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard. Mexicos president was not there.

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But incredibly, Lopez Obrador has set out to contravene every one of the measures his own administration set forth on Tuesday. Just as Lopez-Gatell and Ebrard pleaded with Mexicans to stay home and keep a safe distance from one another, Lopez Obrador has continued traveling the country. On Wednesday, mere hours after the beginning of Mexicos quarantine, Lopez Obrador showed up at the airport. Like a spoiled teenager, he joked when a health official took his temperature. Ninety-six degrees, Lopez Obrador chuckled. There you go! Take that! In Oaxaca, he headlined the opening of a local hospital and spoke to a small crowd, carefully seated a few feet apart. The scene, which can be seen here, defies the imagination.

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But the act in Oaxaca is far from the worst in Lopez Obradors current descent into the incomprehensible. On Sunday, after Lopez-Gatell had already begun to urge Mexicans to stay indoors as much as possible, Lopez Obrador flew to the northern state of Sinaloa. There, he tweeted a video praising the town of Badiraguatos landscaped median strip, with its newly planted flowers and palm trees. Badiraguato, of course, is not just any Sinaloan town but the birthplace of infamous drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman. The setting was no coincidence. That afternoon, a video of Lopez Obrador walking over to warmly greet Guzmans 92-year-old motherdirectly violating social distancing guidelines in the processperplexed even his most dogmatic supporters.

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Such antics demand an explanation. Why is Lopez Obrador so brazenly defying his own governments recommendations in a matter as threatening as the coronavirus pandemic? What drives such recklessness? In another Twitter video, Lopez Obrador hinted at his reasoning. If he self-isolated, he argued, his opponentsthe conservativeswould try to fill the void. Thats what they want: for a vacuum to happen so that they claim control of the country, he claimed.

This is utter nonsense. Elected in a landslide, Lopez Obrador is the countrys most powerful president in decades. Through sheer numbers and political dominance, his party mostly controls Congress. His closest ally governs Mexico City. His daily press conferences are dutifully covered. Even more relevant: Mexicos next significant election wont happen until mid-2021. Lopez Obrador is guaranteed to stay in power until 2024.

Perhaps the problem lies in Lopez Obradors self-doubt. With his approval rating sliding dramatically, Mexicos president seems compelled to remain in a quasi-permanent campaign. This is a mistake. History will not judge him on the number of hands left unshaken, babies not kissed, or his frequent flyer miles, but rather on his efficacy as the head of government of a country under tremendous stress. So far, he is failing.

For more on the impact of the coronavirus, listen to this weeks Political Gabfest.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Eighty Filipinos who were onboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan have all recovered from the coronavirus disease, the Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Thursday.

Earlier, 445 Filipino crew members and passengers were evacuated from the cruise ship which was quarantined at Yokohama Port in Japan as hundreds of passengers contracted coronavirus.

The Filipino returnees were placed on a 14-day mandatory quarantine at the New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac and were eventually sent home.

All in all, 448 Filipinos have tested positive for COVID-19 abroad. At least 313 of them are undergoing treatment, 121 have recovered, while 14 have died.

Among the newly confirmed cases are the two family members of the first Filipino to test positive for COVID-19 in South Korea.

In the Philippines, there are now 2,633 confirmed coronavirus cases, with 107 deaths and 51 recoveries.
Omni-Lite Industries Canada Inc. (CVE:OML) shareholders should be happy to see the share price up 10% in the last week. But that can't change the reality that over the longer term (five years), the returns have been really quite dismal. The share price has failed to impress anyone , down a sizable 52% during that time. Some might say the recent bounce is to be expected after such a bad drop. We'd err towards caution given the long term under-performance.

See our latest analysis for Omni-Lite Industries Canada

Omni-Lite Industries Canada isn't currently profitable, so most analysts would look to revenue growth to get an idea of how fast the underlying business is growing. Generally speaking, companies without profits are expected to grow revenue every year, and at a good clip. That's because fast revenue growth can be easily extrapolated to forecast profits, often of considerable size.

Over five years, Omni-Lite Industries Canada grew its revenue at 4.5% per year. That's not a very high growth rate considering it doesn't make profits. This lacklustre growth has no doubt fueled the loss of 14% per year, in that time. We'd want to see proof that future revenue growth is likely to be significantly stronger before getting too interested in Omni-Lite Industries Canada. When a stock falls hard like this, some investors like to add the company to a watchlist (in case the business recovers, longer term).

You can see below how earnings and revenue have changed over time (discover the exact values by clicking on the image).

TSXV:OML Income Statement April 1st 2020

You can see how its balance sheet has strengthened (or weakened) over time in this free interactive graphic.

A Different Perspective

Omni-Lite Industries Canada shareholders are down 22% over twelve months, which isn't far from the market return of -21%. So last year was actually even worse than the last five years, which cost shareholders 14% per year. Weak performance over the long term usually destroys market confidence in a stock, but bargain hunters may want to take a closer look for signs of a turnaround. I find it very interesting to look at share price over the long term as a proxy for business performance. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. To that end, you should learn about the 6 warning signs we've spotted with Omni-Lite Industries Canada (including 3 which is can't be ignored) .

Story continues

We will like Omni-Lite Industries Canada better if we see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying.

Please note, the market returns quoted in this article reflect the market weighted average returns of stocks that currently trade on CA exchanges.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Half of Sweden's population could be infected with coronavirus by the end of the month, a statistician has warned.

Tom Britton, a mathematics professor from Stockholm University, said it is possible that up to a million people are already infected with the virus - though the country has only confirmed 5,466 cases.

Using mathematical models he believes the number of new daily infections will peak around the middle of the month, with up to 5million people infected by April 30.

Sweden has so-far resisted calls to go on lockdown like other European countries and has instead asked people to act 'like adults' by taking sensible precautions.

A million people in Sweden could already be infected with coronavirus and half the country's 10million population could have it by the end of the month, one mathematician has predicted

The country has officially confirmed just 5,466 cases - but scientists have warned the government that not enough testing is being carried out

Mr Britton told Radio Sweden that it is too early to tell what effect, if any, these measures have had on the spread of the virus - because the only reliable data he has are death figures.

Using death figures he is able to calculate an estimated number of infections, but it means looking around three weeks into the past - since this is roughly how long it takes a person to get sick enough to die from coronavirus.

Since Sweden's social distancing measures were only first introduced two weeks ago, it means they will not yet show in that data.

Using statistical modelling, Mr Britton explained that he can work forwards from the number of infections three weeks ago to estimate how many are infected now.

Professor Tom Britton predicts that the peak of Sweden's infection curve will fall around April 15, with pressure peaking in hospitals two weeks later

The calculations are based on a number known as 'R' - which stands for the number of people the average person with the virus infects before they stop being infectious.

With no social distancing, that number is thought to be around 2.5, with social distancing it falls significantly. Anything under 1 means the virus starts to die out.

Based on his calculations, Mr Britton believes peak day for infections will fall around April 15 with up to half of Sweden's 10million population infected by April 30.

Pressure on hospitals will then peak around two weeks after April 15 as those who fell sick on that date develop symptoms, with some requiring intensive care.

'China succeeded in [reducing its R value] by very comprehensive measures, and very quickly, so that less than 1 per cent will be infected in Wuhan,' he said.

'I am not convinced that we will be as effective in Sweden.'

Mr Britton said he is in touch with a group of mathematicians advising the government, which includes a former student of his, but is not directly involved in government efforts to curb the virus.

Sweden's leaders have urged calm, insisting that sensible social distancing measures and increasing intensive care capacity will see them through the crisis.

Sweden has so far resisted calls to lock the country down like most other European nations, and instead advised people to 'act like adults' and socially distance themselves

But others have insisted the government must act faster and go further to prevent scenes from Italy and Spain - where tens of thousands have died - being repeated.

Last week, a petition signed by 2,000 doctors, scientists, and professors was delivered to the government asking for more stringent measures to be put in place.

Among the signatories was Professor Carl-Henrik Heldin, chairman of the Nobel Foundation.

Meanwhile Cecilia Soderberg-Naucler, a virus researcher from Sweden's Karolinska Institute, echoed their fears.

Speaking to The Guardian, she said: 'Were not testing enough, were not tracking, were not isolating enough  we have let the virus loose.

'They are leading us to catastrophe.'

The WHO's Europe branch said there were 464,859 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 30,098 deaths in the 53 countries that make up its region.

Some 80 per cent of those who died from the virus had at least one underlying illness, in particular cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Florida focused carriers, including Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, dominate residential property insurance market share in Florida. Of these, at year-end 2019, Demotech reviewed and rated forty-six of them. As the first to review and rate independent, regional and specialty insurers in 1989, this is not surprising. In 1996, the then Department of Insurance (DOI), Government and Industry Relations Division, asked us to review and rate carriers that would depopulate the Florida Residential Property Casualty Joint Underwriting Authority.

This request was a consequence of a number of insurer insolvencies caused by the damage Hurricane Andrew inflicted on a marketplace that bought too little reinsurance. When the legacy rating agencies were unable or unwilling to assist Floridians, Demotech's team of experienced, credentialed analysts stepped up to fill the void and assist the DOI, legislature, and investors re-invigorate the residential property insurance marketplace. Today, our leadership includes an evaluation of most of the carriers that comprise Florida's residential property insurance landscape.

Although company-focused financial metrics are critical to any review and analysis process, jurisdictional risk and the relative competitive position of an insurer are among other factors explicitly and implicitly utilized to assign a Financial Stability Rating (FSR). No entity operates in a vacuum and the conditions in every market are intrinsic in corporate operating results. Insurance carriers and the ratings assigned to them are no exception to this holistic reality.

To assess views of jurisdictional risk, our review included Judicial Hellholes, a publication of the American Tort Reform Association (ATRA). Judicial Hellholes named Florida the number 1 Hellhole in the 2017-2018 report. Their rationale included "The Florida Supreme Court's liability-expanding decisions and barely contained contempt for the lawmaking authority of legislators and the governor has repeatedly led to its inclusion in this report."

The 2018-2019 report had Florida ranked as the number 2 Hellhole. The rationale included "The Florida Supreme Court issued a series of liability-expanding opinions that invalidated civil justice reforms, damaging the state's civil justice system. The high court once again showed contempt for the lawmaking authority of the state legislature and its decisions will have a lasting impact on the state's legal climate. The Florida legislature also failed to address blatant lawsuit abuse and fraud, and plaintiffs' lawyers continued with their usual antics."

In 2019, subsequent to reforms enacted in Florida, ATRA's 2019-2020 rankings noted "A former number 1 Judicial Hellhole, Florida took great strides toward improving its legal climate in 2019. Although there is much work to be done, the election of Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has heralded a sea change in Florida's legal landscape, beginning with the appointment of several new Florida Supreme Court justices. This new court is deferential to legislative efforts to stop lawsuit abuse and poised to correct the course set by the prior activist court."

The residential property insurance market in Florida offers myriad facets on relative competitive position. One consideration of its unique competitive landscape is the existence of Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (Citizens). To paraphrase its website, Citizens was created by the Florida Legislature in August 2002 as a not-for-profit, tax-exempt, government entity. Its mission is to provide insurance protection to Florida policyholders who are entitled to but are unable to find property insurance coverage in the private market.

Today, Citizens reports admitted assets, on a statutory insurance accounting basis, exceeding $9 billion. Citizens' existence influences the property insurance marketplace in Florida, let alone its unique characteristics; i.e., its rules of engagement include the capability to assess policyholders. Despite references as 'a market of last resort,' its rates are competitive with other carriers, and often lower than the level indicated by actuarial analysis. Other jurisdictions typically price a market of last resort relatively high to the market rather than competitive with the market. It seems clear that the characterization of Citizens as a 'market of last resort' is often incorrect.

Other state specific issues influence our analysis process as does the financial stability of carriers focused on a single jurisdiction. Our Company Classification System characterizes insurers as State Specialists when 90% or more of their direct written premium is associated with a single jurisdiction. Exhibit 1 summarizes a few state specific metrics of carriers in the US that operate and compete by focusing on a single jurisdiction. More observations on State Specialists are summarized and available within Exhibit 1.

In addition to qualitative factors influencing ratings, during the recent past insurers focused on Florida endured an onslaught of weather related activity. The following list is applicable:

2016 Tropical Storm Colin

2016 Hurricane Hermine

2016 Tropical Storm Julia

2016 Hurricane Matthew

2017 Tropical Storm Cindy

2017 Tropical Storm Emily

2017 Hurricane Harvey (rainfall)

2017 Hurricane Irma

2017 Tropical Storm Phillip

2018 Tropical Storm Alberto

2018 Tropical Storm Gordon

2018 Hurricane Florence

2018 Hurricane Michael

2019 Tropical Storm Chantel

2019 Hurricane Dorian

2019 Tropical Storm Erin

2019 Tropical Storm Nestor

2019 Tropical Storm Olga

Our view of Florida's current residential property insurance marketplace is that the numerous financial and market based criteria that affect Florida residential property insurance have never been more difficult for carriers to navigate since we first rated Florida focused carriers in 1996. The marketplace as well as carrier-specific financial metrics drove the need to consider downgrades. A list of issues beyond those referenced above is included as Exhibit 2.

Jurisdictional and weather-related challenges are two obvious issues facing the Sunshine State. A substantial increase in reinsurance costs during 2019, another likely increase in the cost of reinsurance in 2020, plus the cost of the Rapid Cash Buildup Program of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund are others. As a long-term, informed observer of jurisdictions prone to natural catastrophes, Demotech recognizes that operating losses over the past several years are the reality, in spite of the courageous legislative reforms enacted in 2019.

Our analysis of year-end 2019 financial statements began immediately after our review of September 30, 2019 financial statements, about Thanksgiving of 2019. At that time, although we asked certain insurers to provide projections of their year-end 2019 financials, we asked two questions, implicitly or explicitly, of each Florida focused insurer that we reviewed:

'Given

the lingering impact of the judicial activism of the past the litany of named weather events increases in the cost of reinsurance, and the specter of additional increases in the cost of reinsurance in 2020, will you continue to be focused on residential property insurance in Florida ?'

'If so, based upon the conditions in the marketplace and the operating results that will emanate from those conditions, how will you revise your business model, or otherwise position your company, to combat more of those same conditions in the future?'

Carrier responses included documentation of their jurisdictional diversification, voluntary runoff, marketing existing books of business to other carriers, merging affiliates, or securing assistance to answer our questions and avoid a downgrade. The list below includes carriers downgraded, those affirmed due to a pending merger, affiliates impacted by a review of a Florida focused carrier, as well as those re-committed to being a Florida focused State Specialist:

Anchor P&C Ins Co Assigned an FSR of M Anchor Specialty Ins Co FSR of A  Acquired by insurer with FSR of A Omega Ins Co FSR of A  Merged into an insurer with FSR of A Tower Hill Select Ins Co FSR of A  Merged into an insurer with FSR of A Cypress TX Ins Co FSR of A  Merged into an insurer with FSR of A Access Home Ins Co FSR of A  Merged into an insurer with FSR of A Prepared Ins Co FSR of A  Merged into an insurer with FSR of A

Other carriers aggressively enhanced the capability of their business models to respond to the anticipated continuation of jurisdictional and weather-related challenges, the substantial increase in reinsurance costs during 2019, the likely increase in the cost of reinsurance in 2020, and the cost of the Rapid Cash Buildup Program of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund. They were:

Centauri Specialty Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Centauri National Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Safepoint Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Gulfstream P&C Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Avatar P&C Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Capitol Preferred Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Security First Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Tower Hill Signature Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced Cypress P&C Ins Co FSR of A, Business model enhanced

The management teams of these carriers have fought the conditions in the most difficult operating jurisdiction in the country to a draw. They have addressed the needs of policyholders, investigated and settled claims, paid their employees, producers, and reinsurers, met with us, negotiated with reinsurers for their 2020 programs, and filed timely financial statements in an orderly manner.

Why not more downgrades? At year-end 2019, our scorecard reads as follows: one downgrade, one acquisition by a carrier with an FSR of A, five mergers into carriers with FSRs of A, and an additional nine enhancements of carrier business models - a total of sixteen substantive responses to the observations we shared with carriers at year-end 2019.

Carriers willing to sustain an FSR at the A level have demonstrated how they will fulfill their commitments to Floridians through a revised or enhanced business model. The insurers took action to enhance their capability to address the needs of homeowners knowing that they operate in the most complicated marketplace in the country.

Although Florida may be a geographical peninsula, it is an island when one considers the impact of previous judicial rulings, private sector reinsurance costs, and the additional cost of what was to be a postevent assessment FHCF. These factors plus the 800-pound gorilla known as Citizens Property Insurance Corporation create the singularity of the residential property insurance market.

Some observers commenting on the Florida market have it wrong. They base their naive comments on public financial information only, rather than the confidential information that we review on a regular basis. In contrast, we receive and review this information shared in the strictest of confidentiality. Here is a partial list of items requested, received, and reviewed in the past:

Managing general agency contract and financial statements, when necessary

Holding company financial statements, when necessary

Actuarial reports and documents containing appreciably more detail than the actuarial opinion letter, which is a public document

Independent audits

Anticipated operating results in the form of pro forma financials in a prescribed format

Claims adjusting details and reports

Litigation services

Asset and investment management contracts

Disaster recovery plan

Catastrophe response plans

Catastrophe modelling output

A preliminary review of horizontal and vertical reinsurance programs

A final review of horizontal and vertical reinsurance programs

Review of rate level indications

Personal financial statements of key financial supporters.

On-site meetings with key reinsurers located in London or Bermuda supplement company-specific information. We also have held on-site meetings at the Company's location or our own. Our analysis team has education and professionalism to supplement their experience. Barry Koestler, CFA, Chief Ratings Officer, Bob Warren, CPA (Inactive), CPCU, Client Services Manager, Sharon Romano Petrelli, CPCU, AIAF, CCP, ARC, Vice President and co-founder, and myself, an ACAS, MAAA, MBA, possess collectively 150 years of P&C insurance experience, and we review more than publicly available insurance financial statements.

Patrick White, Lighthouse Insurance Corporation, responded by saying: 'Florida-only carriers will need to make significant changes to their business plans, or see meaningful change in the state's judicial and legal environment, to operate profitably in that market.'

Since 1996, Demotech has been part of Florida's solution to its residential property insurance crisis. This high-level history was prepared prior to espousing a suggestion to address the myriad challenges facing Florida focused carriers.

In the mid-1990s, stakeholders had a common interest in recreating an insurance marketplace. As the consensus solution emerged, all stakeholders had been heard, albeit none secured 100% of what they requested. Our independent, third party evaluations resulting in assignment of FSRs have evolved to permit us to address the requirements of the secondary mortgage marketplace, agent's errors and omissions insurers, and premium finance requirements. Demotech assisted the stakeholders in Florida re-vitalize the most complicated, dynamic, catastrophe prone market in the United States. What changed to cause this same jurisdiction to be declared a Hellhole?

From our perspective, two changes are subtle yet pervasive. Over time, an insurance ecosystem designed to mitigate the financial impact of natural disasters was revised on an ad hoc basis. Second, the insurance ecosystem was never designed to address or mitigate man-made disasters such as the judicial precedents created by AOB, Sebo, Johnson, and Joyce.

Part of the solution is returning to a process where all voices are valued and heard. The Federal Association for Insurance Reform (FAIR) lives the perspective that created the marketplace that survived the storms of 2004, 2005, and Irma, Michael and Matthew. FAIR focuses on common language and an understanding of the issues.

FAIR is about balance. Long-term public policy is best when all stakeholders have a place at the table. Demotech agrees with this tenet. Decisions should not be made because one voice is shouting louder than the rest; but rather, better decisions are made by a choir of voices reading and singing one hymn from the same page, in the proper key.

Financial ratings are necessary but not sufficient. Ratings are a scorecard on what has occurred in the past, and whether or not it is likely to continue into the future. You might think of financial operating results as a lagging indicator of the conditions in the marketplace. One should view the aggregate impact of public policy as the proximate cause of conditions in a marketplace.

Recent operating results were adversely impacted by the storms of the past several years, increased reinsurance costs, an extended period of judicial activism, and other factors. The impact of COVID-19 is unknown at this time. Yet, despite all of this, the boards and management teams of dozens of residential property insurers employing tens of thousands of employees, appointing tens of thousands of agents, insuring the property of millions of Floridians have said "Demotech, we will do whatever it takes to be part of Florida's residential property insurance solution."

Demotech rated carriers revised their business models, re-evaluated the financial consequences of supporting the most complex, dynamic, catastrophe prone jurisdiction in the world, or otherwise affirmed their willingness to continue to write business in Florida.

Exhibit 1, the supplement on State Specialists, lays to rest the belief that the problem with the Florida residential property insurance marketplace is the number of Florida focused insurers and minimal number of national carriers. From coast to coast, virtually every state is well represented by State Specialists. Furthermore, the State Specialists in Florida have similar financial metrics to the State Specialists in other jurisdictions.

Demotech actively reviews more than 400 insurers countrywide. We work with State Specialists in every jurisdiction. We assure you that jurisdictional diversification, voluntary runoff, marketing existing books of business to other carriers, merging affiliates, or otherwise securing assistance to avoid a downgrade rarely occurs outside of the Sunshine State. The challenges facing Florida focused insurers is the operating environment that has emerged in Florida.

Ayn Rand, the author and philosopher, noted "The hardest thing to explain is the glaringly evident which everybody has decided not to see." From our perspective, the glaringly evident is that conditions in the current residential property insurance market in Florida need to be re-evaluated and, when necessary, re-positioned to focus on the overwhelming majority of Floridians who purchase and procure insurance coverage yet never have a claim. Then and only then will an ecosystem designed to protect Floridians from natural disasters be able to protect Floridians from the rigors of the most complicated, dynamic insurance marketplace in the US.

A PDF of the full article with Exhibits and graphs can be found here.

SOURCE Demotech, Inc.

Related Links

http://www.demotech.com


Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 07:30:14|Editor: huaxia

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Min Yuting (C), a member of the national emergency medical rescue team from Shaanxi Province, weeps at the Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, April 1, 2020. As one of the 43 members of the national emergency medical rescue team from Shaanxi Province, Min and her colleagues finished a 14-day quarantine on Wednesday after their return from virus-hit Hubei. The team, dispatched by Shaanxi Provincial People's Hospital, has worked in two temporary hospitals together with colleagues from Wuhan City and Henan Province, managed 988 beds and treated 1,235 patients since their arrival in Wuhan on Feb. 4. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)
A former Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun has supported the state government with N25 million to fight Coronavirus

Sen. Amosun, in a letter dated March 31, written to Governor Dapo Abiodun, said the donation was a personal contribution to the fight against the pandemic.

Please be informed that N25million has been transferred and cleared into the Access Bank Account (No 1384210113 Ogun Coalition Against COVID-19) as my personal contribution for the management of COVID-19 challenges in Ogun State.



 I am in constant touch with federal agencies in and outside Ogun with a view to offering maximum assistance to our people in these trying times.

In addition, arrangements are also in place to assist in ameliorating the challenges arising from the lockdown in Ogun within the period by supporting 25,000 households across the state.

 It is my fervent prayer that the Almighty God will see our people in Ogun and indeed Nigeria through the COVID-19 pandemic, the letter stated.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
The logo of French oil and gas company Total is seen in a petrol station in Paris

By Shanti S Nair

(Reuters) - Oil producer Apache Corp <APA.N> and its joint venture partner Total SA <TOTF.PA> said on Thursday that they made their second significant oil discovery of the year in a closely watched area off the coast of South America's Suriname.

Shares of Apache were trading more than 12% higher after surging nearly 21% at market open, on a day when oil stocks were generally stronger due to a recovery in global crude prices.

The discovery comes at a time when shale oil producers in North America are grappling with the worst oil price shock in decades, which has led several companies, including Apache, to cut spending for the year and slash dividends.

The conventional plays offshore Suriname are especially significant for Apache as it follows the U.S. oil and gas producer's failed bet in the Alpine High region of the Permian basin, which has suffered from diving natural gas prices.

Apache's second major find was made at the Sapakara West-1 well drilled offshore Suriname on Block 58, which comprises 1.4 million acres, the companies said on Thursday, adding that the third and fourth exploration well locations in the block have been identified.

The well was drilled by a water depth of about 1,000 meters and encountered 79 meters net pay of high-quality volatile oil and condensate.

"We believe that, while still in the very early stages of exploration, the results from the Sapakara well further demonstrate what we believe to be the enormous potential of Apache's offshore Suriname position," SunTrust Robinson Humphrey analyst Neal Dingmann said in a note.

Houston-based Apache last month unveiled deep cuts to its exploration budget, pledging to stop all drilling in the Permian basin and to scale back some international operations, in a bid to remain profitable despite the low oil prices.

The announcement also comes on the heels of a downgrade on Suriname's debt by Standard & Poor's, which cited the coronavirus epidemic, the fall in oil prices and an upcoming presidential election as risks the country could default.

Story continues

Suriname President Desi Bouterse described the discovery as a "great gift."

"This will be a lot of money for this small country," Bouterse said in a statement.

(Reporting by Shanti S Nair and Shariq Khan in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Ank Kuipers in Paramaribo, Suriname; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Steve Orlofsky)
Markets

US equities were weaker Wednesday, S&P500 down 4.4%, smaller losses seen through Europe and most of Asia. US 10Y treasury yields fell another 6bps to 0.61%. The tipping point came President Trump warned Americans to brace for an unprecedented crisis. At the same time, Boston Fed President Rosengren confirmed the sum of the market fears by suggesting the US would see two consecutive quarters of negative growth and that unemployment will likely rise dramatically.

Lets face is it could have been worse if not for the nearly unprecedented peacetime fiscal and monetary stimulus on a global level with the possibility of another US budgetary package.

With the global economy in freefall, markets have gone back to risk-off mode overnight as investors are struggling to look through President Trumps ominous forecast suggesting Americans could keep dying into June. Now the markets dispute to come up with some alphabet letters to analogize a potential economic recovery. Still, its going to be anything but a V shape recovery. Thats for sure.

Sentiment remains exceptionally fragile as investors are a flat-out bundle of nerves fretting over the potential impact the coronavirus will have in the US markets and the economy.

Economists continue to downgrade the macro forecast, while stock pickers are focusing on balance sheets and earning statements in the wake of 5 UK based lenders decision to withhold 2019 dividends. And also they are looking at other sectors where shareholder returns look questionable, But for many market observers, all roads lead lower.

Similar to UK lender bowing to pressure from the BoEs Prudential Regulation Authority, the UKs top financial supervisor. The RBNZ ordered New Zealand banks on Thursday to stop paying dividends or redeeming capital notes, amid widespread economic uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Story continues

EPS

Before the virus, the bottom-up earnings estimate was $161. In other words, a sliver down from 2019. Now the bottom-up street consensus for EPS is -4% Q1 and -9% Q2. Suggesting that it will take an inconceivable bounce required in H2 to get the EPS aggregate up, especially when most companies have suspended earnings guidance, so theres nothing for the street to work with.

Yet looking back to previous downturns, P/E has typically overshot downward. And simply put, its beyond belief that the only influence the virus and sudden economic stop has had is a 4% EPS loss, and an unwind of last years multiple expansion, from 21 times back to an average 16

Simply plugging in a 14 X variable that better reflects the average downtown and a more logical 7% EPS loss, which is the average for a downturn, you get 14x $151 to give 2114. That would represent a lower low than the SPX 2194 on March 19 and is pointing to another 14.5 % down move from here.

Overall, this will continue to be a short-term traders market as trying to take a longer-term view in this means you will probably need to run wide stops. But there is still two-way business going on, especially now that systematic selling has ended, and the market is cleaner. Even then Im not sure where the volumes will come from with institutional traders getting position limits cut by risk management to protect the banks against any massive trading losses

Oil markets

Oil prices are higher on news that President Trump will hold a round table discussion with the countrys top oil executives. Presumably, to discuss possible coordinated production curtailment measures in an attempt to buy some time for the struggling US shale industry as the nations logistical storage capacity is getting overwhelmed and is nearing total saturation levels.

President Trumps acknowledging of the problems in the oil patch is critical, and he also revealed he had spoken with the feuding Vladimir Putin and Mohammed bin Salman on the subject. However, there is, as of yet, no obvious move or reconciliation between the producers.

But the threat of intervention or some type of coordinated global compliance agreement put a plank under prices as opposed to what many oil traders had expected this week, which was for oil prices to walk the plank.

Interestingly enough, Russias central bank has already need to adjust its policy due to the lack of petrol dollars per barrel. Not only have they stopped buying gold in the open markets, but they had to sell RUB16 bn of FX to settle March 31. While $200 million is small by central bank standards, but it does suggest a shortage of US dollars in their coffers, and the markets expect that reserve replenishing necessity to increase in April, especially oil prices remain low. But is this dire enough to motivate Russia to pull up a chair at the negotiation table with Opec or the US DoE?

At the same time, theres again more chatter on the street that refiners in the US and Europe are reluctant to buy Saudi Arabias crude, despite the steep discounts being offered as part of Saudi efforts to pressure Russia and other global producers. The suggestion here is that this could cause Saudi to rethink + 12 mn barrel per day in April.

Right now, all we have to go in is lip services and hope that something can be salvaged from these talks. But if nothing comes out of these discussions, oil prices most certainly head for the floor. So, despite the bump in prices in New York, oil traders are still bracing for the storage tanks to fill, and the curve to flatten as oil producers will then have to dump what they pump. And to say they might have to give it way might not be that far of a stretch.

Gold

Over the medium-term, gold should be a safe bet. The sizable fiscal and monetary stimulus that has been announced should be the main factor supporting gold from here, as reasonably aggressive fiat money printing seems to be here to stay. The only concern is the deflationary effect from deeper dive on oil prices, which is harmful to gold prices, especially if oil prices remain lower for longer.

Currency Markets

Despite quarter-end/month-end behind us, and with USD funding stress is decreasing, the USDs safe-haven appeal so far continues to overwhelm the potentially negative impact of looser US monetary and fiscal policy.

While the China canary in the coalmine trade based on buying currencies of countries who took swift containment measures and that should see their economies return to normal quicker, fell flat on its face yesterday as the market went into risk-off mode as economic data was week across Asia and the rest of the world outside of China

The Malaysian Ringgit is trading off overnight lows as oil prices are stabilizing a few dollars above recent lows. Foreign investors are nervous wrecks watching the US economy freefall inflows to risky assets like the Ringgit will dry up as the reality sets in we could be in global lockdown mode longer than anyone had expected even last week. Indeed, the global outlook is dire. The Ringgit will trade defensively in this hazardous environment.

This article was originally posted on FX Empire

More From FXEMPIRE:
[April 02, 2020] iDS Opens Office In London To Expand International Footprint

iDiscovery Solutions (iDS), a leading legal expert services firm, has opened an office in London to strengthen the company's presence in Europe. This new office specializes in complex investigations but also offers the firm's full suite of services, from forensic collections and investigations to data processing and hosting. Tim LaTulippe and Dan Rupprecht are leading iDS's London office. The two experienced consultants have proven track records of providing industry-leading solutions for clients in both the United States and Europe. "Litigation crosses borders, and it's important to have people who understand both systems," said Dan Regard, President and CEO of iDS. "Tim and Dan are the right fit for our company at the right time." LaTulippe is a forensics expert who has worked on a myriad of complex investigations, litigation matters, and compliance issues. He uses his more than 11 years' experience to help clients reactively and proactively address their needs.



"I am looking forward to sharing my transatlantic experiences with our European clients, with a specific focus on leveraging technology in investigations both internal and regulator-driven," LaTulippe said. Rupprecht is an attorney who has practiced extensively in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Belgium. He is well-versed in the management of high-data volume projects and the design and management of large-scale document review efforts.

"I am extremely excited to be joining iDS, providing me with an amazing opportunity to work with like-minded experts who recognize that when confronted with an impossible task, technology can always be a helpful guide to success," Rupprecht said. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cause economic turmoil, businesses are closely monitoring expenditures. iDS remains committed to helping clients best apply technology and digital expertise to their advantage. "Our value proposition has always been that it's better to litigate smart than to litigate brute force," Regard said. "Tim and Dan both bring a consultative approach to resolving litigation data challenges." About iDiscovery Solutions iDiscovery Solutions, Inc. (iDS) is an award-winning, global, and expert services firm that delivers customized, innovative solutions for legal and corporate clients' complex challenges. iDS's subject matter experts testify and consult in connection with electronic discovery (eDiscovery), digital forensics, data analytics, and information governance. To learn more, visit www.idsinc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005118/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
WASHINGTON  The Navy removed the captain of the stricken aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt on Thursday, only days after he implored his superior officers for more help as a coronavirus outbreak spread aboard the ship.

In a letter that leaked to news organizations on Tuesday, Capt. Brett E. Crozier laid out the dire situation unfolding on the warship, with almost 5,000 crew members, and described what he said were the Navys failures to provide the proper resources to combat the virus by moving sailors off the vessel and disinfecting areas on board.

About 114 sailors have been infected so far, a number that is expected to rise by hundreds as the vessel remains docked at Guam.

Senior Defense Department officials were angry that the letter found its way first to The San Francisco Chronicle, and then to other news outlets, where it was widely reported.
The chairman of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Kargil, has appealed for early evacuation of about 300 remaining local pilgrims from coronavirus-hit Iran.

Feroz Ahmad Khan, who is also the chief executive councillor of LAHDC Kargil, made the appeal in a letter to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar while also expressing gratitude for bringing back around 600 stranded pilgrims of Ladakh from the West Asian country.

The Union Territory of Ladakh on Thursday recorded another positive case -- first in over a fortnight, taking the total number of cases in the region to 14. However, three of the patients have fully recovered from the infection.

In times of crisis, the Ministry of External Affairs has stood true to the commitment to the citizens of our country, Khan said referring to the evacuation of the Ladakhi pilgrims who have reached the country in the course of the past one month.

He also appreciated the facilities being extended to them at their respective quarantine centres.

"Considering the immense duress on the Iranian authorities and their resources in dealing with COVID-19 outbreak in their country, the LAHDC Kargil is extremely concerned about the well being of the 250 pilgrims who had tested positive for the pandemic there around a month ago," Khan said in his letter while making a fervent appeal to the External Affairs Minister for their evacuation at the earliest.

He said a number of volunteers who had also stayed back to look after the COVID-19 positive patients are learnt to be "hale and hearty" with no major signs and symptoms of the virus even after a month having passed by.

The chairman appealed to the Centre to evacuate all of them numbering around 300 currently left out in Iran.

Since they have already completed the quarantine period, they may be re-tested on their arrival in the country and the persons testing negative may be allowed to move back to Ladakh where they may be kept under quarantine if required under the protocols, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Beijing: Coronavirus originated in Wuhan city of China. However, now most countries have been caught by this virus. In the last few days, China has not only controlled the coronavirus but is also selling medical equipment to protect many other countries from the corona. However, questions have started to arise about how effective these devices are.

Amit Shah attacked Congress, says "Congress is doing petty politics"

Nepal, which has come close to China in the last few years, also bought some equipment from China to protect it from Corona. But it is being told that their quality is very poor. Not only this, but China has also taken a lot of money from Nepal in exchange for these goods. The Nepal government has banned the use of rapid test kits sent by China. After about 6 lakh US dollars worth of test kit is of no use, the Nepal government has stopped its use.

240 people died in Brazil, President says 'This epidemic is biggest challenge'

Nepal, battling the Corona epidemic, had sent a chartered plane two days before and had imported 75 thousand Corona rapid test kits from China. But when the experts of Nepal's health department examined the kit, not a single kit turned out to be useful. After all the test kits are duplicated, the government has banned its use. Not only this, but China has also sold many products to Nepal many times. The list of which we have attached here.

9 lucky countries of the world where 'Corona' have not reached yet
Wynn Las Vegas is donating 1,000 meals per day to Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada, in effort to assist individuals and families who are food insecure. Over the next two weeks, the Wynns culinary team will assist with preparing boxed meals to ensure that there is no disruption to the non-profits daily meal service during this difficult time.

Wynn is committed to assisting our community however we can. said Marilyn Spiegel, President of Wynn Las Vegas and Board of Trustees member for Catholic Charities of Nevada. We have an incredible team of volunteers at Wynn who always rise to the occasion no matter what the circumstance. I am proud of their work to assist others who are facing hardship.

Vice President of Culinary Operations and Development David Snyder has spearheaded the effort along with Allegro executive chef Enzo Febbraro, Costa di Mare executive chef Mark LoRusso, The Buffet executive chef Jonathan Bauman, Encore in-room dining executive chef Damon Falls, food and beverage executive sous chefs Brian Kenny and Frank Redzikowski and other members of the food and beverage department.

We are honored to be able to utilize our resources to help alleviate some of the stress that so many members of our community are dealing with during this time, said David Snyder.

Dedicated to serving those in need, Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada provides resources for thousands of people every day. Over the coming weeks, Wynn will donate a total of $70,000 in meals to the organization.
Welcome to Strongman Medicine, a weekly column looking at how governments around the world are taking advantage of the pandemic for censorship, surveillance, and repression. Slate is making its coronavirus coverage free for all readers. Subscribe to support our journalism. Start your free trial.

The 1918 flu almost certainly didnt originate in Spain. One popular theory for how it acquired the Spanish name posits that Spain was the only country where you could read about the disease. Thats because Spain remained neutral during World War I, and therefore its newspapers werent censoring any information deemed harmful to national morale. The disease was also rampaging through other countries, including France, Germany, Britain, and the United States, but those governments suppressed or downplayed reports on the extent of the damage.

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Accurate and timely information is vital to combating a pandemic, but still, some countries first impulses are to cover up the spread of the disease. This week, we look at a few of those efforts, plus some brutal methods of enforcing stay-at-home orders.

China

The official line from Beijing claims that China is over the worst of the coronavirus. Wuhan, where the virus originated, has seen no new cases in a week and nearly all the new cases nationwide are importedmostly Chinese nationals returning from abroadrather than local transmissions. Businesses and factories are reopening, and the worlds second-largest economy is grinding back into gear.

But there are some reasons for skepticism. A U.S. intelligence report concluded that China has concealed the total number of cases and deaths in the country. Some health workers say that there are still cases that arent making it into the official count, and that asymptomatic cases are being discovered but not reported. According to some media reports, funeral parlors in Wuhan are ordering thousands more urns than official death tallies would suggest are needed. Chinas film regulator has also put the brakes on plans to reopen the countrys movie theaters. The government is now planning to delay the all-important college entry exams for months. Officially, this is due to the risk of cases being brought in from abroad, but given Chinas track record since the early days of the outbreak, which included suppression of information and arrests of whistleblowers, some skepticism of the official narrative is more than warranted.

Russia

Vladimir Putins government has also been accused of downplaying the severity of the outbreak. Officially, there have been 2,337 cases in Russiavery low by international standardsbut low testing rates make it hard to know for sure. Critics suggest that a suspiciously nationwide uptick in pneumonia cases in recent weeks actually consists of undiagnosed COVID-19 cases. Aggressive measures put in place to punish the spread of false information on the outbreak online may also be preventing media outlets from publishing accurate information.

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After moving much more slowly than other governments to order lockdowns and social distancing measures, Russia is finally implementing new rules as the number of cases has grown rapidly in recent days. Putin, who was highly visible while touting the governments efforts to contain the diseases spread early on, was conspicuously absent when it was time to deliver the bad news. The impending crisis has not stopped Russias government from scoring a propaganda coup by shipping medical supplies to other countriesincluding the U.S.

Japan

It may not just be dictatorships that are playing this game. Given its proximity to China, high elderly population, and high smoking rate, Japan would seem to be highly vulnerable to the coronavirus. Yet the number of cases and deaths in the country has been conspicuously low until recent daysperhaps suspiciously low. Japan, which has not adopted widespread testing or the kinds of strict social distancing measures seen elsewhere, saw the number of cases spike dramatically since it was announced last week that the 2020 Olympics would be postponed. Critics including former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama have suggested that Prime Minister Shinzo Abes government was manipulating the stats in order to make the outbreak appear under control and keep the Olympics in play.

India

Last week, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi suddenly announced an unprecedented three-week lockdown for Indias 1.3 billion people, setting off a rash of panic buying and creating confusion about how the millions of poor Indians in the countrys informal sector are supposed to support themselves. The lockdown has left vast numbers of migrant workers stranded and hungry.

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Reports of police abuses quickly surfaced. Video showed police in Uttar Pradesh forcing young boys to perform frog jumps for violating curfew, while another video in Belgaum showed officers violently breaking up a crowd inside a mosque. An ambulance driver was reportedly beaten to death by police when he was suspected of transporting passengers, and another man was killed after venturing out to buy milk.

Kenya

Kenyas police have also been accused of using excessive force to enforce the countrys dusk-to-dawn curfew. Video showed ferry commuters being beaten and tear-gassed in the city of Mombasa, an hour before curfew even went into effect. A journalist was also beaten while covering protests against the incident. According to Human Rights Watch, In Mombasa, police forced crowds of people to lie down together, in some cases on top of each other, as they beat, kicked, and slapped them for allegedly violating curfewbeing about as counterproductive to combating a disease as one could imagine.

Colombia

The Guardian reports that Colombian death squads have been taking advantage of the countrys coronavirus lockdown to kill activists in rural areas. These death squads are former members of the rebel group FARC as well as other armed right-wing and left-wing factions that have turned to drug trafficking and illegal mining since a peace deal formally ended the countrys decadeslong civil war in 2017. Now, with government resources focused on containing the COVID-19 outbreak, the groups are targeting environmental and land rights activists. Making things worse, the nationwide quarantine that goes into effect this week will make it harder for these activists to move around, turning them into easier targets.

Ethiopia

Due to the coronavirus outbreak, Ethiopia has postponed what many hoped would be the countrys first true democratic elections. The vote, scheduled for the end of August, was to be a a test for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who was earned praiseand the Nobel Peace Prizefor lifting a state of emergency and press restrictions, releasing political prisoners, and resolving a long-standing border conflict with Eritrea, but has also presided over a disturbing rise in ethnic conflict. A true competitive election could have shown that Abiys reforms are genuine. A new date for the election will be announced after the risk of the virus has been resolved, according to the government.

Hungary

Hungarys parliament on Monday passed the emergency law, discussed in last weeks column, allowing President Viktor Orban to rule by decree for an indefinite period. This arguably makes Hungary the first dictatorship within the EU and the first democracy to fall victim to the coronavirus. As Politico reports, even before the latest law, Hungarys government was facing Article 7 proceedings under the EU Treaty, used when a country is considered at risk of breaching the blocs core values. While Hungarys move was roundly condemned by a number of political leaders throughout Europe, the EU commissioner for justice would say only that the situation was being evaluated.
Editor's Note: With so much market volatility, stay on top of daily news! Get caught up in minutes with our speedy summary of today's must-read news and expert opinions. Sign up here!

(Kitco News) - Newmont Corp. (NYSE: NEM, TSX: NGT) is moving to ramp down operations at its Penasquito mine in the Mexican state of Zacatecas, the company announced late Wednesday.

The move comes after a decree by the Mexican government to suspend all non-essential activities until April 30 as part of the effort to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, Newmont said.

Whilst Newmont currently has no confirmed cases of COVID-19, we have proactively implemented rigorous and wide-ranging controls at all of our sites around the globe to protect our workforce and neighboring communities from contracting or transmitting the disease, said Tom Palmer, president and chief executive officer. We will, of course, comply with Mexicos latest directive while engaging with the government to gain further clarity regarding important activities that may continue at the mine. In the meantime, we will ensure Penasquito remains well-positioned to safely and efficiently ramp up operations in a timely manner once the governments directive is lifted.

Newmont said its too soon to determine how much the ramp-down will impact Penasquitos production and costs for 2020. The companys website puts annual production at the mine at 129,000 gold ounces and says Penasquito also produces silver, lead and zinc.

Last month, Newmont put four other mines on care and maintenance and withdrew 2020 production guidance as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. Those four mines temporarily shut down include Musselwhite and Eleanore in Canada, Cerro Negro in Argentina and Yanacocha in Peru.

Earlier this week, Newmont said it completed the sale of its Red Lake complex in Ontario to Evolution Mining Ltd., receiving $375 million in cash with future contingent payments of up to an additional $100 million tied to new resource discoveries. The deal calls for Evolution to pay Newmont $20 million for each 1 million ounces of new gold resources added to the existing Red Lake resource base over a 15-year period, up to the first 5 million ounces of new resources.
iSERT (Safety, EMC, RF, Testing), a leader in the provision of turnkey testing solutions for EMC, RF, and Safety testing, has collaborated with SqwidNet, the only licensed Sigfox operator in South Africa, to become the first, and currently only, Sigfox accredited test laboratory in the Southern Hemisphere.

The partnership has allowed for iSERT to provide customers with absolute confidence in their solutions by providing testing to ensure they will not degrade the Sigfox network. For SqwidNet, the partnership allows for further investment into South African innovation and development through collaboration and mutual growth.

South Africa has huge potential and can lead the way when it comes to innovation and development within the Internet of Things (IoT) sector, said Phathizwe Malinga, Managing Director at SqwidNet. We were looking for a local lab that could perform Sigfox-ready testing and iSERTs openness and ability to adapt to new technology were deciding factors. The company not only demonstrated the ability to accurately measure and plot antenna radiation patterns, but they share our belief that technology plays a vital role in changing lives and the future of the country.

iSERTs commitment to customer satisfaction and testing excellence also played a role in Sigfoxs decision. Established in 2017, the company may be a fresh face in the market, but it has already made significant inroads into the industry.

As one of the only labs in South Africa to offer a turnkey solution for EMC, RF and Safety testing, it brings something unique to the market. Something crucial to the local electronics industry.

With the advent of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), we realised it was essential for a test lab to have the capabilities of testing products that incorporate the latest technology in one convenient location, said Riaan van den Berg, Managing Director at iSERT. Our partnership with SqwidNet and Sigfox ensures that products are of good quality and that they will not degrade the Sigfox network. Its similar to PTCRB testing for cellular networks.

The local and international certification standards that were put in place to ensure that electronic devices can co-exist with limited emissions are of immense value to local companies.

They ensure that the spectrum is used efficiently and that it is of benefit to the public. Products have to be safe for use and they must be designed to take the environment into account.

This forms the basis of the Radio Equipment Directive (RED) and to certify a product with RED, it must comply with EMC, RF, and Safety test requirements. This ties into iSERTs offering and focuses on providing a seamless solution for wireless testing under one roof.

We live in an era of connectivity and IoT will invariably play a huge role in bringing devices together through wireless communications and technologies, said Riaan van den Berg. One of the biggest advantages provided by the Sigfox network is its penetration into rural areas that makes it ideally suited to Africa, South America, and Australasia. Weve seen some remarkable designs for rural areas over the past few years, from fire alarms for informal housing to health sensors, and this partnership allows us to support these designs and initiatives and to play a role in changing lives. Engineers apply science to make life better for the general public and this is us, doing just that.

Multiple factors influence the design of solutions that meet the high standards of the Sigfox network, as well as local and international certification standards. For iSERT two elements stand out  antenna selection and EMC.

Both require forethought and planning to ensure that the design is ergonomic, the quality to a high standard, and that compliance is easily achieved. By eliminating the issues presented by poor EMC design and antenna investment early on, companies can minimise expenditure while maximising results.

iSERT is committed to bringing about real and relevant change to the industry and customers, concluded Malinga. Their passion for design, compliance, and testing standards is reflected in the solutions they work with and the results they achieve to satisfytheir customers. Working with them will allow local companies to fully invest in the potential of their products while ensuring they are sustainable, compliant and capable of working seamlessly with the Sigfox network.

Founded in 2017 by Riaan van den Berg and Johan Deysel, iSERT brings more than 30 years of experience in compliance testing to the fore.

The company has plans to build a pre-compliance lab to assist engineers in product development, providing EMC and RF performance testing equipment and antenna performance and optimisation testing equipment to ensure high-quality from the outset.

The goal is to embed the companys commitment to precision, discipline and attention to detail into locally developed products and solutions, showcasing the remarkable innovation talent in the country while holding it up to a very high global standard.
Russia's Yamal LNG resumes loading operations in Norway

Yamal LNG, controlled by Russias largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer Novatek , is resuming ship-to-ship transfers in Norway, Novatek said on March 30, after plans to shift the operations to Russia fell through due to coronavirus.

Novatek suspended transfers in Norway in June last year due to what it termed pressure from the West. According to Refinitiv Eikon data, the Arc7 tanker Vladimir Vize is due to arrive at the Norwegian Arctic port of Honningsvag on April 1, carrying a cargo from Yamal LNG. The data also showed that an empty Arc4 tanker, Yamal Spirit, had departed from the port of Rotterdam last week and was scheduled to arrive at Honningsvag on April 1. Novatek had planned to start ship-to-ship transfers in the Murmansk region in north-west Russia, but said on Monday that such operations needed foreign specialists, whose travel has been restricted due to the coronavirus pandemic. Thats why temporary transshipment in Norways waters is a safer and more reasonable decision, Novatek said in emailed comments. The group said it had stopped transfer operations in Norway last year due to Western pressure. By transferring LNG to more conventional tankers in Norway, the Arctic vessels cut in half the distance they would cover to deliver gas to Europe, enabling more frequent shipments from the Novatek terminal and increasing Russias gas exports. However, the U.S. State Department has said such operations undercut Europes energy diversification efforts by shoring up its reliance on Russian gas. Novatek has a 50.1% stake in the Yamal LNG project on the shores of the Yamal peninsular. French energy major Total controls 20%, while Chinese CNPC and Silk Road Fund have 20% and 9.9% respectively. Russia plans to boost its global LNG market share to up to a fifth from a current 7% by 2035. It is vying for a share of the LNG market with Qatar, United States and Australia.




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Linkedin Adrian Wail Akhlas (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 19:37 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f52915 1 Business bank-indonesia,BI,swap-arrangement,US,China,Japan,Singapore,Australia,COVID-19,coronavirus,forex-reserves Free

Bank Indonesia (BI) is in talks with the US Federal Reserve about potential currency swaps, while also preparing bilateral swaps with central banks from China to Australia as it consolidates ways to aid the nations COVID-19 battle.

BI Governor Perry Warjiyo said on Thursday that Indonesias foreign exchange (forex) reserves as the central banks first line of defense were adequate. At US$130.4 billion in February, Indonesias dollar reserves are enough to cover 7.7 months of imports, well above the healthy international standard of three months.

But we can also announce that we have a second line of defense, which are bilateral swaps with a number of central banks, Perry said. He cited a $30 billion agreement with China, $22.7 billion with Japan, around $10 billion with Singapore and an undisclosed amount with Australia and other central banks.

We are also communicating with the US central bank to strengthen this bilateral swap partnership. Bilateral swap agreements involve rupiah and US dollar swaps to tackle liquidity issues, according to a BI document.

Read also: Rupiah at 1998 crisis level pressures reserves, foreign-denominated debt

The central banks forex reserves have been relatively buoyant despite it having intervened in the financial market, including by buying government bonds on the secondary market to ease selling pressure and to stabilize the rupiah.

The nations dollar reserves increased by $1.2 billion so far this year from $129.2 at the end of December despite BI having pumped Rp 172.5 trillion to buy government bonds as capital outflows reached Rp 145.1 trillion in the first three months of the year with investors worldwide selling off risky assets.

BI has been stabilizing the rupiah through its "triple market intervention" measures, focusing on the foreign exchange spot market, domestic non-deliverable forward (DNDF) market and secondary bond markets as the rupiah depreciated around 15 percent so far this year.

Read also: Explainer: BI to throw lifeline to Indonesias economy to fight COVID-19

The rupiah, already the worst-performing currency in Asia this year, currently trades at around Rp 16,525 against the greenback, Bloomberg data shows. BI pledged to stabilize the rupiah at Rp 15,000 per US dollar by year-end, although the government has projected the rupiah will hover around Rp 17,500 to Rp 20,000 under the worst-case scenario of the COVID-19 pandemic being prolonged.

This is only a what-if scenario and not a projection, Perry clarified about the worst-case scenario, adding that the central bank saw room for improvement for the rupiah thanks to coordinated efforts among financial authorities.

The new Government Regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) No. 1/2020 also allows BI to buy government bonds directly on the primary market, as Indonesia needs an extra Rp 405.1 trillion in state spending to cover the nations COVID-19 battle. This breaks a long-established prohibition in the 1999 BI Law that restricted the central bank to buying tradable government bonds on the secondary market.
According to Pakistan government, in March the Tablighi Jamaat went ahead with its annual congregation in Raiwind, Lahore against its advice that the gathering might spread the virus.

Lahore: Pakistan authorities have placed the entire city of Raiwind under quarantine, shutting down all general and medical stores, and completely restricted the mobility of people within or outside the city after at least 40 Tablighi Jamaat preachers tested positive, officials said on Thursday.

Similarly, some 50 members of the Jamaat, including five Nigerian women, suspected to be carriers of coronavirus, are admitted to a quarantine centre in Kasur, some 50 km from Lahore.

In Hyderabad city of Sindh province, 38 coronavirus cases of local transmission among members of the Tablighi Jamaat were reported on Thursday.

There are reports that the Sindh and Punjab police have picked some members of the Jamaat from the mosques and its Raiwind Markaz (headquarters of the Pakistani faction of Jamaat) and locked up in the police stations in connection with violation of the lockdown.

Follow LIVE updates on Coronavirus Outbreak here

According to the government, in March the Tablighi Jamaat went ahead with its annual congregation in Raiwind, Lahore against its advice that the gathering might spread the virus.

Pakistani authorities had urged the cancellation of the five-day Tablighi congregation, which was attended by thousands of people from several countries.

"The government's apprehensions stood true as several Tablighi Jamaat activists have tested positive for coronavirus and they caused spread of it,i Lahore Deputy Commissioner Danish Afzaal said in a statement.

He said the Raiwind Tablighi Jamaat Markez is presently housing approximately 600 preachers.

"The health teams have so far sent samples of around 110 of them for lab analysis and of them, 41 preachers have been tested positive for

COVID-19," he said, adding the Jamaat preachers have been quarantined in mosques and their centres in different districts.

"The mobility of people within or outside Raiwind town has completely been restricted through the deployment of police and personnel of security agencies," he said.

Tablighi Jamaat members have emerged as the prime suspects among potential coronavirus carriers, not just in Pakistan but in India, Malaysia and Brunei.

In India, the Jamaat has come under severe criticism for defying the lockdown and organising a congregation. Fifty-three people who took part in the Jamaat congregation in south Delhi's Nizamuddin Markaz last month have tested positive for coronavirus till now.

In Middle East, Gaza's first two confirmed coronavirus patients had also attended the Jamaat congregation in Pakistan.

In Pakistan, the COVID-19 patients number spiked to 2,250 with 32 deaths till Thursday afternoon. Punjab has most 845 cases followed by Sindh 709.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Muslim League-Q, a coalition partner of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government, and opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz have lent its support to the Tablighi Jamaat condemning the government action against it and demanded respect for its members.

Punjab Assembly Speaker Parvez Elahi said propaganda against Jamaat should be stopped forthwith. 'It is such a Jamaat whose Tabligh (preaching) has not caused chaos anywhere ever. Its members are recognised as ambassadors of peace."

Elahi said those members of the Jamaat who had been picked from the mosques and locked up in the police stations should immediately be released and shifted to the mosques or Tablighi centres and these mosques and centres be quarantined and ration and facilities should be arranged for them.

PML-N president and Opposition Leader in the National Assembly has also condemned police action against Jamaat members. iThe Tableeghi Jamaat members should be given respect,i he demanded.
Every name on the BrandBucket marketplace is exclusively listed with BrandBucket. That means that all of our sellers are very responsive, making for quick domain transfers.

A dedicated BrandBucket agent will manage your domain transfer from beginning to end, ensuring a secure and easy transaction. They will manage the receipt of the domain into one of BrandBuckets secure registrar accounts and then complete the transfer to you.

1. Verification and registrar choice

After we receive the payment and verify it, we will reach out via email to confirm which registrar you want the domain transferred to. We also provide a link to our tracking system, where you can communicate with us, check on the status of your transfer, view your invoice, and download your logo files.

In most cases, if a domain is moved between accounts at a single registrar, the transfer is quick and usually completes within 48 hours. If a domain changes registrars (in other words, you would like to move it away from where it is currently registered), the transfer is slower. The total transfer time can then be anywhere from 48 hours to 7 days.

BrandBucket has vetted and supports the following registrars:



GoDaddy

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2. We request the name from the seller.

Once we know where you would like the domain transferred, BrandBucket will request the domain from the seller. All of our sellers are very responsive, making for a quick process.

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As soon as we receive the name from the seller, we start the transfer into your account and guide you through the whole process.

4. Verify with the buyer that the transfer is complete

Once we confirm that you have received the name, we consider the escrow process to be complete. Only then do we release payment to the domain seller.
(Newser)  President Trump announced Wednesday that Navy ships are being moved toward Venezuela as his administration beefs up counter-narcotics operations in the Caribbean following a US drug indictment against Nicolas Maduro, the AP reports. The president's announcement was a break from the daily White House press briefing to discuss the coronavirus pandemic, which has left much of the country in lock-down and which the government warns could cause 100,000 to 240,000 deaths. "The Venezuelan people continue to suffer tremendously due to Maduro and his criminal control over the country, and drug traffickers are seizing on this lawlessness," Defense Secretary Mark Esper said after the president's announcement.

story continues below

The mission involves sending additional Navy warships, surveillance aircraft, and special forces teams to nearly double the US counter-narcotics capacity in the Western Hemisphere, with forces operating both in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Esper said the mission would be supported by 22 partner nations. The enhanced mission has been months in the making but has taken on greater urgency following last week's indictment of Maduro, Venezuela's embattled socialist leader, and members of his inner circle and military. They are accused of leading a narcoterrorist conspiracy responsible for smuggling up to 250 metric tons of cocaine a year into the US, about half of it by sea.

(Read more Venezuela stories.)


How do you encourage people to turn on each other during the COVID-19 pandemic?



The answer is not that complicated, especially if you live in the City of Bellevue, Washington.



Four years ago, when the city created the MyBellvue app, it was touted as being a quick and easy way to report things like downed street signs, potholes, street light issues and noise complaints. Fast forward to 2020 and public fears of COVID-19 have encouraged law enforcement to turn neighbors into government snitches.



Geekwire revealed how the Bellevue Police Department has turned a public service app into a report on your neighbors app. You can report these incidents through the MyBellevue app on your electronic device or the MyBellevue portal.

"Police in Bellevue, Wash., are asking residents to report violations of the states stay home order online in an effort to clear up 911 lines for emergencies."

A recent AP News article revealed that people are happy to report on their neighbors.

"Snitches are emerging as enthusiastic allies as cities, states and countries work to enforce directives meant to limit person-to-person contact amid the virus pandemic that has claimed tens of thousands of lives worldwide. Theyre phoning police and municipal hotlines, complaining to elected officials and shaming perceived scofflaws on social media."

When law enforcement encourages Americans to turn against each other we all lose. We become a nation controlled by fear.

"Suspected violations are tracked in the MyBellevue app and generate a heat map that shows where gatherings have been reported. The map shows hot spots of activity throughout the City of Bellevue, which is about 10 miles from Seattle.

The Bellevue Police Departments' MyBellevue page claims police need the public's help monitoring their neighbors.

The vast majority of people in our community are following the "Stay Home" order and are being safe, said Chief Steve Mylett. But we need your help in reporting violations where there may be a large amount of people at risk.

The MyBellevue customer assistance portal spells out exactly what this is app is really meant for now.

Report Gatherings: You may report gatherings here in violation of the State mandate to "Stay Home"

Contact Your Police Sector Captain: Got an issue affecting your neighborhood? Contact the sector captain for your area! A captain is assigned to each of three geographical sectors -- North, South and West -- and is ultimately responsible for issues taking place in their sector.

Sometimes there is a need to implement extreme measures but often these crises are used as justification to implement surveillance and data collection measures for purposes beyond that crisis, the ACLU of Washingtons Jennifer Lee said.

Reporting on your neighbor apps fly in the face of the freedoms Americans have enjoyed for centuries.





The MyBellevue mobile app can be found at the Apple store and Google Play store . Two recent reviews of the MyBellevue app spell out how everyone should view apps that encourage Americans to report on each other.

Leo Rosas said,

start sarcasm "Yes daddy, step on me harder, oh yes take my constitutionally protected rights away!* end. YOU SOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES! tell on your neighbors for leaving their house is BS you have no clue where they are going or for what. Since no crime has been committed in traveling, the police have no right to know where you go or why. There is no right to Abridge constitutionally protected free travel! Y'all were sworn to protect and uphold the constitution, covid doesn't change that."

Matthew Harphan said,

"I bet Hitler is rolling in his grave, super Jealous of your app used to violate civil rights through unconstitutional enforcement during Corona virus. You swore an Oath to Uphold and Defend the Constitution.. this is pathetic. I expect better from police. Despicable"

Now is the time to fight for our freedoms before a panicked nation willingly gives them away.
Canadian pizza chain Pizza Nova is facing a multimillion-dollar class action claiming its independently owned franchises misclassified delivery drivers as independent contractors and failed to pay them minimum wage.

In what the lawsuit calls a systemic breach of provincial employment laws, delivery drivers at 140 Pizza Nova stores across Ontario were denied appropriate compensation and protections because they were not classified as employees, according to the statement of claim.

The suit, which was filed in March, seeks $150 million in damages for drivers dating back to 2012. The company denies the claims.

Ive spent years of my life working as a pizza delivery driver and experiencing the problems of employment misclassification in the industry first-hand, said Juan Jose Lira Cervantes, the representative plaintiff for the class action.

Cervantes said he decided to step forward to fight against employment misclassification and to improve working conditions for the pizza delivery driver in an industry that treats them poorly.

In a statement to the Star, Pizza Nova president Domenic Primucci said the company denies the allegations made by Mr. Cervantes in the lawsuit.

Pizza Nova is the franchisor of Pizza Nova businesses, each of which is independently owned and operated, Primucci said.

Our current focus is on addressing the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic is having on us, our staff and our franchisees. As a result, we will not be providing any further comments at this time.

Josh Mandryk, a lawyer with Goldblatt Partners  the Toronto-based labour law firm launching the class action  described driver misclassification as pervasive in the pizza delivery industry and said it denies these workers of core workplace protections.

The COVID-19 pandemic highlights not only how critical these workers are to Pizza Novas operations, but also how important it is that they receive the same basic workplace protections as other employees, added co-counsel Ella Bedard.

Cervantes worked as a delivery driver for four Pizza Nova stores in the GTA, the claim says, and was terminated after more than six years of service for refusing to clean a stores bathroom.

During his time as a delivery driver, he was classified as an independent contractor, according to the suit, a category of worker that is not protected by provincial employment laws. He was paid between $6 to $9 and he did not receive overtime, vacation or public holiday pay, the claim says, and he paid for expenses  including gas and car maintenance  out of pocket.

Pizza Nova did not make Canadian Pension Plan or Employment Insurance contributions on behalf of their drivers, or pay workers compensation premiums, the lawsuit claims.

As reported by the CBC in 2018, the provincial Ministry of Labour found a Dominos Pizza franchise that previously employed Cervantes misclassified him as an independent contractor. The franchise was ordered to pay him more than $25,800. Cervantes only received $6,300 because the franchise voluntarily dissolved, even though the same pizza business continues to operate at the very same location, Mandryk said.

This experience highlights deep flaws in Ontarios employment standards regime and its failure to protect working people, Mandryk told the Star.

Mr. Cervantes decided to pursue a class action and to be the representative plaintiff in this action because he wanted to create real and systemic change at Pizza Nova and in the pizza delivery business more broadly.

Independent contractors are defined under Ontario law as workers who are essentially self-employed: they make their own schedules, determine how their work should be done and cant be disciplined by a superior. It is prohibited to classify a worker as an independent contractor if they meet the legal definition of an employee.

The class action says Cervantes worked according to schedules created by Pizza Nova franchisees, was assigned orders by the stores, and wore a Pizza Nova uniform while on the job. When not delivering orders, the suit says he performed in-store duties as required.

Some 65 per cent of the companys business is delivery, according to the suit, which must now be certified by a judge.

Overall, the level of integration, supervision and control imposed by the pizza chain on drivers establishes an employment relationship, the class action says.

Despite its franchise model, the class action argues Pizza Nova is a common employer and liable for damages because it set overarching standards for its independently owned franchisees to follow  including delivery drivers contracts, assigning deliveries and minimum staffing levels.

Drivers are in a position of vulnerability in relation to the defendants, the claim notes.

The defendants owed a duty of care  to ensure they were accurately classified as employees and properly compensated for all hours worked.
The chief executive of the Health Service Executive has said officials are working hard to resolve a shortage of testing materials for coronavirus.

Paul Reid appealed to the public to bear with us as the HSE tries to address the worldwide issue.

In a short time we have scaled up on, testing centres, testing kits, contact tracers, nbr of Labs, hospital beds, ICU, ventilators, PPE, staff.

Our current major issue is "reagents" for labs. A worldwide shortage. We are working hard to fix this. Bear with us @HSELive #COVID19  Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) April 1, 2020

He was speaking after it emerged that Ireland is falling short of the target number of tests being carried out each day.

In a tweet he said: In a short time we have scaled up on, testing centres, testing kits, contact tracers, nbr of Labs, hospital beds, ICU, ventilators, PPE, staff.

Our current major issue is reagents for labs.

A worldwide shortage. We are working hard to fix this. Bear with us.

(PA Graphics)

On Wednesday it was confirmed there had been 14 more deaths and 212 new cases of Covid-19 in the Republic of Ireland.

Eighty-five people have died since the outbreak began in the Republic.

On Thursday the head of the Department of Public Health and Epidemiology at the Royal College of Surgeons said that increasing contact tracing of people with symptoms would work more effectively than waiting for test results.

Professor Ruairi Brugha told RTEs Morning Ireland: Instead of having delays of up to 10 days, we can move in when people have symptoms and start contact tracing at that point.
YEREVAN, 2 APRIL, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs Armenpress that today, 2 April, USD exchange rate down by 0.46 drams to 504.50 drams. EUR exchange rate down by 0.45 drams to 551.62 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate up by 0.03 drams to 6.43 drams. GBP exchange rate up by 4.33 drams to 628.41 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price down by 549.32 drams to 25571.72 drams. Silver price up by 1.17 drams to 227.32 drams. Platinum price down by 221.61 drams to 11581.12 drams.
Nine more Covid-19 cases were reported from Rajasthan on Thursday, seven of them from Ramganj area of Jaipur which has emerged as the new coronavirus hotspot.

Rohit Kumar Singh, additional chief secretary, health department, said nine more positive cases have been reported in the state, taking the total number to 129.

All 7 positive patients are close contact of the person who was the first person to test positive in Ramganj. He has transmitted the disease to 17 of his close contacts till now, Singh said.

One case was reported from Jodhpur and one case of a Tablighi Jamaat member was reported from Jhunjhunu.

Jaipur has the highest number of positive cases at 41 followed by Bhilwara at 26 and Jodhpur at 9.

The total samples received in the state are 6,557 of which 111 are positive. 18 of the evacuees from Iran, who are housed in the Army Wellness Centre in Jodhpur, have tested positive. The cumulative positive cases in the state stand at 129.

The total number of negative samples is 6,279 while 167 are under process, said Singh.

On Wednesday, 13 cases were reported from Ramganj, all are contacts of the first person who tested positive in Ramganj on March 26.

The 45-year-old man from Ramganj, who returned from Oman via Dubai on March 13, has become a super-spreader, transmitting the virus to at least 20 family members and sparking fears of community transmission.
Present in 21 strategic locations across the country, The Byke Hospitality informed the local authorities that they are open to give out the spaces for any relief activity at this time of COVID-19.

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the formation of a relief fund on 28 March, Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund or PM CARES Fund where people help in the government's fight against coronavirus, industrial houses are persistently contributing to the fund.

Financial services conglomerate HDFC Group on Thursday said it has committed Rs 150 crore to the PM-Cares Fund to support the government for its relief and rehabilitation measures towards the Covid-19 pandemic.

"These are uncertain and trying times for all of us. The HDFC Group's support to the PM Cares Fund is to commend the exemplary efforts of the Central & State governments, armed and paramilitary forces, local police, healthcare professionals and sanitation workers across the country, who are working tirelessly day in and out to fight the pandemic," HDFC Ltd chairman Deepak Parek said in a statement.

Standard Chartered Bank announced its commitment to donate Rs 5 crore to support the fight against COVID-19 virus in India.

The bank will be working with multiple non-government organisation (NGO) partners to provide relief to the vulnerable communities including the migrant workers in the initial stages.

StanChart will partner with United Way of Mumbai, Swades Foundation and CII Foundation for supply of rations, meals and essentials to the most-needy sections of the communities, who have been harshly impacted by this pandemic and are facing significant disruption in their livelihoods.

Among the vulnerable groups, migrant labourers have been worst affected during these trying times, as economic activity remains severely disrupted.

This activity will be undertaken across several parts of the country including major cities (Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Baroda) and rural areas (Sundarbans, Jaunpur, Tonk and Marathwada).

AESL contributes Rs 1 cr to PM CARES Fund

Aakash Educational Services Limited (AESL), the player in the test preparation services, has given Rs 1 crore to the government to combat coronavirus outbreak in the country.

Out of this, Rs 50 lakh have been donated to the PM CARES Fund and the remaining Rs 50 lakh to the Delhi Police Welfare Society.

Aakash Chaudhry, director and CEO, AESL, said, "To mitigate the impact that the current lockdown may have on students learning process, AESL has also adopted various measureLIVE online classes, online courses, making available tests, curriculum and course material online and enable teachers to connect with their students via social media applications and online platforms."

Kusum Healthcare pledges Rs 2.50 cr

Kusum Healthcare, one of Indias leading pharmaceutical manufacturer,announced a donation of Rs 2.50 crore to the PM CARES Fund to help India fight against COVID-19.

The company believes that this donation would help the government in the fight against COVID-19.

Additionally, the employees of Kusum Healthcare donated one-days salary to the PM CARES Fund, amounting to Rs 9 lakh.

"With COVID-19 spreading throughout the world, we want to assist our fellow citizens in this time of great need, and this contribution to the PM CARES Fund is a small step towards that," said Sanjeev Gupta, managing director, Kusum Healthcare.

Kusum Healthcare also is taking all possible steps to meet the needs of its global customers while operating safely and effectively to minimise the risks of COVID-19 to its employees and customers globally.

Kusum Healthcare is a part of the Kusum Group of Companies, a fully integrated, young pharmaceutical group, with its headquarters in New Delhi. The company has three state of the art WHO GMP certified and PIC/s compliant manufacturing units in Bhiwadi Rajasthan and Indore, Madhya Pradesh.

Founded in 1997, Kusum Healthcare manufactures formulations for all major specialties including Gynecology, Orthopedic, Dermatology, General Medicine, Rheumatology, Neurology, Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Urology and more.

The Byke Hospitality offers properties for quarantine facility

The Byke Hospitality, a group of vegetarian hotels and resorts in India, said that it extended support to local authorities and offered its properties for quarantine facility, whenever the need arises.

The hotel group said it is open to give any support the government may need and has already established one such quarantine centre at their Thane service apartment. The local authorities can use the service apartment if there is an increase in the number of patients needing quarantine facility, it said.

Present in 21 strategic locations across the country, The Byke Hospitality informed the local authorities that they are open to give out the spaces for any relief activity at this time of COVID-19.

The Byke Hospitality tied up with Lions Club and a body namely My Green Society to help daily wage workers by providing essential grocery items to their families.

Anil Patodia, CMD, said, "We have informed the local authorities that we are willing to convert our property spaces as full-fledged quarantine facility, whenever the need arises. We are also reaching out to the daily wage earners and helping them with essential items to help them survive with dignity in these trying times.

The Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-Cares Fund) was set up on March 28 to raise money for combating coronavirus outbreak and to provide relief to the affected.
A new report has documented the widespread looting being undertaken by the regime's forces and the militias that support them and the markets established to sell these goods writes Zaman Al-Wasl.

At least 30 towns and villages in northern Syria have been looted by Syrian regime forces and allied Shiite militias since April 2019, the Syrian Network for Human Rights said in legal report on Tuesday.

The report has documented that about 30 villages and towns in the northern suburbs of Hama province, the southern suburbs of Idleb, and parts of Aleppo have been subjected to robberies and the looting of property by regime forces and pro-Iran militias.

The report notes that these stolen goods and property are being sold in the markets of al-Sqailbiya town in the suburbs of Hama. As the report states, this is reminiscent of what was recorded previously in 2012 and 2013 when the Syrian regimes militiamen opened similar markets to sell goods theyd looted, after taking control of the cities of Homs and Hama.

Also, the Syrian monitoring group revealed that some other armed groups have also carried out looting of areas they have taken control of, including the forces of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (YPD), the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), extremist Islamist groups (ISIS and al-Nusra Front), and factions of the armed opposition.

Although the scale of the looting carried out by the Syrian, Iranian and Russian regime forces remains by a long way the most widespread and systematic, according to the report.

The regime offensive in Idleb province and parts of Aleppo has displaced more than 1,041,000 people from their homes and killed 700 people, including 91 women, 212 children and 17 rescue workers, over the past three months, the Syrian Response Coordination Group said.

The nine-year-old war has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands and forced 13 million people from their homes, half of whom have left their shattered homeland.

This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Greyhound Australia has suspended its bus service between Sydney and Brisbane to stop the spread of coronavirus.

The decision comes after residents in Byron Bay lobbied to have the buses stop to make sure COVID-19 was not spread to regional areas.

'The safety of our passengers and staff is always our number one priority,' a Greyhound Australia statement read.

In an attempt to limit the spread of COVID-19 Greyhound Australia has suspended its services between Sydney and Brisbane

Byron Bay mayor Simon Richardson said he was ready to get police to turn away backpackers who came in by bus (pictured: backpackers arrive in Byron Bay)

'The purpose of our vigilance in acting in accordance with this advice is to ensure the safe travel of all passengers, not only whilst on board with us but also in their continued journeys.'

The last bus to enter Byron Bay before the suspension had six passengers on board, including backpackers.

'We are not frightened. Our greatest fear is getting stuck in one place, giving all our money out and doing nothing,' Lynn Maendartsma from Finland told The Guardian.

Her travel companion and fellow Finnish backpacker Lles Shign said their plans had been changed due to the restrictions.

'We are just going to relax in Byron and chill a little bit. We wanted to go to Brisbane but thats not an option any more,' she said,.

Byron Bay mayor Simon Richardson said he was prepared to 'go in hard' and ask local police to turn the buses away if they weren't stopped.

When buses were halted on Thursday Mr Richardson took to social media to applaud Greyhound's decision.

'Great to hear that from today, Greyhound will be cancelling its service to Byron. Thanks Greyhound,' he wrote.

His post drew the attention of other Byron Bay residents who also welcomed the decision with glee.

'Thank you Simon for keeping up the pressure on this,' one resident wrote.

'They have become the cruise ships of the road,' another added.

Greyhound Australia said the safety of its staff, passengers and the wider community is their 'number one priority'

According to the Greyhound Australia website its Adelaide to Darwin and Brisbane to Cairns services are still operating.

'In response to the ongoing impact of COVID-19, we are reviewing our services across the network,' the website read.

'Our aim will be to ensure connectivity as much as possible, but never at the risk of the safety or health of our customers and team members.'

On Thursday the COVID-19 death toll climbed to 23, with more than 5,000 confirmed cases.
Why do First Nations want the provinces practice of birth alerts ended? Why is the practice considered by some to be harmful to First Nations mothers, children, families and communities? What are the alternatives?

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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Why do First Nations want the provinces practice of birth alerts ended? Why is the practice considered by some to be harmful to First Nations mothers, children, families and communities? What are the alternatives?

The Brandon Sun posed a series of questions by email to Southern First Nations Network of Care chief executive officer Theresa Stevens regarding the networks mandate from the Southern Chiefs Organization to replace birth alerts with practices more in line with familial and community needs.

Southern First Nations Network of Care chief executive officer Theresa Stevens. (Submitted)

The text has been edited for length and clarity.

The Brandon Sun: Set the context  why must birth alerts stop? How are they harmful?

Theresa Stevens: Like our community leadership, the Southern First Nation Network of Care believes that our children are precious gifts from the Creator. It is our responsibility to ensure that they are prioritized in the decisions we make and the actions we take to ensure that they are safe, secure and are given the best opportunity to thrive as they grow into youth and adults who will lead our communities into the future.

This (work) is a response to the intergenerational impacts of removing Indigenous children from their families and culture, be it through the use of Indigenous residential schools, the Sixties Scoop or the current over-representation of our children in Manitobas child welfare system. Compromising the fortitude of Indigenous cultures by destroying the foundation of community well-being  Indigenous families  has resulted in detrimental impacts to the emotional and mental well-being of Indigenous women.

Tearing families apart feeds the rampant issues of high incarceration rates for men and women, systemic poverty, decreased life expectancy and high rates of missing and murdered women and girls, all of which have a heightened impact on our First Nations families and communities.

Earlier this year, the minister of Families admitted that birth alerts do not mitigate harm to infants born to at-risk mothers, and the Southern First Nations Network of Care would add that birth alerts actually increase risk for children born to these mothers.

Placing First Nation children in care is a certain threat to their chances of stability, safety and success in life. The rest of Canada has managed to mitigate the risk of children born to vulnerable mothers without the use of birth alerts. Our southern First Nations leadership believes that the same can be done here.

To that end, southern First Nations child welfare agencies will no longer issue birth alerts. Our agencies will work with Indigenous women and their families to provide meaningful and culturally relevant family services that allow these women to rediscover the knowledge that their ancestors used to guide generations of Indigenous children prior to colonization.

In accordance with the new federal legislation governing the provision of child welfare services to First Nations people, Bill C-92, An Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit, and Metis Children, youth and families, southern First Nations child welfare agencies will strive to provide differential service responses to First Nations mothers to prevent the apprehension of their children at birth, and to decrease the number of children coming into care by supporting

families to keep their children at home safely.

The Sun: So far, have Southern First Nations Network of Care and its agencies have been following provincial birth alert policy?

TS: The Southern First Nations Network of Care is a mandated authority in Manitoba, and we have historically followed the birth alert policy. In light of current developments in the provision of child welfare services to First Nations families, southern First Nations leadership has chosen to exercise our inherent jurisdiction to address these safety concerns in a differential way that improves outcomes for Indigenous mothers and their children.

The Sun: Are there legal ramifications to Southern First Nations Network of Care going ahead with its own policies and plan?

TS: All of the things our agencies are doing  differential response, prevention, early intervention, wraparound services  are meant to address the risk faced by children born to vulnerable mothers. The province has been clear that authorities have the jurisdiction to respond differentially to these challenges. If there are situations where an agency has tried everything required and the parent will not agree to receive services or utilize community resources, something similar to a birth alert may be issued. However, we will work with our agencies to ensure that they are supported to respond in these different situations to prevent that from happening.

The Sun: What is the culturally appropriate alternative?

TS: Southern First Nations have lost so many of our traditional teachings about the process of bringing life into the world, how we welcome babies into the community, naming ceremonies and building a family and community support structure around new parents, to name a few. These ceremonies and teachings provided structure and guidance to First Nations communities to keep families safe, strong and together.

Our family systems and cultural foundations have been destroyed by colonization and the structures that uphold the oppression of First Nations people: child welfare, the justice system and socio-economic inequality, etc. We must make a special effort to restore our traditional knowledge and teachings that give First Nations parents guidance and support to nurture their families

in a culturally meaningful way.

The Southern First Nations Network of Care will work with our agencies to develop and implement culturally appropriate and meaningful processes and programs to strengthen the traditional knowledge base of families to enable them to keep their children safely at home.

An example of this is the Restoring the Sacred Bond Initiative, Manitobas groundbreaking social impact bond. This is a partnership between the Province of Manitoba and the Southern First Nations Network of Care that seeks to improve maternal and child health, build strengths, cultural identity and social outcomes through access to culturally grounded birth helpers. This program provides support and guidance to at-risk mothers before, during and up to one year after the birth of their child. This program will allow up to 200 mothers to reconnect with their traditional cultural practices and strengthen their support networks.

The Sun: Down the line in the process  at actual hospitals  will this create problems for parents? If a hospital isnt on board? Or is this accounted for in the policy and plan?

TS: If a birth alert is voided, the hospital will not receive notice of an alert. If hospital staff has child protection concerns once the child is born, they still have a duty to report their concerns to the designated intake agency in their service area of the province.

 mletourneau@brandonsun.com

 Michele LeTourneau covers Indigenous matters for The Brandon Sun under the Local Journalism Initiative, a federally funded program that supports the creation of original civic journalism.
The Grand Canyon has become the latest national park to shut after local officials backed the Navajo peoples call to suspend tourism in the canyon and halt the spread of coronavirus within its community.

The closure made the Grand Canyon the last major national park to shut during the coronavirus pandemic, despite the move being backed by county and tribal officials.

The closure of the park took longer than it shouldve, but were glad its finally closed, said Jonathan Nex, president of the Navajo Nation.

Visitors headed to the parks East Rim must drive through the tribes reservation using a state highway.

Staff had begun the process of slowly shutting down visitor services, whilst the Navajo president had warned a complete closure was needed to stop the virus spreading among the rural population.

Tribals officials said on Wednesday the number of confirmed coronavirus cases had reached 214, with seven deaths. The nearest hospital is more than an hours drive from the Navajo Reservation.

When the interior secretary, David Bernhardt, announced on Wednesday that he had accepted the parks request to close, some commented that the decision could have been made sooner.

In a letter addressed to Mr Bernhard on March 24, Mr Nez had written to the interior secretary asking for an emergency closure of the Grand Canyon, adding: We simply cannot afford additional outbreaks among our Navajo people.

A similar plea was made by Coconino Countys health officer, Thomas Pristow, who wrote to the National Parks Service director Mary Risser on March 25 expressing his concern about opening the Grand Canyon during the pandemic.

Tourists were still able to visit the Grand Canyon on Tuesday, when the National Parks Service said it was keeping the park open, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The National Parks Service reportedly denied receiving a request from local health officials asking for closure of the Grand Canyon, despite Mr Pristows letter.

Kevin Dahl, of the National Parks Conservation Association in Arizona, said the Interior Department must make it easier for park managers to make these common-sense decisions that can save lives.

At the same time, the Zion National Park in Utah remained open on Wednesday despite multiple calls for closure. Shutdowns have so far come on a park-by-park basis as the Park Service reacts to the pandemic.
Defense cost talks leave deep scars in alliance



South Korea and the United States have finally reached an agreement on how much Seoul should pay this year for the upkeep of the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), according to South Korean officials.



In the first place, it is nice to see an end to the bizarre negotiations. Although there has not been an announcement yet on the details of the agreement, it is undeniable that the deal, whatever the outcome, has left deep scars in the decades-old alliance. The talks are over, but doubts will remain among many South Koreans about the true meaning of the alliance.



The Donald Trump administration's "extortionate" demand for a near fivefold increase to $5 billion per year in the initial stages of the negotiations was shocking enough to draw a huge backlash from the South Korean people. And on Wednesday, the USFK went ahead with a plan to place thousands of Korean workers on unpaid leave for an indefinite period of time, citing the lapse of the previous Special Measures Agreement, which governs the cost-sharing issue. Given the employees have worked for the USFK for many years and South Korea had demanded separate negotiations on how to protect the workers facing furloughs, the U.S. measure was unilateral, irresponsible  and cruel. It is quite natural to feel the U.S. had taken the Korean workers hostage to pressure Seoul to pay more.



For its part, it is important for the South Korean government to prevent the U.S. from using the Korean workers at U.S. bases as a "bargaining tool" in future negotiations. In a notice to the furloughed workers, USFK Commander Gen. Robert Abrams called them "vital to our mission and the Korea-U.S. alliance," saying he will do his best to address the "heartbreaking" situation. But in fact, during the latest and seventh round of talks last month, South Korea proposed concluding a separate agreement to first address the wage issue, but the U.S. rejected the idea over concerns about any further delay of a comprehensive cost-sharing deal.



It was right for the South Korean defense ministry to voice regret over the forced furloughs, vowing to come up with support measures for the affected workers, such as extending emergency loans, and pushing for a special law aimed at improving their job security.



Given the manner the Trump administration has handled the defense cost issue involving South Korea, we cannot help but partly sympathize with North Korean propaganda website Ryomyong's claim, Wednesday, that the furloughs of Korean USFK employees was a result of Seoul's "submissive" posture toward Washington. There is no denying that many South Koreans feel this way. Even U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, Eliot Engel, accused President Trump in an online statement over the furloughs, saying he is "extorting" allies at a time when closer collaboration is needed in combating the spread of the new coronavirus.



If these claims are wrong, the government at least needs to be more vocal about addressing issues like the Korean USFK workers, which characterize the unfair state of the relations with the U.S. This is about righting a wrong.


US, South Korea seek to seal military deal after furloughs

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 10:07 AM

The commander of United States forces in South Korea has urged a prompt resolution of a lingering cost-sharing dispute between the two close allies that has resulted in the furloughing of over 4,000 Korean workers by the US.

"This is an unfortunate day for us, it's unthinkable, it's heartbreaking," said Commander of US Forces Korea (USFK) General Robert Abrams in a video statement on Wednesday. "The partial furlough of (Korean national) employees is not what we envisioned or hoped would happen."

The dispute developed after the US President Donald Trump administration demanded that South Korea pay up to five billion dollars per year to support the presence of nearly 29,000 US forces in the country, up from 870 million dollars under a deal last year.

About half of the nearly 9,000 South Koreans employed by the USFK were put on unpaid leave effective Wednesday after the two allies failed to reach an agreement on a new pact months after the previous accord expired at the end of 2019.

South Korea's negotiator Jeong Eun-bo expressed Seoul's regret on Tuesday that the US Defense Department had decided to follow through with the furloughs even though the negotiations were in their "final phase," saying, "We expect an agreement to be finalized soon."

Meanwhile, South Korea's Yonhap news agency cited an unidentified source as saying on Wednesday that a new deal could be declared as soon as later in the day, "though various possibilities remain still open."

Representatives for the South Korean Foreign Ministry as well as the US Embassy in Seoul refused to elaborate on the status of the ongoing talks, according to Reuters.

The American military presence in South Korea has stoked anti-US sentiments in the country.

American military personnel have on many occasions caused outrage by committing various crimes, including rape and assault. The US forces were put under curfew in July last year after a drunken soldier attempted to steal a taxi and hit a Korean National Police officer in the process.

The Pentagon insists the troops are in South Korea to deter perceived threats from North Korea.

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Haykhona Corona! Spreading the word, not the virus

A poster series to action South Africans on how to care of themselves and others.

Wits University students who participated in the South African leg of FameLab, an international science competition, helped to translate a series of posters with a key messages on how every South Africans actions can save lives.

The multilingual posters were produced by research communication specialists Jive Media Africa, and are published with a Creative Commons license so you are free to copy, print and share them (provided no modifications are made).

Altruism is a strong motivator says Jive Media Africa Director Robert Inglis, People are looking for ways they can help, and sharing relevant, relatable messages is one of those ways.

Haykhona is an isiZulu expression signalling strong negative sentiment. Inglis says the posters say:

No, not here! to COVID-19

The posters have been translated into a number of languages from South Africa and other African regions, including IsiZulu, IsiXhosa, Setswana, Sesotho, Sepedi, SiSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, Yoruba, Luo and French.

https://jivemedia.co.za/science-spaza/haykhona-corona-spreading-the-word-not-the-virus/
South Africa: Home Affairs allows repatriation, medical travel

Patients who are facing life-threatening diseases are now allowed to enter South Africa or go abroad for medical treatment.

This is just one of several revised regulations announced by Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, as South Africa marks day 7 of its 21-day national lockdown aimed at slowing the spread of novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).

Furthermore, repatriation of South African citizens will be permitted. However, citizens will be screened for COVID-19 before repatriation can take place. Those who test positive will not be allowed to travel.

The borders have been closed for people but now the amendment is that the Minister, or a person designated by him, may allow a person to enter or exit the Republic for emergency medical attention for a life threatening condition, said Motsoaledi on Thursday.

The Minister was part of a briefing held in Tshwane by Ministers who represent the Coronavirus National Command Council.

South Africa now has 1 462 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with five recorded deaths. Two other deaths are yet to be confirmed.

President Ramaphosa declared the global pandemic a national state of disaster.

On Thursday, Motsoaledi said some regulations would have to be reviewed in order not to prejudice those seeking essential services.

A person seeking urgent medical attention for a life-threatening condition may also be allowed to enter or exit the country, provided theyre given permission by the Minister of Home Affairs or the person designated by him, Motsoaledi said.

In addition, individuals may be permitted to leave the country. This means South Africans who are in other countries can come through the borders - provided theyre given permission and people who want to [exit] the borders may now be allowed, Motsoaledi said, adding that permission would have to be sought.

Anyone who comes into the country will be subjected to quarantine, Motsoaledi stressed.

Normal movements, he explained, are still limited.

People cannot move in and out. There have to be special arrangements, the Minister said.

Government has also given fuel and food cargo the green light to cross borders. Previously, only essential goods were allowed before the amendment.

Meanwhile, Minister in the Presidency Jackson Mthembu has disputed criticism that government is making an about-turn on its strict 21-day national lockdown regulations to curb the spread of COVID-19.

He said theyve reviewed some of the measures because theyre a listening and a caring government.

Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma reiterated Mthembus views, saying that while they cannot satisfy every citizen, they cannot turn a blind eye to peoples genuine concerns.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
A t least 28,000 people have signed up to "adopt a grandparent" at UK care homes during the coronavirus lockdown.

The heartwarming scheme, run by CHD living which has 16 care homes in Surrey, involves chatting to residents over video calls.

CHD Living has been running a similar initiative since last year to encourage local people to spend time with their residents in person.

But now face-to-face visits are no longer possible, the company has decided to take it online.

A care home is inviting people to "adopt a grandparent" by holding video calls with its residents during the coronavirus lockdown. / PA

"The idea behind it was to promote inter-generational communication and the relationship between children and older people, which is very valuable," said Shaleeza Hasham, head of hospitality, communications and commissioning for CHD Living.

"By taking it digital, we felt it was so valuable to relieve potential feelings of isolation and loneliness."

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures 1 /81 Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures A deserted Westminster Bridge PA A man wearing a face mask or covering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past customers sat outside a restaurant AFP via Getty Images Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Runners pass cardboard cutouts of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William during the London Marathon in London AP An empty escalator at Charing Coss London Underground tube station Jeremy Selwyn Electronic bilboards displays a message warning people to stay home in Sheffield PA A sign is displayed in the window of a student accommodation building following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Mancheste Reuters People take part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions, in Londo AP People sing and dance in Leicester Square on the eve on the 10PM curfew Reuters Hearts painted by a team of artists from Upfest are seen in the grass at Queen Square, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bristol Reuters Graffiti reads 'good luck and stay safe', as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, under a bridge in London Reuters A sign is pictured in Soho, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London Reuters Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures, during a coronavirus briefing in Downing Street, London AP A person runs past posters with a message of hope, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Manchester REUTERS Riot police face protesters who took part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions in London AP An image of The Queen eith quotes from her broadcast to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the Coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images Durdle Door in Dorset Reuters Captain Tom Moore via Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Coronavirus outbreak PA An NHS worker reacts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS Reuters Goats which have taken over the deserted streets of Llandudno @AndrewStuart via PA Tobias Weller PA Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed London Landscapes: Hyde Park and the Serpentine, central London. Matt Writtle A newspaper vendor in Manchester city centre giving away free toilet rolls with every paper bought as shops run low on supplies due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus PA Theo Clay looks out of his window next to his hand-drawn picture of a rainbow in Liverpool, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue Reuters A young man cuts another man's hair on top of a closed hairdresser in Oxford Reuters General view of the new NHS Nightingale Hospital, built to fight against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London via Reuters Jason Baird is seen dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children in Stockport, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters A woman wearing a face mask walks past Buckingham Palace Getty Images A man holds mobile phone displaying a text message alert sent by the government warning that new rules are in force across the UK and people must stay at home PA Medical staff on the Covid-19 ward at the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, in Wales, as the health services continue their response to the coronavirus outbreak. PA Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking part in a virtual Cabinet meeting with his top team of ministers PA A shopper walks past empty shelves in a Lidl store on in Wallington. After spates of "panic buying" cleared supermarket shelves of items like toilet paper and cleaning products, stores across the UK have introduced limits on purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have also created special time slots for the elderly and other shoppers vulnerable to the new coronavirus. Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour PA Mia, aged 8 and her brother Jack, aged 5 from Essex, continue their school work at home, after being sent home due to the coronavirus PA Children are painting 'Chase the rainbows' artwork and springing up in windows across the country Reuters Social distancing in Primrose Hill Jeremy Selwyn A general view of a locked gate at Anfield, Liverpool as The Premier League has been suspended PA Homeless people in London AFP via Getty Images A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow's street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss PA The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace, London, for Windsor Castle to socially distance herself amid the coronavirus pandemic PA A general view on Grey street, Newcastle as coronavirus cases grow around the world Reuters Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty (L) and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance look on as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he speaks during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news conference inside 10 Downing Street Reuters The ticket-validation terminals at the tram stop on Edinburgh's Princes Street are cleaned following the coronavirus outbreak. PA Locked school gates at Rockcliffe First School in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A sign at a Sainsbury's supermarket informs customers that limits have been set on a small number of products as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases grow around the world Reuters Jawad Javed delivers coronavirus protection kits that he and his wife have put together to the vulnerable people of their community of Stenhousemuir, between Glasgow and Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" Getty Images A man who appears to be homeless sleeping wearing a mask today in Victoria Jeremy Selwyn A pedestrian walks past graffiti that reads "Diseases are in the City" in Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images Staff from The Lyric Theatre, London inform patrons, as it shuts its doors PA A quiet looking George IV Bridge in Edinburgh PA A quieter than usual British Museum Getty Images A racegoer attends Cheltenham in a fashionable face mask SplashNews.com A commuter wears a face mask at London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn A empty restaurant in the Bull Ring Shopping Centre Getty Images A deserted Trafalgar Square in London PA Passengers determined to avoid the coronavirus before leaving the UK arrive at Gatwick Airport Getty Images

The scheme has already been a huge success, with 28,000 people around the world signing up to volunteer from the ages of one to 76.

It comes as care homes around the country have found inventive ways of keeping up morale during the lockdown, including life-sized board games like Kerplunk and Hungry Hippos.

"It's been overwhelming," Ms Hasham said. "There aren't enough words to express."

Volunteers are asked to complete a short questionnaire about their likes and dislikes, allowing residents to choose who they feel they might get on with.

There are introductory sessions to ensure the volunteers and their adopted grandparents get on, and each call is overseen by a supervisor.

And staff are finding that volunteers are getting as much out of the sessions as the residents.

"A lot of the messages we're getting are very heartwarming and some are very emotional," said Ms Hasham. "You see a lot of people who might say 'I lost my grandparents', or indeed 'I lost my parents', or I never met my grandparents'.

"It's filling a void. The positive impact to everybody has been astounding really."

Staff hope that once the pandemic has passed and it is safe to do so, as many of the volunteers as possible will visit their adopted grandparent in person.
Once their done serving time at the Okanagan Correctional Centre, approximately 10% of inmates catch a ride home in a cab with their fares billed to the B.C. government.
UN chief views COVID-19 as most challenging crisis since WWII

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 08:23, April 01, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic "represents a threat to everybody in the world and ... it has an economic impact that will bring a recession that probably has no parallel in the recent past," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.

UNITED NATIONS, March 31 (Xinhua) -- United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday said that the COVID-19 pandemic is the most challenging crisis since the Second World War as it represents a threat to everybody.

The pandemic "represents a threat to everybody in the world and ... it has an economic impact that will bring a recession that probably has no parallel in the recent past," Guterres said at the virtual press launch of the UN report "Shared responsibility, global solidarity: Responding to the socio-economic impacts of COVID-19."

"The combination of the two facts and the risk that it contributes to enhanced instability, enhanced unrest, and enhanced conflict are things that make us believe that this is, indeed, the most challenging crisis we have faced since the Second World War and the one that needs a stronger and more effective response that is only possible in solidarity if everybody comes together and if we forget political games and understand that it is humankind that is at stake," the UN chief said.

Noting that he has been in touch with world leaders about the pandemic, the secretary-general said that "there is a growing consciousness that we are in this together and we need to come out of it together."

"The problem is how to create the practical ways to do so," said Guterres, noting that fast action is critical.

"We are slowly moving in the right direction, but we need to speed up, and we need to do much more if we want to defeat the virus and if we want to support the people in need," he added.

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MEMOIR

LONG WAY HOME

by Dan Jarvis (Little Brown 18.99, 320pp)

Most politicians with a 24-carat diamond of an anecdote about a former prime minister will treat it as the crowning glory of their autobiography. Theyll spin it till it dazzles.

Not Dan Jarvis, Labour MP for Barnsley Central. He chucks in a story about dragging Tony Blair through a nest of barbed wire in a dark, muddy wood at the height of the fighting in Kosovo as if its hardly worth mentioning.

But then, former paratrooper Jarvis is not like most politicians, and his memoir is far from the usual self-serving Westminster brag. He has faced two shattering crises in his life  a blood-curdling deployment in Afghanistan, followed by the death of his adored wife Caroline, mother of his two small children, from cancer.

Former paratrooper Dan Jarvis, reveals the horror of war and reflects on the death of his first wife Caroline, in a new memoir. Pictured: Dan with his late wife Caroline and family

Theres no dwelling on heroics at the frontline, nor wallowing in grief at home. Long Way Home is a lively read, but it has the feel of a military debriefing, with the emphasis here on accuracy without melodramatics.

That said, his after-dinner story about meeting Blair in a war zone is a cracker.

In 1999, on Jarviss first day as aide-de-camp to the head of the British Army in the Balkans (General Mike Jackson, known to his troops as the Prince of Darkness), Blair visited the NATO HQ in Kosovo.

After the meeting, Jarvis was ordered to walk Blair back to his helicopter, accompanied by spin doctors Alastair Campbell and Anji Hunter. As they approached the aircraft, it inexplicably took off and hopped to another helipad on the other side of a wood.

The PM and his advisers had no choice but to traipse through the mud and undergrowth, with Jarvis helping them through barbed wire fences. Campbell was gung-ho but Hunter, who was wearing heels, seemed to be enjoying it less.

As the helicopter lifted off again, this time with the British premier on board, Jarvis realised General Jackson was staring at him with a look of controlled fury. He steeled himself for a roasting, but all the Prince of Darkness said was: Thank God it wasnt the Queen.

Part of Jarviss ability to observe and describe Army life stems from his outsider status. A comprehensive schoolboy from Nottingham, he was the first man in his family to attend Sandhurst. Most of the cadets were public schoolboys: only one other came from a state school. The two of them were dubbed Marks and Spencer.

Dan recalls the constant fear of an Afghan soldier opening fire on the Allied troops who were supposedly his comrades. Pictured: Dan as a paratrooper in Iraq

Though his parents were far from Army types (a college lecturer and a probation officer), they clearly expected their boys to lead rugged lives. At 14, Dan and his brother were dumped on a deserted Scottish island and left to fend for themselves overnight. That sort of treatment seems odd for a middle-class family in Nottingham, so more depth about his childhood would have been welcome.

Instead, much of the book is devoted to the horrors of war against the Taliban in Afghanistan, in particular his posting in 2007 in command of a Special Forces Support Group: Paras, Royal Marines and the SAS.

He is unsparing about the difficulties of working with Afghan troops, who were often fearless fighters, but might also be Taliban double agents. So-called green-on-blue attacks, where an Afghan soldier opened fire on the Allied troops who were supposedly his comrades, were a constant fear.

Jarvis talks of the thousand mile stare that men develop when they have seen too much horror, and explains his own method of dealing with trauma  the coping box, an imaginary trunk for storing turbulent feelings until he has the time and strength to face them . . . which might be never.

Dan's (pictured) wife Caroline was diagnosed with bowel cancer in 2006, after he returned from Afghanistan for the first time

Detailed descriptions of individual military actions will be of interest to war historians, but less so to ordinary readers. It is the authors uncommon awareness of his emotional battles that makes this memoir unique.

In 2006, after he returned from Afghanistan for the first time, Jarviss wife Caroline was diagnosed with bowel cancer.

She had a baby daughter and a toddler son, and the idea that anything could be seriously wrong with her was so unthinkable that for months even her GP couldnt believe it. Only when she became bedridden with agonising stomach pains was she sent to hospital for tests.

Jarvis vividly conveys the nightmare of the man of action who can deal with anything  except being powerless. His first thought on hearing the news was that he had to stay positive  as if the illness brought new military objectives that must be achieved for victory to be won.

LONG WAY HOME by Dan Jarvis (Little Brown 18.99, 320pp)

His gradual realisation that the disease was not like any other enemy is heartbreaking.

There is a bitter unfairness about the battle: he has trained all his life to fight and survive, and now his life is being torn apart by an illness that is impervious to his courage or his capacity to work himself to exhaustion.

Worse, it is not even his own fight for survival  that might have been bearable, or at least a battle he was less afraid to lose. His description of the day of Carolines death stands out from the rest of the book with a surreal intensity.

In his introduction, Jarvis says he was unable to talk about Carolines death for years  even after time had healed his grief enough to let him remarry and have another child with his second wife, Rachel. He also claims that he has been reluctant to talk about his service in Afghanistan, because of the sensitive nature of the operations.

It is clear, though, that those memories are tangled up with the treatments Caroline underwent before and after his deployment, which magnified his dread of facing them. It has taken Dan Jarvis a long time to open his coping box. He deserves great credit for it.
This could be the straw that breaks the camels back, said Nathalie Tocci, director of the International Affairs Institute in Italy. The reason why coronavirus is such an epochal challenge is not that it brought things out of the blue. It touches on all spheres and does so by accentuating dynamics that are already there. Its as if it is bringing the extreme out of everything.
As we anxiously read statements about COVID-19 from local officials and the media, two things are missing: concern for the economy, and detailed data that would help the public understand and properly respond to what is really happening.

President Donald Trump and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick have been roundly mocked and disparaged for merely acknowledging the economic devastation forced upon us and for wanting citizens to get back to work. Instead, they deserve our thanks. While relatively few people are suffering from the virus in Texas, 30 million people are suffering from the economic shutdown. Not to imply that we should not comply with social distancing orders, but lets acknowledge the trade-offs and the financial cost to our people, and publicly release the most important health data.

A booming economy, record low unemployment, a record-high stock market and unprecedented optimism about the future disappeared overnight with the appearance of COVID-19, the governments definition of government essential services and stay-at-home mandates. The forgotten man and woman  hourly employees and small-business managers and owners  are now unemployed by government edict. Their hopes and dreams came to an abrupt halt to stop the growth of the virus. As each day passes with no income, the possibility grows that their job or business will never return.

A record 6.6 million Americans filed for jobless benefits, as reported this week. That figure is almost 10 ten times higher than the pre-pandemic record of jobless claims set 38 years ago. The economy is now just as much a crisis as the coronavirus, and a strong tension in deciding between the two should be part of every policy conversation at the federal, state and local levels.

Notwithstanding the important goal of flattening the curve of coronavirus cases, by forcing businesses to close and their customers to stay home we are making certain that many people will suffer immense and immediate financial hardships, with all the emotional and physical health effects that come with that. That is a certainty. According to the 2011 National Health Interview Survey, almost 23 percent of those who make less than $35,000 reported poor health compared with 5.6 percent of those who make more than $100,000.

Many small businesses operate on very small profit margins and juggle losses and cash flow to keep their doors open and pay their bills. By forcing them to close, some small-business owners will be forced into bankruptcy or insolvency by landlords and bill collectors, while others will simply not be able to emotionally recover. When one is giving all they have  emotionally, physically and financially  to their small business, a forced closure with weeks of heavy losses can trigger a total loss of hope. We need more than a few politicians to advocate for and encourage these hardworking hourly employees and business owners.

But here is the most crucial point: The public is not being told the most important measures of the virus, and some hospitals are not sharing important data. As the Express-News reported, the public lacks complete data about how many ventilators are available among the regions hospitals.

Recently, Mayor Ron Nirenberg and the city of San Antonio launched a COVID-19 website with more helpful data showing the ages of people with the virus, deaths by age and how many have been hospitalized. The governor has mentioned that almost 98 percent of hospital bed capacity is still available to treat coronavirus patients. But other important real-time data is needed on those who are hospitalized: How did they contract the virus, and what was their prior health condition? How many ventilators do the hospitals have available? And for those who die, what was their health condition before being hospitalized?

To the media and public officials: Give us the whole truth with the most important details, tell us how to protect ourselves, take care of the truly sick and allow the economy to continue growing in a healthy manner as soon as possible. We want to get back to work.

Jeff Judson was a member of the Bexar County Hospital District board of managers and is the former president of the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
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By repurposing badges originally designed to locate nurses and other hospital staff, Johns Hopkins Medicine scientists say they can precisely monitor how patients in the hospital are walking outside of their rooms, a well-known indicator and contributor to recovery after surgery.

A team of engineers and clinicians at The Johns Hopkins Hospital developed the repurposed badges to study their value in tracking "ambulation," or mobility, among inpatients who had undergone cardiac surgery.

The study, which began nearly four years ago and is described in a report published March 17 in JAMA Network Open, was inspired by Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Vice Dean for Research Antony Rosen, M.D., who also directs the institution's precision medicine effort, inHealth. Rosen asked his colleague, Johns Hopkins University engineer Peter Searson, Ph.D., to help find ways to improve the assessment of how well patients are functioning.

I was sold on Antony's vision to improve patient care by finding ways to make high value measurements of patients' functional status." Peter Searson, the Joseph R. and Lynne C. Reynolds Professor of Engineering and a professor of materials science and engineering at The Johns Hopkins University

After collecting information about how clinicians currently assess functional status day to day, Searson joined efforts with anesthesiologist and clinical researcher Charles Brown, M.D., who was conducting an ongoing study funded by inHealth, which focused on measuring the mobility of patients after cardiac surgery.

"Ambulation is important for hospitalized patients; in particular, for patients who have surgery and those who are older," says Brown, an associate professor of anesthesiology and critical care medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, whose research focuses on improving perioperative care for older adults. "More ambulation immediately after surgery probably helps preserve patients' cognitive and physical function, and is linked to spending less time in the hospital."

Most of the nursing staff in the hospital wear small badges on their uniforms as location and paging systems. The badges send beams of light, much like the ones used for TV remotes, to sensors in the ceilings of hospital rooms and corridors. The research team's idea was to adapt the system to assess how far and how fast patients walked after surgery.

Searson and In cheol Jeong, Ph.D., replicated the tracker system in their laboratory to see how well the devices could record the timing and speed of patients' movements.

The team ruled out other movement tracking devices that rely on GPS or accelerometers because they aren't sensitive enough to detect whether a patient is in or out of their room, and the devices may not register the typical shuffling gait of a patient recovering from surgery.

"The system collects and records real-time information about a patient's mobility," says Jeong, a former trainee in Searson's lab and now assistant professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York.

For the study, the team obtained consent from 100 patients, mostly men, whose average age was 63, and attached trackers to their hospital gowns. Researchers collected information on how far and how fast patients walked in the unit's corridors every time they left their room.

Generally, patients are encouraged by hospital staff to walk outside of their rooms three times a day. Data collected by the Johns Hopkins team showed that approximately 25 percent of the 100 patients achieved that goal.

The Johns Hopkins team also found that the tracked mobility records among patients were more than 90 percent accurate in predicting the patients' 30-day readmission rate, discharge to home or rehabilitation center and their length of stay in the hospital.

Brown cautioned that, "There are many aspects of measuring and establishing ambulation metrics that aren't clear. Maybe the goal of three times a day needs to be refined or adjusted for baseline function and speed," he explains. The researchers also said there may have been ambulation that wasn't captured by the device.

But the study results, he said, suggest the badges would be valuable in giving feedback to health care workers and patients, encouraging ambulation and helping clinicians identify earlier those who can benefit from earlier discharge or more intensive rehabilitation.

The researchers have filed patents for the technology developed for the study. Funding for the study was provided by Johns Hopkins inHealth.
LONDON, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the Global FinTech Adoption Index 2019* by EY, one in eight people said that the core reason for using FinTech challengers was that those brands focused on customer centric factors such as better experience, better product features and quality of service.

Following the report, Bruc Bond, a leading business banking firm, has said that the banking industry must embrace customer-centric banking practices to stay relevant in 2020.

Today, consumers expect more from banks, demanding convenience, personalised experience and quality products and services. To stay relevant and successfully compete in a thriving market, banking service providers must deliver on these expectations.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has received 21 applications for digital bank licenses. Tarini Ponniah, Chief Compliance Officer for Bruc Bond Singapore, says that she's glad to see the city state join the likes of the United Kingdom in embracing customer centric digital banking. Coordination and cooperation between the MAS and regulators in other fintech- and digital banking-focused jurisdictions, like Poland, Lithuania, Japan and Australia, would hasten the widespread adoption of digital banking worldwide.

Like the MAS, European regulators are keen on adoption of innovative, customer centric solutions.

"The UK has become a competitive hotbed for digital banks, with several eyeing penetrating markets very far from home. Their success has been nothing if not extraordinary, with so-called challenger banks now amassing millions of customers in Europe and worldwide and expecting to treble their customers bases in 2020," says Konstantin Bodragin, Digital Marketing Officer and Bruc Bond's Business Analyst.

In recent years, Lithuania has become a hub for Europe's expanding network of Non-bank Financial Institutions (NBFI), which has significantly raised the country's standing in global financial markets. Neighbouring Poland has taken a different approach, encouraging its highly-developed banking sector to adopt digital solutions to consumer needs. It is for this reason that a recent *Deloitte study found Poland to be a leader in digital banking. "We can say that Poland is a digital leader, but Polish banks are varied in this regard," commented Deloitte's Daniel Majewski.

Tarini Ponniah says, "There needs to be much more cooperation between regulators to accelerate digital banking adoption in their respective jurisdictions to benefit customers worldwide.

She continues, "With new digital banking licenses being granted in almost every market in the world, 2020 is finally going to be the year that customer centric banking becomes a reality."

For more information about Bruc Bond please visit www.brucbond.com.

*EY Global FinTech Adoption Index 2019 report - https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_gl/topics/banking-and-capital-markets/ey-global-fintech-adoption-index.pdf

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1098872/Bruc_Bond_Logo.jpg
OVER 150 calls have been logged by volunteers of a new response group established to support the elderly and those with underlying conditions, during the coronavirus crisis.

Operating since last Friday, March 27, at the Munster GAA headquarters in Castletroy, the Limerick Covid-19 Community Response group is available to assist from 8am to 8pm daily. The need for the group is set to increase over the coming weeks in line with the anticipated peak period for the Covid-19 pandemic impact.

Trends are showing that the collection and drop off of shopping and prescriptions are set to be the most common tasks performed by the group.

Limerick City and County Council is leading the response alongside An Garda Siochana and the HSE backed by up to 40 sporting, community and religious groups across the city and county,

Approximately 21% of the calls logged have been dealt with by operational gardai in the division with 79% either completed by volunteers on the ground or dealt with by call centre staff.

Inspector Andrew Lacey of Limerick gardai, which has two garda sergeants in place at the centre at all times, said that in excess of 350 volunteers have been made available via the Limerick GAA club network and 55 volunteers have already put themselves forward for work at the call centre.

So far, the calls mostly relate to shopping and prescription collection for the elderly and vulnerable, with signposting of services and general advice of the new government regulations and other related matters also prominent,Insp Lacey explained.

Peak time for calls is between 9.30am and 4pm so far. Our volunteers are really up for the task and will endeavor to assist in any way they can or, at the very least, point callers in the direction of those who can help. A lot of callers made contact with us to say they were delighted we are here, that they dont need us just yet but may do in the coming weeks.

The objective for the group now, Insp Lacey said, is to make sure they deal with all queries that come in but also that awareness of the services grows.

So we are asking people to make sure that they pass on our information and contact details to those living alone or in isolation due to coronavirus. We are also very keen that this is a success as the better it works the more people will be able to stay in isolation and hopefully minimise the spread of the virus and the impact on frontline services trying to cope with that.

Those offering to assist can contact the volunteer email address, volunteer@limerick.ie, and those looking for assistance can contact the 1800 832 005 freephone helpline. An additional email address is also now available for people needing support, covidsupport@limerick.ie
Rotunda Rumblings

Masks on: Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton is a fan of people wearing home-sewn cloth masks out in public, believing they block droplets and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Acton said she is anxiously awaiting possible new federal guidance recommending that people wear masks out in public, which she noted is the cultural norm in many countries as a courtesy when someone is sick, cleveland.coms Laura Hancock reports.

Battelle ready: Battelle, the Columbus-based scientific and engineering research institute, is on the front line of battling COVID-19 through its new technology to sterilize N95 masks and a new coronavirus test developed with Ohio State University. Hancock looked at the employer of 3,000 and other inventions theyve developed over the years.

Over 2,000: Fifty-five people are dead from COVID-19 and 2,199 people were confirmed to have the virus Tuesday afternoon in Ohio, Hancock reports. Gov. Mike DeWine announced in his Tuesday briefing that he wants an inventory of all respirators and CPAP and BPAP machines in Ohio that are not at peoples homes for personal use.

What trend says about possible ICU crunch: To illustrate how just under 200 ICU hospitalizations can expand to a serious hospital capacity challenge, cleveland.coms Rich Exner projected out to mid-April, based on recent daily trends. On the low end, there could be 1,150 ICU admissions; on the high side close to 3,600. State officials, of course, are hoping to reduce the need by limiting the spread of the virus. These projections were based just on recent daily trends.

Maps and more: Exners daily map showing county-by-county cases numbers, plus a lot more graphics about the trends can be found here. One interesting note: the number of new cases lately has been holding fairly steady, with 270, 269, 247, 280 and 266 additional cases confirmed by the state over each of the last five days. Of course, this comes with the standard caveat: the state knows a lot of people arent being tested.

Disaster aid: President Donald Trump late Tuesday approved Ohios request for a disaster designation, making the state eligible for emergency federal money to fight the coronavirus. Cleveland.coms Sabrina Eaton has details.

Jail break? DeWine on Tuesday suggested that he may soon release some Ohio inmates because of the coronavirus crisis. As cleveland.coms Jeremy Pelzer writes, the governor specifically mentioned prisoners convicted of non-violent crimes, who are nearing the end of their sentences, or who have a medical condition that puts them at higher risk of dying from the virus.

Positive test: A woman who did part-time contracting work at a Department of Youth Services juvenile detention center has tested positive for COVID-19, according to cleveland.coms Cliff Pinckard. State officials did not specify what kind of work the woman did, or at which facility she worked.

E-sigs: The state issue campaign behind the push to raise Ohios minimum wage to $13 an hour has sued, seeking to allow online signature gathering for ballot petitions amid the COVID-19 pandemic, cleveland.coms Andrew Tobias writes. The lawsuit filed by Ohioans for Raising the Wage in Franklin County Common Pleas Court, also seeks to push back the filing deadline and cut signature requirements in half, among other changes. Depending how the lawsuit goes, it could have ramifications for other state issue campaigns whose futures are uncertain right now.

Lets get it started: Cuyahoga County elections officials have begun encouraging voters to request absentee ballot applications, hoping to get the ball rolling given the tight timetable set by state lawmakers when they set the vote-by-mail wrap-up for Ohios primary election. Tobias laid out how Cuyahoga County is handling the election, which ends on April 28.

One caveat: Theres still that pending federal lawsuit from voter-rights groups seeking to push the election back, allow for in-person voting, re-open voter registration and require the state to send absentee ballot applications to Ohioans who havent already voted, rather than requiring them to obtain an application themselves. U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson on Tuesday ordered Ohio officials to respond to the lawsuit by Thursday, particularly focusing on justifying the need for the April 28 date, as opposed to Secretary of State Frank LaRoses proposal to hold the election on June 2.

Speaking of election lawsuits: The Ohio Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed as moot what was remaining of the lawsuit originally filed by the Ohio Democratic Party against LaRose that challenged his decision on the June 2 date.

A clean fight: Sen. Rob Portman on Tuesday said hes working to lift tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on several Chinese-made packaging parts that Akron-based Gojo Industries uses in the pumps that dispense its Purell hand sanitizer, which is in heavy demand to fight the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, Eaton reports. Earlier this month, the U.S. Trade Representatives office denied the companys request to lift a 25 percent tariff on Chinese-made pump houses and e-collar dispenser parts that Purell uses in its dispensers.

Pandemic premium: Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown wants the next coronavirus-related stimulus package that Washington produces to include hazard pay, or Pandemic Premium Pay," as he puts it, to provide time and a half wages to workers at the front line, including doctors, nurses, grocery store workers, building cleaners, letter carriers and transit workers, writes Eaton. On Tuesday, Brown wrote a letter to President Donald Trump that sought the extra compensation for workers, as well as additional precautions to protect them from workplace exposure to COVID-19.

Ex apart-e decision: Bowing to the coronavirus threat, the Ohio Supreme Court will hear its next round of oral arguments on April 7-8 via videoconference, Pelzer writes.

Auto payment? The Ohio Supreme Court has agreed to hear whether Volkswagen should pay the state of Ohio hundreds of billions of dollars for the automakers 2015 emissions cheating scandal. As Pelzer reports, VW says if it loses the case, it would create a regulatory nightmare for the auto industry around the U.S.

Fuel for thought: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation on Tuesday announced theyll lower fuel efficiency standards for passenger vehicles set during the Obama administration to the consternation of environmental groups, who said the change would hamper efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, Eaton writes. Trump administration officials argued that lowering the fuel efficiency standards will save lives by reducing the cost of newer, safer vehicles so more people can buy them.

Full Disclosure

Five things we learned from the Feb. 18, 2020 financial disclosure of state Rep. Haraz Ghanbari, a Perrysburg Republican:

1. He disclosed income from five different sources last year. In addition to the $48,102 he made as a state representative, he also disclosed making $10,000 to $24,999 from three sources: as a director at the University of Toledo, rental income from a property in Alexandria, Va. and from the U.S. Naval Reserve. He also made $1,000 to $9,999 as a city councilman for Perrysburg. (He was appointed to the legislature in March 2019.)

2. He and his immediate family members dont have any businesses.

3. He disclosed three investments: his Ohio Public Employees Retirement System account, a mutual fund with USAA and a 401(k) from his former job as an Associated Press photojournalist.

4. He disclosed no debts.

5. He received $2,508.48 in House travel reimbursements.

On The Move

Ian Fury, spokesman for Champaign County GOP Rep. Jim Jordan, will start next Monday as Communications Director for South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.

Birthdays

State Sen. Matt Huffman

Michael Farley, vice president of government affairs and general counsel, Ohio Insurance Institute

Tyler Herrmann, deputy legal counsel, Ohio Office of Budget & Management

Robert Lucas, Ohios 12th governor (1781-1853)

Straight From The Source

Understand theyre not the problem. They are working so hard to try to serve you. Dont express frustration to them.

-Lt. Gov. Jon Husted reminding Ohioans to be polite to Ohio Job and Family Service employees working the phones for the unemployment claims system. Many Ohioans are still having trouble getting through. Husted said hes pressing state contractors to increase capacity of the computer system.

Capitol Letter is a daily briefing providing succinct, timely information for those who care deeply about the decisions made by state government. If you do not already subscribe, you can sign up here to get Capitol Letter in your email box each weekday for free.
By Akbar Mammadov

Azerbaijani Defence Ministry has signed a number of orders and commands to protect the health of the Azerbaijani Army amid coronavirus out break (COVID-19) and strictly monitors their implementation, head of the ministrys Main Medical Department, Major General Natig Aliyev told local media on 27 March.

The level of medical care in the Azerbaijan Army is at the highest level and nothing threatens the health of military personnel, Aliyev said.

As part of these activities, the Main Medical Department prepared and sent instructions to the military units and hospitals on the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of coronavirus infection. Mobile field hospitals equipped with state-of-the-art medical equipment are on alert, as are military medical teams. I note that the work of our department is carried out in an intensive mode and is fully coordinated with the activities of the Ministry of Health and the Association for the Management of Medical Territorial Units, Aliyev said.

Measures to protect against infectious diseases in the Azerbaijan Army are carried out in line with the recommendations of the World Health Organization. These measures include three areas: identification and assessment of possible risks, risk management and minimization of their consequences.

Information about each soldier who came to the hospital or first-aid post is immediately brought to the attention of the management, and parallel measures are taken for diagnosis and treatment.

Currently, all military units and institutions of the Ministry of Defense have been prepared for the activities under the serious anti-epidemic work, and they have been equipped with necessary equipment, medical staff has been provided with instructions. Personnel have been provided with individual protective tools (protective clothing, medical tasks, gloves and etc.). Hospitals and polyclinics have been equipped with doctors specialized in infection diseases.

Military units are equipped with a sufficient number of drugs and disinfectants, and a reserve has been created. The medical staff measures the temperature of each soldier three times a day, in order to strengthen their immune syste; vitamins and phytoncides are used, disinfection is carried out daily at checkpoints, in barracks, canteens and other crowded places. As part of the anti-epidemic measures, all military personnel and civilians arriving at checkpoints undergo a medical examination and thermometry. In the barracks, the ventilation mode is constantly observed, optimal indicators of temperature and humidity are provided. In addition, all trips and business trips are canceled.

---

Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
WASHINGTON - Noel Sinkiat, 64, planned to retire in December after 41 years working as a nurse at Howard University Hospital. He would finally go on a long motorcycle trip with his friends.

On March 27 he died of covid-19, according to his family. Sinkiat was the first member of National Nurses United, which represents about 150,000 health-care workers nationwide, to succumb to the virus, the union said.

"It was so fast," his wife, Lourdes Gerardo, said.

As he was hospitalized at MedStar Montgomery Medical Center near their house in Olney, Sinkiat's condition deteriorated rapidly. Gerardo was able to see him only briefly, from behind a protective suit. Since her husband's death Gerardo has tested positive, so she could not pick up his body from the hospital or gather with anyone to mourn his death.

The couple had returned in late February from a trip to the Philippines for Gerardo's high school reunion. She is grateful that her husband was able to see his sister and nieces and nephews there before his death. He went back to work at Howard in the surgical intensive care unit.

Sinkiat worked his regular 12-hour shift on March 12, Gerardo said. But he had begun experiencing flu-like symptoms, so after work he went to an urgent care facility and was tested for the flu and for the coronavirus, she said. He did not return to work.

"Then he felt better; he has seasonal allergies, so at first we thought it was just the allergies," she said. "But he started to feel worse again." He couldn't eat or drink. On the evening of March 27, she took him to the hospital. Within an hour, she said, the doctors had to intubate him; then his heart failed, and they could not resuscitate him.

The test confirming his diagnosis did not come back until after his death.

"I got better," she said. "But he didn't."

Howard University Hospital said it could not confirm Sinkiat died of covid-19. The hospital did not respond to questions about what, if any, steps were taken to test or quarantine staff and patients who had contact with Sinkiat.

But in a statement, the hospital said it has "increased efforts to ensure the safety of all of our health care workers," including testing staff and patients who have been exposed, in line with Department of Health guidance.

That guidance recommends against testing asymptomatic health-care workers who had contact with a known covid-19 patient.

"Like health-care organizations around the country, we are working diligently to expand our testing capabilities with the resources made available to us," the hospital said.

Edward Smith, executive director of the National Nurses United-affliated D.C. Nurses Association, said that members who worked with Sinkiat have been quarantined but not tested, a "blatantly irresponsible and a dangerous practice." Across the city, he said, some nurses are being quarantined after exposure, but others are just told to wear masks.

Five employees and one patient have also tested positive for the coronavirus at St. Elizabeths Hospital, a public psychiatric facility.

"It really shows the need that nurses, all health-care workers, have to be tested if they have been exposed, whether they have symptoms or not," Smith said. "The District government is not allowing for that. We need to make that change so we can save more lives."

Gerardo feels some relief knowing that their 4-month-old grandson, whom she and Sinkiat had been helping care for, has shown no sign of illness. Neither has his immunocompromised son, one of two children he leaves behind.

But she can't believe her husband - healthy, "only 64" - is gone, she said. "I keep thinking any day, he is going to walk through the door."

One of his sons retrieved Sinkiat's body for a quick and solitary cremation.

At Howard, Gerardo said, she thinks staff had adequate protective gear. But she said it was her husband often making sure that door handles, telephones and other shared equipment were consistently sanitized. As one of the oldest nurses there, she said, he was often in charge. She has heard from doctors, housekeepers and security staff since his death about how he helped them.

"A lot of people there at Howard really loved him," she said. "He was a very good nurse."
The Samsung Galaxy S20+ 5G has been spotted on Geekbench for the first time ever. Based on its single and multi-core test results, it appears to be a Snapdragon 865-powered variant of the phone. The device specifications showcased in the listing are bound to change, as the device in question is very likely a pre-production model of Samsung's upcoming flagship.

Working For Notebookcheck Are you a techie who knows how to write? Then join our Team! English native speakers welcome! News Writer (AUS/NZL based) - Details here

We know very little about the Galaxy Note 20 series at this point. Some leaks have given us a rough idea about what Samsung has in store for us. Based on the differences between the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note series that we've seen so far, there shouldn't be too much of a change when it comes to the underlying hardware. There is, however, speculation that Samsung will use a waterfall display on the Galaxy Note 20 series. Samsung's flagship phablet has just made its first appearance on Geekbench.The Galaxy S20+ nets an impressive score of 985 on the Single-Core test and 3220 on the Multi-Core test.

The Galaxy Note 20+'s purported Geekbench listing also sheds some light on the devices' essentials. It appears to be running Android 10 on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 SoC with just 8GB RAM. It is very likely an early prototype of the Galaxy Note 20+, as 5G variants of all Galaxy S20 phones came with at least 12GB RAM, and we see no reason why Samsung will change that with its newer devices. Furthermore, pre-production models of phones often run unoptimized software and hardware, which in turn affects the device's performance.

We should take this Galaxy Note 20+ Geekbench listing with a grain of salt. It is quite easy to fake a listing these days, as it only takes a rooted phone and some rudimentary knowledge of how to modify the 'build.prop' file to pull it off. Assuming that Samsung's production schedule isn't thrown off by the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic, we can expect to see the Galaxy Note 20 series make its debut sometime in mid to late August.
In other parts of the country, however, good bottles are available that cannot be found where I am. Some of the wines that I am recommending will have terrific analogues outside New York. Good wine merchants will suggest excellent alternatives. But not everything can be found all over, and for that I apologize.

Whats the alternative? Most wines that can be found virtually everywhere are mass-market, big-brand bottles that I would not recommend. But thats not to say you should not drink them. If you know the wines and like them, then you are all set.

The bottles that I am recommending here are mostly, though not entirely, small-production, quirky discoveries. Every one piqued my interest one way or another. All are delicious and great values.

Some might seem strange, made with unfamiliar grapes grown in unknown places. Why? If you are looking for great values under $15, you will not find wines from exalted places that are in high demand. No Napa cabernet sauvignon, no Willamette Valley pinot noir, no Burgundy, no Pomerol, no Brunello di Montalcino. At least, not good ones.

Nor will you find wines that you can put away for years of aging, or that would serve as centerpieces for memorable occasions. These are not the complex epitomes that show the extent of a wines potential. Many serve as introductions to a particular style. If you like them, you might consider someday exploring more deeply, at higher cost.

But you will find all of these, listed in no particular order, to be highly enjoyable wines that will make meals and occasions better, that might bring a smile to somebody who needs one.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic) has issued a statement on the fourth anniversary of the April aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan. The statement reads as follows:

Four years ago, on April 2, 2016, in flagrant violation of the ceasefire agreement, the Azerbaijani armed forces attacked the Republic of Artsakh. They targeted not only the front-line positions of the Defense Army of Artsakh, but also the civilians. The intensity and scale of the hostilities, the number of forces and military equipment deployed by Azerbaijan, as well as the actions of the Azerbaijani side taken prior to the attack to deliberately escalate the tensions and disrupt the peace process indicate that the April 2 aggression was a carefully planned and prepared military operation.

Azerbaijans aggression was accompanied by gross violations of international humanitarian law and the rules of warfare. These crimes were documented in detail by the Office of the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Artsakh and presented to the international community in two special reports.

The aggression in April 2016 was another attempt by Azerbaijan to resolve the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict by force. Only thanks to the decisive actions of the Artsakh Defense Army, as well as the support by all Armenians, it was possible to disrupt the military plans of Baku and to force the Azerbaijani side to comply with the ceasefire regime.

Azerbaijans attack on Artsakh became a challenge not only for our Republic, but also for the peace process under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-chairmanship, for the peaceful settlement of the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict. It is noteworthy that shortly before the April aggression, on March 19, 2016, the President of Azerbaijan openly accused the Minsk Group Co-Chairmen of using their destructive activities to freeze the conflict, and therefore the faith of the Azerbaijani people in their activities is completely undermined.

Azerbaijan bears international legal responsibility for both unleashing the April aggression and for the criminal acts committed by its servicemen during the aggression against Artsakh. The fact that the Azerbaijani servicemen, who had committed war crimes, were personally awarded by the President of Azerbaijan is another confirmation that these actions were committed either on the instructions, or under the leadership or control of the Azerbaijani authorities. Given that such crimes have no statute of limitations, the Republic of Artsakh will continue exerting consistent efforts to bring those responsible to justice.

The April aggression only strengthened the determination of the people and authorities of the Republic of Artsakh to continue the chosen path of further consolidation and development of their statehood, which is the best guarantee for the safe existence and peaceful development of the people of Artsakh.

Today, we pay tribute to all those that deceased, repelling the Azerbaijani aggression in April 2016, or became innocent victims of the military adventure of Baku. We also express our gratitude to all and everyone who supported the people of Artsakh during these tragic days.
T he Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have held telephone conversations with staff at two hospitals to thank them for their tireless work responding to the Covid-19 outbreak.

During calls to Queens Hospital Burton in Staffordshire and the University Hospital Monklands in North Lanarkshire on Wednesday, William and Kate heard about the impact of the spread of the virus on the personal and professional lives of staff.

The NHS workers, including doctors and nurses, told the royal couple about the invaluable support they have received from their local communities as well as how they are supporting each other as they work through this crisis.

During the call with staff at Queens Hospital Burton, William said: Wed just like to say from the two of us how proud we are of all of you and how amazingly you are all doing under extreme circumstances.

"I know all of you see this as your job and that you get on with it, but this is a different level and you are doing an incredible job.

"The whole country is proud of you so thank you for everything youre doing and all the hours you are putting in.

The calls follow on from the royal couples recent visit to the London Ambulance Service 111 call centre in south London on March 19.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge / PA

Speaking to staff from University Hospital Monklands on Wednesday about how they are coping with the outbreak, the Duchess said: Youre stretched in all sorts of ways looking after the patients in your care under such extreme circumstances. But you also need to be able to make sure you support yourselves, and each other.

"It must be so hard but Im glad to hear that youre currently getting all the support you need.

Alice Bloxham, a sister on Queens Hospital Burtons Covid-19 cohort ward, said: Until recently our ward was an Acute Care of the Elderly ward, but now we are caring for patients with Covid-19.

"This has been a difficult time for all the patients we care for and for the staff working in a very different environment.

"It was a pleasure to talk to The Duke and Duchess and to be able to explain some of the challenges we face for our patients. Everyone at the hospital appreciates the support they gave us on the call.

Donna Marie McGroarty, Infectious Diseases Charge Nurse, from University Hospital Monklands said: We were so honoured to receive a call from Their Royal Highnesses.
The United Nations on Thursday said people who take the lives of others must be held accountable, responding to a Pakistani court overturning the death sentence of British-born top al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl.

"I have no specific comment except to say that obviously we stand against the use of the death penalty. We do, however, strongly believe that there needs to be accountability for people who take the lives of others, especially in this case the life of a journalist," Stephane Dujarric, Spokesman for UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, said at his daily press briefing.

Dujarric was responding to a question on whether the UN had any comment on the Pakistani court overturning Sheikh's murder conviction.

The Sindh High Court found 46-year-old Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and commuted his death sentence to seven years in prison. Sheikh has been in jail for the past 18 years.

A two-judge bench, headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha, acquitted three others -- Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil -- serving life sentences in the case.

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story on the alleged links between the country's powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda.

Sheikh, who was the mastermind behind abduction and killing of Pearl, was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

The incident came three years after Sheikh, along with Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, was released by India in 1999 and given safe passage to Afghanistan in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814.

He was serving prison term in India for kidnappings of western tourists in the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The director of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, where 188 people who attended the Nizamuddin Markaz are quarantined, on Thursday said that the hospital might need police protection as the patients are not co-operating with the staff.

"We may need police protection in the coming days as many patients are not cooperating with the staff. Although medical professionals are habitual to such misbehaviour by patients to some extent," LNJP hospital director, Dr JC Passey said.

He also said that the situation is alarming as many of the suspected patients are testing positive for coronavirus.

"We have 216 suspected COVID-19 patients out of which 188 belong to one group (Tablighi Jamaat event). We had received reports of 24 patients from the group, out of which 23 have tested positive. This is an alarming situation," Dr Passey told ANI.

He said that at times it gets difficult to manage testing at a fast pace with limited man-power to keep up with the incoming suspected patients.

"While I must say, we have sufficient equipment and beds, etc in the hospital, but the sudden inflow of hundreds of patients in the last two days definitely has caused some panic amongst the workers," he added.

Several people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Nizamuddin area of the capital last month have tested positive for coronavirus.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1,965 on Thursday after 131 people tested positive, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. So far, at least 50 people have lost their lives.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The lockdown decided on March 20 by the Moroccan government to prevent the spread of the coronvirus pandemic has led to a sharp fall in Moroccos motorway traffic.

Travel by car on the countrys highways has dropped by 78 pc in one week (March 25-30) and plummeted by 90 pc during the weekend compared with the traffic recorded during the same period last year.

According to the Moroccan motorway company, traffic on the Casablanca-Rabat motorway, which carries daily an average of 60,000 vehicles of all types, has plunged by 85 pc since the start of the public health emergency to last till April 20.

Trucks traffic also decreased by 43 pc during the same week and dropped by 64 pc during the weekend of March 28-29 as Moroccan authorities have banned travel between cities. Only critical businesses such as shops and supermarkets selling foodstuff, pharmacies and banks and other essential agencies are allowed to operate.

In Morocco, Covid-19 has so far killed 40 people and infected 676, while 29 others recovered.

Globally, the virus infected 959,690 by Thursday April 2 noon while the death toll reached 49,153.
A device to capture carbon dioxide from the air and convert it to useful organic products. On left is the chamber containing the nanowire/bacteria hybrid that reduces carbon dioxide to form acetate. On the right is the chamber where oxygen is produced. CREDIT UC Berkeley photo by Peidong Yang

If humans ever hope to colonize Mars, the settlers will need to manufacture on-planet a huge range of organic compounds, from fuels to drugs, that are too expensive to ship from Earth.

University of California, Berkeley, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) chemists have a plan for that.

For the past eight years, the researchers have been working on a hybrid system combining bacteria and nanowires that can capture the energy of sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into building blocks for organic molecules. Nanowires are thin silicon wires about one-hundredth the width of a human hair, used as electronic components, and also as sensors and solar cells.

"On Mars, about 96% of the atmosphere is CO2. Basically, all you need is these silicon semiconductor nanowires to take in the solar energy and pass it on to these bugs to do the chemistry for you," said project leader Peidong Yang, professor of chemistry and the S. K. and Angela Chan Distinguished Chair in Energy at UC Berkeley. "For a deep space mission, you care about the payload weight, and biological systems have the advantage that they self-reproduce: You don't need to send a lot. That's why our biohybrid version is highly attractive."

The only other requirement, besides sunlight, is water, which on Mars is relatively abundant in the polar ice caps and likely lies frozen underground over most of the planet, said Yang, who is a senior faculty scientist at Berkeley Lab and director of the Kavli Energy Nanoscience Institute.

The biohybrid can also pull carbon dioxide from the air on Earth to make organic compounds and simultaneously address climate change, which is caused by an excess of human-produced CO2 in the atmosphere.

In a new paper to be published March 31 in the journal Joule, the researchers report a milestone in packing these bacteria (Sporomusa ovata) into a "forest of nanowires" to achieve a record efficiency: 3.6% of the incoming solar energy is converted and stored in carbon bonds, in the form of a two-carbon molecule called acetate: essentially acetic acid, or vinegar.

Acetate molecules can serve as building blocks for a range of organic molecules, from fuels and plastics to drugs. Many other organic products could be made from acetate inside genetically engineered organisms, such as bacteria or yeast.

The system works like photosynthesis, which plants naturally employ to convert carbon dioxide and water to carbon compounds, mostly sugar and carbohydrates. Plants, however, have a fairly low efficiency, typically converting less than one-half percent of solar energy to carbon compounds. Yang's system is comparable to the plant that best converts CO2 to sugar: sugar cane, which is 4-5% efficient.

Yang is also working on systems to efficiently produce sugars and carbohydrates from sunlight and CO2, potentially providing food for Mars colonists.

Watch the pH

When Yang and his colleagues first demonstrated their nanowire-bacteria hybrid reactor five years ago, the solar conversion efficiency was only about 0.4% -- comparable to plants, but still low compared to typical efficiencies of 20% or more for silicon solar panels that convert light to electricity. Yang was one of the first to turn nanowires into solar panels, some 15 years ago.

The researchers initially tried to increase the efficiency by packing more bacteria onto the nanowires, which transfer electrons directly to the bacteria for the chemical reaction. But the bacteria separated from the nanowires, breaking the circuit.

The researchers eventually discovered that the bugs, as they produced acetate, decreased the acidity of the surrounding water -- that is, increased a measurement called pH -- and made them detach from the nanowires. He and his students eventually found a way to keep the water slightly more acidic to counteract the effect of rising pH as a result of continuous acetate production. This allowed them to pack many more bacteria into the nanowire forest, upping the efficiency nearly by a factor of 10. They were able to operate the reactor, a forest of parallel nanowires, for a week without the bacteria peeling off.

In this particular experiment, the nanowires were used only as conductive wires, not as solar absorbers. An external solar panel provided the energy.

In a real-world system, however, the nanowires would absorb light, generate electrons and transport them to the bacteria glommed onto the nanowires. The bacteria take in the electrons and, similar to the way plants make sugars, convert two carbon dioxide molecules and water into acetate and oxygen.

"These silicon nanowires are essentially like an antenna: They capture the solar photon just like a solar panel," Yang said. "Within these silicon nanowires, they will generate electrons and feed them to these bacteria. Then the bacteria absorb CO2, do the chemistry and spit out acetate."

The oxygen is a side benefit and, on Mars, could replenish colonists' artificial atmosphere, which would mimic Earth's 21% oxygen environment.

Yang has tweaked the system in other ways -- for example, to embed quantum dots in the bacteria's own membrane that act as solar panels, absorbing sunlight and obviating the need for silicon nanowires. These cyborg bacteria also make acetic acid.

His lab continues to search for ways to up the efficiency of the biohybrid, and is also exploring techniques for genetically engineering the bacteria to make them more versatile and capable of producing a variety of organic compounds.

###

The research is supported by a grant from NASA to the Center for the Utilization of Biological Engineering in Space (CUBES), a multi-university effort to develop techniques for biomanufacturing in space.

UC Berkeley co-authors of the paper are current or former graduate students Yude Su, Stefano Cestellos-Blanco and Ji Min Kim, who contributed equally to the work; and graduate students Yue-xiao Shen, Qiao Kong, Dylan Lu, Chong Liu, Hao Zhang and Yuhong Cao.



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Virgin Australia chief executive Paul Scurrah is clinging on to hope his ailing airline will get a federal bailout despite a majority of cabinet ministers opposing a handout.

The boss of the nation's number-two airline on Thursday disputed reports that the federal government was set to reject Virgin's request for a $1.4 billion loan and fast-track another carrier's entry into Australia. "That certainly hasnt been the message weve been getting from the government," he said. "Were continuing to work on that package.

Paul Scurrah, CEO of Virgin Australiia. Credit:Peter Braig

But government sources told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age that federal cabinet is divided on whether to bail-out the beleaguered airline. A majority of voices remain opposed to a rescue package, despite the governments preference that at least two carriers operate in the Australian market.

Mr Scurrah said the loan would ensure Australia has two full-service airlines to help the Australian economy recover after the global pandemic passes. This would be especially important for the tourism sector, he said. "It ensures we can fire back up quickly when the economy recovers," he said.
Planes of the German carrier Lufthansa are parked on a closed runway at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany. (Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters)

German flag carrier Lufthansa (LHA.DE) has put around two-thirds of its global workforce, some 87,000 staff, on reduced hours as the coronavirus pandemic takes its toll on the aviation sector.

The Lufthansa Group, which includes Swiss Air, Austrian, and EuroWings, confirmed the move, first reported by Business Insider. It had around 138,000 staff as of 2019.

However, like its competitors, Lufthansa has slashed flight schedules to almost nothing in the past two weeks, as country-by-country travel bans took hold and people were urged, or ordered, to return to their homes and stay inside.

EasyJet (EZJ.L) has grounded its entire fleet, and sent cabin crew home for a two-month leave of absence. Ryanair (RYA.L) will ground 90% of flights, and British Airways (IAG.L) said this week it will ground all flights from Gatwick airport, cutting its global flight plan by 75% in the next two months.

Read more: British Airways expected to furlough 36,000 staff

Airports across Germany are empty, seeing just a handful of flights per day. Lufthansa has been leading the German governments 50m (44m, $55m) mission to bring home thousands of Germans, mainly tourists, stranded abroad.

This week, German foreign minister Heiko Maas said that around 187,000 out of 200,000 had already been flown home. The majority of those still stuck abroad are in New Zealand, and may now be brought back to Germany after the New Zealand government today lifted its flight ban.

Lufthansas chief executive, Carsten Spohr, warned during the companys earnings call on 19 March that the pandemic has plunged the global economy into an unprecedented state of emergency.

The longer this crisis lasts, the more likely it is that the future of aviation cannot be guaranteed without state aid, Spohr said.

The aviation industry association IATA has said that on average, airlines can survive this crisis for two months.

The German government this month approved a 750bn package of financial support measures, including 400bn in loans to companies through the kFW state bank.

Read more: Germany bids goodbye to black zero with 750bn coronavirus package

Spohr also told the Bild newspaper in an interview that his airline stood poised to fly in supplies to Germany if necessary to make sure supply chains did not entirely collapse.
"I'm going to do what's right not only for us but for humanity," Trump said Tuesday night.

Tom Brenner/Reuters

United States President Donald Trump has expressed support of Holland America's stranded cruise ships.

"I'm going to do what's right not only for us but for humanity," Trump said during a White House press briefing on Tuesday night. "These are two big ships and they have a lot of very sick people."

He said he would speak to Florida Governor Ronald DeSantis, who has voiced concerns over the cruises docking in southern Florida.

The US Coast Guard will not yet permit the MS Zaandam, a cruise with at least two confirmed cases of COVID-19 onboard, and the MS Rotterdam, the ship sent to rescue its healthy passengers, to enter US waters.

Florida officials remain concerned that allowing Zaandam and Rotterdam passengers to disembark in Fort Lauderdale seaport Port Everglades could worsen the spread of coronavirus in the area.

Four passengers have died on the Zaandam after an outbreak of respiratory illness sickened at least 189 people.

Are you a cruise-ship passenger or employee with a story to share? Email acain@businessinsider.com.

United States President Donald Trump has expressed his support for two Holland America cruise ships stuck at sea.

"I'm going to do what's right not only for us but for humanity," the president said during Tuesday night's White House press briefing. "These are two big ships and they have a lot of very sick people."

White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment. The fate of both the MS Zaandam and the MS Rotterdam  and their combined pool of nearly 2,500 passengers and crew members  remains uncertain, as officials in southern Florida weigh the risks of disembarking potentially sick passengers in a region already rife with coronavirus.

In a March 31 Broward County Commission meeting, US Coast Guard Sector Miami Commander Captain Jo-Ann Burdian said that the Zaandam and the Rotterdam would not be permitted to enter US waters until Holland America's parent company Carnival Corp. submitted a complete plan regarding the medical situation on each ship.

Story continues

"In the opinion of the seventh Coast Guard district, the conditions onboard present especially hazardous conditions," she said.

The plight of the ships have captured international attention of the course of their long journey around South and Central America, and through the Panama Canal. The Zaandam's cruise was scheduled to last 14 days, embarking from Buenos Aires on March 7. For some passengers, the cruise would end after 14 days in San Antonio, Chile. For others, it was due to reach April 7 in Fort Lauderdale.

Those plans were diverted because of the coronavirus, and the cruise ship was closed out of ports across South and Central America. Four passengers died on board and at least two people have tested positive for COVID-19.

And now, the White House is weighing in. During the press briefing, Trump also said he would be speaking with Florida's Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, a political ally has largely spoken out against the ships docking in southern Florida. In a video conference today, DeSantis addressed the cruise ships "bearing onto southern Florida."

He said that he and Trump had spoken about the situation with the Holland America ships. DeSantis said that he believes Trump "would like to see a solution." He also said that the White House "has seen a lot of the cruise ships take up a lot of the resources."

"I obviously am not in control of the port," DeSantis said. "That's run by the counties in southern Florida, in this case Broward County. I know they're in consultation with the cruise ships. Clearly we're going to be willing to accept any Floridians onboard."

DeSantis added that his "understanding is that most of the passengers are foreign nationals." The Florida governor has repeatedly characterized the ship passengers as "foreigners" and "foreign nationals." There are 304 United States citizens onboard the ship. Currently, there are 797 passengers and 645 crew on the Rotterdam, and 602 crew members and 446 guests on the Zaandam.

"Of course, my concern is simply that we have worked so hard to make sure we have adequate hospital space in the event of a COVID-19 surge that we wouldn't want those valuable beds to be taken because of the cruise ship," DeSantis said. "We just want to get to a point where the resources can be used for the folks here particularly in southern Florida where we have most of our problems with COVID-19 and not divert those elsewhere."

Are you a cruise ship passenger or employee? Email acain@businessinsider.com.

Read the original article on Business Insider
All the research we do about the shows indicates people like to just turn it on and spend time with us," Bishop said. "We actually like each other. I've done the shows since day one. I've known Bridget since 1998, Julia since 1999, and Adam (kitchen equipment expert Adam Ried) since, I think, 1995."
Amid the nationwide lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic, the Defence Ministry announced on Thursday that it is mobilising ex-servicemen (ESM) to assist the state and district administrations wherever required.

"Rajya Sainik Boards, Zila Sainik Boards are playing a dynamic role in identifying and mobilising maximum ESM volunteers to assist the state and district administration in performing public outreach activities such as contact tracing, community surveillance, management of quarantine facilities or any such tasks assigned to them," the ministry said in a press release.

Till now, 1,965 people have been infected with the novel coronavirus and 50 people have died due to it in India, according to the Union health ministry.

In Punjab, an organisation called 'Guardians of Governance' comprising 4,200 ESM is assisting in data collection from all villages, the ministry noted.

"The Chhattisgarh government has employed some ESM to assist the police. Similarly, in Andhra Pradesh, all the district Collectors have asked for ESM volunteers," the ministry said.

The defence ministry said that in Uttar Pradesh, all 'Zila Sainik Kalyan Adhikaris' are in touch with district control rooms and retired Army Medical Corps personnel have been identified and kept ready.

"In addition, Sainik rest houses are being readied in Uttarakhand to act as isolation/quarantine centres if need arises. In Goa, a control room has been established and ESM have been asked to remain on standby for any assistance to the local administration," the ministry noted.

India imposed a 21-day lockdown on March 25 to combat the spread of the virus that has killed more than 45,000 people worldwide till now.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Latest updates: COVID-19 kills 42,000 globally in worst crisis since WWII

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 8:26 AM

The coronavirus pandemic has now claimed the lives of 42,151 people and infected 858,875 others worldwide, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

The virus has also sparked economic and social shockwaves unseen since World War II, according to the United Nations (UN).

This has prompted the World Bank to warn of "significant economic pain" across the globe.

The following is the latest on how the pandemic has been affecting the world in the past 24 hours.

'The worst global crisis since WW II'

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the coronavirus outbreak on Tuesday as the worst global crisis since World War II, warning that it could trigger conflicts around the world.

He said that the large magnitude of the crisis was due to "a disease that represents a threat to everybody in the world and... an economic impact that will bring a recession that probably has no parallel in the recent past."

"A stronger and more effective response... is only possible in solidarity if everybody comes together and if we forget political games and understand that it is humankind that is at stake," Guterres said.

Protect global food supply chains: WTO, UN agencies

The heads of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and UN food and health agencies said on Tuesday that food supply chains must be protected from any trade-related measures.

"Uncertainty about food availability can spark a wave of export restrictions, creating a shortage on the global market," WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo and the heads of World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization Qu Dongyu said in a joint statement.

"Such reactions can alter the balance between food supply and demand, resulting in price spikes and increased price volatility," they warned.

Last week, Azevedo said that according to WTO projections, the economic downturn and job losses caused by the pandemic would be worse than the 2008 recession.

Japan on the brink of emergency

On Wednesday, the Japanese government said it would do "whatever is needed" to minimize the virus economic impact in the country.

Infections continue to increase in the country, according to the government.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters on Wednesday that controlling the virus was a top priority for Tokyo.

Japan has reported 2,229 confirmed cases of infection along with 66 deaths.

China reports 36 new cases

China, the first epicenter of the disease, reported a fall in its new confirmed cases on Wednesday.

The National Health Commission reported 36 new cases and seven deaths on Tuesday. The number of cases was down from 48 a day earlier.

All but one of the cases were imported, bringing the total number of cases coming from overseas to 806, according to the commission.

The country's total number of infections stands at 82,290, along with 3,309 deaths to date.

Philippines records largest number of deaths in single day

In Southeast Asia, the Philippines recorded its largest daily increase in the deaths and infection on Tuesday, with 88 fatalities and 2,084 infections.

Healthcare officials said that hospitals were struggling with a shortage of protective gear, manpower, and testing capacity.

The Philippines, with a population of 107 million, has ordered home quarantine for a large part of the country.

Indonesia declares health emergency

Indonesia has confirmed 149 new infections on Wednesday, taking the total in the Southeast Asian country to 1,677, a Health Ministry official said.

Achmad Yurianto also reported 21 new deaths from the virus, taking the total to 157, while 103 have recovered.

The government declared a national public health emergency on Tuesday and announced an additional 24.7 billion dollars in spending over the crisis.

Italy not close to end of crisis

Italy, with 105,792 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 12,428 deaths, and after almost six weeks of harsh lockdown restrictions across the nation, has finally reported a deceleration in new cases.

Officials reported 4,053 cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday  some 1,200 less than the daily rate recorded a week ago.

Deaths have remained largely steady at over 800 a day.

Health officials, however, said on Tuesday that despite the declines this week, the crisis was not near an end.

The government announced on Monday that curbs on movement and business activities would stay in place until at least the Easter holidays in mid-April.

Health officials, however, said it would still be too soon to lift the restrictions after Easter.

"It seems to me highly unrealistic to think this nightmare will end by then," said Guido Marinoni, head of the doctors' association in Bergamo, the northern city at the epicenter of Italy's epidemic.

"If we let work resume (too soon), it will reignite the outbreak and the fire will return," he added.

Spain reports another 812 deaths

Spain on Tuesday announced another 812 deaths, bringing the total fatalities to 8,464.

The total number of the people infected with COVID-19 in Spain reached 95,923, already past the number of cases in China, where the disease emerged in December.

Switzerland's epidemic wave could last into summer

The Swiss government says the peak of the outbreak in Switzerland is expected to stretch into late spring or summer.

"We're counting on an epidemic wave that will have not only a swelling aspect, but also one that wanes, and will not last for years, but rather has a visible time horizon," said Daniel Koch, head of the government's communicable diseases division. "We're expecting that this wave will be over some time in spring (or) summer."

COVID-19 has killed 433 people and infected 16,605 others in Switzerland.

Health Minister Alain Berset also warned that vulnerable groups still needed to be protected even once the number of infections began to subside. He said that extraordinary measures to contain the virus would remain in force for some time.

Large gatherings have been banned and some businesses as well as schools have been closed across the country.

Netherlands' death toll passes 1,000

The number of deaths in the Netherlands has risen by 175 to 1,039, health authorities said on Tuesday.

The number of people diagnosed with COVID-19 also increased by 845 to 12,667 on Tuesday, according to John Hopkins University.

Germany's death toll at 775, Merkel's 3rd test negative

Germany has 71,808 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 775 deaths, the lowest rate in the world.

Chancellor Angela Merkel, who went into self-quarantine last week, will be working from home for the coming weeks. Her third coronavirus test came back negative on Tuesday.

12-year-old dies of COVID-19 in Belgium

In Belgium, a 12-year-old girl died of COVID-19 on Tuesday, a spokesman for the Health Ministry said on Tuesday.

According to the country's local media, she was Europe's youngest victim of the viral infection.

"It is a rare event but one that devastates us," virologist Emmanuel Andre told Belgium's official daily news conference.

Deaths in the age range of 10-19 have been also recorded by European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), an EU agency, in Spain.

Belgium's total death toll stands at 705, and 12,775 people remain infected.

Russia sending medical help to US

President Vladimir Putin of Russia says Moscow is sending medical equipment to the US to help fight the outbreak there.

Citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, the Interfax news agency reported Tuesday that Putin had offered help in a phone conversation with President Donald Trump on Monday.

"Trump gratefully accepted this humanitarian aid," Peskov was quoted as saying.

He said a Russian plane with medical and protective equipment may leave for the United States on Tuesday.

Russia has so far reported 2,337 cases of the viral infection and 17 deaths.

On Monday, Putin urged residents of Moscow to "very seriously" respect a lockdown that has closed all non-essential shops, including restaurants.

Israel's Netanyahu in self-quarantine

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu went into self-isolation after a parliamentary aide tested positive for COVID-19.

The 70-year-old prime minister would remain in isolation, according to his spokesman, despite having tested negative for the virus.

As of Tuesday, Israel has reported 5,358 cases of the infection, and 20 deaths.

Lebanon allows expats to return home

The Lebanese government agreed a procedure on Tuesday to allow citizens abroad to return despite a coronavirus lockdown after its expats policy drew criticism from political leaders.

The decision was made after Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri threatened to withdraw support for the cabinet if it did not act to bring home the Lebanese nationals stranded abroad during the country's lockdown.

The capital, Beirut, had closed its airport to flights for two weeks as part of a lockdown.

This virus has so far infected 470 people and killed 12 people in Lebanon.

Canada's death toll jumps by 35%, Quebec faces shortages

Canada's death toll from the respiratory illness jumped by 35 percent to 89 in less than a day, officials said on Tuesday.

The country's confirmed cases of the infection reached 8,591, along with 89 deaths, as of Tuesday.

"The situation is going to get worse before it gets better. That is the unfortunate truth," Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland told a daily briefing.

Meanwhile, Quebec, the second-most populous region of the 10 provinces, said it was running low on key medical equipment.

Quebec's premier Francois Legault said "my biggest concern right now is for the medical supplies. Currently, for some equipment, we have only (enough) for three to seven days."

In response, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he would allocate two billion dollars to support testing and to purchase ventilators and protective personal equipment. New shipments should arrive "in the next few days," he said on Tuesday.

Trudeau said his government has signed agreements with three companies in the country to produce the supplies needed.

Mexico's tallies on the rise

In North America, Mexico has declared a heath emergency and officials registered 1,215 cases of coronavirus on Tuesday, up from 1,094 the day before.

They said 29 people also died of the disease.

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Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian citizens have returned to the country over the past weeks.

Head of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine Serhii Deineko says it would be better to initially obligate citizens returning from abroad to undergo compulsory observation rather than impose a national quarantine.

Answering a clarifying question by an RBC-Ukraine correspondent on whether it was unnecessary to impose a nationwide quarantine, while forcibly placing all those who had arrived from abroad on observation, he said: "Of course, that would've been better."

Read alsoUkraine's Cabinet lists new quarantine measures

At the same time, Deineko reminded how many people actually returned to Ukraine amid quarantine-related border lockdowns worldwide.

"Let's objectively assess this: about 650,000 people have crossed into Ukraine since March 13. Tell me, where could we place so many people under observation," he added.

As UNIAN reported earlier, border guards said that up to 200,000 Ukrainians are expected to return home before Easter.
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Linkedin Apriza Pinandita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:11 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f2f566 1 World COVID-19,COVID-19-Indonesian-patients,Malaysia,COVID-19-death-toll,coronavirus,virus-corona,outbreak,pandemic,Sarawak,Kuching,Consulate-General Free

Malaysian health authorities have reported the death of an Indonesian national as a result of COVID-19 in Malaysia on Tuesday.

According to the Malaysian Health Ministry, the deceased patient was a 40-year-old man identified as Case 1,275 in the countrys record of COVID-19 patients. It was also the 41st death in Malaysia.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the ministry said the patient had been undergoing treatment at Sarawak General Hospital since March 20 prior to his death on Tuesday.

The Indonesian Consulate General in Kuching told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday that the patient was a professor at the University of Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS). Its not an imported case as he works here [in Kuching].

Unlike many other COVID-19-related deaths, which are cases of comorbidity, the consulate general claimed the man died only from the coronavirus disease.

His death marks the third among Indonesians abroad.

Read also: Japan "on the brink" as it struggles to hold back coronavirus

The Singaporean Health Ministry reported last month the countrys first deaths from COVID-19, including an Indonesian national identified as Case 212.

The patient, a 64-year-old Indonesian man, had been admitted in critical condition to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) intensive care unit on March 13, after arriving from Indonesia on the same day. He tested positive for COVID-19 the next day.

The second COVID-19 death of an Indonesian abroad was announced Monday by the Indonesian Foreign Ministry.

A female Indonesian citizen has died in the UK, ministry spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah said without going into detail on the case.

As of Wednesday, at least 138 Indonesian citizens in 20 foreign territories have tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Foreign Ministry.
As India battles the coronavirus outbreak, sporadic attacks on doctors, social workers and police personnel have come to the fore raising concerns over their safety and prompting warnings by authorities.

IMAGE: Police personnel during a search operation for devotees who had attended religious congregation at Tabligh-e-Jamaat's Markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin area, in Prayagraj, on Wednesday. Photograph: PTI Photo

In a related incident, police said on Thursday that an Army jawan allegedly shot dead a woman after her relative included his family's name in a list of people who had returned to their village in Mainpuri district in Uttar Pradesh following the outbreak of coronavirus.

Two women doctors were injured in Indore when a five-member team of health officials was pelted with stones in Taatpatti Bakhal area on Wednesday while they were trying to trace a person who had come into contact with a COVID-19 patient, police said.

A case has been registered and seven people were arrested, police said, as Indore collector Manish Singh warned that the district administration will not tolerate such incidents and misbehaviour.

Relatives of a 49-year-old coronavirus patient who died at a government hospital in Hyderabad assaulted the duty doctor and the staff alleging negligence, police said.

Telangana Director General of Police M Mahendar Reddy asserted that strong action will be taken against the culprits and necessary measures will be put in place to provide protection to all the doctors and paramedics treating COVID-19 patients.

In Bihar, Police and medical personnel were attacked by locals in Munger town when they visited a locality to collect samples from people suspected to have contracted coronavirus.

Stones were thrown at the quick response team (QRT), comprising policemen and an ambulance carrying medical personnel, when they visited the Hazratganj locality late on Wednesday, said the Station House Officer of Qasim Bazar police station Shailesh Kumar.

The stone-pelting left a police jeep badly damaged and the situation was brought under control by use of force, he added.

Female social workers in Bengaluru and a man in Mumbai were gheraoed and assaulted in separate incidents linked to the survey of people who attended the recent Nizamuddin Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi, the biggest COVID-19 hotspot in India, said police officials from the two cities.

According to reports from state capitals, there also have been cases of policemen being attacked while trying to enforce the 21-day lockdown which entered the ninth day on Thursday and while keeping a surveillance on people under home quarantine.

In Bengaluru, community health workers engaged in conducting coronavirus survey in certain minority dominated areas were allegedly manhandled on Thursday, prompting the Karnataka government to issue a stern warning to the offenders.

The workers under the aegis of Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) along with health officials were conducting a door-to-door survey in the minority dominated areas in view of the virus spreading through those who returned to Karnataka after attending the Tablighi event.

A visibly upset Asha worker, Krishnaveni in a video message which has gone viral, alleged that a group of health workers who had gone to Hegde Nagar in the city were 'gheraoed' by some residents, their mobile phones snatched and all of them abused.

"They snatched our bags and mobile phones. They did not let us make a phone call. I have been working for the past five years but never ever faced a situation like this," she said.

Condemning the incident, Health Minister B Sriramulu shared the video in his Twitter handle and said, 'The doctors, nurses and health workers who toil day and night are like Gods. Respect them. Will not sit idle if they are attacked. Beware!'

In Maharashtra, a man was assaulted by a group in Solapur district for allegedly informing a village official about those who attended the Tablighi gathering in Delhi.

The 56-year-old man had informed the 'gramsevak' of Pimpri village about seven locals who attended the Tablighi meet and also insisted that they be tested for coronavirus, police said.

In Uttar Pradesh, jawan Shailendra along with three others stormed into the house in Alipur village of one Vinay Yadav, who had included his name and that of his family in the list of people who had returned from Kolkata recently.

As the jawan started assaulting Vinay Yadav, his brother Dinesh and sister-in law Sandhya rushed to his rescue.

Shailendra opened fire killing the 36-year-old Sandhya on the spot, police said.

A first information report has been lodged at Kurra police station and Shailendra has been arrested, it added.

In an earlier incident in Bihar, four policemen were injured when a group of people owing allegiance to Tablighi Jamaat assembled in a village in Madhubhani district allegedly attacked them as the men in uniform admonished them for defying the ongoing lockdown, a senior official said.

Four persons were arrested and efforts are underway to nab the others, he added.

In Karnataka, the Mangaluru city police said a case has been registered against four persons for assaulting two policemen and a health worker at Nyatarpu village in Belthangady taluk.

Two police constables and a health worker, who visited the house of a person under home quarantine, were attacked when they questioned the man who was roaming around without any precautionary measures, it said.

In Uttar Pradesh, a sub-inspector and a constable were seriously injured when a police team trying to enforce the lockdown was attacked by a group of villagers in Muzaffarnagar district on Wednesday, an official said.

In Delhi, Tablighi Jamaat attendees quarantined at a railway facility in Tughlakabad allegedly 'misbehaved' with and 'even spit' at doctors and healthcare personnel attending to them.

"At the quarantine centre, they misbehaved with the staff and even raised objections over the food being served to them. They even spit at the doctors and those attending them and refused to stop roaming around the quarantine facility," according to Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar.

Cop 'manhandles' man in front of son, suspended

A constable in Wanaparthy district in Telangana was placed under suspension on Thursday a day after he allegedly manhandled a man during the ongoing coronavirus lockdown following an argument, police said.

A video of the incident that went viral on social media shows the constable in mufti (in plain clothes) 'manhandling' the man in front of his son, who is heard screaming 'uncle, stop' near a police vehicle.

A group of policemen are also seen 'forcibly' putting the man and his son in the vehicle, but police said they were later let off.

However, according to a senior police official, the incident was triggered after the man allegedly slapped the constable when he was stopped by the police personnel while he was moving around on his vehicle during the lockdown, resulting in heated argument between him and the police.

"When he was asked to move away from the place leaving behind the vehicle the man allegedly slapped the constable," the official said.

Taking a serious note of the incident, Telangana IT and Industries Minister K T Rama Rao said this attitude of police is unacceptable in any circumstances.

Rama Rao tweeted: '...@TelanganaDGP Garu, this attitude of police is unacceptable in ANY circumstances Request you to take the strictest action on incidents such as this All the exceptionally good work of thousands of policemen is undone by erratic behaviour of a few.'

Responding to the tweet, Wanaparthy District Superintendent of Police Apoorva Rao tweeted, 'Sir, We apologise to the public for such behaviour by an on-duty constable. This incident has been enquired into and strict disciplinary action has been initiated on the person

responsible. We will ensure that such incidents do not repeat.'

Police said the constable has been placed under suspension even as a case was also registered against the man under Indian Penal Code Sections 186 (Obstructing public servant in discharge of public functions) and 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant).
The post-coronavirus world will be different and much more digital than before, said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. "One thing is clear, we're seeing mass digitalization of human relations with the crisis, and that will have an inevitable impact," Guterres told Efe news in a telephonic interview. "The future will be much more digital than the past.

This is going to provide a major impetus for the development of artificial intelligence, and cyberspace activities," he added. On the flip side, he cautioned, was that there would be a much greater ...
Weather Alert

...The Flood Warning continues for the following rivers in Kentucky...Illinois...Missouri... Ohio River at Paducah...Olmsted Lock and Dam...and Cairo For the Ohio River...including Paducah, Olmsted Lock and Dam, and Cairo...Minor flooding is forecast. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Motorists should not attempt to drive around barricades or drive cars through flooded areas. Caution is urged when walking near riverbanks. Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Additional information is available at www.weather.gov. && ...FLOOD WARNING NOW IN EFFECT FROM THIS MORNING THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING... * WHAT...Minor flooding is forecast. * WHERE...Ohio River at Paducah. * WHEN...Until early tomorrow afternoon. * IMPACTS...At 39.0 feet, Minor flooding occurs affecting mainly bottomland and surrounding low lying areas. * ADDITIONAL DETAILS... - At 11:00 AM CST Monday the stage was 38.5 feet. - Forecast...The river is expected to rise to a crest of 39.0 feet tomorrow morning. - Flood stage is 39.0 feet. - http://www.weather.gov/safety/flood &&
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / First Mining Gold Corp. ("First Mining" or the "Company") (TSX:FF);(OTCQX:FFMGF);(FRANKFURT:FMG) is pleased to announce the appointment of two new Directors - Mr. Richard Lock and Ms. Aoife McGrath to its Board of Directors (the "Board") effective immediately. In addition, the Company announces the retirement of Dr. David Shaw and Mr. Michel Bouchard from its Board. Dr. Shaw has served as Director of the Company since its inception in March 2015, and Mr. Bouchard joined as a Director in April 2016 post First Mining's acquisition of Clifton Star Resources Inc.Keith Neumeyer, Chairman of First Mining, stated "On behalf of First Mining's Board of Directors, we are delighted to welcome Richard and Aoife to the Company. Richard brings corporate experience and technical expertise gained from developing some of the largest mining projects in the world. Aoife brings significant public mining company experience on both the technical and corporate development fronts from her many years working on a vast number of global gold assets. Both bring complementary skill sets to our Board as we advance our portfolio of development-stage gold assets in Canada. I would also like to thank David and Michel for their extensive contributions to the Board and the Company over the last several years. We wish them both great success in all their future endeavors." First Mining is also pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Spiros Cacos as Vice President, Investor Relations and the transition of Mal Karwowska to Vice President, Corporate Development. Dan Wilton, CEO of First Mining, stated "We are excited to welcome Spiros to the First Mining team and to have Mal focus on First Mining's corporate development activities. Spiros brings 20 years of experience and relationships in investor relations to the role, which will help us broaden our investor base and marketing reach. We continue to focus on value-enhancing opportunities for our broader portfolio of gold assets, including finding partners to fund and advance some of our assets as evidenced by our recent earn-in transaction with Auteco Minerals on our Pickle Crow Gold Project. This transition of responsibilities better aligns our resources with our corporate objectives." Board AdditionsRichard Lock is a veteran mining executive with more than 30 years of experience in project management, development and operations for major mining companies including Rio Tinto, Western Potash, DeBeers and Anglo American. Richard is currently serving as the Senior Vice President and Project Director for the NorthMet mining project in Minnesota being developed by PolyMet Mining Corp. His most recent prior roles include Construction Director for KAZ Minerals' Peschanka open-pit copper mine in Russia and executive and project director roles at Arizona Mining's Hermosa Zinc Project in the U.S. (acquired by South32 Limited in 2018 for $2.1 billion). He has been involved with numerous projects including Yara International's Dallol potash project in Ethiopia, Western Potash's Milestone potash project in Canada, and several of Rio Tinto's projects including the Resolution and Keystone copper assets in the U.S. and the Diavik diamond mine in Canada's Northwest Territories. Mr. Lock holds a Bachelor of Science in Mining Engineering from Cardiff University in the U.K.Aoife McGrath is a geologist with more than 20 years of experience in the international mining sector, predominantly in gold exploration. Throughout her career she has worked and led teams in Africa, North America, South America and Europe, with her experience spanning the full spectrum of company size and stages of exploration. She has been involved in a number of exploration discoveries including at the Geita gold mine in Tanzania, at the Chirano Project in Ghana and at the Mulatos Project in Mexico. She most recently served as the Head of Exploration and Geology for Beadell Resources Ltd, an ASX-listed gold producer acquired by Great Panther Mining Limited in 2019. Immediately before that, Aoife spent more than five years with Alamos Gold, serving as Vice President, Exploration and prior to that as Director of Exploration and Corporate Development. During her tenure she was a member of the corporate team that assessed global business opportunities, reviewing approximately 50 opportunities annually, both project and corporate. Additional previous roles include Executive Director of Exploration at Carbine Resources Ltd and Exploration Manager at the Chirano Mine for Red Back Mining Inc. She also served on the Board of Directors of the Peru-based, private exploration company Pucara Resource Corp. Ms. McGrath holds a Bachelor of Science in Geology from University College Dublin, a Master of Science in Mineral Exploration from the University of Leicester, and a Master of Science in Engineering Geology from Imperial College London.Investor Relations AdditionSpiros Cacos has 20 years of investor relations experience working with public mining companies, ranging from early-stage exploration and development to production. Over the last two years, Mr. Cacos served as Vice President, Investor Relations for Group Eleven Resources Corp., a mineral exploration company listed on the TSXV and OTC, focused on advanced stage zinc exploration in Ireland. His prior roles include serving as Director of Investor Relations for Great Panther Mining Limited (formerly Great Panther Silver Limited), a primary silver mining company listed on the TSX and the NYSE with two mining operations in Mexico, and serving as Corporate Development and Communications Director for International Enexco Limited, a North American exploration and development company. Mr. Cacos has an M.A. in International Relations and Diplomacy from the Schiller International University in Paris, France and a B.A. from Simon Fraser University in Canada.About First Mining Gold Corp.First Mining Gold Corp. is a Canadian-focused gold exploration and development company advancing a large resource base of 7.4 million ounces of gold in the Measured and Indicated categories and 3.8 million ounces of gold in the Inferred category. First Mining's primary focus is the development and permitting of its Springpole Gold Project and the advanced exploration of its Goldlund Gold Project, both located in northwestern Ontario. Springpole is one of the largest undeveloped gold assets in Canada, with permitting and a Pre-Feasibility Study underway. Goldlund is an advanced exploration stage asset where drilling in 2020 is planned to define both the extension of the existing resource area and to better define the regional scale potential.
The Tamil Nadu government on



Thursday warned of stringent action against those spreading rumours linking religion or caste to the coronavirus.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event to flag off mobile vegetable vans in all 100 wards of the city corporation, State Municipal Administration Minister S P Velumani said, "The virus does not attack on the basis of caste and religion.

Stringent action will be taken against those attempting to spread rumours linking religion to the disease."



On the whereabouts of 10 more people from Tamil Nadu who took part in the recent conference held by the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi, he said they are yet to receive the information.

Appealing to those who had returned from abroad and from the Nizamuddin conference in the national capital to approach the state government, he said it was taking steps on a war footing to contain the spread of the virus.

With an increase in positive cases in Coimbatore district, a meeting will be held with the officials to discuss the issue so that take preventive measures can be taken to check the spread, the minister said.

So far 34 positive cases have been reported in the district.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Here's something to look forward to next week: The biggest, brightest supermoon of 2020 will be appearing in the night sky Tuesday.

"Watch for the biggest full moon of the year to shine all night long as it beams in the east after sunset April 7, climbs highest up for the night around midnight, and sets in the west around sunrise April 8," EarthSky's Bruce McClure said.

The full moon occurs precisely at 10:35 p.m. EDT on April 7, according to EarthSky.

Of the three supermoons this year, April's supermoon will come closest to our planet  and thus appear the largest. April's supermoon is the second of three to take place in a row, following March's super worm moon and preceding May's super flower moon, due to take place on May 7, Newsweek said.

What's a supermoon?

A supermoon rises over the Parthenon on the ancient Acropolis Hill in Athens, Greece, on Feb. 19, 2019.

A supermoon occurs when the moon is especially close to Earth while its full. The moon's closeness to Earth, naturally, makes it look extra-close and extra-bright  up to 14% bigger and 30% brighter than a full moon at its farthest point from Earth.

The term supermoon was coined in 1979 by astrologer Richard Nolle. It has become an increasingly more popular and media-friendly term in the decades since then. According to NASA, it's used by the media today to describe what astronomers would call a perigean full moon: a full moon occurring near or at the time when the moon is at its closest point in its orbit around Earth.

Due to the optical effect known as the moon illusion, the full moon can seem huge when rising behind distant objects on the horizon. A supermoon appears especially impressive.

We have 13 full moons to look forward to in 2020. Here's when you can see them.

Hurricane season begins in June: Activity will be 'above average,' forecasters warn.

Why is it called a 'pink' supermoon?

The full moon this month is also nicknamed the pink moon. But don't look for a pinkish hue to the moon this month:

Story continues

According to the Old Farmer's Almanac, Aprils full moon often corresponded with the early springtime blooms of Phlox subulata, a pink wildflower native to eastern North America. The wildflower is commonly called creeping phlox or moss phlox  and also goes by the name moss pink."

For millennia, people across the world, including Native Americans, named the months after natures cues. The Old Farmers' Almanac said that full moon names in our part of the world date back to the Native Americans who lived in the northern and eastern USA.

Each full moon has its own name, from January's wolf moon to December's cold moon.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Full moon: Pink supermoon will be biggest, brightest of 2020
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One last time I went to the office premises, said JP Sharma who retired from Syndicate Bank after 38 years of service. A rather dispassionate tone didnt hide the apparent sadness in his heart. I knew there wont be a Syndicate Bank as we know it after a few days. Quite a strange feeling, no? Sharma, based in Delhi, said.

The retired banker joined Syndicate Bank at the age of 21 and worked for nearly four decades. Syndicate Bank has been a household name for generations. It is hard to believe that this bank wont have an identity anymore, Sharma said.

As six Indian public sector banks (PSBs), some of which have been in existence for over a century, ceased to exist on April 1 after their amalgamation with bigger PSBs, old-timers are looking back at the halcyon days of these institutions wistfully. This is probably for the first time in the history of Indian banking that half a dozen banks have met their end on the same day.

There are mixed emotions running in their minds. The organisations that have been part of their lives are no more. In those days, there were no ATM cards and digital banking. There were no computers too till late 80s. Every work was manual. But with customers we had a relation like that of family friends, said Sharma. Banking was a routine service only for those who really needed it. Most of the transactions used to happen in cash.

Now, there are uncertainties on future of staffs and loyal customers, even though the government has assured them that no employees will be handed over the pink slips. Each of these banks have a past. These banks have grown with people, said CH Venkatachalam, Secretary of All India Bank Employees Association.

Mega amalgamation is a move that was announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman last year. Besides Syndicate Bank, Allahabad Bank, Corporation Bank, United Bank of India, Oriental Bank of Commerce and Andhra Bank too were merged on April 1. According to this plan, Punjab National Bank (PNB) absorbed Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank, creating the second-largest bank after State Bank of India (SBI). Similarly, Syndicate Bank merged with Canara Bank, and Union Bank of India absorbed both Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank. Also, Indian Bank took over Allahabad Bank.

The Narendra Modi-government hopes that these mergers will bring size and scale to the Indian banking sector. But, there are questions on whether these goals will be achieved in reality. Right now, Indian banks are neck-deep in non-performing assets (NPAs). Total gross NPAs have grown close to Rs 9 lakh crore and analysts expect more pain to come on account of a slowed economy and COVID-19 economic fall-out.

Also, without deep governance reforms in these banks, merely merging these entities could be a futile exercise. Even as the doubts remain, the mergers are finally real. Customers have been moved to the anchor banks. Even after merger, the anchor banks will have logos of the merging banks displayed at the branches along with that of anchor bank.

Nonetheless, each of these PSU banks is steeped in a long, fascinating past. For example, Syndicate Bank was set up way back in 1925 at Udupi by locals in coastal Karnataka with a capital of Rs 8,000 to serve the local community with small credit needs. There used to be door-to-door collectors who knew each and every customer. Many of these customers have banked with Syndicate for a long time. That is the kind of relation we had with customers, said Sharma.

The oldest in the lot is Allahabad Bank which was set up in 1865 by foreigners. The idea was to serve local businesses. At that point, the concept of organised markets and businesses borrowing from banks were still in the initial phase.

Later, in 1969, the bank was nationalised. I joined the bank at the age of 18. Got this job after my father died while serving in the bank. I had just finished my higher secondary course. Its been 36 years since then, said Deepak Sharma, who still works as single window operator in the Parliament Street branch of erstwhile Allahabad Bank (now Indian Bank) in New Delhi.

While working in the bank, Sharma completed his graduation. He has no regrets. It is very sad, continued Sharma. There are so many memories. After my fathers death, when this job was offered to me, it was also opening a new chapter of life for my family. Never will we forget the organisation. Never this name will cease to exist in our minds, Sharma said.

Allahabad Bank has a strong base in the Eastern region along with Uco Bank and United Bank of India. Eastern India was traditionally under-banked compared with south and western India.

Since the industry presence in the East was very limited, these banks have been mostly catering to small businesses and tea estate businesses in the region. Retail banking was very less. With Allahabad Bank being merged with Indian Bank after 155 years of its inception, there is uncertainty and concern among employees about the difference in work culture and synergy.

In the old days, Sharma recalls, the work culture of these PSU banks was also different from today. Absent was the aggressive campaigning of today to get customers.

Banking was a luxury that the poor couldnt afford and the middle-class could aspire. But, in the last one century, banking services have reached the doorstep of almost every Indian. And further to their mobile phones and computer screens.

The history of state-run banks in India isnt complete without the role employee trade unions have played in these banks highlighting the human resource issues and pressing demands for employee welfare. Although their presence has weakened a bit compared with the old era, trade unions continue to be a prominent force in PSBs even now. They have a say in deciding the wages for public sector bank employees, work timings and employee benefits.

With the mega merger of ten PSBs into four, there are 12 PSBs in India now, which together control about 60 percent of the assets in the banking sector. PSBs continue to dominate the Indian banking industry in terms of customer reach and asset size. But these banks are still at the mercy of the government for survival capital every year. Questions on the promise of privatisation and implementation of PJ Nayak panel recommendations remain. After the mega-amalgamation, India will have a least five to six banks that can be called large and can intensify the competition for private, foreign rivals.

A new era in banking has begun.
Los Angeles, April 2 : Amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis and lockdown, pop superstar Taylor Swift has stepped in to pay salary and healthcare for employees at a vintage record store near her home in Nashville.

The superstar's publicist contacted Grimey's New & Preloved Music with an offer to pay the salaries and healthcare costs for staff during the next three months. It happened when the store got shut when the city's mayor issued a state at home order.

"We were very surprised, and I would have to say amazed, that Taylor Swift reached out to us through her publicist to offer some relief during the COVID-19 pandemic," rollingstone.com quoted Grimey's co-owner Doyle Davis as saying.

"I didn't even know we were on her radar, but she really stepped up to help after the recent tornadoes that struck Nashville and middle Tennessee, and now she's trying to help a beloved small business in her city," Davis added.

He continued: "Taylor generously offered some direct relief to my staff and to cover three months of our health care costs for our group-insurance plan. It's a huge deal to us, and now I have some peace of mind as we apply for (Small Business Administration) loans to pay rent, vendors, and other expenses. This assistance from Ms. Swift helps give us a real shot at coming back on the other side of this." "It's incredibly heartening and totally surreal that Taylor Swift has offered to help us out in such a significant way," Grimey's buyer Will Orman said, adding: "With so much uncertainty about what lies ahead, we're deeply grateful to be able to look forward to returning to the store and continuing to share music and connect with our community, thanks to Taylor's generous support." Swift has also donated to Feeding America and the World Health Organization and requested her fans support the organisations amid the ongoing health crisis.
The MP for Kiharu Constituency, Ndindi Nyoro, has donated his salary to the fight against Covid-19 in Kneya.

Nyoro on Wednesday asked the Parliamentary Service Commission not to credit his bank account with the April 2020 salary, saying the remuneration should be channelled towards the pandemic.

Whereas he will surrender the entirety of his gross salary amounting to Ksh532, 500, Nyoro said his team will take a 20 per cent pay-cut.

We may not have a single case registered in Kiharu Constituency. However, people in the informal sector such as boda boda operators and green grocers are experiencing the economic hardship wrought by the pandemic. And, because we understand the financial problems the virus has subjected this group of people to, I will commit 100 per cent of my April salary to the COVID-19 fight. Staff members attached to my office, including the CDF management, will take a 20 per cent pay-cut, said Nyoro.

He said the monies will be remitted to the COVID-19 Emergency Fund Board.

At the same time, Nyoro called on the newly-formed Board to come up with a Paybill number that Kenyans of goodwill can contribute to.
Enterprise adoption of 5G will be delayed because the 3GPP standards body has been sidelined by the COVID-19 outbreak and cant finish its work on a critical standard for at least two months, according to ABI Research.

The standard in question, known as Release 16, addresses latency standards and mandating 99.999% uptime, said ABI Research analyst Leo Gergs. It was due for release in March and will now be delayed until at least June.

Considering that an hour of machine downtime costs each manufacturer on average $300,000, this underlines the importance a high reliability on availability of the communication network, he said.

As a result, companies that need a modernized cellular-network infrastructure will be forced to rely on various combinations of other technologies  4G/LTE, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth  for different use cases. Thats a workable solution, said Gergs, but its less desirable than 5G given the additional work needed to ensure interoperability among those different standards. On the other hand, 5G by itself could fulfill those needs.

Moreover, the possibility of a general economic recession in response to the pandemic could severely shrink IT budgets in the coming months, making the potential customer base for new 5G technology commensurately smaller.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 2

By Nargiz Sadikhova  Trend:

China has sent a humanitarian aid to Kazakhstan to help battle coronavirus, Trend reports with reference to Kazakhstans Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The corresponding agreement has been reached during a phone call between Kazakhstans President Kassym Jomart Tokayev and Chinas President Xi Jinping.

Within the framework of the agreement reached the plane carrying thermal imagers, test kits, goggles and medical clothing arrived in Kazakhstans Almaty airport on Apr. 2, 2020.

Additional supplies of protective equipment from China is expected in the near future.

The latest data said that the overall number of coronavirus cases in Kazakhstan reported since the outbreak began is 402.

First two cases of coronavirus infection were detected in Kazakhstan among those who arrived in Almaty city from Germany on March 13, 2020.

On March 15, 2020, Kazakhstans President Kassym Jomart Tokayev signed a decree introducing an emergency state in Kazakhstan due to the coronavirus outbreak, which came in force from 08:00 (GMT +6) on March 16 and will last till 08:00 April 15, 2020.

By a decision of State Commission on Provision of Emergency State under the president of Kazakhstan, quarantine regime has been introduced in Kazakhstans Nur-Sultan and Almaty cities at 00:00 (GMT +6) on March 19, 2020.

The outbreak in the Chinese city of Wuhan - which is an international transport hub - began at a fish market in late December 2019. The number of people killed by the disease has surpassed 47,000. Over 937,000 people have been confirmed as infected. Meanwhile, over 194,000 people have reportedly recovered.

Some sources claim the coronavirus outbreak started as early as November 2019.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11.

---

Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
Tradesmen will work on weekends and during public holidays so construction sites are less crowded on weekdays, allowing workers to abide by social distancing advice.

New South Wales Planning Minister Rob Stokes has allowed businesses to space out their staff and working hours to keep the construction industry going during the coronavirus pandemic.

The construction industry employs 400,000 people in NSW and makes up nearly 10 per cent of the state economy, with increased hours enabling more work to be done and the opportunity for more staff to be hired.

Mr Stokes said the changes work in conjunction with medical advice and will keep tradesmen in jobs through uncertain times.

Scroll down for video

Tradesmen are now allowed to work over weekends and public holidays to allow for social distancing while remaining productive on site. Pictured: Tradesmen obey social distancing standards during a meeting in Sydney last week

Increased hours will enable more work to be done and the opportunity for more staff to be hired during the pandemic

'The extended hours allow the industry to facilitate social distancing on construction sites, while minimising the potential for lost productivity during the pandemic,' he told The Daily Telegraph.

'We are committed to doing everyone we can to keep each and every one of them in work - but most importantly to keep them safe and healthy.'

Mr Stokes has been able to override regular planning measures during the pandemic and has allowed for supermarkets and pharmacies to trade 24/7.

Mikeilee Constructions carpentry apprentice Shea Davies said he was grateful to still be working during the pandemic.

'Personally I enjoy working, it gets me out of the house. If there's an opportunity to work seven days a week, I'm keen for it,' he said.

Tradesmen are still subject to strict rules that limit public gatherings to two people while working onsite.

Tradesmen keep their distance from each other at work onsite in Barangaroo last week

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller issued a warning to tradesmen on Tuesday as heavy penalties came into effect to stop the spread of coronavirus.

Breaching the restrictions in NSW can carry $11,000 fines or six months in jail for leaving home without a 'reasonable excuse', or a $1,000 on-the-spot police fine for breaking social distancing rules under the Public Health Act.

Commissioner Fuller said tradesman on work sites should remember to stand apart during safety briefings and smoking breaks.

'The advice for people on worksites is this. When you arrive at work on the morning don't congregate in big groups,' he said on 2GB radio.

'When you have your safety briefing, don't stand together.'

He went on to say that he'd been sent pictures of groups congregating during smoking breaks and that wouldn't be allowed from now on.
The president urged citizens to remain vigilant and trust official information sources only.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said more than a hundred perpetrators had been exposed over misinforming the public about the novel coronavirus.

Thirty criminal proceedings have been launched, the president wrote in his public address on Facebook.

"Today, more than 20,000 police officers and National Guards are involved in measures to counter the coronavirus. Among other things, they are countering fake reports about the virus, along with online fraud and distribution of dubious medications," he said.

Read alsoUkraine's Cabinet lists new quarantine measures

According to the president, more than a hundred perpetrators were exposed, a number of internet links used for criminal purposes were blocked, as well as bank accounts used by online scammers.

"I urge all citizens to be vigilant, to use only official sources of information, not to trust panic-sowing messages and announcements about obscure medications that are claimed to save you from all diseases," Zelensky emphasized.

As UNIAN reported earlier, a number of confirmed coronavirus cases as of Wednesday evening was nearing 800.
Social media giant takes down fake accounts amplifying messaging critical of Iran, Qatar and Turkey, among others.

Twitter has removed thousands of accounts linked to Egypt, Saudi Arabia and several other countries for either taking directions from the governments or promoting pro-government content.

The social media giant said in a post on its platform on Thursday that it had taken down 2,541 accounts in the Egypt-based El Fagr network because it created inauthentic accounts to amplify messaging critical of Iran, Qatar and Turkey.

Information we gained externally indicates it was taking direction from the Egyptian government, Twitter said.

We removed 2,541 accounts in an Egypt-based network, known as the El Fagr network.The media group created inauthentic accounts to amplify messaging critical of Iran, Qatar and Turkey. Information we gained externally indicates it was taking direction from the Egyptian government.  Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) April 2, 2020

Twitter also removed 5,350 accounts associated with Saudi Arabia and operating out of multiple countries including the kingdom, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which had content praising the Saudi leadership and critical of Qatar and Turkish activity in Yemen.

The action by social media company came more than four months after the company took down almost 6,000 accounts it deemed to be tied to a state-backed information operation in Saudi Arabia. On December 20 last year, Twitter had said the removed Saudi accounts were amplifying messages favourable to Saudi authorities, mainly through aggressive liking, retweeting and replying.

In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic and trade ties with Qatar and imposed a sea, land and air blockade on it, claiming it supported terrorism and was too close to Iran. Qatar vehemently rejected the claims and said there was no legitimate justification for the severance of relations.

Targeted attempt

The company also removed 3,104 fake accounts created from a single IP range in Honduras by a staffer on the governments behalf to retweet the presidents account.

An investigation that followed a report by investigative website Bellingcat on an Indonesian information operation targeting the West Papuan independence movement resulted in the removal of 795 fake accounts.

Meanwhile, a total of 8,558 accounts working to promote Serbias governing party and its leader was also removed.

Twitter said it took the actions because the accounts violated its policies and represented a targeted attempt to undermine the public conversation.
Additional reporting: Daniel McConnell

The unemployment rate will have topped 20% by the end of this week as more construction workers sign on for the Covid-19 payments, Goodbody chief economist Dermot OLeary said.

It comes as the new CSO figures suggest that more than 513,000 people were receiving some sort of payment from the Government by the end of March  before the closure of most building sites.

Mr OLeary said the unemployment rate had risen to 17% by the end of March from 4.8% in February and would likely rise to 20% this week as more construction workers join the claimant count.

The CSO said 513,350 people were on the official Live Register at the end of March, including 283,037 receiving the pandemic unemployment payment, and 25,104 covered by the Covid-19 income-subsidy scheme.

At a media briefing, Paschal Donohoe, the finance minister, and his top officials said that government spending and borrowing will increase to meet the costs of the crisis.

The exchequer returns for March show that the Government took in 1bn less in tax revenues in the month than it had anticipated.

VAT receipts in the month were half the level they were last year, which the department described as an unprecedented fall, and an indication of the difficulties businesses are currently facing. Total tax receipts for the month of March amounted to 3.7bn.

This is primarily attributable to a steep decline in VAT receipts as a result of non-payment arising from the Covid-19 crisis, officials said.

As a result, there was an exchequer deficit of 2.5bn in the first quarter compared to a deficit of 966m in the same period last year.

Broker Davy said the public finances took a 2bn hit from the Covid-19 crisis in March by way of additional health spending, social welfare payments, and the fall in VAT receipts.

Speaking to reporters, Mr Donohoe said that while the Government was previously expecting a budget surplus in 2020, we are now heading for a considerable deficit because of the pandemics impact.

The deficit is primarily being driven by increases in voted cernment cushions the effect of the crisis in this way, he said.

Mr Donohoe, when asked about the likely deficit as a result of the crisis, said it was too early to say, but that he will endeavour to give such an update later this month when Ireland has to outline its budgetary estimates to the European Commission.

Asked about ongoing government formation talks, Mr Donohoe said that there was a good engagement with Fianna Fail yesterday, and that he expects such talks to escalate next week.

He said there has been no discussion of who will be taoiseach, but that Fine Gael insisted there be parity of recognition, suggesting an equal number of cabinet seats.
: One more person tested



positive for coronavirus in Puducherry, taking the total number of active cases in the union territory to four, a senior official said on Thursday.

The person who tested positive is a woman from the neighbouring Ariyankuppam village, the official said.

Already three people (two from Ariyankuppam and one from Tiruvandarkoil village), who had returned from the religious congregation in Delhi held recently had tested positive on Wednesday. The result of test of samples of one more person (returned from Delhi) was awaited.

As far as Karaikal region is concerned, six people tested negative while the result of the samples of one person there is awaited, a source said.

Earlier, Puducherry's first positive case was reported from Mahe, an enclave of the union territory in Kerala. The woman had, however, has since recovered.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, left, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom (Associated Press)

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been drawing lots of speculation about maybe becoming an upgraded Democratic presidential nominee, pushing aside bland Joe Biden.

But there hasnt been a peep about California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Whys that?

Both governors are doing a statesman-like job leading their states through the surging coronavirus pandemic. So why all the national political focus just on Cuomo?

Well, it makes sense.

Cuomo, 62, seems president-ready because of his long, impressive resume. Hes a gifted orator and that makes him more exciting. Hes also near the epicenter of the national news media.

But lets be honest: Neither governor would have any chance of shoving aside the former vice president even if one of them wanted to. And neither apparently does.

Cuomos younger brother, CNN anchor Chris Cuomo, asked his sibling on TV Tuesday whether he was thinking of running for president. No, no, Andrew Cuomo replied.

Was he open to thinking about it? No. Might he be at some point? No. How can he know now what he might think about later? I know what I might think about and what I wont think about.

No ambiguity there.

As for Newsom, 52, he knows this isnt his time to bid for the White House. He has only been governor for 15 months. It might be his time in 2024 if President Trump is reelected in November and theres no Democratic incumbent.

But no sitting California governor has ever run successfully for president. Ronald Reagan, Jerry Brown and Pete Wilson all tried. Its too demanding to spend months in Iowa and New Hampshire charming voters in coffee shops while governing the nations most populous, most diverse state several time zones away.

Newsoms time will come in 2028 if theres not a Democrat seeking a second term.

Biden hasnt officially clinched this years nomination, but he has a practically insurmountable lead in delegates over his lone remaining opponent, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

This happens every four years when there are contested primaries, veteran Democratic consultant Bill Carrick says with a tone of frustration. Somebody decides the presumed nominee isnt interesting enough. People start speculating. What if? What if nothing!

Story continues

Biden ran. Biden won lots of states and delegates. Biden is going to be the nominee. It is mathematically impossible  and politically worse  for someone to now get in and become the nominee. Guess how many delegates Cuomo has? Zero. Can you imagine someone who hasnt competed for one vote getting in the race at this point? Its ridiculous.

Carrick adds: This is the result of extreme time zone prejudice. Newsoms in California and the East Coast [news media] dominates political reporting in the country. And New York is where a bunch of [reporters] live so they talk about people from the East Coast.

Theres truth in that. But theres also a legitimate basis for the draft Cuomo speculation.

Face it, Democratic voters arent real excited about Biden, 77.

Theyve looked seriously  if sometimes briefly  at several candidate options during this nominating process: Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, even a glance at Michael Bloomberg, plus Sanders. And Democrats returned to Biden, the original front-runner, because they judged him the best bet to beat Trump.

But for weeks, Biden has been confined to his house, just like most of the rest of us, trying to escape the rampaging virus. With no official role to play in the pandemic fight  unlike Cuomo, Newsom and Trump  Biden is stuck on the bench, mostly out of action except for occasional TV interviews.

Cuomo and Newsom have been holding daily, televised virus briefings. The New Yorker is a talented speaker who gets right to the point.

Kick coronavirus ass, he told National Guard officers, according to the New York Times.

Cuomo is in the spotlight  performing and entertaining. Its natural to dream of him as Trumps opponent, energizing Democratic voters and drawing them to the polls.

His qualifications arent in question: a three-term governor, state attorney general, U.S. secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Clinton. And theres the family pedigree: His father, Mario Cuomo, was also a three-term New York governor.

Newsom was mayor of San Francisco, but he needs to put in more years as governor before asking Americans to elect him president. He understands that.

Cuomo is sounding like a leader  and Newsom is acting like one, not that Cuomo isnt.

Newsom was the nations first governor to confine people to their homes  fortunately without turning California into a total police state by asking cops to arrest violators.

Social pressure  is the most powerful enforcement tool we have, the governor says.

In a refreshing sign of once-unimaginable bipartisanship, Newsom and Trump have been cooperating and formed  if only briefly  a mini-mutual admiration society. Trump has repeatedly praised Newsom for doing a terrific job.

This is not a time to bicker, Newsom told host Jake Tapper of CNNs The Lead on Wednesday. I dont care who is up and down  or who wants to run for president or who doesnt. When it comes to times of crisis  I have extended always an open hand, not a closed fist.

Id be lying to you to say that [Trump] hasnt been responsive to our needs. He has.

Who wants to run for president? Biden. Not Newsom, not Cuomo  not this year. Maybe in the future theyll be rivals for the Oval Office.
By Express News Service

KOCHI: The 17-year-old son and 32-year-old daughter of Yakub Husain Sait of Chullikkal, who died due to Covid-19 early this week, were among the three persons who tested positive for coronavirus in the district on Wednesday.The other person who tested positive for Covid-19 is a health worker.

Yakubs son and daughter were admitted to the Government Medical College Hospital, Kalamassery, on Tuesday after they developed symptoms of the virus. After 67-year-old Yakub tested positive for Covid-19, the health department had put the family members, along with other apartment residents, in home quarantine for 14 days. Earlier, his wife and the taxi driver who ferried him from the airport to his home on March 16, had tested positive for Covid-19 and are now under treatment at the isolation facility at the hospital. Yakub has five children. His two sons, who are in Dubai, have not yet contracted the disease. The other son, the twin brother of the 17-year-old, is in home quarantine in Kochi, but has not developed any symptoms so far.

While the two sons in Dubai could not fly down to Kochi for their fathers funeral, his wife and children in Kochi were allowed to see Yakubs body through a video call before it was wrapped for funeral. The Facebook post of Yakubs elder son, who is living in Dubai, expressing sadness of not seeing his fathers face one last time has left tears in the eyes of many.

Meanwhile, the 41-year-old health worker contracted the virus while he was deployed on duty at the Kochi airport. Since there was an instruction from the government to put all staff members who worked at the airport in quarantine, he was under home quarantine for several days. But he developed the symptoms of the virus only on Tuesday. Earlier, a junior health officer, who worked along with him at the airport, had also tested positive.
A storm nears the coast, stirring up wind and waves. Along the boardwalk that lines the beach, a row of oversize concrete umbrellas begins to tilt downward, transforming from a convenient canopy to a shield against the coming onslaught.

In a new approach to storm surge protection, a Princeton team has created a preliminary design for these dual-purpose kinetic umbrellas. In a study published Mar. 28 in the Journal of Structural Engineering, the researchers used computational modeling to begin evaluating the umbrellas' ability to withstand an acute storm surge.

As sea levels rise and storms grow stronger, coastal communities are building more seawalls to help protect people and property from extreme flooding. These barriers can be unattractive and restrict access to beaches, but the Princeton team's umbrellas would provide shade during fair weather and could be tilted in advance of a storm to form a flood barrier.

"This is so much more than just your typical coastal defensive structure," said lead study author Shengzhe Wang, a Ph.D. student in civil and environmental engineering. "It's the first time that anyone has really tried to integrate architecture as an inherent component to a coastal countermeasure."

The proposed umbrellas are shells of reinforced concrete about 4 inches thick, built in the shape of a hyperbolic paraboloid (shortened to hypar), a saddle-like structure that curves inward along one axis and outward along the other. The structure takes inspiration from the work of the Spanish-born architect Felix Candela, who designed hundreds of buildings with thin-shelled hypar roofs in Mexico in the 1950s and 1960s.

Study co-author Maria Garlock, a professor of civil and environmental engineering, has long studied Candela's designs; she co-wrote a book on Candela and helped create an archive and exhibition exploring his work. In the fall of 2017, she and co-author Branko Glisi?, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, were considering a project to study the potential of hypar umbrellas as "smart" structures to capture energy and rainwater. Then, a new idea came to her: In addition to adding sensors, "why not tip them and use them in a completely different way --as a kind of seawall?" she asked.

Garlock and Glisi? obtained funding from Project X, which enables engineering faculty members to pursue unconventional ideas. Wang took on the task of testing whether the umbrellas would be a viable strategy for coastal protection.

Wang analyzed the geometry and structural strength of the proposed umbrellas, thin shells of concrete measuring 8 meters (about 26 feet) on each side and supported by 10-foot-tall, 20-inch-square columns. In these simulations, he also tested the functionality of a hinge at the vertex where the column meets the middle of the umbrella.

To investigate how the umbrellas might fare during a coastal storm surge, the team compiled storm surge data from hurricanes between 1899 and 2012 along the U.S. East Coast, then modeled a storm surge height of 18 feet, encompassing all but the highest storm surge in the data set. Adapting established numerical methods for modeling fluid-structure interactions to study hypar structures, they showed that the umbrellas would remain stable when faced with a wall of water about 75% of their deployed height.

"These shells are so thin that anyone looking at this would not be inclined to believe that these structures would be capable of stopping such large forces from water," said Wang. "But we're able to take advantage of the geometry of the hypar shape that gives the structure the additional strength that's required."

Wang has now built physical models of the umbrellas (measuring about 6 inches across) to validate the results of the numerical approach, and is beginning to test the models' responses to the dynamic forces of turbulent flows inside a 10-foot-long water channel. Wind forces characteristic of landfalling hurricanes will also be captured via wind tunnel testing.

"In reality, you're not going to just have a pile of static water. You're going to have waves, you're going to have wind that generates those waves," he said. "That's what we're trying to capture in our next step: How do we physically simulate these waves and how would these waves affect our structures?"

Wang noted that most previous studies have evaluated the ability of vertical walls or slanted barriers to withstand storms, but the hypar's complex geometry required the team "to come up with a whole new set of rules that govern how the structure will perform." Due to the complexity of the solution, another graduate student, Vanessa Notario, will study the flow of forces in the shell as a part of her M.S.E. thesis.

In addition to optimizing the structures to resist high winds and waves, designs for coastal protection must take other practical considerations into account. The 10-foot height of the columns, Garlock said, is good for shading pedestrians while restricting access to the umbrellas' hinges and preventing vandalism.

The team plans to investigate the potential of using more sustainable materials, as well as adding sensors and actuators to control the umbrellas, and incorporating systems for capturing solar energy and storm water.

"Sensors would verify that umbrellas are performing properly before, during and after deployment, while actuators would enable not only automatic deployment but also tracking the sun and wind for the best power and storm water harvesting purposes," said Glisi?, who has expertise in structural health monitoring and smart structures.

"This is a completely new way of thinking about coastal defense structures," said Garlock. "Moving forward, our goal is to make these umbrellas part of a smart, sustainable community."

To help integrate the new design into holistic plans for coastal resilience, the researchers will collaborate with Ning Lin, an associate professor at Princeton whose team recently produced updated 21st-century flood maps for the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. They also have plans to work with a geotechnical engineer and are consulting with the New York City Mayor's Office of Resiliency.

###

In addition to the Project X innovation fund, this work was supported in part by Princeton University's Metropolis Project.
NEW YORK  The coronavirus outbreak has thrown 10 million Americans out of work in just two weeks in the swiftest, most stunning collapse the U.S. job market has ever witnessed, and the public health crisis deepened in New York City, where a funeral home in a hard-hit neighborhood had 185 bodies stacked up Thursday  more than triple normal capacity.

The dire news of a record-shattering 6.6 million new unemployment claims, on top of last weeks unprecedented 3.3 million, came as economists warned unemployment could reach levels not seen since the Depression.

Competition for scarce ventilators, masks and other protective gear seemed to grow more desperate and deaths mounted with alarming speed in Italy, Spain and New York, the most lethal hot spot in the United States, with nearly 2,400 lives lost.

Worldwide the number of confirmed infections hit another gloomy milestone  1 million, with more than 50,000 deaths, according to the tally kept by Johns Hopkins University. But the true numbers are believed to be much higher because of testing shortages, many mild cases that have gone unreported and suspicions that some countries are covering up the extent of their outbreaks.

The mounting economic fallout almost certainly signals the onset of a global recession, with job losses that are likely to dwarf those of the Great Recession more than a decade ago.

My anxiety is through the roof right now, not knowing whats going to happen, said Laura Wieder, laid off from her job managing a now-closed sports bar in Bellefontaine, Ohio.

About half of all working Americans report some kind of income loss affecting them or a member of their household because of the epidemic, and poor people and those without college degrees are especially likely to have lost a job, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

With over 240,000 people infected in the U.S. and the death toll topping 5,800, sobering preparations were under way. The Federal Emergency Management Agency asked the Pentagon for 100,000 body bags because of the possibility funeral homes will be overwhelmed, the military said.

Corpses in white plastic were already overwhelming the Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, on Thursday. Usually equipped to handle 40-60 bodies at a time, it was taking care of 185. Masked workers fielded phone calls and handled file folders labeled COVID-19 in yellow highlighter.

Owner Pat Marmo said hes been begging families to insist hospitals hold their dead loved ones as long as possible: This is a state of emergency, he said. We need help.

The Democratic Party pushed its nominating convention back a month, to mid-August. Federal authorities proposed a $611,000 fine against the Seattle-area nursing home connected to at least 40 coronavirus deaths, accusing it of infractions that included failure to report and rapidly manage the outbreak. And a days-long standoff in Florida was resolved when passengers aboard two cruise ships that have had several coronavirus cases and four deaths won permission to come ashore.

Elsewhere around the world, the number of people applying for welfare benefits in Britain increased nearly tenfold to almost 1 million in the past couple of weeks. At least a million in Europe are estimated to have lost their jobs over the same period, and the actual number is probably far higher. Spain alone added over 300,000 to its unemployment rolls in March.

But the job losses in Europe appear to be far smaller than in the U.S. because of countries greater social safety nets.

With its health care system in dire shape, Spain reported a record one-day number of deaths, 950, bringing its overall toll to about 10,000, despite signs that the infection rate is slowing.

Italy recorded 760 more deaths, for a total of 13,900, the worst of any country, but new infections continued to level off.

France recorded a running total of about 4,500 deaths in hospitals, with 471 in the past day. But officials expect the overall toll to jump significantly because they are only now starting to count deaths in nursing homes and other facilities for older people.

White House coronavirus task force coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx said U.S. infection data suggest not enough Americans are heeding social distancing guidelines, and the country must do better in order to emulate those European nations that have begun to bend their curves.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned that New York could run out of breathing machines in six days. He complained that states are competing against each other for protective gear and breathing machines, or are being outbid by the federal government, in a competition he likened to being on eBay.

In France, a top health official in the countrys hard-hit eastern region said American officials swooped in at a Chinese airport to spirit away a planeload of masks that France had ordered.

Nine leading European university hospitals warned they will run out of essential medicines for COVID-19 patients in intensive care in less than two weeks.

A shipment of nearly 5,900 medical masks that Alabamas Montgomery County received from the U.S. government stockpile was unusable because of dry rot, the emergency management director said. The masks had a 2010 expiration date, according to the city of Montgomery.

The Trump administration was formalizing new guidance to recommend Americans wear coverings such as non-medical masks, T-shirts or bandannas over their mouths and noses when out in public, while reserving medical-grade masks, particularly the short-in-supply N95 variety, for those dealing directly with the sick.

Trump invoked the Defense Production Act on Thursday in hopes of boosting production of medical-grade masks by Minnesota-based 3M to assist first responders.

Washington is also trying to crack down on a growing black market for protective medical supplies, Defense Production Act policy coordinator Peter Navarro said.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for others, especially older adults and people with health problems, it can cause severe symptoms like pneumonia. Over 200,000 people worldwide have recovered, by Johns Hopkins count.

With large portions of America under lockdown, job losses for the worlds biggest economy could double to 20 million and unemployment could spike to as high as 15% by the end of the month, many economists have said. Unemployment in the U.S. hasnt been that high since the tail end of the Depression, just before the U.S. entered World War II.

Roughly 90% of the U.S. population is now under stay-at-home orders, and many factories, restaurants, stores and other businesses are closed or have seen sales shrivel.

Laid-off workers can tap money made available in the $2.2 trillion rescue measure passed by Congress. It adds $600 a week to unemployment benefits, extends eligibility to 39 weeks and for the first time wraps in part-timers and workers in the so-called gig economy, such as Uber drivers.

Achsa Febrero, a Subway worker at a rest stop Fairfield, Conn., is among the millions laid off and now waiting for unemployment benefits to kick in, which could take weeks. She said she is on a payment plan to keep her phone connected and unsure how shell pay for groceries  and deeply frustrated at the billions benefiting corporations in the federal bailout.

These companies are getting government relief, government relief, Febrero said. They could afford to pay us more than what were getting. They could support us through this time, and theyre not. Were human. What makes them better than us?

___

Hinnant reported from Paris. Sherman reported from Washington. Associated Press writers around the world contributed.

___

Follow AP news coverage of the coronavirus pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
[April 02, 2020] In an Urgent Initiative to Combat the Coronavirus Epidemic in Iraq, Asiacell Is Donating 750 Million Dinars to the Iraqi Government and USD 500,000 to the Government of the Kurdistan Autonomous Region

BAGHDAD, Iraq, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Asiacell has announced an urgent initiative to support efforts to combat the coronavirus epidemic in Iraq, by allocating 750 million dinars to the Iraqi government and USD 500,000 to the government of the Kurdistan autonomous region. This initiative by Asiacell comes after the spread of the epidemic in many regions of our beloved country. Asiacell is responding to this crisis by actively supporting and standing with the people of our country in these difficult circumstances. It should be noted that this initiative complements many other initiatives launched by Asiacell since the outbreak of the coronavirus crisis, including awareness-raising and instructional campaigns, and the distribution of sanitisation materials and asic food supplies to poor families.



At the same time, Asiacell has appealed to the Iraqi people to comply with the instructions of the responsible authorities and to follow to the advice provided, and to stay at home to get through this difficult period. Asiacell has dedicated all of its media channels, human resources and communications technology to these efforts. Commenting on this initiative, Mr Faruk Mustafa Rasool, Chairman of Asiacell, said: "We have responded to the call for help by contributing 750 million Iraqi dinars to combat this epidemic in our beloved country." He added: "We have also given 500,000 dollars to the government of the Kurdistan region for the same purpose."

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/in-an-urgent-initiative-to-combat-the-coronavirus-epidemic-in-iraq-asiacell-is-donating-750-million-dinars-to-the-iraqi-government-and-usd-500-000-to-the-government-of-the-kurdistan-autonomous-region-301034312.html SOURCE Asiacell Telecommunications PJSC

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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed an executive order on April 1 extending the state of emergency and formally declaring a state of disaster due to the outbreak of the CCP virus.

Whitmer had initially signed a state of emergency on March 10, when Michigan had confirmed two cases of the CCP virus. As of April 2, the state has 9,334 confirmed cases of the virus, while 337 deaths have been attributed to the disease. The state of emergency allowed the state to purchase health-related items without a bid and was in place until the end of March before its extension.

The governor said Wednesdays disaster declaration recognizes an expanded scope of economic, educational, and civic dislocation caused by the CCP virus and equips the administration to address adequately the devastation caused by it.

Since Michigan announced our first confirmed cases of COVID-19 three weeks ago, we have taken some of the most aggressive measures in the country to mitigate the spread of the virus and protect Michigan families, said Whitmer in a press release. Todays action will allow my administration to respond more effectively to every facet of this crisis. During this time, its crucial that Michiganders continue to stay home and keep their distance from others. We will get through this together.

As the number of confirmed cases across the state continues to rise, Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, Chief Medical Executive, and Chief Deputy Director for Health for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) urged people to do everything we can to slow the spread.

The governor has taken a number of critical steps to protect Michigan families, and this order today will allow that work to continue. I will keep working closely with the governor and our partners across state government to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, she added.

In addition to issuing the Executive Order, the governor also sent a letter (pdf) to Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey (R-Mich.) and House Speaker Lee Chatfield (R-Mich.) requesting a concurrent resolution extending the declared state of emergency and disaster by 70 days from the date of the resolution. State law only allows a State of Emergency to last for 28 days unless the State House and Senate pass a resolution making it longer.

To meet the steep, varied, and ongoing demands created by the COVID-19 pandemic, my administration must continue to use the full range of tools available to protect the health, safety, and welfare of our state and its residents. I welcome you and your colleagues continued partnership in fighting this pandemic, Whitmer wrote in her letter.

Whitmer had previously signed the Stay Home, Stay Safe, order directing non-essential businesses, including restaurants, clubs, gyms, and movie theaters to temporarily suspend operations and directing all Michiganders to stay in their homes unless they are part of the critical workforce. However, essential services, such as grocery stores, banks, and pharmacies, were able to continue operating.

From The Epoch Times
By Katie Paul, Joseph Menn and Paresh Dave

SAN FRANCISCO, April 2 (Reuters) - Infectious disease researchers are using Facebook Inc mobile location data to provide daily updates to U.S. cities and states evaluating the effectiveness of social distancing orders aimed at slowing the novel coronavirus.

The COVID-19 Mobility Data Network, a group of 40 health researchers from universities including Harvard, Princeton and Johns Hopkins, said that since mid-March its members have been sharing insights gleaned from the social media giant's data with California, Massachusetts and New York City.

Using mobile location data in the coronavirus fight comes amid intense scrutiny of the privacy practices of tech companies, which collect detailed information about people's interests on apps and websites, often to target ads.

Facebook and the researchers leading the project say they have overcome those concerns by aggregating the data several times over and funneling it through academics. The researchers share broad findings with state and local health departments, which do not receive any raw data.

Facebook confirmed it was sharing the data as part of its nearly year-old Disease Prevention Maps program, which has also aided efforts to increase vaccination rates in Malawi and track cholera outbreaks in Mozambique.

Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told reporters last month that he would not consider sharing Facebook's data directly with governments.

The Mobility Data Network has become one of the first initiatives to harness mobile data for the U.S. response to the coronavirus pandemic, an approach deployed early in places like China, South Korea and much of Europe but scarcely used so far in the United States.

With the virus already spread widely throughout the country, the research focuses on the success of measures designed to get people to stay home, as almost 40 U.S. states have ordered.

Using the data, which is stripped of identifying information, researchers provide insights like the average distance of trips users have taken in a city and the proportion of residents in each county that have stayed within their 600 square meter home "tiles."

In New York, for example, researchers found mobility dropped significantly on the weekends but crept back up on weekdays, when many people - particularly those living in low-income neighborhoods - are still required to work.

Story continues

The data can also show "if at first people stop moving but then begin to travel further once fatigue sets in," said Caroline Buckee, an epidemiologist at Harvard's School of Public Health who is among those leading the network.

Measuring changes in mobility and correlating them with later hospitalizations can also eventually help determine how to roll back social distancing orders, said Buckee, who previously studied the spread of malaria and dengue using mobile data.

GRABBING LOCATION DATA

About half of the apps on Alphabet Inc's Google's Play Store and a quarter on Apple Inc's App Store use at least one service capable of grabbing location data, according to industry research firm Appfigures.

Smaller location tracking services including Cuebiq and Camber Systems are queued up to provide inputs to the research network, too.

Others in talks to receive location analyses include Maryland, Washington and the District of Columbia, along with Los Angeles, San Jose, Santa Clara and Kansas City.

Kansas City confirmed that it was considering taking part in the project, while the other government agencies did not respond to requests for comment.

Facebook is in touch with the White House and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a spokeswoman said, but added that no analyses have been delivered to any U.S. federal entities so far.

Another coronavirus data initiative, the Data and Research Technology Task Force, is liaising with Vice President Mike Pence's coronavirus task force and includes employees from Alphabet Inc's Google, Microsoft Corp and Amazon.com Inc, said Josh Mendelsohn, who worked on disaster aid programs at Google a decade ago.

The companies did not respond to requests for comment.

Although other countries have successfully used location data to warn contacts of those with infections, neither officials nor researchers in the United States have asked for such personal information, said Mendelsohn.

"Contact tracing is something that we were beyond weeks ago," said Mendelsohn. "They need something that shows how we are doing vis-a-vis social distancing, which statistically models what we are about to be in for, so as to predict patient load."

(Reporting by Katie Paul, Joseph Menn and Paresh Dave; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
Former Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone is set to become a father for the fourth time at the age of 89 with his wife Fabiana Flosi.

The billionaire businessman, who is currently at his farm near Sao Paul, Brazil amid the coronavirus crisis, is said to be gearing up to welcome his first son in July.

Mr Ecclestone, a grandfather-of-five, confirmed he and his 44-year-old wife are expecting a child to Swiss newspaper Blick today.

The new addition, who will be born not long before Mr Ecclestone's 90th birthday in October, will be his fourth child. He also has three daughters.

Former Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone is set to become a father for the fourth time at the age of 89 with his wife Fabiana Flosi (pictured together)

His eldest, Deborah, 65, was born to his first wife Ivy Bamford before he welcomed socialites Tamara, 35, and Petra, 31, with his second wife Slavica Radic.

'Yes, it is due in the summer,' Mr Ecclestone told Blick. 'Hopefully he'll learn to play backgammon soon!'

Last night, he told the Daily Mail: 'There's nothing that unusual is there? I haven't had a job for a little while so I have had plenty of time to practise!'

The former Formula 1 boss married Brazilian marketing director Ms Flosi in 2012 - three years after he divorced Croatian model Ms Radic.

The expectant parents met through the World Motor Sport Council, where she regularly attended meetings.

They knew each other professionally for a few years before a mutual friend invited Ms Flosi on a cruise around Croatia with Mr Ecclestone in 2009.

'Like all parents, we have only one wish: the child must be born healthy,' she said. 'Hopefully he will never express the intention to do something with Formula 1.'

The billionaire businessman, who is currently at his farm near Sao Paul, Brazil amid the coronavirus crisis, will welcome his first son in July

The new addition, who will be born not long before Mr Ecclestone's 90th birthday in October, will be his fourth child after his three daughters

'Yes, she is thrilled,' Mr Ecclestone added. 'We're not sure what all the fuss is about!

'I'm very happy and happy really for my wife. She's been looking forward to this happening for quite a few years, so I'm happy she'll have someone after I'm gone.

'It's fun, I don't see any dramas, I've got grandchildren and I'm looking forward to having another baby.'

Pictured: Prince William, Duke of Cambridge with Bernie Ecclestone and guests as he attend the London's Air Ambulance Charity gala at Rosewood London in 2019

Mr Ecclestone - dubbed 'F1 Supremo' - is a former chief executive of the Formula 1 Group, which manages Formula 1 and part-owns Delta Topco

He went on to speak about the current coronavirus pandemic, and said he 'just wants everything to be good with Fabiana' should the isolation go on longer.

'Fortunately the farm never runs out of work,' he added. 'Fabiana also looks after her own coffee plantation.'

Mr Ecclestone - dubbed 'F1 Supremo' - is a former chief executive of the Formula 1 Group, which manages Formula 1 and part-owns Delta Topco.

He amassed an estimated fortune of 2.5billion throughout his time working for Formula 1.

The eccentric mogul entered two Grand Prix races as a driver himself in 1958, but failed to qualify for either of them.

Pictured: Mr Ecclestone with his second wife Slavica (left) and daughters Petra and Tamara (right)

He met Croatian model Slavica Radic in September 1982 in the pits at Italy's Monza race circuit

The former F1 boss later became the manager of drivers Stuart Lewis-Evans and Jochen Rindt before he purchased the Brabham team in 1972, which he went on to lead for 15 years.

He married his first wife, Ivy Bamford, when he was 21 in 1952. The pair had one daughter, Deborah, before they divorced in the 1960s.

Mr Ecclestone then had a 17-year relationship with Singapore-born Tuana Tan, before he met Croatian model Slavica Radic in September 1982 in the pits at Italy's Monza race circuit.

The pair, who had a 28-year age gap upon meeting, married in 1985 and later welcomed daughters Tamara and Petra - both of whom have had careers in fashion.

The pair, who had a 28-year age gap upon meeting, married in 1985 and later welcomed daughters Tamara and Petra (pictured) - both of whom have had careers in fashion

Tamara, a mother-of-one, has also appeared on a series of reality television shows in the UK

Tamara, a mother-of-one, has also appeared on a series of reality television shows in the UK. She starred in her own show, Tamara Ecclestone: Billion $$$ Girl, on Channel 5 in 2011 and on ITVBE's Tamara's World in 2017.

Mr Ecclestone and Ms Radic divorced in 2009 and he married his current wife, who is 45 years his junior, three years later.

A representative for Mr Eccleston has been contacted for comment.
The DUP councillor who sparked outrage by suggesting the coronavirus outbreak was God's punishment for the introduction of same-sex marriage and abortion law reform in Northern Ireland has apologised.

Ballymena representative John Carson said his comments made on social media had been "misinterpreted" by some.

"Anyone who knows me will know that l would not intentionally set out to cause hurt or offence to anyone and if l did then for that l humbly apologise," he said.

"However l will never apologise for my Christian faith and will not be silenced by those that are opposed to the truth of GOD'S word."

Northern Ireland's First Minister and DUP leader Arlene Foster was urged to denounce the remarks and the party open disciplinary proceedings.

The DUP distanced itself from the comments, telling the BBC's Nolan Show that MrCarson was expressing a personal opinion and not that of the party.

"This is a global pandemic and our focus is on protecting lives in Northern Ireland," the party said.

Asked at the daily Executive press conference about the issue the party's Diane Dodds said the views were "certainly not the views of the DUP".

She said they were a "distraction" from the serious challenges faced in fighting Covid-19 and disciplinary matters were for the party officers.

LGBT advocacy group, the Rainbow Project, slammed the comments as "disgraceful but not surprising".

Earlier Mr Carson told the BBC he stood by his comments but refused to discuss the matter on the airwaves. He also did not return calls from the Belfast Telegraph.

Taking to Facebook to comment on abortion becoming available in Northern Ireland on Tuesday evening, he wrote: "I said when abortion was legalised that our nation would be judged by GOD because of its departure from his word and the legalisation of the murder of the unborn child as well as same sex marriage.

"I was laughed at and mocked by some but as l said at the time they laughed at NOAH until the rain started.

It is time to repent and turn again to the GOD of our Fathers

"You reap what you sow and our nation is now reaping the judgement of GOD because of an immoral and corrupt government.

"It is time to repent and turn again to the GOD of our Fathers."

The post was 'liked' by scores of people, among them the DUP MLA Trevor Clarke.

He told the Belfast Telegraph he interacted with the public post from his private account, which he admitted he used for political comment.

He said he would not be commenting on what he said was a personal matter. Pressed on what his view was, he added: "I am not getting into a brickbat with the media on this."

Mr Carson is a member of the Royal British Legion and a strong supporter of veterans, according to Mid and East Antrim Borough Council's website. He is also part of the Orange Order.

The councillor works to help the elderly, build sustainable communities and sits on policing scrutiny and military reservist organisations.

Responding to criticism under his original post, Councillor Carson said he was entitled to an opinion.

He added: "They laughed and mocked my Saviour too, but some day soon their laughs will turn to screams."

There were many posts supportive of the politician's comments under the post.

Very patient of God to wait for Northern Ireland .... before sending judgment

Gavin Boyd of the Rainbow Project described the comments as "disgraceful but not at all surprising that a DUP elected member would try to blame LGBT people and our partners in the womens movement for the coronavirus outbreak just as they have blamed us for Hurricane Katrina and other natural disasters in the past.

"The Rainbow Project and our partners in the LGBT sector and womens sector are still supporting our communities at this difficult time.

"We are still providing counselling services and social support to very isolated people. It is very telling where the priorities of some DUP elected members lie when they seek to blame marginalised people for a global pandemic.

"We look forward to hearing, from Arlene Foster, a strong denunciation of this disgusting slur from her councillor John Carson and we expect disciplinary proceedings to be commenced against him immediately."

SDLP MLA Matthew O'Toole added: "Very patient of God to wait for Northern Ireland - virtually the last part of the western world to get either equal marriage and abortion rights - before sending judgment."

Same-sex marriage was legalised in Northern Ireland at the beginning of the year. It was introduced when MPs voted through an amendment to a Northern Ireland bill in parliament forcing the government to legislate in the absence of powersharing.

Abortion was decriminalised in Northern Ireland last October in a similar manner. New laws allowing terminations in all circumstances in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy came into force this week.

Before the change abortion was only allowed if a woman's life was at risk or there was a danger of permanent and serious damage to her physical or mental health.

Nearly a million people around the world have contracted coronavirus, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University, and more than 47,000 people have died as a result of the pandemic.

The real figures are believed to be much higher because of testing shortages, differences in counting the dead and large numbers of mild cases that have gone unreported.

Previously the DUP Ballymena councillor Maurice Mills said the devastation brought by Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005 was God's punishment of the city's gay community. Katrina killed over 1,300 people.

He refused to apologise for the offence caused.

In 2015 he was made a Member of the British Empire in the Queen's New Year Honours list for services to local government. At that time he told the Belfast Telegraph he stood by the comments.

The DUP was approached for further comment.
Chennai: Why has Tamil Nadus health minister C Vijayabaskar suddenly turned low profile in the past couple of days? This is the question that is being asked in the corridors of power as the otherwise flamboyant minister did not brief the media after two major events since Monday and even skipped a meeting with the Governor on Tuesday.

Hitherto, the minister had been briefing the media at least twice a day ever since the coronavirus outbreak set the government machinery whirring in combating the pandemic in the state, thus ensuring that he was on prime time television every night.

Always accompanied by the health secretary Beela Rajesh, the minister waxed eloquence on the various measures taken by the government and also on the detection of new cases of Covid-19 and earned praise from the public for the good work that he was doing.

However, it would appear that the chief minister, Edappadi K Palanisamy, has taken over the responsibility of speaking to the media regarding the coronavirus developments in the state and the health secretary has been doing the regular briefings. This has led to tongues wagging at the government, sidelining the minister who was gaining personal popularity.

The speculation is that some senior leaders in the ruling party might have felt that Vijaya Bhaskar is getting too big for his shoes and wanted him to be stopped from stealing the limelight when the entire state is tuned to the media outlets for news relating to the coronavirus pandemic.

The two events that Vijayabaskar took part but did not speak to the media after that are the one relating to his taking WHO representatives to visit the facilities set up at the Tamil Nadu Government Multi Super Specialty Hospital at the Omandurar Estate.

Subsequently he attended a departmental event at the DMS complex, after which again he did not address the media. Also he did not call on the Governor after the meeting. The health secretary briefed the governor.

Palanisamy taking over the duty of informing the public on development in a major issue like Covid-19, however, goes back to the old time when it was always the chief minister who parted with all information of great importance.

Whatever happened behind the doors, Vijayabaskar is maintaining a low key even as his ministry is going all out in its efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
Donald Trump Jr. has been spotted breaking from quarantine to spend an afternoon at a shooting range in the summer hotspot of the Hamptons, New York.

Trump was escorted by two Secret Service vehicles and spent over an hour at the Maidstone Gun Club near East Hampton Tuesday. His girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle was nowhere in sight.

Gun shots could be heard ringing out in the area as he broke out of quarantine to head to the property.

While Don Jr. does own a home in the Hamptons, year-round residence are trying to block the rich from fleeing coronavirus-plagued New York City to their small towns, complaining of ransacked supermarkets and crowded hospitals.

Donald Trump Jr. was spotted Tuesday afternoon at a shooting range in the Hamptons, New York

Gun shots could be heard ringing out in the area as he broke out of quarantine to head to the property

The president's son was escorted by two Secret Service vehicles and spent over an hour inside

This comes as Hamptons locals are trying to block the rich from New York City from fleeing to their towns and potentially bringing the virus

Dr Anthony Fauci gave the grim news that U.S. cases were tracking with how those in Italy developed

Tensions are rising in small towns where rich New York City residents have fled to escape the coronavirus hotspot as locals complaining of ransacked supermarkets and crowded hospitals attempt to stop the influx of outsiders.

As NYC's death toll hit nearly 2,000, so-called 'coronavirus refugees' continued to arrive at vacation destinations across the Northeast, including the Hamptons, Hudson Valley and Martha's Vineyard.

Girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle was nowhere in sight and it's unclear if they are spending the quarantine time together

The 'coronavirus refugees' have been leaving the Big Apple in droves, snapping up rental properties in quiet communities where the threat of contracting the deadly bug is significantly lower.

Some towns are beginning to fight back, saying they will not be the personal isolation unit for people seeking refuge from metropolitan areas, as year-round residents fear the influx of visitors will spread the virus and stretch local resources thin.

Local leaders in a number of the vacation destinations have called for travel bans on refugees from New York City, citing a strain on the food supply and concerns that regional health systems will collapse.

In the absence of such a ban, several communities have pleaded with visitors to stay away, while others are taking matters into their own hands by ordering mandatory quarantines for people coming in from coronavirus hot zones.

In Southold, New York, locals have asked the governor to ban all but essential workers from traveling to the island's East End.

Southold is already the town hardest hit in Suffolk County, New York, by a coronavirus outbreak.

'A new trend is taking place that puts our local residents at even further risk -- people seeking refuge from the metropolitan areas,' said town supervisor Scott A. Russell, warning that resources could be stretched to breaking point.

'Our limited medical resources are overburdened and ... they are reaching capacity which has the potential of limiting access to local residents.... Southold shouldn't be treated as someone's personal isolation unit.'

Popular destinations among so-called 'coronavirus refugees' include Martha's Vineyard, Cape Cod, Rhode Island, the Hamptons, Hudson Valley, the Jersey Shore and southern Florida. Local leaders in those communities have called for travel bans on visitors from New York City, citing a strain on the food supply and concerns that regional health systems will collapse

Empty selves in King Kullen in Bridgehampton on Tuesday as New Yorkers fleeing from the coronavirus hotspot are putting more pressure on grocery stores and locals struggle to find the supplies they need because of dwindling supplies

'It is simple math, the more people that come, the greater the spread and the greater the confirmed cases,' he added.

'We have a limited number of stores who are trying to keep their shelves stocked and ration out supplies as best they can. Local residents are finding it difficult to meet even their most basic needs. Unnecessary hoarding and the recent, sudden expansion of the population by those who come are making this far worse.

'I am joining Southampton Supervisor Jay Schneiderman in requesting that Governor Cuomo put a travel ban to the east end in place limiting travel to only essential personnel. Our resources are scarce, the risk of spread is too high for a Town which is already seeing more than its share of confirmed cases and deaths. Southold should NOT be treated as someones personal isolation unit.'
Scarlett Johansson stars in the 'Black Widow' solo adventure. (Credit: Disney/Marvel)

Scarlett Johansson has described the upcoming Black Widow as a family drama with the courage to dig deep and be brave and go there.

The film, which was recently delayed in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, finally gives Johanssons hero Natasha Romanoff a solo outing on the big screen.

Johansson told Total Film that family is one of the key themes of the movie, with trailers teasing a dysfunctional relationship between Natasha and her odd family unit.

Read more: Florence Pugh says Black Widow is raw, powerful and beautiful

This includes sister figure Yelena, played by Florence Pugh, and unconventional quasi-parents portrayed by David Harbour and Rachel Weisz.

Johansson said: I think part of Kevin Feiges genius is that he always thinks about what fans expect out of these films and then gives them something that they never couldve dreamed of.

Scarlett Johansson and Florence Pugh in Black Widow (Credit: Marvel)

The idea of Natasha Romanoff in a family drama is the least expected thing, and I had to wrap my head around what that was going to be because theres such a big tonal shift.

Black Widow is set between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War, therefore many years prior to the characters death during the epic, time travel-powered Infinity Stones quest in Avengers: Endgame.

Read more: Scarlett Johansson is highest paid actress in the world

Johansson first played Romanoff in 2010s Iron Man 2 and has since become one of the stalwarts of the MCU, but is appearing in a title role for the first time with Black Widow.

Black Widow nails the landing. (Disney)

The 35-year-old actor said: I think from the very beginning when we first started talking about doing this standalone film, there was no reason to do it unless we could really dig deep and be brave and go there.

Having played this character for a decade, I wanted to make sure that it would feel artistically and creatively rewarding for me as well as the fans.

Black Widow is currently delayed indefinitely with no release date in sight.

Black Widow - UK payoff poster (Marvel Studios/Disney)

Fans on social media have suggested that the movie could debut on the Disney+ streaming platform, which is something that star David Harbour says would be a fun idea.

Story continues

Read more: Study hints at cinema attendance drop even after pandemic

It is also unclear what impact the coronavirus will have on the rest of the Phase Four slate of MCU movies.

The Eternals currently remains scheduled for a November 2020 release date and Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was dated for August, but is currently on a virus-imposed hiatus from production.
Two cruise ships with Canadian passengers aboard finally docked Thursday in Florida after weeks at sea and days of negotiations with initially resistant local officials.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A helicopter hovers over the cruise ship Zaandam as it makes its way to Port Everglades, Thursday, April 2, 2020, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The Zaandam and Rotterdam cruise ships carrying guests and crew with flu-like symptoms will be allowed to dock in Florida's Port of Everglades Thursday, ending a nightmarish voyage disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.(AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Two cruise ships with Canadian passengers aboard finally docked Thursday in Florida after weeks at sea and days of negotiations with initially resistant local officials.

The MS Zaandam and a sister ship, the MS Rotterdam, were both given permission to unload passengers at Port Everglades after reaching an agreement with officials who feared they would divert needed resources from a region that has seen a spike in virus cases.

Earlier Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the Canadians would stay in isolation upon their return to Canada. Trudeau said a chartered plane would carry asymptomatic Canadian passengers aboard the ships home in the coming days, though he didn't provide an exact timeline.

But Catherine McLeod of Ottawa, who was on the Zaandam with her husband before they were transferred to the Rotterdam, said she was preparing to come home, even before American officials gave the ships the go-ahead to dock in Florida.

"It's kind of a done deal we're getting off this pleasure cruise," McLeod said in a phone interview from her cabin. "So we're very, very hopeful. I will feel 100 per cent better once the plane lifts off the runway. It's going to be one hell of a Hallelujah hoot going up then."

She said she and her husband were waiting for a medical check-up to make sure they remained asymptomatic before getting their "disembarkation" papers.

"I think what they're trying to do is get our fannies on a bus and outta here ASAP," McLeod said.

Holland America, which operates the cruises, said U.S. officials at the local, state and national levels cleared both ships to dock on Thursday afternoon, and would allow all guests fit to travel to disembark.

"Guests who still have symptoms will remain on board and disembark at a later date to be finalized after they have fully recovered," the cruise line said.

Global Affairs Canada said the passengers would be screened after the ships docked. It said passengers showing no symptoms will travel to Canada on a flight chartered by the cruise line.

"Once here, they will be screened again and subject to mandatory 14-day self-isolation," the department said in a release. "Passengers who display symptoms after disembarking the ships will be treated locally."

The docking plan indicated that Florida residents would leave the ship first, with the disembarkation of all passengers not concluding until Friday night.

For nearly three weeks, passengers have not been able to leave the ships, and four elderly passengers have died on the Zaandam  at least two from COVID-19, ship owner Carnival Cruise Lines said in a statement.

There are 442 guests and 603 crew on the Zaandam, and 808 guests and 583 crew on the Rotterdam, which was sent last week to take in some of the passengers and provide assistance to the Zaandam since it was denied permission to dock at ports in South America.

Holland America said 97 guests and 136 crew members on the ships have developed flu-like symptoms.

Initially, 248 Canadians were aboard the MS Zaandam, Global Affairs has said.

As for what happens when they return to Canada, the details remain fuzzy.

"My understanding is they will be flown home on a charter flight but we are still looking for those details and we will ensure they are isolated when they get home," Trudeau said.

He did not specifically say if passengers from the ships will be required to remain in quarantine at federal quarantine centres, like passengers from the Diamond Princess and Grand Princess were in February and March.

Chris Joiner of Ottawa, who remains on the Zaandam, said in written messages that he's been told he may be able to disembark on Friday if Florida grants the necessary permissions.

"People are so bored. Some sleep all the time. I mean, booze is free but you cant get drunk every day," Joiner said.

He said the once-lively cruise ship has quieted in the last week.

"The only thing you hear is food being delivered, dishes picked up and the odd knock when your garbage can is emptied or they dropped off clean towels or booze," he said.

Meanwhile, a Toronto couple who were transferred over to the Rotterdam said they were trying to keep their heads up before ultimately putting this disaster behind them.

"Here we are on day 24 of a 14-day cruise!" Kevin and Jeannette Balgopal wrote in an email on Wednesday.

They said the cruise company and captain were providing as much reassurance as they could under the circumstances.

The couple has been confined to their cabin for fear a half-hour of daily "fresh air time" would "jeopardize any attempts to get us to dock," the Balgopals wrote. "Life is not easy."

 With file from The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2020.
'Working round the clock' to aid Venezuelan refugees and migrants during COVID-19 pandemic: UN agencies

1 April 2020 - Two United Nations agencies came together Tuesday to urge the international community not to overlook the on-going plight of millions of refugees and migrants from Venezuela, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread around the world.

The deadly virus might have brought many aspects of life around the world to a standstill, but the humanitarian implications of the Venezuela crisis have not ceased, said the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in a joint statement.

"Concerted action remains more necessary", said Eduardo Stein, the joint UNHCR-IOM Special Representative for refugees and migrants from Venezuela.

"We are urging the international community to boost its support for humanitarian, protection and integration programmes on which the lives of millions of people depend, including host communities", Mr. Stein said.

The number of Venezuelan migrants, refugees and asylum-seekers stood at 4.93 million as of 5 March, according to the Regional Inter-Agency Coordination Platform for Refugees and Migrants from Venezuela (R4V), which based its total on data provided by host countries.

The biggest numbers are in Colombia, Peru and Chile, which together account for more than 1.8 million.

Venezuela's years-long political and economic crisis has left the country divided and impoverished, with dozens of countries withdrawing their support for President Nicolas Maduro, as the United States imposed new sanctions on the country last year. On Tuesday, the US reportedly offered to lift those sanctions, calling for a power-sharing deal.

COVID-19 compounding refugee woes

UNHCR and IOM emphasized that the worldwide COVID-19 emergency compounds an already desperate situation for many refugees and migrants from Venezuela and for the countries that have taken them in. Funding is urgently needed, they said, particularly as the economic impact of the pandemic begins to be felt across Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Regional Inter-Agency Coordination Platform, co-led by IOM and UNHCR, is promoting the inclusion of refugees and migrants from Venezuela in national programmes combatting the virus.

In close coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization, it is also working with national and local authorities to deliver basic support to refugees, migrants and host communities.

Prevention and response measures

While abiding by physical distancing measures, humanitarian partners are implementing a number of prevention and response activities in the main locations where refugees and migrants are hosted, the UNHCR and IOM said, ensuring that people can access information, clean water, soap and appropriate waste disposal.

"Organizations are working around the clock to find innovative ways to continue supporting the most vulnerable individuals in the current context while also supporting national authorities to set up observation and isolation spaces for potential positive COVID-19 cases", the joint statement said.

Since November 2019, a Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan has been responding to the most urgent needs of refugees and migrants from Venezuela in 17 countries as well as those of host communities. However, it has so far received only three per cent of requested funds  putting the future of lifesaving programmes throughout Latin America and the Caribbean at stake, the UNHCR and IOM warned.



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On Monday the Ghana Government received $65m from the World Bank, with another $35m expected next Monday, specifically to assist our efforts to fight Covid-19. It is probably the fastest disbursement of funds Ghana has ever received from the Bank.



The cash is here due to the fast-thinking and action on the part of President Akufo-Addo in engaging the World Bank for Ghana. It has nothing to do against Ghana Beyond Aid. In fact, Government plans to spend over GHS1 billion of our own funds to deal with the impact of the pandemic. But, this situation means we should invite any assistance we can get.



Indeed, Yesterday, mighty US received a cargo plane full of support from Russia. UK is leaning on China for assistance.



On Wednesday March 11, President Akufo-Addo announced a $100m package to fight covid-19 in Ghana. It was bold and the biggest yet in Africa. Ghana only confirmed its first two cases of Coronavirus the very next day.



When his Finance Minister later on went to Parliament to explain that Government was making a case to the World Bank for $100m support, critics went to town immediately, ridiculing the Govt as still dependent on aid.



Never mind the fact that the Ghana Government has been spending money from day one to combat this virus and will spend even much more.



The President deserves credit for acting fast and decisive. His Finance Minister has been co-chairing video conferences (last one was yesterday) with other African finance ministers on how to deal with the virus and its impact. Hes also been busy with the IMF, World Bank and our bilateral partners and corporate Ghana to see how we deal with this crisis.



On March 3, when Covid-19 was only in 60 countries but spreading, the World Bank announced an initial package of up to $12 billion (later increased to $14bn on March 17) in immediate (fast-track) support to assist member countries in their efforts to prevent, detect and respond to the rapid spread of COVID-19. Available to all member countries and to help developing countries strengthen health systems, including better access to health services to safeguard people from the epidemic, strengthen disease surveillance, bolster public health interventions, and work with the private sector to reduce the impact on economies.



Leadership is what we are seeing. But as Ken Ofori-Atta said in Parliament Monday, the virus thrives on indecision, indiscipline and complacency. But, it fails where responsible leadership triumphs and with this I mean leadership at every level, not just from the President, not just from this August House, but from all of us as Ghanaians.



The pictures have our Finance Minister in separate video conferences with African Finance Ministers and the IMF, all last Tuesday.

Source: Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko/facebook









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New Delhi: India saw a steady rise in the number of coronavirus COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday (April 2, 2020) with the figure rising above 2000 to touch 2069 with 53 deaths. Acting tough against the Tablighi Jamaat, whose congregation at Delhi's Nizamuddin is one of the reasons for the jump in the number of positive cases in the last few days, cracked the whip on the Muslim religious body.

According to the latest Ministry of Health and Family Welfare data, the numbers of active cases in India are 1,860 while 156 patients have been cured, discharged or migrated and 53 died. In the total tally, about 400 positive COVID-19 cases have been found whose epidemiological linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster, said the Union Health Ministry while asserting that there was no evidence of widespread community transmission. Notably, 20 existing and 22 potential hotspots have been identified across the country.

A Home Ministry official stated that 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat members and their primary contacts have been quarantined till now across the country following "massive efforts" to check the outbreak. The Centre also directed all the states and union territories that "lockdown measures should be implemented in letter and spirit".

The Home Ministry also informed that at least 960 foreigners linked to the Tablighi Jamaat have been blacklisted and their tourist visas cancelled after they were found to be involved in activities related to Jamaat in the country in violation of the norms. It directed Delhi Police and the Director Generals of Police (DGPs) of concerned states to take necessary legal action against the 960 foreigners for violating provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946, and the Disaster Management Act, 2005.

The action comes after the Tablighi Jamaat's congregation at south Delhi's Nizamuddin emerged as one of the coronavirus COVID-19 hotspots in the country.

Punya Salila Srivastava, a joint secretary in the Union Home Ministry, stated that out of about 2,000 Tablighi Jamaat members in Delhi, 1,804 have been shifted to quarantine centres while 334 symptomatic persons admitted to hospitals.

She added that among the ones in Delhi, 250 are foreigners. "The home ministry along with states and union territories launched a massive effort and about 9,000 Tablighi Jammat workers and their primary contacts were identified and quarantined. Among these, 1,306 people are foreigners."

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla also wrote to all chief secretaries of the states and union territories to take action against those violating the lockdown or making false claims under the Indian Penal Code and the Disaster Management Act. Bhalla averred those violating these laws can be punished with a jail term of up to two years and fine.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal pointed out that there are 208 COVID-19 patients in the national capital, of which 108 were evacuated from the Tablighi Jamaat's Nizamuddin Markaz. He said two people who had attended the congregation died due to COVID-19 on Thursday and cautioned that the number of positive cases may shoot up in the national capital in the coming days.

Violence against doctors and others involved in tackling the coronavirus outbreak was reported from several parts of the country. Seven persons were arrested for the alleged attack on health workers in Madhya Pradesh's Indore while they were trying to quarantine the relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient. They were attacked with stones by an unruly mob leaving two women doctors injured. A video of the attack went viral on social media.

In Bengaluru, too, ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers were threatened, abused and assaulted while trying to carry out a survey in Sadiq area to trace those showing symptoms of coronavirus.

Several states including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala reported a significant rise in the number of positive cases.

In Maharashtra, at least 81 more tested positive during the day, taking its tally to 416, while two more patients succumbed to the infection taking the death toll to 19. The death of a COVID-19 patient from Mumbai's Dharavi, one of the biggest slums in Asia, sparked fears of its spread in the highly congested area.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also hinted at a "staggered" exit from the ongoing lockdown after the 21-day period ends on April 14 while pitching for efforts on a war footing to identify and isolate COVID-19 hotspots.

The Prime Minister, who will share a video message with people on Friday morning, interacted with chief ministers through a video conference and told them to focus on COVID-19 containment measures -- testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine -- and said it was imperative to work on a war footing, identify hotspots, encircle them and ensure that the infection does not spread out.

Over 50 medical staff including doctors and nurses, too, have tested positive for coronavirus across the country. A senior resident doctor of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday. Sources say his wife, who is nine-month pregnant, also tested positive for the deadly virus and has been isolated.

Two resident doctors of Delhi's Safdarjung Hospital and two doctors of Delhi government-run hospitals also tested positive for coronavirus.
In mid-March, La Aurora National Zoo in Guatemala City was forced to close its doors to the public as part of the restrictions on public gatherings to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Inside, Fito, a six-month-old baby giraffe, a three-month-old bear, a two-week-old zebra, and other animals go on with their lives unawares of the pandemic in the world outside.

Rodolfo Gonzalez is an educator at the site, but due to an almost 85% reduction of the staff because of the restrictions to prevent the spread of the virus, he now takes care of young Fito every Tuesday.

Baby Fito is one of the zoo's new and beloved residents and the first giraffe to be born in Guatemala's park, which was founded 96 years ago.

The 14-hectare park operates on public land but is managed by a private foundation and is accostomed to receive some 4,000 visitors per day.

The entrance fees charged accounted for 70% of the zoo's income.

Ana Luca Vsquez, the zoo's marketing manager, said they had to shift employee schedules around, and change their roles to adapt ton the restrictions, and remain able to take care of their animals.

Vasquez said Onyx, a baby jaguar received as a donation, as well as a recently-born male zebra, six small pigs, two emus, and two ostriches are the newest additions to the park who will greet visitors once it reopens to the public.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.
Residents in a housing estate have left heartwarming messages attached to bins ahead of their weekly collection to thank refuse collectors for their hard work.

Bin men completing their weekly collections in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, noticed the brightly-coloured messages.

The messages emerged ahead of this evening's Clap for Carers event which is due to take place at 8pm.

Residents in Bishop's Stortford have left thank you notes on their bins to praise the work of refuse collectors

Joe Connolly who came up with the idea said 'it was the least we could do'

The bin men were moved by the touching sentiments from the residents who are forced to come up with ingenious ways to say thank you while adhering to social distancing guidelines

Millions of Britons will thank those providing vital services - including refuse collectors.

Joe Connolly, who came up with the idea to thank the bin men said it was 'the least we' could do'.

He told The Mirror: 'I often see the binmen working and they have to rush around to meet the very tight schedules they are given.

'They aren't paid a lot and do well for us at the best of times so I thought it was the least we could do on our lovely estate is to say '"Thank you".'

He added: 'I understand they even stopped briefly to take photos on their phones of some of the messages which is very touching. The community is really coming together in such difficult times. There are lessons we can learn from all this and well be the better for it.'

Binmen who saw the tributes, described them as 'lovely'.

Children across the country have been leaving out messages for bin men

Bin men have expressed their surprise after being thanked by people around the country

The residents in Bishop's Stortford called on the refuse collectors to 'carry on' and 'stay safe'

This bin was decorated by children in Cardiff to thank their refuse collectors

People have been sharing evidence of the bin art online developing community spirit
Photo: Giuseppe Milo/Flickr

Read on for the most recent top news you may have missed in Los Angeles. Prosecutors: Engineer deliberately ran train off tracks in attempt to smash the USNS Mercy Read the full story on ABC7. Garcetti authorizes shutting off utilities to nonessential businesses violating Safer at Home Read the full story on Los Angeles Times. Police find 192 rolls of toilet paper stashed in stolen SUV in Beverly Hills Read the full story on KGET - TV 17 Bakersfield. South LA man sues LAPD, alleging officer suffocated him until he was unconscious Read the full story on KTLA 5 News. LA Mayor Garcetti recommends Angelenos wear non-medical face coverings while in public Read the full story on ABC7. This story was created automatically using data about news stories on social media from CrowdTangle, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.

An engineer deliberately ran a train off the tracks at high speed in an attempt to damage the USNS Mercy hospital ship, prosecutors say.

L.A. will shut off water for nonessential businesses operating, Garcetti says.

Southern California officers searching a stolen SUV found 192 rolls of toilet paper, according to a Beverly Hills Police Dept. social media post Tuesday.



A legally blind man is suing the Los Angeles Police Department, alleging an officer suffocated him while he was strapped to a hospital gurney last year.


The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has intensified its public education on the novel coronavirus in all the 15 Municipal and Districts in the Upper East Region.



The sensitization drive, which is being done in collaboration with the Church of Pentecost, is to sensitize the people on the disease, how it spreads and how it can be prevented.



The Church of Pentecost had earlier on released 10 ultra-modern cinema vans to the Commission to enable it to undertake public education on the COVID-19 pandemic across the country.



The Municipal and District Directors of the Commission who were the main speakers across the Region explained to the citizenry the symptoms of the new virus, how it spreads and precautionary protocols put in place to curtail its spread.



At the various communities visited, the team gave a brief history of the coronavirus, the current stage of the disease in Ghana, the mode of transmission, the basic measures and the directives from President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.



At the Kassena-Nankana West District, Mr Robert Danpare, the District Director, NCCE, told the people, The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are: fever, tiredness, dry cough, some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, sore throat and diarrhoea. In more severe cases, the infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory problems, kidney failure and even death.



Mr Danpare explained that the disease was spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth through coughs or sneezes.



He said the virus had an incubation period of one to 14 days before it would be fully manifested in the person.



Mr Danpare noted, the objectives of the public campaign is to limit and stop the importation of the virus, contain its spread, provide adequate care for the sick, limit the impact of the virus on social and economic life, and inspire the expansion of our domestic capability and deepen our self-reliance.



At the Bongo District, Ms Alice Ndego, the District Director, NCCE, Bongo, mentioned regular hand washing with soap under safe running water, covering of mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing, thoroughly cooking meat and eggs and avoid close contact with anyone showing the symptoms as basic precautionary measures of preventing one from being infected.



She urged members of the public to maintain social distancing, practice respiratory hygiene, stay home, and report to the health facilities when one noticed changes in ones health.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Do we need an inspirational anthem to bring unity and hope during the age of coronavirus?

Lionel Richie, co-author of We Are the World, seems to think so. During a recent interview with People, the pop and R&B star said hes been reminiscing about the 1985 song he wrote with Michael Jackson.

We Are the World -- which sold millions of copies and raised more than $75 million for African famine relief -- celebrated its 35 anniversary in mid-March, as the prospect of COVID-19 began to loom large over the United States.

What happened in China, in Europe, it came here. So if we dont save our brothers there, its going to come home. Its all of us. All of us are in this together, Richie said.

The emerging health crisis made the Alabama native ponder the impact and origins of We Are the World, recorded as a seven-minute singathon featuring more than 40 celebrities. Artists such as Diana Ross, Bruce Springsteen, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder, Cyndi Lauper, Willie Nelson and Al Jarreau lent their voices to the project, which was produced by Quincy Jones.

One line in the chorus was particularly telling: "Theres a choice were making, were saving our own lives.

That line, Richie told People, came about as Michael and I were sitting there talking. We said, you can either say, Im saving my life or Were saving our lives. We Are the World is a statement we wanted to make. What do we do to save our own?

Although Richie, 70, stopped short of proposing a new version of We Are the World, he did say that hes been foiled in his efforts to create another, equally inspiring song during the coronavirus pandemic.

"Every time I try and write another message, I write those same words, Richie said.

Obviously, a large group of high-profile vocalists cant stand side-by-side for a recording session, as they did for We Are the World. But Richies comments have prompted some folks to call for a remake. The goal, aside from its possible feel-good benefits: to raise funds for coronavirus research, personal protective equipment for health-care workers and more.

If such a song materialized, would you listen to it? And would it prompt you to donate to whatever charity organization was linked to the recording or livestream?

Consider: We Are the World 25 for Haiti," a 2010 update of the tune, had ample star power, but was not well received.

Gal Gadots celebrity sing-along for John Lennons Imagine went viral in March -- more than 9 million views to date on her Instagram account -- but lets just say it prompted more criticism than praise.

Instead of trying to recreate the past, perhaps we should simply tip our caps to the original We Are the World. (You can watch the video below.) Also, we can practice health habits that help to stem the spread of the coronavirus, engage in social distancing and support local and state organizations that help others in need.

(For a minute-by-minute breakdown of the recording session for We Are the World, and some celebrity fascinating trivia, see this story by Rolling Stone.)

Coronavirus resources: Follow AL.coms live updates of coronavirus in Alabama. Find all of our coronavirus stories. Heres a continuously updated vital information post. A free text-messaging service so you can receive the most urgent coronavirus updates on your cellphone. And ask questions. To sign up, subscribe to Alabama Coronavirus Urgent Alerts. A new weekday newsletter is available. You can subscribe here. Also, download our mobile app where you can receive on-the-go notifications.
NEW DELHI: The ongoing 21-day lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic has altered everybody's lifestyle, including kids. Besides pushing people to adopt a different way of living and working, the spread of the virus in India and the constant buzz around it is increasingly seen as a catalyst that could disturb mental health of millions of housebound children. The National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences Hospital (NIMHANS) has provided some useful tips for taking care of your kids' mental health during the lockdown over COVID-19.

PROVIDE ASSURANCE WHENEVER NEEDED

It is important to reassure your children. Listen to their concerns and try answering their queries related to the outbreak. Spend quality time with them and give them the attention they need.. Reading them stories to put them to sleep will make them feel loved.

KEEP TREM IN CONTACT WITH THEIR FRIENDS

Physical distancing from friends can be a can be cause of distress for the children. Encourage them to talk to their friends, cousins and loved ones by calling them up or through videocalls. You can also involve your children and their friends in some fun activities, which they can do together by staying connected virtually.

MANAGE YOUR CHILD'S ANXIETY

It is normal for your child to become anxious at this time. Look out for the emotional cues in your child and talk to them regarding the same- Avoid being judgemental when they express their feelings. Do not avoid their questions related to COV1D or speak to them harshly. This can increase their fear and anxiety. Instead, make them understand that things will be better if we take proper care. Remember that this is a new situation for your children and do not get irritated with them.

GIVE THEM CLEAR INFORMATION

It is not advisable to provide children with a lot of reports and news related to the outbreak. However it is important to give them correct information as to what is happening around the world. Give them, proper facts in a way that they can understand so that they do not remain confused as this may increase their anxiety. You cart make the explanation.! creative through pictures and drawings.

ENGAGE THEM IN INDOOR ACTIVITIES

During this time. children may get easily bored. Involve them in indoor games to cut down the boredom. YOU can also make their learning fun by giving them puzzles to solve and teaching them crafts. Encourage them to pick up a hobby. Involve the children in some puzzle that they will enjoy. You can also ask them to do stretching exercise and yoga or dancing which they will enjoy. You can ask them to do simple household activities to keep them engaged.

MAKE A ROUTINE OF LEARNING AT HOME

At this time, schools arc closed, however this should not stop the children from learning. Ensure that they have a regular habit of studying by giving them small assignments related to their lessons. Check the assignments to understand their progress. Above all, take good care of your children's health. Ensure that they practise hand washing and cover their mouth and nose with bent elbow when they cough or sneeze. Watch out for any symptoms of COVID-19 and reach out to the doctor if necessary. Have a plan in advance in case your child falls sick. Ensure that the children eat healthy food and get good sleep and

rest.

1N CASE YOU NEED ANY HELP

Please contact COVID 49 Psycho social toll free helpline at 080-46110007 or consult your doctor or a mental health professional.


Panaji, April 2 : Ayuron, a company in which former Chief Minister late Manohar Parrikar was once a director and is now manned by his kin, is in the process of promoting affordable and simple-to-use ventilator technology, in a bid to bridge the nationwide paucity of the life-saving equipment.

Speaking to IANS, Utpal Parrikar, the former Defence Minister's elder son, said the core technology for the ventilators were developed in the US and most of the components utilised in the making of the critical units were manufactured in India, which would make it easier to produce them on a mass scale, in view of the disruption in the global supply chain due COVID-19 crisis.

"The ventilators can be completely manufactured in India, which is critical in the current crisis. They are simple to use and even the nursing staff can be trained to operate and because of the simplistic design, bigger companies can produce them in large numbers," Parrikar said.

The ventilators' foundational technology was invented by doctors Raj Sardesai, Smeeta Sardesai, Nolan Sardesai and Ramanathan at the Eupnea Technologies in Los Angeles, California, while the life-saving gadgets' innovative control technology, including inventing and interfacing oxygenation sensing and monitoring was developed at the Goa-based Ayuron, originally founded with the late Parrikar as one of its directors.

The late politician quit the directorship of the firm, which initially manufactured orthopedic implants, after he was elected as Chief Minister.

Utpal, his wife Uma and his brother Abhijat are now partners in the firm.

Utpal Parrikar also said, that Ayuron had originally planned to start manufacturing of hi-tech ventilators using the same US-patented technology, but on account of the COVID-19 crisis and the increasing need for speedy manufacture of ventilator units, the company has adapted to promoting an affordable and scaled-down version of the ventilator technology.

"If we had started manufacturing ventilators at our firm in Goa, we may not have been able to manufacture as many ventilators as would be required in the current crisis. So we are offering the technology to bigger companies who can ramp up production of these units, which is necessary," Parrikar said, adding that the ventilator technology has already been tested on lung machines and animal models.

Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urge to scale up production of medical equipment, including ventilators, which are critical life-support mechanisms for patients suffering from COVID-19.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 2

Trend:

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on the appointment of a new deputy minister of economy, Trend reports on Apr. 2.

According to the decree, Sahib Alakbarov has been appointed Deputy Minister of Economy.

Sahib Alakbarov served as Head of the Executive Power of Sabail district in 2005-2009, in 2009-2010 - Deputy Chairman of the State Statistical Committee, and since July 2, 2010 - Deputy Minister of Taxes.
When an exercise ball was introduced to her Norwalk, Ohio home, dog Zoey had to face her fears on March 31. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine issued a stay-at-home order for the state through April 6, which included the closure of fitness centers.

This video from Shannon Adams shows her husband Bryan teaching Zoey had to attack the ball, proving that she doesnt have to be afraid of the exercise ball.

Zoey is shown how to nudge the ball with her nose, and the ball doesnt nudge back. Credit: Shannon Adams via Storyful
Years of writing about and studying entrepreneurship and innovation have helped me understand that that every problem is a potential opportunity.

Yes, an entrepreneurship mindset seems trite today as stores close and job loses soar. No one wants to talk about opportunities when so many people here and overseas are struggling. Positives are hard to find in a pandemic that has upended our way of life.

Many Australians are currently struggling but there does need to be forward thinking about business growth on the other side of this crisis. Credit:istock

However, "building a bridge" to get to the other side of this health and economic crisis, as the federal government puts it, is not enough. Business needs to be stronger when it gets there. We will need more creators, innovators and entrepreneurs  in commercial and social enterprises, large and small.

We will need people with new and expanded skills. People who, perhaps, look at work problems differently after coronavirus and can turn them into opportunities and create value for their employer, the community and themselves. People who take their career in new directions.
With the country recording over 2,000 cases of coronavirus, Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte asked the police and military to shoot dead those who "create trouble" during a month-long lockdown of Luzon.

Lockdown has been imposed in the Philippines' largest and most populous island -- Luzon -- to halt the spread of the virus.

"My orders to the police and military including to the village chiefs is that if a commotion breaks out and they put up a fight that puts your life in danger, shoot them dead," Duterte was quoted as saying by The New York Times.

The country has recorded over 90 deaths due to the deadly coronavirus, which originated in China's Wuhan last year. Since then, the virus has infected more than nine lakh people worldwide.

Duterte termed the abuse of medical workers as a serious crime in the televised address late on Wednesday. "Do not intimidate the government. Do not challenge the government. You will lose," he said.

According to Al Jazeera, the comments by the President came after residents of a slum in Manila's Quezon City staged a protest complaining of not having received any food packs and other relief supplies since the lockdown began.

The outlet citing a police report stated that village security officers and police urged the residents to go back to their homes, but they refused. Police arrested 20 people, who had defied the lockdown.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NASHVILLE, Tenn., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Ludi, Inc., a health care technology and physician-advocacy firm, announced today that they're offering all medical professionals nationwide access to a free version of their DocTime Log mobile app as they combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This condensed version of Ludi's tool, DocTime Log Lite, allows physicians, nurses and other health care workers to digitally document their time or shifts, and helps ensure they're compensated for that work.

"Hospitals are mobilizing their teams at lightning speed," said Ludi Founder & CEO Gail Peace. "The last thing any first responder or medical professional should have to worry about during this crisis is their own paycheck, especially given their heroic efforts. We hope our app can serve as a small but helpful tool for all the health care workers as they work to keep us safe and healthy."



Regardless of whether their organization is a customer of Ludi's, any medical professional can download Ludi's app to track their hours/shifts (or other work). The information captured within the app can be exported into an easy-to-read PDF format for the practitioner and emailed to whomever oversees payments in their practice or hospital.



Ludi's free app helps reduce the administrative burden of time tracking in many different scenarios, including:

Extra hours or shifts beyond normal work and in a new location/facility

Locum tenens

Telehealth/virtual consultations

Paying independent doctors (1099)

Health care workers who were not previously on payroll or had a contract in place with a hospital

To access the DocTime Log Lite app, please visit the sign-up page. The app will be available to all medical professionals through the pandemic.

About Ludi, Inc.

Ludi, Inc., is a health care technology and physician-advocacy firm that simplifies the way hospitals and health systems track, manage and audit payments to their physicians. Ludi's team of physician advocates has helped more than 225 hospitals and health systems nationwide automate their physician payment processes, ensuring physicians are appropriately compensated. Visit www.ludiinc.com.

SOURCE Ludi, Inc.

Related Links

www.ludiinc.com


The coronavirus has ravaged all of New York City, closing schools, emptying streets and turning stadiums into makeshift hospitals. And data made public by city health officials on Wednesday suggests it is hitting low-income neighborhoods the hardest.

83 104 Riverdale 362 253 638 255 397 108 470 Coronavirus cases by ZIP code 332 Bronx 208 386 264 376 25 306 377 255 308 367 355 302 267 116 227 217 50 10 100 500 1,000 337 106 304 176 170 55 Harlem 174 126 252 204 290 147 162 110 Manhattan 212 59 104 189 190 27 105 Bayside 211 Astoria 134 187 121 85 378 331 104 49 144 Flushing 119 64 116 123 Long Island City Jackson Heights Midtown Queens 45 492 213 113 947 113 148 121 13 364 Chelsea 288 85 222 166 101 Corona 831 101 140 Greenpoint 161 318 181 Greenwich Village 96 106 181 319 68 156 112 418 122 Williamsburg 164 195 21 250 405 601 26 Middle Village 163 149 17 25 Jamaica 184 329 293 425 155 216 245 Bushwick 204 151 Brooklyn Heights 182 202 Fort Greene 260 16 182 Bedford-Stuyvesant Cypress Hills 117 130 162 Ozone Park 183 225 127 358 173 100 Park Slope 350 Red Hook 223 394 332 261 Brownsville 178 267 East New York 254 211 162 85 Howard Beach 343 Sunset Park 85 344 350 East Flatbush 264 416 St. George Flatbush Canarsie 97 771 106 61 Borough Park Flatlands Bay Ridge 386 175 209 631 534 Brooklyn 86 101 Bensonhurst 364 289 316 436 251 346 452 178 110 Sheepshead Bay Staten Island 348 Brighton Beach 133 New Dorp 143 278 Great Kills 25 146 336 170 Tottenville 67 Coronavirus cases by ZIP code Bronx 10 Manhattan 50 500 Queens 1,000 Brooklyn Staten Island Coronavirus cases by ZIP code Bronx 10 50 500 1,000 Manhattan Queens Brooklyn Staten Island By The New York Times  Note: The map shows total number of cases as of April 1. Source: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene

During the first month of the outbreak in the city  the epicenter of Americas coronavirus crisis  many of the neighborhoods with the most confirmed virus cases were in areas with the lowest median incomes, the data shows. The biggest hot spots included communities in the South Bronx and western Queens.

The data, collected by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, offers the first snapshot of an outbreak that infected more than 40,000 and killed more than 1,000 in the city in its first month.

[Read the latest coverage of the coronavirus outbreak in the New York area.]

The coronavirus has spread into virtually every corner of the city, and some wealthier neighborhoods have been overrun with cases, including some parts of Manhattan and Staten Island. But that may be because of the availability of testing in those areas. Nineteen of the 20 neighborhoods with the lowest percentage of positive tests have been in wealthy ZIP codes.

The patterns are even more striking when analyzing the data on people who visited the citys 53 emergency rooms with the flulike symptoms that are a hallmark of the coronavirus.

Over all, nearly three times as many people with flulike symptoms like fever, cough or sore throat visited city emergency rooms this March when compared with the same month in previous years.

In the last four years, there were on average 9,250 flu-related visits to emergency rooms in March; this March, the number tripled to about 30,000.

Flu-Related E.R. Visits by ZIP Code Circles are sized by the number of flu-related visits by residents in each ZIP code. Average of March visits in 2016-19 March 2020 Average of March visits in 2016-19 March 2020 March 2020 Average of March visits in 2016-19 By The New York Times  Note: E.R. visits are calculated to show the rate per 1,000 people. Source: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene

The increases in flu-related emergency room visits varied widely by neighborhood, with many of the surges occurring among residents of neighborhoods where the typical household income is less than the city median of about $60,000, the data shows.

In Corona, Queens, for example, the median household income is about $48,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That neighborhood is near the Elmhurst Hospital Center, which Mayor Bill de Blasio has cited as the hardest-hit hospital in the city. Doctors in the overwhelmed emergency room there have described the conditions as apocalyptic.

By The New York Times  E.R. visits are calculated to show the rate per 1,000 people. Sources: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; 2014-18 American Community Survey

Dr. Jessica Justman, an epidemiologist at Columbia University in Manhattan, said the numbers were most likely because many immigrants and low-income residents live with large families in small apartments and cannot isolate at home.

I think unfortunately this is showing how devastating that can be, Dr. Justman said.

In New York, experts said, a vast majority of people visiting emergency rooms with flu-like symptoms probably have the coronavirus.

Weve actually stopped testing for the flu because its all coronavirus, said Bruce Farber, chief of infectious disease at North Shore University Hospital, part of Northwell Health, a network of 23 hospitals throughout the state. Almost anybody who has an influenza illness right now almost certainly has coronavirus.

Many of the emergency rooms with the biggest increases in patients who have flulike symptoms are in Queens, the borough that has the highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases. There are about 616 confirmed cases for every 100,000 residents in Queens, and 584 confirmed cases for every 100,000 residents in the Bronx. Thats far more per 100,000 than the 376 in Manhattan and 453 in Brooklyn.

With infections across all five boroughs, New York has far more confirmed cases than any other city in the United States.

Coronavirus cases Coronavirus deaths 3,000 150,000 100,000 2,000 All U.S. cases All U.S. deaths 50,000 1,000 New York City March 1 March 31 March 1 March 31 Coronavirus cases Coronavirus deaths 3,000 150,000 100,000 2,000 All U.S. cases All U.S. deaths 50,000 1,000 New York City March 1 March 31 March 1 March 31 By The New York Times  Sources: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; New York Times database of coronavirus cases in the U.S.

The emergency room data also tracks admissions  the number of E.R. visitors who end up treated at a hospital. On that metric, the data shows that older visitors are far more likely to be admitted than younger visitors.

There is a simple reason for that difference, according to the hospital officials and experts: The coronavirus seems to take a bigger toll on older people, as well as those with compromised immune systems.

I dont think that infection rates are necessarily different between older and younger people, said Dr. Isaac Weisfuse, the former deputy head for disease control at the citys Department of Health. Elderly have worse clinical outcomes than younger patients, and may have more pre-existing conditions.

E.R. Admissions for Flulike Illness and Pneumonia Per 100,000 people Ages 0-17 18-44 45-64 65-74 75+ 30 15 Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. Jan. March March March March March Ages 75+ 30 15 Jan. March 65-74 30 15 Jan. March 45-64 30 15 Jan. March 18-44 30 15 Jan. March 0-17 30 15 Jan. March By The New York Times  Note: The chart shows E.R. admissions as of March 31. Source: New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene

Over all, more than 8,500 people have been hospitalized with the coronavirus in New York City. That number is expected to soar in the coming weeks.

But officials are hopeful that the social distancing restrictions put in place by the state may have finally started to at least slow the spread of the coronavirus. They have noted that the number of hospitalizations is now doubling every six days, instead of every two or three days.

The citys data shows a slight decline in emergency room admissions over last weekend, and then continuing increases this week.

Dr. Denis Nash, an epidemiologist at the City University of New Yorks School of Public Health, said it was still too soon to tell whether the social distancing restrictions were working.

It may be too soon to say whats really going on here, he said. I just hope it means something good.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  The Philippine government is targeting an April 14 start of "massive testing" of persons suspected of coronavirus infection.

Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez, who is also the chief implementer of the national government's response to the COVID-19 outbreak, said Thursday that they have asked the Department of Health to fast-track the accreditation of more coronavirus testing facilities.

He said nine hospitals have been accredited so far. Previously, only the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine was conducting COVID-19 testing, resulting in delays in the release of test results.

"We're also determined to fast track the accreditation of subnational laboratories so we can start the massive testing of the PUIs (persons under investigation) and the PUMs (persons under monitoring)," Galvez said.

"We expect that by April 14 we should be able to start massive testing," he added.

READ: COVID-19 response head clears air on mass testing

Galvez said the PUIs and PUMs -- composed mostly of those with COVID-19 symptoms and those who had contact with known cases -- will be quarantined as soon as facilities are available.

The conversion of the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila into a quarantine facility is expected to be completed this week. Other quarantine areas include the World Trade Center, Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex, and the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City.

The Philippines now has 2,633 confirmed COVID-19 cases. Of this number 107 have died while 51 have recovered.

President Rodrigo Duterte has placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine, restricting people's movement, to contain the spread of the virus. Other areas in the Visayas and Mindanao have enforced their own lockdown and quarantine guidelines.
Soon after advertising the job opening for the post of Astronauts and escape the planet earth, the US space agency NASA was bombarded by the applications. As per latest data revealed by space agency, more than 12,000 individuals have actually related to sign up with NASAs following class of astronauts, showing solid national interest to take part in Americas strategies to check out the Moon as well as take humankinds next large jump human goals to Mars.

This new course also may launch aboard NASAs powerful brand-new Room Launch System rocket as well as Orion spacecraft for Artemis missions to the Moon. Starting in 2024, NASA will send the very first female as well as next man to the lunar surface and will develop sustainable lunar exploration by 2028. Acquiring understandings from new experiences on as well as around the Moon will certainly prepare NASA to send the first people to Mars in the 2030s.

 Weve entered a vibrant brand-new period of area expedition with the Artemis program, and we are thrilled to see a lot of extraordinary Americans apply to join us, said NASA Manager Jim Bridenstine. The next course of Artemis Generation astronauts will certainly help us discover more of the Moon than ever before and lead us to the Red Planet.

Applications were gotten from every U.S. state, the Area of Columbia, and 4 U.S. territories. The procedure is just starting for NASAs Astronaut Selection Board, which will certainly examine the candidates certifications and also welcome the most certified candidates to the firms Johnson Space Facility in Houston for meetings and clinical tests before making a final option. NASA anticipates to introduce the brand-new astronaut prospects in the summertime of 2021.

Because the 1960s, NASA has chosen 350 individuals to educate as astronaut prospects for its progressively difficult missions to discover room. With 48 astronauts in the active astronaut corps, more will be required to work as team aboard spacecraft bound for multiple destinations as well as propel expedition forward as part of Artemis objectives as well as past.

The application for the newest class of astronauts opened up March 2 and also shut March 31. The variety of individuals who put on be an astronaut stands for the second-highest variety of applications NASA has actually ever before received, gone beyond just by the record of 18,300 set by the most recent class of astronauts who finished in January.

 We have the ability to construct such a strong astronaut corps at NASA since we have such a solid pool of candidates to choose from, said Anne Roemer, manager of the Astronaut Option Board as well as supervisor of personnels at Johnson. Its constantly impressive to see the diversity of education and learning, experience as well as skills that are stood for in our applicants. We are delighted to begin evaluating astronaut applications to identify the next course of astronaut candidates.

As soon as chosen, the astronaut prospects will experience roughly two years of preliminary abilities training, such as spacewalking, robotics, and also spacecraft systems, in addition to expeditionary habits skills, such as management, followership, and synergy. After finishing training, the new astronauts can launch on American rockets and spacecraft developed for NASAs Industrial Team Program to live and also work aboard the International Spaceport Station, 250 miles over Planet. There they will participate in experiments that profit life at home and prepare us for the Moon and Mars.

For this round of applications, NASA enhanced the education demand for candidates from a bachelors level to a masters degree in a scientific research, technology, mathematics, or engineering field. Furthermore, the application period was shortened from two months to one.
BioMax Face Shield "Proper use of face shields offers a greater level of protection to N95 masks, allowing hospitals to conserve scarce resources." - Bruce Powell, President and Founder of BioMax

In response to calls for help from healthcare workers, BioMax has begun producing reusable face shields. As large manufacturers nation-wide scramble to retool their machinery to build N95 masks and ventilators, hospitals are being forced to make do reusing masks or in extreme cases, using hand-sewn masks to protect employees from contracting infectious diseases. We dont know when these items will be readily available so were trying to provide some stop-gap support. Proper use of face shields offers a greater level of protection to N95 masks, allowing hospitals to conserve scarce resources. said Bruce Powell, President and Founder of BioMax.

Designed specially to accommodate masks and glasses/googles being worn beneath the shield, BioMax Face Shields are a one-size-fits-all solution for those on the frontline of testing and treatment. They are built to meet Johns Hopkins medical standards using durable PETG plastic. Acting as a splatter guard, the face shield lessens the chance of large particles and/or moisture rendering a providers N95 mask unusable. When used correctly, the surfaces of the BioMax Face Shield can be wiped clean and re-used several times.

As the US surpasses China in total number of COVID-19 Coronavirus cases, there is growing concern about the number of medical professionals who are contracting the virus due largely to a lack of proper protection. In many cases, shortages are leaving hospitals woefully undersupplied; even going so far as to ask employees to supply their own personal protective equipment.

If healthcare workers continue to practice unprotected, not only will they themselves be at higher risk for infection, but previously uninfected patients they treated while contagious will be as well. There is a very real possibility that so many doctors and nurses will fall ill that hospitals will find themselves totally understaffed and unable to respond to the rapidly swelling number of COVID-19 patients. Experts believe that implementing higher levels of PPE like BioMax Face Shields is one of the most important ways to prevent provider illness and help slow the spread of the virus.

###

ExhibitMax, BioMax, and BioMax Face Shield are either registered trademarks or trademarks of ExhibitMax Inc.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

For more information on BioMax Face Shields:

https://biomaxsystems.com/

For pricing and availability, please contact:

Bruce Powell

(952) 641-6771 or (612) 804-9264

bpowell@exhibitmax.net
Michigan has 1,457 new cases of coronavirus COVID-19 as of Thursday afternoon, April 2, which brings the states total confirmed cases to 10,791.

Additionally, the state reported 80 new deaths during its 3 p.m. update. That brings the virus death toll in Michigan to 417.

One week ago today, the state had 2,896 cases and 60 deaths. Confirmed cases have increased significantly each day since the state began reporting numbers in early March, due in part to an increase in testing.

The number of new cases announced Thursday was the first decline in new cases in a 24-hour period from the day before since Sunday, March 29.

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Sixty-eight of Michigans 83 counties are home to at least one confirmed case of coronavirus, with Dickinson County announcing its first positive case on Thursday.

Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties remain the three hardest hit areas in Michigan with 79.5 percent of the total confirmed cases and almost 89 percent of the states deaths from the virus. The trio of Southeast Michigan counties are home to 39 percent of the states residents.

In Detroit alone, there are 2,858 cases of COVID-19 and 101 deaths. The disproportionate number of cases in the metro Detroit area is a result of multiple factors, including the large population, more aggressive testing in those counties and community spread of coronavirus, according to experts.

Counties that announced their first death Thursday include Clinton, Eaton, Grand Traverse, and Van Buren.

As of Thursday, Wayne County leads the state with 5,069 cases, including 2,858 in Detroit alone. Oakland County has 2,183 cases, followed by Macomb with 1,332, Washtenaw with 438 and Genesee with 349.

Wayne County has had 194 deaths, while Oakland County has reported 119 and Macomb County has had 58.

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Health officials expected the number of confirmed cases to increase dramatically as more testing has become available.

Of the 29,324 total specimens tests in Michigan as of Wednesday, April 1, 7,158 tests were positive (24.4 percent) and 22,054 tests were negative for COVID-19.

Counts of specimens tested positive will not equal the number of people with COVID-19, state health officials said, because people may have more than one test or may have had their test from an out-of-state lab. The total number of samples tested also include those that were inconclusive.

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CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

More on MLive:

This does not mean our kids will stop learning, Whitmer says after extending school closures due to coronavirus

Michigans chief medical executive: strongly consider wearing masks in public during coronavirus pandemic

Michigan education leaders largely support extended k-12 school closure due to coronavirus

Whitmer orders all Michigan schools to remain closed through academic year as coronavirus cases surge

Michigan unemployment claims spike as coronavirus cases continue rapid growth
The death toll in the US from the coronavirus pandemic, which is now over 4,500, has eclipsed the number of nearly 3,000 people killed in the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. And if trends continue, the White House fears that 100,000 to 240,000 deaths are likely in the country.

Anthony Fauci, the countrys top infectious disease expert, warned that the numbers are what we need to anticipate, but that doesnt mean that thats what were going to accept. Our hope is to get that down as much as we can.

Fauci, a member of the White House task force, and Deborah Birx, who also serves on the task force, said in a presentation that 100,000 to 240,00 Americans could die despite the social distancing and other mitigation efforts. The toll could be higher - 1.5 to 2.2mn - if nothing was done, they said.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

Also on Tuesday, UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres said the pandemic is the most challenging crisis we have faced since the Second World War.

The deadly disease has spread to more than 170 countries. It has infected more than 912,000 people worldwide, claiming over 45,500 lives so far.

The staggering scale and reach of the pandemic is unprecedented in recent history, as the UN secretary-general noted at a news briefing to release a report on the socioeconomic impact of Covid-19. This is, indeed, the most challenging crisis we have faced since the Second World War and the one that needs a stronger and more effective response that is only possible in solidarity if everybody comes together and if we forget political games and understand that it is humankind that is at stake, Guterres said.

Also Read: China shielding top cities from 2nd wave

The US has the most confirmed cases now. Going up by nearly 30,000, the figure stood at around 205,000 on Wednesday - more than twice the number of cases in China. At least 4,500 people in the US have died from the disease. New York state with over 83,700 cases has overtaken Hubei provinces 67,000.

The US, which has more deaths than in China, remained behind worst-hit Italy and Spain in terms of fatalities. New York state and NYC remained the hardest hit in the US. These numbers, as around the United States, will continue to rise in the coming days and weeks..

US President Donald Trump told reporters the US will go through a very tough two weeks.. very, very painful two weeks.

The Trump administration is accepting help from other countries. A planeload of masks and other medical equipment took off from a Moscow airfield earlier on Wednesday for the US.
By early March, missionaries from several Southeast Asian countries were in India. Nearly all of them passed through the bustling complex in Delhis storied Nizamuddin district and then traveled on to different parts of India. Several of them later died, including a Filipino man and six Indonesians. One Indian who went home to Kashmir after participating in a three-day event at the Delhi center also died.
Saudi Arabia imposed a 24-hour curfew on Thursday in the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina, extending measures to combat coronavirus, while other Gulf Arab states locked down districts with large migrant worker populations, Reuters reported.

The Saudi interior ministry stipulated exceptions, including for essential workers and to allow residents to buy food and access medical care. Cars may only carry one passenger.

Saudi Arabia has recorded 1,885 infections and 21 deaths, the most in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council. It has already halted international flights, suspended the year-round umrah pilgrimage, closed most public places, and heavily restricted internal movement.

The eastern oil-producing province of Qatif, where the kingdoms first coronavirus cases were reported among Shiite Muslim pilgrims returning from Iran, has been on lockdown for nearly four weeks.

Entry and exit to Riyadh, Mecca, Medina and Jeddah is limited. Some neighbourhoods in Mecca and Medina were already under full lockdown, but in the rest of those cities the curfew was previously from 3 p.m. to 6 a.m.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 13:32:21|Editor: Liu

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TASHKENT, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Uzbekistan donated protective medical supplies and daily necessities to Afghanistan to help the war-torn country fight the COVID-19 pandemic, Uzbekistan National News Agency (UzA) reported Thursday.

The supplies include medical masks, protective overalls, flour, cooking oil, rice, laundry soap and clothes for children, and will be transported to Afghanistan by rail, said the UzA.

"Today there is no country in the world that would be indifferent to the fate of other countries," the UzA quoted Samandar Hikmatullayev, a press officer of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, as saying.

Uzbekistan shares border with Afghanistan in the south, and has been participating in the socio-economic revival and regional infrastructure projects, including building railways and electricity lines, of the war-torn country.
By Ofeliya Afandiyeva

The Analytical Expertise Center under the Azerbaijani Ministry of Health has warned citizens over methyl alcohol usage.

The warning comes after nine people were admitted to the Toxicology Department of the Clinical Medical Center in the period of March 21 to 30. Four of the patients have lost their lives. The patients had sought to prevent contracting the novel coronavirus by consuming methyl alcohol.

It is recommended to use the disinfectant ethanol solution (medical ethyl alcohol) sold in pharmacies only for the purposes of disinfection. Ingestion of this solution in any dilution is dangerous and unacceptable, the centers statement reads.

Azerbaijan has registered 400 people coronavirus cases so far. Twenty-six citizens have recovered and five have died form the disease.

Azerbaijans Cabinet of Minister announced on April 2 that the government might impose emergency situation due to the growing number of infected people.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
A government employee hanged himself in his office here, according to Senior Superintendent of Police Dinesh Kumar P.

In his suicide note, he wrote that he was afraid of the coronavirus. His family members said that he had been depressed for a long time.

Earlier in Chhattisgarh, a 35-year-old man from Tagapani, Dhamtari, who was put under home isolation by the Health Department after his return from Tamil Nadu, committed suicide.

There has been an increase of 131 COVID-19 cases in the last 12 hours as the total number of the coronavirus positive cases on Thursday rose to 1965 in India. This includes 1,764 active cases, 151 cured, discharged or migrated patients and 50 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Rows of empty seats on an American Airlines flight as seen on a flight from Washington, D.C, to Miami on March 18, 2020.

REUTERS/Carlos Barria

American Airlines forced passengers to sit next to each other even though their flight was virtually empty, according to a report by Mother Jones.

The incident took place on a flight on March 24, which had only 11 passengers, all in basic economy, according to the outlet, citing an unnamed flight attendant.

Although there were plenty of seats, none were moved because "that would be an upgrade," according to a flight attendant on the plane, who did not give their name.

American Airlines told Business Insider it could not confirm or deny the account without a specific flight number.

It pointed to a policy introduced on March 24 allowing passengers to sit further apart.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

American Airlines made passengers on a near-empty plane sit right next to each other because it was not prepared to move them to more expensive seats, according to a new report.

According to Mother Jones, which published accounts from several unnamed American flight attendants, the flight in question took off on March 24 with only 11 people on board.

Related Video: How Long Will Social Distancing Last? It's Complicated.

However, the attendant said they were all seated in the back three rows because "they bought basic economy fares, so we can't put them further up in the cabin, because that would be an upgrade."

According to Mother Jones, the incident was one example of a broader trend at American.

Mother Jones said that the flight attendants later overruled the seating plan on their own initiative to spread them out.

American Airlines, when contacted by Business Insider about the account, said it could neither confirm or deny the claim without a specific flight number.

Flight attendants are at high risk of catching the coronavirus in the confined space of an airplane cabin.

Mehmet Ali Ozcan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

It pointed to a policy introduced on March 24  the same day as the incident described by Mother Jones  which provided for more social distancing.

It said American would allow passengers to move into vacant seats and said block as many middle seats as possible.

Business Insider
A 45-year-old resident of Dharavi area of Mumbai who had contracted coronavirus died on Wednesday evening, prompting the civic authorities to seal the building where he lived.

The death has sparked major concerns of the outbreak in Asia's largest and densely populated slum. A second case of coronavirus was reported from Dharavi in less than 24 hours of the man's death.

The man, who lived in a building constructed under the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) scheme, had no foreign travel history, said a health official of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.

BCCL

After he died at nearby government-run Sion Hospital, some 300 tenements in the building and around 30 shops were cordoned off by police.

Residents of the building were quarantined at home.

The deceased had a garment shop at AKG Nagar in Dharavi, the official told news agency PTI.

One #Coronavirus positive case has been found in Shahu Nagar of Dharavi in Mumbai. A team of Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is at the spot. Police is planning to seal the concerned building where the person has been found. More details awaited. pic.twitter.com/3q7ClPqnXG  ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

The person from Dharavi in Mumbai who had tested positive for #Coronavirus has died at Sion Hospital. He had symptoms like fever, cough, respiratory issues and also had co-morbid condition of renal failure. pic.twitter.com/24JA6pIwLR  ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

The Dharavi Covid case is more worrying. He has already died which means case was detected late. May be many cases are not showing up for a test for fear of being isolated. The dread and stigma could be keeping some away. Need to ramp up surveillance now.  Ram (@ramprasad_c) April 1, 2020

The official also said that police had faced some stone pelting as they tried to disperse a crowd that had gathered in the area after learning about the man's death.

A group of persons started arguing with policemen and some of them started throwing stones, he said.

BCCL

Although no one was injured in the incident. Police have however registered a case against unidentified persons.

Mumbai is among the virus hotspots identified by the country, with 181 cases and nine deaths. The total number of positive cases in Maharashtra is 335; 16 people are dead.

More than a million people live in Dharavi, a 5 square km slum that has a maze of dirty lanes and cramped huts packed with large families.




Toiling steel ventures ask for state urgency, photo Shutterstock

Hoa Phat Group, one of the leading Vietnamese private steelmakers, has failed to run its hot-rolled coil facility as scheduled. The group said that the line at its $2.6 billion Dung Quat complex in the central province of Quang Ngai finished installing equipment and was expected to test run and go into operation next month, but is likely to be delayed as Italian experts and other overseas engineers are stranded outside Vietnam. This is a modern and highly-automated line. Italian and other foreign engineers cannot be replaced for completion of the blast furnace, said the group, which has supported the government with around VND5 billion ($217,400) to battle the pandemic.

Hoa Phat added that the hot-rolled coil line at Dung Quat complex will begin operations as soon as it is feasible. This delay could place more burdens on the groups strategy to increase the steel supply, leading to changes in market shares for steelmakers domestically this year. This key project was slated to double the sectors output of steel products to 4.35 million tonnes per year in the first stage.

Meanwhile, the virus pandemic is taking a bite out of profits ranging from petrochemicals and semiconductors to steel at Taiwan-based Formosa Plastic Group, which operates a $10.5-billion steel and port complex in the central province of Ha Tinh. In light of the ongoing pandemic, Formosa Ha Tinh Steel has lowered prices for its hot-rolled coil products for May shipment and delivery to $40 per tonne. Formosa also decreased its wire rod offers for cargoes to be shipped and delivered in March.

Although the numbers of new infections and deaths in China are decreasing, other countries in Asia such as Japan, Singapore, and Vietnam have reported increasing infection cases. According to commodity data provider Fastmarkets, this affects the downstream demand from end-users, who are confident that prices will fall further and are in no hurry to purchase materials.

Thus, it is forecasted that the weak demand may hold Formosas plan to begin a third blast furnace construction after firing its second last year to bring the groups total production capacity to 6.71 million tonnes of liquid cast iron annually, with sales estimated at $3.5 billion

Meanwhile, other local steelmakers are in extreme difficulties and blocked from both export and import lines while the domestic consumption is gloomy as nearly all works are at a standstill. Hoa Sen Group JSC, Nam Kim Steel JSC, and Pomina Steel JSC estimated that profits in the first quarter of 2020 plummeted at least 30 per cent on-year. Dai Thien Loc Corporation, specialising in manufacturing cold-rolling and galvanised steel, is projected to lose about VND12 billion ($521,740) in the same period.

Nghiem Xuan Da, chairman of the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA) said that Vietnams steel market was indeed gloomy, with moderate production and sales. He added that businesses who want to sell their products have to severely lower prices compared to standard market level, though consumption remains very low. Inventories of finished products are increasing, while businesses still have to pay interest on bank loans and storage costs.

In the first two months of 2020, the domestic steel production and consumption are estimated to have decreased by 35-40 per cent on-year, in which galvanised steel, sheet metal items, and coating colours for domestic consumption reduced nearly 70 per cent, and cold-rolled steel by 87 per cent on-year, according to Da.

He added that the VSA has called on the government to help through two proposals  extension for steelmakers loans, and a reduction in lending rates. A representative of a steelmaker who declined to be named said that what businesses want from the government is support with specific and practical policies.

He called a drop of 5 per cent in the corporate income tax rate, which has already been applied by some countries.
Three people have been detained after a group of miscreants pelted stones at officials in Rampur's Tanda area on Wednesday. The incident occurred while the security personnel were patrolling the area to ensure that people stay in their houses during the COVID-19 lockdown.

None of the officials were injured in the incident.

"A group pelted stones at the police team from their terrace. A case has been registered and action is being taken to arrest them," said Arun Kumar Singh, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Rampur.

Three people were detained during the incident and cases have been registered against six people, including a woman, under relevant Sections.

Deputy District Magistrate Gaurav Kumar (IAS), Tehsildar Mahendra Bahadur Singh, police station in-charge Durga Singh, along with other officials, were patrolling in the area on foot.

These officials were making an announcement for the people to stay inside their houses during the lockdown. A few people were seen on roads and got into an argument with the patrolling officials.

As the police officials tried to intervene, the miscreants resorted to stone-pelting.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Of the three, Constellation has the most on the line. Its beer business largely amounts to making its portfolio of Mexican brands just over the Texas border, then importing them to the United States. They have been among the nations most popular beers even as the overall industry struggles.
Trump urges Florida to allow cruise ships with COVID-19 outbreak to dock

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 10:26 AM

US President Donald Trump is urging the governor of Florida to open a port to two Dutch cruise ships stuck off the Pacific coast of Central America with a deadly coronavirus outbreak onboard.

Speaking on Tuesday during a White House press briefing, Trump said he would call Florida Governor Ron DeSantis about whether to allow the two Holland America cruise ships to dock.

DeSantis has declared the cruise ships unwelcome to prevent their sick passengers from being "dumped" on his state.

"They're dying on the ship," Trump said, adding, "I'm going to do what's right, not only for us but for humanity."

The president's remarks contrast with his response in February to a different cruise ship, the Grand Princess, which he said should remain at sea instead of coming into port in California.

The Zaandam, and its sister ship, the Rotterdam, were allowed to sail through the Panama Canal into the Caribbean on Sunday and are now headed to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, officials said.

But it remained uncertain who would be permitted to disembark in Florida, where concerns about the spread of the coronavirus were mounting. The Zaandam was carrying nearly 1,050 passengers and crew, and the Rotterdam almost 1,450.

"We cannot afford to have people who aren't even Floridians dumped into South Florida using up those valuable resources," DeSantis told Fox News on Monday.

As of Monday, 76 passengers and 117 crew members on the Zaandam and Rotterdam were showing influenza-like symptoms, including eight people who have tested positive for the virus.

Over 4,000 people have already died from COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, in the United States, more than the 2,977 who died in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The total confirmed US cases has now risen to nearly 188,600.

Worldwide, there are more than 870,000 cases of the highly contagious illness and over 43,000 deaths reported.

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More than a dozen people waited in line outside Polo Park shopping centre for nearly an hour Wednesday, for the opportunity to get their own stash of face masks and hand sanitizer from a private retailer.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More than a dozen people waited in line outside Polo Park shopping centre for nearly an hour Wednesday, for the opportunity to get their own stash of face masks and hand sanitizer from a private retailer.

Showcase has pivoted from selling infomercial products, such as Sharper Image blankets and Dr. Ho's brand massagers, to stocking pricey "coronavirus supplies" online and in its more than 100 stores during the global pandemic.

Samir Kulkarni, Showcase chief executive officer, said the decision to sell sanitizer and masks, including N95 respirators recommended for use in health-care facilities, was a public service.

"Theres a worldwide shortage of these goods," Kulkarni told the Free Press over the phone. "If we and other Canadian retailers dont step up and do their part, we may not get our fair share of essential supplies in Canada."

When asked who is deserving of such essential supplies, Kulkarni said it depends on the product. Showcase is making hand sanitizer available to anyone who wants a bottle, while masks are being limited to first responders, health-care workers and seniors.

However, theres nothing stopping someone from falsely identifying as a front-line worker in-store or online.

"We are asking customers to confirm that they are, in fact, part of that essential service group," Kulkarni said. "We are counting on the honesty and trust of Canadians."

During Wednesdays provincial news briefing, Manitoba chief public health officer Dr. Brent Roussin advised the public against buying face masks for personal use.

"Personal protective equipment needs to be in the place that it is most important and that's in the hands of health-care workers," Roussin said. "There's really no use for the general public to be using masks."

Winnipeg shoppers were invited via email to visit Showcases Polo Park location between noon and 5 p.m. Wednesday to purchase a maximum of five sanitizer bottles and five masks per customer. The first 30 minutes of the sales day was reserved for first responders, hospital workers, government employees, and seniors; the remainder was intended for anyone working outside their home.

Some lined up outside the mall were buying supplies for the workplace, others were shopping for personal use.

"Im trying to protect myself," said Anne Davies, a 79-year-old who lives in an apartment building with 150 suites.

Seniors and front-line workers line up to buy hand sanitizer and N95 masks at Showcase at Polo Park mall in Winnipeg on April 1, 2020. (Mikaela MacKenzie / Winnipeg Free Press)

"I go out everyday, at least four times a day with my dog, and I need to have something protecting me when I pass people in the hallways, because sometimes they dont keep their distance."

Mother-daughter pair Leilane and Libertine Espinosa had hopes of buying masks and hand sanitizer  items theyve had a hard time finding locally.

"We go everywhere  Walmart, Superstore, Safeway, and theres nothing," said Leilane.

Libertine, who was wearing a face mask while she waited, works in a daycare centre and has been buying her own protective gear to wear on the job.

"The other people are out and about and you dont know where theyve been, so I want to make sure that Im safe," she said. "You just feel safer, you know youre doing something to protect yourself when you feel helpless."

The slow-moving line also included a physiotherapist, flight paramedic, and Child and Family Services employee picking up items to use at work.

On Wednesday, Showcase was only allowing five customers in the store at a time. After nearly an hour of waiting, Saranjit Dhaliwal, who works with seniors at the Misericordia Health Centre, emerged from the mall with a small box and a larger bill than she had expected.

"I spent a lot of money," Dhaliwal said. "It was like $160 for five bottles (of hand sanitizer) and like $30 for these (masks)."

Jen Zoratti | Next A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Showcases online store has sanitizer ranging in price from $3.99 for a small bottle to $29.99 for a 946-millilitre vessel. Single surgical face masks are available for $1.69; N95 respirators start at $9.99 for one or $199.99 for 20.

Kulkarni was adamant his Brampton, Ont.,-based company is not trying to profit off the market demand created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We are not price-gouging and, in fact we, are losing money every day that we are open," he said. "The products we sell and the prices we charge dont even cover the cost of the inventory, the air freight, the wages, the mall rent."

Kulkarni said Showcase has also been selling bulk orders to governments and health institutions in Canada, but didn't provide specifics.

eva.wasney@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @evawasney
- Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has indicated that the Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyeman Manu "misspoke" when he commented about the Bank of Ghana Hospital

- Kwaku Agyeman Manu said the bank's hospital would be reserved for the treatment of its staff and VIPs should they get coronavirus

- But Oppong Nkrumah admitted that his colleague might have not given the right information

Our Manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah says the Minister of Health, Kwaku Agyeman Manu, might not have given the right information when he commented about the Bank of Ghana Hospital.

Kwaku Agyeman Manu yesterday, April 1, 2020, said the bank had made available two floors of its hospital to host 20 beds for the treatment of its staff and VIPs should they get coronavirus.

READ ALSO: Bank of Ghana makes hospital available for all coronavirus patients

Kwaku Agyeman Manu said because the Ministry of Health did not have jurisdiction over the facility, it agreed with the Bank of Ghana to treat only the central banks staff and some VIPs.

READ ALSO: Coronavirus: Video of social distance fufu pounding hits the internet

The development got more people bashing the Central Bank for opening up the facility for only a select group of people in the country.

But Oppong Nkrumah, speaking on Citi TV, admitted that his colleague might have not given the right information.

READ ALSO: Kennedy Agyapong allegedly escapes assassination as gunmen storm his house

I think he probably misspoke and the Bank has provided some clarity, Mr. Nkrumah said.

The Bank of Ghana clarified that the hospital will be available for the benefit of the general public.

The Bank further assured the public of its support as the country continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

READ ALSO: Coronavirus patient who escaped quarantine facility at Tamale still not found - Regional Minister

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that Bank of Ghana has changed its mind about allowing only staff and VIPs who get infected with coronavirus to be treated at its hospital.

The Central Bank says as part of measures put in place to help fight the deadly coronavirus, the Bank of Ghana Hospital will be available for the benefit of all Ghanaians during this period.

In a release sighted by YEN.com.gh, Bank of Ghana said they will make the facility available for everyone who contracts the coronavirus.

This brave man is risking his life to educate Ghanaians about the spread of Coronavirus | #Yencomgh

Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Get interactive via our Facebook page.

Enjoyed reading our story? Download YEN's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Ghana news!

Source: YEN.com.gh
New Delhi: Nizamuddin police station SHO Mukesh Walia on Thursday (April 2) lodged an FIR against Tablighi Jamaat followers of Markaz for not following lockdown orders, including social distancing, hand sanitizers and wearing the mask, with the Crime Branch of Delhi Police.

The complaint stated that despite persuading the Markaz followers several times they did not listen to the SHO. As many as 7 people from Markaz have been booked for violating the lockdown orders, and despite the government's order, more than 50 people remained at one place in the building, the FIR stated.

On March 21, the Delhi Police had contacted the Markaz and Mufti Shahzad and explained to them about coronavirus asking them to act immediately and send foreigners back to their country. They were also asked to persuade others to go back to their homes but they did not listen.

The police also found audio of Maulana Mohammad Saad, who heads the Tablighi Jamaat, through WhatsApp in which he is heard asking his followers not to obey the lockdown orders and remain at the Markaz.

On March 24, when the government issued an order for complete lockdown in the country, a meeting was held at Nizamuddin police station, which was attended by Mohammad Ashraf, Mohammad Shahzad, Dr Zeeshan, Murshlin Saifi, Mohammad Salman, M Yunus, and Maulana Mohammad Saad. They were asked to follow the lockdown rules of social distancing, but the Markaz officials did not inform either to the health department or to any government agency about how many people were present at the Markaz building.

They deliberately violated the lockdown orders and did not respond to the Nizamuddin SHO's notice sent to them on March 28.

Markaz was inspected by the SDM Defence Colony, on March 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, where about 1300 people were present including many foreigners. They were living in the same area without following any social distancing. No one was using masks or sanitizers, as Markaz officials did not make available these things to the members present there putting in danger the lives so many people amid coronavirus outbreak, the complaint said.

The Crime Branch has been requested to take legal action against Maulana Mohammad Saad and other Markaz officials.
TORONTO - An already grim employment toll looked set to worsen Thursday as authorities pondered further tightening restrictions on people and businesses to slow the spread of COVID-19 and keep the pandemic from suffocating the health-care system.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO - An already grim employment toll looked set to worsen Thursday as authorities pondered further tightening restrictions on people and businesses to slow the spread of COVID-19 and keep the pandemic from suffocating the health-care system.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said too many Canadians were still going out needlessly, potentially spreading the coronavirus and putting health-care workers at unnecessary risk. At the same time, Trudeau said he was leaning on restrictions provinces have put in place rather than issuing a mandatory national stay-home order, which would require him to invoke the never-before-used Emergencies Act.

Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau arrives for a news conference in Toronto on Wednesday April 1, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

"We're not quite yet at that point," Trudeau said.

The prime minister held a conference call with premiers later Thursday. A federal official said there was a consensus among first ministers that Trudeau need not invoke the Emergencies Act now.

The virus has now officially infected more than 11,000 Canadians and cost 130 lives.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addresses Canadians on the COVID-19 pandemic from Rideau Cottage in Ottawa on Thursday, April 2, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Ontario on Thursday reported 16 more deaths bringing its total to 53, while a hard-hit nursing home in Bobcaygeon  possibly the site of the worst outbreak in the province  reported two new fatalities. Sixteen residents have died and at least 24 staff members at Pinecrest Nursing Home have been infected.

Quebec saw its caseload rise about 20 per cent since Wednesday, with three more deaths. COVID-19 has killed at least 36 people in the province and another 25 in British Columbia. Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer, said almost half the deaths have occurred among especially vulnerable residents of long-term care homes.

Manitoba said more than 40 health-care workers at a Winnipeg hospital had been sent home after two staff members tested positive.

Experts say keeping a physical distance from others, along with frequent hand washing, is the most effective way of curbing the pandemic.

Governments everywhere have shut non-essential businesses and public facilities such as parks, beaches and playgrounds. All have repeatedly urged people to stay home except for essential outings.

Police in several jurisdictions have already arrested or fined alleged quarantine scofflaws or people disobeying limits on gatherings. Leaders warned Thursday of more to come if people didn't smarten up.

People get exercise outside on the lake shore path along Lake Ontario in Toronto on Thursday, April 2, 2020. Health officials and the government has asks that people stay inside to help curb the spread of the coronavirus also known as COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Forcing people to stay inside was still an option, albeit a drastic one, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said.

"That's the last thing someone wants to do, is the police marching around telling people to stay in their homes," Ford said. "I just don't believe in that. We're responsible. Do the right thing."

Quebec Premier Francois Legault urged police to clamp down on those flouting COVID-19 rules. He warned of fines of up to $6,000.

In Toronto, Mayor John Tory was blunt as he announced a new bylaw imposing a two-metre spacing rule for people in parks and squares for next 30 days, with fines of up to $5,000. People from the same household are exempt.

"Lives are potentially at stake, and we will turn up the heat in the hopes that the few who still don't get it, or pretend not to get it, will get with the program," Tory said.

The restrictions, which could last weeks or even months, have taken a hideous toll on employment  more than one million Canadians reported as having applied for jobless benefits. Liberal government measures designed to help the unemployed weather the crisis could cost more than $250 billion.

A survey by Restaurants Canada, which speaks for the industry, indicated 800,000 jobs have been lost to the pandemic. Almost one in 10 restaurants have closed and nearly one in five expected to close if conditions didn't improve soon, the survey suggested.

The billions the government planned to inject into the economy to mitigate the devastation was the subject of reports from Parliament's spending watchdog Thursday. Just three federal measures  aimed at helping low-income earners, families and seniors  will cost more than $8 billion, budget officer Yves Giroux said.

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However, an analysis from the left-leaning Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives estimated 862,000 unemployed workers about one-third of the total  aren't eligible for aid.

"We're looking at ways to help everyone in Canada that needs it," Trudeau said. "We know there are many vulnerable people."

On Monday, the Canada Revenue Agency will begin delivering the federal aid, with as many as 300,000 Canadians expected to inquire a day about the $2,000-a-month benefit. The agency usually has up to 3,000 employees at call centres for tax season, but more than 7,000 volunteered to help. A spokesman said the agency has been able to pick and choose who's best to supplement its usual call-centre team.

With files from Canadian Press reporters across the country.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2020.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version said 1,000 Canada Revenue Agency workers had volunteered to answer calls.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian says the number of new cases of COVID-19 have continued to stabilise, as the state recorded its lowest daily increase in almost two weeks.

NSW Chief Medical Officer Kerry Chant confirmed there are currently 2389 cases of COVID-19 in NSW - 91 new cases since the last update on Thursday.

This is the first time the number of new overnight cases has been below 100 since March 21.

Dr Chant said it was "pleasing to see a sustained reduction" in the acceleration of cases. But health authorities remain concerned about the number community transmission with no known source, which stands at 336 cases.
Some 15 traders have been arrested in the Kumasi metropolis for defying orders by city authorities not to sell at some parts of the Central market.

Kumasi Mayor, Osei Assibey Antwi on Monday ordered the temporary closure of the Dr Mensah section of the Central Market after traders failed to observe the social distancing protocols in the wake of the ongoing partial lockdown.

Citi News Ashanti Regional Correspondent, Hafiz Tijani said although the area has been cordoned off by the Assembly, some traders still entered the market to sell.

Although vendors of foodstuff are exempt from the partial lockdown, some traders are failing to adhere to the social distancing protocols.

The taskforce arrested the traders and handed them over to the Ashanti Regional Police Command.

Ashanti Regional Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Godwin Ahianyo said the traders will be made to sign a bond of good behaviour.

It is true that we have arrested some traders from the market. Because people have decided to flood the market. We would close the market of which we instructed the Police officers not to allow anyone to enter the market but this morning we got information that some traders had gone to the market to do business. Because of that they were picked up and brought to the Regional Command.

These are market women who have flouted some directives. They are not supposed to go there and they went there. We do not want others to go there since the Assembly has closed that particular market. Other markets are open and even that we are trying to regulate activities so anyone who enters there will observe social distancing protocols.

On Monday, Ghana began a partial lockdown of Accra, Tema, Kumasi and Kasoa as part of measures to fight the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The affected areas observing the lockdown fall within some of the most densely populated in Ghana.

During the two-week partial lockdown, citizens in affected areas are advised to only leave their homes in search of essential items or activities.

---citinewsroom
Briefing With Dr. William Walters, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Operations, Bureau of Medical Services; Dr. Charles Rosenfarb, Special Coordinator, Coronavirus Global Response Coordination Unit (CGRCU); And Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Ian Brownlee, Bureau of Consular Affairs On COVID-19: Updates on Health Impact and Assistance for American Citizens Abroad

Special Briefing

Dr. William Walters, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Operations, Bureau of Medical Services

Dr. Charles Rosenfarb, Special Coordinator, Coronavirus Global Response Coordination Unit (CGRCU)

Ian G. Brownlee, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary

Bureau of Consular Affairs

Via Teleconference

April 1, 2020



MS ORTAGUS: Okay, fantastic. Well, it's 1:01, so let's get started. Just reminding everybody, please, to keep this call embargoed until the end of the call. As always, we're happy to provide the latest available information related to the Department of State's unprecedented and historic effort to bring Americans home from all over the world during the ongoing global COVID pandemic.

To help us do that, we have three briefers joining us for today's on-the-record call. Many of you already know them. Ian Brownlee, our principal deputy assistant secretary for the Bureau of Consular Affairs; Dr. William Walters, executive director, managing director for operational medicine in our Bureau of Medical Services; and of course, Dr. Charles Rosenfarb, who leads  who heads up the State Department's Coronavirus Global Resource [1] Coordination Unit.

PDAS Brownlee will be able to speak about the ongoing effort to repatriate American citizens. Dr. Walters will be able to give you the latest information on the impact of COVID-19 on the health of the State Department workforce. And finally, well, Dr. Rosenfarb can speak more broadly about the impact of COVID-19 on the department. Dr. Walters will begin with some opening remarks and turn it over to Dr. Rosenfarb. Following that, PDAS Brownlee will give the latest repatriation figures. Then we'll take a few questions.

A reminder that this briefing is embargoed until the end of the call. And we don't have our normal AT&T line today, so we are back to, apologies, you have to text Ruben on his cell. Ruben, go ahead and give out that number just to make sure everyone has it.

MR HARUTUNIAN: (Number withheld.) Thanks.

MS ORTAGUS: Thanks, Ruben. So please text him if you'd like to ask a question and go ahead and get in the queue now.

Okay. Doc Walters.

MR WALTERS: So thanks again for the opportunity to provide the latest statistics and interventions that the State Department is taking to protect our workforce both domestically and overseas. Currently, we're tracking a hundred cases in our overseas population and 

MS ORTAGUS: Hi, I'm sorry. Can I just ask everybody to please mute yourselves? It's really important. We have some background noise. Please, everyone mute yourself. Hi, whoever just dialed in, please mute yourself.

Go ahead, Doc Walters. I'm sorry.

MR WALTERS: No sweat. So a hundred cases overseas in a very large workforce. The non-pharmaceutical interventions that were applying overseas have been very effective, both in protecting our workforce and in keeping our embassy platforms open and functioning, delivering on the Secretary's promise of diplomacy. And then 36 cases domestically in roughly nine cities  again, single or double cases in most cities with no evidence of ongoing sort of employee-to-employee transmission. Again, the State Department's been very aggressive in implementing telework policies and in developing both the business practices and the technology necessary to continue vital functions while protecting our workforce. That's all I have.

MS ORTAGUS: Great, thanks. Dr. Rosenfarb.

MR ROSENFARB: Just to piggyback onto something Dr. Walters just said, as we've said many times, promoting the health and safety of American citizens overseas has been our primary responsibility and priority, and that includes our diplomats and their family members posted at missions around the world.

We have been  to address the latter, besides the medical program that Dr. Walters spoke of, we have used authorized departures to ordered departures to help keep American diplomats and their family members out of harm's way if necessary. We have done about  we've evacuated about six  almost 6,000 American diplomats and family members since the beginning of this back in January, mainly from China initially and then from other locations around the world. Back on  it was February 15th  March 15th, I'm sorry, we initiated an unprecedented type of authorized departure, a global authorized departure for any employee or family member who was in a vulnerable category for high-risk complications from COVID. Most of the  about two-thirds of the folks who evacuated from our missions fall into that category.

We have about 24 posts currently on either authorized or ordered departure. And a lot of those departures are not based on risks from  direct risks from COVID, but more of the consequences of the pandemic, how it affected the ability to transit or leave the country because of travel restrictions, breakdowns or inadequacies of local health infrastructure, et cetera. So we continue to track it real well, very closely.

In terms of telework, we've followed OMB directives on telework, but even before those directives were issued, we were very forward-leaning. We encouraged posts to start experimenting with telework, domestically experiment with telework, to make sure that we protected our employees to the greatest extent possible, and that they would be ready for a time where we would have to really invoke more telework for our employees and buildings.

Currently at the start of the week we had about 80 percent of people who were domestically employed on telework. That was before the situation happened locally where Virginia, Maryland, D.C. has enforced shelter-in-place restrictions. I suspect that that percentage will go up and should go up. We want as few people coming to the office as possible just to maintain mission-critical needs.

And I'll leave it at that and take your questions. Thank you.

MS ORTAGUS: Okay, great. Let's go ahead and go over to Ian Brownlee, PDAS.

MR BROWNLEE: Yeah, good afternoon, everyone. It's nice to speak with all of you again as we continue our repatriation efforts. I'm sure you heard Secretary Pompeo speak yesterday morning and highlight some of the excellent efforts of our consular officers and other staff around the world who are working in unique and challenging conditions to bring Americans home.

First, let me update the numbers. We have now repatriated over 30,000 U.S. citizens from over 60 countries on more than 350 flights. There are more than 80 flights scheduled or in the planning stages from various locations. We are seeing the greatest demand for repatriation assistance from U.S. citizens in South Asia and Central and South America, though there is still demand to assist U.S. citizens in returning home from across the globe.

The Department of State is making every effort to assist U.S. citizens overseas who wish to return to the United States. But as the COVID-19 situation develops, our ability to provide such assistance, whether working with commercial airlines or arranging for evacuation flights, may become more limited or even unavailable.

I really want to encourage you to stress this to your audiences: If U.S. citizens wish to return to the United States, they should make arrangements to do so now, and contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate for assistance as needed now. There's no guarantee the Department of State will be able to continue to provide repatriation assistance, and transportation options from many countries to the United States may become unavailable in the future, even in a few weeks' time. Those who choose to remain overseas should be prepared to remain there for the foreseeable future.

If you were on the beach when an earthquake struck, you wouldn't just stand there waiting for the coming tsunami. You would head for higher ground immediately. Well, in this case, the earthquake has happened. It's time to seek higher ground now, and not hope for rescue later.

It bears repeating that the Department of State currently has a Global 4 Health Advisory, and repatriation efforts aside, we want to remind U.S. citizens  including those who live abroad  to avoid initiating any new international travel at this time. Many countries are experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks and implementing travel restrictions and mandatory quarantines, closing borders, and prohibiting non-citizens from entry with little or no advance notice. Choosing to travel internationally at this time may result in travel plans being severely disrupted. You may be forced to remain outside of the United States for an indefinite time.

Thank you. I look forward to your questions.

MS ORTAGUS: Okay. Ruben, I'm going to let you lead the Q&A.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Thanks very much. First question is from Matt Lee.

QUESTION: Hello there. Good afternoon. I just have a very brief question. I'm just wondering if the  for Dr. Walters: Is the death toll still at only two locally employed staff, the ones from Kinshasa and Jakarta?

MR WALTERS: So  Dr. Walters  we are tracking and still aware of only two deaths amongst locally employed staff members worldwide. I believe I put out yesterday three. The third case was evaluated and found to be of other causes and not related to coronavirus.

MS ORTAGUS: Okay.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Thank you. Second question is from Nick Wadhams.

QUESTION: Hi, thanks very much. I had a question for Dr. Rosenfarb on the State Department. As far as I understand, individual bureaus had been given the discretion to determine their telework procedures early on. Can you talk about whether State has now implemented a uniform telework process or policy and how you're handling State Department employees' need to access classified information? Are they able to do that without coming into the office? Are there systems in place to do that or do they need to come into the office to do that? Thanks.

MR ROSENFARB: Hi. Thank you. We continue to follow OMB guidance. But as I said from the very beginning, our stance was we wanted to encourage maximum telework flexibility. Now, the situation the way it is, we are re-encouraging that. We've asked bureaus to ensure that only folks who are really mission-critical, who have an absolute need to be in the office to accomplish a function, that they should be in the office. Those who are telework-ready or telework-eligible are encouraged to work from home. The classified information issue is a tough one, and frankly, there are situations where the only ability to access classified information is to come into the office, though we expect those instances to be limited and when people do come into the office, we ask them to exercise good social distancing as CDC recommends. There are a limited number of classified units that are available for the senior-level people, but for most working-level people, it would  it might involve a trip to the office. Over.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Thank you. Next question is from Carol Morello.

MS ORTAGUS: Carol?

MR HARUTUNIAN: Carol, you're on mute.

QUESTION: Can you hear me? Hello?

MS ORTAGUS: We can hear you now.

QUESTION: Okay, great. Thank you. I was wondering if you are aware of the  or if there are any countries that are about to cut off permissions for special charter flights or either have in the last day or so or are about to? And I was wondering if you've noticed any issue with student exchange programs telling students to shelter in place in the countries where they are? Thank you.

MR BROWNLEE: Yeah, Ian Brownlee here. We have run into some complications with regard to our efforts in Africa because of the closures in airspaces there. I'm not aware of any looming closures, but as we've been saying for some time now, many of these sovereign decisions by these governments have happened with little or no notice. And I do  I'm sorry, I do not have any information for you with regard to the student exchange programs. Over.

MR WALTERS: This is 

MS ORTAGUS: We can  yeah, go ahead.

MR WALTERS: If I could add on to that. This is Dr. Walters. So we're running a piece of the aviation repatriation mission out of the Bureau of Medical Services, and I'll tell you the difficulties that we're seeing in Africa, and now moving to other areas, are not to be under estimated. Of the, I think, 57 international airports on the continent, over 30 of them are either at restricted or no operations, and every repatriation flight is being negotiated by the country team on the ground on a case-by-case, flight-by-flight basis in a great number of the countries involved.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Next question is from Robbie Gramer.

QUESTION: Hey, can you hear me?

MS ORTAGUS: Yeah, we can hear you.

MR HARUTUNIAN: We can hear you.

QUESTION: Okay, thanks. Thanks for doing this. With the number of State employees who've contracted the virus rising both domestically and abroad, can you tell us what the process is for informing State Department employees of new cases internally? Is there a standardized process? Is it sent out to State Department-wide or embassy-wide, or it done in a more ad hoc, case-by-case, office-by-office basis? Thank you.

MR WALTERS: This is Dr. Walters. Each case is brought to the attention of a 24-hour task force within the Bureau of Medical Services where we work with the local health department, whether it's DC Public Health or one of the country public health departments in Maryland or Virginia, to assist in every way in contact tracing. Every effort is taken to protect the privacy of the infected individual while getting the information out to coworkers that would be required for them to take appropriate action.

State is working with our colleagues in the Office of the Legal Adviser to get that information out both to coworkers and to supervisors, and we're acting very aggressively at the sort of impacted workspace and building level to make sure that appropriate cleaning and disinfection takes place before people go back to work. But as far as dissemination, we're not  we're not disseminating daily statistics or building statistics or bureau statistics. We're handling it at a building-by-building, space-by-space, limited distribution.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Thank you. Nike Ching is next.

QUESTION: Thank you. I would like to ask a question on the global coordination, if I may. Can we get confirmation that the COVID task force has suspended some U.S. COVID foreign aid, and is the administration placing a suspension on overseas shipments of PPE and asking that the equipment be sent to the United States? Thank you.

Hello?

MR BROWNLEE: Sorry. So I think this question  sorry, go ahead.

MODERATOR: No, you 

MR ROSENFARB: No, Ian, I didn't quite fully get the whole question. Is it a question about whether the U.S. Government suspended foreign aid in the terms of PPE?

QUESTION: The PPE equipment shipments overseas, and directing that those be sent to the United States.

MR ROSENFARB: Okay. Well, I can talk about a couple  a couple issues with this. So from the beginning, we  we've been tracking both requests from overseas governments for assistance from the U.S. for aid, and we've worked with USAID to help support filling those requests, and I don't have the exact numbers and I think the Secretary this morning talked about that we've given to  up to $274 million worth of aid to 64 countries. Additionally, we've provided aid in the sense that CDC experts have assisted, FDA has established an international conference to build  to help build the vaccine.

In terms of shipping things, in terms of PPE, there are no restrictions I know of at the moment that say we are not restricting the export of PPE from the U.S. to overseas locations. Is  does that answer your question?

QUESTION: Actually, I would like to know  so is there any veracity to media reports that the U.S. has suspended some U.S. COVID foreign aid? And if you can't answer that, could you talk about 

MS ORTAGUS: I think  hey, Nike, I'm sorry. I don't  I don't think we  we should have someone from F or USAID on the phone to answer that directly. So we'll get back to you as a taken question on that. Thank you.

Go ahead, Ruben. Next question.

MR HARUTUNIAN: The next question is from Jessica Donati.

QUESTION: Hi, thank you. I was wondering if you could provide a bit more detail about the 6,000 diplomats and family members that have returned home, perhaps by region, and also give us a sense of what proportion of the workforce is still overseas.

MR ROSENFARB: Yes. We've done evacuations from all regions. I think the highest number has been from EUR, the European region. I don't have the exact percentages but like I said, they've come from all over. The  I don't have the numbers in front of me by percentage-wise. We are able to maintain our (inaudible)  maintaining operations overseas, and each of our embassies or missions have been able to maintain essential operations. To date, only two posts have fully closed. One is Vladivostok, with all services and personnel transferred to Moscow, and the other closure was  I just lost it  it was 

MR HARUTUNIAN: Wuhan.

MR ROSENFARB:  Bangui. Wuhan, I'm sorry, Wuhan. Thank you very much. I should have known from the very beginning. So we have  we've been able to maintain our workforce overseas to fulfill all our functions.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Okay, next question is from Lalit, Press Trust of India.

QUESTION: Hi, thank you for doing this. I have two questions, basically. I would like to know the status of repatriation of U.S. nationals from India. How many have been repatriated so far and how many are still left?

And my second question is about the concerns among Indian students who are on a student visa and they feel stranded here, and they have concerns also about their visa status if the university closes for  goes on for long time and the online courses also continues for a year long. So what happens to the visa status in that case? Thank you.

MR BROWNLEE: Thank you, Lalit. I think  Ian Brownlee here  I think I can address both of those questions.

QUESTION: Okay, thank you.

MR BROWNLEE: We began our repatriation efforts from India yesterday with a flight that brought in some 170-some U.S. citizens. We will begin a steadier flow of flights out of New Delhi and Mumbai in the coming days, really beginning toward the end of this week and into the weekend. I'm reluctant to get into specific numbers because these remain highly dynamic, but I will say that it is in the multiple thousands who are  who have indicated a possible interest in being repatriated to the United States.

I'll note one thing, that in some other countries we have found that people have come forward, identified themselves as being interested in seeking repatriation assistance, but at the  when the time came to be put on a manifest and put on an airplane, they indicated then that they would stay where they were and ride out the crisis in the country where they were.

With regard to the student visas, these are really questions better addressed to the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Once a student enters the United States, their status is governed by  is regulated by USCIS and not by the Department of State. Over.

QUESTION: Hello?

QUESTION: Yeah. Can I follow up with one small question?

(Interruption.)

MS ORTAGUS: Hey, somebody is  somebody needs to mute themselves.

Go ahead. You can do one quick follow-up.

QUESTION: Yeah. Has the Indian Government given you any deadline that that's the last day of flights, outgoing flights from India?

MR BROWNLEE: We have found the Government of India has been very cooperative and very helpful with us in arranging these repatriation flights. We are thankful to them for their assistance and their support as we undertake this important mission. Over.

QUESTION: Thank you so much. Thanks.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Jennifer Hansler with the next question, please.

MR ROSENFARB: Ruben, Dr. Rosenfarb.

QUESTION: Hi, thank you.

MR ROSENFARB: Can I just go back one second to the question about sort of how many folks are overseas, just a perspective? So generally, as the  the medical program which I used to direct, we take care of 75,000 people under chief of mission authority. That includes diplomats, their family members, other agencies' employees overseas. So as a perspective  comparison  in terms of about 6,000 evacuees, we take care of 75,000 people overseas. Over.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Jennifer, go ahead.

QUESTION: Hi, thanks. Do you have an updated number on the number of folks overseas you're tracking who may need assistance? And then for the folks in Peru in that hostel, is there any update on that situation? Our understanding is some have been able to leave, some may have even made it to the airport. What's the situation there?

And then lastly, is there any sort of tracking of people who come back on these flights and they later develop symptoms or test positive for COVID? Are they being asked to report that back to State? Any contact tracing there? Thank you.

MS ORTAGUS: Okay.

MR WALTERS: This is Dr. Walters. I can address the last part of the question. I think the first part would actually be to PDAS Brownlee. For folks who've come back to the United States on a repatriation flight and who later go on to develop illness, whether  it'll always be a question whether they contracted the illness where they came from or they contracted the illness in the United States. The fact of the matter is they're here. We've got a great public health and curative medical infrastructure. They plug in like every other American does to the public health system at the state and local level and we don't have visibility on it at that point.

MR BROWNLEE: I'm sorry, mute is on. With regard to the folks in the hostel  hostels  in Peru, our team on the ground, including the senior diplomat from the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, Julie Chung, who's down there assisting with the efforts  we're working very closely with the central government in Peru, health authorities at both the provincial and the municipal level to seek to move those people out. I can't go into specific cases for privacy reasons, but we've had some success and we're looking forward to future success.

Excuse me. You asked for the total number of folks still seeking repatriation. We are tracking at the moment 24,000-some  approximately 24,000 people who have indicated that they may seek repatriation, and again, I emphasize that word "may" because as I've said several times, sometimes people get to the front of the queue and then say, "No thank you, I'm going to stay here." But somewhere in that range, 24,000. Over.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Lara Jakes with the next question, please.

QUESTION: Thank you. This is for Ian. I was really struck by your opening comments comparing the situation to an earthquake and urging people to come back now, to take it seriously. Are you finding that Americans abroad are not taking this threat seriously or are delaying coming back? And also I'm sure you've heard some of the criticism that the United States is moving a little slower than some of the other countries, especially in Europe, to repatriate some of their citizens, and I'm wondering if you can expand a little bit on why that might be. You've indicated some problems with host nations. I'm wondering if airlines are reluctant to bring back Americans for the cost that it incurs to them, or if there are other issues that we are not aware of. Thank you.

MR BROWNLEE: Thanks very much, Lara. Yes, in fact, we are finding people who  we get in touch with them at countries around the world, and they say, "Well, we'll see. We'll see. Doesn't look so bad now. We'll be back in touch with you in a few weeks." And so that's why I think the tsunami analogy is a useful one. The earthquake has happened. This appears to be spreading everywhere, and so that's why we're emphasizing that point, that people need to make their own choices. They need to decide are they ready to ride this out where they are, and if that's  if the answer to that question is yes, that's fine. Ride it out where you are. If the answer to that question is I don't know, come on in and talk to us and we'll help you get home now, but we're saying we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do this weeks from now. So yes  and I'm sorry, I'm drawing a blank on the second half of your question.

QUESTION: It had to do with why the United States has been criticized for being a little slower.

MR BROWNLEE: Oh, yes, yes. Well, I can't comment too closely on what our fellow  what other countries have done with regard to bringing their citizens home. I will note that we have an extraordinarily large population overseas, somewhere in  at any given moment, close to 20 million  or at least prior to the crisis close to 20 million U.S. citizens who were overseas. A great many of them are in far-flung places  for example, India, where Lalit had asked about  and bringing those people home from India is going to require many wide-body flights to bring them home. I think some of these other countries, their expat populations are relatively close by. They could be brought home by land means and the populations who are far overseas were somewhat smaller.

So I think we have been extraordinarily successful. We've brought home over 31,000 people so far. I'm not very good at math, but that's an awful lot of plane loads. We've flown 378 plane loads so far. I think we have been very, very successful, and we will continue this effort until we achieve complete success or until our options are cut off. Over.

MR HARUTUNIAN: Roz Jordan has the next question.

QUESTION: Hi, this question is for Ian. Thanks for doing the call. I wanted to follow up on the question about the people in the hostels in Peru. Are their flights scheduled in the next week or so? If so, how many flights are being scheduled? And given that all of these Americans are ostensibly in Peru at the Peruvian Government's approval, is the U.S. helping them extend their visa so that they can stay in country until they decide to return to the U.S.? Thank you.

MR BROWNLEE: You're very welcome. Yes, we have flights coming out of both Cuzco and Lima today. We are seeking permission for future flights. We have not reached the end of this effort with regard to Peru. We are looking at flights  I guess we're going to pause things tomorrow. We will continue  we are looking to continue the 3rd through the 6th for flights coming out of Lima, continued flight out of Cuzco on the 3rd, so  what is that  Friday. So it is an ongoing effort there.

With regard to the estadia, the permission to stay in country, our consular officers and our mission in Lima are aware that some of these people are going to be compelled to stay beyond their original permission period, and we will provide all appropriate assistance to them in their interactions with the Government of Peru. Over.

MR HARUTUNIAN: The last question is to Abbie Williams.

QUESTION: Sorry, I  Lara pretty much asked my question, I admit. I just would add my voice to the request to have someone speak more about the PPE efforts from other countries. If anyone else has a question, go ahead.

MS ORTAGUS: Got it. Okay. I think  thanks, Abbie, appreciate it. We'll get back to you on that, and I think that's all we have in the queue for now, so thanks, everybody, for dialing in. We appreciate it and we will talk to you tomorrow.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Response 

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When it comes to a potentially deadly respiratory disease like COVID-19, accurate and reliable information can be the difference between life and death. To that end, Google says it will provide $6.5 million in funding to organizations combating misinformation around the globe, with "an immediate focus on coronavirus." The initiative will see the company approach the problem from several different angles, working with a broad slate of non-profits.

As one example, the company's Google News Initiative will increase its support for First Draft. The organization has helped journalists cover the pandemic by providing an online coronavirus resource hub, as well as training and crisis simulations. Part of the new funding will also go to fact-checking non-profits like Full Fact and Maldita.es. According to Google, those organizations will focus their efforts on European countries such as Italy, Spain, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, where there have been some of the highest numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases. They'll "amplify experts, share trends and reduce the spread of harmful false information," the company says.

Elsewhere, Google will work with Meedan, a journalism non-profit, and public health experts to develop a database to aid reporters. Notably, the company is also experimenting with how to best feature a dedicated fact check page in the COVID-19 section of Google News.

Besides Google, governments are also working to address the issue. In March, the UK government said it would provide 500,000 (approximately $623,000) to fight coronavirus-related misinformation, with some of that funding going to social media influencers. In both cases, the funding is unlikely to address the problem completely, but it could save lives.

We've also seen companies like Samsung and Sony announce efforts to help during the pandemic. Sony, for example, established a $100 million fund, with the money earmarked toward helping front-line medical staff, students learning from home and creatives hard hit by the virus.
H umans who walked the earth more than three million years ago had an ape-like brain structure but man-like brain growth, new research reveals.

The findings are based on analysis of eight fossil skulls which show the "hallmark of evolution" as ape and human features merged.

The bones belong to people from the Australopithecus afarensis species - the same group as the famous early human ancestor Lucy.

An international team of scientists, which included researchers from the Natural History Museum and University College London, used state-of-the-art scanning technology to examine the ancient skulls collected from archaeological sites in Ethiopia.

A researcher at the site in Ethiopia / PA

Philipp Gunz, a biological anthropologist at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany and lead author on the study, said: Our data show that Australopithecus afarensis had a more ape-like brain, that nevertheless developed over a longer period of time, more similar to modern humans.

While brains do not fossilise, they leave imprints on the inside of the skull, which can reveal information about the structure and development of the organ.

Analysis of these brain imprints revealed key differences in the structural organisation of human and A.afarensis brains.

For example, the team found the placement of the lunate sulcus  a fissure that separates the anterior and posterior parts of the brain  closer to the front of the brain in A.afarensis, like chimpanzees.

Brain imprints in fossil skulls of an infant belonging to the species Australopithecus afarensis, compared with a chimpanzee / PA

In humans, this fissure is pushed further down in the brain.

The researchers calculated the endocranial volume, or brain mass, of an A.afarensis infant and found evidence of a prolonged period of brain development compared with chimpanzees.

They believe the findings show that brain growth in A.afarensis was protracted, suggesting their children, like those of modern humans, had a long dependence on caregivers.

Fred Spoor, a scientist at the Natural History Museum and a co-author on the study, said: Our new results now show what their brain looked like, and how it grew after birth.

A.afarensis inhabited East Africa more than three million years ago, and is widely accepted to be ancestral to all later hominins, including humans.

The 3.2 million-year-old ape Lucy was the first A.afarensis skeleton ever found and is considered to be the worlds most famous early human ancestor.

Zeresenay Alemseged, a paleoanthropologist from the University of Chicago in the US and senior author on the study, said: Lucy and her kind provide important evidence about early hominin behaviour.

They walked upright, had brains that were around 20 per cent larger than those of chimpanzees, may have used sharp stone tools.

He added: Our new results show how their brains developed, and how they were organised.
By Trend

AtaBank OJSC, which has always attached great importance to corporate social responsibility, fully supports the measures taken by the state against the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and for reducing its negative impact.

In this connection AtaBank has made a donation of 100,000 manat to the Fund to Support Fight Against Coronavirus which was established by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated March 19, 2020.

The Banks decision to support this struggle is a clear example of solidarity with the Azerbaijani people.

Operating since 1993 AtaBank OJSC is a hi-tech universal Azerbaijani bank with 100 percent domestic capital. The Bank provides a full range of services to corporate and private customers in Baku and regions.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
An elderly man who had tested positive of the coronavirus died Wednesday in Argentina, two weeks after coming into contact with his grandson who dismissed a quarantine order to attend his cousin's birthday.

Health officials in the Buenos Aires city of Moreno confirmed that Luis Suarez, 71, became the 28th person to die in the South American nation because of the global pandemic.

Overall, 34 people have died in Argentina due to the coronavirus as of Thursday. At total 1,133 others have tested positive.

Suarez, who suffered from diabetes and high blood pressure, was among more than 100 guests who attended the sweet 15 birthday bash of his granddaughter Abril, on March 14.

A day earlier, his grandson Eric Torales, 24, had returned to Argentina from vacationing in Miami, but was informed by health officials that he had to quarantine.

SEE VIDEO BELOW

Luis Suarez (right) is one of 34 people who have died in Argentina due to the coronavirus. Suarez, pictured above with his wife Rosa, was infected with the virus after coming in contact with his grandson, Eric Torales, at a birthday party for his granddaughter. Torales disobeyed his quarantine after arriving from Miami on March 13 and went to the party the next day. At least 12 tested positive and 20 others are awaiting results

Eric Torales pictured with his grandmother Rosa, who is also infected with the coronavirus and currently hospitalized. Torales tested positive March 19, five days after he attended his cousin's 15th birthday bash despite orders from health officials to quarantine after arriving in Argentina from Miami on March 13, a day before the party

Abril is one of 12 people who tested positive for COVID-19 after coming in contact with her cousin, who disobeyed a government imposed quarantine and attended her birthday party March 14

Instead of adhering to the mandatory isolation decree that was imposed by the Argentine government the day before his arrival, Torales abandoned his residence in Palermo despite the rain to party with the rest of his friends and family members at an event venue in Moreno.

On March 19, Torales first experienced respiratory issues, one of the symptoms associated with the deadly disease, and visited Clinica Adventista, where he was admitted and placed in the intensive care unit after he later tested positive for COVID-19.

Results came back positive for 12 people who attended the party, including Torales' mother, cousin and grandmother. Another 10 are still awaiting results.

Suarez started feeling symptoms March 22 and tested positive March 25 before he was declared dead at 1:30am Wednesday.

Torales is currently under house arrest for violating Argentina's quarantine order for travelers who arrive in the South American nation from abroad

Officials are also looking into reaching out to other people who may have had contact with Torales following his return from the U.S. and his decision to attend the event instead of quarantining.

'I thinks he did something stupid, he did it without knowing. No one is going to want to infect their family on purpose,' said Edgardo Lopez, the owner of the party hall, in an interview with Argentine news outlet Todo Noticias. 'He had the thought of 'nothing will happen to me' and it was very costly.'

A local DJ hired for the party said he spent 15 days in isolation and tested negative for the virus.

"It is like being in a horror movie,' he said. 'It has to serve as a lesson. You have to be a very bad person to have returned from abroad and not be quarantined.'

Torales, who was ordered to turn in his passport, has been under house since March 25, when he was discharged from the hospital. He is only be allowed to leave the home for medical appointments.

Torales could face 15 years in prison if prosecutors can prove he willfully spread the coronavirus.

He could face three to 15 years in prison if he is found guilty of violating article 202 of the Penal Code - spreading a contagious and dangerous disease for people.

The coronavirus pandemic has caused more than 49,236 deaths and sickened over 965,000 across the globe.
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) on Tuesday, March 31 approved $2 million in emergency assistance for the World Health Organization (WHO) to reinforce its capacity to help African countries contain the COVID-19 pandemic and mitigate its impacts.

The grant, which is in response to an international appeal by the WHO, will be used by the world body to equip Regional Member Countries to prevent, rapidly detect, investigate, contain and manage detected cases of COVID-19.

It is one part of several Bank interventions to help member countries address the pandemic which, while slow to arrive in Africa, is spreading quickly and is straining already fragile health systems.

Specifically, the WHO Africa region will use the funds to bolster the capacity of 41 African countries on infection prevention, testing and case management. WHO Africa will also boost surveillance systems, procure and distribute laboratory test kits and reagents, and support coordination mechanisms at national and regional levels.

This grant will enable Regional Member Countries to put in place robust containment measures within 48 hours of COVID-19 case confirmation and also support the WHO Africa Region to disseminate information and increase public awareness in communities, said the Banks Human Capital Youth and Skills Development Department.

The grant will contribute toward a $50 million WHO Preparedness and Response Plan, which other partners including the United Nations system, are also supporting.

It is estimated that Africa will require billions of dollars to cushion the impact of the disease as many countries scramble together contingency measures, including commercial lockdowns, in desperate efforts to contain it. Globally, factories have been closed and workers sent home, disrupting supply chains, trade, travel, and driving many economies toward recession.

The Bank Group is expected to unveil a financial assistance package that will enable governments and businesses to undertake flexible responses to lessen the economic and social impact of this pandemic.

Last Thursday, the Bank raised an exceptional $3 billion in a three-year social bond, the proceeds from which will go to help alleviate the economic and social effects of the pandemic. It is the largest dollar-denominated social bond launched in international capital markets to date.

Related
Investing.com - Asian stock markets were mostly down on Thursday as the COVID-19 pandemic continued to bring economies and governments to their knees.

Down Under, the S&P/ASX 200 lost its gains from the last session as it slid 2.29% by 10:14 PM ET (3:14 AM GMT).

Japans Nikkei 225 lost 0.74% whilst neighboring South Koreas KOSPI gained a modest 0.74%.

In Greater China, Hong Kongs Hang Seng was down by 0.56%. Chinas Shanghai Composite was up 0.19% while the Shenzhen Component was down 0.16%.

Overnight, U.S. President Donald Trump warned Americans of a hell of a bad two weeks as projections show that COVID-19 could kill more Americans than servicemen killed during recent conflicts such as World War One, the Korean War or the Vietnam war.

The World Health Organization reported 163,199 cases in the U.S. and over 800,000 cases globally as of April 1.

The incremental news on the virus in the last 24 to 48 hours has been disappointing, John Porter, a fund manager at Mellon Investments, said in a Bloomberg TV interview.

The global economy has hit a wall, theres a tremendous amount of uncertainty, and thats contributing to the volatility in the markets and the downward trajectory weve seen the last few days, he added.

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A 56-year-old man is the second confirmed case of coronavirus in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas health officials confirmed late Wednesday.

READ MORE: City of Laredo, Webb Co. confirm third COVID-related death

State officials said he had recently traveled to Dallas.

The first case was confirmed on March 30.

A 70-year-old man had just returned from a trip to New York, according to state officials.

A state spokesperson said the elderly patient underwent two tests last week. He underwent the second testing because the results were not conclusive.

Nuevo Laredo Mayor announced on Wednesday that he has instructed the installment of two Sanitizing Tunnels.

These important tools that will be placed in the east and west part of Nuevo Laredo will undoubtedly help reduce as much as possible the contagion between citizens, he said in a statement.

READ MORE: Laredo appears to be one of the first US cities to mandate people cover their nose, mouth

As of Wednesday evening, Laredo had 57 confirmed cases, six recovered and three deaths.
March 30, 2020 Adam Dermish , 907-784-3296

BARTLETT COVE, AK  Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, in response to the Government of Canada and the U.S. Department of State, is announcing additional modifications to operations to support international, federal, state, and local efforts to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).



With agreement from Kluane National Park, Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park, and Champagne and Aishihik First Nations, all recreational permits and Dry Bay take-outs for commercial operators issued by Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve are suspended due to temporary international travel restrictions, road closures in Canadas national parks, and the United States-Canada border closure that took effect on March 20, 2020.



Effective immediately, this suspension will remain in place for the duration of the travel and border crossing restrictions. It will be re-evaluated on June 1, 2020, or as restrictions are lifted. No new private permits will be issued at this time.



Rafters who were issued a private permit should contact the Dry Bay Ranger at 907-784-3296 or glba_alsek_info@nps.gov with options for cancellation and rescheduling.



Authorized commercial fishing and subsistence activities within Glacier Bay National Preserve are not affected by this action.



The health and safety of our visitors, employees, volunteers, and partners at Glacier Bay is our priority. The National Park Service (NPS) is working service-wide with international, federal, state, and local authorities to closely monitor the COVID-19 pandemic. Outdoor spaces of park and preserve lands remain accessible to the public in accordance with the latest federal, state, and local health guidance.



The NPS encourages people who choose to visit Glacier Bay during this pandemic to adhere to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state and local public health authorities to protect visitors and employees. As services are limited, the NPS urges visitors to continue to practice Leave No Trace principles, including pack-in and pack-out, to keep outdoor spaces safe and healthy.



Updates about NPS operations will be posted on www.nps.gov/coronavirus. Please check with www.nps.gov/glba for specific details about park operations.



About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 419 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.


Washington

President Donald Trump is resisting calls to issue a national stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the coronavirus despite his administration's projections that tens of thousands of Americans are likely to be killed by the disease. One by one, though, states are increasingly pushing shutdown orders of their own.

Trump said Wednesday he wants to give governors' "flexibility" on whether a stay-at-home policy is the best option for their constituents, but acknowledged that he's looking at limiting travel between hot spots within the United States. The president remains hesitant to press a unified policy even after the White House released "sobering" new projections on Tuesday that 100,000 to 240,000 Americans will likely succumb to the coronavirus even if current social distancing guidelines are maintained. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said Wednesday the nation's federalist system leaves much of the authority on how to properly respond to catastrophes to individual state governors and local officials.

On Wednesday alone, five more states  Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Nevada and Pennsylvania  added or expanded their stay-at-home orders.

But the invocation of federalism in the midst of a crisis that threatens a nationwide body count on par with some of the deadliest American wars suggests that Trump and his advisers are cognizant of the political ramifications of their response. Republican governors in states like Florida, Texas and Nebraska have questioned the necessity of applying strong social distancing rules to rural or exurban areas that haven't reported much evidence of the virus so far.

The lack of a unified, 50-state response also collides with evidence emerging that coronavirus infections are being spread by people who have no clear symptoms, complicating efforts to gain control of the pandemic. A study conducted by researchers in Singapore and published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday is the latest to estimate that around 10 percent of new coronavirus infections may be spread by people who were infected with the virus but not experiencing symptoms.

Even while deferring to governors, the Trump administration has issued guidelines that have urged Americans to work from home if possible, cancel on-site instruction at schools and avoid large gatherings. The resistance to a more robust response comes even as Vice President Mike Pence said White House models for the coronavirus toll show the country on a trajectory akin to hard-hit Italy. Speaking to CNN, Pence said, "We think Italy may be the most comparable area to the United States at this point." Italy, which has recorded more than 13,000 deaths, has issued a nationwide quarantine, shutting down almost all industrial production and largely prohibiting residents from leaving their homes.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

The White House's best-case projection for loss of life assumes statewide stay-at-home orders, according to a senior administration official familiar with Trump's thinking. Trump, the official said, is a believer in federalism and that it is up to individual governors to set restrictions for their states. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal discussions.

More than 285 million people live in the 40 states where governors have declared statewide shelter-in-place orders or have recommended that residents stay home. In other states  places like Iowa and Nebraska, among others  governors have resisted state-level decisions, but some localities have declared residents should stay at home.

But there are signs that Trump administration officials are pushing behind the scenes for holdout governors to issue statewide quarantines. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had resisted issuing a statewide order but reversed course. DeSantis, a Republican, told reporters that he decided to issue the order after consulting with Trump and White House advisers. Rep. Donna Shalala, a Florida Democrat, said earlier Wednesday that Trump should be pressing governors for a unified approach to help stem the spread of the disease, calling his response "fragmented, weak and uneven."
[April 02, 2020] Liberty National Bank Partners with Teslar Software to Streamline Commercial Lending

Teslar Software, a provider of automated workflow and portfolio management tools designed to help community financial institutions thrive, announced today that Liberty National Bank has selected its platform to improve productivity and increase transparency across exceptions tracking and reporting, helping to streamline the overall commercial lending process. Lawton, Okla.-based Liberty National Bank has been in business for nearly 120 years and has almost doubled its asset size over the past decade. The bank currently has seven branches in five counties across Oklahoma and recently opened a loan production office in Oklahoma City to provide new opportunities for current and potential customers. By leveraging Teslar, the bank expects to increase operational efficiencies, allowing them to maintain their exceptional customer service with existing resources as they scale. "With today's crowded competitive landscape, we have to find ways to stand out among the wide range of choices available to customers," said Michael Bucher, Chief Credit Officer of Liberty National Bank. "We're confident that through our partnership with Tesla, we'll be able to boost efficiencies, improve accuracy of information and provide better customer service, ultimately helping us rise above the competition. Our bank appreciates that Teslar's platform is built by former bankers who understand our unique challenges and goals."



Liberty National Bank plans to leverage Teslar to improve its exceptions tracking, reporting and overall portfolio management. With Teslar, the bank's loan officers will be empowered with relevant, easily accessible customer information, allowing them to strengthen borrower relationships and more effectively pursue relevant cross-sell opportunities. "Liberty National Bank understands that to successfully compete and effectively scale, they must boost operational productivity and prioritize forming meaningful relationships with customers," said Joe Ehrhardt, CEO and Founder of Teslar. "By leveraging our advanced portfolio management tools, Liberty National Bank will benefit from stronger data and increased visibility in the commercial lending process, helping them to carry out their growth plans with confidence."

About Teslar Software Teslar provides community financial institutions with automated workflow and portfolio management tools to streamline and improve processes with easy access to relevant information needed to operate. The Teslar platform integrates siloed systems, centralizes data and boosts efficiencies enterprise wide to optimize profits and make customer interactions more meaningful. Please visit www.teslarsoftware.com to learn more. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005040/en/

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Real estate agents are being slammed for offering 'unhelpful' financial advice to tenants, telling them to use their superannuation to continue paying rent.

Australia's corporate watchdog is warning tenants to ignore unsolicited financial advice from real estate agents.

But real estate agents claim they are just alerting tenants to the financial hardship measures introduced by federal governments.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) is urging the Real Estate Institute of Australia to stop its members from telling tenants to access their superannuation early, the Herald Sun reported.

Australia's corporate watchdog is warning tenants to ignore unsolicited financial advice from real estate agents

The national cabinet is expected to discuss the issue of residential and commercial tenancies on Friday.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said only qualified individuals are supposed to provide advice on accessing superannuation.

ASIC also warned withdrawals could impact on retirement options later on.

'Anyone who gives financial advice must have an Australian financial services (AFS) licence or be an authorised representative of a licensed business,' an ASIC spokesperson said.

'You should only seek advice from licensed advice businesses or authorised financial advisers. You will be better protected if things go wrong and you will have access to free dispute resolution services.'

Minister for Housing Michael Sukkar told ABC TV on Wednesday that landlords and tenants are expected to 'work this out for themselves'.

'Unless you've got an arrangement with your landlord that takes into account your financial circumstances, you are required to pay your rent,' he said.

'We've strengthened the safety net to ensure people are able to meet the essential costs of day-to-day life.'

Mr Sukkar said the moratorium on evictions is to ensure people are not left without a home during the coronavirus pandemic.

'But at the same time we have to be sensitive to the financial realities for landlords who have repayments that they have to make and rely on the income stream from those properties in order to meet those repayments,' he said.

Real estate agents claim they are just alerting tenants to the financial hardship measures introduced by federal governments

ACTU President Michele O'Neil claims residential tenants are receiving 'threatening correspondence from their real estate agents regarding the payment of rent and notice around evictions'.

The government has granted people early access to their superannuation during the coronavirus pandemic as they are experiencing financial hardship.

Labor Shadow Assistant Finance Treasurer Stephen Jones is also urging ASIC to issue a warning to real estate agents.

'There are now widespread media reports of real estate agents advising tenants to access their superannuation funds if they are facing difficulty in paying their rent. We have received copies of some of these communications,' Mr Jones wrote in a letter to ASIC commissioner James Shipton seen by News Corp.

'We are concerned that this advice may not be in the best interest of individuals.'
A Melbourne bus driver says he was racially abused on Friday afternoon by a passenger, blaming him for "bringing the virus to Australia".

"She called me corona, she called me China," the driver told Nine News.

"It's terrible, it's disgusting."

Premier Daniel Andrews said nobody should be racially abused, adding the bus driver was one of many essential workers doing it tough during the pandemic.

"He is doing really important work and he is putting himself in harm's way in terms of the virus and all the pressures and challenges that he is facing," Mr Andrews told reporters on Friday.

"No-one deserves to be treated like that and it is simply wrong. But I want to say thanks to bus drivers, truck drivers, people stacking shelves, to everybody who is working hard for Victoria, thank you."
As many as 4,200 foreigners have been blacklisted by the Home Ministrys Immigration Department for flouting tourist visa norms and engaging in Tablighi activities, particularly missionary work, since 2015.

The focus on Tablighi Jamaat has come after a large number of its workers were infected with the Sars-CoV-2 pathogen that causes Covid-19 virus from foreigners visiting the Markaz in Nizamuddin last month.

While Maulana Saad, the fourth emir of Jamaat, has made it clear from his quarantine that Tablighi workers must follow medical advice, the initial resistance or hesitation by the group has been blamed for a spike in virus positive cases all over India.

About 216 foreigners were still in the six-storey building in central Delhi when Indian officials began their evacuation a few days back. Another 824 had touched base at Nizamuddin before dispersing to different parts of the country for their activities.

Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba has told state police chiefs to run a quick background check on them to ascertain their activities.

According to North Block officials, Tablighi followers from abroad attract the immigration blacklist if they are found preaching or proselytizing in India. It is not a violation to merely listen to sermons from the Jamaat leadership, one official clarified.

Once it is found that an individual engaged in missionary work on a tourist visa, the Tablighi Jamaat follower is blacklisted for two years. Since January 2020, more than 2,000 foreigners particularly from Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh and Myanmar have visited the Markaz at Nizamuddin.

It is understood that in cases where the immigration finds that a Tablighi preacher with a big following is misusing the visa norms by not applying for a missionary visa but coming on a tourist visa, then the Home Ministry blacklists the culprit permanently.

A foreigner on the blacklist will not be given a visa again for two years. Now the Home Ministry is debating if it should extend the validity of the blacklist to at least four years or more to send a strong message.

Under the existing provisions, such kind of visa condition violations do not attract permanent blacklisting. But we intend to revisit the issue, said a senior official.

The Tablighi Jamaat, an off-shoot of Deobandi movement, preaches on how to be a good Muslim by focusing on Quran and Hadiths while also incorporating some of the local traditions. In that way, it is different from Ahle-Hadith and Wahabbi movements of Islam.

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Its a new world we are living now as we come to terms with the latest set of restrictions laid out by An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar last week.

Offaly has gone quiet as we adapt to coronavirus lock down. Birr resembled a ghost town when I went to get some groceries over the weekend as the vast majority of people obey the sweeping restrictions that mean we have to stay at home, only leaving to buy food, care for vulnerable people, do work deemed essential or briefly exercise within 2km of our homes.

A nationwide lock down has left Offalys public spaces hushed and deserted amid overwhelming support for extreme measures to control the coronavirus pandemic with the hope that community spirit will ensure compliance.

Practically speaking, the last week has been a tricky and difficult one but we all have to do what we have to do to flatten the curve. Working at home for most of the week, here is a snapshot of my strange new world and what is becoming just another average day in our household for the foreseeable future.

Firstly, there is the extra laundry, the extra food preparation and the firm commitment to try and keep the boys doing some school work while both myself and my husband work full-time at home. This was after an initial anxiety about how long they were going to be about of school, how will I get the work done, manage the kids and the house?

Like many people out there, I am also worried about my family and friends getting Covid-19 and have gone from cautious, to nervous, to panicked at a breakneck speed. But now as I write this piece, I am full of a hopeful resolve that we will get through this together.

The latest from the WhatsApp group is a mixture of how the hell do we keep the kids entertained, to realising how lucky we are as we hear of friends friends who are isolating in one bed apartments in Madrid and are thinking of repatriation as they are not allowed even to go outside and they are going out of the their minds. Then, there are the suggestions as to what to do for exercise during the lockdown.

Personally, we are very lucky to be able to get out for a walk and have the space to let the boys go outside. The nice weather last week meant they were able to even say hello to some of our neighbours as they passed up and down the road for their walk or on the tractor as they went about their daily routine.

Next, was the arranging of a virtual catch-up with some friends, which was proving more difficult as we are all on different schedules with regard the ages of our kids and some of us are working and others arent. But, it went ahead on Wednesday night and boy, was it nice to chat and have the bit of banter for a while. Not, that my husband is a bad conversationalist or anything!

Then, there are the daily photographs of what the kids are being up to which included a few from us of the boys playing cards with their dad and me joking about how we have taken up to gambling during the lockdown. A great way for my kids to pay for their college fund, one friend jokingly remarked. After which, we got a photo from one of the girls to how it was great her partner was doing the cooking but she couldnt quite understand the need to use four pans and a saucepan and how she was left doing all of the washing up, saying she needed to introduce the clean as you go concept in their house.

I will let you know later on in the week how the working from home is going and how the boys are getting on with their home-schooling. I did one rather clandestine trip into town to take a photo for the paper earlier in the week where it was eerie quiet and slightly apocalyptic. The photo was worth the trip, however, as you can see below as it embodies the great community spirit of not just the Birr Outdoor Education Centre but all of us.

I, also, came across another one in the Square, in Birr which I thought was a lovely nod to our frontline staff, which I included above.

That is all from me for the time being but on a personal note, no matter how unpredictable the future feels, the Tribune will remain with you, delivering as much local news that we can. Together we can find a way through this and please stay at home so we can keep everyone well and safe and look after yourself, but remember you are not alone. Email news@midlandtribune.ie or WhatsApp (087) 3751974 if you want to stay in touch or follow me on @kogog on Twitter.
A man wearing a protective mask walks towards a bus that will take him to a quarantine facility, amid concerns about the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Nizamuddin area of New Delhi. (Image: Reuters)

Amid a nationwide hunt to identify people who attended the Nizamuddin Tablighi Jamaat congregation, one of the biggest coronavirus hotspots in India, a poster has demanded the revocation of the FIR filed against its cleric. The poster was allegedly shared by a students' organisation named Muslim Students of JNU (MSJ), news agency IANS has reported.

The Tabligh-e-Jamaat's Markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin West caught attention as 24 participants tested positive for COVID-19 and fears mounted that thousands present there could have carried the infection to the length and breadth of the country. Following this, an FIR was lodged against Maulana Saad Kandalwi of the Nizamuddin Markaz for violating government order.

Meanwhile, The Hindu reported that Kandalwi - in a letter - had requested the authorities to evacuate around 1,000 people.

As per your direction we contacted respected SDM (Sub Divisional Magistrate) for vehicle pass so that we can send the remaining people to their respective places. SDM office has given time for meeting at 11 am on 25/3/2020, the letter said. You are therefore requested to kindly approach the SDM for early action. We are ready to compliance all your directions [sic].

After the FIR lodged, a poster reportedly emerged saying "Stand against Islamophobia, Muslims are not your scapegoats.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

"Stand with Tablighi Jamaat," highlighted the poster allegedly shared by MSJ, the report suggested.

Coronavirus LIVE updates

The MSJ has no leader in the JNU, but various students claim that it was founded by Sharjeel Imam, who is currently in prison on sedition charges.

According to a student from the School of Social Sciences, Sharjeel founded this group to fight 'anti-Muslim' elements. It was the same group that called a meeting on the day the Ayodhya verdict was announced, the student told the news agency.

The group urged the government to provide 'dignity' and 'safety' to migrant workers.

A large number of migrant workers were seen leaving their workplaces in different parts of the country last week and walked down to their native places, hundreds of kilometres away facing hardships on the way.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 01:06:24|Editor: huaxia

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KIGALI, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Rwanda is set to temporarily set free inmates with minor offenses at different police stations in the country as part of efforts to contain spread of the new coronavirus, Rwandan prosecution said Thursday.

Inmates eligible include those whose cases were yet to be ruled on by courts of law and their cases can resume when courts re-open, women detained with babies, teenagers and those who can be released on police bond, the spokesman of the National Public Prosecution Authority Faustin Nkusi told national Rwanda television.

Rwandan judiciary in March suspended court operations countrywide as a precautionary measure to curb coronavirus spread.

Nkusi said the screening of those to be set free is being done by a team comprising of people from relevant institutions such as police and prosecution authority.

Those charged with serious crimes such as murder, terrorism, human trafficking, corruption, defilement and recidivists are not eligible, he added.

Rwandan cabinet on Wednesday extended COVID-19 lockdown to two more weeks until April 19 in order to further contain the spread of the virus. Enditem
The heirs of Mendelssohn-Bartholdy have previously reached settlements with the current owners of three other Picassos they claim Paul von Mendelssohn-Bartholdy was forced to sell at the same time as Head of a Woman. They include Boy Leading a Horse, now in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art; Le Moulin de la Galette, now in the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and Portrait of Angel Fernandez de Soto (also known as The Absinthe Drinker). The latter was sold at a Christies auction in London for $51.8 million, with commission, to a private collector by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation after the foundation had reached a settlement with the heirs.
By Express News Service

Things have not been going smoothly for the Aadujeevitham team if the latest information is anything to go by. Following a preliminary hiccup, the team had received permission from the Jordanian government to continue the shoot, which was expected to go on till April 10. But that doesnt seem to be the case anymore. It has come to light that the shoot of the film has been suspended after the Jordanian government imposed stricter restrictions.

The 58-member crew of Aadujeevitham, which includes Prithviraj and director Blessy, is now stranded in Jordans Wadi Rum where they had already shot a few portions. The team has enough supplies to last them for the next two weeks. But it will be a challenge to fly them back home, and arrangements are being made to see if it would be possible.

In a statement, Prithviraj said the shooting permission has been revoked as the Jordanian government has implemented stronger precautionary measures to deal with the outbreak. We have now been told that immediate permission for the shoot to resume is unlikely due to the situation and hence, our next best option would be to return to India at the first available opportunity. As we had originally planned to stay and shoot in Wadi Rum till the 2nd week of April, our accommodation, food and supplies are taken care of for the immediate future. But obviously, what happens beyond that timeline is a matter of concern, wrote the actor.

He added that medical check-ups are being conducted for each member of the crew every 72 hours by a Jordanian government-approved doctor. We completely understand that given the circumstances around the world, our team of 58 might not be the biggest concern of authorities back home now, and rightfully so. But we also felt that it was our duty to let all concerned know about the situation and keep them updated. There are thousands of Indians around the world waiting to get back home, and we hope when the appropriate time and opportunity arrives, we are also able to come back to India. Till then, I hope all of you stay safe and lets collectively hope and pray that life gets back to normal soon.
Accounting firm KPMG have laid off 200 workers, and anyone earning more than $62,000 a year will take a 20 per cent pay cut for four months amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

CEO Gary Wingrove told his 9,000 staff on Thursday the cuts have come during a period of 'unprecedented volatility, uncertainty, and stress'.

'Some areas of our firm are as busy as ever, with clients coming to us for support as they face up to the challenge of reshaping their business to meet the requirements of the new world,' he said.

'In other parts of our business, activity has declined, and we've seen some of our clients forced to take terribly difficult decisions.'

Mr Wingrove believes the measures will help avoid larger job losses down the track.

Accounting firm KPMG have laid off 200 workers, and anyone earning more than $62,000 a year will take a 20 per cent pay cut for four months

CEO Gary Wingrove sent out a letter to his 9,000 staff on Thursday, informing them of the cuts amid a period of 'unprecedented volatility, uncertainty, and stress'

'The 200 redundancies] are occurring mostly in areas where demand has dramatically reduced or where we expect a reduction, and where all options for redeployment have been exhausted'.

Employees earning less than $62,000 a year won't be impacted by the pay cut, which comes into effect this May for four months.

Any staff whose pay cut brings their salary below $62,000 per year will have their percentage altered.

Mr Wingrove said partners of the firm will be more significantly impacted by the changes.

Equity partners have already agreed to forego a partner distribution payment due in mid-April.

In addition, over four months starting next May, equity partners will take a 36 per cent pay cut.

Equity partners will also lose out on a partner distribution payment due in April, which would amount to five per cent of their annual earnings.

Meanwhile, drastic efforts are being made to limit the health crisis' devastating effect on the economy.

Australians looking for work can now go to a new website to help with the hunt.

The federal government has on Thursday launched a site which lists all available jobs on the internet, in a bid to help Australians out of work because of coronavirus.

Employment Minister Michaelia Cash said the government was trying to help connect Australians with work.

The federal government has on Thursday launched a site which lists all available jobs on the internet, in a bid to help Australians out of work because of coronavirus

'These are critical jobs that will contribute to keeping the economy going and keeping as many Australians in work as possible,' she said.

While many sectors have been hard hit because of the pandemic, others are seeing increased demand.

They include the health and care sectors, transport and logistics, some retail, mining, manufacturing, agriculture and government work.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Employers hoping to connect with potential workers can directly contact the Department of Education, Skills and Employment.

'If you are hiring, particularly scaling up your workforce quickly, I encourage you to email our workforce contact centre so you can be connected with the support you need to get your workforce on board,' Senator Cash said.

Economists predict Australia's unemployment rate could reach highs of about 15 per cent because of coronavirus, although the government's wage subsidy plan may ease the numbers.

The government's $130 billion scheme will see some workers paid $1500 each fortnight during the crisis.

More than 452,000 businesses had registered for the payment as of Wednesday evening.
Somalia announces three-day mourning period after Nur Hassan Hussein, celebrated as an influential leader, dies at 83.

Somalia has entered a three-day mourning period after Nur Hassan Hussein, the former prime minister, died in a London hospital on Wednesday after contracting the new coronavirus.

He was 83.

Popularly known as Nur Adde, he was the East African countrys prime minister from November 2007 to February 2009.

Recognising the efforts made by the deceased for his country and his people, I hereby declare three days of national mourning, lowering of the flag of the Federal Republic of Somalia to half mast, to give Prime Minister Nur Adde the respect he deserves, President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo said in a statement late on Wednesday.

Born in Mogadishu in 1937, when the southern part of the country was under Italian rule, Hussein was educated in the city before joining the police force when the country gained independence in 1960.

After leaving the force, he worked for the Somali Red Crescent. He also served as the Horn of Africa countrys ambassador in Italy.

Husseins family said the former leader will be buried in London.

In a statement, the family said he had been receiving treatment at Kings College Hospital for the past two weeks.

Adam Aw Hirsi, a former politician who worked under Hussein, said he was deeply saddened by the loss that Somalis as a nation and [the] Husseins as a family have encountered.

In a tweet, Hirsi said: I worked under him during the difficult [Transitional Federal Government] days. Most laid-back yet most decisive.

Abdihakim Ainte, a fellow at Stanford Universitys Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law, tweeted: Hard to absorb this, but Nur Adde was one of the greatest prime ministers in Somalia, who influenced so many of us and laid the earlier stones for the current system. A massive loss for Somalia. May Allah rest his soul in eternal peace.

In the United Kingdom, there are 33,718 cases of coronavirus and 2,921 have died from COVID-19, while in Somalia, there are five reported cases and no deaths.
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[April 02, 2020] MICHIGAN VIRTUAL AND D2L PARTNER TO DELIVER ONLINE LEARNING

Kitchener, Waterloo, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global learning technology leader D2L has partnered with leading online educator Michigan Virtual to support districts across the state of Michigan in providing learning continuity to students during the COVID-19 outbreak. Through its Brightspace learning management system, D2L is ready and able to work with school districts to rapidly deploy a virtual learning environment. This learning environment offers access to freely available content from over 70 high-quality courses created by Michigan Virtual and a place for students and teachers to ensure learning is continuous in the event of a prolonged school shutdown. With this combination, school districts can leverage existing content resources and a secure and private environment for students to learn safely with their peers, on the platform chosen by Michigan Virtual for online courses  Brightspace. Michigan Virtual is a non-profit company specializing in online K-12 education, as well as professional development for school educators. Michigan Virtual offers a wide range of courses including over 200 online courses for students, including 7 world languages and 23 AP courses. Their course completion rates for students consistently outpace all other online learning providers in the state. They also provide thought leadership and best practices for online learning through the Michigan Virtual Learning Research Institute. Michigan Virtual serves about 30,000 enrollments annually. Our experience with D2L and Brightspace prior to COVID-19 has been incredibly positive. It was an obvious choice to partner with them during the most significant challenge weve ever seen as educators, said Joe Freidhoff, Vice President of Michigan Virtual. At a time like this, when our students and educators are adapting to new ways to teach and learn, everyone will need a learning management system thats flexible, easy to use and fast to deploy. Brightspace hits all those marks and more. Michigan Virtual, as a leader in virtual learning in the state, is leveraging its existing relationships to hep school districts in this unprecedented time of extended school closures. This joint solution offers a path for school districts looking to a known entity to help them, by offering:



A place to start for teachers: Teachers can use the strong, locally developed content for virtual learning, while adjusting to a new modality of teaching and engaging their students. This lets them invest in learning the tools without having to also convert their content online.

Teachers can use the strong, locally developed content for virtual learning, while adjusting to a new modality of teaching and engaging their students. This lets them invest in learning the tools without having to also convert their content online. Rapid response: A solution that can be responsive and allow districts to be up and running as quickly as possible, maximizing the time students and teachers can collaborate.

A solution that can be responsive and allow districts to be up and running as quickly as possible, maximizing the time students and teachers can collaborate. Personalization: D2Ls platform serves students across multiple grades and allows teachers to create a course space unique to their and their classs needs. This flexibility can enable Michigan districts to provide a common location that is built for all their teachers, students, and even parents. Michigan Virtual is a recognized leader and innovator in online learning. Theyre in a great place to meet the challenge posed by COVID-19, and so are we as the provider of the leading online learning management system, says Lee Poteck, Vice President Education at D2L. Its a great partnership, and its going to benefit the people who need it most, the learners and educators who have had their school routines disrupted but who are committed to continue instruction. ABOUT D2L FOR K-12 Education

D2L provides the learning platform for people who care deeply about ensuring all students reach their potential. Working closely with clients, D2L supports millions of students in the classroom and online. And most of the virtual schools in North America and many of the global leaders have trusted D2L for years. Learn more about D2L at www.D2L.com ABOUT D2L BRIGHTSPACE D2L Brightspace is a cloud-based learning platform that makes online and blended learning easy, flexible and smart. Its secure, worry-free technology that puts students first and gives teachers tools they love  helping you create engaging learning experiences and improving outcomes. With Brightspace, you can easily set up individualized learning paths for your students and keep them on track with automated nudges and personalized feedback. Brightspace supports all mobile devices , has industry-leading up-time, and is built with accessibility in mind for all learners. Plus, Brightspace enables the future of learning with a gaming engine, adaptive learning , video management , templated interactives for course design, full support for mastery-based learning or competency-based learning , and actionable learning analytics . D2L MEDIA CONTACT Dana Dean, Director of Awareness, D2L Corporation, [email protected] Twitter: @D2L  2020 D2L Corporation. The D2L family of companies includes D2L Corporation, D2L Ltd, D2L Australia Pty Ltd, D2L Europe Ltd, D2L Asia Pte Ltd, and D2L Brasil Solucoes de Tecnologia para Educacao Ltda. All D2L marks are trademarks of D2L Corporation. Please visit D2L.com/trademarks for a list of D2L marks.

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By Express News Service

HYDERABAD: Telangana recorded one more COVID-19 death on Wednesday. The latest death was that of a patient who was undergoing treatment at Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad.

However, in a surprising turn of events, the Telangana government reduced the number of coronavirus deaths to five. Meanwhile, 12 persons tested positive on Wednesday, taking the total number of cases to 107.

Speaking to mediapersons, Health Minister Eatala Rajender said the State, in fact, had recorded two deaths on Wednesday, one at Gandhi and another at a private hospital. "We are not sure if the second death was due to Coronavirus. Further tests are being conducted on the deceased person," he said.

Later, in a press release, the Minister said, "The State is working hard to control the spread of Coronavirus. It was Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao who first sought a ban on all the international flights. It was Telangana which gave information to the Central government on the Markaz in Nizamuddin."

He said close to a 1,000 people attended Markaz in Nizamuddin. Except 160, the government has identified everyone. As of now, there has been no community transmission in Telangana. About 10 people who had previously been tested negative after receiving treatment at Gandhi Hospital will be discharged after another round of testing, the Minister said.

ALSO READ| Warangal hospital staff in grip of fear with shortage of protective gear amid coronavirus pandemic

Junior doctors attacked

Meanwhile, the junior doctors who treated the coronavirus patient, who died on Wednesday, were assaulted by the patients attendants.

Speaking to Express, Dr Lohith, a member of Gandhi Junior Doctors Association, said, "The 49-year-old man, who passed away, was undergoing treatment along with his two family members for the last four days. However, his condition had been critical, and we had been constantly counselling the family members. Today, at about 5.30 pm, he breathed his last as his family members did not give their consent for us to make an incision in his throat for conducting the intubation procedure."

Another doctor, on the condition of anonymity, said, We have been requesting the authorities to provide us with extra security personnel, but there has been no response. Now, the lives of the doctors are on the line as they may be infected as well. Initially, the police too were hesitant to intervene fearing contracting the infection.The Health Minister condemned the attack and said stringent action would be taken.

ALSO READ| Telangana pays no heed to HRD Ministry's advisory on mid-day meal amid COVID-19 lockdown

Medical teams face angry mob in Nizamabad

In a development that might affect the morale of the medical and health department staff, several of them faced an angry mob at Quila area here on Wednesday. They had gone there to conduct a door-to-door survey to identify those who have come in contact with the attendees of the Markaz-Nizamuddin convention in Delhi.

The residents of the area, who were irked by the presence of the health workers, asked them to go back. Besides obstructing the work, the residents argued with them on the need for a door-to-door survey. They even snatched papers that the staff were carrying, tore them into pieces and threw them in a dustbin.

ALSO READ| As humans are locked down due to coronavirus, wildlife roams free in Telangana

Time running out for others who are infected

For someone who might have been infected on March 15 itself by the SARS-Coronavirus-2 and is yet to be traced, the crucial period of 14 days in which the virus can get incubated and cause COVID-19 disease is already over. Time is also running out for many others who came in contact with them.

It should not come as a surprise that six deaths in TS (till Tuesday) due to COVID-19 are all Markaz-related. They were Telangana citizens who attended the three-day event in Delhi and returned.

It may be mentioned here that even before this three-day event came to an end, as early as March 16, the Telangana government had shifted some Indonesian nationals who were residing at a mosque in Karimnagar to quarantine in Gandhi Hospital. They are all members of the Tabilighi Jamaat.
EU and UK officials are meeting to discuss how arrangements will operate after the transition period ends.

Four Stormont leaders have written a joint letter to Prime Minister Boris Johnson expressing their concern at the UK's rejection of a request by the EU to establish an office in Belfast.

RTE reported the bloc asked to set up an office in the city in order to ensure agreements made in the withdrawal deal were being followed.

The protocol would see checks carried out on goods coming into Northern Ireland from Great Britain to determine if they were to enter the EU through the Republic.

It's reported the EU wants a physical presence, which would have customs and veterinary staff, saying there is provision in the protocol for such an office, however this request has been declined by the UK Government.

Sinn Fein's Michelle O'Neill, Alliance Party leader Naomi Long, SDLP leader Colum Eastwood and the Green Party's Clare Bailey have now penned a letter to the PM stating they feel such an office is necessary to ensure the implementation of commitments in the Withdrawal Agreement.

"You are aware that under, the terms negotiated by your Government, EU representatives have a right under law to be present during any activities relating to the protocol implementation," they said.

"It is also for the EU to determine the extent to which it wishes to exercise these rights, including the opening of an office in Belfast staffed by EU representatives who can carry out their functions without interruption by the Westminster Government."

The letter states it is necessary for EU experts to be based Belfast to liaise with the UK Government and NI Executive on the implementation of the protocol.

"To oppose the opening of such an office by the EU in Belfast represents an act of bad faith by your Government and a breach of trust at this critical stage of the process," they added.

"We are calling on you to reverse the approach taken by your Government without delay and comply with the request made by the European Commission."

The protocol states that the EU "shall have a right to be present" and the UK would "facilitate such a presence". Brussels officials believe this entails an office, however, officials on the UK side said this could lead to "joint patrols" and a permanent presence.

The EU, it is believed, is to insist on an office in order to assure member states the agreement is being followed.

RTE reported the matter was raised at the first teleconference of the EU-UK joint committee which is tasked with working out the finer points of how the Irish protocol will work at the end of the transition period.

A UK government spokesperson said: "We received an initial request from the EU and responded to decline the proposal in February. We have since received a follow up letter to which we will respond in due course."

Before the UK's departure from the EU in January, the EU Commission had an office on Bedford Street in the city centre.

EU officials told RTE they understood the sensitivities around having an office in Belfast, "given the political tension in Northern Ireland since the Brexit referendum, and given that there would not be similar offices in Edinburgh and Cardiff".

A UK government spokesperson said: "We received an initial request from the EU and responded to decline the proposal in February. We have since received a follow up letter to which we will respond in due course."
Examinations for classes 7th and 8th in schools affiliated to Karnataka State Board have been cancelled and children will be promoted to the next standard without exams, said Suresh Kumar, Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Minister.

Several schools across the country have been closed in the backdrop of COVID-19 lockdown.

Karnataka Health Minister B Sriramulu on Thursday said that total positive cases in the State stand at 121.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1,965 on Thursday after 131 people tested positive in the last 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. So far, at least 50 people have lost their lives owing to the virus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The number of confirmed covid-19 cases in India has jumped 47 percent over the past two days to 1834, the latest data from the ministry of health and family welfare (MoHFW) published last night shows. This is a faster increase compared to the previous 48 hours, when the case count rose 37 percent to 1251.

Indias trajectory is still flatter than that of the US, which is emerging as the new global epicentre of covid-19. Yet, it is far more steeper than either Singapore or South Korea, which have managed to flatten their coronavirus curves through a combination of focused surveillance, screening, and the effective use of masks to contain the pandemic.

Indias case count is now roughly double what it was four days ago. At this trajectory, the number of cases could shoot up to 10,000 over the next thirteen days. If the same trajectory continues beyond that period, Indias hospitals could get overwhelmed in the next few months.

Given the volatility in Indias daily data over the past few days, it is too early to say whether the current trajectory will sustain, rise, or flatten in the coming days. It is worth noting that the US had a flatter trajectory compared to China till recently. But as testing expanded, cases spiked up, with the US now overtaking China as the country with the most confirmed cases of covid-19.

At 254, Maharashtra leads in terms of the number of active cases of covid-19, according to the latest health ministry update. Active cases exclude deaths and recoveries from the list of confirmed cases. Tamil Nadu has the second most number of active cases (227), followed by Kerala (216). At 144 active cases, Delhi has the fourth-highest number of active cases, followed closely by Telangana (92). The top five states together account for 57 percent of the active cases nationally.

These are early days yet and the state-wise distribution could change rapidly in the coming days. Across the country, there seems to be a strong link between the extent of testing done by states and the number of cases that have been identified. This suggests that as other states ramp up testing, more cases could get reported from those states as well.

View Full Image Data as of 1st April

View Full Image Source: State government portals

So far, three states have reported covid-19 cases in the north-east: Manipur, Mizoram, and Assam, with 1 confirmed case so far in each of these states. Other north-eastern states have not reported any case so far.

Over the past two days, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra have seen the biggest spikes in confirmed cases. These two states accounted for 47 percent of the rise in confirmed cases nationally over this period.

View Full Image Source: MoHFW

Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra have also seen the biggest spikes in active cases since Tuesday night. The number of active cases rose from 62 to 227 in Tamil Nadu and from 165 to 254 in Maharashtra.

So far, the provisional district wise details are available for 979 confirmed cases nationally. In this list, Mumbai (81 cases) has reported the most number of cases nationally, and also leads in the state of Maharashtra. Kasargod district (78 cases) has reported the most number of cases in Kerala. Bengaluru (43 cases) has reported the most cases in Karnataka and Hyderabad district (27 cases) has reported the most cases in Telangana. Gautam Buddh Nagar district (22 cases) has reported the most number of cases in Uttar Pradesh.

More than nine hundred thousand people have now been detected as covid-19 patients globally even as severe parts of the world, including India, have taken severe lockdown measures in a bid to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

So far, covid-19 has claimed 47, 208 deaths globally, of which Italy has accounted for the most deaths (13,155), followed by Spain (9,387). These countries have overtaken China --- where the virus originated --- in the number of deaths. China, which has seen 3,316 covid-19 deaths so far, has been able to slow the spread of the disease over the past month.

If Europe followed China in becoming the epicentre of the pandemic, the US has followed Europe now. At 215,417 confirmed cases and 5,116 deaths so far, the US has surpassed China on both counts.

In India, there have been 41 deaths so far but this could change in the coming weeks. Testing criteria in India have been stringent so far and are gradually being relaxed even as new labs have begun testing.

It is likely that cases will continue to mount over the coming days as testing expands, even if the lockdown has lowered the rate of transmission of the virus. The full impact of the lockdown can be gauged only after a few weeks. If the lockdown phase is used effectively to identify and isolate affected patients, this could help India flatten the curve in the coming weeks. If not, cases could spike once the lockdown ends.





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SALT LAKE CITY, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Ivanti, the company that unifies IT to better manage and secure the digital workplace, announced the expansion of its growing portfolio of enterprise service management (ESM) solutions with the launch of Ivanti Assistants which enable endpoint self-healing capabilities. Designed to automate detection and remediation of a range of IT issues impacting users, the new suite of automation bots helps ease the burden on service management and helpdesk teams while also enabling those teams to proactively connect with end users, fixing issues that would otherwise have been unreported or ignored.

"Ivanti Assistants are a new family of cloud-based automation bots that provide endpoint self-healing capabilities and give IT organizations their very own 24/7 virtual support team," said Ian Aitchison, senior product director at Ivanti. "These powerful, automation bots allow IT service desks to do what was never thought possible before  proactively monitor, identify and automatically fix endpoint issues before users even know they are there. Additionally, Assistants also enable IT to proactively reach out to help end users who might not typically contact IT when faced with a service interruption. It's a win-win for IT organizations everywhere that struggle to both enable automation and improve the human relationship, while addressing the individual and diverse needs of end users in a timely manner."

Ivanti currently offers four Ivanti Assistants, each focused on maintaining a high level of service to their individual areas of end user IT expertise: security and compliance, business continuity, user productivity and resource optimization. Each Assistant runs through a series of regularly scheduled checks across an organization's endpoints to determine where end users are experiencing challenges. These include common issues such as lengthy login times, application errors or lack of required security settings. Each Assistant also has a library of monitored items within their area of expertise, and customers can add to that library for their business needs.

With Ivanti Assistants, any issue detected can either drive immediate automated correction  such as switching a firewall back on  or if the issue is not immediately resolvable, the Assistant can create an incident ticket in Ivanti Service Manager. That incident can encourage human interaction, reference learned knowledge, and follow automated workflow to either achieve a good ESM/IT service management (ITSM) aligned resolution, or, lead to truly proactive problem management  resolving the cause of tomorrow's incidents today.

Most significantly, Ivanti Assistants' detection and ticket creation allow IT service desk staff to now proactively contact end users, and offer to fix the annoying recurring issues that are not typically reported to IT, yet still impact productivity and damage the perception of IT.

"By adding a specialist virtual support team to Ivanti Service Manager, our customers are increasing uptime, reducing unreported IT errors, driving productivity, and  more importantly  improving the positive perception of IT. We're helping end end user frustration over those IT issues that have never really been addressed properly," continued Aitchison.

Ivanti Assistants are available now. For more information, visit https://www.ivanti.com/solutions/it-service-management and https://www.ivanti.com/products/ivanti-cloud.

Ivanti: The Power of Unified IT.

Ivanti unifies IT and Security Operations to better manage and secure the digital workplace. From PCs to mobile devices, VDI, and the data center, Ivanti discovers IT assets on-premises and in the cloud, improves IT service delivery, and reduces risk with insights and automation. The company also helps organizations leverage modern technology in the warehouse and across the supply chain to improve delivery without modifying backend systems. Ivanti is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah and has offices all over the world. For more information, visit www.ivanti.com and follow @GoIvanti.

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Pennsylvania State Police are asking for the publics help to find the person who decapitated a sheep on a Bedford County farm last month.

Sometime between March 1213, someone cut the head off a sheep found on a farm in the 100 block of Fletcher Road in East Providence Township, authorities said.

There was no blood around the sheep, and its head was not recovered, according to a state police post on Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers.

Police believe the incident occurred between 10 p.m. on March 12 and 6 a.m. the next day.

Anyone with information on the incident can contact the state polices Bedford barracks at 814-623-6133, or the Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers at 1-800-4PA-TIPS (8477). Tips can also be submitted online.
New Delhi, April 2 : The Health and Family Welfare Department of Delhi, here on Thursday, wrote to the police for deployment of adequate forces at hospitals and quarantine centres, to prevent any disturbance at hospitals and isolation centres.

Citing cases of patients, particularly those shifted from the Nizamuddin Markaz, "creating law and order problem", Padmini Singla, Secretary (Health and Family Welfare), in a letter to the Police Commissioner also pointed to suicide attempt by a person who was shifted to Rajiv Gandhi Hospital from the Markaz.

The patient "was rescued by the hospital staff. In another incident, two inmates, quarantined at Narela DDA facility, escaped and were later tracked down in Patparganj," Singla said.

She also said people, particularly those shifted from Markaz, were reportedly creating commotion at the hospitals and it was becoming difficult for the hospital staff to handle.

"In view of the above, I am directed to request you to deploy adequate police force in all the hospitals and quarantine centres," Singla said.
O cado has bought 100,000 coronavirus test kits to ensure it can "safely provide a vital service" to as many of its customers as possible.

The online supermarket reportedly spent 1.5m on the kits and has received 40,000 so far.

Ocado said it would make the kits available to the government if required.

"We have purchased Covid-19 testing kits to ensure that frontline colleagues can regularly access tests, and continue to safely provide a vital service to as many customers as possible," said a spokeswoman from the Ocado Group.

A NHS nurse holds a Coronavirus testing kit / Getty Images

The news has caused some to question why the Government is yet to provide all NHS staff with tests for Covid-19.

Around 2,000 of the 1.2 million NHS staff have been tested for coronavirus so far - working out to just one in around 600.

The Government said on Wednesday that it hopes to have capacity to test 25,000 people each day for coronavirus by mid-April. In contrast, Germany is already testing around 70,000 a day.

Harrow West MP, Gareth Thomas, called on the government to explain why NHS staff weren't being routinely tested.

"If Ocado can buy 100,000 Covid-19 test kits to ensure 'safety for all' for its staff, why can't Michael Gove and Matt Hancock do the same for NHS staff?" he asked on Twitter.

Writer Marcus Chown also took to Twitter to ask why NHS employees weren't being prioritised.

Ocado, like other retailers including Tesco and Sainsbury's, have been overwhelmed with a demand for slots after the government ordered people to stay at home to avoid spreading the coronavirus further.

Ocado said it was doing everything possible to protect the health, safety and welfare of its colleagues around the world and had implemented a number of measures in line with official advice to limit contact and maintain high standard of hygiene.

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures 1 /81 Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures A deserted Westminster Bridge PA A man wearing a face mask or covering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past customers sat outside a restaurant AFP via Getty Images Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Runners pass cardboard cutouts of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William during the London Marathon in London AP An empty escalator at Charing Coss London Underground tube station Jeremy Selwyn Electronic bilboards displays a message warning people to stay home in Sheffield PA A sign is displayed in the window of a student accommodation building following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Mancheste Reuters People take part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions, in Londo AP People sing and dance in Leicester Square on the eve on the 10PM curfew Reuters Hearts painted by a team of artists from Upfest are seen in the grass at Queen Square, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bristol Reuters Graffiti reads 'good luck and stay safe', as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, under a bridge in London Reuters A sign is pictured in Soho, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London Reuters Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures, during a coronavirus briefing in Downing Street, London AP A person runs past posters with a message of hope, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Manchester REUTERS Riot police face protesters who took part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions in London AP An image of The Queen eith quotes from her broadcast to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the Coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images Durdle Door in Dorset Reuters Captain Tom Moore via Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Coronavirus outbreak PA An NHS worker reacts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS Reuters Goats which have taken over the deserted streets of Llandudno @AndrewStuart via PA Tobias Weller PA Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed London Landscapes: Hyde Park and the Serpentine, central London. Matt Writtle A newspaper vendor in Manchester city centre giving away free toilet rolls with every paper bought as shops run low on supplies due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus PA Theo Clay looks out of his window next to his hand-drawn picture of a rainbow in Liverpool, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue Reuters A young man cuts another man's hair on top of a closed hairdresser in Oxford Reuters General view of the new NHS Nightingale Hospital, built to fight against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London via Reuters Jason Baird is seen dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children in Stockport, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters A woman wearing a face mask walks past Buckingham Palace Getty Images A man holds mobile phone displaying a text message alert sent by the government warning that new rules are in force across the UK and people must stay at home PA Medical staff on the Covid-19 ward at the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, in Wales, as the health services continue their response to the coronavirus outbreak. PA Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking part in a virtual Cabinet meeting with his top team of ministers PA A shopper walks past empty shelves in a Lidl store on in Wallington. After spates of "panic buying" cleared supermarket shelves of items like toilet paper and cleaning products, stores across the UK have introduced limits on purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have also created special time slots for the elderly and other shoppers vulnerable to the new coronavirus. Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour PA Mia, aged 8 and her brother Jack, aged 5 from Essex, continue their school work at home, after being sent home due to the coronavirus PA Children are painting 'Chase the rainbows' artwork and springing up in windows across the country Reuters Social distancing in Primrose Hill Jeremy Selwyn A general view of a locked gate at Anfield, Liverpool as The Premier League has been suspended PA Homeless people in London AFP via Getty Images A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow's street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss PA The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace, London, for Windsor Castle to socially distance herself amid the coronavirus pandemic PA A general view on Grey street, Newcastle as coronavirus cases grow around the world Reuters Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty (L) and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance look on as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he speaks during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news conference inside 10 Downing Street Reuters The ticket-validation terminals at the tram stop on Edinburgh's Princes Street are cleaned following the coronavirus outbreak. PA Locked school gates at Rockcliffe First School in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A sign at a Sainsbury's supermarket informs customers that limits have been set on a small number of products as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases grow around the world Reuters Jawad Javed delivers coronavirus protection kits that he and his wife have put together to the vulnerable people of their community of Stenhousemuir, between Glasgow and Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" Getty Images A man who appears to be homeless sleeping wearing a mask today in Victoria Jeremy Selwyn A pedestrian walks past graffiti that reads "Diseases are in the City" in Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images Staff from The Lyric Theatre, London inform patrons, as it shuts its doors PA A quiet looking George IV Bridge in Edinburgh PA A quieter than usual British Museum Getty Images A racegoer attends Cheltenham in a fashionable face mask SplashNews.com A commuter wears a face mask at London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn A empty restaurant in the Bull Ring Shopping Centre Getty Images A deserted Trafalgar Square in London PA Passengers determined to avoid the coronavirus before leaving the UK arrive at Gatwick Airport Getty Images

"We continue to recruit across our UK businesses to maximise the ability of Ocado.com and Morrisons.com to deliver to customers," said the Ocado spokeswoman.

"In order to bring more resources to our operations, we are hiring another 3,000 people to join our Logistics operations, as well as hundreds more across different business areas.
Dealers sold a large number of counterfeit masks to well-known hospitals in Bengaluru, a top police officer told Metrolife.

He named St Marthas and Baptist Hospital among the victims of a counterfeit mask scam busted earlier this week. The counterfeiters also sold 75,000 masks to the government of Kerala, he says.

Police say people should buy masks only from registered pharmacies, and insist on a bill every time. We act on tip-offs. There are likely to be more cases in the coming weeks, says the officer.

Police have conducted seven raids in 15 days and seized more than 15,000 masks and 8,500 bottles of sanitisers worth Rs 56 lakh, all counterfeits.

Officers of the Central Crime Branch say small-time manufacturers are busy running factories and producing counterfeits to meet the high demand for masks and sanitisers.

They buy cloth, make masks and stamp an N95 seal on it. This is done to hoodwink people, a senior officer told Metrolife.

The N95 mask is widely in demand but has gone out of stock even at online stores. Many traders are using the crisis to cheat and make money, police say. They are taking advantage of the situation. Right now masks and sanitisers are in huge demand. They smuggle substandard products into the market and make quick money, he explains.

The counterfeit masks and sanitisers were also being routed to pharmacies, the only shops open during the lockdown.

Underwear cloth

On March 30, police confiscated 12,000 counterfeit masks from two medical representatives. They had contacts in the medical fraternity. They would get masks for Rs 18 and sell them for between Rs 100 and Rs 350 apiece. They would just put an N95 seal on it, says the officer.

The Karnataka government, without knowing the background of the group, had been negotiating with them to buy masks worth Rs 1 crore, he says.

They had a bogus certificate. In fact, they had bought cloth, usually used to make undergarments, from Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu to make the masks. The masks appear attractive but using them might have caused more harm than good, he says.

Why wear a mask

Dr Sanjiv Lewin, chief of medical services, St Johns Medical College Hospital, says primarily two types of masks are on the marketthe N95 mask and the surgical mask.

They are meant for specific purposes. Sanjeev explains, N95 masks are meant to control and reduce airborne aerosol particles. It must be strictly reserved for medical personnel dealing with patients who need intervention for airway and breathing problems. Doctors and nurses who are entering an isolation ward are strictly advised to use this mask.

He also says that surgical medical masks are meant for use against contact and droplet infections.

These masks are worn to prevent droplets that may fall when the patient sneezes or coughs. One must wear this surgical mask when within three feet of the patient and during transport, says Dr Lewin. He advises people without respiratory symptoms not to wear medical masks. It may result in unnecessary cost, supply problems, and maybe more infections as hands are repeatedly used to adjust uncomfortable masks after long use, he cautions.

What is N95?

An N95 mask (also called respirator) is called so because it filters at least 95 per cent of airborne particles. It is made from a fine mesh of synthetic polymer fibers produced through a highly specialised process. Masks conforming to N95 specifications are made by many companies, but pharmacies and online stores are running short of supply in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

Up to seven years in jail

The Central government has brought masks and hand sanitisers under the Essential Commodities Act till June 30, as the pandemic has led to shortages and black marketing of these items. Anyone found guilty may be punished under section 420 IPC and section 18 C of Drugs and Cosmetics Act 1940 which states that any person who sells drugs without a valid license as required under clause C of section 18, shall be punishable with imprisonment for not be less than one year which may extend to three years and with fine. In some cases, depending on the gravity of the offence, there could be imprisonment of up to seven years or fine or both.

Raids across city

On March 30, police busted a counterfeit mask racket and arrested Asgar and Amir Arshad from Kalyan Nagar. The arrested are now in judicial custody. They had bought underwear material from Tiruppur and manufactured the masks at factories in Bengaluru.
Naming buildings can be tricky. Sometimes a name sticks. Sometimes it doesnt.

Take, for example, the mansion at 5120 St. Charles Ave. Covering more than 13,000 square feet and set in parklike grounds spanning an entire city block, its been known by a number of names over the decades.

The one that stuck, though, belongs to a man who never actually lived there.

A distinctive three-story stone structure built by the firm Favrot and Lavadais, the neo-Italianate house was known upon its 1907 completion as the Isaacs house, after its first owner, local department store owner Marks Isaacs, who spared little expense when constructing it.

The walls were covered with tapestrylike wallpaper. Stained-glass windows accented the staircase, for those disinclined to ride the birdcage-style elevator. A pair of oversized paintings signed de Rudder, Paris, 1858 were purchased from the owner of a Royal Street home and installed on the ceilings of the new houses library and its Louis XIV parlor.

Ornate chandeliers filled the place. Out back was a garage for what is said to be one of the first automobiles in the city.

In 1912, upon Isaacs death, lumber baron Frank B. Williams bought the home for his family  including his son, aviator Harry Williams, and the younger Williams wife, silent movie star Marguerite Clark.

Its then that it became known as the Williams Mansion.

Upon Harry Williams death in a plane crash in 1936, it was sold again, this time to racetrack owner Robert S. Eddy  becoming the Eddy Home.

It wasnt until 1948 that the Isaacs-Williams-Eddy mansion  which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in the 1970s  got a name that lasted once and for all.

Thats when real estate broker Harry Latter and wife, Anna  grieving over the death of their son Milton in World War II  bought the house for $100,000, then donated it and an additional $25,000 for renovations to the city of New Orleans. Their chief condition: It become a public library named after their son.

On Oct. 31, 1948, the Milton H. Latter Memorial Library was dedicated.

Today, almost 75 years later, the entire city knows it by that name  even if they might not know much about its namesake.

Milton H. Latter was a 22-year-old Army lieutenant who attended Culver Military Institute in Indiana before joining the fight in the Pacific Theater of World War II. He would never make it home, a casualty of the bitter fight on the Japanese island of Okinawa on April 27, 1945.

A little more than three years later, following months of renovation work, Harry Latter was among the dignitaries attending the dedication of the house as a library in summer 1948. It was then that he explained the thinking behind dedicating a library to his fallen son, as opposed to a statue or more traditional memorial.

Only by education can the way be found to prevent future wars, he said. And by raising these memorials of education, we can show that the sacrifices of the boys and girls in the last war were not made in vain.

Among the Latters other conditions for their donation was that the grounds be maintained in a parklike condition and that the homelike exterior never be changed. The city took that to heart. In fact, although the third-floor ballroom would become a storage area, attention has been paid over the years to keeping the inside as original as possible, including through renovations in 1985 and 2013.

The work goes on, thanks to the Milton H. Latter Decorative Restoration Fund at Greater New Orleans Fund, which is in the middle of a fundraising drive to cover interior repairs and restorations of the antique furniture filling the library.

The result is the most unique library youre likely to see  a monument to learning, to one mans sacrifice and to what many see as the golden era of St. Charles Avenue architecture.

This is more than a library, said Mayor Chep Morrison while accepting it on behalf of the city. It is one of the most beautiful spots in the city.

A brief history of the building published on the librarys website adds to that: Latter Library is one (of) the citys monuments to the past, which has acquired new meaning through service to the present. It is a fitting memorial to Milton H. Latter and the generosity of his family.

Know of a New Orleans building worth profiling in this column, or just curious about one? Contact Mike Scott at moviegoermike@gmail.com.
The death has taken place of Laois woman Alice Kennedy who was a champion of the Irish community in Britain after contracting the coronavirus.

Originally from Clonaslee, Ms Kennedy (nee Culleton) moved from Shracullen to Kentish Town 58 years ago and immersed herself in the Irish community in London through her roles with the Irish Elderly Advice Network and her beloved Irish Pensioners Choir.

She would go on to chair the network which cares for older Irish emigrants living alone and also served as secretary of the Irish Pensioners Choir for many years.

Co-Director of the Irish Elderly Advice Network and close friend of Ms Kennedy, Nora Mulready, told the Leinster Express that Ms Kennedy was the life and soul of everything in the Irish community in London.

The outpouring of love for her over the last number of days has been a real testament of what she meant to people over here.

People knew she was ill and were following her progress, checking up on her. At one point, we all got news that she had improved. In fact, Alice was texting people herself because the doctors said she was doing well and had improved overnight.

The last text message I got from her said, The doctors say Im doing well, thank God. That was probably three days before she passed and she just rapidly declined after that.

She was still right at the absolute top of her game even at 83 years of age. Bright as a button, youd get nothing past our Alice. She always dressed so well and stood so perfectly upright. It was her smile though, everyone that has paid tributes has commented on it, said Ms Mulready.

She was a tiny woman, but she was massive in every other way.

She was deeply involved in the Irish Pensioners Choir and they had so many adventures, including recording songs with Foster and Allen - which was hilarious and fantastic. Theres a video on Youtube and right in the middle, youll see Alice. As always."

When she emigrated in 1962, Alice worked in Woolworths for seven years, then in John Lewis on Oxford Street until her retirement. Her husband was Frank Kennedy, whose remains were laid to rest in Clonaslee.

She kept in touch with family in Clonaslee and nearby Kilcormac but for her, London was as much her home.

"Its lovely to go home, but when I go back to Kentish Town its like coming home too, Alice told the Leinster Express in 2014 after she met the Queen in Buckingham Palace.

The Irish Times reported that the Irish Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Adrian ONeill, said the Irish Embassy in London was deeply saddened by Ms Kennedys passing.

The London Irish Centre paid tribute also, We are deeply sad to hear of her sudden passing. Through Alices work with the Irish Elderly Advice Network and the London Irish Pensioners Choir, both based at the London Irish Centre, she was a much-loved regular around the building.

Alices unexpected passing is a heartbreaking case of the special vulnerability of the older Irish in London to Covid-19, and a reminder for all us to do everything we can to keep the vulnerable, safe, supported and at home. Our London Irish Centre team will never forget Alices bright smile and sense of fun, and we send our sincere condolence to her loved ones.
Has Prince Harry given up a lot to make Meghan, Duchess of Sussex happy? Many critics believe that the Sussexes decision to leave the royal family was initiated by Meghan, with one source sharing that Harry burnt every bridge for his wife.

Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex | Samir Hussein/WireImage

Prince Harry and Meghan quit the royal family

Prince Harry and Meghan announced their plan to step back from their royal duties in January and officially left their royal life behind, with the queens support, on Mar. 31. The couple posted a message on Instagram before their last day to share their gratitude with their fans and explain, While you may not see us here, the work continues.

As we can all feel, the world at this moment seems extraordinarily fragile, they wrote in the post. Yet we are confident that every human being has the potential and opportunity to make a difference  as seen now across the globe, in our families, our communities and those on the front line  together we can lift each other up to realise the fullness of that promise.



They emphasized the importance of the health and wellbeing of everyone across the globe and finding solutions and pledged that they are focusing this new chapter to understand how we can best contribute.



While you may not see us here, the work continues, they added.

Prince Harry has given up everything says one source

In a piece for the Daily Mail, royal editor Rebecca English did a deep dive into Megxit, opening with the concern that Prince Harry might soon experience niggling regrets over their choice to leave the royal family.

She added, As one royal insider  previously a great admirer  said to me recently: Harry has given up everything, literally everything. He has burnt every single bridge back at home. And Meghan? Well I rather think shes got what she wanted'

Whether that statement is entirely true or not is unclear but both Prince Harry and Meghan made sacrifices to choose a life out of the spotlight. In addition to giving up their HRH titles and the Sussex Royal name, they also no longer receive public funding. They gain a life away from the constant media scrutiny and the ability to raise their son Archie with a more normal upbringing, however.

An insider claims Meghan gave Harry an ultimatum

The criticism of Meghan hasnt stopped even though they exited the royal family, as one source shared with English that the duchess wasnt really prepared for the royal life and another insider believes she gave Prince Harry an ultimatum and forced him to choose.

She grossly misjudged how culturally different the UK is from America. And then you add to that the protocol, one source told English. To be fair, she didnt really have any girlfriends to say to her if you dont wear a hat when you are with the queen, you are going to mess this up.

According to English, a senior royal source told her that Meghan gave Harry the ultimatum: Archie and me are your family, adding, Harry had been hopeful of finding a way to marry his desire for more freedom with his royal heritage, but Meghan convinced him there was no other option, she forced him to choose. He has spent three months convincing himself he has done the right thing.
By Jeff Mason and Timothy Gardner WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said he has invited U.S.

By Jeff Mason and Timothy Gardner

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said he has invited U.S. oil executives to the White House to discuss ways to help the industry "ravaged" by slumping energy demand during the coronavirus outbreak and a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

Trump also said he had talked recently with the leaders of both Russia and Saudi Arabia and believed the two countries would make a deal to end their price war within a "few days" - lowering production and bringing prices back up.

"I'm going to meet with the oil producers on Friday. I'm going to meet with independent oil producers also on Friday or Saturday. Maybe Sunday. We're going to have a lot of meetings on it," Trump told reporters at a media conference.

"Worldwide, the oil industry has been ravaged," he said. "Its very bad for Russia, its very bad for Saudi Arabia. I mean, its very bad for both. I think theyre going to make a deal."

Global oil prices have fallen by roughly two-thirds this year as the coronavirus has slammed global economies at the same time major producers Saudi Arabia and Russia have started to flood the market with oil.

The collapse in prices has threatened the once-booming U.S. drilling industry with bankruptcies and massive layoffs, and Washington has scrambled for ways to protect the sector.

In the coming meetings with oil executives, Trump is expected to discuss a range of options to help the industry, including the possibility of tariffs on oil imports from Saudi Arabia, according to the Wall Street Journal, which was first to report the planned meetings.

Major drillers expected to participate in the initial meeting on Friday include Exxon Mobil Corp , Chevron Corp , Occidental Petroleum Corp , and Continental Resources , according to the Journal.

Occidental said it had no comment, while officials at the other companies did not respond to requests for comment.

A source familiar with the plan told Reuters that oil refiners and small producers would also be represented and the issue of potential waivers for royalties on existing federal offshore and onshore leases would be discussed.

The American Petroleum Institute, which represents the U.S. oil and gas industry, said its president Mike Sommers would attend the initial meeting, but added: "We are not seeking any government subsidies or industry-specific intervention to address the recent market downturn at this time."

The API, many of whose members operate globally, has said in the past it opposes trade tariffs because it can complicate projects and business relationships in other countries.

The group on March 20, however, sent a letter to the Trump administration requesting relief from some regulatory requirements to ensure steady supplies during the coronavirus. The administration has since announced it will temporarily ease some environmental enforcement.

Trump this week called Russia and Saudi Arabia's price war "crazy" and spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the issue. Top energy officials from the two countries later spoke and agreed to continue discussions alongside other major global oil producers and consumers, according to the Kremlin.

The Trump administration said it is also planning to send a special envoy to Riyadh to push for lower output.

Saudi Arabia's crude supply rose on Wednesday to a record of more than 12 million barrels per day, two industry sources said, despite a plunge in demand triggered by the coronavirus outbreak and U.S. pressure on the kingdom to stop flooding the market.

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu, Jeff Mason, Timothy Gardner and Valerie Volcovici in Washington and Gary McWilliams in Houston, Editing by Tom Brown, David Gregorio and Lincoln Feast.)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
New Delhi, April 2 : A PhD student has been arrested by Delhi Police teams probing the anti-CAA violence in northeast Delhi. The arrested student is alleged to have been involved in plotting the violence on February 24-25.

The arrested student's name is Miran Haider, a student of Jamia Millia Islamia. Haider has been arrested after a long-running investigation. However, no official information has been given by the Delhi Police regarding this so far.

According to police sources, "The police teams involved in the investigation of the riots in North East Delhi are expected to get more information from the arrested accused.

On the other hand, the student's family say that Haider was only called for questioning. He was not expected to be arrested. They claimed he had nothing to do with the violence.

It is noteworthy that the police has arrested over 1,500 people so far for the riots. Those arrested include Aam Aadmi Party councillor Tahir Hussain. More than 50 people died in the violence. The case was investigated by the Crime Branch. Two DCPs and more than 10 ACPs led several teams to investigate the riots. The investigation is still ongoing.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 13:36:25|Editor: Liu

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TOKYO, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Japan's health ministry and local governments said that 2,524 people had been infected with the COVID-19 virus in Japan, according to the latest figures released Thursday morning.

The death toll in Japan from the pneumonia-causing virus currently stands at a total of 82 people, according to the health ministry, with the figure including those from the virus-hit Diamond Princess cruise ship that was quarantined in Yokohama, close to Tokyo.

Of the 2,524 confirmed COVID-19 infections in Japan, the majority are still in Japan's capital city of Tokyo, which has confirmed 587 cases.

Osaka Prefecture recorded 278 COVID-19 cases, Chiba Prefecture 185, Aichi Prefecture 183 and 180 cases have been recorded in Japan's northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido, the figures showed.

The health ministry also said there are currently a total of 70 patients considered severely ill and are on ventilators to receive respiratory assistance or have been admitted to intensive care units for medical treatment.

The ministry added that in total, 1,091 people have been discharged from hospitals after their symptoms improved, according to the latest figures.
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As coronavirus is spreading through the nation and killing thousands, Trump is focused on stopping Jeff Sessions from winning back his Senate seat.

Via The New York Times:

Mr. Trump has been focused on the Alabama Senate race, consulting in recent weeks about it with his political advisers Bill Stepien, Justin Clark and the White House political director, Brian Jack, according to people familiar with the discussions.

Mr. Trump has a unique level of anger at his former attorney general. In 2017, Mr. Sessions surprised Mr. Trump by recusing himself from the investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential race.

A once in a century event is sickening and killing people while the economy is being destroyed, and Trump has spent recent weeks while the virus has been unleashing itself across the country meeting with his political advisers on how to stop Jeff Sessions from winning back his Senate seat.

Trump is more interested in his vendetta against Jeff Sessions for the Mueller investigation than he is in stopping the coronavirus.

Donald Trump is still trying to settle scores with his imaginary enemies, while doctors and first responders are begging for lifesaving protective gear on the frontlines of the coronavirus.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

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SAN DIEGO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Rising California lifestyle brand Blenders Eyewear has repurposed a portion of its manufacturing to make safety goggles for health workers in light of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The company will donate 10,000 goggles to Southern California hospitals in San Diego and Los Angeles. It is also partnering with Direct Relief , an international humanitarian aid organization, through which it will provide an additional 20,000 pairs of goggles to high-need regions in the U.S. such as New York City. In addition, five percent of all Blenders' sales throughout the month of April will go to Direct Relief.

"Our thoughts are with the doctors, nurses, and medical staff coping with patient surge and putting themselves in harm's way for the sake of the greater good," said Blenders Eyewear CEO Chase Fisher. "As a community, we all have a responsibility to flatten the curve and lower the peak of this virus."

Plans are in place to deliver 2,000 pairs to Sharp Healthcare, 3,500 to Scripps Health, 4,000 to UCLA Medical Center, and to provide an additional 500 pairs to friends and family on the frontlines. The safety goggles are FDA-approved medical devices and will be delivered by April 15. If the need continues to grow, Blenders may produce more.

Blenders Eyewear has gained rapid popularity throughout California and West Coast beach communities since its inception in 2012 on the beaches of San Diego. The sunglasses and goggles brand has garnered international attention for its innovative approach to online and social media marketing. For more information, visit Blenders Eyewear.com .

Video and images are available for download here. Current images will be added as they become available.

About Blenders Eyewear

Blenders Eyewear was founded in 2012 by Chase Fisher in San Diego. Blenders produces a wide range of men's and women's sunglasses and snow goggles. Driven by a company-wide motto of "life in forward motion", its products are predicated upon a bold aesthetic that emphasizes progressive colorways aimed at an active lifestyle demographic. Now a talented team of spunky and spirited designers, photographers, and communicators, Blenders is one of America's fastest-growing sunglasses brands. For more information, visit www.BlendersEyewear.com .

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Airlines are free to take ticket bookings from passengers for any date after April 14, said Aviation Secretary Pradeep Singh Kharola on Thursday, suggesting that those bookings may have to be cancelled in case the 21-day lockdown is extended.

India is under a lockdown from March 25 till April 14 to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, and consequently, all domestic and international commercial passenger flights have been suspended for this time period.

"The government direction is very clear that the lockdown has been announced, and the lockdown is up to April 14. That is what has been said so far," Kharola told reporters in a press conference.

"As far as post that (April 14) is concerned, it is all up to airlines. Airlines have to judge the situation and they can take the bookings. In case the lockdown gets extended, then the same process has to be followed, and if the lockdown is not extended, then the bookings will be honoured," said the secretary.

Till now, more than 1,900 people have been infected and 50 people have died due to the novel coronavirus in India, according to the Union Home Ministry.

As far as the Civil Aviation Ministry is concerned, it is proceeding on the basis and on the understanding that the lockdown is till mid-April, said Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri at the press conference.

"Now, what do the airlines do as a part of their contingency planning and to prepare for the future, it is entirely up to the airline. There is no directive from us," the minister added.

"But as someone who is always an eternal optimist, I am hoping that from April 15, the flights can at least start -- if not everything -- then in a calibrated manner," the minister noted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
NTPC is working towards creating extensive awareness drive hoardings, banners in its operational areas along with encouraging the people to stay safe and be at home through announcements on loudspeakers.

State-run energy producer NTPC contributed Rs 257.5 crore to the PM CARES Fund to support the government in the fight against COVID-19.

While Rs 250 crore has been given by the company, NTPC employees have also contributed Rs 7.5 crore towards the PM CARES Fund as their one day salary, the company said in a statement.

NTPC said it felt honoured to be a part of the contribution from the public sector undertakings (PSUs) of the ministry of power which has contributed Rs 925 crore to the PM CARES Fund.

The company said Rs 11 crore was being spent additionally by the PSU for protective measures at various locations as on 31 March 2020 towards awareness and health camps for people in the vicinity.

NTPC has also committed Rs 25 lakh to the district administration of Kawas (Gujarat), Solapur (Maharashtra), Anta (Rajasthan), Mauda (Maharashtra) and Jhanor (Gujarat) to fight the pandemic.

Moreover, NTPC is working towards creating extensive awareness drive hoardings, banners in its operational areas along with encouraging the people to stay safe and be at home through announcements on loudspeakers.

Further, a wing of the Sundargarh Medical College & Hospital in Odisha with 200 beds has been handed over to the district administration on 30 March.

At various plant locations, NTPC has made arrangements for food and medical facilities along with distribution of sanitisers and soaps for contract labourers, workers and to locals, it said.

Food packets, daily essentials groceries, milk and vegetables are regularly being supplied at many locations for the family members of workers.

The power major has taken several initiatives to contain the spread of the virus and setting up dedicated COVID-19 units at its hospitals. This has been done utilising 45 hospitals/health units with 140 beds to make isolation facilities.

Along with it, a total of 8 ventilators are being procured at Hazaribagh (Jharkhand) for district administration.

At present there are 7 ventilators in the project hospitals. Additionally, there are 18 advanced level ambulances with ventilators. Another 10 ventilators are in the process of procurement for different hospitals. Efforts are being made to acquire additional PPEs, sanitisers from available agencies.

All the trained healthcare staff at NTPC townships are observing the prevention and control (IPC) guidelines and are using protective personal equipment (PPE) as per the guidelines issued by the administration.

Provisions are also made for the health screening of all associate staffs engaged at canteens, guest houses and dining halls.

Also, strict provisions are in place for screening of visitors & employees entering NTPC premise with thermal scanners/screeners.

Plant Canteens and Dining halls are provided with adequate handwashing facilities and proper cleanliness of frequently touched surfaces. Despite this pandemic situation, NTPC is making sure that there is no gap in power generation and taking all precautionary measure to ensure the same.

NTPC groups total installed capacity stands at 62,110 MW and it has 70 NTPC power stations across the country.
Twelve more people have tested



positive for coronavirus in Indore, taking the total number of COVID-19 cases in Madhya Pradesh to 98, a health official said on Thursday.

None of the 12 new patients have any travel history.

Out of the total 98 coronavirus cases in the state, 75 have been reported from Indore, eight from Jabalpur, six from Ujjain, four from Bhopal, two each in Shivpuri and Gwalior and one from Khargone, the official said.

Six people have so far died, including three from Indore, two from Ujjain and one from, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A third prisoner has died after contracting coronavirus while in custody.

A Prison Service spokesman said: A 77-year-old HMP Littlehey prisoner died in hospital on March 27.

Our condolences are with his family at this time.

As with all deaths in custody, there will be an independent investigation by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.

The inmate is said to have had multiple underlying health conditions.

Convicted paedophile Edwin Hillier, 84, who was also at HMP Littlehey, died in hospital on March 22 after contracting coronavirus.

He was the first British inmate to die after being diagnosed with Covid-19.

A 66-year-old male inmate at HMP Manchester died in hospital on March 26, after contracting coronavirus.

He had been receiving end-of-life care for an underlying health condition, prior to being tested positive for Covid-19.
DANBURY  A World War II veteran is the first confirmed coronavirus death involving a resident from a Danbury nursing home.

Gary Anderson said the chief medical examiners office informed him his father, Albert Anderson, had tested positive for COVID-19 after his death over the weekend.

Anderson had to wait outside his fathers room at Danbury Hospital before he died.

That was horrible, he said.

The elder Anderson, 92, had been living at Glen Hill Center, a nursing home on the citys northside, for about two months, his son said.

The infections at the Danbury home come amid a number of other outbreaks reported at senior facilities across the state.

At Ridgefield Crossings, an assisted-living facility near the Danbury border in Ridgefield, several residents have died from the disease and an additional 22 staff and residents have tested positive for COVID-19.

Glen Hill Center nursing home officials confirmed Wednesday one of its residents had died from the disease, without releasing the name of the deceased, and said an additional resident and two employees have tested positive.

Anderson said his father died Saturday.

There is nothing we can say to the family that will take away the pain they must feel other than our hearts and thoughts are with them right now, said Lori Mayer, a spokeswoman for Glen Hill Center. This is a terrible situation that many families are dealing with all over the nation in hospitals, nursing homes, hospice centers and at home  it is an unprecedented pandemic.

Other Connecticut nursing homes and assisted-living facilities struck by coronavirus include Evergreen Health Care center in Stafford Springs, where three people have reportedly died after contracting the illness.

Benchmark Senior Living at The Village at Buckland Court in South Windsor, Sharon Health Care Center in Sharon, and The Greens at Cannondale in Wilton have all reported positive cases.

Anderson said his father was found on the floor of his room Saturday morning in a fetal position gasping for air, before he was taken to Danbury Hospital.

Doctors would later tell the son that when the disease reaches an elderly patients lungs it just strangles them, Gary Anderson recalled.

The diagnosis of coronavirus confirmed the suspicions of his fathers doctor, who told Gary when his father was brought in that his symptoms matched the disease, Anderson said.

He said his father suffered a stroke in December before his family brought him to the nursing home.

Mayer said the nursing home has followed guidelines set by public health officials to prevent the virus, including instructing staff to wear masks and gloves, quarantining certain employees, and increasing cleaning of surfaces.

More recently, we restricted patients and residents to their rooms and we are conducting three times daily monitoring of patient/residents temperature and symptoms, Mayer said.

Like other senior facilities across the state, Glen Hill has restricted visits except for exceptional circumstances such as end-of-life situations, Mayer said.

Glen Hill Center is owned by Genesis HealthCare, which owns nearly 400 centers across 26 states, according to its website.

The nursing home alerted family members by phone that one employee had tested positive on March 21, Anderson said.

On Wednesday, a city spokeswoman said officials are aware the coronavirus has reached the facility.

The City of Danbury and Connecticut Department of Public Health are aware of COVID-19 activity at Glen Hill, said Taylor OBrien, a spokeswoman for Mayor Mark Boughtons office. Our health director and the state have communicated daily with Glen Hill to provide guidance on appropriate actions to take in order to protect the health and safety of all residents and staff.

Anderson said an autopsy of his father was ordered because his father fell out of his bed. The chief medical examiners office said Wednesday the cause and manner of death are still pending investigation.

The Bethel resident described his father as a World War II Army veteran who served in the Pacific theater and commanded a local Veterans of Foreign Wars post.

He also remained active in his local community taking the role as the fire commissioner for the Georgetown Fire Department and was a deacon at the Sacred Heart Church in Georgetown, CT., his obituary said.

Al was an honorable man who would go out of his way to help others, the obituary said.
When the Parks and Recreation Department in Longmeadow shut down all of its classes due to the COVID-19 coronavirus, sensei Jim Shea sought another way to continue his tai chi and karate classes and thought maybe taking them outside would allow him to continue.

But when he began talking to his students about it, he was advised against it, especially by a few doctors in his class.

There was one person, however, who shared his desire to plow ahead in some form. It was his senior student and assistant instructor, Ed Marotta.

Their solution: tai chi and karate on Saturday mornings under the overhang at the front door of Longmeadow High School.

The two of them have the space to practice the ancient arts of tai chi and karate at a safe distance apart and in all kinds of weather.

We wanted to continue to train, Shea said, both to stay in shape and to stay sane and healthy. Its needed now more than ever because its a great way to relieve stress.

By doing this outside, Marotta said, it gives us the distance we need to stay safe. Its been my way of doing exercise for 24 years so I wanted to continue.

Tai chi originated in China as a martial art, but in its slow form, it has gained popularity as a gentle, beneficial exercise. Its also a meditative art in which participants move through a set pattern of slow movements that require complete concentration and silence.

By contrast, karate is high-intensity and is practiced as a martial art. Tai chi can actually be a warm up for karate.

But in this period of social distancing, something had to change. Theres no contact now in these outdoor sessions, Marotta said. In addition to tai chi, we are practicing kumite karate, but without an adversary.
Harrington Healthcare has furloughed 131 employees across all its branches this week as the medical provider has seen a 50 percent decline in patients amid the coronavirus outbreak, the according to Chris Canniff, the companys Vice President of Administration and Human Resources.

Of the 131 employees that were furloughed, 20 were partially furloughed, meaning their hours were cut, Canniff said.

The four-week furloughs are unpaid, Canniff said, and could be extended if patient numbers dont increase. The furloughing process began last week when managers were asked to identify the expected work volumes in their respective departments.

Employees were offered the opportunity to use vacation time. Those who preferred to save the vacation time applied for unemployment, Canniff said. Harrington Healthcare will pay the medical insurance for furloughed employees.

A second round of furloughs could be implemented in the next two weeks, Canniff said.

We're continuing to staff the volume to right size and shrink down the amount of time people are working, and those people will be part of a second phase of furloughs were considering, Canniff said.

Canniff said Harrington Healthcare is largely an outpatient system treating people with elective surgery, physical therapy and behavior health. Many of those procedures and appointments are not essential or have been canceled.

Harrington Healthcare has 40 offices across Central Massachusetts and Northeastern Connecticut, including a hospital in Southbridge. It closed its urgent care facility in Charlton last month to move volume to Oxford which allows for more space enabling patients to practice social distancing.

Most of the patients at Harrington Hospital are seen through the emergency room, Canniff said.

The furloughs did not include physicians or registered nurses, Canniff said.

The plan is for all 131 employees to return to Harrington Hospital once business is conducted as usual following the coronavirus pandemic.

The plan is to bring 100% of them back, Caniff said. There was messaging to them that they could be recalled and possibly redeployed in the system if volume or staff required us to bring them back.

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Chennai, 2 April : Director Karthik Naren's Tamil film "Mafia: Chapter 1", which released earlier in February, has come under the scanner for using photos of five of the eight men who were murdered by Canadian serial killer Bruce McArthur.

The film starring Arun Vijay, Prasanna and Priya Bhavani Shankar features a scene that has the criminal photos pinned to police investigation board. The scene was meant to indicate the background of the characters who have connections with a drug kingpin.

According to a report on CBS, the relatives of one of the victims said: "Why are these people putting [the families] through hell again? It's completely disrespectful." "How irresponsible is it of someone in the Tamil community, putting out a Tamil movie, that highlighted these two individuals, plus three other people, who died in such a tragic way?".

In 2019, Bruce McArthur, a landscaper in Toronto, was charged with first-degree murder charges. He took the lives of his victims between 2010 and 2017. He was sentenced to life imprisonment.

The film, which was available to stream on Amazon Prime Canada, has been taken down.

"We were concerned to learn that the movie uses pictures of the victims of the Toronto serial homicides and immediately took action," Amazon Prime Video told CBC.

However, the film was still available for streaming on Amazon Prime India at the time this report went live.

A representative of the film's production house Lyca has told CBC that they will issue an unconditional apology to the families, and will surely blur the images of victims once the coronavirus lockdown in India is over. They further added that they downloaded the images randomly.
By AFP

KARACHI: A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the death sentence for British-born militant Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who had been convicted over the 2002 killing of American journalist Daniel Pearl.

Sheikh's defence lawyer Khawja Naveed told AFP his client's sentence had been reduced to seven years in prison. Since Sheikh has been in prison since 2002, he was expected to be released, but the court had not yet issued that order, Naveed added.

Prosecutors did not immediately comment. 38-year-old Pearl was the South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal when he was abducted and beheaded in Karachi in 2002, while researching a story about Islamist militants.

A graphic video showing Pearl's decapitation was delivered to the US consulate in the city nearly a month later. Sheikh was arrested in 2002 and sentenced to death by an anti-terror court, while three other co-accused received life imprisonment.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University following an investigation into his death made chilling revelations, claiming that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.

The investigation, led by Pearl's friend and former Wall Street Journal colleague Asra Nomani and a Georgetown University professor, claimed the reporter was murdered by Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, the alleged mastermind of the September 11 2001 attacks, not Sheikh.

Mohammed - better known as KSM - was arrested in Pakistan in 2003 and is being held in Guantanamo Bay. A US psychologist who interviewed KSM said the prisoner had told him that he had beheaded Pearl.
BARCELONA (Reuters) - The separatist government of Spain's Catalonia region abandoned its initial reluctance and asked the national military on Thursday for assistance in tackling the coronavirus.

Spain has the world's second highest death toll after Italy, and Catalonia is its second worst-hit region with 2,093 deaths and 21,804 cases recorded and 1,855 people in intensive care.

Last month, an official of the Catalonia government, whose independence quest has created political turmoil in recent years, said military help was "totally unnecessary."

However, Alba Verges, a senior health official in the northeastern region, told Catalunya Radio that assistance from military health personnel would now be welcome. "We need hands. Hands also means that if (the military) has doctors and nurses that they make them available to us," she said.

Verges said Catalonia's intensive care capacity was "at the limit" but hospitals were finding solutions.

Catalonia's head of government Quim Torra also told SER Catalunya radio he would be thankful for any help from the Spanish military and doctors outside the region.

The military's emergency unit has been building makeshift hospitals and shelters and disinfecting facilities across Spain, including in Catalonia, in recent weeks. Catalonia has a population of 7.5 million, out of Spain's total 47 million.

(Reporting by Joan Faus; Editing by Andrei Khalip and Andrew Cawthorne)
In a bizarre incident, a person who tested positive for Covid-19 attacked the doctors at Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad on Wednesday evening. The man did this after the doctors declared that his brother died due to coronavirus disease.

With the latest death, the Covid-19 toll in Telangana reached seven.

Gandhi Hospital Superintendent Dr P Sravan Kumar told reporters that the brothers had been undergoing treatment at the isolation ward for the last few days. One of them, a 56-year old, was in critical condition and had been put on ventilator.

On Wednesday, his condition deteriorated and he succumbed to the disease. His brother, who was informed of the death, turned furious and attacked the resident doctor and other healthcare workers in the ward. He also broke the window panes in the ward, Kumar said.

He said the attack caused panic among the doctors and other staff of the hospital who had been working under tremendous pressure since the outbreak of Covid-19.

The hospital staff immediately alerted the policemen stationed in the hospital, who initially hesitated to enter the isolation ward because they had no safety gear like Personnel Protection Equipment (PPE).

Later, Hyderabad Commissioner of Police Anjani Kumar rushed to the hospital and took control of the situation and restored normalcy. The attacker was immediately moved to another isolation ward.

The commissioner said a case was registered against the person who attacked the doctors. While appreciating the doctors for their selfless service, he said that additional security arrangements were being made to prevent recurrence of such incidents.

Health minister Etela Rajender issued a statement condemning the attack on the doctors, who he said, were risking their lives while rendering service to the Covid-19 patients. He said the government would get the highest possible punishment for the accused.

The minister assured protection to the doctors and staff of the hospital. He appealed to them not to be disturbed by a stray incident.

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New Delhi: Nearly 1.09 lakh gloves, 65,000 sanitary masks and thermal scanners were recovered from three places in east Delhi in a joint operation against hoarders and black marketeers by the police and Delhi government officials. A total of 10,700 kg of wheat and 800 kg of rice were also hoarded at a fair price shop in Delhis Chanakya Place, officials associated with the operation said.

The Delhi government and the city police have been repeatedly cautioning people not to hoard when the country is a under a 21-day national lockdown.

In the first operation on March 23, the Shahdara police along with teams of ADM, Shahdara and SDM Vivek Vihar conducted a raid at a house in Karkardooma after information that the house owner, who is in the business of supplying essential medical equipments, had illegally stocked such items.

We seized 1.09 lakh gloves, 64,878 packets of masks and six thermometers from the house. A case under section 7 of Essential Commodities Act was registered and the house owner, Sachin Grover, was bound down in the case. Grover had been hoarding the items with intent to sell them on higher rates, said Dinesh Kumr Gupta, deputy commissioner of police (Shahdara).

In a similar raid on Thursday, two men Jagan Nath and Iqbal Javed, were arrested from Seelampur area after they were caught hoarding masks and sanitisers. Both of them ran medical stores.

A senior government official went to buy the items posing as a decoy customer. Both the medical store owners claimed that the items were not available. But when a raid was conducted, several masks and bottles of sanitisers were found, said DCP, (northeast) Ved Prakash Surya.

In another raid, the food and supply minister, along with the enforcement team visited a Fair Price Shop at Chanakya Place in southwest Delhi and found its owner and the record book missing. There was only a cash memo and on checking the stock at shop and allocation of food supply to the shop, a shortage of: Wheat (1000 kg wheat) and Rice 800 kg was found misappropriated by the shop owner, said a police officer.

A case was registered and the shop owner, Prashant Rathi, was nabbed. His questioning led to the recovery of 7,000 kg of the misappropriated wheat, the officer added.
Kerala Chief Minister



Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday said his government was not considering salary restriction for its employees as of now in the wake of the severe financial crisis being faced by the state due to COVID-19 pandemic.

He was responding to questions from reporters about a Facebook post of Finance Minsiter Thomas Isaac, indicating salary restriction while citing measures in several states, including Telangana where the government has decided to defer payment of salaries to several categories of its employees.

"Salary restriction issue is not under the government's consideration right now", Vijayan said here.

The government has asked its employees to donate a month's salary towards the CM's relief fund to tackle the fallout of the pandemic.

"Now we have appealed to the employees to contribute. We will see how the response is", he said.

In the Facebook post, Isaac said the distribution of the salary of the government staff for the month of March began in the state on Thursday but several other states were not giving the complete pay in view of the ongoing crisis.

"Telangana cut salaries by half. States such as Andhra Pradesh, Mahatashtra and Rajasthan have put on hold half of the salary without distributing it. If the situation continues like this, the Kerala government will also be forced to think about such steps," he said.

However, he later told reporters that such an extreme step would not be needed if all the employees take part in the "salary-challenge" announced by the government and contribute their one month salary voluntarily.

"Now, we have requested the employees to contribute their one month salary. No need to pay in a single installment but in multiple installments like during the time of floods," he said in the FB post.

The finance minister also rejected media reports that the LDF government was making the salary challenge mandatory.

"Only noble-hearted people need to contribute their one- month salary and there is no compulsion," he said.

Giving an insight into the grim financial situation of the state, he said the tax revenues on sale of lottery and liquor were nil in view of the lockdown.

There was no sale of motor vehicles in the state. There was only sale of food articles and that too with GST exempted on them, the FM said adding the state had not faced such a tough situation before.

"The state government will have no (tax) revenue in April. Taken the loan that could be. The GST does not provide any compensation," Isaac said.

During the floods in 2018 also the government had asked employees to contribute one month salary.

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress led UDF attacked the government over the issue, saying that the people were being forced to make the contribution.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
About 11,500 antiquities are being given back to the Iraqi and Egyptian governments by Steve Green, president of Hobby Lobby and chairman of the Museum of the Bible.

According to Christianity Today, ancient clay seals and fragments of papyrus housed in the Museum of the Bible were possibly looted or stolen and lack complete documentation.

Green had acquired the antiquities prior to the museums grand opening in Washington, DC, in November 2017 but admitted in a statement issued on Sunday that he fell short when it came to appreciating the importance of the provenance of the items I purchased.

In the official statement, Green acknowledged that the Museums early mistakes that resulted in a great deal of criticism over the years, which he asserted was justified.

The criticism resulting from my mistakes was justified, Green wrote on the Museums website.

My goal was always to protect, preserve, study, and share cultural property with the world, he continued. That goal has not changed, but after some early missteps, I made the decision many years ago that, moving forward, I would only acquire items with reliable, documented provenance.

Furthermore, if I learn of other items in the collection for which another person or entity has a better claim, I will continue to do the right thing with those items, Green added.

The announcement was made after an investigation funded by the museum discovered 16 fake fragments of the Dead Sea Scroll that were exhibited by the Museum.

Additional cases include the museum returning 13 stolen Egyptian papyrus fragments from the University of Oxford last year.

And in 2017, Hobby Lobby was fined and ordered by the federal government to return thousands of cuneiform tablets along with other antiquities found to have been removed from war-torn Iraq illegally and brought to the United States labeled incorrectly as ceramic tiles by a United Arab Emirates-based dealer.

Museum officials hope that its collections controversial beginnings are put to rest.

We understand that theres been questions all along, said chief curatorial officer Jeffrey Kloha.

He notes of the museum's ongoing conversations from the past two and half to three years to work through all of the questions, talk to the right people, to look at different options.

In 2017, staff members were told by the museum board to confirm the historicity of every item in the museums collection, along items personally acquired by Green that did not make its way into the museums collection.

Kloha adds that 2 years were undertaken by twenty curators and registrars, checking documentation on the roughly 60,000 objects held in Washington, DC, and in a climate-controlled warehouse owned by Hobby Lobby in Oklahoma City.

The majority of objects are Bible and printed materials with an easily traceable history unlike harder to trace items such as, mostly tiny clay seal impressions and papyrus fragments that will be repatriated as they are thousands of years old.

The only exhibited item from the repatriated items is a clay tablet recounting the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh.

Very few of the papyrus have any kind of literary text at all, Kloha said. If there's any writing it's typically a documentary item, a receipt, or a letter. The vast majority are small, heavily damaged pieces.

Despite the museums surrounding controversy, repatriation efforts have been received by various Middle Eastern government officials, in which potential future partnerships can be made.

We would be very interested in loans that bring some of their items here to the US, to help people here in the US understand the important history in these countries, the contributions that they have made and continue to make, to culture and to society, Kloha said.

Critics of Green and the museum have either placed them under a cloud of suspicion or were commended by some scholars of biblical antiquities for working to make things right.

Christopher Rollston, professor of Semitic languages at George Washington University, considers the matter to be a part of the past and that he would take family and friends to the museum.

Lawrence Schiffman, professor of Hebrew and Judaic Studies at New York University, agreed.

The museum deserves to be praised, Schiffman said. From the day it opened, the museum told the truth. They have been completely kosher about this.

Related:

All 16 Dead Sea Scroll Fragments at Museum of the Bible Are Forgeries, Investigation Finds

Photo courtesy: Getty Images/Alex Wong/Staff

Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer. He is also the co-hosts of the For Your Soul podcast, which seeks to equip the church with biblical truth and sound doctrine. Visit his blog Blessed Are The Forgiven.
US Navy Evacuates Hundreds From Aircraft Carrier After Virus Outbreak - Secretary

Sputnik News

19:00 GMT 01.04.2020

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - US Navy began evacuating hundreds of sailors from its coronavirus-hit Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier, but will keep aboard enough personnel to maintain the nuclear-powered ship's safety, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly told reporters on Wednesday.

"We already have nearly one thousand personnel off the ship right now and in the next couple of days we expect to have about 2,700 of them off the ship," Modley said at a Pentagon briefing. "We cannot and will not remove all the sailors off the ship. Our plan has always been to remove as much of the crew as we can while maintaining for the ship's safety."

He added that there are less than a hundred personnel who have tested positive so far. None of them is seriously ill and required hospitalization.

"We have 93 positive tests, 86 exhibiting symptoms and 7 without symptoms," Modley said. "We have tested about 24 percent of the crew. We have about 1,273 of the crew that have been tested."

The ship is docked in Guam where the Naval command together with the local authorities are looking for premises to accommodate evacuated sailors.

Modley emphasized that the outbreak doesn't compromise the battle-readiness of the ship which "will go if it needs to go."

 Sputnik

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A 40-year-old fair price shop owner was arrested for alleged misappropriation of foodgrains in Dwarka here, police said on Thursday.

The matter came to light after food supply officials of Circle 30 in Janakupuri filed a complaint stating that the shortage of wheat and rice was found to be misappropriated by the shop owner, identified as Parshant Rath, they said.

A team was constituted which recovered 70 quintals out of 107.86 quintals of misappropriated wheat and the accused was arrested, police said.

Rath was produced before a court which sent him to one-day police custody, they said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
One month ago, nobody responded to Nicki Murrays help-wanted ad for truckers to unload goods at Albertas feedlots. Now, shes getting half a dozen responses a week.

Obviously, people are needing or wanting more work, said Murray, owner of JF Murray Farms in Picture Butte, Alta. Even just in the last week, there was an influx.

In Alberta, Canadas biggest producer of crude oil and beef, the cattle industry aims to lure local workers to fill vacant positions on farms and in processing facilities as businesses in other sectors shut or idle operations amid the coronavirus pandemic and crash in energy prices. While nobodys expecting a flood of former oil workers, those that do come over would be a big help to ranchers who have struggled for years to recruit, often depending on temporary foreign workers.

Many vacant positions we had before this situation can be filled with Canadians, said Brady Stadnicki, manager of policy and programs for the Canadian Cattlemens Association. Theres lots of work to do in agriculture.

Alberta is facing a double whammy: a massive contraction in oil demand because of the coronavirus outbreak and a global collapse in crude prices. Some of the largest oilsands producers, including Suncor Energy Inc., have cut production or shut down operations. Canadian energy companies slashed more than $6 billion in capital-spending plans for the year, which will keep scores of rig operators, maintenance workers and other employees idle.

At the same time, meat is selling out at grocery stores as shoppers stock up at home to persevere through the pandemic. Canadian producers are running around the clock trying to meet the surge in retail demand, and some are offering cash bonuses to staff on the front lines of plants.

The unfortunate increased supply of labour may be an opportunity for businesses in the beef sector to recruit local workers for part-time support work on farms or in processing plants, Stadnicki said. Workers from the oilpatch may also have experience with machinery and trucking that can be an asset on farms, he said.

The labour gap in Canadas beef industry is expected to widen to as many as 14,000 jobs left unfilled by 2029 if the sector cant find ways to boost recruitment and retention, the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council said in a report. Given the industrys aging workforce, processors will need to replace about 32,000 workers by 2030 period, equivalent to more than half of the current total workforce, according to a 2019 report from Food Processing Skills Canada.

Oil shift

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi and the citys economic-development organization have targeted agribusiness as one of the main industries to help diversify the regions economy away from oil and natural gas. Albertas unemployment rate has been above six per cent for more than four years and reached 7.2 per cent in February, before the recent turmoil in the industry.

The fallout from the coronavirus is going to displace more energy workers, and we need to work harder at trying to find places for people, said Mary Moran, chief executive officer of Calgary Economic Development.

She has focused for years on bulking up the citys agribusiness sector to help diversify the economy and find jobs for professionals and office workers who have been laid off by energy companies. The organization has had some success, including helping convince BASF SE to relocate its Canadian agricultural headquarters to the city from Mississauga, Ont. Bayer Crop Science picked Calgary as its head office for its Canadian business.

The city has a long history in agriculture, strong logistics infrastructure and a skilled workforce, Moran said.

The opportunity isnt thousands of jobs, its hundreds, Moran said. So we really have to be careful to manage expectations and not make it sound like its the gold rush.

Hurdles remain. Agricultural contractors and specialized livestock workers in Alberta make an average wage of $24 an hour, compared with oil and gas drillers who earn $26 to $39 an hour, according to the provincial government. Meat cutters in processing plants or retail stores earn $21 an hour on average.

Work on a farm is difficult, said Janice Tranberg, president and CEO of the Alberta Cattle Feeders Association. Youre living remotely, youre not always doing easy work. It can be dirty at times.

While conditions may be similar to some jobs in the oilpatch, labour shortages persist amid a wave of retirements and as people seek more opportunities in cities, Tranberg said. Employers hope the downturn wont just result in workers looking for short-term jobs because the beef sector needs people over the long haul, she said.

What were looking for is long-term permanent employees, or at the very least, people who will return on a regular basis. Tranberg said.

Read more about:
In a joint operation conducted by Delhi Police Special Crime Branch and Delhi government, 275 foreign nationals who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi have been identified and sent into quarantine.

The foreign nationals include 172 from Indonesia, 36 from Kyrgyzstan and 21 from Bangladesh.

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the gathering. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

"104 persons who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi were picked from various mosques yesterday. They have been lodged at a resort and their samples will be collected," Dr Mukesh Vats, Chief Medical Officer of Agra said.

The people are associated with the Tablighi Jamaat were staying at various mosques and other places in Delhi.

Meanwhile, Lucknow Police said, "FIR has been registered against some Muslim clerics for allegedly hiding 23 foreign nationals. FIR has been registered on the grounds of violation of rules under Lockdown, hiding information about the foreign nationals, and religious preaching upon arrival on a tourist visa."

Police have informed the Embassy for the purpose of deporting such foreign nationals, police added.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

-ANI

Also Read: Coronavirus: TikTok India to donate 4 lakh protective hazmat suits
It was Rahm Emmanuel who said the state should never let a good crisis go to waste.

In regard to Iran, the neocons will not let the COVID-19 crisis go to waste. It is a perfect cover for escalating tension with the Islamic Republic.

It is more than obvious the geopolitical ignoramus Donald Trump is under the influence of a gaggle of neocons chomping at the bit to kill tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of Iranians.

Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 1, 2020

Trump, who did not detail the plot, made the threat less than an hour after receiving a foreign intelligence briefing at the White House, reported USA Today. Later at a briefing, Trump said the intelligence indicating an attack was sound.

Iranian-backed militias in Iraq continually threaten to attack U.S. and allied forces, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly. Threats arrive in a daily stream. Some of the more visible threats have been issued by the Kataib Hezbollah militia, the group responsible for rocket attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq that have killed American troops and contractors.

Iraqis have repeatedly and overwhelmingly demanded the US occupation forces leave the country, a demand rejected by Trump and his neocon foreign policy controllers.

From FRN:

Iraqs parliament last month [January, 2020] voted to have the US troops removed from the country, heeding a call from former Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mahdi to take urgent measures and end the presence of the foreign forces as soon as possible. The Iraqi Parliament passed a resolution to work to end the foreign troop presence in the Arab country in the wake of a US targeted assassination of a top Iranian general and a commander of Iraqi popular forces.

U.S. intelligence out of the Middle East suggests that Iran or Iran-backed forces are planning a potentially serious attack against U.S. military personnel in Iraq, said officials monitoring the information, The War Street Journal reported on April Fools Day.

The late CIA whistleblower Victor Marchetti documented how the agency has specialized in lies and deception since its inception in the late 1940s.As a special assistant to the Deputy Director of the CIA,Marchetti knew a thing or two about the role played by US intelligence, its pathological lies, and obsessive-compulsive secrecy.

The real reason for the official secrecy, in most instances, is not to keep the opposition (the CIAs euphemistic term for the enemy) from knowing what is going on; the enemy usually does know. The basic reason for governmental secrecy is to keep you, the American public, from knowingfor you, too, are considered the opposition, or enemyso that you cannot interfere. When the public does not know what the government or the CIA is doing, it cannot voice its approval or disapproval of their actions. In fact, they can even lie to you about what they are doing or have done, and you will not know it.

Due to an avalanche of lies and distortions issued by the state and the corporate medias dutiful stenographic repetition of war propaganda, omission of facts, distortions of reality, and endless demonization of official enemies, many Americans are unable to see what should be more than obviousthe rocket attacks on illegal US bases in Iraq following a lawful order by the Iraqi government demanding US troops leave the country are a completely justified and warranted response to a never-ending occupation.

Ignored is the historical fact Shias in Iran and Iraq share religious and cultural ties and have done so for centuries, well before the region was carved up by Britain and France following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire during the First World War.

Irans Major General Mohammad Hossein Bagheri told The Tehran Times the rocket attacks on US bases are a normal reaction by the Iraqi people and resistance forces against U.S. satanic measures Americans are well aware that the people of the region and the dear people of Iraq are opposed to their military presence in these countries and it is their normal reaction.

Now that the American people are consumed with fear and loathing of an overblown virus pandemic, the neocons around Trump see a chance to finally and decisively deal with Irannot simply by blocking humanitarian aid but also piling on more sanctions and, possibly within a matter of days or weeks, attacking Shia militias in Iraq and possibly launching a long-promised direct military attack on Iran proper.
SAN DIEGO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The McClellan Law Firm Founder Craig R. McClellan and Attorney Conor J. Hulburt have been recognized in the latest edition of Super Lawyers Magazine.

McClellan was named to the Super Lawyers list, the publication's highest honor, and Hulburt was selected for inclusion among the Super Lawyers list of Rising Stars. Both attorneys have been named to the listings in previous years.

Additionally, McClellan earned further distinction as one of the region's most accomplished attorneys with his ranking as one of the Top 10 San Diego Supers Lawyers for 2020.

A Premier Recognition

Published annually as a means to recognize the nation's top legal practitioners, inclusion in the Super Lawyers list and the Super Lawyers list of Rising Stars, which recognizes top young lawyers, is an honor earned by attorneys who exemplify the highest standards of professional and ethical conduct.

Because the Super Lawyers patented selection process relies on independent research, third party peer reviews, and meticulous evaluations into more than a dozen criteria of success, attorneys who make final listings have proven themselves as tried and true advocates widely regarded by their professional colleagues, members of the judiciary, and the communities they serve.

In total, no more than 5% of practicing lawyers in each state are named to Super Lawyers, and just 2.5% earn inclusion among Super Lawyers Rising Stars.

Award-Winning Advocates

With his 2020 selection, Craig R. McClellan has been named to Super Lawyers for 14 consecutive years (2007-2020). The McClellan Law Firm Founder was recognized for his work in Personal Injury, Product Liability, and Business Litigation, and earned additional distinctions among the Top 10 and Top 50 San Diego Super Lawyers. With over 135 verdicts and settlements in excess of one million dollars each in a range of complex civil torts, McClellan is continually hailed by professional organizations and publications as one of the region's best and most respected Civil Trial Lawyers.

Conor J. Hulburt was named to the 2020 Super Lawyers list of Rising Stars, a listing reserved for top young attorneys who are 40 years of age or younger, or who have been in practice for 10 years or less. This is the fourth year in a row Hulburt has been named to the Super Lawyers Rising Stars list for his work in the area of Personal Injury, where he focuses on serious injury, wrongful death, insurance bad faith, and the representation of injured and wronged parties in challenging litigation. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Consumer Attorneys of San Diego, and is the founder of SDCBA WetSuits, a legal association of surfing lawyers.

About The McClellan Law Firm

The McClellan Law Firm has cultivated a reputation as one of Southern California's leading personal injury, product liability, and business litigation law firms. Founded in 1987 by Craig R. McClellan, the first and only lawyer in San Diego admitted to the exclusive Inner Circle of Advocates and the first attorney to litigate a Ford Explorer rollover injury case with all digitally introduced documentary evidence, the firm has been on the forefront of litigating high-stakes claims for decades.

With a team of talented trial attorneys, The McClellan Law Firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for injured victims, families, and business owners in a range of civil actions  including catastrophic injuries and wrongful death caused by the negligent acts of others; claims arising from defective and unsafe consumer products and vehicles; and complex business torts, insurance claims, contractual breaches, and matters of professional negligence.

More about The McClellan Law Firm and its award-winning team can be found at www.mcclellanlaw.com.

SOURCE The McClellan Law Firm

Related Links

https://www.mcclellanlaw.com


President of the State Sanitary Inspection Board Pak Myong Su speaks during an interview at his office Wednesday, April 1, 2020, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

North Korea publicly declared Wednesday that the country was totally free of the coronavirus, a claim that drew skepticism from U.S.-based experts who suggested that Pyongyang had moved to warn off foreign foes and appear strong to its population.

A senior health official in Pyongyang asserted in a rare interview with AFP and other international news outlets that the countrys efforts to protect its citizens from contracting the virus have been successful.

Not one single person has been infected with the novel coronavirus in our country so far, said Pak Myong Su, director of the anti-epidemic department of North Koreas Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters.

"We have carried out preemptive and scientific measures such as inspections and quarantine for all personnel entering our country and thoroughly disinfecting all goods, as well as closing borders and blocking sea and air lanes," said Pak.

Since the epidemic flared up in China in January, RFAs Korean Service has reported on Pyongyangs extensive measures to prevent the spread of the virus within its borders, including the quarantine of entire counties near the Chinese border, the cancellation of important cultural events, and the establishment of a quarantine center in a large Pyongyang hotel.

RFA reports additionally revealed that the government also isolated foreign residents and those who recently had been abroad to China, issued mandates that citizens don facemasks while in public, cancelled public meetings in favor of video conferences, closed off its borders with China while suspending legitimate and illegitimate trade, and hastily cremated patients who mysteriously died in what authorities claimed was the flu.

But despite these measures and those reported by other outlets, Pyongyang never reported a single confirmed case of the virus.

Outside experts have publicly expressed their doubts, saying it is very likely that it crossed into North Korea from China in the early days of the epidemic, because the long border is quite porous.

Others say that the preventative measures seem to be reactionary, and focused on keeping Kim Jong Un and his inner circle safe from COVID-19.

Experts say claim is dubious

Several U.S.-based experts Thursday told RFAs Korean Service they doubted that North Korea could actually be virus-free, instead offering the notion that the claim has a strategic purpose.

I speculate that they are likely worried that, if outsiders believe there are many cases in North Korea, it would affect their military readiness and their enemies might try to take advantage, Susan Thornton, former acting assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, told RFA.

They likely want to dispel publicly to foreigners any notion that they are distracted or weakened by COVID cases.

I dont think their efforts to dispel suspicion will be credible to outsiders, but they are not likely focused on that, she added.

Bruce Klingner of the Heritage Foundation told RFA that North Korea wants to project an image of strength in the face of the spreading virus.

[Pyongyang announced] seven missile launches and several large military exercises in March. The regimes message may be directed at both domestic and international audiences to allay internal concerns while warning foreign opponents not to take advantage of the situation, Klingner said.

North Korea was also defiant when responding to Secretary of State Mike Pompeos call for continued sanctions and rebuffing President Trumps offer of COVID assistance, he added.

Pompeo on March 22 asked the international community to stand together on its denuclearization efforts by continuing sanctions aimed at depriving the North of resources that could be directed toward its nuclear and missile programs, and President Trump reportedly earlier offered U.S. cooperation against COVID-19 in a personal letter to Kim Jong Un.

Jung Pak of the Brookings Institute also found North Koreas claim improbable.

It is highly unlikely that North Korea has zero cases as the regime keeps claiming, given that its between two countries that have a high number of cases [82,000 in China and 9800 in South Korea] and the porous border with China, she told RFA.

Since the crisis bloomed, the regime has been trying to show how it has the situation under control and I see the recent press conference as a way to reinforce that message via a representative of the public health bureaucracy, Pak added.
Photograph: Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images

Twitter has deleted 20,000 fake accounts linked to the governments of Serbia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Honduras and Indonesia, saying they violated company policy and were a targeted attempt to undermine the public conversation.

Yoel Roth, the head of site integrity, said the removal of the accounts was part of the companys ongoing work to detect and investigate state-backed information operations.

Related: Twitter to remove harmful fake news about coronavirus

Of the accounts removed on Thursday, 8,558 were linked to the Serbian Progressive party (SNS) of Aleksandar Vucic, the president. The accounts had posted more than 43m tweets amplifying positive news coverage of Vucics government and attacking his political opponents.

Twitter also removed a network of 5,350 accounts linked to the Saudi monarchy operating out of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. Together they had tweeted 36.5m times praising the Saudi leadership or criticising Qatar and Turkish activity in Yemen.

The takedown of the accounts followed a tip from the Stanford Internet Observatory, which said that network had also generated tweets supportive of the Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar.

Prominent narratives included discrediting recent Libyan peace talks, criticizing the Syrian government, criticizing Iranian influence in Iraq, praising the Mauritanian government, and criticism of Houthi rebels in Yemen, the observatory said in a blogpost.

A separate Egyptian network of 2,541 accounts linked to the pro-government El Fagr newspaper, was also removed. Twitter said that the fake accounts had been used to amplify messaging critical of Iran, Qatar and Turkey.

The social media company deleted more than 3,000 accounts which it said had been traced to a staffer working for the Honduran president, Juan Orlando Hernandez.

Much of the tweet behavior seems targeted at drowning out negative news about the Honduran president by promoting presidential initiatives and heavily retweeting the president and news outlets favorable to his administration, the Stanford Internet Observatory said.

Story continues

Following up reporting by investigative journalists at Bellingcat, the company said it had removed 795 fake accounts promoting the Indonesian government and targeting the West Papuan independence movement.

Twitter has purged networks of state-backed fake accounts since coming under criticism for being used as a vehicle for disinformation. Last month Twitter took joint action with Facebook and to disable a Moscow-linked operation aimed at inflaming racial tensions in the US, as the social media companies sought to respond to pressure to block attempted Russian interference in the 2020 presidential elections.

Transparency is fundamental to the work we do at Twitter, a company statement said. These behaviors are in violation of our policies and are a targeted attempt to undermine the public conversation.

Niam Yaraghi, a fellow with the Brookings Institutions Center for Technology Innovation, said that the removal of the accounts would have a largely symbolic importance, arguing that it was very easy for well-resourced state actors to replace them.

When you look at these numbers of accounts, in terms of their quantity, theyre just a drop in the ocean, Yaraghi said. Theyll have some psychological impact, probably, but Im very doubtful they will have any real tangible impact on anything important.
By now youve probably seen the joke thats doing the rounds on social media. Were just three weeks away from knowing everybodys real hair colour and texture, it states.

Its a reference to the fact that none of us can get to our hairdressers to have our grey roots touched up, our split ends chopped off and our frizzy mops smoothed and blow-dried, and its induced a fair amount of panic.

But, as much as we love our hairdressers and will be flocking to them as soon as its safe to do so, isnt it time for a little reminder that a visit to the salon isnt always the most relaxing experience?

Here, to make you feel better about the hair horrors that lie ahead, CLAUDIA CONNELL suggests 25 reasons she wont miss her visit to the hairdressers . . .

Claudia Connell (pictured) listed 25 reasons why she won't be missing her regular trips to the hairdresser during lockdown

1 Who hasnt played the coffee sip co-ordination game? Your coffee is in front of you (maybe with one of those nice Italian biscuits if its a really upmarket place) but its going cold and youre desperately trying to find the right moment to take a gulp without injuring yourself or annoying the hairdresser.

2 Being quizzed on the products you use at home. Is it a trap? You always end up desperately casting around for whatever they have in the salon to claim thats what you use, to avoid being castigated for the supermarket cheapies you rely on.

Who wants to be told these are the products we used on you today and then be presented with a line-up of bottles at the till?

3 Hairdressers who are too heavy-handed with the products. Half a can of mousse, half a bottle of serum and a gallon of setting spray.

The whole routine means your hair is stickier than a cloud of candyfloss, and if anyone strikes a match nearby youll light up like a firework.

4 That moment when you stand up to remove the gown . . . and all the hair clippings fall into your open handbag on the floor. Youll still be picking them out when its time for your next visit.

5 The anxiety of tipping. How much should you add? Ten per cent on top of a 150 cut and colour is a lot of money. And do you give the tip directly to the stylist, when shes already with another client, or leave it at the desk? Do you tip the washer as well? How much? Do they keep a note of non-tippers and give them bad haircuts the next time?

Claudia said not being able to visit the hairdresser, will give your scalp a break from being either scalded or iced. Pictured: Claudia having her her straightened

6 Gown panic. The hairdresser holds it up for you and suddenly you are a toddler again. How does it go on? Does it do up at the front like a jacket or at the back like a hospital gown? Whichever option you choose will be wrong. Why does this confusion send you, a grown and capable woman, into such a flap?

7 I know, gowns are important to protect clothing  but do they have to be made of 100 per cent crackling nylon, which turns you into a one-woman static factory and makes you sweat like a demon when youre being blow-dried? They are no friend of the menopausal lady.

8 Some salons opt for giant nylon bibs instead of sleeved gowns. Relief? No! This just means your hands are trapped and you have to endure hours in the chair without being able to read a magazine or check your phone.

9 Those wretched wash basins. Placing your neck into the scooped-out groove, then leaning back at an uncomfortable angle to have your hair washed backwards; Ive seen medieval torture instruments that look kinder.

10 Your precious scalp will have a break from being either scalded or iced.

Hows the temperature for you? asks the washer. Fine, you say through clenched teeth, because youve learnt the water has only two temperatures: hotter than the surface of the sun or colder than the North Sea. Take your pick.

Claudia (pictured) revealed she won't miss going to open a gossip magazine, only to discover a clump of somebody else's hair lurking between the pages

11 Would you like a head massage? If youre lucky, you might get a few minutes of blissful relaxation, so of course you say yes. But the bitter reality is that often you get a bored junior with jagged nails and a lot of rings aggressively scratching your scalp for two minutes at the sink of torture. Customers want to emerge from a salon with a bouncy new hairdo, not whiplash.

12 The weird awkwardness of holding a conversation with another person by looking at them, and yourself, in a mirror. If youre getting a cut, blow-dry and a full head of colour that adds up to around three hours of chit chat.

Whenever a stylist asks me if I am going out that evening or planning any holidays, I feel obliged to make something up so I sound less dull. That then requires keeping track of the exciting life I have invented so I dont look blank when on my next visit she asks: How are the snowboarding lessons going?

13 Hairdressers studied a different kind of maths to you and I. Our half-an-inch off the ends is equivalent to their 3 in.

14 Youve settled in for a long session and you spot your favourite trashy, guilty secret gossip magazine. You open the pages to read about the love woes of some sorry reality star only to find a matted clump of somebody elses hair between the pages.

15 The girls who gossip to one another across the basins, oblivious to the fact youre blinded by the shampoo in your eyes, your mascara is running down your face and the misdirected water is trickling down your back.

Claudia said we won't miss the misery of hairdresser's cutting an uninvited bob. Pictured: Claudia having her washed as part of the Yuko System

16 Wheres your parting? asks the stylist. Just there, you reply, pointing to the spot. Here? asks the stylist, parting it in a completely different place. Yes, thats right, you say meekly.

17 Youre a professional and an adult woman, you take no nonsense at work or at home. So why do you find yourself stammering apologies when the stylist grabs your head and moves it roughly back to the centre after you dared to look in any direction other than straight ahead?

18 Every woman has had a bob at some point in her life. Whether she wanted it is another matter. Its every hairdressers fallback style. We wont miss the misery of an uninvited bob.

19 For middle-aged women, a fringe is a godsend. Hiding a wrinkly forehead, theyre a poor mans Botox. But a fringe cut too short is surely the worst of all hairdressing disasters as the only fix is to wait for it to grow. In the meantime, youre left looking like Jim Carrey in Dumb And Dumber.

20 If a customer didnt arrive looking like a teased and primped show poodle, why would a hairdresser assume shed want to leave looking like one?

Claudia (pictured) claims despite hating the cut and the colour, we often gush that the style is lovely and thank our hairdressers

21 Our sensitive little ears will have time to heal from all the times theyve been nipped with scissors, blasted with a hairdryer and burned by straighteners.

22 A blow-dry should be done with a hairdryer. Why do so many hairdressers now blow-dry hair, only to totally flatten the life out of it afterwards with straightening irons?

23 Salons where you book a senior stylist to cut your hair, at great expense, but are then handed over to a gum-chewing junior to be finished off.

24 You hate the cut, you hate the colour, you hate your hairdresser. She holds the mirror up to show you the back and you find yourself saying: Oh, thats lovely, thank you very much.

25 Just as dropped toast always lands butter-side down, it will always rain when you go to the hairdressers. Salon law dictates: the happier you are with your hairdo, the heavier the downpour. So be thankful for isolation!
European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen has called for more solidarity at the EU level to fight the coronavirus pandemic, in a letter to Italian daily newspaper, la Repubblica.

Ms von der Leyen added that the EU would allocate up to 100 billion euros ($110 billion) to the hardest hit countries, starting with Italy, to cover wage cuts and to help preserve jobs, she added.

The EU executive proposed the wage-subsidy scheme on Wednesday, but did not give financial details.

Ms Von der Leyen said too many countries had focused on their own problems in the initial days of the coronavirus emergency, which "was harmful and could have been avoided".

She added the European Commission had also proposed that "every euro still available in the EU's annual budget" be spent on tackling the coronavirus crisis.

"Only solidarity will allow us to emerge from this crisis," she said. "The distance between European nations ... puts everyone at risk".

Read More

Italy, the epicentre of the coronavirus emergency in Europe, was the first Western country to introduce sweeping bans on movement and economic activity, having first confirmed the presence of coronavirus almost six weeks ago.

Since Feb. 23, when Rome imposed the first set of measures to contain the outbreak, Milan's blue chip index has fallen more than 30% and the lockdown, which will be extended until at least April 13, has brought the economy on its knees.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said Rome would not nationalise businesses during the coronavirus crisis on Thursday as the European Commission's head promised affected countries up to 100 billion euros ($110 billion), starting with Italy.

Conte's pledge in an interview with Il Fatto Quotidiano newspaper reflects concerns in his ruling coalition government that investors could try to take advantage of collapsing share prices to snap up assets such as banks or insurers.

Rome has the option of using "golden powers" which give the government the right to veto stake building in strategic industries and Conte reiterated he would use such instruments, which should also "be strengthened at the European level".

At the moment the golden powers apply to companies in the infrastructure, defence, energy and telecoms industries, but Rome is considering extending them to other sectors.

Conte said he felt "the wind was changing" and called on Germany and the Netherlands, which have so far blocked calls from Italy, Spain and France for joint debt to help finance a recovery, to "think with a European perspective".

Conte added that he would like a planned second emergency decree that will include additional measures to mitigate the impact of the health crisis on Italy's economy to be passed before the Easter holiday in mid-April.
Salman Khan's Nephew Abdullah Khan No More, Actor Shares Picture To Share The Shocking News; Iulia Vantur Posts A Note
Heres a look at whats new or notable in home video, Many recent movies are arriving on digital platforms sooner than expected since social distancing measures in response to the coronavirus have shut down theaters. Movies are available on streaming sites such as iTunes, Amazon and Vudu unless otherwise noted.

Buy it now

Bad Boys for Life: Will Smith and Martin Lawrence return to the loud, violent, stylish and funny cop movie franchise that made them actions stars 25 years ago. Those adjectives all still apply to their new adventure, which find them confronting a cartel assassin, creaking joints and a new generation of cops. Whatcha gonna do?

Also: Sonic the Hedgehog

Theatrical releases

Never Rarely Sometimes Always: In an interview with New York magazine, director Eliza Hittman described her work as outtakes from other teen movies. Never Rarely Sometimes Always, her third, follows two teenage girls from Pennsylvania, where parental consent is required for an abortion, to New York, where one of them hopes to end an unplanned pregnancy. The movie was an award winner at the Berlin and Sundance film festivals.

Available to rent on Friday

Also: The Call of the Wild, Downhill

Reissue

Bones: Theres a lot going on in this 2001 horror film from Ernest Dickerson, which stars Snoop Dogg as a murdered gangster who returns from the dead. Hes Jimmy Bones, killed in his brownstone after he refused to let crack into the neighborhood. Twenty years later, his spirit returns when a group of kids try to turn the now decrepit building into a dance club. Beyond the plot, Bones includes a blaxploitation homage complete with Pam Grier, a devil dog, Freddy Krueger-style revenge horror, supernatural visions and a callback to a repulsive scene in the cult horror classic Suspiria. (Maggots. Lots of maggots).

Available on Shout! Factory Blu-ray

Binge watch

Curb Your Enthusiasm: HBO series from Larry David, a co-creator of Seinfeld, recently wrapped its 10th season. Its basically a West Coast version of that classic sitcom with anger management issues. In episode after episode, self-centered rich folks squabble like cats fighting in an alley, turning little misunderstandings into shouting matches. David, playing himself, along with Cheryl Hines as his wife and Jeff Garlin as his manager, are Curbs Jerry, Elaine and George. One of the pleasures of bingeing the series, though, is the recurring presence of Larrys put-upon friends, such as Marty Funkhouser (the late Bob Einstein), comedian Richard Lewis and actor Ted Danson (both playing themselves).

Seasons 1-10 on HBO Now; seasons 1-8 on Amazon Prime.

Jim Kiest is the arts and entertainment editor for the San Antonio Express-News. To read more from Jim, become a subscriber. jkiest@express-news.net | Twitter: @jimik64
New Delhi : On April 2, 1984, India launched its first space mission and Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian in Space. Sharma had a brief conversation with the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and when Indira Gandhi asked Sharma how did India look from the Space, Sharma said, "Saare jahan se achcha". On the 36th anniversary of this major feat, the Congress shared the video on its Twitter handle as a throwback.

'     



A glimpse of the historic conversation between former PM Indira Gandhi and astronaut Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to travel to space. pic.twitter.com/wuJgZNtIUz  Congress (@INCIndia) April 2, 2020

In 1982, Rakesh Sharma was selected for the mission which was jointly undertaken by Isro and the Soviet Intercosmos Space Programme.

Soviet rocket Soyuz T-11 was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic. Sharma had spent 7 days 21 hours and 40 minutes on the Salyut 7 orbital station.

Sharma's place of birth is Patiala in India's Punjab province, where he was born on January 13, 1949. He was commissioned into the IAF in 1971, after he completed his training at the 35th National Defence Academy.

2nd April #TheDayInHistory



IAF officer Sqn Ldr #RakeshSharma flew aboard a SoyuzT11 spacecraft #OnThisDay in 1984 & became the first Indian to journey into space.



When the then PM Smt #IndiraGandhi asked "How does India look from space"

Sharma said, "Sare Jahan Se Achcha"



. pic.twitter.com/kmrOEH0jYH  Dayanand Kamble (@dayakamPR) April 1, 2020

While he joined as a test pilot, his efforts and consistency over the years rose him to the post of Squadron Leader in 1984. He also became the IAF pilot to be selected for the joint manned space programme of the IAF and Soviet Union's Interkosmos.

After returning from space, Sharma along with Malyshev and Strekalov, was awarded with the "Hero of the Soviet Union" title. To this date, he is the only Indian pilot to be conferred upon with the honour by Russia or the erstwhile USSR.

Sharma retired from the forces in 1987 at the rank of Wing Commander. He subsequently joined the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) -- the state-owned defence manufacturer. In 2001, he retired from flying activities.

While speaking to a leading magazine last year, the decorated ex-IAF pilot said he is eagerly awaiting the execution of Gaganyaan mission in 2022 -- when his record would be break as India would be sending their first manned mission to the space.
The cities of Lorain and Elyria will receive money from the first allocations in the federal governments economic stimulus bill due to the novel coronavirus.

The city of Lorain will receive $725,720, while Elyria will receive $439,110 in Community Development Block Grant money, according to an announcement from Sen. Sherrod Brown.

On April 1, the Ohio Democratic senator announced the award of more than $137 million coming to Ohio communities through the federal U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

This funding is a good first step for Ohioans already hurting from the affordable housing crisis, Brown said. But we need to do more and move quicker to get resources to the people who need help while we fight the coronavirus pandemic.

Most of the money, $90.91 million, will be distributed as Community Development Block Grants. The cities of Lorain and Elyria will receive their allocations in this category, according to Browns office.

The money likely will be used to cover costs that depleted city budgets due to efforts to fight the spread of COVID-19, said Lorain Mayor Jack Bradley.

Late March 31, Bradley said he began receiving information about the money from Sen. Rob Portman, Ohios Republican senator, and Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo.

We hope these funds can be used to promote economic development in our community, including housing assistance and related supporting services for low-income residents, Bradley said.

Additional money could be coming through an allocation to the Cleveland metropolitan area, he said.

The aid also highlights the importance of people completing the 2020 Census, Bradley said. Assistance for coronavirus is distributed based on Census results, he said.

I just didnt realize how important the Census was until we faced a disaster like were facing now, the mayor said.

Elyria Mayor Frank Whitfield said he hoped to learn more in a conference call scheduled with Browns office April 2.

Our biggest priority right now as a city is making sure our seniors are receiving the care that they need and that people are fed, Whitfield said.

The money will be allocated as part of the coronavirus stimulus, which was signed into law last week, according to Browns office.

The money will include $45.61 million for Emergency Shelter Grants and $910,129 for support for the Housing Assistance for Persons With AIDS.

A recent Coalition on Housing and Homelessness in Ohio study reported on by Columbus Business First suggests that most Ohio communities lack the resources to protect the homeless population from the coronavirus.

According to the Coalition on Housing and Homelessness in Ohio study, only 46 percent of Ohio communities surveyed reported a joint response plan in place to help the homeless population amid the pandemic  only 22 percent surveyed said they had the resources they need to support homeless communities.
TDT | Manama

His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa yesterday ratified and issued Law 6 for 2020, amending Paragraph a of Article 284 of the Commercial Companies Law issued by Decree-Law 21 for 2001.

Article One of the Law stipulates that Paragraph a of Article 284 of the Commercial Companies Law issued by Decree-Law 21 for 2001 is replaced by the following paragraph: Each partner shall have the right to attend the meetings of the general assembly either in person or by his proxy, provided that the proxy shall not be from among the members of the control board, the companys manager, or among the companys employees.

The special proxy shall be in writing and prepared by the company for this purpose. Each partner shall have a number of votes equal to the shares he owns in the company.

Article Two states that the Prime Minister and the Ministers, each in their capacity, shall implement the provisions of the law that shall come into effect on the day following its publication in the Official Gazette.
Beijing says comments by US politicians are shameless and morally repulsive after scepticism over virus figures.

China strongly criticised American officials as shameless and morally repulsive on Thursday for raising questions about the number of Chinese people infected and killed by the new coronavirus.

US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the coronavirus statistics China was reporting seemed a little bit on the light side, while his national security adviser said Washington had no way of knowing if Beijings figures were accurate.

Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a briefing in Beijing that China has been open and transparent about the pandemic in the country.

These comments by those US politicians are just shameless and morally repulsive, she said. They should abandon such politicising of public health issues. This is just immoral and inhuman  and will be denounced by people all around the world.

Bloomberg News reported that a classified US intelligence report concluded that China had under-reported the total cases and deaths it had suffered.





The coronavirus outbreak began in China in late 2019, but Beijing has reported fewer cases and deaths than the US, which now has the worlds largest outbreak with more than 216,000 confirmed cases and at least 4,800 deaths.

Little bit light

Trump told a daily briefing by his coronavirus taskforce that he had not received an intelligence report on Chinas data, but added: The numbers seem to be a little bit on the light side  and I am being nice when I say that  relative to what we witnessed and what was reported.

Trump said he had discussed how China dealt with the coronavirus outbreak in a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping last Friday, but not so much the numbers. The US president has toned down his criticism of Chinas handling of the virus outbreak since the call.

As to whether or not their numbers are accurate, he added, I am not an accountant from China.

No way to confirm

Trumps national security adviser, Robert OBrien, said Washington was just not [in] the position to confirm any of the numbers that are coming out of China.

Theres lots of public reporting on whether the numbers are too low, he said. You got access to those reports that are coming out of Chinese social media  we just have no way to confirm any of those numbers.

Earlier, Michael McCaul, the ranking Republican on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, accused Beijing of hiding the true number of those affected. He said he called for the State Department to investigate Beijings initial cover up and subsequent actions regarding this pandemic.

The Bloomberg report cited unidentified US officials as saying a classified report, received by the White House last week, concluded that Chinas public reporting on cases and deaths was intentionally incomplete.

China reported dwindling new infections on Wednesday and for the first time disclosed the number of cases of people who have the highly contagious disease but do not show symptoms.

Second wave

A Chinese county of about 600,000 residents went into lockdown after a woman who visited the area tested positive for the coronavirus, underscoring concerns over a second wave of domestic infections.

The tightening comes as China reported 35 new confirmed cases on Thursday, drastically down from the peak of the crisis.

But they were all imported, bringing the tally of such cases to 841 and adding to fears about infections brought in from overseas.

Jia county in central Henan province said in a social media post on Wednesday it was tightening restrictions on villages and residential compounds and was not allowing people to enter or leave their homes without the relevant authorisation.

Although new cases have dwindled in China and its central Hubei province at the epicentre of the outbreak, concerns have been growing over a new wave of infections from overseas or asymptomatic carriers.

The country has in recent weeks started publishing data on a growing number of imported cases  mostly returning Chinese nationals  and on Wednesday started releasing figures on asymptomatic cases.
Mongolia exports 90,000 tons of coal to China in March

ULAN BATOR, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia exported some 90,000 tons of coal to China in March, the Mongolian Customs General Administration (MCGA) said Thursday.

The coal exports were transported to China via four border points, namely Gashuunsukhait, Zamiin-Uud, Shiveekhuren and Khangi, the MCGA said in a statement.

The country resumed exporting coal to China in mid-March after a halt beginning Feb. 10 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We are now working to reopen four more border points, namely Bichigt, Bayankhoshuu, Burgastai and Bulgan in order to increase exports," Yondonsuren Jargalsaikhan, a transport ministry official, told Xinhua.

Mongolia has also resumed the export of other mining products including copper concentrates and iron ores to China, according to the official.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 07:54:26|Editor: huaxia

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A freight train, bound for Germany and carrying medical supplies, leaves China through the Alataw Pass. It was the first train to depart from Wuhan after China-Europe freight train services resumed
Assam Governor Jagdish Mukhi on



Thursday donated his one month's salary, amounting to Rs 3,50,000, to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak.

The governor's principal private secretary S N Bhowmick handed over the cheque to Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on behalf of Mukhi.

"Assam Governor Jagdish Mukhi today contributed one month's gross salary amounting to Rs 3,50,000 to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund to support the Assam government's relief operations against the coronavirus outbreak," an official release said.

Mukhi also appealed to all to contribute generously to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund for fighting against the deadly disease.

The governor urged people to extend support to the government for maintaining social distancing and show solidarity with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for a nationwide lockdown to break the vicious chain of infection.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The opposition CPI(M) and BJP on



Thursday charged West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee with trying to hide the actual figure of COVID-19 deaths in the state and asked her to refrain from such "illegal action".

The criticism came after Banerjee's assertion on Wednesday that, of the six deaths till then, only three persons died of coronavirus infection and three other patients passed away due to other underlying ailments like kidney disorder, but media houses were raising the figure for the sake of sensationalism.

West Bengal health department on Thursday, however, said the state so far has reported 53 cases of COVID-19 and the death toll has been seven.

"The chief minister is trying to hide the death figures. This is absurd. What is there to be ashamed of? She should not hide the truth. This will adversely affect the entire process of containing the outbreak," BJP state president Dilip Ghosh said.

Ghosh reminded that Banerjee had earlier tried to hide dengue death figures too.

"In West Bengal, if people die of dengue it is certified as unknown fever. If people die of coronavirus, it is being certified as kidney ailments, he said.

During the dengue outbreak of 2017, Banerjee had claimed that some private healthcare units in West Bengal were reporting deaths from an "unknown fever" as caused by dengue to "malign" the state government.

CPI(M) state secretary Surya Kanta Mishra said it is for a doctor to certify the reason behind a death and not the chief minister.

"It is absurd and unethical to claim that people died due to kidney ailments and other diseases even after being tested positive for coronavirus. If she is doing it, it is an illegal intervention. This should immediately stop," Mishra, a certified doctor himself, said.

Seniors leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress declined to comment on the issue but asked opposition parties to refrain from indulging in politics at the time of crisis.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SAO PAULO, April 1 (Reuters) - New sales of light vehicles in Brazil fell 19% in March compared to February as the coronavirus crisis hit Latin America's largest economy, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters.

Brazil is Latin America's largest internal auto market, beating Mexico which produces more vehicles overall but is more focused on exports. (Reporting by Alberto Alberigi Jr; Editing by Sandra Maler)
One America News Network correspondent Chanel Rion asks a question during a coronavirus press briefing on April 1, 2020.

MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

The White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) has been limiting the number of people who can attend President Donald Trump's daily coronavirus press briefings to ensure social distancing rules.

It has been operating a rotating attendance list, with reporters going at different times but not all at once.

But Chanel Rion, a reporter for the right-wing One America News Network (OANN), attended White House briefings twice despite not being on the attendance list.

As a result, the WHCA ejected OANN from its rotation for a seat at the briefings, citing a "matter of public safety." The restriction will last for as long as social-distancing restrictions are in place.

Rion is a staunch backer of President Donald Trump, and has built a career spreading right-wing conspiracy theories.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

One America News Network (OANN), a right-wing outlet lauded by President Donald Trump, has been ejected from the White House's coronavirus task force briefings for violating social-distancing restrictions designed to slow the spread of the disease.

The White House has since last month operated a rotating attendance list, in which reporters from various outlets alternate their attendance.

But Chanel Rion, a media personality at OANN, attended the briefings twice despite not being on the attendance rota.

On Wednesday the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) chose to remove OANN from the rota for as long as the restrictions are in place, citing Rion's violation of the social-distancing rules.

"We do not take this action lightly," the WHCA board wrote in an email to members. "This is a matter of public safety."

"The rules are clear," WHCA President and ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl said, according to The Washington Post. "If you don't have a seat in the briefing room on your given day, you cannot be there. The rules are established to protect the health of the White House press corps. We're abiding by the [Centers for Disease Control's] guidelines."

Story continues

But Charles Herring, OANN's founder and CEO, told The Post that Rion's attendance was "appropriate" and she had been invited to attend, but didn't specify who invited her.

White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

The OANN network has a much lower profile than Fox News, and isn't available on most cable packages, but has earned the president's praise through its adulatory coverage of his administration. "They treat me very nicely," Trump said of OANN on March 19.

Rion has in recent weeks attracted attention for asking the president softball questions, including whether "Chinese food" is a racist term.

Rion has built her career promoting right-wing conspiracy theories, including the Seth Rich conspiracy, and recently accompanied Rudy Giuliani to Ukraine to substantiate conspiracy theories that were a key part of the Ukraine impeachment scandal.

In mid-March, she reported that the coronavirus was created in a North Carolina lab, and spread by "deep state" operatives to destroy Trump's economic record.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland is "the star of the moment," one observer said. (Brett Gundlock / Getty Images)

Last fall, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau named her deputy prime minister and charged her with ameliorating relations between Ottawa and the rebellious provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Last month, he tapped her to lead Canadas response to the coronavirus crisis.

And as the virus threat deepened, the government quietly established that if Trudeau falls ill, she would replace him at the helm of the government.

This is Chrystia Freelands breakout. It was her call to Vice President Mike Pence that set in motion the virtual closing of the Canadian-American border. She is at the front lines of Canadas attack on the virus  and in the front row in government public appearances.

"She is the star of the moment," said Donald J. Savoie, an expert on public administration at the University of Moncton in New Brunswick.

She is also the most prominent and consequential woman in Canada.

Described by Maclean's magazine as "the minister of everything," Freeland has the two toughest portfolios in Canadian politics and may be in line to be the countrys next leader even if Trudeau, who is in self-imposed isolation after his wife contracted the virus, stays healthy.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and wife Sophie in December. She has tested positive for the coronavirus. (Dave Chan / AFP/Getty Images)

The tendrils of power linking Trudeau and Freeland are increasingly prominent. Since the autumn she has been operating out of the same building across from Parliament Hill as Trudeau. Once Trudeau completed his remarks virtually closing the borders, he turned to Freeland to roll out a series of dramatic policy changes.

She approached all this with what might be called Chrystia cool and with an inclination for understatement. I wouldnt call it frantic," she said in an interview last week as the House of Commons paused from debating an emergency financial package to address the crisis. "It is very busy."

Very busy indeed. As she took over a new coronavirus Cabinet committee, she called for a "whole of country" approach to the threat, seeking to mobilize business, labor and civic organizations. She won the swift support of business leaders, who sometimes say the Liberals do not engage enough with the commercial sector.

Story continues

If it can be said that Freeland, 51, has arrived, it is in part because of her arrival back in Canada after a Rhodes scholarship and years as a foreign correspondent and editor in Kyiv, London, New York and elsewhere.

The author of influential books about Russia and global wealth disparities, she entered politics during the Conservative Party reign of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, winning a House of Commons seat in Toronto in 2013 and moving swiftly to prominence, becoming Trudeaus minister of international trade two years later and, 14 months after that, taking over as foreign minister.

"Even people who had not read her books," said Rohinton P. Medhora, president of the nonpartisan Center for International Governance Innovation, "could look to her and say: If we get a government with her in it, there will be a change from the Harper years. 

::

Chrystia Freeland was born in the remote settlement of Peace River in northwestern Alberta to parents who were lawyers in a community that then had a population of just under 5,400 and was five hours by car from Edmonton. Some relatives were Ukrainians who had spent time in a displaced-persons camp in war-ravaged Europe, some had homesteaded in the Canadian outback and pursued classic Canadian diversions that included riding in the Calgary Stampede.

Years later, she would sing to her three children in Ukrainian; shes married to New York Times cultural arts writer Graham Bowley, who commutes to their Toronto home even as she commutes to her Ottawa battle station. Its a frantic life but, according to Daphne Taras, dean of the Ted Rogers School of Management at Torontos Ryerson University, "shes a combination of very intense and very laid back."

It seems contradictory, Taras continued, "but there she is, biking around town but looking crisp and great."

But it was her Western ties rather than her metro persona that led Trudeau to task her with addressing discontent in two provinces that have long felt ignored by the federal government.

"The appointment reflected the main concerns of the government," said Eric Marquis, Quebecs assistant deputy minister for bilateral relations. "Shes one of the firefighters in Ottawa, putting out the flames. Shes the only one in the government who has the credibility to do that."

For a native Albertan to address Western alienation is a challenge, said Michael Hawes, executive director of Fulbright Canada, but she is a successful and purposeful politician, she has entered into negotiations that were difficult, she doesnt suffer fools easily and she clearly has the ear of the prime minister."

Having the ear of Trudeau is especially important now that so many voices are demanding attention. But Freelands prominence is a result of the tone and timbre of her voice  forceful but not frantic, intelligent but not incendiary. And it comes from loyalty.

Hers was an important female voice of support during the complex domestic SNF-Lavalin imbroglio, when Freeland sided with the embattled Trudeau after charges of improper prime-ministerial meddling in a justice issue that came from accusations by another prominent Cabinet member, Atty. Gen. Jody Wilson-Raybould. In a classic act of finesse, Freeland noted Trudeaus "feminist" record but acknowledged that Wilson-Raybould spoke "her truth."

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with Chrystia Freeland after she was sworn in as deputy prime minister in November 2019. (Chris Wattie / AFP/Getty Images)

Indeed, diplomatic skills marked her period as Canadas chief trade official and, then, its chief face in global affairs and at global conclaves. They also helped nudge the U.S. and Canada together in the move from NAFTA to USMCA, the new trade accord.

"Being told we had to renegotiate NAFTA was an existential crisis for us," said Jennifer Welsh, who holds a chair in global governance and security at McGill University. "It required her to access a long list of constituencies  senators, House members, mayors  and she managed that well."

It also displayed Freelands nationalist side. When she left Reuters in 2013 she told Time magazine that she "felt myself to be very Canadian." That was a slightly surprising remark from someone who had cultivated an image as a citizen of the world.

But as the coronavirus surged through North America, Freelands sense of being Canadian surged as well.

"As a politician, and particularly a political leader in difficult periods  NAFTA, now coronavirus  I have come to feel a profound connection with the Canadians I serve, and a very deep responsibility to Canadians," she said. "As a journalist, you feel a responsibility to your readers, but now there is a responsibility for me to be 1,000% emotionally invested."

That nationalism became apparent in her willingness to take on the U.S. and its president, who imposed tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum. After the Trump administration said the tariffs were prompted by national security concerns, she responded by addressing the American people:

I think what is important for Americans to understand is the justification under your rules for the imposition of these tariffs was a national-security consideration. So, what youre saying to us and to all your NATO allies is that we somehow represent a national security threat to the United States."

Then she added, mordantly: And I would just say to all of Canadas American friends ... Seriously?

In the end, she won some of the market access that Canada wanted, though the agreement might have come at the expense of innovation sectors, particularly intellectual property and data management.

Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland with fellow negotiators Jesus Seade of Mexico, second from right, and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, right, after signing an update to the North American Free Trade Agreement in December 2019. (Marco Ugarte / Associated Press)

Overall, her record has not been unblemished.

Critics said she paid too little attention to China and India. And as Canada renews its perhaps-doomed efforts to win one of the rotating seats on the United Nations Security Council, some critics believe she did not engage in enough schmoozing with African leaders  a critical U.N. voting group.

She's also won the enmity of Russian President Vladimir Putin and top Chinese officials. After she criticized government suppression of protests in Hong Kong  where 300,000 Canadian citizens reside  China cited her for making irresponsible remarks on Hong Kong affairs repeatedly, and grossly [interfering] in Chinas internal affairs."

"In an era when many politicians in democracies are accommodating autocrats and dictators, she is someone who stands up to them, sometimes to the detriment of her country," said Michael J. Abramowitz, president of the Washington-based Freedom House, a democracy watchdog group. "Shes done it for Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, on Hong Kong with China, and the rights of women activists who have been jailed in Saudi Arabia. Freedom and democracy are the core issues for her."

Freeland drew inspiration from Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent (in office 1948 to 1957), who believed Canadian foreign policy should be governed by what he called "the rule of law in national and international affairs." She won credit globally for speaking out in favor of the liberal international order  perhaps the only prominent North American official to do so  and she was not shy about the importance of using military force.

Of course it must be a last resort," she told the broadcaster CBC last year. But I really believe in this moment today  when ... there are many threats to the liberal international order  it is precisely the democracies, it is precisely the countries that stand for values and human rights that also need to be ready to say we are prepared to use hard power when necessary."

::

When Freeland, who had worked at the Financial Times, Reuters and the Globe and Mail, left journalism for politics, she took with her some of the tools of news gathering  the ability to assess situations swiftly, the instinct to distrust convention, the reliance on a searching examination before making a conclusion.

I have always been a big believer in primary sources," she said. "But at the same time, for decades I always tried to reach out to talk to independent experts with specific knowledge. I have been talking to doctors and to professors and also to business leaders and to union leaders."

She also brought to her new role familiarity with the global movers and shakers, many of whom she profiled or knew from her days walking the corridors of power in Europe and North America.

Then-Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland and U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo in August 2019. (Sebastien St-Jean / AFP/Getty Images)

But for her, journalism provided both entree and limits. She prospered from the former and bumped up against the latter, and not a few in journalism believe she migrated into politics because she topped out of journalism at the relatively young age of 45.

And yet she was marked deeply by journalism. In a public discussion with U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet last year, she attacked the notion that journalists were, as President Trump has frequently said, the "enemy of the people." But she admitted, "That doesnt mean I respond with joy in my heart to every single question Im asked."

Two years ago, during a meeting with Trudeau, she turned to him and said, "Prime minister, that is a scoop. No one knows that." Trudeau looked bewildered, finally reminding Freeland that her journalism days were over. "Some of the instincts do die hard," she told the CBC.

Like this one:

Journalists are accustomed to working on deadline with incomplete information, and I think you cannot be a successful breaking-news journalist  covering collapse of the Soviet Union, for example  without understanding that sometimes you must choose speed over perfection," she said. That is the motto of every news desk in the world, and it is certainly something I have been saying to the members of our coronavirus Cabinet committee  that we need to act with agility and alacrity."

Jeremy Kinsman, then Canadas ambassador to Russia, met Freeland in Moscow when she was a young journalist. Later he reconnected with her in Kyiv while her mother was helping Ukrainians draft their initial constitution.

But it was clear to Kinsman, if not to others, that she eventually wanted to return to Canada, which is not always congenial to the return of the prodigal. She, however, avoided the chilly homecoming journalist author Michael Ignatieff received when he returned from Harvard. He eventually became the Liberal leader and presided over the partys 2011 federal election debacle, losing his own seat in the process.

"It didnt happen with her," Kinsman said. "The reason is personality and cleverness and the fact that she is a terrific communicator. She has come home and been very successful because people have seen her operations abroad as a star.

"Shes not bringing Canada some kind of glory she won abroad. She was the only one with the chops and chutzpah to deal with diplomacy in the age of Trump."

Shribman is a special correspondent.
(Bloomberg) -- In the global struggle with the coronavirus pandemic, the U.K. is fighting in the dark.

Top officials now accept the country has not done enough to test the population and its key medical workers to be able to see how far the virus has spread -- and to stop it spreading further.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is personally leading efforts to source the kit the country needs from around the world. His team blames a shortage of chemical components, and British experts and officials struggle to agree on what to do next.

You cannot fight a fire blindfolded and we cannot stop this pandemic if we dont know who is infected, said the director-general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, two weeks ago. We have a simple message for all countries: test, test, test.

While Johnsons approval ratings have risen since the crisis hit, questions over the U.K.s approach have grown louder in recent days as the death toll begins to soar. Politicians, academics and the British media are asking how the U.K. ended up lagging so far behind other countries, including Germany and Italy on testing rates for Covid-19.

It wasnt always so fraught. In the early stages of the outbreak in the U.K. in February and early March, medics engaged in a rigorous process of tracing people who had been in contact with individuals confirmed to have the virus. Those involved were then tested and told to quarantine themselves at home.

Changing Course

As the outbreak spread, however, it became clear the governments strategy to contain the disease was not going to last. On March 12, Johnson and his most senior scientific advisers made a decision: to abandon efforts to limit the outbreak and instead seek to delay the worst phase of the epidemic until the National Health Service was better able to cope.

That policy had two crucial and hugely controversial elements: first, an acceptance that at least 60% of the population would ultimately get the virus, in order for the country to acquire a degree of herd immunity. At the same time, officials decided it was pointless -- and people involved in the plan say the U.K. didnt have capacity in any case -- to continue widespread testing in the community.

Story continues

It is no longer needed for us to identify every case, Englands Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty explained on March 12. We will pivot all of the testing capacity to identifying people in hospitals who have got symptoms so that we can pick them up early.

Last Friday, Whitty himself fell ill. He went into isolation without taking a test.

Confusion

On the same day, Johnson and the Health Secretary Matt Hancock also announced they had the virus -- but the two top politicians had taken tests that proved it.

That discrepancy underlines the confusion in the U.K.s approach. It may also indicate a fundamental conflict between the argument the scientists are making -- that testing everyone isnt necessary or desirable -- and the political reality for Johnsons ministers, who need to be seen to be doing everything they can.

The policy of ditching widespread tests lasted only a week before it came under intense pressure. A new model of the outbreak sent shock waves through London, with a warning that 250,000 people could die unless ministers took radical new steps to limit public activities. The strategy of allowing herd immunity to build was

abandoned and in its place began the phased shutdown of swathes of Britains economy and the lockdown of its population.

Shutdown

Schools, pubs, bars and restaurants were closed. Public gatherings of more than two people were banned, and police were given sweeping powers to enforce the unprecedented nationwide restrictions.

But there was still no testing on a wide scale. It was only at the weekend that front-line National Health Service staff started getting tested. And a week into the lockdown, despite promises from Johnson and his ministers tests will be scaled up, it hasnt happened yet in a way to match some of the U.K.s neighbors.

The U.K. has been testing about 2,000 people per million citizens, compared with about 6,000 tests per million in Germany, according to analysis from the BBC. Critics have also pointed out that the U.K. was slower than countries such as Germany to make labs available for processing tests.

Countries like Germany and South Korea have gone a different route, former Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said Tuesday in a video on Twitter. It is essential that mass community testing is part of our national strategy.

Moving Target

The government now concedes Hunts point. Johnson is trying to play catch-up, announcing a plan on March 18 to reach 25,000 tests a day by the middle of April, and hopefully very soon up to 250,000 per day. Ministers have yet to chart a path toward Johnsons most ambitious goal.

While the rate of testing is increasing, we must go further, faster, Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove told reporters on Tuesday. A critical constraint on the U.K.s ability to rapidly increase testing capacity is the difficulty in obtaining the chemical reagents needed to carry out the tests, he said.

Since the start of the outbreak, Johnson has promised that he and his government will rigorously follow the advice of their top scientists at all times. Being guided by the science has become a mantra in the U.K.s campaign against the virus.

Yet even Whitty, the chief medical officer who advocated moving away from mass testing, has since said the U.K. should try to learn from other countries and test much more. For politicians like Johnson and Gove, who will ultimately be accountable to voters, the science is not enough on its own.

Once this dreadful epidemic is over, Gove said on Sunday, there will be an opportunity for all of us to look back and to learn.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

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Kerala HC stays state govt order to door deliver liquor to tipplers with doctor's prescription

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 02: The Kerala High Court on Thursday stayed the order issued by the Kerala Government on March 30 as per which Excise Department can permit supply of alcohol to a person on production of a medical certificate to the effect that he is suffering from alcohol withdrawal syndrome.

The stay is for a period of three weeks.

A bench comprising Justices A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Shaji P Chaly passed the interim order on petitions filed by Congress MP T N Prathapan, Indian Medical Association and Kerala Government Medical Officers Association.

With the coronavirus lockdown in place, the left government had decided to issue special passes to tipplers, who exhibit withdrawal symptoms and have doctors prescription.

Kerala: Doctors against 'liquor prescription' during lockdown

Protesting the government decision, the Kerala Government Medical Officers Association (KGMOA) wore black badges on Wednesday, but attended duty and seeking immediate withdrawal of the order, saying it was "anti-people".

As per guidelines issued by the Kerala State Beverages Corporation Managing Director G Sparjan Kumar, for the supply of liquor, a service charge of Rs 100 would be collected from each pass holder for meeting the delivery expenses.

Each person would be entitled to 3 litres of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and sale of wine and beer was not envisaged, the order stated. Those not willing to undertake the home delivery, the name and details of the employee should be reported to the Head office for submission to the government, it said.

A civil police officer will have to accompany the distribution vehicle.

The sale of liquor should be only to the pass holders, limiting it to the quantity mentioned in the pass. Any excess sale to pass holders or sales to non-pass holders is strictly prohibited, the order said. In the order issued on Monday, the government said, following the lockdown and the closure of liquor outlets in the state, there were many instances of social issues, including suicidal tendencies shown by those who consumed liquor regularly and the state government has decided to initiate steps to resolve the matter.

Speaking to reporters, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said his government has not forced anyone to prescribe liquor to addicts. He was responding to a query on the indifference of doctors towards the matter of prescribing liquor to addicts.

Kerala begins distribution of free rations

"If the doctors are not ready to prescribe liquor, it's fine. We are not forcing anyone to do so. We were just following the protocol which are prevalent at many places. It's been over a week. The family and friends of the addicts can gently persuade them to approach the de-addiction centres," he said.

Sparjan Kumar said the order on home delivery was just a modality, as part of the earlier order issued by the government to provide liquor under prescription.

"We have worked out a modality. We have a meeting tomorrow. Some new order has been issued by the Centre today. The meeting will discuss the implementation of the orders," Kumar told PTI.

A person showing withdrawal symptoms has to get a doctor's prescription on his condition so that he could be provided liquor in a "controlled manner", the order added.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has also come out against the government's move. Meanwhile, Vimukthi, an anti-narcotics campaign launched by the state government, has till now admitted 64 patients since March 24.

"Since March 24, the day lockdown started, we have 64 patients admitted due to withdrawal symptoms. We have also registered at least 200 out patients at various de-addiction centres across Kerala," K Mohammed Resheed, Joint Excise Commissioner in charge of awareness told PTI.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 12:50 [IST]
If a visit to your dentist led to a playing a cello while flitting through clouds thousands of feet above an azure Mediterranean sea, you might think it was a dream you had under sedation.

But, for Frederic de Wulf at least, it really came true after a consultation with specialists at Holident Dental Hospital in Fethiye.

The Seattle-based American national has been touring the world by boat with wife Marta and his round-the-globe journey brought him to Turkey towards the end of last summer.

The visit to Holident overlooking Fethiye harbour was part of his itinerary and it was during his appointment with senior partner Cagatay Aras that he mentioned his plan to paraglide from the famous Babadag launch point during his stay.

As a keen cellist, he happened to mention his dream would be to play a haunting and evocative piece of music by renowned Turkish composer Ask Veysel while airborne.

And, as it happened, Cagatay knew a tandem pilot who might be able to help  and, before long, Ferdi Toy and Frederic were in touch planning how they could make a flight of fancy a reality.

A YouTube video (below) was the result and has been released by Fethiye Council in co-operation with Holident Dental Hospital as a positive example to celebrate Turkey and its pull for overseas visitors at a time when the nation  and the world  is struggling.

Frederick said: There are very special souls on Earth and, for me, Ask Veysel is one of them. I hope this project means his work reaches more people.

This song perhaps bears scars from Turkeys soul but the words are clear and make sense for everyone. We are on a long and narrow road in life and  easy or difficult, sad or gratifying  no matter what we encounter, we have to embrace life in every way. 

Holidents Cagatay Aras added: We were very impressed by the fact that an American tourist came to our country, found out Ask Veysel and immortalized his feelings. We are proud to be an intermediary in this project. We hope the music of Ask Veysel will inspire everybody in difficult days while we are fighting a worldwide pandemic.

Paraglider pilot Ferdi Toy said: It was great for everyone to see and, although we have done a few different things while paragliding from Babadag with amazing views of Oludeniz below, Frederic playing the cello was certainly one of the most unusual. We were all proud that he played Ask Veysels famous song.

For more information, please contact Steve Parsley at Dolphin International Communications:

steve@dophin-international.com

Tel: +00 44 1423 529037

Mobile: +00 90 541 601 2870
North Korea remains totally free of the coronavirus, a senior health official in Pyongyang has insisted, despite mounting scepticism overseas as confirmed global infections near one million.

The already isolated, nuclear-armed North quickly shut down its borders after the virus was first detected in neighbouring China in January, and imposed strict containment measures.

Pak Myong Su, director of the anti-epidemic department of the North's Central Emergency Anti-epidemic Headquarters, insisted that the efforts had been completely successful.

"Not one single person has been infected with the novel coronavirus in our country so far," Pak told AFP.

"We have carried out preemptive and scientific measures such as inspections and quarantine for all personnel entering our country and thoroughly disinfecting all goods, as well as closing borders and blocking sea and air lanes."



Nearly every other country has reported coronavirus cases, with the World Health Organization saying on Wednesday that there were nearly one million confirmed infections globally.

Aside from China, South Korea endured one of the worst early outbreaks of the virus, which has claimed more than 45,000 lives around the world.

Experts have said the North is particularly vulnerable to the virus because of its weak medical system, and defectors have accused Pyongyang of covering up an outbreak.

The top US military commander in South Korea, General Robert Abrams, said last month he was "fairly certain" the North had confirmed cases of the virus.

US President Donald Trump also said North Korea "is going through something" and offered "cooperation in the anti-epidemic work", in a personal letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

And Choi Jung-hun, a former North Korean doctor who fled to the South in 2012, told AFP: "I heard there are many deaths in North Korea but the authorities are not saying that it's caused by the coronavirus."



As part of its anti-virus efforts Pyongyang put thousands of its own people and hundreds of foreigners -- including diplomats -- into isolation and mounted disinfection drives, with state media constantly exhorting citizens to obey health directives.

Published images have shown universal face mask use, with the exception of leader Kim Jong Un, who has never been seen wearing one, even though for several weeks the officers alongside him when he supervised firing exercises donned black coverings.

More recently his aides have also been seen without face masks, although defector Choi said that did not signal the North's containment efforts had been widely successful.

"Everyone accompanying Kim Jong Un is under strict control and safe from any virus threats," said Choi.

Pyongyang -- which is subject to multiple international sanctions over its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes -- has sought virus-related aid.

In February, Russia's foreign ministry said it provided Pyongyang with 1,500 coronavirus diagnostic test kits at its request "due to the persisting risk of the new COVID-19".

The United Nations has granted sanctions exemptions to relief groups including Doctors without Borders and UNICEF on items such as diagnostic kits, face masks, protective equipment and disinfectants.

UNICEF confirmed its shipment of supplies -- requested by the North's health ministry -- arrived in Pyongyang overland from China last week.

The World Health Organisation plans to spend $900,000 to support Pyongyang's coronavirus response activities, according to data posted on the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs website.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the death sentence of British-born top al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl here in 2002.

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in investigating a story on the alleged links between the country's powerful spy agency and al-Qaeda.

Sheikh was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

The incident came three years after Sheikh, along with Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, was released by India in 1999 and given safe passage to Afghanistan in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814.

On Thursday, the Sindh High Court commuted the death sentence of Sheikh, 46, to seven years in prison. Sheikh has been in jail for the past 18 years.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha also acquitted the three others - Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil- serving life sentences in the case, the Dawn newspaper reported.

The bench announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the four convicts 18 years ago.

It also dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of the three co-accused, the paper said.

According to the report, Sheikh's seven-year prison will be counted from the time served in jail.

While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon.

They had further contended that Naseem and Adil's confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary.

They also argued that the recovery of the laptop from Naseem was shown to have been made on February 11, 2002, while computer expert Ronald Joseph had deposed that he was given the computer for verification on February 4 and he examined the laptop for six days.

Deputy Prosecutor General Saleem Akhtar had supported the trial court's verdict and submitted that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellants beyond a shadow of doubt and had requested the court to dismiss the appeals, the report said.

According to a report in The Express Tribune, in 2014, an anti-terrorism court had acquitted Qari Hashim, a co-accused in the case due to a lack of evidence. The same year, Sheikh allegedly attempted suicide in his prison cell by hanging himself with a cloth from the ventilator.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University following an investigation into his death revealed that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.

In February 2016, the Army arrested more than 100 militants and foiled a jailbreak attempt by al-Qaeda terrorists to free Sheikh and other leaders of the terror group.

Thursday's verdict came more than a month after Paris-based Financial Action Task Force warned that stern action will be taken against it if the country fails to check the flow of money to terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) among others.

The FATF, which supervises effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, last year placed Pakistan on its 'Grey List' of countries for failure to curb funnelling of funds to terror groups like LeT and JeM.

If not removed off the list by April end, Pakistan may move to a blacklist of countries that face severe economic sanctions, such as Iran.
With the widespread of the coronavirus disease or COVID-19 causing scarcity in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for healthcare workers battling the coronavirus pandemic, people around the globe are stepping up to help in this battle as much as they can.

There have been cicurlating news about people making and improvising their own PPEs. Meanwhile in some places like Malaysia and Tennessee, while the health workers and frontliners combat the virus, prison inmates have been doing their share by producing PPEs.

Malaysia

In Malaysia, the Penor Prison sewing workshop is in a race against time as tehy try to produce enough PPE for medical personnel attending to COVID-19 patients.

In the past few days, 18 inmates in the prison have been working full 8-hour shifts, measuring, cutting and sewing materials to produce said PPEs.

According to the prison's director Datuk Abu Hasan Hussain, they already have received at least 2,000 meters of special material used in making the protective clothing. He also added that a full PPE unit would require at least 5 meters of the material each.

Read also: LOOK: Controversial Photo Shows Indian Migrant Workers Drenched in Disinfectant

He also added that their workshop has been working since Friday, March 27 and that they were able to produce at least 20 units in a day. The finished products would then be sent to the State Secretary's Office in Pahang to be distributed to the State Health Department.

Furthermore, Abu Hasan said that their workshop operations continue even on the weekends in order to meet the urgent need for PPEs as the cases of COVID-19 continue to rise. He also stated that prison staff ahve also been in attendance at at PPE manufacturing briefing on March 2, to make sure that the PPEs they produce would be up to par with the required standard.

Tennessee

Meanwhile, in Tennessee, more than 100 inmates in their Department of Corrections facilities are also making PPEs, including suits and facemasks for the state's medical facilities using materials donated by private group and individuals and have delivered at elast 1,000 face masks.

According to TDOC spokesperson Faith Seifuddin, the inmates themselves proactively asked to contribute and were looking for any available opportunities wherein they can help in the fight against COVID-19.

In a statement sent by a spokesperson of Tennessee Governor Bill Lee, it was noted that the state is hoping that the TDOC can produce at least 2,500 masks and 300 gowns per day. They also said that help from the inmates will be a significant supplement and help to solve the problem in the scarcity of PPEs.

The protective equipment are being manufactured in two TDOC facilities in West and East Tennessee. The Tyvek gowns are producing in Henning at the West Tennessee State Penitentiary, while the masks are being made at the Morgan County Correctional Complex in Wartburg.

There are currently 80 inmates helping in the production of gowns in Henning, while there are 25 inmates working on mask production in Morgan County.

Seifuddin also stated that, although it is not yet determined how much the inmates would be paid for their help, it was already confirmed that their labor would be compensated.

Related article: LOOK: Coronavirus Healthcare Workers in Philippines Use Plastic, Garbage Bags as Improvised PPE

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
From Digital Spy

To say the people featured in the Netflix documentary Tiger King are 'characters' is a vast understatement. Besides the titular Tiger King himself, Joe Exotic and the object of his hatred Carole Baskin, there are countless other private zoo owners, business people and staff who populate this bananas-but-true-crime docuseries.

Photo credit: Netflix

One of the so-called animal lovers who played a major part not only in the series but also in Joe Exotic's eventual incarceration was Jeff Lowe. Lowe was his one-time business partner and a formidable voice in the private-zoo world.

He comes onto the scene about half-way through the documentary, an apparent saving grace for the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park. But all is not as it seems with Jeff Lowe (or with anyone in this documentary, it has to be said).

Photo credit: Barcroft Media - Getty Images

Prior to joining up with Joe Exotic, Lowe was already embroiled in legal battles. In 2007 he was even sued by Prince for allegedly selling clothes with his trademarked symbol on them.

Lowe's version of this story, according to his own website, was that he worked with Prince. However, Dale Atkins from Prince's legal team told the City Pages: "The thing about him [Lowe] working with Prince... Im not gonna call him a liar, but based on any information I have, he never worked for Prince  unless you call getting sued working for him."

This wasn't his only non-cat related legal battle. In 2008, Lowe pleaded guilty to federal mail-fraud charges in the USA for posing as an employee of the Citizens Opposed to Domestic Abuse charity in order to obtain $1 million worth of merchandise that he later resold (via The Beaufort Gazette).

Photo credit: Netflix

In 2015, before teaming up with Joe, he came under scrutiny for showing off big cats at his market, Beaufort Liquidation, but was found not guilty. Regardless, he soon shuttered and upped sticks to Oklahoma.

Upon teaming up with Joe, Lowe moved on to the property while his own home was being built, but this only caused tensions between him and Joe to spike. As the docuseries portrays, Joe was required to pay Carole Baskin $1 million as part of a judgement in Baskin's favour.

Story continues

To prevent her being able to get the park, Joe transferred ownership to Lowe. But Lowe wasn't as flush with cash as his lifestyle made him seem, a trend that would follow him in his later business deals.

Photo credit: Netflix

The Netflix series goes into Lowe's private cub-petting parties in Las Vegas, in which he wheeled cubs in suitcases through hotels, even creating a jungle party bus to ferry people back and forth with cubs. It frames his eventual arrest via footage of him in jail as a direct result of those activities.

In fact, Lowe was arrested for previously failing to appear in court for the case, which he had initially pled out. He had agreed to surrender the animals and pay $10,000 in restitution for their care.

Photo credit: Netflix

He further claimed that animals that grew out of the cub-petting parties were retired to the GW Zoo. However, according to KTNV, in 2017: "The USDA documented an incident at the Greater Wynnewood Zoo in Oklahoma when a female tiger got loose from an enclosure and was shot and killed to prevent her from escaping the facility."

This is in stark contradiction to his claims that the cubs he retired to the GW Zoo led happy, healthy lives. Las Vegas city veterinary records revealed the cubs had a variety of medical issues: being underweight, severe diarrhoea, urinary tract infections due to faecal contamination, Giardia (which can be passed on to humans), and pancreatic conditions requiring lifelong treatment.



Photo credit: Netflix

Tiger King may focus most of its attention on Joe, but it does connect a thread between the murder for hire plot and Jeff Lowe, who was never called on to testify in the eventual trial. Texas Monthly echoed claims made in the documentary.

"In late August, James Garretson [a local business owner] stopped by Joes office, where Lowe pulled up a map on a computer that detailed Baskins property in Tampa. 'He [Lowe] started showing me easy ways to kill her,' Garretson said later.

"Lowe noted Baskins favoured bike paths, pointed out the location of the gift shop at her sanctuary, and showed images of her house, which sat isolated at the edge of an inlet... Later that same month, according to Garretson, Lowe suggested he call Baskin behind Joes back and ask if she wanted to purchase the zoo. Lowe said that if the zoo sold, hed give Garretson $100,000."

Photo credit: Netflix

But, as we know from the series, despite his name being mentioned frequently during the trial Lowe was never called to testify. Lowe declined to comment to Texas Monthly on the story they wrote, from which some of our insight is gleaned.

They added: "Lowe declined to comment for this story, claiming he had sold his exclusive life rights to Netflix. (He hadnt.)"

Lowe consistently denies involvement.

Joe Exotic has filed a $94 million lawsuit against various US government departments and also private citizens, including (not surprisingly) Jeff Lowe. The suit has 14 charges, including misleading a grand jury, perjury, pain and suffering, discrimination, and the misrepresentation of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Photo credit: Netflix

The Tiger King series showed Lowe's next business relationship. He teamed up with another docuseries guest, Tim Stark, to open a new zoo on the Texas border, away from the Joe Exotic's site and the stigma associated.

However, as Tiger King showed, that partnership soon soured. Stark claimed that he was doing all the work and, presumably, putting up most of the money (which many series participants claimed was Lowe's MO).

Stark was often pictured on his property, called Wildlife in Need, but in February 2020, the USDA revoked Stark's facility's license. The USDA administrative judge ruled that Stark, and his park, had "willfully violated the AWA (Animal Welfare Act) on multiple occasions" and that "the gravity of such violations was great" (via the Courier Journal).

Photo credit: Netflix

Perhaps not unpredictably, Lowe and Stark's relationship has completely disintegrated, the point that Lowe has taken aim at him via the Zoo's Facebook page. Lowe wrote in a now-deleted post: "I will always believe that our biggest contribution to the animal kingdom was helping the feds take down monsters like Joe Exotic and Tim Stark."

The statement is ironic, and also quite sad. As the docuseries reveals, there are more tigers privately owned in the US than remain in their natural habitat. There is no excuse for the mistreatment of these animals, and as Tiger King points out, the only victims in this case are the big cats, left at the mercy of the humans in charge.

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness is available to stream on Netflix.

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With 21 fresh cases in the last 24 hours, the number of coronavirus positive patients in Madhya Pradesh shot up to 107 on Thursday, while the death roll rose to eight with the addition of two more fatalities, said a senior health department officer.

Indore, the industrial and commercial hub of Madhya Pradesh, is the worst-affected city by coronavirus in the state, accounting for most of the positive cases and deaths.

"As on April 2, the total number of positive coronavirus cases stood at 107. Eight of these people, who were undergoing treatment, have passed away.

"Two elderly people, who were having other health problems also, died due to coronavirus today morning (in Indore), said Principal Secretary (Health) Pallavi Jain Govil in a video statement on Thursday evening.

One of the deceased was a 65-year-old woman.

On Wednesday evening, Govil had given information about 86 COVID-19 cases, including six deaths. Since then, 21 fresh cases have been reported.

On Thursday, Govil said, One of the patients is serious and doctors are monitoring his condition. Health condition of 30 other patients has improved.

"We will be in a position to discharge them in a couple of days if their second test is found negative."



Out of the total 107 coronavirus cases, 82 have been reported from Indore, eight from Jabalpur, six from Ujjain, four from Bhopal, two each from Morena, Shivpuri and Gwalior and one from Khargone, another health department official aid.

Indore, the industrial and commercial hub of Madhya Pradesh, is the worst-affected by coronavirus in the state.

Among the eight fatalities, five have been reported from Indore, two from Ujjain and one from Khargone, the official added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At a cafe in Hong Kong, white tape marks tables that are off-limits under new social distancing measures. (Anthony Wallace / AFP/Getty Images)

Vietnam has banned public gatherings of more than two people. Hong Kong has closed nightclubs, karaoke bars and mah-jongg parlors, and deployed health inspectors to check that restaurants are seating parties at least six feet apart.

And Singapore on Friday said that schools and nonessential businesses would close for a month, a sweeping shutdown it had avoided until now.

Suddenly, Asian governments that appeared to be bringing the coronavirus under control are imposing new social restrictions as the numbers of infections  many from overseas  continue to rise.

In places that took early, effective action against the COVID-19 outbreak, the stepped-up measures in recent days are a sign that fighting the disease will take much longer than anticipated. They also show that governments must adapt their responses as the threat from the virus evolves, epidemiologists say.

We have to find measures that can control, slow down the virus, and do so in a way that is sustainable  not just for two weeks, two months, but all the way through to the end of the year, Lawrence Wong, co-chair of Singapores coronavirus task force, said this week.

The novel coronavirus is now so widespread that it is highly unlikely that our current control measures would be able to drive this virus out of the human population, said Ooi Eng Eong, deputy director of the Emerging Infectious Diseases Program at the Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore. Without a vaccine or antiviral drug, we should expect to deal with this virus [for] the long haul.

Observing new government guidelines, people sit at a distance from each other at Singapore's Marina Bay on Monday. (Ore Huiying / Getty Images)

That has become clear as several Asian countries see infections rising rapidly, most commonly in people who traveled to newer hot spots such as the U.S. and Europe.

Singapore and Vietnam, despite their proximity to the source of the outbreak in China, managed to keep a lid on coronavirus cases starting in January thanks to vigilant traveler screening, contact tracing and quarantining of suspected infections.

Hong Kong quickly closed schools, museums and government buildings, although residents were otherwise spared the hugely disruptive shutdowns and shelter-in-place orders now in force in much of the U.S.

Story continues

A security guard in a Hong Kong shopping mall. (Anthony Wallace / AFP/Getty Images)

As COVID-19 cases surged in the U.S. and Europe, Asian countries also began to close their borders. But starting in early March, residents who were living or studying abroad rushed back home, bringing with them a second wave of infections.

In the last two weeks, the number of cases in Singapore has quadrupled to more than 1,000. Most were recent travelers who were immediately placed in isolation to reduce the risk of transmission.

New infections are also emerging in people with no recent travel history, a worrying sign that the disease continues to circulate in the community more than two months after Singapores first controls were implemented.

On Thursday, Singapore notched 74 new infections, its highest single-day total, 54 of them from transmission within the community. Ten were linked to a senior citizens home, prompting the government to announce a monthlong ban on visitors to nursing homes island-wide.

Experts say countries must be alert to a resurgence of the virus when existing measures lapse or people start to grow complacent.

With the second wave, we are finding it a lot harder to control local spread as well as stop imported cases, said Paul Ananth Tambyah, Singapore-based president of the Asia Pacific Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infection. That is something that all countries will probably eventually discover.

Hong Kong has limited the size of weddings to 20 people as part of social distancing measures. (Anthony Kwan / Getty Images)

Hong Kong, known for its nightlife, last week banned gatherings of more than four people but let bars and pubs remain open, even as dozens of infections were linked to such venues. On Thursday, as the government recorded 37 more cases to bring its total to 802, watering holes were ordered to close for two weeks.

Vietnam, among the first countries to block travel from China and close schools, went three weeks without recording a new infection. In the last month, however, the number of confirmed cases has risen from 16 to more than 220.

The communist-led nation has since banned all foreign visitors and ordered a two-week lockdown starting Wednesday, a dramatic tightening in what had been one of Asias fastest-growing economies.

Traffic was light in Hanoi on Wednesday, the first day of Vietnam's two-week nationwide shutdown to stop the spread of the coronavirus. (Linh Pham / Getty Images)

Experts say that Vietnam is still seeing mostly clusters of infections, meaning the virus isnt spreading in the population in a significant way. Vietnams rulers are hoping that tough measures will keep its still-developing health system from being overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients.

Im sure thats whats on their minds, that if they can prevent transmission now perhaps they can have an easier time in the future, said Todd Pollack, an infectious diseases specialist at Harvard Medical School who leads a Harvard-based health initiative in Hanoi.

But the borders cant stay closed forever. And if other countries havent had that same level of success against the virus, youre going to continually deal with imported cases.

In prosperous Singapore, which had earlier banned large gatherings and instituted temperature checks at high-traffic buildings, stricter measures implemented last week limited private gatherings to 10 people. Authorities suspended all religious services and closed bars, karaoke lounges and nightclubs, and warned that anyone standing within three feet of another person in line could face up to six months in jail.

Officials also ordered commercial establishments to ensure three feet of space between patrons. At cafes and shopping centers, employees taped a large X on every other seat, denoting where people arent supposed to sit.

People observe safe distancing at a shopping mall in Singapore. (Ore Huiying / Getty Images)

But on Friday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the continued rise in community infections warranted new, even more aggressive measures. He called on citizens to "bear with the painful adjustments we have to make" with the monthlong shutdown of schools and nonessential businesses.

Experts say Singapores gradual approach had allowed life to carry on more or less as normal for a population accustomed to efficient public services. But officials began to believe that people weren't taking the pandemic seriously enough.

At a news conference this week, Wong, the coronavirus task force chief, lamented that some Singaporeans were still asking whether they could go to malls or have parties of fewer than 10 people. Such requests were missing the point of the need for social distancing, he said.

Ooi at the Duke-NUS Medical School said all governments had to balance society's patience with what was needed to tame the virus.

Working out sustainable disease control measures, which may be different from city to city due to local nuances, are just as important as implementing emergency measures, he said.

Updates:

3:55 AM, Apr. 03, 2020: The story has been updated to reflect more aggressive measures announced by Singapore on Friday.




Montreal, CA (H4T1V6)

Today

Some passing clouds. A few flurries or snow showers possible. Low --11C. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Some passing clouds. A few flurries or snow showers possible. Low --24C. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.
The police and a local NGO came to



the rescue of the Northeast community in Kalina area of suburban Kurla, by providing them food and essentials during the COVID-19 lockdown.

People from the Northeast have been subjected to racial slurs, following the pandemic, forcing them to avoid venturing out of their homes even to buy essentials.

"I had appealed to the Maharashtra government and approached several NGOs, who were willing to help us get provisions during the lockdown," the community representative Leo Tharmi Raikhan said.

Over 500 people from the Northeast in Kalina, received packages containing 10 kg each of flour and rice, 5 kg each of onions, potatoes and other essentials from Madhu Mehta Foundation.

Apart from helping the Northeast community, the NGO has distributed at least 2,400 packages in all 24 wards of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation since last week, an official from the NGO said.

Senior inspector Kailash Awhad from Vakola police station said, "The police, along with the NGO, distributed essentials to 100 families from the Northeast by following proper guidelines.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Alabama is currently under a statewide health order imposing coronavirus-related restrictions on businesses through April 17.

But how is that order being enforced?

The order, which went into effect last Saturday afternoon, closes a host of specified businesses and prohibits any non-work related gathering of 10 or more people or any gathering that cant maintain 6-foot distance between people.

Grocery stores, gas station and pharmacies will remain open, as will gun stores. Restaurants are restricted to drive-thru, carryout and curbside service. Businesses that arent included on the list may remain open as well.

The Alabama Department of Public Health referred questions to the Attorney Generals office. On his website, Attorney General Steve Marshall issued an opinion on the statewide order, saying that state law mandates anyone in violation of the order could be subject to a misdemeanor and fines of up to $500.

According to the attorney generals office, potential violations of the order should be reported to local law enforcement or the district attorney. A spokesman for the attorney generals office said anyone reporting can request anonymity.

Sgt. Joni Money of the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office said deputies havent handed out any violations, and most calls have been from businesses asking if they are adhering to the order.

So far, weve had good compliance in the county, Money said.
VANCOUVERA flight repatriating Canadians from Peru to Toronto had a person with a confirmed case of COVID- 19 on board, according to the federal government. Now, other passengers from the flight say there was no screening for the virus before the plane took off.

Miriam Riaboy was on the Air Canada flight from Lima to Toronto on March 26, Riaboy said she was surprised that passengers were not screened before getting on the aircraft bound for Canada.

We walked into the plane and that was it, she said. No checking temperature, no asking us if we were sick or not. Nada.

But Air Canada insists measures to screen passengers in keeping with federal regulations were implemented for the flight.

According to a federal government website tracking confirmed cases of COVID-19 on flights, the March 26 trip from Lima to Toronto had a person with a confirmed case of the virus onboard.

It was one of a number of flights arranged by Air Canada and the federal government to get Canadians out of the South American country and back home amid the COVID-19 pandemic. More flights are scheduled.

Peru has been under a tight lockdown as the government there attempts to stop the spread of the virus. There are 5,440 Canadians registered there with the federal government, according to Global Affairs Canada. Not all of them may be trying to return to Canada and not every Canadian in the country is registered, said the department.

Others complained about what they said was a lack of screening on a Facebook group dedicated to Canadians in Peru who are waiting to get out of the country.

Riaboy said that prior to boarding the plane, passengers took buses to the airbase and waited in them for three hours. Shes concerned that whoever had the virus could have exposed people to it on the buses, or on the flight to Toronto.

The federal governments site said rows two through eight on the flight are affected. It goes on to say that passengers on flights where others have tested positive for COVID-19 should take measures to ensure they do not expose others.

Though she was given a pamphlet by Health Canada officials when she arrived in Toronto, Riaboy said she was not told to check the site tracking confirmed cases and did not get any kind of confirmation concerning a confirmed case on her flight.

She said her daughter found the tracking site online while searching for any notices that may have applied to her flight.

Riaboy, who has been self-isolating since returning to Canada, said she was in row 10. She said she felt uneasy getting on the plane when she saw no one was being screened, but was worried she would be left in Peru if she complained.

On March 15, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said those flying into Canada would be subject to health checks before boarding planes. Such checks include looking for signs of fever, coughing and difficulty breathing and asking passengers questions prior to boarding. He said that those exhibiting symptoms would not be allowed to board planes.

Rebecca Purdy, a spokesperson for Canada Border Services Agency, said the screenings are the responsibility of the airlines.

Airlines are required to prevent any traveller who presents symptoms from boarding a flight to Canada; air carriers are also required to conduct in-flight monitoring of passengers for potential symptoms, Purdy said in an email Wednesday.

Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick said thats just what the airlines employees did.

Our policy is to ask passengers the health questions mandated by the federal government and this has been happening, Fitzpatrick said. These procedures were in place for this particular flight from Lima and we understand they were implemented.

He said there is no information about irregularities from the flight.

Riaboy also said when the flight was over, she was surprised there was no screening done by health officials at Pearson International airport in Toronto, aside from a Health Canada official telling them to self-isolate.

She said shes grateful for the efforts made by embassy staff and the government to bring Canadians home, but expected more stringent oversight to check for potentially infected passengers.

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President Donald Trump has said he will meet US energy executives this week to discuss plummeting oil values amid coronavirus and a Saudi-Russian price war.

"I'm going to meet with the oil companies on Friday," he told a conference.

Trump expressed alarm at the impact on the US energy industry from the twin blows of the economic shutdown caused by the coronavirus and the Russia-Saudi row.

"We don't want to lose our great oil companies," he said.

But he said he had spoken with leaders in both Moscow and Riyadh and "I think that they will work it out over the next few days." Oil prices fell to USD 21.42 a barrel on Wednesday, as markets pondered the devastation to demand.

The American Petroleum Institute said it was organizing the Friday meeting with Trump, but denied the purpose was to ask for financial help.

"Natural gas and oil will be critical to our nation's economic recovery," an official with the industry lobbying group said in a statement.

"We are not seeking any government subsidies or industry-specific intervention to address the recent market downturn at this time." Trump is expected to meet ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods, Chevron chief Michael Wirth, and Vicki Hollub, CEO of Occidental Petroleum, the source said on condition of anonymity.

The heads of Devon Energy, Phillips 66 and Energy Transfer Partners also will be present, the source added.

US shale oil producers, which had made the country self-sufficient, have been particularly hard hit by falling prices and the global economic slowdown.

The American oil group Whiting Petroleum Corporation, which specializes in shale deposits in North Dakota and Colorado, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Wednesday, which under US law allows the company protection from its creditors while it restructures.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Spain has shed close to 900,000 jobs, more than half of them temporary, since it went into lockdown in mid-March to fight the coronavirus outbreak, social security data showed on Thursday.

Spain, which has the worlds second-highest death toll from the disease after Italy, has banned all but essential outings since March 14. This week it further tightened the lockdown with a ban on all but essential workers leaving home to go to work.

The data showed 898,822 Spaniards have now lost their jobs since the start of the lockdown, including around 550,000 temporary workers. The tourism and construction sectors are the hardest hit.

It is always a big problem and it is the double challenge we have: to fight the epidemic and to avoid the economic activity being swept away, Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos told RNE radio. We will have to work on relaunching the economy once we can get control of the epidemic.

The number of people officially registered as unemployed in Spain rose to 3.5 million in March, the highest level since April 2017. That data does not include all the new job losses as not all workers officially registered as unemployed.

This is an absolutely unprecedented situation, Labour Minister Yolanda Diaz told a news conference, adding that this was the biggest monthly increase in unemployment ever recorded in Spain.

PRACTICALLY PARALYSED

Neither the social security nor the unemployment data include the so-called ERTE temporary layoffs, under which companies that face financial difficulties can temporarily suspend a workers contract.

Many companies, including car plants and other major businesses, have implemented such temporary layoff measures over the past weeks.

The country is practically paralysed as a result of the health emergency, Unai Sordo, the leader of Spains biggest labour union CCOO, told TVE broadcaster.

March is usually a good month for employment in Spain because it marks the start of the holiday season, with many temporary workers finding jobs in particular in the hospitality sector.

However hotels, restaurants and bars are currently shut because of the coronavirus lockdown. Social security data shows they are the worst-hit sectors, together with construction.

The destruction of jobs is extraordinarily heavy for women, young people and the most precarious work sectors, especially the hotel and restaurant sector and construction workers, Pepe Alvarez, leader of the UGT union, Spains second-biggest union told RNE radio.

SOURCE: REUTERS
Amid the nationwide lockdown because of the novel Coronavirus pandemic, Bollywood stars are currently in self-quarantine, in which they are spending some quality time with their close ones. Unfortunately, Jackie Shroff is away from his family and is currently staying in their second home, which is between Mumbai and Pune.

Recently, the Brothers actor took to his Twitter page to share a post, asking his fans to chill and spend time with their families at home, amid lockdown. Jackie captioned the video as, "Stay Home Stay Safe in lockdown bhidus." (sic)

Check out his tweet here.

Stay Home Stay Safe in lockdown bhidus. https://t.co/EsIe6iCgAh  Jackie Shroff (@bindasbhidu) April 2, 2020

In the video, the actor is seen thanking his fans for showering love on his son, Tiger and saying, "Main ek chaal ka ladka tha, ab bhi mera dil chali ka hai (I was a slum dweller, my heart still belongs in the slum)."

Next, he is seen urging them to stay home by saying, "Its your duty to obey the rules of the lockdown, do it for your child, think about your family. Stay at home. I think you all should be staying home, take it easy, do pranayam. Consume mustard oil, salt and turmeric at home. Look into the eyes of your mother, your wife, your kid, your lover or whosoever you love. Listen to your heart, if you plan to go out, you end up taking tension and giving tension to your family. Sudhar jao. Even God is relaxing above. Breathe a bit, just relax at home."

Jackie further said in the video that he could have gone home too, by getting a permit etc. However, he decided not to flout the lockdown and advised others to do the same.

Meanwhile, the actor recently pledged to extend his support and contribute to the cause of daily workers, who have been badly hit by the nationwide lockdown due to the Coronavirus outbreak. His tweet read, "I wholeheartedly support this noble initiative. Happy to contribute for this humanitarian cause. While staying safe at home I urge every one else also to contribute online."

Jackie Shroff Unable To Make His Way To His Family, Is Stuck At Second Home Due To Lockdown

Tiger Shroff's Birthday Wish For Dad Jackie Shroff: 'Won't Ever Be As Cool, Good Looking As You'
TANAISTE Simon Coveney has said restrictions on public movement due to the Covid-19 pandemic may need to be extended beyond the current April 12 deadline.

Mr Coveney said people need to realise that current restrictions, which advise people to stay at home except in limited circumstances, may not end in just over a weeks time.

I think people do need to realise that these restrictions may go on for sometime and its wrong to put a timeline on it, he said.

Weve set an initial period but I think it may well be that we will need to go beyond that initial deadline. But again that will be a decision taken with the best public health advice that we can get.

The current effective lockdown on the Irish public was introduced last Friday and is due to expire on April 12. Mr Coveney was speaking ahead of a Cabinet sub-committee meeting on Covid-19 on Thursday. He said the Government would continue to take advice from the Chief Medical Officer and the National Public Health Emergency Team.

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The Fine Gael minister also said that while the HSE is doubling bed capacity and would be able to add an extra 10,000 beds to the health system it is not certain that this will be enough to deal with a surge in Covid-19 cases.

He said that while the spread of the virus was below what the expectation was two weeks ago, it would be wrong to be complacent.

What the HSE is doing is doubling bed capacity in the space of a couple of weeks to add, if we need it, an extra 10,000 beds to the system.

They're not obviously all equivalent to hospital beds, but they are beds that can take huge pressure off the conventional hospital system to actually create space in our hospitals for patients if we see a dramatic increase in the number of people that need hospital care, as we expect we will.

We don't know yet whether it's going to be enough. But what we can say is, the more discipline the public shows, in terms of complying with the restrictions and the guidelines that we have asked them to comply with, then the higher the likelihood that our health system is going to be able to deal with the peak of this crisis when it happens.

Mr Coveney said that there are now 1,400 people trained to work in contact tracing and this is now being applied to people who are awaiting a test. He said that social distancing, washing your hands and complying with guidelines matter as they are going to save lives.

Mr Coveney was speaking at Government Buildings where The Community Call was launched. The major local and national initiative involves the HSE, local authorities, An Garda Siochana, the Red Cross, the Civil Defence, GAA, IFA, LocalLink, the Migrant Forum, church organisations and others who will coordinate to provide support to those in need in the coming weeks.

Mr Coveney also said that Fine Gaels government talks were ongoing following a good day with Fianna Fail on Wednesday. He said the two parties were trying to negotiate a framework document that he hoped could persuade other parties to join a coalition.

He said the next government needs a majority and a plan to come out the other end of the current crisis by getting people back to work, and helping families and communities to heal, and to plan for the next number of years.

My belief is that Ireland does need a government that has a majority and has the mandate and the authority to be able to give leadership through this very difficult period, but also planning for what comes next because not being able to do that will lead to uncertainty that the country could really do without right now given the pressures that we face, he said.

Asked about the possibility of the UK applying for an extension to the Brexit trade talks with the EU given the global pandemic, Mr Coveney said he hoped Boris Johnsons government would be pragmatic.

The timelines for Brexit before Covid-19 emerged on the scene were extraordinarily ambitious and very difficult to comply with. So let's wait to see how that conversation develops, he said.

On Brexit, they'll make their own decisions as they always do. But I do think that in the medium term the consequences of the outcome of the Brexit negotiations are extraordinarily important for Britain, for Ireland and for the EU collectively.

I think we need to ensure that the time and space is available to be able to do that properly and right now there are other priorities, quite frankly, to keep people alive that should be the focus of government attention.

He said the EU would respond generously to any request for an extension which must be made by June.
Suzie Wilson was recently laid off from her job at Local Tavern, in Terminal F of the Philadelphia International Airport. Read more

Days after Mayor Jim Kenney issued a sweeping order requiring most Philadelphia businesses to shut down to slow the spread of the coronavirus, Phyllis Davis found out she was losing her job.

Davis, 52, a concierge supervisor at the Hampton Inn near the Convention Center, was devastated. She had given her whole life to Hersha Hospitality Management, which owns the inn, working almost all the roles during her 23 years with the company: housekeeper, bell clerk, front desk, breakfast bar.

But a few weeks later, after reading her layoff letter closely, she realized her situation was even worse than she had thought. Hersha had cut her health insurance on the same day she was laid off.

Were losing our jobs," Davis said. "Thats a big thing. And to turn around and you cant go to the clinic because you dont have health insurance? Its just like were a piece of garbage. They just threw us to the curb.

As the coronavirus rages through Philadelphia, thousands of low-wage workers like Davis are losing their health-care benefits when they lose their jobs. About 830,000 Pennsylvanians filed for unemployment in the last two weeks of March, more than the number of workers who filed in all of 2019. While county-level numbers arent yet available, Philadelphia, with its high concentration of low-wage service workers in the retail and hospitality industries, stands to be harder-hit than the rest of the state.

With the number of people losing their jobs, theres little doubt that the number of people uninsured is increasing right now, at the exact time when some of them will need health care the most, if they become infected and seriously ill," said Larry Levitt, senior vice president at the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Its hard to quantify how many are losing their health coverage, as many hourly workers dont get health benefits through their job because its too expensive or their employers dont offer it. In 2017, only 28% of full-time workers making below the federal poverty level got health insurance through their employers, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation report. Others are uninsured, while some get it through government programs like Medicaid.

 READ MORE: Airport workers won predictable schedules, higher wages. Can they win affordable health care, too?

And the loss of these workers health-care benefits could have an impact on slowing the spread of COVID-19.

The big concern is that people might wait until they get very, very sick before going to the hospital, and the possibility that they could have exposed more people along the way increases, the foundations Cynthia Cox told Vox.

Some companies, including Urban Outfitters, Macys, and Kohls, said they would keep paying health-care benefits for furloughed workers. In Philadelphia, two high-profile restaurateurs, Stephen Starr and Michael Shulson, said they would cover the cost of health-insurance premiums for employees covered under company-funded plans for April. And workers covered by a plan thats co-managed by their union and their employer, like many of the laid-off members of Unite Here, are able to get their benefits extended through the union plan even if employers have stopped contributing.

But some workers, including Unite Here members like Davis and laid-off airport food workers, are left without health coverage. They could continue their health plan through COBRA, but that would mean paying full price for the plan, plus a 2% administrative fee, which is not a viable option for laid-off, low-wage workers.

If youve lost your health coverage because of a layoff during the crisis, youre eligible for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act or Medicaid, depending on your income. For help signing up for either of these options, call the Pennsylvania Health Access Network (877-570-3642) or Public Citizens for Children and Youth (215-563-5848 x17), which is helping adults sign up for coverage for themselves and their children during the coronavirus.

Suzie Wilson, a prep cook at Philadelphia International Airport who is among the hundreds laid off in the last two weeks, is another low-wage worker whos losing her health coverage. Wilson, a Jamaican immigrant known as Miss Suzie, has worked in eateries at the airport for the last 12 years. Most recently, she worked at Local Tavern, a restaurant in Terminal F run by OTG, the New York-based company behind the $30 million redesign that equipped many airport restaurants with touchscreens in 2017.

 READ MORE: Why Philly workers are fighting for a local coronavirus relief fund

Wilson, 55, was happy to move to an OTG restaurant three years ago because she was able to get a consistent 40-hour schedule each week, as well as health insurance. She was making $14.50 an hour. But after getting laid off in March, she found out that shed lose her heath coverage at the end of the month.

If I took sick right now, I couldnt go to the doctor," she said, because I dont have any money and Im not working."

Unite Here said just over one-third of OTGs 400 former workers use the companys health insurance plan. The union has been in contract negotiations with OTG for a year and a half  the sticking point is the cost of its health-care plan.

OTG did not respond to a request for comment.

I dont know what OTG is thinking about their workers," Wilson said, but this is not right.

For Davis, a mother of five grown daughters who lives in Southwest Philadelphia, the concern is being able to get tested for the coronavirus.

The first thing theyre going to ask is, do you have health insurance? she said.

Large health-insurance companies have said they will cover the cost of testing, but experts say that there are many ways to get hit with surprise bills, including the cost of a visit to the ER where you might get tested.

An even bigger concern for Davis is her youngest daughter, who gave birth last year.

Davis, who was making almost $16 an hour at the Hampton and paying $85 a month for health insurance, had kept her daughter on her insurance so she could give birth at a good hospital  Penn Medicines Pennsylvania Hospital. Her daughter had been going to the doctor frequently in her first year after giving birth, but now shes uninsured.

Through a spokesperson, Hersha  Davis employer  said it had to reduce its pre-pandemic staffing levels by 90% and hoped to hire the workers back when business volumes resume.

Our associates have always been  and will remain  our top priority, the company said in a statement.

Davis, though, remained stunned.

Do you treat your people like that, who have been so loyal to you? she said. You say were a family. Do you throw your family out like trash?

The Philadelphia Inquirer is one of 21 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the citys push toward economic justice. See all of our reporting at brokeinphilly.org.
Despite repeated warnings, violation of social distancing guidelines continued to be a common sight in Bengal with a few villagers attacking policemen on Wednesday night for trying to enforce lockdown orders.

On Thursday, the festival of Ram Navami too was celebrated in certain pockets of Kolkata and the districts.

As 16 more patients tested positive for Covid-19 since Wednesday night, people in most parts of Kolkata and other cities did not leave their homes on Thursday. The stark violations thus triggered sharp reactions.

People thronged vegetable markets in Kolkata and the districts, with very few keeping distance from the next person. On Thursday, prayers were offered at several temples on the occasion of Ram Navami and believers thronged in groups. Village fairs were organised in Purulia, Bankura and Cooch Behar districts. In Kurseong, however, the traditional Ram Navami fair was not held.

This is not the time to play carom or engage in chitchat with your friends at street corners. These can wait. If you do not adhere to social distancing, the consequences can be severe, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had said on Wednesday afternoon.

Hours later, a police team was attacked by some young men who were found drinking by the roadside at Dharmatala village in South 24 Parganas. Some local youth also pelted stones at a police van..

Five police personnel were injured and seven villagers were arrested, said a district police officer who did not want to be named. He said, the villagers accused the policemen of being too strict. In adjacent North 24 Parganas district, policemen caught some villagers gambling.

Significantly, Banerjee, who allowed sweet shops to stay open from 12 to 4 pm to help dairy owners who are facing a huge drop in sales, is facing criticism. The crowds were already there and now crowds can be seen at sweet shops. Are sweets essential items? What is the meaning of this lockdown if the government announces one relaxation after another? political analyst Biswanath Chakraborty, a professor at Rabindra Bharati University, wrote on his social media page, posting a photograph of shoppers in a vegetable market.

Those who are running to markets and sweet shops can put hundreds of lives in danger. Instead of keeping the markets open, the government should ask vendors to carry their goods to every neighbourhood at defined hours. China did this to keep people indoors, Suparna Roy, a homemaker in south Kolkata said.

Policemen had been very strict when the lockdown began and could be seen hitting people with batons to chase them away. They said they went soft after Banerjee pulled them up and accused them of going overboard. Three policemen were taken off the streets and sent to the barracks allegedly for acting tough.

If the government thinks that violators should be dealt with softly, why should we chase people away in the interest of public safety and invite the administrations ire? said the officer-in-charge of a police station in north Kolkata. No senior IPS officer was willing to talk on the issue.

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International and local rights groups on Thursday slammed Philippine President Rodrigo Dutertes shoot them dead declaration against anyone carrying out violent demonstrations during the COVID-19 emergency, after police used force to disperse a protest by poor people in Metro Manila.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch led the condemnations of comments made by Duterte hours after officers in Quezon City chased down protesters and arrested 20 people, who were demanding food and relief supplies during the lockdown over the coronavirus pandemic.

It is deeply alarming that President Duterte has extended a policy of shoot to kill, a devastating hallmark of his presidency, to law enforcement agencies in the community quarantine, said Butch Olano, Amnestys Philippine director.

Deadly unchecked force should never be referred to as a method to respond to emergency such as the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

His group called on Duterte to immediately stop his dangerous incitement to violence against those criticizing the governments COVID-19 response.

The lives of those most at risk must be considered a priority in the effort to minimize the threat of the virus, Olano said.

The president made the comments during a late-night televised address to the nation on Wednesday.

My orders to the police and the military [are] that if a commotion breaks out and they fight, putting your lives in danger, shoot them dead, Duterte said.

I am not used to being challenged. Not me, said the Philippine leader who last week was granted emergency powers by Congress to deal with the national crisis over the coronavirus outbreak. Let this be a warning to all. Follow the government at this time. It is critical that we have order.

A researcher with Human Rights Watch said Duterte was capable of allowing police to carry out his threat, considering the thousands of suspects who have been killed in his administrations war on drugs since 2016.

At the very least, Duterte gives police all the justification they need to commit human rights abuses against people who may be violating these COVID-19 regulations because they needed to find work or food, researcher Carlos H. Conde said.

On Wednesday, 20 members of the urban poor community were arrested after a violent dispersal by riot police in Quezon City.

They were among several dozen people who were frustrated by a lack of assistance from the government and took to the streets to demand food and other relief supplies amid the lockdown. Riot police who were armed with shields and batons had told them to disperse, but later used force to break up the gathering.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, spokesman for the Inter Agency Task Force on the COVID-19 response, defended Dutertes comments, saying that they were meant to ensure order while community quarantines were in place.

Is martial law an option? We are not talking about martial law. In a state of calamity, there has to be order thats why its important for President Duterte that we maintain order especially in this time of crisis, Nograles told a news briefing.

The Philippines had recorded 107 deaths and 2,633 cases of COVID-19 as of Thursday afternoon, an increase of 11 and 322, respectively, from Wednesday.

Globally, more than 51,000 people have died of COVID-19, according to the latest data compiled by disease experts at Johns Hopkins University in the United States. On Thursday, the number of confirmed cases worldwide broke the 1 million mark, according the data from Johns Hopkins.

People try to protect themselves against exposure to COVID-19 as they wait for relief supplies in Manila, April 2, 2020. (Luis Liwanag/BenarNews)

A matter of survival

Duterte has responded to the COVID-19 crisis by calling on trusted defense and military officials to lead an interagency task force rather than civilian health officials. Filipinos have been greeted by military and police personnel in fatigues manning checkpoints.

Since March 16, when Duterte imposed the lockdown over all of Luzon island, home to Manila, police have reported more than 17,000 arrests for violations of curfews and community quarantines.

Conde said incidents of people breaking curfew regulations were understandable because, for the majority of poor people affected by the lockdown, it is a matter of survival.

Appealing to the public, Duterte vowed to release a stimulus package of 200 billion pesos (U.S. $3.9 billion) to assist residents nationwide. Questions about how the funds would be distributed or who would qualify have not been answered fully.

On Thursday, police Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said the government had been working to lay the groundwork for mass distribution of aid through the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

All unit commanders and chiefs of police down to the municipal and city levels have already been directed to start coordinating with the local offices of the DSWD in their respective areas of jurisdiction and map out plans to ensure the quick and smooth distribution of the cash assistance in their respective areas of responsibilities, he said.

We appeal to the public to remain in their homes and observe patience while waiting for the distribution of the cash assistance to help them cope with the adverse effects brought by this pandemic, he said.

Eleazar said the goal was to ensure the security of local social workers tasked with distributing funds, while ensuring that rules on social distancing and home quarantine were strictly observed.

I reiterate the warning against groups and personalities who are planning to take advantage of the cash assistance distribution to instigate disorder and spread fake news aimed at agitating the public to violate the (quarantine) rules and other existing laws, he said.

We will use the full force of the law to make sure that you will pay for any of your action, he said.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Theres no way to know right now how much of Ohios population has coronavirus, because of limited testing.

The tip of the iceberg is how Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton refers to the 2,547 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

A potential solution to know just how widespread the coronavirus is -- and how many people have had it without developing symptoms -- could be antibody testing.

The idea is to check for antibodies the body has produced to fight off the coronavirus, basically to see if someone has developed immunity. The method uses blood testing instead of swab testing, and is much faster, with companies advertising results in fewer than 30 minutes.

Antibody testing is faster because a plate is prepared with part of the virus called a protein. The blood is dropped on the plate, to see if antibodies fight the virus on the plate. Swab testing, which can take eight hours or more, requires time for health professionals to produce enough of the viruss genetic material to get a result.

I have dreams in my mind of, just like in a diabetes test, where you can get a prick of blood and can tell very quickly that they have high glucose, were hoping we can tell whether someone has high antibodies, Acton said in a statehouse briefing Wednesday. That will be an elaborate strategy we hope to have in the future.

Antibody testing could be a way to measure who was already infected by the virus, without getting sick. The Chinese government recently announced that there are 1,541 asymptomatic infections under medical observation in the country. STAT reports multiple countries in Asia are doing serological surveys using the testing, which will allow researchers to know just how much the virus has spread.

Angelo DeLucia, associate professor of molecular virology and cancer biology at Northeast Ohio Medical University, said that checking for the antibodies could show not only whether a person contracted the infection, but how likely the person was to spread it.

If a tests show a high level of antibodies, its likely the body fought the virus off and the person was less likely to infect others.

Thats post-pandemic work, he said.

DeLucia said serology testing could discover information about at-risk groups to create a priority list for vaccinations, and identify individuals with a strong autoimmune response who could share antibodies with those struggling to fight off the virus.

Acton said Ohio does not have access to serology testing, but is optimistic for the future.

She said the tests have more potential for getting insight into how coronavirus spreads than diagnosing cases, because the serology test requires antibodies that build up over the course of the virus.

The Food and Drug Administration has not yet approved any serology tests to test for coronavirus because of this reason.

In early days of infection when the bodys immune response is still building, antibodies may not be detected, the organization wrote in a emailed statement to cleveland.com. This limits the tests effectiveness for diagnosis.

There are two types of antibodies, a weaker type that shows three to four days into the virus and then more substantial antibodies that kick in about a week to 10 days after the virus is contracted, DeLucia said.

Despite its warnings about serology testing for diagnosis, the FDA approved a change on March 16 which would allow hospitals to use the tests, with the inclusion of several disclaimers, including:

-- notification provided to the FDA

-- statements included with test reports, noting the test has not been reviewed by the FDA and that results from antibody testing should not be used as the sole basis to diagnose or exclude SARS-CoV-2 infection or to inform infection status
Cannabis and Pizza Delivered to Your Door In Corvallis, OR Marie Janes Pizza and Pot Delivery Gives New Meaning to the Term Pizza Joint

Marie Janes Cannabis Connection today became the first marijuana dispensary in the country to add in-house pizza to a pot delivery menu. Research has shown that pizza is one the most sought-after foods by people who have recently imbibed in marijuana. Today, thanks to Marie Janes Cannabis Connection, a customers quest for this delicacy can begin and end without leaving the comfort and safety of home  at least for customers who reside in Corvallis, Oregon.

The Marie Janes Pizza menu includes a variety of 14-inch combos, though customers who prefer to roll their own from a selection of fresh, high-quality toppings are welcomed to do so. Executive chef, Ed Barbeau, owner of Pisanos Wood Fired Pizza, which was rated best pizza in Oregon by USA Today in 2019, was brought in to develop the recipes.

My number-one priority is to supply all the ingredients customers need to make memorable moments, even if the memories of those moments are a little fuzzy, said Marie Janes owner, Christina Jancila. Good pizza is nice, but not memorable. Our goal was to come out of the gate offering the best pizza in town. With Eds help, we are doing exactly that.

Barbeau, who cut his teeth making pizza in Naples, Italy and is the four-time West Coast Pizza Champion at the International Pizza Challenge, refers to his recipe as Pacific Northwest Style. This style is similar to Neapolitan pizza but has been tailored to suit the regional palate of Oregonians. The crust is thin in the middle and light, crisp and airy on the outside. The sauce is elegant and understated. Toppings include premium whole milk mozzarella made with a kiss of buffalo milk, high-end meats and fresh vegetables. None of the Marie Janes food contains cannabis.

The pizza menu can be found at http://www.mariejanespizza.com. Once a customer decides upon a food order, they must call the dispensary at 971-301-4POT (4768) where they can speak to a budtender about daily cannabis specials and complete the transaction. Everything available in the dispensary is available for delivery.

Oregon laws regulating cannabis delivery are strictly enforced. Customers must be 21 or older with a valid ID and deliveries are restricted to residential locations. Dorms and hotels are not permitted. These requirements do not apply to food-only orders, which can be made by anyone and delivered anywhere. Pizza prices range from $10.95 to $20.49. Delivery is $7 or free for orders of $30 or more.

Pick-up orders are also available. Pot and pizza takeout orders must be picked up at the dispensary located at 568 SW 3rd St, Corvallis, OR 97333. Pizza aficionados younger than age 21 making a food-only pick-up order can be accommodated at the kitchen and should call for details.

About Marie Janes Cannabis Connection

Marie Janes Cannabis Connection was one of the first locally-owned dispensaries in Corvallis. In 2020, it became the first dispensary in the country to add house-made pizza to its pot delivery menu. The owner, Christina Jancila, holds a masters degree in social work and is heavily involved with the local homeless and prison community. All company artwork and logos have been designed by prison artists. At Marie Janes, we may give you the munchies... but we also provide the pizza. For more information visit http://www.potandpizzadelivery.com.
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. 2 more patients in Armenia have tested negative for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and were discharged from hospital, Healthcare Minister Arsen Torosyan said during todays Cabinet meeting.

The minister added that the total number of recovered people has reached 33.

Torosyan said so far 350 people ended their quarantine period.

In his turn Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan urged citizens not to treat coronavirus so calmly. In the beginning we managed to stop the panic. Its good that there is a common calmness in the country, but at the same time its dangerous from epidemic perspective, the PM said, adding: Dear compatriots, please do not react to this issue so calmly.

According to the latest data, the number of people infected with the novel coronavirus in Armenia has reached 663. 4 death cases have been registered so far. 2490 people tested negative for the virus. The number of active cases is 626.

In late December 2019, Chinese authorities notified the World Health Organization (WHO) about an outbreak of a previously unknown pneumonia in the city of Wuhan, central China. WHO declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus a global pandemic and named the virus COVID-19.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
New Delhi: As part of its neighbourhood first policy, six Indian Navy ships are on standby for assistance to neighbouring countries during the coronavirus COVID-19 crisis. Top sources said that along with Navy ships, five medical teams are on standby for deployment in the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Afghanistan if the situation worsens.

On March 30, India had sent medical supplies to Nepal. According to sources, Dornier and Mi-17 were used to position medical load at Gorakhpur and the load was thereafter taken to Nepal by road.

In March, PM Narendra Modi had proposed a SAARC meet on the COVID crisis via video conference in which all SAARC heads participated barring the Pakistani PM Imran Khan who was represented at a junior level.

India had announced the formation of a COVID emergency fund with a contribution of $10 million in which all SAARC countries barring Pakistan has announced contribution. Sri Lanka contributed $ 5 million, Bangladesh contributed $ 1.5 million, Nepal $ 1 million, Afghanistan $ 1 million, Maldives $ 200,000 and Bhutan $ 100,000 taking the total amount in the COVID-19 Emergency Fund to USD 18.3 million. New Delhi also said, that its rapid response team are at disposal of any SAARC member country.

Since the SAARC meeting, health officials of countries have had video conferences and commerce ministry officials will soon meet via the same format.

As an early responder, India evacuated several South Asian nationals stranded in China's Wuhan, which was the epicentre of COVID-19. India got back 23 Bangladeshi, 9 Maldivian from Wuhan and 2 Sri Lankans and 1 Nepali from quarantined cruise ship Diamond Princess off the coast of Japan.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 3)  The Department of Foreign Affairs welcomed home 123 Filipino seafarers from Spain Thursday night.

The repatriated seafarers were composed of 64 crewmen from Marella Celebration and 59 from MV World Odyssey. This is the fourth batch of Filipino crew members who were repatriated Thursday.

All the 123 Filipino seafarers underwent the appropriate medical protocols as required by the Department of Health, and will undergo mandatory quarantine.

Earlier, there were 454 crewmen from Norwegian Dawn and Star, and another 446 crewmen from Armonia, Meraviglia, Seaside and Divine cruise ships, who arrived in Manila.

Meanwhile, another 79 seafarers from Carnival Pride, Carnival Panorama, Carnival Horizon, Carnical Breeze, and MS World Odyssey, arrived in Clark.

The DFA, through the Philippine Embassy in Madrid, Spain, in coordination with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the local manning agencies, made the arrangements for said repatriation.

Representatives of OWWA, Department of Health, Department of Tourism, Bureau of Quarantine and Manila International Airport Authority all joined in welcoming the returning seafarers.

RELATED: 1,400 Filipino seafarers evacuated from America, Brazil amid COVID-19 crisis arrive at NAIA
Former Madhya Pradesh Health



Minister Tulsiram Silawat on Thursday urged Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to provide high-quality protective gear to health staff attending to COVID-19 patients in Indore.

The Congress leader handed over a letter to Chouhan in this regard and released a few copies to the media. "Health staff must be provided personal protective equipment (PPE) kits and RT PCR for testing coronavirus patients in Indore," he wrote in the letter.

Such kits are being procured from Delhi and the same should be given to medical staff at Indore Medical College as well, Silawat told the Chief Minister after personally meeting him at Mantralaya.

The Congress leader also demanded better security for the staff working at Indore Medical College and Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital, as many deployed on security duty were not reporting to work because of the coronavirus scare.

Additional ambulances should also be deployed there in view of the crisis, he said.

Health workers should get an additional insurance cover of at least Rs 2 lakh in the event of getting infected with the virus while treating COVID-19 patients, Silawat said.

He also requested Chouhan to appoint a senior official to monitor proper distribution of food grains to people in 89 tribal blocks and those belonging to scheduled castes in rural areas.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Tampa, Florida, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cancer informatics and digital pathology solution provider Inspirata announced earlier this week its free remote pathology initiative, available to healthcare institutions looking to provide flexibility to their staff during COVID-19. In an important boost to this campaign, Inspirata is now joined by two industry partners, Hamamatsu and KiKo, Knowledge in Knowledge out.

Hamamatsu will provide its high-quality research use only (RUO) Whole Slide Image (WSI) scanner, NanoZoomer, to scan glass slides submitted by institutions for research and secondary consults. This device will not be used for any primary human diagnosis.

The founders of KiKo Knowledge Hub, a knowledge-sharing platform for pathologists and other physicians, will leverage their pathology practitioners expertise to ensure successful scanning and processing of all received pathology slides.

Inspirata will continue to offer its comprehensive pathology workflow solution, which enables the actual remote use and sharing of cases among pathologists.

This is an important validation of our efforts to support the community. Our successful past digital pathology collaborations make Hamamatsu and KiKo optimal partners for this initiative, says Mark Lloyd, PhD, EVP and Founder of Inspirata.

We understand the need to allow as many pathology departments as possible to make flexible arrangements for their staff. We are proud to support this initiative by offering our RUO, WSI scanners, NanoZoomer, states Scott Blakely, Business Development Manager of Hamamatsu.

Additionally, industry thought leader and KiKo founder, Dr. Jonhan Ho, joins the initiative adding, "Digital pathology gives us the flexibility to serve our patients from anywhere instead of being hamstrung by having to be where our slides are."

The new free remote pathology solution is available through Inspiratas dedicated COVID-19 Preparedness page. Visit https://go.inspirata.com/covid-19-preparedness to learn more and request access.





About Inspirata

Inspirata, Inc. helps patients fighting cancerand the clinicians they trustto make every moment matter. Our comprehensive cancer informatics solutions bring disparate data together throughout the entire cancer care journey to drive informed decisions that improve survivorship.

Inspirata has assembled the most advanced and proven technologies to address the complex challenges of delivering cancer care and conducting ground-breaking research. We combine leading digital pathology solutions with automated cancer registry solutions, comprehensive cancer informatics and advanced patient engagement tools to bring users the broadest oncology informatics platform available globally.

About Hamamatsu

Hamamatsu Corporation is the North American subsidiary of Hamamatsu Photonics K.K. (Japan). We manufacture detectors, light sources, cameras, and systems including the NanoZoomer instruments for whole slide scanning in both brightfield and fluorescence applications. The NanoZoomer converts glass slides into digital images quickly and accurately, making it perfect for viewing and analyzing the slides. Our instruments deliver reliable scanning and image quality youve come to expect from Hamamatsu.

About KiKo Knowledge Hub

KiKo, Knowledge in Knowledge out, is a knowledge-sharing platform for doctors and researchers to share clinically useful information instantly. KiKo believes that the democratization of clinical experience will allow all pathologists across the world to practice at a higher level overall. On KiKo, pathologists share interesting cases, inside tips and tricks, and stories through whole slide images, videos, and other types of content to connect with each other and make each other better doctors. KiKo can be found on the web at kikoxp.com or in the iOS App Store under Knowledge in Knowledge out.





Inspirata Contact:

Emil Mladenov, Vice President of Corporate and Digital Marketing

E-mail: emladenov@inspirata.com | Tel: +1-813-467-7616

Hamamatsu Contact:

Scott M. Blakely, Business Development Manager

Whole Slide Imaging and Digital Pathology

E-mail: sblakely@hamamatsu.com | Tel: +1-412-716-9398

KiKo Knowedge Hub Contact:

Taviann Justice, Director of Marketing

E-mail: taviann@kikoxp.com | Tel: +1-877-454-5697
Britons who have already have fought off the coronavirus could be given 'immunity wristbands', ministers last night confirmed.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock admitted Number 10 was looking at the move at a Downing Street press conference tonight.

He told last nights Question Time on BBC1: When the science is good enough, we are looking at introducing something like an immunity certificate or a wristband that says Ive had it and Im immune and I cant pass it on and Im highly unlikely to catch it.'

German scientists have already announced they will roll out the certificates, to try and ease the country out of its draconian lockdown.

Discussing the prospect of introducing certificates, Mr Hancock said the evidence about the truth on immunity is not yet clear enough.

Fears have been raised that people can be struck down twice after reports in China and Japan of patients being reinfected.

Other scientists believe the evidence for immunity is convincing and even claim that it could be life-long.

Antibody tests are the only ones that can tell if someone has ever caught the deadly infection, which has struck almost 1million people worldwide.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock admitted Number 10 was looking at the controversial move at a Downing Street press conference tonight

GERMANY TO ISSUE IMMUNITY CERTIFICATES AS PART OF PREPARATIONS TO CEASE LOCKDOWN 'Immunity certificates' are set to be introduced in Germany as part of preparations for the country to cease its lockdown. MailOnline reported earlier this week that researchers want to bring in the documents for citizens not at risk of contracting the novel coronavirus. As part of Germany's fight against the virus, scientists are using antibodies in test participants to find out which of them have had the illness and healed. The Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig, 41miles (66km) east of Hanover, is overseeing the project, Der Spiegel reports. The academic team plans to test 100,000 people at a time, issuing documentation to those who have built up an immunity. They will then use the information gleaned from the testing to assess how and when the lockdown should conclude. Researchers will utilise the data as they advise the government on when schools will be re-opened and mass gatherings permitted once again. Germany has repeatedly been praised for its rigorous testing regime, which has seen 100,000 people get swabbed every day across the nation. Advertisement

When someone gets infected with a virus their immune system must work out how to fight it off - it does so by producing substances called antibodies.

Patients who catch COVID-19 develop and store COVID-19 antibodies for their body to use to battle the life-threatening virus in future.

But Number 10 has yet to approve any antibody tests in the UK, despite promises the DIY kits would be ready for use by mid-April.

In the press conference tonight, Mr Hancock revealed nine firms were in the running to produce the 17.5million blood tests it had ordered.

Experts say screening for if people have already fought off COVID-19 - antibody testing - will be the biggest breakthrough in getting the country back on its feet.

In a stark warning, Mr Hancock said the evaluation of the kits - which rely on just a finger-prick of blood and can give results in ten minutes - was still ongoing.

He said some kits had failed, adding: 'In one case, a test that I am being urged to buy missed three out of four positive cases of coronavirus.

'That means in three-quarters of cases that test would have given the false comfort of sending someone with coronavirus back on the wards.'

In a comment suggesting officials still need to evaluate the kits further, he added: 'Approving tests that don't work is dangerous and I will not do it.'

Mr Hancock first promised antibody tests last week. MailOnline understands the process of validating kits should only take a matter of days.

Discussing the potential of immunity certificates, he added: [It] is an important thing that we will be doing and are looking at.

'But its too early in the science of the immunity that comes from having had the disease. Its too early in that science to be able to put clarity around that.

'I wish that we could but the reason that we cant is because the science isnt yet advanced enough.'

Mass antibody testing could allow the UK to slowly ease its draconian lockdown, which senior officials have warned could last for months.

The regime would paint a clear picture on who has already caught the killer infection and is immune to being struck down again.

Half of the rapid fingerprick kits are being made by Guangzhou-based firm Wondfo and will arrive in Britain by the end of the week

The other million, which are reportedly being held-up, are being made by AllTest, a diagnostics firm based in Hangzhou

Belfast-based Biopanda Reagents posted an alert on its website to say the ban on all international orders was 'effective immediately'

WHAT IS AN ANTIBODY TEST, AND HOW IS IT DIFFERENT TO AN ANTIGEN OR PCR TEST? ANTIBODY TEST An antibody test is one which tests whether someone's immune system is equipped to fight a specific disease or infection. When someone gets infected with a virus their immune system must work out how to fight it off and produce substances called antibodies. These are extremely specific and are usually only able to tackle one strain of one virus. They are produced in a way which makes them able to latch onto that specific virus and destroy it. For example, if someone catches COVID-19, they will develop COVID-19 antibodies for their body to use to fight it off. The body then stores versions of these antibodies in the immune system so that if it comes into contact with that same virus again it will be able to fight it off straight away and probably avoid someone feeling any symptoms at all. To test for these antibodies, medics or scientists can take a fluid sample from someone - usually blood - and mix it with part of the virus to see if there is a reaction between the two. If there is a reaction, it means someone has the antibodies and their body knows how to fight off the infection - they are immune. If there is no reaction it means they have not had it yet. PCR TEST Antibody tests differ to a swab test, known as a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, which aims to pick up on active viruses currently in the bloodstream. A PCR test works by a sample of someone's genetic material - their RNA - being taken to lab and worked up in a full map of their DNA at the time of the test. This DNA can then be scanned to find evidence of the virus's DNA, which will be embroiled with the patient's own if they are infected at the time. The PCR test is more reliable but takes longer, while the antibody test is faster but more likely to produce an inaccurate result. It does not look for evidence of past infection. ANTIGEN TEST Antigens are parts of a virus that trigger the immune system's response to fight the infection, and can show up in blood before antibodies are made. The key advantage of antigen tests is that it can take several days for the immune system to develop enough antibodies to be picked up by a test, whereas antigens can be seen almost immediately after infection. Antigen tests are used to diagnose patients with flu, as well as malaria, strep A and HIV. They can also be done using swabs. Advertisement

It would allow frontline NHS staff who are stuck at home - estimates suggest around a quarter of doctors are in lockdown - to get back to work.

But leading scientists warn the truth on immunity is still murky, with laboratory tests on monkeys proving they could not be reinfected.

Other experts have claimed similar coronaviruses also induce immunity for around three months - the UK is braced for a second wave of cases this winter.

And they warn that because the virus had never been seen before until the pandemic began in Wuhan in December more trials are urgently needed.

It comes after one health chiefs in one Chinese region revealed in February that around 14 per cent of coronavirus patients tested positive a second time.

Some researchers believe this is down to unreliable tests and are optimistic that people can become immune to the virus, called SARS-CoV-2.

MailOnline reported earlier this week that researchers in Germany want to bring in the documents for citizens not at risk of contracting the novel coronavirus.

As part of Germany's fight against the virus, scientists are using antibodies in test participants to find out which of them have had the illness and healed.

The Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Braunschweig, 41miles (66km) east of Hanover, is overseeing the project, Der Spiegel reports.

The academic team plans to test 100,000 people at a time, issuing documentation to those who have built up an immunity.

They will then use the information gleaned from the testing to assess how and when the lockdown should conclude.

Researchers will utilise the data as they advise the government on when schools will be re-opened and mass gatherings permitted once again.

Germany has repeatedly been praised for its rigorous testing regime, which has seen 100,000 people get swabbed every day across the nation.

Swab tests are different to antibody tests and can tell if someone is currently infected.

British health chiefs have said they could give out coronavirus 'immunity' certificates like Germany to allow millions of Britons out of isolation.

Otherwise, there is no official way of keeping track of who has already battled the virus and has developed some form of immunity.

MailOnline has repeatedly asked officials to name which companies are in talks with the Government but has never been offered clarity.

One of these firms includes Derby-based SureScreen, which has shipped its tests to be used in Germany and Spain, among other nations.

The company has sent hundreds of the tests to a Public Health England laboratory in Oxfordshire earlier this week but has yet to hear back.

Another of the firms is known to be BioSure, an Essex-based manufacturer which has been asked to get ready to ramp up production.

But the company's chief executive warned it could take six weeks before it had any tests to sell to the Government because of the approval hold-up.

It is currently unclear if either business has heard anything from the Government about the success of their tests in stringent medical checks.

Last night it was revealed officials had already bought 2million antibody tests from two Chinese manufacturers - Wondfo and AllTest.

It is unclear if the two Chinese firms are included in the nine companies because officials will not name the makers.

Yesterday it was revealed that Belfast-based manufacturer Biopanda Reagents had opted to restrict sales to just UK healthcare providers.

MailOnline has also asked Biopanda Reagents whether it is in the running to provide antibody tests in Britain but has yet to hear back.
" " Wilfried Pohnke/Pixabay A microscopic view of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

To stave off infection, there are some things you probably know you should do: wash your hands, be careful when you sneeze, gets lots of sleep, don't rub your eyes (especially after touching your nose), eat lots of fruits and vegetables. After all, a cold virus can survive on someone's hand for a couple of hours or for several days on some materials.

Even those hand sanitizers that many people use don't protect against everything. And once they're in the body, viruses are quite tough to kill  antibiotics are powerless against them and vaccines for influenza and some other viruses must be changed every year to adapt to new strains. Fortunately our immune systems can fight off many viruses, but others, like Ebola or the COVID-19 coronavirus, can be deadly.

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For years scientists have been experimenting with technology for combating viruses with another method  by using a laser, a device which stimulates atoms and molecules to emit light and then amplifies it to create a beam of radiation.

Back in 2007, researchers at Arizona State University and Johns Hopkins University discovered that pulses of light from a laser could low-power laser could neutralize viruses  turning them into "rubble," as Wired magazine put it at the time.

In their study, the researchers blasted a virus with a quick pulse of purple laser light. The laser, which only shines for 100 femtoseconds (a femtosecond is one-millionth of a billionth of a second), causes the virus's capsid (its outer shell) to vibrate and become damaged. Essentially, the virus becomes "deactivated" while the area around the virus remains unharmed. The method didn't cause viruses to mutate either, which is a problem in other virus treatments and can lead to viral resistance.

Since then, research on use of lasers against viruses has continued. Eventually, it might be possible to use lasers to cleanse blood samples of viruses and other pathogens, making them safer to handle. Laser therapy might also be combined with blood dialysis treatments. In that approach, blood would be cycled out of a patient's body, lasers could eliminate any pathogens in the blood and the blood would be cycled back in. As this study, published in November 2019 by the National Institutes of Health, describes, it eventually might be possible to employ lasers to inactivate influenza viruses, so that they used to produce more effective vaccines.

On the next page, we'll look at more ways in which scientists try to fight viruses or stop their spread altogether. Several of them use light, whether to kill viruses or as an activating agent.
C omedy icon Eddie Large has died after contracting coronavirus in hospital.

The Little And Large star, 78, was best known for his partnership with Syd Little.

His family said he had coronavirus and his son, Ryan McGinnis, posted on Facebook: It is with great sadness that Mum and I need to announce that my dad passed away in the early hours of this morning.

He had been suffering with heart failure and unfortunately, whilst in hospital, contracted the coronavirus, which his heart was sadly not strong enough to fight.

Large, right, with his comedy partner Syd Little / Getty Images

McGinnis said that due to the coronavirus outbreak, his family had been unable to visit the comic in hospital, but confirmed that "all of the family and close friends spoke to him every day."

"We will miss him terribly and we are so proud of everything he achieved in his career with Syd and know that he was much loved by the millions that watched them each week," he added.

His agent Peter Mansfield confirmed his death. Large, real name Hugh McGinnis, formed double act Little and Large with Little in 1963.

Fans of Large shared tributes on social media / PA

They began their television career on talent show Opportunity Knocks, which they won in 1971 and went on to front The Little and Large Show on BBC One, which aired between 1978 and 1991 and ran for 11 series.

The duo also appeared on ITV's impression show Who Do You Do? in the 70s.

They retired their double act in the 00s after Large began to suffer from ongoing heart problems, eventually undergoing a transplant in 2003.

Comedians and fans paid tribute to the star on social media, with Little Britain's Matt Lucas praising him for being "lovely and kind and encouraging to me when I was a nipper on Shooting Stars."

Michael Barrymore, who was Large's support act "for many years," hailed him as "nothing but kind, caring and supportive."
A boardroom rift has opened up at HSBC after the Bank of England forced it to cancel its dividend.

Some directors are said to be furious at the intervention and suggested the bank should move its headquarters from London to Hong Kong.

One told the Financial Times: 'For the regulators at the Bank of England to put a gun to the head of the board of directors is terrible.

Some HSBC directors are said to be furious at the Bank of England for forcing it to cancel its dividend and suggested the bank should move its headquarters from London to Hong Kong

This should be a decision for the board to take. We should not be in the UK.' But a senior source at the bank told the Mail it was 'absolute nonsense' to suggest that HSBC would seriously consider relocating to Hong Kong.

Insiders said the bank would remain headquartered in the UK even after it was ordered by regulators to cancel its dividend for the first time in 74 years.

HSBC's location has long been a bone of contention amid claims the bank raises the prospect of leaving the UK to extract concessions on issues such as tax and regulation.

But critics said it would be outrageous for the lender to up sticks over the Bank of England's call to cancel dividends in the face of the coronavirus.

The Bank's Prudential Regulation Authority this week told lenders to axe their dividends and cash bonuses to ensure they have enough money to deal with the crisis.

Lord Mann, a former member of the Treasury Select Committee, said: 'HSBC directors need to play their full role in this war against Covid-19.

We backed the banks [during the financial crisis], now they need to back us.' It is understood there is fury among investors in Hong Kong over the dividend cancellation, which would have handed shareholders 3.5billion in April.

The bank has also been inundated with complaints from its 280,000 UK investors, many of whom rely on the bank's steady dividend for income.

An HSBC spokesman said: 'There are no discussions to review HSBC's global headquarters and no plans to reopen the issue.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday asked fellow party members to act as a 'watchdog' to ensure that the interests of the poor and vulnerable section of the society are protected during the lockdown imposed to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the country.

"Congress needs to act as a watchdog. We need to ensure that the most vulnerable and the poor are protected comprehensively. India has to fight COVID-19 with an India specific strategy and consultation," Rahul said.

"Congress Workers need to help people, soften the blow and assist in every manner possible. Also, let us take the message that we need to take special care of our senior citizens and elders," he added.

The party leader said that the country should be prepared for the economic devastation that could follow the COVID-19 pandemic.

Earlier today Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi had appealed to the Centre to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) such as hazmat suits and N-95 masks to healthcare workers and said there is no alternative to constant and reliable testing to fight COVID-19.

"To fight COVID-19 virus, there is no alternative to constant and reliable testing. Our doctors, nurses, and health workers need all the support. Personal Protection Equipment such as hazmat suits, N-95 masks must be provided to them on a war footing," said Gandhi in a statement.

She confirmed that the Congress Working Committee (CWC) met on Thursday to discuss challenges arising out of the COVID-19 outbreak.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Netflixs Tiger King explores the life of big-cat breeder Joe Exotic and the circumstances that led to his arrest and prison sentence. His husband, Dillon Passage recently opened up about their relationship status. He also revealed that Joe Exotic is currently in COVID-19 isolation.

Tiger King | Netflix

Why is Tiger King star Joe Exotic in jail?

As shown in Tiger King, Joseph Maldonado-Passage, aka Joe Exotic, is a zookeeper and big-cat enthusiast who opened his own zoo in Oklahoma. The 57-year-old was embroiled in an intense feud with his longtime rival, Carole Baskin.

Baskin is the founder of Big Cat Rescue, a sanctuary for tigers, lions, and other big cats. She openly criticized Maldonado-Passage for breeding big-cats and often claimed that he endangered his animals. When Baskin began interfering in Maldonado-Passages business dealing, he started targeting her through insulting online videos.

Tiger King shows how Maldonado-Passage hired two different hitmen to kill Baskin while under federal investigation. As reported by NBC News, the zookeeper was sentenced to 22 years in federal prison by the U.S. District Court for the Western District Court of Oklahoma.

Who is Dillon Passage?

Dillon Passage is Maldonado-Passages current husband. On Tiger King, Maldonado-Passage reveals that he met Passage in an online chatroom, fell in love, and got married soon after. When Maldonado-Passage lost his zoo to business partner Jeff Lowe, the couple moved from Oklahoma to Gulf Breeze, Florida.

In a recent interview with Variety Live, Passage revealed hes still married, despite Maldonado-Passages 22-year sentence. He also explained why he stood by his husbands side after the trial and conviction.

I wasnt just going to abandon him when he needed help because he was there for me, he told the outlet. I felt it was only right to stand by him and not judge him for the circumstance because I understood his relationship with Carole. It was a very negative kind of thing and he was in a dark place when all of this stuff occurred. He just needed support so I was just going to stand next to him.

Passage says the Tiger King is currently in coronavirus isolation

When talking to Andy Cohen on his Sirius XM radio show Radio Andy, Passage revealed Maldonado-Passage is currently in individual COVID-19 isolation in a Texas jail. Maldonado-Passage doesnt appear to have the virus, Passage noted, but he did spend time in a facility where cases were found.

We speak like three to five times every day, but since hes been moved to this new facility, they are putting him on a COVID-19 isolation because of the previous jail he was at, there were cases, Passage said. Ive yet to speak to him since he moved.

He also told Cohen that he still loves Maldonado-Passage, and plans to be there for him during this time.






By John J. Metzler




BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

All decisions made by the state should be enforced without exception and without any privileges, said President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev when receiving Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov, Trend reports.

We can clearly see what is happening in different parts of the world these days. It is possible to say that the situation in the leading countries of the world and Europe, in the most developed countries is getting out of control, about a thousand people die there every day, and it is already difficult for medical personnel to provide patients with proper care. Hospitals are overcrowded and patients are placed in corridors. Many people die because they do not receive medical attention in a timely manner because the number of patients is growing rapidly and the health system of countries cant catch up with the growing number of these patients. After all, the health systems of all countries are designed for normal conditions, including Azerbaijan, said the head of state.

President Ilham Aliyev noted that if the pandemic gets widespread in Azerbaijan, then a tragic turn of events will be inevitable in our country too.

Therefore, all decisions made by the state should be enforced without exception and without any privileges. I am urging citizens once again to act responsibly. They shouldnt go out if they dont have to, they should fully comply with the rules published and announced yesterday. They should protect themselves, their loved ones and doctors. Because doctors are risking their own lives. They should protect police officers, just as police officers are protecting them and risking their own lives. Therefore, I once again demand responsibility from all our citizens and hope that Azerbaijani citizens will demonstrate a sense of responsibility. Of course, the pandemic has dealt a major blow to the economic development of the whole world, said President Ilham Aliyev.

The head of state noted that leading financial institutions of the world are already openly declaring that the possible crisis in the aftermath of the pandemic will be even harsher than the recession of 2008-2009.

At the same time, a sharp drop in the oil price on world markets, the decline by more than in half can create major problems for our economy. Our revenues are reducing, of course. Despite this, I want to say again that there should be no problem with the execution of the state budget for this year. First of all, all social obligations must be completely fulfilled and the implementation of all social infrastructure projects must be ensured. At the same time, budget expenditure needs to be reviewed and non-urgent projects can be postponed. Of course, when reviewing issues of implementation or, on the contrary, postponement of these projects, employment issues must definitely be considered as well. Because the investment projects implemented by the state also provide employment, and for Azerbaijan with its growing population issues of employment are certainly in the foreground, said President Ilham Aliyev.
Tom Stolle was looking forward to the upcoming summer, which he expected to spend with 11 friends in an Avalon home that he rents every year from Memorial Day to Labor Day for about $40,000.

Now, the retired Pennsylvania resident is unsure whether those plans will be canceled and if he would get a refund after Cape May County and state officials put out strong recommendations against short-term rentals amid the coronavirus outbreak.

This week, he spoke to three attorneys about reviewing his lease language for any cancellation clauses or act of God provisions, which refer to events outside of human control. Stolle said he intends to make the full payment regardless, but worries him and his friends wont be able to stay there.

Im apprehensive," said Stolle. Im just worried I will get stuck potentially paying all that money and not be able to access the property. If I cant get the property, who takes the hit? Me or the owner? Its through no fault of anyone."

Cape May County mayors are urging people to call off their stays throughout the duration of Gov. Phil Murphys two executive orders directing residents to stay home to slow the spread of COVID-19 in seasonal shore towns, where hospitals arent equipped for an influx of patients. Short-term rentals, as defined by the state, are any rentals less than 120 days, but municipalities also have their own definitions, said county freeholder George Thornton.

While realtors say his directive has so far had little impact on the market during the off-season month of April, those with summer leases are left waiting anxiously as state officials assess how long restrictions may be in place. And some agencies are planning ahead by adding coronavirus clauses in future leases.

Its a nightmare trying to deal with this. Everybody is trying to be responsible, Thornton said. Its unprecedented. We have never dealt with anything like this before.

A small sign marks that the beach and boardwalk in Lavallette, N.J., is closed during the coronavirus pandemic, Thursday afternoon, March 26, 2020. People were still using the beach and boardwalk, but the announcement had only recently been made and some people were unaware of the closure.Lori M. Nichols | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

The county cant enforce the states directive, Thornton said, and are merely urging renters and owners to comply.

Meanwhile, realtors have already begun preparing for possible rental complications in the months ahead.

Bob Rich, a broker for Stone Harbor-based Coldwell Banker James C. Otton Real Estate, said his offices are adding coronavirus clauses into contracts for summer rentals. Those addendums are being written on a case-by-case basis, he said.

As a broker, Rich said he finds himself in a tough position trying to please both owners and tenants.

We represent the landlord, yet the tenants are our valued customers. So we find ourselves in the middle. We dont have any standing in the lease itself. Our job is to keep them all happy, he said.

April wasnt an issue, though more peoples leases will be affected if restrictions bleed into the summer, Rich said. His office has 55 existing leases for May and 297 for June.

Allan Dechert, a broker with Avalon-based Ferguson Dechert Real Estate, said his agency is also adding cancellation clauses to contracts that would allow tenants to be refunded if they cannot travel to the shore due to the coronavirus.

His office began turning away new short-term leases for this month about two weeks ago, foreseeing COVID-19s impact on the region.

For those who already paid for homes in April, Dechert said his agency reached out to owners and asked that they consider refunds.

In the end, Thornton says only the governor has the authority to close county borders to second homeowners and visitors.

Non-essential businesses and some boardwalks are closed in the county the attractions that draw tourists. But he said the 16 municipalities are still seeing a rise in second homeowners and renters flocking to the shore.

As of Wednesday, there were at least 22,255 coronavirus cases in New Jersey and 355 deaths, according to state officials. Cape May County has 22 reported cases.

We cannot support more people in Cape May County and we insist those who are here to return to their permanent residence, Thornton said. This is not the time for a family vacation.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

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(Charlottesville, VA and Cambridge, UK) March 31, 2020 - Silverchair and The Company of Biologists today announced a new partnership to host the leading, peer-reviewed journals published by The Company of Biologists, improving user experience and maximizing the discoverability of their content for the biological community.

The Silverchair Platform will host The Company of Biologists' five influential journals: Development, Journal of Cell Science, Journal of Experimental Biology, Disease Models & Mechanisms, and Biology Open. In addition to receiving an updated, modern design, The Company of Biologists will gain access to powerful, easy-to-use tools for site creation and updating, as well as a range of simplified partner integrations via the Silverchair Universe, all on a single responsive platform.

"The Company of Biologists joins a growing group of nonprofit publisher peers who desire a cost-effective, independent platform that offers them the agility to create new sites, collections, and products as quickly as their needs change and new opportunities emerge", said Thane Kerner, Silverchair CEO. "We look forward to collaborating with The Company of Biologists' team to serve the needs of scientists and researchers."

"We are excited to partner with Silverchair for the hosting of our journals", said Claire Moulton, Publisher at The Company of Biologists. "We believe that joining this platform gives us greater flexibility as we evolve the ways in which we present content to our communities, enhancing our service to readers and authors."

###

About The Company of Biologists

The Company of Biologists is a not-for-profit publishing organisation dedicated to supporting and inspiring the biological community. The company is run by distinguished practising scientists and it exists to profit science, not shareholders. They inspire new thinking and support the community of biologists. They ensure the profits from the hard work of scientists inspire future scientific discovery and develop the next generation. http://www.biologists.com

About Silverchair

Silverchair is the leading independent platform partner for scholarly and professional publishers, providing both advanced technology and a team dedicated to strategy, service, and growth. The Silverchair Platform delivers distinctive sites and unique products to host publishers' high-value content and drive usage for greater reach and impact. We support our clients' missions through close collaboration, self-serve tools, and a flexible, omni-format content solution to empower their product vision.

http://www.silverchair.com

For more information contact:

Jitske de Vries

Marketing Manager

The Company of Biologists

jitske.devries@biologists.com

Stephanie Lovegrove Hansen

Senior Marketing Manager

Silverchair

press@silverchair.com
The characteristics of speech or language impairment will change, contingent on the kind of problem involved. There may likewise be a blend of a few impairments. At the point when a child has an enunciation impairment, he experiences impairments making certain sounds. These sounds might be left off, included, changed, or slashed, which makes it difficult for people to understand the child.

A child's speech and language are viewed as deferred when the child is perceptibly delayed as compared to their friends in the acquiring of speech as well as language abilities. In some cases, a kid will have remarkable open (understanding) than expressive (communicating in) language aptitudes; however, this isn't generally the situation.

Speech impairments allude to challenges delivering speech sounds or impairments with voice quality. They may be described by a break in the speech or rhythm of speech, for example, faltering, which is called dysfluency. Speech problems might be impairments with the manner in which sounds are framed, called verbalization or phonological problems, or they might be problems with the pitch, volume, or nature of the voice. There might be a blend of a few problems. People with speech and language disorders experience difficulty using some speech sounds, which can likewise be a side effect of a delay. They may say "see" when they mean "ski," or they may experience difficulty using different alphabets like "l" or "r."

What is Voice?

Voice is the sound that is delivered when air from the lungs pushes through, the noise encloses the throat (likewise called the larynx), making the vocal overlays inside vibrate. From that point, the sound created goes up through the spaces of the throat, nose, and mouth, and forms as our "voice."

Forgetting about or changing certain sounds is normal when little kids are figuring out how to talk, obviously. A certain case of this is saying "wabbit" for "rabbit." The off base verbalization isn't really a reason for worrying except if it continues past the age where kids are required to make such sounds efficiently. Accordingly, the kid's speech contains an irregular number of reiterations, faltering, prolongations, or unsettling influences. Stress may be found in the front, cervix, collars, or grip of hands.

Language has to do with relationships, as opposed to sounds. A language problem alludes to a debilitated ability to understand and additionally use words in the setting, which further leads to students seeking dissertation writing help . A kid may have an expressive language impairment (trouble in communicating thoughts or needs), an open language impairment (trouble in understanding what others are stating), or a blended language impairment (which includes both).

A few characteristics of speech and language impairment include:

-inappropriate use of words and their meanings

-powerlessness to communicate thoughts

-wrong syntactic examples

-slashed language, and

-powerlessness to follow subtitles

A language and speech impairment is the capacity to understand and additionally use words in setting, both verbally and nonverbally. A few qualities of language impairment incorporate ill-advised use of words and their implications, powerlessness to communicate thoughts, wrong syntactic examples, diminished jargon, and failure to follow subtitles. One or a blend of these qualities may happen in children who are affected by language learning inabilities or formative language delay.

Children may hear or see a word yet not understand its meaning. They may experience difficulty getting others to understand what they are trying to convey. These side effects can, without much of a stretch, be confused with different defects, for example, mental imbalance or learning disabilities, so it's essential to ensure that the child gets a careful evaluation by an affirmed speech-language pathologist or a pediatrician.

The Role of the Environment

Since all speech and language development carries the possibility to divide people from their social and instructive environment, it is necessary to find suitable fitting mediation. While many speeches and language patterns can be designated "baby talk" and are a piece of a small kid's ordinary growth, they can become impairments if they are not outgrown while growing. Right now, delay in speech and language or an underlying speech case can turn into an impairment that can cause trouble in learning. On account of the manner in which the mind creates, it is simpler to learn the language and relational abilities before the age of 6. At the point when kids have an expression impairment, hearing impairments, or formative delays, their acquiring of speech, language, and related abilities is usually affected.

According to a review, One-fourth of the students who studied in the state-funded schools were classified as having a speech or language impairment. This standard does exclude kids who have speech/language impairments secondary to different conditions, for example, deafness. Language impairments might be identified with different handicaps, for example, mental retardation, mental imbalance, or brain paralysis. It is estimated that language impairments (counting speech, expression, and hearing impairments) affect one of each 12 people in the United States.

What can help?

Speech-language pathologists/pediatricians help children who have speech and language impairments in different ways. They give unique treatment to the child, counsel with the kid's teacher about the best ways to encourage the kid's speech and language in the classroom and work intimately with the family to create goals and strategies for successful treatment in class and at home. Technology can help kids by choosing the right hearing protection, whose physical conditions make hearing, speech, and language troublesome. The use of electronic devices permits non-speaking people and people with serious physical inabilities to take part in the give and take of a shared idea. Speech and language have many parts. All serve to build the manner in which people find out about their usual surroundings, use learning and abilities, and connect with friends, loved ones.

Conclusion

Jargon and idea growth continues during the years' children are in school. Reading and writing are taught, and, as students get more entrenched, the knowledge and use of language turn out to be progressively intricate. Relational abilities are at the core of the training experience. Speech or perhaps language treatment may proceed all through a student's school year either as an immediate treatment or a whole therapy. The speech-language therapist may help professional teachers and advisors in building up speech and language goals identified with the work lessons of students and celebrate ideas that are viable for the significant change from school to business and grown-up life.
Underlining Indias goal of ensuring minimum loss of life and detailing the next steps in Indias strategy to deal with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday indicated that once the lockdown ends, the Centre and the states will together ensure a staggered re-emergence of the citizenry.

Interacting with the state chief ministers over a video conference from his residential office at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, the PM emphasised that in the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the focus areas of the local administrations, according to an official statement.

Many CMs praised the Centres role in dealing with the outbreak, especially in identifying and quarantining suspect cases arising from Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi. But nearly all states demanded more financial support and help with ramping up health care infrastructure to meet the surge in the Covid-19 cases.

According to an official, all states were represented in the meeting. However, only a select number of CMs spoke. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was the only CM who was not present at the meet, but the state was represented by its chief secretary.

During the interaction, Modi spoke about formulating a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population once the lockdown ended. The PM asked the state governments to brainstorm and send suggestions to the Centre on how to do this. He emphasised that even after the lockdown ends, the importance of social distancing to prevent the spread of Covid-19 must be kept in mind.

This is the first hint of the governments thinking on what happens after April 14; it suggests that while a complete lockdown will not continue, neither will there be entirely free movement of people, with restrictions in place for certain geographical clusters, demographic groups and on travel. The Prime Minister announced on Tuesday last week that a 21-day lockdown was being put in place to control the spread of Covid-19, which has infected at least a million people across the world since last December.

Experts believe that this may be a sensible approach. Ravindra Mehta, chief of pulmonary and critical care medicine at Apollo Hospitals, Bengaluru, said: Staggered re-emergence of the public is the best option at the point as continuous lockdown for a long term is not sustainable. The government will test the waters and even when people come out, the government must enforce social distancing and restrict all non-essential activities such as foreign travel. But in the next few weeks, the top priority should be accorded to beefing up health care infrastructure.

But the staggered re-emergence will have implementation challenges. Yashovardhan Azad, a retired senior Indian Police Service officer, said: Even after the lockdown is officially lifted, the identified hot spots of the virus need to be protected. But now, the states get about 13-14 days to plan their exit routes well. And they must use it well.

The video conference with CMs took place two weeks after the first such meeting on the pandemic on March 20. Thursdays meeting focused on the current strategies in force and the next steps in the battle against the pandemic that has killed at least 51,000 people worldwide.

The PM praised different states for their teamwork which helped check the speed of the virus, and thanked them for supporting the lockdown, due to which, the PM suggested, India had achieved some success in limiting the spread of Covid-19.

He emphasised the need for quick identification of virus hot spots and to encircle them to ensure the virus does not spread out.

The PM also pointed to the need to maintain law and order across the country  law and order is a state subject.

He also asked the states to make available dedicated hospital facilities for Covid-19 patients, tap into the resource pool of AYUSH doctors, organise online training and utilise paramedical staff and civil society volunteers. States could consider setting up crisis management groups at the district level, in line with groups of bureaucrats formed by the Union government, and appoint district surveillance officers, he suggested.

At a time when there remains a debate about whether India is testing enough, the PM underlined that data for testing must come from accredited labs so that there is congruence in data of district, state and the Centre.

The PM also asked for staggered release of funds to the beneficiaries under PM Garib Kalyan Yojana to avoid crowding at banks.

A video clip of the meeting also showed PM Modi pointing out that Covid-19 has attacked peoples faith, belief, traditions and the way of life. He added that to counter the outbreak, political leaders needed to reach out to community leaders and social welfare organisations.

State governments put forth their demands at the meeting. The Rajasthan government asked for a package of 1 lakh crore, while West Bengal sought a grant of 25,000 crore, over and above their dues of 36,000 crore. States such as Andhra Pradesh and Bihar asked for more fiscal flexibility, while Odisha demanded unemployment allowance for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) workers.

Experts believe that the crisis demands a strong Centre-state collaboration, and the former needed to be more supportive of financial needs of the states. Yamini Aiyar, president and chief executive of the Centre for Policy Research, said: Genuine cooperative federalism is imperative. States are at the front lines and best placed to devise interventions suited to their contexts. But they are fiscally strapped. The Centre needs to devise a mechanism for support that is untied and flexible and buttresses state action rather than undermine it with central schemes. The demand for greater financial support from states is critical and the Centre must take heed.

Many CMs also sought medical equipment apart from cash to tackle the situation. Rajasthan wanted to take loans of up to 2% of the states GSP and asked for the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to be made the nodal office for buying personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators so that they are available to every state at best price and on time. It also underlined the need to focus on interstate supply chain protocol for essential items, medicines and medical equipment.

West Bengal demanded more face masks, gloves, sanitisers, special suits for medical staff and also immediate release of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) compensation and cess amount. Maharashtra, too, wanted immediate release of pending GST compensation, and permission to procure and manufacture PPE kits and N-95 masks.

Speaking to the media after the interaction, Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa said: The PM said that migrant labourers should be provided all facilities; lockdown should be implemented in full; food, medicine and other essential items should be made easily available; there should be no shortage of doctors or medical facilities; the PM Garib Kalyan package should be implemented smoothly; and states should ensure that there is no impact of lockdown on agricultural activities.

On agriculture, according to the official statement, the PM said that the Centre has provided some relaxation of rules to harvest crops but monitoring and social distancing must take place during harvesting. He also asked the states to think of other platforms for procuring grains apart from agriculture produce marketing committees, and explore the possibility of creating pooling platforms for rural areas, like that in ride-sharing apps, which can be used for this purpose.

The Opposition asked the PM to be more consultative in his approach. The chief spokesperson of the Congress, Randeep Singh Surjewala, said that if the PM had consulted the CMs before announcing the nationwide lockdown, all the problems emerging now could have been avoided.

Its better late than never. The battle against Covid-19 is not between political parties but a nations fight against the pandemic. Hence, the government should discuss all measures with the Opposition. The PM should take into confidence the entire Opposition and try to implement the suggestions given by the leaders of different political parties.
The European Union's top court has ruled that Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic broke the law by refusing to host refugees to help ease the burden on southern states such as Greece and Italy after a surge in migrant arrivals from 2015, RTE reports.

The ruling underscores Europe's bitter divisions over migration, though the three ex-communist nations face no immediate penalty as the relocation of tens of thousands of people agreed by the EU was only envisaged until 2017.

"By refusing to comply with the temporary mechanism for the relocation of applicants for international protection, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic have failed to fulfil their obligations under European Union law," the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union said in its ruling.

The eurosceptic, nationalist governments on the EU's eastern flank had cited national security reasons in refusing to take in any of the mostly Muslim refugees and migrants who had fled wars and poverty in the Middle East, North Africa and beyond.

Frontline states such as Italy and Greece complained angrily over the lack of European solidarity as they struggled with mass arrivals that overwhelmed their security and welfare systems.

Wealthy northern European states such as Germany also criticised the ex-communist east for refusing to help while continuing to benefit from generous EU financial aid.
US authorities were finalizing a plan on Tuesday to allow a coronavirus-stricken cruise ship, the Zaandam, to dock in Florida after its operator warned that more passengers may die if it is left out at sea. "Already four guests have passed away and I fear other lives are at risk," Orlando Ashford, president of Holland America Line, said in a column published in the South Florida Sun Sentinel newspaper. The Zaandam, which left Buenos Aires on March 7, was originally meant to dock in Fort Lauderdale on April 7 at the conclusion of a month-long cruise. After a coronavirus outbreak on board, it was decided to cut the voyage short. But, since a brief stop in Punta Arenas in Chilean Patagonia on March 14, it has been turned away from several South American ports over fears of contagion. Holland America has asked for permission for the Zaandam and its sister ship, the Rotterdam -- which was dispatched from San Diego to its aid -- to dock at Fort Lauderdale's Port Everglades terminal. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis expressed opposition Monday, saying that he did not want sick passengers "dumped" in his state, which has more than 6,000 coronavirus cases already. But Fort Lauderdale port authorities and members of the Broward County Board of Commissioners appeared inclined Tuesday to allow the ships to dock, possibly as early as Thursday afternoon. William Burke, chief maritime officer at Carnival Corp., which owns Holland America, outlined a plan to the commissioners for healthy passengers to disembark and then be sent home on charter flights. Sick passengers would remain aboard and be treated until they are well enough to travel, Burke told a meeting of the Broward County Board of Commissioners broadcast online. "We have several ventilators, extra oxygen," Burke said. "We have the right equipment." The county commissioners appeared to be prepared to allow the plan to go ahead pending its approval by members of a so-called "Unified Command", made up of state and local authorities and others including the US Coast Guard and US Centers for Disease Control. "Get these people off the ship as quickly as possible," said Broward County commissioner Barbara Sharief. "They deserve to be treated humanely." Broward County Mayor Dale Holness said a final decision would be taken on Thursday morning pending the approval of the plan. President Donald Trump said Tuesday evening he would intervene and speak to the governor soon to find a solution. "I'm going to do what's right. Not only for us but for humanity," he told a new conference. - 'Compassion' - Ashford, the Holland America president, said a total of 1,243 passengers and 1,247 crew members were stranded at sea on the Zaandam and Rotterdam. There are 305 US citizens and 247 Canadians among the passengers. Ashford said that as of Monday, 76 passengers and 117 crew members on the Zaandam had influenza-like illness. Burke said they include nine who have tested positive for COVID-19. "These are unfortunate souls unwittingly caught up in the fast-changing health, policy and border restrictions that have rapidly swept the globe," he said. "Nations are justifiably focused on the COVID-19 crisis unfolding before them," Ashford said. "But they've turned their backs on thousands of people left floating at sea. "What happened to compassion and help thy neighbor?" Hundreds of healthy passengers were transferred from the Zaandam to the Rotterdam and the ships passed through the Panama Canal over the weekend to head for Fort Lauderdale. Passengers have been self-isolating in their cabins on the Zaandam since March 22, according to Holland America.
Panaji, April 2 : The Goa government on Thursday directed banks, co-operative societies and co-operative credit societies to keep their branches open, in order to mitigate the rush expected in the first week of April on account of money scheduled to be deposited in accounts of beneficiaries of central and state government schemes.

At a meeting of officials of banks and other financial institutions chaired by Finance Secretary Daulat Havaldar the latter took stock of cash availability in the state.

"The issue of possibility of crowding at bank branches and ATMs due to various transfers by government of India and state government to the beneficiaries was discussed. There is a fairly good presence of bank branches and ATMs across the state," a government spokesperson told reporters on Thursday.

"Registrar of Co-operative Societies was instructed to issue directions to the cooperative banks and co-operative credit societies to keep their branches open in order to ensure smooth functioning of cooperative banks and cooperative credit societies. The public sector banks and private banks were directed to open all their branches in the state," the spokesperson said.

Representatives of the Reserve Bank of India, who were present at the meeting, said that there is "sufficient cash required for the next six months" in the state.

"More than 85 per cent of existing ATMS are functional and adequate cash liquidity is maintained. SBI has started operation of one mobile ATM," the spokesperson said.
The judge sentenced Yousef to life in prison plus 240 years. He sentenced the five other conspirators to 240 years each, though an appeals court later said that he had erred in setting the terms for four of the five men, and he resentenced them to 108 to 117 years each.
Israel's Health Minister Yaakov Litzman has tested positive for COVID-19, forcing all top leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Mossad chief Yossi Cohen and National Security Adviser Meir Ben Shabbat, to go into quarantine, officials said on Thursday.

Prime Minister Netanyahu had earlier gone into seven-day self isolation after a close aide was found to have contracted the deadly virus, but he has so far tested negative. His quarantine had ended Wednesday night.

Litzman and his wife, who also has contracted the virus, are in isolation, feeling well and are being treated, the health ministry said in a statement, adding that it will request all those who came in contact with the minister in the past two weeks to also do the same.

The team of advisers, assistants and secretarial staff in the minister's office will continue to work from home and will maintain constant telephone communication as needed with the minister, who is continuing to fully manage this event from his home, the ministry said.

He has "light coronavirus symptoms after contracting the disease from an as yet unidentified source", a Health Ministry official told Channel 12

"His condition at this time is mild. He is not asymptomatic, there are some symptoms, but no more than that, Dr Itamar Grotto, deputy director-general of the ministry, told the Channel.

Litzman will be "able to keep working while sick", Grotto said.

The ministry is investigating from whom Litzman contracted the disease and is informing people who have been in contact with the minister to go into quarantine, including the director-general of the health ministry, Moshe Bar Siman-Tov, the head of Mossad and a number of other senior officials, he stressed.

Ha'aretz Online in its regular update said that both, Mossad Chief Cohen and NSA Shabbat, will be quarantined.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Chief of Staff, Lt Gen Aviv Kochavi, along with two of his senior commanders, went into isolation on Tuesday after a senior commander they came in contact with recently was tested positive for coronavirus.

Asked if Litzman could have contracted the disease from another senior government official, Grotto did not rule it out but also felt that it may have come from someone within the minister's ultra-Orthodox community in Jerusalem, which has been particularly hit by COVID-19.

There's a high rate of the illness in the Haredi (Ultra-orthodox) community, so it's reasonable to think that it happened there, the official told the Channel.

The community leaders had earlier ignored restrictions over assembly as mandated by the government but have started to comply in view of the large number of cases in the community.

Death toll due to coronavirus in Israel reached 31 on Thursday. The virus has infected 6,211 Israelis. One Israeli tourist died in Italy.

So far 241 have recovered after having tested positive.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The West Australian government has admitted it does not have a good line of sight on the numbers of passengers and crew still on board the Artania cruise ship, which remains docked in Fremantle.

But the matter of dealing with stranded ships  referred to yesterday by Premier Mark McGowan as one of the "great frustrations" of his life  should not be one for the state, in any case.

The cruise ship Artania is seen docked in Fremantle harbour in Fremantle on Friday, March 27, 2020. Credit:Richard Wainwright/AAP

International cruise ships remaining in Australian waters, and the problems arising from them  particularly during an unprecedented global health emergency, are the responsibility of the federal government.

And while this should categorically make the Artanias refusal to leave local waters somebody elses problem, it puts our Premier in an unenviable position.
UN Official Urges Afghan Rivals To 'Rally Together' To Help Bring Peace Deal

By RFE/RL April 01, 2020

The UN Security Council has called on political rivals in Afghanistan to "rally together" and finalize talks with the Taliban to help end the country's long, costly war.

Ingrid Hayden, the UN secretary-general's deputy special representative for Afghanistan, said on March 31 that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and political rival Abdullah Abdullah should take advantage of this key moment in the country's history.

"Afghanistan appears to be reaching a defining moment. Almost two decades after the start of the [U.S.-led] coalition intervention, the question for the Islamic republic now is: Can its leaders rally together to engage in meaningful talks with the Taliban to achieve a sustainable peace?"

"The choice is made stark by the all-encompassing threat of COVID-19, which poses grave dangers to the health of Afghanistan's population and, potentially, to the stability of its institutions," she added.

U.S. envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad signed a deal with the Taliban in Doha on February 29 that Washington hopes will end the country's nearly 19-year war and allow the Pentagon to begin pulling its troops out.

But a power struggle between Ghani and his main rival in Afghanistan's 2019 presidential election, former Chief Executive Officer Abdullah, has threatened to derail the peace process.

Both politicians have claimed to be the winners in the election, although official results gave victory to Ghani.

In addition, a variety of disputes between the government in Kabul and Taliban representatives have slowed progress.

The Taliban has until now refused to negotiate directly with the Afghan government in Kabul. Disagreements over prisoner releases and the Afghan government's negotiating team have stymied any further progress.

'Diverse' Negotiating Team

On March 27, Taliban forces took control of a district headquarters in Afghanistan's northeastern province of Badakhshan, then the next day announced that it would not negotiate with the 21-member team recently unveiled by the Afghan government.

The UN's Hayden indicated support for the Afghan negotiating team, saying she was heartened that, despite deep-seated differences, Afghanistan's leaders had agreed on a diverse selection of citizens.

She said that representatives come from all major ethnic groups and include five women -- which, she said, was an important recognition that women must be involved in efforts to bring about a lasting peace.

The UN mission "has encouraged the Taliban to reciprocate by including women in their delegation who have an empowered decisive voice at the table. Doing so would send a tangible signal that the movement has fundamentally reformed," she said.

Under the agreement with the United States, the Taliban promised to reduce attacks targeting international forces. However, assaults against Afghan national defense and security forces have continued to plague the country, with civilians often being the victims, the UN said.

Hayden said the trend can be reversed and cited the "significant reduction" in violence ahead of the signing of the U.S.-Taliban agreement.

Despite the internal political standoff, Abdullah vowed on March 31 that he would ensure the dispute "does not overshadow peace efforts."

Abdullah said the team "represents the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and our national interests."

With reporting by AP

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/un-urges- afghan-rivals--rally-together- tpeace-deal/30521517.html

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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South Africa: Consumers advised to make use of credit life insurance

The National Credit Regulator (NCR) has advised consumers to make use of their credit life insurance, which can provide some relief for those unable to earn an income as a result of COVID-19.

As South Africa is battling with the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, many consumers have been left with the inability to earn an income, said the NCR, adding that some citizens were unemployed, while others are receiving less income due to reduced working hours.

President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a national 21-day lockdown to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, which came into effect at midnight on 26 March 2020.

Thursday marks day 7 of the lockdown.

The NCR advises consumers that where applicable, they first consider the option of using their credit life insurance benefit as a relief in this difficult period, said the regulators Chief Executive Officer, Nomsa Motshegare.

Credit life insurance is an insurance that a consumer signs up for when applying for credit or a loan and it covers the outstanding debt in the event of unforeseen circumstances such as death, retrenchment, unemployment, inability to earn an income, disability and others.

Motshegare said some credit providers have pronounced interim debt relief measures for consumers, who have been hard hit by the pandemic.

The regulator advised that in the event of the consumer becoming unemployed or unable to earn an income, the credit life insurance cover provides that credit providers must settle/pay the consumers debt for a period of 12 months, or for the remaining repayment period or until the consumer finds employment or is able to earn an income - whichever period is shorter.

Many consumers may not be aware that they have credit life insurance in place and that the premium for this insurance is already included in the cost of credit. To check if this insurance is in place, consumers must contact their credit providers and where applicable, consider use of this benefit to provide relief, Motshegare said.

The NCR was established as the regulator under the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 (NCA) and is responsible for the regulation of the South African credit industry.

The NCR is mandated with the registration of credit providers, credit bureaus, debt counsellors, payment distribution agents, and alternative dispute resolution agents, and monitoring their conduct in compliance with the NCA, as amended.

The regulator is an agency of the Department of Trade and Industry (dti).  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
coronavirus uk

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The UK plans to roll out "immunity passports" to allow people who have contracted COVID-19 to leave the lockdown early.

UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the certificates would be issued to people who have built up immunity to the coronavirus so they can return to "normal life."

Citizens would need to test positive in an antibody test before being issued with the certificates.

However, the UK has yet to identify a reliable test for antibodies to the virus.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The UK plans to roll out "immunity passports" to people who have already contracted COVID-19 to allow them to return to "normal life," the Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Thursday.

"We are looking at an immunity certificate," Hancock said at a Downing Street press conference.

"People who have had the disease have got the antibodies and then have immunity can show that and therefore get back as much as possible to normal life."

He added: "That is something we will be doing and will look at, but it is too early in the science  to be able to put clarity around that."

The UK has already ordered millions of antibody tests. However, the tests have so far proven ineffective, and the government has yet to approve them for use.

"The early results of some of them have not performed well," Hancock said. "But we hope the later tests we have got are reliable enough for people to be confident in using."

Hancock said hundreds of thousands of tests could take place every day once an antibody test is identified.

However, coronavirus testing has so far had mixed success around the world. Spain was recently forced to return tens of thousands of rapid coronavirus tests from a Chinese company after they were found to provide inconsistent results.

Some tests have demonstrated false positives, detecting antibodies to much more common coronaviruses, Quartz reported.

Story continues

Scientists also remain unsure about the extent to which a past infection could prevent reinfection and how long an immunity would remain.

Germany is also examining the possibility of issuing immunity passports.

Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research in Germany plan to send out hundreds of thousands of antibody tests over the coming weeks that could allow people to break free of their lockdowns, Der Spiegel reported on Friday.

If the project is approved, the researchers will test 100,000 people at a time starting this month, Der Spiegel said.

The tests are designed to detect whether a person has developed antibodies to the COVID-19 virus. The antibodies indicate that the tested person was at one time a carrier and may have built up immunity.

A positive test could allow the person to leave the lockdown while many positive tests could allow governments to ease restrictions in areas with "herd immunity."

Gerard Krause, the epidemiologist leading the project, told the magazine that people who are immune "could be given a type of vaccination card that, for example, allows them to be exempted" from "restrictions on their work."

Germany has one of the lowest COVID-19 death rates, which some experts and commentators have said is a result of the extensive testing rolled out by Chancellor Angela Merkel's government.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Minister for Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture Ihor Petrashko have discussed activities with representatives of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine amid the coronavirus quarantine.

Shmyhal wrote this on his Facebook page.

"Today, together with Minister for Economic Development Ihor Petrashko, we held an online meeting with representatives of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine. We discussed activities amid quarantine measures taken by the government due to the spread of coronavirus. We understand that restrictions may be unpleasant and inconvenient for businesses, however, they give a result in terms of saving the lives of Ukrainians," Shmyhal wrote.

He noted that the government was grateful to the American Chamber of Commerce companies for their understanding and responsibility.

Shmyhal stressed that no one has ready-made strategies in the face of the crisis and Ukraine takes into account the experience of other countries to anticipate the possible consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. To this end, the government is actively communicating with businesses. "We are synchronized with businesses. Their recommendations are our roadmap to saving the economy," he wrote.

The head of government stressed that Ukraine cannot "sit on the sofa" for two to three months. "We need to think about economics, so together with business and the best scientists, we are working to create a strategic platform that will include leading economic experts," Shmyhal said.

"The importance of draft laws on banking and the land market approved by the Verkhovna Rada this week was separately noted during the conversation. Ukraine has already received positive feedback from the IMF and ambassadors of the G7 countries," Shmyhal added.

The quarantine has been introduced in Ukraine since March 12 to fight the spread of coronavirus infection COVID-19.

On March 17, the Cabinet of Ministers discontinued the operation of enterprises whose activities are intended to receive visitors. These restrictions do not apply to banks and insurance companies, but they apply to other non-banking financial institutions (currency exchange offices, financial companies, credit unions, pawnshops, etc.).

On March 25, the government lifted a ban on the wholesale of food, trade in veterinary drugs, veterinary practices, the sale of feed, pesticides and agrochemicals, seeds and planting materials, as well as some other activities.

On April 1, the government permitted the sale of spare parts for vehicles, day-old poultry and the work of pawnshops and credit unions during the quarantine period.

op
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Lawmakers, human rights advocates, and leftist groups on Thursday slammed President Rodrigo Duterte's order for his troops to shoot and kill violators of the COVID-19 quarantine if the protests prove to be a threat to law enforcers lives.

The President issued the threat Wednesday night, hours after protesters demanding food assistance from the government amid the Luzon-wide enhanced quarantine were dispersed and rounded up by the police. He told the military and police to "shoot them dead" when protests become too rowdy.

Some of the dozens of protesters from Barangay San Roque in Quezon City held placards saying they have not gotten any help from the local government amid the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine. Police dispersed the crowd, arresting at least 21 protesters, bodily dragging or pinning on the ground those who resisted.

Senator Risa Hontiveros said the national government must respond to the needs of the public, especially those who are most affected by the lockdown.

"Ang mga tao ngayon ay gutom, may sakit, at nawalan ng kabuhayan. Their urgent needs should be met not w/ death threats, but w/ compassion & concern. Ang kailangan ng taumbayan ngayon ay pagkain, ayuda, at proteksyon sa mga frontliners, hindi dahas at pagbabanta," she said in a tweet.

[Translation: The people are hungry, sick, and jobless. Their urgent needs should not be met with death threats, but with compassion and concern. What the public needs now is food, assistance, and protection, not threats.]

Opposition senator Kiko Pangilinan said threats do not solve hunger, as he asked where the government's budget for food assistance during the COVID-19 outbreak has gone.

Duterte placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine starting March 17  by enforcing strict home lockdown with some exemptions, suspending classes, and temporarily shutting down mass transportation  in a bid to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease in the country.

Leftist labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno said the Duterte administration should listen to the cries of the poor instead of turning a blind eye to their pleas and resorting to violence.

"Don't threaten the hungry with brute police force. These threats will not fill empty stomachs. The President should give the people adequate food and jobs, not bullets," KMU chairperson Elmer Ka Bong Labog said in a statement.

Duterte also appealed to "the Left," telling them not to riot or he will have them jailed.

Human rights group Amnesty International Philippines and Karapatan assailed Duterte's policy, saying unchecked force is not the correct response to a health crisis.

It is deeply alarming that President Duterte has extended a policy of shoot to kill, a devastating hallmark of his presidency, to law enforcement agencies in the community quarantine. Deadly, unchecked force should never be referred to as a method to respond to an emergency such as the COVID 19 pandemic," Amnesty International Philippine Section Director, Butch Olano said in a statement.

Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay added, "They are facing threats both to their health and livelihood and they are being driven to mass hunger  but instead of addressing their urgent and legitimate demands for aid, the state is lightning quick to unleash ruthless violence and repression upon the people.

Amnesty International said the violent arrest of the 21 protesters for staging a rally without government permit should be investigated.

From March 17 to 29, the Philippine National Police reported that a total of 17,039 people have been arrested nationwide for supposed violations of curfews and other policies imposed as part of the enhanced community quarantine against the pandemic.

Duterte had earlier approved restrictions on people's movement, ordering most to stay at home as he placed the entire island of Luzon under an enhanced community quarantine to contain the spread of COVID-19. The quarantine is scheduled to last until April 13.

The country has recorded 2,311 patients with the viral disease, with 96 dead. Fifty have recovered so far.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The company that owns a sprawling steel mill near downtown Cleveland has agreed to pay nearly $5 million to settle claims that it violated the Clean Air Act at three separate facilities in two states.

A federal judge in Indiana on Wednesday approved a so-called consent decree that will see ArcelorMittal pay $2.6 million to the U.S. government, $2 million to the state of Indiana and more than $370,000 to Ohio.

Protecting the air we breathe isnt just an environmental issue, its a matter of public health, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said in a Thursday news release announcing the settlement. Cutting back on air pollution is a win-win for the planet and our lungs.

Lawyers in Yosts office represented the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, which accused the company of exceeding permitted air pollution limits at the Cleveland steel mill on several occasions from 2007 through 2018. The company has made several improvements at the facility to enhance emission controls, inspections, repairs and preventative maintenance to comply with the Clean Air Act, Yost said.

As part of the agreement, the company also agreed to stricter reporting procedures.

Ohios claims were part of a larger lawsuit that the U.S. EPA and Indiana EPA brought against the company.

Read more

Appeals court reschedules Jimmy Dimoras oral arguments, will hold them by video due to coronavirus

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost sends cease-and-desist letter to Hobby Lobby, which re-opened stores amid coronavirus restrictions

Ohio appeals federal judges order blocking attempt to use coronavirus health restrictions to limit abortions

Two immigrants in Ohio jail isolated among coronavirus concerns as advocates call for ICE to reduce number of people in custody

Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court extends limits on hearings due to coronavirus into May
Former Vice President Joe Biden isn't afraid to reach across the aisle during this national crisis.

In a press gaggle on Wednesday, Kellyanne Conway, a counselor to President Trump, snapped at Biden's apparent "criticism" of the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus. "Why doesn't Vice President Biden call the White House today and offer some support?" Conway questioned  and so Biden offered to do so.

"I think it's really disappointing to have President Obama's number two ... out there, criticizing, instead of saying 'hey, here is what we did that we thought was effective,' Conway said Wednesday. She repeated the criticism on Fox News and in a tweet, even though Biden had offered up both his and former President Barack Obama's advice on MSNBC Tuesday night.

Biden's deputy campaign manager fired back with another statement on Wednesday, saying Biden "has been extending his advice for months"  Fox News agreed that was true. "The Obama-Biden administration even wrote a literal playbook for pandemic response, but unfortunately Trump's administration left it on the shelf," the statement continued.

Biden campaign confirms @FoxNews report that @JoeBiden is offering to call President Trump to discuss a strategy to combat the #coronavirus Full stmt below from @KBeds pic.twitter.com/6EE0RLu0VD  Johnny Verhovek (@JTHVerhovek) April 1, 2020

Now, the ball is in Trump's court.

More stories from theweek.com

The Secret Service signed an 'emergency order' this week  for 30 golf carts

Engineer arrested after allegedly trying to run train into Los Angeles hospital ship

Experts warn as many as 1 in 3 coronavirus test results may be incorrectly negative


CLEVELAND, Ohio  Spirit Airlines is suspending all service at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, from April 8 through May 5, in response to a dramatic decline in demand due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The airline is temporarily pulling out of numerous other markets, as well, while maintaining a small number of flights to and from a handful of its base airports, including Orlando, Detroit and Baltimore.

Starting May 6, Spirit plans to relaunch daily service from Cleveland to Orlando and Fort Lauderdale, plus less-than-daily flights to Atlanta, Las Vegas and Myrtle Beach. Additional destinations will be added back in June, according to information provided to Cleveland Hopkins.

A spokesman for Spirit declined to discuss the upcoming changes, saying only that capacity for April and May would be down about 75% from what was originally planned.

We are still determining how that will play out on an airport-by-airport basis, said airline spokesman Field Sutton. The situation surrounding the COVID-19 coronavirus remains fluid, meaning actual capacity reductions may shift based on the demand environment continuing to evolve. We hope to return to normal capacity as soon as possible.

Spirits news comes just a day after Frontier Airlines, Spirits main low-cost competitor, announced it also was dramatically reducing its flying in April, cutting more than 90% of capacity nationwide. From Cleveland, Frontier will only fly to Orlando during April.

Earlier this year, Spirit announced a major expansion in Cleveland, launching new flights to Cancun, Mexico, and adding capacity to many existing routes, including Las Vegas, Myrtle Beach and numerous cities in Florida.

Those expansion plans are now on hold, as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc throughout the airline industry, causing massive capacity reductions and flight cancellations from all carriers.

In Cleveland, numerous routes have been halted temporarily, including United service to Los Angeles, Delta service to Salt Lake City and many others.

Read more travel coverage:

Empty Ohio hotels offer up space to hospitals, homeless shelters, health care workers during coronavirus pandemic

Cleveland-area hotels starting to close amid steep drop in occupancy
Coronavirus: Catalonia asks Spain for help, doctors One of hardest-hit regions reported over 2,000 deaths

(ANSAmed) - ROME, APRIL 2 - The leader of Catalonia Quim Torra has asked Spain to help his region, one of the epicenters of the coronavirus emergency.



Only a month ago, the Catalan government said it did not need the Spanish army but after 21,804 people tested positive for the virus and the victims became 2,093 - including 362 in retirement homes - Torra was forced to plead for help. ''If they can help, if any doctor can help us and come, we would be grateful'', the separatist leader told Radio Ser Catalunya. Torra complained he has not received testing kits from Spain.



''The Catalan government is providing 90% of resources, the Spanish 10%'', he added. The Spanish army has already intervened in Barcelona where it is sanitizing retirement homes and creating a hospital in a conference hall in the city.(ANSAmed).




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Accusing Congress president Sonia Gandhi of playing "petty politics" over the Union government's efforts to combat the coronavirus, top BJP leaders on Thursday asked the opposition party to play a responsible role and put up a united front against the pandemic.

BJP president J P Nadda, Home Minister Amit Shah, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad were among the senior leaders of the ruling party to hit out at the Congress, with Shah asking it to think of national interest and stop "misleading" the people.

India's efforts under Prime Minister Narendra Modi to combat the virus is being praised world over, they said, asserting that he is taking everyone, including all states, along in this fight.

Their broadside against the opposition came after Gandhi at a Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting slammed the Union government for its "unplanned" implementation of the 21-day lockdown. The CWC is the apex decision making body of the Congress.

"The 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India," she said.

Hitting back, Shah accused the Congress of playing "petty politics" over the novel coronavirus outbreak and asked it to think about national interest and not mislead the people.

"Under PM Narendra Modi's leadership, India's efforts to fight the coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. 130 crore Indians are united to defeat COVID-19.

Yet, the Congress is playing petty High time they think of national interest and stop misleading people," he said in a statement.

The former BJP president said it has been an "old habit" of the Congress that it has always walked a different path in matters of national interest, and that it has sought to divide the country for its "selfish interests".

"When will the Congress put national interest above its selfish politics," Shah asked.

The Congress president, Nadda said, is being "insensitive and indecent" in her comments.

"The entire country is today fighting against COVID-19 unitedly under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At such a time, Congress president Sonia Gandhi's statement is insensitive and indecent. This is not the time for but to serve the nation unitedly," Nadda said.

The BJP president said Modi is taking along all state governments to lead the fight of "team India" against the pandemic and asked the Congress to play the role of a responsible political party in this difficult time.

The Indian government's efforts are being praised across the world, he said.

Javadekar said the need of the hour for everyone is to join hands and to take on the pandemic unitedly.

There will be time for after the coronavirus is defeated, this should not be done now, he told reporters.

Prasad said the country is showing "united resolve" in the fight against the coronavirus and, at such a time, it seems shocking in many ways that Sonia Gandhi has chosen to question the lockdown with her criticism that it was announced without preparation.

"India is facing challenging times. The need of the hour is that everybody forgetting political divide should speak in one voice and manifest united determination. For the Congress to raises question on this life-saving initiative of lockdown is not only regrettable but also painful," he said.

Despite hardships, people have accepted this "willingly and wholeheartedly", Prasad said, asserting that Modi announced this with due consultation with experts.

The prime minister has been talking to all chief ministers, speaking to medical and drug associations, and consulted industrialists and civil society members among others to seek their suggestions, he said.

Prasad noted that the government announced a Rs 1.70 lakh crore package, which provided for free ration to 80 crore people, assistance to farmers, insurance to doctors and paramedic staff besides others reliefs to the poor.

Migrants have been accommodated and provided help, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 20:55:19|Editor: xuxin

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BERLIN, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Germany had a "high density" of intensive care beds in hospitals based on data by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) announced on Thursday.

There were 33.9 intensive care beds for every 100,000 inhabitants in Germany. The number was even increasing as a result of the coronavirus crisis, according to Destatis.

Destatis said that Austria and the United States also had a "relatively high density." Countries that were hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic such as Spain and Italy only had an intensive care bed capacity of 9.7 and 8.6 places per 100,000 citizens.

According to OECD data from 2017, Germany had around six hospital beds per 1,000 inhabitants. Out of 33 countries compared by OECD, only Japan with 7.8 hospital beds per 1,000 inhabitants and South Korea with 7.1 were "even better equipped," Destatis noted.

The German Hospital Federation (DKG) assumed that the number of intensive care beds has gone up to almost 40,000. Around 15,000 to 20,000 were currently free, DKG President Gerald Gass told the German newspaper Rheinische Post on Thursday.

According to DKG, the number of hospital beds with breathing support equipment has also gone up. "At the beginning of the pandemic, we had about 20,000 ventilator beds. It should be at about 30,000 by now," said Gass.

Germany registered 6,156 new cases of COVID-19 and 140 new deaths over the past day, raising the total of confirmed cases to 73,522 and 872 dead, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Thursday.

Since last week, German hospitals with spare capacities have started to take in coronavirus patients from Italy and France as a "sign of European solidarity," said German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.
Citing misinformation that has led to an increasing number of hate/bias crimes against members the Asian American community nationwide during the COVID-19 pandemic, Pennsylvania State Police said Thursday they will throughly investigate any such incidents in their jurisdiction.

State police Commissioner Robert Evanchick wrote a letter to local, state and federal stakeholders in which he said, We take every allegation of hate/bias crimes and incidents with the seriousness they deserve.

While not providing specifics about the misinformation, Evanchick said, The impact on the victims of these crimes (is) real and immeasurable.

According to a report from ABC News about the risk of hate crimes, The FBI makes this assessment based on the assumption that a portion of the US public will associate COVID-19 with China and Asian American populations.

President Trump and certain supporters have referred to the coronavirus as the Chinese virus, something they defend by saying it originated in the Wuhan section of that country and is no different in phrasing from the Spanish Flu of 1918.

The state police Heritage Affairs Section is dedicated to the prevention and investigation of hate/bias crimes and incidents, a news release said. The proactive group works with members of the impacted communities, lawmakers and law enforcement at all levels, the news release said.

No hate/bias crimes targeting Asian Americans and related to COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, have been investigated by troopers, state police said.

Victims may be reluctant to come forward for cultural reasons, or because they dont feel the crime against them rises to the level of law enforcement involvement," Evanchick said. "We want the community to know that any crime motivated by hate or bias is unacceptable. The Heritage Affairs Section, and our department, supports affected communities during these unprecedented times.

If you feel you are the victim of a hate crime or know someone who is, immediately call 911, state police said. If its a nonemergency, you can send tips by calling Pennsylvania Crime Stoppers at 800-472-8477 or email tips@pa.gov.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. If theres anything about this story that needs attention, please email him. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
(Newser)  Little else but ice, snow, and penguins likely pops into your head when you can spare a thought for Antarctic. But there's much more to the continent than meets the eye, as scientists describe in Nature. Analyzing a sediment core taken from the seafloor of West Antarctica's Amundsen Sea, they found well-preserved samples of clay and silt soil, root systems, spores, and pollen, indicating Antarctica was home to a rainforest about 90 million years ago. The corethe southernmost sample of the Cretaceous period ever collected, per CNNshows evidence of 65 different kinds of plants. At the time, the average daytime temperature was 53 degrees, far warmer than the current range of -76 degrees to 14 degrees, per the Guardian. Even then, however, the sun didn't shine for four-month stretches.

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"Even during months of darkness, swampy temperate rainforests were able to grow close to the South Pole, revealing an even warmer climate than we expected," says study co-author Tina van de Flierdt. Scientists believe the rainforest, fed by annual rainfall comparable to that now seen in Wales, grew without constant sunlight because of the warming effect of atmospheric carbon dioxide, which existed in higher concentrations than expected. "We didn't know that this Cretaceous greenhouse climate was that extreme," co-author Johann Klages tells the Guardian. "It shows us what carbon dioxide is able to do." Geochemist James Bendle explains there could be similar levels of carbon dioxide on Earth by 2100. "If we have an atmosphere of more than 1,000 parts per million of carbon dioxide, we are committing ourselves to a future planet that has little to no ice," he says. (Read more discoveries stories.)
Overdrive

Skoda Auto Volkswagen India private limited (SAVWIPL) announced its financial aid of Rs 1 crore rupees to develop a COVID-19 facility at the Sassoon General Hospital in Pune. The contribution will include medical consumables and critical care equipment for the medical team and the patients infected by the Coronavirus.

Over 35,000 sanitisers will be donated to hospitals in Pune, Aurangabad and Mumbai. And over 50,000 food packets will be distributed in the Aurangabad region. The company's factory in Chakan, Pune, is producing reusable face shields which will be given to the doctors and medical staff taking care of COVID-19 patients.

These face shields have been approved by doctor Ajay Chandanwale, dean of Sassoon General Hospital and it is certified for both indoor and outdoor use. The transparent sheet that forms the shield can be sanitised after six to eight hours before it is used again.

The company will be utilising its supply chain to organise medical supplies and will be importing the necessary medical equipment into India through Volkswagen AG.

The parent company, Skoda Auto has developed FFFP3 respirators for hospitals using 3D printers. This has been done in collaboration with the Czech Technical University in Prague. The company is globally helping charities, municipalities along with distribution of food and medicines by offering its fleet of owned vehicles.

The Volkswagen group is also organising medical material to help the health forces by providing them with face masks, gloves, disinfectants, clinical thermometers, protective goggles and clothing. The entire effort is promoted on their social media by #wenotme.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to place a serious strain on the transportation and food service industries, one of the worlds leading e-hail companies is doing its part to make sure frontline workers and those in need are staying fed and getting where they need to go.

The coronavirus has turned the world upside down. Some days it feels like everything has changed, and weve all had to change with it. A month ago, Uber was connecting 16 million trips a day. Now, were urging our riders to stay home if they can, said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.

And even as their lives have been upended, too, drivers, couriers and restaurants are moving what matters: getting first responders to work, and food to those who need it, Khosrowshahi continued.

On Tuesday, Uber announced that it would provide 10 million free rides and meals to to healthcare workers, seniors and people in need.

Were ready to work with more cities, food banks, hospitals and others around the world to move whatever matters most to them. Organizations, healthcare providers and governmental entities looking for support with rides or food deliveries can submit their request directly through this form, Khosrowshahi said.

Those seeking free rides and meals are asked to fill out the online form, providing information about their organization, where they operate and what type of support they are seeking, whether it be free rides, free meals or free delivery service through Uber Freight.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

UBERS OTHER EFFORTS

Prior to the announcement of 10 million free rides and meals, Uber had announced a host of other ongoing initiatives to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

The company has rolled out new in-app messaging that reminds riders to only travel when absolutely necessary and to take precautionary steps to protect themselves.

Uber Pool, which provides shared rides at lower costs, has been temporarily suspended in all markets to support social distancing.

Healthcare workers in some European and Latin American countries are receiving free rides to their respective homes and hospitals, with the company working to expand the initiative to more countries.

Discounted rides are being offered in Seattle, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., to help connect low-income, vulnerable communities with food sources.

Additionally, any driver or delivery person who is diagnosed with COVID-19, or is asked to self-quarantine to prevent spread of the virus, is eligible for up to 14 days of financial assistance through the company.

Uber is also working with its business partners to provide necessary cleaning supplies to its frontline employees.

We are working with manufacturers and distributors to provide drivers and delivery people with disinfectants, as soon as they become commercially available. Thousands of sanitation kits will also be sent to small carriers that use the Uber Freight platform, according to the company.

UBER EATS

Uber Eats has waived the delivery fee for over 100,000 independent restaurants across the United States and Canada, with daily, targeted marketing campaigns -- in-app and via email -- to promote deliveries from local restaurants.

The company has also introduced a new feature that will allow restaurants to opt-in to daily payments on all Uber Eats orders, as opposed to the standard weekly billing cycle, granting restaurants immediate access to their delivery revenue.

To ensure safety and limit the spread of germs during the outbreak, customers are being encouraged to request their delivery orders be left on their doorstep, with restaurants receiving guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to ensure all food is sealed in tamper-evident packaging.

Uber Eats, in cooperation with local and state governments, has also committed 300,000 free meals to first responders and healthcare workers in the U.S. and Canada in the coming weeks.

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Migrant daily wage labourers make the journey to their respective villages on foot following a lockdown amid concern over spread of coronavirus in New Delhi, India.

Migrant labourers wait for buses provided by the government to transport them to their hometowns in New Delhi, India.

Migrant workers sit atop a bus, provided by the government, as others walk along an expressway to their villages, in New Delhi, India.

A migrant family waits for transportation to their village following a lockdown amid concern over spread of coronavirus in New Delhi, India.

Migrant daily wage labourers crowd a bus as they travel to their respective hometowns following a lockdown to check the spread of the novel coronavirus in New Delhi, India.

Ramesh Meena, a migrant worker from Rajasthan, carries his wife Ramila Meena, who fractured her leg, on his shoulder, as they leave for their village after the city comes under lock down as a precautionary measure against COVID-19 in Ahmedabad, India.

Migrant workers walk to their villages along the Mumbai-Pune highway during the 21-day countrywide lockdown in Mumbai, India.

Locals provide drinking water to Indian migrant labourers making their way on foot to their respective villages following a lockdown amid concern over spread of coronavirus in New Delhi.

Men try to stop vehicles for migrant workers waiting for transportation to their respective villages following a lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus in New Delhi, India.

A young girl lies on a luggage as she along with her family awaits transportation to her village following a nationwide lockdown amid concern over spread of coronavirus in New Delhi, India.
All doctors and nurses should now wear an apron, gloves, mask and goggles every time they come within two metres of people who might have the coronavirus.

And all healthcare workers working in or out of a hospital should wear a mask if there's a possibility they're close to someone who might have COVID-19.

Public Health England today upgraded its advice for medical workers to tell them to wear more protective gear.

The rule applies to all healthcare staff who work in hospitals, GP surgeries or in the community and to anyone who comes within 6'6" (2m) of suspected or confirmed cases.

It added that staff should wear the same goggles or masks all day if they can - 'as long as it is safe to do', PHE said.

The new guidance is stricter than it had been so far in the outbreak. Before today's announcement, this level of protection was only needed for staff working on wards with patients who were confirmed to have the disease.

But now medical staff at all levels of care - from hospitals to at-home carers - should protect themselves even if a patient only has possible symptoms.

The British Medical Association has today launched a campaign to urge the Government to send more protective gear to the NHS frontline amid complaints there isn't enough go around.

And GP practices say that, when they've appealed for equipment from the NHS, they have been told to buy their own from other suppliers.

A paramedic in London is pictured wearing the full protective equipment that Public Health England is now mandating for all health workers to wear if they go near patients with suspected COVID-19. This man is wearing a gown rather than an apron

Hospital staff must all wear a mask of some kind if they are near someone who might have the coronavirus or would be especially vulnerable if they caught it, new guidance announced today rules

Today's update from Public Health England reads: 'Any clinician working in a hospital, primary care or community care setting within two metres of a suspected or confirmed coronavirus COVID-19 patient should wear an apron, gloves, surgical mask and eye protection, based on the risk.

'In some circumstances PPE, particularly masks and eye protection which is there to protect the health and care worker can be worn for an entire session and doesnt need to be changed between patients, as long as it is safe to do so.'

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said in today's Government briefing that the NHS was shipping a 'record quantity' of protective equipment.

He said that, yesterday alone, 45million pieces of equipment were delivered to hospitals with the help of the military, including 6million masks and 5million aprons.

Older health guidance had told medics they only needed aprons, gloves and eye protections if they were working on wards with patients who already had COVID-19. It has been tightened to mandate full-body protection even for those with suspected patients

Any staff coming into contact with suspected or definite COVID-19 cases must wear a mask, gloves and an apron, PHE says

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION COULD U-TURN ON FACE MASKS FOR PUBLIC The World Health Organization will reconsider its decision to tell healthy people not to wear face masks to protect themselves from the coronavirus. A recent study found that coughs and sneezes can spread virus particles up to 27ft (8m) in a cloud around an infected patient. The WHO currently does not recommend that people without the illness wear face masks because there is little evidence they help and they would be better used by healthcare workers and patients who test positive. But it might be about to change its mind, according to a former infectious disease director at the organisation. Professor David Heymann, now an in-house expert at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said the WHO was reopening its discussions about masks today. He said officials could decide to advise people that masks are beneficial - but people would have to wear ones with a proper seal around the nose and wear them all the time. Professor Heymann said: 'There is right now a debate about the usefulness of masks because Hong Kong has provided some evidence that masks may be useful in protecting individuals from infection. It's not clear yet whether or not thats true. 'WHO, the group that I work with, is debating that with a group of experts around the world tomorrow, to understand whether there is evidence which would call for a change in what WHO is recommending now for masks. '[What is recommends] is that they really dont have a major role in protecting people from infection except in healthcare workers where they also wear eye protection and they also have a role from protecting others from coughs or sneezing.' He added: 'But as the evidence becomes available, it seems there will be a debate trying to decide whether masks play a role at some point in the outbreak. 'And believe me, if they do, there is a private sector healthy enough to begin producing those masks in quantities necessary.' Advertisement

The PHE guidance said that paramedics and GPs should all also wear masks if they are dealing with people who have suspected or confirmed coronavirus.

This includes those working in care homes, in patients' own houses, or in public.

Ambulance drivers who don't come face-to-face with a patient do not need to wear a mask.

And health or social care workers who cannot accurately assess whether a patient might have COVID-19 should err on the side of caution and wear the protection.

The upgraded rules will reduce the spread of the infection, officials say, by making it less likely that droplets carrying the virus can enter the bodies of NHS staff.

Medical director for PHE, Dr Yvonne Doyle, said: 'Protecting our NHS colleagues on the frontline is vitally important.

'This updated guidance provides a greater degree of clarity so that NHS clinicians caring for patients feel confident in the PPE they need to wear.

'Our standards are among the highest in the world and in line with what WHO recommends in circumstances and settings with the highest risk transmission.'

The new guidance comes amid ongoing anger from NHS doctors that they aren't getting sent enough protective gear by the Government.

The British Medical Association today launched a campaign urging authorities to provide more the equipment, crucially masks, for staff to work safely.

Some staff said they have seen colleagues fall ill because of 'inadequate PPE' and others are having to buy their own.

One doctor revealed to their MP, Twickenham member Munira Wilson, that they had bought motocross goggles for their staff to wear.

And GPs in surgeries told the trade magazine Pulse that, when they rang the NHS's emergency helpline for access to extra supplies, they had been told to buy their own protective equipment from their usual wholesalers.

Editor of the British Medical Journal, which is part of the BMA's campaign for more equipment, Dr Fiona Godlee, said: 'For healthcare staff on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic, work has suddenly become a frightening place.

'There is real and justified fear about personal safety, fuelled by a scandalous lack of personal protective equipment.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday told chief ministers to focus on COVID-19 containment measures -- testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine -- with a common goal of ensuring minimum loss of life, and pitched for a joint strategy for a "staggered" exit from the ongoing lockdown.

As the country witnessed a spike in coronavirus infections and deaths in the past few days, the prime minister held a meeting with the chief ministers via video-conferencing, and said it was imperative to work on a war footing, identify hotspots, encircle them and ensure that the infection does not spread out.

According to an official statement, Modi also pitched for formulating a common exit strategy to ensure "staggered re-emergence of the population" once the 21-day nationwide lockdown ends on April 14.

Reiterating the importance of social distancing in preventing the spread of the virus, which has infected over 1,950 people and caused at least 50 deaths, Modi asked the states to brainstorm and send suggestions on a strategy from exit from the lockdown.

"The prime minister outlined that the common goal for the country is to ensure minimum loss of life. In the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the areas of focus," the statement said.

The states spoke about the importance of mobilising resources, financial as well as medical, to mitigate the crisis, the statement said.

Union Health Secretary Preeti Sudan spoke about the rise in number of cases in India, spread of cases from the Nizamuddin headquarters of Tablighi Jamaat, preparations to tackle medical cases arising out of further spread of the virus, and need to break the transmission chain in the districts with high number of confirmed cases.

During the interaction, the prime minister forewarned that the global situation remains far from satisfactory.

He informed the participants about speculations of a "possible second wave" of spread of the virus in some countries.

He highlighted the necessity of maintaining supply of essential medical products, availability of raw material for manufacture of medicines and medical equipment.

Modi said it was necessary to ensure availability of separate, dedicated hospital facilities for COVID-19 patients.

He said that it is pertinent to maintain peace, and law and order across the country.

He said COVID-19 has attacked "our faith and belief and is threatening our way of life".

He appealed to the leaders to reach out to community leaders and social welfare organisations at state, district, town and block levels to build up a united front based on community-approach in the battle against the pandemic.

To increase the availability of doctors, he asked the states to tap into the resource pool of AYUSH doctors, organise online training and utilise para-medical staff, National Cadet Corps and National Social Service volunteers.

Modi also thanked the states for supporting the decision of lockdown due to which India has achieved some success in limiting the spread of COVID-19.

He praised how all the states have worked together as a team to check the spread of the virus.

Underscoring the importance of coordinated action and the need to avoid overlaps in efforts of stakeholders, the prime minister talked about the need of setting up "Crisis Management Groups" at district level and appointment of District Surveillance Officers.

He was of the view that data must be taken from the accredited labs for testing -- "this will ensure congruence in data of district, state and centre," the statement said.

He said it is necessary to ensure staggered release of funds to the beneficiaries under PM Garib Kalyan Yojana to avoid crowding at banks.

Considering that this is the time of harvesting, the government has given some relaxation from lockdown.

But it is necessary to continuously monitor and maintain social distancing as much as possible, he pointed out.

He asked the states to think of other platforms for procuring grains apart from Agricultural Produce Market Committees, and explore the possibility of creating pooling platforms for rural areas. He gave the example of ride-sharing apps and said these can be used for this purpose.

The chief ministers thanked the prime minister for his leadership, continuous guidance and support in this time of crisis.

They appreciated him for taking the bold and timely decision of lockdown which has helped check the spread of the virus in the country, the statement said.

The chief ministers referred to their efforts of maintaining social distancing, tracking suspect cases, identifying and quarantining suspect cases arising from Nizamuddin Markaz, containing community transmission and boosting of medical infrastructure.

Tablighi Jamaat's Markaz in Nizamuddin West has emerged as an epicentre for spread of the coronavirus in different parts of the country after thousands of people took part in a congregation from March 1-15. Six people who died in Telangana and one in Jammu and Kashmir had attended the congregation.

The chief ministers also spoke about strengthening medical workforce, provision of tele-medicine and mental health counselling, distribution of food and other essentials to those in need and taking care of migrant workers.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Home Minister Amit Shah were present at the interaction.

Shah talked about the need for enforcing the lockdown more strictly in some states and effective district-level implementation of guidelines issued by the Centre.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the Reserve Bank of India announced relief measures for the common man to deal with coronavirus, several banks have come out with their explanations on what will the impact on the EMIs for the customers if they opt for deferring the EMIs by three months. Here is an FAQ by HDFC Bank, explaining how the stipulation by RBI will impact its customers.

FAQs on EMI Moratorium 1. What is the EMI moratorium provided for loans under Covid-19 - regulatory package? RBI has allowed all Banks and Indian Financial Institutions to offer its customers an option of EMI moratorium up to ...
As the US government urges Americans to give blood to aid in both the treatment and study of coronavirus, some people remain banned from contributing.

Gay and bisexual men, along with men who sleep with men, have long been barred from donating blood and plasma by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA has now confirmed that the ban also covers plasma donations from gay and bisexual men who have tested positive for coronavirus  that is, people who may possess antibodies crucial to treating Covid-19 and eventually finding a vaccine against it.

So far, it seems that the government does not intend to change its policy. At this time, FDAs recommendations regarding blood donor deferral for men who have sex with men have not changed, the organisation told CNN, but we are actively considering the situation as the outbreak progresses.

Campaign organisation GLAAD, formerly known as the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, has begun a petition to lift the ban that hinders gay men, bisexual men, and men who have sex with men from donating blood and plasma. So far, it has gathered nearly 20,000 signatures.

The FDA has issued emergency protocols allowing US hospitals to use blood from coronavirus survivors to treat others who have become critically ill. The treatment can only be used with permission on a case-by-case basis. It has been deployed in parts of China, where experiments on monkeys have indicated that antibodies may help prevent or mitigate re-infection.

The USs blood donation ban covers men who have sex with men within the last year. As GLAAD notes, the argument for keeping the ban in place has been refuted by organisations including the American Public Health Association and the American Red Cross.

In a statement, GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Ellis slated the FDAs decision to keep the ban in place for plasma donations for Covid-19 treatment. The FDA cannot let an outdated and discriminatory ban on blood donations from gay and bi men get in the way of potentially life-saving treatment for the countrys painful current health crisis.

Continuing to enforce this antiquated policy is dangerous, irresponsible, and flies in the face of recommendations from medical experts.

She was joined in her call to end the ban by two Democratic members of Congress, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Carolyn Maloney, who have written to the FDA imploring it to abandon the antiquated policy, which they say undermines crucial efforts to increase the nations blood supply as the United States grapples with the coronavirus crisis.

While the FDA has yet to approve pharmaceutical treatments for Covid-19 based on clinical trials, Donald Trump has talked up the commonly used drug chloroquine as a reliable cure for Covid-19. However, while some doctors have been using the drug and reported promising results, many others have urged caution.

A man in Arizona died from ingesting a version of the drug meant for use in aquariums; there are also reports that doctors are hoarding it for Covid-19 prescriptions, depleting the supply needed by patients with conditions like lupus.
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Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan  Thu, April 2, 2020 16:15 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f40de6 1 National North-Sumatra,police,rape,Deli-Serdang,vocational-schools Free

Deli Serdang Police have arrested seven students of a vocational school in Deli Serdang regency, North Sumatra and are searching for another in connection with alleged gang rape conducted several times against a 16-year-old junior.

Police are tracking down a student suspected to have planned the alleged rape, the head of Criminal Investigation Unit at Deli Serdang Police Sr. Muhammad Firdaus said.

The perpetrators are the victims seniors. We are hunting down [...] the mastermind. We have put him on the wanted list, he said on Wednesday.

He alleged the missing boy was the one who first asked the female student to come to the empty canteen and lab room at the school, to which they were reportedly followed by the remaining accused.

The seven arrested students have all been named suspects.

The arrests were made after victims parents filed a report to police on Tuesday. The students were arrested the day after when they were hanging out together.

Firdaus said the suspects could be charged under the 2002 Child Protection Law, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years' imprisonment upon conviction.

The mother of the victim said her daughter was gang-raped several times with the first incident allegedly occurring in December 2019. She claimed the rapes continued in January.

The mother said the family found out about the assaults when the reported victims older sister opened her mobile phone on Tuesday and discovered threatening messages allegedly from the school boys.

Her sister checked her sisters phone and found screenshots from a video of the alleged rape. When asked, my daughter then admitted that she was raped by her seniors, the mother said.

She said her daughter kept it to herself over fear that the video would be made public.

She was afraid to speak up because her seniors threatened to publish the rape videos, the mother said.

The victim was still suffering severe trauma, her mother said, adding that based on her daughters statement the accused raped her in turns.

The girls father said his daughter told him she wanted to quit school and she escaped from the house for several days.

The chairman of Deli Serdang Child Protection Agency, Junaidi Malik, said he hoped those responsible would be harshly punished.

The chairman of National Commission for Child Protection, Arist Merdeka Sirait, said the same, even though some of the perpetrators are still under age.

Although they are still in the child-age category, they must take legal responsibility, he said, referring to the 2012 Juvenile Justice System Law as the basis of the legal process.
Despite the EUs (albeit lukewarm) challenges to the Hungarian government for years, it has continued to erode liberal democracy in the country. On Monday, and under the pretext of the coronavirus pandemic, Viktor Orban executed an unprecedented power grab, allowing him to rule by decree. His coronavirus bill also introduces punitive actions for misinformation, making anyone deemed to be spreading what the state deems to be fake news about its response to the pandemic liable to up to five years in prison.

While technically the Hungarian parliament or constitutional court can revoke these emergency laws, in practice, the ruling Fidesz Party controls both these organs of the state, making this extremely unlikely. The checks and balances of a functioning democracy have been struck down, perhaps fatally. The prime ministers power is now absolute and for the first time in the history of the European Union, we risk losing a country to authoritarianism.

If this is a historic moment for the European Union, it is a terrifying one for Hungarians, many locked down in their apartments, fearing for their fundamental rights. No doubt popular protest will be fierce when the pandemic abates.

For the EU, Orbans move is an existential threat to its values. Left unattended, Hungarys steady erosion of its democracy could destroy the bloc from within.

On its own behalf and that of the Hungarian people, the EU must act.

Firstly, the commission must condemn, unequivocally and specifically, the actions of the Hungarian government. This means the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, abandoning her political allegiance to the European Peoples Party (EPP), to which she and Orban belong, to stand up for the union. New legal infringement proceedings should be considered, and an emergency rule of law report brought forward as soon as possible.

Secondly, EU member states need to bring forward a formal Article 7 procedure against the Hungarian government, enabling them to suspend certain of Hungarys member state rights, as the European parliament has repeatedly requested.

Thirdly, both the European Commission and Council should take action against the alleged use of EU funds by Hungarys governing elite to consolidate their one-party state and enrich Mr Orbans oligarch friends. A bold conditionality principle should be adopted in the EUs multi-annual financial framework  its seven-year budget  to ensure that EU money destined for Hungary actually ends up where it belongs: with the people.

Fourthly, Orbans Fidesz Party must be expelled from the EUs governing centre-right EPP Party, with immediate effect. Once a moderate, great European political movement, associated with titanic European politicians of the present and past  Helmut Kohl, Donald Tusk and Wilfred Martens  the EPP has regrettably provided legitimacy to Orban for too long.

 Donald Trump to Hungary's far-right leader Viktor Orban: 'You're respected all over Europe. Probably like me a little bit controversial, but that's okay'

The pandering of centre-right political parties  including the Tories in the UK and the Republicans in the US  to the populist and nationalist right has led to the corrosion of the very post-war institutions they once said were the pillars of our security. It is time for it to end.

Lastly, the international community  including countries like the UK and others who still claim to defend and promote liberal democracy  must take a stand. Britain may have left the European Union, but it has not left Europe, and is not immune to the events happening in its backyard. Neither Britain nor the European Union can tolerate a shift towards authoritarianism in central or eastern Europe.

In the aftermath of Orbans actions, the silence from those supposedly tasked with defending our values is deafening. As former Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi clearly stated, these actions are incompatible with EU membership. It is high time that those who still care about liberal democracy make that crystal clear.

Guy Verhofstadt and Sophie In t Veld are members of the European parliament
Burlington, Kentucky, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- At the 2019 Indiana Tourism Award Ceremony, presented by Indiana Connection, Snappy Tomato Pizza received top honors in the Culinary Focused Marketing category their Family Fun Guide 2019 promotion. The award celebrates a campaign that shined the spotlight on travel and dining across the great state of Indiana.

The Indiana Tourism Association hosts their annual convention and award ceremony as a means of recognizing the impact of the multi-billion dollar tourism industry on Indianas economy. This years festivities were held at Ceasars Southern Indiana on March 2nd through 4th, attracting over 200 tourism representatives from every corner of the state. With only ten award categories and only one winner for each, the competition is fierce. The 2019 competition received 60 total entries, while the culinary category received four diverse marketing campaign entrants.

The Culinary Focused category is judged on the innovation, creativity, execution and return on investment of the overall campaign. Snappy Tomato Pizzas 2019 Family Fun Guide campaign won the classification with rave reviews from the panel of three anonymous judges.

Congratulations to Snappy Tomato Pizza, we (the judges) were incredibly impressed with the amount of detail around the campaigns performance, said one of the judges, I order a pizza on almost all of my trips; the next one will be a Snappy Tomato Pizza.

The Snappy Tomato Pizza Family Fun Guide 2019 campaign was developed to encourage patrons to travel to new destinations, try a different Snappy Tomato Pizza location and have some family fun. The free 16-page guide was piled high with numerous day trip adventures, activities and attractions. The guide provided an opportunity to highlight and support businesses in the communities surrounding our Snappy Tomato Pizza franchise locations. Seventeen regional Indiana attractions were featured in the Family Fun Guide 2019, at no expense to them. Fifty thousand printed guides were distributed across forty-eight Snappy Tomato Pizza locations, including seven stores in Indiana from Bright to Rising Sun. The guide was promoted online, in-store and via radio advertising from Columbus, Indiana to Knoxville, Tennessee and Cincinnati, Ohio to Louisville, Kentucky. The Family Fun Guide also included a complete map of all the current Snappy Tomato Pizza locations, an introduction to franchising opportunities and exclusive coupon offers.

This campaign was our way of featuring the state of Indiana, while giving back to the communities where we work and live. We are honored to be recognized by the Indiana Tourism Association for our efforts to promote family, travel, tourism and our delicious Snappy Tomato Pizza products. Appreciatively, I accept this award on behalf of all of our stores and especially our seven Indiana locations. stated Andy Ritter, Marketing Director for Snappy Tomato Pizza corporate.

The campaign more than delivered with fifty thousand guides distributed, 120 earned media placements and 144 commercial radio plays. When compared to the same eight-week time frame of the previous year, overall website traffic was up 11%, brand recognition increased by 16% with the influx of new patrons and there was a 121% increase in traffic to the online order site.

This is the third major award for this campaign, having already been recognized by the Ohio Travel Association as the top Ohio Travel and Tourism Marketing Campaign of 2019 and an Award of Excellence from the Graphic Media Alliance for creativity, design and Activation. All totaled this is the most award-winning marketing campaign in Snappy Tomato Pizza history.

NOTE: Despite these trying times ALL of our Snappy Tomato Pizza locations are open for contactless takeout and delivery. Our seven Indiana locations, although known for their famous dine-in Snappy Tomato Pizza Buffets, remain open for contactless delivery and carryout so you can enjoy elements of the buffet right in your own home. Call today and order our delicious foods, be it a specialty pizza, hoagies, pasta, calzones, salads, wings or all the above. When you call be sure to congratulate these restaurants on their award. There is no better time to celebrate and support these eateries. Please stay safe and healthy. Thank you for your support.

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About Snappy Tomato Pizza: www.SnappyTomato.com | #SnappyTomato

Snappy Tomato Pizza was founded in 1978 in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, as a single independent pizza operation. Today, Snappy Tomato Pizza has grown to over 47 locations across five states: Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana and New Mexico. What started as an all-in bet at a horse race track in Kentucky on a horse named Snappy Tomato is now a beloved casual family restaurant and one of the most sought-after franchise opportunities nationwide. Signature menu items include the complete line of The Beast pizzas, the Snapperoni pizza, the Ranch Pizza and the Loaded Potato Pizza, in addition to delectable wings, salads, hoagies and calzones. Snappy Tomato Pizza is infamous for their always fresh ingredients, secret recipe award-winning sauce, the unique line of Beast Pizzas and the ever memorable Snappy Tomato logo.

Stay in the know with: #SnappyTomato

Indiana Tourism Association & Indiana Tourism Awards: www.IndianaTourismAssociation.com

The Indiana Tourism Associations mission is advocating the value of tourism in Indiana and supporting the best practices of its members. Established in 1980, the association partners with the Indiana Office of Tourism Development, Association of Indiana Restaurant and Lodging and other statewide associations to support tourism investment and promotion as an economic contributor to the state.

For more information, visit www.IndianaTourismAssociation.com.

Media Contact: Carrie Lambert, carrie@indianatourismassociation.com, 317-902-4557

Attachments
Tesco Free From

1.90 for pack of four. Two packs for 2

Rating:

As a hot cross bun fan, this was a delight.

The fruit was perfectly sweet and with a layer of melted butter is was, frankly, delicious. Devastated I only had one and would gladly scoff an entire packet. Gluten free food is normally abhorrent, dry and tasteless!

But this hot-cross bun was none of the above. By a mile the best free-from thing I've ever eaten in that case. I'm not entirely sure I believe its gluten free. - Joe Pinkstone

Joe loved the Tesco Free from hot cross buns, which cost  1.90 for pack of four

Co-op Irresistible Limited Edition Richly Fruited Luxury Hot Cross Buns

1.35 for pack of four

Rating:

'The bun was absolutely delicious and very sweet. I'm really keen for more now and looking forward to Easter!

Having been told that this is in fact a fruit hot cross bun, I have to say that I didn't taste much fruit.

I did, however, taste lots of sugar. Good value for money I think, but don't be bowled over by the 'fruit' element! - Luke Andrews

Luke thought the Co-op irresistible hot cross buns were delicious

M&S Salted Caramel and Chocolate

1.50 for pack of four

Rating:

'This hot cross bun reminds me if a chocolate brioche, which I love! I don't think it needs butter or anything else to compliment the flavour and it's quiet moreish.

'It's probably not for everyonebut I think my fellow chocoholics can appreciate it. - Latoya Gayle

Latoya said the salted caramel and chocolate hot cross from Marks and Spencer (right) buns reminded her of chocolate brioche, while Luke thought the Co-op irresistible hot cross buns were delicious

M&S Bramley Apple

1.50 for pack of four

Rating:

I was very impressed with this hot cross bun and cannot fault it. The bread to fruit ratio was spot on, with it also having a perfect chewy consistency.

None of the raisins had gone soggy and were full of flavour - would definitely buy a packet of these delights!

Didn't really get the apple vibes, just fruit in gen, but boy oh boy looks like I'll be splashing the cash on M&S buns this season - Bryony Jewell

Bryony said she would definitely buy the M&S Bramley Apple Hot Cross Buns this year

Morrisons Best Mocha Hot Cross Buns

1 for a pack of four

Rating:

This dough on this was nice and soft and it had a little bit of a coffee kick to it.

Not usually a fan of things that are coffee flavoured but this was a cool take on the traditional hot cross bun.

I also liked that the top of the bun was glazed and a little bit sticky as it added the sweetness needed because of the bitterness of the coffee.

The little chocolate chips were a nice extra too. - Terri-Ann Williams

Terri-Ann said she loved the glazed and a little bit sticky as it added the sweetness needed because of the bitterness of the coffee

M&S Chilli and Cheese Hot Cross Bun

1.50 for a pack of four

Rating:

I was pleasantly surprised with the chilli and cheese flavour. I've never tried a savoury hot cross bun so was sceptical at first, but it tasted lovely toasted with some butter. - Sophie Law

Sophie said the chilli and cheese hot cross bun was lovely toasted with butter

Tesco Finest Salted Caramel and Belgian Chocolate

1.50 for a pack of four. Two packs for 2

Rating:

I'm not the world's biggest fan of hot cross buns, and sadly I don't think that this offering is going to change my opinion much.

The subtle hints of rich chocolate were a pleasing addition  if less intense than one might have wished for. However, the bun itself was somewhat more stodgy than I might have liked.

I couldn't taste the salted caramel at all, which  in hindsight  is disappointing. I guess it's decent value for what you're getting, and I definitely didn't hate it, but I would still prefer a higher quality item. - Ian Randall

Ian said the subtle hints of rich chocolate were a pleasing addition to the Salted Caramel and Belgian chocolate hot cross bun

Waitrose Sticky Toffee Pudding

1.69 for a pack of four

Rating:

This is a great hot cross bun  good doughy consistency, tasty flavour and nice shine atop. It's a little sweeter than your classic bun and, although I'm not exactly sure what the sugary flavour is, I'm not adverse to it.

I also enjoyed the size of the baked treat, because it was just large enough for a mid-morning snack without leaving you craving more.

I'm not sure it can top the classic hot cross bun flavour and I'd question how many currants there are inside, but all in all a strong 4/5. - Harriet Johnston

Harriet thought the sticky toffee pudding hot cross bun was a nice twist on the traditional treat

M&S Golden Hot Cross Buns

Rating:

1.50 for a pack of four

I'm a huge hot cross bun fan and this little treat didn't disappoint! It was lovely and moist and packed full of flavour.

Would definitely purchase a bag! - Charlotte Dean

Charlotte said M&S' Golden Hot Cross buns were moist and full of flavour

M&S Luxury Hot Cross Buns

Rating:

1.50 for a pack of four

It certainly looked like a perfectly-proportioned hot-cross bun. But my admiration soon turned to mild distress when the glaze turned out to be a little too sticky to handle with ease.

I persevered nonetheless and it redeemed itself within the first bite. It was packed full of fruit - 'a sure sign of quality', I thought to myself. Similarly, the dough was a good consistency. Just chewy enough to savour without being left with a jaw ache. Overall, 4/5, would eat again. - Raven Saunt

Raven thought the dough had a good consistency and was perfectly chewy

Aldi, Bramley Apple

99p for a pack of four

Rating:

It had a nice fluffy texture and the apples in it were not overpowering. A good, solid hot cross bun. - Joe Middleton

Joe thought the apple hot cross buns were nice and fluffy in texture and not overpowering

Aldi, Salted Caramel

Rating:

1.09 for a pack of four

The dough for this one was a little bit bitter but the sweetness of the chocolate chips really did make up for it.

Although I think I might prefer a traditional hot cross bun with currants. If it didn't have the chocolate chips it would really be a little bit plain as it just wasn't sweet enough for me. - Terri-Ann Williams

Terri-Ann thought the chocolate chips were a nice touch, but would rather a traditional bun

Sainsbury's Taste the Difference, Fruity Hot Cross Buns

Rating:

1.25 for pack of four

I found the hot cross bun a little stodgy  it looked good optically but the unusually rounded shape meant it was quite doughy and lacked flavour a bit. However the lack of raisins pleased me and it was still a tasty snack. - Jessica Rach

Jessica thought the buns were a little stodgy and doughy, but tasty overall

Asda Free From

Rating:

2 for a pack of four

'This hot cross bun has a fruity flavour that almost distracted me from the extraordinarily dry texture. It's a decent size but would need a generous serving of butter to be satisfying. I'm not a huge hot cross bun person but tasted like something was missing - Latoya Gayle

M&S Sweet Marmalade

Rating:

1.50 for a pack of four

This hot cross bun had a fab consistency and just the right amount of chew.

The spices and fruity parts blended nicely, and it had a little zest of orange, which didn't disappear with a little touch of butter - Bryony Jewell

Bryony thought these had a zesty flavour and blended nicely with butter

Waitrose Chocolate and Cherry

Rating:

1.69 for a pack of four

This wasn't a bad twist on a hot cross bun - the cherry and chocolate worked well together but it could have done with more of both to really make it stand out. - Faith Ridler
The Vietnamese Ministry of Health announced four new cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Thursday morning, with the countrys tally now totaling 222.

Among the new patients, one is linked to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi while the other three are imported cases who previously returned to Vietnam from foreign countries and had been quarantined since their arrival.

Patient No. 219 is a 59-year-old woman from the northern province of Hung Yen.

She visited the neurology ward at Bach Mai Hospital to take care of a sick relative on March 16 and stayed in the same room as patient No. 133.

After reading the news about patient No. 133, she went to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanoi for quarantine and testing on March 25. She is now being treated at the infirmary.

Bach Mai, the largest general hospital in Vietnam, is the biggest cluster in Hanoi, as 39 cases have now been linked to it.

Patient No. 220, a 20-year-old Vietnamese man, returned to Vietnam from France on March 17 and was sent to a quarantine camp in Thach That District, Hanoi after his arrival.

He developed a fever and coughing on March 22 and was admitted to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Dong Anh District, a suburban district of the capital.

Patient No. 221 is a 24-year-old Vietnamese woman who studies in Canada.

She landed in Vietnam on March 24 on a flight from Canada with transit time in Taiwan. She was quarantined at a military base in the northern province of Vinh Phuc.

The patient is now being treated at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Dong Anh District.

Patient No. 222 is a 28-year-old Hanoi woman who lives and works in the United States.

Upon her return to Vietnam on March 20, she was taken to a quarantine camp and eventually tested positive for COVID-19.

She is now being treated at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Dong Anh District.

The novel coronavirus, which first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019, has infected over 935,000 people and killed more than 47,100 globally as of Thursday morning, according to Ministry of Health statistics.

Vietnam has announced 222 COVID-19 patients so far, with 64 having recovered.

Fifty-four of the active COVID-19 cases have tested negative for the virus at least once since receiving treatment.

No fatality related to the disease has been reported in the country to date.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
TDT | Manama

A leading global non-profit organisation has praised the precautionary measures taken by Bahrain in the on-going fight against the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This was expressed by the Board of Directors of the International Federation of Training and Development Organisations (IFTDO).

They recently held a meeting that was chaired by elected IFTDO Board Chairman Dr Ibrahim bin Khalifa Al Dossary. Considering the extraordinary circumstances the world is currently witnessing, the meeting was held remotely and consisted of 15 board members from different countries of the world.

In the meeting, each member was given the opportunity to explain the situation in their respective country. Dr Al Dossary took the chance to share the situation in Bahrain and the precautionary measures taken by the Kingdom, as well as the facilitation it offered citizens and residents.

Board members expressed their appreciation of the initiatives, which reflect the wise management of the government in dealing with the pandemic and which represent the awareness of the people of the Kingdom.

The board then discussed the meeting agenda, in which several programmes were approved, in addition to discussing the possibility of offering human development consultations to the countries that have been affected most by COVID-19.

It has also been agreed to postpone the IFTDO World Conference, which was scheduled to be held in India, until year-end. Additionally, board members agreed to communicate with NGOs in some poor countries to provide logistic support in order to assist in efforts to combat this pandemic.

It is worth mentioning that IFTDO is a non-profit organisation registered in the United Nations, established in Geneva since 1972. A Board of Directors and a Chairman is periodically elected, and the federation includes most of the profitable and non-profit organisations across the world, with around 500,000 members.

Dr Al Dossary was re-elected for the post after winning the majority of the votes in the federations recent assembly held in Bosnia.

During his chairmanship period of IFTDOs Board of Directors, Dr Al Dossary achieved noticeable improvement in different aspects  a matter that is considered as an international gain for the Kingdom of Bahrain and its citizens, thanks to their dedication, devotion and competencies.
Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited (KBRA) releases research regarding UK CMBS transactions. The UK government passed on 25 March a package of measures to support businesses impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, including a measure to protect commercial tenants from eviction. The measure will allow tenants to defer rent in March and June. In addition, while landlords will be entitled to take steps to recover deferred rent once the protective period ends, it now seems likely that a significant number of tenants, particularly from the retail sector, will negotiate for outright rent holidays.

While these developments pose the risk that some UK commercial real estate loans will experience a failure to pay, the willingness and ability of sponsors to make debt service payments will reduce risks at loan level. Even if there was a failure to pay, bond level structural features such as liquidity facilities and deferrable interest should insulate bondholders from the direct effects.

As events surrounding the crisis unfold, our thoughts are with the individuals and families who have been affected by the virus.

Click here to view the report.

Related Publications

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Taurus 2019-3 UK DAC and Potential Implications

Coronavirus (COVID-19): Kanaal CMBS Finance 2019 Retail Exposure

Salus (European Loan Conduit No. 33) DAC Surveillance Report

Scorpio (European Loan Conduit No. 34) DAC Pre-Sale Report

Taurus 2019-3 UK DAC Pre-Sale Report

About KBRA and KBRA Europe

KBRA is a full-service credit rating agency registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an NRSRO. In addition, KBRA is designated as a designated rating organization by the Ontario Securities Commission for issuers of asset-backed securities to file a short form prospectus or shelf prospectus. KBRA is also recognized by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners as a Credit Rating Provider and is a certified Credit Rating Agency (CRA) with the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA). Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited is registered with ESMA as a CRA. Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited is located at 6-8 College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005563/en/

Contacts:

Analytical Contacts

John Hogan

+44 208 148 1040

jhogan@kbra.com

Matthew Horner, Director

+353 1 588 1240

mhorner@kbra.com

Yee Cent Wong, Senior Managing Director

+1 (646) 731-2374

ywong@kbra.com

Business Development Contact

Mauricio Noe, Senior Managing Director

+44 208 148 1010

mnoe@kbra.com
Company Completes Necessary FDA Notifications to Assist in Fight Against COVID-19

HOUSTON, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- C-Bond Systems, Inc. (the Company or C-Bond) (CBNT), a nanotechnology solutions company, today announced it has temporarily converted its manufacturing facility to produce hand sanitizer for both healthcare professionals and consumers to assist in the fight against COVID-19.



The Company will produce C-Bond Antiseptic Hand Rub, a professional grade World Health Organization (WHO) hand sanitizer formula to fulfill bulk orders received from healthcare customers at its Houston-based manufacturing facility. All necessary FDA notifications are complete for production to proceed.

In this unprecedented time of need, it is imperative that we all do our part to help combat the spread of COVID-19, said Scott R. Silverman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of C-Bond. Therefore, we are dedicating a portion of our facility to the production of hand sanitizer to provide much needed supplies to healthcare professionals on the front lines. This represents a unique revenue opportunity for C-Bond and allows us to most efficiently leverage our manufacturing infrastructure.

For consumers or companies interested in placing a bulk order for hand sanitizer, please contact the C-Bond Systems corporate office at (832) 649-5658.

About C-Bond

C-Bond Systems, Inc. (CBNT) is a Houston-based advanced nanotechnology company and marketer of the patented C-Bond technology, developed in conjunction with Rice University and independently proven to significantly strengthen glass in key automotive and structural applications. The Companys Transportation Solutions Group sells C-Bond NanoShield, a liquid solution applied directly to automotive windshields, sold through distributors. The Companys Safety Solutions Group sells ballistic-resistant glass solutions directly to private enterprises, schools and government agencies. For more information, please visit our website at www.cbondsystems.com, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cbondsys/ and Twitter: https://twitter.com/CBond_Systems .

Story continues

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release about our future expectations, including the likelihood that we will produce C-Bond Antiseptic Hand Rub, a professional grade WHO hand sanitizer formula to fulfill bulk orders received from healthcare customers; the likelihood that this represents a unique revenue opportunity for C-Bond and allows us to most efficiently leverage our manufacturing infrastructure; constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and as that term is defined in the Private Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change at any time, and our actual results could differ materially from expected results. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, C-Bonds ability to raise capital; the Companys ability to successfully commercialize its products; the Companys ability to operate during the COVID-19 pandemic; as well as other risks. Additional information about these and other factors may be described in the Companys filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) including its Form 10-K filed on March 25, 2020, its Forms 10-Q filed on November 14, 2019, August 12, 2019, and May 10, 2019, and in future filings with the SEC. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this statement or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.

Investor Contacts:



Luke Zimmerman

Vice President

MZ Group - MZ North America

949-259-4987

CBNT@mzgroup.us

www.mzgroup.us



Allison Tomek

VP, Corporate Communications

C-Bond Systems, Inc.

atomek@cbondsystems.com

832-649-5658
The Seattle nursing home where at least 40 people have died from coronavirus is facing a $600,000 fine from federal authorities for placing its residents in danger amid the pandemic.

The Life Care Center of Kirkland is where the coronavirus outbreak in the US initially took hold and is the facility where the largest number of cases have been linked to so far.

Federal health officials and state regulators inspected Life Care on March 16 as coronavirus cases were growing rapidly in Washington state.

They found serious infractions that they said placed residents in immediate danger, including how Life Care failed to manage sick residents when the coronavirus outbreak first started.

Authorities said Life Care had at least partially fixed the most serious problems by the time they conducted follow-up inspection in last weekend.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a fine of $611,000 but said that could be adjusted based on how Life Care continued to correct the remaining issues.

Among the most serious issues regulators found was the center's failure to rapidly identify and manage sick residents when the coronavirus outbreak took hold in mid-February.

Regulators also found Life Care failed to notify the Washington health department about the increasing rate of respiratory infections among its residents and did not have a back plan when its main doctor became sick.

CMS notified Life Care on March 18 that it had 23 days to remedy violations that placed residents at immediate jeopardy before it would be terminated as a Medicare provider.

The agency on Wednesday extended that period saying Life Care must fix all remaining issues by September 16.

Among the remaining issues is whether Life Care has a medical director coordinating care at the facility and whether it is properly protecting patient records.

The 40 deaths at Life Care are among the 164 coronvirus deaths recorded in the Seattle area.

Washington state's death toll has now increased to 254 while the number of infections has risen to nearly 6,000.

The Life Care Center of Kirkland in Seattle is where the coronavirus outbreak in the US initially took hold and is the facility where the largest number of cases have been linked to so far. Pictured above is a resident being taken by paramedics on March 24

A nurse is pictured above working in the room of a patient who has tested positive for the coronavirus at the Life Care Center in Kirkland in early March

A woman speaks on the phone to her sick mother after the Life Care center banned visitors to stop the spread of the coronavirus

Deaths there are now not increasing as much as they are in other US states despite the fact that Washington was the epicenter of the country's outbreak a month ago.

Washington recorded the first known coronavirus case in the US and also the first few deaths of the pandemic before it started spreading rapidly across the country.

At one point, Washington had recorded 37 of the country's first 50 fatal outbreaks.

The number of statewide cases surged following the outbreak at the Life Care nursing home.

Washington's first deaths were reported on February 29 after two people - one who was a resident at the Life Care nursing home - died in the same Seattle hospital.

Following the outbreak, the state enforced strict social distancing measures by banning large gatherings in late February and closing schools in early March.

Non-essential workplaces also shut down and the majority of residents started self-isolating as they stayed at home.

There was cautious optimism this week that Washington state may now be nearing the peak of the pandemic or seeing the effects of its strict social distancing measures.

King County health director Jeff Duchin said they were now seeing a positive effect from the introduced measures but the number of deaths and cases continued to increase.

'We are seeing a positive effect from the social distancing and other measures we've put in place, although significant numbers of cases and deaths continue to occur,' Duchin said.

'The threat of a rebound that could overwhelm the healthcare system remains and will remain for the foreseeable future if we let up too soon.'

A new statistical study published this week found that the measures introduced in Washington state appeared to have slowed the rate at which coronavirus spread from person-to-person over three weeks in the Seattle area.

The Institute for Disease Modeling (IDM) used government-compiled heath data, including positive and negative tests and overall mortality, and anonymized Facebook location data to calculate the impact of the lockdown.

The study found that the data appeared to show that the pandemic has slowed in Washington state since the measures were introduced.

The disease's reproductive number - the amount of people a single patient will infect on average - dropped by nearly half, from 2.7 at the end of February to 1.4 by March 18, it calculated. The reproductive number must fall below one for the pandemic to decline, according to the study.

Facebook location data indicated 'a persistent decline in mobility' and 'strong evidence that people have been staying at home' over the period, the report found.

It showed an average 27 percent increase in the occupancy of residential areas, and a 43 percent decline in areas with offices such as central Seattle.

The state's stay-at-home order was 'timely and necessary' but must be maintained, and 'more progress is necessary,' the report said, noting that the models drew on a small amount of data and contain considerable uncertainty.
The residents of a locality here pelted stones at healthcare workers who went there to screen people in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.

The locality where this incident took place was Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore. A case has been registered against the unidentified people.

Moreover, 12 new coronavirus positive cases have been reported in Indore, taking the total number of cases to 75 in the city. The total number of positive cases in Madhya Pradesh stands at 98.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Australia's High Court said Thursday it will rule on Cardinal George Pell's appeal against child sex abuse convictions on April 7, giving the senior cleric another chance to clear his name and leave jail.

The 78-year-old former Vatican treasurer is trying to overturn a six-year sentence for sexually assaulting two 13-year-old choirboys in the 1990s.

Pell, who once helped elect popes, is the highest-ranking Catholic Church official ever convicted of child sex crimes. He maintains his innocence.

Legal experts have struggled to predict the progression of the high-profile case, as it threw up one surprise after another.

Judges could yet deny Pell's appeal, order a retrial or quash his conviction altogether.

The case relied largely on the testimony of Pell's surviving victim. The second choirboy -- who is not known to have ever spoken of the abuse -- died of a drug overdose in 2014. Neither man can be identified for legal reasons.

Pell was quietly removed from top Church bodies while mention of his trial was under a wide-ranging court gag order, but he remains in the priesthood.

The Vatican previously said it would avoid launching an investigation into his conduct until after all legal avenues are exhausted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As all actors know, when disaster strikes mid-performance you've got two choices: stop the show, or improvise.

The Melbourne Theatre Company, fresh from the financial and emotional shock of cancelling its next six productions, is improvising.

A scene from the MTC's 2020 production of Home, I'm Darling. Credit:MTC

From Friday, they unroll a suite of "digital content", as the jargon goes. It will range from the predictable to the bizarre. There will be a virtual tour of MTC HQ, videos providing insights into the production process, audio recordings from the archives of in-conversation events featuring superstars such as Barrie Kosky and David Hare.

There will also be Netflix recommendations, Spotify playlists, directing workshops, virtual Q&As, even a bake-off run by an artistic team member who was on Masterchef. There will be online performances: play readings performed by cast members out of their lockdowns.
China today has reported only 1,863 coronavirus patients who are currently being treated after the country declared to have largely curbed the epidemic.

This is also the first time the number of current patients dropped below 2,000, according to Chinese media.

The announcement comes as experts and critics have warned that Beijing might still be lying about its figures after covering up the numbers of cases and deaths during the initial outbreak.

The country has recorded an overall of 81,589 confirmed cases and 3,199 death. A total of 76,408 people have been cured from the deadly disease.

China today has reported only 1,863 coronavirus patients who are currently being treated as the country declared to have largely curbed the epidemic. People are seen wearing face masks while walking on a street in the former epicentre Wuhan today

Experts and critics have warned that Beijing might still be lying about its figures after covering up the numbers of cases and deaths during the initial outbreak. People wearing face masks stand in front of a Chinese Communist Party flag along a street in Wuhan

Meanwhile, Spain has suffered another record-breaking day of coronavirus deaths, with 950 people killed by the disease in the last 24 hours.

The death toll in the US, which has surpassed China to be the country with the most cases, skyrocketed in the last 24 hours, taking the number of Americans killed by the virus past 5,000.

Hubei also reported zero new cases today in a statement released by Chinas National Health Commission.

A Chinese teenager studying in the UK was recorded yesterday to be the first person to bring the novel coronavirus back to Wuhan, the former centre of the pandemic.

Experts fear that China is facing a second outbreak due to the increasing number of imported cases as well as the 'silent carriers' who show no symptoms.

There are a total of 701 imported cases and 1,075 asymptomatic patients of the coronavirus in China as of now.

Beijing started releasing daily reports of new asymptotic cases from yesterday. The country has also restricted international flights and tightened border controls in a move to avoid a second outbreak.

Experts fear that China is facing a second outbreak due to the increasing number of imported cases as well as the 'silent carriers' who show no symptoms. Beijing residents are pictured at a park today as Chinese authorities claim to have largely curbed the epidemic

Experts have said that China 's decision to lock down Wuhan may have prevented 700,000 new cases of coronavirus, although sceptics have voiced doubts about the accuracy of Chinese figures. Medical workers are seen outside the Wuhan Central Hospital yesterday

Experts have said that China 's decision to lock down Wuhan may have prevented 700,000 new cases of coronavirus, although sceptics have voiced doubts about the accuracy of Chinese figures.

A paper published by researchers in China, Britain and the US praised Beijing for the 'successful' quarantine measures which saw Wuhan virtually cut off.

'China's control measures appear to have worked by successfully breaking the chain of transmission - preventing contact between infectious and susceptible people,' said an Oxford fellow who co-wrote the paper.

However, activists in China claim that Wuhan funeral homes are handing out 500 urns a day each, more than necessary for the 2,559 people who have officially died of the virus there.

Long queues at the funeral homes have fuelled scepticism about China's numbers, prompting claims that 42,000 people or more could have died in Wuhan.

Activists in China claim that Wuhan funeral homes are handing out 500 urns a day each, more than necessary for the 2,548 people who have officially died of the virus there. Medics are pictured treating a coronavirus patient at the Huoshenshan Hospital in Wuhan

More than half a million people in central China have been put under a new coronavirus lockdown this week after three doctors tested positive for the virus despite showing no symptoms.

The county of Jia in Henan Province, with about 570,000 residents, has halted transport in and out of the area as well as local buses and taxis since Monday, according to a government notice.

Regional officials have ordered all villages, towns and residential complexes to activate their 'wartime mechanism' amid fears for a fresh outbreak, another notice said.

Worldwide, over 937,000 people have been infected with the killer virus and at least 47,260 people have died. WHO warned that the number of infections globally will reach a million within days.
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Gov. Phil Murphy shined a love light on the parent company of JCP&L on Wednesday, tweeting that Ohio-based First Energy Corporation was making a significant contribution to the fight against hunger during the coronavirus outbreak, one day after it announced a $50,000 donation to food banks in JCP&Ls service area.

@firstenergycorp is making a significant contribution for food banks in the areas in which it serves on top of accelerating its giving to the United Ways in its service areas, the governor tweeted Wednesday afternoon.

.@firstenergycorp is making a significant contribution for food banks in the areas in which it serves, on top of accelerating its giving to the United Ways in its service areas.



A great reminder that there are many families who need help right now to put food on their tables. pic.twitter.com/PC0VAkuK3t  Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) April 1, 2020

On Tuesday, First Energy announced that its philanthropic arm, the First Energy Foundation, would contribute a total of $2 million to various causes amid the outbreak, including $500,000 to food banks in the coverage areas of its 10 utility subsidiaries.

That amount includes $50,000 divided among five food providers in the area served by JCP&L: Fulfill, formerly the Foodbank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties, in Neptune; the Interfaith Food Pantry in Morris Plains; Lunch Break in Red Bank; NORWESCAP Food Bank in Phillipsburg; and Project Self-Sufficiency in Sparta.

JCP&L  Jersey Central Power & Light  serves all of Sussex, Warren, Hunderdon and Monmouth counties, and parts of Passaic, Morris, Somerset, Middlesex, Mercer and Burlington.

The remaining $1.5 million of teh announced $2 million gift will be in matching grants to United Way social service organizations within First Energy coverage areas in five states.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

In addition to New Jersey, First Energy companies also operate in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Maryland.

In his tweet of recognition on Wednesday, Murphy tried to use FirstEnergys announcement to leverage still more philanthropic giving by other companies or individuals as the coronavirus and measures to contain it have put people out of work, out of reach, and out of food.

Murphy called First Energys gift, a great reminder that there are many families who need help right now to put food on their tables.

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Correction: This article originally reported an incorrect amount for the donation that First Energy Foundation pledged to make to food pantries in JCP&Ls service area. The correct amount is $50,000.

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Cheering the Indian engineers for building a low-cost ventilator, the US hopes that this invention succeeds and can eventually be mass produced as the critical medical equipment can save many lives from the deadly coronavirus that has killed over 5,000 people in America and 40,000 others globally.

The United States, which as per latest projections is expecting between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths due to the coronavirus, requires thousands of ventilators in the next few weeks. It has roped in 11 private sector companies, including car manufacturers and plane makers to build ventilators.

"We are cheering on these Indian engineers as they race to build a low-cost ventilator -- a potential game-changer for COVID19, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Alice G Wells tweeted.

With support from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology engineers and production advice from a US-based company, "we hope this invention succeeds & can eventually be produced at scale, Wells wrote.

According to the MIT, in the US alone, the COVID-19 pandemic may cause ventilator shortages of 300,000-700,000 units. An increase in conventional ventilator production is very likely to fall short and with significant associated costs.

Mass production of low-cost ventilators by a group of Indian engineers with the support from the MIT engineers and production advice from a US-based company, the US officials hope it would come as a big help to mankind which is racing against time in this fight against the deadly coronavirus.

Taranjit Singh Sandhu, India's Ambassador to the US, described this as an important step in the fight against COVID-19.

"Important steps in combating the COVID19," the ambassador said in a tweet. Young engineers, with help from doctors and entrepreneurs in India and the US, are developing a low cost ventilator that could save thousands of lives. Here's wishing them success!" Sandhu said.

While the average cost of current ventilators in the US is around USD 30,000, the MIT said that a rapidly assembled volunteer team of engineers, physicians, computer scientists, and others, centered at the MIT, is working to implement a safe, inexpensive alternative for emergency use, which could be built quickly around the world.

The team called MIT E-Vent (for emergency ventilator), was formed on March 12 in response to the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Its members were brought together by the exhortations of doctors, friends, and a sudden flood of mail referencing a project done a decade ago in the MIT class 2.75 (Medical Device Design).

Students and faculty working in consultation with the local physicians designed a simple ventilator device that could be built with about USD 100 worth of parts, although in the years since prices have gone up and the device would now cost USD 400 to USD 500 in materials, the MIT said.

The key to the simple, inexpensive ventilator alternative is a hand-operated plastic pouch called a bag-valve resuscitator or Ambu bag, which hospitals already have on hand in large quantities, it said.

The MIT said that these are designed to be operated by hand, by a medical professional or emergency technician, to provide breaths to a patient in situations like cardiac arrest.

As the deadly coronavirus crisis accelerates, a number of countries, including the US and India, are trying to procure ventilators needed for hospitals to deal with the demand caused by the virus outbreak.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
African and Middle Eastern airlines have lost $23 billion due to the spread of the virus, the association said

Egypts airline industry faces a potential loss in revenue of $1.6 billion and 9.5 million fewer passengers in 2020 due to the coronavirus crisis, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said.

The impact of the disease means the country is risking almost 205,560 jobs and around $2.4 billion in contribution to the Egyptian economy, the association said on Thursday.

"These are projections on the financial impact COVID-19 could have in 2020," IATA told Ahram Online by email.

Airlines around the world made unprecedented cuts to flights amid lockdowns and widening travel curbs to contain the spread of the virus.

IATA, the world's largest airline body, estimates that losses by airlines in Africa and the Middle East this year will reach $23 billion as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The figure is the "passenger revenue loss expected in 2020 vs. 2019 levels under the scenario where severe restrictions on travel are lifted after three months," IATA added to Ahram Online.

This represents a 32 percent drop in revenues for Africa and 39 percent for the Middle East this year, compared to 2019 figures, it said in a report published Thursday.

The association called for urgent action from governments to provide financial support to rescue the hard-hit industry.

To minimise the broad damage these losses would have across the African and Middle East economies, it is vital that governments step up their efforts to aid the industry, said IATA, which represents some 290 airlines around the globe.

It called for a mixture of direct financial support, loans, loan guarantees and support for the corporate bond market and tax relief.

Failure by governments to act now will make this crisis longer and more painful, said Mohamed Al-Bakri, IATAs Regional Vice President for Africa and the Middle East. Healthy airlines will be essential to jump-start the Middle East and global economies post-crisis, he added.

The vital air transport industry offers as many as 8.6 million jobs across Africa and the Middle East and $186 billion in GDP, according to Al-Bakri. Every job created in the aviation industry supports another 24 jobs in the wider economy, he added.

Earlier this week, Egypts private airline companies appealed to the civil aviation minister to intervene to help stop the losses of the companies.

Egypt extended a suspension of international flights until mid-April as part of drastic measures to curb the spread of the virus.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said last month that local aviation firms would suffer losses of EGP 2.25 billion (approximately $143 million) due to the latest measures.

Several governments in the region have offered financial and tax relief to airlines, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Jordan.

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Diversified natural resources firm Vedanta on Thursday said it has doubled its contribution to Rs 201 crore to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

"Vedanta has contributed Rs 101 crores to the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) Fund. It will fund up to Rs 200 crores in providing relief measures to communities at large across the country," the company said in a statement.

This contribution to PM-CARES Fund will complement Vedanta's earlier commitment of creating a Rs 100-crore corpus which is catering to three specific areas -- livelihood of the daily wage workers across the nation, preventive health care, support to its employees and contract partners across its plant locations, it said.

"It is our responsibility to make sure that no one dies of hunger. My appeal to the government is to provide migrant labourer at least Rs 8,000 every month for the next three months.

"Government has allowed transportation of essential products; it is also important that dhabas and food stalls on the highways remain open for the truck drivers. We are more than willing to support any initiative in this regard," Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal said.

"It is also important for SMEs and critical industries which contribute to sustain the nation's economy, to work with 25 per cent workforce, as they are essential services and are in the continuous process category and they adhere to all norms of safety and hygiene, as prescribed by the World Health Organisation," he added.

In a bid to minimise the impact on especially the poor and marginalised sections, Vedanta is providing meals for all.

"The company has pledged over 10 lakh meals across India to the daily wage earners," the statement said.

Over 50,000 stray animals will be fed daily for the entire month.

Vedanta has tied up with the Ministry of Textiles to import 23 machines from China for manufacturing of personal protective equipment (PPE) within the country.

"We have collaborated with district hospitals to provide them with markings, disinfectant sprays, medical equipment, and medicines," it said. Balcohospital, in New Raipur, Chhattisgarh has set up isolation wards; a 100-bed hospital has been commissioned in Korba, Chhattisgarh; and the Cairn Centre of Excellence in Jodhpur has been handed over to the administration to be converted to a quarantine centre, it added.

In the past one week, Vedanta has provided more than one lakh plus masks and over 15,500 soaps and sanitizers in rural communities, it said, adding that awareness and sensitisation campaigns on prevention of the deadly virus were conducted across 263 villages.

The company will provide round-the-clock "health care helpline access operated by Apollo Hospital for all employees during the COVID-19 pandemic".

Measures have been taken to ensure employee safety with all preventive health-care amenities in place at all locations in collaboration with respective district administrations, it added.

Vedanta employees will donate one day's salary which will be matched by the company to help provide immediate relief measures to local communities through the CM relief funds.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
On March 27, a 12-member team sent by China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) arrived in Algiers, the capital of Algeria, on a charter flight to help with local COVID-19 prevention and control, carrying with them medical supplies the Chinese side donated.

Li Lianhe, Chinese ambassador to Algeria, and Zhou Sheng, general manager of CSCEC Algeria, greeted the team at the airport, and attended the handover ceremony of the medical supplies. Li greeted the team and praised CSCEC for sending them here. He said he believes that the team will further improve CSCEC's capacity in preventing COVID-19 in Algeria, and hopes that the team can exchange experience with the Algerian side and give efforts to combatting the pandemic.

Lotfi Benbahmed, Algeria's vice health minister in charge of pharmaceutical industry, expressed his thanks to the Chinese side for providing the emergency supplies and timely assistance to Algeria at the ceremony.

Chen Jianguang, head of the team and general manager of CSCECs investment department, said the team represented CSCEC's care for its employees. With a long history and an outstanding performance, CSCEC Algeria has been a flagship enterprise representing CSCEC overseas, and its employees have made great contributions to CSCEC's overseas endeavors. The team will start to work as soon as possible, apply Chinese experience and practices in Algeria based on local conditions, and unite Chinese and Algerian employees against COVID-19.

"We have the confidence and ability to overcome the outbreak, maintain the physical and mental health of Chinese and Algerian employees, and ensure smooth production and operation," said Chen.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The 4th Annual Iowa Ideas Conference has been rescheduled from August to Oct. 16-17 to allow organizers to continue the event planning interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The postponement will also allow for the event to include discussion on how the virus has impacted the state.

"Given the necessary attention our business, legislative and non-profit leaders are focusing now on this evolving health care crisis, we've decided a postponement is wise," said Director Zack Kucharski. "This will also give us a chance to incorporate discussion on the impact the virus will have on Iowa Ideas for our state."

The Iowa Ideas conference allows Iowans to meet face-to-face with policy-makers, industry experts, educators, community leaders and others to address topics affecting Iowa. The 2019 conference welcomed Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg, and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack among other inspiring leaders.

"The Iowa Ideas Conference is growing into the state's premier idea exchange," said Kucharski. "We're tremendously proud of the program and are committed to keep it growing as an interactive and thought-provoking approach to statewide issues and challenges."

Now in its fourth year, Iowa Ideas has welcomed more than 1,900 participants since its launch in 2017, engaging them each year in conversations across more than 70 topical sessions and 9 tracks. ITC Midwest has again joined as Presenting Sponsor. The event will again be held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Cedar Rapids Convention Complex, Cedar Rapids.

Conference registration is open at www.iowaideas.com. The full conference is $75 or choose a full day of sessions Friday ($50) or half-day Saturday ($40).

Scholarships to attend the event are available for high school and college students. Apply by July 1 at www.iowaideas.com/involvement.

ABOUT IOWA IDEAS

The Iowa Ideas Conference is an annual nonpartisan, statewide learning experience that brings participants from across the state to Cedar Rapids to discuss key questions and big ideas that will shape the future of Iowa. The conference is designed to inspire and motivate change by challenging current perspectives, identifying barriers to success and encouraging innovative approaches to living, working and learning in Iowa. For more information, go to: www.IowaIdeas.com.

Media Contacts:

Tracy Pratt

319-350-2161

[email protected]

Zack Kucharski

319-594-9666

[email protected]

SOURCE The Gazette, Cedar Rapids
The National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology reported six new SARS-CoV-2 positive cases during the night of April 2, which raised the total number of COVID-19 patients in the country to 233 as of 6am on April 3.

Medical workers in protective gears at a mobile COVID-19 testing station

Among the six, case 231 is a staff member of Truong Sinh company which provides catering services for Bach Mai hospital in Hanoi. More than 20 positive cases have been recorded among the companys staff over the past few days. The 57-year-old woman is hospitalized at Ha Nam provincial hospital.

Five other cases, numbered 228, 229, 230, 232 and 233, are people returning from abroad.

Patients 228, 229 and 230 are receiving treatment in the northern province of Ninh Binh.

Patients 232 and 233 are hospitalized at the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, second branch in Hanoi.

By late April 2, a total of 75 COVID-19 patients were declared to have recovered. Most of the remaining cases are in a stable health condition. Three patients are in serious conditions, all at the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, second branch. Nearly 73,000 people are under quarantine or health monitoring, either at hospitals, designated facilities or at home.

On April 2 evening, the Health Ministry of Vietnam announced the detection of five new cases of COVID-19 as of 18:00 on April 2, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 227.

Patient numbered 223 was related to the cluster at Hanoi-based Bach Mai hospital, as she cared for a family member at the hospital since March 11.

Patient 224 was a Brazilian citizen who once lived together with patient 158.

Patients 225 and 226 returned from abroad.

Patient 227 was the son of patient 209.

Also on April 2, 12 COVID-19 patients were declared to have recovered, bringing the number of cured cases to 75.

Eleven more COVID-19 patients given all-clear on April 2

The patients who were declared to have recovered from COVID-19 on April 2

Eleven more patients were declared to have recovered from COVID-19 in the afternoon of April 2, according to the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, bringing the total number of patients given the all-clear in Vietnam to 75.

The 11 patients were treated at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases.

In the morning the same day, one patient (patient 73) who was treated at the medical centre of Thanh Mien district (Hai Duong northern province) was also said to be free from the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

A majority of COVID-19 patients are in a stable condition.

As of 6am on April 2, Vietnam had 222 confirmed COVID cases.

No Vietnamese in Saudi Arabia positive for SARS-CoV-2

No Vietnamese citizens in Saudi Arabia had contracted the acute respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), the Vietnamese Embassy in the Middle East nation said on April 2.

As of that date, Saudi Arabia had recorded 1,885 confirmed cases, including 21 fatalities. There are currently around 10,000 Vietnamese people living in the country, mainly labourers and housemaids.

Since the country announced its first case on March 2, the embassy has taken numerous measures to support Vietnamese citizens and advise them how to prevent the disease.

The office has regularly provided updated information on the pandemic on its website https://vnembassy-riyadh.mofa.gov.vn and social networks, while making recommendations about countermeasures related to hygiene and disinfection, and advising them to avoid crowds and non-essential travel.

The embassy also asked Vietnamese to strictly follow the host countrys curfew order from 3:00pm to 6:00am, reminding them of the fines to be imposed.

It has also set up a citizen protection hotline at 96 6567 290693 and the local health offices phone number 937, 997, as well as a list of 25 hospitals specialised in the COVID-19 designated by the Saudi Arabian government.

In addition, they have been informed of the host countrys policy allowing a free three-month extension for foreign workers with residence cards or exit visa or re-entry visa which expire between March 20 and June 30.

They were also updated on King Salmans March 30 decree which says all COVID-19 cases will be provided with free treatment at public and private hospitals nationwide./.
TEMPLE BAR INVESTMENT TRUST PLC

CHANGE OF AUDITOR

LEI: 213800O8EAP4SG5JD323

The Company announces that, following the conclusion of a formal audit tender process, the Board, on a recommendation from the Audit Committee, approved the proposed appointment of BDO LLP (BDO) as its auditor for the year ending 31 December 2020. The appointment of BDO LLP was approved by shareholders at the AGM of the Company held on 30 March 2020.

Pursuant to Section 520(2) of the Companies Act 2006, a letter containing the Statement of Circumstances from Ernst & Young LLP in respect of its cessation of office has today been sent to the Company's shareholders for information only.

Ninety One UK Limited

Secretary

2 April 2020
People across India and around the world have been shocked and outraged by the pictures of poor migrant workers caught up in the Indian government's ill-conceived and socially reckless 21-day nationwide coronavirus lockdown.

Without prior warning and, as soon became only too readily apparent, without any serious preparation, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on the evening of March 24 that starting at midnight the country's 1.37 billion peoplewith a few, unspecified exceptionswould be confined to their homes for the next three weeks.

Modi provided no explanation as to how people would procure food, and in India's villages and urban shanty towns, water, while they were under lockdown. Nor did he say how the more than 90 percent of India's workers who work, usually for no more than subsistence wages, in the unregulated informal sector would be able to procure food and other essentials if they went three weeks without work and without pay.

Only on March 26 did the government bother to announce a meagre relief package. Much of this consists of handouts of basic foodstuffs promised for weeks and even months hence, and tiny increases in the funds, or in the case of the National Rural Employment Guarantee wages, paid out by poverty alleviation programs. Underscoring the slapdash and fraudulent character of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government's relief measures, the government arbitrarily included expenditures by state governments to which they have not committed, so as to inflate the headline money amount. Even so, the 1.7 lakh crore rupee (US $22.5 billion) package amounts in per capita terms to little more 1,200 rupees or about US $16.

Left to fend for themselves by a callous and criminally negligent government and ruling elite, poor working people have had to resort to desperate measures.

This is exemplified by the plight of India's migrant workers, who toil in construction, garment manufacture, as day labourers and domestics, and whom Modi's lockdown has cast adrift.

Without work, money, and in many cases shelter, because they slept at their place of work or because they can no longer afford their squalid makeshift dwellings, millions of migrant workers, sometimes with children in tow, have fled Delhi, and the urban centres of Maharashtra, and Gujarat to return to their native villages. And, since all rail and bus transport has been suspended, they are walking homein some cases barefoot.

Tragically, in so doing, they risk bringing the coronavirus pandemic from India's urban centres to its villages, where the majority of the population still lives and where even rudimentary health facilities are nonexistent.

Having created this nightmare, India's far-right Hindu supremacist government and state apparatus have responded in their typically brutal and brutish fashion.

Fearing social unrest, as the movement of the migrant workers swelled into the largest migration since the 1947 communal Partition of the subcontinent into India and Pakistan, several state governments, including Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, announced they would organize for buses to ferry the workers home to their villages. But this measure was hastily organized, leading to chaotic scenes in which thousands, and in some cases tens of thousands, congregated en masse to scramble for bus seatsmaking further mockery of the Modi government's claim that its impromptu lockdown was the key to imposing the social distancing needed to break the chain of coronavirus infection.

Following this debacle, the central government's Home Ministry issued a directive Sunday that the migration must be stopped, with those already en route blocked from crossing state borders.

This soon led to clashes between workers and the police at several places. In one such incident, about 500 garment workers in Surat, Gujarat clashed with police, when the latter fired tear gas at them to prevent them embarking on the journey to their native villages.

Workers who have travelled in some cases hundreds of kilometresin order, as they have repeatedly told the press in anguished tones, to escape hunger and starvationhave been met with hostility from authorities.

Particularly horrific was the treatment meted out to a group of migrant workers when they arrived in Bareilly, a city of more than a million about 250 kilometres east of Delhi. As documented in a video that has gone viral, municipal workers and firemen clad in protective gear forced the migrants, some with their luggage tied to their backs, to squat. They then sprayed them with a sodium hypochlorite solution that is commonly used as a bleaching agent and that Bareilly uses as a disinfectant in cleaning its buses. The city administration, which ordered the action, has continued to defend it as a necessary preventive measure. However, Dr. Rajan Naringrekar, an insecticide officer for the Mumbai city government, exposed their fatuous claims that the disinfectant is benign. "It can cause itching or burning and is not approved to be used on humans," he told the Indian Express.

The Modi government's response to the coronavirus is in keeping with its role as an enforcer for Indian big business, utterly indifferent and hostile to the interests and aspirations of India's workers and toilers. During its nearly six years in office, it has presided over brutal austerity, while promoting privatization, deregulation, and the spread of contract labour, and integrating India ever more deeply into Washington's military-strategic offensive against China.

Until its sudden announcement of a nationwide lockdown at midnight March 24, the BJP government's efforts to contain the pandemic focused almost entirely on bans on foreign travellers. Despite a mounting outcry from medical specialists, it refused to organize systematic testing, and even now in the midst of a nationwide lockdown is stubbornly refusing to follow the World Health Organization's injunction to all governments to prioritize mass testing and contact tracking. Yesterday, Dr. R. Gangakhedkar of the Indian Council of Medical Research said that to date India has conducted COVID-19 tests on a grand total of 47,951 people.

Although the number of confirmed cases has surged in recent days, with 370 new cases and three deaths yesterday, Indian authorities continue to publicly claim there is no community transmission. However, in arguing before the Supreme Court this week to uphold its efforts to block the movement of migrant workers, a government spokesman claimed that it is possible that three in every ten migrant workers are infected!

Given India's dense population, mass poverty, and dilapidated urban and virtually nonexistent rural health infrastructure, the coronavirus is unquestionably a terrible menace. But the actions of the Modi government, including its calamitous lockdown, have multiplied the threat many times over.

Undoubtedly, an important factor in the Modi government's swing from cavalierly claiming India was an exemplar to the region and the world in fighting the virus to imposing the 21-day lockdown was the calculation that it could serve its communalist, authoritarian political agenda. In the months preceding the lockdown, the Modi government had been shaken by mass opposition to its anti-Muslim Citizenship Amendment Act and growing working-class resistance to austerity and poverty wages.

Significantly, yesterday the government approached the Supreme Court to ask it to sanction the censoring of reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a report published by the Committee to Protect Journalists, it has petitioned the court to issue a directive to news outlets to refrain from publishing any COVID-19-related news without clearance from the government.

The health and socioeconomic crisis now stalking India is not due just to the failure of the Modi government and the BJP, but of Indian capitalism and all its political representatives.

For decades, successive governments at both central and state levels have maintained health spending at little more than one percent of GDP. Thanks to the pro-investor policies pursued by all sections of the political establishment, from the BJP and the Congress Party to the Stalinist CPM and CPI, hundreds of millions of peoplethe rural toilers and much of the working classhave effectively no access to health care in normal times, let alone during a pandemic. Hundreds of millions of others, all but the most privileged sections of the middle class, the rich and India's newly minted class of 120-plus billionaires, make great financial sacrifices, including incurring massive debts, to purchase care from a patchwork private health care system, with the private sector accounting for 82 percent of all outpatient visits in India and 58 percent of inpatients.
Former Bachelor star Noni Janur is among the thousands of Australian travellers who have gone into self-quarantine after returning from overseas.

But the 29-year-old swimwear designer learned on Wednesday that, even with all the benefits of modern technology, isolating at home can be a frustrating experience.

She ordered McDonald's via UberEats but was left disappointed when the restaurant botched her order by delivering a bun-less chicken burger.

'My late night binge was ruined': Ex-Bachelor star Noni Janur ordered McDonald's via UberEats on Wednesday but was left disappointed when she was delivered a bun-less chicken burger

Noni, who flew from Bali to the Gold Coast last month, wanted a McChicken with a plain steamed bun instead of the standard burger bun topped with sesame seeds.

But when her sandwich arrived, it had no bun whatsoever.

'So I'm kind of confused,' she wrote on her Instagram Story. 'I just ordered a McChicken. No quarter pounder bun and add steam bun, and this is what I get.'

No buns? Noni wanted a McChicken with a plain steamed bun instead of the standard burger bun topped with sesame seeds. But when her sandwich arrived, it had no bun whatsoever

As she lifted the lid of the burger box, she revealed a single chicken patty topped with mayonnaise and shredded lettuce - but no bun.

'Like, am I missing something?' she added.

In a subsequent post, she told her followers: 'I'm pretty disappointed, if you couldn't tell. My late-night binge was ruined. I am genuinely confused what a steamed bun is now.'

Not McHappy! In a subsequent post, Noni wrote, 'I'm pretty disappointed, if you couldn't tell. My late-night binge was ruined. I am genuinely confused what a steamed bun is now'

The steamed bun is the bun used for the Filet-O-Fish burger.

It is light and more pillowy in texture and is not toasted like the standard sesame seed bun used for Quarter Pounders and other burgers.

It comes after Noni shared a TikTok video on March 19 demonstrating what it was like to get a nasal swab test for coronavirus.

Up in the air: Noni has been staying at home in self-isolation amid the coronavirus pandemic, after flying back to the Gold Coast from Bali last month

'Just don't hit my brain!' Noni said as a doctor slowly inserted a long Q-tip into her nostril. She closed her eyes and grimaced until the test was over.

The COVID-19 nasal swab allows healthcare workers to collect secretions from the uppermost part of the throat.

A healthcare worker will insert the Q-tip as far as it will go into a person's nose, twirl it around to collect a sample, then gently remove it and place it into a vial.

The swab is then sent to a lab for testing. Noni is yet to share her results and Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting she has coronavirus.

Test: It comes after Noni shared a TikTok video on March 19 demonstrating what it was like to get a nasal swab test for coronavirus. She is yet to share her results
By Express News Service

PUDUCHERRY: One more person has tested positive for COVID-19 in Puducherry taking the total number of affected persons to five in the Union Territory. Of these, one patient in Mahe region of the UT has been discharged while four active cases remain under treatment.

A middle-aged woman who tested positive on Thursday is a close relative of a COVID-19 infected person who attended the Tablighi Jamaat conference in Delhi. She is from Ariyankuppam and has been admitted to the isolation ward of the Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Research Institute (IGMCRI), director of health services Dr Mohan Kumar told the media.

CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW CORONAVIRUS LIVE UPDATES

Out of the seven samples sent for testing from Karaikal region, which includes four who participated in the Delhi conference, six samples have come out negative.

It may be noted that three persons who attended the Tablighi Jamaat conference tested positive for the virus on Tuesday. While two are from Ariyankuppam, one is from Thiruvandarkoil.

At present 22 suspected cases of COVID-19 have been admitted to the IGMCRI in addition to the four confirmed COVID-19 cases under treatment.

Besides, 2851 people remain home quarantined, which includes 1274 in Puducherry, 436 in Karaikal, 568 in Mahe and 584 in Yanam.

Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, who visited Ariyankuppam along with Health Minister Malladi Krishna Rao, said that 1000 families have been home quarantined and they are being provided with vegetables, milk and other essentials at their home by the administration.
Venezuela's opposition claimed Thursday that two members of leader Juan Guaido's team were arrested on the same day that he was due to appear before prosecutors investigating an alleged "attempted coup d'etat" and "magnicide." Demostenes Quijada and Maury Carrero were arrested at their homes on Thursday morning by military intelligence agents, Guaido's office said in a statement. "With this new assault by the dictatorship, there are now 10 members" of Guaido's team "that have been detained by security forces. Five of them in the last 72 hours," Guaido's office said on Twitter. Neither the government of President Nicolas Maduro, nor police or military authorities have confirmed the arrests. Around 30 officers "dressed in black, masked and with heavy weapons" took part in the operation to arrest Quijada, said Guaido's human rights representative, Humberto Prado, who accused the agents of "ransacking the home and arbitrarily confiscating" two family vehicles. A similar operation was conducted against Carrero, opposition lawmaker Delsa Solorzano said. The arrests happened on the same day Guaido had been called to appear before the public prosecutor. The subpoena, according to Attorney General Tarek William Saab, is based on an alleged seizure of firearms in Colombia that were due to be sent to Venezuela as part of a plot to assassinate Maduro and other high-ranking officials. Guaido was apparently implicated in the alleged plot by Cliver Alcala, a retired military leader who was close to late former president Hugo Chavez but fell out with his successor Maduro. Last week, Alcala turned himself over to Colombian authorities after he was one of more than a dozen present and former top Venezuelan officials -- including Maduro -- accused by the US of drug-trafficking. Washington had offered a reward for information leading to Alcala's capture, as well as those of the other figures the US accused. Alcala had been living in Colombia since falling out with Maduro. Guaido has ruled out appearing before Saab. "There's no point given he doesn't even have a position" of authority, Guaido told Miami-based online EVTV channel. Last year, Guaido declared himself acting president in a challenge to Maduro's authority and that of his regime. Guaido has been recognized as such by more than 50 countries, including Colombia, the US and much of the EU. Guaido doesn't recognize Maduro as president or other top officials such as Saab. The US, which on Wednesday launched an anti-drugs operation in the Caribbean, has warned Maduro's regime against arresting Guaido. The arrests bring the number of Guaido's team who have been detained by security forces to 10, the opposition tweeted
Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra on Thursday called upon the leaders of various religions to ensure people's cooperation in medical screening for protection from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Governor also called upon members who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhito cooperate with medical staff, administration and police, a statement from Rajbhawan said.

Mishra spoke to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot over the phone and discussed the situation prevailing in the state.

He also talked to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Aditiyanath.

During the conversation with Adityanath, a list of 400labourers from UP, who are in various districts in Rajasthan, was shared with the Governor and he directed the district collectors to ensure medical assistance and food supply to all such people.

Besides, the Governor also donated Rs 20 lakh to the recently constituted PM-CARES fund. The donation made from the governor's relief fund is for assisting relief work being carried out to combat the spread of coronavirus, the statement said.

The Governor has also called upon people to help those in need and those who have no food. People should come forward to feed animals and birds, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Kabul, April 2 : The Afghan government and the Taliban are set to swap the first batch of their prisoners on Thursday, a move expected to pave the way for the start of intra-Afghan talks between the two sides, according to sources.

This development come after two video meetings between the Afghan government and the Taliban, TOLO News reported citing the sources as saying on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, a three-member delegation from the Taliban arrived in Kabu to discuss the issue.

This was the first time that the Taliban had been invited to Kabul to directly meet Afghan government officials since the 2001 US invasion.

The sources said that upto 100 Taliban prisoners will be swapped with 20 government forces.

Thursday's announcement comes after after the Afghan government announced the formation of a 21-member peace negotiating team intended to undertake direct talks with the Taliban once the prisoners were released.

The prisoner release process was originally slated to be held before March 10 as per the US-Taliban agreement signed in Doha on February 29, Efe news reported.

But it was delayed due to differences over procedures to be followed and pending security guarantees by the insurgents that these persons won't return to battlefields after being released from jail.

As per the US-Taliban deal, 5,000 insurgents and 1,000 government prisoners are set to be released in the first phase.

The insurgents and the government have remained deadlocked over the swapping of prisoners, which was a part of the US-Taliban accord and considered crucial for the commencement of the intra-Afghan talks.

The US on February 29 reached an agreement with the Taliban for a roadmap to pull out American troops from the war-ravaged country.

The plan is set to start with the withdrawal of 8,600 soldiers within 135 days from the date of the signing of the deal.

Currently, some 14,000 US troops remain deployed in the country.
Many street vendors in Vietnam, usually migrant workers, are crippled by loss of income and debts due to Covid-19. Photo by VnExpress/Hanh Huong.

Street vendor Le Thi Hong could not sleep as thoughts over numerous expenses bombarded her.

Hong woke her child at 4 a.m. to get ready for a new day. The 38-year-old street vendor and her four-year-old daughter lives in a 12-square-meter rented room in Dong Nai Province near HCMC.

The girl, still hungry for more sleep, shared a bowl of instant noodles with her mom.

After the meager breakfast, Hong brought her daughter to an acquaintance who takes care of the child for VND60,000 ($2.5) a day before she hit the street in search of customers. She carried a basket of different tiny things like Q-tips, hair ties and key chains.

Before the Lunar New Year festival, Sunday felt like payday to street vendors like Hong.

"On Sundays, profits were around VND500,000 ($21), enough to feed me and my daughter and support my husband and our two kids back home," said Hong, one of many migrant workers who left their families in northern or central Vietnam for a job in the middle of industrial and commercial centers in the south.

The first two Covid-19 cases in Vietnam, two Chinese nationals, were reported at the start of the Lunar New Year holiday, on January 23.

In the wake of the Covid-19 spread, restaurants are closed, factory workers are out of work, people receive decreased salaries and shop less. Street vendors like Hong receive nothing but no's when trying to make a sale.

Having no luck on busy streets, Hong entered small alleys to knock on peoples doors, but to no avail.

"Give me some Q-tips you," a man told Hong before grabbing a bag from her basket and walking away.

"You forgot to pay," Hong called after him, but the man paid no heed.

It was near noon and her shirt was drenched in sweat. Hong had only VND80,000 ($3.4) in her pocket, not enough for the day's expenses. She took out a handkerchief and placed it on the back of her neck to alleviate the pressure of the string holding the basket she carried, and moved on to another alley.

"I dont have any rice field, fishing doesnt earn much, I have three kids so I had to migrate to make a living. Now because of the disease, people shoo me away like a plague when they see me. If I go back to my hometown I wont know what to do," Hong said.

She earns about VND100,000 ($4.2) a day, only a third of what she used to. Hong still buys her daughter milk and pays for her daycare. Their meal consisting of 100 gram of meat, an egg and vegetables costs VND40,000. Her daughter usually gets the meat and egg, while Hong eats dried fish.

A lot of neighbors had left Dong Nai and gone back to their hometown, but Hong remained reluctant until her husband pleaded with her.

"You stay but cant sell anything. We are together, hungry or full," he told her on the phone as she wept.

She packed light and told her landlord she would return after the outbreak is contained. The mother and daughter got on a bus heading to central Vietnam.

She plans to buy and rear five chickens and plant vegetables to feed the family.

"I wish the sea is calm so I could catch fish to eat," she thought to herself on the ride home.

While Hong headed home uncertain about her family's future, some of her street colleagues in HCMC now depend on donations to stay out of hunger.

In their rented 10-square-meter room in Thanh Loc Ward, District 12, HCMC, Chau Ngoc Nu, 83, and her daughter Le Thi Kim Thanh, 48, both scrap collectors, waited gifts from a humanitarian agency.

Scrap collectors Chau Ngoc Nu, 83 (L) and her daughter Le Thi Kim Thanh, 48, have lost their incomes since the Covid-19 outbreak hit Vietnam. Photo by VnExpress/Phan Diep.

Knowing they would receive five packs of instant noodles, five masks, and a bottle of soy sauce, Nu said with a sigh: "I have been eating noodles for days. We need more rice."

Nu and her daughter Thanh collect scrap for a living. Thanhs child is a water delivery man, earning VND4.5 million ($191) a month. Nu and Thanh together earned less than a million dong ($43) this month. Shes afraid her grandson would lose his job now all business activities have been suspended.

Unable to sleep, Nu got up at 1 a.m. to look for scrap. She went through garbage bags in front of peoples homes to look for cans or anything she could sell.

"I have to get up early, otherwise garbage trucks will collect everything at 5 a.m.," she explained.

Nu only ate half an instant noodle pack for breakfast that morning, the other half shelved for later. Her 22-year-old grandson bought a loaf of bread for breakfast and cut it in half to share with her.

"You are young you eat, Im old I dont need to eat," she said, pushing the bread towards him.

On certain days when she managed to make more money than usual from the scrap she collected, Nu rewarded herself with a bowl of hu tiu (rice noodle soup with porks) and a cup of iced coffee.

Since restaurants were closed because of the Covid-19 epidemic, there are no more cans and plastic bottles for her to pick up. She has since forgot the taste of store-bought sticky rice and porridge. She even cannot afford to add some vegetables to her home-made bowl of instant noodle.

Nu suffers from a heart condition and ischemia. She has to take six supplements per day. To save money, she took three a day, then two.

Now, she has stopped taking supplements for a week. As her neighbors rushed to the market to stock essentials, Nu stayed back and checked her kitchen, which still held some rice, salt and fish sauce.

"This is enough, when we are hungry we can make porridge out of the rice," she said.

"If we run out of rice, we eat instant noodles."

Nu said she has to spare some money for her medicine, as if she falls sick and has to go to hospital, it would be worse.

Nus daughter, Thanh suffers from peptic ulcers, but she couldnt afford medicine due to the loss of income. Neither Nu or Thanh have health insurance. The entire households expenses now rest on the shoulders of the water delivery son.

The epidemic has also crippled lottery ticket sellers, especially after the government ordered to shut down the business for 15 days from April 1.

Nguyen Thi Thu Thao, who lives and works in Binh Duong Province, another HCMC neighbor, was startled when she heard the news.

Lottery ticket vendors in Vietnam are often senior citizens and those with disabilities and little support. Photo by VnExpress/Phan Diep.

The 43-year-old single mother makes ends meet by selling lottery tickets. She doesnt keep up to date with the daily developments of confirmed Covid-19 cases, but suffers the blow as it gets harder to make money.

She managed to sell a dozen tickets to some frequent customers on Monday. Strangers only waved her away. Vendors get to keep VND1,000 from each VND10,000 lottery ticket they sell.

"I can go around and try to sell until afternoon, but if I stop, my child and I will starve to death. When I heard the news, my head was in a muddle, I couldnt remember where I was going," Thao said.

She has been selling lottery tickets to feed her child and pay school fees for over 10 years.

After work on Monday, she came to her landlord and asked for a discount on the rent, but the request was mercilessly rejected.

"I only feel sad and sorry for myself."

The next morning, Thao joined the crowd to stock food at the market, buying a few potatoes, two pumpkins, a cabbage, and a little dried shrimp.

As she was leaving the market, Thao heard a familiar voice: "Hey, let me give you a gift voucher and you can go to the park tomorrow to claim it. I couldnt find you anywhere before."

It was Doan Thi Duong, owner of the lottery store where Thao gets tickets to sell. The 46-year-old woman felt sorry for the ticket vendors when she had to inform them of the bad news.

"Some looked astonished, others cried. I feel sorry for them so I decided to give them some gift vouchers. I was looking for them the entire morning," Duong said.

Hundreds of people get tickets from Duongs store to sell. Most are old people, those with disabilities or homeless.

On Tuesday morning, Thao was one of the 200 lottery ticket vendors in Thu Dau Mot that received the VND500,000 ($21) gift voucher and a box of instant noodles sponsored by Duong.

"When I have money tomorrow I will also buy some meat and five kilos of rice. The city loudspeakers said we have to eat well to fight the virus," Thao said.
New Delhi, April 2 : Food delivery platform Swiggy on Thursday said it has partnered with various commercial kitchens, NGOs and state governments to provide daily meals to thousands of underprivileged, daily wagers and stranded migrant labourers during the 21-day lockdown period.

Having served over 2,50,000 meals so far, Swiggy said it is in the process of crowdsourcing funds from corporates and individuals in order to scale the initiative to other parts of the country.

The goal is to serve 5,00,000 meals daily, said the food delivery platform.

Swiggy launched the 'Hope, Not Hunger' initiative launched last week to support the Delhi government's programme to feed the needy.

It helped organise the preparation and distribution of nutritious meals twice a day across relief camps in Delhi with the support of partners such as Compass Kitchens, Lite Bite Foods and SmartQ.

The relief effort was quickly scaled to Mumbai with the help of NGOs Pratham, HelpAge India and Yuva, and Elior India acting as the food supply partner.

Since then, Swiggy has taken this initiative to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Gurugram, Chennai and Kolkata, supplying over 75,000 meals daily.

Each meal served for lunch and dinner includes adequate portions of rice, dal and vegetables to ensure the nutritional needs of the individual are met.

"Considering the nature of our business, we are in a unique place to contribute by making something as essential as food available to the needy while providing business opportunities for our restaurant and kitchen partners, so that we can together make it through to the other end of this crisis," Sriharsha Majety, CEO, Swiggy, said in a statement.

Thousands of Swiggy customers have already contributed to the aHope, Not Hunger' initiative through the Swiggy app.A Swiggy has also set up a platform on Milaap for individual donations.
Want to help families of martyred jawans? Log on to Bharat ke Veer

PIB set ups COVID-19 fact check unit

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 02: The Press Information Bureau set up a portal for fact-checking issues related with the novel coronavirus pandemic, and it will receive messages by email and send its response in quick time.

The PIB will also release a daily bulletin at 8 pm everyday to inform regarding Centre's decisions and developments and progress on the deadly COVID 19.

The first bulletin was released on Wednesday at 6.30 pm, the PIB said in statement.

The PIB's bulletin is in line with the Supreme Court directive on Tuesday that to check fake news, a daily bulletin system with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic be made active within 24 hours by the government through all media avenues, including social media and forums, to clear people's doubts.

Dharavi man who contracted coronavirus dies

Press Information Bureau has set up a portal - COVID 19 Fact Check Unit -- which will receive messages by email and send its response in quick time, the statement said.

"The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has set up a technical group consisting of professionals from AIIMS, et al, to clarify any doubts in the minds of the general public on any technical aspect of COVID 19," it said

The ministry has also issued detailed guidelines to deal with psychological issues among migrants, it said.

The cabinet secretary on Wednesday wrote to all the state governments, informing them of the constitution of 11 empowered groups under the Disaster Management Act with clear-cut mandate to decide on various aspects in the management of COVID-19, the statement said.

#Stayathome and send us your selfie

A request has been made for development of similar mechanism at the state-level too.

State governments have also been requested to engage volunteers to supervise the welfare activities of the migrants, the PIB said.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 8:44 [IST]
It's hard to know where to begin in such a time. Life has been upended. What was is no longer, and human services organizations have had to rethink the way they provide services. It's been hectic, with no way to anticipate what life might look like even a week from now.

The purpose of the MDN Community Connections segment is to speak to Midlanders about what is happening at various non-profits and other human service organizations. At West Midland Family Center, the past week has been a flurry of due diligence to preserve critical services while remaining vigilant to the Governor's orders.

WMFC has landed on maintaining vital services. Childcare for children of essential personnel across the community and food distribution for pre-registered patrons (to maximize social distancing.) Due diligence has led to the temporary closure of remaining WMFC programs. Essential personnel remain on site, and it is to these folks and the essential workers across our community, the state, and nation that I dedicate further thoughts.

These are the essential workers, without whom the rest of us would be lost. Thousands of people, whose work cannot be done from the safety of their own home, now risk exposure to COVID-19, in addition to the daily hazards of their job. Doctors, nurses and other health professionals attend to health care needs under dire circumstances. Police officers, firefighters and EMT's protect our safety, while others keep us fed, stock shelves, care for our children and our elderly parents. We are indebted to each of them and to so many others on the frontlines of this epidemic. These are the first responders in this crisis and we are grateful for their sacrifice.

Those of us who have relocated from workplace to shelter-in-place can do our part from the sidelines. Simply staying home is valuable in curtailing the virus.

Buying take-out or gift certificates to support local restaurants, donating to sources seeking to sustain individuals in need or seeking supplies for health care workers, blood donations are increasingly called for. And, another thought; the next time you are at the store, leave enough for someone else!

In the midst of this crisis, there remains the very real and important necessity of filing the 2020 Census. While it may seem an insignificant detail, as Michiganders move forward in a post COVID-19 world, it is more important than ever that each and every one of us are counted in the census. For every person not counted in the 2020 Census, Midland County could lose up to $1,466 per person for a total of up to $122 million annually.

At a time when our community will be recovering from pandemic upheaval, a population undercount means millions of dollars lost in federal funding, resulting in less money for hospitals, schools, housing, road repair and vital programs for our community. It's a big way to do your part while honoring social distancing. Go to www.2020census.gov It only takes a moment! Stay Home, Stay Safe.

Susan Love, new initiatives director at the West Midland Family Center, authored this column as part of the Daily News' Community Connections initiative.
Iran shot back at US President Donald Trump after the latter hinted at a possible attack on American troops, stationed in Iraq, by Tehran or its proxies. Iranian Finance Minister Javad Zarif took to Twitter asking Trump not to be misled by usual warmongers and said that Iran has friends since no country can have millions of proxies. Zarif accused the United States of surreptitiously lying, cheating and assassinating and said that Iran acts only in self-defence.

Dont be mislead by usual warmongers, AGAIN, @realDonaldTrump:



Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of"proxies"



Unlike the USwhich surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinatesIran only acts in self-defense. Openly



Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do  Javad Zarif (@JZarif) April 2, 2020

Earlier, Trump had said that his administration had received intelligence inputs that Iran is planning to strike US interests in Iraq. US troops and other Coalition forces stationed at military bases in Iraq are being continuously being targeted by armed militia allegedly backed by Iran.

Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 1, 2020

Read: Iran's President Rouhani: US Missed 'historic Opportunity' To Lift Sanctions

'Missed historic opportunity'

The heightened tension between the US and Iran has led to crippling economic sanctions on Tehran by Washington. Amid the ongoing coronavirus crisis, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the United States missed a historic opportunity to lift the economic sanctions and apologise for their wrongdoing. During a televised cabinet meeting on April 1, Rouhani said that the Americans did not learn a lesson even in these harsh global conditions.

Read: Iran Warns Of Months Of Crisis As Virus Deaths Reach 3,160

Calling the sanctions cruel and illegal, Rouhani highlighted that the coronavirus crisis is not confined to one region and even one country lagging behind in the fight would impact the whole world. His comments came after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hinted that Washington might consider easing sanctions on Iran.

Read: US In Coronavirus Tailspin, Under-fire Trump Warns Iran Against Attacking Troops In Iraq

Read: 'Iran Only Acts In Self-defence', Says Javad Zarif After Trump's Warning
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Linkedin (Agence France-Presse)  Thu, April 2, 2020 17:03 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f45954 2 Art & Culture ballet,Bolshoi,coronavirus,COVID-19,performing-arts Free

Opera, theater and ballet are being offered for free.

Obviously there is no question of leaving home to see these shows, but there is no end of enjoyment to be derived from watching the world's elite performing arts companies from the comfort of your living room. Here is what is on the program.

The Bolshoi Ballet

For the first time ever in the history of the venerable Russian theater, the Bolshoi Ballet is streaming a number of its past shows. Internet users living under lockdown all over the globe will have until April 10 to watch six ballets on YouTube.

Launched with "Swan Lake" on March 27, the series of shows will run until April 10, when it will end with the ultra-famous "Nutcracker."

The Paris Opera

The French institution is also looking to enliven life under quarantine for audiences around the world with the provision of major classics online.

Among the available choices are "Giselle," "Les Indes Galantes" and Rudolf Nureyev's "Swan Lake," as well as a number of Tschaikovsky symphonies.

The Metropolitan Opera in New York

Rallying to the cause in the United States, the internationally acclaimed Metropolitan Opera has collectively rolled up its sleeves to brighten your horizons. Every day, the New York company is streaming shows from 7:30 PM New York time, which remain online for a period of 23 hours.

The venerable institution has announced a rich program of 14 years of works featuring some of the world's major stars.

Shakespeare's Globe in England

With the theater closed, the Globe is allowing access to six of past productions for free starting April 6 via its on-demand service. The plays available for free will rotate and include "Hamlet," "Romeo and Juliet," and "The Winter's Tale."
The death toll from the new coronavirus in Illinois continues to swell, with state officials on Thursday announcing 16 more deaths and 715 additional known cases. There have now been 157 deaths related to COVID-19 statewide and 7,695 known cases.

Earlier in the day, officials announced a Chicago police officer stricken with COVID-19 had died, making him the first cop in the department to lose their life to the disease.

Meanwhile, health experts say a wave of additional cases is likely in the coming weeks or months, but exactly when that wave will hit  and how big it will be  remains a matter of debate. Here are some projections.

On Thursday morning, it was announced that more than 178,000 Illinois residents applied for unemployment insurance benefits last week. The surge in jobless claims comes as many struggle to file for benefits in Illinois, as the states computer systems have been overwhelmed.

Nationally, a record-breaking almost 6.65 million people applied for unemployment benefits for the week ending March 28, according to Thursdays report from the Labor Department. That figure for last week is on top of 3.3 million claims reported for the previous week.

Here are the latest updates Thursday on the new coronavirus in the Chicago area and Illinois:

8 p.m. Lawsuit: Public safety officer forced to stop working after wearing mask during hospital shift

A hospital public safety officer worried he would endanger his 65-year-old mother and who went against workplace policy by wearing a protective facemask filed a lawsuit Thursday, alleging he was forced to stop working.

On March 10, the day after Marvell Moody wore the mask at Advocate South Suburban Hospital in Hazel Crest, his supervisor chastised him, but Moody pushed back, telling them he believed the policy was unsafe, according to a statement from law firm, Blake Horwitz.

Moody told staffers that he is a caregiver for his mom, who is 65, and who has had two lung surgeries last year. He feared that he would contract COVID-19 and spread it to his mother, whos health conditions make her a high-risk individual, the statement said.

The hospital constructively discharged Moody by not allowing him to wear it, the firm said.

Late last month, Blake Horwitz handled a similar suit, for a nurse named Lauri Mazurkiewicz, who sued Northwestern Memorial Hospital late last month, saying she was fired after warning fellow employees the masks provided by the hospital would not properly protect them against the coronavirus.  Rosemary Sobol

7:43 p.m.: Pritzker enlists Illinois celebrities to encourage residents to stay home

Saying hes nearly exhausted every avenue available to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced a celebrity-filled promotional campaign to encourage Illinois residents to abide by his order to continue hunkering down at home throughout April.

The launch of All in Illinois  which features videos from notable people with Illinois connections such as actor and comedian Jane Lynch and three-time Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee  came on the same day Pritzker announced the recently closed Westlake Hospital in west suburban Melrose Park will reopen as a facility dedicated to COVID-19 patients. Read more here. Dan Petrella

7:19 p.m.: American Airlines expands flight cuts into summer amid record low demand

American Airlines is canceling flights in the peak summer travel season amid restrictions on travel and record low demand from passengers during the coronavirus pandemic, the airline said Thursday.

American is reducing capacity on international flights by more than 60% compared with last summer, after slashing capacity by 80% to 90% in April and May. Its also pushing back new routes expected to launch this summer to 2021, including one connecting Chicago and Krakow, Poland, expected to begin flying in May. Read more here. Lauren Zumbach

7:15 p.m.: U. of I. financial hit from coronavirus significant and growing

Illinois largest public university expects it will cost $37 million to provide room and board refunds to students who left campus early because of the coronavirus outbreak  and additional reimbursements might be on the way.

While the University of Illinois System also projects that canceled events and postponed medical treatments could cost the school $17 million and $15 million, respectively, the refunds for students represent the single largest expense, according to Avijit Ghosh, chief financial officer and comptroller.

In general, the (financial) impact is broad, significant and ongoing, Ghosh said Thursday during a virtual meeting with the board of trustees executive committee. We have incurred a significant amount of ... expenses as we have converted academic programs to online education and remote teaching and adapted everybody to remote work.

The outlook, which Ghosh stressed should only serve as an initial estimate, offers the first glimpse of the pandemics financial toll on higher education in Illinois. One area school, MacMurray College in Jacksonville, has already announced it will close for good, in part because of economic strain from the crisis. Read more here. Elyssa Cherney

7:13 p.m.: Lollapalooza is on schedule for now, Lightfoot says

The widespread coronavirus pandemic has upended most plans for the foreseeable future  with a statewide stay-at-home order in place through the end of April, bars and restaurants closed to dine-in patrons and a growing number of events either canceled or delayed.

But officials still havent pulled the plug on the summer mega-concert Lollapalooza, which is still months off on the horizon.

Lollapalooza is on schedule, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said. Its our hope and expectation that it will go forward, but we will deal with the circumstances when we are much closer to that time. Read more here. Chicago Tribune staff

6:47 p.m.: 15 Will County heath workers test positive

Will County Health Department closed its doors Monday after a staffer tested positive for the coronavirus; four days later a total of 15 employees had tested positive. Read more here.

6:11 p.m.: DuPage County reports 45 new known coronavirus cases, including six at long-term care facilities

Forty-five new known coronavirus cases were reported in DuPage County Thursday, bringing the total to 438, including six new cases at long-term care facilities.

No new deaths were reported in DuPage, where 13 people with the virus have died. No more cases were recorded at Chateau Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Willowbrook, where an outbreak of 49 cases has resulted in six deaths.

However, the new cases involved three additional long-term care facilities, making a total of 16 cases at six such facilities other than Chateau, according to the DuPage County Health Department.

The number of known cases at long-term care facilities in DuPage has steadily increased this week as has the number of facilities at which new known cases have been reported. Robert McCoppin

6:11 p.m.: City IDs Chicago parking enforcement officer who died from coronavirus

The Lightfoot administration on Thursday identified the first city employee who died from the coronavirus, saying he was a parking enforcement aide who had been with the city for 15 years.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Revall Burkes death from the virus on Wednesday, but did not name him or provide any personal details.

On Thursday, city Comptroller Reshna Soni described Burke as a dedicated public servant who had a deep knowledge of the municipal code.

On behalf of the Department of Finance team, I want to express our deepest condolences to the entire Burke family and to all of his loved ones, Soni said in a statement.

Lightfoot said on Wednesday that Burkes death was a reminder that those stricken by the virus are not mere statistics.

They are people whose lives have been forever changed and a network of people connected by crisis who need us to do everything that we can every day to save lives, the mayor said.

The information about Burke came hours after Lightfoot announced Thursday that a Chicago police officer, 50-year-old Marco DiFranco, was the first member of that department to die from the virus. Read more here. John Byrne

5:53 p.m.: City Colleges workers say they were told a colleague had bronchitis. Then they learned she later died of COVID-19.

On a recent Zoom conference call, workers from the business office at Chicagos Wilbur Wright College noticed one of their colleagues was absent.

When they asked where she was, administrators replied that she had been hospitalized with bronchitis, according to unions for the colleges faculty and staff. Even before City Colleges employees were required to work remotely to slow the spread of COVID-19, the co-worker, a longtime bursar at the campus in Dunning, had come down with a cough and was asked to go home, they said.

Thursday, the unions had tough questions for City Colleges leaders after learning their 71-year-old colleague died Monday of complications from coronavirus and chastised administrators for failing to alert workers about the diagnosis. Read more here. Elyssa Cherney

5:47 p.m.: Facing a hit that could be worse than Great Recession, Pritzker and lawmakers look to craft a post-pandemic budget

With large portions of the Illinois economy grinding to a halt as a result of Gov. J.B. Pritzkers stay-at-home order, the chronically fiscally challenged state has yet to come up with a plan for filling the holes the ongoing public health crisis is certain to blow in this years budget.

Pritzker said this week that his administration is trying to estimate how much revenue will be lost and figure out when things might rebound. But making those projections is no easy task as the shape of the pandemic shifts from day to day.

What is for sure is that the budget Pritzker proposed in February for the year beginning July 1 will have to be wholly rewritten. Read more here. Dan Petrella and Jamie Munks

5:47 p.m.: Are your household cleaning products working to fight coronavirus? The answer depends on how you use them.

With Americans more focused than ever on keeping their homes safe amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a key to success is knowing the difference between cleaning and disinfecting.

The words arent synonymous, rather, theyre more akin to two steps in one process, such as sweeping your floor before mopping it, explained Justin Douglas, CEO of Corvus Janitorial Systems.

Thats how I explain it when we train new employees," Douglas said. "Or, I use the example of picking up the clothes off the floor of your kids room before you can do anything else. Cleaning and disinfecting arent interchangeable words.

Its easy to think theres no wrong way to clean. And while it doesnt take a microbiologist to do it correctly, a basic understanding of something referred to as dwell time, also sometimes called contact time or kill time, is necessary, Douglas and other experts say. Read more here. Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas

5:25 p.m. (update): Records shattered as unemployment claims in Illinois top 178,000 and national applications hit 6.6 million

More than 178,000 Illinois residents applied for unemployment insurance benefits last week, as the number of workers who have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic continues to swell.

The surge in jobless claims in Illinois  up about 50% from the 114,000 reported for the week ended March 21  comes as many struggle to file for benefits. With Illinois unemployment offices closed due to the pandemic, the states computer systems have been overwhelmed, and many applicants have had trouble getting through.

The state said last week that additional steps were being taken to handle the unprecedented volume" of applications, with new hardware infrastructure on the website, and increased call center capacity and staff.

But people who are newly unemployed say they continue to be frustrated by online glitches and trouble getting through by phone. The system went down for more than an hour on Thursday morning, and Gov. J. B. Pritzker acknowledged there werent enough people to handle all the claims. Read more here. Mary Wisniewski

4:39 p.m.: Some may not get their coronavirus stimulus checks until August or later, according to a new memo

The federal government expects to begin making payments to millions of Americans under the new stimulus law in mid-April, but some people without direct deposit information may not get checks until mid-August or later, according to a memo obtained Thursday by The Associated Press. Read more here.

4:15 p.m.: Despite economic havoc from coronavirus, state public pension officials say funds in good shape

Although markets have tumbled since the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic, the states pension systems are reassuring retirees that payments will be processed as usual.

Weve prepared for an eventuality like this, said Dave Urbanek, a spokesperson for the Teachers Retirement System. Our top priority is to protect assets, so weve been in what we call a defensive posture for the last several years.

Due to TRS perennially low-funded status, only 36% of its portfolio has been kept in public equities, which Urbanek said is low for a portfolio of its size. Representatives from the Illinois State Retirement Systems and State Universities Retirement System said their systems also maintained lower-risk investment profiles prior to the public health crisis.

We tend to out-perform in down or choppy markets, compared to our peers, said Tim Blair, the executive director of the State Retirement Systems, which oversees pensions to former state employees, judges, and legislators. And during good timeswe dont realize as much on the upside.

Blair said it is too early to know how much of a financial loss the states systems will incur as a result of COVID-19 -- or how the pandemic may affect future funding from the state.

We havent even really had time to get too far into that at this point, Blair said. Given the portfolios over $20 billion in assets going into the pandemic, he said theres absolutely no danger whatsoever of missed benefit payments. Antonia Ayres-Brown

4:12 p.m.: Indiana closes schools for rest of year

COVID-19 dealt a knockout blow to Hoosier schools Thursday as state leaders announced schools will remain closed for the 2019-2020 school year, leaving graduation ceremonies and other cherished events in jeopardy.

Gov. Eric J. Holcomb announced the initial school closure March 19. It was extended twice, then finalized with Thursdays announcement in Indianapolis.

The Indiana High School Athletic Association also canceled the spring sports season because of the novel coronavirus shortly after Holcombs briefing.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jennifer McCormick, who appeared with Holcomb, said schools can determine how theyll handle graduation ceremonies.

Holcomb signed an executive order Thursday requiring all K-12 schools to provide instruction through remote learning for the remainder of the school year. Read more here. Carole Carlson

3:38 p.m.: A coronavirus case curtails some operations at domestic violence court, even as hotline calls increase

Chicago police and domestic violence advocates say they were caught off guard this week when Cook County States Attorney Kim Foxx announced she was removing prosecutors from the domestic violence courthouse for 14 days after an employee tested positive for the coronavirus.

Except in the most violent cases, prosecutors have stopped accepting criminal complaints from people seeking the arrest of their alleged abusers. Instead, they are being directed to petition in civil court for emergency orders of protection, then return in two weeks for a review by prosecutors.

The cutbacks come as hotline calls are ticking up amid the stay-at-home order and the stresses caused by the coronavirus outbreak. Read more here. David Jackson

3:27 p.m.: Uber halts construction in The Old Post Office

Uber has halted construction on its massive space at The Old Post Office, marking Chicagos first big office build-out to be put on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The San Francisco-based company announced last year that it signed a 10-year lease for 463,000 square feet in the long-vacant Old Post Office. Uber plans to consolidate its Chicago offices and hire 2,000 employees in the city over three years. Originally, it planned to move in this fall.

As a consequence of the current COVID-19 crisis, we are going to temporarily pause construction in Chicago," spokeswoman Alix Anfang said in a statement. While we dont expect to move until 2021, we dont anticipate any changes to our strategy or expectations regarding growth in Chicago.

It was Ubers decision to pause construction, Anfang said. Read more here. Ally Marotti and Ryan Ori

2:55 p.m.: DePaul cancels tuition hikes planned for 2020-2021 school year

DePaul University will no longer increase tuition for the 2020-2021 school year, citing the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The school had planned to increase tuition for new undergraduates and institute smaller increases for continuing and graduate students. The board of trustees met virtually Wednesday and unanimously voted to keep tuition at its current rate.

We understand that for some families, even a modest tuition increase  especially amidst the uncertainty caused by this pandemic  could mean a disruption to their students progress toward earning a DePaul degree, university president A. Gabriel Esteban said in a statement Thursday.

About 80% of DePaul students receive some form of financial aid, according to a university statement. DePaul said it plans to increase the financial aid pool nearly 5.1% over the previous years budget to $266.4 million for the 2020-2021 school year.

2:54 p.m.: No Modelo? No Dos XX? No problem  yet  as Mexican beer production halted during coronavirus

Toilet paper stockpile? Check. Bottled water? Check.

Mexican beer? Not so fast.

Despite reports Thursday that the Mexican beer industry is shutting down for at least a month to help stem the spread of COVID-19, experts say its not quite time to add Modelo Especial and Dos XX to your list of panicked pandemic purchases. Read more here. Josh Noel

2:37 p.m.: 16 more deaths and 715 additional known cases

The death toll from the new coronavirus in Illinois continues to swell, with state officials on Thursday announced 16 more deaths and 715 additional known cases.

There have now been 157 deaths related to COVID-19 statewide and 7,695 known cases in 61 of Illinois 102 counties since the outbreak began in late January.

Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said the state is starting to see clusters of COVID-19 cases in essential businesses that are allowed to remain open during Pritzkers stay-at-home order.

Although these businesses need to continue operating, they must take steps to protect both the employees and the customers, Ezike said, including monitoring employees temperatures daily. Dan Petrella

2:35 p.m.: Westlake Hospital in Melrose Park will be opened as alternative health care site to combat new coronavirus

Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Thursday that the recently closed Westlake Hospital in Melrose Park will be opened as an alternative health care site to combat the new coronavirus.

The hospital joins previously announced facilities at McCormick Place and the former Advocate Sherman Hospital in Elgin and MetroSouth Medical Center in Blue Island.

Westlake will be built to a capacity of 230 beds. Dan Petrella

2:01 p.m: Funding for mobile field hospitals announced

Chicago is one of eight cities where select hospitals might soon get tents equipped with beds and medical supplies to help them handle additional patients, through funding from North Chicago-based drugmaker AbbVie.

AbbVie is working with International Medical Corps, a California nonprofit, to set up 20 mobile field hospitals, at existing hospitals, across the country, the company said. The nonprofit is now in discussions with several hospitals in Cook County about setting up tents, potentially in the next couple weeks, said Margaret Traub, head of global initiatives for International Medical Corps.

She declined to name the hospitals, saying plans have not been finalized. She said that, as the discussions with hospitals progress, International Medical Corps will coordinate with city and state officials.

Each mobile field hospital can be set up in about six hours and provide urgent and outpatient care to hundreds of patients a day, according to AbbVie. The facilities are intended to give overburdened hospitals more space for triage and treatment as the COVID-19 outbreak continues. Each participating hospital would likely get two 810-square-foot shelters with 10 beds each, Traub said.

It will be up to the area hospitals that get the shelters exactly how to use them. For example, they could be used to screen COVID-19 patients, or they could be used for non-COVID-19 outpatients who are usually seen in emergency rooms. Theyll be staffed by the existing hospitals, but International Medical Corps will help fill gaps in nursing and infection prevention and control, AbbVie said.

The tents can withstand 80-mph winds and include beds, supplies, portable sinks, power, lighting and HVAC.

Most hospitals are in pretty severe need, Traub said.

Other cities getting the hospitals are Boston, Cleveland, Detroit, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York City and Puerto Rico. Several of the tent hospitals have already been set up in California. Lisa Schencker

1:26 p.m.: Chain of urgent care clinics to begin using new rapid test from Abbott

Physicians Immediate Care announced Thursday that its urgent care clinics will begin testing patients this week using the new rapid COVID-19 test from Abbott Laboratories, which delivers results in as little as five minutes.

The first people to be tested will be symptomatic healthcare workers and first responders with suspected exposure; the next priority will be patients at the highest risk, including those over 65 with symptoms of the new virus, Physicians Immediate Care said in a news release.

Abbott on Friday announced development of a new rapid COVID-19 test that can produce a positive result in as little as five minutes and a negative result in under 13 minutes, according to the Lake Bluff-based medical device company. That is the fastest turnaround available, at a time when some Chicago-area patients are reporting a wait of more than a week for coronavirus test results.

To limit exposure to the highly contagious virus, Physicians Immediate Care has rolled out Curbside Care chain-wide, which allows patients to be screened for potential COVID-19 symptoms at the front entrance before entering a clinic, the company said in the release. Patients who pass the screening are examined in the clinic; the rest are seen in their vehicles, according to the company, which has more than 40 locations in Illinois and Indiana. Angie Leventis Lourgos

1:23 p.m.: He truly believed all life is precious: Family, friends remember Niles veterinarian who died after COVID-19 diagnosis

Long before he became a veterinarian and helmed the Niles Animal Hospital, Dr. Peter Sakas, of Northbrook, was treating and caring for animals.

If a baby bird fell from a tree, a young Sakas was there to nurse it back to health, feeding it through an eye dropper.

When he and his sister, Connie, caught a rabbit near their Skokie home, they raised it as a pet, feeding it until it outgrew its cage and then, after some convincing from their father, releasing it back into the wild.

There would always be some type of stray animal, some creature in distress in the house and he was always taking care of it, Sakas youngest brother Jim said.

But it wasnt until Sakas was a young teen that he set his sights on a career in veterinary medicine.

He wanted to build things, he wanted to become an architect, sister Connie Markoutsas recalled. He caddied at the Evanston Golf Club and one day, as he was walking home from there, there was a little bird on the sidewalk. He bent down, picked up the bird and carried it home. ... Pete said he wanted to help the bird so badly, and he felt helpless. Thats when he decided he wanted to become a vet. Read more here.

12:20 p.m.: Lightfoot reflects on one-year anniversary of her mayoral race victory over Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle

Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Thursday reflected on the one-year anniversary of her landslide victory over Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle  a win she said still humbles her.

This isnt a day that I thought it was going to be, in thinking about April 2nd, but Im grateful every day that the good Lord wakes me up and gives me the opportunity to serve this city, Lightfoot said.

Lightfoots tenure as mayor has been eventful. She battled the Chicago Teachers Union in the longest teachers strike since the 1980s and fired police Superintendent Eddie Johnson after he allegedly lied to her about the night he went out for drinks and was found asleep at the wheel of his car, pushed through a $15 minimum wage hike, and pushed efforts to limit aldermanic power. Then theres the coronavirus, which has upended life across the country.

Weve been through a lot in this last year, more than I think anyone wouldve expected or anticipated, but Im grateful to the support that I continue to receive from total strangers who give me the thumbs up, Lightfoot said.

Lightfoot said the coronavirus also has shown how amazing the people in this city are.

Im following their example and encouraging myself, encouraging my team, and encouraging the entire city to really embrace this moment, as horrific at times as it feels, because the only way we get to the other side of this is by being lockstep together in knowing that our fate is wrapped up in each other, Lightfoot said. When the light at the end of the tunnel comes, its going to be because of the sacrifices that each of us have made in service of a larger good. Gregory Pratt

11:54 a.m.: As Chicago temps rise, Mayor Lori Lightfoot says shes monitoring social distancing at city parks

Mayor Lori Lightfoot isnt ready to close more parks yet but shes monitoring the situation as spring temperatures begin to rise, she said Thursday.

Were going to remain diligent and doing everything we can to educate people into compliance, Lightfoot said. The vast majority of Chicagoans really understood the necessity of these orders and were in compliance but where we need to get more aggressive, we will.

The city is working with the park district to address problems theyre seeing, Lightfoot said.

It is my expectation that people must comply, Lightfoot said. This isnt a pretty please, will you? This is a must. Gregory Pratt

11:30 a.m.: Preckwinkle encourages Cook County businesses to get in line first for federal stimulus money

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle on Thursday announced a program to help ensure that local business owners, nonprofits and contract workers have access to their piece of the $2.2 trillion federal stimulus package.

The coronavirus relief package includes $377 billion to help small businesses, nonprofits and independent gig workers including money to bring workers back on the payrolls.

Cook County would be nothing without our restaurants, our mom-and-pop stores and most importantly our workers, Preckwinkle said at a Thursday news conference.

The funds will be distributed on a first-come-first-serve basis, officials said, with applications opening Friday. The countys efforts are aimed at connecting those eligible, who might not have large legal or accounting firms to help them navigate the bill, with the banks who will help administer the funds.

The funding comes in the form of a forgivable loan meant to cover the cost of bringing employees back onto the payroll, Preckwinkle said. Read more here. Peter Nickeas

11:21 a.m.: Chicago police officer stricken with COVID-19 dies

A Chicago police officer stricken with COVID-19 has died, making him the first cop in the department to lose their life to the disease, officials said.

The officer, Marco DiFranco, 50, was pronounced dead at 1:02 a.m. Thursday at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, according to the Cook County medical examiners office.

An emotional Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced the officers death alongside interim police Superintendent Charlie Beck and Fraternal Order of Police president Kevin Graham.

It is with profound sadness that Im here to announce the painful news, that for the second time in two days, Chicago has lost another city employee to the COVID-19 virus, Lightfoot said. This time, it was a Chicago police department officer.

Since the coronavirus outbreak began, its been healthcare workers and first responders who have been on the front line protecting the public, she said.

Tragically, this officer gave his life to that fight, Lightfoot said. Our hearts go out to the individuals family, friends and fellow officers whose lives have been forever changed by this terrible loss.

At last report Wednesday afternoon, there were 62 total Chicago police officers and two civilian department employees who tested positive for the coronavirus.

In a memo to the 13,000-strong department Thursday morning, Beck said the officer was a 21-year CPD veteran.

Im devastated to share the news that a member of the Chicago Police Department passed away last night from complications of the COVID-19 virus, Beck said.

In the memo, Beck said the officer contracted the virus last week, though he didnt say whether he likely got infected while on or off duty. The officer was hospitalized this past weekend.

Beck also said the officer had past health issues but didnt specify what they were.

Despite some previous health challenges, the severity of the COVID-19 virus became overbearing, said Beck.

Additional details will be released soon as arrangements are finalized.

The tragic news came exactly one year after Lightfoot was elected mayor. Asked how shes doing in light of the anniversary, Lightfoot choked up.

I spoke to officer DiFrancos wife right before I came out here. Those are very hard conversations to have when a wife and a family are sitting in that moment with their grief and I always offer my sincere condolences and sincerely offer to support the family in any way I can, Lightfoot said. But having been through death and grief myself, these moments are so surreal, they are so hard, so Im feeling that for that family. Im lucky because I still have my mother, I still have my siblings, and I have an incredible wife and daughter who sustain me every single day. Read more here. Gregory Pratt and Jeremy Gorner

11:20 a.m.: Democrats postpone national convention in Milwaukee until August over coronavirus concerns

The Democratic National Committee is delaying its presidential nominating convention until the week of Aug. 17 after prospective nominee Joe Biden said he didnt think it would be possible to hold a normal convention in mid-July because of the coronavirus pandemic. Convention CEO Joe Solmonese confirmed the decision in a statement Thursday.

In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds so we can best position our party for a safe and successful convention, Solmonese said. Read more here. The Associated Press

11:15 a.m.: City Colleges employee has died of COVID-19

A 71-year-old woman employed by the City Colleges of Chicago has died from complications of COVID-19, her union announced Thursday morning.

The woman worked as a bursar in the business office at Wilbur Wright College since 2007, according to Monica Trevino, a spokeswoman for the Illinois Federation of Teachers.

The IFT and the Cook County College Teachers Union are holding a news conference at noon to demand more action from City Colleges to keep workers safe during the outbreak. Classes have been moved online and most staff is working remotely, but the unions say the school is not giving enough guidance about who is considered essential staff still required to report to campus.

City Colleges, a community college network of seven schools in Chicago, has previously said engineers, janitors, security, IT personnel and other key administrators might need to come into work in person. A spokeswoman for City Colleges did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Elyssa Cherney

11 a.m.: Bremen high school district loans 3D printers for fire department to create protective masks

A donation of safety glasses by Tinley Park High School to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn drew kudos from Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who singled out the school Tuesday during his daily media briefing updating coronavirus.

But Bremen High School District 228, which includes Tinley Park, has also loaned two 3D printers to the Midlothian Fire Department to make protective masks, said Jamie Bonnema, a district spokeswoman.

Greg Slade, a district teacher, showed by phone how to use the printers to make masks, Bonnema said.

The Fire Department contacted District 228 about borrowing the printers, which students had previously used in engineering courses to make items such as keychains and toy trains, Slade said. Read more here. Mike Nolan

9:09 a.m.: Inmate advocates file series of federal suits seeking potential release of thousands from Illinois prisons

Three federal lawsuits were filed Thursday seeking the release of thousands of Illinois prisoners amid the alarming spread of coronavirus in state lockups that has already killed one inmate and sickened dozens of others.

The lawsuits, filed in U.S. District Court by a consortium of Chicago civil rights attorneys and community activists, included a proposed federal class action suit against Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Illinois Department of Corrections officials, a habeus corpus action, and a direct appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court.

The suits stated that as many as 12,000 prisoners could be eligible for release, including many who were convicted of non-violent offenses, are elderly, at elevated risk to get ill, or have already served most of their sentences.

As of Wednesday, a total of 52 inmates and 25 prison staff members in lockups across the state had tested positive for COVID-19. One inmate from Stateville Correctional Center near Joliet died as a result of the infection. The Tribune has reported he was Russell Sedelmaier, 59, who was serving a life sentence for a double murder near Buffalo Grove.

The lawsuits alleged that IDOC and political leaders have dragged their feet in the face of the pandemic, putting prisoners, prison staff and the general public at greater risk of severe illness and death.

Nearly 37,000 people are incarcerated in Illinois, living in close quarters where all aspects of daily life, including healthcare and food service, take place, the lawsuits stated. The suits alleged the prisons are petri dishes for spreading deadly epidemics. Read more here. Jason Meisner and Annie Sweeney

8:50 a.m.: Traffic, cookies and video calls: Life during coronavirus in 6 charts

As the seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic intensifies each day with a flood of data about increasing cases, deaths and soaring jobless claims, virtually every aspect of how people in Illinois work and play has changed. To capture some of these changes, the Tribune looked at data from pollution reports to smartphone app downloads to retail purchases. Read more here.

8:45 a.m.: Illinois schools stand to get hundreds of millions of dollars from the federal stimulus package

The $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief packaged signed into law by President Donald Trump last week could generate about $570 million for elementary and secondary schools in Illinois.

A huge chunk of that would go to Chicago Public Schools  well over the $75 million the district has set aside for things like emergency workers, computers for homebound students and supplies to disinfect buildings. Read more here. Hannah Leone

7:52 a.m.: Unemployment claims in Illinois top 178,000 as new claims across US hit 6.6 million, breaking record

More than 178,000 Illinois residents applied for unemployment insurance benefits last week, as the number of workers who have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic continues to swell.

The surge in jobless claims  about 64,000 more than the 114,000 reported for the week ended March 21  comes as many struggle to file for benefits in Illinois. With unemployment offices closed due to the pandemic, the states computer systems have been overwhelmed, and many applicants have had trouble getting through.

Nationally, a record-breaking almost 6.65 million people applied for unemployment benefits for the week ending March 28, according to Thursdays report from the Labor Department. Mary Wisniewski

8:05 a.m.: They were told their coronavirus test results would take days. These Fox Valley residents waited more than a week in self-isolation.

Greg Booth spent more than a week in his basement as he waited for the results of his COVID-19 test, he said, listening to his wife and young daughter move around the house above him but too scared of the possibility of infecting them to join them.

His wife left meals for him at the top of the steps in his North Aurora home. He read his 1-year-old daughter bedtime stories via FaceTime.

Booth, 35, said a nurse told him hed learn the outcome of his COVID-19 test within three days, and health officials advise anyone who has been tested to isolate while waiting to hear back. He said he ultimately spent 11 days in his basement before he was notified of his results: negative.

Though he is relieved his illness was not a result of the coronavirus, he and others across the Fox Valley remain frustrated by the process, they said. Read more here. Sarah Freishtat

7:05 a.m.: 12th Cook County Court Clerks employee tests positive for coronavirus; worked in downtown traffic court

The Cook County Court Clerks office announced late Wednesday that a 12th employee in the office, who works in the Traffic Division at the Daley Center, has tested positive for COVID-19.

The employee, who last reported for work March 20, was quarantined at home, according to a news release from Clerk Dorothy Browns office.

Crews from the clerks office and MB Real Estate, which manages the Daley Center, already have deep cleaned and sanitized where the employee worked, according to the office.

Before Gov. J.B. Pritzker ordered a statewide shutdown March 20, Brown was criticized by clerks and other courthouse staff for keeping staffing levels the same as under normal operations, despite a slowdown in courthouse operations and the spread of the new coronavirus. Chicago Tribune staff

5 a.m.: As spring rains arrive amid the coronavirus crisis, towns prep for flooding

In Rock Island, public works crews are staggering their hours. In central Illinois, dredging work continues at the confluence of the Illinois and Sangamon rivers, though the main focus has been on making sure local restaurants in the river town of Beardstown are able to weather the coronavirus crisis. In Chester, on the Mississippi River south of St. Louis, the river already is at flood stage, affecting downtowns Water Street.

But levels are nowhere near where they were last summer, and the river is expected to drop in coming days.

Throughout the state, with the ramifications of coronavirus shutdowns changing life for Illinois communities large and small, the preparations for spring flooding, which ravaged large swaths of the state last year, have continued despite the abnormal circumstances. As local, state and federal agencies scramble to react to the public health needs of COVID-19, cities and towns throughout Illinois must also keep one eye on the weather forecast and river levels.

Read more here. Patrick M. OConnell

5 a.m.: Facing coronavirus fears, Chicago nurses and doctors try to protect their own families

Home should be a refuge. But for people reporting to a hospital during the coronavirus crisis, home is just one more place to dread.

Doctors, nurses and others working at Illinois hospitals where COVID-19 patients are being treated fear returning to their families, who might be more at risk because of invisible dangers they unwittingly bring home.

Each has a routine. It usually looks like this: Disrobe. Leave scrubs in the garage. Bleach shoes. Run to the shower. No hugs from the children, no welcome from a spouse. Shower, scrub.

For Terence Yee, an intensive care unit nurse at the University of Illinois at Chicago, there is no option but to come home. He and his wife, Sweet Vivares Yee, are both nurses; they have three teenagers to take care of.

Read more here. Alison Bowen

Wednesday, April 1

Heres a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Wednesday:

Tuesday, March 31

Heres a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Tuesday:

Monday, March 30

Heres a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Monday:

Sunday, March 29

Heres a recap of coronavirus updates in the Chicago area and Illinois from Sunday:

Saturday, March 28
[April 02, 2020] Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market 2019-2023 | Increase in Global Mobile Data Traffic to Boost Growth | Technavio

Technavio has been monitoring the carrier aggregation solutions market and it is poised to grow by USD 1.34 bn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of over 21% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. Request a free sample report This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005667/en/ Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire) The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Cisco Systems, Huawei (News - Alert) Technologies, Nokia, RHODE&SCHWARZ, and ZTE, are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments. Increase in global mobile data traffic has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market. Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market 2019-2023 : Segmentation Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market is segmented as below: Deployment Femtocell (News - Alert) Picocell Microcellmetrocell

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA

To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30475 Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market 2019-2023 : Scope Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by theway of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our carrier aggregation solutions market report covers the following areas:



Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market Size

Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market Trends

Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market Industry Analysis This study identifies growth of smart cities as one of the prime reasons driving the carrier aggregation solutions market growth during the next few years. Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market 2019-2023 : Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market, including some of the vendors such as Cisco Systems (News - Alert), Huawei Technologies, Nokia, RHODE&SCHWARZ, and ZTE. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support. Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports. Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform Carrier Aggregation Solutions Market 2019-2023 : Key Highlights CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist carrier aggregation solutions market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the carrier aggregation solutions market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the carrier aggregation solutions market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of carrier aggregation solutions market vendors Table Of Contents : PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT 2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$ PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis PART 04: MARKET SIZING Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023 PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY DEPLOYMENT Market segmentation by deployment

Comparison by deployment

Picocell (News - Alert) - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Metrocell - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Microcell - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Femtocell - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by deployment PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Americas - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA - Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity PART 09: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES Market drivers

Market challenges PART 10: MARKET TRENDS Increased investments towards 5G in urban areas

Growth of smart cities

Increased investments in LTE (News - Alert)-A in rural areas PART 11: VENDOR LANDSCAPE Overview

Landscape disruption PART 12: VENDOR ANALYSIS Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Cisco Systems

Huawei Technologies

Nokia

RHODE&SCHWARZ

ZTE PART 13: APPENDIX Research methodology

List of abbreviations About Us Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provide actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005667/en/

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Raffey Cassidy and Michiel Huisman in the movie "The Other Lamb." (IFC Films)

The young actress Raffey Cassidy has a gaze that is somehow both inquisitive and ferocious; it poses questions that could cut through glass. If you saw her in Vox Lux or The Killing of a Sacred Deer, you might recall her presence more than anything else, her watchful intelligence and eerie, preternatural calm. Shes as arresting as ever in the visually immaculate if dramatically muddled chiller The Other Lamb, in which she plays a teenager who has grown up within an incestuous, polygamous sex cult  part Handmaids Tale, part Martha Marcy May Marlene  and gradually realizes that the experience may not be great for her long-term well-being.

The viewer will arrive at this conclusion mere moments after the story begins, probably around the time Selah (Cassidy) and some of her many sisters, wearing near-identical blue dresses, make their way across a mountain landscape toward the cluster of wooded cabins they call home. By the time theyre sitting down opposite their mothers, who are all clad in heavily symbolic red, the creepiness factor is off the charts. These women are the obedient wives and daughters  who will themselves eventually become wives  of a man known only as the Shepherd (Michiel Huisman of Game of Thrones). His shoulder-length Jesus locks are hardly the extent of his self-styled Messiah act.

Selah is the Shepherds favorite daughter, though not having come of age, she has yet to receive the grace that he alone can give. The administering of that grace  said to purify each young woman after the apparent defilement of her first period  is mercifully left to the imagination. While the cult in question is not exactly religious, the Shepherds agenda can be read, in some ways, as a grotesque derangement of the 23rd Psalm. (The verse He maketh me lie down in green pastures has rarely taken on such revolting overtones.) The lambs, for their part, are literal as well as figurative: The women tend their own small flock of sheep, one of which Selah finds mauled to death on a hillside one afternoon in a bloody omen of the horrors to come.

Story continues

From the outset, then, you want Selah to run screaming from this hellish commune  or, better yet, to take a blowtorch to the Shepherds rod and staff. You also want explanations, or at least clues, that Catherine S. McMullens screenplay is teasingly slow to provide. But Cassidy persuasively inhabits the psychological bondage of a young woman who, like her sisters, has known no life other than this one. Besides allowing no one to criticize or contradict him, the Shepherd has also decreed that no one but he can tell stories of any kind: Owning ones narrative, after all, would be tantamount to a kind of freedom.

A scene from "The Other Lamb." (IFC Films)

The filmmaker telling this particular story is the Polish writer-director Malgorzata Szumowska, whose tense and provocative earlier features (including In the Name Of and Elles) have explored the outer limits of youthful sexuality and forbidden desire, as well as the bonds between the spirit and the flesh. Here, the exquisite stillness of her compositions (the work of her longtime cinematographer, Michal Englert) works in elegant counterpoint to the tensions roiling beneath the surface. The deftly balanced colors and symmetrical compositions seem to mock the characters and their increasingly dire straits, imposing a sense of order that will soon be revealed as unsustainable.

Its worth noting that the word Selah appears repeatedly throughout the Psalms; you could think of it as a kind of amen, an occasion to pause and reflect. The Selah of The Other Lamb acts as a more subversive kind of interrupter. Her coming of age is marked by eerie visitations and dark, hallucinatory visions (including much sub-Carrie menstrual imagery), and her smarts allow her to see the cracks and fissures in the Shepherds not-so-grand design before the other women do. One mother (Denise Gough), cast aside and banished by the Shepherd, does her part to steer Selah toward the light.

All this is absorbing enough without generating much in the way of real terror, tension or surprise. As an outside threat sends the Shepherd and his flock packing and in search of a new home, it becomes clear that this dread-soaked parable of female vengeance can end in only one way, which may be why Szumowska doesnt linger on the violent final passages. The most powerful moment comes earlier, when Selah peers out toward a road and catches a cruel glimpse of freedom, of the life that might have been  and still might be  hers. As a study in atmospheric seclusion, The Other Lamb is beautifully crafted enough to hold your attention, but you cant shake the feeling that Selahs next chapter  and Cassidys  might well be the more interesting movie.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 12:20:08|Editor: huaxia

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HOHHOT, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Medical supplies worth of 434,000 yuan (about 61,000 U.S. dollars) were sent to Mongolia via the port in Erenhot, northern China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The medical supplies, donated by the region to Mongolia, include 85,000 disposable masks, 20,000 surgical masks, 1,000 items of protective clothing and 1,015 bottles of disinfectant, the Erenhot customs said.

The customs has speeded up customs clearance for medical supplies. A total of 5.21 million masks, 7,000 items of protective clothing and over 5,000 COVID-19 testing kits have been delivered via the Erenhot customs so far this year.
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Linkedin (Agence France-Presse)  Thu, April 2, 2020 16:08 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f40267 2 Art & Culture Yayoi-Kusama,Infinity-Room,COVID-19,coronavirus,Museum Free

The Los Angeles museum is now temporarily closed to support efforts to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the death toll surged toward 4,000 in the United States.

The Broad has since adapted its digital programming in the light of the current health crisis, launching several online initiatives to "inspire the museum's audience and help people remain connected to one another."

Among them are the "Infinite Drone" project, which allows art lovers to experience Yayoi Kusama's "The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away" (2013) from the comfort of their own home.

The LED installation is one of the two "Infinity Rooms" in The Broad's collection, along with the Japanese artist's "Longing for Eternity" (2017).

The Broad is now reimagining Kusama's "The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away" in a new Instagram TV series, pairing it throughout the museum's closure with musical compositions by Los Angeles-based sound artists and musicians.

"Take an opportunity to delve into the spiritual aspects of Kusama's exploration of eternity -- paired with aural selections chosen curated by The Broad, including drone, electronic, ambient, and pop music," the cultural institution wrote on Instagram.

The Broad collaborated with Geneva Skeen for the first edition of the "Infinite Drone" project, whose practice is influenced by "ecriture feminine, alchemical metaphors, and a range of musical traditions ranging from holy mysticism to industrial."

Footage of the Infinity Room is soundtracked to Skeen's "The Oval Window," which she composed by using recordings of voice and piano processed through digital and analog technologies.

"People experience spirituality or practice contemplation in many different ways. By bringing in a variety of musical approaches, we hope to provide a range of ways to delve into aspects of Kusama's work," Ed Patuto, who is The Broad's director of audience engagement, told Artnet News in a statement.

In addition to launching the "Infinite Drone" project, The Broad also introduced "Interplay: Poetry and Art."

The digital initiative displays multidisciplinary poems alongside accompanying artworks, allowing self-isolated art lovers to explore the relationship between art and literature.

As part of its #TheBroadFromHome program, the cultural institution is releasing weekly art activity tutorials for art lovers of all ages.

The videos present activities that families can do together at home by following the guidelines of an artist from The Broad collection.

The first installment of the weekly series follows Los Angeles-based artist Mark Bradford, who is known for using discarded materials found on city streets such as advertisements, flyers, billboards, comic books and more.
London: When Rishi Sunak was elected to the British Parliament in 2015, he recalled a piece of advice from his father-in-law, Narayana Murthy, a technology billionaire who is one of Indias richest men. In God we trust, Murthy told him, but everyone else needs to bring data to the table.

Now 39 years old and Britains top finance official, Sunak is trying to apply that lesson to the greatest economic rescue in the post-World War II history of the country. As chancellor of the Exchequer, Sunak has orchestrated a series of increasingly desperate efforts to protect Britains 66 million people from the sudden dislocation brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

On March 20, Sunak rolled out the latest  a package to pay 80% of the earnings of self-employed people who lost income because of the lockdown of the country. That came on top of measures last week to compensate people laid off from companies and more than $300 billion in aid for distressed businesses.

In the process, Sunak, who was thrust into his job six weeks ago, has become one of the stars of this crisis. On one level, that is not surprising: His job, after all, is to dole out money. But beyond that, commentators say, Sunaks grave, self-assured delivery and empathetic tone are proving a better match for the moment than the shambling levity of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Now, more than any time in our recent history, we will be judged by our capacity for compassion, Sunak declared. Our ability to come through this wont just be down to what government or business can do but by the individual acts of kindness we show one another.

He spoke to plumbers, hairdressers, musicians and other self-employed workers. To you, I say this: You have not been forgotten, Sunak said at a news conference. We will not leave you behind.

In a poll by market research firm YouGov this week, Sunak has an approval rating of 60%, with only 11% disapproving. Johnsons ratings have risen as well  to 55% in the same poll  but he remains a more divisive figure, with 35% of people disapproving of him.

In Conservative Party circles, Sunak is already being floated as a future party leader and perhaps even the first ethnic minority prime minister in British history. His Indian grandparents, originally from Punjab, came to England from British colonial East Africa in the 1960s.

He is incredibly smart, and as a very young chancellor, he has responded with great ingenuity to huge strains imposed by the coronavirus crisis, said William Shawcross, a writer and commentator who works for the government as a special envoy representing victims of terrorism.

There is no shortage of obstacles in Sunaks path, not least how he will unravel the fiscal stimulus he is pumping into the economy. The lesson of the financial crisis of 2008 is that bailouts can sow bitterness in people who believe they did not get their fair share. For those who did, they can create unrealistic expectations.

This crisis will force the government into something quite close to universal basic income, said Jonathan Powell, a former chief of staff to Tony Blair. Once youve done that, taking it away from people is very hard.

While the public is rallying behind the government now, people are likely to ask hard questions afterward, especially about the austerity policies enacted by Conservative governments, which left the National Health Service financially starved and ill-equipped for the deluge of virus patients.

After winning high praise for his initial efforts, Sunak was criticized for not moving faster to protect self-employed people, many of whom saw their income vanish as soon as Johnson ordered people to stay in their homes. It was, Sunak said, incredibly complicated to design a comprehensive and fair package, given the varied circumstances of these workers.

The delay contributed to Britains fitful adherence to the lockdown Johnson put in place on March 23. Thousands of freelancers and other self-employed people continued to go to work, thronging Londons subways and raising alarms about spreading the virus. Critics noted that the compensation in this package will not be available until June  too late to help some strapped workers.

For a Conservative to preside over such a state intervention is a deep paradox. Yet people who have worked with Sunak say he is well-suited to the task. Pragmatic and politically astute but non-ideological, he is able, they say, to design policies to keep the economy afloat and maneuver them through the government.

As much as it will pain many of his rivals to admit it, he does appear to be the complete package, said Tim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University in London. It is almost as if he were born to play this role at this particular time.

Still, Sunaks success also reflects the fact that he accepted, as a condition of getting his job, far less independence than chancellors have historically enjoyed. His predecessor, Sajid Javid, was forced out in February after he defied Johnsons demand to get rid of his own advisers and install people loyal to the prime minister.

Such adaptability, former colleagues said, is another hallmark of Sunaks success. The eldest son of a doctor and a mother who ran a pharmacy, Sunak has combined his Indian heritage with a classic Tory pedigree.

Educated at the elite Winchester School and Oxford, where he graduated with first-class honors, he earned an MBA at Stanford University. He met his future wife, Akshata, in California.

After that came stints as an analyst with Goldman Sachs and two hedge funds, one of which, The Childrens Investment Fund, came under fire for pressing ABN Amro, a Dutch bank in which it held shares, to sell itself to the Royal Bank of Scotland. The acquisition contributed to the later collapse of RBS.

Sunak launched his political career with a run for a safe Conservative seat in Yorkshire. He charmed people in the constituencys rural dales, recruiting his father-in-law to hand out campaign leaflets. When he won, local papers nicknamed him the Maharajah of the Yorkshire Dales.

In 2016, Sunak decided to back Britains departure from the European Union  not out of any passionate euro skepticism, people who know him said, but because he calculated, correctly, that it would position him to advance in a Conservative Party that was swinging in that direction.

As Britain moves past these frantic days and confronts the long-term consequences of its moves, analysts said Sunak would probably lose some of his stardust. The question, they said, is whether he will be able to chart a new course, balancing the need to tax and spend in a post-pandemic world accustomed to a more interventionist state.

When the final reckoning is made, there will be praise for the government response but there will also be criticism of the age of austerity that left us in this position, Bale said. He might be able to escape personally because he wasnt the face of that policy, but I dont think the Conservative Party will be able to escape.

Mark Landler and Stephen Castle c.2020 The New York Times Company
A California teenager who graduated high school early back in February is still attending classes on Zoom every day  they're just not her classes.

Malissa Cordova, 17, has been 'Zoombombing' for a week now, asking her TikTok followers to send her Zoom meeting codes for their high school classes and then dropping in unannounced  confusing teachers and students alike.

Malissa and other bored teens like her after now turned crashing other people's Zoom classes into a trend  to the delight and frustration of the people who are supposed to be there.

Surprise guest! Malissa Cordova, 17, graduated early in February, but has been crashing other people's classes on Zoom

Malissa crashed a virtual class for the first time last week, recording the moment for a TikTok video.

The moment her video feed popped up on the screen, an unexpected face in a sea of otherwise familiar students, the teacher stopped in confusion.

'Hi, who's this? Who's Malissa?' she asked.

Malissa replied calmly, telling the teacher she's just there to sit in and learn about Macbeth.

'I just want to learn. I won't interrupt,' she said.

The teacher seamed OK with that, and continued to teach  but the odd moment delighted nearly three quarters of a million TikTok users before the social media platform suspended her account.

Bored: She has been soliciting Zoom codes for high school classes on TikTok and dropping in unannounced. Sometimes she just sits and listens while confused teachers go along with it

Malissa has kept it up. On TikTok, she asks others to send her their Zoom codes and class schedules so she can decide what to do each day.

Now, every morning, she wakes up at 6 a.m. checks her Instagram DMs for codes before putting together a class schedule that starts at 8 a.m.

Ultimately, the teen said, it's about relieving boredom, since she has nothing better to do now that she's done with school herself but stuck home during quarantine.

She approaches her class-crashing differently on different occasions. Sometimes, she just does it to listen in, and maybe get a few giggles out of the confused reactions of teachers and students.

'[In some classes] I sit back and observe and don't interrupt or act disrespectful. If they want me to leave, then I leave,' she told Insider.

Some do ask her to go away, though others  like the teacher in her first crashing experiment  don't mind if she sits quietly. In those cases, she's used the opportunity to actually learn about new subjects.

No learning today! Other times, when students tell her the teacher is 'rude' or 'racist,' she'll be disruptive  even having dozens of other people crash the class with her

Other times, though, she is there to cause chaos  like when students who send her Zooms code say they hate the class, or call the teacher 'rude' or 'racist.'

In those cases, she might call on her social media followers for help, and have as many as 60 people crash a class with her.

'What I encourage people to do is rap Nicki Minaj, play music from the movie Ratatouille, or play music by CupcakKe,' she said. 'I do not encourage people to tell the teacher mean things.'

One thing she never does is crash a paid college course. She didn't that once, inadvertently, and felt terrible for disrupting a class people paid for.

Since more and more students are taking classes from home, Zoombombing has becomes a growing trend.

Trend: She's shared the results on TikTok, and now other people are 'Zoombombing'

But while sometimes it's fun and lighthearted  and a novel way to break up the day  in other cases, it's proven incredibly disruptive.

That was the case for a virtual class at Arizona State University, when an anonymous participant played pornography for the other participants.

'We are deeply upset to hear about the incidents involving this type of attack,' a Zoom spokesperson told Insider. 'We strongly condemn such behavior and we encourage users to report any incidents of this kind directly to https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/requests/new so we can take appropriate action.'

The spokesperson recommended using password protections as a deterrent, and also to consider using the waiting room feature, in which the host has to grant access to each participant joining.
In their convent in Rome, 17 Sisters seem at first positive for the virus. The community, whose members are dedicated to nursing the sick, is now on lockdown. To help them, Taiwans embassy brought food, including vegetables, tea, fruit, as well as medicine and surgical masks after the Camillian superior delegate in Taiwan made an appeal. The embassy also provided tuna cans for the homeless and masks for the Vatican Pharmacy.

Rome (AsiaNews)  The Convent of the Daughters of St Camillus in Rome is on lockdown. Seventeen of its 24 members, whose mission is to nurse the sick, are infected with suspected coronavirus. No one can leave, not even to get food supplies. The Taiwanese embassy came to their rescue.

The other day we received an urgent request from Fr Giuseppe Didone, who is the Camillian superior delegate in Taiwan, said Begonia Tsai, an official with the Taiwanese embassy to the Holy See. He urged us to help the nuns who are in quarantine in Rome.

The embassy bought food, including vegetables, tea, fruit, and, on the same day, Ambassador Matthew Shieh-Ming Lee and a few aides delivered it, along with medicine and surgical masks (pictures 1 and 2).

Over the past few weeks, Taiwan has been helping Italian missionaries who dedicated their lives to the Taiwanese. Now they and their brothers and sisters are suffering, especially in northern Italy. This is why we Taiwanese want to do something for them.

At a press conference in Taipei this morning (picture 3), Fr Didone formally thanked the embassy.

After Pope Francis's appeal not to forget the poorest, the homeless and panhandlers, Taiwans embassy gave the papal almoner, Card Konrad Krajewski, 600 tuna cans to be distributed to the poor.

The embassy also provided surgical masks to Vatican congregations and priests and seminarians studying in Rome.

Together with the Tzu Chi Buddhist Foundation of Taiwan, embassy it delivered 4,000 masks to the Vatican Pharmacy. "Helping is a moral duty, Ambassador Lee said.

We are on the same boat, said Pope Francis in his homily last Sunday, all of us [are] called to row together, each of us in need of comforting the other (picture 4).
The federal government of Nigeria is currently trending on social media after begging American billionaire, Elon Musk for some ventilators to tackle coronavirus in the country.

Musk, who is the founder and Chief Engineer, SpaceX, had tweeted on Thursday that his firm had extra ventilators that had been approved by the Food and Drug Administration in America.

He tweeted, We have extra FDA-approved ventilators. We will ship to hospitals worldwide within Tesla delivery regions. Only requirement is that the vents are needed immediately for patients and not stored in a warehouse.

Read Also: Ganduje, Wife Test Negative For Coronavirus

In its response, the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning tagged the billionaire on Twitter, asking him to assist Nigeria.

The ministry tweeted, Dear @Elonmusk @Tesla Federal Government of Nigeria needs support with 100 to 500 ventilators to assist with Covid19 cases rising every day in Nigeria.
Washington: China has concealed the extent of its coronavirus outbreak, under-reporting both total cases and deaths it has suffered from the disease, the US intelligence community concluded in a classified report to the White House, according to three US officials.

The officials asked not to be identified because the report is secret, and they declined to detail its contents. But the thrust, they said, is that Chinas public reporting on cases and deaths is intentionally incomplete. Two of the officials said the report concludes that Chinas numbers are fake.

US President Donald Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence have been pushing China to reveal more about the outbreak. Credit:AP

The report was received by the White House last week, one of the officials said.

The outbreak began in Chinas Hubei province in late 2019, but the country has publicly reported only about 82,000 cases and 3300 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. That compares to more than 189,000 cases and more than 4000 deaths in the US, which now has the largest publicly reported outbreak in the world.
business Coronavirus impact | IT firms start issuing pink slips; around 1.5 lakh employees may lose their jobs The industry employs about 45-50 lakh, of which and smaller firms account for about 10-12 lakh. The top five IT firms alone employ close to 10 lakh people
South Africa: Military Ombud ready to assist the public on conduct of SANDF

The South African Office of the Military Ombud has assured citizens that it remains open to assist those who feel aggrieved by the conduct of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) in the execution of their duties.

We noted that the Department of Defence released a statement taking note of various allegations of abuse by deployed members of the SANDF who are supporting governments efforts to contain the Coronavirus pandemic. In the statement the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans denounces any type or form of abuse committed by deployed soldiers against members of the public during the 21 days lockdown period, said the office in a statement on Wednesday.

The South African Military Ombud Lieutenant General (Retired) Vusumuzi Masondo, said communities need to be informed of the existence of the office and the assistance they can get from it when a need to lodge a complaint should arise.

Our job is to make sure that complaints that come through our office are handled professionally and rights of citizens of the country are protected without compromise, he said.

Masondos comments come as Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, this week condemned any form of abuse committed by soldiers during the 21-day nationwide lockdown.

The Ministers remarks followed various allegations of abuse by members of the SANDF deployed in support of government efforts to contain the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The Office of the Military Ombud was established through the Military Ombud Act 4 of 2012, as an independent, external mechanism to deal with complaints and grievances brought by current and former members of the SANDF regarding their conditions of service.

Members of the public can lodge complaints regarding the official conduct of members of the SANDF.

Members of the public have 90 days to lodge a complaint with the Office, from the date of the incident, and if they have lodged a complaint with law enforcement agencies and the matter is before Court or the Court has ruled, the Office wont have jurisdiction.

Process to lodge a complaint

Those who want to lodge a complaint with the Military Ombud office are advised to provide a description of the incident including date, time and place of incident.

Those lodging complaints are also required to provide the name/s of soldier/s involved (visible on their name tags on their uniform), as well as names and contact details of any witnesses among others.

However, the Military Ombud office does not have the mandate to deal with the conduct of South African Police Services (SAPS) members. Complaints relating to SAPS members should be referred to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID).

The complaint form can be downloaded on www.milombud.org. Once completed, complainants can forward it via email intake@milombud.org or fax 086 523 2296. SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Classes that Click is a series spotlighting how Emory is adapting undergraduate courses to remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Each column will showcase one course, with insights and tips from both the professor and students.

Emory entered a new phase of education on March 23 when all graduate and undergraduate classes transitioned to remote learning for the remainder of the spring 2020 semester. The shift  implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic  necessitated many changes but did not deter Emorys mission to create and share knowledge.

Classes that Click is a new series showcasing how high-caliber education continues and how many lessons learned will further enhance life at Emory when everyone returns to classrooms together.

In this edition, Tom Bing, senior lecturer and director of undergraduate studies for the Department of Physics, shares how he has expanded his use of technology for a lecture-based class with 110 students.

Sarah Abdul-Ghani, a first-year student in Emory College of Arts and Sciences who is a student in Bings class, also shares her perspective as a first-time learner in remote classes. She is a prospective psychology major on the pre-med track.

The course: Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Part 2 (Physics 152)

Physics for Scientists and Engineers, Part 2 introduces students to electric and magnetic fields and forces, Gausss law, electrical properties of materials, electromagnetic induction, electromagnetic waves and optical phenomena.

Moving toward remote learning

How had you already used technology in class?

Bing: I have always used Canvas (to post my syllabus, homework solutions, practice exams, etc.) and WebAssign as our online homework platform. Each homework assignment also always included items that I coded into WebAssign myself: an essay question and (often) a question directing the students to play around with some sort of online physics simulation. I tried to use computer simulations regularly in lecture, too  the old picture is worth a thousand words idea, plus it breaks up the monotony of listening to a 50-minute lecture.

What was one of your primary challenges in shifting to a remote format and how did you meet it?

Bing: The first challenge was simply getting the professional part of my personality past the general What in the world am I going to do now? mindset. Once I started digging around in all the resources, stuff started coming together pretty quickly. I decided to shift to an almost completely asynchronous design and record and post my lectures so students can view them at any time. Homework assignments and lab activities are on WebAssign.

The next challenge was deciding where to set the rigor/difficulty level for the remaining weeks. Were all still committed to offering the best educational opportunities we can. But we faculty have to realize that some of our students will simply not be able to concentrate as efficiently on their academics as we are used to seeing. But I still owe everyone a good product.

Then I realized that academic rigor and grading rigor should be seen as two orthogonal axes, at least in the present circumstances. I can still put just as much deep physics into my lectures and homework as usual. But that does not automatically imply I need to keep my difficult timed exams and the usual distribution of grades they produce. I simply need to trust the standard Emory student to receive the information and take their learning as far as they want.

Abdul-Ghani: My primary challenge was adjusting to the time difference since I live in Hawaii, which is six hours behind Eastern Standard Time. My 10 a.m. classes became 4 a.m. classes and the class that normally started very late in the day now starts at 10 a.m. This was difficult, but having the ability to record Zoom lectures has helped solve a few of my problems. In general, professors are being very understanding.

Putting remote learning into practice

What has been a pleasant surprise about remote learning?

Bing: Ive always believed that 60% of great university teaching is nothing more than careful, meticulous planning. Think very carefully about precisely how youre going to present new ideas in class and activate productive, scientifically authentic behaviors in students. An idea in week 3 should be handled a certain way because I know whats coming in week 10. The other 40% of great teaching is much more interpersonal and artful.

Ive been pleasantly surprised that about the same 60/40 proportion still seems to hold in remote learning mode. My job skills and responsibilities have not hugely changed. Im seeing the same payoff for all my careful preparation and class planning, even if the end product is now a nice set of lecture videos and deep student questions that are asked over email instead of in person.

Abdul-Ghani: I am pleasantly surprised by the creativity of some professors to continue teaching classes that are not suited for online learning. My labs are now online. My indoor climbing class professor had to be more creative. We are asked to take activity pictures and record journal entries to submit on Canvas.

How are you staying engaged with your students or classmates and professors?

Bing: Ive set up discussion threads on Canvas, invited emailed questions and held Zoom videoconference office hours. Its important that students know those resources are there. I am monitoring peoples online homework submissions more than I would during a standard semester. If someones work starts to lag or several assignments are missed, perhaps sending a Can I help? message could help get things back on track sooner rather than later.

Abdul-Ghani: I am constantly on Facetime with my classmates and will email or set up a Zoom conference to stay engaged with my professors. I hardly feel isolated.

Lessons for the future

Whats one lesson youve learned during this transition? How will you use that lesson when you return to a face-to-face classroom setting?

Bing: Its much more awkward to talk to myself in an empty room as I make a lecture video than I expected. The deeper lesson behind that observation is that, once I can teach in person again, I should pause and be thankful for the big lecture halls filled with students and the lines outside during my office hours. I want to remember what it was like during this semester when all that constant in-person energy got taken away, and be more thankful for the flurry of interaction thats typical on Emorys campus.

Abdul-Ghani: I have learned that my professors genuinely care about their students and not to take this for granted. I have learned to be more appreciative of the privileges I didnt know I had. I may begin to look forward to morning classes, study sessions in the library and even simply sitting next to my classmates.

In addition to focusing on the universitys educational mission, Emory experts are on the front lines of the pandemic  caring for patients, researching possible treatments and vaccines and sharing knowledge to help inform and prepare the public. Visit Emorys COVID-19 page for the latest updates.
Matt Shapiros phone hasnt stopped ringing for three weeks. When he answers, its usually someone on the other end of the line crying. In his decades of experience working with renters, hes never seen anything like it.

Its unprecedented. Its crazy. Its an emergency situation, and right now tenants are bearing the burden, Shapiro said.

The 76-year-old leader of the New Jersey Tenants Organization is fighting for more relief from the state for renters. Thousands were expected to pay rent Wednesday  the first month due since the coronavirus outbreak sparked an economic fallout in New Jersey and across the country.

Gov. Phil Murphy announced a stay on some mortgage payments for the next 90 days on March 28, but he hasnt offered the same relief to renters. Instead, hes urged landlords to show some compassion when collecting payments.

If the landlord is getting a (mortgage holiday) we are imploring  if not mandating  that they pass that holiday on in a symmetric way to whoever is renting from them, Murphy said Wednesday.

Shapiro said the governor didnt go far enough.

Its just not reasonable, he said. Landlords are getting relief  and they should get some relief  but now theyre going to go around to their tenants and demand it? Thats not reasonable.

Roughly 35 percent of New Jersey residents rent their home or apartment, according to Census data.

Shapiro commended the work the administration has done for renters, including the temporary moratorium on evictions and forbidding lockouts until two months after the crisis ends, but hes asking the government to step it up."

To immediately alleviate the burden on tenants, rent should be reduced to a percentage of the tenants income so they can afford to make some payment, he said. Late fees should also be waived, like mortgage and some credit card companies have done, since nearly everyone will be paying rent past due.

Tenants rents have to be significantly reduced if we want to survive this as a society, he said. This is the people on the lower end of the economic scale. They live paycheck to paycheck.

And tenants who cant make initial payments are expected to pay the full amount when the moratorium ends to ensure they arent locked out of their homes  another issue Murphy should pay attention to, Shapiro said.

Renters are a "just a more complicated set of individuals to regulate because lease agreements are private contracts, Matt Platkin, Murphys chief counsel, said.

And while some landlords can hold off on paying their mortgages, they have other expenses, including property taxes, insurance and utility bills.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

Some renters are among the hundreds of thousands of workers who have lost their jobs in the service, hospitality and retail industries after non-essential businesses were forced to shutter due to Murphys executive order mandating nearly all residents stay home.

More than 206,000 people filed for unemployment in New Jersey in the week that ended Saturday, breaking all records for claims, including in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy and during the depths of the Great Recession.

I dont think (Murphy) is seeing the full picture. Tenants are screwed and... he needs to take strong action, Shapiro noted.

Kathleen Morris is among one of the tenants who wont be able to pay rent this month, and is upset Murphy is not helping more.

She had her hours cut at the medical office where she works, due to a shortage in supplies. She instantly realized she wouldnt be able to pay her rent, groceries and medication for her disability this month. Shes scared there wont be help for her, she said.

While watching Murphys press conferences, she grew more and more irate realizing he wouldnt offer renters assistance the way he did with homeowners. Then he told landlords to be nice.

My landlord is not being compassionate just because the governor told them to be. Thats not enough. Theyre using mortgage relief and still sitting with their hand out going, Hey, wheres rent? she said, her voice trembling with fear.

She said she turned to the two rental assistance programs where Murphy directed people, the Housing Choice Voucher and State Rental Assistance Program. But both programs are closed, which offer no help to Morris during this dire time.

Im doing everything Im supposed to do, and I go to the website he tells me, and its closed. Theres nowhere else to go  theres no help," she said.

The programs are operating for current voucher holders but waiting lists are closed, said Lisa Ryan, a spokeswoman for the Division of Community Affairs. Residents can go through an anonymous, 2-minute screening process through DCAid to see what other assistance programs are available to them.

Some federal money will be available for housing assistance after the passage of the CARES Act, but the department cannot provide any information for the time being, Ryan said.

Until then, Morris is left in the dark while continuously hitting dead ends, and is worried she will be homeless within months.

Its unfair. Its a big circle, its a big mess, and someone need to step in and help us before it gets the point we cant climb out. Stop it now, she said. Send us a lifeboat now, before we all start to drown.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

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Some residents in the Tamale Metropolis have expressed fear of a possible lockdown and its effects on business activities after the region confirmed 10 cases of COVID-19.



They expressed fear of the possible transmission of the disease by the 10 infected persons to other citizens, and called for effective contact tracing to identify more people on the line of the 10 cases.



The residents expressed these concerns to the Ghana News Agency in Tamale when the Agency sought their reactions on the 10 confirmed cases of COVID-19 recently recorded in the Northern Region.



They suggested among other things the deportation of the affected persons to their home country for treatment since all the 10 cases were foreign citizens.



They further called for the need to strengthen monitoring and closure of all major entry points into the region, and to Tamale in particular.



The Ghana Health Service (GHS) on its designated COVID-19 portal on Sunday, 29 March, 2020 confirmed 11 more cases of COVID-19, with 10 of the cases coming from Tamale, the capital of the Northern Region.



The 10 patients, who are from Guinea, travelled through Burkina Faso and Togo to Ghana, and were picked up from their hiding place following intelligence reports.



Mr Lukman Mahami Adams, Unemployed, express fear and panic, saying "I fear we might go under lockdown for long like kumasi and Accra. It can also claim lives of loved ones".



He said he has therefore resorted to practicing social distancing among others as part of the safety precautionary measures against the disease.



Ms Samira Adam, a student from University Development Studies, Nyankpala Campus said generally, the number of cases recorded in the country was overwhelming, and suggested mass screening and testing for the disease.



"A whole village can be affected if one person gets infected, considering the large numbers of households in the region, especially in the villages".



Mr Mohammed Nasir-Deen Chelpang Abdul-Razak, a Post-Graduate Student at KNUST, expressed worry at the situation saying, "I am afraid because majority of our citizens in Tamale have no formal education and are less informed about the whole COVID-19 issue".



He, however, said he had resolved to stay indoors and also adhere to the safety precautionary practices against the disease.



Mr Tuarik Alhassan, a Nutritionist expressed shock at the sudden recorded cases in the region. "I am worried for myself and others, because the movements in Tamale town does not seem there is anything happening, and to my thinking, community spread will be catastrophic" he added.



He advised residents to avoid handshakes, practice social distancing and proper hand washing as precautionary measures against the disease.

Source: GNA









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Outreach nurse Kenya Smith, right, leaves food for Davis Soto, who is homeless, last month in Los Angeles. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

There are nine confirmed cases of coronavirus among Los Angeles homeless population, said Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, at her Thursday media briefing.

This is up from five the day before and comes as the city and county attempt to more aggressively test in places like skid row. Ferrer said it was challenging to know exactly where in the county these homeless people had been, but so far there had been no clustering of cases.

She said there had been cases at two shelters but didnt reveal their names or locations.

The Times reported earlier this week that the first confirmed case on skid row came from an employee of the Union Rescue Mission who lived in the shelter.

If were able to, we quarantine at the shelter everybody whos been exposed. And sometimes, at a smaller shelter, that could mean were quarantining the entire facility, Ferrer said. But we also will go in and identify who are the people most vulnerable, who had an exposure, and we move those people to an isolated site for them to serve out their quarantine. 

Ferrer said public health staff quarantined 22 homeless people from a shelter in their own rooms at another facility. The city has scrambled to open shelter beds in shuttered community centers and rent motel beds where homeless individuals can live in isolation.

As the city has moved homeless people off the streets, county officials have been working to secure thousands of beds both for shelters and for isolation or quarantine.

The L.A. County Office of Emergency Management, which is responsible for providing space for patients to quarantine or isolate themselves, had 460 rooms ready this week  including 112 trailers at Dockweiler State Beach  and is preparing to open 442 more rooms.

Only 51 people were using them as of Tuesday. More will be used as more people are confirmed to have COVID-19 or possible exposure to the disease, the agencys director, Kevin McGowan, previously told The Times.
The Jawaharlal Nehru University on Thursday said that strict action will be taken against the violators of the coronavirus lockdown guidelines issued by the government and administration.

"Those who have been indulging in activities endangering health and safety of JNU campus residents are cautioned not to repeat such acts. Strict action will be taken against violators of the 21-day lockdown," the JNU registrar said.

The registrar added that a few students, who have been violating the lockdown guidelines, are being supported by some faculty members.

"A handful of Jawaharlal Nehru University students have been repeatedly seen violating the guidelines issued by the government and administration. These students have been directly and indirectly encouraged or supported by a few faculty members," the registrar said.

Earlier on Wednesday, JNU extended the application deadline for the varsity entrance examination in view of the coronavirus lockdown.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Newser)  Holdout Georgia has joined the list of states under stay-at-home orders, but a statement from Gov. Brian Kemp while announcing the restrictions is causing a stir as well. Kemp explained Wednesday that he just learned asymptomatic people with the coronavirus can spread the disease, reports the Hill. "We didn't know that until the last 24 hours," said Kemp. "And as Dr. Toomey told me, this is a game changer for us," he added, referring to state public health chief Kathleen Toomey. Kemp's acknowledgement has led to "shocked reactions" online, notes Newsweek, given that public health officials in the US and around the world have been warning for weeks that asymptomatic people are a particular danger when it comes to spreading COVID-19.

story continues below

"The idea that Kemp didn't know this is striking," writes Aaron Blake at the Washington Post. "But he's merely the latest top politician to indicate that he's unfamiliar with the science even as he's making life-or-death decisions for his constituents." Blake's piece notes that Dr. Anthony Fauci said as far back as Jan. 31 that asymptomatic people could "absolutely" spread the coronavirus, and Blake quotes public statements from Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx (both on the White House task force) to that effect in the ensuing weeks. (Studies abroad, like this one, back up the danger.) It's possible Kemp and officials in Georgia were reacting to comments from CDC chief Robert Redfield on NPR Monday, in which he estimated that 25% of infected people have no symptoms. "That's important," he said, because "we have learned that in fact they do contribute to transmission." (Read more Georgia stories.)
MBABANE  It seems government has changed tune in as far as allowing businesses to continue to operate is concerned.

While government announced last week that the partial lockdown did not mean all business should shut its doors, the Prime Minister (PM), Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini, has emphasised the importance of only allowing essential travel and essential business to operate. The PM made this statement yesterday during a press conference held in Cabinet amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus that has claimed many lives. Dlamini said they were cognisant of the massive economic impact that the partial lockdown would have on businesses. This decision was not taken lightly, said Dlamini. The premier informed the nation that they had been called upon to prioritise the health of the people at all times.

Succumb

No one will work in these businesses if emaSwati would succumb to this virus, said Dlamini. He stated that the lives of all emaSwati mattered and could not be compromised. We therefore plead for patience and understanding as we traverse together through this difficult path and challenging times for our economy and country, said Dlamini. The PM said the virus did not move itself but people moved it and therefore spread the risk of infecting others. The partial lockdown allows us to travel only for food supplies, medication and for the workers in essential services. All other travel remains strictly prohibited, said Dlamini.

The PM was asked by journalists to clarify the issue of how businesses would operate during the partial lockdown. He was particularly asked on what governments stance was regarding the partial lockdown in as far as business operations were concerned. An example was made of a hair dressing salon, which is not an essential service. In response, the PM said government was emphasising that only essential businesses should operate. What has been listed for example as essential are hospitals, pharmacies, shops and groceries including hardware shops which sell animal feed for chickens and fertilisers because agriculture is one of the industries or sectors which we have stated that they should continue, he said.

Hygiene

He emphasised though that they must continue practising good hygiene as directed by the Ministry of Health. However, the rest of the other businesses which you have listed such as the salons must be closed, said Dlamini. The PM said on the issue of the partial lockdown, they had stated that it was meant to ensure that the citizens did not contract the conoravirus at the same time. He said if there were many people who contracted it at a go, they would need to go to health facilities which would not be adequate to contain the situation. He said studies had been conducted that without implementation of the partial lockdown, the situation would have been bad as almost everyone would contract it at once.

Flatten

Hospitals and clinics would not have been able to contain this virus so the partial lockdown or lockdown means that we should flatten the curve because those who have already been treated of the virus then develop immunity to it, said Dlamini. He pleaded with the nation to understand that concept and not wonder why they were being made to stay at home. We are protecting them from not getting the virus at a go, said Dlamini. The PM said this was a virus that maybe in the next two or three years everyone would catch because it was a virus. He said it was further meant to protect the elderly and those with compromised immune systems. The PM said the past six days had been a period of many lessons with false starts and uncertainty in some instances as emaSwati adapted to a change of lifestyle never experienced before.
From delivering ration to



setting up vegetable shops, and making people understand the necessity of remaining indoors during lockdown, 70 lakh women members of six lakh Mission Shakti Self Help Groups are shouldering vital responsibilities across Odisha.

Their role has been acknowledged by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik who expressed his gratitude for their support during this critical time.

"I am heartened by the all-round response of women especially members of Mission Shakti Self Help Groups (SHGs) during this critical time, Patnaik said recently.

The women are devoting their time in generating awareness, supplying essential commodities to families, cooking meals for poor, and even making 50,000 masks every day, he said.

The Mission Shakti programme was started by Patnaik in 2001, a year after he assumed power in Odisha.

It has always played a vital role during any disaster or emergency situation, and has now become a movement in the state, the chief minister said.

The members work in rural and urban areas and once again the Mission Shakti members have risen to the occasion providing a vital link between the government and the community as leaders, partners in service delivery at the grass root level, said Sujata R Karthikeyan, the director of Mission Shakti.

From early March, the SHGs were assigned the responsibility of creating awareness on COVID-19 at the community level. They circulated pamphlets, mostly targeting women in rural and urban areas.

The Women Self Help Group (WSHG) members mostly concentrated on women those who have little knowledge on hygiene and sanitation, the official said.

They carried the chief ministers pledge of Stay Home, Stay Safe' at the doorsteps of people, who do not have access to newspapers and television channels.

The women also made the rural people understand in simple language that it is not impossible to defeat coronavirus if they stay home and break the transmission chain, Karthikeyan said.

Seeing the public demand for masks, nearly 400 SHGs are making 50,000 masks every day, the official said.

Our SHGs have sold nearly 6 lakh masks so far to agencies, institutions banks, police, village health workers. They are sold at a reasonable rate of Rs 15-20 per piece. Many SHGs have also taken this up as a philanthropic activity and distributed masks free of cost to those in need, Karthikeyan pointed out.

When the lockdown was announced and it was seen that supply of rations and vegetables may become an issue, the WSHG members stepped in to fill the gap.

Nearly 500 SHGs have set up dry ration, vegetables and fruit shops across the state with the help of the district administration, she said.

The WSHG members are also carrying out home delivery services for providing ration in many urban centres like Berhampur, Cuttack, Kendrapara and Koraput.

Meanwhile, the chief minister has entrusted the responsibility of managing free kitchens in every Gram Panchayat to the WSHGs.

This is not all. Some WSHGs and federations have voluntarily contributed from their group savings to the Chief Ministers Relief fund for the coronavirus pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON  Social Security beneficiaries will now automatically receive their coronavirus stimulus checks after a change made by the Trump administration late Wednesday night.

Lawmakers on Wednesday decried a policy enacted by the Internal Revenue Service earlier this week that would have required Social Security beneficiaries to file a simple tax return to receive the benefit although many of the beneficiaries  mostly seniors and the disabled  are not normally required to pay taxes.

Now, Social Security recipients will receive these payments as a direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their benefits.

U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-Schuylerville, whose district has one of the highest populations of seniors in the country, applauded the change Thursday.

"Thousands of seniors across my district do not file tax returns because their main source of income is Social Security," Stefanik said. "Im grateful to U.S. Treasury for reversing this policy, as filing tax returns is an often confusing and intensive process. Its important that North Country seniors know they will soon be receiving their stimulus checks during this challenging and unprecedented crisis.

The $1,200 payments will be automatically sent to most taxpayers in the next few weeks. But about 15 million Americans do not file taxes each year, according to IRS estimates.

The change made Wednesday ensures that a portion of those 15 million Americans will now get an automatic stimulus check like taxpayers. But chair of the House tax-writing committeee, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., said Wednesday night the administration still needs to do more.

Now, Treasury should build on this progress and make the same automatic payment to some veterans and those who receive Supplemental Security Income, Neal said. I urge the Trump Administration to make it easier for all individuals eligible for aid to access this new, vital support during the coronavirus pandemic.

Thirty-nine Democratic senators  including New York's Charles E. Schumer, the Senate Democratic Leader, and Kirsten Gillibrand  and two independents wrote to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Social Security Administration Andrew Commissioner on Wednesday urging them to resolve the situation.

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

We strongly urge you to ensure that economic stimulus payments are automatically sent to vulnerable seniors and individuals who experience disabilities, without these individuals needing to file a tax return, the senators wrote.

Thirty-three other House Democrats sent a similar letter to Mnuchin and IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig sent a similar letter Wednesday.

Normally, free in-person tax services funded by the federal government are available to assist low and moderate-income individuals, as well as seniors with their tax needs. But the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program had to cancel appointments in March and April due to the coronavirus.

The coronavirus payments are $1,200 for individuals making $75,000 or less a year, plus $500 per child. People making more than $75,000 will receive less, while people making over $99,000 a year will get nothing.
(Originally published on April 2, 2020)

With pretty much the entire Bay Area stuck at home right now, we thought: What better time for a jaunt down memory lane?

To that effect, we've collected the most memorable (and strange) local TV commercials we could still find on YouTube. What follows is a who's-who of local car dealerships, furniture stores (hi, kids!), and, of course, jewelry stores. We hope you enjoy this nostalgic journey  but don't blame us if you get a jingle stuck in your head for the duration of shelter in place.

Matthew's TV & Stereo

Top of the hill, Daly City! was a mainstay on Bay Area TV and radio ads in the 1980s. But did you forget Matthews Top of the Hill Daly Citys insane accompanying promo? They gave away a free 18-speed bicycle if you bought some of their pricier electronics. Assuming you needed a bike AND a TV at the same time seems like an odd combo. Matthews went out of business in the '90s.





Paul from the Diamond Center

Perhaps the Bay Areas most iconic pitchman, local TV was inescapably Pauls domain. He did gags, he dressed up as a pirate, he sold you diamonds even if you had credit problems in the past.

Paul estimated he made about 65 commercials in 27 years, and chances are, youve seen at least one of them.

Its kind of cool, but I dont feel like Im a celebrity.  Paul Copansky told The Chronicle in 2010. I think they see me as being real. And when you grow up with somebody, like so many people grew up with me, they dont forget.

Furniture U.S.A.

Furniture U.S.A.s Ed Barbara had the cadence of a livestock auctioneer, rattling off information about credit that was totally incomprehensible as a kid. If the only thing you now remember about Ed is his bye kid sign-off, we implore you to watch this absolutely mind-blowing episode of Unsolved Mysteries. Turns out Ed was a con-man who defrauded a whole bunch of people with a fake gold mine. Oh, and then he disappeared and was never seen again.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

If youve lived in the Bay Area for any amount of time, you dont even have to press play to already hear the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk jingle in your head. Its a remarkable, if deeply annoying, piece of work, forcing generations of Californians to instinctively add the word beach when saying simply Santa Cruz boardwalk would do.

Marine World Africa USA

An exact generational cut-off can be found between Bay Area kids who grew up with Marine World and kids who grew up with Six Flags. Back in my day, Marine World had actual animals, we older millennials say, before quickly admitting that those poor animals are probably much better off not performing circus tricks for school kids multiple times a day.

Mr. Chaus

Get the hell outta here, Panda Express. Mr. Chaus was the real Chinese fast food. Enjoy the 90s health trend of switching to all-white-meat chicken breasts, stay for the crushing memory of once being able to buy a combo plate for under $5.

Wet Pets

The larger world was introduced to Wet Pets on a segment on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," bringing the strange joy of this absolute banger to the masses. The husband of one SFGATE staffer, who worked at the San Pablo store at the time of filming, said employees had no idea it was going to turn into an animal-forward rap. But apparently the company hired to make the spot went a little wild with it ... and the rest is history.

Bits and Pieces

Not a commercial, but too iconic to skip: KTVUs Bits and Pieces PSAs. Featuring the puppets Charley and Humphrey, they taught kids little one-minute lessons. This one is about borrowing without asking  a PSA that should probably be put back on the air today. (Sidenote: We also love this KTVU "Bay Area people" promo, perhaps the catchiest TV station song of all time.)

Aqua Fresh Sea Food

Eat more fish, be healthy is a pretty great tagline for an ad that shows fried item after fried item. But if you remember this ad, its probably because of the .... and bread tacked on to the end of every order description. Unlike most of the spots in this list, this ones still open!

Cal Worthington

Although technically a Southern California pitchman, we had to include Cal Worthington, whose car dealership ads put Joe Exotic to shame. Tigers! Pigs! Orcas! They all wanted you to go see Cal (and no, were not sorry if that song is now stuck in your head).

The Saw Mill

Its only now that you start to realize so many commercials in the 80s were for furniture stores. The Saw Mills gimmick was Marty Sherman on his horse George, inpractically prancing around in a field full of random furniture. The small local chain went out of business in the early 2000s.

The dogs of KOFY TV

Does your brain need a relaxation break from lifes persistent anxieties? Just put on this montage of KOFY promos, each featuring a random Bay Area dog staring joyfully into the camera. Except for Goober. Poor, poor Goober.
The police nabbed 15 persons of a



family, who were stamped for home quarantine, at Wadgaon checkpost on Pune-Mumbai Highway amid the COVID-19 lockdown, police said on Thursday.

The Wadgaon-Maval police intercepted the vehicle on Wednesday morning after noticing home-quarantine stamps on the occupants, assistant sub-inspector Vishwas Ambekar said.

The Mumbai-based family, along with the driver, has now been sent for institutional qurantine at Wadgaon, he said, adding that a case was registered against the driver under the Indian Penal Code and the Epidemic Act.

"The family is from Andheri and had gone to attend a funeral at a village in Osmanabad district. On March 31, the local administration had stamped them and instructed them to remain under home quarantine there," the official said.

However, they violated the instructions and started their return journey to Mumbai, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The former business consultant was released by Tehran more than a year ago, but was unable to return to his family.

Kamal Foroughi, an 80-year-old man with dual Iranian-British nationality, has returned to the United Kingdom nine years after being arrested in Iran on spying charges, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office said in a statement.

Foroughi, who was working as a business consultant when he was arrested, was released from detention in Tehran in late 2018. But he was unable to return to his family in the UK as he waited for his Iranian passport to be renewed.

I am pleased and very relieved that Kamal Foroughi has been able to return to the UK and be reunited with his family, said Dominic Raab, the UKs foreign secretary.

I pay tribute to Kamal and his family, who have been through a terrible ordeal, and now have the opportunity to rebuild their life together.





Between his arrest in 2011 and his court date nearly two years later, Foroughi was held mostly in solitary confinement. He was held in Tehrans notorious Evin prison, and for several years received no family or humanitarian visitors.

Rights groups also celebrated Foroughis return.

Its long, long overdue but this is marvellous news, said Kate Allen, Amnesty International UKs director.

Were delighted for Kamal and his son Kamran, who has fought a long and incredibly difficult campaign to get his father out of jail and safely back to the UK.

Like so many other people in Iran, not least several dual-nationals, Mr Foroughi had a blatantly unfair trial and should never have been in jail at all, never mind for all those years.

We extend our best wishes to the Foroughi family and we now hope, of course, that other Britons like Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe are similarly released from their unjust prison sentences in Iran and allowed to reunite with their families here in the UK.
"We don't have gloves, masks, anything," says one of the medical team at southeastern Romania's Ramnicu Sarat hospital, one of those designated to treat COVID-19 patients.

"Everything is done on the cheap," protests the staff member, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

It's a complaint echoed in other parts of the country, where doctors and nurses have begun speaking out about what they say are life-threatening shortcomings in the fight against the new coronavirus.

Feeling ill-equipped and scared, some have taken to social media or public TV to voice their concerns; dozens staged protests in the grounds of two hospitals.

Several felt so strongly that they resigned, leaving an already struggling healthcare system in one of the European Union's poorest countries even more vulnerable.

"Nobody instructed us so we're encouraged to learn from videos," the Ramnicu Sarat medical staff member told AFP.

"We were promised equipment, but when will it arrive?"

The hospital has been placed on a long list of "support units" selected to receive patients who have tested positive for COVID-19.

But the move has sparked fear among local residents that the virus could spread in the area and an online petition has been launched.

'Lack of trust'

Since 2007 when Romania joined the EU, more than 14,000 healthcare workers have emigrated in search of better pay and conditions abroad.

On Monday alone, 10 nurses and one intensive care unit (ICU) medic from central Hunedoara county quit, blaming a chronic lack of basic medical equipment such as surgical masks and gloves.

A day later, the nursesbut not the doctorwere persuaded by officials to change their minds and go back to work.

"We have two medical gowns for 12 employees...," the doctor, Lorena Ehim, told local media, adding they were being forced to face the virus and risk their health "with bare hands".

At a hospital in the western city of Timisoara, 13 medical staffers resigned on Tuesday, according to local media.

"I can understand my colleagues who step down, but I don't encourage resignation," Gheorghe Borcean, president of Romania's medical association, told AFP.

"Even more than fear (of infection), there is a lack of trust in the medical system," he said.

Romania, as of Wednesday, had confirmed more than 2,450 cases of COVID-19about 300 of them medical workersand 86 deaths.

The government has promised to get more protective gear for medical staff.

It also considered banning resignations but decided against, fearing such a move would fuel more resentment.

"We're looking at you with hope. The coming days will be even tougher, but we'll do our best to give you protective gear," President Klaus Iohannis told medical staff on Tuesday in a press statement.

Hospital as hotspot

Doctors are also critical of the state of ICU units, which risk being overwhelmed soon in a country of 19 million people, with the outbreak expected to peak in the middle of this month.

On paper, Romania has 5,111 ICU beds, but fewer than half of those are equipped with a ventilator, according to Health Minister Nelu Tataru.

For the past three decades, the system has been plagued by widespread corruption and a lack of investment.

Romania spends just over five percent of its gross domestic product on health care, the lowest ratio in the EU, according to Eurostat data.

Sfantul Ioan Emergency Hospital in the northeastern city of Suceava has become the centre of the country's coronavirus outbreak.

The hospital was forced to close after dozens of staff members became infected.

Prosecutors have opened an investigation on suspicions that "measures taken to prevent and limit the spread of the novel coronavirus weren't respected".

But Sfantul Ioan hospital doctor Mircea Dinu Bordiniuc said on RFI Romania radio that not all medical personnel were tested.

"It's an error of public health to ask medical personnel, who should have been in isolation, to go to work," he said.

Suceava and its surrounding region, close to the Ukrainian border, has seen around 400 coronavirus cases, half of which involve doctors and nurses.

Some 30 people infected with the virus have died.

The city of 100,000 inhabitants includes many emigrants who recently returned from Italy or France, contributing to the virus' spread, and was placed in quarantine earlier this week.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2020 AFP
Of the 22 persons including



seven foreign nationals, who came to Odisha after attending the congregation at Nizamuddin in Delhi, 17 have tested negative for COVID-19 and all are quarantined in the state, an official said on Thursday.

Among the returnees from Tablighi Jamaat congregation, so far samples of 17 persons tested negative, said Subroto Bagchi, Odisha Government spokesperson on COVID-19.

As per reports available so far, 22 persons including 7 foreign nationals linked to Nizamuddin event have been traced in Odisha, an official in states Health and Family Welfare Department said, adding that all are now in the government quarantine facility.

While the state government still does not have a clear idea about the number of people who went from Odisha to the religious congregation at Nizamuddin, a senior police officer said at least 37 people including seven from abroad have so far been traced having links with the Delhi event.

"So far till Thursday noon, we have traced 37 persons including seven from abroad, who attended the event at Nizamuddin," the senior police officer told PTI, adding that the seven foreign nations comprise six from Sudan and one from Djibouti.

He said while 22 persons are quarantined in Odisha, 15 others have been kept under observation in Delhi.

The officer said the state government has engaged personnel in tracing all the people who attended the event at Nizamuddin, a COVID-19 hotspot in Delhi.

Meanwhile, Khurda District Collector S K Rout said that 13 persons from the district took part in the religious congregation in Nizamuddin. Of the 13 persons, seven are from Jatni and three each from Tangi and Khurda, the collector said.

"Nine of them are now kept at a quarantine centre in New Delhi and one at a hospital at Kishanganj in Bihar while the remaining three persons, who have returned to Khurda, have been admitted to hospital isolation ward. Their blood and swab samples were sent to AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, on Wednesday for the COVID-19 test," the collector said.

Jajpur district administration on Thursday said that it had traced two more persons from the district who had attended the event at Nizamuddin in Delhi.

Jajpur district collector R K Das said while they had on Wednesday traced one man from Binjharpur block to have visited the religious congregation in Delhi, the administration on Thursday located two others, one from Brahmabarada and another from Rasulpur - who have visited the religious event.

"The blood and swab samples of these two persons and their families will be sent for medical tests" the collector added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Consti Yhtiot Oyj (HEL:CONSTI) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. Ex-dividend means that investors that purchase the stock on or after the 7th of April will not receive this dividend, which will be paid on the 17th of April.

Consti Yhtiot Oyj's upcoming dividend is 0.16 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of 0.16 per share to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Consti Yhtiot Oyj stock has a trailing yield of around 2.5% on the current share price of 6.42. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! So we need to investigate whether Consti Yhtiot Oyj can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

See our latest analysis for Consti Yhtiot Oyj

Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. Consti Yhtiot Oyj paid out more than half (53%) of its earnings last year, which is a regular payout ratio for most companies.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

HLSE:CONSTI Historical Dividend Yield April 2nd 2020

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

When earnings decline, dividend companies become much harder to analyse and own safely. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. Consti Yhtiot Oyj's earnings per share have fallen at approximately 8.7% a year over the previous five years. Such a sharp decline casts doubt on the future sustainability of the dividend.

We'd also point out that Consti Yhtiot Oyj issued a meaningful number of new shares in the past year. Trying to grow the dividend while issuing large amounts of new shares reminds us of the ancient Greek tale of Sisyphus - perpetually pushing a boulder uphill.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Consti Yhtiot Oyj's dividend payments per share have declined at 20% per year on average over the past four years, which is uninspiring. While it's not great that earnings and dividends per share have fallen in recent years, we're encouraged by the fact that management has trimmed the dividend rather than risk over-committing the company in a risky attempt to maintain yields to shareholders.

Story continues

The Bottom Line

Is Consti Yhtiot Oyj worth buying for its dividend? We're not overly enthused to see Consti Yhtiot Oyj's earnings in retreat at the same time as the company is paying out more than half of its earnings as dividends to shareholders. We're unconvinced on the company's merits, and think there might be better opportunities out there.

With that being said, if dividends aren't your biggest concern with Consti Yhtiot Oyj, you should know about the other risks facing this business. Be aware that Consti Yhtiot Oyj is showing 4 warning signs in our investment analysis, and 1 of those shouldn't be ignored...

If you're in the market for dividend stocks, we recommend checking our list of top dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
Minority-Owned Media Not Forgotten in Stimulus Legislation

African American-owned media companies and small businesses are included in the massive $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill passed by the U.S. Senate.

Yes, this does include minority-owned media. They are included as small businesses, a top-ranking Senate source told NNPA Newswire.

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A closer read of the 888-page legislation reveals that $10 million has been allocated for minority business centers for technical assistance.

Another $10 million has been designated for the Minority Business Development Agency within the Department of Commerce to provide grants to Minority Business Centers and Minority Chambers of Commerce to provide counseling, training, and education on federal resources and business response to the COVID-19 for small businesses.

In response to COVID-19, the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), a trade organization of the nations African American-owned newspapers and media companies, established a Coronavirus Task Force and Resource Center to assist the Black community through the pandemic.

The task force and resource center appears to meet the criteria for federal assistance through the stimulus bill, the Senate source added.

The legislation also eliminates the Minority Business Center programs non-federal match requirement for three months.

It allows for centers to waive fee-for-service requirements through September 2021.

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All of us had to come together to agree on bipartisan legislation to send an infusion of desperately needed resources to our public health systems, state, local, and tribal governments, small businesses, and American workers, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) stated.

Our nation is no stranger to adversity. But during difficult times, our nation comes together to help and support each other, Schumer added.

Democrats are ready to give our unanimous consent to speed up the consideration of the bill and get the job done. Lets get it done for Americas workers.
Local Physician Urges More Vigilance During Public Health Crisis

As African Americans are largest group of sufferers of chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease and kidney disease, Dr. Cozzette Lyons-Jones, president-elect of the Association of Black Women Physicians is urging them to be more vigilant during the COVID-19 crisis. She has noticed, she said, the complacency among community members in regards to the pandemic. But complacency is dangerous, said Jones and can cost many lives.

It saddens me to think of the vulnerable position [complacency] puts black and brown men, women and children in when they do not understand the vital need to adhere to preventative measures to mitigate the spread of this disease, Lyons-Jones said.

We are the population described as high risk  Its not just about traveling abroad to hot spots or being over the age of 60, but the baseline poor health of African Americans is the kink in the armor of invulnerability in our community.

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Currently in L.A. County there are over 2400 cases of the virus and 44 people have died. There is no current vaccine against the disease, though Johnson & Johnson said they could have one ready early next year. The only prevention right now is through rigorous hand washing, social distancing and isolation.

The losses will be devastating, said Lyons-Jones, if people do not comply.

Even worse, given the fact that medical equipment such as ventilators are at a premium, we are at risk of rising deaths due to barriers to accessing quality and culturally unbiased health care

Early on, Jones said that medical personnel were rationing test kits.

And, who is likely not to get tested, she pointed.

So, thats my concern is that [just because] we dont see the numbers being projected in the news doesnt mean its not in our community, were just not getting tested. 

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Social isolation and social distancing are very important, Lyons-Jones reiterated.

In the face of the resources that we have, youre looking at the capacity of the health care community to absorb the number of cases that are going to require those resources that are available., she said.

Meanwhile, lawmakers in Washington are urging the Department of Health to collect and analyze data that would tell how the disease is being addressed along racial and ethnic lines. Currently, no such data exists, they said.

Without demographic data, policy makers and researchers will have no way to identify and address ongoing disparities and health inequities that risk accelerating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, lawmakers including senators Kamala Harris and Cory Booker said via a letter to the Department.

Other socioeconomic factors may exacerbate racial disparities in COVID-19 outcomes. Low-income people are more likely to have many of the chronic health conditions that experts have identified as risk factors for complications from COVID-19, and people of color are more likely to fall below the poverty line, work in low-wage jobs, and have fewer financial resources to draw upon in times of emergency. Additionally, unemployment, food insecurity and unstable or substandard housing conditions may further perpetuate disparities in health outcomes for people infected by the coronavirus, especially in low-income communities of color. A history of discrimination and marginalization has also left some people of color distrustful of the medical system, making them less likely to seek out timely care. These factors may all combine to accelerate the effects of the outbreak in the most vulnerable communities.

Any attempt to contain COVID-19 in the United States will have to address its potential spread in low-income communities of color, first and foremost to protect the lives of people in those communities, but also to slow the spread of the virus in the country as a whole, wrote the lawmakers.
The border fence between the United States and Mexico just east of Sasabe, Arizona, on Dec. 7, 2018. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

US to Build 400 to 450 Miles of Border Protections by End of 2020: DHS Chief

Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said the United States is still on schedule to build between 400 and 450 miles of the new border wall or border capability by the end of 2020.

During a White House press conference with President Donald Trump on April 1, Wolf said his agency is building miles of the wall every day despite the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, pandemic. Reports have stated that Homeland Security, which oversees the Customs and Border Protection agency, is persisting in building the wall.

Were up to over 150 miles of wall built along the southern border, he said during a news conference. Were continuing to build new miles of wall. And a lot of folks ask about replacement wall or new miles? Its a new capability on the southwest border that we havent had before.

Wolf said that the border wall allows Border Patrol agents to focus elsewhere on parts of the border that are very difficult to patrol, so we can use our resources in a different way.

The wall includes not only the physical infrastructure but the cameras, the roads, the lightings, the fiber optic cables. The agency is on the mark to meet 400, 450 miles by the end of the calendar year.

During the news conference, Trump said that 161 miles of the border wall have been constructed so far.

President Donald Trump speaks during the daily briefing on the CCP virus in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House on April 1, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Nobody has seen anything like it. Thats how good it works. And the other side knew it worked that well, Trump said, referring to Democrats. Everybody, because everybody was for it five years ago. All of a sudden, they changed.

A spokesperson for the Border Patrol told The Washington Times earlier this week that wall construction remains on track to meet the target set by the White House, echoing Wolfs prediction.

We have completed 142 miles of new border wall system, and we have another 197 miles under construction. In addition, there are 414 miles in the pre-construction phase. We remain confident we will have 450 miles completed by the end of 2020, spokesman Rusty Payne told the paper.

Trump said the wall could have an impact on stemming the spread of the CCP virus, which causes the disease COVID-19, inside the United States.

Now we have got to focus on drugs and the drugs come in from different methods, and we have the best people at sea anywhere in the world, so we will have a tremendous impact on drugs, Trump said. But one of the other things we will also have an impact, we think, on the coronavirus.

Some activists supporting immigrant rights, however, said that the wall construction is a distraction amid the pandemic or could even, in some cases, facilitate the spread of the CCP virus.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said virus shutdown orders dont apply because his agency is engaged in essential national security work.

In the border communities we represent, these extraordinary actions by the federal government are quite literally endangering the lives of border residents, said Tricia Cortez, executive director of the Rio Grande International Study Center, according to The Washington Times.
Shameless alum Emmy Rossum took a break from quarantine for a hand-in-hand stroll with her second husband, Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail, and their two dogs while wearing disposable gloves in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

As of Thursday, there have been 3,528 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles with 66 deaths, and California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a stay-at-home order on March 19 to slow the spread.

The 33-year-old Golden Globe nominee and the 42-year-old Emmy nominee began dating in 2013 after he directed her in the alternate universe-hopping rom-com Comet, and they'll celebrate their third wedding anniversary on May 28.

Break from quarantine: Shameless alum Emmy Rossum took a hand-in-hand stroll with her second husband, Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail, and their two dogs while wearing disposable gloves in Los Angeles on Wednesday

Big smile: The 33-year-old Golden Globe nominee and the 42-year-old Emmy nominee will celebrate their third wedding anniversary on May 28

'The world is truly upside down. I just got out of bed [at 7am], like a normal person, made coffee, [and] questioned my existence,' Rossum - who boasts 5.6M social media followers - said via Instastory on Thursday.

'My husband got out of bed [at 7:02am] and was like, "Should I hop on the treadmill real quick?" What? Said him never!'

Emmy (born Emmanuelle) also remarked on Wednesday how 'every day feels the same now' and how 'overwhelming' it feels now that the coronavirus has taken over every aspect of life.

The brunette New Yorker and Esmail were last seen producing and filming Peacock's limited four-part miniseries Angelyne on March 12 just as productions shut down worldwide from the global pandemic.

Rossum said on Thursday: 'The world is truly upside down. I just got out of bed [at 7am], like a normal person, made coffee, [and] questioned my existence. My husband got out of bed [at 7:02am] and was like, "Should I hop on the treadmill real quick?" What? Said him never!'

'It comes in waves': Emmy also remarked on Wednesday how 'every day feels the same now' and how 'overwhelming' it feels now that the coronavirus has taken over every aspect of life

Due out July 15: The brunette New Yorker and Esmail were last seen producing and filming Peacock's limited four-part miniseries Angelyne on March 12 just as productions shut down worldwide from the global pandemic

But the real Angelyne - who scored an alleged $1M contract to produce her biopic - is now saying it's 'fictionalized to the hilt' and 'completely untrue.'

'I don't think they want me to see it, and beyond that I don't want to see it,' the Polish-born, West Hollywood-raised 69-year-old exclusively told DailyMail.com on March 25.

'I just spoke to them about the way they portrayed me visually, because [Emmy] looks nothing like me at all. She's tall, she's skinny, it's prosthetics. God bless her, she's going to do the best she can. But I've spoken to them about that, they're trying to make it look a little bit better.

'But nobody's going to look like me. There's only one Marilyn, there's only one Elvis, there's only one Michael Jackson, and there's only one Angelyne. People can try to emulate but really there's only one.'

Ominous: But the real Angelyne - who scored an alleged $1M contract to produce her biopic - is now saying it's 'fictionalized to the hilt' and 'completely untrue' (pictured in 1987)

The Polish-born, West Hollywood-raised 69-year-old (R) told DailyMail.com on March 25: 'I just spoke to them about the way they portrayed me visually, because [Emmy] looks nothing like me at all. She's tall, she's skinny, it's prosthetics' (pictured February 19)

'It prompted me to have to defend who I am': The Hollywood 'billboard queen' (born Ronia Goldberg) is 'almost finished' with her own documentary to set the record straight

Angelyne is based on THR reporter Gary Baum's 2017 expose which uncovered the true identity of the 2003 California gubernatorial candidate, whose parents survived the Holocaust.

Lucy Tcherniak is directing the series, which will stream on Peacock after it launches April 15 on Comcast/Xfinity and July 15 to the general public.

The Universal Content Productions series also reportedly features Martin Freeman, Charlie Rowe, Alex Karpovsky, Jefferson Hall, Charlie Rowe, Lukas Gage, Michael Angarano and Molly Ephraim.

The Hollywood 'billboard queen' (born Ronia Goldberg) is 'almost finished' with her own documentary to set the record straight.

'Theirs is fictionalized to the hilt, it's completely untrue,' Angelyne noted. 'It prompted me to have to defend who I am and show who I really am. It kind of lit a fire under my little butt.'
Prime Minister Imran Khan Thursday hoped that Pakistan would overcome the COVID-19 threat on its own if its spread was contained, as the number of cases in the country showed an upward trend despite efforts to contain the disease that has infected nearly 2,400 people.

"The trajectory of coronavirus in Pakistan is not like that has been witnessed in other countries. I am confident Pakistan will able to overcome this problem, Khan said while addressing a ceremony in connection with the distribution of Rs 100 billion rupees tax refunds amongst the businessmen.

Khan said that his government has decided to open up the construction industry and give it the necessary incentives in order to provide job opportunities to the people. He said the commerce ministry has also framed a list of industries which can be opened in the current situation.

Meanwhile, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Pakistan rose to 2,378. Punjab province was emerging as the epicentre of the outbreak with 922 confirmed coronavirus cases followed by Sindh with 761. So far 32 people have died and 107 recovered. Nine patients are in critical condition.

Authorities have placed the entire city of Raiwind under quarantine and completely restricted the mobility of people within or outside the city after at least 40 Tablighi Jamaat preachers tested positive, officials said.

Similarly, some 50 members of the Jamaat, including five Nigerian women, suspected to be carriers of coronavirus, are admitted to a quarantine centre in Kasur, some 50 kms from Lahore. In Hyderabad city of Sindh province, 38 coronavirus cases of local transmission among members of the Tablighi Jamaat were reported on Thursday.

There are reports that the Sindh and Punjab police have picked some members of the Jamaat from the mosques and its Raiwind Markaz (headquarters of the Pakistani faction of Jamaat) for violating the lockdown.

According to the government, the Jamaat went ahead with its annual congregation in Raiwind, Lahore in March against its advice that the gathering might spread the virus.

On Thursday, Khan also chaired a meeting of the National Coordination Committee which reviewed situation in the country, according to a statement by Khan's office.

The Prime Minister said that it was vital that exact data should be gathered and shared with the people.

After the meeting, Advisor on Health Dr Zafar Mirza told the media that it was decided to invite ideas from public to deal with different problems and take long term decisions.

Meanwhile, Balochistan Chief Minister Jamal Kamal Khan said that 6,000 to 8,000 pilgrims were still in Iran and the federal government will decide about their return.

The Army on Wednesday announced that Commander of Army's Air Defence Command, Lt Gen Hamood Uz Zaman Khan, has been appointed as the convener of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).

The NCOC would act as the implementation arm of the National Core Committee (NCC), the government's lead agency in the anti-COVID-19 campaign, chaired by Prime Minister Khan and represented by all provinces, Gilgit-Baltistian and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The NCOC, formed to take unanimous decision on all issues related to the coronavirus, has become operational.

Pakistan researchers were also making efforts to understand the virus genome and a team led by Dow University of Health Sciences Vice Chancellor Professor Mohammad Saeed Quraishy reported that the genetic make-up of the novel coronavirus may alter in a locally-transmitted case.

According to a report in media, the researcher while examining the DNA structure of the virus contracted locally by a young boy observed that the sequencing had slight mutations from the one that originated in Wuhan.

Separately, Minister for Science Fawad Chaudhry said that Pakistan was one of few countries trying to understand the genome sequence and also working on the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Pakistan government has also announced a social protection package to provide monetary help to 12 million poor families in the country.

Prime Minister Khan's Special Assistant on Poverty Alleviation Sania Nishtar on Wednesday said that the government is making efforts to reach out to the vulnerable and marginalised people during the time of crisis.

The government is also working to provide cash to poor families on an emergency basis.

Emergency cash initiative in response to COVID-19, the largest-ever social protection initiative in the history of Pakistan. 12 million families (72 million individuals) will receive Rs 12,000 each. Total cost Rs 144 Billion (USD 18.8 billion), she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ethiopia has postponed its parliamentary elections scheduled for August due to the coronavirus outbreak, the electoral commission said on Tuesday.

Due to the pandemic we were forced to suspend our activities, said an Amharic-language statement from the National Electoral Commission.

Ethiopia has as of April 1, confirmed 29 coronavirus cases. Infections have so far been recorded in the capital Addis Ababa, and in the Oromia and Amhara regional states.

The federal government led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed closed all land borders even as the national carrier continues very scaled down operations of passenger flights concentrating more on freight. Aside shutting land borders, a series of enforcement measures were announced relating to regulations on large gatherings and social distancing. Transport has also been banned in most parts of the country.

Prime Minister Abiy, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year, believes the election will give him a mandate for wide-ranging political and economic reforms.

He was appointed prime minister in 2018 after several years of anti-government protests.

He rose through the ranks of the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) ruling coalition, which dominated parliament and allowed only one competitive election after it took power in the early 1990s, which was in 2005.

Abiy has promised to hold free and fair elections and has been positioning himself as a unity candidate whose reforms could replace repression as the glue holding Ethiopias often fractious federal regions together.
Within a three-mile radius from a wild animal market identified as the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chinese government researchers carried out scientific work and isolated more than 2,000 new viruses including deadly bat coronaviruses.

In recent months, Chinese state media outlets applauded the virus research by Tian Junhua, the leader in bat virus work and a key researcher in Wuhan.

While its origin remains to be a mystery and infecting hundreds of thousands of people globally, the coronavirus strain is believed to have infected animals and people at a wild animal market in Wuhan.

Information about the extensive Chinese research on bat viruses fueled more calls for Beijing to make the research publicly accessible.

Texas Republican and ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Michael T. McCaul claims that China should be held accountable for the pandemic and for orchestrating one of the worst cover-ups in human history.

Read also: Blood Plasma From COVID-19 Survivors Can Be Used to Fight Infection



Funded by the Chinese government, a video of Mr. Tian inside the caves in Hubei province taking samples from captured bats while storing them in vials circulated online in December.

Stating the importance of his work, Mr. Tian pointed out that even if he is not a doctor he works to cure and save people, and even he is not a soldier he works to safeguard an invisible national defense line.

Exploring the Bat Habitats

Within the area of the national center of bat virus research of China, Wuhan's Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market is the place where the virus most likely spread from wild animals to people as stated by Chinese Officials.

After a harsh crackdown on travel and street activity imposed in late January, Wuhan is currently stirring back to life as the city's bus, train systems, and subway started to run again over the weekend. Shops in the downtown areas were operating with restrictions on Monday with the small number of customers.

Despite the connection of the wild animal markets to the pandemic, British news accounts reported that over the weekend some stalls of wet wild animal markets reopened and continued slaughtering small animals at the site. They also resumed questionable selling of bats and scorpions once again.

Despite the exploration done, Chinese officials refused to give out samples of its coronavirus strains to U.S. researchers shortly after the outbreak became public and closed Wuhan's doors for international disease specialists for weeks.

Working with the Bats

The seven-minute Chinese film, "Youth in the Wild -Invisible Defender" records researchers engaged in casual handling of bats containing deadly virus boasts that China has taken the lead in worldwide virus research after uncovering more than 2,000 viruses in the last 12 years, the span since the outbreak of the bat-origin virus that caused severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).

The culprit of the current pandemic is SARS-CoV-2 which is also can be traced from bats.

In the past 200 years, researchers found an estimated 2,284 types of viruses prior to China's discoveries.

Revealed by Chinese media outlets, Mr. Tian once failed to wear protective gear during an exploration resulting to contact with bat urine and to avoid contracting a disease, Tian self-quarantined for 14 days, the same time frame for persons exposed to the new COVID-19 strain.

Related article: Coronavirus Second Wave? Chinese Markets Sell Bats After COVID-19 Cases Turn Zero

@ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Bangalore based online furniture rental and home decor services providing company Furlenco has wrapped up $10 million (about Rs 76.4 crore) debt and equity financing round that was conducted by the companys existing cohort of investors.

Venture capital firms such asLightbox, and Dabur scion were seen in this round of debt and equity financing. Where SaketBurmanhas invested through his personal investment arm and Chowdry Associates put in equity financing. In addition, a host of ultra-high-net-worth individuals including Kris Gopalakrishnan, former chief executive of Infosys, and GauthamRadhakrishnan, a former partner with private equity firm Tata Capital, have provided debt financing through the issuance of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) by the company.

Apart from VCs Bollywood superstar like Aamir Khan is also an existing investor in Furlenco. He has participated in the latest round which is an equal split between debt and equity capital, and the process for which kickstarted in November last year.

Taking note of the occasion, Karimpana expresses his views, Furlenco is already operationally profitable and this round will further help us progress on our goal of becoming fully profitable in the next 12 to 18 months. The funding round values Furlenco at $125 million.While the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has definitely impacted all of us, Furlencos subscription business model with monthly recurring revenue allows us to be a lot more resilient than many of the other startups who are seeing their monthly revenues plummet significantly.
Air India on Thursday temporarily suspended the contracts of around 200 pilots, who were re-employed after retirement for all the domestic and international commercial passenger flights have been suspended in the country till April 14 to limit the COVID-19 pandemic, an official said.

Wikipedia

Since almost all the planes have been grounded and the carriers revenues have taken a significant fall during the last few weeks, the airline has decided to temporarily suspend the contract of around 200 pilots who were re-employed after their retirement. said the official



The national carrier has already cut the allowances of all employees, except cabin crew, by 10 per cent for the next three months in order to save money amid the coronavirus pandemic, According to Economic times.

Pixabay

Previously Air India brought back 263 students from Rome in their Boeing 777 ER aircraft which landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi. Besides this, they sent a flight to Milan last week to evacuate 230 stranded Indian nationals, to make sure they get back home safely.




Dillon and Joe Photo: Netflix

The prison where Tiger King subject Joe Exotic is currently being held has put him on COVID-19 isolation because in the previous jail he was at, there were cases, according to Exotics fourth husband, Dillon Passage. Passage doesnt explicitly state that Exotic has tested positive. The 24-year-old bartender was interviewed from his home in Florida today by Andy Cohen for his SiriusXM series Andy Cohen Live, and Passage used the opportunity to answer questions about his and Exotics marriage and his thoughts on the Netflix docuseries.

While Exotic has not been able to watch the series from his prison quarantine, Passage says that Exotic has been ecstatic about fan reactions, and that once this show dropped, he was getting hundreds and hundreds of emails to his jail mail. Passage affirmed to Andy that I do love Joe, and that he has no intention of leaving his husband. Im not just gonna dip out and abandon him when he needs me most. Passage also says that he maintains a good relationship with Tiger Kings producers, and describes how the show was supposed to be about the big cat underworld, but then Joe got arrested and it completely changed the whole dynamic. The arrest for attempted murder-for-hire and wildlife violations was mind-blowing to Passage, who says that, All I wanted to do was stay at home and take care of my animals. Thats what I thought I was gonna do for the rest of my life.

And for anyone whos wondering: Passage describes Exotic as a power vers and tells Andy that no, there were never tigers in the room when he and Exotic had sex. The Prince Albert padlock also stays off in bed. The full interview is available on YouTube.
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden has been helping to pack meal boxes for vulnerable citizens, amid criticism of the country's less restrictive approach to tackling coronavirus.

The Swedish royal, 42, has stepped up charitable initiatives in recent week, including a visit to the association Stockholms Stadsmission, who create meal boxes for the homeless and vulnerable.

Many of their regular volunteers have decided to stay at home to protect themselves, with COVID-19 cases in Sweden roughly estimated to be around 5,000, and deaths around 230.

While most Europe nations have put their populations under complete or partial lockdowns to fight the spread of the coronavirus, Sweden has taken a different approach, with many businesses, cafes and restaurants as well as primary schools remaining open.

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, 42, has stepped up charitable initiatives in recent week, including a visit to the association Stockholms Stadsmission, who create meal boxes for the homeless and vulnerable.

The heir to the Swedish throne rolled up her sleeves and donned disposable gloves to help prepare and pack meal boxes in the kitchen

'Yesterday the Crown Princess visited @stockholmsstadsmission at Mariatorget on Sodermalm,' the Swedish royal family wrote on Instagram.

'Many of the City Mission's volunteers are older and themselves at risk and therefore cannot help the business right now. The Crown Princess therefore went to the Stockholm Stadsmission yesterday to help make food boxes for people in homelessness and vulnerability.'

'The royal family is keen to show their support for the efforts made in various parts of society to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

'Through conversations, digital meetings and visits, the King family informs about how the pandemic affects Sweden. Visits are planned on the basis of current recommendations and with an effort not to unnecessarily use the time and resources of the operations,' the post went on.

The Crown Princess got stuck in as she dished up rice into meal boxes, during the visit to the charity, which is short of volunteers because many of its regulars are self-isolating

Princess Victoria slid notes written by her husband Prince Daniel and herself in the bags full of food

The royal, who seemed in her element cooking rice and chatting with the other volunteers while cooking, also said anyone could help.

'I feel like so many others in this community who would like to help, and it makes me feel good to be with you here today,' she said.

'It is important that those of use who can, contribute and help any way they can. Together we can make the difference,' she said at the charity, as reported by the court.

The meals were either picked up by people at the charity of delivered. They all contained a small card with a message written by Princess Victoria and her husband Prince Daniel, with whom she shares two children.

The couple yesterday shared a pictures of themselves working from home on their Instagram account. They were attending a webinar on the new corona virus and its repercussions on health and life in the short and long term.

The mother-of-two helped to prepare bags containing meals and drinks to be distributed to vulnerable citizens

Each bag contained food and bottles of water. Princess Victoria even handed some to visitors (pictured)

Swedish authorities have advised the public to practice social distancing, but still allow a large amount of personal freedom unlike most other European countries such as France, Italy, Germany or the UK.

Sweden remains the last major European nation to have most of its businesses and even primary schools still opened.

Universities and higher education colleges were closed, and restaurants and eateries were sled to only serve people at tables and not at the bar.

Public gathering of more than 50 people were also banned.

In the UK, 29.474 coronavirus cases were reported, 2,352 having resulted in deaths, as the country has been put on lockdown on March 23.
A senior BJP leader Ashwani Kumar Chrungoo on Thursday welcomed the central government's notification on various conditions for being declared Jammu and Kashmir a domicile, saying it is a major step for closer integration of the Union territory with the country.

Hailing the Centre's March 31 notification, Chrungoo said the resolution of domicile issue was a "long and cherished mission" of the Praja Parishad movement.

The Centre's notification accords J&K domicile status to people who have resided in the UT for 15 years or have taken secondary or higher secondary board examination in the UT after studying here for more than seven years.

The notification also protected jobs up to Group-IV for domicile of the union territory and said no person shall be eligible for appointment to a post carrying a pay scale of not more than Group-IV (Rs 25,500) unless he is a domicile of the UT.

It also states that a "migrant" registered with the Relief and Rehabilitation Commissioner (Migrants) in the new UT would also be considered as its domicile.

The children of parents who have stayed in J&K for 15 years or are registered as "migrants" would also be considered as domicile.

Chrungoo said, "This is a major step aimed at closer integration that fulfils the long and cherished mission of the warriors of Praja Parishad movement".

"While it has been ensured that the jobs up to level IV are reserved for the domiciled, as defined in the notification, the posts in the category of levels 5 to 8 will be referred to the UPSC, PSC and SSC," he added.

"It is indeed a wise and smart act to balance the interest of competition and domicile simultaneously," he said.

He said the issue of fresh registration of "migrants" with the Relief & Rehabilitation office should be immediately stopped with effect from first of April 2020.

Chrungoo said he had raised this issue with appropriate authorities earlier as well, "but the exigencies of situation so warrant that the registration should come to a close formally and officially now."



He said there are a number of elements who always try to exploit the legal and formal procedure to benefit the vested interests in the UT.

The continuation of registration of "migrants" has lost its relevance and the system needs to be abolished forthwith, he said, adding this will protect the interests of already registered "migrants" and their progeny in both J&K provinces.

Chrungoo said he has taken up the issue of the state subject certificate holders with the Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Thursday.

"Those state subject certificate holders of the UT, who have not been living in J&K for one reason or the other and are not registered as 'migrants' either should be considered as the deemed domicile of the Union Territory. The notification issued by the government of India require an amendment in this regard or a formal clarification needs to be made," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Author James Patterson is spearheading a group that includes actress Reese Witherspoon, Reeses Book Club, the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc), and the American Booksellers Association in an effort to raise millions of dollars to help save independent bookstores from closing permanently due to the pandemic.

The author, who has given booksellers annual holiday bonuses for the past five years and returned more than $1 million dollars to bookstores as charity, is seeding this new campaign with a personal donation of $500,000. Money is being collected at the website www.saveindiebookstores.com and the campaign is expected to run at least through April 30, at which point Binc will distribute the total funds raised to eligible independent bookstores.

"The government has a $2.2 trillion dollar bailout that will cover all sorts of industries, from the airlines to cruise ships, and all sorts of other retailers, from liquor stores to pizza delivery place, are still open for business because they are deemed essentialbut nobody is thinking about the bookstores," said Patterson. "I think, and a lot of people agree with me, that bookstores are no less essential to society. Books help comfort people in in stressful times, and have a wonderful ability to make people more empathetic."

Patterson added that this is the most important moment to get money into the hands of booksellers. "If we don't get it done now, we may wake up one day to find there's a new degree of normalcy returning to our daily lives and then find a lot of bookstores are gone. If we act now, we can literally save them," Patterson said.

The author is reaching out to fellow writers and encouraging all book lovers to donate any sum they can, from $1 to $10,000. "This will be an easy place for anyone who loves books to donate," Patterson said. He wants publishers to donate as well. "It is in the publishers' own self interest: if too many bookstores disappear, publishers will suffer too."

Patterson said he's also taking it upon himself to pursue donations from people of genuine means: billionaires. "I've already called out Mike Bloomberg by name and asked him for $1 million  which I don't think he'd miss." Asked about other billionaires he might ask for money, the name Bezos came up. But it was not Jeff but rather his ex-wife and author MacKenzie who was mentioned.

Questioned how much money he might request from the fellow novelistand the world's third richest womanPatterson replied, that any donation would be welcome. "But I hope she would consider donating at least $10 million dollars," he said. "That would help so many people."
In this photo illustration the European Union flag logo seen displayed on a smartphone with a computer model of the COVID-19 coronavirus on the background.

European countries are racing to save their tech start-ups as the region faces an impending economic downturn because of the coronavirus crisis.

France has led the pack in the continent, launching a 4 billion euro ($4.4 billion) liquidity plan to support its start-ups' cash flows. The package includes short-term refinancing, investment into already-planned funding rounds and early payment of some tax credits.

On Wednesday, the German government said it would provide 2 billion euros in financial assistance to help keep its young tech businesses afloat. It's also considering a longer-term fund of 10 billion euros for bigger start-ups.

Together, Germany and France are the leaders within the EU when it comes to hosting the best-funded tech sectors. Last year saw both countries attract $7 billion and $5.2 billion in venture capital respectively, according to figures from Dealroom.

Across the continent, though, they are second and third to Britain, whose privately-held tech firms pulled in a record $13.2 billion in funding last year. The U.K., which is no longer an EU member but still adheres to its trade rules, is facing calls from its own tech industry to bail out start-ups that could collapse in the coming months without access to government support.
Unfortunately for some shareholders, the Nanjing Sample Technology (HKG:1708) share price has dived 77% in the last thirty days. And that drop will have no doubt have some shareholders concerned that the 85% share price decline, over the last year, has turned them into bagholders. For those wondering, a bagholder is someone who keeps holding a losing stock indefinitely, without taking the time to consider its prospects carefully, going forward.

Assuming nothing else has changed, a lower share price makes a stock more attractive to potential buyers. While the market sentiment towards a stock is very changeable, in the long run, the share price will tend to move in the same direction as earnings per share. The implication here is that long term investors have an opportunity when expectations of a company are too low. One way to gauge market expectations of a stock is to look at its Price to Earnings Ratio (PE Ratio). Investors have optimistic expectations of companies with higher P/E ratios, compared to companies with lower P/E ratios.

View our latest analysis for Nanjing Sample Technology

Does Nanjing Sample Technology Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry?

Nanjing Sample Technology's P/E is 7.96. You can see in the image below that the average P/E (7.9) for companies in the electronic industry is roughly the same as Nanjing Sample Technology's P/E.

SEHK:1708 Price Estimation Relative to Market April 2nd 2020

That indicates that the market expects Nanjing Sample Technology will perform roughly in line with other companies in its industry. So if Nanjing Sample Technology actually outperforms its peers going forward, that should be a positive for the share price. Further research into factors such as insider buying and selling, could help you form your own view on whether that is likely.

How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios

Companies that shrink earnings per share quickly will rapidly decrease the 'E' in the equation. That means even if the current P/E is low, it will increase over time if the share price stays flat. Then, a higher P/E might scare off shareholders, pushing the share price down.

Story continues

Nanjing Sample Technology's earnings per share fell by 44% in the last twelve months. And over the longer term (5 years) earnings per share have decreased 11% annually. This could justify a pessimistic P/E.

A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank

Don't forget that the P/E ratio considers market capitalization. So it won't reflect the advantage of cash, or disadvantage of debt. Theoretically, a business can improve its earnings (and produce a lower P/E in the future) by investing in growth. That means taking on debt (or spending its cash).

Spending on growth might be good or bad a few years later, but the point is that the P/E ratio does not account for the option (or lack thereof).

So What Does Nanjing Sample Technology's Balance Sheet Tell Us?

Nanjing Sample Technology's net debt is 75% of its market cap. This is enough debt that you'd have to make some adjustments before using the P/E ratio to compare it to a company with net cash.

The Bottom Line On Nanjing Sample Technology's P/E Ratio

Nanjing Sample Technology's P/E is 8.0 which is below average (9.1) in the HK market. Given meaningful debt, and a lack of recent growth, the market looks to be extrapolating this recent performance; reflecting low expectations for the future. What can be absolutely certain is that the market has become more pessimistic about Nanjing Sample Technology over the last month, with the P/E ratio falling from 35.1 back then to 8.0 today. For those who prefer invest in growth, this stock apparently offers limited promise, but the deep value investors may find the pessimism around this stock enticing.

Investors should be looking to buy stocks that the market is wrong about. If it is underestimating a company, investors can make money by buying and holding the shares until the market corrects itself. Although we don't have analyst forecasts you could get a better understanding of its growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

But note: Nanjing Sample Technology may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a P/E ratio below 20).

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
By Foo Yun Chee

BRUSSELS, April 2 (Reuters) - Twitter took down thousands of accounts linked to Egypt, Honduras, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Serbia on Thursday for either taking directions from the governments or promoting pro-government content.

Twitter and other social media companies are under pressure to clean up misinformation and hateful content on their platforms, while abuse related to the coronavirus outbreak has also increased scrutiny of their actions.

Twitter said it removed the accounts because they violated its policies and were a targeted attempt to undermine the public conversation.

It took down 2,541 accounts in the Egypt-based El Fagr network because it created fake accounts to amplify messages critical of Iran, Qatar, and Turkey.

"Information we gained externally indicates it was taking direction from the Egyptian government," Twitter said.

The company removed 3,104 fake accounts created from a single IP range in Honduras by a staffer on the government's behalf to retweet the president's account.

An investigation that followed a report by investigative website Bellingcat on an Indonesian information operation targeting the West Papuan independence movement resulted in the removal of 795 fake accounts.

Twitter also took down 5,350 accounts associated with Saudi Arabia and operating out of multiple countries including Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates which had content praising the Saudi leadership and critical of Qatar and Turkish activity in Yemen.

A total of 8,558 accounts working to promote Serbia's ruling party and its leader was also removed. (Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Stephen Coates )
An elderly couple in their eighties who both have dementia were sold 125 'insurance' for the same television twice by the same company under different names, as they were targeted by 25 different companies last year.

The couple, who live in a town near Perth, Scotland, had a total of 550 taken in what their son-in-law described as 'needless insurance payments'.

He contacted This is Money at the end of February as his mother and father-in-law were also sold 324 of 'insurance' by West Sussex-based TV Spark, who we previously wrote had been accused of cold calling elderly people to sell them warranty schemes for TVs and other electrical goods.

A reader told us their in-laws in their eighties had been sold 125 insurance by the same firm using the same phone number under two different names (Stock image)

He told us they had payments taken by 25 different companies, one of which was simply another trading name of a company which had already billed them.

He said Brighton-based Home and General had taken 125 from his in-laws for insurance for a 42-inch TV on 30 October last year, while the company also billed them another 125 under the name of Cover Utilities. Home and General also took 150 on two other occasions in April and December last year.

Both of the companies used the same phone number, while he said the letterhead for the bill from the latter firm said 'Home and General trading as Cover Utilities'.

Neither of these firms appear to have a website, nor are they authorised to sell insurance by the Financial Conduct Authority.

He said: 'The link between Cover Utilities and Home and General was quite brazenly obvious. It came to light when I checked the phone number on the letterheads to make the call asking for refunds.

'Both firms have the same phone number and the letterhead for Home and General also reads "Home and General/TA Cover Utilities".

'Only the addresses were different. How can you have two different insurance firms using the same phone line both taking 125 to insure the same TV?'

Our reader got in touch following a story we published last October about an unregulated company accused of cold calling elderly people

When This is Money asked him if the TV was already insured, which was often the case with those who said their elderly relatives were cold called by TV Spark, he said: 'The TV may well have had an original warranty but that will have expired long since.

'It is not a new TV. The 250 that was spent on two of several insurance policies would, without a doubt, have bought a newer and better model from any of the supermarkets.'

According to Companies House, Home and General is registered to an address near Brighton seafront, and was set up in 2017. It was originally set up in Birmingham but changed to Brighton a year later.

Its sole registered officer is Daniel James Williams, who has three other current roles including a recording studio registered to the same address.

Home and General, which our reader said also sold his in-laws warranty under the name of Cover Utilities, is based near Brighton seafront, according to Companies House

Our reader told This is Money he has power of attorney for his in-laws and handed details of 25 companies which had taken payments from them over the course of 2019 to Bank of Scotland, their bank, who he said refunded the payments.

He added: 'My in-laws have been fortunate in regaining most of their money but how many more vulnerable old people are being preyed upon by these unscrupulous people?

'We have had to cancel their bank cards and put a daily limit on cash withdrawals to try to limit any further damage.

'That, unfortunately, means my in-laws, both with quite advanced dementia, now have to go into the bank to withdraw money.

'At 84 and 86 years of age they don't always relish a walk to the bank just to gain access to their own money and my mother-in-law has already got lost once in the town she has lived in for 40 years.'

This is Money called Home and General on the number our reader provided, but no one picked up.

We left a voicemail, but did not hear back by the time of publication.
This time of year signals when Houston-area high school seniors would start counting down the days until they get to cross the stage, dress up for prom and celebrate one of the biggest milestones of their lives.

But for students across the region, the novel coronavirus pandemic has robbed them of these end-of-year traditions. Some schools have canceled classes indefinitely and others are still unsure if graduation ceremonies will even be possible.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: HISD, other school districts to remain closed through at least April 10

At the start of the school year, senior students at Splendora High School in Montgomery County decorated their parking spots as part of a school tradition. After the pandemic made its way into the region and halted daily life for millions of people, Houston Chronicle photographer Jason Fochtman spoke with some of the seniors to see what life has been like during the pandemic.

For senior Shelby Denton, the pandemic drastically affected what would have been an amazing senior year.

"It caused the cancellation of the Montgomery County fair, which left senior exhibitors like me heartbroken," Denton said. "The Montgomery County fair is what sparked and started my love of showing livestock and the agricultural industry. I had 10 years to prepare for the ending of my career as a FFA member, but I can honestly say I wasn't prepared for it to end this way."

THE LATEST: Montgomery County logs first COVID-19 deaths, total jumps to 110

Senior Shaelyn Sanders said instead of counting down until her graduation, she is just hoping to have one.

"It has all happened so fast; this virus may be taking away a few of the memories I've been looking forward to since I was a little girl," Sanders said. "I may not get my last year of high school softball, prom, or a graduation."

Other students such as senior Luke McClennan had a more positive outlook.

"It saddens me to know that we might not get to do some fun things we have looked forward to all these years, but I know there are people in much worse situations right now," McClennan said. "I hope to still have a graduation maybe even prom. But all in all, we'll be ok. It will be a class to remember!"

Click through the photos above for a look at what students are saying about the coronavirus and its impact on their last few days of high school...

SENIORS SPEAK OUT: Montgomery Countys senior class faces a very different year amid coronavirus

Rebecca Hennes covers community news. Read her on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, houstonchronicle.com. | rebecca.hennes@chron.com
Last Friday, Dr. Jesanna Cooper was given one surgical mask for an entire weekend spent on call, delivering babies at Princeton Baptist Medical Center in Birmingham. It was the same for other doctors and nurses on her floor, even though there had been a person of interest with flu-like symptoms in their department recently, she said.

Dr. Michael Bindon, an emergency room physician in Mobile, got an email this week from a fellow ER doctor who said hed been using the same N95 mask for the past five shifts.

Nobody is using personal protective equipment the way its recommended, said Bindon, who serves as president of the Alabama chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians. Everybodys already getting thin on their supplies. Eventually, even the well-supplied hospitals that made good decisions and were prepared for this, were all going to run out.

This week, Alabama hospitals will get deliveries of much-needed personal protective equipment (PPE) like masks, gowns and gloves from the Strategic National Stockpile, a federal reserve of medical supplies and equipment stored for use in a public health emergency.

But thats the last shipment Alabama can expect from the federal government.

The Strategic National Stockpile is now nearly empty, leaving Alabama to face the height of the coronavirus epidemic alone.

Don Williamson, president of the Alabama Hospital Association, said he is extraordinarily concerned about the states dwindling PPE supplies.

A lot of hospitals are now talking about their supply in terms of days, not weeks, he said.

Individual hospitals that may have had two weeks worth of supply, as they are now getting their first COVID patients and recognizing the intense demand that COVID puts on PPE, are now beginning to see that instead of having a couple weeks worth of PPE, that two weeks may really be just a week.

The supply deliveries this week from the national stockpile and from a donation of 200,000 surgical and N95 masks by Apple CEO Tim Cook will help, he said, but not much.

The reality is that while hospitals, nursing homes and clinics will be getting (protective supplies), almost none of them will get the supply they need or asked for, because there wasnt enough in the shipment to meet their requests, said Williamson.

Cooper said she requested and was eventually given a protective N95 mask at her hospital, but she had to sign for it. Hospital staff have been instructed to put their masks into paper bags to protect them for reuse.

The state has a procurement team thats receiving offers, some valid and some not, of PPE and trying to find more, said Williamson. Some companies and organizations are donating masks. Individual hospitals are pressing their suppliers for masks and gowns, competing with other hospitals around the country, all facing the same shortages as the epidemic is expected to peak in the next two to three weeks.

Bindon said hospital physicians just want to see state officials leading the charge.

The squeaky wheel gets the grease and wed like to hear the governor and others campaigning for us, he said. I think the surge is coming but we dont know how bad itll be.
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Unusually high incidence of Covid-19 has led to large gap between demand and supply of mechanical ventilators, to an extent wherein, automotive and other industrial equipment manufacturers have to step in to increase the supply of this life saving device. The U.S. mechanical ventilators market was valued at 1.43 billion in 2019 and anticipated to register a CAGR of 40.0% over the forecast period. As per the Society of Critical Care Medicine, the current stock of hospital ventilators in the U.S. is around 160,000 units in the 2020 Q1. An additional stockpile of 12,700 with SNS (Strategic National Stockpile) would be made available in the grim situations. At the time of writing this article there are nearly 110,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases. Furthermore, as per American Hospital Association, during this pandemic, nearly 960,000 Americans could need artificial ventilation using mechanical ventilators. Owing to the aforementioned factors, the mechanical ventilators are experiencing and will experience sudden spike in the demand in coming few months.

Get More Information Regarding U.S. Mechanical Ventilators Market At @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/us-mechanical-ventilators-market

The market is evaluated on the basis of product such as critical care, neonatal, transport and portable and others. Critical care and portable ventilators are expected to experience significant demand surge in the coming financial quarters. Manufacturers are bracing up to multiply the production capacity to meet the global rising demand. The key players operating in this space includes Medtronic, Allied Healthcare, GE Healthcare, Ventec Life Systems, Smiths Medical. Medtronic already increased their production by 40% since January 2020. Moreover, automobile manufacturers are offering their assembly lines to aid the ventilators production. For example, Tesla and Medtronic, General Motors and Ventec Life Systems teaming up for the ventilator production.

In a welcome move by the U.S. FDA, which temporarily waived off its enforcement and inspection requirements that would be helpful for cross industry manufactures to fabricate much needed components for ventilators and other critical care equipment. Supportive and timely regulatory policies by the government is anticipated to provide lucrative growth platform for this market in the coming financial year and thereby affecting the growth rate over the forecast year.

As per our analysis, with the combined manufacturing capacity of all the leading players the market could witness an additional influx of around 65,000 units in the next financial quarter. In addition, government organizations are evaluating the possibility of using the veterinary ventilators for human use. In the UK, Animal Health Trust were in talks with the Royal college of Emergency Medicine and NHS (National Health Service) about the possibility of sharing veterinary ventilators to help.

Its difficult to predict the exact shape of Coronavirus pandemic curve in the U.S. However, looking at the grim situations in the European nations especially Italy, the peak demand for critical care equipment along with the mechanical ventilators and makeshift ventilators is anticipated to soar at exponential rate over the next few months.

Access Research Report of U.S. Mechanical Ventilators Market @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/us-mechanical-ventilators-market
At home in Ireland, we have to ask ourselves the difficult question: if we continue to fall short of South Korean standards of testing and contact tracing and if we are unable enforce Chinese-style mass quarantine, are we facing many months valiantly trying to control Covid-19?

A March 16th paper from the UK-based Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team describes two fundamental strategies for approaching COVID-19 management: suppression and mitigation.

With suppression, the aim is to reduce case numbers to low levels or eliminate them completely. The main challenge of this approach is that measures need to be maintained, at least intermittently, for as long as the virus is circulating in the human population, or until an effective vaccine becomes available.

In mitigation (herd immunity), the aim is to use interventions like social distancing, not to interrupt transmission completely, but to reduce the impact of an epidemic on the health services. In this scenario, herd immunity builds up through the epidemic. Once 70-80% have been infected and convalesced, the risk of further outbreaks becomes low. The risk with this strategy is that it may easily become uncontrollable resulting in a hugely overloaded hospital system, mass suffering and loss of life.

A number of Asian countries have so far successfully suppressed, or at least halted the exponential growth of COVID-19 . Broadly there have been two successful strategies:

1. Widespread testing with less stringent quarantine (e.g. South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore)

2. Draconian mass quarantine (e.g. Hubei province in China)

Our health authorities stated strategy is suppression and that we are following the South Korean model.

South Korean Model

South Koreas first case was confirmed on January 20th. Though the governments early response was criticised as sluggish and naive South Korea is now held as an exemplar in the management of a Covid-19 outbreak. Theirs initially centred on Daegu, a city populated with 2.5 million, specifically the Shincheonji Church which worships there. A 61-year-old congregant is believed to have infected many other celebrants crowded amongst each other during services. Over 50% of all confirmed cases in the country have been contact-traced to this church. By late February, 1,900 Shincheoji Church members had been tested. 1,300 had symptoms while 600 did not. Among those 1,300 with symptoms, 87.5% were confirmed coronavirus. Of the 600 without symptoms, 70% were confirmed with coronavirus. They rapidly set up drive- thru testing, speedy phone booth testing with results delivered by text message within 24 hours.

South Korea has used technology to track people in ways that those in our society may find intrusive under normal circumstances. Whenever a new case is identified, authorities publish detailed lists of their movements over the previous 48-72 hours. This information is gleaned from mobile phone location information, credit card usage and CCTV footage. It is extremely accurate, down to the shop or restaurant visited. This information is shared with the public using phone apps. This both facilitates people to avoid potentially contaminated areas and reduces the time and efforts that public health officials spend contact tracing, traditionally a cumbersome and time-consuming process

Other Asian countries similarly use big data. In Taiwan citizens diagnosed with COVID-19 were tracked by apps to make sure they obeyed the strict self-isolation criteria. In Singapore those without symptoms but who have had contact with a confirmed case are ordered into strict quarantine. They are required to confirm their presence at their stated quarantine by sharing their location data. The biggest difference between Asia and Europe is data access rules. Governments and companies in the EU have strong data privacy rights as part of GDPR which makes access to existing data difficult. A new opt-in phone tracking app is to be introduced here by the HSE soon.

Along with most other European countries, Ireland is still not testing those without symptoms. Many do not seem to understand the simple fact that infected people without symptoms may be highly contagious, and so made the mistake of not practicing social distancing. Indeed, our authorities have contributed to this by conveying mixed messages to the public.

As recently as Saturday , March 21st, the Department of Health, clarified its position on not testing asymptomatic people: it doesnt relate to capacity.our view is that even if asymptomatic transmission is something that is technically possible, it is not a significant or important part of the driving of continued growth.

In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. The previous day, Nature noted that covert cases could represent some 60% of all infections and that people can be highly contagious when they have mild or no symptoms. The South Koreans had understood this from early on. Many, especially younger people, may show no symptoms or only mild symptoms yet be a significant risk of transmitting the virus on to others.

The head of the World Health Organisation, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said: You cant fight a virus if you dont know where it is and urged countries to find, isolate, test and treat every case to break the chains of transmission. Our health authorities have recently worked tirelessly in this regard. Initially processing a total of 60 samples per day, they are now taking several thousand swabs per day. Our magnificent National Ambulance Service has been working tirelessly 24 hours a day, seven days per week calling to homes throughout the country. Drive- thru testing centres have been set up at various locations including Croke Park. However, due to a lack of testing equipment, our labs can process around 1,500 swabs per day, not the several thousand swabs that are collected per day. Now there is a backlog of 7-10 days from a test being requested to its result, even for some healthcare workers. Once a swab is greater than 14 days old, there is little need to test it as the person has finished their self-isolation. The criteria are now quite narrow and strict. Due to a lack of capacity we are unable to test many people who display symptoms, never mind those who do not show symptoms.

This means we are working off inaccurate figures and that we have lost valuable time for proper contact tracing. By the time someone had been diagnosed, their contacts had interacted with and possibly spread the virus on to many others. Also, despite repeated pleas of our leaders, a minority of people had chosen to disregard the importance of self-isolation until they receive a result.

Simply put, despite our health authoritys best intentions and claim to be following the South Korean model, the reality is that we are some way off reaching their standards and we may have missed the boat in our quest to follow their lead in contact tracing or strict enforcement of self-isolation and quarantine.

Chinese Model

China has excelled in many areas: their contact tracing, ability to monitor citizens through technology and succeeding in the monumental feat of building an entire hospital in 10 days. Draconian mass quarantine of the worst affected provinces coupled with advanced tracking of their citizens was the keystone of their successful approach. Chinas social and political landscape is organised in ways to make it more amenable to genuine lockdown. Most urban dwellers live in fully gated communities, often containing 30 high rise apartment blocks of 22 stories each. Each complex is home to thousands of people with security guards monitoring the entrance and exit while CCTV camera assesses all areas 24/7. This is replicated throughout the country. With the click of the finger, China can put a province, a city, or a building on lockdown. It also has the personnel to enforce it: apart from police and military, millions of ordinary citizens train every day in preparation to be deployed in crisis situations. Each citizen is given a colour code: green, yellow and red. Each persons movements are restricted depending on the colour. China can enforce these graded restricted movements due to its technological ability to track and trace without consideration of personal privacy.

On Friday March 20th, a visiting Chinese Red Cross team criticised Italians failure to properly quarantine themselves and take the national lockdown seriously. Public transportation is still working, people are still moving around. I saw many people not wearing masks. We need to stop all economic activities. We need to stop the social interactions we normally like. All people should be staying at home for quarantine. Clearly lockdown in Europe is different to lockdown in China. Though our government has recently acted decisively and deserving of great credit, we still may be unable to act in the way China found necessary to control Covid-19.

The concern in South Korea is whether it can sustain focused mass testing and strict quarantine in the face of mounting social and economic consequences. The million dollar question in China is whether the virus will re-emerge as they attempt to return to normality. At home in Ireland, we have to ask ourselves the difficult question: if we continue to fall short of South Korean standards of testing and contact tracing and if we are unable enforce Chinese-style mass quarantine, are we facing many months valiantly trying to control Covid-19?
Another record-breaking spike in U.S. jobless claims hit Americans across the country, but varied in impact by state as each governor takes a different tact in slowing the spread of COVID-19. Claims for state unemployment benefits were most concentrated in Hawaii, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Rhode Island with claims of 73, 63, 62, 54 and 50 per 1,000 workers, respectively. The data is for jobless filings through the end of last week. Those were the states that saw the most intense surges in claims when controlling for differences in the size of each state's labor force. Washington state, Massachusetts, Ohio and Louisiana also saw some of the most concentrated bumps in unemployment filings, according to the unadjusted Labor Department data.

Looking at absolute unemployment unadjusted for state population, California came out highest with more than 878,000 workers filing for benefits, up 692,000 from the prior week's print of 186,000 claims. That's a more than 350% increase. Pennsylvania workers filing for state unemployment rose from 377,000 in the week ended March 21 to 405,000 in the week ended March 28, a surge of 28,000. Michigan saw initial claims rise to 311,000 from 128,000 the week prior. The Labor Department issued a special notice at the top of its release Thursday morning explaining the coronavirus's impact on the jobless claims data. "The COVID-19 virus continues to impact the number of initial claims. Nearly every state providing comments cited the COVID-19 virus," the government said.
Ms Bott said working in health care during the coronavirus pandemic has been 'challenging and rewarding'

A nurse was left in tears after she received a kind message in an envelope with cash in appreciation for her hard work from complete strangers.

Theresa Bott, from Park Ridge in south-east Queensland, received the gift while she was shopping at her local Woolworths on Tuesday.

The 32-year-old was in store during the dedicated health care workers shopping hour when a staff member handed her an envelope at the self-service checkout.

The envelope included a $20 note and a letter with a note that read: 'thank you from the Leslie family. We know you're working hard'.

'Hope this helps. With many thank yous, Laurel-Lee and Kath.'

Ms Bott told Daily Mail Australia health workers are working extremely hard to keep the community safe.

'It has been incredibly challenging and rewarding,' she said.

Park Ridge nurse Theresa Bott received this kind letter and gift from a stranger in thanks for her work during the coronavirus period

'We've been faced with unprecedented challenges we've never met before, but it is bringing out the most beautiful side of people to achieve a common goal.'

Staff working with COVID-19 patients are being incredibly careful and taking extreme measures to stop them carrying the disease out of the hospital and potentially infecting others in their home lives.

Medical personnel on the front line wear their personal protective equipment which includes a white non-permeable gown with mask, goggles and gloves to see every patient, before removing it after treatment.

Ms Bott said she was thankful for the loving gesture, after suffering a set back at home.

'The note came on a really terrible day, we'd just received a large electrical bill and I had no power or water that morning and I was quite deflated.

'It got me on the right day and changed my entire outlook on the universe.'

Staff in Ms Bott's hospital have been keeping morale high by constantly checking in on each other and making sure everyone is dealing with the situation.

'We always check in on each other, but we've become acutely aware of it and are doing it more regularly,' she said.

'It's every day, it's every hour, it's every person, it's a beautiful act of humanity. We're all in this together and we're all scared, but it is bringing out the best in people.'

Ms Bott said the positive messages from the community are giving health care workers the strength to keep working during these tough times.

'Thank you to those that keep saying thank you,' she said.

'That acknowledgement and recognition keeps us coming to work and doing what we can to keep the community safe.'
In the Prince Georges County jail, where 641 inmates are housed, corrections officers no longer line up for roll calls before shifts. During meals, inmates are encouraged to sit one or two per table. Inmates in double cells were asked to sleep in opposite directions on their bunk beds so their heads are farther apart. The jail also put its first covid-19 positive inmate in a cell where ventilation in the room generates negative pressure, allowing air to flow into the isolated area that does not circulate out.
The Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA) has presented assorted protective equipment to the Ghana Private Road Transport Union to help in the fight against the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19).



The items donated include giant Veronica buckets and their metal stands, gallons of handwashing soap, gallons of hand sanitizers, hand gloves, nose masks and face masks.



Presenting the items, the Director-General of the Ghana Maritime Authority (GMA), Mr Thomas Kofi Alonsi said the GPRTU was chosen because of the central role it plays in moving people across the country.



We know that the Coronavirus is transmitted through human contact and as a transport union that moves people from one place to another, these contacts are inevitable. It is for that reason that we thought we should equip the GPRTU with the important equipment that will ensure that users of our bus terminals are properly sanitized before boarding a bus to their destination, he explained.



Mr Alonsi said the GMA felt obligated to contribute to the fight against the spread of the virus which has so far claimed five lives locally and more than 33,000 globally.



Ghana has also recorded 152 confirmed COVID-19 cases, according to Ghana Health Service data. The service says all those who died were people with underlying medical conditions.



The Director-General of GMA said all Ghanaians, institutions and even political parties have a duty to support governments efforts at dealing with the pandemic which has compelled a global lockdown.



Ghanaians in the major cities of Accra and Kumasi have been under lockdown since 1 am Monday, March 30, 2020.



All streets are quiet except a few vehicles of mainly essential service providers like the police, health workers and journalists.



Supported by the Deputy Director General (Finance & Administration), Mr Yaw Akosa Antwi, and Dr Kwasi Wereko Awuah, the Director, Finance, Mr Alonsi presented the equipment to the National Chairman of GPRTU, Kwame Kumah and the Greater Accra regional chairman.



Mr Kumah praised managers of GMA for their thoughtfulness and assured that the equipment will be utilised properly.



He invited other organisations and individuals to follow the example of GMA and contribute resources to the fight.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Staying six feet away from others may not work, an MIT researcher has warned - saying the coronavirus can rather travel 27 feet and can linger for hours.

The study was conducted by MIT associate professor Lydia Bourouiba, who has researched the dynamics of coughs and sneezes for years. It was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Bourouiba warned that the current social-distancing guidelines to stay six feet from others are based on outdated models from the 1930s, reported the New York Post website.

The professor has said that the "pathogen-bearing droplets of all sizes can travel 23 to 27 feet."

In the newly published research, Bourouiba also warned that "droplets that settle along the trajectory can contaminate surfaces" -- and "residues or droplet nuclei" may "stay suspended in the air for hours."

According to the New York Post, she noted that a 2020 report from China showed that "virus particles could be found in the ventilation systems in hospital rooms of patients with COVID-19."

Bourouiba fears that the current guidelines of social-distancing are "overly simplified" and "may limit the effectiveness of the proposed interventions" against the deadly pandemic.

She also says that the care workers face an "underappreciated potential exposure range" while treating the sick and dying.

"There's an urgency in revising the guidelines currently being given by the [World Organization] and the [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] on the needs for protective equipment, particularly for the frontline care workers," Bourouiba told USA Today.

The World Health Organization -- which suggests 3 feet is enough to remain safe -- told USA Today it "welcomed" studies.

"WHO carefully monitors emerging evidence about this critical topic and will update this scientific brief as more information becomes available," WHO said in a statement to the paper.

According to the World Health Organization, COVID-19 has affected over seven lakh people globally.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Mickey Fulp: 'Never Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste'

In discussion with Maurice Jackson of Proven and Probable, the Mercenary Geologist offers his take on the coronavirus pandemic, its impacts on economic policy and what he's buying (or not buying) right now.

Maurice: Today we will find out if we are at risk of losing our liberty to the coronavirus, along with buying opportunities for your investment portfolio. Joining us for a conversation is Mickey Fulp, the world-renowned Mercenary Geologist.

Absolute delight to speak with you sir. Mickey, you are the Mercenary Geologist, but you're equally regarded highly for your views on philosophy and politics, and every time we speak my neurons expand. You and I have shared concerns regarding the erosion of liberty as the federal government and municipalities have been perniciously increasing their influence over the years, and in particular in the response to the coronavirus. Sir, what concerns should we have regarding our liberties that many people are not considering due to the government's response to the coronavirus?

Mickey: Well, I think it really comes from state and local governments now, and rightly so. The state and local governments are responsible ultimately, not the federal government, for instituting policies regarding what I prefer to call the Wuhan flu, but they are increasingly infringing on our basic freedoms as expounded in the Bill of Rights to assemble peacefully, to move about freely, the separation of church and state. You have governments outlawing people's right to congregate and practice their religion, confiscate property without due process.

California now has emergency regulations that allow them to commandeer private property to set up emergency hospitals, and now there are number of euphemisms such as, social distancing, self-isolation, shelter in place. I thought that's what your snowflake generation did when they went to their parents' basement as a safe space. Quarantines, curfews, checkpoints, lockdowns, containment zones. . .what I fear is this will progress to some euphemism for martial law.

Maurice: Truly, truly concerning. Let's discuss the economic policy response. Are you as surprised on how much emphasis the Fed and Congress has placed on the economy rather than on providing supplies toward the hospitals and the true heroes, who are the healthcare workers making so many selfless sacrifices?

Mickey: I think this is a media- [and] government-created economic recession in response to a medical event. There's a sayingnever let a good crisis go to wasteand the media and the government have instilled first fear, then panic, then irrationality, now approaching hysteria. That's not to belittle the impact of the Wuhan flu, but let's just step back and put this in perspective. So far, I think as of Friday afternoon, March 27, there are approximately 95,000 confirmed cases in the U.S. and around 1,300 deaths, so do the math.

That's about 1.4%, but that's from the number of people that tested positive. That does not imply the number of people that have had the virus with no symptoms or mild symptoms; these are the people that are extremely ill to begin with. Here's some perspective, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as of March 21, for the 20192020 flu season so far, 39 million cases, 400,000 hospitalizations and 24,000 deaths.

I'm a bit of a numbers wonk, and let's just do a little thought experiment. We have 95,000 cases, but those are people that are ill enough to get tested. Let's just suppose that those 95,000 cases are even upward of 10x that, with people walking around not even know they have it. They've got a cold, because it is a virus very similar to the common cold. If we assume that 10 times that number actually have been exposed and have antibodies to the virus, then that's 950,000 cases right there.

Then let's go back and do the math on that. That gives us a mortality rate of about 0.1%, which is just about the average of the common flu season that kills on average 36,000 Americans every year.

Maurice: Now, that's truly unfortunate for the victims and the families. But, as you stated, if cooler heads prevail and you put it into perspectivebecause the opposite response from all the mainstream media is hysteriaI believe we should be proactive in trying to prevent the spread of the disease. But you stated it correctly: "Never let a good crisis go to waste."

Mickey: I'm going to say something fairly radical in today's environment. When it's all said and done, I think that this is going to be a serious illness, a serious flu. I think we will develop a vaccine for it quicker than usual. In retrospect, we will look back at this and say, well, was it as bad as the swine flu in 20092010? Was it as bad as 86,000 people, if memory serves, killed during that flu season? What's the ultimate outcome? That remains to be seen, but that's my position right now, and I'm sticking to it.

Maurice: Let's focus back on the economic response here. Our currency is being inflated at an unprecedented rate in the past couple of weeks. What are your thoughts on the economic policy response and the potential ramifications?

Mickey: Simply put, I think if the governmentand I include the Federal Reserve as the fourth branch of the United States of America's governmentcreates $6 trillion on a keyboard to fend off economic recession/depression, which is defined as deflation, then an inflating U.S. dollar must be the result.

Maurice: What ramifications do you foresee on globally on supply and demand of goods and services?

Mickey: We have severe demand destruction. Look at the oil business right now. We have an oil price somewhere between $20 and $25 [per barrel]. It's about $22 as we speak, and that's because of demand destruction. We're producing, on average, 20 million barrels of oil worldwide more than demand, and are simply awash in oil. Carry that on out, and we will be, until supply goes away because of low prices. This demand destruction is going to lead to oversupply and falling prices.

Maurice: That will lead to some buying opportunities, potentially, that we'll get to later on in this conversation. Let me ask you this, is government rewarding bad behavior and if so, how?

Mickey: Well, you can argue that. Let's look at this $2 trillion stimulus package, which includes $75 million for the National Endowment for the Arts; $75 million for the Corporation for Progressive Broadcastingwhat I like to refer to it as; $25 million for the Kennedy Center after it was remodeled a couple of years ago at a price of $250 million, so lots of waste there.

Going on with that thought, that bill is rewarding bad behavior because it's giving $1,200 to every American that earns less than a $100,000 a year. Just going to write them a check or probably deposit in your bank accountI don't think they write checks anymore for those sorts of things. This has severely affected a portion of people in this country because they've never saved.

In addition to a usual state where you're able to collect unemployment for a period of six months, some portion of that, they've extended unemployment benefits at 100% for another four months. In New Mexicoand I'm not sure if other states or notyou don't even have to look for a job during that period of time. The idea that people who do not accumulate nest-eggs, who are deeply in debt, who live hand-to-mouth, from paycheck to paycheck, they're certainly going to be adversely affected.

But here comes Uncle Sam, with all these reasons not to work. So someone gets unemployment for six months and they've got another four months of unemployment. If they're minimum wage, what incentive do they have to go back to work?

Maurice: Which leads to my next question, once citizens receive their first stimulus payments for not working, what are the chances of more checks and increased amounts on the horizon by the government?

Mickey: Well, I think everybody has already said in government that this is a startthis $2 trillion plus the $4 trillion the Feds created on a keyboard. There'll be another bailout package, or there'll be another stimulus package, or whatever euphemism they choose to call it. It's not good. The ultimate result of this is we'll default on our debt once again; we've done that twice since 1930.

Maurice: Somewhat counterproductive. You correct me if I'm wrong: If you inflate your currency, the result is higher prices. Well, why are so many people, especially those that advocate for a minimum wage increase, stating that the cost of living is so high, right? There's your culprit. It's the Federal Reserve. It's expansion of our currency.

Mickey: Absolutely.

Maurice: They look at the short term as, I want this paycheck. And now multitrillion-dollar question: Who is going to pay for this; when and how?

Mickey: We ultimately do, as citizens of the United States of America. And I've already said this: It's going to result in a default on the debt, and demise of not only the US dollarthe worlds reserve currency, as this is happening all over the worldultimately, it will result in a demise of all the world's fiat currencies, and that's the natural order of things. Every fiat currency since the Roman Empire, and perhaps longer than that, has inflated itself and resulted in default. I just can't tell you when that's going to happen.

Maurice: If you, Mickey Fulp, were a member of Congress, what would you recommend as an appropriate economic response?

Mickey: Well, I'm going to call that an inappropriate question because I consider myself an honest and forthright man.

Maurice: I think we can read between the lines on what the response would be, and I would echo that I second that emotion, sir.

Mickey: I think there are a couple of honest politicians: Dr. Ron Paul, when he served in the U.S. Congress and his son, Dr. Rand Paul. Those are honest, forthright men that I admire.

Maurice: Mickey, who is ultimately responsible for the decline and degradation of the United States?

Mickey: It's the politicians that we, the people, voted in. But most importantly, I think it's the Deep State bureaucrats who actually run the government. They are entrenched in jobs for their entire careers, and they answer to no one except the ephemeral bosses that are appointed by one set of politicians or the other that we have elected.

Maurice: Switching gears, do you have any buying opportunities at the moment that you would like to share with us?

Mickey: I think it's not too late to buy gold. That's assuming you can find someone who is selling gold and delivering it promptly, and that's a problem right now.

Maurice: Besides gold, are there any other precious metals that would peak your interest at this time or just gold?

Mickey: Just gold for me.

Maurice: Mickey, how does owning physical precious metals fit into today's discussion?

Mickey: Maurice, I think it's the key ingredient in any recipe to ensure financial security for you and yours.

Maurice: May I ask what are you buying and why?

Mickey: I'm not buying anything this week because gold is up $140 bucks, and it's even more than that, with really huge premiums coming in at this point because of its physical scarcity.

Maurice: Just to caveat to what you're sharing, I had a discussion with Bob Moriarty of 321gold recently. I think he stated: "Anyone who does not own gold is financially ignorant."

Mickey: I would agree with that take, and specifically gold, because gold is the only real money.

Maurice: In closing, sir, what keeps you up at night that we don't know about?

Mickey: Right now, I would say it's the next good novel I'm reading about yet another dystopian society.

Maurice: All right, Mr. Fulp, last question: What did I forget to ask?

Mickey: My website and my Twitter feed: www.mercenarygeologist.com; and my Twitter feed is @mercenarygeo.

Maurice: Before you make your next bullion purchase, be sure you call me. I mean licensed representative for Miles Franklin Precious Metals Investments, where we provide a number of options to expand your precious metals portfolio from physical delivery, offshore depositories, precious metal IRAs and private blockchain distributed ledger technology.

Call me directly at (855) 505-1900, or you may e-mail maurice@milesfranklin.com. Last but not least, please subscribe to www.provenandprobable.com for mining insights and bullion sales.

Mickey Fulp, the Mercenary Geologist, thank you for joining us today on Proven and Probable.

Maurice Jackson is the founder of Proven and Probable, a site that aims to enrich its subscribers through education in precious metals and junior mining companies that will enrich the world.

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The World Health Organisation (WHO) is set to review its advice on when to wear face masks during the coronavirus pandemic in light of new evidence.

Under current guidance, only people with coronavirus symptoms or looking after someone with suspected Covid-19 have been told to wear masks to cover their mouth and nose.

However, a group of experts will discuss whether this should change following a new study from Hong Kong, whose findings appear to show face masks can help protect members of the public.

Professor David Heymann from London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine said: As always when new evidence becomes available, WHO will be considering its face mask policies as a routine activity this week and next.

He said advisory groups  including the one he chairs  will offer recommendations, and the final decision will likely take into account the global availability of face masks under the current guidelines.

Currently, the WHO advises only those with symptoms  including a persistent dry cough or fever  should wear a face mask, as well as those caring for them.

Masks worn by sick people protect others from the infection by the droplets that come out when they cough or sneeze.

The WHO guidelines say surgical masks can only help when used with other preventative measures such as frequent hand washing.

The review follows a study from Hong Kong  shared with the global health body but not yet made public as of Thursday  which appears to suggest face masks can help stop the spread the rate of infection among the general population.

But infectious disease specialist Professor David Heymann cautioned that recommendations on masks are difficult due to problems with them being worn incorrectly or not properly disposed of.

Countries around the world have reported shortages of face masks amid surging demand during the pandemic.

Fashion houses have said their factories would start producing masks, while some health professionals in the US have resorted to making their own makeshift protective equipment.

Some Asian countries and a handful of European nations  including Austria and the Czech Republic - have said everyone must wear a face mask in public as many people show no symptoms when infected with Covid-19.

More than 935,000 people have tested positive for coronavirus internationally, according to a Reuters global count.

Meanwhile, at least 46,900 have died after officially contracting the disease.

Additional reporting by Press Association
Peter Hvizdak / Hearst Connecticut Media file photo

NEW HAVEN  The city had to shut down its 911 center for a while Thursday after a worker reported testing positive for COVID-19, with calls then diverted to Hamden as part of a mutual aid agreement.

Mayor Justin Elicker made the announcement at his daily virtual press conference. The mayor said the Public Service Answering Point center was given a thorough cleaning during the shutdown before reopening to staff. He said the sick individual had been out of work for some time.
Germany, France and Great Britain have sent a shipment of medicine to Iran. The two fronts to work together for "other transactions and to improve the mechanism". Dozens of US MPs write to the White House to ease sanctions on the Islamic Republic. In Iran 45 thousand Covid-19 cases and 2900 victims.

Tehran (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Three European nations yesterday sent a shipment of medicine to Iran, the nation most affected by the new coronavirus pandemic in the Middle East, for the first time using the Instex system set up to stem US sanctions on Tehran. "France, Germany and the United Kingdom confirm that INSTEX has successfully concluded its first transaction, facilitating the export of medical goods from Europe to Iran. These goods are now in Iran," the German foreign ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

The payment scheme was officially announced a little over a year ago and intends to encourage trade between the European parties and the Islamic Republic, without incurring US sanctions. The three countries are among the most critical of Washington's policy of confrontation. However, to date it had never been applied. "Instex and the Iranian counterpart Stfi - concludes the statement - will work for other transactions and to improve the mechanism".

In reality, medicines and basic necessities should not be included in the list of goods and businesses subject to punitive measures by the White House, although reports of blockades and restrictions on Iran have emerged in the past to the detriment of the sick. For this reason, analysts and experts point out that Paris, Berlin and London have made a "political" and "propaganda" use of the mechanism, thus sending a message to the Iranian population and its moderate leadership, including President Rouhani and the Foreign Minister. Zarif.

Following the dispatch of medicines and aid from Europe, a group of 34 US parliamentarians - including the Democratic Presidential candidateBernie Sanders - sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, asking for a relaxation of the sanctions. In response, the White House did not rule out a measure without giving further details or timelines, while in Iran there is a struggle to fight the pandemic.

According to the latest data, the new coronavirus has infected nearly 45 thousand people, there are 2900 official victims but the numbers could be underestimated. To date, just under 15 thousand people have recovered. However, a European source explains that the material delivered via Instex is not connected to Covid-19, because the transaction had been underway since December, well before the emergency began. Finally, maximum confidentiality both on suppliers and on the type of goods sent.
President Donald Trump told CNBC on Thursday he expects Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to announce a deal to cut oil production by 10 million to 15 million barrels.

West Texas Intermediate crude surged 24.67% to settle at $25.32 per barrel, for its largest single-day percentage gain in history. Given WTI's 59% decline this year a smaller gain, of course, now accounts for a much larger percentage move. International benchmark Brent jumped 21% to settle at $29.94 per barrel, in what was also its best day on record.

Trump made his comments in a telephone conversation with CNBC's Joe Kernen.

The president said in a tweet later that a production cut would be "great for the oil & gas industry," and that the cut could be "substantially more" than 10 million barrels.

Tweet

Tweet

Oil production is typically discussed in terms of barrels per day, but Trump made no reference to the time frame of the cuts. Additionally, it was not clear how the cuts would be distributed across oil-producing countries.

RBC commodity strategist Helima Croft said the U.S. could have to give up something in return.

"What we know is the Saudis were looking at this through the lens of the financial crisis and believe they needed a response commensurate to 08/09," she said, referring to the collapse of prices during the 2008-09 financial crisis.

"The question is can Trump put together the package that gets them to do that?" Croft said. "We know there's an emergency OPEC meeting. They will be looking for signs that U.S. production will be curtailed. They will be watching what happens with the Texas Railroad Commission and with Canada," she added.

Saudi Arabia on Thursday, via its official press agency, called for an "urgent" meeting between OPEC and its allies.

"Today, the Kingdom calls for an urgent meeting for OPEC+ group and other countries, with aim of reaching a fair agreement to restore the desired balance of oil markets," the Saudi Press Agency said.
[April 02, 2020]

Take a Break With Orlando's Virtual Experiences

ORLANDO, Fla., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- For travel-lovers stuck at home looking for a virtual positive break, Visit Orlando has compiled a list of 20-plus virtual thrills from the theme park capital of the world, including 360-degree online experiences, new Facebook Live broadcasts, live streamings of special films and YouTube videos.

Experience the interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/8711751-visit-orlando-virtual-experiences/

"We recognize that now, more than ever, we all want to escape from reality, even if it's just for a moment," said George Aguel, President & CEO of Visit Orlando. "Whether you like floating down a lazy river in one of our resort pools or immersing yourself into The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, we hope these experiences provide a much-needed break from everyday life."

From the comfort of their home, "virtual visitors" can now soar down a 200-ft. roller coaster drop, watch fireworks over the famous Cinderella Castle, zipline over alligators and even learn from experts how to draw Mickey Mouse, all aggregated on Visit Orlando's blog, VisitOrlando.com/blog.

Experience All of Orlando

Try riding the tallest roller coaster, ziplining over alligators, or standing on Main Street in front of Cinderella Castle . The Orlando Virtual Tour takes viewers into 85 experiences throughout Orlando , from theme parks and hotels to dining and shopping hot spots, with a 360-degree perspective.

Even More of the Theme Parks

Walt Disney World  Watch a sneak peek of new rides like Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway and Star Wars : Rise of the Resistance, enjoy character meet-and-greets and much more exclusively from the Disney Parks YouTube channel.

 Watch a sneak peek of new rides like Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway and : Rise of the Resistance, enjoy character meet-and-greets and much more exclusively from the Disney Parks YouTube channel. Universal Orlando Resort  Travel to different worlds virtually like The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - Diagon Alley and experience the parks with 360-degree videos of some of the most popular roller coasters, explore holiday events and take a closer look into the restaurants that make up Universal CityWalk from the Universal Orlando Resort's YouTube channel.

- Diagon Alley and experience the parks with 360-degree videos of some of the most popular roller coasters, explore holiday events and take a closer look into the restaurants that make up Universal CityWalk from the Universal Orlando Resort's YouTube channel. LEGOLAND Florida Resort  Explore the LEGOLAND Florida Resort Castle virtually through the twists and turns of The Dragon, an indoor/utdoor steel roller coaster.







Relax and virtually float through by yourself down the winding lazy river that is part of the 5-acre waterpark located in the luxurious grounds of the Four Seasons Resort Orlando at Walt Disney World Resort.

Explore a lake on a giant swan-shaped boat, through the swan boat ride in downtown Orlando's Lake Eola Park.

Lake Eola Park. Float down the river with gushing geysers at Aquatica's Roa's Rapids at the Aquatica Orlando water park, in a virtual action river experience with high tides and gushing geysers.

Animal Interactions

From Gatorland's School of Croc, a Facebook live every day at 10 a.m. every showcases animals and adventures. In the afternoon, their YouTube channel shares live-action encounters with animals including Burmese pythons, crocodiles, alligators and monitor lizards.

every showcases animals and adventures. In the afternoon, their YouTube channel shares live-action encounters with animals including Burmese pythons, crocodiles, alligators and monitor lizards. Peak into animal habitats through a new daily video series on Facebook live, from the Central Florida Zoo.

Explore a penguin colony at SeaWorld's Antarctica : Empire of the Penguin.

High-Speed Thrills

Virtually experience indoor skydiving at iFLY Orlando inside of their high-energy vertical wind tunnels that allows visitors to float on a column of air.

inside of their high-energy vertical wind tunnels that allows visitors to float on a column of air. Get in the driver's seat for a virtual race through Andretti Indoor Karting & Games' indoor track of turns and high-speed chases.

Virtual Learning  Making Education Fun

You can now stream educational IMAX films typically shown in the cinedome of the Orlando Science Center. Enjoy MacGillivray Freeman IMAX films by streaming, America's Musical Journey on YouTube, and Dream Big, Humpback Whale and National Parks Adventure on Vimeo on Demand.

Learn about living in space, Mars and rocketry or tour Space Shuttle Atlantis during a new series of Facebook lives from Kennedy Space Center .

. From Disney Imagineers, learn real-world case studies and even design a theme park experience through interactive activities and lessons in theme park design and engineering. This free online program is created in partnership with the Khan Academy and Pixar.

Learn to draw Mickey Mouse as Disney shares a complete series of how-to tutorials on how to draw the famous figure on the Disney Parks YouTube channel. Cast member Stephen Ketchum provides expert tips on how to draw Mickey over the years, from vintage 1920s Mickey to the more contemporary "pied-eyed" version.

Music, Movies and Museums

Listen to intimate musical performances at the Timucua Arts Foundation, set in the home grounds of the former music director for Cirque du Soleil. The foundation will post daily videos of previously recorded live performances on its Facebook page, also host a Digital Music Flea Market to help local musical artists.

Get a daily move recommendation and insider info on the film from a cinematic expert on the Enzian Theater's Facebook page.

Explore the museum galleries of the Charles Hosmer Morse Museum of American Art via the museum's website, with PDF versions of the object guides that are normally placed in each gallery. Learn the history behind the museum through two films available for streaming: A Legacy for the Community andThe Tiffany Chapel: A Masterpiece Rediscovered.

About Visit Orlando

Visit Orlando is The Official Tourism Association for Orlando, the most visited destination in the United States and Theme Park Capital of the World. A not-for-profit trade association that brands, markets and sells the Orlando destination globally, Visit Orlando represents 1,200 member companies comprising every segment of Central Florida's tourism community.

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/take-a-break-with-orlandos-virtual-experiences-301034426.html

SOURCE Visit Orlando
Korean car makers have been hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak ravaging the entire world, as most of the five have suffered sales drops.

Hyundai said Wednesday its overseas sales fell 26.2 percent on-year in March, the biggest drop since the global financial crisis in January 2009. Combined with sales at home, its overall sales stood at just 308,503 cars, down 21 percent.

Kia suffered an 11-percent decrease in overseas sales, with overall sales dropping 6 percent to 226,960 cars.

GM Korea saw its overseas sales slide 21 percent while overall sales decreased 12 percent to 37,918 cars.

Renault Samsung saw a whopping 84-percent increase in domestic sales thanks to the release of new models, but its overseas sales plummeted, resulting in a 9.5 percent rise in overall sales, which stood at 15,100 cars.

Ssangyong's sales declined by 29 percent to 9,345 cars.

In a bid to overcome the crisis brought on by the outbreak, carmakers are launching a big sale campaign.
- Chinese scientists have reportedly isolated antibodies that could be 'extremely effective' when it comes to treating or preventing the coronavirus

- While there is currently no proven treatment for the virus, the team of scientists has hope in their findings

- One of the scientists said the antibodies could be a more effective approach when it comes to treatment

A team of Chinese scientists from Tshinghua University in Beijing has found a possible 'extremely effective' treatment for the coronavirus.

Numerous antibodies have been isolated, with the team claiming they have the ability to prevent the virus from entering cells.

READ ALSO: Politician Suleiman Shahbal promises to contribute KSh 50k school fees for kind policewoman

File photo of physicians. A team of Chinese scientists from Tshinghua University in Beijing has found an 'extremely effective' treatment for the coronavirus.

Source: Getty Images

READ ALSO: COVID-19: Michelle Obama celebrates health workers putting their lives on the line to save others

Zhang Linqi, one of the scientists, explained that a drug made with the antibodies could be more effective than the current approaches used.

The team had begun analysing antibodies taken from recovered patients back in January 2020, and it has isolated over 200 antibodies with a 'strong' ability to bind with the virus.

Speaking to Reuters, Zhang revealed that they had conducted a test to see if the virus could be prevented from entering cells.

READ ALSO: Ndingi Mwana a'Nzeki to be interred at Holy Family Basilica Church basement

Out of the 20 antibodies tested, four were noted as 'exceedingly good' at achieving the desired result.

If everything goes according to plan, developers would go on to mass-produce these antibodies for testing, starting with animals and then on humans, in six months.

Normally, it takes two years for a drug to be approved, but with the coronavirus taking over the world spotlight, the process could be sped up.

READ ALSO: 11 beautiful photos of Kenya's patient zero Brenda who recovered from COVID-19

The team has partnered with Brii Biosciences in a bid to push forward numerous intervention possibilities.

Zhang highlighted the importance of antibodies, explaining that they have long been proven effective in the world of medicine.

Antibodies have been successfully used to treat cancer, infectious diseases and autoimmune diseases.

READ ALSO: Police gun down Recce officer leading gang of robbers in Bungoma

The teams goal is to find the most powerful antibodies and merge them to reduce the chances of the coronavirus mutating, according to Reuters.

The ideal result would produce a drug for at-risk people to prevent them from getting COVID-19.

Hong Kong University expert Ben Cowling commented that, while the road ahead remains a long one, this development is undeniably exciting.

READ ALSO: Man who hawked sweets to treat ailing mother opens bigger business after TUKO.co.ke highlighted his plight

"There's a number of steps which will now need to be followed before it could be used as a treatment for coronavirus patients," he said.

But it's really exciting to find these potential treatments, and then have a chance to test them out. If we can find more candidates, then eventually we'll have better treatment," he added.

Some experts warn that it could take time for such a drug to become widely available, with Cowling saying a number of steps will need to be followed before it can be used on patients.

The coronavirus has infected more than 883,200 people worldwide, killing 44,156. A total of 185,377 have recovered, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

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(CNN) - On a day several more states, including Florida, told most of their residents to stay at home, the number of US coronavirus cases skyrocketed past 200,000 on Wednesday.

The news comes while debate revs up on whether all Americans should be wearing a mask.

As of Wednesday afternoon, more than 210,000 people in the United States have been infected, and at least 4,703 have died. The number of fatality reports again reached a new daily high, with more than 900 reported.

One of the deaths was a 6-week old in Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont said.

More data showing people without symptoms are fueling the spread has top US officials rethinking whether the general public should be wearing masks. But the World Health Organization, while it says it is reviewing its advice, tells people there is no need to keep your mouth covered if you are not a patient or health worker.

A quarter of people in US who are sick have no symptoms

Concerning new data from Iceland shows 50% of those who tested positive said they were asymptomatic.

In the US, an estimated 25% of coronavirus carriers have no symptoms, said the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Information that we have pretty much confirmed now is that a significant number of individuals that are infected actually remain asymptomatic. That may be as many as 25%," CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield told NPR.

To prevent further spread, the top infectious disease expert in the US says health officials are reconsidering guidance on face masks.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said he would "lean towards" recommending that the general public wear face masks "if we do not have the problem of taking away masks from the health care workers who need them."

"We're not there yet, but I think we're close to coming to some determination," Fauci said.

If federal officials recommend widespread use of face masks, it would be a stark reversal from recommendations by the World Health Organization and the CDC, who have said face masks should be worn only by health care workers, those who are sick, and those who are taking care of someone sick.

The organization is "continuing to study the evidence" about whether the general public should use masks during the coronavirus pandemic, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a media briefing in Geneva, Switzerland, on Wednesday.

The WHO recommends the masks for sick people and caregivers, he said.

"This is still a very new virus, and we are learning all the time. As the pandemic evolves, so does the evidence, and so does our advice," he said.

US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams had consistently recommended the public not wear masks, saying they can cause more harm than good.

But this week, new information about asymptomatic spread could change public guidelines, Adams said.

A major argument against the widespread use of masks is that health care workers don't have enough.

"We have a massive global shortage," Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO health emergencies program, said. "Right now, the people most at risk from this virus are frontline health workers who are exposed to the virus every second of every day. The thought of them not having masks is horrific."

In many cities, doctors and nurses are falling sick with or dying from coronavirus. This is doubly tragic because fewer health care workers are able to take care of the public.

So some people are making their own masks. JOANN Fabrics and Craft Stores released a video tutorial on how to make face masks.

Evidence shows social distancing helps

Nearly 90% of the US population now lives in areas that have stay-at-home orders, according to a CNN count based on various state, county and city orders.

Some say that's not enough and are calling for a national shelter-in-place order, especially because the deadly virus is twice as contagious as the flu.

Florida, with 21 million residents and a large senior citizen population, joined the list Wednesday. Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order directing seniors and people with underlying medical conditions to stay home. All Floridians must limit their movements, he wrote. The order takes effect early Friday.

Governors in Georgia and Mississippi also issued orders Wednesday.

While 12 states have not issued stay-at-home mandates, President Donald Trump said he doesn't think a national order is necessary.

"States are different and I understand that the governor of Florida, great governor, Ron DeSantis, issued one today and that's good, that's great. But there are some states that are different. There are some states that don't have much of a problem," Trump said at a news conference on the US coronavirus response.

Health officials say social distancing efforts seem to be paying off, including in Washington state's King County -- the country's first coronavirus epicenter.

"We are looking at reductions in person-to-person contact that have progressively improved and have led us to a point where we are making a very positive impact," said Dr. Jeff Duchin, the public health officer for Seattle and King County.

In hard-hit New York, a CNN analysis shows the day-to-day average of case increases in the past week was 17% -- a major decrease from 58% for the previous seven-day period.

And a large-scale study found that early interventions, such as social distancing and severe restrictions on people's movement, have already saved tens of thousands of lives across Europe.

Scientists at imperial College London studied interventions in 11 European countries and concluded that they "have together had a substantial impact on transmission."

The researchers estimate as of March 31, "interventions across all 11 countries will have averted 59,000 deaths."

You asked, we answered: Your top coronavirus questions

Equipment still in short supply

The calls for help with vital equipment for treating patients continue. One hospital CEO even went to Twitter on Wednesday to ask Tesla head Elon Musk whether he could supply ventilators.

"We are down to one critical care ventilator," the message from the account of Mark Geller said about Montefiore Nyack Hospital.

Hospital spokeswoman Lauren Malone told CNN in an email that Geller "decided it was worth sending a message" to the Tesla head.

"We have not heard back from Mr. Musk, but perhaps we will be lucky enough to receive ventilators," Malone said.

The hospital was able to obtain 10 ventilators from another source, Malone said.

CNN has reached out to Tesla for comment.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said the state has been talking to factory owners from China and other countries, trying to buy equipment.

"We know that not having gotten nearly enough from the federal government, we have really taken it upon ourselves as a state to engage in the purchasing of medical equipment," he said.

Polis said the state doesn't have the hospital beds, ICU units, ventilators and personal protection equipment to treat all potential patients. He said they have ordered some supplies, but, for instance, need to make sure the masks they bought aren't counterfeits.

Why worry about coronavirus when the flu has killed more people?

This story was first published on CNN.com, "US coronavirus cases pass 200,000. More states are saying stay at home"
A 48-year-old doctor from Thane is



one of the 81 persons who tested positive for coronavirus in Maharashtra on Thursday, a senior civic official said.

The doctor, who has a clinic in the city, does not have any history of foreign travel and is undergoing treatment at Thane Civil Hospital, Sandeep Malavi, deputy commissioner of Thane Municipal Corporation said.

The doctor had shut his clinic since March 20 and he may have attended to patients with coronavirus symptoms before that, he said, adding that the TMC is tracking down patients he had treated before falling ill and other high-risk contacts.

In another development, Malavi said 25 attendees of Tablighi Jamaat event in Nizamuddin, who were traced to a mosque in Mumbra town, had tested negative for coronavirus.

The 25 people, including 13 Bangladeshis, eight Malaysians and four from Assam, had attended Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin in Delhi last month.

The count of positive patients in Maharashtra's Thane district has risen to 13, while 2,212 suspected patients, including 989 travellers were screened, of which 2,069 are home quarantined and 82 under institutional quarantine.

Meanwhile, Thane mayor Naresh Mhaske expressed serious concern over the increase in the number of positive cases and directed the TMC's medical team to track down acquaintances and high-risk contacts of positive patients to contain the spread.

In a related development, municipal commissioner Vijay Singhal ordered the zonal divisional municipal commissioners to take action against hospitals and clinics who fail to intimate authorities about suspected COVID-19patients and their contacts.

Errant hospitals and clinics will be charged under the Epidemic Act and the Disaster Management Act if they fail to alert the civic body about suspected cases, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As the outbreak of the novel coronavirus continues, more and more physical distancing measures are being implemented by governments, institutions and individuals. With people working from home, video conferencing app Zoom has become top choice for professionals to conduct important meetings and interactions. But as the practice of such meetings grows, so does the abuse of the app.

On Thursday, a press conference called by the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) was infiltrated by uninvited crashers who used the "default open access" settings of the host to get unauthorized access into the virtual press conference and took control of the main panel. The press conference had to be abruptly stopped as the infiltrators doodled around the presentation screen and started playing loud music and porn videos during the meeting. The trend known as Zoom-Bombing, has become a big problem for organizations and individuals who are new to the technology.

Even big corporations and governments are using Zoom meeting for official cabinet meet. UK Prime Minister recently posted pictures of his first digital cabinet meeting on Twitter, soon researcher pointed out a that the Zoom meeting ID was visible in the picture making it vulnerable for outsiders to get access to the meeting. Security analysts point out that these incidents are largely due to unawareness of the users, rather than security flaws of the platform.

Cyber security analysts suggest some basic Dos and Don'ts for your next Zoom meetings, here is an advice from Manan Shah, CEO of Avalance Global Solutions,

Before meeting

1. One should use private mode to stop strangers joining your account.

2. Don't share your public meeting ID with anyone. Do not share these details on websites, emails and do not post screenshot or videos of meetings where your meeting ID is visible.

3. You should set up a password for participants to verify their identity before entering, as it will act as a filter even if the meeting ID has gone public.

During meeting

1. Do not share control with any other unknown participant. Make sure to check "Host" under who Who Can Share? tab.

2. A two factor authentication should be used to allow anyone joining the meeting even if the participants disconnect and re-join during the meeting.

3. Users should report unauthorized entries to Zoom, so that action against such habitual accounts should be taken.

Other apps

While Zoom meeting has received most eyeballs in recent times, there are other platforms offering more secure environment. There are number of such apps, including apps from established players like Microsoft, Google, Cisco and others. There are also open source alternatives to apps like Zoom. One of that is Jitsi Meet. In India, there is also an app called LogMeIn. "It's important for users to validate that the videoconferencing or chat system you are utilizing has the right privacy and security practices and controls. We have a dedicated global 247 CSIRT (Computer Security Incident Response Team) (that can keep users safe)," Rahul Sharma, MD, India LogMeIn told India Today.
If you're more bored during lockdown than Harry Potter was during his second year summer locked in Dudley's spare bedroom, we've got great news.

Harry Potter author JK Rowling has launched an online hub for kids, families and fans to enjoy while being stuck at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.



Rowling announced the news on Twitter, writing: "Parents, teachers and carers working to keep children amused and interested while we're on lockdown might need a bit of magic, so I'm delighted to launch harrypotterathome.com."
New Delhi, April 2 : Teamwork Arts, producer of the annual Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF), on Thursday announced its new literature series - 'JLF presents Brave New World', a virtual initiative to celebrate books, their power and positivity.

The initiative will be an online literature series, scheduled to kick off from April 4 in which Diggi Palace will be replaced by the boundless possibilities of the Internet.

At upcoming digital series, author and advocate Abhinav Chandrachud and journalist Pragya Tiwari will be in conversation on the devastating Bombay bubonic plague epidemic of 1896 and its repercussions today.

Former politician and author Bruno MaAAes will speak about our transformed circumstances and the lessons learnt from America, China and Europe at a session on our past, present and future, and what the rebirth of these nations could mean for the world and global affairs.

Freedom of thought is a basic human right which protects individual thought and conscience in every human being. In conversation with writer and broadcaster Bee Rowlatt, Baroness Helena Kennedy will explore the need to protect the "forum internum" - our private mental space - from the incursions of digital technology - at a session titled 'Freedom of Thought'.

Writer and politician Shashi Tharoor and President of Observer Research Foundation Samir Saran, co-authors of the recent The New World Disorder and the India Imperative, will be in conversation and will share their views on the current crisis the world is going through. Their session will build a necessary narrative on the new realities that confront us today.

'Walls and Bridges' will be a session on dystopian fiction and its increasingly real and uncanny presence in our lives in which Prayaag Akbar, author of 'Leila' (which was adapted into a Netflix series), and Amrita Tripathi, author of 'The Sibius Knot' will share their views.

Namita Gokhale, writer, publisher and Co-director of the Jaipur Literature Festival, said, "Book lovers are never truly alone - not when we have books, and each other. We believe that these testing times are also the moments in which we need to interrogate and make sense of our world, through books and ideas, debate and dialogue, music and philosophy, science and the arts. JLF, which has always been a platform that celebrates the spirit of human connection, is now ready to go straight into hearts and minds and homes. Our new initiative, 'Brave New World' will provide an important new resource for our extended family across the world." Sanjoy K. Roy, Managing Director of Teamwork Arts who produce the Jaipur Literature Festival said, "JLF continues to be a platform for ideas, introspection and innovation by celebrating the word and sharing each other's stories. 'Brave New World' is an initiative to look ahead and envision a better future for mankind." The initial sessions of the series will run on the official social media platforms of the Festival and will be free and open to all. Going forward, attendees can access sessions on the official website of Jaipur Literature Festival by registering on the website. There will be live question and answer sessions at the end of every session with the audience.
Next come the explosions in the developing world. So far, the numbers of infected have been low in countries such as India, Brazil, Nigeria and Indonesia. The likely reason is that those countries are less linked by trade and travel than the advanced world. These countries have also tested very few people, which is keeping their numbers artificially low. But unless we get lucky, and it turns out that heat does temper the virus, these countries will all get hit  and hard. All of them are cash-strapped, and the loss of tax revenue, combined with the need for large new subsidies, could easily tip them into their own versions of the Great Depression.
Americans urged to wear masks outside as coronavirus pandemic worsens Signgage is seen at the entrance to a playground, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in New York City

By Steve Holland and Gabriella Borter

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Trump administration on Thursday looked set to join local officials in advising Americans to wear masks when venturing out during the still-exploding coronavirus pandemic, as the U.S. death toll rose by 1,000 in a single day for the first time.

Speaking at a White House briefing, Deborah Birx, a member of President Donald Trump's coronavirus task force, said the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would in the coming days add a recommendation on masks to guidelines on protective measures.

But Birx said Americans, almost all of whom have been told to stay at home except for essential outings, should not develop a "false sense of security" that they are fully protected from the respiratory illness by covering their faces.

Trump, answering questions from reporters at the briefing, said only "if people want to wear them, they can."

As of Thursday evening the U.S. death toll from COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the coronavirus, stood at 5,887, with more than 243,000 cases across all 50 states.

Global cases surpassed 1 million on Thursday with more than 52,000 deaths, according to a Reuters tally based on country-by-country data.

White House medical experts have forecast that between 100,000 to 240,000 Americans could be killed, even if the sweeping lock-down orders are followed.

The Trump administration, CDC and public health officials have all wavered on the issue of face masks since the pandemic broke out, initially telling healthy people such measures were unnecessary or even counter-productive.

NOWHERE TO PUT THE DEAD

The mayors of New York City and Los Angeles both urged residents to cover their faces. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio cited studies showing the virus can be transmitted by infected people who are showing no symptoms.

"What that means is when you put on that face covering you're protecting everyone else," de Blasio said.

Story continues

The Democratic mayor suggested New Yorkers use scarves or other home-made masks because medical-grade protective gear was in short supply.

An emergency stockpile of medical equipment maintained by the U.S. government has nearly run out of protective garb for doctors and nurses.

In New York City, where at least 1,400 people have been killed by the virus, hospitals and morgues struggled to treat the desperately ill and bury the dead.

Funeral homes and cemetery directors described a surge in demand not seen in decades as cases surpassed 50,000 in the city.

Crematories extended their hours and burned bodies into the night, with corpses piling up so quickly that city officials were looking elsewhere in the state for temporary interment sites.

"We've been preparing for a worst-case scenario, which is in a lot of ways starting to materialize," said Mike Lanotte, director of the New York State Funeral Directors Association.

At Brooklyn's Wyckoff Heights Medical Center, staff were seen disposing of gowns, caps and other protective gear in a sidewalk trash can on Thursday after loading bodies into a refrigerated truck.

Reuters was unable to confirm whether the bodies were those of coronavirus victims and hospital administrators could not be reached for comment. Operator Beatrice Pereira said, "They said that there's no one available right now, that everyone here is busy saving lives."

CARRIER CAPTAIN REMOVED

The U.S. Navy relieved the commander of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt after he wrote a scathing letter appealing for help to control a coronavirus outbreak onboard, U.S. officials told Reuters on Thursday.

Asked about the captain during a news conference at the White House, Trump said he did not agree with the suggestion that it appeared the commander was being removed for trying to save the lives of sailors.

"I don't agree with that at all. Not at all. Not even a little bit," Trump said.

With an estimated 90% of Americans under unprecedented orders to remain at home, the U.S. government reported that a record 6.6 million workers had filed for jobless benefits last week, double the previous all-time high set a week earlier.

The Walt Disney Company said it would start furloughs of non-essential U.S. employees across the company on April 19. It did not say how many would be affected.

In Florida, two Holland America cruise ships with dozens of sick coronavirus patients aboard docked at a port near Fort Lauderdale, resolving a days-long impasse.

(Reporting by Nathan Layne, Maria Caspani, Doina Chiacu, Susan Heavey, Lisa Shumaker, Brad Brooks, Jonathan Allen, Nick Brown, Brendan McDermid and Barbara Goldberg, Sharon Bernstein, Steve Gorman, Peter Szekely, Steve Holland, Dan Trotta and Dan Whitcomb; Writing by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Howard Goller, Bill Tarrant and Daniel Wallis)
Aoife Loughnane, from Lucan in Dublin, recently moved back to Ireland from Belgium.

Little did I know when I called last orders on a Tuesday night, that it would be my last shift before the world was shut down by a global pandemic.

I locked up and began my walk home through the heart of Antwerp. The city was still and peaceful and I remember thinking as I took in the breathtaking surroundings, how lucky I was that I got to call this place home.

Antwerp is truly a hidden gem; a picturesque city of cobbled streets that wind around a looming cathedral.

Ive lived here for almost seven months and I still stumble upon a new bookshop or a quaint bar where I wile away a few hours reading and sipping on delicious Flemish beers.

But that is all gone.

Now, the Grote Markt (the Great Market Square) is eerily empty and the usually bustling streets have been transformed into a ghost town.

News broke on March 12th that due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus, everything bar essential stores was to be closed from midnight the following night.

While I have my amazing boyfriend, a gorgeous apartment with lovely roommates and friends, I knew that I could be facing potentially months of unemployment and being essentially locked into my apartment alone.

My family were in Ireland, and they wanted me home.

And as the news kept flooding in, I knew it was only a matter of time before flights would be cancelled and borders would close.

It wasnt an easy decision because while I adore living in Belgium, in times like these - family is everything.

Living through this unprecedented time has forced me to think - where really is home?

Is it made up of the people who surround you, is it a feeling or simply a place?

I love Ireland with all of my heart but for the first time I was torn between an old life and my new one.

I arrived safely in Dublin and have been watching this unfold alongside the rest of the world.

For now, Im isolating in my hometown of Lucan but as soon as it is safe to do so, I will head back to Belgium and my boyfriend.

Because as I have discovered, home can be as many places as you like.

And Antwerp has become my second one.

We are living history. The challenges posed by Covid 19 are similar the world over but everybodys experience of this emergency will be different. In this special series, Lockdown Letters' gives our readers at home and across the globe an opportunity to share their stories about how the Coronavirus and the measures to tackle its spread are impacting their lives in these unprecedented times.

Please email your submission (400 words max.) to stories@independent.ie along with a photograph. We will publish as many letters as possible on Independent.ie and a selection in print every week.
In the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak, Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte threatened of shooting anyone who attempts to 'create trouble' during the month-long lockdown. In a televised national address on Wednesday, Duterte ordered the country's security forces to 'shoot down' the troublemakers.

"Let this be a warning to all. Follow the government at this time because it is critical that we have ordered," he said. "And do not harm the health workers, the doctors because that is a serious crime. My orders to the police and the military, if anyone creates trouble, and their lives are in danger: shoot them dead," the Phillippine president added.

This is not the first time that the Philippines' Duterte ordered the security forces to shoot down civilians. In 2016-2017, his administration reportedly permitted the extrajudicial killing of drug dealers.

READ| Phillipines: Boy helps parents recreate 28-year-old photo of them in same, netizens in awe

Coronavirus in the Philippines

The World Health Organisation (WHO) notified that 96 people have died from the COVID-19 pandemic in the country. The first case of Coronavirus was reported in late-January and the first death a few days after in the country of 105 million people. Over 900,000 cases of Coronavirus have been officially detected worldwide. At least 905,589 cases including 45,719 deaths have been recorded in 187 countries and territories across the globe. 203,608 cases and 4,476 deaths are recorded in the United States, followed by Italy with 110,574 detected cases and the highest death toll with 13,155 cases. Meanwhile, Spain confirmed 102,136 cases including 9,053 deaths.

The former hotspot of Coronavirus, China has 81,554 cases and 3,312 deaths. A 57-year-old female shrimp seller in China''s Wuhan city, the originating point of the global Coronavirus pandemic, has been identified as one of the first victims of COVID-19. The coronavirus ''patient zero'', who made a full recovery in January after month-long treatment, believes the Chinese government could have checked the spread of the disease had it acted sooner.

The COVID-19 ''patient zero'' believes she got the disease from a toilet she shared with meat sellers in the market. She said several vendors trading close to her also contracted the killer disease. In a release, Wuhan Municipal Health Commission confirmed Wei was among the first 27 patients to test positive for COVID-19 and one of 24 cases directly related to the market.

READ| COVID-19: Mumbai newborn tests coronavirus positive, parents allege hospital negligence

(With PTI inputs)
Dr. Rachel Levine has been getting asked about it every day: Is there any sign Pennsylvanias rate of new coronavirus cases is slowing? Is the curve bending? When does she expect the peak?

Some recent numbers suggested a glimmer of hope: the daily percentage increase in cases fell for five consecutive days, from 31% on Friday to 18% on Tuesday. Then it ticked upward on Wednesday, to 20%.

Meanwhile, the growth factor, calculated by dividing each days new cases by the new cases on the previous day, has largely remained above 1, pointing to continued exponential growth of cases. A growth factor of less than 1 can indicate the rate of new cases is slowing.

Asked about the percentage declines, Levine, the state secretary of health, has said its too early to draw any conclusions. And Levine and Gov. Tom Wolf clearly remain alarmed by the rising case count, as evidenced by Wednesdays expansion of the stay-at-home order to include every Pennsylvania county.

This virus is spreading rapidly. Its in every corner of our state, Wolf said.

They are also alarmed by the number of cases involving nursing home residents and health care workers: as of Wednesday, the count included about 200 nursing home residents and about 286 health care workers, Levine said.

Levine as of Wednesday had declined to offer any prediction of when Pennsylvania will reach a peak. She said shes working closely with a model created by the University of Pittsburgh.

Meanwhile, state health officials are also watching a University of Washington model which, as of Thursday morning, was predicting Pennsylvania will reach a peak on April 18. [Note: an earlier version of this article incorrectly state a date of April 15]

Experts express confidence the closed schools and businesses, stay-at-home orders and social distancing guidance are achieving the desired result of slowing the increase in cases, and will eventually bend the curve downward. They base that in part on comparing the actual case count to projected case counts if no actions were taken.

The daily case counts are considered a lagging indicator, reflecting infections that happened about two weeks ago. Experts say it will take several weeks after restrictions are put in place for the results to begin to show in daily case counts.

Thats what Pennsylvania is watching and hoping for. Below are delay breakdowns of the some of the essential numbers.

April 1

962 new cases

5,805 total cases

20% increase

1.27 growth factor

74 deaths, all adults

about 620 hospitalized since March 6

March 31

756 new cases

4,843 cases

18% increase

1.09 growth factor

63 deaths

about 514 hospitalized since March 6

about 159 needed ICU

about 94 needed ventilators

March 30

693 new cases

4,087 total cases

20% increase

1.06 growth factor

48 deaths

about 386 hospitalized since March 6

about 110 needed ICU

about 67 needed ventilators

March 29

649 new cases

3,394 total cases

23% increase

1.22 growth factor

March 28

533 new cases

2,751 total cases

24% percent increase

1.004 growth factor

March 27

531 new cases

2,218 total cases

31% increase

.95 growth factor

March 26

560 new cases

1,687 total cases

50% increase

2 growth factor

March 25

276 new cases

1,127 total cases

32% increase

1.33 growth factor

March 24

207 new cases

851 total cases

32% increase

1.25 growth factor

March 23

165 new cases

644 total cases

34% increase

1.53 growth factor

March 22

108 new cases

479 total cases

29% increase

1.05 growth factor

March 21

103 new cases

371 total cases

38% increase

1.24 growth factor

March 20

83 new cases

268 total cases

45% increase

1.6 growth factor

March 19

52 new cases

185 total cases

39% increase

1.4 growth factor

March 18

37 new cases

133 total cases

39% increase

1.85 growth factor

March 17

20 new cases

96 total cases

26% increase

1.54 growth factor

March 16

13 new cases

76 total cases

21% increase

.81 growth factor

March 15

16 new cases

63 total cases

34% increase

4.0 growth factor

March 14

6 new cases

47 total cases

14% increase

.31 growth factor

March 13

19 new cases

41 total cases

86% increase

3.2 growth factor

March 12

6 new cases

22 total cases

38 percent increase

1.5 growth factor

March 11

4 new cases

16 total cases

33% increase

2 growth factor

March 10

2 new cases

12 total cases

20% increase

.5 growth factor

March 9

4 new cases

10 total cases

67% increase

growth factor 2

March 8

2 new cases

6 total cases

50% increase

1 growth factor

March 7

2 new cases

4 total case

100% increase

1 growth factor

March 6
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 19:03:38|Editor: xuxin

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BERLIN, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The German armed forces will deploy 15,000 soldiers to help civilian institutions deal with the coronavirus crisis, Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer told public broadcaster ARD on Thursday.

"It is indeed the case that, for the first time in our history, we have set up coronavirus deployment contingent in view of the crisis," she said.

The medical facilities of the German armed forces, which was already integrated into the civilian system, were part of this, said Kramp-Karrenbauer. "It is all about logistics. It is about helping hands."

Kramp-Karrenbauer said the German armed forces were suffering from a shortage of protective equipment. "We too have supplies for a certain short period of time," she said.

Like many institutions in Germany, the armed forces were suffering from a lack of protective equipment, she warned. "We are not yet able to stock up on protective masks to a sufficient extent."
Kansas woman spots a scam

Roxann Thomas, 65, who lives in rural Kansas, told AARP she got two suspicious text messages within minutes of each other in late March. One was a text alert, saying her $1,000 government stimulus was ready, with a link to click.

"I knew right away it was a scam, because they hadn't even cut the checks yet, Thomas says. She also knew not to click any unfamiliar links  advice she'd received from her tech-savvy children and grandchildren. I never click on links unless I know absolutely 100 percent what it's about, who it's from, she says.

The other suspicious text said Thomas credit score was changing. She reported both texts to AARP's Fraud Watch Helpline, a free service with trained volunteers who take complaints about scams and offer advice. Complaints to the helpline are forwarded to the FTC's database.

One FTC official, Monica Vaca, was not surprised by the increase of complaints. She is associate director of the agency's Division of Consumer Response and Operations.

"This is trending so hard in the news headlines right now, and scammers like to follow the news, Vaca says.

Scammers often prey on people's fears, and there is a great deal of fear around the spread of the new virus, which disproportionally affects older people. I urge people to be on the lookout for offers  whether it's by phone, by email, by text  that play on your fears, she says.

The scams vary: robocallers impersonating government employees and requesting personal information; sales people touting hard-to-find cleaning products and toilet paper; and other fraudsters seeking money for bogus charities.

Bad actors also are promising cures or remedies for COVID-19 even though there is currently no recognized cure for the disease.

Consumers are urged to seek information about the coronavirus from a trusted website such as cdc.gov, where the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention has compiled essential information.
Moscow residents to be fined for breaching self-isolation regime

 RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov

17:56 02/04/2020

MOSCOW, April 2 (RAPSI)  Moscow authorities have fixed fines for violators of the self-isolation regime, according to the order of Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.

Failure to fulfil the requirements related to the spread of coronavirus would result in fines of up to 4,000 rubles. Repeated violations are to be punished with fines of up to 5,000 rubles (about $65).

If a self-isolation regime is violated with the use of a car, violators are to be fined also 5,000 rubles.

According to the Mayors decree, Moscow residents will be controlled by the electronic location monitoring and the citys video monitoring system.

In late March, residents of Moscow and Moscow Region were ordered to self-isolation and banned from leaving their places of living without the serious need, excluding medical aid, grocery shopping, visiting nearest pharmacies and dog walking near home.
Police and medical personnel have been attacked by locals in Munger town of central Bihar when they visited a locality to collect samples from people suspected to have contracted the novel coronavirus, an official said on Thursday.

Stones were thrown at the quick response team (QRT), comprising policemen and an ambulance carrying medical personnel, when they visited the Hazratganj locality late on Wednesday, SHO of Qasim Bazar police station Shailesh Kumar said.

The stone-pelting left a police jeep badly damaged and the situation was brought under control by use of force, he said.

Kumar said the quick response team was in the locality to collect samples from people who were reported to have returned home from elsewhere recently.

Notably, Munger has reported the highest eight COVID-19 cases in the state where altogether 24 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The pathogen is said to have spread here from a 38-year-old man who returned from Qatar a month ago. He died at AIIMS, Patna, while undergoing treatment for renal failure, a day before his test results confirmed that he had contracted the virus.

One of his relatives in Lakhisarai and three persons associated with a private hospital in the state capital where he was briefly admitted before being referred to AIIMS, Patna, have also tested positive.

The state government has intensified the process of collection and testing of samples. All those who returned to Bihar from abroad by mid-March or who have come from other parts of the country are being tested, irrespective of whether or not they are having any symptoms.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:29:16|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) start-up 4Paradigm announced Thursday that it had raised 600 million yuan (about 85 million U.S. dollars) in its latest funding round.

The C+ funding round valued the start-up at 2 billion U.S. dollars, the Beijing-based company said in a press release.

The new round introduced new strategic investors such as Cisco and Lenovo, laying a more solid foundation for the company to build its AI-based enterprise-level service ecosystem, 4Paradigm said. Other investors include China CITIC Bank, Green Pine Capital Partners and Co-Stone Asset Management.

In late 2018, 4Paradigm raised 1 billion yuan in its C funding round with a valuation of 1.2 billion U.S. dollars. The company said it raised a total of 230 million U.S. dollars in the two funding rounds.

Founded in 2014, 4Paradigm has more than 8,000 clients in a wide variety of industries, including finance, retail, health care, manufacturing, energy, media, and the internet.

The leading machine learning platform is dedicated to deploying AI solutions to solve real-world problems in industry and society to bring about more innovative production, more sustainable consumption, more agile supply chains, more convenient healthcare services, and more efficient allocation of resources in both the private and public sectors.

In 2019, 4Paradigm started its globalization by expanding its business to Europe and Southeast Asia. With its latest funding round, the company said it would accelerate the pace and scale of helping global enterprises achieve digital transformation through AI.
Official advice on whether people should wear masks in public could be changed after new evidence emerged suggesting they could protect people from coronavirus.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has consistently said that only those who have symptoms or are caring for someone with COVID-19 should wear masks.

But a new study and evidence from Hong Kong indicates masks may have a protective benefit for the public and a panel of WHO experts is due to assess the evidence today with a view to potentially changing their guidance.

Infections disease specialist Professor David Heymann, who is chairing the panel, warned that recommendations on masks were fraught with problems because people often wear them incorrectly or fail to dispose of them properly.

"There is right now a debate about the usefulness of masks because Hong Kong has provided some evidence that masks may be useful in protecting individuals from infection," he told a Chatham House briefing.

"It's not clear yet whether or not that's true.

"WHO, the group that I work with, is debating that with a group of experts around the world... to understand whether there is evidence which would call for a change in what WHO is recommending now for masks - which is that they really don't have a major role in protecting people from infection except in healthcare workers where they also wear eye protection and they also have a role from protecting others from coughs or sneezing.

"But as the evidence becomes available, it seems there will be a debate trying to decide whether masks play a role at some point in the outbreak.

"And believe me, if they do, there is a private sector healthy enough to begin producing those masks in quantities necessary."

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Data collected in Hong Kong around the use of masks has been shared confidentially with WHO and is expected to be published soon.

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But a separate study conducted under laboratory conditions at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, US, found that coughs can project liquid droplets up to 6m away and that sneezes reach up to 8m.

Scientists involved in the research say their results indicate that wearing higher-quality masks could reduce the risks in some environments, particularly in badly ventilated rooms.

Meanwhile, Prof Heymann urged caution for people who choose to buy 39 antibody home testing kits advertised on Facebook which detect whether or not they have had COVID-19.

"That's up to the person, if you are buying for your own interest in knowing if you have an antibody then why not buy it?" he said.

"But the problem is that you don't know if this is a highly specific or sensitive test unless you have read the package insert or asked the company what is the sensitivity or specificity.

"It is a free world, anybody can buy what they want to buy and use it, but you need to think twice as to whether it is a wise investment for the purposes that you want the test for.

"If you want to just see if you have coronavirus antibody then you could check it.

"If you want to see if you have COVID antibody then you might want to do a little bit more detailed investigation as to what that test is telling you."

He added that it was not yet known whether having immunity to COVID-19 is long-lasting.

"We don't know yet in the new coronavirus that causes COVID-19 whether or not that coronavirus does cause long-lasting immunity and therefore we can't make too many assumptions," he added.

"It would be nice to say 'if I have antibody I feel a bit safer going back out into the public' but with the caveat that I don't understand how long that immunity would last.

"Certainly, a reinsertion strategy would say yes, people who have antibody to this coronavirus could at least begin to work possibly, depending on what a country risk tolerance is, they could begin to working properly back in society and then we will know."

Meanwhile, he said that the UK has "hopefully" avoided a major surge of demand on hospitals.

"Because Italy had been focusing on outbreak containment and wasn't watching what was happening in its hospitals and all of a sudden hospitals became overwhelmed with patients and they weren't able to accommodate them all," he said.

"They didn't have sufficient ventilators and they had a very high level of mortality occurring, so countries then adapted their strategies to a strategy that was more aimed at making sure there was not a surge of patients in the hospitals but rather there could be a more balanced arrival of patients in hospital.

"To do that, many countries developed a delay strategy and among that was the UK which has delayed a major surge, hopefully."
New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

46 Covid deaths in 5 days in Delhi, 34 patients had comorbidities, 25 aged above 60: Govt data

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

Omicron has clear growth advantage over Delta with highest level of immune escape: INSACOG

Confirmed cases in India rises to 1,965, death toll 50

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Apr 02: The number of COVID-19 cases in India rose to 1,965 in India on Thursday, 2 April, according to the figures released by the health ministry, with the death toll rising to 50.

While there are 1,764 active coronavirus cases, 150 people have been cured/discharged and one is a migrated patient.

Haryana recorded its first COVID-19 death when a 67-year-old man from Ambala, who as per doctors had multiple underlying health conditions, passed away at the PGIMER here, a senior health department official said on Thursday.

"The man had multiple underlying health conditions including diabetes and associated kidney disease and a heart ailment. He had reported to Ambala civil hospital with acute respiratory distress and acute pneumonitis from where he was referred to PGIMER, Chandigarh," Chief Medical Officer, Ambala, Dr Kuldeep told PTI on the phone.

"He tested COVID-19 positive at PGIMER (Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research) around midnight Thursday and passed away around the same time," he further said.

According to the doctor, the patient had no contact history. The total number of positive cases of COVID-19 in Haryana is 29.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons has instituted a 14-day lockdown for all its institutions, including ones in Alabama, to stem the spread of COVID-19.

The bureau also stated that one worker at the penitentiary in Talladega has tested positive for coronavirus, according to the bureaus website, which lists 57 inmates nationwide who have tested positive, and 37 staff members.

According to the bureau, inmates in every institution during this two-week period will be secured in their assigned cells/quarters to decrease the spread of the virus. The bureau said this move is based on health concerns, not disruptive inmate behavior.

Alabama has three federal prisons, Talladega, the Federal Prison Camp in Montgomery and the Aliceville penitentiary, which houses female prisoners.

In an announcement yesterday, the bureau said it has started screening, testing, treatment, prevention, education, and infection control measures. Officials also said the institutions have an ample supply of cleaning, sanitation and medical supplies, including several types of respiratory and face masks.

CBS News is reporting that two federal inmates have died of coronavirus, both in Louisiana. About 10,000 inmates nationally are over the age of 60 years old, a third of which have pre-existing conditions. Last week, Attorney General William Barr announced he had ordered federal prisons to expand home confinement for older inmates with underlying conditions.
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Linkedin Ghina Ghaliya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:12 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f2fa47 1 Politics house-of-representatives,COVID-19,coronavirus,NasDem,PDI-P,omnibus-bill,job-creation Free

The House of Representatives will begin its deliberation of the controversial omnibus bill on job creation despite the coronavirus pandemic.

The secretary of the NasDem Party faction at the House, Saan Mustopa, told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday that the House leadership had agreed to read the presidential letter to begin the bill's deliberation at a plenary session on Thursday.

"Yes, it has been decided in a meeting with the House's [steering committee] on Wednesday to announce [the deliberation] in the plenary session," he said, adding that the meeting had also been attended by representatives of all House factions and commissions.

However, according to Saan, the House leadership has yet to decide whether the bill will be handled by the Houses Legislation Body (Baleg) or a special House committee (Pansus).

Read also: House members lead campaign to donate salary to COVID-19 victims

Weve suggested that it be handled by the Baleg, he said.

Speaking at the Houses plenary meeting on Monday, Saan said the bill was needed to mitigate the economic impacts of COVID-19.

We need to prepare for [economic] recovery []. We should start deliberating the omnibus bills on job creation and taxation to prepare for the post-outbreak situation. We need to recover quickly," he said.

House Speaker Puan Maharani, who is from Jokowis Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), has appeared reluctant to process the bill. Of the six political parties in the government coalition, the PDI-P has been the only one to urge lawmakers not to rush, citing public objections to the bill.

Responding to Saans statement, Puan said during Mondays plenary session that the House would focus on emergency measures for COVID-19 at this time.

Read also: House ready to support 2020 budget revisions to account for COVID-19

Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) president Said Iqbal said deliberating the omnibus bill at a time like this showed that the lawmakers had no empathy for the people that currently were facing a difficult situation due to the pandemic.

He said the House should prioritize the coronavirus handling rather than the omnibus bill.

"The omnibus bill is not a solution to the layoff phenomenon following the pandemic. Its not a solution for Indonesia's economic growth problem due to the pandemic too. It is clear that the omnibus bill is not being prepared to anticipate COVID-19, he said.

Civil society organizations, major labor unions and student organizations had prepared for street rallies to protest against articles in the omnibus bill on job creation that  if passed  would harm labor rights, the environment and democracy. They also protested against the bills less-than-transparent drafting process.
THE Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has said people must restrict this months National Clean-up Day to cleaning up their homes this Friday from 8AM to 10AM due to the lockdown aimed at preventing the spread of Covid-19.





The agency said in compliance with the nations strategy to combat the pandemic, people wont be gathering at various points but they should not forget to take care of the environment.





The organisations education and publicity manager, Ms Amkela Sidange, yesterday said waste generation at the household level is bound to increase during this period when families are at home.





Ms Sidange said this reduces residual waste accumulating in the environment. She said it was important for people to prioritise the sorting of waste at their homes to recover recyclable and compost biodegradable materials.Ms Sidange said this reduces residual waste accumulating in the environment.





This National Clean-up Day occurs when the entire global village and our country Zimbabwe are seized with the ramifications of the novel Covid-19, said Ms Sidange.





This calls for all citizens to take time to reflect on our waste management practices as a country, redefine them and admit that a clean environment is essential for a healthy nation.





With the lockdown now in earnest in the country and calls for everyone to stay at home and be safe from Covid-19, lets therefore take time to clean within our households especially our back yards as from 0800 to 1000hours, this April National Clean-up day.





The official also urged local authorities to take advantage of the deserted Central Business Districts (CBDs) and other critical areas including markets during the lockdown and clear all dumps, empty bins, maintain a regular waste collection schedule and generally sanitise those areas.





She said such a move among other things will help to build sustainably clean cities and communities.





Ms Sidange said EMA remains resolute in its efforts to achieve a clean, safe and healthy environment as provided for in the Constitution.





As we intensify our efforts as a country towards the fight against Covid-19, it is imperative that we maintain a clean and healthy environment hence we encourage all of us to take part in creating a clean environment, and also stay safe from Covid-19. Lets promote a clean environment for a healthy nation, she said. Chronicle




 Flash

Trying to get out ahead of the spreading COVID-19 epidemic in the United States, the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) reached out to key medical leaders in China to learn exactly what public health protocols and treatments they had instituted that enabled them to successfully and effectively stop the coronavirus outbreak in China.



On a multi-continent conference call hosted on Monday by Stephanie Levine, president of the CHEST and professor of medicine in pulmonary and critical diseases at the University of Texas, San Antonio, medical practitioners across the United States got a detailed rundown of the successful procedures that turned the tide on COVID-19 in China.

The two-day event was jointly sponsored by the CHEST, the Chinese Thoracic Society (CTS), the Chinese Association of Chest Physicians (CACP), and supported by the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Los Angeles.

"These protocols proved to be a crucial step in bringing the disastrous epidemic in Wuhan under control and can be just as effective anywhere," said Levine.

The two keynote speakers, Chen Wang and Jieming Qu, are both frontline heroes at home and heavyweights in China's successful battle to curb the coronavirus.

Chen Wang, a senior physician, is the president of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, president of the Chinese Association of Chest Physicians (CACP), and former director of the Collaborating Center for Tobacco or Health of the World Health Organization.

Right out of the gate, he stressed that "Herd Immunity" -- leaving patients to fend for themselves until enough became immune to the virus -- was unethical and never an option.

Wang was posted to Wuhan at the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak and is still there mopping up operations. He maintained the importance of strictly enforced isolation protocols to prevent the spread of the virus.

China curbed the COVID-19 outbreak by using the following successful steps as he suggested:

Mandating citywide isolation; designating specific hospitals for the critically ill; setting up temporary sub-medical facilities and "Fangcang Shelter Hospitals" or mobile cabin hospitals, that can admit asymptomatic and mild-to-moderately symptomatic patients to achieve strict control and isolation of all infectious sources.

They also established quarantine sites such as empty hotels for people exposed to the virus and not yet symptomatic; strict and detailed protocols for each step in the management of COVID-19 patients and the protection of medical personnel; and implemented coordinated leadership groups that were given temporary administrative power to bypass the usual bureaucracies to coordinate and carry out comprehensive and intelligent public health mandates at different levels.

One of Wang's own highly-effective innovations was creating the "Fangcang Shelter Hospital."

This model hospital is designed as a large-scale health facility that can be rapidly built -- literally overnight -- by repurposing existing public structures that are already empty due to the coronavirus outbreak, such as stadiums, convention centers, gymnasiums, offices, airports and factories, into temporary housing and treatment facilities for thousands of patients.

These facilities provide isolation, triage, medical care, monitoring and referral, shelter and social engagement mild-to-moderately infected patients in order to free up the intensive care hospitals for the severely and critically ill and help prevent the spread of the virus.

Rounding out the seminar was Jieming Qu, president of Ruijin Hospital in Shanghai and the president-elect of the Chinese Thoracic Society.

Qu, a specialist in pulmonary infections, is the head of the Shanghai Coronavirus Action Plan. This plan kept Shanghai, a densely-packed city with a population in excess of 25 million, four times the size of New York city and six times the size of Los Angeles, from spiraling out of control following in the footsteps of Wuhan.

Instead of becoming China's second disaster area, under Qu's guidance, it suffered only 400 cases and 4 fatalities.

He stressed the need to implement the anti-viral effort using the following key steps:

Immediately close all public venues; stop crowds and gatherings of any kind; restrict traffic flow in and out of the city; wear masks at all time when in public; frequently wash hands and disinfect; set up public temperature monitoring stations to identify transmission sources; provide COVID-19 testing for symptomatic individuals and healthcare professionals; deliver food and essential supplies by non-contact means; and strictly isolate the sick.

It is worthy of note that, after implementing Qu's strict protocols, Shanghai has had no new cases in the last 28 days.

The doctors also advocated for Rapid Medical Response Teams with experienced doctors and nurses, immediate intensive training for medical personnel on COVID-19 specifics, the reasonable and fair distribution of medical resources wherever needed nationwide, and sufficient protective equipment for medical personnel and first responders serving on the frontlines in the war against COVID-19.

Chris Carol, professor of pediatric critical care at University of Connecticut at Harford, and head of the CHEST Critical Care Network, pointed out that the personal protection equipment (PPE) worn by healthcare workers in China were better and provided significantly more protection than the ones used by U.S. healthcare workers.

He also noted that Chinese citizens appeared to be much more willing to wear masks while in public than Americans were. "Is that a cultural thing?" he queried.

China has bought time for the rest of the world to prepare for the outbreak in their country, but sadly, few, if any, seemed to have taken advantage of those precious three months to get better prepared or work together toward a common goal.

Wang made an impassioned plea, "We should act together to stop the spread of the virus. We should help each other and look after each other. Solidarity is needed and conflict should be set aside."

He expressed the strong belief that this is the time for solidarity, compassion, and, above all, collaboration.

"Countries have a responsibility to show up, step up and gear up. We can slow down transmission, prevent infection, and save lives through our personal, national and international efforts," he said. "People of all countries should join forces to strengthen our global response against COVID-19 and work together to build a shared future for mankind."
North Korea has reportedly insisted that it is free from coronavirus" despite global confirmed cases of COVID-19 expected to hit a near-million. A senior health official in Pyongyang claimed that the isolated nuclear-armed country does not have a single case of the novel disease, as per international media reports.

Pak Myong Su, director of the anti-epidemic department of the Norths Central Emergency Anti-Epidemic Headquarters insisted that North Korea sealed its borders late January, shortly after the coronavirus outbreak news emerged from neighbouring China. He said that strict containment measures were enforced, and efforts have been successful.

Further adding to the statement, Pak Myong Su said that the government enacted pre-emptive and scientific measures. It tested every single personnel entering the country, quarantined the presumptive cases ahead of time, and thoroughly disinfected cities, Pak reportedly said. All borders were sealed, the sea and air lanes blocked, he was quoted as saying. Experts and defectors, however, claimed that the particularly vulnerable Pyongyang was concealing information about the case status due to its weak healthcare systems and scant medical resources, according to AFP report.

Read: Australia's Coronavirus Testing Rate Best In World: Morrison

Read: Coronavirus Testing In Iceland Suggests 50% Of Cases Have No Symptoms

Kim Yo Jong acknowledged US' support

General Robert Abrams, top US military commander in South Korea, told at a press conference last month, that he was fairly certain that North Korea had detected several confirmed cases of COVID-19. Earlier, President of the United States Donald Trump said in his address to the US media that he was certain North Korea was hit by the pandemic. In a letter that he sent to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in midst of infection spread as of March 22, the US offered assistance and cooperation in the anti-epidemic work, a state-run Korean Central News Agency confirmed.

In the letter, Trump proposed an action plan to mend relations between the two countries of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the US, and expressed intent to render co-operation, according to a statement from Kim Yo Jong, Kim's younger sister and first vice department director for WPK Central Committee. She said that the North Korean administration esteemed US presidents efforts to improve bilateral relations at a time when big challenges and difficulties lay ahead, referring to the coronavirus pandemic, confirmed North Korean state media reports.

Read: Uganda Police Accused Of Targeting LGBT Community Amid Coronavirus Lockdown

Read: UN Agency Says Coronavirus Pandemic Has Negligible Impact On Climate Change

(With agency inputs)
Saudi Arabia extends measures to combat coronavirus while other Gulf Arab states lock down migrant worker districts.

Saudi Arabia has imposed a 24-hour curfew in the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina, extending measures to combat the novel coronavirus, while other Gulf Arab states locked down districts with large migrant worker populations.

The Saudi interior ministry stipulated exceptions, including for essential workers and for residents allowed to buy food and access medical care. Cars may only carry one passenger.

Saudi Arabia has recorded 1,885 infections and 21 deaths, the most in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

It has already halted international flights, suspended the year-round Umrah pilgrimage, closed most public places, and heavily restricted internal movement.

On state TV on Tuesday, the Minister for Hajj and Umrah, Mohammed Saleh Benten, asked Muslims to defer preparations for the annual Hajj pilgrimage scheduled in late July due to the pandemic.

Some 2.5 million pilgrims from around the world usually flock to Mecca and Medina cities for the week-long ritual. The pilgrimage is also a significant source of income for the kingdom.

The eastern oil-producing province of Qatif, where the kingdoms first coronavirus cases were reported among Shia Muslim pilgrims returning from Iran, has been on lockdown for nearly four weeks.

Entry and exit to Riyadh, Mecca, Medina and Jeddah is limited.

Some neighbourhoods in Mecca and Medina were already under full lockdown, but in the rest of those cities, the curfew was previously from 3pm to 6am.

Migrant worker districts locked down

In other Gulf Arab states, lockdowns targeted neighbourhoods with large numbers of low-wage foreign labourers.

Kuwaits health minister said authorities were considering sealing off some areas after Qatar announced late on Wednesday that it was extending a lockdown on an industrial area and after Oman closed off Muttrah, home to one of the sultanates oldest markets.

Dubai in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday sealed off Al Ras, an area famous for its gold and spice souqs and where many migrant workers reside.





Millions of migrant workers, mainly from Asian countries like Nepal, India and the Philippines, are among the large expatriate population in the six Gulf states, where confirmed infections have risen to above 4,700, with 36 deaths.

Bahrains health ministry reported 66 new cases on Thursday, all in the industrial zone of Salmabad.

The expat labourers had been under precautionary quarantine in their residence and yesterday were placed in a dedicated quarantine facility and there is no outbreak among labourers, it said.

Omans health minister said the coastal commercial district of Muttrah was sealed off due to the discovery of a community spread of the virus.

Such decisions are not easily taken  but it is for the public good, state media quoted him as saying.

Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday that it was working to enable foreign residents to return home even as passenger flights remain suspended.

In mid- March, Qatar reported a majority of coronavirus cases being located in what is called the Industrial Area, a commercial hub outside the capital Doha where many of its migrant workers live.

The area was put under complete lockdown to help curb the outbreak.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As the MTA continues to distribute hundreds of thousands of masks to its frontline employees, the transit agency, alongside the union representing a majority of its workers, is asking mass transit riders to cover their face on the citys buses and subways.

On Thursday, MTA Chairman and CEO Pat Foye asked members of the riding pubic to cover their faces when using the citys transit system.

We have made the decision to disregard previous medical guidance on masks so that we can provide additional comfort and safety to our steadfast, dedicated workforce. We are also recommending that the essential workers who continue to ride with us during the pandemic wear face coverings  we all have a responsibility to do everything we can to stop the spread," Foye said.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK***

For those without masks, TWU Local 100 President Tony Utano, who represents over 40,000 New York City Transit workers, recommended that riders cover their nose and mouth with a bandana or scarf. If riders do not comply with the recommendation, the union has asked government officials to consider legally mandating face coverings on public transit.

This is a common-sense move that will prevent the spread of the virus and could ease the concerns of both transit workers and riders, Utano said.

Foyes recommendation came alongside an announcement that the MTA had secured and is distributing 100,000 additional masks to frontline workers, separate from the 75,000 masks that were distributed last week. Since March 1, the MTA has distributed 240,000 masks and 3.2 million gloves, according to the agency.

The continued distribution of masks is great news for the men and women of the MTA, who are heroes for the work they are doing on the frontlines of this pandemic. It is our hope and our mission to continue to provide this critical protective equipment going forward, Foye said.

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The data-mining feature was available to Zoom users who subscribed to a LinkedIn service for sales prospecting, called LinkedIn Sales Navigator. Once a Zoom user enabled the feature, that person could quickly and covertly view LinkedIn profile data  like locations, employer names and job titles  for people in the Zoom meeting by clicking on a LinkedIn icon next to their names.

The system did not simply automate the manual process of one user looking up the name of another participant on LinkedIn during a Zoom meeting. In tests conducted last week, The Times found that even when a reporter signed in to a Zoom meeting under pseudonyms  Anonymous and I am not here  the data-mining tool was able to instantly match him to his LinkedIn profile. In doing so, Zoom disclosed the reporters real name to another user, overriding his efforts to keep it private.

Reporters also found that Zoom automatically sent participants personal information to its data-mining tool even when no one in a meeting had activated it. This week, for instance, as high school students in Colorado signed in to a mandatory video meeting for a class, Zoom readied the full names and email addresses of at least six students  and their teacher  for possible use by its LinkedIn profile-matching tool, according to a Times analysis of the data traffic that Zoom sent to a students account.

The discoveries about Zooms data-mining feature echo what users have learned about the surveillance practices of other popular tech platforms over the last few years. The video-meeting platform that has offered a welcome window on American resiliency during the coronavirus  providing a virtual peek into colleagues living rooms, classmates kitchens and friends birthday celebrations  can reveal more about its users than they may realize.

People dont know this is happening, and thats just completely unfair and deceptive, Josh Golin, the executive director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, a nonprofit group in Boston, said of the data-mining feature. He added that storing the personal details of schoolchildren for nonschool purposes, without alerting them or obtaining a parents permission, was particularly troubling.
Rebranding

2 April 2020

InterContinental Hong Kong is ready for its biggest renovation in 30 years. The hotel closure is now scheduled for April 20, 2020, with the reopening as the Regent Hong Kong in 2022.

The hotel has been planning a spectacular transformation that will position it as one of the top hotels not only in Asia, but also as one of the world's most iconic hotels. The total transformation will span all guest rooms and suites including bathrooms,

all public areas, restaurants and event venues, as well as a refresh of the building facade with a contemporary new look.

Yan Toh Heen, the hotel's 1-Michelin star Cantonese restaurant, will remain open throughout the renovation, with access via the adjoining K11 Musea.

Following a global search for a design visionary for the flagship property's major transformation and re-opening as the Regent, Hong Kong-born Chi Wing Lo has been appointed as the architect / designer.

Goodwin Gaw, Chairman and Managing Principal of Gaw Capital Partners, which led the acquisition of the hotel in 2015 on behalf of a consortium of investors, shared, "We are thrilled to work with Chi Wing Lo, who has over 30 years of experience in the United States, Greece and Italy. His designs combine superb craftsmanship and ingenuity with an innovative use of materials and a unique and timeless aesthetic. He is now exclusively devoting his time to the design creation and return of the legendary Regent Hong Kong."

Gaw continued, "On behalf of the owning companies, we are committed to returning the property back to its glory days as one of the most prestigious hotels in the world. Following this exciting transformation and rebranding, the hotel will once again become an iconic flagship property for Regent Hotels & Resorts and a jewel of Hong Kong."

InterContinental Hong Kong is internationally-acclaimed as one of the world's leading hotels, with a coveted Five-Star rating from the Forbes Travel Guide. It is famous for its unrivalled panoramic views of Victoria Harbour and Hong Kong's skyline. The 503-room hotel opened in 1980 as the Regent Hong Kong which was owned by IHG up to 2015, and has operated under the InterContinental brand since 2001. For four decades the hotel has had a loyal following and special place in the hearts of both the local Hong Kong community and global travellers who frequent the property for its acclaimed dining, accommodation, harbour views, and its outstanding service.

IHG acquired a majority stake in Regent Hotels and Resorts in March 2018, and has been working together with the owners to renovate the hotel and reopen the property as the Regent Hong Kong. The Regent Hong Kong was not only a great hotel, it was also part of the memory of all Hong Kong people.

InterContinental Hong Kong colleagues will be supported with opportunities, wherever possible, within IHG properties after the hotel closes. They will also be given priority to re-join the hotel when it re-opens and be part of the transformation for its re-opening and relaunch.
ST. LOUIS  St. Louis aldermen on Thursday joined an effort by Mayor Lyda Krewson, St. Louis County Executive Sam Page and others to convince Gov. Mike Parson to issue a statewide stay-at-home order to try to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

We ask you to unite and protect our entire State, Aldermanic President Lewis Reed said in a letter also signed by 25 of the 26 current ward aldermen. COVID-19 knows no boundaries.

In the letter board members also asked that the state provide more personal protective equipment for healthcare and public safety personnel in the city. More testing for the virus also is needed in the city, they said.

The board also asked Parson to issue an executive order classifying grocery workers, pharmacy technicians, sanitation employees and janitors as first responders during the current crisis.

In doing so, these front line workers will be able to access State benefits to childcare and priority testing, the letter says.
EDWARDSVILLE  A Glen Carbon lawyer who once drove a tow truck received 1,506 write-in votes in the March 17 primary, more than three times the tally needed to win the Democratic nomination for a judgeship left vacant by the retirement of former circuit judge Andy Matoesian.

Ive had real life experience. But one day I was standing in a ditch, up to my knees in water, and I decided to go to law school, said Leslie Wood, 52, who will face Republican Associate Judge Steve Stobbs in November.

Wood needed 500 write-in votes to be placed on the ballot, said Madison County Clerk Debbie Ming-Mendoza. The last of the primarys mail-in votes were counted Tuesday.

Ming-Mendoza said the other write-in candidate  Republican coroner candidate Harry Mason  received only 62 votes, not enough to secure him a place on the November ballot to face incumbent Democrat Steve Nonn.

Wood has experience mainly in family law and bankruptcy law, but also has practiced in several other areas, including criminal cases.

Ive handled cases in every part of the courthouse, she said, adding that as the operator of her own practice she has small business experience. Since 2009 she has owned the Wood Law Office.

In 1989 she earned a bachelors degree in business administration from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. After graduating college, she worked for a public relations firm in New York City.

She received her law degree in 1998 from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. After she graduated law school, she worked with Russ Meyer of Alton, then the firm of Thomas, Eastman and Mottaz in Alton. She has also worked with attorney Jay Tomerlin of East Alton.

Wood said she waited to see if the Madison County Democratic Party was going to field a candidate for the judgeship. When it did not, she decided to run because the voters deserve a choice.

I worked really hard on this, Wood said. Im thrilled and grateful to anybody who wrote my name in. A write-in campaign is the hardest way to get on the ballot, so it is a really great feeling.

She said she is not a career politician.

In any area of politics, I think people should step forward if needs are not met, she said. No matter what happens in November, I know I tried.

Wood and her husband have two children, one in college student and one in high school.

Stobbs is an associate judge who presides over the Madison County asbestos docket. He has served as one of Madison Countys 13 associate judges since June 2006; in April 2019 he received the highest rating  97 percent approval  among the judges for reappointment, as voted by the members of the Illinois State Bar Association.

Prior to his appointment, Stobbs was a Republican member of the Madison County Board representing Godfrey for eight years, having been elected three times and chairing its Judiciary Committee.
Onstage in 2015; not livestreamed in 2020. Photo: Richard Termine

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On Monday of this week, Red Bull Theater, the New York group that specializes in Jacobean bloodbath dramas (think Shakespeare, but gleefully less tasteful), was supposed to be online. The company had announced that they would be reconvening their company from their 2015 production of Tis Pity Shes a Whore to read the play  unproduced, unrehearsed, Zoom-style aesthetic  and livestream it. Their normal Monday night series, Revelation Readings, was on indefinite suspension because of the coronavirus, and this free Facebook and Vimeo teleconference event was meant to engage their audience, revive spirits, and honor John Fords zippy, 400-year-old incest plot. Love me or kill me, brother! That sort of stuff.

But last Thursday, the union Actors Equity emailed to tell them that they were in breach of their agreement. A business representative from AEA wrote, I want to reach out and remind you that the Revelation Reading agreement has a prohibition on recording and this wouldnt be allowed under the terms of that agreement. The Red Bull folks were flummoxed: It wasnt a recording and it wasnt a Revelation Reading, but still Equity had the power to shut it down. Some frantic emails over the weekend and phone conversations on Monday didnt put the situation right. They were offered terms (paying the actors salary and health payments) that, artistic director Jesse Berger says, were extraordinary for a company of our size  they were prohibitive. Red Bull rejected those terms. On Monday at 5:30 p.m., the company had to announce that the free event, scheduled for just two hours later that night, was canceled.

Both Berger and Red Bulls managing director, Jim Bredeson, wanted to make clear in our conversation that they have the utmost respect for Equity (a valued partner), and that on Monday the conversations were collegial, in good faith, and hopeful. But it fell apart around 3:30 that day. At that time, says Bredeson, what we were told is that the executive committee of Equity had met the Thursday before and decided on some preliminary terms for streaming. I asked whether those had been bargained and if so with whom. Bredeson compares the terms to the streaming provisions for LORT theaters, which allow venues like ACT in San Francisco to stream their production of Toni Stone for paying audiences. Despite feeling that the comparison was ticket-buying apples to livestreamed oranges, the Red Bull folks shut down their reading because they didnt want to create conflict with Equity. It was supposed to be about creating community, Berger says, ruefully.

Equitys statement on the Red Bull issue takes umbrage: At a time when almost everyone in the arts is going without a regular paycheck and worries about their health care, its deeply sad to see that some employers will still ask Equity actors to work without the protections of a contract. A source at Equity told me that any employer in a collective-bargaining agreement must check with the union any time they use members, and it doesnt matter what form that work takes. (In a time when new forms are springing up like fungus after rain, that absolutism might prove tricky.) The source notes that 80 other theaters have agreed to the terms. But the fact that Red Bull didnt contact the guild beforehand seems to be the most serious sticking point. Contact us first, Equity asks, so that negotiations can take place. But while charity work and fundraising by Equity members is covered under the Theatre Authority guidelines, according to the website, the application needs to be filed 30 days before the event. Thirty days ago was March 1, which was, well  another country.

According to Bredeson, We hadnt contacted them because we didnt feel it was in their purview. You do have to speak with Equity when it means live performance, Bredeson says, but our arrangements with them are for Off Broadway theater in the Manhattan borough. Our thinking was, simply, we didnt feel we were creating a theatrical production. We were just asking friends of the company to support the company and to have a community moment. This is certainly a new, nebulous world. Is screen-only performance even governable by Equity? How does SAG, the Screen Actors Guild, factor in? Is cyberspace a stage? Our position has been the same since the beginning, says Bredeson. It didnt occur to us that they would have dominion over work created in the virtual space, an international marketplace. My colleague Sarah Jones, who reports on labor issues, is a little skeptical on this point. Work is work, she says. The union will naturally feel like it has jurisdiction over an event like the one Red Bull had planned. Shes also curious about the choice not to contact Equity. It wouldve been a fairly simple thing to do.

The Red Bull folks had offered the participating performers an honorarium, so the actors had not seen trouble coming. Kelley Curran (set to reprise her role as the murderous Hippolita) says that when Red Bull asked me to do it, they offered us a fee. And for the amount of time, since there was no rehearsal, it felt reasonable, she says. We assumed they had squared it with the union. When Equity announced the reading couldnt proceed, she emailed the union, expressing her disappointment. I do think it was a genuine mistake, she says, referring to Red Bulls failure to contact the union, which she characterizes as a misstep. I appreciate the union making sure its members are not exploited, she says, because of course we want to protect the workers. But how do we navigate these mistakes that get made? It has to be with grace and compassion.

The Red Bull situation has sent ripples into the field, which is already turbulent. Some tiny groups, who have also been innovating with livestreamed events, are frightened that their models might also run afoul of the union. One young producer operating in the virtual space points out that there is currently no AEA guidance regarding tele-digital, informal readings for free or for charity. These kinds of readings barely existed before two weeks ago, and he fears that Equity is assuming jurisdiction of what is, essentially, new ground without ever writing it into their laws. Certainly Equity is fearful about setting precedents that might lead to further exploitation of actors and stage managers  but the shutting down of the entire theatrical sector is an extraordinary circumstance. Is there no way to have rules that only function during this industrywide crisis? To have waivers that expire once were able to gather again?

Now the question is about what comes next. Red Bull is talking to peer nonprofits about their agreements, wary of letting practice make precedent. Says Berger, Were setting rules in the Wild West in a time of crisis! We would like to proceed with online programs to serve our audience but we dont want to set standards under duress. What would be wonderful is a long, careful process, full of bargaining and negotiation and the calm cooperation that theater is known for. Everyone on all sides of the Red Bull situation wants the best for performers, the best for the field, and given time (and a less frightening situation), they could probably have found a way through the stung feelings and sense of broken agreement to something mutually agreeable. Each person I spoke to had the best will in the world. Now the trick is getting them to agree on what that world will look like.
Lakhs of workers in the state's



unorganised sector are facing an uncertain future as they may lose their jobs as a result of the countrywide lockdown in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, trade union leaders said here on Thursday.

CITU leader Subhas Mukherjee said that with around 95 per cent of West Bengal's workforce associated with the unorganised sector, it is a bleak scenario for these people and their families since they have no income owing to the lockdown.

Construction workers, commercial transport workers, daily wage labourers such as coolies at railway stations and markets, masons and their help are at their wits' end on how to meet their basic requirements, Mukherjee said.

"These are self-employed people and since they have no employer, the government has to take their responsibility," Mukherjee told PTI.

Another trade union leader, MQ Qamar, the INTUC West Bengal unit president said though there are laws and schemes to protect the interests of the workers of the unorganised sector, many of them are not registered or have not renewed their registration.

Thanking both the state and central governments for announcing relief for workers of the unorganised sector, the INTUC leader said with most government offices closed owing to the lockdown, these hapless people do not know where to go to get the assistance.

Though the government has declared special packages, including free ration, most of these people are not getting it owing to lack of coordination and mismanagement at the ground level, the CITU leader said.

Mukherjee also said that these workers are living in a dangerous situation in slums with no protection and lack of provisions.

"We have written to the government seeking orders to the local administration in all parts of the state to assist these people and their families," Mukherjee said.

Since many of these people engaged in unskilled jobs or as daily wage labourers in Kolkata and its vicinity are from neighbouring states like Bihar and Jharkhand, the trade union has urged the state government to start helplines for them.

The helpline numbers would also be of assistance to those from West Bengal working in other states so that they can get in touch with concerned officials of the government in time of need, he said, claiming that the CITU has reached to as many of them as it can.

"Whatever initiative is being taken by the top leadership in the government is going waste at the ground level," he said.

He also claimed that a very low percentage of the total workforce in the unorganised sector has been registered under various social security programmes of the government, thus rendering these people ineligible for assistance under these schemes.

In addition, the INTUC leader said those workers who are registered should be getting financial assistance as announced by the government, including those engaged in construction work, MNREGA and other schemes.

The registered workers are covered under a medical insurance scheme, he said.

"But those who are to implement these schemes and provide assistance to the workers are not attending office owing to the lockdown," he said.

Qamar also said that given the circumstances prevailing due to the lockdown, the workers of the unorganised sector should be given free electricity at their households till the situation normalises.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A man who attended the religious congregation at Tablighi Jamaat Markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin West last month tested positive for COVID-19 in Manipur, taking the total number of coronavirus cases in the state to two, Chief Minister N Biren Singh said on Thursday.

He said the development was "very sad and very serious" for a small state like Manipur.

The state-level control room on COVID-19 said ten people returned to Manipur after attending the religious congregation in Nizamuddin and of them, eight have tested negative.

Earlier, the control room had said 14 people from the state had links to the congregation.

The first case in the state was reported on March 24 when a 23-year-old woman with a travel history to the UK had tested positive.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Although every hospital bed in Germany is needed because of the coronavirus epidemic, many hospitals are facing closure.

Especially in rural areas, where health care is threatened due to the closure of medical practices, more hospitals will be shut down. This will put into practice the plan issued last year by the Bertelsmann Foundation, a right-wing think tank, according to which fewer than 600 out of some 1,400 hospitals will be maintained in Germany. The absurd justification for this is the claim that the mass closures would allow for the optimization of care, since small clinics close to patients homes lack both trained staff and necessary equipment.

Instead of better equipping smaller hospitals and improving pay for medical staff, especially nurses, hospital boards, including many private, church and municipal ones, prefer to close the facilities down.

As the World Socialist Web Site reported on March 31, the catastrophic consequences of the policy of cutbacks and privatisation of the last 30 years are now becoming apparent everywhere. Especially since the introduction of Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG), a patient classification system that standardizes prospective payment to hospitals, the health care system has ceased to be geared to the needs of the population, and instead to the generation of profit.

Hospitals were given an incentive to reduce capacity. Whole wards or departments were closed, which are urgently needed today. Clinics that sought to take countermeasures went bankrupt in droves, were forced to close, or were sold. The new owners are generally more inclined to close down if the facilities are not generating sufficient profit.

In the name of reducing overcapacity, hospitals enter into cooperative ventures and concentrate on service areas that enable them to make enough money to survive.

Numerous clinics have already been forced into insolvency. In the period from 1991 to 2017 alone, the number of hospital beds was reduced by a quarter. The number of clinics across Germany fell from 2,400 in 1991 to 1,400 today.

Because of the coronavirus crisis, the Robert Koch Institute and Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (Christian Democratic Union-CDU) are now calling on hospitals to clear beds for intensive care patients and increase the number of places available. This makes it even more absurd that some hospitals are about to close.

The hospital in Havelberg (Saxony-Anhalt) is to close despite the resistance of the local population. Hospital workers are being given their notices of termination this week.

The hospital in Lehnin is the smallest in the state of Brandenburg, with 55 beds. According to a report in Arztezeitung, this hospital and its specialist department for internal medicine are to be closed. Only the rehabilitation clinic will remain.

This would also shut the accident and emergency centre operated at the same location. Only palliative care, which is located in the hospital, will continue to operate as a special facility, with 10 to 15 beds. There is resistance here tooalso with reference to the coronavirus crisis.

The Loreley Clinics in St. Goar and Oberwesel (Rhineland-Palatinate) are also facing closure. The main shareholder, the Christian Marienhaus Hospital and Nursing Home Group, considers the two hospitals to be unprofitable. A takeover by the Red Cross failed for the same reason.

The affected small towns of St. Goar and Oberwesel, as well as the new Hunsruck-Mittelrhein municipality as co-shareholders, wish to keep the hospitals open. A few days ago, local residents hung bed sheets out of windows as a sign of protest.

The clinics municipal shareholders had suggested that the hospitals be used for the treatment of coronavirus patients. This was rejected by the Rhineland-Palatinate state Ministry of Health, since emergency and intensive care units at the Loreley Clinics had already been closed at the beginning of 2020.

However, it is not clear why they cannot be reopened. Elsewhere, appropriate emergency facilities will be set up in exhibition halls or similar facilities to ensure the care of COVID-19 patients. According to a Marienhaus spokesman, a final decision is to be made at a shareholders meeting on April 9.

The Marienhaus Group is also working on plans to close or merge clinics in the Saarland. The Marienkrankenhaus St. Wendel, the Marienhausklinik Ottweiler and the Marienhausklinik St. Josef Kohlhof in Neunkirchen have already been working closely together for years in the Saar-East alliance. Now the Marienhaus group of companies is working on a concept to close the site in Ottweiler and merge it with the clinic in St. Wendel to form a hospital. The reason cited for this is a considerable building renovation backlog at the clinic location in Ottweiler.

The closure of the hospital in Ottweiler endangers regional care in view of the coronavirus infections of employees at the St. Wendel hospital, which can admit only acute emergency patients.

In the Saarland, a considerable thinning of the overall hospital density is imminent. This summer, the Caritas hospital in Lebach, with 450 employees and 183 planned beds, will close. At a protest rally in front of the building, staff representatives and the Verdi union called for state intervention in order to secure health care and jobs. However, Verdi is not planning a fight to defend jobs, but is demanding a social contract and burden sharing, making a toothless appeal to the public authorities to assume their responsibility.

Politicians have initiated a discussion about a so-called Nordsaarlandklinik. This threatens both the hospital in Losheim and hospitals in Hermeskeil in Rhineland-Palatinate (institutions of the Marienhaus Group).

The board of the Marienhaus Foundation blames massively tightened federal regulations for the fact that more and more smaller hospitals are struggling to survive: ever new regulations covering personnel and structural requirements, the outsourcing of the nursing budget and now the new reform law covering the Medical Service (MD), which audits hospital accounts.

The reform provides for high penalties of 300 to 30,000 for hospitals, which are imposed even for minor errors in the billing of services, e.g., if a blood pressure measurement is forgotten in the documentation but is still billed. In principle, 10 percent of the total costs must be paid, which can easily run into the hundreds of thousands of euros for operations with complications and long periods of stay.

The complicated billing practices also require valuable time of doctors and nursing staff, who are currently urgently needed for the care and treatment of patients.

Hospitals in the Heinsberg district of North Rhine-Westphalia, which has been hardest hit by the COVID-19 crisis, sounded the alarm last week because they see a new wave of costs coming towards them as a result of the MD reform, which could threaten their existence.

The hospital in Riedlingen in Baden-Wurttemberg will be closed as early as April 1, three months sooner than planned. According to the operator, Sana, only one doctor will be available as of April. All others will have left by that date at the latest.

Numerous specialist clinics, whose facilities and 120,000 employees could also contribute to mitigating the coronavirus crisis, feel their existence threatened because a draft bill by Health Minister Jens Spahn stipulating that hospitals must cancel planned operations and treatments. They will face massive losses, which cannot be offset by the planned reimbursement of 400 to 500 per day of occupancy. Specialist clinics expect costs of up to four times the amount Spahn plans to reimburse per day of occupancy.

Rehabilitation clinics, which are supposed to ensure follow-up treatment and post-op rehabilitation, will also suffer huge losses due to the postponement of planned knee, hip and spinal operations. The number of these facilities has already decreased substantially as a result of cuts made in the health system in recent decades, and would probably be reduced even more by the measures planned.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made it abundantly clear that the ruling class and its politicians are not able to guarantee the population a secure provision of health care facilities and the corresponding personnel. The turn to profit maximisation and privatisation, and massive health sector cuts in recent decades, whose deadly consequences are now becoming apparent, must be reversed. Clinics and health facilities must be converted into public utilities and placed under the control of working people in order to serve the sole purpose of the good of society.
The French government on Thursday airlifted over 399 of its nationals from Nigeria over the Coronavirus pandemic, The Nation reports.

The French nationals were airlifted out of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, by an Air France aircraft.

Recall that on Wednesday, the United States also airlifted some of its citizens in Nigeria.

Also Read: Fani-Kayode Laments Over Number Of Coronavirus Tests Carried Out By FG

They were said to have completed all security and health checks before they boarded the aircraft.

Air France had secured permits from Nigerias Ministry of Aviation and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to undertake the operations under the emergency/special / humanitarian  flights category.
A man on a motorcycle passes the office of Narinjara News in Sittwe, capital of Rakhine state in western Myanmar, March 2020.

Police have filed charges under Myanmars Counter-Terrorism Law against the top editor of a Rakhine-based new agency and three reporters, the second prosecution in as many days of journalists for interviews with the Arakan Army since the ethnic force was declared a terrorist group last week, sources in Myanmar said.

The filing of charges against Narinjara News editor-in-chief Khine Myat Kyaw followed a raid Tuesday of the offices in the Rakhine capital Sittwe, in which three reporters from the Narinjara news agency were arrested and questioned by police.

Speaking to RFAs Myanmar Service, senior reporter Thein Zaw said the March 31 raid on Narinjara's office was led by an officer from the local Sittwe Myoma police station and included local administration authorities and officers from the Special Branch.

They came and inspected the properties here, and they confiscated the laptop computer that I use, he said, adding, At the police station, they asked where the editor-in-chief lives and how we report our news. They also asked who is in charge of publishing the news.

The three were questioned separately, and were released at around 11 p.m.

Myanmars Counter-Terrorism Law forbids contact with the AA which is battling Myanmars military for greater autonomy in western Myanmars Rakhine state and has been blacklisted by the government as a terrorist group.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a police officer familiar with the case said that the charges have been filed only against those already accused  the top editor and the reporters  and will not affect other Narinjara employees.

Voice of Myanmar arrest

Articles 50(a) and 52(a) of Myanmars Counter-Terrorism Law, under which the Narinjara journalists have now been charged, carry a maximum penalty of from seven to ten years to life in prison.

The arrests follow the arrest on Monday of Mandalay-based journalist Nay Myo Lin on terrorism charges after his media organization Voice of Myanmar (VOM) published an interview with AA spokesman Khine Thukha. He was apprehended by authorities at his home on Monday night and appeared in Thanmyathazi Township Court on Tuesday.

Narinjara reporter Naung Khine Aung told RFA that journalists based in war-torn Rakhine state must be left free to contact not just the Arakan Army but any organization they need to speak to.

How can we produce balanced reports if we dont contact them? he asked.

It is totally unjust to charge these journalists for producing fair and balanced reports. And what is worse is that no one will defend us in situations like this. We are totally defenseless, he said.

The Myanmar Press Council denounced the crackdown on journalists in a statement released on Wednesday, the online news outlet The Irrawaddy reported.

At a time when it is important to crack downtogether with the official established news mediaon the widespread dissemination of fake news about the coronavirus inside the country, taking such action against the [legitimate] media is unacceptable, it said.

The Myanmar government issued an order last week for internet service providers to block dozens of websites considered fake news, including ones that reported on the conflict in Rakhine state. It is unknown if VOM was on the unpublished list.

Eliminating local reporting?

Nay Win Saneditor of the Rakhine-based DMG news agency, whose executive director Aung Min Oo was charged last year under the Illegal Associations Actsaid that authorities may now be trying to shut DMG and Narinjara News down.

I think they are trying to eliminate any news agencies based in Rakhine state that focus on Rakhine news, he said.

The Myanmar Press Council has widely announced that all problems involving the news media should be resolved through the Press Council, but the authorities arent even using laws intended to regulate the news media.

Instead, they are using other laws to persecute the news media harshly, he said.

Journalists from both Narinjara News and DMG have said that charges filed against their agencies have crippled their ability to independently report the news, and say they fear that any of them may now be arrested at any time.

Prosecuting the news media under the Illegal Associations Act is a violation both of press freedoms and of freedom of speech, said Zaw Zaw Min, an attorney with the Sittwe-based Rakhine Human Rights Defenders Group.

As a human rights organization, we are following these cases closely, and we will fight to get justice in these cases.

Former Myanmar Information Minister Ye Htut told RFA that as fears grow over a possible further spread of COVID-19, it has become increasingly important for journalists to be allowed to freely report the news.

If the government gets along with the media during this time, this will be good for the country and the people, he said. In my opinion, even if media reports are regarded as involvement with [banned] organizations, this is an issue that should be resolved through the Media Council.

Reported by RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Ye Kaung Myint Maung. Written in English by Richard Finney.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  Police say five people were wounded in separate shootings Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning, including three teen males.

The conditions of the victims have not been released, although one of the victims, a 17-year-old male, was shot in the chest. No suspects have been arrested.

The violent stretch started at 7 p.m. Tuesday on the 4500 block of East 147th Street in the Lee-Miles neighborhood. Police say a 28-year-old male was wounded in the thigh and was taken by ambulance to University Hospitals. The suspect left the scene, possibly in a white Jeep.

At 9:30 p.m., officers were called to the 900 block of East 147th Street in the South-Collinwood neighborhood for a 17-year-old male who was wounded in the chest and arm. The shooting reportedly occurred in the area of East 144th Street and St. Clair Avenue. The victim was taken to University Hospitals.

Ten minutes later, a 21-year-old male with a gunshot wound to the back was dropped off at the hospital. Police did not say where the male had been shot or if the incident was related to earlier shootings.

At 1 a.m. Wednesday, a 19-year-old male was taken to University Hospitals with a wound to the arm after being shot on the 2400 block of Greenvale Road in the Euclid-Green neighborhood on the East Side. At the same time, a 17-year-old male was shot in the leg in the area of West 25th Street and Seymour Avenue in the Tremont neighborhood, police say. The victim ran to MetroHealth Medical Center for treatment.

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There are eight men who live inside the center, in the basement of St. Aloysius Gonzaga Church. One of them is a seamster who taught two other men to sew, and theyve been producing masks with whimsical prints  purple flowers, anchors, foxes  that theyre giving to anyone who needs one. (I got an adorable purple flower-print one.)
WASHINGTON  Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations leading expert on infectious diseases, who has become a regular at President Donald Trumps coronavirus briefings, will receive enhanced personal security after receiving threats following his repeated pleas for Americans to help slow the spread of the deadly pandemic, officials said Wednesday.

Fauci has been the Trump administrations most outspoken advocate of social distancing rules that have shuttered the nations schools, forced businesses to close, kept people in their homes and battered the U.S. economy.

That has made him a target of online conspiracy theorists who have accused Fauci, a longtime scientist and civil servant who has served presidents of both parties, of trying to undermine Trump during a year in which the president is fighting for reelection.

The Department of Health and Human Services granted the enhanced personal security for Fauci, 79, after the Justice Department signed off on a request for extra agents to guard him, officials said. Alex Azar, the health and human services secretary, had grown worried that the threats against the doctor were increasing as more of the country shut down in response to the coronavirus.

Yesterday, upon the recommendation of the U.S. Marshals Service, the department approved the special deputization request from HHS for nine HHS-OIG special agents to provide protective services for Dr. Fauci, the Justice Department said in a statement, referring to the Office of the Inspector General at the health department. The Washington Post first reported the news of the enhanced security.

Caitlin Oakley, a spokeswoman for the health department, would not confirm Faucis enhanced security but called him an integral part of the U.S. governments response against COVID-19, referring to the disease caused by the coronavirus.

Among other efforts, she added, he is leading the development of a COVID-19 vaccine and he regularly appears at White House press briefings and media interviews.

The coronavirus could kill 100,000 to more than 200,000 Americans in the coming weeks. Fauci, along with a fellow task force member, Dr. Deborah L. Birx, encouraged Trump to extend the amount of time that the country would remain shuttered through the end of this month. Some states, like Virginia, have issued stay-at-home orders that do not expire until further into the spring.

The idea that Fauci is responsible for the countrys hardship  and for whatever political damage Trump might suffer as a result  was fueled in part by a moment during a news briefing in which Fauci dropped his head and touched his forehead as the president was speaking. The image went viral online and right-wing supporters of Trump cited it as evidence that Fauci sought to undercut the president.

One anti-Fauci Twitter post last week said, Sorry liberals but we dont trust Dr. Anthony Fauci.

The hashtag #FauciFraud has been used by more than 70 Twitter accounts, some posting hundreds of times a day, according to an analysis by The New York Times. Criticism of Fauci has also come from leading conservative voices and supporters of Trump, including Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, a conservative group; Bill Mitchell, host of the far-right online talk show YourVoice America; and Shiva Ayyadurai, who has falsely claimed to be the inventor of email.

Fauci has been targeted by some of the presidents supporters even though Trump himself has praised the doctor. During Wednesdays briefing, when a reporter asked about Faucis personal security, the president said: He doesnt need security. Everybody loves him.

In fact, Fauci has earned plaudits from many medical experts and public health officials for his often grim assessment of the threats facing the U.S. from the coronavirus  even sometimes contradicting the presidents rosier outlook.

For weeks, Faucis remarks on television and at the White House stood in sharp contrast to the commentary from Trumps fiercest supporters on Fox News, whose leading hosts repeatedly claimed that Democrats, the news media and public health experts were inflating the threat of the virus.

After the viral video of Fauci lowering his head, online attacks against him increased. A 7-year-old email that he wrote to an aide of former Secretary of State Hillary Clintons was posted online by The American Thinker, a conservative blog. In the email, Fauci praised Clinton for her stamina during hearings into the 2012 attacks on the U.S. compound in Benghazi, Libya. The blog suggested falsely that the email proved that Fauci was part of a secret group who opposed Trump.

In the past several days, the president has largely adopted Faucis more dire warnings about the dangers of the rapidly spreading virus. On Tuesday, Trump called it a great national trial unlike any we have ever faced before and echoed Faucis language about the need to minimize its spread.

Its a matter of life and death, frankly, Trump said, offering a sober assessment of the pandemics effect. Its a matter of life and death.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Former Nomads bikie president Moudi Taijjour has built an entire gym in the living room of his Sydney apartment during the coronavirus lockdown.

The convicted killer, who bought the gym equipment brand new off a friend, shared a video to his 52,000 Instagram followers showing the makeshift weights room.

The video shows a row of dumbbells next the the kitchen bench, a bench press, a leg press machine and other professional equipment scattered across the living room.

'I'm not even training but I went and bought more dumbells. I'm addicted to this,' the 35-year-old can be heard saying in the video.

Tajjour (pictured with ex-wife Sanaa Mehajer) has built a gym in his cramped lounge room amid the coronavirus lockdown

As he walks through the lounge room filming, a woman can be seen cooking a meal just a few steps from the makeshift gym in the kitchen.

The apartment appears to to be on an upper level so the heavy equipment would have to have been carried up multiple floors.

Earlier in the week he shared footage of helpers dismantling the bulky bench press so that it could fit through his apartment door.

The 'retired' bikie was forced to take matters into his own hand after the federal and state government shut down gyms earlier this month to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

Taijjour, who retired as president of the Nomads motorcycle club, has previously complained that he 'felt like a prisoner' because of New South Wales' tough anti-bikie laws.

The video shows rows of dumbbells setup next the the kitchen bench, a leg press machine, a bench press, and other professional gym equipment scattered across the lounge room

In December 2019, he posted that he was having to 'eat alone' because of the 'harsh conditions law enforcement have placed on him'.

Under anti-consorting laws, Taijjour is not allowed to associate with or speak to known criminals either in-person or online.

'Firstly I've been retired for a while now. I am not allowed to see any of my mates or face a long prison sentence. Tell me how this is human to isolate someone?' Tajjour wrote on Instagram.

'I ain't sure if I'm gonna continue living in Sydney much longer, might relocate to Melbourne or possibly abroad. I can't live in isolation - it's like I'm a prisoner in my own country.'

Nomads members have previously been convicted of serious violence and weapons offences, however, Taijjour said he doesn't know what the government's issue is with him as he 'minds his own business' these days and focuses on his podcast and other ventures.
The Punjab government on Thursday prohibited all kind of gatherings, including religious ones, in the wake of the revelation that many people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat's congregation in New Delhi's Nizamuddin last month have to come to the state.

The Nizamuddin area of New Delhi, where the jamaat's headquarters is situated, came to limelight after a large number of people who attended the gathering there were tested positive for coronavirus.

According to a statement, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, who was holding a videoconferencing with state officials, said he will personally talk to the acting Jathedar of the Akal Takht in this regard.

He directed the chief secretary to discuss the matter with the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee in view of the upcoming Baisakhi celebrations.

The chief minister also ordered a mandatory 21-day quarantine for all those who returned to the state from Delhi's Nizamuddin since January this year.

He directed the police and health department to constitute special teams to trace such people.

According to DGP Dinkar Gupta, around 200 people from Punjab had visited Nizamuddin.

At different times, 12 districts are believed to be affected, he said.

Principal Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) Anurag Aggarwal told the CM that they have so far received a list of 125 people, of whom 73 have been traced.

He said samples were collected in 25 cases who had come to Mansa as late as March 19.

As a precautionary measure, all of them had been placed in quarantine, he added.

Officials told the CM that in Pathankot, 111 migrant labourers from Jammu and Kashmir were stuck and had been accommodated in marriage palaces and other places, with strict social distancing norms being maintained.

Ludhiana, with 5.25 lakh migrant labourers, had built 60 camps though only two were occupied, officials told the CM.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Queensland is closing all national parks, walking tracks and 4WD areas, as the state's death toll from COVID-19 rises to three and a full border lockdown takes effect from midnight.

A man has died in hospital after contracting coronavirus in country Queensland, bringing the state's death toll to three.

The 85-year-old Darling Downs man died overnight in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane. His death takes the national toll to 24.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk (pictured) is cracking down on non-essential travel by closing down national parks and tightening border controls amid the coronavirus pandemic

From Friday anyone who does not have a government issued permit will not be allowed to cross the NSW border into Queensland

A total of four Queenslanders have now died, including one who died in Sydney after being infected while onboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that docked there.

Queensland authorities confirmed on Thursday that another 57 people have been infected with the virus, taking the state's total to 835.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is ramping up Queensland's coronavirus crackdown as people continue to ignore the ban on non-essential travel.

All national parks will be closed to the public, along with hiking tracks, picnic areas, camping areas, swimming holes and lookouts from Friday.

An 85-year-old man from Toowoomba in Queensland has died taking Australia coronavirus deaths to 24

Hundreds of people are still trying to get into Queensland despite the state shutting down its border with NSW.

From Friday, anyone who does not have a state government permit proving they have a legitimate reason for cross-border travel will be denied entry.

Freight trucks are exempt, along with travel for work and medical reasons.

'We are still getting hundreds of people coming across our border,' the premier told Seven Network, before warning: 'No permit, no pass come Friday.'

A police officer speak to sunbathers on a Gold Coast beach on Thursday, the QLD premier has said she may close beaches

Heavy fines apply for breaking border restrictions as states try to slow coronavirus

Ms Palaszczuk said all Australians must prepare for a long period living under severe restrictions, including not leaving home unless it's really necessary.

'The minimum I'm hearing is six months. If we flatten that curve, we are not going to reach the peaks until well into the middle of this year,' she said.

The premier is also threatening to shut down Queensland's beaches, with people continuing to ignore social distancing.

'If people aren't complying with social distancing, we are going to have to crack down So final warning everyone.'

A charter plane carrying 222 Australians and 28 New Zealanders who were stranded in Nepal landed in Brisbane on Thursday.

The group will be forced into 14 days of quarantine under strict measures to stop the importation of new cases of coronavirus.

A palne of 222 Australians has flown to Brisbane after the group was rescued from Nepal

Nepal is now in lockdown and governments around the world have been working to get their citizens out amid fears the small country's health system will not cope.

Back home, Queenslanders have been urged to join a 'care army' to help older people get through the crisis.

Under the scheme, government officials are matching older people confined to home with volunteers who'll help them with tasks such as food shopping and pharmacy supplies.

'If we can keep our seniors safe, we can prevent them from ending up in hospital or in ICU and potentially save lives,' Ms Palaszczuk said.

The plane landed safely in Brisbane on Thursday afternoon with passengers now going into the 14 day quarantine




Is Delhi prepared?

That isnt a question designed to be alarmist. On Thursday, the number of Covid-19 cases in Delhi rose to 293, driven upward by more people who attended the gathering of the Tablighi Jamaat at its HQ testing positive. That trend is likely to continue  in terms of both an increase in cases, and more from the Jamaat gathering testing positive. Hundreds evacuated from the Markaz Nizamuddin are in hospitals in Delhi; around 1,800 are in quarantine. Which is why this is an opportune time to ask the question.

Is Delhi prepared?

New York City clearly wasnt. On Thursday, the number of Covid-19 fatalities in the city touched 1,397. On Wednesday, the New York Times listed the wishlist, in terms of critical medical equipment, of the citys mayor Bill de Blaiso: 3.3 million N95 masks, 2.1 million surgical masks, 100,000 isolation gowns, 400 ventilators. All these are incremental numbers  requirements additional to what the city currently has.

Administrators and health care professionals shaping Indias response to the pandemic would do well to study what is happening in New York City  what it got right and, more importantly, what it didnt.

It emerges that the big issue in Delhi right now is the shortage of PPE (personal protective equipment). This is a problem in other cities and states, and, indeed, in many parts of the world. Last week, the Indian government said it has placed orders with local and global manufacturers for around six million units of PPEs. Work on these to be proceeding apace, despite the hurdles posed by the lockdowns.

Delhi government officials and doctors also say the city-state has enough isolation wards, ICUs, even ventilators, but many of these assessments are based on conservative estimates of the number of daily cases, in some cases, as low as 100. On April 1, New York City reported 3,144 new cases in a day. Thats the kind of number for which Delhi should be ready  and then heave a sigh of relief and celebrate when the numbers stay low.

Its also the kind of number for which Mumbai should be ready. On Wednesday, a 56-year-old man in Dharavi, Asias largest slum, in Mumbai, died of Covid-19. On Thursday, another person who worked in Dharavi tested positive. The prospect of the infection raging through the shanty town with a population density of 66,000 per square km is the stuff of which nightmares are made.

Parts of Mumbai are already being treated as hot spots where clusters of infected people are found. There are around 13 such across India. The area around Markaz Nizamuddin is another cluster  where door-to-door surveys of people within a 3km and a 5km radius of the epicentre (in this case, the six-storey HQ) were undertaken on Thursday.

Amidst all these local developments, US unemployment numbers soared to 6.6 million from 3.3 million last week  a statistic that should worry India because it shows the extent of economic havoc that can be wreaked by the pandemic.

Around the world, companies are being forced to lay off people to cope  in India, apart from the few companies providing essential products and services that continue to function through a 21-day lockdown, every other business is idle, incurring costs with no revenue. The US has already announced a fiscal package amounting to roughly 10% of its GDP, with some of this amount going to businesses. France has said it will pay companies to not retrench people. India, too, needs to think in terms of a fiscal package for businesses. Even with one, the recovery will be slow and painful. Without one...

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The driver and only occupant of a Honda Civic was killed by a tree-trimming truck Thursday morning on state Highway 12 in the Oakmont area of Santa Rosa, the California Highway Patrol said.

The truck with a wood chipper in tow was traveling east on Highway 12 near the intersection of Oakmont Drive around 7:30 a.m. when the driver ran a red light and struck the Honda Civic, which was making a legal left turn onto westbound Highway 12 from Oakmont Drive, California Highway Patrol David deRutte said.
International flights will be permitted after Apr 15 depending on countries they are coming from, says Hardeep Singh Puri

Pregnant wife of doctor who was tested positive for Covid-19 also tests positive

Will take all precautions while delivering baby: AIIMS official after 9-month pregnant woman tests positive for Covid-19

Coronavirus deaths in India on Thursday climbed to 53, while the number of positive cases crossed 2,000. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that he will share a video message with people at 9am tomorrow. It is expected that it will be centered around the coronavirus pandemic that made the PM declare a 21-day nationwide lockdown. More than a million people have been infected by Covid-19 and the global death toll has crossed 50,000.









Here are the major highlights of the day on coronavirus pandemic:
Sir,



As of March 31, 2020, at least 38 854 people had died from COVID-19 and 799 857 had been infected globally, as such, in this war against this virus, screening, diagnosing and monitoring therapy of coronavirus make a core strategic defence and attack in COVID-19 Healthcare Battlefront, hence its not correct to outsource services of screening and diagnosis of COVID-19.



As medical laboratory scientists (MLS) in Eswatini, first and foremost, we thank the King for ordering his government to suspend all non-essential services while it continues to plan, implement and build the systems to address a strategic defence and attack with minimal errors. Secondly, we want to express our interest to join the COVID-19 screening, diagnosing and therapy monitoring (CSDT) Battlefront.



Observed



The CSDT Battlefront prospective warriors have observed, with great concern, that on March 23, 2020, according to the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy (CDDEP), a public health research organisation, with its headquarters in Washington DC and New Delhi, it was indicated that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide by then exceeded 350 000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. However, it took over three months to reach the first 100 000 confirmed cases and, thereafter, it took only 12 days to reach the next 100 000.



Imported



In South Africa, few imported transmissions have caused numerous local transmissions within days.

Here in Eswatini, the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to be imported most likely from KwaZulu Natal and Gauteng and will continue to spread rapidly this coming winter.



Every step of the response needs to prioritise actions most likely to prevent new infections, prevent infected people from dying and reduce causing economical, psychological and social harms.



One potential identified deadly error Eswatini could make in its response is to continue over-depending on outsourced laboratory services on COVID-19. This is going to cost us not only time and data needed to prioritise correct preventive counter measures but also the effectiveness and efficiency of our healthcare staff, pharmacists, nurses and doctors to take a lot more time and strain to the breaking point.



Guarantee



Getting tested today is no guarantee you wont get infected tomorrow, so one-time outsourced testing should not give us a false sense of security. Besides, emerging data suggests that testing of throat swabs may miss as many as two-thirds of infections.

In view of that, prolonged lockdown is a must to stop new cases from emerging.

Above all, we need to set up a level 4 biosafety COVID-19 laboratory to promote internal testing. The Eswatini COVID-19 laboratory can open 24/7 to inform containment, isolation strategies and facilitate contact tracing.

This laboratory can also inform treatment and protection of vulnerable groups - to know when it is safe to discharge patients or to identify participants in clinical trials.



Investigations



According to epidemiological investigations, this laboratory will provide data to determine how widespread infection is, facilitate surveillance, and inform situational analysis, projections, and investigations, including how the virus and how many of viral strains are spreading at a moment in time, and how infectious asymptomatic people are.

With such kind of data, the nation will be able to understand the direction where the virus is spreading, to whom, and what the trend could be in the coming weeks and months.



So, we, the MLS, are more than willing to provide screening, diagnostics and therapy monitoring tests in order to reduce prolonged and unprotected close contact with suspects.

Join us on WhatsApp group: 7640 1669/7918 9812 - FIGHTING OFF COVID-19



Medical laboratory scientists
To the Editor:

I would like to thank all of the healthcare workers who are doing all they can to help the people who have been infected with the novel coronavirus.

I would also like to thank the people who work at stores, restaurants and other businesses.

They are making sure we have food and other supplies while we all stay at home.

Eleanor Dempster

Fourth-grade student

Sarah Noble Intermediate School
https://www.aish.com/h/pes/h/A-Quarantine-Seder-7-Insights-to-Uplift-Your-Seder.html

Bring joy to this years unique Seder experience.

This Seder night will be very different from years past. Unfortunately, some of us will be alone. Others will gather together with only a few family members. The thoughts and conversation we will share around the table will also take on a different flavor and emphasis.

The following 7 insights are geared to uplift and bring joy to this years Seder experience.

1. The Correct Greeting

The beloved Chassidic master, Rebbe Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev (1740-1810) argued that we have adopted the wrong greeting for Passover. He suggested that we switch the greeting with the one we say on Purim. On Purim one greets their friend with the words A Freilichen Purim (A Joyous Purim) and on Passover we say A Kasherin Pesach (A Kosher Passover). It should be just the opposite. On Purim we should remind one another to observe the day in a kosher way, not going overboard in our merriment or drinking.

However on Pesach, said the Rebbe, we don't need reminders to observe it with all its strictures and laws. That we all know. We need to be reminded that there is nothing more important than joy in order to make Passover memorable and uplifting.

This teaching offers us a unique perspective especially this year. Although we face many distractions and there is tension and anxiety, Seder night must be joyful and fun. Maybe more so now than ever. There is no place for melancholy.

The Passover Seder is geared for children. They deserve to feel the joys and deepest delight during this special night. The Talmud records the practice of giving children sweets to keep them awake for the Seder. Prepare a special surprise for your children at the Seder.

Natan Sharansky, who spent nine years in a Soviet prison as a Jewish refusenik, recently put out a video with five recommendations, based on personal experience, on how to get through the long days of confinement. Strikingly, he highlighted the importance of humor. As difficult as things may be, one must bring fun and playfulness to the situation in order to triumph over its hardships. This years Seder should be filled with singing, dancing, good cheer, and a healthy dose of good humor.

2. Why Break the Matzah?

Why do we break the matzah in half at the start of the Seder, the ritual known as Yachatz? The eminent contemporary scholar Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik ztl (1903-1993) offered a unique answer. When the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt there were those slaves who found themselves in better conditions than others. Some had the privilege to work for more merciful masters and lived under better conditions; others found themselves in much worse circumstances. Those who were fortunate to have more would break their bread and share it with those who had less.

On the night of the Seder, we emulate the ways of our predecessors and we do the same. We are teaching that this is the way of loving kindness to share with others, even in the most dire of conditions.

We find ourselves in an unprecedented time. These are days of crisis. Often the common response in such scenarios is to behave selfishly. Our natural instincts tell us that we need to take care of ourselves and our own family members. We have all seen footage and reports of people hoarding food and toilet paper etc. in the panic and stress of this situation.

We are challenged during these days to be people of chesed, loving-kindness and maintain a deep sense of solidarity toward one another even under harsh conditions. Over the past weeks we have witnessed endless examples of heroic kindness one for the other. This has always been our path. This is symbolized by breaking the matzah in half: the fourth step of the Seder, Yachatz.

3. A Holiday of Speed

What story did the Israelites share with one another at the very first Seder? After all, the Jewish people were still in Egypt when they sat down to the first Seder ever. They ate matzah and marror (bitter herbs). But what story could they tell? The Exodus did not yet occur.

The illustrious chassidic master, Rebbe Menachem Nachum of Chernobyl (1730-1787), claimed that they told the same story we do of leaving Egypt. They sang of the great miracles and redemption. How was it possible? The answer, said the Rebbe, is that they were filled with so much hope and faith that they envisioned redemption, even tasted it before it occurred. (Sefer Meor Enayim, Parshat Tzav).

The Rebbe is suggesting that even during the darkest night we must remain ever hopeful and optimistic. After a long night, light suddenly emerges.

Passover is a holiday of speed. The matzah must be baked within a mere 18 minutes. The Jewish people speedily left Egypt. The dough had no time to rise. With great haste the Jews experienced the Exodus. Perhaps this is why the kabbalisitc writings refer to the matzah as the bread of faith. It was the bread eaten by the slave and suddenly it was transformed into the bread of freedom; the very bread that that expressed their emancipation from slavery.

There is a lesson here: Things can quickly turn around for the best, unexpectedly.

We never give up. Brighter days will come.

4. Why An Egg?

Many have the custom to begin the Seder meal eating an egg. Why? Various answers have been offered. According to one tradition, the egg is the only food that when you heat it, it does not soften. Boil an egg and it becomes hard. This symbolizes the Jewish people: the more heat and pressure that has been applied to us as people, the tougher and stronger we become.

The notion of resilience is one that we need to tap into these days. We as a people have weathered some of the most difficult storms. Time and again, throughout our history, we have reached deep inside ourselves and, remarkably, we have found the faith and convictions to make it through, often, thriving during the most demanding situations. The Jewish people are masters of resilience.

In everyone's life there are peaks and valleys. At times of distress we should remember that we have emerged from similar episodes in the past, and that we will survive this ordeal as well. Although there is great sadness, we should not despair. Pesach carries this message for the individual as well as for the nation.

5. Rebbe Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev Would Not Start the Seder Until...

It was a few hours until the Seder began and Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev had an urgent message for his disciples: I will not begin the Seder until I have 50 silk scarves, ten pounds of Turkish tobacco, and one loaf of bread!"

His disciples were stunned. "Rebbe!" they cried, "Where are we supposed to find these items?

The scarves and the tobacco are outlawed by the Czar  they are contraband  no one has any! And for the loaf of bread, it is Passover in a few hours, so where are we going to find a loaf of bread in all of Berditchev?"

Rabbi Levi was adamant, and refused to begin the Seder until they would bring him the illegal items and a loaf of bread.

His disciples ran all over the place, scouring the entire town for the items they needed. After much begging and explaining they finally managed to secure the silk scarves and Turkish tobacco and returned at once to their rebbe to show him what they had found.

"Excellent!" said Rabbi Levi Yitzchak. "But where is the loaf of bread?" With tears in their eyes the disciples pleaded, "Please, Rebbe, you must understand. Where are we to find chametz in Berditchev only hours before Passover?"

Rabbi Levi Yitzchak lifted his eyes to the heavens and began to cry. "Dear God, the Czar has outlawed the importing of silk scarves. Anyone caught wearing a scarf is sentenced to 25 years in a labor camp. Nevertheless, the people of Berditchev have at least 50 scarves! There is a death penalty for anyone caught with Turkish tobacco and the Czar has stationed hundreds of soldiers along the border to ensure it is not brought in. Nevertheless, there is plenty of Turkish tobacco to be found in Berditchev. But You, God, You have no police force or inspectors. Where are your labor camps and courts? You commanded us over 3,000 years ago to rid our houses of chametz. And not even a crumb of chametz is to be found in the entire city! Who is like your people, O Israel!"

And with that final declaration, Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev sat down to begin his Passover Seder!

We can imagine Rebbe Levi Yitzchak storming heaven on the eve of Pesach this year, saying to the Almighty: Look at your beloved people. Look at their yearning for your Torah and the opportunity to offer prayer to You. Thousands and thousands of Jews, although quarantined at home, are learning your sacred texts with one another on Zoom, studying Torah via Facebook, praying together`on Whatsapp, celebrating Bar and Bat Mitzvahs online with hundreds of friends and family looking on from a screen.

And perhaps, Rebbe Levi Yitzchak is directing Gods attention to the many of the teachers and Rabbis and mental health professionals who have brought comfort and advised to so many. Or perhaps, Rebbe Levi Yitzchak is reminding the Almighty of the multitude of people who will sit in solitude at their Seder in order to ensure the safety of their family and friends.

In this same spirit, we join together Passover night and exclaim: Father in heaven, look down upon your remarkable people, and see their devotion and commitment. Now, let us celebrate the Seder.

6. A Prayer for All Humanity

There is a passage in the Haggadah which is often overlooked. It comes towards the end of the Seder night. We exclaim: The soul of every living being shall bless Your Name. The prayer of Nishmat Kol Chai. Why is this prayer included in the Haggadah?

Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik ztl (1903-1993) taught that right before we conclude the Seder we change our focus. Throughout the initial part of the Seder we celebrate the end of our oppression from slavery at the hands of the Egyptians. However as we reach the crescendo, we remind ourselves that the world is sorely in need of redemption. We pray not only for our redemption but the redemption of mankind. When reaching the prayer of Nishmat Kol Chai, the Seder night soars to spiritual heights as we pray every mouth shall give thanks, every tongue shall swear allegiance unto You. We are concerned not only with the Jewish people but with the welfare of people everywhere.

One of the most beloved rituals of the Seder, opening the door for Elijah which symbolizes the harbinger of the Messiah, powerfully illustrates the Jews perpetual hope that all mankind lives in a world free of suffering and pain.

Although we as Jews live distinctly from others around us, there are times, such as these, where we recognize our shared commonality with all mankind. We are one with our fellow man and woman. We are responsible for one another and fervently pray for the healing for all of Gods creations.

This year we recite the passage of Nishmat Kol Chai as a plea for healing and redemption for all humanity.

7. His Love Surrounds You

What does the word Pesach actually mean? Most commonly it is translated to mean pass over, which relates of course to the episode of God miraculously passing over the homes of the Israelites in Egypt. However the great commentator on the Torah, Rashi (Exodus 12:13), offers another explanation: Pesach means love. Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook ztl, the first Chief Rabbi of Palestine much preferred this explanation.

On the final night the Israelite slaves spent in Egypt, when they sat confined in their homes, the verse says that God pasach over their homes. What does pesach mean? Not passed over. Rather, the Jew felt surrounded by Gods love. They felt the Divines warm embrace.

This is the true meaning of the festival and one we wish to infuse within our souls at the Seder. Even if one sits alone this year, or away from close family and friends, one must know that they are not alone; God is right there at our side.

The Exodus was distinct because of an act of faith by our ancestors. Two million people entered a desolate and barren desert, where there was neither food nor water for such a multitude, clinging only to the belief that God would provide for them.

Early in the Haggadah a new name of God is introduced: HaMakom, which translates as place (Baruch Hamakom Baruch Hu). Why the change of name? When we speak of God as HaMakom, the Midrash explains it to mean God is the place of the world. This teaches that God embraces everybody and never deserts anyone.

The Torah attaches a mighty title to this festival: Leil Shimurim, a Night of Watching (Exodus 12:42), a term which conveys the essence of the celebration: God is watching over us.

The story of leaving Egypt, the centerpiece of the Seders celebration symbolizes the absolute, unwavering trust in God that is the foundation of spirituality.
Several Massachusetts communities will start making reverse-911 calls to households asking residents to fill out the 2020 census online.

Secretary of State William Galvins office said he asked communities to make reverse-911 calls to encourage residents to participate in the count so census workers dont have to knock on as many doors amid the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 100 people in Massachusetts.

Some communities have already confirmed they will call households, including North Adams, Brockton and Westwood, Galvin said.

"Every person who responds to their census now is helping to reduce the need for a census worker to go door-to-door later, Galvin said in a statement Wednesday.

Nonprofits across Massachusetts had set up Questionnaire Assistance Centers in their offices, offering people in historically undercounted communities a chance to come in and fill out the census online or get help from trained workers in multiple languages. Those offices are closed until at least May 4 under the governors executive order shutting down non-essential businesses to the public.

Joel Rivera, senior campaign organizer at the Massachusetts Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Coalition, said in a webinar Wednesday night that the nonprofit had recruited and trained other organizations to operate QACs. Now the MIRA staff has shifted to working from home. The staff has started calling people in census tracts with low self-response rates, including immigrants, regardless of legal status.

Vatsady Sivongxay, a Statewide Complete Count coordinator at MIRA, said the nonprofit has shared information about how to participate in the census, including hotlines that are available in 12 languages.

Sivongxay acknowledged, however, that 12 language isnt enough in a country where 350 languages are spoken. She suggested that some look to the Census Bureaus language guides on YouTube that come in additional languages and urged community organizers to reach out to the people they serve.

We are the trusted voices to our community members, and its much easier and more comfortable for our community members to hear it from us," she said.

Let's end #CensusDay strong! If you don't speak English well, you can respond by phone (or online at... Posted by MIRA: Massachusetts Immigrant & Refugee Advocacy Coalition on Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Typically, census workers go door-to-door in July to count people who have not responded to the 2020 count. It is unclear whether that will still happen this year with the novel coronavirus spreading across the country.

Census workers are considered essential under state and federal guidelines, though field operations were suspended last month due to the coronavirus outbreak until April 1. That suspension was extended until April 15.

Recently hired field workers still have jobs, but they may face several barriers to on-boarding. Those who have not been fingerprinted will have to wait for the agencys operations to resume, and training has been delayed in some cases for public safety reasons, according to an email to employees obtained by MassLive.

More than 213,000 people in the U.S. have tested positive for the coronavirus as of Wednesday night, and more than 4,700 have died. In Massachusetts, 7,738 people have tested positive and 122 people have died.

Despite the coronavirus pandemic, Massachusetts has seen as higher participation rate than the national average, Galvins office said.

As of Wednesday, Massachusetts response rate is 40.3%, while the national average is just over 38%.

While the early numbers are encouraging, especially with respect to online responses, I urge residents to go online and answer the census now, Galvin said in a statement last week. Responding to your census online now helps reduce the need for census takers to go door-to-door later, which is obviously something that we would like to cut down on as much as possible right now.

Still, some historically undercounted pockets of the state have low self-response rates, according to data compiled by the City University of New Yorks Mapping Service.

One tract in Stockbridge has a local response rate of 6.2% as of Wednesday. In 2010, the tracts self-response rate was ultimately 46.2%. Otis, Tyringham and other towns in Berkshire County also have single-digit response rates.

Some parts of Chelsea, Brockton and Bostons Dorchester and Roxbury neighborhoods had response rates in the single digits last month. As of Wednesday, those tracts have response rates at or above 20% except for one section of Chelsea and another section of Dorchester. In 2010, those tracts had self-response rates of 59.4% and 45.2%, respectively.

Marwa Sayed, who works for the Massachusetts Coalition for the Homeless, said counting people experiencing homelessness has been difficult during the coronavirus pandemic. Theres not nearly as much street outreach, and counting at food pantries and shelters have become more difficult.

The coalition partnered with community organizers to pass out census materials along with meals and hygiene kits, Sayed said. Organizers are also urging people who are couch surfing or who are doubled up with tenants in a unit to participate in the census, reminding them that their landlords dont have access to their census forms.

Everyone counts in the census, and this includes people who are experiencing homelessness," Sayed said.

Karen Chen, executive director of the Chinese Progressive Association in Boston, said her organization has made calls and sent mailers in Chinese to members, including those who planned to come in for help with the census.

Asians faced racist attacks during the coronavirus outbreak, but Chen noted that the pandemic has also brought an opportunity for community leaders to hammer home how much critical information comes from the census.

In a time of crisis, we need to know how many people whose first language is not English, she said. In a health crisis, we need to know how much protective equipment we will need and how much social services and in what areas they are needed. I think its even more apparent now why we feel we need data, useful data, like the census.

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Bihar is in receipt of details of more



than 100 people hailing from the state, who might have attended the congregation of Tablighi Jamaat, the Delhi headquarter of which has emerged as a COVID-19 hotspot, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said on Thursday.

Speaking at Prime Minister Narendra Modis video conference with Chief Ministers of all states, Kumar stated that the total number of persons whose details have been received by his government was 112, out of whom 12 have been traced and efforts were on to locate 55 others for medical examinations.

The Bihar chief minister also mentioned that many persons, whose details have been sent to his government, are at present living outside the state.

Kumar underscored that the state had shown a high level of preparedness to combat the pandemic and pointed out that city-based Nalanda Medical College and Hospital has been functioning as a dedicated COVID 19 facility in line with the Prime Ministers suggestion that states consider having hospitals exclusively devoted to treating those afflicted by the dreaded virus.

Ruing the shortfall of protective gear for medical personnel, and other facilities sought by the state, he said as against a requisition of five lakh PPE kits, we have received only 4,000 till date.

Likewise, only 50,000 N95 masks have been supplied though we have sought 10 lakhs.. the number of RNA extraction kits made available stands at just 250 though we require 10,000, and we are yet to be provided with 100 additional ventilators which we need for effective treatment of infected patients, he added.

Drawing the Prime Ministers attention to the impending economic crisis, Kumar suggested that the fiscal deficit on which a cap of 3 per cent of GDP has been placed by the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act be raised to "4 per cent or more".

He recalled that in 2009-10 when there was a global economic meltdown, fiscal deficit was raised from 3 to 4 per cent, and again from 3.38 per cent to 3.5 per cent in the next fiscal.

The chief minister also disclosed that the state has set up a corona eradication fund which has received contributions from the Mukhyamantree Kshetr Vikas Yojana a revamped legislators local area development scheme under which every MLA and MLC can recommend works of up to Rs three crore in a year.

Many parliamentarians from the state, both in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, have recommended release of Rs one crore each from their MPLAD schemes. This money might go unused since efforts against corona are not constituency specific. The Union Home Ministry should consider advising the MPs that they make contributions to corona eradication fund instead, he added.

Kumar asserted that the crisis resulting from the return of a huge number of migrants from Delhi over the weekend has been managed by his government despite a resource crunch, and all such returnees were being provided with food, shelter and medical care under proper quarantine.

A total of 1,74,470 people, who have come to Bihar in recent times from outside the state, have been identified and are being kept in quarantine. These include 12,051 foreign nationals, Kumar said.

He also informed the Prime Minister that a total of 24 COVID-19 cases have been reported in Bihar so far, which include one death before the patients test results came out. Two have recovered so far while the deceased ended up infecting 11 people who came in contact with him at his home or at hospitals.

Later in the day, the chief minister launched a drive to provide financial assistance of Rs 1000 to each ration card holding family in the state, through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system, by a click of the mouse.

A sum of Rs 184.08 crore was transferred, on the inaugural day of the drive, into the bank accounts of about 18.40 lakh people. The chief minister directed that all remaining beneficiaries be extended the benefit at the earliest.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Cleaning wipes are most definitely having a moment right now.

The wipes, like all sorts of disinfectants and cleaning products, are flying off shelves as people seek new levels of protection from the coronavirus.

But not all of those wipes are making it into the trash can once theyve been used. Some are being flushed down toilets, and that has New Jerseys sewer operators nervous.

Wipes, gloves and masks that are errantly flushed can mix with grease  which also should not be just dumped down the drain  to damage sewer systems, create clogs and generally generate headaches for utilities.

Lesco Plumbing, a Caldwell-based business, warned of the dangers of flushing wipes in a recent post on the companys website.

They dont disintegrate and because of this can obstruct the flow of water. This can lead to an almost instantaneous clog, Lesco warns. In addition, if said items make it through your plumbing they can form massive clogs with other debris like hair and grease and wreak havoc on the entire neighborhood. These massive clogs are known as fatbergs, and have been disrupting plumbing systems across the globe.

Michael Marvon, the owner of Lesco, said that the company has seen an increase in the numbers of clogs in recent days. He said he thinks the increase is at least partially related to people having trouble getting toilet paper and turning to baby wipes instead.

Weve been getting baby wipes," Marvon said. "We went to one house and we pulled out a sock.

Its a shame that the manufacturer says [the wipes are] safe for your toilet, Marvon said. It will make it past your toilet, thats not the problem.

Can't flush, won't flush....in the wake of the great toilet paper shortage of 2020, please don't flush anything but... Posted by Lesco Plumbing, Heating, & Cooling on Saturday, March 28, 2020

The issues that Marvon warns about are already playing out in Camden County. In a press release on Wednesday, the Camden County Municipal Utilities Authority said it had seen a rise in clogs and other damage to critical infrastructure thanks to an increase in wipes and other non-flushable items entering the sewer system.

We understand that in response to the current crisis involving coronavirus, many of our residents stocked up on disinfectant wipes and other disposables, however we are asking everyone to be especially mindful of how to properly get rid of these items at this time, said Camden County Freeholder Jeff Nash, who is the liaison to the CCMUA. Toilet paper is the only product safe to flush without risking a malfunction or other interruption to critical services. Please dispose of all other products properly to allow CCMUA and its dedicated personnel to continue protecting the health of our community during this crisis.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency urged all Americans on Monday to only flush toilet paper, for the sake of keeping the sewers working.

While EPA encourages disinfecting your environment to prevent the spread of COVID-19, never flush disinfecting wipes or other non-flushable items," the EPAs press release said. "These easy steps will keep surfaces disinfected and wastewater management systems working for all Americans.

In his daily updates to town residents, Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac has repeatedly asked people to not flush wipes, gloves or masks down the toilet.

We remain very concerned about the large volume of gloves, wipes, masks and other hygiene products that are discarded randomly on the ground or carelessly through the sanitary sewer system, McCormac wrote on Monday. These items belong in the regular trash and anything else threatens public safety and threatens your and our sewer infrastructure when lateral lines, pipes and pump stations can no longer run properly due to clogs.

Aqua New Jersey, one of the states major private water and sewer companies, reminded its customers on Tuesday that they can play a big part in preventing sewer issues by not flushing things down the toilet that dont belong. Even wipes that are labeled as flushable dont breakdown, according to the utility, so they shouldnt be flushed.

The Middlesex County Utilities Authority addresses the problem of flushed wipes head on in a special coronavirus statement posted on its website.

Flushable wipes should never be flushed even if the product labels it is safe to flush," the MCUA notice reads. "Flushable wipes cause blockages and backups. If you are out of toilet paper and need to use flushable wipes, it is advised to dispose of them in the trash and to not flush them.

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Catherine McCabe told NJ Advance Media on Tuesday that her agency has not yet heard of major problems with people flushing wipes and other medical supplies, but she wouldnt be surprised to see it become an issue.

It does come up from time to time when people have medical issues that they put things down the toilet that are not appropriate to go down there, McCabe said. "So its probably wise of [utilities] to remind their customers that that will cause problems.

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I started writing this article on Thursday, March 27 but did not send it for publication because I was waiting on the response from the Dutch government on St. Maartens request for legal aid. Article 36 of the Charter. I want to again congratulate our government and all relevant stakeholders, especially those on the front line such as our healthcare workers, law enforcement, firefighters, civil servants, garbage collectors, the cleaning companies and everyone who is making a combined and concerted effort to combat this dangerous outbreak that has already taken the lives of many and unfortunately is on track to take more lives. How can I forget the security guards, cashiers at Supermarkets and countless other persons who we dont know, we cannot thank them enough for the courage being displayed at this difficult time. Why did I entitle this article we need real relief? I read where Central Bank of Curacao and St Maarten said and I quote; Curacao and St. Maarten do not have the tools and resources to mitigate such a crisis. It continues to say It is precisely in times like these that the Dutch Government should be pointed to end of quote. The real relief for St. Maarten, in my opinion, should entail the cancellation of all debt guaranteed by or owed to the Netherlands. I am pleased that the CFT agreed with my article entitled This is no time for balanced Budgets. But I guess their decision had to do with the European commission president Ursula von der Leyens announcement and I quote; national governments can spend their way out of the economic fallout from the coronavirus without fear of reproach end of quote. And not forgetting the criticism by the Prime Minister of Portugal of Minister of finance of the Netherlands Wopke Hoekstra who called for an investigation into Spains request for assistance to deal with the covid19 outbreak. I have a serious issue with the Committee for Financial Supervisions advice to provide liquidity support in the form of loans and coming to an early agreement for repaying these loans. Again it should be grants and not loans. Imagine my surprise when yesterday I heard that Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte prefers a gift to Spain and Italy in attempt to restore diplomatic ties with these countries, but he sees it fit to extend loans to Aruba, Curacao and St. Maarten, with conditions, which according to Minister Knops means increasing taxes to get revenues and having a lean government which for sure will include salary reductions and laying off of civil servants. This is no time for them to issue us any loans. No one will dispute the fact that they are also facing covid19 challenges but they are in a more advantageous position than we are. According to the IMF and World Bank, the Netherlands is the 17th largest economy in the world. They are the 6th richest in Europe. Our grand and great-grandchildren are already saddled with an accumulation of debt. I am asking a Kingdom partner out of necessity not desire and based on the charter in which the preamble speaks about support to think about the people first and not their political agenda. Can they afford to cancel our debts and issue grants? The GDP of the Netherlands in 2019 stood at $907.583 billion. Its GD per capita was estimated at some $48,860 in fiscal year 2017/2018 which makes it the highest-earning nation in the world. Does St. Maarten owe the Netherlands $1 billion? I would think not. And even if we include Aruba and Curacao in the equation, the finances of the Netherlands can carry it. It is about political will. I am cautiously optimistic about the discussions but actions speak louder than words. Let me quote Minister Rutte who said in his speech to the EU members Listen you guys have been hit hard but together with some wealthier countries we are prepared to bear the direct costs of the coronavirus crises end of quote. Those words speak volumes. We are still to receive the agreed Naf. 50 million liquidity funds support for 2018 and 2019. Are they still asking for austerity measures to be taken in this time of crisis? And while they are contemplating such, I suggest they cancel the 2015 instruction. Conclusion, writing off St. Maartens debt will be just a drop in the bucket for them and will give the people of St. Maarten some real relief.
Citing the coronavirus pandemic as a pretext, Jason Kenneys hard-right United Conservative Party (UCP) provincial government slashed all non-teacher salary funding to Alberta school boards Saturday, resulting in the layoff of at least 20,000 teaching assistants, cleaners, and other support staff. Just days later, it bragged about creating 6,800 jobs by giving C$1.5 billion in cash grants to Calgary-based TC Energy Corp. and pledged to fork out up to C$6 billion more next year to subsidize construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline to the US Gulf Coast.

The public announcement by Education Minister Adriana LaGrange noted, with in-school classes cancelled indefinitely, funding for K-12 education is being temporarily adjusted to reflect the cost of at-home learning by students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The cuts will amount to a 14 percent reduction to the base instruction grant and 51 percent to transportation funding, a government spokesman told the CBC.

Orders to school boards from the deputy minister of education, Andre Corbould, include the following instructions: Our direction to school authorities is to limit the use of substitute teachers effective March 31 so these individuals can apply to the expanded federal employment insurance program, as well as other federal support programs.  School authorities should immediately begin to provide notice to educational assistants with the expectation that their services continue until no later than the end of April. Corbould subsequently said, School authorities should immediately begin providing notice to non-essential support staff.  School authorities should immediately begin to provide notice to board employed bus drivers.

In a piece of cynical posturing, the UCP governmentwhich is in the midst of a massive austerity drive that includes the privatization of health care servicesdeclared that any savings generated from the education layoffs will go towards funding the provinces efforts to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

Following Kenneys lead, the City of Edmonton issued layoff notices to 2,100 staff on Monday, and the City of Calgary, led by progressive Mayor Mayor Naheed Nenshi, announced Tuesday that it is furloughing 1,200 workers.

As a result of Saturdays Education Ministry directive, as many as 25,000 substitute teachers, educational assistants, non-essential support staff and bus drivers will soon be dismissed. Many of the soon to be laid-off workers are members of unions such as CUPE, which, apart from issuing pathetic appeals to Kenney to change course, intend to do nothing.

We figure this could be up to 20,000 people, about 10,000 CUPE members and about 10,000 others, said CUPE Alberta President Rory Gill. On a Saturday afternoon, the Kenney Government has just fired thousands of people who look after and educate our kids, said Gill in a press release. The minister has just passed the buck to the federal government and told education workers, good luck out there, there are [emergency relief] programs you can access.

Facebook and Twitter have lit up with opposition from school support staff and teachers who are still expected to risk their lives by going into dirty, uncleaned schools to work on digitizing lessons for their students.

Finance Minister Travis Toews justified Saturdays massive layoffs of school board employees by saying, Its absolutely incumbent on us as the government to ensure that were moving resources to the greatest need. Apparently, the need was much greater for TC Energy, a highly profitable energy infrastructure company that owns oil and natural pipelines in the US, Canada and Mexico.

Kenney justified this equity investment in TC Energy Corp. and next years huge loan guarantee to kick-start the Keystone XL Pipeline, which will transport Alberta tar-sands oil to refineries on the US Gulf Coast, as steps we must make now to build our future focused on jobs, the economy, and pipelines.

In truth, Kenneys corporate bailout for TC Energy and the oil industry more generally and his shredding of tens of thousands of public sector jobs are an intensification of the class war agenda that his UCP government has been pursuing since it came to power a year ago this month.

In October, the UCP tabled a budget that outlined plans to slash per capita public spending by more than 10 percent in real terms by 2023, and to eliminate more than 7,000 public sector jobs, including hundreds of nursing positions. The Kenney government is also vowing to impose wage cuts of up to 5 percent on Albertas 180,000 public sector workers, and is known to be considering using a raft of repressive measures to suppress working-class oppositionfrom hiring scabs to invoking the Canadian constitutions anti-democratic notwithstanding clause to ban strikes and impose concessionary contracts by decree.

In addition to providing billions in bailouts for Big Oil, the Kenney government is preparing to fashion emergency coronavirus measures that will force energy workers to continue risking their lives as the pandemic spreads. The UCP government will declare the oil and gas sector an essential service, meaning that it will be able to continue to operate as normal even after the province is officially placed on lockdown. This is in spite of the fact that thousands of energy workers live at close quarters in isolated work camps with high levels of worker turnover, a perfect environment for the deadly virus to run rampant.
SAN DIEGO, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- David Greenberg, Ziyen Energy Chairman, is interviewed by Steve Nudelberg, on his podcast Tell me something good to discuss what the world is currently going through with COVID-19 and the parallels that faced the mental toll for the US nation post 9/11.



LINK TO PODCAST- Tell Me Something Good with David Greenberg

David Greenberg is currently Chairman of Greenberg Capital, LLC. He previously served three terms on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) Board as well as the Executive Board, where he helped oversee a growth in valuation from $800 million to $12 billion and one of the most successful initial public offerings (IPOs) in U.S. history. He was also President of Sterling Commodities Corporation, one of the largest local commodity clearinghouses. During his tenure with NYMEX, David was involved in the development and widespread adoption of the very first electronic trading platform to emerge in the commodity trading industry.

It was Davids time working at NYMEX, where he was a 9/11 survivor, and in this podcast he discusses what happened at Ground Zero on that day, and how this moment in time had a profound effect on a change to our society.

Just like any disaster in human history, Greenberg focuses on the positive of us getting through it, and how in any disaster there are new heroes.

Greenberg states,

To all the health care workers out there, doctors, nurses, technicians, medical staff, administrators, food service workers, pharmacists, security guards, our military deployed to set up hospitals and deliver aid  our nation owes you our thanks and our lives.

Once this is over, and we will get through it, we must always remember all the selfless people who are endangering themselves and their loved ones for all of our benefit.

Steve Nudelberg, "Tell Me Something Good" host adds,

It's always great to hear something good and never before has Rule # 21 (Tell Me Something Good) from my book, Confessions of a Serial Salesman, been more relevant. This podcast allows us to span the globe engaging with entrepreneurs, business leaders, athletes, entertainers, and more to discuss 'What's Good'!

David is a friend and fellow Junior Achievement of South Florida Board Member. He provides some great insights on dealing with a crisis from a financial perspective and he's one of the most philanthropic guys I know!"

For more information about Ziyen Energy please visit www.ziyen.com or read our corporate overview Tokenizing Energy Assets on the Blockchain

About Ziyen Energy:

Ziyen Energy is a technology-driven energy company incorporated in the State of Wyoming, U.S.A. in April 2016. Originally formed as a software company providing information on the oil, gas, power and energy sectors, Ziyen specializes on business information, contracts, news and information by developing cutting edge procurement and supply chain software to provide clients with intelligence on industry specific government and private contracts. In addition, Ziyen Energy currently owns interests in oil assets based in Texas and the Illinois Basin, which covers Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky. The equity of Ziyen Energy has been tokenized and issued as ZiyenCoin which is offered for sale as a Security Token pursuant to SEC Rule 506(c) of Regulation D.

Forward Looking Statements:

Certain statements in this press release including, but not limited to, statements related to anticipated commencement of commercial production, targeted pricing, performance goals, and statements that otherwise relate to future periods are forward-looking statements. These statements involve risks and uncertainties, which are described in more detail in the Companys periodic reports filed with the SEC- specifically the most recent reports which identify important risk factors that could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are made and based on information available to the company on the date of this press release. Ziyen Inc. assumes no obligation to update the information in this press release.
Travellers who are cooped up in a hotel after returning from overseas have sworn at staff and threatened to sue during their two-week quarantine.

The manager of Travelodge Hotel Sydney, on Wentworth Street, addressed his guests at the 48-hour mark of their 14-day isolation on Wednesday.

Clearly under some pressure from the weight of requests made by guests, the manager urged them to show consideration to hotel staff during their quarantine.

'We are not prison wardens,' he said.

'We are not expecting to be sued, we do not want to be sworn at - we are coming to hear your frustrations but please have some respect.'

The manager of Travelodge Hotel Sydney (pictured), on Wentworth Street, addressed his guests at the 48-hour mark of their 14-day isolation on Wednesday. 'We are not prison wardens,' he said.

Travellers who have returned from overseas are being quarantined at hotels for two weeks

The manager also declared exercise bikes and treadmills would soon be available for hire while a user-pays laundry system would be in place by Friday.

Georgina Sindel, who is quarantined alone at the Sydney hotel, said the last announcement brought some relief but she really craves fresh air and sunlight.

The 27-year-old consultant told AAP she couldn't help but feel like she was headed for the slammer after being placed on a bus by the military at Sydney airport first thing on Tuesday morning.

'And then with the police escorting us all to our room here, it felt very prison-like,' she said.

'I've had my ups and downs - there have been a few meltdowns on the phone to my parents.

'But if we stay positive, it's much easier to get through. I'll keep exercising, working, and try to stick to a schedule.'

Ms Sindel can't open her windows and will be slapped with a six-month prison sentence or $6000 fine if she leaves her room.

Faced with the same situation over at the Hyatt Regency, also in Sydney's CBD, a young couple from NSW can't help but wonder whether smokers would be granted special rights to go outside.

Eddie Boyd, 28, and Annie Collis, 24, are musicians whose move to London was almost immediately turned upside down by the coronavirus.

A flight home at more than $4000 each saw them on home soil by Sunday morning.

'Air is the main frustration right now,' Mr Boyd told AAP on Wednesday.

Georgina Sindel, who is quarantined alone at the Sydney hotel, said she couldn't help but feel like she was headed for the slammer after being placed on a bus by the military at Sydney airport first thing on Tuesday morning. Pictured: Members of ADF assist travellers on Monday

Ms Collis said a lack of information was another major concern.

The phone number for a counselling service was slipped under their door on Tuesday night but little else has been communicated.

'They just put us in here and closed the door,' Ms Collis said.

'The government doesn't seem to be worried much about your mental and physical health in terms of being a normal person in this process.'

But Mr Boyd said they remained in high spirits, binge-watching Netflix, playing guitar, and brushing up on their French and Italian using Duolingo.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

The bandmates also shared a laugh at their occasionally comical situation: for a few nights, they had to wash their own dishes with face soap in the bathroom sink.

'I think we're pretty lucky actually,' Mr Boyd said.

'I'd give it four stars - if we had a window that we could open, that would make it the prime quarantine hotel.'

Ms Collis agreed.

'We're glad to be back in Australia and that's overruling everything else,' she said.

'It looked pretty ominous in London and we thought we should just get out as soon as possible.

'So we're just feeling grateful that we got back and that we have somewhere to go.'

A Travelodge spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia 'we're all in this together' during the coronavirus pandemic.

'As hoteliers and hosts, our role is to do everything we can do to make our guests as comfortable as possible during their stay, and to keep them in good spirits in these challenging times,' she said.

'Highly stressful times bring out the best and the worst in people.

'To those of us still able to see our family and go shopping or exercising, we can't possibly understand what it's like to be confined to one space for 14 days, and we sympathise.

'All we ask is that people please show a little compassion to the frontline hotels teams that are answering telephones, running errands and doing their level best to help in any way they can in difficult circumstances.'
Over 170 FIRs were registered and 3,663 people detained on Thursday for violating government orders amid the lockdown, the Delhi Police said.

According to data shared by the police, 174 FIRs were registered under Section 188 (for disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code till 5 pm.

The police said 3,663 people were detained under Section 65 (persons bound to comply with reasonable directions of police officers) of the IPC and 443 vehicles were impounded under Section 66 of the Delhi Police Act.

A total of 1,327 movement passes were issued, they said.

According to the Union Health Ministry, death toll due to coronavirus touched 50 on Thursday. Total number of positive cases has risen to 1,965 in the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday it had filed a complaint aimed at forcing Marlboro maker Altria Group to sell its investment in e-cigarette maker JUUL. The FTC has probed Altria's decision to buy a 35% stake in JUUL, announced in December 2018, for $12.8 billion

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday it had filed a complaint aimed at forcing Marlboro maker Altria Group to sell its investment in e-cigarette maker JUUL.

The FTC has probed Altria's decision to buy a 35% stake in JUUL, announced in December 2018, for $12.8 billion. The value of the investment has dwindled to $4.2 billion as of late 2019 as a string of vaping-related deaths and potential bans clouded the industry's prospects.

"For several years, Altria and JUUL were competitors in the market for closed-system e-cigarettes. By the end of 2018, Altria orchestrated its exit from the e-cigarette market and became JUUL's largest investor," said Ian Conner, Director of the Bureau of Competition. "Altria and JUUL turned from competitors to collaborators by eliminating competition and sharing in JUUL's profits."

Altria's MarkTen was at one point the second most popular e-cigarette maker, the FTC said in a statement.

The FTC said that Altria responded to JUUL's threat to its business by agreeing not to compete in exchange for Altria's investment in the company.

Neither Altria nor JUUL immediately responded to requests for comment.

The FTC said that it had filed the complaint before one of its administrative law judges.

(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Sandra Maler and Sam Holmes)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Blind justice demands that law be interpreted with an open mind, without bias and without prejudice. Roman and Greek scholars developed this basic concept. Our founding fathers wholeheartedly embraced this important idea and wrote it into our Constitution.

On April 7, one candidate will be elected to a 10-year term on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Special interest groups are hard at work to influence the outcome of this election.

The incumbent candidate, Dan Kelley, a self-proclaimed ultra conservative, was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court with no previous experience as a judge, by Gov. Scott Walker. He is a commercial litigator and represented Wisconsin Republicans in a federal trial over the lawsuit challenging the 2010 redrawing of legislative districts (deliberate gerrymandering). His office is located in the Republican Party headquarters.

The challenger is Jill Karofsky, a politically independent judge. She is an elected Dane County Circuit Court Judge. Shes been an Assistant Attorney General serving as the states Violence against Women resource prosecutor and was a deputy District Attorney.

The choice is clear. A starker contrast between candidates is hard to find. Justice is blind, unbiased and unprejudiced. Partisanship should have no place in our court system.

Lee D. Van Landuyt,

Hillsboro

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The blob went unnoticed at first. In the summer of 2013, a high-pressure ridge settled over a Texas-size area in the northern Pacific, pushing the sky down over the ocean like an invisible lid. The winds died down, and the water became weirdly calm. Without waves and wind to break up the surface and dissipate heat, warmth from the sun accumulated in the water, eventually raising the temperature by 5 degrees Fahrenheit  a huge spike for the ocean.

When scientists noticed this temperature anomaly in the satellite data, they had never seen anything like it. Everyone knew about heat waves on land, but in the ocean? As the Earth heats up, the ocean is changing in very dramatic ways, says Jane Lubchenco, a marine ecologist and former head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It is less predictable, and we are seeing more surprises. The heat waves are one of those surprises.

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Nick Bond, a climatologist at the University of Washington, nicknamed the Pacific heat wave the Blob, after a campy 1958 sci-fi movie about a gelatinous monster that arrives on Earth in a meteor and eats up a small town. But this Blob would turn out to be far more deadly than anything Hollywood imagined.

The hot water killed the phytoplankton  a form of microscopic algae  that live in the top few hundred feet of the ocean. The tiny organisms that feast on them starved, including krill, the small shrimplike creatures that swarm the ocean by the billions and are the preferred food for whales, salmon, seabirds, and many other creatures. The population of herring and sardines, an important food source for many larger fish and marine mammals, also declined. By killing phytoplankton, the Blob disrupted the entire Pacific food chain.

Over the next two years, it drifted down the coast of Alaska to California, eventually responsible for thousands of whale and sea lion strandings on beaches along the coast; the collapse of the Alaska cod fishery; the bankruptcy of fishermen and worker layoffs at fish-processing plants; the vanishing of great kelp forests on the Pacific coast; and the starvation and death of a billion seabirds  the largest single mass mortality of seabirds ever recorded. Dead murres littered beaches like washed-up plastic bottles.

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And its destruction was not limited to the ocean: The Blob changed the weather on the Pacific coast, pushing heat inland and altering rainfall patterns, contributing to the California drought. It raised temperatures on the coast all the way from British Columbia down to Southern California, says Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA. The big question is how much the Blob accelerated wildfires; 2017-18 saw historic blazes, including the Camp Fire in Northern California, the largest in the states history, which burned more than 150,000 acres and killed at least 85 people. Swain says the Blob increased nighttime temperatures in the western third of the state, where many of the wildfires flared. Firefighters will tell you thats really important, because wildfires often lie down at night, burning more slowly and behaving less erratically, becoming less dangerous to approach for human crews. While the Blob was off the coast, that didnt happen.

All in all, the Blob was a slow-rolling climate catastrophe. Its also compelling evidence of how tightly all life on Earth is linked to the ocean. Because we live on land, we often think of the climate crisis as a terrestrial event. But as the planet heats up, its what happens in the ocean that will have the biggest impact on our future.

Earth was not born with an ocean. Water arrived here from the cold depths of space with icy asteroids and comets, which bombarded the planet during the first few million years of its existence. Its been a watery world ever since. Today, 97 percent of the Earths water is in the ocean, which covers more than 70 percent of the planet. The ocean was the petri dish for the creation of life, and we carry that early history within us. The salt content of our blood plasma is similar to the salt content of seawater. The bones we use to hear with were once gill bones of sharks, says Neil Shubin, professor of anatomy at the University of Chicago and author of Your Inner Fish: A Journey Into the 3.5 Billion-Year History of the Human Body. Our hands are modified fish fins, and the genes that build our basic body architecture are shared with worms and fish.

Despite our intimate connection to the sea, for most of human history the ocean has been as strange to us as a distant planet, a realm of monsters and mayhem. Humans stuck close to the shore, mostly, and our ignorance about the ocean was profound. It still is. Scientists have only a vague understanding of exactly how ocean currents are driven, or how ocean temperatures impact cloud formation, or what creatures thrive in the depths. Far more people have been to the moon, which is 240,000 miles above us, than have been to the deepest part of the ocean, which is seven miles down. Eighty percent of the ocean remains unmapped, unobserved, unexplored. Marine biologists dont know how sharks sleep or an octopus learns to open a jar.

But scientists know enough to know that the ocean is in trouble. Largely because of overfishing, 90 percent of the large fish that were here in the 1950s are now gone. One metric ton of plastic enters the ocean every four seconds (at this rate, there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050). But the biggest problem, thanks largely to our insatiable appetite for fossil fuels, is that the ocean is heating up fast. The past five years have been the five warmest ever measured in the ocean, with 2019 the hottest ever. According to one study, the amount of heat being added to the ocean is equivalent to every person on the planet running 100 microwave ovens all day and night.

Until now, the ocean has been the hero of the climate crisis  about 90 percent of the additional heat weve trapped from burning fossil fuels has been absorbed by it. Without the ocean, the atmosphere would be a lot hotter than it already is, says Ken Caldeira, a climate scientist at Stanford University. But the heat the ocean absorbed has not magically vanished  its just stored in the depths and radiated out later. By absorbing and slowly releasing heat, the ocean reduces the volatility of our climate, cushioning the highs and lows as temperatures change from day to night, winter to summer. It also means the heat will continue to seep out for centuries to come, slowing any human efforts to cool the planet.

The ocean is the main driver of our climate system, Hans-Otto Portner, a scientist at the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research in Germany, tells me. One of the central functions of the ocean, Portner says, is to redistribute heat from the tropics toward the poles via deep currents like the Gulf Stream system, which begins in the Southern Ocean near Antarctica, flows across the equator, up to the Arctic and back again. Even small changes in that system can have large impacts on things like the size and intensity of storms, rainfall patterns, sea-level rise, says Portner, and of course the habitats of all the creatures that live in the ocean.

The ocean is also one of the main drivers of many regional economies. In Alaska, one of the fastest-changing parts of the planet, the seafood industry employs more than 50,000 workers, earning $2 billion in total annual income. Across the U.S., fishing, ocean farming, shipping, ocean tourism and recreation support 3.25 million jobs and contribute about $300 billion to the U.S.s annual gross domestic product. No one thinks this blue economy is going to vanish overnight, but as fish and other species migrate to cool waters or die off from temperature changes, there can be profound impacts on local fisheries  just ask the cod fishermen in Alaska, or shrimpers in the Gulf of Maine, who have been wiped out by rapidly warming waters in the Atlantic.

Portner is one of the lead authors of a recent report on the ocean and cryosphere by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. It was the IPCCs first report to focus specifically on the worlds oceans and ice  it was a massive project, the work of 105 scientists over a three-year period. There is a lot of nuance in the report, but the basic message is clear: In the coming decades, the ocean will get hotter, more acidic, with less oxygen and less biodiversity. Seas will rise, flooding coastal cities. Ocean circulation patterns will shift, driving big and unpredictable changes in the weather, with scary implications for the global food supply. The reports summary was blunt: Over the 21st century, the ocean is projected to transition to unprecedented conditions.

Monterey Bay is a crescent on the Northern California coast, a place haunted by the ghosts of John Steinbecks Cannery Row. The old sardine canneries are now T-shirt shops and touristy restaurants. From the pier, you can watch sea otters playing in the surf and, if youre lucky, whales breeching just offshore. A deep canyon delivers cold, nutrient-rich waters into the bay, creating one of the most diverse ecosystems in the Pacific, including giant kelp beds that grow along the coast all the way up to Alaska. In good times, these kelp beds are teeming with life  otters, seals, sharks, rockfish, lingcod. The kelp beds are the rainforests of the Pacific, Kyle Van Houtan, the chief scientist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, tells me.

But like everything in the ocean, the kelp beds are changing fast. On a recent Saturday morning, I pulled on scuba gear and jumped in the water near Monterey to have a look for myself. What I saw was not the rainforest of the Pacific. Instead, I was greeted with nothing but rock and water and hundreds of purple sea urchins, their thorny spikes like medieval armor. A voracious horde had invaded the once-magnificent kelp forest and devoured everything (purple urchins are the cockroaches of the sea, one scientist told me), leaving only some empty abalone shells, a rockfish poking around, and a few pathetic kelp stipes. And this spot is just one fragment of a bigger picture. As a result of the Blob, many of the kelp forests along the coast from California to Oregon have vanished, done in by warming and the army of purple sea urchins, which thrive in a hotter world.

If a 200-mile-long stretch of forest in the California mountains suddenly died, people would be shocked and outraged, says Laura Rogers-Bennett, a marine scientist at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, who works at the Bodega Marine Lab just up the coast. Were talking about the collapse of an entire ecosystem. But because it happened in the ocean, nobody notices.

Rogers-Bennett was one of the first scientists to understand the impact of marine heat waves like the Blob. In 2013, she was diving in Northern California when she saw a sea star that looked like it was melting. When I touched it, its skin came off in my hand, she recalls. And it wasnt just one sea star, she discovered. This was the beginning of a mass die-off of 20 species of sea stars in the Pacific from a condition known as sea star wasting disease, which is linked to warming waters. With the loss of sea stars, which are one of the main predators of purple sea urchins, the urchin population exploded and devoured the kelp forests. Its very scary, Rogers-Bennett says. The Blob shows you how fast a tipping point can happen.

In the past decade, scientists have detected marine heat waves around the world: The Mediterranean was hit in 2012, 2015, and 2017. In 2018, a marine heat wave appeared off the coast of New Zealand and helped spike land temperatures to record highs. Along the coast of Tasmania, giant kelp once stretched over 9 million square meters. Today, thanks to warmer water and an invasion of urchins, the kelp covers fewer than 500,000 meters. Off the Uruguayan coast, a blob of hot water covers 130,000 square miles of ocean, an area nearly twice as big as Uruguay itself. It has caused a massive die-off of clams and mussels, an important food source for tens of thousands of people who live on the coast. Last fall, another heat wave started building in the northern Pacific, says Andrew Leising, a scientist at NOAAs Southwest Fisheries Science Center. It couldnt come at a worse time  the fisheries are just beginning to recover from the Blob.

Marine heat waves are driving a massive reorganization of underwater life, with many creatures migrating to cooler waters. Right now, you can go diving off the Monterey pier and see spiny lobsters, says Van Houtan. They are a subtropical species that are normally found down in Baja. Its absurd to see them up here. (Attention swimmers: Van Houtan also says warmer waters are encouraging juvenile great white sharks to linger in the area). At the Bodega Marine Lab, scientists documented 37 species that had never been found so far north before. Bull sharks have been hanging off the coast of North Carolina, 500 miles north of their habitat in Florida. Lobsters have all but vanished from Long Island Sound. These migrations are radically changing underwater ecosystems, as well as the lives of people who depend on healthy fisheries. A recent study by scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara, showed that nations in the tropics would be hit hardest by fish migration. By 2100, some countries in northwest Africa could lose half their stocks as fish move to colder water. If you know you are losing a stock, then the short-term incentive is to overfish it, said James Salzman, a professor of environmental law at UC Santa Barbara and co-author of the study. What have you got to lose? The stocks going to move anyway.

Marine heat waves are also inflicting massive damage on coral reefs (where they are often called bleaching events). Reefs are the most bio-diverse ecosystems on the planet  they occupy less than one percent of the ocean floor, but are home to more than 25 percent of marine life. Reefs are created by millions of coral colonies that build calcium carbonate skeletons. For the past 100 million years or so, corals have thrived in a happy marriage with microscopic plants called zooxanthellae that live embedded in their tissues. Zooxanthellae produce 85 to 95 percent of corals food through photosynthesis. In return, corals give the plants protection, nutrients, and carbon dioxide, one of the ingredients for photosynthetic food production. This marriage, however, is exquisitely sensitive to changes in ocean temperature. One or two degrees of warming, and the zooxanthellae become toxic to the corals. The corals spit them out like an abusive spouse and eventually starve to death, leaving only their bleached skeletons behind.

Australias Great Barrier Reef, a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the crown jewels of the natural world, has been hit hard by warming. The reef stretches about 1,400 miles along the east coast of Australia  its the largest structure built by living organisms on the planet, so big its visible from space. Since 1998, the Great Barrier Reef has suffered four bleaching events, including devastating back-to-back heat waves in 2016 and 2017. Further bleaching in 2020 has scientists worried it will be a near-annual event. According to Terry Hughes, a marine scientist at James Cook University in Queensland, Australia, 93 percent of the corals in the Great Barrier Reef have been impacted by some level of bleaching. Weve now added enough greenhouse gases to the atmosphere that mass bleaching of the reef is at risk every summer, Hughes says. Its like Russian roulette.

If you look at a few drops of ocean water under a microscope, youll see a wild world of bizarre-looking creatures swimming around, fighting and devouring each other. Many of these animals  forams, pteropods  have thin shells made of calcium carbonate. And thanks to the rising acidity of ocean waters, their shells  like the shells and skeletons of many other creatures in the sea  are slowly dissolving.

Acidification is primarily a consequence of rapidly rising CO2 levels in the atmosphere. The IPCC report notes that carbon pollution so far has decreased the average ocean pH, which is based on a logarithmic scale, from 8.2 to 8.1, meaning the ocean is 25 percent more acidic today than before the Industrial Revolution. If we manage to hold global warming to 2 C, we could limit ocean acidification to 40 percent by 2100. But in a high-emissions scenario, the ocean could become 150 percent more acidic than it was before we began burning fossil fuels. In effect, were running a giant chemistry experiment in the ocean, and nobody has a clear understanding of how it will turn out.

The increasingly acidic waters in the Pacific are already impacting the shells of Dungeness crabs, jeopardizing the $200 million crabbing industry on the West Coast. To prevent the acidic waters from dissolving those shells, oyster farmers in Oregon and Washington have to raise baby oysters in incubators before planting them on the beach to grow to adulthood.

In lab experiments, scientists have found acidification can do strange things to a fishs mind. Clown fish, for example, normally stay close to home in coral reefs. But as the water becomes increasingly acidic, they wander farther and farther away, making them more likely to be eaten. Greater acidity also impairs their ability to discriminate between the smell of kin and not, and of predators and not, according to Philip Munday, a professor at the Coral Reef Studies center at James Cook University in Australia.

Over time, the biggest threat from acidification is the impact it could have on the food chain. Pteropods, a.k.a. the potato chips of the sea, are a food source for everything from seabirds to whales. Their thin shells are extremely sensitive to changes in ocean pH. A collapse of the pteropod population would have a domino effect on the entire ocean food chain, especially in the Southern Ocean.

On coral reefs, most of which are already weakened by bleaching events, acidification attacks the calcium skeletons that they build to support themselves. By midcentury, pretty much every reef in the world will be eroding away, says Stanfords Ken Caldeira. Thats astonishing. Coral reefs have been around for about 250 million years, evolving into some of the most complex, diverse, and beautiful living structures on Earth. And yet if nothing changes, within 40 or 50 years, they will be crumbling ruins. I think if we stopped emitting C02 tomorrow, some reefs would probably survive, Caldeira says. But if we go on a few more decades, I think the reefs are gone. Over geological time scales, they will come back, depending how long it takes the ocean chemistry to recover. But its likely to be at least 10,000 years before anyone sees a reef again.

Sea-level rise is driven by a number of physical processes, including the fact that as the ocean warms, its water -expands. And even though scientists often talk about global sea-level rise as if the ocean were one big bathtub, there is actually considerable local variation due to changes in the tug of gravity from melting ice sheets and the rising or sinking of land along the shore. But for the future of -coastal cities, what really matters are two things: the rate of carbon emissions in the coming decades, and how sensitive the big ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica are to the warming from those emissions. Greenland holds enough ice to raise sea levels about 22 feet; Antarctica holds enough to raise them more than 200 feet. According to the IPCC report, the ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica are now contributing 700 percent more to sea levels than two decades ago. In both cases, the ice melt is being driven largely by the warming of the ocean.

On a research expedition I took to Antarctica last year with British and U.S. scientists aboard the Nathaniel B. Palmer, the big question scientists were trying to answer was how much warm circumpolar deep water was upwelling onto the continental shelf and how much of that warm water was getting beneath the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, melting it from below. The ocean holds the key, one scientist told me. To understand what is happening in West Antarctica, you have to understand what is happening in the Southern Ocean.

The more scientists learn about ocean and ice-sheet dynamics, the more concerned they get. The latest IPCC assessment puts the range of sea-level rise by 2100 at two feet in a low-emissions scenario, or up to 3.6 feet in a high-emissions scenario, which is about 10 percent higher than predicted in the last IPCC report, in 2018. But this is, as Portner tells me, a conservative number. We are basing it on what we know, not on processes that we think could happen.

In fact, virtually every scientist I know who studies sea-level rise thinks the risk is understated, even if they dont yet have enough data or sophisticated-enough climate models to say by how much. As Richard Alley, a geophysicist at Penn State and one of the most respected ice scientists in the world, recently argued: It could be two feet of sea-level rise, it could be 15 or 20 feet [by the end of the century]. There is no good to offset the bad. And the chances of something really bad are really there.

In West Antarctica, the ice sheet is particularly vulnerable to melting from below, due to its contact with ocean water on the edge of the continent and because the ground beneath the ice sheet is a reverse slope  warm ocean water could run down the slope and penetrate deep underneath the glacier, which could begin a cascading collapse in which enormous sheets of ice begin falling into the sea like a giant pile of ice cubes. A big concern is how much warm circumpolar deep water is upwelling near Thwaites glacier, a chunk of ice the size of Florida that is basically the cork in the bottle for the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. If it goes, the rest of the glaciers behind it could collapse quickly, raising sea levels more than 10 feet. How fast could this happen? No one knows for sure.

In Antarctica, small changes in ocean temperature have big implications. A change of even one or two degrees in the waters that wash up against the base of the glaciers could cause the ice to melt. Before our trip last year, I think I was already convinced that extensive retreat of Thwaites is almost inevitable, Robert Larter, a marine geophysicist and the chief scientist on my trip to Antarctica, told me. But the more research results I see from our trip and others, the more certain I become.

Sea-level rise is not the only potential consequence of melting glaciers. Thirty years ago, Wallace Broecker, a pioneering climate scientist at Columbia Universitys Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, saw a very different climate catastrophe developing in the North Atlantic. Broecker understood that as the Greenland Ice Sheet melted, it would dump huge volumes of fresh water into the North Atlantic. This would interfere with circulation of the Gulf Stream system, which depends on the sinking of dense, salty water in the Atlantic to drive the great deepwater current that circulates warm water from the tropics up to the North Atlantic. The Gulf Stream system is why the East Coast of the U.S. is much colder than the western coast of Europe, says Stefan Rahmstorf, a climate scientist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Research in Germany. If the Gulf system were to slow down or stop, it would have a major impact on the weather of the Northern Hemisphere. Broecker (who died in 2019) hypothesized that the shutdown of the system could plunge Northern Europe into a reign of snow and ice  which is more or less the scenario that plays out in The Day After Tomorrow, a cheesy 2003 disaster flick.

The Hollywood scenario is not going to happen, says Rahmstorf. In his view, the shutdown of the Gulf system is a decades- and century-scale risk, not an overnight event. But the Gulf Stream doesnt have to collapse to wreak havoc. The IPCC report noted that the Gulf Stream system slowed down 15 percent in the 20th century. In the coming years, the report says, it will likely continue to weaken, intensifying storms and bringing frigid weather to Northern Europe, as well as shifting the path of the West African monsoon season, which 300 million people in one of the poorest, most climate-vulnerable areas depend on to grow food.

Nature is change. But humans have stomped on the accelerator. We are dumping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere about 10 times faster than volcanoes did 250 million years ago, which cooked the planet, triggering the End-Permian extinction that wiped out 96 percent of the species on Earth and turned the ocean into a lifeless, slimy Jacuzzi. No one knows where our modern experiment with geochemistry will lead, writes Peter Brannen in The Ends of the World: Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understand Earths Past Mass Extinctions, but in the End-Permian, massive injections of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere led straight to the cemetery.

Despite all the massive climate impacts that are transforming the ocean now, its a long way from dead. If we stopped putting carbon in the atmosphere today, most of the species in the ocean would bounce back, says Caldeira. It might take some time, but they will make it back. Unfortunately, we are not going to stop putting carbon into the atmosphere today. And its less clear that, even if we did, we could stabilize the ice sheets. But we can certainly reduce the risk of catastrophic collapse.

Tragic images of sea turtles wrapped in fishing lines and dead whales on the beach with hundreds of plastic shopping bags in their stomachs have helped people connect the dots between what they buy at Target and what happens in the ocean. As a Democratic presidential candidate, Elizabeth Warren championed the Blue New Deal, which addresses everything from streamlined permitting for new offshore wind farms to climate-smart management of wild fisheries. Globally, there is a big push by scientists and conservationists for a U.N. treaty that would protect 30 percent of the worlds ocean from human activity by 2030 (right now, only about two percent is protected). The rise of aquaculture gives hope that, if its done intelligently, the ocean can become a steady source of low-carbon, high-protein food. Matthew Moretti, the 36-year-old CEO of Bangs Island Mussels in Portland, Maine, grows 300,000 pounds of mussels and 100,000 pounds of kelp each year on seven acres of ocean. Mussels, which grow on fuzzy ropes that hang down from the companys rafts in Casco Bay, filter the water, removing nitrogen and carbon. Kelp, a highly nutritious food that is increasingly popular in everything from pickled salads to animal feed, grows nearby, sucking up carbon and de-acidifying the water around the mussels. Aquaculture is hope, says Moretti. I see so much potential to do a lot of good, to produce a lot of food for a lot of hungry people. We can adapt to changes. As the water warms, we can move. As the ocean chemistry changes, we can change our practices. Ocean farming will produce the seafood of the future, and its starting now.

Former NOAA director Jane Lubchenco says its time to stop thinking of the ocean as a victim of climate change and start thinking of it as a powerful part of the solution. A recent study that Lubchenco co-authored suggests that by developing renewable energy from the ocean, including tidal power and offshore wind farms, as well as eating more fish and less red meat and substituting kelp for traditional feeds for farm animals, as much as one-fifth of the carbon-emission reductions needed to hit the 1.5 C target could be found in the ocean. To Lubchenco, we have spent far too long focused on the problems and not enough on the solutions. For the last few decades, the narrative about the ocean is that its too big to fix, says Lubchenco. Coral bleaching, gross plastic pollution, ocean acidification, heat waves, collapsing fisheries. Its been one disaster after another. But now a new narrative is beginning to emerge, one that recognizes how central the oceans are to mitigating climate change, to adapting to climate change, to providing food security, to so many things that we care about. The new narrative is far more hopeful, and it says the ocean is too big to ignore.

But we are in a race against time. Every ton of coal and every barrel of oil we burn heats up the atmosphere a little bit more, and that heat makes its way into the ocean, changing currents in nearly imperceptible ways, bringing new droughts and storms, shifting rainfall patterns, melting ice, eroding coral reefs, spawning toxic algae blooms, and moving the ocean a little closer to a world dominated by jellyfish and slime. The future of the ocean, says marine biologist and ocean activist Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, is in our hands.

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The Delhi Police Special Branch has identified and quarantined 275 foreign nationals, who have been staying in various mosques after attending a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in the Nizamuddin area, officials said on Thursday.

Among 275 foreign nationals, 172 are from Indonesia, 36 from Kyrgyzstan, 21 from Bangladesh, 12 from Malaysia, seven from Algeria, two each from Afghanistan and the US and one each from France, Tunisia, Belgium and Italy. Eighty-four of them have been staying the Northeast district and 109 in Central district, they said.

The Nizamuddin Markaz, the Tablighi Jamaat headquarters in south Delhi, has emerged as an epicentre for spread of the coronavirus in different parts of the country after thousands of people took part in a congregation from March 1-15.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Delhi Police Special Branch wrote to the government on taking immediate action with regard to people, including foreign nationals, associated with Tablighi Jamaat and presently staying at various mosques and places here in the national capital.

"A team of district administration, police and health department are visiting mosques and evacuating foreign nationals and shifting them to quarantine. They were part of Jamat held at Markaz and to decongest the building, they were shifted to various mosques in the national capital," police had said.

Police had said they prepared a list of foreign nationals staying in various mosques across the city. No social distancing would be possible at those places. It may cause grave danger to public health and the objective of containing COVID-19, they said.
In Austin, Texas, it's a very basic sight nowadays having long queues, empty shelves and days of waiting for toilet paper to come back in stock. Be that as it may, as fears around the coronavirus drive essentials off the shelves, two University of Texas students have a plan to help.

InStok.org is a website recently launched by Rithwik Pattikonda and Darshan Bhatta, a sophomore and green bean examining software engineering, it is designed where to check inventories of big stores like Target and CVS and tell users where they can find the items they need.

The idea he got is when he saw his parents having a difficult time finding essentials Pattikonda said.

"Initially, I saw my parents were really struggling to find certain types of grocery items, and when I saw the news, I noticed the panic was a lot more widespread," Pattikonda said.

The site was built from scratch, Pattikonda and Bhatta spent almost a week coding it. The site works by checking inventories of major chain stores including Target, CVS and Walgreens online and accumulating them in one spot. Users can type in their ZIP code, the item they want, and see which stores have it in stock. You can even compare prices and ask the site to send you notifications when the items you choose are available, it is free to use and does not require signing up for an account.

It's helpful in avoiding the trouble of another "out of stock" sign, Pattikonda hopes it prevents people from unnecessary shopping trips at a time when most of the people should be practicing social distancing.

He also said, "Instead of going to seven or eight stores, they can choose one or two stores and get their items."

The site was launched on Tuesday, and it already has had 70,000 visitors. Pattikonda he even used it to find some waffles.

"I think the whole need for this product is really what's carrying it, all we did was post in two subreddits, and from there, it just pretty much organically picked up because of how much people need it," Pattikonda said.

Read Also: Coronavirus: Can It Be Transmitted via Air-Conditioning Outlets and Ducts?

The site can be used anywhere, though it is built out of Texas, as long as you inform it of your location. Reddit and other social media gave thousands of positive comments regarding the site, saying that the site helped them find scarce goods.

Pattinkonda wanted to point out that the website is not perfect but it's definitely helpful. Other stores updated their online inventory automatically, while other stores do it in the mornings and evenings when employees do a physical inventory of the shelves.

He also said that they are just aggregating this information from store websites.

Nielsen's information showed that the sale of many household staples and cleaning supplies have taken off contrasted with this time a year ago. During the first week of March, for instance, Americans bought 470% more hand sanitizer compared with the same week a year ago. Other high-demand things include dry beans, powdered milk items and rubbing alcohol.

Right now, with UT shut down for the semester, Pattikonda and Bhatta have both returned to their parents' homes near Dallas and will resume classes online Monday. They said they hope they can keep the website up and running once their coursework resumes, but until then, want to encourage people to stay calm and not buy more than necessary.

He said, "You should really only buy what you need, especially because these elderly people and other disadvantaged people will have trouble finding things."

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Following President Nana Akufo-Addos announcement and subsequent inauguration of the Board of Trustees of the COVID-19 National Trust Fund, some individuals and institutions have been contributing.

Our manifesto: This is what YEN.com.gh believes in

President Nana Addo after declaring a partial lockdown in Accra, Tema, Kasoa and Greater Kumasi also named former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, as the chairperson for the Board of Trustees which will mange the COVID-19 Fund.

READ ALSO: Updates on COVID-19 as the news portals reported on Wednesday, April 1

The other members of the Board are Archbishop Justice Ofei Akrofi, Mr. Jude Kofi Bucknor, Gifty Afenyi-Dadzie, Mrs. Elsie Addo-Awadzie, Dr. Ernest Ofori-Sarpong, and Dr. Tanko. Mr. Collins Asare will act as Secretary to the Board.

The President noted that since the outbreak of the virus in Ghana, organisations, and individuals have made donations, with others wanting to find out how they can also contribute to the cause.

Akufo-Addo donated his three months salary as seed money to the Fund. Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia also donated his three months salary to the cause.

Also, all Ministers of State, the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, the deputy Chiefs of Staff, Secretary to the President, Secretary to the Cabinet, Presidential Staffers and Presidential Aides at the Presidency have decided to donate fifty percent (50%) of their salaries, for the next three months, i.e. April, May, and June, to the COVID-19 National Trust Fund.

All Deputy Ministers have also agreed to donate fifty percent (50%) of their salaries for the next two months, i.e. April and May, into the Fund.

READ ALSO: Coronavirus: Cuba to assist Ghana with doctors in fight against COVID-19

YEN.com.gh has compiled a list of companies and individuals who have contributed to the COVID-19 Fund so far.

1. Sunon Asogli Power Limited

The Chinese-Ghanaian company donated $100,000 to the fight against COVID-19.

Handing over the money to the government on behalf of the company in Accra, Mr. Shi Ting Wan, the Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, commended the government for its efforts to contain and end the epidemic.

2. International Central Gospel Church (ICGC)

The Charismatic Christian church headed by Pastor Mensa Otabil made a contribution of one hundred thousand Ghana Cedis (GHc100,000.00) to the COVID-19 National Trust Fund.

Three members of the Presbytery of the Church, Prophet Christopher Yaw Annor, Rev. Anthony Cudjoe and Rev. Morris Appiah, presented the cheque to the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, Madam Akosua Frema Osei Opare on Thursday, April 02, 2020.

3. Africa World Airlines Ltd (AWA)

Africa World Airlines Ltd (AWA), has also donated $100,000 towards the fight.

4. COCOBOD CEO and his deputies

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Mr. Joseph Boahen Aidoo, and his three deputies have donated 50 percent of their salaries for the next three months to support the fight against the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

READ ALSO: Vice President Bawumia donates GHC500 each to Ejisu Kayaye

5. ABSA Bank Ghana

ABSA Bank donated GH1 million at a media briefing by the COVID-19 Response Team.

6. Hollard Insurance

Hollard, which donated GH100,000, made its presentation to the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President at Jubilee House.

7. GCB Bank

Ghanas largest bank, GCB Bank Ltd has provided GHS100,000.00 support to the Government of Ghana in the fight against the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the country.

8. Interplast

Interplast, West Africas leading producer of plastic pipe systems has donated 1,200,000 to the COVID-19 National Trust Fund to support efforts of the state aimed at combating the spread of the novel Coronavirus, COVID-19, in Ghana.

READ ALSO: COVID-19: Report shows over 200 million people use Zoom daily following global lockdowns

9. Justmoh Construction Limited

The wholly Ghanaian-owned construction company, through its Chief Executive Officer, Justice Amoh, presented a cheque of 500,000 as their contribution to the COVID-19 Trust Fund.

10. Ghana Baptist Convention

The Ghana Baptist Convention (GBC) has made a donation of GHC 100,000 to the government in support of her efforts to fight the CORONA VIRUS (COVID-19) Pandemic.

The donation which was from a member-church of the GBC, the Triumphant Baptist Church (TBC), of Kwadaso, Kumasi, in the Ashanti Region was to beef up the governments mobilization efforts to fighting the pandemic.

Note that, this is not the full list of companies and individuals who have donated to the COVID-19 Fund. The list is obviously not exhausted.

YEN.com.gh earlier reported that the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has launched a COVID-19 support fund, with a startup amount of one million Ghana cedis.

The seed funding for the ''Stay Home, Stay Alive'' programme will be used to purchase food supplies and sanitary items for underserved communities in the traditional area.

Did you pray for Ghana?| #Yencomgh

READ ALSO: CODIV-19: Report suggests it may take 3 years for African economies to fully recover

Use the comments section below to share your views on this story. Do you have a story to share or you have information for us? Get featured on YEN.com.gh. Message us on Facebook or Instagram

Source: YEN.com.gh
Higher oil prices lifted UK's commodity-heavy FTSE 100 on Thursday, although the mood was fragile as Britain saw a record surge in deaths from the coronavirus pandemic that threatens to plunge the world economy into a deep recession.

BP and Royal Dutch Shell gained more than 4%, as oil prices surged after U.S. President Donald Trump said he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to reach a deal soon to end their oil price war.

That helped the FTSE 100 gain 0.5% by 0809 GMT, but midcap shares dropped 0.1%

Shares of Standard Life Aberdeen, Mondi and Smith & Nephew fell as they traded ex-dividend, while Carnival Corp dropped 7.2% to the bottom of the FTSE 100.

After Wednesday's data showed factory activity contracted sharply in most parts of the world in March, investors are waiting for U.S. weekly jobless claims to see how bad the world's largest economy has been hit by the outbreak.

IAG-owned British Airways rose 1.7% after a source told Reuters they are in talks with its union about a plan to suspend around 32,000 staff in response to the pandemic. (Reuters)

Source: www.businessworld.ie
MILWAUKEE, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Taking the next steps in the company's long-term succession planning process, the board of directors of WEC Energy Group (NYSE: WEC) today announced the following appointments.

Effective June 1 :

Scott Lauber , currently senior executive vice president and chief financial officer, will be promoted to the position of chief operating officer. He will report to Kevin Fletcher , president and chief executive officer. Lauber will continue to serve as a member of the Office of the Chair.



In his new role, Lauber will have senior oversight responsibility for power generation, WEC infrastructure and fuels, information technology, supply chain, supplier diversity, and major projects. He also will be named president of Michigan Gas Utilities and Minnesota Energy Resources.





, currently senior executive vice president and chief financial officer, will be promoted to the position of chief operating officer. He will report to , president and chief executive officer. Lauber will continue to serve as a member of the Office of the Chair. In his new role, Lauber will have senior oversight responsibility for power generation, WEC infrastructure and fuels, information technology, supply chain, supplier diversity, and major projects. He also will be named president of Michigan Gas Utilities and Minnesota Energy Resources. Xia Liu has been appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer of WEC Energy Group. Liu will be joining the company from CenterPoint Energy where she has performed in that same capacity.



Liu began her industry career at Southern Company as a financial analyst in 1998. In recent years, she served as chief financial officer of two Southern Company subsidiaries, Gulf Power and Georgia Power, and senior vice president, finance and treasurer for Southern Company.



Liu also will serve as a member of the Office of the Chair.





has been appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer of WEC Energy Group. Liu will be joining the company from CenterPoint Energy where she has performed in that same capacity. Liu began her industry career at Southern Company as a financial analyst in 1998. In recent years, she served as chief financial officer of two Southern Company subsidiaries, Gulf Power and Georgia Power, and senior vice president, finance and treasurer for Southern Company. Liu also will serve as a member of the Office of the Chair. Rick Kuester will be retiring from his senior officer position at a date to be determined later this year. After his retirement, Kuester will continue in a consulting role, advising on the company's capital investment plan and enterprise risk mitigation.

"As we focus today on health, safety, and providing essential service to our customers through this pandemic, we also continue to plan for the next chapter of the company's growth and development," said Gale Klappa, executive chairman. "The appointments we're announcing today will bring additional depth and experience to an already strong team  a team that has delivered industry leading results over many years. Our future is bright."

WEC Energy Group (NYSE: WEC), based in Milwaukee, is one of the nation's premier energy companies, serving 4.5 million customers in Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota.

The company's principal utilities are We Energies, Wisconsin Public Service, Peoples Gas, North Shore Gas, Michigan Gas Utilities, Minnesota Energy Resources and Upper Michigan Energy Resources. The company's other major subsidiary, We Power, designs, builds and owns electric generating plants.

WEC Energy Group (wecenergygroup.com) is a Fortune 500 company and a component of the S&P 500. The company has approximately 45,000 stockholders of record, 7,500 employees and $35 billion of assets.

SOURCE WEC Energy Group

Related Links

http://www.wecenergygroup.com


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The novel coronavirus has been hitting the city of New Orleans much harder than the majority of the US.

As of Wednesday, the death rate per capita is almost three times that of New York City, the current epicenter of the virus in America.

Doctors, public health officials and data suggest the Big Easy's high levels of obesity and related ailments may be part of the problem.

Residents of New Orleans residents suffer from obesity, diabetes and hypertension at rates higher than the national average.

These are conditions that experts say can make patients more vulnerable to COVID-19, the highly contagious respiratory disease caused by the coronavirus.

Orleans Parish, which encompasses New Orleans, has a rate of 29.5 coronavirus deaths per 100,000 people. Pictured: Elena Likaj, prevention department manager at Odyssey House Louisiana began testing bikers for coronavirus at a drive-thru testing station in New Orleans on March 27

Doctors say obesity and related ailments, such as diabetes and hypertension, may be part of the problem. Pictured: State Rep R Dewith Carrier (R- District 32) has his temperature taken as he arrives at the State Capitol in Baton Rouge on March 31

That's three times more than the rate for New York City, which is about 10.8 deaths per 100,000. Pictured: Medical workers bring in a patient at a special coronavirus intake area at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York on April 2

'We're just sicker,' said Rebekah Gee, who until January was the health secretary for Louisiana and now heads Louisiana State University's healthcare services division.

'We already had tremendous healthcare disparities before this pandemic - one can only imagine they are being amplified now.'

Along with New York and Seattle, New Orleans has emerged as one of the early US hot spots for the coronavirus, making it a national test case for how to control and treat the disease it causes.

Chief among the concerns raised by doctors working in the Louisiana city is the death rate, which is close to three times that of New York and over four times that of Seattle, based on publicly reported data.

Orleans Parish, which encompasses New Orleans, reported 115 deaths as of Wednesday, giving it 29.5 coronavirus deaths per 100,000 people.

The rate for New York City was at 10.8 death per 100,000 on Wednesday.

Some 97 percent of those killed by COVID-19 in Louisiana had a pre-existing condition, according to the state health department.

Diabetes was seen in 40 percent of the deaths, obesity in 25 percent, chronic kidney disease in 23 percent and cardiac problems in 21 percent.

New Orleans could be a harbinger for the potential toll the pandemic could take in other parts of the South and Midwest that also have high rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension.

About one in 10 coronavirus deaths has occurred in either Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia, according to data from the COVID-19 Tracking Project.

Other factors could be contributing to New Orleans' high death rate from COVID-19, ranging from access to healthcare and hospital quality, to the prevalence of other conditions, including lung disease, health officials say.

But they also note that it is clear that obesity-related conditions are playing a role in the deaths. That could be a warning sign for the United States at large, where chronic obesity is more common than in other developed countries, they said.

Hospitals are reporting cases across the generations - mothers and daughters, fathers and sons - being intubated and cared for in the same intensive care units, said Tracey Moffatt, the chief nursing officer at Ochsner Health, the largest healthcare provider in Louisiana.

The prevalence of obesity, diabetes, hypertension and heart disease in New Orleans and Louisiana plays into that, she said.

Those family members often suffered from the same medical conditions before becoming sick, leaving them similarly vulnerable to the coronavirus despite their age gaps.

'We had a case where a mom was already in the ICU and the daughter, who was obese, came in,' she said. 'The daughter asked staff to wheel her by her mom's room so she could say goodbye before she herself was intubated. We knew the mother was going to pass away.'

Both patients suffered from obesity.

DOCTORS SAY LOUISIANA IS MORE VULNERABLE THAN OTHER COMMUNITIES

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released for the first time this week a report showing that 78 percent of COVID-19 patients in ICUs in the US had an underlying health condition, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and chronic lung disease.

What's more, six percent patients with pre-existing conditions died.

Doctors in Louisiana said it was consistent with what they are seeing, and it is in line with what other countries like Italy and China have faced.

Those percentages, are likely similar in cities across the US, said Dr Joseph Kanter, an emergency department doctor and the top public health official in New Orleans, are likely similar in cities across the United States.

'What we worry about here is that we have more people in our communities with those conditions,' he said. 'We're more vulnerable than other communities, and the number of deaths we've seen illustrates that.'

The New Orleans metropolitan statistical area ranks among the worst in the US for the percentage of residents with diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity, a Reuters analysis of CDC data shows.

An estimated 39 percent have high blood pressure, 36 percent are obese and about 15 percent have diabetes. Nationally, the median is 32 percent with high blood pressure, 31 percent with obesity and 11 percent with diabetes.

'The burden of disease in Louisiana and the Deep South is higher than in the rest of the country,' said Gee.

'Invariably that means that the South is going to be hard hit by this.'

LOUISIANA RECORDS BIGGEST ONE DAY SPIKE ON APRIL 1

On Wednesday, Louisiana recorded the biggest one-day coronavirus spike with infections spiking by 1,200 and deaths increasing by 88.

The state's Republican governor John Bel Edwards described the statistic as 'sobering'.

'There's no way to see that number and not be startled,' Edwards said, adding that the jump could be due to a bottleneck of tests. 'I pray that's the case. There's no reason yet to believe that we're flattening the curve.'

He said the dramatic rise in cases and deaths reaffirmed his decision to extend the Louisiana's stay-at-home order to April 30.

'I implore everyone to embrace these mitigation measures. Stay at home and save lives. Be patient,' he said.

Edwards has said the state has only a tiny fraction of the 13,000 ventilators it will need, and that it has yet to receive federal approval to tap a national stockpile.

In New Orleans, authorities are setting up a field hospital to handle the expected overflow of patients at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center - the same site where thousands of Hurricane Katrina refugees suffered in 2005.

Gov Edwards has predicted that hospitals in the New Orleans were likely to run out of ventilators by April 4 and of hospital bed space by April 10.

He said Louisiana's soaring infection rates mean some hospitals will have to start turning away patients in the next week unless statewide efforts to curtail social contact start to show an impact.

n April 1, Louisiana recorded its biggest one day jump in cases and deaths. Republican Governor John Bel Edwards described the statistic as 'sobering'. Pictured: Edwards at a press conference on March 30

Hundreds of churchgoers continued to ignore their governor's pleas by attending services despite the state-wide social distancing guidelines and bans on large gatherings. Pictured: Congregants arrive for evening service at the Life Tabernacle Church in Central Louisiana, March 31

NEW ORLEANS JAZZ GREAT ELLIS MARSALIS JR DIES OF CORONAVIRUS COMPLICATIONS

Ellis Marsalis Jr, the jazz pianist, teacher and patriarch of a New Orleans musical clan, died at age 85 late Wednesday from pneumonia brought on by the novel coronavirus.

'Pneumonia was the actual thing that caused his demise. But it was pneumonia brought on by COVID-19,' Ellis Marsalis III said in an Associated Press phone interview.

He said he drove Sunday from Baltimore to be with his father, who was hospitalized Saturday in Louisiana, which has been hit hard by the outbreak. Others in the family spent time with him, too.

'My dad was a giant of a musician and teacher, but an even greater father. He poured everything he had into making us the best of what we could be,' one of his sons, Branford, said.

llis Marsalis Jr, a famous jazz pianist from New Orleans, died at age 85 on Wednesday from coronavirus complications. Pictured: Marsalis Jr performs at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, January 2019

His son, Wynton, said Marsalis developed pneumonia, which led to his passing. Pictured: Marsalis Jr (left) and his son, fellow musician Wynton Marsalis, in New York City, June 1990

Because Marsalis opted to stay in New Orleans for most of his career, his reputation was limited until his sons became famous. Four of the jazz patriarch's six sons are musicians:

One of them, Wynton, has won nine Grammies and been nominated 33 times - and brought him the spotlight, along with new recording contracts and headliner performances on television and tour.

He is America's most prominent jazz spokesman as artistic director of jazz at New York's Lincoln Center.

Another son, Branford, a saxophonist, has won three Grammies, led The Tonight Show band and toured with Sting.
Ahmed Omer Saeed Sheikh, the terrorist convicted of the 2002 kidnapping and murder of journalist Daniel Pearl, had his death sentence commuted to a prison term of seven years by a Pakistani court on Thursday.

The Sindh high court delivered its ruling in response to appeals by Sheikh and three other men convicted in connection with the killing of the Wall Street Journal reporter in Karachi. The high court overturned the verdict of an anti-terrorism court.

Reacting to the ruling, US House foreign affairs committee tweeted, Deeply concerned by Pakistan courts overturning of convictions...Its critical Pakistan demonstrate a real commitment to addressing its longstanding terrorism problem by holding those involved accountable.

Sheikh, 46, a British citizen of Pakistani origin, was freed by India with Jaish-e-Mohammed founder Masood Azhar and terrorist Mushtaq Ahmad Zargar in exchange for the passengers of Indian Airlines flight IC-814, which was hijacked by a group of Pakistani terrorists from Kathmandu to Kandahar in December 1999.

The murder conviction of Sheikh was overturned by the high court, which found him guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping, for which he was given the seven-year prison term.

The court also acquitted and freed the three other men  Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil, who were earlier sentenced to life imprisonment.

The court has commuted Omars death sentence to a seven-year sentence, defence lawyer Khawaja Naveed told Reuters. The murder charges were not proven, so he has given seven years for the kidnapping.

Naveed added, Omar has already served 18 years...He will be out in a few days. It was not immediately clear whether the Pakistan government will appeal against the high courts ruling.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha announced its verdict on the appeals filed by the four men 18 years ago. The high court also dismissed the prosecutions appeal that the life sentence given to the three other men should be enhanced to capital punishment.

Pearl, an American national and the South Asia bureau chief of the Wall Street Journal, was kidnapped in Karachi on January 23, 2002 and later beheaded. The four men were convicted by the anti-terrorism court on July 15, 2002. They filed appeals in the high court four days later, and the defence lawyers had contended the prosecution had failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the men participated in or abetted the crime.

Sheikh is being held in a prison in Hyderabad city of Pakistans Sindh province. A former student of the London School of Economics, Sheikh was accused by officials of India and several Western countries of having long-standing ties with the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency. Several media reports from 2002 said Sheikh had given himself up after Pearls murder to his ISI contact, Ijaz Shah, who is Pakistans current interior minister. Those reports also said Sheikh was held by the ISI for a week before he was handed over to police.

Pearl disappeared in Karachi on January 23, 2002, while researching links between Pakistani militants and Richard Reid, who was arrested the previous month on a flight from Paris to Miami with explosives in his shoes. Pakistani prosecutors said Saeed lured Pearl into a trap by promising to arrange an interview with an Islamic cleric, who police believe was not involved in the conspiracy. A video emerged of Pearl being beheaded. Khaled Sheikh Mohammed, one of the key plotters of the 9/11 attacks, confessed in 2007 to beheading Pearl, according to a statement issued by the Pentagon.

Sheikh was also a member of the Harkat-ul-Ansar and was involved in the 1994 kidnapping of four foreign tourists  three from the UK and one from the US  in New Delhi. The tourists were subsequently freed and Sheikh was arrested by police. He was in prison in connection with the kidnappings when he was freed along with Masood Azhar.

Perhaps the most bizarre incident involving Sheikh was the phone call he reportedly made from prison to then Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari at the time of the 2008 Mumbai attacks. Sheikh pretended to be then Indian external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee and apparently threatened Pakistan with military action.

The situation was defused after then US secretary of state Condoleeza Rice intervened.

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The coverage on this live blog has ended  but for up-to-the-minute coverage on the coronavirus, visit the live blog from CNBC's U.S. team. Global cases: More than 951,901.

Global deaths: At least 48,284.

Top 5 countries: United States (216,722), Italy (110,574), Spain (110,238), China (82,431), and Germany (77,981) The data above was compiled by Johns Hopkins University as of 7:45 p.m. Beijing time. All times below are in Beijing time.

7:35 pm: One county in China locks down after three new asymptomatic virus cases

In a sign of how fragile China's recovery from the coronavirus' spread is, one region has ordered a lockdown after the emergence of new cases. Jia county in Henan province  just north of the Chinese epicenter of the virus, Hubei province  has been locked down after local authorities confirmed three doctors, who showed no symptoms, had tested positive for the disease on Tuesday, according to state-owned online news outlet The Paper. All public transport has been halted, and residential compounds must launch strict quarantine monitoring, according to an online statement from the Jia county government. China's National Health Commission announced Thursday that all levels of authorities must report asymptomatic cases within two hours and complete an epidemiological investigation within 24 hours, according to state news agency Xinhua. The report added that those who test positive for the virus must remain in quarantine until they test negative twice.  Lilian Wu

7:25 pm: Switzerland coronavirus cases top 18,000

Switzerland's public health agency reported the total number of coronavirus infections nationwide had climbed to 18,267 on Thursday, up from 17,139. To date, the small European country, which has recorded the ninth-highest number of infections worldwide, has confirmed 505 deaths as a result of COVID-19, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.  Sam Meredith

6:55 pm: European Commission chief says next EU budget must resemble 'Marshall Plan' for the region

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said the next European Union budget should take the form of a 'Marshall Plan,' Reuters reported Thursday. Speaking at a news conference, she said the bloc must find "quick answers" in order to fast-track the region's economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis. The Marshall Plan was a U.S. initiative designed to help resuscitate the European economy after World War II.  Sam Meredith

6 pm: Spain's coronavirus death toll crosses 10,000

Spain's health ministry reported Thursday that a record 950 people had died overnight as a result of the coronavirus, bringing the country's death toll to 10,003. It becomes only the second country worldwide to surpass 10,000 coronavirus deaths. To date, Italy has reported that 13,155 people have lost their lives to COVID-19.  Sam Meredith

A man wears a protective mask as he walks along a street in Madrid Center on March 15, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. The cases in Madrid are 2,807 people infected of Coronavirus and 133 deaths. Pablo Blazquez Dominguez | Getty Images

5:45 pm: Spain reports nearly 900,000 people have lost their jobs since coronavirus lockdown

Almost 900,000 Spanish workers have lost their jobs since the country went into lockdown in response to the coronavirus pandemic, social security data published Thursday showed. The euro zone's fourth-largest economy reported that 898,822 people had lost their jobs since March 12, when the lockdown measures were first introduced. More than half of those to have lost work were temporary employees. To date, Spain has reported the third-highest number of cases of any country worldwide, with more than 104,000 infections.  Sam Meredith

4:50 pm: Israel's Netanyahu in self-isolation after health minister tests positive for virus

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to self-quarantine for a second time after the government confirmed Thursday that Health Minister Yaakov Litzman had tested positive for the coronavirus. Several other senior government officials were also thought to be self-isolating after coming into contact with Litzman, Israeli media reported. To date, more than 6,200 people have contracted the COVID-19 infection in Israel, with 30 deaths nationwide.  Sam Meredith

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech during the Fifth World Holocaust Forum in Jerusalem on January 23, 2020. Abir Sultan | AFP | Getty Images

3:50 pm: Russia reports record daily spike of new infections, coronavirus cases jump to over 3,500

Russia's crisis response center reported a record daily increase of 771 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, taking the country's total number of infections to more than 3,500. The center added that 235 people had recovered from COVID-19 infections to date, while 30 people had died nationwide.  Sam Meredith

3:13 pm: China reports 35 new cases, 6 deaths

China's National Health Commission (NHC) said there were 35 new cases as of April 1, all of which were "imported" from other countries. The mainland had six more deaths, all of them from Hubei, the epicenter of the outbreak, said the commission. That brings China's total to 81,589 confirmed cases and 3,318 deaths, the NHC said. Another 55 asymptomatic cases were identified, of which 17 were attributed to travelers from overseas, the NHC said. A total of 1,075 asymptomatic cases are still under medical observation, according to the commission. China started reporting data on asymptomatic cases on Wednesday.  Yen Nee Lee

2:41 pm: European Union will allocate up to $109.6 billion to hardest-hit countries

European Commission's President Ursula von der Leyen said the European Union will allocate up to 100 billion euros ($109.6 billion) to countries hit hardest by the pandemic, starting with Italy, reported Reuters. She also called for more solidarity among EU members to fight the crisis, the report said. She added that many countries had focused on their own problems in the early days of the crisis, which "was harmful and could have been avoided," according to the report.  Yen Nee Lee

2:35 pm: Thailand reports 104 new cases, three additional deaths

Thailand reported 104 new cases, taking the country's total to 1,875 since the outbreak, reported Reuters, citing the government's Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration. The Southeast Asian country also reported three more deaths, bringing the toll to 15 so far, the report said.  Yen Nee Lee

2:03 pm: China's domestic travel industry poised to recover within months, says Trip.com

China's domestic travel industry is poised to resume normal activity before the summer holiday season, according to the CEO of the country's largest travel site Trip.com. Jane Sun told CNBC she was hopeful her company could forge the path to recovery for one of the industries hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. "We are confident, with the government's strong control measures, we'll be able to lead the recovery within China," Sun told "Street Signs" on Wednesday.  Karen Gilchrist

1:43 pm: US deaths cross 5,000

Total deaths in the U.S. related to the coronavirus reached 5,138, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. New York City recorded the highest number of fatalities at 1,374, the data showed. The U.S. has the most number of reported cases globally.  Yen Nee Lee

1:30 pm: Mexico's government forecasts economy could contract as much as 3.9% in 2020

The Mexican government said the economy could contract by as much as 3.9% this year due to the pandemic, Reuters reported, citing the country's finance ministry. The upper limit of the official forecast was 0.1%, said the report. The Mexican economy is expected to rebound in 2021 by 1.5% to 2.5%, reported Reuters. Those forecasts "incorporated the effects of a drastic shock on the economic scenario of Mexico and the rest of the world, derived from the pandemic," the finance ministry reportedly said.  Yen Nee Lee

1:14 pm: For some Chinese businesses, there's no going back to life before virus outbreak

As the second quarter begins in China, it's an altered landscape in the coronavirus-stricken economy with businesses that remain shut  some for good. The official resumption of work rate has crept steadily higher since early February, when more than half the country extended a Lunar New Year holiday by at least a week in an effort to limit the spread of the disease known officially as COVID-19. As of March 29, small and medium-sized enterprises nationwide had resumed work at a rate of 76.8%, up from around 60% about two weeks earlier, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's monitoring of about 2.2 million smaller businesses' use of cloud computing platforms. But it's unclear how quickly or whether that figure can reach 100%.  Evelyn Cheng

12:46 pm: Indian automaker Maruti Suzuki made 'no sales' since lockdown

If the coronavirus pandemic did not occur, demand for automobiles in India would have steadily grown over the course of the year, according to a top industry leader in the country. The initial number of cases in India appeared to show that the situation was contained, but as the number of infections grew, it prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to announce a 21-day national lockdown that began last Wednesday. "The lockdown has meant that all the automakers, including Maruti, have had to close the factories and stop production completely. We've shut down our service stations, our sales outlets, and the dealerships," R.C. Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki, told CNBC's "Street Signs."  Saheli Roy Choudhury

12:34 pm: Germany reports 6,156 new cases and 140 more deaths

Germany, Europe's largest economy, reported 6,156 new cases of the coronavirus and 140 additional deaths, latest data by the Robert Koch Institute showed. The institute is a federal government agency responsible for disease monitoring and prevention. That brought the total number of cases in Germany to 73,522, with 872 fatalities, said the institute.  Yen Nee Lee

12:15 pm: Philippine President Duterte says lockdown violators could be shot dead

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte warned in a televised address that violators of the country's lockdown measures could be shot dead, Reuters reported. "My orders to the police and military ... if there is trouble and there's an occasion that they fight back and your lives are in danger, shoot them dead," Duterte reportedly said. "Is that understood? Dead. Instead of causing trouble, I will bury you," he added. The Philippines has reported 2,311 confirmed coronavirus cases as of Wednesday, said its Department of Health.  Yen Nee Lee

11:47 am: Israel's health minister diagnosed with COVID-19

Israeli health minister, Yaakov Litzman, and his wife were diagnosed with the coronavirus, reported Reuters. The couple are now in isolation, the report said. Litzman is an ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and has regularly appeared alongside the premier to give updates on the virus spread, according to the report. But in recent weeks, the health minister reportedly scaled back his public appearances. Netanyahu tested negative for the virus earlier this week after an aide was diagnosed with COVID-19. Israel has reported 6,092 cases and 26 deaths, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.  Yen Nee Lee

11:00 am: South Korea reports 89 new cases, four additional deaths

There were 89 new cases of infection in South Korea and four more people died, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. South Korea's total cases are just shy of hitting 10,000; the current figure stands at 9,976 and 169 people have died. Mass testing and rigorous efforts to isolate infected patients have relatively slowed down the spread of the virus within the country.  Saheli Roy Choudhury

10:55 am: Australia says it will provide free child care for some families during coronavirus pandemic

Australia will provide free child care for around one million families during the coronavirus pandemic under a plan from Prime Minister Scott Morrison's government. As part of the plan, the government will pay 50% of the sector's fee revenue up to the existing hourly rate cap before parents had started withdrawing their children in large numbers. The caveat is that the services need to stay open and not charge families for care. The measure will apply from April 6 based on the number of children who were in care during the fortnight leading into March 2, whether or not they are attending services. "These services are vital for so many parents so they can provide for their family, and children need as much familiarity and continuity as we can help provide at this unsettling time. Priority will be given to working parents, vulnerable and disadvantaged children that need early education more than ever and parents with pre-existing enrolments," Morrison said.  Saheli Roy Choudhury

10:07 am: Japan may consider support to increase ECMO machine production

Japan's government will consider support to increase production of extracorporeal membranous oxygenation, or ECMO, machines that can replace a person's breathing, Reuters reported, citing Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura. It would be part of an economic package to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, Reuters said. ECMO machines are used in potentially life-saving treatment for coronavirus patients. They can directly pump oxygen into a person and remove carbon dioxide at the same time. Japan has more than 2,000 reported cases of infection, according to JHU data.  Saheli Roy Choudhury

9:30 am: Singapore reports fourth death related to COVID-19

Singapore's health ministry said a 68-year-old Indonesian man died on April 2 at 6:43 a.m. local time due to complications from COVID-19. The patient was a work pass holder in the city-state and had been in Indonesia from Jan. 20 to March 16. He was admitted to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases on March 22 and was diagnosed with COVID-19 on the same day. The ministry said he had a history of diabetes and hypertension. Four people have died to-date from COVID-19-related complications in Singapore. The number of reported cases of infection rose in recent weeks as more residents returned from abroad. (see 7:30 a.m. update)  Saheli Roy Choudhury

8:55 am: Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti encourages residents to wear face coverings in public

Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti said on Wednesday that residents should wear face coverings or homemade masks when out in public. Although the CDC does not currently recommend that healthy people wear masks, an increasing number of officials are recommending them to Americans to slow the spread of COVID-19. Garcetti said he expected the official advice to be updated soon. Earlier on Wednesday, President Trump said that people could wear scarves to cover their mouths. "I think it is time for us to do this," Garcetti said. "I know it will look surreal, we don't have that cultural tradition of wearing masks." Garcetti added that the city has approved 146 businesses which will make 2 million non-medical face masks per week.  Kif Leswing

8:23 am: Apple donates almost 2 million N95 masks to New York

Apple has donated 1.9 million N95 masks to the state of New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said on Wednesday. "We are so grateful to Apple for this much-needed gift of critical PPE supplies," Cuomo tweeted. PPE refers to personal protective equipment that medical workers need in order to tend to sick patients. Tweet: NEW: @Apple has donated 1.9 million masks to the State of New York with more on the way. We are so grateful to Apple for this much-needed gift of critical PPE supplies. Thank you. Thank you. Apple CEO Tim Cook previously said the company had sourced and donated 10 million masks to the medical community in the United States. The masks are in short supply as medical professionals ask for additional equipment to protect themselves while they treat patients who may have COVID-19. On Saturday, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey tweeted out a picture of 63,000 N95 masks donated by Apple.  Kif Leswing

8:20 am: White House advisor Fauci says coronavirus vaccine trial is on target and will be 'ultimate game changer'

The first human trial testing a potential vaccine to prevent COVID-19 is "on track" with public distribution still projected in 12 to 18 months, White House health advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Wednesday. It would be the "ultimate game changer" in the fight against the pandemic, he said. U.S. health officials have been fast-tracking work with biotech company Moderna to develop a vaccine to prevent COVID-19. They began their first human trials on March 16. "It'll take a few months to get the data to where we'll feel confident to go to the phase two, and then a few months from now, we'll be in phase two and I think we're right on target for the year to year-and-a-half," Fauci said at a White House press conference with President Donald Trump's coronavirus task force.  Noah Higgins-Dunn

7:30 am: Singapore has 1,000 reported cases

Based on the latest reported figures from the health ministry, Singapore now has 1,000 recorded instances of COVID-19 infection. The city-state had been praised for its handling of the crisis in January and February by implementing strict measures to quarantine suspected cases and contact tracing for potential exposure to the coronavirus.

Social distancing markers are seen at a cafe outlet as authorities implement a social distancing measures to combat the coronavirus on March 28, 2020 in Singapore. Suhaimi Abdullah | Getty Images

But, the number of cases in Singapore has grown in recent weeks as more residents returned from abroad and tested positive. As of April 1, noon local time, the country reported 74 new cases of COVID-19 infection, of which 20 were "imported," 29 were linked to previous clusters and 25 had no apparent links discovered yet. Three people have died from the disease in Singapore; 245 patients have been discharged and another 291 remain clinically well but isolated as they still test positive for the virus.  Saheli Roy Choudhury

7:24 am: Global cases top 930,000 as death toll nears 47,000

As many as 932,605 cases of coronavirus infection have been recorded around the world and at least 46,809 people have died, according to the latest information compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The United States reported the most number of infections at 213,372, while Italy's death toll remains the highest for a single country at 13,155. At least 193,177 people appeared to have recovered. Italy and Spain each have reported more than 100,000 infection cases as the coronavirus pandemic shows few signs of abating.  Saheli Roy Choudhury All times below are in Eastern time.

7:05 pm: Updated map of US cases, which now total 213,372

7:02 pm: Trump says that the government ordered hospital gowns from Walmart

President Donald Trump said that he spoke to Walmart CEO Doug McMillon and put in a "big big order" for gowns. "Let it be shipped directly to the side of the hospital because we save a lot of time when we do that," Trump said. Doctors, nurses, and healthcare workers around the country have called for more "PPE" or personal protective equipment like gowns and facemasks to protect them from the coronavirus while working at hospitals.  Kif Leswing

6:34 pm: Trump says he doesn't know if China underreported coronavirus numbers: 'I'm not an accountant from China'
Since the coronavirus outbreak has forced New Jersey residents into isolation, calls to New Jerseys child abuse hotline have dropped significantly.

While that may sound like comforting news, officials and experts provide a grim explanation: Its likely because the routine callers  teachers, daycare workers and pediatricians  are no longer seeing children regularly. Prolonged social distancing measures, experts warn, are particularly harmful to abuse victims who rely on external communities for support.

Social connections are one of the main ways that families stay strong and safe, said Nicole Brossoie, a spokesperson for the state Department of Children and Families. One thing all of us can do as families and neighbors, is to regularly check on each other  remotely  especially on parents who we know may be struggling during this time.

As of March 30, the states child abuse hotline  1-877 NJ ABUSE  received 5,177 child protection or child welfare calls. Thats compared to 7,501 in March 2019, a 32% reduction. Overall, the hotline received 12,080 calls last month, compared to 15,528 in March 2019. These figures were announced by DCF Commissioner Christine Norbut Beyer at Gov. Phil Murphys daily coronavirus press briefing Thursday.

March is traditionally one of our highest reporting months, Beyer said. The reduction doesnt necessarily mean that children are experiencing less abuse and neglect, but rather its not being seen or heard. And so no response is being taken. Its not being reported.

Cecilia Zalkind, the executive director of the Advocates for Children of New Jersey, cautioned that its too early to draw any conclusions from the numbers. However, that doesnt mean officials shouldnt be concerned, she said.

You cant assume that everything is fine, Zalkind said. This is a highly stressful time for families and I think people need to be vigilant and aware for the kids.

Zalkind said the drop-off in calls to abuse hotlines is also occurring in other states around the country.

In Pennsylvania, Spotlight PA reported the states 24-hour hotline for reporting child abuse and neglect experienced a sudden drop in calls in the days after schools shut down statewide. The hotline received 3,284 phone calls between March 11 and March 17, compared with 4,121 during the same week in February, the news outlet reported.

In Washington state, an early epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, calls to the child abuse hotline dropped by 42% the week after Gov. Jay Inslee closed all schools, according to a report by Mother Jones.

The dip in call volume, however, is consistent with seasonal fluctuations, experts say.

We see this every June in New Jersey, explained Amanda M. Stylianou, the director of quality improvement at Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care. When schools are out for the summer, reports of child abuse decrease. And this is the same pattern we are seeing now. Except that summer is often a time of less stress and significant community engagement.

Historically, natural disaster events like Hurricanes Sandy and Irene have strained families, leading to upticks in child abuse and domestic violence incidents. With the new coronavirus, the country is in unchartered territory and theres no telling when officials will lift the stay-at-home order.

On Wednesday, Murphy said the effects of the coronavirus could be felt deep into May. He has said schools will remain closed through at least April 17.

In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the New Jersey Department of Children and Families has created a campaign, Social Distancing Shouldnt Mean Social Isolation, to raise awareness and engage the public. The campaign includes a heavy social media push, Brossoie said.

Alex Napoliello may be reached at anapoliello@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @alexnapoNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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The University of Manitoba has created a $500,000-and-counting emergency fund to support students in financial distress due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The University of Manitoba has created a $500,000-and-counting emergency fund to support students in financial distress due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Students who require such backing to continue studies at the Winnipeg-based school because of unforeseen costs associated with the pandemic can apply for a one-time bursary.

Full-time undergraduate students can apply for as much as $800, while graduate students are eligible for up to $1,000. Part-time students in need could receive a total of half the sum their full-time counterparts are entitled to.

"The needs are real and high and, so far, we have had 1,200 applicants since this went live (Tuesday) night," said John Kearsey, vice-president external relations, less than 24 hours after the fund was announced.

Kearsey said Wednesday the university recognizes many students rely on part-time income made in the hospitality sector to pay their bills, and such work has been hit due to forced business closures.

"Wed like to be able to support everyone whos in need at this time, because our commitment through all of this is not only to keep everyone safe but to help our students successfully complete their year  particularly those who are in their graduating years," he said.

The university has both collected all existing emergency bursary funds and new donations from community members  including a $100,000 donation from chancellor Anne Mahon and her husband, as well as other staff members  to create the emergency fund. The school continues to accept donations.

Kearsey said administration is sorting through the applications on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Successful applicants must have paid all owed tuition and outstanding aid, have achieved a minimum passing grade on all courses taken in the previous academic session, and be able to demonstrate their current financial situation is related to COVID-19 disruptions.

Students union president Jakob Sanderson called the fund "phenomenal" news.

The loss of part-time work and the travel costs associated with having to move out of residence or return home earlier than expected are both challenges students currently face as a result of COVID-19, Sanderson said Wednesday.

"There are a lot of students who are going to be affected by this quite negatively, and they want to know their university is taking care of them," he said, adding student politicians have been advocating for some sort of financial support since the pandemic was declared.

Stay informed The latest updates on the novel coronavirus and COVID-19 delivered to your inbox every weeknight. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

After learning about the emergency fund, final-year economics student Ikenna Ndubisi immediately shared the announcement with fellow Nigerian students.

Ndubisi considers himself lucky, since he just landed a full-time job at an insurance company  which has been deemed an "essential service" by the province of Manitoba  so he doesnt expect hell need to access the fund.

"Being an international student and being very active within my community, its something that will be very useful to many students," he said.

The 26-year-old said the only thing that may hinder the help available is the fact students must have already paid off their tuition to be eligible. The price tag on international student tuition is expensive, he said, adding there have been times in the past where hes been behind on paying fees.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @macintoshmaggie
MSNBC host asks Bishop TD Jakes to pray on live TV

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The "TODAY" show's Craig Melvin, who has returned from a voluntary quarantine after being potentially exposed to the new coronavirus, asked Texas megachurch pastor and televangelist, Bishop T.D. Jakes, to pray on "MSNBC Live," saying hes never done this on the air but many are not being able to attend church.

For folks who werent able to get to church yesterday  I've never actually done this on the air. Can you lead us in prayer for 30 seconds? Melvin asked Jakes, senior pastor of The Potter's House megachurch in Dallas, Texas, Monday morning, according to NewsBusters.

Jakes said, Yes, I can.

The megachurch pastor prayed, Our Father and our God, we bow our heads to you in humility, understanding that we are not competent in and of ourselves to handle this kind of global calamity.

He continued, We look to you, Lord, to be the source, the strength, the help, the light that we need, strengthen our first responders, strengthen even our broadcast people, strengthen all of us whose lives have been devastated and disrupted and give us the peace that passes all understanding. In Christs name we pray, amen.

Earlier on the show, Melvin told Bishop Jakes, [i]n times of crisis and in times of uncertainty, a lot of Americans turn to faith or religion for comfort and solace even though [i]ts no longer practical to pray or gather in person as we know, according to NewsBusters.

He also played Jakes remarks from Sundays streamed service. There has been all this discussion about whether we should have church or whether we should be in a building or not, and then talk about what would Jesus do. I dont know because Jesus never saw church. All of this stuff you made dont have nothing to do with the power of God. Its not about a building. Its not about a building. Its never been about a building.

Melvin was in self-isolation for nearly two weeks, as one of the shows staffers had tested positive for the COVID-19 disease.

Speaking to co-hosts Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb during the time of self-quarantine, Melvin said he had no symptoms or signs of the disease. He also said he and his children were fine. Ive been able to spend a lot of time with my kids for the last three days.

Later, responding to a tweet that said he had tested positive, Melvin wrote: Not true. Hes quite healthy and thankful for that. Hes also thinking about and praying for the tens of thousands affected by this virus so far.

In 2018, Melvin wrote on Facebook, I dont talk about my faith often, but the folks at (website) Simple Grace asked. Heres part of what I told them. Feel free to share more about your faith journey.

As of early Wednesday, there were 874,081 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus around the world, with 43,291 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. In the United States, there were 189,633 cases and 4,081 had died.
Ethnic Chin women smoke while rice dries under the sun in a village in western Myanmar's Chin state, March 3, 2020.

Myanmar has stopped issuing rice export licenses following the declaration of the coronavirus as a pandemic, but will honor existing licenses, the head of an industry group said Wednesday, as local merchants warned that hoarding could threaten domestic supply.

Soe Tun, executive member of the Myanmar Rice Federation, told RFAs Myanmar Service that the government placed a moratorium on rice export licenses after the World Health Organization (WHO) labeled the virus a global threat in mid-March, suggesting the move had been made to protect domestic rice supplies.

The issuing of [export] licenses is currently stoppedits been about two weeks now that no licenses have been issued, he said, adding that existing licenses will be permitted to export the grain for the remainder of their six-month validity.

Usually, we produce 13.5 million tons per year. We consumed more than 10 million tons and there is an estimated 3 million tons left. So, we will export 2.5 to 3 million tons and it is very unlikely we will face a shortage for domestic consumption, as long as we control exports.

Myanmar exports rice to more than 50 countries, with some 40 percent of exports going to China.

The country set a rice export target of 2.2 million tons for the current fiscal year and some 1.4 million tons have been exported over the last five months, according to Soe Tun.

Rice trader Nay Lin Zin told RFA that targets for exports are generally sufficient to ensure there is enough rice to meet domestic demand, but said the government had to step in to protect against panic buying. Myanmar confirmed its 16th patient testing positive for COVID-19the disease caused by the coronavirusin about a week on Wednesday, a day after announcing the countrys first related death.

Normally we have enough for domestic consumption, but [the government] needs to control excessive exports, he said.

A total export ban could lead to a price hike on commodities while COVID-19 batters the economy but create difficulties for farmers once the price of rice drops, Nay Lin Zin said.

In order to avoid such a situation, and at the same time to maintain domestic demand, the export limit has been set to 100,000 tons per month.

The government, meanwhile, is maintaining around 15,000 tons of rice reserves and plans to procure an additional 100,000 tons, he said.

There will be no shortage of rice unless people begin panic buying, he warned.

Panic buying could trigger a problem and things could change for the worse. So, people need to refrain from panic buying and should buy only according to their needs. They can buy anytime they want.



The Myanmar Rice Federation and other industry groups have also appealed to merchants to maintain rice prices, while the commerce ministry has warned that it will take action against anyone involved in price gouging.

Business as usual in Laos

In neighboring Laos where, as of Wednesday, authorities had reported 10 confirmed coronavirus cases, an official from the countrys Industry and Trade Ministry told RFA that the outbreak would not impact exports because of sufficient reserves already in place to meet domestic demand.

Importers are importing rice as usual, and exporters are also carrying out business as usual, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

An official from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, who also declined to be named, echoed the Industry and Trade Ministry officials comments, adding that Laos has rice enough for our needs.

There is no rice shortage at the markets throughout the country, he said.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade has a large rice reserve, the official added, saying that the government will sell rice from the reserves in the event of an inadequate domestic supply.

But a rice trader in the capital Vientiane told RFA Wednesday that the domestic rice market is already starting to suffer an impact from the outbreak, noting that prices on imported rice from Thailand and Vietnam have recently skyrocketed.

With borders closed to prevent the spread of the virus, the trader said, people are also regularly purchasing two or three bags at a time, although rice remains available at local markets.

The border with China is closed and Chinese rice is no longer coming in, he said. Rice is selling quickly, because people are buying and stocking rice.

Rice production in Laos was severely affected by floods last year, which destroyed a total of around 100,000 hectares (250,000 acres) of rice fields in all six southern provinces.

The countrys farmers produced only 3 million tons, down from a target of more than 4.1 million tons, prompting several provincial governments to put portions of their rice reserves on the market.

Operating out of caution

While officials in Laos appeared confident that the country will not face a rice shortage amid the outbreak, Myanmars decision to limit exports follows a temporary suspension of rice exports last week by Vietnams government until May to ensure that domestic prices remained stable as a second wave of the coronavirus hit the country.

On Tuesday, Vietnams Ministry of Industry and Trade proposed allowing the resumption of exports of rice, but under strict monthly limits, in an aim to keep as much money as possible flowing into the country during the coronavirus crisis while simultaneously ensuring food security.

According to the reports by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, about 6.5 million tons of rice has been tabbed for export this year, but the trade ministry suggested that Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc approve about 800,000 tons of rice exports in April and May, with the ministry strictly controlling the export volume.

According to Vietnams state media, as of Wednesday there were 218 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the country, with no deaths.

Bloomberg News quoted Bangkok-based David Dawe from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as saying that countries are limiting exports out of an abundance of caution.

They just want to make sure that they have enough supplies for themselves, said Dawes, who is also a writer on rice economics.

Reported and translated by RFAs Myanmar Service and Lao Service. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
Roxy Jacenko showed off her delivery of 22 bottles of laundry detergent on Wednesday - but not everybody was impressed.

The publicist's social media followers slammed her for hoarding while ordinary Australians struggle to find essentials during the coronavirus pandemic.

In footage shared to Instagram, Roxy revealed she had bought almost two dozen bottles of Biozet Attack liquid detergent in five different varieties.

'You should consult a PR professional': Roxy Jacenko (pictured) has been criticised for hoarding 22 bottles of detergent during the coronavirus pandemic

Fans were shocked to see the businesswoman, 39, 'bragging' about her stockpiling efforts.

One person commented: 'Disappointing. Encouraging people to buy products in bulk [when] the government is urging us to be sensible.

'Think of the people who can't afford to buy hundreds of dollars' worth of anything. It's because of people like you, the less fortunate cannot buy a roll of toilet paper. Shame.'

'Selfish': The publicist's social media followers slammed her for stockpiling while ordinary Australians struggle to find essentials during the coronavirus pandemic

Criticism: One of Roxy's followers said she 'should really consult with a PR professional before bragging about [her] bulk buy of laundry liquid' while other Australians are doing it tough

Another said that Roxy 'should really consult with a PR professional before bragging about [her] bulk buy of laundry liquid' while other Australians are doing it tough.

A third follower wrote: 'You are stockpiling. Exactly what the Australian government told us not to do.'

Several people wanted to know how she had managed to bulk order detergent when supplies are running low.

Please help! Several people wanted to know how Roxy had managed to bulk order detergent when supplies are running low

In her defence: Meanwhile, one of Roxy's supporters pointed out that the PR queen 'wasn't stupid' and would likely be donating some of the detergent to those in need

'That's what I use and I can't find it anywhere,' one follower wrote. Another asked: 'Where did you order from? None on our shelves.'

Meanwhile, one of Roxy's supporters pointed out that the PR queen 'wasn't stupid' and would likely be donating some of the detergent to those in need.

In her original video, Roxy said: 'Biozet Attack, Softener, Eliminator and one that no home should be without, Quick Wash. Yep, the simple things right now that bring such joy.

How many? In the footage shared to Instagram, Roxy revealed she had bought almost two dozen bottles of Biozet Attack liquid detergent in five different varieties

Not an advert: The Sweaty Betty PR founder clarified that her video wasn't a sponsored post

'Now, you see, I won't get stuck like the rest of people only concerned about toilet paper!

'And no, it's not sponsored. I am very particular about my laundry liquid.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Roxy Jacenko for comment.

As of Friday afternoon, there are 5,315 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Australia, including 28 deaths.
Steve Durham served in the Colorado General Assembly from 1974 - 1988, with a three year hiatus from 1981 - 1983, when he served as the regional administrator for the EPA. He currently represents Congressional District 5 on the State Board of Education.
Zelensky and Guterres discussed, among other things, further reforms in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he is sure that a new cooperation program with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) will be signed soon.

"We are in constant dialogue with the International Monetary Fund. We are confident that in the coming weeks we will reach a full understanding and sign a memorandum on the expanded program," he told UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during a recent phone talk, according to the presidential press service.

Read alsoUkraine could receive from IMF first loan tranche worth $4 bln right after fulfilling conditions  MP

"Simultaneously, we are negotiating with the World Bank and other partners on financing in these difficult times. We need money to support SMEs and our economy," he said.

Zelensky and Guterres discussed, among other things, further reforms in Ukraine.

UNIAN memo. Ukraine and the IMF agreed on a new three-year US$5.5 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) in December 2019.

On March 26, the IMF announced progress in negotiations with the Ukrainian authorities on the new program and the possibility of increasing its volume, but recalled the need to adopt laws to improve banking regulation and continue land reform.

Danylo Hetmantsev, chairman of the parliamentary committee on finance, tax and customs policy, said that Ukraine could receive about US$4 billion in the first disbursement from the IMF if the preconditions were met.

On March 30, the bill on banking regulation passed its first reading, while the bill on the launch of farmland was adopted in the early hours of March 31.
New Delhi: As India witnesses a sharp rise in coronavirus cases within the past 24 hours with the total number of infections rising to 1834, there are reports of alleged attacks on health department officials and police officers on several occassions in different cities during their coronavirus check up rounds.

Punjab

Police were attacked by people from Nurpur Hakima village in Moga district who insisted to be let out from their village during a nation-wide lockdown. The shutdown has been called to stop the spread of the COVID-19 infection. The attack left a senior police official injured, while a case has been registered against 27 people, five persons including a woman have been arrested.

Uttar Pradesh

A day after an attack on Health Department officials in Nauchandi area of Meerut district, there was another attck on another team on Thursday in Kanker Khera's daempur village. These officials were going from door-to-door to check on the suspected coronavirus patients and collecting data from them. The police reached the incident site and arrested four accused.

Bihar

Some anti-social elements attacked a medical team who had gone to bring a suspected COVID-19 families to quarantine in Hazratganj of Munger-Kasim Bazar police station area of Bihar. A family member had died of coronavirus and the family members was being brought in for quarantine purpose. When the policemen showed up at the spot and after taking strict action the anti-social elements ran away. The people from the society then sent six family members of the deceased with the medical team.

Madhya Pradesh

In Silawatpura of Indore, a team of doctors was abused and pelted with stones even the Municipal Corporation employees who were cleaning the area were beaten up and abused. Additional SP Rupesh Vyas has said that action will be taken against those who were involved in these incidents.

West Bengal

In another incident, during a funeral procession of a coronavirus patient in Kolkata, people gathered in large numbers and did not allow the police to cremate the body. People said that the person who died was infected with coronavirus and burning the body will have an impact on the people living around the area. The crowd became unruly despite repeated requests from the police.
Influencer Arielle Charnas attends the Beach Magazine Celebration of Cover Star Arielle Charnas at the Southampton Social Club on July 24, 2019 in Southampton, New York.

(Photo by Mark Sagliocco/Getty Images for Beach Magazine)

"Something Navy" blogger and fashion influencer Arielle Charnas is receiving backlash online for leaving New York City shortly after testing positive for COVID-19.

Charnas first sparked controversy when she received one of the limited COVID-19 test swabs from a doctor friend.

Since testing positive, Charnas has posted content from her Manhattan apartment and from a rental property in the Hamptons.

Comments on her Instagram criticized her decision to relocate before the 14-day quarantine period ended.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Arielle Charnas, the influencer behind the fashion blog "Something Navy," is sparking more controversy online after leaving New York City for the Hamptons in the wake of her positive COVID-19 diagnosis.

Charnas first received backlash when she shared her health journey with her 1.3 million followers, posting an Instagram story in which received flu and COVID-19 test swabs from a doctor friend  despite telling her followers that she did not qualify for one of the limited tests.

"THE LATEST COOL NEW PERK FOR INFLUENCERS  getting tested quickly for coronavirus, while everyone else waits," New York Times Reporter Kenenth Vogel tweeted in response.

"Still fuming that something navy went and used one of the like 5 tests we have," Twitter user @alainapol22 wrote in a post.

"Influencers are always getting everything first," writer Michael Williams added.

Later that day, Charnas told her followers via an Instagram post that she would no longer be sharing content about her health, and she would continue to post her typical lifestyle content.

A day later, however, Charnas posted a follow-up note in which she revealed that she'd tested positive for COVID-19.

In the post, she addressed her access to the limited COVID-19 tests, writing that she was "lucky," and widespread access to care should be a "#1 priority."

Story continues

Since testing positive for COVID-19, she's continued to update her followers on her activities via Instagram and TikTok  prompting more criticism.

Charnas' Instagram posts, stories, and TikTok videos since getting diagnosed reveal that she spent time with her family in their Manhattan apartment before leaving the city to recover in a Hamptons rental home. Posts on Charnas' Instagram show her taking walks outside with her daughter and posing in front of a Hamptons rental home with the caption "fresh air."

The decision to leave New York before 14 days of quarantine  the recommended period of time for those exposed to the virus  had passed received swift backlash online from commenters calling the decision "selfish" and "disappointing."

A Twitter thread by writer Sophie Ross documents and critiques Charnas' activity since the positive diagnosis.

"[Charnas] literally LEFT her palatial manhattan apartment so she could get Hamptons content," Ross wrote.

"As a nurse, I'm super bummed you couldn't stay quarantined for the whole 14 days past positive testing," one follower wrote in a comment before the comments feature was turned off on the post. "Your privilege does not excuse you from following simple rules to contain yourself. And you influence a lot of young people."

"Do you realize you have a very contagious and, for many, deadly disease? Do you realize that going out and about puts at risk, let's say, the people in your building that need to take the elevator after you?" another added. "Do you realize this is not the best message?"

Charnas did not return Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Insider
The coronavirus has the possibility of becoming a death penalty for the 95,000 people behind bars in Pennsylvania, which includes thousands of young people -- to say nothing of the thousands of correctional officers throughout the state. As the rest of society scrambles to alter life and maintain social distance, the states and counties departments of corrections must manage the safety of a population that can do little of either. This is a crisis in the making that could impact everyone by further taxing not just families and communities, but an already overtaxed health-care system. Keep in mind: The Pennsylvania prison system, according to a recent Spotlight PA report, has a total of four ventilators. And they are all in use.

Last weekend, the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections had its first confirmed case -- an individual incarcerated at SCI Phoenix. Since then, and as of April 2, another incarcerated person and seven staffers have tested positive for COVID-19. Now the entire system is in quarantine. Since confirmed cases are a lagging indicator of transmission, that means that an explosion of cases is likely to happen soon. For example, on March 23, in Chicagos Cook County Jail, two people tested positive. A week later, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the jail rose to 134.

 READ MORE: What its like to be locked in prison during the coronavirus pandemic

Correctional facilities themselves have limited moves; overcrowded, shared facilities cant be altered much -- unless the population is dramatically reduced. Pennsylvanias state and county systems should not wait. It is possible to reduce populations significantly without compromising public safety. The population of Colorados 15 largest jails went down 31% in the effort to combat coronavirus.

About 37,000 people in Pennsylvania are incarcerated in county jails -- including roughly 4,100 in Philadelphia, of whom 20 tested positive for COVID-19 as of April 2. People incarcerated in county jails are awaiting trial or incarcerated for minor offenses and are therefore more short term and transient. According to both the District Attorneys Office and the public defenders association, many of the people in Philadelphias jails can be released without harm to public safety. That should include testing of those exposed or with symptoms.

On the state level, an effort to reduce the size of the prison population has begun, but so far focused on the edges. DOC Secretary John Wetzel says he is looking at potential release of technical parole violators, those approved for parole and waiting for a release date, and nonviolent offenders who have completed their minimum sentence and are waiting for parole hearing -- about 2,000 people. Thats less than 5% of the population, which wont dramatically change the ability to allow for social distancing inside prisons.

There are challenges. For one, not every person has a safe place to go to on short notice. Others have medical conditions that would require further treatment.

These are problems that will take time to solve. That said, given the highly contagious nature of this virus and the unique conditions of prisons, its fair to ask why the prison system didnt have a comprehensive plan in place far earlier than now to address these challenges.

According to reporting by Spotlight PA, a legislative effort in Harrisburg is brewing to create a mechanism for release of inmates by categories of crime. That could be too slow or too narrow to actually contain the problem. In that case, Gov. Tom Wolf should use his reprieve power to suspend sentences and order immediate release of some inmates. In counties, judicial leadership should make courtrooms accessible to allow expediency and prosecutors, judges, and defenders should together determine which individuals can be released -- and release them immediately.

 READ MORE: Despite coronavirus stay-at-home order, Pa. is transferring children across the state

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court also has a role to play. The ACLU-PA filed a petition asking the court to order counties to decrease their jail populations. In another petition, advocates for incarcerated youth asked the court to order the release of nearly 2,000 teenagers held in jails and detention centers. The juvenile justice system is supposed to be built on the aspiration for a better future for the young people who go through it. Potentially fatal illness should have no part in that.

This is not a problem that can be confined behind prison walls, nor is it backdoor criminal justice reform. Its simply pragmatism -- and public health. After all, coronavirus cases from prison will also need the same hospital beds that others do and add further demands on an already choking health-care system.
Every August, the Scottish capital of Edinburgh plays host to some of the funniest and most talented - not to forget strangest - performers from the UK and the wider world.

Not this year. Organisers cancelled the city's collection of late summer festivals on Wednesday as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision marks the first cancellation since the Edinburgh International Festival launched in 1947 in the aftermath of World War II as an attempt to reconcile people and nations through the performing arts.

A bronze theatre mask on Edinburgh's Royal Mile in Scotland. Credit:Jane Barlow/PA via AP

Now numbering five, including the wildly popular Fringe lineup of both obscure and mainstream acts, Edinburgh's annual August festivals draw 4.4 million people to more than 5,000 events involving over 25,000 artists, writers and performers from 70 countries, according to organisers.
Tekashi 6ix9ine will not be serving the rest of his prison sentence behind bars after requesting to be released to home to avoid contracting coronavirus because he is classed as a 'vulnerable' inmate.

Tekashi - real name Daniel Hernandez - is currently serving a 24-month sentence after pleading guilty to nine charges including conspiracy to murder and armed robbery. As he had already served 13 months of his two-year sentence in a jail, he was due to be released from an upstate New York prison in August 2020.

However it now looks likely a judge will accept an appeal to get him out of a penitentiary as COVID-19 confirmed cases surpassed 84,000 in New York and deaths 2,220.

'Its a foregone conclusion, hes getting released,' attorney, Dawn Florio, said Wednesday.

The rapper - real name Daniel Hernandez - was due to be released from an upstate New York prison in August 2020 but is expected to be released four months early on Thursday

Tekashi's attorney wrote a letter to the courts on Sunday night, explaining why the Gummo rapper was at a high risk for contracting coronavirus.

He disclosed that 6ix9ine had been diagnosed with bronchitis and sinusitis late last year and had been hospitalized to treat both ailments.

Additionally, attorney Lance Lazzaro said that Hernandez had been experiencing shortness of breath and was not being allowed to see a doctor by prison officials.

Tekashi is currently serving a 24-month sentence after pleading guilty to nine charges included to conspiracy to murder and armed robbery

Judge Paul Englemeyer said he lacked the legal authority to make such a decision. But the judge suggested Hernandez and his legal team reach out to the Bureau Of Prisons directly.

The judge said if he had known Tekashi - who suffers from asthma - had health issues and to expect a worldwide pandemic, the court would have let him serve his final four months at home.

However in an email the BOP stated they did 'not have any authority or oversight of his case as he is not in a BOP facility'. 'If the Court orders a compassionate release for him, that information will be provided to the US Marshals Service and the GEO facility for processing,' the email read.

'He could do it today, or later, were just waiting on the judges decision,' Florio continued to Rolling Stone Wednesday.

Englemeyer gave prosecutors until 5pm Wednesday to make a case for why the musician should stay in prison. United States Attorney Geoffrey Berman replied: 'The Government does not oppose the defendants motion for compassionate release.'

'Based on what [Engelmayer] wrote this morning, it seems likely hes going to grant it,' Lazzaro added. 'I believe the judge will, at some point, approve my motion for compassionate release. I dont want to put words into the judges mouth.'

Prosecutors have recommended he go free by Thursday due to the coronavirus outbreak that has hit New York State prisons

The rapper is currently incarcerated in New York state, where prisons and jails have become a hotbed for the virus.

Rikers Island has also had its own coronavirus outbreak to deal with.

As of Tuesday, 167 inmates and 137 staff members had tested positive for coronavirus.

Rikers Island's chief physician issued a grim warning Tuesday about the coronavirus pandemic, as he advocated for the release of as many 'vulnerable' inmates from the prison as possible.

Chief Physician Ross MacDonald said the current effects of the virus on jails could bring about 'a crisis of a magnitude no generation living today has ever seen.'

MacDonald was responding to a letter made by district attorneys across the city that was directed toward Mayor de Blasio, asserting he was not considering the public's safety when considering some inmate releases.

Cases of the disease at NYC's Rikers Island lead de Blasio to release 300 nonviolent, elderly inmates at high risk of contracting COVID-19.

That move came after a New York City Department of Corrections officer died of the disease.

In the city, 278 people had died by Wednesday and there were 47,439 cases.
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Steel major Tata Steel said the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has impacted its business and operations in India and Europe.

As the novel coronavirus continues to spread rapidly across the world, Tata Steel will be reducing operations at some of its sites, the company said in a statement.

In India, where a 21-day nationwide lockdown has been announced to combat the spread of the virus, the company said its mining operations are running normally "but the integrated steel facilities in Jamshedpur, Kalinganagar Angul (Tata Steel BSL) and Gamahria (Tata Steel Long Products) have started reducing production levels and operations in the downstream facilities have been suspended and put on care and maintenance mode."

In view of the restrictions on the despatch of finished goods and poor market conditions due to the shutdown of customer operations in automotive, construction and other segments, shipments to customers have also been curtailed, it said.

In Europe, Tata Steel Europe is cooperating with national guidelines of the relevant countries and has updated measures to reduce risk to employees across all sites. The company is committed to continuing to supply steel products vital for society, including or food packaging, where demand has increased for canned food.

"Overall European steel demand has sharply reduced compared to the normal conditions and many of our customers have paused production, including European car manufacturers. Tata Steel Europe has therefore reduced production at some of the European mills to match this lower demand," it said.

Tata Steel Europe is currently operating all four blast furnaces at a reduced level across the two steelmaking hubs -- in Ijmuiden in the Netherlands, and Port Talbot, Wales and despatches to customers are currently continuing at the revised levels.

In both the markets, the company said, it is keeping a continuous watch on the evolving situations and is prepared to take swift actions once situations return to normal.
(Photo : Unsplash)

As people working from home amid the continuing coronavirus pandemic, many people might be placing themselves at unnecessary risk due to unsafe electrical setups and practices. Safety specialists have, in particular, warned people about overloading sockets, daisy-chaining, and charging devices on beds during the lockdown.

ALSO READ: Coronavirus: Households Warned to Prepare for Countrywide Blackouts Due to Staff Shortage

Hazardous electrical setups could place people at unnecessary risk

Electrical Safety First, a group committed to at-home safety, is concerned that many can be setting themselves at unnecessary risk because of hazardous electrical setups.

A recent survey through the charity noted a third of people who are the use of extension leads while working from home are unaware of the dangers they pose.

Almost half, or 44%, of folks who do use extension wires, said they are guilty of daisy-chaining - plugging an extension lead into some other extension.

Experts say these circumstances are notorious electric hazards and can pose a hearth threat.

Rick Hylton, head for domestic safety at the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), told British news website Mirror.co.uk there is a rise in electrical fires as many people set up home offices and adjust to a working lifestyle.

ALSO READ: Alabama Man Almost Electrocuted While Sleeping With His iPhone Charging In Bed

'So, the fire service ask that you check you have running smoke alarms and a practiced escape plan in case there is a fireplace.

'But also make sure you comply with the simple recommendation to reduce your risk of an electrical fire.

'These fires are regularly preventable, and the advice will now not the simplest preserve you operating competently at domestic but reduce the stress on the hearth provider.'

Questionable electric practices are seen

The survey of 3,000 people also suggests awful habits by home employees include questionable practices in the bedroom. Around 70 percent of those currently working from home doing so for the first time due to COVID-19, the research added.

More than half of remote workers revealed to either often or sometimes placing their gadgets, such as laptops or phones, on their bed while it is charging.

Lesley Rudd, chief govt of Electrical Safety First, told Daily Mail not everyone could make sure their work stations are free from fire risks.

Experts also urged people to pay extra attention to electrical safety during our period of remote working.'

"Take a few minutes to make sure you're not [overloading] your plug sockets, and that you are charging your devices on hard, non-flammable surfaces," researchers said.

The charity urged the public to try its Socket Overload Calculator to test they're no longer plugging too many home equipment in at once, on its website, electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk.

Tips on working safely from home

Electrical fires are often preventable. Following these steps will not only keep you working safely at home but reduce the pressure on the fire service.

Don't charge electrical objects on beds.

Always place your gadgets on a hard, flat, non-flammable surface. Avoid overloading sockets and extension leads, check out this online socket calculator.

Keep your workstation tidy

Many could be working in a small workspace. Hence, place your hot and cold drinks far from electrical objects is essential.

Beware of cables

Take time to organize your cables as it can present a trip hazard to you and others to your home.

Don't daisy chain extension leads

If your cable doesn't reach you, don't plug it into another adaptor. Move your workspace closer to the socket or use an extended lead.

Be mindful during mealtime.

With many of us cooking meals at home, being undistracted by emails or work calls that result in the hob being left on unattended may help reduce fire risk.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
FLORENCE, Italy, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- A. Menarini Diagnostics and Credo Diagnostics Biomedical have entered into an exclusive distribution agreement for the SARS-CoV-2 assay kit and other assays for the diagnosis of respiratory infections (RSV and group Strep A).

The tests will be run on the VitaPCR (Credo Diagnostics Biomedical's Point-of-Care molecular testing platform) which allows the diagnosis of COVID-19 in just 20 minutes. The platform is already CE-marked.

The COVID-19 molecular test and instrument are fundamental to both first aid facilities and intensive care units. These diagnostics kits adopt a reaction technology of the utmost accuracy on Point-of-Care instruments which are both compact (the size of a dictionary) and easy to use, giving a rapid diagnosis in settings such as emergency rooms, triage units, airports, seaports and railway stations.

"We have always believed that Point-of-Care molecular testing is the future. We look forward to working with Menarini to bring these tests to the market, especially in a crisis like this, to save lives," said Winston Wong Jr., Chairman of Credo Diagnostics Biomedical.

"Menarini Diagnostics has been working relentlessly over the past few weeks to find a way to help healthcare workers in the fight against the virus," stated Fabio Piazzalunga, General Manager of Menarini Diagnostics."We believe it is essential to have solutions which will allow the detection of positive cases, minimise times and take screening where it is needed, running tests both rapidly and with the most accurate technology possible. Thanks to this collaboration with Credo Diagnostics Biomedical, the Menarini Group hopes to be able to provide substantial support to healthcare workers."

HOW THE TEST WORKS:

Once a nasal or oropharyngeal sample has been taken by a healthcare professional, this is inserted into a vial containing a liquid and shaken. The contents is then transferred into a second reagent tube which, once closed, will be placed inside the VitaPCR system, thus starting the analysis process. Within 20 minutes the test results will be displayed on the instrument's built-in screen, confirming whether the sample analysed has proven negative or positive.

A. Menarini Diagnostics Srl:

A. Menarini Diagnostics, the Human Touch of Technology: more than 40 years dedicated to helping healthcare professionals make safe and sustainable diagnosis, meeting the technological needs of the market and enhancing the quality of life of people all over the world.

A. Menarini Diagnostics belongs to the Menarini Pharmaceutical Group, founded in 1886. Today the Group is present in more than 130 countries, with a turnover of  3,667 billion and over 17,000 employees.

Credo Diagnostics Biomedical Pte. Ltd.

Credo Diagnostics Biomedical develops and manufactures innovative, easy-to-use and rapid molecular diagnostic solutions for Point-of-Care (POC) applications at affordable costs without compromising accuracy and speed in the areas of Animal Health, Human Health, and Human Wellness. Leveraging solid and established science, combined with efficient integration and strategic innovation, Credo Diagnostics Biomedical provides the most advanced medical technologies for all.

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The senator representing Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Philip Aduda, has donated 1,000 bags of rice (10kgs) and 150 cartoons of hand sanitisers to the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).

The donations were made to assist in the fight against COVID -19 pandemic in Abuja.

Presenting the items to the FCT Minister, Muhammad Bello, Mr Aduda explained that the donations were part of his contributions toward the success of the palliative measures being put in place by the FCT Administration.

The lawmaker stressed the need for all stakeholders to support the government in the fight against the spread of COVID-19 in the FCT.

Mr Aduda noted that although the government had the responsibility to provide the needed assistance to the citizens, such assistance was never enough, because the pandemic took the government and everybody by surprise.

On behalf of myself and my family, I wish to donate 1,000 bags of 10kgs rice for distribution to FCT residents as part of palliative measures being put in place by the FCTA.

READ ALSO:

 For the palliatives, although, I realised that the government has the money to provide the needed assistance to the citizens, but this assistance is never enough, because the pandemic did not tell anybody that it was coming and the pandemic does not know party differences.

 All it wants is to ravage humanity. So in my own little way, I am making these little contributions to the palliatives, he said.

The senator stated that the sanitiser would be used in various public places to ensure that FCT residents sanitised their hands in their places of work to curtail the spread of the virus in the territory.

Responding, Mr Bello, assured that the items, including other items donated by individuals and corporate bodies to the administration would be handled properly.

I am highly honoured for this donation, he said.
The spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has incurred global traffic restrictions, leaving tonnes of goods confined to their origins and unable to reach the destinations.

However, the China-Europe cargo trains have remained a reliable transportation channel across the continents, displaying its strategic value of ensuring the international supply chain amid the epidemic.

Initiated in 2011, the China-Europe rail service is considered a significant part of the Belt and Road Initiative to boost trade between China and countries along the routes. A new report by the China Container Industry Association showed that China-Europe trains made 1,132 trips from 63 Chinese cities in the first two months of 2020, up 6 percent year on year.

Train service from central and western China in particular, registered strong growth, with departures from the city of Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, rose 88 percent year on year to 267, while trains leaving from Hunan Province surged by 175 percent in the first two months.

But the sudden hit of the novel coronavirus outbreak did cast a shadow on trains running on the routes.

In the eastern Chinese city of Yiwu, China's small commodity hub, regular Europe-bound rail service after the Spring Festival, the biggest holiday season in China, resumed more than two weeks later than usual.

From the start of the year to March 24, the Yiwu railway station saw departures of 67 China-Europe freight trains carrying 5,474 TEUs (20-foot containers), up 40.8 percent year on year.

However, between Feb. 10 and March 20, only 10 freight trains left Yiwu for Europe. Together they carried 828 TEUs of goods, down 43.4 percent from a year ago. Meanwhile, no cargos were shipped back.

"The biggest change is that the entire company was left with not much to do after the Spring Festival. In previous years, the peak period of shipment was 10 days after the opening of the market after the Lunar New Year, but it took one month to resume normal operation this year," said Feng Xubin, chairman of the operating company of the China-Europe cargo service in Yiwu.

Now as the coronavirus pandemic continued to infect more population globally, many countries have further tightened control of air and sea transportation.

"The soaring price of air freight has led to further decline in goods shipped by air," said Guo Liming, general manager of a Henan-based supply chain management company.

The China-Europe freight service has therefore become an important channel to transport medical supplies out of China, a major manufacturer of such products.

A freight train carrying donated face masks and other anti-coronavirus supplies departed Yiwu on March 21 for Madrid, Spain.

The donation included 110,000 surgical masks and 766 protective suits. It was the first China-Europe freight train to carry anti-epidemic supplies to Europe, which will arrive in Madrid in about two weeks.

There will be no transportation charges for any institutions, groups or individuals that donate anti-epidemic supplies to Spain. The train from Yiwu to Madrid will increase frequency from one trip a week to two trips per week, said Feng.

The China-Europe train service even resumed in Wuhan, the former epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in China, on March 28, soon after the city loosened traffic control following a two-month lockdown.

Carrying medical supplies and other goods with a total value of 22 million yuan (3.1 million U.S. dollars), the train will arrive in the German city of Duisburg in about 15 days and the goods will be transported to countries including France, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland.

"The goods and the train have been thoroughly disinfected and we're closely monitoring the physical condition of the driver," said Gao Ruorui with Wuhan Asia-Europe Logistics.

"We believe that the stable services we provided during the epidemic will deepen people's understanding of the China-Europe rail service," said Kang Yan, vice-general manager of Zhengzhou International Hub Development and Construction Co., Ltd., operator of the China-Europe trains in Zhengzhou. "Railway is the most reliable transportation channel during the epidemic."

"We hope that more countries can fully recognize the role of the China-Europe freight trains and make greater use of them, especially when transportation is strictly restricted at harbors and airports," said Guo.
Chris delivering Easter eggs to the childrens wards at Daisy Hill and the Royal

Chris delivering Easter eggs to the childrens wards at Daisy Hill and the Royal

A Co Down family who are "forever indebted" to healthcare workers who twice helped their infant son through life-saving surgery are using their business to help the NHS.

Chris Wallace and his wife Emma, from Kilkeel, have so far donated almost 7,000 surgical masks to the Northern Ireland healthcare system and will soon be transforming 8,500 metres of fabric into scrubs.

Their drive was inspired by the work of the Royal Victoria Hospital's staff after their 16-month-old son Charlie was diagnosed with a rare heart condition.

Charlie spent a month in the Clark Clinic, which cares for cardiology patients, last June.

He underwent a life-saving operation and returned home with his mother and father, his twin brother Zach and his four-year-old sister Poppy.

However, in November, Charlie was in the Royal's Intensive Care Unit after it was believed he contracted bronchitis, but a week later he was diagnosed with the heart condition middle-aortic syndrome.

Due to the severity of his condition, the Wallace family were flown to London's Great Ormond Street Hospital in a private jet, courtesy of the NHS, so Charlie could receive the treatment he so desperately needed.

Charlie was put through more life-saving surgery and Chris told how his family will forever be in the NHS' debt.

Through the family business, Bedwin Soft Furnishings, which has stores in Kilkeel, Warrenpoint and Banbridge, Chris and his wife have tried to do their bit in the battle against Covid-19.

Outlining how it all began, Chris explained that a consultant in the Royal told him last week that the hospital was desperately short of surgical masks.

"We tried to source the material to make the clinical surgical masks through our own company but we couldn't get that," he said.

"However, one of our suppliers had a stock of 700 masks. I got them and put a plea out on LinkedIn to see if anybody had the fabric.

"Smyths toy shop in Newry got on board and said if I was going to the Children's Hospital they had 800 Easter eggs because they've had to cancel their Easter events and I could deliver them.

"I delivered the Easter eggs to Daisy Hill Hospital and the Royal and the 700 masks to the Children's Hospital."

The local business community rallied to the Wallace's call as Sea Source paid for another 700 masks, Kilkeel Chamber of Commerce raised enough money to buy 5,000 and Collins Aerospace will use their plasma cutter to cut out the patterns for the scrubs before local volunteers stitch the material.

Angeline Murphy from NI Scrubs also set up a GoFundMe page which has allowed the Wallace family to purchase 7,500 metres of material, while the charity Heartbeat NI donated another 1,000 metres.

"We're just trying to give a wee bit back to the NHS who saved our son's life not once but twice," added Chris.

"This is the least we could do and I have just been taken aback by how the whole local community has rallied round and how the businesses came together.

"One wee small business can be a drop in the ocean but when everyone comes together it doesn't take long filling the pond."

The Wallace family held a fundraiser for Heartbeat NI and the Children's Heartbeat Trust on Valentine's night and raised 20,000, while Charlie is due to fly out again to London next week.

Irwyn McKibbin from Heartbeat NI added that during these unprecedented times the charity wanted to do their bit and "stand up to the mark".
ICONIQ Capital, Index Ventures and Durable Capital Partners Lead Latest Round for Data Intelligence Company

NEW YORK and BRUSSELS, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Collibra , the Data Intelligence company, today announced $112.5 million in funding at a post-money valuation of $2.3 billion, bringing the company's total venture funding to $345.5 million.

The funding round was led by existing investors, ICONIQ Capital and Index Ventures, and Durable Capital Partners LP, an investment firm founded in 2019 by former T. Rowe Price portfolio manager Henry Ellenbogen, which participated as a Collibra investor for the first time. Existing investors Battery Ventures, CapitalG and Dawn Capital also participated in the round.

"We are passionate about helping companies better understand, trust and benefit from their data," said Felix Van de Maele, co-founder and CEO for Collibra. "Collibra is dedicated to helping organizations drive data collaboration across teams, and by partnering with our new and existing investors we further strengthen our position - and the position of our customers - to unlock the value of enterprise data."

Collibra's commitment to enabling Data Intelligence and helping its 450 customers improve the quality of business decisions driven by data is further bolstered by this funding. Collibra's suite of products helps organizations address a breadth of business challenges, including data privacy and protection, compliance and risk mitigation, operational efficiency and cost reduction.

"Durable Capital Partners invests in innovative companies that have significant potential to shape growing industries and build larger companies," said Ellenbogen, founder and chief investment officer for Durable Capital Partners LP. "We believe Collibra is a leader in the Data Intelligence category, a space that could have a tremendous impact on global business operations and a space that we expect will continue to grow as data becomes an increasingly critical asset."

Matt Jacobson, general partner at ICONIQ Capital and Collibra board member, said: "We have a high degree of conviction in Collibra and the importance of the company's mission to help organizations benefit from their data. There is an increasing urgency for enterprises to harness their data for strategic business decisions. Collibra empowers organizations to use their data to make critical business decisions, especially in uncertain business environments."

Jan Hammer, partner at Index Ventures and Collibra board member, said: "We are proud to expand our long-term partnership with the Collibra team. Collibra has created an operating system for data that transforms how companies make decisions, giving users access to the data they need, and most importantly, data they can trust to make critical business decisions."

About ICONIQ Capital

ICONIQ Capital is a privately-held investment firm that serves some of the world's most influential families and organizations. We are a trusted advisor and thought partner, facilitating meaningful strategic relationships across investment opportunities, family governance and global impact. With over 200 people across San Francisco, Palo Alto, New York, and Singapore, ICONIQ provides financial advisory and family office services, and manages direct investments with a focus on technology growth equity, venture capital and real estate.

About Index Ventures

Index Ventures is a London and San Francisco-based international venture capital firm that helps the most ambitious entrepreneurs turn bold ideas into global businesses. Index-backed companies that are reshaping the world around us include Adyen, Dropbox, Elastic and Slack. To learn more, visit www.indexventures.com .

About Durable Capital Partners LP

Durable Capital Partners LP is a newly formed investment adviser founded by Henry Ellenbogen. Durable Capital Partners LP's investment philosophy is grounded in sourcing small-cap and midcap compounders in both the private and public markets. Prior to founding Durable Capital Partners LP, Henry spent 18 years at T. Rowe Price, where he was Portfolio Manager of the Media & Telecom Fund (2005 - 2009) and the New Horizons Fund (2010 - March 2019). Henry was also T. Rowe Price's Chief Investment Officer for U.S. Equity Growth.

About Collibra

Collibra is the Data Intelligence company. We accelerate trusted business outcomes by connecting the right data, insights and algorithms to all Data Citizens. Our cloud-based platform connects IT and the business to build a data-driven culture for the digital enterprise. Global organizations choose Collibra to unlock the value of their data and turn it into a strategic, competitive asset. We have a diverse global footprint, with offices in the U.S., Belgium, Australia, Czech Republic, France, Poland and the U.K. For more information, visit collibra.com .

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Iran on Thursday reported 124 new deaths from the coronavirus, raising its total to 3,160, as President Hassan Rouhani warned that the country may still battle the pandemic for another year.

Health ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour announced the latest toll in a conference and confirmed 3,111 new infections over the past 24 hours, bringing Iran's total to 50,468.

He said 16,711 of those hospitalised had so far recovered.

Iran has been scrambling to contain the COVID-19 outbreak since it reported its first cases on February 19.

After weeks of refraining from imposing a lockdown or quarantine measures, Tehran decided last week to ban all intercity travel until at least April 8.

There is no official lockdown within Iran's cities, although the government has repeatedly urged Iranians to stay at home to contain the spread of the virus.

Rouhani warned at a cabinet meeting on Thursday that there was no quick fix.

"Coronavirus is not something for which we can point to a certain date and say it will be completely eradicated by then," he said.

Rouhani said the virus "may be with us in upcoming months, or until the end" of the current Iranian year, in March 2021.

The country, one of the world's worst hit by the pandemic which originated in China, must remain vigilant and more limitations may be implemented, he said.

Iran has closed schools and universities until early April and also four key Shiite pilgrimage sites, including the Fatima Masumeh shrine in Qom. It has discouraged travel, cancelled the main weekly Friday prayers and temporarily closed parliament.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Jessica Chastain stepped out for some fresh air with her daughter Giulietta and the beloved family dog on Wednesday.

The Molly's Game actress was dressed for a sunny day of self-isolating, donning layers tee shirts and shorts during the outing with her two-year-old.

She topped off her look with a floppy hat and sunglasses.

Nature: Jessica Chastain got a breath of fresh air while out with her two-year-old daughter and the family dog on Wednesday

During the stroll her little one opted to walk solo while mom pushed along her stroller.

Jessica took the chance to take a picture of their fluffy little pup as they walked through their upscale neighborhood.

The outing came after Chastain was reportedly photographed with a newborn baby, amid rumors she and husband Gian Luca had welcomed their second child.

Photoshoot! Jessica took the chance to take a picture of their fluffy little pup as they walked through their upscale neighborhood

In photographs taken last week, the couple could be seen strolling together in Santa Monica, California, with Gian Luca pushing their daughter in a stroller.

Walking beside her husband, Jessica looks content as she carries a tiny baby in a wrap, its head safely tucked inside close to her chest.

The images, published by Page Six, appear to show the couple have welcomed a second child to their family.

Added to their family: The outing came after Chastain was reportedly photographed with a newborn baby, amid rumors she and husband Gian Luca had welcomed their second child

Feeling festive: Jessica popped open some champagne on Tuesday as she celebrated her 43rd birthday at home amid the coronavirus lockdowns

A source told the website, 'They were really enjoying themselves. The baby seemed to be sleeping soundly the entire time.'

The couple's daughter Giulietta arrived in July 2018 via surrogate.

Last month Jessica celebrated her 43rd birthday and popped open a bottle of champagne while marking the occasion at home amid the coronavirus lockdown.

'Thank you for all of the Birthday wishes & virtually celebrating with me yesterday!' she captioned a video of her all glammed up and blowing a kiss to the camera.

Time to celebrate: The actress looked glam in a colorblock dress and her hair and makeup done

The Dark Phoenix star began dating Gian Luca, an executive for fashion brand Moncler, in 2012 and they married on June 10 2017 at his family's estate in Carbonera, Italy.

The Sonoma, California born star is coming off Dark Phoenix and IT Chapter Two in 2019, with two more movies slated for release in 2020.

She plays the title character in Ava, a deadly assassin who works for a secret organization, travelling the world and pulling off high-profile hits.

She also plays Tammy Faye Baker in The Eyes of Tammy Faye, alongside Andrew Garfield and Vincent D'Onofrio, and 355 with Sebastian Stan, hitting theaters January 15, 2021.

The Dark Phoenix star began dating Gian Luca, an executive for fashion brand Moncler, in 2012 and they married on June 10 2017 at his family's estate in Carbonera, Italy. They are pictured May 2017
West Bengal reported 16 fresh COVID-19 cases on Thursday, the highest spike in the number of cases so far in a single day, even as policemen were attacked in some parts of the state while enforcing the lockdown to combat the coronavirus outbreak.

The state administration seems to be a divided house over the number of COVID-19 cases, with the health department saying the total figure is 53 and Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha pegging it at 34 active cases.

"In the last 24 hours, 16 fresh cases have been reported in Bengal. The total number of cases in the state is 53. The death toll is seven and three persons have been cured. So the number of active cases is 43," a senior health department official told a press conference at the state secretariat.

He, however, did not divulge the details of the new cases.

Within an hour, Sinha conducted a media briefing, where he brought down the figure of positive cases to 37 -- what Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said on Wednesday.

Banerjee had asserted that of the six deaths till Wednesday, three persons had died of coronavirus and the remaining three passed away due to other underlying ailments such as kidney disorder, but media houses were raising the figure for the sake of sensationalism.

"The total number of active coronavirus cases is 34 now and three others have died due to COVID-19," Sinha said.

Opposition parties CPI(M) and BJP were quick to slam Banerjee for "trying to hide" the actual figures of COVID-19 deaths and active cases, and asked her to refrain from such "illegal action", which would be counterproductive.

"The chief minister is trying to hide the death figure. This is absurd. What is there to be ashamed of? She should not hide the truth. This will adversely affect the entire process of containing the outbreak," state BJP chief Dilip Ghosh said.

He claimed that Banerjee had earlier tried to hide the dengue death figure too.

During the 2017 dengue outbreak in the state, Banerjee had claimed that some private healthcare units were reporting deaths from an "unknown fever" as deaths caused by dengue to "malign" her government.

CPI(M) state secretary Surya Kanta Mishra echoed Ghosh and said it was for doctors to certify the reason behind the deaths and not the chief minister.

"It is absurd and unethical to claim that people died due to kidney ailments and other diseases even after being tested positive for coronavirus. If she (Banerjee) is doing it, it is an illegal intervention. This should immediately stop," he said.

Senior Congress MP Pradip Bhattacharya demanded that the state government reveal the actual figures instead of "hiding" those.

Meanwhile, at least nine policemen were injured in some parts of the state while enforcing the ongoing 21-day lockdown to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

Stones were thrown at quick response teams in South 24 Parganas and West Midnapore districts when they stopped people from assembling.

In two incidents at the Bhangore area of South 24 Parganas and Goaltore in West Midnapore, police personnel were beaten up when patrolling teams stopped youngsters from gathering.

A sub-inspector, two assistant sub-inspectors and six constables were injured in the two incidents.

Five persons were arrested for their alleged involvement in the Bhangore incident, while no arrests have so far been made for the West Midnapore incident.

Meanwhile, scores of devotees assembled in temples in various parts of the state on the occasion of Ram Navami, giving a thumbs down to the social-distancing norms prescribed by the government during the ongoing nationwide lockdown.

State Education Minister Partha Chatterjee announced that all students studying in Classes 1 to 8 will be automatically promoted to the next class in view of the emergent situation due to the coronavirus outbreak.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Trump on Tuesday said Americans should brace for a "hell of a bad two weeks" coming, and projected there could be up to 240,000 deaths in the U.S. from the coronavirus pandemic, regardless of the measures taken to date to mitigate the spread.At a daily White House briefing, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations' top infectious disease expert, offered some optimism.said Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a member of the White House coronavirus task force.In a somber press conference, Trump said the coming weeks will be a "a matter of life and death" for Americans, urging them to heed the administration's guidelines to practice social distancing and stay home.Trump said.the president said in the White House briefing room.Trump said.But he said there is ain a pandemic that has killed more than 3,800 Americans and infected nearly 170,000 more.There was other grim news.said Dr. Deborah Birx, the coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force.Fauci said the new projections are "sobering" as he urged all Americans to "step on the accelerator" and heed the calls to isolate.Fauci said.Trump said all things considered, it's not as bad as originally projected.he said.Trump, 73, also said he planned to cut off his travel to safeguard his health.Trump said.
ISLAMABAD - A regional Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction and death sentence of Omar Saeed Sheikh, the man convicted in the 2002 killing of U.S. journalist Daniel Pearl. The court also overturned the convictions of three other men connected to Pearl's death.

Prosecutor Faiz Shah said he would appeal the decision in Pakistan's Supreme Court. All four men will remain in custody for at least 90 days on the grounds of "public safety," according to a ruling issued by the Home Department of Sindh province.

Pearl, a Wall Street Journal reporter, was kidnapped in January 2002 in Pakistan, where he was researching the connection between a radical Islamic preacher and Richard Reid, who attempted to blow up an airliner with explosives in his shoes.

Saeed, a British-born Pakistani who was implicated in other kidnappings, had been sentenced to death for Pearl's murder and kidnapping. The High Court of Sindh on Thursday overturned the murder conviction and downgraded the kidnapping charge, which carries a seven-year sentence.

Because Saeed has served 18 years, he is eligible for release, as are the other three men whose convictions were overturned: Fahad Naseem, a computer expert; Salman Saqib, a religious activist; and Sheikh Adil, a police officer.

The defendants' lawyer, Khawaja Naveed, said the evidence against Saeed "was very weak" and could prove only kidnapping, not murder.

In a statement Thursday, The Wall Street Journal said: "We continue to seek justice for the murder of Daniel Pearl. Danny was a cherished colleague and we will always honor his memory and service."

Pearl was told he was meeting with a radical cleric. Instead he was kidnapped, held for days and beheaded. When Saeed was convicted months later, he was sentenced for planning Pearl's kidnapping and murder.

But a 2011 investigation by the Center for Public Integrity's Pearl Project found that 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed killed Pearl. Mohammed was captured in Pakistan in 2003 and is being held at Guantanamo Bay. He is not charged in the journalist's killing.

Pakistan was under immense pressure in 2002 to find the people responsible for Pearl's killing. At the time of Saeed's conviction, defense attorneys raised questions about the weight of evidence against him.

The murder has been seen as marking the beginning of a trend of militant groups targeting journalists in conflict zones. In 2014, the Islamic State filmed the beheadings of several its hostages, including journalist James Foley.

- - -

George reported from London. Paul Schemm in Dubai contributed to this report.
Getting to be and spend time with our loved ones is the only silver lining in this grim situation due to the spread of coronavirus. However, for actor Mandana Karimi, the stress is much more. Her family  mother, two brothers and a close friend, are at home in Iran, and she cant be with them.

For my friends in India, the situation hit them for the past two weeks. For me, Ive been stressed with this whole situation for 60 days. My mom was supposed to be with me here for Holi, shes been doing this for seven-eight years now. This year, she couldnt. I cant send her anything, they have a lot of problems with hand sanitisers and medicines. The only way we connect is through the internet. The situation is really bad there, she says, adding how the government isnt supporting people.

So, the community has decided to shut down places, and have made a hand wash station outside the shops that are open. Even tests arent available, so literally they take you to the hospital if you need to be in the ICU, theres no getting healed, rues the 31-year-old, whos in her Bandra, Mumbai home.

Also read: Nafisa Ali stuck in Goa without ration and medicines, reveals her niece has tested positive for Covid-19 in Bengaluru

Due to this, she stopped doing anything since the lockdown started, and was constantly in touch with everyone back home in Iran. She reveals, Taking stress doesnt help anyone, youre fighting a virus which has to do with the immune system. I couldnt work out for three-four days in the beginning, as Id constantly be on the phone. It hit me hard when I sat one day. Then I put myself back together and started working out.

What also adds to her problems is her not stocking on food as a habit, and in this situation, affecting her. Im still struggling with how to store food, because Im always travelling, so I didnt used to store food. Now Im learning how to package chicken and fresh veggies. Its a learning process. I have two dogs at home too. This is how our new life is going to be. Im not used to staying at home the whole day, she ends.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Trump doubles U.S. military assets in Caribbean, bolstering drug fight after Maduro indictment U.S. President Trump leads daily coronavirus response briefing at the White House in Washington

By Matt Spetalnick and Phil Stewart

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration said on Wednesday it was deploying more U.S. Navy warships and aircraft to the Caribbean to prevent drug cartels and "corrupt actors" like Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from exploiting the coronavirus pandemic to smuggle more narcotics.

President Donald Trump said he was doubling U.S. military resources in the region, including destroyers, surveillance planes and personnel, in an anti-drug crackdown to deal with what he called a "growing threat."

The beefed-up operation - quickly dismissed by the Maduro government - will also call for sending Navy ships closer to Venezuela, according to a U.S. official and two people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity. But it was unclear how close they would get to Venezuelan shores, the sources said.

Trump, joined by Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley, made the announcement at the start of the White House's daily briefing on efforts to battle the spreading pandemic.

It followed the indictment last week of Maduro and more than a dozen current and former officials on charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy, drug trafficking and corruption.

Maduro has remained in power despite a wide-ranging U.S.-led campaign of sanctions and diplomacy, something U.S. officials have privately said is a source of frustration for Trump.

On Tuesday, the Trump administration offered, however, to begin lifting Venezuela sanctions if the opposition and members of Maduro's Socialist Party form an interim government without him, marking a shift in a U.S. policy.

Trump said Wednesday's move was needed because cartels and others were trying to take advantage of a pandemic that has required massive resources from United States and other countries. "We must not let the drug cartels exploit the pandemic to threaten American lives," he said.

Story continues

Esper also pointed a finger at Maduro's government.

"Corrupt actors, like the illegitimate Maduro regime in Venezuela, rely on the profits derived from the sale of narcotics to maintain their oppressive hold on power," he said. "The Venezuelan people continue to suffer tremendously due to Maduro's criminal control over the country."

Venezuela's government said in a statement it "energetically rejects" the administration's announcement, calling it an effort to distract from incompetent U.S. handling of the coronavirus outbreak. Maduro has dismissed last week's criminal charges as false and racist.

MORE PRESSURE ON MADURO

The increased naval deployment could ratchet up pressure on Maduro and his allies but is not a prelude to U.S. military action against Venezuela, one person familiar with the matter said.

Although Trump has insisted that all options are on the table against Maduro, U.S. officials have made clear there is little appetite for military force, which could entangle the United States in another foreign conflict.

Federal prosecutors last week accused Maduro and his alleged accomplices of shipping tons of cocaine into the United States each year, using the drugs as a "weapon."

U.S. officials have long accused Maduro and his associates or running a "narco-state," saying they have used proceeds from drugs transshipped from neighboring Colombia to make up for lost revenue from a Venezuelan oil sector hit by U.S. sanctions.

The United States and dozens of other countries have recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuela's legitimate president, regarding Maduro's 2018 re-election as a sham.

But Maduro has remained in power, backed by the country's military and by Russia, China and Cuba.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Tuesday the administration's power-sharing transition plan, which proposed for the first time a "sequenced exit path" from tough U.S. sanctions, including on the vital oil sector, if Maduro and his allies cooperate.

But it will be no easy task to draw Maduro or his associates onto a path of political reconciliation with Guaido. Maduro has shown no willingness to seriously negotiate an end to his rule.

(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick and Phil Stewart; Additional reporting by Jeff Mason, Steve Holland and David Brunnstrom in Washington, Brian Ellsworth in Caracas; Editing by Tom Brown and Peter Cooney)
Its been exactly a month since I returned to Winnipeg from a 12-day trip to El Puerto de Santa Maria, a small village in southern Spain.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Its been exactly a month since I returned to Winnipeg from a 12-day trip to El Puerto de Santa Maria, a small village in southern Spain.

My best friend, Kim, and I booked the trip to visit my 25-year-old daughter, who had been living and working there for the past year. We spent most days touring the small fishing town, but we also caught a ride-share to the ornate Alcazar castle complex in Seville, drove to the gorgeous coastal village of Bolonia, and wrapped up our trip with a two-day stay in London.

Over the course of the trip  and especially aboard the jam-packed, underground rail network in London  Kim and I were diligent about using our small supply of sanitizing hand towelettes to wipe down luggage, airplane trays, and electronics screens.

At that time, the COVID-19 virus was making its way through the northern part of Italy, so we were cautious but not afraid. Whenever we could, we stopped to wash our hands with soap and water.

Nevertheless, a couple of weeks after I returned home, I started having body chills  a symptom of the novel coronavirus. While the World Health Organization had yet to declare it a pandemic, I was worried I had become infected.

Supplied Rebecca Dahl (from left) Leesa Dahl and Kim Lentowitsch in Cadiz, Spain.

Two-and-a-half weeks ago, Manitoba testing centres were just being established, with only three Winnipeg Regional Health Authority Access clinics offering the unpleasant, nostril-swab tests. There are now nine testing sites and seven drive-through locations in Manitoba.

In those early days, people waited hours outside those three centres to get tested. I chose the Access Transcona location on Regent Avenue, only intending to get the test if I didn't have to wait too long. After all, other than some chills, I was feeling nothing unusual.

As it turned out, there was only one masked patient in the waiting area. After learning I had been in Spain less than two weeks earlier, a health-care worker ushered me right in.

Before the test was administered by a masked health-care worker, I was asked to agree to self-isolate for the next two weeks. This surprised me, since I had already worked a full two weeks since returning, and I was confident as a member of the Winnipeg Free Press production crew, I would be required to work at the office.

I hesitated, uncertain as to whether I could accomplish my daily tasks from home, but reluctantly agreed. After the three-minute-long test, I was told I would receive a call with my results within 48 hours.

I feel OK; no cough or fever or any shortness of breath. However, an unprecedented bout of exhaustion recently left me bedridden  and nervous  for a few days.

Thursday  my birthday  marks the 18th day without a word from the hardworking health-care workers who, when answering my frequent calls, offer up little more than a hollow apology for the delay.

"Be patient," one said last week, after asking if I've been watching the news.

In a recent report, Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba's chief provincial public health officer, said the backlog is due to a shortage of a certain reagent that is needed to conduct the tests. It's a worldwide shortage, he said, but Manitoba's lab is now making its own.

Well that's good news, especially in this house, where my just-returned daughter is also waiting for her COVID-19 test results.

On March 15, she handed over the keys to her Spanish apartment, packed up Alvaro, her Spanish cat, and booked a flight home. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was advising all Canadians to do the same, since the coronavirus was spreading fast in all countries.

Leesa's daughter Rebecca is also waiting for her COVID-19 test results. (Matt Rourke / The Associated Press files)

My family of five is together again. We're making the most of our quarantines (taking turns cooking dinner, playing guitar and acclimatizing Alvaro to his new, cold country) and, like many deemed essential workers, I am thankful my husband (a teacher) and I can continue to work through this unimaginable time.

After 18 days in the dark, I'm growing weary.

I feel OK; no cough or fever or any shortness of breath. However, an unprecedented bout of exhaustion recently left me bedridden  and nervous  for a few days.

I'm trying to be patient. I understand our provincial health-care system is under tremendous pressure.

Meanwhile, a friend who was also tested for COVID-19 told me he received his second callback from a health-care worker, who was "just checking to see if he received his first call."

"You've been waiting 16 days? That's crazy."  Healthcare worker

Helpless weariness turned to anger, and I called the Health Links info phone line, hoping once more I could get an answer.

"You've been waiting 16 days? That's crazy," said the compassionate health-care worker who answered, after I waited 20 minutes on hold. "Let me put you on hold and see what I can do."

Stay informed The latest updates on the novel coronavirus and COVID-19 delivered to your inbox every weeknight. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

I felt a glimmer of hope. For a few seconds, I thought maybe I would get an answer, some sort of confirmation that would help me return to some sense of normalcy, whatever that looks like these days.

When he picked up the line once more, he delivered the same familiar apology.

"Be patient," he said. "You'll get a call either way."

And so, as the world unravels around us, I wait.

Just like so many others.

leesa.dahl@freepress.mb.ca
Sea life and ocean ecosystems could substantially rebound within 30 years if humanity takes serious action to protect species and rebuild natural habitats, scientists say.

The world is at a point at which people must choose whether to leave future generations a resilient, vibrant ocean or an irreversibly disrupted one.

Marine life can be revived  but the window for doing so is now very narrow, they caution.

An action plan that includes tackling climate change would bring about a substantial recovery, the international team of researchers announced, as they set out a vision of restoring marine life by 2050.

The scientists said the focus should be on actively rebuilding depleted wildlife populations and ecosystems, not simply on conserving what remains, and efforts to remove pressure on the oceans must be expanded.

Steps needed include protecting vulnerable habitats and species; exercising caution in fishing; restoring habitats; reducing pollution and, critically, curbing the climate crisis.

And the plan can succeed only if the most ambitious goals to limit global temperature rises within the international Paris Agreement on climate change are reached, the experts writing in the journal Nature warn.

Extending protection across half of the oceans could cost $10bn-$20bn (8bn-16bn) a year, the report finds. But it would deliver far more in returns, through ecotourism, sustainable fishing and reductions in insurance claims from storms if coastal areas are protected by mangroves or saltmarshes.

Many marine species, habitats and ecosystems have suffered catastrophic declines as oceans have warmed, been overfished and damaged by pollution and shipping.

We have a narrow window of opportunity to deliver a healthy ocean to our grandchildrens generation, and we have the knowledge and tools to do so Lead author Carlos Duarte

Rising temperatures are further undermining the oceans productivity and rich wildlife by damaging coral reefs.

But substantially rebuilding marine life, so that populations rebound by 50-90 per cent, within a human generation is largely achievable, if action happens at a large scale, the experts say.

The scientists point to examples of impressive resilience in marine wildlife, such as the recovery of fish populations during the first and second world wars when fishing was reduced.

Curbing hunting, better management of fisheries, regulating pollutants and creating protected areas have already reduced the toll on ocean life and helped revive some species.

Humpback whales migrating from Antarctica to Australia, for instance, have returned from the brink of extinction in 1968 to more than 40,000 today.

And northern elephant seals have increased from just 20 breeding animals in 1880 to more than 200,000 today.

Recommended Plastic straws and cotton buds to be banned next year

Lead author Carlos Duarte, professor of marine science at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia said: We have a narrow window of opportunity to deliver a healthy ocean to our grandchildrens generation, and we have the knowledge and tools to do so.

Failing to embrace this challenge  and in so doing condemning our grandchildren to a broken ocean unable to support high-quality livelihoods -is not an option.

He warned: If we dont tackle climate change and raise the ambition and immediacy of these efforts, we risk wasting our efforts.

We also need to move closer towards reducing pressure on fish stocks, and tackle elements of pollution, such as plastic litter.

Dr David Tudor, projects director for Blue Marine Foundation, told The Independent: "This is a significant and positive study and it is vital that we act on its findings to fight the impact of the nature and climate crises we are facing. This study shows that many of the marine conservation projects taking place across the UK and the rest of the globe are having an enormous impact on restoring the biodiversity of the ocean.

"However, the number and scale of these interventions needs to increase rapidly if we are to come close to halting the devastating impact of over-fishing, pollution and habitat loss on the health of the ocean. Its essential that the global ocean is managed sustainably and the areas that need it have the highest levels of protection. There are amazing projects happening right now: whether its restoring native oysters in the Solent, working on models of sustainable fishing in Berwickshire, or expanding marine protection in the Maldives, but the world needs more and, critically, we need them now."

A study last month found Lego bricks could survive in the sea for as many as 1,300 years.
JERSEYVILLE  Health departments in both Jersey and Macoupin counties have reported their first coronavirus cases, as the total number statewide has grown to 7,695.

The Jersey County case, identified as a man in his 50s who has been hospitalized, was announced in a press release by the Health Department Wednesday.

On Thursday the Macoupin County Health Department confirmed a COVID-19 patient, a woman in her 50s who was quarantined at her home as of that day.

In Madison County, the number of cases increased Thursday to 30, up three from 27 the day before, according to the latest Health Department notice.

Statewide, Illinois added 715 new cases and 16 deaths, according to Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike. That brings the total to 7,695 cases and 157 deaths.

Thursdays numbers included the Macoupin County case, but not the Jersey County case, and the state listed 29 cases in Madison County. Health officials have said that as the number of cases increase, there will be some discrepancies between local and state numbers.

During his Thursday briefing, Gov. JB Pritzker spoke about expanding hospital capacity and a new All In Illinois statewide initiative to encourage people to continue stay-at-home and social distancing.

In addition to three alternative care facilities announced in the Cook and Collar county areas, he said they are developing a fourth facility in Melrose Park, Illinois.

More Information FEMA asks for 100,000 body bags The Federal Emergency Management Agency has asked the Defense Logistics Agency for 100,000 body bags, according to multiple news sources, including "The Hill," a news website dealing primarily with politics, policy, business and international relations. This comes a few days after federal officials said current projections show between 100,000 to 240,000 deaths from COVID-19, even with stay-at-home measures and social distancing. See More Collapse

He also said they are looking at a facility in Central Illinois, but did not elaborate.

Pritzker continued to note that these facilities are meant to supplement local health care facilities, not replace them; and patients will first be sent to local hospitals.

He noted that hospitals statewide are working to increase capacity, which is critical.

Pritzker explained that because this was a novel virus, meaning it is new to humans. There is no vaccine or immunity, meaning there is a greater risk of overwhelming the health systems capacity.

Because of that, he said the spread of COVID-19 must be slowed.

If we dont, there could never be enough hospital capacity to treat all those who would become ill, he said.

Pritzker added he has taken virtually every action available including issuing the stay-at-home order, closing schools, bars and restaurants, and limiting public gatherings.

While he takes no pride in being earlier than others, he said he was upset that others have not acted quickly enough, citing what he called the profound failure of the national government.

He also said that individual actions are now critical as the state exhausts options for additional action, specifically referring to the stay-at-home guidelines.

Every one of us must abide by this if we are all to get through this difficult time.

He also announced the creation of a new statewide initiative All In Illinois to continue promoting self-isolation.

All In Illinois means we care about one another, he said. We care about our communities.

Information, including celebrity messages, is supposed to be available at Allin.Illinois.gov, but as of about 3:15 p.m. Thursday the site was not available.

In announcing the number of new cases, Ezike also emphasized staying at home, adding that will allow residents to get together after the pandemic is through.

She also noted that although approximately 85 percent of the deaths related to COVID-19 were in patients 60 or older, that doesnt mean its a death sentence.

But that doesnt mean its a death sentence, she said.

Ezike noted she had spoken to the third and fourth COVID-19 patients in the state, a couple in their 70s, who are recovering.

She also cautioned that essential businesses allowed to remain open must take extra steps to avoid spreading the virus.

We are also starting to see clusters of cases in essential businesses, she said.

Those measures include checking employees temperatures, sending ill employees home, and thoroughly cleaning the businesses.

Approximately 85 percent of deaths are 60 and older.

But that doesnt mean its a death sentence, she said.

Ezike noted she had spoken to the third and fourth COVID-19 patients in the state, a couple in their 70s, who are recovering.

She also cautioned that essential businesses allowed to remain open must take extra steps to avoid spreading the virus.

We are also starting to see clusters of cases in essential businesses, she said.

Those measures include checking employees temperatures, sending ill employees home, and thoroughly cleaning the businesses.

She also noted that some churches and other houses of worship are still holding physical services, and said they need to stop for the duration of the virus.

Ezike emphasized that schools and other public gathering places have been closed and religious houses must do the same.

Then at the other side of the pandemic well be able to gather again, she said. We must not continue putting people at risk. These are all things we have to do, it just cant be some of the community that is following these restrictions and guidelines, we have to all do it together.

For more information, in Macoupin County, .call the Macoupin County COVID-19 hotline at 217-313-5078; in Jersey County, the COVID-19 hotline number is 618-639-4277. Or visit the departments respective Facebook pages.

In Madison County, for information about COVID-19 visit www.madisonchd.org, www.coronavirus.illinois.gov, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus, and the Madison County Health Department, Madison County Government, and Madison County EMA social media sites.

For more about COVID-19 and resources available, visit the Madison County Health Departments coronavirus page at www.co.madison.il.us/departments/health/corona_virus.php or contact the Illinois Department of Public Healths coronavirus hotline at 800-889-3931 or dph.sick@illinois.gov for general questions.
CHIBA, Japan, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Starting April 2020, Yusaku Maezawa will officially conduct a Social Experiment which distributes a cash benefit (Basic Income) of 1-million-yen per person to 1000 people who have been randomly chosen from the 4.3 million people who entered the 'Maezawa Otoshidama' giveaway in January 2020, through Twitter.

Amid the ongoing chaos and confusion that the novel coronavirus has caused to the economy and society, a social experiment entitled "Basic Income Social Experiment Survey" (hereinafter referred to as "this experiment"), will be conducted to distinguish the effects that the money will have on people's behavior, conditions and values, and aims to see the possibility of improving one's labor productivity as well as the possibility of increasing one's motivation to work and challenge themselves. This experiment will have the recipients divided entirely randomly into three payment groups:

Provide 1-million-yen in one payment in April Provide 1-million-yen in one payment in October Provide 1-million-yen in smaller monthly payments over a period of one year

Experimenting with various payment methods will allow new types of academic discoveries to be uncovered. Moreover, with the cooperation from academic researchers including Professor Takashi Unayama, Hitotsubashi University Institute of Economic Research, and Professor Tomohiro Inoue, Associate Professor at Komazawa University School of Economics, the data collected from this experiment will be published in an academic paper and an official report which will allow this social experiment to become a source of reference for the study of Basic Income.

The Purpose and Details of the 'Questionnaire Survey'

By dividing the recipients into three different groups, this survey aims to find out whether a person physically having the "cash" or a person having the "information" that they will be receiving the money, is more significant. The various groups will illustrate the effects that the cash benefits will have on people's behavior and decision-making skills, thus creating a structure that will help with the implementation of Basic Income. For the experiment to have accurate analysis of the results, not only will the winners of the payments participate in the surveys but invitation to partake will also be open to the public.

This long-term research will be conducted over a period of 1 year to investigate the effect that the 1-million-yen that is given to the recipient has on them. Three "Overall Surveys" will be conducted - prior, intermediate and post experiment - and a regular 'Monthly Survey' will be conducted 14 times, totaling to 17 surveys over the period of the whole experiment. In the 'Overall Survey,' surveyed participants will be asked questions related to their environment and values, and any changes will be studied over the period of the experiment. For the regular 'Monthly Surveys,' the way recipients spend their time, their expenditures, their satisfaction on life and their health status will be explored.

System of Research and Analysis

For this experiment, 'Maezawa Otoshidama Management Secretariat,' the subject constituent, will provide the survey results online. Also, with the supervision of academic researchers, the data collected will be statistically analyzed and published in a 'Maezawa Basic Income Social Experiment 2020 Final Report.' Additionally, a Research Team consisting of academic researchers will be organized in order to study the findings from various fields such as economics, sociology and psychology, and eventually write academic papers that will become a starting point for the study of Basic Income.

In a developed country like Japan that has a great possibility of implementing Basic Income, such an experiment where an individual distributes its personal wealth with no restrictions or conditions, and giving each person an adequate amount to live on just from the cash benefit, would be considered a 'uniquely-designed experiment.'

Introducing the Research Team

Tomohiro Inoue is an Associate Professor at Komazawa University School of Economics. He is a Part-time Lecturer at Waseda University, Senior Research Fellow at Keio University SFC, PhD in Economics, has written books such as 'Helicopter Money,' 'Artificial Super Intelligence,' 'New Basic Income,' 'The Pure Mechanized Economy' and 'MMT.'

"I hope this experiment spreads the idea of Basic Income to more people," says Inoue.

Takashi Unayama is a Professor at Hitotsubashi University Institute of Economic Research. Unayama graduated from The University of Tokyo School of Economics. Completed Doctoral Course at University of Tokyo, PhD in Economics, engaged in research activities at Keio Univ., Kyoto Univ. and Kobe Univ. Currently a Professor at Hitotsubashi University, specializes in Japanese economy, household consumption and economic statistics.

"I am very excited to participate in such an exceptional social experiment. I look forward to unraveling the mysteries of human behavior," says Unayama.

What is Basic Income?

Basic Income (BI) is a system that allows all citizens to receive money unconditionally on a regular basis. The money being given to every single person, not household, is also a significant trait of BI. By implementing BI, it will give everyone a chance to live a life with adequate amount of money needed for their daily needs, thus eliminating poverty. There is not a single advanced country that has officially brought in the BI system; however, in recent years, countries within Europe have shown efforts to turn a country with BI into reality and is gaining great attention globally.

About Yusaku Maezawa

Born in Japan. After graduating high school, Yusaku Maezawa made his rock band debut. He then founded a fashion EC 'ZOZOTOWN.' TSE-listed and gained a market worth of US$15 billion. In Sept. 2019, he sold it to Softbank Group and stepped down as CEO. His net worth is now US$2 billion (Forbes). He has a passion for collecting contemporary art, Japanese antiques, supercars, wine etc. Some people know him for purchasing J.M. Basquiat's $110 million painting. He will be the first civilian to fly around the moon on SpaceX's Starship rocket (dearMoon Project), scheduled to launch in 2023.

In 2019, he did a 100-million-yen giveaway on Twitter (1M yen to 100 winners). He held the record for the most retweeted tweet. In 2020, he did a giveaway of up to 1 billion yen. This social experiment will study the effects of BI. Will you be happier if you were given 1M yen?

References

[Social Experiment using Otoshidama] Why give away 1-million-yen to 1000 people?

to 1000 people? https://note.com/ysk2020/n/n287f05c30b9e

[Total of 1-billion-yen ] MZ Twitter Giveaway: 1-million-yen to 1000 people!

] MZ Twitter Giveaway: to 1000 people! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfulqIBiVfQ

For further details of 'Maezawa Basic Income Social Experiment': https://www.yusakumaezawa.com/en/

Contact Information
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WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI -- Twelve additional Washtenaw County residents have been hospitalized after being infected by the new coronavirus, according to data released by the county health department Thursday.

Additionally, 35 more county residents were diagnosed with COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. There are now 435 total cases and 112 hospitalizations in county residents as the outbreak continues to grow in Michigan. No additional deaths were reported in Washtenaw County as of noon, April 2.

Thirty-five people have recovered from the illness, according to the health department. That is up from 17 on Wednesday.

Hospitalizations remain most common in adults over 50 years old, according to data from the health department. So far this week, seven people between the ages of 18 and 49 have been hospitalized. Sixteen of the most recent hospital admissions have been between the ages of 50 and 64, nine have been between the ages of 65 and 79 and seven have been at least 80 years old.

Coronavirus crisis in pictures: How people in Jackson and Ann Arbor are battling the outbreak

Washtenaw County has one of the largest reported community caseloads in the state, behind only Detroit, the rest of Wayne County, and Oakland and Macomb counties. Susan Ringler-Cerniglia, the health department spokeswoman, said Wednesday it could be the countys population or proximity to an airport, but data is still being gathered to determine trends in the cases.

A spike in confirmed cases Wednesday was attributed to a backlog of pending test results.

This means most of these individuals got sick and were tested at least a week ago, but are receiving test results now because labs are just now catching up on tests, according to the health departments website.

3 Ypsilanti firefighters test positive for COVID-19

The University of Michigan Health System, based in Ann Arbor, was treating 165 inpatients as of 1 p.m. Wednesday, April 1, according to data updated daily.

Total cases in the state exceeded 10,000 on Thursday, according to the states daily updates. The number of new cases announced Thursday was the first decline in new cases in a 24-hour period from the day before since Sunday, March 29.

Coronavirus continues rampage through Michigan as case total reaches 10,791, death toll hits 417

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

MORE FROM MLIVE:

This does not mean our kids will stop learning, Whitmer says after extending school closures due to coronavirus

Michigan small businesses can apply for paycheck protection. Heres how

Letter from the Editor: Like you, were trying to make the most of this new normal work situation
UP chief minister Adityanath has already issued the necessary directives to the state chief secretary and the CMs secretariat in this regard. The proposed Covid fund will be in addition to the existing CM Relief Fund, UP additional chief secretary (home) Awanish Kumar Awasthi told the media here this evening and added a formal announcement would soon be made . He said UP had so far received about Rs 8 crore in the distress fund against ...

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Boris Johnson is preparing to overrule control-freak health chiefs today amid warnings 'time is running out' to scale up coronavirus testing.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has finally signalled a U-turn on the screening regime, after weeks of insisting on all checks being carried out centrally.

Instead he has issued a plea for the wider science industry to boost capacity - with Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, saying the government must summon the Dunkirk spirit and let 'small ship' labs help out.

The previous approach was meant to ensure checks are conducted properly, but the 10,000 per day level achieved so far contrasts sharply with the decentralised tactics deployed successfully in countries like Germany, which is carrying out up to 100,000.

Only around 2,800 NHS staff have been tested at drive-through 'swab stations' despite fears tens of thousands are off work unnecessarily.

The tests for who currently has the virus are viewed as critical for keeping health workers on the frontline, and tracking the outbreak could allow lockdown to be calibrated in 'hotspots'.

But experts say screening for if people have already been through the disease - antibody testing - will be the biggest breakthrough in getting the country back on its feet.

In a video released from his self-isolation in Downing Street last night, Boris Johnson admitted mass testing was the solution to the 'puzzle'. 'This is how we will defeat it in the end,' he said.

And Downing Street said: 'We acknowledge that more needs to be done in relation to testing. We need to be testing more people and we need to be making progress very quickly.'

The Francis Crick institute today announced it has started testing NHS staff from University College London Hospitals and aims to ramp up to 500 per day by next week and expand to other hospitals in the capital.

Other smaller laboratories say they have volunteered to help with testing, too, among them the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University and Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon, which is testing local GP staff already. Cancer Research UK said it is also providing equipment and expert staff to help with testing.

However, there is already a blame game under way within government over the failure to scale up the testing regime - with the PHE insisting it has 'played our part'.

A total of 29,747 people had tested positive for the coronavirus as of yesterday, April 1, and 2,352 were confirmed to have died in the UK. The true number of people who have had the virus is thought to be around two million.

On another tumultuous day of coronavirus developments:

Business groups say firms have 'furloughed' half of their staff with concerns the government's bailout will need to be massively bigger than thought;

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator;

The ONS has revealed costs of cough and cold medication have risen by nearly 11 per cent over the last fortnight, amid fears of profiteering;

British Airways will put 36,000 employees - 80% of its workforce - on leave after grounding thousands of flights as it attempts to weather the coronavirus storm;

Spain announced 950 coronavirus deaths yesterday, its highest ever, but the country's outbreak seems to be slowing down;

Almost a million people in the UK have applied for Universal Credit benefits since March 16 and officials are facing calls to allow people to claim it even if they have up to 16,000 in savings;

British Medical Association guidelines have revealed elderly patients should be lower priority than otherwise- healthy younger ones when it comes to rationing ventilators in intensive care.

The number of coronavirus tests being done in the UK has been rising but only to around 10,000 per day - and the number of people being tested is about half as high because individuals are tested more than once. The Government is a long way off its 25,000-per-day target

A medical worker collects a swab from an NHS colleague at a drive-through coronavirus testing centre for health service staff in Chessington, south-west London

TESTING OUTRAGE SPARKS GOVERNMENT BLAME GAME A brutal blame game is under way within government today over the failure to scale up the testing regime. Fingers have been pointed at the government's top health experts for holding back the use of wider testing facilities. Chief medical officer Chris Whitty has repeatedly stressed that 'the only thing worse than no test is a bad test'. Prof Cosford said 'everybody involved is frustrated' about not reaching the required testing output. 'We've played our part, which is to make absolutely certain that that test is spread throughout Public Health England's laboratories, throughout NHS laboratories, is available to support the clinical treatment of patients who need it,' he said. He also told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Our role has always been to - and I speak from Public Health England - make sure our labs are doing what they need to do and we're rolling tests out to the NHS for clinical treatment of patients. 'There is some capacity that is available within that in order to start testing NHS staff and that's being done. 'You've heard about the 2,000 yesterday - nowhere near where we need to get to but it's a good start - and then there's the drive-through systems that are beginning.' Asked why other testing facilities were not being used, Prof Cosford said PHE is most closely involved in NHS testing before adding: 'The second (strand) is how we can use all of those laboratories, all of that capacity, to boost up at least 100,000 tests a day, hopefully more.' Advertisement

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Sir Paul said the Francis Crick Institute had realised 'two or three weeks ago' that 'testing of COVID-19 would be absolutely critical if the country was to successfully handle the crisis - particularly testing of NHS staff'.

He said the institute had 're-purposed' its laboratory for coronavirus tests, and was expecting to do up to 2,000 tests a day, with results available in less than 24 hours.

'We have been working around the clock over the last fortnight, working with UCL Hospital and Health Service Laboratories to produce a testing centre to be able to do that,' he said.

'We have created the testing centre we now know we can operate at a national standard.

'Just after the weekend we expect to be at 500 a day, or 3,000 a week and we hope over the coming weeks to expand that to 2,000 a day.

'We hope that we can roll this out to other research institutes. Cancer Research UK... they are contacting their institutes so they can adopt the way we are operating.'

Sir Paul said there were a range of labs in the public sector - but outside PHE - that could be used.

Referring to the famous Second World War evacuation of UK forces from the French coast, he said: 'A metaphor here is Dunkirk, to be honest. We are a lot of little boats and the little boats can be effective.

'The government has put some bigger boats - destroyers - in place. that is a bit more cumbersome to get working and we wish them all the luck to do that. But we little boats can contribute as well.'

Sir Paul said the smaller labs were 'more agile' to deal with global shortages of reagents. 'We can make pipelines of reagents and chemicals,' he said.

'We can move faster to deal with issues. Of course we have supply chain problems but we can reduce them by being small and agile.'

Health Secretary Matt Hancock (pictured right with chief medical officer Chris Whitty last monht) has finished quarantine after contracting coronavirus himself. Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, one of the UK's leading science labs, said the Government must allow private and academic laboratories to help with COVID-19 testing

CAMBRIDGE TEST '98.7% ACCURATE WITHIN 90 MINUTES' TO BE USED BY NHS Cambridge University scientists have developed a coronavirus testing machine that can produce results in less than 90 minutes and is being rolled out at NHS hospitals in the city and across the UK. The company Diagnostics for the Real World, founded at the prestigious university, has invented the portable Samba II machines and had them approved by Public Health England. Ten of them are being used at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge this week before they are put to use nationwide. The scientists say the machine is 98.7 per cent accurate. CEO Helen Lee said: 'The Samba machine can be placed literally anywhere and operated by anyone with minimum training.' Nasal and throat swabs must be collected from patients then put into the machines which will scan them for tiny traces of genetic material (RNA) from the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus. Current tests which work in the same way can take 24 hours or more. The machines will be used to test healthcare workers as well as other patients suspected of having Covid-19 across the country. Businessman and philanthropist Sir Chris Hohn is helping make the test more widely available with a 2.3million donation to purchase 100 of the machines for NHS use. Advertisement

Chief executive at University College London Hospitals, Marcel Levi, said: 'The Crick have been a fantastic partner. They have rapidly set up the laboratory processes needed for our staff COVID-19 testing service. This will enable us to gradually ramp up access to testing for UCLH staff.'

Cancer Research UK is working in conjunction with the London institute. Its executive director or research, Iain Foulkes, said: 'As well as the Crick, many Cancer Research UK laboratories throughout the country are providing vital testing kit and skills. And we are proud of our scientists, some of the best in the world, who are turning their focus to COVID-19 during this global pandemic.'

The Crick Institute's Sir Paul said he did not want to be too critical of the government at this stage, but made clear that there would need to be a reckoning later.

'We did our thing. We got going. They were focusing on what only they could do with the big ships. We just got on with it,' he said.

'The government may need to think more about its strategy but we are running out a bit of time.'

He added: 'We will need to think in the future, when we are through crisis, how best to manage things.., we were not sufficiently prepared. But now is the time to get our shoulder behind the wheel.'

As pressure intensified over the government's response, Professor Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of Public Health England, appeared to pass the buck.

He said the organisation had 'played our part' by ensuring there were tests for people in hospital.

Fingers have been pointed at the government's top health experts for holding back the use of wider testing facilities. Chief medical officer Chris Whitty has repeatedly stressed that 'the only thing worse than no test is a bad test'.

Professor Cosford said 'everybody involved is frustrated' about not reaching the required testing output.

'We've played our part,' he said, 'which is to make absolutely certain that that testing is spread throughout Public Health England's laboratories, throughout NHS laboratories, is available to support the clinical treatment of patients who need it.'

He also told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Our role has always been to - and I speak from Public Health England - make sure our labs are doing what they need to do and we're rolling tests out to the NHS for clinical treatment of patients.

'There is some capacity that is available within that in order to start testing NHS staff and that's being done.

'You've heard about the 2,000 yesterday - nowhere near where we need to get to but it's a good start - and then there's the drive-through systems that are beginning.'

Asked why other testing facilities were not being used, Professor Cosford said PHE is most closely involved in NHS testing before adding: 'The second (strand) is how we can use all of those laboratories, all of that capacity, to boost up at least 100,000 tests a day, hopefully more.'

Professor Cosford said he would expect this work to be in place 'over the coming days and a small number of weeks'.

A spokesman for the the Prime Minister revealed yesterday that 'more than' 2,000 staff had been tested since testing of health workers began at the weekend.

That is equivalent to fewer than 700 a day and a fraction of the 550,000 frontline in the NHS, or indeed the 1.3million total workforce.

Downing Street had promised on March 16 that testing NHS workers was a 'key focus', yet a pilot scheme did not begin until last Friday, two weeks later.

Mr Hancock used a virtual meeting to launch a new challenge for industry to develop innovative solutions to overcome some of the main obstacles to scaling up capacity.

'Testing is a crucial aspect of our coronavirus battleplan, and we are working day and night to increase our national testing capacity,' he said.

'I'm determined we must rise to this challenge as a country.

'So I've called together our pharmaceutical giants and testing specialists to call on them to build a scale of diagnostic capability never before seen in this country.

'It is a huge task but they know they have the have the full support of this Government as we work towards this common goal in the national interest, as part of our national effort to tackle coronavirus.

'Many companies are already working urgently to assist us in this and I'm delighted that so many more are looking to step up to this challenge.'

The PM's spokesman said that work was ongoing with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test which would show whether people have had the virus, but he said it was essential they were accurate.

'We are working as quickly as we can on that and as soon as a test is approved then we will announce it publicly,' he said.

He said the Government had previously been offered tests which had not met the required levels of accuracy 'and therefore would not have been safe to use'.

One company which has stepped up to help the coronavirus effort already is Diagnostics for the Real World, which was founded in 2003 at Cambridge University.

DRW says it has developed a coronavirus testing machine that can produce results in less than 90 minutes and is being rolled out at NHS hospitals in the city and across the UK.

Scientists there invented the portable Samba II machine and had it approved by Public Health England.

Ten of them are being used at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge this week before they are put to use nationwide.

The scientists say the machine is 98.7 per cent accurate.

CEO Helen Lee said: 'The Samba machine can be placed literally anywhere and operated by anyone with minimum training.'

Nasal and throat swabs must be collected from patients then put into the machines which will scan them for tiny traces of genetic material (RNA) from the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus.

'Miracle of Dunkirk' saved Britain from disaster in 1940 Referring to the famous Second World War evacuation of UK forces from the French coast, Sir Paul Nurse said: 'A metaphor here is Dunkirk, to be honest. We are a lot of little boats and the little boats can be effective.' Pictured: Rescue boats makes their way across the Channel during the dramatic evacuation of 1940 In the spring of 1940, UK, French and Belgian forces were cut off and surrounded by the German military. Winston Churchill warned in the Commons that the 'root and core' of the British Army was trapped. But between May 26 and June 4, a huge flotilla of vessels, including fishing trawlers and merchant ships, helped ferry more than 330,000 personnel to the safety of UK shores. The 'Miracle of Dunkirk' sparked Churchill's stirring 'fight them on the beaches' speech. But although the scale and success of the rescue was epic, the then-PM was clear that it had not been a victory. Some 68,000 British soldiers were lost during the French campaign, and nearly all tanks, vehicles, and equipment were abandoned. Advertisement

Current tests which work in the same way can take 24 hours or more.

The machines will be used to test healthcare workers as well as other patients suspected of having Covid-19 across the country.

Businessman and philanthropist Sir Chris Hohn is helping make the test more widely available with a 2.3million donation to purchase 100 of the machines for NHS use.

And a warehouse at a Milton Keynes lab could soon be converted to process coronavirus swabs after days of delays.

The National Bioample Centre site could be the key to fixing Britain's testing fiasco after the Prime Minister pledged to massively increase swabbing. The centre - which was built for 24million in 2015 - would face a massive overhaul.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma told the daily Downing Street press briefing last night that the UK was looking to create lab-based testing which was the medical equivalent of building a car factory.

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is proposing a range of temporary "stop gap" measures to offer quick support to users of some consumer credit products.

The proposed measures will be subject to a brief consultation ending at 9am on Monday April 6. If confirmed, they will be in place by Thursday April 9.

The plans include ensuring that for customers who have been hit financially by the coronavirus crisis and already have an arranged overdraft in place on their main personal current account, they will be charged zero interest on up to 500 of it for three months.

Alongside this, customers without an overdraft on their main personal current account can request this facility.

University and research institute labs in the UK 'have thousands of machines that could be used for coronavirus testing'

There are dozens of laboratories in the UK that already have the equipment needed to process coronavirus tests, according to scientists.

Experts calling for testing to be done more widely have offered their services and say research institutes, universities and private science companies have thousands of the DNA testing machines that are needed to look for COVID-19.

The PCR machines examine DNA taken from a nose or throat swab to look for signs of viral genetic material (RNA) left behind by the coronavirus. This is the kind of testing currently being used by Public Health England, which has eight of its own laboratories and access to 40 in NHS hospitals around the country.

'Every self-respecting medical or bioscience laboratory in the UK will have the necessary equipment to conduct hundreds if not thousands of these tests every day,' said Professor Colin Garner, who runs a charity called Antibiotic Research UK in York Science Park.

'So why has the government not asked/commandeered/enlisted facilities and people to do these tests?'

One scientist told Sky News that there are thousands of PCR machines all over the UK.

Professor Julian Peto, from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: 'These PCR machines are in every university and commercial lab in Britain so I'm sure you've got 14,000 of them.

'If the people who are already operating those machines turned over to testing to the virus, you'd be able to test everyone in Britain once a week, and you'd be able to test every other day people who come into contact with patients - nurses, doctors, the NHS in particular.'

The 'small ship' labs include:

Francis Crick Institute, London

The Francis Crick Institute in King's Cross, London, has already started testing NHS staff from local hospitals and said it hopes to scale up to 2,000 tests per day

The Francis Crick Institute, a leading biomedical science lab in London, has already started using its facilities to test NHS staff from local hospitals that are part of the University College London Hospitals NHS Trust.

It hopes to scale up to 500 tests per day by early next week with the ultimate aim of doing 2,000 every day.

Cancer Research UK has scientists at the Crick Institute who are involved with carrying out the tests and is also using its staff and equipment around the country to help test medical workers so they can continue working on the frontline without fears they are spreading the infection.

Executive director of research at the charity, Iain Foulkes, said: 'They are providing desperately needed capacity at a time of national crisis, and testing NHS staff quickly so they can decide if they can return to their life-saving work.

'As a scientific research community, we need to beat the pandemic together  the sooner we do that the sooner our researchers can get back to beating cancer.'

Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford

The Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at the University of Oxford, which usually studies human diseases, said it has offered help to the Government but not been commissioned

Some scientists with the right facilities have already volunteered to help the government effort but not had their offers taken up.

Matthew Freeman, at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University said in a tweet: 'We have many people experienced in PCR.

'Wed love to help and have been trying to volunteer for weeks. Must be many university departments and institutes in similar position.

'I'd love to know more about why we cant be used. Would be interested to hear if others have been more successful in offering services.

'I understand how complex it is: quality control, biosafety, ethics... But can't help feeling that in an emergency these could have been sorted. Less complex than constructing a 5,000 bed hospital in 2 weeks.'

The department would normally use its machines to examine the minute workings of human infections and diseases.

Another lab at Oxford - the Butt Group, which studies genetics - added on Twitter: 'I echo this sense of frustration: we volunteered on day 1 and beyond being asked 3 times to list our expertise, have heard nothing.'

Marc Dionne, a researcher at Imperial College London, replied: 'Many from Imperial in the same position. I've heard that one of the personnel shortages now is not people capable of running PCR but people capable of directing them'.

Systems Biology Laboratory, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, is already testing staff at local GP surgeries

Systems Biology Laboratory, a not-for-profit science company, has taken local matters into its own hands and is already testing staff at 14 GP surgeries in Oxfordshire twice a week.

The tests - it is doing around 100 per day, according to The Times - mean staff can continue to work safe in the knowledge that they don't have the coronavirus so aren't passing it on to patients.

Director of the lab, Mike Fischer, said he started buying the testing kits online around two weeks ago and they cost about 10 per time. He hopes to scale up to be able to do 800 tests every day.

'We just ordered another 15,000 tests. I pledged a million pounds towards other people's costs and I'll be delighted when that runs out,' he told The Times.

Although Mr Fischer doesn't have official approval as a testing centre he said the Government was aware of what he was doing and was 'supportive'.
Poetry Ireland has announced that Poetry Day Ireland will take place as a digital/virtual festival on Thursday, April 30, allowing everyone to take part from the safety of their own home and collectively experience the joy of poetry.

The Director of Poetry Ireland, Maureen Kennelly, announced plans for this years festival, which has been amended from its original format due to the ongoing fight against Covid-19.

Now in its sixth year, this annual celebration of the spoken and written word is presented by Poetry Ireland in partnership with poetry lovers the length and breadth of the country.

And while this year will see a different format than the norm for Poetry Day Ireland, it will be an uplifting and interactive opportunity for everyone to connect through virtual poetry workshops, video poetry readings, social media and much more.

Events lined up so far for this years festival include a Poetry Day Ireland Virtual Pub Quiz, First in Line! Online Poetry Workshop for Beginners and video readings from the shortlisted poets for The Moth Poetry Prize in the run-up to the live announcement of the winner of the 10,000 prize.

Poetry Day Ireland will also present well-known figures reading poems in a series of videos, as it has done in previous years, and share 12 beautiful time-themed Pocket Poems online and through social media.

Further programme details will be announced in the coming days on www.poetryday.ie.

The theme this year - There will be time  has been in the works since last autumn, long before the current guidelines were put in place in Ireland.

It was partly chosen as 2020 is a leap year, when we gain an extra day of time that didnt exist in the previous year. Today, the theme of time resonates with us in another way due to the impact of the Covid-19 measures on our daily lives and our sense of time passing.

Each poem is, in a way, a time machine  travelling to the past or the present or the future, examining the way we were, are, and hope to be.

There is still plenty of time for people to register their virtual/online-only event on the Poetry Day website  visit www.poetryday.ie.

And the Poetry Day Ireland team is keen to know how everyone will be marking this day at home  let them know by using #PoetryDayIRL.
Terry Webster Jr. was about to take a big step in his campaign to represent the fourth district on the Pike Township board by hosting a fundraiser.

But that fundraiser, like so many events across the country, had to be canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Candidates caught a little bit of a break when Gov. Eric Holcomb announced Indianas primary will be delayed until June 2, but its just one example of the way local campaigns  for prominent and less prominent offices  are having to make adjustments now that in-person events and campaigning have come to a halt.

Candidates at the biggest disadvantage are those like Webster, running for smaller offices that arent as well known. Thats especially true if theres more than one candidate seeking the party nomination, meaning its not an option to wait it out and gear up for a run at the general election.

Aside from taking policy positions and drawing a contrast between them and others running for the same office, these candidates have to put effort into making sure voters know who they are.

Webster, a Democrat, said a lot of people dont even know hes running to be a township board member. Hes in the process of launching his campaign page on Facebook.

Terry Webster Jr., candidate for township board in Pike Township

Digital initiatives are one of the only remaining tools for candidates to use.

He said he isnt concerned with finances right now because it isnt the right time to be hammering the people for money, as many try to navigate economic instability.

Money always helps, Webster said, but I believe once things settle down that Ill have to get out and do the groundwork of getting my face out to the people.

Belinda Drake, a Democrat running for state Senate in District 32, has also had to cancel in-person fundraisers while her team works on ways to continue raising money online.

Like Webster, though, Drake said its important to be sensitive to each persons financial situation.

We have to remain empathetic to the hardship that many are facing right now, said Drake, who added her campaign is willing to help other Democrats with money and resources.

The biggest adjustment shes had to make to her campaign, Drake said, is how to reach out to voters. In lieu of in-person canvassing, Drake has set up Facebook events for volunteers to do phone banking.

With many people staying home to maintain social distancing, Drake believes, if nothing else, doing more phone banking could be good for simple interactions that are becoming rarer.

A lot of the people in the community may actually appreciate hearing from somebody at this time, she said.

Drakes campaign also organized a volunteer trip to Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana for March 31, which doubled as a way to create positive exposure for her campaign through what Drake said is a demonstration of servant leadership.

Moving the primary from May 5 to June 2 isnt that big of a deal for candidates like Drake who wont face a challenger until the general election, but for others  especially those strapped for cash  the extra time is an opportunity to spread awareness about their campaigns.

Webster said time will be helpful for his campaign because, if social distancing guidelines loosen in time, hell have a better chance to show voters his enthusiasm.

At the end of the day, you have to have a passion for the people, he said. If a person is coming out and just pushing money, money, money, to me thats a red flag that you may not have the passion for the people.

Pierre Pullins, candidate for U.S. House of Representatives

For some campaigns, though, a global health crisis doesnt change much.

Pierre Pullins, a perennial Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in Indianas seventh district, said he hasnt tried raising money and will just stick to posting on Facebook.

If you got the money to run commercials, you can run commercials, he said. But I dont have any money, so I just run Facebook posts.

Contact staff writer Tyler Fenwick at 317-762-7853. Follow him on Twitter @Ty_Fenwick.

Belinda Drake (front), a candidate for state Senate, took her campaign team to volunteer at Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana. Local candidates have had to change the way they campaign because of the COVID-19 health crisis. (Photo provided)
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:33:36|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China on Thursday refuted several United States intelligence officials' accusations that China concealed the extent of the coronavirus epidemic and under-reported the number of the COVID-19 cases and deaths, and noted that such remarks were "shameless and immoral."

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the comments at a news briefing when answering a relevant question.

"China has been giving open, transparent and timely updates to the world as demonstrated clearly in the details my colleagues and I have elaborated on China's response many times," Hua said.

On international public health security, it is the World Health Organization (WHO) and experts on epidemiology and disease control who are entitled to make judgement, rather than several politicians who are habitual liars, Hua said.

She said a senior WHO official on Wednesday refuted unjustified accusations against China's epidemic data at a press conference in Geneva.

China has always been open, transparent and responsible in all its efforts, Hua said. "The decisive and strong measures taken by the Chinese government ensured to the highest possible extent the life, safety and health of the Chinese people and bought precious time for stemming the global spread of the virus."

"We understand that the United States is facing difficulties and some U.S. officials are under pressure, and we feel deeply for the hardship of the American people," Hua said. "Out of humanitarian spirit, we would like to provide help and support within our capability to the United States in the fight against the pandemic."

However, Hua said the remarks by these few U.S. politicians are just shameless and immoral. "Slandering, smearing and blaming cannot make up for lost time and more lies will only waste more time and lead to more lives lost."

"We advise these politicians that, at this moment, they should put the safety of people's lives and health before politics," Hua said. "It is immoral and inhumane to continue to politicize public health issue, which should be condemned by all people of the world, including people of the United States."
KALAMAZOO, MI  Kalamazoo County government officials will answer questions Friday afternoon about COVID-19 as part of a live online question and answer session.

Kalamazoo Medical Director Dr. William Nettleton and County Health Officer Jim Rutherford will be joined by Sheriff Rick Fuller at 3 p.m. Friday, April 3 on the health departments Facebook page.

Those with questions they wish to have answered are asked to submit them to pio@kalcounty.com prior to 3 p.m. Friday, and to include their name and municipality along with their question.

Nettleton, Rutherford and Fuller met Thursday with community leaders as part of a weekly call to answer questions on the virus and address concerns such as testing availability and how to address vulnerable populations such as the citys homeless.

Other questions pertained to seniors who showed signs of being symptomatic, as well as the possibility of community buildings being used as overflow or extra space for hospitals or day centers for the transient community if that need arises.

RELATED: Coronavirus continues rampage through Michigan as case total reaches 10,791, death toll hits 417

Also on Thursday, Rutherford issued a statement recommending workplace health screenings for all essential businesses and services still operating at this time.

All employees should be screened upon entry into their place of employment and checked for fever or other symptoms, as well as maintain six feet of distance between other people whenever possible, he said.

Our intention with issuing this recommendation is to further protect the health and safety of our essential service workers, their family members and the entire community, Rutherford said.

Kalamazoo reported four new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, bringing its total number of cases to 34, up 10 from Tuesday. The county has recorded one death, which was announced Monday, one day after it was announced a Western Michigan University student died from the virus.

For more information from the county on coronavirus, visit www.kalcounty.com/hcs/covid19.php.

Read all of MLives up-to-date coverage on the coronavirus at mlive.com/coronavirus. Additional information is available at Michigan.gov/Coronavirus and CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

Also on MLive:

Answers to 5 questions about Kalamazoo Countys coronavirus response

Van Buren County reports its first coronavirus death

Downtown Kalamazoo eerily quiet as coronavirus cases surge in Michigan

Answers to 7 questions about coronavirus response from Kalamazoo Public Safety chief

Kalamazoo YMCA will donate 1,000 free meals daily during coronavirus emergency

Kalamazoo businesses partner to produce face shields for healthcare workers
Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic broke EU law by rejecting refugees, the top EU court says.

The EU's top court has ruled that Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic broke EU law by refusing to take in refugees under an agreement to ease the burden faced by Italy and Greece.

EU leaders agreed to relocate 160,000 refugees EU-wide in 2015, from overcrowded camps in Italy and Greece.

The European Court of Justice says the three central European countries "failed to fulfil their obligations".

The EU Commission can impose hefty fines for breaches of EU law.

The Czech Republic accepted only 12 of the 2,000 refugees it had been designated, while Hungary and Poland received none.

The relocation scheme assigned quotas to the EU member states, and targeted mainly asylum seekers who had fled from Syria's devastating civil war.

The ECJ dismissed the countries' argument that the non-EU migrants could pose a security threat. That argument, the judges said, could only be applied in relation to a specific applicant, not to a whole group.

Italy and Greece have long accused other EU member states of a lack of solidarity for taking only relatively small groups of refugees from the temporary camps, which were hastily erected in the migrant crisis of 2015. BBC
By Associated Press

WASHINGTON DC: US President Donald Trump aims to shovel USD 2.2 trillion into the US economy over the next few weeks to try to cushion its free fall.

But that means putting his fate in the hands of banks, profit-minded businesses and government bureaucrats he has frequently derided, along with a man who has emerged as arguably the biggest power broker to business in Washington: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

The massive bailout package, which includes direct cash payments, USD 349 billion in loans for small businesses and a USD 500 billion corporate rescue fund, is the biggest ever in US history.

It's an attempt to keep the economy afloat as Trump warns Americans to brace for a "hell of a bad two weeks," with 100,000 to 240,000 coronavirus deaths now  projected in the US even if current social distancing guidelines are followed.

At the same time, the country is hemorrhaging more than 3 million jobs a week, with economic forecasters warning of a deep recession that could compromise the president's reelection chances.

At the center is Mnuchin, a former hedge fund manager and movie producer who helped to write the package and shepherd it through Congress and now has enormous discretion over which industries are most in need and how to dole cash out accordingly.

And then there is the matter of the president  and questions about whether he'll want to meddle.

Trump has already made clear he is more inclined to work with those who earn his favor, including returning the calls of governors who praise him and prioritizing requests for equipment and vital supplies in states that will be crucial to his reelection, like Florida.

Neil Barofsky, a partner at Jenner & Block who served as the first special inspector general of the 2008 Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) program, said the package gives the administration "a ton of discretion," but it's too soon to know exactly how much because the programs for distributing funds have yet to be set up.

ALSO READ| Trump proposes USD 2 trillion infrastructure fund to stimulate economy amid COVID-19 pandemic

"I think it's unlikely the Treasury Secretary's going to call up Bank of America and say, 'Hey, you've got to give a loan to this guy,'" Barofsky said, "so the opportunities are more in the design of the program that tilts it toward a particular industry or a subset of an industry."

Still, Peter Henning, a law professor at Wayne State University and a former Justice Department attorney, said the act was written to give Mnuchin tremendous power. "He can negotiate the terms of any loan or loan guarantee, so it's a much broader authority than back in 2008," when Congress offered a bailout to banks and automakers during the last financial crisis.

With so much discretion, Henning wondered whether businesses with political ties to Trump might end up benefiting. "Is he going to favor businesses that are friendly to the president? I don't know."

The legislation does establish a system of oversight on how companies can use the money that is widely thought to exceed the standards set in 2008-09. Borrowers, for instance, must be based in the U.S. and companies cannot repurchase outstanding stock or pay dividends until one year after their borrowing is repaid. The legislation also makes companies ineligible for loans if top Trump administration officials, members of Congress or their families have 20 per cent control of the company or more.

The law also created a new government watchdog  a special inspector general to be appointed by Trump  and a panel appointed by Congress to monitor how the aid is deployed. However, Trump has already rejected the independence of the office and disputed other aspects of the oversight rules, including that Congress should be consulted in the allocation of money.

The Treasury Department did not respond to questions about Mnuchin's role. The White House declined to answer questions about the potential for influence and instead offered a statement trumpeting the legislation, saying it would "take care of all Americans, including affected industries and small businesses, in unprecedented ways during this ongoing pandemic."

The USD 2.2 trillion relief bill also contains up to USD 50 billion in support for passenger airlines and USD 8 billion for air cargo carriers, half of the money intended to pay workers.

Administration officials indicate that the first major wave of cash to hit the economy will likely start flowing Friday in the form of USD 349 billion in forgivable loans, provided on a first-come, first-served basis, to small businesses that agree to retain or rehire their workers.

That will be followed by cash deposits of USD 1,200 per person with incomes below USD 75,000. The infusion will depend on banks approving loans at a record pace and an Internal Revenue Service with 20,000 fewer workers than it had a decade ago.

It will also depend on bank websites not crashing amid a crush of loan applications and checks reaching the proper accounts without the money being garnished for people's past debts.

Mary Miller, who oversaw efforts to revive the economy after the Great Recession as the Treasury Department's undersecretary for domestic finance, noted that many banks appear unready to process loans that are forgivable if small businesses keep their workers on payroll.

ALSO READ| Global economy could shrink by 1% in 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic

"I want to see the money hit the ground as quickly as possible, but I'm skeptical that it can work like magic. We're racing against time. Small businesses can't wait a few weeks before they fail," said Miller, who is now running for mayor of Baltimore.

"Time is of the essence. We have a lot of money. We need to get that money in Americans' hands," Mnuchin stressed Wednesday in an interview on CNBC. If the money is exhausted, he said, the administration plans to go back to Congress for more. "That will be at the top of the list to go back to Congress," he said.

The Small Business Administration has expanded from 3,000 employees to 5,000 and more in order to manage the effort. But the IRS, which will help distribute nearly USD 300 billion in checks, has lost more than 20 per cent of its workers since fiscal 2010.

There are also unfilled spots at Treasury, which will force Mnuchin to scramble in order to distribute funds successfully. "You can't get the medicine administered if you don't have the people to administer it," said Sarah Bloom Raskin, who succeeded Miller at Treasury and later served as a Federal Reserve governor.

Tony Fratto, a former Treasury and White House spokesman during George W. Bush's administration, said the scope of the effort means, "There are absolutely going to be mistakes. There's no doubt about it. You just can't do something this big, this quickly, with so little documentation without mistakes," he said.

However, he added, "The objective right now to minimize damage to the US economy means that you put a much higher priority on pushing money out the door as quickly as possible."
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Experion Holdings Ltd. (the "Company" or "Experion") (TSXV:EXP)(OTCQB:EXPFF)(FRANKFURT:MB31) is pleased to announce that its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM) will be held on Wednesday, May 27, 2020 at 11:00 AM, Pacific Standard Time. The Company is preparing to host a virtual AGM in conjunction with Computershare using a third-party service provider in order to comply with the current national and provincial health restrictions relating to non-essential travel, physical distancing and avoiding gatherings of more than 10 people.

Further details on the virtual AGM will be provided to shareholders as they become available.

About Experion Holdings Ltd.

Experion Holdings Ltd. is the parent company of Experion Biotechnologies Inc., a Health Canada licensed cultivator and processor of Cannabis, based in Mission, BC.

Experion Holdings Ltd. is invested in a portfolio of products to address a wide spectrum of consumer needs' including Adult-use, Wellness and Therapeutic, and Medical products.

Experion trades on the TSX Venture Exchange as a Tier 1 issuer under the symbol "EXP" on the OTCQB Venture under the symbol "EXPFF" and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol "MB31"

For further information, please visit the Company's website www.experionwellness.com or contact Investor Relations, Email: IR@experionwellness.com

Disclosure

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Although the Company believes that such information is reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.

Forward looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, forecast, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward looking information as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to: the state of the financial markets for the Company's equity securities; recent market volatility; the Company's ability to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to implement its business strategies; the risks identified in the Filing Statement, and other risks and factors that the Company is unaware of at this time. The reader is referred to the Filing Statement dated September 25, 2017 and/or the most recent annual and interim Management's Discussion and Analysis for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects, copies of which may be accessed through the Company page on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies ofthe TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Experion Holdings Ltd.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583516/Experion-Holdings-Announces-AGM-to-be-Hosted-Virtually
A man who was killed after swinging a pickax at a San Antonio police officer last week continued approaching her even after she missed her first shot, investigators said.

Family members called police when Carlos Delgado, 46, was trying to break into the home at 3:44 p.m. on March 23 in the 500 block of Glendale Avenue, a custodial death report submitted to the Texas Attorney Generals Office states.

Once inside, Delgado began destroying items throughout the house with the pickax, police said.

When the officer arrived, she encountered Delgado in the street. He began walking toward her with the pickax in a threatening manner, the report states.

Police noted that Delgado appeared to be intoxicated and had made suicidal statements.

He ignored several commands from the officer and began swinging the ax at her, police said.

She backed away, attempting to distance herself as Delgado kept approaching her, the report states.

The officer fired once at Delgado, missing him. Delgado paused briefly, then resumed his advance, investigators said.

She fired a second shot hitting Delgado in his chest. He fell to the ground and dropped the pickax, police said.

EMS arrived and pronounced Delgado dead at the scene.

The unidentified officer, who has been with the department for two years, was placed on administrative duty as police investigate the incident. She was not injured, police said.

Jacob Beltran is a reporter covering San Antonio and Bexar County. To read more from Jacob, become a subscriber. jbeltran@express-news.net | Twitter: @JBfromSA
1. 6.6 million.

The number of jobless claims the Labor Department reported today is 10 times the weekly record set in 1982.

On the heels of the previous weeks report of more than three million job losses, about 10 million people total are newly out of work. In just two weeks, the coronavirus has roughly matched the jobs carnage of the 2008 financial crisis.

Last week, the tourism and hospitality industries bore the brunt. This week, the wave extended to usually recession-proof sectors like education and even health care. Still, Wall Street closed significantly higher, buoyed partly by a rise in oil prices and a suggestion by President Trump that a price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia could be ending.
By Alexander Marrow and Vladimir Soldatkin

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin is taking precautions to protect himself against coronavirus, the Kremlin said on Wednesday, as Moscow authorities launched a smartphone app to track people who have been ordered to stay home because of the outbreak.

Putin held a government meeting on Wednesday by video conference a day after a doctor who met him last week said he had been diagnosed with the infectious virus.

Denis Protsenko last week gave Putin a tour of Moscow's main coronavirus hospital and shook hands with the Russian leader. Protsenko is now self-isolating in his office.

The Kremlin, which has said Putin was fine, said the president was keeping his distance from others, preferring to work remotely. It also said Putin was keeping a bottle of antiseptic on his desk.

Asked if Putin had changed the way he greeted people and was keeping a distance, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "Of course, now everyone is maintaining a social distance. Everyone is doing this."

'DIGITAL CONCENTRATION CAMP'

Russia expanded its coronavirus lockdown on Wednesday to cover more of its sprawling territory as the official tally of infections rose to 2,777, after increasing by 440 on one day. Twenty-four people have died in Russia, the authorities say.

Moscow, a bustling metropolis of more than 12.5 million that has become the epicenter of Russia's outbreak, has come to an eerie standstill since a partial lockdown was imposed on Sunday.

Residents can leave their homes only to buy food or medicine nearby, get urgent medical treatment, walk the dog or take out trash. Red Square remains largely empty except for police who stopped occasional passersby to check their papers.

At a government meeting on Wednesday, Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova asked Putin to extend a non-working week he had declared last week to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

Her request suggests the lockdown measures could be extended into next week.

Story continues

Putin also signed legislation on Wednesday allowing the government to declare a state of emergency to fight the virus.

Only the president can declare a state of emergency after he has formally received the support of the upper house of parliament, but lawmakers on Tuesday passed legislation granting the cabinet of ministers the same emergency powers.

A Moscow city official said on Wednesday authorities had developed a smartphone app for residents who have contracted the virus to allow officials to monitor their movements. The app will be available from Thursday, the official, Eduard Lysenko, told the Ekho Moskvy radio station.

The Russian capital is also preparing to roll out a QR-code system where each resident that registers online will be assigned a unique code that they can show to police officers if stopped when going to the shop or the chemist, he said.

Both measures appeared in an unconfirmed draft blueprint for a city-wide surveillance system that was circulated online this week. Kremlin critics said it risked turning Moscow into a "digital concentration camp".

Lysenko said anyone without a device that is able to download the tracking app would be lent one by city authorities that they would later return.

Eight southern Russian regions rolled out lockdown measures similar to Moscow's on Wednesday, meaning more than two thirds of Russia's more than 80 regions are now in a state of partial lockdown.

(Additional reporting by Maria Kiselyova, Nadezhda Tsydenova and Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Edmund Blair)
While some might argue that having a new baby in the house puts parents in a sort of semi-quarantine anyway, those with offspring sporting March 2020 birthdays will beg to differ.

Overstretched hospitals, empty supermarket shelves and the ongoing fear of actually getting coronavirus via the many health appointments that come with a new baby have ratcheted up anxiety levels for those who found their final trimester ending during a global lock-down.

Add to that the ban on going outdoors too much, coffee dates, NCT gatherings and even cute photo sessions that normally come with a new baby and parenting during lock-down can be a lonely experience.

Here, Femail speaks to four families who've welcomed a new addition in recent weeks about how they've coped with having one of life's most joyous moments derailed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Priyanka Bhattacharya, 37, who lives in Isleworth, gave birth to her four-week-old son Aum on March 2 at West Middlesex hospital

Priyanka Bhattacharya, 37, who lives in Isleworth, gave birth to her four-week-old son Aum on March 2 West Middlesex hospital. Pictured, with daughters Adya, 11, and Arya, six

Aum (pictured), arrived on 2 March at 9.22am weighing 8lbs - just as the coronavirus pandemic was starting

'It's such a weird time and I'm just so grateful we made it home before everything got more serious. I've had two babies in the past and it's never been anything like this. We were lucky we just got out of West Middlesex hospital in Isleworth when all hell broke loose.

When we went in, we didn't realise coronavirus would take over the world like this. It is such a weird time for a newborn to come into this world. We were really scared about what was happening. I can just image how scared the plight of mothers are going in now, as it's only getting worse and worse.'

We have been most affected by not being able to buy some of the most basic things. When a new mum goes into hospital, they don't stock up on months-worth of items, they just buy things to last a couple of days, or a week or two.

But we came home right in the middle of everything. Even basic necessities like nappies and baby wipes had flown off the shelves - they had all just disappeared.

Priyanka, who is severely asthmatic and is currently living with her husband Joy, 40, their two daughters, and her grandparents in a four-bedroom house, told how they are all on complete lockdown due to being high risk. Pictured, with four-week-old Aum

The concerned mother admitted she is concerned as she is struggling to get hold of the necessities she needs for baby Aum (pictured)

We got home on the 2 March and I came out on March 5 following some complications. We had basic necessities with us but when my husband went to the supermarket, he came home and told me there was nothing left. It was scary. I couldn't' sleep. I didn't believe him. I thought he was just being difficult.

I went with him to verify it for myself and when I saw those empty shelves, I nearly broke down. Even basic things like sanitary pads - I didn't think I wouldn't be able to get any. We couldn't even get hold of nappy bags, so I am using other plastic bags that are recyclable.

Luckily, we had been getting a Tesco delivery at home and had been saving up the recycled bags they put the meat and fish in - so now we use them instead.

Priyanka added that her eldest daughter Adya, 11 (pictured right, with Arya, six, left), has been giving her a helping hand

Priyanka's husband Joy, 40, headed to the supermarket to get baby Aum some essential bits, but was shocked to find the shelves clear of nappies and baby wipes (pictured together)

However, we count ourselves as very lucky because my parents arrived from India just a few days before Aum was born. We haven't got any family here, so my grandparents, aged 69, and 70, came over just to help us out. We are fortunate they made it in time, because India has had a lockdown as well and all its borders have been closed and international flights have been grounded.

This is also the time you look forward to bonding with your baby, you want to go to new baby and mummy classes and meet other new mums. I developed such strong friendships out of them following the births of my eldest, Adya, 11, and middle child, Arya, six.

But I fall under the very high risk category as I have severe asthma. It still scares the life out of me as we're still not at the peak in the UK. I am really petrified, so we don't go out anywhere. We are completely locked down inside the house.

Claire Grace, 38, from South Croydon, had her second child Ellis, two weeks, via C-section on 18th March at the Princess Royal University Hospital in Locksbottom, after suffering four miscarriages following the birth of their six-year-old daughter, Matilda

'We had Ellis at hospital just before the stronger restrictions came in. I had to be induced two weeks early because I had gestational diabetes, and was discharged 36 hours after he was born.

My daughter Matilda, six, wasn't allowed in the hospital at all, but my husband Daniel was there. The logistics of looking after Matilda were a little tricky. She was at our home with Daniel's parents while we were in hospital, but by the time Ellis was born, the lockdown came in. Daniel's parents stayed until the Friday and then went home to isolate by themselves.

Claire Grace, 38, from South Croydon, had her second child Ellis, two weeks, via C-section on 18th March at the Princess Royal University Hospital in Locksbottom. Pictured, together

Ellis (pictured) has tongue tie and needs an operation, but Claire doesn't yet know when this will be, meaning he will continue to struggle with feeding

Our son has a tongue tie and as a result needs an operation, but we dont yet know when or how this will be arranged and up until that time, feeding is and will continue to be tricky. For me, I breastfed my daughter and that's something that's quite important to me, so it really has been a challenge this time around.

Ellis is a lot more restless and he's not sleeping as well. You can tell he's struggling to feed and you can see he's not comfortable or getting what he wants or needs. And feeding is a lot more stressful and painful for me as well, as he can't latch on properly.

There's no breastfeeding cafes at the moment as everything has been shut down, so I haven't been able to get any feeding support which has been really challenging. I haven't had the normal health visitor or midwife visits at home either, and some have been by telephone instead - which isn't ideal.

Claire breastfed with her daughter Matilda, six, pictured with Ellis, but says it's a real struggle trying to get her newborn to latch on

My mum is very close by and she helped out a lot before the baby arrived. She helped with bits of housework when I was heavily pregnant, so to have lost all of that support and to not see her, is hard. I know she's struggling as well - your instinct is you want to go and visit and have baby cuddles. I'm in tears most days, but I guess some of that is to be expected as there's a lot more hormones flying around.

Because we've had miscarriages and because Ellis has been such a longed for baby, not to have people come and see him has been really, really hard.

We can't register the birth yet either, meaning we cant claim child benefit. I work for my own company, Assistant Quarters, where I give virtual business support to other small businesses, so I've had that added stress with the self-employment factor as well.

My husband, an engineer for Sky, is classed as a key worker, but as it's a change of situation day-by-day, week by week, there's still that uncertainty there with what the future will hold.

The lack of child benefit money hasn't affected us yet, but because we don't know what the future holds in terms of how long the restrictions will be in place, it may have more of an impact as time goes on.

Abi Wood, Head of campaigns and communications, NCT, said: 'The coronavirus pandemic is understandably causing concern amongst many new parents and worries can often be heightened during the early days with a newborn.' 'We've seen an increase in enquiries from parents who are concerned about a number of things, including the lack of usual services, isolation from families and financial fears. 'It's important that new parents know where to go for accurate information and support and that they still feel connected to others. We're constantly updating our website with a wide range of information, including FAQs about the coronavirus. 'And our network of around 325 volunteer-run local branches across the four nations connects parents through a range of online activities. New parents need strong, trusted local networks now more than ever in these uncertain times.' Advertisement

Hannah Gleadhill, 25, from Manchester, a NHS children's cancer nurse, has seen her dream wedding postponed and her maternity leave plans thrown into turmoil.

The new mum was due to wed her partner Simon Lines, a BT engineer, in June at a luxury wedding venue in the pretty Ribble Valley in Lancashire.

However, the couple's big day has been put on ice until at least 2021 because of the global pandemic - and Hannah says her dreams of spending vital bonding time with family getting to know her baby daughter, Cuba have also been derailed by the pandemic.

Hannah Gleadhill, a cancer nurse at the Manchester Children's Hospital and her partner Simon Lines, a BT engineer, from Manchester, hoped to wed on June 7th but now face rescheduling into 2021 or beyond because Hannah is due to return to her job in September and fears she - or many of her friends and family who also work for the NHS - won't be able to take leave

Hannah, 25, says she feels robbed of her maternity leave too, as she's left feeling 'lonely' while isolating at home, as partner Simon, a BT engineer, 26, is still working full-time and she can't spend time with her parents or grandparents

Hannah, who works at Manchester Children's Hospital on the oncology ward helping young cancer patients, says she can't re-plan her wedding because - even if the current restrictions are lifted - she's due to return to work from maternity leave in September and knows she'll be needed on the front line until the crisis abates.

Hannah on the oncology ward at Manchester Children's hospital before leaving to take her maternity leave

'This is not going to be over anytime soon, the pressure on the NHS will be long-term and we wouldn't want to risk trying to get married this year.

Potentially, I might not even be able to get time off for my own wedding.'

Lock down has been particularly tough because Simon works full-time as a BT engineer, so I'm alone with Cuba all day every day. You feel selfish for moaning about it, but it's such hard work being stuck in the house with a baby.

'She's not really at an age where she wants to play a lot either.

'Every day we used to go to a baby class and on weekends, we'd be out and about. She had so much social interaction before.

The week before lock-down we went to our last baby sensory class. It's so hard, it can be lonely being at home with a baby. Some days I think, why am I even getting dressed?'

Simon has been coming home from work at lunchtime to try and give Cuba some social interaction and we Facetime her grandparents every day. But it's been hard on other family members, as my grandmother, who has dementia, doesn't understand why she can't cuddle her great granddaughter.

Just the two of us: Hannah says: 'Some days I think, why am I even getting dressed?' when herself and baby Cuba can barely leave the house

After a tricky start, Cuba's health is now thriving although the NHS have cancelled all regular check-ups, such as weigh-ins

Big plans: the couple pictured shortly after Cuba's birth at the end of last year

The cancellation of her dream wedding left Hannah in tears but she says that she knows there are lots of people 'in worse situations'

What's killed me has been in, is that there's no aim. It's not like they're telling us that in three weeks we'll be allowed back out.

I'm also worried about the risk to Cuba's health. With my nursing background I obviously knew it was a pretty dire situation and it is just trying to protect Cuba.

At first they were saying that no babies could get it but obviously we've all seen the stories in the news that show they do get it.

I just feel like I've been robbed of my maternity leave with my first baby... but as much as I'm sad, there are so many people in worse situations than us. It just didn't seem like it was going to play out like this.

Natalie Chappell, 26, from Wiltshire, who runs her own digital marketing company, Zest for Media, gave birth to son Finley by C-section on March 17th at Salisbury Hospital

'I had a difficult pregnancy, suffering with hyperemesis gravidarum (severe morning sickness) for 16 weeks. I also had anaemia, too much amniotic fluid and was also told my baby was large, so I was a high-risk pregnancy.

I gave birth 12 days early to Finley and while I tend to not watch the news, what I do for a living means I'm on social media a lot and I watched the coronavirus story unfolding in the months before but still didn't feel too worried - I was busy winding down my business and had so many other more immediate concerns with my pregnancy.

Natalie Chappell, 26, from Great Bedwyn in Wiltshire, gave birth to son Finley on March 17th at Salisbury hospital; despite receiving 'amazing' care from midwives, Natalie says she's found it really hard not being able to have the support of close family (pictured with fiance Ali and son Finley)

When it really hit was when we arrived at the hospital, we were told we couldn't have visitors and that's when the panic and the upset started for me.

I endured a 37-hour labour that ended in a C-section, with Finley born weighing 8lbs 4oz, and my fiance, Ali, was only able to stay after the birth because we paid 5 an hour for one of three private rooms available - totalling 235 for my two-day stay in hospital.

During that time, Ali, couldn't eat at the hospital and how many times he left to grab a sandwich from a supermarket was monitored because the staff, who were amazing, were worried about raising the risk of infection on the maternity ward.

Now home, I'm recovering well and Finley is thriving but one of the hardest things has not been able to have contact with my mum, who I'm really close to.

The new mum says not being able to have any photographs of Finley with his grandparents weeks after his birth feels really difficult

He's going to change so much in the coming months and family are not going to be able to hold him. We're not going to have photos - memories - of him being really tiny with both sets of grandparents. We won't be able to take him to baby classes - and he won't be able to bond with other babies.

The practicalities have been hard too, I burned out our bottle steriliser by accident and trying to get another one right now isn't easy. Normally you'd just go to Tesco, but we can't do that anymore.

Once a day, I have a wobble and go into panic mode asking 'is it all going to be okay?'. Everybody in our close family is deemed a vulnerable person; I feel like, health-wise, I'm the strongest person in the family and so it's hard not to get worried.

How we'll get through it is to look ahead, we're trying to plan where we'll be able to go in six months with Finley, all the things we will be able to do. We're trying to be excited about the future and not focus on what we can't do now.'
Hospitals are seeing early success giving hydroxychloroquine to patients with COVID-19. Now, Henry Ford Health System wants to see if the drug can prevent the virus.

The health system and the city of Detroit are launching the first research trial in the nation in which healthy people are given hydroxychloroquine. It plans to enroll 3,000 first responders and health care workers from southeast Michigan in the eight-week trial.

The goal is to see if the drug can prevent or weaken COVID-19, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said.

"In Detroit, we don't normally take things lying down. We fight back," Duggan said. "If this study works out, we'll save the lives of first responders around the world."

Enrollment is voluntary for any first responders or health care workers in southeast Michigan who don't have COVID-19 or related symptoms. The hope is to start signing people up by next Monday or Tuesday, study organizer and Henry Ford interventional cardiologist Dr. William W. ONeill said.

Plans for the study started just 10 days ago, and it's been fast-tracked through the Henry Ford Health System and FDA  and is close to FDA approval, O'Neill said.

Hydroxychloroquine has been used for 75 years, and is used to prevent and treat malaria and help patients with conditions like arthritis and lupus. The drug will come from a new shipment or from a reserve, ONeill said, so it wont affect the supply of the drug for people using it for non-COVID reasons.

Side effects include stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and headache.

The FDA has approved emergency use of the drug, but the state of Michigan has warned against stockpiling it. Some Detroit hospitals, including Henry Ford and Beaumont, have been using it on COVID-19 patients.

Michigan hospital reports some success using experimental coronavirus treatment

Some of the 3,000 participants will get daily 200-milligram doses of the drug, some will get weekly doses and some will receive placebo sugar pills. It's a double-blind, random trial, meaning neither the patients or researchers know who's getting the actual drug.

The drug trial is not the only area where Detroit is breaking ground during the coronavirus pandemic. At 4 p.m. Thursday, Detroit planned to start using the Abbott Laboratories 15-minute COVID-19 tests, becoming the first city in the nation to put the technology into practice, Duggan said.

"Detroit's always been the comeback city," said HFHS Senior Vice President Dr. Steven Kalkanis. "In the last century, we turned factories into the arsenal of democracy to win World War II. And now we're turning our health care system into a new front, in a war against COVID-19."

More information on the drug trial is available at www.HenryFord.com/whipCOVID19. Once enrollment opens, people can apply on that site.

Michigan has 10,791 cases of COVID-19 as of Thursday and 417 deaths. Detroit alone has 2,858 positive cases and 101 deaths.

Were going to be fighting the coronavirus for months  at least  to come. We need to have tools to fight back, Duggan said. It may not work. Or you might change the world.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus.

Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible.

Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more Michigan coronavirus coverage here

Coronavirus continues rampage through Michigan as case total reaches 10,791, death toll hits 417

Thursday, April 2: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan

Henry Ford patient could be first with COVID-19 linked to rare form of encephalitis

Whitmer orders all Michigan schools to remain closed through academic year as coronavirus cases surge

Coronavirus crisis in pictures: How people in Jackson and Ann Arbor are battling the outbreak

Michigan inmates make face masks to curb coronavirus spread in prisons
Popular cleric, Apostle Johnson Suleman has accused China of constantly giving the rest off the world troubles.

Read Also: Ganduje, Wife Test Negative For Coronavirus

Speaking in a statement on his official Twitter handle on Thursday, the cleric pointed out that the Asian country has always been know for producing fake products, counterfeit brands and recently the manufacturing of novel coronavirus.

He wrote:

From manufacturing fake products, counterfeit brands, they manufactured a virus that has now put the whole in a mess..while they are presently busy with business, going up and about,the whole world is currently on lockdown..china should know Galatians 6.7 is real..
- Kagwe said 21 of the 22 patients who tested positive within the past one day are among people already in mandatory quarantine

- Out of the 22 new patients, the CS revealed that 13 are males while nine are females

- The new cases comprise of 18 Kenyans, two Pakistanis and two Cameroon nationals

- News of the new cases come shortly after President Uhuru annouced full recovery of two patients who were admitted to the Mbagathi isolation centre

Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Mutahi Kagwe has announced that 22 more people have tested positive for coronavirus in Kenya.

This brings the total number of cases that have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since the first case was reported in Nairobi on Friday, March 13, to 81.

READ ALSO: 10 beautiful photos of Kenya's patient zero Brenda who recovered from COVID-19

The CS (c) revealed that out of the 22 new cases, 13 are males while nine are females. Photo: MoH.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Coronavirus: AMREF says pandemic could force people to stay indoors up to 5 months

In his update on Wednesday, April 1, Kagwe said 21 of the 22 patients who tested positive within the past 24 hours are among people already in mandatory quarantine.

"For the last 24 hours, we have tested over 300 Kenyans. Out of those, 22 have tested positive. This is the largest number that we have received in a single day. It is also commensurate to the fact that this is the largest number that we have tested in a single day.

Let me also add that 21 out of the 22 cases are people who are currently in quarantine and that tells you the importance of the exercise that we have been carrying out," said Kagwe.

READ ALSO: Murkomen ageuka dereva kutokana na coronavirus

Out of the 22 new patients, the CS revealed that 13 are males while nine are females.

The new cases comprise of 18 Kenyans, two Pakistanis and two Cameroon nationals. One of them is a patient admitted to a Mombasa based health facility.

READ ALSO: Zuri: Simple way to unsubscribe from stubborn SMS services feasting on your airtime

News of the new cases come shortly after President Uhuru Kenyatta annouced full recovery of two patients who were admitted to the Mbagathi isolation centre.

The duo is Ivy Brenda Cherotich, also identified as patient zero, and Brian who contracted the infection from Brenda.

According to Kagwe, the story of Brenda and Brian should be a testimony to Kenyans and should also go along way in telling Kenyans that contracting the virus is not a death sentence.

"The recovery of Cherono and Brian should be a testimony that Kenyans must now understand that contracting the disease is not a license to death," said the CS.

On his part, President Uhuru hailed Brenda for presenting herself to health authorities after she realised that she might have been exposed to the virus.

"Your actions are to be emulated by every Kenyan. Come out and get tested as soon as you feel unwell.

There is no stigma. Isolate yourself to ensure you do not put others on harms way, the President urged Kenyans during a video call with Brenda, Brian and CS Kagwe.

Uhuru said the government will continue to proactively implement measures to curb the spread of the respiratory disease. Photo: State House Kenya.

Source: Facebook

Since the first case was reported in Kenya on March 13, some 81 cases have been reported. Three of the patients have fully recovered and one has died.

Globally, over 880,000 cases have been reported. Some 44,000 lives have been lost to the respiratory ailment and 185, 175 have recovered.

Italy is the hardest hit with a death toll of 12,428 and 105,712 infection. However, some 7,251 people have recovered in the European country.

The US has taken the biggest blow in terms of infections which currently stand at 188,881. The President Donald Trump-led country has recorded 4,066 deaths and 7,251 recoveries.

On Tuesday, March 31, medical experts projected that the country (US) may lose between 100,000 to up to 200,000 people to the disease.

Do you have a groundbreaking story you would like us to publish? Please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690. Contact Tuko.co.ke instantly.

My father wanted me to be a prostitute and he is now serving time in Kamiti Maximum Prison | Tuko TV.

Source: TUKO.co.ke
[April 02, 2020] INVESTIGATION REMINDER: The Schall Law Firm Announces it is Investigating Claims Against ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. and Encourages Investors with Losses to Contact the Firm

The Schall Law Firm, a national shareholder rights litigation firm, announces that it is investigating claims on behalf of investors of ServiceMaster Global Holdings, Inc. ("ServiceMaster" or "the Company") (NYSE: SERV) for violations of the securities laws. The investigation focuses on whether the Company issued false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose information pertinent to investors. ServiceMaster announced its preliminary financial results for the third quarter of 2019 on October 22, 2019. The Company missed estimates of both revenue and earnings. The Company also gave downward adjusted EBITDA guidance of $415 to $425 million, down from $435 to $44 million. According to the Company's press release, the disappointing results were in part due to "termite damage claims arising primarily from Formosan termite activity," primarily in Mobile, Alabama. According to the Company, this was a known issue, and it had taken mitigation efforts "starting in 2018." The Company also announced the sudden departure of Terminix Residential President Matthew J. Stevenson. Based on this news, shares of ServiceMaster fell by 20% on the same day.



If you are a shareholder who suffered a loss, click here to participate. We also encourage you to contact Brian Schall of the Schall Law Firm, 1880 Century Park East, Suite 404, Los Angeles, CA (News - Alert) 90067, at 310-301-3335, to discuss your rights free of charge. You can also reach us through the firm's website at www.schallfirm.com, or by email at [email protected].

The class in this case has not yet been certified, and until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member. The Schall Law Firm represents investors around the world and specializes in securities class action lawsuits and shareholder rights litigation. This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and rules of ethics. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005591/en/

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Prelate of the Methodist church in Nigeria, Eminence Samuel Uche

The Prelate of the Methodist church in Nigeria, Eminence Samuel Uche, has given his own opinion on the controversial rape allegation levelled against senior pastor of the Commonwealth of Zion Assembly, Biodun Fatoyinbo, by Busola Dakolo.

The prelated shared his opinion on the rape allegation in a recent interview with media personality, Prisca Chiemeka in which he said the allegation might not be true.

Some accusations are foolish. For me, from my way of analysing things, there is no truth in such a thing. You say somebody raped you were 26 years or so and after 16 years years you come and report. What is wrong. Maybe you demanded money or you wanted some payment and the person did not give you, then you decide to blackmail the person.

Why do you punish somebody for a sin committed 16 years ago. Our lord Jesus Christ says any sinner that believes is forgiven. He said repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand. How do you go and tarnish the image of a man or woman who commited something from years ago. Is it relevant?, he said.

Watch a clip from the interview below:

[embedded content]
Saudi Arabia imposed a 24-hour curfew on Thursday in the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina, an extension of measures to combat coronavirus.

The Saudi interior ministry stipulated exceptions, including for essential workers and to allow residents to buy food and access medical care. Cars may only carry one passenger.

Saudi Arabia has recorded 1,885 infections and 21 deaths, the most in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council. It has already halted international flights, suspended the year-round umrah pilgrimage, closed most public places, and heavily restricted internal movement.

 Slide me  A slidey shows the holy site of the Kaaba holiest city in the Muslim world, located in Mecca, before (left) and after the coronavirus outbreak

Pictured: A small crowd gathers around the Kaaba, the holiest site in the Muslim world, which is located in the Saudi city of Mecca, on 7 March

Muslim pilgrims pray outside Namira Mosque on the plains of Arafat during the annual Hajj pilgrimage, outside the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia in August last year

Women wear protective face masks, as they walk, after Saudi Arabia imposed a temporary lockdown on the province of Qatif, following the spread of coronavirus, in Qatif, Saudi Arabia March 10, 2020

The eastern oil-producing province of Qatif, where the kingdom's first coronavirus cases were reported among Shi'ite Muslim pilgrims returning from Iran, has been on lockdown for nearly four weeks.

Entry and exit to Riyadh, Mecca, Medina and Jeddah is limited. Some neighbourhoods in Mecca and Medina were already under full lockdown, but in the rest of those cities the curfew was previously from 3 p.m. to 6 a.m.

In other Gulf Arab states, lockdowns targeted neighbourhoods with large numbers of low-wage foreign labourers.

A Saudi money exchanger wears a protective face mask and gloves as he counts Saudi riyal currency at a currency exchange shop in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia March 10, 2020

Expats returning from Egypt, Syria, and Lebanon arrive to be re-tested at a Kuwaiti health ministry containment and screening zone for the coronavirus in Kuwait City on March 16, 2020

Police tapes close the entrance of Dubai old market and gold market after the full lockdown, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Wednesday. Reports say that authorities ordered a two-week closure of the area. Authorities had previously imposed a partial lockdown across the Emirates from 8pm to 6am local time until 05 April with the possibility of extension

Kuwait's health minister said authorities were considering sealing off some areas after Qatar announced late on Wednesday it was extending a lockdown on an industrial area and Oman closed off Muttrah, home to one of the sultanate's oldest markets.

Dubai in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday sealed off Al Ras, an area famous for its gold and spice souqs and where many migrant workers reside.

Millions of migrant workers, mainly from Asian countries like Nepal, India and the Philippines, are among the large expatriate population in the six Gulf states, where confirmed infections have risen to above 4,700, with 36 deaths.

Workers stand near the blocked entrance of Dubai old market and gold market after the full lockdown, Dubai, United Arab Emirates yesterday

A cat walks through a deserted Gold Souq, a popular tourist attraction, before the full lockdown, following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 28, 2020

A picture shows Dubai's Burj Khalifa lit up with a message 'thank you heroes' during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic yesterday

Bahrain's health ministry reported 66 new cases on Thursday, all in the industrial zone of Salmabad.

'The expat labourers had been under precautionary quarantine in their residence and yesterday were placed in a dedicated quarantine facility and there is no outbreak among labourers,' it said.

Oman's health minister said the coastal commercial district of Muttrah was sealed off due to the discovery of a community spread of the virus. 'Such decisions are not easily taken ... but it is for the public good,' state media quoted him as saying.

Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it was working to enable foreign residents to return home even as passenger flights remain suspended.
Im not looking to attack the insurance industry, the senator said. Id like to see us come together and agree on the details in the bill, but my focus right now is on how to support restaurants, their workers and other small business.

Once the bill passes, insurance companies operating in Boston can apply for reimbursement from the Commissioner of Insurance, but the insurers would be later required to pay the state back.

Several industry experts have expressed their reservations about the legislation.

This COVID-19 situation is a risk that I dont think anyone could have possibly foreseen, Kristen Whittle, a partner at law firm Barton Gillman, told Boston Herald. Im not insensitive to the plight of businesses. Everybody is struggling with this, but to target the insurance industry to absorb the loss, I think, is the wrong approach here.

Massachusetts Restaurant Association vice-president of government affairs Steve Clark commented that the state bill is an important first step, but also noted that a federal reinsurance bill may also be necessary, since while he believes the insurance companies have money, they dont have unlimited funds.

American Property Casualty Insurance Association (APCIA) president and CEO David Sampson also raised concerns that the constitutionally-flawed legislation will jeopardize the financial ability of insurers, and even threaten the stability of the insurance sector to the detriment of all policyholders.

Sampson had previously confirmed that APCIA is talking with industry and stakeholder groups about potential liquidity solutions.

Read more: US insurers face political pressure to pay out for pandemic-related claims

Laura Meyer Gregory, partner at Sloane and Walsh LLP, brought into question whether the state bill is even constitutional.

The bill, if passed with the current terms, would likely bankrupt some insurers and cause others to discontinue writing insurance policies, Gregory told Boston Herald.

Read more: State looks at legislation to void coronavirus exclusion clauses

Bostons proposal of a coronavirus insurance bill comes after the state of New Jersey proposed its own legislation, which would also virtually void any virus exclusions in business interruption insurance.
The Kerala government



Thursday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure unrestricted movement of essential goods through inter-state borders during the lockdown to check the spread of coronavirus.

The State government has also requested the Centre to approve more testing centres in Kerala.

Central assistance would also be required in bringing the rapid test kits from Hong Kong, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told Modi during a video conference with the Prime minister on Thursday.

"Neighbouring states should not create hurdles during this crisis period and all states should fight this pandemic together," Vijayan said.

With Karnataka closing down the the border roads to Kerala and the national highway, movement of trucks carrying vegetables and essential commodtiies is facing hurdles.

Ambulances carrying seriously ill patients who depend on Mangaluru hospitals for their medical needs were also not being allowed to cross over to Karantaka.

The Chief Minister also sought the intervention of the Central government in ensuring the safety of the Malayalee workforce spread across the world, Vijayan told reporters.

"Indian Embassies should provide assistance in setting up quarantine centres in respective countries which has a large number of Indian expatriates and especially nurses from Kerala. It is our duty to ensure their personal safety also."



Vijayan also informed Modi about the status and steps taken by the state to curb the spread of the virus.

"We have implemented all directives from the Central government in this regard", he said.

The state also sought an increase in its borrowing capacity from the current 3 per cent to 5 per cent, Vijayan said.

He also requested for making the necessary transport arrangements for migrant labourers to go back home after the lockdown period.

The Chief Minister also said the Union Health Secretary, who was present during the video conference, had appreciated the state's efforts in restricting the fatalities due to Covid19 and in controlling the virus outbreak.

As suggested by the Prime Minister, all NCC cadets and NSS volunteers will be allowed to join the State's Community Volunteer Force.

Those who left NCC and NSS in the last five years will also be allowed to join, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi, April 2 : Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi has emphasised that the country needs India specific strategy to combat Covid-19 which has been declared pandemic and number of cases are rising daily.

Rahul Gandhi tweeted, "At the Congress CWC meeting today I emphasised the urgent need to devise an India specific strategy to combat the #COVID19 Pandemic & for Congress workers & leaders to help soften the blow by assisting the poor & the most vulnerable sections of our society in every possible way." Rahul Gandhi while speaking in the CWC meeting said, "COVID-19 particularly attacks aged persons, people with lung disease, diabetics, persons with heart disease, making them most vulnerable. All State Governments need to issue special advisory for these categories and take care." "We have looked at #COVID for 2 months since February and have spoken to experts. No country in the world has attempted a lockdown with huge migrant labour without arranging for their stay, food and ration & pushing them back home." The former Congress President first raised the alarm on coronavirus on February 12 and urged the government to take action. In a letter to the Prime Minister he even said that he supports the 21-day lockdown initiative by the government and suggested to do more for the poor and daily wagers.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Currently, there are limited data on the impact of pre-existing liver disease and the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection, with many open questions.

However, patients with advanced liver disease and recipients of liver transplants represent vulnerable groups and are likely to be at an increased risk of infection and/or a severe course of COVID-19. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic is placing an increasing burden on healthcare systems across the world, which could negatively impact the care of patients with chronic liver diseases who require ongoing medical attention.

To promote the best possible care in these challenging circumstances, this Position Paper provides recommendations for clinicians treating patients with chronic liver diseases.

Recommendations include: promoting telemedicine in the outpatient setting, prioritising outpatient contacts, and avoiding nosocomial dissemination of the virus to patients and healthcare providers while maintaining standard care for patients who require immediate medical attention. Additionally, the paper includes a flowchart on prioritising patient care in patients with chronic liver disease.

"While the threat COVID-19 poses to our populations is clear, it remains vital to maintain appropriate care for patients with chronic liver disease. Clinicians will need to identify ways to prioritise their care even when healthcare resources are limited. EASL has therefore published this joint Position Paper to help support clinicians facing these difficult challenges," said Prof. Phil Newsome, Secretary General of the European Association for the Study of Liver Disease (EASL) and Director of the Centre for Liver and Gastrointestinal Research & Professor of Hepatology at the University of Birmingham, UK.

A flowchart for the prioritization of patient care in patients with chronic liver disease. Credit: JHEP Reports

The paper provides recommendations on the use of outpatient care, ways to reduce direct exposure to COVID-19, and advice on managing patients with compensated/decompensated liver disease, with hepatocellular carcinoma, and following liver transplantation. It also includes advice on liver-related diagnostic procedures (including endoscopy, ultrasound, and liver biopsy), on the collaboration with local healthcare providers and primary care physicians, and on inpatient care and treatments currently being suggested.

"These recommendations address the specific concerns of patients with liver disease and are meant to provide additional guidance for their care. It is important to stress that all general recommendations and guidelines with regards to prevention, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 from local authorities must be adhered to," said Prof. Thomas Berg, Vice-Secretary General of EASL and Head of the Section of Hepatology Acting Director of the Clinic of Gastroenterology, University Hospital Leipzig, Germany.

"This joint Position Paper is a major EASL-ESCMID collaborative effort on management of liver disease during the COVID-19 pandemic strengthening links between our societies," said co-author and ESCMID Fellow Prof. Mario Mondelli, Professor of Infectious Diseases, University of Pavia, Clinical Lead, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Italy.

"Technical solutions are available to enable remote physician-patient interactions, which can be helpful during the pandemic. Health authorities should be urged to equip hospitals with such systems. This is not only to support COVID-19 patients in quarantine at home, but also to care for and guide patients needing to be protected from a potentially harmful infection in the hospital setting," commented lead author Dr. Tobias Boettler, Department of Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Germany.

This Position Paper will also be published shortly in the open access journal, JHEP Reports.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

More information: Tobias Boettler et al. Care of patients with liver disease during the COVID-19 pandemic: EASL-ESCMID Position Paper. Tobias Boettler et al. Care of patients with liver disease during the COVID-19 pandemic: EASL-ESCMID Position Paper. easl.eu/wp-content/uploads/202  ver-2-April-2020.pdf

Provided by European Association for the Study of the Liver
SACRAMENTO  Google will provide thousands of computers and free internet access to help California students finish the school year online, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday.

The company plans to donate 4,000 Chromebooks and make broadband internet available to 100,000 households through the end of the school year. Newsom said at a news conference that Google stepped up in a big way, but that more support was needed from the private sector to reach the most remote parts of the state.
Technavio has been monitoring the truck starter motor market and it is poised to grow by USD 319.28 mn during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 5% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. Request a free sample report

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005476/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Truck Starter Motor Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Borg Warner, DENSO, MAHLE, Mitsubishi Electric, and SEG Automotive are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Increasing need for fuel efficiency has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Truck Starter Motor Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Truck Starter Motor Market is segmented as below:

Application Light-duty Trucks Medium-duty Trucks Heavy-duty Trucks

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30441

Truck Starter Motor Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our truck starter motor market report covers the following areas:

Truck Starter Motor Market Size

Truck Starter Motor Market Trends

Truck Starter Motor Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies development of integrated starter-generators as one of the prime reasons driving the truck starter motor market growth during the next few years.

Truck Starter Motor Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Truck Starter Motor Market, including some of the vendors such as Borg Warner, DENSO, MAHLE, Mitsubishi Electric, and SEG Automotive. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Truck Starter Motor Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

Register for a free trial today and gain instant access to 17,000+ market research reports.

Technavio's SUBSCRIPTION platform

Truck Starter Motor Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist truck starter motor market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the truck starter motor market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the truck starter motor market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of truck starter motor market vendors

Table Of Contents :

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY APPLICATION

Market segmentation by application

Comparison by application

Light-duty trucks Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Medium- and heavy-duty trucks Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by application

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

PART 09: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Part 10: MARKET TRENDS

Development of integrated starter-generators

Development of integrated magnetic switch for heavy-duty truck starter motors

Integration of over crank protection feature

PART 10: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

PART 11: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

BorgWarner

DENSO

MAHLE

Mitsubishi Electric

SEG Automotive

PART 12: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005476/en/

Contacts:

Technavio Research

Jesse Maida

Media Marketing Executive

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Email: media@technavio.com

Website: www.technavio.com/
WATERLOO  UnityPoint Health has launched a new texting platform that allows patients to easily communicate directly with their health care providers office while reducing person-to-person exposure during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The WELL Rapid Release Program will allow UnityPoint Health to create a virtual waiting room for its clinics. Patients can notify the office when they arrive by responding to an automated appointment reminder. The patients then receive text instructions on registration and when and how to enter the building.

WELL, a health care patient communication tool, developed the Rapid Release Program in response to the coronavirus pandemic. It supports physical distancing by keeping patients in their vehicles until clinic staff is ready for them to enter the facility. This technology helps reduces COVID-19 exposure among patients and clinic staff.

The platform is being used by UnityPoint Health primary care clinics across eight regions. As this implementation rolls out, UnityPoint Health will continue evaluating this technology for implementation where it can improve the overall patient experience and automate workflows.

In an effort to reduce community spread of COVID-19, UPH continues to ask all patients to call ahead before visiting a clinic. If an individual is unsure where to go for care, go to unitypoint.org/waterloo/coronavirus-where-to-go-for-care or call (319) 833-5888.
The unit has already picked up a business licence from the Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and boasts a registered capital of 500 million yuan. Now, its business registration has been finalised  with the Beijing Local Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau confirming that the move was completed on March 31.

The move is seen by many as a welcome sign that China is returning to business as usual despite the coronavirus outbreak. The country has relaxed its approach to foreign financial firms in recent years.
TDT | Manama

A major shift in the delivery of justice before Bahrains courts has been completed. This was announced yesterday by Cassation Court president and Supreme Judicial Council vice-president Chancellor Abdulla bin Hasan Al Buainain.

He was speaking during a video conference with Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments Shaikh Khalid bin Ali Al Khalifa and Information and e-Government Authority (iGA) chief executive officer Mohammed Ali Al Qaed.

Al Buainain said that all procedures of civil and commercial cases of all types and degrees are now fully electronic. Al Buainain praised the continuous support of the Government Executive Committee, chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, who had a prominent role in the success of these efforts and achievements.

All this comes in line with the comprehensive development goals set by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Shaikh Khalid expressed his deep thanks and appreciation to the iGA for their efforts in supporting the implementation of the electronic system and in providing solid grounds for the advancement of the continuous development and implementation of justice.

In addition, Al Buainain revealed that the new service will allow the electronic filing of cases and submitting all defence statements, pleadings, and applications to the courts during all stages of the case including the issuance of judgments.

This will include cases in the first degree which was announced recently, as well as the appeal stage before the Appeal and Cassation Courts. The protection of all constitutional and legal guarantees established for a fair trial are ensured in these electronic procedures.
A brief surge in recreational marijuana sales seems to be falling off sharply. Data compiled by consultancy firm Headset and reported by Marijuana Business Daily indicates that sales in the category fell on a year-over-year basis in both Washington State and Colorado on the last day recorded for March. California registered an increase on the last day tracked, but this was only 9%.

That's low when compared with levels seen in all three states in the middle of the month, when many stay-at-home mandates were imposed in order to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. On one particular day during that period, California sales rose 159% against the same day in 2019, while Washington's increased by 100%, and Colorado saw a 46% gain.

This data suggests that after a very brief period of stocking up, recreational marijuana users are sufficiently supplied. Additionally, in numerous locations, cannabis dispensaries have been deemed essential businesses and allowed to stay open; customers might feel less urgency to buy product because of this.

Finally, states that benefit from "weed tourism" are probably suffering from the near-stoppage of travel activities. Colorado falls into this category, as it is bordered by seven states that have not yet legalized recreational cannabis.

This news is not particularly encouraging for marijuana stock investors. Many pot companies are connected to the three covered states, including Cresco Labs (OTC:CRLBF) and Innovative Industrial Properties (NYSE:IIPR). Last year, Cresco completed the acquisition of California distributor Origin House, while Innovative holds properties in both California and Colorado.

On Wednesday, the shares of both Innovative and Cresco fell harder than the broader stock market, with the former declining by over 9% and the latter by almost 12%.
The elite of the Northeast fleeing to their seasonal homes on the island of Marthas Vineyard in an attempt to escape the coronavirus may have brought the pandemic with them to their idyllic retreat.

Some permanent locals are furious that seasonal residents have flooded the island, potentially bringing the coronavirus with them and putting the healthcare system at risk of collapse, according to NBC News.

Though some residents expressed fear that the part-time island dwellers fleeing from the city would bring the virus with them, others noted in Facebook group discussions that the primarily service industry-based economy could use the infusion of cash to keep things running.

A substantial number of the individuals fleeing to the island are coming from New York City and other Northeast metropolitan areas. New York City is currently the US epicentre for the virus.

As of Thursday, Marthas Vineyard had eight confirmed cases of coronavirus. The local hospital has tested 113 people, according to the Vineyard Gazette, and none of those confirmed to have the virus has yet required hospitalisation.

However, the potential for the Marthas Vineyard Hospital to become overrun with patients - especially with an unexpected population surge - is high.

The hospital has 25 beds and seven ventilators. With 25,000 people on the island currently, that breaks down to about one bed for every 1,000 residents.

Those arriving by ferry are greeted with an illuminated sign warning them to stay home 14 days to help prevent the spread of the virus on the island.

Marthas Vineyard isnt the only vacation town vying with emergency population booms resulting from those fleeing the coronavirus. Other locations - despite their economies relying on visitors - are doing what they can to turn away visitors.

Officials in South Lake Tahoe, California told visitors to stay home. Markets ran out of food in the Hamptons because they didnt anticipate the influx of people.

In Sedona, Arizona the mayor asked vacationers to postpone their plans, and officials in the Outer Banks, North Carolina said they would set up checkpoints to turn away visitors.

From our perspective, we consider this pause in visitation to hopefully save some lives, Lee Nettles, executive director of the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, told the New York Times.
Brett Crozier wrote a letter asking Navy leaders for stronger measures to control the outbreak on the aircraft carrier.

The United States Navy announced on Thursday that it had relieved the commander of the US aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, who wrote a scathing letter that leaked to the public and that asked Navy leadership for stronger measures to control a coronavirus outbreak on board.

Officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to Reuters new agency earlier on Thursday, said Captain Brett Crozier was being relieved not because he wrote the letter and sent it up through the chain of command, but because the Navy believes he leaked it to the media.

Crozier demonstrated extremely poor judgement in the middle of a crisis in writing a letter detailing the problem that was leaked to the US media before top defence officials saw it, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said.

More than 100 personnel on the 5,000-person ship have tested positive for the coronavirus so far.

Decisive action

In a four-page letter, Crozier described a bleak situation aboard the nuclear-powered carrier as more sailors tested positive for the virus.

He called for decisive action: removing more than 4,000 sailors from the ship and isolating them.

He said that unless the Navy acted immediately, it would be failing to properly safeguard our most trusted asset  our sailors.

The letter put the Pentagon on the defensive about whether it was doing enough to keep the warships crew members safe, and alarmed the families of those aboard the vessel, whose home port is in San Diego, California.

On Wednesday, the Navy declined to rule out punishing the captain of the carrier.

I dont know who leaked the letter to the media. That would be something that would violate the principles of good order and discipline, if he were responsible for that. But I dont know that, acting US Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said when asked multiple times whether the captain faced discipline.

The carrier was in the Pacific when the Navy reported its first coronavirus case a week ago. It has since docked at the US Naval Base Guam on the southern end of the US island territory in the western Pacific.
This scene from "Shaun of the Dead" is not what our current pandemic looks like. (Focus Features)

We should have been much better prepared for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Im not talking about on a federal or local level  although President Trump's firing of the pandemic experts and ignoring the medical community during early weeks, not to mention Californias decision to stop funding a bunch of mobile hospitals  certainly contributed to the crisis.

No, Im talking about each and every one of us, bathed as we have been in decades' worth of apocalyptic tales, many of them centered on illness and/or governmental ineptitude. In fact, theres one on Apple TV right now, "See," in which the worlds population has been all but wiped out by a pandemic that has left nearly every survivor, including Jason Momoa, blind.

Blind. Get it?

Whether by recognizable virus (Outbreak, "Contagion," Containment, Black Death), radiation (Chernobyl, On the Beach), weaponized rage (28 Days Later), biological warfare (Daybreak) or the ever popular zombie-disease (The Walking Dead," Zombieland, World War Z, Shaun of the Dead), mass infection is one of film and television's favorite topics.

So while the threat of disaster, from earthquakes to the Rapture, has filled many a basement or bunker with canned goods  and many of us now are conditioned to scan the landscape for the best zombie-proof locales  we are just now realizing how utterly unhelpful, and perhaps even harmful, all of those apocalyptic what if stories are.

Seriously, how many people here greeted early suggestions of American containment with raised eyebrow and a snappy retort along the lines of, Well, its not like people are turning into zombies. OK, great, Im the only one. Me and the president, of course.

While one assumes that Trump had more information and experts at hand than I did, we have both clearly spent far too much time watching fictional film and television. According to which deadly viruses cause immediate and gorily graphic symptoms, often accompanied by bloody eyes, limb-twitching and growls. Fictional viruses spread across the world in a matter of days, turning domiciles into cairns and highways into parking lots, lined with cars filled with corpses that may or may not eat your face off.

Story continues

Newscasters fall ill and die horrible deaths on air, nations are left leaderless as heads of state and representative bodies collapse in a single day, grocery stores and malls become resources that must be looted for survival, often at great peril.

And it all happens so fast that only the completely oblivious  see please the Im going to the shop scene from "Shaun of the Dead"  could fail to understand the import of what is happening.

Such oblivion is often expressed via coma  in 28 Days Later and The Walking Dead, the main character emerges from weeks in a hospital bed to find the world completely changed.

None of which excuses the scenes of spring breakers on the Florida beaches or families clogging SoCal trails before all those beaches and trails were officially closed. (Honestly, there is nothing like a closed beach to make people wake up and smell the anti-bacterial gel.) But it does, perhaps, explain them.

To be sure, there have been plenty of scenes chilling enough for any pandemic film. Cruise ships filled with sick and well passengers seeking port like the Flying Dutchman; families saying farewell to the dying through hospital windows; governors begging for more ventilators and getting broken ones or none at all; medical staff intubating patient after patient before going home to strip and sleep in basements and garages to avoid infecting their families.

But most Americans are not members of the medical profession or of emergency response teams. Mercifully, and may this remain true forever and ever amen, most of us have not experienced a COVID-19 infection firsthand. At least not yet. The numbers are boggling, the maps on which the infection blooms globally are horrifying, the firsthand accounts being shared on all media platforms are terrifying but the streets, though silent and eerie, are not filled with zombies or people felled on the spot. Potential life-altering ramifications are just now sinking in.

The world's population will not be cut by 60% in 28 days or however long Rick Grimes was in that coma, but a large yet unknown number of people are going to die in the coming weeks, even with our better-late-than-never attempts at containment. These attempts have shut down the global economy and as the experts in the U.S. push "peak infections" into May, possibly June, it is eminently clear that we have no idea how long this is going to last.

All those fast-moving, survival-skill-celebrating "what if" world-ending films and series we loved to deconstruct as metaphorically insightful or even prescient now seem, at best, superfluous. Which may explain why, despite all those "best films about pandemic" lists that were blithely posted in early days, viewers are turning instead to comedy.

Real horror, as any horror fan knows, is uncertainty. We are currently both the characters in the story, most of us going about our now-restricted daily life with little understanding of what lurks at the edges, and the viewers, watching as deaths mount, supplies run out and leaders struggle to contain what so far cannot be killed.

Turns out the most relevant metaphor for apocalypse isn't a zombie staggering around, or a rage monster rising from the dark or an identifiable cloud of death creeping across the planet. It's the quiet vacuum filled by Zoom meetings and far too much time on social media as we wait to see how bad things are going to get  watching through sleepless hours as the degrees of separation between our families and COVID-19 count down.

As our days of confinement pass, the dramatic choices of near-instantaneous epidemic, or undead monsters, and certainly the narrative use of comas, begin to make perfect sense. Pandemic movies are, at heart, action flicks  things need to move fast. But for those of us fortunate enough to remain, thus far, at least several degrees removed from infection, life has instead slowed down to an increasingly interior balancing act of worry, vigilance, uncertainty and yes, boredom.

Never before, let me add, has boredom seemed such a blessing, and none of us would trade it for the world. But we are animals unused to confinement. For those battling depression, anxiety disorder, addiction and other mental health challenges, confinement is something far more dangerous than fractiousness.

For the rest of us, being thankful for each day we are allowed to complain about nothing more than the irritating realities of staying at home does not, alas, prevent the irritation. We can donate blood and money, offer support from six feet away, clap and make signs lauding healthcare workers  but even our desires to get out there and help are thwarted by the nature of the crisis. The way we can help the most is by staying where we are and waiting.

In many ways, its the postapocalyptic stories  with their crisis-created tribes, rules regarding movement and resource sharing, and over-riding cautions about triggering an attack or resurgence of whatever evil interrupted life as we knew it  that capture the imperatives of this moment. But even those have a heightened level of drama that is unhelpful. We are not surrounded by monsters who can hear our every breath or alone in a landscape stripped bare by disease or Martians.

We are as we were, sheltering at home, working, praying, walking the dogs and hoping that, in the next few weeks or months or years, we and those we know and love will remain well, the hospitals will stand, the numbers begin to fall and the red blooms of the maps recede.

Then we can emerge to rebuild, reacquaint and tell stories that celebrate the drama of endurance  stories in which, with any luck, the what if is not outside our control after all.
The United States continues to wage an all-out war to defeat the coronavirus pandemic, which US president Donald Trump has called "horrible". The country has reported more than 5,000 deaths and more than 200,000 infections, the highest in the world, due to the fast-spreading COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center, the number of Americans to have been infected by coronavirus stood at 214,000 and 5,093 had lost their lives from the deadly disease by Wednesday night.

Globally, more than 930,000 people have been infected and 46,809 people have died due to coronavirus that originated from China in November-December.

AFP

"America continues to wage all-out war to defeat this horrible, horrible virus. You see how terrible it is, especially when you look at the numbers from yesterday," Trump told reporters at the White House on Wednesday.

A six-week-old baby died in Connecticut from coronavirus, making it the state's first pediatric death.

The number of infections keeps on rising with every passing day in the US, giving rise to a scary scenario, which Americans have not witnessed in decades.

Members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force have predicted between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths, even with the mitigation measures including lockdown like situation across the country.

The US has not yet enforced a national lockdown like India. Close to 270 million of the 330 million population are forced into a stay-in-home situation ranging from 30 days to 70 days. All schools, colleges and universities have been shut down, and America's booming tourism and travel industry has come to a standstill.

"We are attacking the virus on every front was social distancing, economic support for our workers, rapid medical intervention and very serious innovation and banning dangerous foreign travel that threatens the health of our people and we did that early, far earlier than anyone would've thought and way ahead of anybody else," Trump said in his daily televised press conference from the White House on Wednesday.

AFP

While medical supplies and equipment are being sent to major cities including New York every day, more than 17,000 national guard personnel have now been activated across the country.

"Difficult days are ahead for our nation. We're going to have a couple of weeks starting pretty much now, but especially a few days from now they're going to be horrific," Trump told the nation.
Lucknow, April 2 : The Tablighi Jamaat, founded in 1927 by Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi in Mewat region in Haryana, is a movement that focuses on ensuring that Muslims practise the religion as it was practised in the time of Prophet Mohammad.

The Tablighi Jamaat can be termed as an organization that promotes fundamentalism and targets those Muslims who have adopted a liberal lifestyle.

A member of the Tablighi Jamaat who lives in Lucknow said on condition of anonymity, "We try to give a sense of belonging to the Muslim youth who are feeling uncared for in the prevailing scenario. We tell the youth that to overcome this restlessness, they must practise the religion in matters of rituals, dress and behaviour because it is this that will take them closer to Allah." The Tablighis, as they are called, are known to wear religion on their sleeve.

The movement has spread over the years, especially in the past five years, and has over 300 million members in South Asia alone.

The Tablighi Jamaat holds 'Ijtema' which is an Islamic congregation. The one held in Delhi in March was one such 'Ijtema'.

Their members are regularly sent out to various states and regions where they "educate" the youth about the need of being a "practising Muslim".

The lifestyle of a Tablighi is frugal.

"We travel in buses or trains, stay for months in local mosques and eat whatever our followers offer us. We spread our ideology and then move on. For us, our family is secondary and our duty is primary," said the Tablighi member.

Interestingly, the Tablighi Jamaat is strongly patriarchal in nature and has virtually no room for women who are never invited to the Ijtema.

Over the years, the Tablighi Jamaat has emerged as a vibrant and most influential Islamic movement. Though it does not propagate terror, it does promote religious fanaticism. It rejects violence as a means for evangelism but it is slowly developing as a breeding ground for Islamic militancy.

The movement has made inroads in Uttar Pradesh, especially after the Ayodhya movement, and has gained roots even though it has no political affiliation.

According to a source, Tablighis can be found in almost every city and village that has even a 'small' Muslim population.

According to an intelligence official, the Tablighi network has become so strong over the years that action against the organization could prove to be a problem.

"There is not a mosque in UP that does not have a Tablighi member," he said.

The Tablighis, interestingly, are different from Deobandis in the sense that the Darul Uloom in Deoband has restricted itself to being an Islamic seminary and does not go beyond teaching the tenets of Islam.

Maulana Muhammad Saad Kandhlawi, 55, is the head of the Tablighi Jamaat and is a well-known preacher. He is the great grandson of the Tablighi Jamaat founder Muhammad Ilyas Kandhlawi.

Saad, who lives in Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti in Delhi, has three sons and daughters.

The Darul Uloom has gone to the extent of issuing a fatwa against Maulana Saad for his controversial interpretation of verses of holy Quran.

Some leading Maulanas of the Sunni sect also seem to be unhappy with Maulana Saad's provocative statements.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
The Navy hospital ship Mercy leaves port in San Diego. Now deployed in Los Angeles, it has 1,000 beds and is treating patients who do not have the coronavirus to ease the strain on hospitals. (Gregory Bull / Associated Press)

The FBI is examining whether a man accused of intentionally derailing a freight train near the Navy hospital ship Mercy, which is docked in San Pedro to help with the coronavirus crisis, had any ties to extremist groups, and agents are digging into his social media background.

Eduardo Moreno, 44, of San Pedro was charged with deliberately wrecking a train during the incident Tuesday, which led to a derailment and fuel leak, according to the charges.

"Moreno is the only person charged in the case. While the government has made no allegations linking Moreno to an extremist ideology, our investigation is continuing," the FBI said in a statement to The Times.

Prosecutors allege that Moreno derailed the train and deliberately crashed through barriers designed to stop engines before grinding to a halt 250 yards from the Mercy.

Prosecutors said Moreno admitted during an interview that he had run the train beyond the track because he believed the Mercy was part of suspicious activities involving the coronavirus.

Moreno, according to multiple sources, believed the Mercy was part of a government control conspiracy designed to divide and control the people. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly on the incident.

Moreno was an employee of Pacific Harbor Line, which operates inside the Los Angeles and Long Beach port complex. He had been a locomotive engineer for several years.

According to an affidavit, he said he thought his act would bring media attention and people could see for themselves, referring to the Mercy.

Moreno appeared Wednesday in court, and his bond hearing was delayed until Friday.

According to sources familiar with the investigation, officials have found he was a member of a Facebook group interested in train crashes.
After President Donald Trump on Friday signed into law a stimulus package expanding relief for student loan borrowers, Navient, Mohela, Nelnet and other companies that collect payments for the government posted alerts on their websites.

But the Education Department as of Wednesday still had outdated information on its own site, leaving borrowers confused about what help is available as the financial impact of the coronavirus outbreak takes hold.

The new law automatically postpones borrowers payments for six months. But the outdated information on the department's website references earlier orders from the Trump administration that only provided two months of relief that required people to opt in.

Several borrowers working toward loan forgiveness contacted The Washington Post out of confusion about how the payment suspension would affect them. The department said it expects to update the information by the end of the day.

"We want to make sure we are following the law Congress passed and are providing accurate and complete information to our customers," Education spokeswoman Liz Hill said Wednesday. "The bill was just signed on Friday."

By Monday, most of the companies the Education Department uses to manage its $1.5 trillion portfolio of student loans had notices about the $2 trillion aid package knowns as the CARES Act. The loan servicers mostly described accurately the provision of the law that provides a six-month suspension of payments. They promised further updates in the coming days.

Not every servicer was as forthcoming. FedLoan Serving, the company administering the government's loan forgiveness program for borrowers in public service jobs, made no mention of legislation. The company did not respond to request for comment Wednesday but has since updated its website.

The stimulus legislation built on a number of measures the Trump administration had introduced earlier in the month to help federal student loan borrowers, as the coronavirus started to slam companies and workers. Whereas the administration pledged to waive interest and let people postpone their payments for at least 60 days, the legislation extended the timeline through Sept. 30 and made the suspension automatic.

Lawmakers also lengthened the moratorium on seizing tax refunds, wages and Social Security income to repay defaulted debt to six months, instead of the 60 days instituted by the department.

Under the Trump administration's original order, borrowers working toward Public Service Loan Forgiveness who postponed payments also would have faced a longer path to debt cancellation. The federal program cancels the remaining balance of a borrower's debt after 120 on-time monthly payments, but postponing those payments would have lengthened the process under Trump's order.

Lawmakers fixed that problem by ensuring that each month of postponed payments would still count toward loan forgiveness. It would also count toward student loan rehabilitation, a federal program that erases a default from a person's credit report after nine consecutive payments.

The swift and unforgiving impact of the pandemic has forced the federal government to respond in kind with orders and legislation to mitigate the economic fallout. Consumer groups say the swift implementation of those measures is critical and worry about the Education Department and other federal agencies' ability to rise to the challenge.
The Hubble Space Telescope is tracking down a suspected black hole that shredded a wayward star that came too close for comfort.

The famed space observatory made the find while hunting down the source of a powerful burst of X-rays caught in 2006 by two other cosmic telescopes: NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the European Space Agency's X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton).

At the time, astronomers weren't sure if the X-rays had come from inside or outside of the Milky Way galaxy, but new high-resolution photography by Hubble shows that the X-ray source (known as 3XMM J215022.4055108) is located in a star cluster at the edge of another galaxy. That's exactly where an intermediate-sized black hole (IMBH) may lurk  at least, according to theory.

Video: Elusive midsize black hole found using Hubble

Related: The missing link: Where are medium-size black holes?

This Hubble Space Telescope image shows the location of an intermediate-mass black hole named 3XMM J215022.4055108 (in the white circle). Hubble's high-resolution imagery revealed that the black hole resides inside a dense star cluster far beyond the Milky Way galaxy, in the outskirts of another galaxy pictured at the center of this image. (Image credit: NASA/ESA/D. Lin (University of New Hampshire))

The team's work further suggests the star cluster may have been the core of a small dwarf galaxy disrupted long ago, when the dwarf galaxy strayed too close to the larger galaxy that currently hosts the star cluster. Gravitational interactions with the larger galaxy may have ripped the dwarf galaxy apart, leaving only a small cluster of stars in its wake. In much the same way, astronomers believe that the gravitational pull of the black hole inside this cluster shredded a star that got too close, thereby producing the X-ray flare detected in 2006.

If the X-rays indeed came from a black hole, astronomers suspect the object is about 50,000 times the mass of our sun. That's a featherweight compared with the supermassive black hole that lies in the center of our Milky Way galaxy, which has a mass four million times greater than that of the sun.

"IMBHs have been particularly difficult to find because they are smaller and less active than supermassive black holes; they do not have readily available sources of fuel, nor as strong a gravitational pull to draw stars and other cosmic material which would produce telltale X-ray glows," NASA officials said in a statement. "Astronomers essentially have to catch an IMBH red-handed in the act of gobbling up a star."

Related: Rarely seen middleweight black hole gobbles star

An artist's impression of an intermediate-mass black hole tearing apart a wayward star that passed too close. (Image credit: NASA/ESA/D. Player (STScI))

IMBHs are believed to be a "missing link" in our understanding of how black holes evolve. Astronomers have seen many examples of small black holes that are similar in size to a star, and other examples of much larger black holes that typically reside in the centers of galaxies.

But IMBHs remain difficult to confirm as astronomers struggle to understand how supermassive black holes got so darn big, compared to stellar-sized black holes. Hubble and other observatories have found other IMBH candidates in the past, but this newest observation is considered the strongest evidence yet for this class of black hole, according to NASA.

"Intermediate-mass black holes are very elusive objects, and so it is critical to carefully consider and rule out alternative explanations for each candidate. That is what Hubble has allowed us to do for our candidate," Dacheng Lin, a research assistant professor at the University of New Hampshire and principal investigator of the new study, said in the statement.

One other theory for the X-rays was that a neutron star  the dense remnants of an exploded supernova star  may have been responsible. Based on the X-ray glow of the chewed-up star, however, astronomers calculated that the black hole's mass was 50,000 solar masses, which is far more massive than a neutron star (typically about the size of a small city). The mass was calculated using both the X-ray luminosity  the inherent brightness of the X-rays  and the shape of the spectrum.

Hubble also helped track down another possible IMBH in 2009. The object, called HLX-1, was spotted on the edge of a galaxy known as ESO 243-49  and also resides in a star cluster that could have been a dwarf galaxy in the ancient past. The X-rays spotted in the case of HLX-1, however, likely came from the accretion disk surrounding the black hole. The accretion disk is considered the point of no return for light or other objects to escape a black hole's gravity.

"The main difference is that our object is tearing a star apart, providing strong evidence that it is a massive black hole, instead of a stellar-mass black hole as people often worry about for previous candidates including HLX-1," Lin said.

A paper based on the study was published March 31 in Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Follow Elizabeth Howell on Twitter @howellspace. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
The U.S.N.S. Mercy, a Navy hospital ship, arrived at the Port of Los Angeles on Friday to bolster a health care system that officials worry could be overwhelmed by a surge in coronavirus patients.

One train operator and engineer who worked at the port grew suspicious, he later told the authorities, according to an affidavit by an F.B.I. special agent, Douglas Swain.

The engineer, Eduardo Moreno, told investigators that he wondered if the ship had some unstated purpose, or something to do with a government takeover, one of several baseless conspiracy theories emerging about the governments handling of the outbreak.

Those unfounded suspicions bubbled over on Tuesday when Mr. Moreno, at the end of his shift, sent a train off its tracks at full speed and crashed it some 250 yards away from the Mercy, according to prosecutors and Mr. Morenos statements recorded in the affidavit.
For now, Bounce, Shuttl, Fab Hotels, Instamojo, Zomato, Curefit, and HealthifyMe, among others, are going for salary deductions.

Most of the consumer internet start-ups, besides those who are in the grocery delivery, education tech, and video conferencing business, would ultimately lay-off people and cut back salaries.

Consumer internet start-ups in India are bracing for measures like salary cuts and layoffs to mitigate the impact of losses after the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19.

For now, Bounce, Shuttl, Fab Hotels, Instamojo, Zomato, Curefit, and HealthifyMe, among others, are going for salary deductions, according to multiple sources.

At Bounce, the Sequoia-backed scooter sharing start-up, co-founders Vivekananda Hallekere, Varun Agni and Anil Giriraj are taking a 100 per cent pay cut.

For others the extent of reduction would be 20-60 per cent.

"Pay cuts will ensure no jobs are lost irrespective of the economic situation, and the company improves its runway to over 30 months," Bounce said in reply to a query by Business Standard.

In January, the firm had raised over $105 million.

The investment had more than doubled its valuation to over $500 million, from its previous funding round last June, according to sources.

Bounce said the company would reinstate salaries as soon as the situation becomes better.

In lieu of the interim salary cut, employees will get ESOPs (employee stock ownership plans), so that everyone benefits from future upsides when the going gets better, it said.

Sandeep Aggarwal, founder of online car marketplace Droom, said employees would take a 15 per cent salary cut.

"I have taken a 100 per cent cut from March 16. The salary cuts for other staff are effective from April 1. No person has been laid off," he said.

He said, however, that as part of the annual appraisal cycle (between mid-February and March), 15-30 employees were asked to leave based on performance.

Similarly, in a note to its employees late last month, MakeMyTrip's executive chairman Deep Kalra and group CEO Rajesh Magow had said: "(In the wake of Covid-19) We will continue to sharply reduce variable costs like advertising, sales promotions and payment gateway costs, along with optimising IT infra and expenses relating to the functioning of our offices and other establishments.

"On people costs front, both of us will take the lead and take zero salary effective April 2020, while the rest of our leadership team have also offered to take a reduction of approximately 50 per cent.

Ixigo also announced salary cuts across the board though the firm would not layoff anyone for now.

"To start with, the two of us (co-founders) took a decision to forego our entire salary for as long as required to get things back on track," co-founder and CEO Aloke Bajapai said.

The company's leadership team has also agreed to take a pay cut of over 60 per cent based on their grade while for the rest of the employees, it would vary (20-50 per cent).

Fab Hotels has said it was implementing a pay cut of 15 per cent for those with salaries of less than Rs 25,000 and 20 per cent for those who are above this salary bracket, starting March.

The co-founders will take a pay cut of 25 per cent.

In a mail to the employees, CEO and co-founder Vaibhav Aggarwal said that in March alone, the budget hotel room aggregator had seen a 50 per cent dip in revenues.

Instamojo is looking at downsizing 6-7 per cent of its total workforce apart from effecting 10-40 per cent pay cuts.

A third of the company staff have not been considered for the pay cut and remain unaffected.

"We are expecting most of the consumer internet start-ups, unless you are in the grocery delivery, education tech, and video conferencing business, would ultimately lay-off people and cut back salaries," said Sachin Taparia, founder and chairman of LocalCircles.

Before the coronavirus hit India, LocalCircles had done a survey to gauge the mood of the consumer in 2020.

Around 45 per cent of the households had said they were planning to reduce discretionary spending.

At well-funded companies such Ola and Swiggy, co-founders including Bhavish Aggarwal and Sriharsha Majety have taken massive salary cuts.
Sky News

Novak Djokovic was sleep-deprived and pressured by Australian officials to cancel his visa after being detained at Melbourne airport, his legal team have argued. Representatives for the world's top-ranked tennis player also claim he was given a medical exemption after testing positive for COVID-19 on 16 December. After travelling for 25 hours, Djokovic's lawyers claim he was interrogated for six hours at the airport before being allowed to go somewhere to sleep - only to be woken by officials half an hour later and pressured into making a decision on cancelling his visa.
Kellan Lutz said he is 'so grateful' his Christian faith helped him and wife Brittany through the devastating stillbirth of their baby girl.

The 35-year-old Twilight actor's wife, 31, delivered their first child six and a half months into her pregnancy in February, with the grieving couple relying on their strong beliefs to help guide them through the ordeal.

Speaking to LaPalme magazine, Kellan said: 'There is no easy way, but I'm just so grateful for our faith and sharing the blood of Jesus Christ.

Tragedy: Kellan Lutz said he is 'so grateful' his Christian faith helped him and wife Brittany through the devastating stillbirth of their baby girl

'We don't have all the understanding in the world. There are some tough days where you'll see the sonogram, and you'll see her cute little nose that she had.

'But then again, we are so grateful she is in heaven, and we remind ourselves that she didn't have to come into this world and deal with heartbreak, and she gets to be with Jesus. It's bittersweet.'

The What Men Want actor said he 'trusts' that he and his wife will go on to have multiple children.

He added: 'But I'm happy to trust that one day we'll have a big family.'

Loss: The 35-year-old Twilight actor's wife, 31, delivered their first child six and a half months into her pregnancy in February, with the grieving couple relying on their strong beliefs to help guide them through the ordeal

The 'FBI: Most Wanted' actor recalled how he'd noticed a change in Brittany's bump but 'never thought' it was a sign of the devastation to come.

He said: 'We had just returned from our Babymoon in Fiji. We had such a great trip, but I remember her stomach was looking smaller. The thing for me is that I never thought this was a possibility.'

Kellan previously admitted he and his wife are planning to 'try again' to have a child as soon as the 'time is right'.

He tweeted last month: '@brittanylynnlutz you have been unbelievable during this hard past month! So grateful for you! I wanted to give a shout out to you all for all your love and support as we lost our baby girl who became stillborn at 6.5 months.

'We can't wait to try again when the time is right God willing.

United: Speaking to LaPalme magazine, Kellan said: 'There is no easy way, but I'm just so grateful for our faith and sharing the blood of Jesus Christ' (pictured January 2019)

'There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: A time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.'

'Ecclesiastes 3:1, 3-8 NIV I've had my season of mourning and now I'm ready to dance. Love you all! -K. (sic)'

In February, Kellan broke the tragic news to his followers with a photo of his wife showing off her bare baby bump.

He wrote at the time: 'Taking heartbrokenness to a whole new level but Grateful for these past 6 months and the journey itself.'

From K: Kellan praising his wife for working through the pain of the last month writing: '@brittanylynnlutz you have been unbelievable during this hard past month!'

Adding: 'In life we might not get the answers to all of our questions but we will always remain faithful! God will restore. I love you @brittanylynnlutz. ... Can't wait to see our baby girl in Heaven when God calls us home. (sic)'

While Brittany also mourned the loss of her baby, as she wrote: 'Baby girl, it was my absolute honor and pleasure to be your mom these last 6 months. I did my best and it was an absolute joy seeing your little face all those times on that screen and feeling your tiny kicks.'

Still struggling with the loss she added: 'I don't know why it happened the way it did, but part of me finds so much peace knowing you never experienced pain or heartache and never will. You're in the arms of Jesus now and one day we will get to meet you for real. Until I see you in heaven... your mommy loves you so much. (sic)'

Two weeks after their announcement Brittany shared how she was choosing to feel the good and the pain.

She posted a photo on Instagram of hearts drawn in chalk on a sidewalk.

'After tragedy or heartache it can be tempting to shut down so you don't feel pain. Aka survival mode.

'But when you shut yourself off to pain, you also shut yourself off to the things that can bring you joy too. I've done that in the past.

'More than once. I can tell you from experience it takes a LOT of work to soften your heart after you've let it go hard,' she wrote in the caption for her nearly 52,000 followers.

'Throughout the last two weeks I've worked SO hard to remain soft.

'As much as I'm tired of falling apart, and want to be done finding myself crying in a ball on the floor, if I allowed myself to fall into the temptation to shut down, I know I'd be missing those special moments that have made me smile and laugh and feel happy again,' she added.

Hopeful message: Two weeks after the stillbirth Brittany took to Instagram with a hopeful message

Brittany then explained the photo. 'Today Kel and I were walking after church and I saw this sidewalk full of hearts.

'Instead of being numb to avoid all the things that remind me of being pregnant just two short weeks ago, I was able to see a sidewalk full of hearts as a little hug for my heart letting me know God's got us. He's not done writing my story,' she posted.

'Like my doctor said the day I found out our sweet baby girl didn't have a heartbeat anymore: 'This isn't the end of your story. This is just a crappy chapter, but you're going to get through this.' 

For support after a stillbirth or neonatal death in the US call the Starlight Legacy Foundation on 952-715-7731 or email info@starlegacyfoundation.org

For support after a stillbirth or neonatal death in the UK call Sands on 0808 164 3332 or email helpline@sands.org.uk
VANCOUVER, Wash., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- With the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, businesses have had to adapt their operations in response to the temporary social distancing trying to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Gorilla Post delineators and signposts help maintain proper traffic flow in a drive-thru. Gorilla Posts can display comprehensive signage, necessary to help keep struggling businesses alive.

Several states have issued statewide stay-at-home orders, compelling residents to remain in their homes and limit trips. These orders typically exempt several "Essential Critical Infrastructure" businesses, allowing them to continue operating. Pacific Cascade Corporation, the umbrella company for ParkingZone, TrafficZone, and DGM Systems, has been classified essential as providers and manufactures of public safety equipment. We remain open with most of our team members working from home.

The Gorilla Post Solution

The exclusive Gorilla Post system has been a proven asset in major cities who employ the Multi-space Parking meters for temporarily reserving parking spaces. The Gorilla Post System includes Magnetic, Quick Release, and Fixed base options for Delineator Posts and Bollards. Each tamper-resistant Gorilla Post employs a reactive spring unit between the tube and the base which allows the sign to withstand bumper hits and return to its original position, without damaging the post or vehicle. The base also has a 360 swivel.

The Gorilla Post system of delineators, signposts, and bollards is the perfect solution for determining permanent, flexible or temporary pedestrian and traffic patterns.

Uncertain Times

Drive-thru coronavirus testing locations are being set up across the United States and in several other countries.

The coronavirus pandemic understandably has everybody on edge. People with even the slightest flu-like symptoms may want to get tested as soon as possible. Medical providers have been inundated and virtual doctor visits haven't been able to offer a definitive diagnosis or comfort. Drive-thru testing facilities have been set up in many states, offering patients a way to get tested while lowering the risk of endangering the health of others.

At some of these drive-thru coronavirus testing stations, grid-locks can occur without proper signage and delineation. The Gorilla Post system of flexible delineators and bollards offers testing stations signpost solutions that are easily deployed. The Quick Release and Fixed Base options can be installed in 30 minutes, and the exclusive temporary Magnetic Base with its ADA compliant metal mounting plate, once installed, can be placed or removed in under 5 seconds. The Gorilla Post signposts, delineators, and bollards are available in a variety of colors with mounting options for concrete, asphalt or natural ground.

American Ingenuity

Since restaurants have been ordered to close their dine-in options because of COVID-19, restaurants have had to restructure their operations to offer walk-up or curbside take-out service only. Customers are urged to place their orders online or by phone in advance. Some are even offering delivery service so some of their front-end employees can remain employed as drivers.

Some cities have waved parking tickets to accommodate curbside and walk-up takeout. But to accomplish easy access to convenient parking, comprehensive signage is necessary to help keep struggling businesses alive. The removable Magnetic Base Gorilla Post is the ideal solution for this sidewalk situation. An ADA compliant metal baseplate is epoxied to the curbside, then the neodymium magnets in the base lock the rugged signposts onto a precise position every time. The posts can easily be removed with an ergonomic tool that breaks the magnetic bond allowing quick, temporary removal while leaving the non-trip hazard metal baseplate.

"The key is lowering the risk of spreading COVID-19 while supporting health providers' safety and consumer convenience. Our Gorilla Post products are a part of the solution," said Lyle Peters, Director of U.S. Sales for the Gorilla Post.

It's important to flatten the curve of the Coronavirus. The Gorilla Post System can help. Please join us to support your local small businesses in any way you can.

CONTACT PERSON:

Lyle Peters

Director of U.S. Sales for the Gorilla Post System

Pacific Cascade Corporation

14208 N.W. 3rd Court  Suite 200

Vancouver, WA 98685

1-800-292-7275 ext. 207

[email protected]

gorillapost.com

ABOUT PACIFIC CASCADE CORPORATION

Since 1987, Pacific Cascade Corporation has been providing the Parking, Hospitality, Traffic Enforcement, and Environmental Sustainability Industries with products to manage and support their effective operational needs. parkingzone.com

SOURCE Pacific Cascade Corporation

Related Links

http://www.gorillapost.com


Israels top health authority has urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to impose a lockdown on an ultra-Orthodox city overwhelmed by the fast-spreading novel coronavirus.

Bnei Brak, east of Tel Aviv, has the second-highest rate of infections in the country, trailing only the capital Jerusalem. Positive tests for the virus in Bnei Brak jumped by 27.8% overnight Tuesday, according to the latest figures from Israel's Health Ministry.

Of the Bnei Brak residents screened for the virus, 34% tested positive, compared to 10% in Jerusalem and 6% in Tel Aviv, according to government data.

"I proposed to the prime minister and interior minister to put Bnei Brak on lockdown," said Health Minister Yaakov Litzman. "The situation there is horrible. Every day we stall, we put lives at risk."

According to a report from Channel 12 News, Litzman wants the police to regulate movement in and out of Bnei Brak and for the authorities to provide food and other essential deliveries to residents.

The ultra-Orthodox community across Israel has drawn fire for flouting government restrictions meant to curb the pandemic. Although it accounts for just 12% of the population, more than 50% of the coronavirus patients in the hospitals around the country are ultra-Orthodox.

The uptick in cases in Bnei Brak comes days after a video surfaced showing hundreds of residents crammed together at a late night funeral procession. News reports have documented similar incidents elsewhere in Israel.

Despite restrictions limiting gatherings to 10 people, four attendees were arrested after an ultra-Orthodox wedding in Bet Shemesh near Jerusalem drew 150 guests. A video aired by Channel 12 showed dozens of worshippers holding hands and dancing in Jerusalem.

Mayor Avraham Rubinstein called on residents Friday to wake up to the dangers of the coronavirus, reported the Times of Israel.
Its a common story. You have a box of ancient home movies shot on 8mm film sitting in a closet, but no projector on which to screen them.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Its a common story. You have a box of ancient home movies shot on 8mm film sitting in a closet, but no projector on which to screen them.

Or maybe you have footage of a 90s-era Canada Day celebration shot on a mini-VHS tape, but your VHS player has long been relegated to the low-tech scrap heap.

If the footage is recognizably Manitoban or features long-gone landmarks, such as a drive-in movie theatre, an 80s-era video arcade, or the old United Army Surplus store on Portage Avenue, your home movies could be valuable enough to be digitized, at no cost.

The Gimli Film Festival is launching a new project, the Manitoba Movie Archive, that allows Manitobans to have up to an hour of their home movies transferred to a digital format free of charge. In exchange, they must agree to allow the footage to be put in the public domain so that it may be accessed through the online archive archive.org and through the Gimli Film Festival website (gimlifilm.com).

"The real goal is to create this treasure trove of historical images of Manitoba that the public can browse," says GFF director Aaron Zeghers. "It will be in the public domain, so that would allow people making documentaries or people making whatever kind of new artwork to access these images and create new work, to recontextualize these images and use them in an effort to kind of reflect on the history of Manitoba."

The project launches at a time when older folks might be looking for a way to preserve old memories and pass them onto the next generation in a format that allows them to be seen, Zeghers says.

"We are dealing with some pretty unprecedented times right now  times when the future looks questionable," her says. "So its helpful to take a look at the past and remind ourselves of the progress that weve made."

The project was in the works before the COVID-19 pandemic, but was accelerated in the wake of the crisis. It comes at a time when the festival itself (scheduled to run July 22-26) is in doubt.

"This is one of the only things that we had been planning that doesnt involve people gathering in a single location," Zeghers says. "So of course it was something that we fast-tracked. But it has been in the works for a while with our Manitoba Project, which weve launched to celebrate the anniversary of Manitoba 150, and the 20th anniversary of the Gimli Film Festival."

The project outlines some rules and restrictions. The project will only transfer footage shot in Manitoba and shot before the year 2000, and will only transfer footage for individuals prepared to waive all copyright over the materials and willing to place the transferred footage in the public domain.

Priority will be given to images that have historical relevance, including historical Manitoba landscapes, locations, architecture, events and individuals, and theyre looking exclusively for movies shot on physical media (film and videotapes). Hard drives and SD cards are not eligible.

Anyone can only send a maximum of one hour of footage to start, although Zeghers allows that limit could be waived if someone is sitting on a gold mine of desirable material.

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"We are looking for footage that has the historical relevancy and people are limited to sending us one hour of footage to begin with," Zeghers says. "If the first hour footage is really great, we would totally consider extending the invitation to send more stuff down the road."

Any individual submitting footage must fill out a signed copyright release form, and the applicant is responsible for the initial cost of shipping physical media to GFF. (GFF will pay the return shipping costs, but will not liable for any damaged, missing or lost materials.)

"Its while supplies last," cautions Zeghers. "We only have finite resources, so its totally advantageous for people to go online and fill out the registration forms and let us know what type of footage they think they have. And then our staff will follow up with them."

To register, log onto wfp.to/homemovie

randall.king@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @FreepKing
New Delhi: HDFC Bank on Wednesday offered to defer EMIs in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The bank in an email to its customers said the prevailing situation may pose a huge challenge for people at large. "In line with the RBI guidelines and to show our solidarity, HDFC Bank is offering its customers EMI moratorium as a relief measure.

"You can defer your EMIs/loan installments and credit card dues up to 3 months," the bank said.

The bank said its debit card holder customers can now withdraw cash from any ATM without charges till June 30.

"There won't be any cap on the number of withdrawals or other transactions done at the ATM including declined transactions," it said.

"We will also waive the minimum monthly/quarterly balance requirements for the savings and current account holders for four months - from March to June 2020. These customers will be sent a separate communication," the lender added.

All the public sector lenders on Tuesday announced they will be extending the moratorium for three months, giving their customers a window to pay EMIs and interest on working capital loans by small businesses or MSMEs.

These measures are part of RBI's mega liquidity booster announced on Friday as the coronavirus lockdown has crippled almost every economic activity in the country.
In this file photo, the Marathon Refinery is seen in Carson, Calif., on March 9, 2020. A foul odor was investigated in the city of Carson in October 2021, but the South Coast Air Management District found that oil refineries and other nearby facilities were not the source. (David McNew/AFP via Getty Images)

Oil Soars on Trumps Expectation of SaudiRussia Production Cut Deal

Oil prices soared on April 2 after President Donald Trump said Russia and Saudi Arabia may soon reach an agreement on cutting oil production.

Trump said so after speaking with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia.

Just spoke to my friend MBS (Crown Prince) of Saudi Arabia, who spoke with President [Vladimir] Putin of Russia, & I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry! Trump wrote on Twitter.

Could be as high as 15 Million Barrels. Good (GREAT) news for everyone! he added in another tweet.

Following the tweets, Brent crude, a key crude oil benchmark, gained about 13 percent, finishing just below the $30 mark, while still far from the $50 mark, where it stood in early March.

The world is pumping more than 80 millions of barrels of crude oil a day. Russia contributes about 11 million, while Saudi Arabia contributes about 10 million. A cut of 10 million to 15 million barrels a day would likely involve more producers than Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Price War

Moscow and Riyadh have been locked in a price war after Russia walked away from talks on production cuts with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in early March. Since then, both countries have escalated production, which has depressed oil prices already under downward pressure by demand cratering amid the CCP virus pandemic.

Saudi Arabia, the de facto head of OPEC, on April 2 called for an emergency meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers, an informal grouping known as OPEC+, state media reported, saying it aimed to reach a fair agreement to stabilize oil markets.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on April 2 that Moscow was no longer planning to raise output and was ready to cooperate with OPEC and other producers to stabilize the market.

Trumps call to Putin has changed everything, one OPEC+ source said, adding that the initial talk among the group was about how other large producers such as Canada and Brazil would need to join in any coordinated output cuts.

It was not clear when Saudi Arabias proposed emergency OPEC meeting might be held.

Trump is separately set to meet with U.S. oil industry executives on April 3.

A senior U.S. administration official familiar with the matter said Trump wouldnt formally ask U.S. oil companies to contribute to the production cuts, a move forbidden by U.S. antitrust legislation.

Virus Impact

Global oil demand is expected to fall by about 30 million barrels per day in April, or about one-third of daily consumption. Some 3 billion people have been put on lockdown to slow the spread of the CCP virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, which has sickened more than 1 million people worldwide and killed over 50,000.

The immense decline in demand sent oil prices to their lowest levels since 2002, hitting budgets of oil-producing nations and dealing a huge blow to the U.S. shale oil industry, which cant compete at prices this low.

Major global oil producers, including Chevron, Brazils Petrobras, and BP, have already scaled back production estimates. Storage is expected to be full by May, analysts said, which would force oil producers to cut output anyway.

The free fall in prices has spurred regulators in Texas, the heart of the countrys oil production, to consider regulating output for the first time in nearly 50 years.

Ryan Sitton, one of three elected oil-and-gas regulators in Texas, wrote on Twitter on April 2 that he had spoken with Russias Novak about a cut of 10 million barrels per day in global supply.

While we normally compete, we agreed that #COVID19 requires unprecedented level of intl cooperation, Sitton wrote.

Reuters contributed to this report.
California power regulators are weighing a recommendation to back off plans to fine Pacific Gas and Electric an additional $462 million for igniting a series of Northern California 2018 deadly wildfires rather than risk that the harsher punishment will scuttle the utilitys plan to emerge from bankruptcy protection.

The states Public Utilities Commission are mulling whether to pare the penalties facing PG&E as the result of a proposed revision floated by one of agencys five commissioners, Clifford Rechtschaffen. The document was made public Monday.

In another development, PG&E disclosed it took steps to ensure it will not have to tap into a $13.5 billion fund set up for wildfire victims to pay a separate $4 million fine that will be imposed for the companys guilty plea to 84 felony counts of involuntary manslaughter stemming from a 2018 inferno triggered by its outdated electrical grid. Last week, PG&E disclosed its bankruptcy plan required that financial penalties for the crimes would come from the victims fund.

Now that it has avoided that potential public relations challenge, PG&E is trying to clear another hurdle that could block its attempt to emerge from one of the most complex bankruptcy cases in U.S. history by June 30.

In documents made public Monday, Rechtschaffen made a case for the public utilities commission to reverse a decision issued last month requiring PG&E to pay a $2.1 billion fine for neglecting the maintenance of equipment blamed for causing the wildfires that killed nearly 130 people and destroyed thousands of homes in Butte County, Sonoma County and other parts of the utilitys sprawling service territory during 2017 and 2018.

The proposed penalty added $462 million to a roughly $1.7 billion settlement that PG&E negotiated with regulators in December. The utilitys critics argued that deal was too lenient, prompting the public utilities commission to impose an additional $200 million fine and other measures costing the company another $262 million.

But requiring PG&E to come up with the extra $200 million to deposit in Californias general fund would violate agreements that the company struck with investors earlier this year to secure commitments to sell $9 billion worth of its stock to help fund $25.5 billion in settlements reaching in its bankruptcy proceedings.

The settlements include the $13.5 billion victims fund to be used to pay more than 81,000 claims for losses suffered in the the wildfires that drove PG&E into bankruptcy last year. PG&E warned that requiring the company to pay the additional $200 fine would set off a chain of financial dominoes and upend its entire bankruptcy plan, depriving wildfire victims of a chance to be paid from its $13.5 billion fund.

Rechtschaffen recommended that the public utilities commission permanently suspend the plan to fine PG&E the extra $200 million.

This is appropriate due to the unique situation of PG&Es bankruptcy, its indebtedness to hundreds of wildfire claimants for loss of life and property, and the current upheaval in the financial markets, .Rechtschaffen wrote in a five-page explanation.

Like most companies, PG&Es stock has fallen sharply over last several weeks amid the economic damage caused by the worst pandemic in a century. PG&Es stock sank 68 cents to close Tuesday at $8.99, less the half of what the shares were worth on Feb. 11 when they reached a six-month high of $18.34.

The recommendations also propose revisions to the tax benefits that PG&E could claim from its original settlement with regulators. If adopted, those changes could further chip away from last months proposal to force PG&E shareholders to shoulder a heavier burden.

An administrative law judge has set an April 9 deadline for comments about Rechtschaffens recommendation. A final decision is expected later in the spring.

PG&E managed to avoid using the wildfire victims fund to pay its $4 million criminal fine by negotiating a deal with 110 insurers receiving a $11 billion cash settlement as part of its bankruptcy fund.

The insurers will pay the $4 million fine using interest income and other investment gains generated from the $11 billion that PG&E is paying them.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics California Catastrophe Natural Disasters Wildfire Energy
Pastor Jamal Bryant offers 1,000 COVID-19 tests to minorities for $150 each, then postpones event

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New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, led by pastor Jamal Bryant, announced Thursday that it canceled a two-day drive-thru event at the church where up to 1,000 people would have been tested for COVID-19 for a fee of $150 each.

In a statement posted on the churchs Facebook page and shared with local media, the church said it decided to postpone the event that was scheduled for April 4-5 to comply with an executive order expected to be signed by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Thursday.

To remain compliant with Governor Brian Kemp's executive order, which is being signed today and goes into effect on Friday, New Birth Missionary Baptist Church and various medical partners will postpone the COVID-19 testing scheduled for this weekend. We look forward to coordinating with our local and state officials to support flattening the curve in Georgia and helping to heal our nation and our world from this global pandemic, the statement said.

Based off of these more stringent regulations placed in Georgia, we are also forced to suspend our drive-in worship experience planned for this year's Resurrection Service. New Birth will continue to stream our weekly sermons online and across our digital platforms. New Birth will continue to serve 1,000 individuals each Saturday at the King's Table (food pantry) as we adhere to federal and state emergency food distribution center guidelines, the statement added.

The Christian Post reached out to both Bryant and New Birth on Thursday for further comment on the tests but a response was not immediately available.

In a broadcast on Facebook Live Wednesday which was removed from his Facebook page Thursday morning, Bryant announced that an agreement was reached between RoweDocs and Oakhurst health clinics to provide 1,000 coronavirus tests to minorities.

Im excited to announce something huge today. Im grateful unto God that we have come into agreement with RoweDocs and Oakhurst health clinics, Bryant said.

New Birth, as of today is in possession of 1,000 COVID-19 teststhat are gonna be made available to our community. Absolutely amazing that we are going to be .able to serve more minorities in COVID-19 testing than anywhere else in the nation. Im excited about it and I am ashamed about it, he said.

Bryant revealed at least a week ago that he was in possession of the tests and told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he was approached by a Florida lab that wanted to partner with his church to provide test kits.

The spread of the pandemic is forcing churches to live out loud and do what were called to do, which is to provide a service, he told the publication.

The process to obtain a test at New Birth would have involved a pre-screening to be performed by RoweDocs for a fee of $25 followed by an additional cost of $125 for a COVID-19 test.

Potential testers were urged to check with their local insurers about testing.

According to The Wall Street Journal, testing for the new coronavirus is mostly free as current legislation forces health insurers and employers to cover the cost of lab tests and visits to healthcare providers for screening without any out-of-pocket charges. There might still be costs, however, if a test is returned negative.

Bryant told the AJC that priority testing was reserved for those who are displaying symptoms, at-risk older people and people with compromised immune systems, then the larger community.
Yaakov Litzman who is the Health Minister of Isreal and his wife Chava have just tested positive to the dreaded corona virus.

The Minister announced that him and his wife have tested positive to the virus and have been isolating after feeling unwell, in a press statement on the 2nd of April 2020. The statement further revealed that those who have been in contact with the Minster and his wife in the past two weeks , will be notified and quarantined.

Litzman who is a member of the United Torah Judaism, has often been criticized of how he handled the covid19 outbreak by delaying strict rules and restrictions on public gatherings and fought bitterly against closing the synagogues.

Before testing positive, the Minster often held meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top official of the Government and health sectors. The Prime Minister is said to have re-enter quarantine after just coming out when his adviser tested positive to the virus.
Under a new government plan to renationalise Alitalia, Italy's national flag carrier is expected to have about 30 aircraft, 3,000 employees and fly mainly short and medium haul routes, with very few long haul services. This will be an Alitalia that looks very much as it did in the late 1950s.

At present the airline has 113 aircraft, 72 of which are leased and are due to be returned at the end of 2020.

Also read:

Because of the Covid-19 lockdown the airline is currently operating limited flights out of Rome's Fiumicino and Milan's Malpensa airport, with about 270 flights weekly.

The government plan will provide 500 million in funding for airlines operating public service routes which effectively means only Alitalia.

It is expected that another 2,900 employees will be laid off until 31 October, bringing the total off work to nearly 7,000 out of a total work force of 11,000.

The government's new nationalisation plan would also allow Alitalia to park its present debts and liabilities in a separate company.

Also read:

Coronavirus: Alitalia plane grounded in Mauritius

The troubled Alitalia has changed shareholders several times in the last decade. In 2009 KLM-Air France took 25 per cent of the shares, with an offer to purchase additional shares in 2013 if conditions were right.

Because of continuing restructuring difficulties and union opposition KLM-Air France never took up the option.

In 2014 Etihad, the United Arab Republic's flag carrier, bought a 49 per cent stake and the following year the partnership with KLM-Air France was severed.

Alitalia started another series of cut backs and structural reforms but these never obtained the hoped-for results and three years later it filed for bankruptcy.

EasyJet, Ryanair and even Italy's railways Ferrovie della Stato all showed some interest in buying parts of the old company last year.

Also read:

But negotiations dragged on, Ryanair was hit by a series of pilot strikes, easyJet withdrew from negotiations and nothing was concluded, mainly due to pressure from the unions faced with heavy job losses.

It has been three years since Alitalia went into administration, but now that the global coronavirus pandemic has hit airlines worldwide the Italian government has been forced to step in to save the airline as a strategic asset.

However, this is only a short-term solution, and the airline will continue to struggle, with a decrease in demand, travel restrictions and suspended routes.

ph: Simone Previdi / Shutterstock.com
Brown, 59, was chosen by Lightfoot over two other finalists selected by the Chicago Police Board. He spent 30 years with the Dallas force until retiring in 2016. That year, in a horrific incident, five Dallas officers were shot to death by a sniper. Browns team tried to negotiate an end to the standoff, but the chief resolved it by directing his force to use a remote-controlled robot loaded with explosives to blow up the gunman. To storm the position would have put officers in grave danger, Brown said.
With international markets closing doors on fliers across the world, planes have been taken out of service worldwide after travel restrictions and stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic. Here are some pictures to check on where airlines have parked their grounded fleet after sharp drop in traffic triggered by the COVID-19 outbreak. (Image: Reuters)

Aircraft seen parked on a runway at the Chhatrapati Shivaji domestic airport in Mumbai. (Image: AP)

Several dozen mothballed Delta Air Lines jets are parked at Kansas City International Airport. (Image: AP)

British Airways planes are seen parked at Bournemouth Airport on April 1, 2020, as the spread of the coronavirus pandemic continues. (Image: Reuters)

Airplanes parked on the tarmac at the international airport of Orly, south of Paris, the day of its closure due to a drop in traffic as the government announced an extension of the initial 15-day home confinement period that came into force on March 17 in a bid to slow down the spread of the COVID-19. (Image: AP)

American Airlines planes stored at Pittsburgh International Airport sit idle on a closed runway in Imperial, Pa., on March 31, 2020. (Image: AP)

As American Airlines cut more service, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Pittsburgh International Airport has closed one of its four runways to shelter in place 96 planes. (Image: AP)

On April 1, TAP planes are seen at Lisbon's airport during partial lockdown as part of state of emergency to combat the coronavirus outbreak in Lisbon, Portugal. (Image: Reuters)

Aegean Airlines planes parked at Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens. The Greek airline carrier has suspended all international flights until April 30 because of the travel restrictions imposed by the Greek government, the EU and other states. (Image: AP)

EasyJet planes resting on the tarmac at Luton Airport in Bedfordshire,England, after the airline announced it has grounded its entire fleet of 344 aircraft due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Image: AP)

German Lufthansa planes sit parked at the airport in Munich, Germany as the planes are not in use because of the novel coronavirus outbreak. (Image: AP)

Parked planes of the airline Swiss at the airport in Duebendorf in Switzerland as the bigger part of the Swiss fleet are not in use due to the outbreak. (Image: AP)

Delta Air Lines passenger planes seen parked at the Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport. (Image: Reuters)

Kenyan Airways planes parked at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi. (Image: Reuters)

Vueling Airlines planes crowd a runway at the Seville airport in Spain. (Image: AP)

American Airlines passenger planes (bottom) parked due to flight reductions made to slow the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) at Tulsa International Airport in Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S. The planes at the top are 737 MAX, parked for reasons other than the coronavirus. (Image: Reuters)

Planes of the Ukrainian International airlines are seen at the Boryspil International Airport after Ukraine suspended all passenger flights to and from the country. (Image: Reuters)
G ordon, Gino & Fred: American Road Trip debuts tonight, with the three amigos traversing Mexico and the USA in their wildest road trip yet.

The ITV reality series follows Gordon Ramsay, Gino DAcampo and Fred Sirieix as they travel across America, following their European adventure last season and a Christmas trip in Morocco.

Across four episodes, the trio will take in some of the continents most exciting sights - getting up to their trademark mischief and bickering along the way.

Where do Gordon, Gino and Fred visit on their American Road Trip?

Mexico

Tonights episode will find Gordon, Gino and Fred starting their road trip in Mexico in search of the best breakfast in the world, tequila, and chilli.

Lads on tour: the TV stars hit Mexico first / ITV

The trio find the proverbial breakfast at Valle de Guadalupe, a tourist hotspot in Baja California, Mexico.

Described as the Napa Valley of Mexico, Valle de Guadalupe is home to some of Mexicos best wine and food.

On their way up towards the US, the boys stop by Caesars Restaurant in Tijuana, famous for being the birthplace of the Caesar Salad.

Founded by Italian restaurateur Caesar Cardini in 1923, the restaurant is now a famous tourist destination.

Cheers: the gang raise a toast / ITV

Los Angeles

The trio then take on one of the USs most famous urban landscapes, Los Angeles.

LA is the hottest place to spot celebrities, enjoy the sunshine and appreciate the history of Hollywood.

The Grand Canyon

Before heading to Las Vegas, they take a helicopter ride over one of the great natural wonders of the world - the Grand Canyon.

Las Vegas

Inevitably, the gang stop off at the blinding lights of Las Vegas, famous for its mega-casinos.

Extravaganza: The trio then heads to Vegas / ITV

The boys hit the world-famous Las Vegas Strip - where they're confronted with Gordon's own face on billboards surrounding the strip.

San Francisco

Next, the boys head to San Francisco, Northern Californias cultural heart and historically a centrepoint for civil rights battles and gay liberation.

Today, the city is a mixture of old and new, with Silicon Valley tech industries taking over the commercial capital of the city, while the hippie San Fran of old remains the beating heart of the city.

Napa

Napa is the centre of Napa Valley, the heart of winemaking in California.

Romanticised by Amy Poehlers directorial debut Wine Country last year, the Napa Valley is famous for its wine (obviously) and Michelin-starred restaurants.

Texas

Lastly, Gordon, Gino and Fred journey to the heart of southern USA: Texas.

The second largest state by area (after Alaska), Texas is known for its catch phrase: everything is bigger in Texas.

While known to some as a conservative hotspot, its also home to Austin, a culturally rich, liberal city home to the iconic SXSW Festival.
(Photo : Pixabay) Medicine compiled to make a world art

Medical experts around the world have remained tough in fighting the coronavirus as the number of cases have continued to rise. Amid the pandemic, medical professionals have started to get worried about the possible shortage of medical supplies once healthcare systems become overwhelmed with the influx of patients.

Despite the series of obstacles, health experts have continued to find ways to stop the spread of the virus by trying to find a cure for those already infected. One such drug that's currently being considered to be a possible answer is an antimalaria drug.

In Australia, Health Minister Greg Hunt reassured the public that a "significant supply" of the drug, also known as hydroxychloroquine, will soon be ready to supply the country's healthcare system.

"I have just come off a call with a supplier, and I am confident we will have a significant supply of hydroxychloroquine if doctors wish to use them with patients who are in [the] hospital," Hunt said during his speech on Wednesday, April 1, via A Current Affair.

Hunt thanked australians for cooperation

During his speech, Hunt mentioned the rates of infection, which have dropped in recent days. On Sunday, March 29, there was only a 9.4% increase, compared to 26.2% on March 22.

The situation in Australia is improving even without the further use of the said drug. He congratulated the authorities who were implementing the preventive measurements and also thanked the Australian citizens for their cooperation.





Antimalarial drug vs. coronavirus

Hydroxychloroquine was used decades ago to treat patients suffering from malaria and lupus. According to medical practitioners, there is vaccine or cure for COVID-19 yet, and it would take several months to years to find, research, develop, and mass produce one.

Even though there is no vaccine, some studies have conducted tests and the results have showed that this antimalaria drug was able to "keep the COVID-19 molecules from entering cells."

The drug got the attention of medical experts since its trial in France. As part of the medical trial, 40 patients with coronavirus received the drug, and after three to six days, their airways were reported to have cleared. Despite the results provided by some researchers, experts are still hesitant in using the antimalaria drug to treat patients with the coronavirus due lack of further studies by experts.

The Health Minister of France, Olivier Veran, said that it can be used "only"' if the infected person is in serious hospital condition, which will still depend on the decision of his or her doctors.

"It's not fully proven, but there have been some promising trials around the world," Hunt said in his speech.

Meanwhile, the US President Donald Trump told the public that medical experts are also performing tests using the drug. He shared on his official Twitter account that the antimalaria drug can be combined with azithromycin--an antibiotic, which he believed would give medical experts an advantage to lessen the spread of the virus. This recommendation, however, has not been endorsed by medical professionals for general treatment of patients.

READ ALSO: Coronavirus vs Coronavirus: Does the Blood of COVID-19 Survivors Contains the Real Cure?

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
A British man has been charged with a federal crime after being accused of smuggling a phoney coronavirus cure into the US, prosecutors said.

Frank Richard Ludlow of West Sussex was charged in Los Angeles federal court with introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce and could face up to three years in prison if convicted, according to the US attorney's office.

Mr Ludlow is in custody after being arrested on drug charges in the UK last week.

Prosecutors alleged that Mr Ludlow, who is not a doctor, had been selling a concoction called Trinity Remedy, that he touted as a miracle cure for various ailments, to people in California and Utah via mail.

This 'cure' - later rebranded as 'Trinity Mind, Body & Soul' - allegedly contained vitamin C, an enzyme mix, potassium thiocyanate, and hydrogen peroxide, the US attorney's office statement said.

Consumers were instructed to add 18 ounces of water, say a prayer, drink half of the solution, take a probiotic along with bee pollen, and then ingest the remainder of the solution.

Authorities said Mr Ludlow sold between 300 and 400 of the treatment kits, but in February or March of this year as the coronavirus pandemic worsened, he began selling the kits under a new name: Trinity Covid-19 Sars Antipathogenic Treatment.

The treatments have not been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for any medical use.

Every major health authority has warned that there is no specific antiviral treatment for Covid-19 and no vaccine to prevent coronavirus infection, according to the US attorney's office.

Hucksters who hawk 'treatments' for this deadly disease put consumers' lives at risk by peddling unapproved drugs, US attorney Nick Hanna said.

Associated Press
As the COVID-19 Public Health Crisis continues to negatively affect Georgias businesses, the Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) on Thursday announced that the agency processed 133,820 claims during the week of March 22 through March 28, the highest number of claims it has ever processed in a week.

This represents an increase of 1,102 percent over the prior week ending March 21 with 12,140 claims, more claims than were filed during the peak of the 2008-2009 recession.

Unemployment claims throughout the United States increased 101 percent last week to 6.6 million.

We are seeing the number of claims filed in Georgia skyrocket to levels we have never experienced before, said Georgia Labor Commissioner Mark Butler. Our team is working overtime, nights, and weekends to process the tremendous volume  taking time away from their own families to help Georgias families.

With a record number of claims being filed, the GDOL dispersed $14,563,575 in unemployment benefits to 64,022 Georgians for the week ending March 28.

People are anxious and worried about their health, their families, and how they are going to continue to make it financially during these uncertain times, said Butler. We are here to help Georgians get through this economic struggle.

Many people may be unaware that they could be eligible for assistance. Butler encouraged Georgians to visit the GDOL website at www.dol.georgia.gov to access applications, step-by-step instructions, and video tutorials on applying for unemployment. The commissioner emphasized that with the huge volume of claims the agency is receiving, people need to use the on-line tools where possible.

President Trump signed the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act on March 27, 2020, expanding unemployment insurance benefits and other economic relief measures aimed at reducing the economic impact of the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and authorized $2.1 trillion in aid to various sectors of the economy. This economic relief package includes the following:

Expands eligibility for those not eligible for regular, extended benefits, or Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation including self-employed individuals, independent contractors, those with limited work histories, and those unable to work due to the enumerated COVID-19 related reasons ;

Extends state unemployment benefits by 13 weeks of federally funded benefits added to the end of regular unemployment benefits; and

Provides for Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation (FPUD) of $600 weekly in addition to regular state benefits.

The GDOL signed all of the necessary agreements last Saturday to access funding for this program. The agency is still waiting to receive guidelines from the US Department of Labor on how to administer funds on behalf of the federal government. The agency continues to update its website daily with new information on applying and receiving unemployment benefits.

The GDOL is also continuing to work with employers to get Georgians back to work. Employers have been contacting the GDOL with job opportunities that are critical during this crisis  some in the workplace and others that can be done from home. Today, over 116,000 jobs are listed online at www.EmployGeorgia.com for Georgians to access. The GDOL offers online resources for finding a job, building a resume, and assisting with other reemployment needs.

Information on filing an unemployment claim, details on how employers must file partial claims, and resources for other reemployment assistance can be found on the agencys webpage at www.gdol.ga.gov
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 12:35:23|Editor: ZD

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WASHINGTON, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Navy is evacuating thousands of sailors from aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in an attempt to contain the spread of the coronavirus on board the ship, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said Wednesday.

Briefing reporters by telephone from the Pentagon, Modly said nearly 1,000 personnel have already left the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, which is now docking in Guam. "In the next couple of days, we expect to have about 2,700 of them off the ship."

According to Modly, there have been 93 positive tests on board the Roosevelt so far, with 86 of those service members exhibiting symptoms and seven having no symptoms. So far, 593 have tested negative. Nearly 1,300 crew members have been tested and some results are still pending.

"We identified and quarantined all those who were suspected of being in close contact with those that had tested positive," Modly said. All sailors with confirmed positive tests were removed from the ship and isolated immediately, he added.

News of a coronavirus outbreak on board the Roosevelt first emerged last Thursday, and the captain reportedly told the Pentagon earlier this week about the spread of the disease, calling for immediate assistance in quarantining the crew.

"We are providing the commanding officer what he has requested, and we are doing our best to accelerate the pace wherever we can," the acting secretary said.

Modly said the Navy "cannot and will not" remove all the roughly 5,000 sailors from the ship, adding that neither the ship's commander nor its medical officers had requested a total evacuation.

He said the aircraft carrier is comparable to a cruise ship only in the sense that "it's big and it floats and has a lot of people on it."

"This ship has weapons on it. It has munitions on it. It has expensive aircraft, and it has a nuclear power plant," the acting secretary said. "It requires a certain number of people on that ship to maintain safety and security."

The spread of the coronavirus on board the Roosevelt has become yet another demonstration of the magnitude of the coronavirus pandemic, especially its effect on the military.

What happened to the ship was brought under spotlight after the release earlier this week of an internal letter by the ship's captain, Brett Crozier, requesting Pentagon officials to provide additional resources for sailors aboard the ship who he believed needed to be quarantined -- particularly those infected.

"This will require a political solution but it is the right thing to do," Crozier wrote in a letter first obtained by The San Francisco Chronicle. "We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset - our sailors."

Modly said Wednesday he was disappointed by Crozier's letter. "It's disappointing to have him say that," the acting secretary said, adding the Navy has been working "very, very hard" within the command structure to meet the needs from the captain and medical officers.

Navy officials initially believed a port call in Da Nang, Vietnam, between late February and early March might be related to the spread of the coronavirus among the crew members, but Navy Admiral Michael Gilday downplayed that hypothesis Wednesday at the briefing.

"We don't have any forensics to indicate" that the stop in Da Nang caused the virus' spread on the ship, Gidley said. All of the crew were tested for symptoms before returning to the ship, he added.

"Understanding who patient zero is is probably going to be an impossible task," the admiral said, citing the reason that sailors leave and board the ship frequently during its deployments.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  A man is dead Thursday after a car crashed into building and burst into flames in Ohio City.

The crash happened about 11:30 a.m. at the former Ohio City Galley building on West 25th Street and Detroit Avenue, according to Cleveland firefighters.

The man drove west across the Detroit-Superior Bridge and crashed into the building. The impact ejected the man from the car, according to Cleveland Fire Department spokesman.

The car burst into flames after the crash. Norman said the man was pronounced dead at the scene. No other information was immediately released on crash.

West 25th Street is closed between Detroit and Church avenues. Firefighters are assessing the building for structural damage.

Read more from cleveland.com:

3 teens among wounded in 5 shootings in 6 hours in Cleveland

Suspect in triple murder at Northwest Ohio bar arrested in Cleveland

Coronavirus got 900 inmates out of Cuyahoga Countys troubled jail when inmate deaths didnt. Some say the changes should stick
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The 2,902 confirmed coronavirus cases in Ohio are spread across 75 of the states 88 counties, with 81 deaths, the Ohio Department of Health reported Thursday.

This map is updated daily: see this link for the latest Ohio coronavirus maps.

The case total was up from 2,547 cases in 72 counties reported Wednesday, while the number of deaths increased from 65. Thursdays update included the first cases for Guernsey, Hardin and Williams counties.

Details for each county including hospitalizations, deaths and per capita rates are in a chart at the bottom of this story.

The increase in newly reported cases was 14% from Wednesday. The daily changes were 16%, 14%, 17%, 18%, 24%, 31%, 23% and 25% the previous seven days.

These graphics illustrate the daily changes in the number of coronavirus cases confirmed in Ohio, but do not account for anyone who may no longer have the virus. The Ohio Department of Health said it does not have that information.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

However, Ohio Health Director Dr. Amy Acton, has repeatedly cautioned that the totals are understated, often calling them the tip of the iceberg," because of limited testing.

Acton said Thursday she has no data yet for the number of people who may have recovered or are no longer in the hospital. Infections can last weeks.

Gov. Mike DeWine said there may be more deaths due to coronavirus than the 81 confirmed so far.

The 81 are spread across 26 counties, with the most in Cuyahoga (12), Mahoning (11), Miami (8), Summit (7) and Trumbull (6) counties. All of these counties but Miami are in Northeast Ohio.

That total number of coronavirus-related in hospitalizations in Ohio increased 18% from Wednesday to Thursday, according to data from the Ohio Department of Health.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

The state reported 802 hospitalizations, with 260 in intensive care units. This is up from 679 and 222 on Wednesday, 586 and 198 on Tuesday, and 475 and 163 on Monday.

The statewide total of confirmed cases was 2,199 on Tuesday, 1,933 on Monday, 1,653 on Sunday, 1,406 on Saturday, 1,137 on Friday and 867 last Thursday.

The first three cases were confirmed on March 9. The total topped 100 on March 19, exceeded 1,000 on March 27 and topped the 2,000 for the first time on Tuesday.

This graphic illustrates the increase in known coronavirus cases in Ohio since the first three were reported on March 9 through the 2,902 the Ohio Department of Health reported Thursday, April 2.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

Most of the cases are concentrated in the largest urban areas of Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati, though on a per capita bases they rates run highest in Mahoning County, which includes Youngstown.

There have been 84 confirmed cases per 100,000 people in Mahoning County versus the statewide rate of 24.8.

The maps below illustrate the spread of coronavirus across Ohio daily, beginning with the 13 cases reported on March 13.

These maps show the spread of known coronavirus cases across Ohio from March 13 through Wednesday, April 1. The map for Thursday is at the top of this story.Rich Exner, cleveland.com

Some numbers may change from day to day. As the state works to clean data, it sometimes has reduced the number of cases in individual counties from one day to the next.

The chart below shows what the Ohio Department of Health reported on Thursday. Cleveland.com calculated the cases per 100,000 rates based on 2019 census population estimates.

Rich Exner, data analysis editor for cleveland.com, writes about numbers on a variety of topics. Follow on Twitter @RichExner. See other data-related stories at cleveland.com/datacentral.

County Cases Hosp. Deaths Cases

per

100,000 Allen 10 8 0 9.8 Ashland 3 1 0 5.6 Ashtabula 8 2 0 8.2 Athens 3 1 1 4.6 Auglaize 3 1 0 6.6 Belmont 12 4 0 17.9 Brown 2 1 1 4.6 Butler 45 18 0 11.7 Carroll 5 4 0 18.6 Champaign 4 2 0 10.3 Clark 7 4 0 5.2 Clermont 14 4 0 6.8 Clinton 5 1 0 11.9 Columbiana 22 16 2 21.6 Coshocton 8 1 0 21.9 Crawford 6 0 0 14.5 Cuyahoga 663 166 12 53.7 Darke 22 0 1 43.0 Defiance 6 2 0 15.8 Delaware 50 8 1 23.9 Erie 5 5 1 6.7 Fairfield 28 6 0 17.8 Fayette 1 0 0 3.5 Franklin 441 67 5 33.5 Fulton 3 1 0 7.1 Gallia 3 3 1 10.0 Geauga 33 10 0 35.2 Greene 8 2 1 4.7 Guernsey 1 0 0 2.6 Hamilton 178 40 2 21.8 Hancock 8 4 0 10.6 Hardin 1 1 0 3.2 Highland 3 1 0 7.0 Holmes 1 0 0 2.3 Huron 4 3 1 6.9 Jefferson 13 5 0 19.9 Knox 5 3 1 8.0 Lake 62 19 3 26.9 Lawrence 2 1 0 3.4 Licking 30 3 0 17.0 Logan 3 1 0 6.6 Lorain 90 25 2 29.0 Lucas 206 35 3 48.1 Madison 11 3 2 24.6 Mahoning 192 87 11 84.0 Marion 10 3 0 15.4 Medina 68 17 1 37.8 Mercer 5 1 0 12.1 Miami 62 24 8 58.0 Montgomery 49 11 2 9.2 Morrow 1 0 0 2.8 Muskingum 3 2 0 3.5 Ottawa 5 3 0 12.3 Perry 2 0 0 5.5 Pickaway 11 0 0 18.8 Pike 1 0 0 3.6 Portage 59 21 2 36.3 Preble 1 1 0 2.4 Richland 8 4 0 6.6 Ross 3 3 0 3.9 Sandusky 5 5 0 8.5 Seneca 4 2 1 7.2 Shelby 6 2 0 12.3 Stark 67 12 3 18.1 Summit 155 62 7 28.6 Trumbull 63 32 6 31.8 Tuscarawas 16 3 0 17.4 Union 4 0 0 6.8 Van Wert 2 1 0 7.1 Warren 26 4 0 11.1 Washington 4 2 0 6.7 Wayne 11 4 0 9.5 Williams 1 1 0 2.7 Wood 18 11 0 13.8 Wyandot 2 2 0 9.2 Statewide 2,902 802 81 24.8

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Recent trends illustrate how quickly ICU hospital needs could go up in Ohio for coronavirus

Coronavirus in Cuyahoga County: Growth, age, gender, death stats as of March 28

Does coronavirus spread along Ohios highways? Not so simple
During the ongoing lockdown in the face of the coronavirus outbreak, there are several cultural initiatives on social media that offer audiences a community to engage with. Here's a list, updated daily:

During the ongoing lockdown in the face of the coronavirus outbreak, there are several cultural initiatives on social media that offer audiences a community to engage with. Here's a list:

Stay Home, Stay Reading by Fatima Bhutto and Sanam Maher

In a bid to stay home and encourage reading, writer Fatima Bhutto and journalist Sanam Maher present short readings from writers around the world, across different genres of writing. Each writer will share two videos. One, a short reading of their own work that they want to share with readers. And two, a video of them recommending books. The project started with Bhutto reading from her book The Runaways, and has so far also seen readings by Alexander Chee, Omar bin Musa, Rupi Kaur, Susan Abulhawa, Max Porter, Aanchal Malhotra, Maher, and Sinead Gleeson.

Videos on both founders Instagram accounts, here and here.

Mother Tongue Twisters by Mohini Gupta

Writer and translator Mohini Guptas initiative is a multilingual platform that collects original poetry and curates contemporary poetry, in Indian languages, for young readers. Besides poems will also be puns and wordplay, nonsense verses, and rhyme and repetition, since such sounds can appeal more to young audiences. The languages and dialects of this collection will range across English, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Kumaoni, Santhali, Sylheti, Maithili, and Marwari. Through bringing together sounds and stories from the collective Indian consciousness, the platform aims to represent the layered Indian experience.

More information on their website, Instagram, and Facebook.

The JCB Prize Catch Up

The JCB Prize for Literature has announced a two-week series aimed at giving readers and aspiring writers the opportunity to connect with Indian authors. The conversations will revolve around life in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, facing reality, and the world of fiction. They will also discuss the challenges of isolation and social distancing, including loneliness and sickness, and their impact on the creative process. Writers will also discuss their personal processes and techniques. Writers include Shubhangi Swarup, Benyamin, Amitabha Bagchi, Vivek Shanbhag, Roshan Ali, Chandrahas Choudhury, Mukta Sathe and Arunava Sinha.

Talks will be streamed live on JCB Prizes Instagram.

AVID Online

Focused on learning and knowledge, and with an aim to offer new perspectives on a range of topics, Avid Learning is offering online art and cultural conversations and sessions. Among the speakers are Meenakshi Shedde, Mortimer Chatterjee, Meher Marfatia, Himanshu Seth, and Pooja Vir. The topics of these talks will include city history, photography, archives, art history, creative writing, music appreciation, culinary arts innovations, fashion tips, theatre appreciation, sustainable living, and more.

Sessions can be seen on Avid Learnings Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube accounts.

Poetry Live by Kitab Khana and Indian Novels Collective

For two weeks, Kitab Khana in association with the Indian Novels Collective will be hosting live poetry readings. With over 60 poets reciting poetry in different languages, the initiative aims to remind audiences to look to poetry for comfort in uncertain times. Among the poets are Arundhathi Subramaniam, Anjali Purohit, Gauhar Raza, Kamal Vora, Hemant Divate, Srilata K, and Medha Singh.

Recitals will be streamed live on Kitab Khanas Instagram account.

Talks by Roli Books

Roli books has organised live talks by authors on their social media accounts. Among them are Alan Wilkins talk on '10 Incredible Sporting Moments, Kashyap Deorah on Startups in the context of COVID-19, and Sunetra Choudhury on Black Warrant and the recent hangings at Tihar.

Talks will be streamed live on Roli Books Twitter account.

Poets on Couches by The Paris Review

In this video series, poets read and discuss the poems that are getting them through these challenging times; broadcast straight from their couches to viewers. The first video sees Stephanie Burt reading Killarney Clarys poem Untitled [There are more of us].

Videos on The Paris Reviews Instagram.

Lockdown Journal by Sunila Galappatti

Dramaturg and theatre director Sunila Galappattis Lockdown Journal invites submissions in the form of journal entries, archiving journal entries during the coronavirus outbreak. Launched on 20 March, the website has accounts of people from different parts of the world, experiencing varying degrees of lockdown.

Read the Lockdown Journal here. Read more about it here.

Brave New World by Jaipur Literature Festival

An online literature series, Brave New World celebrates books, their power, and positivity. Among the speakers will be author Abhinav Chandrachud in conversation with journalist Pragya Tiwari about Bombays 1896 bubonic plague and its repercussions; Baroness Helena Kennedy with writer Bee Rowlatt about freedom of thought; The New World Disorder and the Indian Imperative co-authors Shashi Tharoor and Samir Saran; and Leila author Prayaag Akbar with author Amrita Tripathi will talk about dystopian fiction and its increasingly real presence. Each session will conclude with a live question and answer segment with audiences.

Sessions will be streamed on JLFs Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook accounts.

SAF 2020 x You by the Serendipity Arts Festival

Serendipity Arts Festival's digital experience SAF 2020 x You starts from 25 April and offers webinars, performances, readings, and workshops. Sessions will be held by Serendipity Arts Festival music director Sneha Khanwalkar, and artists like Bickram Ghosh, Ranjit Barot, Vidyya Shivadas, Ravi Agarwal, and Astad Deboo, among others. Ranga Shankara Theatre, envisioned by thespian Arundhati Nag, will also do special readings and hold storytelling sessions for children. Also on offer are workshops on theatre, music, and the culinary arts.

More information here.

This list will be updated regularly as more initiatives are announced. Also check out our comprehensive database of free cultural resources  books, comics, museum tours, performances, courses  available online.
Chinese authorities fear a second wave of contagions. Possible infections in a hospital in Jia County. The news from the area clashes with government data on the number of infected. Restrictive measures in Henan come as the economy shows signs of recovery.

Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Henan authorities have quarantined Jia County for fear of a second wave of coronavirus infections. The measure affects an area inhabited by 600 thousand people, who will only be able to leave their homes with a special permit, wearing protective masks and undergoing body temperature control. Food can be purchased every two days by only one member per family.

Press reports reveal that restrictive measures were taken after four cases of contagion were recorded in a hospital in the area. The virus was reported to have been transmitted by a doctor from the facility that served in Wuhan (Hubei), the epicenter of the epidemic.

All businesses have been closed, except those that supply food and health products. Public utility companies, petrol stations and hotels also remain open.

The news from Henan clashes with official data provided by the government. Yesterday, the National Health Commission reported only 36 cases of contagion, all imported from abroad except one. In total, the infected people are over 82 thousand; about 3300 deaths.

The isolation of Jia County comes as the central government tries to restart the economy, hit hard in the last two months by the forced closure of activities to contain the spread of Covid-19. March data show some signs of revival as the Caixin / Markit manufacturing index jumped to 50.1 points from 40.3 in February (above 50 indicates a growth in production). The government index recorded a more marked growth (52 points).

Meanwhile, Beijing has authorized provincial administrations to issue bonds to finance the construction of new infrastructure. Central authorities have not yet specified the amount, but bonds worth 290 billion yuan (37 billion euros) were issued in February.
Bruno Sivanandan Roques de Borda (left) and Winfrid Messmer (right) from the EuroCham Digital Sector Committee

Industry 4.0 is making great impacts on sectors in Vietnam. Which sectors are EU ICT businesses most interested in, and what are the future plans among members of EuroCham Digital Sector Committee (DSC)?

One of Vietnam's main targets of the Fourth Industrial Revolution is building e-governance, improving and transforming existing production and trade systems to optimise resource allocation, and investing and improving the efficiency of science and technology activities.

This e-governance strongly relies on data-governance. There are initiatives at the ASEAN and at the Vietnamese level to create a framework for data that echoes European general data protection regulations (GDPR). Such a framework sets the legal boundaries within which businesses can use their data. We are mainly looking at telecoms and cloud computing, since they are the back-bone of digital transformation.

The Sector Committee plan is to help in the creation of such a framework through the European GDPR and the point of view of the businesses constituting it. First, in the context of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), Vietnamese companies that want to export will have to comply with the GDPR. The committee can organise GDRP workshops and training sessions and support Vietnamese companies in this matter.

Secondly, as we are individually running businesses, we shall express our opinion on new policies, in order to draw the fine line between framing the data usage and preventing the business from running, harming the economy.

Vietnams sci-tech market is expected to open widely when the EVFTA takes effect. What is the potential growth of the market to EU firms, and how do you compare Vietnam and other regional markets in terms of growth potential and market size?

The EVFTA will boost commerce for many business sectors. As digital is nowadays transverse to all business activities, there is a huge market opening for any technical solution saving time and energy for the business administration, aka a digital solution. For instance, the electronic signature will help foster the business environment by shortening a process which takes a few days into one which takes a few minutes. The payment platforms are becoming more reliable and trusted, saving the costly and delicate handling of money.

In general, digital services are becoming even more relevant with trades taking place between such distant regions of the world. Adam Smith understood in the 18th century that the rise of paper money, way less expensive to use than gold, would help the economy improve by saving finances for concrete added value. We are experiencing a similar transformation, from paper to digital.

Vietnam is making great progress in promoting the digital transformation at the government level. The launch of an e-portal last December was a great step toward fluidifying business administration. In addition, the current pandemic we are facing renders this technology even more vital. We see a boost in digital transformation after the crisis as companies will crave more resilient and sensible systems.

How can members of the Sector Committee contribute to the improvement of ICT education in order to improve the skills of employees and graduates, thus helping Vietnam promote digital transformation?

Vietnam, like many countries, is facing a shortage in skilled workers in the digital field. The new technologies are creating demand for new positions within organisations: chief data officer, data owner, data scientist, data steward, cyber security specialist, and many more.

In order for that demand to be fulfilled, the education system needs to be transformed in order to prepare students to fit into the company's environments. Luckily, if digital technologies challenge the education system, they also offer change possibilities in the way education is provided and how it is equipped. E-learning, multi-streaming devices on the IP network, lifelong learning, individualisation, and gamification of education are now within our reach for implementation.

In parallel, opening education to the international and to the corporate world could greatly enhance the relevance of the student in regards to the market. With the expertise of the DSC and the support of the members of EuroCham we can drive and support the process of ICT skills improvements for graduates and lecturers as well as for reskilling the current workforce also based on best practice.

There are many topics on which EuroChams DSC can advise and support. First, it can bring together vocational institutions and enterprises to collaborate in learning contents and lecturer skills improvements matched with the skills requirements of enterprises, as well as drive and consult universities and enterprises to collaborate and initiate research projects.

DSC can drive and support the matching of skills requirements of enterprises and curricula at universities and can also advise in lecturer skills improvement. It can organise events and set up networks with Vietnamese and international vocational institutions.

In addition, the committee can advise, initiate, and support the collaboration between international and national universities also in the region, while supporting the collaboration with Vietnamese universities and national and international enterprises.

Finally, the DSC can give strategic advice to relevant ministries and Peoples Committees and other public institutions based on best practice in Europe.
Dubai's Emirates airline will be resuming a limited number of outbound passenger flights next week, it was announced.

"Emirates has received approval from UAE authorities to restart flying a limited number of passenger flights," its chairman, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, said on Twitter.

"From April 6, these flights will initally carry travellers outbound to the UAE," he said.

As per the UAE government's directive, Emirates temporarily suspended all passenger services from March 25, but it continued to operate cargo flights.

"Over the time, Emirates looks forward to the gradual resumption of passenger services in line with lifting of travel and operational restrictions, including assurance of health measures to safeguard our people and customers," he added. - TradeArabia News Service
Allschwil, Switzerland - April 2, 2020



Idorsia Ltd (SIX: IDIA) today issued the formal Notice to the upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Shareholders on behalf of the Board of Directors. The meeting to approve the Business Report of the year ending December 31, 2019 will be held on Wednesday May 13, 2020.

The meeting will be held in accordance with the requirements of the COVID-19 Ordinance 2, issued by the Swiss Federal Council on March 13, 2020. As a result, attendance in person will not be possible and voting will take place by independent proxy only.

Jean-Pierre Garnier, Chairman of the Board of Directors commented:

"These are extraordinary times and - while Idorsia continues to advance despite the adverse conditions - we must adapt how we conduct the Annual General Meeting of shareholders. Voting will take place by independent proxy, and attendance in person is not possible. I very much regret that this is the case since it will be my last AGM for Idorsia - having previously served as Chairman at Actelion."

The Chairman continued:

"Having overseen the deal between Actelion and Johnson & Johnson, I wanted to ensure that Idorsia, the new venture for Actelion shareholders, was set on the right path to further value creation. As can be seen from the Annual Report, the company is well and truly on track to deliver on our vision. Our strategy of pursuing the development of all our pipeline assets means that the company's future is not dependent on the results of a single pivotal trial, and Idorsia is thus well placed to go from strength to strength. As a Board, we felt that the time was ripe to hand over the reins and let the company benefit from some fresh perspectives."

Notes to Shareholders

The Notice, which includes the biographies of proposed Board candidates, will be published in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (Schweizerisches Handelsamtsblatt) in the coming days and distributed to Shareholders by post on April 15, 2020, please allow some days for delivery given the strain on public resources. It is also available, together with the Company's Annual Report and Compensation Report, on www.idorsia.com/agm.

Shares only qualify for voting through the independent proxy if registered in the company's shareholder register by May 4, 2020 at the latest. Registered shareholders will receive a form to appoint the Independent Proxy. Forms must be received by May 11, 2020, please allow appropriate time for delivery given the strain on public resources.

Notes to the editor

Letter from the Chairman



Dear Shareholders,

You are receiving details of this year's Annual General Meeting of Idorsia's shareholders in extraordinary times. As this event has to be held in accordance with the requirements of the COVID 19 Ordinance 2, issued by the Swiss Federal Council, I am afraid that attendance in person is not possible and voting will take place by independent proxy. It is unfortunate that we find ourselves in this position, but the health of our shareholders and the Idorsia team is of paramount importance.

Let me therefore take this opportunity to provide you with some context and background information on the Board's proposals, which you are invited to vote on either by postal vote or via the electronic voting platform.

To begin with, you will find a full description of last year's activities in our Annual Report 2019 at: www.idorsia.com/annual-report (http://www.idorsia.com/annual-report).

As we had hoped, the clinical pipeline continues to progress, and the results of the first Phase 3 study with daridorexant for patients with insomnia are expected to be available very shortly. With our pipeline assets nearing the market, there is still much work to be done if we are to maximize their impact in the relevant therapeutic areas. As Idorsia takes these last steps towards financial sustainability, we must maintain financial and strategic flexibility. To this end, we are proposing that you approve an increase to both our conditional and authorized capital until the AGM in 2022.

We are also proposing some changes to the Board of Directors. Both John Greisch and Robert Bertolini have decided not to stand for re-election, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their valuable contributions to the establishment of Idorsia - it has been a pleasure working with both of them. You will also note that I will likewise not be standing for re-election. Having overseen the deal between Actelion and Johnson & Johnson, I wanted to ensure that Idorsia, the new venture for Actelion shareholders, was set on the right path to further value creation. As can be seen from the Annual Report, the company is well and truly on track to deliver on our vision. Our strategy of pursuing the development of all our pipeline assets means that the company's future is not dependent on the results of a single pivotal trial, and Idorsia is thus well placed to go from strength to strength. As a Board, we felt that the time was ripe to hand over the reins and let the company benefit from some fresh perspectives.

Happily, we have found some stellar talent to hand over to, and if you approve our proposals, the Board will be in excellent shape following this year's AGM. Firstly, we propose that Mathieu Simon should take the helm. Mathieu joined Idorsia's Board last year and, having gained a sound understanding of the company's priorities, he can now provide the continuity required of the Board, while also bringing his leadership skills to engage with the new Board members and listen to their new perspectives.

We also propose that you elect Joern Aldag, Michel de Rosen, Felix R. Ehrat and Sandy Mahatme. As you can see from their biographies in the Appendix, all four of these candidates bring the wealth of experience in their respective fields which is needed to support Idorsia in fulfilling its destiny as a leading biopharmaceutical company.

The other items on the agenda are relatively straightforward, and explanations are given with the proposal or in the Appendix.

I very much regret that I will not be able to meet with you in person at my last AGM for Idorsia - having previously served as your Chairman at Actelion - but I am sure you will understand the situation. I hope you will all stay healthy, and that you will exercise your voting rights through the proxy vote.

Best regards,

Jean-Pierre Garnier

Chairman of the Board of Directors

Agenda for the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders 2020

1. Annual Report 2019, Consolidated Financial Statements 2019, Statutory Financial Statements 2019 and Compensation Report 2019

1.1. Approval of Annual Report 2019, Consolidated Financial Statements 2019 and Statutory Financial Statements 2019

1.2. Consultative vote on the Compensation Report 2019

2. Appropriation of available earnings

3. Discharge of the Board of Directors and of the Executive Committee

4. Increase of conditional share capital

4.1. Increase of conditional share capital regarding the issuance of employee participation rights

4.2. Increase of conditional share capital regarding the issuance of conversion rights

5. Increase and extension of existing authorized share capital

6. Board elections

6.1. Re-election of members of the Board of Directors

6.2. Election of new Directors

6.3. Election of the Chair of the Board of Directors

6.4. Election of the Nominating, Governance & Compensation Committee

7. Approval of Board compensation and Executive Committee compensation

7.1. Approval of Board compensation (Non-Executive Directors) for the 2020-2021 term of office

7.2. Approval of Executive Committee compensation 2021

8. Election of the Independent Proxy

9. Election of the statutory auditors



About Idorsia

Idorsia Ltd is reaching out for more - We have more ideas, we see more opportunities and we want to help more patients. In order to achieve this, we will develop Idorsia into one of Europe's leading biopharmaceutical companies, with a strong scientific core.

Headquartered in Switzerland - a biotech-hub of Europe - Idorsia is specialized in the discovery and development of small molecules, to transform the horizon of therapeutic options. Idorsia has a broad portfolio of innovative drugs in the pipeline, an experienced team, a fully-functional research center, and a strong balance sheet - the ideal constellation to bringing R&D efforts to business success.

Idorsia was listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (ticker symbol: IDIA) in June 2017 and has over 800 highly qualified specialists dedicated to realizing our ambitious targets.

For further information, please contact

Andrew C. Weiss

Senior Vice President, Head of Investor Relations & Corporate Communications

Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Hegenheimermattweg 91, CH-4123 Allschwil

+41 (0) 58 844 10 10

www.idorsia.com (http://www.idorsia.com)

The above information contains certain "forward-looking statements", relating to the company's business, which can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "estimates", "believes", "expects", "may", "are expected to", "will", "will continue", "should", "would be", "seeks", "pending" or "anticipates" or similar expressions, or by discussions of strategy, plans or intentions. Such statements include descriptions of the company's investment and research and development programs and anticipated expenditures in connection therewith, descriptions of new products expected to be introduced by the company and anticipated customer demand for such products and products in the company's existing portfolio. Such statements reflect the current views of the company with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company to be materially different from any future results, performances or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as anticipated, believed, estimated or expected.

Attachment
A $265 million verdict in Missouri against two global agribusiness giants has now created another legal headache for the companies, building a road map to victory for dozens of other suits alleging the weedkiller dicamba damaged their crops, lawyers say.

At the same time, regional farmers say they are left with few options but to use the controversial herbicide that has sparked thousands of complaints across millions of acres of U.S. farmland.

Most of those farmers have not filed lawsuits, said Don Downing, a St. Louis-based lawyer for Gray, Ritter & Graham, who is representing plaintiffs in other dicamba suits. I believe that this verdict is going to prompt many farmers to go ahead and file.

Dicamba use ramped up in 2016, after the introduction of popular crop varieties, like soybeans, that were genetically engineered by Creve Coeur, Missouri-based Monsanto to withstand spraying. Soon thereafter, farmers across the Midwest and South began filing complaints saying the drift-prone chemical had wafted off nearby fields and harmed their crops.

In late 2016, Bootheel peach farmer Bill Bader filed suit, first against Monsanto  now owned by the German pharmaceutical and life sciences company Bayer  and then against its German competitor, BASF. He blamed dicamba for destroying his peach farm near Campbell, Missouri, about 80 miles south of Cape Girardeau.

After a three-week trial that captured widespread attention, jurors ordered Bayer and BASF to pay Bader $15 million in compensation and $250 million in punitive damages.

Baders attorneys didnt make Bader available for this story.

Bayer and BASF vowed to appeal the ruling. Bayer representatives maintained that the peach orchard was largely damaged by root rot, that the companys Xtend system of dicamba-tolerant seeds and spray is safe, and that the Bader verdict isnt a bellwether for suits to come.

This case is unique, and we dont think it has any impact on the others, Chris Hohn, a lawyer for Bayer, told the Post-Dispatch on Monday.

We have great empathy for Mr. Bader and Bader Farms, Hohn continued. But whats happening is not related to Monsanto or Monsantos products.

The weekends verdict surprised farmers for its severity, and also its location  delivered in a federal courthouse named in honor of Rush Hudson Limbaugh Sr., a prominent Cape Girardeau judge who is also the grandfather of the conservative talk radio host.

I dont think you were going to get a liberal, company-hating jury in Cape Girardeau, said Tom Burnham, a local farmer and vocal dicamba critic. Not in the Rush Limbaugh courthouse down there.

Bayer faces about 30 other dicamba lawsuits involving around 170 plaintiffs, according to company attorneys. The next case may reach trial late this year.

Plaintiff attorneys say the outcome of the Bader case is promising for their clients.

Not only did the jury rule in favor of Bader Farms on all counts, but it awarded more in punitive damages than the $200 million recommended by Baders legal team. Moreover, the jury moved quickly. It deliberated for about four hours on Feb. 21 to find the companies at fault, and then took just 30 minutes on Feb. 22 to decide on the $250 million penalty.

That jury was mad, said Paul Lesko, a St. Louis lawyer at Peiffer Wolf Carr & Kane who represents dicamba plaintiffs. What Monsanto and BASF did resonated.

Lesko said the Bader case provides a road map of successful arguments that other dicamba lawsuits can follow, including glimpses of certain hot-button documents from inside the companies.

Lawyers said the other cases are also easier to prove. They mostly involve alleged damage to soybeans, instead of peach trees. In the Bader trial, Bayer denied the peach trees were damaged by dicamba at all.

But Lesko and others said that defense disappears in soybean cases  cupped soybean leaves are a telltale mark of exposure to the chemical and should be harder for Bayer to deny.

If Bader was an outlier, its that it was a harder case, said Lesko.

Plaintiffs lawyers also say they expect the Bader case to spark new lawsuits  and for more reasons than the gigantic payout.

Many farmers in recent years havent filed dicamba damage reports or pursued lawsuits largely because they didnt want to strain relationships with neighbors, farmers and lawyers have said. But the Bader trial kept the legal attack focused on the corporate defendants, and did not rope neighboring farmers or herbicide applicators into the fray.

Meanwhile, if the dicamba lawsuits  and payouts  balloon, Bayer investors may lose patience.

The company is already under fire for a different weedkiller. Bayer said in October that it faced more than 42,000 plaintiffs alleging the popular herbicide Roundup causes cancer. Lawyers recently postponed a St. Louis trial, hoping to work toward a settlement that could reach $10 billion, according to some reports.

For Bayer, that stability suggests the market doesnt see dicamba as a Roundup-caliber financial concern for now.

This is not a glyphosate issue in scale, said the trading firm Liberum Capital, according to a Reuters report, but is another legal headache for investors to worry about in the near term.

Andrew Thostenson, a pesticide specialist for North Dakota State Universitys extension service, said he was stunned by the size of punitive damages awarded in the Bader trial, after keeping an eye on it from afar. He was particularly surprised to see the result come from an area like Southeast Missouri, where he felt average citizens generally would not be unsympathetic to agriculture companies and herbicide use.

Its something that you might expect for sure if it was on the West Coast, Thostenson said. But it happened down in Cape Girardeau. I think that says something.

Around the Bootheel, theres no shortage of farmers who say they were harmed by the chemical in recent years  and forced to adopt it as a result.

I had to start growing dicamba beans because the losses were so much you cant stand it, said Sam Branum, a recently retired farmer near Hornersville. If youre farming around it, you either get with it, or you get out.

Xtend crops now blanket the areas cotton and soybean fields.

Its more or less taken over down here, said Carlis McHugh, a retired farmer and the former owner of Billys Steakhouse in Portageville, about an hour south of Cape Girardeau. All the farmers use it.

He says there are multiple reasons for Xtends regional surge toward saturation. One is visible to the naked eye; it provides extremely clean fields, free of weeds.

You can drive around and not see a weed. Thats how effective the stuff is, said McHugh. It kills everything but the crop.

Self-preservation, though, is another top selling point. McHugh says his crops were damaged once, forcing him to join the ranks of Xtend converts.

We switched over to it to protect ourselves, said McHugh. You didnt have a hell of a lot of choice, if you know what I mean.

Incentive for defensive planting is unlikely to diminish. Weed science experts say some drift is an inevitability, and a new way of life that many growers have come to accept.

Bayer expects to file post-trial motions within the next month asking the judge to overturn the jurys rulings in the Bader case.

If denied, the company could turn to a federal appeals court in St. Louis, which would re-examine the case using the same evidence on hand.

The appeal process could take a year or more, Bayer lawyers said.
Hyderabad, April 2 : Subdued celebrations marked Ram Navmi in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on Thursday due to coronavirus-fueled lockdown.

With no public congregation allowed and temples remaining shut across both Telugu states, the devouts performed puja and conducted other rituals at home.

No devotees were allowed for Kalyanotsavam or the annual customary celebrations at the Lord Sree Sita Ramachandra Swamy Temple in Bhadrachalam in Telangana.

The low-key ceremony saw participation by a couple of state ministers and officials besides a few priests. On behalf of the state government, Endowments Minister P. Indrakaran Reddy, Transport Minister P. Ajay Kumar, government advisor K.V. Ramanachari made the offerings to the temple.

About 40 people, some of them wearing face masks, attended the ceremony conducted by the priests in the temple premises.

Every year thousands of people from both the Telugu states travel to Bhadrachalam to attend the celestial wedding of Lord Rama with his consort Sita. Kalyanotsavam, which is traditionally held at Mithila Stadium, was shifted to the temple this time.

Several devotees had booked the temple tickets online but the authorities cancelled them and returned their money. Ajay Kumar said this was done to prevent gathering of devotees in view of the lockdown.

Authorities in both the states had also appealed to people not to visit any temple on the occasion of Ram Navmi.

Governors and chief ministers of both the states greeted people on Ram Navmi. Andhra Pradesh Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan and his Telangana counterpart Tamilisai Soundararajan conveyed their greetings to people.

Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao Ram Navmi conveyed his greetings to the people. He prayed to God to bestow blessings to people in the state to be happy, healthy, and prosperous with longevity.

While extending his greetings, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy appealed to people to celebrate the festival in their homes in view of the coronavirus threat. He prayed for the wellbeing and prosperity of the people.
A civil society group, Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) has proposed that government installs body cameras on officers who are currently taking part in the lockdown duties.



The group believe this will help the authorities know exactly what transpires between officers and civilians on a daily basis.



This comes after several videos surfaced online alleging how some officers of the military and police are maltreating civilians.



Programme Officer of CDD-Ghana, Paul Mensah Abrampa, says this move if implemented will help the country to a large extent.



"In abnormal times such as this, you expect some of these clashes to happen because the directive for a lockdown was abrupt and we could not have enough time to put in place contingency measures. But being a civil society group and having monitored certain situations, we see it proactive to give our security officials body cameras. We are also aware that the security officers come from diverse backgrounds so no matter how strict the commanding officer is they will be people among them who will go wayward. I listen to the Military command and even though they debunked videos going round they accepted one and have recalled the officer."



The Ghana Police Service in 2019 received some over 3000 body cameras to be used by personnel.



The body camera is to enhance police transparency and accountability.



Body cameras are small-lensed devices, often worn on an officer's chest to capture images. It has a microphone to record sounds and internal storage for data or footage for later review and analysis.



Today marks Day 3 of the 14 days government partial lockdown. A number of civilians have clashed with security officials for failing to obey the directive.



Ghana has so far recorded 195 COVID-19 cases with the death toll at 5.













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Ryanair released more than 10 million tonnes of greenhouse gases last year, making the airline one of the biggest carbon polluters in Europe.

Emissions by the airline increased by almost 6pc on 2018 and by close to 33pc since 2013.

While the upward trend is expected to stall now that most flights are grounded, the figures reveal the challenge ahead in reining in air travel emissions if there is a rush to the skies when pandemic restrictions end.

To put Ryanair's emissions into perspective, Ireland as a whole emitted 60 million tonnes of greenhouse gases last year.

The airline's emissions are not included in that figure as airlines and other major energy users such as power plants and large manufacturers come under a separate carbon accounting mechanism, the European Union's Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).

Ryanair did not comment on the figures, but it has repeatedly defended its environmental record, stressing that its high carbon output is due to being the largest airline in Europe.

It claims to be Europe's greenest airline with the lowest carbon output per passenger due to flying the youngest, most energy efficient fleet with the fewest empty seats.

Ryanair was not the only airline to increase emissions - 14 of the top 20 polluting airlines also emitted more carbon.

Andrew Murphy, of environmental group Transport and Environment, said the trend had to be tackled through ending the carbon tax emption for aviation fuel and requiring airlines to adopt cleaner technologies.

"Airlines grew their emissions right up until this crisis. But this current bust will be followed by another boom in CO2 so long as aviation emissions remain untaxed and unregulated," he said.

Europe's biggest carbon polluter is the Belchatow coal-fired power plant in Poland which emitted more than 40m tonnes last year.

By contrast, the ETS figures show the changing nature of electricity generation in Ireland. ESB's emissions fell by about one-third to just over three million tonnes, with the winding down of the coal-powered Moneypoint plant resulting in emissions there falling by almost two-thirds. Emissions from peat-powered plants at West Offaly and Lough Ree came to just over 1.6 million tonnes.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte holding a Galil sniper rifle with outgoing Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Ronald dela Rosa (L) during the change of command ceremony at Camp Crame in Manila on on April 19, 2018. (Noel Celis/AFP via Getty Images)

Shoot Them Dead: Philippine President Duterte Said He Wont Tolerate Lockdown Violators

MANILAPhilippine President Rodrigo Duterte has warned violators of the CCP virus lockdown measures they could be shot for causing trouble and said abuse of medical workers was a serious crime that would not be tolerated.

In a televised address, Duterte said it was vital everyone cooperates and follows home quarantine measures, as authorities try to slow the contagion and spare the countrys fragile health system from being overwhelmed.

The Philippines has recorded 96 CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus deaths and 2,311 confirmed cases, all but three in the past three weeks, with infections now being reported in the hundreds every day.

It is getting worse. So once again Im telling you the seriousness of the problem and that you must listen, Duterte said late on Wednesday.

My orders to the police and military  if there is trouble and theres an occasion that they fight back and your lives are in danger, shoot them dead.

Is that understood? Dead. Instead of causing trouble, I will bury you.

A man wearing a protective mask on his neck walks past closed shops in an empty street following the lockdown in the Philippine capital to prevent the spread of the CCP virus, in Manila, Philippines, on March 24, 2020. (Eloisa Lopez/Reuters)

His comments came after media reports of a disturbance and several arrests on Wednesday of residents in a poor area of Manila who were protesting about insufficient government food aid.

They also follow outrage among the medical community about social stigma and instances of hospital workers suffering physical abuse and discrimination, which Duterte said must be stopped.

Activists deride Duterte over his fierce rhetoric and accuse him of inviting violence and vigilantism, as shown in his war on drugs, during which police and mystery gunmen have killed thousands of people accused of using or selling drugs.

Police say their actions in the anti-drug campaign have been lawful.

Dutertes office typically calls his remarks hyperbole to underline his point.

The national police chief on Thursday said police understood that Duterte was demonstrating his seriousness about public order, and no one would be shot.

By Martin Petty

Epoch Times staff contributed to this report.
Hundreds line up to apply for jobs in March at King Soopers at the store at Constitution Avenue and Marksheffel Road. Many of those waiting had lost their previous jobs because of COVID-19 closures.
Independent TD for Laois/Offaly, Carol Nolan, has said she will be writing to the Minister for Education, Joe McHugh, to seek assurances around the retention of existing supports for children with an autism diagnosis.

Deputy Nolan had previously challenged the Minister on this matter in July 2019; when she highlighted the fact that The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) had only allocated 10 new places for all schools in Laois/Offaly, at a time when Offaly alone had almost 40 Primary and Post Primary Schools with a requirement for additional Special Classes:

On World Autism Awareness Day, I want to acknowledge the heroic work that teachers, parents and communities do for all those children, and indeed adults with an ASD diagnosis.

"I know they will be looking at the current crisis and wondering if the existing and deeply inadequate level of service provision for their loved ones will even be retained in light of the financial challenges that are going to arise from Covid-19.

"I want to assure them that I will continue to advocate on their behalf to the best of my ability and that I will fight for the continuation and expansion of the educational and health services that they require.

"At present, almost 1.9bn is invested in supporting children with special needs.

"And while I accept that this is a substantial allocation-it is also vitally important to recognise that it was simply not sufficient to meet the growing demand for ASD supports.

"We must prioritise the care of our most vulnerable citizens.

"We already know from a major study published in February that over 74 % of children with ASD did not receive one or more services in the previous year and that this has directly contributed to creating an average debt per year per family of 3,259.

"Given how difficult things are likely to become it is vitally important that we do not compound the hardship these families may experience by adding lack of educational opportunity to increasing levels of personal debt, concluded Deputy Nolan.
A surgeon helping in the frontline fight against coronavirus admits he is scared of dying and leaving behind his wife and children.

The honest comments, made by Neeraj Bhasin, come amid huge public praise for the efforts of healthcare workers in recent weeks.

Mr Bhasin, medical director and a consultant vascular surgeon at the Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Huddersfield Royal Infirmary, said: 'The outpouring of support for NHS has been overwhelming and I cannot articulate how humbling, emotional and inspiring it has been.

Neeraj Bhasin, pictured left and right, who is on the frontline of the fight against coronavirus, admits he is scared of dying and leaving behind his wife and children

'As one of millions of NHS workers I know we have got this and it's just what we do.

'However, I will be open and honest and say I am scared of dying and leaving behind my wife and boys.

'I say that for my colleagues, we need to take a breath and not immerse ourselves as we always do and consider ourselves in this.

'We need to consider our mental wellbeing and we all must use the local Calderdale & Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust and national initiatives to look after ourselves.'

The families of key workers have particularly felt the strain in recent weeks, but a number of children have paid tribute to their NHS heroes with a series of heartwarming gestures.

Ali Cremona shared a photo of her three-year-old granddaughter Imogen and her drawing of her mother, Katie.

Meanwhile, ten-year-old Evie wrote a poem to thank her mother Helen, a radiographer at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary, and father James, a cardiology services manager at Calderdale Royal Hospital.

Children of key workers have thanked their heroes with a series of heartwarming gestures. Three-year-old Imogen, pictured left, drew a picture of her mother, Katie, while Evie, 10, whose parents both work in the NHS, wrote a poem of thanks, pictured right

Emma Kovaleski, from the Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Charity, said: 'As part of her home activities, now her local school is closed, Evie wrote this poem thanking all the wonderful NHS staff.

'It is challenging balancing work, parenting and home-schooling young children however when you work on the front line, as Helen and James do, the challenges are even greater.

'At Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust we have an approach called one culture of care.

'This is our way of looking out for each other at the Trust, making sure our staff are supported.

'In the times we are facing now, this approach could not be more vital.

'We are also so grateful for the support we have received over the past few weeks, and cannot thank the community enough for helping us by saying thank you.'
A New York City man, claiming to have coronavirus and underlying health issues, pulled weapons on police officers in an attempted 'suicide by cop,' NYPD said.

The man, who is yet unidentified but believed to be 55 years old, called police to his Bronx neighborhood where he was discovered armed with a large knife and pistol.

He would later tell police he thought he was going to die from coronavirus, a potentially painful and lonely process, which prompted him to attempt suicide by cop.

The incident is believed to have occurred on Westchester Avenue before 4am on Wednesday morning.

This mornings police-involved shooting in the #Bronx, where a man pointed a gun at our cops, exemplifies the dangers officers continue to face on behalf of those they serve in addition to #COVID19. NYs Finest are out there protecting  and always will be.pic.twitter.com/edZ2o3h0kN  Terence Monahan (@TerenceMonahan) April 1, 2020

A photo here of the 'bloodied' knife with a jagged edge, allegedly used by the man on police

The black powder pistol which was recovered from the Bronx shooting scene by police officers

Police officers at the scene reportedly told the man to drop his weapons, but he failed to comply.

The man, who claims to have just contracted Covid-19, has diabetes and is 'overweight', is said to have charged at police who then opened fire.

Nine shots were fired, hitting the man in the hip and back. Other reports suggest ten shots were fired.

He is expected to survive the shooting.

In addition to a black powder pistol, the 55-year-old man was also said to be in possession of a 'bloodied' knife, according to NBC New York.

The entire incident was recorded on police body cameras.

NYPD officers seen here taping off the crime scene where a man with Covid-19 allegedly tried to die 'suicide by cop'

Yet more New York City police seen here, one in a face mask, guarding the crime scene

'He is overweight, has diabetes, he thought he was gonna die so he wanted the cops to shoot and kill him' - NYPD

Later, when police interviewed the man in hospital after the shooting, he is reported to have said he had been diagnosed with Covid-19 the previous day - though this has not been confirmed - and that he wanted police to shoot him.

'We spoke to the individual as to his motivations and his statement to us was that he had just been diagnosed with Covid last night (Tuesday),' said NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan to News 4.

'He is overweight, has diabetes, he thought he was gonna die so he wanted the cops to shoot and kill him.

'So this was apparently attempted suicide by police officer,' he added.

NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan here, telling what happened, to the media in a TV interview

New York police and detectives seen here working the Bronx crime scene where a man attacked police officers with a knife and gun

At this time, it is not clear what in terms of testing and quarantine the officers involved in the incident would need to undergo, according to an NBC New York report.

As of April 1, the New York Police Department has over 6,100 officers off work sick, representing approximately 17 percent of the force.

Some 1,400 have reportedly tested positive for coronavirus, according to NBC New York.

The US has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, with 216,553 confirmed cases, and 5,139 deaths.

New York City has been the epicenter, registering 47,439 cases of the virus, and 1,374 deaths.

Recent data suggests that there are higher numbers of cases of coronavirus in poorer New York neighborhoods than in wealthier zip codes.

An army of volunteers landed in the city April 1 after repeated calls from Governor Andrew Cuomo for medical professionals to fly in from less-affected states to help in New York hospitals.

'It's like a battlefield behind your home,' said 33-year-old Emma Sorza, who could hear the sirens from severely swamped Elmhurst Hospital in Queens.

Refrigerated trucks sit outside hospitals serving as makeshift morgues as the death toll continues to rise.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 01:41:37|Editor: huaxia

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NICOSIA, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Cypriot Foreign Ministry was shut down for disinfection after one diplomat tested positive for the novel coronavirus, both state radio and the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) reported on Thursday.

According to CNA report, Foreign Minister Nicos Christodoulides gave instructions on the closure, and the building was shut down on Wednesday night for disinfection after the man was diagnosed with COVID-19 so that it could resume normal operation on Thursday afternoon.

State radio reported the diplomat is the husband of a health professional working at the main hospital treating coronavirus infections with acute symptoms. He was in quarantine and tested positive on Wednesday, but the diplomat went to his office to take some documents, coming into contact with at least four colleagues.

Three of the colleagues tested negative for COVID-19 and the result of the fourth is expected. Officials are still trying to trace their contacts, CNA reported. Enditem
Nigeria: UN and partners acting to avert coronavirus spread in displacement camps

1 April 2020 - The UN system in Nigeria and its partners are working to reduce the spread of the new coronavirus disease in some of the most vulnerable areas in the country: communities and camps housing millions of internally displaced people (IDPs) uprooted by the Boko Haram insurgency in the northeast.

Teams are supporting authorities in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states in developing emergency response plans that take into account the living conditions in many communities and IDP camps, where overcrowding can increase the risk of disease outbreaks.

"Humanitarian partners are installing hand-washing stations in IDP camps and ensuring supply of clean water. Partners are also distributing soap and teaching women how to produce their own," said Edward Kallon, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria.

"More than ever, it is crucial for vulnerable people to have access to not only water, soap, shelters, but also food, education and protection."

The decade-long crisis in the BAY states, which has spilled over into the Lake Chad region, has left more than seven million people in need of humanitarian assistance.

Most of the displaced are in Borno state, the majority of whom are women and children, with around a quarter being children under age five, according to the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA.

"We will not wait for COVID-19 to reach camps for internally displaced persons before we act", Mr. Kallon stated. "They have already suffered enough from the decade-long conflict and our priority is to ensure the continuous delivery of life-saving assistance, especially health services, to the most vulnerable women, children and the elderly who need special attention".

The UN and its humanitarian partners are actively involved in camp coordination and camp management in IDP sites across northeast Nigeria, in support of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

Key activities are being implemented jointly and under global guidance on COVID-19 Outbreak Preparedness and Response issued by the World Health Organization (WHO).

COVID-19 has affected 12 states across Nigeria, with 139 cases recorded as of Wednesday, and the UN also plans to bring in vital health equipment and tools to prevent and treat the respiratory disease.

The UN team has developed messages, posters, videos and other communications aimed at raising awareness about COVID-19 among IDPs and other vulnerable people in the northeast. Sensitization campaigns are also reaching millions in various states through partnerships with major TV and radio channels.

The UN and the Network of People Living with HIV (NEPWHAN) also will launch a survey tool to understand challenges to continuous access to quality HIV treatment, care and support amid the pandemic response.

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Ill. megachurch pastor, grandfather of 10 dies of coronavirus

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Calvary Church of Naperville in Illinois is now wrapped in grief after losing one of their beloved pastors, Angel Escamilla, to the new coronavirus Sunday night, just a week after he tested positive for the disease. He was 68.

It saddens my heart to tell you that Pastor Angel Escamilla has passed away from this life. I know that we prayed for his earthly healing in hopes that he would remain with us. Our prayers were not in vain, as they turned our hearts toward the hope we place in heaven, Calvary Church of Naperville Lead Pastor Marty Sloan said in a statement posted to the churchs Facebook page. I personally found Pastor Angel to be a man of strong faith in the Lord, a man in the Word, and a man of GREAT prayer! If anyone ever spoke into the heavens in prayer, it was Pastor Angel. He will be forever missed on our team and in the church family.

According to the churchs website, Escamilla was a grandfather of 10, had been in ministry for more than 40 years and served as the assistant pastor in the Calvary en Espanol arm of the church.

I am passionate about living life without regret or fear, fulfilling Gods desire for my life and seeing all of my grandchildren in ministry, Escamilla, who fathered two sons with his wife of more than 40 years, noted.

Russ Hurst, who works with the international program at Convoy of Hope, remembered Escamilla in a statement on Facebook as one of the most godly men he has ever known.

Pastor Angel Escamilla went to be with the Lord last night after battling the coronavirus. Would you please pray for his family at this time? He truly was one of the most godly men Ive had the privilege of working with. To this day I can still hear his voice from when he prayed in our weekly staff prayer meetings... he had a way of touching heaven and bringing the presence of God into a room with just a few words of prayer. Im heart broken like so many others, Hurst said.

Independent journalist Julie Roys previously reported that Sloan, the lead pastor at the 6,000-member church, tried to keep his congregation in the dark that Escamilla had tested positive and his wife and son, whos also a pastor at the church, were displaying symptoms of being infected by the virus.

She said despite knowing that staff and volunteers had been exposed to Escamilla and family members who live with him, Sloan continued to record online services with multiple staff, including members of Escamillas family.

Roys said Sloan later informed the congregation about Escamilla only after she reached out to him about it.

February 23rd, was the last time I was able to stand next to this man of God, Ps Angel Escamilla. He had the spirit of a dove, the strength of a warrior, the faith of Abraham and when he prayed you knew he was talking to Heaven, Sloan noted in a message on his personal Facebook page Monday.



I am honored to have known him and been part of the Calvary Church of Naperville family with him! He is forever in my heart and his family is now in our care. Thank you Ps Angel for a life well lived, a crown well-earned and a reminder that our HOPE IS IN HIM. I will see you in Heaven one day. 1 Thessalonians 4, he added.
An elderly man has



been staying in a boat on self-quarantine in Habibpur area of Malda district after doctors advised him to go on 14-day isolation.

Niranjan Haldar, a frail 65-year-old man, is staying in the boat which is tied to a bamboo pole near the bank of the Tangan, a rivulet, flowing beside Dubapara village for four days.

He had come from Nabadweep in Nadia district to visit a relative in Dubapara. After he became feverish, villagers started suspecting him to be a COVID-19 patient.

When he visited a nearby healthcare centrr, he was advised to go on home quarantine for 14 days.

"My relative does not have many rooms in his house. So, the villagers asked me to stay on a boat. My relative is providing me with food, water, and other essentials," Haldar said.

The authorities of Habibpur area said they are looking into the incident and will transfer the elderly man to a proper quarantine centre.

Last week, seven persons of Balarampur area in Purulia district, who had recently returned from Chennai, have been on self-quarantine on tree branches as they didn't have enough room at their homes.

They were shifted to a quarantine centre later.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
KEY HIGHLIGHTS

Reliance Industries in talks with Air India to operate 10 charter flights to ferry Covid-19 related medical items from China

This will be first time any Indian carrier would be bringing supplies of Coronavirus-relatedmedical supplies from China

Various carriers have transported a total of 37.63 tonnes of cargo during lockdown so far.

Civil Aviation Ministry has launched "Lifeline Udan" flights for movement of medical and essential supplies

Blue Dart and SpicejeXpress are operating cargo flights on commercial basis

Donations and help have poured in from corporates, celebrities and individuals to fight Covid-19 crisis

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has contacted national carrier Air India to operate 10 charter flights to ferry coronavirus related medical items such as hand-sanitisers and masks from China. Sources told BusinessToday.In that air freight charges for the shipments are yet to be negotiated.

Apart from Reliance, a few other companies are also planning to import medical equipment from China and are discussing their plans with Civil Aviation Ministry.

A questionnaire sent to Reliance Industries did not elicit any response.

While domestic carriers, Air India being in the forefront of carrying medical equipments and other essential items, have been operating charter flights to move cargo locally this will be first time any Indian carrier would be bringing supplies of coronavirus-related medical supplies from China.

Ministry of Civil Aviation has been co-coordinating with states and airlines for operating charter cargo flights.

Also read: Coronavirus: 16 companies set to sell COVID-19 test kits in India

As part of India's war against COVID-19, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has launched "Lifeline Udan" flights for movement of medical and essential supplies across the country and beyond. A total of 74 flights have been operated as of April 1, 2020 for transporting medical cargo across the country.

Various carriers have transported a total of 37.63 tonnes of cargo. Domestic cargo operators Blue Dart and SpicejeXpress are operating cargo flights on a commercial basis.

Government sources said that Air India had been operating cargo flights at cost. It has moved cargo for state governments as well as PSUs transporting essential items to far-flung places in North East and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

One of the officials said that the proposed flight to China for bringing essential medical items would be launched after getting necessary regulatory approval from Chinese authorities.

Donations and help have poured in from corporates, celebrities and individuals to fight the Covid-19 crisis which has brought the wheel of economy to a complete halt and threatens to cripple the entire system.

While nearly 1,900 people have been infected with the deadly virus in the country with total casualty crossing 50, there is fear of the numbers surging.

Also read: Coronavirus testing kits: Mylab signs deal with Serum, APG to ramp up production
WASHINGTON Two weeks ago, the Pentagon promised to make as many as 2,000 military ventilators available as the federal government strains to contend with the coronavirus pandemic. As of Wednesday, less than half had been allocated, despite a desperate need across the country.

At the Federal Emergency Management Agency, tasked with co-ordinating the federal response to the outbreak, about 9,000 additional ventilators are also on hold as officials seek to determine where they are needed most urgently.

The combination of scarce supply and high need has sent many states onto the open market, where they are bidding for ventilators from private manufacturers. Their competition in that bidding process: both the federal government and other states.

Its like being on eBay with 50 other states bidding on a ventilator, said New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whose state is the epicenter of the pandemic in the United States. He urged FEMA to step in and act as a single purchaser of the vital machines.

The slow deployment of ventilators underscores the ways in which the sprawling federal bureaucracy has fallen short in the crisis. Demand for medical equipment far outpaces the current supply, and the stockpiles that do exist arent enough for the hardest-hit areas. That undercuts the air of confidence projected by President Donald Trump at his daily briefings.

Cuomo, whose state has had more than 92,000 cases of COVID-19, warned Thursday that New York has only 2,200 ventilators in its own stockpile after shipping out 600 to New York City, Westchester and Long Island. He would run out in six days at this rate.

FEMA has sent 4,400 ventilators to New York, where officials have said they will likely need 20,000 to 40,000 during the crisis.

Its not just ventilators. FEMA has been able to fill only a fraction of the requests for protective equipment and medical supplies requested by the five Mid-Atlantic states and the District of Columbia, according to documents released by Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, who chairs the Oversight and Reform committee.

The shortfalls include less than 10% of the requested number of N95 protective masks and none of 15,000 body bags requested.

But ventilators have emerged as crucial medical tools in treating patients. The machines pump air to a persons lungs through a tube inserted in the windpipe and can be lifesaving for severely ill patients.

The government had 9,961 ventilators as of Thursday, including 9,054 in the stockpile and 907 from the Department of Defence, according to FEMA.

The Health and Human Services Department, which manages the stockpile, said Thursday it has 2,109 ventilators that are undergoing required maintenance. Those are not included in the tally of machines that can be deployed. The goal is to complete all the maintenance by April 30.

In Louisiana, where coronavirus cases are skyrocketing, Gov. John Bel Edwards has requested 14,000 ventilators from the federal government and private companies. To date, the state has received just 442, including 150 that arrived Wednesday from the national stockpile.

The 150 will only get us about a day or so, maybe two if we get really lucky before weve exceeded that capacity again, Edwards said.

FEMA is asking states to answer data-heavy questions to determine where the most urgent needs exist. Among them: How many usable ventilators, intensive care beds and machines that can be converted into ventilators are available within the state? How many anesthesia machines can be converted into ventilators in the state, and has that happened yet?

People who have needed ventilators have been able to get on ventilators and I think thats our goal, with governors and with the mayors, to make sure that continues to happen, said Dr. Deborah Birx, the co-ordinator of the White House coronavirus task force.

FEMA spokeswoman Lizzie Litzow said states should not expect any shipments until they are within 72 hours of a crisis situation.

Several states have hit that point. The federal government has deployed 2,400 ventilators to New York City, and an additional 2,000 for the rest of the state. FEMA said Wednesday that it was sending machines from the national stockpile to Michigan, New Jersey, Illinois, Connecticut and Louisiana.

Still, the numbers deployed to some of the states pale in comparison to what officials say they need. Michigan, which reported nearly 10,000 cases as of Wednesday, says it will need between 5,000-10,000 machines. It received 400 ventilators from FEMA on Tuesday.

Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont said Wednesday that his state has nearly 1,000 ventilators and requested an additional 1,500 from the national stockpile. It received 50.

Lawmakers have called repeatedly on the federal government to publicly account for how it is distributing ventilators and personal protective equipment but say they havent received answers.

The Pentagons announcement two weeks ago that it had 2,000 ventilators available appeared good news. But much of that stockpile is earmarked for a pair of hospital ships and military field hospitals being deployed to take some of the patient load off other facilities.

About 900 Pentagon ventilators are sitting idle, waiting for FEMA to ask for access.

FEMA officials say the Pentagon equipment requires additional training beyond what is typically required for hospital-grade equipment.

Rather than begin that training now, the agency says it is focusing on allocating conventional ventilators already in its stockpiles. FEMA said those are the types commonly used by U.S. hospitals and are better suited for immediate use. It remains unclear how federal officials plan to address the issue of training civilians in local hospitals.

Trump has defended his administrations deployment of ventilators and said the federal government is doing all it can. He has taken steps to compel General Motors to make more of the machines, though the company was already moving in that direction before the presidents order. He issued an order Thursday under the Defence Production Act aimed at ensuring manufacturers have the supplies to make the machines.

GM said in a statement with Ventec last week that they expect to deliver the first ventilators within weeks and will initially produce more than 10,000 per month.

Ford, in collaboration with GE Healthcare, said Tuesday it expects to produce 50,000 of the ventilators within the next 100 days.

 Associated Press writers Melinda Deslatte in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, David Eggert in Lansing, Michigan, Mike Catalini in Trenton, New Jersey, and Marina Villeneuve in New York contributed to this report.
By Trend

If people observe the quarantine regime, the situation related to coronavirus may improve in Azerbaijan within two weeks, Spokesperson for the Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers Ibrahim Mammadov said.

Mammadov made the remarks in Baku at the press conference held by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2, Trend reports.

The observations over the past three days show that the population does not comply with the requirements of the special quarantine regime, the spokesperson added. That is the reason why the situation has not improved yet.

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their homes, apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence.

To this end, all kinds of operations, except for the vital work and services, have been suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Before her two children got out of school for spring break, Esther Woodson did what any mother would do to prepare for an extended at-home stay with teenage boys: she went grocery shopping.

But even standing in line at Meijer, she felt unusually tired.

That was March 16. Three days later, Woodson was diagnosed with COVID-19.

Your lungs feel so heavy, she said. Its a heavy feeling in your lungs, like theyre working triple time just trying to do normal bodily functions.

There were signs a week earlier, when Woodson noticed some breathing difficulties. It got bad enough that she went to the emergency room March 14, where she was diagnosed with pneumonia in her left lung and got a prescription.

Woodson, 43, felt very similar to when she had walking pneumonia six years ago.

This was relatively early in the COVID-19 health crisis. The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic only three days prior to Woodson going to the emergency room. On March 14, Indiana had confirmed 15 positive cases, and it was just becoming evident that community spread was happening.

Before Woodson was admitted to IU Health West Hospital on March 17, she had trouble doing something as simple as walking from the living room to the kitchen.

I was literally out of breath, she said.

Woodson lost her strength  physically and mentally  at the hospital.

After the doctor told her she was getting tested for COVID-19, they wheeled her off to a special unit for patients. Her husband, Kevin, who had been allowed to stay with her in the emergency room, wasnt allowed to go with her to the COVID-19 wing.

She was alone.

Is this my death march? she thought.

The doctors told Kevin first that Woodson tested positive for COVID-19. He had to tell her over the phone.

I couldnt cry, she said of hearing the news. I just sat there. Its like I didnt have any more tears left in a way. It was like I didnt believe what my husband was saying.

The memes on Facebook, they werent funny anymore.

Watching the news and seeing the number of confirmed cases continue to rise exponentially was much more terrifying from a hospital bed.

She memorized the routine doctors went through before leaving her room: sanitize the gloves, put them in the trash, put their yellow gown in a bin, sanitize again, put their mask in the trash, sanitize again, open the door, sanitize again and then leave.

Im just your average person, Woodson said. I wash my hands when I go to the bathroom.  Im one of those that when I finish in the bathroom, I use the paper towel to open the door. I was doing this stuff prior to this.

Woodson, who works for Indy Achieves in a downtown building, cant think of a specific source that spread the virus to her.

Doctors were finally able to lower her fever, which reached 102.8 degrees the morning of March 19, and she was discharged March 20.

Ive never felt that lethargic, tired, hot, Woodson said.

She even became sensitive to light and wanted her room in the hospital as dark as possible.

Going home isnt the end of the battle with an infectious virus. Woodson has a family  her two sons and a husband  who could have contracted COVID-19 from her in the days prior to going to the hospital and knowing for sure she had it.

Luckily, Woodson said neither of her children have shown symptoms while they stay with their father.

Her husband, Kevin, who also hasnt shown any symptoms, has helped keep their home sterilized. They sleep in separate rooms and wash her clothes every time she changes. Family and friends deliver groceries while they stay home.

Woodson said she feels pretty good now, though her cough will continue to linger as her body fights off the pneumonia.

Her self-quarantine period ends April 5, and Kevins ends April 7.

Woodson said she feels different now when learning someone has COVID-19, having lived through it, and she wants Indiana to close everything  from grocery stores to restaurants  except for hospitals.

But more than anything, Woodson just wants people to listen to the health experts who have been stressing the importance of social distancing.

Go home and sit down, please, she said.

Contact staff writer Tyler Fenwick at 317-762-7853. Follow him on Twitter @Ty_Fenwick.

Esther Woodson with her two sons, Austin and Justin. Woodson is recovering from COVID-19. (Photo provided)
01.04.2020 LISTEN

The swelling number of increases in the confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the country has necessitated President Akuffo Addo to impose a partial lockdown on some major cities in the country for two weeks. The restrictions were aimed at slowing down the transmission of the coronavirus. According to the lockdown guidelines issued by President Nana Akuffo Addo, essential service providers like medical and health professionals, food service providers, and media personnel are exempted. Accordingly, the police and the military were endowed with the powers to ensure the strict adherence to the presidents decree.

However, some images circulating on social media regarding the behavior of some of the officers are gory and very disturbing. Several videos have surfaced in which police and military personnel were forcing citizens to do squats, scramble on their hands and knees as well as lie down on the ground, receiving slaps and lashes and roll over several times in opposite directions. With view to what is happening, the credibility of these officers comes into a sharp focus. Attacking our youth and mothers instead of educating them on why they must stay indoors is shameful. I think the joint forces of the police and the military are confused about what they are asked to do. People who should know the law better are caught pants down engaging illegality. Such barbaric acts to humiliate and degrade citizens must stop and be condemned. People are already stressed with the attacks of the disease. There are some who are burden with what they will eat, how to make some money and care for their families and some caught up in the web of problematic marriages. This 'overzealous' enforcement approach by the forces makes one wonder if they had any training regarding open-mindedness when engaging the public.

In a town like Ashaiman where majority of the residents are in the informal sector and settlement is not well structured, almost every household will need some essentials every day. This could necessitate people to venture out to shop stuffs that could make them keep their body and souls together. Under what authority are the police beating them?

The President indicated that they must enforce his decree but not this way. The Police and military service should investigate all the alleged cases of brutality by some officers during this era of partial lockdown. They must also emphasize the importance of professionalism and adopting a 'single style and tone' rather than choosing a harder option.
Thiruvananthapuram, April 2 : 157 Keralites who attended the Tablighi Jamaat meeting at Delhi recently had been identified, said Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, here on Thursday.

"All these people have been traced. They hail from all the 14 districts of the state. Two of them have tested Covid-19 positive and are under treatment. Some of them are either in home isolation or under observation at hospitals. Some of them are still in Delhi," said Vijayan.

The coronavirus tally in Kerala is 286. Of them, 256 are under treatment.
[April 02, 2020] SoftBank Group Announces End of WeWork Tender Offer Because Closing Conditions Not Met

SoftBank Group Corp. ("SoftBank") today announced that, in accordance with the terms of its October 2019 Master Transaction Agreement ("MTA") with The We Company ("WeWork"), SoftBank's tender offer for up to $3 billion worth of shares of WeWork held by other stockholders has ended because certain conditions to the tender offer were not satisfied. The termination of the tender offer will have no impact on WeWork's operations, customers, five-year business and strategic plan, or the vast majority of WeWork's current employees. WeWork has made tremendous operational progress over the past six months and continues to execute its strategy to deliver its core space-as-a-service offering, increase its membership offerings and expand its footprint and transform into an end-to-end business solutions platform. SoftBank and the SoftBank Vision Fund have committed more than $14.25 billion to WeWork to date, including $5.45 billion since October 2019. The most recent capital commitments include: In October 2019, SoftBank accelerated its investment of $1.5 billion in equity capital.

In December 2019, SoftBank made up to $2.2 billion in debt financing available to WeWork via unsecured notes to be issued by WeWork.

In February 2020, SoftBank provided WeWork credit support for a $1.75 billion letter of credit facility provided by Goldman Sachs and other financial institutions. Due in part to SoftBank's financial support, as of the end of 2019, WeWork had $4.4 billion in pro forma cash and cash commitments. When the tender offer was negotiated in October 2019, SoftBank, WeWork, WeWork's Special Committee, Adam Neumann and SoftBank Vision Fund agreed that SoftBank would not have to close the tender offer unless certain specifically negotiated conditions were satisfied. Several of the closing conditions were not satisfied by the April 1, 2020 deadline. "SoftBank remains fully committed to the success of WeWork and has taken significant steps to strengthen the company since October, including newly committed capital, the development of a new stategic plan for WeWork and the hiring of a new, world-class management team," said Rob Townsend, Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer of SoftBank. "The tender offer was an offer to buy shares directly from other major stockholders and its termination has no impact on WeWork's operations or customers. The tender offer closing was conditioned on the satisfaction of certain closing conditions the parties agreed to in October of last year for SoftBank's protection. Several of those conditions were not met, leaving SoftBank no choice but to terminate the tender offer."



Mr. Townsend continued, "Given our fiduciary duty to our shareholders, it would be irresponsible of SoftBank to ignore the fact that the conditions were not satisfied and to nevertheless consummate the tender offer." The unfulfilled closing conditions, which were agreed upon by WeWork, the Special Committee, Mr. Neumann, SoftBank and SoftBank Vision Fund, include:

The failure to obtain the necessary antitrust approvals by April 1, 2020;

The failure to sign and close the roll up of the China joint venture by April 1, 2020;

The failure to close the roll up of the Asia (ex-China and ex-Japan) joint venture by April 1, 2020;

The existence of multiple, new, and significant pending criminal and civil investigations that have begun since the MTA was signed in October 2019, in which authorities have requested information regarding, among other things, WeWork's financing activities, communications with investors, business dealings with Adam Neumann, operations, and financial condition; and

The existence of multiple new actions by governments around the world related to COVID-19, imposing restrictions against WeWork and its operations. Adam Neumann, his family, and certain large institutional stockholders, such as Benchmark Capital, were the parties who stood to benefit most from the tender offer. Together, Mr. Neumann's and Benchmark's equity constitute more than half of the stock tendered in the offering. In contrast, current WeWork employees tendered less than 10 percent of the total. SoftBank previously worked with WeWork to complete an earlier phase of the tender offer that allowed over 4,000 employees to reprice out-of-the-money stock options at lower strike prices, delivering value in excess of $140 million to these employees in the form of reduced exercise prices (where such options would have been worth substantially less or nothing absent such repricing). Impact on SoftBank's Consolidated Financial Results SoftBank originally expected to record non-operating loss for the fiscal year ended March 2020 in the case that the tender offer was completed, which represents the difference between the acquisition cost and the fair value of the shares; however, the loss will not be recorded due to the end of the tender offer. About SoftBank Group The SoftBank Group invests in breakthrough technology to improve people's quality of life around the world. The SoftBank Group is comprised of SoftBank Group Corp. (TOKYO: 9984), a holding company that includes telecommunications, internet services, AI, smart robotics, IoT and clean energy technology providers; Arm Limited, the world's leading semiconductor IP company; and the SoftBank Vision Fund, which is investing up to $100 billion to help extraordinary entrepreneurs transform industries and shape new ones. To learn more, please visit https://global.softbank. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005849/en/

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Oil prices spiked on Thursday morning after U.S. President Donald Trump said that he spoke with the Saudi Crown Prince, and hoped and expected that Saudi Arabia and Russia would cut back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more, sending oil prices soaring by 20 percent.

Just spoke to my friend MBS (Crown Prince) of Saudi Arabia, who spoke with President Putin of Russia, & I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry! President Trump tweeted on Thursday.

For anyone wondering why oil prices just spiked by over 25 percent... https://t.co/xjkfxOAaoS  OilPrice.com (@OilandEnergy) April 2, 2020

Oil prices soared immediately after the tweet, with WTI Crude soaring 25.90 percent at $25.51 as of 11:04 a.m. EDT and Brent Crude surging 20.57 percent at $29.83.

According to the Saudis official news agency, SPA, Saudi Arabia is calling for an urgent meeting for OPEC+ states and another group of countries.

Making no mention of specific numbers.

The press agency later went on to make mention of the relationship with the United States.

Earlier today, prices were already gaining more than 8 percent after the market began to tentatively hope that former allies Russia and Saudi Arabia could re-launch talks on propping up oil prices, which are too low for both of those economies, regardless of their claims of resilience even at these prices. Related: $1 Oil: Saudi Arabia's Attempt To Crush U.S. Shale

After weeks of no-backing-down in the oil price war, the former allies Saudi Arabia and Russia have started hinting at readiness to re-launch cooperation to save oil prices from sliding further amid the massive demand loss in the coronavirus pandemic.

Saudi Arabia has always welcomed and supported cooperation among oil producers in their efforts to stabilize the oil market during the current crisis, based on the principles of fairness and equity, a Gulf source familiar with Saudi Arabias thinking told Reuters on Thursday but said that the OPEC+ break-up was Russias fault.

Russia, for its part, has decided its economically unfeasible for its producers to boost oil production right now, so Moscow called off an earlier promise to also increase supply, albeit at a much lower rate than Saudi Arabia.

With U.S. shale producers suffering the first immediate blow from the Saudi-Russian oil price war, U.S. President Trump discussed the situation on the oil market with Russias President Vladimir Putin earlier this week and said he held a separate phone call with Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
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Backers of the 30,000-square-foot center still need to raise $3.3 million before starting construction.



By KIM BRIGGEMAN

The Missoulian

MISSOULA, Mont.  In the midst of a lot of bad news, here's a nice change of pace: A former forester and forest conservation advocate from Oregon has bequeathed roughly $2 million to shine a light at the end of a long tunnel to an elusive National Conservation Legacy Center in Missoula.

Bill Cannon became enamored with the National Museum of Forest Service History after visiting the site west of the Missoula airport and smokejumper center 20 years ago  five years before the capital campaign for the center began but years after the dream of it was hatched.





. . .
Its hard to miss the New England Patriots airplane. You know, the red, white and blue one featuring the Patriots logo and 6X CHAMPIONS.

Is that a bit obnoxious? Perhaps. But you should tip your cap to the Patriots the next time you see their airplane, because its flying to the rescue in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

The Wall Street Journal reports the Patriots plane is on its way to Logan Airport in Boston, loaded with 1.2 million masks for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 fight. The source of the masks? Shenzhen, China.

The plane was permitted to be on the ground in China for a maximum of three hours, people familiar with the matter said, and the crew was required to stay on the plane while a ground crew loaded the cargo. It took 2 hours and 57 minutes. ... Ive never seen so much red tape in so many ways and obstacles that we had to overcome, said Robert Kraft, the Patriots owner. In todays world, those of us who are fortunate to make a difference have a significant responsibility to do so with all the assets we have available to us." ... In addition to handling the logistics and the plane, the Kraft family had agreed to pay $2 million, or approximately half the cost of the goods.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

According to the Wall Street Journal, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker initiated the deal for the masks two weeks ago.

As the Trump administration has been slow to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, states have been left to fend for themselves and find their own medical supplies, which are running dangerously low. According to Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. has more than 200,000 cases of COVID-19, almost twice that of any other country.

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British man dies in paramotor crash

THAILAND: A British man, 60, was killed when the paramotor he was flying developed engine trouble and plunged the ground in tambon Bang Saray in Sattahip district yesterday (April 1), police said.

accidentsdeath

By Bangkok Post

Thursday 2 April 2020, 09:30AM

The crashed paramotor in a field in Bang Saray area of Chon Buris Sattahip district yesterday (April 1). The flyer, a British national, was killed. Photo: Chaiyot Pupattanapong

The crash occured in grassy field near Moo 11 village. Bang Saray police and rescuers from the Sawangrot Thammasathan Foundation were called to the scene. They reported finding a seriously injured man lying on the ground near a black motorised parasail. He was wearing a green T-shirt and pair of camouflage shorts. He was given immediate first-aid and then rushed to Wat Yanasangwararam hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. Police questioned his colleagues, who said the man was flying his powered motorglider over the area in a training session, when the engine broke down. He tried to make an emergency landing, but it was not successful. The mans name was being withheld pending notification of relatives.
Clashes took place in Muzaffarnagar in which several people were injured including 3 cops, 1 sub inspector and 2 constable. 3 people are arrested out of which 2 are women. (Photo: Sanjeev Kumar Singh Chauhan) Image Source: IANS News

Clashes took place in Muzaffarnagar in which several people were injured including 3 cops, 1 sub inspector and 2 constable. 3 people are arrested out of which 2 are women. (Photo: Sanjeev Kumar Singh Chauhan) Image Source: IANS News

Clashes took place in Muzaffarnagar in which several people were injured including 3 cops, 1 sub inspector and 2 constable. 3 people are arrested out of which 2 are women. (Photo: Sanjeev Kumar Singh Chauhan) Image Source: IANS News

Clashes took place in Muzaffarnagar in which several people were injured including 3 cops, 1 sub inspector and 2 constable. 3 people are arrested out of which 2 are women. (Photo: Sanjeev Kumar Singh Chauhan) Image Source: IANS News

Etawah : , April 2 (IANS) A fierce fight broke out between two groups of prisoners in Etawah district jail and as many as 14 prison staff members and 18 inmates were injured in the clash.

The fight between two groups of inmates began over a question of supremacy and the groups led by Munna Khalid, who has come from Agra Jail and Monu Pahari were involved in the clash. Jailer Raj Kishor Singh said that the inmates attacked the prison staff late on Wednesday with sticks and stones when they were being forced back into their barracks.

Fourteen prison staff members, including Deputy Jailer Jagdish Singh, sustained injuries in the attack, he said.

The staff used "mild force" to control the situation, in which 18 inmates were injured, he added.

Head Constable Purushottam Singh and inmate Chunna Numberdar have suffered head injuries. The inmate has been admitted to the district hospital for treatment. Police force and PAC force of several police stations, including SSP were called in to control the situation.

The other injured prisoners were being treated in the jail hospital.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Akash Tomar said that the situation was now under control and an inquiry has been ordered into the incident.
They have pointed to a surge in absentee ballot requests  now at 1.1 million  as an indicator that in-person turnout will be manageable. (Elections officials estimated in a court hearing on Wednesday that, in a normal election, that number would suggest that about 500,000 voters would still show up at the polls.)

On Friday, Mr. Evers eased his stance, asking the Legislature to order the election commission to mail ballots to every registered voter and extend vote-by-mail deadlines.

But Republican lawmakers dismissed his pleas as fantasy and vowed again to hold the election. Robin Vos, the speaker of the State Assembly, said he would be working at the polls on Tuesday.

The letter to Mr. Evers said that 50 clerks had responded to a message sent to a clerks-only email list asking them to share if they or family members had compromised health. The responses ran the gamut: Some people were cancer survivors or were currently undergoing chemotherapy. Others had diabetes, kidney disease or autoimmune disorders, or were taking immunosuppressants. Family members had lung disease, asthma, heart problems and a host of other issues.

Ms. Goeckner, who is in her 50s, does not have a spleen and donated a kidney eight years ago, said that while she was concerned about her health, she was more worried about her older colleagues. Her husband, who is also a clerk, oversees a 91-year-old poll worker who insists that she will show up on Election Day if voting takes place.

Were not listed as essential workers, but basically being considered essential workers, Ms. Goeckner said. Were not complaining as clerks. I want people to understand the risk thats being asked and the fact that I believe there are other safe alternatives to take in this stage.
A frustrated nurse has opened up about what it's really like to be fighting coronavirus from the front lines while hitting back at those who insist medical professionals should 'stop complaining' because 'this is what you signed up for.'

Titled 'We did not sign up for this,' the post shared on Imgur Wednesday includes a photo of the unknown US-based woman wearing a medical mask at work and the poignant message she said she needed to get off her chest.

'I am here to tell you, we did not sign up for this,' she wrote, slamming the notion that this is what healthcare workers agreed to when they chose their professions.

Her story: A anonymous nurse has penned an open letter about what it's like to work on the frontlines during the coronavirus pandemic

Not having it: The woman back at those who insist medical professionals should 'stop complaining' because 'this is what you signed up for'

'We did not sign up to care for others while not being properly protected ourselves,' she stressed, referring to the critical shortage of medical supplies in the U.S. amid the soaring number of cases of coronavirus.

As of Thursday, there are more than 236,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the U.S. and over 5,600 deaths.

The White House has predicted that the virus will kill 100,000 to 240,000 Americans, meaning the worst has yet to come.

'We did not sign up for turning away a desperate family member from entering the hospital, begging and crying to see a very sick or dying loved one, due to hospital visitor restrictions,' she continued.

The woman, who kept her name and workplace anonymous, went on to discuss the sacrifices that people on the frontlines have to make to keep their families safe.

'We did not sign up for sitting in self-isolation for god knows how long, knowing since we are working in the front lines, we could be a carrier, and could possibly infect someone we know and love,' she insisted.

Scary: The nurse touched upon the shortage of ventilators in hospitals around the country, a growing concern as more and more people are becoming severely ill from the novel virus

Message: The woman reminded others that the people on the frontlines are 'scared, 'tired, 'anxious,' 'sad,' 'vulnerable,' and 'lonely,' but they're doing their best

'We did not sign up for not being able to go see/hug our parents, our grandparents, our siblings, our significant others, our friends and even our children, after long, stressful days, because we are trying to protect the complete strangers of the public.

'We did not sign up for turning our colleagues away from work because they have a runny nose due to allergies, but are mandated to self-isolate because it is deemed a symptom, even though they just want to get to work and help.'

The nurse also touched upon the shortage of ventilators in hospitals around the country, a growing concern as more and more people are becoming severely ill from the novel virus.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo revealed on Thursday that the state only has enough ventilators in its stockpile to last another six days before it has to start using improvised machines.

'We did not sign up for deciding whose life is "more important" based on age, as there isn't enough equipment to treat everyone,' she stressed. We did not sign up for this. But we are doing it.

'We are doing it proudly, compassionately, empathetically, and professionally. We are doing it with education and information about this virus changing hourly,' she continued. 'We are doing it not knowing what exactly will happen next with our mandates, PPE, and guidelines.

'We are doing it knowing and having the gut feeling that this is the calm before the storm. We are doing it while still being ridiculed, yelled at, and disrespected.'

Difference of opinion: Some people thanked her for her service, while others, including healthcare workers, insisted she did sign up for this

She ended her post by reminding others that the people on the frontlines are 'scared,' 'tired, 'anxious,' 'sad,' 'vulnerable,' and 'lonely.'

'We are doing it. As best as we can. We are doing it,' she explained. 'But we did not sign up for this.'

Some people thanked her for her service, with one person writing: 'There isn't really much to say except thank you. Thank you for your sacrifice for us. Please keep going, you are the heroes we need right now.'

Others, including healthcare workers, insisted she did sign up for some of the things she described with the exception of not having protective gear.

'You definitely did not sign up for working unprotected, that is ridiculous. You signed up the rest of it though. Always a chance of crisis,' one person wrote.

'I signed up for this,' another added. 'I didnt want it, but this is my chosen profession as a healthcare worker. We are soldiers in a different war.'
Israeli conspiracy is a very common catchphrase in the Palestinian Authority and Gaza Strip. As a journalist, I've seen it hundreds of times over the years in the stories that spread among the Palestinian population, accusing Israel of all sorts of evil plots to harm them. All too often, Palestinians think of Israel as controlling the world, especially the United States. The purpose, they claim, is to harm the Palestinians. Plots and conspiracies are routine in the territories as a result of the occupation and constant friction between soldiers, settlers and the Palestinian population. They reflect the deep distrust between the opposing sides.

In the age of social networks, conspiracy theories spread like wildfire. But when the Palestinian prime minister himself spreads them, it is no longer a matter of anonymous rumors. These tales and accusations have diplomatic consequences.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh didnt blink when he told a press conference in Ramallah March 29, We have heard testimony that some soldiers are trying to spread the virus through the door handles of cars. It is a case of racism and hatred by people who hope for the death of the other. We will add this to the list of crimes theyve committed.

Shtayyeh didnt end there, also boosting a conspiracy popular among Palestinians that the reason Israel allowed 30,000 Palestinian laborers to work in its territory was not concern for the Palestinian Authoritys economy or to help these workers earn a living. Rather, it was part of a dark plot to infect these workers with the coronavirus, so that they would infect the population of the West Bank when they returned home. Shtayyeh lended this conspiracy theory the weight of his office when he said that a Palestinian working in Israel was infected with the disease and went on to infect another 20 people in his village.

Two days later, Shtayyeh tweeted that not only is Israel refusing to help the Palestinian Authority in its war against the pandemic, but that it also poses a major obstacle to efforts to help Palestinians living in the territories. What is required is for Israel to leave us alone, he wrote.

Israel did not offer an official response. Under normal circumstances, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would milk the comments for all they were worth. This time, he remained silent. The same is true of Defense Minister Naftali Bennett and the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, Maj. Gen. Kamil Abu Rokon, who serves as military liaison to the Palestinians. None of them responded. A statement released by the security forces to the press read, We condemn the harsh incitement and remind the Palestinian public and the international community of all the medical aid that we are sending daily and all of Israels aid to the people of Judea and Samaria [the West Bank]. This includes the transfer of thousands of test kits, protective equipment and disinfectants, medical training for rescue teams and more. The unattributed statement sent the Palestinians a sharp message of protest against the remarks by the Palestinian prime minister.

Shtayyehs comments shocked many in Israel. He had been personally involved in reaching the agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority to allow tens of thousands of laborers to leave the West Bank and work in Israel. When the pandemic struck, Israel made a series of decisions in coordination with the Palestinian Authority to cooperate on preventing the spread of the disease while avoiding triggering an economic crisis.

As a first stage, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories gave some 30,000 Palestinians who work in construction and agriculture special permits to work and sleep in Israel for a period of about two months. Their employers were required to provide them with reasonable living conditions and medical care if requested. It was a precedent-setting decision out of concern for the economies of both the Palestinian Authority and Israel during the pandemic. Shtayyeh supported the decision, but he called on these laborers not to work in any settlements.

This cooperation is can be seen in an incident in Kafr Aqab, a Palestinian neighborhood in northeast Jerusalem, on March 30. When a resident of the village was infected with the coronavirus (the one Shtayyeh insinuated was infected in Israel and went on to infect another 20 people in his village), a local committee was established in the village to handle the crisis and prevent the spread of the disease. One of its decisions was to put up a roadblock manned by Tanzim militants affiliated with Fatah. The roadblock caused such intense friction with the residents of neighboring villages that a gunfight broke out. One resident was wounded and required medical attention. For the first time ever, Israel allowed the Palestinian Authoritys elite 101 Brigade to restore order in the village, even though the territory is under Jerusalems municipal jurisdiction. An Israeli security source told Al-Monitor this week on condition of anonymity, So far, we have no intention of imposing sanctions on the Palestinian Authority as a result of this incitement. What should we do? Stop helping them? Punish the residents of the West Bank because of some ridiculous remark by a populist prime minister acting irresponsibly?

Shtayyeh has held a very firm and militant stance against Israel ever since he was appointed prime minister in March 2019. He takes every opportunity to call for economic disengagement from Israel and has been criticized for it by other senior PA officials, who contend that the goal is unrealistic because the two economies are so intertwined. Shtayyeh has a PhD in economics from Sussex University and served as dean of Bir Zeit University. He was also a member of the Palestinian negotiating team in peace talks with the Israelis. Many Israeli analysts believe that he is preparing to run for the presidency once Mahmoud Abbas leaves the post. His firm positions on economic issues are widely seen in Israel as serving his personal interests, intended to help him advance politically and distinguish him from the other candidates in the race to succeed Abbas.

Israel has indicated that it will not stop, slow or place conditions on its cooperation with the Palestinians at this time. Nevertheless, a senior security official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, We believe that the incitement and serious conspiracy theories that he is promoting now, during an international crisis, will boomerang against him. He was probably saying that when the crisis is over, the European Union and international organizations will see Shtayyeh as a controversial and even a hostile figure.
Policy responses to the global coronavirus crisis have been every-country-for-itself and  in the case of the U.S. and China  tinged with geopolitics.

The flipside: The scientific work underway to understand the virus and develop a vaccine has been globalized on an unprecedented scale.

Zoom in: Trump has boasted that in the race toward a vaccine, America will get it done!

But the NY Times reports that a University of Pittsburgh lab on the cutting edge of vaccine research is collaborating with a research institute in Paris and a drug company in Austria. That group gets funding from an international organization based in Norway and is in talks about vaccine development with a major Indian manufacturer.

Chinese researchers have contributed much of the coronavirus research now available to other scientists, the Times notes. And a team at Mass General hospital in Boston is testing possible treatments in conjunction with colleagues in Xian, China.

The good news: The global scientific community has perhaps never been so singularly devoted to one issue, and borders have not been a major barrier to that work.

But, but, but: Nationalism and geopolitics could still come into play in the eventual distribution of a vaccine, Axios Alison Snyder notes.
(This article contains information about suicide which may be upsetting to some people.)

I never thought much about suicide, even through a lifetime of ebbing and flowing depression. Then, as 2018 became 2019, the universe broke me. In February of last year my life partner was diagnosed with a terminal brain disease; she has since lost the ability to speak. She is my everything, my soulmate, the one person I have ever had difficulty picturing a life without. Her diagnosis came one month after I was laid off from my job as a writer and critic of 23 years, and abruptly cut off from a team of co-workers I had come to see as dear friends and from the work that I had allowed to define me for so long.

In the wake of this one-two punch I have often found myself longing for what my tormented brain makes me see as the release of death by my own hand. (The pros call such thoughts suicidal ideation.)

This is diseased thinking. But clearly Im not alone. According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, 1.4 million American adults attempted suicide in 2018. Suicide is currently the 10th leading cause of death in the United States. Then you have cases like mine, those who stumble about in pain without following through on the impulse to act. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about ten times more people think about suicide than attempt it.

In light of such stunning numbers, the question I often ask myself is direct and to-the-point: What keeps me alive? Daphne Merkin so aptly describes the thought in her memoir This Close to Happy: No more rage at the circumstances that have brought you down. No more dread. The anxiety and isolation brought about by the new coronavirus likely arent helping for those troubled by this question.

I dont believe in an afterlife; unlike Hamlet I have no fear of what dreams may come in the undiscovered country. I do, however, value my connections to the people of this world, especially those who have undertaken the Sisyphean task of trying to keep me upright. But even then, the suicidal mind plays tricks, and mine is generally able to convince myself that nobody would miss me much were I to check out. Life, as they say, goes on. Except when it doesnt.

Then, too, there are ethical concerns. Ive heard many arguments against suicide, chiefly that it leaves a trail of destruction through the lives of others. From this perspective, suicide is the ultimate violation of the social contract. As a good humanist, Im pretty big on the social contract. That said, after my torment of the past year, I dont think Ill ever again sit in moral judgment against anyone who chooses death. Sometimes life simply hurts more than you ever imagined possible.

Of one (and perhaps only one) thing am I certain: Suicide isnt easy. There exists no personal doomsday button to press and be done with it. Im certain Id botch the job, and I have no desire to spend the rest of my years in a coma.

Of course, maybe theres a reason why suicide is so difficult, why so many more people are plagued with suicidal ideation but thankfully dont follow through. Maybe were not supposed to do it. Throughout my journey of grief and severe depression Ive often marveled that Im still stirring, even when stirring is the last thing I want to do. Thus far, despite my off-the-rails train of thought, I remain among the living, in body if not in spirit. I trudge on, obeying the most basic animal instinct to keep moving forward. I sought help. Coping skills, support and treatment often work. For all its pain and suffering, it seems the human being is hardwired to survive.

Vognar was long-time movie and cultural critic at The Dallas Morning News, and a feature writer for The Houston Chronicle in 2019 before seeking medical care for depression.
Which, in a sense, it is.

With colossal public housing projects and families crammed into sagging, multiunit homes, Paterson is a densely populated city of nearly 148,000. These days, the citys ambulance call volume, per capita, is as great as New York Citys, asserted Brian J. McDermott, the exhausted chief of the Fire Department.

There were 620 confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in Paterson as of Thursday afternoon. The emergency department at St. Josephs University Medical Center, the local hospital, is being hammered with patients; the 650-bed facility, currently handling about 100 Covid-19 cases, is searching for outside locations for more beds. Despite the efforts of the E.M.T.s to keep moderately ill people at home, nearly 80 percent of ambulance calls for suspected coronavirus have been serious enough to require transportation to the hospital.

Desperate to be seen by a doctor, panicked people are exaggerating symptoms, determined to get taken to St. Joes, as the hospital is widely known. But also in this majority immigrant, Latino and African-American city, many callers worry that if they have the virus, the ambulance wont show up. Instead, some people give dispatchers symptoms for fake complaints.

A few weeks ago, deceived by dispatch calls for leg pain and sick person, E.M.T.s ran into homes wearing only masks and gloves. Now growing numbers of them are sick or in quarantine.

The Paterson Fire Department allowed New York Times journalists to accompany a 12-hour shift of E.M.T. crews outfitted specifically to respond to potential Covid-19 cases. The grueling day offered a glimpse into the chaotic, risk-filled lives of emergency workers who are reaching directly into the jaws of the pandemic.

I cant believe Im saying this, but Id almost rather go to a fire call, said Brian Hirschmanner, a firefighter and E.M.T. At least you can see what youre fighting. And it eventually goes out.

7:30 a.m.

The shift begins

On a chilly spring morning, nine E.M.T.s assigned for the day to answer only possible coronavirus calls reported for duty in an inflated tent in front of the Lakeview Firehouse. The tent is a designated decon  decontaminated zone  where freshly sterilized hazmat gear is stored.
It was hard to move on with the cast of "Crash Landing on You" and more with Captain Ri Jung Hyuk.

The finale of the South Korean Netflix Series, "Crash Landing on You" is something that broke the hearts of the audience. Being hooked into the story as well as the characters are given. More so, the lead actor, Hyun Bin's role is something not every k-drama would be conceptualized; a North Korean Captain.

While the audiences were given a new flavor of story setting, of which the opposite country is highlighted, Hyun Bin is being credited for his North Korean personification. He successfully gave a visualization of those men living beyond the borderline of the Southern nation.

However, contrary to what the mob believes, a North Korean Defector and Youtuber whose name is Park Yoo Sung revealed something about Hyu Bin in comparison with Kim Jong Un, the leader of the mentioned nation.

Park Yoo Sung whose Youtube channel is called, "North Korean Man" shared a vlog entitled, "3 Things North Koreans are Scared of." He explained that citizens of his country are scared of chubbier individuals. "In North Korea, only those who are wealthy have bellies. Therefore, their beauty standard is different from the South", he said.

He went on and finally mentioned Captain Ri. "I would definitely lie if I declare Hyun Bin as someone handsome in North Korea," he explained. Park Yoo Sung said that the lead actor of "Crash Landing on You" is someone not considered attractive in his country as they consider those chubby men as gorgeous.

A sudden revelation was declared by the North Korean defector regarding Kim Jong Un, whom he believes is a typical handsome man of his country based on the norm of the aforementioned society. "The basis why Kim Jong Un instantly gained a lot compare from his slimmer version is for him to acquire the trust of the higher-ranking officials," he explained.

With these, the said vlog is overwhelmed with various comments. Here are some:

"Imagine how Hyun Bin transformed into Ma Dong Seok."

"I'm afraid of the fat executives!"

"Belly fat and size are symbols of wealth and power."

North Korean defectors or the refugees of the North are those who illegally crossed the borderline who usually escape to a border between their country and China. Since the separation of the two Korean nations, these people were not allowed to traverse the South and vice versa. However, due to severe famine that happened years ago, a lot of them managed to escape and gained resettlement and lived like a normal South Korean citizen like Park Yoo Sung.

His video shed light on the real norm of a handsome man between the two nations. Nonetheless, he also gave a clear idea of what is it living in such a country who is quietly settling on their own from the rest of the world.
Nepal on Thursday reported its sixth coronavirus case after a 65-year-old woman, who returned from Doha last month, tested positive.

The woman flew to Nepal on March 17 from Doha on Qatar Airways flight QR652. The woman had flown to Doha from Belgium with a 19-year-old woman, who had earlier tested positive for COVID-19.

The two women flew together to Pokhara on Buddha Air and a microbus to Baglung, officials said.

So far, coronavirus tests have been conducted on 1,184 people.

Nepal's government has imposed a lockdown until April 7 halting flights, ordering vehicles off the roads, shutting down businesses and shuttering major markets.

The Himalyan nation has suspended permits for all mountain expeditions on March 12, effectively closing its peaks.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At a public hearing on Nigerias social media bill held in Abuja last month, the voice of Chris Isiguzo, president of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), rang clearly across the room: This billseeks to pigeonhole Nigerians from freely expressing themselves. The NUJ is totally opposed to it, he said.

This strong opposition was echoed by multiple other civil society groups, according to local media reports and a recording of the hearing posted on Twitter with the hashtag #SayNoToSocialMediaBill by Paradigm Initiative, a local digital rights organization. By contrast, a Nigerian army representative welcomed the bill for reasons of national security, telling the hearing it would supplement an existing cyber warfare command. The local Guardian newspaper reported in 2018 that the command was established to combat fake news.

At the time of publication, it was not clear whether the COVID-19 crisis would impact the timeline for consideration of the bill, which was scheduled to be sent for a third reading by the senate in April. On March 24, Nigerias National Assembly began a two week shutdown with possible extension based on the public health response, Mohammed Sani Musa, a senator from Niger State who is sponsoring the bill, told CPJ. False information related to the coronavirus was an example of the need for the legislation, he said.

Nigerias Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulation Bill 2019 says that individuals who transmit statements that authorities determine to be false, likely to influence the outcome of an election, or prejudicial to the security of Nigeria, may be imprisoned for up to three years or fined up to 300,000 naira (US$844) or both, according to CPJs review of the text. Offenders who are not individuals face fines up to 10 million naira ($27,247 USD). Another section of the bill introduces fines for companies who fail to comply with orders to disable Nigerians access to content.

Musa told CPJ that the bill was intended to mitigate the propaganda of fake news that travels at the speed of light. He said it was important in addition to existing cybercrime legislation, though he did not provide specifics. Nigerias 2015 cybercrime act has been used to arrest journalists who criticize officials on social media, as CPJ has documented.

Musa told CPJ the bill was guided by online controls in other jurisdictions, including Singapore, the U.K., the EU, and the United Arab Emirateswhere a cybercrime law was passed to suppress criticism on social media, observers have told CPJ. CPJ found strikingly similar language between Singapores 2019 Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Actwhich CPJ has condemnedand Nigerias social media bill, notably in sections denoting prison time for individuals who post false statements of fact.

If theres a society like Nigeria, we feel imprisonment is necessary, Musa said, arguing for deterrence as a tool to manage speech online. He was, however, open to the bill being amended or even dropped. Any bill that is going to infringe on the fundamental freedom of every Nigerian...I would be against it, he concluded.

CPJ asked four Nigerian journalists what they thought about the bill. Their answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Ajibola Amzat (Credit: Busola Ajibola)

Ajibola Amzat, editor with the privately owned International Centre For Investigative Reporting (ICIR), based in Abuja

You say we should not share information or transmit information that is false, and then we begin to ask, well, what is falsehood? When you say people should not transmit false informationfalse information according to who?

Now [the government] realizes that the Nigerian media is getting more critical and having a better sense of awareness of what is going on, and Nigerian people are getting to know a little more about the hypocrisy of the government, and they are talking more freely about it. That is what [the government] does not want to happen, and that is the purpose of bringing up this kind of bill.

The parts that say you can't transmit information that may affect national security, you can't transmit information that you know is false, you can't transmit information that you know will influence the outcome of elections. Its something that can actually put journalists into easy problems, because you don't know what the government will consider as national security.

How can you jail somebody for saying something? If you think what somebody is saying is false, then bring out the truth, so that the falsehood and the truth can stand together and then people will decide for themselves. But you cannot go ahead and criminalize people, that is like trying to kill peoples spirit to talk.

And dont forget, apart from journalists, the organization who carries such information is also going to be sanctioned. So the media organization will also pay if you are found to be the one who published such information or misinformation. Its an attempt to gag the media.

This kind of boldness is coming from places like China and Singapore, and other places where the freedom of expression is being repressed. Nigerian democracy is already broken, but it is going to be more shattered if this kind of bill would be allowed to pass.

The laws that even enable journalists to do their jobs are often disregarded. I mean the laws, like the FOI [freedom of information] law, should enable journalists. Most of them [government agencies] dont have regard for that law...many agencies of the government are not disclosing information vital for public interest. Those are the laws that are supposed to enable the work of journalists. But those laws are just laws on paper. And now [they] bring some other laws to criminalize what journalists do.

Yecenu Sasetu. (Credit: Toby Martins)

Yecenu Sasetu, health reporter for the privately owned Kiss FM radio station, based in Abuja

As a media person, if this is passed into law its going to stifle my voice because the government is going to be in control. They are going to be in control of our online presence.

Now if, as a journalist, I put out content online and the government decides this is fake news, of course it wont fly. Yes, I'll be penalized. A whole lot of things that we need to put out we may not be able to put out, because it is going to put fear in a whole lot of media people. They will feel they do not want to anger the government.

So you cannot criticize, you cannot give opinions. Its going to really stifle the voice of traditional media. Forget about the regular, everyday person that just wants to put out contentit will stifle the voice of every media person.

There has been a lot of criticism of the present administration. People are not getting what they expected, especially in terms of the economy. There is insecurity, there are just a whole lot of issues. People come online to vent. People do not really have access to their representatives, their lawmakers, their elected government officials, so the only way they really get to vent is on social media.

I would say its just a bid to get people not to say so much, not to be as critical of the government as they are right now. I would say its just a bid to control everything and everyone.

Chris Kehinde Nwandu. (Credit: CKN NEWS MEDIA GROUP)

Chris Kehinde Nwandu, publisher of the privately owned CKN News site and president of the Guild of Professional Bloggers of Nigeria, based in Lagos

Some of us have been arrested in the past. I personally was arrested about five years ago, and I stayed about two weeks in jail for some of the information I published [on social media].

For me and my organization, we believe there is no need for another law, the social media bill or whatever. We already have enough laws. In 2015 there was the cybercrime law, but they are trying to come up with another law. We sense there are some political motives behind it.

This may be a law to give more ammunition to some people, to put some level of fear into the minds of journalists. Some people are just trying to wither down the voice of the media, to shut them up. Democracy is about free speech.

I am not totally against a law that regulates what people do. Across the globe there are certain standards that are expected of professionals. [But] this is not China. This is not North Korea. This is not Cuba or one of these countries. This is a democracy.

Amran Aliyu. (Credit: Imona Rage)

Amran Aliou, reporter with the federal government-funded Search FM radio station, based in Minna, Niger State

In Nigeria, the only way people get to talk [and] express their views is on social media. They get to hold politicians and policy makers accountable the only way they can reach them, which is on social media. And so far it's been working well, because the government feels out of place and tries to right their wrongs.

For example, in Niger State we are battling with potholes, terrible roads jam-packed with trailers and heavy duty cars, to the extent that sometimes these vehicles get stuck or fall off and there are oil spills. People feel fear for their dear lives, so most times they snap [photographs of] these incidences and try to question the government on social media, tagging some notable handles. This has, in a way, put the government to order. They try to right their wrongs [and] in turn post it [their actions] on the same social media through their aides. So social media to some extent has impacted positively on the changes the people get to enjoy.
House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) speaks to the press at the Capitol in Washington on March 27, 2020. (Alex Edelman/AFP via Getty Images)

Politicians Push for Weakened Election Security Amid Pandemic

Commentary

Its long been said that politicians should never let a serious crisis go to waste and should use those opportunities to implement policies that would have otherwise remained shelved.

Exploiting panic caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) viruscommonly known as the novel coronavirusis no exception.

Public officials have now leveraged this crisis to pursue unconstitutional bans on firearms, attempt to secure federal funding for abortions, and across the country, officials are working to allow all-mail voting and electronic votingmeasures that introduce a significantly higher potential for fraud in our elections.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) put her partys stunning disregard for the sanctity of the vote on full display when she tried to include the following measures into a proposed House bill dealing with the virus: ballot harvesting, no voter identification requirement for absentee ballots, and no signature from a witness on absentee ballots.

Ballot harvesting is a practice in which a voter completes an absentee ballot and a third-party, usually a person affiliated with a campaign or political party, picks that ballot up and delivers itusually along with many othersto be tallied. This practice is illegal in most of the country, but is lawful in a handful of states. Congressional Democrats want this to be legal nationally.

There are three main concerns with ballot harvesting: one, those collecting the ballots can intentionally discard them; two, vote harvesters can open ballot envelopes and alter recorded votes; and three, ballot harvesters can collect unvoted ballots and simply complete them themselves.

Ballot harvesting is a conduit to a form of fraud that is almost impossible to detect. When most people think of election fraud, they imagine illegal behavior being committed by the voter. But, ballot harvesting can be exploited to manipulate election results, even with no wrongdoing on the part of the individual voter.

Most harvesters are operatives of a political party, which means theyre not neutral actors in the election process. They, by definition, have a side, and they want their side to win.

Allowing biased, political partisans to collect ballots is a system that relies on mere trust and the patently absurd notion that a political representative will act in good faith when delivering ballots for their opponents, while they are largely unsupervised with no real accountability over the chain-of-custody of the ballots theyre collecting.

To state this more simply: Ballot harvesting can turn political operatives into the actual vote counters.

The other two provisions touted by congressional Democrats were just as large a threat to a secure election: no voter ID for absentee ballots and no witness signatures.

America currently has millions more names on its voter rolls than it does citizens eligible to vote. This vulnerability can be (and often is) exploited by casting invalid absentee ballots. Not confirming the identity of the person casting a vote makes it much easier to game the system.

Additionally, not requiring a witness signature means removing a check put in place to help authenticate the validity of mail-in ballots. Further eroding voter ID requirements and removing the need for witness certification of absentee ballots invites an even larger amount of fraud.

The election provisions congressional Democrats have recently proposed represent a step in the wrong direction for the United States.

But, capitalizing on this health and economic crisis isnt only left to politicians inside the Washington Beltway. Elections officials throughout the country are considering switching to all mail-in ballots or electronic voting systems for the 2020 election.

These proposed changes come in response to social distancing guidelines and quarantines that state and local governments have enacted in response to the outbreak of the CCP virus.

On March 18, Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, sent a letter to state lawmakers, urging them to authorize the state to ditch polls and have all votes cast remotely using mail-in ballots.

Over the course of the past several weeks, elections officials throughout Arizona have worked under extraordinary conditions to put on a fair, free and safe Presidential Preference Election amid a public health emergency, she wrote. That said, it would be unreasonable to ask these officials to once again overcome these circumstances, should they still exist or are exacerbated, for the August and November elections.

Hobbs stated that it could be months before the risk of infection subsides and said that the state needs to prepare now and allow elections officials to adapt to the circumstances on the ground to best protect voters health while also preserving the ability to exercise their right to vote.

She said the County Boards of Supervisors should have the authority to conduct an all-mail election, at least for the 2020 Primary and General Elections.

There is evidence that an ample amount of election fraud is facilitated by loopholes provided by mail-in and absentee ballots.

Some examples:

In a 1998 mayoral election in Miami, police discovered more than 100 absentee ballots in the home of local political boss Alberto Rossi, according to a report by Reed College.

In 2004, Florida elections supervisor Brenda Snipes lost 58,000 ballots that would have helped presidential candidate John Kerry. In Oregon, officials said they were prosecuting several people who allegedly cast absentee ballots for their dead relatives. That same year, Oregons King County absentee ballot supervisor testified that absentee ballots werent even tabulated during the November ballot count.

The National Election Defense Coalition cited a study showing that vote-by-mail had a failure rate of roughly 21 percent and noted that in the 2008 election more than 7 million absentee ballots werent even counted.

In 2013 in New York, more than 6,000 dead people were registered to vote and hundreds of them managed to cast ballots after their deaths.

In 2016 in Palm Beach County, Florida, elections supervisor Susan Bucher suspected that as many as 2,000 absentee ballots and ballot requests could be fraudulent, according to the Palm Beach Post.

In 2018, political consultant Aaron Harris confirmed that political operatives sit around and fill [absentee and mail-in ballots] out by the hundreds, often by the thousands. And then, they just turn them in to be tallied.

The decades worth of information we have demonstrates that mail-in and absentee voting doesnt protect the integrity of our elections as Pelosi suggests. More anomalies surface during elections as we move further away from identifying and authenticating each individual voter.

Roughly half of the states in the United States currently have a mail-in voting option, and about a quarter of U.S. voters cast their ballots by mail in the 2016 election. Yet, as fears about how long the pandemic might last continue to mount, more states across the nation are considering having vote-by-mail (VBM) as the only option for the 2020 election.

Some jurisdictions now offer the ability for voters to track their ballots online, but this isnt a feature available nationally or in counties that have had the most egregious issues with suspected election fraud.

Americans concerns about the security of a 100 percent VBM election process arent misplaced when considering the myriad vulnerabilities created by that process.

As listed above, we have examples showing just how easily VBM and absentee ballot policies can be weaponized, often with no consequences for the officials who exploit the system.

Elections are only as good as the confidence we can place in their results.

And as the nation continues to grapple with this latest health crisis, its important that we only enact measures that protect the security of our elections as much as they protect access to those elections.

Adrian Norman is a writer, political commentator, and author of the book The Art of the Steal: Exposing Fraud & Vulnerabilities in Americas Elections.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
[April 02, 2020] Elcomsoft Provides Forensic Access to Encrypted Disks

PRAGUE, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- ElcomSoft Co. Ltd. updates Elcomsoft Distributed Password Recovery with support for an even wider range of encrypted and locked evidence. The update enables forensic access to disks protected with VeraCrypt, APFS volumes encrypted with FileVault 2, and recovers Tally Vault passwords. "The use of full-disk encryption makes the work of forensic experts more difficult than ever," says Vladimir Katalov, ElcomSoft CEO. "FileVault and VeraCrypt are equally important for the law enforcement and corporate IT experts performing internal investigations. While FileVault 2 is actively used on many macOS devices, VeraCrypt is the favorite of those who really have something to hide." Breaking VeraCrypt containers VeraCrypt is the most popular third-party full-disk encryption product, a de-facto successor to TrueCrypt. Devoid of any major vulnerabilities, VeraCrypt is one of the most secure encrypted containers. Volumes protected with VeraCrypt require a full-scale brute-force attack on the original plain-text password. Elcomsoft Distributed Password Recovery 4.20 adds VeraCrypt support, enabling investigators to unlock the most vigorously protected evidence. Read more in the articl Breaking VeraCrypt containers.



Breaking FileVault 2 encryption on APFS volumes The APFS (Apple File System) is Apple's next-generation file system designed to scale from an Apple Watch to a Mac Pro. According to Apple, APFS is optimized for modern solid-state storage, and engineered with encryption as a primary feature. On Mac computers, APFS implements encryption via FileVault 2, a full-disk encryption feature that is built in to macOS.

In this release, Elcomsoft Distributed Password Recovery adds support for FileVault 2 volumes stored on APFS-formatted disks. In order to quickly initiate password attacks without imaging the whole disk, the updated Elcomsoft System Recovery is recommended. Recovering Tally Vault passwords Tally ERP 9 is a popular business planning solution in India. In this update, we have added support for Tally Vault passwords, achieving unprecedented recovery speeds of up to 10 million passwords per second with CPU-only attacks. Read our expert analysis in Tally ERP 9 Vault: How to Not Implement Password Protection. About Elcomsoft Distributed Password Recovery Elcomsoft Distributed Password Recovery enables accelerated password recovery for more than 500 formats including Microsoft Office and Adobe PDF documents, encrypted volumes and archives, Oracle passwords, Windows and UNIX login and domain passwords. About ElcomSoft Co. Ltd. Founded in 1990, ElcomSoft Co.Ltd. is a global industry-acknowledged expert in computer and mobile forensics providing tools, training, and consulting services to law enforcement, forensics, financial and intelligence agencies. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/elcomsoft-provides-forensic-access-to-encrypted-disks-301034037.html SOURCE ELCOMSOFT Co. Ltd.

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Pub group JD Wetherspoon has secured planning permission for a new Irish outlet in Dublin's Grand Canal Dock.

Dublin City Council approved the application to convert the former HQ bar and restaurant on Hanover Quay which Wetherspoons bought last year, and to amalgamate it with the former Nutbutter restaurant on Forbes Street.

The UK-based pub chain said it spends an average of 2m on the conversion of each new pub.

Wetherspoons said it was important for the council to appreciate that its outlets were "not just pubs in the conventional sense, nor should they be considered to provide super-pubs".

The company estimates food will account for 45pc-50pc of sales at the Hanover Quay outlet.

The new pub was scheduled to begin trading by early June but its opening date is likely to be pushed back due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The group, which operates over 900 pubs in the UK, currently has seven pubs in Ireland, with five in Dublin and one each in Cork and Carlow. As part of a 30m investment in the Republic, Wetherspoons is also opening a new pub on Camden Street in Dublin, which will incorporate an 89-bedroom hotel, with other outlets planned for Galway and Waterford.

The pub chain has recently faced strong criticism over its treatment of staff and suppliers during the Covid-19 pandemic after it shut outlets.

In its planning application, Wetherspoons said its reputation was "very positive in the UK when it comes to the revitalisation of historic buildings".
High hopes: A packet of Plaqueril, tablets containing hydroxy-chloroquine, a drug that has shown signs of effectiveness against coronavirus. Photo: Getty Images

Drugs that treat malaria are among the medicines which will be used from next week in Ireland to treat Covid-19 as part of a global trial aimed at giving patients critically ill from the virus a better chance of survival.

The trial offers fresh hope for patients who are left fighting for their lives due to the infection.

Prof Alistair Nichol, of St Vincent's Hospital in Dublin, who is leading the trial, said it is unclear if it will work but it could potentially boost the chances of recovery.

One of the drugs is hydroxychloroquine, which is a well-established medicine in treating malaria.

Prof Nichol said a successful treatment would supplement the supportive care which patients receive in the intensive care unit to help them breathe and keep their organs functioning.

If successful, the trial would not only save lives but potentially allow patients to leave intensive care earlier, freeing up beds for other patients and relieving the pressure on hospitals.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has already launched a worldwide trial called Solidarity, involving scientists in countries all over the globe, to test which drugs work well on Covid-19 patients. Hydroxychloroquine is included in this international trial.

Other drugs to be used in the global experiment are some medicines licensed to treat HIV.

"In the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, many groups tried to conduct trials in a timely manner. However, our groups and others couldn't establish a clinical trial in time to respond to the pandemic," Prof Nichol added.

"So, we designed a new trial called REMAP CAP to recruit in 'peacetime' but to be able to convert rapidly in the event of a pandemic, such as Covid-19.

"This trial will now allow a rapid response which is ready to enrol Irish patients in intensive care units in the first weeks of such a pandemic.

"This means we can rapidly generate evidence to guide doctors' decisions on the best treatment for critically ill patients with Covid-19."

The aim is to try to kill the virus or dampen down the patient's immune response to the infection.

Researchers in Ireland led by Prof Nichol will work with a local network of clinical research facilities and other partners across academia and hospitals to start assessing these potential interventions as quickly as possible.

Prof Nichol said the trial will start in the intensive care units of St Vincent's Hospital and University Hospital Galway in the next week. Beaumont Hospital in Dublin has signed contracts and Cork University Hospital and University Hospital Limerick, as well as the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast, will follow.

In cases where the patient is unable to consent, their next of kin will be asked for permission over the phone.

Meanwhile an Irish made antiviral drug Remdesivir is being trialled on coronavirus patients in the UK.

Hospitals are trying to assess how well the drug made by Gilead in Cork can work in patients with moderate to severe Covid-19.

The escalation in the numbers of patients admitted to intensive care is among the major concerns here, with fears of an uncontrollable surge.

An assessment by the patient safety watchdog Hiqa yesterday said the median length of stay in intensive care for coronavirus patients has been reported to be approximately seven days for those who survive Covid-19.

It is eight days for patients who do not survive, with shorter lengths of stay reported in the UK. However, the evidence is currently limited.

A new report on Covid-19 data up to Monday from Italy, prepared by an Italian expert for the European Society of Anaesthesiology, said about 15 days are necessary to achieve an effective weaning from respiratory care in intensive care.

About one-third of patients worsen after the first extubation, or removal of their tube, and need further respiratory treatment.

Other reports suggest men are at much higher risk from the virus, accounting for more of the patients who end up in intensive care.
The US space agency NASA is all set to start a new mission to study the cause behind Giant Solar Storms. The new mission will consist of CubeSats (miniature satellites) to study the property of solar storms.

NASA has actually picked a new goal to research exactly how the Sunlight produces as well as releases large area weather storms called solar particle storms into global area. Not only will such info boost understanding of how our solar system works, yet it inevitably can aid shield astronauts taking a trip to the Moon as well as Mars by supplying much better info on just how the Suns radiation affects the room atmosphere they need to take a trip through.

The new mission, called the Sunlight Radio Interferometer Room Experiment (DAYBREAK), is a selection of 6 CubeSats operating as one large radio telescope. NASA has actually granted $62.6 million to design, construct and release SunRISE by no earlier than July 1, 2023.

NASA selected SUNUP in August 2017 as one of 2 Goal of Opportunity proposals to perform an 11-month goal concept study. In February 2019, the agency authorized a continued solution research study of the mission for an extra year. SUNUP is led by Justin Kasper at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and managed by NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California.

 We are so delighted to include a brand-new goal to our fleet of spacecraft that aid us better understand the Sunlight, along with how our star affects the room environment between earths, claimed Nicky Fox, supervisor of NASAs Heliophysics Department. The even more we understand concerning just how the Sun appears with room weather occasions, the more we can mitigate their effects on spacecraft and also astronauts.

The mission layout depends on 6 solar-powered CubeSats each regarding the size of a toaster oven to concurrently observe radio photos of low-frequency emission from solar task and share them using NASAs Deep Space Network. The constellation of CubeSats would fly within 6 miles of each other, above Earths ambience, which otherwise blocks the radio signals SUNUP will certainly observe. Together, the 6 CubeSats will certainly create 3D maps to identify where large bit bursts stem on the Sun and also how they develop as they expand outward into space. This, consequently, will aid determine what initiates as well as increases these giant jets of radiation. The six individual spacecraft will also interact to map, for the very first time, the pattern of magnetic field lines reaching from the Sunlight out right into interplanetary space.

NASAs Objectives of Chance take full advantage of scientific research return by combining brand-new, relatively cost-effective missions with launches on spacecraft already authorized and also preparing to go into space. SUNUP recommended a technique for accessibility to room as a held rideshare on an industrial satellite offered by Maxar of Westminster, Colorado, as well as constructed with a Haul Orbital Distribution System, or SHELL. When in orbit, the host spacecraft will release the six DAYBREAK spacecraft and after that proceed its prime mission.

Missions of Chance belong to the Explorers Program, which is the oldest continuous NASA program designed to supply frequent, affordable accessibility to room using major investigator-led space science investigations appropriate to the Scientific research Mission Directorates (SMD) astrophysics as well as heliophysics programs. The program is taken care of by NASAs Goddard Space Trip Facility in Greenbelt, Maryland, for SMD, which conducts a wide variety of study as well as scientific exploration programs for Planet studies, space climate, the planetary system and universe.
Haryana's Home Minister Anil Vij on Thursday said that 927 attendees of the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area have been traced in the state, with five of them testing COVID-19 positive so far.

Of the 927 people traced till now, 107 are foreigners.

The minister, who a day ago said 503 people, including 72 foreigners, who attended the Nizamuddin event have been traced in Haryana, indicated on Thursday that the number may go up further.

Vij, who also holds the health portfolio, said that 820 out of the 927 traced are from outside Haryana, and the foreigners include Bangladeshi, Malaysian, South African, Nepali and Sri Lankan nationals.

"We do not exactly know who all they have met. There is a possibility that some of them may have infected others who in turn unknowingly may be carriers. The report which I have at present states that among those traced so far, two from Ambala and three from Palwal have tested COVID-19 positive," he said.

The foreigners have been kept in isolation while samples of 256 other suspected cases have been sent for testing and all were being quarantined, the minister said.

Informing newspersons that samples of all the 107 foreigners have been sent for testing separately and reports are awaited, Vij said a majority of them were on tourist visa.

They all had concealed information regarding their travel details within the country and action against them according to law is being contemplated, the minister said.

Asked if the foreigners will be deported, Vij replied, "We cannot do so till they test negative."



Vij said the police department was at their job and indicated the number of those who attended the Nizamuddin event could increase as there was possibility of more of them being traced in the state.

To a question how many of the 927 traced so far could have entered the state after the lockdown was put in place, he said, "This information is being gathered."



On the purpose of this group entering Haryana, Vij said on Wednesday that after attending the congregation they are assigned duties and sent to different places across India to preach. "They stay in mosques, go to people's homes and hold meetings."The Tablighi Jamaat's Markaz in Nizamuddin West has emerged as a hotspot of coronavirus, following which a major area has been sealed and an FIR lodged against its cleric for violating government orders.

The Telangana government said on Monday that six people who attended the religious congregation between March 13 and 15 died due to the novel coronavirus. Subsequently, authorities across the country swung into action to trace the contacts of those who went to the gathering, attended by hundreds of people, including from Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia.

The Delhi police has registered an FIR against Maulana Saad of the Nizamuddin centre under sections of Epidemic Disease Act and other sections of the Indian Penal Code for violating government orders on management of the markaz in relation to social, political or religious gathering.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Newser)  CNN's Chris Cuomo revealed this week that he has tested positive for the coronavirus, but he's continuing to anchor his 9pm ET show from his basement. On Wednesday night, he talked about his symptoms with the network's medical correspondent, Sanjay Gupta. Some of the details, via Today.com and People:

"I've never had anything like it," he said. "I've never experienced any kind of fever like what I have going on all the time and the body aches and the tremors and the concern about not being able to do anything about it."

"This virus came at me, I've never seen anything like it, OK?" he said. "So I've had a fever, you've had a fever, right? But 102, 103, 103-plus, that wouldn't quit. It was like somebody was beating me like a pinata. I was shivering so much that ... I chipped my tooth. They call them the rigors."

story continues below

"So the sun comes up, I'm awakeI was up all night. I'm telling you, I was hallucinating. My dad was talking to me," he continued, referring to Mario Cuomo, former New York governor, who died in 2015. "I was seeing people from college, people I haven't seen in forever. It was freaky, what I lived through, and it may happen again tonight."

"You know, I get it now," he said. "And if you match that with chest constriction and people can't breathe, I totally get why we're losing so many people and why our hospitals are so crowded."

See video of Cuomo talking about his illness here, but also strongly urging people to stay home. This video includes a clip of his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, talking about his younger brother.

(Read more Chris Cuomo stories.)
NEW YORK, April 01, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm, reminds investors that class actions have been commenced on behalf of stockholders of Sasol Limited (NYSE: SSL) and Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SPR). Stockholders have until the deadlines below to petition the court to serve as lead plaintiff. Additional information about each case can be found at the link provided.



Sasol Limited (NYSE: SSL)

Class Period: March 10, 2015 to January 13, 2020

Lead Plaintiff Deadline: April 6, 2020

On October 27, 2014, Sasol announced the construction of a of an $8.1 billion ethane cracker and derivatives complex in Lake Charles, Louisiana, dubbed the Lake Charles Chemicals Project (LCCP). According to the Company, the LCCP includes seven manufacturing units, some of which are in continued development, including the low-density polyethylene (LDPE) facility and Ziegler alcohol, ethoxylates and Guerbet alcohol facilities, among others.

On June 6, 2016, Sasol reported that the expected total capital expenditure for the [LCCP] could increase up to US$11 billion, including site infrastructure and utility improvements; a slower rate of capital resulted in an extended project schedule and contributed to further project cost increases; [t]he expected returns for the project have reduced due to changes in long-term price assumptions and the higher capital estimates; and [t]he increase in the estimated LCCP capital cost and extended schedule will reduce the expected project returns by approximately the same amount as the Companys lower long-term price assumptions.

Following these disclosures, Sasols share price fell $3.53 per share, or 10.99%, to close at $28.60 per share on June 6, 2016.

On May 22, 2019, Sasol disclosed that the cost estimate for the LCCP has been revised to a range of $12,6 to $12,9 billion which includes a contingency of $300 million. Sasol cited a $530 million change in the projects cost forecast because of a [c]orrection for duplication of investment allowances of approximately $230 million; a [c]orrection for certain contracts and variation orders managed by Sasol, outside the primary engineering, procurement and construction contract, of approximately $180 million; and forecast improvements that were not expected to be realised and adjustments for potential insurance claims and procurement back-charges of approximately $120 million.

Following these disclosures, Sasols share price fell $4.50 per share, or 14.93%, to close at $25.64 per share on May 22, 2019.

Later, on August 16, 2019, Sasol issued a press release disclosing that it was delaying the announcement of its 2019 financial results because of possible LCCP control weaknesses.

On this news, Sasols share price fell $0.74 per share, or 4.02%, to close at $17.67 per share on August 16, 2019.

Then, on October 28, 2019, Sasol disclosed that its review of the LCCP control weaknesses had brought to light errors, omissions, and inaccuracies in the [LCCP] cost estimate, and a number of unethical and improper reporting activities that took place at the highest level of management. Sasol also announced the resignation of, inter alia, its Joint Presidents and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), effective November 1, 2019, and Senior Vice Presidents and others previously in charge of the LCCP.

Finally, on January 14, 2020, Sasol issued a press release confirming that on January 13, 2020, the Company experienced an explosion and fire at its LCCP low-density polyethylene (LDPE) unit. Sasol stated that [t]he unit was in the final stages of commissioning and startup when the incident occurred and has been shut down and an investigation is underway to determine the cause of the incident, the extent of the damage and resulting impact on the LDPE units [beneficial operation] schedule.

Following these disclosures, Sasols share price fell $1.70 per share, or 7.84%, over the following two trading days, to close at $19.99 per share on January 15, 2020.

The Complaint, filed on February 5, 2020, alleges that throughout the Class Period defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding the Companys business, operational and compliance policies. Specifically, defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Sasol had conducted insufficient due diligence into, and failed to account for multiple issues with, the LCCP, as well as the true cost of the project; (ii) construction and operation of the LCCP was consequently plagued by control weaknesses, delays, rising costs, and technical issues; (iii) these issues were exacerbated by Sasols top-level management, who engaged in improper and unethical behavior with respect to financial reporting for the LCCP and the projects oversight; (iv) all the foregoing was reasonably likely to render the LCCP significantly more expensive than disclosed and negatively impact the Companys financial results; and (v) as a result, the Companys public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

For more information on the Sasol class action go to: https://bespc.com/ssl

Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SPR)

Class Period: October 31, 2019 to February 27, 2020

Lead Plaintiff Deadline: April 10, 2020

On January 30, 2020, Spirit issued a press release announcing executive officer changes. Therein, Spirit stated that it did not comply with its established accounting processes related to certain potential contingent liabilities that were received by Spirit after the end of third quarter 2019. Moreover, the Company stated that, [i]n light of these findings, Spirit's Chief Financial Officer, Jose Garcia, and Principal Accounting Officer, John Gilson, resigned from their positions.

On this news, the Companys share price fell $2.56, or nearly 4%, to close at $65.08 per share on January 30, 2020.

The complaint, filed on February 10, 2020, alleges that throughout the Class Period defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) the Company lacked effective internal controls over financial reporting; (2) the Company did not comply with its established accounting principles related to potential contingent liabilities; and (3) as a result, defendants statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times.

For more information on the Spirit AeroSystems class action go to: https://bespc.com/spr

About Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.:

Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a nationally recognized law firm with offices in New York and California. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in commercial, securities, derivative, and other complex litigation in state and federal courts across the country. For more information about the firm, please visit www.bespc.com . Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.


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His Excellency Muhyiddin Yassin

Prime Minister of Malaysia

Prime Ministers Office

Federal Government Administration Center

Bangunan Perdana Putra, Putrajaya 62502

Malaysia

Sent via email to ppm@pmo.gov.my

Dear Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin,

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a non-governmental, independent organization that promotes press freedom and the safety of journalists around the world, congratulates you on forming a new government in Malaysia and urges you to make press freedom a top priority. The role of an independent press that can report freely on issues of public concern has never been more important, especially at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic threatens the well-being of the people of Malaysia, who require accurate and timely information to make informed decisions about how to safeguard their health.

As you are aware, the successive United Malays Nasional Organization-led administrations that governed your country for decades pursued antagonistic relations with the media, characterized by frequent harassment, intimidation, and threats under various overly broad and repressive laws. We ask you to turn the page on that unfortunate history and open a new chapter that gives priority to amending and abolishing laws that have been habitually abused to stifle the media.

In particular, we call on your government to immediately repeal Section 233(1) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, which criminalizes the use of network facilities for communications that could be deemed by authorities as offensive, false or obscene.

Convictions under this law, with its broad, vague standards, allow for one-year prison sentences and fines. Malaysiakini journalists, including editor-in-chief Malaysiakini , have been gravely threatened under the law in recent years.

Similarly, we urge your government to abolish or amend Section 505(b) of the penal code, a provision that bans statements intended to cause fear or alarm to the public or commit an offense against the State or public tranquility, and allows for two-year jail sentences for convictions.

These provisions are far too broad, and are prone to abuse. They also produce self-censorship that ultimately undermines the very public interest they are purportedly intended to protect.

Award-winning journalist Wan Noor Hayati Wan Alias was charged under the law on February 5 for critical social media posts she made about the then governments handling of the coronavirus pandemic. She now faces up to six years in prison for three separate posts.

Hiyati, who is currently out on bail, told CPJ that the case has caused her journalist colleagues to self-censor their COVID-19 news coverage over fears they could be similarly charged. The case against her should be dropped before its next scheduled hearing on April 29, which will signal to all journalists that they can report on the health emergency without fear of reprisal.

Additionally, we strongly urge your government to refrain from re-enacting the fake news law which was passed by politicians now represented in your ruling Perikatan Nasional coalition and abolished by the outgoing Mahathir Mohamad administration.

That law allowed for six-year prison penalties and 500,000 ringgit ($125,000) fines for news, information, data, and reports which is or are wholly or partly false. Journalists, of course, should never face prison time or punitive fines for doing their work of checking and balancing the government. We strongly encourage you to resist any attempts to revive this draconian law by your coalition party members.

CPJ commended the Mahathir governments decision to drop legal cases against media and journalists, including cases against the independent Malaysiakini news website and editorial cartoonist Zulikiflee Anwar Ulhaque, known as Zunar, which were initiated by the previous UMNO-led government under which you served as deputy prime minister.

CPJ has honored both Steven Gan and Zunar with its annually bestowed International Press Freedom Award for their bravery in the face of persistent and extreme government threats, including potential imprisonment for their journalism. The legal threats that they faced previously should under no circumstances be revisited or revived.

CPJ also encourages you to support the new independent Media Council, approved by the cabinet of the outgoing administration. The Media Council seeks more self-regulation of the media through the abolition of various laws, including the Printing Presses and Publications Act and the Multimedia Act, both of which have been abused by authorities to punish and threaten the free media.

We encourage you to accept the interim Media Councils proposed legal changes and to allow the independent body to function freely without government intervention or threats.

Your government has a unique opportunity to champion the cause of press freedom in Malaysia, amid a global health crisis where free and independent reporting can save lives. We encourage you to grasp this opportunity, in the name of democracy and reform. Thank you for your attention.

Sincerely,

Joel Simon

Executive Director

Committee to Protect Journalists
t:dbdurden/iStock(DENVER) -- The Colorado Attorney General's office sent a letter to Hobby Lobby's CEO, ordering the craft supplies company to shutter stores immediately after it continued operating despite being named a nonessential business during the novel coronavirus pandemic.



"For the avoidance of doubt, and as you have been previously notified, Hobby Lobby is not a 'critical business,'" the letter from attorney general Phil Weiser's office, obtained by ABC News, stated. "You are directed to immediately close all Hobby Lobby locations within the State of Colorado."



The letter added that the state's executive order mandating nonessential businesses shutter amid the COVID-19 outbreak will be enforced.



On Wednesday, several Hobby Lobby locations in Colorado remained opened. ABC News visited two locations outside Denver, where store managers said they had "no comment" when asked why they continued to operate despite being required to close.



"Craft stores including Hobby Lobby are not considered essential businesses under the order," a spokesperson for the Colorado Department of Public Health told ABC Wednesday. "Breaking the order is breaking the law."



Hobby Lobby did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.



As of Wednesday, 45 states have issued or announced statewide closures of all nonessential businesses to help stop the spread of coronavirus in the U.S.



The U.S. has become the new epicenter of the outbreak, with over 216,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19.



Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
Indias Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen Bipin Rawat believes that India must break the Covid-19 virus chain by April 14, through the lockdown and social distancing, or be prepared to weather the long-term consequences of the pandemic.

The military dictum is prepare or perish, but in these times of Covid we have refined it to prepare or suffer. We must arrest the spread of the virus through a 100% lockdown and social distancing by April 14. With the harvesting season around the corner, India cannot afford the numbers to go up. The military is totally prepared to stand up to the demands made by government and the people, Gen Rawat said in a phone interview.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

He said that the army, navy and air force have moved into action by dedicating 17-18 hospitals to care for the infected, and the total bed capacity in the forces has been ramped up to 15,000 so far. We have hospitals ready even in far-off places like Dimapur and Zakhama in Nagaland, even though the virus has not spread in North-east India. We have now two to three hospitals ready in each zone to treat, manage and control the infection, he said.

Also Read: Coronavirus: How world reached a million cases in 93 days

The CDS said that the military and its doctors were constantly in touch with the Union health ministry, and he, as secretary of military affairs, was attending meetings with PK Mishra, principal secretary to the Prime Minister, and cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba.

Gen Rawat said that one ward in each hospital, including places such as Delhi where the base hospital is normally crowded, will be dedicated for Covid-19 patients. We have created isolation and quarantine facilities in Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Jhansi to accommodate 500 patients each for treatment, to add to the capacity of para-military facilities, such as the one in Manesar, he said.

The single-point military advisor to the government said that since army, navy and air force schools are closed due to the lockdown, the premises can be prepared as quarantine centres. We have three army public schools, one navy school and one air force public school in Delhi. It has been decided that these schools should be made ready to be made quarantine centres, if required. Even though the capacities of these schools is about 1,500 patients each, only 200 will be put up in each school due to proper sanitation requirements. The same model is being readied in other parts of the country if there is a requirement, or in a worst-case scenario.

Also Read: Covid-19: What you need to know today

Gen Rawat also said that the defence ministry has made an important change in the procurement manual by allowing advance payments to be made to the manufacturers of medical equipment such as ventilators, masks and protection suits. We have already placed an order of 370 ventilators with the DRDO {Defence Research and Development Organisation} and are asking ordnance factories also for manufacture of masks and PPE {personal protective equipment} suits. The power to make advance payments has been given to director generals of armed medical services, army commanders, corps commanders and brigade commanders so that there is no shortage of any medical supplies, both for troops and the public, he said.

The CDS also said that two naval medical ships were ready to help neighbouring countries in case of a medical emergency. The air force, which recently flew a 14-member team to the Maldives, is prepared to ferry medical supplies in and out of the country.

Although Gen Rawat is optimistic that India can contain the virus, he is keeping his fingers crossed and hoping that social distancing, lockdown, and the Indian summer heat will end the threat.

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Though Istanbul's busiest districts have emptied amid the accelerating number of coronavirus cases and bars, nightclubs, shops and cafes across the country have been shut down by the government, some of the most vulnerable people in the city are still on the streets struggling to earn a living.

Istanbul's street children are still out day and night selling packets of tissues or playing music on the street and on public transportation vehicles for tips. They do not have the luxury of social distancing, as their families depend on them to earn money to survive.

One late Friday evening on the normally packed Istiklal Avenue, some of the only people around were a couple groups of street children, running around and playing with bags of tissue packages still in hand, evidently trying to have a bit of fun after a grinding day of work.

Many of them are Syrian refugees, who have quickly picked up Turkish and frequent the districts of Beyoglu and Sisli, where there are usually high numbers of Arab tourists that they can also communicate with.

There are also children from other disenfranchised groups, such as Turkey's Roma community, who are relatively better off than their counterparts in Europe but still some of the most disadvantaged people in Turkey.

There arent statistics on the number of street children, whether Syrians or from other nationalities, said Omar Kadkoy, policy analyst at the Ankara-based Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey. "The underlying reason, however, for the children to be in the streets begging and/or selling whatever they can carry is economic in nature. Syrians work predominantly informally in the labor market. Hence, being subject to various forms of exploitation, namely, below minimum-wage salaries. Therefore, and under similar conditions, children become breadwinners.

Thousands of informal recyclers pull large wheeled carts, deftly maneuvering through the city while rummaging through garbage dumpsters to collect paper products and other materials that they resell. Until a few years ago, this grueling job was primarily carried out by Turkish nationals but nowadays large numbers of migrants, particularly those from Afghanistan and Pakistan, also work as recyclers. They put in long hours and make multiple runs, stuffing their carts to the brim as they get paid by weight.

Ankara recently banned the practice as a measure against the novel coronavirus, but so far it appears that Istanbul has not done so, and on April 1 several recyclers were observed busily hauling their carts in the district of Sisli.

While Istanbul's street children and the recyclers work day and night throughout the city, the vast majority do not actually reside on the street, but by and large return to homes either in peripheral, crowded working-class districts such as Esenyurt, Esenler, Bagcilar and Gungoren or poor, stigmatized neighborhoods in the city center such as Tarlabasi, Dolapdere, Haciahmet, Hacihusrev and Kustepe.

The actual number of homeless people in Istanbul is relatively low. A survey released by the opposition Islamist Saadet, or Felicity Party, late last year indicated that there are 6-8,000 people living on the streets in Istanbul, a city of nearly 16 million. According to the report, 90% of the homeless people in Istanbul are men and 70% are Turkish nationals, with the remaining 30% primarily from Morocco, Uzbekistan, Palestine and Syria.

Street children, recyclers, beggars and street vendors are among the groups most vulnerable to the coronavirus, due to the long hours they spend outside and their constant contact with people. They also risk spreading the virus in the dense, impoverished and often structurally unsound areas in which they reside, where homes often lack electricity and running water.

There are insufficient educational resources in Turkey in spite of support programs that are in place, contributing to the prevalence of child labor, Kadkoy told Al-Monitor. While combating the informal employment of the parents is rather a complex subject, supporting children to attend school is more feasible. This is the aim of the Conditional Cash Transfer for Education (CCTE), which is implemented under the partnership of the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Services, the Ministry of National Education, the Turkish Red Crescent and UNICEF and funded by the EU, Norway, and the US. The CCTE program extends monthly financial support and girls are entitled to more money so that children attend school, Kadkoy said.

One shouldnt overlook the fact that there are structural problems in the public schooling system, namely lack of enough spaces, that add to children being on the streets, he added.

The opposition right-wing Iyi Party's chair Meral Aksener recently announced that she was sending six months of her salary to the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) mayors of Istanbul and Ankara. She criticized President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the ruling Justice and Development Party for failing to provide assistance to local municipalities, which she says have been left alone by the government in their efforts to combat the epidemic.

On the other hand, the city leaderships have a responsibility to protect refugees and other vulnerable groups, Kadkoy said.

In his campaign, [Istanbul Mayor] Ekrem Imamoglu prioritized refugee women and children. Now, the mayor has a challenging opportunity to stand out as a politician who makes good on his promise, Kadkoy said.

Ultimately it is up to the government agencies to ensure that Turkey's refugee population, which has surpassed four million and is not limited to Syrians but includes several hundred thousand people from other countries, is informed about the coronavirus.

The Ministry of Health in conjunction with the migration directorate and various nongovernmental organizations are circulating multilingual information to different refugee communities regarding the virus, Kadkoy said, explaining, "This is important for asylum seekers and refugees from different backgrounds to receive accurate information. Most importantly, in this situation, we must not allow a fight between birthrights and human rights to emerge. Everybody in Turkey must have equal rights to access necessary health services if they contract the virus."
Burma Ex-Rakhine State Security Minister Appointed Peace Adviser to Myanmar President

Representatives of the government, the military and Northern Alliance members attend peace talks in Kengtung, eastern Shan State, on Sept. 17, 2019. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy
Technavio has been monitoring the electric screw gun market and it is poised to grow by USD 155.86 million during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of almost 5% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment. Request a free sample report

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005683/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Electric Screw Gun Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

The market is fragmented, and the degree of fragmentation will accelerate during the forecast period. Emerson Electric, Makita Corporation, Robert Bosch, Stanley Black Decker, and Techtronic Industries are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

High labor cost and ease of use has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Electric Screw Gun Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Electric Screw Gun Market is segmented as below:

Product Cordless Corded

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download a free sample: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30444

Electric Screw Gun Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our electric screw gun market report covers the following areas:

Electric Screw Gun Market Size

Electric Screw Gun Market Trends

Electric Screw Gun Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies increase in sales through online distribution channel as one of the prime reasons driving the electric screw gun market growth during the next few years.

Electric Screw Gun Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Electric Screw Gun Market, including some of the vendors such as Emerson Electric, Makita Corporation, Robert Bosch, Stanley Black Decker, and Techtronic Industries are some of the major market participants. To make the most of the opportunities. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Electric Screw Gun Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Electric Screw Gun Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist electric screw gun market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the electric screw gun market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the electric screw gun market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of electric screw gun market vendors

Table Of Contents :

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT

Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Cordless Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Corded Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product

CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

Market opportunity

DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

MARKET TRENDS

Increase in sales through online distribution channel

Rising demand for cordless electric screw guns

Emergence of energy-efficient power tools

VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

Competitive scenario

VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Emerson Electric

Makita Corporation

Robert Bosch

Stanley Black Decker

Techtronic Industries

APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

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A woman stabbed a seven-year-old girl to death in front of her horrified father as she rode her scooter past a park bench on Mother's Day, an inquest heard.

Emily Jones was stabbed in the neck by a woman who was sat on a wooden bench as the youngster rode past her.

Emergency services attended the scene of the unprovoked attack at Queen's Park in Bolton, Greater Manchester at around 2.35pm on Sunday, March 22.

Emily Jones, pictured, seven, was stabbed to death as she rode her scooter past a woman who was sat on a wooden bench at Queen's Park in Bolton, Greater Manchester, on March 22

Police pictured in a cordoned-off area at Queen's Park in Bolton, Greater Manchester, on March 23, where the seven-year-old was stabbed to death the previous day

Emily was rushed to nearby Salford Royal Hospital, but was tragically pronounced dead at 3.56pm.

Acting senior coroner Alan Walsh opened an inquest into Emily's death at Bolton Coroner's Court and released her body to allow a funeral to take place.

He described Emily's death as 'one of the most tragic' he has dealt with in 20 years as a coroner.

Police coroner's officer Rebecca Gardner told the court: 'Emily was on her scooter playing.

'As she rode past a wooden bench, a female sat on the bench suddenly attacked Emily, stabbing her in the neck, causing catastrophic injury.

'Emily was taken to Salford Royal Hospital, but despite best efforts to save Emily her death was diagnosed at 15.56 hours that day.'

The court was told a post mortem found that Emily died as a result of an incised wound of the neck.

A 30-year-old woman, who was not known to Emily's family, was arrested at the park on suspicion of murder and has been detained under the Mental Health Act.

She remains in a high security facility.

Mr Walsh told the court: 'I have been truly touched by the photographs of Emily that have been sent to me.

Floral and cuddly toy tributes to the seven-year-old girl. Following her death, Emily's parents paid tribute to her, describing their only child as the 'light of our lives'

'I send my heartfelt condolences to Emily's family and friends, but particularly to her parents, who were present in the park and her father, who was nearby.

'In my 20 years as a coroner this is one of the most tragic deaths that I have dealt with and the loss of a beautiful, innocent, lively, intelligent and lovely seven-year-old in these circumstances is an unimaginable tragedy.

'I appreciate that Emily's parents are beyond devastated and my sincere thoughts are with them at this enormously sad time.'

None of Emily's family were in court for the hearing, but Mr Walsh added: 'I make those comments because the police have kept me informed of the tributes the family made shortly after Emily's death and the photograph that was sent to me, through the police, of her in her school uniform and looking a happy, intelligent child.

'I am enormously sad at her death and it is important that her parents know that all our wishes are with them and our thoughts are with them at this enormously sad time.'

Following Emily's death her parents paid tribute to her, describing their only child as the 'light of our lives'.

They added that the primary school pupil was 'always full of joy, love and laughter'.

In a statement, they said: 'Emily had such a cheeky smile and was beautiful inside and out. She had a heart as big as her smile.

'Emily was never happier than when she was spending time with her family and friends, she was our own little social butterfly.

'Emily had a passion for the outdoors and loved to play any sport, even when she was wearing her pink sparkly dresses.

'We are beyond devastated that this random act of violence means that we will never get to see our beautiful little girl grow up into the wonderful young lady she was showing such promise of becoming.

'It is truly heartbreaking to wake up to a world without Emily in it and we cannot comprehend why this has happened.'

Police inquiries into Emily's death remain ongoing and witnesses are urged to call 0161 856 8797 quoting incident number 1430 of the 22/03/20.

Mr Walsh adjourned the inquest until July 3.
[April 02, 2020] 20 Largest Counties in Texas Now Served by Case Management Solution From Tyler Technologies

Tyler Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: TYL) announced today that it has signed a software-as-a-service (SaaS (News - Alert)) agreement with Jefferson County, Texas, for Tyler's Odyssey Case Manager, Odyssey Attorney Manager, Tyler Corrections, and SoftCode civil process solutions. With this agreement, Tyler's Odyssey solution will now serve all of the 20 largest counties in Texas by population and 86 Texas counties in total. Jefferson County recognized that a new case management system could provide advanced data sharing capabilities and increased operational efficiencies. A team from the county evaluated several vendors, ultimately selecting Tyler because of the company's expertise in the public sector and specifically its expertise - and track record - in Texas to help streamline judicial processes for courts. "We selected Tyler to provide crucial case management software because we know that it has been successful for many of our neighboring counties," said Jeff Ross, director of management information systems, Jefferson County. "By leveraging Tyler's SaaS solution, we will improve security and redundancy, and decrease the burden on our IT staff to maintain systems, which is a win-win for our staff and our taxpayers. We're especially excited about the increased ability to share data across cunty agencies, streamlined reporting, and overall efficiency we will gain by using Odyssey."



Once implemented, Tyler's Odyssey solution will manage all aspects of court case management for the county, and Tyler's SoftCode solution will enable staff to execute civil process efficiently. In addition, Odyssey will help increase the sharing of critical case information across offices. It will also ensure that Jefferson County will have access to the latest technologies and be able to meet all state reporting requirements. Because the county selected Odyssey as a SaaS solution, it will also benefit from

A Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS)-compliant environment

A predictable budget since costs are fixed for the term of the agreement

Flexibility for the county's IT employees to focus on end users' most critical needs

Less burden associated with infrastructure and storage maintenance and cost "We're pleased to have Jefferson County join a large group of Texas counties that use Odyssey every day to efficiently manage its courts," said Rusty Smith, president of Tyler's Courts & Justice Division. "Not only will Jefferson County have comprehensive and secure case management, but it will also benefit from a SaaS solution ensuring the latest technology and security compliance." Jefferson County is located in southeast Texas on the Gulf of Mexico and has a population of more than 250,000. It includes the cities of Beaumont, Port Arthur, and Port Neches. About Tyler Technologies (News - Alert), Inc. Tyler Technologies (NYSE: TYL) provides integrated software and technology services to the public sector. Tyler's end-to-end solutions empower local, state, and federal government entities to operate more efficiently and connect more transparently with their constituents and with each other. By connecting data and processes across disparate systems, Tyler's solutions are transforming how clients gain actionable insights that solve problems in their communities. Tyler has more than 26,000 successful installations across more than 10,000 sites, with clients in all 50 states, Canada, the Caribbean, Australia, and other international locations. A financially strong company, Tyler has achieved double-digit revenue growth every quarter since 2012. It was also named to Forbes' "Best Midsize Employers" list in 2019 and recognized twice on its "Most Innovative Growth Companies" list. More information about Tyler Technologies, headquartered in Plano, Texas, can be found at tylertech.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005033/en/

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Scott Morrison choked back tears during a press conference about coronavirus as he spoke about his grandmother's experience living through the Great Depression.

The prime minister struggled to contain his emotions and was forced to take several deep breaths as he reflected on the hardships she endured during that period before World War II, almost 90 years ago.

'I think back to my grandmother, and how she lived through the depression,' he told reporters at Parliament House in Canberra today.

'I remember as a kid being told stories by my grandmother about what they used to do as a family to get through.'

Economists fear Australia's unemployment rate has surged to levels last seen during the Great Depression of the early 1930s, as coronavirus forces businesses to shut down.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison was forced to contain his emotions as he spoke about his grandmother and how she lived through the Great Depression

Mr Morrison also revealed his family joined him in Canberra before the nation went into partial lockdown in a bid to stop the spread of the killer disease.

'We are keeping each other entertained, as I said the other day they are doing many jigsaw puzzles. Jigsaw puzzle sales are soaring I understand,' he said.

'I am pleased that my family is with me. That is a great comfort to me and I hope it is a comfort to them.

'They sustain me and we are just like any other family. '

Prime Minister Scott Morrison, alongside his wife Jenny Morrison, daughters Lily Morrison and Abbey Morrison, and mother Marion Morrison pose at Government House on May 29, 2019

Mr Morrison managed to get his composure back, and signed off with a message to Australians struggling during the uncertain times.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

'You have got to keep your family positive and keep connected and together.

'For us, our faith is very important to us.

'That helps us get through each day. But every family is different.

'Stay together, Australia.'

Australia now has 5,108 positive coronavirus cases as of Thursday, with a total of 24 dead.

Deloitte Access Economics partner Chris Richardson estimated one million Australians lost their jobs last week.

This would see Australia's jobless rate more than double from 5.1 per cent in February to 12.4 per cent in March, the highest since 1932.

Official labour force data for March is being released in a fortnight.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics survey period will cover the shutdown of pubs, clubs, cinemas and gyms, which Mr Morrison ordered in a bid to slow the increase in COVID-19 cases.
There is no evidence to suggest that the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) will disappear, says Dr David Nabarro, the World Health Organizations (WHO) special envoy on the disease, adding that people may have to consider new norms for the foreseeable future. Declaring a lockdown when there was relatively a small number of cases in India gave the country time to come to terms with the new virus, he tells Sanchita Sharma in an interview. Edited excerpts:

Do you think Covid-19 can be stopped?

If you dont get in early and the outbreaks grow, they get very, very big very quickly and then managing them is a massive and a very taxing task. So, where you have countries with not many cases and strong, robust responses at the community level supported by governments, we are most hopeful.

Everything starts at the community level, detecting people with disease and isolating them, finding their contacts and quarantining them, and maintaining, as far as possible, a ready state to respond to outbreaks very quickly, and widespread efforts to reduce opportunities of transmission through lockdowns. During a lockdown, you must build community capacity for interrupting transmission where its starts -- in local communities -- and I see it recognised in India.

Also Watch | Switch off lights, light candles at 9 pm on Sunday: PM Modi amid lockdown l Full speech

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

How would you rate Indias response?

The lockdown in India was quite early on, when there was relatively a small number of cases detected. This was really a far-sighted decision because it gave the whole country the opportunity to come to terms with the reality of this enemy. People understood that there is a virus in our midst. It gave time to develop capacities at the local level for interrupting transmission and sorting out hospitals.

Of course, there is a lot of debate and criticism, and inevitably with a lot of frustration and anger that life is being disturbed in this way. It is very, very upsetting. I think it is courageous of the government, honestly, to take this step and provoke this enormous public debate and let the frustration come out, to accept that there will be hundreds of millions of people whose lives are being disrupted. For poor people on daily wages, this is a massive sacrifice they are making. And to do it now at an early stage as opposed to waiting three or four weeks later when the virus is much more widespread, was very courageous.

Unlike in Europe and the United States?

Comparisons between governments are not very helpful, but I can say that there have been some countries where that kind of strong action was not taken early on and we see they now have to struggle with the most immense suffering. We are seeing health workers absolutely at the end of their tether, and getting infected because they are exhausted. We see long term lockdowns being talked about. For example, some people are talking about six weeks, eight weeks.

Is lockdown for three weeks enough?

That all depends on how well-organised the basic community-level public health services and hospitals are. And whether people can see it as a battle that requires solidarity right across society. I dont make any kind of recommendation because I dont know what is happening [on the ground].

India is looking very, very carefully to make sure that when the lockdown is lifted, there wont be a windfall, with lots and lots of cases, hospitals overwhelmed and a national crisis. I think that strategy is right.

Also Read: Coronavirus: How world reached a million cases in 93 days

What about the people worst affected?

We need to save the lives of people who are badly affected. We must be looking after our hospitals, treating our health workers like they have to be treated considering they are on the front line, protecting them as much as we can and supporting them in society so they get looked after... really making sure they are secure and safe.

In imposing major lockdowns, all governments are having to juggle with the need to really get on top of outbreaks quickly and, at the same time, ensure that people through the lockdown are not experiencing extreme impoverishment or shortage of food.

There is growing recognition all across the world that we have to manage lockdowns very carefully. The size of some of these lockdowns is really massive, so having an integrated policy of lockdown management that deals with the social and economic consequences is always important. As far as I know, there are 70 countries and territories where lockdown is being applied, which is somewhere around one-third or half of the worlds population. So lockdown management is a key activity to get right alongside the response to the disease.

Will coronavirus go away or will it become a seasonal virus like the flu viruses?

We dont know how this virus will behave over time and whether it will become less serious and whether it will have a particular distribution pattern. The virus is four months old, to our knowledge, and we are learning over time. I dont know what will happen in hotter weather. Im really very eagerly awaiting information from your country which is now going into the hot season to know whether or not there is the same level of transmission, or whether it is the same level of illness that weve seen in temperate climate. Im really hoping that it wont be quite so severe and that weather will be on our side.

We also dont know how the virus will behave in communities where there is quite a lot of illness, like for example malaria or other infectious diseases.

Will social distancing be the new normal?

Lets wait and see but let us plan for the virus to be with us in the world for the foreseeable future. There is no evidence to suggest it will suddenly disappear and lets see what that means for how we organise our lives.

I believe the coming reality for the world will be one where we are always defending against this enemy, like a kind of fire brigade is needed in place. And within that defence, then have the recovery of social interaction and economic activity but done in a way that keeps us all as safe as much as possible. I dont think we have an impossible task but if we call on our collective ingenuity to establish norms that will enable society and business to get on with what they do best, which is enterprise that creates wealth and enables people to have a decent standard of life.

Im asking people to consider the new norms at the same time they are imposing lockdowns because the new norms are going to be key to exiting safely from lockdowns without exposing people to disease.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR Sanchita Sharma Sanchita is the health & science editor of the Hindustan Times. She has been reporting and writing on public health policy, health and nutrition for close to two decades. She is an International Reporting Project fellow from Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at the Bloomberg School of Public Health and was part of the expert group that drafted the Press Council of Indias media guidelines on health reporting, including reporting on people living with HIV. ...view detail
Edison, NJ -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/02/2020 -- Advance Market Analytics released a new market study on Global Carbon Paper Market with 100+ market data Tables, Pie Chat, Graphs & Figures spread through Pages and easy to understand detailed analysis. At present, the market is developing its presence. The Research report presents a complete assessment of the Market and contains a future trend, current growth factors, attentive opinions, facts, and industry validated market data. The research study provides estimates for Global Carbon Paper Forecast till 2025*. Some are the key players taken under coverage for this study are Porelon (United States), Kores (Austria), Pelikan (Switzerland), Feltest (Netherland), Yorkhaven Limited (United Kingdom) and Deli (China).



Carbon paper is used for making a second impression of a document. It is a thin paper coated with carbon or another pigmented substance. The carbon paper market is growing owing to increasing demand for commercial applications such as offices, restaurants, and others. Moreover, increasing demand from the developing economies expected to fuel the market growth during the forecasted period.This growth is primarily driven by Increasing Demand from Government Offices and Rising Use for Commercial Applications.



Free Sample Report + All Related Graphs & Charts @ https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/sample-report/46206-global-carbon-paper-market



Market Drivers

- Increasing Demand from Government Offices

- Rising Use for Commercial Applications



Market Trend

- Growing Online Sales Channel for Carbon Paper



Restraints

- Fluctuating Raw Material Prices

Opportunities

Increasing Demand for Stationary Products and Rising Demand from the Developing Economies



Important Features that are under offering & key highlights of the report:



1) What all companies are currently profiled in the report?

Following are list of players that are currently profiled in the the report Porelon (United States), Kores (Austria), Pelikan (Switzerland), Feltest (Netherland), Yorkhaven Limited (United Kingdom) and Deli (China)"

** List of companies mentioned may vary in the final report subject to Name Change / Merger etc.



2) Can we add or profiled new company as per our need?

Yes, we can add or profile new company as per client need in the report. Final confirmation to be provided by research team depending upon the difficulty of survey.

** Data availability will be confirmed by research in case of privately held company. Upto 3 players can be added at no added cost.



3) Can we get more level of segmentation to meet our market intelligence objective?

Yes it can be provided, however ETA would vary and final confirmation would be given only after checking data in data repository.



4) Can inclusion of additional Segmentation / Market breakdown is possible?

Yes, inclusion of additional segmentation / Market breakdown is possible subject to data availability and difficulty of survey. However a detailed requirement needs to be shared with our research before giving final confirmation to client.



** Depending upon the requirement the deliverable time and quote will vary.



Enquire for customization in Report @ https://www.advancemarketanalytics.com/enquiry-before-buy/46206-global-carbon-paper-market



To comprehend Global Carbon Paper market dynamics in the world mainly, the worldwide Global Carbon Paper market is analyzed across major global regions. AMA also provides customized specific regional and country-level reports for the following areas.



- North America: United States, Canada, and Mexico.

- South & Central America: Argentina, Chile, and Brazil.

- Middle East & Africa: Saudi Arabia, UAE, Turkey, Egypt and South Africa.

- Europe: UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, and Russia.

- Asia-Pacific: India, China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, and Australia.



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Major Highlights of TOC:

Chapter One: Market Overview

Chapter Two: Executive Summary ---------- Free of Cost

Chapter Three: Market Dynamics ------ USD400

Market Drivers, Market Challenges, Market Trends, Restraints & Opportunities

Chapter Four: Market Factor Analysis ------ USD400

Supply/Value Chain, Porters Five Forces, PESTEL analysis, Market Entropy, Patent & Trademark Analysis, Bargain Power

Chapter Five:Global Carbon Paper, by Market Segmentationand Geography (value, volume**) (2013-2018) ------ USD1400



Global Carbon Paper

Type (One Time Type, Multiple Times Type), Application (Office, Industrial, Restaurant, Others), Usage (Single-Use, Multiple-Use), Sales Channel (Online Retail, Offline Retail)



Global Carbon Paper Region

North America (United States, Canada and Mexico)

Europe (Germany, France, United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland, Nordic, Others)

Asia-Pacific (Japan, China, Australia, India, Taiwan, South Korea, Middle East & Africa, Others)

Chapter Six:Global Carbon Paper - Manufacturers/Players Analysis ------ USD1200

Competitive Landscape, Comparative Market Share Analysis (2017-2018), Peer Group Analysis (2018), BCG Matrix, Company Profile, Product/Service Offering Matrix

Chapter Seven:Global Carbon Paper, by Market Segmentationand Region (value, volume**) (2019-2024) ------ USD1400

------ Sections same as Chapter Five------

Chapter Eight:Company profiles / Competitive Landscape [12 Players]------ USD1250

Chapter Nine: Methodology/Research Approach, Data Source, Disclaimer

** If applicable



Actual Numbers & In-Depth Analysis, Business opportunities, Market Size Estimation Available in Full Report.



AMA also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research according to clientele objectives. Thanks for reading this article; you can also get individual chapter wise section or region wise report like North America, Europe or Asia.
Social entrepreneurship pioneer Jim Fruchterman has launched a new nonprofit, Tech Matters, with $1.7 million in backing from corporate and foundation sources, including Twilio, Okta, Working Capital, Facebook and Schmidt Futures.

Tech Matters is Fruchtermans new vehicle to address what he sees as a crippling weakness in the social good sector: the failure to use technology the way technologically savvy for-profits do.

The social change sector has huge problems and is 10-20 years behind the times. People are finally waking up to the fact that if they really want to do social good at scale that's going to involve software and data technology, says Fruchterman. The mission is to bring the benefits of technology to all of humanity, not the richest 5% of it.

In order to have the broadest possible impact, Tech Matters is aiming for wins at the technology systems level that can benefit multiple organizations facing similar challenges.

The firm's first partnership is with Child Helpline International, which is working with Tech Matters to create a common platform for 170 groups around the world providing hotlines for children facing crises such as drug and sexual abuse. Twilio.org, the social good arm of Twilio, is providing $300,000 to support the project, as well as Twilios Flex contact center platform.

Jim Fuchterman with TechCrunch reporter Megan Rose Dickey at TechCrunch Sessions: Blockchain in Zug, Switzerland, 2018.

Today, most of those 170 hotlines are either iffy hacks running on a computer somewhere or dependent on a volunteer, a phone and a pad of paper. The new platform will enable volunteers to track inbound messaging via SMS, voice, WhatsApp and WeChat.

It is super compelling to be able to help 170 helplines with one partnership, says Erin Reilly, Twilios chief social impact officer. Tech Matters has the technical expertise and staff to build this. We are confident they can execute and we are honored to play a small part.

Story continues

Tech Matters is in many ways a continuation of what Fruchterman started in 1989 with his first nonprofit, the Palo Alto-based Benetech.

Fruchterman, a Caltech engineering grad, MacArthur Fellow and successful entrepreneur, set up Benetech to raise capital, much the same way venture firms do, to support technologically sophisticated approaches to social problems, especially in the disabilities and human rights fields.

Benetech's biggest success was to win the U.S. Department of Educations contract for Bookshare, the federal program that funds reading materials for the blind. Benetech won the contract by digitizing the materials that were formerly cassette tapes and Braille books, which in turn reduced costs, improved the service to readers and expanded services. In 2017, Benetech won the five-year, $42.5 million contract for the third time.

Fruchterman handed leadership of Benetech to Betsy Beaumon in 2018 and left to start work on Tech Matters. Asked whats different this time, Fruchterman says Tech Matters is structured so that he can concentrate on helping figure out systems solutions that have broad relevance to the social sector, as well as provide consulting to nonprofits pondering technology investments.

At Benetech, raising money to support an 80-person team and a $15 million budget took 80% of my time," he says. "Now fundraising is more like 20% and I am liberated to actually do the advising I want to do. Basically I provide free consulting, though more often it's free anti-consulting, because most of my job is talking people out of bad tech ideas."

Fruchterman is also writing a book to help get his message out as broadly as possible to nonprofits. "One chapter Im itching to write," he says, is The Five Bad Tech for Good Ideas, which everybody tries first, like the app nobody will download, the blockchain as your first significant database project, the One True List and so on."

With the COVID-19 crisis now raging, Fruchterman is especially eager to take on a close cousin to the crisis text hotline project. "My dream even before the pandemic was to work with some of the cloud companies to create a fully functional crisis contact center in a box solution. The idea is that we could quickly provision solutions that would allow a new hotline to turn on in hours or a day at most."

Additional backers of Tech Matters include EcoAgriculture Partners, FJC, the Hitz Family Foundation, the Peery Foundation and the Ray and Dagmar Dolby Fund.
Donald Trump announced he is considering clamping down on domestic air travel  especially flights between cities hit hardest by coronavirus  but he made clear he opposes issuing a national stay-at-home order amid the pandemic outbreak.

The president said he and his administration are "thinking about doing that" and "looking at hotspots" when asked if he might order flights from cities like New York City and Detroit, which have large numbers of coronavirus cases.

Still, he did appear hesitant, saying: "To start these airlines again is very tough."

But, as always, he left himself ample wiggle room, saying "I'm certainly looking at it."

As he often does, Mr Trump toggled back-and-forth between his options on live national television during one of the daily Covid-19 briefings he has bragged gets large ratings.

"But once you do that, you're really clamping down an industry that's desperately needed," he said of the American airline sector.

The vacillations, however, continued when the president went back to saying he is "very strongly" considering it.

Asked about potential health care system changes to help the uninsured pay for possible Covid-19 treatments, Mr Trump teased Vice President Mike Pence for talking "for five minutes" without "touching" a reporter's question. He then told that journalist his administration is "looking at it."

Frequently during the outbreak, the president or one of his senior aides has said they are examining an option when it is raised by a reporter, lawmaker or public health expert.
FILE PHOTO: The logo of U.S. memory chip maker MicronTechnology is pictured at their booth at an industrial fair in Frankfurt

By Munsif Vengattil

(Reuters) - Chipmaker Micron Technology Inc <MU.O> forecast current-quarter revenue above analysts' estimates on Wednesday and said the shift to work-from-home globally due to the coronavirus outbreak is fueling demand for notebooks and data center services.

Authorities around the world have locked down cities, enforced severe restrictions on travel and encouraged people to stay at home to contain the rapidly spreading virus.

Notebooks that support work-from-home and virtual learning are increasingly in demand, Chief Executive Officer Sanjay Mehrotra said on a post-earnings call with analysts.

The jump in remote work is also powering a surge in demand for data center services.

Mehrotra said data center business in China was boosted by increased gaming, e-commerce and remote-work activities as the country locked down many cities and regions to combat the outbreak.

The company is moving supply from smartphone to service the strength in data center markets, Mehrotra said, adding the demand could lead to supply shortages.

Last week, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd <005930.KS> said coronavirus would hurt sales of smartphones and consumer electronics this year, while demand from data centers would fuel a recovery in memory chip markets.

Micron said two of its factories in Malaysia were briefly shut down and is now running production on a limited basis, in compliance with the country's orders.

The company did not provide any updates about production at its U.S. plants, as states impose shut downs to counter the rapidly spreading virus.

Meanwhile, a group representing major semiconductor companies including Intel Corp <INTC.O> and Micron said on Wednesday it was working with federal officials to make clear to state and local officials overseeing lockdowns that chip companies are essential businesses that should continue operations.

Micron said two of its employees had tested positive for the coronavirus, and are receiving medical attention, without specifying the location details.

Story continues

The Idaho-based company forecast third-quarter revenue in the range of $4.6 billion to $5.2 billion, the midpoint of which was above analysts' estimates of $4.87 billion.

The company's shares rose 5% in extended trading as the estimate followed warning of sales hit by other semiconductor makers such as Apple supplier Skyworks Solutions Inc <SWKS.O>.

(Reporting by Munsif Vengattil in Bengaluru and Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by Maju Samuel and Sriraj Kalluvila)
Wallace Roney, 59, the Philadelphia-born trumpet virtuoso who was a protege of Miles Davis and went on to have a three-decade-plus career as a jazz bandleader, died Tuesday from complications of the coronavirus.

The musician died at St. Josephs University Medical Center in Paterson, N.J., according to his publicist, Lydia Liebman.

Wallace Roneys journey has ended in this lifetime, but his impact lives on, the musician Herbie Hancock said in a statement Wednesday. He carved out his own voice on the trumpet even with the initial strong influence from Miles Davis.

Roney first made a name for himself as a club musician in New York City in the late 1970s. Downbeat magazine named him best young jazz musician of the year in 1979 and 1980.

In the 1980s, he played with Art Blakeys Jazz Messengers and with former Davis drummer Tony Williams, emerging in the Young Lions jazz movement along with Wynton Marsalis, Marcus Roberts, and others.

Roney released Versus, his first album as a leader, in 1987. He would follow with 21 more, often collaborating with his saxophonist brother Antoine and his late wife, the pianist Geri Allen. His final release was 2019s Blue Dawn-Blue Nights.

The novelist James McBride memorably described Mr. Roney as a lion among lions in a 1987 profile in the Washington Post. He sits alone, silent and slim in a dark gray jacket, his right hand on his horn, McBride wrote. His head is bowed slightly, giving him an edgy, pensive, shy look.

"Yet as he rises to walk toward the stage, moving like a shadow, the other horn players  trumpeters and saxmen lined against the wall waiting to blow  part respectfully to let him pass. They know who he is. They know what he can do.

Jazz Times eulogized him Tuesday as the man with the golden horn.

Mr. Roneys talent was recognized early. He started playing when he was 4, and studied at the Settlement Music School, where he received personal instruction from Sigmund Hering of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Roney first met his hero, Davis, in 1983 at a Carnegie Hall tribute concert. Davis invited him to his home the next day. That was the beginning of a great chapter in my life, Mr. Roney told Jazz Times.

Quincy Jones invited Mr. Roney to play alongside Davis at a 1991 concert in Montreux, Switzerland, shorty before the gravely ill Davis died, and in 1993 Mr. Roney toured with the members of Davis mid-'60s quintet, winning a Grammy for the 1994 album A Tribute to Miles.

Mr. Roney is survived by his fiancee, Dawn Felice Jones; children Barbara and Wallace Jr.; stepdaughter Laila Bansaiz; grandmother Rosezell Roney; a brother; a sister; two half-sisters; and a half-brother.

His publicist said the family was considering holding a memorial service once this pandemic has passed.

By Dan DeLuca, The Philadelphia Inquirer (TNS)
Northern Irelands largest health trust is down 10% of its workforce due to coronavirus precautions.

Cathy Jack from Belfast Health and Social Care Trust told the Stormont health committee that 10% of the workforce was self-isolating.

At the moment, and this is yesterdays figures, I have 1,200 staff that are self-isolating because of a family member that has been symptomatic, and I have 791 staff that are self-isolating because they are symptomatic, so thats just under 2,000 staff and thats nearly 10% of my workforce, she said.

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Dr Jack said the trust wants to be able to test the 1,200 staff who feel well to allow them to come back to work if they do not test positive for Covid-19.

So clearly, if you were symptomatic with a high fever, you wouldnt want those staff at work anyway we are really looking at how we can test the 1,200 that actually feel well but have a family member or close contact that are displaying symptoms.

However she said there is a problem with the supply of testing reagents, with a current daily limit of 300 tests.

In terms of personal protective equipment (PPE) for staff, Dr Jack said there are sufficient basic masks, gloves and aprons.

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But she said the biggest challenge is a special type of respiratory mask known as an FFP3.

That is a challenge and its a challenge worldwide, and in Northern Ireland it is no different, she told the committee.

The trust had expected to get 10,000 of the 1895 mask for intensive care staff this week, but just 1,000 arrived.

She said the trust has 8,000 of another type of mask in stock and an assurance from the department that 30,000 more are on the way, but cautioned there are only 666 employees in high-risk areas fit tested for it.

We are making sure that we match our requirement to make sure our staff are protected but PPE, and in particular the FFP3, is a real challenge for us, and we are doing everything we can to protect our staff, make sure they are fit tested and have the right equipment at the right time, she added.

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Dr Jack also revealed there are more than 70 patients with Covid-19 being treated at the Mater Hospital.

The Mater was previously designated as the Covid-19 hospital for Belfast, but a 230-bed unit is being set up at Belfast City Hospital for patients requiring intensive care.

She said the City Hospital has good infrastructure and the oxygen supplies.

The representative body of community pharmacy teams in Northern Ireland said around a third of staff across the region are self-isolating due to Covid-19 symptoms.

Community Pharmacy NI is calling for urgent access to testing kits and PPE so staff who test negative can return to work and help deal with huge demand in local pharmacies.

Chief executive Gerard Greene said: We need to see all community pharmacy staff have access to testing kits as soon as possible. We understand there are obvious difficulties with resources but currently a significant proportion of community pharmacy staff are self-isolating.

If we have access to testing kits it would allow at least some of them to return to work and help ease the enormous pressures that the network in Northern Ireland is currently experiencing.
He is a rising star of the fashion world who made his runway debut at the Dolce & Gabbana Milan Fashion Week show in February.

And Bobby Brazier revealed that his modelling career began when he got into trouble at school, which led to a fateful meeting with an agency scout.

The son of the late Jade Goody and presenter Jeff Brazier, 16, is fast becoming the toast of the fashion world, also attending London Fashion Week this year.

Chance: Bobby Brazier revealed that his modelling career began when he got into trouble at school, which led to a fateful meeting with a modelling scout (pictured in February 2020 at the Dolce & Gabbana MFW show)

During an Instagram Q&A session, the teen said it was a chance encounter with a model scout which kickstarted his journey into couture.

One fan asked: 'How'd you get into modelling?'

Bobby replied: 'Jokes story.

'I was in trouble at school and had to go in for a meeting.

Rising star: The son of the late Jade Goody and presenter Jeff Brazier, 16, is fast becoming the toast of the fashion world, also attending London Fashion Week this year (above)

Trouble: During an Instagram Q&A session, the teen said it was a chance encounter with a model scout which kickstarted his journey into couture

So before I go, I go Costa for a little prep talk with my dad and then when we leave @cesarpin is chasing me down the street asking me if I'm a model.'

Cesar Perin is a model scout who signed Bobby up to talent agency Unsigned Group.

Bobby was also asked if he acts as well as he models, with the star writing: 'No, probably will though, not gonna lie.'

When another follower asked: 'What do you wanna do if modelling doesn't work out?' Bobby replied: 'Modelling is going to work out' and shared a throwback photo with brother Freddie, now 14.

The teenager bears a striking resemblance to his mum, which was especially prevalent as he took to the catwalk.

Acting aspirations: The star said he hoped to move into acting as well as modelling in the future

Confident: Bobby revealed he was confident modelling would work put as a career path, as he posted a throwback photo with brother Freddie, 14

Speaking to MailOnline about his experiences in the modelling world, Bobby said: 'Modelling has been great fun, I'm loving it: you get a chance to do something exciting.

'I'm modelling alongside my apprenticeship; I'm not sure if it will be full time yet, we will have to see how it goes!'

It comes after proud dad Jeff, 40, discussed how Bobby and Freddie had grown into 'wonderful young men' after adjusting to the trauma of their mother Jade's death.

Jade passed away on Mother's Day, 10 years ago, but was able to speak with Bobby and Freddie, who were just five and four years old at the time, before her death.

Memories: The teenager bears a striking resemblance to his late mother Jade Goody, who died of cervical cancer in 2007 (pictured in 2004)

After her cervical cancer diagnosis, Jade's cancer spread to her bowel, liver and groin and she died on Mother's Day in March 2009.

Speaking to Barrow-in-Furness based paper The Mail, Jeff said the last 10 years had been 'tremendously difficult - that's the only way I can really put it. There's been ups and downs, but we've come through it together.'

The star - who wasn't in a relationship with Jade at the time of her passing - went on that to say that his sons were 'coming of age' and 'have grown into wonderful young men. I'm hugely proud of them.'
MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI  Concerns about the rapidly spreading coronavirus have prompted the early release of some inmates from the Muskegon County Jail to free up space to quarantine newcomers.

The unprecedented actions at the jail have been made in consultation with Muskegon County judges, Muskegon County Sheriff Michael Poulin told MLive.

Were doing everything we can, Poulin said. Its been an ongoing process.

Fourteen inmates who had been granted work release  meaning they could leave the jail to go to their jobs  have been released from the jail, he said. The remainder of their sentences have been deferred, meaning if they follow through on court orders, they wont have to serve additional time.

Their release freed up space in the jail for incoming inmates, who are separated from the rest of the population for 17 days, Poulin said. The first three days are spent in full quarantine in a medical suite, and the next 14 are spent in one of four housing units separate form the rest of the inmates, he said.

Each new inmate is monitored for signs of coronavirus COVID-19, he said.

The jail also compiled a list of 30 inmates who meet the criteria of a recent executive order from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer aimed at keeping jails safe, Poulin said.

Those are inmates who are older, have chronic health issues, are not deemed a public threat and who are close to their release dates. The list was forwarded to judges for their input, Poulin said.

As of Tuesday, March 31, there were 378 inmates in the 542-bed facility, he said.

To lessen the chance of COVID-19 being brought into the jail, work release, the Pay it Back community work program and the EXIT program were halted on March 13, he said. EXIT  Empowering Ex-Offenders in Transitionprovides job and life skills training for those preparing to return to the community.

Jail visitation was halted on March 12. Attorney visits and court sentencings are being done via video, Poulin said.

He said he also met with local police chiefs to encourage discretion when bringing individuals to jail. When appropriate, police are issuing appearance tickets rather than arresting and bringing individuals to jail, he said.

Overall, crime appears to have dropped since Whitmer issued a stay-at-home order to reduce transmission of the deadly virus, police chiefs told MLive/Muskegon Chronicle.

As of Thursday, April 1, Muskegon County had 18 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and two related deaths, according to the Muskegon County Health Department.

MLive has complete coverage on coronavirus COVID-19, including maps of known cases, at mlive.com/coronavirus.

PREVENTION TIPS

Michigans State Emergency Operations Center is coordinating state-government resources and the response to the coronavirus spread. It has shared the following tips:

What you can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory diseases:

 Always cover coughs or sneezes with a tissue or sleeve.

 Stay home if you are sick and advise others to do the same.

 Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

 Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.

 Wash your hands often with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds.

 Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol, if soap and warm water are not available.

 Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces (computers, keyboards, desks, etc.).

 Its not too late to get your flu shot! While the influenza vaccine does not protect against COVID-19 infection, it can help keep you healthy during the flu season.

For statewide and national information on the virus, visit Michigan.gov/Coronavirus or CDC.gov/Coronavirus.

More on MLive:

Gov. Whitmer takes action to protect jails, detention centers from coronavirus

Muskegon distilleries convert spirits to sanitizer during coronavirus outbreak

Muskegon tourism hit by coronavirus uncertainty amid cruise ship cancellations

Muskegon Countys coronavirus case, death count unchanged
Putting the Unemployment Backlog in Context

When IT Problems Are Management Problems

Places That Cant Shift Operations

Wish Lists May Turn Into Shopping Lists

Government computer systems are operating under a massive strain. Many state and local functions have suddenly gone all-digital while having to deal with the demands on services that come with a crisis. But so far, at least, its gone surprisingly well.Information technology in government has long lagged notoriously behind the private sector. There have certainly been problems  most prominently, servers crashing in several states due to the record number of unemployment applications. But most governments, having gone virtual, have been able to function.There's still a long way to go. Chief information officers are cautiously optimistic that one silver lining from the current crisis is that it will force government leaders to make more, and smarter, investments. Our inability to invest in our IT modernization is being exposed right now, says Doug Robinson, executive director of the National Association of State Chief Information Officers (NASCIO). Legislators still see it as a back office. Today, its a great example that its critical to continuity of government.Too many government agencies rely on old mainframes and proprietary software that cant quickly scale to meet the demand. But there are some functions that had already moved to the cloud. Moving email to the cloud  theyre all touting that and saying thank goodness we made that move, Robinson says. You can have 10,000 to 200,000 state employees all in the same state email system; its all scalable, they can all communicate and theyre not having any outages.Other chokepoints remain. Unemployment offices were the first to be hit hard, but health agencies are also seeing online traffic spike. With the economy in freefall, there will be major increases in applications for assistance programs such as Medicaid and food stamps. Call centers in general are under heavy demand  lots of people are even calling 911 to have the latest shelter-in-place orders explained to them. Not enough agencies have voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) or other capabilities in place that would allow them to create virtual call centers.Theres been an unexpected and unprecedented migration of the workforce from city halls and state capitols to remote work. Its been working out OK, in most places. Theyre successful in deploying technology and keeping government running, even to the smallest level, says Meghan Cook, program director at the Center for Technology in Government (CTG) at the University at Albany. Ive really been impressed.Still, some jurisdictions are struggling to get their suddenly mobile workforce equipped with the basics, such as laptops and headsets. With people working from home, often on their own devices, security is a big concern, yet many places lack enough virtual private network (VPN) licenses to go around. As the weeks of confinement potentially stretch into months, more strains will become evident.Theres a pronounced digital divide among cities and counties, says Alan Shark, executive director of the Public Technology Institute, a research and education group that works with localities. The bigger cities and counties are doing quite well and the smaller counties are struggling, Shark says. Jurisdictions with less than, say, 150,000 are absolutely struggling.But at all levels of government, theres a realization that technology is not a nice option, its absolutely essential. In the present situation, its the only thing allowing many governments to function at all. Suddenly, the arguments CIOs have been making for years  that investments in networks pay off, that systems should have redundancies built into them  have the quality of demonstrated fact.Agencies long hampered by endless procurement processes have suddenly become nimble. Rules are being waived right and left to move swiftly and buy, for example, licenses for Zoom and other teleconferencing platforms. Were in crisis and bureaucracy is suspended, Cook says. Theyre able to put in programs theyve asked for in the past and not been able to get approved.Suspending rules during a crisis is one thing. Whether longstanding practices are changed over the long haul is a different question. The value of information technology is being amply demonstrated. Whether there will be any new money to invest  particularly at a time when income and sales tax collections are plummeting  is far from certain.But a fast crisis can bring about rapid change. Its likely that the shutdowns triggered by the novel coronavirus will mark a turning point in the way governments use technology.A lot of things have changed for good, says James Collins, CIO for the state of Delaware. It will change the way we plan and it will change the way we work going forward.The frustrations of people applying for unemployment via overloaded servers were entirely unsurprising. Last week, initial jobless claims reached 3.3 million, which was not just a huge increase after a long period of low unemployment, but more than four times the record for applications in any single week, ever. This week, the number of claims doubled to 6.6 million.Some government systems are designed to handle tremendous increases in volumes, notably revenue departments, which would normally be busy in April. (The federal government and most states have moved the income tax filing deadline back three months, to July 15.) But no one anticipates the type of enormous surge state workforce agencies are now experiencing. Its the equivalent of having enough plows to handle a snowstorm that dumps four times as much snow as the previous record. Or having a stormwater system capable of handling rain exceeding all previously known downpours.If unemployment systems had been built to withstand tenfold spikes occurring in a single week, as some states have seen, citizens would have complained about the seemingly unnecessary expense, says Theresa Pardo, director of CTG at Albany. The system is designed on projections and projected use, she says. The fact that the states are not able to respond quickly from a technological perspective to an absolutely unprecedented level of demand doesnt mean theyve failed in deploying online unemployment insurance services.Some states are coming up with workarounds. In Illinois, for example, individuals whose last names start with the letters A-M are now asked to file unemployment claims on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Those with initials N-Z will file on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Saturdays are fair game for everybody. Thats not a technological fix. Thats a change in business process that keeps a program functioning with the tools that are already at hand.States, cities and counties are having to do a lot of that. Some problems cant be fixed overnight, such as lack of employee access to broadband at home, but others can. Some states absolutely prohibit their employees from using home computers and laptops, due to security concerns. Most are recognizing that relaxing such rules is now absolutely imperative. One positive thing thats come out of it, youre going to see a lot of innovation and out of the box thinking about how states do things that they havent been forced to do before, says Robinson.The biggest shift may simply be in terms of mindset. Major technological breakthroughs can take a generation to realize their full potential in terms of productivity gains. It took about 30 years from the advent of electricity for factories to be reinvented, adapting equipment to the new power source and running shifts after sunset. About 30 years, not coincidentally, is about the time is takes for a new generation of managers to retire or die, David Rotman, the editor of, said at a conference at Columbia University last month.The coronavirus crisis may speed up a lot of managerial changes in government, such as widescale remote working.There are certainly managers out there that still had that Industrial Age mindset that, I need to see people and I need to see them working, says Collins, the Delaware CIO. I think well see a lot more openness, that as long as people are producing, were fine with that.Labor departments and other state workforce agencies that handle unemployment claims are relatively small. Even the largest government departments, however, such as state Medicaid systems , have been slow to adapt to the technological age.Theres still lots of government data thats not easily accessible, but rather stuck on a spreadsheet on an individual employees hard drive. And there are still too many transactions that are processed on paper. This should be a huge wakeup call to government, says Daniel Castro, vice president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. If theres any paper process, thats a huge cost, usually on the government side.When agencies do switch to handling functions digitally, they are prone to creating their own systems, which often take years to develop and cant readily be adapted to changing circumstances, such as a sudden spike in volume. Everybody wants to have proprietary systems customized to the needs of a particular agency, says Darrell West, founding director of the Brookings Institution Center for Technology Innovation. One of the advantages of a crisis is that it will put pressure on agencies overnight, encouraging them to rely on off-the-shelf software. There arent months and months of time to develop new proprietary software.The question, Castro says, is whether the current necessity to move faster will lead to permanent change. Procurement rules are being waived, but they wont be tossed out altogether. Often, there are either formal or political requirements that make rapid adaptation difficult, such as the desire of local governments to use local vendors.And then theres cost. Any change, however smart, will cost money. Mainframes require maintenance, but such expenses may be lower, in the short term, than raising capital to move to cloud-based platforms that lock in recurring  and rising  costs in terms of licenses.The way to save on budgets is to reduce personnel  moving to the cloud and getting rid of managed servers, Castro says. But those costs have human impacts. There will be political resistance for a lot of that. You dont usually want to do that in a down economy.States, cities and counties are now paying for their technical debts. Nearly all agencies struggle in terms of modernizing their environment. Investing in upgrades for back-office functions is less glamorous than spending on some new smart city project.The coronavirus has demonstrated that investing in technology is not an option. Looking ahead, states and localities need to think about how to make their systems resilient, so theyre capable of providing continued government services in a variety of unexpected situations. After the pandemic, governments are going to have to see this as part of emergency preparedness, Castro says.Government budgets, however, are about to enter fiscal ICUs. Under the best of circumstances, when the choice comes down to spending a dollar on software or spending it on kids or seniors, technology always seems to be the runner-up.Smaller governments that already lack the staff, expertise and resources to make the most of technology are going to be hard-pressed to do much better. CTG's Pardo predicts that more local governments will move to a shared services model, linking up their IT systems and building increasingly regional approaches to services.Shark, of the Public Technology Institute, agrees that smaller local governments are going to struggle to upgrade effectively. But he says larger locales should see an improvement. The big places are feeling great, confident theyre going to get what they ask for, because all of a sudden senior management sees the value of investment, he says. CIOs are going to get more of what they want than ever before.
CARLINVILLE  The Illinois Department of Public Health has confirmed to the Macoupin County Public Health Department that a female Macoupin County resident in her 50s has tested positive for COVID-19.

This is the first laboratory confirmed positive case of COVID-19 in Macoupin County.

County health officials said the person has been educated not to leave her home and is complying with the quarantine order. Public health officials will not be releasing additional details to protecting her privacy.

Macoupin County health officials said they have begun an investigation into the case by speaking with people who she may have had contact with before this diagnosis. During the investigation, officials may place other individuals on home quarantine if they are determined to have had exposure. Such individuals may not be symptomatic, but could be quarantined for a time, which allows symptoms to develop and pass without posing risk to others.

Local officials said COVID-19 shares many symptoms with other common respiratory diseases: fever, cough or shortness of breath. People with such symptons are advised to contact their medical provider but not to show up unannounced at any health care facility.

The Macoupin County Public Health Department continues to recommend people follow the IDPH guidelines to protect themselves from the influenza and other like illnesses:

1. Practice Social Distancing

2. Stay home when you are sick

3. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing

4. Wash your hands

5. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth

6. Practice other good health habits including the cleaning and disinfecting of frequently touched surfaces at home, work or school, especially when someone is ill.

7. Abide by the Shelter-In-Place order currently in place.

For questions call the Macoupin County COVID-19 hotline at 217-313-5078.
Workers at one of Walmarts South Bethlehem distribution centers say at least nine employees have tested positive for COVID-19 and they accuse the retail giant of not taking adequate steps to protect them from the novel virus.

Those interviewed by lehighvalleylive.com say workers are packed in like sardines in the sprawling, 1.2-million-square-foot e-commerce hub at 3215 Commerce Center Blvd. in the Majestic Realty Center, which employs just shy of 1,800 people.

Hand sanitizer is only placed at major entrances and employees report they cant easily wash their hands during shifts with limited breaks and long walks to bathrooms. Employees say the building is not being sanitized up to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

On Wednesday, lehighvalleylive.com sent its second series of questions about the outbreak to Walmart. Later that night, workers reported they were notified the facility was closing until Monday and would reopen with one 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. shift.

Walmart Global Communications spokesman Kory Lundberg confirmed Thursday morning the company had temporarily suspended operations at the Bethlehem facility Wednesday evening. Walmart will divert orders to other fulfillment centers to meet customer demand during the closure.

Our associates well-being is critically important to us," he said. Due to unique circumstances, our Bethlehem eCommerce Fulfillment Center will temporarily suspend operations until Monday, April 6 so we can make adjustments to our operations, including schedule changes and bringing specialists in to thoroughly clean and sanitize the building.

As the COVID-19 outbreak swept across the nation, Walmart distribution center employees say theyve been holding their breath, knowing it would get into the facility, constantly wondering just when it would arrive.

When it did, news started trickling out amongst shifts over the weekend of March 29, prompting many employees to walk out and take advantage of the unpaid coronavirus leave Walmart is offering. It is a hard decision that some might be not able to afford to make.

It is your paycheck or your health, a woman, who is currently a problem solver in the consolidation department, said.

Lehighvalleylive.com granted her anonymity because she feared she would face repercussions at work for speaking out.

Employees say the one case has grown to at least nine as the distribution center continues to run normally, powered by mothers, fathers, grandparents, daughters and sons, some with serious health conditions. They say they understand theyre providing an essential service when they ship out food, hand sanitizer, cleaning supplies and diapers.

But they dont understand why Walmart is putting their lives at risk to fulfill orders of clothes, decorative pillows and video games. Before the coronavirus hit, employees were already working mandatory overtime and lengthy shifts to keep up with an onslaught of orders.

This is corporate greed. I understand this is an essential place. If you want to keep it going, run it with a skeleton crew," said Antonio DeJesus, who has worked in the center since it opened five years ago. "Dont overload it with people.

Not all employees agree Walmart is not doing enough,

It is very easy to blame up, said Mel Hodges, 65, who has been a line worker there for about three years. I found that once the coronavirus reached the warehouse and we had our first hit on it I felt management responded immediately.

The majority of workers interviewed for this story want Walmart to be more transparent about the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, and take more aggressive steps to curb its spread in the massive building.

The company contends it took decisive steps as soon as the first case was confirmed.

When we received the first positive case in this facility less than a week ago, we reacted immediately, Lundberg said. Facility leadership communicated each known, confirmed case as we were made aware. Again, these conversations included information about our emergency leave policy so associates would fully know their options. We also increased cleaning when we received our first confirmed case.

Hodges, who was working the weekend the COVID-19 case was announced, agrees Walmart took the cases seriously.

"I really think that management stepped up and closed the warehouse. Thats a big thing to do;. especially with the order pool we have, Hodges said. They are taking it seriously, to say that theyre not taking it seriously is a misconception.

The company is taking extra steps to protect workers, Lundberg said Thursday.

When associates return, they will notice several changes made with their health and safety in mind  including access to gloves and masks, along with temperature checks and health screens before every shift  consistent with new policies Walmart announced for all U.S. associates this week, he said.

Earlier this week, Walmart said it would not be confirming coronavirus cases in any of its retail locations and distribution centers.

Any update on COVID-19 cases can only come from local health officials. Per the requirement of HIPPA privacy laws, we do not share personal health information about any associate in order to protect their privacy, the company said through a spokeswoman. We are focused on serving our customers during this unprecedented time.

At the time, the spokeswoman confirmed the distribution center was operating normally. Employees say thats exactly the problem.

DeJesus has been with the center since its inception and he now works as lead in the consolidation department, where workers receive totes of products and bring orders together for shipping. He first heard rumblings of a positive case on March 14 in the locker room before ending his shift, but prior to that time, he wasnt too worried about the virus.

The anonymous employee came down with a bad cough -- later diagnosed as bronchitis -- around the same time, but had to quarantine and go through testing to rule out the coronavirus. Walmart made her jump through hoops to qualify for disability while she awaited her test results, but showed little concern, she said.

When the test came back negative, she was allowed to return to work for nearly two days before anyone asked for proof of her negative results.

No one was adhering to social distancing guidelines in the consolidation center when she returned.

People were coming up to my desk, she recalled. I yelled at somebody, That is not six feet!

There was not even hand sanitizer in their department, so she salvaged some damaged bottles and cleaning wipes headed for the trash. This way her coworkers could clean their hands and sanitize the cell phone-like scanners they rely on all day.

She arrived at 6 a.m. for her shift one day to find a cleaning crew with a wipe and spray bottles haphazardly wiping down tables and chairs, ignoring the majority of the high-touch areas.

None of that is being sanitized, she said.

Hodges also works in consolidation  where he picks products and packs boxes  and he said he had no issue finding sanitization supplies. But he agrees that his coworkers were not obeying social distancing rules. Many people were greeting each other with hugs.

It is the busiest area of the building, he said. It is the most crowded area of the building. I saw (hand sanitizer) available to us.

The more DeJesus learned, the more he worried about his wife, who was recently hospitalized for respiratory issues, and his adult stepdaughter, who works with him in the distribution center. Many of his coworkers head up to New York City to socialize, the epicenter of the virus in the United States.

Something felt off in recent weeks as more associates did not show up when typically people work long shifts for overtime, DeJesus said.

I started feeling it in the atmosphere. You know when youve been in a place for so long you can tell when something is right or not right?" he said.

DeJesus decided to call out sick for a Sunday, March 15 overtime shift after a restless night of little sleep. He worried he might be penalized for calling out. But by Monday hed decided his health and safety came first and applied for extended leave until May.

Were dealing with a silent enemy, DeJesus said. You cant see or feel it. Its like playing Russian roulette.

He thinks his employer should close the distribution center for two weeks and disinfect the entire building.

Kirk Lewis has worked at the e-commerce center for three years and is currently the lead in the procurement department, working 60-plus hour weeks Monday through Thursday on the evening shift.

Lewis has been trying to sound the alarm since Saturday, March 21, when a colleague alerted him another coworker had fallen ill, but Lewis says management rebuffed his efforts, potentially endangering other workers.

Even though he was off that Saturday, Lewis immediately texted his boss to tell him of a possible COVID-19 case in the center and called Bethlehems non-emergency hotline, which told him to call the CDC. Lewis heeded their advice and also followed up Monday with the Bethlehem Health Department.

When asked to confirm whether there was a COVID-19 case in the Walmart facility, Bethlehem Health Director Kristen Wenrich said her staff only gets involved if a city resident tests positive. Then staff interviews that person to determine who they were in close contact with after they began showing symptoms.

As part of that interview, we review work and school status. If the person is employed by a business that is open to the public, we provide that information to the general community, Wenrich said. If it is a private employer, we work with the employer to notify close contacts of the positive case.

She noted the state issued guidelines for essential businesses, but the majority of the rules focus on how infected workers should quarantine, not how businesses should protect employees.

From March 23 until March 26, it was business as usual at the distribution center, according to Lewis. Walmart management began telling a few select employees in person on March 27 to alert them an employee had tested positive for COVID-19, Lewis said.

DeJesus found out about Lewis employee testing positive from a coworker, even though hed helped that employee on a computer shortly before he went on leave. No one from Walmart contacted him to tell him he might have been exposed.

Ive heard more and more people are getting sick, DeJesus said. Theyre not taking any initiatives and still havent sent out emails notifying us. Can you believe it?

The anonymous associate who works as a problem solver said Walmart texts her constantly with updates about overtime, but theres not been a word about COVID-19 diagnoses.

On Friday night, a major walkout ensued with a huge chunk of the night shift walking off the job, Lewis said. The problem solver associate was off on Friday, but a friend texted her and let her know about the case of COVID-19.

When I first found out, I started crying, the worker, who has taken an unpaid three week leave, said. Im like, here it is. I dont want my coworkers to die or get sick or their children."

Since he retired, Hodges went part-time on the weekends. He was there Saturday, March 29, when the facility general manager came down and announced an employee tested positive for COVID-19. He saw a cleaning crew come in that Saturday.

If you wanted to go home, you could go home and many went home, Hodges, who stayed to work, recalled. It crippled the warehouse, but that was ok, its their right.

Lewis was livid when he learned his sick coworker is actually one of his employees. The man and his wife both tested positive and the husband at one point was in critical condition, he said.

Theres no transparency there, Lewis said of corporate.

Lewis went into work on Saturday and asked to meet with upper management to find out why he was not looped in that one of his employees tested positive for the virus. He was told management is following company protocol.

As Lewis left Saturday, he started telling employees an associate had tested positive for the virus. Several people walked off of the job immediately.

"On the way out, I told people walking in, An associate has tested positive and the place is infected. Some of them thanked me, Lewis said.

DeJesus, who is bilingual, noted a lot of the facilitys workers dont speak English. He had to tell coworkers someone tested positive.

Corporate keeps it quiet because they dont want to pay for someone to stay home. It hurts them financially. It comes down to the whole dollar and cents. Its a shame. Its sad to see, DeJesus said.

Lewis spent all day Monday waiting for a call with human resources, but the phone never rang. Then on Tuesday evening, a coworker called to tell him more associates tested positive. Lewis said for now, he is out on unpaid leave and filed for unemployment.

Workers feel trapped. Do they choose the unpaid leave to protect their health and risk financial trouble? Or do they keep working grueling hours in unsafe conditions, risking serious illness?

It is a scary time, the woman said. I have a mortgage. I have car payments. I have children. I have a grandson. I cant even see my grandson. I am afraid to see my grandson because I might get him sick. It is stressful. I cant sleep at night.

They just act like theres nothing wrong, she said of her employer.

Hodges plans to return to work on Monday.

If the company was at fault I would say so, but its not, Hodges said. This is a disease, a virus, thats brand new to us, I believe everybody is trying as best as they can.

Walmart operates another e-commerce fulfillment center at 2785 Commerce Center Blvd. in Lehigh Valley Industrial Park VII. It remains open and lehighvalleylive.com does not know about any cases in that facility.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com. If theres anything about this story that needs attention, please email her. Follow her on Twitter @sarasatullo and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
The outbreak of the coronavirus has dealt a shock to the global economy with unprecedented speed. Following are developments on Thursday related to the global economy, the work place and the spread of the virus.

____________

ZOOM: At the end of last year, the video-conferencing company Zoom had about 10 million daily users. By March, it was 200 million. CEO Eric Yuan is addressing some of the security concerns that have arisen as tens of millions of workers fled the office and logged in to Zoom.

The company is enacting a 90-day freeze on new features so that it can deal with concerns about privacy on the platform. It's also bringing in third-party expertise to assess how it's handling user security.

Among the issues disrupting users is zoombombing," when people who are not part of a group break into a Zoom meeting to post images or memes.

BREAKING THE PIGGY BANK: Southwest Airlines drew down $2.33 billion from an existing credit agreement, according to a regulatory filing Thursday. It also plans to apply for a share of $25 billion in federal grants to cover airline payroll costs for the next six months.

Companies in the travel sector have aggressively gathered whatever cash is available to ride out the coronavirus, but they certainly are not alone.

According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, which tracked 200 corporations across all economic sectors for its analysis, companies have accessed credit lines for $154.79 billion through March 27. The consumer discretionary sector, which includes auto manufacturers, travel and tourism companies and retailers, led the way.

GM and Ford were the biggest borrowers, each tapping more than $15 billion in credit.

ARMY OF UNEMPLOYED: Estimates for the first waves of job losses in the U.S. related to the outbreak were all over the map. The actual number blew all of those estimates away Thursday. The Department of Labor reported more than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, far exceeding a record high set just last week.

GE Aviation is furloughing half of the workers in its U.S. jet engine assembly and component manufacturing unit. GE would not give a specific number of layoffs, but the unit has 26,000 U.S. employees, including those who perform other jobs such as maintenance and repair work. Both salaried and hourly employees will be furloughed for up to four weeks, the company said Thursday. GE will continue to provide income security and health benefits. The furloughs are in addition to GE Aviation's previously announced 10% reduction of its U.S. workforce.

Story continues

Boeing began offering a voluntary layoffs and CEO David Calhoun isn't ruling out involuntary job cuts later.

In a letter to employees, Calhoun said the size of Boeings market will likely be altered by the virus. Under the voluntary layoff plan, eligible employees will be able to leave with a severance package of pay and benefits.

Nearly 900,000 workers have lost their jobs in Spain, authorities said Thursday. The job loss is vastly greater than in January 2009, when 350,000 workers lost their jobs during the global financial crisis.

TRAVEL: Gone unnoticed as millions shut in their homes are skies strangely devoid of aircraft. The number of people flying continues to hit new lows.

The Transportation Security Administration screened 146,348 people on Tuesday, nearly 8,000 fewer than Monday, and down 93% from one year ago.

The peak summer travel season is looking like a bust.

American Airlines said Thursday it will reduce its international schedule this summer by more than 60% and delay new routes because of plunging travel demand during the coronavirus outbreak.

Flights to Asia will be cut the most. Still, the pullback is less severe than the 80% to 90% cuts American is making to international service in April and May. The number of passengers screened at U.S. airports has dropped more than 90% compared with a year ago.

Meanwhile, British Airways reached a deal with unions that will mean no one is fired in the coming weeks and months. The agreement applies to more than 30,000 workers and will mean that the government pays 2,500 pounds ($3,100) of a workers monthly salary with British Airways paying the balance up to 80% of an employees pay.

BOEING BOOST: Boeing will get $882 million in payments that the Air Force withheld because of problems with the companys aerial refueling tanker.

The Pentagon said Thursday it wants to keep cash flowing to defense companies that are suffering during the coronavirus outbreak. Boeing will make changes to the KC-46 including improving a computerized camera system used during refueling that had drawn complaints from the Air Force.

OFF THE RAILS: With auto plants shut down, rail shipments from the auto industry tumbled 70% last week to 5,423 carloads, according to the Association of American Railroads. Total container shipments slid 14% as trade with China plummets.

On Thursday, the U.S reported that the trade deficit tumbled in February to the lowest level since 2016 as exports fell, and imports fell more. The politically sensitive gap in the trade of goods with China narrowed when the world's No. 2 economy was locked down to combat the coronavirus outbreak.

Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific and CSX have warned of a material impact on earnings.

MARKETS: U.S. stocks closed slightly higher.
Manhattan real estate sales ground to a halt at the end of March, and some industry experts say prices could fall 30% or more once activity resumes. Total sales volume actually increased 14% for the first three months of 2020, boosted by a strong January and February, according to a report from Douglas Elliman and Miller Samuel. But the average sale price for a Manhattan apartment fell 11% in the quarter, to $1,887,740. The last two weeks of March, when the coronavirus began to really hit the New York area, showed a market suddenly in shock. According to Olshan Realty's market report, there were only two contracts over $4 million signed in the last week of March  the worst week since August 2009, when the financial crisis rocked markets. The biggest sign of trouble is listings. The number of new listings in the last week of March plunged 85% compared with the same period a year ago, according to UrbanDigs. Sellers also pulled existing listings off the market, since buyers either can't or don't want to view apartments amid the outbreak. The number of listings coming off the market jumped by 68% on a year-over-year basis, according to UrbanDigs. UrbanDigs said it expects a "thinly traded, temporarily disclosed marketplace as spreads between buyers's bids and sellers' asking prices widens."

A pedestrian walks past a Sotheby's 'For Sale' sign displayed outside of a townhouse in New York. Craig Warga | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The big question is what prices will look like when the market starts to recover  either in summer or fall. Manhattan real estate sales and prices were already in the midst of a two-year slide before the coronavirus pandemic, with an oversupply of condos, tax changes and lack of foreign buyers all hurting sales. Pandemic and stock market declines are likely to cause another drop. Jonathan Miller, CEO of Miller Samuel, said median prices during the financial crisis and the 9/11 terrorist attacks fell anywhere between 25% and 30% for a short period, from market highs to market lows. "We could see something comparable this time, it's certainly possible," Miller said. "You could argue the two earlier events had more definable timelines. This time, we don't know how long it will last. At least after 9/11 you could see light at the end of the tunnel shortly after the event itself."
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 22:53:45|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Here are the latest developments on the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in China:

-- Chinese health authority said Thursday that no new domestically transmitted cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were reported on the Chinese mainland Wednesday.

The National Health Commission (NHC) received reports of 35 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases on the Chinese mainland Wednesday, all of which were imported.

Also on Wednesday, six deaths, all in Hubei Province, and 20 new suspected cases, all imported ones, were reported on the mainland, according to the commission.

-- A total of 170 COVID-19 patients were discharged from hospital after recovery Wednesday on the Chinese mainland, according to the NHC.

Altogether 76,408 patients had been discharged from hospital after recovery by the end of Wednesday, the commission said in its daily report Thursday.

As of Wednesday, a total of 81,589 confirmed cases of the COVID-19 had been reported on the mainland, and 3,318 people had died of the disease.

-- Vice Minister of Education Tian Xuejun said Thursday that the ministry has taken all-out efforts to safeguard the health and safety of overseas Chinese students amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

A prevention and control guideline on COVID-19 was compiled for the students, and multiple lectures by renowned experts have also been held to offer more guidance on epidemic prevention, Tian said at a press conference.

-- China will further support small and micro businesses as well as agricultural and rural entities in financing and credit enhancement with government guarantee to tide them over the tough time.

Government-controlled financing guarantee and re-guarantee entities should offer more such services to small and micro enterprises as well as agricultural and rural entities, and coordinate with financial institutions to solve small and micro firms' problems in financing, according to a circular issued by the Ministry of Finance.

-- East China's Hangzhou city debuted a new international cargo air route from Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, to Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia.

The new flight, which took off Tuesday, carried medical supplies donated by the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation, and packages from online stores mainly consisting of supplies such as garments and face masks.

-- Medical supplies worth of 434,000 yuan (about 61,000 U.S. dollars) were sent to Mongolia via the port in Erenhot, northern China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The medical supplies, donated by the region to Mongolia, include 85,000 disposable masks, 20,000 surgical masks, 1,000 items of protective clothing and 1,015 bottles of disinfectant, the Erenhot customs said.

-- Fourteen people who died on the frontline of fighting the novel coronavirus in central China's Hubei Province, have been identified as the first batch of martyrs.

The 14 martyrs were Wang Bing, Feng Xiaolin, Jiang Xueqing, Liu Zhiming, Li Wenliang, Zhang Kangmei, Xiao Jun, Wu Yong, Liu Fan, Xia Sisi, Huang Wenjun, Mei Zhongming, Peng Yinhua and Liao Jianjun. They were described as excellent representatives of role models among frontline medics and epidemic prevention workers.

-- China will seek further opening-up and upgrade of foreign trade and investment, the hardest-hit sectors amid the global pandemic of COVID-19, to offset its economic shock.

-- China said it is irresponsible for some media to hype up the so-called quality problems of Chinese anti-epidemic products before making clear the facts.

-- China will step up targeted screening of people infected with the novel coronavirus but showing no symptoms.

-- China is distributing 500,000 health kits, including face masks and disinfection supplies, to Chinese students studying abroad. Enditem
Rodney Howard-Browne shutters megachurch as Florida declares worship essential activity

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Days after he was arrested for leading two large worship services amid the coronavirus pandemic, Florida megachurch pastor Rodney Howard-Browne said he's decided to shutter his church even though Gov. Ron DeSantis declared Wednesday that attending church is an essential activity.

Police arrested Howard-Browne at his home Monday for allegedly violating public health emergency rules amid the coronavirus pandemic. Following international media attention surrounding the church and the governor's decision to recognize religious services as essential activities, Hillsborough County Council voted Thursday to reverse its previous stay-at-home order to recognize churches as essential. The council also voted against imposing a 10 person limit and 6-foot social distancing restriction on churches.

Howard-Browne of The River at Tampa Bay Church in Tampa, Florida, was charged with unlawful assembly and violation of public health emergency rules  both second degree misdemeanors  for hosting church services with hundreds of members in attendance following a stay-at-home order issued by DeSantis for South Florida, the Hillsborough County Sheriffs Office said.

Liberty Counsel, the religious liberty nonprofit law firm representing Howard-Browne, said that on March 20, Hillsborough County issued an administrative order restricting all 'public or private gatherings, including community, civic, public leisure, faith-based events, sporting events, concerts, and any similar events that bring together more than 10 people in a single room, single space, or any venue, at the same time'

However, Liberty Counsel added that "on March 27, Hillsborough County issued a 'Safer-at-Home' administrative order that contains 42 paragraphs of exceptions, including 'religious personnel.'" They added that it also exempted places that are able to maintain physical distancing of 6 feet, which the church abided by.

The law firm said that in addition to following the 6-foot distancing rule with designated floor makers, all staff wore gloves, everyone who entered the church received hand sanitizer, and the church also installed a $100,000 hospital grade purification system.

Liberty Counsel said in a statement released Thursday that: "Sheriff Chad Chronister made many false statements this week about The River at Tampa Bay Church and Pastor Howard-Browne. Those statements must be retracted. His statements also placed Pastor Howard-Browne and the church in physical harm. Pastor Howard-Browne has received abusive words and death threats since Sheriff Chronisters press conference on Monday and his media circuit. Liberty Counsel is calling upon the Hillsborough County Sheriffs office to provide protection to the church."

In a Facebook Live broadcast late Wednesday night to members of The River at Tampa Bay Church and the public, Howard-Browne said: No ones expecting me to make this announcement but I actually have no choice. What people dont know is from Monday I actually shut the whole church down. I shut the ministry down. And so we probably had no more than nine people there at any time, just with the essential services from the food ministry. ... So theres been nothing there the whole week."

The pastors announcement came the same day DeSantis issued a statewide stay at home order  that added church as an essential service  after a phone call with President Donald Trump.

For purposes of this Order and the conduct it limits, essential activities means and encompasses the following: attending religious services conducted in churches, synagogues and houses of worship; participating in recreational activities (consistent with social distancing guidelines) such as walking, biking, hiking, fishing, hunting, running, or swimming; and taking care of pets; and caring for or otherwise assisting a loved one or friend, the order explains.

Howard-Browne, who launched a legal fight against his charges with help from the Liberty Counsel, said he's decided to keep his church closed to protect his congregants from a tyrannical government.

There will be no service at The River this Sunday. Now I know some people say hes caving. No. And let me tell you why I have to do this. I have to do this to protect the congregation, not from the virus but from a tyrannical government because all the charges against me are totally bogus. Now, Im not going to get into the case or whatever. Ive forgiven the sheriff and thats it, he said.

He further noted that he is keeping his church closed because the media has blown it out of proportion, leading to threats to his members and other staff.

The big thing is, I dont want to have a service and they come raid the church, he said. He also noted that he was wary of crazy infected people who may try to enter his church and expose his congregants to the virus.

Liberty Counsel Founder and Chairman Mat Staver said in a statement that The River at Tampa Bay Church "is essential to the community" in part because it "feeds 900 families each week and goes to certain places of the inner city where law enforcement does not go."

"The Hillsborough County order was unconstitutional. The county knew the lawsuit was coming this week and knew they would not win. We are also pleased that every church in Florida is now free to worship. Pastor Rodney Howard-Browne brought worldwide attention to an unconstitutional order and arrest," Staver said.

Not only did the church comply with the administrative order regarding 6-foot distancing, it went above and beyond any other business to ensure the health and safety of the people. Contrary to Sheriff Chronisters allegation that Pastor Howard-Browne was reckless,' the actions of Hillsborough County and the Hernando County Sheriff are discriminatory against religion and church gatherings, Staver added.

The decision by DeSantis to classify attending church an essential service came as an outspoken minority of pastors across the country, with Howard-Browne as the most high-profile face, began resisting calls from federal, state and local government authorities to close their churches despite facing fines and arrest.

State lawmakers in Texas also made a similar move as DeSantis in making church worship and ministry an essential service. But many churches say they will continue pursuing alternative forms of worship amid the pandemic.

Pastor Steve Wells of South Main Baptist Church in Houston told Click2Houston that his congregation is following the Harris County Stay Home, Work Safe order by continuing services online.

We plan to continue doing that so long as the county judge recommends doing so," Well said. "Our current plan is to do that through April 30.

Texas pastors Dwight McKissic, Robert Jeffress and Jared Wellman also told Baptist Press they planned to continue following recommended safety protocols.

Vice President Mike Pence who leads the White House Coronavirus Task Force also urged Americans to avoid church services of more than 10 people.

"We're so grateful to churches and synagogues and places of worship around America that have heeded the president's coronavirus guidelines for America," Pence told ABC News's "Nightline."

"We really believe this is a time when people should avoid gatherings of more than 10 people," he continued. "And so we continue to urge churches around America to heed to that."

An earlier version of this article did not include information about Hillsborough County Council's vote to reverse its order and recognize churches as essential. It also did not list the ways the church complied with 6-foot social distancing and other safety precautions the church implemented.
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Horsch praised her brother for creating a good atmosphere at Mojos and becoming an extraordinary cook of upscale food.

Out of the kitchen, John Seymore rode his motorcycle just for pleasure, said his sister.

The motorcycle was therapy for him, Susan Seymore said. And he would ride to relax.

On Sunday, Mojos was open when Seymore lost his life, just a few miles west of Damascus.

It seems like a nightmare, Susan Seymore said.

Just off U.S. 58, Mojos sits along the Appalachian Trail, within sight of the Virginia Creeper Trail on the east end of Damascus.

Now, Mojos is closed, and family members arent sure when or if it will reopen. Because of health concerns over the coronavirus, family members also werent sure Monday when a public memorial can be held to celebrate Seymores life, said his mother.

He was just a really good, unique cook, Susan Seymore said.

He was an accomplished chef, she added, citing her sons experience working with other chefs in Richmond, Virginia.
Shan AS By

Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As many as 395 Tablighi Jamaat (TJ) members from the state had gone to their national headquarters (Markaz) at Nizamuddin in New Delhi from February, of whom 320 are yet to return. Only 75 people, who were at the Markaz, now considered as a Covid-19 hotspot, during the first week of March, have returned to the state and are currently under home quarantine, said highly-placed police sources. The sources confirmed that none of the people in home quarantine has exhibited any Covid-19 symptoms so far and the Health Department is monitoring the situation closely.

Sources said 160 people from the state had attended the first meeting held on March 7-10. Of them, 75 people returned, while the remaining 85 are yet to be back. During the second meeting held on March 18, 30 from the state were present at markaz. Another 45 Keralites had also reached there during the time, but they went there only to visit the place and did not take part in the function. These 75 (the 30 who attended the function and 45 who visited) are still stuck in Delhi and many of them are under quarantine.

The remaining 160 people were part of various groups (jamaats) that had been to Nizamuddin in late February and early March before branching out to various places as part of the outreach programme. These groups are currently stranded in various Indian cities, where they are under quarantine. Of these, three groups are in Haryana, two in Srinagar, three in Uttar Pradesh, and one each in Andaman, Punjab, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Bengaluru and New Delhi.

The TJ sources had maintained that only 54 from Kerala had attended the mushawara. Of the 54 persons, 48 returned on March 10 itself by air, while the remaining six reached the state on March 12 by train. Many of them had gone into self-quarantine after their return, a TJ source said. Meanwhile, agencies have tracked down the flight that ferried some of the TJ members back home. Sources said they arrived via Hyderabad. The details of the co-passengers have been collected.
The city's metro rail service has ground to a halt but some of its staff members are still at work, cooking food for those left without jobs after the lockdown to halt coronavirus.

"There are a number of people, especially migrant labourers who have been left stranded in the state capital because of the lockdown, Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation Managing Director, Kumar Keshav said.

The Lucknow Metro kitchen staff is preparing food packets in its kitchen at the metro depot situated in Transport Nagar," he told PTI.

The food packets, about a 1,000 every day, are then handed over to the municipal authorities for distribution at rain baseras' and other shelters for helpless people set up in the city.

The Nagar Nigam also provides the raw material for the food cooked in the metro kitchen, which in normal times serves the staff canteen.

On the first day of the operation, the kitchen rolled out 500 food packets. This has gone up to 1,000 per day, he said.

Although the metro services have stopped, like all other transport services nationwide, because of the lockdown, the staff runs one train every morning and evening.

This is to ensure preparedness, so that Lucknow Metro can restart operations without any delay once the orders come in, he said.

Before the lockdown, Lucknow Metro trains ran from 6 am to 10 pm, ferrying 70,000 passengers every day.

The metro employs 850 people but only the essential staff is now being called to work. Kumar Keshav said there have been no cuts in the salaries after the lockdown.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An update is being issued for the news release, Resolute to Hold its Annual Meeting of Stockholders on May 12, 2020, issued on February 25, 2020, over PR Newswire. The format for Resolute's annual meeting of stockholders has been changed from an in-person to a virtual meeting due to the public health impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and to allow the company to continue to proceed with the meeting while mitigating health and safety risks to participants. The complete, updated version of the release follows:

MONTREAL, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ - Resolute Forest Products Inc. (NYSE: RFP) (TSX: RFP) will hold its virtual annual meeting of stockholders on Tuesday, May 12, 2020, at 9:00 a.m. (Eastern).

Resolute officials are actively monitoring the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation and are being respectful of the public health and travel concerns shareholders have and the protocols that federal, state, provincial and local governments have imposed. Considering it is not possible to hold an in-person annual meeting, the company will hold a virtual meeting. Stockholders of record as of March 16, 2020, will be able to attend and participate in the annual meeting online by accessing https://web.lumiagm.com/172118479. To join the annual meeting, stockholders will need to have their 11- or 13-digit control number and follow the instructions included in the Notice of Internet Availability and proxy card. Especially in light of current circumstances, we strongly encourage all stockholders to vote their shares as early as possible prior to the annual meeting. Please monitor the "Annual Meeting of Stockholders" page under the "Investors" section of www.resolutefp.com for any further updates.

About Resolute Forest Products

Resolute Forest Products is a global leader in the forest products industry with a diverse range of products, including market pulp, tissue, wood products, newsprint and specialty papers, which are marketed in close to 70 countries. The company owns or operates some 40 facilities, as well as power generation assets, in the United States and Canada. Resolute has third-party certified 100% of its managed woodlands to internationally recognized sustainable forest management standards. The shares of Resolute Forest Products trade under the stock symbol RFP on both the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Resolute has received regional, North American and global recognition for its leadership in corporate social responsibility and sustainable development, as well as for its business practices. Visit www.resolutefp.com for more information.

SOURCE Resolute Forest Products Inc.

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As the coronavirus epicenter has slowly moved around the worldfirst in Wuhan, then in Italy, now in New York CityAmericans have had the slight benefit of watching other countries try to handle the worst as we prep for our hospitals to be flooded with patients. The Italian government, for example, has taken extraordinary steps to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and to support its ailing health system. Among them was a bold decision to graduate final-year medical students early. Reuters reported that students there would be staffed at outpatient clinics, so the more experienced could surge toward hospitals in hot spots to care for patients with COVID-19.

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It seems that now some of Americas medical schools are planning to do the same. Last Wednesday, Brief19 broke the story of New York Universitys plans to graduate its fourth-year medical students early to work in its emergency departments and wards. The next day, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, based in the Bronx, announced similar plans for students to staff its hospitals as stand-in residents. By the end of the week, more schools in New York joined them, along with Uniformed Services University (the militarys medical school) and most medical schools in Massachusetts.

As a fourth-year medical student myself, I felt a turbulent mix of emotions when I first heard this news. Pride interspersed with worry, for my colleagues who may now find themselves on the front lines of a pandemic sooner than we all expected, but with dwindling access to personal protective equipment. Empowered that, if I were to receive the call, I would be able to rise to the challenge and help the patients in our hospitals who need it most right now. Anxiety that I might fall short of what may be asked of me. Fear for our society, knowing that fourth-year medical students have to be among the last untapped reservoirs of health care workers left to keep our hospitals running. A friend of mine privately compared the news to conscription. I thought they may have been overreacting, until I learned that Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York actually used the word draft when describing his plan to call medical and nursing students, alongside retired medical professionals, into action.

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Frustration, however, seeped into those emotions too, as I read into the details of what some medical schools were asking of their students. Other than what Italy has done just weeks ago, the decision to graduate medical students early has no obvious modern precedent. All bets, it appears, are off. NYUs ask, to take an example, seems reasonable: It is offering its students pay that is typical of a first-year resident, alongside benefits like health insurance, while making the request entirely voluntary. Students there, famously, also dont pay tuition. Einsteins ask, on the other hand, was tone-deaf at best and exploitative at worst. In an email to students, it announced that fourth-years are expected to return to clinical duties on April 6 and to work effectively as residents on either a COVID or non-COVID ward. None of its students would actually graduate early. Nor would they be paid. Instead, theyd actually be paying tuition to work in their hospitals in the middle of a pandemic.

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To its credit, Einstein walked back part of its demand after facing significant criticism, making it voluntary. But the taste of the initial request still lingered. The school still has not waived or prorated tuition, nor has it offered any pay for students. Any discussion of benefits or assurances of adequate health insurance were conspicuously absent (although Einstein, according to its website, does require its students to carry basic health insurance). School officials said PPE would be available, but its difficult to ignore the warnings issued by political leaders in New York that suggest its rapidly running out. In digital communities like r/medicalschool on Reddit, unverified rumors abound of schools in places like California and Michigan following Einsteins initial lead, forcing their students into the wards before they leave for their residency programs, without repaying their tuition or figuring out how to pay them.

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And yet I can imagine that many medical students would still consider these offers. Its in our nature. For the past few weeks, the vast majority of medical students have been dismissed from hospital rotations, per the recommendation of the Association of American Medical Colleges. Outside the hospital, however, many have found ways to help in the fight against COVID-19. Students have translated fact sheets about the virus into dozens of languages, organized to provide child care for resident and attending physicians on the wards, manned telephone hotlines to answer questions about COVID-19, collected public donations of personal protective equipment, and published briefings that distill the findings of the vast research literature on COVID-19 for front-line health care workers. At my institution, students have volunteered with our local public health department to help perform the grinding, necessary tasks of epidemiology to counter COVID-19, like contact tracing and calling patients to notify them of test results.

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I can even sympathize with the leadership of our medical schools and hospitals. What were facing right now is an unprecedented all-hands-on-deck situation. The latest recommendations offered by the accrediting body of medical schools, published last week, also reflect the increasingly dire situation and leave the door open for schools to take this step with their blessing. But to conscript or voluntell medical students to work as residents without pay and while hospitals themselves struggle to find enough personal protective equipment for their employees is reckless. Im honestly struggling to find an analogy to any other context. Even in our wars in which there were drafts, conscripted soldiers were guaranteed armor and earned a salary.

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Perhaps muddying the waters here are the awkward roles of medical students in the hospital during their clinical years. The second half of medical school functions like an apprenticeship, in which students learn on the job. In that role, we often skirt the line between employee and learnerperforming necessary tasks on the wards and assuming some patient care, but always under heavy supervision and with little ultimate responsibility.

COVID-19, however, changes that equation; what medical schools are asking of us now is far more substantial. Asking us to act like residents, in the middle of a disaster, means that we should be treated like residents. That means we ought to be earning a fair salary and getting adequate health insurance coverage that unfortunately some of us will inevitably need. It means that were no longer students, and we shouldnt be paying tuition to risk our lives. It also means leaving the final decision to enter the workforce prematurely in the hands of students themselves. Some may not be mentally or emotionally ready to make such a leap; some may be immunocompromised. Others may wish to continue the valuable work they are doing outside the hospital right now to support our system.

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In Ed Yongs tremendous Atlantic piece on how this pandemic may end, he introduced the idea of a generation of people whose lives will be irrevocably shaped by this crisis: Generation C. I worry that there will be a Generation C of medical professionals, too, but that we might be older than the generation Yong envisions. It could certainly include the health professionals on the front lines right nowforced to work themselves to the bone in a global health disaster, while making decisions of life and death that weigh so heavily on psyches. And it may also include graduating medical students, possibly forced to enter the workforce. They will remember the unavoidably abrupt transition from student to doctor, marked by Match Day celebrations over Zoom and being minted in the midst of a pandemic. And they will also remember the cognitive dissonance of how society is handling its front-line health care workerssoon to be themat this very moment. Private businesses and citizens are offering generous displays of public support for their doctors and nurses, cheering for them every evening, buying them dinner in hospital wards, and thanking them profusely for their service. But institutions, at the same time, are letting them down. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is constantly revising down recommendations of adequate personal protective equipment, now actually suggesting that bandannas are enough to keep COVID-19 at bay. Stories surface of hospital administrators yanking masks off of nurses faces. All while our president accuses our future colleagues of hoarding masks and wanting to wreak economic havoc on our country. The notion that now some of our medical schools may be willing to, in the words of a physician on Twitter, offer us up as unpaid meat shields only compounds the psychic trauma.

Fourth-year medical students are now in a unique position to help in the war against COVID-19. Many of us are willing to enter the trenches. But we deserve respect, remuneration, and protection. Thats not much to ask.
The number of COVID-19 patients at UAB fell slightly this week to 52, from a high of 62 patients last Thursday.

Its a faint ray of sunshine for a hospital thats been hardest hit in Alabama by the coronavirus epidemic, with patient numbers shooting from 1 to 62 the previous week.

But Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, an infectious disease physician at UAB, cautioned against reading too much into the slight decline in patient numbers.

If we have been able toflatten the curve, that would be fantastic, she said. I think its too early to say.

In addition to those 52 COVID-19 patients, UAB has another 30 to 50 patients each day who are classified as under investigation for potentially having COVID-19. About one-third of UABs covid patients are seriously ill in the ICU.

Elsewhere around the state, numbers of hospitalized COVID-19 patients arent high, but they are rising. At East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, another hot spot, the number of confirmed, hospitalized COVID-19 patients rose from 22 on Sunday to 30 by Wednesday. The number of suspected patients nearly doubled in that time, from 12 to 23.

Dr. Don Williamson, president of the Alabama Hospital Association, said hes been looking specifically at hospital occupancy rates around the state. Those are creeping steadily higher. Theyd been artificially lower since hospitals canceled elective surgeries in recent weeks to create more bedspace for COVID-19 patients. Right now, hospitals statewide are hovering around 59% capacity, he said.

Yesterday (occupancy rates) were a little higher than they were the day before, he said. Some of its COVID. Some of it is patients under investigation who have a flu-like illness.

We think well have a much better handle on it this time next week, in terms of what the curve looks like.

Williams and Marrazzo said theyre looking at COVID-19 projections from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, the same projections now cited by White House advisers.

According to that data, the coronavirus epidemic is expected to peak nationally on April 16, and in Alabama less than a week later.

The projections also show that Alabama could run out of existing hospital beds as soon as April 3. An updated projection released Wednesday afternoon showed Alabama could see more than 7,000 COVID-19 deaths by August, with a peak daily high of 341 deaths on April 22.

I think its a model we have to pay very close attention to, said Marrazzo. But she said, the model doesnt take into account all of Alabamas social distancing measures. I think that model is a worst-case scenario that I hope and pray very much we are going to avoid, given the cooperation weve had from our local government, our excellent public health department and really from the community at large.

Williams said if infection rates stay low, that would show social distancing and other measures, like closing schools and nonessential businesses, were working.

Nothing would make us happier than to see those numbers stay flat, he said. I just unfortunately cant think of a reason why Alabama would somehow be spared a surge.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

A ceremony on providing assistance from China to Azerbaijan to support fight against coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has been held at Azerbaijans Ministry of Foreign Affairs on April 2, the ministry told Trend.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Ramiz Hasanov, Deputy Minister of Health Victor Gasimov and Chinese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Guo Min have made the remarks at the event.

During the event, Ramiz Hasanov noted that this event coincided with the 28-th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Azerbaijan and China, and in this regard congratulated all the participants.

The deputy minister noted that the existence of a political dialogue, based on mutual understanding and trust between Azerbaijan and China, is at the highest level.

Hasanov stressed that they support each other in issues of exceptional importance for both countries, including the issues of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the One-China Policy.

The active participation of Azerbaijan in the One Belt One Road initiative, initiated by China, has given impetus to the development of bilateral economic relations in the fields of trade, high technology, investment, agriculture and others in recent years, he added.

The deputy minister noted that during the fight against the coronavirus pandemic at the global level, solidarity between the nations of Azerbaijan and China has been demonstrated during these difficult days.

Hasanov noted that the Chinese test kits for detection of COVID-19 infection, provided to Azerbaijan, are an indicator of this friendship. He expressed gratitude to the Chinese people and the government for their support.

The deputy minister noted that Azerbaijan has also shown solidarity to the Chinese people from the first days of the fight against the pandemic, providing material and moral support.

Guo Min noted that this event, dedicated to the 28th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, is of particular importance, and also demonstrates strong and sincere friendship, high mutual trust between China and Azerbaijan.

Guo Min added that the current situation continues to improve, and the normal way of life of the population is quickly coming back. She emphasized that in the most difficult period for China, Azerbaijan and people from different countries support her country in different ways.

The ambassador said that President Ilham Aliyev immediately sent a letter of condolences to President Xi Jinping.

Guo Min noted that the Executive Power of Sumgayit city, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Nizami Ganjavi International Center are actively cooperating with China through relevant channels, providing materials to contain the epidemic.

The Chinese government has decided to provide Azerbaijan with 5,000 new types of tests for the detection of coronavirus. In the near future, China will also provide Azerbaijan with a second batch of anti-epidemic material assistance, she said.

Viktor Gasimov noted that the whole world is currently fighting against pandemic, and expressed regret that the infection did not bypass Azerbaijan, adding that under the direct supervision of the head of state, the Azerbaijani government has implemented preventive and preventive measures to prevent the spread of infection.

Gasimov have congratulated the government and people of China on their achievements in the fight against the coronovirus epidemic, and expressing gratitude to China for supporting Azerbaijan, expressed confidence in the further expansion of cooperation between the two countries in the field of healthcare.

Viktor Gasimov and Guo Min also signed assistance acts to fight the coronavirus.
ALTON  Darci K. Ward, owner of DK Dance Productions, found that she and her 15-member staff were up to the challenge of switching a normally, very tactical, technical learning environment into an online experience  with barely a hiccup.

Fortunately, our spring break was scheduled for the week of March 16, and we used that time between officially closing our doors to the re-opening of classes online to create videos and figure out the best way to implement live-stream teaching, said Ward, founder of DK Dance Productions, with locations in Alton and Florissant, Missouri.

She and her employees have recorded approximately 100 videos, and adapted roughly 80 classes for a live experience that students can virtually continue online through DKTV at the dance studios website  www. dkdancepro.com.

We worked like maniacs to get everything recorded  12 to 13 hours a day, Ward said.

Everyone worked really hard so we would make the March 23 launch date, she recalled. I have such an amazing team who all help me hold up the structure of the business.

For currently enrolled students, live classes are gated, requiring a password, and online live classes are offered at the same time as classes were prior to social distancing  with the same teacher to whom the students are accustomed.

I wanted to continue being here for our students and families during this time of social distancing by giving them something of normalcy, Ward said. And I wanted to keep my staff employed.

They love the kids, and they love what they do, she said. You have to have a passion for doing this  and we all do.

Now in its 14th year, DK Dance holds a yearly recital that everyone looks forward to  including students, teachers, parents, relatives and friends. It is currently scheduled for June, but with the uncertain day-to-day announcements amid the coronavirus pandemic, Ward secured July dates as backup. But only time will tell what the future holds as far as social distancing.

Meanwhile, students are practicing their recital dances via pre-recorded videos with their own teacher, performing from a front view, one from a back view, and one taking them through step by step with counts.

DKTV now features the live streaming classes, five days a week, and offers pre-recorded videos of recital routines, strength and conditioning classes, flexibility exercises and functional movement classes for students.

Pop Up story times with teachers are offered every Tuesday and Thursday, when students can log in and hear one of the teachers read a story.

Ward said knowing that many parents are also home now, and cant work out at a gym, DKTV created fitness videos for them, as well.

As with many small business owners in these trying times, Ward has had sleepless nights, but said she kept her faith and hope alive for her studio through the development of DKTV.

Between the two locations, DK Productions has about 15 teachers and 500 students from multiple school districts on both sides of the Mississippi River.

DK Dance is still accepting new students for special mini-session classes online. One is a Princess Power class that includes ballet, jazz and hip-hop for students 3 to 6 years old. Another is a pre-company audition prep class for ages 4 to 8.

DK Dance Productions serves children as young as 18 months through adult, offering lessons in ballet, jazz, tap, musical theater, poms, hip hop and tumbling, for all abilities, beginner through pre-professional.

The foundation of the organization is built on a strong mission to be innovators in dance and develop friendships and life skills to last forever.

The students have a real rapport and relationship with the teachers  and to continue to have their own teachers is huge, Ward said.

They are so happy to see them online, especially the little ones, she noted. And this keeps them all active and still dancing.

Its more than just great dancing, a philosophy adapted from an exclusive organization of the same name, with which Ward and her studio are affiliated.

We are also helping to teach our students about adapting to changes in life, Ward said.

Will the online classes become a permanent thing  even after life gets back to normal?

Ward said that while it works for the current situation, and it can be great to have videos for supplemental learning or additional work, theres no permanent substitute for in-person education and the human connection.

Founded by Ward in 2006, the Missouri studio is located at 12350 Old Halls Ferry Road in Florissant. DK Dance Productions opened its second location in Alton in 2017, and is in the former Yungk Medical Building at 2600 State St., in Alton. For more information on current offerings or classes, visit www.dkdancepro.com.
What is being done to increase testing in the UK?

The UK is currently working towards a target of testing 25,000 people a day within the next three weeks.

The 25,000 figure comes despite promises made last week by NHS medical director Professor Stephen Powis who said there would be hundreds of thousands of tests a day within the next few weeks.

Chris Hopson, the chief executive of NHS Providers, which represents NHS trusts, told the Press Association this week maximum testing capacity in the UK was currently very constrained and only able to deliver around 13,000 tests per day.

The focus remains on testing patients in hospital to see if they have Covid-19, rather than the wider public.

Public Health England (PHE) has also come under fire over its stance on wider testing of members of the public for the virus.

The organisation has repeatedly said most adults in good health who develop symptoms will fully recover and do not need to be tested.

However, many scientists disagree and say it is only through widespread testing the UK will be able to emerge from lockdown.

On Tuesday, former WHO director Professor Anthony Costello criticised the UK's response to the crisis, saying the country does have the capacity to test hundreds of thousands more people.

He said: By mass testing, we can detect new outbreaks and there will be much less disruption rather than isolating the whole economy.

We have 44 molecular virology labs in the UK. If they were doing 400 tests a day, we would be up to Germany levels of testing (around 70,000 a day) and that is perfectly feasible.

He warned a rapid acceleration was the only way for the UK to avoid a painful six months before society returns to normal, as the public was warned on Sunday.

We must go to mass testing and, when we remove the lockdown, I dont think it will take six months. All the Asian states  it was six to eight weeks of being able to lift the lockdown, he told BBC Radio 4s Today programme.
LONDON, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the Global FinTech Adoption Index 2019* by EY, one in eight people said that the core reason for using FinTech challengers was that those brands focused on customer centric factors such as better experience, better product features and quality of service.

Following the report, Bruc Bond, a leading business banking firm, has said that the banking industry must embrace customer-centric banking practices to stay relevant in 2020.

Today, consumers expect more from banks, demanding convenience, personalised experience and quality products and services. To stay relevant and successfully compete in a thriving market, banking service providers must deliver on these expectations.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has received 21 applications for digital bank licenses. Tarini Ponniah, Chief Compliance Officer for Bruc Bond Singapore, says that she's glad to see the city state join the likes of the United Kingdom in embracing customer centric digital banking. Coordination and cooperation between the MAS and regulators in other fintech- and digital banking-focused jurisdictions, like Poland, Lithuania, Japan and Australia, would hasten the widespread adoption of digital banking worldwide.

Like the MAS, European regulators are keen on adoption of innovative, customer centric solutions.

"The UK has become a competitive hotbed for digital banks, with several eyeing penetrating markets very far from home. Their success has been nothing if not extraordinary, with so-called challenger banks now amassing millions of customers in Europe and worldwide and expecting to treble their customers bases in 2020," says Konstantin Bodragin, Digital Marketing Officer and Bruc Bond's Business Analyst.

In recent years, Lithuania has become a hub for Europe's expanding network of Non-bank Financial Institutions (NBFI), which has significantly raised the country's standing in global financial markets. Neighbouring Poland has taken a different approach, encouraging its highly-developed banking sector to adopt digital solutions to consumer needs. It is for this reason that a recent *Deloitte study found Poland to be a leader in digital banking. "We can say that Poland is a digital leader, but Polish banks are varied in this regard," commented Deloitte's Daniel Majewski.

Tarini Ponniah says, "There needs to be much more cooperation between regulators to accelerate digital banking adoption in their respective jurisdictions to benefit customers worldwide.

She continues, "With new digital banking licenses being granted in almost every market in the world, 2020 is finally going to be the year that customer centric banking becomes a reality."

For more information about Bruc Bond please visit www.brucbond.com.

*EY Global FinTech Adoption Index 2019 report - https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_gl/topics/banking-and-capital-markets/ey-global-fintech-adoption-index.pdf

SOURCE Bruc Bond
You can often tell from a politicians facial reaction if theyre uncomfortable with a question, says 2GB morning host Ray Hadley. If they bring an adviser into the studio and the politician says something they werent supposed to, you can practically see the colour draining from the advisers face. (Nine Entertainment owns 2GB and this masthead.)

When social distancing measures were introduced to slow the spread of coronavirus, Hadley broadcast from a hotel room in suburban Sydney until the necessary equipment was installed in his home.

Like most radio hosts, 2GB morning presenter Ray Hadley is working remotely. Credit:2GB

Ive been doing outside broadcasts [as a live sports caller] for 35 years, so its not foreign to me, he says. I miss having guests in the studio and even though we tell our listeners were in another location, they probably cant hear the difference.

But the restrictions have forced Hadley and fiancee Sophie Baird to postpone their wedding.
Musicians hang out in Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights on Wednesday. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Coronavirus cases across California barreled toward 10,000 Wednesday  with the death toll topping 200  as officials desperately tried to keep unprecedented social distancing orders enforced while also trying to get more supplies to hospitals as patient numbers surged.

The rapid spread of the virus brought new concerns about whether the state's healthcare system could handle the flow of patients. Many California hospitals are grappling with shortages of supplies while rushing to prepare for what is expected to be a deluge of patients in the coming weeks.

As bad as the numbers are, health officials warned it could get much worse if Californians don't adhere to the stay-at-home orders, which now could last well into May.

California faces 5,000 coronavirus deaths a week if the states stay-at-home policies are relaxed too early, according to one Bay Area health officer.

Some of the modeling is predicting  at the peak  up to 5,000 deaths a week throughout California, Dr. Chris Farnitano, health officer for Contra Costa County, told his Board of Supervisors. That would mean 600 deaths a week from the disease known as COVID-19 in the central Bay Area and 100 to 200 deaths a week in Contra Costa County, he said.

We are still hopeful we can avoid [this scenario] if we dont relax our efforts to flatten the curve, said Farnitano, who shared the possible epidemic outcomes on the same day that six Bay Area counties extended and strengthened the nations first coronavirus shelter-in-place order .

The news came as local health officials across the state began revealing estimates of potential coronavirus death tolls. There could be 2,000 to 14,000 deaths in Contra Costa County, and perhaps 1,000 deaths in Ventura County, health officers for both counties said.

Last week, the city of San Jose released an estimate saying there could be 2,000 to 16,000 coronavirus deaths in Santa Clara County .

Dr. Robert Levin, health officer for Ventura County, said the number of coronavirus cases coming into hospitals could be like a tsunami. In the last 21 years hes been tracking the data, the worst year for flu deaths came two years ago, with 49 fatalities  a small fraction of the 1,000 deaths the coronavirus could bring to Ventura County.

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This is not influenza. This is much more serious, Levin said at a Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday. But he added that he hopes the stay-at-home order will significantly curtail the projected death toll.

Some health officers in California said there are early signs that the order is working. Farnitano noted that Californias coronavirus death toll has been about 10% of New Yorks.

Santa Clara County health officer Dr. Sara Cody said that she is seeing a bit of slowing in the number of COVID-19 cases, although she added that she was speaking cautiously.

The sacrifice that everyone has made, I believe it is starting to bend the curve. But its not enough, and it hasnt been in place for long enough, Cody said. So we need to keep at it. We just need to keep at it. I believe its beginning to make a difference, and its giving our hospitals more time.

Coronavirus cases in Los Angeles County rose dramatically Wednesday as officials reported more than 500 new cases, bringing the total number of people infected by the virus in the region to 3,528.

County officials also reported 12 additional deaths, bringing the toll to 66. Nine of the 11 people who most recently died were older than 65, and seven had underlying health conditions. One person was between 18 and 40 years old, and another was between 41 and 65 years old, said Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

The coronavirus has also spread to the most vulnerable populations in the county, with five homeless people testing positive for COVID-19, Ferrer said.

Orange County saw its biggest single-day increase in coronavirus infections to date Wednesday, as officials announced 107 new cases and three additional deaths. In all, 606 COVID-19 cases and 10 deaths have been confirmed countywide.

Another focus of concern was California's elderly population, who are at high risk of death from the virus.

California regulators have told skilled nursing facility operators that they must accept patients even if they have the virus.

The order comes amid a fierce debate among healthcare providers. Hospitals are desperate to clear space for an expected wave of COVID-19 patients, so they are discharging as many patients as possible, including nursing home residents.

Many nursing home administrators are equally desperate to keep those residents out until they are proven virus-free, fearing a catastrophic result if the deadly pathogen gains a foothold in their institutions.

The directive , in a letter this week to facilities from California Department of Public Health Deputy Director Heidi Steinecker, appears to side squarely with the hospitals. It says skilled nursing facilities shall not refuse to admit or readmit a resident based on their status as a suspected or confirmed COVID-19 case.

Amid the preparations, federal prosecutors were dealing with a bizarre incident in San Pedro.

Federal prosecutors Wednesday charged a locomotive driver at the Port of Los Angeles with intentionally derailing a train near the U.S. Navys hospital ship Mercy because he suspected it was not there to help with the coronavirus crisis.

Eduardo Moreno, 44, of San Pedro, was charged with deliberately wrecking a train during the incident Tuesday, which led to a derailment and fuel leak, according to the charges.

Prosecutors allege that Moreno derailed the train and deliberately crashed through barriers designed to stop engines before grinding to a halt 250 yards from the Mercy.

Moreno reportedly said, You only get this chance once. The whole world is watching. I had to. People dont know whats going on here. Now they will.

Times staff writers Melissa Gomez, Matt Hamilton, Jack Dolan, Joseph Serna and Taryn Luna contributed to this report.
Paramedics have created a hilarious dance to remind Australians how to wash their hands and practice good hygiene during the coronavirus crisis.

Workers from the Mordialloc Ambulance branch in Melbourne uploaded the 'quarantine workout' video to TikTok on Wednesday.

The clip is a parody of American workout videos in the 80s and features a Texas accent voice over to introduce the various steps in the routine.

Mordialloc Ambulance Branch have demonstrated how to practice good hygiene in a hilarious viral video posted on TikTok

'Hi y'all I'm Pamela Pepkin and you're about to do Pamela Pepkin's quarantine work out,' it begins.

The Victorian paramedics then stand in a line and rotate on the spot as they pretend to scrub their hands for 20 seconds.

'Wash your hands two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight , nine, ten, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15,' the song instructs.

The health professionals then move onto disinfection methods, encouraging people to 'work those thighs, sanitise,' and to 'soap, water, soap, water' when washing their hands.

Next, they demonstrate how to sneeze and cough, stepping side to side as they draw their fist to their chest to wheeze into their elbows.

'Sneeze like this, cough like that, sneeze like this, and cough like that,' the music chants, before urging people to avoid touching their face.

In the last segment, the crew focuses on social distancing guidelines which stipulate Australians should remain 1.5 metres apart.

Marlie Lochran (pictured) said she came up with the idea after noticing other people using the platform to educate about COVID-19

'See that human, and we are staying six feet away. Human person, six feet away, human person six feet away,' the lyrics directs.

'Now what do you do when someone tries to come up and give you a hand shake? or a hug?'

'Block!' they demand, as the life-savers kick into the air to prevent their counterparts from coming towards them.

The video has gone viral, racking up more than 1200 views in 24 hours.

Marlie Lochran, who stars as Pamela Pepkin, said she came up with the idea after seeing other health professionals using the app to educate others about coronavirus safety measures.

The paramedic said she was surprised at how popular the video had become overnight but she was happy the message was being shared.

'I Just want to encourage everyone, because we are putting ourselves on the front line, also if I speak for everyone in the medical profession, we are all putting ourselves there,' she told the Today Show on Thursday.

'But we are also putting our families at risk as well because if we get something, then we pass it on to them. So their on the front line.'

'We want everyone to stay home and do the right thing. Because there's no way we can defeat this without doing the right things that the community can do.
From the Introduction

On September 19, 1780, Virginia congressman James Madison reported from Philadelphia, President Reeds Lady has been buried this morning. Interred in the graveyard of the Arch Street Presbyterian Church, the thirty-three-year-old wife of the chief executive of Pennsylvania had died the day before, taken off by the Dysentery. Her death deprived the fledgling American nation of one of its most public, most effective, and most widely known political women.In the three years before her death, Esther DeBerdt Reed had converted her husband from military to political leadership, participated with him in building a powerful political party, led the Philadelphia Ladies Association in a multistate fund-raising campaign in support of the Continental Army, and politely but firmly debated with General Washington about how to spend the money she and her Ladies had raised. In The Sentiments of an American Woman, the political broadside she published in support of her fund-raising effort, she gave eloquent expression to the political aspirations of Americas new female citizens, while her Ladies Association itself provided the model for public engagement that women in America would employ with increasing effectiveness over the next two centuries. Her active engagement in the political world, where by law and by custom only men were members of the state, only men played independent political roles, and only men exercised autonomous political will, makes her worthy of our attention. Her name deserves to be known. Her story deserves to be told.Esther DeBerdt began life in London, England, in October 1746 as the indulged daughter of a well-to-do commercial family involved in the Atlantic trade with America. Her parents, evangelical Christians, were followers of the great sixteenth-century reformer John Calvin, and Esther grew up as a religious dissenter in a nation that was officially Anglican and in which religious and political identity were closely linked.In the fall of 1763, at seventeen, Esther met and fell in love with Joseph Reed, an ambitious young American staying in London to complete his legal studies and to advance his familys interests. Esthers father objected to their marriage, and Joseph returned home to New Jersey. Then, over the next five years, the young lovers conducted a clandestine transatlantic courtship by mail while Esther (in London) and Joseph (in America) worked to change her fathers mind and to use the patronage system of the British Empire to construct the economic foundation for their future family. In the spring of 1770, they married, and over the next ten years they negotiated a dynamic marriage distinguished by mutual affection, respect, and accommodation. Here, Esther challenged social norms and legal structures that emphasized parental power and pecuniary considerations in courtship and defined marriage as a hierarchical relationship between a dominant husband and a subordinate wife.Esther and Joseph had intended to live their lives in London, but a family tragedy drove them into exile in America, where they struggled to reestablish their economic base. Her father had introduced her to the intricacies of oceangoing commerce while she was still in her teens. Now, living in Philadelphia (177074), she intruded into this traditionally male domain by collaborating in the construction of a complex and lucrative trading network that spanned much of the British Atlantic world.Esthers father had also introduced her to the complex world of patron/client politics in Georgian England, and she employed political means to advance her ends first in London in the late 1760s and then in Philadelphia. In the fall of 1775, she made a personal political decision to support the American struggle for independence and soon found herself plunged into the cauldron of war. After three harrowing years of disruption, disaster, isolation, and loss, she returned to Philadelphia and persuaded her husband to give up his military ambitions and accept political office. She then worked closely with him to advance themselves to the cusp of national political leadership. In 1780, acting in her own name, she launched a barrage of political initiatives that made her, at the time of her death, one of Americas most sophisticated, poised, confident, admired, and efficacious public female politicians. Here, as throughout her short life, this bright, determined, self-confident, and skillful woman, slight of frame but strong of will and blessed with a way with words and with people, exercised a suitable command of self  far greater than the law and the social norms her time and place seemed to permit.Throughout, however, she voiced little desire to end the existing gendered distinctions between female and male political action, or to assume male public responsibilities or obligations. Rather, she understood politics as part of the process whereby she and Joseph collaborated to marshal the resources they needed to marry, to create and sustain a love-based, religiously informed family, to seek eclat in the broader world, and to establish the foundation for their own and their childrens futures.Esther came of age at the beginning of the conflict between Great Britain and her North American colonies that produced the American Revolution. That world-altering conflict structured almost every phase of her life and bedeviled her at every stage of her evolution from a proud young English lady to a mature and ardent American wife, mother, patriot, political operative, and publicist. Esthers story thus illustrates and illuminates for us the contingencies and human costs of the complex process whereby the English-speaking residents of British North America became a separate people, a new nation.After her death, Esther largely disappeared from our collective memory of the founding. Today she is recalled, if at all, for her notable political activities in the summer of 1780. Even those who are aware of her extraordinary success in those few months, however, know little of the life that brought her to this prominence, of the political context that made her behavior so noteworthy, and of the character, personality, values, and lifetime accumulation of political skill and understanding that prepared her to become by September 1780 one of the foremost political female founders of the American republic.Esthers story falls into four broad categories. Chapters 1 through 4 focus on her initiation and management of her courtship (176465). Chapters 5 and 6 explore how she and Joseph, living on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean, first sought to accumulate the political and economic capital that would allow them to marry and live in London, and then retreated into exile in provincial America (176670). Chapter 7 deals with her unhappiness in America, her ever-growing family, and the impressive financial success she and Joseph achieved in Philadelphia between 1770 and 1775. Chapters 8 through 10 probe the nature of her decision for American independence and describe her wartime suffering as well as the Reeds rapid political ascent (177680). Chapters 11 and 12 detail her extraordinary political summer of 1780, her sudden death, the deterioration and death of Joseph, and the dispersion of their children. The coda offers a final appraisal of Esther DeBerdt Reeds place among the founders of the American republic.A note to the reader: in quoting from correspondence, I have not tried to make eighteenth-century writers conform to modern prescriptions, but I have corrected a small number of obvious spelling errors.(Excerpt ends here.)
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Iranians tear up a US flag at a protest after the US killing of Iranian Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, in Tehran, January 3, 2020.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Recent clashes between the US and Iran have nearly escalated into full-fledged conflict.

Despite that tension, there is one issue on which the two governments can cooperate and potentially improve relations, writes Defense Priorities fellow Daniel R. DePetris.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

If there is one word to describe the state of US-Iran relations in 2020, it's "edgy."

This January, the two countries were dangerously on the precipice of a wide-scale military confrontation, with US Hellfire missiles slamming into Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani's convoy and Iranian ballistic missiles sending over 100 US soldiers to the hospital with traumatic brain injuries.

President Donald Trump wisely decided not to respond militarily against Iran's missile attack on two US bases in Iraq, an operation that was itself an act of retaliation for Soleimani's death. But the White House isn't exactly seeking to defuse the situation either; the administration is full-steam ahead on its maximum pressure strategy, with the State Department announcing more sanctions on the Iranian economy in what some Middle East analysts have called a missed opportunity for de-escalation, all but sealing the window shut on a bilateral US-Iran dialogue.

The gap separating these two countries is astronomical, made worse by Trump's proactive destruction of the Iran nuclear agreement. But there is one issue that could force US and Iranian officials into a dialogue: prisoners.

According to the US Bureau of Prisons, 29 Iranian citizens are currently in US custody. Many of them were arrested, charged, and prosecuted for violating US sanctions on Iran. The Iranian government has always perceived these charges as politically motivated, much the same way as the United States views Americans who have been detained, charged, or sentenced by the Iranian authorities for spying.

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Neither Washington nor Tehran wants to see their citizens rotting in an overseas prison cell. The sad death of Robert Levinson, a former FBI agent who has been missing in Iran since 2007 and whom US intelligence officials now assess died in Iranian custody, is a worst-case scenario US officials should strive to prevent. The United States and Iran have cooperated on prisoner exchanges in the past, even when other issues of concern remain unresolved.

A 2012 FBI poster showing how former FBI agent Robert Levinson looked before he was kidnapped, left; a video released by his kidnappers, center; and after five years in captivity.

Associated Press

The most significant prisoner exchange in recent history occurred in January 2016, when four Americansincluding Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaianwere swapped in exchange for dropping cases against seven Iranians charged with sanctions violations.

That agreement was the culmination of 14 months of diplomacy on the sidelines of the nuclear talks. While the deal caused an uproar among some in Washington, the result was a tough but ultimately successful diplomatic outcome that helped solidify then-Secretary of State John Kerry's working relationship with Foreign Minister Zarif.

President Trump has taken a personal interest in freeing detained Americans overseas and has had some notable success with the help of hostage envoy and national security adviser Robert O'Brien.

Last December, in a choreographed release, the Iranians handed over Princeton University researcher Xiyue Wang to the Americans after years in detention. In return, Washington dropped charges against an Iranian scientist and released him into Iran's custody. Trump praised the exchange and thanked Tehran for its cooperation. Days later, Zarif proposed an all-for-all prisoner swapbut the idea was rejected by the Trump administration as heavily skewed in Iran's favor.

The issue of prisoners is a live one, and it should be pursued with absolute rigor by both parties.

Ironically, the deadly spread of the coronavirus inside Iranian borders today has only given more impetus to the issue of prisoner releasestens of thousands of prisoners, many of whom are categorized as political prisoners, have been freed from jail by the Iranian government in order to help contain the virus. Michael White, a US citizen who has been detained in Iran since 2018, is now on medical furlough and is in the care of the Swiss government.

Recently, Iran and France successfully completed a one-for-one prisoner exchange despite stark differences on other aspects of their relationship. Rather than condemning the exchange, the State Department should proceed on a similar wavelength in order to free Americans from Iranian prisons and remove a portion of the antagonism that now dominates relations with Tehran.

When channels for communication remain so constricted, it's incumbent upon US and Iranian leaders to capitalize on whatever opportunity for dialogue exists. Tehran acknowledges that its relationship with the United States won't magically sort itself out regardless of who is sitting in the White House next year. But it has just as much of an interest in getting its people back home as the United States does. This convergence is at least a starting point for a discussion.

A few prisoner releases may not be a dramatic foreign policy triumph for President Trump, but they would still go a long way toward arresting a cycle of confrontation that would suck Washington even deeper in a region of declining strategic importance.

Daniel R. DePetris is a fellow at Defense Priorities and a columnist at the Washington Examiner.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The Orange County Sheriffs Office upgraded a charge, Thursday, against a man accused of shooting at a police vehicle.

Joshua Sykes, 37, was arrested and charged with aggravated assault of a public servant after police responded to a call of a man carrying a gun along the 7200 block of Texas 12 at approximately 2 p.m., according to a news release from the sheriffs office.

On Thursday, the sheriffs office upgraded the charge to attempted capital murder, according to a second news release.

When officers arrived the man fired several rounds and one hit a sheriffs vehicle, the release said. No one was injured.

chris.moore@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/chris_moore09
As a high school freshman, Mohammad Muntakim was looking forward to celebrating Eid Al-Fitr, which marks the end of the month of Ramadan and the sunrise-to-sundown fasting that accompanies it. The holiday is typically celebrated with family get-togethers and feasting. Then an unexpected problem came up: The holiday fell during final-exams week, presenting him with an unenviable choice between academics and faith.

Ultimately, the teachers at his school, Cass Technical High, moved the tests to the following week to honor the 300 or so Muslim students in the high school, Detroits largest with 2,350 students. Ever since, Mohammad has helped lead a group of Muslim students in the district to advocate adding Eid al-Fitr to the district calendar if it falls on a weekday.

I think its not about just one school or two schools getting the day off. I think its about respecting the culture that surrounds the community and in the city, said Mohammad, now a junior at Cass Tech. Detroit likes to say were a very diverse city, but I think we need to stand up and say we actually respect our diversity, rather than just calling ourselves diverse.

Dozens of emails and phone calls have gotten him and his peers tantalizingly close to the goal, but as a result of logistical problems, it isnt yet a done deal in the Motor City.

The 51,000-student Detroit district is not alone. Muslims are among the fastest-growing religious minorities in the United States, but its still comparatively rare for their religious holidaysor those of other religious minoritiesto be accommodated in school schedules the way that Christian and Jewish holidays typically are. Whats more, as demographics in the United States change, districts will need to consider how increased diversity demands a re-evaluation of some of the most basic questions of school governance.

Its just a natural progression as communities become more diverse, integrated, and settled and established, said Zainab Chaudry, the director of Maryland outreach for the Council for American-Islamic Relations.

Double Standard?

As pressures to craft inclusive school calendars rise, they are putting districts into a difficult constitutional bind. Since the U.S. Supreme Court determined in the 1940s that the establishment clause of the First Amendment also applies to state and local government, districts have generally had to cite a secular reason to close schoolsfor example, that large numbers of staff or student absences would hinder learning. (The establishment clause of the First Amendment prohibits government from favoring any religion.)

Its a hurdle that can feel frustrating to advocates who rightly point out that Christian priorities are deeply embedded in most school calendars. Theyre largely an artifact of the founding of public schools in an era when literacy was explicitly linked to the ability to understand Christian scripture, noted Charles Haynes, the founding director of the Religious Freedom Center of the Freedom Forum Institute.

The schools were founded by Protestants, and they made sure the calendar was good to them. No public school has Sunday classes, Christmas is now a national holiday, so they have a double whammy there, he said. And other communities look at that and say, Wow, thats not fair! And then you have a public relations issue and public community issue.

It bothers many people in these communities because it means their child has to be treated differently, he said.

It also means, Chaudry noted, that many Muslim communities and other religious groups have been asked to justify school calendar changes on demographic information thats hard to come by, because religious adherence is not collected as part of the U.S. census.

Education Week reached out to districts located in counties that, according to estimates, have either a high proportion of Muslims or a high number of adherents. Several, including the Los Angeles and Houston districts, said they permit excused absences for religious observance, although sometimes parents must supply a written note. Among the handful of districts that do officially include the Muslim holiday of Eid El-Fitr and/or Eid El-Adha, which marks the end of the Hajj pilgrimage later in the year, are the large Philadelphia and New York City districts.

School calendars are generally the purview of local districts, though a few states have aimed for broader measures. Lawmakers in New York last year identified six additional holidays and proposed allowing districts to add them if the ethnic or religious groups celebrating them made up at least 7.5 percent or more of the population. The bill has not advanced.

And on their own, a few districts have taken an expansive approach. Howard County, Md., now recognizes Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, the Hindu holiday Diwali, and in response to its East Asian community, the Lunar New Year.

Eyeing the Puzzle Pieces

In Detroit, Mohammad pursued his advocacy with support from classmates, and with the particular encouragement of the districts chief operating officer, Louis Solano. The high school student wrote an opinion article for the Detroit Free Press outlining his argument, organized a petition, and presented at a school board meeting.

Thanks to his activism, the city and the Detroit Federation of Teachers reached a verbal agreement last year to recognize the holiday by adding an extra day off following Memorial Day. (Eid-al-Fitr is based on the lunar calendar and is expected to fall on that weekend this year.)

But the pact fell through over other scheduling issues, highlighting how something as seemingly simple as changing a few calendar dates can end up posing all kinds of logistical challenges. Detroits calendar must be bargained with the DFT and other unions, and although all are supportive of the change in principle, so far they havent been able to land on a new calendar for the 2019-20 or 2020-21 school years.

I will tell you theres a pathway to get there, but theres a lot of compromise from different groups to allow that to happen, Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said in an interview. And right now, theres too many compromises that need to be made with too many groups to then get to an agreement.

Just a few of the sticking points: whether such a day would be reserved for teacher training and how theyll be compensated for it; whether to nix part of a winter break, which the schools have preserved despite also letting students out the week of Christmas, alongside a spring one; and whether to begin before Labor Day, which teachers generally eschew.

Adding days at the end of the school year could cause problems, too, because few Detroit schools have air conditioning to compensate for sultry weather. School closings from the coronavirus pandemic seem likely to complicate scheduling issues further.

It is not a matter of not wanting to do itits a matter of trying to figure out a plan ahead to make sure its impact is not disruptive to other matters we have to consider, said DFT President Terrence Martin.

A Larger Conversation

Nationally, the issue of what advocates term Eid equality has become a fruitful topic of youth activism beyond Michigan. A 16-year-old New Jersey student earlier this year succeeded in persuading the Pompton Lakes district to close on Eid al-Fitr for future years, for example. And the Detroit students conversation about the issue has inspired similar movements in the nearby suburban districts in Troy, Warren, and Bloomfield Township.

And for those districts that have yet to debate the topic, but are seeing their communities grow more diverse? They should start by hosting a community town hall for Muslim families or other religious minorities to learn what they most need from the schools, said Chaudry of CAIR.

In some cases, the community is not particularly concerned about religious holidays, especially if its trying to get other basic needs met. I think for refugees especially, theirs are food on the table and a roof over their head and not being subjected to violence, and they have different priorities than some who have been settled for generations, she said.

Haynes of the Religious Freedom Center agrees that communities that have successfully navigated the calendar issue also have tended to have a wider-ranging conversation about how schools can listen to religious minorities particular needs or concerns. Otherwise, the calendar issue can assume outsized symbolic importance.

This issue taken in isolation is a surefire way for conflict and anger in many communities, and a surefire way for people to feel like theyve lost or been hurt, Haynes said. Its just hard for there to be any real winners when its all put on this one thing.

Short of calendar changes, there are a lot of other things districts can do to show that theyre listening. For example, they can give excused absences and leave those out of calculations for giving out awards for perfect attendance, so Muslim students and other religious minorities arent penalized.

What they shouldnt do, he said, is take a zero-sum approach. Before Howard County in Maryland approved its new calendar, for instance, it had considered scotching all but state-mandated holidaysa proposal that riled up both its Muslim population and its Jewish residents, who would have lost Rosh Hoshana and Yom Kippur.

Advocates for Muslim youths say theyre still working to educate school systems but note encouraging signs of awareness. Anisa Sahoubah, the youth and education director for the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services, in Dearborn, Mich., says one general change she sees among local districtsand welcomesis that more of them have started to change how they refer to breaks, calling them winter and spring rather than Christmas and Easter breaks.

Mohammad is still hoping that Detroit officials will reach a calendar agreement for 2021, when Eid-al-Fitr is likely to fall on a weekday.

The movements there; theres community support; people are willing to work behind it, but we havent seen it being implemented yet, he said. I think this is the start just for students. Its a big community here, and we have a lot, lot more to do.
Photo: Bonnie Williams

UPDATE 9:11 a.m.

After an outpouring of offers to help the Peachland couple struggling to take care of their dog while living in quarantine the senior couple says they have found a solution. Bonnie Williams tells Castanet, "we have had several offers for assistance in walking the dog and we have solved the situation! Our family in Vernon will take the dog while we are in lockdown! Thanks again!"

ORIGINAL 4:00 a.m.

A retired Peachland couple, newly returned from the United States, are living in self-quarantine in their seniors' apartment complex on 6th Street.

Bruce and Bonnie Williams tell Castanet they have no problem self-quarantining but are having problems taking their dog out so it can do its business.

"We don't care if we don't go out, we are having groceries delivered and we've got lots of booze. We're fine with it, but we can't stop our dog's bodily functions," said Bruce.

Bruce says they got back from California last Friday and received a phone call from the police on Saturday acting on a complaint from someone who saw them walking the dog. "I said, 'are you gonna arrest me? 'They said 'no, we just want to find a solution.'"

They haven't had another call from the police since Saturday, but on Wednesday morning, after another complaint they called Peachland Mayor Cindy Fortin to ask for advice.

"She said she'd see if there was a solution that we haven't thought of, but we feel like we're between a rock and a very hard place, we're getting harassed daily."

Bonnie Williams says she is a retired ICU nurse, is taking self-isolation seriously after returning to Canada on March 24 with no symptoms.

Bonnie says the dog is 12 years old and won't go out with anyone else, nor will the dog go on the balcony. "We practise social distancing and wear a mask and gloves. Now our apartment manager has called the police and the mayor is getting involved...please! Should we shoot the dog? I am at my wit's end!"

Bruce echoes his wife's words and says they don't know what to do and are open to any ideas, "if anybody's got a solution, please let us know."
The economic damage of the coronavirus pandemic continues to worsen, as stay-at-home orders have made more nonessential businesses shut their doors. The disruptions have had a huge effect on the workforce, with many businesses lacking the financial resources to keep workers on the payroll without revenue coming in.

This week, first-time claims for unemployment benefits nationwide hit 5.82 million, according to the Labor Department. That was nearly double the 2.92 million claims from the week before on an unadjusted basis, which in turn had soared more than 10 times compared with the week of March 14. When you add in the Labor Department's seasonal adjustment factor, the headline number of claims jumped even further to nearly 6.65 million.

The report also released some numbers from individual states showing that some are taking a harder hit from coronavirus layoffs than others. What's surprising, though, is that some states with smaller populations had more jobless claims than the largest ones that you'd typically find at the top of such lists. Below, we'll look at the five states with the biggest rise in jobless claims in the most recent report.

5. California

The most surprising thing about the country's most populous state isn't that it makes the list, but that it comes in at No. 5. California saw a rise of 128,727 in the number of initial claims for unemployment benefits.

California has a high concentration of service jobs, and the requirements to close down businesses providing nonessential services hit the state hard. That impact is likely to continue indefinitely, with tourism dwindling to a trickle, and even residents remaining loath to venture out.

4. Texas

Texas has the second-largest population among the 50 states, so again, seeing it on this list isn't a big shock. The Lone Star State weighed in with a rise of 139,250 jobless claims.

Texas pointed to a host of different industries that were hit hard by the coronavirus. Areas like hotels and restaurants, transportation, healthcare, mining and manufacturing, and construction all suffered substantial layoffs during the period.

3. Massachusetts

Massachusetts is the smallest state on this list, but it suffered a substantial rise in the number of new layoffs. Jobless claims rose by 141,003 from the previous week.

The state government didn't provide any specifics on the reasons for the rise, citing only effects of the pandemic. But Massachusetts has a bustling service economy, with tourism playing an essential role. That'll make itself felt even more as the summer months approach.

2. Ohio

Ohio saw a rise of 189,263 jobless claims, the second-most of any state. As the seventh most-populous state, that's a disproportionate effect from the coronavirus.

It boasts a huge manufacturing industry, and so while the state didn't supply any details about the industries hit hardest, workers associated with industrial production have definitely taken more than their fair share of the impact. Automakers like Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC) and Ford Motor (NYSE:F) have halted production at Ohio plants, although some are looking to restart in the near future.

1. Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania had by far the biggest increase in jobless claims in the most recent report. A rise of 362,012 claims left it with nearly double the impact of the next most-affected state.

It reported that layoffs in the transportation, hotel and restaurant, administrative, and healthcare industries were the biggest contributors to the rise. With a diverse mix of manufacturing capacity and tourists from both other states and around the world, the Keystone State is likely to keep hurting from the coronavirus crisis for a while.

Expect more economic pain

Some people had hoped that last week's initial-claims numbers would prove to be the worst of the crisis, but this week's numbers threw cold water on their optimism. With the federal government having opened up unemployment coverage to self-employed gig workers, jobless claims could continue to rise in the weeks to come. Despite the strain on the system, government officials are working their hardest to provide much-needed benefits in the hope of helping as many people as possible and stall a potential recession as long as they can.
SAO PAULO, April 1 (Reuters) - Brazilian meatpacker BRF SA said on Wednesday that it will hire an additional 2,000 workers, both in-house and outsourced, in order to maintain its levels of production.

BRF Chief Executive Lorival Luz said that the company will not fire workers in April or May, when the coronavirus outbreak is expected to worsen in Brazil.

(Reporting by Alberto Alerigi Writing by Jake Spring)
On the night of April 2, 2016, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale attack on Artsakh in southern, southeastern and northeastern directions. The Defense forces of the Artsakh Republic successfully thwarted the offensive and launched a counteroffensive. At noon on April 5, an oral ceasefire was reached between the chiefs of the General staffs of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Moscow. In the outcome of the military operations on April 2-5, the human and material losses of the Azerbaijani army significantly exceeded the losses of the Artsakh Defense Army.

Despite the enormous amount of human force and armoured vehicles, including the ones Azerbaijan had bought during the recent years, the Military forces of Azerbaijan failed to complete the assigned tasks; achieve operational depth and refraction in the negotiation process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The Artsakh Defense Army managed to inflict a strategic defeat on Azerbaijan due to competent defensive and counter-offensive military operations.

The initiation of the April 2016 War by Azerbaijan, was the largest flare-up of anti-Armenian hatred policy, or, in other words, Armenophobia, since the beginning of the truce in 1994.

In a Security Council meeting convened on April 2, President Aliyev tried to justify the offensive initiated by Azerbaijan, announcing: ...All conflicts must be resolved on a single principle. The principle of self-determination of nations must not violate the territorial integrity of countries. This is what the Helsinki Final Act states.

This statement is proof itself, that Azerbaijan has given huge importance to the initiation of military actions in the scope of its state strategy.

As a result of large-scale military actions on April 2-5, Azerbaijan managed to occupy a few combat positions in the Northern and Southern directions. Despite this, Azerbaijani Military forces failed to fulfill its military tasks, suffering heavy combat and human casualties. By the virtue of the counter-offensives of the Artsakh Defense Army, some of the above mentioned positions were recaptured and Artsakh was able to repel the alleged main attack of the Azerbaijani Armed forces in the central direction.

In particular, Armenian forces were able to thrust back the attack planned in the direction of Akna(Aghdam). Following this, Azerbaijans Minister of Defense Zakir Hasanov ordered Azerbaijans armed forces to be ready to launch heavy combat attacks on Stepanakert and other Armenian settlements.

The same day, heavy flamethrower systems TOS-1A were used in combat operations for the first time. Besides this,the BM-21 Grad and longer-range BM-30 Smerch multiple launch rocket systems were also put into operation.

The analysis of the first day of the military actions shows that Azerbaijan had adopted the tactics of a rapid breakthrough with the use of mobile groups for special purposes. In particular, the 052 separate special forces brigade of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces was involved in the Northern direction of Talysh. However, despite the successful sabotage penetration in the primary segment, the brigade then found itself in a blockade and lost more than 30 soldiers, including junior and senior officers.

The harmonization of special purpose groups and combined arms forces failed. Due to this, the tactic of providing a breakthrough with a surprise attack came to naught. Therefore, Azerbaijan put heavy artillery into action, thereby transferring the military attack to a positional battle and failing the primarily initiated military action. Its important to note that these artillery systems, and Smerch in particular, completely lacked in their implementation.

These turnouts made a ceasefire desirable for Azerbaijan and after the oral ceasefire agreement of April 5 between the Chiefs of General of Staff of Azerbaijan and Armenia, the military actions were put at a halt. Azerbaijan's aggression against Artsakh was successfully prevented.

Azerbaijan did not provide accurate and final data related to its human losses, as usually hiding the real number of casualties, but it became clear by open source investigation that the Azerbaijani armed forces lost at least 93 soldiers during the military operations. To be more exact, at least 70 losses were reported in the northern direction, in Talish, and at least 22 losses in the southern direction, in Fizuli. It is also worth noting that a significant number of special force combatants were among the fatalities of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces.

There are literally dozens of casualties each year, and as you may know, fighting flared up dramatically in early April, April 2 to April 5  so-called 4-day war  with hundreds of casualties  an estimated 350 casualties including civilians, stated the US State Department officials, on their special briefing on May 16, 2016. According to the same statement, Azerbaijan has had much more losses, compared to Armenia as well. This allows us to confirm our assessments related to the number of casualties of the Azerbaijani side.

According to the reports from Artsakh Defense Army, Azerbaijan has also had more losses of military equipment, including 24 tanks, 1 TOS-1A multiple launch rocket, 1 IFV, 6 armoured vehicles, 1 Engineer Vehicle, 1 Grad multiple rocket launcher, 2 helicopters (Azerbaijan reports only 1 of them), 12 Unmanned aerial vehicles. Artsakh Defense Army reported the loss of 64 soldiers and 13 volunteers. As for the equipment, Artsakh DA reported 14 tanks (6 of which were later repaired and put into operation again), 4 IFVs (BMP), 1 Shilka ZSU (radar-guided anti-aircraft system).

The Armenian side reported 800 hectares of land losses, which the President Serzh Sargsyan also did confirm in an interview . Despite this, Azerbaijan claims to occupy a territory of more than 2000 hectares.

Hrant Mikaelyan, a researcher at the Caucasus Institute, published an article on Kavkaz-uzel.eu website where he mentions that Artsakh lost a total of 9.93 sq km or 993 hectares of land, based on an analysis of maps (according to his first assessment, Armenian sides land-loss was 795 hectares). In any case, it should be noted that this data is not accurate, as it is based on maps and may definitely differ from the actual measurements. Its also important to consider that Artsakhs overall territory currently is about 11,500 sq km, and the above-mentioned 800-900 hectares or 8-9 sq km land is only 0.07 % of its total territory. Clearly, one can not consider the capture of such a relatively small territory as success especially when taking into account the fact that Azerbaijan mobilized huge amounts of forces and military equipment.

During the April War, Azerbaijan has repeatedly violated its international obligations and a number of international conventions. In particular, Azerbaijani soldiers brutally murdered 3 elderly residents of Talish village; Valeri Khalapyan, his spouse and 92-year-old Marusya Khalapyan, and maimed their corpses. Vagharshak Grigoryan, a schoolboy born in 2004, was killed in Azerbaijani shelling in front of his school located in Zoravan village (Nerkin Tchartar). 2 other children were also wounded.

Besides this, according to the 2016 report prepared by the Artsakhs Ombudsman office, 90 % of the 28 soldiers of the Artsakh Defense Army who were caught in the control zone of Azerbaijani forces, were also brutally killed and their corpses were mutilated; many amputation cases were also reported (both alive and after death). 3 cases of decapitation were registered.

A footage of how the Azerbaijani soldiers were showing Yezidi Kyaram Sloyans cut off head to a group of villagers and proudly celebrating their heroic act was dispersed on the Internet. Some time later the official website of the President of Azerbaijan posted a picture where Ilham Aliyev was awarding the soldier who had committed that act of heroism.

The above-mentioned facts also clearly state that the policy of using military force adopted by Azerbaijan not only does ignore its international obligations but also encourages racism and war crimes which was clearly demonstrated during the military operations in April 2016.

April war once again confirmed that the security of the population of Artsakh can be guaranteed by its own armed forces only.

Aram Kostanyan
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Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) complained on Fox News about schools being closed and called for workers to be sent back to work at the height of the coronavirus epidemic.

Nunes complained about schools being closed, The schools were just canceled out here in California, which is way overkill. Its possible kids could have gone back to school in two weeks to four weeks, but they just canceled the rest of the schools.

He then called for workers to be sent back to work:



The vaccines are going to take a while, but look, we have this bill that we just passed last week, $2.2 trillion worth, we have to focus on keeping people employed. I will tell you this: If we dont start to get people back to work in this country over the next week to two weeks, I dont believe we can wait until the end of April.

I just dont know of any economy thats ever survived or you unplug the entire economy and expect things to go back and be normal. So the more tests that are out there, the more people getting testing, lets learn about the treatments. Lets get good data as to who is being impacted and lets figure out a way to get back to work.

Video:

Devin Nunes calls the closure of schools in California way overkill shortly before he argues we need to send people back to work within 1-2 weeks while citing optimism over Hydroxychloroquine pic.twitter.com/3pBHWdwlK0  Acyn Torabi (@Acyn) April 1, 2020

Nunes has been downplaying the coronavirus for weeks, so it is not surprising that he was on Laura Ingrahams show that has done nothing but showcase dangerous propaganda about the virus since the crisis started.

Rep. Nunes and his Fox News pals are going to get people sick and killed. There is no way to send parts of the economy back to work. This is a national crisis. The virus is everywhere, and Nunes is only making the situation worse with his downplaying and misinformation.
New month, same volatility. Kicking off the second quarter of 2020, all three of the major U.S. stock indexes dropped more than 4% yesterday in response to an update from the Trump administration. Late on March 31, the President stated the next two weeks will be painful," with health officials predicting a significant spike in COVID-19-related deaths.

As U.S. stock futures tick up on April 2, investors are worried the volatility is here to stay, and new economic data hasnt calmed these fears. According to an ADP National Employment report, last month, private payrolls fell for the first time since 2017, by 27,000 jobs to be precise. It doesnt help that new orders to factories reached its lowest point in 11 years.

In light of these developments, investment firm J.P. Morgan reassessed some of the names in its coverage universe. The well-known financial institution found that the impacts of COVID-19 have made several stocks riskier plays than they once were.

Bearing this in mind, we used TipRanks database to take a closer look at three stocks that have fallen out of favor with the firm. It turns out that the rest of the Street also takes a cautious approach when it comes to these tickers. Lets take a closer look.

Plantronics Inc. (PLT)

Next up we have electronics company Plantronics, which provides business and personal headsets as well as audio solutions. So far in 2020, shares have plummeted 71%, and J.P. Morgan doesnt see a recovery anywhere in sight.

After gaining more insight on PLTs standing amid the ongoing public health crisis, analyst Paul Coster acknowledges that its positioned to endure the disruption caused by COVID-19. That being said, he argues that it would do so with limited balance sheet flexibility, and thus cant recommend that investors do anything other than sell shares. Consensus estimates through FY21 are too high, in our view, so downward revisions could weigh on the stock near-term. This downgrade is not a call to short the stock, but we are sidelined on elevated near-term risks, Coster explained.

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Speaking to these estimates, Coster expects voice, headset and product sales to fall by 25-30% year-over-year during the next two quarters, with the video and services segments taking a mid-single-digit hit. The gross margin prediction also gets a haircut, by 200 basis points to be exact. We assume the firm bears down on operating expenses to moderate impact on cash flow... We expect sharp downward revisions to estimates to weigh on the stock near term, the analyst said.

There is some good news, though. Following discussions with IT VAR/Distributors, observed enterprise and SMB behavior and the monitoring of Google search trends, Coster thinks the company might get a near-term boost from the increase in headset and some tele/conferencing equipment sales as more people start working from home.

However, the analyst noted, ... we think this is a temporary demand pull-forward, and we also believe it is probably offset by the decline in enterprise spending on on-premises desktop phones, conference phones, VTC equipment. We are also concerned that enterprises will sweat assets coming out of a downturn and that there will be a decline in service revenue associated with lower installation and usage levels.

As a result, Coster gives PLT a thumbs down, downgrading his call from Neutral to Underweight. He also reduced the price target from $17 to $12, but the new figure still suggests 50% upside potential. (To watch Costers track record, click here)

The rest of the Street has reservations as well. 4 Holds and a single Sell issued in the last three months add up to a Hold analyst consensus. That being said, the $18.60 average price target puts the upside potential at 132%. (See Plantronics stock analysis on TipRanks)

Nio Inc. (NIO)

With the goal of being the first User Enterprise," Nio considers itself more than just a car company, offering high-performance, electric vehicles (EVs). Given that shares are down 36% in the last month and its engineering chief is set to depart amid ongoing reorganization, things arent looking good.

This is the stance taken by J.P. Morgan. Weighing in on Nio for the firm, analyst Ryan Brinkman states that while its Chinese name, Weilai, might translate to blue sky is coming, this isnt the case for the company. Against the current tumultuous economic backdrop, the industry as a whole is facing headwinds like weak consumer sentiment and the growing localized entry of foreign brands into the EV space. Fundamentally, we have two key reservations: 1) slow sales and a challenging NEV market; and 2) funding and financing, the analyst commented.

Based on Brinkmans estimates, PV demand in China is slated to take another 7% hit in 2020 as a result of poor consumer sentiment and a weak economy. In addition, the challenging nature of the auto market as well as steep competition from Tesla and other EV start-ups in China do little to improve Nios prospects.

In order to stimulate demand in China, the government will potentially cut the NEV subsidy in the second half of 2020, but this works against Nio. Further, the governments efforts to boost auto demand by easing purchase restrictions for NEVs could increase competition for NIO, Brinkman explained.

It should also be noted that Nio recently reached an agreement with Hefei Government for additional funding after a $200 million convertible note and two $100 million convertible bonds were issued. When the company receives the funding support, Brinkman thinks that Nio will be stable in the near-term with respect to cash. However, the five-star analyst argued, While the funding size and deal structure have not yet been decided upon or disclosed, we do not rule out the possibility of NIO needing further funding in 2H20/2021, considering the pace of cash burn. Possible equity dilution is another factor investors need to consider.

To this end, Brinkman assumed coverage of this stock with an Underweight rating and $2 price target. Should shares reach this level in the next year, Nio stands to see 25% of its value erased. (To watch Brinkmans track record, click here)

Turning now to the rest of the Street, other analysts are staying on the sidelines. With 2 Holds published in the last three months, NIO earns a Hold consensus rating. However, at $4.10, the average price target implies 55% upside potential. (See Nio stock analysis on TipRanks)

Diebold Nixdorf Incorporated (DBD)

Like Plantronics, banking solutions and retail technology systems provider Diebold Nixdorf has shed 71% of its value year-to-date. Add in a recent downgrade from J.P. Morgan, and its clear why this name has received negative attention from investors.

Writing for the firm, Paul Coster, who also covers Plantronics, isnt necessarily recommending that investors short the stock. Rather, DBDs exposure to end-markets heavily impacted by COVID-19 makes the stock just too risky.

Explaining this assumption, the analyst stated, Neither DBD nor Neutral-rated NCR stocks seem appealing at present, despite trough-level forward multiples, but we prefer NCR in view of the cash on hand following last nights revolver drawdown.

Based on the mounting evidence that COVID-19 is dramatically reducing foot-traffic in retail, hospitality and bank branches, and that field service resources cannot be deployed to deployments, Coster believes the bottom line will take a beating. We look for DBD to generate 2020 PF EPS of $0.33 on revenue of $4.1 billion versus consensus of $0.99 EPS on revenue of $4.2 billion, and we believe risks are skewed to the downside, he noted.

Having said that, should both revenue and earnings level out and improve in the second half of 2020, liquidity most likely wont be at risk. However, as Coster doesnt see DBDs leverage ratio getting better throughout the year, and the DN Now program might need to be ramped up thanks to swings in working capital, the long-term growth narrative appears weak.

In line with this conclusion, Coster downgraded the stock from Neutral to Underweight and cut the price target by $2. Still, this new $6 target conveys his belief that shares could soar 96% in the next twelve months.

Looking at the consensus breakdown, it has been quiet when it comes to other analyst activity. Costers downgrade is the only recent review, making the consensus rating a Moderate Sell. (See Diebold Nixdorf stock analysis on TipRanks)

To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.
Qatar is planning a bond sale to shore up its finances against coronavirus fallout and a sharp fall in energy prices.

Qatar, the worlds biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas, hired banks to raise more than $5 billion in bonds as early as next week to shore up its finances against the global coronavirus pandemic and oil-price war.

The gas-rich Gulf state mandated banks including Standard Chartered Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays Plc and Deutsche Bank AG for the sale, according to people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private.

The nation is planning the bond to support its finances as low oil prices and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic weighs on Gulf Arab states, one of the people said. Gas prices are closely tied to the cost of oil, which has dropped more than 50% over the past month.

No final decision on the timing of the sale has been made and the country may decide against the sale depending on market conditions. A representative at Qatars Ministry of Finance didnt immediately respond to requests for comment.

On top of the collapse of oil prices and meltdown in global markets, sovereign wealth funds in Gulf Arab states are channeling some of their billions back home to counter slowing economic growth triggered by the coronavirus. The decline in assets from funds in countries such as Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia could exceed $300 billion this year, according to the Institute of International Finance, the industrys global association.

Qatar, of course, has a large sovereign wealth fund, but much of it is not liquid and it also has large government-related enterprise liabilities, said Hasnain Malik, Dubai-based head of strategy at Tellimer. In the time of the coronavirus crisis, the potential for delayed payments from overseas gas customers, cash requirements for the sovereign go up.

Qatar, a country of about 2.8 million, has unveiled stimulus packages worth 75 billion riyals ($20.3 billion) for the private sector to help mitigate the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak and allocated 3 billion riyals to local banks as guarantees to back the finance and economic sectors.

The country has reported 835 cases of the novel coronavirus, known as COVID-19, and two deaths.

Market Turmoil

Qatar would be among a handful of high-rated governments in emerging markets to brave the market turmoil and sell dollar debt in recent weeks. On Tuesday, Israel sold a century bond in international markets as part of a record $5 billion deal to help the economy cope with the coronavirus outbreak. Demand for the offering topped $25 billion.

Government bonds from oil and gas producing nations in the Gulf have been pummeled after Saudi Arabia unleashed a record volume of crude into the already-glutted global oil market, escalating a price war with Russia.

The country, whose debt carries the fourth-highest investment grade at S&P Global Ratings, raised $12 billion in March 2019.

(Updates throughout. An earlier version corrected the period of the last bond sale.)

 2020 Bloomberg L.P.
A Lawrence Township packaging manufacturer was fined over $150,000 in safety violations Wednesday by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) after a worker suffered an amputation last year while cleaning a machine.

BWay Corp., doing business as Mauser Packaging Solutions, faces $151,329 in penalties following the incident which happened on Sept. 26, 2019, OHSA said in a statement.

The agency cited the corporation for two repeated and two serious violations for failing to use lockout/tagout procedures to protect employees from hazardous energy, according to the statement.

The previous violations, which were not detailed by OSHA, happened at multiple facilities between 2016 and 2019.

Workers servicing or maintaining machines are at risk of serious injury, including amputations, if hazardous energy is not properly controlled, OSHA Marlton Area Office Director Paula Dixon-Roderick said in the statement. This company must correct the hazards identified to protect workers safety.

The company has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to request an informal conference with OSHAs Area Director or contest its findings.

Mauser could not immediately be reached for comment on Wednesday evening.

Chris Sheldon may be reached at csheldon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrisrsheldon Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips.
South Korea's biggest internet portal suspended its real-time "trending topics" feature Thursday ahead of a general election this month, after controversy over politicians and their supporters trying to manipulate the results.

Accusations of misinformation and "fake news" have tainted political processes around the world and the hyper-wired South is known for its technological advances, with virtually every adult citizen owning a smartphone.

Naver said in a statement it had suspended trends temporarily -- the first time it has done so -- to "prepare for the possibility of an issue that can affect impartiality", with the South holding legislative elections on April 15.

The portal and its ilk are highly influential platforms as almost 80 percent of South Koreans are known to access via search engines, rather than directly visiting media outlets' websites.

"Trending words on portals have a tremendous impact on South Koreans," said Shim Mi-seon, a media professor at Soon Chun Hyang University.

"Many will click on the trending words, rather than browsing websites, to learn what's new," she told AFP.

"The words also give an idea of what the majority is thinking. Both as individuals and when deciding to vote, it's hard not to be influenced by it, especially when you don't have much time," she added.

When the country was rocked by an elitism scandal involving former justice minister Cho Kuk last year, Naver was accused by opposition lawmakers of deliberately making some trending words rank higher than others, such as "We support you, Cho Kuk".

Naver denied the allegations, saying its algorithm was impossible to manipulate.

Aside from the top trending words, Naver's most liked comments on stories have also been used -- sometimes illegally -- for political gain.

Last year, a provincial governor was jailed for his part in an online opinion-rigging scandal ahead of the 2017 presidential election.

He was found guilty of colluding with a blogger to artificially generate more than 88 million likes and dislikes on comments on news stories, seeking to rig Naver's algorithms to give more prominence to content favourable to the current President Moon Jae-in.

Naver's announcement came after another major portal in the South, Daum, permanently suspended its real-time list of most-searched words in February, saying the service had "lost its original purpose".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Korea's exports shrank in March, and the outlook is even gloomier for April due to the coronavirus pandemic in North America and Europe.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said exports fell 0.2 percent in March compared to the same month last year to US$46.9 billion. In February they grew 4.3 percent, shifting to growth for the first time in 15 months.

Average daily exports, which factor in the number of business days, plunged 6.4 percent in March even though there were three more working days last month than a year earlier.

Major exports performed poorly, with semiconductor shipments down 2.7 percent despite rising prices. A slowdown in consumption caused smartphone output to drop sharply, offsetting the benefits of rising chip prices, according to analysts. Exports of petrochemical and petroleum products fell nine percent and 5.9 percent due to plummeting global oil prices.

By region, exports to China fell 5.8 percent, to the U.S. 17.3 percent and to Europe 10 percent.

Chung In-kyo at Inha University said, "Factories around the world have been shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic, so Korean manufacturers have lost their main clients."


Eddb91860.yihfeng.com scored 40 Social Media Impact. Social Media Impact score is a measure of how much a site is popular on social networks. 2/5.0 Stars by Social Team

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As the media and investors whipped up a frenzy of COVID-19 panic selling in March, some corporate insiders (such as CEOs and directors) had an entirely different take. They calmly scooped up shares of their own companies at an insider buying rate we haven't seen in a decade.

Here's some useful market insight: When investors and the media are super-negative and insiders are buying in droves, that's often a great time to purchase stocks for the medium-term, which is at least two or three years.

Here's another bullish signal from insider trading: Many insiders are buying companies in the "wrong" places. They're decidedly going for stocks in energy, basic materials (such as chemicals) and consumer-facing businesses. These are all among the hardest-hit areas of the market, with more to lose in a prolonged recession.

This all adds up to the boldest "contrarian" insider trading buy signal that I've ever seen in the 10 years I've tracked insider activity as a starting point for investment ideas in my stock letter Brush Up on Stocks.

Here are seven blue-chip stocks that have experienced significant insider buying lately. Insider buying, like any other signal, isn't a guarantee of anything. So to improve our chances of success, we narrowed down a list of companies seeing heavy insider buying to make sure we're buying high-quality names. Thus, this list is made up of blue-chip companies with market values of at least $20 billion that boast enduring, powerful brands and/or some other barriers to entry.

SEE ALSO: 25 Dividend Stocks the Analysts Love the Most

Dell Technologies

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Market value: $27.3 billion

Insider buying: $26.2 million by CEO and founder Michael Dell

Purchase price range: $26.00-$37.00

Dude, you're gettin' a ... cloud?

If you still think of Dell Technologies (DELL, $36.90) as just a personal computer company, it's time to upgrade the operating system above your neck. Thanks to the purchase of EMC and a controlling stake in VMware (VMW) a few years back, Dell is now a highly competitive player in cloud services.

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"The cloud" commonly refers to arrays of servers, storage and software that companies use to better manage everything from online sales and employees to analysis of "big data" for strategic insights.

That EMC-VMware purchase has provided Dell with some unique strengths among cloud companies.

First, it's the leader in a cloud niche called "hyper-converged infrastructure." This is the use of virtualized servers and networking to help companies manage more data "on the edge." That means at local sites instead of in a more cumbersome centralized data center. Dell also has strengths in all-flash storage arrays, which offer benefits such as greater storage density and lower power usage.

Dell does still sell desktops and notebooks. It's a cutthroat business thanks to competition from the likes of HP (HPQ) and Lenovo (LNVGY). The good news is, Dell has been gaining PC market share for years.

Another plus for investors: Dell is founder-run, by Michael Dell, who has conducted some serious insider buying of late. This can help investors, as several studies have shown that founder-run companies outperform their peers.

SEE ALSO: 10 Solid Social Distancing Stocks to Buy

Keurig Dr Pepper

Getty Images

Market value: $33.3 billion

Insider buying: $988,238 by an officer and a director

Purchase price: $26.00

Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP, $23.66) might be small compared to mega-caps Coca-Cola (KO) and PepsiCo (PEP), but it's still a mighty little brand powerhouse.

It boasts the second biggest non-cola and lemon-lime brands - Dr Pepper and 7UP - plus other enduringly popular drinks including Canada Dry, Hawaiian Punch, Mott's, Sunkist and A&W.

Spawned from the merger of Dr Pepper Snapple and Keurig Green Mountain, this company also dominates the single-serve coffee brew market in North America. About 22% of households have its Keurig coffee makers. Consumers like the convenience of K-cups - even if they're darned expensive compared to regular coffee. One reason: Keurig offers a broad assortment of flavors and products thanks to partnerships with other companies such as Starbucks (SBUX).

In soft drinks, Keurig continues to roll out tweaked versions of popular brands and take price increases. Investors also benefit from merger-related cost savings. Management projects $600 million in cost cutting by 2021, or around 5% of sales. In 2019, the company reported 11% operating income growth on 3.2% underlying net sales growth. It also posted $2.4 billion in free cash flow. Keurig is using a lot of the money to pay down debt.

One issue here is that Keurig is majority-owned by the German conglomerate JAB Holdings, which also controls popular consumer food brands like Peet's Coffee, Krispy Kreme, Panera and Pret a Manger.) That majority stake is a turnoff for investors who favor shareholder democracy. But it does free up managers to prioritize long-term growth over quarterly results. As Warren Buffett often points out, this can be a big plus for shareholders.

FedEx

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Market value: $29.6 billion

Insider buying: $560,200 by a director

Purchase price: $112.04

Sheltering in place has helped shares of Amazon.com (AMZN) hold up in the bear market. Investors think all that time at home and the shuttering of so many brick-and-mortar stores will boost sales at the king of online retail.

You'd think the benefit would spill over to shippers like FedEx (FDX, $113.48), too. But FDX stock is down sharply during the March mayhem. What gives?

Behind the scenes, FedEx handles lots of business-to-business shipping all around the world. That's down sharply as the global economy cools because of COVID-19. It's gotten so bad, FDX has joined a growing swath of companies that have suspended guidance for 2020. Investors hate that kind of uncertainty, so they are selling.

FedEx has another issue: Going into this economic train wreck, the shipper was already dealing with the loss of Amazon.com as a customer. Amazon itself is moving into the shipping business itself, another challenge.

So why has a FedEx insider been buying stock?

COVID-19 won't hold the economy back forever. This is essentially a one-off problem (albeit a severe one). After the virus fears subside, FedEx should stand as a long-term play on the growth of e-commerce - and economic growth in general. Meanwhile, it holds a nice trump card. Upstarts would have to spend a bundle to replicate FedEx's vast infrastructure of trucks, planes, warehouses and 475,000 employees. This keeps competition at bay.

SEE ALSO: 10 Facts You Must Know About Recessions

Mastercard

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Market value: $229.8 billion

Insider buying: $265,000 by a director

Purchase price: $265.00

Shares of Mastercard (MA, $228.61) nosedived as soon as the spread of COVID-19 amped up worries about global growth. After all, as the second largest payment processor in the world, Mastercard depends on transaction volume for revenue.

But what if worries about COVID-19 and its impact on global growth are vastly overstated, which is my thesis? After all, there are many signs it's not much more lethal than normal seasonal influenza, and President Donald Trump is itching to get the country back to work.

If the economy snaps back fairly quickly, as Trump likes to project, then the pullback in Mastercard's stock is a buying opportunity. One director thinks so, given his purchase of over a quarter-million dollars' worth of stock.

"We view the impact of the coronavirus as a transitory event and fully expect consumer spending globally to come back once this event has passed," Mastercard CFO Sachin Mehra told investors in a March 10 conference call.

Of course, no one really knows exactly when that will happen. But once it does, Mastercard will still be there - with the same rich profit margins extracted from its asset-light business. (Remember: MA is simply a payment processor; it's not responsible for any of the debt.)

Mastercard also enjoys barriers to entry because it would be tough to set up a similar payments system, Morningstar analyst Brett Horn says.

Exxon Mobil

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Market value: $158.8 billion

Insider buying: $2.7 million by a director and three officers

Purchase price range: $34.00-$48.00

Over the years, Exxon Mobil (XOM, $37.53) had been criticized for investing too judiciously in energy exploration and production, but that had been a way to maintain financial strength and return cash to shareholders.

Relatively recently, Exxon flipped the script, aggressively ramping up capital expenditures in 2018 and 2019, with similar plans for this year. Now, however, with West Texas Intermediate trading down into the low $20 range, Exxon faces the high likelihood of reining its capex in again.

Russia and Saudi Arabia recently began fighting it out, triggering a price war, just as questions arose about energy demand in a coronavirus global slowdown. Shares have lost more than 45% of their value in 2020. But amid that weakness, four insiders scooped up a huge number of shares worth $2.7 million. Large "cluster" insider buying like this can be a very bullish signal in insider analysis. Obviously, they think the selling is overdone. If the economy bounces back fairly quickly, those insiders will turn out to be right.

Here's another potential positive for Exxon Mobil and the entire energy complex. Both Russia and Saudi Arabia are so dependent on oil revenue, they can't afford to let oil prices stay so low for long. "They are playing a very expensive game of chicken," says Mark Zandi, the chief economist of Moody's Analytics. They are likely to settle, he believes, and agree to production cuts, which would support oil prices. Indeed, Trump recently tweeted optimism of a price cut, sending energy prices spiking.

As for Exxon Mobil, the question on many investors' minds is whether the Dividend Aristocrat will be able to maintain its payout. Indeed, many energy firms have announced dividend cuts and suspensions of late. However, Morgan Stanley analyst Devin McDermott believes Exxon should be able to cover its dividend with operational cash flows this year. However, XOM might have to take on debt for any capital spending, which McDermott thinks the company will cut.

SEE ALSO: 7 Oil and Gas Stocks That Have Entered Dangerous Waters

AbbVie

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Market value: $108.4 billion

Insider buying: $508,732 by an officer and a director

Purchase price: $87.87

AbbVie (ABBV, $73.42) is like an investor who puts too much money into one stock. It gets almost 60% of its revenue from the blockbuster drug Humira, used to treat autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn's disease.

That's all well and good when competition from other drugs is scarce. Increasingly, though, that's not the case. Competitors with biosimilars and other effective therapies for the same illnesses are cropping up.

This has some investors worried about AbbVie's stock. But they are overlooking a few key positives. ABBV has been buying other successful drug companies, such as Pharmacyclics, which brought in the cancer drug blockbuster Imbruvica, and Allergan (AGN), which has key therapies in eye care, neuroscience, gastroenterology and women's health. (The Allergan deal is still pending but is likely to close in the second quarter.)

Next, AbbVie has a rich pipeline of dozens of drugs in development for cancer, autoimmune diseases and neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis. AbbVie also has an A-team sales force to manage these drug launches.

ABBV shares have held up decently, off 17% to the S&P 500's 24% decline so far. But an AbbVie officer and a director have seen fit to conduct some insider buying, snapping up more than a half-million dollars' worth of shares.

SEE ALSO: 7 Stock Picks That Analysts Are Actually Upgrading Now

Dow Inc.

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Market value: $20.1 billion

Insider buying: $1.8 million by CEO James Fitterling and two directors

Purchase price range: $25.00-$38.00

Dow Inc. (DOW, $27.04) sells a bewilderingly huge range of chemicals, foams, sealants and solvents used in everything from cars and cosmetics, to food packaging, footwear, housewares, sporting goods, toys and aircraft de-icing. They're also used in a broad array of industrial applications.

In short, if you wanted to find a company that was finely attuned to all aspects of economic growth, this would be it. Dow has a hand in just about every end market imaginable. Of course, when the outlook for the economy darkens, investors sell Dow. You can't blame them. It's the definition of an economically sensitive business.

But what if investors are wrong about the lasting negative impact of coronavirus on the economy? What if it turns out to have a fairly short-lived impact on growth, especially with so much fiscal and monetary stimulus being dumped on the economy?

That might be the driver behind insider buying from Dow CEO James Fitterling and three Dow directors. Since they have a better view of end market demand trends on their sales than we do, perhaps it makes sense to go along with their judgment and follow them into shares.

Only time will tell who was right. But insiders have made a sizeable bet here, showing a lot of conviction. Behind the scenes, Dow has been cutting costs aggressively, and it produces a lot of free cash flow.

Michael Brush had no positions in any stocks mentioned in this column as of this writing. Brush has suggested DELL, KDP, FDX, MA, XOM, ABBV and DOW in his stock newsletter Brush Up on Stocks. Brush is a Manhattan-based financial writer who has covered business for the New York Times and The Economist Group, and he attended Columbia Business School.

EDITOR'S PICKS



Copyright 2020 The Kiplinger Washington Editors
The Mumbai Congress on Thursday



urged the Centre to direct the RBI to announce a waiver instead of moratorium on loans.

Mumbai Congress vice president Amarjit Manhas said in a statement that in a moratorium, interest shall continue to accrue on the outstanding portion of the term loan.

Therefore, the Centre must ask the RBI to announce a waiver instead of moratorium on loans, he said.

"Similarly, banks must unconditionally pause all EMIs, including credit card EMIs, for three months. No interest should be charged on delayed payments for three months even if debit card facility is opted for," he said.

The RBI recently allowed banks in the country to provide a three-month moratorium on fixed-term loan and EMI payments to help millions of people with bank dues during the novel coronavirus pandemic.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
It's a situation unfolding in living rooms across the New Orleans area: amid coronvirus-related closures, parents are suddenly getting a crash-course in homeschooling, with some help from afar by regular instructors.

Some are still employed, and are struggling to balance work and childcare duties. Others, laid off or furloughed, are struggling financially.

But, for those who go to Catholic or private elementary and high schools throughout the metro area, most are still paying full tuition while the learning happens at home, as teachers work remotely to upload videos, create paper-based lesson plans and give grades.

In a letter sent home to families in mid-March, RaeNell Houston, superintendent of Catholic schools for the Archdiocese of New Orleans, said tuition would be charged because the schools would still be giving Catholic education "in a quality manner."

"This is a very challenging time for all of our families, including our teachers and school leaders, both personally and professionally. I respectfully request that we all work together in a spirit of collaboration and compassion," Houston wrote.

In a follow-up statement, Archdiocese of New Orleans spokeswoman Sarah McDonald said a number of tuition loan institutions were allowing parents to defer payments to ease the burden.

Memorial Baptist School in Metairie appeared to be in the minority, waiving the $475 monthly tuition for all parents in April and May.

"Most people are out of work, they're not working," Jerry Riggs, the head of school, said in a video announcement. "Everybody's fearful of the uncertainty."

Some, like Crescent City Christian School and Atonement Lutheran School in Metairie, were allowing families more time to come up with payments. Others, including Northlake Christian School in Covington, were able to tap into a needs-based financial aid program.

Most Episcopalian, Waldorf and Montessori schools either didn't respond or said they wouldn't divulge information about possible tuition relief.

Scott Griggs, the executive director of the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest  a network that includes New Orleans-based schools Isidore Newman and Louise McGehee, Metairie Park Country Day and most of the area's Episcopalian schools  noted that schools accredited by the agency had the autonomy to make decisions individually about whether to offer tuition breaks.

He said the schools had "a history of working individually with families whenever a challenging financial situation might arise," but were also implementing robust remote learning plans during the stay-at-home order.

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For some parents, the bills for private and parochial schools, which range from about $5,000 a year up to $20,000 a year or more, prompted mixed reactions after Gov. John Bel Edwards announced this week that the mandatory stay-at-home order would be extended at least through the end of April.

Mia Calamia, a New Orleans mother of a 4-year-old and 2-year-old, is one of thousands in the food or service industry who was laid off last month because of the pandemic. She said Hoffman Early Learning Center, where her youngest goes, has offered half off for the $1,000-per-month tuition, or credit for a summer session.

But she wasn't so lucky for her daughter's PreK tuition at Alice M. Harte Charter School, which is public but charges $600 a month for grades below kindergarten.

Although her husband is still employed, the family income has been cut by 60%, she said, and she lost the more affordable health insurance she had gotten through her job.

"It has been stressful for sure," Calamia said. "We worry about what we will and will not be able to pay. Daycare is our largest expense so it's especially hard to swallow that bill when we are having to homeschool."

Other parents who struggled said their children weren't getting the same kind of instruction from YouTube videos or Google hangout sessions that they would in the classroom.

Among them was Morgon Stonecipher, a stay-at-home mom of an 8-year-old who attends a Catholic elementary school in Metairie. While she was thankful that the teachers were sending home work, she felt annoyed at ponying up full tuition of more than $10,200 a year.

"We are paying for a service that we are not receiving a complete amount of," Compton said. "I feel that the Catholic Church could supplement teacher pay while this is going on instead of still burdening most of the families that are also suffering without jobs."

Kirstie Myvett, however, was among parents who defended private and parochial schools' decisions. The author and mom to a freshman at the Metairie-based Archbishop Rummel High School, said she was happy to pay full tuition of $8,850 a year.

"Why would we get a tuition break? Do teachers & staff not deserve to be paid?" Myvett mused. "My son is working harder than ever and I'm thankful the transition was so smooth because his school is on top of technology and already had things in place."
Japan Coast Guard vessel PS206 Houou sails in front of Uotsuri island, one of the disputed islands, called Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea on Aug. 18, 2013. (Ruairidh Villar/Reuters)

Japanese Destroyer Is Damaged by Chinese Fishing Boat After Collision in East China Sea

News Analysis

A Chinese fishing boat and a Japanese guided-missile destroyer reportedly collided in the East China Sea, causing a three-foot long gash that could have sunk the $646 million warship.

The JS Shimakaze guided-missile destroyer was on regular patrol on Monday night in the East China Sea, about 350 nautical miles west of Japans Yakushima Island, when the collision with the Chinese fishing boat occurred, according to Japan Defense Minister Taro Kono.

Kono confirmed the collision left a hole of about three feet long by three-quarters of an inch wide located on the port side, about 15 feet above the Shimakazes waterline.

No personnel were injured and no one from the Chinese fishing boat was missing. We are checking details, Kono wrote.

Kono stated that the Japan Ministry of Defense and Coast Guard are currently investigating the incident.

The 492-foot-long JS Shimakaze has a displacement of 4,000 metric tons under standard load and up to 6,000 metric tons under full load, and can accommodate a crew of 260.

Chinas Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying asserted that the collision occurred in the coastal waters of China and one of its fishermen suffered a lower back injury. She claimed the Japanese warship was sailing in relevant waters and endangered the safety of the Chinese vessel. She added that China and Japan are in communication to determine the cause and prevent such incidents from happening again.

The site of the accident off Yakushima Island is far to the north of an area disputed between the two countries, Japans defense ministry said.

In 1895, Japan claimed the Senkaku Islands (known in China and Taiwan as the Diaoyu Islands), located just 137 miles northwest of Taipei in the East China Sea. The islands were unowned before Japan officially obtained control, but China claims centuries of sovereignty over the islands. Both nations claim the islands and a surrounding 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) give rights to establish artificial islands and develop natural resources.

The United States has backed Japans claims since the Cold War.

The latest incident between the Chinese and Japanese vessels in the East China Sea follows a series of provocative acts by Chinas Peoples Armed Forces Maritime Militia (PAFMM), referred to as little blue men.

The PAFMM, with their steel-armored fishing boats, also provoke Vietnam and Taiwan forces in a bid to expand Chinas control to over 80 percent of the South China Sea, which encompasses an area of 1.4 million square miles in the Pacific Ocean.

The U.S. National Security Strategy (NSS) stressed in 2017 that China is engaged in continuous competition with Americaneither fully at peace nor at war. The NSS identified the PAFMM as representing a significant and growing risks to U.S. interests and values.

With $3.37 trillion of ocean-going trade and up to 22 billion barrels of oil and 290 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, China, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei and Taiwan are asserting economic claims to sections of the East and South China Seas.

China filed a declaration in 2016 of historic rights to a U-shaped nine-dash line extending about 1,500 km (932 miles) south of its mainland. After dredging to form several artificial islands, China constructed military infrastructure on several artificial islands to deploy anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile systems.

But when an appeal to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea tribunal ruled that Chinas claims were invalid, Chinese leader Xi Jinping refuted the decision, saying that it was invalid and has no binding force against the ancient rights of China.

However, the Trump administration in November 2018 promised ironclad and enduring U.S. commitment to the region and highlighted expanded cooperation with our partners in order to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Zodiacal light glows in the sky at the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope at the Paranal Observatory in Chile. (Image credit: Yuri Beletsky/ESO)

One of the sad things about the significant increase in light pollution over these past 30 or 40 years is that it is making certain celestial sights all that more difficult to see. One of these is a phenomenon that I myself have only seen firsthand twice in more than a half-century of skywatching. For someone who has spent the majority of his life in brightly-lit environments, sighting it was a real treat for me. The first time came in April 1986, when I led a tour group to the supremely dark skies of the Andes Mountains in Chile to view Halley's Comet.

The second time came in 2001, when I spent several nights in the desert country of southern Arizona, a trip timed specifically to coincide with a predicted storm of Leonid meteors. It was on the first night of that trip, under a magnificent star-spangled sky, that I again saw what I had seen 15 years earlier in Chile.

It actually crept up on me with no advance notice.

Related: Zodiacal light: how to see the mysterious glow

Where did that town come from?

It was around 3 a.m. when rather near to the eastern horizon I noticed some sort of a very faint, whitish, diffuse glow. After about a half-hour later, when I again looked in the same direction, I could still see the glow, although it now appeared somewhat brighter and appeared to be reaching a bit higher into the sky. After another half-hour, the glow seemed brighter still and now extended well up into the eastern sky. I was really puzzled. It was almost as if some town or a distant city had suddenly materialized from beyond the nearby hills and was producing some sort of light haze protruding upwards against the sky. I then checked my watch ... no, dawn was not due to break for at least another hour or so.

Then, all at once, I realized what I was looking at. "Of course!" I said to myself. "I'm looking at the zodiacal light!"

There was no need for me to feel embarrassed, for over the ages countless others have been fooled as well. In fact, the Persian astronomer, mathematician and poet Omar Khayyam (1048 -1141) made reference to it as a "false dawn" in his one long poem, "The Rubaiyat."

Reflected light from meteoroids

That faint ghostly glow was once thought to be solely an atmospheric phenomenon: possibly reflected sunlight shining off the very high atmosphere of Earth. Today we know that while it is indeed reflected sunlight, it is being reflected not off our atmosphere, but rather off of a non-uniform distribution of interplanetary material; debris likely left over from the formation of our solar system.

Photographer Jeff Berkes took this image of the zodiacal light and two Quadrantid meteors over the Florida Keys in 2012. Read the full story (Image credit: Photographer Jeffrey Berkes

These countless millions (or perhaps billions) of particles  ranging in size from small boulders to micron-sized dust grains  seem densest around the immediate vicinity of the sun, but extend outward, beyond the orbit of Mars, and are spread out along the plane of an imaginary line on the sky called the ecliptic (a path that the sun follows throughout the year). Hence the reason for the name "zodiacal" light; is because it is always seen projected against the zodiac constellations.

Though meteoric particles are concentrated in this region, they are widely separated. If, for example, the particles were of pinhead size and five miles apart, there would still be enough within the Earth's orbit to reflect the amount of light that is usually observed.

When and where to look

The best time to see the zodiacal light is when the ecliptic appears most nearly perpendicular to the horizon. For those in the Northern Hemisphere, the best time to see it is after sunset during February and March, in the western evening sky. The best morning views  in the eastern sky  come during August and September (though I made my Arizona sighting in mid-November).

Conversely, for those who live in the Southern Hemisphere, the best view in the western evening sky comes after sunset in August and September, while the best morning view in the eastern sky comes from late March into the early part of May.

Astrophotographer Jeff Dai took this self-portrait with the zodiacal light "dueling" with the Milky Way above the Himalayan mountains of Tibet, China, in 2016. Read the full story (Image credit: Jeff Dai

It presents a somewhat ill-defined shape, almost like a tilted cone, wedge or slanted pyramid. At the base of the cone, the light may extend some 20 to 30 degrees along the horizon (your clenched fist held at arm's length measures roughly 10 degrees). When seen at its best, it might appear as conspicuous as the Milky Way in brightness, but more often than not, contrasting only slightly with the background sky, it is so faint that even a thin haze or high cloud can obscure it.

Those who live in the tropics or at the equator are most fortunate, since the zodiacal light is always conspicuous from these regions. This is probably because from these locations the ecliptic is always favorably oriented vertically, allowing views both in the western evening sky and eastern morning sky through the entire year.

For northerners at this particular time of the year, it is just after evening twilight ends (about 90 minutes after sunset), that the zodiacal light should appear at its brightest and most conspicuous.

It would also help to use what astronomers call "averted vision." This is a technique used to see faint objects visually. It involves looking to one side of an object's position, rather than directly at it, so that light falls on to the outer part of the retina, which is more sensitive than the center of vision. For viewing the zodiacal light, this technique will put it on the most sensitive part of your eye, and improve your chance of seeing it.

The zodiacal light can be seen as a cone-shaped glow above the planet Venus on the left-hand side of this image. To the right in the image is the concentrated glow of the Milky Way galaxy. (Image credit: IAC/Daniel Lopez (elcielodecanarias.com))

Restrictions apply

As I noted at the beginning of this essay, getting a view of this ethereal glow has gotten more difficult thanks to the increase in light pollution. Only those who live far from population centers can still enjoy an old time pollution-free view of the heavens. The rest of us are handicapped, as I am at my home in Putnam County some 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of New York City. The big metropolis illuminates the southern sky up to an altitude of about 40 degrees, but it's light from local sources, such as shopping centers in nearby northern Westchester, that has caused my night sky to deteriorate toward an unacceptable level.

When the stars in a planetarium are suddenly turned on, lecturers are in the habit of ascribing to the beauty of the sight the "oohs" and "ahs" of big-city audiences. But perhaps some exclamations are expressions of disbelief by people who have never seen what the real sky looks like! Celestial sights like the Milky Way and Zodiacal Light can be appreciated only when the sky is truly dark.

Another challenging sight

On exceptionally clear nights, the zodiacal light might be seen to reach more than halfway to the point directly overhead. In fact, should you be blessed with such conditions  absolutely no artificial lighting, smoke or haze  you might also try to see the zodiacal band, which runs along the entire ecliptic and usually averages about 5 to 10 degrees in apparent width.

A panoramic view of the night sky over the Very Large Telescope in Chile shows several interesting objects: the Milky Way galaxy, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, zodiacal light and gegenschein. (Image credit: Miguel Claro

Also difficult to see, though perhaps a trifle brighter than the zodiacal band is the "counterglow" or gegenschein. This is a very faint oval patch of light about 10 to 20 degrees long and 6 to 8 degrees wide (overall, comparable in size to the Great Square of Pegasus) and situated exactly on the ecliptic at that point diametrically opposite to the sun in the sky. It too is interplanetary material that lies out in space beyond the orbit of Earth. It may appear ever-so-slightly brighter than the zodiacal band due to the fact that the meteoric particles directly opposite to the sun reflect more sunlight toward us than is reflected by particles in portions of the band that are not directly opposite the sun.

To see the gegenschein with certainty is no small accomplishment. It requires not only absolutely black skies, but unusual perception and visual acuity. Moreover, if it occurs anywhere in or near the Milky Way, it will be hopelessly lost in its light. The gegenschein should be centered about 10 degrees to the lower left of the second-magnitude star, Denebola in a rather star-poor region of the sky. Because of its extreme faintness, your best chance of glimpsing it is to use averted vision. Try this: look directly toward that spot in the sky where the gegenschein should be, then turn your eyes slowly to one side. Slowly returning your eyes to the spot, you just might be able to discern this large  albeit exceedingly faint  hazy patch.

Good luck!

Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for Natural History magazine, the Farmers' Almanac and other publications. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook
Aihik Sur By

Express News Service

HYDERABAD: A day after Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao announced the state-wide lockdown and curfew from 7 pm to 6 am, the streets were uncharacteristically empty post nightfall.

While most of the residents stayed at home figuring out ways to procure essentials to sustain till the lockdown period, a group of youngsters from Sanath Nagar went around the city, braving the curfew and the police, to distribute food to the homeless and labourers at night.

Mohammed Qadeer, a mosquito net-maker, and his friend Mohammed Ghazi, an auto-rickshaw driver, have been using their savings from the day of lockdown to feed around 100-150 homeless and beggars every day at night. What theyre doing is of significance: though there are many people distributing food during the day, there is hardly anyone doing it at night due to the curfew.

The Express chanced upon the youngsters a few days ago at around 9 pm and accompanied them while they distributed food packets to the needy. While Qadeer rode a motorcycle alone, two others were on another bike holding a large crate filled with food packets - comprising dal and rice.

They moved slowly looking out for homeless or beggars sleeping on the pavements. When they approached one such person who was sleeping in front of a restaurant at Somajiguda, there was a look of disbelief on his face when he realised that he was being given food.

They were stopped by a bike-borne traffic police, who enquired what they were doing out at night. After Qadeer and others explained to the police of their service, they were let go. This has happened every day till now. We are always stopped by the police, but they let us go when we tell them why we are out, he said on Wednesday.

They have now started distributing food in different areas like Lakdi ka Pul. "We are not affiliated to any NGO and we do not have any external funding," Qadeer told Express. The Sanath Nagar resident makes food at his house, with his family helping him in the cooking process.

"We take utmost care when it comes to hygiene and ensure cleanliness while cooking food," he said. However, as of on Wednesday, Qadeer said they have been facing financial issues and that they may not be able to distribute food for two days.
Last month, residents of Kiryas Joel, a New York village of 35,000 Hasidic Jews roughly an hours drive from Manhattan, began hearing about a promising treatment for the coronavirus that had been rippling through their community.

The source was Dr. Vladimir Zelenko, 46, a mild-mannered family doctor with offices near the village. Since early March, his clinics had treated people with coronaviruslike symptoms, and he had developed an experimental treatment consisting of an antimalarial medication called hydroxychloroquine, the antibiotic azithromycin and zinc sulfate.

After testing this three-drug cocktail on hundreds of patients, some of whom had only mild or moderate symptoms when they arrived, Zelenko claimed that 100% of them had survived the virus with no hospitalizations and no need for a ventilator.

Im seeing tremendous positive results, he said in a March 21 video, which was addressed to President Donald Trump and eventually posted to YouTube and Facebook.

What happened next is a modern pandemic parable that illustrates how the coronavirus is colliding with our fragile information ecosystem: a jumble of facts, falsehoods and viral rumors patched together from Twitter threads and shards of online news, amplified by armchair experts and professional partisans and pumped through the warp-speed accelerator of social media.

Zelenkos treatment arrived at a useful moment for Trump and his media supporters, who have at times appeared more interested in discussing miracle cures than testing delays or ventilator shortages.

Sean Hannity, the Fox News host, quickly promoted Zelenkos claims on his TV and radio shows. Mark Meadows, the incoming White House chief of staff, called Zelenko to ask about his treatment plan. And Rudy Giuliani, Trumps personal lawyer, praised him in a podcast interview this week for thinking of solutions, just like the president.

Few people have been as hopeful about hydroxychloroquine as Trump, who has enthusiastically promoted it for weeks as very effective and possibly the biggest game changer in the history of medicine  even as health experts have cautioned that more research and testing are needed.

That has not deterred Trumps supporters, who have vilified public health officials such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the most outspoken advocate of emergency virus measures. Instead, some are pinning their hopes on Zelenko and his unproven treatment plan, which has now been seen by millions.

In a phone interview from his home, where he has been in self-isolation, Zelenko, who goes by Zev, described a dizzying week filled with calls from media and health officials from countries including Israel, Ukraine and Russia, all seeking information about his treatment. Some world leaders, including Brazils president, Jair Bolsonaro, are also talking up some of the same drugs as a cure.

Its a very surreal moment, said Zelenko, who has been practicing medicine for 16 years. Im a simple country doctor, you know. I dont have connections.

The online spread of his treatment plan may have real-world consequences as countries consider testing the drugs he recommends on patients. Their popularity has also spurred shortages of hydroxychloroquine, which is used to treat lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and other chronic diseases.

In New Yorks tight-knit Hasidic community, Zelenkos sudden fame has caused tensions. Shortly after he posted on YouTube, a group of village officials wrote an open letter pleading with him to stop. They said he had exaggerated the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in Kiryas Joel, using a small sample of his patients to predict that as many as 90% of village residents would get the virus.

Dr. Zelenkos videos have caused widespread fear that has resulted in the discrimination against members of the Hasidic community throughout the region, the officials wrote, disputing the figure.

Critics have accused Zelenko of getting ahead of scientific research. Several small studies, including a controversial French one of 20 coronavirus patients, have found that hydroxychloroquine may be effective against the coronavirus. This week, doctors in China said it had helped to speed the recovery of a small number of patients who were mildly ill from the coronavirus. But other studies have contradicted those findings or have been inconclusive.

Anyone who tells you these drugs work, or dont work, is not basing that view on science, said David Juurlink, head of the division of clinical pharmacology at the University of Toronto. Theres reason to be optimistic, and theres also reason to be pessimistic.

Dr. Jeff Paley, an internist in Englewood, New Jersey, who shares some patients with Zelenko, said it was irresponsible for him to promote a treatment without warning people that the combination of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin can cause severe side effects if not properly administered, especially in patients with preexisting heart problems.

Ive gotten numerous calls from patients demanding the regimen, saying they believe Dr. Zelenko is magically curing his patients, Paley said.

Zelenko, who learned two years ago that he had a rare form of cancer, was not the first doctor to recommend treating the coronavirus with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, although he was among the first to recommend that they be given to patients with only mild symptoms. He said that while he was optimistic, it was too early to tell whether the drugs would ultimately work.

But hopes for a miracle cure have ballooned as the coronavirus spreads, and Trump and his allies are not waiting for the clinical trials to finish. An analysis by Media Matters last week found that Fox News had promoted hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine as a coronavirus cure more than 100 times over three days.

Tech companies have begun cracking down on hyperbolic claims about the drugs. Last week, Twitter removed a tweet by Giuliani that said hydroxychloroquine was 100% effective in treating COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Facebook and Twitter this week took down a video by Bolsonaro claiming that the drug is working in all places. YouTube later took down Zelenkos video, saying it violated the sites community guidelines.

Zelenko, who said he supported Trump, declined to discuss his politics in detail, saying they were irrelevant to his medical findings.

But he appeared to share the presidents initial skepticism about the virus. In early March, he posted several right-wing memes about the coronavirus on Facebook, including one that referred to the pandemic as a Dem panic and another that featured Hillary Clinton on a list of things more likely to kill you than the coronavirus.

When I see something funny, I maybe in a juvenile way posted it without much thought, Zelenko said of the posts. I never thought that I would be in the public limelight.

For more than a decade, Zelenko has been a fixture in Kiryas Joel, where a sign at the village entrance encourages visitors to dress and behave in a modest way. Unlike most of the residents, who belong to the Satmar sect of Orthodox Judaism, Zelenko is part of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement and does not live in Kiryas Joel itself, which has made him something of an outsider.

Ari Felberman, a patient of Zelenkos for years, called him a phenomenal doctor and said that if he had exaggerated the coronavirus threat in Kiryas Joel, it was only out of concern for his patients health.

When he spoke about how many people were affected, it was just to shake up the community and say, Dont take this lightly, Felberman said.

Villagers began experiencing coronavirus symptoms in early March. Days later, after Zelenko began treating patients with his three-drug combination and saw many of them improving, he created a YouTube account and uploaded his video that addressed Trump.

At the time, it was a brand-new finding, and I viewed it like a commander in the battlefield, he said of the video. I realized I needed to speak to the five-star general.

Hydroxychloroquine, which is sold under the brand name Plaquenil, has started selling out at many pharmacies nationwide. Some health systems have begun reserving their supplies for coronavirus patients, depriving those who take it for other conditions. At least four states have restricted hydroxychloroquine prescriptions to prevent hoarding.

HCQ, as hydroxychloroquine is known, is generally considered safe for clinical use. But it can be risky if patients administer the drugs themselves. Last month, an Arizona man died after ingesting a type of fish parasite treatment that listed chloroquine phosphate as one of its ingredients.

You dont want people stockpiling this at home, said Dr. Dena Grayson, a biotech executive who has helped develop drugs for Ebola and other epidemics. If you do get sick, you need to take this under close supervision of a doctor to make sure you dont drop dead.

This week, the Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, allowing doctors to distribute them to coronavirus patients. The agencys chief scientist, Denise Hinton, wrote in the authorization order that the drugs may be effective in treating COVID-19. New York also recently began clinical trials of hydroxychloroquine combined with azithromycin.

While dealing with his newfound fame, Zelenko, who has been practicing telemedicine from his home office, is working to keep his coronavirus patients alive. He said his team had seen about 900 patients with possible coronavirus symptoms, treating approximately 200 with his regimen. None had died as of Tuesday, he said, although six were hospitalized and three were on ventilators.

He is worried about his own health. One of his lungs was removed as part of his cancer treatment, and chemotherapy has weakened his immune system, putting him in a high-risk category for the coronavirus.

I have eight children, and I want to live, he said. Im personally motivated to find a solution.

Zelenko said he understood the need for clinical trials but added that ignoring a hopeful possibility was also risky.

Im a strong supporter of clinical trials, he said. But they take time, and thats one thing we dont have. The virus is here, its World War III, and not everyone has fully comprehended that yet.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
COVID-19: International community must step up to prevent pandemic from devastating vulnerable on the run

1 April 2020 - Given how quickly the COVID-19 pandemic is spreading, an outbreak is "looking imminent" in the world's refugee camps, crowded reception centres or detention facilities where migrant families are sheltering, the Executive Director of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Wednesday.

"An outbreak of a respiratory disease like COVID-19 could spread easily through the overcrowded confines and unsafe conditions typical of many camps or settlements", Henrietta Fore said in a statement. "Families in these environments would be more likely to get sick and less capable of fighting off the disease because of inadequate services"

She pointed out that there are 31 million children who have been uprooted from their homes, including over 17 million internally displaced, 12.7 million refugees and 1.1 million asylum seekers  all needing some form of assistance.

"Most of them do not have the luxury of calling a doctor when sick, of washing their hands whenever they need to, or of practicing physical distancing to stop disease transmission", detailed the UNICEF chief.

Curtailing the spread

Ms. Fore maintained that any public health response to the pandemic should "reach the most vulnerable, including refugees, migrants and those who are internally displaced".

This means equitable access to testing and treatment as well as to prevention information, water and sanitation services. Moreover, there should be plans in place for safe, family-based protection and support for children who are unable to be with their caregivers.

It also means that containment measures  such as border closures and movement restrictions  should not block rights of children to seek asylum and reunite with family members or hinder aid agencies' efforts to provide humanitarian assistance.

"Uprooted children and families should be moved quickly out of harm's way to adequate accommodations where they have access to water, soap, physical distancing and safety", Ms. Fore spelled out.

Working on the ground

Currently, UNICEF is working with partners to prevent the disease from spreading among refugee, migrant and displaced communities by promoting hygiene practices that help thwart transmission.

It is also developing accurate, child-friendly information on COVID-19 along with materials to fight stigma and promote positive parenting. Likewise, the UN agency is distributing hygiene supplies and providing access to water.

"But we cannot do this alone", stressed the UNICEF chief. "Now, more than ever, governments and the international community should come together to protect the most vulnerable in these unprecedented times".

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Virus Outbreak Bangladesh People line up to shop for essential items from a roadside truck Wednesday, March 25, 2020 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms for most people, but for some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness or death. (AP Photo/Al-emrun Garjon)

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP)  Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina appealed on Wednesday to all citizens to stay at home and avoid any gatherings to slow the transmission of the coronavirus.

In particular, she urged hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshis who worked abroad and recently returned to the country from virus-hit countries to isolate themselves at home for 14 days.

It is essential to follow the directives to save the lives of your family members, neighbors, and ultimately all of your countrymen, she said in a televised address. Do not leave home unless it's an emergency."

Experts say there is a high risk that people who returned in recent weeks and attended social gatherings will spread the virus.

Bangladesh is a densely populated delta nation. About 10 million of its citizens work abroad.

Hasina also announced a number of programs to provide free food and cash to the country's poorest people.

"Many people have become unemployed because of the coronavirus epidemic. We need to stand beside them. Members of the lower income groups will receive assistance in their own villages ... homeless and landless people will get free housing, food for six months and cash incentives, Hasina said.

She also declared a stimulus package for the country's export-oriented manufacturers, including the large garment industry, to help pay millions of workers.

Bangladesh's garment industry is the world's second largest after China's. It annually earns about $30 billion from exports of garment products, mainly to the United States and Europe.

The sector has employed about 4 million workers, mainly women from rural Bangladesh. Industry officials say many big orders have already been canceled by Western buyers because of the impact of the virus globally.

The country will go on a 10-day general holiday during which it will suspend all passenger trains, buses and flights until April 4 to slow the spread of the virus.

It has reported 39 confirmed cases of the virus and five deaths.
A 52-year-old coronavirus



patient died in Gujarat's Vadodara district early Thursday morning, an official said.

The man was admitted to SSG Hospital in Vadodara on March 19 after he returned from Sri Lanka and tested positive for coronavirus, principal secretary (health) Jayanti Ravi told reporters in Gandhinagar.

With this, the COVID-29 death toll in the state has reached seven, she said.

So far, there are 87 COVID-19 cases in the state.

No new case has been reported in the state in the last 12 hours.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Asian News International

New data from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has provided the strongest evidence yet for mid-sized black holes in the Universe.

Hubble confirms that this "intermediate-mass" black hole dwells inside a dense star cluster.

Intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) are a long-sought 'missing link' in black hole evolution. There have been a few other IMBH candidates found to date.

They are smaller than the supermassive black holes that lie at the cores of large galaxies but larger than stellar-mass black holes formed by the collapse of massive stars. This new black hole is over 50 000 times the mass of our Sun.

IMBHs are hard to find.

"Intermediate-mass black holes are very elusive objects, and so it is critical to carefully consider and rule out alternative explanations for each candidate. That is what Hubble has allowed us to do for our candidate," said Dacheng Lin of the University of New Hampshire, principal investigator of the stud1.

Lin and his team used Hubble to follow up on leads from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the European Space Agency's X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton), which carries three high-throughput X-ray telescopes and an optical monitor to make long uninterrupted exposures providing highly sensitive observations.

"Adding further X-ray observations allowed us to understand the total energy output. This helps us to understand the type of star that was disrupted by the black hole," said team member Natalie Webb of the Universite de Toulouse in France.

In 2006 these high-energy satellites detected a powerful flare of X-rays, but it was not clear if they originated from inside or outside of our galaxy. Researchers attributed it to a star being torn apart after coming too close to a gravitationally powerful compact object, like a black hole.

Surprisingly, the X-ray source, named 3XMM J215022.4-055108, was not located in the centre of a galaxy, where massive black holes normally reside.

This raised hopes that an IMBH was the culprit, but first another possible source of the X-ray flare had to be ruled out: a neutron star in our own Milky Way galaxy, cooling off after being heated to a very high temperature. Neutron stars are the extremely dense remnants of an exploded star.

Hubble was pointed at the X-ray source to resolve its precise location. Deep, high-resolution imaging confirmed that the X-rays emanated not from an isolated source in our galaxy, but instead in a distant, dense star cluster on the outskirts of another galaxy -- just the sort of place astronomers expected to find an IMBH.

Previous Hubble research has shown that the more massive the galaxy, the more massive its black hole. Therefore, this new result suggests that the star cluster that is home to 3XMM J215022.4-055108 may be the stripped-down core of a lower-mass dwarf galaxy that has been gravitationally and tidally disrupted by its close interactions with its current larger galaxy host.

IMBHs have been particularly difficult to find because they are smaller and less active than supermassive black holes; they do not have readily available sources of fuel, nor do they have a gravitational pull that is strong enough for them to be constantly drawing in stars and other cosmic material and producing the tell-tale X-ray glow.

Astronomers, therefore, have to catch an IMBH red-handed in the relatively rare act of gobbling up a star. Lin and his colleagues combed through the XMM-Newton data archive, searching hundreds of thousands of sources to find this one IMBH candidate. Once found, the X-ray glow from the shredded star allowed astronomers to estimate the black hole's mass.

Confirming one IMBH opens the door to the possibility that many more lurk undetected in the dark, waiting to be given away by a star passing too close. Lin plans to continue this meticulous detective work, using the methods his team has proved successful.

"Studying the origin and evolution of the intermediate-mass black holes will finally give an answer as to how the supermassive black holes that we find in the centres of massive galaxies came to exist," added Webb.

Black holes are one of the most extreme environments humans are aware of, and so they are a testing ground for the laws of physics and our understanding of how the Universe works.

Does a supermassive black hole grow from an IMBH? How do IMBHs themselves form? Are dense star clusters their favoured home? With a confident conclusion to one mystery, Lin and other black hole astronomers find they have many more exciting questions to pursue.
 CNNs Amanpour Condemns power grab By Israels Prime Minister and Others | Main | Reuters Arabic Misidentifies Dome of Rock 

April 02, 2020

When Palestinians Like Checkpoints

To some pundits, it goes without saying that checkpoints in the West Bank should be discussed with the bleakest of terms.

The checkpoints Israel erected in the West Bank during waves of Palestinian suicide bombings are understood by Israelis to be life-saving, and there is no shortage of examples they could point to of would-be bombers stopped at a checkpoint before they could reach their target.

Outside of Israel, though, they are often cast in a different light. They inflict "moral and physical suffering" for no other reason than to "humiliate and intimidate another people," insisted a pair of foreign visitors to the West Bank wrote the New York Times international edition, having once passed through a checkpoint.

"I can no longer endure the anxiety" caused in part by traffic created by checkpoints, insisted Raja Shehadeh, a frequent New York Times contributor who just last week absurdly claimed Israel's curfew on the West Bank in 2002 was imposed as "normal life" continued in the Jewish state, though 2002 was a year of relentless Palestinian suicide bombings and hundreds of Israeli deaths, unprecedented in Israeli history.

"Some of the checkpoints create terror rather than prevent it," declared the head of an advocacy group.

It was striking, then, to hear NPR correspondent Daniel Estrin reference West Bank checkpoints this Tuesday on Morning Edition as follows:

There are over a hundred cases of Palestinians who have caught the [corona]virus in the West Bank.  And Palestinian authorities very quickly imposed lockdowns even earlier than Israel did, much stricter lockdowns. It's very difficult to move around in the West Bank. Palestinians can't drive between cities. There are checkpoints that Palestinian security officials have set up. And Palestinians are rallying around their leadership right now. They like these strict measures.

The approval of these "strict measures" makes sense. Burdensome interventions like checkpoints are sometimes necessary to save Palestinian lives. When the alternative is hospitalization or death for sick Palestinians, they not only can handle restrictions on movement, but welcome them.

Editors rushing to print hyperbole about Israeli measures might also keep in mind that burdensome interventions like checkpoints are also sometimes necessary to save Israeli lives, too.

Posted by gi at April 2, 2020 11:14 AM

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ITV and the BBC are set to pause programmes at 8pm tonight to join millions of Britons for the second weekly Clap for our Carers celebration.

The broadcasters will halt their scheduled programming to pay tribute to the NHS and all other key workers as the nation battles the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week, people from around the country stood out on their doorsteps to clap for a minute as a thank you for the brave NHS staff on the frontlines.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson was photographed outside Number 10 alongside his chancellor Rishi Sunak.

Thousands of Britons are planning to stand on their doorsteps this evening #ClapforOurCarers

Last week, thousands of people filmed themselves clapping to honour NHS and other frontline staff who are risking their own lives in battling the coronavirus

Among those being honoured this evening are the cleaners and NHS ancillary staff

Hours after being photographed celebrating the NHS, Mr Johnson was forced into self-isolation after being diagnosed with Covid-19.

Tonight's Clap for our Carers event, which is scheduled for 8pm, will concentrate on healthcare workers, emergency services, armed services, delivery drivers, shop workers, teachers, waste collectors, manufacturers, postal workers, cleaners, vets, engineers and 'all those who are out there making an unbelievable difference to our lives in these challenging times'.

People are asked to come to their front doors or windows - while maintaining social distancing rules - and clap for a full minute.

Similar expressions of gratitude have been held in Italy and Spain, which have been hit incredibly hard by the coronavirus outbreak.

To encourage even more people to take part in tonight's exercise, ITV is pausing the Martin Lewis Money Programme which is due to start at 8pm to allow people to support the NHS.

Carolyn McCall, Chief Executive at ITV, said: 'ITV is joining the rest of the country in thanking everyone in the NHS and carers who are doing such a vital and fantastic role - so we will pause our programming at 8pm to applaud the heroes within the NHS for the remarkable efforts they are making, and raise as much money for NHS charities as we can thanks to our viewers' generosity.'

The BBC will also pause its usual programming and will instead broadcast live coverage of the second Clap for our Carers event from 8pm until 8:05pm.

Creator of the #Clapforourcarers movement Annemarie Plas said: 'I am really delighted that ITV is backing the initiative to clap for all who there are out there taking care of us, and helping keep that Thursday 8pm moment alive.'

Tonight's event also celebrates other workers whose efforts are keeping the country going

Retail workers, cleaners and bin men are also performing vital roles during the ongoing crisis

One social media user claimed they were 'so damn proud' about the efforts of NHS staff

Last week, Boris Johnson joined the British people in clapping from the steps of Downing Street just hours before it was confirmed had developed Covid-19 symptoms

The government has faced criticism over its failure to test enough people for Covid-19, including the 500,000 NHS frontline workers.

Mr Johnson said: 'We're also massively increasing testing.

'I want to say a special word about testing because it is so important. As I have said for weeks and weeks, this is the way through: this is how we will unlock the coronavirus puzzle, this is how we will defeat it in the end.'

Johnson's message, posted on Twitter on Wednesday evening, followed pledges from his ministers to accelerate testing in the days and weeks ahead after a slew of sometimes contradictory statements on the numbers already checked.

People from around the country stood outside briefly, pictured here across the road from the Wythenshawe Hospital in Manchester

Kensington Palace released a photograph of Princes George and Louis along with their sister Princess Charlotte getting involved in the celebration

Even police officers got involved in last week's celebration, pictured here outside the Royal Liverpool University Hospital

While Germany has been testing about 500,000 people a week, Britain's current capacity is about 13,000 a day, a figure the government said it was aiming to double by mid-April.

Tests are essential for both fighting the virus and nursing the economy back to health after what is expected to be the worst quarter in around a century.

Testing frontline health staff allows those with immunity to return to work while broader testing of the population would allow tens of millions of idled workers back to work.

So far, tests have been focused on those suspected to have the virus and admitted to hospital, but the government plans to increase testing of frontline healthcare staff to hundreds of thousands in coming weeks.

He added: 'What we need to do is massively ramp up not just tests so that you can know whether you have had the disease in the past - so-called antibody tests - so that will enable you to go to work in the confidence that you can't be infected or infectious.'

Ministers have suggested shortages of necessary chemicals were a factor, though the industry has said the necessary reagents are being manufactured and delivered to the National Health Service.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 14:43:32|Editor: huaxia

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LOS ANGELES, April 1 (Xinhua) -- A train operator was charged on Wednesday for deliberately running a locomotive at full speed off the end of rail tracks near the U.S. Navy hospital ship Mercy, which is docked at the Port of Los Angeles to aid COVID-19 response.

Eduardo Moreno, 44, of San Pedro, was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of train wrecking as a result of the incident on Tuesday, according to a press release from U.S. Attorney's Office in the Central District of California.

After Moreno ran it off the end of tracks, the train crashed through a series of barriers before coming to rest more than 250 yards from the Mercy. No one was injured in the incident, and the Mercy was not harmed or damaged in any way, prosecutors said.

Moreno said that he was suspicious of the purpose of the hospital ship, adding that he acted alone and had not pre-planned the attempted attack.

While admitting to intentionally derailing and crashing the train, he said he knew it would bring media attention and "people could see for themselves."

In an interview with FBI agents, Moreno said that "he did it out of the desire to 'wake people up,'" according to the affidavit. "Moreno stated that he thought that the U.S.N.S. Mercy was suspicious and did not believe 'the ship is what they say it's for.'"

The train wrecking charge alleged in the criminal complaint carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison, according to U.S. Attorney's Office.

The Mercy arrived at the Port of Los Angeles last Friday as the number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases continued to surge in the metropolitan area. The ship, carrying more than 800 Navy medical personnel and support staff, will provide 1,000 hospital beds as a "referral hospital" to treat non-COVID-19 patients. It will help relieve the strain being put on local hospitals by the pandemic.
I am a translator and interpreter for asylum seekers held at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, and elsewhere in the country. I had never imagined that there could be more urgency around the work I do. The detainees I talk to are afraid of being deported, or being held indefinitely. Some are sick over being separated from their children, and unable to protect them from harm. Over the past few days, those concerns are increasingly being eclipsed by the fear of being infected with the coronavirus and dying alone in jail.

Their fears are not unwarranted. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has reported that at least four immigrants in custody and five ICE facility employees have tested positive for Covid-19. The Office of Refugee Resettlement has confirmed four cases of coronavirus among minors in its custody, and at least one child has been placed under quarantine while awaiting results. Eight personnel or foster parents in programs in New York, Washington and Texas have also reported testing positive for Covid-19.

Leaked photos, videos, and audio recordings paint a grim picture. In March migrants held at the Hudson County Jail in New Jersey, where two people have tested positive for Covid-19, went on a hunger strike, demanding access to soap and toilet paper. In a video-visitation call to The Intercept, a woman in a Louisiana detention center held a sign that read, A women here with us is sick. She may have Covid-19. The other detainees are afraid they will also get sick.

On Monday, The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, or RAICES, released a recording of two fathers detained with their children in the Karnes Detention Center in Texas. They have not been given information on how to prevent the spread of the virus. They said their children are sick with flu-like symptoms. They live in a cell with five other people  it is impossible to put six feet between each person. They have not been given masks, disinfectant, or soap. Everyone is really desperate and I think this is all about to collapse, said one of the fathers.
[April 02, 2020] MG Capital Questions HC2's Appointment of Long-Time Falcone Insider as Chairman

MG Capital Management, Ltd. (together with Percy Rockdale LLC, the nominating stockholder, and its affiliates, "MG Capital" or "we"), a significant stockholder of HC2 Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: HCHC) ("HC2" or the "Company"), which collectively with the other participants in its solicitation beneficially owns more than 5% of the Company's outstanding shares, today issued the below statement regarding HC2's announced separation of its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer roles. As a reminder, we invite stockholders to learn more about our case for change and sign up for updates at www.ABetterHC2.com. Michael Gorzynski, Founder and Managing Partner, commented: "We believe stockholders should be very concerned by the elevation of Warren Gfeller to the role of interim Non-Executive Chairman at HC2. Mr. Gfeller is a long-time HC2 director and has longstanding ties to Philip Falcone that date back many years. He most recently served as Chairperson of the Company's Audit Committee, which oversaw a series of potential material misstatements and omissions as well as a questionable bargain purchase gain that we are concerned may have resulted in an increase in management compensation at the expense of stockholders. Mr. Gfeller has done nothing to lessen those concerns in the last month. After MG Capital sent a detailed, substantiated letter to Mr. Gfeller on March 2 to request that he address these serious accounting and disclosure issues, his immediate response was to send our correspondence to Mr. Falcone, who was the very person who may have personally benefited at stockholders' expense. We contend that the elevation of Mr. Gfeller-whose troubling response to our letter fails to give us confidence in his independence and competence-only solidifies the need for wholesale chang atop the Company. We believe that this shuffling of the directors' deck chairs is a reactionary maneuver that stockholders will surely take note of and question.



HC2 should refrain from further maneuvers that we believe are clearly designed to insulate Mr. Falcone and position him to continue to exert control over his fellow directors while still sitting on the Board of Directors." CERTAIN INFORMATION CONCERNING THE PARTICIPANTS

MG Capital Management, Ltd. together with the other participants named herein (collectively, "MG Capital"), has filed a preliminary consent statement and an accompanying consent card with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC (News - Alert)") to be used to solicit votes for the election of its slate of director nominees for the Board of Directors of HC2 Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation ("HC2" or the "Company"). MG CAPITAL STRONGLY ADVISES ALL SHAREHOLDERS OF THE COMPANY TO READ THE CONSENT STATEMENT AND OTHER CONSENT MATERIALS AS THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. SUCH CONSENT MATERIALS WILL BE AVAILABLE AT NO CHARGE ON (News - Alert) THE SEC'S WEB SITE AT HTTP://WWW.SEC.GOV. IN ADDITION, THE PARTICIPANTS IN THIS CONSENT SOLICITATION WILL PROVIDE COPIES OF THE CONSENT STATEMENT WITHOUT CHARGE, WHEN AVAILABLE, UPON REQUEST. REQUESTS FOR COPIES SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO THE PARTICIPANTS' PROXY SOLICITOR: SARATOGA PROXY CONSULTING LLC (TEL: (888) 368-0379 OR (212) 257-1311; EMAIL: [email protected]). The participants in the solicitation are anticipated to be MG Capital Management, Ltd., a Cayman Islands company limited by shares ("MG Capital"), Percy Rockdale LLC, a Michigan limited liability company ("Percy Rockdale"), Rio Royal LLC, a Delaware limited liability company ("Rio Royal"), Michael Gorzynski, a natural person, ("Mr. Gorzynski," and, together with MG Capital, Percy Rockdale and Rio Royal, the "MG Capital Participants"), George Brokaw, a natural person ("Mr. Brokaw"), Kenneth Courtis, a natural person ("Mr. Courtis"), Robin Greenwood, a natural person ("Mr. Greenwood"), Liesl Hickey, a natural person ("Ms. Hickey"), and Jay Newman, a natural person ("Mr. Newman" and together with Mr. Brokaw, Mr. Courtis, Mr. Greenwood, Mr. Gorzynski and Ms. Hickey, each a "Nominee" and collectively, the "Nominees"; the Nominees and the MG Capital Participants collectively, the "Participants"). As of the date hereof, Percy Rockdale is the direct owner of 2,422,000 shares of common stock of the Company, $0.001 par value ("Common Stock"). As of the date hereof, Rio Royal is the direct owner of 10,000 shares of Common Stock. MG Capital Management, Ltd., as the investment holding company of Rio Royal, may be deemed the beneficial owner of the 10,000 shares of Common Stock owned by Rio Royal. Mr. Gorzynski, as the sole Manager of Percy Capital and the sole Director of MG Capital Management, Ltd., may be deemed the beneficial owner of (i) the 2,422,000 shares of Common Stock owned by Percy Rockdale and (ii) the 10,000 shares of Common Stock owned by Rio Royal. As of the date hereof, Mr. Brokaw is the beneficial owner of 40,000 shares of Common Stock. As of the date hereof, Mr. Courtis is the beneficial owner of 237,336 shares of Common Stock. Except as described herein, no other Participant beneficially owns any Common Stock as of the date hereof. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005789/en/

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 2

Trend:

Radical reforms being carried out in the Republic of Azerbaijan have recently entered a qualitatively new stage, a source in the parliament told Trend.

Structural and personnel reforms being carried out in the Cabinet of Ministers, executive bodies, the judicial system are welcomed in the society, the source said. A new MP corps was formed through early parliamentary election on February 9, 2020.

In his speech at the first meeting of the Azerbaijani parliament of the sixth convocation on March 10, 2020, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stressed that in general, the election process was successful and the election results reflected the will of the Azerbaijani people.

To meet the expectations of the Azerbaijani society and voters, there was a need to reorganize the work of the Azerbaijani parliament in accordance with modern standards and carry out relevant structural reforms by ensuring transparency of the process, the source added.

"In this regard, to increase the efficiency of the Azerbaijani parliaments activity and strengthen the strategy of comprehensive reforms being carried out in the country, it is necessary to reconstruct the Parliamentary Office and the Department of Affairs in accordance with the modern requirements," the source said.

For this purpose, the chairman of the Azerbaijani parliament adopted a decree on structural reforms in the Parliamentary Office and the Department of Affairs.
A man who coughed on a police officer in the UK after declaring "I am Covid" is off to jail for six months, convicted of assaulting an emergency worker.

Adam Lewis, 55, told the officer: "I am Covid and I am going to cough in your face and you will get it." 

The officer was told that a man had been seen trying the handles of car doors in the area, magistrates heard. Lewis resisted the officer's attempt to search him and smashed a bottle of wine he was holding on the floor, police said. As well as coughing on the officer, Lewis also tried to cough up phlegm and threatened to bite him
DETROIT, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Stratview Research announces the launch of a new market research report on Air Barriers Market by Form Type (Sheet-Applied, Fluid-Applied, and Others), by Permeability Type (Vapor Permeable and Vapor Impermeable), by Substrate Type (Gypsum, CMU, OSB, and Others), by End-Use Type (Commercial, Residential, and Industrial), and by Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of The World), Trend, Forecast, Competitive Analysis, and Growth Opportunity: 2020-2025.

This comprehensive report, from Stratview Research, studies the air barriers market over the trend period of 2014 to 2019 and the forecast period of 2020 to 2025 in terms of both value and volume shipments. After a continuous interest in our below-grade waterproofing market report from the industry stakeholders, we have tried to further accentuate our research scope to the air barriers market. The report estimates the current and future demand for air barriers at the global, regional, as well as country level. The report also studies all the major suppliers of air barriers across the globe. The vital data/information provided in the report can play a crucial role for market participants as well as investors in the identification of low-hanging fruits available in the market as well as formulate the growth strategies.

Air Barriers Market: Highlights

Air barrier is a system used to control the flow of air in building enclosures. Energy loss and durability & resiliency of the building are the two most important forces that necessitate the usage of air barriers in the building envelopes. Climate zone is another important factor for determining the usage of barrier materials in the building. Temperature, general climate conditions, and the analysis of dew point fall within the wall cavity play a vital role in the consideration of the type of air barriers to be used. Air barriers in typical non-residential buildings are estimated to reduce air leakage by up to 83 percent, mitigate gas bills by more than 40 percent and cut down electrical consumption by more than 25 percent, based on a study performed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

The year 2020 is likely to be extremely challenging as major global economies are in the clinch of coronavirus (COVID-19). The outburst of coronavirus in China followed by its spread in the major economies is anticipated to strike an unrecoverable dent on the growth of the construction industry. None of the companies or materials used in the construction industry proves to be invincible from the coronavirus effect including waterproofing systems and air barriers.

The construction industry is anticipated to face a labor shortage, shutdown of various projects, legal issues and shortage of materials. While some anticipations have also been made that commercial (non-residential) construction may cause a lag of 12 to 18 months in the USA. Gauging the real impact of coronavirus on the market at this moment is extremely difficult as the situation is becoming graver day by day compelling the major economies to lock down countries and shut down manufacturing plants and construction activities.

Click Here and Run Through the Detailed TOC of the Report: https://www.stratviewresearch.com/toc/823/air-barriers-market.html

Despite the worrisome situation in 2020, the long-term market repercussions seem negligible. As per Stratview Research, the air barriers market is estimated to reach an estimated US$ 6.0 billion in 2025, offering good opportunities for the market participants in the long-term scenario. An expected recovery of the construction industry post coronavirus, growing need for the reduction in energy loss of buildings, growing concerns about indoor air quality, and increasing awareness about green building technologies are some key factors fuelling the growth of the market. Furthermore, there is also a push in the market by the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) and several states' energy codes such as Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and Michigan, which now necessitate the use of air barriers.

Stratview has firstly segmented the air barrier market based on the form type as fluid-applied, sheet-applied, and others. Fluid-applied air barrier is expected to continue to rule the market, owing to its ease of application using a simple and cheap instrument (roller, sprayer, and brush), reduced time and cost of installation, less or no dependency on the installer, and no use of fasteners. The sheet-applied air barrier is also likely to offer significant market opportunities owing to its ability to maintain the thickness of the membrane with special mixing material or installation equipment.

Based on the permeability type, the vapor permeable air barrier is expected to remain the dominant as well as the faster-growing segment of the market during the forecast period. The ability to resist air along with water vapor, slow diffusion of water vapor and aid in resisting the live loads which increase energy efficiency are some key factors fueling the demand for permeable air barriers.

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In terms of region, North America is projected to remain the largest as well as the fastest-growing market for air barriers during the forecast period. The USA and Canada have been the growth engines of the North American market, driven by an extreme cold climate, stringent regulations, rapid urbanization, and increased awareness towards energy-efficient and economical green buildings. One of the key factors behind the dominance of the region is the early adoption of air barriers by the design professionals and architects in the US states, such as Connecticut, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New York, Illinois, and Vermont, which recognized the importance of an efficient air barrier system. The outbreak of COVID 19 in major economies of the world may fade the growth trajectory temporarily, especially in 2020, but North America's attractiveness among all regions remains ubiquitous in terms of market growth and size.

The supply chain of this market comprises raw materials suppliers, air barrier manufacturers, distributors, and end-users (builders/owners, municipal authorities, construction contractors, etc.). Key players in the air barriers market are RPM International Inc., Carlisle Companies Incorporated, SIKA AG, Henry Company, GCP Applied Technologies Inc., The 3M Company, DuPont de Nemours, Inc., BASF SE, Dow Inc., Polyguard Products Inc., and Prosoco Inc.

Report Features

This report provides market intelligence in the most comprehensive way. The report structure has been kept such that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights on the market dynamics and will enable strategic decision making for the existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market. The following are the key features of the report:

Market structure: Overview, industry life cycle analysis, supply chain analysis.

Market environment analysis: Growth drivers and constraints, Porter's five forces analysis, SWOT analysis.

Market trend and forecast analysis.

Market segment trend and forecast.

Competitive landscape and dynamics: Market share, product portfolio, product launches, etc.

Attractive market segments and associated growth opportunities.

Emerging trends.

Strategic growth opportunities for the existing and new players.

Key success factors

This report studies the global air barriers market and has segmented the market in five ways, keeping in mind the interest of all the stakeholders across the value chain. Following are the five ways in which the market is segmented:

Air Barriers Market, By Form Type:

Fluid-Applied Air Barriers (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Sheet-Applied Air Barriers

Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW



Type Analysis: Self-Adhered and Mechanically Fastened

Others (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Air Barriers Market, By Permeability Type

Vapor Permeable (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Vapor Impermeable (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Air Barriers Market, By Substrate Type

Gypsum (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

CMU (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

OSB (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Others (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Air Barriers Market, By End-Use Type

Commercial (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Residential (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Industrial (Regional Analysis: North America , Europe , Asia-Pacific , and RoW)

Air Barriers Market, By Region

North America (Country Analysis: The USA , Canada , and Mexico )

Europe (Country Analysis: Germany , Russia , Switzerland , Norway , and Rest of Europe )

Asia-Pacific (Country Analysis: China , South Korea , and Rest of Asia-Pacific )

Rest of the World (Sub-Region Analysis: Latin America , Middle East , and Others)

Our other related premium market report:

Below-Grade Waterproofing Market by Material Type (Polymers, Bitumen, Bentonite, Rubberized Asphalt, and Others), by Membrane Type (Sheet-based and Liquid-coated), by Position Type (Positive side, Blind side and Negative side), by Application Type (Fluid-Applied, Fully Bonded, Self-Adhered, and Loose-Laid), by End-User Type (Commercial Building, Residential Building and Public Infrastructure), and by Region (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Rest of the World), Trend, Forecast, Competitive Analysis, and Growth Opportunity: 2019-2024.

About Stratview Research

Stratview Research is a global market intelligence firm providing wide range of services including syndicated market reports, custom research and sourcing intelligence across industries, such as Advanced Materials, Aerospace & Defense, Automotive & Mass Transportation, Consumer Goods, Construction & Equipment, Electronics and Semiconductors, Energy & Utility, Healthcare & Life Sciences, and Oil & Gas.

We have a strong team of industry veterans and analysts with an extensive experience in executing custom research projects for mid-sized to Fortune 500 companies, in the areas of Market Assessment, Opportunity Screening, Competitive Intelligence, Due Diligence, Target Screening, Market Entry Strategy, Go to Market Strategy, and Voice of Customer studies.

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Some 350,000 EU citizens trapped overseas by the coronavirus epidemic have been flown home, officials said Thursday, warning that 250,000 were still stranded, including the most difficult cases.

The EU has been helping member states and some neighbouring non-member countries including Britain, Norway and Iceland get travellers home where their return flights have been cancelled because of the pandemic.

The bloc has set up a special team within its civil protection arm to deal with repatriations as airlines around the world cancel huge numbers of flights amid travel restrictions and collapsing passenger numbers.

A senior EU official said that since the crisis began a total of 600,000 EU citizens had appealed for help getting home, either through their embassies or EU missions overseas.

"Out of those 600,000, about 350,000 were able to come back... leaving roughly 250,000 EU citizens outside Europe," the official told journalists in a briefing on condition of not being identified.

Returns have mostly been on commercial flights or charters by national governments, with only around one in 10 on special services operated by the EU's crisis management unit.

In one example, the Belgian government has carried out 25 repatriation flights to ferry people home, in particular Belgian-Moroccans stuck in Morocco.

The EU team has been coordinating efforts between member states and has drawn up a list of 25 problem countries rated with a traffic-light system according to how complex it is to get travellers back from them.

The official said the remaining 250,00 included "more difficult repatriations, in more difficult countries or tightening circumstances".

"Just because we are halfway down the number doesn't mean we're halfway down the effort," the official warned.

Part of the EU effort has been to persuade countries to keep airspace and transit hubs open to enable travellers to get home.

EU foreign ministers will hold video talks on Friday to discuss the international aspect of the crisis, in particular what can be done to help poorer countries cope with the epidemic, which has killed nearly 50,000 people around the world.

They fear that quelling the virus in Europe will not be enough if it continues to rage elsewhere in the world.

Explore further Germany to fly citizens stranded by virus home, warns against all travel

 2020 AFP
Of five new infections confirmed Thursday evening by the Health Ministry, three are related to Vietnam's biggest Covid-19 hotspots in Hanoi and HCMC.

Since several weeks, the Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi and Buddha Bar & Grill in HCMC have emerged as Covid-19 hotspots, accounting for a majority of new infections.

"Patient 223" is a woman, 29, from Hai Hau District in the northern province of Nam Dinh. She was taking care of a family member at the functional rehabilitation department of Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi. Between March 11 and 14, she dined and visited the hospitals canteen and met with many staff of the Truong Sinh Company, the food and logistic services provider to the hospital.

She started to cough and ran a fever on March 26, and was sent to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Dong Anh District for testing. She is now undergoing treatment at the hospital.

"Patient 224" is a Brazilian man, 39, residing in Thao Dien Ward of HCMCs District 2. He was a roommate of "Patient 158" at the Masteri apartment complex. "Patient 158" is among those infected from a party at the Buddha Bar in Thao Dien on March 14.

On March 27, "Patient 224" was sent to a quarantine camp in Hoc Mon District as the city tracked down people who had attended the Buddha Bar party and those who had come into contact with them. After "Patient 224" tested positive, he was transferred to the citys field hospital in Cu Chi District.

"Patient 225" is a 35-year-old resident of An Dong Commune, An Duong District in the northern city of Hai Phong. He has been living and working in Moscow, Russia for 10 years. He returned to Vietnam on Aeroflot flight SU290, seat 50D, on March 25 and was sent to a quarantine camp in Hanois Thach That District. After testing positive, he is being treated at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Dong Anh District.

"Patient 226" is 22. He flew back to Vietnam on the same Aeroflot flight as "Patient 212" from Moscow on March 27. He was quarantined at a facility in the northern province of Vinh Phuc. After his samples tested positive, he is being treated at the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

"Patient 227," 31, is an employee of the Bao Viet insurance firm and son of "Patient 209." He came into close contact with his mother from March 16 to 25 and was isolated at the Duc Giang General Hospital in Hanoi's Long Bien District from March 27 onwards. He was confirmed positive on March 31 and transferred to the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

"Patient 209" is a 55-year-old cook at Petrolimex Hanoi Co., Ltd in Hanoi. Between March 18 and 24, she had come into close contact with "Patient 163" at the companys canteen. "Patient 163" is a 43-year-old Vietnamese woman, granddaughter of "Patient 161" and lives in Hanois Long Bien District. She was a caretaker for her grandmother at the Bach Mai Hospital.

That makes "Patient 227" the first fifth generation patient of Covid-19 in Vietnam.

One of the largest hospitals in the country, Bach Mai is now Vietnam's largest Covid-19 hotspot with 42 related cases, 26 of them employees of the Truong Sinh Company.

The Buddha Bar & Grill in HCMC is the second largest hotspot, with the latest addition bringing the number of related patients to 16.

As of Thursday night, Vietnam has confirmed 227 Covid-19 infections, 75 of whom have been discharged from hospitals.

Vietnam declared Covid-19 a national epidemic Wednesday afternoon.

To date, the Covid-19 pandemic has killed more than 49,000, spreading to 203 countries and territories.
Srinagar, April 2 (IANS) Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) on Thursday installed and made operational the first disinfectant tunnel for decontamination and sanitisation at the CD Hospital Dalgate here amid the Coronavirus outbreak in the region. Image Source: IANS News

Srinagar, April 2 (IANS) Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) on Thursday installed and made operational the first disinfectant tunnel for decontamination and sanitisation at the CD Hospital Dalgate here amid the Coronavirus outbreak in the region. Image Source: IANS News

Srinagar, April 2 : Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) on Thursday installed and made operational the first disinfectant tunnel for decontamination and sanitisation at the CD Hospital Dalgate here amid the Coronavirus outbreak in the region.

Srinagar Mayor Junaid Azim Mattu, accompanied by officials, visited the Chest Diseases (CD) Hospital to inspect and kick start the installation of the disinfectant tunnel.

With the operationalisation of the tunnel, people, including doctors, hospital workers, patients and other attendants, can get sanitised instantly while entering or leaving the hospital premises.

The SMC has also taken various measures to curb the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic by sanitising all the areas where people were found to be positive for this deadly disease with specially recommended chemicals, including the quarantine facilities and hospitals.
Today

Brisk and cold with a mix of clouds and sun. There might be a stray flurry or snow shower later in the day, mainly north of the area.

Tonight

Partly cloudy, breezy, and bitterly cold. Wind chills close to 0 degrees.

Tomorrow

Mostly sunny and bitterly cold. It will feel like it's in the single digits and low teens.
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For example, the algorithm could notice things are going downhill by analyzing the language used, and then suggest conflict-resolution strategies, Hohenstein said.The study was an attempt to explore the myriad ways - both subtle and significant - that AI systems such as smart replies are altering how humans interact. Choosing a suggested reply that's not quite what you intended to say, but saves you some typing, might be fundamentally altering the course of your conversations - and your relationships, the researchers said. "Communication is so fundamental to how we form perceptions of each other, how we form and maintain relationships, or how we're able to accomplish anything working together," said co-author Malte Jung, assistant professor of information science and director of the Robots in Groups lab, which explores how robots alter group dynamics."This study falls within the broader agenda of understanding how these new AI systems mess with our capacity to interact," Jung said. "We often think about how the design of systems affects how we interact with them, but fewer studies focus on the question of how the technologies we develop affect how people interact with each other."In addition to shedding light on how people perceive and interact with computers, the study offers possibilities for improving human communication - with subtle guidance and reminders from AI.Hohenstein and Jung said they sought to explore whether AI could function as a "moral crumple zone" - the technological equivalent of a car's crumple zone, designed to deform in order to absorb the crash's impact."There's a physical mechanism in the front of the car that's designed to absorb the force of the impact and take responsibility for minimizing the effects of the crash," Hohenstein said. "Here we see the AI system absorb some of the moral responsibility."The research was partly supported by the National Science Foundation.Source: Newswise
An outbreak of COVID-19 among migrant farm workers in British Columbia is a reminder that Canadian farmers have to take every measure possible to prevent the spread of the deadly virus when international workers start arriving this week, says the head of an Ontario growers association.

Bill George, chair of the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, said the workers involved in the outbreak at the Bylands Nursery in West Kelowna arrived in Canada before Ottawa closed the borders to international visitors. Nevertheless, he said, it is a sign of what can happen if farms are not mindful of safety precautions.

Absolutely, this is a reminder of how important it is for us to take the steps to protect these workers and Canadians, said George, who noted a group of Jamaican workers are scheduled to arrive in Canada in the next few days. That means following all the isolation protocols and if a worker seems ill in any way, to deal with it immediately.

The B.C. outbreak was announced Tuesday by provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry.

Interior Health is investigating our first large community outbreak, which involves a group of temporary foreign workers in housing at a West Kelowna agricultural business, Bylands Nursery, Henry said.

B.C. authorities believe the workers arrived in Kelowna on March 12, days before the travel ban came into effect on March 20.

Bylands Nursery has been closed to customers, and the migrant workers continue to stay on the premises in accommodations Henry said were satisfactory for effective isolation.

These people werent going out into the community, but there was considerable mixing when they worked on the farm together, she added.

The risk of exposure to the general public is low, according to a statement from Interior Health.

Farmers across the country had earlier warned that migrant workers are critical to the agriculture industry and their absence could have tremendous consequences on food production.

The agricultural sector lobbied Ottawa to allow migrant workers through the travel ban, which it did two weeks ago. However, arriving farmhands will have to isolate themselves for 14 days, now standard protocol for any Canadian arriving from abroad.

Glen Lucas, general manager of the B.C. Fruit Growers Association, is optimistic that the agriculture industry will comply with health protocols and a similar outbreak wont happen again.

Were in a different world from when the Bylands event happened. I think Bylands is an excellently managed company and they wouldve taken all the precautions they couldve taken with the knowledge they had. With the new protocols in place, requirements are much more stringent and theres a higher standard there that an individual grower probably couldnt come up with on their own, Lucas said.

According to new federal health protocols, new arrivals must isolate for 14 days and cannot work, even if its at a distance from other people outdoors on a farm.

The protocols also say farmers have to pay their workers their full wage during the isolation period. Workers can be isolated together, but the 14 day clock must then be reset to the date of the person who arrived most recently.

Worker residences have to be regularly cleaned and disinfected, and if a worker shows any symptoms of COVID-19, the local public health unit must be notified.

George said farms will take a financial hit to pay for labourers who arent working for two weeks, but under present conditions, its a loss the industry is willing to take.

It is better to have them in (isolation) two weeks than not having them at all, he said.

Some farms are cutting back the size of their migrant workforce in order to accommodate the isolation and infection control protocols.

Niagara farmer Matthias Oppenlaender, chair of the Grape Growers of Ontario, said he is reducing the size of his workforce from 23 people to 12 in order to accommodate the space needed for workers to stay two metres apart in living quarters.

He hopes to bring the rest of his annual workforce to the farm in the summer if the pandemic has passed.

It is going to be difficult, for certain, but the most important thing is to make sure everyone is safe, he said.
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The government on Thursday engaged with leading IT companies like Microsoft, WIPRO and SAP for coming up technologies to roll out training modules for health workers and ventilator operators for containing the COVID-19 pandemic.

An Empowered Committee for COVID-19 headed by NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant also reached out to NGOs for management assistance for the pandemic.

During a virtual interaction with representatives of industry, which included Nasscom president Debjani Ghosh, Wipro chairman Rishad Premji, Microsoft India president Anant Maheshwari, Sindhu Gangadharan, MD of SAP Labs India and Rahul Sharma, president, Amazon Internet Services, Kant stressed on the importance of technology in rolling out training modules for health workers and ventilator operators.

Kant heads the empowered group on coordinating with private sector NGOs and international organisations for the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

"#NITIAayog CEO @amitabhk87 has reached out to all NGOs for #COVID19 management assistance, in conjunction with urging all State and District officials to harness the resources made available by these NGOs. The quality of this partnership will be key during these times," the Niti Aayog said in a tweet.

Also participating in the meeting Principal Scientific Advisor to Government of India K VijayRaghavan said there is an increasing need to not only leverage smartphones but also feature phones in accelerating the process of contact tracing and identification of coronavirus infection hotspots in the country.

Track this blog for latest updates on coronavirus outbreak

Briefing the empowered committee, Nasscom president Debjani Ghosh said that Nasscom has created a special task force which is focusing on utilising data and technology for COVID-19 management and has launched an online directory of all its actions.

Amazon Internet Services President Rahul Sharma offered the utilisation of their decision-making platform which leverages the usage of machine learning on open data, to the Empowered Committee led by Kant.

SVP & MD SAP Labs INDIA Sindhu Gangadharan said that SAP India has been involved in augmenting healthcare systems, working with NGOs and UN agencies, launching a platform to connect suppliers, along with assisting the Government in building predictive models.

Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi pressed upon the importance of the civil society and called on leaders of CSOs and NGOs to come together and complement the Government-led COVID- mitigation efforts at the Centre, State and Local level.

The group headed by Kant is one of the 11 empowered groups of officers constituted by Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla for planning and ensuring implementation of COVID-19 response activities.
Coronavirus Outbreak: A resident doctor from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday, AIIMS sources confirmed. Meanwhile, the source of his infection is not yet known but the doctor does not have any foreign travel history. The medic from the Physiology department is the seventh doctor in Delhi to get COVID-19.

Also Read: Coronavirus in India Live Updates April 3: PM Modi to address the nation at 9 am on Friday on COVID-19 crisis

India recorded a spike in COVID-19 positive cases by over 400 in the past 24 hours as the contagion continues to spread across the country. The sudden jump in cases is linked to the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin which was attended by around 3,400 people in early March. The authorities are also working to trace more of these people who attended the event in order to prevent the jump in confirmed cases. The total number of active novel coronavirus cases in the country stand at 1,764 in the country while the death tally is at 50, according to latest information on the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's website. Globally, too the picture remains grim as the US reported its largest single-day death toll on Wednesday. The UK also reported around 550 deaths.

Also Read: Coronavirus in India: State-wise COVID-19 cases, trends, list of testing facilities

Follow BusinessToday.In for all the COVID-19 live updates:

8.00 PM: Himachal Pradesh ropes in private hospital in fight against coronavirus

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur has directed health authorities to dedicate Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Government Medical College and Hospital in Mandi district for treatment of coronavirus cases.

7.46 PM: Second coronavirus case in Jharkhand

Second positive case of coronavirus in Jharkhand has come from Hazaribagh district. The patient had returned recently from Asansol, West Bengal and has been put in quarantine, informed Jharkhand Health Secretary Nitin Madan Kulkarni.

7.41 PM: Coronavirus update: Patanjali Ayurved promises 1 crore hand sanitisers

Baba Ramdev-led Patanjal Ayurved has promised to manufacture 1 crore bottles of hand sanitisers soon. The company said it has already supplied 10 lakh bottles at Rs 55 for a 120ml bottle, which is below the government-mandated price.

At 9 AM tomorrow morning, Ill share a small video message with my fellow Indians.



9 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 2, 2020 7.30 PM: Coronavirus in Delhi: Notices sent to Maulana Saad, others Crime Branch has sent notices to Tablighi Jamat's head Maulana Saad and 6 others named in the FIR in the Nizamuddin Markaz matter, news agency ANI quoted Delhi Police sources as saying. They have been asked to furnish a written statement on why the lockdown rules were not followed by them. 7.25 PM: Coronavirus crisis: Delhi govt seeks adequate forces at hospitals, quarantine centres In a letter to Commissioner of Delhi Police, Delhi Government has asked for deployment of adequate police force at hospitals and coronavirus quarantine facilities. "COVID-19 patients, particularly those transferred from Markaz are creating a law and order problem and commotion in the hospitals which is becoming very difficult for hospital staff to handle," the letter says. "Medical Superintendents of designated COVID-19 hospitals reported that patients, particularly those transferred from Markaz, are creating law and order problem and commotion in hospitals which is becoming difficult for the hospital staff to handle," Delhi government further said in the letter 7.19 PM: Nizamuddin Markaz row: MHA directs legal action action 960 foreigners Ministry of Home Affairs has asked Delhi Police and DGPs of other states to take legal action against 960 foreigners, who attended the Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin Markaz, for violating the provisions of the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Disaster Management Act, 2005, ANI reported. These 960 foreigners have been black-listed and their tourist visas have been cancelled after they were found involved in activities related to Tablighi Jamat, the news agency reported. 7.08 PM: Coronavirus in India: 1,965 infected, 50 dead due to COVID-19 According to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 1,965 confirmed cases and 50 deaths have been reported in India so far due to novel coronavirus. 328 new confirmed cases and 12 new deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours. 7.06 PM: Coronavirus in Delhi: Coronavirus patrols begin in New Delhi After South Delhi district, Delhi Police has started COVID-19 patrolling in New Delhi district too. A squad of 40 motorcycle-borne policemen will patrol the district and detain lockdown violators. They will also help people facing troubles and spread awareness about coronavirus. 7.04 PM: Nizamuddin Markaz row: 46 Tablighi Jamaat attendees went to Goa from other states Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant informed that 46 Tablighi Jamaat attendees have been identified and quarantined in the state are from other states. "We don't know why have they come to Goa. Their reports will come tomorrow. Search for more attendees is still on," Sawant said. 6.50 PM: Coronavirus in India: Chandigarh woman, granddaughter test positive According to Chandigarh Health Department, a 59-year-old woman and her 10-month-old granddaughter in the union terrritory have tested positive for coronavirus. They are primary family contacts of an NRI couple who have tested Positive for coronavirus earlier. So far, number of cases in the Chandigarh is 18. 6.30 PM: Coronavirus impact: Air India suspends contract of 200 pilots Air India has suspended contracts of around 200 pilots, who were re-employed after retirement, on temporary basis. The action came on the back of severe revenue loss as all domestic and international passenger flights in the country have been grounded due to the nationwide coronavirus lockdown. 6.15 PM: Kalyan Dombivali Mayour under quarantine on coronavirus suspicion Three more positive coronavirus cases have been found in Dombivali. These patients came in contact with the 25-year-old who had returned from Turkey on March 15 and then hosted his brothers wedding on March 19. Kalyan Dombivali Mayor Vinita Rane had also attended the wedding and is under quarantine since last week. 6.00 PM: Coronavirus: PM Modi talks to state govts Prime Minister Narendra Modi talked to chief ministers across India via video conferencing as the country saw coronavirus cases and deaths rise substantially in the past few days. PM Modi said the nationwide lockdown across the country should be lifted in phases to avoid crowding. He also asked CMs to focus on COVID-19 containment measures - testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine - over the next few weeks with to ensure minimum loss of life. 5.55 PM: Bollywood stands with daily wage workers in Corona times Bollywood celebrities have collaborated with Art of Living Foundation for #iStandWithHumanity to help 1 million daily wage workers families facing troubles in times of coronavirus outbreak. Local administration authorities like BMC and other organisations have also joined the initiative. This initiative has been started by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of The Art of Living Foundation, filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani and Producer Mahaveer Jain. 5.47 PM: Coronavirus outbreak: US senators seek suspension of sanctions against Iran Nearly 30 senators and Members of US Congress have written to US Secretary Micheal Pompeo and Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin to temporarily suspend sanctions against Iran in view of coronavirus pandemic. The letter states US cannot afford to be callous when 2,000 have died and 25,000 are infected with the deadly in Iran. 5.32 PM: Coronavirus in Delhi: 55 new patients traced back to Nizamuddin Markaz 55 new coronavirius patients in Delhi were found to be attendees of Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin Markaz. Two patients from brought from Nizamuddin Markaz have died in Delhi during the last 24 hours. As of now, total number of patients from the Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi is 108. 5.28 PM: PM Modi will release a video message at 9am tomorrow #WATCH Health Ministry briefs media on COVID 19 situation (2nd April) https://t.co/XA5Dwe329I ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020 5.21 PM: MHA asks states to publicise penalties on lockdown violations The Ministry of Home Affairs has asked state governments to publicise the penalties on violation of the lockdown. MHA had earlier written to all states requesting them to strictly implement lockdown measures by exercising their powers under the Disaster Management Act, 2005. 5.17 PM: Naval dockyard designs temperature gun Naval Dockyard, Mumbai has designed and developed its own handheld IR based temperature sensor to screen large number of personnel at the entry gates. The instrument has been manufactured under Rs 1,000 through in-house resources. 5.13 PM: 5,000 railway coaches to be made into corona isolation wards Indian Railways is converting 5,000 coaches to coronavirus isolation wards. The southern railway has been assigned with 473 on 5000. The Chennai Perumbur carriage workshop has to make 110 coach corona isolation units. Authorities have ten days to complete this project. 5.02 PM: India may change testing guidelines India might change testing guidelines. ICMR has recommended Rapid Antibody Tests in hotspot areas. Antibody positives will be confirmed by RT-PCT test (Corona Confirmatory Test). Antibody negatives will be quarantined at home. The National Task Force is scheduled to meet at 5 pm today to finalise this recommendation. 4.59 PM: 'Don't crowd places after April 15': Uddhav Thackeray Office The Uddhav Thackeray government has shared pointers on what people should do once the lockdown is over. "Once lockdown is over on April 15th, people should not crowd the places immediately. State government should have proper management plan to open the lockdown step by step ," it said. 4.55 PM: Govt to launch Aarogya Setu AN APP to track cases Governemt is planning to launch Aarogya Setu AN APP to track coronavirus infectives. The app, available in 11 Indian languages will be available on Play Store on Android and App Store on iOS. 4.45 PM: Ladakh patients stable The Directorate of Health Services, Ladakh said that the condition of 10 positive cases is stable. One repeat positive case has been isolated and one new positive reported from Kargil district. 4.40 PM: Tier-1 cities more coronavirus-aware In a study conducted by IIT-Hyderabad and IIT-Bombay, it was found that residents of Tier 1 cities are more aware of coronavirus outbreak than people in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. The respondents spoke on the impact of daily commute. A majority -- 93 per cent -- of respondents said that private mode of commute is safer than public mode. 4.37 PM: Lowdown of Tablighi Jamat attendees from each state, except Delhi: Tamilnadu -Attended Gathering - Around 1500 , Corona Positive -190 Karnataka - 1500; coronavirus positive - 143 tested Telangana - 1030, coronavirus positive - 53 including 9 death Andhra Pradesh - 1085, coronavirus positive - 97 UP - 157, coronavirus positive - 2 Rajasthan - 550, coronavirus positive - 14 Bihar - 162, coronavirus positive - none( Awaited) Jharkhand - 37, coronavirus positive - none West Bengal - 71, Quarantined - 54, no test conducted Gujarat - 72, coronavirus positive - 1, who died JK - 855, coronavirus positive - results awaited Assam - 456, coronavirus positive - 16 Manipur - 11, coronavirus positive - 1 Arunachal - 7, coronavirus positive - 1 Odisha - 20, coronavirus positive - 5 test result awaited MP - 84, coronavirus positive - none Kerala - 60, coronavirus positive - None Haryana - 927, coronavirus positive - 3 Himachal - 107, coronavirus positive - none 4.32 PM: AIIMS doctor's wife tested Wife of senior AIIMS doctor who has been found coronavirus positive is being tested for COVID-19. Her results are awaited. Authorities are tracking down everyone the doctor met. The doctor had no history of travel. 4.28 PM: Air India clarification "We are providing all the essentials things like sanitisers, gloves, personal protective equipment to the cockpit crew, cabin crew and the ground staff. Our cabin crew has been advised to quarantine themselves after flights," says Air India CMD Rajiv Bansal. 4.21 PM: Health ministry on Tabligi Jamat As many as 9,000 have been quarantined, 1,300 foreigners have also been identified. Contact tracing of Tabligi Jamat is being done. A total of 400 have tested positive in different states. Numbers are increasing. 4.15 PM: As many as 328 new cases of COVID-19 and 12 new deaths reported since Wednesday, says health ministry official. 4.10 PM: 2-year jail for spreading fake news Misappropriation of money or material in disaster-like situation invites 2 years of jail with fine; anyone making false claim on any matter can be punished up to two years of jail with fine, says the home secretary 4.09 PM: Health Ministry update on COVID-19 Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla writes to Chief Secretaries of all states, asking them to take strict action on violation of lockdown measures. "The penal provisions under the DM Act and IPC should be widely circulated and for violation of lockdown measure, actions under provisions of DM Act and IPC shall be taken by law enforcement authorities," says the health ministry officials. 4.07 PM: Watch health ministry briefing on COVID 19 situation in India Prime Minister @narendramodi interacts with CMs to bolster efforts to tackle COVID-19.



Press release:https://t.co/vtVqPxvB8s pic.twitter.com/jtx2iudsyr , HMO India (@HMOIndia) April 2, 2020

4.02 PM: Update from Maharashtra: Over 1400 people from Maharashtra attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. Out of which, around 1300 have been traced till now and are being quarantined in Maharashtra. Their samples will be collected for COVID-19 testing.

3.50 PM: CWC meet highlights

All state governments need to issue special advisories for categories of people vulnerable to COVID-19, says Rahul Gandhi

Lockdown may be necessary but its unplanned implementation has caused chaos and pain to millions of migrant workers

Govt needs to put in place a comprehensive strategy to manage this crisis arising out of coronavirus lockdown

3.45 PM: 'It's our duty to help administration'

Musharraf Ali Khan, advocate of Tablighi Jamaat Chief Maulana Muhammad Saad on FIR against Saad says: "People who visited Tablighi Jamaat (Delhi) should come forward & tell authorities about themselves. As responsible citizens it's our duty to help the administration & follow their orders."

3.40 PM: Highlights of PM Modi's talk with CMs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi asks chief ministers to formulate a common exit strategy to ensure staggered re-emergence of the population after the 21-day lockdown ends. The PM also asks CMs from provide suggestions on how to exit the lockdown.

3.33 PM: Prime Minister outlined the common goal for the country is to ensure minimum loss of life. In the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the areas of focus, he said.

3.28 PM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with CMs to bolster efforts to tackle COVID-19. He practiced social distancing while talking to the CMs.

{blurb}

3.18 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: Govt extends extend validity of health and motor vehicle insurance policy till April 21

The government has extended the validity of health and motor vehicle insurance policy between March 25 and April 14 till April 21 in the view of 21-day nationwide lockdown due to novel coronavirus.

3.12 pm: Coronavirus cases in India: Govt identifies 20 existing, 22 likely critical COVID-19 hotspots in India

The government has identified 20 existing and 22 potential novel coronavirus hotspots in India, PTI reported. It had earlier identified 10 such critical areas in the country.

3.04 pm: Coronavirus in India live updates: PM Modi's video conference with states! prime minister discusses foodgrain supply with state CMs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi who held a video conferencing meet with the chief ministers of all the states discussed the implementation of Garib Kalyan scheme involving Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) and foodgrain supply. Meanwhile, the state CMs asked the prime minister to ensure greater supply of personal protection equipment (PPE) for health workers and also sought quick payments of arrears. They requested PM Modi for financial help as the revenue collection has dropped due to the nationwide lockdown and sough clarity on the lockdown tenure.

2.55 pm: Mumbai coronavirus cases: First critical COVID-19 patient goes home

A 38-year-old techie from Kalyan, Mumbai who was critically ill due to COVID-19, a disease caused by coronavirus has recovered at Jaslok Hospital. The man was one of the youngest to be put on a ventilator in the city despite being a non-smoker, having no underlying ailments.

2.45 pm: Coronavirus in Delhi: AIIMS doctor tests COVID-19 positive; 7th medic in the city to get the virus

A resident doctor from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday, AIIMS sources confirmed. Meanwhile, the source of his infection is not yet known. The medic from the Physiology department is the seventh doctor in Delhi to get COVID-19. The doctor does not have any foreign travel history.

2.35 pm: Coronavirus in India: Sonia Gandhi calls nationwide lockdown necessary but unplanned

Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi said on Thursday that the nationwide lockdown is a necessary step to combat the further spread novel coronavirus but lashed out at the government for unplanned implementation. Addressing party members at a Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, she said that the lockdown "may be necessary but its unplanned implementation across the country has caused a lot of chaos and pain to millions of migrant labourers.

2.20 pm: Coronavirus updates: Delhi Police preparing list of attendees of Nizamuddin event

Delhi Police has identified around 800 people who visited the religious gathering at Markaz building in Delhi's Nizamuddin area earlier this month. The police according to India Today TV is in the process of preparing a list of the people who attended the religious assembly.

2.10 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: In Pics: disinfectant process in process in Nizamuddin

The authorities are carrying out the disinfectant procedure at Markaz in Nizamuddin area of Delhi which has developed as the hotspot of COVID-19.

2.00 pm: Gujarat coronavirus cases: D-Mart superstore closed after staffer tests COVID-19 positive

D-Mart superstore shut down its store in Surat after a staffer in its packaging department was tested positive for novel coronavirus. Over 1500 people were asked to go under home quarantine. Meanwhile, the health officials will also carry out door-to-door survey in Bamroli and Pandesara areas of Surat.

1.45 pm: Coronavirus updates: Lot of misinformation on foreign donations to PM-CARES Fund: Govt sources

There has been a lot of misinformation on the news of PM-CARES Fund accepting foreign donations, government sources said clarifying that the PM CARES Fund will accept donations and contributions from individuals and organisations based in foreign countries. "This is consistent with India's policy with respect to PMNRF. PMNRF has also received foreign contributions as a public trust since 2011," the government sources said.

1.30 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: Critical shortage of life saving medicines, says DR DS RANA senior nephrologist, Sir Ganga ram hospital

Dr DS Rana, senior nephrologist, Sir Ganga ram hospital said on Thursday that there is an "extreme shortage of Immuno Suppressant Drugs and Life saving medicines needed for Transplant , Cancer and other critically ill patients in India's far flung areas and Delhi NCR." He added that, "SGRH is getting desperate calls of patients about non-availablity of life saving medicines. Hospital is arranging transport and other means to send medicines in Delhi NCR but is helpless in far flung areas like Assam , Bihar and north east. Due to their co-morbid conditions , these patients are also in high risk group for catching Covid-19."

1.18 pm: Coronavirus in India updates: Nizamuddin event's permission was cancelled on March 6

The Tabliqi event that happened in Delhi's Nizamuddin earlier this month was earlier allowed to be organised with authorities' permission which was given in the month of January but the permission was withdrawn in March due to the growing number of COVID-19 cases. IG Niket Kaushik and SP Gaurav Singh withdrew the permission for Tabliqi Jamaat on March 6 and the event was cancelled. Over 50,000 people were supposed to attend the event on the outskirts of Mumbai with several foreign delegates in Vasai.

1.10 pm: Coronavirus in India latest news: Andhra Pradesh govt takes over private hospitals

The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to take over all the private hospitals by invoking the powers under the Disaster Management Act to combat the novel coronavirus pandemic. The YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government has issued an order concerning this in the state to contain the contagion.

1.00 pm: Madhya Pradesh coronavirus cases: Police arrests 4 people for attacking doctors in Indore

The Madhya Pradesh Police have arrested four people for attacking doctors in Indore. The police officials are now identifying the rest of the people who were reportedly involved in the attack.

12.57 pm: Coronavirus latest news: Provide hazmat suits, N-95 masks to doctors, nurses fighting COVID-19, says Sonia Gandhi

Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi said on Thursday that the doctors, nurses and other health workers who are fighting the novel coronavirus pandemic should be provided with Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) such as hazmat suits, N-95 masks.

To fight #COVID19, there is no alternative to constant & reliable testing. Our doctors, nurses, & health workers need all the support. Personal Protection Equipment such as hazmat suits, N-95 masks must be provided to them on a war footing: Congress Interim President Sonia Gandhi https://t.co/nwYwcvyGKb - ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020

12.53 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: DGCA allows use of passenger aircraft for cargo operations during COVID-19 lockdown period

The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in its circular on Wednesday permitted the use of passenger aircraft to conduct cargo operations during the COVID-19 lockdown period. "Considering the extra-ordinary situation the country is facing, permission may be given to scheduled/ non-scheduled operators to use the available passenger category aircraft (without configuration change) for carriage of cargo," DGCA said in its circular.

12.45 pm: India coronavirus lockdown updates: Air India clarifies the flight with COVID-19 positive crew was a regular flight

Air India clarified on Thursday that the cab crew which has been tested positive for COVID-19 was a part of a regular flight to the US and not an evacuation flight.

12.38 pm: Coronavirus updates: Gautam Gambhir donates 2 years' salary to PM-CARES Fund

Former cricketer and BJP MP Gautam Gambhir said on Thursday that he has donated his two years' salary to PM-CARES Fund. "People ask what can their country do for them. The real question is what can you do for your country? I am donating my 2 year's salary to #PMCaresFund. You should come forward too," he tweeted.

People ask what can their country do for them. The real question is what can you do for your country? I am donating my 2 year's salary to #PMCaresFund. You should come forward too! @narendramodi @JPNadda @BJP4Delhi #IndiaFightsCorona - Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) April 2, 2020

12.29 pm: Coronavirus latest news: PM Modi holds virtual meet with state CMs on COVID-19 situation

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a crucial meeting with state chief minister to come up with a plan to combat the COVID-19 crisis. PM Modi discussed several measures to tackle and prevent the further spread of novel coronavirus with the state CMs in the meeting. This is the second such virtual meet between the prime minister and the state chief ministers after the nationwide lockdown was announced.

12.15 pm: Latest coronavirus cases news: Railways denies reports of starting reservation for post lockdown period

The Indian Railways clarified on Thursday that it never stopped the reservation for journeys post April 14 as opposed to some media reports claiming that it has started reservation for post-lockdown period. "Certain media reports have claimed that Railways has started reservation for post-lockdown period. It is to clarify that reservation for journeys post 14th April was never stopped and is not related to any new announcement," tweeted the Ministry of Railways.

Certain media reports have claimed that Railways has started reservation for post-lockdown period. It is to clarify that reservation for journeys post 14th April was never stopped and is not related to any new announcement. pic.twitter.com/oJ7ZqxIx3q - Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) April 2, 2020

12.02 pm: Coronavirus in India news: Varun Gandhi donates salary to PM-CARES Fund

BJP MP Varun Gandhi said on Thursday that he has donated his salary to PM-CARES Fund and has also started sending 10,000 food packets to feed the hungry in Pilibhit everydayd. "In the face of this horrific tragedy, it's heartening to see all of us Indians coming together as one & doing our best to help one another.Donated my salary to the PM Cares Fund & started with sending 10,000 food packets (to be scaled up) to feed the hungry in Pilibhit everyday," he tweeted.

In the face of this horrific tragedy, it's heartening to see all of us Indians coming together as one & doing our best to help one another.Donated my salary to the PM Cares Fund & started with sending 10,000 food packets (to be scaled up) to feed the hungry in Pilibhit everyday. pic.twitter.com/LCSKvHrLpN - Varun Gandhi (@varungandhi80) April 2, 2020

11.48 am: Coronavirus in Ladakh: New COVID-19 cases reported in Kargil

A woman from Sunjaak village of Kargil in Ladakh tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday. The village is already under quarantine since last 15 days. Meanwhile, two more positive cases were recorded from the adjoining Sankoo village earlier.

11.36 am: Coronavirus updates: AIIMS RDA writes to Home Minister over attack on doctors in Hyderabad

The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of AIIMS has written to Home Minister Rajnath Singh over the recent attack on doctors in Hyderabad. The AIIMS RDA has put forward the following demands:-

1) Filing case against the perpetrators according to ACT 11 of 2008

2)CRPF Deployment to ensure doctors are able to safely work.

3)Provision of PPE to all health care providers.

4)Assurance from Home Minister/Chief Minister on this issue Kindly address the issue on an emergency basis and revert back at the earliest.

11.25 am: Coronavirus in Mumbai: Sanitation worker in Dharavi tests positive for COVID-19

A 55-year-old sanitation worker from Dharavi tested positive for novel coronavirus on Thursday. The sweeper stayed in Worli ,but worked near Mahim Fatak road in Dharavi, which is Asia's largest slum.

11.19 am: Coronavirus update worldwide: Pakistan extends nation lackdown till April 14

The Imran Khan government in Pakistan has taken the decision to extend the nationwide lockdown till April 14.

11.14 am: Coronavirus in Andhra Pradesh: State reports 21 new COVID-19 positive cases

Andhra Pradesh reported 21 new COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday. With this the total number of novel coronavirus cases has climbed to 132 in the state.

11.03 am: Coronavirus updates: Home Affairs Ministry writes to states to take steps to tackle fake news on COVID-19

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has written a letter to all the states and union territories asking them to take appropriate steps to fight the spread of fake news on COVID-19 in order to prevent panic among the people.

10.54 am: Coronavirus in Noida: Police arrests one person, books 12 for group namaaz despite lockdown

The Noida Police said on Thursday that it arrested one man and booked around 12 people for allegedly assembling for a group namaaz violating the lockdown restrictions imposed due to novel coronavirus.

10.45 am: Coronavirus latest updates: Air India crew test positive for COVID-19

The Air India cabin crew, which was part of an evacuation flight tested positive for COVID-19.

10.37 am: Coronavirus in Haryana: State reports first death due to COVID-19

Haryana on Thursday reported its first death due to novel coronavirus after a 67-year-old man from Ambala died.

10.24 am: Coronavirus in Arunachal Pradesh: State reports first COVID-19 positive case

Arunachal Pradesh on Thursday reported its first COVID-19 positive case. The person tested positive had reportedly participated in the Tablighi event in Nizamuddin's Delhi.

10.15 am: Delhi police's two teams in western UP to trace Markaz chief Maulana Saad

Two teams of Delhi Police are in Western Uttar Pradesh to trace the Markaz chief Maulana Saad. One team is looking for Saad at different places/mosques in Delhi while, other team is preparing a list of Indian nationals who were present at the gathering and left the Markaz before March 24. The details are being shared with police of other states as well. The police are also in touch with 14 hospitals where people who were inside the mosque have been admitted. Once released from hospital, their statements will be recorded by police.

10.05 am: Coronavirus in Gujarat: Another death reported in the state

A 52-year-old person who had tested positive for COVID-19 died on Thursday morning. The man had a history of travel to Sri Lanka and was admitted to a hospital recently. S Agarwal, Vadodara Collector said that four members of his family have also tested positive and undergoing treatment.

9.56 am: Coronavirus latest news: Tablighi Jamat visits to Shaheen Bagh under authorities' scanner

A novel coronavirus patient from Andaman and Nicobar islands who is said to be critical and was a part of the religious gathering at the Markaz in Delhi's Nizamuddin is reportedly key to the link between the Tablighi Jamaat members who visited Shaheen Bagh. This has added to fears that thousands sitting in the protest could have come in contact with them. The patient was reportedly a one of the members who visited Shaheen Bagh but the same is to corroborated as the patient is undergoing treatment and is in quarantine due to which it is not possible to record his statement, an official said.

9.47 am: Coronavirus United States news: Six-week-old dies of COVID-19

A six-week-old baby girl died due to coronavirus in the US state of Connecticut on Thursday, Governor Ned Lamont said. He added the death of the young infant is a reminder that "nobody is safe with this virus". The number of COVID-19 death cases has crossed 3,500 in the US. (PTI)

9.38 am: Coronavirus in Maharashtra: State reports 3 new COVI-19 positive cases

Maharashtra on Thursday reported three new novel coronavirus cases which include one from Pune and one from Buldhana.

9.27 am: Coronavirus in Assam: State reports 3 more COVID-19 positive cases, total tally rises to 16

Assam reported three more COVID-19 positive cases in Goalpara district on Thursday. With this, the total number of novel coronavirus cases in the state have increased to 16, Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said. He added that all the patients had participated in the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin earlier this month.

9.16 am: Coronavirus in India live updates: PM Modi to hold virtual meeting with all state CMs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a virtual meeting with the chief ministers of all the states on Thursday to take stock of the situation and discuss ways to tackle and contain the further spread of COVID-19- a disease caused by coronavirus.

9.10 am: Coronavirus in India live: Pune-based company develops 'virus-killer' air purifying technology

A Pune-based firm has developed an air purifying technology which reduces the virus load in infected areas. According to Dr Rajendra Jagdale, Director General of Science and Technology Park (STP), the firm that came up with the technology, explained that the machine called Scitech Airon generates 10 crore negative ions every second that react with water present in the air and form two molecules, Hydroxyl Iron (OH-) and Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2). He added that both of these then instantly react with other molecules in the air. The OH-molecules then break the lipid wall of the COVID-19 such as soap and reduce the virus load in the air.

9.04 am: Coronavirus in India: Padma Shri awardee dies of COVID-19 in Amritsar

A Padma Shri recipient and former "Hazuri Raagi" at the Golden Temple died in Amritsar on Thursday morning after being tested positive for novel coronavirus, a health official told PTI. 62-year-old Giani Nirmal Singh had recently returned from abroad and had tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, the official added.

8.55 am: Coronavirus latest news: Authorities grappling to trace Tablighi Jamaat event attendees

Indian authorities are grappling to trace and identify thousands of people who attended the Nizamuddin Tablighi Jamaat congregation as the religious event seems to be the highest novel coronavirus hotspot in India as of now. The authorities have already traced over 6,000 people who participated in the religious gathering. As a lot of these attendees have scattered across the country, there has been a sudden spike in cases from states such as Delhi, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

8.43 am: Coronavirus in Mumbai: COVID-19 cases in Dharavi a matter of concern, says Maharashtra minister

After the first COVID-19 case was confirmed from Asia's largest slum, Dharavi, authorities in Maharashtra are faced with a herculean task to contain the deadly virus. A 56-year-old patient from the slum died later on Wednesday night at Sion Hospital after being tested positive for novel coronavirus. Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope, told India Today TV that the virus which was earlier seemed to be classist is now being among the masses as well and is a matter of concern once it reaches a congested place such as Dharavi.

8.30 am: Coronavirus in Rajasthan: State reports 9 COVID-19 positive cases

Nine more people were reported to have been confirmed for novel coronavirus infection from Rajasthan, taking the total tally in the state to 129. The new cases include seven from Ramganj in Jaipur, one from Jodhpur and one from Jhunjhunu.

8.15 am: Coronavirus in India: Highest single-day spike in COVID-19 cases

India is faced with a herculean task of containing the increasing novel coronavirus cases after around 300 new COVID-19 cases were reported on Wednesday. The spike was the highest single-day increase in the number of positive cases in India. The authorities are grappling to contain the deadly virus from spreading. The sudden spike comes after several people who attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin in early March were tested COVID-19 positive. the total number of active novel coronavirus cases in the country is at 1,649 with 41 deaths, according the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's website.
International oil prices have fallen to record lows in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis

The price of Brent crude oil stood at around $25 a barrel and US crude fell below $20 a barrel on Monday as the impacts of the crisis over the Covid-19 virus continued to affect international markets.

In a sharp downgrade from its predictions on oil demand as recently as last February, the International Energy Agencys (IEA) March report predicted that global demand would be 99.9 million barrels a day in 2020, signalling a decrease of 90,000 barrels a day compared to 2019.

The IEA has thus downgraded its predictions, with its March report seeing a further decline in prices due to contraction of demand for oil in China, the worlds largest consumer, coupled with the stoppage of aviation and reduction of economic activities on the global level.

It has also produced scenarios regarding the outlook for the oil market in 2020.

A low-case scenario sees global demand falling by 730,00 barrels a day if the coronavirus pandemic is not contained. A more optimistic scenario sees global demand growing by 480,00 barrels a day if the virus is contained on the global level.

Meanwhile, the financial news agency Bloomberg reported that IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol had said in a press briefing on 26 March that oil demand could fall by about 20 million barrels per day.

The storage of crude oil is a potentially growing problem, with dislocations expected to happen as soon as producers start running out of room to store crude, Edward Moya, a senior market analyst at the forex trading and broker the US Oanda Corporation, told the oil news website Oil.com.

The continuous stockpiling of the commodity is also expected to push the price to as low as $10 per barrel.

The falling demand for oil has adversely impacted the revenues of oil-producing countries at a critical time as they strive to draw up emergency budgets to support their economies that have been hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

The US investment bank JP Morgan said that an approximate $100 to $150 billion in stocks had been offloaded by sovereign wealth funds in oil-producing countries.

The situation is negatively impacting all oil-producers, from sanction-embattled Iran to US shale-producers hit by declining demand, bringing about a historically unprecedented crash in prices that will potentially induce an unprecedented curtailing of crude-oil production threatening the US oil industry.

Following the US Congress passing a $2 trillion stimulus package to boost the US economy last week, the US Department of Energy withdrew its plan to buy 77 million barrels of oil for the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) after funding for the plan was removed from the stimulus package.

As the demand for oil falls as a result of the slowing-down of world economies, the markets efforts to stabilise prices have also been beleaguered by the continuing tug-of-war between Saudi Arabia and Russia over production cuts.

The stand-off between the two major oil producers started when a 6 March meeting of OPEC+ (OPECs 14 member-states and Russia, the worlds third-largest oil producer) failed to reach an agreement on production cuts proposed by Saudi Arabia, with Russia rejecting the proposals.

Saudi Arabia had proposed a production cut to the tune of 1.5 million barrels per day until the end of June, over and above cuts already implemented by OPEC to stabilise market prices which had fallen by almost 50 per cent in January.

In response to Russias refusal to approve its proposed cuts, and in a bid to demonstrate its ability to control the market, Saudi Arabia then announced a price cut, with the Saudi ARAMCO oil company announcing an increase in its production from 12 to 13 million barrels a day, causing prices to fall by 25 per cent.

The US Trump administration has attempted to intervene in the standoff between Saudi Arabia and Russia, pressed by US oil companies as well as by Congress to do so. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had called on Saudi Arabia to start to stabilise market prices ahead of the G20 group meeting that was held on 26 March.

But any negotiations on this front, regardless of outcome, will have little bearing on the downward turn in production and prices.

According to the IEA, the short-term outlook for the oil market will ultimately depend on how quickly governments move to contain the coronavirus outbreak, how successful their efforts are, and what lingering impact the global health crisis has on economic activity.

The future of the oil market at this point thus seems precarious, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimating that in 2020 Saudi Arabian oil will need to be priced at $78.3 per barrel and Russian at $40 in order to balance the countries budgets.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 2 April, 2020 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Fine Gael will only go into Government with Fianna Fail if a third party is also involved, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.

Confirming to the Irish Examiner that he and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin are working towards producing a joint paper on Monday, Mr Varadkar said any new government would need a third party to give it legitimacy and authority.

In his most wide-ranging comments yet about the process of forming a government, Mr Varadkar said that when the election happened two months ago, "the view of my party, Fine Gael, was that we would go into opposition".

However, he said the failure of other parties like Sinn Fein to form a government means he is now willing to return to power.

Since then, the other parties have been unable to form a government. And as a consequence of that we feel we can't leave the country down. And that's why we are willing to consider participating in government again, he revealed.

Those negotiations with Fianna Fail are underway. We meet again, our teams will meet again anyway on Monday. We would talk to you in a position to agree a joint paper. And we would then seek the support of a third party, The Greens, Social Democrats, Labour, he said tonight.

But he made clear that he will only enter power if a third party and not just a group of independent TDs is involved.

I'm firmly of the view, that if Fine Gael is going to participate in the next government, we need a third party. We can absolutely work with independents as we did for the past four years, and very successfully.

But a government that relies on nine or 10 independents, support for the government on every crucial vote isn't one that's going to be stable isn't one that will be able to make the tough decisions and hard calls that have to be made in the next couple of years isn't one that will last until 2024 or 2025.

So we're totally up for working with independents, including independents from the regional independent group, some very good people there. But I'm firmly of the view that if Fine Gael is to participate in the next government, we will have to have a third party in there to make sure that we have the numbers and also I think the broad base that's needed to guide the country through the next couple of years. the Taoiseach said.

Mr Varadkar said that Fianna Fail and Fine Gael together won 43% of the vote in the last election, and that's not enough for a stable government.

Now I think we need a broader base than that, to have the legitimacy and have the authority to govern the country well over the next four years and more so than ever, this country is going to need good government, he said.

Earlier, Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin said that it is far too early to be discussing who should be Taoiseach in the event of a coalition between his party and Fine Gael.

Whatever emerges has to reflect the election result, he told RTE radios News at One. "The key issue is to get an agreed agenda and policy platform, then the focus can be on rebooting the economy, and tackling health, housing and the environment.

"There has to be parity of esteem," he added. "All parties had worked together on Covid-19 and had agreed not to play party politics.

We have not tried to outdo each other.
A defector from the Syrian army, who was made head of the police in Afrin, has been arrested on corruption charges by the Turkish intelligence reports Zaman Al Wasl.

Turkish intelligence has arrested the head of the police department in the northwestern city of Afrin over corruption claims and misuse of power, sources told Zaman Al-Wasl Tuesday.

Colonel Rami Tlass is under investigation for taking bribes, sexual harassment and corruption.

The former Syrian army defector was appointed as the head of Afrin police in May 2018 after the Turkish army, backed by opposition factions, took the city from Kurdish YPG forces two months earlier.

This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
A member of the House of Representatives, Usman Kumo, has been dismissed from the All Progressives Congress (APC) by the leadership of the Kumo East Ward of Akko Local Government.

Full text of the letter is reproduced below:

The National Chairman,

All Progressive Congress (APC),

Blant tyre Street,

Wuse II, Abuja.

Sir,

EXPULSION/DISMISSAL OF HON. USMAN BELLO KUMO FROM THE ALL PROGRESSIVE CONGRESS (APC) ON GROUNDS OF ANTI-PARTY ACTIVITIES AND OTHER INFAMOUS CONDUCTS, CAPABLE OF DESTROYING THE PROGRESS AND STABILITY OF THE PARTY.

Upon a petition by the Kumo East Ward Executive Committee of All Progressive Congress (APC), Akko Local Government, Gombe State against Hon. Usman Bello Kumo, member Representing Akko Federal Constituency at the National Assembly, Abuja on the following allegations;

1. Anti-party activities;

2. In famous conduct in his official capacity; and

3. Other offences likely to have adverse effects on the reputation, progress and stability of our great party.

Consequently, the Ward Executive Committee constituted and inaugurated a seven man facts findings/disciplinary committee, to investigate the issues raised in the petition, make recommendations and report back within one week.

Having completed its assignment, the disciplinary Committee submitted its report and recommendations to the ward Executive Committee.

Consequent upon the foregoing, the Ward Executive Committee met, adopted and resolved as follows;

1. That the Anti-party activities of Hon. Usman Bello Kumo against the election of Alhaji Muhammad Inuwa Yahaya at the 2019 general elections as Governor of Gombe State is an infamous conduct, cannot be tolerate and it is contrary to the provisions of the partys constitution as enshrined in article 21, paragraph A (I) and (II) (2014 As Amended).

2. That the factionalisation and destruction of the partys campaign office, APC Zone at Bakoshi Street, Kumo by Hon. Usman Bello Kumo and his youth thugs is a clear indication and manifestation of bad faith and against the partys rules and constitution.

3. That the act of sending youth thugs, carrying arms and offensive weapons to disrupts our partys meeting at Anguwan Akkoyel, Kumo East is also devastating, unpatriotic and contrary Article 21, paragraph A (VIII) and (IX) of APC constitution (2014 As Amended).

4. That the act of insulting and humiliating the good name and personality of our party leader, Senator Muhammad Danjuma Goje during the hypocritical empowerment programme at Kumo is against our partys ethics, religions, natural justice and good conscious.

5. That the car donation by Hon. Usman Bello Kumo to an interloper, one Garba Inuwa Akoma Gona, who is not even a constituent of Akko Federal Constituency, simple because he insulted our party leader, Senator Muhammad Danjuma Goje on Progress Radio, Gombe clearly demonstrated his indiscipline, immorality and a total disrespect to the leadership of the party, the Governor of Gombe State and would, certainly have an adverse effect on the progress, peace and stability of our great party.

6. That Hon. Usman Bello Kumo is hereby dismissed/expelled from the party, All Progressive Congress with immediate effect from today 30th day of March, 2020. We urge the Local and State Executives to adopt our resolutions and to further recommend to the National Executives for ratification.

Copy of the list of members of the executive represent at the meeting is annexed and marked as annexture APC

Yours Faithfully,

_____________

Musa Barade

Chairman

All Progressive Congress,

Kumo East Chapter,

Akko Local Government,

Gombe State.

CC:

 National Executive Committee,

All Progressive Congress,

Abuja.

 RT. Hon. Speaker,

House of Representatives,

National Assembly,

Abuja.

 The Deputy Speaker,

House of Representatives,

National Assembly,

Abuja.

 The Majority Leader,

House of Representatives,

National Assembly,

Abuja.

 The Chief Whip,

House of Representatives,

National Assembly,

Abuja.

The Inspector General of Police,

Lois Edet House,

Force Headquarters,

Abuja

 State Executive Committee,

Gombe State.

 The Executive Governor,

Gombe State.

 Dr. Isa Ali Pantami,

Hon. Minster of Communication and,

Digital Technology, Abuja.

 Resident Electoral Commissioner,

Gombe State.

 The Commissioner of Police,

Gombe State.

 The Director DSS,

Gombe State.

 Hon. Usman Bello Kumo

House of Representatives,

Abuja.

 Local Executive Committee,

Akko L.G.A.

 The Divisional Police Officer,

Akko L.G.A.

 The Officer In-Charge,

DSS, Akko L.G.A.

 The INEC Officer,

Akko L.G.A.
Spokesman: Cosby Lawyers to Seek Early Release Because of Pandemic

Lawyers for Bill Cosby are preparing to petition the court for his release amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A spokesman for Cosby, who is in the second year of a 3-to-10 year prison sentence for aggravated indecent assault, said Cosby doesnt have the virus, but his age (82), blindness, and high blood pressure does make him vulnerable to COVID-19.

Mr. Cosbys lawyers are now considering filing a motion asking the court to release Mr. Cosby from prison and place him under house arrest for the duration of his sentence, Cosbys longtime spokesman Andrew Wyatt of the Birmingham, Ala.-based Purpose PR Firm, stated.

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Specifically, the lawyers are focusing on whether states are granting early release to elderly inmates from prisons due to the coronavirus, which could be a valid legal argument for Mr. Cosby, Wyatt noted.

Prisons and jails around the country are becoming infested with Coronavirus cases  and its only a matter of time before SCI-Phoenix in Montgomery County, Penn., experiences an outbreak, Wyatt stated.

Montgomery County is at the epicenter of Pennsylvanias coronavirus outbreak.

The county, which is home to about 800,000 residents and a senior population of almost 18 percent, has recorded more than 145 cases of the coronavirus. Philadelphia, with more than 1.6 million residents and the largest county in the state, has about 170 cases. No other county has reported more than 58 cases.

Im very concerned for Mr. Cosbys health in prison during the Coronavirus epidemic, Wyatt continued.

Mr. Cosby is elderly and blind  and always needs to be escorted around the prison by support service inmates, known as Certified Peer Specialists (CPI). Those inmates could fall victim to the coronavirus and easily spread the disease to Mr. Cosby as they wheel him around in a wheelchair. Among their duties, the inmates bring Mr. Cosby to the infirmary for his doctor appointments and clean his cell.

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In addition, Mr. Cosby is constantly in contact with the correction officers who could contract the disease on the outside and bring it inside the prison, potentially exposing Mr. Cosby to the virus.
Sri Lankan medical experts have called on government authorities to immediately introduce mass testing for COVID-19 in order to stop community transmissions spreading the virus throughout the country.

Their appeals, which were published in several newspapers this week, came as confirmed COVID-19 cases rose to 146 and fatalities climbed to a total of three. The number of people officially held in quarantine centres is currently about 1,700. Health authorities have placed many villages under isolation and hundreds of people have been asked to home quarantine.

The call for mass testing was issued by University of Colombo Family Medicine faculty chief Dr. Ruvaiz Haniffa and publicly endorsed by professors Vajira H.W. Dissanayake, Harendra De Silva and Dr. Ravi P. Rannan-Eliya.

Dr Ruvaiz

There is a dire need to rapidly increase and expand testing if we want to have a positive impact. The strongest point of our response to the pandemic from a healthcare perspective should be how we can improve our weakest point, which at the moment is testing for COVID-19, Haniffa said.

Some of those infected may not show symptoms and, because of Sri Lankas scandalously low and dangerous testing policies, can go undetected and spread the virus. As of March 29, Sri Lanka had only conducted 2,082 tests. These have revealed 115 infections, an alarming 5.5 percent positive rate.

If we do not expand testing and identify those with the virus, Professor Dissanayake observed, the curfews would be useless. He also stressed the urgent necessity to protect health workers. When health workers, without prior knowledge and experience and no protective equipment, are exposed to infected patients then they have to be quarantined and cannot work, he warned.

Dissanayake pointed out that longer quarantine periods could be avoided if mass testing was introduced immediately. Several health workersfrom the state and private sectorsare currently in quarantine.

Professor De Silva bluntly declared: We cannot be complacent. We are sitting on the tip of the iceberg We are not looking out to detect and track cases actively. We are passive: only a selected lot of those seeking treatment are tested. If we do not actively detect the iceberg, it will become a volcano.

Dr. Rannan-Eliya commented: More extensive testing means increasing our testing capacity by at least ten-fold so we can test up to 10,000 people a day in an emergency. Infected people would keep entering Sri Lanka, he said, until a global solution was found. We need to provide ample facilities for people to test and re-test and diagnose COVID-19 cases, he stated.

Several doctors spoke to the WSWS yesterday, confirming the medical experts warnings. They complained about a lack of sufficient ventilators and test kits and pointed to the serious dangers facing medical workers.

Many health workers, the doctors explained, were using hurriedly made and substandard personal protective equipment (PPE), endangering their own lives and those of their patients. These conditions are the result of decades of cuts to health services by consecutive Sri Lankan governments.

While medical experts are calling for mass testing, the Rajapakse administration is mainly concentrating on social distancing, tracing and its lockdown and curfews. These measures are being enforced by the police and the military.

Colombo, Gampaha, and Kaluthara districts in the Western Province, the Northern Jaffna district, Puttalam in the Northeast and the central Kandy district have all been named as vulnerable zones and are under total lockdown. Special Task Force police commandoes are being used for security in Colombo where barricades and patrols have been instituted.

The curfew was lifted in several districts for a few hours on Tuesday to allow people to buy essentials, which are, however, becoming scarce. Some of the communities that have been completely isolated include Atalugama village and five villages in Beruwela, in Kalutara district, Akurana in Kandy and the Darawela Tea Estate near Hatton.

The lockdown and curfews are creating enormous hardships for workers, the poor, the self-employed and other sections of society. There are no proper mechanisms for people to buy essentials. The mass of the population is simply ordered to obey government dictates, which are then enforced by the police and the military.

President Gotabhaya Rajapakse has appointed a Special Presidential Task Force, headed by his younger brother Basil Rajapakse. The task force has issued numerous statements about special relief packages for the needy. The packages contain a small quantity of dry rations, which are sold to raise money for the poor.

Samurdhi welfare program beneficiaries, who are paid a pittance by the government, have been promised a 10,000 rupee ($US52) payment in April and May. The payment is an interest free loan that must be repaid in 18 months.

Workers and elderly people from the Theresa Estate in Bogawanthalawa in the Central Hills waited in line for about eight hours when the curfew was lifted yesterday. They were led to believe that they would be given a charity payment for the elderly and a relief package from the Samurdhi Department. No official turned up and they returned to their estate line room accommodation empty handed.

On Monday it was revealed during a discussion at the Badulla district government administrative office that the distribution of relief packages to villages and low-income groups in the municipal area had failed because no essential food items could be obtained.

Remote farmers from Girandurukotte village in Badulla told the WSWS that they have not received any relief. The farmers said that the village officer and local policemen had collected food items from the farmers themselves and distributed them among several families.

About 800 farming families live in Girandurukotte. Many of the village youth have migrated to get work in Sri Lankas free trade zones or other jobs in the cities. Following the imposition of the lockdown and the closure of factories they have been forced to return home, but without any way of earning an income.

Last week the curfew required tens of thousands of free trade zone workers to stay inside their boarding houses. As workers anger began to mount, the government intervened and sent them back to their villages. The government, however, failed to ensure that the workers were paid last months wages and that they continue to receive their pay until the factories reopen.

President Rajapakse is using the coronavirus pandemic to step up the militarisation of his administration. At the same time, in the face of rising discontent, his government is bringing the opposition parties on board to assist in the suppression of the inevitable mass resistance to the lack of food and other essentials, including proper healthcare.

On March 24, the United National Party and its splinter group, the Jathika Samagi Balavegaya, along with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, the Tamil National Alliance and several Muslim parties, participated in an all-party meeting called by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse. All those in attendance pledged their support. The Sri Lankan prime minister has invited these organisations to attend another all-party conference today.
Amazon has promised to check temperatures and provide surgical masks for workers at its fulfillment centers and Whole Foods grocery stores starting next week, according to multiple reports.

Instacart workers have not received similar promises.

The news came in the midst of brewing turmoil among employees.

Some full-time and contract workers at Whole Foods, Amazon and Instacart walked out or called in sick on Monday and Tuesday, ramping up their fight for protection from coronavirus infection.

The UFCW (United Food and Commercial Workers) on Monday issued a statement in support of the demands of workers at Amazon, Instacart and Whole Foods.

Fourteen state attorneys general last week signed a letter to the CEOs of Amazon and Whole Foods, asking them to improve their sick leave policies.

The letter asks the CEOs to adopt a more generous paid leave policy for their employees and independent contractors in order to curb the spread of the coronavirus during the current pandemic.

It cites the CDCs interim guidance for businesses and employers, and points out that the companies COVID-19 sick leave policies are inconsistent with those recommendations. It warns that the companies are placing their other employees, their customers, and the public at large at significant risk of exposure to COVID-19.

Their narrow criteria is particularly insufficient given the realities of the public health crisis, where the lack of access to COVID-19 testing has been widely reported, and warns this would seriously undercut efforts to promote social distancing, the letter warns.

Amazon has responded to the letter and is engaged in discussions about strengthening its paid sick leave policies for employees, according to the office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, who wrote the letter.

Deaf Ears?

Mondays labor action had absolutely no impact to Instacarts operations, a company spokesperson said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by company rep Dani Pietro. We saw 40 percent more shoppers on the platform on Monday compared to the same time and day last week.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Whole Foods Market saw no changes to overall absenteeism and we continued to operate all of our stores without interruption, a company spokesperson said in a statement provided to the E-Commerce Times by company rep Rachel Malish.

The workers have no choice but to protest, said Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group, because in effect the firms are passing the risk on to them without adequate compensation.

Their only other alternative is to refuse to work, which isnt a tolerable solution for many individuals, Enderle told the E-Commerce Times.

Amazon and other firms behaving this way are unintentionally laying the groundwork for very invasive unionization, particularly when they fire organizers, he added, referring to the termination of an Amazon strike leader following an action on Monday.

Why Workers are Furious

Over the past few weeks, some staff in at least 10 Amazon warehouses in the United States have been infected by COVID-19 but the company apparently has not shut down those warehouses.

Workers at Amazons DTW5 sorting center south of Detroit reportedly learned a colleague had been infected from rumors on Facebook. A human resources staffer later confirmed the rumors in the break room.

After confronting management, they learned that five colleagues who had been in contact with the infected person had been notified.

Whole Foods employees in at least three locations  San Francisco, Huntington Beach and Chicago  have been infected.

Instacart reportedly informed a shopping team that a supermarket employee at Star Market in Auburn, Massachusetts, one of its grocery store partners, was diagnosed with COVID-19.

It reportedly offered to provide any team member feeling unsafe to work with seven to 30 days of unpaid time off on a case-by-case basis, and urged anyone who might have developed COVID-19 symptoms to contact a health provider.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

Given the work conditions, many of these workers will need PPE (personal protective equipment) to keep themselves safe, as well as prevent potentially spreading COVID-19 to customers, observed Ray Wang, principal analyst at Constellation Research.

Hazard pay, which the workers are demanding, may be tough to win, he told the E-Commerce Times.

However, it makes sense to improve working conditions for safety and provide PPE, Wang added. Bring on the testing of workers and thermometer scans.

Actions Taken

The companies have responded to repeated petitions from workers for better working conditions, but the workers have deemed those efforts inadequate.

We are consulting with local and federal health authorities and medical experts how to handle building closures for deep cleaning if an employee tests positive for COVID-19, an Amazon spokesperson said in comments provided to the E-Commerce Times by company rep Alyssa Bronikowski.

Amazons evaluation process examines various issues, including where the affected employee was in a building, for how long, how long ago the employee was there, and who interacted with the employee.

Anyone in close contact with an infected person at an Amazon building will be asked to self-quarantine for 14 days with pay, in addition to unlimited unpaid time off for all hourly employees through the end of April.

Paid sick leave is new for Amazon, Wang said.

Amazon also has increased the frequency and intensity of cleaning at all sites, implemented various social distancing measures, and insisted on frequent hand washing for at least 20 seconds or use of an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

Instacart in the last four weeks has introduced new product features, health guidelines, shopper bonuses, sick leave policies, and safety supplies, according to a spokesperson, as well as pay for those affected by COVID-19.

Whole Foods has rolled out extensive measures to keep employees safe at work, an additional $2 per hour in pay, and increased overtime pay, according to a spokesperson. It is offering an additional two weeks of paid sick time for employees who are in quarantine or have tested positive for COVID-19.

Amazon Under NYs Microscope

Amazon fired an activist who led Mondays walkout at its New York warehouse.

That prompted New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio to call for an investigation.

It also sparked condemnation by New York State Attorney-General Letitia James, who described the firing as disgraceful, pointed out that the right to organize is codified into the states law, and said her office was considering all legal options, including calling on the U.S. National Labor Relations Board to undertake an investigation.

Right now, its cheaper to replace workers than it is to protect them, Enderle said. Until it stops being cheaper to allow employees to die than to protect them, you wont get a middle ground to reach a collective decision.

Governments need to implement robust financial incentives, like requiring companies to pay adequate death benefits, if they want the situation to change, he suggested.

Companies risk huge fines, costly regulations and draconian responses to mass employee deaths in states that have substantial employee rights, Enderle cautioned, such as California and New York.
Despite increasing pleas from health officials, both locally and globally, to stay home save for absolutely essential trips, spring weather continues to draw people into the great outdoors.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker has extended his stay-at-home executive order until April 30 in an effort to continue flattening the curve of the coronavirus spread.
The "Europe Online Payment Methods 2020" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

Payment method preferences in Europe vary by country

Payment method rankings included in the report show that Europe's Internet shoppers have diverse choices regarding online payments. Buyers in the UK and France prefer card payments and E-Wallets like PayPal, while a major share of digital buyers in selected Eastern European countries chose to pay on delivery. In German-speaking nations, payment by invoice ranks high, while Dutch digital buyers predominantly use online banking method iDEAL.

Mobile payment adoption is taking off in Europe

Surveys and market projections cited by the analyst also reveal that mobile payment usage is growing steadily across Europe. The Nordics were leading in the region by 2019 mobile payment penetration rates, while consumers in Germany and France are yet to catch up. Recent surveys also show that shoppers in Russia and Poland are also keen on using mobile payments, with usage rates expanding between 2018 and 2019.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Management Summary

2. Global Developments

Payment Methods Preferred in E-Commerce, in of Online Shoppers, by Selected Regions, January 2019

Share of Online Shoppers Who Had Abandoned a Shopping Cart Due to Their Preferred Payment Method Not Being Offered, in %, January 2019

Share of Mobile Shoppers Who Had Abandoned a Shopping Cart Due to Their Preferred Payment Method Not Being Offered, in %, August 2019

Mobile Online Remote Payment Value, in USD billion, by Selected Regions, 2024f

Mobile Online Remote Payment Value, in USD billion, by Digital and Physical Goods, 2024f

Online Mobile Payment Platform Revenues, in USD billion, 2019e 2024f

Online Payment Fraud Losses, in USD million, by Segment, 2023f

Online Payment Fraud Prevention Software Spending, in USD billion, 2020f 2024f

Number of Digital Wallet Users, in billions, 2019e 2024f

Breakdown of Digital Wallets by Provider's Main Industry, in %, 2019

Proximity Mobile Payment Users, in billions, and Penetration, in of Smartphone Users, 2018 2023f

Proximity Mobile Payment User Penetration, in of Smartphone Users, by Selected Countries, 2019e

Value of Mobile Payment Transactions Authenticated via Biometrics, in USD billion, 2019e 2024f

3. Europe

3.1. Regional

3.2. Advanced Markets

3.2.1. UK

3.2.2. Germany

3.2.3. France

3.2.4. Spain

3.2.5. Italy

3.2.6. Netherlands

3.2.7. Sweden

3.2.8. Belgium

3.2.9. Norway

3.2.10. Denmark

3.2.11. Finland

3.2.12. Austria

3.3. Emerging Markets

3.3.1. Russia

3.3.2. Poland

3.3.3. Turkey

3.3.4. Czech Republic

3.3.5. Portugal

3.3.6. Romania

3.3.7. Hungary

3.3.8. Ukraine

3.3.9. Bulgaria

3.3.10. Croatia

Companies Mentioned

Adyen B.V.

Alphabet Inc.

Amazon.com Inc.

Apple Inc

Blik Inc.

Currence iDeal B.V.

Fidelity National Information Services Inc.

Ingenico Group SA

J.P. Morgan

Klarna AB

Mastercard Inc.

PayPal Holdings Inc.

Sberbank of Russia

Swish Inc.

Vipps AS

Visa Inc.

Wirecard AG

Worldline SA

Yandex LLC

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/mhnmcv

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005347/en/

Contacts:

ResearchAndMarkets.com

Laura Wood, Senior Press Manager

press@researchandmarkets.com

For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900
T&T and a set of other countries are in lockdown. COVID-19 is spiralling. Economies are frozen, businesses in free-fall, families living from day to day.

What happens next? Dont ask the economists. They have no idea. Ask the medics.
The general overseer of the Omega fire ministry, Apostle Johnson Suleman has called on state governors to release truckloads of food items to the masses during lockdown over coronavirus pandemic.

Read Also: Sanusi: Disrespecting A Governor Is Not Criminal Offence  Apostle Suleman

He made the appeal in a post on his official Twitter handle on Thursday.

He wrote:

Governors should release thousands of truckloads of food items to local govt chairmen and they should have council staff move from house to house giving food items..Nigeria has a reserved account for emergencies like this..whats going on?
Two employees at a Whole Foods location in West Orange have tested positive for the coronavirus.

The diagnosed employees are in quarantine, a company spokeswoman confirmed Thursday, and extra steps have been taken to sanitize the store.

Out of an abundance of caution, the store performed an additional cleaning and disinfection, on top of our current enhanced sanitation measures, she said.

The location remains open for business.

Whole Foods workers staged a national sick-out strike on Tuesday to demand better protective measures during the outbreak.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

In addition to cleaning and social distancing efforts, Whole Foods, which is owned by Amazon, is closing its stores up to two hours early each day to allow for cleaning and restocking.

Whole Foods operates 21 stores in New Jersey.

Several grocery store operators in New Jersey have announced employees diagnosed with COVID-19 in the last few weeks. Many stores are now allowing employees to wear protective masks and gloves if they wish.

New Jersey has reported more than 22,000 coronavirus cases and 355 deaths, with a new update on state figures expected this afternoon. The national death toll now exceeds 5,000.

Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattGraySJT. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A: Do you mean which one of the 30 book clubs for which I facilitate discussions is my favorite? No way! Each group has its own personality. Some groups are more talkative, some even rambunctious, some more reserved. Some are quite large, such as the VAPL group, which has 30 or more people each month, and some of my private groups like to keep it small with eight to 10 members. Each group challenges me to respond to them, and this keeps me interested every day, regardless of the book I will be discussing. I love them all.
Huntsville Hospital CEO David Spillers said Wednesday that masks would be now required wearing for anyone who enters a hospital building.

We are going to be implementing a masking policy for anyone in our hospital, Spillers said. If you are in our hospital, you will have to wear a mask. Were currently acquiring the necessary masks to do that."

Spillers said that Crestwood Hospital in south Huntsville is adopting a similar policy.

"Crestwood is going to do the same thing. We think thats good for our patients. We know its good for our staff. As soon as we have appropriate supplies, we will do that.

Related: Should everyone in Alabama be wearing masks?

Huntsville and Crestwood are believed to be the first Alabama hospitals to require everyone to wear a mask to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Meanwhile, Spillers said about 400 patients in Madison County received COVID-19 tests on Tuesday.

As of midday Wednesday, Spillers said there were eight people in Madison County hospitalized with the coronavirus and the fact that none needed a ventilator was good news. Another 44 patients are hospitalized while awaiting test results.

"The glimmer of hope is we're meeting demand for the test right now (even without the drive-thru site)," he said. The drive-thru site is closed until at least next week because of a lack of test kits.

Altogether, Spillers said almost 4,000 people have been tested in Madison County and more than 6,000 throughout the Huntsville Hospital System in north Alabama. The positive rate for those tests has been 2.4 percent and Spillers said, "those numbers are actually positive."

Future test results will soon be almost immediate in the hospital after pharmaceutical giant Roche provided Huntsville Hospital with the test tools necessary to perform those tests at the hospital. Spillers has been calling for such access for several days, saying the hospital had the capability to conduct the tests but needed certain computer software from Roche to do it.

"Roche has stepped up and we are actually going to be testing in our lab," Spillers said. "They are currently working with team in our lab to get that set up by the end of this week or early next week. It's about 200 tests a day is what we think we're going to be able to get from them. That would be the same number that UAB (Hospital in Birmingham) gets daily. These tests would be very quick turnaround. We would use these for the patients who are under investigation (as possible COVID-19 positive tests)."

The hospital has also been getting quick turnaround testing from Huntsville's Diatherix biological testing company, which is located at HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology. That testing will continue but now the hospital has expanded its quick turnaround capability, Spillers said.

"Anything we can do to speed up tests, I think that's very important," Spillers said. "It allows us to rule out patients quicker and get them into a process where we can get them off all the utilization supplies. Or if we get a positive, we can proceed knowing that they are positive. Nationally, when you see this quick test that everybody is trying to develop, that's the reason they want to do that."

Quick results also allows hospitals to preserve scarce personal protective equipment for healthcare workers if the patient tests negative instead of having an extended period of unknown that must be treated like a positive test, Spillers said.
This is the shocking moment a foul-mouthed BMW driver threatened to 'knock a shoppers head off' after the man accused him of drinking at the wheel of his car in a supermarket car park.

Rob Flint filmed his encounter with the driver in Southport, Merseyside at 6.30pm on Monday when he popped to the Co-Op to pick up essentials for himself and his 90-year-old neighbour.

The business owner, 47, was greeted with a barrage of abuse when he challenged the driver at first over littering, and then drink-driving after he spotted what he believes was a bottle of vodka in the man's car at the Marsh Side supermarket.

A BMW driver who allegedly had a bottle of vodka in the front of his car threatened to punch a man who confronted him for littering a can of Coca Cola in Southport, Merseyside

Rob said the man first started swearing at him while swigging from a Coke can as he went to grab a bag from his car.

A female shopper wound her window down and shouted over to him that he'd been heckling her too.

When Rob returned to his car he confronted the man for being a litterbug after seeing a discarded Coke can on the floor next to his white private-reg car.

As Rob lectured him on dumping rubbish he spotted what he believes was a bottle of vodka stashed next to him and confronted him about it.

Rob Flint, who recorded the incident, accused the driver of drinking a bottle of vodka in the car (left)

The aggressive driver stumbled out of his car and approached the man recording with a clenched fist

Rob said: 'I opened the boot of my car to get a bag out and he started shouting expletives at me, he shouted "oi f***ing t****r".

'A girl parked in front of him put her window down and said he'd had a go at her too, she'd phoned her husband to come down as she was in quite a bit of a state.

'When I came back out with my shopping a couple of minutes later he was still there shouting abuse.'

Footage shows the driver becoming irate when he was confronted by Rob about the litter.

He then stumbles out of his car towards Rob with a clenched fist, threatening to 'knock [his] head off'.

The BMW driver threatened violence towards Rob and staggered out of his car towards him

Rob said: 'I think he was just sitting in the car park looking for a punch-up with somebody and it happened to be me.

'When I saw the bottle of vodka in the centre console I couldn't believe it and when I mentioned it you could see the colour drain from his face.

'He got out of the car and he told me he was going to thump me.'

He said the driver clenched his fist and threatened to take his phone, but Rob remained calm and ignored his threats.

Rob said when he went to leave the car park the bad-tempered BMW driver tried to land one final blow by attempting to rear-end him.

Rob said: 'I'm one for giving people the benefit of the doubt.

The man staggered towards Rob and can be seen lunging forward with a clenched fist in an apparent bid to grab his phone

'I initially thought he was an elderly gentleman who might have had a stroke, might have been diabetic or low on his meds, and that's why I didn't retaliate.

'I'm a kind-hearted bloke, I'm not one going out looking for trouble, someone else might have thumped him while he was sitting in his car.

'I was really taken aback that an older gentleman would speak to me like that. When he got out of his car I could see he couldn't walk - that was probably to do with the amount of alcohol he'd drunk.'

A Merseyside Police spokesman said: 'We arrested a 65-year-old man on Monday evening (30th March) on suspicion of driving while unfit through drink or drugs in Southport.

'He has been released under investigation and enquiries are continuing.'
Heeding the call of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to maintain social distancing amid coronavirus outbreak, RSS-affiliate Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) celebrated Ram Navami without much fanfare on Thursday.

The organisation had cancelled all grand celebrations to mark the first Ram Navami post the Supreme Court verdict on Ram Janmabhoomi in the aftermath of the lockdown and asked people to pray at home.

Furthermore, VHP is adhering to social distancing, a measure that can prevent the spread of the virus. The organisation has decided to hold its crucial meetings via video conferencing with all its top functionaries in attendance.

"We have the social responsibility of catering to the needs of many. We need to streamline and decide how to take care of government norms while doing that. So, 14 of the functionaries across states get connected via video conferencing and take stock of the situation," Milind Parande, Secretary-General, VHP said.

Those in the VHP headquarters located in RK Puram in the capital maintained distance while performing pooja. There were a few who sat apart from each other at a respectable distance while watching Ramayana being telecast on Doordarshan.

"As Lord Ram was born around noon, we will begin prayers at 11 am and only a few will be allowed in the temple on the premises. This temple used to witness hundreds of people on Ram Navami. We have requested people not to gather in temples and rather pray at their homes," Parande said.

Ram Navami, being celebrated today, was slated to be a grand affair across the country with thousands of Rath and Shobha yatras to celebrate the beginning of the construction of a grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya post the Supreme Court verdict.

However, with COVID-19 outbreak across countries and appeal by the Prime Minister to stay home to avoid the risk of getting infected, the celebrations have been put on hold.

VHP has also asked its workers to stay and pray at home and follow social distancing as advised by the government.

"The temples will hold the ceremony of celebrating Lord Ram's birth but it will be done only by the priest. People have been discouraged from gathering at temples in wake of Coronavirus spread," Koteshwar Rao, joint General Secretary, VHP said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
CMS said infection concerns did not come up at either meeting, including the one in February, which was held days after Life Care said it posted signs warning visitors about the respiratory outbreak that staff thought was the flu. Further review of the 02/19/2020 monthly QAPI meeting minutes under the nursing section revealed: no reports of infection concerns at the facility, the CMS report said.
If the coronavirus pandemic did not occur, demand for automobiles in India would have steadily grown over the course of the year, according to a top industry leader in the country.

Though the virus outbreak was first reported in China's Hubei province late last year, the infection has spread rapidly around the world, infecting more than 935,000 and killing over 47,000 people so far, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The initial number of cases in India appeared to show that the situation was contained, but as the number of infections grew, it prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to announce a 21-day national lockdown that began last Wednesday.

"The lockdown has meant that all the automakers, including Maruti, have had to close the factories and stop production completely. We've shut down our service stations, our sales outlets, and the dealerships," R.C. Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki, told CNBC's "Street Signs" on Wednesday.

"So, no sales have been taking place now for the last about two weeks. Whatever demand there was remains dormant. I'm not sure how quickly it'll come back once the lockdown is lifted," he added.

In a regulatory filing, publicly-listed Maruti said it sold 76,976 vehicles in India for March this year. That marked a 47.9% decline from the same period in 2019, when it had sold 147,613 vehicles. The filing noted that Maruti suspended its operations in line with the national policy from March 22, two days before the lockdown began.

according to the health ministry's website, India has 1,649 active cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, and 41 people have died while 143 were cured as of April 1, 7:30 p.m. local time.
Deal: PFS boss Noel Moran (back row, right) and wife Valerie (back row, second left) with EML staff

PREPAID Financial Services founder and chief executive Noel Moran has said a sale of the business he established in 2008 still represents "a great result" despite a last-minute 30pc price cut.

On Tuesday, Australian firm EML Payments confirmed it was buying Mr Moran's PFS for 94.5m (107m) less than originally agreed. Husband and wife Noel and Valerie Moran own 81pc of the company, worth 265m when the sale was announced in November.

The revised terms value the Morans' stake at 170m, including a significant shareholding in the enlarged EML.

"Our original deal was on track to close until recent weeks, when Covid-19 started to have an impact on global stock markets. With share prices plummeting around the world, the value of fintechs (financial technology) was similarly affected," Mr Moran said.

"Luckily, we had built a solid, profitable business over the past 12 years thanks to the dedication of our entire team. In light of the current worldwide business reality, I believe we have achieved a great result for everyone involved," he said.

"We are eager to play a pivotal role in complementing EML's sizeable and diversified electronic money portfolio."

PFS employs 130 people at its headquarters in Trim, Co Meath and 70 in London, Manchester and Malta. It provides online payment and banking-as-a-service software to clients in more than two dozen countries.

EML told the Sydney Securities Exchange yesterday its acquisition of PFS was closing "on improved terms, reflecting the economic reality of Covid-19 and the need to have a strong balance sheet with significant cash on hand and nil net debt".

The Morans and other PFS shareholders will gain 8.2pc of EML equity in the deal.

EML's shares surged by nearly 70pc immediately following news of the discounted PFS purchase.

But they shed most of those gains and closed 4pc lower yesterday at AU$2.20 (1.22).

This values EML at AU$715m - over 60pc below a high reached just six weeks ago, before markets crash on Covid-19 fears.
 Flash

Shirley, who moved from Beijing to the Netherlands with her family 18 months ago, said that most of her Chinese acquaintances are choosing to stay despite an increasing number of confirmed COVID-19 cases.







As of March 28, the number of confirmed cases in the country rose to 9,762, with 1,159 new cases; meanwhile, the number of fatalities reached 639, registering an increase of 93 cases, according to de Volkskrant, a local newspaper in Netherlands.





"The growth of confirmed cases, soaring in recent weeks , has far exceeded the expectations of Dutch experts," she said.





"However," she added, "as a society running in transparency, all data released by the country reflects the true situation."





According to Shirley, there are rounds of deliberation and evaluations behind every single measure taken in the Netherlands, but this can lead to inefficiency when faced with a pandemic.





Despite recent shutdowns of schools, restaurants and sport clubs, the government has yet to announce a state emergency, though it has suggested that people should stay at home.





However, while they are still being allowed to walk freely in public without face masks, many Dutch people have heeded the official advice to stay at home, provided that they do not have to go out for essential work-related tasks or errands. The roads have been almost deserted aside from some children spotted playing together sporadically.





"From the first confirmed case almost a month ago until now, the rational response and the humanitarian measures taken in the Netherlands have enabled the country  from the government to ordinary people  to run in an orderly manner thanks to the abundant stocks and supplies that ensure the entire country can stay calm," she explained.





"Many people in the Netherlands, confident in local medical and governmental capabilities, support the proposal of group immunity. They believe that since the virus, which has been transmitted around the globe, cannot yet be eradicated, group immunity can stave it off, benefitting seniors and vulnerable people," she added.





"Although a lockdown was unable to pass at the parliament in a recent vote, it remains an option in case the epidemic is aggravated and leads to a precipitous growth of the death toll," Shirley said, quoting Mark Rutte, the Dutch Prime Minister.





To counteract the impact of the pandemic, the Dutch government launched an economic stimulus plan to help local enterprises and individuals experiencing financial woe. In addition, children are supposed to learn at home with iPads or computers, which is the same as what they had been doing in school.





According to Shirley, there were a few cases of discrimination that were targeted at people of Asian descent in the Netherlands when Wuhan, the capital of China's Hubei province, first experienced the coronavirus pandemic outbreak. However, such cases are now rarely heard of, as the COVID-19 has proved itself to be a pandemic that also affects Europe.





"There are lots of Chinese people settling down in the Netherlands, yet few of my acquaintances feel rushed to head back to China because our work and families are here. By learning from Wuhan, we have developed a strong awareness, which enables us to adopt protective approaches and stock up on all necessities in a timely fashion," she said.




BLURB: Amid lockdown, the state government has failed to fulfil their demand of extending the last date for submitting power bills

With the state government failing to extend the last dates for submitting electricity bills, members of the Federation of Industrial and Commercial Organisation (FICO) are now considering filing a petition against the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL).

Amid lockdown in the wake of Covid-19 outbreak, the industrialists have been demanding that the government may extend the last date to submit the bills with no penalty or interest. Further, they have been seeking that the fixed charges be waived off and the bills be generated by the PSPCL on the basis of actual consumption, as the factories are closed.

FICO president Gurmeet Singh Kular and senior vice-president Vipan Mittal said the state government has used Force Majeure clause in making payments to the power generators and has asked the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission (PSERC) to specify a reduced rate of late payment surcharge.

Similarly, the PSPCL should not charge penalty from the state industry as it is closed and reeling under losses due to the lockdown, Kular said, adding that the state government can stop payment of interest, which is paid to the industry for the security amount, which is then submitted with the PSPCL.

However, nothing in this regard has been announced and so we are considering filing a petition against the PSPCL in court, Kular added.

Mittal said while the states including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat have already announced relief for the residents, the state government is still in a deep slumber.

CICU PRESIDENT SEEKS MAKING PAYMENTS IN INSTALMENTS

Besides, Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU) president Upkar Singh Ahuja has also demanded that the state government may allow the industry to make payments in instalments during the financial crisis.
With the constantly increasing number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths in the United States, thousands of people here seek help from President Donald Trump's administration. Some Americans even ask assistance from the private security companies for their evacuation, but others have chosen to stay, apprehensive about what they see as a rapidly increasing US caseload worsened by more laidback restraint measures.

Several Americans seem pleased, though, with their choice while the others start feeling distressed envisioning a prolonged separation from their loved ones, or are so engrossed by indecisiveness over the place they should go to. In addition, now with fewer flights overseas, available each day, fast-ranging conditions help write such a narrative.

READ: 2 Million N95 Face Masks for Sale, but at 6 Times the Regular Price

Settling in Guatemala for the Time Being

22-year-old Lola Daehler, a native from New York, was traveling with her friends in Hawaii while the COVID-19 worsened. This pandemic provoked sudden travel limitations not just for Daehler but for all the travelers of the world.

As a result, she eventually chose the typically tourist-crowded Atitlan lake of Guatemala which is ringed by the old-fashioned Maya villages and lush volcanoes.

The tourist said she's happy to have gotten to the lake, adding, "I get to wake up and swim" here instead of being in New York City which, she said, "seems pretty terrible" at present.

Incidentally, New York State has turned the epicenter of the pandemic in the US with over 80,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and more than 2,000 deaths as of this writing. Because of this, the local officials are now pleading for reinforcements.

Daehler pointed to the strictly-implemented 4 pm curfew of Guatemala which was enacted more than one week ago and is being announced every day via loudspeakers which are attached to the roaming patrols using the Maya Tz'utujil, English, and Spanish languages.

READ NEXT: Free Tacos From Taco Bell During the COVID-19 Shutdown! How Do You Get Yours?

COVID-19 Condition in Guatemala

Moreover, the US backpacker and her friends took advantage of their stay in the lake as they passed the time reading, swimming, strumming the guitar and running. She admitted, some friends pleaded for her return home but she said it will not happen.

The authorities in Guatemala have already confirmed only 39 COVID-19 cases and just one fatality to date. Nevertheless, the health authorities said, below 600 tests have been given.

Based on an estimate made by the US Department of State in 2015, approximately, nine million Americans live abroad. However, it remains unclear how many of them reside as a whole, in Latin America.

Meanwhile, in Mexico, home to the largest US citizens' population of Latin America, Chris Landau, the US Ambassador to Mexico, appealed to all Americans to go home and asked those who have opted to stay to "think long and hard" about their personal situation at present.

Online System Registration for COVID-19 Alerts

The ambassador also encouraged the approximated 1.5 million US residents to sign up online for COVID-19 alerts so they can be traced to Mexico. Relatively, a spokesman of the embassy did not disclose the exact number of who signed up. In addition, for the past ten years, 76-year-old Tina Rosa, a former Oregon resident has lived near the attractive Mexican town of San Miguel de Allende.

READ MORE: President Trump Announces Strict Guidelines to Combat COVID-19

Last weekend, she said, she went out for the first time in ten consecutive days, with a pair of gloves and a face mask, to buy extra fencing for the expansion of her garden. She was emotional though when she said she wondered if she would ever go back and see her friends again. With her voice shaking, Rosa also said, she didn't even know if she'd ever see her daughter again.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 09:32:03|Editor: xuxin

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A healthcare worker passes by the emergency entrance of Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver, Canada, April 1, 2020. Personal protective equipment stockpiled in Canada is not enough when the COVID-19 pandemic is raging in the world, Canadian Health Minister Patty Hajdu said Wednesday. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua)

OTTAWA, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Personal protective equipment stockpiled in Canada is not enough when the COVID-19 pandemic is raging in the world, Canadian Health Minister Patty Hajdu said Wednesday.

"I would say that, obviously, governments all across the world are in the same exact situation," Hajdu said at a press conference.

"We are working I would say 24 hours, around the clock, trying to procure equipment in a global situation where equipment is extremely tight," Hajdu added.

Hajdu made the remarks hours after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that no one can guarantee that the federal emergency strategic stockpiles would be sufficient to cover the ever growing need for masks, ventilators and other supplies.

Last week, Trudeau said he could "assure everyone that the federal stockpiles have been sufficient to meet the needs of the provinces until this point."

On Tuesday Trudeau said that the government has signed contracts with three Canadian companies to make ventilators, surgical masks, test kits and other medical supplies.

Also on Tuesday Canadian Public Services and Procurement Minister Anita Anand said that the Canadian government ordered 157 million surgical masks and 60 million N95 masks.

The government has also ordered nearly 1,570 ventilators and more than a million COVID-19 test kits and is working to secure an additional 4,000 ventilators, Anand said.
The government is considering VND61.58 trillion ($2.6 billion) worth of financial support to poor people and businesses affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment on Wednesday submitted to it a proposal for a social security policy package suggested by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Of the amount, more than VND52 trillion ($2.24 billion) would be targeted at six categories of individuals and businesses and around VND9.5 trillion ($409.48 million) would be used to support businesses facing difficulties.

Of the VND52 trillion, nearly VND36 trillion ($1.55 billion) will come from the government and the remaining VND16.2 trillion ($698.28 million) from the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP). The financial support will be provided over three months from April to June.

The six categories of entities eligible for the VND52 trillion support include people with meritorious services to the revolution, poor and near-poor households, people on unpaid leave because their employers face financial difficulties caused by Covid-19.

Businesses with employees who have Covid-19 will be allowed to borrow from the VBSP at zero percent interest to pay their employees three months salaries. The loans will be for a maximum of 50 percent of the local minimum wage, and the businesses will be responsible for paying the remaining salary.

As of Thursday morning known Covid-19 cases in Vietnam had risen to 222. There have been no deaths and 64 have been discharged from hospitals.

Globally, the pandemic has spread to 203 countries and territories, claiming over 47,000 lives.
Serial killers, at least according to the FBI, are people who commit at least three murders in over a month. Britannica's definition of "serial killer" is a murderer who has killed at least two people in separate events.

Serial killers are some of the vilest creatures on earth. Some might be more deranged than others---murderers who commit sexual assault, robbery, and cannibalism, to name a few.

Francisco Chagas

Francisco Chagas was a serial killer who confessed to the murder of 42 boys between 1991 and 2003. He was arrested in 2004 after police found two bodies buried beneath the floor of his house.

The Brazilian murderer said he lost track of the murders he committed and reckon he "might have killed 30 boys." All victims died with blows to the head.

In an interview, Chagas said he mutilated the genitals of his victims and said "voices" in his head told him to commit the atrocious acts of violence. He supplied local authorities with information, leading to the discovery of ten bodies in a field near his home.

The 41-year-old killer claimed he was sexually abused as a child and was driven to kill because of the traumatic experience. He was sentenced to 20 years and eight months in jail for a 15-year-old victim.

"Sometimes I'm revolted by what I did," he said, "but you must understand that something was using me to do this. Good people will understand that."

Francisco Chagas is yet to stand trial for the other 41 victims.

Julio Perez Silva

Julio Silva was a Chilean serial killer known as the Psychopath from Alto Hospicio. He was presumed active between 1998 and 2001 and reportedly murdered 14 women.

Alto Hospicio, a small mining town in Chile, saw a string of disappearances involving women from poor families. Due to their financial stature, the local authorities often dismissed the cases as run-away teenagers.

Silva posed as a cab driver and offered free rides to young people. The victims were driven to a remote place where the perpetrator would commit acts of rape and murder. The bodies would then be thrown in deep abandoned mines.

In 2001, a 13-year-old survived after Silva kidnapped and assaulted her. She escaped and, accompanied by family, went straight to the hospital where doctors took samples of the killer's semen.

Silva was arrested months later and immediately confessed to his crimes. He led investigators to a deep mine shaft where authorities found the bodies of seven young women ages 14 to 17.

His criminal history and brutality made him one of Chilean history's most prolific serial killer. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on February 26, 2004.

Pedro Alonzo Lopez

Pedro was a Colombian serial killer who was linked to the murders of over 110 girls from 1969 to 2002. Known as "The Monster of Andes," Lopez was also suspected to be responsible for the death of 300 women across Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia.

Alonzo Lopez was reportedly kicked out of his home early in life for molesting his sister. He suffered sexual and physical abuse under the hands of foster parents, teachers, and cellmates (in prison).

According to a podcast, he was almost killed by tribal leaders in Peru for his crimes. He was saved by a missionary, after which he continued his crime spree.

He was captured after Ecuadorian authorities discovered the bodies of four young girls. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison. He was then deported to Colombia after 14 years where he was put in a psychiatric hospital. He was released four years later.

No one knows where he went after gaining back his freedom.

Carlos Eduardo Robledo Puch

Robledo Puch, also known as "The Angel of Death" and "The Black Angel," is considered one of the most notorious serial killers in Argentinian history.

Puch was convicted for murder, attempted murder, robbery, rape, attempted rape, sexual abuse, kidnapping, and theft.

Carlos never fit the serial killer profile---he was young, attractive and intelligent. He came from a wealthy family, a life he turned his back on.

Robledo Puch was arrested after he killed an accomplice in a robbery on February 1, 1972. He allegedly blowtorched the face of his deceased accomplice to avoid the identification of the body. He was arrested on February 4, 1972, after authorities found his ID card inside his accomplice's pocket.

He was just 20-years-old at the time of his arrest.

Authorities never found a motive behind his crimes. Puch publicly threatened a judge after he deemed him, psychopath, saying, "Someday, I'm going to get out and kill you all."

He was tried and sentenced to life imprisonment in the high-security prison of Sierra Chica.

He requested to be paroled on May 2008 but was seen as a threat to society. He is still serving his sentence in the Argentinian corrections facility to this day.

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S Gurumurthy By

Except intelligence officials, national security experts and the wary among police officials, not many Indians would have heard of the name Tablighi Jamaat [TJ] before the explosive Nizamuddin coronavirus episode gave it the publicity it studiously avoided. On the face of it, TJs six principles suggest Islamic piety in its extreme. But that is merely its cosmetic exterior, inviting the innocent and idealistic young Muslims into an ideological line that ultimately turns them as terrorists. The less known and dangerous side of the century-old TJ began unfolding the world over since 2001, but not in India.

Nursery and gateway to terror

TJ is another system driver and integral element of Islamist Violent Non-State Actors internal dynamics; in many cases it has acted as nursery for indoctrinating Islamist terrorists, writes Dr Farhan Zahid, a Pakistani counter-terrorism and security expert, in his analysis titled Tablighi Jamaat and its links with terrorism [Foreign Analysis March 2015 Centre Francais de Reserche Sur le Renseignement]. Dr Farhan says, TJ in a way plays the role of recruiter and sympathiser [for terrorism]. TJs congregation allows radical elements worldwide to meet and discuss violent activities and provide them with the best opportunity to coordinate. Adding many of its followers have dual and overlapping membership with jihadist groups, Dr Farhan cites references and says TJ has now been considered as a gateway to terrorism.

WATCH | Quarantine is not against Islamic laws: Tablighi Jamaat Chief Maulana Saad

Terror record in Europe, US

Dr Farhan says since 2001, traces of links have been found between TJ and Islamists involved in acts of terror. Shoe bomber Richard Reid who attempted a trans-Atlantic airline bombing [2001], Jose Padilla who tried dirty bomb manufacturing [2002] in New York city, Barcelona terror plot [2008] and the arrest of American Taliban John Walker in Afghanistan [2001] were all linked to TJ. Its French Muslim recruits were found involved in planning attacks by the Portland Seven and the Lackawanna Six in the US.In his analysis titled Tablighi Jamaat: Jihads stealthy Legions in Middle East Quarterly [Jan 8, 2016] Alex Alexiev writes that as 80 per cent of Islamist extremists have come from Tablighi ranks and the French intelligence calls TJ the antechamber of fundamentalism. In his investigative story titled French Islamic group offers rich soil for militancy in The New York Times [April 29, 2005] Craig Smith lists Zacarias Moussaoui [charged in the US 9/11 terror]; Herve Djamel Loiseau, who died fleeing the 2001 American bombardment of Tora Bora in Afghanistan; Djamel Beghal, an admitted Al-Qaeda member, who was convicted in 2005 for plotting to blow up the US Embassy in Paris, as TJ terror activists of French origin. Freth Burton and Scott Stewart, writing in an analysis titled Tablighi Jamaat: An Indirect Line to Terrorism in the Stratfor Global Intelligence Security Weekly, say that 12 out of the 14 men arrested in a pre-emptive raid on a mosque in Barcelona for plotting to attack targets belonged to TJ, adding that TJs name figured in the 2005 London underground bombings in which 52 people died and also in the attempted bombings in London, Glasgow and Scotland. Assistant FBI Director [US] Michael Heimbach says that TJ has significant presence in the US, and Al-Qaeda was found to have recruited TJ adherents [New York Post Dec 27, 2015].

Turned Pak into terror hub

The book titled On The Abyss  Pakistan After the Coup [Harper Collins Publishers India 2000] authored mainly by Pakistani scholars, diplomats and writers, says that the largely Barelvi Islamic Pakistan, which accepted local variations, including Dargah worship and Sufi traditions, had been hijacked by Deobandi ideology through Tablighi Jamaat, the result of which was the growth of militancy. Khaled Ahmed, former diplomat and editor of Friday Times in Pakistan writes in On The Abyss: Because of the rise of Deobandi militias. the [Punjab] province is rapidly losing its Barelvi temperament. What the authors had prophesied came true in the very next year when Pakistan was found involved in 9/11 attack on the US. Over the years, Pakistan has come to be known as the global terror hub. Says Dr Farhan, Several mainstream Islamist violent non-state actors have taken their roots from TJs indoctrination and on the platform provided by TJ missionaries. It is the Deobandi ideology of TJ which provides potential jihadists a crucial link.During the 1980s and 1990s, TJ became the recruiter of Islamist radicals for the Afghan war. Dr Farhan points out that Harkat-ul Jihad-al-Islami [HuJI] was formed by former TJ members Qari Saifullah Akhtar and Fazal ur Rahman Kalil along with others. From the HuJI platform emerged other jihadist outfits - Harkat-ul-Mujhahideen [HuM] Jaish-e-Mohammed [JeM], Sipah-e-Sahaba [SSP] and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi [LeJ]. All of them stand declared as terror outfits.

Terror merchant

An India Abroad News Service report on April 1, 2020 titled Tablighi Jamaat shares links with terror outfits, said: As per WikiLeaks, some of the 9/11 al-Qaeda suspects detained by the US in Guantanamo Bay had stayed in the Tablighi Jamaat headquarters in Nizamuddin West, New Delhi, years ago. Tablighi Jamaat was also suspected to be involved in the burning of 59 Hindu kar sevaks in 2002 in Godhra, Gujarat, which led to mass communal rioting in the state. According to Indias intelligence and security expert, late B Raman, TJ in Pakistan and Bangladesh gained adverse attention for association with Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad and members of the International Islamic Front formed by Osama bin Laden in 1998. Quoting Pakistani newspaper reports from the 1990s, Raman pointed out that the trained cadre of jihadi terrorist organisations like HuM obtained visas by posing as preachers of Tablighi Jamaat and went abroad to recruit young Muslims for terror training in Pakistan. Since millions of TJ proselytisers travel around the world, TJ also developed a large following in Chechnya and Dagestan areas of Russia, Somalia and other African countries. Raman wrote that intelligence agencies of these countries suspected that terror organisations based in Pakistan were using the cover of TJ preaching for creating sleeper cells in different countries. As a result, TJ was black-listed and its preachers denied visas.

B Raman, one of the most brilliant R&AW officers, passed away in 2013.

In Sri Lanka, too

In a piece titled The road to Sri Lanka Carnage on Rediff.com, the well-known security analyst Praveen Swami linked Mohammad Muhsin Nilam, a Sri Lankan, to Zahran Hashim who was responsible for the Colombo bombings. Also known as Abu Shuraya, Nilam was killed in Raqqa, the ISIS capital. Nilams story is key to understanding the networks thought to be responsible for the carnage in Colombo. Swami says that Tablighi Jamaat had begun to grow roots among Sri Lankan Muslims from the early 21st century. Swami says, Educated in Sharia law at Islamabads International Islamic University, an institution where Osama bin Ladens mentor Abdullah Azzam once taught, Nilam had encountered with the Tablighi Jamaat. In 2011, when Nilam returned to his home in Kandy in Sri Lanka, he first worked as part-time Urdu instructor at Colombo University. When he was principal of a school in Galewala, he played a key role in Zahrans group. Then, in 2014, feigning to go on a pilgrimage with his six children, pregnant wife, and ageing parents, he took them to Turkey and disappeared across the border into Syria. He posted in his Facebook post: We will kill every man, woman, child, Shia, Sunni, Zoroastrians, Kurds, Christians. Nilam had recruited for ISIS 36 Sri Lankans, maybe 100, including his friend, Thauqeer Ahmed Thajudeen. Sri Lanka Thowheed Jamaat and Tablighi Jamaat have identical goals and their interests converge. Tamil Nadu Thowheed Jamaat is the mentor of Sri Lankas National Thowheed Jamaat, which delivered the bombs in Sri Lanka. There is no Thowheed Jamaat outside India and Sri Lanka.

Now, the climax

And now the climax, for the unwary. Where was this noble-looking evil born? India. Who founded it? Indian. Name? Maulana Mohammed Illyasi. When? In 1920s. Where is its global headquarters? Nizamuddin West Delhi! The place of its annual meet in which hundreds of Tablighis from Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, China and other coronavirus hotspots participated. The outbreak was astonishingly in control in India till Nizamuddin exploded as a grave and dangerous national threat. TJ with its headquarters in India now functions in some 80 countries with some 80 million adherents.

In a 173-page paper titled Tablighi Jamaat: Wolf in sheeps skin [Sept 9, 2018; released to media again after the Nizamuddin episode] Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, a Zionist and multi-award-winning anti-jihadist journalist and a counterterrorism specialist, unravels the massive following of JT and its terror connections the world over. Thousands of TJ teachers from within and outside assemble in India and that is what they did in Nizamuddin. Is it just to memorise the six noble principles or as Dr Farhan says to discuss and coordinate terror activities, will never be known in India, as no government has the guts to enter any mosque, thanks to the way secularism is understood in our politics.Unless this limit is breached and the menace is outlawed, innocent Muslims attracted by its cosmetic exterior of Koran cannot be saved from becoming carriers of Kalashnikovs and makers and throwers of lethal bombs. Let the courts decide whether TJs right to mentor terror in India also constitutes minority right, as is so far being understood.

S GURUMURTHY

The author is a commentator on political and economic affairs
WOOD RIVER  Thousands of pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) and two Illinois National Guard members arrived in Madison County this week.

Were thankful for the states shipments and assistance from the Illinois National Guard, County Chairman Kurt Prenzler said.

EMA Director Tony Falconio said two shipments from the state arrived at its warehouse in Wood River on Saturday and Tuesday along with the soldiers.

The soldiers are stationed at our Emergency Operations Center, Falconio said. We are very grateful for the extra support they are providing us right now.

The soldiers are collecting data and surveying the five hospitals in Madison County for use by the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois Emergency Management Agency.

Falconio said the need for PPE continues to be critical. EMA volunteers have been helping take donations from the public to distribute to local first response agencies. EMA has had around 15 volunteers at the warehouse each day donating their time by accepting, organizing and distributing the donations.

The response from our EMA volunteers and the public during this pandemic has been nothing short of amazing, Falconio said. Because of them, we are able to provide critically needed PPE to our first responders.

This is the second time the Illinois National Guard has been deployed recently to Madison County. The first came during last years historical flooding.

We are happy to have them back after the fantastic work they did for us last year, Prenzler said. The more help we have to keep our residents and first responders safe, the better.
Prosecutor Faiz Shah said he would appeal the decision in Pakistans Supreme Court. All four men will remain in custody for at least 90 days on the grounds of public safety, according to a ruling issued by the Home Department of Sindh province.
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The national arts and crafts chain Hobby Lobby has repeatedly disobeyed stay-at-home orders issued in states across the country aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus. The emergency orders issued by governors usually allow for a sliver of the business community to remain open because it has been deemed critical or essential, usually including grocery stores and pharmacies and a handful of other retailers depending on the state. State officials in Colorado were the latest to have had enough when the Oklahoma Citybased chain reopened its Colorado stores this week, prompting the state attorney generals office to send a cease-and-desist letter instructing the company to adhere to the Colorado governors order issued last Wednesday. For the avoidance of doubt  Hobby Lobby is not a critical business,  the letter stated.

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In Wisconsin, a handful of Milwaukee-area Hobby Lobby outlets were shut down by police Tuesday for failing to adhere to the states shelter-in-place order issued last week. Hobby Lobby properly closed its stores during Ohios stay-home order. Now theyre open againwhats changed? Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost tweeted Wednesday. Neither the order, nor the seriousness of the health threat, for sure. In response to a cease-and-desist letter from the Republican state attorney general, the chain eventually agreed Wednesday evening to halt its operations in the state. Hobby Lobbys practice of disregarding state public safety orders appears to be widespread, having also occurred in North Carolina and Indiana, and part of a companywide effort to evade state closure orders. A March 28 Hobby Lobby memo obtained by Business Insider outlined talking points for store managers on how to respond and communicate if visited by a local authority that asks why we are open.

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David Green, the founder and head of Hobby Lobby, is a well-known evangelical conservative who waged a successful Supreme Court challenge to the Affordable Care Act over its requirement that family-owned corporations pay for coverage that includes contraception. Political conservatives have been slow to accept the seriousness of the looming threat of the coronavirus pandemic, and many evangelicals have outright defied attempts to slow the spread through social distancing by continuing to hold religious services. While we do not know for certain what the future holds, or how long this disruption will last, we can all rest in knowing that God is in control, Green wrote in a letter to Hobby Lobby employees last month.

For more on the impact of the coronavirus, listen to Thursdays episode of What Next.
Swiss fragrance producer Givaudan said Thursday it would produce 60 tonnes of hand sanitiser over the next two weeks to meet chronic shortages of the product needed to tackle the coronavirus pandemic.

The world's biggest fragrance and flavouring company said it had set up a dedicated production line at its factory in Geneva for hand sanitiser, which would be donated to local hospitals, transportation workers and others in need.

The company, which supplies prestige names in perfumes including Christian Dior and Prada, said in a statement that its Geneva factory would produce the equivalent of around 700,000 bottles of hand sanitiser by mid-April.

Further production lines were being created at its factories in the US and other European countries to help meet a growing demand, it said.

Givaudan has thus joined the ranks of a range of breweries and other companies who have transformed part of their production lines to help meet spiking global demand for hand sanitiser, seen as an essential tool in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic which has infected nearly one million people worldwide.

"In a short space of time, we've managed to establish dedicated production lines of hand sanitiser to produce up to eight tonnes a day, helping to keep our employees protected, but also allowing us to supply to those on the front line, including local hospitals," company chief Gilles Andrier said.

Givaudan said that its production sites in other countries would also provide hand sanitiser locally.

Its French sites in Pomacle and Avignon had provided over nearly 1.5 tonnes of hand sanitiser to local hospitals and others, while its Ashford site in Britain had partnered with a local brewery in providing hand sanitiser to nearby hospitals.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Theres a fine line between privacy and secrecy in an emergency.

In a pandemic, we have crossed that line  because lives are on the line: COVID-19 does not respect national borders nor personal boundaries.

This is not time the time to hold back information, neither collectively nor individually. Governments must tell us what they know, when they know it.

But each of us must also do our part. And we know it.

With great fanfare, Premier Doug Ford has set up a toll-free snitch line for the exposure of price gouging. But we need more exposure of the high price we are paying for gaping holes in pandemic planning by both our provincial and federal governments.

Until journalists revealed the rapid spread of COVID-19 in Ontario nursing homes, there had been no public disclosure of the local outbreaks. Our politicians and officials default to withholding information, keen to avoid panic or inclined to put the best face forward.

But this is not the time to save face, it is the time to save lives. The best way to protect us is with truth and transparency, which requires disclosure of information and evidence.

How many masks do we have in hand and how many are we short? How many ventilators do we need now, never mind whats on order?

Were calling on the government to clearly and specifically inform hospitals on when new supplies will be delivered, the Ontario Hospital Association said in an urgent appeal after days of public reassurances from the premier.

What is the true death toll today, not two days ago? On Wednesday, the Toronto Stars tally nearly doubled the official province-wide compilation.

We dont know the up-to-date figures because testing is still lagging, but also because the tabulations are delayed. And, inexplicably, we still dont know the full explanation for why our lab work remains days behind the pace of other provinces, only that the premier keeps saying we are short of materials that others seem to have.

Why cant we even keep count? Who exactly has COVID-19, where were they last, and who might have been exposed to them at the time?

Too often the people who truly need to know cant get the truth, because employers and employees refuse to name names. That forces co-workers, customers and patients to play guessing games to assess their own risk of exposure.

If princes, prime ministers and popular celebrities are willing to both self-isolate and self-disclose, why are some people  even some journalists  reticent about coming forward with their own status? There is no stigma in testing positive, only the guilt that comes from holding back as the virus spreads, imperilling others who need the full protection of full information.

Surely the signal sent by Justin Trudeau when he announced that his wifes infection had sent him into isolation, when Prince Charles revealed his own illness, and when Hollywood leading man Tom Hanks led the way with his own early disclosure, is that there is no blame in catching COVID-19. Only shame in concealing it.

Caring means sharing all information, not sitting on it. Being ill is no crime, but the impulse to cover up is worse than the coronavirus.

It is not enough for our leaders to lead by example in their personal circumstances. They should also urge their own officials, and all of us, to disclose all the collective and individual data we need to combat the virus.

Even in the best of times, health practitioners are required to report sexually transmitted infections so that contact tracing can alert those who might have been affected, while striving to avoid stigma. Now, in the worst of times, it is unrealistic to expect overstretched public health officials to complete the vital work of contact tracing for COVID-19.

Everyone is affected when anyone is infected. People should, of their own volition, spread the word rather than spread the virus.

Legally compelling public disclosure might only deter people from coming forward. No one wants to go viral with news they have the novel coronavirus, but naming is not shaming  certainly not within ones own workplace or local setting.

If it helps save lives, anyone who might have COVID-19 should encourage their employer  whether a hospital or a transit service  to share their details, including identifying information, if it helps identify the risk. Even in a time of social distancing, we are all in this together.

Elevating personal rights over collective obligations is a misreading of the human right to life. Just as free speech does not confer the right to scream fire in a crowded theatre, so too privacy and secrecy are no defence for reticence or silence when others need to know how to stay safe.

It bears repeating that not just journalists but also economists, epidemiologists, statisticians and AI researchers need instant public access to granular data, metadata, and all data points or information fragments that are key pieces of the puzzle in a pandemic. The default must be open data that can help us open up new leads, not a closed-minded approach that shuts people out and closes the door to potential solutions.

Clear information is needed now to support contingency planning for all scenarios, especially over the short term, the Ontario Hospital Association said Wednesday.

In a pandemic, hoarding data is like hoarding prescription drugs. Until a vaccine can inoculate us from COVID-19, sunshine is the best disinfectant  and the antidote to darkness.

At a time of uncontrolled infections, uncontrolled information is the solution.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 14:39:49|Editor: huaxia

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LOS ANGELES, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Guam Governor Leon Guerrero said Thursday that she decided to allow sailors from the USS Theodore Roosevelt to leave the military base and be quarantined in hotels on the island after the Navy asked for help to deal with the spread of COVID-19 on the aircraft carrier.

The U.S. Pacific Fleet assured that only sailors who tested negative for COVID-19 would be arranged to be quarantined in the hotels and the Navy would deal with any sailor in quarantine who tests positive individually, Guerrero said.

"They cannot go out of their rooms. They cannot go out to the lobby areas. They can't go to the beaches. The Navy is going to place security guards on the floors. They're going to have roving security and have leadership stay with them," she said at the daily online briefing.

The Navy asked local authorities to help them "get over this god-awful virus," she said, noting that her decision was made based on plenty of discussions and information and she had the "morale obligation, as an ethical action" to do so.

On Wednesday, the governor and Joint Region Marianas announced that they had reached an agreement to house sailors who tested negative off the base and would be sent to a designated hotel for a 14-day quarantine where they would have no interaction with the local community and be strictly monitored.

The aircraft carrier pulled into port in Guam on Friday, after several of its sailors had tested positive for COVID-19 and had been airlifted to the Naval Hospital on Guam.

The nuclear-powered Roosevelt has a crew of some 5,500 service members, among whom about 20 are originally from Guam. The ship left its San Diego homeport in California in mid-January for a regularly-scheduled deployment to the Indo-Pacific.
Cannabis Shelf Space Deemed Essential

Seattle, Washington--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - CFN Media (OTCQB: CNFN), the leading agency and financial media network dedicated to the legalized North American cannabis industry, announces publication of an article discussing how CalEthos, Inc. (OTC Pink: BUUZ) is reimagining the cannabis retail experience, for both consumers and brands, with its proposed chain of SHOWCASE cannabis superstores in Southern California.

What is the ideal setting for a brand to showcase its wares to the retail consumer? It is certainly not a crowded store with hundreds of brands competing for limited shelf space and consumer attention. Every brand out there would much rather have its own store, featuring its own product offerings, staffed by expert sales associates ready to educate consumers on the value of their products. In short, every brand would like its own version of the Apple Store or the Gap. Of course, every brand can't afford to develop its own store, and cannabis licensing requirements often make the idea even more untenable.

CalEthos may have the answer for cannabis brands struggling to solve this problem. The company is currently financing the first of several planned cannabis superstores, appropriately called SHOWCASE, in Southern California. The concept is to provide partner cannabis brands their own space within a 20,000 sq. ft. SHOWCASE footprint, allowing them to fully display all that a brand has to offer. Each SHOWCASE location will also feature a medical pharmacy, an event center for community and consumer education, and a cafe and lounge areas to enhance the consumer experience and extend the shopper's stay. Rather than the cramped, hurried environment common throughout retail cannabis, SHOWCASE promises to cater to both the customer and the brand in an elevated, inviting space.

Click Here to Receive a CalEthos Investor Presentation & Company Updates

CalEthos President Piers Cooper sat down with CFN Media to discuss the ideal setting for retailers to SHOWCASE their cannabis brand. Please click on the video below for the full story.





Click above to hear CalEthos President Piers Cooper discuss the SHOWCASE Innovation

Cannot view this video? Visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0ECEtVncxM&t=10s

CalEthos Did the Homework

The two executives largely responsible for the CalEthos concept, CEO Michael Campbell and President Piers Cooper, have a long history in advising, building, and investing in companies both private and public. They kept bumping up against the emerging cannabis industry and decided to investigate, looking for opportunities arising from shortcomings in the young marketplace. They settled on retail, visiting a wide variety of stores and brands and talking to everyone involved, from the consumer to the staff to the product companies.

These investigations highlighted the problems listed above, both for the brand and for the consumer. Cannabis has been legalized, but many stores still carry a bit of a black-market vibe which is uninviting to newer cannabis consumers. Space is at a premium, as most dispensaries don't have the capital to build large format stores or expand and upgrade existing stores. Budtenders are generally helpful, but they are usually limited to some personal advice about a brand they like before making the sale and moving on to the next in line.

Click Here to Receive a CalEthos Investor Presentation & Company Updates

From the brand side, it is almost impossible to build a loyal customer base under such conditions. With advertising options limited, brands don't have anywhere to turn. A given dispensary may carry 5 out of the brand's 50 SKUs, whilst those 5 products are generally displayed amongst many other brands with limited space or capability for differentiation.

Campbell and Cooper came away from their research knowing there had to be a solution that provided a better consumer experience while enabling product makers to actively engage and educate those consumers.





Click above to hear CalEthos President Piers Cooper discuss The SHOWCASE Model Inspiration

Cannot view this video? Visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0aTr61f5Tc

The SHOWCASE Solution

CalEthos enlisted the help of Stephen Brady, the man responsible for the design of numerous Ralph Lauren, Bloomingdales, Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic and other retail stores. Brady helped them realize the vision of an open, engaging, vital retail setting in which consumers are given space and options and educational opportunities. CalEthos is tuned in to the need to invite and educate 'canna-curious' consumers, and the SHOWCASE design enables that with event and education space along with lounge areas and a cafe. The concept is not turn and burn, though there is nothing stopping a customer from grabbing what they need and leaving quickly. Rather, the concept is explore and learn and enjoy. CalEthos believes consumers will gravitate to its model over the typical marijuana dispensary in the Southern California market.





CalEthos Artist Rendering

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6612/54063_b1462fb6d4322bf8_003full.jpg

The company already knows that brands will appreciate the opportunity to create their own stores-within-a-store. Brand partners can procure dedicated space under the SHOWCASE Brand Membership Program that ranges from a 10' x 16' boutique with 90' of shelf space, to shared kiosks with 21' of shelf space per brand in specialty product sections, to 18' of refrigerated space in the Chill Zone for edibles and beverages. The SHOWCASE design also features a pharmacy for medical products and advice for patients to explore treatment options. All spaces are staffed by highly trained associates who are intimately aware of the products sold in their area.

Ready to SHOWCASE your Brand? Click Here to Apply.





Click above to hear CalEthos President Piers Cooper discuss the CalEthos Event Center

Cannot view this video? Visit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SH6XmkOsTyA

Overall, the concept is compelling and a refreshing change from the typical dispensary environment. Southern California, with its advanced legal market, huge population, and trend-setting reputation, is a prime location for the SHOWCASE concept. Investors interested in learning more about the opportunity are encouraged to follow the links. The future of cannabis retail awaits.

Click Here to Receive a CalEthos Investor Presentation & Company Updates

For Additional Information on CalEthos Please Visit the website at: https://www.calethos.com

To Read the full feature click here: https://bit.ly/2xEiil5

CalEthos

CEO Michael Campbell

mc@calethos.com

714-352-5315

CFN Enterprises

President Frank Lane

206-369-7050

lane@cannabisfn.com

About CFN Media

CFN Enterprises Inc. (OTCQB: CNFN) is the owner and operator of CFN Media, the leading agency and digital financial media network dedicated to the legal cannabis industry.

For Visitors and Viewers

CFN Media's Cannabis Financial Network (CannabisFN.com) is the destination for savvy investors and business people profiting from the worldwide cannabis industry. Viewers will see breaking news, exclusive content and original programming involving the people, companies and investments shaping the industry.

For Cannabis Businesses & Companies

CFN Media is a leading agency and financial media network dedicated to the cannabis industry. We help private, pre-public and public cannabis companies in the US and Canada attract capital, investors and media attention.

Our powerful digital media and distribution platform conveys a company's message and value proposition directly to accredited and retail investors and national media active in the North American cannabis markets.

Since 2013, CFN Media has enabled the world's preeminent cannabis companies to thrive in the capital and public markets.

Learn how to become a CFN Media client company, brand or entrepreneur: https://www.cannabisfn.com/become-featured-company/

Disclaimer

The above article is sponsored content. CannabisFN.com and CFN Media, have been hired to create awareness. Please follow the link below to view our full disclosure outlining our compensation: http://www.cannabisfn.com/legal-disclaimer/

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54063
We must communicate to our people where we are now, and that we can no longer assume we are still where we used to be. We are faced with a challenge that no government in the history of Nigeria has ever faced. So, we have to redesign our economic planning and change our thinking.

This was the view of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, today, at the inaugural meeting of the Economic Sustainability Committee composed by President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday in a move to design and respond to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the crashing of oil prices in the global market.

In the last several weeks, oil prices, a critical driver of the Nigerian economy, have crashed from the budget benchmark of $57 per barrel to less than $20 amidst the other worsening implications of the pandemic with forecasts of impending recession on a global scale.

However, President Buhari set up the committee to amongst other things develop a clear economic sustainability plan from now till 2023, identify fiscal and monetary measures to enhance oil and non-oil revenues in order to fund the plan, develop a stimulus package and come up with other clear-cut measures to create more jobs while keeping existing ones.

While inaugurating the committee, the Vice President noted that what Mr President has asked us to do is to devise a strategy in order to be able to keep the economy going and also make provisions to ensure that we are able to retain jobs and indeed create more.

We also need to develop the Nigerian economy in a way that we will even take advantage of the challenges of these times and convert those challenges to opportunities, Mr Osinbajo added.

Speaking on the focus of the committee and what would be done to salvage the situation in the country, the vice president said what we will need to do is something that is bold, radical and one that our people can understand and buy into.

READ ALSO:

We must design a broad vision that takes into account how to implement a big plan inclusive of a focus on mass local productivity and mass employment.

The big plan of government is to find a way for us to be able to do mass housing, increase agricultural production, ensure massive local productivity by among several other options, increasing support to MSMEs, and majorly improve avenues to put more cash in the hands of our people and also make them productive.

Committee members present at the meeting were the Ministers of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed; Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo; Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige; Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola; the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq; and Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Silva. Others include, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mele Kyari; the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele and the Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Office in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babatunde Lawal who is the secretary of the committee.

Laolu Akande

Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Publicity

Office of the Vice President
COLUMBUS, Ohio  The unusual way Ohio is wrapping up its primary election amid the coronavirus pandemic is bringing new attention to its vote-by-mail rules.

That includes the requirement that people who want to get a mail ballot first fill out a physical, paper form, and send it to their board of elections.

As part of a bipartisan coronavirus response law approved last week, lawmakers passed an election plan for extended all-mail voting through April 28. It makes up for canceled in-person voting on March 17, after Gov. Mike DeWine ordered polls closed for public-health reasons.

In the elections plan, approved unanimously, lawmakers agreed to send ballots and postage-paid envelopes to anyone who requests them, as long as theyre registered to vote and havent voted already.

But lawmakers opted not to provide ballot request forms or pay for the postage to mail them back, something that had been proposed by the states top elections official, Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a Republican.

The law otherwise extends mail voting for the primary through April 28. But except for the disabled and homeless, that means Ohioans wont be able to vote in person.

Generally, that means voters will have to obtain an application  by printing one off the Internet or requesting one be mailed to them by their county board of elections  and then find a stamp and envelope to mail it to their county board of elections.

Once the county receives a voters application, elections officials then will mail back a blank ballot with a postage-paid envelope.

Voting-rights activists view the states decision to not offer general in-person voting, while also not providing postage for ballot applications, as illegally requiring people to pay to vote, according to Jen Miller, executive director of the Ohio League of Women Voters.

The LWV and other voting-rights groups this week sued over the elections plan, including the postage issue. That lawsuit is pending in federal court, and could be decided soon. (UPDATE, 4/5: A federal judge on Friday declined to change Ohios elections plan.)

Many houses dont even have postage. So one concern is that people now have to leave their home in the middle of a pandemic to buy stamps, Miller said. But just as importantly, if applications are required in writing to be able to vote, and an individual has to supply their own postage, we would liken that to a poll tax.

Are there ways for voters to get around this?

The first issue is some may not have Internet access or a printer. County boards of election have offered to mail applications to those who request them. Cuyahoga County has a specific process that weve written about to request one  more about that here  but youll need to check with your local board of elections to find out whats happening where you live.

The Secretary of States Office has also suggested that voters hand-write their own applications, as long as it includes key information, which you can find here.

As for the postage, the Secretary of States Office has the following suggestions:

Multiple Vote-by-Mail ballot requests can be sent in one envelope to the voters county board of elections. When their ballots arrive, are completed and signed, the voter should place each in the separate provided pre-paid envelopes.

Once the voter fills out a vote-by-mail ballot request they can physically return it to their county board of elections .

buy stamps online, via Individuals can, via https://store.usps.com/store/results/stamps/_/N-9y93lv . Also, USPS has authorized Stamps.com to allow for payment and printing of stamps.

However, its not an option for community groups to provide free postage and envelopes for voters.

In Ohio, its illegal to provide a thing of value to get someone to vote, viewing it as related to bribing voters. That includes free postage and envelopes.

Why do I need to apply for a mail-in ballot?

Its required under Ohio law. It allows a voter to chose how they want to vote, while in a normal election, making it easier for the state to keep tabs of outstanding mail ballots so people dont try to vote a second time at the polls on Election Day.

In a primary election, the applications are especially important because voters need to request whether they want a partisan ballot  Republican, Democratic or otherwise  or an issues-only ballot.

But state law also requires voters to include their signature on their application. That means voters need a physical form.

Some, including LaRose when he was in the state senate, have pushed to change state law to allow voters to request absentee ballots online. Sen. Theresa Gavarone, a Republican from the Toledo area, sponsored a similar bill last September that hasnt made it out of committee.

Why didnt lawmakers provide free postage for applications?

Time was a factor, according to state Sen. Matt Huffman, a Lima Republican who played a central role in negotiating the elections plan.

Organizing a statewide mailing of postage-paid applications would slow down the process, he said.

Lawmakers set the voting period through April 28, while LaRose had pushed for voting to end on June 2, which elections officials said would give them more time to organize an orderly election.

But lawmakers wanted the earlier date because it lines up with the timelines for the Republican and Democratic presidential nomination process, as well as for candidates and local school districts that need to make budgeting decisions based on whether local levies pass or fail.

Huffman said voters who have a hard time getting postage will have options  such as asking for help from friends and family or ordering stamps online. He also said primary elections are primarily for members of political parties, which isnt a majority of Ohio voters. And there are other states with vote-by-mail systems that dont provide postage to their voters, he said.

The short answer to your question is, weve not done that [provide postage for vote-by-mail request forms] in any of our elections. And the other part is, most people are not going to have their ability to vote affected by whether they have the postage to mail it in, he said.

How long do I have to vote again?

Voters must postmark their ballots by April 27, or drop them off at their county board of elections by 7:30 p.m. on April 28.

If you have more questions about the rules for the election, read this detailed Q&A from cleveland.com, check out this mailing from the Ohio Secretary of State, or visit www.voteohio.gov.

Read other recent related coverage:

Cuyahoga County will begin mailing absentee ballots soon for the delayed primary election. Heres how to get one.

Voting rights groups sue over Ohio primary elections new April 28 date, seeking in-person voting

Heres how to vote in Ohios vote-by-mail wrap-up to its 2020 primary election: Q&A

Ohio lawmakers sets all-mail primary election through April 28; legal challenge still possible

Ohio legislature passes coronavirus relief bill extending primary voting until April 28, waiving school testing requirements
The United States is one of the worst-hit countries by the coronavirus pandemic. The country presently has 215,300 active cases and over 5,000 people have already lost their lives. Sadly, the country is expected to see a spike in the death rate in the upcoming weeks. New York City raced to build field hospitals and pleaded for reinforcements of medical personnel and equipment as Mayor Bill de Blasio projected that over half of the city of more than eight million people will become infected with the coronavirus.


The ongoing COVID-19 crisis will put the global economy in an extremely difficult situation. The Middle East, including oil producers in the Persian Gulf that are vulnerable to external economic ups and downs, will be one of the parts of the world to be hit hardest by the coming economic difficulties. This will have various long-term impacts on their domestic politics and external relations.



March of 2020 witnessed the unprecedented crashing of oil prices. On March 8, in response to a breakdown of negotiations on output cuts, Saudi Arabia threatened to discount its crude and boost production, which prompted the price of Brent crude, the international oil marker, to fall to as low as $31.02 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, to fall to $27.71 per barrel.

The falling of oil prices was an immediate and direct response to the breakdown of negotiations between Russia and OPEC countries, as Russia was unwilling to join in OPEC's efforts to reduce oil output. But competition for market share can't be an explanation; instead, the falling of oil prices is believed to take place within a far more complex context.

In a lesser  but also an important  way, the falling of oil prices should be attributed to the slowing-down of emerging economies. According to statistics, China's GDP growth rate dropped to 6.1% in 2019, and India's fell to 5.3%. Although China did import about 505 million tons of crude in 2019 in comparison to 402 million in 2018, the expectations for demand were weakened. It was largely due to the slackening of the market expectations that OPEC initiated the negotiations on reducing output.

Besides the two factors mentioned above, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic should be the most important reason behind the crashing of oil prices. Despite joint global efforts, it seems that the virus' spread has yet to lose any momentum. By April 1, more than 900,000 infections have been registered across the world. With a large population staying at home, the pandemic will undermine not only global manufacturing but also transportation and tourist industries on an unimaginable scale.

Experts believe that even if the pandemic is overcome within half a year, the global economy cannot avoid a historically difficult time. In fact, it will likely take more than half a year to solve the problem. Market confidence is therefore seriously undermined. As competition for market share will be a defining feature of oil politics, it is expected that crude will remain below $40 per barrel.

Of course, the falling of oil prices will bring negative economic implications for oil producers in the Gulf and the Middle East in general. Oil producers in the Gulf, despite their efforts to diversify their economies in the past decades, are still dependent on oil production for financial budgets at a government level, and in some countries the dependence can be as high as 70%. The falling of oil prices will make them lose half of their revenues from oil, and it will tighten their budgets that have already been tight in the past decade due to the financial crisis of 2008.

The repercussions will be felt not only by Gulf-based oil producers but also by Arab countries of the Middle East in general. The recent decades have seen more and more migrant workers across other Arab countries seeking fortunes in countries located on the Gulf  not only lower-class laborers but also middle-class people and scholars. They work in Gulf countries, and they send back salaries to support families at home. Hence, the worsening of the Gulf's economy will augment the economic difficulties of other Arab countries.

The economic implications will also lead to political and social fallouts. In Gulf monarchies, some of the oil revenue has been allocated to the public, and high-level social welfare has served to pacify the quest for political rights among ordinary people, as well as to maintain stability. The declining of social welfare will create social dissatisfaction, which could be a serious threat to domestic stability.

In other Arab countries, the situation could be even worse. Those migrant workers might have to return home, and they and their families will have to face new pressure as sources of income are cut off. Their homecoming will also create new pressures of employment. These will add to the problems of governments that have already been struggling.

Currently, all Middle Eastern countries, like other parts of the world, are concentrated on the efforts against the virus, and people are being mostly urged to stay at home. Chances are high that discontents will be released shortly after the pandemic, which might seriously undermine overall political and social stability.

The falling of oil prices might also bring long-term implications on the structure of Gulf countries' external relations. Gulf countries regard their relations with the United States as the pillar of their foreign relations structure. They sell their oil at prices in dollars, and they put their petrol dollars in the U.S., either by buying U.S. treasury securities or purchasing arms from the U.S., which serves to maintain U.S. financial hegemony. On the other hand, the U.S. gives Gulf countries protection from other regional powers like Iran. But with the declining oil prices, the linkage will be greatly weakened on the Gulf side, as Gulf oil producers will no longer be so capable of buying U.S. bonds and arms.

Besides, many experts reasonably believe that the falling of oil prices was intentionally managed by countries, including Saudi Arabia, to push American shale oil out of the market in the context of its slackening. And Americans have reasons to be discontent with Gulf oil producers.

As their relations are mainly bonded by interests, when those interests fade away, the linkage will be weakened.

All in all, the impact of the COVID-19 crisis will be most visible in the Middle East. The pandemic and the falling of oil prices will have long-term implications for Gulf countries and the Middle East as a whole. The fallouts will be more tangible after the pandemic's eventual conclusion.

Jin Liangxiang is Senior Research Fellow with the Center for West Asian and African Studies, Shanghai Institutes for International Studies. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/jinliangxiang.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.

If you would like to contribute, please contact us at opinion@china.org.cn.
New Delhi, April 2 : From cinematic gems to unexplored marvels to decades-old Hollywood classics, the streaming world is full of classic Hollywood movies that are not only binge-worthy during the lockdown but also promise to leave behind a feel-good nostalgia. A revisit could be worth it.

IANS picks a few old films that you might want to revisit, that will let you relax and bust the stress of lockdown.

Sleepless In Seattle (1993) It's an evergreen love story, featuring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. The classic is a heart-warming story of a mourning widower Sam Baldwin (Hanks) finding love once again. It is available on Netflix.

It's an evergreen love story, featuring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. The classic is a heart-warming story of a mourning widower Sam Baldwin (Hanks) finding love once again. It is available on Netflix. The Sixth Sense (1999) The supernatural psychological thriller, written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, tells the story of Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), a boy who is able to see and talk to the dead, and Malcolm Crowe (essayed by Bruce Willis), a psychologist who is trying to help the child. It is available on Netflix.

The supernatural psychological thriller, written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan, tells the story of Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), a boy who is able to see and talk to the dead, and Malcolm Crowe (essayed by Bruce Willis), a psychologist who is trying to help the child. It is available on Netflix. Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004) The romantic comedy follows an estranged couple who have erased each other from their memories. Featuring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, it is available on Netflix.

The romantic comedy follows an estranged couple who have erased each other from their memories. Featuring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, it is available on Netflix. It Could Happen To You (1994) Based on a true incident, the romantic comedy-drama is about a New York City police officer (Nicolas Cage) who wins the lottery and splits his winnings with a waitress (Bridget Fonda). It is available on Netflix.

Based on a true incident, the romantic comedy-drama is about a New York City police officer (Nicolas Cage) who wins the lottery and splits his winnings with a waitress (Bridget Fonda). It is available on Netflix. Pearl Harbor (2001) As the name suggests, the movie presents a fictionalised version of the Pearl Harbor attack. It follows American friends Rafe McCawley (Ben Affleck) and Danny Walker (Josh Hartnett) as they enter World War II as pilots. It is available on Netflix.

As the name suggests, the movie presents a fictionalised version of the Pearl Harbor attack. It follows American friends Rafe McCawley (Ben Affleck) and Danny Walker (Josh Hartnett) as they enter World War II as pilots. It is available on Netflix. Rebecca (1940) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, the psychological thriller tells the story of an aristocratic widower Maxim de Winter and Joan Fontaine as the young woman who becomes his second wife. Her life turns upside down when she discovers that Maxim had killed his ex-wife. It features Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. It is available on Netflix.

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, the psychological thriller tells the story of an aristocratic widower Maxim de Winter and Joan Fontaine as the young woman who becomes his second wife. Her life turns upside down when she discovers that Maxim had killed his ex-wife. It features Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. It is available on Netflix. Eyes Wide Shut (1999) An erotic mystery psychological drama, the film was directed, produced and co-written by Stanley Kubrick. It is about the sexual adventures of Dr. Bill Harford, who is shocked when his wife, Alice, reveals that she had contemplated having an affair a year earlier. The film stars Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. It's streaming live on Netflix.

An erotic mystery psychological drama, the film was directed, produced and co-written by Stanley Kubrick. It is about the sexual adventures of Dr. Bill Harford, who is shocked when his wife, Alice, reveals that she had contemplated having an affair a year earlier. The film stars Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. It's streaming live on Netflix. The Aviator (2004) It's a classic film by Martin Scorsese about Howard Hughes, who despite suffering from germophobia and psychological illness, is trying to design a new aircraft. He faces personal issues but becomes a successful filmmaker. The biographical drama, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett and Kate Beckinsale, is streaming on Netflix.

It's a classic film by Martin Scorsese about Howard Hughes, who despite suffering from germophobia and psychological illness, is trying to design a new aircraft. He faces personal issues but becomes a successful filmmaker. The biographical drama, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett and Kate Beckinsale, is streaming on Netflix. The Stranger (1946) The film, starring Edward G. Robinson, Loretta Young, and Orson Welles, is about a war crimes investigator tracking a high-ranking Nazi fugitive to a Connecticut town. It is streaming on Netflix

The film, starring Edward G. Robinson, Loretta Young, and Orson Welles, is about a war crimes investigator tracking a high-ranking Nazi fugitive to a Connecticut town. It is streaming on Netflix Indiana Jones And The Raiders Of The Lost Ark (1981) Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film stars Harrison Ford as archaeologist Indiana Jones, who battles a group of Nazis searching for the Ark of the Covenant. The film promises an adventurous ride to the jungle and back. It is streaming on Netflix.

Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film stars Harrison Ford as archaeologist Indiana Jones, who battles a group of Nazis searching for the Ark of the Covenant. The film promises an adventurous ride to the jungle and back. It is streaming on Netflix. The Mask (1994) Mask your isolation woes away with Jim Carrey's fun film "The Mask". Available on Netflix, it is about Stanley Ipkiss, an unfortunate bank clerk who finds a magical mask that transforms him into a mischievous hero with superpowers.

Mask your isolation woes away with Jim Carrey's fun film "The Mask". Available on Netflix, it is about Stanley Ipkiss, an unfortunate bank clerk who finds a magical mask that transforms him into a mischievous hero with superpowers. American Pie (1999) From the notorious pie scene to many "self loving" moments to the curiosity around sex, the 1990s teen sex comedy is about guys on a mission to lose their virginity before high school graduation. The film has become a pop culture phenomenon and has cult following amongst youngsters. It stars Jason Biggs, Chris Klein, Alyson Hannigan, Natasha Lyonne, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Tara Reid, Mena Suvari, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Sean William Scott and Eugene Levy. It's live on Netflix.

From the notorious pie scene to many "self loving" moments to the curiosity around sex, the 1990s teen sex comedy is about guys on a mission to lose their virginity before high school graduation. The film has become a pop culture phenomenon and has cult following amongst youngsters. It stars Jason Biggs, Chris Klein, Alyson Hannigan, Natasha Lyonne, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Tara Reid, Mena Suvari, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Sean William Scott and Eugene Levy. It's live on Netflix. Jurassic Park (1993) The science fiction adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg chronicles a disastrous and dangerous attempt to create a theme park of dinosaurs. It stars Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Richard Attenborough. It's live on Netflix.

The science fiction adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg chronicles a disastrous and dangerous attempt to create a theme park of dinosaurs. It stars Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Richard Attenborough. It's live on Netflix. Apollo 13 (1995) The space docudrama, directed by Ron Howard, stars Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, and Ed Harris. It narrates the story of astronauts Lovell, Haise and Swigert of the Apollo 13 moon mission, who get stranded after their spacecraft gets damaged. It's live on Netflix.

The space docudrama, directed by Ron Howard, stars Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, and Ed Harris. It narrates the story of astronauts Lovell, Haise and Swigert of the Apollo 13 moon mission, who get stranded after their spacecraft gets damaged. It's live on Netflix. Tucker: The Man And His Dream (1988) The biographical comedy-drama recounts the story of Preston Tucker and his attempt to produce and market the 1948 Tucker Sedan, which was met with scandal between the "Big Three automobile manufacturers" and accusations of stock fraud. It is directed by Francis Ford Coppola and stars Jeff Bridges. It's live on Netflix.

The biographical comedy-drama recounts the story of Preston Tucker and his attempt to produce and market the 1948 Tucker Sedan, which was met with scandal between the "Big Three automobile manufacturers" and accusations of stock fraud. It is directed by Francis Ford Coppola and stars Jeff Bridges. It's live on Netflix. Forrest Gump (1994) The American comedy-drama film based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. The story depicts several decades in the life of Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks), a slow-witted but kind-hearted man from Alabama who witnesses and unwittingly influences several defining historical events in the 20th century in the US. The film was directed by Robert Zemeck. You can watch it on Netflix.

The American comedy-drama film based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. The story depicts several decades in the life of Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks), a slow-witted but kind-hearted man from Alabama who witnesses and unwittingly influences several defining historical events in the 20th century in the US. The film was directed by Robert Zemeck. You can watch it on Netflix. Cast Away (2000) The film is about Chuck Nolan (Tom Hanks) who finds himself marooned on a desolate island after a plane crash. It's a story of how he survives in his new home. You can watch it on Netflix.

The film is about Chuck Nolan (Tom Hanks) who finds himself marooned on a desolate island after a plane crash. It's a story of how he survives in his new home. You can watch it on Netflix. Sophie's Choice (1982) With Meryl Streep in the lead role of Sophie Zawistowska, the drama set in post-World War II Brooklyn revolves around Sophie's struggle as a Polish-Catholic immigrant in the US who had survived a Nazi concentration camp. Kevin Kline plays her all-consuming lover, Nathan. You can watch it on Netflix.

With Meryl Streep in the lead role of Sophie Zawistowska, the drama set in post-World War II Brooklyn revolves around Sophie's struggle as a Polish-Catholic immigrant in the US who had survived a Nazi concentration camp. Kevin Kline plays her all-consuming lover, Nathan. You can watch it on Netflix. Goodfellas (1990) Directed by Martin Scorsese, the film is about Henry Hill who along with his friends Jimmy and Tommy, become a gangster from a petty criminal in New York. You can revisit the classic on Netflix.

Directed by Martin Scorsese, the film is about Henry Hill who along with his friends Jimmy and Tommy, become a gangster from a petty criminal in New York. You can revisit the classic on Netflix. Blade Runner (1982) Ridley Scott's film is about Rick Deckard, an ex-policeman who becomes a special agent with a mission to exterminate a group of violent androids. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer and Sean Young, it is live on Netflix.

Ridley Scott's film is about Rick Deckard, an ex-policeman who becomes a special agent with a mission to exterminate a group of violent androids. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer and Sean Young, it is live on Netflix. The Godfather (1972) Francis Ford Coppola's cinematic gem is about Don Vito Corleone, head of a mafia family, and how things turn dangerous when he decides to hand over his empire to his youngest son Michael. It stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Richard Castellano and Robert Duvall amongst others. It is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Francis Ford Coppola's cinematic gem is about Don Vito Corleone, head of a mafia family, and how things turn dangerous when he decides to hand over his empire to his youngest son Michael. It stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Richard Castellano and Robert Duvall amongst others. It is streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Indecent Proposal (1993) Based on the novel of the same name by Jack Engelhard, it's a story about a married couple who go through a turbulent time when a stranger's offer a million dollars for the wife to spend the night with him. It is directed by Adrian Lyne, and stars Robert Redford, Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson and Seymour Cassel. It is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Based on the novel of the same name by Jack Engelhard, it's a story about a married couple who go through a turbulent time when a stranger's offer a million dollars for the wife to spend the night with him. It is directed by Adrian Lyne, and stars Robert Redford, Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson and Seymour Cassel. It is streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Top Gun (1986) "Top Gun" was apparently inspired by a magazine article on Navy pilots. The film followed the life of a fighter pilot and launched Tom Cruise's career as a global action star. From iconic moments featuring Cruise on a motorcycle and flying a jet, a volleyball game, shirtless men, aerial tricks to its music, there are many reasons to watch the movie once again. It is live on Amazon Prime Video.

"Top Gun" was apparently inspired by a magazine article on Navy pilots. The film followed the life of a fighter pilot and launched Tom Cruise's career as a global action star. From iconic moments featuring Cruise on a motorcycle and flying a jet, a volleyball game, shirtless men, aerial tricks to its music, there are many reasons to watch the movie once again. It is live on Amazon Prime Video. Rambo: First Blood (1982) The film is about Rambo, a troubled and misunderstood veteran, and his mission to rely on his combat and survival senses against the abusive law enforcement of the small town of Hope, Washington. Sylvester Stallone's iconic movie is available on Amazon Prime Video.

The film is about Rambo, a troubled and misunderstood veteran, and his mission to rely on his combat and survival senses against the abusive law enforcement of the small town of Hope, Washington. Sylvester Stallone's iconic movie is available on Amazon Prime Video. Wish Upon A Star (1996) Starring Katherine Heigl and Danielle Harris, the film focuses on two teenage sisters that magically swap bodies because of a wish made on a shooting star. It is live on Amazon Prime Video.

Starring Katherine Heigl and Danielle Harris, the film focuses on two teenage sisters that magically swap bodies because of a wish made on a shooting star. It is live on Amazon Prime Video. The Bodyguard (1982) The romantic thriller, directed by Mick Jackson, is about a former Secret Service agent-turned-bodyguard who is hired to protect a music star from an unknown stalker. It stars Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston. It is live on Amazon Prime Video.

The romantic thriller, directed by Mick Jackson, is about a former Secret Service agent-turned-bodyguard who is hired to protect a music star from an unknown stalker. It stars Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston. It is live on Amazon Prime Video. Dirty Dancing (1987) The romantic dance film stars Jennifer Grey as a young woman named Frances Houseman, who falls in love with dance instructor Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze) during a vacation. It is available on Amazon Prime Video.

The romantic dance film stars Jennifer Grey as a young woman named Frances Houseman, who falls in love with dance instructor Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze) during a vacation. It is available on Amazon Prime Video. The House On Sorority Row (1982) Directed by Mark Rosman, the film follows a group of sorority sisters who are being stalked and murdered during their graduation party after they conceal a fatal prank. It is live on Amazon Prime Video.

Directed by Mark Rosman, the film follows a group of sorority sisters who are being stalked and murdered during their graduation party after they conceal a fatal prank. It is live on Amazon Prime Video. The Little Mermaid (1989) The fantasy film tells the story of a mermaid princess named Ariel who dreams of becoming human and falls in love with a human prince named Eric. It is available on Hotstar.

The fantasy film tells the story of a mermaid princess named Ariel who dreams of becoming human and falls in love with a human prince named Eric. It is available on Hotstar. The Shawshank Redemption (1994) The film is based on Stephen King's 1982 novella, "Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption", and it tells the story of two prisoners who forge a lifelong friendship. These are Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins), a man wrongly convicted for the murder of his wife and her lover, and Red (Morgan Freeman), who is serving out a life sentence. Frank Darabont's film, widely considered a classic now, is available on Hotstar.

The film is based on Stephen King's 1982 novella, "Rita Hayworth And Shawshank Redemption", and it tells the story of two prisoners who forge a lifelong friendship. These are Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins), a man wrongly convicted for the murder of his wife and her lover, and Red (Morgan Freeman), who is serving out a life sentence. Frank Darabont's film, widely considered a classic now, is available on Hotstar. The Matrix (1999) The film tells the story of Thomas Anderson, a computer programmer, who leads a fight against powerful computers who have constructed his entire reality with a system called the Matrix. Starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, and Carrie-Anne Moss, the film is available on Hotstar.

The film tells the story of Thomas Anderson, a computer programmer, who leads a fight against powerful computers who have constructed his entire reality with a system called the Matrix. Starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, and Carrie-Anne Moss, the film is available on Hotstar. Seven (1995) The thriller is about a serial killer who begins murdering people according to the seven deadly sins. It stars Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Spacey and John C. The film is available on Hotstar.

The thriller is about a serial killer who begins murdering people according to the seven deadly sins. It stars Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Spacey and John C. The film is available on Hotstar. Lethal Weapon (1987)The buddy cop action film is about officers Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh of the Los Angeles Police Department. It takes people on an exciting trip when the cops are assigned a mission to stop a dangerous crime lord from China from getting his brother out of jail. Starring Mel Gibson, Danny Glover and Gary Busey, the film is available on Hotstar.

-- Syndicated from IANS
The USNS Mercy entering the Port of Los Angeles on Friday.

Mark J. Terrill/AP Photo

An engineer was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of intentionally derailing a train near the USNS Mercy, a hospital ship providing relief to Los Angeles-area hospitals during the COVID-19 outbreak, the US Department of Justice said.

According to a press release from the DOJ citing an interview with the FBI, the train operator said he wanted to "wake people up," apparently believing that the Mercy "had an alternate purpose related to COVID-19 or a government takeover."

The train came to a stop about 250 yards away from the Mercy, which was not damaged or affected.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

An engineer has been arrested on suspicion of derailing a train at full speed near the US Naval Ship Mercy in California. The ship is a floating hospital that is providing care during the coronavirus pandemic.

The ship is docked in San Pedro, about 25 miles south of Los Angeles.

Eduardo Moreno, 44, was charged Wednesday with one count of train wrecking, the US Department of Justice said in a press release.

A California Highway Patrol officer recounted watching the train barrel at full speed "into a concrete barrier at the end of the track, smash into a steel barrier, smash into a chain-link fence, slide through a parking lot, slide across another lot filled with gravel, and smash into a second chain-link fence," according to an affidavit cited by the DOJ.

The USNS Mercy arrived at the Port of Los Angeles last week. Like the USNS Comfort in New York, it is providing relief to area hospitals overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients.

The affidavit cited by the DOJ said Moreno admitted to crashing the train and suggested the ship "had an alternate purpose related to COVID-19 or a government takeover."

"People could see for themselves," the affidavit quoted Moreno as saying, according to the DOJ, adding that he wanted to "wake people up."

Citing the affidavit, the DOJ said Moreno made several comments to law enforcement on the scene, including: "You only get this chance once. The whole world is watching. I had to. People don't know what's going on here. Now they will."

Story continues

The Mercy was not damaged or affected by the crash, and no one was injured. The DOJ cited the affidavit as saying Moreno told the Los Angeles Port Police he acted alone and had not pre-planned his actions.

Moreno worked for Pacific Harbor Line, a train company that carries cargo from the port and connects to major railroad lines, according to a representative for the Port of Los Angeles cited by CBS News.

The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Los Angeles Port Police are leading the investigation.

Moreno faces up to 20 years in prison, if convicted.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Verizon has launched Pay It Forward Live, a weekly streaming concert series to support small businesses affected by COVID-19. The intimate shows kicked off last week with Dave Matthews, and continued this week with OneRepublic frontman and Grammy-winning superstar songwriter Ryan Tedder.

The performance, which originally streamed from Tedders home on April 2, will be available for replay here for one week afterwards.

As were all feeling right now, small businesses are a huge part of our daily lives, says Tedder. Im grateful that I am able to take part in an initiative to help lessen the impact of this crisis.

Video: Ryan Tedder Performs Better Days

Over the course of Pay It Forward Live, viewers are encouraged to tag their favorite local businesses and do what they can to support them  shop online, make a purchase in advance for when the crisis is over and the businesses reopen, or order a meal. Verizon will also donate $10 to support small businesses, up to $2.5 million, when the hashtag #PayItForwardLive is used.

Verizon is also giving consumers as many ways to support small businesses as possible, including partnering with PayPal and Square to give Pay It Forward Live viewers the ability to support small businesses within the live streams.

Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic. (Photo: Interscope)

Expanding its commitment to small businesses, this week Verizon Business will pay it forward to a number of small businesses preparing daily meals to feed healthcare workers. This program brings together multiple New York City restaurants with six area hospitals in an effort to help both the restaurants workers and hospital staff on the front line providing care to patients. Meals are being provided seven days a week throughout the month of April, at no cost to the hospitals or their employees. The ordering and delivery process is managed by Grubhub, which donated its service to help this cause.

Participating restaurants include: Blue Restaurant, Bella Notte, Dino, Dosa Royale, Locksmith Bar and Mimi Chengs. Medical centers receiving food include: Maimonides Medical Center and Hospital for Special Surgery.

Story continues

Video: Ryan Tedder Performs Counting Stars

Verizon is planning to scale these efforts, with continued support from Grubhub, to help as many as possible in our backyard and beyond. Verizon is urging companies in other cities to support similar efforts to fund local restaurants efforts to feed healthcare workers.

To date, Verizon is supporting communities through a combined $20 million donation to nonprofits directed at serving students, healthcare first responders, and small businesses. To find out more about what Verizon is doing to help customers and small businesses, visit verizon.com/about/news/our-response-coronavirus.

Verizon is the parent company of Yahoo.

For the latest coronavirus news and updates, follow along at https://news.yahoo.com/coronavirus. According to experts, people over 60 and those who are immunocompromised continue to be the most at risk. If you have questions, please reference the CDC and WHOs resource guides.
Doctors will be flown on to foreign cruise ships floating off NSW to test and evacuate patients needing urgent coronavirus treatment.

Once crews have been treated, the federal government will increase pressure on foreign ships to sail away from Australia.

On Thursday Peter Dutton slammed cruise companies for playing down the number of coronavirus cases they had on board.

Speaking on 2GB the Home Affairs Minister said there needed to be a proper assessment of the situation.

'Some of these ships will move off and go back to their point of origin. Some of them we might able to extract crew and fly them back to their country of origin,' he said.

'It's clear that some of the companies have been lying about the situation of the health of passengers and crew onboard.

The Pacific Explorer, Carnival Splendour, Ovation of the Seas, Spectrum of the Seas (pictured), Radiance of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas, Celebrity Solstice and the highly-infected Ruby Princess remain off the coast of NSW

There are 324 coronavirus infections in NSW linked to cruise ships, including 211 cases from the Ruby Princess (pictured) and 79 from the Ovation of the Seas

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton slammed the cruise companies for playing down the number of infections

'I need to get an honest picture of what's happening. We are going to have a health company by the name of Aspen - as well as NSW Health, Queensland Health and WA Health - do a proper assessment of what's happening onboard.'

Eight cruise ships have been locked in a stand off with the New South Wales government for nearly three weeks after refusing to leave Australian waters and go back to their country of origin.

Cruises have been linked to 461 cases of coronavirus in New South Wales alone.

NSW Health confirmed that there had been 337 cases of coronavirus linked to the Ruby Princess, as well as three crew members, 74 cases linked the Ovation of the Seas and 34 cases, and five crew members linked to the Voyager of the Seas.

The Celebrity Solstice has been responsible for 11 cases.

Cruise companies Carnival Australia and Royal Caribbean International haven't budged after the Federal Government on March 16 banned cruise ships from docking at Australian ports to stop the spread of coronavirus.

They appealed against the order to ABF Commissioner Michael Outram, with a decision expected in the coming days.

The Pacific Explorer, Carnival Splendour, Ovation of the Seas, Spectrum of the Seas, Radiance of the Seas, Voyager of the Seas, Celebrity Solstice and the highly-infected Ruby Princess remain off the coast of NSW.

There are between 800 and 1300 people stranded on board each ship.

Once crews have been treated, the federal government will increase pressure on foreign cruise companies to sail away from Australia rather than risk flooding NSW hospitals with COVID-19 patients.

In an attempt to end the stalemate, NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said helicopters will be used to fly doctors on board

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

In an attempt to end the stalemate, NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said helicopters will be used to fly doctors on board.

'At first they will go on and they will do an assessment and the standard temperature check and ask questions around symptoms of the virus,' Mr Fuller told reporters on Thursday morning.

'If the crew is fit and healthy, I have no hesitation in asking Minister Dutton to enforce the orders for them to leave our shores.'

Anyone requiring urgent medical attention would be brought ashore.

All known Australian crew members have already been extracted.

Two ships had agreed to refuel over the coming days and depart Australian shores.

'If a small percentage end up with the virus it will overwhelm our health system and everything we've done to date will be wasted,' he said.

'Every cruise ship that leaves, I see it as a victory for NSW.'

In Australia, 5,108 people have been diagnosed with COVID-9 coronavirus. Twenty-three people have died

Police urged the foreign cruise ships to immediately sail home rather than risk flooding the state's hospitals with coronavirus patients. Pictured: a COVID-19 testing clinic for travellers

The federal government will pay for the operation, which will be coordinated by the Australian Border Force with assistance from NSW Police.

A private company - Aspen Medical - will help test and treat crew members.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton met with Mr Fuller and NSW Police Minister David Elliott on Wednesday to discuss the cruise ship situation.

'What we've agreed to do is to look at each of these vessels and to do a proper assessment of what's happening on board,' Mr Dutton told 2GB.

Senator Kristina Keneally slammed the Liberal government for their handling of the outbreak in a press conference on Thursday

'If you force these boats to set sail and they have people that die or get seriously sick by the time they get a couple of hundred nautical miles off the coast, they will turn around and come back.'

But Labor Senator Kristina Keneally slammed the Liberal government for their handling of the outbreak in a press conference on Thursday.

Ms Keneally demanded to know why infected passengers from the Ruby Princess were allowed to dissipate into the community without being quarantined just days after the Federal Government said it would not allow cruise ships to dock.

'We have a border security crisis on our hands and we've heard nothing from the Home Affairs Minister.'

She claimed that Mr Dutton worked from home after being diagnosed with COVID-19 in mid-March and should have told Australians what steps he would take to ensure residents were insulated from future outbreaks.

'I look forward to Peter Dutton standing up in whatever form he can, whether it is from home, on radio, an interview through Zoom or Skype, we can do it.'

Ms Keneally suggested Prime Minister Scott Morrison appoint an active Home Affairs Minister if Mr Dutton is too unwell.
One fascinating thing about COVID-19 is how it's turned every leftist theory and belief system upside-down. All the things leftists have advocated have only made us more vulnerable to epidemic disease. Now, in a supreme irony, there's a possibility that one of the things they most hate  tobacco  will ride to the rescue.

COVID-19, in many ways, may prove to be the undoing of leftism. Here's a short list of all the leftist ideas that are taking a beating thanks to the pandemic:

Globalism: It turns out that interconnectedness is dangerous and that international organizations, such as the WHO, are intellectually corrupt and in thrall to totalitarian governments.

Open Borders: Countries around the world, including those within the European Schengen zone, are slamming their borders shut. Even Mexico again wants a working border with the United States.

Global Warming: The virus seems vulnerable to warmer, wetter climates, which is what we'd have more of if global warming were actually a thing.

Urbanization: Contrary to the leftist desire to pack people into cities (ostensibly to beat climate change but, in fact, to increase population control), dense urban areas are Petri dishes for COVID-19.

Public Transportation: For decades, the left has waged war against the comfort and convenience of cars because cars are not green. Cars may not be green, but they are clean, unlike public transportation, AKA a Petri dish on wheels.

Re-usable Bags: I've long called them Salmonella Sacks because using them drastically increases the spread of E. coli and salmonella. It turns out that the plastic bags that leftist governments all over America are banning (because Africa and Asia put them into rivers and oceans) are safer in pandemics.

China: Democrats screamed when Trump tried to decrease our dependence on China. He was correct to do so. Not only did China's Belt and Road project seed COVID-19 all over the world, but China's also sitting on most of the world's drug manufacturing. Yikes!

Reality may shatter another leftist shibboleth. The left has been waging war on tobacco for a long time. Before I go farther with this, let me say that I think smoking or chewing tobacco is a health risk because the connection between cancer and heart disease is too strong to deny. I also hate the smell, so I bitterly resent being on the receiving end of secondhand smoke.

However, the left's war on cancer is so vicious that it goes after vaping and e-cigarettes, which should fall squarely in the camp of letting people make their own decisions. Also, leftists are hypocritical because of their unwavering support for marijuana, which, when smoked, also causes lung damage.

Given their fanatic hatred for tobacco, leftists are likely to find horrifying the thought that Big Tobacco claims to have found within the tobacco leaf a vaccine for COVID-19:

The maker of Benson & Hedges and Lucky Strike cigarettes claims it has developed a coronavirus vaccine made from tobacco plants. British American Tobacco (BAT) said it can manufacture up to three million doses a week starting in June if it gets support from the UK Government. The unproven vaccine is currently being tested on animals. But BAT is calling on Whitehall to fast-track the vaccine through rigorous human trials which could otherwise take the best part of a year and make the June date impossible. BAT said it had pivoted its vast resources - the company is worth 65.5billion - to fighting the pandemic. The London-headquartered firm added that it would sell the tests to the Government 'at cost', meaning without making any profit. Tobacco firms are currently barred from doing deals with governments under World Health Organisation rules, but BAT said it planned to contact the WHO. The company said it had approached the US Food and Drug Administration and UK's Department of Health and Social Care about its vaccine. [snip] The vaccine is being developed by BAT's subsidiary firm Kentucky BioProcessing (KBP) in the US, using tobacco plant technology. KBP has previous experience of fighting outbreaks. It helped develop an effective drug for Ebola in 2014, called ZMapp.

A lot of companies are asserting that they've developed vaccinations, so this is one claim among many. Still, there would be something really delightful if the White Knight for the coronavirus were a cigarette company. For the sake of world health, I wish Kentucky BioProcessing all the luck in the world  and let's hope neither the WHO nor the FDA is stupid enough to turn its back on a possible cure just because the cure comes from the tobacco plant.
The CEO of the Health Service Executive (HSE), Paul Reid has announced that the HSE has completed a deal overnight to have Covid-19 testing carried out in a laboratory in Europe.

Priority cases will continue to be processed in Ireland he told RTE radios Today with Sean ORourke.

We have scaled up in a way like never before in the history of the State.

The HSE has a three-pronged approach to tackling the backlog of testing. One strand is transferring some of the queue to a reputable organisation in Europe. That will help to address the queue, he said.

Priority testing will continue in Ireland for priority cases such as health workers and patients in hospitals.

The second angle is the tracing of extra testing kits, with the assistance of the IDA, which should arrive in the next week to 10 days. However, he added the caveat that the reliability of Chinese test kits will need to be validated when they arrive.

The third angle, he said, is working with Irish pharma and bio-pharma companies and third-level institutions to determine their capacity to ramp up testing.

We are in the top tier of the world in terms of testing. We are in the top five. We are working around the clock and are at a squeeze point now.

Mr Reid pointed out that there has been a 1,000% growth worldwide in the demand for the reagent used in testing. This is a worldwide pandemic with other countries also facing choke points in relation to test kits and PPE.

Ireland has gone from zero test centres to 50, from 36 contact tracers to 1,400, a figure which will rise to 4,000 and from one laboratory to 19, he said.

Mr Reid said he wants to get to the stage where there are between 10,000 to 15,000 tests being carried out per day, but that will not happen in the next week, he warned. At present 2,600 tests per day are being carried out.

We will significantly ramp up, but it will take us longer to reach 15,000. We will be working around the clock to reassure the public.

Using laboratories abroad to carry out testing will be significant, he said.

Mr Reid stressed that the most important thing the public can do is to adhere to the guidelines with regard to hand hygiene and to stay at home. It is so important.

It is early days, but there are good signs that the public sacrifice is helping us to ensure that we dont have a massive peak one week. 

There will be an extra 7,000 beds in the health system shortly, he said, that is comprised of 2,200 public beds, 2,000 private beds, with 1,200 created in City West and a further 1,200 in a similar vein will be introduced.

The primary focus of every health care worker will be fighting Covid-19, he said.

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Balika Vadhu actor Pratyusha Banerjees parents are still fighting to get justice for their daughter who was found dead in April, 2016 at her rented apartment in Goregaon. Her boyfriend Rahul Raj Singh was booked for abetting her suicide. On her fourth death anniversary, her father Shankar Banerjee revealed he couldnt find a garland for his daughters portrait amid lockdown.

A report in Spotboye quoted Shanker as saying, To tell you the truth, I couldnt get flowers or garland for a long time outside my building which otherwise, I get easily. After a long time I managed to get few flowers and I myself made a mala of it.

However, more than finding flowers for Pratyushas portrait, the elderly couple have a bigger regret. Expressing disappointment with the progress in the case, her father said, You see, my main grouse is that the trial is still to get underway. He also revealed that he had met Rahul at the court and felt his nervousness and anxiety. We did see him in Dindoshi Court and unka chehra badal gaya humko dekhkar, paseena-paseena ho gaya, he said.

Pratyushas co-star Shashank Vyas, who had played her husband in Balika Vadhu, wrote a heartfelt note on Instagram.Sharing a picture of her, he wrote, Those we love dont go away, they walk beside us everyday. Unseen unheard but always near; still loved, still.

Also read: Kapil Sharma worships daughter Anayra for Ashtami puja, celebs shower love on the dolled-up 3 month old

Three months after Pratyushas death, Rahul was granted anticipatory bail by the Bombay High Court. He had claimed that they were planning to get married in December 2016 but Pratyusha was deeply disturbed and frustrated due to constant interference of Soma (Banerjees mother) and her husband Shankar Banerjee

Her parents had said during a media interaction, After coming to Mumbai, my daughter was not in a live-in relationship, Rahul was staying with us. He conspired, separated our daughter from us, and then started staying at her place, calling it a live-in relation. He conspired, created pressure on my daughter and killed her.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
The funeral procession for 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus, on Thursday morning in Passaic. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

It was quiet.

There were no bagpipes, no drums and no call to arms.

Firefighters sat inside their firetrucks, police inside their cars, but many still turned out to show respect to a fallen firefighter.

Israel Tolentino, a 33-year-old Passaic firefighter died Tuesday from complications from the coronavirus. He joined the department in December 2018 and when he wasnt fighting fires he was working as an EMT.

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

Wednesday night, about two-dozen supporters went to his home to hold a candlelight vigil, standing the recommended six feet apart.

When they bowed their heads their sadness was illuminated in a warm glow  the virus bringing them together but forcing them apart.

His family was on the porch looking on and his wife holding flowers.

On Thursday, only family was allowed inside the funeral home and after the service they came out and entered the hearse.

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Passaic Mayor Hector Lora is briefed before the funeral procession for 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus, on Thursday morning in Passaic. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

About 50 vehicles processed with a howling wind blowing down the street.

The procession went through town with sirens screaming and wailing for all to know that he was coming through town, down Passaic Avenue turning on to Main and slowly entering the cemetery.

Only family was allowed there, too.

Ed Murray may be reached at emurray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Ed on Twitter at @EdMurrayphoto. Find NJ.COM on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips

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Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Fire Chief Patrick Trentacost (left) briefs Police Chief Luis Guzman (center) and Mayor Hector Lora before the funeral procession for 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus, on Thursday morning in Passaic. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service Supervisor Cesar Perez (left) offers comfort to a colleague at a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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The family of fallen 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino watches from their porch as Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Emergency Medical Service personnel hold a candlelight vigil at the home of 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Passaic Mayor Hector Lora (left) is briefed by Fire Chief Patrick Trentacost before the funeral procession for 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus, on Thursday morning in Passaic. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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The funeral procession for 33-year-old firefighter Israel Tolentino who died from the COVID-19 virus, on Thursday morning in Passaic. Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media

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Steve Hockstein | For NJ Advance Media
Former office workers are complaining of exhaustion amid the UK's coronavirus lockdown. (Getty Images)

With bars closed, parties called off and working from home mandatory for most, the coronavirus outbreak is forcing many former office workers to adjust to a slower pace of life.

Frontline NHS staff, however, are more taxed than ever. Delivery drivers, social workers and politicians are also likely getting little respite.

For those setting up office in their kitchen, many may have expected the longer lie-in, leisurely breakfast and lack of public transport to leave them feeling well rested.

Yet the anxiety of the pandemic combined with the disruption to our normal routine is resulting in many at-home workers being more exhausted than ever.

People caring for others with suspected symptoms, or showing the tell-tale fever or cough themselves, have been advised to wear a mask. (Getty Images)

Coronavirus: Why is lockdown so tiring?

Boris Johnson has enforced draconian measures that prevent people from leaving their home except for very limited purposes, like shopping for essentials or exercise.

Anyone with the coronavirus tell-tale fever or cough must stay indoors for seven days, while other members of their household must do so for two weeks.

Early research suggests the infection is mild in four out of five cases, however, it can trigger a respiratory disease called COVID-19.

Latest coronavirus news, updates and advice

Live: Follow all the latest updates from the UK and around the world

Fact-checker: The number of COVID-19 cases in your local area

Explained: Symptoms, latest advice and how it compares to the flu

During the unprecedented lockdown, many Britons are battling feelings of exhaustion, lethargy and just day-to-day fatigue.

There are numerous reasons for this, including disruption to daily routine, reduced physical activity, boredom, lack of natural light which affects the production of vitamin D  all of which disturb our circadian rhythm [body clock], leading to poor sleep quality, Dr Meg Aroll, chartered psychologist for Healthspan, told Yahoo UK.

Britons are permitted to exercise outdoors but must maintain a two metre (6.5ft) distance from anyone they do not live with.

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Reduced social contact may also be leaving many feeling unstimulated mentally.

Humans are hardwired to be social beings and we thrive on social connection, cooperation, competition and love, Liz Ritchie, psychotherapist at St Andrews Healthcare, told Yahoo UK.

In the midst of lockdown, our lives have changed immeasurably and we find ourselves living a kind of surreal existence dominated by isolation, high alert, anxiety and unease about what might happen as a result of this pandemic.

The intense anxiety about the uncertainty can cause us to feel tired, reduce our energy levels, cause physical or mental exhaustion and a lack of motivation.

Dr Arroll is also concerned the lockdown may trigger symptoms of poor mental health.

A study by the University of Sheffield found a spike in people reporting depression and anxiety after Boris Johnson announced the UKs lockdown on 23 March.

Prior to this, the prime minister had urged people to avoid social contact, ditch non-essential travel and work from home, if possible.

The scientists found 38% of the 2,000 people surveyed online reported significant depression and 36% noted anxiety.

This is compared to 16% and 17% of people reporting significant depression and anxiety, respectively, the day before Johnsons announcement.

A lack of energy and disturbed sleeping patterns are recognised warning signs of both mental-health conditions.

With a global pandemic a first in all of our lives, many are glued to their TV for the latest update.

The current situation means most of us are understandably in a hyper-vigilant state and any information about the virus can be a real energy buster, said Ritchie.

The related anxiety can stress the body and tax its energy resources harder than normal.

Too many stress responses can leave the body devoid of energy, which can make us experience chronic fatigue.

Regular hand washing and social distancing are key to warding off the infection. (Getty Images)

How to ward off exhaustion amid the coronavirus outbreak

We all have a part to play in combating the coronavirus outbreak, with officials repeatedly stressing the importance of hand washing and social distancing.

While the responsibility may feel daunting, simple steps can make the situation easier to cope with and altogether less exhausting.

Try to keep to a set daily schedule with regular wake, bed, meal, rest and exercise times, said Dr Arroll.

Make use of the outdoor exercise excursion allowed to get some vitamin D and top up with a good-quality supplement.

With officials unable to give an exact timeframe as to how long lockdown may last, many may be struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

It may seem the lockdown will be never ending and the path ahead unknown, but it will end and we will emerge into the world once again, said Dr Arroll.

This too, shall pass.

Some may even find they emerge from the lockdown more well-rounded than before.

In psychology we call this post-traumatic growth whereby difficult situations and experiences give rise to increased self-awareness, knowledge, self-efficacy and empathy, said Dr Arroll.

So, look for the lessons and what you can take from this experience to shift your mindset to combat feelings of fatigue and stress, and energise your days.

Breaking news bringing the latest death toll may be important information, however, try and break it up with moments of light relief.

Make sure you take your laughter supplements, said Dr Aroll.

This can be whatever brings a smile to your face such as silly cat videos on YouTube, a comedy boxset on Netflix or organising a dad joke competition with friends on WhatsApp.

Laughter boosts mood and can give us respite from intrusive and negative thoughts.

The coronavirus shares some, but not all, symptoms with colds and flu. (Yahoo UK)

What is the coronavirus?

The coronavirus is one of seven strains of a virus class that are known to infect humans.

Others include the common cold and severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars), which killed 774 people during its 2002/3 outbreak.

The current circulating strain is thought to have emerged at a seafood and live animal market in the Chinese city Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, at the end of last year.

It has since been reported in 180 countries across every inhabited continent.

Since the outbreak was identified, more than 951,900 cases have been confirmed, of whom more than 202,300 are known to have recovered, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Globally, the death toll has exceeded 48,200.

The coronavirus mainly spreads face-to-face via infected droplets that have been expelled in a cough or sneeze.

There is also evidence it can be transmitted in faeces and urine, and survive on surfaces.

Symptoms tend to be flu-like, including fever, cough and slight breathlessness.

In severe incidences, pneumonia may come about if the infection spreads to the air sacs in the lungs, causing them to become inflamed and filled with fluid or pus.

The lungs then struggle to draw in air, resulting in reduced oxygen in the bloodstream and a build-up of carbon dioxide.

The coronavirus has no set treatment, with most patients naturally fighting off the infection.

Those requiring hospitalisation are offered supportive care, like ventilation, while their immune system gets to work.
President Hassan Rouhani says U.S. sanctions have not curbed Iran's ability to cope with the COVID-19 outbreak. Meanwhile, for the first time he acknowledged that there is no end in sight for the current crisis.

The remark made at the cabinet's economic meeting on Thursday April 2 contradicts Rouhnai and his Foreign Minister Javad Zarif's weeks-long propaganda campaign in the press and social media targeting the United States and Europe about the adverse impact of the sanctions on Iran's ability to confront the outbreak.

Rouhani said that according to the Iranian Central Bank Governor "Iran has no problem in providing foreign currency until the end of the [Iranian] year," in March 2021.

Rouhani also said that Iran is in a good position for procuring food and medicines. "We have a good reserve of essential commodities for the next months and agriculture and trade ministers have given very promising reports for the situation during the coming months."

U.S. State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus tweeted, We have repeatedly said that U.S. sanctions do not impede the Iranian regimes response to the COVID-19 crisis. Today @HassanRouhani has confirmed this to be true: "The sanctions have failed to hamper our efforts to fight against the coronavirus outbreak."

He also said that around 4,000,000 tons of essential commodities are currently stuck at the Iranian customs. "We should have observed some regulations in order to clear the goods from the customs," he explained vaguely.

This comes while Irans customs office is part of the Rouhani administration. Nevertheless, Rouhani's aides including his Trade Ministry and Health Ministry officials have been constantly complaining about their inability to get their imports cleared from the Iranian Customs Administration.

Economic analysts in Iran have attributed the problem to widespread financial corruption in the administration and the intervention Revolutionary Guard in the affairs of the customs for financial gain and in order to weaken the administration as a political rival.

However, Rouhani said at the meeting on Thursday that "Thanks to decisions made by the Central bank and Trade Ministry, this four million tons of essential commodities will pour into the markets during the coming days." But he did not say why these decisions were not made before and how one part of his administration can obstruct the activities of other parts.

Rouhani said that there are also other goods stuck at the customs that are needed to boost production and promised that overloaded customs will be cleared "soon" and even goods that have been waiting on board ships for a long time will be unloaded and distributed.

Going back to operational matters about disease control, Rouhani said that on Sunday April 5 the government will make new decisions about whether to continue the current restrictions that will be in place up to April 8.

Both Rouhani and several other officials have indicated previously that restrictions and social distancing rules might be extended up to April 18. Medical experts have contended that restrictions should be in place at least for another month.

However, for the first time since the start of the outbreak Rouhani who was always unusually optimistic about an easy and quick end to the COVID-19 outbreak, said on Thursday that no one anywhere in the world can say when this situation could come to an end.

In the meantime, the latest official report on the number of Iranians affected by the virus and those who died as a result of COVID-19, put the death toll at 3,160 and the number of COVID-19 patients at 50,468.

Health Ministry Spokesman Kianush Jahanpur said for the first time that 3,956 of these patients are in critical conditions at intensive care units.

The figures announced by the Iranian Health Ministry are widely questioned by the media and health officials. The World Health Organization has said that actual figures can be up to five times higher.

An independent exclusive report by Radio Farda based on the statements made by local officials and medical experts puts the number of those infected with the virus in Iran at more than 70,000 and the death toll at 4762 as of April 2.
WASHINGTON  Elevating a feud with some governors critical of the government's response to the coronavirus pandemic, President Donald Trump insisted Thursday his team is delivering medical supplies to states nationwide and that certain unnamed "complainers" will never be satisfied.

In a series of tweets, Trump said some state leaders have insatiable appetites for equipment needed to fight the spread of a virus that threatens to kill up to 240,000 Americans this year.

"Massive amounts of medical supplies, even hospitals and medical centers, are being delivered directly to states and hospitals by the Federal Government," Trump said in a tweet. "Some have insatiable appetites & are never satisfied (politics?). Remember, we are a backup for them."

Trump did not specify which critics he was referring to, but a group of Democratic governors that include Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, Andrew Cuomo of New York, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Jay Inslee of Washington state have criticized the slow pace of federal assistance.

Stimulus checks: Treasury backs off requirement that Social Security recipients, others take extra step to get $1,200 checks

Critics accused Trump of shifting blame for a slow response that has allowed the coronavirus to spread.

"These tweets are disgusting," said Walter Shaub, former director of the Office of Government Ethics. "This is a man desperate to shift blame instead of save a country because he knows he's over his head. He doesn't care who dies, he cares who votes for him."

Some governors said they have shortages of masks, gloves, and personal protective equipment that doctors need to treat coronavirus patients. They also protest a looming shortage of ventilators that patients with the virus need to breathe.

President Donald Trump speaks about the coronavirus in the White House on Wednesday.

Fauci to get security: Anthony Fauci to get a security detail after facing threats, reports say

Trump has been clashing with certain governors for weeks.

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On Friday, when Trump asked Vice President Mike Pence not to call governors who have not been "appreciative" enough, Whitmer tweeted: "I've asked repeatedly and respectfully for help. We need it. No more political attacks, just PPEs, ventilators, N95 masks, test kits."

On March 22, after Pritzker complained in a CNN interview about the federal response to the coronavirus, Trump tweeted that the Illinois governor and others "shouldnt be blaming the Federal Government for their own shortcomings."

Responding on Twitter, Pritzker said: "You wasted precious months when you could've taken action to protect Americans & Illinoisans. You should be leading a national response instead of throwing tantrums from the back seat."

At times, Trump has accused states of hoarding equipment, comments that brought criticism from governors like Cuomo.

Were creating a stockpile, Cuomo said this week. For someone to say, Well, the warehouse has equipment in it, you should be using that equipment today, that defies the basic concept of planning."

He added, in apparent reference to Trump: If you are not preparing for the apex, and for the high point, you are missing the entire point of the operation. It is a fundamental blunder to only prepare for today.

Trump said that "New York unfortunately got off to a late start" and said Cuomo is "working hard!"

In his morning tweets, Trump said "the complainers should have been stocked up and ready long before this crisis hit. Other states are thrilled with the job we have done."

The president also claimed his administration is "sending many Ventilators today, with thousands being built. 51 large cargo planes coming in with medical supplies."

100,000 body bags: FEMA seeks 100,000 body bags from the Pentagon as coronavirus pandemic worsens

While not singling out any particular governor in those tweets, Trump sent other posts zeroing in on a congressional critic: Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who protested the Trump administration's coronavirus response on MSNBC's Morning Joe.

Schumer said Trump needs new leadership for the counter-coronavirus effort. He also urged Trump to make use of a federal law designed to compel private industries to make more equipment.

"President Trump needs to harness industry to quickly produce more medical supplies and equipment under the Defense Production Act NOW," Schumer tweeted. "He needs to appoint a czar like a military or logistics expert to lead the effort to make and get the supplies where theyre needed."

The president claimed that "New York has gotten far more than any other State", adding that, "It wouldnt matter if you got ten times what was needed, it would never be good enough."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus: Trump hits governors, says Andrew Cuomo 'working hard!'
DALLAS - A Texas radio host and financial consultant who admitted to conning elderly listeners out of millions of dollars in a Ponzi scheme was sentenced to 25 years in prison.

The sentence was imposed as part of a plea deal that William Neil Doc Gallagher, 79, agreed to on Friday with Dallas County prosecutors, the Dallas Morning News reported. The North Richland Hills man was ordered to pay more than $10 million in restitution.

Gallagher targeted older, Christian listeners of his show, called The Money Doctor, and met with them to discuss what he said was risk-free income, prosecutors said. He guaranteed annual returns of 5% to nearly 9% if they invested in securities with him, according to the criminal complaint. He described it as a retirement income youll never outlive.

Gallagher, who wasnt licensed to advise clients on securities, received up to $29.2 million from about 60 investors from December 2014 to January 2019, authorities said. By Jan. 31, 2019, those accounts contained just $821,951.

Under the plea deal, Gallagher was convicted on one count each of theft of more than $300,000, money laundering of more than $300,000 and securities fraud exceeding $100,000.

He took advantage of some of the most vulnerable people in our society, lead prosecutor Alexis Goldate said in a written statement. He targeted elderly investors and individuals attracted to his Christian ideals and then stole from them.

Authorities said Gallagher dished out roughly $5.9 million to early investors by using newer investors capital. He also used several million dollars for payroll, radio and website costs and personal outlays such as legal fees.

Gallagher has been behind bars since his March 2019 arrest. After the indictment, the Gallagher Financial Groups assets were frozen and a lawyer was appointed to manage the funds.

Following his plea, authorities said Gallagher apologized to his friends and family.

He faces more charges in Tarrant County.
AUTHORITIES in Tanzania are working with development partners to transform the Msimbazi River in Dar es Salaam that was once historically a lifeline before suffering suffocation from massive wastes dump.

Deputy Minister of State Vice Presidents Office (Union and Environment), Mr Mussa Sima told the Parliamentarians here on Thursday that the river has been subjected to support agricultural activities in its banks and animal rearing to the detriment of the citys population depending on it for other purposes.

Were working with a number of stakeholders, and the government has planned a special project to improve the basin to respond to existing environmental challenges, he said.

That was the response of the deputy minister, while answering Special Seats Member of Parliament (MPCCM), Zainabu Mndolwa Amiri raised question to know the governments attention to improve water supply from the river to help vegetable farmers, who depend on it as their sole water source.

The MP claimed that the river is now polluted and its water isunsafe for further agricultural activities, yet still support cultivation of vegetables consumed in the city.

Vegetables consumption is important for the health of the people and a big population of the farmers irrigate their farms with water from the river that is contaminated and unsafe. In the end the same vegetables becomes harmful for human consumption, she pointed out.

The Deputy Minister, Mr Sima acknowledged that the river actually faces environmental challenges including contamination and wastes dump; however, the government was addressing that by providing public awareness on best ways to protect the water source and the environment.

He said that the new plan, henceforth, will involve development partners and stakeholders interested in reducing flood, controlling soil degradation caused by human activities close to the river.

We are targeting those communities to continue with their economic activities without affecting the river ... we will need to plant more trees to protect the environment and set appropriate strategies for the public to prevent wastes dump into the river, Mr Sima said.

His other plans included supporting entrepreneurs with appropriate infrastructures, which do not compromise with the existence of the river.

Section 57 of the Environmental Management Act of 2004 bars permanent human activities and those, which could affect a river and other water body practiced within 60 meters from any water source.

He said that the Minister in the Office of the Vice President has prepared and would roll out a draft guideline to protect any water source.
Ride-hailing platform Uber will now deliver household essentials to customers and has partnered with bigbasket for the service amid the ongoing countrywide lockdown.

Uber, which is in discussions with other supermarkets and pharmacies for offering similar delivery services, said two-wheelers (UberMoto) and four-wheelers (UberGo and UberXL) and network of driver-partners will help support delivery of essential supplies safely to consumers' doorsteps.

"This last-mile delivery service provides multiple wins. It supports authorities in containing COVID-19, delivers essential supplies in a timely manner to customers and creates earning opportunities for drivers. We will not charge any commission for our efforts," Uber India and South Asia Director-Operations and Head of Cities Prabhjeet Singh told PTI.

He added that the partnership with grocery delivery platform bigbasket is the first in this direction.

With the implementation of the 21-day lockdown, the government has allowed only people in essential services like healthcare, banking and media to commute. With no cabs being allowed to ply, driver-partners of ride-hailing apps have been left with no source of income.

Uber said its association with bigbasket will comply with all hygiene and traffic regulations.

The new service will enable bigbasket to serve customers in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chandigarh and Noida. The e-passes required by the delivery partners as well as their training will be handled by bigbasket.

"The ongoing pan-India lockdown has led to a disruption in the supply of essential goods, primarily led by a shortage of personnel and delivery vehicles. We are very happy to partner with Uber India for this initiative and we will be utilising a portion of their huge fleet of cars, bikes as well as personnel to help with our deliveries to fulfill customer orders," bigbasket National Process Head-Last Mile Lalita Aggarwal said.

All drivers associated with this service have been provided masks, gloves, sanitisers, and specialised safety training.

E-commerce companies have been struggling to deliver orders after the 21-day lockdown to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus came into effect from March 25.

Even though the government allowed delivery of essential goods including food, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment through e-commerce platform, players have complained of their delivery staff being hassled by police.

With local authorities shutting down warehouses and stopping trucks from crossing state borders, e-commerce players have seen their operations getting disrupted. Another challenge facing the industry is the availability of limited staff for warehouses and logistics.

While these companies have gradually resumed services across various cities they operate in, it will still be a few days before they can clear the pending orders, according to industry watchers. Many of these firms have even stopped taking fresh orders to clear the pending orders.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Kamal Foroughi, an 80-year-old British-Iranian businessman who was arrested in Iran nine years ago, has returned to Britain, the U.K. Foreign Office said.



Foroughi was working as a business consultant when he was arrested in 2011 and convicted of espionage and possessing alcohol.



"I am pleased and very relieved that Kamal Foroughi has been able to return to the U.K. and be reunited with his family," Dominic Raab, Britain's foreign secretary, said in a statement quoted by Reuters.



"I pay tribute to Kamal and his family, who have been through a terrible ordeal, and now have the opportunity to rebuild their life together," Raab said.



Foroughi was released from detention in Tehran in late 2018, but he was unable to return to his family in Britain while waiting for his Iranian passport to be renewed.



Britain's Foreign Office said in March 2018 that it had raised Foroughis case with the Iranian authorities. His family denied the charges against him.



Iran announced two weeks ago that it would pardon prisoners, including political prisoners, due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Based on reporting by Reuters
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Growing evidence suggests that the novel COVID-19 virus can be aerosolized. To adequately protect employees, providers require not just droplet, but airborne precautions and the appropriate healthcare worker personal protective equipment (PPE).

Appropriate PPE mandates an N95 mask. News reports for weeks have described hospitals working without the necessary protection for health care providers.

This is the case in Boston-area hospitals, which are running short on these masks. One of the citys largest hospitals will have exhausted its supplies of N95 masks by the end of this week if shipments dont arrive as promised.

Despite this, non-urgent and non-emergent surgeries and procedures are still being done in the operating rooms at one of the main Harvard teaching hospitals. These include procedures known to cause aerosolization of the virus and require that everyone present wear an N95 mask.

Counting the surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and scrub techs, an average of 5 masks are consumed per surgery. Surgical protocol requires that every health care provider in the surgery wear an N95 mask. In one area teaching hospital, at least ten truly elective surgeries were performed on March 30. These surgeries occurred despite the guidance from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published nearly two weeks ago outlining how and why elective or non-essential procedures needed to be canceled: to protect healthcare providers and patients and to preserve our ever-dwindling supply of PPE.

Thus, while five N95 masks per procedure are being used in the ORs for non-emergent procedures, staff in the dedicated coronavirus Intensive Care Units are being asked to wear standard surgical masks or to reuse a single N95 mask for days. No one would consider this acceptable for a member of their family.

Businesses and people in the Boston area have offered to donate N95 masks for front-line health workers fighting the coronavirus. These masks routinely are used by construction workers, house painters, mechanics, and other non-medical professionals.

Physicians and other health care workers have been instructed that they are not permitted to use N95 masks donated by the community because these donated masks will not have been vetted by the hospital.

As the pandemic advances, we hardly complain when asked to work 28-hour shifts. Its what we do. In the time of this global pandemic, when healthcare workers around the globe are contracting this new coronavirus, all we ask is that hospitals consider the safety of employees rather than giving priority to the bottom line. Elective surgical procedures are big revenue sources for hospitals.

As a doctor, I ask our CEOs and presidents who are directing these efforts as they shelter in place from the safety of their own homes to reconsider their decisions to continue non-emergent surgeries and deny the use of donated masks, when the alternative they provide is nearing no mask at all.

My partner and I are both physicians at major Boston hospitals. We see this first hand. We are seeing the continuation of elective surgeries that siphon off necessary PPE supplies for those of us fighting the coronavirus. We need N95 masks.

The author is an anonymous physician.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
The president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, has warned anyone who violates the countrys coronavirus lockdown measures could be shot.

In a televised address, Mr Duterte said it was vital everyone cooperates and follows home quarantine measures.

He also said the abuse of medical workers was a serious crime that would not be tolerated.

Authorities are fighting to slow the spread of Covid-19 and spare the countrys fragile health system from being overwhelmed.

The Philippines has recorded 96 coronavirus deaths and 2,311 confirmed cases, with infections now being reported in the hundreds each day.

It is getting worse. So once again Im telling you the seriousness of the problem and that you must listen, Mr Duterte said on Wednesday.

My orders to the police and military ... if there is trouble and theres an occasion that they fight back and your lives are in danger, shoot them dead.

Is that understood? Dead. Instead of causing trouble, I will bury you.

His comments came after media reports of a disturbance and several arrests on Wednesday of residents in a poor area of Manila who were protesting about insufficient government food aid.

They also follow outrage among the medical community about social stigma and instances of hospital workers suffering physical abuse and discrimination, which Mr Duterte said must be stopped.

Butch Olano, Amnesty Internationals Philippines director, said: It is deeply alarming that President Duterte has extended a policy of shoot to kill, a devastating hallmark of his presidency, to law enforcement agencies in the community quarantine.

Deadly, unchecked force should never be referred to as a method to respond to an emergency such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

The abusive methods used to punish those accused of breaching quarantine, and the vast number of mass arrests that have been carried out to date against mainly poor people, are further examples of the oppressive approach the government is taking against many who are struggling with basic needs.

We call on the president to immediately cease his dangerous incitement to violence against those who may be critical of the government during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The lives of those most at risk must be considered a priority in the effort to minimise the threat of the virus.

Mr Dutertes office typically calls his remarks hyperbole to underline his point.

On Thursday, the national police chief said police understood Mr Duterte was demonstrating his seriousness about public order, and no one would be shot.
One of the cruelest parts of the Coronavirus crisis is the impact on funerals and families burying the dead. Social distancing rules mean at most 10 people can attend a funeral - keeping 2 metres apart. Meanwhile the government has warned banks they must help small businesses with emergency loans.
(Bloomberg) -- Emerging markets have just taken a first-quarter battering. The fear on Wall Street is that it may hardly compare with whats coming.

While the advanced economies have gone into lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19, triggering market turmoil of a kind unseen in generations, the worlds developing nations have yet to experience the full effects, both economic and humanitarian, of the pandemic. True, the global dollar squeeze, collapse in commodity prices and rising distressed-debt levels have prompted pre-emptive stimulus measures across many countries, but the success or failure of these is likely to remain unknown for a while yet.

Little wonder then that some of the worlds foremost investors and strategists, from Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Franklin Templeton, are telling clients to hold off on bargain hunting. Theyre worried the coronavirus could devastate nations such as India, South Africa and Brazil, where infections are only now starting to gather pace.

Markets are discounting a catastrophic recession accompanied by massive defaults, said Ricardo Hausmann, an economist at Harvard University. As horrific as this sounds, the situation in the advanced economies is likely to be much more benign than what developing countries are facing. Not only in terms of the disease burden, but also in terms of the economic devastation.

Emerging markets are traditionally thought of as volatile, and perhaps its no surprise that their assets generally came off worse than their counterparts in the advanced economies of the U.S., Europe and Japan. But while banks such as JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley say developed-nation stocks have probably bottomed already, thats not the case for their emerging-market counterparts.

Equity markets in the developing world just capped their worst quarter since the 2008 financial crisis. Currencies tumbled as demand for U.S. dollars soared, led by a depreciation of more than 20% in the Brazilian real, South African rand and Russian ruble. A broad gauge of dollar bonds from emerging markets posted its sharpest sell-off since 1998.

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Developing-nation assets kicked off the second quarter on a negative note on Wednesday as stocks from India, South Korea and Colombia slid, currencies declined and the risk premium on bonds rose.

With emerging economies reeling from a slump in demand for commodities such as oil and metals, supply-chain disruptions and dollar-debt burdens exacerbated by weakening currencies, outflows are likely to surge in the next few quarters, according to a JPMorgan model.

Its unlikely this crisis is over as it moves from an acute to a chronic phase, Luis Oganes, a London-based strategist at JPMorgan, wrote in a report. Focus will turn to emerging-market country vulnerabilities over the coming months as capital outflows could mutate into a sudden stop.

Hausmann and Oganes may be gloomy, but theyre in good company. In fact, a Whos Who of economists and investors, including Mohamed El-Erian, Michael Hasenstab and Carmen Reinhart, are also sounding the alarm.

El-Erian, the chief economic adviser at Allianz SE and a Bloomberg Opinion contributor, said the current situation has elements of both the Great Depression and the 2008 financial crisis. While fiscal stimulus in the developed world has helped for now, investors need to eschew risk, he said. El-Erian advised selling lower-rated bonds, adjusting stock portfolios to favor companies with strong balance sheets and keeping more cash on hand for distressed opportunities down the road.

Hasenstab, Templetons chief investment officer for global macro, agrees. He says its too early to try to cherry pick among distressed securities. His team favors so-called haven assets, while increasing allocations to cash and several higher-yielding emerging markets with more resilient economies.

Gundlach Says En Masse Defaults Likely for Some Junk Issuers

The list of developing nations seeking debt relief has already swelled in the past few months. Fifteen nations with more than $100 billion of Eurobonds outstanding had average spreads of at least 1,000 basis points over U.S. Treasuries as of March 19, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Argentina is pursuing a restructuring, Ecuador is discussing a re-profiling and Zambia is seeking to reorganize its foreign bonds. Meantime, Lebanon defaulted in March on its first bond since independence in 1943.

Another challenge is that China, a lender of last resort for many developing nations, is experiencing its own slowdown. Reinhart, an economist at Harvard University, warns that the worlds second-largest economy may contract this year for the first time since 1976, reducing Beijings lending capacity. Even Chinese officials have cautioned the road back will be a long one.

The potential human misery as the coronavirus rips through developing nations even less equipped to cope with a pandemic than their advanced counterparts is what worries investors most. The stricter the rules to curb contagion, the more those countries will be forced to boost spending, in turn compelling them to borrow more. That chain of events will disproportionately hurt the weakest credits, many of them commodity producers already suffering from a collapse in exports as well as a drop off in remittances, according to Hausmann.

Nouriel Roubini, a professor at New York University who predicted hard times before the global financial crisis in 2008, says money printing will flourish, with Mexican pesos, Indonesian rupiahs and Turkish liras about to spill forth from central banks.

How do you avoid a freefall of their currencies? he asked.

The consequences could be even worse in countries with poor policy responses or local dynamics that make the virus harder to contain, according to Fabiana Fedeli, the global head of fundamental equities at Robeco in Rotterdam. She singled out Brazil and Mexico for their lackluster efforts to fight the spread of the disease, and India because of its crowded slums.

We Will Starve Here: Indias Poor Flee Cities in Mass Exodus

The International Monetary Fund and World Bank have committed some $1 trillion in lending capacity to nations hamstrung by the pandemic, yet Roubini estimates the need may be three or four times that amount.

Kamakshya Trivedi, a strategist at Goldman in London, says developing-nation bonds look more vulnerable now than during the 2008 financial crisis.

We see further downside risks across emerging-market assets as the global economic outlook remains fragile and is consistently shifting, he wrote in a report.

(Adds market moves in seventh paragraph.)

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A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the death sentence of British-born top Al Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of United States journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi in 2002.

IMAGE: Al Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh when he was arrested in 2002 the abduction and murder of American journalist Daniel Pearl. Photograph: Zahid Hussein/Reuters

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story on the alleged links between the country's powerful spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence and Al Qaeda.

Sheikh was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

The incident came three years after Sheikh, along with Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, was released by India in 1999 and given safe passage to Afghanistan in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814.

On Thursday, the Sindh high court commuted the death sentence of Sheikh, 46, to seven years in prison. Sheikh has been in jail for the past 18 years.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha also acquitted the three others -- Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil -- serving life sentences in the case, the Dawn newspaper reported.

The bench announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the four convicts 18 years ago.

It also dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of the three co-accused, the paper said.

According to the report, Sheikh's seven-year prison will be counted from the time served in jail.

While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon.

They had further contended that Naseem and Adil's confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary.

They also argued that the recovery of the laptop from Naseem was shown to have been made on February 11, 2002, while computer expert Ronald Joseph had deposed that he was given the computer for verification on February 4 and he examined the laptop for six days.

Deputy Prosecutor General Saleem Akhtar had supported the trial court's verdict and submitted that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellants beyond a shadow of doubt and had requested the court to dismiss the appeals, the report said.

According to a report in The Express Tribune, in 2014, an anti-terrorism court had acquitted Qari Hashim, a co-accused in the case due to a lack of evidence.

The same year, Sheikh allegedly attempted suicide in his prison cell by hanging himself with a cloth from the ventilator.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University following an investigation into his death revealed that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.

In February 2016, the Pakistan Army arrested more than 100 militants and foiled a jailbreak attempt by al-Qaeda terrorists to free Sheikh and other leaders of the terror group.

Thursday's verdict came more than a month after Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) warned Pakistan that stern action will be taken against it if the country fails to check the flow of money to terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) among others.

The FATF, which supervises effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, last year placed Pakistan on its 'Grey List' of countries for failure to curb funnelling of funds to terror groups like LeT and JeM.

If not removed off the list by April end, Pakistan may move to a blacklist of countries that face severe economic sanctions, such as Iran.
Tanaiste Simon Coveney has conceded that restrictions on people's movements to limit the spread of Covid-19 may go beyond the initial deadline of Easter.

He made the remarks as the government announced a 'community call', an initiative to support the vulnerable and elderly in towns, villages and in cities.

Mr Coveney at a press briefing also admitted that it remained unknown if there were enough hospital beds to cope with an expected surge in virus patients in the weeks ahead.

The comments come as the Cabinet sub-committee overseeing response to the killer virus meets this morning to review restrictions in place and the latest measures to curb the disease's spread.

Mr Coveney addressed queries on the lockdown in place across the country until Easter, where people cannot leave their homes unless it is for essential work, appointments or for provisions.

He said the restrictions may go on for some time.

It was wrong to put a timeline on them, he suggested, but it may well be that Ireland may need to go beyond that initial deadline.

He also admitted that there may not be sufficient bed spaces for virus patients in the weeks ahead.

The HSE was attempting to double capacity and more to some 10,000 beds in a number of weeks, Mr Coveney told reporters.

But a dramatic increase in patients needing beds and care was expected, it was added.

We don't know yet if it [the capacity] is going to be enough, he added.

Nonetheless, if the public complied with social distancing and handwashing guidelines among measures, lives could be saved, added Mr Coveney

Ministers announced a rallying call for local authorities, volunteers and neighbours to unite in supporting vulnerable communities.

The 'community call' will see 31 local-authority-run offices nationwide coordinate help and supports for the elderly and vulnerable most at risk from the virus.

Rural Affairs Minister Michael Ring said:

We will be there to help you, nobody will be left behind, do not be afraid."

Elsewhere, officials have announced that efforts are underway to reduce job losses in the horseracing industry after the cancellation of events in that sector.

The Government is also trying to help over 1,000 Irish citizens return home from some 86 countries around the globe.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott addresses the media. (Getty Images)

Six Republican-led states are moving to dramatically curtail access to abortion amid the coronavirus pandemic, prompting a wave of lawsuits that could soon bring the dispute to the Supreme Court.

While several states and the federal government have discouraged nonessential medical procedures like cosmetic surgery and elective dental work during the national health crisis, six states  Indiana, Iowa, Mississippi, Ohio, Oklahoma and Texas  went a step further, prohibiting abortion, unless to protect the life or health of the woman.

The Republican governors say their orders are vital to preserving hospital capacity and personal protective equipment for healthcare workers treating COVID-19 cases.

But abortion rights supporters say the states are exploiting the crisis to block or delay access to abortions, perhaps until a pregnancy is so far along it will be harder or impossible to end. They say the orders violate Supreme Court rulings first spelled out in Roe vs. Wade that states cannot ban abortion before a fetus is viable outside the womb, about 24 weeks.

They also note that many abortions conducted early in a pregnancy  up to 10 weeks under the Texas law  rely on a pill and can be completed with no use of hospital or personal protective equipment.

Federal judges have blocked the bans from going into effect in nearly all the states. But the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals allowed the Texas ban to take effect on a temporary basis. Abortion providers vowed to appeal to the Supreme Court if necessary.

We are absolutely ready to take every legal action that we have to to keep clinics open, said Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights, the legal organization representing providers in several states. These emergency abortion bans are an abuse of power and they are a part of a long-term effect to use sham justifications to shut down clinics and make an end-run around Roe vs. Wade.

The order is having an immediate effect in Texas. Already, the Planned Parenthood facility and other providers that have filed suit have had to cancel hundreds of scheduled appointments.

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In Texas, the prohibition includes any type of abortion that is not medically necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother, according to state Atty. Gen. Ken Paxton. Violating the ban would result in a $1,000 fine or six months in jail for the provider.

In Iowa, Gov. Kim Reynolds and abortion providers on Wednesday reached agreement to allow surgical abortions if delaying them would push the patient past the point at which legal abortions are allowed, according to the Associated Press.

In Michigan, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer  who recently clashed with President Trump over the federal response to the virus  did not include abortion in her order blocking nonessential procedures. Anti-abortion groups including the Susan B. Anthony List and Michigan Right to Life chastised her decision.

Gov. Whitmer should end these unnecessary procedures that further strain our healthcare system, and abortion businesses in the state should cooperate," said SBA List President Marjorie Dannenfelser, who also condemned Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf's order for not including abortion.

Governors have framed the state orders as temporary, saying they will last for a limited number of days, or for as long as there is an emergency. They've said women can wait until after the bans are lifted to obtain an abortion. But that won't be an option for many women since federal and many state guidelines encouraging people to stay home will be in effect for another month at least, if not longer.

The legal battle marks a continuation of what has been a decades-long effort by many red states to limit access to abortion. If the Supreme Court is asked to make an emergency ruling on the issue, it could provide an unexpected early glimpse of how the recently reshaped bench views abortion rights.

Justices were already expected to deliver by June the first abortion ruling since Trump's two appointees joined the court, in a Louisiana case questioning whether abortion providers need to have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital. If suddenly faced with an emergency appeal over the Texas order, the Supreme Court may be forced to weigh in on this much sooner than [the justices] wanted to, said Mary Ziegler, a professor at Florida State University College of Law who has written extensively about the legal history of abortion.

That should concern abortion rights supporters, she said. This court ... has a track record of granting more leeway to the government in times of emergency, she said.

U.S. District Judge Lee Yeakel, who temporarily blocked the Texas order from taking effect, suggested that only the justices could undermine the Roe decision to allow for a "silent 'except-in-a-national-emergency clause.'"

In court documents, Republican state leaders argue that they have the authority to temporarily ban access to nonessential healthcare procedures to protect the health of all citizens during a pandemic.

They say that allowing abortions to proceed  while not allowing other medical procedures  would give abortion an elevated status.

The right to abortion does not have preeminence over all of the other individual liberties that are being temporarily curtailed, Texas wrote in court documents this week.

Steve H. Aden, chief legal officer and general counsel at Americans United for Life, which opposes abortion, anticipates the court would allow the state orders to remain in place because the country is fighting a pandemic.

The power of the state to take extreme measures to deal with a health crisis like this is really the apex of its constitutional powers, he said, citing a 1905 precedent that let states fine or imprison citizens who did not get a small pox vaccine during an epidemic of the disease. There really isnt much that a state cannot do to respond to what is truly a health emergency.

Abortion rights supporters dispute the idea that abortion is a nonessential procedure comparable to a face lift or carpal tunnel surgery, and instead is time-sensitive and constitutionally protected.

They also say that while the coronavirus emergency is real, closing abortion clinics wont change the pandemics trajectory.

Ending access to abortion doesnt lower the risk of transmitting the virus. It just forces people to stay pregnant and have children against their will, said Jennifer Dalven, director of the reproductive freedom project at the ACLU. So its not surprising that the states that are now using the COVID crisis to stop people from getting abortion care are the very same states that have a history of passing laws to ban abortion or using sham rationales to shut down clinics.

Dalven says the orders have to be viewed through the lens of the states long-standing opposition to abortion and history of enacting prohibitions on the procedure through medical regulation, which undermines their case that theyre working to protect the public from the coronavirus.

The Supreme Court heard a case last month that questions a Louisiana regulation requiring abortion providers have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital. The court has not yet issued a decision.




West African lions are a critically endangered subpopulation, with an estimated 400 remaining and strong evidence of ongoing declines.

About 90% of these lions live in West Africa's largest protected area complex, the W-Arly-Pendjari. The WAP Complex includes five national parks and 14 hunting concessions across roughly 10,200 square miles in Burkina Faso, Niger and Benin.

Given that wildlife protection is one of the main purposes of a national park, you might expect West African lions to favor life inside park boundaries, rather than within the privately managed hunting concessions that surround the parks. After all, lions tend to shun people, and human pressures are higher in hunting areas than in the parks.

But a new University of Michigan-led camera survey of West African lions -- believed to be the largest wildlife camera survey ever undertaken in West Africa and the first carried out within WAP Complex national parks and hunting concessions -- found that West African lions show no statistically significant preference between the parks and trophy-hunting areas.

The findings, scheduled for publication March 30 in the Journal of Applied Ecology, have implications for conservation management of the remaining West African lions.

"Our results suggest habitat quality in national parks is inadequate, leading to a lack of preference in lions despite lower human pressures," said doctoral student Kirby Mills of U-M's Applied Wildlife Ecology (AWE) Lab, lead author of the study.

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The researchers suspect that the lure of plentiful water, high-quality habitat and abundant prey on hunting properties outweigh the lions' natural avoidance of humans. Revenues from trophy hunting pay for enhanced infrastructure such as irrigation systems and solar-powered pumps at watering holes, as well as added patrol staff.

At the same time, under-resourced national parks struggle to deal with degraded wildlife habitat, poachers, inadequate staffing and displacement of wildlife by livestock, which are permitted within the parks.

"We recommend prioritizing the reduction of habitat degradation in the parks and increasing water availability to increase suitable habitat for lions and their prey," said Mills, who conducted the study for her master's thesis at the U-M School for Environment and Sustainability. "But at the same time, we recognize that management interventions at a large scale require economic resources unavailable to park managers in WAP, an incongruity prolific throughout the range of African lions."

The study's senior author is Nyeema Harris, an assistant professor in the U-M Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and director of the AWE Lab. Harris designed the project and led the fieldwork with an international team that included government employees and students from Burkina Faso and Niger.

In the U-M-led study, 238 motion-activated digital cameras were deployed across 5,000 square miles in three WAP Complex national parks and 11 of the hunting concessions. The fieldwork was conducted from February through June in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

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Some 1.7 million images were captured during that time, but West African lions triggered the shutter just 96 times, reflecting the critically endangered feline's scarcity. The cameras were programmed to rapid-fire three to five frames when triggered, so the total number of lion images is 360.

The camera data were used in two types of mathematical models -- occupancy models and structural equation models. The occupancy models allowed the researchers to calculate the probability that an animal used a given space, while the SEM models enabled them to disentangle the relative effects of environmental, ecological and anthropogenic factors influencing space use by West African lions.

The researchers found that lion occupancy was largely driven by prey availability, which in turn was shaped by ecological and environmental variables -- such as water availability and habitat diversity -- that scored higher in hunting concessions than in national parks.

Contrary to the researchers' expectations, the WAP Complex lions showed no discernable preference between national parks and hunting zones. The U-M-led study provides the first estimate of West African lion occupancy using camera-trap data.

"We hypothesize that ecological cues indicating high-quality habitat, such as plentiful water and available prey, are mitigating the expected avoidance response to the increased human pressures and competitor activity in hunting concessions," Harris said.

"Because the lions rely heavily on prey, managers may be able to manipulate the distribution of prey within WAP to directly influence spatial distributions of lions and indirectly reduce human-lion conflict.

Stretching across three countries in the West African savanna belt, the WAP Complex is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is described by the U.N. agency as "a refuge for wildlife species that have disappeared elsewhere in West Africa or are highly threatened."

Trophy hunting is permitted in all of the WAP Complex concessions but is illegal in the five national parks and in Niger's Tamou game reserve, which is part of the protected area complex. The lions are known to feed on several species of antelope, as well as savanna buffalos and warthogs. Predators that compete with the lions for food include spotted hyenas and leopards.

West African lions are categorized as critically endangered in the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Threatened Species. In its 2015 assessment, the IUCN states that the West African lion subpopulation is estimated at just above 400 animals, with fewer than 250 mature individuals.

West African lions are smaller than, and genetically distinct from, other African lions. They form smaller prides, and the males have little to no mane.

"This population continues to decline," the IUCN assessment states. "Further deterioration of the last protected areas harbouring lions in West Africa will likely lead to the local extinction of the species."
Christopher Blunck Chris in-depth knowledge of TSCA law and policy will be an invaluable asset to our clients, as will Chris familiarity with the federal administrative process and EPA infrastructure.

Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C) and The Acta Group (Acta) are pleased to announce that Christopher R. Blunck has joined our firms as Of Counsel with B&C and Senior Regulatory Specialist with Acta. Mr. Blunck most recently served as Policy Analyst and Special Assistant to the Director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencys (EPA) Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT). Mr. Blunck has managed or participated in the development of hundreds of Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and Toxics Release Inventory Program (TRI) regulations, guidance documents, and policy papers, and his decades of involvement in the regulatory development process at EPA are an invaluable asset to clients seeking to anticipate, address, and resolve regulatory compliance matters.

Over the course of his 30-year career at EPA, Chris developed and reviewed regulations, interpretive guidance on TSCA matters, international chemical treaties, and international trade matters related to chemicals; represented the United States in the negotiation and implementation of the Stockholm Convention of Persistent Organic Pollutants and at technical and policy meetings under the Rotterdam Prior Informed Consent Convention; and earned numerous agency special citations and awards, including an EPA Gold Medal for Exceptional Service in 2017 for his work on the framework for implementing the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century (Lautenberg) amendment of TSCA.

Mr. Blunck received his law degree from George Mason University School of Law and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental, Population, and Organism Biology from the University of Colorado.

Lynn L. Bergeson, B&C Managing Partner and President of Acta, commented regarding Mr. Bluncks appointment, Having known, worked with, and admired Chris for years, we are thrilled Chis is now part of the Bergeson & Campbell and Acta team. Chris in-depth knowledge of TSCA law and policy will be an invaluable asset to our clients, as will Chris familiarity with the federal administrative process and EPA infrastructure.

Mr. Blunck joins a powerful team of EPA alumni at B&C and Acta, including Director of Chemistry Richard E. Engler, Ph.D., 17-year veteran of OPPT and one of the most widely recognized experts in the field of green chemistry; Senior Government Affairs Consultant James V. Aidala, a former Assistant Administrator of the Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances (OPPTS) (now the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention); Charles M. Auer, a former Director of OPPT, Timothy D. Backstrom, a 25-year veteran of EPAs Office of General Counsel, and Oscar Hernandez, Ph.D., former Director of the Risk Assessment Division (RAD) at OPPT. This impressive team offers clients an unmatched wealth of experience in TSCA and Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) legislative and regulatory matters.

About Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. -- Located in Washington, D.C., B&C is a law firm focusing on conventional, biobased, and nanoscale industrial, agricultural, and specialty chemical product regulation and approval, and associated business issues, including TSCA matters, FIFRA/Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) matters, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and product approval, registration and data compensation arbitrations, chemical product litigation, and associated business counseling and litigation issues. Additional information is available at http://www.lawbc.com.

About The Acta Group -- Acta, a consulting affiliate of B&C with offices in Washington, D.C.; Brussels, Belgium; Manchester, United Kingdom; and Beijing, China, offers expertise with regulatory programs and chemical product approvals in North America, Europe, South and Central America, Asia, and the Middle East. Acta supports clients products from concept to approval so they get to market quickly and efficiently. Additional information is available at http://www.actagroup.com.
By PTI

UNITED NATIONS: The UN's human rights chief has expressed concern over the plight of millions of domestic migrants in India during the ongoing 21-day nationwide lockdown to stop the spread of the coronavirus, and welcomed the subsequent measures announced to address their situation, underscoring the need for "domestic solidarity and unity" to combat the epidemic.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a complete lockdown for 21 days on March 24, triggering a mass movement of hundreds of thousands of migrant workers from their place of work in cities to homes in villages across India.

"The lockdown in India represents a massive logistical and implementation challenge given the population size and its density and we all hope the spread of the virus can be checked," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said in a statement on Thursday in Geneva.

Bachelet said she was "distressed" by the plight of millions of domestic migrants affected by the sudden lockdown announced in India, noting that it is important to ensure that measures in response to the COVID-19 are "neither applied in a discriminatory manner nor exacerbate existing inequalities and vulnerabilities."

The UN agency stressed that containing COVID-19 in the country, which hosts one-sixth of the world's population, will require effort not only from the government but also the population at large.

The high commissioner encouraged the government to work "shoulder-to-shoulder" with civil society on the response -- including many NGOs who are already providing relief.

"This is a time for domestic solidarity and unity. I encourage the government to draw on India's vibrant civil society to reach out to the most vulnerable sectors of society to ensure no one is left behind in this time of crisis," Bachelet said.

A migrant worker died of a heart attack last week after a journey on foot of about 800 km from the national capital to his hometown in Madhya Pradesh.

Following such reports in the media, state governments have asked migrant workers to stay put and announced special measures for providing food and other facilities to them, while a few arranged special buses to ferry them to their native places.

The high commissioner welcomed the Indian Supreme Court's subsequent instruction on March 31 to ensure that migrants are provided enough food, water, beds and supplies as well as psychosocial counselling in make-shift shelters.

"The Supreme Court's order and its implementation will go a long way to ensuring the safety and rights of these vulnerable migrants.

Many of these people's lives have been suddenly uprooted by the lockdown, placing them in very precarious situations," Bachelet said.

The UN human rights body noted that the Indian government has taken a number of other measures to address the situation, such as ensuring the distribution of food services on a massive scale, calling on employers to pay wages and landlords to waive rents.

"In spite of all these significant efforts, more needs to be done as the human tragedy continues to unfold before our eyes," Bachelet said.

The UN agency has also asked for special measures focusing on migrant women, who are among those most economically vulnerable and impacted by the situation.

On reports of police officers beating citizens for breaking quarantine rules and migrants being doused with disinfectant, Bachelet said the agency understands the strain on the police service at this time, but "officers must show restraint and abide by international standards on the use of force and humane treatment in their efforts to respond to this pandemic in accordance with the Supreme Court's instruction."

It noted that a number of states have now issued explicit orders to their police forces to refrain from the use of force to contain the virus.

On practice in some states of stamping hands of those quarantined in their homes and sticking notices outside the homes of people quarantined, she said, "It is important to weigh such measures against the right to privacy and avoid measures that would unduly stigmatise people within the community, who may already be vulnerable due to their social status or other factors."
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has said the figures of confirmed COVID-19 cases released for Akwa-Ibom are accurate.

The Director-General of the agency, Chikwe Ihekweazu, said this is not a time to dispute or doubt especially within government.

This is not a time to release press statements against anybody. It is time to come together, he said.

Mr Ihekweazu was responding to a statement by the Akwa Ibom government, questioning the credibility of the recently confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state.

The agency, on Wednesday, announced 23 new cases of COVID-19 in Nigeria. Five of the new cases were said to have been recorded in Akwa Ibom State.

The state government, in a statement by its commissioner for health, Dominic Ukpong, however, said there was a disturbing breach in the test and reporting procedure adopted by the agency.

It said the reported positive test cases have been contacted and they have showed no COVID-19 symptoms.

The government, therefore, demanded a reconfirmation test on the five reported cases.

READ ALSO:

Owing to the irregularities observed in the testing and reporting procedure, healthcare professionals in Akwa Ibom State have called for an immediate reconfirmation test on the five reported cases, the statement said.

Results are accurate

Mr Ihekweazu while answering questions from a journalist at the Presidential Taskforce briefing on Thursday, said there is no reason for doubts as the test was carried out in a trusted laboratory.

He also said the COVID-19 test is done twice before results are announced.

Every new case in a state always leave a little bit of anxiety and people need time to accept that these results are what they are.

But they are what they are, I have no reason to doubt the results coming out from any of our labs and especially the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, he said.

There is no result anybody will give without verifying. We are working very hard to make sure these results are correct.

Sometimes we delay in releasing these results because the test is being repeated so that we can be very sure, he added.

Reconfirmation test

The NCDC boss said the reported cases will be retested at a specific time.

Yes they will be retested at a specific time. After every positive case, we would retest anyway after three to four days.

The only way to know it people are recovering or not is by retesting them so that will be done, he said.

As of Thursday evening, Nigeria has recorded 174 cases of COVID-19 and two deaths.

At least 18 people have recovered from the disease and have been discharged.
[April 02, 2020] RtBrick Announces BNG (Broadband Network Gateway) Software for Disaggregated Networks

RtBrick has today announced the availability of its Broadband Network Gateway (News - Alert) (BNG) software. RtBrick's BNG is the first use-case for its FullStack routing software, which runs on merchant-silicon hardware, transforming it into carrier IP/MPLS infrastructure. RtBrick FullStack brings web-scale, greater agility and a substantially lower cost-base to carrier networks. "We realised the huge 'cloud-native' IT companies can run their operations at lower cost and with more agility than telecoms operators have ever been able to," said Hannes Gredler, founder and chief technology officer at RtBrick, "so we took a similar approach to building IP networks. We wanted to transform networks from carrier-grade to web-scale, taking advantage of the latest merchant-silicon and with an emphasis on automation." RtBrick's BNG has already been selected for trials with major telecoms operators. The initial release includes support for key subscriber features such as queuing, accounting and lawful-intercept, along with major routing protocols, such as BGP, OSPF and IS-IS. The software is delivered as a container, running on Linux, which only includes the microservice required for each use-case. It also comes with a 'single-pane-of-glass' Web2.0 Management System, including a zero-touch-provisioning system.



"This disaggregated approach, separating software from hardware, will enable us to transform our network edge, and operate more like a 'cloud-native' business," said Hans-Jorg Kolbe, Chief Technical Leader for Deutsche Telekom's (News - Alert) Access 4.0 project, which aims to connect millions of broadband lines across Germany. "Adopting a cloud-like network architecture makes it simpler to automate our operations and allows us to benefit from lower-cost open hardware platforms." RtBrick Full Stack has been validated on several bare-metal switch platforms from manufacturers such as Edgecore Networks and Delta, and can also run on x86 servers.

About RtBrick RtBrick provides carrier routing software that runs on off-the-shelf hardware. It has applied the same approach to networks that the huge 'cloud-natives' have used to build and operate their web-scale IT services. RtBrick is a privately held company, with staff located in the USA, Europe and India. For more information, please visit https://www.rtbrick.com/ View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005066/en/

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For more coverage, visit our complete coronavirus section here.

Costco unveiled the new ways it plans to keep customers and staff safe on April 1.

Among the implemented changes is a limit of two people allowed into Costco per membership card, along with changed hours of operation. For now, Costco warehouses in the U.S. will close during the week at 6:30 p.m., with its gas stations open from 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. during weekdays and closing at 6:30 p.m. on the weekends.

THE COSTCO SCENE: Customers stocked up at Costco the weekend before the shelter-in-place order hit, causing huge lines

Customers aged 60 and older, or with physical disabilities, will also now be able to shop a special set of hours from 8 to 9 a.m., Tuesday through Thursday. (The pharmacy will be open during this hour, Costco noted, but not its food court.)

Certain departments within Costco may also be closed, depending on the location. Among the areas that may see "limited or no service" include the hearing aid and optical departments, as well as the floral and jewelry departments. The food court remains open, however, but for takeout only (seating will not be made available during this time).

Limitations on certain products  like, say, toilet paper  remain in effect.

To see the full list of changes from Costco, head here.

Dianne de Guzman is a Digital Editor at SFGATE. Email: dianne.deguzman@sfgate.com
ALBANY  Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday said the peak of the coronavirus outbreak in New York state could arrive sooner than the 21-day projection he has been proffering for more than a week, but he cautioned that the estimates are largely based on the effect of the social-distancing measures that have been in place since early March.

"It's anywhere from seven to 21 to 30 days. It depends on how that model rates how effective social distancing is," the governor said. "We believe it is close to the shorter end of the range with our in-house people looking at the professional modeling that's being done."

The total confirmed cases since the COVID-19 outbreak began in New York reached 92,381 on Thursday, although that figure includes people who have recovered from the flu-like illness. More than 13,380 people are hospitalized and 7,434 patients have been discharged from hospitals after treatment for the respiratory illness caused by novel coronavirus.

New York City, and Westchester and Nassau counties, are the state's hardest-hit areas, with nearly 74,000 cases in those localities. There have been 2,373 deaths in the state, up from 1,941 on Wednesday. The state, and the White House, project New York may have roughly 16,000 fatalities from COVID-19, with 93,000 nationwide.

The governor on Thursday said the state may still need may between 70,000 to 110,000 hospital beds to handle COVID-19 patients. Under that projection, the number of new hospitalizations for the virus in New York would top 100,000 in the next two to three weeks. The number of new hospitalizations declined Thursday, from 1,297 to 1,157.

But his hospitalization projection has changed. On March 25, Cuomo had said: "Right now what we're looking at is about 140,000 cases coming into the hospitals. The hospital capacity is 53,000 beds. That's a problem."

After hearing about mask shortages in New York City, the federal government on Friday will deliver one month's supply of N-95 masks to the New York City public hospital system, after speaking to Mitchell Katz, CEO of that hospital group, Vice President Mike Pence and Admiral Polowczyk announced Thursday night.

Cuomo on Thursday said the state has enough ventilators in a stockpile for up to six days if the flow of intensive care unit patients continues.

"At the current burn rate, we have about six days of ventilators in our stockpile, meaning if the rate of usage, the rate of people coming into hospitals who need ventilators, if that rate continues, in our stockpile we have about six days," he said. "Now, if the apex happens within that timeframe, if the apex increases, if the apex is longer, we have an issue with ventilators. ... There's a difference of opinion, how many will you need."

Cuomo said some projection models have New York hitting its apex of cases in late April, though his task force expects it will be closer to seven days.

"They all basically say you come down from the apex quickly and then some models have it flattening out ... and continuing through the summer," Cuomo said.

President Donald Trump, using Twitter Thursday to spar with U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer over federal efforts on the pandemic, said New York was slow to deal with the crisis but he also commended the job being done by Cuomo.

"I don't know how you square those two statements," Cuomo said. "We started purchasing, and we probably will have wound up purchasing, more (more ventilators and medical supplies) than any state in the country. ... But I thank him for his good words that he thinks I'm doing a good job."

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Schumer sent a letter to Trump Thursday asking to appoint a senior military official to lead the production and distribution of personal protective equipment and other medical supplies. Schumer called the administration's efforts to date "confused and uncoordinated" and said it was a "failure" that Trump has not used the Defense Production Act to secure more materials more extensively.

"The existing federal leadership void has left America with an ugly spectacle in which States and cities are literally fending for themselves, often in conflict and competition with each other, when trying to procure precious medical supplies and equipment," Schumer wrote.

Trump fired back with his own letter Thursday evening saying Schumer's "public relations letter" was "wrong in every way."

Special Investigation 147 NY dams are 'unsound,' potentially dangerous Thousands of dams have not been inspected in over 20 years.

"I've known you for many years, but I never knew how bad a senator you are for the state of New York, until I became president," Trump wrote. "if you spent less time on your ridiculous impeachment hoax, which went haplessly on forever and ended up going nowhere (except increasing my poll numbers), and instead focused on helping the people of New York, then New York would not have been so completely unprepared for the 'invisible enemy.' No wonder [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.] and others are thinking about running against you in the primary."

Trump noted a submarine supply officer, Rear Admiral John Polowczyk, who spoke at the White House coronavirus briefing Thursday night, was in charge of the supply chain coordination. He rebutted that he was using the Defense Production Act  the White House announced two new activations of the law Thursday against mask-producer 3M and to seize production of ventilators.

Trump praised his administration's work to deliver supplies to New York, noting the state needed more than others and "the federal government is merely a back up for state governments."

Cuomo said the state has purchased 3,000 ventilators from Philips in Pittsburgh and is "in fairly good shape" in terms of having enough ventilators to treat patients in intensive care units. But he said the state is continuing to seek to purchase ventilators, including from China. Still, Cuomo has cautioned that the projections vary and New York, and all other states, including rural regions, need to prepare for the worst and plan for any potential shortage of ventilators, hospital beds and medical supplies.

New York has 2,200 ventilators in a stockpile, and roughly 350 people per day are being hospitalized who need a ventilator.

"So, 2,200, you see, disappears very quickly," he said. "There is no state and no country that has done anything to provide ventilators that we are not doing."

He said dealing with the pandemic has changed him.

"I don't make excuses. If I fail, I fail," Cuomo said. "I see those number of deaths every day and I take that personally, and I feel the pain that families are feeling and I'm doing everything I can. But people are still dying and that is very hurtful, and humbling and painful. Just painful. And this is a long time to be under that level of pain. What do you look like when you come out the other side? I don't know."

The governor conducted a live online web conference with his younger brother, Chris, a CNN anchor, who is infected with COVID-19, during Thursday's press conference at the Capitol.

They are best friends, they have said, and the younger Cuomo remarked that living in his basement to isolate himself from his family has been tough on his personal hygiene, including his ability to keep his hair in order. Then he turned to his older brother's hairstyle.

"You look like youve been cutting your own hair, which some people are good at, some people are not," Chris Cuomo said. He recounted a "hallucination" he experienced when he first fell ill, in which his older brother showed up dressed in an "L.A. outfit ... and you were dancing in the dream and you were waving a wand saying, 'I wish I could wave a wand and make this go away.'"

The governor countered there was "a lot of metaphoric reality" in his brother's dream.
Ever wonder why there is stockpiling?

Perhaps the mental giants in Ottawa could stop fear mongering. For example, on Castanet today I read that no less than the Deputy Minister of Health Canada has warned that the COVID-19 will worsen the supply of drugs.

Perfect news for us seniors. But wait here is the kicker.

The Canadian Pharmacists Association is encouraging members to limit patients to a 30 day supply. Doesnt that mean susceptible seniors will need to go to the drugstore for their prescriptions three times instead of once? That also means three dispensing fees instead on one. We are told to stay home yet are told to venture out more often to get needed prescription drugs. Does that make any sense to anyone?

Also Heath Canada has warned Canadians not to stockpile drugs. How can I stock pile drugs when I need to visit my doctor every time in order to renew? The most I can get, even though I have an ongoing never-get-better condition that will require the same drug until I die, is 90 days.

Why cant people find a doctor who will accept them as patients? Perhaps the reason is the waiting rooms are full of patients just requiring a refill.

The most maddening phrase is OK Boomer.

You know the response given us older hard working taxpayers ever hear from the enlightened ones like the Deputy Minister. From now on I think I will address them as OK Morons.

Robert Hepting
Weve closed some of our lakes and facilities, but the river is open, said Mike Anderson, the director of Forsyth County Parks and recreation. Were following the governors orders for social distancing, but the river is open.

Its a birdwatchers paradise, a wildlife refuge in and of itself, a sportsmans paradise and a source of drinking water, inspiration and history.

It flows like a liquid highway, carrying nutrients and sediment from the first few feet of the headwaters underneath a parking lot at the Green Park Inn all the way to Winyah Bay in South Carolina. And along the way, it meanders past us, providing sustenance and beauty for anyone and everyone.

I tell kids this all the time, but if youre an adult human in the river basin, you are made up of 60 percent water, Fannon said. So if you live in the basin and eat and drink in the basin, you are the Yadkin River.

The river is there for all of us, and it will be there through this crisis and it will be there when we all get through it.

The river is part of the solution, part of the outdoors we all need now and especially in the future.

We are indeed the Yadkin River as it is us.

Contact Ed Hardin at 336-373-7069, and follow @Ed_Hardin on Twitter.
Palmdale, CA (93550)

Today

Partly cloudy. High around 55F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Stronger winds in and below canyons and passes..

Tonight

Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 29F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph. Stronger winds in and below canyons and passes.
An APT group is exploiting the flaws patched earlier this year in Firefox and Internet Explorer in attacks aimed at China and Japan.

An APT group is exploiting two vulnerabilities patched earlier this year in Firefox and Internet Explorer in attacks aimed at China and Japan.

The first issue, tracked as CVE-2019-17026, affects the Firefox browser and was addressed in January.

The CVE-2019-17026 flaw is an IonMonkey type confusion with StoreElementHole and FallibleStoreElement, where IonMonkey is the Just-in-Time (JIT) compiler for Firefoxs SpiderMonkey JavaScript engine.

In January, Mozilla confirmed that its aware of targeted attacks exploiting the CVE-2019-17026 zero-day, but it did not disclose details of the attacks.

The vulnerability was reported to Mozilla by security experts from the Chinese firm Qihoo 360.

The experts reported that the CVE-2019-17026 zero-day had been exploited by attackers along with an Internet Explorer zero-day, Qihoo 360 experts initially disclosed the discovery via Twitter, but later deleted the message.

The second flaw tracked as CVE-2020-0674 is an RCE affecting the Internet Explorer, Microsoft addressed it in February,

The CVE-2020-0674 flaw could be triggered by tricking victims into visiting a website hosting a specially crafted content designed to exploit the issue through Internet Explorer.

According to the cybersecurity firm Qihoo 360, threat actors exploited both flaws before they have been addressed by Microsoft.

The experts pointed out that the two vulnerabilities were exploited as part of a campaign aimed at Chinese government agencies and attributed to the DarkHotel APT, aka APT-C-06.

Qihoo experts also tracked the group as the Peninsula APT, likely because it refers to an APT group operating from Korea.

Japans Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Center (JPCERT/CC) published a report containing technical details on attacks exploiting both flaws and aimed at Japanese entities

When you are directed to the attack site with IE or Firefox, the attack code corresponding to the browser you accessed is returned. states the JPCERT.

After that, if the attack succeeds, the attack code will be downloaded again as a proxy automatic configuration file (PAC file). The downloaded attack code is executed as a PAC file, and the malware is downloaded and executed.

The exploitation of the flaw allows delivering a proxy auto-configuration (PAC) file to the system. The PAC files are used to redirect requests made to specified websites through an external server under the control of the attackers.

The final payload used in the attack is a variant of the Gh0st RAT that was employed in multiple attacks carried out by China-linked APT groups. Experts pointed out that the source code of the RAT was leaked many years ago, and many out threat actors started using it.

As a result of verification, it was confirmed that the attack on IE confirmed this time will be performed until execution of malware on Window 7 x64 (December 2019 release patch applied) and Windows 8.1 x64 (January 2020 release patch applied), No malware infection occurred in the environment of Windows 10 (with the January 2020 release patch applied). concluded the report. It is possible that the code was not compatible with Windows 10 in this attack.

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Pierluigi Paganini

( SecurityAffairs  Firefox, IE)
TAMPA, Fla. - One day last week, the math became irrefutable. On that day, Suzanne and Roger Perry laid off 175 employees in their small empire of Tampa Bay restaurants. They couldn't gather everyone together to explain the layoffs - it would have exceeded the governor's rules about crowd sizes. The managers had to phone people individually to break the news.

They told all those waiters and bussers and line cooks that they didn't have enough hours to offer, couldn't guarantee enough money to live on. Better to run to the unemployment office, get in line and start the paperwork.

After it was over, Suzanne Perry texted a reporter a picture of Ben the Dog, the office mascot, looking dejected. It was the first of several short, choppy texts full of pain.

"I'm in tears. Devastated. Trying to keep 'leader face' but unable in the chaos," she texted after delivering the news.

"I don't fall apart, and I'm falling apart," she wrote a minute later.

Some are called to the hospitality industry, hard-wired for the pace. Others fall into it, waiting for something else to unfold. Before the virus, a server at Datz could expect to pull in $300 in tips on a flush day. Their top bartenders earned more than $75,000 a year. Some of the Perrys' employees had been with them since the beginning, growing up, having families. Becoming family.

Now restaurants, like other public places, are painfully exposed to the economic effects of the pandemic. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard recently said unemployment could reach as high as 30 percent as a result of the pandemic and recession.

In the hospitality industry, that number could be far higher, as tens of thousands of American restaurants have shuttered and restaurant owners like the Perrys make their individual calculations about how much long they can hang on. Independent restaurants employ more than 10 million workers.

The Perrys had watched the virus news from other countries in February and early March as social gatherings were limited to 1,000 people, then 500, then 250, then all the way down to 10. They watched Europe, then New York and San Francisco, as they prepared and looked over payroll and vendor invoices against sales projections. They watched as the first cases were announced in the United States, as southeast Florida, the other side of the state, got hit hard because of snowbirds, spring-breakers and infected people coming off cruise ships.

"It's knowing there's a tidal wave 150 miles out moving 28 miles per hour and just watching it come," wrote Suzanne Perry, a Floridian accustomed to natural disaster. "Any amount of prep - get on the second floor! - is a ridiculous effort. You're going to die, and you know it, but at least climbing to the second floor keeps your mind off impending death."

The Perrys, Roger, 70, and Suzanne, 57, own a handful of eateries with a total of 700 seats. They came to the industry later in life but dove in feet first, making a splash with their first place, a deli called Datz, in 2009. It was embraced immediately for its audacity, its pluck. Its oversized sandwiches and "nothing succeeds like excess" mantra made it a darling of Instagram, with dishes like the Cheesy Todd - a fat burger with two jalapeno mac-and-cheese "buns" - capturing the attention of "Good Morning America."

They bought the bakery space next door and opened Dough in April 2013, sending out bacon lattes, bacon eclairs and bacon chocolate chip cookies. They added the swankier Cajun-Creole Roux down the road in August 2014, and then Dr. BBQ in St. Petersburg in October 2018.

They also run the cafe and concessions at the James Museum of Western and Wildlife Art in St. Petersburg, which opened in April 2018, and a second nearby Datz location, which debuted in June 2019. They were shooting for April 1 to open the doors of a third Datz location in Riverview, with 5,900 square feet of indoor space and seating for 175 guests, plus two patios.

The tables and chairs are arrayed, the kitchen complete. They hired 75 people for the new location, laying them all off before a single shock-and-awe, bacon-stacked sammie was sold.

In a March 18 letter to President Donald Trump, the National Restaurant Association projected restaurant sales would decline by $225 billion over the next three months, prompting the loss of between 5 million and 7 million jobs. Independent restaurants comprise nearly 70 percent of the nation's food service operators, according to Chicago-based food service database firm CHD. Even the successful ones operate on low margins and a tight cash flow.

The Riverview location is in limbo. Or maybe done.

- - -

Roger Perry said they had already been calling nightly meetings, moving around key employees, slashing high food-cost items, reinventing the business every 12 hours, "making extreme pivots in what we are selling and who works for us."

But when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican announced March 17 that restaurants in the state would be allowed to stay open only at half capacity, with all tables at least six feet apart, they realized that profitability was no longer possible. But they would try to tread water, keep going.

Suzanne Perry still ruminates about how the layoffs went down. In the aftermath, she texted a GIF of Kermit the Frog leaping off a building, puppet arms flailing. Gallows humor, but it fit her mood.

"We had a range of emotions from people, from 'yes, I absolutely understand, good luck and god bless,' to real anger, people thinking we weren't taking care of our people," she says. "The ones who remain have survivors' guilt. We're trying to salvage the company, and these are the people I need in the room when the plane drops the oxygen masks. They say you have to put it on yourself before you can help other people, right?"

Her husband is worried about her, says she's not sleeping, she's not eating.

"Suz isn't doing well. We have no control over our destiny right now. The biggest fear to me is there's no end in sight. The anxiety is crushing," he says. "Would we be better off to shut our doors and save our cash? We're working really hard to keep a small number of people with jobs."

The couple has applied for the state's $50,000 interest-free loans under the Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan program, but they don't know when and if that money is coming. They say they don't have the personal reserves to continue more than a few weeks without government checks and loans.

Some supply vendors are trying hard to work with them, keep things running. But smaller vendors without deep cash reserves moved to a "cash on delivery" model almost immediately, Suzanne Perry says. She says she's selling her whole and "epic" bourbon collection so she can keep staff another couple weeks. Her $20,000 Pappy Van Winkle 25-year and all of her expensive, rare things are going. Right next to the Michelob Ultra, she says: "There's a kind of humor in that. Sorta."

A few days after his first announcement, on March 20, DeSantis issued an additional executive order closing all on-premises restaurant sales, causing every restaurateur in Florida to make the decision: Close entirely or pivot to takeout and delivery only?

The Perrys pivoted to takeout and delivery only.

- - -

They have started over before.

Roger Perry's family was in animal feed, from which he built a pet food business, eventually selling 31 pet superstores to PetSmart in 1994 and retiring. He lived in Ocala, Florida, and raised Derby-worthy thoroughbreds in Kentucky. He met Suzanne.

Love shook up their lives and, in what was a second marriage for both, they relocated to Tampa in 2005 to build something new. The city was unsophisticated then; there were too many chain restaurants and gastronomic gaps, with no good deli like Zingerman's in Ann Arbor, Michigan, or Katzinger's in Columbus, Ohio. Having never been in the restaurant business, the Perrys thought they'd give it a go.

They were perpetually tinkering with Datz, adding a cheese counter and taking it away, developing a sassy social media game that helped their restaurants garner notice from the Travel Channel, Cooking Channel and Food Network. The marquee above the flagship South Tampa location, leaning toward bacon puns and snarky pop culture references, had been a source of local pride.

On Monday, all sense of play was gone, the letters spelling out simply: "DatzTampa.com: Order online 15 percent off pickup."

Roger sits in the office with Cheeto the office cat and Ben, the Humane Society rescue mutt, and lays out the grim math. Out of 400 employees at the start of the pandemic, they are down to 36, mostly senior salaried managers, everyone taking pay cuts to try to keep things afloat.

Even the animals seem to understand something is off. The office, usually bustling, is somber. Outside, Ben the Dog's tongue-in-cheek reserved parking place stands, almost for the first time, empty.

The Perrys started in the industry during the recession of 2008 and 2009. There was a huge reduction in the number of independent restaurants then, but they came roaring back. This is different, they say. The pandemic is making diners leery of togetherness, discomfited by the nurturing of strangers that has always been the guiding principle of the restaurant industry.

None of the employees they've let go have found other hospitality jobs, Suzanne Perry says, ticking off the other major Tampa Bay restaurants that have had to let employees go. The jobs just aren't there. Some of her people have gone home to be with family, entering into family businesses like construction.

She doesn't know how many of her employees have applied for unemployment. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 2 percent of the labor force, or 3.3 million people, filed for unemployment insurance the week of March 21.

The Perrys' own futures are on the line. Until the coronavirus, Roger Perry had intended to retire in the next few years. Everything they have is mortgaged, so a loss of income will likely change their retirement plans.

As a handful of takeout orders are assembled on a Monday evening, Roger and Suzanne stand in the darkened restaurant space, the front doors open to keep things cool. They aren't selling enough to pay the air conditioning and electric bill.

"We make three payments of $1,400 a month for electricity just for this location, another $1,600 to the city for trash and water," Roger says, trailing off as he considers his restaurants' other expenses.

They've pared the takeout menu to a fraction of what Datz usually has on offer, a handful of greatest hits and family meals, things that require limited kitchen prep. It's meatloaf and chicken and waffles, spaghetti and meatballs. They think they will add prepare-at-home meal kits and grocery items.

Suzanne says they're encouraging customers to buy takeout directly from their website because they can't afford the commission on online ordering apps. Many of the big food delivery services, all experiencing explosive growth since covid-19 arrived, have waived customers' delivery fees, but their fees for the restaurants are still between 22 and 30 percent.

So far today, Datz has sold about $1,000 worth of takeout. A pittance, Roger says. This location usually makes that for breakfast service alone. On a Monday. Off season.

Outside, a black Honda Fit pulls up along a barrel taped with a sign that reads, "Stop here. Please stay in your vehicle [smiley emoji]." Longtime manager Lisa Godbout, one of the handful of employees left, scurries out with a plastic bag containing a foam clamshell. She reaches it carefully through the open passenger window.

Hospitality is a reflex by now. Maybe hope is, too.

"Thank you so much," she says, as the window rolls up. "Have a great evening."

Godbout retreats and scrubs her hands with a sanitary wipe.
Europe's veterinarians are stepping in to help save human lives as the coronavirus outbreak stretches medical facilities and staffing to the limit.

Many animal practices have donated crossover equipment, are helping with virus test analysis, and thousands of vets have volunteered as reserve emergency carers for patients who don't have fur or tails.

"Our expertise, our equipment, and our commitment can help save human lives," the Swiss Veterinary Society (SVS) states on its website, urging members to help where possible because "a human life is worth more than an animal life."



Around 5,000 of France's 18,000 vets have volunteered for a health reserve force being set up by the government, but not yet deployed.

In Madrid, animal doctors are helping frontline nurses and others have been installed in a new temporary hospital to manage teams and equipment said Manuel Lazaro, director of the order of veterinarians in the Spanish capital.

But while there is no question of the desire to help, there are limits to what vets can do.

"We know how to intubate animals, but would we know how to intubate humans? They are not the same techniques," commented Bruno Tessier, who presides over the veterinary association of the wider Paris Ile-de-France region.

Himself a volunteer reserve, Tessier insisted that "no-one is suggesting" sending vets to work on the front lines, and that they would be deployed more in supporting roles.

"We do know how to respond to people with coronavirus symptoms, to do medical interviews, to prioritise" patients, he said.

"We are waiting to be called up," Tessier added.

Vets around the continent have meanwhile donated crucial hardware ranging from syringes, protective gowns and face masks, to ultrasound machines and oxygen and pressure monitors to help out.

The veterinary faculty of the University of Bern in Switzerland has provided ventilator equipment that is much needed by patients whose lungs are ravaged by the virus.

And animal practices in Madrid and the Czech Republic have made available their laboratories for medical analysis.

"Several ventilators have been placed in reserve, but none have yet been requisitioned," SVS president Olivier Glardon told AFP.

"The next step will be to ask vets to come and provide assistance, but this is a problem because we cannot abandon our practices. We may have to call on (veterinary) students," he said.

France bans testing on human samples in veterinary laboratories, a practice that is allowed in other European countries such as Germany, Belgium and Italy.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has warned Armenians not to take the coronavirus situation too lightly, at the same time not to panic.

He said that there is a certain danger of growth in the rate of new infections, given that 92 cases of COVID-19 were diagnosed in one day.

Although the day before we had a decrease in the pace. It is important to say for the record that we have increased the volumes of testing, he said, adding that the situation is under control.

There are two extremes, one is panic, which is inadmissible, and it is not needed whatsoever. The other extreme is the mass calmness about this outbreak. Initially we were able to prevent panic, but as I understand weve prevented it much more than needed. Now we are unable to bring back our society to some balanced state, because mass calmness and relaxation is seen in the country. Of course this is good in social-psychological perspective, but it is a problem in terms of epidemiology, he said, calling on the general public not to take the situation too lightly.

Speaking about the coronavirus patients, he said that 80% of Armenias COVID-19 patients are asymptomatic.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
With nearly 10 million Americans  330,000 Massachusetts residents among them  filing for unemployment in the last two weeks, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal is asking why the U.S. Department of Labor has yet to distribute emergency administrative funding so states can process the claims.

The Labor Department released new data on first-time unemployment claims Thursday.

The $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act includes up to $1 billion for each state. The money is meant to pay for additional administrative capacity and get unemployment insurance money into the hands of laid-off workers.

The federal government on Monday approved Massachusetts first allotment of funding in the amount of $12.9 million, according to Neals office.

In a letter Thursday to Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia, Neal asked why some states are telling him they have not received the money. Neal, D-Springfield, chairman of the powerful House Committee on Ways and Means, asked Scalia the following questions:

When will the first $500 million in administrative funding be provided to all states?

Which states have qualified for the additional $500 million and when will they receive it?

When will the Department allow states to begin providing enhanced unemployment compensation to workers?

Early on, we anticipated a rise in the need for unemployment compensation and provided additional funding for states to hire staff and upgrade systems to provide benefits quickly, Neal wrote. We also expected this immediate funding to help states quickly provide federal unemployment compensation authorized in (the CARES Act), in advance of states being reimbursed for administrative costs related to those benefits.

On Thursday the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development outlined what its doing to handle the deluge of new applicants. The department said it:

deployed more than 500 new employees, working remotely, to process claims through the online system

made 34,000 return phone calls to applicants

held virtual town halls in English and Spanish attended by more than 70,000 people

The state said it is waiting on the federal government for guidance on how to implement other portions of the CARE Act, including providing an additional $600 a week for all unemployment claimants and extending eligibility to the self-employed, those who have exhausted unemployment benefits and those who did not meet income thresholds.

Until that guidance is issued, benefits under the CARES Act are not available in Massachusetts, the state said.
[April 02, 2020] New Perspectives on the APAC Quantum Computing Market

CROZET, Va., April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Inside Quantum Technology is revising its projections for worldwide quantum computer (hardware) sales. In this iteration of our forecasting work we place more emphasis on regional activity. The infographic that accompanies this blog shows our latest estimates for the APAC countries.

We think revenues from quantum computing hardware sold in the APAC region will be about $40 million in 2020 but will take off to reach about $250 million in 2025. By the end of our forecasting period in 2029, we think the APAC market for quantum computer hardware will be quite substantial  over $800 million.



Most of these revenues will come from two countries  Japan and China  which are expected to track each other quite closely in terms of revenues throughout our forecast period. By 2025, Inside Quantum Technology believes that the value of quantum computing hardware sold to Japanese customers will reach almost $95 million, and the equivalent number for China wil be just under $120 million







The Chinese and Japanese quantum computer markets couldnt be more different. The Chinese quantum effort is strongly oriented towards military applications, while the Japanese actually have legal restrictions on what they can do militarily dating back to WWII. Based on our recent discussions with both Japanese and Chinese vendors, we think that both countries are somewhat behind North America technically, but not by much.



Oceania may represent an opportunity for selling quantum computing systems in the near future. But this opportunity quantum computing hardware to sell to Australia and New Zealand is constrained by the small size of the country and the low number of potential quantum computer users in these countries. Cloud access to significantly remote machines may offer a better choice.

Inside Quantum Technology is building the first forecasting model of the quantum technology market covering quantum computing, quantum cryptography and quantum sensors. Lawrence Gasman

[email protected]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/613dfef7-36ea-46dc-a779-b2febaab1761.

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]
Canadian purchasing power will significantly decline in the near future as nearly one-third (32%) of small business owners admitted that they are not sure they will reopen after the COVID-19 crisis, according to a new study.

The recent survey by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) also found that on average, small businesses lost around $160,000 due to the fiscal and economic ravages of the pandemic.

A separate poll has warned that 47% of Canadians cannot afford to miss even just one day of work as they have neither back-up funds nor benefits. Another 23% also fear that they might lose their current jobs, the Financial Post reported.
G reg James hailed radios power to bring people together in difficult times as he kicked off the BBCs Great British Singalong.

The special initiative saw BBC Radio 1, Radio 2, 6Music, 1Xtra and Asian Network listeners pick five singalong tracks to lift the nations spirits during the coronavirus crisis.

On Thursday morning, Radio 1 Breakfast host James kicked things off by praising radios ability to unite people before introducing his listeners choice.

What a unique moment, he said. Its taken us a week to work out what to play.

Weve veered from funny, stupid songs, but what weve landed on is the perfect song because radio has always been brilliant at bringing people together and particularly at this time its powers are magnetised."

Isolation doesnt mean you have to be lonely. Radio is a great pal to all of us. Wed love to see you singing along. This is a massive, brilliant community.

James listeners voted for Florence and the Machines cover of You Got The Love, with many writing on Twitter that hearing the track made them feel emotional.

Radio 2s Dermot OLeary admitted that he was also feeling a little tearful after his colleagues remarks, telling James Stop making me cry with your lovely speech! before playing his listeners choice of Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond.

During the singalong takeover, fans - and fellow BBC presenters - shared videos of themselves getting into the spirit and singing and dancing to the five special tracks.

6Musics Lauren Laverne introduced Princes Raspberry Beret before handing over to Radio1Xtras Dotty, who was broadcasting from home.

Its nice to be under the duvet, Im not gonna lie to you Lauren, she said, before playing Toast by rising reggae star Koffee.

Asian Network presenter Harpz Kaur then finished things off by playing Panjabi MCs Mundian To Bach Ke.

Many Twitter users said that the singalong takeover had helped to boost their spirits during a difficult and uncertain time.
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The Cochrane Special Collection, COVID-19: Effective options for quitting smoking during the pandemic, includes Cochrane Reviews on nicotine replacement, behavioural support such as telephone, internet and text messaging programmes, and gradual quitting. This is one of several Special Collections relevant to COVID-19, other recently published collections include evidence relevant to critical care and infection control and prevention measures.Cochrane author, Jamie Hartmann-Boyce, from Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford in the UK said, "There is a wealth of evidence on the best ways to stop smoking. The evidence suggests people who smoke should use a combination of stop smoking medicines and behavioural support to give them the best chances of success. Options may be limited at this time, but there are ways to boost chances of quitting smoking that don't involve face-to-face contact or prescriptions. This Special Collection pulls together the evidence Cochrane has on this topic, to help health professionals advise people and for quitters to use to inform their own decisions."Cochrane author, Nicola Lindson, also from the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, UK, said "Anxiety and depression improve as a result of quitting smoking, so there is good reason to hang on in there when the going gets tough in trying to give up. If one method doesn't work, don't be discouraged - evidence shows some people need to try to quit many times before successfully doing so. Just because you haven't been able to quit smoking before, doesn't mean you won't be able to now."Cochrane Editor in Chief, Karla Soares-Weiser, added, "Cochrane is helping to build up the evidence base for those healthcare workers and policymakers working on the COVID-19 global response. We have a series of Special Collections being produced and shared with global decision makers. Smoking during the pandemic is associated with risks of contracting coronavirus and complications arising from it. This Collection is particularly helpful for people looking to give up smoking and those helping others to give up."Source: Eurekalert
Canadian beekeepers buy thousands of packages of bees every year to replace hives that died over the winter, but this year those bees aren't getting into the country.

And it could have ramifications for honeybee farmers and the agriculture industry.

Typically Kelly O'Day, president of Kona Queen Hawaii, sends tens of thousands of bees into Canada. His bees are used to help farmers after their colonies die over the winter.

This year, he hasn't been able to send any, as the COVID-19 pandemic has grounded commercial flights that typically fly in the stock.

"We're at the mercy of the airlines who are cancelling flights daily," O'Day said. "So even if we get booked on a flight, our confidence is dropping of those flights actually happening."

Honeybees need to be flown in on commercial flights, because they have regulated temperature.

Queen bees need to be kept between 9 C and 32 C, or they could die or become sterilized.

O'Day said the farmers need the queens soon, because they're just finding out how many colonies died over the winter and must work quickly to replenish their stock.

"If they don't have the queen, not only can they not get their numbers back, but those hives that do survive will swarm and they will lose those," O'Day said.

Submitted by Echo Chandler

"If these queens do not get to Canada this year ... they're going to probably lose half to three-quarters of their population and it'll take three to five years to rebuild."

O'Day said the company is still trying to work with airlines.

"This is a desperate situation."

Pollination problems

Ron Greidanus, Canadian Honey Council representative for the Alberta Beekeepers Commission and owner of Greidanus HoneyBee Farms, said it's critical to get the queens into Canada now.

The repercussions could damage the agriculture industry, because honeybees are used across the country to pollinate crops.

If there's a shortage in hives, there will be a loss in yield for canola, canola seed, blueberry production and orchard production.

Story continues

"You're going to go to the grocery store, you're going to look for blueberries, you're paying 10 bucks for a pint of blueberries ... because we can't make them in Canada anymore."

Wild Blueberry Producers Association of Nova Scotia

Right now there's a demand for 10,000 packages of bees in Manitoba and 35,000 for Ontario, Greidanus said.

"They're going to be well short of that number."

Packages contain bees, a queen and some feed to help start a colony.

Right now there are 300,000 hives in Alberta, and if packages don't start coming in, Greidanus said he can see that number shrinking to about 250,000.

The Scandia Honey Company pollinates crops, produces honey and imports packaged bees from New Zealand.

Echo Chandler, Scandia Honey Company's director and owner, said the operation typically loses between 20 and 30 per cent of its 13,000 hives over the winter, which are replaced with packaged bees.

The company also sells packages to farmers and hobbyists. Scandia brings in about 9,500 packages a year, but right now they can't be flown out of New Zealand because the airlines are switching to cargo planes without temperature regulation.

"We can't put the bees on there because they won't survive."

Submitted by Echo Chandler

She said they were able to get a few pallets of bees in March for B.C., but the orders for Alberta and Saskatchewan haven't come in.

"It's going to be hard. It's going to be a lot of work, but we can tough it out this year and we can get it back for next year."

Chandler said it would be nice if they could get the bees in, but she understands that the airlines can't just send an airplane for the bees.

"Those airlines are bleeding right now."

Greidanus is encouraging people to reach out to their local representative to have honey bee transportation deemed an essential commodity.

The federal department of agriculture and agri-food said in an email statement that the department is "very aware of the importance of pollinators," As well, the department has been "working with industry, as well as with other government departments and logistical partners, to resolve this issue as quickly as possible."

Alberta's provincial department of agriculture and forestry does not deal with the import of honeybees. However, department representative Justin Laurence said in an email that the department has several supports for apiculturists, including AgriStability, bee overwintering insurance and honey insurance. There is also $153 million of emergency disaster funding to support "hard-hit producers during the COVID-19 pandemic."
Defendants accused of spitting on police officers during the Covid-19 crisis are being "woefully undercharged", a Northern Ireland judge has said.

District Judge Mark Hamill suggested assault suspects should be prosecuted for more serious offences as he jailed one man and refused bail to another.

Neil Henry, 26, received a four-month prison sentence for disorderly behaviour and assaulting a PSNI constable.

Belfast Magistrates' Court heard he attempted to bite and spit on an officer called to his hostel address at Divis Street in the city on March 25.

Defence lawyer Eoghan McKenna confirmed his client's guilty plea, adding that the incident developed over accommodation issues.

Henry was warned that any repeat behaviour in future could see him facing up to a year behind bars.

Meanwhile, 31-year-old Bryan Glenn appeared at court for allegedly targeting officers following a disturbance outside his ex-partner's home.

Glenn, of Strand Avenue in Millisle, Co Down, is accused of kicking a front door at the woman's house in east Belfast after travelling there on Tuesday night.

Opposing bail, a PSNI constable claimed: "He then kicked an officer and spat in another officer's face."

Glenn is accused of two counts of assault on police, criminal damage and disorderly behaviour at Brandon Parade in the city.

"This is another example of woeful undercharging," Mr Hamill said.

"In the current climate, to spit on someone's face is either (attempted) actual bodily harm or grievous bodily harm. Convey that to the PPS (Public Prosecution Service) please."

Following defence submissions that Glenn had "blacked out" during the incident, the judge questioned why he was even in Belfast amid the current rules on social distancing.

"The allegation is in the course of a Covid-19 pandemic he spat at a police officer," Mr Hamill reiterated.

Glenn denied any spitting, and instead claimed he had been put in handcuffs while suffering from a cold.

His barrister added: "He's suggesting his hands were behind his back when arrested, and he wasn't able to cover his mouth."

Refusing bail, however, the judge emphasised: "Anybody allegedly behaving like this in the course of a pandemic, I'm afraid, is going to be remanded in custody.

"There's the deterrent for everybody else."




Cases of coronavirus have been confirmed on board a cruise ship carrying 400 Britons in the Caribbean, passengers say.

The captain of the Coral Princess announced that 'there were positive results for Covid-19', according to a recording shared by one of the guests.

Samples were sent for testing in Barbados after the ship's medical centre reported a 'higher than normal number of people presenting influenza-like symptoms' on board.

The 1,024 passengers were due to disembark in Florida on Saturday, but it is not yet clear whether they will now be allowed to dock.

Passengers on the Coral Princess cruise ship, pictured, say coronavirus cases have been confirmed on board

Princess Cruises announced a 60-day halt to its holidays last month, but the Coral Princess was already at sea and several countries have refused permission for passengers to leave the ship.

The crew is now in 'continued talks' with health officials over how to get the passengers home, the captain said.

Port officials in Fort Lauderdale say decisions on whether to admit vessels will be made in consultation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other agencies. Other ships are currently negotiating with authorities in Florida.

The US Coast Guard has warned cruise ships generally that they should be prepared for an 'indefinite' stay offshore.

It is not clear how many people are infected on the Coral Princess. MailOnline has approached the cruise operator for comment.

According to the recorded message, the captain said: 'As you know, over the last few days, a small cluster of cases among guests and crew members have presented with influenza-like illness symptoms and those have been isolated.

'We took the opportunity while we were in Barbados to load more supplies including face masks and sent samples ashore for testing.

'We have now received confirmation that there were positive results for Covid-19. These patients have all been advised of their test results.

'This new information means that we will need all guests to remain in their staterooms for the remainder of our cruise.'

News of the confirmed cases has also emerged on social media via worried relatives of passengers on board.

One woman said her NHS nurse mother had been stuck on the ship since March 15, while another said his father had tested positive. It is thought that around 400 Britons are on board.

One passenger, Christine Beehler (pictured), shared a recording of the captain's announcement from her stateroom

The view inside one of the Coral Princess's staterooms as the captain told passengers that coronavirus cases had been confirmed on board

One passenger's daughter shared a text from her mother saying that at least one person had tested positive. The captain mentioned multiple cases

The woman said her NHS nurse mother had been stuck on the Coral Princess since March 15

The captain's message continued: 'We are in continued talks with our head office and officials shoreside regarding your disembarkation and are working to confirm these details.

'We understand that this is frustrating for you but like so much of what we have encountered on this voyage, it is a constantly changing situation.

'We are working to adapt our plans so that we can get you home as soon as possible.'

The Coral Princess had to leave Buenos Aires on March 19 after Argentina brought in quarantine rules which would have left the ship marooned there indefinitely.

The ship reached Montevideo on March 21, where fuel and supplies were taken on board but passengers were not allowed to disembark.

Brazilian authorities turned the ship away in Rio de Janeiro on March 24, despite some guests having confirmed outbound flights from Brazil.

The Coral Princess then sailed to Barbados for a 'service call' on March 31 where no passengers were allowed to leave.

Crew members will now be distributing masks which passengers will be required to wear when they receive food or interact with staff.

'At this time we can only distribute one face mask per guest so we will ask you to reuse them until we are able to provide a replacement. We're not sure when that will be,' the captain said.

Samples were sent for testing in Barbados after the Coral Princess (pictured) reported a high number of people with influenza-like symptoms

Any further passengers who notice symptoms of respiratory illness such as a cough, fever or shortness of breath have been told to inform the crew by phone.

A US Coast Guard memo covering ships in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Puerto Rico said ships should be ready to treat sick passengers and crew on board.

The rules, which apply to vessels carrying more than 50 people, were issued in a March 29 safety bulletin signed by Coast Guard Rear Admiral EC Jones.

All ships destined for US ports were already required to provide daily updates on their coronavirus caseload or face civil penalties or criminal prosecution.

Dozens of cruise ships are either lined up at Port Miami and Port Everglades or waiting offshore due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Cruise ships have been causing problems for health authorities for weeks after a series of coronavirus scares at sea.

In the most serious case, more than 700 people tested positive on the Diamond Princess during a failed two-week quarantine imposed by Japanese authorities.

Experts have highlighted a number of reasons why cruise ships are vulnerable to the spread of disease, including the large number of elderly passengers in a confined space.

Princess Cruises announced on March 12 that it was suspending all its operations for 60 days because of the health crisis.
Two residents of a senior apartment community in The Woodlands died this week, marking Montgomery Countys first deaths related to the new coronavirus, officials said.

The Montgomery County Public Health District said in a news release that a man in his 90s died Wednesday, 12 days after the county reported he tested positive for the virus. On Tuesday, a man in his 80s died, the same day his case was reported positive. Both were residents of The Conservatory at Alden Bridge, which was placed under a shelter-in-place order Monday after 13 people there tested positive for COVID-19.

Officials did not identify the victims.

The health district said Wednesday afternoon that the county had recorded 110 positive cases, up 17 from Tuesday. More than a dozen have made a full recovery.

Authorities also said that a man who was the countys first coronavirus case  a Patton Village police officer who was hospitalized in critical condition and was unconscious for several days  had shown improvement and was in fair condition.

County Judge Mark Keough announced the shelter-in-place order Monday, saying the move was out of concern for the well-being of the local community as well as the high-risk individuals who reside at the Conservatory.

The Conservatory had announced March 20 it was halting visitation in response to a directive from Texas banning nonessential visitors from entering retirement and independent living communities.

The county health district said it became aware of a positive test for coronavirus at The Conservatory at Alden Bridge on March 25.

On March 26, the senior living complex said in a Facebook post that two residents had tested positive for COVID-19. The following day, the complex said it had identified 19 people who came in contact with a resident who tested positive more than a week ago and that they had since been placed in self-isolation. Seven of the 19 tested positive and were quarantined, the complex said on Facebook.

Keough said a problem was that residents not in isolation and living in other buildings were still coming and going on their own and allowing visitors. Concern that many residents were not taking this serious enough prompted the shelter-in-place order, he said.

Residents were advised this week they could go stay with a family member by Tuesday evening, but if they did so, they wouldnt be able to return until the order expired April 13. The order prohibits anyone from entering the property except for food providers, caregivers, medical professionals, law enforcement or someone assisting a resident in leaving under the order.

Officials with The Conservatory have declined requests for comment.

Concerns about potential outbreaks at senior communities have been high since more than 20 deaths in Washington state were connected to a nursing home in Kirkland run by Life Care Center, which also operates homes in Texas. The elderly are among the groups considered most vulnerable to the effects of the virus.

The Conservatory is not a skilled nursing facility, but Keough stressed this week that nursing homes and licensed senior living communities need to heed the warnings of the health professionals and those issued by my office as this is a very serious virus that spreads very easily and requires extensive medical intervention for those who require hospitalization.

Brooke Lewis and Emily Foxhall contributed to this report

cdominguez@hcnonline.com
Some coronavirus patients may suffer brain damage as a result of the devastating infection, doctors around the world are warning.

One Florida patient in his 70s lost the ability to speak at least temporarily, The New York Times reported.

Brain scans of a woman in her 50s taken in Detroit revealed that some of her brain cells had died as a result of a rare complication of the infection.

And similar attacks on the central nervous system have been seen in Italy and China.

While neurological complications so far seem to strike a small subset of the more than 700,000 people who have the virus around the world, the reports paint a worrying picture of its potential for long-term effects.

Dark spots in brain scans (show by arrows) indicate cell death in patients with encephalitis, the brain swelling condition a 58-year-old woman treated in Detroit developed from COVID-19 (file)

'We need to be thinking of how were going to incorporate patients with severe neurological disease into our treatment paradigm,' Dr Elissa Fory, a Henry Ford neurologist who was part of the team that diagnosed the woman in Detroit.

'This complication is as devastating as severe lung disease.

By the time the woman, a 58-year-old airline worker, checked into a Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, she already had not only the typical cough and fever seen in coronavirus patients, but was confused, disoriented and lethargic.

Doctors there ran a sweeping panel of diagnostic tests on the woman, including screens for the chickenpox virus and West Nile virus.

They drew a sample of her cerebrospinal fluid too, to check for signs that a bacterial infection was attacking her central nervous system.

Everything came back negative.

But her tell-tale signs of fever and cough had pointed to the correct diagnosis. The woman tested positive for COVID-19.

More than 200,000 Americans have coronavirus, and now doctors warn health care workers need to be on the lookout for neurological symptoms of the infection (file)

Neurological symptoms are not considered typical of coronavirus, so the doctors also performed a CT scan of her brain.

Dark spots on the resulting can indicate that parts of her brain are less dense than they should appear in a healthy brain.

That told the woman's doctors that either fluid had built up in these regions, or chunks of her brain cells had died off.

In particular, the woman's thalamus showed damage. The thalamus sends sensory information from the far reaches of the body to the cerebral cortex, which processes those signals.

Further scans revealed the woman's brain also had lesions, or brain bleeds, in her temporal lobes, which are involved consciousness and memory as well as sensation.

Taken together, the scans confirmed the doctors' suspicions.

'The team had suspected encephalitis at the outset, but then back-to-back CCT and MRI scans made the diagnosis,' said Dr Fory.

Encephalitis is a dangerous brain swelling condition that can come on as a result of any number of kinds of trauma, as well as severe infections.

Reports of brain swelling and neurological symptoms have so far been sporadic in US coronavirus patients, but doctors that have seen them warn to watch for confusion (file)

It is periodically seen in - and may be the cause of death for - flu, chickenpox or enterovirus.

Brain swelling may trigger seizures in these patients too, as was seen in the 74-year-old man with coronavirus in Boca Raton, Florida. He also suffered from chronic lung disease and Parkinson's, but his loss of speech combined with the other symptoms tipped the man's doctors off to the possibility of encephalitis.

Reports of this complication have only been sporadic in the US thus far, but Italy has seen enough cases for one hospital at the University of Brescia to create an entire 'NeuroCovid' unit to administer to patients who had pre-existing or developed neurological conditions.

And Chinese researchers were the first to report the brain complication in some coronavirus patients there.

Now, the Detroit team is warning that US doctors should be on the look out for neurological symptoms in the more exploding number of coronavirus patients across the US.
WASHINGTON (AP)  More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week  doubling a record high set just one week earlier  a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus.

The stunning report Thursday from the Labor Department showed that job cuts are mounting against the backdrop of economies in the United States and abroad that have almost certainly sunk into a severe recession as businesses close across the world.

CRITICAL MASK SHORTAGE: Home Depot halts sales of N95 masks amid shortage

The figure for last week is much higher than the previous record of 3.3 million reported for the previous week. The surging layoffs have led many economists to envision as many as 20 million lost jobs by the end of April. The unemployment rate could spike to as high as 15% this month, above the previous record of 10.8% set during a deep recession in 1982.

Many employers are slashing their payrolls to try to stay afloat because their revenue has collapsed, especially at restaurants, hotels, gyms, movie theaters and other venues that depend on face-to-face interaction. Auto sales have sunk, and factories have closed.

Stay-at-home orders, imposed by most U.S. states, have intensified pressure on businesses, most of which face rent, loans and other bills that must be paid.

Congress significantly expanded the unemployment benefits system in last week's $2.2 trillion economic rescue package. That legislation added $600 a week in jobless aid, on top of what recipients receive from their states. This will enable many lower-income workers to manage their expenses and even increase their purchasing power and support the economy.

It also makes many more people eligible for jobless aid, including the self-employed, contractors, and so-called gig economy workers such as Uber and Lyft drivers.

Kathryn Lickteig, a cook in Kansas City, signed up for unemployment compensation last week after the city shut down dine-in restaurants. She is hopeful that the extra $600 will help her ride out the shutdown instead of having to look for an interim job.

COVID-19 SURGE: Houston leaders urgently planning for COVID-19 patients to avoid New York's nightmare

It has eased my mind so much," she said. I do not have to actively go out and expose myself to the public and possibly get sick. I can stay home now and do my part in social distancing.

The legislation will also help fund unemployment benefits for workers whose hours have been cut. That would enable these people to replace some of their lost income with unemployment aid even as they keep their jobs.

About 26 states allow workers with reduced hours to claim benefits. Most economists support doing so because it encourages companies to cut back on hours rather than lay off workers. Any program that encourages companies to maintain connections with their workers can help the economy rebound faster after the virus outbreak is contained.

Typically, people who receive jobless aid are required to actively look for a new job and to document their searches. But Congress has passed other legislation that encourages states to drop that requirement, given that so many businesses are closed, and most Americans have been ordered to stay mostly at home.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, said this week that just 6% of companies surveyed by Moody's say theyre hiring -- down dramatically from 40% in the weeks preceding the coronavirus outbreak. The plunge in hiring underscores the difficulty that anyone out of work would have finding a new job.

On Friday, the government will issue the March jobs report, which economists forecast will show a loss of 145,000 jobs. That report is based on data gathered mostly before the spike in layoffs began two weeks ago. Though relatively small, that loss would still end a record-long 113-month streak of job growth.

Numerous state unemployment agencies have struggled to keep up with the flood of applications for jobless benefits. New York's Labor Department asks people to file on different days depending on their last names. Monday, for example, is reserved for those last names that start with A through F.
Following the footsteps of Singapore and South Korea, India has launched its own contact tracking app, called Corona Kavach. The app tracks the data of the user every hour to alert them whether they have crossed paths with any person who tested positive for coronavirus. While this might be beneficial for the user, privacy activists flag concerns.

The contact tracking app is a joint effort of the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. The user's location is mapped through GPS on the app to assess whether they are at a high-risk geographical zone or not. Data experts believe that this could be beneficial for a country like India that has a large number of cellphone users.

Also read: Coronavirus Cases in India Live Updates: First COVID-19 case in Arunachal; man attended Nizamuddin event

The description for Corona Kavach mentions that the identity of the user would not be disclosed to anyone, including the government. However, privacy expert Apar Gupta told India Today, "These applications by themselves aim towards providing data-rich insights. However, they also run the risk of mass surveillance given that these apps are coming without any underlying legal framework for privacy protections being in place. As India does not have a pre-existing data protection law and there is a lack of statutory protection in place there is also a further problem given that these specific applications on the Play Store itself do not link to applicable privacy policies."

However, data expert Karnika Seth believes this app is for a good cause. Seth told India Today that since this app is for public health and safety, it falls in the parameters of the law and is justified, considering the extreme circumstances. "While the government launches any apps for surveillance they fall under the purview of the IT Act - Section 69 and 69A of the IT Act where it can monitor traffic and data," said Seth.

The British government has also announced the launch of a similar contact tracking app but also plans to appoint an ethics board to oversee the project. Activists believe a similar board by the government might ease concerns.

Also read: Coronavirus crisis: VCs, PEs and start-ups send SoS to PM, FM

Also read: Coronavirus outbreak: Is it fair to ask landlords to skip rent?
AFRICOM Bows to NGO Pressure, Vows Quarterly Reports on Civilian Casualties

Sputnik News

19:00 GMT 01.04.2020

Amid a barrage of damning evidence from Amnesty International, US Africa Command has pledged to begin presenting quarterly reports on civilian casualties resulting from US operations. AFRICOM has long claimed its actions rarely cause civilian deaths, but at present, it doesn't consider the question when authorizing attacks.

On Wednesday, London-based human rights non-governmental organization (NGO) Amnesty International published a report that included evidence of two civilian deaths and three injuries as the result of two US airstrikes in Somalia in February.

By interviewing community members, including the victims' relatives, the NGO was able to determine that those killed and maimed by US airstrikes on February 2 and February 24 near the southern Somali city of Jilib were not members of al-Shabaab, a terrorist militant group closely aligned with al-Qaeda. AFRICOM reported no civilian casualties in either strike.

The same day, AFRICOM announced it would begin releasing quarterly reports at the end of April "on the status of ongoing civilian casualty allegations and assessments."

Fighting for Acknowledgment of Civilian Casualties

"This is a welcome, though long overdue, step towards providing truth and accountability for the victims of US air strikes and their families in Somalia and beyond," Amnesty International's Director for East and Southern Africa Deprose Muchena said in a Wednesday news release. "It's shocking that it has taken more than a decade of AFRICOM's secret air war in Somalia for this to happen."

"We continue to stand in solidarity with families of civilians who have been killed or injured in US attacks, only to have their loved ones smeared as 'terrorists' and have their plight ignored. The truth must come out and they deserve transparency, accountability and reparation  all of which have been sorely lacking from the US military to date," he said.

"Since I took command last year, we have been reviewing and revising our [civilian casualty] tracking, assessment and reporting procedures," AFRICOM chief Gen. Stephen Townsend said in the Wednesday news release. "To demonstrate our transparency and commitment to protecting civilians from unnecessary harm, we plan to publicize our initial report by the end of this month and we will provide quarterly updates thereafter."

In reality, AFRICOM has been on its heels since early 2019, when Amnesty International first produced compelling evidence that AFRICOM was covering up civilian casualties.

A March 2019 report by Amnesty International titled "The Hidden US War in Somalia" proved that 14 civilians were killed in five airstrikes between October 2018 and February 2019 - a time period in which AFRICOM had boasted that "no AFRICOM airstrike resulted in any civilian casualty or injury."

The damning report, which included references to airstrikes not previously publicly admitted to by the Pentagon, compelled AFRICOM officials to "review" data from the airstrikes, during which they discovered "credible evidence" of some civilian casualties because of a "reporting error." Even then, the US command would not admit to all the civilian deaths alleged by Amnesty International.

Omissions Are by Design

However, as Sputnik reported at the time, the omission of civilian casualties in airstrike reports isn't by accident, but by design.

Somalia, along with Yemen and Pakistan, are regarded by the Pentagon as "undeclared war zones," where US presence and conduct is authorized and governed by the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Terrorists (AUMF) that then-US President George W. Bush signed into law in the days after the September 11 terrorist attacks.

The AUMF gives the president broad authorization to use "force against those nations, organizations or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided" the September 11 attacks. This authorizes - under US law, at least - US military operations in Somalia against al-Shabaab, a militia group that is a close al-Qaeda affiliate.

However, few rules existed to govern these operations until 2013, when then-US President Barack Obama laid out vague guidelines that limited lethal strikes outside of an "area of active hostilities" and against targets that pose a "continuing, imminent threat to US persons."

These standards required a "near certainty" of the target's presence, as well as the absence of potential civilian casualties, before an airstrike could be authorized on a specific place. However, soon after US President Donald Trump took office, these rules began to shift, and the standards for ordering a strike to simply require "reasonable certainty" of the presence of al-Shabaab fighters, the New York Times reported in October 2017, although Amnesty International noted the change as early as March of that year.

In other words, civilian casualties are no longer part of the equation, and all people killed by US airstrikes are considered to be enemy combatants by AFRICOM. It's unclear how AFRICOM's new commitment to reporting on civilian casualties will alter, or be hindered by, the Trump administration's present understanding of the AUMF.

In 2019, the US conducted more airstrikes in Somalia than in any previous year, with 63 attacks in the East African country. However, following al-Shabaab's January 2020 attack against US and Kenyan forces across the border at Manda Bay Air Base in Kenya, the tempo of US airstrikes against the group increased still further; Sputnik reported last month that if air operations continued at this pace, the number would top 100 airstrikes by the end of the year.

 Sputnik

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(Bloomberg) -- Stocks in Asia fell, though losses were shallower than those on Wall Street overnight, as investors continue to gauge the impact of the stringent measures being used to contain the coronavirus.

Japanese shares opened lower with more modest declines in South Korea, while the Sydney market lost more than 2%. Futures on the S&P 500 advanced about 1% after the index on Tuesday tumbled again. In the latest virus developments, France and Spain reported another increase in fatalities, while Italy and Germany moved to extend lockdown measures and Florida ordered people to stay home. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said a model showed the Covid-19 outbreak may not peak in the state until the end of April.

The incremental news on the virus in the last 24 to 48 hours has been disappointing," John Porter, a fund manager at Mellon Investments Corp., said on Bloomberg TV. The global economy has hit a wall, theres a tremendous amount of uncertainty, and thats contributing to the volatility in the markets and the downward trajectory weve seen the last few days."

Last weeks rally in global equities is being threatened as companies move to slash dividends and more U.S. states enact severe restrictions on people movement. Germany is extending its natiowide lockdown for another two weeks, until April 19. The S&P 500s decline accelerated on Wednesday after U.S. intelligence sources said China concealed the extent of the virus outbreak.

The biggest economic hit on a monthly basis will likely be in the month of April," Abby Joseph Cohen, advisory director and senior investment strategist at Goldman Sachs, said on Bloomberg TV. This is going to be a rolling health crisis in the U.S."

Elsewhere, West Texas oil jumped above $21 a barrel after President Donald Trumps pledge to meet with feuding producers Saudi Arabia and Russia to support the market failed to bolster prices substantially.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

S&P 500 futures rose 1.1% as of 9:05 a.m. in Tokyo. The S&P 500 fell 4.4%.

Japans Topix index lost 0.7%.

South Koreas Kospi index added 0.4%.

Australias S&P/ASX 200 Index slid 2%.

Currencies

The yen was little changed at 107.24 per dollar.

The offshore yuan traded at 7.1245 per dollar.

The euro bought $1.0948, down 0.1%.

Bonds

The yield on 10-year Treasuries dropped one basis points to 0.57%.

Australias 10-year bond yield three basis points to 0.71%.

Commodities

West Texas crude rose 4.4% to $21.20 a barrel.

Gold rose 0.1% to $1,592.90 an ounce.

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A man in a gray hoodie called out across 51st Street in a strangled voice.



"They shot Old Man Bill," he yelled at a man in a wheelchair.



"Old Man Bill?" came the reply.



"Old Man Bill got shot!"



Everyone on 51st knows Old Man Bill, who was wounded in a shooting. He is a quiet 64-year-old who does odd jobs at the GoLo gas station at 51st and Indiana Avenue on the South Side.



He was in the vestibule of the station with three other people early Friday when someone ran from a nearby car, opened the bulletproof front door and fired more than a dozen shots inside, sources said.



The door from the entryway into the main convenience store is locked at night for security. The men in the vestibule had no way to escape.



One man was shot several times and pronounced dead inside the vestibule. Another man, 24, was hit in the torso and legs. He was taken to Stroger Hospital and pronounced dead.



A 25-year-old was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition with wounds to the legs and a graze wound to the head.



Old Man Bill was shot in the leg. The man in the gray hoodie, Shawn Jordan, watched him being lifted into the ambulance and taken to Stroger Hospital.



"I seen Bill, I just started crying," said Jordan, 42, who has lived around the corner for three years. "Bill never messed with nobody."



Family members of the man pronounced dead at the scene declined to speak to a reporter. Police had not yet determined a motive for the shooting, sources said, but the man known as Bill likely was not the intended target.



Bill's real name is David Scott. An aunt started calling him Bill when he was little. Scott's wife, Angie Anderson, stood at the scene rubbing her hands together for warmth.



A gas station employee had called her right after the shooting: "Get up here, your husband just got shot," she recalled.



Her husband, a Vietnam veteran, had health issues, she said. She worried that someone had targeted him; maybe someone in the neighborhood was preying on older people.



Nobody would do that to Bill, said Jordan.



"Everybody know him on 51st," he said. "That's why when they brought him out I started crying. Everybody knows Bill."



In other shootings in Chicago on Thursday, two men were wounded in separate South Side attacks in the Englewood and Gresham neighborhoods.



About 10:30 p.m., a 58-year-old man was shot in the foot in Gresham. He was in the lobby of his apartment building in the 8200 block of South Ada Street when he started arguing with another man, who pulled a gun and shot him in the foot. The incident may have been domestic-related, police said. The man went to St. Bernard Hospital and was in good condition.



About 1 p.m., a 23-year-old man was shot in Englewood. He drove to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn with a gunshot wound to the leg after an attack in the 7100 block of South Aberdeen Street, police said. His condition was stabilized.



Police initially said the man had been shot in the 7200 block of South Racine Avenue. That information was later corrected.
Syrian doctors have been told to offer one day a week to free treatment and to also prepare plans that can be implemented in the event of an outbreak of coronavirus reports Jesr.

Syrias Doctors Syndicate issued a circular on Tuesday, calling on doctors to set a free treatment day for patients at their clinics.

The Syndicates Chief, Kamal Assad Amer, said that the decision is mandatory for all doctors, warning that any transgression shall be liable to legal punishment, according to the pro-government Al-Watan newspaper, noting that only emergency cases shall be received, in an effort to reduce gatherings.

Meanwhile, medical consultations and mild cases shall be postponed or treated over the phone, government media reported.

Amer said the circular also demanded the forming of medical teams in each governorate and boosting their readiness incase they were needed in government hospitals to counter the new coronavirus.

The Syndicates circular targets doctors working in private clinics, meanwhile, doctors working at the Ministry of Health are subject to the Ministrys instructions, he stressed.

According to Amer, the Syndicate also instructed all unions to help provide government hospitals with face masks, demanding that each make great efforts to serve this cause.

Two days ago, the manager of the al-Mujtahid Hospital in Damascus, Samer Khodor, reported a 50 percent decline in the number of patients attending the hospital for medical reviews, with only 600 coming in per day for check-ups, in comparison to previous figures of 1,500 a day. The majority of patients were suffering from respiratory infections or fever, he said, noting that the Chest and Respiratory departments were the busiest.

For his part, the Director-General at the Mouwasat University Hospital, Issam Amin, said the number of patients coming for review visits dropped by 40 percent, expecting the rate to decrease even more in light of the curfew decision imposed between provinces and the countryside, stressing that the emergency service department continues to receive all cases.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Global oil prices jumped on Thursday after President Donald Trump of the United States suggested that Saudi and Russia may cut supply by 10 million barrels.

Following Trumps comments, Brent crude oil jumped 10.11 per cent to $27.16 early Thursday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 8.76 percent to $22.09.

The US President said he would broker a deal between Saudi Arabia and Russia, the worlds second and third-largest oil producers.

According to Mr Trump, the deal would end the ongoing price war that followed the collapse of OPECs three-year production cut agreement last month in Vienna, leading to a free fall in prices.

In a tweet on Thursday, Mr Trump noted that he expects Russia and Saudi Arabia to cut back approximately 10 million barrels.

It remains unclear how and when the supply cut would begin, if any cuts would take place. Saudi Arabia has said that it wants to hold an emergency OPEC+ meeting, which would include Russia, in the coming weeks.

Worldwide, the oil industry has been ravaged, Trump told reporters in Washington earlier on Wednesday. Its very bad for Russia, its very bad for Saudi Arabia. I mean, its very bad for both. I think theyre going to make a deal.

On Thursday, the benchmark reference for around 60 per cent of global crude purchases,

Brent crude futures contracts for May delivery were seen at about $8.92 higher from their Wednesday closing price in New York, changing hands at $33.66 per barrel in early European trading.

WTI crude futures for May delivery were marked $5.85 higher at $26.16 per barrel.

Trump steps in

Reports said Trump will meet U.S. oil executives Friday in Washington amid an historic collapse in global crude prices. Prices have fallen more than 60 per cent so far this year as production increases, slowing demand amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier in the week, PREMIUM TIMES reported how oil prices suffered the biggest decline on record, pulling U.S. crude prices to the lowest levels in 18 years and below $20 for the first time since February 2002.

This came against the backdrop of travel restrictions, manufacturing sector shut-downs and a looming global recession occasioned by the Covid-19 epidemic.

Saudi Arabia, the worlds second-largest producer behind the United States, is also set to pump a record 12.3 million barrels of crude each day, starting this month, following the collapse of its output limit agreement with OPEC cartel members and Russia.

That surge in output, as well as the ongoing slump for global oil prices, has made drilling in the Permian Basin, a major source of shale deposits that could provide as many as 150 million barrels of oil over the next few decades, economically nonviable.

The drop in prices on our main export has been quite significant, serious, steep, Russia President Vladimir Putin said in a government meeting Wednesday. We have been discussing it with colleagues both here, in our country, and at the international level: with our OPEC partners and I have recently discussed the issue with the president of the United States.

The Americans are also worried because their profitability from shale oil production is ranging, by various estimates, in the region of $40 per barrel, so this too is a serious test for the U.S. economy, he added.

Nigerian Impact

Like Russia, Nigeria and other countries relying on oil prices for the financing of governmental obligations have been severely hit by the crash.

The crash in prices, for instance, has forced the Nigerian government to make significant changes to its budgetary projection.

Earlier in the month, the government adjusted its 2020 budget amid measures to contain the effect of the outbreak of coronavirus on the nations economy.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, said the government will implement a 50 per cent cut in revenue from privatization proceeds. The government also announced a cut in crude oil benchmark price, down to $30, while crude oil production remains at 2.18 million barrels per day as earlier contained in the budget estimates.

Despite significant adjustments in budgetary projections, analysts are worried that Nigeria may slip into depression amid fear of global recession.

In the midst of the uncertainty, Nigeria faces the challenge of seeking buyers for its unsold crude.

Last week, reports said Nigeria cut its official selling price of crude oil to record lows as the country looks to clear a glut of unsold April-loading cargoes before announcing its May programme.

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According to Reuters, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) cut its April official selling prices for Bonny Light and Qua Iboe by US$5/bbl.
In the current scenario, it is imperative to have access to accurate and reliable information, and for this, Google has pledged new funding to ensure people receive accurate information related to coronavirus.

Google will provide USD 6.5 million in funding to fact-checkers and nonprofits fighting misinformation around the world, with an immediate focus on coronavirus, the official blog notes. It is also making Google Trends data readily available in localised pages for reporters to understand how people are searching for COVID-19.

The company is also working on including a dedicated fact check section in the COVID-19 Google News experience to highlight articles that address potentially harmful health misinformation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
age 95, passed away peacefully in her sleep on February 12, 2020. Olive was a resident of the Fountains of La Cholla in Tucson since 2006 and received excellent care from all the Assisted Living staff. She was born in Melbourne, Australia, in August 1924 and was the eldest of four children of Ivy (Warburton) and Charles Morgan. Olive attended local schools in Melbourne and graduated from Newport Business School. During World War II, she served in the Australian Women's Army Service (Signal Corps). While stationed in Brisbane, Australia, she met Louis St. Onge of the U.S. Army Medical Corps. Olive and Louis were married in September 1943 and were together more than 67 years until Louis passed away in March 2011. Olive is survived by four children, four grandchildren, five great-grandchildren and one great-great- grandchild. She is also survived by one aunt and several nephews and cousins in Australia. Widely traveled, Olive lived in Japan, Libya, Colorado, Texas, Massachusetts and Maryland while Louis served in the U.S. Air Force. After Louis retired, Olive worked for several U.S. govt agencies and, while working for the then National Bureau of Standards, received the Bronze Medal Award for her duties as a Personnel Officer. During assignments for the Dept of the Navy, Olive worked in Naples, Italy and Rota, Spain. She retired in 1988 after 24 years of federal civilian service. Following her govt service, Olive was a volunteer for many years at the Carlsbad, CA, library and was an English language tutor at Mira Costa College in California. She most recently was a volunteer at the resident's library and a member of the Knitting Group at the Fountains. Olive and Louis also traveled to countries where their ancestors were born - Canada, France, England, Scotland and Wales. Services were private. Olive will be buried alongside her husband, Louis at the Southern Arizona Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Sierra Vista, AZ. She will be missed dearly by her family and friends. Arrangements by NEPTUNE SOCIETY.
Despite the current coronavirus-driven economic slowdown and drop in oil prices, Houston continues to be one of the fastest-growing and most prosperous metropolitan areas in America. The metro area continues to add about 100,000 residents annually and has a gross domestic product of a half-trillion dollars per year.

Once we are out of the current economic straits, this growth will most likely be sustained for decades to come. There are many reasons, but one of the most important is the fact that Houston is the an important part of one of the worlds most important economic units: the Texas Triangle, stretching from Dallas and and Fort Worth on the north to Austin and San Antonio at the southwest corner, with Houston anchoring the southeast corner.

The Triangle is made up of only 35 out of Texass 254 counties. But 18 million people live in those 35 counties  66 percent of the states population.

A surprisingly large number of the Triangles people live in large cities. Already, Houston, Dallas and San Antonio are among the nations 10 most populous cities. Thats only happened twice before in American history  New York in the 1860s and California starting in 2010. Austin and Fort Worth are currently 11th and 13th and moving up quickly.

And these places are growing fast. By 2050, the Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston metros are each expected to grow to 13 million people  about the same population as metro London, Buenos Aires or Beijing.

Furthermore, the Triangle produces 77 percent of the states gross domestic product. The Triangle is home to 48 Fortune 500 headquarters. If the Triangle were a nation, the 35 counties of the Texas Triangle would be the 15th largest economy in the world  about the same size as Mexico or Australia.

In short: Despite Texass reputation as a rural state, it is the mega-metropolitan economy of the Triangle that is driving the state forward.

For generations, we have been thought of in national and global circles  indeed, we have thought of ourselves  as the land of wide-open spaces, of oil wells and ranches. But now we are home to one of the most powerful urbanized regions in the United States.

Our political and civic leadership needs to accept the reality that Texas is an urban and metropolitan state. We need to rethink our priorities for legislative action so they align with the reality of the New Texas.

Our state leaders would do well to support the economic engines in the Triangle to keep them growing and producing jobs.

Preparing for the future also means recognizing the importance of education to prepare our workforce. As more people gravitate to these cities, Texans must put emphasis on educational investment and innovation in them. It also means investing in the infrastructure of urban Texas  water and electricity especially. Transportation must also be addressed, as the Triangle cities have some of the worst transportation congestion in the country. Equity strategies must address the realities of diversity in Texas cities, because the growing gap between the haves and have-nots within the Triangles city will hold back Texass future economic growth strong.

And the Triangle will need to step up to the plate on housing. Affordability and supply of housing are becoming issues throughout the Triangle. Austin already confronts coastal housing prices. But Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth are gradually seeing their affordability advantage over the coasts erode as well. The talented people who make the economy go make locational decisions based on affordability and quality of life, so if Texas has a housing supply problem, its also likely to have a workforce productivity problem.

Because the Triangles growth is so strong and likely to be durable for the years to come, Texas should also find ways to harness that prosperity to reach smaller cities and the rural areas of Texas, which are struggling with both population growth and prosperity. By focusing educational connections through telecommunications to remote places, locating branches of the Triangles world-class healthcare institutions in rural areas, and distributing employment opportunities associated with the Triangle networks of the New Texas economy, the Texas Triangle can be a part of solving the urban-rural divide that separates and alienates so many Americans.

Houston will survive the current COVID-19 and oil-price related downturn. But it will continue to prosper  and help the rest of Texas prosper  only if the states leaders recognize that Texas is incrasingly a large, complex and metropolitan state.

Texas can wisely apply the prosperity of its economic trajectory to assure an uplifting future for all its residents. This requires a clear understanding of the Texas growth that is inevitably occurring. And it requires the wisdom to act to assure that the Triangles education investments, workforce training, healthcare, housing and basic infrastructure projects keep pace and allow us to secure attainable opportunities and a better quality of life for all Texans.

Cisneros served as secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under President Bill Clinton and is a former mayor of San Antonio. Fulton is director of the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University. They are among the authors of a forthcoming book on the Texas Triangle to be published by Texas A&M University Press.
You wait ages for a pterosaur and then four come along at once.

Hot on the heels of a recent paper discovering three new species of pterosaur, University of Portsmouth palaeobiologists have identified another new species - the first of its kind to be found on African soil.

Pterosaurs are the less well-known cousins of dinosaurs. They had adept flying ability - some as large as a fighter jet and others as small as a model aeroplane.

The new species belongs to a group of pterosaurs called tapejarids from the Cretaceous period. Tapejarids were small to medium-sized pterosaurs with wingspans perhaps as wide as four metres, most of which had large, broad crests sweeping up from the front of the skull.

They are well known in Brazil and China, and specimens have also been discovered in Europe, but this is the first time the flying reptile has been found in Africa.

It differs from the three recent species discovered as this one had no teeth - it was 'edentulous'.

Professor David Martill, from the University's School of the Environment, Geography and Geosciences, led the study. He said: "The study of Moroccan material shows that we are still far from having found all the paleontological treasures of North Africa. Even fragmentary fossils, like the jaw piece of the new pterosaur, can give us important information about the biodiversity of the past."

PhD student Roy Smith, one of the co-authors, said: "I feel very privileged to be part of such an exciting discovery. Working in the Sahara was a life-changing experience, and discovering a new species of pterosaur is the icing on the cake."

The new pterosaur has been named Afrotapejara zouhrii to honour the Moroccan palaeontologist Professor Samir Zouhri. Originally a mammal specialist, Zouhri also contributed to several discoveries of prehistoric reptiles in Morocco, including dinosaurs and pterosaurs.

Professor Martill said: "The opportunity to illuminate the diversity of pterosaurs in Africa while honouring a colleague does not happen every day."

The research team included Dr David Unwin from the University of Leicester and Dr Nizar Ibrahim from the University of Detroit Mercy.

Palaeontologist Dr Ibrahim, said: "Samir Zouhri has played an important role in the development of Moroccan palaeontology, not only through his publications, but also because he organised scientific conferences in Morocco and edited an entire volume for the Geological Society of France on the subject of vertebrate palaeontology in Morocco."

The fossil material is part of the collections of the Faculty of Sciences Ain Chock, Casablanca Hassan II University and the paper was published in Cretaceous Research.

###
D onald Trump has said arrangements have been made to evacuate British passengers on two cruise ship set to soon dock in Florida after being hit by the coronavirus.

Four people have died aboard the Zaandam, including 75-year-old British man John Carter, whose widow has been isolated alone on board since his death.

The couple were among 200 Britons on the vessel, which has recorded nine confirmed cases of Covid-19 and has some 200 people on board who have reported flu-like symptoms.

Raising hopes Mr Carters partner and other UK nationals still stranded on the cruise liner would be repatriated soon, Mr Trump said arrangements had been made with the UK government.

Donald Trump speaks about the coronavirus in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on Wednesday evening / AP

Addressing the issue at a White House briefing on Wednesday night, he added: "It's a tough situation you know. You can understand you have people that are sick on the ships and states don't want to take (them). They have enough problems right now.

"They don't want to take them. But we have to from a humane standpoint. We don't have a choice. I don't want to do that but we have to. People are dying.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab earlier that the Government was "determined to help Britons stranded abroad" and that it would "work with British Airways to keeps flights running, so travelling Brits can get back to the UK".

The Zaandam offloaded its healthy passengers onto its sister-ship, the Rotterdam, earlier this week, with both vessels having been denied entry to ports in several countries.

The cruise liners are seeking to dock in Florida but became embroiled in a dispute, with local authorities reluctant to take more patients into a state healthcare system already stretched by the coronavirus outbreak.

Passengers, one wearing a protective face mask, look out from the Zaandam cruise ship, anchored in the bay of Panama City / AP

The latest development regarding the two Florida-bound ships come as authorities in Mexico allowed 46 British citizens to disembark from another cruise ship off its Caribbean coast and fly home on Wednesday.

It also came after Mr Carter's family pleaded for Mr Trump and Florida officials to allows the two ships to dock so that passengers and crew can receive "the urgent assistance that they so desperately need".

In a statement, the family said Mr Carter's widow urgently required assistance.

"She is struggling to eat the limited meals and is feeling unwell," the family said.

"She is obviously distressed and extremely frightened.

"They were both in good health and did not foresee the terrible situation that has arisen. John became unwell aboard the ship and passed away on the 22nd March, 2020."

The cruise ship MS Zaandam pictured after four passengers died on board / REUTERS

Before Mr Trump's comments on Wednesday, local authorities in Broward County, Florida, one of the locations the ship has been denied permission to dock, had urged the US government to intervene in the case.

Michael Udine, commissioner of Broward County, said: "Decisions with international implications should not be left to local officials to make piecemeal solutions during a global crisis.

"We need experts from the CDC and Fema to do their jobs and outline a plan that takes the passengers out of limbo and does not play politics."

Florida governor Ron DeSantis told a news conference on Tuesday that the state's healthcare resources were already stretched too thin by the coronavirus outbreak to take on the Zaandam's caseload.
A battle is brewing between Republicans and Democrats over whether to allow widespread mail-in voting in November.

Officials in the United States are grappling with a new political challenge: how to hold a national election in the washout of the coronavirus pandemic.

Grim new projections from top government scientists suggest the US could face between 100,000 to 240,000 deaths from the coronavirus in coming months. The pandemic is reshaping how the US will hold its next national election.

And yet, in November, some 260 million Americans are expected to go to local polling places in schools, libraries and public buildings and stand in line to vote for their choice for president and members of Congress.

Assuming that we are still going to be dealing with issues having to do with the pandemic in November, we are going to have a huge increase in the use of vote by mail in all states, said Rick Hasen, a professor of law and politics at the University of California.

The last time the US faced an election quandary like the current one was in 1918, when a mid-term vote was held amid the Spanish flu pandemic. Then, as now, widespread quarantines were in place and businesses were shuttered. Voter turnout ended up being abnormally low  40 percent  and the opposition Republican Party took complete control of Congress from incumbent President Woodrow Wilsons Democrats.

Already, most primary contests for the Democratic nomination for president  now down to a race between Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders  have been postponed until June.

Wisconsin carries on

A lone holdout, the Midwest state of Wisconsin, is struggling to conduct its primary next week. Localities like Milwaukee are dramatically reducing the number of polling places because workers are not willing to risk exposure to the virus, and bringing in National Guard troops to staff those that do remain open.

If we are going to have an election in November that is not going to disenfranchise lots and lots of people, then we need to have vote-by-mail, Hasen told Al Jazeera.

In the $2.2 trillion rescue package enacted by the US last week, Congress provided $400m to help the states deal with the coronavirus effect on the election. Hasen and others say that will not be enough.

Democrats sought to include a provision mandating all 50 states allow universal mail-in balloting, but the effort was rebuffed by Republicans.

Balloting by mail is polarising for the two large American political parties. Democrats generally want to encourage turnout and Republicans are often seen placing controls on voting. The underlying reason is that if everyone voted, the outcomes would likely be to Democrats advantage.

In terms of the elections, I think well be moving to vote by mail, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the number one Democrat in Congress, said in a television interview on Tuesday.

Pelosi indicated again on Wednesday she intends to continue pushing the issue in negotiations with Republicans on the next legislative response to the coronavirus crisis.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrives for a briefing by the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institute of Health [File: Joshua Roberts/Reuters]

Republican resistance

President Donald Trump acknowledged the Republican resistance to universal mail-in balloting in a television interview on Monday.

Speaking about the negotiations with Democrats over the rescue package, Trump said; They had things, levels of voting that if youd ever agreed to it, youd never have a Republican elected in this country again.

Most states already allow voters to cast mail-in ballots, although with restrictions, according to a survey by the Pew Charitable Trusts, a non-partisan policy think-tank in Washington, DC.

In the 2018 congressional elections, one-fourth votes were cast by mail-in ballot, according to Jack Young, a lawyer in Washington, DC and former counsel to the Democratic National Committee.

It is not enough just to allow citizens to vote by mail, Young told Al Jazeera. Weve got to come up with funding to support the process.

We are going to flood postal facilities with last-minute mail-in ballots at a time when the system is under great stress, Young said.

A hand sanitiser is prominently set aside for voters to apply after voting in the presidential party primary in Ridgeland, Mississippi [File: Rogelio V Solis/AP Photo]

Absentee voting

Seventeen of 50 states currently restrict so-called absentee voting by mail to people with disabilities or who will be out of town on election day.

Only a few states  including California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah  already allow everyone to cast a ballot by mail.

Marian Schneider, president of the Verified Voting Foundation, a non-profit advocacy group, said many states that are not accustomed to seeing a heavy volume of mail-in ballots are going to face challenges.

Elections are the foundation of our democracy. We should be thinking about, how can we make the election safe for all the voters, and how can we work together to make sure that happens, Schneider told Al Jazeera.

At the end of the day, COVID-19 does not discriminate by party affiliation. This is a public health crisis, Schneider said.

The pandemic crisis is so extreme, even opponents of expanding vote-by-mail procedures are advocating local administrators waive state constitutional restrictions on voting by mail.

New Yorks constitution only allows absentee balloting for reasons of illness or absence.





Doug Kellner, a co-chair of the New York State Board of Elections, is advising local officials to bypass that restriction by simply allowing anyone who wants to use a mail-in ballot to do so.

Almost all of the fraud that has occurred in elections has been in connection with absentee ballots and so, I am very concerned about that becoming the normal method of voting, Kellner told Al Jazeera.

But we cannot maintain a democracy without holding elections. And whatever conditions we have to impose to make that happen, we have to do, Kellner said.
The Arunachal Pradesh Police on



Thursday traced 12 more persons, who had attended a congregation in Delhis Nizamuddin West last month, an officer said.

The police traced the 12 persons after the of first COVID-19 case was reported from Lohit district of the state on Thursday morning, the offficer said.

The 12 persons who went to the Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi, stayed in the National Capital from March 2 to 4, left Delhi on March 5 by train and reached Naharlagun railway station, near here, on March 7, Capital SP Tumme Amo said.

Of the 12 persons, four were traced in Itanagar, two in Naharlagun, one in Nirjuli and another five from Laluk in Assams North Lakhimpur district, the SP said.

"The individuals have been traced and have been taken to Tomo Riba Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (TRIHMS) for necessary tests to be conducted," Amo said.

TRIHMS sources said that the 12 persons are kept in the isolation ward and their swab samples have been collected and would be sent for test.

The state government had already designated TRIHMS as the specialized hospital to deal with COVID-19 cases.

Earlier the state government had traced seven persons, including the 31-year-old man who tested positive for COVID-19 at Tezu and another six from Namsai district who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhis Nizamuddin West last month.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
[April 02, 2020]

Dryrun announces free three-month subscription of Cash Flow Management Software to support businesses

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SOURCE Dryrun
According to scientists, building a mobile coronavirus (COVID-19) tracing app would help slow down the rate of viral transmission if it is built and released as quickly as possible! Oxford University Researchers have been putting in effort to study how the COVID-19 is transmitted and whether a mobile app could potentially slow the viral spread.

The support behind the application

A report for NHSX as well as the Norwegian Institute of Public Health by Oxford bioethicists support the creation of an app which could bring countries out of lockdown in a safe matter. The United Kingdom's government is already working on its very own mobile app which is expected to be using Bluetooth in order to identify the people which coronavirus patients have made contact with in order to properly trace them.

Although the app has not yet been in production, Oxford researchers would say that Bluetooth Technology would be used as proposed by the NHS. According to the researchers, time is of the very essence when it comes to the creation of the virus tracing app and that it should be launched as quickly as possible.

Read Also: Here's How Digital Technology has Changed our Everyday Lives

Using a Bluetooth-based app should be enough in order to meet the specific requirements needed in slowing down the spread of the virus as it would not need to store or track specific locations only. The technology is already being used by Singapore's government for their applications.

How would the app help?

According to NHS, the app would need at least half of the population to install it in order for it to be effective due to the fact that it relies on remembering which people have you made contact with. The app would then detect phones that are nearby using Bluetooth signals to be stored as records on the device.

When using the app, a person who tests positive for the coronavirus would be able to share this information with the NHS. Oxford's research team is behind this approach and they say that their mathematical models can use low power wireless signals to make it more efficient.

According to co-author David Bonsall with regards for the ideal tool to trace the virus, "It uses a low-energy version of Bluetooth to log a memory of all the app users with whom you have come into close proximity over the last few days,"

Read Also: Mobile Phone App Designed to Boost Physical Activity in Women Shows Promise in Trial

The risks included in this Bluetooth app

The certain risks that are included in this Bluetooth app circulate the reliability of just a short-range and also low-power wireless technology. According to the Head of Compliance at Bulletproof Nicky Whiting, Bluetooth is already known to have a few vulnerabilities which could become worse upon the launch.

A researcher at Oxford's Nuffield Department of Medicine Dr. Bonsall (who is also a clinician at the Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital) stated that Bluetooth technology would still require a considerable buy-in from the population.

Oxford University's Big Data Institute Professor by the name of Christophe Fraser, said that a mobile tracing app is urgently needed and people have to use only the official version.
Record-low oil prices could cost a fund that supports the University of Texas and Texas A&M systems at least $300 million in revenue.

State-operated University Lands, a company that oversees oil leases on land owned by Texas, expects to send $700 million to the Permanent University Fund this fiscal year, down from $1 billion in 2019 after oil prices plunged to about $20 per barrel this year during a price war and the coronavirus pandemic.

With prices that low, University Lands is not issuing new leases on the 2 million acres in the Permian Basin it manages and is telling the roughly 250 oil companies operating on state leases to delay drilling and wait for higher prices, if they can.

Our primary strategy right now is to work with operators and, where prudent, to delay new activity, University Lands CEO Mark Houser said. We encourage them to delay new activity right now. In our mind, theres no sense in selling these hydrocarbons at such a low price.

Oil Bust: Energy companies slash $19 billion from budgets

Created by the Legislature in 1876, the Permanent University Fund provides the states portion of the budgets for the 21 schools that make up the UT and A&M systems. The fund, which had an estimated $23.3 billion at the beginning of March, is managed by the Austin-based University of Texas/Texas A&M Investment Co., or UTIMCO.

More Information Top 10 Oil Producers on University Lands (Jan through Dec 2019) University Lands, a state-owned company based in Houston, oversees oil leases on more than 2 million acres of state-owned land in the Permian Basin of West Texas. The top 10 operators accounted for nearly a third of production on those lands. Company (Barrels) Felix Energy (7,012,239) Pioneer Natural Resources (6,655,849) Shell (5,968,618) Diamondback Energy (5,533,022) EP Energy (3,636,772) Sable Permian Resources (3,075,524) QEP Resources (2,381,545) Parsley Energy (2,343,500) Occidental Petroleum (1,620,161) Apache Corp (1,180,265) Source: University Lands; Houston Chronicle Research Public Money for State Universities Created by Texas lawmakers in 1876, the Permanent University Fund provides the state's portion of the budgets for the 21 schools that make up the UT and Texas A&M systems. Here's a look at the funds that fund has provided the two university systems over the past five fiscal years. Fiscal Year (Fund disbursement) 2016 ($772.9 million) 2017 ($839.4 million) 2018 ($887.3 million) 2019 ($1 billion) 2020 ($1.3 billion) Source: University of Texas/Texas A&M Investment Company See More Collapse

Karen Adler, a spokeswoman for the UT System and UTIMCO, said the money the funds distributes to universities is not tied to mineral investments. Although taking a temporary hit on oil and natural gas royalties, the fund is still expected to distribute more than $1.3 billion to the two university systems this fiscal year and an additional $1.1 billion in fiscal year 2021.

Combined, the two university systems have nearly 400,000 students. The drop in oil prices will not affect a program that provides free tuition to thousands of UT-Austin students, Adler said. The $160 million used to create that program, she said, was already distributed and used to create an endowment last summer.

Our distribution policy is designed to insulate the institutions we serve from short- and medium-term volatility in the financial markets and energy markets, Adler said.

Fuel Fix: Get energy news sent directly to your inbox

Its not the first time in the funds nearly 150-year history that oil prices have collapsed. An oil price crash in 2015 also resulted in University Lands sending less money to the fund.

Over the past nine fiscal years, oil and gas royalties from the state-owned leases ranged from $500 million to $1.1 billion per year.

While we continue to assess the changing market conditions, our current projections are that revenue generated from PUF mineral investment in fiscal year 2020 and fiscal year 2021 to be within this historical range, Adler said.

Oil Crash: Drilling rig operators cut budgets ahead of rig count plummet

Created by the Legislature in 1929, University Lands operates like a royalty company that generates revenue by leasing its mineral rights to oil and gas companies, receiving an average of 22 percent on what the companies sell. Those lands are located in the largest and most active oil fields in the U.S.

Leases owned by University Lands produced an average of 181,000 barrels of oil and 626 million cubic feet of natural gas per day in 2019, state records show.

Out of the 250 companies that operate leases owned by University Lands, the top three producers  Felix Energy, Pioneer Natural Resources and Shell  accounted for nearly a third of that production, state figures show. It remains to be seen how far drilling activity and production will drop this year, but CEO Houser said University Lands intends to cooperate with operators during the downturn.

Some companies need to drill a certain amount for their own reasons, Houser said. They can do some of that, but our general preference is for them to delay and defer new development where they can and where it makes sense.

More: Read the latest oil and gas news from HoustonChronicle.com

Over the past few years, University Lands has branched out into renewables, but they are nowhere near making up for the lost oil and natural gas revenue.

More than 60,000 acres of land have been leased to wind farms and 8,000 acres to solar farms. Combined and at peak efficiency, they can make more than 1 gigawatt of power. And with the state of Texas consuming as much as 71 gigawatts on a hot summer day, thats enough electricity for nearly 700,000 homes.

Although that amount of power is not insignificant, it does not generate revenue equal to oil and natural gas.

University Lands lumps revenue from renewables along with other surface activities such as selling freshwater, caliche mining, cattle grazing, leasing land to vineyards and oil field wastewater disposal. Combined, those activities accounted for $88 million of revenue in fiscal year 2019.

The view we have about renewables is that theyre a nice complement to what we do in terms of generating low-cost energy through oil and gas, Houser said. However, the amount of energy generated from these solar and wind farms will never move the needle for us compared to the amount of energy generated from oil and gas production.

sergio.chapa@chron.com

@SergioChapa on Twitter
Healthcare workers and first responders in a Jersey Shore town now have someone looking over their shoulder to make sure they get a good meal as they respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

Earth Angels for Dementia, a nonprofit dedicated to helping support caregivers for family members with dementia, is adjusting its mission for a new effort called Gratitude to Go.

The goal is to enlist local restaurants in and around Somers Point, about 15 miles southwest of Atlantic City, to provide meals to healthcare and first responders. The group is soliciting donations to pay for the meals, each priced at $5 for the restaurants, even meals that typical cost as much as three times more.

Were not giving charity to healthcare workers. Were giving convenience, said Cheryl Carliri, the founder of the dementia group and Gratitude to Go. Wanted to figure out a way to help them while they are helping us.

Carliri said her dementia group, which provides programs and strategies for caregivers, is not operating during the current state of emergency in New Jersey and a stay at home order from Gov. Phil Murphy. Thats when she launched Gratitude to Go as a way to help healthcare workers, first responders and restaurants survive the pandemic.

It was a no-brainer for us to contribute and support this, said Michael Dougherty, of the Mays Landing Merchants Association. Were seeing an absolute impact. Were seeing the benefit right out of the gate.

Weve got people that are going to be taken away from their families for double shifts," he said. "They are putting their health and familys health at risk and the community stepping up to support them with either free or discounted meals is the least we can do at this time.

Yogi Kumar, owner of the Inn at Sugar Hill and Yogis All-American Riverview Bar and Grill, said hes all in on the effort.

For them we have specials like tomato bisque soup or chicken Caesar wrap, he said. Every day we have specials like fish wraps, pasta with meatballs. We change it around. They are tired of eating pizza and Chinese food.

Kumar said the program was also a lifeline for his business.

We went from clearing $80,000 a month to zero, he said. I had to lay off 18 people. Now its just me and my wife and the bartender to handle beer and wine sales. We sent out 45 meals today.

Attention Healthcare Workers!! Near Somers Point Today?? Pick up you FREE QUART OF SOUP today at Romeo DiBonas Italian American. http://Www.EarthAngelsforDementia.org/gratitude-to-go. Posted by Gratitude to Go on Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Carliri said Gratitude to Go primarily provides meals to the staff at Shore Memorial Hospital in Somers Point and local first responders, but she has been contacted by groups in other parts of the state who want to use their model and name to do the same thing in their area.

They are risking their lives to save ours, she said.

Keith Prince, vice president of the Mays Landing-Egg Harbor City Rotary Club summed up why his organization supports Gratitude to Go.

You can change someones life by saying, I appreciate you. I appreciate what you do, he said. This is just our little way to say thank you to people who are busting their ass to make sure we survive.

New Jersey health officials announced Wednesday the state now has at least 22,255 cases of the coronavirus, including 355 deaths, as 3,649 new positive tests and 91 new deaths were reported in the last 24 hours.

That is the highest single-day increases in both cases and deaths since the outbreak began. New Jersey has more cases than all but eight countries in the world.

New Jersey, a state with 9 million residents, continues to have the second highest number of positive COVID-19 cases in the United States after New York.

Staff writer Matt Arco contributed to this report.

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Citing a decline in enrollment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Three Rivers Christian School announced Wednesday that it will close both its early learning centers through April.

Superintendent Erin Hart said in press release that the last day of service will be Friday at the Ocean Beach Highway campus and the Ridge campus. The centers are tentatively slated to reopen May 1, pending governmental guidance, Hart said.

The COVID-19 crisis continues to unfold in our county, and the impact in all areas of our life continues, Hart wrote. With very few families requiring childcare in this time, we have decided to temporarily close both of our Early Learning Centers.

Hart said she plans for staff to keep getting paid under the federal PPA program while working on professional development or other small projects at home. She also said the staff hopes to create child-friendly online groups so children can continue to interact with friends and teachers.

We will be doing everything in our power to keep our community intact, Hart wrote.

During the closure, families will not be charged tuition, Hart said, and the first three days of April will be charged on the daily rate. Spaces will also be saved for current students to return after the closure.

Lets all keep praying for each other, the health of our community and for the hearts of our children, staff and families in this time, Hart wrote.

Contact TeamTRCS@3riversschool.net with questions.

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Update: The individual was reported to have been taken into custody on Wednesday, April 1 and the scene is now cleared.

BAY CITY, MI - There is a heavy police presence in Bay Citys South End due to an apparent standoff situation.

A multi-block area around Marsac Street and 29th was blocked by police as of 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 1, and no entry is currently permitted. The scene is located near the Bay County Child & Senior Citizen Center at 1001 Marsac.

Police currently are negotiating with an individual in a nearby residence.

Michigan State Police, McLaren Ambulance Service and the Bay City Police Department are all currently on the scene.

More details will be posted as they become available.
Residents standing at safe distances in a queue wait to collect free rice being distributed by the government during the nationwide lockdown imposed in wake of coronavirus pandemic, in Guwahati. PTI photo

Guwahati: Assam health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma here on Wednesday said that four new COVID-19 positive cases have been detected, taking the confirm corona positive cases to five in the state.

Fearing that some more cases would be detected by evening, the minister said, All five cases detected in the state have the history of attending the religious congregation of Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin in Delhi. The initial screening of nearly 195 samples collected last night has indication that some more positive cases would be detected by this evening.

Pointing out that they were fearing that people who came back about 14 days back from Bangalore, Chennai and Kerala would be the most vulnerable to corona infection, the minister said that even after completion of quarantine period for them, no such cases have come to light as yet.

Informing that five corona positive people are---Jamal Uddin (52) of Karimganj, Md Arshad Ali (19) from Nalbari, Md Hazarat Ali (60) from Jagiroad , Md Nuruddin Ali (55) and Jonab Ali (46) both from Jagroad, the minister said, We are publishing the names deliberately as 117 people who went for religious congregation to Nizammuddin are still traceless. We want to let the people know if they have come in contact with these people in your respective areas, they should approach us on helpline number 104 for check-up, said the minister adding that four other confirm corona positive cases from Assam are admitted in a hospital in New Delhi.

Mr Sarma said, Those admitted in Delhi are Naskar Ali (72) , Baharuddin (48) Mustafa Ahmed (59) and Md Ali ( 52) from Baksha. We are circulating these names to encourage others who came in contact with these people to take medical help at the earliest. He feared that the positive cases in the state may increase further and cross to double-digits by evening.

He also informed that in addition to the first patient at Silchar Medical College and Hospital, four people who tested positive for Coronavirus today are admitted at Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH). The health condition of all the patient is very well except the Silchar patient who is suffering from multiple disorders, said the minister while stating that Centre had provided with a list of 547 people to Assam government on Tuesday. Out 547, 134 were in the Nizamuddin area but not in Tablighi Jamaat.

He added that 68 people had stayed back in Delhi and 4 of them tested positive in the National Capital itself. "347 are back in Assam and but did not get themselves quarantined. Out of 347, 230 of them have been traced overnight and samples are being collected." said the health minister.

Mr Sarma said that it was the responsibility of the society to identify and report the whereabouts of 117 people evading their location and hiding somewhere in the state. We have asked out health personnel in village areas to trace the whereabouts of these missing people, said Mr Sarma said that they have the stock of nearly 9000 personnel protection equipment besides the stock of 80,000 N-95 masks.

Admitting that their biggest worry is 117 people who came in contact with corona positive people at Nizamuddin religious congregation and hiding in the state, the minister however asserted that moral of doctors and paramedical staffs was very high and they are prepared to deal with any situation.

Meanwhile, veteran Muslim leader and president of All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) Badruddin Ajmal on Wednesday appealed to all the community people who visited Nizamuddin to cooperate with health officials and get themselves checked their health condition voluntarily.
One more person has tested positive for coronavirus, the second case in Manipur, Chief Minister N Biren Singh said on Thursday.

The Chief Minister informed media that the patient contracted the infection while attending the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in New Delhi.

"One more COVID-19 positive case in Manipur who attended Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz. The total number of positive cases in the state now stands at two. Some are at quarantine centres and under observation," said CM Singh.

Earlier, a 23-year-old woman from Manipur, with a travel history to the United Kingdom, had tested positive for coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The logjam in coronavirus testing is now leaving some patients waiting two weeks to find out if they are positive for the virus.

More women than men are testing positive for the virus for the first time, as 14 more families were yesterday left mourning a loved one who died from infection.

The death toll has now risen to 85 after 10 more people died in the east and another four in the south.

The Department of Health also confirmed if a person dies before their test is processed, they are counted as positive.

This means the deceased person's funeral must be held under strict conditions and restrictions to the upset of families at such a sad time.

Deputy chief medical officer Dr Ronan Glynn said another 212 cases of the virus have been diagnosed, bringing the total to 3,447.

An analysis of figures up to Monday night showed 48pc are male, reversing a trend where more men were infected. The number in intensive care has risen again to 126 and most of these are still likely to be receiving treatment.

Dr Glynn, said it could be 10 days to two weeks before the delays in testing, due to a worldwide shortage of laboratory kits, is resolved.

People with suspected cases who could be waiting 14 days for a result may have completed their period of self-isolation and recovered before they get a result.

Asked if the delay in testing was giving an underestimate of the daily rise in new cases, Dr Glynn said: "We have been very open that we are not carrying out as many tests as we intended to be carried out at this point.

"If we were carrying out more tests we probably would be picking up more people but that does not mean the picture in hospitalisations intensive care would be any different," he added.

"Ultimately from the point of view of tracking the disease and tracking its impact on hospital capacity those are the figures we are most interested in."

Some 834 patients have been hospitalised with the illness.

The next 10 days or two weeks will provide the best picture of where we stand in terms of spread and it is still too early to draw conclusions.

Dr Cillian de Gascun, of the National Virus Reference Laboratory, said they are carrying out 1,500 tests a day and were planning for 5,000.

However, a worldwide shortage of reagents to complete the laboratory analysis of swabs was hampering progress.

He said the plan is still to be doing 15,000 tests a day in a couple of weeks' time.

"We are working with our existing partners to identify alternative options for the extraction process and we also have more equipment coming on-stream in the next seven to 10 days."

A survey commissioned by the Department of Health showed strong support for emergency measures with 89pc saying they agree with social distancing and 94pc believing they can comply with the restrictions.

Some 85pc said they have adapted to the measures and would know what to do if they felt they had symptoms which is to self-isolate.

One in three is worried about their health and three in four are concerned for family and friends. Two-thirds are now contacting family and friends on their phone or online.

Due to the delay in testing, public health officials will now start contact tracing from the point at which someone suspected of having the virus is referred for a test, not when a result comes through.

It will be another 10 days to two weeks before testing is ramped up to the levels needed.

Dr Colm Henry, of the HSE, said as of now the advice regarding masks is that unless in direct contact with an infected patient they may even present a hazard because people adjust them more frequently and that can distract them from the core practice of hand-washing.

The advice is constantly evolving, he added. Meanwhile the number of clusters in nursing homes has risen to 23.

The National Public Health Emergency Team has written to the HSE to implement a series of safeguards including more screening of staff for potential symptoms of the virus and improved training in areas such as the administration of oxygen.

The Master of the Rotunda Hospital, Professor Fergal Malone, confirmed 10 pregnant women in the hospital and some staff have tested positive for the coronavirus.

He said, however, the patients are being well looked after and all of the women infected with the virus and their babies are in good health.
A growing number of workers who are crucial to supplying the world with meat are demanding that their companies do more to keep them safe from the coronavirus.

Labor unions are starting to speak out as their members fall ill. Some front line workers have even walked off the job. Thats raising the specter of mass protests that could threaten global meat supplies just as supply chains unravel and grocery stores struggle to keep food on their shelves.

Its part of the balancing act facing meat and agricultural producers in a pandemic: how to keep the world fed while safeguarding employees. Slaughterhouses and processing plants are sanitizing their operations more, staggering lunch breaks and checking peoples temperatures, but unions say theyre still falling short.

Theyre scared to make that decision that you guys need to be six feet apart because the production is going to plummet, said Paula Schelling, acting national joint council chairwoman of food-inspector locals for the American Federation of Government Employees.

The first case of a worker at a major U.S. meat producer testing positive for the virus was reported last week at poultry giant Sanderson Farms Inc. Since then, infections have cropped up everywhere from JBS SA plants in Iowa to Harmony Beef in Alberta.

While scattered factories have closed temporarily or cut output, generally companies are keeping plants running when workers get sick. Rather than shutting entire plants, theyve focused on identifying areas where infected people have had direct contact.

In Brazil, a labor judge granted a petition in mid-March by workers at two JBS facilities in Santa Catarina state, a chicken-production hub, to halt or reduce operations because of safety concerns. The next day, JBS won a decision to overturn the ruling because food processing is considered essential.

Workers still feel unsafe, Celso Elias, a director at the union, said in a telephone interview.

JBS cited its strict measures to guarantee the health and safety of employees, including steps to reduce crowding. The company proved to the federal court through documents, photos, videos and elements attached to the lawsuit, that it is adopting all the recommendations of the World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health, JBS said in a statement.

In the U.S, social distancing is not possible in processing facilities where workers are side by side, and the Department of Agriculture is not equipping its consumer-safety or food inspectors with protective masks or hand sanitizer, Schelling of the American Federation said.

Dozens of inspectors who are at high risk of coronavirus complications due to health issues are on safety leave, and one consumer safety inspector died of coronavirus in New York City, she said.

While food safety inspectors follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are times when the physical layout of the plants they work in make social distancing a challenge, the USDA said in a statement. Unlike doctors and nurses in hospitals, there is no data to suggest that slaughter establishments are at higher risk of exposure.

Inspectors may wear their own face masks to plants if they choose to, the agency said.

The League of United Latin American Citizens, the largest Latino civil-rights organization in the U.S., said workers are being exposed with little recourse. The group is asking the Department of Labor to provide clear guidelines on proper safety equipment, paid sick days and regular health checks for workers.

Relief Pool

A Canadian union representing processing workers has asked employers to increase the space between each employees work area, even if line speeds drop.

Were calling on all these employers to look themselves in the mirror and say no matter what happens we did everything we could to keep food on the table and everyone safe, said Thomas Hesse, president of United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 401, the largest private-sector union in Western Canada with 32,000 members in Alberta, mostly in food processing and retailing.

Just as hospitals have reached out to staff with previous critical-care experience, some companies are working to create a relief pool of workers to keep plants running.

Chicken giant BRF SA in Sao Paulo is hiring more than 2,000 people in Brazil and other countries to replace those who may be unable to work because of the pandemic, Chief Executive Officer Lorival Luz said.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency plans to redeploy internal staff and use emergency measures, including contacting recent retirees, to address potential inspector shortages related to absenteeism.

JBS USA is paying a bonus to retain staff while hiring more people to make sure it will be able to run plants if absenteeism increases.

Theres a risk, but we have to balance that as we have a responsibility to continue to produce food, Andre Nogueira, who heads U.S. operations, said on a conference call last week. We cannot stop. Otherwise, you call it a big, big issue for the whole nation.

With assistance from Mike Dorning.

About the photo: Pig carcasses hang from an overhead conveyor at a Smithfield Foods Inc. pork processing facility in Milan, Missouri, U.S., on Wednesday, April 12, 2017. WH Group Ltd. acquired Virginia-based Smithfield, the worlds largest pork producer, in 2013 for $6.95 billion. As Smithfield cant export sausage, ham and bacon from its U.S. factories, because China prohibits imports of processed meat, WH Group opened an 800 million-yuan ($116 million) factory in Zhengzhou that will produce 30,000 metric tons of those meats when it reaches full capacity next year.

Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.
The Balmoral Hotel on the outskirts of west Belfast

A minister is taking legal action against a Belfast hotel after claiming he was told by staff to stop a religious event promoting marriage.

The Rev Harry Coulter, from Carrickfergus Reformed Church, had booked a conference room at the Balmoral Hotel, on the outskirts of west Belfast, last October to host his event, Marriage Matters.

It is alleged that midway through the meeting, which was attended by over 50 people, he was told to end proceedings by hotel staff, who said they had received a complaint.

Rev Coulter then left the hotel, along with the attendees and a keynote speaker, who had travelled from Wales.

The Christian Institute - a lobby group and charity - released details of the alleged incident. It is supporting the legal action being taken by the clergyman.

According to the group, Rev Coulter later wrote to the hotel asking for an explanation and compensation.

The hotel failed to respond to his letter, the institute said.

Rev Coulter could not be reached for comment.

The Christian Institute alleged the hotel asked the minister to stop proceedings because the event promoted the belief that marriage is between one man and one woman.

A spokesperson for the group said: "The Christian Institute supports Rev Coulter in his action against the hotel and is helping him with his case."

It would not disclose on what grounds the minister had initiated legal proceedings, but claimed Rev Coulter's right to believe in traditional marriage, had been "breached".

"The hotel's treatment of Rev Coulter is a violation of free speech," it said.

"It is important for the sake of gospel freedom that we take every opportunity to defend this essential right."

Simon Calvert, deputy leader for public affairs at the Christian Institute, said the hotel had not acted properly in its treatment of Rev Coulter.

"The hotel interrupted the meeting halfway through, causing maximum inconvenience and embarrassment to Mr Coulter and to the 55 people attending his meeting," he claimed.

"People who believe marriage is between a man and a woman have the same rights and freedom of speech and not to be mistreated, like everybody else."

The Belfast Telegraph contacted Balmoral Hotel for a response.

In a statement it said: "The Balmoral Hotel is currently closed due to the coronavirus crisis and are unable to comment in relation to the matters raised (by your query)."
After his first book became a best-seller nearly 10 years ago, Dave Cullen finally had enough money to leave Denver for New York City.

Mr. Cullen  whose book, Columbine, examined the aftermath of the 1999 Colorado school shooting  rented a two-bedroom in Hells Kitchen. It was such a fun neighborhood, which is what I came to New York for, he said. And it was near the TV networks, which often featured his commentary after mass shootings.

But as time passed, the intensity of the neighborhood  buzzing with movement, noise and tourists  sucked a lot of energy out of me, said Mr. Cullen, now 58, a gay military veteran. I kind of aged out of the gayborhood there.

Whats more, he had a list of apartment complaints. The pipes clanked, and finicky heat made the rooms both too hot and too cold. His bed was crammed in the corner of a small bedroom. Rising skyscrapers blocked his light. Horns honked.

[Did you recently buy or rent a home in the New York metro area? We want to hear from you. Email: thehunt@nytimes.com]

Initially, he told himself, This is New York, thats how we live here. And it was kind of adorable.

But while completing his second book, Parkland, partly at friends places, he noticed that I did my best writing away from the intensity of the city.

He liked to work outdoors, although going to Central Park meant packing his stuff, walking for 15 minutes and fighting laptop glare. It is hard to make a whole afternoon of it and have the weather cooperate, he said.

Moving seemed like an ordeal and was easy to put off. But for a few years, Mr. Cullen had thought about migrating to Brooklyn. There, he figured, he could escape the defects of his rental, which was costing him more than $3,000 a month.

He was hoping for a sunny two-bedroom where he could have a separate home office. Without one, theres no psychological change, he said. You are still sitting in your living room. I need to leave the space and know Im at work, so Im not three feet from my couch staring at my television.

The place needed enough wall space for his storyboards. And he wanted some piece of outside  a backyard, a balcony or a rooftop, where he could work. Mr. Cullen is currently working on a book about two gay U.S. soldiers.

He also wanted a quiet block, preferably not far from Prospect Park. His budget was around $3,000, but he soon realized that for the size and the outdoor space he wanted, that was unrealistically low.

Mr. Cullen found several nice apartments online  before looking at them. When he did, he often found them to be rundown or battered a bit. Private yards tended to come with ground-floor back apartments, which were dark. Quirky layouts sometimes meant that usable space was limited.

He focused his search in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, and considered these three options:
Since coronavirus shook the world around us, one thing which has obviously bothered a lot of us is our physical health. We have been asking questions which would have seemed unthinkable just a few weeks ago: how healthy am I? is my immune system strong enough? what about the strength and capacity of my organs? have I been eating the right food?

With so much to think of right now, everyone regardless of age, race or religion has continued to take precautions to ensure their physical health is in check; even those who have sadly been infected with covid-19. Not only do we continue to receive tips from health authorities on how to stay safe and hygienic, there are messages and videos constantly being distributed all over social media on what to eat and drink to limit the symptoms and boost our immune system.

Apart from this, the impact of social distancing has caused economies to be placed on hold with uncertainty for when things will bounce back. For families who survived on day-to-day earnings, you cannot imagine where they will start from with supply of basic needs such as food and water and general financial sufficiency.

Lets agree that we are all strategizing on survival tricks in these uncertain and scary times  you want to ration food supplies to the barest minimum to ensure that it will last long enough!

What now?

Whilst good hygiene is essential during this period, it is important to note that adequate food supply is paramount to each person as it will reduce fear, anxiety and panic. Therefore, it is only sufficient that one of Nigerias largest food and Agro-allied groups, Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN), the makers of Golden Penny products, has stepped up efforts to provide support. In line with its purpose of Feeding the Nation, Everyday, the company is committed to improving the health, wellbeing and livelihood of Nigerian families by ensuring continuous supply of food.

To minimize the heavy impact of the partial lockdown ordered by the state government to stem the spread of the virus, FMN is donating food items to several states across Nigeria. Kicking off donations in Lagos State, FMN will be donating essential food items including pasta, semovita and noodles.

It doesnt end here  the company with its strong heritage in Nigeria is further proving its appreciation for health workers and commitment to enriching communities by donating medical relief materials and kits for first responders.

Products from Flour Mills of Nigeria

In the midst of such an unprecedented situation, FMN is reiterating its commitment to collaborate across the food value chain by leveraging on it expansive supply chain to ensure than Nigerians continue to get healthy and nutritious food. The company has assured that it has implemented careful measures to ensure that their staff can still safely produce food  from their farms, to processing factories and distribution channels to ensure that Nigerian can continue to receive their favourite golden penny products

For 60 years and counting, FMN has taken on challenges and continued to show its backing for the wellbeing of the nation with several initiatives. In navigating this new, normal situation, rest assured that there are greater times ahead as FMN continues to Feed the Nation Everyday.
With curfew in Punjab entering the 11th day on Thursday, the Ludhiana police had remained on its toes taking action against those violating the orders. As many as 93 FIRs were registered against such violators in the last few days. Another 250 violators were locked in open jails and were later let off with a warning on Thursday.

From loitering around to standing in groups for no reason or simply sauntering the streets at a time when the novel coronavirus pandemic has claimed one life, the violators, mostly youth, were nabbed for giving two hoots to polices warning. Only uniformed police personnel, paramilitary forces, health services, government officers, officials on duty, delivery staff and vendors are exempted to move around during the curfew for discharge of their official duties.

To deal with the violators of the orders related to the lockdown, four open jails have been set up temporarily in Ludhiana, including New SD School, 33 feet Bahadurke Road, Indoor Stadium on Pakhowal Road, Guru Nanak Stadium and Valmiki Bhawan in Moti Nagar Ludhiana.

Agrawal added that four open jails have been set up in Ludhiana city for the violators, and similarly such open jails would also be set up at Khanna and Jagraon.

A police official on curfew duty narrated the experience and said that whenever police rounds these youth up, they start making excuses that they are out to buy groceries, vegetables etc.

After it is verified that the person is telling a lie, we lodge them in open jails. Everyone is advised to stay at home and only those who have a purpose to go out, or are on duty can venture out, said the cop.

Agrawal informed that the work related to distribution of essential commodities is going on smoothly in the entire district. He assured that the district administration would assure the supply of essential commodities to everyone at doorstep so that no one suffers.

Appeal to doctors denying treatment

Taking serious note of reports that some private hospitals are denying admission to the patients, the deputy commissioner appealed to the doctors to help the patients by offering them treatment. He said that it is not necessary that every sick patient is suffering from COVID 19. So that is why, no private hospital should deny admission to sick patients.

Migrants have stopped from going to parent state

Agrawal stated the migration by labourers to their parent state has now stopped now as they have come to know that not only Punjab, but even Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh have sealed their borders. He informed that shelter homes have been set up by the district administration, where such persons are provided shelter, food and medical aid.
: NYC Doctor Leaves Note for Her Kids: If They Lose Me Mommy Tried Really Hard to Do Her Job
A hospital in Catalonia, Spain, posted celebratory footage on March 31 showing the discharge of a 93-year-old patient who had recovered from the coronavirus.

The hospitals video shows staff forming a guard of honor for the man, and then applauding him.

Spain has been one of the countries hardest hit by the virus. It had recorded more than 94,000 cases and almost 8,200 deaths by the morning of April 1. Credit: Fundacio St Hospital via Storyful
U.S. intelligence believes that China vastly understated its own death toll in the COVID-19 pandemic. Two senior U.S. officials say the true number of dead in Wuhan, where the outbreak began, could be 10 times what was reported. Also, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says the U.S. is missing a historic opportunity to ease tensions with sanctions relief.
Authorities say a five-year-old San Francisco Bay area girl was bitten by a coyote while she walked in a park with her mother on Wednesday afternoon.

The girl had been at the Dublin Hills Regional park with her family when the attack happened at around 2.22pm, East Regional Park District officials shared.

EBRPD Lt Gretchen Rose explained to KPIX that the child's mother had tried to shoo the pack of roughly five to six coyotes away from her daughter. One managed to get to the girl.

Scroll down for video

The girl had been at the Dublin Hills Regional park with her family when the attack happened at around 2.22pm, East Regional Park District officials shared

'She was bitten on the neck and has a laceration in the back that required sutures.' Rose added.

None of the girl's injuries were serious and she was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Wildlife officials are extremely concerned about the rare attack, however.

'I've been with the district since 2005 and to my knowledge, we haven't had a coyote attack a human being,' said Doug Bell, Wildlife Program Manager with the EBRPD.

The Dublin community has been sharing more photos of the scavengers lurking around their home as residents stay in them during the area's shelter-in-place order (stock)

Bell shared that there were cases where humans were injured while trying to save animals but couldn't recall instances where coyotes targeted humans.

The Dublin community has been sharing more photos of the scavengers lurking around their home as residents stay in them during the area's shelter-in-place order.

Bell assert that nothing suggests that the coyote's population has grown in the area.

Some 215 people have died in California from the coronavirus. The Bay area recently extended their shelter-in-place order until May 3

'We have open space parks sandwiched by thousands and thousands of people. We literally have coyotes everywhere,' Bell said.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is working with the EBRPD to locate and identify the coyote.

'The victim may have some possible dna of the animal so by us getting the animal, we will be able to link that and say hey, this was the offending animal,' said Lt Clint Garrett with the Department Fish and Wildlife.

The park is closed until officials are able to catch the coyote.

The Bay area recently extended their shelter-in-place order until May 3.
They brought home their cute puppy Redford just before Christmas.

And on Wednesday, Lily Collins and Charlie McDowell took a break from home isolation to take the terrier for a walk.

The couple were casually dressed for their stroll in a leafy LA neighborhood.

Stroll: They brought home cute puppy Redford just before Christmas. And Wednesday, Lily Collins and Charlie McDowell took a break from home isolation to take the terrier for a walk

Lily and Charlie have been together since last summer.

Both have famous parents - Lily, 31, is the daughter of British rock musician Phil Collins while Charlie, 36, is the son of actors Malcom McDowell and Mary Steenburgen.

Lily made a name for herself as the daughter of Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw in the hit movie The Blind Side released in 2009.

Since then her credits have included Mirror, Mirror, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, Tolkien and series The Last Tycoon and Les Miserables.

Relaxed: Lily was casually dressed in a khaki green jacket and black leggings for the stroll. She wore her hair up in a bun and sported gold-framed sunglasses

Lily and Charlie have been together since last summer. Both have famous parents - Lily is the daughter of Phil Collins while Charlie is the son of Malcom McDowell and Mary Steenburgen

Lily celebrated her 31st birthday last month as California embarked on a 'safer at home' lockdown as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19.

'This has definitely been a strange time to celebrate,' she shared with her Instagram followers. 'But we do need to keep our heads up through it all.'

She also shared some heartfelt advice, writing: 'Remember to keep yourself and others safe by social distancing - even if you're young and healthy - and be proactive by helping the more vulnerable people around you and stay in.'

She then directed her followers to the Feeding America donation page, so that those with extra funds can extend a helping hand to 'low income families in need.'

Collins also encouraged people to make an effort to support their 'local small businesses.'

Cute: Lily, 31, features Redford on her Instagram and clearly adores the playful pup. Last month, she celebrated her 31st birthday while self-isolating in LA due to COVID-19
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) announced Thursday that she is tasking Majority Whip James Clyburn (D., S.C.) to lead a House oversight committee to ensure the governments coronavirus funds are spent wisely and effectively.

The panel will root out waste, fraud and abuse; it will protect against price-gouging, profiteering and political favoritism, Pelosi told reporters on a press call. The fact is, we do need transparency and accountability.

She later added that the bipartisan committee would have subpoena power to carry out its tasks, and specifically cited the Truman Committee  formed by Congress during World War II to address profiteering and other abuses  as a guide.

Where theres money theres also frequently mischief, and we want to just make sure that the funds that are expended, that are put out there, are done so with the conditions that we had in the legislation, she said.

Clyburn drew the ire of Senate Republicans after he told caucus members on a call about provisions in the phase-three coronavirus package that the Senates bill was a tremendous opportunity to restructure things to fit our vision.

After Clyburns comments, Pelosi flew into Washington D.C. as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) was negotiating with Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.). Following Pelosis arrival, House Democrats introudced their own spending bill that included a number of unrelated environmental and corporate diversity regulations for companies receiving the emergency funding. Senate Democrats then blocked the legislation that McConnell and Schumer negotiated on the grounds that it did not provide enough oversight over the $500 million allocated to corporations harmed by the pandemic.

McConnell slammed the slow-walking and called on Democrats to stop playing politics and step up to the plate, while Senator Ben Sasse (R., Neb.) said Pelosi was hijacking the negotiations with an ideologically-driven wish list of demands that has absolutely nothing to do with the public health emergency that we face at this moment.

Story continues

McConnell later implied that the extended negotiations did not result in significant alterations to the bill, a claim reinforced by Senator Pat Toomey (R., Pa.) who suggested after a deal was reached that Democrats were falsely claiming to have achieved stricter oversight, and that before Pelosi arrived, allegations that the bills corporate relief funds lacked oversight were not a major topic of discussion.

More from National Review
Loved ones having to die alone is one of the most heart-breaking tragedies of the Coronavirus pandemic, legendary Irish actor Brendan Gleeson has said.

The Hollywood star took to the airwaves on RTE Radio Ones Liveline programme today in an urgent public appeal for people to support the St Francis Hospice Group.



The charity, which runs hospices in Raheny and Blanchardstown, relies on annual donations of about 6m a year to operate. But due to the current crisis, donations have dried up but the need is still there, he said.



"This isn't a guilt thing - it's just a brilliant thing to do," he said of the need for donations.



He revealed that his mother Pat was at the hospice in Raheny before her death and he couldn't speak highly enough of the caring staff at the facility. His father Frank also passed away there.



"Before Mum went into hospice she said' I should have come in here years ago,' he said.



While he was fortunate to be able to bid farewell to his parents, the star, who celebrated his 65th birthday last weekend, said it is truly tragic that people are being forced to die alone without being able to say goodbye to their loved ones due to Covid-19 restrictions.



"I keep thinking that the worst is the thought of dying alone," he told host Joe Duffy.



"If I had to die alone, I'd love to die in the hospice where that spirit of humanity is there."



"It's a dreadful disease that has been robbing people of the gift of a good death," he said.

Read More

But as he remains at his Dublin home with his wife Mary, their two sons and one of their partners during the lockdown, he praised the Irish people and Government for taking the appropriate measures to battle the virus.



But he urged people to continue the battle against Covid-19.



"We really need to keep doing what we're doing," he told listeners.



"We're going to really have to batten down the hatches."



Meanwhile, he urged anyone wishing to make a donation to the charity to ring them on 01 832 7535 to pledge a donation. They can also do so by emailing the charity.
I could reach no other conclusion than that Capt. Crozier had allowed the complexity of his challenge with the covid breakout on his ship to overwhelm his ability to act professionally, when acting professionally was what was needed most at the time, Modly said at the Pentagon. We do and we should expect more from the commanding officers of our aircraft carriers.
Britain said Wednesday it would soon begin testing 25,000 people daily for COVID-19 as criticism of the government grew over low numbers of testing compared to other countries. Housing Minister Robert Jenrick told Sky TV that it was targeting 25,000 daily tests by "mid-April", after the latest figures revealed the UK death toll was almost 1,800,. The victims included a 13-year-old boy, thought to be the country's youngest victim. "We think within days we'll be able to go from our present capacity, as I say, of 12,750, to 15,000," said Jenrick. "And then mid-April is when we expect to be at 25,000," he added. Ministers have been put on the back foot as criticism over the lack of testing grows. There has been growing condemnation of a lack of tests for frontline health staff as well as the wider public. Even media normally loyal to the ruling Conservative Party have written about a mass testing "shambles". Britain has so far carried out just over 143,000 tests compared to Germany which is testing 70,000 people a day. As of March 30, there have been 455 deaths in Germany. Some 25,150 people have now tested positive for the virus in Britain, including Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Health Minister Matt Hancock. Jenrick conceded the UK had to increase test numbers "significantly" but blamed kit shortages due to the global pandemic. Another senior minister, Michael Gove, has also blamed the lack of "chemical reagents" needed for tests kits -- a claim contradicted by those representing the UK chemical industry. Meanwhile, the family of the 13-year-old boy, Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab, from south London, said in a statement that they were "beyond devastated" at his death. The boy, who died on Monday at King's College Hospital in London, had no underlying illnesses. The latest UK health ministry figures show that a total of 1,789 people have died, although data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for England and Wales suggested that the true toll could be 24 percent higher. Government figures only cover those who have been taken to hospital and tested for the virus whereas the ONS data is for deaths in the community where COVID-19 is suspected. Jenrick added that the country should be braced for further bad news. "It's likely the numbers will get worse in the coming days before they get better," he said.
If you thought the financial crisis a little over a decade ago was bad, the coronavirus is rewriting history for Wall Street.

Growing uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus, which has led to more than 42,100 deaths globally as of March 31, wound up pulling the rug out from underneath the stock market at a record pace. It took just over three weeks for all major U.S. stock indexes to fall into bear market territory from their recent highs, with all major indexes shedding in excess of 30% in a little more than four weeks. Both descents represent the quickest 20% and 30% respective declines in the history of the U.S. stock market.

Think your losses are bad? Check out the billions Warren Buffett has lost

While the paper losses in your own personal portfolios have likely stung, they pale in comparison to the six-week decline Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRK.A)(NYSE:BRK.B) CEO Warren Buffett has endured. Since the stock market peaked on Feb. 19, Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio has lost approximately $80 billion in value through the end of March.

Although the selling has been relatively indiscriminate to sector or industry, what's particularly notable about Buffett's paper losses over the past six weeks is that a sizable chunk ($49 billion) has come from only five stocks. Listed in order of total unrealized loss since Feb. 19, and taking into account any dividends paid, the following stocks have cost Buffett big time:

Apple NASDAQ:AAPL)

Bank of America NYSE:BAC)

American Express NYSE:AXP)

Coca-Cola NYSE:KO)

Wells Fargo NYSE:WFC)

Now, understand, there have been some notable negatives to come out of these companies. Apple was among the first to warn Wall Street that COVID-19 would disrupt its supply chain and cause it to miss its previous guidance. There have also been rumors that Apple might delay the launch of its first 5G-capable iPhone given the uncertainties surrounding the coronavirus, which has further pressured shares.

Meanwhile, financials have taken a beating across the board -- which is especially bad news considering that financials are Buffett's largest sector-based holding. Financials are a cyclical sector, meaning they don't perform well when recessions crop up. Even more worrisome, the Federal Reserve lowered its federal funds rate back to a historically low range of 0% to 0.25%. This means less net interest income for Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and American Express.

Warren Buffett isn't panicking, and neither should you

However, this isn't the first time Buffett has navigated through a bear market. History has shown that he has used times of immense fear to make some of his most profitable investments. For instance, Buffett wound up taking a $5 billion preferred stake in Bank of America following the financial crisis, fueling what's become his second-largest position by dollar value. Even with $12.3 billion in recent paper losses, Buffett has made a boatload of money on Bank of America from his initial investment in the company many years ago.

Resolve is yet another reason the Oracle of Omaha has had such lasting success pushing through bear markets. Coca-Cola, Wells Fargo, and American Express are three names that Berkshire Hathaway has owned for approximately 31, 30, and 27 years, respectively. Though it may not be the case with Wells Fargo, which Buffett has sold down recently, he very much continues to hold on to Coca-Cola and American Express because he believes in their brands, their image, and their competitive advantages.

Think about Coca-Cola as an example. It's a beverage giant that's operating in all but one country worldwide (North Korea), and it has 21 brands that generate at least $1 billion in annual sales. It's also one of the most recognizable brands in the entire world. Although COVID-19 has people staying home more, that's not going to compromise a consumer staple like Coca-Cola or alter its long-term growth strategy -- and Buffett knows it.

He's also a big-time fan of businesses that choose to take good care of their shareholders. That's why Apple currently accounts for a whopping 35% of Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio. Even with Apple taking on more than $100 billion in debt in recent years, much of which was used to fuel a massive share repurchase program, Buffett has been entirely on board with management's decision-making. After all, borrowing rates have been at or near historic lows (something even Buffett has taken advantage of), and Apple has had little issue generating significant cash flow from its traditional iPhone segment and its faster-growing wearables and service operations.

The point is that if Buffett can shrug off an $80 billion loss in six weeks, you, too, can look past what might be an unsightly paper loss since Feb. 19. Buffett's resolve to stay the course has resulted in a 2,744,062% gain in per-share market value for Berkshire Hathaway over the past 55 years, which should be more than enough to encourage you to have some faith in your own long-term investments.
The water authority's line Minister also said this was the first he too was hearing of the problem at Mt Hololo Road and he said it would be given priority.
THE government has urged any private sector interested investor(s) to try a hand at Africas second tallest free-leaping Kalambo Waterfalls given the advances it has made to construct it as a tourist attraction site.

The single-drop waterfall stands tall as 221m and is second to the Tugela Falls in South Africa, but currently lack sufficient accommodation facilities.

Making the revelation, the Deputy Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Mr Constantine Kanyasu told the National Assembly that the government has been working to improve its infrastructures, since it was carved from the Kalambo National Reserve Forest.

The government is considering support from the private sector in the construction of a Zoo, Conference Halls and Hotels to make the site more attractive to visitors, he said.

Since 2016, the government had embarked on constructing the areas infrastructures to attract more tourists by first building Administration Offices, walk trails and a 450 metre stair to the waterfalls.

In 2018, Mr Kanyasu noted that the government embarked on further constructing 540 stairs, offices, toilets and a gate to serve the visitors.

The work was being implemented by Green Construction Limited, he further said, while responding to a question from Special Seats Member of Parliament (MP- Chadema), Aida Khenan.

The legislator had sought to know when the government would release funds to improve the site to attract more tourists visiting Kalambo River.

In rejoinder, the deputy minister said improvements have been there including construction of modern infrastructures likely to be completed this year.

The Kalambo River stands as a border point between Zambia and Tanzania.
New Delhi, April 2 : In the wake of COVID-19 pandemic, the Haryana government has banned sale and use of chewing gum till June 30, as its spitting towards another person is likely to contribute in transmission of the coronavirus infection.

According to Health Ministry, as on April 2 at 6 pm, there 1,860 active coronavirus cases and 53 people have died so far due to the deadly infection.

The order, issued by Food and Drugs Administration Department Commissioner Ashok Kumar Meena, said "Whereas, COVID-19 transmits through droplets, there may be possibility of transmitting of COVID-19 by spitting of chewing gum/bubble gum towards another person." The order mentioned that the state government is currently keep surveillance on 13,000 persons, and it is necessary to take effective steps to prevent further spread of COVID-19.

The department exercised the power conferred by clause (a)A of sub-section (2) of section 30 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (Central Act 34 of 2006).

"Prohibit the sale and use of chewing gum/bubble gum and similar products, or otherwise by whatsoever name called, whether packaged or unpackaged or sold as one product, or through packaged as separate products, sold or distributed in any manner.." said the order.

The order emphasized that the decision has been taken in the interest of public health. "in the interest of public health for a period of three months from the date of issue of this order till June 30. In the state of Haryana", added the order.
Photograph: Daniel Becerril/Reuters

When Angelica turned 30, she realized there was no future for her in Honduras.

Although she had a college degree, she was still living paycheck to paycheck and was stuck in a neighborhood of the capital Tegucigalpa ruled by violent gangs.

So, after years contemplating migration to the US where she has relatives, she finally made arrangements to depart.

I didnt want to stay in a neighborhood where there are massacres or where the people lock themselves in their homes at six at night because the gangs impose a curfew, she said. I realized I was more surviving than living.

Related: Counting the cost of Honduran crime  in pictures

But by the time she was due to start her journey north, Honduras had closed its borders and declared a state of emergency. She could no longer leave her city  much less take a bus to northern Guatemala, to meet a coyote who would guide her through Mexico.

I had thought that only a hurricane could stop me, she said. But I hadnt thought of a pandemic.

Border closures and strict lockdowns prompted by the Covid-19 crisis have disrupted the migrant trail through Central America and Mexico, forcing some would-be migrants to postpone their journeys  and stopping many others in their tracks.

The result has been a deterrent more effective than any wall Donald Trump could build.

Activists across the region have reported a steep decline in the number of migrants coming from Central America since the restrictions were implemented. One Mexican shelter near the Guatemalan border said it hadnt received a new arrival in a week.

A migrant washes the hands of a child at an encampment in Matamoros, Mexico, as more than 2,000 migrants seek asylum in the US. Photograph: Daniel Becerril/Reuters

The crisis has facilitated Trumps policies because [Central American] migrants cant even leave their countries, said Sister Nyzella Juliana Donde, coordinator of a Catholic migrant aid organization in Honduras.

El Salvador closed its borders on 11 March, and the governments of Guatemala and Honduras quickly followed suit. All three countries in the so-called northern triangle have since announced internal lockdowns of differing strictness.

Story continues

The three nations had recently signed safe third country agreements with the US government under which they agreed to increase enforcement on their borders, and receive migrants who had transited their country on the way to the US.

Only Guatemala had begun to implement the new measures, but it announced on 17 March that it would suspend the deportations of Hondurans and Salvadorans from the US to its territory.

Related: US migrant deportations risk spreading coronavirus to Central America

But Guatemala and Honduras continued to receive deportation flights bringing their own citizens from the US  despite concerns that the practice could accelerate the spread of the virus.

In the past week, a migrant who was deported from the US to Guatemala was diagnosed with Covid-19 and a group of deportees to Honduras escaped from the shelter where they were to be quarantined. Guatemala has now requested that the US suspend deportation flights.

Meanwhile, migrants who were already en route have been left exposed by the closure of shelters and the difficulties facing humanitarian organizations which would normally attend to them.

They are in a vulnerable situation because the guidance is to stay at home  but the migrants dont have homes, said Donde, who mentioned a case of a large group of Haitian and African migrants who were detained after crossing into Guatemala from Honduras amid the lockdown. Neither Honduras or Guatemala wanted to offer them a place to stay.

Migrants who already had arrived to Mexico have been left in limbo by the US governments decision to immediately return all migrants from Mexico and Central America who cross into the country irregularly along the south-west border.

When restrictions are eventually eased, a fresh surge in migration seems likely: multiple would-be migrants who spoke with the Guardian said it was only a question of when, not if, they would set out for the US.

And the economic impact of the crisis may in turn cause others to migrate.. Before many people migrated because they lacked work and a dignified life, said Silva de Souza. Now there will be many more.

Migrants who have come from even farther afield, have no choice but to try to push on. Mohamed left Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, in 2018, following the well-trodden migrant path via Ecuador, Colombia and the jungles of Panama. He was burning through his savings and racking up debt, but making steady progress north.

But he reached Guatemala just before the government announced a state of emergency which has made moving on impossible.

Travel has become very difficult, he said in a brief exchange via Facebook Messenger. But he was still determined to reach the US  even if he now has to move more carefully  traveling at night and avoiding large caravans. With Gods will, Ill get there. I will build a life of opportunity.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:31 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f34295 1 Food COVID-19,SARS-CoV-2,fruit,vegetable,grocery,fresh-produce,coronavirus,washing-hands-with-soap,hand-washing Free

Paranoia over other peoples dirty hands has grown over the past few weeks amid the alarming spread of COVID-19.

It is widely known that the highly contagious virus could infect you if you touch contaminated objects and then touch your mouth, nose or eyes. This makes people wash their hands and clean up more than usual, which is a good habit with or without pandemics going around.

The coronavirus is known to be protected with a layer of lipid that can be broken down with soap, which makes washing hands and objects we touch with soap and water a highly recommended practice to combat the virus.

However, there is confusion as to whether or not we should wash fresh produce with soap and water. There is no guarantee that, by the time the fruits and vegetables have made their journey from the farmer to your table, no one has sneezed over them or touched them with virus-ridden hands.

Read also: How to do online grocery shopping in a time of coronavirus

Benjamin Chapman, a food safety specialist at North Carolina State University told Live Science that washing fresh produce with soap might instead cause perilous stomach ache.

Drinking dish soap or eating it can lead to nausea and [an] upset stomach. It's not a compound that our stomach is really built to deal with, he said.

According to Chapman, there is not yet any evidence that food or food packaging can harbor the virus long enough to cause infections.

SARS-cov-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, can only survive for a limited time outside a human body. According to a recent study published by the New England Journal of Medicine, the virus can stay on cardboard for 24 hours and on plastic and stainless steel for 72 hours. The virus also becomes weaker the more time it sits outside the human body, so that if you touch a contaminated surface hours after someone sneezes on it, there is a possibility that the virus is already too weak to make you sick.

Chapman said that fruits and veggies should be washed only with running, clean water. That may remove 90 to 99 percent of [any contamination], he said.

What is more important is to always wash your hands before preparing and eating your meal, as well as cooking and serving your food with clean cooking utensils, dishes and cutlery. (gis/kes)
Md. outlines what state deems as acceptable religious services amid coronavirus shutdown

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Officials in Maryland released a guidance Wednesday detailing what the state constitutes as acceptable religious gatherings amid a statewide stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Larry Hogan.

The Office of Legal Counsel released an interpretative guidance document that explains what types of religious services will be allowed until the order is lifted.

Acceptable gatherings included Drive-In Religious Services, Limited In-Person Services, and Minimal Operations at Religious Facilities.

Drive-In Religious Services, or services in which attendees remain inside their vehicles, will be allowed as long as no more than 10 people are in a vehicle, passengers remain in the vehicle at all times, and they refrain from physical contact with others.

Participants may not interact physically with clergy, staff, or participants in other vehicles. This includes, but is not limited to, collecting donations by basket or plate, explained the guidance.

Regarding Limited In-Person Services, the guidance said it was acceptable for 10 or fewer people, to be inside a house of worship, provided there was no physical contact among participants and social distancing was respected.

There must be at least a four hour gap between the end of one in-person service and the beginning of the next in-person service, the guidance adds. The Religious Facility should be cleaned between services, in accordance with CDC cleaning and disinfection guidance.

For both types of services, collecting offerings via basket or plate were considered unacceptable given the close proximity required between people.

Finally, on the issue of Minimal Operations at Religious Facilities, it was noted that houses of worship could conduct minimal operations provided they respect rules regarding social distancing.

In the case of religious facilities, the term Minimal Operations includes, but is not necessarily limited to, facilitating remote services, the document explained.

State orders aimed at combating the spread of COVID-19 have varied in how they treat religious gatherings, with some opting to exempt houses of worship from the recommended restrictions.

For example, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued an exemption for places of religious worship from a statewide ban on gatherings of 50 people or more.

Whitmer told Fox News Sunday anchor John Roberts in March that she believed the government did not have the right to order houses of worship to close over the pandemic.

Well, you know, the separation of church and state and the Republican legislature asked me to clarify that, Whitmer said.

That's an area that we don't have the ability to directly enforce and control. We are encouraging people, though, do not congregate.
China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday slammed some U.S. politicians' "shameless" remarks doubting China's reporting of coronavirus cases in the country.

Spokesperson Hua Chunying said during a daily briefing that China has been open and transparent about the coronavirus outbreak that began in the country late last year. She said the United States should stop politicizing the health issue and instead focus on the safety of its people.

"Regarding international public health security, the most qualified judges are the World Health Organization and related experts in infectious diseases and medical control, not a few politicians who are full of lies," Hua stressed.

Some U.S. officials, including U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, have questioned the accuracy of Chinese figures during the COVID-19 outbreak.

"How do we know" if they are accurate? Trump asked at a press conference. "Their numbers seem to be a little bit on the light side."

"We are very sympathetic to the gravity of the situation in the United States, and we can understand that some people in the U.S. want to be rid of the responsibility, but we do not want to get into any meaningless arguments," Hua said.

"The measures taken by the Chinese government have been decisive, timely, and strong. We have worked, to the best of our capabilities, to protect the lives and welfare of the Chinese people... while buying the world valuable time to stem the pandemic. China has done its best to be open, transparent, and accountable," she underlined.

Hua said that "to slander, to discredit, to blame others or to shift responsibility cannot make up the time that has been lost." "To carry on lying will only waste more time and cause more loss of life," she said, adding that politicians who accused China of concealing information were "shameless and without morality."

Asian countries including China are contributing "fantastic" scientifically-based research publications about the COVID-19 outbreak "on a daily basis," and should not be tagged as "non-transparent," Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO's Health Emergencies Program, said during a media briefing on Wednesday.

"I think we need to be very careful not to be profiling certain parts of the world as being uncooperative or non-transparent. We need to look at transparency across the board. We need to look at solidarity across the board," he added.

If China's data untrustworthy, other countries are questionable too: U.S. expert

Huang Yanzhong, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations of the U.S., told the Global Times that it's meaningless to hide the true numbers as "policymakers can take correct measures only with accurate data."

If one doubts the credibility of China's data just because asymptomatic patients were not counted, the whole world's numbers are not credible as no single country could test all its population, Huang noted.

Huang said that the whole country is aware of the severity of the epidemic, so it is pointless to cover up or play down the number of confirmed cases. "In fact, the decision makers want nothing more than the most accurate and real number, so they can make the right decision; otherwise they cannot handle the pandemic properly," said Huang.

Business Insider said in a report last week that the National Health Commission (NHC) has been aggregating all of its coronavirus information on its website and releasing daily updates since February 3. Meanwhile, in the U.S., it's much harder to find data and information about the outbreak.
It has been a 'sad, sad day', said United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson after the UK reported the biggest daily death toll of the coronavirus crisis on Wednesday.

"It has been a sad, sad day. 563 more cases, a record in a single day. Our thoughts go out to the families of the victims," said Johnson in a video of himself during self-isolation.

The United Kingdom has reported 563 deaths in a day, bringing the total number of patients in the country who died in hospitals to 2,352. Some 29,474 people have now tested positive, a jump of 4,324 over the previous day, according to Al Jazeera.

Johnson also said that 597 million extra pieces of protection kit had been shipped in for "amazing" NHS staff.

"But let's be in no doubt, that if we can follow the program that we're currently set upon, if we can comply with the measures that we've embarked on together then I have absolutely no doubt that we will begin to start to push those numbers down, and we will turn the tide of the coronavirus in the next few weeks and months," he added.

"The Army reservists and others are doing a quite amazing job of shipping that stuff around the country.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
If youre among the many Pennsylvanians whose income or jobs were affected by the coronavirus, you are probably looking for some help right now.

Unemployment compensation has been expanded in our state, and some federal aid is on the way eventually. But between delays, crowded phone lines and an overtaxed system, many need other options.

And despite the stay-at-home orders going statewide, there are still vital services being supplied by businesses throughout our region - and some of them are hiring. If youre stuck at home and looking for work, we have some suggestions.

The US Census Bureau

The Census Bureau is on an operational pause, but still hiring temporary staff members to help complete the 2020 Census. Positions are likely to begin starting in May, but applications are being accepted now.

Visit the 2020 Census career page for more info on positions and how to apply.

Susquehanna Township EMS

Susquehanna Township is looking to hire a full-time emergency medical technician. Click here for more info.

SAS Retail Service

SAS Retail is hiring nationwide for a variety of positions, including supervisors, merchandizers, program directors and coordinators. Click here for details on positions and how to apply in our area.

Messiah Lifeways

Messiah Lifeways in Mechanicsburg is hiring for several positions, including resident assistants, certified nursing assistants, at-home caregivers, housekeepers and laundry assistants. More information can be found at the Messiah Lifeways career page.

Sheetz

The gas station and convenience store chain announced that it would be raising hourly pay rates by $3 an hour for its 17,000 store workers through April 23, and that the deadline for that raise would be re-evaluated as the COVID-19 crisis continued.

The company has over 1,300 job openings across all of its stores, including openings in our region. Check out the jobs page on the Sheetz website to do a search of the area near you.

Office Depot

The Office Depot distribution center in Newville is hiring equipment operators and warehouse associates, with roughly 13 positions open. Interested parties can contact Patrick Graddick at 404-934-7071, and interviews and hiring can be done over the phone.

Griswold Home Care

The non-medical home care service is hiring certified nursing assistants and other home care providers. Information on positions and how to apply can be found at the Griswold Home Care website or by calling 717-234-4009.

CVS

Prescriptions, cough drops, cleaning products, snacks - its easy to see why pharmacies and convenience stores are pivotal right now. CVS has announced that the company is planning to fill 50,000 full-time, part-time and temporary positions across the nation, including in Pennsylvania. Its current employees are also going to be collecting bonuses of $150-$500 during the coronavirus pandemic.

Get more info here: CVS will pay bonuses to employees required to work during coronavirus outbreak

You can also search for jobs by area through the CVS Health website.

Amazon

Amazon announced plans to hire an additional 100,000 people across the country, and that their employees would be earning an additional $2 an hour until the end of April, bumping them up to at least $17 an hour for work in warehouses, delivery centers and Whole Foods grocery stores..

Walmart

The massive retail chain Walmart is issuing COVID-19 bonuses to employees, giving out $300 to full-time employees and $150 to part-time staff. And its also looking to hire 150,000 nationally, with over 5,300 of those jobs coming to Pennsylvania.

You can read more about the increase in hires here: Walmart plans to hire more than 5,000 employees in Pa. because of pandemic shopping and give out bonuses

Applications at Walmart, which usually take up to two weeks, are being accelerated to a 24-hour process in order to expedite the hiring process and meet demand for new staff. You can get more info at careers.walmart.com.

Giant

The grocery store chain has announced the addition of temporary and part-time work to meet the growing demand during the state-wide shutdown, with the potential for continued or expanded employment opportunities.

Read more about Giants hiring expansion here: Giant hiring temp, part-time workers to meet demand from coronavirus shopping surge

An online application can be found here.

Wegmans, Weis and other grocery chains

With the rush for food, cleaning supplies and other essentials, many grocery stores are looking to expand their workforce, at least temporarily. Most chains have altered their hours in order to allow for re-stocking emptied shelves and sanitizing the store - and they need more hands to do it.

The Pennsylvania Food Merchant Association has a list of grocery stores that have announced a need for more staff, including Wegmans, Aldi, ShopRite, Giant Eagle and Weis. Click here to see the full list and find links to the companies hiring pages.

Keystone Human Services

Keystone Humans Services operates beyond Pennsylvania, but the offices in this state are currently hiring for work in assisting those with intellectual disabilities, autism, mental health and children and family services.

There are several dozen positions currently open in direct care/community support services, in addition to several other positions, located in several offices throughout the state. To do a search by area, visit the Keystone Human Services website.

Chewy

Florida-based pet food company is looking to hire 360 people to work at their Silver Spring Township warehouse, primarily in positions such as fulfillment and forklift operations. The jobs are full-time and come with benefits, and the company offers virtual interview options.

Details can be found at chewy.com/jobs.

Friendship Community

Friendship Community in Lititz is a Christian nonprofit group that provides support services for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The group oversees 26 residential group homes and two day programs in Lancaster and Lebanon counties.

The company is looking to hire between 10 and 15 full-time team members and as many as 25 part-time employees. Details on job requirements and a link to submit applications can be found on the Friendship Communitys employment page on their website.

Instacart

Going to the grocery store is still vital, but anywhere that people gather can potentially be a vector for infection. Which is why Instacart, the grocery delivery service, is looking to add 300,000 full-service shoppers in North America, including Pennsylvania.

Like Uber or Lyft drivers, the majority of Instacart shoppers are treated as independent contractors. However, the company does employ some part-time employees, and claims it will offer sick leave to any employees who contract the coronavirus.

Read more about Instacarts hiring plans here, or click here to visit their hiring page (the website requires registration and login info).

Ollies Bargain Outlets

As they sell groceries, cleaning products and other essentials, Ollies stores are still open for business and looking to add positions at stores in Harrisburg, Mechanicsburg and York, as well as their York distribution center.

Information can be found at the Ollies Bargain Outlets careers page.

Pizza Hut

Like many restaurants, Pizza Hut is still open for takeout and delivery - and as pizza restaurants frequently specialize in takeout and delivery service, they are also looking to fill some positions in Pennsylvania, among the 30,000 they are hoping to fill nationwide.

You can click here to do a search for Pizza Hut positions in our state.

Do you know of other employers who are looking to hire during this crisis? Share them with us! We will add to this story and update as we find more opportunities. Send your job listings to sadams@pennlive.com with the subject line Now Hiring.

More on the coronavirus:
The Nigerian government has deleted a tweet posted on Wednesday via the verified Twitter handle of the Ministry of Finance Budget and National Planning begging the founder of Tesla, Elon Musk for ventilators.

In the tweet, which has drawn a lot of criticisms, the ministry begged the South African billionaire for between 100 and 500 ventilators to assist in the growing number of coronavirus cases in the country.

The ministry was responding to a statement by the billionaire of his companys decision to send FDA-approved ventilators to hospitals worldwide.

The tweet, appealing for help for a country where coronavirus cases are gradually rising, elicited criticisms from embarrassed Nigerians who questioned the whereabouts of the billions of naira donated by Nigerian billionaires to fight the pandemic.

As of Wednesday, Nigerias coronavirus cases had shot up to 174, with two deaths.

The backlash from Nigerians apparently forced the ministry to delete the tweet and issue a statement saying it was an unauthorised post.

An unauthorised post was made on the verified twitter handle of the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning. The fact of the post is regrettable because of which it was brought down. We have made sure our internal processes are strengthened that such doesnt happen again. The error is highly regrettable, a statement by Yunusa Abdullahi, the media aide to the minister of finance, read.

Although the ministry described the post as regrettable, supporters of the government defended the tweet saying other countries such as Ukraine also asked for help.

Bashir Ahmad, President Muhammadu Buharis assistant on New Media, amplified the ministrys appeal through his social media handle.

Hello Elon, I woke up to this your tweet all over the TL, in this period of worldwide emergency getting ventilators is pretty hard no matter how much money you get, and thats understandable! Nigeria, my dear country is in need. Kindly send 100s here, we really need them, thanks, Mr Ahmad wrote in response to Mr Musks tweet.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday criticised the government for 'unplanned' implementation of the countrywide lockdown that she said had caused 'chaos and pain' to millions of migrant workers.

IMAGE: People carry essentials during a nationwide lockdown in the wake of coronavirus pandemic, at Azadpur market in New Delhi, on Thursday. Photograph: Shahbaz Khan/PTI Photo

Calling for availability of all necessary equipment for medical professionals, she said the onus lies on the government to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness.

Addressing a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) through video conferencing, Gandhi said the country was in the midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis which can be overcome only if everyone acts in solidarity.

"The magnitude of the challenge is daunting but our resolve to overcome it must be greater," she said, calling upon Congress governments, frontal organisations, leaders and workers to offer help to those at risk during the pandemic.

The Congress chief noted that the COVID-19 crisis has caused suffering across the world but it has also 'reaffirmed the bonds of brotherhood' that unite humanity.

She said in India, the poor and disadvantaged have been most vulnerable to the consequences of the pandemic.

"We must come together for their sake and do all we can to support them through the difficult days that lie ahead," she said.

Describing as 'heartbreaking' the sight of lakhs of people walking for hundreds of kilometres without food or shelter, she criticised the government for its 'unplanned' implementation of the nationwide lockdown and causing hardships to the poor.

"The 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India," she noted.

She said that as far as the COVID-19 virus is concerned, there is no alternative to constant and reliable testing.

"This is the most effective way to combat it. Our doctors, nurses, and health workers need all the support possible," she said.

Gandhi also called for the provision of Personal Protection Equipment to doctors and paramedics 'on a war footing', besides ventilators and breathing equipment, isolation beds and designated hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients.

"The onus lies on governments to ensure that the spread of infection and casualties are not caused owing to lack of infrastructure or preparedness," she said.

The Congress president said COVID-19 does not differentiate between political ideology, religion, caste, age or gender.

"The choices we make today will have a direct impact tomorrow on our family, neighbourhood, community, environment and nation. How effectively we meet this challenge, how we protect all sections of our society, specially the most vulnerable among us will define us for generations to come. Only if we act together in solidarity, we will overcome," Gandhi said.

She also called upon the Centre to publish and make available details of designated hospitals, number of beds, quarantine and testing facilities, as well as information regarding the availability of medical supplies to the general public.

Highlighting the plight of farmers who have faced the wrath of inclement weather this season, she said they are now confronted with having to cope with the harvesting season.

They urgently require availability of fertilizers and pesticides, access to easy lines of credit, forward guidance in preparing for the planting of the kharif crop, she said, calling upon the government to provide remunerative prices for their produce to survive the present economic onslaught.

Gandhi said Medium and Small-Scale Enterprises are now gravely threatened as they have been hit hardest by the economic fallout of coronavirus and the related lockdown.

The livelihood of crores of our citizens has been imperiled, she noted.

"The government needs to put in place a comprehensive strategy to manage this crisis," she said.

"They are already facing tremendous hardship due to hunger and lack of health facilities. As a nation, we owe them our full and constructive support," she said, highlighting the plight of workers in the unorganised sector.

The Congress president also said the middle classes are vulnerable amid wage cuts, job losses across all sectors of economy, high petrol diesel and gas prices are causing them acute distress.

"I urge the Central government to prepare and publish a Common Minimum Relief Programme," she said, adding that this is vital and will help alleviate several of concerns that currently afflict all people.

Congress playing 'petty politics': BJP hits back

Accusing Congress president Sonia Gandhi of playing "petty politics" over the government's efforts to combat coronavirus, top Bharatiya Janata Party leaders on Thursday rejected her criticism of the lockdown as "brazen lie" and asked the opposition party to play a responsible role.

BJP president J P Nadda, Home Minister Amit Shah, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad were among the senior leaders of the ruling party to hit out at the Congress, with Shah asking it to think of national interest and stop "misleading" the people.

India's efforts under Prime Minister Narendra Modi to combat the virus is being praised world over, they said, asserting that he is taking everyone, including all states, along in this fight.

Nadda asked the Congress to put up a united front in the nation's fight against the endemic and said this was not time for petty politics. Gandhi's comments will weaken this battle, he added.

Top BJP leaders' broadside against the opposition came after Gandhi at a Congress Working Committee meeting slammed the Union government for its "unplanned" implementation of the 21-day lockdown.

Hitting back, Shah accused the Congress of playing "petty politics" over the novel coronavirus outbreak and asked it to think about national interest and not mislead the people.

"Under PM Narendra Modi's leadership, India's efforts to fight the coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. One hundred and thirty crore Indians are united to defeat COVID-19. Yet, the Congress is playing petty politics. High time they think of national interest and stop misleading people," he said in a statement.

The former BJP president said the Congress has this "old habit" of always walking a different path in matters of national interest, and that it has sought to divide the country for its "selfish interests".

"When will the Congress put national interest above its selfish politics," Shah asked.

The Congress president, Nadda said, is being "insensitive and indecent" in her comments.

"This is not the time for politics but to serve the nation unitedly. We have to fight this together and win it. The statement of the Congress president will weaken India's battle. Her comments that the lockdown was implemented without preparation is a brazen lie and defy facts," Nadda said.

"The entire country is today fighting decisively and unitedly against COVID-19 under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At such a time, Sonia Gandhi's statement is condemnable, insensitive, indecent and irresponsible," he added.

The BJP president said Modi is taking along all state governments to lead the fight of "team India" against the pandemic and asked the Congress to play the role of a responsible political party in this difficult time.

The Indian government's efforts are being praised across the world, he said.

Javadekar said the need of the hour for everyone is to join hands and to take on the pandemic unitedly.

There will be time for politics after the coronavirus is defeated, this should not be done now, he told reporters.

Prasad said the country is showing "united resolve" in the fight against the coronavirus and, at such a time, it seems shocking in many ways that Gandhi has chosen to question the lockdown with her criticism that it was announced without preparation.

"India is facing challenging times. The need of the hour is that everybody forgetting political divide should speak in one voice and manifest united determination. For the Congress to raises question on this life-saving initiative of lockdown is not only regrettable but also painful," he said.

Despite hardships, people have accepted this "willingly and wholeheartedly", Prasad said, asserting that Modi announced this with due consultation with experts.
"May Almighty God bless the people of Azerbaijan and grant each of you good health, happiness and a long life!" said Azerbaijan's First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva in a post on her official Instagram page.

The Instagram post says: "Today a flock of cranes was flying in the sky of Absheron! Cranes are a symbol of health, happiness and longevity! May Almighty God bless the people of Azerbaijan and grant each of you good health, happiness and a long life!"
NEW YORK  The economic damage from the coronavirus crisis piled up as an unprecedented 6.6 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits, and the competition for masks and other protective gear intensified amid growing evidence that people who are infected but have no symptoms can spread the virus.

The staggering new unemployment claims, announced Thursday, double those of last week's previous record high and bring to 10 million the number of people who have lost their jobs in the U.S. in just two weeks because of the outbreak.

They also almost certainly signal the onset of a severe global recession.

With large portions of America under lockdown to try to contain the scourge, job losses could reach as high as 20 million and the unemployment rate could spike to as high as 15% by the end of the month, many economists have said.

The mounting economic fallout came amid a worldwide race to protect people against unwitting coronavirus carriers.

A study by researchers in Singapore on Wednesday estimated that 10% of new infections may be sparked by people who carry the virus but have not yet developed symptoms.

In response, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed how it defines the risks of infection, saying essentially that anyone may be a carrier, with or without symptoms. But neither it nor the World Health Organization changed its stand that most people do not need to wear masks.

Still, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti recommended the city's 4 million people wear masks, saying even a "tucked-in bandanna" could slow the spread of the virus and remind people to keep their distance from each other.

"I know it will look surreal," he said, donning a mask. "We're going to have to get used to seeing each other like this."

CORONAVIRUS IN OREGON: THE LATEST NEWS

Governments also faced off over precious protective gear. A top health official in France's hard-hit eastern region said American officials swooped in at a Chinese airport to spirit away a planeload of masks that France had ordered.

"On the tarmac, the Americans arrive, take out cash and pay three or four times more for our orders, so we really have to fight," Dr. Jean Rottner, an emergency room doctor in Mulhouse, told RTL radio.

Nine leading European university hospitals warned Thursday they will run out of essential medicines for COVID-19 patients in intensive care in less than two weeks. The European University Hospital Alliance said countries should cooperate, not compete, to ensure a steady supply.

President Donald Trump acknowledged that the federal stockpile is nearly depleted of the protective equipment needed by doctors and nurses.

"We're going to have a couple of weeks, starting pretty much now, but especially a few days from now, that are going to be horrific," he said.

In Japan, where masks are a household staple, the government planned to mail two gauze masks each to the country's 50 million households.

Altogether, close to 1 million people around the world have contracted the virus and more than 48,000 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University. Over 200,000 have recovered.

Spain reported a record number of daily virus-related deaths, 950 in 24 hours, bringing its total deaths to about 10,000, despite signs that the infection rate is slowing. Italy had the most virus deaths in the world at over 13,000,

Over 200,000 people have been infected in the U.S., and the death toll climbed past 5,100.

"How does it end? And people want answers," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in the state that become the worst hot spot in the nation. "I want answers. The answer is nobody knows for sure."

Cuomo said projections suggest the crisis in New York will peak at the end of April, with a high death rate continuing through July.

New York state's coronavirus death toll doubled in 72 hours to more than 1,900 on Wednesday. Cuomo has complained that states are competing against each other for protective gear and breathing machines, or being outbid by the federal government, in a competition he likened to being on eBay.

In Greece, authorities placed an entire refugee camp of 2,400 people under quarantine after discovering that one-third of the 63 contacts of just one infected woman tested positive  and none had showed symptoms.

The real figures are believed to be much higher because of testing shortages, differences in counting the dead and mild cases that have gone unreported. Critics also say some governments have been deliberately under-reporting cases in order to avoid criticism.

Frank Ulrich Montgomery, chairman of the World Medical Association, called China's recent low figures on infections "nonsense" but added that many countries are working with uncertain data.

In Italy, a new study found a hidden toll from coronavirus in the province of Bergamo, more than doubling the official number of dead there to a new estimate of 4,500.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. But for others, especially older adults and people with health problems, it can cause severe symptoms like pneumonia.

People in Wuhan, the Chinese city was once the epicenter of the crisis, are starting to return to work, tracked by a color-coded smartphone app that shows if they are free of symptoms.

Green means the user is symptom-free; it is required to board a subway, check into a hotel or enter the city of 11 million. Serious travel restrictions still exist for those who have yellow or red symbols.

 The Associated Press

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"Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak" is now streaming on Netflix. (Netflix)

Not if but when.

Its the rallying cry uttered over and over again by the doctors, scientists, humanitarian workers and public health officials profiled in Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak. Structured like a globe-trotting thriller, the Netflix documentary series follows dedicated men and women on the front lines of the battle against the next devastating disease to ravage the human population  an event they are all certain is just around the corner.

Turns out they were right.

In a freakish coincidence of timing, Pandemic premiered on Netflix in late January, just as the novel coronavirus was beginning its rampage. Over six episodes, the series issues uncomfortably prescient warnings about the risk of a new respiratory virus that could, within a matter of months, overwhelm the planet. It brings epidemiological science to life in unexpected ways  not with dry data but through compelling characters located in far-flung, seemingly unconnected places, from a crowded animal market in Vietnam to an under-resourced hospital in rural Oklahoma.

There were already a lot of scary science documentaries where you had people sitting in a room talking about the potential for a new virus to spread around the world, says executive producer Sheri Fink, a reporter for the New York Times with experience in infectious disease. (She covered the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009 and the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014.) We thought we would try to go around the world and give a sense of the lives of these people who felt passionate [about] and devoted their lives to trying to detect pandemics.

These subjects include Susan Flis, a retired nurse who volunteers to give out flu shots at the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona; Jacob Glanville, an entrepreneur trying to develop a universal flu vaccine; Michel Yao, a doctor with the World Health Organization attempting to contain an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and Dr. Syra Madad, the infectious disease specialist preparing New Yorks municipal hospitals for the next pandemic.

Story continues

Scientists and healthcare workers are the storys heroes but there are also antagonists: One story line follows Caylan Wagar, a home-schooling mother of five and anti-vaccine activist in Oregon who, in the midst of a historic measles outbreak, fights against stricter immunization laws. The documentary shows how a constellation of distinct forces including a growing distrust of scientific authority, global instability and a lack of funding for public health infrastructure makes us more vulnerable to a deadly new disease.

Filmed over the course of the 2018-2019 flu season, Pandemic is full of what-if scenarios  many involving Madads work in New York City  that have now come to fruition. Minutes into the first episode, a team of medical workers covered head to toe in protective gear run through a simulation to test their readiness for a major flu outbreak in the city. Madad, who is overseeing the drill, warns them: If youre not protected, if you cant protect yourself, then how are you going to protect others? Later, she lays out a hypothetical scenario in which a single traveler arriving by plane in New York City could trigger an overwhelming outbreak that would, within weeks, incapacitate the city. Shes also seen pleading with politicians about resources for pandemic preparedness.

Sound familiar?

The work of prevention and preparedness  its challenging to make that real to people before the bad thing happens and makes people care about it, says Fink.

Isabel Castro, one of the series' directors, recalls the apathetic response she got from friends and family when she told them about the project she was working on. Everyone would be like, Oh you're making a show about the flu? They would talk about it dismissively and I would be like, No, this is a big deal. So it's very surreal for these same people now to be watching the show and to be like, Oh my God. I can't believe it happened in our lifetime.

Production wrapped a few months before the coronavirus outbreak began in China. Ironically, it was a relatively mild flu season in the United States, but even a mild flu season is enough to overwhelm Holly Goracke, the only doctor at a hospital in Jefferson County, Okla.

We didn't want the flu season to be bad, says Castro, But at the same time it was difficult because we were talking about all of these worst-case scenarios and then not necessarily seeing it on the ground.

Still, Castro adds, I remember feeling a growing paranoia over the course of filming. Director Doug Shultz documented an outbreak of H1N1 in Rajasthan, India. He had to wear a mask while filming doctors and patients in crowded isolation wards. It's very strange [to] look back and see that we sort of took this trip through exactly what is happening right now, he says.

One memory has stuck with Shultz even though it didnt make the final cut of the documentary: He followed hospital workers as they took buses to poor areas of the region and put on plays to teach proper hand-washing techniques and other basic hygiene to children. I keep being haunted by that, he says. I feel like those lessons are going to be around for a long time, for all of us.

The filmmakers have been in touch with the scientists and healthcare workers profiled in Pandemic," nearly all of whom have trained their efforts on fighting the coronavirus outbreak. Castro says she's gotten text messages from Flis, a retired nurse who has 16 years of working with ventilators and is contemplating returning to the border. Glanville has reoriented his focus to the coronavirus and says his company has made strides toward a cure. Madad has been on the front lines in New York City.

For her part, Fink is not exactly surprised to witness the most dire predictions in the documentary come true. Its strange to hear people saying, Oh my God, we never could have imagined it. The experts were very aware this could happen at any time." But, she concedes, "It feels different to be in it than to imagine it.

Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak'

Where: Netflix



When: Any time



Rating: TV-14 (may be unsuitable for children under the age of 14)
(Newser)  Global demand for oil has disappeared during the pandemic, even as the supply side seems to ignore that reality and keep rolling along. There's still a price war going on between Russia and Saudi Arabia, CNN reports. Prices have plunged; a trading house bid negative 19 cents per barrel earlier this month, per Bloomberg, effectively making an offer to dispose of it. "The market is starting to signal that not only is there no demand for this crude, eventually there could be nowhere for it to go," an analyst said. Storage space is running out. "The price is trying to go to a level to force companies to keep the oil in the ground. If it has to go negative to incentivize that behavior, then it will," the analyst said.

story continues below

President Trump said Tuesday that he discussed the situation with the leaders of Russia and Saudi Arabia, per the Wall Street Journal. The chances of demand increasing soon seem to worsen Wednesday, when new surveys showed factories in the US, Asia and Europe have slashed production and jobs faster than at any time since the financial crisis. US oil prices dropped Wednesday after climbing the day before, and Saudi Arabia said it's producing about 2 million barrels a day more than it was a month ago. Citing forecasts showing nearly one-fourth of demand evaporating during the pandemic, resolving the price war alone won't bring a quick solution, an analyst said: "Even if we get some kind of agreement, it will be difficult to balance the market for a while." (Read more oil prices stories.)
In a phone interview from his home, where he has been in self-isolation, Dr. Zelenko, who goes by Zev, described a dizzying week filled with calls from media and health officials from countries including Israel, Ukraine and Russia, all seeking information about his treatment. Some world leaders, including Brazils president, Jair Bolsonaro, are also talking up some of the same drugs as a cure.

Its a very surreal moment, said Dr. Zelenko, who has been practicing medicine for 16 years. Im a simple country doctor, you know. I dont have connections.

The online spread of his treatment plan may have real-world consequences as countries consider testing the drugs he recommends on patients. Their popularity has also spurred shortages of hydroxychloroquine, which is used to treat lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and other chronic diseases.

In New Yorks tight-knit Hasidic community, Dr. Zelenkos sudden fame has caused tensions. Shortly after he posted on YouTube, a group of village officials wrote an open letter pleading with him to stop. They said he had exaggerated the extent of the coronavirus outbreak in Kiryas Joel, using a small sample of his patients to predict that as many as 90 percent of village residents would get the virus.

Dr. Zelenkos videos have caused widespread fear that has resulted in the discrimination against members of the Hasidic community throughout the region, the officials wrote, disputing the figure.

Critics have accused Dr. Zelenko of getting ahead of scientific research. Several small studies, including a controversial French one of 20 coronavirus patients, have found that hydroxychloroquine may be effective against the coronavirus. This week, doctors in China said it had helped to speed the recovery of a small number of patients who were mildly ill from the coronavirus. But other studies have contradicted those findings, or have been inconclusive.

Anyone who tells you these drugs work, or dont work, is not basing that view on science, said David Juurlink, the head of the division of clinical pharmacology at the University of Toronto. Theres reason to be optimistic, and theres also reason to be pessimistic.
Patti LuPone was feeling nostalgic this Wednesday as she hunkered down at home amid the coronavirus lockdowns.

The 70-year-old Broadway legend delighted her fans by reprising her Sunset Boulevard role as the deranged ex-movie star Norma Desmond.

Wandering madly around her basement in full costume, Patti sang a stretch of one of the character's big songs With One Look.

Looking back: Patti LuPone was feeling nostalgic this Wednesday as she hunkered down at home amid the coronavirus lockdowns

At the end of the video Patti delivered the iconic line in which Norma denies her star power has dwindled, snapping: 'I am big! It's the pictures that got small.'

The original 1950 movie Sunset Boulevard, starring the real faded silent movie star Gloria Swanson as Norma, was adapted into the stage musical in the 1990s.

Two years ago Patti finally ended her decades-long feud with the musical's composer and producer Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Although Patti played Norma in the original London production and was signed to reprise the role in New York, she was replaced for Broadway by Glenn Close.

Icon: The 70-year-old Broadway legend delighted her fans by reprising her Sunset Boulevard role as the deranged ex-movie star Norma Desmond

Ranging about: Wandering madly around her basement in full costume, Patti sang a stretch of one of the character's big songs With One Look

Before Patti's firing, Glenn played the role in Los Angeles to critical acclaim while Patti was still performing in Sunset Boulevard in London.

In her memoir Patti was acidic about Glenn's Los Angeles run, writing: 'Glenn Close received rave reviews, but then, she didn't have to sing the same high notes that I did. Andrew lowered the keys for Glenn.'

Patti revealed that after months of rumors she learned of her firing in Liz Smith's gossip column - and responded by trashing her London dressing room.

'I took batting practice in my dressing room with a floor lamp. I swung at everything in sight - mirrors, wig stands, makeup, wardrobe, furniture, everything. Then I heaved the lamp out the second-floor window,' she wrote.

Pulling out the stops: At the end of the video Patti delivered the iconic line in which Norma denies her star power has dwindled saying: 'I am big! It's the pictures that got small'

'Do I think Glenn Close was complicit in what happened to me? Hard to say. But what I do know is that from the time she was announced in April, I never heard from her,' wrote Patti, who became a star in Andrew's show Evita.

Her public comment on Andrew in the wake of her dismissal was: 'I have nothing nice to say about the man, so I choose to say nothing at all.'

His spokesman cited the 'expense of the production' and a 'vocal' push from investors while justifying the decision, according to the New York Times.

Remember when: Although Patti played Norma in the original London production (pictured) and was signed to reprise the role in New York, she was replaced for Broadway by Glenn Close

Patti had to continue playing the show in London after learning of her replacement and wrote later: 'Paradoxically, I think I was a better Norma after I got fired.'

She quipped: 'The Philadelphia Inquirer had said I wasn't crazy enough. They should have seen me during that last month.'

Glenn earned praise as Norma on Broadway, winning a Tony in 1995, but the show was so costly to put up that it still lost money even after running over two years.

Throwback: Patti revealed that after months of rumors she learned of her firing in Liz Smith's gossip column - and responded by trashing her London dressing room

Lavish: Glenn earned praise as Norma on Broadway, winning a Tony in 1995, but the show was so costly to put up that it still lost money even after running over two years

Patti fought Andrew in court and spent her $1 million payout to install what she called the Andrew Lloyd Webber Memorial Pool at her country house.

However she agreed to sing Don't Cry For Me Argentina from Evita for a tribute to Andrew and fellow composer Leonard Bernstein at the 2018 Grammy Awards.

'This is detente, ladies and gentleman,' she said at a rehearsal for the gig before hugging Andrew, according to Michael Riedel's New York Post gossip column.

A year prior Glenn had returned to Broadway as Norma in a limited run of Sunset Boulevard from February to June 2017.
Liquid Fertilizers Market: Global Size, Trends, Competitive, Historical &Forecast Analysis, 2020-2026 Increasing number of research and development activities for new fertilizers in agriculture sector as well as surge in demand of food supplies for serving increasing populations around the globe are expected to boost the growth of liquid fertilizers market over forecast period.

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market is valued at USD 10.88 Billion in 2018 and expected to reach USD 13.81 Billion by 2025 with the CAGR of 3.46% over the forecast period.

Scope of Global Liquid Fertilizers Market Report 

The inorganic substances are produced industrially and introduced into the soil in a liquid state. The Liquid fertilizers include nitrogenous fertilizers, anhydrous liquid ammonia, aqueous ammonia, ammoniates, concentrated solutions of ammonium nitrate, urea, and complex fertilizers containing two or three basic plant food elements (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) in various proportions. Liquid fertilizers are rich in growth hormones and micro nutrients and are widely used for rowing crops such as maize. Fertilizers containing sodium, potassium and phosphorous are able to dissolve quickly in water and can be applied easily which eventually saves the application cost and allows the utilization of fertilizers. Ammoniates require vessels that are made of stainless steel, aluminum, or plastic or have an anticorrosion coating.

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Global liquid fertilizers market report is segmented on the basis of type, application, and by regional & country level. Based on type, global Liquid Fertilizers market is classified as the vegetables, grain, fruit and others. Based upon application, global liquid fertilizers market is classified into synthetic liquid fertilizers and organic liquid fertilizers.

The regions covered in this liquid fertilizers market report are North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World. On the basis of country level, market of clinical decision support system is sub divided into U.S., Mexico, Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Italy, China, Japan, India, South East Asia, GCC, Africa, etc.

Key Players for Global Liquid Fertilizers Market Report-

Some major key players for global liquid fertilizers market are Agrium Incorporated, Yara International ASA, Israel Chemical, Rural Liquid Fertilizers, K+S Aktiengesellschaft, Triangle Chemical Company, Haifa Chemicals, Compo Expert GmbH, Kugler Company, Agro Liquid, Plant Food Company Incorporated, Nutri-Tech Solutions, Planet Natural, Tessenderlo Group, Kay-Flo, Agro tiger and Foxfarm Fertilizer.

IFFCO launches nano-tech based fertilisers for on-field trials.

Nov 03, 2019: -Fertilizer has been major IFFCO on Sunday introduced its nano-technology based products  nano nitrogen, nano zinc and nano copper for on- field trials as part of its efforts to cut usage of chemical fertilizers and boost farmers income. Hence, the environment sociable products have been introduced for the first time in India and have potential to reduce usage of conventional chemical fertilizers by 50 per cent besides raising crop output by 15-30 per cent, IFFCO said in a statement. These nano products were launched at an event held at its unit in Kalol, Gujarat by Union Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Sadananda Gowda. However, the IFFCO also invited progressive farmers (34 in total) from each and every state of India including Padma Shri awardee farmers for the event in order to introduce them to the new nano products and start simultaneous field trials of these products across India. These products have been researched and developed indigenously at the IFFCO Nano Biotechnology Research Centre (NBRC) at Kalol Unit.

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Global Liquid Fertilizers Market Dynamics 

The rapidly increasing demand for liquid fertilizers market is due to the need for micro nutrients for soil efficiency and escalating growth for bio fuels and high quality yield are factors propelling the market. Fruits and vegetables exhibit high potential and their production is becoming intensive and vertically integrated due to continuous technological advancements and mounting demands for them. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the global demand for the consumption of agricultural food, feed and fuel has been increased at higher rate. It was estimated that the global demand of farmland productivity has rose at potential rate in 2017 the productivity of corn and wheat was 200 million tons per year and is increasing at rapid pace globally. Additionally, investments by the government and private players, increasing research and development activities and new product developments are projected to steer growth in global liquid fertilizers market. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), almost 800 million people are chronically hungry and 2 billion suffer micronutrient deficiencies by 2030, which also increases the demand of the market. However, high cost associated with handling and lack of awareness regarding the benefits associated with use of the liquid fertilizers in various developing countries is expected to hamper growth of market over the forecast period. The growth of nitrogen fertilizers market is highly driven by elements such as increasing population number eventually rise in demand of food production and level of yield in limited space to meet the need of people.

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market Regional Analysis 

Geographically, North America is dominating the market with highest share in terms of profits in liquid fertilizers market across the global. North America has a significant share of liquid fertilizers globally and the huge demand in this region has led to increased competition and companies are investing in R&D for innovative liquid fertilizer products. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in U.S, the investment in agricultural R&D continues to be the most productive investments, around 80 percent of the necessary production increases would come from increases in yields and cropping intensity by 2050. The growth of nitrogen fertilizers market is highly driven by elements such as increasing population number eventually rise in demand of food production and level of yield in limited space to meet the need of people. The Asia-Pacific region is projected to have a speedy growth in coming years owing to economic growth and developmental activities in the region. With robust population base, the need for food is growing unprecedentedly in this region and the farmers are compelled to enhance their agricultural output from the limited available land. Liquid fertilizers market finds a promising future in Europe because of the growing demand for renewable energy in the region and steps taken by EFMA (European Fertilizer Manufacturers Association) for the implementation of product stewardship program for enhancing agricultural productivity.

Key Benefits for Global Liquid Fertilizers Market Reports

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market report covers in depth historical and forecast analysis.

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market research report provides detail information about Market Introduction, Market Summary, Global market Revenue (Revenue USD), Market Drivers, Market Restraints, Market opportunities, Competitive Analysis, Regional and Country Level.

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market report helps to identify opportunities in market place.

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market report covers extensive analysis of emerging trends and competitive landscape.

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Global Liquid Fertilizers Market Segmentation 

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market: By Type

Vegetables

Grain

Fruit

Others

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market: By Application

Synthetic Liquid Fertilizers

Organic Liquid Fertilizers

Global Liquid Fertilizers Market: by Regional & Country Analysis

North America

U.S.

Mexico

Canada

Europe

UK

France

Germany

Italy

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

Southeast Asia

Latin America

Brazil

The Middle East and Africa

GCC

Africa

Rest of Middle East and Africa

About us: Brandessence Market Research and Consulting Pvt. ltd.

Brandessence market research publishes market research reports & business insights produced by highly qualified and experienced industry analysts. Our research reports are available in a wide range of industry verticals including aviation, food & beverage, healthcare, ICT, Construction, Chemicals and lot more. Brand Essence Market Research report will be best fit for senior executives, business development managers, marketing managers, consultants, CEOs, CIOs, COOs, and Directors, governments, agencies, organizations and Ph.D. Students. We have a delivery center in Pune, India and our sales office is in London.

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I look forward to helping customers around the world connect to all their banks and Fides partners with user-friendly features and functionality, furthering innovative product design, and contributing to the companys success.  Rodrigue Gabriel

Fides Treasury Services Ltd., the global leader in multi-bank connectivity and communications, has announced the hire of Rodrigue Gabriel as Head Product Management & Solutions.

Gabriel has experience working with leading treasury management systems, software and solution providers including Sage-XRT, Finastra and ION Treasury and banks including BNP Paribas and Natixis. Most recently, he was vice president of liquidity management at Intellect Design Arena. Gabriel will draw on his 15-year career leading transaction banking and treasury management projects, products and teams in the UK, France, Germany, India and the Americas to lead Fides product strategy and execution of that strategy.

Rods background across various financial industry sectors gives him a unique understanding of business needs as well as product management requirements, said Fides COO Roman Muller. Those insights will help keep Fides on the leading edge of product innovation.

Reporting directly to Fides CIO Alexander Runge with a dotted line to Muller, Gabriel will drive the vision and strategy for the industry-leading Fides multi-banking product portfolio, using his wealth of expertise to determine innovative new ways to deliver superior customer-centric solutions.

Rod brings a wealth of valuable experience to the product management role at Fides, said Runge. We are excited to have him on board, and welcome his strategic viewpoint to take Fides products and services to the next level for our customers and the market.

I am pleased and honored to be part of the Fides family, said Gabriel. I look forward to helping customers around the world connect to all their banks and Fides partners with user-friendly features and functionality, furthering innovative product design, and contributing to the companys success.

ABOUT FIDES

Fides is the global leader in multi-bank connectivity and transaction communications. With the industrys largest bank connectivity network, Fides helps over 3,000 active clients communicate with more than 10,000 banks globally. Our geographic reach spans 170 countries across the Americas, EMEA, and APAC regions.

Committed to helping corporations optimally connect and interact with their banks for over a century, Fides solutions deliver critical multi-bank account statement, payment workflow and reporting capabilities that allow treasury and finance teams to easily, accurately and securely communicate with their banks through any possible channel such as SWIFT, EBICS, SFTP, APIs or any alternative network.

Press Contact: Please email marketing@fides.ch for all press inquiries
WASHINGTON  The Pentagon will release $882 million in withheld payments to Boeing in an effort to mitigate the financial strain of the coronavirus outbreak on the defense contractor.

The U.S. Air Force and Boeing negotiated the release of payments, which were held back due to outstanding flaws with the KC-46 aerial refueling tanker.

"When COVID-19 hit obviously things changed for the entire defense industrial base," Will Roper, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics, told Pentagon reporters Thursday via teleconference.

"Cash flow is everything right now, liquidity is everything, and we've created policies in the Department of the Air Force to get as much cash out of our hands and to industry as possible ... The KC-46 is no exception," he added.

Last January, after a two-year delay, the Air Force received its first two Boeing aerial refueling tankers. And while the Air Force plans to buy 179 tankers, the program has been plagued with a litany of problems, including foreign object debris and issues with the camera system used during the refueling process.

The economic fallout from the coronavirus is the latest blow to Boeing, which along with Airbus dominates commercial aircraft production.

Boeing temporarily shut down production at its factories in the Seattle area and several employees have tested positive for COVID-19. Boeing in January halted production of the 737 Max, which is made in Renton, Washington, to cut costs associated with the aircraft, which has been grounded worldwide for just over a year after two fatal crashes killed 346 people.

What's more, the aviation industry has been especially hit hard by the coronavirus as airlines race to ground hundreds of planes and defer orders to match the collapse in air travel demand.
American actor Kristen Bell shared a timeline of her career and revealed that during the initial days of her career, she was criticised for her looks.

According to Fox News, the 39-year-old actor in a recent interview with Vanity Fair offered a timeline of her career and revealed that in its early days, she was criticised for her looks.

Bell said of her beginnings in show business: "I would get feedback from an audition: Well, you're not pretty enough to play the pretty girl, but you're not quirky enough or weird enough to play the weird girl."

The 'Frozen' actor also told that she didn't exactly know what to think of such comments, "I was like 'OK so does that just mean I can't be an actor? What does that mean?' That's what I was getting feedback on in every single audition."

Luckily, things turned around for Bell.

Kristen said: "I think as I've grown older, those boxes have changed and they've almost gone away. It's this huge grey area now of all these beautiful stories you can tell that have dimensional people that don't have to be one thing."

The 'When in Rome' actor also attributed the change to more open-minded film industry.

Kristen shared noted that it is not the '80s where you have to have the popular girl and then the nerd who gets the guy. It's not that anymore and she is really grateful for that. Bell said.

"It opens up a lot of opportunities for everyone to play and pretend, which is the most fun part," added Bell.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
More than 40 million masks are on the way to help protect frontline health workers after weeks of confusion and fear about the supply of Covid-19 equipment.

Up to 11 privately chartered planes full of personal protective equipment (PPE) - masks, gloves, gowns and visors - are also due to begin landing soon.

The government had recently ordered the release over coming weeks of at least 11 million masks from pandemic reserves, prompting questions by Wellington thinktank the McGuinness Institute on how much PPE was left.

Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield told RNZ on Wednesday more supplies were due to arrive over the next few weeks.

"Last night, we confirmed an order for 41 million additional face masks that will start to arrive on Monday and continue to be delivered over the next six weeks.

"We have also placed an order for an additional 500,000 isolation gowns, 30,000 face shields and 50,000 goggles, which are scheduled to arrive over the coming weeks.

"There is plenty of PPE available in New Zealand."

District Health Boards were leading the distribution of the masks, with the ministry meeting for each of the past three days with health sector unions to reassure them about PPE stocks, and advise them on when workers should use it, Ashley says.

Other PPE for health workers outside of DHBs, such as in medical centres and community health agencies, are also on their way, with the first of three Dreamliners chartered by Whanganui importer Amtech due to land in Auckland from China on Saturday.

A second is due on Sunday, a third next Wednesday.

The triple payload included almost two million masks,150,000 face shields, 100,000 goggles and an unspecified number of gowns - all pre-ordered and paid for, Amtech director Jeremy Anderson says.

Another three flights are being teed up.

The profit margin was low as charters cost a lot and his motivation was to help, Jeremy says.

At least two other companies are also bringing in planes with PPE. In one of those cases, The Warehouse founder Sir Stephen Tindall is using his China sourcing office and personally underwriting the cost of the PPE, being imported with help from toy company Zuru.

Jeremy says the PPE raw material was very difficult to get now.

The whole world is now wanting PPE gear. If it spreads around the third world countries, the demand for PPE is just going to explode.

"And there will come a point where China cannot keep up, and we're waiting a long time [for orders], and that would be a a scary situation."

The market was being hammered by the US, he says.

"I've been even getting calls from contacts in New York for volumes of 10 million masks and 20 million masks ... we could never possibly do those sort of numbers."

Prices are rising. A full-filter N95 mask bulk-bought for 32 cents in China pre-Covid, now costs $2.80.

But the thornier issue for Jeremy is time - logjammed factories pushing back orders ever further.

He was worried in case the Chinese government were to clamp down on PPE exports - "not that it's been mooted".

Ashley says they were looking ahead.

"We are ... following up further channels for additional PPE, for example we are in negotiations to secure an additional 20 million masks per month from another supplier."

New Zealand businesses are exploring ways to produce masks and gowns locally.

However, the raw material - a non-splash, semi-absorbent fabric called 30-50 GSM coated, spun bond polypropylene non-woven - is not made here.

At least one factory, which did not want to be identified, has gone looking but been unable to import any.

The new supplies of PPE will replenish depleted public stocks, with 1.8 million masks having been sent out by DHBs in the last week and about another 9 million poised for distribution.

The McGuinness Institute expressed concern about reserves after pursuing numbers from the ministry and DHBs for weeks.

Just how large the reserves were for each item of PPE remained unclear, institute chief executive Wendy McGuinness says.

"My recommendation is the Office of Auditor-General actually audits the Ministry of Health stock that relates to Covid-19 and makes that audit public, so that all the press, decision-makers, businesses doing purchases, everyone has enormous clarity," says Wendy.

"It has enormous priority because if we don't know what we've got, we won't know what to buy, and we won't know what to ration, and we won't know what to manufacture."

The Ministry of Health says from now, non-health essential services will receive PPE via office supplies company and distributor National Express Products operating under the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment.

Phil Pennington/RNZ
Photo: The Canadian Press A man stands at an exchange office screen showing the currency exchange rates of U.S. Dollar and Euro to Russian Rubles in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, March 10, 2020. Oil prices are plunging after Saudi Arabia started a price war against Russia. The Saudis tried to get the Russians to cut oil production to keep prices from falling even more due to the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin)

President Donald Trump said Thursday that he expects Saudi Arabia and Russia will dramatically cut production and end an oil war that sent energy prices to record lows.

But the Kremlin disputed part of his tweet, leading to skepticism that a deal was imminent.

A global glut in production, coupled with an economy reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, has sent energy prices to lows not seen since 2002. Trump tweeted Thursday that he had spoken with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, just days after talking to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the matter.

Trump tweeted; I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry! He also tweeted that Prince Mohammed bin Salman had spoken with Putin, and later tweeted the presumed production cut could be as high as 15 million barrels.

But Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin and the prince have not spoken recently. "No, there wasn't such a conversation," he said, according to Russian state news agency Tass.

Nevertheless, U.S. benchmark crude climbed more than 20% Thursday after Trump's tweet. Even with those gains, prices are down 60% from the start of the year.

Saudi Arabia called for an urgent meeting of OPEC and non-OPEC producers Thursday, just weeks after triggering the price war with Russia that sent oil prices plummeting.

Russias refusal last month to extend and deepen production cuts with OPEC and its de facto leader Saudi Arabia sparked immediate backlash from Riyadh, where oil policy is largely dictated by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The kingdom slashed oil prices last month and vowed to ramp up production to more than 12 million barrels a day.

The clash is taking place during a period of vastly reduced energy demand. The pandemic arrived with the global economy entering a cycle of slower growth. The confluence has pushed Brent crude oil prices to below $30 a barrel, far below what Saudi Arabia or Russia need to balance their budgets. The price of U.S. crude fell harder than at any point in history, plunging more than 65%, to around $20 per barrel, lower than what many U.S. shale companies can withstand.

In a statement carried on the state-run Saudi Press Agency Thursday, the kingdom said its call for a meeting of major oil producers indicates the countrys support for the global economy at this time, and is in appreciation of Trump and the request made by the United States. It said the purpose of calling a meeting is aimed at reaching a fair agreement to restore balance to the oil market.

The state-run news agency in Saudi Arabia noted that a call took place between Trump and the crown prince, but made no mention of Trumps specific call on Saudi Arabia to cut production.

Trump also has said he will meet with U.S. oil and gas company executives Friday.
TDT | Manama

The Fourth High Criminal Court recently sentenced a duo to five years imprisonment and fined them BD1,000 each for forging banknotes and using them in several commercial shops around Bahrain. The Court also ordered both defendants permanent deportation after they serve their jail terms.

Court files showed that the duo (a Gulf man and an Arab woman) counterfeited several SR500 notes and used them to purchase goods from different shops, and receive the change in genuine Bahraini Dinars.

The case was reported to the police on July 24 last year by their first victim, who informed that the duo cheated him after the female defendant purchased a juicer worth BD8 from the shop he worked at using a fake SR500 bill.

The shopkeeper said that he had returned the remaining amount in Bahraini Dinars as per the request of the woman, who he claimed had also asked to change more Saudi banknotes.

The victim added that he discovered the notes were forged at a nearby money exchange, and he quickly returned to his shop where he saw the duo were still walking around. He further told investigators that he was physically assaulted and yelled at by the duo when he confronted them, adding that they walked away from the spot after beating him.

Further investigations revealed that more complaints were lodged against the duo for similar accusations. A second victim informed the police that the female defendant had purchased a BD8 phone cover from his shop, used a counterfeited note to pay, and collected the remaining change in genuine Bahraini Dinars.

A third victim also reported the same to the police. CCTV footage and the confiscated banknotes proved the duos involvement in the crime. In the interrogation, the female defendant confessed that her male partner had handed over the counterfeited banknotes to her.
Optus has waived phone bills for three months for health workers who have been battling the killer coronavirus.

The plan was announced by Optus chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin on Friday, and she said it was a way to thank the 'heroes on the front line' who have been working tirelessly around the country.

Vodafone will also support health workers, offering two months of free phone service to medical professionals.

Health professionals using Optus will have their phone bills waived for three months as the telco says thanks to the 'heroes on the front line' (pictured: Nurse at Tanunda medical centre screens patients in Barossa Valley)

Vodafone has also announced they will waive phone bills for health professionals for two months (pictured: Healthcare professional speaks on her phone outside pop-up testing clinic in Bondi)

'These are trying times and we recognise that our health workers are putting themselves on the frontline day in day out to protect and help Australians during this pandemic, and we want to say thank you,' Ms Rosmarin said.

'We are so grateful to all the nurses, doctors, and other healthcare workers who are working in unprecedented conditions. So, we will be waiving their Optus mobile bill access charges in recognition of their invaluable support and dedication.

'We understand how much everyone is relying on communications services to keep our communities - including our health professionals - connected.

'We are proud to recognise and support the heroes on the front line who are supporting us.'

Optus has also cancelled Optus Sport subscription fees until May 31 as well as making fixed broadband plans unlimited until the end of May.

The telco has also announced customers including small businesses could put their postpaid mobile charges on hold for up to 90 days and would waive late fees until April 30.

Health workers can sign up on the Optus website to access the free plan.

Vodafone has also dropped late payment fees and service suspensions until after April 30.

Vodafone users who do go over their data allowance between March 31 and May 5, can expect to be charged less than usual.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Telstra have not yet waived phone bills but have introduced a range of other measures to support those struggling amid the pandemic.

Post-paid customers will be entitled to a bonus 25GB of data to use within 30 days of activation.

For those who are working from home and have a broadband plan (either ADSL, NBN or cable), Telstra will offer unlimited data until April 30, with the data being added automatically.

Eligible pensioners with a home phone will get unlimited calls to local, national, 13/1300 and mobile numbers until the end of April.

If you have Telstra and you need bill support, there'll be no late payment fees or service suspension for bills overdue between March 19 and April 30.
New Delhi, April 2 : The Health Ministry on Thursday said that around 400 coronavirus positive cases fo far have been linked to Tablighi Jamaat gathering in Delhi, adding that order had been placed for over 1 crore personal protective equipment (PPE), with stepped up domestic production of N-95 masks.

Ministry Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said tests to identify new cases is in progress, as attendees from the Nizamuddin Markaz in southwest Delhi had since moved to states across the country.

Tamil Nadu has reported 173 positive cases and their epidemiological linkage traced to the Nizamuddin meet.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has said that of the nearly 2,000 persons evacuated from teh Tablighi Jamaat headquarters in Delhi, 1,804 were quarantined and 334 admitted in hospitals.

Agarwal said: "As many as 328 news positive cases and 12 deaths have been reported since Wednesday. A total of 151 patients have recovered." He added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also urged the state governments to manage the coronavirus crisis at the district level.

Responding to a query on shortage of PPEs, Agarwal said that orders have been placed for 1.5 crore PPEs and for 1 crore N95 masks, besides other regular masks.

The official said that domestic manufacturing of N95 masks has been stepped up amid the ongoing crisis.

Agarwal insisted that people should respect medical professionals and healthcare workers who are on the frontline in fighting coronavirus.

"Limited number of doctors have tested positive for COVID-19. It is extremely important to follow infection prevention guidelines at the hospitals," said Agarwal.

He also emphasized that protection of medical professionals and healthcare workers is the government's priority.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Steve Irwins son shares selfie with isolation buddy

Robert Irwin, son of renowned zookeeper Steve Irwin, has shared an isolation selfie that has taken the internet by storm.

In a tweet, the 16-year-old Robert wrote, My self isolation buddy.

My self isolation buddy  pic.twitter.com/Gu7H0ljF3U Robert Irwin (@RobertIrwin) March 31, 2020

In the selfie, one can see him pose with a tortoise named Igloo. The tweet, till now, has received around 86,000 retweets and over 835,000 likes.

As per the official website of the Australian zoo, Igloo is an Aldabra tortoise. According to the Smithsonians National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute, the spices was one of the first to be protected to ensure its survival.

The post comes after Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison urged people to stay at homes and not leave until absolutely necessary. This has been done to curb the spread of the deadly coronavirus. As of now, there have been over 4,800 cases of the disease in the country and 20 people have lost their lives due to it.

Bindi Irwin, Roberts sister got married last month. She had made the headlines after she organised the same shortly before officials issued restrictions for events, which led to mass gatherings.

In a heartwarming Instagram post, she described her wedding story. She says it was a difficult decision to take, as the plans for the special day were much different.

Weve planned this beautiful day for nearly a year and had to change everything, as we didnt have guests at our wedding. This was a very difficult decision but important to keep everyone safe. We wish all of our friends and family could have been there with us, however its lovely that we will be able to share photos and videos, she wrote.
New Delhi: Dawa bhi, dua bhi Auron se faslaa bhi Ghareeb ki khidmat Kamzor ki seva bhi, tweeted legendary actor Dilip Kumar on Wednesday urging people to stay at home amid the coronavirus lockdown. The 97-year-old actor, who was put under quarantine a few weeks ago as a precautionary measure, has been quite actively spreading awareness about the novel coronavirus through tweets. I urge you to stay home, save lives during this COVID-19 pandemic, he wrote while posting the poem.

Take a look:

I urge you to #StayHomeSaveLives during this #COVID19pandemic Dawa bhi, dua bhi

Auron se faslaa bhi

Ghareeb ki khidmat

Kamzor ki seva bhi  Dilip Kumar (@TheDilipKumar) April 1, 2020

In a tweet shared earlier, Dilip Kumar had also cautioned people to protect themselves by staying indoors and follow the guidelines issued by the health departments. He and his wife Saira Banu have been in complete isolation and practicing social distancing.

"I appeal to all of you to protect yourself and others by staying indoors as much as possible. The coronavirus outbreak transcends all boundaries and borders. Follow guidelines issued by health departments, protect yourself and others by limiting your exposure to others," read one of his previous tweets.

Ive been told #coronavirus can spread in #cold as well as #hot weather. My fervent appeal to you: avoid crowded places and unnecessary outdoor exposure. #CoronaVirusUpdate https://t.co/3UMaWRT6c9  Dilip Kumar (@TheDilipKumar) March 18, 2020

Meanwhile, Dilip Kumar also said that Saira Banu is ensuring he did not contract any infection and hence, she decided to put him under home quarantine.

I am under complete isolation and quarantine due to the #CoronavirusOutbreak. Saira has left nothing to chance, ensuring I do not catch any infection.  Dilip Kumar (@TheDilipKumar) March 16, 2020

Dilip Kumar is recuperating from severe backache. Last month, Saira Banu tweeted to inform that he consulted a doctor for the same and is doing better.

The deadly coronavirus pandemic has brought the world to a standstill. In India, the total number of COVID-19 cases reported till Thursday morning is 1,834 with 41 deaths.
Almost half of the coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Punjab have been traced to areas spread over a few kilometers, with these hot spots accounting for 226, or about 14%, of the infections in India so far, according to an analysis of the numbers.

INDORE

Madhya Pradesh has so far reported 86 Covid-19 cases and almost 50% of them, 63, are from Indore, which has for two years been ranked as Indias cleanest city by Central government. Of the 63, 43 cases have been reported within the last three days. Indore is Madhya Pradeshs most populous city with a population of around two million.

Most of the cases in Indore been reported from congested neighbourhoods such as Ranipura, Nayapura, Daulatganj, Hathipala, Chandan Nagar and Khajrana, where maintaining social distancing is a challenge.

A health official said about 50,000 people from these localities are being monitored. More than 650 have already been quarantined while the process is going on to identify others with Covid-19 symptoms, he said on condition of anonymity.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

Indore district collector, Manish Singh, said it is challenging to conduct surveillance in such areas but that the administration has deployed at least 500 people for the purpose. We fear a further increase in cases once more Covid-19 test resukts come, he said. He added that swab test results of about 285 people are awaited.

Only two of the those who tested positive in Indore had a history of foreign travel.

Also read: Genetic sequencing takes lead in Covid-19 vaccine development

The first four cases of coronavirus in Madhya Pradesh were reported from Jabalpur on March 20. Of the four, three belong to a jewellers family, which had visited Dubai. The fourth Covid-19 positive patient had returned from Germany. Four more Covid-19 patients in Jabalpur are the jewellers employees.

KASARAGOD

In Kerala, of the 241 Covid-19 cases, 128 have been reported from Kasaragod in the northern part of the state with a population of 1.3 million. The region has a poor doctor-population ratio of 1: 1500, as against 1: 300 in rest of the state. Experts said Kasaragod is home to a large number of expatriates living in West Asia and added that slack surveillance and poor medical infrastructure has led to such a large number of cases.

An alleged smuggler jumped quarantine and transmitted the disease to many in the city. After his case came to light, customs officials found he had made 14 trips to West Asia over three months.

Officials said at least 8,000 people have returned to Kasargod from West Asia since February 15 and were put under home quarantine. But many violated the quarantine restrictions and aggravated the situation.

Also Read: Biggest challenge is fighting stigma: Dr. Harsh Vardhan

The officials said out of 128 cases in the area, 90 were of those who returned from West Asia or had come in contact with them. A few patients have no travel history or any direct contact with the returnees and officials said this is a cause for worry.

The district is under a complete lockdown and two top government officials are camping in the region to ensure there is no community spread.

We literally pleaded with foreign returnees to remain in their homes for at least 3-4 weeks. Many followed our advice but some flouted it and the district is paying a heavy price. We are fighting with all our might to contain the spread, said Kerala minister E Chandrasekharan, who belongs to the district.

SBS NAGAR

Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar in Punjab accounts for about 45% of the total Covid-19 cases in the state. Most of these cases have been reported from 15 villages and been linked to a religious preacher, who returned from Germany via Italy on March 7 along with two other people.

Officials said the preacher, who held meetings in 15 villages and spread the disease, died on March 19. His test was conduced following his death. The other two have also tested positive for the disease and are now in isolation.

Officials have put about 1,000 people in government quarantine facilities in the area.

Deputy commissioner Vinay Bublani said 361 samples of suspected Covid-19 cases have been taken across the 15 villages and that 19 of them have tested positive. He added that 14 of them are the preachers family members and include his two year-old grandson. No patient has been found positive over past five days. We are hopeful that we will shed this tag of being a hot spot, he said.

Also Read: 800 Jamaat attendees in Karnataka to be quarantined, 2 identified in Andhra

BHILWARA

In Rajasthans textile city, Bhilwara, where two doctors are among those infected, the disease has spread to another 25 people and necessitated a massive screening exercise in a district with a population of 2.8 million. A curfew has also been imposed in the district.

The doctors tested positive for the virus on March 19 and are undergoing treatment. One doctor is a general physician and the other was ICU [intensive care unit] in charge. They were unwell since March 11 or 12 and were still working, said district collector Rajendra Bhatt, who has deployed over 1,000 personnel for contact tracing.

Curfew was lifted on Monday in Bhilwara town as no new cases were reported.

Till Monday, Bhilwara contributed to about half of the 51 cases in Rajasthan. However, by Wednesday, the total Covid-19 cases in the state increased to 93.

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Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 07:55:27|Editor: Liu

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WASHINGTON, April 1 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he will not issue a national stay-at-home order even as coronavirus cases are still surging in the country.

Trump told reporters at a White House Coronavirus Task Force news briefing that he does not intend to do so because different states have different levels of COVID-19 cases.

"States are different and I understand that the governor of Florida, great Governor Ron DeSantis issued one today and that's good, that's great. But there are some states that are different. There are some states that don't have much of a problem," he said.

Initially hesitant to issue a statewide stay-at-home order, DeSantis bowed to pressure and joined a slew of other states in directing residents to "limit movements and all personal interactions outside the home" to those that are necessary. Georgia, Mississippi and Nevada followed suit on the same day.

"You have to look -- you have to give a little flexibility. If you have a state in the Midwest, or if Alaska for example doesn't have a problem, it's awfully tough to say close it down. We have to have a little bit of flexibility," Trump said at the briefing.

Stay-at-home orders issued across the nation now cover at least 294 million people in at least 37 states, 74 counties, 14 cities, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, according to calculations by The New York Times.

The United States now leads the world with more than 200,000 confirmed cases, with the death toll rising to 4,757, showed the latest data from Johns Hopkins University on Wednesday.
The unexpected arrival of tens of thousands of migrants amid the lockdown posed an "unmanageable" crisis for Bihar but it was defused with a number of effective measures, state Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said on Thursday.

The state government decentralised its efforts by turning one school in every panchayat into a quarantine facility, and villagers, keen to avert any spread of the coronavirus pandemic, also wanted the exercise to succeed, he told PTI.

While critics have questioned the Nitish Kumar-led government's measures to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, Modi said few states have taken decisions like Bihar.

Apart from turning one school in every panchayat into a quarantine centre, the state government also decided to test everybody who arrived in the state from abroad after March 18, something no other state has done, he asserted.

Asked if he faults the Arvind Kejriwal government in Delhi for the massive exodus of migrants from the national capital after a nationwide lockdown was imposed on March 24 midnight, the BJP leader said he will not "blame any state" and that these labourers also wanted to go home under the circumstances prevailing then.

The situation, however, could have been managed better, he added.

Migrants, mostly labourers, arrived in such large numbers in Bihar that it was creating chaos, he said.

Over 52000 people arrived, throwing a spanner in the state government's plan to quarantine them at border.

"It was not possible to keep them in camps. We were forced to bring them to their respective villages. We had decided to turn one school in every panchayat into a quarantine centre. Now they have been put up there. Things otherwise could have been unmanageable," Modi said.

This decentralisation effort has elicited support from villagers as well as they fear infection and want these migrants to undergo the protocol put in by the government before entering their homes, he said.

He brushed aside the opposition's attack on the NDA government over a few incidents of people running away from quarantine, some alleging poor facilities.

"In a big country like ours some incidents may happen. It has happened in many states as people are often unwilling to be quarantined. We cannot use police or Army to force the poor. That is why we have promoted quarantine in these schools and also at home," he said.

Bihar has so far reported 24 confirmed coronavirus cases, including one death.

Bihar, Modi added, is the only state which has decided to test everybody who arrived from abroad for coronavirus.

The government has also traced most of the 86 people from the state who had attended a Tablighi Jamaat meeting in Nizamuddin area, which has emerged as a hotspot of the spread of virus, in Delhi.

Bihar, he asserted, took strict measures very early, noting that its assembly session was called off on March 16, and its schools and colleges were already closed by then.

It had announced a lockdown in urban areas on March 22 after the state's first case of coronavirus was reported.

With lakhs of poor migrants from Bihar continuing to remain in different states, the state government has decided to give them Rs 1,000 each to help them irrespective of whether they have ration card or not, the deputy chief minister said.

Their numbers could be 25 lakh or 40 lakh as the government does not know but they all can get help by submitting certain details, he stated, adding that the Bihar government received over 10,000 calls from across the country from these migrants and reverted to each of them.

Over 86 lakh poor pensioners, out of which over 50 lakh are covered by the state government, and over 1.68 crore ration card holders in Bihar are being given Rs 1,000 each, he said, listing measures taken by the Nitish Kumar government to deal with the crisis.

Assembly elections in the state are due later this year, and the handling of the coronavirus crisis by the JD(U)-BJP government in the state is sure to have much bearing on the polls.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Hydroxychloroquine Market: Global Size, Trends, Competitive, Historical &Forecast Analysis, 2020-2026  Increasing prevalence of chronic disease globally is driving the global Hydroxychloroquine market

Global Hydroxychloroquine market is valued at USD XX million in 2019 and expected to reach USD XX million by 2025 with the CAGR of XX% over the forecast period.

Scope of Global Hydroxychloroquine Market Reports 

Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) is a medicinal drug used mainly for the prevention and treatment of types of malaria such as chloroquine sensitive malaria. It is also taken by mouth. It has severe side effects and cannot be sold without any valid prescription from doctor. Even if it has side effects, it is essential in treating rheumatic disease during pregnancy. It belongs to the antimalarial and 4-aminoquinoline families of medication. Even if it is mainly known for malaria, it is also used in treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatic disorders like rheumatoid arthritis, porphyria cutanea tarda, and Q fever. Its alternative name is Hydroxychloroquine sulfate and it is sold in the brand name of Plaquenil, Hydroquin, Axemal (in India), Dolquine, Quensyl and Quinoric.

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Global Hydroxychloroquine Market report is segmented on the basis of type, application, and by regional & country level. Based on type, global Hydroxychloroquine market is classified as USP Standards Grade, EP Standards Grade, Pharmaceutical Standards Grade and others. Based upon end user, global Hydroxychloroquine is classified into uncomplicated malaria, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic discoid lupus erythematosus, systemic lupus erythematosus and others.

The regions covered in this Hydroxychloroquine market report are North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World. On the basis of country level, market of clinical decision support system is sub divided into U.S., Mexico, Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Italy, China, Japan, India, South East Asia, GCC, Africa, etc.

Key Players for Global Hydroxychloroquine Market Reports-

Some major key players for Global Hydroxychloroquine market are Teva, Mylan, Novartis, Cadila healthcare, Torrent Pharma, BSE healthcare, Sandoz, HIKMA, IPCA, Shanghai Pharma, Shenhua Pharm, Sanofi, H-QYN, TAJ Pharma, MAAN Medex, Cinkate, Concordia Healthcare and others.

Due to severity of corona virus Novartis will donate doses of malaria drug hydroxychloroquine to treat patients in the fight against the coronavirus, if it gets approval, the Swiss company said on March 20, 2020.

No vaccines or treatments is approved for the disease, but there is currently a 1,500-person trial, directed by the University of Minnesota, to know whether hydroxychloroquine can prevent or decrease the severity of COVID-19.

Novartis produces the malaria drug, which is also used in treating of lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, at Sandoz unit in the United States. It aims to donate 130 million doses of the medicine and is in negotiation with U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulators over expanding its use for coronavirus.

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Global Hydroxychloroquine Market Dynamics 

Increasing prevalence of chronic diseases worldwide is driving the use of drugs market which also affects positively on Hydroxychloroquine market as it is used in treatment of number of diseases such as uncomplicated malaria, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic discoid lupus erythematosus, and systemic lupus erythematosus as it is commonly prescribed for these diseases which makes this market steady as number of cases on diseases such as malaria is high every year. For instance, according to WHO (World Health Organization) in 2018, an estimated 228 million cases of malaria happened worldwide compared with 251 million cases in 2010 and 231 million cases in 2017. From this it is also estimated that, there is a constant need of Hydroxychloroquine in treating this disease making the market less vulnerable to outside changes. Recent positive research on treatment of novel coronavirus using Hydroxychloroquine came up with positive signs, which is helping in growing demand of this drug from last one month. For example, Teva expects to contribute more than 6 million doses through wholesalers to U.S. hospitals to fulfill urgent demand of coronavirus. The medicines will be shipped by March 31, and more than 10 million can be available within a month. However, the drug has some serious side effects such as headache, drowsiness, visual disturbances, cardiovascular collapse, convulsions, hypokalemia, rhythm and conduction disorders including QT prolongation, ventricular tachycardia, and ventricular fibrillation which restrains the market.

Global Hydroxychloroquine Market Regional Analysis 

North America is accounted for largest market share and dominates the market due to presence of large number of major market players in this region, merger and acquisition performed by these players for expanding in to other regions and growing number of chronic diseases. For example, shares of Mylan MYL, went up to 6% in trading after the drug maker restarted production of hydroxychloroquine-sulfate tablets, which are being thought-of as a possible treatment for people with COVID-19. Mylans hydroxychloroquine-sulfate tablets have FDA approval for malaria, lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis. The company told it will have a supply by mid-April, which could treat about 1.5 million patients. This sudden demand of this drug will propel to market to grow rapidly in near future in this region. Asia Pacific is the second largest market for hydroxychloroquine, as south and south east Asia have high cases of malaria than western regions and many pharma companies are actively involved in manufacture of generic hydroxychloroquine drug especially in China and India. The ongoing global pandemic of Corona virus which was originated from wuhan region of China is providing more opportunity for this market as several researchers have peached for this drugs ability to curve the virus. For example, after the news of hydroxychloroquine being used with some success in treating Covid-19, indian pharma companies such as Cadillac Healthcare, Ipca Labs and Torrent Pharma that manufacture the drug increased up to 17 per cent in Mumbai trading recently which will help in growth of this market.

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Global Hydroxychloroquine Market report covers extensive analysis of emerging trends and competitive landscape.

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Global Hydroxychloroquine Market Segmentation 

Global Hydroxychloroquine Market: by Type

USP Standards Grade

EP Standards Grade

Pharmaceutical Standards Grade

others

Global Hydroxychloroquine Market: by Application

uncomplicated malaria

rheumatoid arthritis

chronic discoid lupus erythematosus

systemic lupus erythematosus

others

Global Hydroxychloroquine Market: By Regional & Country Analysis

North America

U.S.

Mexico

Canada

Europe

UK

France

Germany

Italy

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

Southeast Asia

Latin America

Brazil

The Middle East and Africa

GCC

Africa

Rest of Middle East and Africa

Continued..

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A woman has been arrested after she allegedly coughed at members of the public while walking the streets.

The 41-year-old is charged with breaching the Public Health Act, stalking and intimidation after the alleged incident in Cooma, in the New South Wales Snowy Mountains.

Police say the woman intentionally coughed at members of the public as she walked past them including a woman with a young child.

When officers arrived they encountered the woman nearby the alleged incident, stating she was unable to provide a valid reason for being on the streets during the coronavirus lockdown.

New South Wales police has been increasing patrols across the state to enforce new lockdown laws including mandatory self-isolation for travellers and restrictions on movement

The 41-year-old was refused bail to appear before Wollongong Local court via videolink on Thursday morning.

She is facing two counts of stalking, intimidation, intend to cause fear/physical harm and not comply with direction under the Public Health Act.

New South Wales health guidelines advise residents to cough into their elbows if they do not have a tissue available.
SHERIDAN  The firearm used in a triple homicide in Big Horn has not yet been found, and the Sheridan County Sheriffs Office urges community members to call law enforcement without touching the weapon, should they locate it.

Sheridan County Sheriffs Office Lt. Levi Dominguez said no one in Sheridan County law enforcement can recall encountering a case of this nature before. The sheriffs office, Montana law enforcement, Sheridan Police Department, Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation and Sheridan County Coroners Office are collaborating on the ongoing case that is expected to remain active for several weeks.

The prime suspect has been identified as Dana Beartusk, 54, who allegedly called a relative sometime on Sunday evening and said he killed one or more people. The relative then called the sheriffs office, and deputies were dispatched to the 100 block of Willow Street in Big Horn shortly after 8 p.m.

Further calls from Beartusk to the reporting party indicated Beartusk had left Big Horn and traveled through Sheridan toward Montana.

Sheridan County Deputy Coroner and media specialist Kaye Penno said blood alcohol level for each of the victims will come back with toxicology, likely within two weeks. The cause and manner of death appears as stated by law enforcement, she said.

Three victims found inside the house appeared to have died from gunshot wounds. Autopsies have been completed but results will not be available for several weeks, while awaiting lab results.

The victims have been identified as relatives of Beartusk and Sheridan County residents: his wife, Angelina Beartusk, 51; sister Seana Fisher, 54; and nephew Mochdaveyano Blackhawk Fisher, 25.

Between the call from the reporting party and Dana Beartusks detention in Montana, the Sheridan County Sheriffs Office attempted to identify the type of vehicle he was driving but was unsuccessful until around the time Montana law enforcement contacted Beartusk on the Northern Cheyenne Reservation near the intersection of Highway 314 and 212.

Beartusk declined to speak to law enforcement that evening when he was taken into custody. Authorities filed three counts of first-degree murder against the suspect and a warrant was granted for his arrest March 30.

SCSO believes a semi-automatic handgun was used in the homicide, though no weapons were found at the scene, in Beartusks possession or in his vehicle.

Sheridan County Prosecuting Attorney Dianna Bennett said the forensic aspect of the case is only beginning. In any homicide case, Bennetts first step is gathering information from law enforcement and compiling a complete a picture of the facts.

In cases where the victims do not have a voice and cant give their version of what happened, we are left to learn what information we can from the forensic evidence and any witnesses, Bennett said in an email to The Sheridan Press.

Bennett said homicide investigations are fast-moving and she generally has limited information about the case when it first comes to her office. Because of cross-jurisdictional cooperation, Bennett said she needed to file charges quickly to get the suspect back to Sheridan County jurisdiction.

An arraignment has not been scheduled as Beartusk has yet to be transported to Sheridan County.

As in a recent attempted murder case in Sheridan, in which charges were amended from first-degree to second-degree attempted murder, Bennett said charges in any case may be amended to address a weakness in the states case or for the purpose of potential plea negotiations.

According to Wyoming statute, to prove first-degree murder, the state must prove premeditated malice or the homicide occurred while attempting to perpetrate a sex crime, robbery, escape, kidnapping or sexual abuse of a minor.

The death penalty remains a potential punishment for those convicted of first-degree murder in Wyoming despite recent challenges from lawmakers and nonprofits. A bill to repeal capital punishment failed introduction during the Legislative budget session in February.

Second-degree murder does not bear the burden to the state to prove premeditation and carries 20 years to life imprisonment as potential punishment.

Information is still coming in, Bennett said. At a later time, I will be in a better position to know if we should proceed under the current charges.

Bennett said in nearly 23 years in Sheridan, she is not aware of a triple homicide ever having occurred. In previous single homicide cases, she has considered sentences of life imprisonment without parole to 20- to 30-year sentences with the possibility of parole, depending on the wishes of the victims families, strength of the case, defendants criminal history and aggravated nature of the crime. Each plays into the decision to arrange a plea agreement or proceed to trial.

Bennett said with three victims, the aggravated nature of the crime is extreme and she believes the responsible party should be held accountable for each life lost.

There is a lot we dont yet know in this investigation and investigators and laboratories are working hard to get to us more evidence and a better idea of what happened, she said.

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The federal government of Nigeria has described as regrettable the post wherein it begged for ventilators from American billionaire, Elon Musk on social media.

The post which has since been brought down has generated a lot of reactions from Nigeria since it was posted.

Read Also: Ganduje, Wife Test Negative For Coronavirus

According to Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, Special Adviser, Media and Communications, to the Minister of Finance Budget and National Planning, an official statement would soon be made public to the effect.

The fact of the post is regrettable because of which it is brought down. He noted that they have made sure our internal processes are strengthened that such doesnt happen again. The error is highly regrettable.

The ministry had twitted that dear @elonmusk @Tesla federal government of Nigeria needs support with 100-500 ventilators to assist with #covid19 cases arising everyday in Nigeria.
If a party elects a new leader, without an event to announce the winner, will its outcome make a sound? On Saturday, the British Labour Party will find out. Campaigning to replace Jeremy Corbyn began back on Jan. 7, with ballots sent out to Labour members via mail on Feb. 21. A week later came the first documented case of coronavirus transmission in the U.K., and on March 12, the party canceled plans to hold a convention to unveil its new leaderthe front-runner is the current Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer.

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If the next leader is destined to begin their tenure in obscurity, Corbyn will go out in a blaze of ignominy. After Labours historic defeat in last Decembers general election, he now claims the moral victory. The coronavirus outbreak and the British governments response to itwhich has included wage guarantees for furloughed workers and quasi-renationalization of the railwayshas vindicated his brand of far-left politics, he told the BBC. I didnt think that it would take only three months for me to be proved absolutely right, he said with his usual modesty and grace. Meanwhile, the Conservative Party holds a 26-point lead in public polling.

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As he inelegantly heads toward the door marked exit, Corbyn would like his time as Labour leader to be remembered as follows: In September 2015, he came out of nowhere to win his partys leadership in a contest that witnessed a surge in support. Labour had 550,000 members by September 2016, making it the largest political party in Europe. That enthusiasm translated into the creation of the Momentum faction, whose young cadres were mobilized to campaign for Corbyn up and down Britain. In the 2017 general electionan unusual contest unsettled by the chaos of BrexitLabour won 30 seats and increased its vote share by almost 10 points. Another future, supposedly, was possible.

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In December 2019, however, Corbyn announced his intention to resign, having led Labour to its worst result since 1935: a loss of 60 seats and almost 8 points, demonstrating that 2017 was indeed an aberration and a mirage. Those for whom Labour was formed in 1900 in order to representworking peopleturned their backs on the party en masse, as the Conservatives flipped parliamentary seats Labour had held for decades in the postindustrial English north, Midlands, and in Wales.

Rarely has Labour seemed as detached from and irrelevant to the lives of working people as it does now. Postelection polling showed that Johnsons Conservatives beat Corbyns Labour by a staggering 16 points among skilled workers and 13 points among unskilled workers and the unemployed. Corbyns outriders in the British media claimedmore or less raising the white flag of surrenderthat it was a myth Labour had lost workers support, arguing that, economically speaking, young university graduates living in Britains cities constituted a new working class. Perhaps casting aside lifelong Labour voters in favor of those who dont vote at all wasnt a winning electoral strategy.

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Part of the problem was that Corbyns particular brand of left-wing politics made for a grab-bag electoral program chock-full of goodies and promises like free high-speed internet access for all that voters found unbelievable. It didnt help either that Corbyns leadership team scorned traditional TV and print media as hostile, favoring social media, sympathetic commentators, and tendential fake news sites as their outlets of choice, forgetting which of these is actually read by those Labour needed to reach.

On Brexitthe defining political question of Corbyns tenurethe supposedly brave leader of conviction opted for fudge, muddle, and a dose of whiplash. A euroskeptic of long standing, scornful of the EU as a capitalist club, Corbyn meekly campaigned for the Remain option in the runup to the 2016 referendum, rating the EU a seven out of 10 in a notorious television interview. Thereafter, he ordered Labour parliamentarians to vote for triggering the beginning of the withdrawal process in January 2017 before having them reject thenPrime Minister Theresa Mays Brexit deal multiple times. By the time Labour did have a coherent Brexit policy in November 2019, it was too little, too late.

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The Brexit debacle was embarrassing, but the partys long and unresolved anti-Semitism crisis was unforgivable. Whether Corbyn himself is or is not an anti-Semite is a question that will never be definitively answered. But it is certainly fair to say that Corbyn spent his decadeslong political career engaged in and around anti-Semitic politics, associating with terrorists, blood libel promoters, and Holocaust deniers. When he became Labour leader, he brought that politics from the partys fringes to its center. The Labour Party is no longer a safe space for Jewish people, the Jewish Labour Movement had concluded by December 2019, adding the party suffers from endemic, institutional anti-Semitism.

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Corbyn was a rotting albatross around the neck of the Labour Party. It was he, above all other factors, who drove Labour voters away from the party and into the expectant arms of the Tories. When it came down to it, the polling guru Michael Ashcroft found in his postelection focus groups, voters did not want Corbyn to become Britains prime minister. Nothing about him says leader,  one ex-Labour voter told Ashcroft. He wasnt someone I would trust my country to be run by, said another. And of voting Conservative, one voter said, It was easy. Youd just have to see Corbyn on television, youd say No! 

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In 1995, the BBC produced a four-part documentary series about the Labour Party called The Wilderness Years, which is well worth rewatching during our coronavirus quarantines. At the time the program aired, the party had been out of power since 1979, having spent the 1980s pushed and pulled between left and right, fighting with itself as opposed to the Thatcher regime, saddled with an agenda that was, in the words of ex-Labour leader Neil Kinnock, outdated, misplaced, [and] irrelevant to the real needs of working people.

Well, here we are again. Since 2010, Labour has lost four general elections in a row, and its new leader will take over a party that is a shadow of its former self, wandering again in the wilderness of opposition. Having been captured and hollowed out by the hard left, far from being in a position to regain power in the immediate future, a weak, broken-down, and divided Labour Party finds itself further away from capturing Downing Street than it has been in decades. Corbyn believes he has been vindicated when the record shows he has been humiliated.
An Italian medical student was allegedly strangled to death by her boyfriend after he wrongly accused her of giving him coronavirus, according to local media.

Lorena Quaranta from Sicily died in Messina earlier this week, officials have said.

The mayor of Favara, her hometown, said she heard the tragic news about the untimely death of our citizen Lorena on Tuesday.

Her boyfriend, Antonio De Pace, reportedly told police he had killed her because he thought she had given him coronavirus, according to ltalian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera.

Both tests reportedly came back negative.

Ms Quaranta was strangled at their shared home in Messina in northeast Sicily, according to an Italian news agency.

Mr De Pace called police to the scene and tried to take his life by suicide, ANSA reported.

The University of Messina, where the victim was a medical student, said it was hoping to have Ms Quaranta graduate posthumously.

In a post about the young womans death, the mayor of Messina said the nationwide lockdown was a particularly difficult time for victims of domestic abuse, and outlined the support available in the community.

People in Italy have been told to stay at home as authorities work to combat the coronavirus outbreak unless it is deemed essential to leave the house, for example to get groceries or medicine.

The lockdown  set to finish this week  will now go on until at least 13 April, the prime minister has said.

Italy has been one of the hardest-hit countries in the world by coronavirus, with more than 110,000 confirmed infections and a death toll of around 13,000, according to official figures.
Madrid: Two planes packed with protective equipment arrived to restock Spain's overloaded public health system on Wednesday as its confirmed coronavirus cases rose beyond 100,000 and it recorded its biggest one-day death toll from the outbreak.

A Spanish Red cross volunteer works at a food bank helping people affected by the Covid-19 crisis in Huesca, Spain. Credit:Getty

Barring Italy, the virus has killed more people in Spain than anywhere else, triggering a lockdown that has brought economic activity to a virtual standstill. A survey showed Spain's manufacturing sector is heading for a slump after shrinking in March at its steepest pace since 2013.

A record 864 fatalities overnight took the country's overall toll to 9053 while total infections rose to 102,136, health officials said, adding that the percentage increase in deaths was lower than in recent days.

"The central issue is no longer whether we've reached the peak or not, it seems like we are there," health emergency chief Fernando Simon, who was himself diagnosed with the virus this week, told a briefing.
Doctors, nurses and other health care workers are afraid for their health  and in some cases their lives  as the mounting coronavirus outbreak closes in on a health care system that doesn't have enough equipment and overworks its people.

What they're saying: "It's a mess, and there's no help," Alan Roth, a doctor at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center in Queens, New York, said last week. "We have been left out to dry."

The big picture: Dwindling supplies of face masks, gowns and necessary hospital equipment continue to worry health care workers in areas where the coronavirus cases have spiked.

Chuck Fox, a gastroenterologist in Atlanta, said on a conference call that a doctor at a nearby hospital had been using the same N95 mask for two straight weeks and was intermittently disinfecting it with Clorox wipes.

Roseann Farris, a critical care nurse at Watson Community Hospital in California, is worried that her hospital, which has not seen a surge yet, will run out of supplies. She and her colleagues walked out this week, urging hospital administrators to explain how they plan to replenish their stockpile.

The worries extend well beyond doctors and nurses.

Hospital technicians, therapists, janitors and other service staff feel especially neglected and worry about contracting the virus, the Center for Public Integrity reports.

A former home health therapist in New York tells Axios that his company told employees to persuade patients to continue getting home care, even if the patients were concerned about the coronavirus. Many of those patients are older and have several medical conditions, and thus are at a higher risk of contracting the virus, the person said.

What to watch: Health care workers are starting to die more frequently. Whether that trend continues will depend on how well hospitals and the system at large protects them.

Go deeper: Health care workers in the calm before the storm
The Army has extensive experience in cooperation with reserve troops, volunteers, and ordinary citizens in repelling Russian aggression in the east of Ukraine.

Ukraine's Defense Ministry has called on citizens to take part, jointly with the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in the ongoing fight against coronavirus.

"Faced with the need to confront the large-scale challenges of the global coronavirus pandemic and the prevention of the disease spread in Ukraine, the Defense Ministry addresses reservists, volunteers, other concerned citizens who have relevant experience in health care, as well as medical students, in particular, interns who are in extramural studies, and fifth-six year students, to join efforts to help patients with confirmed/suspected coronavirus cases," the ministry's press service said on March 24.

Read alsoUkraine launching production of coronavirus tests

It is noted that the Army has the most extensive and effective experience in cooperation with reserve troops, volunteers, and ordinary citizens when the need for such cooperation was vital to repel Russian aggression in eastern Ukraine.

"Mobilizing not only material resources, but primarily human ones, is currently crucial for the Armed Forces' medical units. All concerned citizens who have experience in the areas of epidemiology, infectious diseases, anesthesiology, pharmacy, therapy, as well as representatives of other scarce and narrowly specialized medical specialties may contribute to the nationwide measures being taken. Amid a pandemic, Ukrainian healthcare institutions, as well as the Defense Ministry and the Armed Forces need any feasible help from specialists among junior medical personnel and doctors," the press service added.
New York City actor Elliot Lazar flew home to Winnipeg to be with his family in a safe environment and ride out the pandemic in a country where he had access to health care, if he needed it.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

New York City actor Elliot Lazar flew home to Winnipeg to be with his family in a safe environment and ride out the pandemic in a country where he had access to health care, if he needed it.

And when he started exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19, he was directed to a testing site in Fort Garry. It took an entire week for Lazar to learn that he had tested positive for the virus.

After watching the situation deteriorate in New York, where he's been living since August, Elliot Lazar flew back to Winnipeg in mid-March and began self-isolating in his childhood bedroom in his parents' home. He has since tested positive for COVID-19. (Supplied)

"While it was a little frustrating, I understand why it took so long," he says. "There are so many tests being conducted every day and it makes sense that the health system would be overwhelmed."

After watching the situation deteriorate in New York, where he's been living since August, Lazar flew back to Winnipeg March 16 and began self-isolating in his childhood bedroom in his parents' home.

He got a phone call Sunday telling him he tested positive for COVID-19 and then notified WestJet, even though he was told he didnt have to.

"I erred on the side of caution," he says.

Lazar provided public-health worker with information on his flights from New York to Toronto and then to Winnipeg.

WestJet does not notify passengers, says Morgan Bell, the airline's media and public relations adviser.

"The public health authority has jurisdiction, and a process, for notifying guests on board the flight," says Bell, "and we provide all necessary information as required."

He adds WestJet is doing its best to keep the public informed about flights that have been affected on a regularly updated coronavirus page on its website.

Winnipeg Regional Health Authority spokesperson Paul Turenne said he couldn't comment on specific circumstances or cases.

Jen Zoratti | Next A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Lazar doesn't know where he was infected. He did not have any community contact in Winnipeg beyond the airport, where he got into his father's car and went directly into isolation. None of his roommates in New York are exhibiting symptoms, and because WestJet is not selling the middle seat on some planes, he wasn't seated to anyone on either of the two flights he took to get to Winnipeg.

While the delay in test results was frustrating, he says the response afterward was swift. He was contacted immediately by a public-health worker who provided instructions for him and his family.

"Everyone in my household has been instructed to take our temperatures twice a day and someone from Manitoba Public Health calls once a day to get our temperatures from us," he says. "The idea is that if any of my family members' temperatures rise and they become symptomatic, it will be arranged for them to get tested for COVID-19 as soon as possible."

Lazars symptoms were mild, so the week-long waiting period to find out results did not put his health at any further risk, but he is aware that not everyone who contracts the virus will be as lucky.

As of April 2, Lazar has made a complete recovery and his case has been officially resolved with Manitoba Public Health.

Twitter: @franceskoncan
Amazon is no longer offering N95 masks to the general public, as it prioritizes the delivery of essential supplies to hospitals, government agencies and other groups amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Earlier this week, the company rolled out a new section of its website dedicated to COVID-19 related supplies. There, any U.S.-accredited hospital or state or federal agency can fill out a form to access necessary items like N95 masks, surgical masks, facial shields, surgical gowns, surgical gloves and large-volume sanitizers. News of the website was first reported by Vox.

The site states it is not accepting requests from the general public, noting: "We are not accepting requests from individuals or non-qualified organizations at this time." Amazon also noted it will not make a profit from the orders.

An Amazon spokesperson told CNBC that it's no longer permitting the sale of certain coronavirus-related items in its store to ensure that scarce inventory of medical supplies are available to hospitals and government organizations during the pandemic.

In addition to N95 masks and similar masks, Amazon is also restricting the general public's access to COVID-19 diagnostic kits, the spokesperson said. The company will monitor additional product categories to determine if they should be prioritized for sale to hospitals and government organizations.
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What happened

Oil prices rebounded sharply on Thursday, thanks to a series of tweets by President Trump. That rally sent most energy stocks soaring, including those of oilfield service companies. Several popped double-digits at one point in the day, led by TechnipFMC (NYSE:FTI), Oceaneering International (NYSE:OII), Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP), and Halliburton (NYSE:HAL).

So what

Oil prices rose a remarkable 25% on the day, settling right above $25 per barrel. Fueling that massive rally were tweets by President Trump that Russia and Saudi Arabia had agreed to cut their oil production by as much as 15 million barrels per day. If true, that would help stabilize the oil market, which has been pulverized by the massive disruption in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stabilization in the price of oil would be welcome news for oilfield service companies. The industry will already experience a significant decline in revenue this year due to the oil-price crash. One analyst sees spending on oilfield equipment and services plunging 21%, which would push it down to its lowest level since 2005. Spending, however, would likely fall even further if major producers Russia and Saudi Arabia don't step in to support the market. That's why stock prices are bouncing back today: Their support would hasten the industry's ability to return to some sense of normalcy once oil demand picks up following the end of the pandemic.

However, with market conditions currently unclear, service companies have had to cut back on costs to ensure they survive this downturn. TechnipFMC, for example, slashed its capital spending plan by 30%, which will save it about $150 million. The company also said it would target more than $100 million of cost reductions in one of its business units, and another $30 million of corporate overhead costs. Oceaneering also recently reduced its capital spending range, and planned to cut other costs.

Helmerich & Payne, meanwhile, recently said that it would cut its dividend by 65% following its June payment. That marks an abrupt end to quite a legacy: The company had increased its payout for 48 straight years. That move, along with a 23% reduction in capital spending, puts the company in a better position to weather the current storm.

Analysts believe more oilfield service companies should cut their dividends due to the depth of the current downturn. Bernstein, for example, put out a note yesterday stating that TechnipFMC, Halliburton, and others in the sector should all follow Helmerich & Payne's lead by reducing their dividends, given how much their revenue will likely fall this year. One analyst, for example, expects Halliburton's fracking revenue to fall below $4.1 billion this year, which is less than 2016's low.

Now what

The oil-price crash has hit oilfield service stocks hard. That's because their customers have slashed their spending plans, which will cut deeply into the revenue earned by the service industry. As a result, they've had to cut back on their spending as well as their dividend payments.

However, investors see a glimmer of hope today on reports that Russia and Saudi Arabia could put an end to their price war and go back to supporting the oil market. If those prove to be accurate, that support would help stabilize the market. However, if the two countries hit another snag in their negotiations, then oil prices and service company stock prices could give up today's gains, and then some.
Harris County Sheriff's Office

A Houston-area man who allegedly confessed he killed his wife  leaving his three children alone at home with her corpse  was charged with her murder, police say.

Jason Armster, 37, told Baytown police officers at their station on Tuesday that he had warrants out for his arrest and wanted to turn himself in, according to prosecutors. For some reason, the officers decided to not arrest him on the warrants and placed him in the back of a police car, prosecutors read in court.
Napoleon Bonaparte was once asked why he ordered a dental chair to be loaded on to a ship sailing off to war. (Apocryphally?) His answer was that a soldier with a tooth ache was of no use to him.

Updating this to the COVID-19 era, a doctor or a nurse with young children and no childcare is of no use to the nation. Unless the Minister for Education, Dan Tehan, and the Prime Minister understand we are dangerously close to having no childcare centres left, they will be remembered as the blokes responsible for health professionals not being able to do their jobs.

Childcare services are on the brink as parents keep children away, yet they are an essential service for emergency workers. Credit: Phil Carrick

Nurses and doctors cannot work if their childcare centre closes down. Unlike the rest of us learning to work from home with children underfoot, its nigh on impossible to ventilate a patient or perform a tracheotomy with a two-year-old pulling at your personal protective equipment.

The Prime Minister said last Friday that the early education and care (childcare) sector is an essential service. He said: "This is one of the very sensitive areas. We're working on a plan to deal with that  we haven't finalised those arrangements yet."
We all make mistakes, Ms. Charnas said in an email statement, including me, especially when a crisis such as this is developing so quickly. My family and I apologize to those we have offended for not appearing to be taking this crisis seriously, but I am absolutely committed to making informed, responsible decisions for my family and community.

Ms. Maffucci said that the decision to leave her apartment was not one that she took lightly. She was prepared for the backlash, but she ultimately felt that her family would be safer in Florida.

When people say, Why do you think you can go and just spread it around? I dont think they understand that if I stay home in Jersey City I risk interacting with and infecting more people than staying in a private home in Florida where Im self-quarantining for 14 days and able to see nobody but my family, she said.

I think that the public health officials, of course, say shelter in place, but what theyre not taking into consideration are all those situations like mine, she added. I think we do have a responsibility as influencers to go along with what public health officials are saying. But also, were scared. This is the decision we made and we tried to make it safely.

Mordechai Sacks, a physician assistant and primary care provider at Larchmont Family Medicine, said that the idea that any of these people are safer in smaller communities or other states is a flawed one. Many vacation towns have fewer medical resources to deal with a sudden onslaught of sick and contagious out-of-towners, and Florida is full of older citizens, who are at higher risk of becoming critically ill with the virus, he said. New York City is by far better equipped to deal with this, Mr. Sacks said. We have a bunch of top hospitals, we have leadership who are doing the right thing, and top clinicians.

The Hamptons is an example of a community thats not used to having this volume, said Dara Kass, associate professor of emergency medicine at Columbia University Medical Center. The townships are very nervous, because their local hospitals and facilities are not built for people living there full time, theyre not staffed up right now. A lot of these vacation communities people flee to are at capacity. Traveling also endangers at-risk people these influencers or their families may come into contact with on the way.
When you look out at the crystal blue skies over California, it doesnt look like a deadly pandemic.

In fact, the Bay Area is basking in its cleanest air in months, if not years. And were not alone. Satellite photos of China show an unprecedented drop in pollution. Worldwide greenhouse gas emissions are falling. And even the planets rivers and bays are clearing up, including the famously murky canals of Venice.

At a huge cost to the global economy, Earth is getting a rare gulp of fresh air as society shuts down in the face of the coronavirus outbreak. Its an environmental boon that decades of green activism could not achieve.

The improvement isnt likely to last, however. Once the world comes roaring back to life, so too will the ecological carnage. Or will it? Environmental experts say that cleaner days could lie ahead, that is, if we permanently adopt some of the climate-friendly practices weve accidentally embraced during the shutdown  working remotely being just one  and if federal stimulus money can be steered toward green infrastructure.

In many ways we dont want to live the way were living (now). But perhaps some good will come of this, said Rob Jackson, a professor of Earth system science at Stanford University. If the coronavirus helps transform our consumption and our energy supply, it could have lasting effects.

The masses now working from home, clocking in on laptops and using video conferencing apps instead of driving to work or flying to a convention, is the most apparent and perhaps most Earth-friendly shift in societal behavior recently.

Its something that workers and their bosses are learning is not too difficult, and might continue after the pandemic is long gone, say Jackson and others. Same goes for telemedicine and tele-education and other remote activities that have spiked with the outbreak.

My wifes ceramics guild had their first Zoom meeting. They were surprised how nice it was, Jackson said. The virus really provides opportunity for us to rethink travel and work.

Transportation is the largest driver of global warming in the United States and much of the world. So even a small contraction can have a big impact.

In the Bay Area, traffic has decreased as much as 70% since stay-at-home directives were issued last month. The reduction translates to at least a 20% drop in air-choking particulate matter and at least a 26% drop in heat-trapping carbon emissions, according to estimates from the local air district. Similar declines are being reported in metro areas around the globe.

Joanna Lombard, a professor at the University of Miami School of Architecture and a climate mitigation expert, takes the idea of staying close to home one step further.

She said she believes that the pandemic could prompt people who have gotten stir crazy at home to begin demanding more of their communities and push to make them more livable. More shopping and recreating locally, she says, could result in wholesale reductions in automobile travel  and greenhouse gas emissions.

And, if goods are produced closer to home, it would shorten supply chains and cut even more emissions, she said. Already, some farmers have seen a boost in direct sales to local residents since the shutdown.

All of a sudden, people are having to pay attention to where they live, Lombard said. We look around and see that there are amenities that have been neglected. Maybe this will alert us to the idea that planning is good and we can reinvent our neighborhoods.

It doesnt mean you cut off global commerce, she added, but when you want to go local, you can.

The shelter-in-place orders have led to other behavioral changes that are tougher to gauge from an environmental perspective. The uptick in online shopping, for example, is beneficial in cutting carbon emissions when purchases are part of streamlined mass delivery operation and deter trips to Costco in the family SUV, experts say. But if its a single pack of toilet paper rushed out in an Amazon van, emissions increase.

Eating in, versus eating out, is another wild card, with a yet-to-be determined verdict. Its dependent on a wide range of factors, including what is consumed, packaging and food waste.

There are different ways that these activities can affect your carbon footprint, said Maya Almaraz, program manager for the Working Lands Innovation Center at UC Davis, who has studied behavior and climate change. Im just hoping this (pandemic) can be an excuse for people to re-evaluate the way we think about our health and our consumption, and use it as an opportunity.

Almaraz also said that peoples willingness to quickly change their lives as theyve done in response to the coronavirus is hope that people could make adjustments to counter global warming.

Pandemics have altered how people live before. Elena Conis, a historian of public health at UC Berkeley, can point to nearly every widespread outbreak of infectious disease over the past few centuries and recall how it modified human behavior.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The AIDS epidemic led to people practicing safe sex. The tuberculosis pandemic halted the once-common practice of spitting in public. Puerperal fever prompted doctors to begin washing their hands before delivering babies.

Today we dont even think about these changes, said Conis, noting how ingrained those behaviors have become. Were all very curious what the world will look like when we come out of this pandemic.

The money that the federal government has begun pumping into the economy to prevent a recession could also be a catalyst for change. Environmental advocates are pushing to fund projects that will keep a lid on greenhouse gas emissions. Other nations are doing the same.

The widely reported 25% plunge in carbon emissions during the coronavirus outbreak in China, the worlds biggest polluter, many say, is what a future with clean infrastructure could look like.

A green stimulus is a way governments could commit to building back greener, stronger and more equitably, said Daniel Kammen, a professor of energy at UC Berkeley, who last month helped author a spending proposal sent to Congress from dozens of scientists and academics from across the United States.

The plan includes sweeping government investments in renewable energy, public transit, high-density housing and energy-saving retrofits of homes and businesses.

The $2 trillion stimulus package signed by President Trump last week does not include this type of spending. But Congress has already begun to consider another round of relief, and many Democrats are on board with hefty expenditures on green infrastructure. So far, Republicans have fought such climate-friendly moves as tax credits for renewable energy.

Kammen says theres room for compromise in the next package. Green programs, for example, could come alongside Republican-sought industry aid, with conditions attached, like limiting pollution.

While lamenting the coronavirus outbreak, Kammen says few people would be opposed to the clean air and fewer greenhouse gas emissions that the world is experiencing now.

To look at COVID-19 as an environmental benefit is the wrong perspective, he said. What it highlights, though, is how much environmental improvement can come with easy transitions.

Kurtis Alexander is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: kalexander@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kurtisalexander
Both times Ive left home in the past two and a half weeks, Ive had a printed form in my pocket with my place of birth, Tullamore, written on it - in case the police stop me.

France went into strict lockdown on March 16. Since then, any time anyone leaves the house they have to print out a form which specifies their name, address, the time they left home, and an explanation for why they are out. It also requires you to put down the name of the town where you were born. Why? Im not really sure what the point is  I just know that they love that kind of stuff over here. Filling out forms, and folders to put the forms in. To be honest, Im surprised I dont have to divulge my mothers maiden name or produce an original copy of my long-form birth cert whenever I want to go to the shop.

Whatever about the merits of French bureaucracy, I havent seen a policeman on either of my trips to the local supermarket. Neither has my wife on the handful of occasions shes been out. But if they are not bothering with our small town, they are out there in the cities  in the first 10 days of lockdown, some 260,000 people across France were fined for flouting the rules.

If you get caught without the proper form, you face a fine of 135  this includes an incomplete or incorrect form. A second infraction within 15 days will set you back another 200, rising to 450 if its not paid on time. Four breaches in a 30-day period will result in a fine of 3,750, not to mention possibly six months in prison.

When people here find out Im from Tullamore, they often reply with: Ah, Tullamore Dew? Something tells me thats not a conversation Ill be having with the stressed-out gendarmes if they stop me over the next few weeks.

Ireland is settling into the first week of lockdown, whereas in France were a little further down the road. Our experience was that, during the first week, a sort of harmony descended on our house as everyone made an extra effort to be patient and kind to each other  we were all in it together. By the second weekend, this felt like a distant memory, as a collective crankiness took hold. Its a very stressful time for everyone, and for different reasons  older people are worried about their own health, middle-aged people are worried about their parents and their jobs, and the kids are worried about what kind of disease-infested dying planet theyll inherit, and how it might affect the release of the new season of Fortnite.

FULL STORY IN THIS WEEK'S EDITION OF THE TULLAMORE TRIBUNE
"What we will be doing is turning off the old system and going to a new system, which will provide that relief to parents." Free childcare will be available to all families from next week, subject to availability, but Mr Tehan said preference would be given to children of essential workers, disadvantaged children and previously enrolled children. "The most important of those are those essential workers and the vulnerable children," he said. Mr Tehan encouraged any parents who had terminated enrolments to get back in contact with their childcare centre.

"I don't want a parent to have to choose between feeding their kids and having their kids looked after or having their education being provided," Mr Morrison said. Mr Morrison said the official medical advice on children attending childcare was clear and had not changed. "There is no health risk in children going to school or childcare," he said. Under the new system, means-testing for childcare subsidies will be suspended. The government is also waiving the gap fee for parents who have been paying for childcare, backdated to March 23. Advocacy group Early Childhood Australia praised the package for tackling the key concerns of providers and families.

"Families will now continue to have access to the services they trust, and services know they can stay open with core jobs secured," chief executive Samantha Page said. "For families who want to keep their children at home, there is no longer a terrible choice between paying a gap fee and losing their place at the service." The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia said the measures would encourage families to put children back in care and resume their early education. "ELACCA is also very pleased that frontline workers and children experiencing vulnerability and disadvantage will have priority of access to early learning and care services across Australia," chief executive Elizabeth Death said.

Under a $1.6 billion measure, providers will be paid 50 per cent of their fee revenue up to the existing hourly rate cap based on enrolment levels before the mass exodus of children at the start of March. Loading To be eligible for the payments, providers must stay open, not charge any fees and prioritise care for children of essential workers, vulnerable and disadvantaged children and those previously enrolled. "They must also seek to re-enrol those parents who might have dropped off," Mr Tehan said. Mr Tehan said 60 per cent of the costs of a childcare centre were wages and noted the previously announced JobKeeper wage subsidy would also be supporting the sector "to the tune of over $1 billion".

After-school care and vacation-care services will also be able to access the payment, taking the entire package to $1.6 billion, on top of the JobKeeper subsidy. "The old system is quite a complex system. It was drafted for a pre-pandemic time. What we needed to be able to do with reductions in attendances is look at how we could put in place a new system which would adjust for that," Mr Tehan said. He said the temporary system would be reviewed after one month and in place for at least six months. Eventually the government would "look to evolve back to the existing system". According to the latest figures, 1.34 million children from 945,000 families were enrolled in childcare and early learning before the COVID-19 crisis. Average weekly use per child was 24.7 hours. The country's largest childcare provider, Goodstart Early Learning, does not currently qualify for the JobKeeper package because its turnover exceeds $1 billion and Mr Tehan said discussions were ongoing about support for the company. In a press conference on Thursday, he said the company made $100 million in profit annually.

The company, which operates 665 centres, immediately rejected the claim, saying it was a not-for-profit and its operating surplus was $11 million last year. It estimates a loss of $20 million this year. Loading "Todays announcement offers no certainty for our educators and teachers. Nor does it offer any comfort for the 3000 casual educators we had to stand down last week," the company said in a statement. The company must demonstrate a 50 per cent reduction in turnover to access JobKeeper subsidies, without which it says "we will not be able to keep our centres open  not for essential workers and vulnerable children now and not when the rebuild begins". Labor's early child education spokeswoman, Amanda Rishworth, welcomed the measures announced by the government.
KARACHI, Pakistan - A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction of a British Pakistani man found guilty of the 2002 kidnapping and killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

FILE - In this April 15, 2007, file photo, Dr. Judea Pearl, father of American journalist Daniel Pearl, who was killed by terrorists in 2002, speaks in Miami Beach, Fla. A Pakistani court on Thursday, April 2, 2020, overturned the murder conviction of a British Pakistani man found guilty of the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street journalist Daniel Pearl. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)

KARACHI, Pakistan - A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction of a British Pakistani man found guilty of the 2002 kidnapping and killing of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl.

Instead, the court found Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and sentenced him to seven years in prison.

FILE - In this March 29, 2002, file photo, Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, the alleged mastermind behind Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl's abduction, arrives at a court in Karachi, Pakistan. A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the murder conviction of a British Pakistani man found guilty of the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street journalist Daniel Pearl. Instead, the court found Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and sentenced him to seven years in jail. (AP Photo/Zia Mazhar, file)

Pearl disappeared Jan. 23, 2002 in Karachi while researching links between Pakistani militants and Richard C. Reid, who became known as the shoe-bomber after he was arrested on a flight from Paris to Miami with explosives in his shoes. Prosecutors said Saeed lured Pearl into a trap by promising to arrange an interview with an Islamic cleric who police believed was not involved in the conspiracy.

One of Saeed's lawyers, Khwaja Naveed, said Saeed could go free unless the government chooses to challenge the court decision. Faiz Shah, prosecutor general for southern Sindh province, said the government will appeal to the Supreme Court of Pakistan.

The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a statement expressing disappointment at the court decision and supporting an appeal.

The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply disappointed to see justice in the murder case of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl denied by a Pakistani court today, said Steven Butler, CPJs Asia program co-ordinator.

U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric, asked for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' response, said: We stand against the use of the death penalty. We do, however, strongly believe that there needs to be accountability for people who take the lives of others, especially in this case of a journalist.

Khwaja Naveed, lawyer of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh who found guilty of the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, speaks to reporters outside a court in Karachi, Pakistan, Thursday, April 2, 2020. He said that Sheikh could go free unless the government chooses to challenge the court decision. A Pakistani court Thursday overturned the murder conviction of the British Pakistani man found guilty of the kidnapping and murder of Pearl. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

Saeed has already spent 18 years in prison in southern Hyderabad on death row. The seven-year sentence for kidnapping was expected to be counted as time served, said Naveed.

The Sindh High Court also acquitted three others accused in the case: Fahad Naseem, Sheikh Adil, and Salman Saqib, who were earlier sentenced to life in prison. The defendants were also collectively fined $32,000.

Justice has been done for my clients, said Naveed.

Saeed, a former student at the London School of Economics, and the others were convicted in 2002.

FILE - This file photo obtained on Jan. 30, 2002, shows Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in captivity by Pakistani militants. A videotape received by U.S. diplomats in February 2002 confirmed that Pearl had been killed. On Thursday, April 2, 2020, a Pakistani court overturned the murder conviction of British-born Pakistani Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was found guilty of Pearl's kidnapping and killing and has spent 18 years in prison. (AP Photo)

A videotape received by U.S. diplomats in February, 2002 confirmed that Pearl, 38, was dead. He had been beheaded.

In court testimony and emails released during the 2002 trial, Saeed said he developed a personal relationship with Pearl, with both sharing their concerns about their wives, who were both pregnant at the time. Marianne Pearl gave birth to their son Adam in May 2002.

The Pearl Project, an investigative journalism team at Washington's Georgetown University, carried out a three-year investigation into Pearl's kidnapping and death. They concluded the reporter was beheaded by Khalid Sheikh Mohammad, who was arrested in Pakistan in 2003 and later described as the architect of the 9-11 terrorist attacks on the United States. Mohammad is a prisoner at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Soon after Pearl disappeared, Pakistani and U.S. news organizations received emails from the previously unknown National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty. The group demanded better treatment for Taliban and al-Qaida prisoners at Guantanamo.

FBI agents traced the emails to Saeed, who admitted his role in the kidnapping during his first court appearance but later recanted.

Right or wrong I had my reasons, Saeed told the court at the time. I think that our country shouldnt be catering to Americas needs. The statement was ruled inadmissible because it was not made under oath.

Saeed had been arrested in 1994 by Indian authorities, accused of kidnapping three Britons and an American, who were all freed unharmed, in Indian-ruled Kashmir, Hindu India's only Muslim- dominated region. Kashmir is divided between Pakistan and India but coveted by each in its entirety.

Since 1989, an insurgency in Indian-held Kashmir has been demanding either outright independence for a united Kashmir or union with Muslim-majority Pakistan.

In 1999, India freed Saeed and two other militants in exchange for the release of 155 passengers and crew aboard an Indian Airlines plane hijacked to Kandahar, Afghanistan.

The Pearl kidnapping was the first of five attacks against Westerners in Pakistan in 2002. A grenade attack against a Protestant church in Islamabad on March 17 killed five people, including two Americans and the attacker.

___

Gannon reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed to this report.
Coronavirus: Syrians discriminated in Lebanon - HRW More stringent measures imposed

(ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, APRIL 2 - Communities of Syrian refugees in Lebanon are being discriminated in several areas of the country due to the coronavirus emergency, Human Rights Watch has denounced. The international humanitarian emergency has just published a statement denouncing violations committed by dozens of Lebanese municipalities against Syrian refugees. About one million Syrian refugees have fled to Lebanon since the start of the conflict in 2011. Some sources say there are 1.5 million refugees in Lebanon, which has a population of roughly four million people.



From February 21 until today, Lebanon has registered some 500 cases of Codiv-19 and 16 have died from the virus, according to official data. The Lebanese government in mid-March imposed the shutdown of all non-essential commercial activities and a nighttime curfew.



In this context, even before the middle of March, dozens of Lebanese municipalities imposed discriminatory measures against Syrian refugees, said Human Rights Watch, citing the example of places where Syrians had to abide by a curfew during the day which Lebanese nationals did not have to respect. In general, Syrians did not have the same freedom of movement as the rest of the population. For their part, UN agencies already supporting Syrian refugees in Lebanon have started awareness campaigns in refugee camps, distributing soap and disinfectant for families.



They have also set up facilities for isolation. (ANSAmed)
When San Antonio-based manufacturer J.H. Design LP needed a controller to oversee its accounting, it turned to the worlds largest specialized staffing firm  Robert Half International Inc.

The man Robert Half sent to do the job did more than pay bills, process payroll and other duties, J.H. Design says.

J.H. Design alleges in a recently filed lawsuit that the controller  Anthony Schott  embezzled almost $100,000 and failed to make weekly payroll-tax deposits.

It calls Schott a liar and a con man with a fake resume put together and embellished by Robert Half.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio womans CBD use leads to firing, lawsuit

J.H. Design is suing Robert Half for more than $1 million in damages, accusing the California staffing company of fraud and gross negligence in placing Schott with the manufacturer.

Robert Half deliberately or recklessly placed a criminal into a position of trust at J.H. Design to generate fees, the suit says.

A Robert Half spokeswoman said it cant comment on pending litigation. The company has not yet filed an answer to the complaint in state District Court in San Antonio. Lawyers for J.H. Design did not respond to requests for comment.

The complaint doesnt name Schott as a defendant. A man answered a call to a phone number thats been connected to Schott but hung up. He did not return a follow-up call.

J.H. Design is a manufacturer and wholesaler of handcrafted leather bags, travel goods and accessories. It has operated in San Antonio for more than 30 years and employs about 110 people at its headquarters on the East Side, according to its lawsuit. Jon Hart Design Co. operates from the same address.

The publicly traded Robert Half placed about 205,600 engagement professionals with clients last year, generating $454 million in profits on almost $6.1 billion in revenue.

J.H. Design initially retained Schott on a contract basis and paid Robert Half $85 an hour for his services, according to the lawsuit. It doesnt say when Schott started working at the company.

Within a few months, the manufacturer hired Schott full time at a salary of about $92,000.

Almost immediately after Schott began work on a contract basis and continuing for over one year, Schott embezzled money from (J.H. Design) and failed to file payroll taxes, the company alleges in its suit. In doing so, he changed reports to management to cover up his theft and malfeasance, making it difficult or impossible for his superiors to detect his wrongdoing.

On ExpressNews.com: Another Workforce Solutions Alamo ex-CEO sues over firing

J.H. Design hired an outside accounting firm to investigate when the payroll malfeasance came to light.

Schott left the company three day later, before he was found out, the suit says. He never returned and left no forwarding address.

Besides uncovering the alleged embezzlement, the investigation found that representations that a Robert Half senior vice president made about Schotts background and qualifications were false and misleading, the suit says.

In reality, Schott had a criminal background, had filed for bankruptcy, did business under multiple aliases, and illegally listed a private post office box as his permanent address on his Texas drivers license, the suit.

Court records show an Anthony Schott filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in San Antonio in 2010.

J.H. Design says its own fact-checking discovered much of Schotts work history was false and even embellished by Robert Half.

People who allegedly reported to (Robert Half) about Schotts work and qualifications at their company have flatly denied making the statements that (Robert Half) represented were made, the suit says.

J.H. Design also says it found a six-year gap in Schotts employment history that was masked by the representation that he worked for a company called RNH LLC, which he owned. But J.H. Designs claims theres no evidence that RNH did any business or that Schott actually worked during that time.

In addition, J.H. Design also alleges Schotts college credentials were fudged.

Robert Half said Schott received a bachelors degree and a masters in business administration from Texas A&M University in College Station. Schott did not have an MBA, the suit says.

And Schotts bachelors degree came from Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, which the suit describes as a satellite campus that has nowhere near the prestige and academic rigor of the flagship Texas A&M University.

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J.H. Design says it suffered lost profits and loss of value, and had to pay outside firms to recover from the alleged embezzlement. It also had to pay penalties and interest to the Internal Revenue Service, but the amounts werent revealed in the suit.

It adds it relied on Robert Halfs misrepresentations and concealments to its detriment.

Vincent R. Johnson, interim dean at St. Marys School of Law, says J.H. Design will have to show that but for the alleged wrongful acts, the harm wouldnt have occurred.

Johnson expects J.H. Design will offer testimony at trial that had it known about Schotts alleged misrepresentations, it wouldnt have hired him.

But J.H. Design also will have to show that what occurred, at least in some loose sense, was foreseeable. Thats a bit trickier to prove, Johnson said.

With regard to sort of the resume fraud issues, its hard to say that type of misrepresentation of credentials makes embezzlement foreseeable, he said. So I would be interested in what detailed facts they have about prior criminality.

Patrick Danner is a San Antonio-based staff writer covering banking and civil courts. To read more from Patrick, become a subscriber. pdanner@express-news.net | Twitter: @AlamoPD
Police have identified 12 more



persons from Gujarat, who had attended last month's religious congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area, taking the number of attendees from the state to 84 so far.

Till Wednesday, the state police had identified 72 persons, including a 70-year-old person from Bhavnagar who had died of coronavirus infection after returning from the Nizamuddin event, Gujarat DGP Shivanand Jha said in Gandhinagar on Thursday.

Among the 12 who were identified in the last 24 hours, eight belong to Surat, while four others are from Ahmedabad, he said.

"Search is still on to identify and trace others who had attended the congregation at Nizamuddin, which has become a major source for the spread of coronavirus in the country," Jha added.

Among the 71 persons identified on Wednesday, 34 are from Ahmedabad, 19 from Bhavnagar, 12 from Mehsana, four from Botad and two from Navsari.

"All of them have been quarantined," Jha said.

Meanwhile, the Ahmedabad Police have launched a probe into a 'warning' message doing rounds in social media, which alleges that Muslims are deliberately trying to spread the coronavirus and people must not allow vegetable vendors from the community inside their housing societies.

Ahmedabad Police Commissioner Ashish Bhatia said efforts are on to nab those who are circulating such message in social media.

While addresing media in Gandhinagar, the DGP said NCC cadets as well as retried policemen will be roped in to ensure that people follow the lockdown orders.

"As many as 59 people have been arrested during the lockdown for spreading rumours on social media platforms," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi, April 2 : A flying object over a locality in Nizamuddin left the residents wondering what it was. Later they came to know that the South Delhi Municipal Corporation deployed a drone to spray a disinfectant over the locality, now said to be the epicentre of COVID-19 outbreak.

SDMC said it used the drone to spray 1% sodium hypochlorite solution as a disinfectant in Nizamuddin East, Nizamuddin Basti and the surrounding areas. The spraying radius also included the controversial Markaz building.

"The drone deployment was meant to bring down human contact in the area. We don't want our dedicated sanitation workers to be infected," a senior SDMC official told IANS. He said drones also help in covering a large area effectively.

"The drone took 18 rounds of 20 minutes each with a 5-liter solution of the disinfectant. We may deploy more drones in the area," he said.

The sanitation drive in the Nizamuddin area has been going on since Monday, a day after Delhi Police started evacuating people from the Nizamuddin Markaz.

The police had cordoned off a large part of Nizamuddin West as several people showed coronavirus symptoms after taking part in the religious gathering, Delhi Health Minister Satendra Jain had said.

The police have identified over 1,830 attendees of the religious congregation that had gathered in Nizamuddin earlier this month.

On Monday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal ordered registration of an FIR against 'maulana' who led the congregation.

The maulana has been accused of organising a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in the area, flouting the social distancing norms.

According to sources, when the 21-day nationwide lockdown was announced, there were thousands of persons present inside the Tablighi Jamaat's international headquarters in southwest Delhi.

(Rohan Agarwal can be contacted at Rohan.a@ians.in )-IANS
Australians could be entitled to twice as much annual leave under new workplace award changes due to the coronavirus crisis.

The government on Thursday unveiled changes to more than 100 industry awards that will help workers cope with the economic effects of the pandemic.

Workers on 103 modern awards will be given two weeks of unpaid 'pandemic leave', as well as double their annual leave but at half pay.

'It's probably fair to say that there's been the type of change in three weeks inside the award system that you might otherwise wait 30 years to see,' Industrial Relations Minister Christian Porter told reporters.

'The reform has been temporary, it's meant to last for as long as this crisis lasts.'

New workplace award changes will give employees and employers a greater ability to manage the impacts of the virus. Pictured: Newly unemployed workers standing in a queue outside Centrelink

Industrial Relations Minister Christian Porter said the changes made in three weeks would usually take three decades

More 'significant' changes will apply to those covered by the restaurant, hospitality and clerk awards - which includes at least two million people.

Employees in those sectors will now be given longer periods of annual leave at reduced rates, work flexibility and the ability to work from home.

'The changes in these three awards mean that we have had changes like this: an individual worker who was performing one type of duty in one type of classification can go and move and perform another type of duty in another type of classification,' he added.

'Remarkably, some of the awards were so inflexible it was actually unlawful to work from home.'

Employees in 18 other awards - that include jobs in the construction, mining and maritime sector - will not be covered under the new changes as they have not been as severely affected by crisis.

The Fair Work Commission on Wednesday had proposed variations to the modern awards that would operate until June 30.

Industrial Relations Minister Christian Porter said it would give employees and employers a greater ability to manage the impacts of the virus.

People queuing outside a Centrelink office in Bondi Junction last Tuesday after pubs, cafes and restaurants were forced to close. Australians have been warned they may not be eligible for welfare if they receive a JobKeeper payment

'This reflects a key change already endorsed across key industry sector awards including restaurants, hospitality and the clerks' private sector awards,' he said.

Modern awards cover about 20 per cent of all employees in Australia.

The government is expected to confirm to the commission that the new $1,500 a fortnight JobKeeper payment will be available to employees on unpaid leave, provided the employee and employer in question meet the eligibility criteria for the payment.

A recent Australian Bureau of Statistics survey found half of all businesses had already experienced an adverse impact as a result of COVID-19 while 86 per cent of businesses expected to be impacted in the coming months.

Meanwhile, the Morrison government has backed an industry call for the annual wage review to be delayed.

It was due to be completed by June 30, but the government argues more reliable economic data will be needed for the Fair Work Commission to make an informed decision.

The government has already deferred the federal budget until October.

'In light of rapidly evolving events relating to the coronavirus pandemic, the government's position is that the commission should utilise any available mechanisms that enhance its ability to consider all economic data and other information relevant to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic when making its decision,' the government said in its submission.

The commission also has the ability under 'exceptional circumstances' to defer the start of an order if it chose to go down that path.
Almost 81,000 people filed for unemployment last week, the Alabama Department of Labor announced today.

According to preliminary figures, 80,984 Alabamians filed for unemployment compensation for the week ending March 28.

This latest number, the largest to date since the business closures prompted by the coronavirus pandemic, shows its effect on Alabamas economy. The previous week, just as sheltering restrictions came into place, 10,892 people filed for unemployment. For the week ending March 14, before any measures were enacted, it was only 1,824.

In February, Alabama recorded a 2.7 percent unemployment rate, the best ever and the third straight month at that mark.

Looking at individual county totals, Jefferson County saw a jump from 2,301 claims for the week ending March 21, to 13,603 a week later. Shelby jumped from 448 to 2,439. Baldwin County went from 503 to 4,683. Tuscaloosa shot from 586 to 5,458.

Madison County had 6,370 apply last week, up from 1,080 the previous week, while Montgomery saw 3,928 claims, up from 523.

Among individual categories statewide, the effects were evident on major industries in state. Accommodation and food service workers had 17,632 claims, while manufacturing had 11,486 filings. Health care and social assistance tallied 7,324 claims.

The highest unemployment rate the state ever recorded was in October, November and December of 2009, the height of the Great Recession, when it was 11.8 percent. In October of that year, 227,000 Alabamians were unemployed.

Meanwhile, preliminary figures show 66,638 Alabamians filed for unemployment this week through Wednesday, according to the state Labor Department.
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The absence of a concerted ASEAN response to the coronavirus pandemic has put a spotlight on member states commitment to regional integration and unity. And now Indonesia, one of the grouping's five founding states, is calling for a special summit on a regional COVID-19 strategy.

The ASEAN Community concept was introduced in 2015 to develop a regional community that was politically cohesive, economically integrated, and socially responsible. Observers say, however, that ASEAN states have failed at anticipating a regional pandemic, never mind a regional prevention and control strategy as part of the vision for an integrated ASEAN.

Southeast Asian nations are beginning to see the all-encompassing challenges that come with their own localized outbreaks while the number of confirmed cases grows across the region.

Yet, each member state is using a different approach to curbing the spread of the virus, whether in the form of quarantines, lockdowns, border closures or travel bans, while each have introduced various economic stimulus packages to buffer the impacts of COVID-19.

Senior officials from the 10 member states with expertise in health, politics, economics and sociocultural affairs met on Tuesday by video link under the framework of the ASEAN Coordinating Council Working Group (ACCWG) on Public Health Emergencies.

Indonesia told the meeting that it was time for ASEAN to hold a virtual summit as well as an ASEAN Plus Three Summit in order to strengthen cooperation against the deadly virus, which has infected more than 10,000 people across the region.

Indonesia believes that a special summit will send a positive signal to the public, businesses and investors, the Indonesian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi has also informally proposed convening a special meeting to address the global health crisis to Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh, according to ministry official Achmad Rizal Purnama.

Member states are also in the process of setting up the ASEAN COVID-19 Response Fund. The fund is to be drawn from the ASEAN cooperation fund with partner countries including the United States, which has pledged around US$18.3 million in emergency health and humanitarian assistance, according to the US State Department.

Read also: Coronavirus epidemic 'far from over' in Asia, WHO official

Indonesia said that the special summit would be useful in sharing knowledge and experience from the blocs "plus three" partners  Japan, South Korea and China, all of which have succeeded in flattening the curve .

The Chinese city of Wuhan is where the disease first emerged about three months ago, while South Korea has been praised around the world for its strategy to control the outbreak through massive early testing programs.

Such initiatives are especially important following the mid-March announcement by current ASEAN chair Vietnam, that the ASEAN Summit scheduled for April 6-9 had been postponed to June due to concerns over the outbreak.

The Foreign Minister continues to communicate with her counterparts in ASEAN that it is time for member states to address [COVID-19] issues through other means, such as a virtual [summit]," Achmad told a press briefing on Wednesday. "Indonesia has conveyed this [idea] to Vietnam, as the ASEAN chair, which is exploring this possibility.

Read also: COVID-19 cases surge in ASEAN states

Ibrahim Almuttaqi of the Habibie Center's ASEAN studies program said that the regional grouping appeared sluggish in developing a regional response to COVID-19 and had instead adopted what he described as a nation-first mentality.

On the one hand, this is understandable given the desperate situation we are in. But they should be well-advised of the 'tragedy of the commons'. If we all act independently and think only about our own interests, we will hurt the greater good, he said.

Senior fellow Randy Nandyatama at Gadjah Mada Universitys ASEAN Studies Center described the situation as a stag hunt", a game theory concept wherein countries have to choose between cooperation toward larger payoffs or individually seeking smaller outcomes.

Hopefully ASEAN member states are all looking for the stag [greater good], which can only happen if they share information among countries and are well aware that this crisis is likely to be long and thus requires leadership, he said.

Read also: Lawmaker calls on government to help Indonesian workers in Malaysia

Randy pointed out that ASEAN had never responded collectively to any regional crises as they were occurring, but rather created a new mechanism once the crisis had passed. For example, the Chiang Mai Initiative, the bloc's legacy from the 1997 Asian financial crisis, was only formed after 2000, he said.

ASEAN states also tended to use a security paradigm when facing regional challenges, which generally resulted in a zero-sum mentality, said Randy.

Singapore and Vietnam can share their best practices with fellow member states, but they have not appeared to consider this, [...] even though helping their neighbors will greatly help them in the long run  in this case, avoiding a second wave of COVID-19, he said.
The pastor of a Florida megachurch  arrested this week on charges of violating local orders against mass gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic  said Thursday he's received death threats stemming from the "trumped-up charges."

But in a lengthy statement defending himself, Pastor Rodney Howard-Browne admitted that the right move now is to cancel Sunday services at The River at Tampa Bay Church.

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

"At this point, we believe it is prudent to take a pause by not opening the church doors this Sunday," according to Howard-Browne. "This will allow an opportunity for people to take a deep breath and calm down."

IMAGE: Rodney Howard-Browne (Hernando County Jail via AP)

Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister secured an arrest warrant and had deputies from neighboring Hernando County arrest the pastor at his home Monday.

He was booked on suspicion of unlawful assembly and violation of public health emergency rules, both second-degree misdemeanors.

"The word of my arrest has traveled around the world," Howard-Browne said Thursday. "While I have received vulgar verbal abuse and death threats from people who do not know me and are not familiar with the facts, I have also received many words of support and prayer. "

Howard-Browne was bailed out the same day he was arrested  but he conceded that he doesn't want to be jailed again.

"I have already been arrested once on trumped-up charges," he said. "I am a law-abiding citizen, who respects law enforcement. Like any normal law-abiding person, I would prefer not to be arrested again."

Howard-Browne insisted that his church enforced all local orders about social distancing, passed out hand sanitizer to worshippers and had all staff members wear gloves.

"The church took extra precautions to more than comply with" the local orders, Howard-Browne said.

Download the NBC News app for full coverage and alerts about the coronavirus outbreak

Story continues

The church posted a livestream of services Sunday morning, and the sanctuary appeared to be crowded  with far less than 6 feet of separation between worshippers  but not completely packed.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office didn't immediately return a call Thursday seeking comment.

Howard-Browne said he hasn't decided whether church doors will be open a week from Sunday: "At this time, I have not made any decision about Easter Sunday or services thereafter."
Parliament has has indicated that the COVID-19 National Trust Fund Bill should be considered under a certificate of urgency.

This follows the Attorney Generals presentation of the Bill to the House with a request for it to be considered urgently.

The Bill is to establish a fund to properly receive and regulate donations for dealing with the Coronavirus pandemic.

With the determination, the Bill can now be taken through the processes and passed within 24 hours.

The Majority Leader, Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu, on the Floor of Parliament said, The committee would then in all alacrity go through it and come with a report to us. Mr. Speaker, we can then pass this through all the processes in one day if we should determine. So Mr. Speaker, I would want to agree with the committee that what weve done is most appropriate under the circumstances that the entire House approves the report and agree that this BIll be taken under a certificate of urgency so that it can go back to the committee for them to come back with a report on the second reading of the Bill which would then be done by the Minister for Justice and the Attorney General.

About COVID-19 National Trust Fund

President Nana Akufo-Addo in a late-night address on Friday, March 27, 2020, announced the establishment of a COVID-19 Fund in Ghana.

He also indicated that he has donated his April, May and June salaries as seed capital for the Fund.

The Fund which will be headed by former Chief Justice, Sophia Akuffo, is to receive public contributions to help improve the lives of the vulnerable who will be worst-hit by the pandemic.

The other members of the Board of trustees of the Fund are Archbishop Justice Ofei Akrofi, Jude Kofi Bucknor, Gifty Afenyi-Dadzie, Elsie Addo-Awadzie, Dr. Ernest Ofori-Sarpong, and Dr Tanko Collins Asare will act as Secretary to the Board.

The President, while inaugurating the Board at a brief ceremony at Jubilee House two days after the Funds establishment noted that since the outbreak of the virus in Ghana, especially during the course of last week, organisations and individuals have made donations, with others wanting to find out how they can also contribute to the cause.

I felt that the best way was to establish a public trust so that the monies that come do not get intermingled with Government money and all of those problems. A public trust that is to be managed by an independent body of trustees, so that people will see that these monies are being properly accounted for and properly deployed, he said.

Donations to the Fund

Vice-President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia continued in Akufo-Addos steps and also donated three months salary to the Trust Fund.

All Ministers of State and other top appointees at the presidency voluntarily decided to donate 50 percent of their salary for the next three months to the recently initiated COVID-19 Fund.

Institutions that have donated to the Fund so far include Hollard Ghana  GHS100,000, Absa Bank Ghana  GHS1 million, Interplast  GHS1.2 million, and Justmoh Construction Limited contributing GHS500,000.

---citinewsroom
[Read our Coronavirus Relief Small Business F.A.Q.]

Small business owners, desperate for help amid the economic meltdown wrought by the coronavirus pandemic, are eagerly awaiting the start of a $349 billion government relief program.

But just one day before the programs launch on Friday, the banks and other lenders that the government is relying on to fund loans and vet applicants were still waiting for much of the information they need to participate. They are also nervous about how they  and the government  will handle what is expected to be a huge crush of demand.

The response is overwhelming  its unlike anything Ive ever seen in my career, said Craig Street, the chief lending officer of United Midwest Savings Bank, a community bank in Columbus, Ohio. Were talking about attempting to do 10 times our normal monthly loan volume, and maybe more than that.

The so-called paycheck protection program, part of the $2 trillion stimulus package enacted last week, offers companies and nonprofits with up to 500 workers a low-interest loan to cover up to two months of payroll and other expenses. Most  and in some cases, all  of the loan will be forgiven if the borrower retains its workers and doesnt cut their wages. (The government will repay lenders for the forgiven portions of the loans.)
The Earth's ozone layer is continuing to repair itself, according to scientists.

The Montreal Protocol was agreed back in 1987 with the purpose of safeguarding the ozone layer and aiding it to repair itself. A study was released this week confirming the protocol is working.

Evidence showed that the ozone layer is exhibiting signs of ongoing recovery from man-made damage which is likely to fully heal in 2060.

The measures taken to mend the damage will also have a critical beneficial impact on climate change, as some of the gases that caused the ozone layer to narrow and in places fade also bring about the warming of the atmosphere.

The ozone layer is in charge of protecting Earth from the sun's ultraviolet rays.

Ultraviolet radiation given off by the sun can cause skin cancer, immune system suppression, cataracts, and damage to plants.

Without the ozone layer, survival on this planet would be nearly impossible.

According to the study, published in the science journal "Nature," the recuperating ozone hole may have been a byproduct of the 1987 Montreal Protocol.

This heralds a rare success in the upending of environmental damage and shows that orchestrated action on a global scale can make big changes.

Aside from recovering, the ozone layer is regenerating the circulation of winds all over the planet. This development is associated with tangible measures set store by international cooperation.

All UN-recognized countries signed the Montreal Protocol in 1987, setting in place guidelines to restrain the manufacture and utilization of agents linked with the aggravation of the ozone layer, such as chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs.

Also Read: NASA Recruiting Astronauts for Artemis Missions to the Moon and Mars

Scientists showed through direct satellite monitoring of the ozone hole that levels of ozone-damaging chlorine are decreasing, resulting in a lesser degree of ozone depletion.

The decline in chlorine, brought about by an international ban on CFCs, has prompted around 20 percent less ozone depletion during the Antarctic winter than the depletion in 2005.

The ozone hole was first reported in 1985. According to NASA atmospheric scientist Nathaniel Livesey, today, the planet's ozone hole is in recuperation. The hole on the layer is in the smallest size it has ever been.

The ozone layer hovering over Antarctica has healed to a large degree, that it stopped several alarming changes in the Southern Hemisphere's atmosphere.

The Montreal Protocol is to be thanked as it could be the driving force in pausing or even countering some worrying changes in air currents all over the Southern Hemisphere.

Ozone depletion had been moving the southern jet stream further south than normal. This resulted in varying rainfall patterns and possibly ocean currents as well. A decade or so after the protocol was signed, that migration abruptly halted.

However, according to scientists, redirecting wind flows should not be lauded as a feat yet because of the increasing greenhouse gas emission. It is critical to note that the healing of the ozone layer will have a varied pace in different regions of the world.

Related Article: Polar Bear Cannibalism on the Rise

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LONDON (Reuters) - More than 170,000 people have signed up to help Britain's National Health Service tackle the coronavirus outbreak just hours after a request for a quarter of a million volunteers.

"At times of crisis people come together," Stephen Powis, the national medical director of NHS England, told BBC TV. "This is a health emergency and we can all play a role."

Britain had called for 250,000 volunteers to deliver food and medicines, provide transport for patients and supplies, and to telephone those who are becoming lonely because of self isolation.

The system aims to reach up to 1.5 million people who are "shielding" - keeping themselves at home for 12 weeks under government advice to protect those with serious health conditions.

The death toll from coronavirus in the United Kingdom jumped on Tuesday by 87 to a total of 422 - the biggest daily increase since the crisis began.

(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; editing by Kate Holton)
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen (L) meets passengers who disembarked from the Westerdam cruise ship in Sihanoukville, where the liner docked after being refused entry at other Asian ports due to fears of the COVID-19 outbreak, Feb. 14, 2020.

Draft legislation authorizing a state of emergency to contain the spread of the coronavirus in Cambodia would empower Prime Minister Hun Sen to override fundamental human rights protections, a rights group said Thursday, urging his government to withdraw the bill.

On March 31, Cambodias Council of Ministers approved the Law on Governing the Country in a State of Emergency, which New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) warned in a statement would allow the government to restrict all civil and political liberties and target human rights, democracy, and media groups.

A vote on the bill by the countrys one-party National Assembly, essentially a rubber stamp parliament, is expected later this week or early next week.

Brad Adams, Asia director at HRW, noted that Hun Sen has claimed the law is necessary to respond to a pandemic that only weeks ago he had dismissed concerns over, and suggested the prime minister is using the crisis as an excuse to give himself even greater control over the country.

Even before the coronavirus, Hun Sen ran roughshod over human rights, so these sweeping, undefined, and unchecked powers should set off alarm bells among Cambodias friends and donors, Adams said.

Instead of passing laws to protect public health, the Cambodian government is using the COVID-19 pandemic as a pretext to assert absolute power over all aspects of civil, political, social, and economic lifeall without any time limits or checks on abuses of power, he added, referring to the disease caused by the virus.

In particular, HRW highlighted article 5 of the bill, which it said contains overly broad and vague provisions that would violate fundamental rights without explaining why they are needed to fight the spread of the virus.

The article includes language that would grant the government unlimited surveillance of telecommunications, control of media and social media, and what HRW called catch-all unfettered powers, referring to a clause through which authorities could put in place other measures that are deemed appropriate for and necessary to responding to the state of emergency.

Other articles

Additionally, articles 1 and 4 would allow the government to declare a state of emergency even after the end of the coronavirus crisis, citing a need to defend national security, public order, the lives and health of citizens as well as property and the environment, while article 3 says that a declaration can last for an unlimited period of time, without specifying how a decision on its length would be reached.

The bill also would create a permanent opportunity for the government to declare martial law, HRW said, and fails to include any oversight for the powers it grants the state.

The emergency law will allow Hun Sen, at long last, to run the country by fiat, Adams said. It will make his dictatorial rule legal and official.

HRW warned that if the bill passes, it could be easily used against critics of the government, the oppositions, nongovernmental organizations, and the mediagroups that have already been targeted in a longstanding crackdown by Hun Sen.

The group noted that United Nations human rights experts have cautioned states against emergency declarations based on the coronavirus as a cover for repressive action under the guise of protecting health  and should not be used simply to quash dissent.

From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hun Sen has denied or downplayed the risks posed to Cambodia by the coronavirus in Cambodia, but evidently hes more than willing to join the bandwagon of autocratic leaders using the crisis to justify giving themselves vastly expanded powers, Adams said.

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights should remind Hun Sen that if he wants to suspend certain rights, he has to notify the UN Human Rights Committee. But pandemic or not, many rights cannot be suspended, and Cambodia will remain bound by its international legal commitments.

Government response

Ministry of Justice spokesman Chhin Malin on Thursday dismissed criticism of the draft law, but refused to comment on specific articles within it, saying the language is not official yet.

He said the governments decision to pursue the bill is not out of the ordinary amidst the coronavirus outbreak and vowed that it would comply with international norms based on the U.N.s Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Before criticizing us, I would like Human Rights Watch to look into other countries laws in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak, he told RFA.

Do those laws restrict peoples freedom during the outbreak? For Cambodia, we are drafting the law for the publics benefit and we are doing it in a way that will comply with international law.

In the Philippines, where the countrys Congress declared a state of emergency to deal with the virus that has infected 2,633 and killed 107, rights groups have expressed concerns that new powers granted to President Rodrigo Duterte will make it dangerous for local governments to express dissent over how to respond to the crisis.

Cambodias National Assembly spokesman Leng Peng Long told RFA that members of parliament have yet to receive the draft law, but would review it as soon as possible, as quick action is needed to protect the public.

He stressed that even if the law is passed, only Cambodias King Norodom Sihamoni can officially declare a state of emergency.

Activists weigh in

Meanwhile, activists around Cambodia expressed concerns over the bill, saying they believe it will restrict their freedom if enacted into law.

A student from the capital Phnom Penh named Chea Kunin told RFA that the law will impact freedom of expression, travel, and her work as an environmental activist who regularly monitors protected areas for illegal logging.

We will endure difficulties expressing our views, she said. If we speak out and [the government] finds it offensive, we will be in trouble.

Another activist named Suth Ban said the government can control the outbreak without placing the country under a state of emergency and called on lawmakers to consider the draft law carefully before passing it.

When the draft law is approved, we will have problems speaking publicly, he said.

HRWs statement came a day after local NGOs also called on the government to ensure that authorities will only use the law to combat the coronavirus.

Speaking to RFAs Khmer Service on Wednesday, Ny Sokhachief of the human rights department of the Cambodia-based rights group Adhocexpressed concern over several points of the bill that he said might be used by Hun Sens ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) to control the country.

We urge the government to use only those measures that are needed to fight the spread of COVID-19, he said. Nothing should be done that will harm democracy and human rights in the country.

As of Thursday evening, Cambodia had recorded 110 confirmed cases of COVID-19. The government announced the first infection within the countrys borders on Jan. 27.

Analysts also expressed doubts over newly appointed Minister of Justice Koeut Rith, who replaced Ang Vong Vathana last week in a cabinet reshuffle by Hun Sen.

Analyst Kim Sok told RFA Koeut Rith might have been appointed to his position because he helped draft laws to dissolve the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party in 2017 as part of a crackdown that sparked the countrys political crisis.

To please Hun Sen. Koeut Rith will draft more law to opposition the dissents in Cambodia, said the Finland-based analyst.

RFA couldnt reach Koeut Rith for comment.

However, Ministry of Justice Chhin Malin told RFA that critics should not judge the new minister who was just appointed.

This is destructive criticism, not constructive criticism. The minister has not started officially working yet but they have already judged him, he said.

Political researcher Em Sovanara said the reshuffle may not change much in a situation like Cambodia's, where the judicial system is not independent.

The three branches of the government, if they are separate, they will have checks and balances, but they are not at the moment.

Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
Russian envoy earlier claimed Russia was "lending a helping hand to the American people."

The United States has purchased from Russia, not received as assistance, a batch of medical supplies, in particular, ventilators and personal protection equipment.

The delivery was a result of the agreements reached by the heads of both states during a phone call on March 30.

"As a follow-up to the March 30 phone call between President Trump and President Putin, the United States has agreed to purchase needed medical supplies, including ventilators and personal protection equipment, from Russia, which were handed over to FEMA on April 1 in New York City," Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said in a press statement on April 1, 2020.

The U.S. said the countries of the G20 agreed last week to work together to defeat the coronavirus.

Read alsoUkrainian diplomats ask Mask to help with pulmonary fans for Ukrainian hospitals

Moreover, Washington said the United States is a generous and reliable contributor to crisis response and humanitarian action across the world.

On March 30, Russian media reported on the transfer of humanitarian aid by Russia. In addition, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said on April 1 the Russian Federation "is lending a helping hand to the American people. This is a historical moment and the continuation of a centuries-old tradition," without mentioning that this assistance was purchased by the United States.

Earlier, concerns have arisen in Italian political circles and media about the so-called "humanitarian assistance" that Russia is providing to the country to combat the coronavirus. According to senior sources of La Stampa, Russia is far from being guided by solely humanitarian motives, but rather pursues its own political and diplomatic interests.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, the newspaper writes, agreed to accept Russian assistance to "strengthen wonderful personal relations" with Moscow. However, as the sources of the publication note, 80% of Russian deliveries are "absolutely useless or of little use" for Italy to fight COVID-19, being nothing more than an excuse.
Preacher planning to host outdoor Easter blowout service despite coronavirus warnings

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A preacher in Pennsylvania says he's planning to host an outdoor Easter blowout service that will be like Woodstock, despite government guidelines urging people to avoid mass gatherings.

Jonathan Shuttlesworth, who oversees a ministry called Revival Today in the city of Prosperity, which is located around 40 miles from Pittsburgh, posted a video on YouTube Monday titled The Rodney Howard-Browne Tribute Special.

The video was named in honor of the Florida pastor who was arrested Monday for hosting worship services in spite of a state order advising people in South Florida to stay home to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Shuttlesworth denounced the idea of churches canceling in-person worship in response to concerns of spreading the coronavirus.

If somebody would have asked you, as a Christian, would you allow the government to tell you to not go to church on Sunday for any reason? If somebody would have asked you in January, what would your answer have been? Shuttlesworth asked.

And then why is it a different answer now?  Everybody would have bucked up, Oh no, not me. Im willing to die for my freedom.

Shuttlesworth found it hypocritical that some politicians and government officials believe churches should be closed, but not grocery stores, marijuana dispensaries, and abortion clinics.

Shuttlesworth then announced his plans for an Easter event, stating he wanted to bring people out to realize that God still has a remnant that will fight for freedom, fight for the Gospel.

I'm going to announce it, but we're going to hold an outdoor Easter blowout service, not online, a national gathering, you can come from all over like Woodstock, said Shuttlesworth.

We're going to gather and lift up Jesus Christ. I'm not ashamed that Dr. Rodney got arrested. I'm ashamed that when they wanted to arrest preachers for having church in an entire state, there was only one to come for. Im ashamed my butt wasnt seated next to him.

Shuttlesworth said he still respects pastors who decided to close their churches over the health concerns, but added, "I am in the lighting a fire under a behind, business."

In response to calls to fight the spread of COVID-19, most churches in the United States have canceled their in-person worship, with many switching to online services.

Last month, Word of Life Church in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, issued an official apology for holding a large worship service during efforts to curb mass gatherings for public health reasons.

Word of Life pastor Tom Walters posted a statement on Facebook apologizing for the decision to hold the service and explained that they will switch to exclusively online worship.

Walters explained in the statement that the worship gathering began with him and the church staff coming together to pray, with others joining them because they felt led to.

Please believe me when I say that it was not out of arrogance or defiance, but solely for the purpose of praying for our churches, communities, and nation, explained Walters.

We certainly want to be a blessing to our community and have certainly tried to be in years gone by. My heart was so heavy to experience the amount of hateful comments we received, but I guess I can understand.
The Japanese government has released the results of a simulation showing what could happen if Mount Fuji erupted again today.

The project was organized by the Central Disaster Management Council, which ran models predicting eruptions at 92 different vent locations on Mount Fuji.

While lava could reach the outer edges of Tokyo, the primary danger will come from ash, which could fall through the air for several days, or even weeks.

The Japanese government has run 92 different simulations for how Tokyo would be affected if Mount Fuji were to erupt again, predicting a worst case scenario that would see the city shut down in a matter of hours as more than 17.3billion cubic feet of ash spread across the landscape

In the worst case scenario, more than 17.3 billion cubic feet of volcanic ash would fall over Tokyo and the surrounding areas, according to a report in The Asahi Shimbun.

That would be equivalent to 10 times the amount of debris that had to be cleared from the city after the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011.

According to the report, the first signs of ash falling could be felt in as little as three hours and the city would be effectively shutdown within 24 hours because of the ash.

With just a one-inch layer of ash, the simulation says roads would become unusable for all two-wheel drive vehicles because for lack of adequate friction.

Even a comparatively light ashfall of around one-fifth of an inch would effectively lower visibility to the point where driving would become impossible.

Rail service would be suspended almost immediately as even a small amount of ash on the tracks would make it unsafe for trains to operate.

'A mistake in the early response could leave tens of millions of people stranded, and it may not be possible to distribute supplies,' University of Tokyo's Toshitsugu Fujii, who worked on the project, said

The research team selected 92 different vent locations on Mount Fuji for the simulation, in the hopes of anticipating a worst case scenario

Airports would be extremely restricted, as just 0.08 inches of volcanic ash would render runways unsafe for landing planes.

The ash would also disrupt mobile phone towers, cause power outages, and render thermal power plants inoperable after just two inches of ash.

Perhaps the worst effects would be on the population, who would face severe respiratory damage, especially those with existing conditions like asthma.

Many wooden homes would also be threatened with structural damage from the unexpectedly heavy weight of accumulated volcanic ash.

Mount Fuji is just 60 miles southwest of Tokyo and in a major eruption could blanket the city in ash, shutting down rail service and airports, while reducing visibility and road friction to the point where driving would become impossible

The group estimate it would take at least three days and a crew of 1,000 bulldozers to clear pathways wide enough just for emergency vehicles to begin driving again.

Mount Fuji has erupted around 180 eruptions over the last 5,600 years but the majority have been small and had little effect on nearby residents.

MOUNT FUJI FACTS At an elevation of 12,388 feet (3,776 meters), Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. It is an active stratovolcano found on Honshu island that last erupted in December 1707. Known as the Hoei eruption, this is thought to have expelled a billion cubic metres of ash and debris. Mount Fuji lies 60 miles (100 kilometers) south west of Tokyo, which in 1707 was called Edo. On 22 June 2014 Mount Fuji was added to the World Heritage List as a Cultural Site, one of Japans Three Holy Mountains. Advertisement

The last major eruption occurred in 1707, what's called the 'Hoei' eruption after the the Edo calendar period during which it took place.

That eruption produced more than 28.2 billion cubic feet of volcanic ash, which fell through the air for two weeks and traveled as far as 62 miles.

That eruption led to a number of secondary disasters during the following year, including flooding in multiple areas where volcanic ash formed natural dams that blocked the Sakawa River.

According to the Council, the simulations are intended to help the local government be prepared for the next disaster to minimize as much unnecessary damage as possible.

'A mistake in the early response could leave tens of millions of people stranded, and it may not be possible to distribute supplies,' University of Tokyo's Toshitsugu Fujii, who worked on the project, told The Mainichi.

'It's important to prepare a system to handle the situation in advance.'
SAN FRANCISCO, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), the global leader in CRM, today announced that Adam Blitzer, EVP & GM, Marketing Cloud, Commerce Cloud and Community Cloud, will participate in a conference call hosted by Cleveland Research Company on Friday, April 3, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. (PT) / 1:00 p.m. (ET) in San Francisco, CA.

An audiocast will be available on Salesforce's website at www.salesforce.com/investor.

About Salesforce

Salesforce is the global leader in Customer Relationship Management (CRM), bringing companies closer to their customers in the digital age. Founded in 1999, Salesforce enables companies of every size and industry to take advantage of powerful technologiescloud, mobile, social, internet of things, artificial intelligence, voice and blockchainto create a 360-degree view of their customers. For more information about Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), visit: www.salesforce.com.

SOURCE Salesforce

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Cumberland Valley High School students are among those involved in an elaborate home project to help people on the frontline in the fight against the coronavirus.

I figured with everything thats going on right now, its easy to feel helpless ... that you are not in control of anything, said Abby Maier, 15, a CV sophomore from Hampden Township.

I thought this would be a pretty good opportunity to insert myself into a situation where I was helping even in the smallest way, she said.

Maier is one of six students in Operation Face Mask Central Pennsylvania, a grassroots effort to mass produce protective gear for first responders and health care workers.

The initiative started around March 25 after Abi Givler, also of Hampden Township, noticed a Facebook post from Cumberland Goodwill EMS. The ambulance service asked the public for help to acquire face masks for employees.

Weve heard about the shortages elsewhere of personal protective equipment, said Nathan Harig, assistant director of administration for Cumberland Goodwill. We wanted to get ahead to make sure that we have a backup in case we run out of medical grade face masks.

Calling all crafters

The call for help prompted Givler to organize a group where CVHS students use a template to cut cotton fabric into the component parts for masks. The student volunteers are friends and siblings of friends of her son, Daniel, who is 18 and a senior this year.

I know the masks are important, Abi Givler said, adding that her father is a retired firefighter while her mother is a retired hospital lab technician. Both live in Wheeling, West Virginia.

Givler used a Facebook page developed for the operation and an app called Nextdoor to recruit about two dozen volunteers to sew together the parts into masks. In keeping with social distancing guidelines, she places the components with elastic bands into kit bags that the volunteers pick up from her front porch and then return with the finished product.

The group has constructed more than 350 masks as of Thursday. The goal is to provide 2,000 masks for Cumberland Goodwill and nine other organizations that need personal protective equipment. The list includes United Home Care Workers of Pennsylvania, which has thousands of members. Daniel Givler delivers the masks to the organizations.

I wanted to use my time to help somebody out who is not getting the help they need, Daniel Givler said. So far, he has cut components for about 150 masks.

I feel better doing something that is productive and helpful while staying at home, said Maier, who has cut components for 100 to 150 masks. It makes the situation better.

Helping hands

Paige Vernon is a sophomore at Penn State with a major in mechanical engineering and a minor in bio-engineering. Even though the main campus is closed in State College, she is taking full-time online courses at her familys home in Hampden Township.

Like the high school students, the 2018 CV graduate spends much of her time cutting the fabric into component parts. Vernon has sewn together two masks.

I have always participated in organizations and clubs that have helped people, Vernon said. Ive always loved to sew. This is right up my alley.

Though it was a bit overwhelming to organize Operation Face Masks, the effort has a system in place that seems to be working, Abi Givler said. Its just awesome how the community has come together to help all these organizations. I just want to thank everyone who has made donations and to those who are sewing.

Tracking COVID-19: Charts detail the course of coronavirus in Cumberland County The Sentinel is tracking the spread of COVID-19 through different data visualizations using the daily report from the Department of Health.

Email Joseph Cress at jcress@cumberlink.com.

Concerned about COVID-19? Sign up now to get the most recent coronavirus headlines and other important local and national news sent to your email inbox daily. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
In an appalling incident, health workers in Madhya Pradesh's Indore were pelted with stones by locals after they tried to screen residents of a locality for COVID-19.

The incident occurred on Wednesday in the city's Tatpatti Bakhal neighbourhood, one of the two hotspots of the virus outbreak in Indore, where a team of five health officials had been trying to conduct screenings for coronavirus among residents. According to police, the officials were trying to trace and contact a patient who had been infected with COVID-19.

In a video, now viral on social media, two of the workers clad in blue personal protective equipment suits can be seen running away as a local mob pelts in with stones. What starts as a small crowd soon turns into a 100-strong mob armed with stones and sticks and screaming abuses as they chased the medicos. Two women doctors were allegedly injured in the attack, NDTV reported. The doctors were reportedly rescued by police after they managed to escape on a vehicle.

#WATCH Madhya Pradesh: Locals of Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore pelt stones at health workers who were there to screen people, in wake of #Coronavirus outbreak. A case has been registered. (Note-Abusive language) (1.04.2020) pic.twitter.com/vkfOwYrfxK ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

The incident has evoked widespread anger on social media.

Ridiculously disgusting These people are criminals of top order, how can they even attack the medics who are like angels savings lives in this #COVID19Pandemic situation Santosh Addagulla (@santoshspeed) April 1, 2020

This entire neighbourhood in Indore should be locked down for another 21 days as punishment. https://t.co/hTjxP8Iixw Shivam Vij (@DilliDurAst) April 2, 2020

After seeing that Indore video where doctors, healthcare ppl are being chased, beaten, I received this DM from an AIIMS doctor. I got little emotional. He is angry, scared but still on work.. made some valid point. Imagine U seeing that video while on duty. Respect. With consent pic.twitter.com/hjQYaUsNSx Paresh Rawal fan (@Babu_Bhaiyaa) April 1, 2020

This group of men & women must know that they are the societys biggest enemy. Far from gratitude, doctors & health officials were attacked in Indore. The harshest of punishment is required. These people are a danger to India. #CoronaWarriors. Video shared by @Anurag_Dwary pic.twitter.com/dvmBebAA7s Sanket  (@sanket) April 2, 2020

Indore. Look at the health workers. They are running for their lives. This does not happen in a normal country. pic.twitter.com/4cMdUUMmed Shubhangi Tiwari (@shubh19822) April 1, 2020

The video from Indore is disturbing at so many levels. The health workers are risking their lives to save the nation, and they are treated with stones. Imagine this is happening in a lockdown period. Rahul Raj (@bhak_sala) April 1, 2020

Four men have allegedly been arrested with regard to the incident, police said.

The Tatpatti Bakhal neighbourhood is a sensitive spot with at least two positive cases reported from the area after which nearly 54 families were put under quarantine, much to the anger and chagrin of residents.

This is not the first incident of hostility against medicos in Indore. In fact, just two days prior to the attack, residents of Ranipuri, yet another neighbourhood in the city, spat at health officials and abused them during screening.

Some on social media claimed that the attack was a result of the mistrust of health and police officials amid locals after alleged targeting of Muslims in the city for testing and quarantining in wake of the Tablighi Jamat gathering at Delhi's Nizamuddin earlier in March. The event has now become one of the biggest coronavirus outbreak clusters in India and medical as well as government teams are scouring states to trace and contact all patients or potential patients.

Madhya Pradesh has recorded 93 cases of novel coronavirus which are currently active and seven deaths due to the virus.
THE World Bank (WB) has approved 500 million US Dollars (about 1.15tr/-) loan to Tanzania to support the Secondary Education Quality Improvement Project (SEQUIP), as the government vows that the fund would be spent on the intended purpose.

The money is set to directly benefit about 6.5 million pupils of primary schools and students of secondary schools by strengthening government-run schools and establishing stronger educational pathways for students who leave the formal school system.

It complements the governments efforts to improve the quality of education in the country, following the implementation of fee-free education from primary to form four, which has led to the increase of enrolment in primary schools from 8.3 million to 10.1 million, while for secondary schools, the enrolment has reached 4.4 million.

Deputy Minister in Presidents Office, Regional Administration and Local Government (PORALG) Mr Mwita Waitara, thanked various players who were supporting the government when it was requesting the loan, saying they had a good intention towards improvement of quality of education.

According to him, the government was disappointed with those who were lobbying for the World Bank to suspend issuing the loan to Tanzania.

It was unfortunate that some of our fellow Tanzanians were against the plans and initiatives taken by the government on bringing development. We stood firm for the national interest. As a result, the money has been approved and I can assure that the money will be spent on the targeted purpose, he told the Daily News in a telephone interview.

The project to be funded by the WB loan intends to support students who drop out to access recognized, quality Alternative Education Pathways as well as increasing the number and quality of secondary schools through construction of new schools closer to communities and ensure they are equipped with a minimum package of infrastructure, teachers, textbooks and learning materials.

It will also cater to roll out innovative digital technology to alleviate the learning crisis in core subjects and prepare students for further education and skills development.

He was of a view that, the government is intending to build a strong generation, and as a result it is throwing full weight to ensure every Tanzanian girl and boy acquires quality education and it will continue to do so.

Minister of Education, Science and Technology Prof Joyce Ndalichako, said recently in Dodoma that among other things, the money would be spent on to 26 boarding schools for girls that have capacity to carry 39,000 student and some 1,000 day schools.

Responding to the development, analysts have welcomed the latest decision by the WB, acknowledging efforts that have been made by the government on the matter, calling on Tanzanians from all walks to support the governments initiatives to improve the education sector.

A senior lecturer of Economics at Mzumbe University, Dr Elinaza Mkuna, apart from commending the government on its efforts to ensure the loans come to the country, stressed on the importance of having a national dialogue on the education sector.

Members of the public have a role to play in improving our education, therefore they shouldnt be left behind in the process. So far a lot has been done by the government on improving infrastructure and learning environment in our schools, he explained.

The scholar also called on the importance of strengthening the capacity of institutions overseeing quality of education in the country.

He was seconded by Mr Jerlum Kilumile, an assistant lecturer at Mzumbe University who hailed the government for maintaining its stand on the matter despite barriers placed by some political opposition politicians and activists.

This project is for our country and it will benefit all of us, so there was no need for them to urge the WB to suspend it. They should have let the government do the job for the interest of our country, he said.

For his part, a senior lecturer of political science at the Iringa based Ruaha Catholic University (RUCU), Prof Gaudence Mpangala, was optimistic that the government would deliver the expectations..
The CPI-M on Thursday said that there are efforts and the campaign in social media to target a community on coronavirus outbreak, which is condemnable.

"It is a matter of serious concern that a large number of those, who attended the meetings of the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi and who dispersed to different parts of the country have been found infected with the coronavirus," said the CPI-M in a statement.

"It was irresponsible on the part of the Jamaat leadership to have organized the meeting in mid-March when restrictions were already in place about the size of gatherings," added the release.

The party's statement came after several COVID-19 positive cases were found among Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin area. More than 10 attendees have also died.

The party stated that it is "inexplicable" how the authorities allowed a second gathering on March 2O-21.

"The CPI (M) condemns the efforts and the campaign in social media to give this a communal colour and to target a community. The coronavirus does not differentiate on the basis of religion. All efforts to communalise the issue must be rebuffed," it said.

The party said that those who attended big gatherings in the country after the March 13 order, prohibiting assembly of more than 200 people, must be traced and tested.

It also said that India has a very low testing rate today and this must be rectified urgently.

"We must learn from South Korea and Singapore in meticulously tracing all those attending large congregations, isolating them after aggressive testing and containing the community spread of COVID-19. India today has a very low testing rate, i.e., 241 times lower than South Korea. This must be rectified urgently," reads the release.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1,965 on Thursday after 131 people tested positive in the last 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. So far, at least 50 people have lost their lives due to the deadly virus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The friend of President Donald Trumps who he refers to as having coronavirus is reportedly Stanley Chera.

Earlier in the week, during his daily press conferences concerning the virus, Mr Trump referred to one of his friends who contracted Covid-19, but did not reveal their name.

Three sources told The New York Times that Mr Chera is who Mr Trump referred to, but could not confirm if he has tested positive for the virus.

Mr Chera is a friend of the presidents and is a real estate developer in New York City.

He introduced Mr Trump at the Veterans Day Parade in 2019 and sold the retail portion of 666 Fifth Avenue in a joint venture with Charles Kushner, father to the presidents son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

The Times reported that he left the city after the outbreak hit America and has been staying in Deal, New Jersey.

Their sources confirm that the 78-year-old is believed to be in a medically induced coma at the NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia hospital, but that a coronavirus diagnosis is unconfirmed by doctors.

In his daily press conference on Tuesday, Mr Trump described the seriousness of his friends condition, saying that he is in a coma.

When you send a friend to the hospital, and you call up to find out how is he doing  it happened to me, where he goes to the hospital, he says goodbye, he said.

Hes sort of a tough guy. A little older, a little heavier than hed like to be, frankly. And you call up the next day: Hows he doing? And hes in a coma? This is not the flu, Mr Trump added.

A reporter asked the president if hearing about his friends condition helped change his mind about relaxing social distancing measures by Easter and extending them until at least the end of the month.

Not a turning point. No, before that, I knew, he said. It hit him very hard. He is strong. A very strong kind of a guy. He is older. He is heavier. He sort of is central casting for what were talking about, and it hit him very hard.

According to a tracking project hosted by Johns Hopkins University, upwards of 216,768 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the US. The death toll has reached at least 5,148.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended a two-week ban on gatherings of more than 50 people as part of the battle to contain the spread of the contagion.
Anyone traveling to Nashville who is a Civil War enthusiast should consider visiting Fort Negley for a couple of reasons.



The first is to have the opportunity to view from a high elevation the immense construction that is taking place in what is now Tennessees largest city (Shelby is the largest county). From a viewpoint on the knoll at Fort Negley observers can see a multitude of high level cranes engaged in elevating the Music Citys skyline.

From a historical perspective Fort Negley is an important part of the Civil War involvement of our state's capital in 1862-1867. Although the wooden structure that comprised the fortifications of the area are gone, much history pertaining to the area remains.

After its occupation on February 25, 1862, by Union forces, Nashville was the second most fortified city in America after Washington, D.C. The original fort was named after James S. Negley, provost marshal and commander of Federal forces in the city.

In 1865 the location was renamed Fort Hacker in honor of the death of General Charles G. Hacker, who was killed at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain in Georgia.

The changing of the name of the fort was based on General Negleys alleged poor performance at the Battle of Chickamauga in 1863. However, he was later exonerated of the charges and the fort was known locally as Fort Negley. Negley would later serve as a Congressman and railroad president.

After the defeat of the Confederate Army at Fort Donelson on February 16, 1862, the citizenry and government officials realized that the occupation of Nashville was imminent and an era known as The Great Panic took place. Governor Isham Harris and the Tennessee General Assembly members left for Memphis by rail with the state's Archives. When the Confederate Army under the command of General Albert S. Johnston fled the city on February 25, Union troops arrived headed by General Don Carlos Buell. Terms of surrender were negotiated by Major Richard B. Cheatham and Nashville remained under federal occupation throughout the war.

The erection of Fort Negley was originally designed to protect any attack on Nashville. It was located atop St. Cloud Hill, south of the city.

Local male and female slaves were the primary labor force that erected a star-shaped structure of limestone block.

An agreement was made that the runaway slaves who worked on the construction of the fort would have their status of slaves revoked. Free blacks were also forcibly conscripted for the work. Of the 2,768 blacks on the project, only 310 were ever paid and 600-800 men were killed while working.

Although Fort Negley was erected for the defense of Nashville when Confederate forces attacked the capital in the Battle of Nashville on December 15-16, 1864, most of the fighting was on the south end of the city.

Although units at the impressive Fort Negley fired an occasional volley toward the invading southern troops of General John Bell Hood, its role was of minor involvement. The fort remained under federal control and martial law until 1867.

After the end of the Civil War, the fort fell into a state of deterioration and was abandoned. The site became a meeting place for secret rallies of the Ku Klux Klan until 1869. In 1937 the Federal Works Progress Association (WPA) reconstructed the fort as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelts New Deal.

However, the site has had a checkered history. After the 1937 reconstruction the fort was allowed to fall into ruins until attention was once again brought to its existence in the 1964 Civil War Centennial Celebration. In 1975, Fort Negley was listed on the National Registry of Historic Places.

In 1980 the Metro Historical Commission marked the site with a historical marker.

Rehabilitation of the fort began in 2002 with stabilization of the fort and installation of interpretive panels outlining the history of the fort. Accessible walkways were erected. Fort Negley reopened on the 140th anniversary of the Battle of Nashville in December 2004.

The modernistic Fort Negley Visitors Center opened in 2007 and includes many Civil War historical features about Nashville and other areas.

Admission to the fort is free and information as to hours and dates of operation can be obtained at (615) 862-8470 or www.nashville.gov/parks-and-recreation-historic-sites-fort-negley.aspx.

Although an administrative blunder in 2017 resulted in the removal of all of the trees from the site, both reasons stated above justify a visit to Fort Negley as an opportunity to learn the past and see the proposed future of Nashville.
And Mr. de Blasio? He was somewhere in the middle, like most of the media that is now keeping score. His painfully public three-day Hamlet act over closing schools ended with Mr. Cuomo announcing that theyd be closed just minutes before Mr. de Blasios planned announcement  both of them days behind some other school systems around the country. Ms. Breed had her city shelter in place March 16; Mr. de Blasio aired that idea March 17, to be immediately rebuked by Cuomo, who then put in a similar statewide order four days later. On Wednesday, Mr. Cuomo overrode the mayor to close playgrounds. The two have tiptoed around one another, and on Tuesday held news conferences at the same hospital ship, an hour apart.

Mr. de Blasio told me his hesitation to shut schools and, effectively, the city was focused on the city as he saw it. The vast majority of New Yorkers are working-class people, are lower income folks, who have no option but to stand and fight, he said. They cant go any place else, they dont have an alternative to child care, they dont have a nanny.

And he blamed the media for overlooking those groups to focus on the more affluent classes. Our discourse is inherently about a small subset of our people.

The problem with his argument, of course, is that the poor get sick, too. People close to Mr. de Blasio say he erred in taking a reflexively ideological approach to a fast-moving health crisis. One former aide worried that the mayor filtered the pandemic through a social justice lens that does not work for this moment.

Mr. de Blasio rejects the criticism that he let his preoccupation with inequality overwhelm his more universal obligations. But he says the emerging story of the crisis will be about the old inequalities as much as about the new disease. The city has released largely useless data about where the coronavirus is hitting hardest. New data is nearly ready, he said, and when its released later this week, it will show that clearly.

Were going to be able to put out much more true data that will show this tracking with the health disparities that are historically known, he said. Coronavirus is equal opportunity, and we have to save and protect everyone  but its increasingly clear where were losing lots of people and how it connects back to historic disparities.

Mr. de Blasios hair has cooled off as the briefings have gone on; he continues to drive his aides crazy by refusing to trust information, as The New York Times Jeffery C. Mays and Joseph Goldstein reported, until he has processed it himself. Hes scrambling like other executives to get supplies for the city; he was on the phone Monday, he said, with the chief executive of a Swedish ventilator company, pleading New Yorks case. Hes now under fire from the right for releasing inmates from city jails.
[April 02, 2020] MRM Named A 'Magic Quadrant' Leader By Gartner For Fourth Straight Year

NEW YORK, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- For the fourth year in a row, MRM has been designated as a Leader in Gartner Inc.'s "Magic Quadrant for Global Marketing Agencies" report. Gartner, which is the world's leading information technology research and advisory company, compiles its global agency analysis based on an evaluation of 15 criteria encompassing both completeness of vision and ability to execute. MRM, a leading customer relationship agency that is part of McCann Worldgroup, has global expertise and capabilities across a number of key areas. MRM's core pillars include strategy & consulting, creativity & connections, technology & invention and data science, engineering & analytics. Kate MacNevin, Global CEO of MRM, said, "We couldn't be prouder of the continued recognition we're receiving from Gartner based on their thorough evaluation of agency services, including how these are perceived by the client community. From our view, we've been consistently strengthening and expanding our capabilities across the boardin strategy, creativity, consulting, data and analytics, e-Commerce and technology  along with providing the staff development and diversity programs required to support these competencies. As we look to when the coronavirus pandemic ends, we're likely to see some lasting modifications in how businesses and consumers behave in a digitally interconnected world with which they've become more active and familiar. So it's gratifying that as we continue to advance and evolve all of our capabilities, we also continue to be recognized by an outside objective observer as one of the global leaders in our agency sector." We believe this Gartner "Leaders" recognition follows a successful year for MRM globally. In 2019, it achieved impressive growth fueled both by additional assignments from existing clients, such as General Motors, BASF, Anheuser-Busch and Coca-Cola and many new clients including British Land, Aden + Anais, Boston Proper and Kashiyama. The agency also launched a new Center of Excellence (COEx) for Microsoft in London, as well as two new product innovation studios  LB13  in Tokyo and Manchester. On the awards front, MRM earned three Lions at the 2019 Cannes International Festival of Creativity, 17 Effie Awards across several markets, and additional hardware from the likes of The One Show, The Clio Awards, The Webby Awards and the D&AD Awards.



Gartner Magic Quadrants are based on a rigorous, fact-based analysis backed up by a highly structured methodology. As described by Gartner, "Leaders possess deep, broad capabilities across all competencies, most notably related to strategic services (which include business strategy and digital business transformation skills). Leaders implement comprehensive, effective solutions that leverage sizable investments in creative talent and marketing technology. They invest their own R&D dollars to set market direction. As a result, Leaders are the providers to watch in the ongoing evolution and transformation of marketing in a digital world. Leaders maintain a viable business, regardless of the global economy. Leaders extend their client relationships far beyond marketing promotions, often appearing on competitive bids outside their primary sector (for example, management consulting, product ideation and product development requests for quotations). Leaders help their clients develop digital marketing platforms designed for systemic growth and scale; they do so by harnessing their own significant expertise implementing digital marketing programs driven by data and analytics." You can access a complimentary copy of the full report here: https://www.gartner.com/doc/reprints?id=1-1YPMN987&ct=200402&st=sb

Source: Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Global Marketing Agencies, Jay Wilson, Ewan McIntyre, Laurel Erickson, 30 March 2020. Gartner Disclaimer

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designations. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of facts. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. ABOUT MRM

MRM is a leading marketing agency. Through a strong foundation in strategy, data science, technology and creativity, MRM helps transform businesses by helping brands grow meaningful relationships with people. MRM is part of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG) and a top agency in the McCann Worldgroup network, with 40-plus offices across North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. For more information, please visit www.mrm.com. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mrm-named-a-magic-quadrant-leader-by-gartner-for-fourth-straight-year-301034205.html SOURCE MRM

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India crosses the mark of 2000 cases, approximately 235 cases has been reported in the last 24 hours. Karnataka reported 14 new cases in the last 24 hours confirmed state health minister.

India crosses the mark of 2000 cases, approximately 235 cases has been reported in the last 24 hours. Karnataka reported 14 new cases in the last 24 hours confirmed state health minister. The death toll is constant to 3 but 107 patients have been taken to isolation which includes a pregnant lady. Whereas the Harayan government has taken a decision to ban the sale of chew gum to stop the spread of coronavirus. It is not the key measure for the spread but the government has decided to keep all kinds to precautions in the state.

Delhi government said that there are more 141 new cases in the last 24 hours out of which 121 belongs to Markaz Nizamuddin. News agency ANI reported 2 deaths involved in Markaz Nizamuddin. The state health ministry confirmed 2 9 3 positive cases.

Assam Health Minister also made a big statement, he said that 488 people have been traced in the state who have been part of Markaz Nizamuddin. The government has taken 361 samples for the test and around 15 people are yet to be traced.

The health workers and police are also getting affected by the COVID-19, earlier today BMC worker in Dharavi found positive. After that In Delhi, AAIMS resident doctor was found positive. In no time the report came that his 9 months pregnant wife also get infected by the novel coronavirus.

Also, Congress president Sonia Gandhi said that the lockdown became big trouble for the citizens of India, it should be imposed with better preparations. To which BJP president JP Nadda called it an insensitive statement. While everyone is supporting the government to fight against coronavirus such statements should not be made. Markaz Nizamuddin highly affected the state of Tamil Nadu where 75 new cases were found in the last 24 out of which 74 has relation with Tablighi Jamaat.

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Dr. Bashar al-Jaafari has written to the UN Secretary General to insist that sanction imposed on the country by the US are lifted and that their occupation forces leave the country writes SANA.

Syrias Permanent Representative to the UN Dr. Bashar al-Jaafari has affirmed that the statements made about Syria last Monday by James Jeffrey, an employee at the US Department of State, are irresponsible and misleading and they are just an attempt to cover the US crimes and violations against the sovereignty, independence and safety of the Syrian territories and against the security, peace and prosperity of the Syrian people, adding that Syria demands that the US Government immediately and unconditionally lift all the unilateral coercive economic measures imposed on it.

In a letter sent to the UN Secretary General and the President of the Security Council, Jaafari asserted that the statements made by Jeffrey reflect the continuity of the policy of denial and stubbornness by a government which cant be depended on to play any humanitarian and international role in fighting the outbreak of the coronavirus.

Jaafari added that in light of the global pandemic, Syria is facing an additional pressure and new challenges in fighting this dangerous pandemic, which requires the Syrian Government to provide the basic infrastructure and the necessary potentials for the health sector.

Jaafari said that Syria demands that the US government immediately and unconditionally lift all the unilateral coercive economic measures imposed, particularly on the sectors of banking, oil, energy and the air, sea and land transport, in a way that would allow the free flow of materials and medical equipment in particular, and would enhance Syrias ability to tackle this pandemic and to prevent its spread.

He added that Syria also calls for the withdrawal of the US occupation forces from all the Syrian territories, particularly the oil and gas fields and to allow the Syrian Government to regain its control over these areas and to start the reconstruction and to rehabilitation the oil and gas plants and to use their resources to serve the needs of the Syrian people exclusively.

Jaafari stressed that the Syrian government preserves the right to hold the American government and its partners within the framework of the so-called International Coalition legally, morally and financially responsible for the destruction of the cities of Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, Ayn al-Arab, Hajin and other areas in Syria, in addition to holding them responsible for targeting the Syrian infrastructures, which led to their total or partial destruction, including roads, bridges, electric power stations, oil and gas wells, and supply routes.

This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Dawar Army Camp of Snow Leopard Brigade airlifted a pregnant lady stranded at Dawar for last four days. Presently, the Gurez Valley is cut off from the rest of the Kashmir Valley due to high snow levels at Razdan Pass. On Apr 1, 2020 Dawar Army Camp Image Source: IANS News

Dawar Army Camp of Snow Leopard Brigade airlifted a pregnant lady stranded at Dawar for last four days. Presently, the Gurez Valley is cut off from the rest of the Kashmir Valley due to high snow levels at Razdan Pass. On Apr 1, 2020 Dawar Army Camp Image Source: IANS News

Dawar Army Camp of Snow Leopard Brigade airlifted a pregnant lady stranded at Dawar for last four days. Presently, the Gurez Valley is cut off from the rest of the Kashmir Valley due to high snow levels at Razdan Pass. On Apr 1, 2020 Dawar Army Camp Image Source: IANS News

Dawar Army Camp of Snow Leopard Brigade airlifted a pregnant lady stranded at Dawar for last four days. Presently, the Gurez Valley is cut off from the rest of the Kashmir Valley due to high snow levels at Razdan Pass. On Apr 1, 2020 Dawar Army Camp Image Source: IANS News

Srinagar, April 2 : The Indian Army's Snow Leopard Brigade on Thursday airlifted a pregnant woman stranded at Dawar, near Line of Control for last four days, to Srinagar for treatment. The critically ill woman is undergoing treatment at Lal Ded Hospital.

The Army said that on April 1, Dawar Army Camp of Snow Leopard Brigade received a requisition from the civil administration for evacuation of Zytoona Begum, resident of Satni village located very close to the Line of Control who had been critically ill.

"She was a case of molar pregnancy with excessive bleeding resulting in low haemoglobin and needed urgent surgery. She was under the close monitoring of civil and Army medical team at the Hospital at Dawar," the force said.

It was decided to take Zytoona Begum to a bigger hospital. The Army swung into action and evacuated her from Army Helipad in Gurez on Thursday.

"At present, the Gurez Valley is cut off from the rest of the Kashmir Valley due to high snow levels at Razdan Pass. The prevailing bad weather conditions for the last four days did not afford any window of opportunity to the Army to evacuate the patient by air," the force said.

For doing so, soldiers of Snow Leopard Brigade activated the Gurez Helipad at short notice. "Thereafter the critically ill patient was continuously monitored before she could be evacuated by helicopter," the force added.

The threat of COVID-19 further added to the procedures of evacuation.

It further stated that Dawar has a civil hospital with limited advance diagnostic and treatment facilities.

In these difficult times of the corona pandemic, the medical team of Dawar Army Camp and Sub District Hospital in Gurez has achieved a high degree of cohesion and synergy with an aim to provide medical aid to locals and Army personnel alike.

With the pooled resources of the Army and civil administration, a quarantine facility has been created at Dawar in which five civilians who had recently returned from Bandipora have been kept.
To help students keep up with their studies during the coronavirus pandemic, Google will donate 4,000 Chromebooks and 100,000 WiFi hotspots to households in California. Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced the initiative in a tweet on Wednesday. California Governor Gavin Newsom said the state's Department of Education will distribute the Chromebooks and WiFi hotspots, prioritizing rural communities. Students will have the tools until the end of the school year, giving them at least three months of unlimited high-speed internet access.

According to SFGate (via The Verge), Governor Newsom estimates California needs an additional 162,013 hotspots on top of the 100,000 hotspots Google will provide to meet the needs of the state's students. To that end, the governor called on other companies to match Google's donation. "We need more Googles," he told the publication.

The donation is Google's latest attempt to help during the ongoing crisis. In March, the company's sibling healthcare brand, Verily, started developing a website to allow people in the US to screen themselves for COVID-19, directing them to drive-thru testing sites if needed. Later in the month, Verily opened two physical testing sites in California. Google has also earmarked $800 million in COVID-19 relief in the form of business assistance and ad grants for the WHO.
Karachi, April 2 : The Sindh High Court (SHC) is set to announce its verdict on Thursday on the appeals filed by four convicts in the case of the slain American journalist Daniel Pearl, who was abducted and beheaded in Pakistan in 2002, a media report said.

A two-judge SHC bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha had reserved the judgement last month on the convicts' appeals, pending for the past 18 years, and an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of the sentence after hearing arguments and examining the record and proceedings of the case, Dawn news said in the report.

An anti-terrorism court (ATC) had sentenced to death prime accused Ahmed Omer Saeed Sheikh, commonly known as Shaikh Omar, and life term to co-accused Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil for the abduction of the slain journalist.

Shaikh Omar and other convicts had moved the SHC in 2002 challenging their convictions handed down by the Hyderabad ATC after finding them guilty of abducting and killing Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal who was researching a story on religious extremists, in January 2002 in Karachi.

Hashim, Asim alias Qasim, Hassan, Ahmed Bhai, Imtiaz Siddiqui and Amjad Farooqui had been declared proclaimed offenders by the trial court, the Dawn news report further said.

The lawyers for the appellants, Rai Bashir and Khawaja Naveed Ahmed, submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen and their testimonies could not be relied upon.

They further contended that the recovery of a laptop computer with e-mails and messages foisted on appellants Naseem and Adil Sheikh, and their confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary.

Deputy Prosecutor GeneAral Saleem Akhtar supported the trial court's verdict and submitted that the prosecution had proved its case agaAinst the appellants beyAond a shadow of doubt and requeAsted the court to dismiss the appeals.
Rick Naerebout, chief executive of the Idaho Dairymens Association, said that he has fielded calls from many dairy farmers worried that their workers may be unable to get to work if the authorities begin enforcing domestic travel restrictions. So he has been providing members with a template to print out on official letterhead and distribute to workers, stating that they are now considered essential workers, part of the nations critical infrastructure.
An Army jawan allegedly shot dead a woman after her relative included his family's name in a list of people who had returned to their village in Alipur here following the outbreak of coronavirus, police said on Thursday.

The jawan Shailendra along with three others stormed into the house of one Vinay Yadav, who had included his name and that of his family in the list of people who had returned from Kolkata recently.

As the jawan started assaulting Vinay Yadav, his brother Dinesh and sister-in law Sandhya rushed to his rescue. Shailendra opened fire killing 36-year-old Sandhya on the spot, police said.

An FIR has been lodged at Kurra police station and Shailendra has been arrested, Superintendent of Police, Ajay Kumar Pandey said.

Vinay Yadav, on the instructions ofthe village panchayat, hadprepareda list of people who have returned home from other districts following the spread of coronavirus.

People returning to their villages from cities have been asked to self quarantine themselves to avoid the spread of coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dateline: South Carolina

A restaurant is accused of reselling frozen pizzas purchased at Costco as homemade gourmet pies. The Post and Courier reports that Coquina 5-month-old wine bar located in Charleston, S.C.began advertising a new pizza program via Instagram and its website. The new menu items were priced at $18 for a cheese pizza and $20 for a pie with meat or vegetable toppings. Last week, reporters from The Post and Courier received reports that the pizzas were not being made from scratch in the restaurant's kitchen. After making an order by phone, reporters say they watched Coquin chef and owner Chip Grimalda leave the restaurant and drive to his home. He then left his home carrying cardboard boxes that read: Fresh Pizza, Oven Baked. The reporters were unable to determine if the pizzas had been baked at the chef's home or in the restaurant. Upon further investigation, four-pack boxes of Kirkland Signature Cheese Pizza with Breadcrumb Crusts were reportedly discovered inside the restaurant's trash cans. These frozen supermarket pizzas often sell at Costco for no more than $10 per four-pack. When confronted about the controversy and asked if the pizzas were in fact purchased at Costco, Grimalda denied the accusations. I dont know what youre talking about. Its definitely not Costco, and thats all I have to say. When investigators brought up the discarded pizza boxes in the restaurant's trash cans, Grimalda said, Theres a lot of Airbnbs in the neighborhood.

Dateline: United Kingdom

Thanks to restrictions on public movement that have been implemented in London, England, highway maintenance crews have finally been able to repaint the iconic crosswalk depicted on the Beatles' Abbey Road album cover. The Guardian reports that a crew of workers descended on the crosswalk on Mar. 24only a day after the UK's prime minister announced a full lockdown in response to the COVID-19 health emergency. The location was designated as a site of national importance in 2010, meaning it can only be altered with explicit permission from authorities. This London zebra crossing is no castle or cathedral but, thanks to the Beatles and a 10-minute photoshoot one August morning in 1969, it has just as strong a claim as any to be seen as part of our heritage, said John Penrose, minister for tourism and heritage at the time. The famous album cover depicts the four Beatles crossing the titular Abbey Road single file at the crosswalk. On a normal day, hundreds of tourists are said to visit the site to pose for pictures and pay tribute to their favorite band, causing the painted lines to fade with time. But recent lockdown measures have afforded authorities the chance to repaint them. A spokesperson for Westminster City Council said: This is a very busy zebra crossing and we repainted the line markings to ensure visibility and increased safety for drivers and pedestrians. Our contractors follow government advice on limiting the spread of COVID-19, including social distancing and hand washing.

Dateline: United Kingdom

Police in England have dyed the Blue Lagoon of Buxton black to keep tourists from visiting during a nationwide lockdown. According to CNN, the UK's prime minister Boris Johnson announced last week that residents were required to stay in their homes to curb the spread of COVID-19. Residents are allowed to leave their homes only to go shopping for basic necessities, performing one form of exercise a day, providing medical services or going to work at critical businesses. But the ban was reportedly not deterring people from visiting the Blue Lagoon, a popular tourist destination in Derbyshire, England. The site is a former lime quarry that was used as a chemical weapons storage depot by the British Royal Air Force during World War II. Over the years, water has flooded the quarry, creating an artificial lake. A number of caustic chemicals have leached into the lake over the years, causing the water to turn a brilliant blue. In the past, police have dyed the water black to keep visitors from swimming in the toxic water. Last week, the Buxton police department made a Facebook post announcing that they had dyed the water black once again. We have attended the location this morning and used water dye to make the water look less appealing, it wrote. Please stay at home.

Dateline: New York

New York City health officials have warned residents to avoid participating in group sex or performing anilingus. According to BuzzFeed News, New York City citizens have been provided with healthy sex guidelines by city officials. According to the official advisory, You are your safest sex partner. Masturbation will not spread COVID-19, especially if you wash your hands (and any sex toys) with soap and water for at least 20 seconds before and after sex. The advisory goes on to say that the next safest partner is someone you live with. It then warns against having sex with anyone outside your household but says if you do have sex with other, have as few partners as possible and avoid group sex. The advisory suggests using video dates, sexting or chat rooms as an alternative to in-person sex. It also warns against kissing and rimming (mouth on anus) as these practices can spread the virus.
On a sunny afternoon, the usually bustling main shopping thoroughfare of Jordans Zaatari camp  the largest refugee camp in the Middle East  is eerily quiet. A handful of people walk briskly past carrying supplies, while most of the hundreds of shops lining what residents ironically refer to as the Champs-Elysees remain shuttered.

Like the rest of the Kingdoms 10 million population, the nearly 120,000 Syrians living in Zaatari and Jordans other main camp in Azraq have been on lockdown since 21 March in response to the threat of COVID-19. But with so many living in such close quarters with access to only basic health and sanitation facilities, many fear what will happen if the virus reaches the camps.

It is completely quiet. I do not hear voices in my neighbourhood anymore. Only silence. The market is different, everything is different, Ahmad Harb, a 35-year-old refugee from Syrias southern Deraa province, said by telephone from Zaatari. People are terrified because it is a new thing that they don't know much about, and it is a disease that can spread very fast.

The current situation is a far cry from just a few weeks ago, Harb said, when news first reached the camp of the global spread of a novel human coronavirus. At first, people seemed unconcerned and reluctant to change their normal routines, but awareness sessions and regular SMS updates from UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, have helped to drive the message home.

"They are staying home all day and night."

People here weren't taking things seriously, but after some time they realized that this is not a joke, Harb explained. The messages they received from UNHCR made them more aware of how serious the situation is.

Most people have stopped going out unless it is absolutely necessary, he continued. They are staying at home all day and night. Some have even put signs outside their doors that read visits not allowed.

More than three quarters of the world's 25.9 million refugees live in developing countries with some of the weakest health systems. Worldwide, UNHCR is prioritizing steps to prevent potential outbreaks that would put extraordinary strain on fragile local health-care services and likely result in avoidable suffering and death.

Jordan currently hosts 656,000 registered refugees from the nine-year conflict in neighbouring Syria. The two main camps of Zaatari and Azraq host nearly 80,000 and 40,000 refugees respectively, while the majority of Syrians live in Jordanian host communities around the country, also currently under a nationwide curfew to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

So far there have been no cases of the virus among Syrian refugees either inside or outside the camps. In Zaatari and Azraq, the two main hospitals and networks of health clinics are fully staffed and have introduced additional infection-control measures. Plans are in place to isolate any suspected cases and evacuate them by ambulance to the nearby Mafraq and Zarqa hospitals.

Jordan: Health clinic serves refugees while preparing for coronavirus (Mohamed Al-Taher; Shawkat Youssef (Zaatari UNHCR staff); Lilly Carlisle (Producer, UNHCR Jordan))

Despite these preparations, UNHCR staff present in the camps still worry about how to protect the vulnerable populations from the disease.

Sanitation and hygiene levels are not ideal. Were talking about a refugee camp, and facilities are challenging, said Mohammad Tahir, a UNHCR external relations officer. A large portion of the population are children, and its hard to make them understand the need for isolation and extra handwashing. My real concern is that this is a very crowded environment, so if we do have cases it will be very hard to contain.

When the nationwide lockdown was announced, the Jordanian authorities that manage the camp closed Zaataris 32 schools, with lessons for the more than 18,000 enrolled students now being broadcast on a television channel used by pupils across the country.

To cater for the extra demand caused by home-schooling and families confined to their shelters all day, UNHCR and the camp authorities have increased the supply of electricity to households from eight to more than 12 hours each day.

The camp is also well supplied with food, with six centres distributing three kilograms of bread per family each day, while supermarkets and small fruit and vegetable stores remain open. Residents have even come up with their own method for maintaining social distancing in food queues, painting red circles on the ground 1.5 metres apart.

Za'atari's main shopping street stands largely empty as people stay indoors.  UNHCR/Mohamad al-Taher

Refugees waiting for bread stand on marks drawn to ensure social-distancing.  UNHCR/Mohamad al-Taher

But the level of preparedness for families during lockdown depends on their financial situation, explained 33-year-old resident Omar Rajab. Those with income from work inside or outside the camp in addition to the assistance all refugees receive were better able to stock up before the lockdown, he said.

The good thing is that everything is available in the camp. Some people have managed to buy everything they need because their financial situation is better than others, Rajab said. The poor are struggling to buy and stock enough of their basic needs. Some are selling less important products they already have at home, like canned food, to buy more of the more urgent food like flour and milk.

But despite the additional hardship for a population that has already fled conflict and endured years of displacement, the current crisis is also bringing families closer together and spurring acts of generosity among the population.

A group of refugee entrepreneurs in the camp that makes hand-crafted products for sale online and in markets has recently increased production of natural soap, and begun distributing it for free among their neighbours to help encourage hand washing.

Za'atari refugee women make soap to help keep families sanitize (Shawkat Harfoosh, camera/ Youssef al-Hariri, producer/ Mohd al-Taher, editor)

For others, the extended period of home confinement has revealed some bright spots.

To cope with the situation, I created a programme for my children and wife where we spend our day playing games, which includes playing with a ball and asking general knowledge questions in the form of a competition, Harb said. I even shared the programme with my friends and neighbours so they can do it with their families too.

I am doing new things now like cooking with my children and playing with them more. It is a nice new atmosphere, his wife Nisreen agreed.

I have also learned how to bake myself, and now my kids tell me they like the sweets that I do more than the ones we used to get from the shops, she added.

"We miss our life, even with the struggles and hardships."

Perhaps the biggest surprise for Harb was the newfound appreciation the lockdown has given him for their previous lives in the camp, despite the many challenges.

I hope this virus goes away, he said. We miss our life, even with the struggles and hardships. We accept them now. We appreciate our lives and the things we used to take for granted, like going to work and the busy market, seeing our neighbours and friends, and simply going out. We just miss it.

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Tension arises not only because of shortages of PPE but also because of uncertainty about how much protection is optimal. No one knows. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has given conflicting advice, and other countries have varying standards. Singapore avoided infections with modest PPE, while Chinese doctors and nurses now use full-body coverings much more substantial than the protective clothing in the U.S.
It may sound counterintuitive, but watching horror films isnt just about feeling scared. Its also about feeling safe. Scary movies assure our brains that the terror is happening there, not here. Theyre chilling security blankets.

A few weeks ago, the pandemic film Contagion was terrifying and cautionary but also a work of fiction. Now many of its fictions are facts, and the fear is real. (For some people, Contagion is still entertaining; streams of the film and other virus-themed disaster movies have surged.)

Besides pandemics, horror movies about isolation (It Comes at Night), home invasions (Hush) and the apocalypse (The Road) also come too close for comfort these days.

But what if I told you I had a motley list of films that are so far-fetched and improbable that theres no way they could come true? That you can safely and sanely enjoy dread, mayhem and fear of the unknown? That each one carries a promise that this will never happen?
Since its beginnings, quantum mechanics hasn't ceased to amaze us with its peculiarity, so difficult to understand. Why does one particle seem to pass through two slits simultaneously? Why instead of specific predictions can we only talk about evolution of probabilities? According to theorists from universities in Warsaw and Oxford, the most important features of the quantum world may result from the special theory of relativity, which until now seemed to have little to do with quantum mechanics.

Since the arrival of quantum mechanics and the theory of relativity, physicists have lost sleep over the incompatibility of these three concepts (three, since there are two theories of relativity: special and general). It has commonly been accepted that it is the description of quantum mechanics that is the more fundamental and that the theory of relativity that will have to be adjusted to it. Dr. Andrzej Dragan from the Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw (FUW) and Prof. Artur Ekert from the University of Oxford (UO) have just presented their reasoning leading to a different conclusion. In the article "The Quantum Principle of Relativity", published in the New Journal of Physics, they prove that the features of quantum mechanics determining its uniqueness and its such non-intuitive exoticism - accepted, what's more, on faith (as axioms) - can be explained within the framework of the special theory of relativity. One only has to decide on a certain rather unorthodox step.

Albert Einstein based the special theory of relativity on two postulates. The first is known as the Galilean principle of relativity (which, please note, is a special case of the Copernican principle). This states that physics is the same in every inertial system (i.e., one that is either at rest or in a steady straight line motion). The second postulate, formulated on the result of the famous Michelson-Morley experiment, imposed the requirement of a constant velocity of light in every reference system.

"Einstein considered the second postulate to be crucial. In reality, what is crucial is the principle of relativity. Already in 1910 Vladimir Ignatowski showed that based only on this principle it is possible to reconstruct all relativistic phenomena of the special theory of relativity. A strikingly simple reasoning, leading directly from the principle of relativity to relativism, was also presented in 1992 by Professor Andrzej Szymacha from our faculty," says Dr. Dragan.

The special theory of relativity is a coherent structure that allows for three mathematically correct types of solutions: a world of particles moving at subluminal velocities, a world of particles moving at the velocity of light and a world of particles moving at superluminal velocities. This third option has always been rejected as having nothing to do with reality.

We posed the question: what happens if - for the time being without entering into the physicality or non-physicality of the solutions - we take seriously not part of the special theory of relativity, but all of it, together with the superluminal system? We expected cause-effect paradoxes. Meanwhile, we saw exactly those effects that form the deepest core of quantum mechanics," say Dr. Dragan and Prof. Ekert.

Initially, both theorists considered a simplified case: space-time with all three families of solutions, but consisting of only one spatial and one time dimension (1+1). A particle at rest in one system of solutions seems to move superluminally in the other, which means that superluminosity itself is relative.

In a space-time continuum constructed this way, non-deterministic events occur naturally. If in one system at point A there is generation of a superluminal particle, even completely predictable, emitted towards point B, where there is simply no information about the reasons for the emission, then from the point of view of the observer in the second system events run from point B to point A, so they start from a completely unpredictable event. It turns out that analogous effects appear also in the case of subluminal particle emissions.

Both theorists have also shown that after taking into account superluminal solutions, the motion of a particle on multiple trajectories simultaneously appears naturally, and a description of the course of events requires the introduction of a sum of combined amplitudes of probability that indicate the existence of superposition of states, a phenomenon thus far associated only with quantum mechanics.

In the case of space-time with three spatial dimensions and one time dimension (3+1), that is, corresponding to our physical reality, the situation is more complicated. The principle of relativity in its original form is not preserved - the subluminal and superluminal systems are distinguishable. However, the researchers noticed that when the principle of relativity is modified to the form: "The ability to describe an event in a local and deterministic way should not depend on the choice of an inertial reference system", it limits the solutions to those in which all the conclusions from the consideration in (1+1) space-time remain valid.

"We noticed, incidentally, the possibility of an interesting interpretation of the role of individual dimensions. In the system that looks superluminal to the observer some space-time dimensions seem to change their physical roles. Only one dimension of superluminal light has a spatial character - the one along which the particle moves. The other three dimensions appear to be time dimensions," says Dr. Dragan.

A characteristic feature of spatial dimensions is that a particle can move in any direction or remain at rest, while in a time dimension it always propagates in one direction (what we call aging in everyday language). So, three time dimensions of the superluminal system with one spatial dimension (1+3) would thus mean that particles inevitably age in three times simultaneously. The ageing process of a particle in a superluminal system (1+3), observed from a subluminal system (3+1), would look as if the particle was moving like a spherical wave, leading to the famous Huygens principle (every point on a wavefront can be treated itself as a source of a new spherical wave) and corpuscular-wave dualism.

"All the strangeness that appears when considering solutions relating to a system that looks superluminal turns out to be no stranger than what commonly accepted and experimentally verified quantum theory has long been saying. On the contrary, taking into account a superluminal system, it is possible - at least theoretically - to derive some of the postulates of quantum mechanics from the special theory of relativity, which were usually accepted as not resulting from other, more fundamental reasons," Dr. Dragan concludes.

For almost a hundred years quantum mechanics has been awaiting a deeper theory to explain the nature of its mysterious phenomena. If the reasoning presented by the physicists from FUW and UO stands the test of time, history would cruelly mock all physicists. The "unknown" theory sought for decades, explaining the uniqueness of quantum mechanics, would be something already known from the very first work on quantum theory.

Physics and Astronomy first appeared at the University of Warsaw in 1816, under the then Faculty of Philosophy. In 1825 the Astronomical Observatory was established. Currently, the Faculty of Physics' Institutes include Experimental Physics, Theoretical Physics, Geophysics, Department of Mathematical Methods and an Astronomical Observatory. Research covers almost all areas of modern physics, on scales from the quantum to the cosmological. The Faculty's research and teaching staff includes ca. 200 university teachers, of which 87 are employees with the title of professor. The Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw, is attended by ca. 1000 students and more than 170 doctoral students.

###

CONTACTS:

Dr. Andrzej Dragan

Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw

tel.: +48 22 5532926

email: dragan@fuw.edu.pl

Prof. Artur Ekert

University of Oxford; National University of Singapore

email: artur.ekert@maths.ox.ac.uk

SCIENTIFIC PAPERS:

Quantum principle of relativity"

A. Dragan, A. Ekert

New Journal of Physics, 22 (2020) 033038

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/ab76f7

RELATED LINKS:

http://www.fuw.edu.pl/

The Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw website.

https://www.fuw.edu.pl/press-releases.html

Press office of the Faculty of Physics, University of Warsaw.

IMAGES:

FUW200330b_fot01s.jpg

https://www.fuw.edu.pl/tl_files/press/images/2020/FUW200330b_fot01.jpg

The evolution of probabilities and the "impossible" phenomena of quantum mechanics may have their origins in the special theory of relativity, as suggested by physicists from universities in Warsaw and Oxford. (Source: FUW)
Masquerade or needed aid? China virus help proves contentious

WORLD: China has stepped in to help the West tackle the coronavirus crisis after managing to quell its own outbreak. But critics view the aid, though indispensible, as part of a cynical ploy to project Chinese influence.

ChineseCoronavirusCOVID-19

By AFP

Thursday 2 April 2020, 04:30PM

Boxes of masks flown in from China on a special flight being unloaded in France earlier this week to help alleviate a shortage of protective gear for health care workers. Photo: AFP

As European and American healthcare systems creak under the strain, China has offered millions of face masks and teams of medical experts.

As well as seeking to deflect criticism over initial Chinese missteps in handling the epidemic, analysts say, the campaign is a public relations opportunity in Chinas great power rivalry with the West and especially the United States.

COVID-19 first emerged in a wild animal market late last year in the Chinese city of Wuhan, but Beijing says the situation in China is now under control with domestic cases dwindling to zero.

By contrast, Europe and the United States have become hotspots of the pandemic with much of the West now in lockdown to curtail the spread of the virus and limit the burden on health systems.

As governments scramble to cope, China is showering nations across the globe - including in the EU - with masks, experts and equipment.

Austria, Belgium, France, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain have all received assistance.

China asked for discretion when the EU sent help in January but is conversely trumpeting its own support in a PR campaign without precedent according to political science expert Antoine Bondaz from the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS) in Paris.

The ideological battle around COVID-19 represents the latest flare-up of tensions between China and the West, after spats over Beijings military build-up in the South China Sea and over the expansion of tech giant Huawei.

(Beijing) seizes every national or international opportunity to show the supposed superiority of its system, Alice Ekman from the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) told AFP.

Battle of narratives

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen initially expressed gratitude on March 18 for Beijings support.

But the warm tone has turned sour.

The blocs foreign policy chief Josep Borrell last week called on Europe to stand ready for a struggle for influence in a global battle of narratives.

We must be aware there is a geopolitical component including a struggle for influence through spinning and the politics of generosity, the newly-appointed Spanish diplomat said.

Borrell accused Beijing of initially covering up the outbreak, saying this paved the way for its rapid, global spread.

Armed with facts, we need to defend Europe against its detractors, Borrell said.

French Secretary of State for European Affairs Amelie de Montchalin told French radio Sunday: Its sometimes easier to spread propaganda, pretty images and sometimes to exploit what is happening.

And French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday (Mar 31) pointed to a massive order of much-needed face masks from China as a wake-up call for boosting domestic independence.

This crisis has taught us that the strategic nature of certain goods, certain products, certain materials require European sovereignty, the president said.

Original sin

Beijing has repeatedly expressed fury at US Secretary of State Mike Pompeos insistence on referring to COVID-19 as the Wuhan virus - also to the consternation of some G7 counterparts who fear such a term risks encouraging racism.

Chinese officials have also sought to sow doubt over the origin of the virus.

On March 12, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lijian Zhao tweeted: It might be the US army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan. ... US owe us an explanation!

Beijing is seeking to wipe out its original sin both domestically and internationally, researcher Francois Heisbourg told AFP.

In some countries, Chinas propaganda may find fertile ground, said Ekman.

Russia, Iran, Pakistan and Algeria amongst others wouldnt be displeased to announce together (with China) a post-Western new world order when this crisis ends, the expert said.

On the European Unions very doorstep, aspiring bloc member Serbia has already been drawn into the battle for influence.

European solidarity does not exist. That was a fairy tale, President Aleksandar Vucic said after the EU banned exports of medical supplies.

Vucic then praised the Chinese: the only ones who can help us, and addressed Chinese president Xi Jinping as his brother after Beijing pledged to send help.

Some people, in their heart of hearts, are very impressed with the successes of Chinese governance, Chinas embassy in France tweeted last Friday.

They envy the efficiency of our political system and hate their own countries inability to do as well!
Health officials urge Ohio megachurch to stop holding large worship gatherings

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Health officials in Ohio are urging a megachurch to stop holding mass gatherings, including in-person worship services.

Solid Rock Church of Lebanon has continued to hold worship services despite concerns that large gatherings could spread the COVID-19 virus.

The Butler County Public Health District sent a letter to the church last Friday, noting that it had received multiple complaints about the worship services.

Butler County Public Health officials highly encourage Solid Rock Church discontinue holding large mass gatherings and practice social distancing, stated the letter, according to Cincinnati-based Fox 19.

Bringing together a large number of people during a pandemic increases the pace at which the virus spreads, overwhelming our hospital systems and posing a significant risk to members within the congregation.

The letter also noted that most of the houses of worship in the state meet their congregations spiritual fulfillment through online materials and services.

Two days after the letter was issued, Solid Rock held a Sunday worship service posted online, in which church leaders reiterated that people were not being forced to attend.

Last month, Solid Rock garnered controversy for deciding to continue holding worship services, being allowed to since religious gatherings were exempted from a state order.

In a statement posted on their website, the church noted that while they share everyones concern to help keep people safe, the First Amendment guarantees freedom concerning religion, expression, and assembly.

There is no pressure from Solid Rock Church to require anyone to come to our services. We are respectful of every individuals right to choose either to come to our service or to watch online, stated Solid Rock.

We do believe that it is important for our doors to remain open for whomever to come to worship and pray during this time of great challenge in our country.

The move has received a great deal of negative feedback, however, with news station WHIO reporting that a live stream of one their services got around 3,000 negative comments.

One online critic, quoted by WHIO, stated you have a moral obligation to protect your flock  God gave us brains to use them.
The European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy has addressed EU High Representative, Vice-President of the European Commission Josep Borrell with an open letter regarding the statement on the presidential and parliamentary elections held in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).

The open letter reads as follows:

"His Excellency

High Representative of the European Union/Vice-President

Josep Borrell



Honourable High Representative,

Dear Mr. Borrell,



As a European grassroots organization with members in fourteen Member States of the European Union and first of all as citizens of the European Union, we would like to express our disappointment and deep discontentment with the recent statement of the European External Action Service concerning the presidential and parliamentary elections in the Nagorno Karabakh/Artsakh Republic  a statement that unfortunately discourages a democratic way of organizing a society.



We do believe that the European Union is a union that is based on values and attaches great importance to upholding the universal human rights and democracy, within the borders of the EU and outside of it. In fact, any elected government in the EU is accountable for standing for these values.



On 31 March the people of Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh exercised their right to vote and reiterated their commitment to organize their society according to the principles of transparency and democracy. This is a path that they consciously and willingly chose more than 25 years ago and have been faithful to since the collapse of the Soviet Union without any help from the outside and despite extremely complex, unfriendly geopolitical situation.



With such discouraging statements the EEAS sends a signal that the political status of a country is a prerequisite for enjoying universal human rights. In fact, international law does not recognize any limitation over human rights of individuals or groups based on the status of the country of their residence and contains no discriminatory provisions in relation to non-recognized states.



No conflict has been solved in a sustainable way through isolating, marginalizing the people who are directly affected by it and without speaking or listening to them. As citizens of the EU we therefore call on the External Action Service to reconsider its position regarding this matter and we do sincerely hope that it does so.
(Bloomberg) -- A Southern California venture capitalist who contributed $900,000 to President Donald Trumps inaugural committee agreed to plead guilty to making almost $1 million in illegal campaign contributions from 2012 to 2016.

Imaad Shah Zuberi, 49, also admitted he hid his work for foreign nationals while he lobbied U.S. government officials and evaded paying taxes, according to the U.S. attorney in Los Angeles.

The charges dont appear linked to contributions made to the Trump campaign, but Zuberi has been linked to people in Trumps orbit who have come under the scrutiny of federal prosecutors, including the presidents former lawyer Michael Cohen.

Zuberi, who ran the venture capital firm Avenue Ventures, solicited foreign nationals and representatives of foreign governments for money, which he used to hire lobbyists and public relations people and to make campaign contributions to both Republicans and Democrats, according to prosecutors. He also pocketed money from foreign sources for his personal use, prosecutors said.

Mr. Zuberis multi-faceted scheme allowed him to line his pockets by concealing the fact that he was representing foreign clients, obtaining access for clients by making a long series of illegal contributions, and skimming money paid by his clients, U.S. Attorney Nick Hanna said in the statement. Mr. Zuberi circumvented laws designed to insulate U.S. policy and our election process from foreign intervention.

Zuberis plea agreement with prosecutors doesnt include a cooperation clause. Zuberis lawyer, Thomas OBrien, declined to comment.

Read more on Trump inaugural committee here

Zuberi made campaign contributions that gave him access to high-level U.S. officials, some of whom took action to help his clients, according to prosecutors.

The $900,000 to the Trump inaugural committee came through Avenue Ventures, according to a person familiar with the case. For that, Zuberi got a table at the presidents candlelit dinner, slated to be near seats for Vice President Mike Pence and Republican fundraiser Elliott Broidy.

Story continues

In February, prosecutors in New York served a subpoena on the inaugural committee, demanding records of its finances, according to a person familiar with the matter. Zuberi and Avenue Ventures were the only donors named in the subpoena, the New York Times reported at the time.

Prosecutors asked Cohen about his dealings with Zuberi after the presidents former lawyer pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations and other crimes, the newspaper reported.

Zuberi took about $6.5 million from the government of Sri Lanka as part of a 2014 contract to help to rehabilitate that countrys image in the U.S., prosecutors said. Of that money, less than $850,000 went to lobbyists and public relations firms, while more than $5.65 million went to Zuberi and his wife, they said.

He also pocketed the bulk of the money investors put in U.S. Cares, a company created to export humanitarian goods to Iran, according to the Justice Department. Of the $7 million invested in 2013 and 2014, Zuberi allegedly used more than 90% to buy real estate, pay down credit cards, remodel properties and make charitable donations.

He faces as long as 15 years in prison.

(Corrects reference to Zuberi seating arrangement and spelling of Broidys name in 8th paragraph, and removes reference to Broidy in third paragraph, in story that appeared on Oct. 22, 2019)

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African finance ministers have requested the support of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Union for bilateral, multilateral and commercial debt relief amid the coronavirus crisis.

The request was germinated from the second virtual meeting on Tuesday, hosted by Vera Songwe, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa, and co-chaired by Ministers Tito Mboweni of South Africa and Ken Ofori-Atta of Ghana.

The call for debt relief  should be for all of Africa and should be undertaken in a coordinated and collaborative way, ECA said in a statement.

In an initial meeting organized by ECA last month, Finance & Economy Ministers called for a $100 billion stimulus package, including a suspension of debt service payments.

On Tuesday, the ministers also called for the creation of a special purpose vehicle to deal with all sovereign debt obligations.

The request comes amid the hardest time in the history of the globe, as the continent has already registered more than 5,000 cases of the COVID-19 from various nations, and over 200 death reported.

As much as it is a crisis of public health, the pandemic threatens to batter Africas economies, especially the countries and sectors dependent on trade. ECA estimated in a recent report that the continent could lose up to 1.4 percentage points of GDP growth as a result of the pandemic. Some analysts consider the figure much too conservative given the massive destruction of trade and economic activity around the world.

Already hit by the crash in oil prices, African countries including Angola and Nigeria that export oil could together lose up to $65 billion in income.

Additional health spending on the pandemic is expected to reach $10.6 billion across Africa.

If the pandemic and global disruptions are severe and endure, Brookings estimates that Sub-Saharan Africa will lose up to 2.1 percentage points in GDP growth.

Foreign Policy, in an analysis on how Africa Is Bracing for a Head-On Collision With Coronavirus, pointed out that now that almost all of Africas 54 countries are reporting cases of the new coronavirus, one thing is certain: The pandemic will have drastic consequences in Africa, especially in the many countries that still have poor public health infrastructure and weak social welfare systems. For African economies, the shock will result in a drastic loss of revenues and slower economic growth. However, just as it survived Ebola, the continent will recover well from the coronavirus crisisif its leaders act boldly now and the international community provides help where it is urgently needed. 
The shutdown of normal activity due to the coronavirus pandemic is accelerating many structural changes that already were underway in the economy. Now there are signs that the declining newspaper industry, where layoffs continue, may see the shuttering of many more venerable institutions. In Australia, News Corporation, the global media giant that began as a newspaper publisher, has announced that next week, 60 of its Australian newspaper will not be printed. Endangered species? (photo credit: Mike Licht)

The shutdown of normal activity due to the coronavirus pandemic is accelerating many structural changes that already were underway in the economy. Now there are signs that the declining newspaper industry, where layoffs continue, may see the shuttering of many more venerable institutions.

In Australia, News Corporation, the global media giant that began as a newspaper publisher, has announced that next week, 60 of its Australian newspapers will not be printed.



Endangered species? (Photo credit: Mike Licht.)

Michael Miller, executive chairman of News Corp Australasia, writes in the Telegraph of Australia:

Today is a sad day for Australian media. Every newspaper company's paramount mission is to get the paper out. Next week, 60 of News Corp Australia's papers won't be printed. Our decision to suspend print editions of our community newspapers in four states to assess their viability comes as other publishers also close editions and accelerate cost reduction. COVID-19 did not create this crisis, but it brought it to a head. The decision we have made is pragmatic but it is made with a heavy heart as we are committed to local journalism. These print editions have no cover price and have been decimated by the sudden collapse of retail, real estate, clubs, restaurant and event advertising. For years, we have been managing these structural trends to transform our business from purely print to print and digital. But digital media is not a level playing field: we are forced to fight digitally with one hand behind our back and this is the fundamental issue that must be addressed. Australian media is passing its tipping point.

Miller notes that readers continue to consume news online and complains:

The unfairness of the digital playing field, along with Australia's draconian tangle of legislation and regulation means local companies can't compete with international platforms. These platforms, unlike us, have no commitment to local communities. They employ no journalists, create no content, face almost no regulation, and pay (virtually) no tax while they make unheard of profits by taking other people's content.

I believe he is referring to Facebook, Google, and Twitter, primarily. It is not clear whether the 60 newspapers will continue to provide online content and if so, whether staff will be cut. But as one in the business of internet publishing, I know all too well that online advertising is not sufficiently lucrative to sustain the same level of journalism that print once did.

Hat tip: John McMahon.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 01:43:09|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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JOHANNESBURG, April 2 (Xinhua) -- As the novel coronavirus cases continued escalating, South Africans without regular incomes said the ongoing lockdown was causing a tremendous financial strain and uncertainty on their lives.

While citizens understood the stringent measures were aimed at reducing the spread of the virus, the impact on the self-employed and people in the informal sector can't be denied.

Stampede broke out at Dobsonville shopping centre in Soweto on Monday as shoppers and social grants beneficiaries stood for hours in long queues. Some affected citizens said long queues in big and small supermarkets and empty shelves had made it difficult for them to purchase all the required essentials during the lockdown.

Other citizens in the informal sectors were simply wondering how they would be able to meet their financial obligations with the lockdown in place.

Siya Siluma, 32, a taxi driver from the South of Johannesburg said the lockdown has left him without any income.

"We have responsibilities, I have to pay rent, buy food and take care of my family but how am I expected do those without a salary," he said.

With the lockdown, mini bus taxis are legally permitted to transport or carry few passengers in the morning and evening.

"That means I can't make money, not even the owner of the taxi makes money. You only work for petrol for the taxi. There are few people that use taxis now," Siluma said, "I still don't know how I am going to pay rent and buy food for the whole of April under the lockdown. I wish government could help us with 1,000 rand grants so that we can afford food."

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula acknowledged the economic vulnerability of the taxi industry.

"This industry continues operating on the fringes of the formal economy despite the fact that they have the largest market share of all public transport modes," he said.

This period is also difficult for thousands of street vendors who normally spend their days in markets selling essentials like fruit and vegetables.

"I've been at home with no money since last week and it's been hard to make ends meet. It's not like we have savings cause whatever you make is spent on stock and other necessities at home," Thali Dalane, a 55-year-old mother of three, told Xinhua.

Suggestions for the implementation of welfare policies to cushion people in informal sectors of the economy such as street vendors, taxi drivers and other self-employed people from the impact of the lockdown have been made. While other sectors would be supported by government, policies to asssit these vulnerable groups were yet to be announced.

For some even visiting supermarkets for groceries has become costly.

Noni Muzi from Soweto near Johannesburg said queues with hundreds of people made it difficult to buy food.

"On Monday and Tuesday, I went to malls to buy but there were hundreds of people in the queues and I decided to return home as spending hours looking for food was not going to assist me,"she said, "I bought flour to make bread before the start of the lockdown so I've been making my own bread."

"We are particularly concerned about the impact of the lockdown on the self-employed and on informal businesses. We are urgently developing additional measures to provide relief to them during this difficult time," said South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in a statement.

"All of us are experiencing great hardship and great anxiety at this time," he said, "I am convinced that we will succeed, because we will take this coronavirus threat seriously, we will adapt as a society, and we will all act responsibly."
Midland community leaders celebrated a gift of medical supplies from the Midland-Odessa Chinese Association during the Unified Command Team press conference Thursday at the Midland County Annex.

The donation included 4,850 regular masks, 500 N95 masks and 650 pairs of disposable gloves.

Midland Mayor Patrick Payton wanted to acknowledge the donation just weeks after a racial motivated attack when 19-year-old Jose Gomez stabbed members of an Asian family at Sams Club in west Midland. The FBI in a report called the March 14 incident a hate crime and the man  according to ABC news report, citing the FBI analysis -- admitted attempting to kill the family members because he thought the family was Chinese and infecting people with the coronavirus.

What were going to see today is how a community -- even after coming under attack -- steps up to the plate, just like you would expect people from the Permian Basin to do in order to show their love and care for our community, Payton said. So, in front of me are basically boxes filled with masks and gloves from the Permian Basin Chinese American Community. And quite simply, their note (on the box) says Stay strong together, we will overcome. And I, quite frankly, cannot think of a better example and a better encouragement to our city, to our region, to Midland-Odessa, to the entire Permian Basin -- that in the hardest of times, the most difficult times and even the most personally insulting and injurious times -- the community steps up and says we want to show you how much we were a part of this community, we want to show you how much we love you, we care for you, and we're doing everything we can to be in this battle with you till we get to the other side.

The Permian Basin Chinese American Community said in a statement, Chinese Americans have a long-standing presence in the Permian Basin. As members of the diverse Permian community, we work and raise families here and we are proud to call West Texas home.

At the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and seeing its impact to our community, the Midland-Odessa Chinese Association would like to support the people working on the frontline and join the community in the fight. Our message to the community: together we will overcome.

Russell Meyers, CEO of Midland Health, said the donation adds to the generosity provided by other Midlanders and people around the region. He said Thursday that a foundation has stepped forward to cover the cost of COVID-19 testing. He also said there are enough N95 protective respirators (masks) to last up to 138 days at the current rate of use.

Meyers also echoed the mayors comments about the donation from the Permian Basin Chinese American Community.

Thank you all very much, Meyers said. You all know that personal protective equipment is a precious resource. And during this time in the hospital for first responders and for all sorts of folks who are taking care of patients, every donation we get is a tremendous help. Thank you all, very much.


BASEL (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has urged to withdraw Sanofi's heartburn drug Ranitidine as well as its generics from the market with immediate effect for possible contamination. The recall involves all prescription and over-the-counter or OTC ranitidine drugs, commonly known by the brand name Zantac.



The recall includes generic products that contain ranitidine made by Novartis, Endo, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Perrigo, and others.



The FDA said the ranitidine products, which are used to treat stomach acid and ulcers, will not be available for new or existing prescriptions or OTC use in the U.S. FDA is sending letters to all manufacturers of ranitidine asking to withdraw their products.



The decision was taken following an ongoing investigation of a contaminant known as N-Nitrosodimethylamine or NDMA, a probable human carcinogen, in ranitidine medications. NDMA is generally found in water and foods, including meats, dairy products, and vegetables.



In a statement, the heath regulator said it has found that the impurity in some ranitidine products increases over time, when stored at higher than room temperatures. This is likely to result in consumer exposure to unacceptable levels of this impurity.



Janet Woodcock, director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, said, 'We didn't observe unacceptable levels of NDMA in many of the samples that we tested. However, since we don't know how or for how long the product might have been stored, we decided that it should not be available to consumers and patients unless its quality can be assured.'



Independent laboratory testing previously had found the presence of NDMA in ranitidine, but FDA at that did not have enough scientific evidence to recommend to discard its use. The agency in September 2019 had warned the public of the potential risks and to consider alternative OTC and prescription treatments.



Following this, several drug companies in the U.S. had issued recalls for Ranitidine. Sanofi had recalled all Zantac OTC in the U.S., while Dr. Reddy's, Perrigo, and Sandoz Inc., the generics division of Swiss drug maker Novartis AG, recalled all Ranitidine Tablets.



Retail giant Walmart as well as Walgreens and CVS Pharmacy suspended the sale of OTC Ranitidine medications at their counters.



Woodcock further suggested multiple alternative medications to treat heartburn. FDA said its testing has not found NDMA in famotidine (Pepcid), cimetidine (Tagamet), esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid) or omeprazole (Prilosec).



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DETROIT  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District, announced that an agreement has been signed that will help them directly assist Detroit neighborhoods in fighting against flooding events expected during this upcoming spring and summer seasons.

According to a press release, the Detroit District is using its authority to help during possible flood events. It will provide the city with materials that directly assist in flood fighting, including wire mesh sand-filled basket walls and sandbag sleeves.

Current high-water levels on the Great Lakes along with forecasted spring rain have caused known flood-prone areas in Detroit to require help in fighting neighborhood flooding, so the State of Michigan and City of Detroit have requested assistance to facilitate this effort.

To supplement direct assistance, the district will provide technical assistance, but the city and state will install and maintain these temporary structures. The Detroit District will also construct a temporary levee approximately 1,500 linear feet long around the Harding Canal in the Jefferson Village area.

The cooperation agreement, signed electronically in light of COVID-19, will provide direct assistance to Detroit in the Jefferson-Chalmers and Jefferson Village neighborhoods, according to the press release.

"Even while the Detroit District and the Corps nation-wide is surging to help the nation respond to this pandemic, we're working diligently to help the City of Detroit and State of Michigan protect our communities from historically high water levels," said Lt. Col. Greg Turner, district engineer, Detroit District.

The Detroit District is scheduled to construct the temporary berms starting in early April with completion by early May.

READ MORE:

Detroit to spend $2M on temporary dams to prevent flooding
At a time of when 87% of the worlds student population is affected by COVID-19 school closures, UNESCO is launching a global education coalition to support countries in scaling up their best distance learning practices and reaching children and youth who are most at risk.

Over 1.5 billion learners in 165 countries are affected by COVID-19 school closures.

Never before have we witnessed educational disruption on such a scale, said UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay. Partnership is the only way forward. This Coalition is a call for coordinated and innovative action to unlock solutions that will not only support learners and teachers now, but through the recovery process, with a principle focus on inclusion and equity.

Since closing schools to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, governments have been deploying distance learning solutions and grappling with the complexity of provisioning education remotely, from delivering contents and supporting teachers to providing guidance to families and addressing connectivity challenges. Equity is the paramount concern because closures disproportionately hurt vulnerable and disadvantaged students who rely on schools for a range of social services, including health and nutrition.

We must speed up the ways we share experience, and help the most vulnerable, whether or not they have internet access, said Angelina Jolie, UN High Commission for Refugees Special Envoy, who partnered with UNESCO in the establishment of the Coalition.

UN Deputy Secretary General Amina Mohamed expressed the UNs full commitment to the Coalition, warning that for millions of children and youth from disadvantaged backgrounds, school closures could mean the loss of a vital safety net  of nutrition, protection and emotional support. She added, This is not a time to deepen inequalities. It is a time to invest in educations power to transform. As we embark on the decade of action of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, our responsibility as a global community is to leave absolutely no one behind.

Multilateral partners, including the International Labor Organization, the UN High Commission for Refugees, The United Nations Childrens Fund, the World Health Organization, the World Food Programme and the International Telecommunication Union, as well as the Global Partnership for Education, Education Cannot Wait, the OIF (Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie) the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the Asian Development Bank have joined the Coalition, stressing the need for swift and coordinated support to countries in order to mitigate the adverse impacts of school closures, in particular for the most disadvantaged.

The private sector, including, Microsoft, GSMA, Weidong, Google, Facebook, Zoom, KPMG and Coursera have also joined the Coalition, contributing resources and their expertise around technology, notably connectivity, and capacity strengthening. Companies using learner and educational data have committed to uphold ethical standards.

Philanthropic and non-profit organizations, including Khan Academy, Dubai Cares, Fundacion Profuturoand Sesame Street are also part of the Coalition, mobilizing their resources and services to support schools, teachers, parents and learners during this time of unparalleled educational disruption.

Media outlets are also invited to join the Coalition, as has done the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

With its emphasis on equity and gender equality, the Global Education Coalition will respond to countries specific needs, as envisaged during the meetings of Education Ministers convened by UNESCO. It will endeavor to match needs with free and secure solutions, bringing partners together to address connectivity and content challenges among others. It will provide digital tools and learning management solutions to upload national digitized educational resources, and curate resources for distance learning and strengthen technical expertise using a with a mix of technology and community approaches, depending on local contexts. In all interventions, special attention will be placed on ensuring data security and protecting the privacy of learners and teachers.

Specifically, the Coalition aims to:

1. Help countries in mobilizing resources and implementing innovative and context-appropriate solutions to provide education remotely, leveraging hi-tech, low-tech and no-tech approaches

2. Seek equitable solutions and universal access

3. Ensure coordinated responses and avoid overlapping efforts

4. Facilitate the return of students to school when they reopen to avoid an upsurge in dropout rates

We are working together to find a way to make sure that children everywhere can continue their education, with special care to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged communities, said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, in a video message marking the Coalitions launch, together with UNESCO Director-General and other personalities.

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But households in some of the citys Latino neighborhoods, like Little Village, arent participating as quickly as other parts of Chicago, according to a map of census data compiled by the City University of New York. Organizers and experts say these communities could be lagging both because of a digital divide and because of a misconception that the census will ask who is a citizen.
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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Experion Holdings Ltd. (the "Company" or "Experion") (TSXV:EXP)(OTCQB:EXPFF)(FRANKFURT:MB31) is pleased to announce that its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM) will be held on Wednesday, May 27, 2020 at 11:00 AM, Pacific Standard Time. The Company is preparing to host a virtual AGM in conjunction with Computershare using a third-party service provider in order to comply with the current national and provincial health restrictions relating to non-essential travel, physical distancing and avoiding gatherings of more than 10 people.Further details on the virtual AGM will be provided to shareholders as they become available.About Experion Holdings Ltd.Experion Holdings Ltd. is the parent company of Experion Biotechnologies Inc., a Health Canada licensed cultivator and processor of Cannabis, based in Mission, BC.Experion Holdings Ltd. is invested in a portfolio of products to address a wide spectrum of consumer needs' including Adult-use, Wellness and Therapeutic, and Medical products.Experion trades on the TSX Venture Exchange as a Tier 1 issuer under the symbol "EXP" on the OTCQB Venture under the symbol "EXPFF" and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol "MB31"For further information, please visit the Company's website www.experionwellness.com or contact Investor Relations, Email: IR@ experionwellness.com DisclosureThis press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Although the Company believes that such information is reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.Forward looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, forecast, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking information provided by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward looking information as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to: the state of the financial markets for the Company's equity securities; recent market volatility; the Company's ability to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to implement its business strategies; the risks identified in the Filing Statement, and other risks and factors that the Company is unaware of at this time. The reader is referred to the Filing Statement dated September 25, 2017 and/or the most recent annual and interim Management's Discussion and Analysis for a more complete discussion of such risk factors and their potential effects, copies of which may be accessed through the Company page on SEDAR at www.sedar.com Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies ofthe TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.SOURCE: Experion Holdings Ltd.
Two absconding persons, who attended the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi's Nizamuddin last month, were held in Greater Noida and quarantined on Thursday, police said.

Two others, who had provided shelter to the Jamaat attendees, were also arrested and quarantined, they added.

The two Jamaat attendees had absconded from Rajasthan's Alwar, where eight others who had participated in the religious congregation have been arrested.

The Tabligh-e-Jamaat's Markaz (headquarters) in Nizamuddin West has emerged as a hotspot of coronavirus as over 180 people who had attended the religious congregation have tested positive for COVID-19 in Delhi alone, while several other participants across the country are suspected to be infected with the virus.

The police in Gautam Buddh Nagar, adjoining Delhi, in western Uttar Pradesh had received information from their Alwar counterparts about 13 persons coming to the Rajasthan district after attending the Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi, a police spokesperson said.

"Eight of those 13 were held from Alwar's Karmala mosque. Five had absconded and the Alwar police traced their location to Greater Noida's Jarcha. Based on the information, the local police launched a hunt for those five persons.

"Two of them -- Mohammad Azam and Danish Khan -- were traced and held while two others, who had provided shelter to them, were also arrested," he added.

The police have come to know that the three other absconding persons are residents of Loni in adjoining Ghaziabad district and the inputs have been shared with the police there, the spokesperson said.

Legal proceedings are underway against those who provided shelter to Azam and Khan, and all four have been quarantined, he added.

The Uttar Pradesh government had invoked the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897 last month to combat the pandemic, with the British-era law stipulating legal action against those hiding information about suspected COVID-19 carriers.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The beginning of the month brings with it the socially unproductive and unnecessary practice of rent collection for housing, a source of conflict and anxiety for millions of workers and students. Faced with reduced hours, or being completely out of work due to the coronavirus pandemic, some workers have begun to organize rent strikes while many others will forgo their monthly payments to their landlords due to missed paychecks.

Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia have issued shelter in place or stay at home directives, affecting over 270 million people, shuttering restaurants, bars and other businesses putting millions out of work. Unemployment is expected to soar. While necessary to stem the spread of the virus, in capitalist society, corporations, including real estate holding firms, have used the shutdown to swindle billions of taxpayer dollars while providing no rent or mortgage relief.

In a country in which 33 percent of the population lives pay-to-paycheck and nearly 45 percent have zero dollars in their savings accounts according to a 2019 GOBankingrates survey, the loss of multiple weeks of work means many are left with choosing between essential items such as food or medicine or paying rent. In New York City, the epicenter of the outbreak, the New York Times reported up to 40 percent of tenants will forgo rent payments this month because they have no choice.

While corporations and stockholders have been given access to trillions of dollars through the unanimously passed CARES act, the act only provided two benefits for working people: A one-time means tested $1,200 check with several stipulations and the expansion of unemployment benefits for 13 weeks with $600 added per week to the benefits.

In cities such as New York and Los Angeles where low income housing is considered anything below $1,000 per month, these pitiful benefits are wholly insufficient and will be weeks late. The Treasury Department isnt expected to begin mailing out checks and distributing direct deposits into bank accounts until April 17. The Treasury also announced that low-income Social Security recipients would have to fill out a tax return in order to be eligible, meaning millions wont receive their funds.

A further barrier was also erected by the government for immigrant families. If one member of the household doesnt have a social security number, the entire household is disqualified from receiving a check. This will leave millions of undocumented workers and their families with no relief whatsoever.

In the US, new unemployment claims exceeded 3.2 million last week and are expected to top 5 million this week. The tidal wave of applicants following massive layoffs in the travel, tourist and service industry has caused hours-long backups on state unemployment phonelines and websites, preventing thousands from completing the labyrinthine process in order to access desperately needed funds.

The US government has left it up to individual states to pass their own legislation regarding eviction practices. While several state governors, including in California, Washington and New York, have enacted 90-day eviction moratoriums, there is nothing to prevent landlords from evicting tenants after the moratoriums have ended if they are unable to pay potentially months of back rent. No rent freezes been enacted.

California Governor Gavin Newsoms eviction moratorium still allows landlords to begin the eviction process if rent is missed, meaning as soon as the moratorium is lifted millions could be served eviction notices.

In order to qualify for the moratorium, tenants are required to declare in writing that they cant pay due to the COVID-19 pandemic with supporting documentation such as a layoff notice from their employer. For the millions of Californians who are part of the gig economy, and technically classified as contractors, they wont be able to provide any documentation, nor will the millions of migrant or immigrant workers who have been let go from their non-traditional jobs.

This has left millions in a precarious situation, unable to work, unable to pay rent and not eligible for relief. This has provided an opportunity for workers forced to stay at home to use the internet and social media to begin organizing rent strikes in major cities.

In New York City, tenants with the 1234 Pacific Street Tenant Association formally went on strike Tuesday after their request for a 50 percent reduction in rent payments beginning April 1 and a 100 percent reduction for those that had lost employment was rejected by the management company. Isaac Schwartz, the head officer of Pacific Management, the company which owns the building, declined to meet with the association to discuss an equitable bargain, advising the group that both tenants and landlords were having a hard time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the tenant association, Schwartz is the owner of 50 rental properties in the city and controls a portfolio valued at $87 million.

Tenants have begun flying white sheets in solidarity with renters and homeowners unable to afford monthly payments in cities across the US including in Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago, New Orleans, Austin and Minneapolis.

In an interview for the Guardian, Los Angeles resident Melissa Reyes, 25, explained why she is withholding her rent: We are all suffering, but we shouldnt have to suffer to this extent, this is about survival and necessity.

Phillip Elliott, 27, a Toronto resident and freelance writer and editor succinctly explained in an interview with Toronto Life why his landlord, in one of the most expensive cities in the world, wouldnt be paid this month: Coronavirus has exposed the flaws in our cannibalistic system of unrestrained capitalism. Pre-pandemic, my wife and I could barely pay the rent for our tiny bachelor. Some weeks, we rationed food. Now, one of my clients cancelled a major project when she lost her job, and my wife lost her serving jobwere both without income. Extortionate rents in Toronto mean we have no savings. Now we dont know what the future holds other than we cant pay rent. We understand landlords have bills, too. Rather than punching down at the poor, landlords should pressure government to cancel rent and mortgage costs during this crisis. We live in a society, not an economy: were all in this together.
The proactiveness of Maharashtra Police has saved the lives of many who could have been infected with the novel coronavirus COVID-19 had the Tablighi Jamaat carried out with their event in Vasai on March 14.

According to documents accessed by Republic TV, Maharashtra Police had denied permission to Tablighi Jamaat on March 6. This was at a time when the country was not even under lockdown but the state had already witnessed a few cases of COVID-19 infection. This timely decision of the police ensured that Tablighi Jamaat could not carry out a congregation of Nizamuddin scale in the state.

Read: Notice To Tablighi Jamaat Chief, Six Others For Defying Lockdown

Vasai Congregation Denied Permission

Republic TV has learnt that the Jamaat had already begun preparations for the Vasai congregation in January. They had also secured political permissions to go ahead with a large scale congregation in Mumbai. But in March, IG Konkan Range Niket Kaushik and his team decided to take a hard look at the repercussions of a large scale gathering at a time when the pandemic was spreading its tentacles in the state. The decision was taken after details of the event and number of attendees was discussed in a meeting convened by IG Konkan Range.

The police took a considered decision after realising that there would be several foreigners who would be attending the congregation. We could not have allowed such a large gathering at a time when there were growing number of COVID-19 cases. Hence we decided to cancel the permissions, said Niket Kaushik, IG, Konkan Range.

Read: 9000 Tablighi Jamaat Contacts Quarantined, 1306 Foreigners: Health Ministry

115 foreign Tablighi workers in Maharashtra

Several of the Tablighis who travelled to Maharashtra did so after spending a few days in Delhi's Nizamuddin area. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), 115 foreign Tablighi workers travelled to Maharashtra. The police are already trying to identify those who are still in the state and could have been infected.

Around 13 Tablighis from Bangladesh and 8 Tablighis from Malaysia were taken out from a masjid in Mumbra, Thane on Wednesday and their swab samples have been sent for testing. Maharashtra Police has already registered FIRs against office bearers of masjids where the police found Tablighis hiding and not cooperating with the police teams.

Read: Delhi Cops Identify And Quarantine 275 Foreign Nationals Who Attended Tablighi Jamaat Congregation

Read: Nizamuddin Dargah Criticises Tablighi Jamaat For Congregation Despite Govt's Orders
A resident doctor of the Physiology Department of All India Institute Of Medical Science (AIIMS), Delhi has tested positive for COVID-19, sources said.

According to AIIMS sources, the doctor is admitted to the new private ward for further evaluation and multiple testing.

Moreover, his family members will also be screened for lethal infection, they added.

On Wednesday, two resident doctors of Safdarjung Hospital were tested positive for coronavirus.Of the two doctors who were tested positive, one is a male posted at COVID-19 unit and the other is a female third-year post-graduation student from the Biochemistry Department, officials said.According to officials, the student has a past travel history to a foreign nation."Both the doctors have been admitted to the isolation ward," hospital officials said while adding that contact tracing of these two doctors is being done.A doctor of the Delhi State Cancer Institute was also confirmed positive for COVID-19.

There has been an increase of 131 COVID-19 cases in the last 12 hours.The total number of COVID-19 positive cases on Thursday rose to 1965 in India, including 1764 active cases, 151 cured, discharged or migrated patients and 50 deaths, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Municipal Commissioner Vijay



Singhal appealed to citizens of Maharashtra's Thane city to make generous donations to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement on Wednesday, the civic body chief said the city had already reported 12 cases of coronavirus and the corporation needs medical equipment and protective gear to contain the spread.

Hospitals require ventilators, N-95 masks, PPE kits, medicines and sanitising materials, he said, asking citizens to donate generously to the cause.

Migrant labourers and homeless persons were housed in rehabilitation centres and people are welcome to provide food grains and other essentials to them, Singhal said.

Several social organisations and companies had come forward to help out in the hour of crisis, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
02.04.2020 LISTEN

Aspiring Parliamentary candidate for Ablekuma North on the ticket of New Patriotic Party (NPP) Ms. Sheila Bartels has donated bags of rice, cooking oil, Gari, Corned Beef and some cash tokens as a relief package to support other members of her party in the Ablekuma North Constituency.

Her donation comes in the wake of the announcement made by the first Gentleman of the land Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for the lockdown. The announcement was made by the President on Friday night as part of the measures to help combat COVID 19 away from Ghana.

The elated beneficiaries expressed their gratitude for the kind gesture of Ms. Sheila Bartels.

"We are grateful to Ms. Sheila Bartels for the kind Gesture indeed she is a leader and we are sure she will be voted as our parliamentary candidate during the upcoming party primary".

Sheila Bartels is number 4 on the ballot paper for the upcoming primary having successfully sailed through her vetting.

"I'm coming to rescue Ablekuma North and this mission cannot be done myself alone I will need their support and prayers to succeed". Ms. Bartels added.

Sheila also used the opportunity to educate the beneficiaries on COVID 19, and why it is necessary to combat it using the directives recommended by the President, especially handwashing.

Sheila is an emerging and fast-rising politician from the Ablekuma North Constituency.

Born into a strong NPP tradition with her father being the former NPP MP and minister of state, Hon. Kwamena Essilfie Bartels, Sheilas biggest contribution to the NPP fraternity is the formation of an independent volunteer campaign organization known as The HOPE Campaign.

HOPE was instrumental in ensuring that the electorates, especially the youth, understood and could identify with the NPP campaign message for 2016 and this is indicative in the margin of the victory won in 2016.

WHO IS SHEILA BARTELS?

Sheila Bartels is an Entrepreneur since 1998, with business interests in E-commerce, Financial technology, Oil and Gas and Business Development. One of her businesses, InCharge Global Limited manages digital financial service agents nationwide on behalf of banks and other financial institutions like Ecobank and GhiPSS.

Another venture she owns is Betorbi.com, an E-commerce and consulting firm, specializing in developing and promoting Made in Ghana products internationally and supporting business owners to achieve business growth.

She also represents a Turkish manufacturer of fuel transportation and storage equipment.
Teachers have decided to join the effort to support NHS medical staff battling on the frontline against coronavirus, by putting their skills to use and making protective visors using equipment in their school's art and design workshop.

With protective equipment for medical staff at an all-time low due to a surge in panic buying, one school in East Anglia has decided to make their own moves in contributing to the national effort.

Such has been the shortage, some exhausted NHS staff have been forced to buy makeshift masks from DIY stores in order to carry out their work on the frontline, while others had approached building site workers and requested industrial action dusk masks.

Ed Cann, an art and design teacher at Norwich School, said he wanted to help address the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) for key workers during the coronavirus crisis.

The school made 138 visors on Monday using materials already in stock, and hopes to make at least 150 per day once they have sourced further materials.

'We have had numerous requests from the local medical community for the school's support,' said Mr Cann.

Ed Cann, an art and design teacher at Norwich School, is leading a movement to create protective visors and masks for NHS medical staff battling against the spread of coronavirus

Mr Cann and his colleagues produced 138 masks on Monday and have now been flooded with requests from the local community to provide further supplies

'Following prototyping on Sunday, we managed to produce 138 on Monday using the materials we had in stock.'

He has shared the designs with other schools for them to help make as many visors as possible.

The first delivery went to facilities that directly approached the school for help, including several hospitals, a GP surgery and a hospice in Norfolk.

The school also donated around 100 pairs of goggles and 30 boxes of gloves from existing supplies in its science department.

Steffan Griffiths, the school's headmaster, said: 'Norwich School has remained open to supervise the children of key workers and is now pleased to be able to use its resources to support the NHS in another way.

The visors have been created using art and design supplies, with the first delivery going to facilities that directly approached the school for help; including several hospitals, a GP surgery and a hospice in Norfolk

The number of coronavirus tests being done in the UK has been rising but only to around 10,000 per day - and the number of people being tested is about half as high because individuals are tested more than once. The Government is a long way off its 25,000-per-day target

'I am grateful to my colleagues for giving their time and using their expertise to make equipment which enables health workers to assist those in need.

'It is important that everyone plays their part in helping the community respond to the coronavirus outbreak and we will continue to explore ways in which we can be useful to these wider efforts.'

On Thursday Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who himself has tested positive for Covid-19, was facing demands to overrule control-freak health chiefs amid warnings 'time is running out' to scale up on the testing process.

Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, one of Britain's leading laboratories, urged the PM to summon the Dunkirk spirit and let 'small ship' labs start screening for the killer disease.

The number of people admitted to hospitals in England with coronavirus has soared in the past 10 days, particularly in London, which is still at the heart of the country's outbreak

The institute announced on Thursday it has started testing NHS staff from University College London Hospitals and aims to ramp up to 500 per day by next week and expand to other hospitals in the capital.

Cancer Research UK said it is also providing testing kits and expert staff to ramp up testing for NHS staff across the country, and others say they have volunteered to help, among them the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University and Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon.

A total of 29,747 people had tested positive for the coronavirus as of yesterday, April 1, and 2,352 were confirmed to have died in the UK.

The true number of people who have had the virus is thought to be around two million.
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Linkedin Arya Dipa (The Jakarta Post) Bandung  Thu, April 2, 2020 19:37 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f53277 1 National COVID-19,COVID-19-West-Java,COVID-19-rapid-test,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,West-Java,Bandung-mayor,sukabumi,church,religious-gathering Free

One hundred and twenty-seven people have tested positive after rapid tests were carried out on hundreds of people who attended a Lembang Bethel Church of Indonesia (GBI) event in Bandung, West Java.

"We will follow up the rapid tests with swab tests because the results from the rapid tests are less accurate compared to swab tests," Bandung Mayor Oded Daniel said on Wednesday.

About 2,000 people had attended a religious seminar held by GBI Lembang between March 2 and 6.

On March 21, a pastor who attended the seminar died after testing positive for COVID-19. His wife also contracted the disease and died about a week later.

Ryan B. Ristandi, the person-in-charge of West Javas Health Laboratory said that of Tuesday, 17 patients linked to the church event were under surveillance for COVID-19 and had been hospitalized.

Oded urged his residents to keep practicing social distancing and stay at home as the number of COVID-19 cases in Bandung and West Java rose.

"The spread [of COVID-19] is getting wider. I ask all residents to be disciplined and stay at home. Don't go out as much unless you need to buy essentials," he said.

Meanwhile, the Sukabumi Health Agency is planning to conduct rapid tests on people who live around the Police Officer Candidate School (Setukpa) in Sukabumi.

"We'll carry out the tests around the police academy after the health agency receives 2,000 rapid test kits," Sukabumi COVID-19 spokesperson Wahyu Handriana said.

Previously, 300 of 1,550 students of the academy tested positive for COVID-19 after rapid tests.

According to the central governments official count, there were 223 confirmed COVID-19 cases in West Java as of Thursday. (nal)
Hundreds of thousands of people displaced by conflict in Myanmar face a health "catastrophe" from the coronavirus pandemic, a rights group warned, as international calls grow for an end to fighting.

Overcrowded camps with an estimated 350,000 people were "COVID-19 tinderboxes", Human Rights Watch said.

Myanmar has 16 confirmed infections and one death, but experts say the lack of testing and poor health infrastructure mean the true figure is likely far higher in the impoverished country, long wracked by ethnic and religious violence.

Eighteen ambassadors to Myanmar -- including from the United States, Britain and European Union -- issued a joint statement Wednesday saying they were "deeply concerned", and called for an end to fighting in the country.

The focus must be on "protecting the most vulnerable communities from the devastating impacts of COVID-19", they said.

Myanmar's decrepit health system would struggle to cope with a serious outbreak of the deadly virus, HRW said Monday.

But displaced communities in Rakhine, Kachin, Shan, Chin and Karen states were even more vulnerable while internet blackouts and clamp downs on media freedoms in some areas have left people particularly isolated.

"The authorities need to ensure these groups have access to information, humanitarian aid, and health services -- including prompt testing and isolation for those who show symptoms," said HRW Asia director Brad Adams.

Myanmar's military has long been locked in battles with various insurgent groups across the country.

A conflict in Rakhine state involving the Arakan Army -- which is fighting for greater autonomy for ethnic Rakhine Buddhists -- has left scores of civilians dead and hundreds wounded.

Some 150,000 people have been displaced by the violence since January last year.

The situation is even more dire for Rakhine state's Rohingya Muslim population, who are among those with the worst health-care access.

Nearly 130,000 have languished in camps since intercommunal violence in 2012, with virtually no freedom of movement.

One man in a camp near state capital Sittwe told AFP they were doing what they could.

"We keep our children indoors," he said, asking not to be named. "We're afraid of the virus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Central banks around the world are doing everything they can to soften the financial and economic blow of lockdowns aimed at containing the coronavirus. But as owners of more than $13 trillion in foreign exchange reserves, theyre also major investors whose actions can either support or undermine their policy efforts.

To achieve the right outcome, theyll need to make sure their investment actions calm rather than inflame markets further.

Following in the footsteps of the U.S. Federal Reserve, many central banks have taken extraordinary measures to ensure that financial institutions, companies and governments can obtain the funding they need to meet obligations, keep operating and fight the pandemic. They have pledged to buy an ever-widening array of securities, and they have established swap lines to provide borrowers outside the U.S. with much-needed dollars and avert unnecessary panic. All these actions are needed. All are to be lauded.

Unfortunately, past experience suggests central banks foreign exchange reserves arent always managed in accordance with such desirable goals. These reserves include not only cash and safe government bonds, but also several trillion dollars worth of riskier assets, such as high-grade corporate debt, mortgage-backed securities, equities, peripheral European sovereign debt and gold. Like other investors, central bank reserve managers hate losses and volatility, and hence have been known to head for the exits at the same time as everyone else. This can exacerbate the very market distress that their policy-making colleagues are trying to calm.

Reserve managers have added fuel to the fire on several occasions, including the European credit crisis of 2011 to 2012, the mortgage bust of 2008 and 2009, and the remarkable case of gold at the turn of the millennium. In each instance, their selling contributed to disorderly markets and imperiled global financial stability  for example, complicating efforts to provide Spain, Italy and Portugal with access to cheap credit, and to maintain funding for U.S. mortgage guarantors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. (In the latter case, the Fed came to the rescue and made a tidy profit on the guarantors short-term debt.)

Story continues

Of course, reserve managers must act in the interests of their respective economies. Were not suggesting that they be braver and assume losses or refrain from selling if thats whats needed. Their objectives are rightly safety, liquidity and return, in that order. But succumbing to herd mentality achieves none of the three. And actions that seem individually rational can be collectively disastrous. Assuming they have no immediate need for cash and hence can afford to take a longer-term perspective, now is not the time for central banks to retreat from riskier assets. Time horizons matter. By any measure, the future, long-run return prospects of many asset classes now exceed those of the largest advanced nations government bonds.

On occasion, central bankers have demonstrated a willingness to collaborate in furthering their collective best interest. On September 26, 1999, fifteen European central banks signed the first Central Bank Gold Agreement, announcing they would coordinate their sales to prevent market dislocation. The agreement was so successful that they renewed it every five years with a growing number of signatories. Central banks working together achieved something they could never have done on their own: greater market certainty, improved stability in a shared asset class and a more secure global financial system.

And they can do the same today. Reserve managers holding equities, corporate credit, mortgage-backed securities and peripheral European sovereign debt can individually or collectively state that they own these assets for the long term and will seek appropriate buying opportunities, rather than heading for the exits. And they can restate their commitments to being responsible investors in global capital markets, now and for the long term.

In other words, central banks need to show the same spirit of global coordination when acting as investors as they do as policy makers. Doing so will enhance their efforts to help the global economy weather this terrible episode.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Isabelle Mateos y Lago co-runs BlackRocks Official Institutions Group and is a managing director at BlackRock.

Terrence Keeley co-runs BlackRocks Official Institutions Group and is a managing director at BlackRock.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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2020 Bloomberg L.P.
Video-sharing platform TikTok has said that its working with the Indian government to donate medical equipment worth Rs 100 crore to the medical workers are playing a very brave role in the frontline.

The Chinese company will chip in with 400,000 hazmat medical protective suits and 200,000 masks according to a community post on its website.

With support from the Union Ministry of Textile, this essential gear, which meets the prescribed standards and guidelines, is being handed over to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the post said.

TikTok also donated 200,000 masks to the state governments of Delhi and Maharashtra for local and state-level medical workers.

Even under full lockdown conditions, new cases of COVID positive patients are being reported every day and 437 new cases were added on Wednesday, registering the biggest single-day jump in the figures yet. The explosive rise in the infected persons has put pressure on the already overstretched medical services in India.



There has been a global shortage of medical protective equipment and the WHO has requested governments and industries to increase manufacturing by at least 40% to meet the demand. These protective equipment are indispensable for doctors and nurses whore putting their lives on the line to care for the victims of the pandemic.

Our medical doctors and health workers are the most vulnerable and exposed to the virus. At times like these, their safety is of utmost priority.  TikTok said in the post.



The Chinese company had reached quarterly revenues of Rs 25 Cr in India for the quarter ended in Dec 2019. Earlier this week, it was reported that New York-based investment management firm Tiger Global has acquired a stake in its parent company Bytedance through secondary transactions.
The founder of EasyJet has demanded a vote on whether to sack one of the company's directors, in a row over a 4.5bn (5.1bn) aeroplane order.

Stelios Haji-Ioannou's holding company easyGroup on Wednesday requisitioned a meeting of the company's shareholders to decide whether to remove Andreas Bierwirth from the EasyJet board.

It follows through on a threat from the businessman, who is EasyJet's biggest shareholder, to start sacking directors if the company did not take steps to cancel its order of 107 aircraft from Airbus.

The Luton-based carrier grounded all of its planes earlier this week as demand for flights collapsed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Chief executive Johan Lundgren has indicated the airline would consider accepting UK Government bailout loans if needed.

EasyJet's board said it is "considering the contents" of Stelios's requisition and will announce its decision in time.

On Tuesday, Stelios said the Airbus order, which will see 4.5bn paid to the European plane maker over the next three years, is EasyJet's "main risk to survival".

He said he is concerned EasyJet did not consider the crisis to be a "force majeure" - a legal term for unforeseen circumstances that allow a business to get out of a contract.

Stelios said: "In short, I would rather spend shareholders' scarce money paying lawyers to defend EasyJet against a potential legal action by Airbus demanding payments for dubious penalties rather than buying overpriced planes that will sit on the ground or fly their passengers at a loss."

He has threatened to remove a non-executive every seven weeks unless his demands are met.

Separately, fellow budget airline Wizz Air has said the number of passengers it is carrying dropped by 36pc in March, as it cut capacity by 34pc. It is operating flights between China and Hungary to deliver medical equipment, the carrier said.
Democrats delayed their presidential nominating convention Thursday until the week of Aug. 17 to increase the likelihood that the party can still hold an in-person gathering in Milwaukee amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The decision to reschedule from July puts the Democratic gathering one week before the Republican convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, starting Aug. 24, which both President Donald Trump and Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel pledged recently will go forward.

Trump said last week that there was "no way" his convention would be canceled, and McDaniel said that planning for a "full seated" convention was moving "full steam ahead." But Democrats have taken a far more cautious approach, in part because their convention was originally scheduled six weeks earlier in the summer to accommodate the Summer Olympics, which have since been canceled.

"In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds so we can best position our party for a safe and successful convention," Joe Solmonese, CEO of the Democratic National Convention Committee, said in a statement Thursday.

Former vice president Joe Biden, who is leading in delegates to the nomination, made clear this week that he welcomed a delay.

"I think it's going to have to move into August," Biden said Wednesday on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon."

The postponement is only the latest sign of a presidential contest upended by the coronavirus, which has killed more than 50,000 people worldwide and more than 5,300 in the U.S., and cost Americans millions of jobs.

Several states that had planned to vote in late March or April postponed their primaries, extended the end of the nominating season - and the determination of a winner - well into June, potentially costing the party months of general election organizing.

When it comes to the summer conventions, Democrats had worried that their event would be canceled but that the Republican one would still be able to go forward, delivering Trump a clear advantage in the televised spectacle that marks the start of the general election.

By tradition, the party that does not hold the White House goes first in the nominating contest. Both parties depend on live media coverage of the events, particularly by broadcast networks, to reintroduce their candidates and campaign themes before the final sprint to the nomination.

Democratic officials said the August event would still be subject to the recommendations of federal and state health officials, who have signaled that they are waiting for data on the course of the coronavirus infection.

"When it goes down to essentially no new cases, no deaths at a period of time, I think it makes sense that you're going to have to relax social distancing," the nation's top infectious disease expert, Anthony Fauci, said this week when asked about the summer conventions.

Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., a co-chair of the convention host committee, said she spoke with Democratic chairman Tom Perez last month, shortly after the first case of covid-19 was diagnosed in the state.

"I said to him that my third grade teacher told me that the biological definition of survival was the ability to adapt to change," Moore said in an interview Thursday. "We are going to be re-envisioning different kind of spaces. For example, the convening of the Rules Committee - that might have to be a much bigger venue so that people can space themselves appropriately. There might have to be rules around microphones so that everyone will be clean."

Democratic convention organizers have spent the past two weeks seeking out contingency plans for the convention, exploring virtual voting options and a new schedule. Major contracts for a July convention were due to be signed in the coming weeks, putting pressure on organizers to make a decision.

Both national party and local officials have tried to emphasize a commitment to holding the event in Wisconsin, a key battleground state that Democrats lost in 2016.

"The convention team is totally focused on accomplishing two goals, which are protecting the health and safety of Wisconsinites and making sure we launch the Democratic nominee in a way that is unmistakably Wisconsin," Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Ben Wikler said Wednesday.

A person familiar with the Republican deliberations said Wednesday that the president remained determined to go forward with his convention and that many donors to the event think the coronavirus is less of a concern, because they are not in places that are currently affected by it.

But a fully virtual convention, or one with far fewer people than normal, is still a real possibility for both parties, which have recently taken steps to allow for voting delays and virtual meetings as the nomination process moves forward. Local health officials in both Wisconsin and North Carolina are likely to be wary of a large influx of out-of-state travelers if the pandemic is still spreading.

"You go to a swing state, which both of these are, you don't want to leave them with 10,000 cases of covid-19," former Democratic Party chairman Howard Dean said. "You just may not be able to have 20,000 or 30,000 or 40,000 people."

Democratic committee members believe that an electronic voting system for the nearly 4,000 delegates would be far more manageable than the problematic electronic system that marred the Iowa caucuses. Unlike a regular election, votes at the convention are cast publicly, so they are easier to verify after the fact. Only five votes must be held - three for committee reports, one for the presidential nominees and one for the vice presidential nominee.

The original plans for the Milwaukee convention presumed that as many as 50,000 people from around the country would come to the city, including about 15,000 journalists and nearly 4,000 party delegates. The city's original bid identified 15,000 hotel rooms and 500 buses that could be used for the four-day event.

Concern in the state has grown, however, as the coronavirus has spread throughout the country, leading to stay-at-home orders for most Americans.

A poll by Marquette University last week found that 62 percent of Wisconsin voters did not want the convention to move forward as an in-person event. That included 69 percent of Democrats, 62 percent of independents and 55 percent of Republicans.

But there is concern in both parties that any switch to a virtual convention, without a live event for reporters to cover in person, will lower the network interest in covering the spectacles and limit their reach.

"The less newsworthy they become, the less coverages there is. And events are newsworthy," said Erik Smith, a Democratic consultant who helped plan his party's last three events.

"The truth is this is not something that people are going to walk away from easily."

- - -

The Washington Post's Josh Dawsey contributed to this report.
Lack of trust contributes to increasing anxiety and rage sweeping across the country along with the virus.

Do we trust China? Do we trust WHO? Do we trust the media? Do we trust the money in the relief bill will get to the right people and that widespread corruption won't emerge? Do we trust the "experts" advising the president? Do we trust the president?

We don't trust China. I hope, when the time is right, President Trump and other world leaders will determine how best to exact a heavy price for the hell China unleashed. The WHO, which followed Chinese propaganda that there was no person-to-person transmission of the virus, has forfeited any credibility it may have had.

Sadly, most of the media also fall into the no-reason-to-trust category. Ever since Trump announced his first run for president, the media have been working 24/7/365 to take him down. The coronavirus has become the latest platform toward that end.

That is not to say the virus is not worthy of extensive coverage. But so much of the reporting is funneled through a TDS machine that spits out one report after another that paints Trump, and his administration, in a negative light.

Despite all Trump has done, and continues to do in the face of this unprecedented pandemic, the media have had eyes only for the problems, the oversights, the flaws, never offering praise, thanks, or acknowledgment for the tireless work and, more importantly, the monumental accomplishments this administration has achieved in record time.

Meanwhile, as the gargantuan relief package kicks in, suspicious things are bubbling to the surface as small to medium-sized manufacturers who make parts for ventilators express concern that the big companies who make them are outsourcing to (wait for it) China.

As for the "experts" advising the president, like many others, I have misgivings about Dr. Fauci. I believe we lost the time we gained when Trump shut down the border to China because Fauci promised a test and then didn't deliver. And we waited and waited, and things stalled out.

As for President Trump, he had the right instinct early on when he closed the border, but then he failed to continue to be aggressive, perhaps because he received erroneous guidance from the "experts," with Fauci in the most prominent role.

For all of Fauci's credentials dealing with pandemics, one would think he could have anticipated that by the time we realized that the coronavirus had hit our shores, the virus had seeded itself all over the country. How could he possibly have thought it had made its way to only one nursing home in one city in one state?

These are troubling and uncertain times.

Pray for the president, that he can see the right path through as he threads this needle. May he be healthy, safe, and surrounded only by those who have the country's best interest at heart.

Graphic credit: Pixabay.
NEW YORK, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Owl Rock Capital Corporation (NYSE: ORCC) ("ORCC") today announced it will release its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2020 on Tuesday, May 5, 2020 after market close. ORCC invites all interested persons to its webcast / conference call on Wednesday, May 6, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time to discuss its first quarter ended March 31, 2020 financial results.

Conference Call Information:

The conference call will be broadcast live at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time on the Investor Resources section of ORCC's website at www.owlrockcapitalcorporation.com. Please visit the website to test your connection before the webcast.

Participants are also invited to access the conference call by dialing one of the following numbers:



Domestic: (866) 393-4306

International: (734) 385-2616

Conference ID: 1891937

All callers will need to enter the Conference ID followed by the # sign and reference "Owl Rock Capital Corporation" once connected with the operator. All callers are asked to dial in 10-15 minutes prior to the call so that name and company information can be collected.

Replay Information:

An archived replay will be available for 14 days via a webcast link located on the Investor Resources section of ORCC's website, and via the dial-in numbers listed below:

Domestic: (855) 859-2056

International: (404) 537-3406

Conference ID: 1891937

About Owl Rock Capital Corporation

Owl Rock Capital Corporation (ORCC) is a specialty finance company focused on lending to U.S. middle-market companies. As of December 31, 2019, ORCC had investments in 98 portfolio companies with an aggregate fair value of $8.8 billion. ORCC has elected to be regulated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. ORCC is externally managed by Owl Rock Capital Advisors LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser that is an affiliate of Owl Rock Capital Partners. Owl Rock Capital Partners, together with its subsidiaries, is a New York based direct lending platform with approximately $16.4 billion of assets under management as of December 31, 2019.

Certain information contained herein may constitute "forward-looking statements" that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors and undue reliance should not be placed thereon. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but rather are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about ORCC, its current and prospective portfolio investments, its industry, its beliefs and opinions, and its assumptions. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "will," "may," "continue," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "would," "could," "should," "targets," "projects," "outlook," "potential," "predicts" and variations of these words and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond ORCC's control and difficult to predict and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or forecasted in the forward-looking statements including, without limitation, the risks, uncertainties and other factors identified in ORCC's filings with the SEC. Investors should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date on which ORCC makes them. ORCC does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements or any other information contained herein, except as required by applicable law.

Investor Contact:

Dana Sclafani

212-651-4705

[email protected]

Media Contact:

Prosek Partners

David Wells / Kelly Smith Aceituno / Josh Clarkson

[email protected]

SOURCE Owl Rock Capital Corporation
As the COVID-19 situation was worsening in India and around the world, popular payments platform MobiKwik decided on March 12 to shift completely to the work from home from the very next day. Most organizations and their IT teams would have struggled with such a short turnaround time. Life has just not been the same the past few weeks. Some love it, the work from home bit, where interaction with other humans is minimal. It has been what they dreamt off all this while. For the rest, this has either been a bit of a rude shock and a new learning that isnt exactly pleasant or something they have taken to with the ease reminiscent of a knife gliding through a cube of lightly warm butter. Whatever it may be, here we are in the lockdown in many countries. In fact, the realities of discomfort and ease are something that apply to corporates as well as the employees. Our operations team works in shifts due to which they have workstations, so we organized rental laptops for all of them, configured them to our security protocols and made them available in less than 24 hours so that team could work seamlessly from their homes, says Upasana Taku, co-founder and COO, MobiKwik. To have the entire team equipped for the work from home scenario, in less than a day, is no mean feat.

For many corporates too who preferred to have employees sit at their workstations for 8-9 hours a day, are finding this new learning quite interesting. Safe to say. Also, they had no choice. Technology has undoubtedly played a big role in making the transition simpler, at least at this time of a public health emergency. And thats technology at home and technology that runs the very core of your organizations core competence. A few years ago, with much slower broadband lines at home, it would have been hard to imagine the sort of productivity that we now enjoy with 100Mbps and faster internet lines. Add slick video meeting apps such as Microsoft Teams, Skype, Apple FaceTime and Google Duo to the mix and instant messaging apps including the much-loved WhatsApp, Slack, iMessage and Facebook Messenger, and we have a full office setup ready at home.

Is it one big experiment?

In a way, this forced change was nothing new for some organizations. For us, work from home or working remotely has been a 'new normal' for almost as long as we have been around. One of the key reasons is that we are fortunate to work in an industry where most of our work is 'knowledge' work, i.e. it involves sharing information, acting on information and exchanging and communicating on ideas, with clients as well as internal stakeholders. These things, thanks to modern technology, can happen from anywhere, says Bhairav Shanth, co-founder and Managing Director, ITW Consulting. Indian e-commerce company Flipkart, incredibly popular would be putting it mildly, has been adopting quite a few tech enhancements in their daily workflow whether they are in office or working from home. Flipsters are using video conferences to stay connected for meetings. We're encouraging employees across the organization to take a 'Digital Chai Break' and guiding them in scheduling their workday, a Flipkart spokesperson tells us. Flipkart employees are referred to as Flipsters.

With examples such as MobiKwik in our midst, we cannot at all discount the genuine possibility that this current health emergency will be the harbinger of what could possibly be permanent change in the way we work. Raman Singh, co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer, CloudConnect Communications believes that this COVID-19 outbreak has caused organizations across the country to rethink the way they carry out day-to-day business. Thankfully, we live in an age of technology, and ensuring seamless business continuity is not very tough  all we need are the right tools! With continued business communication and security at the top of their priority lists, organizations are now turning to remote working technologies to facilitate a work-from-home option for their employees, he says.

But this change will only happen if the organization you work for has the infrastructure and the technology solutions in place to allow remote work, without any bottlenecks. With the IT infrastructure of the most organizations being put to test now, we believe there will be long term impact of present situation on the workstyles and workplaces of Indian workforce. The organizations will have to re-assess their IT infrastructure strategy, focusing on the need to have right technological tools that support mobility, security and freedom to collaborate, says Vickram Bedi, Senior Director (Personal Systems), HP Inc. for India, Bangladesh & Sri Lanka.

Can any organization afford to not be work from home ready now?

There is the sense that some organizations werent prepared for this change, some had perhaps not envisioned it while some had been resisting this change for a while now. The difference between those who were, and those who werent, is becoming very clear right now. Organizations in the past have embraced remote work policy, though not on a scale as big as this. However, the pressing circumstances have mandated us to accept our new social-distancing world, admits Aakrit Vaish, co-founder and CEO, Haptik. The company which makes virtual assistants and relies heavily on artificial intelligence (AI) is the name behind the recently launched MyGov Corona Helpdesk on WhatsApp, that is designed to offer smart and instant responses to queries people may have about the Coronavirus, or COVID19. The attempt is to disseminate correct, crisp and precise information about how to protect oneself against the virus, at a time when fake news and misinformation are rampant on social networks and instant messaging platforms. On March 27, Haptik organized an online Counter-Strike gaming competition for employees as part of their work from initiative. For those who may not be well versed, Counter-Strike is a very popular first person shooter game. After all, working from home shouldnt be designed to make employees feel guilty about not being in office, and measures such as this help in boosting morale significantly.

What happens when we ask 195 employees to take a break from work? An online Counter-Strike competition as part of Haptik's work from home initiative.#HaptikWorksFromHome #LifeAtHaptik #CoronaLockdown #WorkFromHome Haptik (@haptik) March 27, 2020

A lot of companies were putting emphasis on the person-to-person interactions, which are a part of the daily routine in certain functions that depend on everyone being in office every day. And rightly so, some would argue. There is also the person to person interaction angle which is given weightage. At work, you meet team members by the water cooler, at the coffee table, in the alley. This creates a sense of presence if you dont really interact with each other every day, a Snapdeal spokesperson tells us. Their recommendation is that daily interactions, even if prescriptive, should remain even in remote work scenarios. But this too much weightage given to that? The COVID19 epidemic has forced organizations to revisit their work from home policies and plan for a future where employees will work from home more frequently and for longer durations, says Sandeep Goel, Senior Vice President - Technology, Moglix.

Preparedness was key, it seems

Over the past few weeks, technology giant Microsoft has shifted completely to a virtual workplace, for almost all of their operations. Our top concern is the well-being of our employees and supporting our customers, partners and communities in maintaining business continuity during this challenging time. Technology can play a vital role in reducing the impact of COVID-19 on people and organizations, including helping people stay productive at work when theyre not able to be there physically. Across the global economy, were making sure employees can work remotely without sacrificing collaboration, productivity or security, says Rajiv Sodhi, COO, Microsoft India. At this time, the company is actively working with large corporations, schools, and government bodies to help them transition to remote workplacesthese are also some examples of entities that havent really adopted the remote working culture over the years.

Working from home used to be the exception to the rule; today it is becoming the new norm, says Philipp Weiser, founder and managing director of remote desktop provider, AnyDesk Software GmbH. A lot of organizations have workflows that require employees to use the remote desktop software which the company offers, for quicker collaboration and communication within teams. AnyDesk says their software has been downloaded 170 million times and is used by more than 25,000 organizations in as many as 173 countries.

Schools Are Showing The Way to The Doubters

Video chats and video conferencing solutions play a very important role in the remote workplace jigsaw. Schools, for instance, are adopting the tech-enabled learning methods too. Two examples that Microsoft shares are The British School and Ardee School NFC in Delhi. Some of these transitions have been happening for a while now, simply fast-tracked by the demands of the COVID19 pandemic. We got an Office 365 subscription for the entire school at the beginning of the school session in 2019 as it provided many tools for teaching and learning, says Rashima V Varma, the head of The Ardee School, NFC. By having every student and teacher mapped to the Office 365 accounts, enabling them to use the Microsoft Teams app, when the governments asked school to close because of the Coronavirus, was simple and quick. Even before the Delhi government announced school closures, wed already done over a hundred dry runs (for classes on Teams) across the school. On the evening of March 5, the government announced the closure of primary schools and at 8:05 AM on March 6, we delivered our first class over Teams, says Vanita Uppal OBE, director of The British School.

Microsoft showcases The Ardee Schools and the British school for virtual learning.https://t.co/X2WfOt6eO8 THE ARDEE SCHOOL (@theardeeschool) March 26, 2020

The matter of trust And Maintaining The Balance

Organizations which havent really implemented work from home as an option for employees often said that they cannot risk the balance of productivity shifting for the worse. But the answer perhaps lies with the organizations themselves, if they look hard enough. We're encouraging parents with older children to get them involved in scheduling their priorities for the day and keep them engaged in this regard, the Flipkart spokesperson tells us. Flipkart believes that inclusivity in this form helps employees balance the priorities. In fact, the company urges employees to get their young ones to join in on video meetings to greet their colleagues their parents work with. It is building a strong sense of togetherness, the company believes.

They arent the only example of an employee-first mindset. ITW Consultings Shanth says the keys to their success as an organization that encourages remote working comprises of two thingstrust and outcome. The one key item to making remote working work is trust and at ITW it's always been a two-way street. And we always have defined criteria for success for our employees in terms of outcome/output and not quantity, he says. ITW Consulting makes it a point to not focus on metrics such as how many minutes employees were online or how many mails they answered in a day, for instance.

One way of ensuring the trust and productivity aspects remain in top shape, is the extra focus on communication. Communicating consistently and improving the planning processes will be key to make working from home successful for both employees and organizations, says Moglix Goel. Snapdeal also believes that communication is the key to uninterrupted work even as employees work remotely. The key to success for any engagement is clear communication - remote or otherwise, the Snapdeal spokesperson says.

Will this change remain?

Whether this is a lasting culture change, some arent exactly sure. Well, in the current situation, social media is filled with rosy predictions of the future work culture and how remote working might just become the new norm. However, a pandemic is not the right time to determine the best possible outcome for workplace flexibility, says Niraj Ranjan Rout, Co-Founder and CEO of Hiver, a SaaS platform that has clients in more than 30 countries. But Rout believes this does present companies with a rather interesting opportunity to innovate and adopt technology which will enable remote work in the years to come.

CloudConnects Singh is more optimistic. As the virus continues to spread, everyone is wondering: Is work from home the new normal? The answer is a simple yes. For now, until the lockdown is lifted, working from is the only option for businesses looking at continued operations and profits. However, once organizations become comfortable with remote working during this period, we believe that a long-term transformation will occur. Nothing will be the same again, he says. His belief is that even long after the lockdown is done and dusted with, work from home is something organizations would have become used to, and also found processes that would help employees retain productivity levels even when not working in a typical office environment.
As many as 13 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat at the Markaz in Nizamuddin in Delhi were picked up from a mosque in Barwalan area in Moradabad on Wednesday.

Superintendent of police (SP) City Amit Kumar Anand, said, They are all from Assam. They will be placed under quarantine.

Police were informed about these people and their primary test has been conducted. Investigation will also be conducted, he added.

In Gorakhpur region, over 21 people from Maharajganj district who attended the Tablighi Jamat at Delhis Markaz on March 18 and 19 have been identified by the district administration and quarantined in Maharajganjs Women Hospital. Their samples have been sent for testing and the list of their names sent to the state Government for further action.

The 21 men had already isolated themselves at home. Gorakhpur district magistrate Ujjawal Kumar said  Twenty-one people, including 15 elderly , who returned on March 21 from Delhis Markaz after attending Tablighi Jamat have been quarantined. Their swabs have been sent for testing.

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the gathering. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh government has identified as many as 569 people who attended the congregation at the Markaz in New Delhi early this month along with 218 foreign nationals suspected of being infected by Sars-Cov-2 Covid 19 and quarantined.

UP Police identified 218 foreign nationals, who had come to Uttar Pradesh at different stages on tourist visas but some of these foreigners joined the Jamaat. Police have seized the passports of these foreigners and have got them quarantined. Along with this, they are being investigated. The police have also filed an FIR against people who provided shelter to foreigners.

OVER 100 BOOKED

Cases under Foreigners Act have been registered against over a hundred religious preachers in different districts of Meerut region and presently they have been kept under quarantine.

In Meerut district, cases under Section 14 b of the Foreigners Act have been registered against 19 preachers who came from Sudan, Djibouti, Kenya and Indonesia and stayed in mosques of Sardhana and Mawana towns.

SP (Rural) of Meerut Avinash Pandey said, Initially they violated the visa rules. They came here on tourist visa and got involved in religious activities in violation of visa rules. Besides, they didnt inform the local intelligence office about their arrival in the city and their guides hid their movement from authorities, which was also violation of Foreigners Act, he said.

The SP said cases had been registered against preachers from abroad under Section 14 b of Foreigners Act and under Section 14C against their local guides. He said that the state and Union governments had issued guidelines about foreign preachers on Thursday.

Cops also confiscated passports of these foreign preachers, which would be case property during investigation.

Presently all these preachers and their local guides are under quarantine and their samples have been sent for corona test.

In Saharanpur, cops have lodged 6 FIRs against 57 religious preachers who came from Indonesia, Sudan, Kazakistan and other countries and were involved in missionary activities in violation of visa rules. We have lodged cases against them under Foreigners Act and investigation will be conducted against them, said SSP of Saharanpur Dinesh Kumar P.

District authorities of Shamli, Hapur and Bulandshahr districts also registered cases against nine foreign religious preachers from Thailand, eight from Bangladesh and 17 from Indonesia and Bangladesh in their respective districts.
Washington: President Donald Trump has said that Tehran should expect a bold US response if Iran or Iranian-backed groups attack American forces or assets in Iraq.

US-Iran tensions soared following the January 3 Washington-directed strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassim Soleimani outside Baghdad airport.

Trump said at an evening White House briefing that his administration has received intelligence that Iran is planning a strike, but did not provide additional details.

Iran has been blamed for an uptick in rocket attacks targeting Iraqi military bases hosting US troops. Three separate attacks in the span of a week struck Camp Taji and Basmaya bases, killed three coalition servicemen, including two Americans, and injured scores of others.

Earlier in the day, Trump tweeted: "Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on US troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!"

Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018 and has steadily reimposed US sanctions on Iran that had been eased or lifted under the terms of the deal.

Last week, the administration slapped new sanctions on 20 Iranian people and companies for supporting Shia militia in Iraq held responsible for attacks on bases where US forces are located. Currently, there are about 7,500 coalition troops in Iraq assisting and providing training to their Iraqi security counterparts to fight the Islamic State group.
Researchers have created a curve model that predicts how COVID-19 is impacting the United States.

Experts from the University of Washington used data from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation to forecast coronavirus's impact on each state, and the country as a whole. The data can be used to predict when the peak amount of cases and deaths could occur.

The curve model shows which state has issued a stay-at-home order. It also breaks down the amount of hospital beds, intensive care units and ventilators needed and compares it to how many are still needed.

According to the data, the United States could see its peak April 15. However, there could be a projected shortage of resources needed to treat patients. At its peak, the U.S. could see more than 2,200 deaths in one day.

Video: Boston Convention Center to join DCU Center as coronavirus field hospital

KCRA-TV spoke to Professor Ali Mokdad, one of the lead researchers on the project.

Tell me about your role in the research

Dr. Mokdad: We collect a lot of information from a lot of countries. Then we were tasked to do this for our university hospitals, and we did it for our county and nearby county and now were doing it for every state. I lead the team for the United States, and part of our work is this one.

How long ago did you start researching?

Dr. Mokdad: For COVID-19 we started about one month ago. We started doing some runs for our own hospitals, then we were contacted by lots of our colleagues and they asked us to do it for the rest of the country.

Was there anything in the research that surprised you?

Dr. Mokdad: Yes, several surprises. One of it is the rapid rise in the number of deaths from this pandemic and the variation between our states. So there are ongoing, unfortunately, different factors that are influencing the peak and the rate of increase. Our findings were very helpful for all of us in order to locate resources between different states. ... Two: Inform the public about the importance of the measures, separation measures  the social distancing, basically stay at home and education facilities should be closing. Nonessential services should be closed because weve seen (the) impact of these measurements when they were implemented on our projection and estimations.

Was it difficult to gather the data?

Dr. Mokdad: For a country like the United States, its much easier to do it than other countries. In the United States, we have vital statistics where causes of death are being reported on a regular basis, so were able to track mortality. Our model uses mortality-deaths. So, were projecting mortality to the future and we have that data and for the number of beds and the number of ICU and ventilators, again, lucky for us in the United States. We have the American Hospital Association where we have data and then we can get this data and use it in our models. The one that we didnt have its impact on our projection, which is our social distancing measures, we used the experience of China and South Korea. Remember, (the) Chinese started before us with the pandemic, so we could benefit, unfortunately, from their experience, and basically, we can use what they have seen in terms of how the rates of mortality is increasing in each of these countries and what happened to these rates: the slope of going up when they implemented these measures.

Is President Trump using your data?

Dr. Mokdad: Yesterday (Sunday), I didnt watch it but the president at the (news) conference at the White House they mentioned our institute and our director by name. So, yes, there are a lot of data coming and there is a team Im sure around the president, and one of the data being used is this data. Our data has been very informative, and I think youve heard the delay until the end of April and even the president mentioned yesterday that it will be with us until the end of May. Thats coming exactly from our data. Were happy that people are using our numbers.

Do you agree with opening the country again by April 30?

Dr. Mokdad: From the way we see it, its not a decision that we can make. The virus is making all the decisions, unfortunately for us, and what we are doing at IHME is we have told our staff to stay at home until the end of April. But we told everybody that mid-April we will revise our policy. Because well know better data. So, I think everyone of us working on this issue are waiting.

Why do some states peak later?

Dr. Mokdad: With this virus, what determines the peak is when the infection started, the spread of the virus in the community. So certain communities like in Seattle, we had the first case diagnosed so we were ahead of everybody else. New York being New York, the financial capital of the world, people are flying to New York from all over the world. So, they started earlier. So thats what determines the peak. What determines the number going up and down are the measures that are put in place: Stay at home, shut down educational facilities. So, California has done a good job, called early on for these measures, faster than any other state in a way. So, its very important, and you will see a lot of reduction from mortality and needs for ICU and ventilators because of that. Remember, everybody is talking about flattening the curve earlier and making sure the curve doesnt go as high because we really want to limit demand on our medical resources and we want to delay as much as we can new cases being diagnosed and any need for hospitalization and that way we can avoid a lot of morbidity and mortality.

Does anyone peak after April 30?

Dr. Mokdad: Yeah, I talked today to North Dakota. Its projected to peak on May 1. Again, a different factor, North Dakota being less traveled than other states. Some states in the U.S., as you know, they dont have as much population and that population is very dispersed. So that in a way can help. A city like New York, L.A. or San Francisco is where we are really concerned and where you really want these measures to be implemented as soon as possible and where you really want the population to adhere to that.

Do your models include all positive cases?

Dr. Mokdad: We on purpose modeled mortality, which is death rate. And the reason were modeling mortality is because we know for sure people who are dying from coronavirus we have a number for them. We dont know especially early on in the pandemic  the epidemic in the U.S. We didnt have enough tests so we didnt know how many people are positive. Then, we know from previous diseases, flu like symptoms, SARS or others that sometimes people are infected but they are asymptomatic, so they dont show any signs of the disease. So, we really dont know how many people are positive in the country right now. And with testing more people youre going to find more people so we felt in our model if you went with mortality, that would be a sure thing. And we can reverse engineer the demand based on mortality.

How can you be so specific?

Dr. Mokdad: We have done this. Weve been doing projections for a lot of things before. Thats one. So we have models that could take certain variables and say given the status and how these variables interact with each other thats what we would expect in the future. Also, the most important part of what were doing right now: We have a real-live situation where we have seen what happened in China. So, if you develop a model in a simplistic way you can develop your model by going to China and apply it and see how did the model perform against the real data.

Are there any bright spots in the data?

Dr. Mokdad: What we have seen when we implemented the social distancing measures our prediction went down.

What we are really seeing here and what we keep enforcing for everybody is if you stay at home it's working. If you shut down your school it's working. If you stop non-essential services, it's working. And this is what is really surprising us, that we can see it within like a week or two weeks a big difference in the number of projected deaths.
With governors in coronavirus hotspots scrounging for tens of thousands of ventilators, blame on the lack of availability can be widely apportioned.

Decades before President Donald Trump told governors, as he did in early March, Try getting it yourselves, the federal government dictated that hospitals have the minimum amount of emergency equipment necessary on hand.

And while the president hammered auto executives to produce thousands of ventilators, which they had never made before, the federal government had recognized a possible need after 9/11 created scenarios of biological weapon scares.

To that end, it funded efforts by small manufacturers to develop inexpensive, portable, easy to operate ventilators only for those companies to be purchased by larger companies, which considered those machines a threat to their commercial products. About $20 million later, none were ever produced for the government.

The long-term blame dates back to 1983, according to University of Georgia history professor Stephen Mihm, who has studied U.S. health care financing. Thats when Made in Japan went from being a joke to the gold standard of manufacturing with a just in time system maximizing the use of existing inventories without delay.

While it revitalized American industry, U.S. politicians used it as a model for the health care system. Instead of reimbursing hospitals for daily expenses, the Reagan administration proposed paying Medicare costs on the basis of diagnosis, not length of stay. That prompted hospitals to get patients in and out as soon as feasibly possible.

Hospital beds since have fallen significantly per 1,000, and extra ventilators werent essential.

But the Bush administration was concerned after 9/11 about what would happen if terrorists launched biological weapon attacks on major population areas.

It wanted to stockpile thousands of ventilators.

Ventilators are designed to prevent a virus from damaging lungs by increasing levels of oxygen into them. Ventilators have a humidifier to add heat and moisture to match body temperature. Patients get medication to relax their respiratory system, enabling the machine to regulate it.

Its an intricate machine with hundreds of parts. The major manufacturers were overseas with smaller companies in the U.S.

In 2006, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority was created in the Department of Health and Human Services to prepare for medical responses to chemical, biological and nuclear attacks and infectious diseases. It anticipated needing 70,000 more ventilators for a moderate pandemic.

California-based Newport Medical, owned by a Japanese company, won the $6.1 million contract to develop the ventilator with the promise the government would buy tens of thousands. With ventilators going for $10,000, it developed one costing $3,000.

It applied for Food and Drug Administration approval in 2012, then was bought for $100 million by Covidien which, in turn, was bought by Medtronic for $50 billion. Medtronic had pricier ventilators that would have competed with the Newport model, and it scuttled the project.

BARDA tried again with a $13.8 million contract to Trilogy Evo Universal, a Pennsylvania company owned by Dutch electronics giant Philips. The FDA approved it last September. HHS was prepared to order 10,000 at $3,280 each for the Strategic National Stockpile.

But none made it into the national stockpile. Instead, Philips has been selling ventilators online for $12,495, according to ProPublica.

After New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, requested the federal government help find 30,000 ventilators, Trump told Fox News commentator Sean Hannity, I dont believe you need 40,000 or 30,000 ventilators. You go into major hospitals sometimes, and theyll have two ventilators.

He subsequently reversed form, blaming GM, in part, for not producing ventilators.

General Motors MUST immediately open their stupidly  abandoned Lordstown plant in Ohio, or some other plant, and START MAKING VENTILATORS, NOW!!!!!! he tweeted.

GM, which had sold the Lordstown plant, was awaiting approval of a $1.5 billion government contract to make the ventilators  at $18,000 each  at its auto parts facility in Kokomo, Ind., in partnership with Ventec, a small ventilator manufacturer.

The New York Times reported the administration believed GM could quickly ramp up production to make 20,000 monthly, but that wasnt feasible until the end of the year. Initially, the partnership could produce only 5,000 to 7,500 monthly. That derailed the negotiations.

So Trump pressed Ford and Tesla to produce ventilators as well.

Ford promised to produce 50,000 ventilators within 100 days, beginning April 20, at its Ypsilanti, Mich., plant in partnership with GE Healthcare.

Tesla was negotiating a partnership with Medtronic  the same firm that had upended the Newport Medical project. And Philips, too, vowed to produce more.

Trump has at various times underestimated the pandemic, while overpromising medical supplies and the ventilators needed to deal with it.

The predictable problem of a substantial shortage predates Trump. Yet public-private partnerships to address it went awry at different turns because of potentially impacting corporate profits.
Many shopping malls and landlords have accepted to lower retail premises rent or exempt rent to help tenants overcome difficulties at this time.

Returning from a meeting with the owner of the house he is renting to run a massage facility on in HCM City, Toan said he had reached a consensus with the landlord. He wont have to pay rent for one month while his facility temporarily closes.

Petty merchants at An Dong Plaza shopping mall sighed with relief when the plazas management board said there would be 30 percent rent reduction for March, April and May.





Toan said his business has been hit hard by the epidemic. The revenue has dropped dramatically, but he still has to pay workers and other expenses to maintain the shop. The rent is $2,000 a month.



Toan and his wife had intended to give the retail premises back, if the landlord refused to lower the rents.



It is still unclear when the epidemic can be contained. It is highly possible that the massage facility will have to close until the end of April, he said.

Many shopping malls and landlords have accepted to lower retail premises rent or exempt rent to help tenants overcome difficulties at this time.

Late last week, more than 100 petty merchants at An Dong Plaza shopping mall in district 5 sighed with relief when the plazas management board said there would be 30 percent rent reduction for March, April and May.



Prior to that, merchants at the shopping mall signed a petition to the management board, asking the buildings owner to lower the rents.



The spread of coronavirus, plus the development of shopping apps, have led to the sharp fall in the number of people going to the shopping mall. Some merchants reported dramatic decreases of 80-90 percent in revenue in recent months.



In general, the premises rent, taxes and other expenses cost them VND40 million a month.



A survey by Savills released last week found that as of early March, the rent of street front houses has dropped sharply because of sluggish business.



Many landlords have slashed rents to support tenants. They exempted rent for one month, or lowered the rent by 30-50 percent.



As for street front houses in advantageous areas such as Phan Xich Long street (Phu Nhuan district), Ho Tung Mau and Ngo Duc Ke (district 1), landlords accepted a small rent decrease of 10-20 percent compared with late 2019.



Diamond Plaza has lowered the premises rent since February. Big C and Go!, belonging to Central Retail, have cut rent by 10-15 percent for February and March.



In March, Vincom Retail announced z budget of VND300 billion reserved to support partners who rent retail premises affected by the current crisis.



Aeon, the retailer from Japan, has also accepted to lower the rent for some contracts.

Linh Ha

VN Finance Ministry proposes 5-month extension of VAT and land rent payment for businesses The Ministry of Finance has submitted to the Government a five-month extension of value-added tax (VAT), personal income tax and land rent fee payments for those affected by the COVID-19 epidemic.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley speaks about military operations during the daily White House coronavirus press briefing flanked by Attorney General William Barr (L) and Defense Secretary Mark Esper in Washington on April 1, 2020. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Trump Deploys Military as Drug Cartels Try to Exploit Pandemic to Infiltrate US

The Navy deployed warships to the eastern Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea at the direction of President Donald Trump on April 1 as part of an operation to counter drug cartels which, according to intelligence, are actively planning to exploit the global CCP virus pandemic to smuggle more drugs into the United States.

The mission involves sending additional Navy warships, surveillance aircraft, and special forces teams to nearly double the U.S. counter-narcotics capacity in the Western Hemisphere, with forces operating both in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said the mission would be supported by 22 partner nations.

As governments and nations focus on the coronavirus, there is a growing threat that cartels, criminals, terrorists, and other malign actors will try to exploit the situation for their own gain, Trump said. We must not let that happen.

U.S. authorities have long been short on resources in the area to interdict all of the drug traffic heading along naval routes to the United States. The intelligence community has long been aware of the routes, according to Attorney General Bill Barr. Last year, authorities seized 280 metric tons of drugs in the area.

Trump made the announcement one day after the White House advised Americans to brace for the deadliest days of the CCP virus (Chinese Communist Party virus), commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

According to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, the United States is in possession of intelligence showing that the cartels are looking to exploit the crisis to smuggle more drugs into the country.

The enhanced mission has been months in the making. The formal launch comes days after the Justice Departments indictment of Nicholas Maduro, Venezuelas illegitimate socialist dictator, and members of his inner circle and military. They are accused of leading a narcoterrorist conspiracy responsible for smuggling up to 250 metric tons of cocaine a year into the United Statesabout half of it by sea.

If I was just indicted for drug trafficking by the United States with a $15 million reward for my capture, having the U.S. Navy conducting anti-drug operations off my coast would be something I would worry about, said Sen. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican who has been among those calling for a tougher stance against Maduro.

It also comes as Maduro steps up attacks on his U.S.-backed rival, Juan Guaido. Maduros chief prosecutor ordered Guaido to provide testimony Thursday as part of an investigation into an alleged coup attempt.

Guaido, the head of Venezuelas congress who is recognized as his countrys legitimate leader by the United States and almost 60 other nations, is unlikely to show up, raising the possibility he could be arrested. The United States has long insisted it will not tolerate any harm to Guaido.

No matter where you sit ideologically, any move to try to bring democracy back to Venezuela requires first recognizing the criminal nature of the Maduro regime, and making moves that scare the regime into negotiating, said Raul Gallegos, a Bogota, Colombia-based director in the Andean region for Control Risks, a consulting group.

Maduro blasted the Trump administrations offer of a $15 million reward for his arrest, calling it the work of a racist cowboy aimed at getting U.S. hands on Venezuelas vast oil reservesthe worlds largest. He also points out that the vast majority of cocaine leaves South America from Colombia, a staunch U.S. ally.

The Trump administration has long insisted that all options are on the table for removing Maduro, including military ones. Still, theres no indication then, or now, that any sort of U.S. invasion is being planned.

Rather, the sending of ships fits into a longstanding call by the U.S. Southern Command for additional assets to combat growing narcotics and other security threats in the hemisphere.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump has said he will meet US energy executives this week to discuss plummeting oil values amid coronavirus and a Saudi-Russian price war. "I'm going to meet with the oil companies on Friday," he told a news conference.

Trump expressed alarm at the impact on the US energy industry from the twin blows of the economic shutdown caused by the coronavirus and the Russia-Saudi row. "We don't want to lose our great oil companies," he said. But he said he had spoken with leaders in both Moscow and Riyadh and "I think that they will work it ...
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday exchanged views on the low availability of medicines and medical equipment to fight the coronavirus pandemic as they agreed to explore avenues of cooperation in the area.

The two leaders held a telephonic conversation and discussed COVID-19, the situation in their respective countries, and the importance of international collaboration for fighting the health crisis.

"They shared views on the inadequate availability of medicines and medical equipment required during the pandemic, and agreed to explore avenues of cooperation in this regard," a statement from the Prime Minister's Office said.

The German chancellor agreed with the prime minister that the COVID-19 pandemic is an important turning point in modern history, and offers an opportunity to forge a new vision of globalisation focused on the shared interests of humanity as a whole, according to the statement.

Modi informed her about the recent Indian initiatives to disseminate simple yoga exercises and immunity-enhancing Ayurvedic remedies for people of the world.

The chancellor agreed that such practices could be very beneficial for enhancing psychological and physical health, especially under the present lockdown conditions, the statement said.

India is under a 21-day lockdown announced by PM Modi on March 24 to prevent coronavirus spread.

Germany has also extended its current restrictions on public life to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus by two weeks until April 19. German authorities on March 22 ordered restaurants shut and banned gatherings of more than two people to slow the spread of COVID-19.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi: The quarantine time seems to be bringing the loved ones closer, if not anything else. The 'stay home, stay safe' policy is important to stop the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus outbreak which has claimed thousands of lives worldwide. And in a way, when you are home, it is the best time to catch up with your siblings.

Actress Janhvi Kapoor did the same. She took to her Instagram and shared a picture with sister Khushi as her Inst story. The young and talented Janhvi can be seen all snuggled up on Khushi's lap and seems like she is enjoying her comfort zone.

It surely defines sibling love between the two!

Khushi Kapoor is currently studying at New York Film Academy.

On the work front, Janhvi has 'Gunjan SaxenaThe Kargil Girl', Takht and Dostana in her kitty.

'Gunjan SaxenaThe Kargil Girl' happens to be a Dharma Production. It is a biopic which tells the story of our country's first Air Force woman officer who went to war. The Kargil Girl features Angad Bedi, Manav Vij, Pankaj Tripathi, Rajat Barmecha, Neena Gupta and Vijay Varma in pivotal parts.
WASHINGTON - As Abbott Laboratories began shipping its new rapid-response tests across the country Wednesday, a new flashpoint emerged in the nation's handling of the pandemic: where to ship the covid-19 diagnostics that could be one of the most effective tools in combating the outbreak.

Some White House officials want to ship many of the tests, which were approved Friday and can deliver results in five to 13 minutes, to areas where there are fewer cases, such as rural areas and parts of the South. But officials in hard-hit areas and some public health experts favor directing them to the outbreak's current hot spots, arguing that delays in test readings have sidelined many first responders and health care workers and made it harder to isolate the most contagious patients.

During a Tuesday meeting of the White House coronavirus task force in the Situation Room, Vice President Mike Pence and other officials discussed diverting new tests to areas where there are relatively few cases, according to two individuals familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal deliberations.

They said the administration needs "to figure out the spread in places where we don't quite understand it now," according to one of the individuals present. The final consensus seemed to be, "Let's send it to the South and low-density areas."

The lag in delivering test results is taking a toll on communities across the country, depriving them of workers who can respond to medical emergencies and sowing uncertainty among hospital officials deciding what precautions to take. The competition for machines is so intense that governors and mayors have begun personally calling Abbott executives to negotiate orders.

In beleaguered Detroit, which now has one of the nation's highest rates of infection and one of the fastest-rising death tolls, Mayor Mike Duggan said Wednesday that he secured the cellphone number of Miles White - the chairman and outgoing chief executive of Abbott Labs - and woke him up Sunday morning to beg for the test, because he knew the whole country would be calling. He said the fact that he struck a deal for five machines and 5,000 kits would be a "game changer," allowing firefighters, police and nurses to get back on the job and out of quarantine.

Atop the shuttered Greektown Hotel in the city's casino district, where some police officers have begun staying overnight this week to avoid the risk of infecting their own families, the message "#DETROITSTRONG" blazes night and day.

Five-hundred-twenty-five officers in Detroit's police force of more than 2,500 officers are quarantined, according to spokeswoman Sgt. Nicole Kirkwood. Eighty-five members are expected to return to work by the end of this week, she said, and 91 have tested positive.

Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., whose district includes the neighboring city of Dearborn, said in a phone interview Tuesday that some of her constituents are waiting as long as two weeks to get results from tests sent out of state and to private companies.

"You need to know whether it's safe for someone to go out, and we need to keep them safe as well," Dingell said, adding that local police and fire chiefs are struggling to deal with employees who are isolating themselves while they await test results.

"We can't afford to wait for another week," one wrote her.

Abbott spokesman John Koval, whose firm started shipping 50,000 tests per day on Wednesday, said, "We're working with the administration to deploy them where they will have the greatest impact." He would not elaborate, but said states across the country had already begun to receive and use them.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, said in an interview that his state needs at least 100,000 more tests than it has.

"We've talked to Abbott. They're shortly supposed to have a small amount of testing machines out to the states. No governor in America has received any yet," Hogan said. "They've said they are available. They are not yet available. They say, 'Get on the phone, governors can get all these things.' I just got off the phone with all the governors, no governors have these things."

Public health experts say tests are needed everywhere - as much as several hundred thousand a day. "Hot zones need them the most," said Harlan Krumholz, a cardiologist at Yale University's medical school and director of the Yale New Haven Hospital Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation, "but everyone needs them."

Joshua Sharfstein, former Maryland health commissioner and now a professor at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University, said any decisions to send them to the South "instead of to hot spots like that would have to be part of a plan with a scientific rationale. And I haven't seen one at this point."

In Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat, has delayed launching mobile testing sites, partly because he doesn't have an adequate supply of tests and personal protective equipment. But he noted in a news conference Tuesday that the turnaround time for tests matters as well, since officials are trying to ensure that they have access to a lab outside the state that "can turn it around in enough time to where it can be helpful. We'd like to get reports back in 48 hours."

That's not what's happening now.

In California, the backlog for getting test results is staggering. While about 86,100 tests had been conducted as of March 30, about 28,704 results had been delivered and another 57,400 were pending. The numbers include data California has received from commercial, private and academic labs, including Quest Diagnostics, LabCorp, Kaiser, the University of California, Stanford University, and 22 state and county health labs.

Even though widely used test analyses take four hours, shortages of the large costly machines used for those analyses have caused bottlenecks, forcing patients to wait four or more days for test results.

On March 18, as the pandemic deepened, the American Clinical Laboratory Association appealed in vain to congressional leaders to include $5 billion in legislation to help private laboratories meet growing demand for tests and analysis. Some test providers feared that Medicaid might reimburse a fraction of costs. And the laboratory companies are already hurting from a drop in other business. Quest, in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Tuesday said it had suffered a 40% drop in overall volume during the last two weeks of March, even after including testing for covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

There are now more than a dozen major players in the testing world. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has its own labs, but on Feb. 29 it appealed to hospitals and private companies for help. Since then, private companies have churned out as many as 84,000 tests daily, and have accounted for about three-quarters of the 1,064,506 tests completed as of April 1.

The biggest companies that have jumped into covid-19 testing include Roche, Labcorp, and Quest, established names in laboratory analysis. They have ramped up quickl. LabCorp, for example, has the ability to perform more than 20,000 coronavirus tests per day, and has performed more than 250,000 tests overall since the company first began testing for covid-19 on March 5. Quest said on March 24 that its capacity would soon reach 30,000. But it still takes either company routinely four to five days to release test results to health-care providers.

"This timeframe can vary based on demand, the length of time to transport the specimen to LabCorp's test facilities, and the prioritization of patients (as defined by healthcare authorities and the White House Coronavirus Task Force, HHS and other health authorities)," Labcorp said in a statement, referring to the Health and Human Services Department.

Scott Becker, a spokesman for the Association of Public Health Laboratories, said in an email that delays of results are pervasive across private and public labs.

"These backlogs are system-wide issues that point to supply shortages, equipment shortages and shortages of qualified staff," he said. "These tests aren't like a simple blood test, they are deemed highly complex tests that require skilled scientific staff."

The new Abbott test involves putting a sample from a nasal swab in a 6.6-pound toaster-size device, which will give results back in five to 13 minutes. The new test will be used only in medical facilities. The company says it will provide 50,000 of the testing kits a day and has distributed 18,000 of the analytical devices.

For primary care physicians, Abbott's technology is largely out of reach. Gary Bergman, senior physician at Children's Medical Associates of Northern Virginia, said in a phone interview Wednesday that he and his partners looked into buying one of the firm's machines, but it would cost between $12,000 and $15,000, and they couldn't say how many covid-19 tests they could supply or what they would cost.

"It doesn't pay. It's not practical," said Bergman, who continue to see sick children and newborns even though business has dipped by two-thirds.

- - -

The Washington Post's Eva Dou in Detroit, Greg Jaffe in Toledo and Andrew Ba Tran in Washington contributed to this report.
A Pakistani high court on Thursday commuted the death sentence of UK-born Ahmed Omar Sheikh, the prime accused in the US journalist Daniel Pearl's 2002 abduction and murder to seven years in jail and freed three others in the case.

Pearl, the South Asia Bureau Chief of The Wall Street Journal, was kidnapped and later beheaded in Karachi in 2002.

The Sindh High Court overturned the verdict earlier given by the anti-terrorism court (ATC) to Sheikh, and acquitted the three others- Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil- serving life sentences in the case, the Dawn newspaper reported.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the convicts 18 years ago.

It also dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of the three co-accused, it said.

According to the report, Sheikh's seven-year prison will be counted from the time served in jail.

He has been in prison for the last 18 years.

While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon.

They had further contended that Naseem and Adil's confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary.

They also argued that the recovery of the laptop from Naseem was shown to have been made on February 11, 2002, while computer expert Ronald Joseph had deposed that he was given the computer for verification on February 4 and he examined the laptop for six days.

Deputy Prosecutor General Saleem Akhtar had supported the trial court's verdict and submitted that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellants beyond a shadow of doubt and had requested the court to dismiss the appeals, the report said.

According to a report in The Express Tribune, in 2014, an anti-terrorism court had acquitted Qari Hashim, a co-accused in the case due to a lack of evidence.

The same year, Sheikh allegedly attempted suicide in his prison cell by hanging himself with a cloth from the ventilator.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University following an investigation into his death revealed that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
JP Morgan reported that global manufacturing shrank in March. Its worldwide manufacturing index registered 47.6 in March.

Industrial output shrank sharply across the world in March in the wake of rising coronavirus pandemic cases and it subsequently upset the global economy as more countries declared lockdowns to contain the virus.

On 31 March, a latest UN trade report said that the world economy would go into recession this year with a predicted loss of trillions of dollars of global income due to the coronavirus pandemic, spelling serious trouble for developing countries with the likely exception of India and China.

With two-thirds of the world's population living in developing countries facing unprecedented economic damage from the COVID-19 crisis, the UN is calling for a $2.5 trillion rescue package for these nations.

Last month, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had said that COVID-19 led the global economy into recession, reported Reuters.

IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva had said that there was immense pressure on emerging markets suffering from lost commerce, reduced exports and massive capital outflows.

Georgieva further said that emerging market countries need at least $2.5 trillion in financial resources to get through the pandemic.

Amid reports of slight recovery in China last month, manufacturing activities contracted in the United States and other parts of the world in March, dragged down by economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak, reported AP.

The Institute for Supply Management, an association of purchasing managers, reported Wednesday that its US manufacturing index fell to 49.1 in March after registering 50.1 in February.

Any reading below 50 signals a contraction. The index had signalled growth in January and February.

Also Wednesday JP Morgan reported that global manufacturing shrank in March. Its worldwide manufacturing index registered 47.6 in March.

That was a slight improvement on February's 47.1  but only because Chinese factories began ramping back up last month after being locked down in February to counter COVID-19. Excluding China, JP Morgan found, global manufacturing dropped to the lowest level last month since May 2009 at the depths of the Great Recession.

Economists had expected a bigger drop in the US index. Timothy Fiore, chair of ISM manufacturing index committee, said that things got worse'' as March dragged on and predicted that the index will signal more weakness in April.

New orders and factory employment fell last month to the lowest level since 2009. Production and export orders also fell.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the quarantines, travel restrictions and business closings imposed to combat it have hammered global manufacturers, disrupting their access to supplies and crushing demand for their products.

But the impact of the outbreak is falling even harder on service businesses such as restaurants and hotels.

Manufacturing is not, for the most part, in the very front line of the virus hit, but nonetheless large swathes of the sector are vulnerable as consumers cut back on spending on goods, especially big-ticket items like cars and trucks," Ian Shephardson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, wrote in a research report, adding that while this headline ISM reading is a pleasant-looking surprise, don't be fooled.''

Ten of 18 US industries surveyed reported growth in March, but six contracted, led by energy companies, coal producers and textile mills.

Already weakened by President Donald Trump's trade war with China, manufacturers around the world are reeling from COVID-19 and its economic impact. JP Morgan reported that its manufacturing index for the 19 European countries that share the euro currency dropped last month to the lowest level in nearly eight years.

Confidence among eurozone manufacturers fell to a record low. Manufacturing in the Philippines dropped to the lowest level on record as authorities locked down Luzon, the country's biggest and most populous island, to combat COVID-19. JP Morgan also reported that Italy, the Czech Republic and Vietnam registered especially deep manufacturing contractions last month.

Last month, IMF officials had said in a blog on the economic impact of the pandemic that China's economy was beginning to show some signs of normalisation after the full-blown shock caused by coronavirus but stark risks remained, reported Reuters

Most larger Chinese firms have reopened and many local staff have returned to work but infections could rise again as national and international travel resumes, the officials said.

In February this year, industry body PHDCCI had said that the coronavirus outbreak might negatively impact global growth by 30 basis points or $250 billion.

PHDCCI President D K Aggarwal said disruptions in the global supply chains will not only hit China's exports but also the exports of the importing countries as they import a large chunk of raw materials and intermediate goods from China while exporting to other respective destinations.

--With inputs from agencies
The Union on Thursday said it has identified20 existing and 22 potential hotspots of COVID-19 in the country and asserted that although there is no evidence of widespread community transmission, containment measures will require large human resource.

The ministry said this in an advisory on human resource management of COVID-19 to provide guidance to the states on manpower that can be mobilized for the management of the disease along with possible role assignments and their training requirements.

"Although there is no evidence to widespread community transmission, 20 existing and 22 potential hotspots have been identified. The containment measures to break the cycle of transmission and clinical management of those affected would require large human resource," it said in the document.

The advisorystressed oncapacity building, saying identified human resource needs to be trained online using online training programs developed by the ministry.

The training for different target groups shall cover areas like field surveillance, contact tracing,sampling, packaging and shipment of specimen, hospital infection prevention and control, including use of appropriate PPEs and biomedical waste management, clinical case management including ventilator management, trainingon managing quarantine and isolation facilities and community based training in pyscho social care, the document said.

The ministry advised states to identify and designate a nodal officer for training who will coordinate all these activities.

For COVID-19 management, it advised the district administration to pool-in the requisite human resources who would stay in the containment zone till such operations are over.

"Forisolation areas, in addition to training, all hospital staff, dentists and AYUSH practitioners available should also be trained. Retired doctors and other healthcare professionals should be identified to work in non-COVID areas in hospitals in case of emergencies," the advisory stated.

For surveillance activities, the ministry said COVID Warriors @ 1 per 250 population may be identified and trained.

It stated quarantine facilities are meant to house asymptomatic cases and the number identified and trained manpower should be equal to the number of COVID Warriors.

The advisory highlights major areas where enhanced deployment of human resource is required such as surveillance activities at grass root level, supervisory management of containment operations, laboratory testing and clinical management of suspect/confirmed cases in isolation wards.

It also listed out critical care management of Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) cases in ICUs, patient transportation and referral, cleaning, disinfection and waste management, management of quarantine, isolation facilities and pyscho-social care as some of the important areas.
New Delhi:

Coronavirus Outbreak LIVE Updates: The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,965 in the country on Thursday while the death toll rose to 50, according to the Union Health Ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 1,764, of which 150 people were either cured or discharged and one migrated to another country, it said. On Wednesday, India saw the biggest single-day rise in the number of COVID-19 cases with more than 400 new cases being confirmed.

Menawhile, the World Health Organization said Wednesday it was deeply concerned about the near-exponential escalation of the new coronavirus pandemic, with the number of deaths doubling in a week.

There have been more than 9,00,000 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus worldwide since the pandemic emerged in China late last year, according to an AFP tally. According to the tally compiled using official sources, at least 9,05,589 COVID-19 infections including 45,719 deaths, have been recorded in 187 countries and territories globally till midnight. (With Agency Inputs)

23:37 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In It is very sad what has happened there(Nizamuddin). They(Tablighi Jamaat) shouldn't have organized such a big gathering involving foreigners who brought COVID-19 with them. They should have sought permission from the administration or cancelled the event:Defence Expert Qamar Agha

23:35 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Due to the increasing number of COVID-19 positive cases in Kerala, all hospitals in the district are instructed not to admit any patients from Kerala: Health and Family Welfare Department, Dakshina Kannada District, Karnataka

23:34 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In

Madhya Pradesh: Health workers on whom stones were pelted by locals yesterday at Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore, today visited the same area to carry out screening services. Dr Zakiya Sayed says, "We have sustained injuries but we have to do our job and will not be scared."



23:34 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In

Ministry of Home Affairs issues 3rd Addendum to lockdown guidelines, given measures with SOP on the evacuation of foreign nationals and release from quarantine facilities. pic.twitter.com/QhTKzS0C4n

 ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020



23:33 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In We have traced 488 people in Assam who had attended Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi, 15 persons are yet to be traced. We have already collected 361 samples (out of 488) to test for COVID-19: Assam Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma

23:33 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Ghaziabad DM has ordered an investigation after CMO Ghaziabad writes to police alleging that persons from Tablighi Jamat who are in quarantine at MMG hospital are walking around the ward without their trousers on and making lewd gestures towards the nurses.

23:32 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In There are 1062 people in Maharashtra who attended Delhi's Nizamuddin Markaz, of which 890 have been traced. Of them, 4 persons are COVID19 positive;2 each from Pimpri-Chinchwad & Ahmednagar. There are total 423 positive cases in state & 20 deaths, so far: State Health Department

23:32 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In

Delhi: Kanishk Yadav, a nursing officer at AIIMS has requested the administration to post him at COVID19 ward to support the team there. He states in his letter "Depute me at COVID19 ward at Trauma Centre; I am competent to handle all emergency situations." pic.twitter.com/8wysEoC4XT

 ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020



23:31 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Ghaziabad: Police at MMG hospital conducting investigations into the allegations that persons from Tablighi Jamat who are in quarantine at the hospital are walking around the ward without their trousers on and making lewd gestures towards the nurses

23:31 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In 27 persons associated with Tablighi Jamat traced in the state so far, out of which 19 persons have been tested negative for COVID 19, tracking for others underway: Health & Family Welfare Department, Odisha.

23:31 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In 5 more persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in Bihar taking total number of cases to 29. 2 are from Gopalganj with travel history to Middle East and 1 from Saran with travel history to UK. 2 are from Gaya and are contacts of earlier positive cases: State Health Department

23:30 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In 3 more persons have tested positive for COVID19 in Uttarakhand, taking the total number of cases to 10. There are 245 Tablighi Jamaat (Delhi) attendees in institutional quarantine in the state: State Health Department

23:30 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In The current lockdown on both domestic & international passenger flights is till April 15. A decision to restart the flights after this period remains to be taken. If required, we will have to assess the situation on a case by case basis: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri

23:29 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In



Madhya Pradesh Government has put the National Security Act on Md Mustafa, Md Gulrez, Shoaib and Majeed who were involved in stone-pelting on health workers in Indore's Tatpatti Bakhal area.























23:29 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Violent attacks being committed against doctorsmedical staff providing healthcare by risking their lives is condemned&anyone resorting to violence against them will be liable to strict legal action. All DGPs to take immediate action against culprits: MoS Home G Kishan Reddy

23:29 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In One 67-year-old COVID19 patient has passed away. He was also suffering from Tuberculosis: District Collector Palghar, Maharashtra; The total number of deaths in the state due to COVID19 rises to 21.

15:59 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Over 1400 people from Maharashtra attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi. Out of which, around 1300 have been traced till now & are being quarantined in Maharashtra. Their samples will be collected for COVID-19 testing: State Health Minister Rajesh Tope

15:59 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In COVID-19 cases rise to 33 in Haryana, with active cases standing at 20: State Health Department

15:58 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Eleven more people have tested positive for COVID-19, taking the total number of cases to 131 in Rajasthan including two Italian & 14 attendees of Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi: State Health department

14:03 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In According to latest inputs, a doctor as AIIMS in Delhi has also been found positive for coronavirus. The COVID-19 positive works in the Physiology Department. Currently, the case is in non-clinical stage.

13:03 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Kerala High Court stays for three weeks the state govt order to allow sale of liquor to people suffering from Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome.



Kerala High Court stays the state govt order to allow sale of liquor to people suffering from Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome after they produce the certificate to the effect that they are suffering from the syndrome. The stay is for a period of three weeks. pic.twitter.com/UcUlvZlGcf

 ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020



13:02 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Second COVID-19 case confirmed in Dharavi, Mumbai. A 52-year-old BMC sanitization worker has been found positive for the virus, he resides in the Worli area but was posted at Dharavi for cleaning: Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation

13:02 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In A COVID-19 symptomatic man has committed suicide in quarantine ward of a hospital in Shamli district. His report is awaited. Further investigation is underway: District Magistrate Jasjit Kaur

12:03 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Certain media reports have claimed that Railways has started reservations for the post-lockdown period. It is to clarify that reservations for journeys after 14th April were never stopped and is not related to any new announcement: Ministry of Railways

12:03 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds meeting with Chief Ministers via video conferencing, on COVID-19 situation in the country. Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also present.



Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds meeting with Chief Ministers via video conferencing, on #COVID19 situation in the country. Home Minister Amit Shah & Defence Minister Rajnath Singh also present. pic.twitter.com/t0irTAXGc5

 ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020



11:43 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In We meet today in midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis. The magnitude of the challenge before us is daunting but our resolve to overcome it must be greater: Congress Interim President Sonia Gandhi at Congress Working Committee meeting (via video conferencing)

11:09 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In We are monitoring 362 people who had attended Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi. Out of 27 people from Bidar who had attended, 11 have tested positive for COVID-19, while results of 16 others are awaited. Total positive cases in the state are 121: B Sriramulu, Karnataka Health Minister

11:09 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In One 85-year-old person from Alwar who had tested positive for COVID-19 has unfortunately died. He had a comorbid condition of brain stroke paralysis: Rohit Kumar Singh, Additional Chief Secretary, Rajasthan Health Department

11:08 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In 32 people were tested positive yesterday in Delhi out of which 29 people had attended Tablighi Jamaat event in Nizamuddin. A total of 700 possibly infected & confirmed cases of COVID-19 are in different hospitals in Delhi: Health Minister Satyendar Jain

11:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In 21 more COVID-19 cases reported in Andhra Pradesh, taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 132: Arja Srikanth, State Nodal Officer

11:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Maharashtra: Dharavi area of Mumbai; a resident of the area who had tested positive for COVID-19 lost his life at Sion Hospital yesterday. The deceased person had symptoms like fever, cough, respiratory issues and also had a co-morbid condition of renal failure.

11:07 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In National Cadet Corps (NCC) issues guidelines for temporary employment of its cadets to augment relief efforts & functioning of various agencies involved in battling coronavirus.

10:32 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In India sees 131 new COVID-19 cases in the last 12 hours. Total number of positive cases of novel coronavirus rises to 1,965 in India (including 1764 active cases, 151 cured/discharged/migrated people and 50 deaths): Ministry of Health and Family Welfare

10:01 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Another Death In Gujarat According to Vadodara District Collector S Agarwal, a 52-year-old COVID-19 patient lost his life at SSG hospital on Thursday morning. He had a history of travel to Sri Lanka and was admitted to hospital on 19 March. 4 members of his family have also tested positive for the virus&are and are undergoing treatment.

09:43 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In 12 more coronavirus cases in Indore; total cases rise to 98 in Madhya Pradesh: Official

09:43 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Three persons test positive for COVID-19 in Assam's Goalpara district on Thursday, taking the total number of coronavirus cases in the state to 16: state Health Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

09:12 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Three more coronavirus cases reported in Maharashtra (2 from Pune & 1 from Buldhana) taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 338: Maharashtra Health Department

09:05 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Naval Dockyard, Mumbai has designed & developed its own handheld infrared-based temperature sensor. The instrument has been manufactured under Rs. 1000, through in-house resources (which is a fraction of the cost of the temperature guns in the market): Indian Navy

09:04 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In



A 67-year-old man from Ambala, Haryana who had tested positive for coronavirus has lost his life at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Chandigarh: Dr. Kuldeep Singh, Ambala Chief Medical Officer









08:53 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Many private schools are sending messages to students' parents to deposit school fee. It is not appropriate to pressurize them for fees in such times. All schools have been instructed to postpone recovery of fees during coronavirus lockdown in Chhattisgarh: CM Bhupesh Baghel

08:45 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In



One more coronavirus positive case in Manipur who attended Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz . The total number of positive cases in the state now stands at two. Some are at quarantine centres & under observation: N Biren Singh, Chief Minister of Manipur





08:44 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In



Naval Dockyard, Mumbai has designed & developed its own handheld infrared-based temperature sensor for undertaking screening of a large number of personnel at the entry gates of the yard, reducing the load on the security sentries at the gate: Indian Navy





07:48 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In Nine more COVID-19 cases in Rajasthan (7 from Ramganj, and 1 each from Jodhpur and Jhunjhunu) taking the total number of coronavirus positive cases in the state to 129: Rajasthan Health Department

07:44 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In In Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad, 13 people who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi have been picked from a mosque in Barwalan area. According to SP (City) Amit Kumar Anand, "They are all from Assam. They will be placed under quarantine."

07:43 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In US President Donald Trump says US to evacuate Canadians, British from stranded cruise ship: AFP

07:42 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In The United States witnesses 884 coronavirus deaths in one day, a new record for casualities in a single day, AFP reports quoting Johns Hopkins University.

07:40 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In The US has begun repatriation of its stranded nationals, who want to return home, from India which is undergoing a 21-day lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic, a senior American diplomat has said.

07:40 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In World Health Organization said Wednesday it was deeply concerned about the near-exponential escalation of the new coronavirus pandemic, with the number of deaths doubling in a week. There are more than 9,00,000 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus worldwide since the pandemic emerged in China late last year, according to an AFP tally.

07:40 (IST) Facebook Twitter Whats app Linked In The number of COVID-19 cases climbed to 1,834 in the country on Wednesday, registering the biggest single-day jump, while the death toll rose to 41, according to the Union Health Ministry. The number of active COVID-19 cases stands at 1,649, while 143 people were either cured or discharged and one had migrated, the ministry stated.

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Earth and the moon as seen by BepiColombo on March 5, 2020, as the mission began preparing for its flyby of Earth.

A mission dubbed BepiColombo is bound for Mercury, but in order to reach its destination, it needs to take the scenic route, beginning with a flyby of Earth later this month, during which skywatchers may be able to spot the probe.

BepiColombo, which launched in October 2018 , is a joint project of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The mission is scheduled to arrive at Mercury in December 2025, when it will split into two component spacecraft and begin observing the tiniest planet in our solar system up close. But, in order to reach the small planet, BepiColombo will need to complete a total of nine planetary flybys in order to achieve the right speed to orbit its target. The first of these flybys will be the only one of Earth and it happens on April 10.

"This is the last time we will see BepiColombo from Earth," Joe Zender, BepiColombo deputy project scientist at ESA, said in a statement . "After that it will head deeper into the inner solar system."

Related: A radar station in Puerto Rico can see ice on Mercury

This maneuver was scheduled long ago, but the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic on Earth has threatened ESA's ability to prepare as desired for the flyby. In response to the pandemic, the agency put four other missions into safe hold mode , pausing their science operations for more than a week in order to prioritize flyby preparations. (Those missions have resumed normal activity, according to an ESA statement released April 2 .)

"The Earth swing-by is a phase where we need daily contact with the spacecraft," Elsa Montagnon, BepiColombo spacecraft operations manager at ESA, said in the statement. "This is something that we cannot postpone. The spacecraft will swing by Earth independently in any case."

But spacecraft personnel would very much prefer to be on hand for the maneuver, rather than leave BepiColombo to do it alone. That concern is in part because the flyby is one step that will determine the success of the entire mission .

During this flyby, the spacecraft will be carefully aligned with Earth so that the probe slows down a smidge, about 3 miles (5 kilometers) per second, compared to the sun, which will send it deeper into the heart of the solar system. The nudge will align the spacecraft for two similar flybys of Venus this October and in August 2021 that will also tweak the probe's trajectory.

BepiColombo will make its closest approach to Earth on April 10 at 12:25 a.m. EST (425 GMT), when it will be 7,877 miles (12,677 km) away, according to a website set up by Italian National Institute for Astrophysics, which is participating in the mission.

During the flyby, skywatchers may be able to catch sight of the spacecraft with a telescope or relatively large binoculars, although the brightness of a fairly full moon will reduce visibility. Skywatchers near the equator, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere, will have the best odds of spotting the probe, according to viewing tips provided by ESA .

Whether or not you can spot BepiColombo, the spacecraft will be looking toward you. Scientists on the mission will be using the maneuver as an opportunity to test some of the instruments on board the probe. Among the devices that will make observations are magnetometers, a host of particle detectors, an infrared spectrometer and, of course, a trio of cameras .

"We will see the Earth approaching and getting bigger," Zender said in the statement. "When it reaches the nearest point, we will take a few images, and then we are planning to capture a whole sequence of photographs over several hours looking at the Earth-moon system as it gets smaller and smaller until we lose it completely."

Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her @meghanbartels . Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook .
The Chinese government is scrambling to rebuild confidence in the medical equipment it is providing to the rest of the world to help stem the coronavirus pandemic.

With its own numbers of new Covid-19 infections seemingly under control, China has been encouraging its companies to keep producing equipment that it can gift or sell back to Western countries - in many cases returning favours done to them at the start of the outbreak.

But several European countries have rejected batches of test kits and facemasks made in China, amounting to millions of items of equipment, on the basis that they do not work as advertised.

The UK has reportedly already paid for two million antibody tests from China that are due to arrive in the coming week. Yet according to ITV News Robert Peston, Public Health England has been hesitant to give the tests its seal of approval for reasons that are extremely unclear.

Last week, the Spanish government said it had ordered 640,000 antigen tests from China, which detect whether a patient is currently infected with the virus, and therefore if they can pass it on to others.

Spain said checks on the first shipment of tests, bought from Chinese diagnostics firm Shenzhen Bioeasy Biotechnology, found they displayed insufficient sensibility for the virus - an accurate detection rate of about 30 per cent, when at least 80 per cent is required.

The Czech Republic has also criticised hundreds of thousands of such tests acquired from China, saying they only worked if a person had been infected for at least five days, even as it pushed to up its testing capacity to 10,000 a day.

And Slovakias prime minister Igor Matovic said that its 1.2 million tests - bought from China through local middlemen - were so inaccurate they should just be thrown straight into the Danube.

In some cases, China has countered the growing narrative around its faulty equipment through traditional propaganda methods, shifting the blame onto the end-user countries.

Thus, a spokeswoman for the Chinese foreign ministry said that the preliminary conclusion from the Chinese consulate in Slovakia was that the inaccuracies were the result of medical workers using the kits incorrectly.

At the same time, Chinese officials have issued a statement saying that Beijing is increasing the checks exporters must undergo before they will be given licences to sell such equipment abroad - an implicit acceptance that standards may not have been high enough.

Previously, some Chinese manufacturers had taken advantage of easier EU regulations to get their products into the market before they had been approved at home.

In a current transition period between two regulatory systems, companies have been able to get a CE mark, meaning their products are approved for sale across European countries, simply by submitting a dossier of documents, avoiding stricter clinical tests or third-party assessments.

Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Show all 15 1 /15 Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A rose is delivered by drone to a woman on Mother's Day in Jounieh, Lebanon AFP/Getty Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Women dance on their balcony as a radio station plays music for a flash mob to raise spirits in Rome Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A skeleton stands on a balcony in Frankfurt, Germany AP Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies The film Le ragazze di Piazza di Spagna is projected on a building in Rome AP Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A woman uses a basket tied to a rope to pull a delivery of groceries up to her balcony in Naples, Italy EPA Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies DJ Francesco Cellini plays for his neighbours from the rooftop terrace of his flat block in Rome Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A woman gestures from her balcony in Barcelona EPA Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Cellist Karina Nunez performs for her neighbours at the balcony of her flat in Panama City Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies DJ Nash Petrovic live streams a set from his roof in Brooklyn Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies People applaud medical workers from their balconies in Modiin, Israel Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A Brooklyn resident relaxes in a hammock hung on their balcony Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Residents toast during a "safe distance" aperitif time between neighbours in Anderlecht, Belgium Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies Musician Adam Moser plays for neighbours from his balcony in Budapest, Hungary Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A man and his son on their balcony in Brooklyn Reuters Coronavirus culture from rooftops, windows and balconies A man sits alone on a roof terrace in Rome Reuters

In practice, it has meant manufacturers are able to export equipment that would not meet the standards of Chinas own regulatory body.

From now on, Beijing said, Chinese exporters must now obtain a domestic certificate from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) before they will be granted an export licence.

Steve Tsang, director of SOASs China Institute, questioned whether China was knowingly trying to pass off the substandard equipment as returning in kind the support it received when the coronavirus first emerged in Wuhan.

[Displaying] the industrial capacity of China, even in a lockdown situation being able to so quickly produce supplies which then are being used to enable the rest of the world to cope, would have gone down very, very well.

If they had been honest, saying they had received that much as donations and we are now returning that donation, plus all these additional [commercial] services, people would have been saying wow, China is great! It is not going down quite so well because of the way that they are managing it. They are squandering the opportunity to show their soft power.

Mr Tsang said it was also possible that China was not applying double standards - that the poor level of quality applies both to domestic and external supplies, in which case it would suggest the Chinese official statistics are unreliable because the testing kits are unreliable.

The alternative is that they have kept the good, high quality reliable kits for themselves, and they provided trash ones for export, he said. Which is worse? I don't know.
By PTI

NEW DELHI: Three Indians pursuing academic careers in Italy stayed back when COVID-19 was sweeping across the European nation - one to complete his doctorate, the second for coronavirus related research and the third to see how the country with the world's second-best healthcare facilities tackles the pandemic.

All three are from Assam and have been staying in Italy for nearly four years.

They are among the few Indians who did not return home when the Indian government made arrangements to bring them from the country, among the worst affected with over 13,000 deaths and more than 1,10,000 cases.

On March 24, as India began a 21-day lockdown to curtail the spread of the virus, Prabin Upadhyaya was awarded his doctorate online.

The biologist did his PhD in neurosciences and imaging from the Gabriele d'Annunzio University in Chieti city in central Italy's Abruzzo region.

"I completed my doctorate, with an additional title of PhD Europeaus and was given 'Excellent' grade. Currently, I am looking for a postdoctoral position for further research," Upadhyaya told PTI from Chieti.

"When the flights to India were arranged, there was some work left for my PhD degree. So I decided to stay back till I finish," said Upadhyaya, who belongs to Jagun in Assam's Tinsukia district and has been under home quarantine for the past 20 days.

Upadhyaya has no regrets and Akash Deep Biswas, a PhD scholar of Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and a computational biologist, doesn't either.

Biswas is currently working on finding a molecule which can inhibit the CoV-2 main protease.

"I had started working on the CoV-2 protease from mid-February and wasn't interested in leaving this country under any circumstances because of my work demands," he said from Pisa.

His research article on computational approach based on molecular dynamics simulation to study the dependence of the protein hydration-shell density on the size of the protein molecule, which includes 17 proteins besides CoV-2 main protease, was published on March 23 by the Royal Society of Chemistry's Journal of Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics.

According to Biswas, who belongs to Tezpur, the reason for the many positive cases and deaths in Italy is the high average age of 45.5 years.

"A huge number of people are either very young or very old. These two groups of people are very vulnerable to COVID-19 as their immune system is low compared to others," he said.

Italians, he said, are very sad about the whole situation but are optimistic and positive.

"They call the patients fighters. The dead are being buried with respect and dignity. They have this strong belief that we all will soon come out of this situation," said Biswas.

He said Italians are following lockdown rules very diligently.

"They don't go out unless there's an extreme emergency. They are maintaining hygiene in everything - from disposal of garbage to buying essentials. The number of people entering supermarkets are controlled," he said.

Promit Choudhury from Silchar is doing his masters at Politecnico Di Milano in Italy's worst-hit Lombardy province.

Before coming to Italy, he worked with Mahindra & Mahindra (in its R&D wing) for two years.

"Currently I am also working with a Mexico-based company as a senior consultant and taking care of its operations in Europe. Now, with the shortage of ventilators and protective gear like masks, our company is working on low-cost solutions like a reusable gear."

When Indians from Italy were leaving for home -- when the pandemic was in the second stage in Italy -- Choudhury consulted with his parents and chose to stay back.

"I wanted to see how Italy being second best in the world in terms of healthcare facilities tackles the situation and adopts counter-solution measures," he said.

Choudhury, who has self-quarantined himself for over 20 days, said he has stocked food that will be enough for at least a month.
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, wearing a protective face mask, gestures next to Japan's Finance Minister Taro Aso during an upper house parliamentary session in Tokyo, Japan on April 1, 2020. (Issei Kato/Reuters)

Japan On the Brink as It Struggles to Hold Back CCP Virus

TOKYOJapan will ban entry to foreigners from 73 countries and ask everyone arriving from abroad to quarantine themselves for two weeks as it struggles to contain the CCP virus, with a senior minister warning the country had been pushed to the brink.

Medical experts advising Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a news conference on Wednesday that the rapid spread of contagion was severely straining hospitals in Tokyo, in Osaka, and some other prefectures and that quick action was vital.

Fundamental responses should be made as early as today or tomorrow, Shigeru Omi, head of the Japan Community Healthcare Organisation, said. He said the medical system could collapse even before an overshootor an explosive rise in cases.

Abe is facing growing public calls to declare a state of emergency that would give local governors greater clout to tell residents to stay home, close schools, and take other steps. But the relevant enabling law includes no penalties in most cases.

People wearing protective masks take a rest among empty seats in a cafe and restaurant at the Roppongi Hills complex in Tokyo, Japan on April 1, 2020. (Issei Kato/Reuters)

Many other countries hit by the pandemic have imposed legally binding lockdowns with severe penalties for violators. Japans new measures on travel and quarantine will take effect on April 3.

Japan had confirmed 2,362 domestically transmitted cases of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus. and 67 deaths as of Wednesday; public broadcaster NHK saidrelatively small tallies compared with those of the United States, China, and Europe.

But Tokyo has seen the most significant jump in cases, with another 66 on Wednesday for a total of 587, NHK said, adding to pressure on the government to take more drastic measures. NHK said later that Japan overall had seen its highest daily increase yet with 237 new cases, though it was not clear if that number was included in the total tally for Wednesday.

We are barely holding the line and remain at a critical point where virus cases could surge if we let down our guard, Abe told a parliamentary committee.

Economics Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said infectious disease experts were especially alarmed about medical capacity in Tokyo and that the country was on the verge of a crisis.

We must prevent infections from spreading further no matter what. We have come to the edge of edges, to the very brink, Nishimura told reporters.

Omi said that while Japan was not seeing an uncontrolled spike in cases now, more clusters of infections were being reported. He said it had caused the supply of medical services to tighten in some areas.

At a later news conference, infectious disease experts advising the government said that if measures in place now fail to halt secondary and reinfections from overseas, a plan B would be needed.

What we can do is to lock down cities or zones, which means more stringent, more harsh control on movement, Hokkaido University professor Hiroshi Nishiura said.

It may not be possible under the current legislation, but we are thinking about the possibility, he said.

Shortages Loom

Earlier, Nishiura said that some strained regions could see the same sort of shortage of respirators for severely ill patients experienced elsewhere.

The experts urged areas that have seen sharp spikes in infections over the past week to tell residents to stay home and avoid gatherings of more than 10 people.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike has requested that residents of the city of nearly 14 million people stay indoors and avoid restaurants and bars, steps she reiterated on Wednesday.

People are saying I didnt think I was infected myself. I want everyone to share the awareness that one should both protect oneself while also avoiding spreading (the virus),' she told a news conference.

Koike said junior high schools and high schools run by the metropolis would remain closed through May 6 after shutting at the start of March. Schools in other areas should decide based on local conditions, the experts said.

The spread of the virus is hammering an economy that was already verging on recession. A Bank of Japan poll showed the mood of industrial manufacturers at its most pessimistic for seven years.

Calls for a lockdown have been growing on social media, with many Twitter users expressing worry and pointing to the more draconian measures taken in cities elsewhere around the world.

One of my friends who works in Tokyo is still commuting on packed trains, wrote a user under the Twitter handle Arikan.

Im a little embarrassed by how indecisive Japan is compared with other nations.

By Kiyoshi Takenaka and Elaine Lies
US Defence Secretary Mark Esper said he disagreed with the captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelts decision to evacuate his ship after more than 100 sailors tested positive for the coronavirus.

The aircraft carrier docked in Guam last week after more than 20 sailors tested positive for Covid-19. While in Guam, each of the 5,000 sailors aboard was to be tested.

As the infection spread throughout the crew, the ships captain, Brett Crozier, sent a letter to his superiors saying his sailors needed to be put in isolation and that their lives were at risk. Mr Croziers letter was leaked to the press.

We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset - our Sailors, Mr Crozier wrote.

Mr Esper admitted during an interview on the CBS Evening News that he had not read Mr Croziers letter, but chose to publicly disagree with his actions regardless.

I dont think were at that point, Mr Esper said when asked if the ship should have been evacuated. Im going to rely on the Navy chain of command to go out there to assess the situation and to make sure they provide the captain and the crew all the support they need to get the sailors healthy and get the ship back at sea.

After CBS News anchor Norah ODonnell read the captains words to him, Mr Esper agreed that priority number one is taking care of our service members and their families.

In his letter, Mr Crozier made the argument that, without acting to prevent the spread of the virus on the ship, his sailors would be ready to fight, but they would fight sick and that there would be losses to the virus.

He suggested the entire crew be allowed off the ship, after which the vessel would undergo a professional cleaning.

While social distancing guidelines may be helpful at slowing infection rates on land, the narrow corridors, tight living spaces and constant movement of sailors throughout the ship make containment of a fast moving virus extremely difficult.

The Acting US Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly said he didnt agree with Mr Crozier, but said the removal of troops from the ship had to be methodical and strategic.

We dont disagree with the [commanding officer] on that ship, and were doing it in a very methodical way because its not the same as a cruise ship  that ship has armaments on it, it has aircraft on it, Mr Modly said during a CNN interview.

The head of the US Navys Pacific Fleet, Admiral John Quilino, also stressed the need for a measured response to the virus, suggesting sailors be rotated on and off the ship, placing some sailors in quarantine on land and others in quarantine on the aircraft carrier.

According to the New York Times, the rotation is intended to keep a ready group onboard the ship at all times to ensure mission readiness.

Thus far, no crew members aboard the ship have been hospitalised due to the virus.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 12:28:26|Editor: huaxia

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NANNING/NANJING, April, 2 (Xinhua) -- When night falls, food streets in Nanning, capital of southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, spring to life with eager diners and bustling restaurants as the coronavirus outbreak wanes in the country.

Huang Shixiong, co-owner of a restaurant specializing in snake meat along a food street, has shut down his eatery since late January, even though his competitive neighbors have started attracting diners after the prolonged Spring Festival holiday due to the epidemic.

Huang holds shares of three chain restaurants in Nanning registered with the name "Rongji," with snake meat featured prominently on the menu. However, he now plans to change their signature dishes as the consumption of wild animals is prohibited nationwide.

On Feb. 24, China's top legislature issued an order to ban the illegal trade of wild animals, in a bid to wipe out the habit of eating game meat to safeguard people's lives and health.

Terrestrial wildlife of important ecological, scientific and social value are not allowed to be traded or consumed, according to the order.

"It is still unclear whether snakes are on the prohibited list, so we are waiting for further notice at the moment," Huang said, noting that the snakes his restaurants used are captive bred ones.

Local authorities have told Huang and his counterparts selling dishes made of game meat in the city to suspend business immediately after the ban came into force.

"If snake-related dishes are prohibited, Cantonese cuisine will be a suitable alternative for us to ease the losses as our restaurants are inspired by the cooking culture in Guangzhou," he said.

The same goes for the Huahua Hot Pot, another restaurant chain in Nanning. One of the main ingredients of its signature dish "stir-fried rice frog legs" has been replaced with bullfrogs after a public announcement on March 5.

"We have banned the use of rice frogs at all of our restaurants, including those raised by humans because we do not want to risk touching the red line," said Li Yongjiu, manager of the Huahua Hot Pot.

"We have discouraged the catering industry to cook and provide dishes made of wild animals, and received active response not only from the restaurant owners but also from the chefs," said Wu Dongdong, secretary of the Guangxi Restaurant and Catering Association.

"In fact, the consumption of game meat accounts for little in the business," Wu said, noting that there are a limited number of restaurants specializing in wild animals.

In Nanjing, capital of eastern China's Jiangsu Province, Yang Derong, a restaurant owner, removed the words "game meat" from the name of his eatery before he resumed business.

"I've been in the business for 12 years, mostly offering dishes of wild boar, hare and other farming animals," Yang said. "They are captive-bred animals supplied by qualified farms in the neighboring Anhui Province."

"We have also added a number of local specialties to maintain the popularity among the regulars of my restaurant," he added.

Zhang Min, deputy director of a sub-bureau of the Nanjing Administration for Market Regulation, said that more eateries in the city have readjusted their market strategies to cope with the new rule.

"Jiangsu Province has banned market entities from naming with words of 'game meat' or 'wild animals'," Zhang said.

Lyu Zhi, a professor of conservation biology at Peking University, said many people mistakenly think that eating wild animals can nourish their bodies and it is a way to show off.

"But nature is an organic ecosystem, and the health of human beings can hardly be sustained without the well-being of wild animals," Lyu said. "Moreover, people do not need to rely on eating wild animals to survive."
Jennifer Lawrence has taken to social media to ask for change.

The Hunger Games actress demanded that Americas to be able to vote from home during the upcoming election as it is likely the stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic will only intensify in the coming months and prevent people from going to the polls.

The 29-year-old, who does not have an Instagram account, was seen in a video shared by RepresentUs campaign.

Her message: Jennifer Lawrence has taken to social media to ask for change

Her voice: The Hunger Games actress demanded that Americas to be able to vote from home during the upcoming election as it is likely the stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic will only intensify in the coming months and prevent people from going to the polls

'There's still an election coming up with millions of Americans who have yet to cast their ballot in the 2020 primaries, which is why you should go to represent.us/voteathome so that you can cast your ballot from the safety of your own home,' Jennifer explained as she stood in her home.

The Red Sparrow actress added, 'Some states won't allow you to turn in an absentee ballot without an excuse, but a bill in congress and your secretary of state can fix this right now.'

Lawrence also said: 'This is extremely important. It's our elections we're talking about, so please help spread the word by posting on your social media with the hashtag #VoteAtHome. Stay safe and healthy everybody.'

Where it was shared: The 29-year-old, who does not have an Instagram account, was seen in a video shared by RepresentUs campaign

She also asked her friend Amy Schumer to do her part: 'We need to be able to vote without getting sick. Im calling on @amyschumer to go to http://Represent.Us/VoteAtHome, request your mail-in ballot, call your senator to support Vote at Home, and tag 3 friends to call and share with #VoteAtHome.'

Her speech began with concern over those who have fallen ill.

'First and foremost, I want to give my heartfelt sympathies to everyone who's been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and my deepest gratitude to the emergency responders and healthcare workers who are risking their health every day,' she said.

'The best thing that we can do to slow the spread of this virus is to stay at home.'

At an event: Seen at the Christian Dior show as part of the Paris Fashion Week Womenswear Fall/Winter 2019/2020 in February 2019 in Paris, France

Just do it: She also asked her friend Amy Schumer, seen here with son Gene, to do her part: ' We need to be able to vote without getting sick. Im calling on @amyschumer to go to http://Represent.Us/VoteAtHome, request your mail-in ballot, call your senator to support Vote at Home, and tag 3 friends to call and share with #VoteAtHome'

Because of social distancing it would be too challenging to vote at polling places.

Only three states, Colorado, Oregon and Washington, vote only by mail. More than a dozen other states allow mail-in-voting as an option.

'No eligible voter should be forced to choose between protecting their familys health and exercising their right to vote,' said RepresentUs co-founder and managing director Joshua Graham Lynn in a statement.

More names: Khloe Kardashian, Rita Wilson, Sia, Monica Lewinsky, David Guetta, Alyssa Milano and Sarah Silverman have also joined the #VoteAtHome campaign

'Mailing ballots to voters is common sense and has bipartisan support. It is safer, more secure, increases turnout and saves money in the states where it is already being used. RepresentUs is proud to have the support of so many influential figures such as Jennifer and SIA in the fight for this crucial reform.'

Khloe Kardashian, Rita Wilson, Sia, Monica Lewinsky, David Guetta, Alyssa Milano and Sarah Silverman have also joined the #VoteAtHome campaign.

Joe Biden told MSNBC he also thinks US residents should be able to vote from home.

'This is about making sure that we're able to conduct our democracy while we're dealing with a pandemic. We can do both.

'It may mean a difference in the way we do it. It may mean that social distancing doesn't get it done. It may mean that you have a circumstance where you have drive-in voting literally, you pull up and you vote. There's a lot of ways to do it, but we should be talking about it now,' he added.
Kolkata, April 2 : Defying the ongoing lockdown, people gathered in strength before Ram temples to offer prayerson Ram Navami while congestion in several large daily markets in the city threw social distancing norms out of the window on Thursday.

A large number of pilgrims gathered outside the locked gates of the Ram temple on Chittaranjan Avenue in central Kolkata to offer prayers.

The collapsible gate of the temple was kept shut in view of the Covid 19 induced lockdown, but that did not deter the devotees who arrived with flowers and fruits, and stood without caring to maintain any social distancing.

Police had a trying time controlling the crowd, which refused to pay any heed to their warnings.

"We all are very careful. But we have come here for 10 minutes only to attend the rituals. We are trying to maintain social distancing. I am telling everybody to keep distance between one another. But nobody is listening," said a devotee.

Around 440 kilometers away in South Dinajpur district's Balurghat, a fair - an annual event - was organised close to the Ram Temple.

A large number of locals also offered prayers to the temple.

A huge number of people also gathered at the famous daily markets in central Kolkata -Kolay Market, and Baithakkhana Bazar, defying the norms in place.
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian visited today the Yerablur Military Pantheon to pay tribute to the memory of soldiers fallen during the 2016 April four-day war, the Presidential Office told Armenpress.

The President was accompanied by former soldiers of the Armenian Army  Gor Darmanyan and Liparit Melkonyan, currently working at the Presidential administration, as well as Arkadi Andreasyan, working at the ministry of emergency situations. During the military service these soldiers have been distinguished with their high level of combat preparedness and dedication and were wounded during the military operations. They started working within the frames of the Fatherlands Defender initiative which aims at assisting disabled soldiers by providing them with jobs.

The President and the former soldiers laid flowers at the tombs of soldiers fallen during the 2016 April military operations.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar on Thursday said Congress president Sonia Gandhis comments about the ongoing 21-day nationwide lockdown to contain the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak being necessary but unplanned is unfortunate.

Javadekar, who also holds the portfolio of environment, forest, and climate change, said Gandhis reaction after the Congress Working Committee meeting accusing the government for the lockdown not being properly planned is not only unfortunate, false but also more importantly unnecessary.

Gandhi on Thursday said that the nationwide lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain to millions of migrant workers across the country.

It is the politicisation of an issue of national calamity, Javadekar said. The minister said India has taken quick and effective steps to control the spread of Covid-19 and the world is praising it for the timely action it took by announcing the lockdown.

People have made the lockdown successful. There will be pain, hurdles and hardships, but the government with the cooperation of people, state governments, district administrations, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and all political parties is doing a laudable job. Political discussions can take place after we defeat the virus together, he said.

The minister urged political parties to join forces with the government in its battle against Covid-19. I hope wisdom will prevail upon the Congress leadership  everyone needs to be on the same page. I hope such comments wont be repeated again till we overcome our battle against the virus.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah tweeted: Under PM @narendramodis leadership, Indias efforts to fight coronavirus are being lauded domestically and globally. 130 crore Indians are united to defeat Covid-19. Yet, the Congress is playing petty politics. High time they think of national interest and stop misleading people.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 17:24 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f480ae 1 City food,University-of-Indonesia,students,COVID-19,COVID-19-West-Java,coronavirus,virus-corona,virus-korona-indonesia,Depok,West-Java Free

A number of parents of University of Indonesia (UI) students are working together to provide free food to students from outside the Greater Jakarta area who are currently staying within or near the university's compound in Depok, West Java, during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Two students' parents, Iwel and Titi Reza, initiated the program through a group they named "Moms UI".

Titi said she had sent 135 food packages to UI students from outside the city who were currently struggling to get food as many restaurants around the campus had closed because of the outbreak.

Support continued to grow for the program as more and more parents were taking part in it, she said.

"Thank God, there are a lot of people who care about the students," Titi said as quoted by kompas.com on Wednesday.

"In less than a week we managed to gather about Rp 6 million (US$359). With the money, we are able to provide free food to the students twice a week for a three-week period."

Read also: GoFood, GrabFood provide contactless food delivery amid COVID-19 spread

She said the money was collected from 20 parents, only a third of her community members, so Titi remained optimistic that there would be more people donating to the program.

"Some parents have said that they would donate food like bread and milk instead of money. Some people outside the community had also shown interest in donating to the program," she said.

UI had asked its students originally from outside Greater Jakarta to stay in their dorms instead of returning to their home towns so as to curb the spread of COVID-19 to other regions.

"All students are advised to stay in their dorms or in their rooming houses until the situation gets better," UI secretary Agustin Kusmayati said in a circular on March 16.

Titi said that some students have asked for more food.

"Some students said 'Bu, could you give us more?' and I am sure we can provide them more food as more donations keep on coming," she said. (nal)
The police here registered a fresh



case of forgery against Hemant Zaveri, one of the directors of jewellery chain Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri and Sons (TBZ), who allegedly defrauded an investor to the tune of Rs 38.85 lakh.

The offence was registered on Wednesday on the basis of an order issued by the Nagpurbench of the Bombay High Court, after the accused allegedly presented forged cheques to the aggrieved depositor as a settlement.

Zaveri (60) and other directors of the company had floated gold deposit scheme, in which Nagpur resident Manish Kiran Deshraj (50) had invested 1,450 gm of gold worth Rs 38.85 lakh in 2015, the police said in a statement.

However, the TBZ branch stopped sharing profits with Deshraj and kept delaying his payments, forcing the complainant to lodge a complaint of cheating in 2018.

Similarly, the company allegedly cheated other investors, following which an offence under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and relevant provisions of the IPC and Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act (MPDA), was registered against Zaveri, the release stated.

Zaveri then filed a bail application before the Nagpur bench of the High Court and during the hearing, Zaveri's counsel submitted 10 cheques to Deshraj and six receipts.

However, on verification, it was found that the cheques were forged and the gold deposits were not returned to the complainant.

The Nagpur bench ordered action against Zaveri, who has now been booked under section 465 (forgery) and relevant provisions of the IPC, the release stated.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
SACRAMENTO  Participation in the 2020 census is lagging far behind a decade ago.

By the end of March, just under 38% of California households had responded to the decennial count of every person in the country, according to tracking data published by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Thats right in line with the national response rate so far. But at the same point 10 years ago, about 52% of California households had already mailed back their census forms.

Diana Crofts-Pelayo, spokeswoman for the California Census Office, said participation is trailing everywhere. The office crunched the Census Bureaus tracking data from 2010 and found that, nearly three weeks after forms were mailed that year, the national response rate was 56%.

Officials are dealing with two enormous complications this year: The census moved online for the first time, so rather than being mailed the form, Americans are receiving reminders to fill it out on their computer or by phone. And the coronavirus outbreak disrupted the count just as it began, forcing the Census Bureau to suspend its field operations and community organizations to rethink their outreach campaigns.

This is definitely something that no one was expecting to happen at this point, Crofts-Pelayo said. Its really hard when you cant have those person-to-person conversations.

The stakes for states are enormous  the census will determine how many seats they hold in Congress and how much money they receive from the federal government.

California, which has large populations of non-English speakers, people in unstable living conditions and other hard-to-count groups, set aside $187 million for the count. That is more than six times what the state spent in 2000 and 2010 combined.

The Bay Area is doing better than most other regions of California. Three counties  Santa Clara, San Mateo and Contra Costa  lead the state with 44% or more participation. In San Francisco, 36% of households have filled out their census form.

But some of the rural corners of the state have seen response rates in the single digits  as low as 2% in Trinity County.

Because many of the residents in those areas do not have home mail delivery, the Census Bureau must drop off paper copies of the form. With field operations on hold until at least April 15, Crofts-Pelayo said, about 300,000 California households have yet to receive any census information.

The coronavirus pandemic has also delayed counts of the homeless population and group quarters such as college dorms, local jails and nursing homes. The deadline for the entire count was pushed back two weeks to Aug. 14, though census officials still plan to send out staff later this year to knock on the doors of those who did not fill out their form online.

Jeff Enos, deputy regional director for the U.S. Census Bureau in Los Angeles, said it was impossible to compare participation in the 2020 count to 2010, because its being done entirely differently.

Currently, were pleased with the response rate. Its within our projection, he said.

But Jacqueline Martinez Garcel, CEO of the Latino Community Foundation, said it has been hard to cut through news about the coronavirus to draw peoples attention to the census.

Her organization has a contract with the state to oversee census outreach to Latinos. It garnered dozens of viewers Wednesday for a Facebook livestream to mark the official Census Day, far fewer than the thousands of attendees the group was expecting for a kickoff concert it originally planned. That event, along with hundreds of others across the state to help people fill out their forms, was canceled because of the pandemic.

People are really preoccupied with some life-changing events, Martinez Garcel said. Theres no room to breathe or focus on anything else.

Alexei Koseff is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: alexei.koseff@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @akoseff
8 out-of-the-ordinary watches 8 out-of-the-ordinary watches

The editorial team has picked eight off-the-beaten-track watches, any one of which would make a perfect end to the year

The editorial team has picked eight...
NNIT wins tender and extends twelve-year collaboration with another up to seven years.



Copenhagen, April 2, 2020 - NNIT, a leading provider of IT services and consultancy, announces that it has signed a new agreement with HK. Denmark's largest union for salaried employees with 230,000 members brings together the responsibility for the operation of the entire IT infrastructure in the hands of NNIT.

Since 2008, NNIT has overseen operations for the basic infrastructure, and HK has, after a recently completed tender, assigned NNIT responsibility for the complete operations of the organization's entire IT infrastructure. The cooperation is extended as takes over responsibility for the operation of HK's core applications and the skeleton under them.

At NNIT, who is already in charge of application operations for several of Denmark's largest companies, employees welcome the new agreement, says Jacob Hahn Michelsen, Senior Vice President, NNIT A/S:

"Our employees are very pleased with this sign of confidence as the cooperation with HK is both extended and expanded in scope, - you simply do not get any better proof of customer satisfaction."



He adds that the contract was signed digitally on March 31, 2020 where the majority of employees in both organizations worked at home as a result of the COVID-19 situation:

"We must wait with the handshakes, high-fives and shoulder pats until it becomes safe. For now, we're doing things over phone, email and digital platforms."

The expanded cooperation provides new tasks, which is entirely in line with NNIT's new strategy. These include cybersecurity deliveries, Microsoft standard solutions such as Teams, and ongoing infrastructure modernization. All server infrastructure is lifted into NNIT's private cloud and becomes software-controlled, allowing HK to adjust it much faster in the future. All solutions which are in line with the "Winning Solutions" portfolio that NNIT focuses on.

The agreement between HK and NNIT has been extended with additional five years with the possibility of up to two years' extension and represents a high double-digit million DKK turnover in total.

********

More information

Helga Heyn, NNIT Communications, +45 30 77 81 41, hhey@nnit.com

About NNIT

NNIT is an international consultancy in the development, implementation, validation and operation of IT for the life sciences industry. We create value for our clients by treating their IT as if it was our own, and of course, we meet the industry's strictest regulatory requirements. We apply the latest advances in technology to make our clients' software, business processes and communication more effective. NNIT A/S has more than 3,200 employees. For more information please visit www.nnit.com.

About HK https://www.hk.dk/omhk/about-hk

Attachment
President Trump reading his notes at Wednesdays coronavirus briefing at the White House.

Biden says hell pick a female running mate. Who could it be?

Biden served as President Barack Obamas vice president for eight years  and as he moves closer to landing the Democratic presidential nomination himself, he is giving real thought to his own potential running mate, which he has said will be a woman.

Its a subject on which his allies have strong  and sharply divergent  opinions, according to interviews with nearly two dozen Biden donors and other supporters. Some argued that Biden, if he wins the nomination, should prioritize selecting a woman of color as his running mate. Others said that regional considerations, like ties to the industrial Midwest, should hold greater weight.

Biden has indicated that hell consider a long list of contenders, including former rivals like Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobuchar, all of whom are senators  as well as governors like Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan. Other possible contenders often mentioned by allies include two Latina leaders from the West: Catherine Cortez Masto, a senator from Nevada, and Michelle Lujan Grisham, the governor of New Mexico. Stacey Abrams, the 2018 candidate for governor in Georgia, is frequently floated, too.
Some 20 people were killed by a lightning strike on high-voltage power lines in Congo-Brazzaville, the authorities say.



The incident happened on the first day of a lockdown in the capital, Brazzaville, to help prevent the spread of coronavirus.



So far 22 cases of Covid-19, the respiratory illness caused by the virus, have been confirmed in the country, including two deaths.



The mayor of Kintele district, Stella Mensah Saddou Nguesso, said people were electrocuted by the falling cables.



Eyewitnesses said one line fell on a house, setting it on fire and killing those inside.



The other cable struck a pool of water in a courtyard, electrocuting the neighbours.



Heavy rain has been falling in Kintele for several hours.



Some of the dead and injured were rushed to hospital by people in private vehicles as ambulances could not cope with the numbers.

Source: BBC









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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North Chinas Tianjin and the city of Anyang in Central Chinas Henan province both reported two new cases of the highly transmissible omicron variant over the weekend. Both cities have launched new rounds of mass testing and designated more Covid-19 risk areas to control the spread of the virus

Jan 10, 2022 06:18 PM
When readers were asked what your most pressing questions are about the novel coronavirus, PennLive responded by trying to get the most up-to-date information. Throughout the ever-evolving pandemic, a lot of news is being shared at a rapid pace.

The honest answer is sometimes we wont immediately have specific information, but we are working toward providing clarity as often as we can.

Below are several recent answers to submitted questions.

Courts:

Q: How are criminal court proceedings being handled during the shutdown?

A: Under orders from the state Supreme Court, courthouses throughout the state are closed and deadlines regarding the prosecutions of criminal cases, including speedy trial provisions, are being temporarily waived for cases that have already reached the level of the county courts.

Preliminary hearings for criminal defendants who are not being held in prison are being postponed. Other proceedings are being handled remotely.

For example, Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo explained that his county preliminary hearings for jailed defendants are being conducted via video feeds between the district judge offices and the county prison. The district judge, prosecutor, and defense attorney participate from the judges office while the defendant joins in from the jail.

Defense attorneys are given time to confer privately with their clients through the two-way links.

Education:

Q: What can we expect for our seniors, class of 2020?

A: The latest information available is that Gov. Tom Wolf has closed schools for an indefinite period of time during the pandemic. He said this week that he is considering allowing students to move to next years grade or graduate without having completed an academic school year, as long as they had passing grades before schools were closed.

Meanwhile, the state is urging districts to find a way  which for most means providing some online instruction  to providing education to students while schools are closed. Some schools have begun providing online instruction, while other schools are struggling with ensuring that students are equipped to learn in that manner.

No information is yet available on whether graduation ceremonies will be affected by the coronavirus mitigation efforts.

Health:

Q: "What is the plan to increase ventilator capacity? How many do they have, project will be needed, and what are they doing to get them?

A: Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine has been updating commonwealth residents daily on the number of positive cases ever since the first two cases of it were reported here on March 6. Levine has relayed to reporters that Pennsylvania has about 3,000 ventilators, including those from the states emergency stockpile, and about 75 percent remain available.

According to a PennLive article, Levine further said the emergency stockpile has a little over a million N95 face masks, which the state has been distributing to hospitals and emergency responders. The federal government has also provided some. But the state is seeking still more from sources including the federal government, businesses that normally use them for other purposes, and by scouring whatever is available in Pennsylvania or throughout the nation or even overseas.

How many ventilators Pennsylvania will need will be determined by the number of coronavirus cases and how successful the state is in slowing the spread of the illness

Q: "Have people recovered from the virus? What did they do to take care of themselves to help in their recovery?

A: Most people do get better. PennLive published an article, Pa. knows how many are sick -- but not how many have recovered from coronavirus," which points to Johns Hopkins University research that has been tracking the virus.

The number of people who have recovered is an estimate, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health spokesperson Nate Wardle. The state health department is only notified when someone with the coronavirus enters the hospital or tests positive while there.

People with mild symptoms, who arent tested and recover on their own, are not included in the recovery count.

Dr. Levine has repeatedly said there is "no standard of care and no vaccine to date.

Pets:

Q: "Are all of our pets immune? Can they be carriers of the virus?

A: Both the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention have released information that there is no evidence that companion animals, including dogs and cats, can spread COVID-19.

There have been extremely rare reports of dogs and cats testing positive for the coronavirus.

There was a report that one dog died and two other dogs contracted coronavirus in China. And, a sick cat in Belgium, thought to have contracted COVID-19 from its owner, recovered.

Spread:

Q: "When was the first case diagnosed on the east coast and where?

A: A University of Massachusetts at Boston student returned from China in early February and had tested positive for coronavirus. It was the first case reported on the east coast on February 1, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Q: Can you get it more than once?

A: That answer remains unknown at this time.

Q: When will it be over?

A: At this point, its too soon to tell. State health department officials, and Gov. Tom Wolf, continues to repeat the mantra: stay-at-home. All of Pennsylvania is under a stay-at-home order in hopes of slowing the spread, therefore, causing it to become manageable for health experts. The government hasnt indicated when businesses or services will resume back to normal.
PRINCE ALBERT, SASK.A man in Saskatchewan has been charged with the killings over the weekend of his parents and young son, police say.

Nathaniel Kenneth Carrier faces three counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Denis Carrier, 56, Sandra Henry, 56, and seven-year-old Bentlee.

The 28-year-old man is also charged with attempted murder in connection with his five-year-old daughter.

Prince Albert police Insp. Craig Mushka said he couldnt comment on a possible motive behind the killings.

We are very early in our investigation, Mushka said Wednesday.

Obviously, its human nature to want to know why something like this occurred.

Police were called to a home in Prince Albert on Sunday evening after friends noted they had not heard from the couple and two of their grandchildren.

Officers located Denis Carrier, Henry and their grandson dead on the property.

The boys little sister, Kendrah, was in critical condition and transferred to a hospital in Edmonton.

Mushka said new evidence, such as video surveillance from the neighbourhood, suggests the killings happened Saturday.

Nathaniel Carrier also lived at the home, but officers could not find him, and a family vehicle was missing.

The vehicle was found in La Ronge on Sunday and investigators located the suspect in Prince Albert. Mushka said he was not a risk to public safety and was arrested Tuesday.

I am not able to divulge his exact location during that time, but those details will likely become available during the judicial process, Mushka said.

The familys relatives and friends said they are struggling to understand why the deaths happened.

Stuff like this doesnt happen to our family, said Sherry McLellan, Henrys cousin.

She said Henry and Denis Carrier began dating in junior high school. Nathaniel Carrier is one of their three sons.

Henry worked at a local Co-op store, where she was known for her friendly demeanour and making everyone feel important, her cousin said.

She liked to play cards, had a great sense of humour and referred to everyone as cuz, McLellan said.

She was also part of a large Metis family, McLellan said, adding that restrictions around COVID-19 mean they cannot grieve together.

McLellan said she hopes the couples other two sons are receiving the support they need.

We are a strong Metis family, where we have values of family and tradition. Family is very important, she said.

We are still struggling and reeling from what happened. Our heads are in the clouds and we dont know really what is going on.

McLellan has started an online fundraiser to help cover funeral costs and support the couples two other sons. Money will also go to help the granddaughter, who remains in hospital in stable condition.

McLellan said she hopes there will be answers one day, but for now, shes encouraging everyone to tell their family members how much they love them.

Dont take your family for granted. Make sure that you check on them. Make sure you extend yourself out to them, she said. Let everybody know you love them.

Court records show Nathaniel Carrier was scheduled for a court appearance Wednesday, but his attendance was waived. He is next to appear in court April 15, although the court file shows his attendance will again be waived.
Pakistan train accident: Death toll rises to 65 as two passenger trains collide in Sindh's Ghotki district

Highest ever: Why did India report 61,48 deaths in a single day

Reports on COVID-19 related deaths are an audacious assumption says Govt

Haiti earthquake: Death toll rises to 1,419, injured now at 6,000

Death toll in Cyclone Shaheen now five as storm moves into Oman

One more death in Gujarat at COVID-19 death toll rises to 7

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Ahmedabad, Apr 02: A 52-year-old man died of coronavirus in Vadodara early Thursday morning, taking the COVID-19 toll in Gujarat to seven, an official said.

The man was admitted to Sir Sayajirao General (SSG) Hospital in Vadodara on March 19 after he fell ill on return from Sri Lanka. He later tested positive for coronavirus, principal secretary (health) Jayanti Ravi told reporters in Gandhinagar.

There are 87 coronavirus cases in the state so far.

No new case has been reported in last 12 hours, she said.

North Korea insists it is free of coronavirus

Out of these patients, seven have died and seven discharged after recovery. The remaining 73 are still undergoing treatment, the official said.

Till date, 31 cases have been reported from Ahmedabad, followed by Surat-12, Rajkot-10, Vadodara-nine, Bhavnagar-six, Porbandar-three, Gir Somnath-two, and Kutch, Mehsana and Panchmahal-one each.

While 33 patients have foreign travel history, eight have history of travelling to other states and 46 are cases of local transmission, said Ravi.

Out of the total 1,789 people tested so far in Gujarat for coronavirus, 1,693 were found negative, 87 positive, and results of nine are pending, she said.

6 signs you may already be infected with coronavirus

Over 18,800 people are still quarantined in the state.

The official said there is no scarcity of personal protection equipment and N95 masks in the state.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 12:27 [IST]
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A train engineer is accused of intentionally running a locomotive off the tracks at high speed Tuesday near the Port of Los Angeles, trying to crash into the USNS Mercy hospital ship, according to an ABC 7 report.

Eduardo Moreno, 44, of San Pedro, Calif., was charged with one count of train wrecking, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office.

Authorities said Moreno admitted to crashing the train intentionally, saying he didnt think the ship is what they say its for, according to the report.

He allegedly went on to say, You only get this chance once. The whole world is watching. I had to. People dont know whats going on here. Now they will.

Today #USNSMercy arrived @PortofLA to serve as a referral hospital for patients not infected with #COVID19 - handling overflow of acute trauma cases & other urgent needs allowing shore-based hospitals to focus medical care resources on the treatment of #coronavirus patients. pic.twitter.com/14WkftEEZp  Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas B. Modly (@SECNAV) March 27, 2020

The Navy hospital ship was deployed to the Los Angeles area to house non-coronavirus patients. Similar to the USNS Comfort deployed recently to New York City, the USNS Mercy is helping to ease the impact to local hospitals that are surging with COVID-19 cases.




Police in South Korea arrested a woman after she gave birth in a public restroom then threw the newborn baby out a window, according to reports.







Police in the city of Gwangju said the incident took place on Feb. 5 and involved the defendant, identified only as a 23-year-old woman, and an "accomplice," who did "not prevent the death of the newborn," Newsis and News 1 reported Wednesday.







Police initially sought to charge the second defendant, a man, but ultimately decided to not pursue a warrant for his arrest. Police did not say what the man's relationship was to the defendant.







Authorities said the defendant notified her acquaintance as she began to go into labor at an Internet cafe in Gwangju.







In text messages, the defendant reportedly said, "I think the baby is coming out. I don't know what to do."







Her acquaintance said, "Do what you think is best."







Police were called to the scene after a witness in a building opposite the cafe reported the incident.





"There is a lot of blood on the bathroom wall," the witness told police, according to reports.







The defendant was subsequently rushed to a hospital.







Reports of infanticide are rising in the country.







Last week, a South Korean couple charged with the murder of their 7-month-old infant received a reduced sentence.







The two defendants, a 22-year-old husband and his 19-year-old wife, were accused of letting their daughter die from neglect.







The defendants ate meals while leaving their child to die of thirst in the next room, a South Korean court had said. (UPI)


(CNN) Panama is taking a new -- if somewhat unorthodox  measure to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus: separation of the sexes.

Starting on Wednesday, only women will be able to leave their homes to buy necessities on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Men in Panama will be allowed to venture outside to run errands on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

Everyone will have to stay home on Sundays. The restrictions will last for at least 15 days, according to government officials.

The additional measures to the already-announced national quarantine in theory will make it easier for police in the Central American nation to limit the number of people going out in public.

"The great quantity of people circulating outside their homes, despite the obligatory national quarantine, has led the national government to take more severe measures," said a statement by Panamanian President Laurentino "Nito" Cortizo on Twitter.

Earlier, Panamanian officials had ordered all citizens to stay inside except for emergencies and to buy food. But alarmed by the number of people still going out, Panamanian officials decided to divide the week by sex to further limit how much of the public is outside their homes at one time.

Even on their designated days both men and women will only have two hours to do their shopping, according to the Panamanian government release.

Panama has 1075 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 27 deaths, according to health officials, and has already taken some of the toughest measures in the region to stop the spread of the illness.

The country has banned all domestic and international travel. It has shut down airports and -- after a March 22 deadline -- prevented even Panamanian citizens from traveling to the country.

A nightly curfew had already kept Panamanians from leaving their homes between 9pm and 5am each day. Under the new, more stringent measures, the curfew will now begin at 5pm.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "In Panama, coronavirus lockdown means separating men and women."
Health workers sanitizing an area near the Nizamuddin mosque in New Delhi on Wednesday, April 1, 2020 after people who attended a religious congregation organised by the Tablighi Jamaat tested positive for the corona virus. (DC Photo: Pritam Bandyopadhyay)

New Delhi: It took 36 hours to evacuate 2,361 people from the Alami Markaz (headquarters of Tablighi Jamaat) in the capitals Nizamuddin West area, Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said on Wednesday.

Tabligh-e-Jamaat's three-day congregation, in which people from across the country and various countries had gathered, has emerged as a "super spreader" of the novel coronavirus infection in the country.

The operation by Delhi government, medical staff, Delhi police and DTC staff

continued for 36 hours and the Markaz was cleared at 4 am on Wednesday. "The

entire building has been cleared and 617 people, who had symptoms, have been

hospitalised while the rest have been home quarantined," Sisodia announced on

Twitter.

"Medical staff, administration, police and DTC staff worked together in this 36-hour operation, putting their lives at risk. Hats off to all of them," he said in another tweet.

Soon after the evacuation, the Nizamuddin Markaz and the area around it was

sanitised by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation. With 32 new positive cases of coronavirus on Wednesday, the total number in Delhi has climbed to 152. Of these, 53 cases are linked to the Nizamuddin Markaz.

An FIR has been registered against the Alami Markaz cleric Maulana Saad, and six others, though he has been untraceable since March 28 after he was served a notice by the Delhi police.

Sisodia said that a list has been prepared with the phone numbers and other

details of people who attended the congregation and handed over to the Delhi

Police's cyber cell. They will trace the history of movement of these people with the help of their mobiles phones details and figure out how many people have come in their contact, and their whereabouts.

Sisodia appealed to those who attended the congregation or visited Alami Markaz in March to contact the administration and go to the local medical facilities immediately for a proper medical checkup.
(CNN)  President Donald Trump tweeted Wednesday, without citing any evidence, that the administration has information that "Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on US troops and/or assets in Iraq." Trump added, "If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!"

The President's tweet, which the White House did not elaborate upon, comes as the US has picked up more intelligence in the last several days from an ongoing stream indicating that Iranian-backed militias inside Iraq are potentially planning an attack against US forces in the near future, one US official said.

The White House did not respond to requests for comment.

The intelligence is some of the latest in a threat stream that the US has been monitoring in Iraq in recent months, the official said. It follows the US killing of Iran's second most powerful official, Gen. Qasem Soleimani, in January, and tit-for-tat strikes between the US and Iraq-based militias in March.

On March 12, US warplanes struck five targets in southern Iraq affiliated with a militia with ties to Iran after a rocket attack the day before killed two Americans and a British soldier. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper the attack was carried out by Iranian-backed Shia militia groups. Soleimani's killing prompted calls for revenge from Iranian officials and affiliated militias in the region.

This newest intelligence includes information gathered from people in the region as well as communications intercepts, the official said. It comes as Iran is reeling from the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed senior officials, sent others into isolation and left health systems overwhelmed by an estimated 47,000 known infections, according to the World Health Organization.

The coronavirus has slowed down much of Iran's planning and it is possible it could still stall any attack, the official said. Since the US killed Soleimani, there has not been a leader of his influence over the militias and the forces he once controlled inside Iraq, adding to uncertainty.

The New York Times has reported that there has been tension within the Trump administration about whether to escalate military action against Iran, with officials such as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging a harder response after the March 11 killing of the two Americans.

Pompeo and national security adviser Robert O'Brien have argued that a hard response to Iran while the coronavirus pummels the country would make its leaders more open to negotiating with the US, the Times reported.

But Pentagon officials, including Esper and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Mark Milley, have argued against such a move. They have said that they lacked clear evidence the March 11 attack had been ordered by Iran, the Times said. And they've cautioned that a harsher response could give rise to a wider war with Iran and further damage badly strained ties with Iraq, they warned.

In the end, the US conducted its March 12 airstrikes on weapons depots. Since then, the Pentagon has taken steps to improve defenses for its troops stationed in Iraq.

Last month, Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, commander of US Central Command, said for the first time that the US is moving PATRIOT missile systems into Iraq. "We've put the preparatory materiel in place that will allow us to establish PATRIOT positions inside Iraq," McKenzie told reporters at the Pentagon.

The US will be sending the PATRIOTs to bases in Al Asad and Irbil, and will also strengthen both places with counter-artillery and rockets systems. US troops have also consolidated into fewer bases within Iraq.

The US assessment is if there is an attack against US forces, the militias as well as elements of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps would likely use a combination of rockets fired from their position inside Iraq and armed drones fired from inside Iran.

The assessment is these weapons would give plausible deniability to the attackers. It's a strategy that differs from Tehran's January 8 attack on the Al Asad base, which is used by American, Iraqi and British forces. That assault, meant to retaliate for Soleimani's January 3 killing, used ballistic missiles unique to Iran.

For the last several weeks, the Pentagon has been refining an extensive package of military options for Trump if a response to Iran is required. As always, the options range from non-kinetic actions, such as potential cyber operations, to a full-scale attack against multiple targets inside Iran.

This story was first published on CNN.com 'Trump threatens heavy price if Iran conducts 'sneak attack' on US troops'
Pigs are seen in a pig farm in Bouille-Menard, France, on April 28, 2017. (Stephane Mahe/Reuters)

Pigs Fly in as China Replenishes Worlds Biggest Hog Herd

BEIJINGSix planes carrying more than 4,000 high-quality French breeding pigs have arrived in China so far this year, the first of an expected dozens of plane-loads as the worlds top pork producer rebuilds its decimated hog herd.

China is ramping up imports as it rushes to restock after an outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) swept through the country from late 2018, killing tens of millions of pigs and reducing its sow herd by as much as 60 percent.

Soaring pork prices and a government drive to rebuild have prompted farmers who had halted buying to resume orders, with some doubling contracts that had been signed prior to the disease. Each charter is worth up to 1.5 million euros ($1.6 million).

Its like after World War Two. They lost half the herd and need to repopulate fast to get it back, said Marie Pushparajalingam, global strategist for French swine genetics company Axiom.

China imports breeding pigs to take advantage of traits like increased productivity and better meat quality that global genetics firms select for during breeding. A top breeding sow can have a litter of as many as 16 piglets.

Axiom sent two 777 charters to China in January, followed by two 747s last month, totaling about 3,400 pigs. It has signed deals for a further six plane-loads later in the year, said Pushparajalingam, and is expecting additional business.

Another 500 boars bred by Dutch firm Topigs Norsvin arrived from France in southwestern Guizhou last week, said Chinas Dekang Group, which will use the pigs in a nucleus breeding farm to produce 20 million pigs for slaughter.

China typically slaughters about 700 million pigs a year to produce more than 50 million tonnes of porkabout half of global consumption. But the disease outbreak cut pork output by 21 percent in 2019, sending prices soaring, and production is set to fall again this year.

Fattened hogs in China currently cost about 35 yuan ($4.93) a kilogram, or three times the price in France.

Under pressure to meet government targets for pork production, some provinces began offering import subsidies of about 2,000 yuan per pig to farmers last month.

Producers face a severe shortage of sows and are even holding back females normally destined for slaughter to use in breeding farms. Those pigs will produce much smaller litters than a sow bred to be a productive mother.

Imports from France alone this year look set to top the 11,000 pigs China imported from all countries in 2017, a year after pork prices hit a record.

In all, China may need more than 150 plane loads of pure bred pigs to replenish its herd, according to one genetics company estimate.

Pigs are seen on the back of a truck outside a slaughterhouse in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China on Dec. 22, 2017. (Reuters)

New ASF Cases

African swine fever was detected in seven dead wild boars in Shennongjia Forestry District in Hubei Province, Chinas Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs announced last month.

The disclosure of a new ASF outbreak in central China has raised concerns that another large precautionary culling of millions of Chinese pigs could threaten food security and drive food prices much higher.

That risk has intensified with the World Organization for Animal Health reporting that new outbreaks of ASF have recently been reported near Chinas northern and southern borders.

Pandemic Complicates Shipment

Chinas customs has said it will allow more countries to ship live pigs, and is also working to resume exports from the United States, which has not been able to export to China during recent trade tensions.

Still, cumbersome quarantine procedures for importing pigs and obstacles related to the coronavirus outbreak will limit overall numbers.

Before shipment, pigs must undergo a month of health checks and spend another 30 days in quarantine under observation by an official Chinese vet. On arrival, the pigs spend a further 45 days in a quarantine center to ensure they are disease free.

The coronavirus pandemic has further complicated shipments, said Laurent Poussart, manager of Francexporc, a pig freight specialist.

A sharp reduction in cargo planes flying between Europe and China is driving up costs, and China does not permit foreign airline crew to disembark.

Poussarts latest cargo to China arrived just a day before the Chinese airline he was using cancelled all further flights to and from Europe.

By Dominique Patton. Chriss Street contributed to this report.
Ellis Marsalis Jr., the jazz pianist, teacher and patriarch of one of New Orleans great musical families, has died.

The 85-year-old jazz piano legend was hospitalized with pneumonia and symptoms of COVID-19, his son, Ellis Marsalis III said. He had been tested for coronavirus and results were pending.

"Pneumonia was the actual thing that caused his demise. But it was pneumonia brought on by COVID-19," Ellis Marsalis III said in an Associated Press phone interview.

He said he drove Sunday from Baltimore to be with his father, who was hospitalized Saturday. Others in the family spent time with him, too.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell issued a statement Wednesday night on his passing.

"Ellis Marsalis was a legend," she said. "He was the prototype of what we mean when we talk about New Orleans jazz. The love and the prayers of all of our people go out to his family, and to all of those whose lives he touched. He was a teacher, a father, and an icon ... This loss cuts us deeply."

Marsaliss performances and recordings have been a feature of the jazz scene in New Orleans for decades, but he may be even better known as a teacher to generations of Crescent City stars.

In his days on the staff of the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, Xavier University and the University of New Orleans, Marsalis taught and tutored several future stars, including Terence Blanchard, Harry Connick Jr., Irvin Mayfield, Jesse Davis, Charlie Dennard, Victor Goines, Donald Harrison, Marlon Jordan and Paul Longstreth, as well as his renowned musical sons, Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo and Jason. Marsalis retired from UNO in 2001.

Marsalis initially learned to play the saxophone in high school but switched to piano as he studied classical music at Dillard University. Ironically, at the time, jazz was not an esteemed art form at the university.

"When I was in school, you could get expelled for playing jazz, " Marsalis recalled in a 2001 interview. "The dean would get a report that we were over there ruining pianos playing jazz on them.

After graduating in 1955, he became Xavier Prep high school band director, then enlisted in the Marines where he performed as part of the "Corps Four" band during his two-year stint. In 1956, Marsalis met his future wife Dolores Ferdinand at Lincoln Beach. Both were there to attend a Dinah Washington concert with friends. In 1959, they married.

In the 1960s, Marsalis was part of the house band at the Playboy Club in the French Quarter, before joining trumpeter Al Hirts band, then Bob Frenchs Storyville Jazz Band. During that period, he recorded with Cannonball and Nat Adderley.

Marsaliss career as a teacher began in the 1970s. He first became an adjunct professor at Xavier University, where he taught classes in African American music and jazz improvisation. He later attended graduate school at Loyola University on the GI Bill, then was hired to teach music, with an emphasis on jazz, at the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, the citys renowned arts magnet high school.

In addition to teaching, Marsalis remained a working musician, playing in the atrium of the Hyatt Regency hotel. Throughout his teaching career, Marsalis made his students aware of the long-term challenges of earning a living as a musician.

At the start of the 1980s, Marsalis left New Orleans temporarily for a teaching position at Virginia Commonwealth University but returned in 1989 to help establish the influential jazz studies program at UNO. His already unquestioned credibility grew with the continued successes of his superstar sons Wynton and Branford who shared Ellis Marsaliss influence with the world.

Marsaliss wife Dolores died in 2017. He is survived by his sons Branford, Wynton, Ellis III, Delfeayo, Mboya Kinyatta and Jason.

Four of the jazz patriarch's six sons are musicians: Wynton, trumpeter, is America's most prominent jazz spokesman as artistic director of jazz at New York's Lincoln Center. Branford, saxophonist, led The Tonight Show band and toured with Sting. Delfeayo, a trombonist, is a prominent recording producer and performer. And Jason, a percussionist, has made a name for himself with his own band and as an accompanist. Ellis III, who decided music wasn't his gig, is a photographer-poet in Baltimore.

"He went out the way he lived: embracing reality," Wynton tweeted, alongside pictures of his father.

"My dad was a giant of a musician and teacher, but an even greater father. He poured everything he had into making us the best of what we could be," Branford said.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Police said the Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorneys Office ruled in December that there would have been enough evidence to charge James Jimmy Edwards in the killing of Karen Lee Spencer of Huntington if he were alive. Some people thought the teen was the girls boyfriend.
China Aviation Daily | Apr. 03, 2020

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) held a press conference Thursday, where the aviation authority updated the public on the latest status of China's air transport industry under new policies issued earlier due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Here China Aviation Daily outlines the key highlights of this press conference.

Daily Domestic Capacity at 42% of Pre-Epidemic Average

China has seen a modest rebound in its daily domestic capacity, which has recovered to 42% of the average level before the COVID-19 outbreak, with 6,533 flights carried out daily in March, an increase of 20.5% compared to the last month. The passenger flights have resumed mainly in the northwest and southwest areas of China, where feature a relatively high concentration of migrant workers, and areas of eager labor demand, such as Yangtze river delta and the pearl river delta.

"First Points of Entry into China"

There were 106 flights re-adjusted by 7 airlines as of Apr. 1, after CAAC announced that all Beijing-bound international flights should be diverted to the " designated first points of entry into China" starting Mar. 20. These designated airports have handled a total of 24,651 inbound passengers, of which 20,665 passengers were stranded in their entering cities, a rate of about 84%. Among all "first points", the top 3 airports by the number of inbound international flights are Tianjin Binhai International Airport (31), Qingdao Liuting International Airport (15) and Hohhot Baita International Airport (14).

No More Than 134 Intl Flights Per Week

As China's international flights have now been limited to no more than 134 per week, there will be a total of only 108 flights into the country during the first week after Mar. 29, the effective start date of the government's new policy ordering international schedule cuts. The flights to be operated are mainly from 4 countries, namely United States, Thailand, Cambodia and Japan.

Airports in Hubei Resume Flights

All domestic flights have resumed operations in Hubei Province except for the Tianhe International Airport in Wuhan. As of Apr. 1, 4 airports in the cities of Yichang, Xiangyang, Shiyan and Enshi have handled a total of 26,624 passengers for 377 flights, of which 66% are outbound passengers and 34% are inbound passengers.

Increased Intl Air Freight Volume

The number of international cargo flights in China this week has reached 1,195, an increase of 17.85% compared to the pre-epidemic average of 1,014. There were 528 chartered cargo-only flights approved in March, which is about 4.47 times the number for the same period last year, and a quarter of the total number in 2019.

6 Incentives to Boast Cargo Capacity

- Continue reducing the international air freight cost.

- Simplify the approval process for cargo flights.

- Encourage airlines to operate cargo-only flights using passenger aircraft

- Adopt a "point to point" approach for cargo flights.

- Establish a precise connection mechanism between foreign trade enterprises and air transportation enterprises.

- Launch a major air transport guarantee mechanism and provide temporary flights or charter flights.
Lies, damned lies, and statisticspopularized by Mark Twain

As the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States surpasses 200,000 and the number of dead nears 5,000, increasingly sophisticated justifications are being made for the continued inadequacy of the federal governments response to the pandemic. One of the most recent is a study from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), which paints the massive outbreak in the country as nearly over, with two weeks to go until the worst is past.

The IHME paper, Forecasting COVID-19 impact on hospital bed-days, ICU-days, ventilator-days and deaths by US state in the next 4 months, was led by Chris Murray at the University of Washington in Seattle. Its main claim is that the resources needed to fight the spreading disease will peak on April 15. During this time, it estimates that there will only be 64,000 extra hospital beds needed nationally and only 15,000 ventilators. The paper also seeks to prepare its readers to expect some 84,000 deaths.

These figures contrast sharply with earlier estimates done by Londons Imperial College, as well as those by the White Houses own health officials. The former predicts 1.1 million dead in the United States even using its most optimistic scenario, while the latest minimum casualty estimates from Deborah Birx, the Coronavirus Task Force Response Coordinator, is 100,000 to 240,000.

The report also conflicts with the requests from cities around the country for 139,000 ventilators and millions of test kits and pieces of personal protective equipment, noted in the recent survey of 213 cities by the US Conference of Mayors. The IHME study tries to bury these and other grimmer predictions of the course of the coronavirus by stating that these projections imply that there would be millions of deaths in the United States, and claiming such models can overestimate health service need by not taking into account behavioral change and government-mandated action.

This has not stopped the Trump administration, including Birx, from seizing on the new report in an effort to downplay the seriousness of the pandemic. Birx herself yesterday noted that the task forces estimates had the same numbers as the ones in the IHME report. As a result, local and state health officials have also begun using this model to revise downward the number of deaths they will face while the national media has largely accepted this new account uncritically.

It is also being promoted to establish the justification for sending people back to work not when Trump originally proposed, after Easter Sunday, but by the first week of May. The IHME study is in line with the calls from both Trump himself and many from the corporate and financial elite to get America back to work, in order to continue generating billions in profits. The catastrophic number of lives that will be lost to the virus will just be the price of doing business.

The IHME is a project constructed at the University of Washington with approximately $400 million in ongoing funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Since its founding in 2007, it has faced criticism from many angles. After it published its first major study in 2010, the leading medical journal the Lancet editorialized that the IHME struggled to generate support, legitimacy, and acceptance for their findings.

A 2019 paper in the journal Global Policy examined the political connections of the IHME, and noted the growing conflict between the expertise and norms of national and intergovernmental statistical production on the one hand, and the distinct epistemologies and logics of new non-state data actors.  In the world of development, as indeed in other realms, measurement is never an innocent matter where as it were, the facts speak for themselves. With significant foresight, the paper notes that measuresare contested matters because they are linked withthe outcomes [institutions] aspire to.

Such statements are further borne out with a closer look at the study itself. While the estimated number of dead, for instance, is given as a 95 percent chance of being between 38,242 and 162,106, the estimations themselves are based on mathematical sophistry.

Here are the central unsupported assumptions of the IHME forecast:

That the curve of deaths, its early exponential rise, its inflection, and then its leveling out at its end result, is best modeled by the unexamined assumption that the rate at which the death rate first rises is precisely the same as the rate at which it later falls offand that it will fall offin each modeled state.

That the death rate rises, inflects, and falls in the same way that it did in Wuhan, with the same political decisions being madeisolating individuals within their homes, etc.at the same thresholds of deaths. From this they conclude that peak daily deaths will occur 27 days after the implementation of social distancing. There is no analysis of the differences in the Chinese response, which involved a massive effort to test and trace contacts of the infected as well as the harshly enforced quarantine of nearly 60 million people.

That the profound difference in approach between China and the US (and indeed, the major Western governments) is of little significance, that tracing the contacts of each case, testing and quarantining them either is not a defining epidemiological choice, or will naturally happen as thresholds are reached. The word tracing never occurs in the report, and testing is only mentioned to justify the use of death rates as the basis of modeling, not to critique the model as a whole.

The authors then conclude that if they are wrong, a major reason will be the question of adherence to social distancing mandates, whether it is fundamentally different in the US compared to Wuhan. In other words, if theyre wrong, its because the American working class isnt obeying, not because the measures taken are inadequate.

None of these assumptions survive a comparison with the reality of the European countries experience: Italy and Spain, which belatedly took heroic measures of isolation, have perhaps stabilized daily new cases, which continue at around 5,000 and 7,000 a day, respectively, but without widespread testing and tracing, have not demonstrated that this is adequate to begin a sustained drop in cases. It is too early to tell whether Germany, France and the UK have stabilized a growth in new cases with their measures to date. In any event, none shows the symmetric rapid Wuhan-like decline that marked the template to which US states are supposedly being fitted.

Nor, it must be mentioned, does the experience of New York City, Detroit, Seattle or New Orleans match the model. In each of these major metropolitan areas within the US, hospital systems are already disintegrating under the pressure of tens of thousands of cases. Even the IHMEs estimate of 84,000 deaths implies (at a 1 percent fatality rate) about 8.4 million cases nationally, a situation during which medical care in the US would essentially collapse.

The IHME report also does not address the fact that without testing and tracing, taken to the point of containment and then maintained, social isolation and major industrial closures must be maintained essentially indefinitely. Only one of two things would permit these to be relaxed long-term without exponential growth: widespread vaccination or an immunity purchased by near-universal infectionat immense cost in human life.

Workers must be on their guard. As the coronavirus crisis intensifies, more supposedly scientific studies will emerge attempting to justify a back-to-work order, claiming that the danger has passed.
Johannesburg: Some African countries will have more than 10,000 coronavirus cases by the end of April, health officials projected on Thursday, as the continent least equipped to treat serious infections braces for a healthcare tsunami.

Cases across Africa now stand at more than 6000, and the head of Africa Centres for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention, Dr John Nkengasong, has warned that the continent is "very, very close" to where Europe was 40 days into the pandemic.

The virus "is an existential threat to our continent," he said. All but five of Africa's 54 countries have cases, and local transmission has started. High rates of diabetes, HIV, tuberculosis and other co-morbidities that increase COVID-19 risk are also a concern.

Nkengasong said authorities are "aggressively" looking into procuring equipment such as ventilators, as well as local manufacturing options.
Texas A&M Internationals move to its Virtual Classroom has been seamless, according to the university. With the transition having gone well in the first week, the university announced changes for the remainder of the semester and the summer schedule Wednesday.

READ MORE: TAMIU psych professor asks for volunteers in global COVID-19 study

Our faculty transitioned courses to the Virtual Classroom in the space of a week, and weve seen a seamless transition with minimal glitches, TAMIU president Dr. Pablo Arenaz said in a release. Ive been able to view some of our facultys class deliveries and was truly impressed. Feedback from students has also been positive. In collaboration with our Office of Information Technology and our Instructional Technology team, I believe we have provided a solid response that can ensure our students continued success.

TAMIU made the transition to its Virtual Classroom as part of the universitys ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Arenaz also shared some additional changes the university will undergo due to the ongoing pandemic.

Like universities across the country, we realize that this change in course delivery and campus normalcy has been challenging for our students, Arenaz said. We will offer undergraduate students a credit/non-credit grading option for this spring. Students will have the ability to opt-in to this new grading option on a course-by-course basis.

TAMIU suggests that students reach out to their adviser to completely understand the changes and if there are any possible ramifications on their program study and future plans. TAMIU stated that this will be a one-time option.

Once a selection is made, it cannot be undone, Arenaz said.

The university will also extend its drop date to Thursday, April 23. This will also be the last date for students to decide to select their credit/non-credit grading option.

TAMIU has decided that all classes offered in the summer, including Maymester, will be delivered online in its Virtual Classroom. Registration for the universitys Maymester, summer and fall classes will begin on Monday.

A few lab classes will require face-to-face meetings, Arenaz said. But will only be conducted in strict adherence to CDC guidelines and all local, state and federal restrictions in place.

As with all institutions of higher education, this has been a time of tremendous change for the entire TAMIU community. As a community, together, TAMIU students, faculty and staff have proven their resilience and commitment to our mission and student success. The future is uncertain, but we are certain that the path forward can only be completed together.

READ MORE: TAMIU transitions to online classes, closes campus to the public amid coronavirus pandemic

As part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, TAMIUs campus will remain closed to the general public.
South Africa: Chartered flight denied entry into SA

A passenger that arrived in a private charter aircraft at OR Tambo International Airport has not been allowed to disembark, the Ministry of Transport said on Thursday.

At approximately 12:30pm on Wednesday, a private charter aircraft landed at OR Tambo International Airport from Harare, Zimbabwe, with one passenger on board, said the ministry.

The flight was not cleared by the Department of Transport as is required, in terms of the current protocols of the countrys 21-day lockdown.

The passenger and the crew were held at the airport whilst the airport sought guidance on how to handle the flight. Subsequently, a decision was made that the passenger, who is an Italian national, holding a South African passport, would not be allowed to enter the country.

The passenger initially refused to leave, but with the intervention of the South African Police Service (SAPS), the flight left South African airspace at 7:50pm, returning to Harare.

Minister Fikile Mbalula has called for a full investigation into the incident, and consequence management should any wrongdoing be found to have taken place.

The Department of Transport, working closely with its aviation entities, is reviewing the applicable protocols to ensure that only flights with necessary approval are allowed to enter the South African airspace.

This requires seamless co-ordination between the department, the Air Traffic Navigation Services and the Airports Company South Africa, the Ministry said. SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2020-04-02. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
(Photo : Screenshot from: Pexels Official Website)

An elusive large black hole was spotted by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope which was discovered to be 50,000 times the mass of the Sun and was seen tearing apart a wandering star in a distant galaxy.



Read Also: NASA Will Venture Into Space to Understand the Effect of the Sun's Radiation. Is this Something to Worry About?





The black hole was found 740 million light-years away from earth

Astronomers found this mid-sized, intermediate-mass black hole using the Hubble Space Telescope and their X-Ray observatories.

Scientists from The University of New Hampshire in Durham, UK said that this space object is about 50,000 times larger than the Sun and has been considered as a "missing link" to the universe's evolution.

They also said that it is larger than previous black holes that were created by the collapse of giant stars. At the same time, however, it is also smaller when compared to a supermassive black hole located at the center of the galaxy.

A black hole such as this can be found in other parts of the galaxy, unlike other giant black holes like the Sagittarius A* that can be found in the Milky Way and is considered to be a supermassive black hole. This particular black hole is can be difficult to find and spot. In this case, it was only spotted because of its relationship with a wayward star.

The research from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, the European Space Agency X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope led to this major discovery in the solar system.

The exact origin of the black hole is still blurry

According to DailyMail, Dacheng Lin of the University of New Hampshire stated that "Intermediate-mass black holes are very elusive objects, and so it is critical to carefully consider and rule out alternative explanations for each candidate." Lin, along with his team, used the Hubble to trace clues and hints.

High-energy satellites detected compelling and powerful x-ray flares, though it was not clear whether they originated and came from inside or outside our galaxy.

These scientists also pointed out that a star was torn apart by the black hole after approaching too close.

Natalie Webb, one of the members of a team at the Universite de Toulouse in France said that "Adding further X-ray observations allowed us to understand the total energy output and this helps us to understand the type of star that was disrupted by the black hole. The distant destroyer doesn't have an inspirational name - it was from an X-ray source called 3XMM J215022.4-055108 and wasn't found at the center of a galaxy."

They had to try and determine that this did not come from a neutron star--a dense remnant of an exploded star--which was just cooling off after being burned and heated at a very high temperature.

The research allowed astronomers to open the door to the possibility that there are a lot more massive and impressive objects that are lurking in the darkness of space.

Lin and his team will continue to study black holes as they arguably the most extreme environment known to humankind. They serve as a good testing ground when it comes to studying of laws of physics.

Read Also: Two More Astronauts Added to The List in SpaceX's Planned Flight To ISS

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The Gujarat government has



roped in primary school teachers to trace migrant workers and provide them free ration during the unprecedented lockdown in view of the coronavirus outbreak.

Teachers from government-run schools were called-in on Wednesday for door-to-door survey of villages to find the migrant workers there and inform about their whereabouts to the authorities concerned.

Lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus has turned into a humanitarian crisis as it resulted in exodus of migrant workers, who have lost their jobs and have been walking to their native places in the absence of any transportation facilities.

However, the government has been taking steps to stop their movement as of now.

A group of teachers on Wednesday went to every house in Chacharavadi Vasna village near the Ahmedabad-Rajkot highway here in the industrial cluster of Changador.

After surveying the village, the teachers found 14 families of migrant labourers hailing from different parts of the country and not having ration cards of Gujarat.

"We conducted survey of every house to find the poor families who do not have ration cards. Fourteen such families have been identified in the village and we have given the information to higher officials," a teacher of a government primary school in Chacharavadi Vasna said.

The list includes names of Anil Yadav and his wife, who came from Uttar Pradesh and used to sell a street snack outside a factory in the village.

"Those working in factories arethe responsibility of factory owners. We are identifying those not working in the organised sector and are on their own," said another teacher.

The Gujarat government has declared that it will provide one month's free ration to poor families, whose means of earnings have been affected due to the lockdown.

The ration per person will include 3.5 kg of wheat, 1.5 kg of rice, and one kg each of pulses, sugar and salt.

The state government had said the ration is being provided to migrant workers to contain their movement.

"Migrant labourers from other states as well as those form rural areas in Gujarat will also be provided free ration from fair price shops starting April 4 on the basis of lists prepared by the district administration so as to contain their movement,"chief minister's secretary Ashwani Kumar said.

They will be provided supplies under the state government's 'Ann Brahm' scheme, Kumar said, adding that the list of migrant labourers is being prepared with the help of primary school teachers.

A fund of Rs 40 crore has been allocated through which food and shelter will be provided to the migrant labourers in order to ensure they do not eave the state, he said.

Ahmedabad, which is one of the 10 COVID-19 hotspots identified in the country, has so far reported 31 cases of coronavirus and three deaths.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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AUBURN  A warehouse/office building at 813 44th St. N.W. in Auburn sold for a bit over $5.3 million, according to King County records.

The seller was an LLC related to DCT Industrial Trust of Denver, which acquired the land in 2013 for about $954,000, then developed it. DCT is now owned by Prologis.





. . .
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle need to pay out of their own pocket for their security personnel now that they have stepped down from their royal duties according to a recently published article.

The decision of Harry and Meghan to step down from their senior royal duties was not easy. They might face challenges along the way as they live financially independent. This also means that they will no longer enjoy royal entitlements and that includes payment for their security.

SECURITY OF PRINCE HARRY AND MEGHAN MARKLE

It is not a question as to why Harry and Meghan need heavily loaded security to keep them safe day and night. Since the couple lived together in Canada with their son and split their time between the United Kingdom and Canada, the Canadian and British taxpayers have been paying their 15 man security team.

However, the Canadian government already said that right after Prince Harry and Meghan step down from their senior royal duties, they will no longer finance the security of the couple. This means that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle must pay for it.

According to the royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams, Prince Harry will have a hard time to come up with the terms of the security and the payment will worry both Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

HOW MUCH MONEY NEEDED FOR THEIR SECURITY?

Harry and Meghan are high profile individuals. This means that they need highly trained security personnel who have the skills and abilities to protect them from any unprecedented events.

Based on the lavish lifestyle that Harry and Meghan have, it is estimated that the couple will be spending 4 million just in security alone. In a recently published article, the couple needs presidential like security every minute of the day.

It was also found that Harry and Meghan are now looking to finance their own team of former SAS guards to watch them inside and outside their home. It is estimated that each guard will cost them to pay 400 per operative a day.

Russell Stuart, the owner of the U.S. Security firm Force Protection Agency, said: "The US is a completely different place to Canada. There are more guns then there are people and just, in general, we have a higher level of crime which does make the move risky. Not that they couldn't be safe here, it's just a different environment."

He also added that there is nothing to worry about if Meghan will go back to acting in Hollywood because she will definitely be heavily guarded while she is in the studio. The problem is for Prince Harry who will be spending most of his time outdoor like jogging, eating in a restaurant, roaming around, and more.

With the activities of Harry outside their home, there is a need for heavy security who can protect the former Duke of Sussex from any unprecedented events. If he wanted to go anywhere like eating lunch, it would need heavy security.

Read related articles:
WINSTED, Minn., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- When times get hard, living in a small close-knit community can oftentimes have a huge advantage. In following in their late father Jerry Sterner's legacy for love and pride in his local community, the Stafford and Frank Sterner families, owners of SJF Material Handling Inc. in Winsted, MN, would like to begin a movement encouraging other local businesses to daily patronize local restaurants in and around their own community, in support of our neighbors and friends.

For as long as Minnesota's executive order restricting business operations is in effect, due to COVID-19, SJF will be purchasing lunches from different local restaurants in Winsted, Minnesota, for all SJF employees working on-site. Frank and Stafford's hope is that other businesses will follow suit and come together in their own communities to boost sales to local restaurants and businesses.

SJF is committed to doing everything possible to help our community family through this difficult time. At the same time, this movement also rewards employees for their hard work in continuing to keep essential businesses running smoothly.

SJF would like to encourage all businesses to show their support in this way and to work together to become an example to other communities to do the same. All businesses working together can make it through this difficult time and strengthen their own communities in the process.

About SJF Material Handling Inc.: SJF Material Handling Inc. specializes in buying and selling new and used material handling equipment. Products include pallet racks, cantilever racking, conveyors, carousels, forklifts, mezzanines, case and carton flow racks, industrial shelving and storage systems.

Contact:

SJF Material Handling Inc.

800-598-5532 or 320-485-4974

Photo(s):

https://www.prlog.org/12817123

Press release distributed by PRLog

SOURCE SJF Material Handling Inc.

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WASHINGTON, DCIt was President Donald Trump who finally, publicly at least, broke the logjam of an unfolding humanitarian nightmare.

We have to help the people, Trump said Wednesday evening, addressing the fate of the almost 1,200 passengers, including 147 Canadians, stranded at sea on the cruise ships Zaandam and Rotterdam. I mean, theyre dying. So we have to do something.

The sentiment may seem simple enough but it came after those on board the ships were refused help for weeks, after four passengers died and following reports that at some point as many as 200 passengers and crew were showing possible symptoms of COVID-19. At sea since March 7, the vessels had been refused by more than a dozen countries. Authorities in Fort Lauderdale, Florida this week said they didnt want them to dock, fearful the local health system would be overrun and the virus would spread.

We do not want to see people dumped in southern Florida right now, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said on Fox News Monday.

For a time it appeared this might turn into another Voyage of the Damned. Indeed, the history of the MS St. Louis, in which Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany were denied entry to both the U.S. and Canada before being turned back to Europe, was invoked by Florida Rep. Donna Shalala Thursday morning. We Americans dont turn people away. We did once, Shalala told CNN. We will never recover from that shame.

You can see the deep regret for that episode at both the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., and the Maritime Museum in Halifax. Reminders to both countries of the cruel indifference we are capable of in a crisis. Reminders to do better.

The message is echoed in the grave statues in Ireland Park on Torontos waterfront. The park commemorates the time in 1847, when the citys population was only 20,000, that the city accepted more than 38,000 refugees on ships fleeing the Irish potato famine. Many of them were stricken with typhus, a deadly disease.

The Toronto memorial is a reminder that such decisions carry a cost. More than 1,100 died if typhus on the shores of Lake Ontario, including the head of the citys newly created public health agency, many other local medical staff, and Michael Power, the Catholic bishop who had urged Toronto to take the refugees and who helped tend to them.

Then as now, there is no easy solution, as DeSantis said on Fox News Thursday morning. A day earlier Trump said hed spoken to DeSantis about the ships. We have to do something, and the governor knows that, too, he said. And on Fox News DeSantis announced a deal was close. I think we have a plan, he said, negotiated among the cruise ship operators at Holland America Line, the coast guard, and local Florida officials.

Details were still being ironed out Thursday afternoon, as ambulances lined the streets near the Fort Lauderdale port and passengers were advised to prepare to disembark. Late in the afternoon, the ships were granted permission to dock and at last an end to the fear and frustration was at hand for the passengers and their families.

Trump said foreign nationals were to be immediately flown home. We have Canada notified. A lot of Canadians, a lot of British on the ship. And theyre coming to take the people that are on the ship back to their homeland. Canada is coming. The UK is coming.

Global Affairs Canada said in a statement they were engaging with U.S. officials, to determine the docking details, and working with the cruise ship operator to co-ordinate travel for Canadian citizens back to Canada upon disembarkation.

Im going to do whats right not only for us but for humanity, Trump said about the ships at his briefing on Tuesday, expressing uncharacteristic moral clarity. It was a theme that continued Wednesday, just before the deal came together.

They dont want to take them, but we have to, from a humane standpoint. We dont have a choice, Trump said. We have to. People are dying.

Read more about:
Actress and talent manager Julie Bennett passed away, age 88, from complications related to the fast-spreading coronavirus pandemic while hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The Manhattan-born, LA-raised industry vet's talent agent and friend Mark Scroggs told People in a statement: 'She was definitely a personality and a throwback to Hollywood glamour.'

Bennett was perhaps best known for voicing the parasol-twirling Southern belle, Cindy Bear, the girlfriend of Yogi Bear in The Yogi Bear Show and its various spin-offs from 1961-1988.

RIP: Actress and talent manager Julie Bennett passed away, age 88, from complications related to the fast-spreading coronavirus pandemic while hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on Tuesday (pictured in 1949)

Julie also provided voicover for cartoon characters in The Bullwinkle Show, Quick Draw McGraw, Mr. Magoo, The Bugs Bunny Show, and Spider-Man: The Animated Series from 1997-1998.

The Beverly Hills High School grad also graced the small screen in Dragnet, Leave It to Beaver, Superman, Gunsmoke, and Love, American Style.

Additionally, Bennett made appearances on the New York stage as well as The Tonight Show, The Sid Caesar Show and multiple Bob Hope comedy specials.

The Manhattan-born, LA-raised industry vet's agent Mark Scroggs said in a statement: 'She was definitely a personality and a throwback to Hollywood glamour'

In the early nineties, Julie reinvented herself as Marianne Daniels and worked as a personal manager for new and established talent for over 20 years.

Bennett is survived by her 'mutually adopted family' - Carol, Nick and Mark Scroggs. Donations can be made in her memory to the Actors Fund.

As of Thursday, there have been 3,528 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles with 66 deaths, and California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a stay-at-home order on March 19 to slow the spread.
A nurse stands inside a tent with stocked medical supplies at a Samaritan's Purse Emergency Field Hospital in Cremona, near Milan, Italy, on March 20, 2020. (Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images)

US Dwarfs China in Contributions to International Bodies Responding to Pandemic, as Beijing Touts Relief Efforts

The Trump administration is focused on countering the disinformation from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak, and is spreading news about U.S. humanitarian efforts, a state department official recently said.

To deflect blame over its initial mismanagement of the CCP virus outbreak, the Chinese regime has embarked on a concerted disinformation campaign to posit the unfounded theory that the virus did not originate in China, and may have even come from the United States.

On top of this, the CCP has sought to brand itself as a humanitarian leader amid global response efforts, touting its provision of experts and medical supplies to virus-hit countries around the world. Much of the medical equipment sent overseas have been exports rather than donations.

But the United States is working on combating both aspects of this campaign by calling out the disinformation while also highlighting its own humanitarian efforts, state department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said on March 31.

The best way to counter disinformation, in my opinion, is the good news story that actually exists, Ortagus said at a virtual panel discussion hosted by the Atlantic Council.

We often forget that the American people remain the single most generous bloc of people around the world.

In early February, U.S. nonprofits and companies donated 17.8 tons of medical supplies to China, a shipment that was facilitated by the State Department.

The United Statess contributions to international organizations vital to global COVID-19 response efforts have also dwarfed Chinese contributions, Ortagus pointed out.

For instance, U.S. contributions to the World Health Organization, the body coordinating the global response to the crisis, in 2019 exceeded $400 million, almost double the second largest member state contribution. In contrast, China contributed $44 million, according to a press release by the department.

We are by far the largest contributors to organizations like the UN Childrens Fund and the World Food Program because we believe in effective multilateralism that is focused on helping those in need, not scoring political points, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in the release.

The United States also contributed more than $700 million in 2019 to the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF), another organization providing aid to the Chinese people amid the outbreak. China, meanwhile, contributed $16 million that year.

Last week, the State Department announced the United States has made available nearly $274 million in emergency health and humanitarian funding to help at-risk countries with responding to the pandemic.

When American provides assistance it does so out of goodwill, Ortagus said. Theres no nefarious intentions behind that aid.

Meanwhile, the Chinese regimes humanitarian efforts in the crisis have recently come under scrutiny as several countries returned faulty medical equipment, such as masks and test kits, purchased from Chinese manufacturers. Others have criticized such measures as a means for Beijing and Chinese businesses to enhance its influence across Europe.

A July 2019 congressional report said that the CCPs has used its aid and humanitarian program to enhance its military capabilities and advance its political agenda.
Socialite Pretty Mike has again taken to his IG page to again speak on the COVID 19 pandemic ravaging the world.

The club owner in his post wrote on how everything in life is vanity as with the pandemic all the riches and affluence many have, are of no use anymore.

Read Also: COVID-19: It Is Not The Time To Blame Govt, It Is Time To Pray  Pretty Mike

In his words;

Emptiness and Vanity!

Our cars are just parked there, no where to go to. The private jets are lying in waste, air spaces are all shut, every country nursing its citizens and fighting an unseen tiny enemy.

Each man is confined to a room in those big mansions and the designers; clothes, bags, shoes, perfumes and make-up kits have all become useless and serving no purpose.

No more urgent appointments and business meetings that deprive us of time with God and family.

No parties to attend and hangouts to meet up with friends, no more convoys and sirens, even the money stocked away in the accounts and soak aways are useless Even our expansive and expensive church auditoriums are empty, it is now each man with his God in truth and in spirit.

All we need today is food and air to breathe, we just want to be alive. Nothing else is really important.

This world has never been vanity as it is today!

Good news is; we all have one more chance to introspect, to reflect and ask yourself why does God need to keep me alive through this? To marry or buy new cars or perhaps finish my doctorate or bachelors degree?

What is my purpose in life now and after Covid-19?

Why does God need to spare me and allow others die?

Of what value am I to humanity and to God and His kingdom that should make God to spare me?

Let us pray and repent and seek a more purposeful living after Covid-19.

Covid-19 is just a tip of what is to come if you miss rapture!

#StayHomeStaySafe

#DoYourPartStaySafe

#GodWillHealOurLand
PM to order national nightly curfew: reports

PHUKET: Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha tonight will address the nation to announce a nightly curfew throughout the country from 10pm to 4am to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

COVID-19Coronavirushealth

By The Phuket News

Thursday 2 April 2020, 04:32PM

PM Prayut is address the nation at 6pm tonight (Apr 2). Photo: Post Today

The prime minister is to announce the curfew in a national broadcast at 6pm, reports Post Today. (See here.)



The curfew is to come into effect tomorrow (Apr 3), said the report.



The news comes as Dr Taweesin Visanuyothin, spokesman for the Center for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) at Government House, today refused to deny the impending curfew.



Please, all people stay tuned to their televisions, because as I said, the Prime Minister is concerned for all people. We have implemented many measures to prevent the disease from spreading, but they have not significantly decreased the number of infections. There is more we can do, he said.



From the beginning, the Prime Minister has spoken of introducing increasingly harsher emasures. Therefore we ask the people to follow the announcement on TV in order to be informed and cooperate.



We must seal ourselves together as one. The prime minister will come to ask for cooperation from the people from you, Dr Taweesin said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 00:12:37|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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NAIROBI, April 1 (Xinhua)--The African Development Bank (AfDB) said Wednesday it has approved around 208 million Kenyan shillings (about 2 million U.S. dollars) in emergency assistance for the World Health Organization (WHO) to strengthen its capacity to help African countries contain the COVID-19 pandemic and mitigate its impacts.

AfDB said WHO Africa region will use the funds to bolster the capacity of 41 African countries on infection prevention, testing and case management.

"This grant will enable regional member countries to put in place robust containment measures within 48 hours of COVID-19 case confirmation and also support the WHO Africa region to disseminate information and increase public awareness in communities," the Bank's human capital youth and skills development department said in a statement.

The lender said the assistance, which is in response to an international appeal by the WHO, will be used by the world body to equip regional member countries to prevent, rapidly detect, investigate, contain and manage detected cases of COVID-19.

It said the assistance is one part of several AfDB interventions to help member countries address the pandemic which, though slow to arrive in Africa, is spreading quickly and is straining already fragile health systems.

"WHO Africa will also boost surveillance systems, procure and distribute laboratory test kits and reagents, and support coordination mechanisms at national and regional levels," said AfDB.

It said the grant will contribute toward a 50-million-dollar WHO Preparedness and Response Plan, which other partners including the United Nations system, are also supporting.

It is estimated that Africa will require billions of dollars to cushion the impact of the disease as many countries scramble together contingency measures, including commercial lockdowns, in efforts to contain it.

AfDB said it will unveil a financial assistance package that will enable governments and businesses to undertake flexible responses to lessen the economic and social impact of this pandemic.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Look, we all know basing anything on a tweet from President Donald Trump is a fraught exercise. But oil prices jumped as much as 24% on the back of this on Thursday, so needs must:

Get the obvious out of the way. I expect & hope, maybe, and if it happens are not caveats to be ignored, especially coming from the president who oh-so-recently said coronavirus would disappear like a miracle. Initial reports from Saudi Arabia and Russia certainly came across a little more tempered about what had (or hadnt) been agreed. We can assume that the tweets 10 Million Barrels (and subsequent 15 Million) figure is probably supposed to be 10-15 million barrels a day, although one cant entirely rule out the possibility of MBS (Crown Prince) simply throwing out a large-sounding number and then saying sorry DJT (President), youre breaking up; try lat-.

So, as often these days, its necessary to hold at least two realities in ones head at once. One is that Trump misheard, jumped the gun, was misled, or  and I hope youre sitting down for this  wasnt being wholly truthful. In that case, lets hope you timed your trade well on Thursday.

If, on the other hand, we assume Trump did manage to secure an agreement of a big supply cut from Saudi Arabia and Russia, then the obvious question is: What could he offer in return?

For Russia, the obvious candidate would be relief from sanctions, both existing ones related to the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and potential further sanctions lurking in Congress. This seems highly unlikely, though. Venezuela remains a point of friction between the White House and the Kremlin. Meanwhile, Trump will be relying on Congress to pass stimulus measures this side of November, and efforts by the White House to ease up on Russia could provide the impetus for Congress actually tightening sanctions on Moscow.

For Saudi Arabia, Trump could offer reassurance on general U.S. support, which has looked more and more ambivalent for at least a decade, especially given the tepid U.S. response to Septembers attack on Abqaiq. He might also offer to play good cop versus the growing crowd of bad cops in Congress calling for punitive tariffs or legislation against Saudi Arabia. Like sanctions with Russia, though, these dont seem to rise to the level of getting Saudi Arabia to reverse course and chop millions of barrels a day from its oil production.

Story continues

Possibly, the reality  theres that word again  is more prosaic and lies somewhere in between.

Theres an implacable mathematical problem confronting all oil producers: The world will soon run out of places to store excess barrels. Trading house Trafigura now estimates 35 million barrels a day  or one-third  of global oil demand has disappeared amid Covid-19 related distancing. When storage maxes out, oil prices will crash further. That will wreak havoc on frackers, but will also accelerate the burn rate on Russias and Saudi Arabias financial reserves. When refiners stop taking all that crude oil, production will be cut anyway.

Far better for Moscow and Riyadh to do that in the context of a grand bargain, especially if, as some in the oil industry are calling for, the U.S. agrees to contribute some cuts of its own. To be clear, U.S. oil production will start dropping after the summer anyway. But if oil is to avoid hitting the storage wall, then deep cuts would have to begin almost immediately; as Kevin Book of ClearView Energy Partners put it to me on Thursday: Tweets travel at the speed of light; barrels move at 10 knots. Trump, never a market purist, would no doubt love to play the dealmaker and earn brownie points with oil producing states (and donors) while hes at it. Beware, though: Numbers viewed in a tweet can appear larger than they actually are.

Similarly, Putin and Prince Mohammed bin Salman derive a great deal of prestige from acting as power-brokers. Strutting the global stage offers one way of masking the fundamental weaknesses of their respective petro-states. The timing also shouldnt be lost on anyone: With Saudi Arabia due to set official selling prices for May sales any day now, a bump to oil benchmarks on the back of a presidential tweet and talk about talks offer a reasonable return on a small investment.

For those very same reasons, the U.S. shouldnt be jumping into such a deal at all (see this). Yet with a further oil crash looming, and political goodies to be derived from being seen to take control, theres a performative aspect to all this that holds great allure for three practiced performers.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Liam Denning is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering energy, mining and commodities. He previously was editor of the Wall Street Journal's Heard on the Street column and wrote for the Financial Times' Lex column. He was also an investment banker.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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Fourteen persons, including 11 Bangladeshis, who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area and kept in an isolation facility here have tested negative for coronavirus, officials said on Thursday.

"Sample of these 14 were sent to Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi. In the report they have tested negative for coronavirus," Chief Medical Officer Dr Lakshmi Singh said.

Singh said besides the 14, three other samples were also sent, the report of which are awaited.

Superintendet of Police Ram Badan Singh said besides the 14, FIR has been registered against seven persons who facilitated their stay in Bhadohi without informing the authorities.

Three Indians along with 11 Bangladeshi nationals, who were on tourist visa, came to Bhadohi on March 4 after attending the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin area.

No information was provided by them or by the organisers in this regard. The Bangladeshi nationals were openly flouting visa norms by roaming and propagating religion, he said.

A large number of delegates, including from Indonesia and Malaysia, attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi last month.

"The 11 Bangladeshi nationals started from Dhaka on February 27 and reached Delhi's Hazrat Nizammudin Markaz. From there, 14 persons arrived in Bhadohi and were staying at a guest house. In the past 25 days, these persons met many people," the SP said.

"They also held religious gatherings at a mosque in Kajipur which were attended by hundreds of people," he said.

Meanwhile, in Shahjahanpur district, 11 persons including 9 foreigners were put in quarantine.

"Eleven persons including ninepersons from Thailand and two from Tamil Nadu have been put in a quarantine facility. Their samples have been sent for testing," Principal, state medical college Abhay Singh said.

Superintendent of Police, Shahjahanpur, Pravin Singh said these people were staying at a guest house here and were found during checking by the police.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Express News Service

KALABURAGI: Next 36 hours would be crucial to Karnataka as the result of samples of throat-swab tests conducted on the people who visited Delhis Nizamuddin Markaz would start coming in large number.

Confirming this, Central Nodal Officer of COVID-19 of Karnataka Subodh Yadav who is also a senior IAS officer said that the result of the throat-swab tests of 11 persons of Bidar who visited Nizamuddin Marzat came on Thursday morning. Results of more tests of throat-swab samples would be available by Thursday evening and almost all results would be available by Friday. It would be known whether the COVID-19 has entered the third stage only after getting results samples of throat-swab sample tests of the persons who visited Nizamuddin Markaz and of other persons who have returned from abroad and were having symptoms of COVID-19, Subodh Yadav said.

To a question, Subodh Yadav declined to give correct figure of the people from Karnataka who have visited Nizamuddin Markaz. However, he said that the state government has enough information on the persons who visited Nizamuddin Markaz. From Tuesday itself the district administrations of all the districts have started taking steps of putting the persons who have visited Nizamuddin Markaz under home and institution quarantine and sending samples of throat-swab of the persons having symptoms of CoVID-19 for testing in VRDL situated in different places.

The Deputy Commissioners of all the districts have requested all the persons repeatedly to inform their respective district administrations about their visit to Nizamuddin Markaz and follow the instructions of the district administration, Subodh Yadav said.

He requested the people not to be panic as both Central and State government were ready to tackle any situation to control spread of COVID-19.
The National Commission for Women has received over 250 complaints since the country-wide lockdown was imposed to control the spread of coronavirus out of which 69 were cases of domestic violence, which it said has been increasing since then. .

Since the lockdown was imposed, a total of 257 complaints related to various offences against women were received, out of which 69 complaints are related to domestic violence, the data released by the NCW showed. . NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma said the number of cases of domestic violence must be much higher but the women are ...
Both the Islamic State group and al-Qaida see the coronavirus as a threat, but some of their fighters also see the upheaval from the pandemic as an opportunity to win over more supporters and strike harder than before.

Messages from the Islamic extremist groups show concern about the virus mixed with bravado, asserting that it is punishment for non-Muslims while also urging followers to repent and take care of themselves.

Al-Qaida suggested in a statement Tuesday that non-Muslims use their time in quarantine to learn about Islam. But in a sharp commentary in its al-Naba newsletter in mid-March, IS urged followers to show no mercy and launch attacks in this time of crisis.

In a commentary Tuesday, the International Crisis Group warned that the pandemic threatens the global solidarity that is key to fighting extremists, allowing the jihadists to better prepare spectacular terror attacks.

Though analysts said it was too soon to say which attacks can be blamed on militants exploiting the coronavirus, Islamic extremists in late March carried out their deadliest assault yet against the military of Chad, a significant contributor to Africas growing counterterrorism efforts, killing at least 92 soldiers near the border with Nigeria and Niger.

In Egypt, two military officials reported a spike in IS attacks in March in the restive northern part of the Sinai Peninsula. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

While Syria and Iraq have seen no uptick in attacks by IS since the virus spread there, the pandemic has prompted the U.S.-led coalition to halt training activities in Iraq amid a planned pullout from several bases.

There are signs elsewhere that the U.S., British and other militaries are pulling back because of the virus, leaving a possible opening for the extremists.

Thats a danger in Africas hot spots of the Sahel, the Lake Chad region and Somalia, where the U.S. military already worried allies in recent months by contemplating cuts to focus on threats from China and Russia.

Any state that was interested in pulling back in Africa will take the opportunity to do so, said Clionadh Raleigh, executive director of the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, which tracks extremists activities worldwide. That will be unbelievably bad.

A U.S. Africa Command spokeswoman, Lt. Christina Gibson, told The Associated Press that while the size and scope of some AFRICOM activities have been adjusted to ensure the safety and protection of forces  both U.S. and partner nation  our commitment to Africa endures. She did not give details but said about 5,200 forces are on the continent.

The British army mission in Kenya, which provides counterterrorism training and other skills, this week announced that all army families are returning to the U.K. because of the virus.

But Frances largest overseas military mission, Barkhane in West Africas sprawling Sahel region south of the Sahara Desert, is keeping its 5,100 troops there, the French Defense Ministry said.

Four French soldiers with Barkhane have tested positive for the coronavirus, a spokesman said Thursday, adding that operations have not been affected. They were the first in the mission to be infected.

African military units, already stretched thin and under attack, are likely to take protective measures as the virus threatens their ranks.

In Nigeria, which has struggled against the Boko Haram extremist group and an assertive IS-linked offshoot, the military has called for suspending much of its activities including large gatherings and training.

A leaked memo signed by Nigerian armys policy chief says its vehicles might have to be used for mass burials or transferring the sick to hospitals.

While security forces are targets, under-guarded prisons could be too, said Laith Alkhouri, a counterterrorism adviser who researches extremists in West Africa. Both IS and al-Qaida-linked fighters have turned the Sahel into Africas most urgent extremism crisis, and even have engaged in some unprecedented cooperation.

Their fighters are likely to exploit the pandemic by accusing governments of mismanaging the crisis to try to win popular support, he said.

Some extremist groups are showing signs that, like the rest of the world, they are trying to understand the coronavirus and respond.

In Somalia, the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab held a rare five-day meeting of its leaders in March that discussed the virus. In a communique, the group recognized its emergency threat to the world, including Muslims.

An al-Shabab spokesman later told the AP it was too soon to comment on whether the group would heed a U.N. plea to halt attacks, which have continued, or whether it would allow health workers access to areas it controls.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban have gone even further, putting out videos on disinfection and photos of its fighters handing out face masks and soap. It also has offered security guarantees to any aid group assisting victims of the virus or helping to stop its spread.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed told the AP that if, God forbid, the outbreak happens in an area where we control the situation, then we can stop fighting in that area.

(Image: AP)
The municipal corporations (MC) contact tracing team on Thursday quarantined 84 people who attended a religious gathering in Sector 27 on March 19 where former Golden Temple hazoori raagi Bhai Nirmal Singh Khalsa was present.

A Padma Shri awardee, 67-year-old Bhai Nirmal Singh was diagnosed with Covid-19 on March 31 after he returned from abroad and complained of breathlessness. He died on Thursday.

With his death, Covid-19 deaths in Punjab rose to five.

On March 19, Singh was present at a large gathering at the Sector 27 residence of a banquet hall owner, it was learnt. After being alerted by the Amritsar health authorities about the Bhai Nirmal Singhs presence at the city, the Chandigarh contact tracing team started contacting people who attended the event.

We have quarantined 84 contacts, who attended the religious ceremony, including 14 members of one house in Sector 27 and others in Sectors 18, 33, 36, said a senior MC official.

Four houses in Sector 27-A have been quarantined.

A person living near the banquet hall owners house said, On March 19 there was a roka ceremony of the owners son. Thats why a kirtan was held and the raagi called.

The owner owns a banquet hall in Mohali and is also an office bearer of the Association of Banquet Halls, Mohali.

What health authorities were concerned about was that a number of events had been organised for the wedding. A ladies sangeet was held a day after the kirtan, which was followed by the wedding. There were numerous functions which a number of people attended. The house and roads were blocked with vehicles, said another neighbour.

After she heard about the raagis death another woman living close to the banquet hall owners house called up the police to inform them about the wedding. A former judicial officer residing in their neighbourhood had advised them to postpone the wedding, but as their (home owners) children had come from abroad, they couldnt change plans at the last moment, the neighbour said.
While a bride spends months and months planing every detail of her big day, nothing could prepare her for an international pandemic.

Like most businesses, the wedding industry is struggling right now, with couples having to postpone or cancel their nuptials amid coronavirus spread concerns.

But brands like Anne Barge, Pronovias and Berta are taking the necessary steps to adapt to the new normal. FEMAIL reveals what bridal companies are doing to stay afloat during COVID-19.

Worse than rain: While a bride spends months and months planing every detail of her big day, nothing could prepare her for an international pandemic. Pictured: Wona

Bridal bliss: Brands like Anne Barge (pictured), Pronovias and Berta are taking the necessary steps to adapt to the new normal.

SUPPORTING ONE ANOTHER

In an effort to support local boutiques and salons around the country, the Anne Barge team meets virtually every week with its retailers for 'Wedding Wine Wednesdays' via Zoom.

The hour is hosted by Anne Barge president and creative director, Shawne Jacobs, and covers different topics to address a variety of questions and concerns that the industry is facing during the COVID-19 outbreak.

'What we need to do is to keep doing what we have always done, focusing on our customer, understand what the bride needs and dreams of, with the intent to come back stronger than ever,' said Pronovias Group CEO, Amandine Ohayon.

'The main challenge in this crisis is that most, if not all weddings are being postponed,' says Nir Moscovich, Director of the Berta fashion house.

'It requires a significant financial breathing room for manufacturers and retailers, as the most important thing of all is to be flexible and patient with brides that are caught in the middle of this situation.

'They are the ones we are all here to serve, and they must remain top of mind when we address all steps and measures that are taken during this crisis.'

The designer further explains that the wedding industry is cyclical with high and low seasons. 'This current crisis can be seen as an extension of a given low season, that was abnormally stretched. It's still a challenge no doubt, but given that this crisis will not last more than 3-4 months, the effect on the bridal industry should not be that harsh.'

Better late than never: 'The main challenge in this crisis is that most, if not all weddings are being postponed,' says Nir Moscovich, Director of the Berta fashion house. Pictured: jolie. a division of Berta

The future: Anomalie is the only wedding dress retailer that is fully online

DIY: Soon-to-be brides can design their dream dress on Anomalie's website with the assurance that they will receive it or their money back, and then some

IMPLEMENTING DIGITAL SOLUTIONS

'Like in all industries, brands are readapting and changing their strategies to the exceptional moment we are living,' says Amandine of Pronovias.

'We need to be more digital than ever, being present through our websites and social media channels, being able to connect emotionally and interact with brides during this lockdown time.'

Ranu Coleman, CMO for Azazie agrees. 'With the effects of the Coronavirus, now is the time for the industry to embrace technology and provide a seamless experience for their customers online.

Anomalie is the only wedding dress retailer that is fully online.

Soon-to-be brides can design their dream dress on their computers with the assurance that they will receive it or their money back, and then some.

With news around bridal store closures, Anomalie wants to ease brides worries by offering a guarantee that all dresses will be delivered a month before the wedding, or they will refund 1.5x the price of the gown.

Theyve actually seen a 25% increase in signups the past few weeks.

Money back: With news around bridal store closures, Anomalie wants to ease brides worries by offering a guarantee that all dresses will be delivered a month before the wedding, or they will refund 1.5x the price of the gown

In it together: In an effort to support local boutiques and salons around the country, the Anne Barge team meets virtually every week with its retailers for 'Wedding Wine Wednesdays' via Zoom

'The bridal industry has been impacted greatly by the pandemic and it is more vital than ever for smart, interactive and elevated experiences to be provided,' said Revae Norvell, Director of Customer Experience at Evening Collective.

'Facilities will need to get creative with virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) so that brides will feel like they're still getting personalized attention and not missing out on any details just because they cant physically view their venues.'

The bridal e-tailer is encouraging bridal parties to connect with each other in their Virtual Showroom. It's like House Party for bridesmaids!

The interface allows shoppers the ability to shop 42 gorgeous styles, be interactive safely from home and have samples sent directly to their door.

Azazie also offers sample dresses for women to try on in the comfort of their own homes, and every gown is made-to-order. Their industry-exclusive virtual showroom allows brides to remain organized and collaborative with their bridesmaids.

Ukrainian bridal and luxury fashion label, Wona, has their professional stylists available on their site, as well as all their dresses with detailed pictures and videos.

At your service: Ukrainian bridal and luxury fashion label, Wona , has their professional stylists available on their site, as well as all their dresses with detailed pictures and videos.

'The bridal industry has been impacted greatly by the pandemic and it is more vital than ever for smart, interactive and elevated experiences to be provided,' said Revae Norvell, Director of Customer Experience at Evening Collective (pictured)

Just like walking into a store: 'Facilities will need to get creative with virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) so that brides will feel like they're still getting personalized attention and not missing out on any details just because they cant physically view their venues'

Don't do anywhere: Azazie offers sample dresses for women to try on in the comfort of their own homes, and every gown is made-to-order. Their industry-exclusive virtual showroom allows brides to remain organized and collaborative with their bridesmaids

Power in numbers: Wedding Wine Wednesdays is an hour long weekly chat that covers different topics to address a variety of questions and concerns that the industry is facing during the COVID-19 outbreak

SUGGESTING ALTERNATIVES

'Nearly all couples (96%) are postponing their celebrations rather than canceling altogether, said Lauren Kay, Executive Editor, The Knot.

'We know this can be an emotional time for to-be-weds, so we recommend couples be flexible and patient when connecting with their vendors.

'As many popular Saturday wedding dates may already be booked for fall, we recommend couples explore weekdays, like a Monday, for their celebrations.

'It may be more likely that their entire vendor team will be available during the week.'

Many brides are not wanting to wait too long to walk down the aisle. 'Most spring weddings will be happening this fall or winter,' explained Amandine of Pronovias.

'Brides will need to re-adapt their dream wedding dress to the colder season, meaning that they will have to find additional accessories like capes or jackets to have the perfect outfit for their special day on that time of the year.'

Galia Lahav believes Plan B can be even better. 'We think in every challenge there's an opportunity. Brides to be should focus on the advantage of having to change their original plans,' says the celebrity adored luxury designer.

'For example, why not turn your wedding into a two-part celebration? Do an intimate event at home, or share your ceremony in a video to friends at home and then host a big party and enjoy two exciting memories and not just one.'

Postponing: 'Most spring weddings will be happening this fall or winter,' explained Amandine of Pronovias.

Add a layer: 'Brides will need to re-adapt their dream wedding dress to the colder season, meaning that they will have to find additional accessories like capes or jackets to have the perfect outfit for their special day on that time of the year'

Be safe: Winnie Couture just launched the Haute Mask collection, protective wedding wear for engaged couples amid this worldwide outbreak

Glamour: 'Haute Mask was created to allow brides to stay safe without having to sacrifice their dream look

For a cause: 'Our hearts go out to all of the frontline healthcare professionals, as 100% of Haute Mask proceeds are being donated to Direct Relief '

GIVING BACK

'It is also very important to be agents of change in the current crisis and show how companies in our industry are also support for global and local communities, shared the CEO of Pronovias.

Pronovias Group launched the Heroes Collection initiative, donating wedding dresses to those brides-to-be fighting the pandemic on the frontlines of this battle. From doctors and nurses to janitors and cafeteria staff, all hospital employees quality.

Winnie Couture just launched the Haute Mask collection, protective wedding wear for engaged couples amid this worldwide outbreak.

'It all started two weeks ago when we saw pictures of brides around the globe getting married with no options but to wear standard face masks on their special day, and we knew we had to take action,' said Winnie Chlomin Lee, Co-Founder and Creative Director of Winnie Couture.

'We were already making hand-sewn cloth masks with filter pockets for our medical heroes when we realized that we could do more to help our brides as well.'

The collection features four unique styles that are handcrafted with couture fabrics and embellished with elements like crystals and lace.

'Haute Mask was created to allow brides to stay safe without having to sacrifice their dream look. Our hearts go out to all of the frontline healthcare professionals, as 100% of the proceeds are being donated to Direct Relief.'

Anomalie launched their 'Face Mask Project' to deliver CDC-certified face masks to US hospitals for front-line healthcare workers.

'The Knot created a Vendor Assistance Program consisting of financial assistance, ongoing education, and new products and services to support our local advertising partners,' shared the site's Executive Editor.

'As part of this program, we established $10 million in financial assistance to help our local wedding professionals impacted by this crisis with their advertising payments. In addition, The Knot Worldwide has also launched a COVID Center on our B2B brand, WeddingPros, blog.

'The resource area outlines government stimulus packages that are in place or near final, and weve had our team of internal lawyers, paired with external experts, comb through the bills to summarize and translate what this means for our vendors we work with across the country.'

To show gratitude to all of the health heroes who have dedicated themselves to helping our communities in need, Anne Barge will be launching the Health Hero Program.

This program will offer a 20% discount on all wedding gowns for healthcare workers from participating retailers. This initiative will extend through December 2021.

Never before seen: As a separate and independent brand under the BERTA fashion house, jolie. will become available soon
BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China has taken a series of measures to protect the health of Chinese living or studying abroad while stemming potential import of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), an aviation official said Thursday.

China has arranged nine special flights, three from Italy and six from Iran, to bring 1,466 Chinese citizens home between March 4 and 26, said Lyu Erxue, deputy head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC).

From Iran alone, the special flights flew back 976 Chinese citizens, most of whom were Chinese students, he said, noting that the fourth such flight taking off from Italy is scheduled to bring back 180 Chinese citizens to the eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou.

Another plane has departed from Shanghai for London Thursday morning to ferry 180 overseas Chinese students home, the first such flight orchestrated for Chinese citizens in the United Kingdom, according to Lyu.

For Chinese citizens who remained abroad, 116 tonnes of health supplies have been delivered to Chinese embassies and consulates in seven countries including Italy, the United States, France and the United Kingdom as of Wednesday, with the rest of the 300-tonne supplies bound for 12 countries to be delivered before April 10, according to Lyu.

To minimize the risk of imported cases, the CAAC said it sought to keep international flights per week under 134, including necessary ones to carry Chinese studying or living aborad back home.

As of Wednesday, the CAAC has organized 178 planes to send 100 medical experts and workers, as well as more than 2,635 tonnes of supplies to 40 countries worldwide to help fight the pandemic.
New Delhi, April 2 : The Home Ministry on Thursday exempted from lockdown norms the transit arrangements for foreign nationals in India and release of those quarantined after they arrived in India after February 15.

The Ministry allowed the exemption in a fresh addendum to the 21-day nationwide lockdown imposed since March 24 midnight to contain spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

As per the addendum, "transit arrangements for foreign nationals in India and release of quarantined persons, who have arrived in India after February 15, after expiry of their quarantine period and being tested Covid- 19 negative" have been exempted from the lockdown measures.

This is the third addendum in continuation to the Ministry of Home Affairs' earlier guidelines in exercise of the powers, conferred under the Disaster Management Act during the lockdown.

The move comes after the Home Ministry was apprised of presence of several foreign nationals stranded in different parts of the country, and requests from foreign governments for evacuation of their nationals.
The impact of the coronavirus crisis on the agriculture sector is likely to increase in the coming days.

The Government issued the warning as it holds discussions with the EU on how best to support the sector.

A helpline has been set up for farmers to get information on supports available.

60% of Ireland's beef exports are for food services.

Agriculture Minister Michael Creed said demand has been badly hit abroad:

"Food services, fast food joints, restaurants, hotels, and to be honest that has virtually collapsed across all of our major markets," he said.

"So there is a real challenge there. There has been some consequent increase in the retail side but not at an order of magnitude that would compensate for what we are losing in those markets.

Meanwhile, retailers have been urged not to reduce the price they are paying meat processors for beef.

Farming group Beef Plan said it would be an important step in ensuring food supply chains are maintained during the current pandemic.

Yesterday Tesco announced it would continue paying processors the same price it paid for beef in January, pre-Covid-19.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:22:49|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China will seek further opening-up and upgrade of foreign trade and investment, the hardest-hit sectors amid the global pandemic of COVID-19, to offset its economic shock, according to Zhong Shan, the country's commerce minister.

Despite the pandemic, China, instead of closing its door, will open wider to the outside world, which would translate into strong support for the two sectors, Zhong wrote in an article published on Qiushi Journal, a flagship magazine of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.

Disrupted global supply chain, volatility in global capital markets and a massive oil price tumble has fueled risk of a global economic crisis, weighing on both the supply and demand side of China's foreign trade and investment, which plays a significant role in ensuring supplies and creating new jobs, said the minister.

In the face of the stress, China would work to streamline clearance procedures, improve logistic service and advance free trade agreement negotiations to strengthen trade, Zhong said.

He also underscored innovation and upgrade in the foreign trade sector, pledging to nurture new business models, including cross-border e-commerce and market procurement trade, as well as expedite transformation and upgrading of service outsourcing.

The import and export value of cross-border e-commerce in the first two months surged 36.7 percent to 17.4 billion yuan (about 2.45 billion U.S. dollars), unleashing great potential amid the epidemic, he said.

To facilitate foreign investment, China will shorten the negative list on foreign investment, further open up the service sector including the financial industry, and improve China's business environment, Zhong said.

He also called for sound preparation for the China International Import Expo and China Import and Export Fair to improve the international marketing network.

Zhong said the downward pressure may only be short-lived and controllable, and China is confident in and capable of managing the COVID-19 impact and stabilizing the foreign trade and investment, which would contribute to building an open world economy and a community with a shared future for humanity.




Exploiting the chaos surrounding COVID-19, bad characters are especially targeting remote workers. Discover their tactics and how IT support thwarts them.

As the coronavirus continues its menacing march across the globe, companies are rapidly shifting to remote work. Unfortunately, cybercriminals are capitalizing on the chaos to target unsuspecting WFH employees adjusting to a new normal. Having an understanding of these bad actors' strategies can help you keep two steps ahead of them.

Cincinnati IT consulting specialist James Forbis with 4BIS.COM shares how hackers are going after your data.

Phishing Scams

This is probably the most popular tactic employed by spam-savvy characters who use emails and texts to get unsuspecting workers to click a link that opens the door to malware and other threats. Once these invaders take hold, cybercriminals can easily access employer network data. To entice people to click the links, hackers create messages that appear to contain information about the coronavirus. Employees should be on the lookout for emails about COVID-19 vaccines and treatments. Not only are they red flags; they are also prime sources of fake news.

Suspicious Software

Another strategy that's been devised by cybercriminals allows them to install software that doesn't deliver as promised. For instance, scammers exploiting the COVID-19 crisis have been advertising software that tracks the spread of the virus, when in reality it masks malware that hijacks your passwords.

Social Engineering

While this type of attack is frequently committed against public-sector entities, it can happen to SMBs, too. Social engineering occurs when bad characters call the department of a company or organization, claiming to be from another department within it. The idea is to pretend to be affiliated with a particular business or organization with the goal of convincing admins to grant them access.

Hackers also like to impersonate government agencies, such as the Department of Homeland Security. They communicate with workers through calls or text messages. While they may go after individuals' personal information, their primary aim is to breach corporate networks.

Ransomware Attacks

Other pandemic-themed attacks involve using ransomware that puts your hard drive on lockdown. The perpetrators then demand payment to unlock it.

Well-aware that many remote workers are still getting used to new policies and technologies, cybercriminals are exploiting employees looking for the VPN software they need to work from home. When it doesn't come from a trusted source, this software is likely to infect a computer with malware. Similarly, security experts recently uncovered an app that touts "Ways to Get Rid of the Coronavirus" but steals banking information instead.

Protecting Your Network When Employees Are Working Remotely

Working from home exposes your network to more vulnerabilities than you would typically find at the office. Using personal devices, logging in on public wi-fi, and not having the latest firewalls and anti-virus software are just a few of the factors that increase the likelihood of data breaches. Employers need to educate their teams about how to take precautions, especially as the coronavirus leads cybercriminals to step up their attacks. Remind your staff to:

Avoid opening unsolicited emails, especially if they're about the coronavirus and contain suspicious attachments and links

Create strong passwords and use 2FA to verify their identity when logging in

Hover over email links before clicking to make sure they are coming from a trusted source

Access sensitive data only via a private network

Report suspicious activity

Furthermore, it's critical for employers to be aware of all the devices connected to their networks. In an era of smart technology, this may go beyond smartphones and tablets to possibly include TVs and appliances, too. Businesses should also ensure they're using the latest software patches and security configurations.

Another way to keep your entire network secure is to partner with an IT company to ensure you're doing everything possible to protect sensitive data. Tech experts can perform a risk assessment to identify vulnerabilities in your system. Managed IT services also monitor your network around-the-clock, ensure it's protected with the latest firewalls and anti-virus software and provide solutions that enable your staff to navigate the Work For Home transition with minimal stress.
- Many celebrities took to social media to air out their sentiments on the statement of the president regarding troublemakers

- These celebs include Alessandra de Rossi, Agot Isidro, Jane Oineza, Lauren Young, and more

- The president recently made some pronouncements on what authorities should do in case there would be those who would cause trouble

- He said that if there would be those who would fight and the lives of the authorities would be put on the line, then they will "shoot them dead"

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Celebrities reacted to the pronouncements made by the president during his recent address.

He was talking about the troublemakers and what the authorities must do if the latter's life would be put on the line.

According to the president, "Do not challenge the government. Matatalo kayo, sigurado. Magtiis na lang siguro kayo ng delayed delivery pero dadating yan. Hindi kayo mamamatay sa gutom."

The president also mentioned, "Kapag ginulo at nagkaroon ng okasyon na lumaban at ang buhay niyo ay nalagay sa alanganin, shoot them dead."

Celebs were quick to react, airing out their own take of the president's statements.

Alessandra de Rossi asked if it's possible to stone them with pancit canton.

Agot Isidro expressed that people are hungry, sick and dying.

Jane Oineza emphasized that people don't need threats.

Lauren Young said that she does not agree with the present administration.

Social media right now is flooded with similar sentiments on the president's statements.

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In a previous report by KAMI, the government faced problems when they imposed the initial community quarantine, which was elevated into the now ongoing enhanced community quarantine. It also suspended transportation causing massive problems with commuters.

The coronavirus outbreak started out in Wuhan, Hubei Province of China. Scientists believed that the virus came from an animal at one of Wuhan's wet markets. At present, the Philippines is under a state of calamity while the entire Luzon is under an enhanced community quarantine.

Please like and share our amazing Facebook posts to support the KAMI team! Dont hesitate to comment and share your opinions about our stories either. We love reading about your thoughts and views on different matters!

Are you an avid fan of Liza Soberano? You might want to know more about how she rose to fame. Find out who Liza was before showbiz. Check out all of the exciting videos and celebrity interviews on our

Source: KAMI.com.gh
Patong masseuse, 26, found hanged from apartment awning

PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of a 26-year-old masseuse who was found hanged by a rope tied to a second-floor apartment awning in Patong this morning (Apr 2).

deathpatongpolice

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Thursday 2 April 2020, 09:11PM

Police and rescue workers at the scene this earlier today. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

Col Kittisak Sommat of the Patong Police said officers were called to the scene, on Nanai Rd, at around 8:30am.

Police together with Kusoldharm rescue workers arrived to find the body the woman hanged by a rope to the awning.

Officers found no marks on the womans body to indicate she had been involved in an altercation, Col Kittisak said.

There was no evidence of fighting or ransacking in the room, he added.

However, he added that the womans body was taken to Patong Hospital for further examination.

The womans mother told police by phone that her daughter worked in a massage shop on Phra Baramee Rd in Patong. She also said her daughter was prone to periods of instability.

The mother was on Samui yesterday and called her daughter in the morning, but her daughter did not answer her calls, said Col Kittisak.

The mother called to the shop, and a staffer told her that her daughter was working.

The woman left the shop around 11am. After that nobody could contact her. he added.

Police are questioning witnesses and checking CCTV footage from the nearby building, Col Kittisak said.
A lot of people think social media is a tool where they have freedom of speech and can express the best side of themselves. However, there is much more to social media than you think. It is one of the strongest marketing tools of today that has changed the dynamics of modern businesses.

Today, a business without social media marketing is like a body without a soul. Not only is it less expensive, but it can also help a naive business in achieving skyrocketing success in a short time. If it hadn't been for this amazing tool, many business ideas would have never seen the light of the day. Here, in this article, we will talk about a few incredible benefits of this tool for your business:

1. Increased Brand Awareness

If you want to increase your business awareness online, the best way is to seek help from social media. So once you begin with a social media strategy, it will help you in reaching out to a vast number of consumers online. The best way to engage with the audience is to create attractive social media profiles and update them with the content regularly. In simple words, share the social media address of your business pages and encourage customers to like and share them. Once you gather enough audience on your social media pages, it will become easy for the business to appear in suggestions.

2. Higher Conversion Rates

The most coherent benefit of using social media is, you easily get a chance to convert the audience into customers. This means every blog post, video, or image will increase the traffic on your website. However, you need to learn patience, if the conversion rate is not as you expect.

In today's digital age, it is important for brands to stay active on social media and engage with the customers whenever they want them. For instance, if you go visit i49, you will be intrigued to see the eye-catching design of their website. Such sites with a good landing page and unique content can easily grab the customer's attention.

3. Improved Brand Loyalty

One of the core goals of any business is to establish a strong bond with their customers. So if you want to improve customer satisfaction, it is essential to regularly keep in touch. Keep in mind, social media is not just about introducing your brand, but it is also about strengthening the online presence of your business. Modern customers regard social media as a strong platform where their voices can be heard. A recent research states, more than 60% of customers are more interested in understanding the brand through its social media profile. This means if your business has zero availability online, it will have no existence to the world.

4. Cost-Effective

Every business is initiated with the aim of earning a maximum profit with the investment of the least amount of money necessary. Social media marketing is the only tool that is cheap and can reduce your budget. Furthermore, with top-notch social media strategies, it is easy to engage with a massive audience from across the globe. This advantage is so amazing, you can easily save a lot of money and spend it elsewhere for the benefit of the business. As compared to traditional marketing, social media is cheap and offers a vast array of benefits to the customers as well as the business, more than any tool out there. So if you have plans to cut your initial budget to a great extent, switch to social media marketing now.
As the U.S. continues to combat the coronavirus outbreak, the New England Patriots airplane is being used to help aid the country in its response to the pandemic.

The Patriots team plane departed early Wednesday morning from Shenzen, China, where the Boeing 767 had picked up 1.2 million N95 face masks to bring them back to the United States, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

The plane was expected to land at Boston Logan International Airport on Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported.

No days off. Thanks to some serious teamwork, Massachusetts is set to receive over 1 million N95 masks for our front-line workers. Huge thanks to the Krafts and several dedicated partners for making this happen, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker tweeted.

A picture of the Patriots plane with workers moving large cargo can be seen in the governors tweet.

No days off. Thanks to some serious teamwork, Massachusetts is set to receive over 1 million N95 masks for our front-line workers. Huge thanks to the Krafts and several dedicated partners for making this happen. pic.twitter.com/ieV6XMC5Ow  Charlie Baker (@MassGovernor) April 2, 2020

The move comes as the U.S. faces a shortage of face masks. Hospitals across Massachusetts have sought donations of the valuable piece of personal protective equipment for medical personnel. Officials in China noted the biggest mistake people in the United States were making in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic was not wearing face masks.

Videos and photographs of the preparations for the Patriots delivery reportedly show employees at Shenzhen Baoan International Airport loading boxes of face masks onto the teams red, white and blue plane, according to The Wall Street Journal. The operation took under three hours.

Citing documents and interviews with people involved in the operation, the newspaper reported that planning for the delivery began two weeks ago when Baker believed he had made a deal to receive more than a million face masks from a group of manufacturers in China.

Officials had to find out how to ship over the pieces of personal protective equipment overseas, though. Getting large cargo shipments out of China - where the coronavirus outbreak began - can be tricky, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Ive never seen so much red tape in so many ways and obstacles that we had to overcome, Patriots Owner Robert Kraft told The Wall Street Journal. In todays world, those of us who are fortunate to make a difference have a significant responsibility to do so with all the assets we have available to us.

Following struggles to secure permission to land in China and after ensuring the teams vehicle was in fact able to make such a long flight, the plane made its way to Shenzhen, stopped in Alaska and headed to Boston, according to the newspaper.

Baker has pledged to send 300,000 of the masks to New York, one of the states most hit the hardest by the disease, so the planes journey will end there, the newspaper reported.

About half a million pieces of the personal protective equipment were unable to fit on the plane, so another shipment will be made, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Face mask are important for doctors and nurses to stave off transmission of the viral respiratory infection as they treat COVID-19 patients. The virus is spread through droplets that come out of a persons mouth when they speak.

Related Content:
By Patpicha Tanakasempipat

BANGKOK, April 2 (Reuters) - Thailand's rice prices have reached the highest in seven years due to Thai exporters anticipating more sales, as their main competitors battle domestic coronavirus outbreaks.

Thailand, the world's second-largest rice exporter after India, quoted its benchmark 5% broken white rice <RI-THBKN5-P1> at around $560-$570 per tonne on a free-on-board (FOB) Bangkok basis on Thursday, according to rice exporters Reuters spoke to.

The prices jumped from under $500 per tonne last week to the highest level since late April 2013, which saw an average quote of $570 per tonne, according to Reuters data.

Exporters said prices rose on a better export outlook after the coronavirus outbreak sent India into a three-week lockdown and main rival Vietnam banned new rice export contracts last week to ensure domestic supply.

More demand was also expected as the Philippines said on Tuesday it was seeking to import 300,000 tonnes.

An official quote from the Thai Rice Exporters Association for a 5% white rice grade <RI-THWHT5-A> also reached a seven-year high this week at $564 per tonne, up more than 12% from $502 last week. (Reporting by Patpicha Tanakasempipat; Editing by Alex Richardson)
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., walks to her office after signing the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act last week. Read more

WASHINGTON - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the creation of a new select committee Thursday with subpoena powers to scrutinize the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic, and its management of the new $2 trillion economic rescue law.

"Where there's money, there's also frequently mischief," Pelosi, D-Calif., said as she announced creation of the special bipartisan panel she said would be focused on rooting out waste, fraud and abuse.

Pelosi's announcement comes amid growing clashes between congressional Democrats and the Trump administration about oversight of the new rescue legislation and a $500 billion fund controlled by the Treasury Department. President Donald Trump has to appoint a new inspector general to oversee that fund but has already signaled opposition to the scope of that person's mandate.

Pelosi told reporters on a conference call that her new committee would be modeled after the World War II-era committee run by then-Sen. Harry Truman, D-Mo., whose role in investigating the implementation of billions of dollars in defense contracts eventually led to his elevation to vice president.

She said that this new committee needed to serve as an everyday watchdog of the more than $2 trillion already allocated to fight the novel coronavirus and the virtual lockdown it has placed on the economy.

The House Select Committee on the Coronavirus, as Pelosi called it, will be chaired by Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., who is the No. 3 Democratic leader as majority whip. No further details were provided about how many lawmakers would serve on the panel.

In a statement, Clyburn said "we cannot let the assistance directed toward addressing this crisis accrue in an unequitable fashion."

Democrats have alleged that the White House and Republicans are prioritizing assistance for businesses over households, and Clyburn said his committee would be scrutinizing this dynamic closely.

"In the recovery from previous crises like the Great Depression and various recessions, parts of our great country were left behind, having not been treated equitably," he said. "We cannot allow that to happen in this pandemic."

The new oversight committee is being created in addition to several other oversight mechanisms, which were established as part of the $2 trillion coronavirus spending law that was enacted on Friday. But some Democrats are already expressing concern that Trump could try to circumvent oversight for his administration's decisions.

The law established a new special inspector general to oversee the Treasury fund, a separate commission appointed by Congress also empowered to monitor that fund, and a Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, comprised of existing inspectors general from multiple agencies, to oversee the entire federal response to the coronavirus.

Republicans voiced immediate skepticism about Pelosi's move to stand up a new select committee.

"This seems really redundant," House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., told reporters on a call following Pelosi's announcement.

McCarthy also expressed "concerns" about how the committee would be created since the House is on a long recess and no one knows when they are coming back given health concerns from the coronavirus. Several lawmakers have tested positive.

McCarthy also expressed "concerns" about how the committee would be created since the House is on a long recess and no one knows when they are coming back given health concerns from the coronavirus. Several lawmakers have tested positive.

Pelosi said the new committee will have the full investigative authorities of any congressional oversight committee. "It's no use having a committee unless you have subpoena power," Pelosi said.

Since Democrats took control of the House in January 2019, Trump and his administration have repeatedly ignored House subpoenas related to the Robert Mueller report, the Ukraine investigation and other issues, forcing Democrats to ask the courts to compel former and current administration officials to comply.

The select committee would supplement oversight mechanisms that Democrats pushed to include in the $2 trillion rescue package signed into law on Friday. Some experts are already questioning how effective those mechanisms can be.

Democrats have already called on Trump to quickly nominate a new inspector general tasked with overseeing how Treasury makes loans and loan guarantees as part of the $500 billion program. This process could take months, though, as the person must be nominated by the White House and confirmed by the Senate, which is not in session because of coronavirus fears.

Trump has already suggested he may try to block one of the inspector general's most important tools: the ability to alert Congress if the executive branch is denying requests for information.

"There's a bunch of oversight provisions [in last week's $2 trillion law], and they are not as muscular as one might want," said Adam Levitin, a professor at Georgetown University Law who played a key oversight role during the financial crisis bailout programs of 2008, and also consulted with Democrats on the oversight language in the new bill.

As Congress and the Trump administration negotiated the vast rescue bill, one comment from Trump unnerved Democrats perhaps more than any other, when he told reporters: "I'll be the oversight."

"Democrats were never going to let President Trump be the oversight," said Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. "It's why we put in multiple layers of robust oversight, accountability and transparency, and we're going to do everything we can to see that they are enforced."

But with just days to cobble together an enormous relief package, lawmakers modeled three new oversight mechanisms off of programs they had used in the past. This included the creation of a new inspector general, which was also created to monitor the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program during the financial crisis of 2008 and a congressionally appointed commission to monitor the program and produce monthly reports.

The third oversight piece, the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee, will oversee the entire federal response to the coronavirus, including but not limited to the federal spending under the three pieces of coronavirus legislation enacted so far, and with a mandate to examine any future legislation.

Republicans and the Trump administration agreed to the provisions, although at lower funding levels than Democrats sought. In the case of the oversight of the Treasury fund the provisions were among the last items agreed to as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Schumer and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., exchanged offers during late nights at the Capitol last week.

Democrats also wrote in provisions requiring swift public disclosure of loans and prohibitions on loans going to any Trump organization business.

"We were fighting for major guardrails including limits involving the Trump family, so if you ask me about how we went from virtually nothing to what we got, I would tell you I think there was real progress," said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., top Democrat on the Finance Committee. "There's obviously a lot more to do."

The limits of the oversight scheme in the legislation became apparent as soon as Trump signed it into law, when he issued a signing statement disputing the authority of the new inspector general to notify Congress if the executive branch was not providing requested information. Trump suggested he would not necessarily allow such notifications to occur. The signing statement also disputed a requirement for members of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee to consult with Congress before hiring staff.

Neil Barofsky, who served as the first inspector general for TARP, said that for him, it was crucial to have the ability to notify Congress when an executive branch agency was failing to cooperate with a request for information. Such a notification - or more often, the threat of one - was the one real tool he had to force Treasury Department officials or others to produce information they were reluctant to divulge.

If Trump follows through on his signing statement and blocks the special inspector general from notifying Congress of resistance from the executive branch, "That potentially will hamstring the ability of the IG to be effective," Barofsky said.

"If they have no recourse . . . that could be very problematic," he said.

Pelosi's decision to create a special congressional committee will give lawmakers more access to information, as well as subpoena powers if they believe the White House isn't being forthcoming with key details.

The experience of TARP also made clear the importance of who was in key roles. Barofsky had an outspoken and activist approach, as did the chair of TARP's version of the Congressional Oversight Commission, Elizabeth Warren. Warren was tapped for the panel by then-Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada, and was elected by fellow members to chair it. The structure of the coronavirus Congressional Oversight Commission, however, is slightly different, specifying that it will be chaired by the member selected jointly by McConnell and Pelosi. It may be difficult for the two of them to agree on a selection, and then it might not be a person who is outspoken in either direction.

"There are a lot of things the administration could do to try to frustrate oversight, starting with the special IG for pandemic recovery efforts," said Levitin, who had served as special counsel to Warren's oversight panel. "Will the president put forth a nomination? How fast will he act? And will he put forward someone who is likely to take a close look at things or twiddle his or her thumbs?"

The administration has not said when or if Trump will nominate someone for the job, and who that person might be.

"The President and his Coronavirus Task Force are committing 100% of their time, energy, and resources to ending the current crisis," said Steve Groves, a White House spokesperson. "Any attempt to politicize the crisis even before it has ended is dangerous. The President's focus remains on working to defeat the virus and ensuring the safety of the American people."

A senior administration official said Trump is deeply skeptical of inspectors general and saw the move to add the provision to the relief package as a way to undercut or hurt him and his administration. He believes the inspector general could look for ways to criticize him and work with the Democrats, said the official, who also spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the president's views.

The special inspector general for TARP is still in action more than a decade later, with an annual budget of more than $20 million and around 85 employees, said Christy Romero, the person who is now in that role. The agency continues to conduct audits and prosecutions and last year recovered nearly $900 million.

"Overall, during a crisis situation having a special IG at least for TARP helped gain the confidence of the American people and the markets which was super important," Romero said,

But the special inspector general for the coronavirus response does not have such an open-ended mandate: The office will terminate five years after enactment of the law.
Democrats are playing wait-and-see with this summers planned Democratic National Convention.

Its supposed to begin July 13 at Milwaukees Fiserv Forum.

Tens of thousands of people from across the country are expected to attend. Almost 5,000 of them would be delegates, casting the final ballots for either Joe Biden or Bernie Sanders  the Democratic front-runners seeking to challenge President Donald Trump, a Republican.

The final tens of thousands will be media members, party members, left-leaning supporters, possibly some protesters and a smattering of others interested in the countrys rather complicated electoral process.

Meg Andrietsch, chair of the Racine County Democratic Party and secretary of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, told The Journal Times last week that we are looking at options and waiting for the DNC (Democratic National Committee) to make decisions regarding postponement or changed plans for the convention.

Similar messages have come from the top of the party.

As we navigate the unprecedented challenge of responding to the coronavirus, were exploring a range of contingency options to ensure we can deliver a successful convention without unnecessary risk to public health, Katie Peters, top spokeswoman for the Democratic National Convention Committee, said in a statement earlier this week.

When asked if he thinks the convention should be canceled, state Sen. Bob Wirch, D-Somers, said: Its too early to make that call  clearly, public health should be the No. 1 concern.

State Rep. Greta Neubauer, D-Racine, agreed. She said that the party should try to make a decision after it becomes clear how effective Wisconsins current four-week plan to contain COVID-19 has been.

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By An Puzhong and Sun Shaojian

XICHANG, Apr.2 -- Firefighters continued to battle the forest fire in Xichang city of Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Sichuan Province on April 1. Totally 1,400-odd service members plus militias under the Liangshan Military Sub-command were still in the frontline battling the blaze. As of press time, the overall situation was basically under control.

It was learned from the Combat and Command Center of the PLA Sichuan Provincial Military Command that due to the high temperature and drought in the fire area for many days, as well as the high slopes of the mountains, it was difficult for firefighters to put out the fire, or to keep the flames under control.

At 5:00 a.m. on April 1, the frontline command post of the Sichuan Provincial Military Command decided to increase the firefighting troops to more than 1,400, focusing on three main mission areas. They also dispatched professional rescue equipment such as drones, water pump trucks and tracked water trucks with conveyance pipelines to battle the fire with ground-air coordination.

By 3:00 p.m. on April 1, the open flames at Baihua gully and Daying Farm had been basically put out. The fire field on the front of Lushan Mountain is about five kilometers away from the Liangshan Yi Society Museum and currently, the service members and the militias were still battling the fire as of press time.

As of 5:00 p.m. on April 1, the forces have evacuated and transferred more than 2,000 people, battled more than 300 fire spots, transported 128 tons of water, dug more than 800 meters of the firebreak, and cleared more than 420 smoke spots.
Fitness-tracking gadgets are selling out, home exercise classes have never been more popular and industrial robot designers are pivoting to making sanitation bots. The Covid-19 pandemic has triggered a seismic wave of health awareness and anxiety, which is energizing a new category of virus-fighting tech.

The fear of infection has accelerated the adoption of apps and wearables as a means to feel better protected. Having accurate and immediate feedback about our body temperature, blood pressure and other health signals helps to restore peoples sense of control, said Andy Yap, a social psychologist at the INSEAD business school.

Users, insurers and health-care providers are all seeing the benefit of health gadgets, in a shift expected to persist long after the outbreak subsides. Thats galvanizing the development of new devices by startups and gadget outfits in Asia, where the novel coronavirus first struck and consumers are known to be early adopters.

The Withings Thermo is a contactless thermometer that uses 16 sensors to take more than 4,000 measurements in 2 seconds  which it then syncs to a mobile app. It costs $99.95, but nobody can buy one until mid-April because all inventory was depleted two weeks ago, according to the company. Use of the Thermo has been significantly higher than usual for this time of year, the company added.

Until the start of this year, CrucialTec Co. used to give away its thumb-sized thermometer dongle as a gift to clients, finding no market for the health gadget. That all changed when orders came pouring in after the virus outbreak, said President Jay Yim, and the South Korean companys now ramping up production with the goal of making more than 500,000 within the first half of this year.

Local governments in China, retailers in Japan and U.S. wholesalers are all putting in orders for the $65 Temon thermometer, and Yim expects one or two Chinese smartphone makers to come out with prototype devices with the technology built in this fall. Sister company CrucialTrak, which sells the module, has seen orders for its touch-less biometric ID solutions  facial, vein and iris scanning  rise fivefold after the initial outbreak, according to Senior Vice President Seung Y. Park. It plans to go public in 2022.

Youibot Robotics Technologies Co. took 18 days to design and build a human-height robot that can sanitize rooms using two ultraviolet lights as well as measure the body temperature of passersby. The Shenzhen-based startup, which partnered with Michelin on robot tire inspectors in 2017, is looking to sell more than 200 of these anti-epidemic robots in the first half of this year, said Cody Zhang, founder and chief executive officer, virtually doubling the companys entire sales output from last year.

A robot that fights virus pandemics is something new, but we are prepared because it was our goal to bring robotic equipment to emerging sectors, said Zhang, who was born in 1992. The company already had the basic building blocks on hand and sourced ultraviolet tubes from Philips along with other off-the-shelf components like cameras and temperature sensors. Zhang expects the sanitizing robots to deliver close to a third of Youibots 70 million yuan ($9 million) sales target this year.

Another small Chinese startup, the Hangzhou-based MegaHealth Information Technology Co., saw a fivefold increase in its sales the past two months compared to the last quarter of 2019  largely thanks to its medical ring that can monitor heart rate and blood oxygen levels. We initially developed the product for patients who have breathing problems, but the coronavirus outbreak extended its use, said CEO Hu Jun, whose gadget is in use in around 100 Chinese hospitals now. It will be in the U.S. and Europe in the second half of the year, he added, and once production catches up with demand, MegaHealth will sell it direct to consumers as well.

Fitness app and gadget provider Chengdu Music Information Technology Co., trading under the name Codoon, has seen the number of its users exercising at home almost triple. Responding to user and government demand, the companys also added a thermometer function to its fitness watches. We have a new app, an AI temperature-measuring system, following the governments encouragement, said founder and CEO Shen Bo. Codoon is investing more in software, Shen added, because he sees gadgets with personalized programming as the key to sustaining user interest.

Bhrugu Pange, managing director at global consultants AArete, expects that the surge in usage now  as people grapple with the uncertainty around infection and treatment  will lead to a domino effect producing lasting change. Users, insurers and health-care providers will all start taking fitness-tracking devices and apps more seriously as a tool for preventive and proactive maintenance of patient health. This in turn will lead to more serious collaboration between device makers and healthcare institutions.

Beyond hardware, health experts and startups are looking into mobilizing health data to help consumers. John Torous, a researcher at the Harvard-associated Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is integrating Apple Watch and Google Fit device data into a common platform, allowing patients to consult with doctors online and share their measurable health indicators.

After (and during) periods of high stress and anxiety like we are in now, often demand and need for mental health services expands. With telehealth we can meet this demand and ensure everyone has access to care, said Torous. Hes among the strongest advocates of a widespread move toward remote medicine, hastened by the rapid spread of Covid-19.

Working toward a similar goal, Huami Corp., which makes Xiaomis popular fitness-tracking bands, looked back on the sleep data it had from 115,000 users in Wuhan  epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak  and the neighboring Anhui province from July 2017 to Feb. 2020. The company saw a detectable deviation in reported sleeping heart rate, which peaked on Jan. 21, weeks earlier than in previous years. Similar spikes showed up in other Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou as the virus started spreading to them. Huami is now developing an early-warning signal to flag these anomalies as they occur and accelerate the reaction to the next major epidemic.

Ultimately, the current wave of new consumer gadgets and the data they churn out have the potential to produce big technological breakthroughs.

Historically, new tech emerged after major incidents such as the Spanish flu outbreak and the two World Wars, said Suh Yonggu, dean of the business school at Sookmyung Womens University. He expects the novel coronavirus to have long-lasting impact. Even after the Covid-19 pandemic subsides, I believe offline health-care will be shifted to online training and home health-care, fueled by changes in peoples value for family and house.
Google today announced the beta of Memorystore for Memcached, a new service that provides a fully managed in-memory datastore that is compatible with the open-source Memcached protocol. It will join Redis in the Memorystore family, which first launched in 2018.

As Gopal Ashok, Google's product manager for Memorystore, notes in today's announcement, Redis remains a popular choice for use cases like session stores, gaming leaderboards, stream analytics, threat detection and API rate limiting, while Memcached is typically used as a caching layer for databases. Developers also regularly use Memcached as a session store and with this new service, developers can scale their clusters up to 5TB of memory per instance.

Because the service is fully compatible with Memcached, developers should be able to take any of their applications that use the protocol and migrate them over to Google Cloud and its Memorystore platform. As a fully managed service, Google will handle all of the routine tasks like monitoring and patching. Figuring out the right size of a cache remains a bit of an art, though, but Google Cloud argues that its detailed metrics will allow developers to easily scale their instances up and down as needed to optimize the service for their specific use cases. Those metrics, the company notes, are exposed in Cloud Monitoring, Google Cloud's centralized monitoring dashboard, and the Cloud Console.

Currently, Memorystore for Memcached can be used for applications that run on Compute Engine, Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), App Engine Flex, App Engine Standard and Cloud Functions.

It's worth noting that Amazon, with ElastiCache for Memcached, and specialized startups like MemCachier offer similar services. And Redis Labs, too, is offering a fully managed Memcached service that can run on AWS, Azure and Google Cloud.
A star Silicon Valley engineer who pleaded guilty to stealing trade secrets from Google is asking a bankruptcy court to force Uber to pay him $179million because he claims the ride-sharing app broke a promise to cover his legal expenses.

Anthony Levandowski, who is considered a pioneer in the field of driverless vehicles, claims that Uber reneged on an agreement to pay for his legal expenses and liabilities after it convinced him to leave Google in 2016.

According to Levandowski, Uber aggressively recruited him when it expressed interest in buying his self-driving startup, Otto, just a few months after he left Google.

Anthony Levandowski, 39, pictured outside a California court last year, is asking a federal bankruptcy court in California to compel Uber to pay $179million in legal expenses and damages

Levandowski alleges that Uber reneged on an agreement to protect him from legal action brought by Google after the ride-sharing app aggressively recruited him to join their company

In papers filed with federal bankruptcy court in San Francisco on Monday, Levandowski claims that before his company was acquired by Uber, the ride-sharing giant had its lawyers investigate Otto.

The lawyers discovered that Levandowski had files that belonged to Google on his computers, according to the court filing.

Ubers lawyers were also made aware of the fact that Levandowski tried to recruit several Google employees to Otto while he was still working for the search engine, Levandowski says in the court filing.

Levandowski claims that he warned Ubers then-Chief Executive Officer Travis Kalanick that Google would likely take him to court if his company bought Otto.

According to Levandowski, however, Kalanick told him not to worry.

Uber eats injunctions for breakfast, Kalanick is alleged to have told Levandowski.

DailyMail.com has reached out to Kalanick and Uber for comment.

Levandowski claims that when he agreed to sell his company to Uber, the terms of the deal included an ironclad indemnification clause in which the company promised to defend him against any legal action taken by Google.

Uber agreed to cover all of Levandowskis legal expenses, including damages, even if a court found in Googles favor that he was guilty of stealing trade secrets.

In October 2016, Google filed suit against Levandowski, who was defended in court by Ubers lawyers.

Google accused Levandowski of downloading 14,000 highly confidential files measuring 9.7 gigabytes from its Waymo division, which was working on self-driving technology.

Uber was ordered by a court to hand over the files.

Six weeks after downloading the files, Levandowski resigned and started his own self-driving startup, Otto, which was eventually acquired by Uber for $680million.

Even though Google was suing Uber, Levandowski was a central player in the case.

In this 206 file photo, Anthony Levandowski, who was head of Uber's self-driving program, speaks about their driverless car in San Francisco. Earlier this month, Levandowski pleaded guilty to stealing trade secrets from Google

Months into the trial, when Googles lawyers sought to question Levandowski under oath, he invoked his Fifth Amendment privilege which protects witnesses against making self-incriminating statements.

Levandowski was concerned that if he testified about what he knew, he would be vulnerable to criminal prosecution.

Ubers lawyers, however, demanded that Levandowski turn over documents related to the case. He refused.

Shortly afterward, Uber fired Levandowski, though the company continued to pay his legal expenses for two years as part of a separate legal action taken by Google against its former engineer.

Last month, Levandowski pleaded guilty to stealing trade secrets after he left Google's self-driving car division, now renamed Waymo. Alphabet, Google's parent company, sued Uber, accusing it of stealing company knowledge and patents. The two sides eventually settled last year.

Uber and Google eventually settled their case.

Late last year, however, Uber informed Levandowski that it would no longer provide attorneys to represent him.

The company also said it would not pay the $179million judgment against him.

According to Levandowski, Uber claimed that the indemnification arrangement was void because the engineer did not reveal that he was also involved in creating another startup, Tyto.

In April 2017, documents from Googles arbitration against Levandowski allege that Levandowski and another former Google employee, Lior Ron, formed Tyto while still employed by Google, according to Tech Crunch.

Tyto was a self-driving startup that relied on LiDAR, a technology which uses surveying to measure distance to a target.

In the field of autonomous vehicles, LiDAR is used to detect obstacles and to navigate safely through environments using rotating laser beams.

Levandowski disputes Ubers contention that it was unaware of his role with Tyto.

He says Uber knew about Tyto because the information was contained in files he gave the company before it acquired Otto.

Levandowski claims that Uber retroactively and unilaterally voided the indemnification clause even though its lawyers spent three years representing him in court.

After Google won its arbitration against Levandowski, it was able to claw back some $127million that he earned in the 10 years during which he worked for the company.

The judgment against Levandowski forced him to declare bankruptcy.

Levandowski was also prosecuted by the federal government. Earlier this month, he agreed to plead guilty to stealing trade secrets.

He faces 30 months in prison.

'All of us have the right to change jobs, none of us has the right to fill our pockets on the way out the door,' US attorney David Anderson said in a release announcing the original counts of theft and attempted theft of trade secrets last year.
President Donald Trump inveighed against 'endless partisan investigations' at Thursday's briefing on the coronavirus, fuming about a 'witch hunt' on a day House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced new efforts to oversee a $2 trillion bailout and spoke about an 'after-action' look at the coronavirus pandemic.

'I want to remind everyone here in our nations capital, especially in Congress that this is not the time for politics,' Trump said at the White House immediately after praising the 'selflessness and compassion' of medical professionals.

'Endless partisan investigations  here we go again  have already done extraordinary damage to our country in recent years. You see what happens. Its witch hunt after witch hunt after witch hunt,' he said, without offering explanation.

'Conducting these investigations in the middle of a pandemic is a really big waste of vital resources, time, attention,' Trump complained at a White House briefing Thursday, after Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a bipartisan committee would police bailout funds. Other Democrats have called for a 9/11-style commission to investigate the coronavirus pandemic

'And in the end the people doing the witch hunt have been losing and theyve been losing by a lot. Its not any time for witch hunts. Its time to get this enemy defeated,' he said.

Trump's diatribe came amid a push by some Democrats for a new commission to review the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 5,000 Americans, left 10 million unemployed, leveled the U.S. economy, and led to claims by Trump and his team that as many as 100,000 may die of the virus.

Pelosi also announced she is created a bipartisan select committee to police bailout funds going out the door.

Trump did not specify what investigations he was blasting, but there don't appear to be any others getting underway.

'Conducting these investigations in the middle of a pandemic is a really big waste of vital resources, time, attention,' Trump vented, and we want to fight for American lives and [they] build up my poll numbers, because thats all they're doing and everyone knows it's ridiculous,' he concluded.

Before Trump spoke, the head of the Small Business Administration and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke about urgent efforts to get banks to push guaranteed loans out the door and efforts to start sending $1,200 checks to Americans within two weeks.

Hours earlier, Pelosi said she is creating a new bipartisan select committee to police more than $2 trillion in government funds being spent to deal with the coronavirus.

She says it will 'protect against price gouging, profiteering and political favoritism,' and argues it should start its oversight role immediately in order to prevent waste, fraud and abuse.

'We need to ensure those dollars are spent carefully and effectively,' she said during her weekly press conference with reporters, which was organized as a conference call to account for social distancing.

'Its witch hunt after witch hunt after witch hunt,' said Trump, using a term he used to attack the Russia probe

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) says she is creating a bipartisan select committee to oversee trillions in government coronavirus spending

Some Democrats are calling for a commission to probe the nation's response to the coronavirus pandemic. A model cited by the administration predicts 100,000 American deaths even after social distancing is imposed

Pelosi said she has informed Republican leadership and that the panel will be bipartisan. It will be chaired by House Democratic Whip James C. Clyburn of Missouri, who gained a boost of national prominence when he threw his presidential endorsement to former Vice President Joe Biden.

She referenced a committee to investigate national defense spending during World War II that was overseen by then Missouri Sen. Harry S. Truman.

'What made sense then makes even more sense now,' Pelosi said.

Congress has already acted to shovel billions to corporations, small businesses, and individual Americans in a bid to shore up the economy and aide hospitals and virus victims. Unemployment claims have now hit 10 million.

'We have no higher priority to make sure the money gets to those working families,' said Pelosi. She says she wants it to examine 'how the private sector reacts to the funds that they receive as well.'

Pelosi also said she is a supporter of 'after-action' reviews, but said a coronavirus commission still has to be discussed

Pelosi held her weekly press conference by call-in due to the outbreak

Healthcare workers wheel the bodies of deceased people from the Wyckoff Heights Medical Center during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, New York, U.S., April 2, 2020

A worker at the Mathis Brothers mattress factory sews face masks Wednesday, April 1, 2020, in Oklahoma City. The masks, which are being supplied to the University of Oklahoma Medical Center and Norman Regional Hospital, are approved for use for visitors, non-COVID-19 patients, and to be worn by health-care professionals over their N95 masks for additional protection

'The allocation of so many trillions of dollars  we really do have to subject to an after action review,' Pelosi said

The select committee will be chaired by Rep. James C. Clyburn, Pelosi announced

Pelosi did not call for a separate idea being promoted by key Democratic lawmakers  a commission to look at the totality of the pandemic and the U.S. response to it.

She did endorse 'after-action' reviews in general, and noted she helped push through legislation creating the bipartisan Sept. 11th commission that produced a scathing and well-read volume on factors leading to the attacks.

Homeland Security Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson

'I see the value of that,' Pelosi said, after Homeland Security Chair Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi called for one.

'Thats something that we should discuss,' said Pelosi. But she is keeping her focus on funding for now.

'The allocation of so many trillions of dollars  we really do have to subject to an after action review,' Pelosi said, but that the idea is 'not to point fingers.'

'I dont want to wait for that because were in the action right now,' Pelosi said.

'Im a big supporter of after action review,' she said.

Thomson introduced legislation for a coronavirus commission  which could be used as a political cudgel if implemented before the November elections. Some Democrats including Biden have blasted President Trump for not taking earlier action to shore-up hospitals and produce new equipment, with U.S. deaths now predicted to his as many as 100,000.

Trump also unloaded on Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer in a letter Thursday, accusing him of focusing on the 'impeachment hoax' and leaving his state 'unprepared.'

'You should have had New York much better prepared than you did,' Trump wrote. 'If you spent less time on your impeachment hoax, which went haplessly on forever and ended up going nowhere ...' Trump wrote, Schumer would not have been 'so completely unprepared for the "invisible enemy."'
Three COVID-19 positive cases were found in Goalpara, taking the tally in Assam to 16

Goalpara: Three COVID-19 positive cases were found in Goalpara, taking the state tally to 16.

"These three new cases were part of the group who joined Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi," Assam Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.

Earlier, he said, "Eight more COVID-19 positive cases in Assam, taking the total to 13. All eight new cases are of people who also participated in Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi."

Moreover, some people defied lockdown orders and police personnel took action against the violators of the lockdown in Guwahati. Movement of only those availing/providing essential services are allowed.

Earlier, 110 people in Tamil Nadu and 43 in Andhra Pradesh who had attended the gathering have tested positive for coronavirus. Six attendees from Telangana have also died due to the deadly virus.

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the gathering. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

Follow LIVE Updates on Coronavirus Outbreak here

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.
At a public hearing on Nigerias social media bill held in Abuja last month, the voice of Chris Isiguzo, president of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), rang clearly across the room: This billseeks to pigeonhole Nigerians from freely expressing themselves. The NUJ is totally opposed to it, he said.

This strong opposition was echoed by multiple other civil society groups, according to local media reports and a recording of the hearing posted on Twitter with the hashtag #SayNoToSocialMediaBill by Paradigm Initiative, a local digital rights organization. By contrast, a Nigerian army representative welcomed the bill for reasons of national security, telling the hearing it would supplement an existing cyber warfare command. The local Guardian newspaper reported in 2018 that the command was established to combat fake news.

At the time of publication, it was not clear whether the COVID-19 crisis would impact the timeline for consideration of the bill, which was scheduled to be sent for a third reading by the senate in April. On March 24, Nigerias National Assembly began a two week shutdown with possible extension based on the public health response, Mohammed Sani Musa, a senator from Niger State who is sponsoring the bill, told CPJ. False information related to the coronavirus was an example of the need for the legislation, he said.

Nigerias Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulation Bill 2019 says that individuals who transmit statements that authorities determine to be false, likely to influence the outcome of an election, or prejudicial to the security of Nigeria, may be imprisoned for up to three years or fined up to 300,000 naira (US$844) or both, according to CPJs review of the text. Offenders who are not individuals face fines up to 10 million naira ($27,247 USD). Another section of the bill introduces fines for companies who fail to comply with orders to disable Nigerians access to content.

Musa told CPJ that the bill was intended to mitigate the propaganda of fake news that travels at the speed of light. He said it was important in addition to existing cybercrime legislation, though he did not provide specifics. Nigerias 2015 cybercrime act has been used to arrest journalists who criticize officials on social media, as CPJ has documented.

Musa told CPJ the bill was guided by online controls in other jurisdictions, including Singapore, the U.K., the EU, and the United Arab Emirateswhere a cybercrime law was passed to suppress criticism on social media, observers have told CPJ. CPJ found strikingly similar language between Singapores 2019 Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Actwhich CPJ has condemnedand Nigerias social media bill, notably in sections denoting prison time for individuals who post false statements of fact.

If theres a society like Nigeria, we feel imprisonment is necessary, Musa said, arguing for deterrence as a tool to manage speech online. He was, however, open to the bill being amended or even dropped. Any bill that is going to infringe on the fundamental freedom of every NigerianI would be against it, he concluded.

CPJ asked four Nigerian journalists what they thought about the bill. Their answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity.



Ajibola Amzat (Credit: Busola Ajibola)

Ajibola Amzat, editor with the privately owned International Centre For Investigative Reporting(ICIR), based in Abuja

You say we should not share information or transmit information that is false, and then we begin to ask, well, what is falsehood? When you say people should not transmit false informationfalse information according to who?

Now [the government] realizes that the Nigerian media is getting more critical and having a better sense of awareness of what is going on, and Nigerian people are getting to know a little more about the hypocrisy of the government, and they are talking more freely about it. That is what [the government] does not want to happen, and that is the purpose of bringing up this kind of bill.

The parts that say you cant transmit information that may affect national security, you cant transmit information that you know is false, you cant transmit information that you know will influence the outcome of elections. Its something that can actually put journalists into easy problems, because you dont know what the government will consider as national security.

How can you jail somebody for saying something? If you think what somebody is saying is false, then bring out the truth, so that the falsehood and the truth can stand together and then people will decide for themselves. But you cannot go ahead and criminalize people, that is like trying to kill peoples spirit to talk.

And dont forget, apart from journalists, the organization who carries such information is also going to be sanctioned. So the media organization will also pay if you are found to be the one who published such information or misinformation. Its an attempt to gag the media.

This kind of boldness is coming from places like China and Singapore, and other places where the freedom of expression is being repressed. Nigerian democracy is already broken, but it is going to be more shattered if this kind of bill would be allowed to pass.

The laws that even enable journalists to do their jobs are often disregarded. I mean the laws, like the FOI [freedom of information] law, should enable journalists. Most of them [government agencies] dont have regard for that lawmany agencies of the government are not disclosing information vital for public interest. Those are the laws that are supposed to enable the work of journalists. But those laws are just laws on paper. And now [they] bring some other laws to criminalize what journalists do.



Yecenu Sasetu. (Credit: Toby Martins)

Yecenu Sasetu, health reporter for the privately owned Kiss FM radio station, based in Abuja

As a media person, if this is passed into law its going to stifle my voice because the government is going to be in control. They are going to be in control of our online presence.

Now if, as a journalist, I put out content online and the government decides this is fake news, of course it wont fly. Yes, Ill be penalized. A whole lot of things that we need to put out we may not be able to put out, because it is going to put fear in a whole lot of media people. They will feel they do not want to anger the government.

So you cannot criticize, you cannot give opinions. Its going to really stifle the voice of traditional media. Forget about the regular, everyday person that just wants to put out contentit will stifle the voice of every media person.

There has been a lot of criticism of the present administration. People are not getting what they expected, especially in terms of the economy. There is insecurity, there are just a whole lot of issues. People come online to vent. People do not really have access to their representatives, their lawmakers, their elected government officials, so the only way they really get to vent is on social media.

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I would say its just a bid to get people not to say so much, not to be as critical of the government as they are right now. I would say its just a bid to control everything and everyone.



Chris Kehinde Nwandu. (Credit: CKN NEWS MEDIA GROUP)

Chris Kehinde Nwandu, publisher of the privately owned CKN News site and president of the Guild of Professional Bloggers of Nigeria, based in Lagos

Some of us have been arrested in the past. I personally was arrested about five years ago, and I stayed about two weeks in jail for some of the information I published [on social media].

For me and my organization, we believe there is no need for another law, the social media bill or whatever. We already have enough laws. In 2015 there was the cybercrime law, but they are trying to come up with another law. We sense there are some political motives behind it.

This may be a law to give more ammunition to some people, to put some level of fear into the minds of journalists. Some people are just trying to wither down the voice of the media, to shut them up. Democracy is about free speech.

I am not totally against a law that regulates what people do. Across the globe there are certain standards that are expected of professionals. [But] this is not China. This is not North Korea. This is not Cuba or one of these countries. This is a democracy.



Amrah Aliyu. (Credit: Imona Rage)

Amrah Aliou, reporter with the federal government-funded Search FM radio station, based in Minna, Niger State

In Nigeria, the only way people get to talk [and] express their views is on social media. They get to hold politicians and policy makers accountable the only way they can reach them, which is on social media. And so far its been working well, because the government feels out of place and tries to right their wrongs.

For example, in Niger State we are battling with potholes, terrible roads jam-packed with trailers and heavy duty cars, to the extent that sometimes these vehicles get stuck or fall off and there are oil spills. People feel fear for their dear lives, so most times they snap [photographs of] these incidences and try to question the government on social media, tagging some notable handles. This has, in a way, put the government to order. They try to right their wrongs [and] in turn post it [their actions] on the same social media through their aides. So social media to some extent has impacted positively on the changes the people get to enjoy.



This article was first published on CPJs website
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Linkedin Apriza Pinandita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 13:11 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f27ba9 1 World COVID-19,COVID-19-Indonesian-patients,Delhi-tabligh,COVID-19-in-India,#COVID19,#India,citizen-protection Free

The Foreign Ministry has confirmed that hundreds of Indonesian citizens who recently participated in a tabligh event  an Islamic mass gathering -- in New Delhi remain stuck in India as the South Asian country imposed a three-week lockdown to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus disease.

Fourteen Indonesians who were among the participants have tested positive for COVID-19, the ministry's director for citizens protection, Judha Nugraha, said.

As of March 30, at least 731 Indonesian citizens, the participants of a tabligh, are across Indian states. They are those who have been affected by the lockdown imposed by the Indian government until April 14, Judha said in a virtual press briefing on Wednesday.

The Tabligh-e-Jamaats Markaz in Nizamuddin West in Delhi, held last month, has emerged as a major COVID-19 hot spot with at least 128 positive cases across the country.

The center for Nizamuddin events has advised all states and union territories to immediately trace, screen and quarantine the estimated 2,000 foreigners who attended the religious gathering, The Statesman reported.

Fifty tested positive in Tamil Nadu, 24 in New Delhi, 21 in Telangana, 21 in Andhra Pradesh, 10 in Andamans and one each in Assam and Jammu and Kashmir after attending the gathering.

Judha said among the 14 participants from Indonesia who tested positive for the coronavirus, 10 had recovered, while four others were still in treatment.

Our envoy in New Delhi, together with the Indonesian Embassys task force for COVID-19, met with the Indonesian tabligh participants in New Delhi on Tuesday to give moral support. They also called on [the citizens] to obey the call from authorities there, Judha said.

The Indian Home Ministry, in a letter addressed to state chief secretaries and police chiefs, has said that if any foreigner tests negative for the deadly coronavirus, they should be immediately deported on the first available flight.

Till that time, such person must be confined and quarantined by their host organization,  the government said in its advisory as quoted by The Statesman.

Our missions in New Delhi and Mumbai will help the Indonesian citizens, especially the tabligh participants, process their permit extensions with Indian immigration if their visa is close to expiring, Judha said.

According to Worldometer, India had recorded 1,998 cases of COVID-19 and 58 fatalities as of Thursday.
The World Bank has approved its first funds to help some of the globe's poorer countries combat the coronavirus outbreak.

It approved total aid of USD 1.9 billion for 25 countries on Thursday. The largest amount of assistance was USD 1 billion for India followed by USD 200 million for Pakistan, USD 129 million for Sri Lanka, USD 100 million for Afghanistan and USD 83 million for Ethiopia.

World Bank President David Malpass predicted the bank could provide up to USD 160 billion in assistance over the next 15 months.

World Bank officials said the emergency resources would include money to purchase critical medical supplies such as masks and ventilators, with the World Bank lending its procurement expertise to help obtain these supplies on global markets.

The approval of the first round of support for 25 countries will be followed quickly with aid to another 40 countries, officials said.

In addition to the support effort, Malpass said he and Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, are lobbying the Group of 20 major industrial countries to support instituting a 14-month pause in requiring the poorest countries to make debt repayments.

Malpass said that would free up about USD 14 billion over the next year that the countries would be able to use to fight the coronavirus.

He said the proposal was discussed at last week's conference call with President Donald Trump and other G-20 leaders.

Malpass said he hoped it would receive approval when the World Bank's policy panel, the Development Committee, holds a virtual meeting on April 17.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Statement comes after US President Trump said Iran or proxies are planning to target US troops or assets in Iraq.

Iran has no proxies but it has friends, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said, a day after US President Donald Trump alleged Tehran or its proxies planned a sneak attack on US targets in Iraq.

Dont be misled by usual warmongers, AGAIN, @realDonaldTrump: Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of proxies. Unlike the US  which surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinates  Iran only acts in self-defence, tweeted Zarif on Thursday.

Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do.

Dont be mislead by usual warmongers, AGAIN, @realDonaldTrump: Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of"proxies" Unlike the USwhich surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinatesIran only acts in self-defense. Openly Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do  Javad Zarif (@JZarif) April 2, 2020

Trump said in a tweet on Wednesday that Iran is planning a sneak attack on US troops or assets in Iraq, warning the country will pay a heavy price if this happens.

The president made the abrupt announcement amid lingering tensions between the two countries over past confrontations, as well as the coronavirus pandemic.

Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 1, 2020

Trumps tweet coincided with US officials saying intelligence suggested that Iran or its Iraq-based proxies were planning an attack on US personal in the country, reported the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

Weve been seeing something brewing and developing pretty seriously, an unnamed US official told the Journal, adding that intelligence has mounted over a two-week period. We expect something soon.

The US official said he expected the potential attack to be more menacing than previous rocket attacks.

Another American official told Reuters news agency on condition of anonymity that intelligence about a potential Iran-backed attack in Iraq suggested it would likely be a deniable attack. The official did not disclose intelligence on the timing or precise locations of any attack.

Meanwhile, senior Democrats have advised Trump against attacking Iran without consulting Congress. In a letter on March 27, they called on the US president to discuss any potential military action overseas with lawmakers.

News reports suggest the US deployed Patriot air defence systems to an Iraqi military base as a precaution against attacks by Iran-backed armed groups. One of the Patriot batteries was reportedly deployed to the Ain al-Asad facility.

Ongoing tensions

While the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers offered a period of detente, relations have deteriorated with Trumps decision nearly two years ago to abandon that multilateral agreement and reimpose US sanctions that have crippled the Iranian economy.

Tensions worsened after a January 3 US drone attack in Iraq killed Qassem Soleimani, the head of Irans elite Quds Force, as well as Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who founded Iraqs Shia Kataib Hezbollah militia after the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq.

Iran retaliated with a rocket attack on Iraqs Ain al-Asad base where US forces were stationed on January 8. No US troops were killed or faced immediate bodily injury, but more than 100 were later diagnosed with traumatic brain injury.

The US has blamed Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah for a March 11 rocket attack that killed two American troops and a 26-year-old British soldier in Iraq and, a day later, carried out air raids against its fighters in Iraq.

Phillip Smyth, an analyst who tracks Shia militias at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy think-tank, said he believed Trumps warning was prompted by the emergence of the League of the Revolutionaries, a group he said was formed to give Kataib Hezbollah deniability to attack US targets.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:48:42|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- A total of 26 provincial-level regions on the Chinese mainland had reported imported cases of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the National Health Commission (NHC) said Thursday.

By Wednesday, the Chinese mainland had reported 841 imported cases from 47 countries, said Mi Feng, spokesperson for the NHC, at a press conference.

Nine provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Wednesday reported no domestically transmitted cases, suspected cases or close contacts, Mi said, adding the daily number of new domestic cases reported on the Chinese mainland has remained less than five since March 12.

Mi stressed further tightening epidemic control in communities around the country and conducting thorough epidemiological investigations to contain the virus.
FILE PHOTO: U.S. chipmaker Intel Corp's logo is seen on their "smart building" in Petah Tikva, near Tel Aviv

(Reuters) - A group representing major U.S. semiconductor companies on Wednesday said it was working with federal officials to make clear to state and local officials overseeing lockdowns that chip companies are essential businesses that should continue operations.

In a blog post, the Semiconductor Industry Association, which represents chipmakers with major U.S. factories such as Intel Corp and Micron Technology Inc, said it was working with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to refine the guidance sent to state and local officials last week.

That guidance mentioned chipmakers as an essential business because of their role supporting information technology, which has become crucial as millions of Americans work from home. John Neuffer, the group's president, said in a blog post that chips also play a vital role in medical equipment, power grids and other needed infrastructure.

"Ensuring the continuity of semiconductor and related supply chains is necessary to support the even greater range of services that will be digitized in the coming weeks and months," he wrote. "Since the semiconductor supply chain is highly globalized, semiconductor shortages created by operating restrictions in one region cannot be readily made up by production in other regions."

To date, major chip companies in the United States have not reported manufacturing disruptions. Last week, Intel Chief Executive Bob Swan said in a letter to customers that its factories, including locations in California, Oregon, New Mexico and Arizona, were "sustaining a rate of on-time delivery currently greater than 90%."

Sanjay Mehrotra, chief executive of memory chip maker Micron, which has factories in Utah, Idaho and Virginia, also said in a letter last week that the company had "carefully managed raw materials and our supply chain to maintain our manufacturing capabilities and production."

But on Wednesday during an earnings conference call, Mehrotra disclosed that an order limiting movement of citizens in Malaysia on March 16 had hit factories in Muar and Penang, which "were briefly shut down" before officials there declared chip factories an essential business. He said the factories "have since been able to return to production on a very limited basis, in compliance with local regulations."

(Reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by David Gregorio and Alistair Bell)
Iran said on Thursday it "only acts in self-defence" after President Donald Trump warned it and its allies against attacking US troops in Iraq.

"Unlike the US -- which surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinates -- Iran only acts in self-defence," Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted.

"Don't be misled by usual warmongers, AGAIN," he wrote, also cautioning that "Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do".

Tensions have risen sharply between Tehran and Washington ever since Trump withdrew from a landmark nuclear agreement and reimposed sweeping sanctions in 2018.

They escalated in January when the US killed Iran's Major General Qasem Soleimani in a Baghdad drone strike, following attacks on its troops in Iraq that Washington blamed on Iran-backed armed groups.

Iran retaliated by firing at bases in Iraq housing US troops.

Trump warned Iran on Wednesday that it would pay a "heavy price" in the event of further attacks on US troops.

He tweeted that "upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq."



In response, Zarif wrote on Twitter that "Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of 'proxies'"



Iran and the US are in a tense battle for influence in Iraq, where Tehran has powerful allies and Washington has close ties to the government.

Bases housing US troops and foreign embassies, particularly the American mission, have been targeted in more than two dozen rocket strikes since late October.

The attacks, which the US has blamed on Iran-backed armed groups, have prompted fears of a proxy war on Iraqi soil.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Stellungnahme zur Verwendung von Barengalle bei der Behandlung von Covid-19 27. Marz 2020

Wie Animals Asia erfahren hat, wird Tanreqing, in dem Barengalle als Wirkstoff enthalten ist, zur Behandlung von COVID-19-Patienten verwendet.

Tanreqing ist eine Art Compositum der Traditionellen Chinesischen Medizin, zusammengesetzt aus funf Bestandteilen, namlich Scutellaria (Helmkraut), Barengallepulver, Ziegenhorn, Geiblatt und Forsythie. Auch Tanreqingkapseln enthalten diese funf Wirkstoffe. Davon sind Helmkraut, Geiblatt und Forsythie pflanzlicher, Barengallepulver und Ziegenhorn dagegen tierischer Herkunft. Tanreqing enthalt Barengalle mit der Gallensaure Ursodesoxycholsaure oder UDCS. Synthetische UDCS wird bereits seit Jahrzehnten in aller Welt hergestellt und angewendet, um eine Reihe von Krankheiten zu behandeln.

Animals Asia ist der Auffassung, dass wir uns bei der Bekampfung eines todlichen Virus, der offenbar von Wildtieren auf Menschen ubergesprungen ist, nicht auf Wildtierprodukte wie Barengalle verlassen sollten. Die Behauptung, dass der in Barengalle enthaltene Wirkstoff UDCS bei der Behandlung einiger Krankheiten effektiv eingesetzt werden kann, ist richtig. Darum wird er auch schon seit Jahrzehnten synthetisch (also nicht unter Verwendung der Galle von Baren) hergestellt und tonnenweise in alle Welt verkauft. Zudem wissen wir, dass Tanreqing gema Auskunft der Nationalen Gesundheitskommission schon einige Jahre lang erfolgreich eingesetzt wurde, um Atemwegserkrankungen wie Lungenentzundung und andere Krankheiten, die Ahnlichkeit mit COVID-19 besitzen, zu behandeln. Doch kann sich die TCM auf Jahrtausende der praktischen Anwendung und entsprechender Erfahrungen berufen, auerdem auf eine Philosophie der Balance in Harmonie und Frieden mit der Umwelt. Solche Medikamente sollten heilen, ohne Leid zu verursachen.

Ende Februar beschloss China ein umfassendes Verbot der Nutzung von Wildtieren. Wir begruen diese Manahme Chinas. Doch wurden gema Mitteilung der Nationalen Behorde fur Forst- und Weidewirtschaft Wildtiere, die in wissenschaftlicher Forschung, Medizin und zu Ausstellungszwecken verwendet werden, von diesem Verbot ausgenommen. Daher hat sich, soviel wir wissen, die Entscheidung, die Nutzung von Wildtieren zu verbieten, nicht auf die Barengallegewinnung ausgewirkt.

Jedoch schloss die kurzlich erfolgte Gesetzgebung rund um das Wildtierleben auch strengere Kontrollen der Verwendung von Tieren in der Arzneimittelproduktion ein. Wir hoffen sehr, dass solche Kontrollen noch weiter verscharft werden und damit Spezies wie den Baren besseren Schutz bieten.

Die Teamangehorigen von Animals Asia arbeiten und kampfen jetzt schon seit 30 Jahren fur ein Ende der Barengallegewinnung in China. Wahrend dieser Zeit haben wir groe Veranderungen erlebt, und mit Unterstutzung der Regierung konnten wir uber 400 Baren retten und betreuen sie auch weiterhin in unseren Rettungseinrichtungen in Chengdu und Nanning. Wir haben auch Erfolge in der Zusammenarbeit mit der Regierungs Vietnams erzielt und konnten dort uber 200 Baren retten sowie gemeinsam mit Vietnam eine Absichtserklarung unterzeichnen, nach der die Barengallegewinnung im Land bis 2022 vollstandig abgeschafft sein soll. Es geht hier nicht um Petitionen und Proteste. Es geht um gemeinsame Arbeit mit Beteiligten aller Bereiche in Regierung und Industrie. Derzeit ist Barengallegewinnung in China noch legal, und wir arbeiten innerhalb jener Faktoren. Doch wurde Animals Asia gegrundet, um den Baren zu helfen, und wird immer noch von denselben Grundungsmitgliedern gefuhrt, die die Notlage der Baren 1993 ans Licht der Offentlichkeit gebracht haben. Mit unserer ausgedehnten Erfahrung auf dem Gebiet des Tierschutzes in China und als einzige Organisation mit einem Barenrettungszentrum in China sind wir jederzeit bereit, Wissen und Unterstutzung anzubieten, wenn es darum geht, politische Strategien zu entwickeln, die den Schutz des chinesischen Volkes und der Welt vor Gesundheitsproblemen im Zusammenhang mit der Verwendung von Wildtierprodukten bezwecken.

Historisch betrachtet wurden uber 10.000 Baren in ganz Asien wegen ihrer Galle in Kafigen eingesperrt und entsprechend genutzt. Der Galleextraktion dienen unterschiedliche Mittel und Methoden, von Kathetern aus Metall und Latex bis hin zu offenen Bauchwunden und die Einfuhrung von vier Zoll langen Nadeln in die Gallenblase. Das ist nicht nur schmerzhaft, unhygienisch und eine Brutstatte fur Krankheiten, das lebenslange Einsperren eines Wildtieres wie des Baren zum Zwecke der Barengallegewinnung ist grausam. Die Extraktion von Barengalle ist ein schwerer Eingriff. Animals Asia beobachtet die schadigenden Folgen der Galleextraktion an den geretteten Baren, die unnotige chirurgische Behandlungen erdulden mussten. Diese fuhrten zu Herzkrankheiten, Augen- und Zahnkrankheiten, Gallenblasenleiden, schmerzhafter Arthritis, Krebs, Bluthochdruck, offener Wundinfektion und anderen Leiden. Viele der Baren, die in unserem Rettungszentrum eintreffen, haben aufgrund der Folgen dieser Eingriffe zum Zwecke der Gallegewinnung groe Schmerzen. Mehr noch, die Art und Weise, wie die Galle extrahiert wird, ist ihrer Natur nach infektios und krankheitserregend. Wir fordern alle Beteiligten dazu auf, Methoden der Heilung zu finden, die kein Leid verursachen.
Myanmar & COVID-19 Volunteers, Govt Staff Fighting COVID-19 in Myanmar Face Discrimination

Nurses conduct health checks on people who have returned from outside the country in Naypyitaw in March. / Aung Thiha Tun / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYITAWPeople quarantine for COVID-19 in Myanmar, as well as volunteers and civil servants who provide them with assistance, are facing discrimination as colleagues and members of the public avoid them and treat them with trepidation.

Upper House lawmaker U Maung Maung Swe, who is leading volunteers to support the COVID-19 response in Naypyitaw, said people in quarantine after returning from abroad and government staff assigned to quarantine facilities are experiencing discrimination.

Although members of the public should support them, in fact the reverse is true. People misunderstand what quarantine is. The health knowledge of the public is limited. They should know that people who are quarantined are not [COVID-19] patients, not even suspected patients, he said.

According to U Maung Maung Swe, some government staff have discriminated against their colleagues who have worked at quarantine facilities.

I am afraid. Of course I have concerns as [some colleagues] have been to quarantine facilities, said U Win Min Tun, a government employee from Naypyitaw.

State health professionals, General Administration Department officials, members of the Myanmar Police Force and volunteers have all been assigned to monitor returnees at quarantine facilities in Naypyitaw.

Some view us as carriers of the disease. But in fact, we have to keep ourselves safe while helping them. Health workers conduct health checks on us, including temperature screenings, U Phone Mo, a volunteer participating in the COVID-19 response in Naypyitaw told The Irrawaddy.

U Maung Maung Swe said that faced with the risk of such a large loss of life, people have lost trust in each other.

This is the wrong attitude, society should not have such an attitude, U Maung Maung Swe said.

The General Administration Department has said that the public should not discriminate against those in quarantine, according to U Thaik Wai Phyo, administrator for Naypyitaws Pyinmana Township.

Not all the people in quarantine are patients. We have instructed the public not to discriminate against them and to treat them as normal people. We have instructed them not to avoid talking or going near them, he said.

Nearly 700 people who have returned from overseas are being kept in quarantine at hospitals in Naypyitaws Zayarthiri, Pobbathiri, Ottarathiri and Dekkhinathiri townships and at Naypyitaw Development Committee Guesthouse.

According to the Ministry of Health and Sports, Myanmar has had 16 COVID-19 cases so far. One COVID-19 patient, who also suffered from cancer, has died.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.

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Linkedin Marchio Irfan Gorbiano and Sausan Atika (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Fri, April 3 2020

Precaution: A heath worker, accompanied by a security officer, checks the temperature of a traveler near the border between Serang and Pandeglang in Cadasari district, Pandeglang regency, Banten, on Thursday to help contain the spread of COVID-19. (Antara/Muhammad Bagus Khoirunas)

For West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil, the consequences of letting people go to their hometowns during a pandemic are real. The governor posted on his Facebook wall on Thursday a news story about a 72-year-old stroke patient from Ciamis who tested positive for COVID-19 after having contact with his child from virus-stricken Jakarta.



This story is one of many cases of parents in West Java who are COVID-19 positive after being visited by their children or relatives, who are unaware that they are carrying the virus to their hometowns, he said. Restrain yourselves and love your parents. Dont go home now, he pleaded.



The post is just another sign of growing apprehension among regional leaders over a possible explosion of coronavirus cases in their respective areas as millions of people from Greater Jakarta  largely deprived of their livelihood due to large-scale physical distancing policies  are set to travel to their hometowns for Idul Fitri early.



The central government still lacks a clear strategy on preventing that. Just hours before Ridwan made his plea, President Joko Jokowi Widodo announced that he would not officially ban people from traveling for the Idul Fitri holidays, ignoring warnings from public health experts that the consequences of failing to prevent people from leaving Jakarta, the epicenter of the outbreak in the country, could be dire.



Annually, some 20 million people from Greater Jakarta travel to their hometowns to celebrate Idul Fitri in a tradition called mudik (exodus). The tradition, public health experts say, could lead to massive COVID-19 contagion on Java, an island of 141 million people, where many regions have far worse healthcare systems than Jakarta.



[The President] underlines that there is no official ban on people going on the mudik during the 2020 Idul Fitri holiday period. The travelers, however, must self-isolate for 14 days, will be given people under observation [ODP] status, as per the World Health Organization health protocol, and will be monitored by the respective local administration, presidential spokesman Fadjroel Rachman said in a statement on Thursday, shortly after a speech by the President on the matter.



State Secretary Pratikno, however, later clarified Fadjroels statement, saying that the President actually called on people to stay in the capital, though he did not categorically state that the President would ban the mudik.



A revised statement from Fadjroel was not redacted to retract the original one.





Speaking in a teleconferenced Cabinet meeting on Thursday, Jokowi said the government had advised people not to go back to their hometowns for Idul Fitri, so as to contain the spread of the virus, which has killed at least 170 people nationwide. But he stopped short of banning people from doing so.



His refusal to ban the mudik has surprised many, but it falls in line with the main strategy he adopted to fight the virus, which is one of large-scale social restrictions. The President has ruled out any form of lockdown, be it a closure of regional borders or a strict restriction of peoples movement, saying that such a drastic policy was not suited to the characteristics of Indonesians and would severely hurt businesses.



But despite his refusal to isolate cities, the President still wanted regional leaders and his ministers to devise ways to discourage people from the exodus this year.



The Jakarta administration, he said, had proposed that 3.6 million people in the capital be included in social safety nets to keep them from leaving. The President himself said he was open to adjusting the dates of the Idul Fitri public holiday for people who would not be able to return to their hometowns for the annual exodus.



As some people would still be able to leave Jakarta, Jokowi also instructed authorities at the subdistrict and village level in the regions to tighten surveillance, saying that local authorities could also use village funds to act as a local social safety net. I would like to encourage participation at the community level, be it through neighborhood units [RT] or community units [RW], so that travelers [returning to their hometowns] from Greater Jakarta can be given ODP status, said Jokowi at Bogor Palace, West Java.



Meanwhile, Jokowis large-scale social restriction policy has created public confusion. On Wednesday, the Transportation Ministry issued a circular outlining restrictions on transportation to and from Greater Jakarta, sparking speculation that the government was ready to ban people from leaving the capital.



It was later clarified that the circular was just a recommendation and that Jakarta and its satellite cities should send a letter asking the Health Minister to allow them to impose wide-scale social restrictions, known as PSBB, to restrict transportation services.



The Jakarta administration had made a request to stop intercity bus services to and from Jakarta on Monday, but it was rejected by acting transportation minister Luhut Pandjaitan after Jokowi turned down the capitals request for a lockdown.



On Thursday, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said he would make that request even though he had earlier claimed that Jakarta had already imposed PSBB.



Today, we will send a letter to the health minister asking for the minister to immediately approve the PSBB for Jakarta. What we need from the central government is to grant us the status, so that we can issue regulations [with regard to COVID-19 handling], Anies said in a virtual meeting with Vice President Maruf Amin.



He suggested that the PSBB for Jakarta apply also to surrounding cities, saying that the outbreak affected Greater Jakarta areas.



Anies had issued a circular asking interregional buses to temporarily halt operations starting Monday in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19 to other regions.



We were worried about peoples mobility from Jakarta to areas outside the capital. Hence, we issued the circular because of the high risk of spreading the disease [to other regions]. This needs to be a concern for the central government.



 Ardila Syakriah contributed to this story.

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Three weeks since they last stepped on dry land, hundreds of passengers aboard the Zaandam may soon be allowed to leave the stricken cruise ship.

President Trump has intervened to overturn the decision by Floridas governor that the vessel could not dock at its home port, Fort Lauderdale.

The Holland America Line vessel has been barred from disembarking passengers at every port since she departed Punta Arenas in Chile on 12 March.

Four passengers have died aboard the Zaandam, including a 75-year-old British man, John Carter. His widow remains on board in isolation.

Nine people on board have tested positive for Covid-19 and 219 have reported flu-like symptoms.

Around 250 other passengers remain aboard the Zaandam, along with 602 crew.

A further 808 passengers who were free of symptoms were transferred from the stricken ship to a sister vessel, Rotterdam, off the coast of Panama.

The two ships then passed through the canal and sailed across the Caribbean to Florida. During the voyage, 14 of the passengers transferred to the Rotterdam have developed flu-like symptoms.

The vessels are currently 20 miles east of Fort Lauderdale.

Floridas governor, Ron DeSantis, had told Fox News: We cannot afford to have people who are not even Floridians dumped into South Florida using up those valuable resources.

But Mr Trump used part of his coronavirus briefing on Wednesday to insist that British and Canadian passengers would be allowed off the Zaandam and Rotterdam.

He said: You have people that are sick on those ships and states don't want to take  they have enough problems right now.

They don't want to take them but we have to from a humane standpoint. We don't have a choice. I dont want to do that but we have to. People are dying, were going to do something.

We're taking the Canadians off and giving them to Canadian authorities. They're going to bring them back home. The same thing with the UK.

We have to help the people. We have to do something. And the governor knows that, too.

Holland America Line said: We appreciate the support of President Trump in resolving the humanitarian plight of our guests  311 of whom are American citizens and 52 of whom are residents of Florida.

There are also four children under the age of 12 on board.

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

In a statement it said: Holland America Line calls for compassion and reason in the review and approval of our disembarkation plan by Florida officials and we are grateful for those that have supported our efforts.

For the estimated less than 10 people who need immediate critical care shoreside, we have secured approval from a local health system partner that they will accept them for treatment.

The cruise line said passengers who were in good health and needed to fly home would be taken straight to the airport on buses with limited person-to-person contact and while wearing masks.

But 45 other passengers who have mild illness will be held in isolation on board.

Disembarkation would be at a later date to be determined and only after they have recovered, Holland America Line said.
Today President Donald Trump tweeted about the Saudis agreeing to some cuts to oil production. This news only makes it clear that the United States should not be reliant on their whims. The global oil market is sick. It has been dragged down by the effects of COVID-19 and Saudi Arabias unilateral decision to juice oil production after Russia refused further output cuts. The twin blow has sent prices into free fall, with worldwide repercussions  especially damaging in the shale patch.

The Permian Basin has been an engine of growth for both Texas and the entire U.S. economy. Our import requirements have fallen, more money has stayed in the country instead of going to foreign oil producers, and jobs have been created. The thousands of jobs in the Permian Basin and other plays all pay well.

It was American innovation, initiative and entrepreneurship that unlocked oil and gas reserves previously considered inaccessible. However, this latest Saudi Arabia stunt of flexing its oil production muscle for its own domestic interest is another reminder that the worldwide oil market is rigged against us.

This is not the first time Saudi Arabia has played its cartel card. In November 2014, faced with U.S. shale industry competition, the kingdom and its fellow OPEC cronies opened their spigots to high levels of oil production that drove down the price of oil to just $26 by February 2016. By the end of 2016, 216 U.S. energy companies filed for bankruptcy, taking approximately 150,000 jobs with them. In Texas alone, 100 businesses entered bankruptcy.

The Saudi move takes advantage of the U.S. energy industrys debt load. North American energy exploration and production companies have approximately $86 billion in debt maturing over the coming four years  and 62 percent of those maturities are in junk bonds. In a competitive and free market, the industry could have carried this load and still produced returns for investors. However, plummeting demand in the wake of COVID-19 has imposed financial stress on the industry, and the Saudi action will turn that stress into bankruptcy. While cheap gas prices at the pump may please consumers, artificially low oil prices harm our energy industry and ensure that investment vital to maintaining stable, long-term supply is deferred.

Saudi Arabia does not intend to keep prices low forever. Its objective is to disable American shale oil production, then to throttle back its production, drive up prices and once again generate large profits. This is the time-tested strategy of a closed market, low-cost cartel king. In addition, Saudi Arabia is counting on Americans to invest in its national oil company and counting on the United States to defend it against its regional foe Iran.

The United States needs a more comprehensive approach, and quickly.

A strategy that makes true energy dominance the goal must include a competitive world oil market in which American domestic production can flourish. One important step is the NOPEC legislation currently in the Congress that would allow the president to treat the OPEC as we do all other commodity cartels. In a competitive energy market, American oil producers will flourish. Another even more important step is to diversify our fuel sources for the transportation sector. Around 92 percent of our transportation system is powered by oil, and when energy prices rise again, as they inevitably will, both consumers and businesses will be damaged, points will be shaved off our gross domestic product, and unless we make changes we will still be both supporting and defending Saudi Arabias ability to jack us around.

Energy dominance is equally about consumption as it is production and to make our oil production advantage truly count for our energy security, we must consume less as we produce more. It remains important to encourage the adoption of alternative fuel vehicles running on diverse sources of domestic energy, including electricity, natural gas, and hydrogen. Electric vehicles represent a particularly compelling, near-term opportunity to diversify our transportation fuel sources as they run on a domestic fuel that is diverse from wind and solar to natural gas. These fuels are unconnected to global markets and the prices remain stable regardless of the actions taken in foreign capitals. It is time for the U.S. to expedite this transition with fueling infrastructure, support for building the supply chain in the U.S. from minerals to supporting the market, and an expansion of tax credits while battery costs continue to fall.

This greater choice in fuel for consumers and businesses will increase our energy dominance and decouple our transportation sector from the actions of foreign governments like Saudi Arabia, Russia, and Iran that have neither our values nor interests at heart.

Before the OPEC meeting last week, Saudi Arabias oil minister likened the coronaviruss oil market effects to a house on fire. Their actions after the meeting to flood the world with Saudi crude added fuel to that fire that threatens to burn that house to the ground. Only a real, comprehensive energy strategy can stop it and protect our energy dominance with all the economic, job and national security benefits it provides.

Blair is the former director of National Intelligence and commander in chief, U.S. Pacific Command. Hagee is the 33rd commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps. Both are members of the Energy Security Leadership Council.
June 14, 1926  March 31, 2020

CAMBRIDGE  Henry Smith Bates Jr., 93, of Cambridge, passed into eternity on Tuesday, March 31, 2020 at the Vermont Veterans Home in Bennington, Vermont after a long illness. He lived a long life filled with love for family and friends, as well as his country, community, and fellow man.

Henry and his twin brother, John were born to Henry and Seraph Bates on Flag Day, June 14, 1926, at the Mary McClellan Hospital, in Cambridge. As a child, Henry attended the Coila Church, through which he entered the Bible reading contests that brought him into contact with a young woman who became his wife, Ruth Elizabeth Muirhead.

Henrys entire life was dedicated to serving others. He enlisted in the Navy directly out of high school, serving a total of six and a half years as a radar technician during both WWII and the Korean War.

When he left the service, Henry began his own plumbing and HVAC company, serving his community in this capacity for nearly 70 years. Henry became the Cambridge Fire Chief in 1962, serving in that capacity for 26 years. He was chief engineer at Mary McClellan Hospital for many years, and drove a school bus for Cambridge Central School for 32 years. Henrys high standard of excellence and his incredible work ethic earned him the respect of everyone who knew him.

In recent years, Henry attended the Sandgate Methodist Church, enjoying fellowship with its members who continued to keep in touch with him even when he was unable to be present.

Henry is survived by his sons, Henry III (Skip) and his wife Dale; David and his wife Laurie; and Timothy and his wife Cherise; his beloved grandchildren, Shawn, Luke, Michael, Daniel, Sarah, Noah, Carissa, and Zachary; and his great grandchildren, Jared, Josiah, Lauren, Ruth and Esther Bates, and Veda and Maxwell Worboys.

He was predeceased by his wife of 62 years, Ruth E.M. Bates; his brothers, John and Donald; and his sister, May Elliott.

The family wishes to express their heartfelt thanks to the staff of the Vermont Veterans home for their loving, compassionate care of their dad during his stay there, the SWVMC Cancer Center. Words cannot express how thankful we are for you.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the service for Henry will be private for the family only at this time; however, there will be a time of visitation at the Ackley, Ross & Gariepy Funeral Home, 73 West Main St., Cambridge from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 5, 2020. Social distancing will be in effect, with a limited number of guests allowed into the funeral home at a given time during the visitation.

Donations in Henrys memory may be made to the building fund of the Cambridge Fire Department, P.O. Box 554, Cambridge, NY 12816.

To offer condolences to the family, please visit www.gariepyfuneralhomes.com.
Health Advisor to President Nana Akufo-Addo, Dr. Anthony Nsiah-Asare has called for a collective effort by all Ghanaians to help fight the spread of Covid-19.



Speaking in an interview on Peace FMs flagship programme 'Kokrokoo', Dr. Nsiah-Asare was optimistic should every person in the nation play his or her role effectively during this pandemic, Covid-19 will soon be defeated.



He elucidated that the State authorities are taking collaborative steps and it behooves all Ghanaians to be responsible citizens and comply with directives of the President.



The virus, he stated, is no respecter of persons and so doesnt care about the rich or poor nor politician; therefore no one should play propaganda with the issue.



He believed the World Bank pledge of 100 million dollars for Ghana as well as the Covid-19 Fund set up by President Akufo-Addo will boost the fight against the virus.



According to him, the government has also made available lots of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) for health workers and further purchasing more test kits, and other equipment to resolve the challenge nationwide.



Dr. Nsiah Asare stressed that Covid-19 is the nations war and needs every individual to gird for it.



The Coronavirus is a war that were fighting. We will fight until we defeat the enemy.

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Hospitals, doctors, and nurses are begging for supplies, but Donald Trump is trying to help the oil and natural gas industry.

Trump tweeted:

Just spoke to my friend MBS (Crown Prince) of Saudi Arabia, who spoke with President Putin of Russia, & I expect & hope that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels, and maybe substantially more which, if it happens, will be GREAT for the oil & gas industry!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2020

..Could be as high as 15 Million Barrels. Good (GREAT) news for everyone!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 2, 2020

The big concern for doctors, nurses, and hospitals as they are exposed to coronavirus over and over again due to a lack of protective equipment is the plight of the oil and natural gas industries.

The United States is in the early stages of catastrophic public health emergency and Donald Trump is still pretending like all that matters is saving the economy. The economy will not come back as long as Americans are sick and dying from the coronavirus.

Immediate economic aid for those who are being impacted by the pandemic is vital, but things like saving sectors of the economy can definitely wait until after the coronavirus outbreak has been brought under control.

The only thing that Trump should be doing is fighting the public health crisis. Instead, he seems to be doing everything, but focusing on the coronavirus.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

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New York City's SoHo, normally a bustling neighborhood that essentially functions as an outdoor shopping mall, is empty. The windows of stores usually buzzing with tourists and Instagrammers posing for fit checks are marked with signs announcing closures due to the global spread of the novel coronavirus  luxury retailers like Coach, Fendi and Dolce & Gabbana have been boarded up entirely, as though preparing for looters. Since we're all supposed to stay home (please, unless you have to go to work, for the love of God, please stay home) and "flatten the curve," i.e. slow the spread of the virus, shopping outside is essentially a non-starter. But what about shopping online?

There are a number of considerations when it comes to online shopping in this, our brave new world. Is it safe to receive packages? Are conditions safe for workers? Considering rapidly rising unemployment rates, is it wise to spend money on clothing in the first place? When we can't go outside, is there even a point to buying anything besides the comfiest of sweatpants?

When it comes to receiving mail, scientists have found that the CoV-2 virus can survive for up to 24 hours on cardboard, so it's a good policy to Lysol your packages before bringing them inside. But there's no need for hysteria. Cardboard is a porous surface, which experts say is good for avoiding viral transmissions (fabric is also porous  but there aren't hard numbers yet on how long the virus can live on fabric, so it's a good idea to wash clothes once you receive them).

Essentially, you're not going to get corona from picking up a box. "The thing that you have to consider, though, is that those tests are done in ideal testing circumstances," Rachel Graham, a virologist at the University of North Carolina, told NPR. "That's like in some kind of hermetically sealed box where there's no fluctuation in humidity, there's no wind, there's nothing that can contribute toward desiccating the virus. And so desiccation  or drying out the virus  would actually reduce the amount of time it's actually viable on any kind of surface."

But what about conditions for workers? Since the second week of March, when the virus began a full-force global spread, I've received countless emails from fashion companies assuring customers that they've sent their employees home to practice social distancing, and special sanitary precautions are being taken in package fulfillment facilities. But that's not everywhere. Amazon and Instacart workers are striking; employees have been exposed to COVID-19 in warehouses, and say that their employers aren't protecting them with proper sanitation, let alone paid sick leave. Even fashion businesses that seem far cuddlier than Bezos's behemoth aren't above treating their workers poorly. Everlane, which markets itself as a bastion of ethical fashion and makes basics for basics, was recently admonished by Senator Bernie Sanders for union-busting in a crisis.

So when it comes to online shopping in a pandemic, it's important to be even more mindful than usual about who you support. In a column for the New York Times, fashion critic Vanessa Friedman wrote that shopping during a pandemic feels selfish, fluffy, "just the other side of wrong," or, as one of her readers put it, "shameful." People are dying, out of work and desperate  with very little hope of help from the US government. But as Friedman wrote, shopping "is also an essential part of our economy; retail an enormous source of employment and creative expression." In some ways, she noted, "the state of shopping is a sign of the times." Those 25 percent off deals shouldn't solicit joy: they're a retailer's cry for help. "Shopping now is as much a moral as a consumer question," she added. "Where you spend your money matters. Before you buy, think: What is this about? It could be about helping save a generation of small designers and independent businesses."

That line of thinking seems like the best and perhaps only ethical way to shop online. If you can afford it, buy your clothes from small businesses you'd like to see live out the virus. People that contribute so much to our culture  designers, artists, chefs, musicians, everyone interesting  are getting decimated by this, the plague. So if you can help, spend your money wisely.

"Buying and shopping online are the only lifelines for a lot of small businesses right now," designer Adam Selman, who runs the athleticwear brand Adam Selman Sport (aka A.S.S.) tells PAPER in an Instagram direct message. Selman makes the most comfortable sweatpants this reporter has ever owned, as well as incredibly ass-flattering leggings that work both for attempting at-home workout videos and taking photos to send to one's coronavirus boyfriend. And he thinks that this is a watershed moment for the industry.

"Shoppers are in a unique position to shape the future of what surrounds them and survives this chapter," he wrote. "It leaves a big opening  a lot of Goliaths in the industry could fall and more savvy brands could define the next chapter we live in. Currently, ordering online is another form of voting. Support the brands you love and believe in."

Brandon Veloria, co-owner of New York's best vintage boutique, James Veloria, has kept online orders going, aided by an active and joyful social media presence. (The store's charming Instagram stories, in which Veloria models archival looks from the likes of Jean Paul Gaultier and Vivienne Westwood, are not to be missed.)

"Doing stories and online sales have definitely been keeping me sane," he wrote in a DM. "It's been a really nice way of still maintaining a community and relationships with people that I'd normally see in person."

"I think in general it's important for us because we're able to continue maintaining jobs for our staff who are like family to us, and I think to a lot of our customers," he added. "Honestly though, even if people don't buy anything, all of the messages of support have been so encouraging and make me feel less alone or trapped in all of this. And hopefully my silly stories are helping people feel the same way."

Watching Veloria's stories adds a dash of glamour to my otherwise dull, dull days. I sit in my pajamas and watch him in polished '90s Commes de Garcons and Raf Simons button downs and think about how badly I want to get dressed up for something, anything. And then last night, I decided I just should get dressed for no reason, just to feel better. I put on a vintage Vivienne Westwood tartan with a cropped black Margiela sweater and high heels, the exact outfit I'd worn on a date right before the world stopped. It made me feel just a tad more normal, even if I only wore it to watch The Talented Mr. Ripley and drunkenly bake banana bread.
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Georgia Governor Announces Shelter in Place Order, Closes Public Schools for Rest of Academic Year

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced on Wednesday that he would sign a statewide shelter in place order and move to close all kindergarten and public schools for the rest of the academic year.

Schools in Georgia were initially ordered to close until March 31; the deadline was later extended through April 24, and now Kemp has announced he will sign an executive order on Wednesday to close K-12 public schools through the end of the academic year at the end of May. Classes will be completed through virtual learning.

In an update outside the Georgia State Capitol, Kemp said that he would sign the shelter in place order on Thursday. It will be effective from Friday to at least April 13. The date is in line with Georgias public health state of emergency order, Kemp said.

The Georgia Department of Public Health confirmed late Wednesday that there are more than 4,700 cases and the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus. More than 1,010 people are hospitalized and 154 people have died due to the CCP virus.

The governor said that he decided to issue the two orders after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that people could spread the virus even without exhibiting any symptoms.

Over the past 48 hours, the modeling and data have dramatically changed for Georgia and many other states around the country, Kemp said. The CDC has announced that individuals can be infected and begin spread coronavirus earlier than previously thoughteven if they have no symptoms. From a public health standpoint, this is a revelation and a game-changer.

In addition, new models show Georgia will need more time to prepare for a hospital surge in capacity, he said. While we are making excellent progress with our team, we have got to be more aggressive.

Kemp said that research from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation suggests that Georgia will reach peak hospital capacity on April 23, assuming that Georgians abide by the states social distancing guidelines. He noted that as of Wednesday morning, hospitals across the state have 3,520 medical-surgical beds, 450 beds, and 1,006 ventilators available.

Those caught in breach of the shelter in place order will be punished with a fine or misdemeanor, Kemp said, adding that law enforcement will be at hand to make sure state residents comply.

Now is the crunch time for us to lessen the peak, to make the bullseye smaller, so we dont overrun our health care system, Kemp said.

Online late Wednesday, the governor announced that his office would issue specific guidelines soon.

In keeping w/ our promise to let data & experts guide our decisions, I announced another strategic step forward. Tomorrow, I will sign a statewide shelter in place order. We will issue guidance soon so Georgians can prepare for the next phase in the fight against COVID-19. #gapol  Brian Kemp (@BrianKempGA) April 1, 2020

In a news release on Tuesday, Kemps office said that clinical labs at universities in Georgia would soon be able to process over 3,000 COVID-19 test samples per day.

More than 100 troops from the Georgia National Guard will be deployed over the next few weeks to assisted-living facilities or nursing homes with COVID-19 cases. The troops will help with infection control protocols and enhanced sanitation methods at specific locations, to help limit COVID-19 exposure among residents.

Until Wednesday, Kemp had held back from mandating that all Georgia residents shelter at home, saying that those orders were subject to local governments. The governor previously ordered schools to close and ordered that gatherings of 10 or more people be banned since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has also shut down bars and night clubs and ordered those with health conditions to remain home.

The State of Georgia has a new COVID-19 hotline: (844) 442-2681.

If you believe that you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or have been exposed to the novel coronavirus, please contact your primary care doctor, an urgent care clinic, or your local federally qualified healthcare center. Please do not show up unannounced at an emergency room or health care facility.
The results were published on 1st April 2020

Two of them are in the category "Research in accordance with the orders of the President of Russia":

Ayrat Kayumov, "New approaches to reducing the resistance of microorganisms to antibiotics in mixed infections: the search for new antimicrobial substances based on semi-synthetic thioterpenoids, the characterization of molecular targets and mechanisms of action, the development of an effective system for the delivery of antimicrobial agents and its visualization using conjugates with BODIPY phosphors"';

Marat Yusupov, "Structural basis of the protein synthesizing apparatus of Candida albicans."

Seven more projects are in the category "Research undertaken by autonomous research groups":

Yury Nefedyev, "Creating a dynamic simulation selenographic model taking into account the parameters of the internal structure of the moon based on methods of space geodesy, planetology and multi-parameter analysis";

Rawil Fakhrullin, "Hair surface engineering: modification of fibrous materials of biological origin using functional ceramic nano containers";

Yvon Maurice Masson Patrick, "Cholinesterase as active components of nano reactors for detoxification of organophosphorus compounds. Interactions with new medications";

Ramziya Kiyamova, "Tumor-specific membrane protein folding";

Guzel Sitdikova, "Cellular and network mechanisms of homocysteine toxicity in migraine";

Larisa Frolova, "The evolution of the natural environment and climatic changes in the Polar Urals and the north of Western Siberia in the Holocene: reconstruction based on paleolimnological studies";

Oleg Zholobov, "Distributive-quantitative analysis of semantic changes based on large diachronic corpuses."

Two projects received prolongation funding:

Gennady Yevtyugin, "New generation supramolecular polymers based on functionalized macrocycles for medical diagnostics: design and use as part of electrochemical sensors";

Rustem Khazipov, "Neuroprotective screening system in a model of focal ischemia of the cerebral cortex."

###
Chinas wet markets have been blamed globally for the dismally increasing novel Coronavirus. The pandemic has infected over 9,38,000 people, so far, across and has claimed more than 47,000 lives across the globe.

Image 1

The point of origin was reported in the wet markets in Wuhan, China. However, keeping the health risks aside, the markets have gone back to operating in the same way as it did earlier.

But, now security guards do not let anyone take pictures in the wet market so the world doesnt know what is happening there. However, Shenzhen, a city in China has become the first one in the country to ban its residents from eating dog and cat meat. Not only this, but a new law has also been introduced keeping in mind the ongoing pandemic.

Image 2

For years, animal activists have been demanding the Chinese government to ban the consumption of these animals. And now after years, a city that is resident to ove 13 million people will see a unique change. The law will come into effect from May 1. Apart from dogs and cats, snake meat, frog and turtle meat has also been banned.

Image 3

The wet market in China was closed in February when it was confirmed that the consumption of wild animals led to the rise of the pandemic. But, now the news is doing the rounds that the markets are again open for trade and is going to go as usual. According to BBC, officials have called the recent steps as the universal localization requirement for a modern society.

Image 4

The Shenzhen Government has listed nine types of livestock which are fit for humans to consume and include pigs, sheep, donkeys, cows, rabbits, ducks, geese, chickens and pigeons. I think this should be a cue for other Chinese cities to follow suit as well and we hope they get inspired to follow the same steps.
Charleston, SC (29403)

Today

Cloudy skies early, followed by partial clearing. Slight chance of a rain shower. High near 55F. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

A mostly clear sky. Low 32F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.
New Covid curbs in UP: Government and private employees to work at 50 per cent capacity

Night curfew in Andhra Pradesh: Know timings, guidelines, rules; What is allowed, what is not allowed

Contacts of confirmed cases don't need to get tested unless identified as high risk: Govt

Plenty of misinformation being spread on foreign donations to PM CARES fund: Govt sources

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Apr 02: The government took a decision to accept foreign donations to the PM Cares Fund, which was set up to fight the outbreak of novel coronavirus in India.

Several persons on the social media asked as to how the PM Cares Fund was accepting foreign contributions, when it was not permitted in the case which faced severe floods recently.

Government sources tell OneIndia that there has been a lot of misinformation on the news of PM CARES fund accepting foreign donations. What has been announced is that PM CARES fund will simply accept donations and contributions from individuals and organisations who are based in foreign countries.

This is consistent with India's policy with respect to PMNRF. PMNRF has also received foreign contributions as a public trust since 2011.

PM-CARES fund to help fight coronavirus: How to donate? Check details

For those who are comparing this with previous instances of natural calamities in some states, here is what the Official spokesperson had said on 22nd August 2018: "In line with the existing policy, the Government is committed to meeting the requirements for relief and rehabilitation through domestic efforts. Contributions to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund and the Chief Minister's Relief Fund from NRIs, PIOs and international entities such as foundations would, however, be welcome."

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, April 2, 2020, 12:44 [IST]
APEIRON Biologics Initiates Phase II Clinical Trial of APN01 for Treatment of COVID-19

Details Category: Proteins and Peptides Published on Thursday, 02 April 2020 09:18 Hits: 6612

Regulatory approvals obtained for the treatment of 200 COVID-19 patients in Austria, Germany and Denmark; Austrian government to provide significant financial support

APN01 has the potential to block the infection of cells by the novel COVID-19 virus and reduce lung injury

APN01 was previously proven to be safe and well tolerated in Phase I and Phase II clinical trials

First patient expected to be dosed shortly

VIENNA, Austria I April 02, 2020 I APEIRON Biologics AG today announced that it has received regulatory approvals in Austria, Germany and Denmark to initiate a Phase II clinical trial of APN01 to treat COVID-19. APN01 is the recombinant form of the human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (rhACE2), and has the potential to block the infection of cells by the novel SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19), and reduce lung injury. The Phase II trial aims to treat 200 severely infected COVID-19 patients, and the first patients are expected to be dosed shortly.

APN01 has a unique dual mode of action. APN01 imitates the human enzyme ACE2, which is used by the virus to enter cells. The virus binds to soluble ACE2/APN01, instead of ACE2 on the cell surface, which means that the virus can no longer infect the cells. At the same time, APN01 reduces the harmful inflammatory reactions in the lungs and protects against acute lung injury (ALI/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).

Based on its unique dual mechanism of action, APN01 has the potential to be the first drug approved to treat COVID-19 that specifically targets the new SARS-CoV-2 virus, said Peter Llewellyn-Davies, Chief Executive Officer of APEIRON Biologics AG. We look forward to dosing the first patient in our Phase II trial shortly, with the goal of providing a safe and effective treatment option for severely infected COVID-19 patients in urgent need of help. We are grateful to the regulatory authorities in Austria, Germany and Denmark for rapidly approving this study, and for the commitment of the Austrian Government, which has agreed to fund a significant portion of this trial.

The randomized, double-blind Phase II trial will compare APN01 to placebo in up to 200 patients at 10 sites in Austria, Denmark and Germany. The primary objective of the trial is to assess the clinical efficacy and safety of APN01 in severe COVID-19 patients using, among other criteria, the need for invasive mechanical ventilation. Secondary objectives include the evaluation of measurable biological biomarker changes following treatment with APN01.

APN01 has been shown to be safe and well-tolerated in a total of 89 healthy volunteers and patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and ALI/ARDS in previously completed Phase I and Phase II clinical trials. The product candidate is currently in Phase II development by APEIRON Biologics for the treatment of PAH and ALI/ARDS, which is a significant cause of COVID-19-related mortalities.

Importantly, the novel coronavirus strain SARS-CoV-2 is a very close relative of the first SARS-CoV virus, which emerged globally in 2002, as it critically relies on the ACE2 receptor to infect the human cell, explained Prof. Josef Penninger, MD, co-inventor of APN01, founder of APEIRON Biologics AG, member of its supervisory board and Professor at the University of British Columbia. There is significant scientific evidence suggesting that treatment with the dual action recombinant human ACE2 can be used to treat patients with COVID-19. We are blocking the door for the virus and, at the same time, protecting tissues, which is what ACE2 normally does.

We are eager to participate in this very promising and critical study. APN01 is an advanced drug candidate with a very strong dual rationale that may provide an important therapeutic contribution to fight the COVID-19 pandemic," said Prof. Henning Bundgaard, principal investigator of the study and professor at the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen.

The following centers, among others, will participate in the clinical trial: in Germany, the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf and the Klinikum rechts der Isar of the Technical University of Munich; in Austria, the Medical University of Vienna, the Kaiser Franz-Josef-Spital, Vienna, the Medical University of Innsbruck and the University Medical Center Salzburg; in Denmark, the National University Hospital, Rigshospitalet (Copenhagen), the Herlev Gentofte Hospital, the Hvidovre Hospital, and the Nordsjllands Hospital (Hillerd).

CTC North GmbH & Co. KG, a medical contract research organization at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, will be responsible for the study-specific organization of the clinical trial.

About APN01

APN01 is a recombinant human Angiotensin Converting Enzyme 2 (rhACE2) and was developed by APEIRON biologics for the treatment of acute lung injury (ALI), acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). After licensing from APEIRON in February 2010, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) conducted several clinical trials from 2014 to 2017 to treat ALI/ARDS and PAH patients, lung injury being the major source of Covid-2019 mortalities, the disease caused by the new corona virus SARS-CoV-2. In 2019, APEIRON obtained the APN01 licenses back from GSK for further clinical development, after a their strategic refocusing of GSK to oncology.

The ACE2 receptor is expressed in human airway epithelia as well as lung parenchyma and was previously identified as the essential gateway used by the first SARS-CoV virus to infect human cells. ACE2 is also the critical receptor for the new virus SARS-CoV-2 to enter human cells. Thus, treatment with recombinant human ACE2 could be used to not only block viremia but also protect lungs and other organs from injury. The drug candidate is administered intravenously as an infusion and has already shown safety and tolerability in 89 patients and volunteers.

About APEIRON Biologics AG

APEIRON Biologics is a privately-held European biotech company based in Vienna, Austria, focused on the discovery and development of novel cancer immunotherapies and respiratory diseases. APEIRON received EU marketing approval for APN311 (Dinutuximab beta, Qarziba) in 2017 for the treatment of pediatric neuroblastoma patients and out-licensed global, exclusive rights for this product to EUSA Pharma Ltd. APEIRON now leverages its proprietary master checkpoint blockade mechanism to enable the human bodys natural defense mechanisms to fight the tumor. APEIRONs clinical program APN401 is a first-in-class autologous cellular therapy to strengthen immune reactivity via an intracellular master checkpoint, Cbl-b. APEIRONs APN01 (rhACE2) is starting a Phase II trial in Europe to treat COVID-19. APEIRONs projects and technologies are bolstered by a strong patent portfolio. APEIRONs development expertise is validated through partnerships with leading pharmaceutical companies and academic institutions.

SOURCE: Apeiron Biologics
On March 23, as the coronavirus pandemic put grocery workers on the front lines of a public health crisis, Trader Joes sent a memo to store managers encouraging them to relay a message to employees: Joining a union might be a bad idea.

Its not like buying toothpaste you dont end up liking, said the email, which listed a series of anti-union talking points, including a warning about the size of dues. Its like buying a house  youre in for the long term.

The pandemic has led to a wave of worker activism in recent weeks, as employees at Instacart, Amazon and Whole Foods have gone on strike and demanded increased protections. At Trader Joes, a chain known for its outwardly cheerful work force, employees have criticized what they describe as the companys haphazard response to the crisis, reigniting a debate about union organizing that has simmered for years.

Workers hoping to form a union recently circulated a petition calling for Trader Joes to offer hazard pay, or an hourly rate of time and a half. And over the last few weeks, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union has held talks with employees.
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Samsung has said it will end production of LCD or liquid crystal display in South Korea and China by the end of the year.

According to a report by ZDNet, Samsung Display, the display-making unit of Samsung Electronics, said the decision was taken to provide more resources for its QD or quantum dot displays. .

As per the report, while the company will continue to supply LCD panels to clients without any hassle till the end of the year, existing people at its LCD business will be transferred to its OLED and QD display units.

Quantum Dot technology is a form of improved backlighting for LCD displays. These allow for far better control over colour, resulting in better brightness and colour accuracy.

The decision to end LCD production was expected following the company's October announcement of investing $11 million into QD displays.

The first batch of Samsung Display's mass-produced QD panels will make use of OLED and quantum dot as a film.

Other companies too have distanced themselves from traditional LCDs, with LG Display converting its LCD factories into OLED and Panasonic deciding in 2019 to terminate LCD manufacturing by 2021.

According to ZDNet, Samsung still has factories that produce LCD panels South Koreas Asan region, and in Suzhou, China.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-01 23:54:55|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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Volunteers disinfect a mosque as a preventive measure against COVID-19 in northwest Pakistan's Peshawar on April 1, 2020. The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan has risen to 2,071, with 26 deaths reported across the country, according to the latest data from the country's health ministry released Wednesday. (Photo by Saeed Ahmad/Xinhua)

ISLAMABAD, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Wednesday that China has given priority to Pakistan in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Pakistan is fortunate that China is giving us preference in provision of the equipment as they started controlling the outbreak," Khan said.

"China gave priority to Pakistan and the whole equipment coming to Pakistan is from China. There was a demand of protective equipment, especially ventilators, and Pakistan also needed this equipment," he said.

An eight-member medical expert team organized by the Chinese government arrived here on March 28 to help Pakistan fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The day before, nearly two tons of medical supplies from China were successfully handed over to Pakistan at the Khunjerab pass in north Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region.

Addressing doctors in the city of Rawalpindi near the capital Islamabad, Khan assured doctors, nurses and other medical staff they would be provided full protection in the fight against the coronavirus.

The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan has risen to 2,071, with 26 deaths reported across the country, according to the latest data from the country's health ministry released Wednesday.
The National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology reported four new cases of COVID-19, raising the total to 222 as of 6am on April 2.

Taking sample for test at Bach Mai hospital

Patient 219, a 59-year-old woman from Hung Yen province, took care of a family member who was at the same room with patient 133 at Bach Mai hospital in Hanoi from March 16. She took the test on March 25 after learning of COVID-19 cases at the hospital.

The other three patients, numbered from 220 to 222, were found among those under quarantine after returning from abroad.

Except for patient 220 who had a fever and cough, three other patients are in a stable health condition.

On April 1 evening, the Ministry of Health reported six new COVID-19 cases.

They include two employees of the Truong Sinh Co. Ltd, which provides services for the Hanoi-based Bach Mai Hospital, a patient who used to visit Bach Mai hospital for medical check-up, and three returning Vietnam from overseas.



Patient 213 is a female, 40, living in the Thanh Ha Urban Area, Cu Khe commune, Thanh Oai district, Hanoi. After experiencing a fever of 38.6 degrees Celsius, the patient went to the Tropical Centre of Bach Mai Hospital with her husband. After the examination, she returned to the Thanh Ha Urban Area and quarantined herself at home.|

Every day, the patient still went out to take out the trash while wearing a mask, though she did not have contact with other people. The Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2 test found her positive for SARS-CoV-2. The patient is currently quarantined at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases No. 2 in stable condition.

Patient 214 is a 45-year-old female and Patient 215 is a 31-year-old male, both employees of Truong Sinh Company. The man lives on Truong Chinh street, Phuong Mai ward, Dong Da district, Hanoi. He was quarantined from March 30 to 31 and then sent to the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases.

Patient 216 is a woman, 48, from Quang Ninh province. She was in Germany and transited Russia on her return to Vietnam on Aeroflot flight SU290 on March 23. After entry, she was quarantined at the FPT University in Lang-Hoa Lac, Hanoi.

On March 31, she had a sore throat and on the same day, tested positive for SARS-COV-2. She was sent to the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2 for treatment.

Patient 217 is a female, 25, Vietnamese nationality, with her address in Khanh Son 2, Nam Dan district, Nghe An province. She returned from Japan on March 25 on All Nippon Airways flight NH857 (seat 31K). After entry, she was quarantined at the FPT University. From March 31, she was treated at the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2.

Patient 218 is a 43-year-old woman of Vietnamese nationality, with her address in Phu Xa district, Thai Nguyen province. The patient returned home on Aeroflot flight SU290 (seat number 46G) from Russia on March 25. After entry, she was quarantined at the FPT University. From March 31, she was quarantined and treated at the Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases No. 2.

To date, 63 COVID-19 patients have recovered, 54 have tested negative once and 43 have tested negative twice.

Vietnam has enforced nationwide social distancing for 15 days since April 1 with the aim of curbing the spread of COVID-19 in the community. The country has no death from the disease so far.

Social distancing begins in central region

A take-away coffee shop in a Nang. All online and take-away food and coffee shops will be closed from April 2 as social distancing sets in to prevent COVID-19 from spreading.

Online and take-away food and coffee shops will shut down from April 2 following a decision released on Wednesday in response to the Prime Ministers social distancing decision.

Only chemists, food stores, supermarkets, petrol stations, banks, and power, water supply and telecommunications services will be allowed to stay open.

Also on Tuesday, eight bus routes were closed to limit travel and close contact among people. Offices were warned to work online or cut office-based staff by 50 per cent.

Bus routes connecting a Nang with Thua Thien-Hue and Quang Nam have been shut, while only one daily return flight will be operated from a Nang to Ha Noi and HCM City, respectively.

More than 900 people were being monitored at medical centres, households and hotels, while 4,991 people had completed their isolation time as of today. In total 2,034 had tested negative for SARS-CoV-2.

In Quang Nam Province, social distancing began in all city, districts and communes from Wednesday.

Eight checkpoints have been set up to provide heath checks and declarations for all passengers from other provinces or foreign countries travelling to the province.

The province has been isolating 615 foreigners and 246 Vietnamese nationals who had close contact with COVID-19 positive cases. More than 1,100 people had finished their quarantine periods as of Wednesday, while 702 samples had tested negative.

Two quarantine centres have been set up in Quang Ngai Province providing 800 beds for possible cases of COVID-19. A donation of 1,000 face mask was made by Thien Tan company to contribute in to fight against the pandemic. No cases of the virus have been confirmed in the province thus far.

Thua Thien-Hue Province on Tuesday welcomed 700 Vietnamese workers returning from Laos. They have been taken to isolation sites for further health checks and monitoring for two weeks as regulated.

The province has 5,300 people in isolation centres, and 1,059 medical samples out of 1,625 have tested negative for COVID-19.

Hue Central Hospital has been caring for two COVID-19 patients (no 30 and 31). Earlier, two patients were released from the hospital.

Friendship association presents face masks to Italy

The Vietnam-Italy Friendship Association has presented over 41,500 face masks to Italy to help Italian people in the fight against the COVID-19.

The associations representatives recently handed over the gift to the Embassy of Italy in Vietnam, said the associations Vice Chairman - former Ambassador to Italy Dang Khanh Thoai.

Thoai said the masks are donated by people who love the Italian country, adding that the relief is part of a campaign initiated by the association to support the European country which is struggling against the pandemic.

For his part, Italian Ambassador to Vietnam Antonio Alessandro expressed his gratitude for the support of the Vietnamese people and the Vietnam-Italy Friendship Association, as Vietnam is also exerting efforts in the fight against the global pandemic.

He voiced his belief that the COVID-19 will soon be repelled in Vietnam and Italy as well as across the globe.

The bilateral relations will continue to thrive, benefitting people of the two nations and contributing to peace and friendship of the world, he added.

Italy is among the hardest hit nations in the COVID-19 pandemic, with total 110,570 cases as of April 2 and the worlds highest death toll of more than 13,150.

Man attacks hospital guard after being asked to wear face mask

People have been ordered to wear face masks in public places to curb the spread of COVID-19.

A man has been arrested in the northern province of Phu Tho for assaulting a hospital security guard who asked him to wear a face mask.

Pham Hong Hai, 35 , from the northern province of Tuyen Quang, allegedly attacked a security guard at Hung Vuong General Hospital on Monday evening while he, together with two other men, was taking an injured man to the hospital.

The security guard asked Hai to put a face mask on but rather than complying he rounded on the man, verbally and physically assaulting him.

The hospitals security team quickly escorted Hai from the premises.

The guard suffered bruising to the eyes and face, said head of the hospitals Organisation and Legal Affairs Department Nguyen uc Nhung.

The hospital reported the incident to oan Hung District Police, who summoned Hai for questioning.

Hai was reportedly involved in a traffic accident on Monday evening in which a car crashed into a motorbike in oi Can Commune, Tuyen Quang City. Hai was the car driver.

The motorbike driver Pham Van Sanh, 29, from Son Duong District, Tuyen Quang Province was diagnosed with brain trauma at the hospital.

He is undergoing treatment.

To curb the spread of COVID-19, people in Viet Nam are asked to wear face masks and frequently wash their hands with soap, especially in public spaces like hospitals and offices. People without face masks in public places during the pandemic face fines from VN100,000 to VN300,000 (US$ 4 -12).

HCM City hospitals send health staff to homes of seniors

A patient is provided physical therapy at HCM City Traditional Medicine Institute. Hospitals in HCM City will send their health staff to people's homes to examine and treat people aged more than 60 who suffer from chronic or common diseases.

People aged more than 60 who suffer from chronic and common diseases are eligible to use examination and treatment services provided by hospitals at home and be covered by health insurance, according to the city's Department of Health.

Hospitals will send their doctors and nurses to homes of seniors needing treatment.

For seniors who live too far from hospitals and need periodic treatment, hospital doctors can examine and treat via telemedicine by using telephone. If patients health is stable, they should continue their prescribed medicines for the next month.

Health staff will also bring medicine to patients homes. Patients relatives can also go to hospitals to pick up medicine.

Hospital leaders are responsible for the examination, treatment and provision of medicine at patients homes. They should assign and strictly manage their staff, who must have a certificate that allows them to provide this kind of service.

Hospitals should also co-operate with health stations in communes and wards where patients live to transfer patients with stable chronic diseases to the latter for surveillance to reduce overcrowding at hospitals.

HCM City: Round-the-clock hotlines opened to obtain COVID-19 feedback

The Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee on April 1 launched round-the-clock hotlines to receive reports, feedback, and complaints from citizens, businesses, and organisations on local COVID-19 prevention and control measures.

The hotlines - 1022 (ext. 3) and (028) 3824 9000 - were opened for city leaders to hear the response to local preventive efforts against the pandemic.

The municipal Department of Information and Communications has publicised locations of over 1,000 shops selling anti-bacterial and anti-droplet masks citywide at covid19.hochiminhcity.gov.vn/diadiembankhautrang or 1022.tphcm.gov.vn/covid19.

The masks are on sale at a large number of local convenience stores and supermarkets, such as Co.opmart, Co.opXtra, Co.opFood, Satrafoods, VinMart, VinMart , Big C, Lotte Mart, and Aeon.

The department plans to launch an iOS and Android-based app to update residents on the current COVID-19 situation in the city, and will cooperate with the citys Department of Industry and Trade to provide information on markets, supermarkets, shopping malls, and wholesale outlets selling essential goods.

Health Ministry announces official fanpage on local social network

Health Ministry's fanpage on Lotus

The Ministry of Public Health announced on April 1 the launch of a fanpage called Bo Y Te (Health Ministry) on Lotus, a Vietnamese social network platform, on March 15, in order to promote recommendations on tackling COVID-19.

The ministrys official fanpage will publish directions from the Government, the National Steering Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control, and the ministry relating to the pandemic and provide updated information on the situation in Vietnam and around the world.

The launch of the fanpage expresses the ministrys determination to intensify communications activities to raise public awareness about the pandemic.

Subscribers to the official fanpage must download the Lotus app from the Appstore or CH Play on mobile phones or tablets, or visit https://lotus.vn/w.

As of March 30, 15 days after its creation, the fanpage had nearly 5,100 followers and had received thousands of comments each day.

Russian radio praises Vietnams COVID-19 prompt response

A street with a poster calling for joint efforts in the COVID-19 combat in Vietnam

Russian radio Sputnik has lauded the Vietnamese Governments prompt response to the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic, especially its decision to declare a nationwide epidemic and social-distancing order.

The radio quoted experts as saying that the nationwide epidemic announcement at a time when the number of COVID-19 cases in Vietnam stands at only more than 200 has demonstrated the governments timely reaction.

The declaration has helped the government, agencies and people make preparedness for the disease combat, experts said, adding that the announcement at such an early date has also enabled the government to use strict quarantine measures in order to curb the spread of the pandemic.



Thanks to the decision, Vietnam has completely barred imported cases via roads, waterways, air and sea routes, the radio said.

According to Sputnik, Vietnam has done well in the disease control, quarantine and treatment work, with the participation of the army, public security force and health workers.

With such drastic measures as well as cooperation, solidarity and law observance of Vietnamese people, and great efforts of the forces involved, Vietnam is likely to contain the pandemic and stamp it out at the approach of the summer, the radio said.

Nearly 29 million USD raised for COVID-19 fight

The VFF central Committee receives funds from the Party Central Committee Office, the Government Office, the National Assembly Office, and the President Office (Photo: dangcongsan.vn)

The Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee announced on April 1 that over 683 billion VND (28.9 million USD) has been raised from organisations and individuals since the fundraising campaign for the COVID-19 fight was launched on March 17.

According to Vice President of the committee Nguyen Huu Dung, the amount is rising after each hour.

The same day, it received funds worth 420 million from the Party Central Committee Office, 325 million VND from the Government Office, 400 million VND from the National Assembly Office, and 30 million VND from the President Office, and 500 million VND from the State Treasury.

The committee will quickly transfer the funds to the Ministry of Health for buying medical equipment and necessities, and support those who are directly involved in the prevention of the pandemic and those in quarantine areas, Dung said.

HCM City to strictly manage delivery of goods

The HCM City Department of Health on March 31 instructed relevant agencies and local authorities to strictly manage delivery of goods by restaurants, food stores and supermarkets.

Speaking during an online meeting with the city's Steering Board for COVID-19 Prevention and Control held on March 31, Nguyen Tan Binh, the head of the department, said that companies must keep a record of where and to whom they are delivering goods.

These records will help identify anyone who has had contact with people at a high risk of contracting COVID-19 and will help speed up quarantine, if needed, Binh said.

Pham Khanh Phong Lan, head of the city's Food Safety and Hygiene Management Authority, has instructed peoples committees in all 24 districts to inform food trade establishments, enterprises and individuals delivering goods about the need to carry out to preventive measures such as wearing masks and washing hands with sanitisers.

Buyers must keep at least two metres from others while standing in queues or receiving goods from delivery people, Lan said.

Nguyen Thi Huynh Mai, the departments chief of the secretariat, said that nearly 80 doctors and nurses who are examining and treating COVID-19 patients at HCM City hospitals will be staying free at a hotel run by TTC Hospitality after their working shift every day to ensure safety for their family.

They will also receive free meals and other services at hotels thanks to the sponsorship of Orient Commercial Bank.

Meanwhile, Sai Gon Water Corporation will not charge for water use at disadvantaged households and quarantine areas for three months.

Vietnam Electricity (EVN) has asked the Prime Minister and relevant ministries to approve exemption or reduction in charges for energy use by certain people in the country affected by COVID-19.

EVN in HCM City is maintaining its operation and repair services. Customers can contact EVN through its website and customer care app as well as its website https://dichvucong.gov.vn if they have a problem relating to electricity.

Vietnamese firm contributes to COVID-19 combat in Laos

At the hand-over ceremony

Xekaman 1 Power Ltd., Co under Viet-Laos Power JSC on April 1 donated 30,000 USD to the COVID-19 combat of the Lao government and people.

The donation was handed to the Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Somdy Duangdy.

Addressing the hand-over ceremony, Dinh Ngoc Diep, chief representative of Viet-Laos Power JSC, thanked the Lao government for facilitating the companys operation in the country over the past years.

Through the donation, the company hopes to join hands with the Lao government and people to soon contain and stamp out the pandemic, he said.

Somdy Duangdy said the gift has demonstrated not only the companys social responsibility but also sentiments and special relations between Vietnam and Laos.

COVID-19 patients increase in Southeast Asian countries

Malaysia on April 1 announced an additional 142 cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection, bringing the total number of COVID-19 patients in the country to 2,908.

Malaysia now has the highest number of novel coronavirus infections in Southeast Asia. The Malaysian Health Ministry said the country had recorded 45 deaths due to COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the Philippines reported 227 more COVID-19 cases and eight deaths. In total, this Southeast Asian nation recorded 2,311 infections and 96 fatalities from the disease.

Also the same day, Thailand's Ministry of Public Health confirmed 120 more cases of COVID-19 and two deaths from the disease. The new cases are local residents, returnees from abroad, including those who came to Indonesia to attend religious events, and a health worker. The majority of new infections have been recorded in the capital city of Bangkok.

Thailand has so far confirmed 1,771 COVID-19 cases, including 12 deaths.

Another coronavirus hotspot in Southeast Asia, Indonesia has just announced 149 more COVID-19 cases and 21 deaths from the disease. According to Indonesian health official Achmad Yurianto, the country has recorded a total of 1,677 SARS-CoV-2 infections, including 157 deaths and 103 recoveries.

Two COVID-19 patients in Ninh Thuan now free of coronavirus

Two men found to have contracted the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 after a trip to Malaysia have recovered, the General Hospital of the southern central province of Ninh Thuan announced on April 1 morning.

One of them is Case 61, 42 years old, who was hospitalised on March 15 and confirmed to be positive for the novel coronavirus on March 16.

The other is a 36-year-old person who was sent to the hospital on March 17 and confirmed as Case 67 on the next day.

Both of them reside in Van Lam 3 hamlet of Phuoc Nam commune, Ninh Thuans Thuan Nam district.

Doctor Thai Phuong Phien, Director of the Ninh Thuan General Hospital, said after finishing treatment, they will continue to be quarantined and monitored for an additional 14 days as regulated by the Ministry of Health.

The two men and three others, also from Phuoc Nam commune, travelled to Malaysia to attend a religious event on February 27. Then, they boarded Flight VJ826 from Malaysia to Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City on March 4. After arriving in Ninh Thuan on March 5, Case 61 attended several activities and had contact with many locals.

After the 61st patient was confirmed, Ninh Thuans authorities quarantined the entire Van Lam 3 hamlet, which is home to 981 households with over 5,000 people, in 28 days, starting at 8pm on March 17.

The province has also sent 150 people with close contact with the 61st and 67th patients to concentrated quarantine facilities. Among them, 134 have finished their quarantine period.

Ho Chi Minh City basically contains COVID-19 hotbeds

Ho Chi Minh City's Health Department said the city has basically contained the local clusters of COVID-19, adding that the city recorded 49 COVID-19 infection cases as of 7pm on March 31, 11 of them fully recovered.

Among 196 samples collected from those who were related to the Buddha bar in District 1, 166 tested negative for SARS-CoV-2, 11 positive, and 19 are waiting for results.

Of more than 2,900 people who had contact with them, four were found positive, 505 negative and more than 2,400 on the waiting list.

The medical sector collected 306 samples from Muslims in District 8, including those who had close contact with patients and attended a ceremony at a local mosque. All of them have tested negative. At present, 176 are under concentrated quarantine at the Vietnam National University  Ho Chi Minh City and 122 others self-quarantine at home.

No new infection has been detected among this group since March 15.

Up to 179 samples from those who attended a funeral in Binh Chanh district were also collected, with 86 negative and 93 others still waiting. Since March 23, no new infection case has been found among this group.

Three more COVID-19 patients released from Cu Chi field hospital

The patients leave Cu Chi Hospital for Acute Respiratory Diseases. Photo congan.com.vn

Three COVID-19 patients were discharged from HCM Citys Cu Chi Hospital for Acute Respiratory Diseases this morning after making a full recovery.

They are patients 45, 48 and 64.

Patient No. 45, residing in Tan Binh District of HCM City, was hospitalised on March 12 after having close contact with patient No. 34 on March 4.

During treatment in the hospital, the 27-year-old patient tested negative three times for SARS-CoV-2.

Patient No. 48, living in the citys District 10, who is a colleague of patient No.45, was hospitalised on March 14. He also tested negative three times.

Patient No. 64, a resident of District 8, tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 on March 17 after she entered Viet Nam at Tan Son Nhat International Airport from Switzerland via Dubai on March 12 and was taken to a quarantine facility.

The 34-year-old tested negative on March 23, 25 and 28.

All three patients will be monitored at home for the next 14 days.

Two days ago, Cu Chi Hospital for Acute Respiratory Diseases also released seven patients who had recovered from COVID-19.

The total number of patients to have recovered from the disease in HCM Ctiy has reached 15, while there are 63 across the country.
FEMA approved Tennessees COVID-19 major disaster declaration on Thursday. Governor Bill Lee said this accelerates efforts to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and expand statewide capacity by an additional 7,000 beds.

He said the Corps of Engineers is working for FEMA and in partnership with Tennessee in responding to the crisis. Through Tennessees partnership with the Corps of Engineers, the state is assessing sites across Tennessee to build capacity and create Alternate Healthcare Facilities.

Also,

The Music City Center in downtown Nashville will be transformed into a COVID Positive Non-Acute Alternate Healthcare Facility. It will serve COVID patients who need hospital care but do not require critical care. The current plan for the Music City Center is to provide more than 1,600 Patient Care Spaces.

In Memphis, the Corps will be constructing a COVID positive Non-Acute Alternate Healthcare facility at Gateway Shopping Center. Additional sites in Memphis are being actively assessed to ensure capacity in this hotspot is built up quickly and efficiently.

The Chattanooga Convention Center and the Knoxville Expo Center will also serve as a COVID positive Non-Acute Alternate Healthcare facilities.

Governor Lee said, "While facilities are a key part of planning for a surge in COVID-19 patients, staffing is also an essential need."

All displaced or furloughed health care personnel are urged to register on the Tennessee Department of Health website here.
Boris Johnson is preparing to stay in isolation for longer than he hoped after appearing poorly in a video message from his Downing Street flat.

The prime minister was due to go back to his office on Friday  seven days after being diagnosed with coronavirus  but still has symptoms, No 10 acknowledged.

Asked if he would leave isolation on Friday, his spokesman repeatedly refused to give a guarantee, saying only: We will follow the guidelines... you can rest assured on that.

Mr Johnson released a video to answer criticism of the failure to hit testing targets on Wednesday evening, but did not appear well to most observers.

He was already facing criticism for planning to emerge from his flat on Friday  after just seven days  when World Health Organisation guidelines call for 14 days of isolation.

The spokesman declined to go into the details of Mr Johnsons continuing symptoms, refusing to say if he was still coughing.

Asked if he would undergo a check today, he said only: We are fully aware of what the guidelines are. We will follow that to the letter.

And he acknowledged: What the guidelines say is that, if you still have a high temperature, for example, you should keep self-isolating.

Mr Johnson has remained in charge, chairing the daily Covid-19 meetings, rather than putting Dominic Raab  the so-called designated survivor  in his place.

The likely delay to his isolation emerged as No 10 signalled that people could be given immunity certificates to prove they have recovered from coronavirus and can leave the lockdown early.

The move, already planned in Germany, will be considered if hoped-for antibody tests  showing a person was infected, but is now healthy  become available on a mass scale.

Asked if the German model would be adopted, Mr Johnsons spokesman said: We have always said we would look at strategies that have been followed elsewhere.

If there are things that would be useful in the UK, we would of course consider them.

Meanwhile, Downing Street made its clearest admission yet that it is falling badly short on testing if someone currently has the virus, promising a significant increase would be announced later today.

We acknowledge that more needs to be done, the spokesman told journalists. We agree we need to be testing more people and to make progress very quickly.

However, he argued the much-criticised figure that just 2,000 NHS staff had been tested  clearing them to return to the frontline, if negative  was an underestimation.

It said 2,800 had now been seen at drive-in testing facilities, plus an unspecified significant number at NHS and Public Health England laboratories.

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

The spokesman also rebuffed calls to reduce the five-week wait for universal credit, to help a deluge of applicants, saying: People can take an advance if they need money urgently.

And he refused to confirm or deny whether mobile phone location data is being used to decide on the success or otherwise of the lockdown.

Weve received data from a wide variety of sources in relation to protecting peoples health, but at all times we follow data protection rules, he insisted.
Time is money, as the old adage goes, and this is doubly true in healthcare systems operating with thin margins now made even thinner thanks to the loss of revenue caused by a freeze on elective procedures.

Stepping in with a technology that automates much of the time-consuming back-end processes hospitals and healthcare providers need to keep up with is Olive, a startup out of Columbus, Ohio.

The company, which counts among its customers more than 500 hospitals representing some of the largest healthcare providers in the U.S., has raised a new round of $51 million as it sees significant growth for its business.

The round, raised from investors including Drive Capital, Oak HC/FT and Ascension Ventures, was led by General Catalyst, which recently closed on $2.3 billion in new capital to invest in early-stage companies.

As a result of the investment, Ron Paulus, the former president and chief executive of Mission Health, will join the board of directors, the company said in a statement.

Olive's software toolkit automates administrative tasks like revenue cycle, supply chain management, clinical administration and human resources, the company said in a statement. And demand for the company's technology is surging.

According to data provided by the company, roughly half of hospital administrators intend to invest in robotic process automation by 2021.

Theres a growing, multi-billion dollar problem: healthcare doesnt have the internet. Instead, healthcare uses humans as routers, forcing workers to toggle between disparate systems -- they copy, they paste, they manipulate data  they become robots. They click and type and extract and import, all day long -- and its one of the leading reasons that one out of every three dollars spent in the industry today is spent on administrative costs, said Olive chief executive Sean Lane in a September statement.

Olive doesn't just automate processes, but makes those processes better for hospitals by identifying problem areas that could lead to lost revenues for hospitals. The software has access to pre-existing health claim status data, which allows it to identify where mistakes in previous claims were made. By using accurate coding, hospitals can add additional revenue.

As a recent health system CEO, I appreciate the duress our hospitals are under as they focus on delivering the best patient care possible under challenging circumstances all while needing to keep the lights on, said Dr. Ronald A. Paulus. Olives reliable automation of essential back-office processes saves time, reduces errors and allows staff to focus on higher-order work. I am excited to be working closely with Olives management team to maximize the outsized positive impact we can have in healthcare on both the administrative and clinical fronts.
 Flash

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Wednesday that China has given priority to Pakistan in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Pakistan is fortunate that China is giving us preference in provision of the equipment as they started controlling the outbreak," Khan said.

"China gave priority to Pakistan and the whole equipment coming to Pakistan is from China. There was a demand of protective equipment, especially ventilators, and Pakistan also needed this equipment," he said.

An eight-member medical expert team organized by the Chinese government arrived here on March 28 to help Pakistan fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The day before, nearly two tons of medical supplies from China were successfully handed over to Pakistan at the Khunjerab pass in north Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region.

Addressing doctors in the city of Rawalpindi near the capital Islamabad, Khan assured doctors, nurses and other medical staff they would be provided full protection in the fight against the coronavirus.

The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Pakistan has risen to 2,071, with 26 deaths reported across the country, according to the latest data from the country's health ministry released Wednesday.
2022 about 27.8 million Tanzanians will have possessed National Identity Cards (IDs), thanks to the new modern equipment procured by the government recently.

Speaking at a news conference here yesterday, the Minister for Internal Affairs, George Simbachawene, said the 8.5bn/- machine will start operations by the end of this month, and will have a capacity to produce 9,000 IDs per hour.

According to the minister, the National Identification Authority (NIDA), targets to identify and register 27.8 million Tanzanians, refugees living in the country and resident immigrants countrywide.

So far, as of March 27,2020 about 21, 823,026 people have been identified and registered out of 27,796,983 targeted population, he said.

However, Mr Simbachawene expressed his dismay over the number of Tanzanians, who have been issued with National Identification Number (NIN) and National IDs.

According to him, only 17.8 million people have NIN but surprisingly only 6 million people have been issued with the IDs.

However, Mr Simbachawene said with the new machine, the government was optimistic that in the next two years, all Tanzanians will have the IDs.

The minister asked NIDA officials to increase pace in identifying and registering the citizens, and refrain from using bad language, while serving the public.

He said within a short period he has been in office, he has received several complaints from the public that they are unhappy by the way NIDA officials treat them.

Mr Simbachawene, therefore said, as from today, he would go for a comprehensive reshuffle within the authority that would see underperforming staff transferred to new duty stations and other assigned different duties.

He equally directed all Regional Commissioners and District Commissioners to make sure that they closely supervise NIDA officials in their areas to ensure that they discharge.
At a time when most people are doing their bit to stay safe in the time of lockdown to check spread of Sars-Cov-2, UP police are also helping people with food, water besides providing other assistance to the people in need. Going beyond their call of duty in Lucknow, four policemen, while they were on assisting people job, rushed to a hospital to save the life of a stranger by donating blood to him.

They responded to a man urgently needing blood on a WhatsApp group they were members of.

I was distressed as the blood bank that had supplied blood to me easily had started facing problem under the lockdown, said Dr Nilesh Kumar, a government veterinary doctor posted in Siddharthnagar.

My ailing father Bhagwan Das, 68, was on dialysis at a private hospital in Lucknow. This was much before the lockdown. On March 18, we shifted him to the Vivekananda Polyclinic. His condition was critical and the hospital immediately admitted him. The blood bank gave us blood for transfusion twice. But on March 27, his health deteriorated but by then blood was not available without first donating it and no friends and relatives could come under the lockdown. In such a crisis, an acquaintance messaged someone. Soon, four policemen in their uniform walked in, donated a unit each and left, said Dr Nilesh.

A government spokesperson identified three of them as head constable Dilip Patel, constable Avnish Upadhyaya and constable Pradip Gangwar. The name of the fourth policeman could be established.

Our requirement was two units, they donated four. We now have two units in reserve, Dr Nilesh added.

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The partnership between the United States of America and the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) is at the forefront of combating COVID-19 in Ghana.

A statement jointly issued by the Ghana Armed Forces and the US Embassy made this known.

To serve the people of Ghana, the GAF is deploying one state of the art Level II Field Hospital from two that Ambassador Stephanie Sullivan handed over February 4 this year on behalf of the United States.

The donation was made through the U.S. Government's Africa Peacekeeping Rapid Response Partnership (APRRP) program.

The GAF will deploy the hospital in the Greater Accra area as part of the Government of Ghana's COVID-19 response.

Ambassador Sullivan underscored the importance of our joint efforts to combat the pandemic, saying: Now more than ever, the United States is pleased to work together with the government, armed forces, and people of Ghana.

This mobile hospital will directly serve those most in need. I also echo His Excellency President Akufo-Addo's call for all Ghanaians and residents of Ghana to stay home as much as possible at this time, as one of the most effective ways to combat the pandemic and 'flatten the curve, she says.

Together, we will emerge from this stronger and more united.

---Daily Guide
A shopper was left stunned after she was charged $615 for a tray of mince at her local supermarket.

Helen Carmichael, who works as a support worker, was at Countdown in Christchurch when she received an exorbitant $805 bill for a normal grocery shop.

Ms Charmichael told the New Zealand Herald that she was shocked when the checkout worker read the total out loud.

'I didn't see the price of the mince come up as I was packing my groceries while the operator was scanning,' she said.

'Then when she said the total I was like "pardon?" and looked at the eftpos machine thinking there is no way in hell my groceries cost that much.'

A supermarket shopper was shocked to find out that her tray of minced meat cost $633 NZD ($615 AUD) when she was checking out her groceries at a Countdown in Christchurch

She said that her normal bill would usually come to around $200 for a weekly grocery shop.

Ms Charmichael asked the checkout worker about the massive bill and was offered an odd explanation.

'I then questioned it and said "how can that be? Look at my trolley it's not even much!" Her reply was there are no sales so that's why it cost so much,' Ms Charmichael said.

Ms Charmichael knew that something must have scanned incorrectly and asked to review her purchased goods.

After looking up the items she noticed that her mince was priced at $13 but the scanner showed it priced as $633.38 NZD ($615 AUD).

Ms Carmichael said that the experience gave her a scare but she did not want to slam supermarket workers during a stressful time as they struggle to combat demand sparked by the coronavirus crisis.

Instead she urged her fellow shoppers to check their receipts and noted that it was a tough time for all New Zealanders.

Ms Carmichael said she was particularly worried about vulnerable shoppers who might not notice errors in their grocery bills.

'I am a support worker so I am aware of how hard our elderly and disabled do it in the community already without these errors being made. Just please remind everyone to check their receipts,' Ms Carmichael said.

A Countdown spokesperson noted that errors were rare but that shoppers should always check their receipts.

'We'd always encourage customers to check their receipts, just as you would for any purchase at any retailer,' they said.

New Zealand is currently in a stage four lockdown in a bid to fight the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

Kiwis are required to stay inside their homes and may only leave for exercise, grocery shopping or medical reasons.

Schools and businesses are closed except for essential services like supermarkets, pharmacies and clinics.

New Zealand has a total of 647 confirmed COVID-19 cases and one coronavirus related death.
With flood concerns already high in the Midwest, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is warning that many levees on the Missouri and Kansas rivers that were damaged during devastating floods last spring remain vulnerable to high water.

The National Weather Service has said Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri and eastern North Dakota and South Dakota face an above-average flood risk this spring, due largely to soil saturation to the north. Already, some rivers are high, including the Mississippi, which on Tuesday was a few feet above flood stage in several towns in Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. No major damage was reported.

A bigger concern is in parts of eastern Kansas and western Missouri. Record flooding in 2019 damaged several Missouri River and Kansas River levees, many of which have yet to be repaired. The Kansas City District of the Corps of Engineers said in a news release that challenging weather conditions and higher flows persisted through the winter and continue, delaying the ability to fully assess damaged levee systems.

The Corps said projects at 13 sites are preparing to begin work, and more than 20 additional bid openings or contract awards are expected by the end of April. More than two dozen other repair projects in the Kansas City district, though, arent ready for bids. The district covers parts of western Missouri, northeastern Kansas, southern Nebraska and southwestern Iowa.

For now, both the Kansas River and the Missouri River are below flood stage.

Some key projects have been completed. In February, crews closed the final breach of a Missouri River levee in northwestern Missouri near Rock Port. It was one of several breaks along the levee section that saw thousands of acres of mostly farmland submerged and a section of Interstate 29 and other roads in Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas damaged and closed to traffic for weeks.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Flood Missouri Iowa Kansas Nebraska
[April 02, 2020] Augury Expands Leadership Team to Transform the Machine Health Category

Augury, a leading AI-based machine health solution provider, today announced the additions of Brian Fitzgerald as Chief Marketing Officer and Nelson Ricciardi Parente as Vice President of Services. Their combined experience will be key as Augury continues to build awareness and firmly establish machine health as a critical category within the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and industrial sectors. The emerging Machine Health category is focused on the critical first step of any digital transformation: providing real-time visibility and actionable insights pertaining to the health and performance of the machines that matter most. "Machines are relied upon to generate the electricity we use, pump the water we drink, fill stores with the products we need and produce the medicine that keeps us and our children healthy. The empty store shelves we're seeing today underscore the importance of keeping those machines and supply chains healthy in order to meet demand," says Saar Yoskovitz, Co-Founder and CEO of Augury. "Our technology leverages the power of AI and the IIoT to ensure that the machines that enable modern living as we know it stay running. Building a category around this technology now is critical to a more reliable future." Fitzgerald, a technology industry veteran, joins Augury with more than three decades of experience, featuring a strong track record of category creation and transformation. Fitzgerald previously served as Chief Marketing Officer of Veracode, where he led the effort to underscore the value of application security as a top company investment. He was also SVP of marketing at Cybersecurity giant RSA (News - Alert), helping double RSA's revenues and sustain its position as industry leader during a critical period of the company's history. Earlier in his career at EMC Corporation (News - Alert), Fitzgerald ushered in the repositioning of the company to become the global leader in enterprise storage. "Digital transformation isn't entirely digital," said Fitzgerald. "Augury's machine health solutions are step-one in any digital transformation, enabling companies to go on to carefully streamline processes, reinvent their company culture and seamlessly implement new business models. I am excited to help Augury shape the macine health category with these solutions as the catalysts for the value they hold for businesses."



The need for knowledgeable digital transformation partners to guide organizations in their pursuit of new business models and ROI is critical. Gartner (News - Alert), in its November 2019 Market Guide for Digital Business Consulting and Implementation Services, states that "despite the digital transformation hype, 54% of leaders say their organization doesn't have a clear vision for transformation, and only 11% have scaled digital business transformation." According to the January 2020 Gartner report, Improve Credibility in Digital Business Services in 7 Steps, "eighty-two percent of CEOs and senior business executives in the 2019 Gartner CEO Survey indicate aspirations to create a digital business. The responsibility to deliver on aspirations to create a digital business often falls to the CIO, but only 10% of CIOs indicate their organizations are very effective at harvesting results from digitalization." Parente is joining Augury to ensure that its full range of expertise and capabilities are available to customers throughout their digital transformation journeys. As Vice President of Services, Parente will be overseeing service delivery and enhancement of customer experience. Most recently, Parente served as VP Services, Americas for NICE Systems. He has also served as Senior VP of Platform Delivery at CitiGroup, as well as a technology consultant for Accenture and IBM (News - Alert).

"The key to a successful integration is the ability to work seamlessly with customers throughout their entire digital transformation, ensuring smooth, efficient implementations and transitions," said Parente. "I look forward to leveraging my background in similar mission critical scenarios with world class organizations to help current and future customers enhance the services that make Augury a trusted digital transformation partner capable of maximizing ROI on a global scale." The expansion of Augury's leadership team ?builds on the company's continued momentum spanning the past two years. Most recently, Augury received an $8 million investment from Qualcomm Ventures' AI Fund, in addition to raising $25 million in Series C funding in early 2019. This year, Augury expanded its strategic partnership with Grundfos, a worldwide leader in pump and water technology, to advance water's digital future. For more information about Augury, please visit www.augury.com. About Augury Augury is building a world where people can always rely on the machines that matter. Augury supports its partners by enabling Digital Transformation through superior insights into the health and performance of the machines they use to make products, deliver services and improve lives. To learn more about Augury's machine health solutions, visit www.augury.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005653/en/

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Former Representative Chris Collins, a Republican from New York, exits a federal court in New York, U.S., on Friday, Jan. 17, 2020.

A federal judge granted a two-month delay on Wednesday for the prison surrender of former GOP Rep. Chris Collins after his lawyers argued he has a high risk of contracting the coronavirus.

Collins' surrender postponement until June 23 is the latest example of disparities in how the pandemic is being handled by the criminal justice system in prisons and jails.

Dozens of corrections guards have tested positive for the disease and some inmates have died after being infected.

A number of people in jail who have not been convicted of crimes have been denied requests for release after they argued they were at risk of catching the virus while locked up.

Collins, 69, was sentenced in January to serve 26 months in prison for conspiracy to commit securities fraud and lying to the FBI. He originally was due to surrender on April 21.

Collins, while representing a Buffalo, New York, area district, was the first member of Congress to endorse Donald Trump's presidential campaign.

His lawyers in a filing Wednesday in Manhattan federal court argued that it would be "dangerous for an elderly person with underlying health conditions" to be incarcerated "in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic that is ravaging the United States."

Attorneys asked Judge Vernon Broderick to postpone Collins' surrender until June 23.

Broderick granted the request on the same day as the filing.
By Liu Pinran, Xu Ye, Wang Ying, Chen Lin, Lin Zhaohui, Zhang Xiao

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc worldwide. But as the world is sounding the clarion to fight the novel coronavirus together, the US, the largest economy of the world, has continuously intensified its unilateral sanctions against countries such as Iran and Venezuela.

It is generally believed that such acts by the US that add insult and injury to the sanctioned countries not only go against international justice and morality and exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in those countries, but also hinder the global coordination in combating the pandemic.

The US has intensified sanctions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the US announced to exempt the medical supplies to Iran, it has kept intensifying its sanctions, expanding the list of sanctioned entities several times in March. The US Secretary of State Pompeo even vowed repeatedly to cut off Irans capital acquisition channels and leave it high and dry.

Also falling prey to Americas sanctions and suppression are Venezuela, Syria, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Russia.

Washington has been escalating the sanctions against the Syrian government, businesses, and individuals in the past decade, to overthrow the Syrian regime in the end. On March 17, the US Department of State announced to sanction Syrians defense minister on the ground of "be responsible for the violence and the disastrous humanitarian crisis in northern Syria".

Analysts pointed out that Americas intensified sanctions against those countries amid the COVID-19 pandemic are aimed to coerce them into accepting its demands under the dual pressure and consequently achieve its political agenda.

Barbara Slavin, director of the "Future of Iran Initiative" at the Atlantic Council, a US think tank, called Americas superficial concern for the Iranians and Venezuelans hypocritical, saying that the message that the US sent to both countries was that they could avoid the sanction as long as the current regime was overthrown, which was brutal.

US sanctions exacerbate the humanitarian crisis.

Of the countries that are sanctioned by the US, Iran is hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic. The long-term sanctions imposed by the US have already left the country economically and socially crippled, making it unable to deal with a crisis. The constant intensification of the sanctions since the pandemic broke out has also made it hard for Iran to access the medical supplies they need to combat the pandemic promptly.

In a recent joint letter to the UNESCO, Iranian students slammed the US for quitting the Iranian nuclear deal unilaterally and imposing sanctions on Irans health and economic sectors, saying those non-humanitarian policies have blocked the ways for COVID-19 patients to acquire the much-needed medicine. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN Human Rights) commented that the sanctions against Iran have hindered the people there from obtaining basic medicine and medical equipment, including ventilators and protective equipment for medical personnel.

Although the White House has claimed many times that the humanitarian supplies are not on its sanction list, an article published by Washington Post on March 29revealed that the US Department of the Treasury has extremely tedious procedures of approving Iran's import of food and medicine.

In addition to Iran, other countries sanctioned by the US are also facing difficulties in combating the COVID-19 pandemic. Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, issued a statement lately, fearing the sanctions could impact medical efforts in Cuba, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK), Venezuela and Zimbabwe, and "obstacles to the import of vital medical supplies will create long-lasting harm to vulnerable communities".

US sanctions impede global cooperation in fighting the pandemic.

According to analysts, the international community will only win the battle against COVID-19 pandemic through solidarity and coordination in this global public health crisis, but America's unilateral sanctions are impeding the global efforts toward that end.

Kira Sazonova, an associate professor at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, pointed out that given the grave situation of the pandemic, all countries are facing difficulties in their medical and economic sectors. The US sanctions have seriously impeded international coordination and taken a heavy toll on the global response.

When addressing at a special Group of 20 (G20) leaders' summit on responding to the COVID-19 pandemic on March 26, the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an immediate lifting of unilateral sanctions that may impair relevant countries capabilities of pandemic response.

In her statement, Michelle Bachelet urged world leaders to come together at this time as no country can combat the pandemic alone. "In a context of global pandemic, impeding medical efforts in one country heightens the risk for all of us."
Chinese President Xi Jinping.

REUTERS/Marko Djurica

The Chinese government is rebuffing the notion that its face masks exported to other countries were "defective" and suggested that the nations did not "double-check" the instructions.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday claimed in a tweet that the "true story" behind the alleged faulty face masks imported by the Netherlands was that the Chinese manufacturer explicitly "stated clearly that they are non-surgical."

Representatives from the Chinese government in recent weeks shifted the narrative surrounding the coronavirus's origins by questioning its validity.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Chinese government is rebuffing the notion that its face masks exported to other countries were "defective" and suggested that the nations did not "double-check" the instructions.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday claimed in a tweet that the "true story" behind the alleged faulty face masks sent to the Netherlands was that the Chinese manufacturer explicitly "stated clearly that they are non-surgical."

"Masks of various category offer different levels of protection, for day-to-day use and for medical purposes," the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in the tweet. "[Please] double-check the instructions to make sure that you ordered, paid for and distributed the right ones. Do not use non-surgical masks for surgical purposes."

Related Video: How Long Will Social Distancing Last?

The statement comes as the Dutch government recalled 600,000 of the Chinese-manufactured face masks for being defective and not meeting safety standards  over half of the 1.3 million total N-95 protective masks that were delivered to the Netherlands.

Hospitals in the country were requested to return the masks that did not properly fit on faces and prevent COVID-19 virus particles from making human contact. The N-95 mask is able to block out 95% of airborne particles when used properly.

"When they were delivered to our hospital, I immediately rejected those masks," one hospital employee reportedly said to Dutch broadcaster NOS. "If those masks do not close properly, the virus particles can simply pass. We do not use them."

Story continues

Other countries have expressed concern with medical equipment manufactured in China. After purchasing 340,000 test kits from a Chinese manufacturer, Spain's government claimed that 60,000 of them did not accurately test for COVID-19.

European Union Minister for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell said in a blog post that the Chinese government was attempting to be perceived as an international ally in the "global battle of narratives."

"China is aggressively pushing the message that, unlike the US, it is a responsible and reliable partner," Borrell wrote. "In the battle of narratives, we have also seen attempts to discredit the EU as such and some instances where Europeans have been stigmatized as if all were carriers of the virus."

Representatives from the Communist Party of China (CCP) in recent weeks have shifted the narrative surrounding the coronavirus's origins by questioning its validity. Despite health officials and scientists widely agreeing that COVID-19 originated in Wuhan, China  likely from a wildlife market  government officials suggested that the US Army may have shipped the virus to China.

The Global Times, which operates under the Chinese government's purview, also claimed in a tweet that Italy "may have had an unexplained strain of pneumonia" in November and December  around the same time as China reported its first positive case.

Business Insider
Fact 1. Covid-19 and SARS-CoV-2 are not the same thing. Covid-19 is a disease (D stands for disease) caused by a new coronavirus. SARS-CoV-2 is the name of the virus itself.

Fact 2. CoV is short for CoronaVirus, Coronavirus. This is the name of the family of viruses (there are about 40 of them), which bear resemblance with the solar corona due to the spinous crests.

Fact 3. Coronaviruses are impostors from biology. The tailpiece of each spike imitates the molecule of a useful substance, so that the cellular receptors gladly pull it into themselves, and the whole virus is squeezed into the cell after the spike is in. This is how infection occurs.

Fact 4. The term "new coronavirus" (novel or nCoV) means that before neither scientists nor the cells met this virus before.

Fact 5. Over 2 million years of evolution, our immune system has learned to deal with most known infections, but the new coronavirus catches it by surprise, this its so hard to cope with and quite easy to get infected.

Fact 6. Once in a cell, the virus seizes control over it and forces it to endlessly produce its own copies - instead of its usual proteins. A chain reaction begins. As a result, the cell dies, but the carrier of the infection becomes contagious.

Fact 7. At the initial stage of infection, the new coronavirus actively reproduces itself in the throat and upper respiratory tract. Then the infection goes down and can reach the lungs, causing inflammation.

Fact 8. That is why the first symptom of infection is a cough. Only then the temperature begins to rise.

Fact 9. Or it does not begin - in 30% of patients in Wuhan, the temperature at the time of arrival at the hospital was normal.

Fact 10. Many people who become infected (18% or one in five people) do not even have a cough. The disease proceeds without any symptoms at all: a person may not even suspect that he is sick.

Fact 11. Moreover, such an asymptomatic patient is still an active carrier of infection and can infect others.

Fact 12. If Covid-19 proceeds benignantly, its symptoms are very similar to the usual seasonal flu: dry cough, fever, fatigue, sometimes muscle pain or headache.

Fact 13. Covid-19 is also treated in the same way as regular flu - at home, symptomatically.

Fact 14. One of the most unusual symptoms of coronavirus is the loss of a sense of taste and/or smell.

Fact 15. Loss of a sense of taste and/or smell is not a common symptom - is does not necessarily happens in all Covid-19 cases, sometimes it is the only symptom.

Fact 16. So if you suddenly stop smelling or tasting, this is a reason to grow suspicious and take measures.

Fact 17. Important: the carrier of a new coronavirus becomes dangerous to others immediately after being infected - long before the first symptoms (if any).

Fact 18. The good news: the more deadly a virus is, the worse it is spreading. By killing its master, the virus can no longer infect others. Therefore, the virus rarely mutates into a more deadly form, it is not in its interests.

Fact 19. The bad news: SARS-CoV-2 - is just from a different category. This virus makes its host a spreader, but it does not appear immediately or does not appear at all, so the carrier manages to infect several more people.

Fact 20. On average, each carrier of a new coronavirus manages to infect 2 to 4 healthy people. This number is higher than seasonal flu (1.3), but lower than measles (12+).

Fact 21. Although, like any infection, the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus has the so-called superspreders - carriers that infect incomparably more people: hundreds or even thousands.

Fact 22. In South Korea, the virus was controlled until the number of cases reached 30. But the woman, codenamed "Patient 31", immediately infected about 1,200 people.

Fact 23. It turned out that she was very religious and continued visiting church, despite the cough and fever, ignoring the orders of the Korean authorities.

Fact 24. Over 10 days, the number of infected in South Korea increased from 30 to 5,000.

Fact 25. The mortality rate from Covid-19 is still difficult to calculate with accuracy, but most studies estimate it at 1-3%.

Fact 26. This is about 20 times higher than seasonal flu, but falls short compared to the predecessors of the coronavirus SARS (10%) and MERS (25%).

Fact 27. Mortality from Covid-19 is highly dependent on the overall burden on the healthcare system and the rapidity of delivery medical care: in Germany it is only 0.3%, in Italy it is almost 9%.

Fact 28. In the age group of 70+, mortality exceeds 5%; 80+, every tenth dies of the virus.

Fact 29. That is why the main task of authorities around the world now is to stretch the epidemic for as long as possible, without allowing a large number of people to get Covid-19 at the same time.

Fact 30. The pandemic is quickly developing: 100,000 patients 67 days after the first diagnosis, the second 100,000 became ill in 11 days, and the third - in 4 days.

Internewscast Fact 31. Every day, the number of people infected with the virus increases by about a third. Every day, the number of people infected with the virus increases by about a third.

Fact 32. The pandemic has already reached the most remote corners of the globe, including the famous Easter Island, where on March 24, the first patient, a 42-year-old man, was officially confirmed.

Fact 33. Experts warn: you need to psychologically prepare yourself in advance for the fact that the number of infected people can amount to tens of millions, and perhaps hundreds of thousands will die.

Fact 34. It is not exactly known where SARS-CoV-2 came from, but bats and pangolins carry viruses similar to this one.

Fact 35. Most likely, the virus mutated and was transmitted to some other animal, and then to a human.

Fact 36. Was the virus dangerous for a person at the moment when the first person got it? Or did he mutate and learn to penetrate into our cells while already in a person? Scientists have not yet found answers to these questions.

Fact 37. If the virus was already dangerous when it came into contact with humans, it means that it can still walk somewhere in the animal kingdom and sooner or later infect people again.

Fact 38. That is why at the beginning of the outbreak in Wuhan, the first thing they did was closing the wildlife markets.

Fact 39. This, by the way, is a standard measure in China: first they close the markets when a new infection is suspected and lockdown is introduced. It usually helps, but this time it was too late: the asymptomatic virus has already gone "to the people."

Fact 40. No, the virus did not run away from the biological laboratory, no matter how much someone would like to believe it.

Fact 41. The version of the artificial origin of coronavirus was carefully checked by several teams of scientists from different countries at once and rejected as untenable.

Fact 42. "Our analysis clearly shows that SARS-CoV-2 was not designed in the laboratory and is not a virus that was aimed for any targeted manipulation," quoted researchers from the journal Nature.

Open source Fact 43. Since we went to bust myths, here's another one: surgical masks DO NOT protect against coronavirus. Its particles are so small that they easily pass through the pores. Since we went to bust myths, here's another one: surgical masks DO NOT protect against coronavirus. Its particles are so small that they easily pass through the pores.

Fact 44. For you to imagine the size of the virus: about 100 million copies can be easily placed on the tip of a needle.

Fact 45. When coughing from an infected patient, the smallest drops of saliva fly off, each of which may contain billions (!) of virus particles.

Fact 46. It makes sense to wear a mask for those who are afraid to infect others. It does not provide 100% protection, but slightly reduces the risk to others.

Fact 47. Contrary to popular belief, pets can NOT spread the coronavirus. No cases of human infection from a dog or cat have yet been reported.

Fact 48. But the virus can be picked up in an absolutely empty room, where the infected had previously been present.

Fact 49. In the air, the coronavirus remains viable (that is, it can infect healthy people) for three hours.

Fact 50. On plastic and steel surfaces, SARS-CoV-2 remains dangerous for up to three days, on paper and cardboard - up to a day, on copper - up to four hours.

Fact 51. That is why the main and most reliable means of prevention is to wash your hands thoroughly after contacting any surfaces outside your home.

Fact 52. If there is no opportunity to wash your hands with soap, use hand gel antiseptic.Fact 52. If there is no opportunity to wash your hands with soap, use hand gel antiseptic.

Fact 53. At the very least, miramistin or chlorhexidine will do for disinfection: they both destroy bacteria and viruses.

Fact 54. Antibiotics against coronavirus are useless.

Fact 55. Lockdown and other restrictive measures may be extended around the world (with short interruptions) until a vaccine or effective treatment for Covid-19 are found.

Fact 56. It is absolutely clear that an effective vaccine for coronavirus will NOT appear earlier than in a year - year and a half, by the mid or end of 2021. At this point under the threat are likely to get sick.

Fact 57. Vaccine may never appear at all. The whole world has been trying to develop a vaccine against HIV for 35 years - this mounted to nothing. Although HIV pills have already been developed for effective prevention.

Fact 58. There is no specific therapy for SARS-CoV-2 yet. Infected people are treated exclusively symptomatically, that is, they are fighting not with the disease itself, but with manifestations of a disease.

Fact 59. Over 100,000 people with confirmed Covid-19 have successfully recovered.

Fact 60. The majority of patients (over 80%) do not need medical assistance at all. They treat themselves at home, with the help of ordinary flu, and usually recover in about a week.

Fact 61. Approximately one in five or six cases require for hospitalization, this is true mainly for the elderly and/or those with chronic diseases.

Fact 62. In heavy cases (about 4%), the patient needs lung ventilation - i.e. to get connected to a ventilator. The ventilation apparatus may not be enough if there are too many sick people. Some car companies have switched to the production of ventilators.

Fact 63. This is one of the main causes of high mortality in Italy. There are a lot of elderly patients, the peak load on hospitals and, as a result, the emaciation of medical staff and lack of equipment.

Fact 64. For 10,300 Italians recovered from Covid-19, more than 8,000 died. Another 62 thousand people are still ill (data as of March 27).

Fact 65. In a separate development, the search for a remedy for the virus goes on. There is no time to develop new drugs, because doctors are checking existing antiviral drugs, namely how effective they are in the fight against SARS-CoV-2.

Fact 66. In February, Chinese doctors noticed that chloroquine, a drug designed to prevent and treat malaria, does a good job in tratment of coronavirus. Since then, several studies have confirmed its effectiveness in controlling Covid-19.

AFP Fact 67. Two other possible remedies are lopinavir, which is commonly used to treat HIV patients, and remdesivir, originally developed to treat Ebola and Marburg virus. So far, both have been successfully tested. Two other possible remedies are lopinavir, which is commonly used to treat HIV patients, and remdesivir, originally developed to treat Ebola and Marburg virus. So far, both have been successfully tested.

Fact 68. The latest encouraging discovery is the antiviral drug, Avigan (Favipiravir), a popular anti-flu medicine in Japan. It has been specifically designed to fight RNA viruses.

Fact 69. In tests in Wuhan, coronavirus-infected patients who received Avigan recovered in four days.

Fact 70. In some cases, heavily ill Covid-19 patients got transfusion of blood plasma from recovered people - with antibodies against the virus. This practice has proven itself during outbreaks of SARS, MERS and Ebola virus and has been officially recommended by WHO.

Fact 71. Sneezing is NOT a symptom of coronavirus. Coughing - yes, sneezing - no.

Fact 72. SARS-CoV-2 continues mutating. From December to March, some variants of the virus managed to change the genome 14 times.

Read the original text here.
One printer is being used to make filters that are inserted in the masks, with the filters able to be used a few times before being discarded, he said. The filters take about 45 minutes each to produce. Elastic strips would be used to secure the mask to someones face, Kucharski said.
In mid-March, Aurora Cannabis (ACB) hit a 52-week low of $0.60 per share, with some commentators believing it hadn't hit bottom yet. While it appears a bottom is in, the question going forward is whether or not the company can hold on to some of its recent gains.

After hitting its bottom, a little over a week later the company soared to over $1.13 per share, pulling back to $0.85 per share as I write.

In this article we'll look at whether or not the company will be able to sustain or increase these gains, and what it would take to do so.

The key factor in the near term

Without a doubt the key to short-term growth for Aurora is recreational sales in Canada. If it is able to do well there, it will surprise the market to the upside and give its share price another boost that would have a good chance to hold if there are no negative surprises in its next earnings report.

If Aurora is able to match last quarter's recreational pot revenue, it should exceed it by at least several million because of the inclusion of derivative sales in this quarter; that means higher revenue, margins and earnings from those sales. Another element would be if it is able to attract new customers to derivatives, which would represent a significant increase in its performance if the new customers represent meaningful numbers in the reporting period.

Add to that the gradual increase in retail outlets to sell in, and it points to a possible solid win in this quarter. The caveat will be if it is in fact able to at least sell as much recreational pot as it did last quarter; that's not a guarantee, so we'll have to wait and see if the increase in stores and sales of derivatives will allow it to exceed recreational pot sales expectations.

On the positive side, if it is able to generate the same number of sales with recreational pot without derivative sales, it could surprise to the upside in a big way. That could happen if it is able to regain some Canadian market share.

Story continues

The negative catalyst would be if coronavirus ends up having a detrimental impact on Canadian sales.

International sales

After dropping the ball last quarter in regard to licensing in Germany, the company temporarily lost some business until it met German requirements. With that behind them, there is no doubt Aurora will win back that business, although it could take a couple of quarters to do so.

What it means is revenue from international sales in the last quarter should rebound, and combined with the potential increase in recreational sales, would add more fuel to the fire.

Over the long term Aurora Cannabis will be one of the international market leaders in the cannabis sector, but for now it'll take time to build that business out.

Eventually I think this will be the best performing segment Aurora competes in.

Consensus Verdict

Most of Wall Street is surveying the cannabis player from the sidelines, with TipRanks analytics demonstrating ACB as a Hold. Based on 16 analysts polled in the last 3 months, only 1 say "buy," while 11 suggest "hold," and 4 recommend "sell." That said, the 12-month average price target still stands at $1.69, which marks about 96% upside from where the stock is currently trading. (See Aurora Cannabis stock analysis on TipRanks)

Conclusion

As has been the case in the recent past, some of the things having a negative effect on Aurora Cannabis and its Canadian peers remain in place, and that has been potentially worsened with the emergence of coronavirus.

I don't think coronavirus will have an impact on sales to long-term cannabis users, but it may slow down the number of new users entering the market. That could undermine the company in the near term because it's highly probable that derivatives will be more palatable to new users who don't want the perceived stigma that smoking or vaping cannabis would have on them. The company has said about 20 percent of its sales in this quarter are from derivatives, which based upon sales from last quarter, would be over $7 million.

If it is exceeding last quarter's sales, that number could be higher.

How this will play out is Aurora is partially reliant on growth from opening new retail stores in Canada, and should grow nicely in conjunction with the openings.

Whether or not coronavirus has had a lot of impact on the performance of Aurora won't be known until the earnings report. So far it hasn't been suggested that has been the case, but it should be considered a probability.

If the things outlined in this article go right for Aurora, it will surprise the market to the upside in the short term, and would lay a foundation for incremental, sustainable growth.

As the number of retail stores multiply and international sales climb, Aurora's future prospects look bright, as it has the potential to quickly ramp up production with the production facilities it can quickly bring on line and complete construction on.

To find good ideas for cannabis stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 15:24:20|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China has deployed medical workers to provide emergency support on the temporary flights to bring home overseas students and other Chinese citizens from abroad, a health official said Thursday at a press conference.

The National Health Commission (NHC) has released information on individual protection and psychological health online for overseas Chinese citizens amid novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, said Zhang Yang, head for the Department of International Cooperation with NHC.

The NHC also instructed Chinese medical teams fighting COVID-19 abroad to offer health guidance to overseas students through symposiums and live video broadcast, said Zhang, adding that the NHC has provided "health kits" containing epidemic prevention guidelines and materials in joint work with the diplomatic missions.
Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan has shared a new picture of herself on Instagram, making the best use of her time in lockdown. The picture shows Kareena soaking in the sun, and gazing towards something off camera.

She captioned the post, Sunshine on my mind... and my face. Within the span of a few minutes, the actors post was liked by close to 150000 people. Producer Rhea Kapoor, actor Sonam Kapoors sister, wrote in the comments section, After this quarantine Im tracking the number of kaftan posts. Another person called her, Sooo prettyyy.

Earlier in the day, Kareena also responded to her Ki & Ka co-star Arjun Kapoors latest Instagram post, urging men to contribute in household chores. First I want to see you do your household chores on the gram... Then others will follow. Arjun accepted, and said, Waah. Done deal.

Also read: Kareena Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan donate to PM and Maharashtra CMs Covid-19 relief funds: Every rupee raised matters

On March 31, Kareena and her husband, actor Saif Ali Khan, announced that they were contributing to three humanitarian aid organisations - Unicef (United Nations Childrens Fund), Give India and International Association for Human Values. At difficult times like these, we need to come together and help each other. We both have taken steps to do just that and have pledged our support to UNICEF, GIVE INDIA and the International Association for Human Values (IAHV). We urge those of you who can to do the same. United we stand. Jai Hind. Kareena, Saif & Taimur, her post read.

On April 2, she announced via Instagram that they were also contributing towards the PM-Cares Fund and Maharashtras CM Relief Fund.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Earlier in the day mother and daughter were spotted wearing standard medical face masks, a precaution against the coronavirus currently sweeping the globe.

But later on Wednesday, Farrah and Sophia Abraham upgraded their PPE, thanks to designer Pol' Atteau, who made them some masks inspired by the Netflix reality series Tiger King.

The 28-year-old reality TV star and her 11-year-old daughter were spotted having final adjustments made to the masks by the designer on the streets of Beverly Hills.

No risks: Earlier in the day mother and daughter were spotted wearing standard medical face masks, a precaution against the coronavirus currently sweeping the globe

The Teen Mom OG fixture rocked a leopard print jumpsuit for the weekday stroll, complete with matching tube top and neckerchief.

In her left, latex gloved hand, she carried a clear plastic backpack containing her Pomeranian pooch.

Her pre-teen daughter matched her mom's style in her own animal print blouse.

Later, the pair were seen switching out their face masks for new, designer models.

In a caption accompanying a video posted to her Instagram account, Abraham wrote 'Feelin some #joeexotic vibes today #tigerking shout out to @polatteu @infamous_swim for #leopardprint #facemask & swim fashion.'

Animal instincts: The Teen Mom OG fixture rocked a leopard print jumpsuit for the weekday stroll, complete with matching tube top and neckerchief

Haute couture: Later, the pair were seen switching out their face masks for new, designer models

Last month, Farrah shared a video of herself and Sophia at a store stocking up on cleaning supplies amid the crisis.

She was seen stocking her basket with disinfectant and panicking that there were no anti-bacterial wipes left in the shop to purchase.

The number of coronavirus cases in California has skyrocketed to nearly 10,000, including 213 deaths, as cities on the West Coast scramble to enforce lockdowns, manufacture medical supplies, procure hospital beds and slow the spread of the virus.

There are now 3524 confirmed cases in Los Angeles county, which has a population of 10 million.
Rafael Gomez Nieto, the last surviving member of a company of Spanish soldiers that fought with French forces in liberating Paris from Nazi occupation in 1944, has died of the new coronavirus, the French presidency said Thursday. He was 99.

The presidency said Gomez Nieto died in Strasbourg, a city in eastern France that he fought to liberate in November 1944. France's eastern regions have been hit particularly hard by virus infections and deaths. French media said Gomez Nieto died Tuesday.

While growing up in Spain, the soldier's son was still a teenager when he fought in the Spanish Civil War, joining the Republican forces that battled the Nationalists led by Gen. Francisco Franco. More than 500,000 people died in the 1936-1939 conflict.

As Franco's forces advanced, declaring victory on April 1, 1939, Gomez Nieto and his family joined the exodus of hundreds of thousands of Spanish refugees who fled over the Pyrenees to France, hoping to find safety, the French presidency said.

But like many others, Gomez Nieto was locked up in one of the harsh and rudimentary internment camps that were hastily thrown together for refugees in the south of France.

Gomez Nieto later managed to join up with Free French troops in North Africa.

He enlisted in 1943 and became part of "La Nueve," a company that reunited veterans of the Spanish war. The company was part of French Gen.

Leclerc's famed 2nd Armored Division that fought in the Allied liberation of France and took Paris on Aug. 25, 1944.

"These stubborn freedom fighters were determined to root out oppression everywhere, from their cradle in Spain and under the sun of Africa and the skies of Paris. After taking up arms against Franco, they fought against Hitler," the presidency said in a statement.

"Everywhere, they sowed liberty."

La Nueve gave Spanish names to its armored vehicles and was at the forefront of the thrust into Paris.

In an interview published by the French newspaper l'Humanite in 2014, Gomez Nieto said the half-track he drove was nicknamed Guernica, after the Spanish town bombed by Nazi planes in 1937.

The soldiers took City Hall as ordered, and Gomez Nieto parked the vehicle in front of the building, he recalled.

"When you enter an oppressed city, the girls jump on the liberator!" the newspaper quoted him as saying.

The presidency said France will be "eternally gratefully" to Gomez Nieto and his comrades.
Infectious disease experts say the Morrison government should release the scientific modelling underlying its response to the deadly coronavirus, warning the public may grow tired of restrictions if they are not given access to the detailed expert advice.

Raina MacIntyre, head of biosecurity at the NSW Kirby Institute, said Australia should follow the lead of the United Kingdom, New Zealand and United States in making its modelling public to "inform the community and elicit their cooperation".

Greg Hunt faces mounting calls to release the detailed modelling behind the government's coronavirus response. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

"The purpose of modelling is to inform disease control strategies, and to engage and bring people along with the necessary measures to control COVID-19," Professor MacIntyre said.

Deputy Chief Medical Office Paul Kelly on Wednesday appeared to backtrack from an earlier commitment to "unlock" the modelling, saying it could be misinterpreted.
Nigerias challenge with the expanding footprints of the coronavirus pandemic is getting a badly needed signal to help from Cuba, the Caribbean nation whose biomedical industry is currently attracting global acclaim for the impressive results its wonder drug, the interferon Alpha 2B, had in the control and management of the disease in Wuhan, China.

Cuban Ambassador to Nigeria, Clara Escandell, in an interview with PREMIUM TIMES, said her country which has historical relationship with Nigeria will be attentive to the request of the country but said no such request had been made at the moment.

Cuba and Nigeria have a historical relationship. Through the veins of many Cubans flows blood from the peoples that make up this great country. There is an enormous cultural and idiosyncratic influence from Nigeria in many aspects of our social life, like music Ms Escandell said stating that if a request is tabled by the Nigerian government, we analyse the overall issue and agree on what conduct can be followed.

On account of the reputed effectiveness of the Interferon Alpha 2B, about a dozen countries are already knocking on the doors of the Havana government seeking Cuban help.

With an eye on the role the Interferon Alpha 2B played in China, the Italian government invited the Cubans who have sent in 50 biomedical experts from its Cuban Medical Brigade Henry Reeve, who are veterans in solving complex health situations and had built experience in the fight against Ebola in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea and in disaster management in countries like Haiti and Pakistan when they were shaken by earthquakes, according to Ms Escandell.

Although the Interferon Alpha 2B is not a vaccine, it is one of the 30 medicines chosen by the Chinese National Health Commission to fight the virus according to Helen Yaffe, who teaches Cuban and Latin American development at the University of Glasgow and who has provided one of the broadest insights on the history and trajectory of the drug.

In a recent blog on the platform of the London School of Economics, Ms Yaffe explains how Cubas early entry into the biotech industry paved a path for the small Island nation to harness international expertise and develop medicines to fight a range of diseases from dengue fever and meningitis to the COVID19.

While the Interferon Alpha 2B had been used in the effective management of meningitis, some cancer, dengue fever and HIV, Ms Yaffe argues that the drugs brightest moment was the 1989-1990 meningitis campaign when three million Cubans most at risk were vaccinated.

Subsequently, 250,000 young people were vaccinated with the VA-MENGOC-BC vaccine, a combined vaccine for meningitis types B and C. The vaccine recorded a 95 per cent efficacy rate overall, with 97 per cent in the high-risk age group of three months to six years. Cubas meningitis B vaccine was awarded a UN Gold Medal for global innovation. This was Cubas meningitis miracle, she argued.

Last week in Lagos the public interest litigant, Femi Falana, asked the federal government to approach the Cubans and seek help to contain the COVID-19 rampage. Since then, a string of virologist, medical professionals, and civil society activists have also supported the call.

The President, Nigeria Medical Association, Francis Faduyile, welcomes any foreign experts who want to come and assist Nigeria combat the Covid-19 outbreak in the country.

Although Mr Faduyile worries that the country is yet to fully explore the expertise of the professionals available in the country, he merely asked that care and caution is important in engaging external support when the government has not made use of what is available on ground.

Mr. Faduyile also wants a more symbiotic relation that enriches rather than use Nigerians as what he calls Guinea pigs but Ms Escandell said Cuban scientific institutions are fully prepared to work alongside Nigerian ones, stating that these issues have been discussed in the past and it is a permanently open door and opportunity. The most important thing is to go deeper among the interested and concerned institutions on what we can do together.

If such collaborations will proceed now, it will be institutions such as LABIOFAM, the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, the Immunoassay Center, according to Ms Escandell, that will take the lead, a point that already caught the attention of Idowu Obasa, the Chief Executive Officer, of Biomedical Services, a major biogenetic and pharmaceutical concern in Ilorin, Kwara State, who told PREMIUM TIMES that we shall soon be opening dialogue with the Cubans we have great respect for the biogenetic programme in the country particularly the research and outcomes on malaria, hepatitis and meningitis.

Training her gaze at the enormity of the challenge and the possible dimensions of human suffering of COVID-19, the chief executive of the Vaccine Network, Chika Offor, asked the Nigerian government to accept all offers of help it can get to combat the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak ravaging the country.

Mrs Offor pointed to the novelty of the virus and counselled federal authorities not to be trapped in a tunnel vision because as she puts it, the virus is a new one and most countries do not have sole knowledge of how to treat the virus. [So] it is a learning time and every country has been learning one or two things about the disease and containing its spread.

It is not about competition, so there is no harm in accepting a helping hand. We need to welcome the experience of countries where they have recorded successes in containing the disease, she said.

The chief executive officer of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, CISLAC, Auwal Musa, said a realistic assessment of the COVID 19 trail in the country ought to prompt the government in feverish search for help from those who have expertise in the management of the situation from the international community especially Cuba.

The government is expected to actively seek support from other countries that have the experts before it gets out of hand. It is because most Nigeria officials are not sincere and not willing to accept the realistic conditions of health service in the country.

Mr Musa painted a sober sight of the countrys health landscape, querying why experts who have gone out of the country, find no inspiration to address our dilapidated hospitals, address the oddity of money budgeted for the hospitals but are not used rightly or not even released, and why we dont have testing kits, and facilities to combat Covid-19.

The claims around the Interferon Alpha 2B is adequate reason, Mr Musa said, why it is important that the Nigeria government accept Cuban health offers and assemble our medical experts to sit down with them to see if the drugs will be applicable for use in Nigeria.

For Abdulfatai Ibrahim, a medical virologist, Interferon Alpha 2B could be an effective treatment for the COVID-19 disease. He rests his argument on the history of the drug in the treatment of viral diseases such as hepatitis B and other, [and that] Interferon Alpha 2B has been proven to be effective in stopping the replication of virus in the cells.

Mr Ibrahims views are in sync with Ms Yaffe who reasons that: since its first application to combat dengue fever, interferon has shown its efficacy and safety in the therapy of viral diseases including hepatitis types B and C, shingles, HIV-AIDS, and dengue. Because it interferes with viral multiplication within cells, it has also been used in the treatment of different types of carcinomas. Only time will tell if Interferon Alfa 2B proves to be the wonder drug in tackling COVID-19.

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A sign stating that visitors are forbidden is pictured in a corridor at the CHUV in Lausanne

By John Revill and John Miller

ZURICH (Reuters) - Switzerland's government said it was still far too early to relax measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus, as the number of deaths and infections from the pandemic continued to swell.

The death toll has risen to 432, the country's public health agency on Thursday, from 378 people on Wednesday. Positive tests increased to 18,267 from 17,139.

Daniel Koch, head of the Federal Office of Public Health's communicable diseases division, said the number of new cases was increasing by around a thousand cases per day.

"That means that the increase is no longer as steep, but still every day a significant number of people have been infected," he told a news conference in Bern.

"We are certainty not at the point where we have reached the peak of the epidemic," he said, adding it was too early to predict when the nation could begin the slow return to normality.

Relaxing emergency measures would definitely be premature, Koch added, advising the population to keep their distance from one another, stay at home and maintain hygiene methods employed to reduce infections.

Switzerland has closed schools, shuttered many businesses and banned gatherings of more than five people as it fights the outbreak, while launching an initial 42 billion Swiss franc ($43.26 billion) aid package for the economy.

Government officials urged the public to avoid the roads, including Switzerland's winding mountain passes, to reduce potential accidents which would divert critical emergency services resources away from coronavirus cases.

Stefan Blaettler, who heads the umbrella group for cantonal police forces, urged people not to go on holiday or camping -- campsites are closed anyway, he said -- and to avoid daredevil maneuvers on motorcycles.

"In such instances, you have to rely on people's common sense," Blaettler said.

The government also unveiled a scientific task-force to combine the know-how of experts, including to help advise the government as it begins preparations for an eventual transition away from restrictions.

Story continues

Among the projects is a mobile phone application which will collect information on whether people are still gathering in large groups.

($1 = 0.9709 Swiss francs)

(Editing by Michael Shields)
President Donald Trump warned Iran on Wednesday of a "heavy price" if it or its allies in Iraq attack US troops stationed there. "We don't want hostility, but if they are hostile to us, they're going to regret it like they've never regretted anything before," he said of Iran at a White House press briefing on the coronavirus pandemic. "If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!" Trump tweeted earlier in the day. The US president also wrote: "Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on US troops and/or assets in Iraq." It was not clear whether Trump meant Washington actually has intelligence of such a plan. Tensions between the arch-foes -- already high since Trump abandoned a landmark nuclear agreement in 2018 and reimposed sweeping sanctions -- have soared since the US killing of Tehran's foreign operations chief Major General Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike just outside Baghdad airport in January. The US and Iran are locked in a tense battle for influence in Iraq, where Tehran has powerful allies, including among armed militias, and Washington has close ties to the government. Some 7,500 foreign troops are in Iraq as part of the US-led coalition helping local troops fight jihadist groups, but those numbers are being significantly drawn down this month. The alliance is temporarily bringing some trainers home as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus pandemic and is also leaving some Iraqi bases altogether. Those bases and foreign embassies, particularly the American mission, have been targeted in more than two dozen rocket strikes since late October. The attacks, which the US has blamed on an Iran-backed armed group, have prompted fears of a proxy war on Iraqi soil. Earlier on Wednesday Iran hit out at US sanctions, as its own virus death toll passed 3,000. Tehran has repeatedly called on Washington to reverse its policy, which has been opposed by US allies, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. President Hassan Rouhani accused Washington of missing a "historic opportunity" to lift sanctions. "This was a humanitarian issue. No one would have blamed them for retreating," he said. Medicines and medical equipment are technically exempt from the US sanctions but purchases are frequently blocked by the unwillingness of banks to process purchases for fear of incurring large penalties in the United States.
Jessie Morancy uses her computer to fill out the application for unemployment benefits as she stays home with her nephew after being laid off from her job at the Fort LauderdaleHollywood International Airport on March 27, 2020 in Hollywood, Florida. Mrs. Morancy said she lost her job as a wheel chair and customer service agent. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Joe Raedle

State unemployment offices around the country are being overrun as Americans apply for jobless benefits in record numbers. Officials are scrambling to manage the surge in volume by instituting new procedures for filing unemployment claims, expanding staffing, fixing outdated technology and, above all, urging patience as websites and phone lines are jammed around the clock. The response comes at a critical moment for workers affected by the economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. Many are relying on unemployment benefits, which were significantly expanded by the recent $2 trillion relief package, as a financial lifeline. "We know there are many Californians who are really struggling to provide for their families because of the massive economic impact created by the coronavirus," said Sharon Hilliard, director of the state's Employment Development Department. "The EDD is employing all means necessary to get [unemployment] benefit payments out to those in need," Hilliard added.

Unemployment claims doubled to 6.6 million last week, shattering a record that had been set only the week prior, when 3.3 million Americans filed for jobless benefits, according to Labor Department data released today. The previous weekly record, 695,000 claims, had been set in 1982.

Managing the surge

New York's unemployment office said call volume and web traffic have reached "unprecedented" levels. Its website crashed around two weeks ago amid a flood of filers. "Please be patient and keep trying," the website urges.

State and federal social-distancing guidelines have pushed many brick-and-mortar unemployment offices to close, driving even more traffic online and to call centers. Some states, like Texas, are offering virtual services to compensate for office closures. Many states have waived red tape, like eliminating one-week waiting periods and work-search requirements, to get benefits to people faster, which has contributed to a surge in traffic.

I literally tried to do everything. The circumstances are horrific. Lisa McGoldrick laid-off Fort Lauderdale, Florida, resident

States also have expanded the hours during which Americans can apply for benefits to handle the increased load. Most are encouraging people to apply online to reduce call-center volume and during off-peak hours in the middle of the night. Some states, like Michigan and New York, are asking people to file on certain days of the week depending on the first letter of their last name.

'Horrific' circumstances

Lisa McGoldrick, a resident of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has tried applying for benefits online and by phone for hours every day since March 18. She was laid off  along with about 100 other employees  the day prior from her job as a sales representative at a local bowling center, where she helped coordinate events, fundraisers and reservations. Her hundreds of calls to the unemployment hotline have rung and gotten disconnected without a recorded prompt of any kind. She can't get past the login page of the state website, which keeps crashing or directing her to a certain phone number to call  which then restarts the loop.

McGoldrick, 60, has tried logging in between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m., to no avail. She even called her internet service provider to check for a faulty connection, but that wasn't the issue. "I literally tried to do everything," McGoldrick said. "The circumstances are horrific." "I understand it's overloaded, but you still can't get help," she added.

RUNSTUDIO
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown is asking the federal government to fund the potential mobilization of 1,250 members of the Oregon National Guard to help the state respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

Brown sent a letter to President Donald Trump on March 27 asking the White House to invoke provisions of Title 32 of the U.S. Code, which allow governors to retain command of their National Guard forces, while being funded by the federal government. If the request is approved, it would free up state money for the continued response to the coronavirus crisis.

Trump has already approved Title 32 requests for at least eight states, including Washington, New York and California.

Authorization to mobilize 1,250 members of the Oregon Army and Air National Guard pursuant to Title 32 will provide much needed logistical, medical, communications, and coordinating skills that are invaluable to Oregons efforts in stopping and mitigating the spread of COVID-19, Brown wrote in her letter.

All seven members of Oregons congressional delegation sent a letter to the White House Wednesday backing Browns request.

The Oregon National Guard has already helped the state respond to the coronavirus pandemic by transporting and distributing personal protective gear and assisting with the set up of temporary medical facilities, including one at the Oregon State Fairgrounds. Guards members also helped Providence Seaside Hospital in set up tents to be used for testing and triaging local residents who may have contracted COVID-19.

Due to the rapidity of this crisis, the Oregon National Guard is uniquely positioned to fulfill immediate requirements for our communities, Brown wrote in her letter.

Stephen Bomar, a spokesman for the Oregon Military Department, said approximately 40 guard members have been mobilized to state active duty, but that the department expects that number to increase exponentially as the need for transporting and distributing personal protective gear rises.

State military leaders are working with other state agencies, including the Oregon Health Authority and the Office of Emergency Management, to coordinate the guards response.

I think the biggest takeaway is were all one team working together to try to help our state, Bomar said.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
World Health Organisation Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus welcomed India's financial package to help fight the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. He also acknowledged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had unveiled a comprehensive 24 billion dollars package including free ration for the disadvantaged, cash transfers to poor women and free cooking gas for the next three months. At the same time, he appealed for debt relief to developing countries for ensuring that they can implement such social welfare schemes.

"In #India, for example, Prime Minister @narendramodi has announced a $24 billion package, incl free food rations for 800 million disadvantaged people, cash transfers to 204 million poor women & free cooking gas for 80 million households for the next 3 months"-@DrTedros #COVID19  World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) April 1, 2020

READ | WHO Urges Nations To Implement Social Welfare Measures, Hails India's Lockdown Package

WHO opines on lockdown

The WHO chief also stressed the need for other governments to follow suit at a juncture when many countries have enforced a lockdown. Dr. Tedros on Monday opined that lockdown had to be complemented with a proper procedure of identification, quarantine, and treatment to combat COVID-19. Highlighting that movement restriction is very difficult to accept in any community, he called upon governments to continuously communicate with the citizens. According to the WHO Director-General, this was not just applicable to India but everywhere.

READ | COVID-19: Delhi Police Share Harry Potter Meme To Fight Fake News On April Fools' Day

India's financial package

On March 26, the Centre unveiling a financial package worth Rs.1.7 lakh crore to address the needs of the migrant workers, urban and rural poor, women, specially-abled people, and farmers. Some of the key announcements are providing an insurance cover of 50 lakh rupees for health professionals, an increase in MNREGA wages, direct cash transfer to farmers, poor widows, poor senior citizens, and free gas cylinders to BPL families for the next three months. Even Rahul Gandhi, a key leader of the opposition had lauded the package, terming it as the "first step in the right direction".

READ | Shivraj Chouhan: '82 Out Of 107 Markaz Attendees Who Entered MP Have Been Identified'

READ | NIA Initiates First Overseas Investigation; To Probe Kabul Gurudwara Terror Attack
Anna Hakobyan, wife of the Prime Minister of Armenia, has posted the following on her Facebook page:

Dear compatriots, we Armenians have been commemorating our heroic boys every April 2nd for the past four years. They went down in history and remain in our prayers with the endeavors they made during the Four-Day Artsakh War in April 2016.

Their spirit was strong and unbreakable, and their goals were just.

We pay our respects to them and their patriotism.

April 2nd is not only the day that marks the anniversary of the military operations, but also the day for revaluing and reinterpreting what happened.

April 2nd is not only the day to respect the memory of our heroes, but also the day for appreciating peace and viewing it as an absolute value.

Lets start from today and move forward for the establishment of peace, our future, the good life of our children and remember our heroes who are resting in peace at Yerablur Military Pantheon.
Many feel that the money from their MPLADS should go directly to a district hospital in their respective constituencies rather than a central fund like PM CARES.

Archis Mohan reports.

IMAGE: Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu had asked MPs to contribute Rs 1 crore from their MPLADS to the PM CARES Fund. Photograph: Arun Sharma/PTI Photo

Questions about the need for a new PM CARES -- Prime Ministers Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations -- Fund notwithstanding, nearly half of our MPs (members of Parliament) have until now consented to allocate Rs 1 crore from their respective MPLADS (Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme) to the recently set up PM CARES Fund to fight COVID-19.

The government is hopeful that more MPs will come forward in the days to come, and Bharatiya Janata Party leaders have reached out to not just their party MPs but those from other friendly parties as well to give their consent to allocate money to the PM CARES Fund.

Significantly, as of March 4, 2020, as much as Rs 5,275.24 crore was unspent in the MPLADS funds.

The PM CARES was instituted earlier this week to provide relief for COVID-19.

The Congress and other opposition parties have questioned the need for setting up the PM CARES Fund when there already exists the PM National Relief Fund (PMNRF).

According to the PMs website, PMNRF had a corpus of Rs 3,800 crore at the end of 2018-19 fiscal.

Until Tuesday evening, only 320 of the 779 MPs (of the total 788) had consented that Rs 1 crore should be allocated to PM CARES Fund from their respective MPLADS.

Sources in Parliament, however, said dozens of MPs sent their consent on Wednesday as well.

Earlier this week, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla had asked MPs to contribute Rs 1 crore from their MPLADS to the PM CARES Fund.

They had also asked MPs to contribute a months salary to the PM CARES Fund.

"This fund will enable micro donations as a result of which a large number of people will be able to contribute with the smallest of denominations," Naidu said in a letter sent to Rajya Sabha MPs.

The ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MOSPI) is responsible for overseeing the MPLAD Scheme, which is implemented by district authorities with the MPs recommending the public projects to be taken up.

With its circulars on March 24 and 28, the MOSPI tweaked existing MPLADS rules to enable funds under it to be allocated for fighting COVID-19.

In its March 24 circular, the MOSPI allowed district authorities to use MPLADS funds for 'medical testing, screening and other facilities required to detect and contain COVID-19'.

It allowed a 'one-time dispensation' to district authorities to purchase from MPLADS funds items not costing less than Rs 5 lakh for government dispensaries and hospitals, such as ICU ventilators, coronavirus testing kits and PPE (personal protection equipment) kits.

It also instructed the district authorities that this expenditure shall be restricted to the end of fiscal year 2020-21, and not be allowed to roll over to 2021-22.

However, in its circular on March 28, MOSPI asked MPs to recommend the release of funds to a central government pool for fighting COVID-19.

It asked MPs to give consent for release of funds from the first instalment they will receive in 2020-21.

The ministry stated in the circular that the MPs should submit consent for this money to be given to 'such Fund/central government poor or head of account as may be decided by the central government for managing COVID-19 in the country'.

Each year under MPLADS, MPs receive Rs 5 crore in two instalments of Rs 2.5 crore each.

Funds under MPLADS are non-lapsable. Lok Sabha MPs have to recommend to the district authorities projects in their Lok Sabha constituencies, while Rajya Sabha MPs have to spend it in the state that has elected them to the House.

Under the MPLADS rules, an MP can donate a maximum of Rs 1 crore to a trust or a public fund.

The March 28 MOSPI circular also provided for 'one-time exemption in furnishing of utilisation certificate' for release of the first instalment, and exemption from furnishing of audit certificate for release of the second instalment.

Several MPs, however, are not keen to contribute to PM CARES Fund, and would rather follow the March 24 MOSPI order where the money from their MPLADS goes directly to a district hospital of their respective constituencies rather than to a central fund like PM CARES.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee will sign Executive Order 23 requiring that Tennesseans stay home unless they are carrying out essential activities as data shows an increase in citizen movement across the state, officials said Thursday.

Over the last few weeks, we have seen decreases in movement around the state as Tennesseans socially distance and stay at home, said Governor Lee. However, in recent days we have seen data indicating that movement may be increasing and we must get these numbers trending back down. I have updated my previous executive order to clearly require that Tennesseans stay at home unless they are carrying out essential activities.

Data from the Tennessee Department of Transportation analyzed traffic patterns for March 2020. While safer at home measures and further restrictions on businesses showed a steep drop-off in vehicle movement from March 13-29, data beginning on March 30 indicates travel is trending upwards, again.

The administration also analyzed data from Unacast to understand cell phone mobility and determine movement trends among people. Unacast indicates the movement of Tennesseans is trending toward pre-COVID-19 levels.

The month of April stands to be an extremely tough time for our state as we face the potential for a surge in COVID-19 cases, said Governor Lee. Every Tennessean must take this seriously, remain at home and ensure we save lives.

The executive order remains in effect until April 14 at 11:59 p.m.

Tennessee Medical Association president Elise C. Denneny, MD. said the TMA "appreciates and applauds Governor Lees Stay at Home order issued today. We all understand and recognize the gravity of this decision and the impact on our state. We are grateful that the Governor has made the tough decision that we believe is the right strategy to protect our citizens.

"Staying at home is our best weapon against COVID-19, and with cases starting to rise more rapidly, implementation now is Tennessees best chance to return to business as usual as quickly as possible.

"It is reassuring to the medical community that the State is ramping up alternative site plans and calling for available health care workers to step forth and assist us to prepare to meet the peak demand facing us in the coming days. Besides flattening the curve of new patient COVID-19 cases, physicians, nurses, and other health care professionals on the front line of this battle will be better protected to take care of the citizens of our great state. This will be the most effective mechanism yet to slow the virus and hopefully prevent a truly overwhelming influx of critically ill patients in our healthcare system.

"This new Executive Order takes the most aggressive step of closing all non-essential business, limits travel and requires all citizens to stay at home unless essential to health and safety.

TMA and Tennessee physicians reiterate the Governors call for citizens to stay at home for the health of all Tennesseans."
The CCP Virus Pandemic Shows Why Its Dangerous to Rely on China for Medicines: Rosemary Gibson

How is it possible that the global supply of medicine components is almost entirely controlled by China?

How is this being used as leverage against other countries, especially the U.S.? What would happen if China decided to stop exporting drug ingredients, especially now, during the CCP virus, or coronavirus outbreak?

Why are special interests like Big Pharma lobbying against a potential Buy American executive order?

Is it possible that medicines manufactured in the U.S. could actually be produced cheaper than using global supply chains, as most are today?

In this episode, we sit down with Rosemary Gibson, senior advisor at the Hastings Center and author of China Rx: Exposing the Risks of Americas Dependence on China for Medicine.

This is American Thought Leaders , and Im Jan Jekielek.

Jan Jekielek: Rosemary Gibson, such a pleasure to have you on American thought leaders.

Rosemary Gibson: Thank you so much for having me today. Its really a pleasure to be here.

Mr. Jekielek: Weve seen this CCP Virus or coronavirus pandemic expose big issues in supply chains and manufacturing. And amidst all this, the Chinese Communist Party has threatened to stop drug exports, or even precursor drug exports from China to the US. Tell me what you think would do to America.

Ms. Gibson: As I wrote in China Rx, the United States and the rest of the world is dramatically dependent on China for thousands of medicines that are taken every day. These are mostly generic drugs. And if China shut the door on exports of the core chemicals, and other ingredients to make them, well see, the countries waiting in line to get vital medicines to care for their populations. Were already beginning to see the pricing rivalry for certain drugs that are now becoming more scarce because global demand has increased with coronavirus. Its a very serious situation that were approaching.

We have a perfect storm: Production shutdowns have taken place in China because of coronavirus. Workers were not going to work so they could stay home and take care of themselves and their families. Transportation routes have been constrained, [theres a] huge demand [of medicine] in China. And then, as the coronavirus spread around the world, global demand increased. And meanwhile, the whole supply chain for the worlds medicines is concentrated in a single country. And now were beginning to see countries like the United Kingdom, India, and even Hungary, as well as others, that are banning the exports of medicines, because they want to make sure that they have enough for their own people. These are unprecedented times that were in. Were in uncharted waters. And I did predict this. And regrettably, its happening. I wrote in China Rx that in the event of a natural disaster or global pandemic, if China shuts the door, countries will indeed line up to get vital medicines for their people.

Mr. Jekielek: White House trade advisor Peter Navarro has been talking about this Buy American executive order thats in the works, but Big Pharma is lobbying against it. Wed love to get your perspective on this.

Ms. Gibson: My understanding is that the draft executive order being prepared by the White House would have a provision for the Defense Department, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Health and Human Servicesthat they would buy American-made medicines and all of their components. That could revitalize industry here in this country, and also diversify the manufacturing base, which would benefit the rest of the world. But were seeing some headwinds coming up against that draft executive order. And its really quite surprising that there appears to be opposition to making medicines in America.  Its really very curious why any company would want to oppose making medicines here in the United States.

Were so dependent that we cant even make antibiotics anymore in the United States. That began in the early 2000s, when the United States opened up free trade with China. And the last penicillin plant shut down. The last vitamin C plant shut down. And that happened because China undercut other companies on price and kept prices low for a long time. These are illegal trade practices. And thats how we lost our penicillin capability and the production of generic antibiotics. Weve got to think about ways that we can bring our manufacturing back home. Not all of it, but some of it, to assure our national health security.

Mr. Jekielek: China is hardly benign under the Chinese Communist Party. I think this isnt just a health issue, but a serious national security issue. What do you think?

Ms. Gibson: Thats right. And other countries are feeling this in the same situation. Last year, there was a Dutch public television documentary that highlighted the Netherlands dependence on China for critical medicines. What are our pharmaceuticals? Theyre basically chemicals formulated to treat and cure disease. And the Dutch authorities and retired industry people have said that they are concerned now that China could withhold medicines. And that was pre-coronavirus. So, now here we are in this situation where we have a global pandemic. So its not just the United States that is concerned about this, but other countries are concerned as well.

Mr. Jekielek: I was reading recently that China is promising to ramp up its production of at least these precursor chemicals.

Ms. Gibson: I think the question is, is it a good thing to continue concentrating the worlds global supply of medicine in a single country. The world would not appreciate having 80 or 90% of its oil coming from a single country. We have to diversify the manufacturing base. And there are small companies in the United States that want to do thatto fill that vacuum and to meet that need. And I hope theres opportunity to do that not only here but around the world.

Now lets take a look at the medicines that are needed to treat people who are hospitalized with coronavirus. These patients will need sedatives if theyre placed on a ventilator. They will need antibiotics if they get a secondary infection thats bacterial in nature. They will need medicines if their blood pressure falls precipitously. And 90% of the core chemicals to make those medicines are sourced in China. All those roads lead to China in terms of global supply. And that can actually be dangerous for global public health. It was actually quite remarkable to me that in writing China Rx, it took three years to do the research for it, that no one had done this before, that no one had raised the visibility of how concentrated and centralized the supply of medicine is. These are products that are essential for life. And yet, it wasnt talked about. It wasnt talked about in this country, and it wasnt talked about in countries around the world. China Rx really is the first endeavor and the first book to put this out there. We need to act quickly to begin to rectify the situation. And thats a silver lining of this global pandemic. Will it spur us? Will it motivate us to diversify our manufacturing capability, and bring some of that manufacturing back to the United States and to other countries?

Mr. Jekielek: You mentioned blood pressure medication being important. That reminded me of the opening story that you have in your book. Im wondering if you could share that briefly for us, in your own words.

Ms. Gibson: The opening in China Rx is a story about contamination of a drug that killed hundreds of Americans about 12 years ago. This is a commonly used medicine in hospitals called heparin. Its also used for people when theyre on kidney dialysis. And it was in short supply back then. And thats because there was a disease that ravaged the pig population in China called blue ear disease. And it turns out the core material to make it comes from pigs. And China has the largest pig population in the world because the Chinese people love pork. And so when there werent enough pigs from which to derive this raw material, enterprising minds came up with a fake substitute. And it mimicked so closely the real product that when the time came to have it tested, this fake contaminant passed under the radar. And it turns out this fake contaminant was lethal in high quantities.

I found a family whose husband was a prominent physician trained at a very prominent medical school here in the United States. He had a thriving practice. He went into the emergency room one night of a bleeding stomach ulcer. [They asked him to stay in the hospital overnight] and for inexplicable reasons, he was given heparin.  And within 11 minutes of getting those doses, his heart began to fail, and his other organs began to fail. And a week later, he had to have his heart removed because it was so damaged. He died three months later, in a horrific death. And there are hundreds and hundreds of other Americans that faced that situation, as well did people in other countries.

So theres a real price that were paying when we have these long supply chains. And its not possible to assure the same quality standards that we have in the United States and Europe and other countries.  We should all expect high-quality standards. But Im increasingly concerned about the diminishment of those standards. What were seeing right now is that the Food and Drug Administration has suspended inspections in China because of coronavirus. They dont want their employees to travel to China because its simply not safe. And what they do is they go in and they inspect these plants where our drugs are made. Theres a very specific process that has to be followed to assure that our medicines are made to the quality specifications that we expect. So the FDA wont be doing that. So whos checking on the quality of our medicines? This is amplified by recent independent testing thats been going on with our generic drugs. Independent groups that have tested generics have found that more than 10% of them dont pass muster. They dont meet the standards for how the active ingredient dissolves in the body. Trust in the medicines is eroding.

Most recently, there was a worldwide recall of a very common series of blood pressure medicinesValsartan, Losartan. And that was because they contain carcinogens. And in some cases, these carcinogens were at lethal levels. There was a plant in China where the amount of this particular carcinogen, which is used to make rocket fuel, was more than 200 times the acceptable limit per pill. And this went out to millions of people, and they were taking it every day. And whats really troubling is that the company knew it had a problem, but it kept sending products to the United States anyway.

This is what happens when we lose control over the supply of something as important as medicine. We lose control over the quality. We see during coronavirus that were losing control over price. Because in shortages prices spike, and then we lose control over our national sovereignty. As we think about it, when we lose control over medicines and somebody elses controlling that supply, whoever controls that supply controls the world.  So we really have to rethink our global supply chains for practical reasons, to ensure that theres an unfettered supply, but also for issues of our national health security.

Mr. Jekielek: Im reminded of the CCPs unrestricted warfare doctrine to employ all different kinds of non-military forms of engagement against another country. Youre saying just simply withholding medicines is probably the most powerful weapon.

Ms. Gibson: So there are two ways to do it. One is in a slightly more obvious way, and that is to contaminate medicines, or to put no medicine in them. And thats very hard to trace. It is far more insidious. That was the case with the heparin blood thinner. It takes a long time before you find out that people are dying because of a drug that was contaminated. Or a drug that didnt have the full component of medicine in it So thats one issue. And the other issue is simply withholding supply, which is a much more obvious shot across the bow, which really would be a very aggressive and unwise action because that would truly damage the reputation of a country worldwide. It will be viewed as a country that cant be trusted if they withhold medicines. So there are lots of ways that our medicines can be used to coerce certain behaviors, and force governments to do things that they otherwise would not do.

Mr. Jekielek: It just seems like such a no-brainer that we should have some production here in America. And frankly, every country should have some production of very critical medicines, at least within its borders, or from countries that have rule of law. So why would Big Pharma be so interested in keeping these supply chains?

Ms. Gibson: I think itd be good first to understand who these special interests are, and have them come forward and describe why they are opposed to Buy American. Were spending $6 billion a year on generic drugs that are made in China. Why dont we keep that money here so we can grow our own industry and have real-time quality control? But it is hard to understand why any special interest would want to oppose having medicines made here. it really is quite puzzling.  You know, the special interests here in Washington are effectively telling the American people that we want you to be more dependent on this entity thats threatened to kill you. How do you justify that?

Mr. Jekielek: Pharmaceutical companies seem to be very unwilling to explain where their products are made. Thats something youve documented extensively.

Ms. Gibson: Thats right. There was country of origin labeling legislation that was proposed about 12 years ago in Congress. And it was killed immediately. And I asked someone in the industry who worked for about 30 years why that legislation was thrown out. And the response was, that businesses probably thought it wouldnt be good if their customers knew where their product was made. If you think about it, this was back around 2007 in 2008, when the heparin contamination took place. Back then, the head of the Chinese FDA was executed for taking bribes. It was also a time when thousands of dogs and cats here in this country died because of pet food that was contaminated with an industrial chemical called melamine. Then there was the infant formula. So its not just Americans that saw this, but also people in China suffered under this. It surprised me while writing China Rx that during that period, those events did not stop the industry from outsourcing product to a country that surely didnt have the same standards because it was still new in its growth and development. Its made a lot of progress since then, was really quite remarkable that the industry allowed that to happen. And back then the FDA was not inspecting plants. So we went from a first world standard to really an unregulated standard.

About 10% of the generic drugs in the United States now are made in China, and many of them are made by domestic companies. And these include things like medicines for Alzheimers and Parkinsons and epilepsy, diabetes, HIV AIDS, birth control pills. Meanwhile, were seeing our own domestic industry collapse. You know, Western companies are just falling apart. These are the Western generic drug makers, which are different from the innovator companies who we tend to call Big Pharma. If we had the list of generic companies, most people would have never heard of those names. But they are dropping like flies because they cant compete with Chinese companies. Theyre competing with the Chinese government, which subsidizes their companies so they can achieve as a country the global aim to become the pharmacy to the world. So  we have a strategic decision to make. Do we want to continue on the same path of being dependent on a single country with all the risks that that entails? Or do we want to have a capability for a diversified supply chain and bring some of that manufacturing back home?

Mr. Jekielek: We know that its roughly 90% of the precursors that are coming from China, but do you have an estimate for the actual number of medicines which are being produced there?

Ms. Gibson: We just dont have data on the volumes of medicines and the information on the precursors, [which are] chemical molecules that come from people who make products. Chemists and the pharmaceutical engineers have it in their book. They have to go buy these products to make medicines. So they know, but we dont have data on the volume and actually how much is produced.

Mr. Jekielek: Are there efforts now to identify where the medicines are created?

Ms. Gibson: There isnt much happening on that score. There have been some bills that mentioned country of origin, but I think thats going to be a very challenging piece of legislation to get enacted. Id rather see us start moving more quickly with a plan to reassure production of those most critical products.

We are talking about coronavirus now, which is an infection caused by a virus. What about bacterial infections? You know, theres biowarfare and if we dont have antibiotics to treat bacterial infections, were in deep trouble. Now, after the anthrax attacks in Washington in New York in 2001, the federal government had to buy about 20 million doses of an antibiotic to treat anthrax exposure. Its called doxycycline and it is used for a lot of other things like Lyme disease. And we didnt make it here. And we still dont make it here. And so the federal government had to go to a European company. And I interviewed the CEO of that firm and he said he had to get the starting material from a plant in China.

When were in the midst of a pandemic, we wont have time to source it from other countries. And the consequences could be very, very devastating. So we have to fix it. We have to fix it now. The free market will not fix this. People will say let the private sector do this, let the free market fix this. Well, what is the free market? Lets say you and I start a manufacturing plant. And we want to sell products. But were undercut by Chinese companies that are subsidized by their government. Theres no way that we can win that. So the United States government and Congress has to understand this and decide whether or not we want to support the capability to make medicines here at home. Its going to take more than just incentives. Our infrastructure is demolished for generic drug manufacturing. Theres a very large plant not far from Washington DC that used to employ about 2,500 people and its slated for closure. They were making generic products. Are we as a country going to let that go? This is happening right now in the midst of a pandemic.

So we have some very important strategic decisions to make as a country. If you ask people on the street, no matter where they are on the political spectrum, they understand the importance of having the capability to make medicines. And people still remember when their dogs and cats died because of contaminated pet food. So theres a mistrust out there.

Were seeing mistrust of generic drugs now even among physicians. I had the pleasure of doing grand rounds at a hospital. And I met a physician during that visit. He showed me a cabinet in his office, and it had those amber-colored plastic bottles with white caps on them that are hard to open. I said, whered you get those? [He had asked patients for them because] he had some concern about whether those medicines were actually working as they should. He saw that some patients didnt seem to get better. And these are people who are pretty sick. And these medicines can make the difference between life or death. He said, I want to have those tested. So were now in a situation where physicians are doubting the quality of the medicines theyre giving to patients. And once you lose that trust, it is very hard to regain it. Ive been calling for public reporting of the quality of medicine, to have test results put out there in a Consumer Reports-type modelindependent testingand that will automatically turn the market around.

But we still have to invest in US and other western companies capability for manufacturing again, because there they will not be subsidized by [the CCP]. We subsidize things like agriculture to make sure we have enough food. We subsidize roads and highways and bridges. We subsidize a military; we wouldnt have our aircraft carriers or nuclear submarines made in China. We realize that there are some things that are so sacred, that are essential to the functioning of a society, that we make them here. Thats smart, and we need to start thinking of our medicines as a strategic asset and not outsource them thousands of thousands of miles away in a country that is threatening the United States to cut off supply. Imagine if China issued a threat to cut off food supply, say if they controlled the supply of wheat or corn to the United States. Thered be an immediate reaction in Congress not to allow that, along with efforts to encourage farmers here to grow wheat. But here we have a situation with medicine

Mr. Jekielek: Did you say that there are medicine manufacturing plants in the US right now that have been functioning but are threatened with closure? Did I catch that right?

Ms. Gibson: Yes. And there are plants that have already closed that have equipment in them. So why dont we take advantage of that infrastructure? We dont have to rebuild all of it. They might have to be retooled and upgraded, but lets take advantage of that manufacturing capability. What we need is buyers, like the Department of Defense and the VAthey have 20 million people that they have to take care of. Why dont we make those medicines here in those plants that have been abandoned, or are going to be shutting down. That would be good for communities, good for jobs, and good for our national security. And my goodness, its really quite remarkable that there are some companies that wont even tell the Department of Defense where they source their product from.

One of the recommendations I gave when I testified to the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission is that companies should be required to tell the Department of Defense the source of the drugs they sell to the DOD and the components to make. Thats just common sense. Recently the USS Theodore Roosevelt that was on patrol in the South China Sea24 members of the crew were diagnosed with coronavirus. And so they went into port to have everybody tested. Just think of those young men and women. Theyre dependent on the adversary for the antidotes for coronavirus.

Im really delighted that the China Rx book was the first to put this out there for policymakers in the [government] and in the private sector. The first recommendation in the book is to have the federal government know who controls the supply of our medicine. One of the most shocking findings in writing the book was that its no ones job in the federal government to know who controls our drug supply. And thats changed now. Now, federal agencies and others are looking to see where they are vulnerable

And the next step is [to see who can] make masks and ventilators. Were beginning to see a similar thing underway with regard to our prescription drugs. But again, the challenge is, where do the core chemicals come from? For many of our medicines, they are sourced primarily in China. You saw that India withheld exports of critical drugs. And thats because India is the largest generic drug maker in the world. But it depends on China for about 70% of the core chemicals that sustains its industry. So if you dont have those chemicals then you cant take care of your own population. And so why would you want to export medicines that you might need? The good news is in India, they have very few cases. Theyre on a 21-day lockdown, but they have very few cases of coronavirus. So there isnt a huge spike in demand for these critical drugs. But it goes to show again all roads overtly to China.

 How are we going to invigorate [domestic] plants? Were going to need some reinvestment in these manufacturing facilities. We have brilliant minds and tremendous ingenuity in this country. And there are people who can make our generic drugs faster, cheaper, with real-time quality control. And in a smaller environmental footprint. People say, well, it will cost more to make in the United States. Thats not true.

Once the investment is made in new infrastructure and new equipment, we can actually make generic drugs at least 20% cheaper. But, those manufacturers will need guaranteed contracts because if you put that product on the open market, China will come in and undercut it and investors will have no incentive to invest. So we need long term contracts with the Department of Defense, Health and Human Services, for the Strategic National Stockpile, for veterans. Thats how we can start as a country to rebuild our industrial base. That would be a great boon for our economy, and plus, it will keep taxpayers money here in this country. But we have to get policymakers to take that next step. Its good to see that theres a lot of awareness now about dependence on a single country on China. But are we going to act? Will we turn those words and intent, good intentions, and to actually making those investments that matter?

Mr. Jekielek: Its quite the claim to say that we could actually produce a lot of these things 20% cheaper in America. How did you arrive at that number?

Ms. Gibson: The technology that were using now to manufacture medicines is 100 years old. We are making drugs now the way we did 100 years ago. Theres been more innovation in the manufacture of potato chips than in the manufacture of our medicines. And thats because branded companies just dont have the incentive to invest. Theyve made a few drugs using advanced manufacturing technology. But on the generic side, the margins are so slim that generics companies are barely hanging on. Theyre not going to make that investment again if China comes in and undercuts them.

There could be a renaissance in advanced manufacturing in the sector, but the private sector is not going to do it. So we have a choice either to give up, or invest in some public-private partnerships and make it here in the US. We have a precedent for this. There was a time when right before flu season, the US government got word that about 50 million doses of flu vaccine were not going to be available.  And so Congress acted and established a public-private partnership with industry to make flu vaccines. So there is precedent in the United States, for the manufacturing of medicinal products. And somehow theres a hesitancy to do this for our generic drugs. Weve got to get over that because this is, were hitting a critical inflection point and the coronavirus pandemic is certainly a giant wake-up call.

Mr. Jekielek: Were seeing considerable industrial mobilization, most of it voluntary, a little bit through the War Powers Act being enacted. There seems to be no reason why it couldnt go in the direction of creating medicines.

Ms. Gibson: It was very surprising to me that in the $8.3 billion coronavirus spending package, that there was money for manufacturing ventilators, respirators, masks, and gloves. But there wasnt any money for the manufacturer of medicines that, even before coronavirus, were in shortage. Even in the big spending bill, the $2 trillion, there was no money for the manufacture of medicine. Somehow its been off-limits to think about this in a public interest perspective rather than a private interest perspective. Weve got to break through that.

Mr. Jekielek: In your book, you mentioned that there were 200 to 300 medicines in short supply well before coronavirus. How does that happen? Some of them are critical medicines, right?

Ms. Gibson: For the past 20 years in the United States, weve had shortages of critical drugs. Some of these are antibiotics, medicines for surgery. And if you think about it, we have shortages of nothing in this country except vital medicines. Why is that? Because in a normal market if there was a shortage of pizza because we couldnt get the tomatoes, well, entrepreneurs would go out there and contract tomato growers. Of course, we can fix it. But for some reason, theres been an extreme reluctance. Theres something wrong in that shadowy system that has allowed these shortages to persist.

There has been an innovation with a nonprofit group called Civica RX, which is composed of 1,300 hospitals that are buying medicines differently because theyve been so concerned about shortages. So they all chipped in money, and theyre doing exactly what someone making pizza [but] couldnt get tomatoes would do. Theyre going out to find reputable companies in trustworthy countries to make medicines and theyre buying as much of the active ingredient they can thats not made in China. And their secret sauce is to give manufacturers long-term contracts, pay them a fair price, and full transparency on country of origin, and they test them and they give them a certificate.

This is about restoring market forces to the making of essential products. Within the first year of operation to show that this is indeed fixable, they delivered their first very important antibiotic.  In the first year, they started making about 20 drugs and they eventually want to have their own manufacturing plant here in the United States. Thats how we have to think differently to use our purchasing dollars to buy a quality product. And the private sector is leading that. But we have to get our government, our taxpayer dollars, directed in the same way to buy differently.

Mr. Jekielek: Were hearing all sorts of reports from around the country of small manufacturers stepping up to retool. It seems like we do have a great model to study and emulate.

Ms. Gibson: We have the companies showing up to make respirators and masks because the federal government put money out for it.  Lets have a public debate on this. Lets have those who oppose making medicines in the United States for our military come out publicly and say it, and tell us the rationale, and do it on national television. Tell the American people why thats beneficial. Instead of hiding behind the shadows of special interest lobbying, lets have a public debate about it. Maybe The Epoch Times could support that.

Mr. Jekielek: Looking at this draft letter that opposes Buy American on the pharma side, the argument, curiously, is precisely that it will disrupt the supply chains.

Ms. Gibson: Well, our medicine supply chain is already in a shambles because of poor quality and persistent shortages. So theres a lot of improvement that needs to be made. But what was really striking is that two days after that letter, the Chinese leader came out to the virtual G 20 meeting, and made a similar talking point. So both the talking points of the special interests in Washington seem to be so aligned with the talking points of the head of China.  You know, if the United States does it (increases production of medicines), thats considered nationalism. But if China does that, its okay. And of course, there is no concern among special interests that this will persist this monopoly and grow the monopoly that China has on the global supply. This is putting the world at risk. Without doubt.

Mr. Jekielek: Looking at the way that the Chinese Communist Party has handled the coronavirus outbreak, what should we expect in terms of medicine production?

Ms. Gibson: Its all about trust, isnt it? Trust is essential for the world to function.  Its not the first time China has threatened us with drug shortages. Theyve threatened the United States with drug shortages before. But this threat was very visible. The other threat was a very quiet threat. And I learned about it when I was writing China Rx. This is a threat to kill Americans by withholding medicines. You cant get more brazen than that. And if thats not a wake-up call, I dont know what is.

Mr. Jekielek: Rosemary, thats a powerful place to finish up, but before we do, any final thoughts?

Ms. Gibson: I just think we have an opportunity together to do so much good for the world. You know, the coronavirus has caused a lot of angst and fear. How can we work together to come out of it? And for the next thing that happens, we can be so much better prepared.  These events are like hurricanes in that theyre predictable. We plan for hurricanes, we prepare for them. But we dont do that for situations like this. And if nothing else, were in a moment in time where we have a chance to learn from this.

Mr. Jekielek: Rosemary Gibson, such a pleasure to have you on.

This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
Unless we follow the Constitution, crisis produces fear, and fear produces madness, and madness produces those who become a law unto themselves.





by Andrew P. Napolitano





"If the provisions of the Constitution be not upheld when they pinch as well as when they comfort, they may as well be abandoned."  Justice George Sutherland (1862-1942)





In his 2008 book "Taking Rights Seriously," the late professor Ronald Dworkin explored the origins and governmental treatment of human liberty. He argued that Thomas Jefferson  who wrote the Declaration of Independence  and James Madison  the scrivener at the Constitutional Convention and the author of the Bill of Rights  were clear in their articulations that the premise of America at its birth is that our rights are personal and natural because they come from our humanity, not from the government.









Dworkin also recognized that government, which is essentially the negation of liberty, is only moral and valid when it enjoys the consent of the governed, respects individual rights as inalienable and interferes with them only after it proves fault to a jury at a fair trial.





The Dworkin thesis is obviously not novel, but he wrote it toward the end of his illustrious career as a bulwark against those in government and academia who argued to the contrary. These folks claimed  and do so today  that the law is whatever those in power say it is, and the dead hands of the framers cannot control the living hands of those whom the people have elected. To these folks, the majority rules, even when it is tyrannical toward a minority.





This argument  that a popularly elected government can trump individual liberties  is utterly repugnant to the concept of natural rights and accepts as somehow lawful the horrific acts of popularly elected governments for which the 19th and 20th centuries are well known. This view also rejects the plain language and  since 1803  consistent judicial recognition of the Constitution as the supreme law of the land.





The Constitution was written to keep the government off the people's backs and to assure their natural rights are free from government restraint.





The concept against which the natural law is arrayed and against which Dworkin argued is regrettably on display in America today. People are getting sick and dying. The same government that can't stop robocalls micromanages the delivery of health care in the U.S. and monopolizes medical procedures  like testing for a virus  that the free market can do better and faster. Because the government tolerates no competition, it was uninformed and ill-prepared.





So, the essence of its response has been to treat our freedoms as if they were licenses to be rescinded on governmental whims, not guarantees as declared by the Declaration and Constitution.





No matter how well-intended is New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, he is the chief executive of the government of the state of New York. He is not the legislature. He cannot write laws and cannot enforce whatever he has written. That is the least of his transgressions. The greatest of them is his interference with rights expressly guaranteed in the Constitution that he and all others in government have taken an oath to uphold.





I admire deeply Cuomo's brilliant use of his bully pulpit to educate and intimidate the populace into commonsense behavior intended to limit the spread of coronavirus. But he cannot lawfully  nor could the legislature  interfere with the right to travel and to assemble peacefully because those liberties are guaranteed by the Constitution. They cannot be interfered with by decree or even by legislation, no matter the beneficial goal of the interference.





It gets worse.





Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo is stopping automobiles with out-of-state license plates as they attempt to enter Rhode Island and denying them entry. She has also threatened to send police door to door looking for persons from the New York City region who somehow eluded her border dragnet. And she is doing this with no warrants, no probable cause of crime and no individualized suspicion.





In New York City, where Mayor Bill de Blasio has declared music stores essential to society but churches, synagogues and mosques to be nonessential, we have seen the boldest threat yet. He offered to close permanently  permanently!  any house of worship that presently holds religious services. This barbarity directly violates the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment that keeps government out of religion.





And in New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy is arresting folks for holding coronavirus parties. The parties are insane, the attendees are reckless and their behavior is selfish. But it is not criminal. In fact, it is protected by the right to assemble, which is also expressly guaranteed in the Constitution. What if these assemblages are not for frivolity, but to protest the unconstitutional behavior of the government? Then they'd achieve even added protection  the freedom of speech.





What's going on in America?





Justice George Sutherland was prescient in 1934. When the Constitution pinches the government, he warned, the government abandons it.





If constitutional abandonment is not challenged by those most affected by it, a future generation of public officials will argue that the current generation acquiesced. That might happen as soon as the present crisis has passed. The government loves power and power once possessed is rarely voluntarily relinquished.





When President George W. Bush argued after 9/11 that he needed temporary mass suspicionless surveillance powers to find the terrorists hiding among us, and Congress gave it to him, that power remained in the government. What started as listening to phone calls and monitoring bank accounts has now become following the movements, in real time, of all persons with mobile devices and capturing every keystroke on every computer.





Unless we follow the Constitution, crisis produces fear, and fear produces madness, and madness produces those who become a law unto themselves.




New Delhi, April 2 : The lawyer representing Maulana Saad Kandhalvi, the controversial head of Markaz Tablighi Jamaat whose headquarters in Delhi is the veritable epicentre of coronavirus infection in the national capital, said on Thursday that Kandhalvi is not running away from law and that he is cooperating with the Crime Branch of Delhi Police.

"We have received notice from the Investigating Officer of the Crime Branch and we are preparing a reply. The Maulana is not running away from law," said advocate Musharraf Ali Khan.

He said the Jamaat followers should present themselves before the authorities for a check-up and should adhere to the directive of the authorities. "There is no need to argue and misbehave with anybody," said Khan.

He said the media is painting a wrong picture that "we did not come out to explain the truth".

The lawyer read out a message on behalf of the Maulana advising members of Tablighi Jamaat across the country to present themselves before medical authorities for screening.

Maulana Saad released an audio on Wednesday in which he said: "I am in self-quarantine in Delhi as advised by doctors and I appeal to all Jamaat members, wherever they are in the country, to follow the directives of law enforcement agencies." He said it is advised to remain indoors and adhere to the directives of the government and not assemble anywhere.

Fuzail Ahmed Ayyubi, another lawyer of the Maulana, told IANS that Maulana Saad has asked every person of Tablighi Jamat to approach the authorities of their respective districts and extend cooperation to them. "In particular they should present themselves for medical examination for their safety as well for the safety of others." He said full cooperation is being extended to the authorities.
AKRON, Ohio  The University of Akron President Gary Miller on Thursday announced the appointment of John Wiencek as provost and executive vice president.

Wiencek, who grew up in Akron near the Portage Lakes area and graduated from Walsh Jesuit High School, is currently a professor of chemical engineering and executive vice president and provost at the University of Idaho.

Pending approval by the Board of Trustees on April 15, Wiencek will assume his new role on May 29 and report directly to Miller as the second-ranking officer of the university. His salary will be $350,000.

I am extremely pleased to have someone with such a strong background join the UA leadership team, Miller said. Dr. Wienceks tenure as a provost, combined with his experience as a dean of engineering, will allow him to easily connect with faculty and help us quickly move forward with academic strategic planning. This is a critical time for the University and his skillset is an excellent match for the work we have before us. We are very fortunate to have such an experienced leader join the University at this time.

Former UA Interim President John Green announced in April 2019 that the Board of Trustees was splitting the role of provost into two positions: Chand Midha as executive vice president and chief academic officer, and then-Provost Rex Ramsier as executive vice president and chief administrative officer.

In October, Miller announced the appointment of Joe Urgo as interim executive vice president and provost, a newly created role. Miller also said Midha would be leaving his post, while Ramsier would keep his current position. Urgo was not eligible for the permanent job.

The search committee was headed by Paul Levy, UA professor and chair of the Department of Psychology, and included students, administrators, contract specialists, staff and faculty. Semi-finalists were interviewed by the committee, and three finalists came to campus for Q&A sessions.

We had a very strong applicant pool and three terrific finalists, but Dr. Wiencek stood out because of his experience as a sitting provost where he has demonstrated the skills and abilities that will serve us well as we continue implementing President Millers vision for our university, Levy said. He is a creative thinker who is eager to share his vast academic experiences with us at UA. We also appreciate his Akron connection and are confident that he will work extremely well with President Miller in strategic and practical ways in our quest to keep rising.

Wiencek, 58, has a bachelors degree in chemical engineering from the University of Cincinnati, and masters and doctorate degrees in chemical engineering from Case Western Reserve University.

His previous positions include dean of the College of Engineering at the University of South Florida and associate professor at Rutgers University. At the University of Iowa, he was a professor, department chair, graduate director and graduate admissions chair. He served as interim provost and vice president of academic affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University from 2013 to 2015, and has been at the University of Idaho since 2015.

The University of Akron is a strong public urban research university that has a deep history and an extremely bright future, Wiencek said. I grew up in Akron and have an affinity for the community and a profound respect for the students and employees who have chosen it as their home. I look forward to coming home and making an impact.

See also:

University of Akron waives application fees, ACT/SAT requirement for fall 2020 admission due to coronavirus pandemic

University of Akron to close dorms, hold online classes for rest of semester due to coronavirus

University of Akron postpones graduation to protect from coronavirus
The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) voiced deep concern on Wednesday about the rapid escalation and global spread of COVID-19 cases from the new coronavirus, which has now reached 205 countries and territories.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that his agency, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) backed debt relief to help developing countries cope with the pandemics social and economic consequences.

In the past five weeks there has been a near-exponential growth in the number of new cases and the number of deaths has more than doubled in the past week, Tedros told a virtual news conference in Geneva where the U.N. health organization is based.

In the next few days we will reach 1 million confirmed cases and 50,000 deaths worldwide, he said.

China, where the coronavirus outbreak first emerged in December, reported dwindling new infections on Wednesday and for the first time disclosed the number of asymptomatic cases, which could complicate how trends in the outbreak are read. Its latest figures excluded 130 new sufferers of the highly contagious disease who do not show symptoms, its statistics showed.

Asked about the distinction, Dr. Maria ver Kerkhove, a WHO epidemiologist who was part of an international team who went to China in February, said WHOs definition included laboratory-confirmed cases regardless of the development of symptoms.

From data that we have seen from China in particular, we know that individuals who are identified, who are listed as asymptomatic, about 75 percent of those actually go on to develop symptoms, she said, describing them as having been in a pre-symptomatic phase. The new coronavirus causes the respiratory disease COVID-19.

The outbreak continues to be driven by people who show signs of disease including fever and cough, but it is important for the WHO to capture that full spectrum of illness, she added.

Tedros, referring to proposed debt relief, said: Many countries, developing countries cannot really support their societies especially during lockdowns, especially those community members who work for their daily bread. That is why we call on the international community to have debt relief to support those countries.

We are proposing an expedited process to support countries so their economies are not getting into crisis, (and) their communities are not getting into crisis, he said.

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Police in Ho Chi Minh City have arrested a suspect in an armed robbery that took place at a local grocery store last Friday.

A source close to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper confirmed on Thursday morning that the municipal Department of Police had apprehended Nguyen Huu Thuan, 25, who is one of the two suspects in the robbery.

Thuan was arrested while in hiding in the south-central province of Binh Thuan.

According to preliminary information, Thuan and an accessory entered a store of Bach Hoa Xanh  a major Vietnamese grocery retailer  on Son Ky Street in Tan Phu District at around 9:55 pm on Friday.

The two men were wearing jackets, helmets, and face masks.

Thuan carried what appeared to be a pistol while the other suspect wielded a knife.

Two armed men rob a Bach Hoa Xanh grocery store in Tan Phu District, Ho Chi Minh City in this CCTV footage.

They threatened store employees with the weapons and took an unspecified amount of cash and a computer before fleeing the store.

The robbery happened in less than two minutes, according to CCTV footage seen by Tuoi Tre.

No one was hurt in the incident.

Officers are hunting for the remaining suspect.

Armed robbery is punishable by between seven and 15 years behind bars in Vietnam, according to the country's Penal Code.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
With Themis, IRONSCALES customers have access to the unique combination of artificial intelligence and real-time decision data from the worlds largest community of security analysts.

IRONSCALES, the pioneer of self-learning email security, today announced that Themis, its AI-driven virtual security analyst, now has the ability to be fully autonomous in the classification and removal of email threats. Since first being released in 2018, Themis has helped render verdicts against more than 100 million trending and zero-day phishing attacks, including some of the most complex techniques, such as polymorphism, business email compromise and ransomware. With todays news, security analysts can now measurably increase the speed and accuracy of their email security by allowing Themis to make time-sensitive decisions on email threat mitigation without any human involvement.

Themis is an invaluable resource with its autonomic capabilities, said Vern Scoggins, CISO of IRONSCALES customer Polypore International. We chose Themis because of the volume and level of sophistication of phishing emails is steadily increasing. The time it takes for an individual to analyze and respond to every phishing email is far too long.

Themis is part of IRONSCALES self-learning email security platform, which gives end users and security professionals the right training, tools, and intelligence, to hunt, log, alert, analyze, and remediate phishing attacks. In total, the virtual security email analyst is now more than 93% accurate in resolving incidents, giving SOC teams overwhelming confidence in her ability to make decisions autonomously.

Themis accuracy-level has increased exponentially due to IRONSCALES approach of having humans and machines constantly working together. Specifically, IRONSCALES proprietary data labeling technology that assesses millions of technical data points is combined in real-time with human vetted decision making by security analysts. This ever-evolving ecosystem or feedback loop has provided Themis with the unprecedented intelligence needed to render highly accurate verdicts on email security incidents.

With Phishing Mitigation, Time is of the Essence

Today, the majority of enterprise SOCs lack the dedicated resources to detect, investigate and respond to suspicious emails as quickly as phishing mitigation demands. Additionally, the eruption of coronavirus has led to more employees across the globe working remotely, and cybercriminals are exploiting this dynamic with thousands of new attacks related to the virus, such as those purporting to deliver critical information from established sources like the World Health Organization.

To be effective against the growing email phishing threats, SOCs require both more automation and more human oversight. With Themis, IRONSCALES customers have access to the unique combination of artificial intelligence and real-time decision data from the worlds largest community of security analysts, now boasting more than 1000 analysts and counting.

Themis is not just automated, its autonomic, said Eyal Benishti, IRONSCALES founder and CEO. Never before have SOC teams had access to the combination of patented AI and years of human experience, in one resource. Themis acts as another member of the team. Without anyone ever having to think about, much less interact with her, Themis does her job.

For more information on IRONSCALES Themis, cybersecuritys first fully autonomous virtual security assistant, please visit https://ironscales.com/anti-phishing-solutions/virtual-soc-analyst/ to schedule a demo. To read our 5-Star Product Review by SC Magazine visit https://www.scmagazine.com/review/ironthrone-26-00-00/ and follow IRONSCALES on social media @ironscales.

About IRONSCALES

IRONSCALES is the future of phishing protection, incubated inside the worlds top venture program for cybersecurity and founded by alumni of the Israeli Defense Forces elite Intelligence Technology unit. We offer security professionals and end users an AI-driven, self-learning email security platform that provides a comprehensive solution to stop tomorrows phishing attacks today. Using the worlds most decentralized threat protection network, our platform accelerates the prevention, detection and remediation of phishing attacks already inside your email with threat removal times in seconds, not minutes or hours. We give organizations of all sizes complete anti-phishing protection against any type of phishing attack, right now. Visit http://www.ironscales.com to learn more about The Power of Now.
Former County Commissioner Richard Casavant has died at 77 in Atlanta.

He was born on June 23, 1942, in Athens, Tennessee, to the late Albert Richard Cas Casavant and Nancye Ewing Casavant. He was a 1960 graduate of Chattanooga City High, but he switched his focus to business and education, receiving a B.A. in Economics from Emory University in 1964, an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1966, and a Ph.D. in Marketing from Georgia State University in 1976.

With his various degrees, he often self-deprecatingly said that he was educated beyond his intelligence. Following his graduation from Wharton, he served in the United States Air Force, Medical Service Corps, as a 1st Lieutenant and Medical Supply Officer from 1966-1969.

In 1976, he began a 30-plus year teaching career at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, first as an Associate Professor of Marketing, ultimately becoming the Alan Lorberbaum Professor of Marketing, Director of the UTC Family Business Center, and the John Staigmaier Chair and Dean of the College of Business, retiring as Dean in 2010. During his tenure at UTC, he fostered and promoted the concept of individual entrepreneurship, creating a distinct curriculum and innovative programs, resulting in UTC becoming one of the first fifty colleges in the United States to have such a curriculum.

He served on the Signal Mountain Town Council for six years, and then served three four-year terms as a Commissioner on the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners (1998-2010, serving as chairman in 2002-2003.

He "passionately advocated that quality education was available to all, and he dedicated the majority of his years in public service to establishing a public middle/high school for the citizens of his community in Signal Mountain."

One of his proudest achievements was the opening of Signal Mountain Middle-High School in 2008. For all his efforts in furtherance of the school, he was honored in 2015 with the opening of the Richard Casavant Media and Enrichment Center, although he dryly noted that the creative genes in the Casavant family primarily resided in his two sons, his father, and his siblings, since he could barely play the radio.
Kalray (Paris:ALKAL) (Euronext Growth Paris: ALKAL), a pioneer in processors for new intelligent systems, is sharing the status on its activity and the continuation of its activity following the various health measures taken by the French government.

The impact of Covid-19 epidemic on Kalray's research and development activity, which is not too dependent on its suppliers, is expected to be limited and Kalray is hopeful it will be able to stick to its development roadmap. The development teams are fully operational thanks to telework, which was put in place as soon as the containment was announced in France on Monday March 16. The company does not use technical unemployment to date.

However, the global health situation related to the Covid-19 epidemic and the containment measures implemented in many countries are likely to slow down business cycles, which could delay the deployment of some of company's projects. At this stage, Kalray is currently assessing all the impacts of this crisis on its business and its financial forecasts. The company is working with its partners as well, who are themselves assessing the impact of the crisis on their own activities.

In such context, and even if Kalray's cash position remains solid ( 15.7 million at December 31, 2019, reinforced by NXP investment), the company is taking additional measures in order to increase its financial visibility by limiting certain investments and by requesting bank loans as part of the support measures implemented by the Government. Nevertheless, Kalray confirms that its current cash position, including the NXP investment just announced, should allow the company to develop its technology roadmap, including developments related to the NXP strategic partnership, as well as the commercial deployment, beyond the next twelve months.

On April 20, as previously announced, the company will comment on its 2019 results as previously announced. Within this timeframe, Kalray hopes to be in a position to provide more details on the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic crisis on its business, which, as it constitutes a post-closure event, will have no impact on its 2019 accounts.

Next publication:

Monday April 20, 2020 (after market close): 2019 annual results

ABOUT KALRAY

Kalray (Euronext Growth Paris FR0010722819 ALKAL) is the pioneer in processors for new intelligent systems. A genuine technological breakthrough, "intelligent" processors are able to intelligently analyze a vast quantity of data on the fly and to make decisions and interact in real time with the outside world. These intelligent processors will be largely deployed in fast-growing sectors such as new-generation networks (intelligent data centers) and autonomous vehicles, as well as in healthcare equipment, drones and robots. Kalray's offering spans both processors and global solutions (electronic boards and software). Created in 2008 as a spin-off of CEA ("Commissariat l'Energie Atomique", the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission), Kalray addresses a broad spectrum of customers including server manufacturers, intelligent system integrators and consumer product manufacturers such as car makers. Read more at: www.kalrayinc.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005824/en/

Contacts:

INVESTORS

Eric BAISSUS

contactinvestisseurs@kalray.eu

+33 (0)4 76 18 90 71

ACTUS finance communication

Caroline LESAGE

kalray@actus.fr

+33 1 53 67 36 79

MEDIA

Loic HAMON

communication@kalray.eu

+33 (0)4 76 18 90 71

ACTUS finance communication

Serena BONI

sboni@actus.fr

+33 (0)4 72 18 04 92
Thousands of ambulance workers in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh walked off the job Tuesday afternoon demanding protective gear and their outstanding salaries for the last two months. About 19,000 workers, including drivers, helpers and emergency technicians employed in 102 and 108 emergency number ambulance services joined the strike, halting the operation of 4,700 ambulances.

The strike is part of an upsurge of working class struggle around the world against the efforts of capitalist governments and corporations to keep non-essential workplaces open, despite the spread of the deadly COVID-19 disease, and to demand proper protective equipment for workers in essential industries and services. Doctors, nurses and paramedics who work closely with patients infected by the coronavirus are working under the most dangerous of these conditions.

Hours after the strike began, the Association of Ambulance Workers (AAW), the trade union that organized the strike, called off the action following negotiations with the state administration. The union was determined to prevent the strike from turning into a wider struggle, attracting the attention of millions of Indian health workers labouring under the same perilous conditions.

The ambulance workers are among the tens of millions of Indian contract workers who are deprived of almost all basic rights even under normal circumstances. The state government hired them from Gunupati Venkata Krishna Emergency Management and Research Institute (GVK-EMRI), which owns a large network of ambulance services throughout the country.

Uttar Pradesh ambulance workers have taken strike action on several previous occasions as the company waived their pay for several months. Now, as they are forced to work under hazardous conditions, both the GVK-EMRI that employed them and the state government that hired them have demonstrated their utter disregard for the workers lives.

Speaking to the media in a video, one striking worker explained, We do not have sanitizers, gloves or proper masks. Pointing to the mask he was wearing, he said, 15 of these have been distributed for each ambulance but we don't know when we will get new ones. You cannot wear this mask more than two hours. When we go to fill oxygen, people don't allow us inside. We told the local chief medical officer to arrange better supplies but got no response.

Workers sent a letter through union officials to the private company requesting safety equipment like what doctors are getting but they got no response. After the workers asked the right-wing state government to intervene on their behalf, the government dismissed their request and ordered the workers to negotiate directly with the private company. The state government cannot provide help in this matter, it bluntly declared.

As the unions negotiated with the government, Additional Chief Secretary Awanish Awasthi threatened workers, saying, This is an emergency situation, and going on a strike at this juncture is illegal. The issue has been resolved. The statement was meant as threat against all workers who will be demanding urgently needed equipment and medical supplies.

Indias health care system is in an appalling state, especially in Uttar Pradesh. This is due to the meagre levels of spending allocated to health by successive governments at both central and state levels. The horrific state of health services in Uttar Pradesh was exposed by the deaths of at least 70 children over the span of 10 days three years ago at the state-run Baba Raghav Das Medical College Hospital in Gorkhapur district. The fatalities were mainly due to a lack of oxygen supplies, after a private company withdrew its supplies due to unpaid bills.

The spread of COVID-19 in India is triggering a massive tragedy across the country. In addition to its criminal failure to expand testing and boost funding for hospitals and other health care services, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government responded to the pandemic by imposing a sudden, disorganized nationwide shutdown on March 24. No plan has been put in place to provide the basic necessities of life while people shelter indoors, exacerbating the hardship for hundreds of millions of migrant workers and rural toilers in particular.

Health care workers are also facing unbearable conditions. Several newspapers in India have reported how the shortages of PPE have forced some doctors to use raincoats and motorbike helmets while working among COVID-19 infected patients.

Reuters reported that although India needs at least 38 million masks and 6.2 million pieces of PPE as it confronts the spread of the coronavirus, the quantity of masks available from the companies it canvassed was just 9.1 million, while the number of PPE body coveralls stood at less than 800,000.

Like their counterparts in other countries, the Indian ruling class is incapable of providing health care workers with the protection they need. Thousands of medical professionals across Europe have already contracted the disease, and millions more are in serious danger. This is leading to growing protests and actions by health care workers, including in Papua New Guinea where thousands of nurses are striking this week to demand protective equipment.
COVID-19 sealed Peter Kings fate to take the permanent helm at Westpac. Firstly, it removed any chance the board would recruit from outside the bank and secondly, it rendered his extensive experience and understanding of the financials and risk as crucial.

Put simply King is the best-placed person to manage the impending credit event.

For the foreseeable future banks will be operating in near crisis mode. While they are well capitalised many of their customers are now in distress.

Peter King will manage the bank through an inevitable 'credit event'.

Although the immediate task for the major banks has been to support struggling business customers with cheap loans and repayment deferrals and offer some retail customers interest-payment holidays, the real challenge will be in dealing with the aftermath - navigating the way through a shell-shocked economy.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2) - As Luzon remains on enhanced community quarantine and public transportation is temporarily suspended, the countrys ride-hailing giant is taking extra steps to ease the financial burden of its driver-partners.

Grab Philippines confirmed on Thursday that senior officials are taking a pay cut of up to 20% to provide financial assistance to driver-partners affected by the quarantine.

The company said its move is part of a Grab global initiative to help the business and its partners cope with the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grab Philippines has dedicated a support fund to cover the medical bills of driver-partners who would need to undergo mandatory quarantine or test positive for COVID-19. This will be provided through a one-time financial assistance.

The company also said it will assist driver-partners through a food donation drive.

The ride-hailing firm, together with its employees, communities and corporate partners, have raised 14 million worth of relief items, which include grocery vouchers, rice, canned goods, and medicine.

These will be distributed to about 40,000 driver-partners who are unable to work and earn income due to the suspension of public transportation. Each will receive 5 kilograms of rice.

The company also donated 30,000 face masks and nearly 2,000 bottles of rubbing alcohol to its driver-partners, to promote safety and hygiene.

Grab Philippines President Brian Cu said the COVID-19 outbreak is a call to all sectors to band together and provide meaningful service to the Filipino people.

For us at Grab, the last few weeks have been a testament to our innate ability to innovate for all and to use our platform to help our community endure this period of uncertainty and disruption. We hope that now more than ever, other players will help carry out this vision of bayanihan while preventing the spread of COVID-19, Cu said in a statement.

The company also committed to donate 10,000 face masks to the Department of Health and an additional 10,000 face masks to other local government units.
UPDATE: A third death has been reported in Onondaga County. -- 6 p.m.

Syracuse, N.Y.  A second person has died from the coronavirus in Onondaga County.

The woman was in her late 60s, with significant underlying medical issues, County Executive Ryan McMahon said Thursday. The first death, reported March 24, was an elderly woman.

No more information has been released by county officials, who cite health privacy laws.

This is the reality of this disease, McMahon said. Anyone can catch it, and our immune systems battle it in different ways, but our communitys most vulnerable  folks with underlying medical conditions  this is a fight.

There remain 14 people in critical condition at local hospitals, the same number as a day ago. Given the death, that implies that one additional person is in critical. The total number of people hospitalized crept up, from 27 to 29. There were no hospital releases in the past day.

Total cases increased to 301, thats 24 more than Wednesday. Theres been a relatively steady increase each day for the past week.

There have now been 4,054 tests with results: 301 positive and 3,753 negative. The 24 new cases were reported from among 275 test results in the past 24 hours. There remain 484 pending tests.

The number of people tested has seen an uptick this week, McMahon said. He suggested that some people are starting to be too complacent in social distancing, leading to infections that could be avoided by following the rules.

There are roughly 150 to 175 tests being administered a day now, compared to 125 to 150 a week ago. The first week of testing, there were up to 300 people a day getting tested.

McMahon and the county health commissioner, Dr. Indu Gupta, have repeatedly urged the public to take social distancing seriously. The margin for error with this highly contagious virus remains extremely low.

The percentage of positive tests from among the total has also increased in recent days. Now, 7.4 percent of people tested are positive.

In better news, there are a total of 75 people who have recovered from COVID-19. Thats up eight from Wednesday.

Subtracting the 75 recoveries and the two deaths, there are now 224 active coronavirus cases in the county. Thats up 15 from a day ago.

McMahon said that were still in throes of the pandemic.

I think our active trend is somewhat flat, which is somewhat good, he said. I would obviously like to see the positive trends tail off a little bit.

From the total cases:

166 are female and 135 are male

9 are under 19,

67 in their 20s,

47 in their 30s,

46 in their 40s,

51 in their 50s,

44 in their 60s,

24 in their 70s

11 in their 80s.

2 in their 90s

Breakdown by municipality:

City of Syracuse - 99

Clay - 31

Camillus - 21

DeWitt - 21

Salina - 21

Cicero - 19

Onondaga - 17

Manlius - 15

Pompey - 13

Geddes - 11

Lysander - 9

Skaneateles - 7

Van Buren - 4

LaFayette - 3

Marcellus - 3

Otisco - 3

Tully - 2

Fabius - 1

Spafford - 1

Potential supermarket exposure:

An employee at the Tops supermarket in Manlius who tested positive for the coronavirus may have had contact with customers, the county health department announced Thursday.

The public announcement means that theres a gap in the countys investigation into the case, with worry that members of the public could have been exposed. (On the other hand, an employee at the DeWitt Wegmans who tested positive for the virus was not considered a public threat by county officials.)

People who visited the 119 W. Seneca St. store between these hours may have been exposed:

Thursday, March 26, 6 a.m. and 1:10 p.m.

Friday, March 27, 6:00 a.m. and 11 a.m.

Some of those hours included times set aside for elderly and vulnerable populations. The store has since been deep-cleaned, the health department said.

Anyone who visited the market during the identified time periods should monitor themselves for symptoms of COVID-19 such as fever, cough, and/or difficulty breathing for 14 days after they visited the store, health commissioner Dr. Indu Gupta said. "If symptoms do develop, stay home and call your doctor for further guidance about testing. If you are elderly, have underlying medical conditions, or are immunocompromised, call your doctor early even if your illness is mild. In an emergency, call 911.

Previous concerns of public exposure:

Bethany Baptist Church: Infected person attended on Sunday, March 15.

Asciotis Market, located at 3249 Milton Ave. in Solvay: Infected employee worked from 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17.

Americas Best Contacts & Eyeglasses, located at 3401 Erie Blvd East, DeWitt: Infected employee worked:

Monday 3/9 8:30 am-5:30 pm

Tuesday 3/10 9:30 am-6:30 pm

Wednesday 3/11 10:30 am-7:30 pm

Thursday 3/12 9:30 am-3:30 pm

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

New York City hospitals begin transferring patients to Upstate NY (report)

Medical exams in a parking lot: Family doctors fight on coronaviruss frontlines and worry about the homefront

Syracuse hospital to furlough workers amid coronavirus surge

Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst cases double in 2 days, total hospitalized down; 277 total cases

Staff writer Douglass Dowty can be reached at ddowty@syracuse.com or 315-470-6070.
Leading British doctors are hoping to track the spread of Covid-19 around the world by asking people whether they can smell household objects.

Professor Claire Hopkins and Professor Nirmal Kumar say that a patient's loss of smell is a 'better indicator' of coronavirus than a fever, and are developing the #CovidSmellTest, which asks participants to sniff items as part of an ambitious effort to collect global data on the disease.

The means through which users will report their results is yet to be decided, but the experts hope tracking the location of the posts will help them identify the spread of cases within certain areas.

Professor Claire Hopkins says that a patient's loss of smell is a 'better indicator' of coronavirus than a fever

Doctors are developing the #CovidSmellTest, which asks participants to sniff items as part of an ambitious effort to collect global data on the disease

The NHS nose, throat and ear experts identified anosmia, loss of smell, as a crucial indicator of coronavirus, especially because for many people this is their only symptom.

Professor Kumar, 55, said those with a cold or flu mention losing their smell to him 'only once in a blue moon', whereas it is a common complaint for Covid-19 patients.

In a survey, led by the professors, of 2,500 people with signs of coronavirus, a 'staggering' one in six reported anosmia as their only symptom. Of those who reported losing their sense of smell, 74% tested positive for coronavirus.

King's College London experts also found through analysis of two million users on their symptom tracker app, 59% of those who tested positive for Covid-19 reported a loss of smell.

The #CovidSmellTest, which will encourage people to sniff household objects such as a cup of coffee and report any sudden loss of smell on social media, is being developed by the professors alongside former chief risk officer for JP Morgan, Peter Hancock.

Professor Nirmal Kumar (pictured) said those with a cold or flu mention losing their smell to him 'only once in a blue moon', whereas it is a common complaint for Covid-19 patients

Peter Hancock, 62, who came up with the initiative, described it as 'real targeting of the super-spreaders who really don't know they're doing harm' in 'the lowest cost way possible.'

He added: 'As the general public watch the healthcare professionals put their lives at risk to save people, everyone has the strong urge to help.

'If they can help in some way and also have a giggle, that seems like a good use of people's energy.'

Doctors are warning that a loss of smell may be a sign of coronavirus (stock image)

Another 569 deaths have been declared in the UK today, taking the total death toll to 2,921

Prof Hopkins, 47, said she hopes the global test will become a useful tool for predicting the start of an outbreak so that healthcare resources can be directed to the right place before it is too late.

She said: 'One of the problems all countries are facing so far is that they haven't got the PPE to where it was needed, before it was needed and therefore they're reacting behind the curve.

'If we can get people to self-report loss of a sense of smell globally, we might be able to identify countries and regions as the outbreak starts.

'It will only work if we get really good widespread global coverage.'

Professors Kumar and Hopkins are also urging the Government to add loss of smell to the key coronavirus symptoms to isolate with, alongside cough and fever, otherwise 'our social distancing policy will be completely lost'.

'At the end of the day, we've got to do whatever we can to help with the containment policy. That's the light at the end of the tunnel,' Prof Kumar said.
(Natural News) Occasional anxiety can be considered a part of everyday life, but for people with anxiety disorders, the anxious feeling doesnt go away and may even get worse over time. This can interfere with day-to-day activities like work and school performance.

One of the treatments for anxiety disorders is called exposure therapy, wherein the patient is exposed to the source of anxiety to help him overcome his anxious feelings.

In most cases, a dose of the stress hormone, cortisol, before exposure treatment can bring improvements in mental health. However, recent findings suggest that this is not the case when cortisol is taken after exposure therapy.

A study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology found that administering cortisol to patients who recently underwent exposure therapy does not grant any benefits.

Various studies have shown that extinction can be accelerated or reinforced in healthy individuals by administering the stress hormone cortisol, said corresponding author Armin Zlomuzica.

Anxiety and cortisol

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, anxiety disorders are the most common types of mental illness in the United States  affecting around 40 million American adults aged 18 and above. In normal circumstances, cortisol administration prior to exposure therapy can promote the efficacy of the treatment for certain phobias. Cortisol is a stress hormone that plays a role in various bodily functions like regulating blood sugar and reducing inflammation. The stress hormone is also said to reduce fear retrieval at the beginning of exposure therapy and enhances the corrective information learned during the therapy. (Related: Supplement with these herbs to keep your cortisol levels under control.)

However, in the current study, researchers from the Ruhr-Universitat Bochum (RUB) in Germany looked into testing what happens if the stress hormone is administered to patients after exposing them to the source of their anxiety. The study was done with the idea that cortisol could still be used after successful exposure to reinforce positive therapy outcomes.

To do so, the researchers recruited 43 patients with arachnophobia (fear of spiders) to take part in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. The participants were treated with a single session of exposure therapy followed by a dose of cortisol. The exposure therapy involved a therapist presenting a spider in a terrarium and asking the participants to get as close to it as possible.

The researchers recorded the severity of the participants fear of spiders both before and after exposure to the trigger. Because of this, the patients were able to subjectively assess their own fear. Finally, the researchers also performed a behavioral approach test to gather an objective measure of each patients phobia.

From the results, the researchers observed that many of the patients could approach the spider much more closely than they usually can almost immediately after the therapy. However, the research team is mostly interested in the long-term effects of cortisol application. Therefore, they repeated the same behavioral approach test after a follow-up period of one month and six months  both with different contexts. The first test takes place in the room where the patients experienced their therapy while the second test made use of a different room with a different terrarium and supervisor.

Our study has shown that the learned behavior was much more strongly linked to the context following the application of the drug, which is not what we want in the long term, explains Zlomuzica.

According to the researchers, patients administered with cortisol after exposure therapy were more likely to experience a relapse when exposed to a spider in a different context. Cortisol-treated patients showed an increase in subjective fear after a seven-month follow-up. In conclusion, the researchers believe that administering cortisol after therapy does not provide any sort of benefit for the patients.

Learn more about anxiety and ways to ease its symptoms at MindBodyScience.news.

Sources include:

ScienceDaily.com

ScienceDirect.com

Healthline.com
Mark Mulligan

Calls to the Texas Workforce Commission, which administers unemployment benefits, rose to the millions within a week, state officials said, as closures necessary to slow the spread of the virus leave hundreds of thousands of Texans out of a job.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Everything you need to know about filing for unemployment in Texas
A week after the relaxation of rules by the labour ministry for withdrawing from provident fund (PF) accounts to fight the Covid-19 pandemic, 161 district residents have applied for advance withdrawal from their PF savings with the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) regional office.

At present, the regional office covers around 3 lakh subscribers of the provident fund scheme.

Besides health issues, the pandemic has also brought financial troubles for many residents who are confined to their homes amid the lockdown. The government had taken the move in view of more individuals using their savings and borrowing money from their friends and families.

EPFO regional commissioner Dheeraj Gupta said Normally, an EPF withdrawal process takes between one to two weeks. To date, 161 advance claims have been received at the Ludhiana regional office. We are trying to settle these claims on auto mode and send money to the beneficiaries accounts within three working days, adding that the regional office is, however, not receiving any physical claims.

People can only apply online. We are not accepting any physical claims in the wake of coronavirus outbreak. People are advised to use the UMANG app to apply for advance withdrawal of PF. They can also access their passbook and check the balance, he added.

WHAT THE NOTIFICATION SAYS

As per the gazette notification, EPFO subscribers can either withdraw 75% of their savings or up to a maximum of three months basic pay and dearness allowance from their PF accounts, whichever is lower. Once a subscriber withdraws the amount, it cannot be replenished after the situation improves.

People who are KYC compliant and have seeded their UAN (Universal Account Number) with the Aadhaar card and their bank account can make their request online or through the UMANG app.

While applying for the claim online, one needs to select the option of Outbreak of Pandemic (COVID-19) from the given options.

BOX

TAKE NOTE

People who are KYC compliant and have seeded their UAN (Universal Account Number) with the Aadhaar card and their bank account can make their request online or through the UMANG app

No certificate or documents are to be submitted by the EPF member or by his or her employer for availing the advance

Any member of the EPF Scheme, 1952, employed in any establishment or factory covered under the EPF and MP Act, 1952, and having a UAN, is eligible to apply for the advance.
Al-Hayatem is one of many villages that have been isolated in 10 governorates until Saturday including the Red Sea, Minya, Menoufiya and Port Said, in a bid to stop the spread of the coronavirus

Residents of Al-Hayatem, a village in Gharbiya governorate, some 90km north of Cairo, are banned from leaving the area and authorities have denied entry into the village in an effort to stem the spread of the coronavirus after the detection of several cases there. However, both the locals and officials have denied reports the village is home to a massive outbreak.

Al-Hayatem is one of many villages that have been isolated in 10 governorates until Saturday including the Red Sea, Minya, Menounfiya and Port Said, in a bid to stop any possible spread of coronavirus, according to health ministry spokesperson Khaled Megahed.

Villagers no longer go to work outside the town since security forces closed the three entrances to the village in a precautionary measure that the provincial governor says is meant to reduce the risk of virus transmission.

But residents have dismissed media reports that the village, home to an estimated 40,000 residents, is home to a massive cluster of cases or that all families are isolated at home.

The new restrictions were imposed after the first case of a 40-year-old staff member at a restaurant tested positive for the virus on Friday following days of self-isolation at home after experiencing some symptoms, one of the mans neighbours told Ahram Online by phone. Ten of his family members and neighbours were then tested positive when authorities conducted tests earlier this week for people the patient had come in contact with, Mona El-Khouly told Ahram Online.

They are now in isolation hospitals and their condition is improving. We are constantly in contact with them, she said.

On Wednesday evening, Tarek Rahmy, the governor of Gharbiya confirmed several cases were detected for the restaurant worker and those who came in contact with him, but he declined to specify the number of cases, saying it is the responsibility of the health ministry.

He said residents were not placed under home quarantine but are only not allowed to leave the village that has been off-limits since late Monday.

There is no pandemic in the village that should cause worry, he said. The number of cases are not high... Isolating the village is only a precautionary measure so we can closely follow up on residents and keep them under observation. Having them in one place makes it easy to follow [their condition] and track any suspected cases.

The governor affirmed no new cases have been detected in recent days, adding that tests on 20 village residents on Wednesday turned out negative.

Civil Defence vehicles carried out sterilisation operations of the whole village six times, he said. Fresh food commodities and staple goods including grocery and medicines provided to the village are sufficient to cover residents needs for the upcoming 15 days, the governor said.

Health ministry teams advised residents to stay at home and voluntarily lengthen curfew times to help track suspected cases, he added

Al-Hayatem is the only village in Gharbiya that has been placed under isolation, according to the governor.

Exaggeration plays a part

Mohamed El-Baradi, a townsman of Al-Hayatem, affirmed to Ahram Online that only 10 people in the village were infected. They were taken to quarantine hospitals in Alexandria and Matrouh governorates and most of them are now in a stable condition, he added.

Daily life is proceeding normally in the village, he stated, and calm prevails in its streets by the time the curfew goes into effect at 7pm.

Since 25 March, a nationwide night-time curfew has been imposed daily from 7pm to 6am as part of drastic steps to contain the spread of the virus. It is scheduled to remain in place until 7 April.

People go to work in the village and perform their everyday activities normally before the curfew time in most parts of the village, El-Baradi said.

But the majority of village residents are upset because of the rumours of the coronavirus outbreak in their village and have declined aid from outside, he added.

El-Baradi, who is also the admin of one of the villages most popular Facebook groups, says social media and other news reports are exaggerating in their portrayal of the situation in the village, which he described as totally normal and under control.

To a great extent, everything is going normally in our village, but the residents are not allowed to leave the village and outsiders are not allowed to pass security checkpoints deployed at the villages entrances, he said.

Ahmed Beshier, another Al-Hayatem resident, said a number of residents gathered in front of the police station in the village on Wednesday evening in rejection of aid, presented to them mostly by local MPs.

Online footage showed dozens of people marching in the villages narrow streets, defying social-distancing measures as they shouted slogans demanding easing restrictions imposed on the village and expressing rejection of aid.

We dont need anything, and the residents are in complete solidarity to provide assistance to each other if needed, Beshier said, urging social media users to stop sharing rumours about his village.

"Village residents felt humiliated for being offered aid, which is why they refused help and protested, said resident El-Khouly.

The local governor said that businessmen have donated 1,500 boxes of food commodities in recent days.

Stigma against residents of the village over the virus appears to be another reason for disappointment.

The residents are upset because of the way they are viewed by other village residents, treating them as outcasts, El-Khouly lamented.

Egypt has so far recorded 779 coronavirus cases nationwide, with the death toll standing at 52. Officials have repeatedly sought to reassure the public that they are able to control the virus.

But some residents are unhappy with the restrictions and tried to break the imposed regulations.

One man managed to sneak into farmlands in the village to go to his work at a textile firm outside the village before he was later brought back. The governor said authorities examined him when he returned, and he tested negative for the virus.

The first coronavirus case in Egypt was detected on 14 February, almost two months after the virus first had surfaced in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

Egypt has grounded international flights until mid-April as part of strict measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus, but the country has since operated several exceptional flights to bring home nationals stranded overseas provided that they undergo a 28-day quarantine.

Authorities have also shut down cinemas, restaurants, coffee shops and nightclubs, suspended classes at schools and universities and shut mosques and churches.

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Supporters of Senate Bill 54, the California "sanctuary state" law, demonstrate during a Huntington Beach City Council meeting. (Kevin Chang / Daily Pilot)

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to hear a challenge to a state law that limits police collaboration with federal immigration agents.

The court denied a request by the city of Huntington Beach to review an appellate court opinion in January that found that the issue was a matter of statewide concern and that gave the law precedence over the police authority of charter cities. That reversed a 2018 ruling.

This is tragic for the rule of law and for local control efforts, Huntington Beach City Atty. Michael E. Gates said in an email. Now the lower court ruling stands, which opens the floodgates for the state to legislate and control every aspect of local governance.

The Orange County city of 200,000 people sued claiming that California's so-called immigrant sanctuary law, the 2017 California Values Act, interfered with its authority to enforce local laws and regulations.

The law prohibits state and local police from asking arrestees  except for those charged with serious crimes  about their immigration status or notifying federal agents when an immigrant is being released from jail.

California enacted the law following President Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration. It was hailed as a victory by immigrant advocates seeking to encourage immigrants to trust in police officers and report crime.

But critics decried the law, saying it makes it harder to deport immigrants who commit crimes and leads law enforcement to release them back into communities.

In California, 121 cities have their own charters and others follow the state's general law. Huntington Beach argued that cities that create their own charters to have a greater say over local affairs shouldn't be subject to the law since it relates to local policing.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 2

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops 24 times, Trend reports referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry on Apr. 2.

The Armenian armed forces were using large-caliber machine guns.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Scammers are targeting people with texts pretending to be from the UK government telling victims they have been 'fined' for going out too much or too far during the coronavirus lockdown.

The malicious message then goes on to try and trick recipients into handing over their bank details to the real senders using links to non-governmental websites.

According to UK cyber-crime reporting centre Action Fraud, the number of coronavirus-related scams has increased by 400 per cent in March.

Since February, the centre has logged 305 reports from victims of such crimes, with loses that total almost 970,000.

Scroll down for video

Scam coronavirus texts pretending to be from the UK Government tell their victims that they have been 'fined' for going out too much or too far during lockdown. The malicious message then goes on to try and trick recipients into handing over their bank details to the real senders  using links to non-governmental websites

'GOV.UK CORONAVIRUS ALERT. You have exited the specified 1 mile radius on three separate occasions today,' one of the scam messages begins.

'A penalty notice has been issued to your address held on the electoral roll.

'More info & appeals can be filed at gov.uk/cvpenalty. Stay at home. Protect the NHS. Save lives.'

Another variation of the scam includes the message that: 'We would like to inform you that you have been recorded as leaving your home on 3 occasions yesterday. A fine of 35 has been added to your gov.uk account.'

In reality, the UK government's coronavirus guidelines do not stipulte that citizens must stay within a one-mile radius of their home, nor is there a fine associated with going outside three times.

However, people are encouraged to stay at home where possible and confine trips outdoors to limited activities that include essential shopping, exercise, seeking medical help and assisting a vulnerable individual.

Police can order individuals to return home if they determine that they are outside without a reasonable justification and issue fines to anyone who does not comply.

Another variation of the scam includes the message that: 'We would like to inform you that you have been recorded as leaving your home on 3 occasions yesterday. A fine of 35 has been added to your gov.uk account'

'During times of crisis our human response is to seek out information, so attackers have learned to use this instinct against us,' security intelligence research director at Lookout Christoph Hebeisen told The Sun.

'The ongoing response to COVID-19 has created an opportunity for alarming yet plausible "hooks" that can be used by malicious actors in phishing attacks.'

'Users need to be extra-vigilant for spear-phishing attacks that leverage our anxiety about this pandemic against us.'
* Pavilion seeks up to 2 mmtpa LNG from 2023 for Singapore

* Wants to jointly develop methodology to measure emissions

* Asks sellers to offset carbon, show green credentials

By Jessica Jaganathan

SINGAPORE, April 2 (Reuters) - Singapore's Pavilion Energy is asking potential liquefied natural gas (LNG) suppliers to help develop an industry standard for the superchilled fuel's total greenhouse gas emissions, as it looks for new gas deliveries from 2023.

One of two companies approved to import LNG into Singapore, Pavilion also urged sellers to outline their carbon mitigation efforts as it aims to eventually make its purchases carbon neutral.

While LNG is typically considered a cleaner fuel than coal or oil, there is no accepted industry standard for measuring the emissions from producing and transporting the fuel, which needs to be cooled to minus 162 degrees Celsius.

"We believe that the attractiveness of natural gas as a transition fuel must be reinforced by a better understanding and then reduction of its carbon footprint," Pavilion group chief executive Frederic Barnaud said in an emailed statement to Reuters.

Owned by Singapore state-owned investment company Temasek Holdings, Pavilion is soliciting bids through a request for proposal for up to 2 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of LNG for delivery from 2023 for a period of at least five years.

In what the company said is a world first, it is asking suppliers to commit to jointly develop and implement a greenhouse gas quantification and reporting methodology, covering emissions from the well to the discharge terminal.

Carbon neutral LNG typically involves companies supporting nature-based projects that reduce emissions to compensate for emissions generated from exploration and production.

Pavilion's move comes as carbon reduction targets tighten globally, leading to a gradual push for more transparency of carbon and methane emissions in the gas value chain.

Story continues

Barnaud said there are currently ways to calculate greenhouse gas emissions for a single LNG cargo transaction, but there is no standardised methodology to measure, report and offset emissions in a transparent and verifiable manner.

Pavilion also wants to work with other companies to promote standardisation, certification and price transparency for emissions reduction or offset certificates in Asia and to develop a marketplace and trading hub, he said.

The company is also looking into studying hydrogen as a complement to natural gas, he said.

Royal Dutch Shell in June last year supplied what it said was the world's first "carbon neutral" LNG cargoes to Japan's Tokyo Gas and South Korea's GS Energy. It also supplied a similar cargo to Taiwan's CPC Corp last month.

Pavilion is owned by Singapore state-owned investment company Temasek Holdings. The deadline to submit bids for its tender is in June. (Reporting by Jessica Jaganathan; editing by Richard Pullin)
President Donald Trump says Saudi Arabia and Russia could soon agree to a big cut in oil production, but energy analysts say a lot of levers would have to be pulled to make that happen.

Such a deal might possibly even include an unprecedented deal involving the U.S. oil industry.

Trump meets with U.S. oil industry executives at the White House Friday, and there's some speculation the president could ask the industry for help curb production. The industry meets as producers struggle with falling demand and low prices. The agenda is reportedly expected to include discussions about federal storage of oil, tariffs on foreign oil, and drilling on public land.

The president earlier Thursday tweeted and told CNBC's Joe Kernen that he expects Saudi Arabia and Russia to get together and announce a production cut of 10 million barrels a day, or even 15 million barrels.

"As far as the Saudis and the Russians are concerned, it's a global deal and the U.S., as the largest producer, has to be part of the deal," said Daniel Yergin, vice chairman of IHS Markit. "That's the way they see it. We see it as more complicated. That would probably be a topic at the White House."

In response to Trump's comments, oil prices bounces nearly 30%, but West Texas Intermediate and Brent futures gave up some initial gains. West Texas Intermediate crude futures surged 24.67% to settle at $25.32 per barrel, for its largest single-day percentage gain in history.

"Getting a coalition of the willing together remains a challenge," said Helima Croft, head of global commodities at RBC. "What we know is the Saudis were looking at this through the lens of the financial crisis and believe they needed a response commensurate to 08/09. The question is can Trump put together the package that gets them to do that?"

For the U.S., it would be unprecedented in the last half century for government to regulate oil production, as the Texas Railroad Commission last did it in 1970, Yergin said. The U.S., however, has only been permitted by the federal government to export oil for the past four years.

"There's a lot of skepticism about this in the market," said John Kilduff, partner with Again Capital. "The numbers are just too large for starters. The Saudis have made it clear they are not going to shoulder the burden alone. It's going to require a lot of chip in from a lot of disparate players that don't like to play together. The Saudis are going to require a U.S. role."

U.S. production was at the heart of a disagreement between Russia and OPEC that led to the end of a three-year agreement to limit production in early March. The OPEC plus group cut back, but the U.S. industry continued to pump oil into an oversupplied market. Saudi responded by upping its own production, and in the month of March, Brent prices fell 54%.

Trump has now inserted himself into the battle, but so have some members of the U.S. energy industry, including the Texas Railroad Commission. The president spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the oil market earlier this week, and in a tweet he said he spoke to Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

"We know there's an emergency OPEC meeting. They will be looking for signs that U.S. production will be curtailed. They will be watching what happens with the Texas Railroad Commission and with Canada." Croft said. Croft said as for Russia, there may be some discussion about a roll back in sanctions.

Earlier this week, Pioneer Natural and Parsely asked the Texas Railroad Commission to curb Texas production. The industry is divided over any efforts to control output. The American Petroleum Institute has opposed it, and in a letter to the president on Wednesday said gains made by the industry would be jeopardized by efforts to restrict supply.

On Thursday, Texas Railroad Commissioner Ryan Sitton tweeted that he had a discussion with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak about the 10 million barrel a day production cut from global supply. He noted that Russia is normally a competitor but that the virus requires unusual cooperation. He added that he looks forward to speaking with Saudi Arabia's oil minister.

tweet

"Texas is a 5.4 million barrel a day producer. It's 40% of U.S. production," Yergin said. "I think the politics around the Texas commission are complicated. But it may be a different picture by tomorrow afternoon. Trump has become the moderator."

In prior comments, API CEO Mike Sommers said any efforts to create a "TexOPEC would be incredibly damaging to our posture in the world. Imposing a production or export quota on Texas crude would really penalize the most efficient producers while supporting less efficient companies."

Analysts said clearly Saudi Arabia and Russia alone could not provide cuts that would remove even 10 million barrels a day from the market without help. Saudi Arabia would need to be joined by the other members of OPEC, and non-OPEC producers. Russia would also have to join in. Saudi Arabia called an emergency of the producers, known as OPEC plus.

"They want all the producers on board. The US poses the trickiest challenge. The question is can the Texas Railroad Commission proposal get institutional backing in Washington?" Croft said.

Analyst said Saudi Arabia conceivably could cut 4 million barrels a day from its 12.5 million barrels, and Russia might be able to cut 1.5 million at most from its 11 million barrel-a-day output. But the Wall Street Journal quoted a Saudi official saying the best case would be a 6 million barrel-a-day cut and it was unclear how the president reached 10 million barrels a day.

The U.S. industry has been pumping at near record levels of 13 million barrels a day in the last several weeks, even with the stunning drop in demand that Yergin says could be 10 million barrels a day in April. He said the question for the industry is whether production will fall because of economics or because of state regulation. Bank of America forecasts U.S. production could decline to 11 million by the end of the year, just because of the impact of lower prices.

"I think everybody will be listening very carefully to what Trump has to say," said Yergin.

But the U.S. industry has succeeded without government restrictions, going from a big importer to net exporter of oil and refined products in just a matter of years. "Joining in to try to manage the oil price goes against our capitalist values," said Kilduff.

"Maybe he gets the frackers to stop fracking and he gets them an aid package to get them through," Kilduff said. "They already have cut cap ex and that maybe could count. It's going to be fuzzy math of the first order."
The importance of social distancing appears to be sinking in, with beaches that just a few days ago were packed now almost completely empty.

Photos taken at Sydney's famous Manly Beach over the weekend showed thousands of people exercising, swimming and relaxing in large groups despite the continuing threat of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But just a matter of days later and there is a visible difference among locals who are now mostly abiding by the government's instructions to stay home where possible.

Walkers along the concourse could be seen taking a wide berth of those coming in the opposite direction, while the few swimming among the waves were spread out.

Scroll down for video

Manly Beach was packed with people on Saturday, despite being urged to stay home because of the coronavirus pandemic

But in a matter of just a few days the message appears to have begun sinking in, with the beach almost deserted on Thursday aside from a few getting in their essential exercise

Local chicken shop owner Dave Dunbar told Daily Mail Australia he had noticed quite a significant difference since last weekend, but said mornings were still a busy time.

'I think people get out and do their exercise in the mornings in Manly, or go out for a takeaway coffee,' Mr Dunbar said.

'It was busy down here on the weekend, but if you look around today and it feels like we are in complete lockdown.

'We have noticed a drop off in business in the last few days too, I think that's because people are just staying home and also because they are now stocked full with food.'

The scenes at Manly Beach came a day after backpackers in Melbourne packed onto St Kilda beach to enjoy a warm autumn day.

Local chicken shop owner Dave Dunbar told Daily Mail Australia he had noticed quite a significant difference since last weekend, but said mornings were still a busy time

Weekend: People were seen swimming and sunbathing at Manly beach on Saturday, even after the much publicised closeure of others in Sydney

Today: There were only a handful of people in the water on Thursday, with those who did swim doing so at a distance from each other

Weekend: People were undeterred by the coronavirus threat and made the most of the warm autumn weather on Saturday at Manly

Today: In stark contrast to the weekend this woman was asked to move on despite sitting alone at a bench in the city's east

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

It led Prime Minister Scott Morrison to introduce stricter coronavirus measures, with people now only allowed to leave their homes for 'essential' reasons such as exercise or grocery shopping.

One local woman who was out exercising at Manly on Thursday said the difference in attitude among people, compared to last weekend, was noticeable.

'I think people are taking it so much more seriously than last weekend and definitely than the weekend before,' she said.

'Nobody is staying and lingering around the beaches anymore. You just go for a swim and then leave, and the lifeguards have been great in telling people to move on too.

'There are no groups around today whereas they were everywhere on the weekend.'

A hot spot for boot camps and group training, only one-on-one surf lessons - which fit within the government's guidelines - were taking place on Thursday.

There are more than 5,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus across Australia, with 24 deaths linked to the virus

The promenade at Manly was almost completely deserted of people as light rain began to fall on Thursday afternoon

Gelma Fonseca, who works at the Manly Point Cafe right next to the beach, said she believed people were social distancing better but were still spending quite a bit of time outside their homes.

'I think people have been a lot better over the past week, they are very spaced out as they wait for their coffee,' she said.

'But it has actually been just as busy as normal. I think maybe that's because some of the other shops have shut their doors so people are coming here.

'I am actually surprised how many people are still coming out and about.'
NSW Labor leader Jodi McKay has criticised one of her MPs for praising China's "unswerving leadership" in handling the coronavirus crisis, labelling the comments as "inappropriate".

Labor upper house MP Shaoquett Moselmane sparked controversy this week by saying China's President Xi Jinping had "fought [COVID-19] and contained it", describing the nation's response as "emphatic" and "decisive".

Federal Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton strongly condemned Mr Moselmane's remarks as Chinese government "talking points" and said he should resign from the NSW Parliament.

NSW Labor MP Shaoquett Moselmane has been heavily criticised for praising China's President Xi Jinping's handling of the coronavirus crisis. Credit:James Alcock

"You cant have an allegiance to another country and pretend to have an allegiance to this country at the same time," Mr Dutton said in an interview with 2GB radio's Ray Hadley on Thursday.
An infectious disease physician hit out at the US government on Fox News, claiming the severity of the coronavirus outbreak in the US was caused by the governments weak response.

Appearing on Fox News Dr Desai advised that the country needed to implement more aggressive lockdown measures to stem the number of cases by completely banning all air and rail travel.

If we did do this shutdown if we shut down rail and airlines and did it the way Im suggesting and really kind of policed it and had one squad car driving around making sure everyones in their homes we would see a drop off in cases within two weeks, he said.

Within two weeks the number of cases would start to fall and the entire country would breathe a sigh of relief.

Talking about Covid-19 testing, the physician scorned the Trump administrations slow response to testing of the virus, vehemently shaking his head when anchor Martha MacCallum suggested there were still a million tests available.

In response to a discussion about the FDAs approval of new 15-minute testing, Dr Desai replied, Yeah, theyre working on it ... They shouldve been working on it for months.

We knew coronavirus was coming, we knew that it was a respiratory disease, we knew it was person-to-person. Why is it that it is this week that the FDA finally approved these new Abbott lab testing? he said.

He then pointed to South Korea as an example of a country having dealt with the pandemic successfully.

Look at what South Korea did, and what we did, he said.

Their population is one-sixth of ours. Look at the cases they have. Look at the mortality they have. Its a trifle compared to what were dealing with right now because weve had a very weak response and they had a really strong response.

The video of the interview has since gone viral online, with videos of the segment trending on Twitter and many users applauding the physicians blunt responses.

Users were jokingly sceptical that Dr Desai would be invited back as anchor Ms MacCallum suggested during the segment.

How to ensure you dont get follow-up questions on Fox, apparently. one user tweeted.

Somebody decided to invite Dr Rishi Desai onto Fox. I dont think theyll be asking him back, another said.
Kapil Sharma's Net Worth Trumps Bollywood Stars Like Deepika Padukone, Farhan Akhtar; See His Success Story In Numbers
(CNN)  In the midst of heartbreak we are alone, unable to reach out and comfort those who mourn, standing a careful six feet from each other.

There is no great gathering of family and friends to honor our mothers, fathers, grandparents, spouses, brothers, sisters, children or friends so suddenly and cruelly ripped from our lives. There is no wake, no shiva.

Instead, we must listen to the tinny sound of the funeral emanating from laptops or smartphones, wishing our sorrow and support could race through digital space and surround those in agony with a hug or a touch -- the most basic of human comforts.

This is the grim face of grief and loss in the age of coronavirus.

"The rituals around death are so important for healthy grief," said David Kessler, who co-authored the book "On Grief and Grieving," with legendary bereavement expert Elisabeth Kubler-Ross.

"Grief is a time of connection. We've always been able to be with their bodies, to gather for a funeral. All that is gone," Kessler said.

"So we're not only robbed of our loved one, but we're also robbed of our ability to gather to honor them. On a national level, this is really unprecedented."

A special type of grief

Much of what we are going through is reminiscent of wars and terrorist attacks, said trauma counselor Jane Webber, a professor of counselor education at Kean University in New Jersey.

"Similar to 9/11, not being able to say goodbye, not being able to see your loved one's body, imagining what they may have suffered, those memories stay with people, and they often need help to heal," said Webber, who counseled survivors and families during 9/11's tragic aftermath.

What's uniquely painful today, she says, is that after a loved one dies, families are trapped in quarantine, unable to touch and comfort each other, living in dread that another family member could fall ill.

"Dread is a combination of not knowing, fearing and terror," Webber said. "Do you go pick up groceries? Are gloves enough? Should I touch the mail? Your child sneezes. You're living in fear every moment.

"Where we suffer most is that we want to hug someone. We need human touch and we're denied that," she added. "There is no measure of how painful it is or how horrible it is for people right now."

Doing the best we can

Unique times call for special measures, experts told CNN. Families should immediately connect in the most visual way possible.

"Connect through FaceTime, Skype, other social media," Webber said. "We need to see each others' faces to know that the rest of our family is with us in spirit even if they can't be with us physically."

Webber suggests daily check-ins with as many family members as possible, perhaps on a group platform like Zoom. Consider it a "virtual shiva," she says.

If that's not possible, use the next best thing, said Tom Dening, who directs the Centre for Old Age and Dementia at the University of Nottingham in the UK.

"The main thing is for the key people in the life of the deceased to communicate with each other, to share their grief by whatever medium ... they feel comfortable with," he said.

Try to keep the funeral as visual as possible too, Kessler suggests. It's important to see the faces of the friends and family who have gathered to honor and grieve the deceased.

"We are going to have to start gathering virtually with the minister on the Zoom and as many people as possible, instead of pretending we're still doing it at the church," he said.

Some people may decide to put off the memorial service or funeral until after the Covid-19 pandemic passes. Kessler says that while that makes sense, it's his experience that a service of some kind should occur within the first few weeks after death.

"I'm concerned if people postpone them," he said. "There's something important about grieving when grief first hits. People who don't have these rituals seem to have more trouble grieving."

Coping with guilt

Guilt, one of the stages of grief, can begin to plague us as we mourn our inability to say goodbye.

"Some degree of guilt is so often present in normal bereavement -- we usually think of things that we might have done or said differently -- but it is likely to be exaggerated with Covid-19," Dening said.

"Our experience is going to be complicated by the fact that we may feel that our loved one has died isolated and unsupported by us," he added. "On reflection, we might remind ourselves that we couldn't have done more, but this may not be enough to suppress such feelings."

"If the death is sudden or unexpected, and we did not get a chance to tell them how much they meant to us and how they changed our life for the better, we suffer even more," said Barbara Sahakian, a professor of clinical neuropsychology at the University of Cambridge.

Take time to remember the loved one you lost, Sahakian suggests.

"Although in the early stages of grief we can feel overwhelmed by sadness, at that time, it is important to remember that we would not have become the person that we are without having experienced knowing them," she said.

Webber suggests setting up family routines in which two or more loved ones gather visually or on the phone and share photos and tall tales of their loved one who has passed.

"Try to remember the happy parts of the person who has died," Webber said."It keeps the human touch going. Even if it's not physical touch, it's emotional, it's spiritual, it's intellectual touch. We need that kind of relationship and grieving or we are left with unfinished grief -- and that's a scary thing."

While it may sound sad, Webber also suggests going through photos and watching old videos of your loved one.

"Write letters to your loved ones," she suggests. "Write a letter every day, before you go to bed. Talk to the loved one and just say, 'This is what I wish I could have said to you.'

"By doing that, you are finishing some of the business that you weren't able to do," she said."If you don't do it, I would worry about depression, maybe even suicidal thoughts."

Get support

Even if you have the closest, most supportive family and friends in the world, consider joining a support group. Just a few months ago, you would have been able to meet people in person who are experiencing the same grief.

Another reality of this surreal time -- support groups are no longer meeting in person. But that doesn't mean you must forgo this very important tool for healing.

Counselors and therapists are conducting virtual visits and support groups; they are also popping up on social media.

"We have virtual support groups now as the only way people can share their fear of death and grief which have all mixed together," Webber said. "We're grieving, but we're also afraid that we might get infected as well. So we have kind of a double tragedy, a double trauma going on here."

The story was first published on CNN.com "Grief and fear after a Covid-19 death: Managing a double trauma"
The EU commissioner for neighborhood and enlargement, Oliver Varhelyi, has rejected accusations that the bloc has been too slow in providing assistance to its Balkan neighbors and countries of its Eastern Partnership program in their fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

In an interview with RFE/RL on April 2, Varhelyi also said he wasnt worried that China and Russia could capitalize politically on the EU response to the crisis.

I think that we have been very quick in reacting once we have been able to start to fight the crisis within the EU. We immediately came out with help for the entire region. This is not a race that we are running; this is about helping, he said.

In the Balkans, the EU on March 30 announced up to 38 million euros ($41.1 million) in immediate support for EU hopefuls Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia to tackle the health emergency caused by coronavirus.

A first batch of ventilators arrived in Bosnia this week. The EU is also sending equipment to Serbia and is providing Kosovo with ambulances.

The EU also pledged 140 million euro ($154 million) for the most immediate needs in its eastern partners Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine, and Varhelyi expressed confidence that medical equipment will arrive there very soon.

Recently, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic slammed the EU for "abandoning his country and praised China for its assistance during the crisis, but Varhelyi said that the Serbian leader immediately made it clear that we are the ones who are helping more.

We have been providing 7.5 million euros [$8.1 million] for Serbia, whereas China has been providing 5 million euros [$5.4 million] of help, the commissioner said, insisting that the EU continues to be the most important partner in the region.
The wedding of Reese Lichtenstein and Cory Lubarsky, scheduled for May 25, was always going to be a low-key affair, even with 150 guests. There would be beer and banh mi on the patio of a local brewery, and compostable plates rather than elaborate tablescapes. Lichtenstein, the bride, was especially excited for the photo booth.

Then came the novel coronavirus  and the event became very low key.

On March 20, the couple wed in front of six friends at the overlook outside the UC Berkeley Lawrence Hall of Science. One of the friends, having been ordained online for a previous wedding, officiated. Guests brought their own cups for Champagne, for fear of germs; the cups went mostly unclinked. The bride and grooms families watched remotely from phones held aloft. Most had received their invitations to the original fete just a couple of days before.

We stood 6 feet apart and hung out for a bit and drank our Champagne and then we all left, Lichtenstein said of the hastily planned nuptials.

COVID-19 and the response to it have wreaked havoc on the springtime wedding plans of countless couples, and along the way turned the $3 billion industry into a tangled mass of logistical nightmares. Many couples have rescheduled their weddings for the fall, or later, and put the entire planning process  venue visits, dress fittings, menu selections  on hold.

Some, like Lichtenstein and Lubarsky, have moved their timelines way, way up. It wasnt exactly the wedding of their dreams, but getting hitched seemed like the right thing to do, given the climate of fear and uncertainty. The pair, who met at Oaklands popular mac-and-cheese restaurant, Homeroom, were more recently general manager at State Bird Provisions (him), and a nanny and personal chef (her). Both were laid off in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.

If, God forbid, anything happened and if one of us was hospitalized, we didnt want there to be any issues with us not being married, Lichtenstein said. It is a little morbid, but its the world we live in right now.

Other betrothed couples, especially those with March weddings, have gone ahead, but at a drastically reduced scale.

I cant emphasize how fast this happened, said Lauren Geissler, a wedding planner at Downey Street Events in San Francisco, of a March 14 wedding she had to completely overhaul  twice, within a week  in response to the fast-changing regulations and health guidance. Weve moved weddings before due to wildfire, and I have experience with all types of crazy situations, but the speed at which this happened was truly shocking.

Rushing to the altar might not be an option for couples who havent already procured their marriage licenses. A representative of San Francisco County told The Chronicle that the clerk is not currently issuing marriage licenses, which require an in-service application process, during shelter in place. Bad news, romantics: Marriage licenses are not an essential service.

Jenya Chernoff Photography

For Megan Bundy and Mark Loeswick, who had planned to marry March 21 in Nevada City, the honeymoon was first to go. By mid-March, a trip to Costa Rica, or anywhere that involved a plane, didnt look romantic at all. Soon after came the regime of social distancing. Out went the wedding and rehearsal dinner, each with a guest list of 45.

The venue was canceled. The photographer was canceled. The hair-and-makeup stylist was canceled, too  her job couldnt be done from 6 feet away.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

Though frustrated and at times overwhelmed, the couple were determined to stick with their date. In the end, a family friend with a house in Nevada City offered to host. Only immediate family were invited to the tiny ceremony on the porch, officiated by the grooms brother. There was snow in the distance.

Despite all the stress, it ended up really beautiful, said Bundy.

She did the hair and makeup herself, and family members took the photos.

Some couples, especially now, might feel relieved at the opportunity to downsize their weddings. Bundy and Loeswick recently left managerial posts at San Francisco restaurants and never wanted a big-budget affair anyway, said Bundy. Our marriage was much more important than the wedding.

Lichtenstein, for her part, said she and her husband might host an I-do redo when the pandemic passes. She still wants Jewish ceremonial elements, the physical presence of her parents, and that photo booth.

Theres something else the newlywed craves  the congratulatory embraces of her nearest and dearest.

Im a hugger, said Lichtenstein, and it was really hard that we couldnt hug our friends.

Alix Wall is a freelance writer. Email culture@sfchronicle.com
Italy, Spain thank Turkish authorities for medical aid

Foreign ministers of two countries thank Turkey and Turkish people for their solidarity in combatting coronavirus.

Italy and Spains foreign ministers thanked Turkey on Wednesday for helping their countries combat the novel coronavirus.

ITALY HAS THE HIGHEST DEATH TOLL

"Today's help is very important to us. We thank President Erdogan, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and all Turkish people for their solidarity," said Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio.

On Wednesday, Turkey sent a plane carrying medical supplies including masks, overalls and hand sanitizers to Italy, which has reported the highest number of deaths so far from the coronavirus.

Spains Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya also thanked Turkey for providing medical aid in a post on Twitter.

Cavusoglu separately responded to messages from his counterparts, noting friends support each other in difficult times.
Paintings have been discovered inside the coffin of an Egyptian mummy after she was lifted out of it for the first time in more than 100 years.

Scottish conservators made the discovery during work to conserve Ta-Kr-Hb  pronounced takerheb'  believed to be a priestess or princess from Thebes.

The mummy, which is nearly 3,000 years old, was in fragile condition after being targeted by grave robbers throughout history.

Work has been required to ensure her condition did not deteriorate further before her remains are displayed in the new City Hall Museum in Perth, Scotland.

Conservators were surprised to find painted figures of an Egyptian goddess on both the internal and external bases of the coffin trough when Ta-Kr-Hb was lifted out.

Conservators at Perth Museum and Gallery cleaning the 3,000 old mummy Ta-Kr-Hb's coffin

Both figures are representations of the Egyptian goddess Amentet or Imentet, known as the 'She of the West' or sometimes 'Lady of the West'.

'It was a great surprise to see these paintings appear,' Dr Mark Hall, collections officer at Perth Museum and Art Gallery, told the PA news agency.

'We had never had a reason to lift the whole thing so high that we could see the underneath of the trough and had never lifted the mummy out before and didn't expect to see anything there.

Photo issued by Perth Museum and Art Gallery showing paintings of the Egyptian goddess Amentet discovered inside the coffin. Amentet, meaning 'She of the West', was a goddess in Ancient Egyptian religion

'So to get a painting on both surfaces is a real bonus and gives us something extra special to share with visitors.'

Further research will be carried out on the paintings to find out more about the history of the mummy, believed to date from somewhere between 760 and 525 BC.

The painting on the interior base of the coffin trough was previously hidden by Ta-Kr-Hb and is the best preserved of the two.

The underside of the coffin, which is slightly less well preserved, also shows a portrait of Amentet

It shows Amentet in profile, looking right and wearing her typical red dress.

Her arms are slightly outstretched and she is standing on a platform, indicating the depiction is of a holy statue or processional figure.

Usually, the platform is supported by a pole or column and one of these can be seen on the underside of the coffin trough.

Conservators clean the front of the coffin in preparation for its presentation at the new Perth City Hall, which will open as a museum in 2022

The mummy was donated to Perth Museum by the Alloa Society of Natural Science and Archaeology in 1936.

It was presented to the society by a Mr William Bailey, who bought it from the curator of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

In 2013, Ta-Kr-Hb was transferred temporarily for a 'check-up' at Manchester Royal Childrens Hospital, which included a CT scan and X-rays of her coffin.

Amentet (right) greeting Pharaoh Horemheb in his tomb. According to some sources, Amentet was often depicted on tombs to welcome the deceased into the afterlife

Radiographic examinations revealed that her skeleton had suffered extensive damage to the chest and pelvis, sometime after the body had been mummified, according to SCBP Perth.

While the skull remains intact, radiography revealed that as part of the mummification process the brain mass was removed through the sinuses.

But the full removal of Ta-Kr-Hb's remains this year allow today's researchers to closely observe the paintings beneath.

Perth Museum and Art Gallery are now hoping to save 'Ta-Kr-Hb'  as written in hieroglyphics on the lid of her coffin  for future generations.

'The key thing we wanted to achieve was to stabilise the body so it didn't deteriorate any more so it has been rewrapped and then we wanted to stabilise the trough and upper part of the coffin which we've done,' said Dr Hall.

Remains of a hide beetle - which is associated with decomposing remains - that was taken from inside the coffin

'Doing this means everybody gets to find out a lot more about her.

'One of the key things is just physically doing the work so we have a better idea of the episodes Ta-Kr-Hb went through in terms of grave robbers and later collectors in the Victorian times so we can explore these matters more fully and we can share that with the public.'

Conservators Helena Jaeschke and Richard Jaeschke have been working closely with Culture Perth and Kinross on the project, which started work in late January.

Culture Perth and Kinross is campaigning to raise money for the conservation of Ta-Kr-Hb as she prepares to go on display at the Perth City Hall Museum, which is set to open in 2022.
C an air pollution harm unborn babies? There is now mounting evidence that air pollution can harm foetuses in the womb. In a 2019 study, Professor Tim Nawrot and colleagues at Hasselt University, Belgium, used high-resolution imaging to detect black carbon particles in womens placentas.

Black carbon particles are released every day into the air, largely from the combustion of fossil fuels. Smaller particles, known as PM2.5, have been found to settle in airways and get into the bloodstream. These particles, which are the most dangerous form of air pollution to human health, are 30 times smaller than the average human hair.

The results of the Belgian study found that these particles are able to penetrate the placenta during pregnancy. It is thought these can have detrimental effects on pregnancy outcome.

Professor Anna Hansell of the University of Leicester looks at the impact of air pollution on the population from a public health perspective. She is involved in research into the effects of air pollution on birth outcomes, and worked on a large study focused on mothers in London.

She said: We found there were some associations between various air pollutants and lower birth rates. The actual effect size was quite small. We estimated 3% of the low birth weight cases in London could be attributed to the residential exposure in pregnancy to high levels of particles of air pollution.

It was difficult to ascertain if exposure to air pollution was more dangerous in certain stages of a pregnancy, Professor Hansell said. However, some studies have suggested the last trimester is the most important, especially in terms of birth weight. The team also looked at pre-term birth and stillbirth, and found that traffic-related particle pollution and ozone were a cause for concern. Ozone at ground level is a harmful air pollutant.

Another study from 2019 by the University of Aberdeen found evidence to suggest that exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), particularly in the last three months of pregnancy, results in babies having smaller heads.

ONE YEAR BREATHING LONDONS AIR The Air We Breathe is a year-long project that considers the impact of Londons air on our health and asks how we can take action to limit it. This project is supported financially by the Childrens Investment Fund Foundation, Guys & St Thomas Charity, and the Clean Air Fund, who share the projects aims, but our journalism remains editorially independent. This project is part of our Future London initiative, which looks for solutions to some of the biggest issues facing the capital.

What about pregnant women?

As with all of us, exposure to air pollution can increase the risks of respiratory and cardiovascular conditions and exacerbate pre-existing conditions such as asthma, explained Dr Norrice Liu, a paediatrician and clinical research fellow at Queen Mary.

There are studies showing a link between air pollution exposure during pregnancy and increased risks of high blood pressure, gestational diabetes, and pre-eclampsia, all of which can impact on maternal and foetal wellbeing, she says.

Air pollution has also been found to be as bad for pregnant women as smoking when it comes to raising the risk of miscarriage, according to a study by scientists at the University of Utah.
(Bloomberg) -- During the coronavirus pandemic, it seems as if everyone is connecting with Zooms videoconferencing app -- including, on occasion, unwanted visitors.

Online trolls have been sneaking into web meetings and disrupting them with profanities and pornography for at least the better part of the last month. Cybersecurity researchers fear these disruptions could be a precursor to more harmful attacks allowing hackers to commandeer connected machines to access secure files or other corporate software.

Much of our current reality is unchartered territory, and this growing dependence on Zoom at home is just another one, said Mark Ostrowski, regional head of engineering for Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. As soon as a platforms attack surface gets big enough, you can only expect that theyll become more interesting to attackers. Thats whats happened to Zoom.

In a Wednesday blog post, Zoom said that it takes security concerns extremely seriously and is working to address them. In addition, a Zoom representative said in an email that the company is upset about reports of harassment on Zoom and has sought to educate users about protecting meetings.

Zoom also apologized, in another blog, for the confusion we have caused by incorrectly suggesting that Zoom meetings were capable of using end-to-end encryption. While the company strives to use encryption in as many scenarios as possible, we recognize that there is a discrepancy between the commonly accepted definition of end-to-end encryption and how we were using it.

But theres good news. Users dont have to follow Elon Musk, whose SpaceX has banned the use of Zoom Video Communications Inc. amid privacy concerns.

There are a few simple steps to host secure video meetings, according to security experts. For instance, ensure your meeting is password protected, and dont share meeting IDs and passwords on social media, where criminal hackers may grab the credentials.

Story continues

Experts also recommend that meeting or classroom organizers take attendance and kick out unwanted visitors. Here are a few more tips:

Use the waiting-room feature to screen meeting participants before allowing them to interact in the meeting room. This can be accessed by clicking on the settings tab and then the In Meeting (Advanced) option.Use conference IDs instead of links when inviting others to join. Links can be malicious and used to hack unsuspecting users.Dont repeat meeting IDs to keep unwanted participants out of meetings.Apply scrutiny to links and documents, which can contain malicious code.When not using computer microphones and webcams, use blockers or covers, both of which can be purchased online.

Zooms shares have more than doubled this year as investors bet that the teleconferencing company would be one of the rare winners from the coronavirus pandemic. The company has become wildly popular, reaching more than 200 million daily meeting participants in March, according to its blog. But it has also drawn increased scrutiny from cybersecurity and privacy experts.

The most recent incident came on Monday when Patrick Wardle, principal security researcher at Jamf, published a blog about two new flaws in Zoom. If already infected with malware, the Mac OS desktop version could enable attackers to gain high-level privileges and hijack the webcam and microphone, he said. Zoom said it subsequently released fixes for the issues.

Zoom appears to have been designed with security as an afterthought, Wardle said, adding that it was a common phenomenon among startups primarily focused on users and funding.

But Zooms meteoric popularity has drawn additional scrutiny.

We did not design the product with the foresight that, in a matter of weeks, every person in the world would suddenly be working, studying, and socializing from home, Zoom said in the blog post. The influx of new users has presented the company with challenges we did not anticipate when the platform was conceived and that company committed to learning from them and doing better in the future.

On March 30, the FBI issued a warning about so-called zoom-bombing, urging users not to make classes or meetings public or share links to teleconferences on social media.

That same day, a Zoom user sued the company claiming its services were illegally disclosing personal information.

The company collects information when users install or open the Zoom application and shares it, without proper notice, to third parties including Facebook Inc., according to the federal lawsuit. Yet Zooms privacy policy doesnt explain to users that its app contains code that discloses information to others, according to the complaint.

Zoom acknowledged that it shares data with Facebook in a blog post on March 27.

In addition, New York State Attorney General Letitia James wrote a recent letter to Zoom that included a number of questions to ensure the company will take appropriate steps to ensure users privacy and security is protected, according to a spokesperson for the attorney generals office, who declined to share a copy of the letter.

Concerns over Zooms security practices arent new. Last year, a researcher named Jonathan Leitschuh discovered that the desktop version of Zoom for Macs quietly installed a web server -- one that remained on systems even if the app was removed -- that presented a new way for hackers to access webcams, he said. Apple Inc. released an update in July that plugged the security hole.

Holding Zooms feet to the fire around security and privacy amid the apps new popularity will create incentives for the company to adapt, Leitschuh said in an interview.

(Updates with details on encryption on fifth paragraph.)

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By PTI

INDORE: Seven persons were arrested for the alleged attack on health workers in Taatpatti Bakhal area of Madhya Pradesh's Indore city, an official said on Thursday.

A five-member team from the health department had gone to Taatpatti Bakhal on Wednesday to quarantine relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient, when an unruly mob attacked them with stones, injuring two women doctors.

The video of the attack went viral on social media.

"Based on the video footage, we identified seven persons who were involved in stone pelting and arrested them," deputy inspector general (DIG) Harinarayanchari Mishra told reporters here.

FOLLOW LIVE UPDATES ON COVID-19 HERE

The investigation has also revealed that the attack may have been caused by rumours spread on social media and the mob was incited by some anti-social elements.

The health department was carrying out an intensive exercise to identify relatives and acquaintances of a COVID-19 patient to isolate them as a precautionary measure to contain the outbreak, the senior official said.

Although the attack wasn't pre-planned, rumours were spread on social media against the health departments campaign, he said.

"We are also tracking down people who are spreading these rumours on social media and taking legal action against them," the DIG said.

The police have arrested seven men, between the ages of 21 to 50 years, three of whom have criminal record, Chhatripura police station in-charge Karni Singh Shaktawat said.

The accused have been charged under sections 147 (rioting), 188 (disobeying order issued by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and other relevant provisions of the IPC, he said.

The police are on the lookout for at least 15 accused, who were involved in the attack, he added.

Meanwhile, Indore collector Manish Singh warned that the district administration will not tolerate such incidents and misbehaviour.

"After all, who are we working for," he asked? The administration has requested the deployment of five Special Armed Force (SAF) companies in the city, he said.

Taking note of the attack, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan warned that anti-social elements involved will not be spared at any cost.

Chouhan said he salutes health workers for their dedication and assured to take care of their security.
Korean evacuees from Italy get on a bus at the Incheon International Airport, Thursday, heading to a quarantine facility located in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul



By Kim Se-jeong



Prime Minister Chung Sei-kyun said Thursday it was too early to ease the nationwide campaign to encourage "strict" social distancing as coronavirus infections continue to rise here at home and exponentially abroad. Chung hinted that the government will continue to promote the campaign well into April.



"Given the fast spread of the virus outside Korea and the fact that many Koreans are getting infected overseas, easing social distancing could trigger a faster, secondary spread of the virus," Chung said during an emergency meeting in Seoul.



The campaign was set to end April 5 but new guidelines and an extension are expected to be announced Sunday.



The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) reported 89 new infections Wednesday, bringing the total number of cases here to 9,976. Around the world, the number of cases has exceeded 930,000, and the World Health Organization said the figure will soon surpass 1 million, with 50,000 fatalities.





Seoul to conduct coronavirus test for int'l arrivals at Olympic stadium Virus fallout: Empty in-flight meal carts [PHOTOS] S. Korea reports 89 new virus cases, total at 9,976. Death toll hits 169 Despite warnings against outings and gatherings, more people in Korea are becoming increasingly frustrated with social distancing and heading out of their homes.



According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, almost 1 million visited a park on Yeouido famous for cherry blossom trees last weekend.



The latest confirmed cases involved two residents of Cherwon, Gangwon Province, who contracted the virus in a public sauna. The KCDC said it was trying to identify 20 customers who used the facility at the same time as the confirmed patients.



The number of infections from overseas is also increasing  of the 9,976 total cases here, 601 were contracted outside the country, according to the KCDC.



Stricter quarantine rules are in place, but apparently not all people are complying with them. According to local media outlets, the number of new arrivals at Incheon International Airport is too many for the quarantine authorities there to control. They cited the KCDC as reporting that an average of 7,000 passengers have been arriving at the airport daily recently.



The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced Thursday that it would bring all residents of the capital from the airport to a separate testing center in Jamsil. Mayor Park Won-soon said the measure was to ensure that those who contracted the virus overseas were quickly identified.



On Thursday, a chartered plane carrying more than 200 Korean evacuees from Italy arrived at Incheon, and after virus screening at the airport, they were taken to a quarantine facility outside Seoul. The previous day, another plane carried 309 Korean evacuees from Italy, and among them, one tested positive for COVID-19 and was isolated for treatment.



Also on Thursday, Korea saw the first death of a medical doctor from the coronavirus.




Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting with members of the government in Moscow, Russia, on February 5, 2020. Aleksey Nikolskyi | Sputnik | Kremlin | Reuters

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his administration are using the coronavirus crisis to spread conspiracy theories in a bid to "subvert the West" and create a new world order, a new report has alleged. In an article published Wednesday by The University of Calgary's School of Public Policy, it's claimed Russia has been "churning out propaganda that blames the West for creating the virus." The report's author, Sergey Sukhankin, said the state was propagating disinformation and conspiracy theories via social media accounts, fake news outlets, state-controlled media, pseudo-scientists and Russians living in the West. The Kremlin has previously denied such claims. "Putin's larger goal in spreading propaganda and conspiracy theories is to subvert the West," Sukhankin said. "Russia seeks to seriously damage the solidarity among EU members and capitalize on any internal European weaknesses to promote broader conflicts. COVID-19 is seen as an ideal way for Russia to deal a powerful blow not only to the EU, but to inflict damage on the ties between Europe and its North American allies."

Moscow also wanted revenge on the West for economic sanctions that were imposed on Russia for various reasons, including its annexation of Crimea, Sukhankin added, warning that the Kremlin saw an opportunity amid the crisis to unravel the current world order. "Moscow views the virus as a fortuitous harbinger of the end of the post-Cold War liberal world order," the report said. "The new leaders to emerge from this liberal collapse, according to this view, will be Russia and China. Indeed, Russia is seeking to strengthen its ties with China, as well as with Iran, and the danger is that other rogue states could join this new configuration." Speaking to CNBC on Tuesday, Keyu Jin, associate professor of economics at the London School of Economics, also claimed that China saw the coronavirus crisis as the "opportunity of the century" to establish a new role for itself on the international stage. On Wednesday, an updated report from the EU's foreign policy arm, the European External Action Service (EEAS), claimed countries including Russia and China were spreading disinformation about the coronavirus crisis. The EU recorded more than 150 cases of pro-Kremlin disinformation on COVID-19 between the end of January and the end of March, the report said.
(Newser)  A Port of Los Angeles locomotive engineer has admitted trying to crash a train into a hospital ship, federal prosecutors say. According to a court affidavit, 44-year-old Eduardo Moreno told investigators that he intentionally derailed the train at full speed on Tuesday because he thought the USNS Mercy might be there as part of a government takeover, not to help with the coronavirus crisis, ABC reports. He said he wanted to "wake people up" and knew the crash would attract media attention. Prosecutors say the train smashed through several barriers before coming to a halt around 250 yards from the Mercy. Authorities say there were no injuries and the ship wasn't damaged, but the derailment caused a substantial fuel leak.

story continues below

"You only get this chance once. The whole world is watching. I had to. People dont know whats going on here. Now they will," Moreno told investigators, per the Los Angeles Times. The Mercy, which has around 800 staffers and 1,000 hospital beds, is docked in Los Angeles to treat non-coronavirus patients, freeing up space in area hospitals. An FBI affidavit states that Moreno told agents "he thought that the USNS Mercy was suspicious and did not believe 'the ship is what they say it's for.'" He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years under a federal train-wrecking statute, NBC reports. (Read more derailment stories.)
What happened

Shares of Apache (NASDAQ:APA) nose-dived a stunning 83.2% in March, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. Crude oil prices crashed last month, which forced Apache to take drastic action to shore up its financial profile.

So what

The U.S. oil price benchmark, WTI, plummeted 54% last month, pushing it down 66% for the quarter to right around $20 a barrel. Driving that downdraft was the collapse of a market-support agreement between Russia and OPEC, causing a price war amid a massive disruption in the global economy because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

That devastating plunge in oil prices forced Apache to cut its capital spending plan from a range of $1.6 billion to $1.9 billion to between $1.0 billion and $1.2 billion, requiring it to stop all drilling in the Permian Basin. Apache also slashed its dividend by 90%, which will save it $340 million per year, and it plans to shave $150 million off its operating costs. The company intends to use these savings to bolster its balance sheet as it prepares for $937 million of debt maturities between next February and January of 2023.

Those looming debt maturities caused credit rating agency S&P Global to downgrade Apache's debt to junk. That had an immediate impact on the company because it had to post letters of credit totaling $650 million, guaranteeing it would meet its obligations to retire old oil wells in the North Sea once they stop producing. In addition, it will be harder and costlier for the company to borrow money.

Now what

Apache quickly slashed spending last month after crashing crude prices put pressure on its balance sheet. The company has continued cutting costs this month, doubling its operating-expense savings estimate to $300 million. Apache hopes that these reductions will enable it to stay afloat by giving it the ability to meet its upcoming debt maturities.
Medical equipment were airlifted



to different districts in Arunachal Pradesh on Thursday from the Naharlagun helipad near Itanagar to strengthen health services in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.

An MI-172 helicopter flew with medical kits to Tezu, the headquarters of Lohit district, and Khonsa in Tirap district despite inclement weather, Naharlagun helipad base manager Santosh Tewari said.

However, the helicopter on the way to Pasighat for reaching supplies to East Siang, Upper Siang and Lower Siang districts could not take off as the weather conditions worsened, he said.

It would fly when the weather clears, Tewari added.

State planning secretary Himanshu Gupta, state surveillance officer (IDSP) L Jampa and helipad manager N C Chakhap facilitated loading the kits in the helicopters.

This is the first air shipment of medical equipment to different parts of the state.

The medical consignment, comprising personal protection equipment (PPE), sample collection kits, sanitisers, masks, gloves and disinfectors, for Arunachal Pradesh weighing around 5.5 tonnes reached Lilabari airport in Assams North Lakhimpur district on Wednesday evening from Hindon Air Force base in Uttar Pradesh.

The state reported its first COVID-19 case earlier in the day with a 31-year-old man, who attended a congregation in Delhi's Nizamuddin West, testing positive in Tezu.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Representative Image

Between January and March, Artham Menon* has seen enough to last him a lifetime.

A crew member onboard an oil tanker, Menon was around 1,000km from Wuhan when coronavirus began to ravage the Chinese city. On January 4, his ship docked close to Qingdao port in the neighbouring Shandong province. It had 1 lakh tonnes of cargo to deliver but as the outbreak worsened, a lockdown was announced.

That was in January. Wuhan, from where the epidemic started, has since come back to life and restrictions are being eased. The lockdown ends on April 8 but not for Menon, who was to get off at Qingdao and take a flight home to India or head back to Singapore after exchanging cargo. He is still in China and hasn't seen his family for more than nine months.

Menon is not alone. Hundreds of thousands of seamen, most of them from India, the Philippines, China, Indonesia, Ukraine, and Russia, find themselves stuck in ships as countries tighten border controls to check the spread of the virus.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

India is in the second week of the 21-days lockdown to check the spread of the highly contagious virus that causes respiratory distress. The country had shut doors to international travellers earlier. Domestic flights are grounded and so is the movement between states.

An industry professional who works with a ship management company in Mumbai confirmed that India, too, has sealed off seafarers. "The government has urged Indian seafarers working abroad either on Indian or foreign vessels not to sign off after finishing their contracts and return to India," he said, requesting anonymity. Only a few are exempted and that too on grounds of emergency.

Coronavirus LIVE updates

After it was reported in Wuhan, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread to at least 180 countries and territories. Globally, confirmed cases are inching close to 900,000-mark. At least, 43, 300 people have died.

Markets across the world have been crashing as concerns mount over the health of the global economy. The worst crisis since World War 2 could lead to a never-seen-before recession, experts have warned.

Governments and central banks have come out with a raft of measures to alleviate the pain. India has announced a Rs 1.7-lakh crore relief package to ensure no citizen sleeps hungry when everyone is expected to stay indoors.

From banking, aviation to the health sector, the challenges facing the economy have been discussed threadbare. But there's one industry and its people who've found little mention.

The maritime industry

Today, pretty much everything we use is made in China or its neighbouring countries. In the last few years China has emerged as the worlds manufacturing hub.

But, who brings these finished goods or parts to your doorstep? It is ships--huge containers sailing with hundreds of thousands of tonnes of cargo-- cars, oil, wheat, laptopsyou name it and they ship it. These are called supercarriers but even an average container ship can carry 100,000 tonnes of cargo. In comparison, an Airbus A320 can only carry 20 tonnes and that too with a multitude of restrictions.

From a supply chain point of view, 90% of the world trade is carried out through shipping.

While ships continue to sail, the coronavirus outbreak has taken a huge toll on men who have been forced to remain onboard for months on end--carrying goods from one end of the world to the other.

They may not be getting laid off or facing pay cuts like their aviation industry counterparts, but they are isolated, infected or not.

And the isolation facility isn't a room or a government-run centre, these men are stuck on ships, stranded for months in the middle of nowhere. Sailing, doing their job, without any sign of relief.

Why is this happening?

No country wants to let "foreigners" step on its land as the pandemic rages. While governments talk about ensuring that trade continues, the people operating these vessels and making it possible are lost in the mix of closed borders.

They aren't treated like pilots. Evacuation and medical supplies are sent via air, so aviation staff has access to safety equipment.

The seafarers are being treated like second-class professionals. Countries are docking ships and exchanging cargo but the crew isn't allowed to step out. It means even crew swaps aren't possible.

How long is a pilot expected to keep fly at a stretch? Eight to ten hours? These mariners have been operating for months without stepping on land.

No country wants to take them in. What if an asymptomatic crew member is swapped, and then tests positive in the middle of an ocean? It puts the whole team at risk.

How have countries responded?

Countries like Singapore, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and even Sri Lanka are preventing the crew from leaving ships. It means that the teams that were on the high seas when the outbreak started are now responsible for the industry for an indefinite period.

Millions of seafarers are operating ships with expired contracts because there's nobody else to take their place. Another seafarer has been working for more than nine months and is stuck near Singapore on a bulk carrier.

"In view of the rapid spread of the coronavirus, the process of sign-off and repatriation of seafarers has been affected the world over due to travel restrictions imposed by various countries," director general of shipping (India) Amitabh Kumar said in a statement.

What's the ground situation?

"Right now, even if companies are willing to arrange replacements and provisions at high costs, it is becoming more and more difficult for stocks of spares, stores and provisions to reach onboard," said a senior-most engineer with an oil tanker on condition of anonymity.

He has been sailing for two months and counts himself lucky to have left New York just when the coronavirus was beginning its silent march on the city, now the epicentre of the outbreak in the US.

"Imagine if we had been there a fortnight later. Then there would have been no crew change. Suddenly we would have had sad, demotivated staff on board with no idea when they'll reach home he said.

The tanker is now headed back to a port on the other side of the world. With a team of less than 24 personnel, the kind of isolation they are facing is unprecedented.

What does it mean for the global economy?

The mood is mutinous. WhatsApp groups and forums are buzzing with ideas of an open mutiny to make the world take note of what they do for global trade and commerce.

One thing we all know is that the world is facing a pandemic but none of us know when it will end. It could take at least a couple of months for the situation to ease and that could be an optimistic estimate. How long are these men expected to stay on, nameless and unacknowledged? And what about their familiesparents, spouses, children and siblings?

"As such, we have had to suspend all crew changes for an initial period up to April 30, 2020, except for emergencies. We are aware that this is a challenging period for our seafarers, and I ask them and their families for their understanding. We will provide whatever support we can, to our seafarers on board and at home," Ian Beveridge, CEO of Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement, said in a letter to employees.

When reached for a response, Maersk, the world's largest container shipping company, declined to comment.

A day's delay in reaching the destination costs a charter price that ranges from tens of thousands of dollars for a small vessel to hundreds of thousands for a larger one. If these men give up, their companies lose money and goods get stuck. In the end, it is the consumeryou and mewho pays more to make up for the supply gap.

At a time when everyone is worried about the global economy, the workforce that is vital to world trade has been abandoned in the middle of an ocean.

There are fatigued and angry. It is time governments around the world step in. Countries like India, China and Russia should be the first to find a solution and help these men.

Shipping is the lifeblood of port cities such as Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Rotterdam and Dubai, seamen's distress could deal another blow to the already shaky global economy. Now is the time to act.

(*name changed to protect identity)

The author writes on technology, aviation and mobility.
A 33-year-old American woman running out of her life-saving medication to treat her auto-immune disease finally boarded a flight home Wednesday after being stuck in Peru for about 10 days, but hundreds of other U.S. citizens remained stranded after the South American nation closed its borders due to the coronavirus pandemic.

I could not be happier, Anna, who requested that her last name not be made public due to privacy concerns related to her medical condition, said after getting on the plane in Cusco.

At the same time, it was bittersweet. On the way to the airport, Anna and her husband saw a long line of Americans hoping to get on the flight. Her husband told The Associated Press that some people have been sitting outside the airport for a week.

So obviously not everyone on line was getting on this flight, he said, adding that there were 167 passengers on the LATAM plane, which was organized by the U.S. State Department and allowed to land by Peruvian authorities, unlike previous planes.

The flight from Cusco to Miami with a stop in the Peruvian capital of Lima was the culmination of more than a week of desperately trying to get out of South American nation. The couple had tried to charter a plane to leave Cusco, nestled high in the Andes near the ancient ruins of Machu Picchu, but the Peruvian government refused to give it permission to land. And when they asked the State Department for help, they said they were told the agency was working on the situation.

There are other foreign governments that are able to take out their citizens, but it seems that with the U.S. there is some gridlock in the Peruvian government granting those airplanes permission to land, Anna said Tuesday. But there are many citizens here that are just desperate to go home.

Thousands of U.S. citizens have found themselves trapped abroad because of the pandemic. Anna and her husband, like many others, said they had a hard time getting help or information.

Ian Brownlee, head of the U.S. State Departments task force on repatriations, said Wednesday that State and the U.S. Embassy in Peru had secured the needed permissions from the Foreign Ministry for the flight Tuesday to land, but that agreement apparently did not trickle down to the appropriate people who run the airport.

Story continues

Brownlee said the situation was chaotic but it appeared to have been resolved and that two flights  one from Lima and one from Cusco  left Wednesday. More flights are expected to depart this week, he told reporters in a conference call. Brownlee said there were about 4,000 Americans still in Peru and another large number in nearby Ecuador.

Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra, a soft-spoken U.S. ally, was among the first in Latin America to close borders over the coronavirus pandemic, deploy the military and require people to stay in their homes. Initially he allowed waivers for chartered repatriation flights, but that ended Saturday.

The pandemic has infected more than 400,000 people around the world and killed over 20,000. The COVID-19 illness causes mild or moderate symptoms in most people, but severe, life-threatening symptoms are possible especially for the elderly or those with existing health problems  like Anna.

Peru confirmed its first case of the virus March 6, three days before she arrived to meet her husband who was there as part of a South American trip. When Vizcarra declared an emergency and closed the borders March 15, they were given just 24 hours to leave.

Annas husband immediately turned to the U.S. Embassy for help, telling officials about her precarious health condition and dwindling supply of medication. He provided a note from her U.S. doctor attesting that it was very urgent and important that she returns to USA for treatment.

Then he contacted political leaders in Texas including Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, who he said tried to help. The couple believed an American plane would arrive Tuesday, but that didnt happen.

Another flight was also turned away that day. American Airlines spokesman Ross Feinstein said a charter flight from Miami reached Peruvian airspace that afternoon but was denied permission to land, and circled until fuel levels dictated a return to Florida. The State Department said Peru also did not provide clearances for a LATAM flight to pick up Americans in Cusco.

Various private air charter companies had been working feverishly to find a way to bring them home, according to communications that Anna showed to the AP.

Steve Panzella, president of Horizon Jets Charter Inc., said Tuesday that the couple contacted him about an air ambulance and said they were willing to pay to bring other Americans home on any flight they chartered, but the holdup was securing permission from Peru.

I have been getting calls 24 hours a day from people stuck all over Central and South America, but nothing like Peru, Panzella said. People are desperate.

In interviews, other Americans who traveled to Peru painted a bleak picture of armed troops patrolling the streets during the lockdown and making sure they stay in their hotels. Some told AP they didnt know how or when they would get home. Others managed to leave by buying tickets through local travel companies. But they were given little advance notice about the flights and didnt know until they boarded if there would be enough seats.

To help Peruvian aviation authorities, Brownlee said the State Departments Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement had vacated a hanger on the military side of Lima's airport so it could serve as a waiting and staging area for passengers waiting to leave.

Were doing what we can to help the Peruvians, he said.

For Anna, at least, the ordeal is over.

She's looking forward to having access to her medications. And after more than a week confined to a hotel, she was looking forward to something else: Walking around the green grass of our backyard.

___

Associated Press writers Joshua Goodman in Miami, Franklin Briceno in Lima, Peru, and David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this report.
NEW YORK (AP)  J.K. Rowling is hoping a dash of Harry Potter will help families confined to their homes during the coronavirus pandemic.

The author has launched an online initiative, harrypotterathome.com, which features quizzes, games and other activities. For the month of April, Rowling also has partnered with the audio publisher-distributor Audible and the library e-book supplier OverDrive for free audio and digital editions of the first Potter book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. (The U.S. edition is called Harry Potter's and the Sorcerer's Stone).

Rowling's British and American print publishers, Bloomsbury and Scholastic, will contribute materials to the Potter web site and to their own web sites.

The teachers, parents and carers working to keep childrens lives as normal and happy as possible while were all on lockdown deserve a bit of magic," Rowling said in a statement Wednesday. I hope these initiatives will give children and even adults a happy distraction during their enforced stay-at-home time.
A Baramati court here in Maharashtra



has awarded three-day imprisonment to three people for violating the lockdown imposed by the government to contain the spread of coronavirus.

This is, perhaps, the first case of conviction for violating the lockdown order, police claimed.

Judge J J Bachulkar on Wednesday ordered that the accused - Afzal Attar (39), Chandrakumar Shah (38) and Akshay Shah (32) - serve three-day imprisonment or pay a fine of Rs 500 each.

"The three accused were booked under IPC Section 188 after they were found roaming in Baramati city of Pune district without any reason, thus violating the lockdown and orders imposed under Section 144 of the CrPC," Baramati's Deputy Superintendent of Police Narayan Shirgaonkar said.

This is, perhaps, the first case of conviction for violating the lockdown order, Shirgaonkar said.

Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) pertains to disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant.

Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) prohibits the assembly of four or more people in an area.

"Though the punishment is mild, it will impact their (accused's) ability to obtain a passport and other licenses in future," the police official said.

Pune Police have so far booked over 250 people in rural parts of the district for violating the lockdown.

"The conviction will send a stern message to people who are still not adhering to the orders and venturing out on the road unnecessarily," Shirgaonkar said.

So far, more than 600 people have been booked in Pune city for defying the orders, and 900 in neighbouring Pimpri Chinchwad township.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A businessman has opened his home to 20 struggling international students that were left with nothing in the wake of the outbreak of coronavirus.

Mauricio Pucci, an international education agent offered his farm in Martinsville, about 125kms north of Sydney, rent free with the first 20 having already moved in on Sunday and dozens more on the way.

Most were left jobless after hospitality and retail businesses were forced to close following restrictions by the government.

Mr Pucci is now letting them use his property nestled in bushland as an escape, providing free food and shelter until they can get back on their feet.

Mauricio Pucci, (pictured with partner) has opened his home to 20 international students that have been left jobless in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak

The students will be able to live in the home in Martinsville, NSW rent free with food included

'They are running out of money to buy food and that is what worries me,' Mr Pucci told the Sydney Morning Herald.

'We are talking about thousands and thousands of them. I had a phone call yesterday; this guy was sleeping in his car. Why? Because he doesn't have a place. The family he was with kicked him out.'

Brazilian couple Camila Cadore, 27, and Arlan Germano, 25, have been one of the lucky 20 students that are able to call the Martinsville property home.

They were studying English and working in cafes in Manly and arrived at Mr Pucci's house on Sunday.

'We don't have money to pay our rent,' Ms Cadore said. 'Why if we are so important for the economy, why doesn't the government worry about us? We are human beings like them.'

The private property spans across 15 hectares and includes two buildings used as living spaces.

One of the bedrooms seen at the property that businessman Mauricio Pucci will lend to guests to stay for free

Mr Pucci said he was happy to help those in need as many of the students are unable to receive financial help from the government

In Australia, there are more than 570,000 international students with a large majority being hit hard by the spread of the disease.

These students are unable to receive the government's $130billion wage payment scheme that will see workers who were stood down financially supported over the next six months.

Due to borders shutting across the world and constant flight cancellations, many of the students have no way of returning home.

International students who are suffering significantly in terms of finance can apply for help under the government's $200million fund for those who can't receive any other income support.
Nearly 3,000 sailors aboard a U.S. aircraft carrier where the CCP virus has spread will be taken off the ship by April 3, Navy officials said as they struggle to quarantine crew members in the face of an outbreak.

So far, fewer than 100 of the nearly 5,000 sailors assigned to the USS Theodore Roosevelt, now docked in Guam, have tested positive for the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, but the Navy is moving sailors into various facilities and probably will begin using hotel rooms in the coming days. Navy leaders are talking with government officials in the U.S. territory to identify rooms for the crew members.

Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly, however, made it clear Wednesday that while several thousand will leave the ship, other sailors will remain on board in order to continue to protect the ship and run critical systems.

We cannot and will not remove all sailors from the ship, Modly told Pentagon reporters. He said officials will send as many sailors off the ship as possible while still maintaining safety. He said about 1,000 have gone ashore, and that number will grow to at least 2,700 in a couple of days.

Modly and Adm. Michael Gilday, the chief of naval operations, declined to say how long the ship will be sidelined. But if crew members are required to be quarantined for 14 days, on a rotational basis, the Roosevelt could be out of duty for weeks.

The Navy leaders said that they are trying to track down any sailors who came in contact with those now ill and place them in quarantine. They said almost 1,300 sailors have been tested, and as of Wednesday, nearly 600 of those tests came back negative. Officials are awaiting more results and more testing.

The long pole in the tent, said Gilday, is getting results more quickly. At this point, no sailors with the CCP virus are hospitalized.

For most people, the new CCP virus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and death.

Navy Capt. Brett Crozier, the carriers commander, raised warnings this week in a memo to his leaders. He said the ship was facing a growing outbreak of the CCP virus and he asked permission to isolate the bulk of his crew members on shore, an extraordinary move to take a carrier out of duty in an effort to save lives.

The carrier, like other Navy ships, is vulnerable to infectious disease spread given its close quarters. The ship is more than 1,000 feet long. Sailors are spread out across a labyrinth of decks linked by steep ladder-like stairs and narrow corridors. Enlisted sailors and officers have separate living areas, but most share rooms with multiple people, work in close quarters with other sailors, routinely grab their food from crowded buffet lines, and eat at tables joined end to end.

A descendant of the ships namesake also urged for the crew to be quickly removed from the ship.

Members of the Roosevelt family and I are extremely concerned about the plight of the sailors and captain of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, Tweed Roosevelt, a great-grandson of President Theodore Roosevelt and chairman of the Theodore Roosevelt Institute at Long Island University, wrote in an email Wednesday. We must get these brave men and women off at once to protect their lives and the future viability of the ship.

In a memo to Navy leaders over the weekend, Crozier said the spread of the disease was accelerating and that removing all but 10 percent of the crew would be a necessary risk in order to stop the spread of the CCP virus.

We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset our sailors, said Crozier.

Navy leaders were quick to praise the captain for bringing the dire nature of the matter to their attention. They brushed away suggestions that he could be punished because the issue became public so quickly.

In Asia, a carrier presence is central to what the Pentagon has identified as a fundamental shift from fighting insurgent and extremist conflicts in the Middle East to a return to great power competition. That means, principally, a bigger focus on China, including its militarization of disputed areas of the South China Sea.

Navy leaders faced persistent questions about the origin of the CCP virus on the ship, but said it may be impossible to identify where it started.

The Roosevelt made a port call in Vietnam last month. Modly said the stop, where thousands of sailors likely went off the ship into Danang, was done when there was fewer than 20 cases of the illness in Hanoi and sailors were screened when they returned to the ship.

He said two sailors fell ill near the end of the required 14-day period between port calls, and they were flown off the ship. As the days went by, however, the problem worsened.

Modly said there are 94 Navy ships deployed at sea around the world, and the Roosevelt is the only one with sailors who have tested positive for the CCP virus. Some other sailors have tested positive, but those have been in other jobs or on ships that are at their home bases and are not out at sea.

As of Tuesday morning, the Navy said that a total of 334 personnel had tested positive for the CCP virus, including 243 sailors. Of those, 19 have been hospitalized and 15 have recovered. None have died.

By Lolita C. Baldor

Epoch Times staff contributed to this report.
The SXSW Film Festival, which is held in Austin, Texas, is teaming up with Amazon to move its film festival online after it was canceled by the coronavirus pandemic.

SXSW announced Thursday that it's partnering with Amazon Prime Video to stream as much of its movie line-up as possible for a 10-day period in the US It will be free to viewers with or without an Amazon Prime membership.

South by Southwest organizers have worked frantically to salvage what they could of the festival and bring attention to the many films that had been planning to premiere there.

The SXSW Film Festival, which is held in Austin, Texas, is teaming up with Amazon to move its film festival online after it was canceled by the coronavirus pandemic. Attendees at the SXSW festival in March 2019

SXSW announced Thursday that it's partnering with Amazon Prime Video to stream as much of its movie line-up as possible for a 10-day period in the US It will be free to viewers with or without an Amazon Prime membership. Amazon also announced the partnership (right)

SXSW, which had been scheduled to run March 13-22, last week announced awards for its competition categories, anyway.

Individual films will choose whether they want to opt in to the 10-day 'SXSW 2020 Film Festival Collection' on Amazon.

Don't count on movies acquired by Netflix, for example, to participate. The festival declined to say how many films it expects to host.

But for the filmmakers that do join in, the digital platform could offer a measure of solace for their missed SXSW premiere, and all the promotion benefit that a major festival entails. Filmmakers who participate will receive a screening fee.

'Ever since SXSW was canceled by the City of Austin, we've been focused on how we could help the incredible films and filmmakers in the SXSW 2020 Film Festival lineup,' said Janet Pierson, director of film at SXSW.

'We're inspired by the adaptability and resilience of the film community as it searches for creative solutions in this unprecedented crisis.'

South by Southwest organizers have worked frantically to salvage what they could of the festival and bring attention to the many films that had been planning to premiere there

Texas, which has reported more than 4,600 confirmed coronavirus cases and 70 deaths, is one of 39 states that have been forced to issue a statewide lockdown for residents

The lockdowns were put in place as the death toll and confirmed cases continued to the rise in the United States. The death toll across the US is now at more than 5,600 and there are more than 236,000 confirmed infections

SXSW and Prime Video are aiming to hold the 10-day online event in late April.

Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, said she hopes the online SXSW 'can help give back some of that experience, and showcase artists and films that audiences might otherwise not have had the chance to see.'

Texas, which has reported more than 4,600 confirmed coronavirus cases and 70 deaths, is one of 39 states that have been forced to issue a statewide lockdown for residents.

Lockdown orders for each state goes by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guideline which advises against mass gatherings such as conferences and festivals.

The lockdowns were put in place as the death toll and confirmed cases continued to the rise in the United States. The death toll across the US is now at more than 5,600 and there are more than 236,000 confirmed infections.

About 297 million people - up from less than 50 per cent just a few weeks ago - have now been told to stay home except for essential workers or to go out to buy groceries or seek medical attention.
Wallace Roney performs at New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission Medallion Ceremony for Miles Davis in 2013 in New York City. Read more

Wallace Roney, 59, the Philadelphia-born trumpet virtuoso who was a protege of Miles Davis and went on to have a three-decade-plus career as a jazz bandleader, died Tuesday, March 31, from complications of the coronavirus.

The musician died at St. Josephs University Medical Center in Paterson, N.J., according to his publicist, Lydia Liebman.

Wallace Roneys journey has ended in this lifetime, but his impact lives on, the musician Herbie Hancock said in a statement Wednesday. He carved out his own voice on the trumpet even with the initial strong influence from Miles Davis.

Mr. Roney first made a name for himself as a club musician in New York City in the late 1970s. Downbeat magazine named him best young jazz musician of the year in 1979 and 1980.

In the 1980s, he played with Art Blakeys Jazz Messengers and with former Davis drummer Tony Williams, emerging in the Young Lions jazz movement along with Wynton Marsalis, Marcus Roberts, and others.

Mr. Roney released Versus, his first album as a leader, in 1987. He would follow with 21 more, often collaborating with his saxophonist brother Antoine and his late wife, the pianist Geri Allen. His final release was 2019s Blue Dawn-Blue Nights.

 READ MORE: Jazz great Ellis Marsalis Jr. dies at 85; fought coronavirus

The novelist James McBride memorably described Mr. Roney as a lion among lions in a 1987 profile in the Washington Post. He sits alone, silent and slim in a dark gray jacket, his right hand on his horn, McBride wrote. His head is bowed slightly, giving him an edgy, pensive, shy look.

"Yet as he rises to walk toward the stage, moving like a shadow, the other horn players  trumpeters and saxmen lined against the wall waiting to blow  part respectfully to let him pass. They know who he is. They know what he can do.

Jazz Times eulogized him Tuesday as the man with the golden horn.

Mr. Roneys talent was recognized early. He started playing when he was 4, and studied at the Settlement Music School, where he received personal instruction from Sigmund Hering of the Philadelphia Orchestra.

He played in various jazz and classical groups as a boy, becoming the youngest member of the classical ensemble Philadelphia Brass at 12.

When his parents divorced, he moved to Washington with his father, and enrolled at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, also taking private lessons with Clark Terry and Dizzy Gillespie.

After further study at Berklee School of Music in Boston and Howard University, Mr. Roney started gigging in New York.

I played with Philly Joe Jones in 1977, he told Jazz Times in 2004. Pianist Walter Davis Jr., in Jones band, was one of the first guys who took me under, used to give me money when I didnt have any.

Mr. Roney first met his hero, Davis, in 1983 at a Carnegie Hall tribute concert. Davis invited him to his home the next day. That was the beginning of a great chapter in my life, Mr. Roney told Jazz Times.

 READ MORE: Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne dies from coronavirus

Quincy Jones invited Mr. Roney to play alongside Davis at a 1991 concert in Montreux, Switzerland, shorty before the gravely ill Davis died, and in 1993 Mr. Roney toured with the members of Davis mid-'60s quintet, winning a Grammy for the 1994 album A Tribute to Miles.

Recalling that tour, Hancock said, Wallace had such fire in his playing as he attacked the aggressive tunes, but was as gentle as a lamb on ballads. His sound was rock solid. The two musicians toured again later that decade and what [Roney] conjured up was always new, unexpected and, therefore, provocative, Hancock added.

Speaking to allaboutjazz.com last year, Mr. Roney remembered learning from the greats. When I came to New York, when Dexter Gordon came to town, we were all there. We revered him. We revered Miles Davis. We wanted to play with Art Blakey. We wanted to play with Herbie Hancock.

Thats what I tell my guys, he said, speaking of young musicians in his band. Build on the masters. Learn everything theyve done. Dont cheat on it. But then always come out you.  Youre trying to use it from your point of view. And if youre lucky, you might be able to add to it.

Mr. Roneys friend Wendell Pierce, an actor who played a New Orleans trombone player on the HBO series Treme, reflected in a Twitter message about Mr. Roneys gentle nature which belied his fierce improvisation.

He recalled the rise of trumpeters like Mr. Roney, Marsalis, and Jon Faddis in the 1980s as part of a resurgent wave of jazz musicians destined to revive the art he ultimately mastered  a resurrection of a music many cynics thought to be dead.

"Wallace was a global life force in the jazz community, Davis family members wrote on Twitter on Tuesday. We are devastated that our brother trumpeter Wallace Roney passed away today due to complications from COVID-19.

Mr. Roney is survived by his fiancee, Dawn Felice Jones; children Barbara and Wallace Jr.; stepdaughter Laila Bansaiz; grandmother Rosezell Roney; a brother; a sister; two half-sisters; and a half-brother.

His publicist said the family was considering holding a memorial service once this pandemic has passed.
With six new infections on Thursday, a total of 35 people tested positive for COVID-19 in Haryana, the state health department said.

There are 22 active cases reported from the state so far.

Out of 35 cases,10 are in Gurugram, 6 in Faridabad, 4 in Palwal, 3 each in Sirsa and Ambala, 2 in Panchkula and one each in Hisar, Sonipat and Rohtak.

Of the two people found positive in Ambala, one is a Nepali and another man named Salim a resident of Maharashtra who had attended the Tablighi Jamaat religious congregation in Delhi, informed Dr Kuldeep Singh, Ambala Chief Medical Officer (CMO).

Earlier a 67-year-old COVID-19 patient from Haryana passed away at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Chandigarh,

The total number of people hospitalised with the infection in the state is 227. 13 people have been discharged till date of these 9 patients are from Gurugram, 2 patients are from Panipat and one patient each from Faridabad and Palwal.

The state department's daily evening bulletin said 353 people in the state have come into contact with COVID 19 positive cases.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Now is the time to register your free place at a Major Tourism Conference titled Learn from the Best. Organized by Dundalk Chamber of Commerce and sponsored by the Louth Leader Partnership, Local Enterprise Office Louth, Louth County Council , Four Seasons Hotel Carlingford and The Marshes Shopping Centre , this event will bring experts together from various Tourism projects around Ireland so that you can replicate it in your own business.



This online conference will give you practical tips on how to improve your tourism business so you can increase your sales and boost attendance figures at your attraction!



This is a must event for all those involved in the Tourism & Hospitality sector. There will be five key speakers including Hermione Winters President of Slow Food Ireland who will discuss What slow food can do for me.



Wayne Denner will host cover the World of Tourism Talks- Deeper Connections with Podcasting. John Fitzgerald of Ballyhoura Failte Development Group will tell the story of Ballyhoura and how to be different..



Cillian Murphy of Loop Head Tourism will cover why not! and finally Pol O Conghaile- Travel Editor with the Irish Independent will discuss 2020 Vison ;10 things your visitors want this year



This online event will take place over two mornings on Wednesday the 22nd April 2020 and Thursday 23rd April from 9.30am to 1pm.



This event is a must for all in the Tourism and Hospitality sector.

Kieran Swail Tourism Specialist Southern Regional College will facilitate the online event and we would encourage all tourism providers to register for this conference.



President of Dundalk Chamber Pat McCormick is delighted with the superb line up of speakers who all have a wonderful story to help and their experience is bound to help local tourism providers.



To register your free place sign up on: https://www.dundalk.ie/event/cross-border-tourism-conference-2020

or call Brenda in Dundalk Chamber on 042 9336343 or email brenda@dundalk.ie
A man from the north-central Vietnamese province of Nghe An has been fined after posting a photo of himself not wearing a face mask in public on Facebook, challenging authorities to penalize him for it.

L.V.K., a resident of Quynh Loc Commune, Hoang Mai Town, was summoned to the local police station for the violation on Wednesday, according to the communes Peoples Committee.

K. had previously posted a photo of himself to Facebook, showing him riding a motorbike wearing neither a crash helmet nor a face mask.

In the comment section, his friends reminded him to wear a face mask as per new regulations amid the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic.

K.s reply? Who dares fine me?

After being informed of the violation, police officers summoned the man and slapped him with a VND300,000 (US$12.7) fine.

Police in Vinh City and Que Phong District, located in Nghe An Province, also caught two other residents failing to wear face masks in public on the same day and imposed a VND200,000 ($8.4) fine upon each of them.

The novel coronavirus, which first emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019, has infected almost 937,000 people and killed more than 47,200 globally as of Thursday, according to Ministry of Health statistics.

Vietnam has announced 222 COVID-19 patients so far, with 64 having recovered.

The country has made it mandatory for all citizens to wear face masks whenever they are outdoors and warned that those found breaking this rule will be fined.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has announced a period of social distancing from April 1 to 15, which is believed to be crucial in the fight against the COVID-19 epidemic in Vietnam.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
TANZANIA Forest Service Agency (TFS) is set to distribute 500,000 tree seedlings in Dar es Salaam Region and will closely monitor their growth as part of environment conservation initiatives.

TFS Director of Forest and Beekeeping Resource, Mr Zawadi Mbwambo said in the city yesterday that the seedlings will be provided free of charge in commemoration of the National Tree Planting Day, marked on April 1, every year.

The TFS distributed the tree seedlings to its workers as well as to a section of Dar es Salaam residents and urged them to use the ongoing rains for planting trees.

Mr Mbwambo added that tree seedlings were also provided to citizens across the country through TFS zonal offices as efforts to fight deforestation and address the impact of climate change.

According to TFS a total of 650 tree seedlings were yesterday provided to the agency's workers and Dar es Salaam residents nearby its office while 300 seedlings were distributed to Kigamboni residents.

"We have enough seedlings to be distributed to the citizens across the country, we call upon people to visit our zonal offices so that they can be provided with tree seedlings and plant them especially during this rain season," he said.

Mr Mbwambo noted that TFS will start making follow up on people who have been given the seedlings to ensure they take good care of the trees, noting that some were collecting seedlings but couldnt take proper care of them.

"If all people who are given the seedlings could plant and take care of them the country could have many trees by now, thats why now we want to track the growth of the trees.

We have taken contacts of people who have been given the seedlings so that it can be easier to track them," he said.

One of the residents who collected tree seedlings at TFS offices, Masemba Saganda said the seedlings have been distributed at the right time since it is raining in most parts of the country.

He underscored the significance of the green campaign, saying apart from making the environment attractive trees help in the fight against the impact of climate change.

Tanzania Meteorological Agency (TMA), Director, Forecasting Services Dr Hamza Kabelwa said that trees were crucial in conserving the environment and attracting rain.

He called upon the citizens to use the ongoing rain for planting more trees to make the environment attractive and fight air pollution.
NEW YORK (AP) - Millions of small business owners will be turning to the government, seeking help for the economic devastation caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

The government plans to begin disbursing loan money to companies and freelancers Friday under the Paycheck Protection Program, part of the $2 trillion relief package signed into law last week.

For many companies, it may be the quickest way to rebuild the cash flow that enables a company to pay its bills.

But whether they're restaurants, retailers or architects, companies are also seeking money from a variety of other sources: government disaster aid, unemployment benefits, even concessions from landlords and vendors.

For more information on the Paycheck Protection Program, visit: home.treasury.gov.
The Indian hotels sector has been significantly impacted by Covid-19 as demand is at an all-time low. In our latest report, we have tried to quantify the impact, while discussing some immediate steps needed to help the sector get back on its feet.

The world is still coming to terms with the COVID-19 outbreak and there is no doubt that the pandemic will change the world as we know it. With the globalized world going into partial or complete shutdown, the overall impact on human life, economic growth and businesses is immeasurable, both in the short term and long term due to the uncertainty as things evolve.



While most Economists and Analysts currently expect the global economy to rebound, by some measure in the latter part of 2020, the exact timeline cannot be determined till the virus is contained across the globe.



Nearer home, the Indian hotels sector has been hit hard, grappling with significantly low demand, with very few future bookings. Essentially, all transient demand has completely vanished  the remaining is largely on account of either a few long stay guests, or hotels having been prescribed by the Government for the international travelers returning to India.



Nothing could have ever prepared us for the COVID-19-shock and although, the current crisis is unlike any other we have ever faced, not all is lost. The Indian hotels sector can recover from this crisis as well, by adjusting strategies in the near term and preparing for the future.



In this report, we have tried to quantify the impact of COVID-19 on the Indian hospitality sector, while discussing some of the immediate steps that are needed to help the sector get back on its feet.



We would like to emphasize that our analysis is based on data available to us as on 23rd March 2020. However, as the situation and implications are evolving rapidly, some of the insights in the report may quickly be outdated.



It is imperative that all the industry participants collaborate and work harmoniously in the current crisis by sharing best practices, keep the workforce motivated and seek to put the industry back into recovery mode, because this too shall pass soon. COVID-19  Unprecedented Impact on the Global Economy To say that the economic impact of the outbreak has been devastating, is putting it mildly. Most Economists believe that the full impact will only emerge once the outbreak is completely contained.



Economists world-over expect the global economy to shrink in the first quarter of 2020, a first since the 2008 financial crisis. With the number of cases rising sharply on a daily basis, even if the pandemic is contained soon, the ripple-effects will be felt across the world well into the year, pushing all major economies into a possible recession.

COVID-19 will significantly impact the GDP growth forecast in 2020



Source: IMF, RaboResearch, MacrobondS

The Travel & Tourism sector across the globe is undoubtedly the biggest casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic. Several countries have issued travel advisories and are in lock down mode, with all major global business, social and sporting events getting cancelled since February.

Impact on Global Travel & Tourism Sector  a Few Alarming Estimates

IATA estimates that global airlines need an emergency fund of up to US$ 200 billion as they fight for survival

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, the COVID-19 pandemic could slash 50 million jobs worldwide in the travel and tourism industry, reflecting a 12-14% reduction in jobs

International travel could be adversely impacted by up to 25% this year, equivalent to a loss of three months of travel

The industry could take up to 10 months to recover after the outbreak is over.

COVID-19 & Impact on the Indian Hotels Sector The Indian hospitality industry is undoubtedly one of the biggest casualties of the COVID-19 outbreak as demand has declined to an all-time low. Global travel advisories, suspension of Visas, imposition of Section-144 (prohibition against mass gatherings), India like most other countries is on a lock down, the ramifications of which are unprecedented.



Inbound Foreign Tourism Comes to a Grinding Halt and Limited Scope for Quick Revival

Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) into India (particularly leisure travelers) started softening in February, as the spread continued its unabated movement to other countries.

Following suit, the Indian Government suspended travel visas (with a few exceptions) till 15th April 2020, which in all likelihood will be extended. Even if it is not, the paranoia surrounding the events will continue to have a major impact on travel.

Demand from FTAs is not expected to pick up any time soon. In our opinion, travel bans across the globe will fully roll down only by the end of the year, even though such a process will commence much sooner.

Furthermore, majority of the future travel bookings for winter i.e. October-March  the strong season for our industry - are done in the summer months, have largely evaporated.

Domestic Travel Will Be Key to the Revival With new confirmed cases being reported daily, the penetration of the COVID-19 virus in India has caused mass hysteria, the reverberations of which are expected to continue well into the second quarter of the calendar year 2020. The current situation is extremely grim, as domestic flights have been ordered to shut shop from 25th March 2020 and all other demand segments such as MICE, business, social and sporting events have been cancelled or deferred indefinitely for the foreseeable future.

The silver lining to such devastation is that it has brought multiple representative bodies from Travel, Tourism and Hotels to collectively make representations to the Government and the Prime Ministers Office. As we go to print, in all likelihood the Government should announce measures to revive and support the distressed sectors, with specific focus to the hospitality sector, among others. Further in this report, we have highlighted our recommendations to the Government that will assist in the revival of the sector. Government assistance in revival of demand will go a long way in cushioning the blow to the sector, which in our opinion, should include, in large part, assistance to domestic travellers.

The Impact on the Indian Hotel Sector will be Significant

The Indian hotels sector sailed smoothly into January 2020, after a record year in 2019, with 2020 set to be even bigger. The country first started feeling the ripple effects of the global COVID-19 turmoil towards the end of February 2020, which worsened in the beginning of March. Occupancy across hotels in key cities declined rapidly and as per our estimates has declined by a staggering 45 percentage points compared to previous year. Such a steep decline in a such a short period of time has never been witnessed by the sector.

We predict the second quarter of the year to be the worst hit. Hotels will be unable to drive rates and may even seek to attract business at deep discounts.



While the veracity of the impact on the sector may only be fully known much after the cessation of the pandemic, at HVS we have tried to determine the total loss in revenues faced by industry using two scenarios - both assuming that demand growth will resume prior to the end of the year.



The overall occupancy in the branded hotels segment in 2020 is estimated to decline by 16.7  20.5 percentage points over 2019, while ADRs are estimated to decline by 7% to 8% for the year. As a result, RevPAR will witness a significant decline of 31% to 36.2%.

Scenario 1: Demand picks up in July*

Source: HVS Research; *Analysis based on data available as of 23rd March 2020

Scenario 2: Demand picks up in October-November*

Source: HVS Research; *Analysis based on data available as of 23rd March 2020

Therefore, the overall revenue of the Indian hotel sector is set to decline by anywhere between US$ 8.85 billion to US$ 10 billion, reflecting an erosion of 39% to 45% compared over last year. Besides the actual business loss, the hotel owners will also incur losses due to fixed operating expenses, debt repayments, interest payments and several other compliances required to be undertaken as part of the sector.



It is important to note that the magnitude of the impact can change drastically if the outbreak is not contained immediately. In such an event, our scenarios will turn invalid. The Way Forward While the pandemic has brought the hotel sector in India to its knees, our hope is that the industry will be in recovery mode sooner than later.

Recommendations for the Government of India The Government has already taken a step in the right direction by announcing its plans to set up a COVID-19 Taskforce to undertake measures necessary to combat the economic effects of the pandemic on the country. On our part, we have highlighted some sector-specific measures that we believe will assist the taskforce in evaluating multiple measures to help the Indian hotel industry weather the current storm.



Monetary Support:

Stimulus package to stabilize and support the sector in the near term, including a workforce support fund to ensure that there are no job losses.

Provide a moratorium of ~ 6  12 months on all loans (principle & interest), including working capital payments and overdrafts.

Ensure that Credit Rating agencies do not down-grade ratings of businesses, due to the expected volatility of the business in the short to medium term.

With the fall in oil prices, subsidies on Heat-Light-Power (HLP) costs should be extended, as HLP is among the largest fixed cost for the sector.

Fiscal Support:

Provide a 12-month corporate tax holiday to travel, tourism and hospitality sectors.

Defer all statutory dues such as advance tax, custom duties, excise duties, PF, bank charges etc. at central and state level for 12 months.

Direct Support to Revive Demand:

Appoint a think tank to evaluate and decide the measures necessary for the revival of the sector.

Waive / Reduce GST on products offered by the sector for one-year period

Incentivise travel by introducing a one-time opportunity for Leave Travel Allowance to be part of the new income tax slabs.

Policy Support:

Annual renewal of licenses paid for in 2020 should be extended till the end of 2021 without an incremental fee or charges.

Recommendations for the Operators The hotels sector at large has been the biggest casualty of the COVID-19 shock, with demand at an all-time low across the globe. As the sector continues to build contingency plans to alleviate the fallout of the crisis, in our opinion, hotel operators should also look to extend the hand of solidarity to their owners by providing certain relief measures.



One-time Waiver or Reduction in Base and Incentive Fees

The relief should be in the form of a one-time waiver or reduction in Base and Incentive Fees as well as Distribution, Technology and reimbursable costs, measured by correlating the total impact of the crisis on the hotel to the return of normalcy in operation post COVID-19.



Defer Certain Brand Standard Provisions

All brand standard provisions that do not have direct impact on revenues of the hotel and / or cannot be planned as per the revised capex budget for the current year, should be deferred until such time normalcy in operation returns. While FF&E is an important fund set up by the hotel for periodic replacement and upgradation, the funds should be released immediately and redeployed either towards initial working capital to resume hotel operations or towards reduction in debt, as may apply to each situation.

Recommendations for Hotels According to recent reports, over 90% of domestic hotels in China had resumed operations at the end of February 2020, just 2 months after the first COVID-19 case was reported in the country. Hotel bookings have also been increasing with business travellers accounting for the largest segment. Hotels located in proximity to transportation hubs have been the popular choice.



All the above news comes as a silver lining as it provides the Indian hotels sector a window to look for in the future, as it comes to terms with COVID-19 related travel restrictions and cancellations.



Our industry has proactively taken several precautionary steps to mitigate the immediate impact. However, we must forewarn that now more than ever, hotels will need to continue their efforts to quickly adapt to the rapidly changing business environment.

To assist with the same, we have highlighted a few measures that will assist hotels with the current onslaught below:



Stop-gap Plan

Hotels should use the opportunity to devise and implement a Stop Gap Plan to ensure that when demand bounces back, the hotels are well prepared to benefit from the upswing. Among essential items the Stop Gap Plan should include:

Bare minimum operations sufficient enough for quick recommencement when the opportunity arrives Implement a subtle digital and social media marketing strategy to retain mindshare of customers Engage with suppliers / vendors to compute their capacity to re-engage with the hotel on recommencement Develop and maintain communication lines with key customers and team members Continue to remain in discussion with relevant local government authorities Develop a Reopening Plan and Budget Utilize this period for implementing Ken-fix-it / upgradation, wherever possible

We at HVS are absolutely certain that when demand returns, it will do so in a manner that will require hotels to respond in a quick and efficient manner. To continue delivering quality to its returning customers, hotel managers will need valuable support of team members, who are currently away. Hotels should not consider retrenchment plans, unless the situation inhibits continuing operations under current conditions.

Prepare and Plan for the Reopening

The reopening plan of a hotel should be viewed through the prism of past preopening plans that were devised for the hotel prior to its initial opening. The only critical difference in this instance being that hotel will now reopen post a horrific event that would have fundamentally altered the foundation of hospitality sector globally.



Hotels should look to implement the reopening plan in the shortest possible time available, as when demand returns the customer will become a bigger and more demanding King. Below, we have provided some key tasks that hotels will need to consider as part of their reopening plan.



Task Force Management Team

Stop Gap Plan task force team to handover the hotel to an operational Reopening Plan task force team.

The task force team should evaluate short term recruitment to bridge any gaps in operations

Re-engagement and Support for Returning Team Members

Provide adequate support to the returning employees to restart their work life, including assistance on matters such as housing etc.

Roll out a training and re-engagement processes for their specific duties and departments.

Sales and Marketing

Carrying forward from the Stop Gap Plan, aggressive efforts to reestablish connections with all customer through all available channels should be implemented.

Effective digital and social media strategies must be rolled out as part of the communication plan

Follow a mechanism whereby all the bookings that were previously cancelled or deferred are honored in good spirit

Instead of Glocal go Local: demand from outstation travelers will be low in 2020, hence, it is time to focus and rely on local demand. Special experiential packages and promotions targeted at locals should be the driving mantra.

Promote packages for specific target groups such as Staycations

Maintain Pricing Charts

Hotels should think long-term and promote value-added services and flexible booking terms instead of reducing rates.

Discounts can be creatively packaged, by bundling services into customized packages & promotions, without adding substantially to the hotels cost while leveraging the propertys exclusive characteristics to remain competitive.

Offering a flexible cancellation and rebooking policy will reassure existing & potential guests.

Front of House Facilities

Demand outlook should be the funnel through which decisions for opening of multiple front of the house facilities such as restaurants, Spas and Gyms be made.

As demand improves, hotels should gradually re-open the areas which earlier were temporarily shut down.

Increase Ancillary Revenues

Focus on ancillary revenues that maybe generated through non- core revenue generating areas such as Gyms, Spas, etc

Provide services that have traditionally not been part of the hotels core offerings such as food delivery through online platforms or leasing of kitchens for cloud kitchen requirements

Prudent Spending

Refrain from any form of spending that may not have a direct revenue benefit

Continue cost saving measures even when demand is back to normal to recover the losses during the crisis

Power and Equipment

Prior to powering up all necessary equipment, a thorough service plan should be mobilized to ensure that all equipment is fully functional, adequately safe and capable of delivering the required results.

Vendor Management

Post assessment of supplier capability and categorization of all operating supplies including perishables in order of importance, the procurement team must ensure proper stock piling.

Initial Working Capital

A 90 to 180 days initial working capital credit line should be established

Compliances

Ensure that the hotel is complaint with any revised government and brand norms

Ensure the hotel continues to follow the health and cleanliness guidelines

Reassure Guests and Employees by intensifying routine maintenance and increasing deep clean measures

Conduct Dry Runs

At the end of such dry runs, the hotels should be able to understand any gaps remaining prior to full roll out of the hotel.

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, President  South Asia, oversees the HVS practice in South Asia. Mandeep has spent over 30 years in the hospitality industry having worked with International Hotel Companies such as Choice Hotels, IHG and Radisson Hotels before becoming President for ITC Fortune Hotels in 2001. Having successfully built the Fortune brand in Indias mid-scale hospitality sector, Mandeep ventured into an entrepreneurial stint for over 8 years, setting up JV companies with Dawnay Day Group UK and Onyx Hospitality Thailand before joining JLL in 2014, as Managing Director, Hotels & Hospitality Group  South Asia. An established industry leader, Mandeep has won several awards and recognitions for his accomplishments. Recently, he was featured in the Hotelier India Power List of the most respected hoteliers in India for the second year in a row. Contact Mandeep at +91 981 1306 161 or mlamba@hvs.com , HVS Senior Vice President - Consulting and Valuation, leads consulting engagements, encompassing market studies, feasibility studies, strategic planning, valuation, and forecasting. Akash has spent nearly 13 years in the hospitality industry having successfully worked with International Hotel and Consulting firms such as Hilton, JLL and HVS in South Asia and the Middle East. In 2005, Akash started his Consulting career with HVS as an analyst following which he undertook his MBA in International Hospitality Management with concentration in Real Estate Finance from IMHI ESSEC in Paris, France. Known for his industry insights, Akash works with leading companies, private clients, industry groups, and global networks. Contact Akash at +91 989 9517 404 or adatta@hvs.com , Senior Manager - Research with HVS South Asia, is a seasoned knowledge professional with extensive experience in research-based content creation. She has authored several point of view documents such as thought leadership reports, expert opinion articles, white papers and research reports. Contact Dipti at dmohan@hvs.com
Former prime minister HD Deve Gowda has written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan stating that he has communicated in writing to Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa to make arrangements for the passing of vehicles related to medical facilities and essential goods between Mangaluru and Kasargod.

"What made me write this letter is the pain and anguish I experienced when BM Farookhji, the working president of JDS and K Krishnan Kutty, MLA and a member of your Cabinet and member of JDS, a coalition partner of your government brought to my notice the inhuman and inappropriate action on part of the authorities of Karnataka to block the interstate highway between Mangaluru and Kasargod, bringing the traffic movements between the two states and particularly to Kasargod district having a sizeable population of Kannadigas to a grinding halt," Gowda wrote in the letter.

"I immediately wrote a letter to Yeddiyurappaji, the Chief Minister of Karnataka to make arrangements to permit goods movement and the passage of ambulances and other vehicles for any emergency. But authorities of Karnataka government appears to be very adamant despite the assurance given before the High Court," it added.

Gowda said that the situation is very grim since he learnt that four to five patients died for want of medical facilities since the ambulances ferrying the patients were denied permission to cross the border, to avail treatment from the hospitals at Mangaluru.

He also condemned the Karnataka government for denying access to medical facilities to people in Kerala.

"I very strongly condemn the attitude of the BJP government in Karnataka denying access to people from Kerala to avail medical facilities on emergency and also the movement of essential goods for the survival of the people and deprivation of such emergency services amounts to violation of human rights and opposed to all norms of humanity and humanitarian considerations," the letter read.

Gowda said he will take up the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"I take this opportunity to assure you that I will take up this issue with the Prime Minister who had assured while imposing 21 days of lockdown that the supply of essential commodities will be maintained and hospital facilities will be kept open round the clock so as to prevent any untoward incident," he stated.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BREAKINGFlag of Nigeria A HIGH RANKING member of President Buharis Cabinet has DIED Coffinof #CoronaVirus #Covid9Squared sosSkull and crossbonesFace with medical mask complications. I will give the feds the honor of announcing it. U cannot hide it like YarAdua. Im not telling because I value NATIONAL SECURITY OF NIGERIA

#drkemiolunloyo

The more reason Im not announcing this. Many of you are flat out uncompassionateFace with rolling eyes @FemAdesina @GarShehu @BashirAhmaad @toluogunlesi

DO YOUR THING. Nigerians Stay indoors! @HQNigerianArmy secure the borders and communities. Im the PRESIDENT today. @PoliceNG keep order. The End!
Just before I began my first broadcast in Wuhan, on Zhejiang Radio, I was given three nos  not unlike the infamous "Three Nos" of the Arafatian Palestinian Authority or the earlier PLO.

The persons who had hired me to have a three-hour once-a-week radio program I called "Conversations With..." told me explicitly I could say "what [I] wanted" except:

I could not mention the Falun Gong in my broadcasts. The Falun Gong seemed innocuous to me and other expats in China, a minor religious cum performance group that somehow existed as a huge irritant to Beijing, which considers them a resistance sect and passes around the rumor that the Falun gong harvest human organs for their rituals. Wok calling the kettle black...

Tibet, which the Chinese consider theirs, end of story, and not a break-off nation of its own. Subsuming the gentle, hardy Tibetans, in the foothills of the Himalayas, was achieved the way the Han Chinese have long '"conquered' a region: they ship in hundreds or thousands of "volunteer" local Chinese into a territory, where they find local women, marry, procreate, and establish essentially a facts-on-the-ground extension of Beijing  thereby extinguishing the local culture in a few short years, without a chopstick being broken.

And Taiwan, a term as verboten in mainland China as the freighted proper noun "Rhodesia" is in present-day Zimbabwe, regarded as a wayward but undisciplined family member who will, soon, someday, be brought to heel and reincorporated into the PRC.

Taiwan, a thriving democracy of some 23.6 million souls, which established its existence and independence a century ago, is neutered in the U.N. and disappeared in the WHO, and anywhere international relations confer legitimacy on the People's Republic.

Because China swings an uber-most-powerful financial club, few nations dare to thwart the country seat, the governing body, or president-for-life Xi Jinping. Land that trade bond!

Nauseating evidence of this forced hegemony over foreign bodies was recently demonstrated when Canadian national Bruce Aylward, a senior World Health Organization (WHO) public health official, was interviewed on the subject of Taiwan and its status in relation to the coronavirus pandemic currently scything 171 countries at last count.

The WHO, it should be understood, is funded most by the United States. But fair-haired Aylward, more than once, feigned deafness when asked about this nation to the right of mainland Red China.

Working the sonic cement twice did not discourage the interviewer from repeating her question about Taiwan, so Aylward did what all pols try to do, some with greater effectiveness, some with less. In Aylward's case, his hesitant dismissal came a few microsecs after the reiterated question about COVID-19's incidence in Taiwan. Aylward pivoted.

"Ah, that's OK, I couldn't hear, but let's go on to a different question, shall we?" As glaring an example to serving Xi's diminuendo goals as one could imagine, too obvious to have anyone actually buy his feint and deflection follow-through.

As with Brad Pitt's rough invocation to men spoiling for a muscle match in the 1999 film Fight Club,

"You don't talk about Fight Club," in the same way, evidently, serious servitors of Beijing do not talk about Taiwan.

On my radio program, interviewing guests and occasional minor celebrities, even though I wanted to break the ban, I managed to sneak in a few mentions of Tibet, sociologically analyzing the topography and agriculture and whatever I could smuggle into our dialogues in English and Mandarin, and I made mention of the talent demonstrated by the flexible dance-dervishes of the Falun Gong. But I demurred at the last in clandestine discussion of the island a few kilometers offshore. It would have ended my tenure as radio host.

We never knew which officials were listening to our broadcasts  or if, because English is still not the lingua franca of the leadership echelons of the Chinese, they bothered to listen at all. I was all too aware of the cordon solitaire censoring the films I showed once a week to hundreds of collegians from nearby colleges.

So Aylward's brazen pretense of deafness in regard to Taiwan brought me back to the stone-cold threat I recall from my days as a radio host in Hubei Province. More important, it is crystalline that the WHO is under the dirty yellowed cigarette-stained thumb of Xi and the PRC's economic hungry or thirsty battalions.

Yet as any halfway observant world citizen knows now, China makes no guarantees. China makes no promises. But if it does, peradventure, no one expects it to actually hold to its routinely meretricious promises. So Canada can dance to China's tinny abacus music, but fools the Canadians would be to actually wrest any benefit from their pretzelized postures in denying the obvious.

As some know, the Mandarin word for crisis  weiji  has, hidden in its brush-stroke ideograph depths, the character for "opportunity," as dashing President John F. Kennedy once noted in a speech. The Chinese leadership, bent on eventual surpassing of the United States in its GNP and dominant political pre-eminence within the next at-most 30 years. Judging by the mulligatawny the rest of the globe is now simmering in, without the benefit of meat, onions, or potatoes, they are right on schedule.

You heard it here.

Hear no challenge. Speak no truth. See no endgame.

Photo credit: YouTube screen grab.
A high ranking leader within the Veterans of Foreign Wars is accused of trying to meet a five-year-old girl  really a fake child created by an undercover agent  for sex.

Adam Swift, 30, has pleaded not guilty in federal court to enticing a minor for sexual activity via the internet. If convicted, he would be sentenced to at least 10 years in prison.

Swift is the commander of VFW Post 1273 in downtown Rapid City, and the Judge Advocate for the South Dakota VFW.

His positions are listed on his Facebook page, the posts Facebook page and the state VFWs website as of Thursday afternoon.

Swift is being investigated by the South Dakota and national VFW, state Commander Sean Johnson said in an email.

What follows is alleged in an affidavit signed by Brent Gromer, supervisor of the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) unit in South Dakota:

Swift came under investigation Feb. 24 when he sent a private message to an undercover FBI agent on the Kik messaging app.

The two discussed whether they were active, a term that means sexually active with children. Swift said he was active with a 4- and 7-year-old boy while the agent said he was active with his 9-year-old stepchild.

The pair then exchanged clothed photos of minors, and Swift sent the agent two videos of a man sexually abusing a child. Swift also told the agent that hes sexually abused multiple children, including an infant.

The agent, who works in New York, contacted the FBI in Rapid City who asked ICAC to continue the investigation.

ICAC was able to confirm Swifts identity by linking his Kik account to his email, workplace IP address and Facebook page.

An undercover agent with Homeland Security Investigations then began messaging Swift on Kik, posing as a woman who sexually abuses her five-year-old daughter.

Swift said he wanted to arrange a swap, where he would sexually abuse the five-year-old and bring a child for the undercover agent. He also offered to send live videos of him abusing a child.

The agent met Swift at his workplace on March 24 to discuss plans. Instead, the agent had Swift arrested.

Swift let agents seize his cellphone and laptop. He admitted to Gromer that it was him chatting with the agents but said he had never really planned to have sex with the five-year-old, and that he hadnt sexually abused one of the children he had mentioned to the agents.

Swift, who is incarcerated at the Pennington County Jail, has until May 15 to reach a plea deal or his case will go to trial on June 2.

Its unclear if federal or state officials plan to further charge Swift with distributing porn or child sexual abuse.

 Contact Arielle Zionts at arielle.zionts@rapidcityjournal.com.

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The moment a few positive cases of Covid-19 cropped up in Bhatkal town, the administration clamped down on all movement.

Karwar: About two weeks ago, Bhatkal town in Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka flickered into the nations attention when three persons tested positive for COVID-19 in a span of two days.

In subsequent days, five more tested positive, but effective steps taken by the district administration succeeded in curtailing the numbers and restricting the cases to Bhatkal town itself.

Today, in terms of the district-wise daily growth rate of positive cases, Uttara Kannada district is among the three lowest. While the Karnataka average is 5.33 percent, Uttara Kannada's average is 2.59 per cent.

Officials here feel that the steps taken by the district administration could serve as a template for others as they fight this pandemic.

When many districts began taking steps after positive cases were found within their jurisdiction, Uttara Kannada district was proactive and acted before the first positive.

Even before PM Narendra Modi clamped his Janata Curfew on the nation on March 22, Uttara Kannada had already restricted movement not only across the state border with Kerala but across border with other districts and also between taluks within the district too.

When officials noticed the correlation between Covid-19 and foregn travel, they moved fast to impose Section 144 in Bhatkal on March 24, hours before two positive cases were detected in the town.

They had noticed that of the total number of foreign-returned people in Uttara Kannada district, about 40 per cent were concentrated in Bhatkal. And 10 per cent of Uttara Kannada's total population is concentrated in Bhatkal.

As soon as the two positive cases were found in Bhatkal, the administration immediately declared a Health Emergency in Bhatkal town and nearby villages and enforced containment measures.

Home quarantine was strictly followed. Every person who had returned from abroad was tracked, and officials called each of them twice daily to know their health condition. Those who had even small health problems were immediately taken to hospital and their swabs were sent for testing.

Of the eight positive cases, four were from the same family: One person who had returned from Dubai infected three members of his family.

Though home quarantine of the positives was successful in ensuring that the virus did not spread in the community, the virus did spread to family members.

It was at this time that the district administration decided to take an innovative step: it opened separate quarantine facilities for such cases.

By stopping fresh inflows from other countries, other states and districts and by separating family members from people under home quarantine, the administration is now confident of restricting COVID-19 cases.

As Uttara Kannada does not have a sophisticated hospital, the Indian Navy was requested to lend its its INHS Patanjali hospital to treat the positive patients.

When the nationwide lockdown was announced by PM Narendra Modi, it was enforced stringently in the entire district, especially in Bhatkal.

Nobody is allowed to venture out. However, any shortages are quickly attended to. Arrangements have been made to ensure door-to-door supply of not only groceries and vegetables but also medicines.

The district has now come out with a detailed health report on its population after doing a three-day door-to-door health survey.

The survey brought to light the total number of people from outside the country, other states and other districts residing in Uttara Kannada district.

Also, the survey enumerated that the district has 418 people with fever, and officials are continuing to keep an eye on all those who have come to the district from other countries, state and district, especially those who have a fever.

Another survey will be done next week to see what is working and what is not.

So far, COVID-19 positives have been restricted to Bhatkal town and no other place.

"We just follow the old saying that prevention is better than cure. We clearly knew that the initial positive cases were only among those who had traveled abroad, so we concentrated all our energies on confining the virus to Bhatkal, Uttara Kannada deputy commissioner Dr. K Harish Kumar told Deccan Chronicle.

"We took up measures as per the containment protocol. The survey shows that our containment plan has been a success. We are thankful for the cooperation given by officials and the public in this fight against COVID-19," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 06:57:57|Editor: ZD

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LOS ANGELES, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Public schools in the U.S. state of California will not reopen before the end of this academic year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Gavin Newsom said on Wednesday.

Newsom noted that it is "a right thing to do for our children" and for their parents in response to the spread of the coronavirus. He encouraged California students to study at home. "I know how stressful this is," said the governor.

Newsom also announced that Google will help California students by providing 100,000 WiFi access points and thousands of Chromebooks.

California's State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond released a statement Tuesday regarding the 2019-20 school year.

"Due to the current safety concerns and needs for ongoing social distancing, it currently appears that our students will not be able to return to school campuses before the end of the school year," he said.

"In order to allow schools to plan accordingly, and to ensure that learning still occurs until the end of the school year, we are suggesting that schools plan and prepare to have their curriculum carried out through a distance learning model," he added.

Thurmond said that the education authorities are "doing everything we can to support our schools and their distance learning opportunities for our students."

There are more than 6 million students in K-12 schools in California, according to a statement from Newsom's office last month.
US sailors will die unless virus-hit aircraft carrier evacuated: Captain

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 5:04 AM

American sailors aboard a US aircraft carrier will die unless the coronaviru-hit vessel is evacuated, the ship's captain warns.

Captain Brett Crozier, the commanding officer of the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt with 5,000 people onboard, called for help to save the lives of his sailors after an unconfirmed number tested positive for Covid-19 a week ago while the carrier was in the pacific.

In his four-page letter dated Monday, Crozier described how bleak the situation was onboard the nuclear-powered carrier as more sailors are diagnosed with the virus.

He wrote that the carrier lacked sufficient quarantine and isolation facilities, warning the current strategy would slow but fail to eliminate the virus.

He called for "decisive action" and the removal of more than 4,000 sailors from the ship and their isolation. Other personnel aboard the Roosevelt include the ship's crew, naval aviators and others.

"We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die. If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset - our sailors," Crozier wrote.

"The spread of the disease is ongoing and accelerating," he added.

Reuters has quoted anonymous US officials as saying that almost 80 people aboard the ship had been infected with the coronavirus, a number projected to rise as all personnel on the ship are tested.

The navy, which puts the ship's complement at 5,000, the equivalent of a small American town, has so far declined to confirm the exact number of people tested positive.

The ship has pulled into port in Guam, a US island territory in the western Pacific, since the first cases were confirmed. The island of Guam is the hotspot of the virus in the Pacific region and is already struggling to deal with the nearly 60 confirmed cases there.

Crozier's letter does not say where the sailors would be transferred to, but did note that there would be "challenges" in securing individual accommodation for the people onboard to safely quarantine themselves for 14 days.

Meanwhile, acting US navy secretary Thomas Modly said the navy had been trying for several days to evacuate the sailors in Guam, but added the island did not have enough beds and that the Navy was negotiating with the local government to use hotels and set up tents.

"We don't disagree with the [commanding officer] on that ship, and we're doing it in a very methodical way because it's not the same as a cruise ship ... that ship has armaments on it, it has aircraft on it," he said on CNN.

Admiral John Aquilino, head of the US Navy's Pacific Fleet, also told reporters that they had planned to remove some sailors off the ship, test and quarantine them, disinfect the ship and then rotate them with those on the carrier.

He also said that there would be some sailors in quarantine and isolation on the vessel.

On Tuesday, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said, however, it was not time to get the sailors off the carrier, adding he had "not had a chance to read that letter ... in detail."

Speaking to CBS News on Tuesday, he claimed that none of the sailors were "seriously ill."

"At this point in time, we are trying to make sure that we contain the virus, that we deploy testing kits, and we get a good assessment of how much of the crew is infected," Esper said. "And then, of course, taking other measures to ensure that we can get the carrier up and ready again to continue its mission."

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T he Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have spoken to hospital staff on the frontline of the coronavirus crisis as they conduct royal duties from home amid a nationwide lockdown.

William and Kate chatted with staff from University Hospital Monklands in Scotland and Queen's Hospital Burton in the Midlands on the telephone on Wednesday afternoon.

The royal family has resorted to phone calls and video conferencing for some of their duties as the country continues to observe the lockdown aimed at slowing the spread of Covid-19.

The duke and duchess's telephone calls came after the Prince of Wales delivered a message of hope to the nation in the midst of the health crisis, saying "end it will" and praising the "remarkable NHS" as its staff "battle heroically to save lives".

Prince of Wales makes first appearance since coming out of self-isolation

Charles, who earlier this week came out of self-isolation following his Covid-19 diagnosis, recorded a video message in support of the charity Age UK, which he represents as patron.

He said: "As a nation, we are faced by a profoundly challenging situation, which we are only too aware threatens the livelihoods, businesses and welfare of millions of our fellow citizens.
Pakistan on Wednesday reported the biggest jump in Covid-19 cases for the third consecutive day as the number of people infected with the deadly disease reached 2,238.

The country has also witnessed 31 deaths from the disease.

Reports of the lack of adequate screening procedures and squalid living conditions at the quarantine camps at the Taftan border crossing with Iran have raised concerns about the surge in the number of infections.

The increase in the number of cases showed that there was little impact of the measures, including partial lockdown, taken so far to reduce the spread of the disease.

Also Watch | Pakistan army sending COVID-19 patients to PoK: Activist Amjad Mirza

People have so far refused to listen to the authorities. Officials in Pakistan are scrambling to contain the disease by appealing to the public to remain inside homes and go out only in cases of emergencies. But there was little impact on the masses and in several cities, people were seen roaming out while security officials were trying to convince them to go back to their places.

Reports say that mosques have not been shut, despite the spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in the country. An event was organised in Pakistan last month where 2,50,000 people had gathered, showing the casual approach adopted by the authorities in the country in controlling the spread of the Sars-CoV-2 virus.

While Saudi Arabia and Iran have announced closure of mosques, Pakistan is yet to take such a decision. Friday prayers have been going on in the mosques in Punjab province which has a population of 110 million. Except the provincial governments in Sidh and Balochistan, no other regional government has taken a decision to close the places of worship.

This dilly-dallying by the central government in Pakistan has led Opposition parties to launch an attack on the Imran Khan dispensation.

This government has yet to decide if it wants to properly shut down the country or not. We demand that lockdown should be imposed without any further delay, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader and former premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said.

Khan, on his part, has said that coronavirus will be confronted by the force of faith. Pakistani media cited Jamaat-i-Islamis general-secretary Liaqat Baloch as saying that the Prime Minister is confused over whether or not to impose a lockdown in the country.
GREENWICH  Gov. Ned Lamont proposed setting up beds for patients at the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center one option for mitigating the spread of coronavirus in nursing homes in the state.

But thats not going to happen, Greenwich First Selectman Fred Camillo said Thursday.

Late Wednesday, Lamont had issued a plan to open a list of alternative care sites, which included the Eastern Greenwich Civic Center in Old Greenwich, where a nursing home could be set up.

But Camillo, who closed the towns civic centers to mitigate the spread of the virus, said the site was just one option that has been discarded.

Camillo said he had spoken with Lt. Gov. Susan Bysciewicz about the matter. I was told it is one of many options under consideration right now and nothing more, Camillo said.

The first selectman said he has been in daily contact with Lamont and Bysciewicz during the coronavirus pandemic.

The plan also calls for using the privately owned Greenwich Woods health care center as the state tries to separate COVID-19 positive nursing home patients from healthy patients.

Late Wednesday, Lamont announced that his administration will collaborate with long-term care facilities throughout the state on the medical surge plan in which some residents would be moved to set up separate, dedicated space for those who have tested positive for the coronavirus.

He presented several options as part of the medical surge plan, which will create dedicated spaces for patients of long-term care facilities who have tested positive for coronavirus and are not hospitalized. Creating that space will involve moving some residents.

The plan calls for any long-term care patient diagnosed with coronavirus to be placed in an area only with other coronavirus-diagnosed patients for monitoring and assessment for 14 days. Those who test negative will be placed in areas only with other long-term care residents who have also tested negative or are not symptomatic.

To do that, Lamont said facilities could set up dedicated spaces within facilities and turn over entire facilities to one classification of patients.

Greenwich Woods, which has 217 beds, is on the states list as a possible place to house patients who have tested positive for the virus, along with other facilities in Stafford Springs, Sharon, Farmington and Bloomfield.

Greenwich Woods has had discussions with the Department of Public Health to review options for best serving the community and the state in the unprecedented times of the coronavirus pandemic, said a statement released Thursday afternoon by Tammy Campanelli, vice president of operations.

The discussions are ongoing, but there is not a finalized plan, Campanelli said.

Endorsing the plan

Two town officials said the plan to separate nursing home patients is a good one, even if the details need to be worked out.

Its the first Ive (heard), although I think it makes sense, said Alan Barry, town commissioner of human services. We have social distancing. I think we now need medical distancing to be able to isolate, so it wont spread. I think having positive coronavirus residents together in one area makes sense because of their age and their vulnerabilities, especially medically.

Steve Katz, vice chair of the Commission on Aging, said, From my public health background, my guess is, the reason theyre doing that is two-fold:

One, they want to prevent the spread (of the virus) in any facility. Two, when the hospitals discharge people  sometimes they need a place to put (the patient). Right now, the issue is, if they send them home and theres no home support, you cant really send them home, because its not a safe discharge.

Sending coronavirus patients to a separate, designated space, frees up hospitals to make room for the most serious cases, he said.

A public health professor at Columbia University in New York, Katz says he agrees with the Connecticut governors decision to separate positive patients. But Katz said there will be significant challenges ahead.

You have to staff those places, which in this environment, is extraordinarily hard to do, he said. Obviously, you have to find people who want to do that.

Coronavirus cases reported in town facilities

Both the town-owned and -operated Nathaniel Witherell and the privately owned Greenwich Woods facility have patients who have tested positive as of Wednesday.

Witherell, which also operates as a short-term rehabilitation center, had a patient who was diagnosed with the virus and moved to Greenwich Hospital on March 28. That patient died and was identified by family on Wednesday as 87-year-old Kevin Duffy, a resident and retired federal judge who had presided for 44 years in the Southern District of New York.

According to his family, Duffy had been in Witherells short-term rehabilitation center for recovery from a recent illness.

On Thursday morning, Larry Simon, chair of Witherells Board of Directors, said three other patients there have tested positive, all of whom remain in the facilitys long-term care section. Simon said they are waiting for more test results to come back.

We are following all the guidelines on isolation and treating our patients, Simon said.

To mitigate the spread, the Witherell is not accepting any new patients. There are currently 141 long-term residents at Witherell, with only 25 short-term patients.

Tatiana Flowers contributed to this story. tflowers@thehour.com, kborsuk@greenwichtime.com
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 1

Trend:

"May Almighty God bless the people of Azerbaijan and grant each of you good health, happiness and a long life!" said Azerbaijan's First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva in a post on her official Instagram page.

The Instagram post says: "Today a flock of cranes was flying in the sky of Absheron! Cranes are a symbol of health, happiness and longevity! May Almighty God bless the people of Azerbaijan and grant each of you good health, happiness and a long life!"
The Ogun State Government says it would begin distribution of a stimulus package to residents on Saturday to cushion the economic effects of the lockdown of the state declared by the federal government.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday announced restriction of movement in Lagos, Abuja and Ogun, where there are many cases of confirmed COVID-19 infection.

Mr Buhari said the restriction of movements in those areas is for an initial period of 14 days with effect from 11 p.m on Monday.

However, the Governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun, said he later obtained permission from the Presidency to shift the implementation of the measure to Friday, to enable the state government prepare palliatives for the people.

According to a statement on the official Twitter page of Ogun State Government on Thursday, Mr Abiodun on Wednesday night met with all 20 local government transition chairpersons to finalise details of the distribution.

The chairpersons will on Thursday organise sensitisation programmes to enlighten their people on Coronavirus and the arrangements for the distribution of material so that households can be reached effectively.

The package is planned for 500,000 homes with an average of four persons per household. The package will contain food items and hand sanitizers for use over the 14-day pilot stage of the lockdown.

The governor said the social distancing advisory will be ensured in the distribution process as the package will be distributed at any gathering but at individual homes.

He emphasised that everyone should continue to be guided as they go about their activities before the distribution commences.

READ ALSO:

He said the distribution will not be influenced by regional or political affiliations, as all distributing officers have been duly trained and instructed.

Details So Far

According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Nigeria as at Wednesday evening had 174 confirmed cases of coronavirus.

A breakdown shows that Lagos now has 91 cases, followed by FCT  35, Osun -14, Oyo  8, Akwa Ibom  5, Ogun  4, Edo- 4, Kaduna  4, Bauchi  3, Enugu  2, and Ekiti  2. Rivers and Benue have one case each.

Nigeria is expected to record more cases as health authorities have embarked on contact tracing to locate thousands of people who have come in contact with infected persons.
A five-point plan to press the accelerator on coronavirus testing and reach 100,000 tests a day was ordered by Health Secretary Matt Hancock today.

Responding to criticism of the slow pace of testing so far, the Government will go all out to bring on board commercial labs, research institutes and inventors to create brand new testing machines.

Returning to the frontline of the battle against Covid-19 from a week of self-isolation after catching the disease himself, Mr Hancock called meetings with the heads of the NHS, Public Health England and other bodies engaged in the plan.

Ill be pressing the accelerator, the Health Secretary told allies. Sources stressed that testing was already at record levels for the UK in any pandemic, but it would now go further and faster.

Coronavirus testing: What we know so far

The five point plan includes:

Accelerating the current in-house testing run by Public Health England to ensure it hits a target of 25,000 tests a day of patients and key NHS staff by the middle of this month. Earlier this week the Government suggested it might take until the end of the month or even May. The scheme has been criticised because only about 8,000 patients have been tested daily out of a current capacity of 12,500, meaning thousands of tests have been wasted.

A big push to harness the private sector by buying up commercial swab tests along with using hospital and research sector labs to process the results. Professor Paul Cosford, of PHE, said it will give us another 100,000 or more tests a day over coming weeks.

Rolling out millions of the new antibody tests for immunity, first revealed in the Standard last month. The Department of Health has bought options on 17 million tests, including pregnancy test-style sticks that give a result in just 15 minutes. However, testing and validation of the kits is still under way.

A giant survey of the population has now started, with thousands of people per day tested for antibodies indicating that they have had the disease, to create a giant database mapping the way the virus spread through the UK.

A call-out was made last night by Mr Hancock in a conference call with manufacturers, inventors and commercial developers asking them to urgently create a major UK diagnostic capability to match the well-established German capability, mirroring the successful appeal to industry to make new ventilators.

Among signs of the plan getting under way, the world renowned Francis Crick Institute, Europes largest biomedical research centre, in Kings Cross, announced it was switching its laboratories to test for coronavirus in frontline NHS staff.

It will conduct 500 tests a day from next week under a partnership with University College London Hospitals, with the aim of ramping this up to 2,000 a day and expanding to other hospitals.

London during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures 1 /66 London during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures A woman jogging near City Hall, London, the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the UK in lockdown PA An image of Queen Elizabeth II and quotes from her broadcast on Sunday to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA A pedestrian walks past a billboard reading "Please believe these days will pass" on Broadway Market in east London AFP via Getty Images Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge Getty Images Boris Johnson Jeremy Selwyn Sun-seekers cool off in the water and sunbathe on the riverbank at Hackney Marshes in east London AFP via Getty Images Ed Davey is shown on screens as he speaks via videolink during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons, London PA A herd of fallow deer graze on the lawns in front of a housing estate in Harold Hill in east London AFP via Getty Images A woman wearing a mask crosses a bridge over Camden Lock, London PA An empty Millenium Bridge PA A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" is seen on an underground station platform Getty Images People push to enter the Niketown shop in Londo AP Jo Proudlove and daughter Eve, 9, follow the daily online "PE with Joe" Joe Wickes' exercise class on "Fancy dress Friday Reuters Police in Westminster Jeremy Selwyn Waterloo station looking empty PA Getty Images A quiet Parliament Square Getty Images PABest A man walks along a passageway at London's Oxford Street Underground station the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the UK in lockdown to help curb the spread of the Coronavirus PA Social distancing markers around the camel enclosure at ZSL London Zoo PA A police car patrols Greenwich Park in London PA The Premier League in action in front of empty stands AP Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed. A deserted Piccadilly Circus PA A general view is seen of a deserted Trafalgar Square AFP via Getty Images Getty Images The iconic Abbey Road crossing is seen after a re-paint by a Highways Maintenance team as they take advantage of the COVID-19 coronavirus lockdown and quiet streets to refresh the markings Getty Images A view of 20 Fenchurch Street (the 'Walkie Talkie' building) in the City of London, the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson put the UK in lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus PA A deserted Chinatown PA A person looks at graffiti on a JD Wetherspoon pub in Crystal Palace, south London. Wetherspoons workers have described founder Tim Martin's lack of support for his chain's 40,000 employees as "absolutely outrageous" PA The London ExCel centre that has been turned into a makeshift NHS Hospital and critical care unit to cope with the Coronavirus pandemic PA The Palace Theatre, which usually shows the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play, sits in a deserted Shaftesbury Avenue PA The Sondheim Theatre, which usually shows the Les Miserables musical, sits in a deserted Shaftesbury Avenue PA Two members of a British Army mounted regiment exercise their horses in Parliament Square AP Westminster Bridge is deserted PA A quiet Canary Wharf Underground Station PA An empty street and bus stop at St James's Park AFP via Getty Images Whitehall Jeremy Selwyn A quiet Canary Wharf Underground Station PA A single pedestrian walks past The national Gallery AFP via Getty Images London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn Kings Cross and St Pancras Jeremy Selwyn Buckingham Palace looking empty in London, PA London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn Kings Cross and St Pancras Jeremy Selwyn London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn London's Carnaby Street empty as shops closed after a lockdown was announced in the latest bid to stop the spread of coronavirus through the UK AP A quiet Jubilee line westbound train carriage PA A single pedestrian walks past The national Gallery AFP via Getty Images A quiet Canary Wharf Underground Station PA Empty Embankment Jeremy Selwyn

At the same time Addenbrookes hospital, in Cambridge, began testing bedside machines converted from HIV testing apparatus that can determine within 90 minutes whether patients have Covid-19.

Ministers are desperate to regain a grip after headlines denouncing testing figures so far as a shambles and fiasco. The number of positive tests for Covid-19 was expected to surge past 30,000 this afternoon, but possibly hundreds of thousands are undiagnosed in the community.

Boris Johnson issued a video saying testing is the way to solve the crisis. However, there were mixed messages as a deputy chief medical officer said testing was a side issue and social distancing measures was he real key to tackling the virus. Professor Cosford, emeritus medical director of PHE, admitted everybody involved is frustrated by the low number of tests being carried out.

Speaking on Good Morning Britain he said the Office for Life Sciences is working with universities and industries which will give us another 100,00 or more tests a day. That work is ongoing.

Boris Johnson gives update on testing from self-isolation

A survey revealed today that businesses are fast running out of cash, with nearly a fifth warning they have only enough left to tide them over for another month.

Polling by the British Chambers of Commerce found that a further 44 per cent have sufficient reserves for one to three months. The same proportion expect to put at least half their workforce on furlough leave in the next week, while 32 per cent said they will suspend between 75 per cent and 100 percent of their staff.

Richard Burge, chief executive of London Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: With cashflow running out, many have no choice but to furlough staff, while juggling other tough choices to cut outgoings in order to stop themselves going to the wall.

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At the London Chamber we are hearing from members who are yet to be able to access the government-funded business interruption loan via the bank, and who cannot get access to interim bank finance on low interest or appropriate terms either.

"The government money simply isnt flowing fast enough down the chain.

Banks must demonstrate that they are serving the national cause. And those organisations who represent Londons financial institutions must call them out for not doing enough. This includes the City of London Corporation.

Listen to today's episode of The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast:
A decomposing body found wrapped and concealed under a mattress in Bessemer, Alabama on Wednesday has been identified as missing 30-year-old mother Tiffany Smitherman Osborne, authorities said.

On Thursday, the Jefferson County Coroner's Office officially identified the remains as Midfield, Alabama resident Tiffany Osborne, who disappeared on February 17, 2020. The death is being investigated as a homicide.

Sergeant Michael Jeffries with the Midfield Police Department told Dateline that a worker cutting grass in the 4200 block of Turin Drive made the discovery around 9:20 a.m. on Wednesday and called police.

Sergeant Jeffries added that the body was found wrapped up and concealed under an old mattress. The industrial area where the body was found is at the end of an unfinished road that is frequently used for dumping trash, according to NBC affiliate WVTM.

Tiffany was featured in Datelines Missing in America series on March 9. Sergeant Jeffries told Dateline at the time that Tiffanys boyfriend told investigators that she left that Monday evening around 11 p.m. to walk about a block away to Carson's Convenience Store for cigarettes. Jeffries said the store was closed by that time and the people who worked there said they never saw her that night.

Tiffany and her boyfriend have been together for two years and have a 3-month-old baby boy, Tiffanys mother told Dateline in March. The baby was at their home with his father when Tiffany disappeared, she said. Her boyfriend told investigators both he and the baby had fallen asleep and when they woke up, Tiffany still hadnt returned. He reported her missing on Wednesday, according to Jeffries.

In addition to the baby, Tiffany is also the mother of 12 and 7-year-old girls, who were with Tiffanys mother, Cathy, when Tiffany went missing. Cathy lives in Hueytown, Alabama, about a 15-minute drive away from Midfield. All three children, including the baby, are now being taken care of by Cathy.

According to WVTM, this is the second body discovered by workers in Bessemer in 2020. In February, the body of Karen Scott was found in a manhole in Bessemer. She was last seen alive in December 2018. No arrests have been announced in her case, which police also ruled as a homicide.

Anyone with information on Tiffany's case is asked to call Midfield Police Department at 205-923-7575, Bessemer police at 205-425-2411 or the Investigations Division at 205-481-4366.
Well-prepared supermarkets in Ho Chi Minh City have managed to keep their shelves filled to the brim with goods as the nation implements social distancing to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Markets, supermarkets, and shops selling essentials are allowed to maintain normal operations after 0:00 Wednesday, April 1, when Vietnam entered 15 days of nationwide social distancing as per a directive issued by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc the day before.

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade affirmed the information in a document sent to its information and communications counterpart and the administrations of 24 districts in the city on Tuesday afternoon.

Along with that, the department also stated that supermarket chains and stores in the city had reserved enough supply of essentials to serve the needs of the local people.

Residents are advised to refrain from gathering at the points of sale in order to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection.

Online purchases and doorstep delivery are recommended while hoarding and panic buying are not, the trade department said.

It also asked the municipal information and communications department and the administrations of 24 districts to widely propagate this information among the citys residents.

A couple wearing face masks picks a bag of rice at a Co.op Mart supermarket on Cong Quynh Street in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, March 31, 2020. Photo: Quang Dinh / Tuoi Tre

In separate discussions with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, representatives of supermarket chains MM Mega Market, Saigon Co.op, and VinMart all affirmed they currently have abundant inventories of rice, instant noodles, canned food, drinking water, eggs, meat, and toilet paper.

At a Co.op Mart supermarket on Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street in District 3 on Tuesday afternoon, Le Thi An was shopping for essentials to keep her family fed and comfortable over the next two weeks.

Everything we need is here [and] nothings out of stock, An told Tuoi Tre, glancing at a grocery list she had made beforehand.

Two women wearing face masks shop for eggs at a supermarket in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, March 31, 2020. Photo: Bong Mai / Tuoi Tre

Another shopper, Huynh Thi Le Thi from Binh Chanh District, said she was only looking to buy some vegetables for dinner as she did not feel the need to stock up on food.

Its only 15 days. You cannot eat so much, Thi said, adding that being stress-free is more important to stay healthy during the epidemic.

Supermarkets said they allow purchases made via phone calls and instant messaging applications such as Viber and Zalo for the convenience of customers.

Bags of rice pile up at a supermarket in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, March 31, 2020. Photo: Bong Mai / Tuoi Tre

Vietnams Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Wednesday declared COVID-19 a nationwide infectious disease pandemic.

The government is doing its best to control the epidemic as the country has confirmed 222 cases of COVID-19 infection so far.

No death related to the disease has been reported while 63 patients have recovered and been discharged from the hospital to date.

People wearing face masks shop for vegetables at a supermarket in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, March 31, 2020. Photo: Bong Mai / Tuoi Tre

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There are memorable concerts . . . and then there are memorable concerts.

Viera Zmiyiwsky isnt going to forget her outdoor solo event on March 27 in 3 C weather, that left audience and performer, in tears.

Zmiyiwsky played, with a portable speaker, in the rear yard of the Ivan Franko long-term care facility in Erin Mills.

The seven-year member of Mississauga Symphony Orchestra is incredibly close to her grandmother Anna, a 94-year-old resident of the building.

They normally visit and talk on the phone several times a week. Thats no longer possible with COVID-19 regulations.

Her grandparents lived with Vieras family in Thunder Bay for the first 16 years of her life. Music was integral to the familys identity. She and her older brothers, also accomplished violinists, regularly gave concerts at old folks homes.

Her mother didnt have the opportunity to study music, but played piano when she was pregnant with Viera, who believes she may have gained her appreciation for music in utero. Some classical pieces shes never heard before seem strangely familiar.

Im angry that the virus has taken away my time with my grandmother, says the city centre resident.

Phone calls and visits are all the contact many of the elderly Ukrainian-Canadian residents have with the larger world.

When you take that away, you take their lifeline.

So the musician hatched a plan to surprise her grandmother. Shed play a short set of her favourites from a socially acceptable distance.

She brought a bouquet and had the centres staff deliver it while she set up. She didnt know the centres staff had alerted residents.

Her grandmother was confused when told to go outside to see her granddaughter.

She could hear me, but she was looking in the trees, laughs Zmiyiwsky.

I started playing, she saw me. She started crying and the nurses started crying and I started crying, recalls the U of T grad.

The plan to play 10 minutes changed.

You cant stop when you see this guy struggling to open the balcony door and hes carting an oxygen tank.

One man clapped enthusiastically after every song and implored her to continue.

My hand was almost frozen in playing position but I couldnt say no.

When she wound up after 30 minutes, her new best fan threw her a box of chocolates in appreciation.

Its not the first time Viera has played with a heavy heart.

When her grandfather Paul lay dying in Trillium Health Centre in 2014, she played his favourite songs in an emotional farewell bedside concert.

Viera Zmiyiwsky gave a farewell concert of his favourite songs for her grandfather when he was dying at Trillium Hospital in 2014. Supplied photo

Her grandmother Anna says Viera is so good to me. She always calls me and visits. Residents compliment her on her musical family and want to know when Vieras coming again.

Her balcony audience may have only amounted to six or seven members (after all, there was bingo at the same time), but Zmiyiwsky says they were her most attentive audience ever.

Trust me, what I felt from those seven people was enough to fill my heart for many years to come.
New Delhi, April 2 : The central government here on Thursday asked states to ensure smooth disbursal of Rs 27,500 crore financial package under the Prime Minister Garib Kalyan Yojana (PM-GKY). The disbursal will begin on Friday.

In a letter to the Chief Secretaries of states and Union Territories, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla asked them also to submit an action-taken report. "They shall take necessary measures to ensure smooth disbursal of money to the PM-GKY beneficiaries," the letter read.

On Wednesday, Bhalla had said disbursement of money under the PM-GKY would be held in five phases through the direct benefit transfer (DBT). It would start on Friday and conclude on April 9.

The DBT will take place as per the last digit of the bank account number of the beneficiary. An SMS will be sent to those whose mobile numbers have been seeded in the account.

The SMSs will also indicate the day on which the beneficiary has to come to bank for money withdrawal.

Bhalla on Monday had directed states and UTs to ensure functioning of all bank branches, cash management and ATMs during the lockdown.
People who test positive for coronavirus antibodies will be given "immunity certificates" to allow them to leave lockdown and return to normal life, health secretary Matt Hancock has announced.

The move, already planned in Germany, will be implemented if hoped-for antibody tests  showing a person was infected, but is now healthy  become available on a mass scale.

Mr Hancock cautioned that the antibody tests may not be introduced for some time, as none has yet obtained approval from Public Health England by meeting required accuracy levels.

Asked if the German model would be adopted, he told a 10 Downing Street press conference: "We are looking at an immunity certificate - how people hwo have had the disease, have got the antibodies and therefore have immunity can show that and so get back as much as posislbe to normal life.

"That is an important thing that we will be doing and are looking at, but it's too early in the science to be able to put clarity around that."

Mr Hancock's announcement came after Boris Johnson's official spokesman told reporters that the UK was ready to "consider" the use of certificates if they proved useful in other countries.

Researchers in Germany are already exploring how the authorities will be able to eventually issue passes to exclude essential workers from the harsh crackdown currently in place.

In the UK, ministers see the antibody test as the potential game-changer  and have ordered millions, but they have yet to pass regulatory tests.

Professor John Newton, of Public Health England said that once an antibody test is approved, it can be "scaled very quickly to a very large number of people - millions and millions of people".

He stressed that it was not yet known whether the antibodies will indicate permanent immunity from coronavirus, or only short-lived protection from a return of the disease.

"I think we have to be optimistic that it will give some immunity, but we're just not quite sure how much at the moment," he said.

The idea first emerged as Mr Johnson prepared to stay in isolation longer than he hoped after appearing poorly in a video message from his Downing Street flat.

The prime minister was due to go back to his office on Friday  seven days after being diagnosed with coronavirus  but still had symptoms, No 10 acknowledged.

Asked if he would leave isolation on Friday, his spokesman repeatedly refused to give a guarantee, saying only: We will follow the guidelines ... you can rest assured on that.

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

Mr Johnson's spokesman gave Downing Street's clearest admission yet that it is falling badly short on testing if someone currently has the virus, promising a significant increase.

We acknowledge that more needs to be done, the spokesman told journalists. We agree we need to be testing more people and to make progress very quickly.

However, he argued the much-criticised figure that just 2,000 NHS staff had been tested  clearing them to return to the frontline, if negative  was an underestimation.

It said 2,800 had now been seen at drive-in testing facilities, plus an unspecified significant number at NHS and Public Health England laboratories.

The spokesman also rebuffed calls to reduce the five-week wait for universal credit, to help a deluge of applicants, saying: People can take an advance if they need money urgently.

And he refused to confirm or deny whether mobile phone location data is being used to decide on the success or otherwise of the lockdown.

Weve received data from a wide variety of sources in relation to protecting peoples health, but at all times we follow data protection rules, he insisted.
From the ashes of the canceled 2020 Geneva Auto Show rose many models that were supposedly slated to make their debut in Switzerland and Bentleys eye-catching Bacalar wouldve surely attracted every and all camera lenses. As it happens, a web reveal is all we got but, alas, weve been drooling at the $2 million roadster ever since we laid eyes on it so we do hope Bentleys short-term plan includes a Bacalar with a fixed roof arching over the heads of the driver and his very special companion sitting in the passengers seat.

Bentley wowed us all when it flooded the internet with images of the glorious Bacalar , an aggressive two-seater based on the current-generation Continental GTC with design strokes signed by Bentleys famed coachbuilder Mulliner. Now, were getting a peek at how a coupe version might look but you should withstand the urge to throw money in Bentleys general direction as this is merely an unofficial render.

More than just a Continental GT with an extra bit of fizz

Nowadays, we seemed to be swamped by limited-edition models and even one-offs are almost a dime a dozen. The bulk of the worlds ultra-exotic automakers are constantly looking at ways to outdo one another when it comes to building four-wheeled contraptions that only the people filling Forbes Worlds Billionaires list can afford.

Upon seeing ludicrously expensive cars such as La Voiture Noire, Bugattis $18.9 million Chiron-based one-off made as a tribute to the Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, or the Rolls Royce Sweptail billed as the most expensive modern Roller ever thanks to its $13 million price tag, the Bacalar may seem mundane.

It {only} costs about $2 million and Bentley will assemble 12 copies, all of which have already been spoken for.

But the Bacalar Is, for now, the rarest modern Bentley. If the tides turn in the world, Bentley hopes it will make other special models by knocking at Mulliners door in the future.

One such model could be, Nikita Aksyonov suggests, a Bacalar Coupe. The graphic designer posted his own rendition of a closed-top Bacalar and it got us thinking. For starters, it oozes with sumptuous elegance while retaining all of the key design features that make the Bacalar unique but, at the same time, it arguably looks a bit too much like the standard Continental GT - a much more pedestrian offering at just $202,500 a pop.

Having said that, lets not forget what goes into the recipe for a Bacalar. You start off with the underpinnings of a Bentley Continental, albeit with the rear track widened by 0.8 inches. Under the hood, theres a twin-turbocharged, 6.0-liter W-12 engine cranking out a respectable 650 horsepower and 667 pound-feet of torque, figures that suffered no improvements over those of a standard Continental. But we know 650 horsepower is sufficient because, in spite of the fact that the Bacalar weighs some 5,000 pounds, it goes from naught to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds en route to a top speed of 200 mph.

Bentley Bacalar specifications Engine 6.0-liter W-12 Horsepower 650 HP Torque 667 LB-FT 0 to 60 mph 3.5 seconds Top Speed 200 mph

The Bacalar sports fancy headlights with LED strips that bleed into the fenders

Wed expect a coupe Bacalar to also lack seating in the back and that means only two people at a time would be able to feast their eyes with the gorgeous cabin loaded with posh materials. While entirely customizable, Bentley proposed for the Bacalar stuff like fine leather and wool upholstery, deep-pile carpeting, and Riverwood trim and the Bacalar shown in the official imagery boasts an obsessively intricate tweed upholstery with 148,199 stitches in its material.

The Bacalar coupe rendered here was painted In blue, probably a nod to the cars name that refers to a lake in Mexico whose blue waters are mirrored by the cars digital displays. We hope a closed-top version would also be available in a range of unique colors such as Yellow Flame, the ultra-metallic tint on the Bacalar that was shown to the world.

The only thing the Bacalar shares with the Continental GT are the door handles

At the end of the day, you could still argue the convertible will always look that extra bit more special due to its subdued roll hoops behind the headrests but, instead of seeing a potential Bacalar coupe as just a Bacalar with a roof, consider it the EXP 100 GT Concept from 2019 in production form. The round headlights and diamond-shaped taillights are all there so we can just about see it.

Source: Aksyonov Nikita via Behance
We understand that our PolicyOwners are likely to be experiencing more stress, anxiety and financial burden than usual. We want to do what we can to alleviate one of the concerns they may have, and help in our small way.

MagMutual, one of the nations leading healthcare liability insurance providers, today announced that its medical professional liability policyholders can defer their premium payments for nine months. The premium deferment option is available to existing, new and prospective policyholders. At the completion of the nine-month period, policyholders will then have the option to spread out their outstanding balance over their subsequent renewed policy period. The company would like to thank the Georgia Department of Insurance for expeditiously supporting this initiative.

We understand that our PolicyOwners are likely to be experiencing more stress, anxiety and financial burden than usual, said Joe Wilson, MD, executive chairman of MagMutual. We want to do what we can to alleviate one of the concerns they may have, and help in our small way.

Interested policyholders are advised to contact their sales representative or insurance agent. More information, including details of the program and applicable conditions, are provided on the companys website, MagMutual.com. As the situation currently appears, the company expects to keep this relief in place for all of 2020.

About MagMutual

For nearly four decades, MagMutual has been a leading provider of medical professional liability insurance. Today, we deliver comprehensive coverage for the practice, business and regulation of medicine to more than 30,000 physicians and healthcare organizations nationwide. Our focus on innovation enables us to provide exceptional service, extensive support and financial benefits that result in improved outcomes and stronger PolicyOwners. For more information, visit MagMutual.com.


One of the coronavirus tests as it is about to be shipped to Physicians Group Laboratories
A 64-year-old woman who had



tested positive for coronavirus on March 25 was discharged from a hospital in Chhattisgarh's Bilaspur district on Thursday following her recovery, a health official said.

She is the third coronavirus patient in the state to be discharged. There are six active cases in the state now.

The woman had returned to Bilaspur from Saudi Arabia on February 10.

Nearly 40 days after her return, she showed symptoms such as coughing and sneezing following which her sample was sent for examination and it came out positive for the virus on March 25, Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr Pramod Mahajan said.

She was being treated at isolation ward of Apollo hospital here. Her fresh samples tested negative following which she was discharged on Thursday afternoon, Dr Mahajan said.

Earlier, of the nine COVID-19 cases reported in the state till Wednesday, a 68-year-old man from Raipur and 33- year-old man from Bhilai were discharged from AIIMS Raipur on March 31.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
To reduce NATO's presence in Afghanistan there should be clear conditions set, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said before a meeting of the NATO Foreign Ministers Council on Thursday

BERLIN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd April, 2020) To reduce NATO's presence in Afghanistan there should be clear conditions set, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said before a meeting of the NATO Foreign Ministers Council on Thursday.

"We'll talk about Afghanistan today. We want to confirm that we associate the further reduction in military units with clear conditions. Afghanistan needs security, peace, and we must save in the future the rights of citizens that have been provided in recent years," Maas said.

The top German diplomat added that there should be political progress, including in on intra-Afghan peace, and that Berlin was ready to mediate the negotiations.

On February 29, the United States signed an agreement with the Taliban that set the stage to terminate the longest war in modern US history and paved the way for intra-Afghan talks. The deal laid out a timetable for the withdrawal of some 8,600 troops out of the current 13,000 stationed in Afghanistan within 135 days. The full pullout is expected in 14 months.
A drug already tested against lung disease could potentially inhibit COVID-19 by reducing the coronavirus load that enters the lungs and other organs. That is according to a study in human cell cultures and organoids by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and the University of British Columbia (UBC) in Canada, published in the journal Cell.

The results could be promising for the treatment of COVID-19 patients who are in the early stages of infection, according to the researchers.

"Our study provides new insights into how SARS-CoV-2 infects the cells of the body, including in blood vessels and kidneys," says Ali Mirazimi, adjunct professor at the Department of Laboratory Medicine at Karolinska Institutet and one of the study's corresponding authors. "We hope that our results can contribute to the development of a novel drug treatment that can help patients with COVID-19."

The researchers used tissue samples from a patient with COVID-19 to isolate and cultivate SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the disease COVID-19. In cell cultures, they were able to show how the spike protein in SARS-CoV-2 binds to a cell surface receptor called angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) in order to enter our cells. It is the same mechanism that the original SARS-virus from 2003 used to bind to our cells, and which has been described by several of the researchers in previous studies.

By adding a genetically modified variant of this protein, called human recombinant soluble angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hrsACE2), the researchers wanted to test if the virus could be stopped from infecting the cells.

The result now published shows that hrsACE2 reduced viral growth of SARS-CoV-2 by a factor of 1,000 to 5,000 in cell cultures. The result was dose dependent, meaning it varied depending on the total amount of virus in relation to the total amount of hrsACE2. The authors were also able to verify these data from regular cell cultures in engineered miniature replicas of blood vessels and kidneys, so-called organoids grown from human stem cells.

"We believe adding this enzyme copy, hrsACE2, lures the virus to attach itself to the copy instead of the actual cells," Mirazimi says. "It distracts the virus from infecting the cells to the same degree and should lead to a reduction in the growth of the virus in the lungs and other organs."

The research has so far been limited to cell cultures and engineered miniature organs, but the biotech company Aperion Biologics, which develops the drug APN01 with the active substance, is planning to conduct a clinical pilot study on infected COVID-19 patients in China. The same drug has already been tested against lung disease in a clinical phase II study.

The researchers note that the current study only examined the drug's effect during the initial stages of infection and that further research is needed to determine if it is also effective during later stages of disease development.

ACE2 usually helps lungs and other organs to maintain normal function but when viruses bind to the protein they could damage the cells. This could, according to the researchers, explain why some COVID-19 patients suffer severe lung disease and multi-organ failure.

With the help of the organoids, the researchers were also able to show that the virus can directly infect and multiply itself in blood vessels and kidneys. This provides important information on the development of the disease and the fact that severe cases of COVID-19 present with multi-organ failure and evidence of cardiovascular damage. hrsACE2 also reduced the SARS-CoV-2 infection in these engineered human tissues.

"The virus causing the COVID-19 is a close sibling to the first SARS virus," says Josef Penninger, professor in UBC's faculty of medicine and co-corresponding author of the study. "Our previous work has helped to rapidly identify ACE2 as the entry gate for SARS-CoV-2, which explains a lot about the disease. Now we know that a soluble form of ACE2 that catches the virus away, could indeed be a very rational therapy that specifically targets the gate the virus must take to infect us."

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The study was financed in part by the Swedish Research Council, the European Research Council and grants from Canada for COVID-19 research. Several of the researchers report conflict of interests, including Josef Penninger who is a founder and shareholder in Apeiron Biologics. Please see the study for a complete list.

Publication: "Inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 infections in engineered human tissues using clinical-grade soluble human ACE2," Vanessa Monteil, Heysoo Kwon, Patricia Prado, Reiner A. Wimmer, Martin Stahl, Alexandra Leopoldi, Elena Garreta, Carmen Hurtado del Pozo, Felipe Prosper, J.P. Romero, Gerald Wirnsberger, Haibo Zhang, Arthur S. Slutsky, Ryan Conder, Nuria Montserrat, Ali Mirazimi, Josef M. Penninger, Cell, online April 2, 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.04.004
The United States has begun repatriation of its stranded nationals, who want to return home, from India which is undergoing a 21-day lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus pandemic, a senior American diplomat has said.

"We began our repatriation efforts from India yesterday with a flight that brought in some 170-some US citizens," said Ian G. Brownlee, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs, US State Department.

"We will begin a steadier flow of flights out of New Delhi and Mumbai in the coming days, really beginning toward the end of this week and into the weekend. I am reluctant to get into specific numbers because these remain highly dynamic," he added.

The repatriation from India is part of the massive effort being undertaken by the US for its citizens from across the

The Trump administration had last month said that it is coordinating with the Indian government to evacuate stranded American citizens from the country, who have expressed interest to return to the US.

India has suspended all international flights from landing at any airport in the country in view to curb the further spread of the contagious virus that has infected 1,834 people in the country.

Meanwhile, the death toll from COVID-19 in the United States jumped by 884 over the past 24 hours, setting a new one-day record for the country, and taking the tally to 4757, as per the data compiled by the Johns Hopkins University on Wednesday evening (local time).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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Number 10 today abandoned the previous centralised testing approach of control freak health chiefs and urged the wider science industry to help boost capacity.

Matt Hancock tonight declared the UK will conduct 100,000 coronavirus tests a day by the end of the month as finally signalled a U-turn on the UK screening regime.

It came amid warnings 'time is running out' to scale up mass coronavirus testing to allow Britain to get a grip of the escalating crisis - which has killed almost 3,000 people.

The chief executive of one of the UK's leading laboratories urged the Prime Minister to summon the Dunkirk spirit and let 'small ship' labs start screening for the deadly infection spreading rampantly on British soil.

The Francis Crick Institute today announced it has started swabbing NHS staff at one trust and aims to ramp up to 500 per day by next week and expand to other overwhelmed hospitals across the capital.

Other smaller laboratories say they have volunteered to help with testing, too, among them the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University and the Jack Birch Cancer Research Unit in York.

Another - Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon - is testing local GP staff already and Cancer Research UK said it is also providing equipment and expert staff to help with swabbing Britons.

But scientists say there are dozens of laboratories in the UK that already have the equipment needed to process coronavirus tests, and that any 'self-respecting' facility would be equipped to start immediately.

So where are the little ships that are sailing to the rescue? And how many tests can they carry out every day?

The Francis Crick Institute (pictured inside, left and right) today announced it has started swabbing NHS staff at one trust and aims to ramp up to 500 per day by next week and expand to other overwhelmed hospitals across the capital

Francis Crick Institute, London

The Francis Crick Institute in King's Cross, London, has already started testing NHS staff from local hospitals and said it hopes to scale up to 2,000 tests per day

The Francis Crick Institute, a leading biomedical science lab in London, has already started using its facilities to test NHS staff from the University College London Hospitals NHS Trust.

It hopes to scale up to 500 tests per day by early next week with the ultimate aim of doing 2,000 every day - the equivalent of around 14,000 each week.

The institute - a partnership of leading charities and universities - will aim to provide results within 24 hours, to enable NHS staff to return to work as quickly as possible.

In comparison, only around 10,000 patients are being tested every day in Public Health England's centralised approach.

Sir Paul Nurse, director of the Crick, said: 'Testing is an essential part of the national effort to tackle the spread of COVID-19. We wanted to use our facilities and expertise to help support NHS staff on the front line who are battling this virus.

'Institutes like ours are coming together with a Dunkirk spirit  small boats that collectively can have a huge impact on the national endeavour.'

Cancer Research UK has scientists at the Crick Institute who are involved with carrying out the tests and is also using its staff and equipment around the country to help test medical workers so they can continue working on the frontline without fears they are spreading the infection.

Executive director of research at the charity, Iain Foulkes, said: 'They are providing desperately needed capacity at a time of national crisis, and testing NHS staff quickly so they can decide if they can return to their life-saving work.

'As a scientific research community, we need to beat the pandemic together  the sooner we do that the sooner our researchers can get back to beating cancer.'

Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford

The Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at the University of Oxford, which usually studies human diseases, said it has offered help to the Government but not been commissioned

Some scientists with the right facilities have already volunteered to help the government effort but not had their offers taken up.

Matthew Freeman, at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University, said in a tweet: 'We have many people experienced in PCR.'

The PCR machines examine DNA taken from a nose or throat swab to look for signs of viral genetic material (RNA) left behind by the coronavirus.

This is the kind of testing currently being used by Public Health England, which has eight of its own laboratories and access to 40 in NHS hospitals around the country.

Mr Freeman added: 'Wed love to help and have been trying to volunteer for weeks. Must be many university departments and institutes in similar position.

'I'd love to know more about why we cant be used. Would be interested to hear if others have been more successful in offering services.

'I understand how complex it is: quality control, biosafety, ethics... But can't help feeling that in an emergency these could have been sorted. Less complex than constructing a 5,000 bed hospital in two weeks.'

The department - famed for the development of penicillin - would normally use its machines to examine the minute workings of human infections and diseases.

Another lab at Oxford - the Butt Group, which studies genetics - added on Twitter: 'I echo this sense of frustration: we volunteered on day 1 and beyond being asked 3 times to list our expertise, have heard nothing.'

Marc Dionne, a researcher at Imperial College London, replied: 'Many from Imperial in the same position. I've heard that one of the personnel shortages now is not people capable of running PCR but people capable of directing them'.

Systems Biology Laboratory, Abingdon, Oxfordshire

Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, is already testing staff at local GP surgeries

Systems Biology Laboratory, a not-for-profit science company, has taken local matters into its own hands and is already testing staff at 14 GP surgeries in Oxfordshire twice a week.

The tests - it is doing around 100 per day, according to The Times - mean staff can continue to work safe in the knowledge that they don't have the coronavirus so aren't passing it on to patients.

Director of the lab, Mike Fischer, said he started buying the testing kits online around two weeks ago and they cost about 10 per time. He hopes to scale up to be able to do 800 tests every day.

Mr Fischer said the lab was also using PCR tests and had ordered another 15,000. It is unclear who they bought them from or how much they cost.

He said: 'I wouldnt be surprised if there are 1,000 labs like that. We actually have this incredibly valuable strategic resource distributed around the country.'

Although Mr Fischer doesn't have official approval as a testing centre he said the Government was aware of what he was doing and was 'supportive'.

Mr Fischer, who also co-founded the stock imagery company Alamy, said his team of five people could scale up tests to 500 each day once they have honed the process.

Jack Birch Cancer Research Unit, York

One of the founders of the Jack Birch Cancer Research Unit in York yesterday claimed the facility was capable of carrying out potentially thousands of tests every day

One of the founders of the Jack Birch Cancer Research Unit in York yesterday claimed the facility - which mainly focuses on studying bladder cancer - was capable of carrying out potentially thousands of tests every day.

Professor Colin Garner, who said the UK must take war-time measures to fight the outbreak, claimed 'every self-respecting laboratory will have the equipment to conduct hundreds, if not thousands, of these tests every day'.

In a call to action, he said: 'My understanding is that the UK is building a large testing centre in Milton Keynes. Why wait for this to be built when there are labs and people sitting idle around the UK who could conduct these tests now?'

Professor Garner urged the Government to create an immediate task force comprised of the university medical and bioscience sector, cancer research labs, pharma giants, the NHS and other bodies.

He said: 'Just as the government called for volunteers to help vulnerable people and got 750,000 people applying, they should now put out an immediate call to all UK lab scientists and enlist them in this national effort.'

'It is heart breaking that we are putting our medical front-line staff at risk when there is a national testing capability that could be used now.

'A centralised lab is not the answer. Regional labs should be created and all the above organisations enlisted... The UK has some of the best scientists and facilities in the world. Lets get them working to beat COVID-19.'

So who IS to blame for testing fiasco? Medical chief Chris Whitty and science adviser Patrick Vallance are in the firing line as Public Health England passes the buck insisting it has 'done its part'

The blame game for the coronavirus testing fiasco is in full swing today amid mounting fury at the failure to ramp up screening.

In the face of an outcry about the government response, Public Health England England effectively passed the buck saying it had 'done our part' to ensure checks were available for patients.

The intervention left fingers pointing at chief medical officer Chris Whitty and top science adviser Patrick Vallance over the lack of wide-scale community testing.

The UK is carrying out barely 10,000 a day compared to up to 100,00 in Germany, despite Boris Johnson admitting last night that mass screening is the way to ease the lockdown crippling the economy.

Downing Street admitted today that just 2,800 NHS staff have been checked at drive-through 'swab sites', despite claims tens of thousands are off work self-isolating for no reason.

Up until now the government has relied on PHE and NHS labs to conduct 'antigen' tests for who currently has the virus, apparently over concerns about reliability and standardisation.

However, Health Secretary Matt Hancock finally appealed for help from the wider industry last night, as numbers remained stubbornly low amid shortages of chemicals and swabs.

Business groups say firms have 'furloughed' half of their staff with concerns the government's bailout will need to be massively bigger than thought;

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator;

The ONS has revealed costs of cough and cold medication have risen by nearly 11 per cent over the last fortnight, amid fears of profiteering;

Fingers are pointing at chief medical officer Chris Whitty (right) and top science adviser Patrick Vallance (left) over the lack of wide-scale community testing

How the UK's testing shambles developed January 31: First confirmed cases in the UK are two Chinese nationals staying in York. February 21: Government experts conclude at a meeting that the disease is still only a 'moderate' threat to the UK. March 12: The UK shelves efforts to test and 'contact trace' everyone with symptoms on March 12, as the government's response moves from 'containment' into a 'delay' phase. Instead people who think they have the illness are urged to self-isolate unless their conditions became so severe they need medical help. March 16: Boris Johnson urges Britons to follow 'social distancing' guidelines as well as isolating when they have symptoms, in a change of policy after modelling found the death toll could be much higher than previously estimated. March 18: Amid growing criticism, the PM declares that there will be a big expansion of tests from under 5,000 a day to 25,000. March 21: Downing Street sends an email to research institutions begging for machines needed to process testing samples. No10 denies this was the first time it had raised the idea. March 28: Cabinet ministers Matt Hancock and Michael Gove hail news that the UK is now carrying out 10,000 tests a day. April 1: The UK finally hits 10,000 tests in a day. Ministers admit the target of 25,000 tests a day might not be reached for weeks. April 2: Ministers urge labs outside PHE and the NHS to get involved in ramping up test numbers. The Francis Crick Institute says there must be a 'small ships' approach emulating Dunkirk. PHE appears to pass the buck for the failings saying it has 'played our part'. Advertisement

Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, urged the PM to summon the Dunkirk spirit and let 'small ship' labs start screening for the killer disease.

Delivering a damning verdict on government's strategy and lack of 'preparation', he warned the country was 'running out of time' to get on top of the outbreak and capacity at research facilities was 'agile' enough to get round shortages of materials hampering the official effort.

Prof Whitty - who has not been seen for a week after going into self-isolation with symptoms - and Prof Vallance have repeatedly insisted the 'only thing worse than no test is a bad test'.

And one of Prof Whitty's deputy, Professor Jonathan Van Tam, risked stoking anger last night by dismissing testing as a 'side issue'.

'What matters is slowing the rate of new infections,' he told ITV's Peston.

'And the only way you can slow the rate of new infections, irrespective of whether they're tested or not, it's a bit of a side issue to be truthful with you, what's important is the social distancing, stopping people coming into contact, so that the rate of new cases slows.'

In a video released from his self-isolation in Downing Street last night, Mr Johnson admitted mass testing was the solution to the 'puzzle'. 'This is how we will defeat it in the end,' he said.

The Prime Minister's spokesman said today that in all, 10,412 coronavirus tests were carried out across the UK in NHS and Public Health England laboratories on Tuesday.

'We acknowledge that more needs to be done in relation to testing. We need to be testing more people and we need to be making progress very quickly,' he said.

The spokesman said that work was ongoing with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test which would show whether people have had the virus, but he said it was essential they were accurate.

'We are working as quickly as we can on that and as soon as a test is approved then we will announce it publicly,' he said.

He said the Government had previously been offered tests which had not met the required levels of accuracy 'and therefore would not have been safe to use'.

But Health minister Nadine Dorries - the first MP confirmed with the virus but now recovered - risked mixing the PM's message, tweeting: 'Testing, is not a cure, it won't cut the number of deaths, it won't make people feel better or stop them catching #coronavirus. it will only tell you if you have or have had it There is no cure.

'Tests will allow us to know who has antibodies and is immune/non contagious, but we don't yet know how long those anti bodies will last for. The best we can hope for is that it will allow workers to get back to work if they know they have had it and have antibodies to protect them.'

One senior MP told MailOnline that Mr Johnson was 'going to have to find someone to blame' for abandoning community testing, with public anger growing.

The number of coronavirus tests being done in the UK has been rising but only to around 10,000 per day - and the number of people being tested is about half as high because individuals are tested more than once. The Government is a long way off its 25,000-per-day target

'It really is the wrong decision. A bad decision,' they said. The MP said too often in PHE it was a case of 'nice title, get a gong, and move on'.

But Professor Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of PHE, appeared to pass the buck.

He said the organisation had 'played our part' by ensuring there were tests for people in hospital.

'We've played our part,' he said, 'which is to make absolutely certain that that testing is spread throughout Public Health England's laboratories, throughout NHS laboratories, is available to support the clinical treatment of patients who need it.'

He also told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Our role has always been to - and I speak from Public Health England - make sure our labs are doing what they need to do and we're rolling tests out to the NHS for clinical treatment of patients.

'There is some capacity that is available within that in order to start testing NHS staff and that's being done.

'You've heard about the 2,000 yesterday - nowhere near where we need to get to but it's a good start - and then there's the drive-through systems that are beginning.'

Asked why other testing facilities were not being used, Professor Cosford said PHE is most closely involved in NHS testing before adding: 'The second (strand) is how we can use all of those laboratories, all of that capacity, to boost up at least 100,000 tests a day, hopefully more.'

Professor Cosford said he would expect this work to be in place 'over the coming days and a small number of weeks'.

In a video released from his self-isolation in Downing Street last night, Boris Johnson said mass testing was the solution to the 'puzzle'

Downing Street had promised on March 16 that testing NHS workers was a 'key focus', yet a pilot scheme did not begin until last Friday, two weeks later.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Sir Paul said the Francis Crick Institute had realised 'two or three weeks ago' that 'testing of COVID-19 would be absolutely critical if the country was to successfully handle the crisis - particularly testing of NHS staff'.

He said the institute had 're-purposed' its laboratory for coronavirus tests, and was expecting to do up to 2,000 tests a day, with results available in less than 24 hours.

'We have been working around then clock over the last fortnight working with UCL Hospital and health service laboratories to produce a testing centre to be able to do that,' he said.

'We have created the testing centre. we now know we can operate at a national standard.

'Just after the weekend we expect to be at 500 a day, or 3,000 a week and we hope over the coming weeks to expand that to 2,000 a day.

'We hope that we can roll this out to other research institutes. Cancer Research UK... they are contacting their institutes so they can adopt the way we are operating.'

Sir Paul said there were a range of labs in the public sector - but outside PHE - that could be used.

Referring to the famous Second World War evacuation of UK forces from the French coast, he said: 'A metaphor here is Dunkirk, to be honest. We are a lot of little boats and the little boats can be effective.

'The government has put some bigger boats - destroyers - in place. that is a bit more cumbersome to get working and we wish them all the luck to do that. But we little boats can contribute as well.'

Sir Paul said the smaller labs were 'more agile' to deal with global shortages of reagents. 'We can make pipelines of reagents and chemicals,' he said.

'We can move faster to deal with issues. Of course we have supply chain problems but we can reduce them by being small and agile.'

Sir Paul said he did not want to be too critical of the government at this stage, but made clear that there would need to be a reckoning later.

Troops wade out to boats at Dunkirk as British forces were rescued from disaster at Dunkirk in the Second World War

Rescue boats makes their way across the Channel during the dramatic evacuation of Dunkirk

'We did our thing. We got going. They were focusing on what only they could do with the big ships. We just got on with it,' he said.

'The government may need to think more about its strategy but we are running out a bit of time.'

He added: 'We will need to think in the future, when we are through crisis, how best to manage things.., we were not sufficiently prepared. But now is the time to get our shoulder behind the wheel.'

Mr Hancock said he used a virtual meeting to launch a new challenge for industry to develop innovative solutions to overcome some of the main obstacles to scaling up capacity.

'Miracle of Dunkirk' saved Britain from disaster in 1940 In the spring of 1940, UK, French and Belgian forces were cut off and surrounded by the German military. Winston Churchill warned in the Commons that the 'root and core' of the British Army was trapped. But between May 26 and June 4, a huge flotilla of vessels, including fishing trawlers and merchant ships, helped ferry more than 330,000 personnel to the safety of UK shores. The 'Miracle of Dunkirk' sparked Churchill's stirring 'fight them on the beaches' speech. But although the scale and success of the rescue was epic, the then-PM was clear that it had not been a victory. Some 68,000 British soldiers were lost during the French campaign, and nearly all tanks, vehicles, and equipment were abandoned. Advertisement

'Testing is a crucial aspect of our coronavirus battleplan, and we are working day and night to increase our national testing capacity,' he said.

'I'm determined we must rise to this challenge as a country.

'So I've called together our pharmaceutical giants and testing specialists to call on them to build a scale of diagnostic capability never before seen in this country.

'It is a huge task but they know they have the have the full support of this Government as we work towards this common goal in the national interest, as part of our national effort to tackle coronavirus.

'Many companies are already working urgently to assist us in this and I'm delighted that so many more are looking to step up to this challenge.'

A warehouse at a Milton Keynes lab could be converted to process coronavirus swabs after days of delays.

The National Bioample Centre site could be the key to fixing Britain's testing fiasco after the Prime Minister pledged to massively increase swabbing. The centre - which was built for 24million in 2015 - would face a massive overhaul.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma told the daily Downing Street press briefing last night that the UK was looking to create lab-based testing which was the medical equivalent of building a car factory.

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is proposing a range of temporary 'stop gap' measures to offer quick support to users of some consumer credit products.

The proposed measures will be subject to a brief consultation ending at 9am on Monday April 6. If confirmed, they will be in place by Thursday April 9.

The plans include ensuring that for customers who have been hit financially by the coronavirus crisis and already have an arranged overdraft in place on their main personal current account, they will be charged zero interest on up to 500 of it for three months.

Alongside this, customers without an overdraft on their main personal current account can request this facility.
The FIR against The Wire editor Siddharth Varadarajan also mentioned his remark, questioning Adityanath's participation at a religious ceremony at the Ramjanmabhoomi site in Ayodhya during the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus.

Ayodhya: The Uttar Pradesh Police on Wednesday booked a senior journalist over comments on Twitter claiming that the day Tablighi Jamaat held its event in Delhi, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had insisted that a Ram Navami fair will take place as usual.

The FIR against The Wire editor Siddharth Varadarajan also mentioned his remark, questioning Adityanath's participation at a religious ceremony at the Ramjanmabhoomi site in Ayodhya during the nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of coronavirus.

In his statement, Varadarajan called the FIR "politically motivated".

The FIR referred to a tweet by Varadarajan which said, "On the day the Tablighi Jamaat event was held, Adityanath insisted a large Ram Navami fair planned for Ayodhya from 25 March to 2 April would proceed as usual and that 'Lord Ram would protect devotees from the coronavirus".

Later, the journalist tweeted, "I should clarify that it was Acharya Paramhans, Hindutva stalwart and head of the official Ayodhya temple trust, who said Ram would protect devotees from coronavirus, and not Adityanath, though he allowed a public event on 25/3 in defiance of the lockdown and took part himself."

Faizabad Kotwali police station in-charge Nitish Kumar Shrivastava registered an FIR under sections 188 (disobeying an order duly promulgated by public servant) and 505(2) (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code, saying he had made "disreputable" comment against the chief minister.

The founding editors of The Wire released the following statement on Twitter:

"We have to come to know through social media that an FIR has been registered under Section 188 and 505(2) of the IPC against The Wire by the UP Police in Faizabad."

"A bare perusal of the FIR shows that it is politically motivated and the offenses invoked are not even remotely made out. The registration of an FIR is a blatant attack on the freedom of the press."

"The government of Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh does not seem to have learned anything despite the strictures passed against it by the Supreme Court in June 2019 when the court ordered the release of the journalist Prashant Kanojia whom the state had illegally arrested. The right to liberty is a fundamental right and non-negotiable, the court had said."

"What the FIR says we have stated - that Chief Minister Adityanath attended a public religious event in Ayodhya on March 25 after the Prime Minister had announced a national lockdown to deal with the coronavirus challenge - is a matter of record."

The event was not open to the public but a small group of RSS and VHP functionaries was present, triggering Opposition's criticism that Adityanath had sent a wrong message by seemingly flouting lockdown guidelines.

Earlier, chief minister's media advisor Mritunjay Kumar had objected to Varadharajan's claim on Adityanath's alleged comment on Ram Navami celebrations.

"Do not try to spread lies. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had never said such a thing. Delete it immediately, otherwise, action will be taken and a case of defamation will also be imposed," Kumar tweeted.

"Along with the website, I will also have to ask for a donation to fight the case," Kumar said.

Later the media adviser said, "despite our warnings", Varadarajan did not remove the tweet nor apologise.
The ongoing restrictions due to Covid-19 are creating incredibly difficult circumstances for grieving families and undertakers, according to the director of a Dundalk funeral service business.

The COVID-19 crisis has brought many challenges within daily life, but one of the hardest impacts of the pandemic is the restrictions regarding a funeral service for a loved one.

Measures have included the limiting of presenting the deceased, to drastically decreasing the number of family members allowed to be present at such an emotional time.

Funeral services, according to Tony Shevlin of Shevlins Funeral Home in Dundalk, are so much more complicated at this time.

Were trying our best, this is completely different to what were used to, he says.

These measures have to be taken by undertakers present for the safety of themselves and also the family members in line with social distancing measures laid out by the government.

This involves the use of protective clothing and masks throughout the funeral process, before and after the service.

People get scared when they see us, says Tony, its terrifying people, but we are a small family company and if one of us gets it, we would have to close, which would put pressure on the other local undertakers.

Families have been finding it difficult to adjust to the new restrictions, explains the local undertaker, with only 10 people allowed to attend the funeral service for the safety of everyone involved.

There have been so many changes in the past two weeks, explaining the process when speaking to the families, but they do listen to the new guidelines.

The new guidelines have changed the usual community gathering and spirit that is present at many funeral services.

Speaking to the Democrat, Gerard Quinn of Quinn Funeral Homes, added: What we do in relation to honouring a life is so much based on community support and sharing, this present situation is the antithesis of that which the Irish are celebrated for.

The current restrictions are curtailing the traditional wake and ceremonies, with many families seeking alternative methods to celebrate the life of someone who was central to their lives.

Family members have been impacted by the restrictive spacing guidelines and in regards to the burial process, Tony Shevlin explained that funeral transportation with numerous cars has had to cease operation with no more than two people allowed into the one car with the undertaking staff, again for the safety of all parties involved.

In relation to funeral masses, Tony feels, however, that it is important to acknowledge the hard work of the members of local clergies in adjusting to the current guidelines set out by the government.

The clergy are going out of their way in a very difficult situation. There is serious pressure on younger priests as older people are being encouraged to cocoon at this time.
Doctors and hospitals overwhelmed in the pandemic will have to make their excruciating life-or-death decisions meticulously or they risk being second-guessed by a jury when the onslaught is over.

Lawyers who defend health care providers are already giving advice on how their clients can avoid liability if theyre forced to choose between patients. How they prepare for this battlefield triage now  and how they practice it in the chaos of peak infections  will determine whether negligence cases against them are dismissed or lead to trials or settlements over the death of a parent or spouse.

The key, in my opinion, is to have clear written policies that do not discriminate or single out certain types of patients based on age, gender, race or any of those unlawful, suspect criteria, said Nick Oberheiden, who represents doctors in malpractice litigation.

Governors and medical experts have warned that the U.S. doesnt have enough ventilators, masks and other resources to keep struggling patients alive and check the spread of the virus in the nations 6,000 hospitals. As many as 200,000 Americans could die, Dr. Anthony Fauci estimated on Sunday.

Oberheiden said hes telling clients theyll need written documentation of all decisions, including efforts to help those who are ultimately denied lifesaving care. And even though older patients are less likely to survive Covid-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, hospital triage plans shouldnt single out that factor, he said.

Where its done correctly, its not simply the age, Oberheiden said. Its more objective medical criteria.

Health care providers may prioritize patients without underlying conditions who are likeliest to make a full recovery, but theres no national standard for triage. The question of withholding or withdrawing ventilators from the sickest patients is so charged that medical experts have encouraged providers to develop their own guidelines. Like the U.S. pandemic response itself, its largely a state-by-state and, to some extent, hospital-by-hospital patchwork.

There is an established standard of care in the industry, however, and providers could be accused of breaching their duty to patients by violating it and of negligence for failing to have enough ventilators on hand, for example.

Its a tough case to make in a pandemic.

I would expect hospitals to argue that their obligations are to make sure they have adequate equipment in ordinary times, not in pandemic times, and that seems quite persuasive to me, said I. Glenn Cohen, a bioethics expert at Harvard Law School.

New protocols lay out how to ration ventilators to save the most lives in the outbreak, Cohen and others wrote Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. But a plaintiff could still claim that the hospital bungled the triage or hadnt planned properly for an outbreak, raising further questions for the courts.

Something like that happened after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Tenet Healthcare Corp. agreed in 2011 to pay $25 million to settle a class action by the families of dozens of patients who perished in a Tenet facility in New Orleans. The plaintiffs said the company had failed to prepare adequately for the storm.

In the wake of the pandemic, providers may be accused of failing to foresee a crisis that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and others have warned was inevitable, said Carmel Shachar, executive director of the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy at Harvard Law School. Thats especially so after the recent drumbeat of outbreaks from SARS to swine flu to Ebola.

Rachel Seifert, the general counsel of Community Health Systems from 1998 to 2017, said hospitals shouldnt be held liable amid a national shortage of critical equipment. Even so, she added, they need to be fastidious about the triage plans they are fashioning or refining as they brace for the first big wave of bad Covid-19 cases.

The wording of a memo about how to make those difficult or impossible decisions based on the likelihood of survival would be a difficult exhibit in a wrongful-death case, Seifert said. If written at all, it should be written very carefully and vetted by lawyers and risk managers.

Partly with this in mind, hospitals are preparing to allocate limited resources to patients, including time with doctors and nurses and access to ventilators, said Allison Hoffman, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania who specializes in health care law and policy. Sticking to the playbook and applying its standards consistently can help protect health care providers in court, she said.

At the same time, Hoffman said, theyre tying to look at what is reasonable and customary in uncharted territory.

Health care lawyer George Indest said hes confident of his clients position.

Every hospital out there has a mass casualty plan for a plane crash or a tornado or something like 9/11, he said, referring to Joint Commission standards, and conducts regular drills on who to pass on, who to send to another facility, who to put aside until later. Its probably just never been expected that something of this nature would happen.

Triage policies should spell out which types of patients get access to which resources when a hospital is rationing in a crisis, Harvards Shachar said. That means allocating services without discrimination and based on urgency, because thats what judges and juries will ultimately be able to understand, even in the face of grieving plaintiffs, she said.

On Saturday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights fired off a bulletin warning that persons with disabilities should not be denied medical care on the basis of stereotypes, assessments of quality of life, or judgments about a persons relative worth based on the presence or absence of disabilities or age.

Hospitals and doctors are focused on care right now, as they should be, said Sean Zabaneh, a lawyer with Duane Morris LLP in Philadelphia who represents them in court.

Still, he said, they should be making sure they have insurance coverage in place that is applicable to the new circumstances that are becoming more normal every day as a result of the pandemic, and staying up to date on the quickly evolving legal standards and legislation. Lawmakers could pass legislation to protect health care providers that adhere to the standard of care, he added.

Litigation by families of those who lose out in triage is only a matter of time, said health care attorney Andrew Wachler. He said he expects such lawsuits to be filed shortly after the contagions peak.

With assistance from Lydia Wheeler, Emma Court and Michelle Fay Cortez.

About the photo: Doctors test people with flu-like symptoms for coronavirus in tents set-up to triage possible COVID-19 patients outside the main Emergency area at St. Barnabas hospital in the Bronx on March 24, 2020.

Copyright 2022 Bloomberg.
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Linkedin Josa Lukman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:03 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f2d71a 1 Art & Culture Performance,Asita-Kaladewa,jagongan,performance-art,pantomime,arts-and-culture,play,acting Free

At a time when everyone is staying home, Padepokan Seni Bagong Kussudiardja (PSBK) has transitioned its monthly shows so it is just one click away.

Founded by the late choreographer and painter Bagong Kussudiardja, PSBK is now streaming its Jagongan Wagen monthly series  except for the Islamic fasting month of Ramadhan  on the the performing arts group's official YouTube channel, Media PSBK.

PSBKs second show of the 2020 series, which started in February, highlights the art of pantomime with Nafas Nafsu (Breath of Lust).

Pantomime performances are a rarity in Indonesia, and the word would prompt most to think of comical street performers in a black-and-white striped shirt a la Marcel Marceau.

While pantomime theater involves comedic conventions like slapstick and wordplay, some productions take on themes and theatrical interpretations of a more serious nature. Nafas Nafsu is one of these.

Live rehearsal: Japanese mime artist Naoki Nagai (right) works with Kudus-born Asita Kaladewa during a rehearsal for 'Nafas Nafsu', to which he contributed dramaturgy and music. (Padepokan Seni Bagong Kussudiardja/-)

Starring in the production is Asita Kaladewa, a Kudus-born mime artist from Central Java and co-founder of Bengkel Mime Theatre.

Dramaturgy and music are the responsibility of Naoki Nagai, a Japanese mime artist who studied at the Tokyo Mime Institute and was a one-time lecturer at Showa Music Academy.

Despite the rather risque title, Nafas Nafsu is born of Asitas relationship with nature: on the one hand, the artist's idea of an ideal life was to be one with nature, but on the other, modern life required practical solutions that kept him from nature.

To create Nafas Nafsu, Asita revisited four pieces in his repertoire that explored human beings' relationship with nature  Berburu Serangga (Bug Hunting), Sesak (Suffocated), Tanjung Harapan (Bay of Hope), and Fish  and reinterpreted them into four "acts": Target, Fisherman, Menunggu (Waiting) and Trapped.

Nafas Nafsu opens with Target, with starts relatively simply with hand movements set to cheery instrumental music. Then, the camera zooms out, the music comes to a halt, and Asita proceeds with a more distinct storyline that is apparent through his movements.

The first act, appropriately named, sees Asita aiming at an invisible target, one that he goes to great lengths to shoot. Depending on interpretation, Asita could be either a photographer or a marksman, but this is left ambiguous with the absence of narration.

The second act is Fisherman, during which the sound of rolling waves accompanies Asita as he works on an imaginary net. He mimes every aspect of a fishermans life on the open seas, from rowing to responding to what could be seagulls circling in the skies above.

Fisherman is much calmer and almost transcendental, as viewers can see even the smallest, almost dainty hand movements. Surrounded by darkness, Asita looks for the most part as if he is dancing in the void, interspersed with the interpretive gestures of the fisherman and segments that hint at underwater life.

Act three, Menunggu, sees Asita sitting alone on a bench, taking an almost comical persona with Mr. Bean-esque mannerisms and facial expressions, accompanied by jazzy strings.

The storyline is much clearer in this act, with an obvious plot that showcases Asitas comedic and acting chops as he switches from zany, fast-paced comedy to an almost melancholic tone in close proximity of the lens.

The last of the four acts is Trapped, which features a clear caricature of modern-day white-collar workers.

Set to rhythmic tapping, Asita goes through familiar motions from the morning commute, to taking phone calls while typing away, and to going on a lunch break.

Trapped is notable for its looping repetitiveness, which might be the whole point. It starts out with what appears to be a good day, with the character happily going about his routine, but the tapping becomes faster with each repeated cycle, while the movements become more frantic.

By the third cycle, Asita seems to portray all us office workers after a certain point in life, just going through the motions robotically. The act ends with a shot of Asitas clenched fists with the rhythmic tapping increasingly sounding like the ticking of a clock, perhaps signifying that time is running out.

Daily grind: Asita Kaladewa performs in "Trapped", the final act in the four-act 'Nafas Nafsu' that appears to be a commentary on the monotonous routine of modern-day white-collar workers. (Padepokan Seni Bagong Kussudiardja/-)

While attending a live show has certain charms that cannot be replicated on video, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it impossible to attend events outside the home.

Still, there are some benefits to watching a streaming performance: you can rewind or replay if you are distracted from the show by something else. The camerawork also serves to highlight specific parts of a scene, making sure that every shot is viewed as the artists intended.

Executive director Jeannie Park of the Bagong Kussudiardja Foundation  the non-profit organization behind PSBK  said that even though it had taken a hit from the pandemic like many other arts groups, the role of the arts in serving humanity was more imperative now than ever before.

Not only in producing important art that will benefit from the outburst of engagements after a period of social distancing, but a culture that enables society to protect the health and safety of others with compassion, and to build a sustainable future, Park said in a statement.

The question is whether the essence of the performance can successfully reach the audience, remotely or otherwise.

Asita initially had his own reservations about the change in medium, noting that he had envisioned Nafas Nafsu to be enjoyed in a live theatrical setting so the audience could feel what he felt in the shared environment.

Based on the numbers alone, the show can be hailed as a success, with views well exceeding the 150-seat PSBK theater, at more than 940 for both the closed-caption and unsubtitled versions to date and rising by the day.

As for viewer responses, the comments section is full of nothing but positivity, with many praising PSBK for its initiative as well as Asitas expressive performance.

In the journey, the artists ego is of course very prominent, so when I heard that the performance would be postponed, I had to start compromising, Asita remarked.

Of course it stung a little, but I then questioned why I, in developing this body of work, was able manage my feelings and not in the real world. But it's fine, creativity can still run and it turned out to be an unexpected surprise, he said.
It may not feel like it, but Easter is just around the corner.

Last year, about 80% of Americans planned to celebrate the holiday, according to the National Retail Federation. In 2019, most people said they planned to spend the day with family and friends and cook a holiday meal.

This year, social distancing practices designed to help stop the spread of the coronavirus pandemic mean large gatherings are off the table for most.

But people may still want to cook for themselves or their families.

"We are likely to see people still wanting to commemorate Easter in some way," said Katherine Cullen, senior director of industry and consumer insights for the National Retail Federation's research team. She noted that the 80% figure has generally held steady "regardless of where consumer confidence is."

That's good news for the food companies and retailers that typically get a boost in sales around the holiday. This year, they're trying to make sure that shoppers are able to get traditional Easter foods, despite the tumultuous time. Still, shoppers may have to plan further ahead than usual or spend a little more.

Here's what to expect if you plan to cook at home this Easter.

Ham

For Honey Baked Ham, Easter is an important time.

"Easter is one of our highest selling volumes times of the year," Jo Ann Herold, the company's chief marketing officer, told CNN Business in an email. She added that "demand remains positive for our retail products including ham and turkey."

This year, Honey Baked is offering $10 off to customers who pick up their hams from stores between April 3 and April 8, ahead of the April 12 holiday.

"We are extending what is typically a 3-day high-volume period to span over 8 days," explained Dan McAleenan, senior vice president of store operations. By spreading the shopping period out, Honey Baked hopes to reduce crowding in stores. It's also offering delivery via Uber Eats, limiting the amount of customers who can enter stores, holding special hours for senior citizens and taking other measures to try to keep customers and employees safe.

Meat producer Smithfield Foods is also taking steps to ensure that shoppers are able to get ham this Easter.

The company has added more than 13 million pounds of bone-in and spiral hams this year to meet customer demand, John Pauley, the company's chief commercial officer of packaged meats, told CNN Business in an email.

He added that the company is also shipping out hams earlier than usual to make sure they arrive on time and working with its retail partners to make sure hams are available online and for pickup.

Eggs

A surge in demand for eggs has sent prices through the roof in recent weeks. To keep up with the shopping frenzy, retailers ordered more eggs than usual, depleting egg producers' Easter supply.

Farmers can't instruct their hens to lay more eggs to meet a sudden rush on eggs. But that doesn't mean that customers won't be able to find eggs this Easter.

Some institutional egg buyers, like restaurants or cafeterias, are closed. That means that some of those eggs could be redirected to grocery store shelves.

"It does look like the supply side is starting to catch up a little bit," said Brian Moscogiuri, director and egg analyst at Urner Barry, a commodity market research firm, adding that "prices are finally starting to stabilize."

Plus, people who stocked up on eggs a few weeks ago might not come back for more now. "Consumers have a lot of inventory in their own refrigerators," he said. Because of that, producers "likely won't need that same Easter inventory that they were projecting."

But, Moscogiuri warned, "we could still see a run on eggs."

Shoppers should still be able to find eggs for Easter, but they might be pricey. And customers might not be able to buy as much as they want. Some retailers have been limiting sales of eggs to prevent more hoarding. Others might raise prices, either because they're paying more for eggs or to try to ration supply, noted Moscogiuri.

Peeps

Easter is particularly important for niche candy manufacturers, said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail, a research and consulting firm.

"It's really important for Peeps," he said, because the colorful marshmallow chicks and bunnies are so tightly linked with Easter. Other candy makers, like Hershey or Mars, sell their products throughout the year and on holidays like Halloween and Valentine's Day.

Although people tend to buy perishable food items like ham or eggs just a few days before holidays, they may shop for more shelf-stable goods, like chocolate, ahead of time. And because candy sellers tend to extend their seasons as much as possible, shoppers have been seeing Easter candy on shelves since February.

Under these circumstances, that's an advantage  especially for Peeps maker Just Born, which has temporarily closed its production facilities in Pennsylvania.

"Thankfully, all of our production was pretty much done, already shipped and on its way to retailers even before the plant closed," said Matt Pye, senior vice president of sales and marketing.

Just Born makes more than two billion Peeps a year, he said, and most of them are for Easter. It also makes Mike And Ike, Hot Tamales and Goldenberg's Peanut Chews. The company expects to make most of its Easter Peeps sales right around now.

"The two weeks before any holiday, especially for candy, are the most important," Pye said.

This year, sales are down up to 12% compared to last year, according to national retailers who sell Peeps, said Pye. That could be because Easter is earlier this year than last, which means there's a shorter shopping period between Valentine's Day  the most recent big candy holiday  and Easter.
Female eggs exposed to THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, have an impaired ability to produce viable embryos, and are significantly less likely to result in a viable pregnancy, according to an animal study accepted for presentation at ENDO 2020, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting. The abstract will be published in the Journal of the Endocrine Society.

Marijuana, or cannabis, is the most commonly used recreational drug by people of reproductive age. The rise in marijuana use has occurred at the same time that THC percentages in the drug have increased. "Currently, patients seeking infertility treatments are advised against cannabis use, but the scientific evidence backing this statement is weak," said Master student Megan Misner, part of the research laboratory led by Laura Favetta, Ph.D., in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Guelph in Canada. "This makes it difficult for physicians to properly advise patients undergoing in vitro fertilization."

In the new study, researchers treated cow oocytes, or female eggs, with concentrations of THC equivalent to therapeutic and recreational doses. The oocytes were collected and matured into five groups: untreated, control, low THC, mid THC and high THC.

The eggs' developmental rates and gene expression were measured. The researchers evaluated the ability of embryos to reach critical stages of development at specific time points. With higher concentrations of THC, they found a significant decrease and delay in the ability of the treated oocytes to reach these checkpoints.

This is a key indicator in determining the quality and developmental potential of the egg." Megan Misner, University of Guelph

THC exposure led to a significant decrease in the expression of genes called connexins, which are present at increased levels in higher quality oocytes. Poorer quality oocytes, with lower connexin expression levels, have been shown to lead to a poorer embryo development. "This embryo would be less likely to proceed past the first week of development, and thus lead to infertility," Misner said.

Preliminary data also showed THC affected the activity of a total of 62 genes in the treatment groups compared with the non-treated groups. "This implies lower quality and lower fertilization capability, therefore lower fertility in the end," she said.
The Kano State Government has opened an online registration portal for volunteer medical and health workers to assist in the fight against the spread of coronavirus.

The Public Relations Officer in the state Ministry of Health, Hadiza Namadi, said this in Kano on Thursday in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Mrs Namadi said the state government invited the volunteers for screening, which began on Wednesday, but the venue was overcrowded due to huge turnout.

In an effort to ease the overcrowding of the designated venue of the screening, the state launched an online registration to ease the hardship. the statement said.

The volunteer medical health professionals needed include doctors, community health extension workers, nurses and community health officers.

READ ALSO:

Other volunteers needed include laboratory technicians and scientists, pharmacists and pharmaceutical technicians, environmental health officers as well as environmental health assistants.

The volunteers are expected to be residents of Kano.

The link for the registration is www.kanostate.gov.ng/volunteers.

(NAN)
To the Editor:

Re The Ventilators Were on Order. They Still Are (front page, March 30):

What a heartbreaking story, exposing tragic errors caused by the fundamental weakness in our national health care system. And today we are still making the same mistake.

The states and the federal government are in a bidding war for the old-style, expensive, difficult-to-operate ventilators. The invocation of the Defense Production Act is a step forward, but the contracted automakers may not start providing this vital equipment until late April. By then, many thousands will have died unnecessarily.
Wartime leadership involves, most crucially, two things. The first is steely honesty in the face of grim facts. My company commander modeled this for me in his response to the estimate of 70 percent casualties within our ranks. He gathered the officers and staff noncommissioned officers. He told us that he didnt know whether the 70 percent figure was accurate but that we should assume it was. He also told us that it didnt matter. We had a job to do, and our competence in doing it was the only way to keep that figure down.

The second component of wartime leadership is affirming the capabilities of those you lead. The senior enlisted Marine in our division, a sergeant major and 30-year Marine veteran, excelled at this. Two days before the battle, he addressed a large group of us who were headed into the assault. He reminded us that we were part of a legacy stretching back to battles in the Argonne Forest in World War I, to Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima in World War II, to Hue City in Vietnam and up to this very day. He placed the battle we were about to fight in a broader context. We were Marines, he affirmed, a link in a chain. As those who came before us did, wed rise to our challenge.

Mr. Trump seems as though he is coming to terms with the facts on the ground. In his press briefing on Tuesday he was more sober and direct than he has been at any time during the crisis, acknowledging an estimate provided by Dr. Anthony S. Fauci and Dr. Deborah L. Birx of a death toll from 100,000 to 240,000 Americans. I want every American to be prepared for the hard days that lie ahead, Mr. Trump said. Were going to go through a very tough two weeks.

In fact, the struggle against this pandemic will last far longer than two weeks. If Mr. Trump aspires to a legacy as a wartime president, he must dispense with the equivocations and rosy predictions that have characterized his administrations response to the coronavirus pandemic. He has to deal with the American people honestly, be straight with us about the facts of this crisis while affirming that were completely capable of rising to any challenge as a nation. From Sept. 11 to Pearl Harbor and back to our nations founding, Americans know how to come together. E pluribus unum: Its in our DNA. Its also embroidered on the flag behind the presidents desk if he cares to look.

This was one of the lessons I learned in Falluja. The night before the battle, when I brought my platoon together for a last-minute pep talk, Id benefited from the example of my company commander and the sergeant major. Standing by the trucks that would drive us to our jumpoff point, the platoon gathered in the headlights. And I knew exactly what to say. I didnt tell them I hoped the casualty figures wed heard were low or that I had a hunch the battle wouldnt last too long. Instead, I told the Marines that I didnt know what was going to happen when we entered the city. I told them that didnt matter. We knew one another and could rely on one another. That would be enough.
Former Guam radio and marketing executive Evan Montvel-Cohen could be released from the Department of Corrections if the U.S. Probation Office is able to secure a phone line at his residence so he could be placed on home monitoring.

Montvel-Cohen, who pleaded not guilty to aggravated identity theft and wire fraud, appeared via teleconference before Magistrate Judge Michael Bordallo of the District Court of Guam. He faces up to two years in prison if convicted.

"If there is home monitoring then I will consider releasing you," said Bordallo.

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The detention hearing was continued for Monday to allow probation time to find out if home monitoring is currently an option.

Defense Attorney Brianna Kottke told the court the biggest concern with keeping Montvel-Cohen in prison is his health.

"There is no risk of flight. The FBI has his passport. There is not many planes, trains, boats or other things leaving the island right now given the current COVID-19 situation," said Kottke. "He just recently got open heart surgery. He was headed to Manila for a follow-up appointment. Since incarceration, he hasn't received medication for his serious heart condition. He has not been getting emphysema medication. Given the scary situation with COVID-19, jail is not appropriate given that he is a very high-risk situation."

She said releasing him would also allow him to continue to provide services to his clients through his advertising firm, C2 Social.

'A con man and serious fraudster'

However, Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin Petersburg told the court Montvel-Cohen does present a significant flight risk.

"He was arrested at the airport on his way to Manila. His traveling companion told investigators that they were going to Vietnam," said Petersburg.

The federal prosecutor told the court that the defendant is also subject to numerous lawsuits, is going through a contentious divorce case, recently sold significant assets  a vehicle  for cash, and has been bouncing around to different hotels.

"The crime involved fraud and deceit," he said. "His character is a con man and serious fraudster. ... Agents also reviewed bank accounts linked to him, and between September 2017 to July 2019 there were bounced checks, bounced wire transfers that totaled $1.7 million."

Petersburg added that if the court were to release him from custody that it be through a combination of cash bond and to a third-party custodian or location monitoring.

The alleged scam

Court documents allege Montvel-Cohen offered a man a job at C2 Social in the summer of 2019. The man, a retired Navy corpsman, provided personal information to Montvel-Cohen and made plans to relocate his family from Florida to Guam for work.

Montvel-Cohen sent the man a check to move out to Guam, but the check bounced during his travels.

The man backed out of the Guam job. Montvel-Cohen was then accused of using the man's personal information to rent a house in Tamuning and leaving the rent unpaid.
The religious retreat that sparked India's major coronavirus manhunt The spread of coronavirus disease in Nizamuddin area of New Delhi

By Devjyot Ghoshal, Aftab Ahmed and Alasdair Pal

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - It was late on Sunday night when officials in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh received the alert. Federal authorities said they needed to track down more than 1,000 people linked to a large Muslim missionary gathering nearly 2,000 km away in the capital New Delhi.

Authorities in Andhra Pradesh, a region of about 50 million people, used cell phone towers, government databases and even village volunteers over the next five days to find almost everyone on the list -- from attendees to the people they had been in close contact to fellow travellers.

The search is part of a nationwide manhunt for thousands of people linked to an outbreak of coronavirus at the headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat group in a cramped corner of New Delhi, which is propelling a surge of cases in India, the worlds second most populous country after China.

We have almost tracked everybody, a senior Andhra Pradesh health official told Reuters.

Authorities have found and quarantined 9,000 people connected to the headquarters or their close contacts, Indias federal interior ministry said on Thursday. Officials from at least three states said they were looking for hundreds more linked to the Nizamuddin Markaz building, which serves as a hostel and center for missionary workers from all over the world.

The outbreak is the largest cluster reported in India, according to federal and state health department data. It presents a major challenge to the country of 1.3 billion people, where high population density and a rudimentary public health system risk undermining the fight against the disease that has killed tens of thousands of people worldwide.

With authorities concerned the outbreak has spread the virus across India, the incident has fanned communal tensions just weeks after Hindu-Muslim riots in the capital killed more than 50 this year.

More than 450 coronavirus cases and at least eight deaths have now already been linked to Tablighi Jamaat in India, according to data from state governments.

Story continues

That accounts for about a fifth of the more than 2,000 infections reported by Indias federal health ministry, which has said there have been 53 deaths. More than 950,000 infections have been reported globally, according to a Reuters tally.

The group also held big gatherings in February and March that led to a mass outbreaks in Malaysia and Pakistan, respectively, according to officials in those countries.

A spokesman for the Tablighi Jamaat group, Mujeeb ur Rehman, denied that the headquarters was a big source of Indias coronavirus cases: India by then had already hundreds of cases. So, it will be wrong to say that Markaz was a major source of outbreak in the country.

CRAMPED CONDITIONS

Tablighi Jamaat is an orthodox Islamic missionary movement with members across the world. Thousands of people from across Asia and elsewhere gather at its global headquarters in New Delhis densely-populated Nizamuddin West neighbourhood famous for its Sufi shrines and kebab stalls.

The six-story building includes large halls where prayers are held and sermons delivered. At night, it turns into sleeping quarters for 200-300 people on each floor, said one attendee from West Bengal state, who said he attends courses there twice a year and gave only his first name.

On March 13, two weeks after the group held a meeting in Malaysia that emerged as a source of hundreds of coronavirus cases across Southeast Asia, Tablighi Jamaats members gathered in New Delhi, including nearly 200 Indonesians and Malaysians, according to two top Tablighi leaders interviewed by Reuters.

The headquarters typically hosts between 2,000-4,000 people on most days, with events scheduled at least a year in advance, the two leaders said.

"We have a transparent system and we respect the rules of the country," one of the leaders said.

On March 16, Delhi's Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a ban on all gatherings of more than 50 people, except weddings, in an effort to contain the outbreak.

But the Tablighi leaders said their headquarters remained open for several days until Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a one-day citizen's curfew on March 22.

A New Delhi-wide lockdown began on March 23, followed by a national one starting March 25.

The group said it was able to move out around 1,500 people before the countrywide lockdown came into force, but that hundreds remained stranded inside. "After the lockdown was announced, it was impossible to further vacate the Markaz," one of the Tablighi leaders said.

Mujeeb ur Rehman, the groups spokesman, confirmed that a conference was held between March 13 and 15. He added that most foreign attendees had arrived weeks before the event.

MASSIVE MANHUNT

Indian officials first became concerned about the groups Nizamuddin Markaz headquarters around March 18 after Indonesians linked to the group tested positive for COVID-19  the disease caused by coronavirus - in the southern state of Telangana, according to a government source and an interior ministry letter dated March 28 reviewed by Reuters.

By March 21, India's interior ministry sent details of the group's foreign and Indian workers to all state governments to trace and test them, the ministry said in a statement.

At that time, officials estimated the group's headquarters housed about 1,750 people, including 216 foreigners, the ministry statement said. Another 2,100 Indian and 800 foreign workers were scattered around the rest of the country.

About 370 people travelled from Tablighi Jamaats headquarters to Andhra Pradesh, according to a state government note reviewed by Reuters.

To locate them and people they had been in contact with - totaling more than 1,000 people in all - authorities fed names into multiple databases, including taxpayer lists, to find local addresses, the senior health official said. Then, police officers, municipal officials and village-level volunteers helped to track them down, the official added. A team of up to about 1,5000 people was involved in the whole process.

The government note, drafted on March 31, said state authorities had identified 1,321 people with the help of health officials, police and Indian railways.

In the western state of Maharashtra, police and health department officials used cell phone numbers to try to find around 1,400 attendees, a senior health department official said. The state has so far found 1,300 of them, Maharashtras Health Minister Rajesh Tope said.

COMMUNAL TENSIONS

Early this week, health officials began clearing the building of people and taking them to quarantine facilities in the capital. Guarded by paramilitary police, some clutched prayer beads as they were loaded onto buses. Delhi's Health Minister Satyendra Jain said authorities moved 2,335 people.

But cases linked to the Nizamuddin Markaz have already been reported from as far away as the Himalayan Kashmir region in the far north to the remote Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the east and the rugged northeastern state of Assam, according to interviews with local officials and public data.

In Kashmir, a conference attendee who returned from Delhi on March 16, died 10 days later, becoming the first recorded fatality from the event, local officials said. Authorities in Kashmir are now monitoring more than 2,000 people who may have come into contact with those who tested positive after attending the Markaz, the officials said.

In the southern state of Tamil Nadu, 263 people - or about 85% of all coronavirus cases recorded in the state - are people who traveled to the Markaz, officials said on Thursday.

The case has also re-opened communal fault-lines in India, after months of the deadliest Hindu-Muslim riots to sweep through the capital city in decades.

On Wednesday, the Vishva Hindu Parishad, a hardline Hindu group linked to Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, demanded stricter action against Tablighi Jamaat, describing their Delhi base as the "epicentre of (the) COVID-19 quake in India." And anti-Muslim content and "#CoronaJihad" has been trending on social media in India as the sheer extent of the outbreak became apparent.

In Sarai Kale Khan, a religiously mixed neighbourhood bordering Nizamuddin, a group of men wielding sticks have barricaded the entrance to the area, trying to prevent people from entering.

"We will stay here until the government tells us it's safe," said one of the men, Ayush Vashishta. "There used to be a lot of contact. Now nobody can come."

(Reporting by Devjyot Ghoshal, Aftab Ahmed and Alasdair Pal in New Delhi, additional reporting by Sanjeev Miglani in New Delhi, Rupam Nair in Mumbai, Fayaz Bukhari in Srinagar, Sudarshan Varadhan in Chennai, Sumit Khanna in Ahmedabad, Zarir Hussain in Guwahati, Subrata Nagchoudhury in Kolkata and Saurabh Sharma in Lucknow; Editing by Euan Rocha and Cassell Bryan-Low)
Swedish music streaming app Spotify has launched Spotify Kids for the users in the US, Canada and France

Like YouTube Kids, everything in Spotify Kids is curated to ensure songs are kid-friendly, the company said in a statement.

We are constantly working on ways to make the Kids experience even better, and we had the opportunity to take into consideration the ideas and feedback from parents who have already used the app with their kids, it added.

There are more than 8,000 songs and 125 playlists available with additional content such as stories from family-friendly companies like Disney, Nickelodeon and Kidz Bop.

The app also touts educational content for kids, including a playlist hub called Learning which features songs that teach kids about counting, the ABCs, science and more.

For the US market, Spotify is offering a multi-genre, multi-cultural music mix.

Spotify Kids was originally in beta in Ireland, before being slowly released to countries like Sweden, Australia and Mexico.

The Spotify Kids app is available to download for free on the App Store for iPhone and iPad.
The PepsiCo Foundation announced Thursday the largest grant in its 62-year history  a $45 million program that includes 50 million nutritious meals for at-risk people amid the coronavirus outbreak, distributed by food banks and other partners around the world.

The state of play: Among the recipients are students whose schools are closed. Meals have already been shipped to Alaska, the Bronx, the Chickasaw Nation in Oklahoma, and many other places, a company official told Axios.

PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Ramon Laguarta said in a statement: "Food is at the heart of what PepsiCo does."
Youve probably seen people hiding in the bushes and wearing all kinds of silly disguises in order to go outside without being stopped by police, but now you can add faking death to the list of things people have resorted to in order to circumvent the coronavirus lockdown.

Just like Italy, India imposed nationwide lockdown from last Wednesday to fight the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, which left many citizens stranded hundreds of kilometers away from home, with no way to return. That was the case of Hakim Din, a 70-year-old villager from Poonch, in Indias disputed Kashmir region. He was being treated for a minor head injury at a hospital in Jammu, a few hundred kilometers away from home, when the lockdown was enforced, and he started looking for ways to get back. When an ambulance driver suggested that he play dead in order to get past the checkpoints, he jumped at the opportunity.

Photo: Pixabay

According to Poonch Superintendent of Police, Ramesh Angral, Din and three others managed to get past several control checkpoints by lying perfectly still under white covers. The ambulance driver also mislead authorities by showing them a fake death certificate from the hospital. However, at the last checkpoint before they reached home, the ambulance was stopped and the dead bodies inspected.

A policeman there immediately figured out that the men lying covered inside the ambulance could not be dead, Angral said.



The men were arrested and quarantined separately, the Superintendent added. They are now facing charges of cheating and defying the governments prohibitory orders.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  A member of the Philippine Army has tested positive for the coronavirus on Thursday.

Philippine Army spokesperson Col. Demy Zagala said the infected soldier is a member of the 1st Infantry Division based in Zamboanga Del Sur. He had also visited the Army headquarters in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City.

Soldiers are not immune with the virus and we are cognizant about proper health procedures to prevent further spread of the virus, said Zagala.

The Philippine Army is now conducting contact tracing on personnel, dependents, and civilians who may have interacted with the infected soldier, particularly inside the Army headquarters.

Zagala said persons who had come in direct contact with the Army man are now considered persons under investigation (PUIs) and will be placed in a quarantine area.

He assured the infantryman and the PUIs that they will be given proper medical care.

The total number of COVID-19 cases in the country has increased to 2,633, after 322 new infections on Thursday. Eleven persons have died, raising the death toll to 107. The lone recovery brings the total to 51.
STOCKHOLM, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Essity's Annual General Meeting was held today at Stockholm Waterfront Congress Center in Stockholm, Sweden

The Meeting approved the Parent Company income statement and balance sheet and the consolidated income statement and consolidated balance sheet for 2019.

The Meeting resolved in accordance with the Board of Director's proposal to refrain from dividend for 2019. The Board of Directors has announced that it intends to revisit the issue of a dividend later in the year once a better overview has been obtained regarding the effects of the Covid-19 epidemic.

The Meeting resolved on unchanged fees for the Board of Directors in accordance with the amended proposal of the Nomination Committee announced in a press release dated March 31, 2020. The Meeting also resolved in accordance with the Board of Director's proposal on guidelines for remuneration of senior executives.

The Board of Directors and the CEO were granted discharge from liability for the 2019 fiscal year.

Board members Ewa Bjorling, Par Boman, Maija-Liisa Friman, Annemarie Gardshol, Magnus Groth, Bert Nordberg, Louise Svanberg, Lars Rebien Srensen and Barbara Milian Thoralfsson were re-elected. Par Boman was re-elected Chairman of the Board.

Ernst & Young AB was appointed the company's auditor for a mandate period until the end of the 2021 Annual General Meeting.

The Meeting voted to approve the Board of Director's proposal regarding an amendment to the Articles of Association and the Nomination Committee's proposal concerning rules of procedure for the Nomination Committee.

Minutes from the Annual General Meeting will be available on the company website, www.essity.com, within two weeks.

A speech by President and CEO Magnus Groth is available on the company website www.essity.com.

For further information, please contact:

Per Lorentz,

Vice President Corporate Communications,

+46-8-788-52-51,

[email protected]

Johan Karlsson,

Vice President Investor Relations,

+46-8-788-51-30,

[email protected]

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/essity/r/essity-s-2020-annual-general-meeting,c3079753

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/15798/3079753/1223425.pdf Essityas 2020 Annual General Meeting

SOURCE Essity
It is inconceivable to me how any hospital in America has the audacity to tuck-tail and run when the worst epidemic in our worlds history is banging at the door. Shock is the only word to describe Erlanger Hospitals furlough earlier this week and now comes word that some medical staffing companies around the country are actually cutting doctors and nurses salaries as they actually care and treat coronavirus patients. I never knew cash could get this cold. Oh, my goodness, this is hardly the America that Mr. Norman Rockwell once loved to paint.

A non-profit news agency, ProPublica, presented a glaring story on this April Fools Day that a large staffing provider, Alteon Health, is losing revenue as hospitals postpone elective procedures and non-corona patients are avoiding emergency rooms like the plague.

Alteon Health is owned by the private equity firms Frazier Healthcare Partners and New Mountain Capital, whose principles only go to the hospital when their grandchildren are born, or a politician is laid up.

Most hospitals in America use such staffing companies to supply emergency room physicians, for example, and Alteon sent out a memo Monday that announced it was reducing salaried clinicians, turning them into hourly employees and cutting their hours. Administrative officials would get a 20-percent reduction in pay, and 401(k) matches, bonuses, and paid time off would be suspended. The memo also asked employees to accept the changes or else contact the Alteon Human Resources Department within five days to discuss alternatives. I am talking cold.

In the meanwhile, New York state has confirmed 83,712 cases of coronavirus, marking an increase of 7,917 since Monday and the virus has claimed 1,941 lives in the state, up from 1,550 yesterday. Of those, about 1,000 deaths were in New York City alone. At 6 p.m. yesterday, the United States had 25,495 more cases than the day before, meaning the 211,698 totals will get heavier with each and every hour. Yet, heres a staffing company cutting back emergency room doctors salaries as though there was nothing for them to do.

Its completely demoralizing, said an Alteon clinician who spoke to ProPublica on the condition of anonymity. At this time, of all times, were putting ourselves at risk but also putting our families at risk  A lot of sacrifices are being made on the front line that the administration is not seeing because theyre not stepping foot in a hospital, the doctor said. Ive completely lost trust with this company.

TeamHealth, a major staffing company headquartered in Knoxville, took an entirely different approach, saying its employees would not be affected. We are not instituting any reduction in pay or benefits, TeamHealth said in a statement to ProPublica. This is despite incurring significant cost for staffing in anticipation of surging volumes, costs related to quarantined and sick physicians, and costs for PPE as we work hard to protect our clinicians from the virus.

On Monday Erlanger announced its briefly-fired program because a furlough it most assuredly is not. What is perplexing is how the hospitals Board of Trustees ever went along with something so distasteful. It is absolutely absurd. Sure, they knew Erlanger was losing cash before they could pronounce COVID-19. They also had to know while it appears we are all in for a two- to three-month whipping, to put any employee out on the street amidst such pandemonium is a direct reflection on their leadership.

What is being allowed to happen is best said by three of the doctors in the ProPublica report about Alteon:

* -- This decision is being made not by physicians but by people who are not on the front lines, who do not have to worry about whether Im infecting my family or myself, one said. If a company cannot support physicians during the toughest times, to me theres a significant question of integrity.

* -- We all feel pretty crestfallen, another ER doctor employed by Alteon said in a text message. I did expect support from our administrators, and this certainly doesnt feel like that.

* -- I have a huge loan payment. I have rent. I have groceries. Im not going to sacrifice my life for when I get sick and theyre going to say, You were replaceable, the physician said. I cannot believe they did that to us."

There were 624 new coronavirus cases in Tennessee yesterday, scooting the workload up to 2,863, and today there will be even more. Erlanger will get the great majority of all of the cases in our region. This is because the Level One trauma center, for all practical purposes, is the lone provider of indigent care in our region. Our region, just so youll know, is halfway to Atlanta, halfway to Birmingham, halfway to Nashville and halfway to Knoxville. Last year Erlanger had nearly $140 million in indigent care and, aside from a pithy $1.5 million donation from Hamilton County and zero ($0.00) from the city of Chattanooga, the local support is far and away the worst in the Southeast, if not the nation. Incidentally, each time a person is shot the cost is more than $25,000 with little, if any, compensation. No, the gangs have no health insurance plans at this time.

Further, the coronavirus is deadliest among those 65 and up, who we are told at least half live from week to week. In the stimulus package just approved, $200 billion was set aside for hospitals because every single one in America is hemorrhaging. The least Erlanger could have done before its briefly-fired panic was to wait, assuring its employees that the Trustees and the management cared about them. Thats brash, but thats candidly the lack of empathy most of them now feel, as well as the Erlanger family itself. Believe this: our fearful community finds such callousness abominable.

While it is obvious new CEO Will Jackson has never run a hospital before, and that his concern for the hospitals finances are genuine, the raw truth is that there have been no raises, nothing to boost morale, and inept middle management at the hospital since before former CEO Kevin Spiegel fell from grace. Erlangers greatest strength has been its people; doctors will be doctors, but the nurse beside the bed, the housekeepers giggle, the floor nurses working together like one well-oiled machine  its the whole package, and to let anyone put a chink into its side is akin to sacrilege.

Now the entire country faces monumental changes that will evolve into a completely different world than we have ever known.

In as much as we are in the fire, lets use the forge and hammer our misfortune into something thats better and exhibit a world where a knee-jerk reaction will never include being briefly fired any time and forever in our future.

* * *

Last week 47,000 stores were closed in the United States, meaning those employees are eligible for unemployment compensation. If a person is furloughed, they are still by definition employed, and are therefore ineligible for unemployment benefits or help with the mortgage, their daughters car payment, their church tithe, or a jug of Clorox to wipe the door knob on the backdoor. If I was a member of the Erlanger Hospitals Board of Trustees, that would bother me during my prayer time. A lot.
AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B- (Fair) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of "bb-" of Rosgosstrakh Insurance Company, OJSC (RGS) (Russia). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is stable.

The ratings reflect RGS' balance sheet strength, which AM Best categorises as adequate, as well as its marginal operating performance, neutral business profile and marginal enterprise risk management (ERM).

RGS' risk-adjusted capitalisation was at the strongest level in 2019, as measured by the Best's Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR). The BCAR scores were stronger than previously anticipated by AM Best due to lower than expected capital requirements, as RGS did not achieve planned premium growth. AM Best expects prospective RGS' risk-adjusted capitalisation to be supported by positive operating results and the absence of a requirement to pay dividends over the next three years. The balance sheet strength assessment also reflects the insurer's conservative investment portfolio, which has improved significantly over the past two years in terms of credit quality, diversification and exposure to affiliated holdings. Whilst RGS' balance sheet is exposed to the high financial system risk in Russia, which has intensified in the first quarter of 2020 due to the impact of declining oil prices and economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, AM Best considers the insurer's risk-adjusted capitalisation to have a sufficient buffer to absorb any near-term volatility. The company's financial flexibility is adequate, supported by its association with The Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR).

RGS has a track record of poor technical performance, driven by losses in the compulsory motor third-party liability (CMTPL) portfolio and demonstrated by a five-year (2015-2019) weighted average combined ratio of 116.8%. In addition, a large non-operating loss was incurred in 2017, largely due to impairments of affiliated investments. In 2018 and 2019, underwriting performance improved, with combined ratios of 94.7% and 98%, respectively, helped by remediation of the CMTPL portfolio initiated by the new management team. Over the medium term, AM Best expects the combined ratio to remain below 100%, although there is potential for the motor loss ratio to be affected negatively by the recent depreciation of the Russian rouble. Prospective investment performance is expected to be positive, but subject to potential volatility.

RGS is one of the leading insurers in Russia, with a strong market position in personal lines that benefits from an extensive distribution network and a well-recognised brand. In 2017, RGS received a capital injection of USD 2 billion from the CBR, which became its ultimate shareholder and controlling party. In 2018, the insurer significantly pruned its CMTPL portfolio, reducing its market share in this segment. The company plans to grow strongly in corporate and personal lines, and there are plans to grow significantly in the life market (15% of gross written premium in 2019). In AM Best's opinion, implementation is subject to execution risk, especially in the view of competitive conditions in its domestic insurance market and the expected decline in the country's economic growth in 2020, which is likely to impact insurance demand.

AM Best considers RGS' ERM as marginal, with new organisational structures and frameworks being developed in order to improve governance and risk culture.

This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best's website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best's Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information on the proper media use of Best's Credit Ratings and AM Best press releases, please view Guide for Media Proper Use of Best's Credit Ratings and AM Best Rating Action Press Releases

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com

Copyright 2020 by A.M. Best Rating Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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Contacts:

Elena Abramova

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+44 20 7397 0321

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: An Indian Navy vessel has come to



the rescue of 10 fishermen stranded in the sea off Kochi coast without sufficient fuel and provision in their Tamil Nadu-registered boat.

INS Nireekshak, a diving support vessel of the Southern Naval Command, on Wednesday found the fishing boat Saint Nicholas without fuel, water and provision to reach the home port of Kolachel in Tamil Nadu, a defence spokesman said here.

The boat was found stranded while the Navy vessel was on a mission patrol along the Kerala coast, he said.

Nireekshak, realising that the boat was in distress, provided assistance to it by transferring 300 litres of fuel, water and provision to sustain them till they reached their home port, the spokesman said in a press release.

"In view of the existing health advisories on COVID-19, it was ensured that all transfer was done without any physical contact with the boat or crew. The fuel, water and provisions were transferred using the ship's crane," he said.

The boat had left Kochi on March 12 for fishing in the Arabian Sea and has not since touched any other port.

It was to enter Kochi for re-fueling and ration but entry was denied in view of ongoing lockdown due to the coronavirus.

The spokesman said Naval ships continue to remain mission-deployed during COVID-19 crisis and the deployments are being planned without any port visit to the extent possible or with at least a gap of 14 days at sea from the last port visit prior return.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
On Wednesday morning a group of doctors, nurses and some members of the local civic health department, visited Tatpatti Bhakal, in Indore, after they came to know of a locals death.

Given the current pandemic that is going on, it was actually a routine exercise to screen the residents of the area for the novel coronavirus.

However, upon reaching the area, they were attacked by a rather large mob, who were pelting stones and hurling abuses. Two doctors were injured because of the attacks.

#WATCH Madhya Pradesh: Locals of Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore pelt stones at health workers who were there to screen people, in wake of #Coronavirus outbreak. A case has been registered. (Note-Abusive language) (1.04.2020) pic.twitter.com/vkfOwYrfxK  ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

This is not the only incident of aggression against medical professionals and caregivers that has surfaced this week.

Doctors at a hospital in Hyderabad were allegedly attacked, after a patient who was infected with the virus, die because of severe complications.

Recently, several doctors and healthcare professional at AIIMS have said that their landlords and housing RWAs have evicted them, out of fear.

 Reuters

Incidents like these are not new. Back when doctors in Gorakhpur were forced to deal with the carnage that encephalitis had caused among children, there were several reports on how often, angry mobs would often attack them, when a child from their village, died because of inadequate medical facilities.



We got in touch with Dr Sandhya Verma, a final year medical student who is in the process of completing her Compulsory Rotatory Residential Internship, or CRRI at a renowned government hospital in Noida.

What people often dont realise, is that as much as we would like to help the patients to the best of our ability, most of our colleagues do not actually have the right tools to do so. Also, given the severity of the (coronavirus) situation, and the manner in which it spreads, we are really hard-pressed to do anything. We are dealing with mind-numbing shifts, inadequate safety equipment, among a number of other issues, she said.

 Reuters

Dr Sandhya is actually right. There have been several reports of how doctors have been forced to use raincoats and helmets as safety equipment. With that being said, Dr Sandhya believes, it is not right to completely blame the patients.



 Reuters

We get why families of patients would get angry with the medical staff when things dont work out. But attacking them should not and can not be an option. All of us, are doing what we can, to the best of our abilities.



 Reuters

Dr Sandhya says, that even though there have been a number of incidents where doctors and nurses have been attacked, those incidents genuinely are examples of a few bad apples. And even then, she says, it is their despair and fear that gets the best of them.



Everything aside, I actually applaud everything that the state governments and the central government are doing to help the doctors in this situation. Be it CM Kejriwals scheme of giving a crore to medical workers who die when treating patients, or the health coverage scheme that the Prime Minister has announced, we need all the help we can get, she says. With that being said, she added that hospitals all over the country are in dire need of equipment, and other infrastructural needs.

 Twitter/anandmahindra

And given how several prominent businessmen, like Anand Mahindra among several others, have stepped up to the plate at a such a precarious time, we can say that there still is hope.


STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Whether its providing something small, like a face mask to a vulnerable senior citizen, or something bigger, like funding for hospital supplies, the good deeds on Staten Island these days continue to prove that not all coronavirus news is bad news.

Amid the frighting medical emergency, kindness prevails, and Staten Islanders continue to support their neighbors, first responders and the medical professionals working tirelessly to treat those inflicted with the frightening virus.

One nail salon owner is sharing her dwindling supply of face masks with senior citizens, who are deemed most vulnerable to the coronavirus (COVID-19) if they become infected. High schoolers are delivering supplies from the school labs to emergency rooms, and a host of businesses and residents are teaming up to provide meals to hospital staffers on the front lines of the battle.

There are not enough words to express the gratitude we have for the continuous donations of food, supplies and messages of encouragement from the community, said Dr. Daniel J. Messina, president and chief executive officer at Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC). We are re-energized every shift, day and night, when the latest show of support from total strangers arrives at our hospital. We will never get to thank each and every person, but we want them all to please know they are forever in our hearts.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

Heres a look at some of the recent good-will efforts.

Gloves and goggles

To help RUMC treat patents during the COVID-19 outbreak, Port Richmond High School has donated 600 pairs of gloves and 36 pairs of goggles for use by the medical staff, nurses and ancillary staff.

The hospital would like to express its deepest gratitude to the Port Richmond High School community for helping the hospital and our patients, RUMC said in a statement. Go Raiders!

Medical staff at Richmond University Medical Center receives meals from Panino Rustico and Qdoba donated by Tom Delmarzo and the Pellegrito family.(Courtesy of Richmond University Medical Center)

Meals for medical staff

Individuals, restaurant owners and other Staten Island businesses continue to show support to medical staff and local restaurants by ordering meals for the doctors, nurses and technicians working round-the-clock to treat coronavirus patients.

Tom Delmarzo and the Pellegrito family recently donated meals to RUMC from Panino Rustico and Qdoba. Others who have made donations to the hospital include: Alfonsos Pastry Shoppe; Anna Porto; Annmarie & Joe Ricciardi; the Chinese-American Community; Cord Blood Registry; Cucina Fresca; the Cupo Family; Delco Pharmacy; Dr. Perry Drucker; Dr. Victor Avis; Dunkin of Forest Avenue; East End Group; HoBrah Taco Joint; Hu Limei in Shanghai, China; Investors Bank; Joan Mckeever-Thomas; Joseph Drennan Movers; Kathy Giovinazzo; Louis Gregorio; Mancini Giuffre; Marks Bakery; Mr. Garber; Nick Szymanski; Notre Dame Academy High School; Ounce Water; Pier 76; Pizza Mia; the Presto Family; Pronto Pizza; Relief Crafters of America; Renatos Pastry Shoppe; Rosemarie Stazzone; Staten Island Care Center; Staten Island Hatzalah; The Angiuli Group; The Kettle Black; Tom Delmarzo; Wendys.

Anyone who would like to donate lunch should use this link: www.rumcsi.org/support

LeeLee Wong delivers gloves to the medical staff at Staten Island University Hospital, Prince's Bay. (Courtesy of LeeLee Nails)

Masks for seniors, gloves for first responders

LeeLee Wong, owner of LeeLee Nails in Dongan Hills, uses latex-free gloves and surgical masks in her salon, so she donated the gloves she had on hand to SIUH in Princes Bay and the 120th Precinct in St. George.

She doesnt have many masks, but shes been sharing them with senior citizens -- to help protect them from the virus if they have to go out for essentials.

Wong said shes saving the masks for senior citizens only. They have no immune system, she said. And they call me, asking for the masks. I am happy to help the seniors.

Wong is awaiting an order she placed for more gloves, she said. Those, she plans to deliver to RUMC and police precincts. Clients who are nurses and police officers have been letting her know where the needs are, she said.

Im so happy everyone is helping me do this, Wong said.

Funds for masks

And Staten Islands elected officials have jumped in, too, using funds from the district attorneys NYS Asset Forfeiture Fund to supply 5,000 N95 masks to medical workers at Richmond University Medical Center and Staten Island University Hospital.

As elected officials during the time of COVID-19, our shared and primary focus is ensuring those on the front lines of this fight are equipped with the equipment and support necessary to continue their inspiring, life-saving work, said a group statement from Borough President Oddo, Rep. Max Rose (D-Staten Island, Brooklyn), District Attorney Michael E. McMahon, Sen. Diane Savino, Sen. Andrew Lanza, Assemblyman Michael Cusick, Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis, Assemblyman Mike Reilly, Assemblyman Charles Fall, Councilman Steven Matteo, Councilman Joe Borelli and Councilwoman Debi Rose.

We are proud to supply 5,000 N95 masks to Richmond University Medical Center and Staten Island University Hospital, to be given directly to the heroes working around the clock to treat our family members, loved ones, and neighbors suffering from this terrible illness, the statement said.

The masks were purchased with funds from the district attorneys office NYS Asset Forfeiture Fund.

Additionally, Lanza and Cusick delivered face masks and N95 masks to several of the Islands medical facilities.

Staffers at the Staten Island Care Center recently delivered food and donuts to healthcare workers to show their support and appreciation. (Courtesy of Staten Island Care Center)

Staten Island Care Center

Staffers at the Staten Island Care Center recently delivered food and donuts to healthcare workers to show their support and appreciation.

Volunteers at the Joan and Alan Bernikow JCC of Staten Island have distributed more than 5,000 meals to seniors in need across Staten Island. (Courtesy of the Joan and Alan Bernikow JCC of Staten Island)

Meals for seniors

Volunteers at the Joan and Alan Bernikow JCC of Staten Island have distributed more than 5,000 meals to seniors in need across Staten Island.

Following the closure of JCC facilities to the public, staff members have been distributing frozen and shelf-stable kosher meals at the Bernikow Building, as well as delivering meals to home-bound seniors. Meals were also distributed to the residents of Seaview Senior Housing, where the JCC operates the Social Services Office.

Staff members have also reached out to 300 seniors a day by phone, including those who attend the JCCs three senior centers and individuals enrolled in the JCCs Family Solutions to Memory Loss Programs. In addition to food, staff members are providing resources and supplies to those isolated in their homes.

With each and every passing day, we will continue to listen, adapt, and deliver to those hit hardest by this crisis. Please know that if you have a need, we are here for you, said David Sorkin, the JCCs chief executive officer. No matter where we were located, our mission has never changedto provide services to those in need across Staten Island."

The kindergarten and second-grade Girl Scout troops from Our Lady of Good Counsel R.C. Church turned the cancellation of cookie sales into an opportunity to give back to the local Staten Island community. (Courtesy of Diana Gatto)

Giving back

At Our Lady of Good Counsel R.C. Church (OLGC), kindergarten and second-grade Girl Scouts turned the cancellation of cookie sales into an opportunity to make life a little sweeter for some of the men and women on the front lines of this pandemic.

With more than 250 boxes remaining because of cookie booths being cancelled, they reached out to friends and family on Facebook and Instagram to sponsor a box of cookies to be donated to first responders in the area. Within just a few hours, hundreds of dollars poured in and every box has now been sponsored.

Girl Scouts depend on the cookie program to help fund programs and experiences. The two troops raised a total of $3,335.

Members of the Our Lady of Good Counsel Home School Association have also joined in the spirit of giving, by delivering baskets to 30 school parents who are healthcare workers. The baskets contained beer from Flagship Brewery, a gift certificate for Beans and Leaves, and a gift card for one of three restaurants, Kettle Black, Jimmy Max or The Manor House. Each of these businesses is owned by an OLGC parishioner.

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Springfield, Adams County and Sangamon County are among 20 jurisdictions in central Illinois eligible for $1.7 million in emergency funding through the U.S. Department of Justice, according to U.S. Attorney John C. Milhiser.

Funds can be used to hire personnel, pay overtime costs, cover protective equipment and supplies, address inmates medical needs and pay expenses associated with distributing resources.
Nearly 1,000 people from Karnataka, who are linked to Tablighi-Jamaat congregation in New Delhi, have been screened so far, the government said on Thursday, as the state reported 14 new positive cases of coronavirus, taking the total number of the affected to 124.

The state government has been on tenterhooks since Tuesday night, mounting efforts to track nearly 1,500 people as per inputs by the Centre, who might have travelled to the state after taking part in the conference at Nizamuddin in Delhi last month, which has turned out to be the hotbed of Covid-19 spread in the country.

Among 14 new positive cases reported in the state include- ten men, who had attended the Tablighi-Jamaat Congregation from March 13-18 at Delhi, and are currently isolated at a designated hospital in Bidar; while one woman from Kalaburagi is the contact of a person who has attended congregation.

"Based on inputs given by police and central govt, nearly 1000 people linked to Tablighi Jamat, Nizamuddin have been screened by Health dept till morning. Out of them 6 have been found symptomatic," Karnataka Health Commissioner Pankaj Kumar Pandey said in a statement.

"Further, more than 200 swab samples have been drawn from them. Tests are going on in labs, and out of nearly 100 preliminary test results, 11 from Bidar dist are positive. Contact tracing and isolation works are already on," he said, adding that out of all identified Tablighi Jamaat members, 19 are foreigners.

Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa however, said 391 people associated with Tablighi Jamaat have been identified so far.

"...Some 391 Tablighi Jamaat workers have been identified, and based on the advise of doctors they have been placed under home or institutional quarantine and this process will continue," he said, adding that the number is expected to go up in the days to come.

According to bulletin by the state health department, 124 COVID-19 positive cases have been confirmed in the state which includes 3 deaths and 11 discharges, till Thursday evening.

"In Karnataka, 124 people have been infected by coronavirus and we are in the ninth place in the country for number of cases," Yediyurappa too said.

Speaking to reporters after attending Prime Minister Narendra Modi's video conferencing with various Chief Ministers to review the lockdown situation in the states and preventive measures taken by the states, he said, "the decision on future (of lockdown) will depend on how we conduct ourselves till April 14 (last date of 21 days lockdown). After April 14 a task force will be formed and decide on what needs to be done in the days to come."



Out of 110 active cases in the state, 107 positive patients (including 1 pregnant woman) are in isolation at designated hospitals are stable and three in ICU (one on oxygen and two on Ventilators).

Out of total 124 cases detected and confirmed in the state so far 7 cases are transit passengers of Kerala who have landed in our airports and being treated in Karnataka.

Among the 124 positive cases, 51 were reported from Bengaluru, 21 from Mysuru, ten from Bidar, nine each from Dakshina Kannada, eight from Uttara Kannada, seven from Chikkaballapur, five from Kalaburgai, four from Ballari, three each from Davangere and Udupi, and one each from Kodagu, Tumakuru and Dharwad.

Those discharged include nine patients from Bengaluru and two from Kalaburagi; and among those dead are one each are reported from Kalaburgari, Bengaluru and Tumakuru.

Meanwhile, Karnataka Primary Secondary Education Minister Suresh Kumar on Thursday said, the department has decided to promote class 7 and 8 students without any exams in the wake of lockdown aimed at controlling the spread of COVID-19.

Class 9 students will be promoted based on formative and summative assessment during their class tests, the Minister said, regarding board exams-class ten (SSLC) and class twelve (second PUC one paper)- decision will be taken after April 14, once the lockdown is over.

Home Quarantine Enforcement squad have quarantined 52 persons in institutions yesterday based on the complaints received from publicand totally till date 293 have been shifted from home quarantine to institutional quarantine.

In view of Medical emergency declared in the State, Chief Secretary and Member Secretary, Karnataka State Disaster Management Board has instructed all District Commissioners to consider relaxation on mandating of OTP for lifting Food grains from ration shops.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Britain's property market and economy could enjoy a 'strong rebound' once the coronavirus crisis ceases, Nationwide suggested.

The latest Nationwide house price index painted a picture of a property market before coronavirus hit, with the average cost of a home up 3 per cent annually as home values rose at the fastest pace since January 2018.

For the time being, however, the housing market has ground to a halt. Lenders, including Britain's biggest building society Nationwide, have pulled swathes of their mortgage range, estate agents are closed and property viewings and moves are being cancelled or postponed.

Nationwide's chief economist Robert Gardner said the medium-term outlook for house prices was 'highly uncertain' but that government rescue packages would lessen the impact.

An uptick in house prices at the start of the year on the Nationwide house price index continued into March, before the UK went on coronavirus lockdown

Mr Gardner said: 'The raft of policies adopted to support the economy, including to protect businesses and jobs, to support peoples incomes and keep borrowing costs down, should set the stage for a strong rebound once the shock passes, and help limit long-term damage to the economy.

'These same measures should also help ensure the impact on the housing market will ultimately be much less than would normally be associated with an economic shock of this magnitude.'

The index showed the average house price rising almost 3,500 in March to 219,583, but is based on Nationwide's own mortgage approvals and mainly covers the period before Britain went into lockdown on 24 March.

'It is important to note that, while we use a full months worth of data to generate the index, the cut-off point is slightly before the end of the month,' said Robert Gardner, Nationwides chief economist.

He added: 'This means that developments following the UK governments lockdown will not be reflected in these figures.'

Before the pandemic gripped the nation, property prices had been 'steadily gathering momentum', Mr Gardner said.

Cheap mortgage deals, Help to Buy schemes, a slightly more stable political backdrop and a fairly strong labour market had all played their part in the market's recovery and the so-called Boris Bounce in the New Year.

Now, however, with transactions largely at a standstill, it will be difficult to gauge how house prices are shifting over the next few months.

On Wednesday, Nationwide tightened measures on mortgage applications and will no longer takes bonuses and overtime pay into account.

The lender also pulled its mortgage offering for low-deposit borrowers earlier this week.

The property market had picked up in both Northern and Southern England, Nationwide said

Other banks have also done a dramatic U-turn from the position they were in a month ago, when a fierce mortgage market price battle was being waged.

Lloyds Banking Group, which owns includes Halifax and Scottish Widows and is the country's biggest lender, has capped lending at 60 per cent of loan to value.

Barclays has also put a cap on how many mortgage applications it will accept from brokers for the time being, and along with other lenders, is temporarily limiting high loan to value mortgages.

Ratio matters: The UK house price to earnings ratio since 1990

How house prices were rising

In the first quarter of this year, Wales saw the strongest property price growth out of every region in the UK, and in the last year the area has seen prices swell by 6.4 per cent, Nationwide's house price index for March shows.

On an annual basis in England, house prices increased by 1.9 per cent, while in Scotland and Northern Ireland they rose by 0.8 and 0.7 per cent respectively.

How house prices were rising across the UK before the coronavirus outbreak hit

'In England, all regions except the North saw modest price growth of between 0% and 5 per cent - in the North prices were down 0.3 per cent compared with Q1 2019', Nationwide said.

House prices in London rose by 1 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter, following 10 consecutive quarters of falls. London remains the most expensive place in the country to buy a property.

Looking ahead: Britain's property market could enjoy a 'strong rebound' once the coronavirus crisis ceases, an economist has suggested

Howard Archer, chief economist at the EY Item Club, said: 'The expectation has to be that house prices will come under significant downward pressure from a sharp rise in unemployment and peoples incomes being hit (despite the Governments measures) as well as sharply lower consumer confidence and increased caution.

'Once restrictions start to be lifted on peoples movements, housing market activity should progressively pick up.

'Even so, given the impact on the economy, the anticipated rise in unemployment and the hit to many peoples incomes, the housing market looks unlikely to return to the levels seen at the start of 2020 for some time.'

Last week, property listing site Zoopla reported that demand for viewing houses was down 40 per cent in a week and looked set to dwindle further.
EgyptAir has changed the destination of a repatriation flight coming from Washington DC on Friday morning to Marsa Alam airport instead of Cairo airport, Al-Ahram Arabic website has reported.

The 300 passengers on board will be placed in quarantine for 14 days in a hotel in the city of Marsa Alam in Red Sea governorate.

The government has decided to quarantine all Egyptians returning to the country from abroad, and is requiring returnees to sign a written acknowledgement that they agree to the quarantine before boarding their flights.

President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi decided on Wednesday that the costs of their stay at hotels will be funded by the state.

Prime Minister Mostafa Mabouly had stated earlier on Thursday that efforts to repatriate Egyptians stranded abroad have been ongoing since the country suspended international flights to curb the spread of coronavirus on 19 March.

Madbouly said that, at first, the government performed medical check-ups and tests on returnees at airports and asked them to self-isolate for 14 days.

The government discovered, however, that many people have not been committing to self-isolation, and that led to an outbreak in some areas.

Egypt recorded on Thursday its highest daily increase in new cases, as 86 new cases, bringing the total to 865. The death toll now stands at 58.

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Samples of all 17 foreign nationals from Kyrgyzstan, and two tour guides, who were in the eye of a media storm, tested negative for coronavirus (Covid-19) in Patna on Thursday resulting in huge relief for state officials.

A section of the media (not the Hindustan Times) had questioned the authorities for not taking samples for a confirmatory test of the foreign nationals during their initial screening at AIIMS-Patna on March 23.

Patna AIIMS had defended the administrations decision to not collect suspects oropharyngeal samples for confirmatory testing.

The foreign nationals did not show any symptoms of coronavirus. Besides, they did not have any international travel history during the last 14 days. They had arrived in India in the month of January and to Bihar only on March 3, said Dr Neeraj Aggarwal, nodal officer for Covid-19 and dean of AIIMS-Patna.

He added that the foreigners had denied coming in contact with any high-risk Covid-19 patient, including those from the Nizamuddin religious gathering.

They also did not tell us anything about having visited Nizamuddin markaz in Delhi. As per the health ministrys guidelines, taking their oropharyngeal sample was not necessary. Based on their clinical assessment and results of thermal scanning, our doctors advised 14 days of home quarantine to them, Dr Aggarwal added.

Patna district magistrate Kumar Ravi was guarded in his comments when this reporter asked him if any of the 19 people tested had visited the Nizamuddin markaz.

That is for the police to investigate, said Ravi, while confirming that all 19 samples had tested negative.

Efforts to reach Patna senior superintendent of police Upendra Kumar Sharma proved futile, as he did not respond to phone calls or text messages.

Twelve of the 19 people, who have now been put under home quarantine, were staying at a mosque in Kurji area of the capital and another seven at Phulwarisharif, before apprehensive locals informed the police on March 23.

On Wednesday, the electronic media reports speculated that the 17 Kyrgyzstan nationals could have also been among the 86 Tablighi Jamaat attendees from Bihar, identified by the centre.

The swab samples of these foreigners were collected on Tuesday evening and sent for test to ICMR-Rajendra Memorial Institute of Medical Sciences in Patna. It was necessitated as a precautionary step following a spike in the number of Covid-19 cases in the country due to cases linked to the Nizamuddin congregation.

Bihar chief secretary Deepak Kumar said the samples of 4,000-odd foreigners, who reached Bihar between March 15 and 23, were now being mandatorily screened.
Veteran Nollywood actor Sadiq Abubakar Dabas health has worsened.

The actor who has been diagnosed with Leukemia and prostate cancer is about to lose his sight, Nigerian Journalist, Olutade Simon claims.

Tweeting at the Vice-President, Ogun and Lagos state Governors, Simon said;

Sadiq Daba is still sick Yesterday he reached out he was still ill and on the verge of losing one of his Eyes. It is a tough time as Government is battling Covid-19. but i will blame myself if i dont do this and something happens to him



@dabiodunMFR @ProfOsinbajo

Yesterday he reached out he was still ill and on the verge of losing one of his Eyes.

It is a tough time as Government is battling Covid-19. but i will blame myself if i dont do this and something happens to him. @jidesanwoolu Sadiq Daba is still sickYesterday he reached out he was still ill and on the verge of losing one of his Eyes.It is a tough time as Government is battling Covid-19. but i will blame myself if i dont do this and something happens to him. pic.twitter.com/Y69d4JaRui  Olutade oluwatosin Simon (@faleyeolu) March 29, 2020

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
The United States has confirmed the arrival of a plane carrying medical supplies that it says were purchased from Russia to help fight the coronavirus outbreak, raising questions over the motives behind the move.



The supplies, including ventilators and personal protection equipment needed in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, were handed over on April 1 in New York to the U.S. emergency management agency, the U.S. State Department said in a statement.



State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus described the purchase as a follow-up to a March 30 phone call between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.



The statement did not say how much the United States paid Russia for the equipment, which Moscow has described as aid in a thinly veiled attempt to hand Putin a public relations coup.



Both countries have provided humanitarian assistance to each other in times of crisis in the past and will no doubt do so again in the future, Ortagus said. This is a time to work together to overcome a common enemy that threatens the lives of all of us.

Many critics of Moscow have warned that Russia is using aid as part of a campaign of disinformation and propaganda to sow fear abroad while bolstering Putin at home.



Meanwhile, Trump, who has touted his close relationship with Putin, has faced similar warnings at home from those concerned that Moscow is using such actions to gain influence and push Russia's efforts for relief from sanctions imposed for meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.



Ortagus did note that the Group of 20 (G20) counties agreed last week to work together to defeat the coronavirus. The United States and Russia are in the G20, and Ortagus said Washington was working closely with all G20 states and other countries to ensure that critically needed supplies get to those in need.

'Difficult Situation'



A U.S. official said quoted by Reuters as saying the shipment carried 60 tons of ventilators, masks, respirators, and other items.



The official said the equipment would be carefully examined to make sure it complies with quality requirements of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

RFE/RL's Coronavirus Crisis Archive Features and analysis, videos, and infographics explore how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the countries in our region.

Russia's deputy UN ambassador, Dmitry Polyansky, said the shipment was a "good gesture of solidarity with New Yorkers who are in a very difficult situation at the moment," according to the Russian UN Mission on Twitter.



Interfax quoted Polyansky as saying that, while nothing has been agreed, it is not ruled out that further shipments may follow.



Kremlin critics questioned why Moscow would send equipment abroad at a time when there are questions as to whether there are enough supplies to meet the countrys needs.



"I thought this was a stupid April Fool's joke but turns out it's true. Russia really did SELL the U.S. masks and medical equipment at a time when doctors and nurses all over the country are working without masks and infecting one another. It's monstrous. Putin's mad," said opposition leader and vocal Putin critic Alexei Navalny.



U.S deaths in the coronavirus pandemic pushed past 5,100 as of early April 2, two days after Americans were told to brace for "very painful" weeks ahead.



New York is by far the hardest-hit U.S. state, with more than 83,700 coronavirus cases and nearly 2,000 deaths.



Local officials have sounded the alarm over a shortage of protective gear and life-saving equipment. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has said millions more face masks and thousands more ventilators are needed by next week.



Meanwhile, Trump, who has touted his close relationship with Putin, has faced similar warnings at home from those concerned that Moscow is using such actions to gain influence and push Russia's efforts for relief from sanctions imposed for meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

U.S deaths in the coronavirus pandemic pushed past 4,000 as of early April 1, a day after Americans were told to brace for "very painful" weeks ahead.



In Russia, where the accuracy of official data has been questioned, the number of confirmed cases has jumped in recent days, but still appears low compared with other European nations.

The countrys official tally puts the total number of cases at 3,548 as of April 2, with 30 deaths.

With reporting by Rossia-24, Interfax, Reuters, AFP and TASS.
Real Housewives of Atlanta fans have had enough of Kenya Moores plastic surgery denial. The RHOA star sparked another round of criticisms on social media after acting like her body is all-natural, and fans are once again speaking out. While viewers were quick to call out Moore for lying about plastic surgery, she wasnt afraid to fire back with some heated comments of her own.

RHOA star Kenya Moore | Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

Kenya Moores throwback photo reveals major changes

Taking to Instagram, Moore recently shared a throwback photo of a fake ID she created when she was a minor. The RHOA star had a good laugh with the light-hearted post and poked fun at the middle name she chose for herself.

#TBT the time I got 1) a fake ID at 15 2) I made up my middle name to the name I wanted to be born with and its nearly the same as #solange knowles #awholemess even back then (the address and ss are made up, I redacted just in case its real to someone), Moore wrote.

Fans enjoyed seeing a pic of a younger Kenya Moore, but they also noticed that she has undergone some major changes over the years.

In particular, the photo clearly shows Moores eyes as being dark brown. Even the eye color on the ID says brown. As RHOA fans pointed out, Moore has always maintained that her hazel eyes are natural, but the image seems to contradict that.

Moores nose in the fake ID also looks completely different from its current state. This led some fans to speculate that Moore had a rhinoplasty before appearing on Bravos hit show, accusations she has vehemently denied.

Moore slams fan for questioning her looks

This is hardly the first time fans have criticized Moore for not owning up to plastic surgery. In 2019, Moore found herself in the hot seat after she shared a sponsored post promoting a supplement company called Body Complex RX.

@bodycompleterx can help with your body It cant help you with your face though.

After a fan noted that Kenya Moore forgot to add #plasticsurgery in her post, the RHOA immediately fired back, writing, 

Kenya Moores plastic surgery and fake hair rumors are called out by Christopher Morgan over their #RHOA feud! https://t.co/ie07FrZIiV  OK! Magazine USA (@OKMagazine) March 16, 2016

Viewers were taken aback by Moores insult, especially considering it was on a sponsored post. Needless to say, it did not stop fans from speculating about what else Moore has had done.

This includes work on her backside. Fans shared images of Moores derriere from 1993 and compared it to a more recent photo taken in 2012. The differences are pretty clear, despite Moores denial that she had anything done.

Unfortunately, this not the only thing Moore has openly lied about.

Did Kenya Moore lie about her hair?

Throughout all of her years on RHOA, Moore has insisted that her hair is the real deal. But during a January episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Moores RHOA co-star, Tanya Sam, revealed that she wears wigs on the regular.

Sam claims that Kenya Moore texted her following the cast outing to Canada and asked her to grab something she left in their hotel room. According to OK Magazine, Sam discovered that Moore had left behind a wig.

After yall left, she sent me a text message saying, hey girl I left something at the hotel. And I opened it up and it was a phone charger and a wig, Sam shared. I have the wig here.

Following the revelation, Porsha Williams pointed out how Moore is always bragging about her natural hair. Based on Sams claims, it is clear that Moore is lying about wearing wigs, which only adds another layer to her faux look.

While Kenya Moore is clearly in denial, she did openly discuss going under the knife following the birth of her first child.

Moore opens up about breast reduction

After giving birth to her first daughter, Brooklyn Daly, in 2018, Moore spent the better part of a year getting her body back into top shape. Although she has achieved impressive results, the RHOA star admitted last summer that she is thinking about getting a breast reduction.

Taking to social media, Moore asked her followers is they think she should have her breasts downsized. Most fans seemed to agree that a reduction was not a good idea, though Kenya Moore still sounded open to the possibility.

Moore has been a part of the RHOA since season 5, though she took a brief break in season 11 after tying the knot with Marc Daly. Sadly, Moore and Dalys marriage fell apart last year and the two are currently in the middle of finalizing their divorce.

Moore has not commented on the most recent reports surrounding her plastic surgery history.

Fans, meanwhile, can watch Kenya Moore in action when new episodes of the Real Housewives of Atlanta air Sunday nights on Bravo.
This story was originally published by High Country News and has been republished here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

By now, its clear the coronavirus pandemic is one of the most serious collective events most of us alive today have ever faced. The spread of the virus has been a massive wake-up call for humankind, and not just in a scientific, logistical, or even personal sense. It has also shown us that the way we live on the planet is fatally out of balance. We should think of COVID-19 as a warning.

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We must change the way we inhabit the planet, or otherwise face self-destruction caused by our own negligence, if not by the pandemic then by environmental destruction (or both). The changes we need to make are not just economic and scientific; they are philosophical and practical, and they concern the things we value. We need to seriously reexamine and revise the philosophical frameworks that undergird modern society. Indigenous peoples who have lived sustainably in the same territories for thousands of years have important knowledge systems that can productively intervene in the destructive social structures currently orchestrating our downfall. But first, societies need to listen.

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The world as we know itshaped by centuries of technological advancement, aggressive migration, and colossal population growthis the result of particular beliefs about how humans should live on the earth. Perhaps most recognizable to us would be the belief that the Earths resources are there for unrestrained human taking. So deep-seated is this view that entire populations of Indigenous peoples were considered expendable by way of germs and warfare in order to give way to more advanced societies that would use the land properly. As Indigenous peoples, we know all about foreign diseases.

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We need to seriously reexamine and revise the philosophical frameworks that undergird modern society.

A 2015 white paper produced by the Rockefeller FoundationLancet Commission, which gave birth to the budding field of planetary health, concluded that not only do failures at the governmental and implementation level contribute to many of our current problems but so too do failures of imagination and knowledge, including the overreliance on economics as a measure of human progress. Altogether, these reveal that societies based primarily on a utilitarian and extractive orientation are results of a worldview that has gone horribly wrong.

Mushrooming social movements and a huge body of academic literature have for decades criticized unquestioned, unlimited capitalist economic growth, including its impacts on planetary healththe study of the ways commercial development affects the environment and its consequences to human health. Recent media stories, for instance, have highlighted the ways zoonotic diseases and pathogens cross from animals to humans, unleashing hellish illnesses as a result of our unending exploitation of the natural world. Ebola, SARS, MERS, Lyme disease, the ever-mutating avian influenza viruses, and our most recent coronavirus, COVID-19, are perfect examples.

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Indigenous societies, on the other hand, are based on worldviews where human needs are balanced with the needs of other life forms. This worldview inherently acknowledges the constraints of an ecosystem, the essence of sustainability. When the integrity of an ecosystem is guarded, the integrity and very existence of human communities are guarded as well. In a philosophical system that respects other life forms as relatives, an ethic of respect, responsibility, and reciprocity automatically follows, mediated by reverence. This is the opposite of the vulgar, endless extraction of resources for short-term economic gain.

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Just as scientists are finally waking up to the ways Indigenous knowledge can inform climate science, so planetary health scientists should also look to Indigenous knowledge to fill in the gaps of the failures of imagination, knowledge, and implementation.

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As Indigenous peoples, we have always understood that ecocidethe killing of an ecosystemis commensurate with genocide. In the U.S., this socially acceptable form of genocide continues in the way our lands and resources are still targeted for toxic development, as the Dakota Access Pipeline and countless other fossil fuel projects make clear. Now, the coronavirus shows that the entire human race faces the ramifications of ecocide and biodiversity loss. But applying Indigenous thought patterns today presents a challenge.

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Indigenous knowledge involves the application of particular knowledge in particular contexts. It is not universal like universalist religious and capitalist value systems. Before Indigenous knowledge can be incorporated into research and policy toolboxes, powerful entities will need to learn how to partner with local Indigenous communities in ways that are respectful, equitable, and nonextractive.

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It might, at first, sound like lunacy: expecting societies to begin valuing the knowledge of the peoples they have systematically been trying to eradicate for centuries. I am not naive about that. But as a teacher and an almost elder, it is not the older generation I place my faith in. Instead, I look to the youth. Historically, it has always been the younger generations who fought the hardest for change. With their futures at stake, now will be no different. It is up to us as elders to help lay a transformative philosophical foundation for them. And the sooner the better, because as scientists tell us, this will not be the lastor the worstpandemic we are likely to see.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Prime Mining Corp. (TSX.V:PRYM) (OTCQB: PRMNF) (Frankfurt:A2PRDW) (Prime or the Company) is pleased to announce an updated mineral resource estimate (Updated Resource) prepared by Stantec Consulting Ltd. (Stantec) for Primes Los Reyes Oxide Gold and Silver Project located near Cosala, Mexico (the Los Reyes).



Highlights

The Updated Resource increases total oxide mineralized material and upgrades the assurance category estimate reliability. The new pit constrained Updated Resource (at 0.22 g/t Au cutoff) increased to 19.8 million tonnes Measured and Indicated plus 7.1 million tonnes Inferred from 6.8 million tonnes Indicated and 3.2 million tonnes Inferred historic global resource (at 0.5 g/t Au cutoff).

The Updated Resource contains 833,082 gold equivalent (AuEq) ounces Measured and Indicated at 1.31 g/t and 261,132 AuEq ounces Inferred at 1.14 g/t.

The following is a summary of pit constrained AuEq ounces at various cutoffs:

Table 1: Summary of Pit Constrained Updated Resource in AuEq Ounces

Cutoff Assurance Category Tonnes Average AuEq Contained AuEq Grade (g/t) Ounces 0.22 g/t cutoff Base Case Measured & Indicated 19,752,000 1.31 833,082 Inferred 7,094,000 1.14 261,132 0.50 g/t cutoff Measured & Indicated 11,822,000 1.85 701,873 Inferred 3,956,000 1.65 209,344 0.70 g/t cutoff Measured & Indicated 8,697,000 2.21 618,123 Inferred 2,603,000 2.09 175,232 0.90 g/t cutoff Measured & Indicated 6,746,000 2.54 550,207 Inferred 1,859,000 2.48 148,160 1.0 g/t cutoff Measured & Indicated 5,914,000 2.72 516,251 Inferred 1,685,000 2.59 140,530

Gold equivalent calculations are based on a gold to silver ratio of 1:83. Pit constrained mineral resources are reported at cut-off grades within conceptual pit shells. The total base case resulting pit strip ratio is 4.6:1 waste to mineralized material. Both gold and silver values are used to determine the value of a given block and the pit shell is defined by: a 0.22 g/t minimum gold cutoff grade, US$2.40 per tonne mining cost, a gold price of US$1,329 per troy ounce and a silver price of US$16 per troy ounce. Mineralization density is based on laboratory analyses on specific lithologies and a default mine rock density is based on 2.6 tonnes/m3 for all other areas. Modifying factors considered for the definition of mineralized zones into classified resources having reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction are: metallurgical recovery factors of 72% for gold and 25% for silver that are typical for conventional heap leach operations, no allowance for dilution and mining losses in the calculation of the cutoff grade, combined leaching, site costs and overhead of approximately US$4.30 per tonne placed on the leach pad and no refining and royalty costs have been applied.

Table 2: Pit Constrained Updated Resources

Cutoff Assurance Category Tonnes ('000) Average Au Contained Au Average Ag Contained Ag Average AuEq Contained AuEq Grade (g/t) (oz '000) Grade (g/t) (oz '000) Grade (g/t) (oz '000) 0.22 g/t cutoff total Measured 8,527 1.24 341 28.98 7,946 1.59 436 Indicated 11,225 0.81 293 23.99 8,658 1.10 397 M+I 19,752 1.00 633 26.15 16,604 1.31 833 Inferred 7,094 0.78 179 29.95 6,831 1.14 261 0.50 g/t cutoff total Measured 5,294 1.80 306 37.62 6,403 2.25 383 Indicated 6,528 1.15 240 31.01 6,509 1.52 319 M+I 11,822 1.44 546 33.97 12,912 1.85 702 Inferred 3,956 1.13 144 42.90 5,456 1.65 209 0.70 g/t cutoff total Measured 4,094 2.15 283 42.46 5,589 2.66 351 Indicated 4,603 1.38 204 35.48 5,251 1.81 268 M+I 8,697 1.74 488 38.77 10,840 2.21 618 Inferred 2,603 1.44 120 54.36 4,549 2.09 175 0.90 g/t cutoff total Measured 3,323 2.47 264 46.57 4,975 3.03 324 Indicated 3,423 1.58 174 39.46 4,342 2.06 227 M+I 6,746 2.02 438 42.96 9,317 2.54 550 Inferred 1,859 1.71 102 64.23 3,839 2.48 148 1.0 g/t cutoff total Measured 3,019 2.62 254 48.42 4,700 3.20 311 Indicated 2,895 1.70 158 41.85 3,895 2.20 205 M+I 5,914 2.17 413 45.20 8,595 2.72 516 Inferred 1,685 1.78 97 67.22 3,642 2.59 141

We are very pleased with these results and the major increase in potential open pit material, said Prime COO Gregory K. Liller. The successful Prime sampling program, started in September 2019, allowed us to evaluate the tonnage and grade in areas between the unsampled outcrop and the drilled subsurface. The sampling program confirmed our belief that the mineralized zones are substantially wider than previously modeled. We believe our planned 2020 exploration program will build on this success with emphasis on three target efforts: 1) down dip and along strike in the pit areas; 2) between pits to connect them together; and, 3) the remaining 60% of Los Reyess undrilled structures where outcrop grab samples are similar to sample results in the Updated Resource.

See this link for project maps and data on Los Reyes: https://primeminingcorp.ca/project/los-reyes-project

Management emphasizes the following four key points:

Los Reyes is a much larger oxide resource than historic estimates;

Primes plan of advancing to immediate production is now being delayed to conduct exploration, as recommended by Stantec, and increase the scope and size of the project;

A historic 2013 Preliminary Economic Assessment included test work supporting recoveries of 93% gold and 83% silver with conventional milling, gravity and carbon-in-leach. The Updated Resource uses recoveries of 72% gold and 25% silver; and,

Prime believes that heap leach processing of mineralized material below certain grades, and mill/gravity/CIL processing for the rest, could provide significant upside to further expand the resource and recover more gold and silver ounces.

Updated Resource

Following is Figure 1: Los Reyes March 2020 Resource Pits showing locations of the pit areas and Table 3: Pit Constrained Resource by Deposit with a summary of resources contained in the seven neighboring pit areas:

Figure 1: Los Reyes March 2020 Resource Pits

Figure 1 is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/367c8871-ef1c-46cd-a5ee-dd32a6075dd9

Table 3: Pit-Constrained Resource by Deposit (Cutoff Grade 0.22g/t Au)

Deposit Assurance Category Tonnes

('000) Average Au Contained Au Average Ag Contained Ag Average AuEq Contained AuEq Grade (g/t) (oz '000) Grade (g/t) (oz '000) Grade (g/t) (oz '000) Tahonitas -El Zapote (North & South) Measured 4,576 1.15 169 17.97 2,644 1.37 201 Indicated 5,622 0.78 141 16.55 2,992 0.98 177 M+I 10,198 0.95 311 17.19 5,637 1.15 378 Inferred 2,407 0.91 70 17.17 1,329 1.12 86 Noche Buena Measured 300 1.25 12 25.93 250 1.56 15 Indicated 1,939 0.80 50 20.92 1,304 1.05 66 M+I 2,239 0.86 62 21.59 1,554 1.12 81 Inferred 1,123 0.73 26 17.34 626 0.94 34 San Miguel East Measured 650 1.22 26 59.88 1,251 1.94 41 Indicated 1,784 0.84 48 53.09 3,045 1.48 85 M+I 2,434 0.94 74 54.91 4,297 1.60 125 Inferred 2,391 0.81 62 54.89 4,219 1.47 113 San Miguel West Measured 93 3.15 9 42.26 126 3.66 11 Indicated 379 1.51 18 20.65 252 1.76 21 M+I 472 1.83 28 24.91 378 2.13 32 Inferred 116 0.59 2 10.97 41 0.72 3 Guadalupe East Measured 2,141 1.46 100 42.08 2,896 1.97 135 Indicated 809 0.89 23 25.26 657 1.19 31 M+I 2,950 1.30 124 37.46 3,553 1.75 166 Inferred 814 0.58 15 18.82 492 0.80 21 Guadalupe West Measured 767 0.97 24 31.51 777 1.35 33 Indicated 692 0.53 12 18.37 409 0.75 17 M+I 1,459 0.76 36 25.27 1,186 1.06 50 Inferred 243 0.30 2 15.74 123 0.49 4 TOTAL Measured 8,527 1.24 341 28.98 7,946 1.59 436 Indicated 11,225 0.81 293 23.99 8,658 1.10 397 M+I 19,752 1.00 633 26.15 16,604 1.31 833 Inferred 7,094 0.78 179 29.95 6,831 1.14 261

CIM (2014) definitions were followed for Mineral Resources.

Mineral resources which are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. An Inferred Mineral Resource has a lower level of confidence than that applying to a Measured and Indicated Mineral Resource and must not be converted to a Mineral Reserve. All figures are rounded to reflect the relative accuracy of the estimate. The gold and silver 1.5 m composites have been capped at 25 g/t gold and 550 g/t silver (1:83 ratio Au to Ag) and modeled on 3m x 3m x 3m block size The results from the pit optimization are used solely for the purpose of testing the reasonable prospects for economic extraction by an open pit and do not represent an attempt to estimate mineral reserves. There are no mineral reserves on the Los Reyes. The results are used as a guide to assist in the preparation of a mineral resource statement and to select an appropriate resource reporting cut-off grade. Resource estimation by Inverse Distance Weighting algorithm cubed (IDW3) in a multiple search pass approach; and Construction of Lerchs-Grossmann pit shells using independently assessed mining extraction costs and revenue.

Updated Resource Data Input and Review

The Updated Resource is based on 463 historic drill holes and 41 of them, completed in 2015, were never utilized in previous resource estimations. The Updated Resource also includes results from the Companys recent 5,000 metre trenching, adit and roadcut sampling program. The Companys sampling, and the 2015 drilling data, significantly increased the information available. The Updated Resource is contained in a technical report prepared by Stantec under National Instrument 43-101 (NI 43-101), which will be available on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) under the Companys profile within 45 days.

The Updated Resource is enabled by two 3D block models of zones identified from drill hole records and model solids of the mineralized intervals and include Los Reyes deposits El Zapote (North and South), Tahonitas, Noche Buena, Guadalupe (East and West), and San Miguel (East and West) which are contained in an area within 1 to 3 kilometres from each other.

Stantec reviewed the input data from the entire 493-hole historic database and Primes 5,000 metre sampling program. They performed a number of statistical analyses including histograms comparing assay results from RC drill holes with those from diamond drill core holes. The study showed a high degree of confidence with the two data sets including comparable mean, variance, standard deviation and coefficient of variation values. In addition, the data from 17 paired core and RC holes was also analyzed with a similar high degree of confidence with the two data sets including comparable mean, variance, standard deviation and coefficient of variation values. Stantec was able to conclude that the drilling methods used did not create any bias regarding the grade values for gold and silver.

Relevant Historic Technical Reports

In 2013, Vista Gold Corp. (Vista) issued a Preliminary Economic Assessment for Los Reyes which included a mineral resource estimate. In 2017, Los Reyes was optioned from Vista by Minera Alamos Inc. (Minera Alamos). Minera Alamos commissioned Tetra Tech to complete: NI 43-101 Updated Technical Report, Guadalupe de Los Reyes Gold/Silver Project, Sinaloa, Mexico, effective February 8, 2013 and amended and restated April 16, 2018. Prime acquired the Vista option from Minera Alamos in 2019 and retained Tetra Tech to issue: NI 43-101Technical Report, Los Reyes Gold/Silver Project, Sinaloa, Mexico, effective May 23, 2019 and filed August 27, 2019, which is available under Prime's profile on SEDAR.

2020 Plan for Los Reyes

Prime has submitted a permit application to initiate road building to access new areas for drilling and trenching. In addition, the engineering team has designed a drilling program to intersect the mineralized structures below proposed pits, along strike, in areas where pits may merge together and in new areas where there is good potential to discover high grade mineralization.

The Update Resource technical report recommends additional trenching to potentially extend the mineralization in El Zapote North and South, San Miguel East and West, between San Miguel East and Noche Buena, as well as in the Tahonitas area. It is also recommended to complete a 40 hole drilling program to: 1) assess the extension of mineralization down dip below current pit bottoms; 2) test subsurface mineralization identified during trenching program; and 3) assess the continuity between ore bodies, such as El Zapote North and El Zapote South, and between San Miguel and El Zapote North. The proposed method of drilling would include both core and RC holes.

Primes currently has $1.0 million in cash which is sufficient to sustain current operations for the remainder of 2020. In order to fund the proposed 2020 program, the Company expects to engage with a strategic partner or enter the capital markets if conditions are favourable.

Qualified Persons

William A Turner, P.Geol., and A.C. (Chris) Hunter, P.Geol. prepared the Updated Resource and authored the technical report on behalf of Stantec and are independent as defined by Section 1.5 of NI 43-101.

Gregory K. Liller, Primes COO was responsible for the Companys internal geologic modelling, input review and other major aspects of the Companys sampling program. Bruce Kienlen, P.Geol., Primes Vice President of Exploration, contributed to the update and field sampling program data collection. He is responsible for Companys database management, quality control, and internal technical reporting.

Mr. Kienlen, a qualified person for the purposes of NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical content in this news release.

Los Reyes Gold and Silver Project

The Los Reyes Gold-Silver Project is district scale epithermal gold-silver project in a prolific mining region of Mexico. Mineralization in the Los Reyes area is typical of low sulfidation epithermal gold/silver systems. Over $20 million in exploration and engineering has already been spent on the project over 2 1/2 decades. Previous operators completed various prefeasibility studies and plans yet held back from development due to declining gold prices. While work completed has provided sufficient understanding of resources to fast-track Los Reyes to production, the bulk of work at Los Reyes has being conducted over less than 40% of the known structures leaving significant opportunity to expand known resources.

About Prime Mining Corp (TSX.V: PRYM) (OTCQB:PRMNF)

Prime Mining is an ideal mix of successful mining executives, strong capital markets personnel and experienced local operators who have united to build a low cost, near-term gold producer at the historically productive Los Reyes project in Mexico. The location boasts a mining history spanning hundreds of years of activity alongside a stable and established regional mining infrastructure. Decades of extensive fieldwork and technical study have positioned Los Reyes to advance to gold production quickly and cost effectively.

Los Reyes holds substantial resource upside based on open extensions of known resources, 10 kilometres of undrilled strike length and at least 8 additional exploration targets.

Prime Mining has a well-planned capital structure with significant team and insider ownership. For more information please visit www.primeminingcorp.ca and follow us on Twitter , Facebook or LinkedIn .



ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Andrew Bowering

Chief Executive Officer

For further information, please contact:

Anthony Patterson

Investor Relations

Prime Mining Corp.

1507  1030 West Georgia Street

Vancouver, BC, V6E 2Y3

Telephone: (604) 428-6128

Facsimile: (604) 428-6430

E: info@primeminingcorp.ca

Scott Koyich

President and CEO

Brisco Capital Partners Corp.

#400 - 505 8th Avenue S.W.

Calgary, AB, T2P 1G2

Telephone: (403) 262-9888

Facsimile: (403) 263-1339

E: skoyich@briscocapital.com



Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.



Forward Looking Information

Information set forth in this document may include forward-looking statements. While these statements reflect management's current plans, projections and intents, by their nature, forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, some of which are beyond the control of the Company. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements. There is no assurance the transactions noted above will be completed on the terms as contemplated, or at all. The Companys actual results, programs, activities and financial position could differ materially from those expressed in or implied by these forward-looking statements.




Investors wear masks and sit distantly from each other at An Binh Securities Co amid the spread of coronavirus. Viet Nam's benchmark VN-Index rose 2.67 per cent on Wednesday.

The benchmark VN-Index on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange gained 2.67 per cent to end at 680.23 points, extending growth for a second day from a 0.04 per cent increase on Tuesday.

The HNX-Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange jumped 3.21 per cent to close at 95.61 points. It had dropped a total of 7.44 per cent in the previous four trading days.

More than 303.5 million shares were traded on the two exchanges, worth VND4.16 trillion (US$176 million).

The figure included 236 million shares sold via order-matching deals, worth VND2.38 trillion.

The local stock market rebounded in the morning session after Government officials and agencies reassured that a 15-day nationwide social-distancing order, starting on Wednesday, was not a lockdown and the securities market would not be interrupted during the fight against COVID-19.

The State Securities Commission on Wednesday also sent a letter to centrally-run cities and provinces, asking local authorities to consider securities trading an indispensable activity so the stock market would run uninterrupted.

Large-cap stocks advanced on both exchanges. Large-cap trackers VN30-Index and HNX30-Index rose 2.95 per cent and 3.67 per cent, respectively.

In the VN30 basket, 27 of the 30 largest stocks by market capitalisation and trading liquidity made gains while only two declined.

The four best-performing large-caps were Sacombank (STB), insurer Bao Viet (BVH), SSI Securities (SSI) and FLC Faros Construction (ROS), which surged 6.7-7.0 per cent.

Other large-caps that followed included petrol group Petrolimex (PLX), HDBank (HDB), Vietinbank (CTG), Military Bank (MBB), Vietcombank (VCB), Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BID), and retailer Mobile World Investment (MWG).

Foreign investors remained as net sellers but their selling lightened on Wednesday. Net foreign selling reached VND140 billion on the two exchanges, down 65 per cent from Tuesday's figure.

Local stock exchanges and securities firms will take a day off on Thursday the national holiday for the Hung Kings Festival.

Wednesdays gain may only be a technical recovery as trading liquidity of order-matching deals declined on a daily basis, Sai Gon-Ha Noi Securities Co (SHS) said in its daily report.

The VN-Index may encounter strong resistance as it is approaching the 700-point level in the coming days, the company said.

Investors are betting the market will soon decline sharply again, SHS said.

The developments of the coronavirus pandemic will still weigh on market sentiment after the market returns from the national holiday, the company said.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 15:54:20|Editor: xuxin

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by Xinhua writer Tan Jingjing

WASHINGTON, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The COVID-19 mitigation efforts, if continued efficiently, may help reduce the large number of deaths the infectious disease is projected to cause in the United States, leading U.S. experts told Xinhua on Wednesday.

At a White House briefing on Tuesday, Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Deborah Birx, director of the White House COVID-19 task force, called the projected 100,000 to 240,000 deaths a "real number," pledging to try to reduce it.

As dire as those predictions are, both Fauci and Birx said the number of deaths could be much higher if Americans did not follow the strict guidelines vital to keeping the virus from spreading.

The White House models they displayed at the briefing showed that more than 2.2 million people could have died in the United States if nothing were done.

Those conclusions were based on a continuing analysis of cases in the United States, and generally matched those from similar models created by public health researchers around the globe, according to experts.

"This is the worst-case scenario, and we hope that it does not happen," Stanley Perlman, professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Iowa, told Xinhua.

"Social distancing and as much self-quarantining as possible seems to be the best way to mitigate the disease," he said.

Addressing the White House briefing on Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump warned everyone in the nation will be facing a "very very rough two weeks" in the coronavirus pandemic, urging Americans to continue social-distancing measures.

He announced on Sunday the federal social distancing guidelines will be extended to April 30.

While enhancing the mitigation efforts, the United States is also stepping up the development of treatments for COVID-19, including experimenting with the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine and blood-related therapies, and offering fast tests.

"These measures would help delay the peak of the epidemic, leaving more time for the U.S. medical system to prepare for the crisis, and prevent it from collapsing," Zhang Zuofeng, professor of epidemiology, and also associate dean for research at the School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles, told Xinhua.

Kent Pinkerton, professor of pediatrics from the School of Medicine at the University of California, Davis, said that based on the current stay-in-shelter and social distancing precautions being taken for much of the United States at this time, the projected death figure seems "unusually high."

"I am confident the current mitigation procedures being implemented, if followed, will clearly reduce this number," he told Xinhua.

"There's no magic bullet. There's no magic vaccine or therapy. It's just behaviors: Each of our behaviors translating into something that changes the course of this viral pandemic over the next 30 days," Birx said.
Kinshasa, DR Congo (PANA) - Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), which is operating in 16 provinces of DR Congo, including North-Kivu and in other hospitals and health centers, is preparing to face the rush of coronavirus patients, an official source told PANA here Wednesday
A Nigerian student who posed as a diplomat to scam a vulnerable Brisbane woman after she had been scammed by another man posing as a US Air Force officer has avoided spending more time in jail.

Cosmos Kelechi Emeh, 33, pleaded guilty on Thursday to defrauding the woman, from Kuraby in south Brisbane, out of more than $100,000 via an internet romance hoax in 2018.

Emeh contacted the woman part way through the sophisticated scam, which had already defrauded the 34-year-old out of more than $250,000, the Brisbane District Court heard.

He identified himself as diplomat Mark David and asked for a further $105,000, which she withdrew from her parent's account without permission and paid in cash.
She's been relaxing at home ever since TOWIE filming was cancelled amid the coronavirus pandemic.

And Amber Turner encouraged her 769K to 'self-isolate' on Wednesday night as she shared a sultry selfie to Instagram.

The TOWIE star, 26, showcased her surgically-enhanced assets in a grey plunging Calvin Klein bra in the snap.

Sultry: Amber Turner encouraged her 769K to 'self-isolate' on Wednesday night as she shared a sultry selfie to Instagram

Amber teased a glimpse of her toned abs as she teamed the item of lingerie with a pair of matching pants.

Draping a grey ribbed cardigan around her shoulders, the reality star added a diamond pendant necklace.

Amber styled her blonde locks into a curly blow-dried hairdo and added a slick of glamorous make-up.

Work out: The TOWIE star, 26, also enjoyed a workout, which she shared to her Stories, where she displayed her toned figure in a blue crop top and matching leggings

The reality star revealed in her caption that she did her hair and make-up to make herself 'feel better', she later shared the snap to he Stories where she added a GIF which said 'this is what social distancing looks like'.

Amber also enjoyed a workout, which she shared to her Instagram, where she displayed her toned figure in a blue crop top and matching leggings.

It comes after the reality star appeared to pine back to her recent sun-soaked Dubai trip as she shared a sizzling bikini snap onto her account on Tuesday.

The reality star displayed her incredibly toned physique in a tiny lilac bikini by Moda Minx as she encouraged her social media followers to 'use this time in self-isolation to exercise'.

Throwback: It comes after the reality star appeared to pine back to her recent sun-soaked Dubai trip as she shared a sizzling bikini snap onto her account on Tuesday

'Use this time to get your summer body!' The reality star encouraged her social media followers to 'use this time in self-isolation to exercise' in her caption

Posing up a storm by the five-star Palm Jumeirah Hotel in the throwback snap, the media personality styled her barely-there two-piece with a flashy gold watch and a diamond ring.

The TV star - who has launched her new fitness account, Active With Amber - recommended her followers to engage in a workout session while in quarantine as she captioned the image: 'Getting bikini confident starts in Winter / Spring.

'I hope summer isnt cancelled this year! Use this time where it would usually be your excuse for not working out! 30-40 mins a day! Think about how much progress you would of made after this isolation is over!

'Summer body doesnt mean skinny! It simply means confident in YOUR OWN skin! All shapes and sizes are beautiful. I wanna help you all on your journey - get following. LAUNCHING SOON.' [sic]

Looking back: The reality star continued to post eye-catching photos from her past holidays amid the coronavirus pandemic

Earlier in the day, the blonde bombshell treated fans to a peek at her couples' workout with boyfriend Dan Edgar.

Earlier this month, The Only Way Is Essex filming was cancelled in Tenerife amid coronavirus fears.

The ITVBe series has been following travelling advice from the government, with cast members avoiding putting themselves in danger by staying at home.

A source told The Sun: 'Everyone's talking about it - the castmembers who were due to go have been told it's not happening now and they're rethinking plans.

A couple that stay fit together... Earlier in the day, the blonde bombshell treated fans to a peek at her couples' workout with boyfriend Dan Edgar (L)

'The last thing anyone would want is for them to be in danger and they're following travel advice when filming.'

A TOWIE spokesperson told MailOnline: 'No decisions have been made on filming locations for the next series.'

TOWIE films in a special location each year for a special abroad series, this has included the likes of Thailand and Marbella.

Coronavirus was classed a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) earlier this month, leading countries such as Italy, Spain and the UK to implement nationwide lockdowns.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 09:16:49|Editor: ZD

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KIGALI, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The Rwandan Ministry of Trade and Industry said Wednesday 146 companies and business people have been fined here over various offenses amid the COVID-19 lockdown.

Since March 17, the total fine amount has reached 10,740,000 Rwandan francs (about 11,480 U.S. dollars), the ministry said in a statement.

The statement came as seven new cases have been reported Wednesday, bringing the country's total to 82.

Inspections conducted inside the city found an abnormal increase in prices of some products, intentional use of unapproved weighing scales and issuance of illegal invoices, said the statement.

According to the ministry, the offenders breached laws related to consumer protection and the organization of internal trade.

Earlier in March, the Eastern African country put into place limits on the sales of foodstuffs and other essential commodities per day to prevent panic buying amid the coronavirus lockdown.

The ministry also required all traders, including retailers and wholesalers, avoid pricing up goods, whether they are imported or locally produced.

In addition, it also set tariffs on different commodities to prevent traders from taking advantage of the current situation to deceive buyers.

On March 21, Rwanda announced the implementation of stricter measures in a bid to contain the spread of COVID-19, banning unnecessary movements of residents and ordering border closure.
COEUR D ALENE, Idaho  A 47-year-old Texas man was arrested in Idaho on charges of interference with a child custody order after he was accused of taking his 6-year-son on an 1,800-mile (2,900-kilometer) trip during a scheduled visitation, authorities said.

Ronald Whitted of Fort Worth, Texas, had a visitation session with his son last week, but he was accused of not returning the boy to his mother and instead going on a multi-day trip, the Coeur dAlene Press reported.

Texas authorities believed the child was in danger and enlisted the help of the U.S. Marshals task force to locate Whitted, who they learned had traveled to northern Idaho.

Whitted left Hurst, Texas, around March 17 and began the trip north, police said, adding the drive is estimated at 27 hours, or about three days.

He was believed to have attempted to flee the country, U.S. Marshal deputy Michael Leigh said. After being on the run for almost two weeks, the Greater Idaho Fugitive Task Force  tracked Whitted and his son to an apartment in downtown Coeur dAlene.

The child was safely recovered, authorities said.

U.S. Marshals-led task forces find and arrest fugitives throughout the country who are charged with violent crimes, drug offenses, sex offenders and other serious felonies, and they investigate and recover missing and exploited children, Leigh said.

Whitteds attorney in Idaho, Anne Taylor, did not immediately return a phone message left by The Associated Press.

Whitted is being held without bond in the Kootenai County jail until he can be extradited to Texas.

Extradition proceedings will begin this month for Whitted, who faces civil charges in Kootenai County, and whose criminal charges will be pursued in Texas. His next court appearance is April 10 in Coeur dAlene.
A court in capital Algiers Wednesday pressed a 15-year prison sentence associated with a $80,000-fine against former head of the national police, Major General Abdelghani Hamel, charged with corruption and illicit enrichment.

The Sidi Mhamed court also handed individual sentences to the family of the General and their company.

Hamels wife Lanani Salima is handed one-year in prison and a $10,000 fine. Their elder son, Amyar is issued 10 years in prison and a fine of $60,000. The couples other son, Shafiq, is sentenced to eight years in prison attached with a $50,000 fine. Mourad, the Hamels third son, and their daughter, Shahinaz, were both sentenced to seven years in prison and a fine of $50,000.

The familys company, whose properties were seized, is requested to pay $320,000 in fine to the state.

The prosecution in March requested 20 years in prison for the former head of national security directorate.

The court also heard and sentenced several people including former ministers and governors over connection with the case. Abdelmalek Boudiaf and Abdelghani Zaalane, two former ministers are sentenced respectively to three years in prison and a fine of $10,000. They were governors of Oran governorate at the time the illicit enrichment by the family.
(CNN) -- British Airways will furlough 30,000 of its employees with pay, as the coronavirus pandemic halts global travel, forcing airlines to ground planes and slash costs.

The United Kingdom's flagship carrier, owned by International Airlines Group, said in a statement Thursday that it is implementing a "furlough scheme" to minimize the financial impact of the coronavirus on staff.

After talks with unions, British Airways agreed to provide workers with 80% of their regular pay, with no cap on earnings, according to the major UK union, Unite. The first 2,500 ($3,095) will be paid by the government, with BA making up the shortfall, Unite said in a statement. There will be no unpaid temporary layoffs and the measures will be in place until the end of May.

This is "as good a deal as possible for our members," said Oliver Richardson, Unite's national officer for aviation. "The deal protects the jobs of BA staff and, as far as possible, also protects their pay," he said in a statement.

British Airways, which on Monday suspended flights from London's Gatwick airport, is the latest major European carrier to announce sweeping operational changes. On Monday, UK budget carrier EasyJet grounded its entire fleet, furloughing 4,000 cabin crew. Europe's largest low-cost carrier Ryanair will ground more than 90% of its aircraft over the coming weeks, while Scotland-based Loganair plans to approach the government for financial aid.

Airlines around the world have been brought to their knees as the pandemic worsens, particularly in Europe and North America, with flight bans and nationwide lockdowns threatening to shut down aviation altogether. Many carriers have slashed or suspended their short-term flight schedules, placed workers on unpaid leave and paused hiring. Several industry CEOs have stopped taking salaries.

Bailouts ahead

While US airlines will receive tens of billions of dollars in support as part of the country's $2 trillion stimulus package, governments in Europe have not promised bailouts to their carriers.

The UK government has said that airlines, like all companies, can make use of measures to help businesses hit by the coronavirus, including capital-raising programs and tax relief. "We are continuing to work closely with the sector and are willing to consider the situation of individual firms, so long as all other government schemes have been explored and all commercial options exhausted, including raising capital from existing investors," a government spokesperson said.

Virgin Atlantic on Thursday declined to comment on media reports that the airline is seeking financial assistance from the UK government. The company said that Richard Branson, its billionaire owner, is plowing $250 million into Virgin Group companies to protect jobs.

Lufthansa, which owns national carriers in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Belgium, said in a statement Thursday that it is "in close contact" with the federal governments of its home markets to secure its liquidity.

A spokesperson for Airbus told CNN Business that the plane maker is "strongly advocating government support for all airlines."

"[There is] no more 'normal' for aviation," analysts at CAPA Centre for Aviation, said in a report Thursday. "The revenue reduction faced by airlines this year as a result of COVID-19 far exceeds the impact from previous crises. It has the dimensions of a world war," they noted.

The International Air Transport Association expects the crisis to cut industry revenues globally by $252 billion this year compared to 2019, with airlines burning through $61 billion in cash in the second quarter.

-- Eoin McSweeney and Chris Liakos contributed to this report.

This story was first published on CNN.com "British Airways furloughs 30,000 workers."
A Sharadhaa By

Express News Service

Priyanka Upendra is playing a different role now. Post the COVID-19 outbreak in the city, the actor has immersed herself full-time into housework. Priyanka, who is also a wife, mother of two children, and a daughter-in-law, says the lockdown has put her in charge of the entire household. Since all my servants have gone, there is so much work to do at home now. I am cooking, and taking care of the family -- Uppi, kids and my in-laws. My daily activities also include looking after the plants, pets, etc. I dont realise when my day starts and ends, says Priyanka, who adds that she had three domestic helps until now.

Priyanka Upendra

Never once have I cleaned the entire house, and it looks quite okay, which is, of course, an achievement, she says. We sometimes underestimate how much we can do. It is a little tiring. Though its great that I have Uppi (actor Upendra) helping me with the dishes, and the kids too help me sometimes, she reveals. Priyanka had even planned to catch up on watching some films, and get on with her writing, but she is not finding much time for those passions.

At this moment, it is important to clean the house, which alone takes two hours of my time, says Priyanka, adding, In all this melee, I managed to watch the Oscar-winning film, Parasite, on Amazon. I am hoping to watch more shows on Netflix, but it all depends on how much time I get. The entire days work gets me tired  so much so that I want to get to bed by 8.30 pm. For the family, Chaitra Navaratri (Vasantha Navarathri), which falls on April 2, will be a low-key affair this year.



Usually, we have the purohit come and perform the pooja. However, this year it will be quite simple, she says. Meanwhile, Priyanka is waiting for the kids to start their online classes. My son, Ayush, is a Class 10 student. He has taken three Board exams, and we are yet to get an update about when the rest of them will be held. My daughter, Aishwarya, is in Class 9 and will start attending her schools online classes from April 10, which will keep her busy, she says.

Ramesh Aravind, filmmaker

Ramesh Aravind, an actor, director, producer and motivational speaker has now found new ways to make his life interesting during this lockdown period.

A chance to bond better with family



For Ramesh Aravind, this is the time to rewire the existing relationship at home and bond better with family members. I have never folded my clothes in my life, and am doing it now. To an extent, my participation in domestic chores is helping me get a better understanding of the relationship. Perhaps for the first time in our lives, my wife, my daughter and I (my son is currently in the USA) are having all three meals together. Earlier, each one of us were in our own orbit, and they have now got aligned, he says.

Learning accounting and hands-on VFX



The lockdown is also giving Ramesh Aravind a chance to take up activities he has wanting to try, but could not do because of his hectic schedule. Our professional work swallows at least nine hours of our time, he says. I always wanted to understand tally and financial accounting. Since I was a science student, I never understood much about debit and credit, voucher, journal entry and ledger. Since it was not that relevant to my profession, I didnt bother. But now that I am also a producer, and I have the time, I have downloaded a free version of Tally software, and am trying my hands on it.

I am getting better knowledge of accounts. Secondly, I always wanted to learn VFX (visual effects). Though I would complete the entire film in five months, 15 minutes of VFX would take another five months to complete, which was irritating. So I was keen to understand the process better, he says. Ramesh Aravind now involves himself in taking online classes with a friend for three hours every day. It enables me to understand how to remove the green mat, how to put the background, etc, and I am getting a first-hand experience, he explains.

New fitness routine



Like everyone else in the city, Ramesh is forced to carry out his exercise regime at home, and has got bored with the regular workout. He is now trying out other kinds of physical activity. I am getting into Chinese Qi, a kind of yoga, and Baare, which is popular in South Africa. I do these different kinds of exercises for 20 minutes. Having been used to only doing asanas, I find these exercises creative, and sometimes, even funny, he says.

Script for Shivaji sequel



On the professional front, Ramesh and director Akash Srivatsa are developing a sequel to Shivaji Surathkal, which is now in the scripting stages. All of the writing is happening online, or either through audio or video calls, says Ramesh, who is also looking forward to releasing his next directorial, 100. I am waiting for this lockdown period to be over, and we will then plan for the release, he says.

Best time for introspection



According to Ramesh, this is the best time for introspection. Since we have 8-10 hours a day to spend, we have 210 hours in hand. That is something you will never get again. I think this is when we need to analyse ourselves, and see where we have messed up, and what corrective measures need to be taken, he says.

Abhimanyu Dassani, actor

I wake up around 8-8.30 every morning. I try to have at least two meals with my family  mostly breakfast and lunch. I read scripts through the day or catch up on more sleep. In the evenings, I play board-games like Ludo, Taboo and Judgement with my family. Ive been watching a lot of shows: Tiger King (on Netflix), Special Ops (Hostar) and the last season of Billions (Hotstar). Ill also recommend the Anime series, My Hero Academia. Cooking is my first love as well as a form of meditation. Ive been trying a lot of healthy recipes: I made mushroom ravioli, gluten-free pizza, gluten-free pasta and lots of eggs. Ive been posting daily workouts on Instagram that people can do at home. Its always easy to follow a regime if someone gives you written instructions every day. A woman messaged me saying that her husband, who hadnt exercised for a year, was inspired by my series to work out.

Shriya Pilgaonkar, actor

As the last few months were hectic for me workwise, the first week of the lockdown was just about resting it out, spending time with my family and dog, reading and watching things. I am a homebody at heart but I dont want lethargy to kick in. So Ive been doing different workouts and allowing myself to flow in this free time. I have been watching a mixed bag of things. I watched both seasons of Killing Eve created by Phoebe Waller Bridge, who I absolutely love. Ive been watching a lot of animation: Studio Ghibli Films on Netflix and a lovely Japanese Series called Midnight Dinner: Tokyo Stories. I also caught up on some South films on my list like Super Deluxe and Kumbalangi Nights. I am currently reading Essays on Love by Alain de Botton.

Pawan Kumar, director

Lockdown or not, Pawan Kumar lives a similar lifestyle. I am keeping busy. Earlier, I was constantly doing some creative work. But this time, I am engaging more as an entrepreneur, says the director-actor, who took the responsibility of crowdfunding for daily wage workers just after the lockdown was announced. The initiative ended on March 31, and Pawan Kumar collected about `8 lakh, which will be distributed among the daily wage workers.

I am also looking at how we can do better in terms of film production and distribution. This is not just for myself, but from the perspective of the industry and the audience. I am also working on how the industry can create more employment, says Pawan, adding, My lifestyle is pretty much similar, and I am mostly doing work online. These days, I am also participating in household work, and spending a lot of time with my daughter. Other then binge-watching, I am also thinking of new ways of spending time qualitatively.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- New research shows the potential for the coronavirus to move through the air, but theres not enough evidence to change the way we approach the virus yet.

Current social distancing guidelines are based on the belief that COVID-19 is transmitted by respiratory droplets. That means the virus spreads through liquid released when a patient coughs or sneezes.

But is the coronavirus airborne? Airborne viruses can travel without respiratory droplets to carry them, said Mark Cameron, an associate professor at Case Western Reserve University.

It doesnt simply rely on being coughed on or respiratory secretions within a six-foot radius of a patient, he said. Being airborne would allow a virus to travel further than that. There have been hints.

Air samples taken inside hospitals, in COVID-19 patients rooms and the hallways outside, tested positive for the coronavirus, according to University of Nebraska research. The study is published on a pre-publication research site, but is not yet peer-reviewed.

The samples were taken farther than 6 feet away from patient beds. Analysis of the samples found in the air did not indicate the presence of viral replication.

A university post noted that this was not conclusive evidence that the virus is airborne, and that further research is needed to see if live virus was captured and determine the risk of transmission through the air.

An earlier study in the New England Journal of Medicine nebulized the virus and studied the spray in the air in a controlled lab environment. Researchers found that the virus remained in the air for three hours after it was sprayed, but did not study whether or not it spread.

The University of Nebraska study was conducted in a clinical environment, with isolated coronavirus patients. A next step, Cameron said, could be to move away from an area with high concentration of the illness and see whether the virus shows up.

Otherwise, the virus could be spreading by landing on various surfaces, or by being sucked up into vents.

A study conducted in hospitals in Wuhan, China, found that testing sites in ICU, CCU and general patient rooms, as well as a patient hall had undetectable or low airborne coronavirus concentration. Samples in the intensive care unit and in a patient toilet tested positive for the coronavirus.

Researchers concluded this meant precautions like negative-pressure rooms, which prevents contaminated air from leaving the rooms, and regular cleaning were working.

The study also examined samples from the air in public areas in Wuhan. Though amounts of the virus were undetectable or very low, there were higher levels in a gathering place in front of a department store.

The results showed overall low risks in the public venues overall but do reinforce the importance of avoiding crowded gatherings and implementing early identification and diagnosis of asymptomatic carriers for early quarantine or treatment, the study reads.

The study also suggests that regular mask-wearing in public places and on transit could be helpful in halting the spread of the disease.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are reportedly reconsidering recommendations on whether people should wear masks in public, the Washington Post reported. The recommendations would be for "do-it yourself cloth masks, not surgical masks or N-95 respirator masks.

Neither the CDC or the World Health Organization currently recommend people wearing masks every time theyre in public.

Cameron said if the disease is airborne, hospitals would need to drastically shift how patients are isolated, with stricter quarantine measures. The personal protective equipment healthcare workers wear would not necessarily change, with the right masks fitted correctly as a line of defense.

The virus being airborne would not likely change what us in our homes should be doing, including whether we wear a mask or not, he said. It would change the decisions that would have to be made at some point, in how long we shelter in place or stay at home, and how long non-essential businesses stay open.

A similar virus, SARS-CoV-1, which is about 80 percent identical to COVID-19, is not spread in the air.

There are indicators that this should be part of the discussion on this coronavirus is able to spread so well," Cameron said. "However, coronaviruses in general are viruses that transmit through respiratory transmission and are not airborne.

We dont yet know the story."

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La Hechicera makes some of the best Spanish-style rum out there with nothing added: no sugar, no flavourings, no nothing. We caught up with managing director Miguel Riascos for a few drinks.

La Hechicera as a brand is a recent creation; it was launched in London in 2012. However, the Riascos familys involvement in the rum business goes back to 1994. They learned how to make rum in Cuba, Miguel Riascos explained: After deciding to leave the banana business due to instability and insecurity in Colombia at the time (early 90s), my father, Miguel Riascos Noguera, decided to travel to Cuba in search of new business opportunities and alternatives to agriculture, which at the time carried an inherent risk. In Cuba, my father quickly fell in love with the promise of rum and sought a deal with the Cuban Ministry of Sugar with the purpose of establishing a rum factory in Barranquilla with the Cuban establishments technical support. As part of this arrangement, several qualified chemical engineers and master blenders were sent from Cuba to Colombia, including master blender Giraldo Mituoka Kagana who is still with the company.

Barranquilla, a city on the Caribbean coast, near Cartagena, was the perfect place to do this because it had been designated a Free Zone. In the rest of the country alcohol above 20% ABV was a state monopoly. Unlike in Venezuela, there were no private brands, which is perhaps why Colombian rum doesnt have the same reputation as its neighbour. The family bought in Colombian cane spirit and aged it in ex-bourbon barrels to their own exacting standards meaning no sugar or other additives. The rum would then be sold on to be blended into Colombian or generic Caribbean rums. Which seems a shame.

So, the decision was taken to bottle some of their own. The result was La Hechicera, the name means Enchantress in Spanish, a reference to the magical fecundity and diversity of Colombia. Riascos said: Colombia has more species of flora and fauna than any other country in the world. Appropriately, I was meeting with Riascos in the jungle-inspired splendour of Amazonico in Mayfair.

The project goes back to when the family got into the rum business , Riascos said: When we initially created La Hechicera, it was by far the oldest rum that our family had aged. This is the epitome of everything we want to produce. He went on to tell me a little about the rum: The idea was to bottle something absolutely pure. Its a typical Hispanic-style rum in that it is molasses-fermented, column-distilled and aged in ex-Jack Daniels American white oak for a minimum of 12 years. The oldest component is 21 years old. The rum comes off the column at between 88 and 96% ABV so, according to Riascos, its light in its congenic make-up, and yet its very characterful in its woodiness. Its spent so long in the barrel. That is quite simply the way we like to make our rum and I do feel this almost epitomises our rum making style in Barranquilla. Though at the moment they buy in the spirit, the family has plans to build their own distillery in the near future though will continue to buy in spirit even when its up and running as they like the diversity of flavours, according to Riascos.

Colombia, once a byword for a failed state, is now one of Latin Americas success stories. I asked Riascos if the country was more stable now and he replied with obvious pride: Its firmly stable, today its one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America. Its the third largest already after Mexico and Brazil. Its got an unbelievably diversified economy which is obviously a source of growth and future growth for sure.

Nevertheless, hes surprised by how his home country has taken to La Hechicera, its now the biggest market. Colombians generally are not big consumers of Colombian products, he said. In the past sophisticated drinkers went for Scotch brands, especially Grand Old Parr which is a cult drink in the country. Now though, people are taking pride in home-grown products: Today La Hechicera is almost synonymous with Colombia, Riascos said.

The family expected La Hechicera to be an export-led product so they launched it in London in 2012.  In the UK and in London specifically you do have all the expert bartenders, the awards, the publications, and the master blenders, so its a great platform to position the brands in the on-trade, Riascos said. We are constantly working with bartenders. A classic cocktail is always a great anchor to create a new idea. Over our interview, we tried two takes on the Old Fashioned: firstly the so-called Gold Fashioned, made with a gold-coated (yes real gold!) cube of panela (unrefined cane sugar). Then the Banana Republic, made with banana liqueur, bitters and a piece of dehydrated banana. Its a nod to the familys involvement in the banana business. What we try to do with our cocktails is to tell the story about Colombia, about provenance, about who we are,  Riascos said.

Michael Fink from Amazanico had also been hard at work coming up with cocktails (yes, it was quite a boozy interview.) First off an Old Fashioned made with Antica Formula vermouth and strawberry and tobacco bitters which really brought out the chocolate in the rum. This was followed by a sort of Daiquiri meets Sidecar cocktail with lime juice, sugar, Italian vermouth and Cointreau. It worked so well because like the best Spanish-style rums, theres more than a little of Cognac about La Hechicera. Its a beautifully-poised rum, perfumed and wine-like with intense notes of nuts and vanilla; the long ageing in no way overpowers the spirit. And all the time with that purity, theres none of the sugar that you get in some Venezualan rums.

The company currently produces around 20,000 cases a year with plans to raise that to 100,000 in three years. It currently holds around 12,000 casks of rum so theres plenty in stock. Its been such a success, that the family has just released a new version called Serie Experimental #1 which is finished in casks that held Spanish Muscat for around 13 years so the oak was heavily impregnated with wine. They had 16 casks yielding 7200 bottles. Riascos said, it shares the same DNA, but its got that added body from that finish. The Muscat adds sweetness (perceived sweetness that is, not actual sugar) and brings out the rums floral side with some added dried fruit and tobacco notes. Its a great sipping rum, as is the standard bottling.

Youll notice that its called Serie Experimental #1, so expect others to follow. Were currently working on dos, tres and cuatro, said Riascos. And well see if one of those hits the market later this year. Weve been working with wines from Napa Valley. Weve been working with Canadian rye whisky. Weve been working with different natural fruits and infusions, things that tell the story of Colombia as the most biodiverse country in the world. We are working together with Colombias largest independent brewery to kind of do a barrel exchange. So theyre working with our barrels for their beer and theyre sending them back with a few added notes and then were ageing our rum in there to see if that works. Im very sceptical about it, but if it works it will be very, very good. We think it will too.
The Gujarat police on Thursday



said they have identified 12 more persons who had attended an Islamic congregation in Delhi, taking the number of visitors from Gujarat to 84 till now, one of them an elderly man who succumbed to coronavirus after returning from the meet which has emerged as a key source of the COVID-19 spread.

The figure was 72 till Wednesday, including a 70- year-old man from Bhavnagar who died due to coronavirus last week, days after returning from the gathering, DGP Shivanand Jha told reporters in Gandhinagar.

The congregation was held last month at the Tablighi Jamaat's headquarters in the Nizamuddin area of the national capital.

Among the 12 who were identified during the last 24 hours, eight belong to Surat, while four are from Ahmedabad, he said.

Jha said process is still on to trace and identify others who had attended the congregation, which became a hotpsot for the spread of coronavirus in the country.

Among the 72 attendees identified till Wednesday, 34 were from Ahmedabad, 20 from Bhavnagar (one of then died later), 12 from Mehsana, four from Botad and two from Navsari.

They have been quarantined, said Jha.

The DGP said NCC cadets as well as retried police personnel will be roped in to enforce the 21-day-long lockdown implemented since March 25 to halt the spread of the highly contagious disease.

He said as many as 59 people have been arrested since the lockdown started for spreading rumours on social media platforms.

Meanwhile, the Ahmedabad police have launched a probe into a 'warning' message making the rounds on social media against a minority community, alleging they were deliberately trying to spread the virus and people must not let vegetable vendors from the social group inside their housing societies.

Ahmedabad Police Commissioner Ashish Bhatia said efforts were on to nab those behind circulation of the objectionable message.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
KBRA Europe Releases Research - Coronavirus (COVID-19): Sponsor Support and Structural Features to Insulate UK CMBS From Rent Disruptions

Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited (KBRA) releases research regarding UK CMBS transactions. The UK government passed on 25 March a package of measures to support businesses impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, including a measure to protect commercial tenants from eviction. The measure will allow tenants to defer rent in March and June. In addition, while landlords will be entitled to take steps to recover deferred rent once the protective period ends, it now seems likely that a significant number of tenants, particularly from the retail sector, will negotiate for outright rent holidays.

While these developments pose the risk that some UK commercial real estate loans will experience a failure to pay, the willingness and ability of sponsors to make debt service payments will reduce risks at loan level. Even if there was a failure to pay, bond level structural features such as liquidity facilities and deferrable interest should insulate bondholders from the direct effects.

As events surrounding the crisis unfold, our thoughts are with the individuals and families who have been affected by the virus.

Click here to view the report.

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View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005563/en/
Westpac Bank has appointed long-serving executive Peter King to CEO, to help the embattled financial institution though the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

Chairman of the board John McFarlane made the announcement to the Australian Security Exchange on Thursday, asserting that in moments of global stress and uncertainty, management stability and strength are vital.

Set to rake in a pay packet of $2.4 million a year, Mr King will also be eligible for an extra $6.8 million in incentives and entitlements during his two-year contract.

Westpac Bank has appointed long-serving executive Peter King (above) to CEO, to help the embattled financial institution though the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

Stepping in as acting CEO in December after a money-laundering scandal claimed the scalp of former boss Brian Hartzer, Mr McFarlane said Mr King understands the bank, its business and its finances.

I believe we need a chief executive in place now, not later, and with full, rather than acting authority.

He is the right person to take the company forward at the present time, and has the full authority to make change and to see it through.

Still reeling after Australias financial watchdog AUSTRAC filed civil legal proceedings in Federal Court in November, the nations second-largest financial institution were accused of breaching anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism finance laws on 23 million occasions.

The financial regulator also alleged Westpac did not keep adequate records relating to the origin of some international fund transfers, particularly in troubled foreign hotspots where child exploitation is rife.

Now facing yet another major challenge as the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the globe, Mr King said the bank needs to be fast, agile and responsive in responding to the crisis.

Former Westpac CEO Brian Hartzer (above) came under fire after Australias financial watchdog AUSTRAC filed civil legal proceedings against the bank in November, 2020

We are focused on responding to the COVID-19 outbreak and supporting our customers and protecting our people, he said.

We have a critical role to play alongside Government and regulators in supporting Australians and New Zealanders and our countries financial systems.

Across our organisation we are working hard to ensure we remain open for business so we can continue to help customers with the financial situation.

In the medium term Mr King said his priorities are to drive performance by simplifying the business through sharper accountability and digital transformation.

He also aims to improve the banks customer culture and risk management capabilities.

Media reports claimed Westpac's Sydney office (above left) was evacuated in March, 2020 after a coronavirus scare but the bank said the accusations were false

As a bank we have an important role to play in the community at this critical time, Mr McFarlane said.

We are responding appropriately and the decisions we are making now, and over the coming weeks and months, will make a significant difference going forward.

However, given the impact of the coronavirus on the economy and the level of uncertainty, while it is difficult to make a reasonable assessment of its potential impact at the moment, we expect to see a rise in our credit provisioning this year and probably beyond, which will be accelerated by recently implemented accounting standards.
Sydney, April 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Just released, this edition of Paul Budde Communications focus report on Spain outlines the major developments and key aspects in the telecoms markets.

Read the full report: https://www.budde.com.au/Research/Spain-Telecoms-Mobile-and-Broadband-Statistics-and-Analyses

Publication Overview

This report provides a comprehensive overview of trends and developments in Spains telecommunications market. The report analyses the fixed-line, mobile and broadband sectors. Subjects include:

Market and industry analyses, trends and developments;

Facts, figures and statistics;

Industry and regulatory issues;

Infrastructure developments;

Major Players, Revenues, Subscribers, ARPU, MoU;

Mobile Voice and Data Markets;

Broadband (FttP, DSL, cable, wireless);

Mobile subscribers and ARPU;

Broadband market forecasts;

Government policies affecting the telecoms industry;

Market liberalisation and industry issues;

Telecoms operators  privatisation, IPOs, acquisitions, new licences;

Mobile technologies (GSM; 3G, HSPA, LTE, 5G).

Researcher:- Henry Lancaster

Current publication date:- October 2019 (18th Edition)

Executive Summary

Spain expected to have universal FttP coverage by 2024

Spains telecom market is one of the largest in Europe, supported by a population of more than 46 million. Mobile penetration is on a par with the European average and there remains room for further growth, particularly in the mobile broadband segment which has been supported by continuing investment in infrastructure among operators. With LTE widely available, the focus among operators has shifted to services based on 5G. Vodafone Spain was the first operator to launch a 5G network, in June 2019, while the other players are expected to wait until after the auction of spectrum in the 700MHz bad in mid-2020.

The fixed-line broadband sector has also been backed by investment in fibre infrastructure, enabling providers to develop improved bundled services and to compete more effectively. The regulator has fostered competition by providing access to Telefonicas DSL and FttP networks, while network sharing agreements have meant that Orange Spain, Vodafone Spain and Masmovil have become significant operators. By mid-2019 fibre accounted for 62% of all fixed broadband connections. Telefonica alone expects to provide complete FttP coverage by 2024.

This report introduces the key aspects of the Spanish telecom market, providing statistics on the fixed-network services sector, and profiles of the main players. The report also assesses the main regulatory issues, noting the status of interconnection, local loop unbundling, number portability and carrier preselection. In addition, the report covers the fixed and wireless broadband markets, together with developments in related technologies, as well as analyses on the mobile sector, including an assessment of regulatory issues, a profile of the major providers, and a review of mobile data services and technologies including LTE and 5G. The report also provides fixed-line, broadband, mobile, and mobile broadband subscriber forecasts to 2024.

BuddeComm notes that the outbreak of the Coronavirus in 2020 is having a significant impact on production and supply chains all around the world. During this time, the telecoms sector may experience a downturn in mobile device and ICT equipment production and a decline in consumer spending on telecoms services. Overall progress towards 5G may also be postponed or slowed down in some countries. Please also note: Industry forecasts contained in this report have not taken Coronavirus into consideration as it is yet largely unknown what the long-term impact will be.

Key developments:

Regulator delays 700MHz spectrum auction due to COVID-19;

EllaLink submarine cable connecting Spain with Brazil to be ready in 2020;

Telefonica joins the 5G Technological Cities project;

Orange and Vodafone sign revised network sharing agreement to include 5G;

Orange Spain adds ZTE as a 5G vendor partner;

Vodafone Spain launches 5G services;

Vodafone Spain contracts Huawei to upgrade its HFC network with DOCSIS3.1, launches a 1Gb/s broadband service to four million premises;

Movistar aiming to provide 100% FttP coverage by 2024;

Fibre broadband accounting for 62% of all fixed-line broadband connections

Report update includes the regulators market data updates to June 2019, telcos operating and financial data to Q2 2019, recent market developments.

Companies mentioned in this report:

Orange Spain, Telefonica (Movistar), Jazztel, Ono, Vodafone Spain, Lebara, Lycamobile, Masmovil, YouMobile, Yoigo

Table of Contents

Key statistics

Regional European Market Comparison Europe Telecom Maturity Index by tier Market Leaders Market Challengers Market Emergents TMI versus GDP Mobile and mobile broadband penetration Fixed versus mobile broadband penetration

Country overview

Telecommunications market Market overview

Regulatory environment Historical overview Regulatory authority Fixed-line developments General Telecommunications Act Telecom sector liberalisation Interconnect Access Number Portability (NP) Carrier PreSelection (CPS) Wholesale Line Rental (WLR) Mobile network developments Spectrum regulations and spectrum auctions Roaming Mobile Number Portability (MNP) Mobile Termination Rates (MTRs)

Mobile market Market analysis Mobile statistics General statistics Operator market shares Mobile voice Mobile data Mobile broadband Mobile infrastructure 5G 4G (LTE) 3G Other infrastructure developments Major mobile operators Movistar Vodafone Spain Orange Spain Masmovil MVNOs Mobile content and applications

Fixed-line broadband market Market analysis Government initiatives Broadband statistics Hybrid Fibre Coax (HFC) networks Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) networks Movistar ADSL2+ Fibre-to-the-Premises (FttP) networks Regulatory issues Fibre market Movistar Vodafone Spain Orange Spain Other developments Other fixed broadband services Wireless Local Loop (WLL) Wi-Fi WiMAX Satellite broadband Broadband Powerline (BPL)

Fixed network operators Introduction Telefonica Orange Spain Jazztel Vodafone Espana Ono Masmovil

Telecommunications infrastructure Overview of the national telecom network Next Generation Networks (NGN) International infrastructure Satellite networks Submarine cable Smart Infrastructure Smart Cities  Barcelona

Appendix  Historic data





List of Tables

Table 1  Top Level Country Statistics and Telco Authorities - Spain  2019 (e)

Table 2  Broadband penetration by technology  2004  2018

Chart SEQ Chart 75  Orange Spain connectable fibre premises  2016  2019

Table 3  Fixed-line subscribers, by major operator  2009  2018

Table 4  Fixed-line subscribers by minor operator  2009  2018

Table 5  Fixed-line (direct line) subscriber market share by major operator  2010  2018

Table 6  Historic - Dial-up internet subscribers  2005  2013

Table 7  Historic - Internet users and penetration rate  1996  2015

Table 8  Historic - Fixed-line broadband subscribers and penetration  2001  2009

Table 9  Historic - DSL and cable broadband subscribers  2001  2009

Table 10  Historic - Broadband revenue by platform  2003  2009

Table 11  Historic - FttX lines installed  2009  2014

Table 12  Historic - Mobile subscribers and penetration rate  1999  2009

Table 13  Historic - Mobile retail market revenue and annual change 2000  2009

Table 14  Historic - Mobile market revenue by contract and prepaid sectors  2000  2009

Table 15  Historic - Annual number portings  2002  2009

Table 16  Historic - Mobile traffic prepaid and contract in minutes  2000  2009

Table 17  Historic - Mobile subscribers by technology platform  2002  2014

Table 18  Historic - Cost per invoiced minute of use: contract, prepaid; all operators  2001  2009

Table 19  Historic - Mobile subscriber market share by operator  2004  2009

Table 20  Historic - Base stations in service, by technology  2001  2015

List of Charts

Chart 1  Europe Telecoms Maturity Index  Market Leaders (top tier)

Chart 2  Europe Telecoms Maturity Index  Market Challengers (middle tier)

Chart 3  Europe Telecoms Maturity Index  Market Emergents (bottom tier)

Chart 4  Overall view - Telecoms Maturity Index vs GDP per Capita

Chart 5  Europe - mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration

Chart 6  Scandinavia and Baltics: mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration

Chart 7  Northern Europe mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration

Chart 8  Southern Europe mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration

Chart 9  Eastern Europe mobile subscriber penetration vs mobile broadband penetration

Chart 10  Scandinavia and Baltics fixed and mobile broadband penetration

Chart 11  Northern Europe fixed and mobile broadband penetration

Chart 12  Southern Europe fixed and mobile broadband penetration

Chart 13  Eastern Europe fixed and mobile broadband penetration

Chart 14  Telecom revenue, retail and wholesale  2009  2018

Chart 15  Total telecom retail revenue and annual change  2009  2018

Chart 16  Telecom retail revenue by sector  2009  2018

Chart 17  Telecom retail revenue annual change, by sector  2009  2018

Chart 18  Decline in interconnection revenue  2005  2018

Chart 19  Fixed-line subscribers by type of access  2006  2018

Chart 20  Fixed number portings  2007  2019

Chart 21  Decline in the number of Carrier PreSelection lines  2006  2017

Chart 22  Change in the number of annual mobile numbers ported  2009  2019

Chart 23  Decline in mobile retail market revenue, annual change 2000  2018

Chart 24  Mobile market revenue by sector  2006  2018

Chart 25  Decline in mobile market revenue by contract and prepaid sectors  2009  2018

Chart 26  Growth in the number of mobile subscribers and penetration rate  2009  2024

Chart 27  Change in the number of prepaid and contract mobile subscribers: 2006  2019

Chart 28  Cost per invoiced minute of use: contract, prepaid; all operators  2009  2018

Chart 29  Change in mobile service price index  2006  2019

Chart 30  Subscriber market share by operator  2010  2019

Chart 31  Change in prepaid and contract mobile voice traffic  2009  2018

Chart 32  Change in messaging revenue by type  2005  2018

Chart 33  Change in messaging traffic by type  2005  2018

Chart 34  Growth in the number of mobile broadband subscribers by operator  2010  2019

Chart 35  Growth in the number of mobile broadband lines by type (voice and data)  2011  2019

Chart 36  Development of mobile broadband subscribers and penetration  2009  2024

Chart 37  Growth in mobile broadband traffic  2012  2018

Chart 38  Growth in mobile broadband revenue and annual change  2009  2018

Chart 39  Growth in Movistars LTE subscriber base and penetration  2014  2019

Chart 40  Growth in the number of M2M lines  2004  2019

Chart 41  Change in the number of Movistars mobile subscribers  2009  2019

Chart 42  Vodafone revenue by type  2013  2020

Chart 43  Vodafone quarterly mobile service revenue (year to March)  2016  2020

Chart 44  Change in the number of Vodafones mobile subscribers and proportion prepaid  2006  2019

Chart 45  Growth in Vodafones mobile data traffic  2006  2019

Chart 46  Change in Vodafones mobile ARPU  2006  2019

Chart 47  Vodafone Spain customer churn  2007  2019

Chart 48  Decline in Vodafone mobile customer retention costs  2007  2019

Chart 49  Change in the number of Oranges mobile subscribers by type  2009  2019

Chart 50  Orange mobile service revenue  2016  2019

Chart 51  Orange ARPU/ARPO by sector (per month)  2012  2019

Chart 52  Orange customer churn  2007  2019

Chart 53  Growth in the number of Masmovil subscribers  2007  2019

Chart 54  Growth in Masmovil revenue  2016  2019

Chart 55  Growth in the number of MVNO subscribers and market share  2009  2019

Chart 56  DSL, cable and fibre broadband subscribers  2009  2019

Chart 57  Growth in the number of fixed-line broadband subscribers and penetration  2009  2024

Chart 58  Annual growth of broadband subscriptions by technology  2009  2018

Chart 59  Fixed broadband lines by data rate (Mb/s)  2016  2018

Chart 60  Broadband subscriptions by major operator  2016  2018

Chart 61  Share of broadband lines by operator  2009  2018

Chart 62  Change in fixed internet market revenue  2006  2018

Chart 63  Broadband revenue by platform  2009  2018

Chart 64  Euskatel cable broadband subscribers  2007  2018

Chart 65  Movistar retail and wholesale broadband subscribers  2006  2019

Chart 66  Consumer and business FttP subscribers  2010  2018

Chart 67  FttP lines by operator  2009  2019

Chart 68  Masmovil broadband accessible premises  2016  2019

Chart 69  Masmovil broadband subscriber share by platform  2016  2019

Chart 70  Growth in the number of Masmovils broadband subscribers  2016  2019

Chart 71  Movistar retail and wholesale broadband subscribers  2012  2019

Chart 72  Growth in the number of Vodafone Spain broadband subscribers  2012  2019

Chart 73  Growth in the number of Orange Spain broadband subscribers, by type  2012  2019

Chart 74  Development of Orange Spains broadband ARPU/ARPO  2012  2019

Chart 76  Decline in the number of Wi-Fi/WiMAX/LMDS subscribers  2007  2018

Chart 77  Decline in fixed line revenue  2006  2018

Chart 78  Telefonica Group financial data  2006  2019

Chart 79  Decline in Telefonica de Espana EBITDA  2007  2019

Chart 80  Telefonica de Espana consumer and business wireline line revenue  2015  2019

Chart 81  Telefonica de Espana fixed telephony and broadband lines  2009  2019

Chart 82  Telefonica de Espana retail and wholesale access lines  2009  2019

Chart 83  Growth in the number of Orange mobile and broadband subscribers  2009  2019

Chart 84  Growth in Orange EBITDA, capex  2007  2019

Chart 85  Change in Vodafone Spains revenue by segment  2017  2019

Chart 86  Decline in fixed line traffic  2009  2018

Chart 87  Fixed lines in service and penetration  2009  2024

Chart 88  NGN installed lines by access type  2010  2018

List of Exhibits

Exhibit 1  Generalised Market Characteristics by Market Segment

Exhibit 2  Access and the local loop

Exhibit 3  3G licence results in Spain  March 2000

Exhibit 4  Overview of spectrum allocations  2011

Exhibit 5  3.6GHz auction results  July 2018

Exhibit 6  Overview of MVNOs

Exhibit 7  Narrowband and broadband wireless licensees  2000





Read the full report: https://www.budde.com.au/Research/Spain-Telecoms-Mobile-and-Broadband-Statistics-and-Analyses
Global stock markets went on a rollercoaster ride on Thursday as investors were caught between fresh tremors on the economic front and a sudden surge in oil prices, analysts said. A tentative rebound in European stocks seen early in the day came to an abrupt end when US jobless data fuelled fears that no amount of government efforts can shield the economy from coronavirus. News that another 6.65 million US workers filed for unemployment benefits last week, the most ever recorded and nearly twice as many as market economists had forecast, initially also depressed Wall Street. "The economy is in bad shape," said analyst Edward Moya at OANDA, calling the reading "whopping". "It is unfortunate how bad these numbers are getting, and no one will be surprised if we see a few more terrible readings over the next few weeks," he said. - 'Choppy' - Fears were growing "that the recent fiscal rescue package to help businesses might not be enough to keep people on their payroll", Moya said. But just as stock markets investors seemed to be throwing in the towel for the day, US President Donald Trump engineered a dizzying recovery in oil prices that rose by more than 30 percent after he said he expected Russia and Saudi Arabia to end a price war by slashing crude output. There was some confusion as to who had been talking with whom -- especially after the Kremlin denied that President Vladimir Putin had spoken to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman -- but oil market enthusiasm still spilled over into equities. "Stocks are showing some resiliency as the energy sector is rallying amid a surge in crude oil prices off a near two-decade low," said analysts at the Charles Schwab brokerage, adding that equity trading remained "choppy". The deadly coronavirus is keeping traders on edge as it sweeps the planet, with infections approaching one million and countries forced to tighten already strict lockdown measures. - 'Bundle of nerves' - Thursday's stock market recovery followed a global rout Wednesday as the human and economic toll from the coronavirus rose. After two weeks of much-needed gains fuelled by trillions of dollars in stimulus and widespread monetary easing, focus has returned to the devastation wrought on populations and the long-term impact of the pandemic. Asia earlier saw a mixed session, with Tokyo down 1.4 percent, while Sydney and Kuala Lumpur shed two percent apiece and Singapore dropped 0.2 percent. There were also losses in Wellington and Manila. But Hong Kong rose 0.8 percent and Shanghai rallied 1.7 percent, with Seoul and Bangkok up more than two percent. Jakarta put on more than one percent. Investors are now a "bundle of nerves", said AxiCorp's Stephen Innes. - Key figures around 1550 GMT - London - FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 5,480.22 points (close) Frankfurt - DAX 30: UP 0.3 Percent at 9,570.82 (close) Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 4,220.96 (close) EURO STOXX 50: UP 0.3 percent at 2,688.49 New York - Dow: UP 1.6 percent at 21,270.84 Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.4 percent at 17,818.72 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: UP 0.8 percent at 23,280.06 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 1.7 percent at 2,780.64 (close) Brent North Sea crude: UP 17.7 percent at $29.11 per barrel West Texas Intermediate: UP 20.4 percent at $24.39 Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0856 from $1.0964 at 2100 GMT Dollar/yen: UP at 107.86 yen from 107.17 Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2374 from $1.2406 Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.74 pence from 89.07 burs-jh/rl
Coronavirus: Israel, head of Mossad enters quarantine He had met health minister who is now positive; 30 dead

(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, APRIL 2 - Israeli Mossad chief Yossi Cohen has been instructed to self-quarantine after recently meeting with Health Minister Yaakov Litzman who learned last night that he has tested positive for coronavirus, according to local media reports. Litzman - a 71-year-old Orthodox rabbi - is now in quarantine together with his wife, the Israeli health ministry reports.



The health ministry has said that the coronavirus has so far killed 30 people in the country. A total of 6,211 people have tested positive, including 107 who are in critical condition.



(ANSAmed).




US Jobless Claims Soar to 6.6 Million, Shattering Record

Jobless claims filed in the United States soared to a record high of more than 6 million for the week ending March 28, as CCP virus-related lockdowns and closures drive deep layoffs.

The number of initial jobless claims filed across the country, which is a measure of the number of Americans filing new unemployment claims, surged to 6,648,000, an increase of 3,341,000 from the previous weeks revised level, the Department of Labor figures show (pdf).

This is a historic high for weekly unemployment claims in the United States, amounting to nearly twice as many as the previous week and almost 10 times the pre-COVID-19 crisis record of 695,000, set in 1982.

The Department of Labor blamed the spike in unemployment on the pandemic.

The COVID-19 virus continues to impact the number of initial claims. Nearly every state providing comments cited the COVID-19 virus, the agency said.

But while job losses in accommodation and food services continued to lead the downward slide, the Labor Department said that this week, there was a broader fallout across industries.

Many states continued to cite the health care and social assistance, and manufacturing industries, while an increasing number of states identified the retail and wholesale trade and construction industries, the Labor Department wrote.

There was an upward revision of last weeks numbers, which were marked up by 24,000 from 3,283,000 to 3,307,000.

The figures far exceeded the median estimate of 3.50 million in a Reuters survey of economists; some estimates ranged as high as 5.25 million.

Many economists believe there is still more downside for the labor market.

A rough look at the most affected industries suggests a potential payroll job loss of over 16 million jobs, said David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Funds. The loss would be enough to boost the unemployment rate from roughly 3.5 percent to 12.5 percent, which would be its highest rate since the Great Depression.

The mounting economic fallout almost certainly signals the onset of a global recession, with job losses that are likely to dwarf those of the Great Recession more than a decade ago.

Roughly 90 percent of the U.S. population is now under stay-at-home orders, and many factories, restaurants, stores, and other businesses are closed or have seen sales shrivel.

My anxiety is through the roof right now, not knowing whats going to happen, said Laura Wieder, laid off from her job managing a now-closed sports bar in Bellefontaine, Ohio.

Elsewhere around the world, the number of people applying for welfare benefits in Britain increased nearly tenfold to almost 1 million in the past couple of weeks. European unions estimate at least a million on the Continent lost their jobs over the same period, and say the actual number is probably far higher. Spain alone added more than 300,000 to its unemployment rolls in March.

Forecast: 20 Million Jobs May Be Lost by Summer

A Washington-based think tank has made a dire forecast of 20 million jobs lost by summer.

Our estimate is much larger than was predicted even a week ago, when the forecasting implied 14 million would be furloughed or laid off, The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) said in an April 1 note that blamed the COVID-19 outbreak for the carnage in labor markets.

This kind of upending of the labor market in such a short time is unheard of, said Heidi Shierholz, an economist at EPI.

In their report, EPI analysts cited the latest Goldman Sachs forecast, which predicted a 9 percent slide in gross domestic product (GDP) for the first quarter and a 34 percent plunge in the second quarter.

This large drop in GDP is consistent with 19.8 million jobs lost by July, bringing unemployment rates across the country into the mid-teens, the analysts said in the report.

Bank of America analysts forecast similar figures. In a report released on April 2, the analysts project that 16 million to 20 million jobs will be lost within a few months. They expect unemployment to soar to more than 15 percent, worse than the figures during the recession in 20072009.

The researchers say the resulting recession appears to be deeper and more prolonged than we were led to believe just 14 days ago, when we last updated our forecasts, not just in the U.S. but globally as well.

Both Bank of America and Goldman Sachs expect a sharp rebound after the pandemic subsides in the United States.

Goldmans dismal prediction follows a Federal Reserve estimate that unemployment in the second quarter would range between around 10 and 42 percent, with a likely jobless rate of around 32 percent.

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard told Bloomberg radio on March 30 that unemployment could continue to grow to between 10 and 42 percent, but should rebound after the virus is defeated.

Were expecting the unemployment rate to spike, Bullard said, noting that the federal relief package will help those who lose their jobs. But once the virus goes away, well be able to return to normal.

Hopefully, if this all works smoothlyand theres a lot in the legislation as wellwell be able to come out on the other side and get the economy rocking again.

Ivan Pentchoukov and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Russian Justice Ministry urges supportive measures for lawyers, NGOs amid pandemic

 RAPSI, Vladimir Burnov

13:55 02/04/2020

MOSCOW, April 2 (RAPSI)  The Justice Ministry has proposed to extend benefits proposed by the government for small and medium entrepreneurship to NGOs over the coronavirus spread, attorneys and notaries in private practice.

According to a statement published on the ministrys website on Thursday, currently, such issues as extension of tax and advance payments and insurance contributions deadlines for small and medium-sized businesses are under consideration.

However, there are no similar measures for attorneys and notaries in private practice and non-government organizations, which also require such support, the statement reads.




The global death toll has surpassed 51,000 with over 1 million infections confirmed, causing mass disruptions as governments continue to try to slow the spread of the new respiratory illness.

Here's a roundup of developments in RFE/RL's broadcast countries.

Russia

Russian President Vladimir Putin has extended the non-working period in the country to April 30 amid a spike in the official number of coronavirus cases.

In a televised address to the nation on April 2, his second in eight days, Putin said people will continue to receive their monthly wages during the break, but he did not explain how they will be paid or by whom.

Putin said most Russians should continue to stay away from their workplace because the peak of the epidemic has not been passed in the world, including in our country."

Russia, which has officially reported 3,548 cases and 30 deaths -- critics have questioned the authenticity of the government's data -- has already imposed a partial lockdown on many regions, including Moscow, its capital of more than 12.5 million people.

RFE/RL's Coronavirus Coverage Features and analysis, videos, and infographics explore how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the countries in our region.

Putin said exceptions for essential industries will keep operating, and grocery stores and pharmacies will remain open. He said that it would be up to regional authorities to decide which sectors in their region should keep working, "depending on the situation, what kind of regime is enforced, and what organizations could continue working.

An efficient and stable economy is key to solving our tasks, including in the health-care system, he added.

Minutes after Putin's speech, the Kremlin announced Putin had signed a decree to prolong the non-working period.

On March 25, Putin announced a non-working week between March 28 to April 5 -- essentially a weeklong holiday in Russia.

The official death toll now stands at 30, though the accuracy of official data has been questioned by critics.

On April 1, Putin signed legislation that allows the government to declare an emergency situation across the country and to establish mandatory rules of conduct during a state of emergency.

Officials have been tightening restrictions on the movement of people in recent days as the number of reported coronavirus cases jumped, especially in the capital, Moscow, which has all but confined its 12 million residents to their homes.



In the North Caucasus region of Chechnya, Kremlin-backed Ramzan Kadyrov, who has ruled the volatile region since 2007, said administrative boundaries with other parts of the Russian Federation will be closed off to slow the spread of the virus.



Kadyrov called on residents of Chechnya, who are currently travelling abroad or across Russia and plan to return home, to do so before April 5 as all forms of transport, including trains and planes, will be suspended from that day.



Only vehicles and planes transporting food, medicine, and essential items will be allowed to operate, Kadyrov said.

Pakistan

A human rights group has called on Pakistan's government to take rapid measures to offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its most vulnerable workers.



"Social distancing, quarantines, and the closure of businesses will have enormous economic consequences for garment and textile workers, domestic workers, home-based workers, and other workers in low-income households," Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on April 2.



Pakistan has almost 2,300 confirmed coronavirus cases of COVID-19, with at least 31 fatalities, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University in the United States.

However, HRW says the real number of infections may be much higher since little testing is available.



"Pakistani authorities should take urgent steps to mitigate the economic impact of COVID-19 on its most vulnerable workers," the New York-based rights group said.



Central and regional authorities have imposed partial or complete lockdowns, and all businesses not producing essential supplies have been shut down.



Between 12.3 million and 18.5 million people in various sectors may lose their jobs, according to estimates.



In Punjab Province alone, at least half a million textile and garment-industry workers had lost their jobs as of March 28, according to the Pakistan Workers Federation.



HRW said the government should find ways to protect those affected "from suffering loss of income that would push them further into poverty and deter them from self-isolating to contain the spread of the virus."



The Pakistan government should take measures so that the loss of livelihood and income doesnt compound the threats workers face to their health, said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.



The economically marginalized are among the most vulnerable groups affected by COVID-19, and the government should urgently find ways to protect them, Adams said.

Belarus

Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka vowed transparency in the reporting of the coronavirus outbreak in the country, as the health authorities reported a total of four fatalities due to the respiratory illness.

The Health Ministry on April 2 reported a total of 304 coronavirus cases, adding that four elderly patients suffering from numerous chronic illnesses have died.



Belarus's approach to the outbreak has been criticized by some for lacking transparency, especially with regard to the reporting of cases.

But Lukashenka on April 2 insisted that the authorities do not hide anything"

On April 7, the government will discuss a number of issues," the Belarusian leader said, adding: "I will prepare the information, all the statistics on the epidemic.

Lukashenka's comments come a day after Belarusian authorities said they did not attribute the death of a well-known actor on March 30 to the coronavirus.

The actor, Viktar Dashkevich, had tested positive to the virus, but the death certificate only mentions pneumonia.

Unlike its neighbors, Belarus has kept its borders open and has not imposed any restrictions of movement inside the country.

Meanwhile, a Belarusian news website editor was arrested on March 25 and charged with receiving a bribe after he published an editorial criticizing Lukashenkas approach to the coronavirus epidemic and casting doubt on official infection figures.

Reporters Without Borders called the case against Syarhey Satsuk a warning to media that question the Belarusian governments health-care policies.

The charge against Satsuk, director and editor in chief of the online newspaper ej.by, carries a possible 10-year prison sentence.

Romania

Romania's death toll from the coronavirus reached 94 on April 2 with nine more fatalities during the previous 24 hours, the government's crisis group said.

During the same period, 278 people tested positive for the virus, bringing Romania's total number of infections to 2,738.

Meanwhile, President Klaus Iohannis said he had asked the government to reroute European Union funding to give doctors, nurses, and other personnel dealing with the epidemic a monthly bonus of about 500 euros ($543.10) a month.

The growing number of infected medical personnel has prompted many doctors, paramedics, nurses, and auxiliary personnel to resign -- either in frustration at the lack of medical supplies or because of fatigue.

A total of 357 Romanian doctors, nurses, and other medical staff are among those who have tested positive, according to Romania's crisis group.

Bucharest and Romania's northeastern city of Suceava, which has been under a lockdown since March 31, have the highest number of confirmed cases -- more than 500 and, 700, respectively, the crisis group said. Officials said 217 people with the virus have recovered.

Romania has been under a state of emergency since March 16.

In other countries, there are 217 Romanians known to have tested positive for the respiratory illness -- including 25 people who have died while abroad.

Tajikistan

The head of the World Health Organization's office in Tajikistan, Galina Perfilyeva, says no coronavirus cases have been registered in the Central Asian nation.

In a televised statement on April 1, Perfilyeva said coronavirus tests had been carried out on more than 700 people in Tajikistan: all came back negative.

While the countrys strong-armed leadership insists there are no cases of coronavirus, critics beg to differ given Tajikistans border with China, where the virus was first detected, and the growing number of positive tests and COVID-19-related deaths in the region.

They point out that not having any registered cases does not mean the virus isnt there -- especially since authorities have not imposed a quarantine or restricted public events and the fact that thousands of migrant workers have returned from abroad -- but it could just be issues with testing.

The governments transparency on the issue has also been questioned given it has not disclosed any information discussed at daily meetings of a crisis group that is led by Prime Minister Kokhir Rasulzoda.

In a letter on March 31, RFE/RL President Jamie Fly criticized the government for obstructing the efforts of the broadcaster's journalists to cover the coronavirus pandemic in the Central Asian nation.

Fly expressed frustration at the governments attempts to interfere with the operations of the service, known locally as Radio Ozodi, at a time when information "is needed more than ever.

The Tajik Foreign Ministry is set to decide on long-standing accreditation requests from Radio Ozodi journalists in the coming days.

It has been reluctant since late October to fully grant one-year accreditations to 18 RFE/RL journalists and staff members of RFE/RLs Tajik Service whose credentials have been withheld by the ministry or which expired on November 1.

Armenia

Armenian health authorities have reported two more coronavirus-related deaths, raising the national death toll from the epidemic to six.

The total number of coronavirus cases declared by the Health Ministry on April 2 was 663, an increase of 92 infections during the previous 24 hours. That is Armenia's highest single-day increase.

Three of those infected were said to be in a critical condition.

Armenia on March 16 declared a state of emergency through April 14. The movement of citizens has been restricted in the country since March 25.

Self-isolation rules and travel restrictions were tightened and extended on March 31 for "at least 10 days."

Armenias legislature also has granted authorities the power to track citizens mobile phone data in a bid to slow the spread of the virus.

Justice Minister Rustam Badasian has said the extraordinary measure would not infringe on privacy and civil rights or be used for eavesdropping on opposition figures.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Russian Service, Zvyazda, BelTA, and MIR
Many observers are making comparisons between the current worldwide spread of the coronavirus and the events of World War II.

The comparisons have appeared in recent days as the world faces possibly the most serious threat since the last truly international war. Several world leaders have called on people to show the fearlessness of those who lived through World War II.

Some people have warned of an invisible enemy: one that could cause death, damage the worlds economy and create social problems. Others say it is not helpful to make such comparisons and that they only add to the fear over the coronavirus.

The names, places and battles of World War II bring up many emotions: Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. Places too can have emotions tied to them: Auschwitz, Pearl Harbor and Midway Island and Stalingrad. Events also can bring emotions: the siege of Leningrad, the German blitz of London, the Allied bombing of Dresden, and the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

It is estimated that 85 million people died in WWII. The coronavirus has been blamed for tens of thousands of deaths.

Some people worry whether these comparisons are useful or just serve as a metaphor.

World leaders call to action

German Chancellor Angela Merkel was born ten years after World War II ended. She grew up in East Germany, a country at the time under the influence of the former Soviet Union.

Last week, she spoke to her countrymen on television. She said: Since the Second World War  there has been no challenge to our nation that has demanded such united action.

U.S. President Donald Trump has called himself a wartime president. He has used or said he would use the 70-year-old Defense Production Act to battle shortages of medical supplies and equipment like masks and ventilators. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and many media opinion writers have urged him to use the law.

Queen Elizabeth of Britain seemed to recall her young years during the war when she drove military vehicles in Britain.

At times such as these, I am reminded that our nations history has been forged by people and communities coming together to work as one, she said.

Italy has had more deaths than any other nation from the coronavirus so far. Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte said on television Saturday that he was tightening the countrys restrictions on movement and closing everything except businesses that provide food and medicine.

We are facing the most serious crisis that the country has experienced since World War II, Conte said.

Rescue plans, employment and technology

Governments are reacting differently to the problems of keeping people working and important industries operating. Rescue plans started by several Western countries remind some people of the Marshall Plan. The Marshall plan was a $15-billion, American plan to rebuild Europe after the end of World War II.

Today, modern economies not only depend on financial resources but also on the internet to connect government services and businesses. Some people wonder what would happen if the internet collapsed. They say such a happening would be much like the use of an atom bomb, an event of unimaginable destruction.

Im John Russell.

The Reuters News Agency reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

inspire v. to make (someone) want to do something : to give (someone) an idea about what to do or create

comparison n. the act of looking at things to see if they are similar or different

metaphor n. a word or phrase for one thing that is used to refer to another thing in order to show they are similar

siege n. a situation in which soldiers or police officers surround a city, building, etc., in order to try to take control of it

blitz n. a very fast attack

countrymen n. people who live in or come from the same country as you

recall v. to remember (something) from the past

remind v. to make (someone) think about something again : to cause (someone) to remember something

challenge n. to test the ability or skill of something

mask n. a piece clothing that covers the mouth for protection

ventilator n. a medical device that assists breathing

forge v. to make or create

tighten v. to increase restrictiveness
They stand metres apart, unable to touch or console each other, self-isolating among the headstones as a minister pays tribute to the life of their loved one.

Mourners socially distance at Thelma Aujard's funeral.

Travis Trewarne and his family held a graveside service last Thursday for his 102-year-old grandmother Thelma Aujard, who died from pneumonia at an aged care home in Ashburton in Melbourne's eastern suburbs on March 12.

They had trouble hiring a minister and had to move locations twice after a church and event centre closed, the second time only a few days before the service.

Once they accounted for four pallbearers and the minister, that left only five family members at the graveside, each of whom had to abide by the new four-square-metres-per-person rule.
ASA Computers Inc is pleased to announce the release of a new optimized solution for Hadoop deployments based on Super Micro Computers, Inc., FatTwin server platform and ScaleFluxs computational storage card to improve Hadoop performance.

Recent tests and benchmarking of the solution yielded results which show an increase in performance over standard Hadoop installs by at least 30% while allowing significant reductions in overhead to CPUs. This improvement in performance translates to faster time-to-insight and lower cost per job. The solution is based on a mix of traditional spinning media with ScaleFluxs computational storage card in a FatTwin server platform. FatTwins dense four Rack unit four node platform has already been adopted by many Hadoop users. Details on the deployment and total cost of ownership savings will be available in a forthcoming white paper.

As a global leader in enterprise computing, storage, networking solutions and green computing technology, we have a long standing relationship with ASA, said Raju Penumatcha, Supermicro Senior Vice President and Chief Product Officer. We are very excited to enable this new product offering with ASA. We believe it represents an important step forward for Hadoop customers who want to maximize the efficiency and value of their deployments.

"Existing and potential customers have shown great interest in this solution particularly because it doesnt require any special application coding and works out of the box," says founder and CEO Arvind Bhargava. "We believe this will further enhance the value we bring to our customers and give them a competitive edge in a competitive market space.

We are thrilled to lead Computational Storage to mainstream enterprise adoption, said Hao Zhong, CEO/Co-Founder ScaleFlux. Two years ago we coined the term, last year we made our industry debut, and now we are at the front of a very large crowd. Our newest CSD 2000 Series products integrated with Supermicro FatTwin servers integrated and optimized by ASA will deliver immense value and optimal total cost of ownership.

This solution is available now and will be deployed shortly in the field.

Founded in 1989, ASA Computers is based in Fremont, California and is privately held. For more information, please visit http://www.asacomputers.com

on Twitter (@asacomputers)

on LinkedIn (@asacomputers)

on Facebook (@asacomputers)

About Super Micro Computer, Inc.

Supermicro, the leading innovator in high-performance, high-efficiency server technology is a premier provider of advanced server Building Block Solutions for Data Center, Cloud Computing, Enterprise IT, Hadoop/Big Data, HPC and Embedded Systems worldwide. Supermicro is committed to protecting the environment through its We Keep IT Green initiative and provides customers with the most energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly solutions available on the market.

Supermicro, Server Building Block Solutions, Fat Twin, and We Keep IT Green are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Super Micro Computer, Inc.

All other brands, names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Toyota (NYSE:TM) released its monthly North American sales figures for March on Wednesday, and they weren't pretty. The company sold just 135,730 vehicles during the month, a year-over-year decline of 36.9% on a volume basis and a 31.8% decline on a daily selling rate basis.

Other major automakers like General Motors (NYSE:GM) and Fiat Chrysler (NYSE:FCAU) released quarterly numbers but did not break out their March sales figures. Toyota's first quarter sales decline of 8.8% was roughly in line with the 7% decline in deliveries posted by GM and the 10.4% sales decline reported by Fiat. That seems to indicate that other automakers experienced a similar trend.

Lexus sales fell even further

Things were even worse for Toyota's luxury Lexus division. March Lexus sales in North America were down 46.7% from March 2019 on a volume basis, and down 42.5% on a daily selling rate basis. Quarterly Lexus sales fell 15.6% from the prior year.

Sales fell less on a daily selling rate basis due to the differences in the calendar: March 2019 had five full weekends (Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays), while March 2020 had only four Fridays and Saturdays. However, the numbers were bad no matter which metric you look at.

What management had to say

In a statement, Bob Carter, executive vice president of sales for Toyota Motor North America, focused on the cause of the decline without specifically mentioning coronavirus or the disease it causes, COVID-19. "During this unprecedented time, Toyota's number one priority is on the health and safety of our team members, business partners, customers and the communities where we do business," he said. "Despite the ever-changing market dynamics, we continue to take appropriate actions that serve our long-term business objectives."

Toyota shares were down 2.9% for the day.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continuously unfolds, mankind has collectively endured loss, but there are also opportunities for many to learn and grow.

With self-isolating and social distancing encouraged by governments, people have begun to revert their focus back into the things that are most important  families, friends and most especially, themselves.

In little and big ways, the rise of COVID-19 has also given rise to positive shifts in how mankind relate to themselves and to each other and they should make the most of that.

Emma Carbery, Founder at Mindfulness Dubai, says that trying to find the new balance between life and work is what most people are struggling with. Work-life balance involves juggling workplace stress with the daily pressures of maintaining performance, wellbeing, and relationships.

But with nationwide lock-downs and working from home programmes due to the global situation, we are faced with all of our lives happening in the same physical space and this can be challenging, she notes.

With more time spent at home, individuals are finding it hard to maintain a level of structure. And with less work for some, routines have completely shifted, leaving some people lost and unfulfilled. However, now, more than ever, is the opportune time to reflect on mans priorities and reassess where he put his energy.

Carbery comments: Everyone is impacted in different ways by the current situation, so whilst some people are genuinely able to enjoy a slower pace of life as they work from home, other people are experiencing a very stressful time with financial worry as they try to keep hold of their jobs and businesses. For those who are in a more stable situation and feel like they have more free time - I would say enjoy it as much as you can! If the situation goes on for some time however, it is also important to think about how you are spending that free time and to use it in ways that will optimise your wellbeing and happiness.

"Asking ourselves whether we are focused on whats most important in life is a great way to get perspective on how we are spending out time. It can make the different between whiling away the hours lost in TV versus spending quality time with those that we love, either in person or online. Many of us could also benefit from learning to do less, to slow down and to focus on the present moment.

The only thing man can really control is how he responds to the current situation, and anxiety and stress are contagious. So how does one contain it? As a Certified Mindfulness Teacher, Carbery shares a few short tips to maintaining your sanity, wellbeing and effectiveness.

Be Mindful - Whenever, wherever and purposefully, bring your attention to the present moment by focusing on your breath. This will ease your anxiety and calm your nervous system.

Watch what you consume - Whatever we consume, whether its news, social media, food, drink, all of these things impact how we feel and how we behave. So be mindful about what you are consuming to ensure you can be at your best for yourself and others.

Be mindful of your feelings - Treat yourself with kindness and self-compassion when youre feeling down.

Set a routine for yourself and for your family  Set up a routine for the entire family that allows you to focus on work rest and play so that everyones needs get met. If youre living on your own, similarly set up a routine that encompasses work time and down time.

Lastly, remember that this wont last forever!

Additionally, Carbery will be hosting a complimentary 4-part online mindfulness programme running in conjunction with ICAS, the Employee Assistance Programme provider. The series is titled, Navigating Tough Times with the next session scheduled for Sunday April 5 called Harnessing the Power of What IS.

The upcoming session aims to help participants realise when their minds have been overwhelmed by stressful what IF this or that happens scenarios and enable them to focus back on whats happening right now and what they can control in their current environment. -- Tradearabia News Service
Meghan Markle always had dreams of living the Hollywood lifestyle, an insider claiming to be a lifelong friend has said.

The Duchess of Sussex, 38, who has relocated to LA with Prince Harry, 35, and their son Archie, 11 months, was reportedly always keen on living among the A-listers and being able to earn her own keep.

And according the source, Harry is so 'smitten' he was open to relocating, having his own 'fascination' with movie stars.

Scroll down for video

Meghan Markle always had dreams of living the Hollywood lifestyle and Prince Harry was 'star-struck', an insider claiming to be a lifelong friend has said.

A source told The Sun: 'I think she always wanted to be back here, she always dreamed of the full-blown Hollywood lifestyle and this kind of clout. And I don't think it was even that hard to persuade Harry.

'He was smitten and star struck over the whole thing. I don't think she had to twist his arm to move to Hollywood.'

'Now she is back home, near her mom, her friends and her PR team. She doesn't have to ask for permission from the royal family in how she chooses to live her life and she can acquire income in all sorts of fields.

The Duchess of Sussex, 38, who has relocated to LA with Prince Harry, 35, and their son Archie, 11 months, was reportedly always keen on living among the A-listers and being able to earn her own keep. They are seen at the Lion King premiere last year

The source claimed that she has had the 'ideal result' as she 'gets to return with a Prince' and choose who she 'works and socialises with'.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have reportedly left Canada for good to set up a permanent home in Los Angeles - and it's likely affluent Malibu is top of their list.

Last week a royal insider claimed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex decided to leave Vancouver Island - where they have been staying since announcing they were stepping down as senior royals in January - amid fears the US-Canada border could close due to coronavirus.

The Sussexes want to be close to Meghan's friends and mother Doria, the source told The Sun.

They are now believed to be in lockdown in the Hollywood area with 11-month-old baby Archie.

The source claimed that she has had the 'ideal result' as she 'gets to return with a Prince' and choose who she 'works and socialises with'. Harry and Meghan are seen in London last month

This follows reports Harry is feeling torn over the relocation, and is keen to 'fly the nest' and make a more private life with his own family, but is also 'racked with guilt'.

Prince Harry is said to be struggling with feelings of helplessness after discovering Prince Charles tested positive for coronavirus, a source claims.

The Duke of Sussex, 35, who officially stepped down as a senior royal this week as he strives to give 11-month-old son Archie, and his wife Meghan Markle, 38, a more private life in LA out of the spotlight, is said to have had an emotional phonecall with his father, 71.

According to an insider the father-of-one feels 'helpless', and is trying to keep regular contact with Charles and the Queen, but the time difference is making it difficult.

A source told Us Weekly: 'Despite their ups and downs, hearing that his dad is sick with a potentially life-threatening illness is a huge wake-up call. And he's overwhelmed with feelings of guilt for not being closer to home while this is all going on.'

Charles reportedly tried to calm Harry down bY explaining that he is only suffering from 'mild symptoms', but the diagnosis is said to have been a 'huge wake-up call'.

According to the source the royals are trying to 'rally together' amid the pandemic, but are struggling due to the physical distancing rule.
It is a question being asked in hospitals across the country: What is the duty to treat in a viral pandemic, particularly one in which health workers are getting infected and there is a dearth of personal protective equipment?

The question could be glibly dismissed. Medicine is a humanitarian profession, the argument would go. Health care workers have a duty to care for the sick. By freely entering into the profession, we have implicitly agreed to accept the risks.

Medical societies have generally been supportive of this idealistic viewpoint. The ethics manual of the American College of Physicians, for example, states that the ethical imperative for physicians to provide care overrides the risk to the treating physician, even during epidemics. The American Medical Association asserts that individual physicians have an obligation to provide urgent medical care during disasters, emphasizing that this duty persists even in the face of greater than usual risks to physicians own safety, health, or life.

However, this argument seems to minimize the quandary my colleagues are facing as they try to balance their obligations as professionals with their duties as husbands, wives, parents and children. The risk to personal health from the coronavirus is alarming enough, but the risk of infecting our families because of exposure on the job is for some unacceptable. With the rates of infection among health workers so high  nearly 14 percent of confirmed cases in Spain, for example  the risk of transmission to our loved ones is not insignificant. How do we balance our professional and personal obligations?
Toronto police have identified the victim of a fatal shooting near Ryerson University last month.

On March 21, at around 7:45 p.m., Toronto police responded to reports of gunshots near OKeefe Lane and Gould Street. They located a man with gunshot wounds and emergency services transported him to hospital. He later died from his injuries.

On Thursday, police identified him as 25-year-old Mamadou Drame of Toronto.

Homicide investigators are looking for businesses with security cameras and drivers with dashcam footage to share any evidence or information of this incident with police.
Photo: IC

The US and some other Western countries have been recently launching continuous public opinion attacks on China from changing perspectives. They accused China of concealing data on the number of COVID-19 infections and deaths, politicized disputes over the quality of certain medical supplies shipped from China to the West, threw mud at China's diplomacy and demanded China be held accountable for the coronavirus outbreak, as if they are in tune with a new anti-China chorus.

There are three reasons for the emergence of this chorus. First, some forces with an inherent paranoid stance toward China will inevitably respond in this way under the current circumstances. Second, they feel frustrated as China has got the epidemic under control, while US and European countries are being severely hit. Third, ruling and ideological elites in some countries failed to explain the plight their states are grappling with to the public, therefore resorting to diverting domestic anger by scapegoating China.

More attacks on China are likely to occur in the future. But we do not think they will constrain China. China must continue its prevention efforts and strengthen cooperation with other countries to cope with the pandemic. Lies will be eventually revealed and they cannot dominate the world's understanding of the virus fight.

There are three facts worth underlining. First, China has done a great job in containing the epidemic. We reversed the situation in two months. The number of infections and deaths in China, a gigantic society with a population of over 1 billion, constitutes an impressive contrast with the figures outside the country. This displays the extraordinary mobilization capabilities of the Chinese government and people to everyone around the world and is a powerful enough fact to crush any political smears on China.

Second, China has become a force of support in the global pandemic fight after overcoming its initial predicament. It has dispatched medical supplies and experts to other countries, a contribution to the international community that cannot be denied no matter how hard some forces find fault with China. China's most powerful response to slander is to offer more sincere support for countries in difficulties. Actions speak louder than words.

Third, China is the first country to have started post-epidemic reconstruction. Although the coronavirus outbreak has been controlled, it is not completely over. There are still many risks ahead and it is hard to coordinate resumption of work and production, restart consumption and continue the virus fight at this critical moment. China's exploration is of great value to the world no matter it's smooth or not.

Facing external public opinion attacks, at China's disposal are an unprecedented number of facts. For one thing, China must resolutely strike back at the attackers' faulty logic and factual defects. For another, China must maintain its confidence that absurdities will be crushed by facts when it comes to certain inflection points.

The lie that China caused the US to become the country that is worst-hit by the pandemic will be angrily rejected by the American public at some inflection point. If the US cannot concentrate on fighting the pandemic, which could cause between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths as estimated by US infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci, yet China has managed the situation well at the same time, the lies will not be sustained eventually.

Although China's system has deficiencies, it serves the people and always gives priority to people's lives and safety during crises. This has been made crystal clear now.

US President Donald Trump said keeping US COVID-19 deaths to 100,000 would be a "very good job." Any Chinese official uttering the same words during China's outbreak would be overwhelmed by curses.

Many uncertainties lie ahead. China must deal with them with solidarity and confidence. We are the largest society in the world, diligent, kind-hearted, energetic and positive. As long as we handle every matter well and treat others with earnest, no forces can coerce or hurt us.
A medical staff uses blood samples for testing new coronavirus at a quick test station in Hanoi, March 31, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Huy.

The threat of spreading Covid-19 in Vietnam is increasing since medics could not identify the source of infection at its current hotspot.

Tran Dac Phu, senior advisor at the Public Health Emergency Operations Center under the Health Ministry, said there is still no clue as to who the source was that first introduced Covid-19, the respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus, to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi.

The hospital is now the nations largest infection hotspot. By Thursday morning, the number of cases associated with the facility had increased to at least 42; 26 of them employees of Truong Sinh Company, the food and logistic services provider to Bach Mai.

Authorities had identified all sources at previous hotspots across the nation, enabling them to track down and keep all those that had come in close contact with them under close monitor.

Most recently, "Patient 17", the first infection confirmed in Hanoi and "Patient 34" in south central Binh Thuan Province, who had both returned from abroad and then tested positive, are typical examples of such sources.

"For hotspots that we could not identify the source of transmission, the risk of spreading infection in the community is very high and therefore, everybody should stay home."

At this stage, what the health sector and local authorities could do is try to detect all suspected cases as early as they could, then locate and isolate affected areas.

The national social distancing rule the government has requested citizens to follow is for the purpose of preventing healthy people from directly contacting those that have contracted the virus, Phu told a meeting Thursday.

The new coronavirus is easily transmitted via close and direct contact and thus, the further people stay away from each other, the better.

"Once social distancing is practiced well, a hotspot will not have a chance to grow bigger. Its just like a fire: if the fires are just small ones, we totally have the ability to kill each of them off," he confirmed.

On the contrary, if the epidemic spreads widely, authorities could not locate the affected areas, allowing the number of infections to grow out of control, placing the medical system under great pressure.

What comes next would be a high fatality rate because doctors could not focus their efforts and time on treating each patient as has been happening so far in Vietnam.

"What everybody needs to do right now is stay inside and only go out when it is truly necessary," he insisted.

Truong Huu Khanh, head of the infection and internal neurology department at the Children's Hospital No.1 in HCMC, said losing track of the source of transmission is what must be prepared for.

However, he said, if practiced well, social distancing can cut the chain of transmission and even when the sources of infection are still out there in the community, there is no way they could transmit the virus widely.

For a source of infection from abroad, Phu praised Vietnams efforts of sending all entries to quarantine camps, not only for two week isolation but also testing.

"This method has allowed us to resist until today and keep the number of infections from surging while many other countries have seen their cases jump from 100 to 1,000 in just one week," he said.

Phu confirmed the epidemic in Vietnam, until today, remains under control.

Aside from two nurses confirmed positive on March 20, the Bach Mai Hospital has yet to record cases among its staff.

From April 1, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has imposed a 15-day nationwide social distancing campaign, banning gatherings of over two people and asking people not to leave their homes.

The government also suspended all inbound international flights and halted road transport services until April 15 to limit travel in the country of 94 million.

It also shut down all "non-essential" services like bars, karaoke parlors and spas until April 15 and closed its borders with neighboring countries Cambodia, China and Laos.

It declared Covid-19 a national epidemic on Wednesday afternoon when the infection tally reached 212.

As of Thursday, the number of infections in the country has gone up to 227, including 75 who have recovered and been discharged from hospital.

Many of the active cases are people, both Vietnamese and foreigners, coming from Europe and the U.S., and others who came into contact with them.
London Ambulance staff members are seen with vehicles in the car park at the ExCeL London exhibition centre in London on April 1, 2020, which has been transformed into the NHS Nightingale Hospital to help with the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS

U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been forced to defend the lack of widespread coronavirus testing for frontline health professionals  a situation that has attracted widespread criticism from the public. Making an online address on Twitter Wednesday, Johnson said testing was the key to solving the epidemic in the U.K., as it was revealed that only 2,000 frontline National Health Service (NHS) workers had been tested for the virus, out of around 500,000 NHS staff. Tweet Johnson, who is himself self-isolating after testing positive for the virus, said that testing would be ramped up amid an outpouring of criticism from NHS workers, opposition parties and the media about the lack of testing. 'We're also massively increasing testing," Johnson said Wednesday. "This is the way through. This is how we will unlock the coronavirus puzzle. This is how we will defeat it in the end." There are now 29,865 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the U.K. and 2,357 people have died from the virus, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Government data released Wednesday showed that the U.K. had registered its biggest daily increase in deaths, of 563 people, in the previous 24 hours.

The two tests

There are two tests for coronavirus: one tests for antigens, which are produced by the body in response to a coronavirus infection and show if an individual has the virus; the other, an antibody test, shows whether an individual has been exposed to the virus, and has developed immunity to it. The U.K. has been slow to implement widespread antigen testing as only a small number of U.K. laboratories have been enabled to carry out these tests. The Department of Health said yesterday that testing capacity for inpatients stands at 12,799 in England, with just over 10,000 tests being carried out Tuesday. Tweet By contrast, in countries like Germany and South Korea, mass antigen testing has been a key strategy in their fight against the coronavirus outbreak, and appears to have kept the death rate relatively low. Germany, which has 67,377 confirmed cases of the virus but only 732 deaths, is estimated to be carrying out around 500,000 antigen tests a week. The U.K. has only been testing very symptomatic cases, unlike Germany.

Antibody tests for the frontline

So far, testing has been constrained to antigen tests that see whether an individual has the virus. However, antibody testing is a key issue in the U.K. right now, as thousands of healthcare professionals are self-isolating at home because they  or their family members  have shown symptoms, but it is unknown whether or not they have the coronavirus. On Wednesday, Johnson said the government would "massively" ramp-up antibody testing as this test is seen as crucial to determining who is no longer vulnerable to being infected or contagious themselves, and is able to return to work. Health Minister Matt Hancock said last week that the government had ordered 3.5 million antibody tests. Neil Ferguson, a professor of mathematical biology at Imperial College London, whose studies are informing U.K. government policy towards the pandemic, said on Monday that antibody tests were in the final stages of validation and would hopefully be ready "in days rather than weeks."

Scathing response
A RETAIL investment with dual frontage onto both Meath Street and Thomas Street in Dublin 8 is being offered for sale with a 330,000 guide price.

Comprising a ground floor unit at 45-46 Thomas Street, it extends to 1,119 sq ft.

It is fully let to Ladbrokes Ireland Ltd on a 10-year lease from January 2013 at 21,000 annual rent. This reflects a net initial yield of 6.36pc.

Colin O'Shea, of sales agents Colliers International, says the guide price also equates to a capital value of 295 per sq ft.

Before the Covid-19 crisis, he had estimated future rent of about 35,000, which would equate to a net reversionary yield of 9.64pc.

"We would be hopeful that rents would return to around those levels after this clears," he said.
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Medical staff waited until nightfall yesterday to wheel out the dead to avoid bumping in to passersby on the streets of New York after city hospitals reported bodies flowing through them 'like a conveyor belt'.

As the number of dead rises, funeral homes have reported becoming 'overwhelmed' with the grim death tally and 130 more mobile morgues are now on their way to store the overflowing fatal victims of the coronavirus crisis.

New estimates predict the death toll in the Big Apple alone could surpass 16,000, leaving the city's already-struggling funeral homes bursting at the seams with bodies.

Using the cover of darkness to hide the grim reality of the death tally from people passing the sidewalk outside Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan, medical workers were pictured carrying out four corpses in an hour to be loaded on to a refrigerated morgue.

The staff, clad in partial PPE, wheeled the dead out in black body bags tied to stretchers down a ramp into the parking lot.

From there, they moved the trolley to the sidewalk, where a refrigerated temporary morgue truck was waiting to ferry them away.

New York state continues to be the US epicenter of the pandemic with 92,743 infections and 2,468 deaths as of Thursday night. New York City accounts for most of the fatalities, with a death toll of 1,562.

While the healthcare system buckles under the strain, the disposal of bodies is fast becoming the latest crisis with bottlenecks emerging at every step from the hospitals to funeral homes to crematories and cemeteries.

Funeral directors are finding themselves stuck in the middle of a system where hospitals are overrun with more fatalities and cemeteries and crematoriums are booked up for at least a week.

Horrific scenes from Manhattan's Mount Sinai hospital show medical staff bringing out the dead and loading them onto a refrigerated truck

Using the cover of night to avoid people on the sidewalk seeing the horrific scenes, medical staff from Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan carried out bodies of the dead last night to be taken away in a refrigerated truck

The two individuals are seen pushing the body into a waiting truck outside Mount Sinai hospital

The pair are shown pushing a covered trolley containing a dead body out of the hospital at night and up a makeshift ramp into a refrigerated truck, which is parked on the street

The medical staff straighten the trolley as they wheel the corpse out using the cover of night to protect the public from the grim scenes outside Mount Sinai Hospital yesterday

The trolley was then moved back to the hospital before being loaded with another body. This happened four times in an hour

Medical staff at Mount Sinai hospital in Manhattan, New York City, were reported to have ferried out at least four corpses an hour last night

The individual was removed from Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, under cover of darkness. The city is in the grip of a ferocious pandemic

The corpse in the trolley was then pulled up onto the sidewalk, shown, as they returned to the hospital to collect a body

A makeshift wooden ramp has been constructed outside Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, so that staff can place bodies into a trailer. The trailer is parked on the street, and has people walking past

The pair are pictured above moving down the ramp as they return to the hospital to collect another corpse

The individuals pulled the trolley carrying a corpse along the road and up onto the sidewalk in New York yesterday

Families who have lost loved ones to the killer disease have also been left heartbroken as the stay-at-home order means they cannot hold public funerals.

The owner of one funeral home in Brooklyn said it was 'surreal'.

Pat Marmo, owner of Daniel J. Schaefer funeral home in the Sunset Park neighbourhood, said that more than triple the typical number of bodies have been coming through the doors this week.

The funeral home usually takes up to 60 bodies at once but as of Thursday morning, it had 185.

The horrendous scenes from Mount Sinai Hospital last night were captured as witnesses reported seeing four bodies being wheeled out every hour through the night

The trailer is returned to the hospital so staff can collect another body. The trailer is preparing bodies for transfer to another facility

The medical staff used the relative quiet of the night to avoid bumping into passersby on their way to deliver the corpses to a refrigerated truck, which is being used as a temporary morgue in New York City last night

The medical staff are pictured bringing their stretcber out of the trailer here as others walked past along the sidewalk

Bodies were loaded onto this trailer outside Mount Sinai Hospital, New York. It is not clear where they were moved to

A picture showing a view into the hospital's interior from which the bodies are being removed

About 20 embalmed bodies are being stored on gurneys and shelves in the basement and another dozen in his secondary chapel room, he showed Associated Press.

His cell phones and the office phone have been ringing constantly as the fatalities mount by the hour.

'Every person there, they're not a body,' said Marmo. 'They're a father, they're a mother, they're a grandmother. They're not bodies. They're people.'

Marmo is trying to rent a refrigerated lorry to act as a makeshift morgue, something the city's hospitals have turned to.

Bodies are loaded onto a refrigerated truck outside of Wyckoff Medical Center in Brooklyn on Thursday

Pat Marmo, owner of Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home, walks through his body holding facility yesterday in the Brooklyn borough of New York. The company is equipped to handle 40-60 cases at a time. But amid the coronavirus pandemic, it was taking care of 185 Thursday morning

Hospitals and healthcare professionals are struggling to bring the crisis under control and the city is becoming overwhelmed with dead bodies as the pandemic is poised to kill more New Yorkers than 9/11

'I need somebody to help me,' he said. 'Maybe if they send me refrigeration, or guide me in a way that I could set up a refrigerated trailer that I could keep, and I could supervise.'

Patrick J Kearns, a fourth-generation funeral director who operates three funeral homes in Queens and one on Long Island, said the mounting crisis over bodies was worse than he witnessed after 9/11.

His Rego Park business has been inundated with bodies from Elmhurst Hospital, and has been forced to convert a small chapel into a makeshift refrigerator.

Kearns said he is scrambling to keep up with the rapid rate at which bodies are coming out of hospitals while trying to avoid pile-ups from far slower cemeteries and crematoriums.

'It's taking longer for the bodies to be released and for the bodies to be transferred,' Kearns told the Times.

'When you overwhelm the health system, you also overwhelm the death system.'

He said he fears that the problems will only get worse as the death toll rises.

Marmo said the backlog of bodies has already left him with no choice but to beg families to ask hospitals to hold onto their loved ones' bodies for as long as possible as he has no room to take any more of the deceased.

Pictured: Employees deliver a body at Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home yesterday in the Brooklyn borough of New York. The company is equipped to handle 40-60 cases at a time. His roster as of Thursday morning numbered at 185.

A body is taken out of Wyckoff Medical Center to go to a makeshift morgue in a refrigerated lorry

'This is a state of emergency,' he said. 'We need help.'

But hospitals are equally unable to cope with the growing number of bodies, with one doctor at Brookdale Medical Center saying that bodies are flowing through Brooklyn hospitals 'like a conveyor belt'.

The sheer number of deaths is unlike anything hospitals have seen before.

On average 158 people die in New York City each day.

On April 1, 278 people died from coronavirus alone - and the figure has been on the rise.

Joe Aievoli, who owns six funeral homes in Brooklyn and Manhattan, told the New York Times that most hospital morgues can only hold between eight and 12 bodies at one time.

New York state continues to be the hardest-hit in the US with 92,381 infections and 2,373 deaths as of Thursday

'Now, they've been inundated with 30, 40, 50 deaths within a short period of time. They just don't have the capacity to store,' he said.

'The practice is we hold bodies until the funeral homes make arrangements to pick them up,' a spokeswoman for Brookdale, Khari Edwards, told the Times.

'Unfortunately, the funeral homes have either been overwhelmed or are not picking up bodies.'

Mobile morgues have been drafted in to plug the gap, with 45 now set up around the five boroughs able to take on another 3,500 bodies.

Horrifying images showed the bodies of victims being loaded onto a refrigerated truck outside of Wyckoff Medical Center in Brooklyn on Thursday - the undignified send-offs the only option for the healthcare system in the grips of crisis.

One of the mobile morgues was placed outside the hard-hit Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn, which had ran out of space in its in-house morgue, which holds 25 bodies, on Tuesday.

Nursing staff ran out of body bags the next day as the mobile morgue outside climbed closer and closer to capacity.

An additional 130 of the refrigerated units are on their way to the city.

The city's medical examiner's office has been put in charge of identifying and picking up the dead and can take on 900 bodies across five facilities but this is still far from enough.

The US Department of Defense is sending 42 mortuary affairs officers and the New York Air National Guard has sent a 12-person team to help the city run the mobile morgues already set up.

Healthcare workers wheel the bodies of deceased people from the Wyckoff Heights Medical Center during the outbreak of the coronavirus

New estimates predict that the death toll in the Big Apple alone could surpass 16,000, threatening to overwhelm the city's usual system for accommodating the dead as backups emerge at every step from hospitals to funeral homes to cemeteries and crematoriums

Crematories were recently given the green light to work around the clock until June 30 after city environmental officials eased restrictions.

This means more cremations can take place, so more bodies of victims can flow down the system from the hospitals to the funeral homes to the crematories.

At Ferncliff Cemetery in Westchester, Phil Tassi said staff were working 16 hour days to wade through the influx of dead bodies.

As many as 130 more mobile morgues are on their way to New York City to store the bodies

The disposal of bodies is fast becoming the latest crisis with a 'bottleneck' emerging between the bodies being taken from the city's hospitals to funeral homes and to crematories and cemeteries

'We're running 16 hours a day, and we've hit capacity where we have to set limits because we can't keep up with the number of bodies coming in,' Tassi told The Times. 'We have never had weeks like this.'

The crematory usually cremates 12 bodies a day. By 11 am Tuesday it had already cremated 38.

New York's public hospitals chief Dr. Mitchell Katz acknowledged the issue Wednesday that the city is buckling under the bodies of the dead.

'It's much more difficult for funeral homes to retrieve people who are deceased because of the various parts of our shelter in place,' he said.

Bodies are loaded onto a refrigerated truck outside of Wyckoff Medical Center. A domino effect has meant victims' bodies are left lying in refrigerated trucks for days as there is not enough space in hospital morgues, funeral homes can't keep up with demand and cemeteries are operating less than usual due to the city's lockdown and social distancing rules

Mobile morgues have been drafted in to plug the gap and the city's medical examiner's office has taken control of the disposal of bodies and started taking in bodies to its five facilities

The US Department of Defense is also sending 42 mortuary affairs officers and the New York Air National Guard has sent a 12-person team to help the city run the mobile morgues

Most hospital morgues can hold between eight and 12 bodies at one time

The 'average wait time' for hospitals to pick up bodies is one to two days, Katz said.

'In these circumstances we're waiting multiple, multiple days.'

New York's stay-at-home order also means that families cannot gather at funerals to say goodbye to their loved ones.

Some have been forced to say goodbye via photographs of a ceremony that only the funeral director has been allowed to attend.

'The whole process, including the experience for the family during the funeral, is one of sort of isolation rather than the support,' Bonnie Dixon, president of Maple Grove Cemetery in Queens, told AP.

The morbid crisis of what to do with the mounting number of bodies is not as dire as the situation seen in Italy where corpses were pictured piled up on the streets creating yet another health concern.

Crematories were recently given the green light to work around the clock until June 30 after city environmental officials eased restrictions in order to help meet the growth in demand

On average 158 people die in New York City each day. On April 1, 278 people died from coronavirus alone - and the figure has been on the rise

As a growing number of hospitals reach capacity in their in-house morgues, the office of the chief medical examiner has been drafted in to be put in charge of identifying and picking up the dead

New York City has had some preparation for such a crisis, with the medical examiner's office detailing a plan in 2008 for a scenario where 50,000 die in New York in two months.

The mobile morgues are part of this emergency plan.

The next stage would be for bodies to be sent to Hart Island in the Bronx to be buried by Rikers Island prison inmates.

The final stage is temporary mass graves, with 'ten bodies in caskets' packed in the ground together.

It remains to be seen whether these more extreme stages of mass burials will need to be acted out during the coronavirus pandemic.

Healthcare workers wear protective gear to move bodies of coronavirus victims into makeshift morgues
These are the men and women on the front line in Australia's fight against COVID-19.

Stationed at Sydney International Airport, these nurses and doctors spend their days performing coronavirus checks on the 4,000 daily arrivals from overseas.

These brave professionals risk their lives to stop cases entering the community, despite coronavirus proving deadly for medical workers in nations like China and the U.S.

Nurses stationed at Sydney International Airport check more than 4,000 arriving passengers a day

The nurses check all passengers and those who show symptoms of COVID-19 are taken away for testing

Prime Minister Scott Morrison last week followed the lead of other nations to bring in compulsory temperature checks for all incoming passengers.

The measure - which can provide an instant indicator of a likely coronavirus sufferer - had already been in place for weeks in many countries throughout Asia.

Before passengers pass through customs they are greeted by nurses and doctors at a coronavirus screening station.

Those with a high temperature or who show symptoms such as a cough or shortness of breath, are taken aside by the medical team.

A swab is then performed and they are taken away to self-isolate.

The government last week stepped up its compulsory self-isolation requirements by taking overseas arrivals from the airport by bus directly to quarantine hotels.

It came after concerns about the number of people refusing to self-isolate in their own homes.

Those with a high temperature or who show symptoms such as a cough or shortness of breath, are taken aside by the medical team for a swab test

The government last week stepped up its compulsory self-isolation requirements by taking overseas arrivals from the airport by bus directly to quarantine hotels

Police and members of the army are keeping a watchful eye on arrivals, ensuring they do not skip self-isolation

As of Thursday night there was a total of 5,136 confirmed coronavirus cases across Australia, with 24 deaths directly linked to the virus

'States and territories will be quarantining all arrivals through our airports in hotels and other accommodation facilities for the two weeks of their mandatory self-isolation before they are able to return to their home,' Prime Minister Morrison said.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

'If their home is in South Australia, or in Perth, or in Tasmania and they have arrived in Melbourne, they will be quarantining in Melbourne.'

As of Thursday night there was a total of 5,136 confirmed coronavirus cases across Australia, with 24 deaths directly linked to the virus.

Queensland last night brought in strict new laws which mean anyone who does not live in the state can not cross its borders.

Only Queensland residents or those with an exemption will be authorised to enter as of 12.01am on Friday

Some crossing spots will now feature physical barriers, while others will be patrolled by police.

Queensland has more than 800 cases of the virus, while New South Wales continues to be the worst affected state with close to 2,300 sufferers.
Of course, there are practical problems in convening a normal sitting of Parliament during a pandemic. At least four MPs, including Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton, have already contracted the disease. But Prime Minister Scott Morrison must reconsider and allow proper democratic scrutiny of his actions.

The government has taken the view that Parliament should sit as little as possible in order to reduce the risk of transmission of the virus to MPs and their staff. On that basis, the Coalition adjourned Parliament two weeks ago until August 11, a recess of four months. It has been forced to re-call a scaled-back group of MPs next week to pass its $130 billion third stimulus package, but only for one day. MPs will be sent back home after that.

The great parliaments of the world have often shown their mettle by continuing to conduct business during a crisis. During the Blitz of World War II, after German bombs put a hole in the House of Commons, British MPs found a new home within two days. The Morrison government should take the British example to heart in the debate over whether Federal Parliament will continue to sit through the coronavirus pandemic.

There is an argument that during this extraordinary moment partisan parliamentary debate is a waste of time that will just throw sand in the gears of government. Yet now is precisely when Parliament is most needed. There must be proper scrutiny of the untold billions the government is spending to support the economy and bail out whole industries. The bailout is necessary, but it creates opportunities for waste and corruption. The ALP has asked the Australian National Audit Office to monitor some of the coronavirus programs in real time but some form of parliamentary oversight is essential.

Someone also has to keep an eye on the use of the governments emergency powers under the Biosecurity Act, which have already been invoked to lock returned travellers in hotels under quarantine and ban all overseas travel. The Age supports these measures but Parliament should be able to debate whether infringements on citizens rights are justified and how long they are required.

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The Age reported yesterday on one practical option for establishing a reasonable level of democratic accountability that still gives the government room to do its job but avoids the risk of infection. Six former judges, including High Court justice Mary Gaudron, have called for Australia to follow New Zealand and establish an all-party select committee to scrutinise the governments actions. In New Zealand, the committee meets virtually to reduce the risk of infection.

The NSW upper house has also set up a special committee of oversight into the handling of the coronavirus which will sit regularly during a parliamentary break until September. Victoria should consider applying the same model.
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - HollyFrontier Corp. (HFC) announced Thursday that Timothy Go will join HollyFrontier as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, effective July 2020, after leaving from his current role. Go brings more than 30 years of operating experience serving in executive-level roles at leading companies in the petroleum refining and specialty chemicals markets. Go currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of the general partner of Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P., a position he has held since January 2016. Prior to joining Calumet, Go served as Vice President, Operations of Flint Hills Resources, LP, a wholly owned subsidiary of Koch Industries, Inc., from July 2012 through September 2015 and as Vice President, Operations Excellence of Flint Hills Resources, LP from June 2011 through July 2013. Go also served as Managing Director, Operations Excellence from August 2008 through 2011 of Koch Industries, Inc. Prior to joining Koch Industries, Go held various roles of increasing responsibility in downstream operations during his 18 years at ExxonMobil Corp. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Turning a brittle oxide into a flexible membrane and stretching it on a tiny apparatus flipped it from a conducting to an insulating state and changed its magnetic properties

One way to change the properties of a material is to stretch it just a wee bit, so its atoms are farther apart but the bonds between them don't break. This extra distance affects the behavior of electrons, which determine whether the material is an insulator or a conductor of electricity, for instance.

But for an important class of complex oxide materials, stretching doesn't work so well; they're as brittle as ceramic coffee cups and would break.

Scientists at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University have now found a way around this problem for a complex oxide known as LCMO. They created a super-thin, flexible membrane from the normally brittle material, used micromanipulators to stretch it on a tiny apparatus and glued it in place to preserve the stretch.

By applying gentle heat to melt the glue, they could release and stretch the same transparent membrane again and again and watch it flip from being an insulator to a conductor and back again. Stretching also changed its magnetic properties.

"We can really stretch and strain these things dramatically, by up to 8%," said Harold Hwang, a professor at SLAC and Stanford and an investigator with the Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Sciences (SIMES). "This opens a whole new world of possibilities that will have an impact beyond this particular study."

The research team reported its findings in Science today.

New ways to float free and stretch

LCMO, or lanthanum calcium manganese oxide, is what's known as a quantum material because its electrons behave in unconventional and often surprising ways. Scientists want to be able to control and fine-tune this behavior for a new generation of electronics with applications in power transmission, transportation, computing, sensors and detectors.

Thin films of quantum materials are generally grown on the surface of another material. Four years ago, Hwang's group reported an easy way to detach those delicate layers so they could be studied in new ways.

One of the researchers who worked on that study, Seung Sae Hong, led this one as well. He used the new method to create and free small pieces of LCMO that were thinner than ever before - less than 20 nanometers thick. They were nearly transparent and surprisingly flexible.

Directly stretching such a small, fragile scrap would be difficult, but Hong got around that problem by putting it on a thin polymer film - kind of like a plastic bag from a grocery store - where it stuck of its own volition.

Then he clamped the polymer film on each of its four sides and used a micromanipulator to pull and stretch it - sometimes in one direction, sometimes in both directions at once. Once the LCMO was stretched, its polymer backing could be glued to another surface and taken to another instrument for examination with X-rays.

Flipping electronic states

"The experiments were quite tedious and difficult," said Hong, who is now an assistant professor at the University of California, Davis. "We'd look at the film, warm it to soften the glue and relax the stretch, manipulate it in some other way, freeze it in place and look at it again."

The researchers were able to directly measure the spacing between atoms and confirm that it increased with stretching. They also measured the electrical resistance of the LMCO and discovered that stretching flipped it from a metallic state that readily conducts electricity to an insulating state, which doesn't. Applying a strong magnetic field changed the magnetic state of the material and also flipped it back into being a metal.

"As a scientific tool this is really exciting," Hong said. "It opens opportunities for mechanically manipulating broad classes of materials in ways we couldn't do before. And it gives us ideas for how we might design flexible materials for electronic devices, including sensors and detectors that measure very small changes."

###

Major funding for this study came from the DOE Office of Science and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation's Emergent Phenomena in Quantum Systems Initiative. Researchers from Northwestern University and the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany contributed theoretical modeling for the study. Calculations were performed using the National Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment (XSEDE), which is supported by the National Science Foundation; the CARBON Cluster at DOE's Argonne National Laboratory; and the MagnitUDE supercomputer at the University of Duisburg-Essen.

Citation: Seung Sae Hong et al., Science, 5 April 2020 (10.1126/science.aax9753)

SLAC is a vibrant multiprogram laboratory that explores how the universe works at the biggest, smallest and fastest scales and invents powerful tools used by scientists around the globe. With research spanning particle physics, astrophysics and cosmology, materials, chemistry, bio- and energy sciences and scientific computing, we help solve real-world problems and advance the interests of the nation.

SLAC is operated by Stanford University for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science. The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time.
Ecuador's tallest waterfall has disappeared after a sinkhole diverted its water source.

The 150m-high San Rafael Waterfall on the Coca River previously attracted tens of thousands of people a year.

But a sinkhole appeared in the riverbed above the fall, diverting the river into three separate sections with a less steep slope, according to local media reports.

The river appears to have all but vanished from the vantage point from which it used to be photographed.

The Ministry of the Environment has launched an investigation into the cause of the sinkhole, but experts suggested it may be related to the construction of the countrys largest hydroelectric plant.

The San Rafael Waterfall on the Coca River previously attracted tens of thousands of people a year (Ecuador Ministry of Tourism)

A waterfall that has been there for thousands of years does not collapse, coincidentally, a few years after opening a hydroelectric project, Emilio Cobo, coordinator of the South America Water Program at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, told Mongabay.

These are processes that are in scientific papers and there is sufficient evidence that a dam can cause effects of this type on a river.

The cascade of water stopped flowing on 2 February, according to Nasas Earth Observatory.

Ecuadors tourism ministry has said it does not plan to reconstruct the waterbed or restore the waterfall.

It has also cancelled all tours of the falls.

Unfortunately, Cascada San Rafael is now part of history and will not return, a spokesperson said.
FORT WORTH, Texas, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Waples Manufacturing, Inc., a leading CNC precision machining manufacturer for the medical and aerospace industries, has announced it has reconfigured its capacity to support manufacturing parts for the medical device manufacturing supply chain.

http://www.waples.com

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Says Kerry Parker, Waples Manufacturing COO: "How manufacturers respond to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak will ultimately demonstrate their resiliency. At Waples we're using our expertise in CNC Precision Machining to work with medical device manufacturers to help build safety products and equipment necessary to combat the coronavirus."

As a primary supplier, Waples Manufacturing has been classified AS CRITICAL TO THE DEFENSE, TRANSPORTATION, AND MANUFACTURING INFRASTRUCTURE SECTORS under the Defense Production Act. Their lights-out manufacturing capability limits the need for human intervention allowing the company to maintain continuity of operations.

Waples commitment will provide much-needed capacity to an already stressed medical device supply chain. Specifically, Waples will be focused on making parts for ventilators such as the PB560 Ventilator System as well as CTs, mobile X-ray systems, hospital beds, and ultra-sound equipment.

About Waples: An ISO 9001/AS9100 certified company, Waples Manufacturing manufactures complex metal parts while meeting close tolerance requirements. With 42 CNC machining centers, Waples is able to leverage intelligent technologies and pair that with a broad spectrum of metallurgic knowledge and robust quality assurance to provide turnkey, cost-saving solutions for its customers.

Contact:

John Deely

Vice President Sales

Waples Manufacturing, Inc.

[email protected]

817-568-1600 x120

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Ram Gopal Varma is popular for his infamous tweets but last night, it was a different low. As insensitive as it could be, RGV took to Twitter to joke about being tested positive for Coronavirus. Despite knowing that the whole world is battling this contagious virus and people are succumbing to it, RGV didnt think even for a single second before putting it out on Twitter.

So, he first tweeted, My doctor just told me that I tested positive with Corona. This obviously created a bit of a chaos and people started commenting. While some knew he was joking, some were contemplating if its true.

My doctor just told me that I tested positive with Corona  Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) April 1, 2020

A few moments later, he clarified in another tweet that his coronavirus diagnosis was an April Fools joke. He wrote, Sorry to disappoint, but now he tells me its an April Fool joke. its his fault and not mine. To make it even worse, the director said he was just trying to find something to laugh about in this grim situation. Anyway I am just trying to make light of a grim situation but the joke is on me and if I dint offend anyone I sincerely apologize to them, he wrote.



Sorry to disappoint, but now he tells me its a April Fool joke its his fault and not mine  Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) April 1, 2020

Anyway I am just trying to make light of a grim situation but the joke is on me and if I dint offend anyone I sincerely apologise to them  Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) April 1, 2020

But the damage was done. Twitter is a place where people are quite proactive and can bash you hard for your wrongdoings. RGV, after his infamous tweets, came under the radar of these trolls who told him that his movie Aag was equally torturous.

Just watch RGV ki Aag..sab virus marr jayenge sir..  O m k a r (@omkar_gs) April 1, 2020

corona tested positive with RGV :P  Rohit Niranjan (@RohitvNiranjan) April 1, 2020

No. Corona tested positive with you!!!  mahesh varagani (@mahesh_varagani) April 1, 2020

Even your humor has been quarantined or what?  E.T (@leobunty) April 1, 2020

It's our fault to have u on this planet  Royal Ramana (@RoyalRamana4) April 1, 2020

Your joke offended the joking system as a whole !  Social animal ! (@YDS9) April 1, 2020

And some people on Twitter also schooled him for being irresponsible.

Humour should be sensible, especially when people look upto you  Richard Daniel (@Richy1anita) April 2, 2020

Sir please this 'CORONA VIRUS' is nothing to joke about This is a Pandemic.. People are dying.. I pray that this joke of yours should never come true  Anindita Das (@Anindit41238607) April 1, 2020

Making a joke about such a sensitive topic is obviously very irresponsible and too low of RGV.

What do you think about his tweets? Let us know in the comments section below.
Labour frontbencher Dawn Butler revealed that her uncle has died from coronavirus he contracted in a hospital as she demanded more tests for NHS staff today.

The shadow women and equalities minister shared a heart-rending message on Twitter this morning, revealing he had been admitted after suffering from a fall.

The Brent South MP, 50, said he has subsequently picked up the virus while being treated, with the bereavement coming weeks after the death of his son, her cousin.

It came as the Government was facing mounting criticism of the speed of its testing regime, with a fraction of NHS staff having been checked for coronavirus.

Announcing her news, Ms Butler said: 'My uncle had a fall he didn't have Covid-19.

'He caught it in hospital and has now sadly died from Covid-19.

The shadow women and equalities minister shared a heart-rending message on Twitter this morning, revealing he had been admitted after suffering from a fall

'Just a few weeks ago we buried his only son.

'We are devastated as a family but I'm also angry. Government needs to test everyone who works in the hospitals without delay!'

It came as Boris Johnson faces demands to overrule control-freak health chiefs today amid warnings 'time is running out' to scale up coronavirus testing.

Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, one of Britain's leading laboratories, urged the PM to summon the Dunkirk spirit and let 'small ship' labs start screening for the killer disease.

The institute today announced it has started testing NHS staff from University College London Hospitals and aims to ramp up to 500 per day by next week and expand to other hospitals in the capital.

Cancer Research UK said it is also providing testing kits and expert staff to ramp up testing for NHS staff across the country.

The private labs' involvement come as the Government is facing bitter backlash over slow progress on increasing the number of people it is testing - Public Health England managed an average of just 7,994 tests per day in the last week but the number of tested people is lower because of repeat tests.
The latest: North State COVID-19 confirmed cases

Local cases of the coronavirus are on the rise. Here are the up-to-date numbers of cases in each county in our viewer area. Tehama County Wednesday night confirmed its first case of the coronavirus. And Butte County confirmed another positive case, bringing the total to nine confirmed cases. Shasta County has 7 confirmed cases, Glenn has 2 positive cases, and Trinity and Modoc remain at zero cases.

Butte County schools will resume with distance learning for remainder of school year

"Distance learning" its the new normal for Butte County students for the rest of the year. Butte County Superintendent of Schools announced the decision Wednesday. It followed discussions with school district leaders around Butte County. On Tuesday, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction urged school districts across the state end in-person instruction and focus on improving distance learning.

A temporary field hospital could be coming to Redding

Governor Gavin Newsom named Redding as a possible location for a temporary field hospital. Shasta County health representatives say the U.S. army corps of engineers has been looking at possible sites, in order to set up make-shift hospitals. Possible locations include -- the Redding Civic Auditorium, the Shasta County Fairgrounds in Anderson and Shasta College.

IRS: What you need to know about stimulus checks

Checks from the government relief package should be rolling off the presses and on their way to millions of Americans. Taxpayers can expect anywhere from $1,200 to $2,400, based on their income and filing status. The amounts for eligible Americans are based on the latest tax filing, either 2018 or 2019.

The debate: Should you wear a face mask?

A new debate is brewing among public health experts, Should we wear face masks? The Centers for Disease Control says wearing a mask is unnecessary for healthy individuals. However, the U.S. Surgeon General says federal health experts could change that guidance. The surgeon general also adds if people plan on wearing a face covering to not touch their faces and to continue practicing social distancing. This debate comes as the mayor of Los Angeles is taking no chances. He is now urging the city's 4 million residents to wear masks while in public. That recommendation goes against the state's own guidelines which do not require masks. Prioritizing hand washing and social distancing.

A record 10 million sought US jobless aid in past 2 weeks

The numbers are in and U.S. unemployment claims have hit 6.6 million. Far exceeding a record high set just last week of 3.3 million. A sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus. Some economists predict as many as 20 million lost jobs by the end of April.
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Linkedin Ganug Nugroho Adi and Markus Makur (The Jakarta Post) Central Java and East Nusa Tenggara  Thu, April 2, 2020 16:40 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f444bc 1 National coronavirus,COVID-19,movement,restriction,stay-at-home,pocong,urban-legends Free

As regions nationwide have enforced restrictions on peoples movement in an attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19, some local authorities are resorting to unorthodox methods in imposing the virus control measures.

Young people from Kesongo hamlet of Kepuh village in Central Javas Sukoharjo regency, for example, stayed at the entrance gate to the hamlet dressed up as pocong (shroud ghosts of Indonesian legend).

"The pocong is not to scare residents; instead, we want to educate residents on the fact that coronavirus causes death. It is a shock therapy, as people usually [pay more attention] to anything related to death," Anjar Panca, the keeper of Kesongos Al Himmah mosque, said on Wednesday.

The pocong guards monitor guests coming into the hamlet and make sure residents obey the government's restrictions on social gatherings.

"During the past three days, no residents were seen going out at night. Apparently, they're scared of the fake ghost," Anjar claimed.

The head of Kesongo hamlets neighborhood unit, Karno Supadmo, said the pocong guards had been deployed on the initiative of residents, and they were positive about the measure, as it aimed to prevent a greater virus outbreak in the area.

As of Thursday, Central Java has confirmed 104 cases of COVID-19, seven of which have ended deadly. Nationwide, COVID-19 has infected 1,790 and killed 170 people.

According to Karno, the pocong stood by the entrance gate from 8 p.m. to midnight every day. They would do an ID check on every guest coming into the hamlet and ask about the purpose of their visit.

Read also: Regions start enforcing curfews to flatten Indonesia's COVID-19 curve

In Galang village, Welak district of West Manggarai regency in East Nusa Tenggara, local officials were using myth and local folklore to prevent people from going out at night.

"One way to keep them from going out during the COVID-19 pandemic is resorting to kating (scaring people) with myth or local folklore. Our ancestors used to do it to scare children to prevent them from going out at night," village head Marianus Samsung told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

"If the government's calls [for physical distancing] are ignored, we will use kating," he said.

He added that he himself and local officials were scared to go out, even to visit other kampungs on duty, because of COVID-19.

In Mojokerto regency of East Java, traffic police officers wore helmets resembling supersized virus cells while disinfecting vehicles and informing local residents on the preventive measures against COVID-19 at the Kenanten junction.

"Stay alert, but don't panic. Keep a distance and stay out of crowds," were some of the messages delivered to the residents according to the deputy head of Mojokerto Police, Comr. David, as reported by Kompas on Tuesday.

"We made the coronavirus helmets this afternoon so that people would become more aware of the danger the virus poses," he said. (trn)
By AFP

TEHRAN: Iran said Thursday it "only acts in self-defence" after President Donald Trump warned it against attacks on US troops in Iraq, as a new war of words heated up despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Tensions between the arch-foes flared in Iraq where the United States deployed Patriot air defence missiles prompting neighbouring Iran to warn of consequences and demand a US withdrawal.

Both countries have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has claimed more than 5,000 lives in the United States and more than 3,000 in Iran.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted that "unlike the US -- which surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinates -- Iran only acts in self-defence".

"Don't be misled by usual warmongers, AGAIN," he said, addressing US President Donald Trump.

"Iran starts no wars but teaches lessons to those who do," he added.

Trump warned Iran on Wednesday that it would pay a "heavy price" in the event of further attacks on US troops.

He tweeted that "upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq".

In response, Zarif tweeted that "Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of 'proxies'"

Iran responded angrily to the US Patriot deployment warning that Washington risked leading the Middle East to disaster in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Its armed forces chief of staff said the recent attacks against US bases in Iraq are the "natural reaction" of Iraqi people towards Washington's continuing military presence.

The attacks "have nothing to do with our country. The Americans sometimes attribute such things to us, which is projecting the blame," Iran's ISNA news agency quoted Major General Mohammad Bagheri as saying.

"Iran has no involvement in these actions and no intention to attack foreign forces," he said, underlining that Iran would still respond strongly to any aggression.

Battle for influence

Iran and the US are in a tense battle for influence in Iraq, where Tehran has powerful allies and Washington has close ties to the government.

Bases in Iraq housing US troops and foreign embassies, particularly the American mission, have been targeted in more than two dozen rocket attacks since October that Washington has blamed on Iran-backed armed groups.

Tensions have risen sharply since Trump withdrew from a landmark nuclear agreement in 2018 and reimposed sweeping sanctions.

They escalated in January when the US killed Iran's Major General Qasem Soleimani in a drone strike near Baghdad airport.

Iran retaliated by firing at bases in Iraq housing US troops.

While on high alert for a response, Iranian air defences accidentally shot down a Ukrainian airliner minutes after takeoff from Tehran, killing all 176 people on board.

Iran has repeatedly called on the Trump administration to reverse its sanctions policy, which has been opposed even by US allies, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

"This was the best, historic opportunity for the Americans to reverse their wrong path and for once, tell their nation they are not against the Iranian people," President Hassan Rouhani told a cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

Medicines and medical equipment are technically exempt from the US sanctions but purchases are frequently blocked by the unwillingness of banks to process purchases for fear of incurring large penalties in the United States.

European nations have delivered medical goods to Iran in the first transaction under the Instex financing mechanism set up to get round US sanctions, Germany said on Tuesday.

But it is more than a year since Britain, France and Germany announced the creation of Instex and Iran has questioned European governments' commitment to seeing it through in defiance of the Trump administration.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 21:38:25|Editor: xuxin

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WINDHOEK, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Namibia will launch online yoga classes dubbed "Stay Home, Stay Fit" by High Commission of India in Windhoek, in a move to encourage citizens to stay fit amid 21-day lockdown in the country due to COVID-19 outbreak.

The classes will go live as of Friday and will be free of cost from Monday to Friday, Vipul Bawa, India's Acting High Commissioner told Xinhua.

"These yoga lessons will be organized via Facebook Live, through the Facebook page of the High Commission: "India in Namibia", he said, stating that the regular free of cost yoga lessons conducted at the High Commission premises in Windhoek were temporarily suspended due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

An enthusiastic yoga practitioner, Mandisa Rasmeni, who commenced with the classes in January told Xinhua that the move is most welcome.

"It is a very innovative idea. I am a regular participant in the classes and when they were cancelled I was gutted. The introduction of the online classes will definitely help us to release stress and stay fit at the same time," she added.

Another participant who is eager to engage in the online classes, Lyzette Muranda, said yoga not only releases stress but also keeps you mentally stable.

The online classes will be conducted by a teacher of Indian Culture and Yoga at the High Commission of India. The classes will include breathing exercises as well as meditation and relaxation techniques.

Namibia is currently under a 21-day lockdown which commenced on March 28, in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. The lockdown has seen a number of non-essential services shut down and restriction on movements and gathering imposed in a move to discourage the further spread of the virus.

Namibia has so far recorded 13 positive COVID-19 cases.
[April 02, 2020] Atlanta's Perfect Audience Offers up to $5,000 Free Ad Spend to Businesses

ATLANTA, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Perfect Audience, the leading next-generation advertising engine, is offering matching advertising dollars to any qualified advertiser during the month of April. The ad dollars can be used for any display ad, Google, Facebook or Instagram ad. There is no minimum spend, and the company will match up to $5,000 per advertiser. In addition, advertisers can apply to be included in the company's Artificial Intelligence Lab. "We are at an inflection point," said Eric Stockton, General Manager. "From a data perspective, we're in an interesting position. We see a cross-section of the entire web in real-time. Some advertisers have cut back spend i.e travel  but a majority are adjusting to the environment and reallocating more of their budget to digital. I remember when startups like Airbnb and Slack were founded during the 2008 recession. Now is the time to adjust and innovate. We want to help with that process, and we're opening up our resources to any business that needs it." The company is earmarking an initial $1M in ad vouchers as well offering advertisers direct access to it's AI Lab and a team of experts. Advertisers wishing to take advantage of this ad creditcan visit PerfectAudience.com or attend a free informational webinar on April 15 to learn more.



About the AI Lab

In 2019, Perfect Audience established an independent group dedicated to one thing: leveraging Artificial Intelligence to help advertisers increase advertising ROI. Led by top experts from MarketingSherpa, Robauto, Ascend2, Perfect Audience, and SharpSpring the group provides free access to algorithms and tools to select Perfect Audience advertisers. About Perfect Audience

Perfect Audience is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SharpSpring, Inc. and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The company provides an intelligent advertising engine that enables businesses to remarket to their past customers across the entire web and mobile devices. The Perfect Audience network reaches more than 250 million consumers each month.

Press Contact: Kathleen Davis

(800) 674-3270

[email protected]

https://www.perfectaudience.com/match View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/atlantas-perfect-audience-offers-up-to-5-000-free-ad-spend-to-businesses-301034519.html SOURCE Perfect Audience

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EVOTEC LICENSES PANCELLA'S STATE-OF-THE-ART IPSC TECHNOLOGIES IACT STEALTH CELL AND FAILSAFE FOR USE IN CELL THERAPY

ACCESS TO PANCELLA'S TECHNOLOGY HAS THE POTENTIAL TO ENABLE SAFE AND OFF-THE-SHELF CELL THERAPY PRODUCTS AND LIFTS EVOTEC'S IPSC-BASED CELL THERAPY PLATFORM ("EVOCELLS") TO THE NEXT LEVEL

EVOTEC TAKES MINORITY SHAREHOLDING IN PANCELLA

HAMBURG, GERMANY, AND TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Evotec SE (Frankfurt Stock Exchange: EVT, MDAX/TecDAX, ISIN: DE0005664809) and the innovative biotechnology company panCELLa Inc. announced today that the companies have entered into a licensing and investment agreement.

Under the terms of the agreement, Evotec will receive a non-exclusive licence to access panCELLa's proprietary iPS cell lines "iACT Stealth Cells", which are genetically modified to prevent immune rejection of derived cell therapy products ("cloaking"). Furthermore, Evotec will also have access to a new-generation cloaking technology known as hypoimmunogenic cells. In addition, the "FailSafe" mechanism effectively addresses a key challenge in iPSC-based cell therapy, potential tumour formation by residual undifferentiated cells.

Using the cell lines, Evotec will be able to develop iPSC-based, off-the-shelf cell therapies with long-lasting efficacy that can be safely administered to a broad population of patients without the use of medication to supress the patients' immune system. With a growing portfolio of iPSC-based cell therapy projects at Evotec, access to research as well as GMP-grade iPSC lines modified with one or both of the panCELLa technologies significantly accelerates Evotec's cell therapy discovery and development efforts. Modified iPSC lines will be available for the development of cell therapy approaches across a broad range of indications by Evotec and potential partners. Furthermore, Evotec has made an investment to take a minority stake in panCELLa and has nominated Dr Andreas Scheel to join panCELLa's supervisory board.

Dr Cord Dohrmann, Chief Scientific Officer of Evotec, commented: "Cell therapies hold enormous potential as truly regenerative or curative approaches for a broad range of different diseases with significant medical need. Integrating panCELLa's technology and cell lines into our ongoing proprietary research and development efforts strengthens Evotec's position in cell therapy. It is our goal to provide safe highly-effective cell therapy products to as many patients as possible. In addition to small molecules and biologics, cell therapy will become yet another major pillar of Evotec's multimodality discovery and development platform."

Mahendra Rao, MD, PhD, CEO at panCELLa, added: "We welcome the partnership with Evotec. Evotec's widely recognised expertise and existing portfolio of iPSC-related technology platforms will allow panCELLa to rapidly advance its own therapeutic interests in NK cell therapy, pancreatic islet production and iPSC-derived MSC platform, in addition to enabling panCELLa to make its platform technologies widely available. I believe that the investment by Evotec in our company is a strong validation of the leading role of panCELLa in the field of regenerative medicine and in the utility of its platform technologies. We welcome Dr Andreas Scheel to our Board."

No financial details of the agreement were disclosed.

About Evotec and iPSC

Induced pluripotent stem cells (also known as iPS cells or iPSCs) are a type of pluripotent stem cell that can be generated directly from adult cells. The iPSC technology was pioneered by Shinya Yamanaka's lab in Kyoto, Japan, who showed in 2006 that the introduction of four specific genes encoding transcription factors could convert adult cells into pluripotent stem cells. He was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize along with Sir John Gurdon "for the discovery that mature cells can be reprogrammed to become pluripotent". Pluripotent stem cells hold great promise in the field of regenerative medicine. Because they can propagate indefinitely, as well as give rise to every other cell type in the body (such as neurons, heart, pancreatic and liver cells), they represent a single source of cells that could be used to replace those lost to damage or disease.

Evotec has built an industrialised iPSC infrastructure that represents one of the largest and most sophisticated iPSC platforms in the industry. Evotec's iPSC platform has been developed over the last years with the goal to industrialise iPSC-based drug screening in terms of throughput, reproducibility and robustness to reach the highest industrial standards, and to use iPSC-based cells in cell therapy approaches via the Company's proprietary EVOcells platform.

About cell therapy and panCELLa's FailSafe iPSC technology

Cell therapy, one of the most promising regenerative medicine approaches, replaces a patient's missing or broken cells with functioning cells from a range of different sources, either from a donor, from the patient's own material, or from stem cells. The advent of induced pluripotent stem cells ("iPSC") has opened up stem cells as an almost unlimited source of consistent-quality material for such cell therapies. At the same time, differentiating cell therapies from a single validated source circumvents critical risks of contamination associated with administering both donor and patient cell material.

However, the patient's immune system will treat such iPSC-based transplants as "foreign" and use the body's immune system to counteract the therapy, thus undermining its long-term efficacy. While organ transplants require an often lifelong regimen of immunosuppressants, iPSC-derived cells used for cell therapies can be cloaked to make them undetectable by the patient's immune system, thus avoiding rejection and enabling effective long-term relief of the patient's symptoms.

To increase the safety of such iPSC-derived cell products, panCELLa's proprietary FailSafe technology is able to inactivate any iPSC-derived proliferating cell before and after transplantation through the use of a readily available anti-infective medication. FailSafe is the only quantifiable "safety switch" on the market which is expected to be critical for regulators, clinicians and patients to make informed decisions when evaluating treatment options.

ABOUT PANCELLA INC.

Incorporated in August 2015, panCELLa (www.pancella.com) was founded by Dr Andras Nagy and Dr Armand Keating based on Dr Nagy's ground-breaking work in the area of stem cell research. Through panCELLa, Drs Keating and Nagy are seeking to create an effective cell therapy derived from stem cells, which are modified to provide a sufficient and very high level of safety before and after the cells are introduced to the patient. panCELLa serves those companies developing products from stem cells. panCELLa seeks to create universal "off the shelf" FailSafe Cells and to assist pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors to achieve such with their own cell lines. Targeted medical applications include deadly, debilitating, or aggressive diseases requiring immediate treatment where there is no time to cultivate a customized stem cell treatment from the patient (i.e. cancer, cardiac infarct, diabetes, stroke and spinal cord injury).

ABOUT EVOTEC SE

Evotec is a drug discovery alliance and development partnership company focused on rapidly progressing innovative product approaches with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, academics, patient advocacy groups and venture capitalists. We operate worldwide and our more than 3,000 employees provide the highest quality stand-alone and integrated drug discovery and development solutions. We cover all activities from target-to-clinic to meet the industry's need for innovation and efficiency in drug discovery and development (EVT Execute). The Company has established a unique position by assembling top-class scientific experts and integrating state-of-the-art technologies as well as substantial experience and expertise in key therapeutic areas including neuronal diseases, diabetes and complications of diabetes, pain and inflammation, oncology, infectious diseases, respiratory diseases, fibrosis, rare diseases and women's health. On this basis, Evotec has built a broad and deep pipeline of approx. 100 co-owned product opportunities at clinical, pre-clinical and discovery stages (EVT Innovate). Evotec has established multiple long-term alliances with partners including Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, CHDI, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Sanofi, Takeda, UCB and others. For additional information please go to www.evotec.com and follow us on Twitter @Evotec.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS

Information set forth in this press release contains forward-looking statements, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The forward-looking statements contained herein represent the judgement of Evotec as of the date of this press release. Such forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, and which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statements to reflect any change in our expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

Contact Evotec SE:

Gabriele Hansen, SVP Corporate Communications, Marketing & Investor Relations, Phone: +49.(0)40.56081-255, gabriele.hansen@evotec.com

SOURCE: Evotec AG

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583603/Evotec-Expands-Its-IPSC-Based-Cell-Therapy-Platform-Evocells-Through-Licensing-Agreement-with-panCella
The government on Thursday blacklisted 960 foreigners currently in India for their involvement in Tablighi Jamaat activities in violation of their visa conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Their visas were also cancelled. The Union home ministry also directed police chief s of all States and Union Territories concerned and the Delhi Police to take necessary legal action against all such violators, on priority, under relevant sections of the Foreigners Act, 1946 and Disaster Management Act, 2005.

The government has been spurred into action after hundreds of foreigners took part in a Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhis Nizamuddin area last month which turned the locality into a coronavirus hotspot.

The Home Ministers Office asked Delhi Police and police chiefs of other states, where these foreigners are currently living, to take legal action against them under the Foreigners Act and the Disaster Management Act.

The Home Ministry has blacklisted 960 foreigners and their Indian visas have also been cancelled for their involvement in Tablighi Jamaat activities while coming on tourist visas, the home ministers office tweeted.

The action against the foreign Tablighi Jamaat members was taken after over 2,300 members including 250 foreigners were found to be living at its headquarters in Nizamuddin despite the 21 days lockdown and a prohibitory order in force in the national capital.

Most of these foreigners came to India on tourist visas, which prohibit involvement of any religious activities. The government has also decided not to issue tourist visa to any foreigner who wishes to visit India and take part in Tablighi activities.

The home ministry also said over 1,300 foreign Tablighi Jamaat activists, including those from the US, France and Italy, have been identified in different parts of the country and most of them have quarantined.

More than 300 of the Tablighi Jamaat activistshave tested positive for coronavirus . About 400 cases of coronavirus and about 12 deaths in the country have been linked to the Nizamuddin event so far.

On Tuesday, the home ministry had said had said that about 2,100 foreigners had come to India since January 1 and indulged in Tablighi activities in different parts of the country.
A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the death sentence of British-born top al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi in 2002 in the aftermath of the 9/11 terror attack.

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story on the alleged links between the country's powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda.

Sheikh, who was the mastermind behind abduction and killing of Pearl, was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

The incident came three years after Sheikh, along with Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, was released by India in 1999 and given safe passage to Afghanistan in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814. He was serving prison term in India for kidnappings of Western tourists in the country.

On Thursday, the Sindh High Court found 46-year-old Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and commuted his death sentence to seven years in prison. Sheikh has been in jail for the past 18 years.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha also acquitted the three others - Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil- serving life sentences in the case.

The bench announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the four convicts 18 years ago. It also dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of the three co-accused.

Sheikh's lawyers, Khawaja Naveed and Rai Bashir, told the media that since he had already been in prison for 18 years he could go free immediately that is unless the government chooses to challenge the court decision.

"Justice has been done to my clients, said Naveed.

While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon.

They had further contended that Naseem and Adil's confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary.

They also argued that the recovery of the laptop from Naseem was shown to have been made on February 11, 2002, while computer expert Ronald Joseph had deposed that he was given the computer for verification on February 4 and he examined the laptop for six days.

Deputy Prosecutor General Saleem Akhtar had supported the trial court's verdict and submitted that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellants beyond a shadow of doubt and had requested the court to dismiss the appeals.

The case had strained Pakistan and US relations when terrorism was at its height in Pakistan after the 9/11 attacks on the twin towers of the World Trade Centre.

According to a report in The Express Tribune, in 2014, an anti-terrorism court had acquitted Qari Hashim, a co-accused in the case due to lack of evidence. The same year, Sheikh allegedly attempted suicide in his prison cell by hanging himself with a cloth from the ventilator.

Interestingly, an investigation led by Pearl's friend and former Wall Street Journal colleague Asra Nomani and a Georgetown University professor, in 2011 claimed that the reporter was murdered by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks, not Sheikh.

Mohammed, who was arrested by security forces in Pakistan in 2003 and is being held in Guantanamo Bay, told a US psychologist who interviewed him that he had beheaded Pearl.

In February 2016, the Pakistan Army arrested more than 100 militants and foiled a jailbreak attempt by al-Qaeda terrorists to free Sheikh and other leaders of the terror group.

Thursday's verdict came more than a month after Paris-based Financial Action Task Force warned Pakistan that stern action will be taken against it if the country fails to check the flow of money to terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) among others.

The FATF, which supervises effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, last year placed Pakistan on its 'Grey List' of countries for failure to curb funnelling of funds to terror groups like LeT and JeM.

If not removed off the list by April end, Pakistan may move to a blacklist of countries that face severe economic sanctions, such as Iran.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Google on Thursday said it is pumping $6.5 million into fact-checkers and nonprofits as it ramps up its the battle against coronavirus misinformation. Fact-checking organizations, which often operate on relatively small budgets, are seeing a surge in demand for their work as mistaken or maliciously false information about the pandemic spreads, according to Alexios Mantzarlis of the Google News Lab. "Uncertainty and fear make us all more susceptible to inaccurate information, so we're supporting fact-checkers as they address heightened demand for their work," Mantzarlis said. A Poynter Institute report last year on the state of fact-checking indicated that more than a fifth of fact-checking organizations operated with annual budgets of less than $20,000. "We are supporting fact checking projects around the world with a concentration on parts hardest hit by the pandemic," Mantzarlis told AFP. "This can be a noticeable infusion of additional support at a time of stress." Google is also looking to use its products and "ecosystem" to bolster the battle against COVID-19 misinformation. The Google News Initiative is increasing its support for nonprofit First Draft, which provides a resource hub, training and crisis simulations for journalists covering news during times of crisis, according to Mantzarlis. Google is also supporting the creation of a public health resource database for reporters. "We also want to do more to surface fact-checks that address potentially harmful health misinformation more prominently to our users," Mantzarlis said. "Were experimenting with how to best include a dedicated fact-check section in the COVID-19 Google News experience." Google is conducting a test in India and Africa to explore how to use trends in what people are asking or searching for online to let fact-checkers know where a lack of reliable answers may invite misinformation. "Unanswered user questions -- such as 'what temperature kills coronavirus?' -- can provide useful insights to fact-checkers and health authorities about content they may want to produce," Mantzarlis said. That test compliments an effort to train 1,000 journalists across India and Nigeria to spot health misinformation, according to the California-based internet titan. "There is definitely an appetite for this stuff," Mantzarlis said. "We grasp for certainty, a glimmer of something we can do to protect ourselves and those we care about. It makes us more vulnerable to this kind of misinformation." Facebook has also supported fact-checking operations with AFP and other media companies, including Reuters and the Associated Press, under which content rated false is downgraded in news feeds so that fewer people see it.
One day last month, just after Super Tuesday, when the city of Washington had not yet succumbed to the fear of contagion and death and was simply relieved to realize that there would no longer be 368 candidates at the next Democratic debate, people were looking to relax and enjoy a pleasant night. Restaurants were crowded, and choices were scarce. My girlfriend, Rachel, and I found ourselves at Nandos Peri-Peri, an un-fancy chicken joint. You go up to the counter and order, and the cashier gives you one of those humiliating table centerpieces featuring a tall pole with a number on it, so the wait staff knows where to bring your order. Nandos centerpiece looks like a rooster. Beneath it is a wooden egg that is actually a salt shaker. Its that kind of place.
To the annoyance of some shareholders, Beijing Enterprises Environment Group (HKG:154) shares are down a considerable 35% in the last month. Indeed the recent decline has arguably caused some bitterness for shareholders who have held through the 48% drop over twelve months.

Assuming nothing else has changed, a lower share price makes a stock more attractive to potential buyers. While the market sentiment towards a stock is very changeable, in the long run, the share price will tend to move in the same direction as earnings per share. So, on certain occasions, long term focussed investors try to take advantage of pessimistic expectations to buy shares at a better price. Perhaps the simplest way to get a read on investors' expectations of a business is to look at its Price to Earnings Ratio (PE Ratio). Investors have optimistic expectations of companies with higher P/E ratios, compared to companies with lower P/E ratios.

Check out our latest analysis for Beijing Enterprises Environment Group

Does Beijing Enterprises Environment Group Have A Relatively High Or Low P/E For Its Industry?

Beijing Enterprises Environment Group's P/E of 2.90 indicates relatively low sentiment towards the stock. The image below shows that Beijing Enterprises Environment Group has a lower P/E than the average (10.7) P/E for companies in the commercial services industry.

SEHK:154 Price Estimation Relative to Market April 1st 2020

This suggests that market participants think Beijing Enterprises Environment Group will underperform other companies in its industry. While current expectations are low, the stock could be undervalued if the situation is better than the market assumes. If you consider the stock interesting, further research is recommended. For example, I often monitor director buying and selling.

How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios

Earnings growth rates have a big influence on P/E ratios. That's because companies that grow earnings per share quickly will rapidly increase the 'E' in the equation. And in that case, the P/E ratio itself will drop rather quickly. So while a stock may look expensive based on past earnings, it could be cheap based on future earnings.

Story continues

Beijing Enterprises Environment Group shrunk earnings per share by 16% over the last year. But EPS is up 81% over the last 5 years.

A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank

The 'Price' in P/E reflects the market capitalization of the company. In other words, it does not consider any debt or cash that the company may have on the balance sheet. Theoretically, a business can improve its earnings (and produce a lower P/E in the future) by investing in growth. That means taking on debt (or spending its cash).

While growth expenditure doesn't always pay off, the point is that it is a good option to have; but one that the P/E ratio ignores.

So What Does Beijing Enterprises Environment Group's Balance Sheet Tell Us?

Beijing Enterprises Environment Group has net debt worth a very significant 236% of its market capitalization. If you want to compare its P/E ratio to other companies, you must keep in mind that these debt levels would usually warrant a relatively low P/E.

The Verdict On Beijing Enterprises Environment Group's P/E Ratio

Beijing Enterprises Environment Group's P/E is 2.9 which is below average (9.1) in the HK market. Given meaningful debt, and a lack of recent growth, the market looks to be extrapolating this recent performance; reflecting low expectations for the future. What can be absolutely certain is that the market has become more pessimistic about Beijing Enterprises Environment Group over the last month, with the P/E ratio falling from 4.5 back then to 2.9 today. For those who prefer to invest with the flow of momentum, that might be a bad sign, but for deep value investors this stock might justify some research.

Investors should be looking to buy stocks that the market is wrong about. If the reality for a company is not as bad as the P/E ratio indicates, then the share price should increase as the market realizes this. We don't have analyst forecasts, but you could get a better understanding of its growth by checking out this more detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

But note: Beijing Enterprises Environment Group may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with strong recent earnings growth (and a P/E ratio below 20).

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
When Roger Martin heard Ontario Premier Doug Ford say last Monday that all non-essential businesses would be shut down to limit the spread of COVID-19, he went to bed content with the fact that he would be closing up shop.

Martin is the president of Unicell Ltd., a company that builds truck bodies and equipment and employs about 60 people in Toronto.

But the next day, he was shocked when he saw the list of businesses deemed essential and allowed to remain open. Based on several of the categories, Martin determined that his company would be considered essential under the governments rules. He disagrees.

Do we support hospitals? Do we support food? Do we do any of those essential things? No, we dont, he told the Star in an interview this week. By no means, using common sense, do we qualify as an essential business.

So he decided to shut down.

Martin joins a chorus of people, including Torontos chief medical officer of health, who have implored the provincial government to further cut its list of essential businesses. Change could be coming very soon, with Ford saying Wednesday that an announcement would be coming in the next day or so.

Martin wrote to Ford, provincial Health Minister Christine Elliott and his MPP, former premier Kathleen Wynne, soon after the list was released, arguing that the length of the list defeated the purpose of the order to shut down non-essential businesses.

Youre bringing in 60 people into a workplace each day, theyre inevitably contacting each other, and they all go home each night, god knows what happens, Martin told the Star of his company.

Among other categories on the list of essential businesses, Martin said Unicell would easily fit with No. 19, which he believes is far too broad: Businesses that extract, manufacture, process and distribute goods, products, equipment and materials, including businesses that manufacture inputs to other manufacturers.

Martin said the decision to close received a positive reaction from his employees, and the company has been helping them apply for EI.

My mindset is to apply the common sense definition of essential and apply the moral calculus of staying open, he said.

On the one hand, the company could continue to see some financial benefits, he said. But the cost would include risking the health of employees and the community, and not contributing to flattening the curve of the pandemic.

Thats a pretty easy moral calculation, he said.

Martin spoke to the Star a day after Dr. Eileen de Villa, Torontos chief medical officer of health, said she would be asking the province to further limit the number of businesses allowed to stay open, as she expressed deep concern about the spread of the virus in the city.

I am saying in the strongest terms possible that people need to stay home as much as possible, she said.

The Ontario Construction Consortium also reiterated its call this week for the province to suspend construction across Ontario for 14 days. Construction sites are included on the essential-business list.

It makes no sense to ban gatherings of five or more people in most circumstances, but still have hundreds of workers reporting to construction job sites, the consortiums executive director, Phil Gillies, said in a statement.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business said it always expected the province would further trim the list as the COVID-19 pandemic escalated, said Julie Kwiecinski, director of Ontario provincial affairs.

But she said the new list must be released as soon as possible, the categories must be clear to avoid misinterpretation, and the operators on the toll-free business information line must be able to provide interpretation of categories when asked.

Were getting feedback from our members that the operators are simply reading information from the website, Kwiecinski said.

She said one area of concern for the federation is e-commerce, which as of now is permitted for all businesses according to the current list. She used florists as an example, pointing out that employees still need to come in to fulfil online orders, which have included orders for funerals. She said the federation is hoping for clarity when a new list is released on whether those types of businesses can remain open.

Any business where youre not interfacing with the public but youre fulfilling orders and need people to come in, thats where were going to be keeping a close eye, she said.

Read more about:
CANTON, Mass., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Failures to support frontline nurses and other healthcare workers, along with communication breakdowns at Steward Healthcare-owned facilities throughout Massachusetts, has prompted nurses represented by the Massachusetts Nurses Association to sound the alarm about the health system's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Massachusetts Nurses Association represents more than 2,750 nurses and health professionals working in eight Steward owned hospitals in Massachusetts including Carney Hospital (Steward's designated COVID-19 Hospital), Carney's satellite ER in Quincy, Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, Holy Family Hospital in Methuen and Haverhill, Morton Hospital in Taunton, Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer, Norwood Hospital and St. Elizabeth's Medical Center in Brighton.

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses and MNA staff asked to postpone for several months all contract negotiations and similar meetings and disputes to instead focus 100% on engaging in crisis management collaboratively with Steward, similar to efforts MNA nurses have been making with hospital networks throughout the Commonwealth. But very serious issues remain unaddressed pointing to systemic breakdowns in communication, and delays in providing nurses and patients with what is needed to respond to the pandemic.

Systemwide Lack of Proper PPE

While assuring staff and the public that Steward has a "robust supply" and a stockpile of PPE and there is no shortage in the system, Steward is inconsistently providing PPE including N95 masks, gowns and other equipment to staff when needed. If the stockpile exists, there is a disconnect because the supplies are not generally accessible to staff when needed.

According to Peg Conlon, RN, a nurse at Carney Hospital, which has been designated by Steward as the COVID-19 hospital in the system, nurses are not being provided access to N95 masks at all times, and are forced to reuse soiled masks for days.

"Yesterday there were not enough N95 masks available in the ICU, in the special COVID-19 units or anywhere in the hospital, " said Conlon. "What we do see is a dangerous rationing of PPE at Carney, which is a guarantee for more spread, and of a loss of staff as more of us become sick."

At St. Elizabeth's Medical Center, physical access to PPE is controlled not by a doctor or a nurse manager but by the Director of Finance, who has instituted a process that leads to lengthy delays in nurses accessing the protective equipment. Similar reports abound in hospitals throughout the system.

Issues in Designated COVID Units in addition to PPE

MNA representatives continue to urge the management at each facility to adequately staff the special COVID-19 units by providing needed nurses and other staff to assist in the safe donning and doffing of PPE to prevent exposure and spread, and to serve as helping hands in emergencies. Extra staff is also needed because of the unusually high level of care required for hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

At St. Elizabeth's Medical Center and at Morton Hospital, the lack of appropriate RN and support staff was a major concern before the COVID-19 crisis and now it has only gotten worse. According to SEMC RN and MNA Board member Ellen MacInnis, "We started out approximately 43 RN positions short here at St. E's before the crisis hit. We want to be there for our patients, we only ask for the tools we need to do that job."

Carney Hospital

Steward publicly announced on March 17 that Carney Hospital in Dorchester had become its dedicated facility for the care of COVID-19 patients but gave no notice to the nurses and physicians prior to the announcement, who learned about it from reporters. While nurses have not criticized the plan in its concept, there was no advanced planning or discussions that involved frontline staff before the plan was announced. Following the announcement, Steward Carney management did not cancel elective surgeries or stop admitting non-COVID-19 patients for some weeks, adding to the generalized confusion and undermining preparedness. Carney staff have been struggling since the announcement to put proper protocols in place, including establishing a safe ER screening process, as well as ensuring access to PPE and other supplies.

Protection of Staff Who Are Exposed

There are not clear protocols known by staff who have been exposed or who suspect they may be positive. "It seems as if they don't want to know if we are feeling symptomatic, or if we are concerned about a possible exposure, which again, is another way to guarantee unnecessary spread," said the Carney's Conlon.

Unlike many other Massachusetts hospitals, Steward is requiring staff who are out of work because they are sick with COVID-19 or in quarantine for two weeks for exposure, to pay out of their own accrued time. At the Carney, for example, vacation and sick leave is in a combined bank, and so an RN out for weeks with COVID-19 may have no vacation time left when she recovers.

To date, Steward has held back on agreeing to a written set of conditions that would enable a nurse or healthcare professional to seek reassignment away from a COVID-19 unit. The MNA has proposed: pregnancy, compromised immune system, heart disease, pulmonary disease, diabetes, etc. and/or that they cohabitate with someone with one or more of these risk factors.

Management has insisted that this agreement must be part of a document in which the MNA would agree that management can order, on threat of discipline, RNs to leave their own hospitals where they are caring for patients and be sent to any other Steward hospital where the RN has never practiced.

Mandatory Policies to Move Nurses Between Facilities Without Proper Safeguards

On March 31 Steward implemented, over the strong objection of MNA nurses, that they can order, on threat of discipline, RNs to leave their own hospitals where they are caring for patients and be sent to any other Steward hospital where the RN likely has never practiced.

The MNA strongly supports creating a voluntary COVID-19 crisis float pool among the hospitals and has been urging management to engage with us on that for four weeks. Without working out with the nurses how the voluntary float pool would work and systematically recruiting for it, management cut off discussions and announced that as of March 31 they would enact the policy where they could send nurses to any hospital with 90 minutes notice, "effective immediately."

During these discussions, the MNA nurses proposed the following protection as part of the process, that "Personal Protective Equipment will be provided to staff."

Management rejected that proviso and instead substituted it with the following meaningless wording, that only "Available proper Personal Protective Equipment will be provided to staff."

This policy also fails to acknowledge, and Steward executives have failed to understand that every hospital in the Steward system now has COVID-19 patients, and nurses fear that they will be forced to leave patients in need at their hospital without enough RN staff.

Fears Become Reality Today at Nashoba Valley Medical Center

Yesterday Steward management ordered the RNs who were on the schedule to work at the Nashoba Valley Medical Center ICU to report to work instead at Carney Hospital where they had never practiced. There are three COVID-19 patients and COVID-19 suspected patients daily at NVMC. Some of the cases have been very serious and there have been two reported patient deaths despite the excellent and heroic efforts of the staff. There is a well-publicized COVID-19 outbreak at a nursing home close to the hospital.

The ICU RNs said they could not go to Carney if it would result in there being no RNs in the Nashoba ICU. This morning Steward management shut down the Nashoba ICU and sent the RNs home without pay.

"Because they have shortchanged all our facilities with staffing, their plan to shuffle staff will only weaken care for everyone," said Jacqui Fitts, an RN and co-chair of the nurses MNA local bargaining unit at Morton Hospital.

The Steward plan to force nurses to move from facility to facility as opposed to a system of accepting volunteers is causing fear of loss of critically needed staff, as it may force nurses to resign and immediately go to work for other hospitals that need them where they will be treating COVID-19 patients under more favorable conditions.

The MNA has been calling upon Steward daily to engage in emergency discussions to resolve these issues. MNA members are raising these concerns now publicly because they need urgent help.

Read MNA letters to the governor, PPE explanation videos, position statements and more information at www.massnurses.org/COVID-19.

MassNurses.org  Facebook.com/MassNurses  Twitter.com/MassNurses  Instagram.com/MassNurses

Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 23,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association

Related Links

http://www.massnurses.org


Kareena Kapoor Khan on Thursday shared her sun-kissed sans-makeup look while expressing her love for sunshine amid self-isolation in view of the 21-day-long government-imposed lockdown.

The 39-year-old star took to Instagram and shared her sans-makeup look. In the adorable picture, the 'Good Newwz' actor is seen looking at the sun while she adores the sheer sunlight falling on her face. Kareena is sporting a peach floral print kaftan as she is nailing the no-makeup look.

The 'Jab We Met' actor expressed her love for the sunshine in the caption accompanying the picture that reads: "Sunshine on my mind... and my face."

Netizens were quick to notice the post on the photo-sharing platform, and it garnered likes and comments by celebrity followers including Rhea Kapoor and Vikrant Massey.

Meanwhile, Kareena along with her husband Saif and son Taimur has pledged to donate to UNICEF, PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra's CM Relief Fund to combat the COVID-19 However, the amount of donation hasn't been revealed in the post.

The star couple has joined a list of celebrities including Akshay Kumar, Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Vicky Kaushal, and others who too have extended support to PM CARES Fund to fight against coronavirus.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1,965 on Thursday after 131 people tested positive in the last 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. So far, nearly 50 people have lost their lives due to the deadly virus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
India reported 328 new coronavirus cases since yesterday which took the combined tally of the infected from 29 states and Union Territories to 1965, including 50 deaths, a dozen of which were reported in the last 24 hours, health ministry said on Thursday.

The central government officials added that a total of 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat workers and their primary contacts have been identified so far and put in quarantine. 1306 of them are foreigners and the rest are Indians. However, these numbers could rise if more contacts are reported.

There were about 2000 Jamaat workers in Delhi, including around 250 foreigners. 1804 of them have been shifted to quarantine centres and 302 symptomatic cases have been hospitalized, said Punya Salila Srivastava, joint secretary of the home ministry.

The Jamaat members were identified from Andaman Nicobar, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Uttar Pradesh and Puducherry, a senior health ministry official added.

400 cases have been identified from these states with epidemiological linkages to this cluster. Additional testing is going on and more positive cases may get linked to this cluster, said Lav Agarwal, joint secretary, ministry of health.

Agarwal said that most of the coronavirus positive cases among the Jamaat members were from Tamil Nadu.

173 positive cases have been found from Tamil Nadu, 11 from Rajasthan, 9 from Andaman Nicobar, 47 from Delhi, 33 from Telangana, 67 from Andhra Pradesh, 16 from Assam, 22 from Jammu and Kashmir and two from Puducherry, Agarwal said, and added that this number could increase as results of more samples come in over the next few days.

The government officials at the routine daily briefing on Covid-19 status and governments containment efforts said that states have been again asked to strictly implement the lockdown provisions without any exceptions.

Lockdown violations are a punishable offence under the Disaster Management Act and states have been asked to strictly enforce the provisions without any fear or favour, Agarwal said.

Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi advised the chief ministers of states to priorities testing, tracing, isolating and quarantining and requested them to send him suggestions for a staggered exit from the nationwide lockdown that ends on April 14.

During the interaction, the Prime Minister thanked the states for supporting the lockdown decision due to which India has achieved some success in limiting the spread of Covid-19.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-03 01:46:35|Editor: zyl

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KAMPALA, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Uganda on Thursday rolled out a comprehensive health plan to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The east African country currently has 44 confirmed cases.

Ruth Aceng, Minister of Health accompanied by World Health Organization, U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention country representatives and other officials said the country is bracing its self for the outbreak.

Aceng said the ministry has put up a team of specialist doctors including those from the military to help combat the outbreak. She noted that the government health personnel are backed up by 82 military medical personnel.

She said government would soon recruit 220 health personnel to be deployed across the country to do case management and surveillance. The minister noted that the privately owned medical facilities would also be called upon if the situation worsens.

The ministry of health has set aside a total of 3,650 beds in public hospitals across the country. The country also has 288 Intensive Care Units that would be used by patients who are in critical condition.

Aceng said 310 ambulances have been deployed at both national and district level to evacuate positive cases.

The ministry has also decentralized the treatment of positive cases from national to district level. According to the ministry, this would limit the transmission of the disease in the process of transporting the positive cases to the national treatment centers.

Minister Aceng said from the time China confirmed the COVID-19 outbreak on December 31, 2019, Uganda has been taking a series of measures to limit the spread.

Uganda on March 21 registered its first case which was imported from Dubai. Since then, the country has registered 44 confirmed cases. A total of 766 contacts to the 44 confirmed cases have been listed and being followed up, according to the ministry.

Government has previously warned that the country is likely to register more cases since some of the confirmed cases had already interacted with the public.

Government has instituted a series of measures to ensure that the spread is limited.

The country's President Yoweri Museveni has so far announced 23 measures which among others include a lockdown for 14 days. Public and private transport was suspended, public gatherings banned and the entry points closed to incoming and outgoing travelers, apart from cargo.

All these measures, including majorly social distancing are critical in reversing epidemic growth and reduce case numbers.

"This is necessary, in part to halt secondary transmissions from those yet undetected cases in the community, but also enable their eventual discovery," according to the ministry.

Minister Aceng said without any lockdown or social distancing measures, the epidemic will get out of hand.

"Basically, what this means from the modelling so far done, is that Uganda will have 18,878 cases (at a 3 percent fatality rate, 566.34 deaths) by April 30, 2020. This is unbearable for our already constrained health system," she said.
TORONTO, April 1, 2020 /CNW/ - On behalf of QuestCap Inc., Stan Bharti, Co-Chair of QuestCap, has announced an immediate investment of $1 million in Sunnybrook's COVID-19 research. With these funds, Sunnybrook will establish the Sunnybrook Translational Research Group for Emerging and Respiratory Viruses (SERV).

Led by infectious diseases physician and microbiologist Dr. Samira Mubareka, SERV's work will focus on three crucial streams of research: vaccines and therapeutics, virus biology and transmission prevention. Dedicated investment in SERV means Dr. Mubareka and her team will be able to accelerate the pace of further research into COVID-19 at a crucial time.

"This is extremely time-sensitive research," says Dr. Mubareka. "As a scientist on the frontlines, I have seen the devastation this virus can cause. We all feel the effects of physical distancing as our lives are fundamentally changed. This is why support from our community is so important right now. The more we understand how this virus behaves, the better we can limit its spread as we race to find a treatment or vaccine. This investment will be put to work immediately toward our human and operational funding needs to rapidly accelerate research into COVID-19."

"Now is the time to dedicate as many resources as possible to stopping the spread of this highly contagious virus," explains Dr. Andy Smith, Sunnybrook's President and CEO. "On behalf of Sunnybrook, I would like to extend my deepest thanks to Stan Bharti and QuestCap Inc., for stepping up with this inspiring investment. Your support will have a direct impact on the lives of countless people in our communities, across Canada and around the world."

Sunnybrook has been at the global forefront of the COVID-19 pandemic since the first Canadian case was identified, both clinically and on the research front. Dr. Mubareka, along with clinical microbiologist Dr. Robert Kozak and a team of close collaborators, has led Sunnybrook's research response efforts since the earliest days of the pandemic. Their work has been globally significant, leading to early implementation of a hospital-based COVID-19 test. Most crucially, on March 10, 2020, their team isolated the agent responsible for the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19. The isolated virus is helping researchers in Canada to develop better diagnostic testing, treatments and vaccines, and gain a better understanding of the virus's biology, evolution and clinical shedding.

With these crucial tools in hand, QuestCap saw an opportunity to give this research a major boost at a critical juncture. "As countries grapple with the effects of COVID-19, there has been a collective global effort to help minimize the impacts of this deadly virus. QuestCap, through its investment platform, is looking to do its part by providing a critical investment to help fund the vital research being conducted by Dr. Mubareka, Dr. Kozak and their teams."

"At a time of global uncertainty as COVID-19 continues to devastate people, families and entire countries, the urgency of research has never been greater," says Dr. Kullervo Hynynen, Vice President of Research & Innovation at Sunnybrook. "Yet, often times, there simply isn't enough funding for research. I am deeply grateful to Mr. Bharti and QuestCap for this clear statement on supporting the power of research to save and change lives."

About the research

SERV is a three-pronged COVID-19 research response program, consisting of the following critically important areas of focus:

1. Virus biology (genomics): Identifying the genetic sequence of a virus is an essential step for identifying key targets for treatments and vaccines. It also tells the story of origin and its relation to other viruses. This approach provides precision genomic data, which will be essential for outbreak investigation. Funds for SERV allow Sunnybrook scientists to turn around whole genome viral sequences at the site of care: Sunnybrook.

2. Vaccines and therapeutics: Our ability to identify and isolate the virus that causes COVID-19, based on samples from infected patients, allows us to collaborate on antiviral research and conduct our own vaccine and transmission work. With SERV, Sunnybrook will share our findings about the virus within the Canadian research and diagnostic community, thereby driving further innovative solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic.

3. Transmission prevention: As part of a World Health Organization's effort to evaluate risk to health-care workers of providing certain support measures, such as high-flow oxygen use, Sunnybrook is building a simulation space for live virus experiments using mannequins with funds for SERV. This is important because protecting care providers is key to preventing the spread of the virus within hospitals.

About Sunnybrook

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre is inventing the future of health care for the 1.3 million patients the hospital cares for each year through the dedication of its more than 10,000 staff and volunteers. An internationally recognized leader in research and education and a full affiliation with the University of Toronto distinguishes Sunnybrook as one of Canada's premier academic health sciences centres. Sunnybrook specializes in caring for high-risk pregnancies, critically ill newborns and adults, offering specialized rehabilitation, and treating and preventing cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurological and psychiatric disorders, orthopaedic and arthritic conditions and traumatic injuries. The hospital also has a unique and national leading program for the care of Canada's war veterans.

SOURCE Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

For further information: Media contact: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, 416.480.4040

Related Links

http://www.sunnybrook.ca/foundation


Jasmine Yarbrough is set to welcome her first child with husband Karl Stefanovic in May.

And the expectant mother, 36, has shown off an expensive new item for her unborn baby's nursery on Thursday - a sleeper bed worth an eye-watering $2000 AUD.

The shoe designer purchased a Snoo baby cot for her daughter, which is said to 'combine gentle rocking with soothing white noise and snug, safe swaddling'.

'Countdown is on': Jasmine Yarbrough is set to welcome her first child with husband Karl Stefanovic in May and has been nesting in preparation for the little one' s arrival

'My Snoo has arrived!' The expectant mother, 36, has shown off an expensive new item for her unborn baby's nursery on Thursday - a sleeper bed worth an eye-watering $2000 AUD

'My Snoo has arrived. Countdown is on for Baby S to arrive,' Jasmine wrote on Instagram stories.

She continued preparations with a large car safety bed, adding: 'car's all ready'.

Meanwhile, Jasmine's husband Karl is concerned he may not be able to come into the birthing suite on the big day if he shows any signs of having coronavirus, or even a flu.

Getting excited: She continued preparations with a large car safety bed

Speaking to Hit105's Stav, Abby and Matt on Thursday, the Today host revealed the strict rules around Jasmine's upcoming birth.

'They have told me if I show any symptoms of coronavirus or anything that even looks like a flu, then I won't be allowed in the birthing room,' Karl said.

He added: 'That goes for everyone. Jas' parents come from Brisbane, she's got a grandmother who is 94, she was going to come down for it. It's the first grandchild and her first great grandchild.

Expecting parents: While Jasmine has been excitedly nesting before the birth, her 45-year-old husband fears he may not be allowed into the birthing suite amid the coronavirus pandemic

'So all the normal things you would do which would be a great celebration in a family's life have been curtailed a bit but I guess you've just got to go through it and have a big party at the end of it.'

Karl's 70-year-old mother Jenny also won't be able to meet his child, as interstate travel restrictions and hospital protocols will force her to stay in Queensland.

'My mum lives in Cairns. She's just turned 70. She feels so isolated,' Karl told his co-host, Allison Langdon on Today last week.
Rural Funds Group has been awarded costs and damages totalling $900,000 following last month's courtroom victory over Texan short-seller Bonitas Research.

According to an ASX release on Thursday, the Supreme Court of NSW awarded damages worth $530,201 against Bonitas and its founder, Matt Wiechert, the co-founder of high profile short-seller Glaucus Research, as well as costs of $368,974.

Rural Funds Group owns more than $900 million worth of agricultural assets, including vineyards leased to Treasury Wine Estates. Credit:Milton Wordley

However, Rural Funds could face difficulty collecting the funds given Bonitas is outside the court's jurisdiction and refused to engage in the legal battle. Rural Funds declined to say how it planned to recover the award from Bonitas.

In a series of tweets in February following the judgment against it, Bonitas defended its report and said it remains short on the $900 million agricultural property trust.
SALEM, Ore.  With 90 new cases announced by Oregon Health Authority on Thursday, the state count is now at 826.

Two more people have died, bringing the state death toll to 21.

A 61-year-old Washington County man who tested positive March 21 died April 1 at Tuality Healthcare. OHA said he had underlying health conditions.

The other death was a 91-year-old Marion County woman. She tested positive March 31 and died the next day at her home. OHA said she also had underlying health conditions.

Among the new cases are two in Benton County and two in Lane county, not including the adjusted case.

The rest of the cases come from Clackamas, Deschutes, Hood River, Jackson, Josephine, Klamath, Lincoln, Marion, Union, Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill counties.

OHA said one case identified out of Douglas County yesterday is actually a Lane County case.
If you're in the market for new digs, you know how hard it can be to find a quality spot for a reasonable price. So what does the low-end pricing on a rental in Houston look like these days  and what might you get for your money?

We took a look at local listings for studios and one-bedroom apartments in Houston via rental sites Zumper and Apartment Guide to find out what price-conscious apartment seekers can expect to find.

Read on for the cheapest listings available right now. (Note: Prices and availability are subject to change.)

Hoodline offers data-driven analysis of local happenings and trends across cities. Links included in this article may earn Hoodline a commission on clicks and transactions.

5430 Birdwood Road

Listed at $549/month, this studio apartment, located at 5430 Birdwood Road in the Meyerland Area, is 58.4 percent less than the median rent for a studio in Houston, which is currently estimated at around $1,320/month.

The building offers on-site laundry and wheelchair accessibility. Both cats and dogs are allowed.

Per Walk Score ratings, the area around this address is friendly for those on foot, has some bike infrastructure and has some transit options.

(See the complete listing here.)

1000 Greens Road

This one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment, situated at 1000 Greens Road in Greater Greenspoint, is listed for $570/month for its 643 square feet.

In the unit, look for a dishwasher and hardwood flooring; there's also assigned parking and secured entry available. If you've got a pet, you'll be happy to learn that cats and dogs are welcome. Expect a $300 pet deposit.

According to Walk Score, the surrounding area is car-dependent, has minimal bike infrastructure and has a few nearby public transportation options.

(See the complete listing here.)

9475 W. Sam Houston Parkway

Here's a studio apartment at 9475 W. Sam Houston Parkway in Westwood, which, at 450 square feet, is also going for $570/month.

Building amenities include a swimming pool. In the unit, you'll find a balcony, hardwood flooring and a walk-in closet. Pet lovers are in luck: Cats and dogs are welcome. Future tenants needn't worry about a leasing fee.

Walk Score indicates that the surrounding area requires a car for most errands, is somewhat bikeable and has some transit options.

(See the full listing here.)

3925 Arlington Square Drive

Next up is this 535-square-foot studio apartment, located at 3925 Arlington Square Drive in Edgebrook Area and listed for $575/month.

When it comes to building amenities, expect on-site laundry, secured entry, a resident lounge and a swimming pool. In the unit, you'll find a balcony and a dishwasher. Neither cats nor dogs are welcome.

According to Walk Score, the area around this address is somewhat walkable, has some bike infrastructure and doesn't offer many public transit options.

(Here's the listing.)

810/812 Maltby St.

Then there's this 400-square-foot studio at 810/812 Maltby St. in Magnolia Park, listed at $595/month.

Look for central heating in the unit. Animals are not allowed. There isn't a leasing fee associated with this rental.

Walk Score indicates that the surrounding area is very walkable, has some bike infrastructure and has good transit options.

(See the listing here.)

This story was created automatically using local real estate data from Zumper and Apartment Guide, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Additionally, if youre in the real estate business learn how to do local real estate advertising in your ZIP codes.

Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
With Napas public schools unlikely to reopen this school year, the Napa Valley Unified School Districts board has approved the purchase of 500 laptop computers to help more staff members continue their work from home.

Reinforcing the importance of last weeks board action, Tony Thurmond, the state superintendent of public instruction, sent out a letter Tuesday encouraging educators to pivot quickly to online.

In his letter, Thurmond said it currently appears that our students will not be able to return to school campuses before the end of the school year.

This is in no way to suggest that school is over for the year, Thurmond wrote. But rather we should put all efforts into strengthening our delivery of education through distance learning.

The purchase of 500 laptop computers is intended to help more staff members continue their work while district offices  and campuses in Napa, American Canyon and Yountville  remain closed.NVUSD will buy 250 ASUS and 250 Hewlett-Packard laptops from the Simi Valley vendor STS, at a total cost of $321,983, according to district documents.

The Napa-area school shutdown, which NVUSD began March 13 and originally scheduled to last a month through the end of spring break, was later extended to May 1, as California has given no indication when it may relax a wide-ranging shelter-at-home order aimed at containing the coronavirus.

Separately, the board also signed off on a $681,617 purchase of 3,000 Chromebooks for use by elementary school students. Unlike the purchase of business laptops, the Chromebooks were a previously scheduled acquisition to fulfill a district goal of providing a computer for every student in the district at all grade levels, according to Rabinder (Rob) Mangewala, assistant superintendent for business services.

NVUSD, like other California school districts, has relied on remote instruction as the spread of COVID-19 has halted public gatherings of all kinds. More than 16,000 local students are continuing their work through a combination of online learning and paper packets for those without adequate internet access at home.

The computer purchases were approved during the district boards March 26 meeting, its first to be conducted as a teleconference from trustees homes because of county and state social distancing rules during the coronavirus emergency.

The original posting gave the incorrect number of Chromebook computers being purchased. It is 3,000.

Editors Note: Because of the health implications of the COVID-19 virus, this article is being made available free to all online readers. If youd like to join us in supporting the mission of local journalism, please visit napavalleyregister.com/members/join/.

You can reach Howard Yune at 707-256-2214 or hyune@napanews.com

Concerned about COVID-19? Sign up now to get the most recent coronavirus headlines and other important local and national news sent to your email inbox daily. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy.
US Military Furloughs Thousands of South Korean Workers

By William Gallo April 01, 2020

Thousands of South Korean workers on U.S. bases were placed on unpaid leave Wednesday, after the United States and South Korea failed to reach a deal on how to split the cost of the U.S. military presence here.

Through seven rounds of talks, South Korea has refused the Trump administration's demand to massively increase its contribution toward the approximately 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea.

The latest cost-sharing deal expired at the end of the year, but the U.S. had been covering the salaries of Korean employees with funds that ran out this week.

Starting Wednesday, about 4,000 Korean civilian employees, who work in areas such as logistics and administration, will be indefinitely furloughed. The U.S. will temporarily cover the salaries of about 4,500 others whose duties are considered essential, U.S. officials said.

The cost-sharing dispute has caused unusual friction in the 70-year-old alliance that both sides regularly refer to as "ironclad." The friction is especially ill-timed, coming as the U.S. military fights off the coronavirus and as North Korea test-fires a record number of short-range missiles.

During a last-minute push to reach a deal, the head South Korean negotiator, Jeong Eun-bo, said the two sides had reached the "final stages for sealing a deal," but called the furloughs "regrettable."

"This is an unfortunate day for us. It's unthinkable. It's heartbreaking. The partial furlough of [Korean National] employees is not what we envisioned or hoped what would happen," said General Robert Abrams, the top U.S. commander in Korea.

"The furlough is in no way a reflection of their performance, dedication or conduct, but rather due to a lack of a burden sharing agreement making programmed funds unavailable," Abrams said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has demanded South Korea pay up to $5 billion to support the U.S. military presence -- or about five times the amount Seoul paid in 2019. Local media reports suggest the U.S. had recently lowered its demand to $4 billion.

Trump accuses South Korea of taking advantage of U.S. protection. He has at times hinted he would support pulling troops from South Korea. At other times, he denies a withdrawal has been discussed.

South Korean officials have rejected Trump's cost-sharing demands as absurd, noting that any deal will have to be reasonable, since it will have to be ratified by South Korea's parliament. The issue could become even more politically sensitive ahead of South Korea's legislative election this month.

South Korean officials have warned that the furloughs could impact military readiness.

Camp Humphreys, the main U.S. base in South Korea, is already in partial lockdown after more than a dozen service members, contractors, and other individuals related to the U.S. military in South Korea tested positive for the coronavirus.

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PIERS MORGAN has defended his Good Morning Britain colleague Laura Tobin after she delivered a series of weather reports live from Henley.

The breakfast show presenter said the meteorologist lived near the town so it was safer than her having to drive to work.

Mr Morgan also said that she and the rest of the Good Morning Britain team were journalists and therefore classed as key workers.

Tobin was filmed live during Tuesdays show on three occasions, with Henley Bridge behind her during her final report.

Morgan and

co-presenter Susanna Reid had spent much of the show discussing the importance of social

distancing.

One of the main news items was the role of the police in ensuring residents obey the Governments lockdown advice.

They also interviewed Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, on the subject of essential travel and key workers.

This led to a number of viewers criticising Tobin for delivering the weather report from Henley instead of the studio or her home.

Marcus Stead wrote on Twitter: Was it really necessary to send Laura Tobin to Henley-on-Thames this morning? That wouldve involved an OB [outside broadcasting] truck and several staff.

And for what? So we can see a few trees and a river backdrop? Why couldnt she have presented the weather from the studio? An essential journey?

Elizabeth Shaw added: Would Piers Morgan, who berates everyone for making unnecessary journeys, please explain why it is necessary for Laura Tobin to deliver the weather report from Henley-on-Thames? Does she live there? Does the film crew?

Viewers also said Jonathan Swain giving a report about new drive-in testing centres on location was unnecessary.

Morgan addressed the criticism during the show, saying: We are getting a few people saying why have you got reporters out there on location.

They are reporting and they have been classified by the Government as essential workers because they are reporting news to you from where the action is happening.

Why is Laura, our weather girl in Henley? Because it is near her home. It avoids her spending an hour driving in to be here and filling up the studio, which perhaps would be a higher risk.

These things, we havent just done these casually. The show itself is classified a news show and so we do think very carefully about the division of labour and who goes where and why theyre doing it. The Government has decided we are essential workers and we are imparting information to you.

Reid returned to presenting duties having self-isolated for 14 days when one of her children presented with symptoms linked to the virus.

She said: We are a key public information service and I hope we are also doing our bit to lift your spirits.

Tobin did not address the criticism from viewers but delivered her weather reports on Wednesday from her home.
Mayor of Americas Second Largest City Tells People to Wear Masks

The mayor of Los Angeles urged people to wear masks when leaving their homes as federal officials continued discussing issuing a similar recommendation for all Americans.

Current federal guidance only advises sick people and healthcare workers to wear masks, despite what some experts say is a strong body of evidence supporting the use of masks in all public situations to prevent the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.

Some of the places with slower rates of spread, from the Czech Republic and Taiwan to South Korea, are reminders that tackling the coronavirus depends on not spreading respiratory droplets, Eric Garcetti, the Los Angeles mayor, said at a press conference on Wednesday.

We are now recommending that Angelinos wear homemade face coverings when in public and when interacting with others.

Israel joined other countries in recommending or requiring the use of masks in public, along with a number of European and Asian countries.

An employee from the Tieks by Gavrieli shoe company makes masks to be donated to hospitals amid the CCP virus pandemic in Culver City, California, on March 31, 2020. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Frontline workers like doctors, nurses, and medical technicians should get medical-grade masks like N95s they need to perform their duties, Garcetti said. But other people should still cover their face when leaving home.

We must protect folks that we come into contact, like our grocery workers, our delivery workers, and other non-medical essential workers when we interact with them, he said.

A top federal health official said this week that as many as one in four CCP virus patients never show symptoms while people without symptoms can pass on the virus, bolstering calls for people to wear masks whenever they go out.

One group compiled 41 papers they say show masks would be useful in slowing the spread of the CCP virus, including multiple studies showing that even homemade masks can reduce exposure to respiratory infections. A study published last month compared mask recommendations among different countries for healthcare workers and the public.

Face masks are widely used by medical workers as part of droplet precautions when caring for patients with respiratory infections. It would be reasonable to suggest vulnerable individuals avoid crowded areas and use surgical face masks rationally when exposed to high-risk areas, the researchers wrote.

A shopper and cashier both wear masks and gloves at the checkout station Pats Farms grocery store in Merrick, New York, on March 31, 2020. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

Garcettis recommendation is based on guidance from California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles County Health Director Barbara Ferrer.

We need to assume that even if we are feeling fine, we can be infected and can infect others, Ferrer said at a briefing, the Los Angeles Daily News reported.

Research shows that even a bandana covering the mouth can slow droplet spread, Garcetti said.

The CCP virus is believed to spread mainly from person-to-person between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet) through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes.

These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states on its website.

While federal officials still havent recommended all people wear masks, others have.

We are all doing what we can by staying home but a lot of people are still having to to go out to run a few errands or go out and provide health care. When you do, wear a mask, cover up, Hawaiis Lieutenant Gov. Josh Green, a physician, told Hawaiians this week.

Newsom and other California officials admitted at a briefing on Wednesday that masks may have some benefits but did not recommend all state residents wear them. It was a change in tone after officials had previously discouraged the general public from donning masks.

Dr. Jeff Duchin, health officer for Public HealthSeattle & King County, said in an advisory issued Wednesday that medical masks should be reserved for medical workers but for the general public, homemade fabric masks, especially if well-made and fit, may provide some benefit.

Surgeon General Jerome Adams speaks outside the White House in Washington on March 20, 2020. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

Surgeon General Jerome Adams, among the federal officials who claimed last month that masks werent effective in preventing people from getting COVID-19, the disease the CCP virus causes, said on Wednesday that he asked the CDC to look into whether a federal recommendation to wear the masks should be issued.

His exhortation in February for people to STOP BUYING MASKS! was based on the best available evidence at the time, Adams said during an appearance on NBCs Today show.

We now know there is a significant amount of asymptomatic spread, he said.

Officials have struggled to explain why healthcare workers have been told to wear masks throughout the pandemic but others have not.

President Donald Trump told reporters on Tuesday that people can use scarves to cover their mouths when going out but cautioned, like many, against using N95 and other medical grade masks because of looming shortages for healthcare workers.

Los Angeles launched a website that includes descriptions of how to produce non-medical masks as it encouraged companies and groups to make five million of them for workers in essential sectors outside frontline workers, including non-medical staff in hospitals and medical patients.

A six-page document from Kaiser Permanente attached to the site says to use a piece of fabric 15.5 inches long and 7.5 inches wide. It also shows pictures of finished masks.
She is small with a big heart that



beats inexorably for those sick and dying from coronavirus.

The other a poor widow who ekes out a living doing menial jobs and selling groceries part-time.

The common thread that binds Zorintluangi, a class 3 student of Faith Academy in Aizawl, and Mailoki, a destitute widow, is that both have hearts of gold.

Zorintluangi donated her entire savings of Rs 1,107 to Luangmual local-level task force to aid the battle against the deadly virus and those in desperate need during the 21-day lockdown the disease has brought in its wake.

Zollianchhungi, the little girl's mother, told PTI that her daughter has been sleepless ever since the lockdown began, hitting the poorest the hardest.

She kept on saying that she wanted to help people affected by the lockdown, after she saw her grandmother distributing food to our tenants, Zollianchhungi said.

The youngest of four siblings, Zorintluangi broke open her piggy bank and sat counting gingerly the coins and crumpled notes she had saved to buy herself tiffin at school, her mother said.

She counted once, twice and then again, and on Wdenesday handed over her bank of generosity--the Rs 1,107 she had saved-- to the local task force.

The milk of human kindesss did not stop flowing.

Mailoki, a widow who subsists on casual labour and selling grocery sometimes, rushed to the village task force in Lunglei district on the southern fringe of the state bordering Bangladesh on Monday.

She came to us and fished out a handful of notes from her purse, saying she wants to help others, Tlabung village council president Thangkhuma said. Rs 950 in all, a veritable treasure for the poor woman who also has to support her son, an undergraduate student.

A few days ago, Rommel Lalmuansanga, a seven-year-old boy from Kolasibs Venglai, was hailed on social media and also by Chief Minister Zoramthanga after he donated his entire saving of Rs 333 to aid the fight against COVID-19 and help those in need.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ideas For Profit | Avenue Supermarts: Why market weakness should be used to buy D-Marts stock
The arrival of the new lions, from the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City, came on March 17, Zeigler said, but Thursday was only their second day out in their environment, and they seemed calm but very curious, especially about Canada geese.
ORLANDO, Fla. - The Magic Kingdom is dark. The last of the spring breakers have fled the beaches. Calle Ocho, the vibrant Miami street once bustling with Cuban restaurants and Latin music, is silent amid a nightly curfew. And in The Villages, a sprawling senior-living community near Ocala, town square concerts have ceased and the pools have closed.

Slowly and reluctantly over the past month, as coronavirus infections grew from almost none to nearly 8,000 and more than 125 residents have died, Florida has sobered up. Under mounting pressure, Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, this week ordered most Floridians to remain at home starting Friday, a move that more than 30 U.S. states had already taken in an effort to slow the spread of a deadly viral infection with no vaccine and no cure.

But as case counts climb in the nation's third most-populous state - one home to bustling international airports, swarms of tourists and many vulnerable residents - many are now left to wait and wonder if the latest restrictions came in time, and what lies ahead for the Sunshine State.

"I have zero doubt that there are hundreds if not thousands of cases we don't know about," Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said in an interview.

Suarez was among the first people in his city to be infected with covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, and he emerged from quarantine two days before the rest of his state was ordered to shelter in place. "We're not quite a hotspot, but we have all the factors," he said. "We can quickly become one."

Florida's bout with the virus is likely to peak in early May, when an estimated 175 people will die from covid-19 every day, according to the University of Washington Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, which has provided a much-cited model of the outbreak. In total, it predicts 6,897 Sunshine State residents could eventually die from coronavirus.

"I would love it to be accurate and I very much hope it is, but we must be prepared for the possibly that is an optimistic scenario," William Hanage, an epidemiologist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said of that model.

Hanage said he is "very worried" about what awaits the state.

"My concern for Florida is rooted in the fact it has a population that skews old," he said. "There have been reasonably large opportunities for super spreading events. And I don't think there is very good evidence that the transmission of covid-19 is slowed in any meaningful way by warmer temperatures."

As recently as Tuesday, DeSantis said he had no plans to issue a statewide stay-at-home order, in part because the White House coronavirus task force had not explicitly recommended it.

A day later, facing mounting criticism as caseloads multiplied, the governor ordered the state's nearly 21 million residents to stay indoors for 30 days unless they are pursuing essential services or activities. His executive order takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on Friday.

"It makes sense to make this move now," DeSantis said at a Wednesday afternoon news conference, saying he had spoken with President Donald Trump about the decision. "We don't really know how all these measures work, because it's never been tried on American society before. But I think we find ourselves in a situation where we have a national pause, and we need to deal with this front and center."

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried has been imploring DeSantis to issue a statewide shelter in place order for two weeks. Fried said Thursday she's glad the governor finally agreed.

"The piecemeal approach wasn't working," Fried said. "I'm glad the governor finally came to this realization and decision. I hope it was quick enough."

Palm Beach Town Manager Kirk Blouin said if the state had been faster to clamp down, the spread of the virus in Florida might have been contained more quickly.

"I wish it would have been done a bit sooner," Blouin said. "Now my concern is, what's the longer term strategy going to be? After a while, people without jobs, without money, without the basic survival needs, that's going to create a whole new set of problems. We can do this 'safe at home' as a two- or a four-week strategy, but this thing can go on for months. We have to be thinking about that now."

The governor's stay-at-home order still allows Floridians some leeway to gather, even in some instances where local officials have previously cracked down. It permits church services, for example.

Just this week, officials in Hillsborough County arrested the pastor of a Tampa megachurch after he held Sunday services in defiance of county orders to limit public gatherings, telling congregants that he would close the church only for the Rapture.

The state has faced criticism for its uneven, patchwork embrace of social distancing and other measures to slow the spread of the virus, even as it became clear that the outbreak was deepening around the country.

Well into mid-March, huge crowds flocked to theme parks. Spring breakers crowded beaches, until local officials took it upon themselves to shut down parts of the coastline. Now, questions remain about what impact those lost days might mean for Florida - and for the communities to which some tourists returned.

As the spread of coronavirus began to accelerate in the United States a month ago, Nicholas Hickman decided to take his birthday celebration trip to Disney World, in part because the state and the county had not issued a stay-at-home order. When his plane touched down in Orlando, there had been no cases reported in the county where the Magical Kingdom is located.

"When we went, the primary defense for the virus was just to wash hands," he said. He and his friends ate at their hotel, and spent most of the trip smelling like hand sanitizer. "If we were told not to go to Disney, we definitely would not have gone."

A day after he returned home to Ringgold, a north Georgia city of fewer 4,000 near the Tennessee border, he learned that Disney World planned to close its doors over coronavirus fears.

Three days later, he fell ill: head and muscle aches, dizziness and a fever that shot up to 104 degrees. After two trips to hospitals and a battery of tests to rule out other infections, doctors relented and tested him for covid-19.

"They told me that they felt like they were wasting a test," he said, "because they only had four or five tests in the whole hospital. They kind of diagnosed and treated me for bronchitis. They said 'really we think you just have bronchitis.' "

He self-quarantined, even though it would be days before he got test results confirming he had covid-19. One of his biggest fears, he said, was that he might spark an outbreak in his city- one that would start with his parents, with whom he lives. As Hickman's symptoms began to abate, his parents felt unwell.

"They've been sick for the last week. My mom has been tested for it, but her results haven't come back," Hickman said. "No one will even test my dad. They're like 'your son's got it and your wife's got it' so it's not even worth [doing the test].' "

The family's health worries have ceded to financial worries.

"Now my parents, they can't go to work. I can't go to work. I worked at a restaurant and now all the restaurants are closed," he said. "I don't even have a job anymore. I have no money coming in now. My dad, we don't know if he's going to get paid."

Back in Florida, state officials have requested federal help to build five mobile intensive care units and to secure 5,000 ventilators, 5,000 additional hospital beds, 150,000 personal protective equipment kits, millions more face masks and a wave of other supplies.

The state could also face additional burdens, including the arrival of a stranded, coronavirus-stricken cruise ship known as the Zaandam, where four people have died and nearly 200 have reported flu-like symptoms. A separate cruise ship also is headed toward Florida with some suspected covid-19 cases aboard.

In Miami, the mayor said he believes that Florida has enough beds and supplies to weather the worst, but he has ongoing worries: a still-open international airport that he said could be "a receptacle" for future transmissions; a police force where some officers have already tested positive for covid-19; and front-line workers who have been killed by the virus.

In parts of Florida, especially those where case counts have yet to skyrocket, there is still hope that it's possible to stem the coming tide.

"I think they've been doing a good job with social distancing," Michael Lauzardo, deputy director of the University of Florida's Emerging Pathogens Institute, who has been helping oversee testing in The Villages, said of the senior citizens there. "It's buying us time."

Whether that holds true in the weeks ahead remains unclear, in part because as in many parts of the country, a shortage of tests and supplies have prevented health experts from getting a clear picture of where and how quickly the virus is spreading.

"We're flying blind in many instances," Lauzardo said.

Sumter County, where much of The Villages is located, reported 66 cases of coronavirus as of Wednesday, and the number of new cases has been growing steadily, according to the state health department.

Hanage, the Harvard epidemiologist, worries that many areas of the country no longer have enough time to dodge the viral freight train that is coming, including the Sunshine State.

"When it comes down to it, the future is not good anywhere," he said. "But Florida has been late taking action that might help. And I hope it is spared the worse."

- - -

Wootson Jr. and Rozsa reported from Florida. The Washington Post's Christine Loman contributed to this report.
TAIPEI, April 1 (Xinhua) -- The total number of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases in Taiwan has increased by seven to 329, the island's epidemic monitoring agency said Wednesday.

All the new patients, three men and four women, were believed to have contracted the virus during their trips to Britain and the United States, the agency said in a press release.

Among the island's confirmed COVID-19 cases, 283 were imported. A total of 45 confirmed patients have recovered, and five died.

Ahead of the four-day tomb-sweeping holiday that will start Thursday and lead to an increasing flow of travelers, the island's authorities have stepped up disease control measures.

The island's railways, high-speed railways, airports, service areas of major highways and post offices started to take the temperature of passengers and ask them to wear face masks on Wednesday.

The disease control agency urged the public to maintain a distance of 1.5 meters between each other indoors and 1 meter outdoors.

It also warned that people who are quarantined at home would face a fine between 200,000 to 1 million New Taiwan dollars (about 6,600 to 33,000 U.S. dollars) for breaking the rules.

According to the agency, 318 people have been fined a total of 27 million New Taiwan dollars.
The CPI(M) on Thursday said that the coronavirus crisis should not be communalised and slammed both the Tablighi Jamaat as well as state authorities for allowing a mass gathering during the pandemic.

Six people who died in Telangana and one in Jammu and Kashmir had attended the religious congregation in Nizamuddin area here.

In Delhi alone, 24 participants tested positive for the disease. By Wednesday morning, a total of 2,346 persons were evacuated from the centre, of whom 536 were hospitalised, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said.

In a statement the party said that all big gatherings, social, religious and political, that have been held in many parts of the country after the March 13 order prohibiting assembly of more than 200 people must be investigated thoroughly.

"It was irresponsible on the part of the Jamaat leadership to have organised the meeting in mid-March when restrictions were already in place about size of gatherings. It is also inexplicable how the authorities allowed a second gathering on March 20-21.

"The CPI (M) condemns the efforts and the campaign on social media to give this a communal color and to target a community. The coronavirus does not differentiate on the basis of religion. All efforts to communalise the issue must be rebuffed. We must learn from South Korea and Singapore in meticulously tracing all those attending large congregations, isolating them after aggressive testing and containing the community spread of COVID-19. India today has a very low testing rate i.e. 241 times lower than South Korea. This must be rectified urgently," the statement said.

It also said that efforts to communalise the fight against coronavirus will only undermine the triumph in containing the virus and will be self-defeating and all efforts must be made by the government to end the spread of such dangerous communal polarisation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
When Rick and Wendy de Pinho left Buenos Aires on March 7 onboard the Holland America Line cruise ship MS Zaandam, things felt perfectly normal. The New Jersey couple were concerned about the spread of coronavirus, they tell TIME, but at the time of their departure there were few confirmed cases in South America and the cruise line had assured them that steps were being taken to protect guests, including enhanced passenger screenings and increased cleaning protocol.

Three weeks later, however, and things are far from normal. Over the past month, COVID-19, the disease caused by novel coronavirus, has spread worldwide and been classified by the World Health Organization as a pandemic.

By March 13, every major cruise line had temporarily suspended its operations, leaving ships mid-voyage, like the Zaandam, scrambling to find ways to get passengers home. Multiple South American countries have since rejected the Zaandams request to dock and allow passengers to disembark.

The Zaandam is also one of multiple ships that have been struck by coronavirus. In a Thursday statement, the ships operator Holland America Line, confirmed that at least 107 guests and 143 crew members had reported flu-like symptoms, and that nine passengers aboard had tested positive for COVID-19. Four passengers died, Holland America also confirmed to TIME. According to the AP, two of those deaths can be attributed to COVID-19. (Holland America Line said it could not provide additional medical details due to HIPPA laws.)

On March 28, 1,450 passengers and crew who had passed health screenings were transferred to another Holland America ship, the MS Rotterdam, in an attempt to lessen the load on the Zaandams crew. The de Pinhos were among the passengers transferred. More than 300 Americans are aboard the two ships.

After weeks of uncertainty, the Zaandam and Rotterdam were finally given clearance to dock in Floridas Port of Everglades on Thursday, and guests who were fit to travel were given clearance to disembark.

Story continues

Rick de Pinho tells TIME that some people came to greet the passengers as the ship pulled up to the dock, and the sight caused some passengers to cry. It made me feel proud of our country and people. One gentleman was saluting the ship, he tells TIME in a WhatsApp message.

Passengers will undergo health screening and pass through U.S. Customs and Border Protection as they disembark the ship, according to a statement from Holland America Line released Thursday. The process is expected to be completed by Friday evening. The statement said those who need immediate care at local health systems will be prioritized. Guests who are cleared to travel will then transfer directly on buses that take them to airports, and the majority of passengers will leave on flights chartered by the cruise lines. The AP reports guests wont enter the terminal.

Rescue workers push a stretcher with a patient from the Zaandam cruise ship at Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on April 02, 2020. | Eva Marie Uzcategui Trinkl/Anadolu AgencyGetty Images

Guests who still have symptoms will remain on board the ship and leave after they have fully recovered and meet the CDC guidelines for being fit to travel, the statement said. None of the crew from the Rotterdam or the Zaandam will disembark the ship.

Its been a long journey for the passengers, who have been isolated to their rooms since March 22 and had received mixed messages as to whether theyd be allowed to dock in the United States.

On Wednesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had said the state would accept Floridians who were aboard the Zaandam, but did not commit to taking people from other U.S. states or nationalities, per CNN. And on Monday, DeSantis faced criticism after telling Fox News that the state cannot afford to have coronavirus-stricken foreigners dumped into south Florida. As of Thursday afternoon Eastern Time, Florida had at least 9,008 confirmed cases of the virus and at least 144 confirmed deaths, according to a tracker from Johns Hopkins University.

After multiple countries turned away the ship last week, Orlando Ashford, the president of Holland America Line had urged nations to not turn their backs on thousands of people left floating at sea, stressing that he fears lives are at risk In an op-ed published in the South Florida Sun Sentinel on Monday.

Its been a rollercoaster Are we able to dock? Are we not? Wendy de Pinho told TIME on March 31, adding that she and her husband regularly call other passengers aboard the ship to check in with them. Its the fear of the unknown. If youre not already sick, this can really cause you to get sick.

Rick and Wendy de Pinho, passengers aboard the virus-stricken Zaandam cruise ship, while they transferred to the Rotterdam cruise ship on Sunday. | Courtesy of Rick and Wendy de Pinho

Emily Spinder Brazell, a passenger aboard the Rotterdam from Virginia, told TIME via Facebook Messenger on March 31, We feel like the ship is doing the best they can to take care of us but we feel like the governments of the world have been unwilling to help. Brazell adds that she has been inspired by the Rotterdams captain, who she says told passengers he recognized that we are going through tough times but we are on a humanitarian mission.

I know it will be helpful for us to leave even though were leaving sick people behind because it will put less stress on the ship and crew, Brazell said in the Facebook message. My heart will be in this with them until theyre all well and home.

But the Zaandam and Rotterdam are not the only cruise ships still sailing. On Tuesday, Carnival Corp., which owns nine cruise lines including Holland America, Princess Cruises and Costa Cruises, told the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission that it had more than 6,000 passengers on ships still at sea, although only a portion of these vessels are headed to the U.S.

Princess Cruises Coral Princess is currently headed towards Fort Lauderdale, Fl., and has at least 12 positive cases of COVID-19 onboard, per an April 2 statement from the cruise line. Its also reported a higher-than-normal number of passengers with flu-like symptoms. Guests aboard the ship are self-isolating in their rooms. Its estimated to arrive on Saturday.

A spokesperson for the trade group the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) told TIME on Wednesday that there are around 14 CLIA member ships off the South Florida coast that contain no passengers but are still being supported by crew.

On Sunday, March 29, the U.S. Coast Guard released a safety bulletin that directed all foreign-flagged passenger vessels impacted by coronavirus  including cruise ships  carrying over 50 people to increase their medical capabilities in order to treat sick passengers for an indefinite period of time. This is necessary as shore-side medical facilities may reach full capacity and lose the ability to accept and effectively treat additional critically-ill patients, the guidance said.

The Coast Guard also told foreign-flagged ships that loiter beyond U.S. territorial seas to send severely ill passengers to the countries where the vessels are registered, before turning to the U.S.. The Coral Princess is registered to Bermuda, a Carnival Corp. spokesperson tells TIME. (The Zaandam and Rotterdam are registered to the Netherlands, a spokesperson from Holland America Line tells TIME.)

The MS Zaandam pictured sailing alongside the MS Rotterdam on Monday night. | Courtesy of Rick de Pinho

According to NPR, registering ships in foreign countries is par for the course in the cruise industry; such registrations are a way companies can avoid some U.S. tax, environmental, and employment laws. In its bulletin, the Coast Guard specifically directed ships registered to the Bahamas  a country to which many cruise ships are registered  to seek medical assistance in the island nation before turning to medical facilities in the U.S.. Per the Associated Press, however, hospital capacity in the Bahamas is still limited due to the destruction caused by last Septembers Hurricane Dorian.

The Coast Guards guidance impacts the Seventh District Area of Responsibility, which includes Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Puerto Rico. In the bulletin, the Coast Guard also said the move was partially to help mitigate the potential of overwhelming local medical resources.

Keep up to date with our daily coronavirus newsletter by clicking here.

We have significant medical facilities and capabilities onboard our ships. However, there are rare situations when the medical needs exceed our onboard capabilities, a spokesperson for Carnival Corp., the parent company of Holland America, tells TIME in a statement. In those cases, we follow USCG guidance and direction regarding an evaluation of the patient and need to medically evacuate  and we will continue to do so. We value our relationship with the Coast Guard and we fully understand these are unprecedented times.

A spokesperson for trade group the Cruise Lines International Association tells TIME in a statement that, [We] are in conversations with the U.S. Coast Guard and other national and global authorities on an ongoing basis to achieve our mutual objectivesto do the right thing for people, passengers and crew. Since the cruise industrys voluntary suspension of operations was announced, teams of people have been working day and night to coordinate a safe and orderly return to port for passengers and crew on the few remaining ships at sea, as well to do the right thing for crew that are supporting ships that are in full suspension.

While the passengers of the Rotterdam and Zaandam may have finally been allowed to disembark, its not immediately clear what will happen to those aboard the Coral Princess.

Please send any tips, leads, and stories to virus@time.com.
Des Williams is the fourth Queenslander to die of COVID-19, and the second in Toowoomba.

Three of the four Queenslanders who have died after contracting novel coronavirus were cruise ship passengers.

An 85-year-old man who recently returned home from the Ruby Princess and was believed to have an underlying health condition became the latest victim when he died in Toowoomba Hospital on Wednesday night.

Des Williams has been remembered by members of his family as a "true gentleman" who had the "health and strength" of someone 10 years younger.

"Des was a beautiful man who saw the best in every person and gave so much of his time to each and every one of us," Jacqui Blackburn, the wife of Mr Williams' stepson, wrote on social media.
Banda District Magistrate has directed to close Madrasa Jamia Arabia Hathaura for all movement with immediate effect on Thursday as a precautionary measure after some of its students returned from the Tablighi Jamaat's headquarters in Nizamuddin Markaz, which has become one of the major coronavirus hotspots in the country.

Four people among those who returned from Nizamuddin Markaz in the capital have been shifted to medical college for COVID-19 testing.

"Madrasa Jamia Arabia Hathaura will be closed with immediate effect. 4 people were brought to medical college for testing. Some of the madrasa students have returned from Nizamuddin of Tablighi Jamaat in Delhi," Amit Singh Bansal, Banda District Magistrate said in a statement.

The entire staff of the Madrasa is under home quarantine.

No person is allowed to come outside from Madrasa and entry into it is also restricted. The administration will supply the essential material to Madrasa.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Omar Saeed Sheikh was sentenced to death for masterminding the killing of Wall Street Journal journalist in 2002.

A Pakistani court has overturned the murder conviction of a British Pakistani man found guilty of the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in 2002.

Instead, the court on Thursday found Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and sentenced him to seven years in jail.

One of his lawyers, Khwaja Naveed, said he could go free unless the government chooses to challenge the court decision.

The murder charges were not proven, so he [court] has given seven years for the kidnapping, Naveed told Reuters by telephone.

Omar has already served 18 years, so his release orders will be issued sometime today. He will be out in a few days, Naveed added.

At least four people were convicted in connection with Pearls murder, including the British-born Sheikh, who was sentenced to death in 2002 for masterminding the murder.

A two-member bench of the High Court of Sindh province issued the order in the city of Karachi, Naveed said, adding that the three others, who had been serving life-sentences in connection with the case, had been acquitted.

We havent had a very strong reaction [to the verdict] given the fact there is this [coronavirus] pandemic, and all news is focused on that, Al Jazeeras Kamal Hyder, reporting from Islamabad, said.

According to Hyder, the court said the prosecution had not been able to prove its case, in which most of the witnesses were policemen.

In a statement later on Thursday, the Wall Street Journal said: We continue to seek justice for the murder of Daniel Pearl. Danny was a cherished colleague and we will always honor his memory and service.

Pearl was investigating armed groups in Karachi after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States when he was kidnapped in January 2002. Video emerged a few weeks later of his murder.

A Sindh prosecutor said he would consider appealing against the court decision.

We will go through the court order once it is issued, we will probably file an appeal, Faiz Shah, the provincial prosecutor general, told Reuters by telephone.

Sheikh was arrested in India in the 1990s for his involvement in the kidnapping of western tourists in 1994.

He was one of three men released from an Indian prison after armed groups hijacked an Indian airliner in late 1999 and flew it to Afghanistan, where the then-ruling Taliban regime helped negotiate an exchange.
The CEO of GIHOC Distilleries, Mr Maxwell Kofi Jumah has asked Ghana's Electoral Commission to suspend this years elections over the coronavirus outbreak.



He said Ghana has managed the coronavirus pandemic well hence must extend her support to other countries rather than focus on the forthcoming general elections.



He said on Accra FM Thursday, April 2 that: We are fortunate to have had a President like Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at this critical time because he is intelligent.



We all know he is a problem solver and Im so proud of him.



But, for me, I think we shouldnt go to the polls this year to vote.



"We will need to assist neighbouring countries to deal with the COVD-19 because we have managed the coronavirus very well. If we dont do that the problem in the neighbouring countries can affect us again." Ghana closed its borders as part of moves to deal with the COVID-19.





Source: Class News









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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SHELTON  The city continues to see a spike in positive coronavirus cases, with 12 alone in the past 24 hours, according to data released by area health officials Wednesday.

Shelton now has 60 positive COVID-19 cases, with four coronavirus-related deaths. All four residents who died were elderly  three in their 80s, one in her 90s.

Public Safety Director Mike Maglione said a number of positive cases are in the citys nursing home community, but the virus is also among the general population. There are five nursing home facilities in Shelton, according to Maglione, housing some 450 residents altogether.

Positive cases are scattered throughout the city, said Maglione. That is why we constantly reinforce social distancing. Stay away from crowds  and wash your hands.

Naugatuck Valley Health District (NVHD) Director Jessica Stelmaszek said individuals experiencing grief, anxiety or stress can visit http://www.nvhd.org/coping/ for resources.

The health district, in a release last week, stated that community spread/transmission is now occurring in the Valley. People have been infected with the virus, including some who are not sure how or where they became infected. Please practice social distancing and stay home as much as possible.

In all, there are 125 residents in the Naugatuck Valley that as of 4 p.m. April 1 had tested positive for COVID-19. Most of the positive tests have been from Shelton, followed by 24 in Ansonia, 23 in Naugatuck, 17 in Seymour, 16 in Derby, and nine in Beacon Falls.

The NVHD states that, of the 152 testing positive in the Valley, 11 men and 14 women are 80 and older; 10 men and seven women are between 70 and 79; 13 men and 14 women between 60 and 69; 15 women and two men are between 50 and 59; 12 men and 11 women between 40 and 49; 13 men and 16 women are between 30 and 39; and five men and six women are between 20 and 29.

Statewide, as of April 1, there were more than 3,500 confirmed cases and 85 reported deaths, including four from Shelton. Gov. Ned Lamonts executive orders have shuttered all schools until at least April 20, and closed all nonessential businesses, until further notice. Lamont said last week that schools may remain closed until the fall, and there can be no gatherings of more than five people.

Residents should continue to heed the advice of their chief elected officials, added Stelmaszek, and stay home as much as possible and continue to practice social distancing to avoid exposure and further spread of the virus.

The NVHD defines a person under investigation as anyone who has been identified as someone who may have the virus that causes COVID-19 or who was under investigation but tested negative.

The state Department of Public Health now publishes a report at www.ct.gov/coronavirus that breaks down positive COVID-19 cases by town.

The NVHD release states that the physician who ordered the coronavirus test for the patient and health district staff will contact individuals who test positive for COVID-19.

Those individuals will remain in quarantine at their homes, stated the NVHD release. Individuals who reside in the same household as a laboratory confirmed positive case will also be required to self-quarantine at their home. Health department staff will work with the patients to investigate and determine if additional individuals need to be notified or require 14-day self-monitoring periods at home. If an individual is inpatient or in a healthcare facility, that facility will lead the investigation.

Stelmaszek said health district officials are hopeful that some of our residents will start meeting criteria to come out of self-isolation. Most individuals in Connecticut will not have a test to determine if they are still contagious.

People with COVID-19 who have remained home isolated can stop home isolation under the following conditions:

* They have had no fever for at least 72 hours  three full days of no fever without the use medicine that reduces fevers, and;

* other symptoms a cough or shortness of breaths  have improved; and

* at least seven days have passed since the symptoms first appeared.

brian.gioiele@hearstmediact.com
The Coast Guard is allowing its members to wear their hair longer, under a softening of grooming standards designed to reduce exposure and slow the spread of COVID-19.

In a Coast Guard-wide message issued Thursday, Rear Adm. Joanna Nunan, assistant commandant for Human Resources, said men and women in the service can now wear their hair longer in response to the pandemic.

The measure reduces the close contact required with barbers and hair stylists needed to meet regulations.

"Commanders and supervisors may allow for additional hair length and bulk on the sides, top, and back of the head but must ensure a professional military appearance is maintained," Nunan wrote in ALCOAST 118/20.

Related: Coast Guard Tells Cruise Lines to Prepare to Care for Sick People for an 'Indefinite Period'

The Coast Guard's policy will "remain in effect until rescinded" and applies only to hair standards. Regulations on sideburns, hairstyles and shaving will remain in effect.

The move follows the Navy's announcement March 18 and the Air Force's earlier this week that both services were relaxing grooming standards. The Marine Corps has left the decision up to individual commanders. The Army has not made a public announcement regarding its grooming standards, but it also does not regularly release service-wide messages.

Government officials and medical experts, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are recommending Americans maintain at least six feet between themselves and anyone they do not live with to prevent spreading the novel coronavirus.

As of Thursday, the Coast Guard had 32 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among its personnel, according to spokesman Chief Warrant Officer 4 Barry Lane.

Defense Department-wide, 893 service members had confirmed cases of the coronavirus as of Thursday. There were 256 cases among military dependents, 306 cases in civilian employees and 95 among contractors.

For Coast Guard women, standards call for hair that does not fall below the eyebrows or headgear or, in the back, below the bottom edge of a uniform collar. Otherwise, it can be worn in a bun that may extend no farther than three inches from the scalp.

Men are required to keep their hair so that it does not fall below the eyebrows, is maintained within 1 1/2 inches of the scalp and does not touch the ears or top of the collar.

According to the ALCOAST, the temporary relaxed grooming standards should "at no time interfere with the proper wearing of Coast Guard headgear and/or proper use of protective personal equipment."

-- Patricia Kime can be reached at patriciankime@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter @patriciakime.

Read more: Defense Department Readies 100,000 Body Bags as Virus Death Toll Rises
Topeka has approved $1 million in additional relief grants for regional small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. These grants will provide aid to those most affected by the challenges brought by COVID-19, says Molly Howey, president of GO Topeka. It is GO Topekas hope that the HOST Relief Program can give small businesses and displaced workers in Shawnee County some hope for the future."

GO Topeka is pleased to announce that the Joint Economic Development Organization (JEDO) has approved $1 million in additional relief grants for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The new HOST Relief Grants are intended to provide sustainable support and capital to local businesses in Shawnee County, Kan.

The public dollars will complement private dollars raised since March 21. To date, $476,000 has been raised through 23 private donors. Together they form the HOST Relief Program. HOST, which stands for Helping Others Support Topeka, is a small business emergency resource fund designed to provide immediate aid. Announced on March 23, the intention of this effort is to generate up to $2 million in economic stimulus for businesses and displaced workers affected by COVID-19.

For weeks now, we have been fielding calls from small businesses in the area. Anxiety is high, and many are struggling to meet day-to-day expenses. So, you can imagine what these additional funds will mean to the small businesses in our community, says Glenda Washington, senior vice president of Women & Minority Business Development, a program of GO Topeka. It affords them not only monetary relief but also additional confidence that they will be able to make it through this crisis.

Applications for publicly funded HOST Relief Grants are found at SupportTopeka.com/HOST. Small businesses will be eligible to receive up to $5,000 in grant money through this program.

Businesses selected for private HOST Relief support will be notified. Gift cards will be distributed to displaced workers in Shawnee County, who have been impacted by COVID-19. Employers who have had to temporarily or permanently reduce staffing are encouraged to apply at SupportTopeka.com/HOST for gift card relief for their employees who were released from work. Each person is eligible to receive $250 in aid.

In a time of need, Topeka always comes together, even from 6 feet away. I am amazed at the outpouring of support from local and regional businesses, says Scott Hunsicker, owner and president, Kansas Financial Resources, and lead organizer of the HOST Relief effort. Topeka is a survivor  from the 66 Tornado to the current COVID-19 crisis. Local and regional businesses are the lifeblood of our community. It is important that we assist them during this time. We lose alone and win together."

These grants will provide aid to those most affected by the challenges brought by COVID-19, says Molly Howey, president of GO Topeka. It is GO Topekas hope that the HOST Relief Program can give small businesses and displaced workers in Shawnee County some hope for the future. We are committed to giving this community the support it needs to make it through these hardships.

When this community decides to take action, it doesnt hesitate. I am extremely proud of this effort, said Matt Pivarnik, CEO of the Greater Topeka Partnership. As a community, we should really celebrate this extraordinary show of strength and unity and recognize that not many other communities throughout the U.S. can provide the same kind of support.

Donors include:



Alma Creamery

Capital City Oil

Capitol Federal

Creative One

Ed Eller Inc.

Edward Jones Associates of Shawnee County

Federal Home Loan Bank

Gary Woodland

Mark and Lisa Heitz

Innovation Design Group

Kansas City Life

Kansas Financial Resources

Kansas Secured Title

Magellan Financial

Market Synergy

MCP Build McElroys

Mark & Sandy Ruelle

Schendel Lawn and Landscape

Security Benefit Group

Silver Lake Bank

Lance Sparks Trust

Vision Bank

About HOST Relief Program

The HOST Relief Program is a small business emergency resource fund that was developed by private sector leaders and is being facilitated by GO Topeka and the Greater Topeka Partnership. More details on the HOST Relief Program, including how donors, small businesses and individuals can participate, can be found at http://SupportTopeka.com/HOST. Participation requests will be evaluated by the Host Relief Committee.

About GO Topeka

GO Topeka creates opportunities for economic growth that provide a thriving business climate and fulfilling lifestyle for Topeka and Shawnee County. GO Topeka operates under the Greater Topeka Partnership, the leading economic development agency in the region. https://www.gotopeka.com/

About Greater Topeka

The Greater Topeka area in Shawnee County represents a community of 178,915 people, located in the Greater Kansas City region. As the state capital of Kansas, Topeka is home to a dynamic employer base with headquartered companies including Hill's Pet Nutrition, Advisors Excel, Security Benefit, Capitol Federal and Evergy. Topeka is proud to be a part of the #KCHeartland.


Castle Hills officials, having to choose between holding a city election amid the COVID-19 pandemic or waiting until November, instead voted Wednesday to cancel the election after a candidate in the only contested race voluntarily withdrew.

The city is one of the last among Bexar Countys suburban communities to postpone a May 2 election or cancel it, as provided by state law when all seated incumbents are unopposed.

President Donald Trump extended the 6-foot social distancing and no-gathering guidelines to April 30, covering the early voting period for a May 2 election: April 20 to April 28.

Former Alderman Frank Paul, who had filed to run against Place 5 incumbent Douglas Gregory, submitted a withdrawal certificate and a letter read aloud by Mayor JR Trevino at Wednesday nights meeting.

We simply cannot permit our residents to be exposed to the risks in order to participate in next months election, Paul wrote.

At the same time, the possibility of a fall election is equally problematic for other reasons. Certain council members would serve as holdovers and remain in office until November, including in Place 4, where the incumbent has chosen not to seek re-election, Paul continued.

On ExpressNews.com: Suburban issues decided in November vote

That Place 4 incumbent, Lesley Wenger, has generated controversy in her efforts to fire the city manager and restrict public comment at council meetings. Jack Joyce, an architect, was the only candidate who filed for Wengers seat.

Paul wrote that he and Gregory both were asked to consider withdrawing. He acquiesced, so Castle Hills could avoid posing significant risk to the city and its residents, and allowing a new, stable and responsible City Council to be sworn in as early as May 8.

Alluding to Wenger but without mentioning her name, he wrote that he would withdraw to support the forward movement of the city.

This is the same council member whose behavior during the last two years, in my opinion, has significantly harmed the citys financial health, Paul wrote.

The council then unanimously passed an ordinance to cancel the election, a move Trevino said will save the city about $7,000.

There was some tension when the council discussed the residency of Alderman Mark Sanderson, who has voted with Wenger on some controversial issues, including limiting public comment to the end of meetings.

Trevino said several residents had asked him if Sanderson does in fact live in the city of Castle Hills. Some residents have said he moved to Fairfax, Va., and Alderman Joe Izbrand had posted Sunday on Facebook that it was public knowledge that his primary residence is vacant.

On ExpressNews.com: Castle Hills drama may be far from over

In his post, Izbrand said he hoped Mr. Sanderson will use this opportunity to provide clarity at the council meeting.

Wenger dismissed the discussion as rumor-mongering, and the council moved on to the next agenda item after Sanderson, participating remotely by phone, defiantly insisted, without elaborating, that he still resides in Castle Hills.

I still consider myself a taxpaying resident of the city of Castle Hills. I do not answer to the mayor. Nor do I answer to the city manager. They are not my boss. My bosses are the people who elected me. Nobody else, Sanderson said.

Extension of the citys March 26 emergency order through April 30 also was approved Wednesday.

Wenger asked why that action was necessary, since Gov. Greg Abbotts emergency orders are in place statewide. City Attorney Marc Schnall said it was important to have a local emergency declaration that remains active, to preserve the citys rights to secure federal and state aid related to the pandemic.

Trevino asked Wenger if Schnalls reply answered her question. Wenger said yes.

But she voted against the emergency declaration. It passed in a 4-1 council vote.

Scott Huddleston covers Bexar County government and the Alamo for the San Antonio Express-News. To read more from Scott, become a subscriber. shuddleston@express-news.net | Twitter: @shuddlestonSA
Exhibited in New York in 2018, Wilderness is scheduled to open in its expanded version next year, on May 29, 2021, at the Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa. In late March, Ms Dill spoke by phone about adapting to her new work style. (This interview was edited for clarity and length.)

How are you spending your days?

The space at the Figge Museum is 90 by 38 feet, with 20-foot ceilings, and my project needs to fill it. I am hoping to complete 16 3-by-12-foot scrolls that wrap the entire gallery. Plus, Im working on five new 8-foot-high textile sculptures to add to the existing 10, plus two 8-foot-high drawings. (The existing figures are at the Nohra Haime Gallery in New York, which represents her.)

You had to say goodbye to the team of interns who normally help you paint the hundreds of thousands of letters you stencil onto your flat pieces and sculptures. How are you coping?

My wonderful right-hand studio manager, Sarah Ingber, lives only four blocks away, in Brooklyn Heights, thank God. On the last day she could come here after the ban on nonessential workers, we ordered supplies from Blick and packed up a huge suitcase for her to take home full of paint, brushes and scrolls that I had already stenciled. We also packed up a large scroll and paint for my assistant, Alannah Sears, who lives in Inwood.

Our plan is to review the work in snapshots we send back and forth on our phones. Sarah, being so close, can drop off what she has done in the lobby, and I can leave things for her to pick up. When Alannah is finished, Im going to have her FedEx it back to me. We will let whatever we have touched or worked on breathe for two or three days in some outdoor space. Of course, I spray everything with Formula 409 anyway.
Dear Heloise: Someone told me this, and I have found it effective: While your bananas are just beginning to get ripe and still a bit green, wrap each one in a paper towel and put them in your refrigerator crisper drawer. They may change color on the outside, but when you want to use them, just remove the peel. They will stay fresher longer.
President Moon Jae-in/ Yonhap



By Do Je-hae



Cheong Wa Dae is pushing for a virtual summit of ASEAN+3 (ASEAN members plus Korea, China and Japan) to advance multilateral cooperation in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a presidential aide, Thursday.



"Close consultations are underway to realize the summit," vice presidential spokesman Yoon Jae-kwan said during a briefing. "These countries have a lot of exchanges with Korea, so forming a consensus with them is very important."



Korea hosted the ASEAN summit in Busan in November 2019, the highlight of President Moon Jae-in's New Southern Policy of increasing ties with Southeast Asia.



Moon has been actively participating in international diplomacy through video conferences and phone calls in coordinating responses to COVID-19. In particular, he has underlined the need to allow the flow of business exchanges despite the entry bans imposed by countries worldwide. Tokyo recently expanded its entry ban on all travelers arriving from Korea.



The South Korean leader is expected to renew his call for allowing essential travel which he made during a first-ever virtual meeting of the G20 leaders, March 26. "In order to minimize COVID-19's negative repercussions on the global economy, it is vital that countries maintain the flow of essential economic exchanges," Moon said. "To that end, to the extent that we do not undermine any one country's efforts at disease control, I propose that we seek ways to allow for the travel of essential persons such as scientists, medical professionals and business leaders.



Moon has also been engaging actively in bilateral diplomacy with leaders from various parts of the world to discuss cooperation on dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.



"The frequent calls from leaders reflect the need for global solidarity on responding to the coronavirus. Also, many countries have been asking for Korea to share its know-how on quarantining, diagnosis and medical equipment," the presidential office said. According to Cheong Wa Dae, 90 countries have requested diagnostic kits, either as exports or aid, through diplomatic channels.



Moon talked on the phone with Colombian President Ivan Duque Marque, Thursday, the 14th leader to call him regarding cooperation related to fighting COVID-19.



The President has also spoken on the phone with U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jingping.


RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, recently made the following statement on Twitter: "This is what 'Health for All' means! Thank you so much, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, for your leadership and commitment to ensuring that everyone has access to the health services needed to fight COVID-19. I hope other countries will follow your lead! Solidarity!"

The WHO top official also addressed Saudi Arabia's leadership of the G20 Virtual Summit, which was hosted recently by the Kingdom. "Shukran jazeelan (thank you very much), Your Majesty King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and the G20 leaders for your commitment to keeping your nations safe, and also for showing your solidarity with vulnerable countries that need your support now more than ever. Together, we can push back the effects of novel Coronavirus."

On 29 March 2020, and in response to an urgent appeal from the WHO, King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) signed an agreement giving WHO an amount of USD 10 million for urgent action needed to minimize the spread of COVID-19 and support countries with vulnerable health infrastructures. WHO Country Representative for Saudi Arabia, Dr. Ibrahim El Ziq, stated that, "the ten million dollars provided by Saudi Arabia will contribute to the implementation of the COVID-19 National Health Plan."

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia commits considerable resources to helping to alleviate the suffering of people in need globally. As the Kingdom's humanitarian representative, KSrelief continues to work in cooperation with United Nations agencies and other leading humanitarian organizations to safeguard public health and address a wide range of global humanitarian issues.

SOURCE The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre
Tottenham Hotspur's South Korean striker Son Heung-min will report to a marines boot camp later this month to fulfil military service duties, a report said Thursday.

All able-bodied South Korean men are obliged to serve in the military for nearly two years, making up the bulk of Seoul's 600,000-strong forces -- who face off against North Korea's army of 1.3 million.

But Son was spared a career-threatening stint as a conscript when South Korea took gold at the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia, earning the team an exemption.

The Spurs star broke down in tears of joy after the 2-1 extra-time win over Japan, which meant he could fulfil his obligations with just three weeks' basic training and around 500 hours of community service.

The 27-year-old's Premier League season ended even before the coronavirus outbreak spread to Europe when he broke his arm against Aston Villa on February 16, and Spurs said he returned to South Korea for "personal reasons".

Son will report to a marines boot camp on the island of Jeju on April 20 for his basic training, an industry source told the South's Yonhap agency.

He posted images online Wednesday of himself exercising on what appeared to be a large balcony, skipping and stretching.

The Premier League is postponed until at least April 30 because of the pandemic and is likely to be delayed even longer when the English game's stakeholders meet on Friday.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 50-year-old woman died of Covid-19 at Sassoon General Hospital on Thursday, taking the number of coronavirus deaths in the city to two.

According to the health department, the victim did not have any travel history or had come in contact with any positive patient. She died while undergoing treatment for respiratory issues and her source of infection is being traced.

Dr Ajay Chandanwale, dean, Sassoon General Hospital, said, She was admitted yesterday [Wednesday] and put on ventilator for respiratory support and declared dead at around 8 pm. She appears to be a case of community transmission since she did not have any foreign travel history or known to have come in contact with any positive patient.

The number of Covid-19 positive cases reported in Pune on Thursday was seven, taking the tally to 46.

Shekhar Gaikwad, Pune municipal commissioner, said, Out of the seven new patients tested positive in Pune on Thursday, three had gone to New Delhi to attend the Tablighi Jamaat congregation and other four are the first contacts of the former.
Countless thinkpieces on COVID-19 mass hysteria have emerged in the past several weeks, all decrying the media for whipping up an unjustifiable panic. Supporters of President Trumps denialist approach to the pandemic frequently take this stance, arguing that overhyping the disease is a political ploy to harm his re-election bid.

Trump friend and pardonee Conrad Black lamented last week that the world [has] succumbed to a pandemic of hysteria, more than a virus, calling the U.S. a hero-nation of public policy in its COVID-19 response. The h word appears in other places too, with Brazils President Bolsonaro condemning the recent lockdown of Sao Paulo as a hysterical overreaction to a little flu.

Trumps hostility to the media is well known, and journalists are a convenient scapegoat for rising public fear. But blaming the media ignores the fact that health experts have been sounding an urgent alarm on COVID-19 for months. By and large, the media have simply reported on the widespread concerns of front line health workers, infectious disease scientists and public health experts. Smearing the media is a common tactic in these days of fake news and alternative facts, but there is virtually no one in health care who doesnt agree COVID-19 is a major global threat.

War metaphors have abounded, with many health workers feeling like were being called to the front lines of a new global battle. In New York City, the exploding new epicentre, accounts of intubating ones own colleagues and saying goodbye to friends and mentors read like letters from the trenches of the Great War. But do we ever call soldiers stories from the front hysterical? Would we dismiss a military generals concerns about war preparations as inciting mass hysteria? Health experts deserve the same level of respect accorded to military experts on the eve of war.

Lets not forget what the underlying connotation of hysteria is. The word was once a medical diagnosis bestowed upon troublesome women. Its root is hystera, Greek for uterus, because women behaving badly or expressing psychological distress were thought to be ill from a malfunctioning uterus. While the word hysterical no longer has medical meaning, it lingers as a colloquial insult lobbed primarily at women who are too loud or too passionate for other peoples comfort.

Is it a coincidence that this term is being used to downplay a health crisis? According to the WHO, women make up 67 per cent of the global health workforce. Amongst the nurses who start IVs and the respiratory therapists who manage ventilators, female representation is overwhelming: 70 to 90 per cent depending on where you are.

There is certainly no doubt that men are a vitally important part of health care. However, when women are predominately the front line workers facing the brunt of this pandemic, we must be critical of how accusations of hysteria are used to dismiss health experts.

Despite the frequency with which the term mass hysteria is thrown around, few commentators actually use it correctly. What they really mean to say is social panic, a population-wide flare of anxiety rooted in fear.

Storming the grocery store to buy up all the toilet paper is a social panic. Mass hysteria, on the other hand, is defined as a collective outbreak of psychogenic illness, which is when a person feels the symptoms of a disease but doesnt show actual evidence of that disease.

An example is the phenomenon of koro, a collective panic over disappearing genitals. A famous penis panic occurred in Singapore in 1967, with hundreds of men seeking medical care for shrinking penises. Several waves of koro swept through West Africa in the 1990s-2000s, as people became convinced of supernatural theft of their genitals.

In Canada, the calm, confident voices of female public health officials like Dr. Theresa Tam, Dr. Bonnie Henry and Dr. Deena Hinshaw have been a reassuring balm of facts and evidence for a fearful public. Theres no hysteria, just a rational communication of concerns rooted in epidemiological science and case reports from health workers worldwide.

Continuing to smear health experts and journalists as inciters of hysteria not only ignores the measured, fact-based messaging thats being delivered, it denigrates the labour and sacrifice of doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, paramedics and many others. If it seems disrespectful to tar a soldier with this sexist insult, then the term is equally out of place in this pandemic and must be dropped.
Prince Harry is said to be struggling with feelings of helplessness after discovering Prince Charles tested positive for coronavirus, a source claims.

The Duke of Sussex, 35, who officially stepped down as a senior royal this week as he strives to give 11-month-old son Archie, and his wife Meghan Markle, 38, a more private life in LA out of the spotlight, is said to have had an emotional phonecall with his father, 71.

According to an insider the father-of-one feels 'helpless', and is trying to keep regular contact with Charles and the Queen, but the time difference is making it difficult.

Prince Harry, seen with Meghan at Westminster Abbey last month, is said to be struggling with feelings of helplessness after discovering Prince Charles tested positive for coronavirus, a source claims

Charles reportedly tried to calm Harry down bY explaining that he is only suffering from 'mild symptoms', but the diagnosis is said to have been a 'huge wake-up call'.

A source told Us Weekly: 'Despite their ups and downs, hearing that his dad is sick with a potentially life-threatening illness is a huge wake-up call. And he's overwhelmed with feelings of guilt for not being closer to home while this is all going on.

'During the heart-wrenching call, he confessed to feeling beyond helpless, being over 5,000 miles away in L.A.,'

According to an insider the father-of-one feels 'helpless', and is trying to keep regular contact with Charles and the Queen, seen at the Commonwealth Service in March, but the time difference is making it difficult

'Charles tried to calm Harry down by saying he's OK and that he's only suffering from mild symptoms, which slightly helped put his mind at ease but he's [Harry] still worried. Harry's admitted it's hit home that Charles and the Queen aren't going to be around forever.'

According to the source the royals are trying to 'rally together' amid the pandemic, but are struggling due to the physical distancing rule.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have reportedly left Canada for good to set up a permanent home in Los Angeles - and it's likely affluent Malibu is top of their list.

Last week a royal insider claimed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex decided to leave Vancouver Island - where they have been staying since announcing they were stepping down as senior royals in January - amid fears the US-Canada border could close due to coronavirus.

The Sussexes want to be close to Meghan's friends and mother Doria, the source told The Sun.

They are now believed to be in lockdown in the Hollywood area with 11-month-old baby Archie.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has accused China, Iran, and Russia of conducting disinformation campaigns n connection with the coronavirus pandemic, saying that they want to cause confusion about its origin, Voice of America reported. COVID-19 has been first reported from Wuhan, a large city in the central province of Hubei, China.

Bats are thought to have been the source of the virus, but propagandists from countries such as China, Iran, and Russia are promoting pandemic conspiracy theories, the source noted adding that for example, it is claimed that COVID-19 was created and distributed around the world by the US military.

According to Pompeo, not only Iran and Russia but also China and others are trying to offer their interpretations.

His remarks came during Pompeo told reporters during a telephone roundtable, according to a transcript published by the State Department on Wednesday.

The interpretations are different, but each of them has the same component. It consists of trying to avoid responsibility and cause confusion in the world - confusion about the origin of the virus, confusion about how different countries react to it, and which countries really provide assistance around the world, the Secretary of State added.

It seems important to us that these interpretations be adjusted. President Trump has clearly put everything in place with regard to part of this misinformation, and we are also trying to do this work, he added.

In an interview with Fox News this week, President Donald Trump was asked to comment on recent posts in the Washington Post that said China, Iran, and Russia have accused the US of provoking the epidemic and criticizing its efforts to combat it.

In turn, Trump criticized the Washington Post.

Meanwhile, the State Department announced on Wednesday that following a phone talk between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, the United States agreed to purchase the medical supplies they need from Russia, including fans and personal protective equipment.

The statement said the supplies were handed over to representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in New York on April 1.
I understand the feelings of those disappointed with me, but the reality scenario, which is more challenging than the House of Cards, forced me to do it my way. And if this is the end to my political career but I get to serve the State of Israel well, then I have accomplished something! These were the final words of a personal message that Blue and White leader Benny Gantz sent April 1 to the many members of his WhatsApp group who have been walking around for days with a sense of shock and rage, mourning his decision to join Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a power-sharing government.

Gantz wrote that while he understood his voters disappointment and anger, the option of forming a minority government was not viable and his former partner in the Blue and White leadership, Yair Lapid, was wrong in refusing to realize this. The left-wing political camp rebuffed his explanations with contempt, having crowned him as its savior, a clone of assassinated Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin who would restore the center left to power and to its glory days and finally bring down Netanyahu.

The Israeli left is at a low historic ebb and has been virtually wiped out. Not only has Gantz hooked up with Netanyahu, but Labor party Chair Amir Peretz is also on his way. Both violated explicit pledges to their voters not to join Netanyahu, but in Peretzs case, the implication is even more significant. Gantz never portrayed himself as a left-wing ideologue but rather as a political centrist who even tried to appeal to moderate right-wing voters when he started out in politics in late 2018. Peretz, on the other hand, was the oracle of the camp, a veteran politician whose agenda most clearly reflected a social-democratic worldview. A year ago, Peretz promised to restore Labor to power. Instead, he brought the party to its worst-ever, most embarrassing performance in the September 2019 and the March 2020 elections. The party, which established the State of Israel and governed it for its first three decades, is now left with a mere three representatives in the Knesset, a near fatal blow to the Israeli left.

However, the anger at Gantz and to a great extent at Peretz is divorced from Israels political reality. Neither one of them could have restored the center left to power for the simple reason that this camp lacks sufficient followers in the Israel of 2020. That is why, when he entered political life some 18 months ago, Gantz did not present himself as the leader of the center-left camp. The calling card of the former military leader was as a political centrist with an inclination toward the moderate right. Gantz sets his sights on the light right, knowing that his way to the premiership would have to go through that constituency. He tried to attract the support of Likud party followers fed up with Netanyahu, and even of settlers, but found out over and over throughout three election cycles that these voters were not rallying to his side.

That did not stop left-wing voters and ideologues and leaders of their fast-sinking camp from getting their hopes up and seeing him as a clone of Rabin, the Labor party head who led his camp to a dizzying victory over the Likud in 1992. They refused to face the clear and unambiguous fact that Netanyahu, despite his criminal indictment for corruption, was and remains the unchallenged leader of the Likud and the large right-wing and ultra-Orthodox bloc. Their blindness lasted through three elections and reached its peak after the March 2 elections that gave the Anyone but Netanyahu camp a slight advantage of 61 Knesset seats vis-a-vis Netanyahus solid 58 (Orly Levy-Abekasis, who was originally part of the first camp, decided to switch sides after the elections).

The new camp brought together a strange grouping that consisted of the hard-line chair of the Yisrael Beitenu party, Avigdor Liberman, along with the left-wing Meretz Party and the Arab Joint List, and inflated the sails of the left with winds of an illusory victory. Libermans outspoken views about the leaders of Israels Arab minority are well known to anyone living in Israel for the past decade. He has repeatedly consigned Arab legislators to service in the Palestinian parliament in Ramallah and tarred them as a fifth column and terror supporters.

Similarly, Liberman also slandered Meretz leadership, ignoring its position as a veteran left-wing Zionist party. The left, however, once again engaged in unfounded sinful arrogance, ignoring the fact that Blue and White included distinctly right-wing Knesset members who, with all due respect to the Anyone but Netanyahu agenda, are more loyal to the right-wing ideology and are unwilling to support a government backed by Arab parties.

To Gantzs credit, he realized that this eclectic, anti-Netanyahu grouping was doomed to failure and that a minority government backed by the Arab Joint List was not a viable option because it had too many opponents even in his own camp (such as Levy-Abekasis). His hookup with Netanyahu proves that he is a political realist and pragmatist. On the other hand, the furious reaction on the part of some of his voters proves that the left, too, viewed him as nothing but a tool for Netanyahus removal. Had they regarded him as their leader, they would not have turned on him overnight and dubbed him a traitor.

Gantz realized that a coalition consisting of Liberman, the Joint List and Meretz was skewed and unnatural. What is more, presenting Liberman as a member of the center left is a travesty of the truth. Many of his veteran voters define themselves as staunch right-wingers and would like to see Netanyahu as prime minister.

Leaders of the left and their supporters must abandon the illusion to which they have held on for over two decades that their return to power is imminent. If they want to remain viable, they must confront reality. The last time a left-wing leader was elected prime minister was 1999 when Labor party leader Ehud Barak beat Netanyahu in a knockout, but Israel was a different state then. The division between the political left and right was a clear expression of ideological camps  advocates of negotiations with the Palestinians, and opponents. Years later, and definitely in the time of the coronavirus, most Israelis do not care about negotiations with the Palestinians having had their fill of disappointments and experienced two harsh intifadas.

This might be the final call for the Israeli left to recognize reality. It must stop placing its hopes in external leaders not committed to its agenda and rebuild on its own, recognizing that this is the only way to recovery and possibly restoring itself one day as a political alternative.
Japanese electric motor company Nidec is to acquire Secops Delta hermetic refrigeration compressor production line, part of the business it was forced to sell last year.

Nidec has signed a definitive agreement with Secop Austria GmbH to acquire the Delta production line from Secop through its sub-subsidiary Nidec Global Appliance Italy Srl and its Austrian company.

Nidec acquired Secop for 185m in 2017. The former Danfoss Compressors GmbH business was renamed Secop when it was acquired by German industrial holdings company Aurelius in 2010. Nidec was forced to sell Secop last year as part of the conditions imposed by the European Commission flowing its acquisition of compressor manufacturer Embraco.

When Secop Austrias new owners announced in October that it would discontinue manufacturing of compressors for household refrigeration appliances in Furstenfeld, Nidec stepped in.

With this transaction, Nidec and Secop aim to preserve as many jobs as possible at the site in Furstenfeld, Austria. Nidec will take over approximately 40 employees for the production of household refrigeration compressors on the Delta line and has already retained 47 employees for the production of motors for washing machines and dish washers.

In addition, Secop will retain and strengthen its group headquarter in the Furstenfeld area and retain in excess of 80 employees. In total, more than 170 of the current 300 jobs at the Furstenfeld site will be saved.

Secop will transfer its second Austrian production line for the production of Kappa refrigeration compressors, which was not for sale, to its European production facility in Zlate Moravce, Slovakia.

Nidec says it has been in close communication with the European Commission with regard to the proposed acquisition. Closing of the Transaction is conditional on approval by the European Commission which Nidec expects shortly.
Manlius, N.Y.  An employee at the Tops supermarket in Manlius who tested positive for the coronavirus may have had contact with customers, the county health department announced Thursday.

The public announcement means that theres a gap in the countys investigation into the case, with worry that members of the public could have been exposed. (On the other hand, an employee at the DeWitt Wegmans who tested positive for the virus was not considered a public threat by county officials.)

People who visited the 119 W. Seneca St. store between these hours may have been exposed:

Thursday, March 26, 6 a.m. and 1:10 p.m.

Friday, March 27, 6:00 a.m. and 11 a.m.

Some of those hours included times set aside for elderly and vulnerable populations. The store has since been deep-cleaned, the health department said.

Anyone who visited the market during the identified time periods should monitor themselves for symptoms of COVID-19 such as fever, cough, and/or difficulty breathing for 14 days after they visited the store, Onondaga County Health Commissioner Dr. Indu Gupta said. "If symptoms do develop, stay home and call your doctor for further guidance about testing. If you are elderly, have underlying medical conditions, or are immunocompromised, call your doctor early even if your illness is mild. In an emergency, call 911.

MORE ON CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus in NY: Cases, maps, charts and resources

New York City hospitals begin transferring patients to Upstate NY (report)

Medical exams in a parking lot: Family doctors fight on coronaviruss frontlines and worry about the homefront

Syracuse hospital to furlough workers amid coronavirus surge

Onondaga Co. coronavirus: Worst cases double in 2 days, total hospitalized down; 277 total cases

Staff writer Douglass Dowty can be reached at ddowty@syracuse.com or 315-470-6070.
Read what is in the news today.

Society

-- Vietnam confirmed four new novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients, all Vietnamese nationals, on early Thursday morning, including three imported cases and one infection traced to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi, bringing the national tally to 222.

-- Police in the central province of Quang Ngai on Wednesday evening arrested two robbers only a couple of hours after they had robbed a bank of VND160.5 million (US$6,807) in the neighboring province of Quang Nam.

-- Traffic inspectors are setting up checkpoints at seven entrances to Ho Chi Minh City from the neighboring provinces of Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Long An and Tay Ninh to look out for four-wheeled commercial passenger vehicles, which have been banned amid the nationwide implementation of social distancing over COVID-19.

-- The American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Vietnam donated 250,000 medical masks to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health on Wednesday.

-- Hue Central Hospital in the central province of Thua Thien - Hue on Wednesday determined that a woman from north-central Quang Binh Province had died because of septic shock after returning to Vietnam from Laos through Cha Lo International Border Gate. Her test result also turned out negative for COVID-19.

-- Vietnams Natural Resources and Environment Minister Tran Hong Ha on Wednesday decided to give VND800 million ($33,904) from the Environmental Protection Fund in support to each of the five provinces in the Mekong Delta region that have declared a state of emergency due to drought and saline intrusion, including Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Kien Giang, and Ca Mau.

Business

-- Vietnams Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc told a monthly government meeting in Hanoi on Wednesday afternoon that he wants the fiscal stimulus package to revive the countrys economy, which has been hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic, to be increased from VND30 trillion ($1.27 billion) to VND150 trillion ($6.36 billion).

-- More than 1,500 flight attendants of Vietnam Airlines have agreed to take unpaid leave as the national flag carrier looks to curb costs amid COVID-19 pandemic.

World News

-- The novel coronavirus has infected over 934,200 people and killed nearly 47,000 globally, according to Ministry of Health statistics. More than 193,800 cases have recovered worldwide.

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Following the arrival in New York City of the U.S. Naval hospital ship Comfort, NY State Governor Andrew Cuomo is seen during a press conference at the field hospital site at the Javits Center. Albin Lohr-Jones | Pacific Press | Getty Images

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Thursday a coronavirus outbreak in Long Island is "troubling" as the infection has now spread to every county across the state, surging to 92,381 with 2,373 deaths. At his daily news conference in Albany, Cuomo said it was the "cruelest irony" that China, where the pandemic began, is the leading producer of critically needed personal protective equipment. He also said the state would provide assistance to businesses manufacturing personal protective gear if possible  face masks, medical gowns, face shields and gloves. "I'm doing everything I can, but people are still dying and that is hurtful and humbling and painful. Just painful," Cuomo said. "And this is a long time to be under that level of pain. What do you look like when you come out the other side, I don't know. Cuomo said the COVID-19 outbreak isn't just hitting urban areas. The coronavirus has spread across the state, including in rural communities where there are "more cows than people," Cuomo said. "It's suburban areas. That's Westchester, Nassau and Suffolk. ... In many ways New York state is a microcosm of the United States." He said Nassau County has 1,000 new cases while Suffolk County  home to the Hamptons  has 1,141 new cases. "That is troubling news."

He pleaded with local hospitals to not hoard supplies. "We are asking all the hospitals to contribute what they have to that central stockpile and then we will distribute on a needed basis," he said. The state is now predicting it will hit a peak of coronavirus cases in seven to 30 days, and it still doesn't have enough ventilators to meet the coming wave of seriously ill COVID-19 patients, he said. "At the current burn rate, we have about six days of ventilators in our stockpile," Cuomo said. "They are very expensive and the state is broke, so I have no desire to buy more ventilators than we need." At the same time, ventilators can mean the difference between life and death. "If a person comes in and needs a ventilator and you don't have a ventilator, the person dies. That's the blunt equation here," Cuomo said. Cuomo said doctors and nurses in hospitals upstate have been shifted to New York City and other areas that are getting hit the hardest. In addition, 21,000 out-of-state health-care workers have volunteered to come to New York, he said. "I thank their patriotism ... These are beautiful, generous people and New Yorkers will return the favor.."

Cuomo's 49-year-old brother, Chris Cuomo, a CNN anchor who tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this week, appeared at the press conference via video. The two have developed a loyal fan base after their competitive and playful family rivalry was showcased on Chris Cuomo's show "Cuomo Prime Time." "You look good. You sound good. I know sometimes we joke. I'm not going to do that. Rule is you never hit a brother while he is down," the governor said, before ribbing his brother. "You have 'Cuomo Prime Time,' I have Cuomo all the time. That's the difference," the governor said, commenting on his brother's hat that had his show name stitched on the front. "It is a good-looking hat, and one hour a day. I work 23 hours a day. That's the mathematical balance."
Banners showing pictures of Lee Nak-yon of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, top, and Hwang Kyo-ahn of the main opposition United Future Party hang in a street in Seoul's Jongno District, Thursday, the first day of the official 13-day election campaign period designated by the National Election Commission. The political heavyweights are leading the liberal and conservative camps, respectively in the April 15 general election. Korea Times photo by Bae Woo-han



By Jung Da-min



The political parties officially kicked off their campaigns for the April 15 general election Thursday, the first day of the 13-day campaigning period designated by the National Election Commission.



Although the campaigns have been restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the parties are trying to increase their contact with voters as much as possible such as by using slogans to appeal to them.



The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is trying to turn favorable public opinion toward President Moon Jae-in over his handling of the pandemic into support for the ruling party. Its election slogan "Workers against COVID-19" reflects the party's attempt to convince voters that it can produce policies to overcome the coronavirus outbreak and reinvigorate the economy.



The main opposition United Future Party (UFP), on the other hand, is calling for the people to "judge the Moon government," saying current economic policies need a fundamental change in order to overcome the "real" crisis overshadowed by COVID-19.



The two major parties kicked off their campaigns at midnight. Lee Nak-yon, head of the DPK's election campaign committee, visited a market in Seoul's Jongro District constituency, where he is running as a candidate against UFP Chairman Hwang Kyo-ahn. Hwang held a ceremony in Gwanghwamun Square to launch his party's campaign.



"Overcoming the national crisis amid the coronavirus situation is the DPK's official election goal," Lee said.



Close advisors to President Moon, Yang Jung-chul, head of the DPK's Institute for Democracy think tank and Im Jong-seok, a former presidential chief of staff, also joined the campaign to help the party's candidates in the capital. The two visited the headquarters of Ko Min-jung, a former presidential spokeswoman who is running in Seoul's Gwangjin-B district against conservative heavyweight Oh Se-hoon, a former mayor of Seoul.



Assisting in the campaign against the DPK is co-head of the UFP election committee  alongside Hwang  Kim Chong-in, a veteran economist and politician well known for his career as a "king maker." He helped both President Moon and former President Park Geun-hye get elected.





Members of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and its satellite party, Civil Together, attend a joint ceremony to launch their campaigns for the April 15 general election at the National Assembly in Seoul, Thursday, the first day of the official campaigning period designated by the National Election Commission. The placard at the back reads, "We protect people," as the ruling bloc emphasizes that it can work better with the government in the national fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Yonhap



"The April 15 general election is a time for the people to judge the three years of maladministration by the Moon Jae-in government," Hwang said. "I ask the people to gather support for the main opposition, if they feel their three-year experience under the Moon government is not right."



Kim visited Seoul's Dongdaemun to meet merchants there and ask them to "judge" the Moon government on its "poor" economic policies. He was accompanied by the leader of the UFP satellite Future Korea Party, Rep. Won Yoo-chul, a five-term lawmaker and "former member" of the main opposition party.



The DPK also staged joint campaigns with its Civil Together satellite party, a minor party created by pro-Moon civic groups and several minor parties. Both the ruling DPK and the UFP created satellite parties earlier this year to try and win more proportional representation seats under the new electoral system designed to boost representation for minor parties.





Members of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and its satellite party, Civil Together, attend a joint ceremony to launch their campaigns for the April 15 general election at the National Assembly in Seoul, Thursday, the first day of the official campaigning period designated by the National Election Commission. The placard at the back reads, "We protect people," as the ruling bloc emphasizes that it can work better with the government in the national fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Yonhap
I think being able to look at them side by side adds more color to the problem. It gives us a better understanding of what might happen, he said on a conference call Thursday with reporters. The difference is really borne out by the fact that were still very early in the disease, and we dont have a lot of data on how well our interventions are working.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 19:23:29|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China and more than 230 political parties from over 100 countries issued a joint open letter Thursday, calling for carrying out closer international cooperation to beat COVID-19.

This is the first joint appeal of major world political parties for strengthening international cooperation since the COVID-19 outbreak.

The following is the full text of the joint open letter.

A JOINT OPEN LETTER FROM WORLD POLITICAL PARTIES CONCERNING CLOSER INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AGAINST COVID-19

Today, as COVID-19 is spreading rapidly across the globe, it constitutes the most urgent and serious challenge to both the health of the humanity and world peace and development.

Faced with this unprecedented situation, we, major political parties of various countries tasked with the weighty responsibility of improving people's wellbeing, promoting national development and safeguarding world peace and stability, hereby issue our joint appeal as follows:

I. We pay our loftiest tribute to all the people, health workers in particular, who devote themselves to saving lives and protecting people's health. We extend our heartfelt sympathies and solicitude to those who are suffering from pain and whose lives are under the threat of COVID-19 as well as the bereaved families of those deceased. We also express our deep mourning for the unfortunate loss of lives in the outbreak.

II. We recognise that if the COVID-19 outbreak is not effectively and promptly contained, it will inflict even greater harm to the lives, safety and health of many more people, and exert a severe impact on the economic and social development of most countries as well as on international exchanges and cooperation. We call on all countries to put the lives, safety and health of the people above everything else and take resolute and forceful measures to put an end to the spread of COVID-19.

III. We support countries to put in place contingency plans and strategies for combating COVID-19 in light of their specific national conditions and to strengthen cooperation, with equal emphasis on containing the further spread and on patient treatment. Meanwhile, modern science and technology must be applied to the full to ensure the quickest and best possible results.

IV. We call on the general public of all countries to comply with prevention and mitigation measures with a due sense of social responsibility. We encourage countries to fully leverage the strength of civil society organisations and volunteers with a view to unleashing the power of all social sectors to combat COVID-19.

V. We encourage all countries, while devoting efforts to epidemic control, to adopt an integrated approach to ensure economic and social development, take targeted measures to protect vulnerable groups and the SMEs, and honour their commitment to people's living standards and social progress. We call on all countries to step up the international coordination of macroeconomic policies to maintain stability of global financial market as well as that of industrial and supply chains, and to reduce or exempt tariffs for trade facilitation so as to prevent world economic recession. Countries are also encouraged to maintain an appropriate level of international exchanges, in particular to facilitate the cross-border transportation of urgently needed medical equipment and protective materials for the fight against COVID-19.

VI. We are aware that the virus respects no borders, and no country can respond to the challenges alone in the face of the outbreak. Countries must enhance their consciousness of a community with a shared future for mankind, proactively rendering mutual help and support to one another as the situation becomes more difficult. Closer international cooperation, coordinated policies, concerted actions, and mobilisation of resources and forces globally will enable us to defeat this virus, a common enemy to all of humanity.

VII. We take note of the significant progress in the fight against COVID-19 in China and some other countries, which has bought time and offered experience to the rest of the international community. We highly commend countries including China for adopting an open, transparent and responsible attitude to disclosing related information in a timely fashion, sharing experience on response and patient treatment, and in particular providing medical and other supplies to the best of their ability to other affected countries. These represent a major contribution to the global fight against COVID-19, boosting the hope and confidence of countries that they can win this battle.

VIII. We welcome the Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit Statement on COVID-19 and support countries to strengthen the sharing of experience and medical cooperation in containing the outbreak, including joint research and development of specific medicines, vaccines and tests. We call on the provision of material, technical and other support to developing countries and countries with vulnerable public health systems. Let the sunlight of cooperation disperse the darkness of the pandemic.

IX. We call for science-based professional discussions on issues like prevention measures and the origin of the virus. We strongly oppose the politicization of public health issues and the stigmatisation of other countries under the excuse of COVID-19. We stand firmly against all discriminatory comments and practices against any country, region or ethnic group, and call on governments of all countries to take proactive measures to protect the health, safety and legitimate interests of foreign nationals and students they host.

X. We are of the view that the COVID-19 outbreak has laid bare the need for all countries to further foster the global governance outlook of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration and to support the leading role of the United Nations and the World Health Organisation in global public health governance. We call for all parties to enhance coordination and cooperation within the framework of the G20 and other international mechanisms for effective international prevention and control as we strive to build a global community with a shared future for public health.

As major political parties from countries of the world, we undertake to maintain close communication under the unusual circumstances, and ensure better performance of the due role of political guidance for the purpose of injecting political energy into the global fight against COVID-19. We firmly believe that our current difficulties are only temporary, just as the sunlight shall eventually shine after each storm. If the international community makes concerted efforts with confidence and resolve and takes a science-based and targeted approach, it will definitely win the final victory in the all-out global war against COVID-19. It is our belief that, after the pandemic, the community with a shared future for mankind will emerge stronger and humanity will embrace a brighter tomorrow.
The corporate regulator has been urged to caution landlords and property managers against encouraging tenants to dip into their superannuation to cover rent.

Shadow assistant treasurer Stephen Jones wrote to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission this week raising concerns about "unqualified financial advice" being given by real estate agents to tenants who are struggling to pay.

Tensions over unpaid rent are rising, with some property managers suggesting tenants chip in with their superannuation. Credit:Jim Rice

In the letter to ASIC commissioner James Shipton, seen by The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, Mr Jones pointed to media reports of real estate agents advising tenants to use the federal government's early superannuation access measures to keep up with their rent payments.

The scheme, which starts this month, allows people suffering financial hardship due to the coronavirus outbreak to withdraw up to $20,000 from their super if they've lost 20 per cent or more of their work. It has been criticised by super funds and Labor, which have described dipping into retirement funds as a "last resort" for the million Australians expected to lose their jobs by December.
The World Health Organization will reconsider its decision to tell healthy people not to wear face masks to protect themselves from the coronavirus.

A recent study found that coughs and sneezes can spread virus particles up to 27ft (8m) in a cloud around an infected patient.

The WHO currently does not recommend that people without the illness wear face masks because there is little evidence they help and they would be better used by healthcare workers and patients who test positive.

But it might be about to change its mind, according to a former infectious disease director at the organisation.

Professor David Heymann, now an in-house expert at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said the WHO was reopening its discussions about masks today.

He said officials could decide to advise people that masks are beneficial - but people would have to wear ones with a proper seal around the nose and wear them all the time.

Face masks are commonplace in East Asia - pictured, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and ministers around him are pictured wearing them yesterday

South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong have issued millions of masks to their people and managed to prevent full-scale outbreaks, despite being in such close proximity to China. Critics say masks don't work because China still suffered more than 80,000 cases

Not all masks are created equal: Single-use masks and surgical masks have larger pores which the coronavirus can easily slip through. A more expensive N95 mask is the gold standard for healthcare workers fighting infectious diseases

Professor Heymann said: 'There is right now a debate about the usefulness of masks because Hong Kong has provided some evidence that masks may be useful in protecting individuals from infection. It's not clear yet whether or not thats true.

'WHO, the group that I work with, is debating that with a group of experts around the world tomorrow, to understand whether there is evidence which would call for a change in what WHO is recommending now for masks.

'[What is recommends] is that they really dont have a major role in protecting people from infection except in healthcare workers where they also wear eye protection and they also have a role from protecting others from coughs or sneezing.'

He added: 'But as the evidence becomes available, it seems there will be a debate trying to decide whether masks play a role at some point in the outbreak.

'And believe me, if they do, there is a private sector healthy enough to begin producing those masks in quantities necessary.'

He made the comments in a briefing at British think-tank Chatham House in London yesterday.

The WHO currently says healthy people only ought to wear a mask if they're looking after a COVID-19 patient, or if they are coughing and sneezing themselves.

The coronavirus is thought only to spread through close contact with others - defined as being within 6'6" (2m) of someone.

THE TRUTH ABOUT FACE MASKS: WHAT STUDIES HAVE SHOWN Research on how well various types of masks and face coverings varies but, recently, and in light of the pandemic of COVID-19, experts are increasingly leaning toward the notion that something is better than nothing. A University of Oxford study published on March 30 concluded that surgical masks are just as effective at preventing respiratory infections as N95 masks for doctors, nurses and other health care workers. It's too early for their to be reliable data on how well they prevent infection with COVID-19, but the study found the thinner, cheaper masks do work in flu outbreaks. The difference between surgical or face masks and N95 masks lies in the size of particles that can - and more importantly, can't - get though the materials. N95 respirators are made of thick, tightly woven and molded material that fits tightly over the face and can stop 95 percent of all airborne particles, while surgical masks are thinner, fit more loosely, and more porous. This makes surgical masks much more comfortable to breathe and work in, but less effective at stopping small particles from entering your mouth and nose. Droplets of saliva and mucous from coughs and sneezes are very small, and viral particles themselves are particularly tiny - in fact, they're about 20-times smaller than bacteria. For this reason, a JAMA study published this month still contended that people without symptoms should not wear surgical masks, because there is not proof the gear will protect them from infection - although they may keep people who are coughing and sneezing from infecting others. But the Oxford analysis of past studies- which has not yet been peer reviewed - found that surgical masks were worth wearing and didn't provide statistically less protection than N95 for health care workers around flu patients. However, any face mask is only as good as other health and hygiene practices. Experts universally agree that there's simply no replacement for thorough, frequent hand-washing for preventing disease transmission. Some think the masks may also help to 'train' people not to touch their faces, while others argue that the unfamiliar garment will just make people do it more, actually raising infection risks. If the CDC does instruct Americans to wear masks, it could create a second issue: Hospitals already face shortages of masks and other PPE. Advertisement

But a study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston found that infected patients can create a cloud of virus particles around them with coughs and sneezes.

This can stretch out up to 27ft (8m) and could carry enough of the virus to infect someone, the researchers said.

Droplets from people's lungs could also linger in the air and be blown about, they added.

The study - from one of the US's most prestigious universities and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) - was done in lab conditions rather than the real world.

But it could change the way health authorities look at protective equipment like masks, which are currently being stockpiled for health workers.

In France, for example, the government banned wholesalers from selling masks to the public so it could save them for medical staff.

Although scientists say the vast majority of masks do not have fine enough filters to stop viruses getting through, there is a growing school of thought that they could be useful.

Even if they don't stop viruses in their tracks they could redirect air flow which might be carrying them into people's mouths or noses.

A smaller initial dose of the virus has been linked to less severe symptoms in some coronavirus patients.

South Korea, Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong have issued millions of masks to the public and, thanks to strict public health measures, managed to prevent large outbreaks, despite being in such close proximity to China.

Professor Ian Jones, a virologist from the University of Reading, said the mass-issuing of masks 'should now be considered' in the UK.

Warning that the crisis is spiralling rapidly, he told MailOnline: 'Anything that reduces the rate of transmission will bring it under control sooner.'

Professor Jones told MailOnline: 'For me it's very simple, the epidemic is currently running [rampant] and anything that reduces the rate of transmission will bring it under control sooner.

'On the basis that correct mask use would do no harm and potentially some good it should be considered.'

Dr Stephen Griffin, associate professor of infection and immunity at the University of Leeds, said masks prevent people with no symptoms spreading the disease by catching tiny droplets they exhale.

He added: 'They are also useful for people that are themselves symptomatic in stopping coughs and sneezes.

'They also reduce the propensity for people to touch their faces, which happens many more times a day than we all realise and is a major source of infection without proper hand hygiene.'

George Gao, director-general of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, this week said the 'big mistake' in the US and Europe was that 'people aren't wearing masks'.

He told Science magazine: 'This virus is transmitted by droplets and close contact. Droplets play a very important role  you've got to wear a mask, because when you speak, there are always droplets coming out of your mouth.

'Many people have asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic infections. If they are wearing face masks, it can prevent droplets that carry the virus from escaping and infecting others.'
S tacey Solomon has admitted she "can't stop laughing" after finding her name mentioned in an Instagram post from Michelle Obama.

The Loose Women panellist is one of the nation's sweethearts, but it seems her reach extends far beyond the UK.

The former first lady posted a collection of notes praising healthcare workers on social media as the world grapples with the coronavirus pandemic.

The first one is from the child of an NHS nurse, who urged her mother to get some sleep, relax and let Stacy Solomon get you giggling. [sic]

It didn't take long for Solomon's pals and fans to tag her on the post and the 30-year-old admitted she couldn't stop laughing.

So many of you are tagging me in this," she wrote. Me and Joe [Swash] cant stop laughing that Im on Michelle Obamas grid.

Im 100% sure the queen has no idea who I am but it has made my day nonetheless.

'Can't stop laughing': Obama's post brought a smile to Solomon's face / Splash News

Solomon is a frequent Instagram user, sharing candid updates on the reality of family life with her three children, Zachary, Leighton and Rex.

Obama had shared the handwritten note to the nurse alongside a message urging people to let healthcare workers know if youre feeling grateful for their work.

From our medical providers and hospital staff to our grocery, transit and delivery workers, so many extraordinary people are putting their lives on the line to get us all through this moment, she said.

Lets take the opportunity to tell them and their families that we see their sacrifices and were behind them.
By Akbar Mammadov

The country marks the fourth anniversary of Azerbaijani armys victory in April 2016 clashes.

The April wars demonstrated the strength of our state and our army, the unity and patriotism of our people, President Ilham Aliyev wrote in a post on his official Facebook page.

April War, or a four-day war, started on April 2 when the frontline positions and settlements of Azerbaijan came under heavy artillery fire by the Armenian armed forces.

Six civilians were killed, including two children aged under 16, and 26 people were injured as a result of shelling of Azerbaijans settlements located along the line of contact by Armenia. Numerous public and private facilities, including civil infrastructure, were severely damaged as a result of the offensive, 232 houses, 99 power transmission line poles, three electric power substations, kilometers of water and gas pipes were destroyed.

The Armenian Armed Forces launched the guided-missiles at social institutions, including schools, hospitals and places of worship. Large-caliber artillery shells fell during the prayer service in one of the mosques.

The battles resulted in the victory of the Azerbaijani Army. Some positions in the direction of the heights around Talysh village of Tartar region, Lalatapa height of Jabrayil region and Jojug Marjanli, Gulustan village of Goranboy region and Madagiz village of Tartar region were liberated. Thus, the myth of criminal Armenian leaders about impassable Armenian trenches was destroyed.

Armenian armed forces suffered heavy losses in these battles. According to Azerbaijani Defense Ministrys information, more than 320 Armenian soldiers were killed and over 500 Armenian servicemen were wounded. About 30 tanks and other armored vehicles, more than 25 artillery pieces were destroyed, the headquarters and main military units in the Madagiz settlement were destroyed. Aghdara-Madagiz, Jabrayil roads in the direction of control was obtained.

On April 4, the Armenian army again attacked Azerbaijani positions on the frontline, mainly in the direction of Aghdara-Tartar and Khojavend-Fuzuli, in order to return the lost positions, and intensively fired on our settlements near the line of contact. Azerbaijans training units hit the headquarters of the enemy's military base in the strategically important settlement of Madagiz and the bus carrying Armenian volunteers.

During the operation, the reserve forces that the Armenian armed forces wanted to mobilize from Aghdara, Madagiz and other settlements were destroyed by the Azerbaijani units with preventive strikes.

Attacks on the adversarys firing points and artillery installations, as a result of appropriate measures taken by Azerbaijans reconnaissance teams, in the north around the Talish settlement, which could pose a threat to Goranboy region and Naftalan city, and in the south along the Horadiz city and Araz River to protect some villages of Jabrayil region from the adversarys threat and strategically important areas around it were liberated.

New positions were established and engineering and fortification measures were carried out in the territories liberated by the Azerbaijani units.

After the April clashes, in May, the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan met in Vienna with the participation of officials from the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairing countries, and on June 20, trilateral talks were held in St. Petersburg with the participation of the Russian president. During the meetings, an agreement was reached on strengthening confidence-building measures in the conflict zone, establishing mechanisms to investigate incidents, and expanding the office of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office.

In fact, it is no secret why Armenia provokes the front every time: the criminal regime constantly aggravates the situation on the front on the eve of negotiations on the settlement of the conflict, thereby trying to divert the minds of its people from the socio-political and socio-economic crisis.

Azerbaijan mutually agreed to suspend military operations, thus demonstrating once again its preference for a peaceful solution to the conflict.

The April battles showed the strength of the Azerbaijani Army and its readiness in case of the resumption of a war.

Azerbaijan and Armenia are locked in a conflict over Azerbaijans Nagorno-Karabakh breakaway region, which along with seven adjacent regions was occupied by Armenian forces in a war in the early 1990s. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and around one million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.

The OSCE Minsk Group co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France has been mediating the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict since the signing of the volatile cease-fire agreement in 1994. The Minsk Groups efforts have resulted in no progress and to this date, Armenia has failed to abide by the UN Security Council resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884) that demand the withdrawal of Armenian military forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

--

Akbar Mammadov is AzerNews staff journalist, follow him on Twitter: @AkbarMammadov97

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
WASHINGTON  After the House passed a $2 trillion emergency aid package to help Americans reeling from the coronavirus last week, one of their colleagues back home announced he had tested positive for the potentially deadly disease.

A few hours later, another disclosed he, too, had contracted COVID-19. Three days later, there was a third.

The growing group of lawmakers who have contracted the virus  now at six  has underscored the dangerous predicament that Congress has found itself in as lawmakers aim to keep themselves healthy while working on vital legislation to keep families and businesses afloat across the country.

As Congress begins to discuss a possible fourth piece of legislation to tackle the impacts of the coronavirus, here is what lawmakers face and how they're attempting to maneuver around the virus.

Coronavirus live updates: CDC reviewing face mask policy; Prince Charles feeling better; US death toll tops 4,000

Six members of Congress with coronavirus diagnosis

As of Thursday, at least six members of Congress have tested positive for the coronavirus: one U.S. Senator and five members of the House of Representatives.

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.

Rep. Joe Cunningham, D-S.C.

Rep. Mike Kelly, D-Pa.

Rep. Nydia Valazquez, D-N.Y.

Rep. Ben McAdams, D-Utah

Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla.

More than two dozen have gone into self-quarantine after potentially interacting with someone who tested positive. Others have also done so after being in close contact with the lawmakers who tested positive. At least two congressional staff members have tested positive as well.

Valazquez, Kelly and Cunningham announced their diagnoses after Friday's historic vote on the $2 trillion coronavirus bill. Kelly and Cunningham did not travel to Washington for the vote. Valazquez, who said she started to notice symptoms the Sunday after, did go to D.C. where she spoke on the House floor and attended a signing ceremony with House leadership, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Story continues

In a Tuesday interview with MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Pelosi said she "kept my distance from all of the members" at the signing ceremony,

McAdams had been admitted to the hospital after experiencing severe shortness of breath.

He told the Salt Lake Tribune the experience "felt awful like I was hit by a truck."

More: Which members of Congress have tested positive for COVID-19?

Aging Congress increases risks

Congress has been put in an even more dangerous predicament because many members are in the age group at high risk of getting severely ill or dying from the coronavirus: those 65 years and older.

About half of the 100-member Senate is 65 or older and, in the House, 146 of its members are above that age.

The average age of a member of the House is 58, and 63 in the Senate.

The older pack of lawmakers also includes its leaders, who have played a key role in quickly passing coronavirus legislation. Pelosi turned 80 this week and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is 78.

Convening Congress also stands in opposition to the Trump administration's social distancing guidelines that recommend against coming together in gatherings of more than 10 people. There are normally 535 total members of the House and Senate, and many more staff members coming in and out of the Capitol.

Anxious lawmakers push for remote voting

The spike in coronavirus cases across the U.S. also led to the rise in demands that Congress be allowed to vote remotely.

"Its time for us to have this conversation about how to protect members and their families, staff and their families, in the way that we vote on the floor of the Senate when were facing a public health crisis such as the one that we have at this moment," said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., one of the leading voices demanding that lawmakers be allowed to vote remotely.

More: Tradition-bound Congress considers voting remotely as coronavirus illnesses hit home

Pelosi commissioned House Rules Committee Chairman Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., to research the possibility. McGovern sent out a report outlining the issues with voting remotely but offered the option of voting by proxy, something that would require a change in the House's rules and a vote of approval.

But both Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have rejected the idea of voting remotely. Pelosi on a Tuesday conference call with reporters knocked down the idea again, explaining that it's something that could be considered "way down the road" if warranted.

"Lets not waste too much time on something thats not going to happen," she said.

When will Congress come back? TBD

The House and Senate are on a recess without a definitive end date. Both chambers had a prescheduled break that would end April 20 but the coronavirus has left that up in the air.

There is also still a chance that Congress could be called back earlier if another coronavirus relief package is needed, but congressional leaders have indicated they believe the end of April would likely be the next time legislation is needed.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer penned a letter to fellow Democrats on Tuesday indicating that everything is in flux due to the virus.

"We will listen to the advice from medical experts as to when we can proceed with the business of Congress in Washington, so it is not possible to give a definitive return date," he wrote.

Many lawmakers had trouble returning to Washington last week because of scarce flight availability, a hurdle that could worsen over time should the virus persist.

Headed to DC to vote on #coronavirus bill. Plane is pretty empty. Pray for America and our frontline workers. pic.twitter.com/Mw3SQFKEnX  Grace Meng (@Grace4NY) March 27, 2020

Maintaining a safe (and clean) Capitol

In mid-March, after the first two members of Congress were diagnosed with the coronavirus, Attending Physician of the United States Congress Brian P. Monahan issued new guidance for members of Congress, and said offices and locations at risk were cleaned using "CDC approved cleaning methods to ensure there is no residual risk to others."

And when members of Congress came back to vote on the stimulus bill last week, all members of the House had to use hand sanitizer as they came on and off the floor, and hand sanitizer dispensers were placed at the doors.

House of Representatives Media Logistics Coordinator Kinsey Harvey disinfects the podium following a news conference with U.S. House Speaker (D-CA) about the ongoing coronavirus outbreak at the U.S. Capitol March 26, 2020 in Washington, DC.

Before every press conference with members of Congress, staff members thoroughly wiped down the podium and microphones to minimize transmission risk. The few reporters left at the Capitol all sat several feet apart from each other to try to adhere to social distancing guidelines. Reporters were urged to give lawmakers space to adhere to those guidelines, even as the number of press at the Capitol dwindled due to the threat from the virus.

The police and support workers inside the Capitol are also at risk.

Two members of the Capitol Police have also tested positive for the coronavirus, prompting an outcry from their labor committee, which has asked for every frontline officer to be tested, for extra hazard pay for officers, and protective equipment for officers.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Coronavirus: Congress trying to minimize spread while legislating
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 22:54:36|Editor: huaxia

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File photo shows Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meeting with Belgian King Philippe in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 17, 2017. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

Hailing King Philippe's efforts to boost China-Belgium ties, Xi stressed that China is willing to work with Belgium to overcome the pandemic's influence and promote cooperation in various fields in a coordinated manner, so as to further advance China-Belgium and China-Europe relations.

BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping said Thursday China is willing to help Belgium overcome the current shortage of medical supplies within its capacity.

Xi, in a telephone conversation with King Philippe of Belgium, also said China is ready to share useful COVID-19 prevention and control experience with the European country, and promote cooperation in vaccine and medicine joint research and development, and other areas.

Noting that the coronavirus disease is spreading across the world and posing a serious challenge to Europe, including Belgium, Xi, on behalf of the Chinese government and people, conveyed sincere sympathies and firm support to the Belgian royalty, government and people.

During the critical phase of China's fight against the epidemic, various sections of Belgian society extended sympathies and support in various ways to China, which has demonstrated the profound friendship of mutual support between the two peoples, Xi said.

Chinese medical supplies for Belgium are unloaded at the Liege Airport in Liege, Belgium, on March 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhang Cheng)

China is willing to help meet Belgium's urgent needs, Xi stressed, adding that he believes that under the leadership of the Belgian royalty and government, the Belgian people will definitely defeat the virus.

Meanwhile, Xi voiced the hope for the Belgian side to pay close attention to and take measures to guarantee the safety of the Chinese nationals living in the European country, especially Chinese students.

Reiterating that viruses recognize neither borders nor races, and pose a common challenge to all humanity, the Chinese president pointed out that only by joining forces can the international community prevail over them.

Guided by the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, China is enhancing international cooperation in a comprehensive fashion, he said, adding that at the recent extraordinary leaders' summit of the Group of 20 major economies, he laid out a set of proposals on pooling global efforts against the pandemic and stabilizing the world economy.

On the basis of reinforcing the results of its COVID-19 prevention and control, China will speed up the resumption of work and production throughout the country, Xi said.

Staff work at a medical mask production workshop in Tangshan, north China's Hebei Province, March 30, 2020. (Xinhua/Yang Shiyao)

China, he added, will overcome difficulties to prioritize the restoration and expansion of the production capacity in medical and anti-epidemic supplies, tighten up quality control measures, and provide as many resources as it can for the global fight against the disease.

Hailing King Philippe's efforts to boost China-Belgium ties, Xi stressed that China is willing to work with Belgium to overcome the pandemic's influence and promote cooperation in various fields in a coordinated manner, so as to further advance China-Belgium and China-Europe relations.

For his part, King Philippe said that as the pandemic is striking all countries in the world, China takes the lead in putting it under control, and its experience is of important value to other countries.

Noting China has been supporting and contributing to other countries' fight against the disease, King Philippe said Belgium appreciates China's provision of emergency medical protective supplies, and is willing to collaborate with China on drug development.

A friend in need is a friend indeed, and China is a real friend of Belgium, said the king, adding that he will cherish the friendship forever and continue to promote the exchanges and cooperation between the two countries. 
koda Auto Volkswagen India Pvt Ltd on Thursday said it has pledged Rs 1 crore towards setting up dedicated 1,100 beds facility for treating coronavirus patients with Sassoon General Hospital in Pune.

The contribution is made towards essential medical consumables and critical care equipment for the medical team and patients fighting COVID-19, koda Auto Volkswagen India Pvt Ltd (SAVWIPL) said in a statement.

Besides, the company will donate over 35,000 sanitisers to Sassoon General Hospital (Pune), Kasturba Gandhi Hospital (Mumbai) and Government Hospital (Aurangabad) and distribute over 50,000 food packets in the Aurangabad region, it added.

The company further said it is also producing reusable face shields within the Chakan factory which will distributed amongst healthcare providers treating COVID-19 patients. It has obtained the approval from Dean of Maharashtra state government-run Sassoon General Hospital Dr Ajay Chandanwale.

"The face masks produced by SAVWIPL have been certified by the team for indoor and outdoor use, will be used in ICU while doing procedures and for COVID-19 OPD consultation. The transparent sheet that forms the shield, can be sanitized after 6-8 hours before reuse," it said.

The company is also lending support to Annamitra Foundation which will be distributing 50,000 food packets to the needy people in and around Aurangabad till the lockdown is lifted.

It is also looking at utilising its global supply chain capabilities to organise essential medical supplies that India needs to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, the company added.

"Our parent company, KODA AUTO a.s. in collaboration with the Czech Technical University, Prague, has developed and producing reusable FFP3 respirators for hospitals using 3D printers," it said.

The Volkswagen Group, of which the company is a part of, is organizing medical materials including face masks, gloves, disinfectants, clinical thermometers, protective goggles and protective clothing which is to be made available to medical personnel providing emergency treatment and care.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
C oronavirus is God's judgement after Northern Ireland legalised abortion and same-sex marriage, a DUP councillor has claimed.

John Carson, who represents Ballymena, Co Antrim, said the pandemic arrived because an immoral and corrupt Government changed the law.

His ward was a former stronghold for ex-leader and Christian preacher, Ian Paisley, and his party strongly opposed Westminster legislation liberalising the law surrounding terminations.

Mr Carson, making comment in a personal capacity, compared the coronavirus outbreak to the biblical story of Noah's ark.

The councillor said the world reaps what it sows and coronavirus was like the great flood in the bible / Getty Images

I said when abortion was legalised that our nation would be judged by God because of its departure from his word and the legalisation of the murder of the unborn child as well as same-sex marriage," he said.

I was laughed at and mocked by some but as I said at the time, they laughed at Noah until the rain started.

You reap what you sow and our nation is now reaping the judgment of God because of an immoral and corrupt Government.

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It is time to repent and turn again to the God of our fathers.

The DUP has distanced itself from the comments.

Earlier this week, a senior party member claimed Northern Ireland has introduced the most extreme abortion laws in Europe.

The World on Coronavirus lockdown 1 /60 The World on Coronavirus lockdown Getty Images A UK government public health campaign is displayed in Piccadilly Circus Reuters Chinese paramilitary police and security officers wear face masks to protect against the spread of the new coronavirus as they stand guard outside an entrance to the Forbidden City in Beijing AP A usually busy 42nd Street is seen nearly empty in New York AFP via Getty Images Bondi Beach, Australia Getty Images Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images View of the illuminated statue of Christ the Redeemer that reads "Thank you" as Archbishop of the city of Rio de Janeiro Dom Orani Tempesta performs a mass in honor of Act of Consecration of Brazil and tribute to medical workers amidst the Coronavirus (COVID - 19) pandemic Getty Images Rome AFP via Getty Images An Indian man paddles his bicycle in front of a mural depicting the globe covered in a mask, as India remains under an unprecedented lockdown over the highly contagious coronavirus Getty Images Aerial view of the empty 9 de Julio avenue in Buenos Aires in Argentina AFP via Getty Images A view of an empty Grand Canal Reuters Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Central cemetery in Bogota, Columbia AFP via Getty Images The facade of the Palacio de Lopez (seat of the government palace) AFP via Getty Images Miami, Florida AFP via Getty Images Aerial view of the empty Simon Bolivar park in Bogota AFP via Getty Images An LAPD patrol car drives through Venice Beach Boardwalk AP Venice Beach, California Getty Images Los Angeles, California Getty Images Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images Many shops stand shuttered on the Venice Beach boardwalk Getty Images Empty escalators are seen at a deserted train station during morning rush hour after New South Wales began shutting down non-essential businesses Reuters A nearly empty Times Square in New York AFP via Getty Images Caracas AFP via Getty Images Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador AFP via Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Midland Park in Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A general view of an unusually quiet Civic Square at lunchtimein Wellington, New Zealand Getty Images A policeman rides his motorcycle wearing a face mask in front of a closed shopping mall in Buenos Aires, Argentina AFP via Getty Images Florida Keys AP The historic Channel 2 Bridge closed to fishermen, bikers and pedestrians in Florida Keys AP The Beach on Scenic Gulf Drive near Seascape Resort in south Walton County, Florida sits empty of tourists AP Surfers Paradise is seen empty in Australia Getty Images A deserted Rajpath leading to India Gate in New Delhi AFP via Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images A general view is seen of a closed Luna Park in Sydney, Australia Getty Images Empty roads are pictured following the lockdown by the government amid concerns about the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Kathmandu, Nepal Reuters An empty New York Subway car i AFP via Getty Images The empty pedestrian zone is seen in the city of Cologne, western Germany, AFP via Getty Images Place de la Comedie in the city of Montpellier , southern France AFP via Getty Images An empty street in Kuwait city AFP via Getty Images A building is covered by the Portuguese message: "Coronavirus: take precaution" over empty streets in downtown Sao Paulo, Brazil, AP A general view shows an empty street after a curfew was imposed to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Reuters Parliament of Canada is pictured with empty street during morning rush hour AFP via Getty Images A near empty beach on Southend seafront in England PA Near empty Keswick town centre in Cumbria, England PA

Westminster MPs passed provisions on terminations last year in the absence of the powersharing Assembly.

The regulations will allow terminations on request for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and up to 24 weeks in the case of a risk of injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman or girl.

Abortion will also be available in cases of severe and fatal foetal anomalies, with no gestational limit.

Campaigners have claimed many barriers still exist to terminations after 12 weeks, and they have called for greater use of telemedicine to provide pills, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Rainbow Project, a Belfast-based LGBT support organisation, said: It is disgraceful but not at all surprising that a DUP elected member would try to blame LGBT people and our partners in the womens movement for the coronavirus outbreak, just as they have blamed us for Hurricane Katrina and other natural disasters in the past.

The statement said the group is supporting its communities at a difficult time.

The organisation added: We look forward to hearing from Arlene Foster a strong denunciation of this disgusting slur from her councillor John Carson.

Mr Carson is a member of the Royal British Legion and a strong supporter of veterans, according to Mid and East Antrim Borough Councils website. He is also part of the Orange Order.

The councillor works to help the elderly age well, build sustainable communities and sits on policing scrutiny and military reservist organisations.

Peter Lynas, UK director of the Evangelical Alliance, said they were unhelpful comments and the media would go to town on them.
Newscity

Trump Promises Hospital

President Donald Trump has promised Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham to have an Army hospital built in Albuquerque to help battle the COVID-19 outbreak.

According to KRQE, Lujan Grisham discussed the issue with Trump during an hour-long conference call with in which she mentioned that two national laboratories are located in the state. According to the governor, failing to contain the virus near these labs could constitute a national security risk.

Lujan Grisham also brought up the health emergency facing tribal communities as the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the Navajo Nation reaches more than 100. We're seeing incredible spikes in the Navajo Nation, and this is going to be an issue where we're going to have to figure that out and think about maybe testing and surveillance opportunities, she told the president. She also said the spread of the virus on tribal lands has produced higher hospital rates than in other places. And it could wipe out those tribal nations, she added.

Last week, the governor requested that a staffed 248 bed US Army hospital be built in Albuquerque under the operational control of New Mexico National Guard Brigadier General Michele K. LaMontagne. During the conference call with Trump, the president told Lujan Grisham: We'll build you that hospital as quickly as we can.

The president said the hospital will be built by April 10.
COPENHAGEN, DE / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Adform, one of the largest European-based adtech companies welcomes its new CEO. Troels Philip Jensen steps into the CEO chair from April 1st and leaves behind a position as COO for the Swedish software giant Itiviti AB, which has more than 1,000 employees.

Jensen replaces Adform's Co-Founder and CEO Gustav Mellentin, who will stay with the company in an active role focused on continuing to shape the company's strategic work. Troels Jensen, in his role as CEO, will lead Adform's employees across 29 offices in 26 countries.

"I have been looking forward to starting as Adform's CEO. I plan to spend the first few weeks getting to know my new colleagues, the organization and our customers. There is an exciting global strategy on the table, which I look forward to executing with the support of Adform's extremely talented employees," says Troels Philip Jensen, CEO of Adform.

Jensen's task and ambitions are clear. He joins the company to strengthen Adform's international position as a leading independent supplier of advertising software technology, while driving the company's commercial development. Jensen elaborates:

"Adform is a company that serves some of the largest advertisers, agencies and media around the world. Gustav Mellentin and his amazing team have achieved an impressive amount over the last 18 years. There are not many independent software companies on the market that have Adform's scale, global presence and also have great potential for future growth. That's why I quickly and proudly accepted this job."

Jensen has worked with enterprise platforms for the past 25 years, building extensive international experience at an executive level. He's worked for Itiviti AB since 2013 and now exits from the role as COO. For the 17 years prior to that he was part of the Danish IT success, SimCorp.

Adform's Co-Founder Mellentin believes Jensen is the right match:

"It has been an incredible journey from three men in a basement in Copenhagen to a leading global company. I have enjoyed every moment, but now is the right time to pass the baton and change the leader of Adform. I'm confident Troels Philip Jensen has the right skills to ensure Adform's continued growth and success, and I personally look forward to being part of the journey ahead as a member of our amazing leadership team."

Torben Munch, Chairman of the Board of Adform, says:

"Troels Philip Jensen brings impressive global experience from enterprise software companies such as Itiviti AB and SimCorp. Adform is entering a new era as a global market leader driving the "IAP" Integrated Advertising Platform category. We are certain that Troels Philip Jensen is the right man to guide Adform with his strong global leadership skills, his impressive track record, and his ability to execute international growth strategies focusing on sales and customer satisfaction."

About Troels Philip Jensen:

2020 appointed CEO of Adform

2013-2020 COO at Itiviti AB

2000-2013 Managing Director Western Europe at SimCorp

Board position in Boyum IT

Copenhagen Business School, MSc. International Business

Married with three children

Leisure: Troels is a passionate mountain biker, and has just cycled 350 KM through the Sahara

About Adform

With more than 18 years of expertise in digital advertising, Adform is the preferred technology partner for strategically executing advertising campaigns across the world's leading digital media platforms. Adform is powered by Odin, the company's leading artificial intelligence solution for activating paid media. The company's agnostic approach to media enables the bidding and execution of digital campaigns across traditional and emerging channels, including online, video, audio, connected TV and outdoor media. Through its integrated advertising platform, Adform's advanced measurement, reporting and analytics tools help advertisers and agencies maximize the impact of their campaigns while leveraging exceptional activation, dynamic and creative optimization, and cross-device capabilities. Headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, Adform has 26 offices with global market coverage. Read more at https://adform.com



CONTACT:



Diane Anderson

WIT Stratedy

danderson@witstrategy.com



SOURCE: Adform

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583717/Adform-Welcomes-New-CEO
Two female doctors were injured in Madhya Pradesh after healthcare workers and civic officials were attacked by a mob in an Indore neighbourhood on Wednesday while screening residents for coronavirus, according to media reports.

Two doctors were injured in Madhya Pradesh after healthcare workers and civic officials were attacked by a mob in an Indore neighbourhood on Wednesday while screening residents for coronavirus, according to media reports.

Two healthcare workers dressed in light blue personal protective equipment suits can be seen running from locals throwing stones, as per a report in NDTV.

#WATCH Madhya Pradesh: Locals of Tatpatti Bakhal in Indore pelt stones at health workers who were there to screen people, in wake of #Coronavirus outbreak. A case has been registered. (Note-Abusive language) (1.04.2020) pic.twitter.com/vkfOwYrfxK  ANI (@ANI) April 1, 2020

The attack occurred allegedly in Indore's Tatpatti Bakhal area after an elderly woman, suspected to have come in contact with a coronavirus disease patient, was asked to accompany the team to a hospital for diagnostic tests, as per a report in Hindustan Times.

We have been visiting the locality for the past three days for the screening of residents. We had information about a person coming in contact with a COVID-19 patientWe were talking to the person (the elderly woman) when, all of a sudden, residents got agitated and attacked us, one of the doctors told Hindustan Times.

Two female doctors suffered injuries. They managed to save themselves by hiding behind the jeep of a tehsildar, Praveen Jadia, chief medical and health officer, Indore further told the newspaper.

This is the second time in a week healthcare workers have been attacked in Indore, which, with 69 positive cases, has emerged as a coronavirus hotspot in Madhya Pradesh.

ANI reported that a case has been registered against unknown individuals.

As per a report in DNA, similar reports have been received from Hyderabad, where doctors at the Gandhi hospital were attacked allegedly by a mob after a patient infected with COVID-19 died.

In Delhi, doctors at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) appealed for help after health workers were reportedly evicted from their rented residences by panicking landlords under suspicions of coronavirus, as per the report.

With inputs from agencies
Oluwaseun Ayodeji Osowobi, the Nigerian woman who was the flag bearer at the last Commonwealth Day service in the UK, has shared her experience after she was diagnosed with the deadly coronavirus days after returning to Nigeria.

29-year-old Oluwaseun, who is a Time 100 Next Honouree and also a leader at Obama Foundation, said she began self-isolating when she returned to Nigeria after fulfilling her duties abroad.

While isolating at home, she said she kept calling NCDC to get her tested. The test was not forthcoming but she persisted and was eventually tested, but got no information on her test result.

One night, an ambulance arrived at her home at 12 midnight while she was sleeping and she was whisked off to the Lagos state isolation centre where she said no one attended to her for 2 hours.

I got to isolation center, but no one was there to receive me. I waited in the ambulance for TWO HOURS,  she wrote.

Eventually, nurses came out to attend to her and she said they treated her like a plague.

Oluwaseun, said she was eventually taken into the isolation centre and shown her bed space.

Read her full experience below;
Australia has agreed to send Taiwan one million litres of alcohol to make sanitiser and vaccines in exchange for three tonnes of material to make face masks.

Taiwans Ministry of Economic Affairs said the arrangement was designed to help both countries battle COVID-19 in an announcement over Facebook on Tuesday.

'Taiwan is partnering up with Australia to curb the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus,' the post read.

The Australian government has reportedly cut a deal with Taiwan to ship the Chinese nation state alcohol to be used for vaccines and hand sanitiser in exchange for material to make face masks

'The two countries will offer pandemic prevention equipment to each other for procurement.'

'This collaboration on disease prevention will benefit both Taiwanese and Australia, get the necessary immunisation supplies, and help both sides combat the epidemic and achieve a win-win.'

The time frame of the deliveries are yet to be announced.

It comes as Australian medical workers have been forced to go without PPE or innovate as the coronavirus crisis wreaks havoc on supplies.

Around 90 per cent of the alcohol used to produce hand sanitiser in Taiwan already comes from Australia, however, the new deal is on top of existing contracts and supply chains.

Taiwan currently makes 220,000 bottles of hand sanitiser on a daily basis.

MOEA said the alcohol will go contribute to making 4.2 million 330ml bottles containing 75 percent alcohol to be used as a disinfectant.

Health professionals around the country have been left with limited PPE resources as demand for medical supplies swells amid the coronavirus crisis

Despite having a similar population, Australia has been hit harder by the COVID-19 outbreak, with cases soaring to 5105 on Thursday morning, including 23 deaths.

Meanwhile, Taiwan has reported just over 300 cases and five deaths.

Taiwan struck a similar pact with the US earlier this month, agreeing to send 100,000 surgical masks to the west in exchange for raw materials needed to produce 300,000 personal protective suits.

The nation will also ship 7million masks to European Union countries, including the United Kingdom and Switzerland.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton announced a ban on exporting medical equipment after several Chinese operations in Australia were found to be shipping supplies back to Asia.

Anyone caught exporting masks, hand sanitiser, gloves, gowns, goggles and visors during the coronavirus crisis will now face up to five years in prison.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Austrade and the Prime Minister's office for comment.
British Man Charged With Smuggling Fake COVID-19 Cure Into US

A man from the UK has been charged with smuggling fake drugs that purportedly treated COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP virus, into the United States, according to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Frank Richard Ludlow, 59, has been charged with one count of introducing misbranded drugs into interstate commerce, the agency said in a news release. If convicted, Ludlow faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison.

Ludlow allegedly smuggled remedy kits that contained a number of ingredients vitamin C, an enzyme mix, potassium thiocyanate, and hydrogen peroxide from the UK to homes in Utah and California. The remedy kits, named Trinity Remedy, were first sold in 2017 as a miracle cure, according to court documents. These kits were later repackaged as Trinity COVID-19 SARS Antipathogenic Treatment on March 1, in the midst of the CCP virus pandemic. Authorities said Ludlow is not a medical practitioner.

The fake Trinity COVID-19 SARS Antipathogenic Treatment allegedly treated COVID-19. (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)

The kits have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat COVID-19 or for any other uses. The FDA is currently working with medical product developers to rapidly create vaccines and treatment for the disease but as of now, there are no specific drugs or vaccines available.

The FDA, along with the Federal Trade Commission, said they have been issuing warnings against companies for selling fraudulent COVID-19 products, including teas, essential oils, and colloidal silver.

The FDA is actively and aggressively monitoring for unproven COVID-19 products including those attempting to be imported into the countryas part of our ongoing efforts to protect Americans during this pandemic. Unproven health claims, tests, and medical products can pose serious health risks and may keep people from seeking care or delay necessary medical treatment, said Catherine Hermsen, the assistant commissioner for criminal investigations of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, in the statement.

The FDA will continue to take appropriate action to protect consumers from bad actors who take advantage of a pandemic to increase their profits while jeopardizing the public health, she added.

The kits were intercepted by authorities before they could reach their destinations, the statement said.

Ludlow was arrested by British authorities who charged him with one count of fraud by false representation, one count of possession of articles for use in fraud, and one count of unlawfully manufacturing a medicinal product, according to the City of London Police. He remains in custody in the UK.
A sea cage can hold up to 200000 farmed salmon. If the cage sustains damage, such as a hole in the nets, the fish could swim out through the opening and make their escape in short order.

Clearly, the aquaculture industry wants to avoid this scenario. Not only do escapes lead to large losses for the industry, but no one wants farm-raised salmon to mix and interbreed with wild populations.

Keeping an eye on what is going on inside the cages is critical for being able to respond and repair any damage promptly.

Monitoring life in the cages is important for other reasons as well, such as ensuring good fish welfare: What is the health condition of the fish? How serious is the salmon lice problem? Do the cages need to be cleaned?

Human divers and underwater vehicles controlled by operators on land are commonly used to check the conditions in sea cages. Both types of intruders can disrupt and stress the fish.

These methods also limit the frequency of inspections.

Robotics and biology researchers have been trying to find out which monitoring methods disturb fish least. The tests that have a robotic turtle swimming around the cage to film the equipment and fish have proven to do the inspection job better and more gently.

The experiments show that the fish are only negligibly scared or stressed by the robotic turtle. They swim calmly and fairly close to the turtle, whereas they keep away from the intruders in experiments with divers and thruster-driven underwater robots.

"The overall purpose of the experiments wasn't just to test the turtle robot, but also to investigate what characteristics robots being used in the aquaculture industry should have," says Maarja Kruusmaa. She is a professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology's (NTNU) Department of Engineering Cybernetics and at Tallinn University of Technology.

"We've found that the most crucial characteristics of the surveillance robot are its size and speed, whereas colour and motor noise hardly matter at all," she said.

The turtle robot's small size and slow movements are the characteristics that make it less disturbing to the fish. The fact that it resembles an organism that lives in the ocean is less important.

"The conclusion turned out to be the opposite of our expectations. The fact that the robot looks like a marine animal doesn't seem to play any role at all. And that's actually good news - it means we don't have to build the robots to be fish- or turtle-like. That will make it cheaper to develop and use robots in this new field of application to monitor marine organisms," Kruusmaa says.

The research indicates which factors are important when developing robots for the fish farming industry or for monitoring fish in their natural setting.

Kruusmaa and Jo Arve Alfredsen, an associate professor in the Department of Engineering Cybernetics at NTNU, published an article about their findings in Royal Society Open Science about their findings. Kruusmaa is the first author.

Kruusmaa and Alfredsen are both employed by NTNU AMOS - the Centre for Autonomous Marine Operations and Systems. AMOS is developing new types of underwater vehicles and new offshore monitoring methods as their focus areas.

Robots like the robotic turtle can provide fish breeders with online updates and monitoring of life in the sea cage. The turtle can also be connected to various measuring instruments and sensors.

Using robotic technology instead of divers for surveillance allows monitoring to continue without interruption. This continuity can contribute to quicker responses, greater predictability, better fish welfare and lower mortality.

The researchers carried out the practical experiments in SINTEF Ocean's full-scale aquaculture laboratory ACE, operated by SalMar as part of the EU project AQUAEXCEL2020.

SINTEF, NTNU and Tallinn University of Technology are collaborating on this project.

The turtle robot, named U-CAT, was developed at Tallinn University of Technology in Estonia and was originally designed for underwater archaeology applications. The idea was to use it to investigate shipwrecks on the sea floor, so it was designed as a small and very manoeuvrable robot.

Alfredsen discovered that the robot could be used in aquaculture because it had precisely these properties.

The experiments in the sea cages at SalMar have shown that this robotic technology can also benefit the aquaculture industry.

###

Reference: M. Kruusmaa, R. Gkliva, J. A. Tuhtan, A. Tuvikene and J. A. Alfredsen. Salmon behavioural response to robots in an aquaculture sea cage. R. Soc. open sci. 7191220. 11 March 2020 https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.191220
PUNE: Two of the 25 samples of those who returned from Markaz Nizamuddin to Pimpri-Chinchwad area have tested positive for Covid-19, while all the 46 samples of those who returned to Pune have tested negative, district officials confirmed on Thursday.

The state administration has traced as many as 106 of the 182 persons in western Maharashtras five districts who had either been or came in contact with those who attended the Tablighi Jamaat congregation in New Delhi.

Deepak Mhaisekar, Pune divisional commissioner, said that the police and administration have tracked down those who had visited the Capital and find out if they were in contact with others.

We are doing contact tracing, interviews and using other sources of information. So far, two are positive and 23 negative in Pimpri-Chinchwad and 46 are negative in Pune, said Mhaisekar.

According to Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) additional commissioner Rubal Agarwal, 14 samples had come negative on Wednesday night while results of the rest were reported on Thursday.

The Tablighi Jamaats headquarter in Delhi has emerged as a hotspot of Covid-19 suspects recently where a number of foreign nationals were found in the districts and taluka places doing missionary activity in the area. The worldwide Islamic missionary group is also known as Allahs police in the local population of Maharashtra.

The state administration had earlier claimed that Pune revenue regions five districts  Pune, Satara, Sangli, Kolhapur and Solapur  had started collecting swabs of 94 persons quarantined so far. The officials and police have also launched a search for those who have not been traced by tracking their call detail records (CDR).

6 found positive in Ahmednagar

Two foreign national Tablighi preachers who had participated in Nizamuddin event in Delhi earlier this month and four locals who came in contact with these persons have also tested positive for Covid-19 in Ahmednagar district of western Maharashtra on Thursday. With this, the total number of Covid-19 positive patients from Ahmednagar has reached 14, said officials from local administration. Earlier last month, a French and Ivory Cost national had tested positive for the virus in Ahmednagar district.
The need to dramatically ramp up U.S. production and distribution of masks should have been apparent early on in the crisis, former disaster preparedness officials said. For years, public health advocates had warned that the U.S. national stockpile of medical supplies was woefully inadequate. Domestic mask makers had repeatedly tried to sound the alarm about the countrys overreliance on foreign-made masks  a problem that became acute when China shut down its factories as the virus swept through that country.
School Principal Aaron Starke distributes Chromebooks to families and students at the Universal Alcorn Charter Middle School in Philadelphia on Thursday. Read more

The Philadelphia School Partnership announced plans Thursday to buy 15,000 Chromebooks for students in city charter and parochial schools as learning moves online during the coronavirus outbreak.

The Jump-Start Philly Schools Fund, backed by $3.8 million in donations, will pay for laptops for students in more than 100 charter and Catholic schools, according to the partnership.

Regardless of where they live in the city or what type of school they attend, students must have the opportunity to continue their learning, Janine Yass, a cofounder of Boys Latin Charter School and board member of Philadelphia School Partnership, said in a news release.

Yass and her husband, Jeff, founder of the Bala Cynwyd investment firm Susquehanna International Group, donated $2.8 million to the new fund.

The announcement by the nonprofit partnership, which donates millions of dollars to city schools, comes as schools across the region have been distributing laptops for students to use at home during the coronavirus closures  though some districts with higher concentrations of economically disadvantaged students have been slower to get technology into their hands.

 READ MORE: As coronavirus closes schools, wealthier districts send laptops home with students. What about poorer districts?

The Philadelphia school board last week authorized spending $11 million to purchase up to 50,000 computers. Comcast Corp. CEO Brian Roberts and his family donated $5 million toward the purchase, while 76ers managing partners Josh Harris and David Blitzer this week pledged a seven-figure donation to buy 10,000 of the laptops.

Philadelphia School Partnership said it surveyed charter schools  which are publicly funded but independently run  and the citys Catholic schools to determine their needs.

Existing achievement gaps among students may widen in this new world of remote learning, said Mark Gleason, the partnerships executive director. Schools have a dual challenge of delivering new forms of instruction now and preparing for the learning loss many students will experience and bring back to schools whenever they are finally able to return.

Schools receiving laptops include Mastery Charter Schools  the citys largest charter operator  which will get 1,500, according to the partnership. Archdiocese of Philadelphia schools will receive 750, while Independence Mission Schools, a network of 15 Catholic elementary schools in low-income neighborhoods, will get 850.

The partnership said other schools serving low-income students should contact them. The new fund aims to raise $6 million in the coming months  not just to supply laptops, but to address learning needs going forward. The effort is also supported by the McCausland Foundation and the Lenfest Foundation. (A separate nonprofit, the unrelated Lenfest Institute for Journalism, is the owner of The Inquirer.)

In New Jersey, donations totaling $400,000 from the Camden Education Fund, Townsend Press, and Campbell Soup Co. meant the Camden School District could purchase Chromebooks for all of its high school students.

Other nonprofits have also been donating technology. Asociacion Puertorriquenos en Marcha said last week it was distributing more than 600 tablets to 3- to 5-year-old pupils in its early childhood education programs in North Philadelphia.

Staff writer Kristen A. Graham contributed to this article.
MTN Group has reaffirmed its intention to reduce its presence in Nigeria, although the ongoing Covid-19 (coronavirus) outbreak may force it to sell off multiple smaller holdings in stages.

Speaking to Bloomberg, the operators CFO Ralph Mupita said that the South African group was cutting its majority holding in its Nigerian operation  MTNs largest unit  due to its numerous high-profile clashes with the countrys government.

Over the past few years, MTN has been fined an initial sum of US$8.1 billion for the alleged illegal repatriation of revenue. The operator denied the charges and argued the fine down to a settlement of US$53 million, but was also facing a tax bill for US$2 billion.

While this demand was eventually withdrawn in January this year  with MTN shortly afterwards pledging to invest US$1.6 billion into Nigeria  the experience has evidently rattled the operators confidence in its largest market.

MTN owns 79% of its Nigerian unit, and had planned to sell a 15% stake of this to local investors. However, the ongoing pandemic crisis coupled with a crash in oil prices means that a phased sale is now more likely. MTN listed on the Nigerian stock exchange around a year ago, with the business valued at US$5 billion.

Mupita noted that MTNs planned Nigerian sell-off forms part of a wider strategy to divest US$1.4 billion in assets across the next few years, but that this plan could be temporarily shelved given the current crisis. The impact of Covid-19 knocked MTNs share prices to a 15-year low last week, but they have since recovered somewhat.

With an increasing number of countries implementing nationwide lockdown measures, Mupita noted that MTN was preparing its networks for a surge in data use, saying: We want to make sure that our networks have resilience and capacity. We are looking at where we can drive broader coverage.
AMHERST  The costs associated with transitioning from in-person to online-remote learning at Amherst College could exceed $10 million, according to the colleges trustees chair.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and a state of emergency, colleges are universities remain closed to students. Amherst College announced March 9 that it would close the campus and switch to online classes for the rest of the semester.

In a letter sent to the college community, including alumni and parents, Trustees Chair Andrew J. Nussbaum, class of 1985, asked for help to raise the money.

Recognizing that the present global state has affected us all, including financially, I ask you to consider joining us with any support you can offer to the Amherst Fund or the COVID-19 Student Support Fund, both of which are vital to the work the College is doing, he said.

Financially, the College remains secure, though we will experience substantial increased costs to honor the commitments we have made. We estimate that the overall financial impact to the College of the move to remote learning may exceed the $10 million raised by the Amherst Fund last year, he wrote.

As youd expect, the Colleges endowment valuation has already declined, and may decline further, due to the economic environment, Nussbaum said.

Amherst continues to be fortunate, thanks to your generosity and to careful planning to preserve liquidity and build reserves. Yet we must be clear-eyed. Maintaining Amhersts excellence will require more than hard work; ensuring the future of Amherst for generations to come is worth it, he said.

The Amherst community historically has risen to this challenge. In 1840, Samuel Williston responded to the Colleges near financial ruin with a $1,000 gift that truly saved Amherst College. Today, thanks to our alumni and parents over many generations, we are fortunate indeed that we do not face such a stark reality, but we must be diligent and responsible about shepherding this incredible institution through a very difficult time, Nussbaum wrote.
The Chief Information Officer at AirtelTigo Prince Sarpong Kwaku Agyeman Manu

02.04.2020 LISTEN

Accra, 1 April 2020  In support of the governments efforts to stem the spread of coronavirus, telecom operator AirtelTigo has donated 200 pieces of veronica buckets to the Ministry of Health for distribution to the public hospitals across the country.

Presenting the items, the Chief Information Officer at AirtelTigo, Prince Sarpong commended the Ministry of Health, Ghana Health Service, frontline medical staff and other stakeholders on the initiatives made to stop the spread of the virus and save precious lives.

We hope that this donation will also help reinforce the message that the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service has been stressing on the importance of washing hands under running water, he said.

He also remarked that through the Telecom Chamber, the company is broadcasting messages by the Ministry of Health and Ghana Health Service to educate customers and the general public via SMS and social media platforms, and also routing all calls to the COVID-19 emergency numbers at no cost to the public.

In addition to that, we have zero-rated Ghana Health Service (GHS) website that provides COVID-19 awareness and safety protocols and uploaded GHS and MOH jingles on our Interactive Voice Response (IVR) platform. Besides that, we broadcast COVID-19 related notifications every day on our Customer App and also build customer awareness via End of Call Flash Notifications.

The Minister of Health, Honorable Kwaku Agyeman Manu, who received the donation on behalf of the government expressed gratitude to AirtelTigo for the kind gesture. We appreciate what you have done so far. Despite this donation, AirtelTigo has been facilitating our efforts to get our COVID-19 education materials for the public. We are grateful for your support.

About AirtelTigo:

AirtelTigo is a dynamic and innovative brand providing a wide range of telecommunications services including mobile voice, data, mobile financial services, and business connectivity solutions. With the credo of customer first, AirtelTigo constantly innovates to make life simple for its customers. AirtelTigo was launched in November 2017, from a merger between erstwhile Airtel and Tigo. www.airteltigo.com.gh
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday talked about the need to implement lockdown more strictly in some states.

"Union Home Minister talked about the need to implement lockdown more strictly in some states and the importance of effective district-level implementation of the guidelines issued by the Centre," said a statement from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Shah on Thursday interacted with the Chief Ministers of States via video conferencing and discussed ways and means to combat the menace of COVID-19.

"Union Health Secretary apprised the dignitaries of the rise in a number of cases in India, the spread of cases from Nizamuddin Markaz, preparations to tackle medical cases arising out of the further spread of the virus and need to break transmission chain in the districts with a high number of confirmed cases," the press release said.

The Union Defence Minister, Health Minister, Principal Secretary, Cabinet Secretary, Home Secretary, and DG, ICMR also participated in the interaction. Along with the Chief Ministers, the Home Minister, Health Minister, Chief Secretary, Home Secretary and Health Secretary of the respective states also attended the video conference of Prime Minister with chief ministers of state on Thursday.

Prime Minister Modi praised how all the States have worked together as a team to check the spread of the virus.

He, however, forewarned that the global situation remains far from satisfactory and informed about speculations of a possible second wave of the spread of the virus in some countries.

Prime Minister Modi outlined that the common goal for the country is to ensure minimum loss of life.

"For the next few weeks, testing, tracing, isolation and quarantine should remain the areas of focus," he said while highlighting the necessity of maintaining the supply of essential medical products, availability of raw material for the manufacture of medicines and medical equipment.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Assyrians 'Afraid to Return' to Northern Iraq

Although Islamic State has been defeated in northern Iraq, the "Islamist mindset" that persists in the region has made Christian refugees from the region "afraid to return", according to one of Iraq's most senior Catholic Bishops.

Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Najeeb Michaeel Moussa of Mosul and Akra told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need that although Christians in Iraq remain active and hopeful about the future, the ancient Christian presence in the region, already much diminished by years of war and persecution, is threatened by a resurgence of Islamic extremism.

Archbishop Moussa explained that among Christians, the greatest fear, and one which prevents Christians from returning to their former homes in Mosul, "is that of seeing the renewed growth of Islamic fundamentalism".

Before the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, around 1.4 million Christians lived in the country. At present, fewer than 250,000 remain: a drop of 80 per cent in less than two decades. Under the Islamic state, Christians were often offered a choice between conversion to Islam and death; at best, they were expected to pay a special levy to ISIS in return for their lives.

In Mosul, Archbishop Moussa's diocese, of the roughly 15,000 Christian residents of the region prior to ISIS's rule over the region, none remained by the time of the area's liberation in 2017. Although Mosul is one of the largest cities in Iraq, few Christians have so far returned there.

Iraqi Christians still face significant obstacles: Iraq is one of the most corrupt countries in the world by most measurements, and the Iraqi constitution written in 2005, states that Islam is the nation's official religions -- and forbids laws that clash with the "established provisions" of Islam.

Archbishop Moussa said that he hoped this would change in future, but outlined numerous economic and legal barriers faced by Christians in Iraq, citing "certain unjust laws, for example, the forced conversion to Islam of young underage girls, if one of the parents should become a Muslim." The archbishop added that Christians are often denied equal opportunities at work, with some jobs simply closed to non-muslims.

Decrying the sectarian division stirred up, according to the Bishop, by school text books and extremist preachers, Archbishop Moussa called for the separation of religion and politics in Iraq, which he stated would be a "blessing". He added that such a development "could certainly ease the Calvary that the Christians have been so painfully enduring ever since the seventh century."

Gender equality is also a concern of the Archbishop's, in a region where, according to the UN, "a pattern of violence against women has emerged" in recent years.

He said: "Christians are also demanding the right to equality of the sexes with regard to matters of inheritance, marriage, freedom of religion and so forth"

Archbishop Moussa, elected Archbishop of Mosul in 2018, is a former archivist, and was directly responsible for saving hundreds of historic documents and religious writings from ISIS during their rise to power in the region.

Ultimately, the Archbishop said he hoped for the establishment of equal rights and equal duties for all citizens of Iraq, whether Muslim or Christian. To be able to live "on exactly the same basis as the other Iraqis and not as second-class citizens", he added, was the hope of all Christians living in the war-torn region.
T he head of Londons biggest academy chain warned today that some of the capitals most vulnerable children are even more unsafe now that they are isolated at home without the safe haven of school.

Sir Daniel Moynihan, chief executive of the Harris Federation, admitted he was worried about certain pupils and said teachers are making huge efforts to keep in daily contact.

He said some pupils are more vulnerable to gangs, while others are at risk of losing contact with social services, or are living in homes with no books or sanitary products.

Sir Daniel said: I am worried about the vulnerable children. School is a safe haven for them, it provides trusted adults who keep them in contact with social services and other people they need.

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures 1 /81 Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures A deserted Westminster Bridge PA A man wearing a face mask or covering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past customers sat outside a restaurant AFP via Getty Images Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Runners pass cardboard cutouts of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William during the London Marathon in London AP An empty escalator at Charing Coss London Underground tube station Jeremy Selwyn Electronic bilboards displays a message warning people to stay home in Sheffield PA A sign is displayed in the window of a student accommodation building following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Mancheste Reuters People take part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions, in Londo AP People sing and dance in Leicester Square on the eve on the 10PM curfew Reuters Hearts painted by a team of artists from Upfest are seen in the grass at Queen Square, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bristol Reuters Graffiti reads 'good luck and stay safe', as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, under a bridge in London Reuters A sign is pictured in Soho, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London Reuters Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures, during a coronavirus briefing in Downing Street, London AP A person runs past posters with a message of hope, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Manchester REUTERS Riot police face protesters who took part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions in London AP An image of The Queen eith quotes from her broadcast to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the Coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images Durdle Door in Dorset Reuters Captain Tom Moore via Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Coronavirus outbreak PA An NHS worker reacts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS Reuters Goats which have taken over the deserted streets of Llandudno @AndrewStuart via PA Tobias Weller PA Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed London Landscapes: Hyde Park and the Serpentine, central London. Matt Writtle A newspaper vendor in Manchester city centre giving away free toilet rolls with every paper bought as shops run low on supplies due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus PA Theo Clay looks out of his window next to his hand-drawn picture of a rainbow in Liverpool, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue Reuters A young man cuts another man's hair on top of a closed hairdresser in Oxford Reuters General view of the new NHS Nightingale Hospital, built to fight against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London via Reuters Jason Baird is seen dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children in Stockport, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters A woman wearing a face mask walks past Buckingham Palace Getty Images A man holds mobile phone displaying a text message alert sent by the government warning that new rules are in force across the UK and people must stay at home PA Medical staff on the Covid-19 ward at the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, in Wales, as the health services continue their response to the coronavirus outbreak. PA Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking part in a virtual Cabinet meeting with his top team of ministers PA A shopper walks past empty shelves in a Lidl store on in Wallington. After spates of "panic buying" cleared supermarket shelves of items like toilet paper and cleaning products, stores across the UK have introduced limits on purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have also created special time slots for the elderly and other shoppers vulnerable to the new coronavirus. Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour PA Mia, aged 8 and her brother Jack, aged 5 from Essex, continue their school work at home, after being sent home due to the coronavirus PA Children are painting 'Chase the rainbows' artwork and springing up in windows across the country Reuters Social distancing in Primrose Hill Jeremy Selwyn A general view of a locked gate at Anfield, Liverpool as The Premier League has been suspended PA Homeless people in London AFP via Getty Images A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow's street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss PA The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace, London, for Windsor Castle to socially distance herself amid the coronavirus pandemic PA A general view on Grey street, Newcastle as coronavirus cases grow around the world Reuters Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty (L) and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance look on as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he speaks during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news conference inside 10 Downing Street Reuters The ticket-validation terminals at the tram stop on Edinburgh's Princes Street are cleaned following the coronavirus outbreak. PA Locked school gates at Rockcliffe First School in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A sign at a Sainsbury's supermarket informs customers that limits have been set on a small number of products as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases grow around the world Reuters Jawad Javed delivers coronavirus protection kits that he and his wife have put together to the vulnerable people of their community of Stenhousemuir, between Glasgow and Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" Getty Images A man who appears to be homeless sleeping wearing a mask today in Victoria Jeremy Selwyn A pedestrian walks past graffiti that reads "Diseases are in the City" in Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images Staff from The Lyric Theatre, London inform patrons, as it shuts its doors PA A quiet looking George IV Bridge in Edinburgh PA A quieter than usual British Museum Getty Images A racegoer attends Cheltenham in a fashionable face mask SplashNews.com A commuter wears a face mask at London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn A empty restaurant in the Bull Ring Shopping Centre Getty Images A deserted Trafalgar Square in London PA Passengers determined to avoid the coronavirus before leaving the UK arrive at Gatwick Airport Getty Images

We have much less contact now but we are phoning them regularly during the week and we have risk assessments on the most vulnerable. A very small minority are not necessarily safe at home...There are others in areas where gang crime is endemic.

He added: [The vulnerable children] know if things are at absolute crisis we will be there for them. There are staff in each school and they know they can turn up.

The Harris Federation runs 48 academies and educates one in every 41 pupils in London. It is buying laptops and wireless dongles for pupils who do not have internet access at home, and is paying for food for pupils who do not qualify for free school meals but are nevertheless struggling.

The Federation is spending a 350,000 donation from an unnamed City business as part of its coronavirus hardship fund. Families are encouraged to approach schools to ask for what they need.
Family members have confirmed that Zachery Sandstrom, 66, a native of Chadron, is the among the several hundred residents of New York City who have died of complications of coronavirus.

Sandstrom reportedly died on Monday, March 23, after he became ill and was hospitalized, according to JoAnn Sandstrom of Chadron, his sister-in-law. Few other details are known, she said.

Zachery was born and raised in Chadron, the son the late Robert and Lorraine Sandstrom. He graduated from Chadron High School in 1971 and had lived in New York City most of the time since then. He worked as a bartender.

Survivors include his brothers Robert of Chadron and Terry of Wheatland, Wyo., a sister, Lorna Buscek of Denver, and a son, Shane, and a daughter, Shannon, both of Kansas City.

Shannon stated, "Zac Sandstrom was the best father, grandfather, friend and colleague. In the short week since his passing, I have heard from dozens of people that I have never met, who have reached out to me to let me know what an incredible impact his passing has had on them, and offering to help with anything that my family and I may need. While I know what he meant to me as a father, I have been blown away by the words that others that knew him have shared. He was always modest and didnt share the details of what he was doing or had done for others, and it brings me to tears each time I hear a new story from yet another person who he touched in his 66 years on this earth.

"Zac was my father, and we spoke almost every day. He was witty, funny and kind. He was so thoughtful, always making sure I had a listening ear when I needed. He regularly visited with my family and I in Kansas City. We shared everything; he was as much a best friend as he was a dad. He loved antiquing, reading books, collecting marbles and crystals, refinishing furniture, traveling, and shopping. He loved the city and was such an explorer. He had such an inquisitive nature, always looking for something new to learn and somewhere new to explore. He made everything exciting. He loved learning about others, and was the best listener and most insightful conversationalist I have ever known. He helped me through life challenges more times than I can count.

"Zac worked at the Metropolitan Club (a members only club) in Manhattan, NYC for many years. His work was meticulous, and he was incredibly loyal to both members and employees until the end of his life, working until three days before he passed. His co-workers, supervisors, and members of the club have all shared what a good friend and fun man my father has been to them. He was, according to them, a cornerstone in the club, and the glue that held people together.

"Zac was an incredible grandpa, 'Papa' to my son, Ashton. From the time he was 18 months old, Zac coordinated a trip with Ashton each summer, back to Chadron to see family. They would stay in Chadron a month or more, with Zac as his full time caregiver during that time. When my brother, Shane, and I were young, we had that experience as well, and Zac wanted to ensure that his grandson learned the country life, and had an opportunity to be close to his great-grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. When Zacs partner of 33 years died of cancer in 2019, Ashton went to live with his Papa in NYC, and Zac set about connecting him with several successful people that he considered friends. Ashton was able to start a career in real estate with his Papas support and connections, and to make some lifelong friendships because of his papa.

"It is very challenging for me to put into a few short paragraphs who my father was, for to me, he was my all. He was my very best friend and confidante, my rock, my support, my 'go-to'. His passing has left a hole that will not be filled."

Further, Shannon shared of her father's experience of contracting COVID-19

"When COVID-19 struck NYC, my dad was petrified of contracting the virus. He and I talked throughout March about how he needed to stop working, but hes very loyal to the private club where he worked, and would not stop until they told him to.

"On March 16, he was notified that the club was being closed due to the pandemic. We spoke throughout the week about how anxious he was about the virus, finances with work closing down, and his sadness around the anniversary of his partners death. March 18, I spoke with him and he said he was tired, but I attributed that to his stress level. On Thursday, March 19, he was asked to come in to the club with two employees to clean and sanitize so that it would be ready to reopen when the time came. He walked to the subway station, took the train into work and got busy. According to one of the employees, he was acting strange  stumbling around a bit (seemed dizzy), and being spacy and forgetful (struggled to remember what keys to use to open doors that hes been opening for 20 years working there). They got him a car and sent him home. He laid down and went to sleep.

"During the day on Friday, March 20, my dad was apparently coughing a bit and seemed to be a bit confused and tired. He slept much of the day. At 4 a.m. Saturday morning, he woke up and was walking around the house, and my son heard him fall. As this is something hes never done, it scared Ashton and he rushed to help him up. Ashton texted me Saturday morning to tell me that he was concerned about my dad, as it seemed he was getting senile all of a sudden. His behavior was very out of character. I attempted to call my father several times Saturday and he didnt answer. Finally, at around 5 p.m., I contacted Ashton. He shared some of the details of the day, and his concern, and put my dad on the phone.

"My dad had a very weak voice, something I had never heard. He said his throat felt very tight. He had not had a fever though  and had been checking hourly. He said he was very tired, and it was clear through our discussion that he was very spacy and confused. I told Ashton to contact his doctor right away. Apparently, after we ended the call, my dad convinced Ashton that it was too late to call, and that he just wanted to sleep that evening at home, and would call the doctor in the morning.

Sunday morning, March 22, they called his infectious disease doctor, who advised them to go to the ER right away. My dad insisted on showering and finishing his tea, and in the process, fell asleep again. Ashton was able to rouse him and they arrived at New York Presbyterian Queens at about 2 p.m. They asked Ashton for some basic information, and then sent him home, as they wouldnt let anyone other than the patient in the waiting room. Throughout the day Sunday I spoke with a number of physicians to get updates.

2:30 p.m.  They did a chest x-ray and drew labs, oxygen level of 88. COVID-19 test initiated. No fever.

3:30 p.m.- confirmed he would be admitted, but there were no open beds in ICU, so he was put on oxygen in the ER and told to wait. Fever spiked.

6:30 p.m.  My dad texts me that he was fine and would like to get out of there

11:00 p.m.  He text again, that he was hungry and no one had offered food, and he couldnt get a nurse.

11:30 p.m.  A physician called me to tell me his oxygen level had dropped to 82, and they were intubating. We discussed current protocol, and I asked specifically that if the COVID 19 test came back positive, they start remdesivir if at all possible. She shared that she could not do that, as current protocol was to attempt treatment with cloroquine and azithromycin, and that if that didnt work after several doses, they would request remdesivir.

1:30 p.m.  COVID 19 test came back positive. Dosed with cloroquine and azithromycin.

March 23, 7:30 p.m.  I received a call that his heart had stopped. They performed CPR, and after several minutes, got a pulse. However, they said that he likely would have no cognitive function if he ever woke, and that his heart was likely going to start again. I authorized DNR.

7:50 p.m.  I received another call, stating his heart had stopped again, and they had called time of death.

"My father was healthy, active, working full time and planning for retirement. He was my very best friend, and my life is forever changed by COVID-19. This virus took his life in a matter of 4 or 5 days. And 24 hours after he was treated, data was released publically reflecting the risk of heart failure of giving cloroquine and azithromycin to patients on ventilators.

"This virus has definitely become very personal to me and my family."

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Linkedin Apriza Pinandita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 17:04 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f46516 1 World COVID-19,Wuhan-coronavirus,cruise-line,cruise-ship,Indonesian-sailors,citizen-protection,Foreign-Ministry Free

Nearly a thousand Indonesians working aboard international cruise liners have returned, as the COVID-19 pandemic has forced their employers to suspend all operations and send them home.

As of Wednesday, at least 963 Indonesian seafarers and crew members had arrived in the country, Foreign Ministry officials confirmed, after traveling on commercial and charter flights funded by their companies.

At a time when the COVID-19 outbreak has evolved into a pandemic, cruise ship operators have faced major disruptions to their activities. Most have decided to halt their operations and send their crew back, said Judha Nugraha, the ministrys director for overseas citizen protection, in a virtual press conference held on Wednesday.

According to the ministrys records, there are an estimated 12,748 Indonesian crew members working aboard 89 cruise ships around the world  operated by a total of 10 big companies.

A string of virus cases has been connected with numerous cruise ships around the world, sending governments scrambling to keep the COVID-19 outbreak at bay.

Although most ships did not see a substantial spread of the disease, a few  including the Diamond Princess, World Dream, MS Westerdam and MS Zaandam  have seen the virus spread quickly amongst passengers and crew, which includes Indonesians.

According to analysis issued by the International Rescue Committee on Wednesday, COVID-19 transmission on the Diamond Princess, where 712 passengers contracted the virus during a two-month quarantine in Yokohama, Japan, occurred four times faster than at the peak of the outbreak in Chinas Wuhan province, where the virus was first detected.

Under the patronage of the operators, crew members are often the last people to disembark a ship and have had to be quarantined the longest.

However, the pandemic has not stopped some crew members from staying behind.

Not all of them are returning to Indonesia. Some have chosen to continue to work on board [their ships], Judha said, adding that the ministry would take all the necessary steps to ensure their wellbeing.

The Indonesian government is in constant contact with authorities and cruise operators to ensure that its seafarers are all in good health, and, if some are found to have contracted the virus, that they would be cared for in accordance with standard health protocols.

Read also: Indonesia to offer exemptions from temporary ban on foreigners

Acting ministry spokesperson Teuku Faizasyah reiterated that cruise companies had an obligation to fulfill the rights of their crew members, including in funding their safe passage home when an emergency situation arises.

We cant predict the future, but we want to underline that, based on previous experiences, [the crew] are supposed to get their jobs back when conditions improve, Faizasyah said during the teleconference.

Judha added that some cruise directors had reassured the government that they would not terminate their workers contracts and would even continue paying them if they chose to return to Indonesia.

At a time when the government in Jakarta is scrambling to contain the pandemic, the return of hundreds of seafarers from abroad has raised eyebrows and left some segments of the population feeling concerned. Indonesia had recorded 1,677 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 157 deaths and 103 recoveries as of Thursday morning.

Officials have urged most Indonesian travelers to return home before travel restrictions come into effect, and have asked those in more permanent living situations to stay put overseas so that they avoid unnecessarily importing viral infections and the steep costs of repatriation that come with it.

However, the Foreign Ministry has said that it cannot lawfully prevent people from returning home. Law No. 16/2011 on immigration stipulates that the government cannot forbid Indonesian citizens from returning to their homeland. We understand that, in the midst of this pandemic, we need to implement certain health protocols, Judha said.

Read also: Indonesian cruise crew arrives in Bali from virus-hit Italy, tests negative for COVID-19

For virus-stricken cruise ships, the ministry implemented a protocol similar to the one used on the Grand Princess cruise ship that docked in San Francisco Bay, the United States, after days of being stranded at sea with 21 confirmed infections on board.

We ask the cruise ship to impose a quarantine on board [...] According to the [World Health Organization], virus-positive crew should not be allowed to go home and should be treated in nearby hospitals, the official said.

The cruise ships quarantine period ends Saturday.

As for those who have arrived safely in Indonesia, they must undergo all the necessary health protocols at their respective ports of entry, whether at airports, ports and border gates, where the authorities will take their temperatures, screen them for symptoms and conduct rapid testing.

Those who test positive for the virus will be quarantined at their port of entry, while those who test negative will be allowed to self-quarantine for two weeks at home.

So for Indonesians who have chosen to go home, we will facilitate their needs but they must obey protocol so that they do not spread the virus in the country, Judha said.
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Ben Deveran is the definition of an entrepreneur. In less than 18 months, Ben has impacted businesses and individuals across the globe in terms of their Digital Marketing presence. At Next Wave Marketing, their main focus is to help people with their online branding by establishing online credibility and social proof.

Furthermore Ben stated, "Many people know they need to invest into their brand for themselves but don't know a place to go to get everything they need done." Ben and Next Waves track record speaks for itself, collectively they've worked with some of the most respected business leaders in the US, as well as on an international level with very large corporations.

When he first started, Ben knew that there was a huge market for the services he wanted to provide. He saw how others were finding incredible success in the online space. Knowing it wouldn't be easy, he took a full dive into the industry at the start of 2019. Ben went on to say "In the beginning it wasn't easy, not even in the slightest. I struggled immensely to get a footing online. It takes awhile to build trust, especially at that time because I had so many things to work on."

To cap off the rest of 2019, Ben quickly figured out what strategies worked and how to build a footing online. The greatest thing about it Ben stated is, "Everything we found to work we did a 180 with and added it to our services for our clients. The same way we've been able to grow our business is the same way we help others grow theirs."

One of the most important things for Ben was to seek out knowledge and mentorship. Mentorship was by far the most valuable thing for him during this journey. Ben explained, "The only investment people need to make is in a quality mentor who helps steer them in the right direction and scale their business." There's so much beauty in mentorship, it's a guide to help you get ahead quicker and not make the same mistakes others made on the same path as yourself.

Leading into the sixth business quarter of Next Wave Marketing, Ben and his team have been working hard to remodel their service offerings so that they can stay ahead of the everlasting changes in their industry.

"This is an absolute necessity for us, currently we have so much demand for our services in the marketplace. We're working endlessly to put our service offerings into more streamlined monthly deliverables so that we can help our clients as best as we can. We have a lot of exciting new offerings we're perfecting as well including personal name SEO, and business reputation management so consumers are less hesitant to make decisions when researching online."

Ben is always focused on the value he brings to his customers. Ben went on to say "We're months ahead of anyone else in our industry, most agencies have outdated service offerings and even worse; nothing that is streamlined and efficient. In order to be a great agency, you need to stay ahead of the curve, not just for your own bottomline but to make sure your clients are getting the results they desire."

If you're interested in learning more about Next Wave Marketing or following Ben Journey, click here.

CONTACT:

Paula Henderson

202-539-7664

phendersonnews@gmail.com

About VIP Media Group

VIP Media Group is a hybrid PR agency. Their diverse client base includes top-class entrepreneurs, public figures, influencers, and celebrities.

SOURCE: VIP-Media

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583706/Entrepreneur-Ben-Deveran-Shares-How-to-Take-Over-the-Marketing-World
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order banning water shutoffs for unpaid bills during the coronavirus crisis. (Los Angeles Times)

Californians won't have their water turned off due to unpaid bills during the coronavirus crisis, and those who already had it turned off will have their service restored, under action taken Thursday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The governor's directive comes in response to calls from environmental justice organizations for assistance to low-income residents facing mounting financial pressures.

"This executive order will help people who have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring they have water service," Newsom said in a written statement after hinting at the action during an event broadcast online. "Water is critical to our very lives, and in this time it is critically important that it is available for everyone."

The decision also requires that residential water service be restored to those who had it turned off for lack of payment since March 4, when the statewide coronavirus emergency went into effect.

"People are under enormous pressure economically and the last thing they need to worry about now is not having access to water," said Steve Fleischli, senior director of water initiatives at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

More than 100 private and public water agencies had already offered help to customers unable to pay their bills, according to Newsom's office.

Governors in several other states, including Michigan, Ohio and North Carolina, have issued similar orders ensuring that water service won't be denied to those who don't pay their bills.

Fleischli said that while the decision by Newsom is welcome news, it won't help those struggling Californians who had water service shut off due to unpaid bills prior to the public health crisis.

"We think everyone should be connected," he said. Nor does it address the needs of rural communities that rely on bottled supplies because of contaminants in tap water.

The financial impact to water agencies remains unclear, as does whether the state government might agree to replace lost operating dollars.

Story continues

Newsom's order includes small businesses in the moratorium for water shutoffs, though that would likely only apply to those following state or local directives permitting only "essential" businesses to remain open. On Wednesday, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti approved water shutoffs to nonessential businesses that refuse to close their doors.

The governor also announced on Thursday an additional boost to small business owners, granting them a one-year delay in paying up to $50,000 in sales taxes  money paid by customers and normally sent every month to government officials.

"In essence, it is a bridge loan," the governor said of the new effort during his webcast. "The money that you've already collected, you will not have to pay the state for 12 months. No penalties, no interest  de facto a loan."

Newsom issued an executive order on Monday that gave businesses until the end of July to comply with sales tax filings. The action taken Thursday pushes out the requirements to a full year. Only businesses that have $5 million or less in taxable sales would be eligible.

But the relief for some business owners could come at the expense of local services. A sizable portion of sales taxes, though sent by businesses to the state, is later returned to cities and counties across California. Dozens of communities have enacted their own local sales taxes, either to pay for basic programs such as public safety or to boost other government services.

A 2018 report by the independent Legislative Analyst's Office found that slightly more than half of all annual sales and use taxes goes back to local needs.

Newsom's decision to allow a business to hold onto $50,000 of those tax revenues could mean reduced funds in the coming months for a variety of vital city and county services.

"Its unclear how this initiative will be implemented, but it simply cannot occur in a manner that redirects county funding and erodes the very services most in need," Graham Knaus, executive director of the California State Assn. of Counties, said in a written statement. "Counties face dire cash flow challenges due to COVID-19 costs to protect communities and cannot absorb a significant loss of sales tax revenue that would directly impact funding for public safety, public health and behavioral health services."

A spokesman for the California Department of Finance said there was no immediate plan to replace the delayed local funds with an equal amount of state tax revenue. Newsom has allocated some, but not all, of the $1 billion in emergency response funds approved by the Legislature last month.
Firefighters used an aerial ladder to remove an obese patient with suspected coronavirus from a London block of flats.

The rescue workers, wearing protective face masks fitted with air filters, were seen carrying the patient through a second-floor window before taking them down to hazmat-suited paramedics on the ground.

Afterwards they removed their helmets, face masks and boots for immediate decontamination, while their tunics and leggings were double-bagged and sent for cleaning.

The rescue workers, wearing protective face masks fitted with air filters, were seen carrying the patient through a second-floor window

The patient was loaded onto the aerial ladder before being carried to ambulance workers on the ground

Part of Uxbridge Road in Shepherds Bush, West London, had to be closed for the operation, which involved all three emergency services.

The ambulance service called the fire brigade for help at 4.01pm and they remained at the scene until 5.55pm.

MailOnline understands the patient was obese, which can raise the chance of severe symptoms for people with coronavirus.

It comes as the number of confirmed UK cases his 29,474 with 2,352 deaths.

The Government was facing criticism today for its slowness in increasing the number of people who could be tested for the virus.

Public Health England managed an average of just 7,994 tests per day last week but the number of tested people is lower because of repeat tests.

Officials hope the involvement of private labs will increase these figures in the coming days.

The patient was taken into the ambulance by paramedics, who were wearing hazmat suits

Ambulance workers and the fire brigade at an incident in Shepherd's Bush, West London

A London Fire Brigade spokesman said: 'Firefighters assisted London Ambulance Service crews to remove a patient with suspected Covid-19 symptoms from a property on Uxbridge Road in Shepherds Bush.

'Firefighters were breathing air but wore respirators with a filter to remove airborne particles. The patient was brought to ground floor level via an aerial ladder platform. He was taken to hospital by London Ambulance Service crews.

'Fire crews who were in contact with the patient were safely undressed from their personal protective equipment.

'Their face masks, boots and helmet were decontaminated at scene. Any equipment used at the incident was also washed with solution. Tunics and leggings were double bagged and sent for cleaning.'

The London Ambulance Service said: 'We were called at 3:07pm yesterday to reports of an incident at a residential property on Uxbridge Road in Shepherd's Bush.

'We dispatched a number of responses to the scene including an ambulance crew. We treated a person and took them to hospital.'
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has urged fellow governors in the US to take quick action against the deadly coronavirus, cautioning that their cities could also face situations like that in New York where some 16,000 people may die due to the infection by time the virus pandemic runs its course.

Cuomo, at his daily press briefing on the pandemic, cited fatality estimates projected by a group funded by the Gates Foundation.

According to these projections, 93,000 Americans and 16,000 New Yorkers will pass away by the time the pandemic is over.

And what would that mean to New York? That would mean about 16,000. Frankly that would mean that New York is only 16 per cent, roughly, of the number of deaths. I don't even understand that since New York is so much higher right now, he said.

But what that does say to the rest of the nation is, this is not just New York. If you believe these numbers, 16,000 deaths in New York, that means you're going to have tens of thousands of deaths outside of New York."



"So to the extent people watch their nightly in Kansas and say well this is a New York problem, that's not what these numbers say. This says it's a New York problem today. Tomorrow it's a Kansas problem, and a Texas problem, and a New Mexico problem. That's why I say to my fellow governors and elected officials all across this country, look at us today, see yourself tomorrow, he said.

Cuomo voiced concern that overall the number of conformed coronavirus cases continue to go up in the state.

He however noted that he is proud of the number of tests the state is now doing.

the more you test the more good you're doing, he said adding that 220,000 people have been tested in total and total cases now stand at 83,712.

Of these, 12,000 people are currently hospitalised, 1,200 more than the previous day, 3,000 in ICU.

New York city's mayor Bill de Blasio stressed it has to brace for a real upsurge' in COVID-19 cases beyond the demarcation line, D-Day of April 5.

He underscored that the city is working hard to stay ahead of the problem and recognizes the challenges in the next few weeks.

As of April 1, there were 45,707 COVID-19 cases, 9,775 hospitalisations and 1,374 deaths in New York.

I've talked about this Sunday, April 5th as a crucial, crucial day, and I've done that for a reason. I want everyone to understand it. It's not to be alarmist, it's to focus the energies of our national government, to focus the attention of everyone who can help us, to help them understand how important it is to maximise support for New York City by this Sunday," he said.

"And then in the days immediately following as we prepare for a real upsurge.

The mayor said that in preparing for the "demarcation line, that D-Day of April 5, he wants to ensure that the city is ready and has sufficient medical supplies such as protective gear, ventilators for the days and wells ahead for all hospitals in New York City and for all the first responders.

He noted that the city still needs 3.3 million N-95 masks, 2.1 million surgical masks, 100,000 isolation gowns, 400 more ventilators to be in place by Sunday to prepare us for the week ahead.

The city would also need to build out an additional number of 65,000 hospital beds by the end of April.

Cuomo said that the impact of minimal social distancing would mean that the state requires 110,000 beds and 37,000 ventilators to treat the COVID-19 caseload but high compliance with social distancing could slightly reduce that number to 75,000 COVID beds and 25,000 ventilators.

Not happy with the compliance of social distancing requirements, Cuomo said the state is going to take more dramatic actions and will close down the New York City playgrounds.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
TORONTO - Ontario and its municipalities stepped up legal measures Wednesday to stop the spread of COVID-19, while expanding hospital capacity and increasing medical supply production, as Premier Doug Ford warned of a coming surge.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 1/4/2020 (649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Nurses wave to hundreds of residents driving by Pinecrest Nursing Home honking their horns to acknowledge health care workers in Bobcaygeon, Ontario on Wednesday April 1, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Fred Thornhill

TORONTO - Ontario and its municipalities stepped up legal measures Wednesday to stop the spread of COVID-19, while expanding hospital capacity and increasing medical supply production, as Premier Doug Ford warned of a coming surge.

Ford said thousands of lives are at stake.

"The hard truth is right now, today, there's very little separating what we will face here in Ontario from the devastation we've seen in Italy and Spain," he said.

"The actions we take today, what we do as a government and as a people today, will determine what we face tomorrow. These next two weeks will be absolutely critical, because we know a surge is coming."

Ontario reported 426 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday, including four new deaths. The provincial total is now 2,392, including 37 deaths and 689 cases that have been resolved.

Pinecrest Nursing Home in Bobcaygeon, Ont., reported two more deaths among residents Wednesday, for a total of 14, with at least 24 staff members infected. The spouse of a resident has also died.

Those two deaths were not included in the provincial total reported earlier in the day.

As of Wednesday morning there were 332 people with COVID-19 in hospital, with 145 of them in intensive care and 98 of those patients on ventilators.

Neither Ford nor Health Minister Christine Elliott would give projections for the number of cases or deaths that Ontario could face, saying there are several different models. Ontario's chief medical officer of health, Dr. David Williams, said he hoped to have projections to make public next week.

Williams sent a letter Wednesday to the province's local medical officers of health "strongly recommending" they use powers under the Health Protection and Promotion Act to require COVID-19 patients and their close contacts to self-isolate.

Toronto's medical officer of health, Dr. Eileen de Villa, said the city will be issuing such orders to those people, as well as others suspected of having COVID-19.

De Villa urged the province to reduce the number of businesses allowed to stay open  Ford said he will be adjusting the essential workplaces list in the next day or so  and echoed a message from Williams earlier this week that everyone should only leave their homes for essential purposes.

"I am saying in the strongest possible terms for the public to stay home as much as possible and only to go out for the most essential of needs," she said.

De Villa said such measures may need to be in place for up to 12 weeks.

Toronto Mayor John Tory said the city has drafted a bylaw that it could use to enforce physical distancing measures to stop the spread of COVID-19.

The neighbouring city of Brampton has enacted a bylaw that prohibits people from being within two metres of each other on public property, other than people they live with, with penalties of up to $100,000.

The province has announced that people being charged with violating state of emergency orders, such as running non-essential businesses and gathering in groups larger than five, will be required to identify themselves to police or bylaw enforcement officers.

Failure to comply will carry a fine of $750 and obstructing an officer from issuing a ticket will carry a $1,000 fine.

In anticipation of a surge in patients, Joseph Brant Hospital in Burlington, Ont., is building a temporary COVID-19 unit with 93 beds.

The hospital's chief of staff, Dr. Ian Preyra, said the pandemic response unit will allow the hospital to keep its critical care and high acuity beds for the sickest patients.

The Ministry of Health is also allowing all public hospitals to lease or acquire temporary space in institutions or other buildings, such as hotels or retirement homes.

The ministry says hospitals could use those spaces to house COVID-19 or other patients.

Jen Zoratti | Next A weekly look towards a post-pandemic future delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Ontario launched a $50-million fund Wednesday to help businesses retool their operations to produce medical equipment and personal protective gear for front-line workers.

The province has also worked with the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association to get ventilators produced and Ontario recently ordered 10,000 of the machines from O-Two Medical Technologies.

Meanwhile, the association that represents Ontario's hospitals said it is "extremely concerned" that many of the facilities are running low on personal protective equipment.

The Ontario Hospital Association said in a statement Wednesday that as the number of COVID-19 cases in acute care units rises, many hospitals are experiencing the equipment shortage, with masks in especially limited supply.

The association is calling on the federal and provincial governments to clearly communicate when new supplies will be provided to specific hospitals.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 1, 2020.
The rapidly increasing Coronavirus cases have jolted people across the globe bringing everyones lives to a standstill.



Not only that, there is also another important concern thats adding more woes to the ongoing situation. Since there is an alarming rise in the number of affected cases, there is also a shortage of ventilators and other medical equipment throughout the world.

 Reuters

With over a lakh cases in Italy, older people are bearing the brunt of the shortage of ventilators and other medical equipment. In fact, other European countries are also going through a very hard situation in the wake of the unprecedented crisis in modern times, to an extent where even doctors are being forced to make choices on who gets the ventilator and who is let go.



As per reports, EU countries have reported shortages of ventilators, personal protective equipment and testing kits - especially in Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and France where there is a very high number of Coronavirus patient requiring intensive care.

 Reuters

Ventilators, as we all know, are extremely crucial in the treatment of the deadly virus. Affected patients who develop breathing related issues cannot breathe on their own without these machines that help pump oxygen into the lungs.



Even in such a situation, a 90-year-old COVID-19 patient in Belgium proved theres nothing above humanity and chose to sacrifice her life for a younger patient.

Suzanne Hoylaerts from Binkom, Belgium died after she refused to use the ventilator for her treatment and instead, instructed doctors to keep this for the younger patients, Daily Mail reported.

The selfless elderly woman reportedly told doctors that, I dont want to use artificial respiration. Save it for younger patients. I already had a good life.

According to the reports, Suzanne was admitted to the hospital after suffering from lack of appetite and shortness of breath. She then tested positive for Coronavirus and was placed in isolation. However, unfortunately, her health kept deteriorating and she passed away two days later.

Also heart-wrenching is the fact that Suzannes daughter, Judith, could not even get a chance to bid goodbye to her. In her interview to a Dutch newspaper, the daughter said, I can't say goodbye to her, and I don't even have a chance to attend her funeral.

She also said the family were baffled as to how their mother could have contracted the virus as she had stayed at home and was complying carefully with lockdown measures.

Heres how people reacted on social media about this elderly womans selfless act:

Im not crying, youre crying.... Save it for younger patients. I already had a good life. ~90 year old with #COVID19 who refused ventilator. https://t.co/JHJKSbrJaE  Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) April 1, 2020

God bless her  goodwitchofthenorth (@tracydareok) April 1, 2020

May her soul rest in peace  steven (@life1018) April 1, 2020

I think her life is every bit as valuable as anyone else's. No matter if you're two or 102, your life is equally valuable. And her death is just tragic.  Pathos  (@SadMusketeer) April 1, 2020

Bless her precious heart   Michelle Landis (@scbeachchic) April 1, 2020

90-year-old lady in Belgium has died after she refused being put on a ventilator, telling doctors to "Save it for younger patients. I already had a good life."



This womans face is what courage looks like. pic.twitter.com/y0EWaSXOzf  Mohamad Safa (@mhdksafa) April 1, 2020

Will you feel the same if the person is 60? How about 50? Even 40? People should NOT have to make this type of decision in 2020. Where were all of these companies making ventilators this week?!?  SocialDistancingIsKey (@LLinkowsky) April 1, 2020

I agree that people shouldnt have to make this decision but want to point out that this lady may have made the same decision regardless. Some people choose not to go through intubation, ventilation etc even in normal times.  RCP (@RCPrentice) April 1, 2020

Not only did she have courage, love, clarity and gratitude towards her own life and a younger patient but kindness to the doctors, making the decision for them. There is more good than bad in this world, it's likely more will make the same decision unfortunately.  Pete Muir (@PeterMu12338005) April 1, 2020

This is what the world has come to  Jen (@jenminicooper) April 1, 2020

Meanwhile, a few days ago, there was news about a 72-year-old Italian priest who gave his ventilator to a younger patient (https://www.newsweek.com/72-year-old-italian-priest-who-gave-his-ventilator-younger-patient-dies-coronavirus-1493868) and soon after died.

Fr. Giuseppe Berardelli, a 72-year-old priest who gave a respirator (that his parishioners had purchased for him), to a younger patient (whom he did not know), has died from #coronavirus.



"Greater love has no person..." (Jn 15:13) https://t.co/qXQ6knoE6n via @Araberara pic.twitter.com/uKxRNghire  James Martin, SJ (@JamesMartinSJ) March 24, 2020

Shortages of ventilators have become apparent around the world as the virus continues to spread. Experts across the globe worry that the health care system will soon be overwhelmed and the limited number of ventilators could pose serious problems.

The Coronavirus cases across the globe have crossed over nine lakh and the death toll has reached around 40,000, so far.
Since the spread of COVID-19, its become clear healthcare workers make up our societys last line of defence. Every day, doctors, nurses and healthcare staff are putting their and their families lives on the line to help treat the sick, as they face a mounting number of patients.

What is it really like to serve on the frontline of a pandemic? What are doctors and nurses seeing in emergency rooms? How are our healthcare workers coping with the mental stress of making life and death decisions at an unprecedented time, while also being exposed daily to COVID-19?

Today, Adrian Cheung talks to an emergency room doctor, Dr. David Carr, in Toronto. Carr has worked in emergency medicine for nearly two decades and gives a firsthand account on what healthcare workers are facing in the fight against COVID-19.

Listen here or subscribe at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.

Background reading:

I didnt sign up to die on my job: Fear and anger among Ontario nurses battling COVID-19 pandemic

Ontario hospitals get new emergency powers
O fficials are working hard to resolve a shortage of coronavirus testing materials, the Health Service Executive has said.

HSE CEO Paul Reid asked the public to bear with us as it tries to address the worldwide issue.

His comments come after it emerged that Ireland is falling short of the target number of tests being carried out each day.

The British Government has also come under pressure to rapidly increase testing with some medics going into self-isolation when they are needed on the frontline because they have not got a diagnosis.

In a tweet, Mr Reid said: In a short time we have scaled up on, testing centres, testing kits, contact tracers, nbr of Labs, hospital beds, ICU, ventilators, PPE, staff.

Our current major issue is reagents for labs.

A worldwide shortage. We are working hard to fix this. Bear with us.

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On Wednesday, it was confirmed there had been 14 more deaths and 212 new cases of Covid-19 in the Republic of Ireland.

Eighty-five people have died since the outbreak began in the Republic.

On Thursday the head of the Department of Public Health and Epidemiology at the Royal College of Surgeons said that increasing contact tracing of people with symptoms would work more effectively than waiting for test results.

Professor Ruairi Brugha told RTEs Morning Ireland: Instead of having delays of up to 10 days, we can move in when people have symptoms and start contact tracing at that point.

Across the sea in England, NHS frontline staff are forced into self-isolation when they are most needed because tests are not available to show whether they are clear of the disease.

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The Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of Nursing and the British Medical Association also said staff testing is desperately needed.

Cabinet minister Michael Gove acknowledged the Government needed to go "further, faster but said there was a shortage of chemicals needed for the tests on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had now promised to "ramp up" testing for Covid-19 in the UK and said it will be key to "unlocking the puzzle" of stopping the deadly virus.

Currently, around 8,000 tests a day are being carried out, and the Government has admitted only 2,000 of the half a million NHS staff on the frontline have so far been tested.
The US on Friday criticised a Pakistani court for overturning the death sentence of British-born top al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl in Karachi in 2002 in the aftermath of the 9/11 terror attack, terming the verdict an "affront" to victims of terrorism everywhere.

The US' response comes after the Sindh High Court on Thursday found the 46-year-old Sheikh guilty of the lesser charge of kidnapping and commuted his death sentence to seven years in prison. Sheikh has been in jail for the past 18 years.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha also acquitted the three others - Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib and Sheikh Adil- serving life sentences in the case.

"The overturning of the convictions for Daniel Pearl's murder is an affront to victims of terrorism everywhere," Alice Wells, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, said in a tweet.

But the US' top diplomat for South Asia welcomed Pakistani prosecutors' indications that they would appeal the decision.

"We welcome Pakistan's decision to appeal the verdict. Those responsible for Daniel's heinous kidnapping and murder must face the full measure of justice," Wells said.

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story on the alleged links between the country''s powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda.

Sheikh, who was the mastermind behind abduction and killing of Pearl, was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

The incident had come three years after Sheikh, along with Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, was released by India in 1999 and given safe passage to Afghanistan in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814. He was serving prison term in India for kidnappings of Western tourists in the country.

"Justice has been done to my clients," said one of Sheikh's lawyers Khawaja Naveed.

The case had strained the relations between Pakistan and the US when terrorism was at its height in Pakistan after the 9/11 attacks on the twin towers of the World Trade Centre.

The verdict on Thursday came more than a month after Paris-based Financial Action Task Force warned Pakistan that stern action will be taken against it if the country fails to check the flow of money to terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) among others.

The FATF, which supervises effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, last year placed Pakistan on its "Grey List" of countries for failure to curb funnelling of funds to terror groups like the LeT and the JeM.

If not removed from the list by April end, Pakistan may move to a blacklist of countries such as Iran that face severe economic sanctions.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Keda (Ghana) Ceramics Company Limited, manufacturers of Twyford tiles based at Aboadze in the Shama District of the Western Region has put in place adequate measures to help protect its workers from the COVID-19 disease.

Workers of the Chinese ceramics company have therefore been asked not to panic as the company is leaving no stone unturned to ensure the safety of all of them.

As part of the measures, the company has provided the required personal protective equipment (PPEs) including nose masks and veronica buckets to ensure frequent hand washing as well as ensuring social distancing.

Security personnel at the entrance of the company have also been provided with thermometer guns to check the temperature of those who move in and out of the premises.

The management debunked rumours that it had decided not to allow the workers to go home after work even though the region not on lockdown.

Speaking to journalists, David Yevugah, Human Resources Manager of the company explained that about 70 per cent of the workers stay around the companys premises and were always at work.

He said in view of the Presidents directive on the lockdown of Accra and Kumasi to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, the management also decided to embark on a voluntary lockdown of the 30 per cent of the workers who stayed outside the companys premises.

So those workers were given forms to fill to indicate whether they wanted to be part of the lockdown and majority of them decided to stay.

Accommodation had been made available for the workers who decided not to go home, he said.

He said the workers were also told that the directives would be reviewed as and when the status of the pandemic facing the country, changes.

So we have not sacked any worker or asked any of them not to go home. However, all those who did not take part in the voluntary lockdown had been asked to stay at their homes until the outbreak of COVID 19 in the country is resolved, he noted.
Press Release

Nicox's Partner Fera Pharmaceuticals Files Application for Orphan Drug Designation for Naproxcinod in Sickle-Cell Disease





April 2, 2020 - release at 7:30 am CET

Sophia Antipolis, France







Nicox SA (Euronext Paris: FR0013018124, COX), an international ophthalmology company, and Fera Pharmaceuticals, a privately-held, U.S. specialty pharmaceutical company, announced today that Fera has filed an application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for an Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) for naproxcinod in sickle-cell disease.



Following results from in vivo primary pharmacodynamics studies of naproxcinod in models of sickle-cell disease, Fera has decided to focus its development on the treatment of painful vaso-occlusive crisis in sickle-cell disease. Fera plans to conduct further studies and other development activities in preparation for entering directly into a clinical efficacy trial of naproxcinod in sickle-cell patients, subject to being granted an ODD.



Naproxcinod, a Cyclooxygenase-Inhibiting Nitric Oxide (NO)-Donating (CINOD) naproxen, is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory product candidate engineered to release NO, originally discovered and developed by Nicox. Nicox and Fera entered into an agreement in December 2015, amended in September 2018, which granted Fera exclusive rights to develop and commercialize naproxcinod for the U.S. market. Nicox is eligible to potentially receive a single $40 million sales-based milestone if naproxcinod reaches $1 billion yearly sales (for any indication) in the U.S. as well as royalties of 7% on net sales of naproxcinod in the U.S. Fera is responsible for all clinical development, manufacturing, regulatory and commercialization activities.



Role of nitric oxide in sickle cell disease



Sickle-cell disease is a rare, inherited blood condition where defects in hemoglobin result in red blood cells adopting a "sickle" shape. Rupture of these cells in the bloodstream can lead to inflammation, a reduction in NO and a subsequent endothelial cell wall thickening as well as platelet activation. In this inflamed environment and reduced volume, sickled red blood cells, leukocytes (white blood cells) and activated platelets aggregate to create a "vascular log-jam" (vaso-occlusion), leading to a painful vaso-occlusive crisis.

About naproxcinod

Naproxcinod is a nitric oxide (NO)-donating naproxen combining the cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitory activity of naproxen with that of NO (COX-inhibiting NO donor, CINOD). While the inhibitory COX component provides the analgesic and anti-inflammatory efficacy, the NO part may play a significant role in maintaining vascular endothelial cell function and integrity, blood pressure homeostasis and microvascular circulation. A broad clinical package already exists for naproxcinod in osteoarthritis, including three phase 3 trials with over 2,700 patients.

About Fera Pharmaceuticals

Fera Pharmaceuticals is a privately held company. The company goal is to realize opportunities via acquisitions, in-licensing, developing and marketing abbreviated new drug applications (ANDAs), new drug applications (NDAs) and 505(b)(2) NDA products. Areas of interest include products that could benefit from lifecycle management with a special focus on niche markets. For more information visit www.ferapharma.com (http://www.ferapharma.com).





About Nicox

Nicox S.A. is an ophthalmology company developing innovative solutions to help maintain vision and improve ocular health. Nicox's lead program in clinical development is NCX 470, a novel, second-generation nitric oxide-donating bimatoprost analog, for lowering intraocular pressure in patients with glaucoma. The company is also developing NCX 4251, a proprietary formulation of fluticasone, for acute exacerbations of blepharitis. Nicox generates revenue from VYZULTA in glaucoma, licensed exclusively worldwide to Bausch & Lomb, and ZERVIATE in allergic conjunctivitis, licensed in multiple geographies, including to Eyevance Pharmaceuticals, LLC, in the U.S. and Ocumension Therapeutics in the Chinese and Southeast Asian markets.



Nicox is headquartered in Sophia Antipolis, France, is listed on Euronext Paris (Compartment B: Mid Caps; Ticker symbol: COX) and is part of the CAC Healthcare, CAC Pharma & Bio and Next 150 indexes.



For more information on Nicox, its products or pipeline, please visit: www.nicox.com (http://www.nicox.com) .

Analyst coverage





Bryan, Garnier & Co Victor Floc'h Paris, France

Cantor Fitzgerald Louise Chen New York, U.S.

H.C. Wainwright & Co Yi Chen New York, U.S.

Oppenheimer & Co Hartaj Singh New York, U.S.

The views expressed by analysts in their coverage of Nicox are those of the author and do not reflect the views of Nicox. Additionally, the information contained in their reports may not be correct or current. Nicox disavows any obligation to correct or to update the information contained in analyst reports.

Contacts

Nicox

Gavin Spencer

Executive Vice President, Chief Business Officer

& Head of Corporate Development

T +33 (0)4 97 24 53 00

mailto:communications@nicox.com (mailto:communications@nicox.com)

Investors & Media

United States & Europe

LifeSci Advisors, LLC

Hans Herklots

T +41 79 598 71 49

hherklots@lifesciadvisors.com (mailto:hherklots@lifesciadvisors.com) Media

France

LifeSci Advisors, LLC

Sophie Baumont

M +33 (0)6 27 74 74 49

sophie@lifesciadvisors.com (mailto:sophie@lifesciadvisors.com)

Disclaimer

The information contained in this document may be modified without prior notice. This information includes forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance. These statements are based on current expectations or beliefs of the management of Nicox S.A. and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Nicox S.A. and its affiliates, directors, officers, employees, advisers or agents, do not undertake, nor do they have any obligation, to provide updates or to revise any forward-looking statements.



Risks factors which are likely to have a material effect on Nicox's business are presented in the 3rd chapter of the 'Document d'enregistrement universel, rapport financier annuel et rapport de gestion 2019' filed with the French Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF) on March 6, 2020 which are available on Nicox's website ( www.nicox.com (http://www.nicox.com)).
Presidential challengers always prize three moments of dayslong publicity  with their vice-presidential selection, their conventions and in the fall debates. That sustained coverage is all the more important now that the virus is likely to keep Mr. Biden off the campaign trail for much of the spring and may substantially condense the general election period.

There are things you can do online, but there is something about the communal spirit that is important and people feed off of, said David Axelrod, a senior official in Barack Obamas presidential campaigns. From a television standpoint its hard to have the same impact if youre cobbling together a series of remotes.

Though an in-person convention would provide Mr. Biden a nationally televised boost, the later date carries potential downsides. In addition to potentially keeping Mr. Biden out of the spotlight for an extended period of time, it could complicate his timing on when to announce his vice-presidential choice. And it delays for a month his ability to access funds earmarked for the general election.

Concerns over the virus have already led to the cancellation of hundreds of state and local conventions from both parties. Moving the national convention back a month is an acknowledgment that the outlook for holding an in-person gathering in July  with some 4,500 delegates, and tens of thousands of others who convene on the convention city  was not feasible.

We welcome the D.N.C.s decision today to prioritize the health and safety of delegates and the greater Milwaukee community by postponing the Democratic National Convention until August, said Bill Russo, a campaign spokesman, adding that the campaign would continue to work closely with state parties and the D.N.C. on any changes to the delegate selection process and the format of the convention.

But there is no guarantee that the crisis will be over by August, and travel could still be difficult or even dangerous for some. One of Mr. Bidens strongest constituencies is older Americans, the population most vulnerable to the virus, and the lingering effects of the outbreak could still have an effect on which delegates are able to travel.

Dr. Irwin Redlener, a clinical professor at Columbia Universitys Mailman School of Public Health, said he was deeply skeptical of a summer convention.
New Delhi, April 2 : The Congress on Thursday reiterated that it stood with the nation to take on the coronavirus threat amid a 21-day nationwide lockdown.

During the Congress Working Committee meeting held through videoconferencing in the morning to discussed various issues, including government response to the pandemic, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reiterated the party's support to the government, earlier also voiced by the party leader Rahul Gandhi.

In her opening remarks, Congress President Sonia Gandhi said: "We meet today in the midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis. The magnitude of the challenge before us is daunting but our resolve to overcome it must be greater." Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, who was among the Congress CMs to attend the meeting, informed the CWC about the preparations and steps taken to fight COVID in his state, including provision of food and medication and preventive steps.

Praising the efforts of various organizations and Punjab Police during the lockdown, he pointed out to non-release of Punjab's share of Rs 5,000 crore by the Centre as a hindrance in the fight against coronavirus.

He said he had taken up the issue with the Union Finance Minister.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
What you need to know about the coronavirus right now FILE PHOTO: A medical staff member in protective gear prepares to take samples from a visitor at a 'drive-thru' testing center for the novel coronavirus disease of COVID-19 in Yeungnam University Medical Center in Daegu

(Reuters) - Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:

Passing the million milestone

There are now some 935,392 cases of coronavirus infection globally, as of the last Reuters tally on Thursday, meaning the 1 million mark will be surpassed in the next 24 hours at the current rate of increase. Given the widespread recognition that official national figures in many cases woefully under-represent the true spread of the virus, the real figure will be much higher. The death toll continues to rise sharply, with nearly 5,000 confirmed new fatalities in the last day for a total of 46,906. One small solace is that massive under-detection means the actual mortality rate - deaths divided by cases - is likely a lot lower than official figures imply.

(For an interactive graphic tracking the global spread, open https://tmsnrt.rs/3aIRuz7 in an external browser.)

Not working: labour markets suffer

Social security data released by Spain on Thursday underline the economic and human cost of measures put in place to arrest the spread of the virus: they reveal that the country has shed close to 900,000 jobs since it went into lockdown in mid-March. That is the highest monthly rise in unemployment ever, faster even than when Spain was in the eye of the storm of the 2008/2009 global recession.

U.S. data out later on Thursday will be equally grim: economists surveyed by Reuters expect on average that U.S. jobless claims will jump by about 3.5 million for March 22-28 week as lockdowns of cities mean there is even less likelihood of hiring than during a recession.

Things not under control

European Union governments may have worsened their current predicament of mask and medical equipment shortages by overestimating their response capacity, internal and public documents seen by Reuters show.

"There is strong level of preparedness in member states, most have measures in place" to detect and treat COVID-19, a European Commission official said at a closed-door meeting with diplomats from member states on Feb. 5, two weeks after China locked down nearly 60 million people in Hubei province, or roughly the equivalent population of Italy.

Story continues

EU governments began to realise the gravity of the situation in March, but rather than focusing on joint action, many resorted to protectionist measures, raising trade barriers to hinder the export of medical equipment to their neighbours.

Isolating antibodies 'effective' at blocking coronavirus

A team of Chinese scientists has isolated several antibodies that it says are "extremely effective" at blocking the ability of the new coronavirus to enter cells, which eventually could be helpful in treating or preventing COVID-19.

Zhang Linqi at Tsinghua University in Beijing said a drug made with antibodies like the ones his team have found could be used more effectively than current approaches, including those utilising plasma, which is restricted by blood type.

The team is now focused on identifying the most powerful antibodies and possibly combining them to mitigate the risk of the new coronavirus mutating.

If all goes well, interested developers could mass produce them for testing, first on animals and eventually on humans.

(Open https://reut.rs/2JuUzGt in an external browser to see an interactive graphic that tracks the spread of coronavirus in your country.)

'Shoot them dead' - Philippines president warns lockdown violaters

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said violaters of the country's coronavirus lockdown measures could be shot for causing trouble and that abuse of medical workers was a serious crime that wouldn't be tolerated.

"My orders to the police and military ... if there is trouble and there's an occasion that they fight back and your lives are in danger, shoot them dead," he said in a televised address late on Wednesday.

"Is that understood? Dead. Instead of causing trouble, I will bury you."

Duterte's office typically calls his remarks hyperbole to underline his point.

(Compiled by Karishma Singh and Mark John)
Thank you for joining us for a very special live interview with Stacy Bohlen, executive director of the National Congress of American Indians, and Dr. Aaron Payment, first vice president of the National Congress of American Indians. Kevin Abourezk is our host tonight. Another special guest will be joining us tonight, a young tribal leader who was recently diagnosed with COVID-19 but is feeling well enough tonight to join us and share her story.

With the number of COVID-19 cases in Indian Country continuing to rise, the Trump administration is embarking on the most consequential tribal consultation in recent history.

Starting on Thursday, the Department of the Interior and the Department of Treasury will be asking tribes about the $8 billion coronavirus relief fund that was just approved by Congress. The goal is to get the much-needed funds out to Indian Country as soon as possible to help address the devastating cultural, social and economic impacts of the global health pandemic.

"We need the money right now," Aaron Payment, the chairperson of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians , said on an Indianz.Com broadcast on Wednesday evening.

FYSA: Tribal Leaders. A rapid CARES ACT TITLE VI consultation will take place on Thursday, April 2 from 1:00 pm-4:00 pm eastern time. Regional directors are pushing out the letter. If you have not received it, please contact your regional director. #CARESAct @USIndianAffairs  Assistant Secretary Tara Sweeney (@ASIndianAffairs) March 31, 2020

"We are 100 percent relying on these dollars," Payment added, noting that it will take at least $20 million to keep his tribe's operation -- which serves thousands of citizens and employees hundreds of people throughout Michigan -- afloat during the crisis.

"Don't forget," said Payment, who also serves as vice president of the National Congress of American Indians . "We pre-paid for everything. We are the only population in the country that has a federal right to health care, education and social welfare."

Federal officials are in agreement about getting the funds out as quickly as possible. The first consultation on Thursday will be followed by another one next week, with comments from tribes due by April 13.

"A compressed timeline is necessary, so that we may distribute the funds as soon as possible to address your needs in these unprecedented and uncertain times," Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Tara Sweeney wrote in a Dear Tribal Leader Letter on Tuesday.

As tribes look to the federal government to uphold its trust and treaty responsibilities during the worst public health crisis in decades, one important agency is receiving failing grades for its response to the #Coronavirus pandemic. #COVID19 https://t.co/kKP8N34cxv  indianz.com (@indianz) March 31, 2020

Tribes and key members of Congress pushed strongly for the $8 billion fund, though it's much lower than the $20 billion initially sought. Lawmakers from both parties said they had to fight tooth and nail for the money, which is included in H.R.748 , also known as the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, or the CARES Act. The bill passed the U.S. Senate on March 25, before clearing the U.S. House of Representatives two days later.

"I won't bore you with all the knife-fighting that had to happen here," Sen. Martha McSally (R-Arizona), a member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs , said on a town hall hosted by several Indian organizations last Thursday, "but I was literally presiding on the floor of the Senate the night that the deal was announced and this fund was still in jeopardy."

McSally, whose Republican party controls the chamber, said she "went to the mat" with high-level officials from the White House and from the office of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), the Republican Senate Majority Leader , to keep the $8 billion alive after attempts to reduce it -- and even remove it -- were made.

"I told them, 'We've gotta get this money for the tribes!'" McSally said on the town hall. "It has to happen!"

But the funds in the hands of the executive branch, lawmakers want to make sure the federal government lives up to its trust and treaty responsibilities. Led by Sen. Tom Udall (D-New Mexico), the vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, a bipartisan group of lawmakers wrote to President Donald Trump on Wednesday, seeking adequate consultation as the money rolls out to tribes and their citizens.

"The U.S. government has specific trust and treaty responsibilities to American Indians and Alaska Natives, responsibilities that all federal agencies share equally," the 31 members of the House and the Senate wrote in the letter. "Implementation of the CARES Act will require many federal agencies within DOI, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Treasury, the Small Business Administration, and others to work directly with Indian Country on implementation of complicated new authorities and deployment of critical funding."

The $8 billion tribal government relief fund isn't the only resource available as a result of the CARES Act. The law, which President Trump signed on Friday, infuses about $2 billion into the federal agencies that serve American Indians and Alaska Natives.

We are urging the Trump administration to ensure that Tribal #COVID19 relief from the #CARESAct is distributed in a way that reflects the federal trust responsibility, respects tribal sovereignty, and provides for meaningful government-to-government consultation. pic.twitter.com/lXhsl3ijK8  Tom Udall (@SenatorTomUdall) April 1, 2020

A significant amount -- more than $1.5 billion , according to the National Indian Health Board -- will go to critical health programs in Indian Country. The funding includes $1.032 billion for the Indian Health Service , at least $125 million for tribes through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , a minimum of $15 million from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and at least $15 million from the Health Resources and Services Administration

Most tribal health facilities are already operating on a slim budget, so this funding is vital to tribes ability to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak safely and effectively while also caring for their communities, families and elders, said NIHB Chairperson Victoria Kitcheyan.

NIHB is committed to working with the administration to ensure that all funding gets to tribes and tribal organizations in a way that is fair, streamlined and expedited," said Kitcheyan, who serves on the council of the Winnebago Tribe . "Tribes need this money now.

The consultations this Thursday and next Thursday will take place over the phone. Call-in numbers are available on the Indianz.Com COVID-19 page

Join the Conversation

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As many as 160 foreigners supposed to have "disappeared" from Nizammudin's Markaz Tablighi Jamaat's headquarters, the new epicentre of coronavirus infection in the national capital, have been found from Delhi, according to an intelligence report, which also says that five out of the 160 are women.

In addition there are 13 Indian nationals, which takes the total count to 173. All of them had recently visited the Markaz headquarters, the intelligence report has said.



The report is prepared by the Special Intelligence Branch of Delhi Police. A copy of the report has also been shared with the Delhi Health Secretary. It clearly mentions the places where the people who had "disappeared" stayed.





The confidential report informs the Delhi health authorities that these people have visited the Tablighi Jamaat and that they could be the carriers of the dreaded coronavirus infection. It asks the health authorities to ensure that these "suspects" do not become part of any crowd, it said.



The reports about "disapperance" of some suspects from the Jamaat headquarters came on Tuesday following which an FIR was registered against six persons, including Maulana Mohammad Saad Kandhalvi, the chief of the Markaz Tablighi Jamaat. Five aides of Kandhalvi whose names were mentioned in the FIR, have also "disappeared".



Delhi Police's Crime Branch is investigating the matter.



The FIR also mentions those whom the Nizamuddin SHO had angrily asked to remove the crowd on March 23-24 in a video which has now gone viral. Despite the SHO's strict warnings, the crowd comprising hundreds of Markaz followers refused to vacate the place.



The confidential report mentions 14 places where information about the "disappeared" Jamaat followers can be collected. The first name among these places is C-Block Rajiv Nagar, Bhalswa Dairy, where eight Indians (four men and four women) have been found. All of them had visited the Markaz headquarters a few days back.



The second place mentioned in the report is Lal Kuan, Chungi Number-2, Pul Prahladpur, from where nine Indonesians and two Indian nationals have been found. All of them had been to the Markaz headquarters around the time the corona fear surfaced.



The report says the areas where the Tablighi followers had been "hiding" are public places, where social distancing -- the key factor against the spread of coronavirus --is almost impossible. According to the report, most of 120 foreigners lodged at 14 places are Indonesians."



The report says 160 people from seven countries have been found to be lodged in these public places. These nationals belong to Malaysia, Algeria, Tunisia, Belgium, Italy and Kyrgyzstan. Besides the 160 foreigners, there are 13 Indians, the report added.



The Special Branch report says most of the foreign-origin nationals whose travel history is traced to the Markaz headquarters, lived together at Chandni Mahal. Out of the 21 foreigners, 10 are from Indonesia, seven from Algeria, one each from Tunisia, Belgium and Italy and one from India.



"In a similar manner, in north-east Delhi's Wazirabad area, 12 Indonesians as well as two Indians have been found from Gully Number 9, under Wazirabad police station," said the report. All of them had been to the Markaz headquarters recently.



It said 13 nationals from Kyrgyzstan have been found from Malviya Nagar's Hauz Rani area.



Rohini district Additional Police Commissioner S.D. Mishra told IANS on Wednesday that 15 foreigners, mostly Indonesians, were found hiding in various houses. The Delhi government has shifted them at various places for the purpose of social distancing.
NASHVILLE, Tenn.  After learning that data shows an increase in citizen movement across the state, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee is now requiring that residents stay home unless they are carrying out essential activities.

Lee previously urged people to stay home but did not make it a requirement. In recent days, several organizations have urged the governor to issue a stay-at-home order, similar to one in Virginia.

Over the last few weeks, we have seen decreases in movement around the state as Tennesseans socially distance and stay at home, said Gov. Bill Lee. However, in recent days we have seen data indicating that movement may be increasing and we must get these numbers trending back down. I have updated my previous executive order to clearly require that Tennesseans stay at home unless they are carrying out essential activities.

Data from the Tennessee Department of Transportation analyzed traffic patterns for March 2020. While safer at home measures and further restrictions on businesses showed a steep drop-off in vehicle movement from March 13-29, data beginning on March 30 indicates travel is trending upwards, again, according to a news release issued Thursday.
The State Department flatly rejects the calls to relax sanctions; Mr. Abrams argues that given the documented corruption of the Maduro regime, its political use of food and other resources, and its ongoing repression, it cannot properly manage any aid. But Mr. Abrams acknowledged to us that it will likely take time for the transition plan to gain traction, if it does. In the meantime, the United States should be looking for innovative ways to get help to Venezuelans; one possibility is to channel now-frozen Venezuelan funds to humanitarian groups via Mr. Guaido. If this already stricken country suffers a catastrophic attack by the coronavirus, neither maximum pressure nor a maximalist political plan will be of much help.
People get exercise outside on the lake shore path along Lake Ontario in Toronto on Thursday, April 2, 2020. Health officials and the government has asks that people stay inside to help curb the spread of the coronavirus also known as COVID-19. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
If you thought that your favourite restaurant is shut right now, you stand corrected. The National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) has pledged to provide 10 million meals, during the lockdown period, to the daily wage earners, part time workers, and house helps. To help them do this, the task force  at kitchens of some popular eateries in Delhi-NCR  has come forward to support those who have been the worst hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Government asked us to close our restaurants and only delivery was operational. We realised that we have excess stock, and could deliver it to people who needed food in our neighbourhood. Soon we expanded, partnered with NGOs and started preparing 3,000 meals per day. We now work up to 14 hours a day, and our staff has volunteered to help. Our target now is to provide 5000 meals per day, says Saurabh Wahie, co-owner of Cafeteria & Co sharing that monetary contributions from city folks are helping them sustain this initiative.

READ | Floyd Cardoz: The Final Wave

Wahie adds, We ensure our kitchen is clean, and the food packages are fully sanitised. The cooking staff has been given an accommodation near the kitchen. Since a sanitised environment is our priority, we are not taking in any volunteers from outside, though many people have approached us offering help.

Some of the restaurateurs have provided accommodation to their cooking staff, nearby the kitchens, to be able to prepare maximum number of meals while ensuring that they have sanitised themselves.

Zorawar Kalra, founder, Massive Restaurants informs that NRAI is planning to raise funds to sustain this initiative, and adds, When going to purchase medicines for my mother, I saw people travelling to their home town on foot, on the Gurgaon-Faridabad road. They didnt have food to eat. This propelled me to make food in my kitchen  aaloo puri  and distribute it to them... Im hugely influenced by the langar concept of the Gurdwaras.

READ | Off the shelf: Long-lasting recipes during self-isolation

While Kalra shares that he is using his base kitchens to prepare 2,000 meals per day and plans to increase it to 5,000 meals per day, Varun Tuli, owner of Yum Yum Tree says, I am providing 10,000 meals per day, using the manpower and facilities I have at hand , which are being distributed to the daily wagers in Delhi-NCR with the help of the government. We are targeting at providing 5 lakh meals per day... People have been donating grains and sponsoring meals to support this initiative. My aim is to contribute how ever much I can in terms of funds, meals or grains and also enable other caterers and kitchens in the city to do so too.

Akhil Malik, co-owner of QDs, says that he extended a helping hand because this the need of the hour, and adds, It feels really great to feed people who arent getting any food. Everyone should come together and try to make a difference in these circumstances.

Author tweets @FizzyBuddha

Follow @htlifeandstyle for more
As the Ugandan authorities ordered a ban on gatherings of more than five people to curb coronavirus spread, the police authorities reportedly charged 20 LGBT people for disobeying rules. According to international media reports, campaigners have accused the Uganda police of abusing the newly imposed restrictions to target sexual minorities as earlier this week, the police raided a shelter on the outskirts of Kampala and arrested 14 gay men, two bisexual men and four transgender women. However, the police have denied the allegations by the LGBT campaigners.

While speaking to an international media outlet, a police spokesperson, Patrick Onyango, said that the detainees had been disobeying distancing by congesting school-like dormitory setting within a small house despite the ban. Onyango reportedly said that that country still has offences of unnatural sex in the law books and the authorities are still charging them with disobeying the ban. Uganda is a largely conservative Christian community and homosexuality is punishable by life imprisonment.

READ: US Navy Evacuates Sailors From Roosevelt After 93 Test Positive For Coronavirus

According to reports, the executive director of Sexual Minorities, Frank Mugisha, said that the arrests were a clear case of discriminations against the LGBT community. Frank said that the raid followed complaints to police about the shelter from neighbours, and the lockdown related charges were brought only when it was clear that there was no other justification for holding the detainees. He further reportedly added that the arrests were initially around homophobia and transphobia because neighbours reported them and so the security forces came and raided them.

LGBT campaigners have also said that the pandemic had contributed to a rise in homophobic rhetoric in the country as the LGBT is reportedly also being blamed by some people for the disease. currently, Uganda has more than 40 confirmed coronavirus cases.

READ: China's Successor As UNSC Chair Takes Immediate Remedial Steps; Plans Coronavirus Meeting

Coronavirus outbreak

Meanwhile, coronavirus, which originated in China in December 2019, has now claimed over 47,000 lives worldwide as of April 2. According to the tally by international news agency, the pandemic has now spread to 203 countries and has infected more than 936,829 people. Out of the total infections, 194,604 have been recovered but the easily spread virus is continuing to disrupt many lives. Major cities have been put under lockdown in almost all countries including Spain, and the economy is struggling.

(Image source: PoliceUg/Twitter)

READ: France Reports 509 More Coronavirus Deaths, Highest Single-day Toll

READ: Coronavirus Crisis: Portugal Gives Full Citizenship Rights To Migrants


Raytheon Companys RTN Missile Systems unit recently secured a $146.1-million contract to provide guided missile round packs and spare replacement components for the Block 2 and 2A variants of the Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) system. The contract was awarded by the Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC.



The contract includes foreign military sales (FMS) to Germany, Turkey, Egypt, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Majority of the work related to the deal will be executed in Ottobrunn, Germany, and Tucson, AZ. The entire task is scheduled to be completed by June 2025.



Importance of Guided Missile Weapon System



The RAM Guided Missile Weapon System, manufactured by Raytheon, is a cooperative development and production program, conducted jointly by the United States and Germany. Currently deployed on more than 165 ships in 11 countries, it has been specifically designed to protect ships of all sizes and destroy anti-ship missiles.



Its latest variant, Block 2, has a larger rocket motor, advanced control section and an enhanced RF receiver, capable of detecting the quietest of threat emitters. The improvements offer the Block 2 variant with the capability to defeat highly stressing threats, increasing the survivability of the defended ship.



Whats Favoring Raytheon?



Increasing geopolitical tensions along with a rise in terrorism across the globe are prompting nations to strengthen their defense systems manifold. With rapid technological upgrades, missile defense is steadily emerging to play a pivotal role in a nations defense strategy. With the United States being the worlds largest weapons supplier, it is a golden era for premier defense contractors like Raytheon.



Further, the U.S. governments fiscal 2020 defense budget includes a significant spending plan of $13.6 billion on missile defense, 126.6% higher than the previous budget plan. Evidently, such an increased spending provision should usher in more contracts for Raytheons RAM Guided Missile program along with other major missile programs.



Per Markets and Markets, the rocket and missile market is projected to grow from $55.5 billion in 2017 to $70 billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 4.74%. Factors such as geopolitical issues, a rise in asymmetric warfare and terrorist activities, among others, across the globe are expected to drive the rocket and missile market during the forecast period. Such massive growth projections, thereby, offer Raytheon ample opportunities to enhance its share in the global missile market.



Price Performance



Shares of Raytheon have lost about 31.4% in a year compared with the industrys decline of 34%.

Story continues





Zacks Rank & Key Picks



Raytheon currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.



A few better-ranked stocks in the same space are AeroVironment, Inc. AVAV, Moog Inc. MOG.A and Bae Systems PLC BAESY, each holding a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).



AeroVironment came up with average positive earnings surprise of 5.72% in the last four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2020 earnings has risen 8.6% to $1.77 over the past 90 days.



Moog pulled off average positive earnings surprise of 4.76% for the trailing four quarters. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2019 earnings has moved 0.9% north to $5.55 over the past 90 days.



Bae Systems long-term earnings growth estimate currently stands at 2.8%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2020 earnings has climbed 5.8% to $2.55 over the past 90 days.



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Ethiopia has put its democratic transition on hold amid concerns over Covid-19. Parliamentary polls were meant to go ahead in August. The delayed vote is seen as a critical test for Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, whose reformist agenda has opened up what was once one of the continents most repressive nations.

The Horn of Africa nation has 29 confirmed cases of coronavirus so far, and the government has closed schools and restricted gatherings to curb the spread of the highly infectious illness.

Due to the pandemic we were forced to suspend our activities, said an Amharic-language statement from the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia, adding that a new timeline would be drawn up once the pandemic is over.

Preparations for the 2020 election were already three months behind schedule. The parliamentary vote had been planned for May, but was postponed due to unrest.

The vote is the first under reformist Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who took power in 2018.

Abiy has been credited for introducing sweeping political reforms, but the easing of authoritarian controls has empowered ethnic nationalists, triggering violence that has killed hundreds and displaced millions.

Abiy's Prosperity party would have faced a stiff challenge from many of these newly resurgent regional, ethnically based parties in the August vote.

Opportunity to reset transition

Analysts reckon the delay could buy him time to discuss critical topics with opposition parties, including how to make the elections free and fair.

Although the circumstances are deeply worrying, the delay does offer an opportunity to reset Ethiopia's troubled transition, the International Crisis Groups Ethiopia analyst, William Davison, told AFP.

Some opposition parties have also endorsed the delay.

For now, our priority is how to overcome the pandemic, said Yesuf Ebrahim, spokesman of the National Movement of Amhara (NAMA).

But Jawar Mohammed, a prominent activist from Abiys Oromo ethnic group, warned that the opposition must be consulted during the next steps.

Story continues

The ruling party cannot and should not make unilateral decisions, he said.

Abiy has promised to hold free and fair elections and has been positioning himself as a unity candidate whose reforms could replace repression as the glue holding Ethiopias often fractious federal regions together.

Despite the coronavirus outbreak, analysts warn that ethnic regional tensions in East Africas most populous country pose a bigger threat to its fragile transition.
Muslim cleric Imam Umer Ilyasi appealed to all the individuals who attended Tablighi Jamaat congregation at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi recently, not to hide from the government and not to be scared of it.

"I appeal to all the Muslim brothers and mosque managing committees involved in the Jamaat congregation to please come out and inform the government. You do not need to feel scared of the government," Ilyasi told ANI.

He added: "You do not need to feel scared of the government. If you are quarantined, it doesn't mean you will be punished. This is for your and other people's safety."

On the subject of people likely to be quarantined, he said that if one does get quarantined, he or she must not think those quarantine facilities are jails. "If you are quarantined, it doesn't mean you will be punished. This is for your and other people's safety. Quarantine is the cure, you do not need to worry about it," he added.

Ilyasi further appealed to the people that one must not associate religion with the coronavirus outbreak. "Islam talks about saving one person's life and securing a person's life. Do not connect the outbreak with religion as this outbreak does not affect any religion or caste in particular," he said.

With regards to the lockdown being imposed by the centre, he said: "I appeal to all that we must obey the lockdown judiciously as there is no medicine or cure for this disease."

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare's latest bulletin said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Nigerian student who scammed an Australian out of more than $100,000 by posing as a diplomat has been spared more jail time.

Cosmos Kelechi Emeh, 33, pleaded guilty on Thursday to defrauding the woman, from Kuraby in Brisbane, with an internet romance hoax in 2018.

Emeh contacted the woman part way through the scam, which had already defrauded the 34-year-old out of more than $250,000.

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Cosmos Kelechi Emeh (pictured during his arrest), 33, pleaded guilty on Thursday to defrauding the woman, from Kuraby in Brisbane, with an internet romance hoax in 2018

He identified himself as diplomat Mark David and asked for a further $105,000, which she withdrew from her parent's account without permission and paid in cash.

Before this, the woman had been contacted via social media by another man posing as Matthew Dobbin, a US officer serving with the United Nations.

The pair sent each other photos and professed their love after just three days of communication.

'By various ruses concerning the necessity to move his valuables, including gold bars that he purported to have been paid with, he approached her to take possession of his luggage,' Judge Michael Byrne QC said.

'He said she was the only person he trusted.'

All told she was defrauded out of $267,000.

Before Emeh called the woman she had been contacted via social media by another man posing as Matthew Dobbin, a US officer serving with the United Nations (pictured is the image the scammers used)

During the scam, Emeh told the woman she would need to pay for a 'terrorist certificate'.

He also told her not to contact Australian authorities because her actions may be considered money laundering.

After Emeh collected the cash he asked for a further $200,000 but police arrested him before he could collect it.

Judge Byrne said Emeh was not the mastermind in the scheme and it appeared likely he had 'given way to temptation' in a bid to raise money to pay his university fees.

'(But) you became involved to fleece an already vulnerable woman who had lost a large amount of money,' he said.

'Your conduct is serious. It caused a serious detriment.'

Emeh was sentenced to three-and-a-half years' imprisonment, suspended immediately after the 448 days he had spent in pre-sentence custody was taken into account.

Judge Byrne said it was likely he would now fail the immigration department's character test and eventually be deported.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:11:54|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BANGKOK, April 1 (Xinhua) -- Thailand has lifted its ban to close four ports at the Mekong River to allow essential goods to be shipped to and from China as Thailand is currently facing the COVID-19 outbreak.

The four ports, including cargo terminals and border crossing, were closed since March 21 to curb the virus outbreak, leaving only two bridges over the Mekong River in Chiang Kong and Mae Sai districts to remain open.

However Chiang Rai Governor Prajon Pratyakul said on Thursday that he had decided to lift the ban as essential goods shipped from China, were necessary to assist those impacted by the pandemic.

"These four ports in Thailand's northernmost province of Chiang Rai usually handle large cargo volumes exported to and imported from China," said Prajon, "we simply cannot cut these shipping bloodlines during this tumultuous period."

However, COVID-19 in China has greatly improved, therefore it is of no problem to resume trading with China, said Prajon.

The governor also said that the temporary closures of the ports have resulted in cargo pile-up at port terminals and shortages of daily necessities, not only in Thailand but also in Myanmar's border towns that rely on imports from Thailand.

The operations of the ports are however limited to only three days a week, the governor said. Travelers are still not allowed port entry.
Technavio has been monitoring the automotive diagnostic scan tools market and it is poised to grow by USD 10.2 billion during 2019-2023, progressing at a CAGR of 5% during the forecast period. The report offers an up-to-date analysis regarding the current market scenario, latest trends and drivers, and the overall market environment.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005379/en/

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2019-2023 (Graphic: Business Wire)

Technavio suggests three forecast scenarios (optimistic, probable, and pessimistic) considering the impact of COVID-19. Please request latest free sample report on Covid-19 Impact

The market is concentrated, and the degree of concentration will accelerate during the forecast period. Bosch, CarMD.com, Continental, Delphi Technologies, and DENSO are some of the major market participants. The increasing aftersales vehicle service centers will offer immense growth opportunities. To make the most of the opportunities, market vendors should focus more on the growth prospects in the fast-growing segments, while maintaining their positions in the slow-growing segments.

Increasing aftersales vehicle service centers has been instrumental in driving the growth of the market.

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2019-2023: Segmentation

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market is segmented as below:

Product Hand-held Scan Tools PC-based Scan Tools

Geographic Landscape The Americas APAC EMEA



To learn more about the global trends impacting the future of market research, download latest free sample report of 2020-2024: https://www.technavio.com/talk-to-us?report=IRTNTR30574

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2019-2023: Scope

Technavio presents a detailed picture of the market by the way of study, synthesis, and summation of data from multiple sources. Our automotive diagnostic scan tools market report covers the following areas:

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Size

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Trends

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market Industry Analysis

This study identifies development of integrated vehicle health management as one of the prime reasons driving the automotive diagnostic scan tools market growth during the next few years.

Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2019-2023: Vendor Analysis

We provide a detailed analysis of around 25 vendors operating in the Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market, including some of the vendors such as Bosch, CarMD.com, Continental, Delphi Technologies, and DENSO. Backed with competitive intelligence and benchmarking, our research reports on the Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market are designed to provide entry support, customer profile and M&As as well as go-to-market strategy support.

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Automotive Diagnostic Scan Tools Market 2019-2023: Key Highlights

CAGR of the market during the forecast period 2019-2023

Detailed information on factors that will assist automotive diagnostic scan tools market growth during the next five years

Estimation of the automotive diagnostic scan tools market size and its contribution to the parent market

Predictions on upcoming trends and changes in consumer behavior

The growth of the automotive diagnostic scan tools market

Analysis of the market's competitive landscape and detailed information on vendors

Comprehensive details of factors that will challenge the growth of automotive diagnostic scan tools market vendors

Table Of Contents:

PART 01: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

PART 02: SCOPE OF THE REPORT

2.1 Preface

2.2 Preface

2.3 Currency conversion rates for US$

PART 03: MARKET LANDSCAPE

Market ecosystem

Market characteristics

Market segmentation analysis

PART 04: MARKET SIZING

Market definition

Market sizing 2018

Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PART 05: FIVE FORCES ANALYSIS

Bargaining power of buyers

Bargaining power of suppliers

Threat of new entrants

Threat of substitutes

Threat of rivalry

Market condition

PART 06: MARKET SEGMENTATION BY PRODUCT

Market segmentation by product

Comparison by product

Hand-held Market size and forecast 2018-2023

PC-based Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Market opportunity by product

PART 07: CUSTOMER LANDSCAPE

PART 08: GEOGRAPHIC LANDSCAPE

Geographic segmentation

Geographic comparison

APAC Market size and forecast 2018-2023

EMEA Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Americas Market size and forecast 2018-2023

Key leading countries

PART 09: DRIVERS AND CHALLENGES

Market drivers

Market challenges

Market trends

PART 10: VENDOR LANDSCAPE

Overview

Landscape disruption

PART 11: VENDOR ANALYSIS

Vendors covered

Vendor classification

Market positioning of vendors

Bosch

CarMD.com

Continental

Delphi Technologies

DENSO

PART 12: APPENDIX

Research methodology

List of abbreviations

About Us

Technavio is a leading global technology research and advisory company. Their research and analysis focus on emerging market trends and provides actionable insights to help businesses identify market opportunities and develop effective strategies to optimize their market positions. With over 500 specialized analysts, Technavio's report library consists of more than 17,000 reports and counting, covering 800 technologies, spanning across 50 countries. Their client base consists of enterprises of all sizes, including more than 100 Fortune 500 companies. This growing client base relies on Technavio's comprehensive coverage, extensive research, and actionable market insights to identify opportunities in existing and potential markets and assess their competitive positions within changing market scenarios.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005379/en/

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Thirty-two people tested positive on Wednesday in Delhi, and out of these, 29 had attended the Tablighi Jamaat event in Nizamuddin. A total of 700 possibly infected and confirmed cases of COVID-19 are in different hospitals here, informed Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday.

A huge religious gathering was held at the Markaz building in Nizamuddin between March 13 and March 15. The event came into the spotlight after multiple coronavirus cases were confirmed amongst those who attended the event.

An FIR has been registered against Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad and others under the Epidemic Disease Act 1897 in Delhi.

A total of 2,361 people were brought out from the Markaz in a joint operation by authorities which lasted for over 36 hours, following which the South Delhi Municipal Corporation carried out the sanitisation of the premises and nearby areas.

The total number of confirmed cases in the country now stands at 1965, out of these 151 people have been cured/discharged while 50 people have died so far, as per the data provided by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
According to the Census Bureau, households that haven't yet responded to the census will receive a written questionnaire in April.

Up to half a million temporary workers could be hired to help with this count.

Officials estimate that about 60% of people will reply to questionnaires in the mail, on the phone or online. Census-takers will need to go door-to-door to get responses from the rest  and they don't have much time to do it.

Census officials have said they're aiming to hire up to half a million temporary workers to help with the count this year.

But major efforts to go door-to-door and follow up with households that haven't responded yet to the census aren't scheduled to start for a few months.

According to the official schedule for the 2020 census, that will largely happen from May to July. By December 31, 2020, the US Census Bureau is required by law to report population counts from the new census to the President.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison addresses the media and the nation during a press conference at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia on March 24, 2020. (Lukas Coch/Pool/Getty Images)

Australia Gives Free Childcare as COVID-19 Case Curve Flattens

Australia on Thursday announced free childcare for six months as part of a bid to keep businesses operating through the COVID-19 pandemic, as data on new infections supported early signs of flattening the curve.

The childcare centre subsidy adds to a growing list of support packages worth some A$200 billion ($121 billion) for airlines to mall owners as the government attempts to hibernate the Australian economy, to be reawakened when the crisis has passed.

We will demonstrate to the world here in Australia how such societies can deal with these sort of challenges our way, the Australian way, Morrison said during a televised press conference. So stay positive, Australia. Stay connected, stay strong. We will get through this together.

Morrison and state officials have introduced unprecedented restrictions on public movement to stop the spread of the virus and said that data on new infections continued to show those efforts were paying off.

People walk past a Beach Closed sign at Bondi Beach, during the COVID-19 outbreak, in Sydney, Australia, on April 1, 2020. (Reuters/Loren Elliott)

Australia has reported around 5,200 infections and 25 deaths, with daily increases in new cases dropping to single digits from between 25 percent and 30 percent two weeks ago.

The curve is beginning to flatten, Health Minister Greg Hunt said. It isnt sustained yet, it hasnt been consolidated, but those early, important signs are absolutely critical.

Morrison said on Thursday the countrys testing rate was now more than 1,000 tests per 100,000 people, or 1 percent of the population.

We are the first country to the best of our knowledge that has been able to exceed that mark, Morrison said.

Childcare centres have lost significant business in recent weeks as thousands of people shifted to working at home, or were made redundant.

Morrison said the subsidy would keep about 13,000 childcare centres open by paying them A$1.6 billion over the next three months. The full subsidies will last for six months, when they will be reviewed.

Keeping the centres open would also allow critical workers from medical professionals to cleaners and food deliverers to continue to work, Morrison said.

Australia has ordered the shutdown of restaurants, cafes, bars, movie theatres and instructed people to stay inside unless they are shopping for food or taking their daily exercise as it tries to contain the flu-like illness.

An information notice stating the closure of outdoor playground equipment is seen in Melbourne, Australia on March 31, 2020. (Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

The restrictions are expected to push the countrys A$2 trillion economy into its first recession in almost three decades and lift unemployment to double figures.

Cruise Ship Ban

Australia was also dealing with the fate of around a dozen cruise ships it has banned from docking at its ports after disembarking passengers and crew became the countrys biggest single source of COVID-19 infections.

The cruise ship Silver Whisper heads into Fremantle Harbour to refuel in Fremantle, Australia, on March 26, 2020. (Paul Kane/Getty Images)

A military-style operation was planned to airlift doctors onto eight cruise ships floating off the NSW coast which were refusing orders to leave Australian waters, to conduct health checks on nearly 9,000 crew members, local media reported on Thursday.

The Maritime Union of Australia said there were 11 foreign-owned cruise ships in limbo in Australian waters, with 11,000 crew members in total, and their situation was an emerging humanitarian crisis.

State governments, meanwhile, began putting time limits on the use of police to enforce restrictions on personal movement intended to slow the spread of the illness, including fines of up to A$11,000 ($6,672) and prison time of up to six months.

Authorities themselves have referred to the measures as draconian but necessary. In New South Wales, the countrys most populous state, officials said the rights of police to enforce penalties would initially last for 90 days.

People will have gotten the message by then, hopefully, NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fullter said. And we wont be talking about the powers, well be talking about what does it look like coming out of this?

In Victoria, the second-most populous state, officials said policing of the social distancing policies might last until at least June.

By Byron Kaye
The Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, (LASEPA) and Lagos State Safety Commission on Wednesday sealed off a warehouse belonging to Jumia, an online marketing store for defying the stay at home order issued by President Buhari.

The President on Sunday, March 29th, declared a 14-day lockdown in Abuja, Lagos and Ogun states as part of measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

Residents of these states are to stay indoors except those that provide essential services to the public.

READ ALSO  Coronavirus: Lagos, Abuja, Ogun Markets To Open Between 10:00am and 2:00pm Daily: FG

Also sealed was SPN Packaging Studio Press Nigeria Plc on Plot B, Israel Adebajo Close, Ikeja and Supreme Hotel in Agege for defying the restriction order by President Buhari.

See Photo Here:
New Delhi, April 2 : The World Health Organisation (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for helping the poor and the vulnerable people of the society during the 21-day lockdown.

In a tweet, Ghebreyesus said he applauds Modi's Rs 1.70 lakh crore Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan package to help the needy in such tough times.

"My appreciation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for announcing a $24 billion package to support Flag of India's vulnerable populations during COVID19 crisis," tweeted Ghebreyesus.

This includes "free food rations for 800M disadvantaged people; cash transfers to 204M poor women, free cooking gas for 80M households," Ghebreyesus added.

The Finance Minister on March 26 announced economic stimulus to deal with impact of coronavirus lockdown.

"Countries are asking ppl to #stayhome & shutting down population movement to limit #COVID19 transmission. These steps can have unintended consequences for the poorest & most vulnerable. I call on countries to ensure these populations have food & life essentials during the crisis," said Ghebreyesus.

The Indian government is set to disburse Rs 27,500 crore financial package under the Prime Minister Garib Kalyan Yojana this week and the coming weeks.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
The Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria to suspend all funds deductions from states and restructure their debt repayments.

Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti, the NGF chairman, said this at the governors second COVID-19 teleconference meeting on Wednesday.

The details of the meeting were made available via a copy of the communique on Thursday.

The NGF had on Monday resolved to hold their weekly meetings via teleconferencing as part of the efforts to check the spread of COVID-19 in the country.

Deliberation

The forum said the request to the CBN was agreed on after a briefing it held with the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed.

Mr Fayemi said such measures would help safeguard the liquidity of state governments and mitigate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic ravaging the economy.

Following a briefing from the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning on fiscal measures taken by the federal government to mitigate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Forum called for urgent fiscal measures to safeguard the liquidity of state governments, including the acceleration of an arrangement to suspend all state deductions and restructure all debt service payments on federal government and CBN-owned debts, the NGF said.

Tunde Ajileye, a partner at SBM Intelligence, said loans obtained by state governments are deducted from the state-federal allocations by the federal government.

He said from an external debt perspective, the federal government needs to provide a sovereign guarantee.

Except the state government issues a bond or something along those lines, they cant borrow from CBN. Even bonds are usually borrowings from the public or investors, he said.

State governments cannot obtain foreign loans without the instrument of the federal government, Inibehe Effiong, a Lagos based lawyer, also told PREMIUM TIMES, in a phone interview.

The federal government usually guarantees those loans, that is why the repayment of those loans are placed on first-line charge, once statutory monthly allocation is due to those states. There are usually terms of deduction; it is the duty of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the minister of finance to deduct the loans that they have guaranteed.

For example, if they (states) are to be paid a certain allocation per month once allocation comes in they deduct it at first before they release the balance to the states,. Mr Effiong said.

Data from the Federation Account Allocation Committee shows that Nigerias 36 state governments spent 3.6 billion servicing their external debt obligations in January.

The amount represents about 1.8 per cent of the state governments net statutory January allocation of 206.75 billion.

Also, as at June last year, the states external debts, from multilateral and bilateral sources, were about $3.96 billion. These are from China Export-Import Bank, Japan International Cooperation Agency, KFW Development Bank, Euro-bond and Diaspora Bond. According to the Debt Management Office.

Lagos State, the data shows, spent about 1.2 billion, the highest amount servicing its external debt obligations; followed by Oyo with 321 million.

Palliative measures

Also in their communique, the NGF urged the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Sadiya Farouq, to provide stimulus incentives from the federal government to support vulnerable households across states.

The governors said the aid would provide relief to the poor due to the impact of COVID-19 on the Nigerian economy.

This would help the vulnerable cope with the expected loss of income and livelihoods in the coming months.

The governors said they were committed to leading the effort through state focal persons in charge of social protection to ensure that palliatives including food and cash transfers reach the most vulnerable population in all states.

Ms Farouq had on Wednesday supervised the disbursement of N20,000 under its Conditional Cash Transfer scheme to 5,000 beneficiaries in Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The ministry explained that the cash covers four months stipends for the beneficiaries from January to April.

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Members also resolved to leverage on the lockdown situations to send essential food items across borders as part of the palliatives so that perishables produced in one state get to states that need them unhindered, Mr Fayemi said.

Lockdown

Members also discussed the legality or otherwise of lockdowns in other states around the country and resolved to maintain the status quo until the Chairman and Governor of Ekiti State resolves the matter with the Presidential Committee on COVID-19, the release said.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday ordered a lockdown in Abuja, Lagos and Ogun to curtail the spread of coronavirus.
In Its Time to Make Your Own Face Mask (column, nytimes.com, March 31), Farhad Manjoo clearly shows that face masks function not only as personal protective equipment but also as what we might call others protective equipment by reducing airborne viral spread from sneezes and coughs. One of the most self-protective and altruistic things we can do now is to wear a face mask while in public because asymptomatic people with Covid-19 can still transmit the illness.

Eileen Kavanagh

Dirk Winter

New York

The writers are psychiatrists at Columbia University Medical Center.

To the Editor:

You may have heard that surgical masks dont work for preventing viral infections and may increase the risk of infection. Why is this? It is because people not accustomed to wearing masks cant keep their hands off them. They constantly fiddle with them, adjust them, pull them down to talk and so on. Every time they do this, they are contaminating their mask with their hands, and if their hands have virus or bacteria on them, then they are risking infection.

As a surgeon, I am used to standing around for hours without touching my mask or my face, but it is very difficult for someone who is not used to this. So, if you decide to wear a mask for protection against viral or bacterial infection, here is what you need to do:

(1) Start with a clean mask. If you are reusing a mask, make sure that you keep it clean when you are not wearing it.

(2) Wash your hands well with soap and water, for a minimum of 20 seconds but preferably more.

(3) Place your mask and get it adjusted perfectly. It may help to do this in front of a mirror.
This guide to home entertainment and more may relieve some stress and boredom as these difficult days wear on. Vital health tips included, too.
[April 01, 2020]

Reminder: GoDaddy Hosts Virtual Investor Day On April 2, 2020

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- GoDaddy Inc. (NYSE: GDDY), the company that empowers everyday entrepreneurs, today issued a reminder that it is hosting its virtual Investor Day on Thursday, April 2, 2020 at 10:00 AM PDT via a live webcast.

Aman Bhutani, GoDaddy CEO, Andrew Low Ah Kee, GoDaddy COO, Fara Howard, GoDaddy CMO, and Ray Winborne, GoDaddy CFO, will cover a series of presentations and product demonstrations, discuss the #OpenWeStand initiative, the impact of COVID-19 on GoDaddy's business, and conduct a live Q&A session.

Analysts and institutional investors interested in attending can register for the event through the Investor elations section of GoDaddy's website at https://investors.godaddy.net/. Supporting materials and an archived replay will also be available on the Investor Relations site.







Analysts and institutional investors interested in participating in the live Q&A are encouraged to submit questions to GoDaddy at [email protected].

About GoDaddy

GoDaddy is empowering everyday entrepreneurs around the world by providing all of the help and tools to succeed online. With 19 million customers worldwide, GoDaddy is the place people come to name their idea, build a professional website, attract customers and manage their work. Our mission is to give our customers the tools, insights and the people to transform their ideas and personal initiative into success. To learn more about the company visit www.GoDaddy.com.

 2020 GoDaddy Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Source: GoDaddy Inc.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/reminder-godaddy-hosts-virtual-investor-day-on-april-2-2020-301033803.html

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Republican congressional candidate Kathaleen Wall is using the coronavirus outbreak as the centerpiece for a new campaign ad airing in the Houston media market.

China poisoned our people, a narrator says in the ad, which then lauds President Donald Trump for calling COVID-19 the Chinese virus.

Wall will cut off trade, aid, and support to China, the narrator says. China is a criminal enterprise masquerading as a sovereign nation.

Wall is hardly alone in trying to place blame for the coronavirus outbreak on China. Other Texas Republicans including U.S. Sens John Cornyn and Ted Cruz have pinned blame on China for their mishandling of the virus at the start of the outbreak.

Its no coincidence Chinas been the source of most of these contagions breaking out  SARS, MERS, the swine flu  because of some of the cultural practices there, Cornyn said in mid-March in which he pinpointed exotic markets in China where bats and snakes are served.

Cornyns statement was rated False by the independent fact-checking group PolitiFact.

During an interview on KFYO radio in Lubbock, Cruz made clear China bears enormous responsibility for letting the pandemic get out of control.

For months they tried to keep it secret, Cruz said.

Walls ad is airing as she donates portable hand sanitizers to the Houston Police Officers Union. In a picture of the donation posted on her Twitter page, the hand sanitizers have a Made in China label on them.

Wall is running for the 22nd Congressional District, which includes most of Fort Bend County and portions of Brazoria and Harris counties. She and former Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls are battling in a Republican Primary runoff now scheduled for July 14.

Nehls won 40 percent of the vote during the March 3 Republican primary to Walls 19 percent. The race was forced into a runoff because no candidate hit 50 percent of the vote.

Democrat Sri Preston Kulkarni will face the winner in November in the general election. He was quick to blast Walls ad.

Irresponsible, race-baiting comments like these from Kathaleen Wall are unacceptable and dangerous to TX-22s large Asian American and Pacific Islander population, who are intimately aware of the FBI warning about the recent surge of hate crimes against their community, Kulkarni said.

The candidates are battling to replace U.S. Rep. Pete Olson, R-Sugar Land, who announced in 2019 he would not seek re-election. In 2018, Olson won re-election but by just 5 percentage points, leading Democrats to make the race one of their top targets in the 2020 elections.
Huntsville Hospitals emergency department is prepared for a surge of coronavirus cases this month, but its top doctor still worries.

I look at it almost like knowing ahead of time a tornado is coming, and its not going to be just a single tornado, Dr. Sherrie Squyres said Wednesday. Its going to be a protracted tornado that last for months.

Squyres is medical director of Huntsville Hospitals Emergency Department, is board certified in emergency medicine and has practiced medicine in Huntsville for 30 years. She oversees ER policies and manages the physicians who serve there.

Squyres worries that people with the virus in states with crowded hospitals may head for her ER, too. People will travel to where they think they can get care, she said.

She worries that people with other real needs wont come to the emergency room because theyre afraid of the virus. Theres no risk, Squyres said. Its handled.

And she worries about the people of north Alabama with serious existing health conditions. If they get the virus, shes afraid they wont be able to fight it off.

But Huntsville has had time to prepare, she said, and it has used that time.

Its weird, Squyres said, because we can benefit from others around us going through this a little ahead of us. Were very, very fortunate to be on this end of the curve, the come-to-the-party-later group.

Squyres isnt worried about things she and Madison Countys leaders can control and plan for. Many medical and political leaders here have known and worked with each other for years, she said. Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle texted her directly with a question this week.

Huntsville Hospital has cordoned and sealed off one of four pods in its ER solely for coronavirus admissions. Well expand into the next one if we need to, Squyres said.

Theres a separate entrance for ambulances with patients that might have the virus. People who walk up are stopped, questioned and deflected if necessary to the coronavirus pod before they can enter the main ER. People dont have to fear catching the virus at the ER, Squyres said. Theyre not going to catch Covid here, she said. Were going to make sure.

Before we walk in to see a patient, we are fully garbed and ready to go, Squyres said. Were in masks and gowns and gloves and were protected. We feel like its a very safe area to work in.

Still, six hospital employees have tested positive, Squyres said, and none of them have been hospitalized here at Huntsville.

Some of them, we dont know if they got it here, she said. Its out in the community, too. Ive had people from call centers, people from NASA  it is out there in the community.

Squyress husband works on Redstone Arsenal but has worked from home for two weeks. Do I worry about taking something home? she asked. Im just real careful.

Medical professionals like Squyres say Huntsvilles biggest battles are a couple of weeks down the road.

Am I afraid it will really hit hard? I am, she said. We have a lot of frail people. People that are on immunosuppressive drugs. We have a lot of patients who have COPD. We have a lot of people that have cancer that are on chemotherapy. If those people get this, itll be fatal. You just cant fight it in these people.

"But if we can keep them segregated and we do a good job avoiding contact with others and really do what were supposed to do, I dont have a doubt in the world we can do well with this thing.
Hyderabad, April 2 : Three more persons have died of COVID-19 and 30 new positive cases have been reported in Telangana taking the overall tally in the state to 127.

With the death of three persons, the toll rose to nine. All of them had attended Tablighi Jamaat congregation in Delhi last month.

According to a statement released from the chief minister's office late Wednesday night, two persons died at government-run Gandhi Hospital while one succumbed at Yashoda, a private hospital. All the 30 who were tested positive had attended Nizamuddin Markaz meet of Tablighi Jamaat.

At a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao till midnight, the officials pointed out that the virus spread from those who attended Delhi meet to their family members and others.

Initially, the virus spread among those who came from abroad and through them it spread to others. However, they are all recovering. Many of them discharged and none of those under treatment is critical.

However, positive cases registered for the last few days are of all those who went to Markaz. The government decided to conduct tests on all those who attended the Delhi meet. There is a need to conduct tests on 300 more who went attended the congregation, said the statement.

The government has urged those who went to Markaz, their family members and those who came in contact with them to undergo tests. The statement said that since the virus was spreading through those who went to Markaz, they all should undergo tests without failure.

The statement from CMO came hours after the department of medical and health released a medical bulletin. According to the bulletin, one person died on Wednesday, taking the toll to five.

It was on Monday that the department had put the toll at six. With 30 new cases, the total rose to 127. While nine died, 14 recovered and were discharged from hospitals.
Toxic fluorinated chemicals known as PFAS are now confirmed or suspected in ground and surface water at 678 military installations, including 16 in Michigan, according to a new analysis by the Environmental Working Group.

Representatives of EWG and U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint, reviewed the findings, which relied on Defense Department records, in a video conference call with reporters on Thursday, April 2.

EWG officials said they have so far confirmed PFAS in the tap water or groundwater at 328 of the 678 military installations, including nine in Michigan. They said 28 bases had PFAS in drinking water at levels above those set by some state regulators, including Grand Ledge Army Aviation Support in Clinton County

With this report, more and more members of Congress are going to be hearing about this ..., Kildee said. Nobody ... should ever have to worry about the water that they drink.

Active and closed military installations have been suspected locations of PFAS contamination due to the use of fire-fighting foam that contained the chemicals during training exercises and fires. In addition to the military sites, contamination has also been found in drinking water supplies and in the environment elsewhere at levels higher than the federal guideline.

Because that national guideline is not enforceable, states like Michigan, New Jersey and Vermont are enacting their own regulations.

PFAS are called forever chemicals because they dont break down in the environment. Research shows they increase the risk of cancer, kidney disease, thyroid conditions and auto-immune disorders. They also bioaccumulate, absorbing in a body faster than theyre eliminated.

The EWG analysis included 16 military installations in Michigan, nine of which showed confirmed discharges of PFAS and seven more with suspected discharges.

Sites with confirmed discharges are the Jackson Readiness Center in Jackson County, W.K. Kellogg Airport in Springfield, Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Mt. Clemens, Grand Ledge Army Aviation Support in Clinton County, Belmont Armory in Kent County, Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Iosco County, Camp Grayling in Crawford County, Alpena County Regional Airport in Alpena County, and K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base in Marquette County.

Sites with suspected discharges are Fort Custer in the Kalamazoo area, Detroit Arsenal in the Detroit area, Lansing Airport Hanger in the Lansing area, MTC-H Camp Grayling Cantonment in the Grayling area, MTC-H Grayling Airfield in the Grayling area, MTC-H Camp Grayling MATES in the Grayling area and Calumet Air Force Station in the Calumet area.

Kildee on Thursday also co-signed a letter to the chairman and ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, asking for specific measures to address PFAS chemicals affecting communities and service members.

The request included requiring the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to create a drinking water standard for two types of PFAS -- PFOA and PFOS -- within two years, blood testing for all DOD personnel and dependents who may have been exposed to PFAS, and increased protections for military firefighters.

678 Military Sites With Known and Suspected Discharges of PFAS

Military must stop dragging its feet and work with states on PFAS cleanup in 2020

1.9 million Michigan residents drink some PFAS as evidence mounts about its dangers

What are the health effects of PFAS?

Peters rebukes Air Force for aggressive posture on PFAS dispute
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Another hospital laboratory in the Visayas region can now independently conduct COVID-19 tests, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III announced on Thursday.

The health chief said the West Visayas Medical Center, which is in Iloilo City, received its accreditation to conduct COVID-19 tests. The hospital joins the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City, which already began local testing as early as March 19.

Kasama ng Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, dalawa na ang independent testing laboratories natin sa Visayas, said Duque in an online briefing.

[Translation: Along with the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, we now have two independent testing laboratories in the Visayas]

Duque said the Department of Health also expects the Bicol Public Health Laboratory, the Armed Forces of the Philippines Research Institute for Medical Science, the Victoriano Luna General Hospital, and St. Lukes Medical Center branches in Quezon City and Taguig City to receive certification soon.

Dahil dito madadagdagan pa ang bilang ng specimen na ating mapoproseso at mapapabilis na rin ang paglabas ng resulta, the secretary said.

[Translation: Because of this, the number of specimens we can process will increase and we can expect a speedier release of results.]

PPE sets delivered

Duque said 12,000 sets of personal protective equipment have also been sent to six hospitals. These were from the first batch of PPE sets ordered by the DOH and which arrived in the country on Monday evening.

Here is the breakdown of the number of PPE sets given to each referral hospital:

Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital - 2,590

San Lazaro Hospital- 2,780

Lung Center of the Philippines - 2,800

Philippine General Hospital - 2,000

AFP Medical Center -1,100 sets

East Avenue Medical Center - 770

The secretary assured that more PPE sets will arrive in the country. He said the DOH ordered one million sets which will continue to arrive in batches until April 24.
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A homicide investigation is underway after a man was found dead in the middle of a Bessemer roadway late Wednesday night.

The Jefferson County Coroners Office on Thursday identified the victim as Earnest Lee Cunningham Jr. He was 26.

Authorities said Cunninghams body was found by motorists at 11:41 p.m. in the 3300 block of 12th Avenue North in Bessemer. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

Evidence at the scene indicated foul play. Lt. Christian Clemons said Cunningham had been shot.

The investigation is ongoing, and this story will be updated as more information becomes available.
Hospitals in New York are facing disastrously low levels of oxygen, a problem that could be seen globally as demand increases in line with greater numbers of coronavirus cases.

Some patients, particularly those who develop pneumonia, require supplemental oxygen when facing breathing difficulties, and a lack of supply will prove to be similarly problematic to the shortage of ventilators that is also being seen around the world.

According to a news report from Good Morning America, in New York Presbyterian hospitals, nearly 27% of all coronavirus patients are on ventilators, and the lack of oxygen available could compound the struggle of getting the right supplies.

Ventilators essentially control the oxygen and airflow from a patients lungs, and support them when they are not working to their full capacity. An oxygen tank is also needed to supply ventilators with the necessary oxygen to do this.

NEW YORK HOSPITALS PUSHED TO THE BRINK: Supplies short as patients flood emergency rooms. @whitjohnson reports. https://t.co/xSWTBWclsZ pic.twitter.com/j6ARbpoprr  Good Morning America (@GMA) April 2, 2020

Speaking during the news report, anesthesiologist Dr Peter Papadakos said to Good Morning America this demand for ventilators and oxygen has never been seen before in the U.S. or globally.

'The problem with Oxygen at this point in the Covid-19 pandemic, is that instead of having 20 patients in an ICU is that hospitals now have 300 patients, all on ventilators that are consuming oxygen 24/7,' he said.

'This is demand we have never seen before throughout the United States, or throughout the world.'

Dr Peter Papadakos speaks to Good Morning America and says that the U.S. and the world has never seen this level of demand for oxygen

Ventilators control oxygen and airflow into people's lungs and require oxygen tanks to do so. With so many people on ventilators, the demand for oxygen has shot up

A patient hooked up to an oxygen tank is wheeled into a hospital in New York City

Doctors on the front lines of the Covid-19 pandemic in New York have been sounding alarm bells over hospital's struggle to get hold the correct PPE equipment, ventilators and drugs used in the treatment of patients, and they are now saying the same for oxygen.

One emergency room doctor at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, N.Y told ABC News: 'The hospital was close to running out of oxygen. With the number of patients we have, we are using up resources at an unusual rate.'

Another doctor, Dr Dorian Alexander at Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn, said 'we burn through oxygen every day.'

A large tank of oxygen is delivered to a temporary field hospital in East Meadow, Central Park that has been set up to treat Covid-19 patients

Temporary field hospitals are being set up in Central Park, N.Y to ease the burden from the Mount Sinai Hospital across the street

Some New York hospitals are reportedly sending some patients home with less serious symptoms with small oxygen tanks to use themselves. Patients who are discharged from hospitals can also be sent home with oxygen tanks to use if required.

Some are given portable oxygen meters to measure their levels to track how they are doing after leaving hospital, and are then contacted by a doctor 12 to 24 hours later.

For patients who develop the most severe symptoms, such as pneumonia and ultimately respiratory distress, supplementary oxygen is required to ensure they can still get enough oxygen into their lungs.

The spike in demand also spells bad news for any non-coronavirus patients who require oxygen, as the global shortage could impact their ability to access it.

New York state governor Andrew Cuomo present a forecast that says the coronavirus death toll could continue to increase through to July

New York state governor Andrew Cuomo gave a press conference yesterday displaying a model that suggests the coronavirus could result in the death rate lasting through the summer.

'People say "well, when is it over, two weeks, three weeks, four weeks?" This model predics that you're going to have a high death rate through July,' he said. 'If this model is correct, this could go through the summer.'

As of the 1 April, 1,374 people have died from as a result of contracting the coronavirus in New York City
Manila (CNN Philippines Life)  Religion continues to play a crucial role in Philippine society. A predominantly Roman Catholic Christian nation, with 81% of its population christened into the religion, the Philippines holds great regard to national observance of Catholic holidays, such as the penitential season of Lent.

Rarely do religious institutions let calamities get in the way of practicing traditions that have been at place for centuries. After all, it is through religion that some people find refuge in times of crisis.

The novel coronavirus outbreak is a great exception, having become a global threat to health and economic stability. Churches have been compelled to cancel physical gatherings set for the Holy Week due to community quarantines around the world. In the Philippines, the Catholic Church promotes a virtual celebration of the holiday in the form of livestreamed mass services, following the steps being taken in the Vatican.

Out of the events lined up for the Holy Week, one tradition that would be necessary to forego is the Visita Iglesia, which calls for visitations to seven churches across the country. While the Catholic Church will remain open throughout the Holy Week for the religious who seek to pray within the physical church, this option would be inaccessible to most, much less with the requisite of traveling from one church to another.

Echoing the Churchs shift to virtual platforms in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Filipino Catholics can make good use of online sources in order to fulfill this years Visita Iglesia without the risk of getting infected. Platforms such as Google Street View, a technology that offers interactive visuals of several areas all over the world, would be an easy alternative for those who seek a complete celebration of the Holy Week.

Google Street View is able to let users virtually visit and tour some of the oldest and most popular churches across the Philippines, such as: the San Agustin Church, and the Minor Basilica and Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Concepcion in Intramuros, Manila; the Our Lady of the Abandoned Parish in Sta. Ana, Manila; Daraga Church in Albay; St. James The Apostle Parish in Pampanga; St. Gregory The Great Parish Church in Majayjay, Laguna; Basilica Menor del Santo Nino in Cebu; and San Pedro Cathedral in Davao. The online platform also lets you view the churches interior, giving everyone the closest possible experience to an actual visit inside these majestic structures.

To use, simply open Google Maps on the web, type in a destination, and drag the Pegman icon (the human-shaped yellow icon at the lower right of the map) to a specific area on the map. For mobile users, just input the destination and tap on a place marker on the Google Maps app.

Now more than ever, people, regardless of their beliefs, are in dire need of something from which they can find solace and strength. Faith, for the majority of Filipinos, remains to be this one constant source, and while there are current restrictions in their practice of religious traditions, the COVID-19 pandemic may serve as opportunity for religion to better adapt to the changing times, embracing the sectors still deemed to be its polar opposites, such as science and technology, in working towards a safer world not only for the religious, but for society as a whole.

The Minor Basilica and Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Concepcion in Intramuros, Manila, as seen in Google Street View. Photo from GOOGLE

Daraga Church in Albay, as seen in Google Street View. Photo from GOOGLE

Basilica Menor del Santo Nino in Cebu, as seen in Google Street View. Photo from GOOGLE

Saint Gregory The Great Parish Church in Majayjay, Laguna, as seen in Google Street View. Photo from GOOGLE

St. James The Apostle Parish in Pampanga, as seen in Google Street View. Photo from GOOGLE

Our Lady of the Abandoned Parish in Sta. Ana, Manila, as seen in Google Street View. Photo from GOOGLE
CHICAGO, April 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Recognizing the mounting fear and isolation felt by Illinois residents 60+, who are at increased risk for serious illness from the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19), Gov. JB Pritzker and Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike will speak live with tens of thousands of older adults in a telephone Town Hall on Wednesday, 4/1 at 7 p.m.

The telephone Town Hall will offer participants a chance to hear directly from the governor and top health official about the importance of social distancing, measures to protect residents in nursing homes, assisted living, and senior housing, and other pressing concerns for older adults across the state.

"Our social distancing efforts are the most important thing we can do to protect our seniors and support our health care workersthat's why we're working to keep the public informed and use science and facts to make decisions that protect the health and wellbeing of our seniors," said Gov. JB Pritzker. "From creating special hours for seniors to shop for essentials, to enacting telehealth policies my administration is here to support you in any way we can, because I know seniors are the foundation of our community."

Participants in the Town Hall will also be able to share their experiences and ask questions during the hour-long conversation, developed to address growing concerns about health, wellness and service offerings.

The Town Hall will be available to 150,000 AARP members across Illinois as well as members of the general public through a Facebook and Twitter Livestream. Data shows that members of the older population, specifically people that are age 60 or older are more vulnerable to COVID-19, which causes a respiratory illness that can lead to serious cases of pneumonia.

"Each day, we hear from older adults across the state who have questions about how this crisis is going to impact their health, their financial security, and the safety of their loved ones and caregivers," said AARP Illinois State Director Bob Gallo. "AARP is grateful that Gov. Pritzker and Dr. Ezike recognize the uneasiness that comes from these uncertain times, and their willingness to speak directly with our members about resources available."

In addition to working to ensure that older adults, their families and those caring for them have the most accurate and up-to-date information to protect themselves from COVID-19 and prevent the spread to others, AARP Illinois has also been working with state leaders on other concerns related to the outbreak, including:

The need for robust support and resources provided to states and local communities, including health care professionals and first responders , who are on the front lines of this effort.

who are on the front lines of this effort. The potential for fraud as scammers prey on older adults during this time  using headlines as opportunities to steal money or sensitive personal information.

Social isolation and the risks associated with leaving vulnerable older adults without access to food and regular human contact during this time.

Worries about financial security during uncertain economic times with markets reacting (or overreacting) to coronavirus news of the day.

The Town Hall will be monitored live by AARP screeners, who will patch through callers with questions covering a variety of concerns from all across Illinois.

AARP Illinois members in Illinois who opt to receive telephone Town Hall calls as part of their membership will receive a phone call shortly before the start of the April 1 event. Those who wish to join the Tele-Town Hall through Facebook and Twitter can do so from the AARP and Governor's pages.

Last week (3/26) a similar telephone Town Hall with Chicago Mayor Lightfoot and Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) Commissioner Lisa Morrison Butler brought in more than 5,000 phone participants and another 18,000 who listened through the Facebook Livestream.

You can find AARP's coronavirus resources at www.aarp.org/coronavirus .

About AARP

AARP is the nation's largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence, 1.7 million members in Illinois and 250,000 in Chicago, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to families: health security, financial stability and personal fulfillment. To learn more, visit www.aarp.org or follow @AARP and @AARPadvocates on social media.

SOURCE AARP Illinois

Related Links

http://www.aarp.org


Australians are being urged to take advantage of a coronavirus clause that allows them to save $5,000 in tax over six months.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has announced taxpayers would be allowed to withdraw up to $10,000 from their superannuation, tax free, by the end of June plus another $10,000 by the end of September.

Australians affected by COVID-19 are being allowed to access their super instead of being forced to wait until they retire in their late fifties or sixties.

Economists fear one million jobs were lost last week alone, which would overnight take unemployment to the highest level since the 1930s Great Depression.

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Australians are being urged to take advantage of a coronavirus clause that allows them to save $5,000 in tax over six months. Pictured is a Centrelink queue at Flemington in Melbourne's inner west

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg (left with Prime Minister Scott Morrison) has announced taxpayers would be allowed to withdraw up to $10,000 from their superannuation, tax free, by the end of June plus another $10,000 by the end of September. Australians affected by COVID-19 are being allowed to access their super instead of being forced to wait until they retire in their late fifties or sixties

Under the new coronavirus rules, individuals can also make voluntary super contributions and only pay 15 per cent tax instead of the much higher marginal personal income tax rate of 32.5 per cent for income earned between $37,001 and $90,000.

Australian National University Crawford School of Public Policy researchers Robert Breunig, a professor of economics, and Tristram Sainsbury, a research fellow, said this rule could potentially save someone $5,000 in tax over six months.

The experts from ANU's Tax and Transfer Policy Institute said this would most likely require some help from an accountant to structure their salary sacrificing arrangements

'You can do it mostly risk-free,' they said in a piece for The Conversation website.

'But you do have to rearrange your financial affairs a bit, and deal with some bureaucratic hurdles.'

As part of a second stimulus package, worth $66.1billion, the government announced a series of superannuation measures to help Australians facing financial stress as a result of coronavirus.

When can you access your superannuation? For those born before July 1, 1960, it's 55 The rises to 56 for baby boomers born between July 1, 1960 and June 30, 1961 It's 57 for those born between July 1, 1961 and June 30, 1962 It's 58 for those born between July 1, 1962 and June 30, 1963 It's 59 for those born between July 1, 1963 and June 30, 1964 It's 60 for anyone born after July 1, 1964 Source: moneysmart.gov.au Advertisement

Under the coronavirus rules, individuals can also make voluntary super contributions and only pay 15 per cent tax instead of the much higher marginal personal income tax rate of 32.5 per cent for income earned between $37,001 and $90,000. Pictured is Westfield at Parramatta in Sydney's west with fewer customers than usual

They can access $10,000 from their super savings by June 30 and another $10,000 from July 1 for another three months, without this affecting their Centrelink or Veterans Affairs entitlements.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Australia's superannuation savings were worth $3trillion at the end of 2019, before Chinese authorities confirmed the first cases of coronavirus in Wuhan.

Employer contributions to super have been compulsory since 1992.

The savings of Australian workers are now at risk, with the federal government last month closing down clubs, pubs, cinemas and gyms in a bid to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Deloitte Access Economics partner Chris Richardson, an economist, estimates one million jobs were lost last week.

That means Australia now has a jobless rate of 12.4 per cent - the highest in 88 years - although official labour force statistics for March won't be released until April 16.

In February, before COVID-19 cases escalated in Australia, there were 699,100 people without a job.

Westpac chief economist Bill Evans was this week expecting Australia's jobless rate to triple from 5.1 per cent to 17 per cent by the end of June.

This would be the highest level of unemployment since 1932 at the height of the Great Depression.

On Thursday, Mr Evans updated his forecast to say unemployment would now peak at nine per cent in the June quarter.

He credited the government's third stimulus package, worth $130billion, which includes a Jobkeeper program to give six million workers a $1,500 fortnightly wage subsidy.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on April 2 hit out at Donald Trump saying that his country only acts in self-defense, unlike the United States. Zarif was responding to the US President Donald Trump's comment in which he had warned Iran and its allies against attacking US troops stationed in Iraq. Donald Trump had earlier said that his administration had received intelligence that Iran is planning a strike on US interests in Iraq. Zarif took to his official Twitter handle to respond to Trump's comment and accused the United States of lying, cheating and assassinating innocents.

Read: Donald Trump Accuses Iran Of Plotting Attack On US, Warns About 'heavy Price'

Dont be mislead by usual warmongers, AGAIN, @realDonaldTrump:



Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of"proxies"



Unlike the USwhich surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinatesIran only acts in self-defense. Openly



Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do  Javad Zarif (@JZarif) April 2, 2020

Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 1, 2020

Read: US In Coronavirus Tailspin, Under-fire Trump Warns Iran Against Attacking Troops In Iraq

Iran-US tension

Tensions between Tehran and Washington rose to an all-time high after Donald Trump withdrew from the Obama-era nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The United States on January 3 killed Iran's top military commander Qasem Soleimani following which Tehran reiterated by firing a dozen missiles on US troops stationed at the Iraqi military base. Following Iran's action, the Iraqi parliament passed a resolution to dismiss US troops from the country.

Read: US State Secretary Warns Iraq That Attacks On Americans Will Not Be Tolerated

Since January escalation between Iran and the US, there have been multiple attacks on the US-led NATO forces in Iraq which Washington blamed on Tehran and its proxies. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned Iraqs Prime Minister that the United States will not tolerate attacks and threats to American lives. Pompeo held a discussion with Adil Abd al-Mahdi on the last month's attacks on Camp Taji military base near Baghdad which claimed three lives of service members of US-led Coalition forces.

Read: Iran's President Rouhani: US Missed 'historic Opportunity' To Lift Sanctions
On Wednesday, two of Kenyas three COVID-19 recoveries gave a televised address in a video conference call with President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Brenda Cherotich, the first Kenyan patient, and Brian, who was infected by Brenda, recounted their triumphant experience, giving a glimmer of hope to millions of Kenyans who were following keenly.

I want to tell Kenyans that this virus is manageable and people might have mild symptoms like a cough and a slight headache, so people should not really be afraid, we will pull through, said Brenda, a former Miss Tourism Kericho County.

The pair also praised the government for its swift response in quarantining them and offering medical care to ensure they recovered.

On his part, President Uhuru lauded Brenda and Brian for their bravery and called on Kenyans who feel unwell to be accountable and report to the relevant authorities.

The address was seen as a way of calming peoples nerves but according to Starehe MP Charles Njagua Jaguar, it might not have been the best idea.

The vocal lawmaker took to Twitter to express his reservation for the address, hinting that President Uhurus advisers failed him.

Jaguar said that after watching Brenda and Brian, some of his constituents were no longer afraid of the deadly virus.

Ive received calls from my constituents telling me that theyre now even more afraid of hunger than they were of COVID-19. They can see its curable at Govts expense. Was that press conference with Brenda & Brian a good idea? Did President Uhuru Kenyattas advisers fail him? posed Jaguar.

Sampled below are some comments from KOT:

Thats your own school of thought,dont drag your constituents to that..You people rarely receive calls immediately you take over that docket  Simple Boy (@stivo_boy) April 1, 2020

Thats your own school of thought,dont drag your constituents to that..You people rarely receive calls immediately you take over that docket  Simple Boy (@stivo_boy) April 1, 2020

Perhaps you should help your constituents achieve food security instead of posturing on twitter  diane Yua (@DianeYaksha) April 1, 2020

All countries have been showing their recoveries, you need to remind your constituents that contracting #COVID19 is not a death sentence it has a 97% recovery chances. Also when theyre sick will they eat? Work? People must follow govt instructions, they need hope too like today  Kenya West (@KinyanBoy) April 1, 2020

We vitu zingine achia watu wamesoma.  Ripped Jeans (@gachunu10) April 1, 2020

His point is, people may be tempted to downplay the seriousness of the disease since it did not kill brenda and Brian.  Amos__amoh (@amos__amoh) April 1, 2020

Kigeugeu nyamaza.  collins kk (@mista_kk) April 1, 2020

A midist this hard times kenyans need some hope that at time t we shall overcome and we shall resume our normal life. Think!  Buch? (@orinavincent) April 1, 2020

Misinformation is worse than Coronavirus. Jaguar stop this misinformation you a leader who was SELECTED by William. So stay out of this. You dont care about them where were you before Coronavirus? Why do you drive a range rover while youre constituents are sleeping hungry.  Broken (@G00DM0RNlN) April 1, 2020

My thoughts too,, i dont think people are going to take it serious henceforth as before.  peter jr (@ptrcaptain) April 1, 2020

Inspiring hope is one of the greatest roles of leaders. At the height of fear and desperation over #COVID19 selling more fear would be great mess. The sick need to hear such messages  Evanson Minjire (@evanson_minjire) April 1, 2020

Do you need two heads above your shoulders to process simple thoughts on your two feet? ? Of course the sick and affected families and infact all Kenyans need hope amid Covid-19 pandemic. Stop selling FEAR and misinformation!  Miraa(Khat) enthusiast! (@kgitonga67) April 1, 2020

Voting young people into positions of leadership thinking theyre better than older generation is a farce. Youth leadership in Kenya has been a spectacular failure ??????  jowi ? ?? ?? (@EricJowi) April 1, 2020
Things got so bad in Italy that the medics were having a tough time prioritising care for patients who had higher chances of surviving coronavirus.

As the world grapples with the coronavirus outbreak, every country seems to be falling marginally short of the required medical equipment. There's not enough protective gear for the doctors and not enough ventilators for the increasing number of patients.

AP

Amidst the crisis, when everyone seems to be contributing in whichever way they can, the elderly of various nations have contributed by taking a step back from medical attention that could've saved their lives, and instead passing on the chance to a younger patient.

Recently, a woman in Belgium died after she selflessly refused to use a ventilator and asked her doctors to use it for younger patients instead. 90-year-old Suzanne Hoylaerts who tested positive for COVID-19 was hospitalised on March 20, post which her condition rapidly deteriorated.

"I don't want to use artificial respiration. Save it for younger patients. I already had a good life, she reportedly said. She succumbed to the disease.

"Suzanne Hoylaerts" from Belgium, aged 90, died of an infection of #coronavirus & refused to be placed on a ventilator & said, "I lived a happy life, I leave that device to the younger ones. She sacrificed her life in the hope of saving the lives of others.



Rest in peace pic.twitter.com/eNrPD8JeZD  Mustafa Batnain  (@MustafaBatnain) April 1, 2020

Her daughter Judith told a Dutch newspaper, Het Laatste Nieuws, I can't say goodbye to her, and I don't even have a chance to attend her funeral.

This is not an isolated case.

Reportedly a a 72-year-old Italian priest named Don Giuseppe Berardelli also refused access to a ventilator for the same reason as Suzannes; he thought it could be put to a better use for a younger patient instead.

Berardelli reportedly passed away around 15 March. His story and sacrifice also gained media traction.

Don Giuseppe Berardelli, 72, died March 15 at a hospital in Lovere, Italy after declining to use the medical equipment that his parishioners were said to have bought for him.



Why?



He gave his ventilator to a child, who he had never met.



He saved the childs life. pic.twitter.com/vn4xj7Embs  Yoni Michanie (@YoniMichanie) March 24, 2020

Don Giuseppe Berardelli, 72, died March 15 at a hospital in Lovere, Italy after declining to use the medical equipment that his parishioners were said to have bought for him. Why? He gave his ventilator to a child, who he had never met. He saved the childs life, a Twitter post about him reads.

He was buried in Casnigo, Italy, where residents reportedly stepped out to their balconies to applaud for him.

This was Don Giuseppe Berardelli.



Don Giuseppe was a priest who loved smiles and motorcycles. When he got infected, he let someone else use his respiratory unit. He died of #COVID19.



You may not believe in a god, but believe in this man's kindness and sacrifice. #StayAtHome pic.twitter.com/JrstirBJOC  Laura Ingallinella (@lauraingalli) March 23, 2020

It has been seen around the world that people of older age are more susceptible COVID-19 than people who are younger. Maybe it was after knowing this fact and realising the shortage of ventilators that these heroes offered to give up their chance to survive. And for that reason alone, they'll be known as heroes.
The Naval Dockyard, Mumbai, has designed and developed a hand-held infrared temperature sensor, and has the capacity to scale up its production, if agencies require the instruments in large numbers to screen people for fever amid the Covid-19 outbreak, the navy said in a statement on Thursday.

The navy said the instrument has been developed due to the scarcity of temperature sensors in the market, where these are being sold for a high cost. The instrument has been manufactured for under 1,000 using in-house resources. The cost is a fraction of the price of the temperature guns in the market, the statement said, adding that the countrys medical infrastructure was being tested by the surge in the count of Covid-19 cases.

The dockyards temperature sensor has an accuracy to 0.02 degree Celsius, as per the statement.

The temperature guns will be used for screening the 20,000 personnel who visit the dockyard daily. This will reduce the workload of the sentries at the gates, the navy said.

In view of Covid-19, initial screening of these personnel entering the dockyard was essential to prevent the spread of the disease within the yard and the navys Western Fleet. The most preliminary method to screen a probable patient is to check for body temperature by non-contact means, the statement said.

As the country prepares to handle a rising number of cases and meet its need for ventilators, which about 5% of the Covid-19 patients may require, the navy has also pitched in with an innovative ventilator design that can cater to six patients simultaneously.

The Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam, has manufactured this portable multi-feed oxygen manifold ventilator.

To cater to the requirement of oxygen supply for multiple patients during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, personnel from Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam, have designed an innovative Portable Multi-feed Oxygen Manifold(MOM) using a six-way radial header fitted to a single cylinder. This innovation will enable one oxygen bottle to supply six patients concurrently thus, enabling critical care management to a larger number of Covid patients with the existing limited resources, the navy said in a statement earlier this week.
Photo: (Photo : Instagram/amyschumer)

Amy Schumer brought her 10-month-old son to see his grandfather despite practicing social distancing.

On Tuesday, the comedienne shared a heartwarming video on her Instagram. The video shows her standing outside her father's window at his nursing home wearing a blue sweat outfit, black coat, and white sneakers while carrying her son, Gene, in one hand, and a banner that says, "Hi Grandpa! We love you!" on her other hand. She waited for her dad to take a peek through his window and waved back.

She captioned the post saying "visiting dad", where she got 3.6 million views.

Schumer Visits Her Dad Often

Schumer's father is residing in an assisted living facility in the Tribeca neighborhood of New York City. He was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when Schumer was 12 years old. It happened at the wrong time because that was when her father's business went under and had filed for bankruptcy. Then at the same time, her parents split up.

Schumer frequently visits her dad, sometimes bringing with her some famous friends. She has brought Goldie Hawn and Colin Quinn to make her dad happy. Quinn played Schumer's father in the movie "Trainwreck", whose story was partly inspired by the actress's own life.

How Schumer Feels About Dad's Multiple Sclerosis

Schumer told Barbara Walters in an interview in 2015 that there were days when her dad is really good, and they go around joking about life; however, there were some days that she feels pain and in disbelief when she visits her dad.

The 38-year-old comedienne added that she is confused as to how multiple sclerosis works because her dad was in physical pain. Thus, she took the initiative to take care of the whole family and make it a point to make them laugh all the time.

How Schumer Helps the People During the Coronavirus Quarantine Period

Schumer wants to bring happiness to the public right now, especially due to the coronavirus pandemic. For the past few weeks, she has been sharing hilarious and informative videos on her social media account.

Apart from recommending movies and television shows for the netizens to watch during the lockdown, she would document New Yorkers clapping for the first responders every day at seven in the evening. She even shared a video of her cutting her husband Chris Fischer's hair.

On Saturday night, Schumer also commended all the pregnant and breastfeeding ladies out there who are all practicing self-isolation. She posted a flashback photo of her in black-and-white while breastfeeding her newborn son, Gene, in the hospital and added a caption saying that she is sharing her "big nip love" to all the pregnant ladies during the difficult time. She said that they are thinking of them too. Being topless in the photo, Schumer added two flames to cover up her private parts.

Last week, Schumer shared a video on her Instagram, where she practices social distancing as she and Tony award-winning friend Jerry Zaks showed the public how to keep a distance of "six feet" from other people. She added a caption, saying that she is social distancing with Jerry Zaks and then adding a hashtag, #cherrypie.

On the video that garnered over 960 thousand views, Schumer told her pal to step forward, and then step back twice, and finally, she said, "now THAT is social distance".

Schumer and Fischer got married in Malibu, California, in 2018, and then welcomed their son, Gene, in May 2019.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide a total of Rs 1 lakh crore as an immediate assistance for the state governments to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, an official statement said.

During a video conference of the PM with chief ministers, Gehlot also urged Modi for an interstate supply chain protocol to ensure uninterrupted supply of essentials, medicines and medical equipment, it said.

Rajasthan CM told the prime minister that many of the states are already facing a difficult financial situation due to the pandemic which has badly affected the economy as the industries are shut and revenue collection has nosedived, the statement said.

During the video conference, Gehlot suggested that Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) should coordinate the procurement process so that states can get Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and ventilators at reasonable prices, it said.

The chief minister also briefed PM Modi on the measures taken by the Rajasthan government to help the people during COVID-19 pandemic, the statement said.

I told PM that we are working 24X7, we have formed a core group under ACS Home. The war room is functioning separately and in each district war rooms have been set up. Entire monitoring is happening at the CM level, Gehlot tweeted.

All poor people in state, deprived sections and those in old age homes, orphanages, destitute, beggars, divyangs, whether in cities or villages, we are registering all of them so that we can provide food to them in crisis, he said.

Gehlot said 78 lakh beneficiaries of social security pension schemes have been given the pension amount for the month of February and the pensions for the month of March will be credited this week.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
(Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump warned Iran against what he said was a possible sneak attack the Islamic Republic was planning against U.S. troops in Iraq.

Trump indicated in a tweet that the U.S. had information about a possible attack but didnt elaborate. He said Iran would pay a very heavy price if theres an attack.

Tensions have soared this year between Washington and Tehran after a top Iranian general was killed by American forces at the start of the year, prompting a missile barrage on an Iraqi base used by American forces. There have since been strikes in Iraq by Iranian proxy groups, and the U.S. has seized shipments of allegedly Iranian weapons bound for Yemen.

More recently, Iran and some other countries have called on the U.S. to ease sanctions to allow for faster importation of humanitarian goods needed to help fight the coronavirus outbreak, which has hit Iran particularly hard. The U.S. argues that its sanctions already allow for the importation of critical goods.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

Subscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
The UK death toll for coronavirus has risen to 2,921  up by 569 from the day before.

Meanwhile, more than 33,700 people have tested positive for the virus as of Thursday, according to government figures.

The new death toll, which counts the number of hospitalised patients who have died, was a daily increase of 24 per cent.

More than 163,100 people have been tested for Covid-19 in the UK as of Thursday morning, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.

Public Health England (PHE) said 10,657 tests were carried out in England on Wednesday.

Boris Johnson, the prime minister, has said the UK will massively increase its testing for the virus as the government continues to face intense pressure over its policy.

Speaking from self-isolation on Wednesday, the PM said the government needed to massively ramp up testing NHS staff so those who are self-isolating unnecessarily can return to work.

It came as Professor Paul Cosford, emeritus medical director of PHE, claimed everybody involved is frustrated by the low number of tests being carried out.

He pointed to ongoing capacity issues and said the core priority until now has been testing hospital patients with suspected Covid-19.

A Downing Street spokesperson said on Thursday around 2,800 NHS staff have been tested for coronavirus at drive-in testing facilities, in addition to a significant number at NHS and PHE laboratories.

The UK has gone into lockdown as it battles the pandemic, with people told to stay at home unless it is deemed essential, for example to get groceries or medicine.

All non-essential businesses have been told to shut their doors, while schools have also been closed.

Additional reporting by Press Association
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The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century, by Kirk Wallace Johnson

Johnson unspools an utterly fascinating and complex tale of greed, deception and ornithological sabotage about a young flutist named Edwin Rist, who in 2009 broke into a British natural history museum and stole hundreds of preserved bird skins. He intended to fence the birds extravagantly colored plumage at high prices to fellow aficionados in hopes of raising enough cash to support both his musical career and his parents struggling Labradoodle-breeding business in the Hudson Valley, wrote our reviewer, Joshua Hammer.

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Over a five-month period starting in 2012, 67 fires were set across an isolated stretch of Virginia. A mechanic eventually took responsibility, but solving the mystery isnt what makes this book so compelling: Its the back story of an improbable outlaw and his fiancee, who quickly emerges as one of the most memorable femme fatales in recent true-crime cases. The story, our critic Jennifer Senior wrote, has all the elements of a lively crime procedural: courtroom drama, forensic trivia, toothsome gossip, vexed sex.

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The Orchid Thief: A True Story of Beauty and Obsession, by Susan Orlean

The veteran reporter and bibliophile (dont miss her latest, The Library Book) introduces readers to John Laroche, a 36-year-old who became so obsessed with orchids, he hired himself out to the Seminole tribe of Florida to set up a plant nursery and propagation laboratory on the tribes reservation  and hatched a scheme that would benefit the Seminoles, the world and himself. Our reviewer wrote: In Ms. Orleans skillful handling, her orchid story turns out to be distinctly something more.  She writes that orchids appeal to people because they are both smart and sexy: smart in their ability to survive; sexy in their look and feel. She describes the lengths to which collectors have gone to acquire them. She introduces us to people who deal in them, steal them, do anything but kill for them.

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Strange Piece of Paradise, by Terri Jentz

In 1977, Terri Jentz and her college roommate set out on a cross country bike trip. Seven days into their 4,200-mile journey, the two were camping at a state park in Cline Falls, Ore., when a man in a truck brutally attacked them  first with his truck, then with an ax. Strange Piece of Paradise is Jentzs memoir of her own survival. Our reviewer wrote: She is condemning American culture, one of easy violence that glorifies the badass outlaw, that values self-gratification, impulsivity and irresponsibility, and rewards preening narcissism. She is condemning violence against women and a society-wide indifference toward its ubiquity, what she calls our passive complicity.  But Jentz keeps the editorializing to a minimum, and her soapbox is, for the most part, more of an easy chair. I felt a bit hopeless, but I never felt harangued.
EMMETT, Idaho  Ammon Bundy hosted a March 26 meeting where he called on attendees to pledge to defend Idahoans who are pressured to comply with a stay-home order enacted by Gov. Brad Little.

Reached by phone Friday, Bundy said the gathering was about discussing the states self-isolation order.

We discussed with each other whether our rights can be taken by an order from a governor or an agency, and if they can be, what good are our rights? Bundy said.

Little on March 25 issued a statewide stay-home order for all Idahoans for 21 days. The order requires all residents to self-isolate at home if you can, not just if you are sick, according to the governors office.

Bundy said self-isolation during the spread of the new coronavirus is not a bad thing.

Im not sure its warranted completely to even ask that, but thats not the argument here, he said. If it was a guideline, I would applaud it. Its not, its an order.

A 19-minute video of the two-hour March 26 meeting, recorded live and posted on a public Facebook account, shows Bundy pledging to help provide legal, political and physical defense to people who are pressured by the authorities or anybody else to comply with the order.

I will be there, Bundy said. I will bring as many people as we can. We will form a legal defense for you, a political defense for you, and we will also, if necessary, provide a physical defense for you, so that you can continue in your rights.

Bundy asked meeting attendees to sign a piece of paper, provide their contact information and agree that, as someone decides to stand, we form a legal and political and physical defense. Bundy said he knows a lot of good people that have a tremendous amount of legal capabilities, and there are people who are very effective at political defense.

If you are within your rights, acting, and you are receiving pressure or force from anybody  that this is the people that you contact, he said, referring to the pledge paper. What their job is, is to activate everybody in the situation.

Bundy said the situation could be so and so needs (us) to go down to his business, or so and so (needs us) to file suit, grievance. Bundy also said that a bad actor, or someone who infringes on peoples rights, could be targeted for protests at their homes.

We need to find out whos the bad actor here, he said. We need to go to his house and act in that way.

Bundy told the Idaho Press hes not opposed to weapons being used in a situation where physical defense is required.

When someones rights are being violated for whatever reason  then thousands of people come and surround that person and bring a tremendous, a lot of attention and bring accountability to the bad actors, he said. The First Amendment is secured by the Second Amendment.

In a Facebook video inviting all the people of Idaho to come to a peoples meeting," Bundy said, The last time it was illegal to meet together as a people on this land was before the Revolutionary War.

Wearing a cowboy hat and filming himself, Bundy said, Since we won our independence, it has never been illegal to assemble as a people.

In 2016, Bundy helped lead the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in eastern Oregon. He also participated in an armed standoff with federal law enforcement at his fathers Nevada ranch in 2014.

The March 26 meeting was held in an industrial building in Emmett, which Bundy owns and leases. The video shows more than a dozen people in attendance, both sitting and standing, and they mostly appeared to be keeping some distance from one another. Bundy said he planned to host another meeting at the same location.

The meeting likely violates the states stay-home order. At a Friday press conference, Little said he has the authority to outlaw public gatherings, even political gatherings. He said gatherings are discouraged and are frankly in violation of this stay-home order.

Theres no difference between a political gathering and any other gathering, Little said.

--Ryan Suppe, Idaho Press
Barcode Scanner Market Worldwide Opportunities, Prominent Players, and Growth Rate, 2022

The Global Barcode Scanner Market is estimated to develop at a substantial CAGR of 6% for the duration of the prediction. Growing demand for two-dimensional [2D] barcodes in numerous businesses; for example retail marketing, transportation & logistics, and healthcare, are pushing the development of the market. On the other hand, increasing sum of scanning errors and potentials of growing substitutes are limiting the development of the market.

The Barcode Scanners are electronic apparatuses proficient in interpreting printed barcodes onto a computer. They comprise light, a lens, and a sensor of light. They transform ophthalmic impulses into electrical. The barcode scanning market is growing by a stable proportion. The growing sum of retail openings in emerging nations of Asia for example India, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, China, South Korea, and Japan are contributing to the greater demand for barcode scanning apparatus in Asia Pacific.

The barcode scanner market on the source of Type of Scanners could span Rough Barcode Scanner (Automatic Reader, Portable/Handheld Scanner, Cordless Scanner, PDA Scanner, Additional Rough Barcode Scanner), and Non-Rough Barcode Scanner (Presentation Scanner, Automatic Reader, Fixed-Position Scanner, Stationary Scanner). The subdivision of non-rugged barcode scanner is witnessing utmost CAGR owing to the increasing retail openings across the globe.

The market on the source of Type of End User could span Manufacturing, Defense, Logistics & Warehouse, Health Care, Retail & Commercial, and the other End Users. The market on the source of Type of Product shows the Manufacture, Profits, Price, Market stake and Development percentage of respective category. The market is divided into handheld barcode scanner, Mobile computers, POS retail barcode scanners, Self-checkout barcode scanner.

The subdivision of mobile computers tops the market at the international basis. The market on the source of Type of Technology could span Smartphone based scanner, Pen type reader, Laser scanner, Camera based reader, RFID Reader, Omni directional barcode scanners, and Charge coupled device reader.

The barcode scanner market on the source of Area with respect to Trades in terms of intake, Profits, Market stake and Development percentage in these areas, for the duration of the prediction could span North America [U.S.A, Canada and Mexico], Europe [France, Spain, Germany, U.K., Italy], Rest of Europe, Asia Pacific [India, Japan, China, Australia, and New Zealand], Rest of Asia Pacific, Latin America [Brazil, Argentina],Middle East & Africa [Egypt, South Africa].

By the source of geography, North America is likely to generate full incremental opening in the prediction period. On the other hand, the market in Canada is likely to slant in the direction of small price and greater development for the duration of the prediction. The statement revises Trades in terms of intake of Barcode Scanner in the market; particularly in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America and Middle East & Africa. It concentrates on the topmost companies operating in these regions.

Some of the important companies operating in the field on the international basis are Bluebird, Optic on, General scan, Zebra Technologies Corporation, Toshiba TEC Corporation, SATO Holdings Corporation, Honeywell International Inc., Cognex Corporation, Denso, Touch Star Technologies, Aceeca, Wasp Barcode Technologies, Scandit AG, JC Square Inc., and Data Logics S.P.A.
When three-legged Terrior mix Clark was found as an injured stray and brought to the Houston Humane Society, his rescuer asked that he be put down.

Thanks to the staff at the Humane Society, sweet Clark is as good as new. The 3-year-old pup is hopeful to find a new, special owner that can help him hop around Houston and live a happy new life.

One of our previous Pets of the Week, 4-year-old retriever mix Moochie, is back at the shelter. Poor Moochie was adopted out of the shelter last month but was recently returned after it was determined she would do better as the only animal in a household. Moochie originally came to the shelter after her previous owner passed away and rarely lets go of a special red, green and white toy gifted to her from her owner. The 4-year-old girl is heartworm positive but her treatment is sponsored by the shelter and would not cost a potential adopter.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Houston vet clinics go curbside, postpone elective surgeries amid coronavirus pandemic

Then there's Seeka, a beautiful 6-year-old Siamese Longhair cat. Shelter officials say Seeka is usually shy but she loves to talk all about her day as a cat in the shelter once she warms up to you. Boxer mix Rocky is also hoping for a new home. The 4-year-old pup was surrendered by his owner for "not being a good fit," but shelter officials say he is well-behaved, knows how to sit, has excellent leash manners and loves treats. He is a very strong dog but gentle and does not pull on a leash, officials say. He loves to play but is also a good lap dog.

As is the case for shelters across the Houston region, the Houston Humane Society has implemented a few changes to ensure its staff, visitors and animals are safe during the novel coronavirus pandemic. The shelter is letting visitors in by appointment only and the number of people allowed inside the facility. including staff, is limited. To schedule an appointment, call 713-433-6421 or fill out a request online.

The shelter recently opened a free, curbside pet food pantry and is in need of donations. Donations can be made virtually via the shelter's Amazon wish list or dropped off in person outside of the facility. Find more information on the pet food pantry on the shelter's website.

Those who are unable to adopt an animal but would like to help the shelter can foster one instead. While so many are quarantined at home, what better time to find an isolation buddy? The shelter is always looking for volunteers as well. To volunteer for the shelter, click here.

The shelter is located at 14700 Almeda Road in Houston. Adoption hours are 11:00 a.m. to 6 p.m Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. To adopt an animal, click here.

Click through the photos above for a look at Clark, Moochie, Seeka and more pets that need homes at the Houston Humane Society...

Rebecca Hennes covers community news. Read her on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, houstonchronicle.com. | rebecca.hennes@chron.com
Italy's Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has banned Serie A clubs from going on to team training until at least April 13 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Italy remains one of the hardest-hit regions due to the disease, and as a result, Serie A's season was also suspended indefinitely last month.

There were reports that Napoli and Lazio were planning to return to training.

But as Italy has extended its lockdown until April 13, Italy's PM ruled out any team sessions taking place during that time.

"Actual measures are extended until April 13. We know we are asking another effort, another sacrifice. We have to understand one thing - if we stop following the rules or reduce these measures, we will waste our efforts," Goal.com quoted Italy's PM Conte as saying.

"The only news introduced is about athletes' training sessions. The training sessions are not allowed in clubs' headquarters. It doesn't mean athletes cannot train themselves, they can do it individually," he added.

Italy's coronavirus death toll increased by 727 to 13,155 over the past 24 hours, and the number of new cases have also surged by 2,937, Angelo Borrelli, the head of the National Civil Protection Department, said on Wednesday.

The total case count, including fatalities and recoveries, has reached 110,400, according to Borrelli.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) had termed coronavirus as a pandemic on March 11.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Unsure of your employer tax obligations and tax relief options during this uncertain time? The Australian Tax Office (ATO) is encouraging business impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to get in touch with them to discuss relief options. However, with so many businesses looking for answers right now, we thought wed summarise some of the biggest points regarding tax obligations here.

Commissioner of Taxation, Chris Jordan, has said that many businesses and communities are being heavily affected by the difficult economic conditions that we are currently experiencing.

The ATO will work shoulder-to-shoulder with businesses to assist them through this difficult period and do what we can to ease the pressure, he said.

Once you contact us, well tailor a support plan for your needs and circumstances.

Support measures could include deferral of some payments, quicker access to GST refunds, and options to enter low interest payment plans for existing or future tax debts.

The ATO have flexible options available to assist businesses impacted by COVID-19, which include:

Deferring (by up to six months) the payment date of amounts due through the business activity statement (including PAYG instalments), income tax assessments, fringe benefits tax assessments and excise

Allow businesses on a quarterly reporting cycle to opt into monthly GST reporting in order to get quicker access to GST refunds they may be entitled to

Allowing businesses to vary Pay As You Go (PAYG) instalment amounts to zero for the March 2020 quarter. Businesses that vary their PAYG instalment to zero can also claim a refund for any instalments made for the September 2019 and December 2019 quarters

Remitting any interest and penalties, incurred on or after 23 January 2020, that have been applied to tax liabilities

Working with affected businesses to help them pay their existing and ongoing tax liabilities by allowing them to enter into low interest payment plans.

During this time, employers will still need to meet their ongoing super obligations. If you are struggling to meet the full obligatory amount, you still need to pay as much as you can. You contact the ATO to arrange a personal payment plan for this if absolutely necessary.

Unlike the bushfire relief measures, which applied automatically to particular geographic areas, assistance measures for those impacted by COVID-19 will not be automatically implemented.

Anyone impacted by COVID-19 must therefore contact the ATO to request assistance.

Visit their website or call their Emergency Support Infoline on 1800 806 218, to discuss your situation.
Troops and police in Ecuador have collected at least 150 bodies from streets and homes in the country's most populous city Guayaquil amid warnings that as many as 3,500 people could die of the coronavirus in the city and surrounding province in the coming months. A joint military and police task force sent out to gather corpses in the horror-struck port city had collected 150 in just three days, government spokesman Jorge Wated said late Wednesday. Residents had published videos on social media showing abandoned bodies in the streets in the Latin American city worst hit by the pandemic. Some left desperate messages for authorities to take away the corpses of people who had died in their homes. Authorities have not confirmed how many of the dead were victims of the coronavirus. Rosa Romero, 51, lost her husband Bolivar Reyes and had to wait a day for his body to be removed from their home. A week later, amid the chaos of the city's mortuary system, she does not know where it is. "In the forensic bureau they told us that they had taken him to the Guasmo Hospital. We went there to find him but he was not registered anywhere," Romero told AFP. A 15-hour curfew imposed in the city makes further searching difficult. - Government apology - The government's spokesman apologized in a message broadcast on state television late Wednesday. He said mortuary workers had been unable to keep up with the removal of bodies because of the curfew. "We acknowledge any errors and apologize to those who had to wait days for their loved ones to be taken away," Wated said. Mortuary workers in masks and protective clothing were seen carrying plastic-wrapped coffins in the city on Wednesday as authorities tried to cope with the backlog of dead. Work at cemeteries and funeral homes has stalled, with staffers reluctant to handle the dead over contagion fears. Ecuador is the Latin American country worst hit by the virus after Brazil, with more than 3,160 infections and 120 deaths by Thursday morning. Guayaquil has Latin America's highest mortality rate from COVID-19 with 1.35 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants -- higher than the 0.92 per 100,000 registered in Brazil's epicenter Sao Paulo -- according to Esteban Ortiz from Ecuador's University of the Americas. Guayaquil's surrounding province of Guayas has 70 percent of the country's COVID-19 infections. Ecuador's first reported case of COVID-19 was a 71-year-old Ecuadoran woman who arrived in Guayaquil from Spain on February 14. - 'Difficult days ahead' - Wated said the government is preparing for even more difficult days ahead. "The medical experts unfortunately estimate that deaths from COVID in these months will reach between 2,500 and 3,500 -- in the province of Guayas alone, and we are preparing for that," he said. Autopsies have been restricted and the government, which has banned usually crowded funeral services, initially insisted that COVID-19 victims be cremated but was forced to relent after a public backlash. "We are working so that each person can be buried with dignity in one-person spaces," Wated said, referring to a government-run cemetery being made available with capacity for around 2,000 bodies. Last month, the city's mayor Cynthia Viteri sent municipal vehicles to block an Iberia plane sent to repatriate stranded foreigners from landing at the city's international airport. But Viteri was unapologetic as the number of cases spiraled in her city. "I take responsibility for protecting my city," she said. A coffin wrapped in plastic is seen outside a hospital in Guayaquil on April 1 People carry a sick man into a hospital in Guayaquil on April 1 A man helps a sick woman enter a hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador on April 1, 2020 Employees wearing protective gear carry a coffin wrapped in plastic at a cemetery in Guayaquil on April 1
The U.S. has evacuated its citizen who tested positive for COVID-19 in Nigeria and was being treated at the Infectious Disease Centre in Lagos.

Akin Abayomi, the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, provided the information on his Twitter handle on Wednesday.

Mr Abayomi said eight patients out of the 82 confirmed cases in Lagos have been discharged from the isolation facility following their full recovery while an American has been evacuated.

One of the confirmed case who is an American citizen has been evacuated to USA, Mr Abayomi, a professor, who coordinates the Lagos governments COVID-19 response, said.

The U.S. government had earlier said it was preparing evacuation flights for its citizens in Nigeria due to COVID-19.

In a notice released last Friday by the U.S. Consulate tagged Health Alert, U.S. citizens were told to prepare to join the arranged flights that would evacuate them from Nigeria, PUNCH newspaper reported.

U.S. citizens in different states of Nigeria were enjoined to find their way to Abuja and Lagos for the evacuation process.

We will email US citizens immediately once we have flights details, routes, and costs, the notice read.

Mr Abayomi has now confirmed that the U.S. citizen in the Lagos government facility has been evacuated.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / April 1, 2020 / World-Class Extractions Inc. (PUMP.CN) (WCF.F) (OTCQB:WCEXF) (the "Company" or "World-Class"), an innovation-driven company that deploys and manages purpose-built cannabis and hemp extraction and processing centres, is pleased to announce the signing of a definitive investment agreement (the "Investment Agreement"), dated effective March 27, 2020, outlining the terms and conditions with respect to an acquisition (the "Acquisition") of Pineapple Express Delivery Inc., ("Pineapple Express Delivery" or "PED"), an arm's length, privately held, Toronto-based company offering different types of legal delivery services (including same day and next day) to the cannabis sector in Canada. Pineapple Express Delivery's financial results will be reported with World-Class on a consolidated basis.

Pineapple Express Delivery currently has several contracts in place with Licensed Producers ("LP's") for delivery within select provinces in Canada. Pineapple Express Delivery is targeting to become the delivery company of choice for Business-to-Consumer ("B2C") and Business-to-Business ("B2B") companies associated with medical and recreational cannabis, including all provincial organizations which manage cannabis distribution. Pineapple Express Delivery has also partnered with a US organization to assist in establishing joint ventures for distribution in California, Nevada, and Oregon in the near future.

Pineapple Express Delivery is experiencing significant growth in B2B and B2C deliveries having completed 7,916; 8,935; and 22,478 deliveries in January, February and March (estimate) 2020, respectively, resulting in revenues of $131,179, $154,962, $347,897 in January, February and March (estimate) 2020 respectively, against gross margin of -12% (Jan), 12% (Feb) and 25% (March estimate) over the same period. Pineapple Express Delivery's impressive revenue growth is demonstrated by March revenues being 265% of those in January as the company's operations continue to ramp up to satisfy the current demand.

Story continues

Pineapple Express Delivery is in the process of submitting its evidence package to Health Canada to obtain a Sale for Medical Purposes' license for its facility located in the Greater Toronto Area ("GTA"), with a population of 6 million people. This license gives Pineapple Express Delivery the ability to store inventory for other LPs at its licensed facility, by way of supply agreements. This allows Pineapple Express Delivery to leverage its facility in the GTA and offer same day delivery services to the patients of those LPs.

During these unfortunate times, while we live through the COVID-19 pandemic, Pineapple Express Delivery has seen a substantial increase in volume throughout the provinces in which it delivers medical and recreational cannabis. In response to a surge in volume from the recreational market in Ontario, Pineapple Express Delivery is in the process of increasing the number of delivery drivers from 104 currently to 200, in order to better support both patients and recreational consumers to receive their products safely, securely, and in a timely manner. Pineapple Express Delivery, currently one of the premiere, most used delivery services in Ontario, will continue to maintain its high standards of security and compliance for same day and next day parcels, even as it grows to meet each provincial need.

Pineapple Express Delivery benefits from a management team with over 10 years of experience offering same-day delivery services in multiple industries across Canada. Pineapple Express Delivery owns in-house proprietary software which offers a personalized experience for its customers and has established in-depth security and delivery protocols to facilitate same-day delivery of medical and recreational cannabis across Canada. Pineapple Express Delivery has been providing B2C and B2B delivery options to the legal cannabis industry since October 17, 2018 and has provincial offices set up across Canada.

Rosy Mondin, CEO of World-Class, remarked, "World-Class is very excited with its acquisition in Pineapple Express Delivery, a fast-growing cannabis delivery business with an impressive management team. With the unfortunate outbreak of COVID-19 and the cannabis sector deemed an essential' service in Ontario, the need for a legal, proven and reliable solution for cannabis delivery in Canada is evident now more than ever. This investment will allow us to participate in and capture Pineapple Express Delivery's potential growth on our future financial statements. Pineapple Express Delivery's strategic partnerships enable interprovincial deliveries across Canada, providing services for key industry clients and partners which we believe will create additional opportunities for World-Class in the future."

Randy Rolph, CEO and Founder of Pineapple Express Delivery stated, "This acquisition of a controlling interest represents a defining moment for Pineapple Express Delivery. Alongside our long-term supporter Namaste Technologies Inc., we are excited to welcome World-Class who believe in our vision and long-term goals of becoming the go to same day delivery and next day delivery company in Canada and the US. With this being said, World-Class brings a strong leadership team to achieve all these goals and help us grow to our full potential at a quicker rate. We have established ourselves as the clear leader in the B2C market and with World-Class' investment we will now be able to focus 100 percent on the growth of Pineapple Express Delivery and rapidly differentiate ourselves across the market. Our goal is to provide the whole cannabis industry with an exceptional safe, secure and compliant same day and next day service both in the B2C and B2B market."

Terms of the Acquisition

Under the terms of the Acquisition, World-Class purchased a $500,000 secured convertible debenture ("Convertible Debentures") from PED, convertible at the option of World-Class at $0.15 per common share of PED. The Convertible Debentures have a two-year term and bear interest at 12% per annum, compounded monthly in advance. World-Class also purchased 8,333,333 units (the "Units") of PED, at a price of $0.15 per Unit for aggregate gross proceeds of $1,250,000. Each Unit consisting of one common share and one half of one share purchase warrant, with each full warrant exercisable at $0.30 for a period of two years. The 8,333,333 common shares of PED held by World-Class represent approximately 21.55% of the current issued and outstanding share capital of PED, valuing PED at approximately $5.8 million dollars.

As part of the Acquisition, PED utilized a portion of the financing proceeds to purchase 25,000,000 common shares of World-Class at a price of $0.05 per share. These shares are subject to a statutory hold period expiring on August 1, 2020.

World-Class also acquired an option to acquire up to an additional 24,046,182 common shares (the "Option") of PED from existing shareholders, in addition to any additional common shares of PED they acquire during the term of the Option.

The Option is exercisable during a 60-day period, starting two years from the closing of the Acquisition, based on a valuation of PED of one time its annualized revenue during the last quarter of the period. The exercise price per common share of PED is payable in common shares of World-Class, based on the 20-day Volume Weighted Average Price of World-Class' share price prior to the end of the two-year period. World-Class also entered into a voting trust with the optionors, entitling World-Class to vote such shares for a period of two years.

Upon satisfaction of certain other conditions, including the restructuring of certain of PED's debt, World-Class has agreed to purchase an additional $500,000 in Convertible Debentures of PED under the same terms and conditions described above.

Assuming the conversion of the Convertible Debentures and exercise of the Option by World-Class, the Company would hold 39,046,182 common shares of PED representing approximately 86.1% of the then issued and outstanding share capital of PED.

The Convertible Debentures will rank pari-passu with PED's existing secured debt. Subject to certain conditions, the current holder of secured debt of PED has agreed, on the maturity of such debt, to assign the debt to World-Class in exchange for common shares of World-Class based on the 20-day Volume Weighted Average Price of World-Class' share price, calculated on the maturity date of the secured debt.

About World-Class Extractions Inc.

World-Class develops, deploys and manages custom-built extraction centers for licensed cannabis and hemp processors. Utilizing its custom technology and processes, World-Class enables its licensed partners to efficiently produce high-margin cannabis and hemp concentrates and oils. Through its relationships with licensed partners, World-Class also has the ability to offer toll processing of cannabis and hemp to licensed third parties that lack the expertise and equipment required to produce high-quality cannabis and hemp concentrates and end-products. With over half of a decade spent in research and development, the Company allows licensed producers to access the technology required to create value-added products in the expanding concentrate market.

Company Contact

Rosy Mondin, CEO & Director

World-Class Extractions Inc.

rosy@worldclassextractions.com

1-604-473-9569

Investor Contact

Christina Rao & Daniel Mogil

World-Class Investor Relations

1-604-723-7480

ir@worldclassextractions.com

https://worldclassextractions.com

About Pineapple Express Delivery Inc.

The Pineapple Express Delivery management team has over 10 years of experience offering same-day 60-minute delivery services in multiple industries across Canada with a record breaking 40,000 deliveries per month. Pineapple Express Delivery offers a personalized experience for its customers and has established in depth security and delivery protocols to facilitate same-day delivery of medical and recreational cannabis across the country. Pineapple Express Delivery has been providing a same day delivery option to the legal Cannabis Industry from October 17th, 2018 and has provincial offices set up across Canada. For more information regarding Pineapple Express Delivery, please visit www.pineappledeliveryexpress.com.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release, which has been prepared by management of the Company.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

All statements in this press release, other than statements of historical fact, are "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements related to the capture of revenue with operational margins on our income statement, successful deployment of the Company's cannabis and hemp processing centres, the ability of the Company to generate revenue from such processing centres, and the ability of its partners to produce high-margin cannabis products. The Company provides forward-looking statements for the purpose of conveying information about current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. By its nature, this information is subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific and which give rise to the possibility that expectations, forecasts, predictions, projections or conclusions will not prove to be accurate, that assumptions may not be correct and that objectives, strategic goals and priorities will not be achieved. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited those identified and reported in the Company's public filings under the Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by law.



SOURCE: World Class Extractions





View source version on accesswire.com:

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Equity markets fell in Asia on Thursday, tracking a sharp drop on Wall Street as the deadly coronavirus sweeps the planet, with the infection rate fast approaching one million and forcing countries to tighten already strict lockdown measures aimed at containing the disease.

After two weeks of much-needed gains fuelled by trillions of dollars in stimulus and widespread monetary easing, traders' focus has returned to the devastation wrought on populations and the long-term impact of the pandemic.

Donald Trump's COVID-19 task force has warned the US could see almost a quarter of a million deaths and the president warned of a "horrific" couple of weeks ahead.

His sobering comments came as a number of countries said they would extend lockdowns, which have already gouged economies around the world.

Adding to the unease on trading floors was a report saying China had masked the true extent of the virus in the country, which is just coming out of an extended shutdown.

"The incremental news on the virus in the last 24 to 48 hours has been disappointing," John Porter, at Mellon Investments Corp., told Bloomberg TV.

"The global economy has hit a wall, there's a tremendous amount of uncertainty, and that's contributing to the volatility in the markets and the downward trajectory we've seen the last few days."

US and European markets fell around four percent Wednesday, with investors ignoring data showing far fewer private-sector jobs were lost last month than were expected. Eyes are on the release later in the day of US jobless claims figures for last week, which some estimates have put at a mind-boggling 6.5 million.

The selling extended into Asia, with Tokyo ending the morning down 0.8 percent, while Hong Kong dropped 0.5 percent and Sydney shed more than two percent. Shanghai eased 0.1 percent, Singapore fell one percent, while Manila and Wellington were off two percent.

However, Seoul rose 0.6 percent.

"With the global economy in freefall, markets have gone back to risk-off mode... as investors are struggling to look through President Trump's ominous forecast suggesting Americans could keep dying into June," said AxiCorp's Stephen Innes.

"Now the markets dispute to come up with some alphabet letters to analogise a potential economic recovery. Still, it's going to be anything but a 'V'-shape recovery. That's for sure." He added that investors were currently a "bundle of nerves".

Crude enjoyed a small rally on hopes for a US intervention to end Saudi Arabia and Russia's price war, which is compounding the effects of battered demand caused by the coronavirus.

Trump said he had held talks with the leaders, adding: "I think that they will work it out over the next few days." The president will also meet on Friday energy industry executives to discuss the crisis, which is battering the sector, with prices now at near-two decade lows.

ANZ Bank said prices were also being supported by reports that the US energy department might rent space in the country's emergency oil reserves to local producers.

Analysts said, however, that gains are likely to be limited owing to the impact of business shutdowns, the grounding of air travel and other social distancing measures aimed at limiting the outbreak.

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.8 percent at 17,911.07 (break) Hong Kong - Hang Seng: DOWN 0.5 percent at 22,967.80 Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 2,733.02 Brent North Sea crude: UP 4.2 percent at $25.77 per barrel West Texas Intermediate: UP 3.8 percent at $21.08 per barrel Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0943 from $1.0965 at 2130 GMT Dollar/yen: UP at 107.50 yen from 107.13

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2388 from $1.2390 Euro/pound: DOWN at 88.36 pence from 88.48 pence New York - Dow: DOWN 4.4 percent at 20,943.51 (close) London - FTSE 100: DOWN 3.8 percent at 5,454.57 (AFP) RS RS
TAFE Queensland's decision to keep its libraries open has been labelled "foolish" as Australia's lockdown regulations tighten to stop the spread of COVID-19.

"We think it puts students at risk," said Michael Thomas, Together Union's director for industrial services in Queensland.

One of TAFE Queensland facilities in the state.

Mr Thomas said he was surprised the training provider continued to keep its doors open despite libraries and universities closing.

"I can't imagine why they aren't listening to the government but we've certainly been pressing TAFE Queensland that they should be closed in line with what's happening elsewhere across the nation," he said.
Naomi Campbell has insisted the world 'must not come out the same way' after the coronavirus pandemic ends.

The model, 49, is currently in self-isolation and is using it as a time for self-reflection and said many people are currently living 'in fear'.

Speaking to Access Hollywood, she said: 'We can use this time to soul-search and reflect. We can't come out the same way. We must not come out the same way.'

Interview: Naomi Campbell, 49, has insisted the world 'must not come out the same way' after the coronavirus pandemic ends

Naomi described COVID-19 as a 'beast' and said it is something we continue to learn more about each day.

She added: 'We are in fear, of course we're in fear. We have something that we're not clear of it.

'We're learning what this beast is and we have to learn about it like we learn about anything else and right now, it's at the forefront of all our minds.

'We're learning everyday and we have to be grateful to God for the doctors and the nurses and the hotel workers and the delivery people, God bless them.'

Being careful: Naomi has shared her strict adherence to hygiene on social media and has previously posted photos of herself wearing face masks and gloves while travelling

Naomi has shared her strict adherence to hygiene on social media and has previously posted photos of herself wearing face masks and gloves while travelling.

The London native explained she picked up the practice from working in Japan as a model.

She said: 'The way I live my life, wearing a mask, which is what I've been doing for over 17 years, that's just what I've done. I got that from working in Japan, I would say.

Health: Naomi is currently in self-isolation and is using it as a time for self-reflection and said many people are currently living 'in fear'

'We can't live in regret of, we should have done this, we should done that, we are where we are now. We have to do our best to save lives.'

Naomi also spoke about her role as a judge on Amazon Prime reality series Making The Cut.

The show, which is hosted by Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum, features Naomi as a judge, and follows 12 designers competing to become the next global fashion brand.

Of her role on the show, Naomi said: 'I'm a consulting producer and it's more Tim and Heidi [Klum]. It doesn't stop me from being my authentic self, whether the camera is rolling or not, I'm going to explain what I say.'
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Linkedin Marchio Irfan Gorbiano (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 14:13 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f2faa1 1 National Jokowi,mudik,exodus Free

Resisting calls from health experts, President Joko Jokowi Widodo will not ban people from leaving Jakarta, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the country, for Idul Fitri, asking community heads in the regions to quarantine and cater to the needs of the vacationers soon after their arrival.

[The President] underlines that there is no official ban on people from participating in the mudik [exodus] during the 2020 Idul Fitri holiday. The returnees, however, must self-isolate for 14 days and will be given people under observation [ODP] status, as per World Health Organization health protocol, and will be monitored by their respective local administrations, presidential spokesman Fadjroel Rachman said in a statement on Thursday.

Speaking in a teleconferenced Cabinet meeting on Thursday, Jokowi said the government had advised people not to go back to their hometowns for Idul Fitri, a tradition locally known as mudik, and had ordered regional heads to find ways to discourage people from traveling.

The Jakarta administration, he said, had proposed that 3.6 million people in the capital be included in social safety net programs to help them cope with the economic effects of the city's social distancing policies. The President himself said he was open to adjusting the dates of the Idul Fitri public holiday in consideration of people who will not be able to return to their hometowns for the annual exodus.

With people still allowed to participate in the mudik, Jokowi also instructed authorities at the subdistrict and village level to tighten surveillance, saying that local authorities could also use village funds to act as a local social safety net.

I would like to encourage participation at the community level, be it through neighborhood units [RT] or community units [RW] so that travelers who come back from Greater Jakarta can be given ODP status, said Jokowi from Bogor Palace, West Java.

It is unclear how many people are expected to participate in the annual mudik this year. In 2019, as many as 19.5 million people across Indonesia returned to their hometowns during the exodus. In a previous Cabinet meeting on Monday, Jokowi said there had been indication that people, particularly informal workers in Greater Jakarta, had returned to their hometowns earlier than expected this year as economic activities slowed down after Jakarta declared the outbreak an emergency.

The President has insisted that the government will not isolate provinces and cities to fight the COVID-19 outbreak, saying that the central government had chosen large-scale social restrictions as the main strategy to address the pandemic.

The decision was made despite calls from public health experts and regional heads for the government to impose a lockdown for red zone areas, such as Jakarta, to prevent the disease from spreading further across the island of Java.

Topics : Jokowi mudik exodus
The coronavirus pandemic sent global air passenger demand plunging 14 percent in February, marking the steepest decline in traffic since the September 11 attacks in 2001, the global aviation association said Thursday.

"Airlines were hit by a sledgehammer called COVID-19 in February," Alexandre de Juniac, head of the International Air Transport Association, said in a statement, pointing out that global numbers had slumped 14.1 per cent year-on-year in February, while the drop for carriers in the Asia Pacific region was 41 per cent.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Under a power purchase agreement signed today, Antofagasta will be supplied with 100% renewable energy sources.

The contract the Chilean-copper giant signed with Centinela is effective from 2022 until 2033.

"As part of the transaction Centinela will cancel two existing PPAs, that expire in 2026 and 2027, and the Company will sell its indirect 40% interest in the Hornitos thermal power station to ENGIE, resulting in an attributable post-tax write down of approximately $43 million, which will be recognised in Antofagastas half year financial results.

In a news release Antofagastas CEO, Ivan Arriagada, said the contract will lower the company's cost. It will also help the company achieve its target to reduce carbon emissions by 300,000 tonnes by 2022.

In a study released earlier this year, McKinsey noted that mining in Chile is facing potential disruption from climate change. In the country 80% of copper production is already located in extremely high water-stressed and arid areas; by 2040, it will be 100 percent.
'LoveWorks rebukes non-essential status as fears rise for availability of specialist contraception'

LAKE CHARLES, LA / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / Lake Charles based 'LoveWorks' has formally appealed a recent decision which has seen the business face closure, under the Coronavirus influenced Business Closure Act.

Specializing in a wide range of sexual health and marital aid products, the company has formally appealed to State Governor John Bel Edwards, following the company being wrongly categorized as a 'non-essential' business. The decision would see the store close with immediate effect and subsequently remove an important provider of FDA classified medical products, from the local community.

LoveWorks president Joe Wiseman commented: "I understand the knee-jerk reaction to close adult oriented stores as non-essential, however this is a shallow and poorly thought out decision. The reality is that a large portion of our local community rely on us for particular products which cannot be purchased at the likes of Walmart. Many of these relate to specialist contraception such as specific types or sizes, which address medical needs and simply can't be found elsewhere."

"This is a real issue for many, with the FDA officially categorizing condoms as Class 2 medical devices. While there's the obvious humorous banter around needing specific sizes of condoms, the reality for those affected is a real risk of damage to their relationships, their well-being and their mental health."

LoveWorks has also highlighted that a growing number of Obstetrics and Gynaecology doctors in Southwest Louisiana send patients to the store on a daily basis, to purchase specific brands of personal lubricants and other items which can't be purchased at WalMart, CVS, or Walgreen's stores. The closure of the store would have a significant impact on those using these products to manage medical conditions, such as those related to Menopause.

Within a letter sent directly to Governor Edwards, Mr Wiseman also highlighted the peripheral but no less important impacts of the closure order. He continued: "During an unprecedented time of global crisis, much of the world's population is confined to their homes. To remove the wide provision of contraceptives from a community in this position, runs a huge risk of adding to the worryingly anticipated largest baby-boom in a generation. Looking after our communities means more than just avoiding the Coronavirus."

To alleviate concerns around the potential spread of the virus in the event of LoveWorks remaining open, Mr Wiseman has described two options of either remaining open with stringent safety and hygiene measures - including regular sanitizing and cleaning, with strictly limited customer numbers being permitted - or alternatively operating as a 'to-go' business, which would meet the needs of the community while observing the social distancing and restrictive measures in place.

Mr Wiseman concluded: "We take the safety of our staff, our customers and our community very seriously. The options we have proposed are balanced, managed and will reduce the significant damage that closing would have, on the well-being and health of our local community."

About LoveWorks:

Based in Louisiana USA, LoveWorks is a privately-owned company founded in 1991 with headquarters in Lake Charles - one of the fastest growing areas in the United States. LoveWorks sells products designed to improve interpersonal relationships and supplies the local community with a wide range of specialist class 2 medical devices.

Media Contact:

Contact: Joe Wiseman

Email: mjw@loveworks.com

Telephone: +1 337-478-3566

Full Text Of Appeal: https://loveworks.com/letter-to-governor-john-bel-edwards

SOURCE: Best Management Co

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/583695/LoveWorks-Seeks-Business-Act-Exemption-In-A-Bid-To-Continue-Providing-FDA-Listed-Medical-Devices-To-Louisiana
In the weeks before Italy joined Chinas Belt and Road Initiative last year, top foreign ministry officials in Rome made a flurry of calls to US and European ambassadors, trying to persuade them there was nothing to fear from the relationship with Beijing.

The coronavirus pandemic has only reinforced the drive for close ties between Italy and China, even as Italy makes European solidarity a top priority, according to Manlio Di Stefano, Italian undersecretary of foreign affairs.

We want to be as close as possible [with China], but we know very well where we are: we are in Europe, Di Stefano told the South China Morning Post on Tuesday.

Everybody knows that Italy is very proud to be one of the EUs founders. We have never looked at the geopolitical strategy we have [with China] as some alternative to the European Union. We believe that multilateralism is fundamental. Thats why we always kept very thorough dialogue with China, and we want to keep on doing that.

Manlio Di Stefano, Italian undersecretary of foreign affairs, is seen in 2018. Photo: C3c3dj, CC by SA 4.0

Italy has the highest death toll in the world from the pandemic - more than 105,000 people in the country have contracted the virus, and more than 12,000 have died.

Its northern regions  the financial centre and manufacturing heartland of the euro zones third-largest economy  have been particularly hard hit and economists are forecasting a deep recession.

Climbing out of that recession did not mean choosing between Beijing and Brussels, Di Stefano said.

The crisis will be so deep when the situation would be restarted, everyone  every country  will need [more] effort, Di Stefano said.

China will have the same kind of need at the end. The European crisis, the Western crisis will obviously have an impact on the Chinese economy because the Chinese market is the Western market. We have to find a common approach to restart our economies.

Concerns are growing in the European Union that Chinas widely publicised efforts to help struggling countries like Italy might be seen as weakness in the bloc.

Story continues

China has sent face masks and test kits for the virus to a number of European countries, including Italy.

But last week, the European Commission, the EUs executive arm, said France and Germany combined have donated to Italy more masks than China.

The message was directed, in part, at Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio.

Defending his controversial decision to make Italy the first major Western power to join Chinas belt and road economic programme when he was deputy prime minister last year, Di Maio, from the populist Five Star Movement, said the medical supplies proved the need for a closer relationship with China.

Those who scoffed at our participation in the Belt and Road Initiative now have to admit that investing in that friendship allowed us to save lives in Italy, Di Maio said in an Italian television interview, prompting criticism from members of the Democratic Party, with which the Five Star Movement has formed a fragile coalition government.

Di Stefano, who is also from the Five Star Movement, echoed the ministers view.

All the other Western countries were saying we cannot believe in [the] level playing field that China was granting to us, and we say we want to pay this political price, but we want to see the result at the end, he said.

With the number of patients with Covid-19  the disease caused by the coronavirus  as well as infections dropping in Italy, so too was the demand for new medical products.

We thank China for [the supplies]. The doctors who came to Italy to help were also very helpful. I dont think we are looking  at this moment to fulfil some more needs, because luckily the numbers are decreasing in Italy now, Di Stefano said.

Apart from China and the EU, the US also pledged to Italy US$100 million worth of what US President Donald Trump referred to as medical things.

Asked about Italys ability to be on good terms with both the US and China, Di Stefano said it was by behaviour.

We are very famous for cooperation, not for wars. We are very famous for art and music, not for colonialism  I know this could create some smiles, he said, without referring to former colonies such as Libya and Ethiopia.

But Di Stefano refused to be drawn on a complaint from a prominent Italian scientist that Chinese propaganda outlets had twisted his comments to suggest the coronavirus originated in Italy, rather than China, where the first cases of the coronavirus were reported.

Giuseppe Remuzzi, director of the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research in Milan, said last month that a strange pneumonia was circulating in northern Italy as long ago as November.

The first reported coronavirus cases in China were in December, and Chinese media seized on Remuzzis comments, highlighting the November reference.

Remuzzi described the Chinese reports as propaganda, adding that of course the virus emerged in the central Chinese city of Wuhan. He said his key point was not where the virus came from, but how far it had spread before it was discovered.

Asked about the complaint, Di Stefano said: I have my own opinion, but at this moment, talking about the responsibilities makes no sense. We talk about the solution. Then everyone will look for the responsibility when it will be the time.

But, anyway, it was stated very well by lots of experts that the virus came from wild animals, he said, agreeing that it was not part of the Italian culinary tradition to consume such wildlife.

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PR-Inside.com: 2020-04-02 23:07:03

New clinical trial to evaluate Jakavi  (ruxolitinib) in patients with COVID-19 associated cytokine storm



(ruxolitinib) in patients with COVID-19 associated cytokine storm Cytokine storm is a type of severe immune overreaction that can result from coronavirus infection and may contribute to respiratory compromise in patients with COVID-19 1-3





Pre-clinical and preliminary clinical evidence suggests Jakavi, a well-established JAK inhibitor, could reduce the number of patients requiring intensive care and mechanical ventilation





Novartis to establish compassionate use program for COVID-19 patient access and undertake steps to ensure uninterrupted supply of Jakavi for currently licensed indications

Basel, April 2, 2020  Novartis today announced plans to initiate a Phase III clinical trial in collaboration with Incyte to evaluate the use of Jakavi (ruxolitinib) for treatment of a type of severe immune overreaction called cytokine storm that can lead to life-threatening respiratory complications in patients with COVID-191-3.

The decision is based on pre-clinical evidence and preliminary reports from independent studies, and is supported by extensive data on the safety and efficacy of Jakavi in conditions like acute graft versus host disease and myeloproliferative neoplasms. The proposed trial will assess Jakavi in combination with standard of care (SoC) therapy, compared to SoC therapy alone, in patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia as a result of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Novartis is taking a number of steps to address the urgent needs arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, including the evaluation of our existing therapies to assess if any can be utilized beyond their approved indications, said John Tsai, Head Global Drug Development and Chief Medical Officer, Novartis. The potential that Jakavi could lead to faster recovery times for COVID-19 patients with fewer requiring intensive care and mechanical ventilation is encouraging and absolutely merits further investigation. We now are moving rapidly to finalize the study plan and then to enroll eligible patients, as well as put in place a process to provide access for patients unable to participate in the trial.

Given the rapid spread of the pandemic, and as plans for the study are finalized, Novartis also has set up an international compassionate use program for eligible patients, subject to local regulations. In addition, we are taking steps to manage the anticipated increase in COVID-19 related requests for Jakavi without interrupting access for patients taking the drug for its licensed indications. In the US, ruxolitinib access requests are coordinated by Incyte.

Novartis commitment and response to COVID-19

Novartis is deeply dedicated to the global effort to combat COVID-19 and doing our part to support the stability of global healthcare systems. We announced a broad set of measures including the creation of a global fund of USD 20 million to support communities around the world impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Novartis also has committed 130 million doses of hydroxychloroquine to support pandemic response. In addition, Novartis joined two key cross-industry research initiatives, the COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator, coordinated by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Wellcome, and Mastercard, as well as a COVID-19 directed partnership organized by the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI). Novartis is separately supporting COVID-19 related clinical investigations of several Novartis medicines. To support access, the Novartis generics and biosimilars division Sandoz became the first company to commit to keeping stable prices for a basket of essential medicines that may help in the treatment of COVID-19. More information about the Novartis response to COVID-19 is available on Novartis.com/coronavirus.

About Jakavi (ruxolitinib)

Jakavi (ruxolitinib) is an oral inhibitor of the JAK 1 and JAK 2 tyrosine kinases. Jakavi is approved by the European Commission for the treatment of adult patients with polycythemia vera (PV) who are resistant to or intolerant of hydroxyurea and for the treatment of disease-related splenomegaly or symptoms in adult patients with primary myelofibrosis (MF) (also known as chronic idiopathic MF), post-polycythemia vera MF or post-essential thrombocythemia MF. Jakavi is approved in 101 countries for patients with MF, including EU countries, Switzerland, Canada, Japan and in more than 75 countries for patients with PV, including EU countries, Switzerland, Japan and Canada. The exact indication for Jakavi varies by country. Additional worldwide regulatory filings are underway in MF and PV.

Novartis licensed ruxolitinib from Incyte Corporation for development and commercialization in selected indications outside the United States. Ruxolitinib is marketed in the United States by Incyte Corporation as Jakafi for patients with PV who have had an inadequate response to or are intolerant of hydroxyurea, for patients with intermediate or high-risk MF, and steroid-refractory acute GvHD in adult and pediatric patients 12 years and older4.

The recommended starting dose of Jakavi in PV is 10 mg given orally twice daily. The recommended starting dose of Jakavi in MF is 15 mg given orally twice daily for patients with a platelet count between 100,000 cubic millimeters (mm) and 200,000 mm, and 20 mg twice daily for patients with a platelet count of >200,000 mm. Doses may be titrated based on safety and efficacy. There is limited information to recommend a starting dose for MF and PV patients with platelet counts between 50,000/mm and <100,000/mm. The maximum recommended starting dose in these patients is 5 mg twice daily, and patients should be titrated cautiously4.

Jakavi is a registered trademark of Novartis AG in countries outside the United States. Jakafi is a registered trademark of Incyte Corporation. The safety and efficacy profile of Jakavi has not yet been established outside of its approved indications.

Jakavi Important Safety Information for Treatment of Myelofibrosis (MF) and Polycythemia Vera (PV)

Jakavi can cause serious side effects, including a decrease in blood cell count and infections. Complete blood count monitoring is recommended. Dose reduction or interruption may be required in patients with any hepatic impairment or severe renal impairment or in patients developing hematologic adverse reactions such as thrombocytopenia, anemia and neutropenia. Dose reductions are also recommended when Jakavi is co-administered with strong CYP3A4 inhibitors or fluconazole. Use of Jakavi during pregnancy is not recommended, and women should avoid becoming pregnant during Jakavi therapy. Women taking Jakavi should not breast feed. Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) has been reported. Physicians should be alert for neuropsychiatric symptoms suggestive of PML. Hepatitis B viral load (HBV-DNA titer) increases have been reported in patients with chronic HBV infections. Patients with chronic HBV infection should be treated and monitored according to clinical guidelines. Non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) has been reported in Jakavi treated patients. Periodic skin examination is recommended. Very common adverse reactions in MF (>10%) include urinary tract infections, anemia, thrombocytopenia, neutropenia, hypercholesterolemia, dizziness, headache, alanine aminotransferase increased, aspartate aminotransferase increased, bruising and weight gain. Common adverse reactions in MF (1 to 10%) include herpes zoster and flatulence. Uncommon adverse reactions in MF include tuberculosis. Very common adverse reactions in PV (>10%) include anemia, thrombocytopenia, hypercholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, dizziness, alanine aminotransferase increased and aspartate aminotransferase increased. Common adverse reactions in PV (1 to 10%) include urinary tract infections, herpes zoster, weight gain, constipation and hypertension.

Please see full Prescribing Information available at www.jakavi.com.

Disclaimer

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements can generally be identified by words such as potential, can, will, plan, may, could, would, expect, anticipate, seek, look forward, believe, committed, suggests,pipeline, launch, or similar terms, or by express or implied discussions regarding potential marketing approvals, new indications or labeling for Jakavi, regarding potential future revenues from such products, regarding our plans to initiate a clinical trial to evaluate the use of Jakavi in severe COVID-19 patients, or regarding the international compassionate use program for eligible patients. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on our current beliefs and expectations regarding future events, and are subject to significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. There can be no guarantee that Jakavi will be submitted or approved for sale or for any additional indications or labeling in any market, or at any particular time. Neither can there be any guarantee that we will initiate the planned clinical trial in the expected time frame, or at all. Nor can there be any guarantee that Jakavi will meet the primary or any secondary endpoints of the planned trial. Neither can there be any guarantee that Jakavi will be commercially successful in the future. In particular, our expectations regarding such products and the international compassionate use program could be affected by, among other things, the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including clinical trial results and additional analysis of existing clinical data; regulatory actions or delays or government regulation generally; global trends toward health care cost containment, including government, payor and general public pricing and reimbursement pressures and requirements for increased pricing transparency; our ability to obtain or maintain proprietary intellectual property protection; the particular prescribing preferences of physicians and patients; general political, economic and business conditions, including the effects of and efforts to mitigate pandemic diseases such as COVID-19; safety, quality, data integrity or manufacturing issues; potential or actual data security and data privacy breaches, or disruptions of our information technology systems, and other risks and factors referred to in Novartis AGs current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Novartis is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

About Novartis

Novartis is reimagining medicine to improve and extend peoples lives. As a leading global medicines company, we use innovative science and digital technologies to create transformative treatments in areas of great medical need. In our quest to find new medicines, we consistently rank among the worlds top companies investing in research and development. Novartis products reach nearly 800 million people globally and we are finding innovative ways to expand access to our latest treatments. About 109,000 people of more than 145 nationalities work at Novartis around the world. Find out more at https://www.novartis.com.

Novartis is on Twitter. Sign up to follow @Novartis at https://twitter.com/novartisnews

For Novartis multimedia content, please visit https://www.novartis.com/news/media-library

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References

1. NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms: cytokine release syndrome. National Cancer Institute, www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/cytokine-release-syndrome. Accessed 28 March, 2020.

2. Mehta, Puja, et al. COVID-19: Consider Cytokine Storm Syndromes and Immunosuppression. The Lancet, vol. 395, no. 10229, 28 Mar. 2020, pp. 10331034., doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(20)30628-0.

3. Shimabukuro-Vornhagen, Alexander, et al. Cytokine Release Syndrome. Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer, vol. 6, no. 56, 15 June 2018, doi:10.1186/s40425-018-0343-9.

4. Jakavi (ruxolitinib) tablets: EU Summary of Product Characteristics. Novartis; Mar 2015.

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E-mail: media.relations@novartis.com

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To address the coronavirus pandemic, many colleges and universities have closed their doors and moved classes online  a shift that students, professors, administrators and public health officials agree will play an important role in limiting the virus' transmission. In the United States, at least 1,149 colleges and universities have closed so far, affecting over 14 million students. And students who were preparing to graduate this spring are feeling a range of emotions as their college careers come to an abrupt end. CNBC Make It spoke with college seniors to learn how coronavirus has disrupted their final months before graduation and how the class of 2020 became known as the class of COVID-19.

Rushed goodbyes

On March 10, Harvard University announced that classes would be moved online and gave students five days to evacuate their dorms. Trey Rogers, a member of Harvard's senior class, says he is "devastated" that his college career was cut short, even though he understands the need for such public health measures. "It's a lot of goodbyes," Rogers says. "But it's hard to pack in two months, three months of goodbyes into a couple of days when there's so much confusion." "It sucks a lot," Robin Fierberg, a senior at Stanford University, tells CNBC Make It. "I had to say goodbye to a lot of my friends much quicker than I thought I would have to, and under much different circumstances. It's unclear whether there will be a commencement ceremony."

Emotions run high at the Olin College of Engineering "Fauxmencement" for senior students on March 12, 2020, two months early, held because of coronavirus fears in Needham, MA. John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

Canceled commencement ceremonies

Indeed, many college seniors expect there will be no commencement ceremony to commemorate their collegiate accomplishments. "If [graduation] happens  if it's able to be put on  everyone still won't be there," says Michael Robertson, a senior at Davidson College, referencing the financial realities and public health barriers that would likely prevent some students and their families back from traveling back to campus just for a ceremony. "It's hard to imagine my 92-year-old grandmother traveling to graduation under the current circumstances." The likelihood that graduation ceremonies will be canceled strikes a harsh chord for students who have spent their lives working toward their college degrees. "The fact that we might not even have a graduation is probably the biggest thing for me because I worked so hard these last four years," Jordyn Jamal, a senior at the College of Saint Rose tells CNBC Make It. "And the fact that I can't share that moment with my family, my friends, myself  it's just devastating. "It would honestly break my heart if the school just mailed us our diploma and just said, 'OK, have a great life,'" she says. Some students took the issue into their own hands and held their own "fauxmencement ceremonies" before their campuses closed. At Wellesley College, students coordinated their own unofficial graduation in which no administrators spoke, no diplomas were distributed and students said their own names into a microphone. Students at Olin College used garbage bags as graduation gowns and made tassels out of yarn during an impromptu ceremony of their own.

Professional plans in jeopardy

The college seniors CNBC Make It spoke with are particularly concerned about their professional lives after college and are bracing themselves to enter the workforce during a recession. Cheryn Shin, a senior at Wellesley majoring in English and creative writing, says she's spent the past few months looking for a full-time job to start after graduation. But because of the pandemic, her job search has become even harder. "It feels like even fewer companies are looking to hire," she says. "I was told that [majoring in] the humanities was all about luck and timing, so it felt like a slap in the face because it feels like I have neither of those." Fierberg, the Stanford senior, says that the situation has been stressful both for students who do and don't have job offers for after graduation. "I don't have a job or anything lined up as of right now," he says. "I know a lot of people who do have jobs lined up in the fall, and I think for them it's reassuring to know that they have something, but I think that's also scary because the economy is tanking." Davidson senior Robertson had firm plans for after graduation but is now unsure how they will play out. "I was supposed to work at a camp in the summer. They're saying that's going to continue, but I'm skeptical. And I was supposed to travel abroad to Kyrgyzstan in August to teach. I really don't know how that's going to play out in terms of the pace of the virus. So professionally, it throws me through a loop," says Robertson. "I know that's a concern of a lot of working Americans, and I'm sort of in that liminal stage where I'm a student right now, but very soon I'm not going to be. "I was planning on being financially independent from my parents, that's totally up in the air now as well." Robertson's back-up plan is to apply for remote coding jobs. "I think I am in a better position than some because I have coding experience and a lot of the work that I would envision myself doing could be done from home," he says.

A sense of camaraderie
When the sun came up Wednesday morning, CNN anchor Chris Cuomo was already awake. But as Cuomo tells it, his early rising wasn't by choice.

"I was up all night," he said during Wednesday's edition of "Cuomo Prime Time," broadcast live from his basement where he is now self-quarantining after announcing one day earlier that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

CORONAVIRUS CELEBS: Celebrities whove tested positive for COVID-19

The cause of Cuomo's insomnia?

"This virus came at me, I've never seen anything like it," Cuomo said, telling viewers that he was racked with a fever of around 103 degrees "that wouldn't quit."

"It was like somebody was beating me like a pinata," he continued. "I was shivering so much . . . I chipped my tooth."

Then, there were the fever-induced hallucinations.

"My dad was talking to me," a wide-eyed Cuomo said, referring to his late father, former New York governor and revered Democratic Party figure Mario Cuomo, who died in January 2015. "I was seeing people from college, people I haven't seen in forever. It was freaky what I lived through last night, and it may happen again tonight."

For the second night in a row, Cuomo, 49, who has repeatedly said that he refuses to be sidelined by the virus, merged his personal experience with news coverage of the global pandemic in an effort to drive home the seriousness of the outbreak. During Wednesday's show, the anchor provided viewers with a firsthand account of what coronavirus symptoms may feel like, while also interviewing guests such as CNN chief medical correspondent Sanjay Gupta, New Jersey Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy and the loved ones of a New Jersey emergency room doctor who recently died after treating covid-19 patients.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?: A timeline of the coronavirus pandemic

Cuomo isn't the first TV personality to soldier on through a serious diagnosis nor is he alone in allowing the public to be privy to details of his sensitive situation. But his decision to chronicle the misery of being afflicted with a potentially deadly disease, describing his symptoms live and in real time, appears to be an unprecedented move among network anchors.

Sitting in his basement dressed casually in a dark-colored pullover and T-shirt, Cuomo kicked off his broadcast with an update on his condition.

"Anybody who's ever seen me spar will tell you my first round is never my best and this has proven no different with coronavirus," he said. "I've never experienced any kind of fever like what I have going on all the time and the body aches and the tremors and the concern about not being able to do anything about it. I totally get why so many are so scared all over this country."

Though he reported feeling "way worse" Wednesday, Cuomo had a spot of good news to share with his audience.

"My biggest fear was passing this on to Cristina and the kids," he said, referring to his wife of 19 years. "They're negative and that is the best thing I ever could've heard."

Cuomo, who previously acknowledged that his battle with covid-19 pales in comparison to what many others may be facing, then attempted to shift the show's focus to the national conversation surrounding the virus by bringing on Gupta. But before launching into a discussion about "stay at home" orders, Gupta made sure to check in with his colleague and friend.

"I'm happy to see you," Gupta said. "We spoke last night after the show. You had these rigors, I'm just going to say it, so bad that I think you chipped a tooth. This was significant for you.

"I know you're a warrior, but you're allowed to take a day off," the doctor added.

FURLOUGHS: These companies have furloughed or laid off Houston and Texas workers due to virus

Gupta wasn't the only person worried about Cuomo on Wednesday. At a news conference earlier in the day, the anchor's older brother, New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, told reporters that he was "frightened" by the situation.

"We're talking about my little brother," the governor said. "This is my best friend. I talk to him several times a day. . . . It's frightening because there's nothing I can do and I'm out of control."

The elder Cuomo pointed to his brother as an example of how "anyone can get this disease," praising the anchor's "gutsy, courageous" decision to stay on air.

"Show the country what it means to have coronavirus and that information, that experience, can be helpful to people, that's why he did the show last night," the governor said. "Kudos to him. My pop would be proud. I love you little brother."

On Wednesday, Chris Cuomo detailed his experience with coronavirus so far, giving people a glimpse into what he called "a spooky time."

In-person interactions, Cuomo said, have been limited to tray exchanges at the top of the basement stairs with his wife, who is outfitted in a mask and gloves. When fellow CNN anchor Don Lemon came by for a visit, Cuomo recalled his colleague "looking at me like I'm in a zoo from behind a glass door."

But none of that compared to what he went through Tuesday night, Cuomo said.

STAY POSITIVE: 15 pieces of good news to come out coronavirus pandemic

"I've had a lot of weird experiences in my life with health and everything else," he said. "I've never had anything like what haunted me last night with this virus."

Gesturing emphatically, Cuomo recounted his sleepless night, noting that doctors anticipate he may experience similarly harrowing episodes anywhere between five to eight more times as he continues to fight off the virus.

"I get it now," he said. "If you match that with chest constriction and people can't breathe, I totally get why we're losing so many people and why our hospitals are so crowded."

As he signed off for the night, Cuomo delivered a pointed message.

"Care enough not just to stay home, but to stay on our leaders to make sure that they're doing everything they can to limit this," he said. "I'm telling you, this is the part of our lives we will live through and remember the most. How do you want to be remembered during this time?"
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Two Staten Island healthcare centers will receive over $100,000 in coronavirus supplemental federal funding, it was announced by U.S. Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand.

Beacon Christian Community Health Center will receive $54,388 and Community Health Center of Richmond will receive $61,928 out of nearly $3 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that will go to New York and Long Island.

The monies will be used to support the healthcare centers as they continue to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and serve the community.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

New York is seeing more confirmed cases and more deaths each day, and our health workers are on the frontlines of the fight to treat the growing number of coronavirus patients in our hospitals. I have fought tooth and nail to get New Yorks health workers the federal funding they need to beat back this pandemic, and I will do whatever it takes in the coming weeks to keep the support flowing, Schumer said.

Gillibrand said: This federal and state funding will help provide health centers with the resources needed to treat patients and save lives. I will continue fighting in the Senate for the resources our health care workers need during this pandemic.

Thirty-four additional New York City healthcare facilities also received funding, including New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, which received $237,073.

***

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The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of AIIMS wrote to Home Minister Amit Shah complaining about an assault on a doctor treating COVID-19 patient at Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad and sought stern action against the perpetrators.

The RDA further endorsed the demands made by Telangana Junior Doctors Association (T-JUDA) which include - filing a case against the perpetrators of violence, CRPF deployment to ensure doctors are able to safely work, provision of PPE to all health care providers and assurance from Home Minister and Chief Minister on this issue.

The Director of Public Health and Family Welfare of the government of Telangana also condemned the brutal behaviour of the patient attendants at Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad against a Post Graduate Resident doctor.

The Director assured that strict action would be taken against the miscreants.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The normal rules of supply and demand dont apply during a pandemic.

Thats why, on March 24 and 25, the Oregon Department of Justice sent cease-and-desist letters to the proprietors of the Portland 7-Eleven stores at 4715 N.E. Columbia Blvd. and 9145 S.W. Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy., respectively, informing them that the state believed the stores were charging unconscionably excessive prices for face masks.

On Wednesday, more letters went out to Portland businesses: Best Buy Foods at 14420 S.E. Stark St., Moscow Nights Euro Food Market at 13507 S.E. Division St., All Service Moving at 66 S.E. Morrison St.

The letters were a response to consumer complaints to the DOJs consumer-protection division.

When we initiated our price-gouging hotline, we did not know what to expect, Oregon Attorney General Ellen F. Rosenblum told The Oregonian/OregonLive. We have now been taking calls for a little over two weeks -- and have we ever been busy! Complaints have come in from all over the state, with lots from the Portland metro area.

The most-frequent complaints, not surprisingly, have been about items that are necessary during a public-health crisis that includes a state-of-emergency stay-at-home order: face masks, toilet paper, disinfectant wipes, hand sanitizer, bottled water.

Gov. Kate Brown, as part of her response to the coronavirus outbreak in the state, declared an abnormal disruption of the market on March 16. That means the price of essential goods -- such as food, medicine and cleaning supplies -- cannot be increased by more than 15% during the emergency.

Kristina Edmunson, DOJs communications director, said that when the department believes there is a basis for price gouging it contacts the business. Usually, a business will correct the behavior. But, if they do not, we will follow up with a cease-and-desist letter.

The department has sent out 17 letters at this point, with a little less than half of them going to businesses in the Portland area.

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum. Dave Killen / staffDave Killen

So far, more than 125 official price-gouging complaints have come into DOJ through its hotline and online form. They cite a large variety of items, including meat, bread, eggs, rice, coffee creamer, ramen, marijuana, bleach, paper towels, detergent, thermometers -- and even TVs, hotel rooms, video-conferencing services and guns.

Raul Torres, a truck driver for a national grocery chain, said he was pumping his own gas this week at a station in Woodburn when he realized he was being charged $3.98-a-gallon for regular unleaded. He immediately stopped the pump. He looked up and saw that the stations overhead sign didnt have prices on it, just blank spaces.

Thats just ridiculous, he told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

The average price of a gallon of gas in Oregon right now is $2.68, according to AAA.

Torres said he called the DOJs consumer-protection hotline and reported the station.

Woodburn, for whatever reason, just might be a hot spot for high prices right now.

The Oregonian/OregonLive has received photos from stunned customers at the Mega Foods store there showing prices that appear to be significantly higher than the norm, such as a large bag of black beans going for $79.99. DOJ received a complaint about Mega Foods on March 26.

Almost all of the recipients of the cease-and-desist letters so far are small-business owners and convenience-store franchisees. The Oregonian/OregonLive contacted half-a-dozen of the businesses about their pricing and found them unwilling to talk about it.

The manager at the 7-Eleven on Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway, who refused to give his name, insisted the store had not sold face masks for a while. He added: I dont know why they would make a complaint. We dont sell surgical masks. (Calls to 7-Elevens corporate offices were not returned.) The person who answered the phone at the Moscow Nights food mart insisted, in a heavy accent, that no one there spoke English.

But complaints that have come into the Oregon hotline also have pointed the finger at some of the biggest retailers in the country, including Amazon, Facebook, eBay, Costco and Walmart.

So what happens if the Department of Justice sends out a cease-and-desist letter and later finds that excessive pricing has continued?

It would really depend on the particular facts, but we are monitoring each situation closely, Edmunson said.

Ultimately, the penalty could be up to $25,000 per violation, along with the reimbursement of customers.

The bottom line is this, added Attorney General Rosenblum. When it comes to basic essentials at this time, no one should be allowed to profit off this pandemic. Period.

UPDATE: 7-Eleven responded to The Oregonian/OregonLive after this article was published. The company stated in an email: 7-Eleven is committed to providing quality products at fair, honest prices. Any violations of federal, state and local price-gouging laws will not be tolerated. We are taking steps to resolve any issues brought to our attention as 7-Eleven prohibits these practices.

-- Douglas Perry

@douglasmperry

Subscribe to Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.
Coronavirus: Greece seals off refugee camp near Athens (2)

(ANSAMed) - ATHENS, 2 APR - Under the quarantine rules, which was ordered by the Minister of Migration Policy Notis Mitarakis in cooperation with the Deputy Minister of Civil Protection, Nikos Chardalias, nobody will be allowed in or out of the camp for 14 days.



The decision has come after a woman who was staying at the camp where 2,500 people are housed, was found earlier this week to be infected with the highly contagious novel coronavirus (Covid-19) at a hospital in Athens after giving birth.



Tests were carried out on 63 other residents of the Ritsona structure in northwest Athens, and it was from those tests that 20 of which came back positive.



What's more, none of the 20 asylum seekers who tested positive showed any prominent symptoms of the virus, according to local media reports. Tests will continue on more of the camp's 2,500 residents over the coming days.



Tests have already also been carried out on all of the staff working at the site, none of which have come back positive.



Medical NGOs and human rights groups, as well as local residents, have been heavily critical of the Greek government's approach on the way it is handling the refugee issue since the start of the global pandemic.



Kyriakos Mitsotakis' New Democracy government have been accused of trying to use a "herd immunity" policy in quarantining migrants and refugees on the camps on the North East Aegean islands following the Covid-19 outbreak.



Migrant camps on Lesvos, Chios and Samos are already desperately overcrowded, with new "closed" centers planned by the government to be built on each of those locations still not completed.



And with Greece on lockdown following the outbreak, the situation for thousands of people living in poor living conditions has become even more difficult with many people living on the outskirts of camps without basic sanitation. Media observers and local communities on the islands have criticized the government's handling of the situation in what they see as a perceived lack of care for migrants while also putting the local communities in danger.



(ANSAMed).




The United States has criticised a Pakistani court's overturning of a death sentence handed down over the gruesome killing of American journalist Daniel Pearl, calling the decision an "affront."



"The overturning of the convictions for Daniel Pearl's murder is an affront to victims of terrorism everywhere," said Alice Wells, the top US diplomat for South Asia.

She welcomed indications that Pakistani prosecutors would appeal the decision on British-born militant Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh.

"Those responsible for Daniel's heinous kidnapping and murder must face the full measure of justice," Wells wrote on Twitter.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
McMaster University researchers have helped to create guidelines for health-care workers treating patients with COVID-19 in an intensive-care unit.

Meanwhile, a study that would see a potential treatment tested in Hamilton is on track to start in 10 days.

In both cases, a process that would normally take at least a year has been condensed into a matter of weeks.

Given the urgency and the huge need for these guidelines, we assembled the team, searched the literature, summarized the evidence, and formulated recommendations within 18 days, said first author Dr. Waleed Alhazzani, assistant professor of medicine at McMaster and an intensive-care physician at St. Josephs Healthcare.

Alhazzani was part of an international panel of 36 experts, including six from McMaster, to come up with the guidelines published in the journals Critical Care Medicine and Intensive Care Medicine using no outside funding.

Previously there was limited guidance on acute management of critically ill patients with COVID-19, said Alhazzani.

The Surviving Sepsis Campaign COVID-19 panel came up with 54 recommendations looking at everything from infection control to diagnosis to laboratory specimens to blood flow support to ventilation.

The guidelines will be used by front-line health-care workers as well as policymakers and include evidence-based advice on personal protective equipment.

Meanwhile, a randomized clinical trial that brings together a group of some of Hamiltons top researchers is currently being reviewed by Health Canada and the ethics board.

The study would recruit at least 1,000 COVID-19 patients in the community and 500 at hospitals including Hamilton General, Juravinski and St. Josephs. Half would get the supportive therapy currently used because there is no treatment for the virus. The other half would get combination of two drugs  the antibiotic azithromycin and a malaria medication called chloroquine. A similar drug called hydroxychloroquine can also be used.

Led and funded by the Population Health Research Institute affiliated with McMaster and Hamilton Health Sciences, it will include researchers from eight other countries.
Former Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins gave birth to her first child, Frankie Violet, in October 2019.

And the proud new mother, 36, has shared an incredible update regarding her daughter's speech development.

In an interview with Marie Claire, Jennifer revealed that her five-month-old infant had already begun talking.

Former Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins (pictured) has revealed her baby daughter Frankie Violet has already begun talking at FIVE MONTHS - and reveals the little girl's first word

The Australian supermodel told the publication: 'The other day I ducked out for an hour and when I came back Frankie was going "Mum, Mum, Mum, Mum". It was the best sound I've ever heard in my entire life. I got so teary it was amazing.'

She added: 'You can't plan with babies, and every day is different.'

'It was the best sound I've ever heard in my entire life. I got so teary it was amazing': Jennifer said her bundle of joy (pictured at two months) has been saying the word 'Mum' to her

Although individual children develop at their own rate, generally children aged four-to-six months can only sigh, grunt, gurgle, squeal, laugh and make crying sounds.

According to Pregnancybirthbaby.org.au, an Australian government website linked to HealthDirect, a baby's first words are often recorded between nine-and-12 months old.

Jennifer shares daughter Frankie with her husband-of-seven-years, Jake Wall.

Lucky for Jennifer and Jake, early speech development in infants is often believed to be a sign that a child will be gifted and intelligent.

Tough: The former Miss Universe suffered a miscarriage in 2018 and said she 'almost broke' at the thought she may never be able to have children with husband Jake Wall (right)

The genetically-blessed duo first met prior to Jen being crowned Miss Universe in 2014 and dated for eight years before saying 'I do' in a lavish Bali ceremony in 2013.

The couple suffered a heartbreaking miscarriage in 2018, before falling pregnant again with Frankie in 2019.

Their pregnancy announcement was made on Instagram at the time with a picture of Jake cradling Jennifer's growing bump.
Boris Johnson is still showing signs of coronavirus, Downing Street has said, as it confirmed the UK government is working with nine potential suppliers over a new Covid-19 antibody test.

The British Prime Ministers seven days of self-isolation end on Friday but it is unclear whether he plans to leave the Downing Street flat where he has been staying.

It comes as 2,921 people were confirmed to have died in hospital after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Wednesday.

This is up by 569 from 2,352 the day before and is the biggest day-on-day increase so far, just above the 563 reported the day before.

Mr Johnsons official spokesman told a Westminster briefing: The Prime Minister continues to have mild symptoms, but he does still have symptoms.

Asked if he would be leaving self-isolation on Friday, the spokesman said: Were following the guidelines from Public Health England (PHE) and from the chief medical officer which state that you need to self-isolate for a period of seven days, so no change in that.

Number 10 said work was ongoing with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test which would show whether people have had the virus.

(PA Graphics)

Such a test would enable people to get back to work quickly and some experts say this type of testing is the quickest way out of the current lockdown.

Mr Johnsons spokesman said: We are working as quickly as we can on that and as soon as a test is approved then we will announce it publicly.

He said the UK government had previously been offered tests that had not met the required levels of accuracy and therefore would not have been safe to use.

It was also suggested that immunity certificates to identify people who have had coronavirus are being considered by the government.

Mr Johnsons spokesman said: This is something which has been discussed in other countries.

We have always said that we are watching closely what other countries are doing and we will always look to learn from ideas which could be helpful.
Save The Children has described the pen pal friendship between a boy from London and a girl from Yemen as humbling.

Last year, six-year-old Apollo, sent a letter to a young Yemeni girl, Razan*, after he saw her story in one of the charity's campaigns in October 2019.

The pair have since struck up a touching pen-pal friendship, sharing letters with their thoughts and hobbies, favourite animals and family trips.

Born in the war-torn city of Hodeidah, Razan* and her family were forced to flee their home during an airstrike. During the attack, shrapnel from a bomb seriously injured the young girls eye.

Struck by her story, Apollo decided to put pen to paper, and write to the girl who had a bandaged eye. How are you? he asked, before adding, Do you like animals too?

While Apollo did not expect to receive a reply, with Save the Children's support, Razan* was referred to a specialist hospital and her eyesight was saved.

Once fully recovered from her injuries, the young girl sat down to return a letter to her new penpal, writing: I like black and white rabbits.

Apollos understanding and compassion towards the people of Yemen goes back a long way.

At the age of three, his parents first taught him about the conflict there and the family began fundraising together.

On his third birthday, he held a party and asked his guests to donate to Yemen, rather than give him birthday presents. The young boy has also played the cello at concerts to help raise more funds.

Apollo says he is worried that children and families in Yemen are in danger because of the war (Save The Children)

Im very worried that its not fair that we have everything we need and that children in Yemen dont have anything, Apollo said in a statement.

Im six. Five years ago, it started  the war on Yemen  so nearly all my life it has been war in Yemen. Its not fair that adults fight with each other and the kids are the ones that suffer more.

Meanwhile, his penpal Razan* is still receiving psychosocial support from Save the Children specialists to help her deal with her experiences.

Apollo holds a drawing from his Yemeni penfriend Razan* at home in London (Save The Children)

However, she says, I'm happy. I'm not going back to the hospital and I'm happy that I'm alive.

George Graham, Save The Childrens children and armed conflict director, described the childrens friendship as incredibly humbling.

Despite their differences, separated by a vicious war and living half a world apart, they are united by their human connection, Graham said.

Razan* holds a drawing of her and her friend Apollo (Save The Children)

These children serve as a timely reminder to us all that kindness is a universal language.

He added that at a time when healthcare in the UK has never been under more pressure, it is sobering to think about the catastrophic devastation that coronavirus could cause in a country like Yemen, whose health system has been decimated by war for five years.

As Britain rightly focuses on halting the spread of the coronavirus here in the UK, we must not forget that we can still transform the lives of children like Razan, Graham explained.
[April 02, 2020] Ellie Mae Digital Lending Platform Innovation Supports Lenders During COVID-19 Situation

PLEASANTON, Calif., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Ellie Mae, the leading cloud-based loan origination platform provider for the mortgage industry, offers the following Ellie Mae Digital Lending Platform capabilities to support lenders during the evolving COVID-19 pandemic. "We recognize that in these unprecedented times, lenders are experiencing increased refinance loan volumes while contending with the need to support virtual workforces and consumer demand for online services," said Jonathan Corr, President and CEO of Ellie Mae. "With the Ellie Mae Digital Lending Platform, lenders can take advantage of Ellie Mae innovation as well as the capabilities provided by our robust network of partners who are speeding innovation and integrations to meet the changing demands." "From consumer engagement functionality and mobilizing loan officers to eClosing and homeowner-guided appraisals, mortgage technology can help lenders continue to manage workflow and processes in a seamless, digital manner. This is critical when in-person interaction is limited." Ellie Mae and the Ellie Mae Network of partners are responding by enabling lenders to take advantage of current and evolving technologies being built on the Ellie Mae Digital Lending Platform to decrease in person and/or manual interactions, such as accepting more appraisal waiver offers and doing electronic verifications of income, assets, employment, etc. In addition, new partner integrations and offerings can assist lenders with their capacity and virtual mortgage manufacturing needs. eClosing and Remote Online Notarization (RON): In today's environment, eClosings have become an important tool where one or more of the required closing documents are accessed, presented and signed electronically. Ellie Mae has added two new eClosing partners to our Platform and is excited to support GSE-announced support for RON in 42 states and the District of Columbia. Notarize : Notarize allows signers to electronically review, sign and notarize real estate documents from anywhere in the world. By integrating Notarize with Encompass, lenders can "click-to-close" loans online and automate the entire closing workflow.





Notarize allows signers to electronically review, sign and notarize real estate documents from anywhere in the world. By integrating Notarize with Encompass, lenders can "click-to-close" loans online and automate the entire closing workflow. Snapdocs: The Snapdocs integration creates an origination-to-closing table and back again connection, seamlessly unifying lenders, title, signing agents, and borrowers in a single workflow for every closing. The solution simplifies the cloing process by offering a suite of closing tools, including borrower document preview, automated hybrid document sorting and annotating, RON, and more.



Appraisal Alternatives and innovations: The Ellie Mae Digital Lending Platform can immediately support flexibilities announced by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the government agencies with regard to appraisal alternatives. Ellie Mae made immediate updates to our appraisal center to highlight different appraisal ordering options, and appraisal partners across the industry are ensuring that lenders can take advantage of these alternatives when getting into the home is difficult due to social distancing constraints. In addition, partners are innovating to make the process better in other ways as well: Clear Capital: Clear Capital just launched OwnerInsight, a free mobile friendly service that walks homeowners through capturing simple interior/exterior photos and information to keep homeowners and appraisers safe while giving the appraiser and lender consistent information about the home to improve the lending experience. Electronic Verification of Employment, Income, and Assets: The GSEs and government agencies have created flexibility on the process to re-verify employment pre-closing including the ability to use bank statements to show a recent payroll deposit. In addition, they have tightened requirements on the timing in which income and employment verifications must be completed. Using electronic verifications saves time, limits borrower interaction, and ensures compliance with new requirements. New and updated partner integrations can help:

Finicity: The go-to solution provider for lenders looking to digitize the mortgage experience through asset, income and employment verification. Through the integration with Encompass and Consumer Connect, digital asset verification shortens the underwriting process while improving security by removing the need for borrowers to submit statements or other paper documents.





The go-to solution provider for lenders looking to digitize the mortgage experience through asset, income and employment verification. Through the integration with Encompass and Consumer Connect, digital asset verification shortens the underwriting process while improving security by removing the need for borrowers to submit statements or other paper documents. FormFree: Collecting, transmitting and processing physical income; asset and employment verification paperwork is resource intensive and time consuming. Faster than gathering paper documents and easy to use on any device, FormFree technologies significantly streamlines the mortgage underwriting process for both borrowers and lenders. This results in quicker decisions, higher borrower satisfaction and a more fraud-resistant loan process. To get more detail on all the partner integrations being developed to support lenders during COVID-19 please visit the Ellie Mae Marketplace. Ellie Mae capabilities included with lenders' Platform investment include: Encompass Consumer Connect: Consumer Connect is Ellie Mae's point-of-sale solution which enables borrowers to easily complete an online mortgage application with zero in-person interaction, verify income, employment, and assets directly from the source, instantly engage with their loan officer, and securely upload and eSign documents, making it faster and less expensive for a lender to process a loan. Encompass LO Connect: The Encompass mobile solution for LOs on the go, LO Connect gives loan officers secure, real-time access to Encompass from any mobile device. In this virtual environment, loan officers can access to move loans forward while offering a connection to agents, referral partners, credit reporting agencies and underwriters. Encompass Investor Connect: Investor Connect establishes secure system-to-system workflows between lenders and correspondent investors, ensuring streamlined delivery of accurate, compliant loan data and docs. To help reduce review and purchase times, Investors are encouraging Ellie Mae lenders to utilize Investor Connect to deliver their closed loan data and document images due to capacity issues. To receive updates and resources to help lender business continuity through the COVID-19 pandemic, visit: https://explore.elliemae.com/covid-19 About Ellie Mae

Ellie Mae is the leading cloud-based platform provider for the mortgage finance industry. Ellie Mae's technology solutions enable lenders to originate more loans, reduce origination costs, and shorten the time to close, all while ensuring the highest levels of compliance, quality and efficiency. Visit EllieMae.com or call 877.355.4362 to learn more.  2020 Ellie Mae, Inc. Ellie Mae, Encompass, AllRegs, Velocify, Capsilon, the Ellie Mae logo and other trademarks or service marks of Ellie Mae, Inc. appearing herein are the property of Ellie Mae, Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. Other company and product names may be trademarks or copyrights of their respective owners. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ellie-mae-digital-lending-platform-innovation-supports-lenders-during-covid-19-situation-301033985.html SOURCE Ellie Mae

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When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle dropped their bombshell announcement to step down as senior members of the royal family last January, they made it clear that they want to be financially independent from the royal family.

"We intend to step back as 'senior' members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen," the Duke and Duchess of Sussex wrote on their official Instagram announcement.

This means that they will not receive any cent from the monarchy and will be the ones to fund all the logistics that their private life will require, from the rent, food, and even down to their security team.

Now that their royal exit has finally become official, it looks like the couple is not "financially independent" from the royal family after all.

Security Issues

Earlier this week, when U.S. President Donald Trump learned that the royal couple flew to Los Angeles to make a permanent base starting their post-royal life, he immediately took to social media to slam the couple about their security team.

Trump made it clear that while he supports Queen Elizabeth II, there is no way the U.S. government will pay for Meghan and Harry's security force.

In response, the Sussexes said through their spokesperson that they do not need the government's help and that they already made arrangements and are privately funding the security team they hired.

While the couple's move seems to deserve some round of applause, it turns out that the fund for the security team will not come from their pockets.

Back-Up From Daddy

According to reports, Harry's father, Prince Charles, is the one paying for their U.S. security costs which will amount to a whopping $2.5 million per year.

A royal insider revealed that the 71-year-old heir to the throne is paying for the said cost, which will come from his private estate, the Duchy of Cornwall.

"Charles has agreed to pay a 'private contribution' to the Sussexes. It will not be revealed how much and what that is used for, but it is believed to be around 2 million," the source explained as reported by Page Six.

However, it is not clear until when the Prince of Wales will provide back-up funding for Meghan and Harry's private life. The couple's security bill is still expected to blow up in the coming days as they are supposed to hire private guards since they could not bring in their British security forces in the U.S.

"However, the Prince of Wales does not have an infinite amount of money," the source added.

Sussexes Hollywood Life

Earlier this week, Meghan and Harry reportedly left their rented mansion in Vancouver Island in Canada. They boarded a private jet together with their 10-month-old baby Archie to fly to California before the borders closed due to coronavirus.

The Sussexes is reportedly staying in yet another rented mansion, which is close to Hollywood and Meghan's newly setup group of agents and PR team.
Families in Iraq are being left traumatised, as restrictions mean burials cannot be carried out in line with Muslim tradition.

The scale of the coronavirus pandemic has changed the way people say goodbye to loved ones.

Across the globe, more and more people are dying alone and bodies are being buried without the usual traditions.

In Iraq, where the virus has killed more than 50 people so far, some cemeteries are refusing to take the victims.

Al Jazeeras Simona Foltyn has more from Baghdad, Iraq
Officials have confirmed two more people have recovered from the coronavirus, but three more have tested positive, bringing the total to 23 in
For a White House that frequently says it is considering just about anything floated its way to combat the coronavirus outbreak, there is one think not on the table.

Americans won't be getting get-out-coronavirus-jail-free cards anytime soon.

Germany already is issuing "immunity certificates" to coronavirus patients when they have recovered from the highly spreadable disease, meaning they no longer have to remain in quarantine. A spokesman for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday he would "consider" such a move.

German officials are planning to issue the certificates if antibody tests  showing an infected person is now healthy  actually become widely available there.

Senior Trump administration officials have discussed antibody tests as a potential way to identify those who might have carried Covid-19 but never had symptoms. Like those who did get sick, those individuals might be immune from catching it again.

But a source with knowledge of the White House's discussions about how to deal with the deadly pandemic said "immunity certificates" have not been seriously considered.

That's notable for a president and White House that often says it is and will consider just about any option.

Whether it's Donald Trump asked about strict domestic airline flight restrictions or one of his economic advisers when asked about tax cuts, administration officials have launched a slew of news headlines declaring they are "considering" a slew of measures.

Take Mr Trump on Wednesday night when asked about locking down flights between cities like New York and Miami, both hit hard by Covid-19.

"It's very tough. And you have them going, in some cases, from hotspot to hotspot. If you notice, they're usually hotspot to hotspot [with] very few flights. New York to Miami," he said. "And  but we're thinking  we're certainly looking at it. But once you do that, you really are, you really are clamping down on an industry that is desperately needed."

And when asked the same evening during his daily coronavirus briefing if he might re-open enrolment on the Obamacare health insurance exchanges to help those who currently do not have coverage but might contract the virus, Mr Trump added that to the long list of things he allegedly is considering.

He called it a "very fair question," saying: "It's something we're really going to look at because it doesn't seem fair."
If you havent hopped aboard the Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness train yet, theres still time. The bizarre true story of Garold Wayne Zoo owner, Joseph Maldonado-Passage (aka Joe Exotic), his outlandish murder-for-hire-plot against rival, Carole Baskin, and all the what just happened moments in between, makes for one addictive series. That said, there are a lot of threads not shown in the seven-part series every Tiger King viewer should know.

Joe Exotic was previously a police chief and this is not a drill

Joe Exotic  Tiger King | Netflix

Long before Joseph Maldonado-Passage owned the Gerold Wayne Zoo in Oklahoma and became the leading man of Tiger King, he was a police chief for the small town of Eastvale, Texas  population: 503.

At the time, Maldonado-Passage had a live-in girlfriend, according to NY Mag, but had begun frequenting the gay nightclubs. 1985 marks when he crashed his police cruiser into a bridge, breaking his back. However, as the outlet reports, residents of Eastvale dont remember the accident,

Furthermore, the outlet said his boyfriend at the time thought Maldonado-Passage only suffered a broken shoulder and the saltwater rehab he endured was snorkeling.

Maldonado-Passages ex-husband is serving a life sentence for murder

Before Maldonado-Passage met John Finlay, Travis Maldonado, and Dillon Passage, he was previously married to J.C. Hartpence, whom he met at the gay bar, Copra.

Hartpence helped with Maldonado-Passages magic acts but the two had a tumultuous relationship. Texas Monthly reported an incent in which Maldonado-Passage left J.C. a threatening image of a tiger baring his teeth over a piece of meat with the words J.C.s remains written underneath.

Also, Hartpence once pointed a gun at Maldonado-Passage. Its a good thing the relationship ended because Hartpence is now serving a sentence for the murder of Curtis Shelton, according to the Witchita Eagle.

Maldonado-Passage claimed to written Say Something but A Great Big World

Along the lines of Maldonado-Passage taking credit for all the music sung in Tiger King, he once told documentarian, Rick Kirkham, he also wrote the hit song, Say Something.

The song was written and performed by A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera. Both Carole Baskin and Kirkham pointed this out. And by the way  country and western duo Vince Johnson and Danny Clinton are the real voices behind Maldonado-Passages tunes.

Maldonado-Passage had multiple aliases

As shown in Tiger King, Maldonado-Passage performed magic acts early on. He went under the aliases, Aarron Alex and Cody Ryan. According to Aaron Stone, a former assistant who appeared on the Wondery podcast Joe Exotic: Tiger King, Maldonado-Passage spray-painted a sheep orange with black stripes to look like a tiger for one of his acts.

Joe Kirkhams dog died in a house fire

Tiger King revealed a devastating fire that burned the zoos reptiles along with footage from Maldonado-Passages TV studio. Though he accused Inside Edition alum, Kirkham, it couldnt be proven.

Later  and by coincidence  Kirkhams Dallas apartment burned down. His dog died in the fire, and no one was arrested. He now lives in Norway with his wife.

Carole Baskin ran away from home at 15

According to the same NY Mag profile of Tiger King, Carole Baskin ran away from home at just 15 years old with a local roller rink employee. She then hitchhiked from Florida to Maine, married her discount department store boss, and became pregnant with their daughter.

Later, while hitchhiking, Don Lewis picked her up. The rest is history.

Don Lewis allegedly filed a restraining order against Carole

The same year Carole Baskins previous husband, Don Lewis, went missing, he allegedly filed a petition for a restraining order, as told by NY Mag. The petition was rejected. A few weeks later, Lewis went missing and has not been seen since.

Lewiss van was found at a nearby airport, but no one claims to have seen him, the outlet elaborated. Some think he traveled to Costa Rica, while Lewiss daughters have accused Baskin of killing him and feeling his body to the tigers (hence the memes circulating).

Baskin wasnt a suspect and no evidence has surfaced of a murder. In the time since then, Baskin and Lewiss daughters have battled over Lewiss estate.

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness is available to stream now.
Roadside bomb in Afghanistan kills 8: A roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan killed at least eight civilians, including six children. The victims were from a single family, according to a police spokesman in Helmand province. Two more members were wounded. No one asserted responsibility for the attack, but the Taliban and the Islamic State are active in the province.
(Alliance News) - PZ Cussons PLC will be giving recently departed Chief Executive Alex Kanellis no financial package after an investigation confirmed "breaches of his duties".

The personal care products firm, which owns brands such as Imperial Leather soap, had said back in December that Kanellis would be leaving at the end of January .

Kanellis had been CEO at Manchester-based PZ Cussons since 2006 and had worked at the firm since 1993. He was replaced by Jonathan Myers, a former executive at Procter & Gamble Co and Kellogg Co.

However, PZ Cussons on Thursday said "certain matters" have been brought to its attention since his departure. These relate to cash withdrawals and payments made by Kanellis over "a period of years".

The board had not been made aware, and such behaviour would be "inconsistent" with that expected from a senior member of management, PZ Cussons continued. An investigation by law firm Addleshaw Goddard LLP was set up to look into the matter.

"A report has been presented to and considered by the PZ Cussons board. The board is now in a position to conclude that Kanellis's conduct fell short of that which could reasonably be expected from the CEO and constituted repeated breaches of his duties as a director of the company," said PZ Cussons.

"The board is satisfied that the financial amounts involved are not material in the context of the group and that there is no impact on or requirement to restate the financial statements for the current or any prior periods."

PZ Cussons had agreed on a retirement settlement with Kanellis which required "certain representations to be reconfirmed". However, he did not do so, meaning no payments will be made.

Shares were 0.1% lower on Thursday morning in London at a price of 183.94 pence each.

By George Collard; georgecollard@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
By PTI

PARIS: Rafael Gomez Nieto, the last surviving member of a company of Spanish soldiers that fought with French forces in liberating Paris from Nazi occupation in 1944, has died of the new coronavirus, the French presidency said Thursday.

He was 99.

The presidency said Gomez Nieto died in Strasbourg, a city in eastern France that he fought to liberate in November 1944.

France's eastern regions have been hit particularly hard by virus infections and deaths.

French media said Gomez Nieto died on Tuesday.

While growing up in Spain, the soldier's son was still a teenager when he fought in the Spanish Civil War, joining the Republican forces that battled the Nationalists led by Gen. Francisco Franco.

More than 500,000 people died in the 1936-1939 conflict.

As Franco's forces advanced, declaring victory on April 1, 1939, Gomez Nieto and his family joined the exodus of hundreds of thousands of Spanish refugees who fled over the Pyrenees to France, hoping to find safety, the French presidency said.

But like many others, Gomez Nieto was locked up in one of the harsh and rudimentary internment camps that were hastily thrown together for refugees in the south of France.

Gomez Nieto later managed to join up with Free French troops in North Africa.

He enlisted in 1943 and became part of "La Nueve," a company that reunited veterans of the Spanish war.

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The company was part of French Gen.Leclerc's famed 2nd Armored Division that fought in the Allied liberation of France and took Paris on Aug. 25, 1944.

These stubborn freedom fighters were determined to root out oppression everywhere, from their cradle in Spain and under the sun of Africa and the skies of Paris.

After taking up arms against Franco, they fought against Hitler," the presidency said in a statement.

Everywhere, they sowed liberty.

La Nueve gave Spanish names to its armored vehicles and was at the forefront of the thrust into Paris.

In an interview published by the French newspaper l'Humanite in 2014, Gomez Nieto said the half-track he drove was nicknamed Guernica, after the Spanish town bombed by Nazi planes in 1937.

The soldiers took City Hall as ordered, and Gomez Nieto parked the vehicle in front of the building, he recalled.

When you enter an oppressed city, the girls jump on the liberator! the newspaper quoted him as saying.

The presidency said France will be eternally gratefully to Gomez Nieto and his comrades.
V oting in the Labour leadership contest closed today, with three candidates battling it out to replace Jeremy Corbyn as party leader.

Labour party members, registered and affiliated supporters began voting on Monday, February 24 and had until 12pm on Thursday, April 2 to cast their ballot.

A new deputy leader will also be elected following Tom Watson's resignation, with results for both to be announced at the weekend electronically after a planned conference was cancelled over the coronavirus outbreak.

Sir Keir Starmer is still the frontrunner in the leadership race, having picked up endorsements from key trade unions such as Unison and more than half of all constituency parties.

Wigan MP Lisa Nandy, who had originally been seen as a long-shot in the race, received the support of the GMB and the Jewish Labour Movement.

Ms Long-Bailey, meanwhile, has been endorsed by Unite and a number of senior party figures, many of which are pushing for a woman to be the next Labour leader.

Now with the ballot set to close, the Standard takes a look at the remaining hopefuls and what they have to offer.

Who will replace Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader? 1 /4 Who will replace Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader? Rebecca Long-Bailey Getty Images Lisa Nandy REUTERS Keir Starmer PA

Who are the candidates in the Labour leadership contest?

Three Labour MPs are in the leadership contest:

Sir Keir Starmer

The shadow Brexit secretary is the current front-runner for the Labour leadership, having entered the race on January 4 with calls to "rebuild" the party "fast".

The MP for Holborn and St Pancras said Labour had lost the publics trust over a lack of clarity on Brexit, anti-Semitism, and a feeling that the manifesto was overloaded.

Keir Starmer is running in the race to succeed Jeremy Corbyn / PA

However, he told Andrew Marr that we shouldnt retreat from the radical as he outlined his vision for the future.

Sir Keir is the only man in the running, after his colleague Clive Owen dropped out early on.

Some senior Labour figures are hoping a woman will take up the role, with party chairman Ian Lavery urging Sir Keir to "stand down" in favour of his closest competition Ms Long-Bailey.

Despite this, Sir Keir is backed by two trade unions and has recently received the backing of prominent backbencher and former contender Jess Phillips, who said Sir Keir is her second favourite to win behind Lisa Nandy.

Rebecca Long-Bailey

The shadow business secretary, a key ally of Mr Corbyn, said the party needs a proud socialist leader" driven by their principles and "unwavering determination".

Corbyn-ally and left-winger Rebecca Long-Bailey / Bloomberg via Getty Images

Ms Long-Bailey has assured voters that she would take the party "in a completely different direction".

She is backed by Labour's left, campaign group Momentum, trade union Unite the Union and senior Labour figures including Ian Lavery and John McDonnell.

Recently she announced her backing for an open selection process in the way Labour selects its parliamentary candidates.

Lisa Nandy

Wigan MP Lisa Nandy announced her candidacy in a letter to the Wigan Post on January 3. In it, she claimed to have "a deeper understanding of what has gone awry in our discredited political system" having represented her constituents since 2010.

She cited a lack of trust as the key factor in Labours defeat, blaming Mr Corbyn for failing to acknowledge the power of the Prime Ministers Brexit message.

Through to the final round of the leadership contest, she has been described as the "dark horse" of the competition.

TODO: define component type apester

She has voiced her concerns about New Labour's "Thatcherite consensus", accusing Tony Blair's government of continuing the late Tory Prime Minister's policies.

How did they get this far?

Firstly, they won the backing of at least 22 MPs or MEPs apiece to make it into the second round. Then they had two routes to pursue.

They could either win nominations from 5 per cent of Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs).

Or they had to get the support of three affiliated socialist organisations, including two unions. These groups had to be large enough to represent at least 5 per cent of affiliated members.

The party membership, which stood at more than 580,000 after the general election, each get a single and equal vote, as do do supporters who have paid a fee to take part.

They have until 12pm on April 2 to make their voices heard.

How does the voting work and when will winners be announced?

The system used is a preferential vote, so if no candidate wins more than 50 per cent in the first round, then the candidate in last place is eliminated and their votes redistributed until the threshold is reached.

The winners will be announced on mid-morning on Saturday, April 4.

What are the key dates? April 4 Results are announced and the new Labour leader is declared.

A special conference was scheduled for April 4. However, due to the outbreak of coronavirus that announcement was scrapped and instead it it believed the results will be sent via email, with a press release sent out later in the day.

The leader and deputy leader will assume their roles immediately, leaving Mr Corbyn to return to the backbenches unless the winner wants him in their shadow cabinet.

Who has pulled out?

Jess Phillips

Jess Phillips no longer in the running / PA

Birmingham Yardley MP Jess Phillips was one of the first of the five candidates to announce her bid. The backbencher would have represented a clean break from Corbyn-era politics.

But she pulled out of the race in January, saying she could not "unite the party".

Clive Lewis has claimed Brexit was used to "divide communities" / Getty Images

A few weeks earlier, Clive Lewis also pulled out of the race after failing to get the support of MPs.

Others

Emily Thornberry made it through to the first stage of the contest by a whisker, receiving 23 backers in total  just one more than the required 22  with just minutes to spare before the deadline.

Emily Thornberry has thrown her hat in the ring / AFP via Getty Images

But the shadow foreign secretary narrowly fell short of getting the support of 33 local Labour branches for the final stage and is now out of the running .

Other MPs were touted for the top job, including shadow international trade secretary Barry Gardiner, former leadership candidate Yvette Cooper and party chairman Ian Lavery, but all ruled themselves out.

Who is currently favourite to win?

Sir Keir is the clear favourite to win the leadership race, according to the bookmakers who have given the shadow Brexit secretary huge odds of 1/41cto win with Oddschecker.
Coronavirus face mask

Manuel Silvestri/Reuters

Residents in Laredo, Texas, are being told they must wear face masks when entering a building, public transit, or outdoor gas station. If they don't comply, they could be fined up to $1,000.

The ability of face masks to prevent coronavirus spread has been up for debate due to limited research and short supply for those who need protective gear the most.

According to the World Health Organization, face masks should be reserved for healthcare professionals, sick people, and their caretakers.

Healthy people don't need to wear face masks right now, but WHO said this could change as new information comes out.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Anyone over the age of five years old who walks around Laredo, Texas, without their mouth and nose covered could now be fined up to $1,000.

The move, brought into effect on April 2, is an attempt to stop the spread of the coronavirus in the small Texas town, despite the financial burden such a fine could have on locals, and the fact that masks are not the most effective way to prevent the spread of the virus.

"I'd rather bury them in debt than bury them in a coffin," councilman George Altgelt told the Morning Times.

Residents can use anything to cover their faces, the Laredo Morning Times reported, whether it's a mask, bandana, scarf, or any fabric they have available, although there's no evidence a bandana or a scarf would be effective. They must use it when entering a building, public transit, or an outdoor gas station.

The directive is controversial: the World Health Organization is still advising the general public not to buy masks to wear, given the global shortage of masks, which are needed by healthcare workers, who are most exposed to the virus.

There's limited research on face mask effectiveness for healthy people

On April 1, the World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said they are still not advising everyone to wear surgical masks: only healthcare professionals, sick people, and their caretakers, should wear them.

Story continues

"We're continuing to study the evidence about the use of masks. WHO's priority is that frontline health workers are able to access essential personal protective equipment, including medical masks and respirators," Tedros said.

Currently, few studies exist on the effectiveness of face masks for preventing disease spread. Of the randomized control trials that do exist, many suggest that people sometimes wear a face mask incorrectly, which could have contributed to the negative results.

"Randomized trials don't support a big effect of face masks, but there is the mechanistic plausibility for face masks to work, right? So why not consider it?" Ben Cowling, a professor of epidemiology and a mask researcher at the University of Hong Kong's School of Public Health, previously told Business Insider. "If you don't wear the mask properly, and if there's a lot of chances for you to get infected, then the mask may not do a lot of good."

The more people buy up surgical masks, the less protection healthcare workers will have

There is global shortage of face masks, which complicates the question about what the advice should be on face masks.

Health officials are urging the general public that face masks won't serve them, but also say that the masks are effective and necessary for medics to protect them from the virus. Mike Ryan, WHO's executive director of health emergencies, agreed in a press conference this week that officials are trying to make sure their advice protects the public, but also does not fuel a shortage in areas where the masks are most needed.

"Where should these masks be, and where are the best benefits?" Ryan asked a reporter during a press briefing on Monday.

"Because one can argue that there's a benefit of anything, but where does a given tool have its most benefit? And right now, the people most at risk from this virus are frontline health workers who are exposed to the virus every second of every day." He added that "the thought of them not having masks" was "horrific."

At the same time, Tedros said it's possible the WHO could change its stance on who should wear the protective garment as we learn more about the virus.

"WHO continues to gather all available evidence and continues to evaluate the potential use of masks more broadly to control COVID-19 transmission at the community level," Tedros said. "This is still a very new virus and we're learning all the time. As the pandemic evolves, so does the evidence, and so does our advice."

Read the original article on Business Insider
The 1,400 recruits on hold because of the novel coronavirus pandemic may be eligible to be paid as privates under the new Future Soldier to Active Duty Program, U.S. Army Recruiting Command announced Thursday.

"The majority of the delays are in areas experiencing the largest COVID-19 outbreaks: the New York City metropolitan area, the northeast United States, southern California, south Florida and Seattle," Lisa Ferguson, a spokeswoman for Recruiting Command, told Military.com.

The program will pay future soldiers about $1,600 -- the base pay of an active-duty private -- as long as they have had their basic training dates rescheduled based on the virus risk level in their area, according to an April 2 news release posted on the command's website.

"It's important that we take care of our people," Maj. Gen. Frank Muth, commanding general of Recruiting Command, said in the release. "This virus has been a challenge for all of us, and we want to be sure our future soldiers are not put into a difficult situation because we had to reschedule their ship dates. We are doing everything we can to protect our personnel and those who are in the process of joining our team."

Related: Army Shutters Recruiting Stations as 6 Recruits Show COVID-19 Symptoms at Basic Training

Army recruiting officials are currently testing the program and expect to "launch with final authorities" sometime next week, Ferguson said.

Local recruiting battalion commanders will evaluate a recruit's individual situation based on current employment, access to housing, dependents and other factors to make a recommendation for approval to Recruiting Command, according to the release.

Once in the program, the future soldiers will be attached to the battalion and, as paid active-duty troops, will be required to meet regular physical fitness and other pre-basic training requirements until conditions allow them to safely ship to Basic Combat Training, the release states.

Army officials stressed that not every recruit on hold will be eligible for the payment program.

Rescheduled Future Soldiers who are ineligible for the Active Duty Program or choose to opt out may be eligible for a cash bonus when they are able to ship to their training base, according to the release. No details were provided.

Recruits that accept the conditions of the program will be subject to discipline under the Uniform Code of Military Justice if they decide not to ship to BCT, Ferguson said.

Currently, Army officials are still evaluating the total amount future soldiers in the program will be paid and what benefits will be included, he added.

"This is an unprecedented program, and the Army is still finalizing the details of the benefits involved," Ferguson said. "Right now, we are working on the base pay equal to a private, but there are other things being evaluated, such as family benefits."

Army recruiting officials stressed that this is not intended to attract new recruits.

"This is not an incentive for new applicants," Ferguson said. "It is intended to provide support for those future soldiers who are experiencing hardship because they were planning their lives around a set ship date that was delayed because of the COVID-19 outbreak."

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to clarify soldier eligibility restrictions.

-- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.

Read More: Army Tests New Virus-Resistant Protocols for Shipping Recruits to Training
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 3)  The Department of Agriculture, through the Agriculture Credit Policy Council (ACPC), has approved an initial P1-billion loan assistance to marginal farmers and fisherfolk, as well as agri-fishery micro and small enterprises amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is to enable them to cope during this state of national emergency, said DA Secretary William Dar.

According Dar, this financing program is part of the expanded SURE Aid and Recovery Project, in support of the Ahon Lahat, Pagkaing Sapat (ALPAS) Kontra COVID-19", or "Plant, Plant, Plant Program."

The Plant, Plant, Plant Program is an initiative from the DA to increase farm productivity and ensure food sufficiency during the Covid-19 emergency situation.

The said loan assistance program will provide small farmers, fisherfolk, and small and micro agri-fishery enterprises with needed working capital to continue operations amid the enhanced community quarantine.

The idea is to provide emergency and production capital requirements for our marginalized sector, whose operations and earnings were severely affected by the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon, Dar said.

Eligible SMEs with single proprietorship, partnership, corporation or cooperative/association, may borrow up to 10 million at zero interest under the expanded loan program, payable up to five years.

Meanwhile, individual farmers and fishers can borrow a non-collateralized loan of 25,000 at zero interest, payable in 10 years. Only one borrower is allowed per farm or fisher household.

The country's farmers and fishers, who we consider as food security frontliners, play a crucial part in our fight against Covid-19. Thats why it is important that we continue to empower them to ensure continued production and delivery of food to our countrymen, Dar added.

The DA-ACPC is strengthening its partnerships with 230 existing lending conduits nationwide, which include government banks, rural banks, cooperative banks, cooperatives, viable NGOs, and associations for the successful implementation of the expanded SURE Aid program.
Students are going through an extraordinary change to their daily routine, while schools and districts are struggling to meet the social and emotional needs of their students. Suite360 allows schools and districts to meet their students in the digital world during this time of uncertainty.

Suite360, Evolution Labs proprietary Social and Emotional Learning Program, is providing schools and districts with much needed comfort during the coronavirus pandemic. For some districts and schools, the remote learning strategies being implemented are mainly focused around core academic subjects, leaving students without the support of social workers, school psychologists, guidance counselors, and social & emotional learning.

During stressful times, students, families, and staff can experience anxiety and panic, potentially compromising all of the progress schools and districts have been making throughout the school year with social & emotional learning and character development. Suite360 is playing an integral part of the school day during the coronavirus crisis.

With Suite360, students, parents, teachers, and school administrators are equipped to cover a range of topics, including; anxiety, mental health, personal hygiene, time management, diversity, social media, substance abuse, and more. Program content is aligned with the standards developed by the National Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) and mapped to the grade-specific learning objectives published by state school boards. Schools can assign topics to individual students, groups, classes or grades, and the multichannel platform is accessible on any web-enabled device so students, parents, and staff can go through lessons at home with ease.

Evolution Labs Co-Founder Tracy Howe believes Students are going through an extraordinary change to their daily routine, while schools and districts are struggling to meet the social and emotional needs of their students. Suite360 allows schools and districts to meet their students in the digital world during this time of uncertainty.

Evolution Labs works with schools and districts in New Jersey, Michigan, New Hampshire and 40+ other states to deliver Social and Emotional Learning and Mental Health content.

About Evolution Labs

Evolution Labs improves student engagement and outcomes through its proprietary suite of tools for K-12 schools and districts, and Colleges and Universities. In K-12, the Company's Suite360 program delivers Social & Emotional Learning and Restorative Programming to Students, with additional programs for Parents and Staff to better equip them to be the school/district's ally. The Company's S360 program helps K-12 Independent Schools drive enrollment and retention. In Higher Ed, the Company's S360 program drives inquiries, applications, enrollment yield, and student wellness/success. The team at Evolution Labs has served the educational sector for over 20 years, working with thousands of schools and engaging millions of students. Learn more at http://www.evpco.com.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Thursday hit back at US President Donald Trump, saying Tehran has no proxies but it has friends.

"Don't be mislead by usual warmongers, AGAIN, @realDonaldTrump: Iran has FRIENDS: No one can have MILLIONS of "proxies" Unlike the US--which surreptitiously lies, cheats & assassinates--Iran only acts in self-defense. Openly Iran starts no wars, but teaches lessons to those who do," tweeted Iranian Foreign Minister.

His remarks come a day after Trump tweeted that Iran or "its proxies" are planning a "sneak attack on US troops in Iraq."

"Upon information and belief, Iran or its proxies are planning a sneak attack on U.S. troops and/or assets in Iraq. If this happens, Iran will pay a very heavy price, indeed!" Trump had tweeted.

Tensions between two nations escalated earlier this year after the US drone attack in Iraq killed Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds Force.

According to Al Jazeera, Iran retaliated with a rocket attack on Iraq's Ain al-Asad base where US forces were stationed on January 8. The recent war of words comes even as the two countries have been grappling with coronavirus.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
T he countrys first antiviral literary festival is to take place at the end of this month, though it has already had to change its name.

BookBound 2020 had initially been called HouseBound, until organisers contacted a disability rights organisation who cringed at the name. But, founder Georgie Codd told the Londoner, there was still time to change it, so we have. This could actually turn into something we discuss at the festival.

Codd and her team have collected some big names for their online offering, which is free and starts on April 27, including comic Robert Webb, MP David Lammy and Sarah Perry, author of the bestselling The Essex Serpent.

I, generally speaking, feel no nerves at all at ordinary festivals, Perry said, but suspect I will be a little anxious prior to BookBound since there are a number of hazards  the cat leaping on me out of nowhere or bad internet, for example, as well as the existential terror of having to look at ones own face.

Meanwhile Lammy, whose book Tribes was released last month, told us: I hope my talk gets people thinking about a few ways to form new communities to replace tribes. Nows the time for community spirit.

---

Closeted: Annie Nightingale (Photo by Tristan Fewings/Getty Images) / Getty Images

Broadcaster Annie Nightingale, who has just finished her memoir Hey Hi Hello, tells us her weirdest career moment: interviewing George Clinton of Funkadelic in a cramped broom cupboard below a ladies loo, at a concert of his in Denver, Colorado. Every time the loo flushed, we had to stop recording. Its not all glamour.

---

Camdens most senior police officer has questioned the number of people out exercising on the streets. Chief Superintendent Raj Kohli said some people were using exercise as an excuse to meet friends. He told the Camden New Journal: If that many people exercised on a regular basis in the UK, then wed be better at the Olympics. Alright, officer.

Sam rolls out of home for a session on her skateboard

Sam Taylor-Johnson made the most of working from home in LA  the Croydon- born filmmaker popped out on her skateboard. Back in the capital, DJ Jodie Harsh was in a bouncy mood, partying with all [her] quarantine besties!  her giant wig collection. Harsh has made a Solo Rave mix for the BBC, so theres no excuse not to dance through the lockdown. Meanwhile, Naomi Campbell donned pink gloves to share a banana pudding recipe. One to munch after all the solo raving.

SW1A

Lesson: Jacob Rees-Mogg (Photo by Luke Dray/Getty Images) / Getty Images

Jacob Rees-Mogg says a silver lining of lockdown is that he gets to see a lot more of his children, though home-schooling is not as easy as it sounds. Especially in Latin. Pray for Nanny.

---

Sir Edward Leigh MP is creating a vegetable patch. Inspired by the war time injunction to dig for victory I thought it would save on unnecessary food shopping if I tried my hand at planting," he tells us.

"I have spent the last few days clearing the patch. I shall put in some seeding potatoes and I have found some seeds for carrots, peas, beetroot and salad. No doubt they will be fairly knobbly and stunted, but here goes."
The U.S. Department of Defense is seeking tens of thousands of body bags as public officials anticipate a sharp increase in the number of deaths caused by the coronavirus in April.

The DoD and the Defense Logistics Agency have a longstanding arrangement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to receive important products from industrial partners during times of crisis, according to a statement from Lt. Col. Mike Andrews, a department spokesperson.

DLA is currently responding to FEMAs prudent planning efforts for 100,000 pouches to address mortuary contingencies on behalf of state health agencies, the statement said.

The announcement comes as state and federal leaders are forecasting a surge in COVID-19-related fatalities and a rapid increase in positive diagnoses of the viral respiratory infection in early April.

To date, 49,236 deaths due to the illness have been reported globally. Of the more than 960,000 confirmed patients, roughly 203,000 have recovered from the sickness, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. It appears the rate of people dying worldwide is exponentially increasing.

As of Thursday afternoon, 5,316 fatalities and 217,263 positive diagnoses of the coronavirus have been reported in the U.S. alone, according to Johns Hopkins. In Massachusetts, 122 deaths and 7,738 cases have been identified.

Temporary mortuary trucks are being placed in the lot of Fitchburg State Universitys Landry Arena in Fitchburg as the state continues to respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

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President Donald Trump told the public Tuesday that the next two weeks are going to be very very painful." Trump and the federal governments COVID-19 task force shared data that showed the infections ability to kill at least 100,000 Americans.

The president said that preventative measures, including stay-at-home guidance and limitations on gatherings, laid out by the White House earlier this month are a matter of life and death.

Gov. Charlie Baker noted in his daily press briefing on Monday that Massachusetts has not seen the worst of the coronavirus either. He projected the state could see a peak in the number of cases between April 10 and April 20.

An analysis conducted by Harvard University researchers also found that Massachusetts may one of multiple states to be hit with a drastic shortage of hospital beds in the next few months.

Governors across the U.S., including Baker, have deployed the assistance of the National Guard to assist in their efforts to stave off the spread of the virus. State leaders have also looked to convert facilities into treatment centers for patients diagnosed with the disease.

Baker announced in March he has been collaborating with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers to find spaces to retrofit into medical facilities.

At a national level, the Department of Defense has issued a stop-movement memo, ordering a freeze on foreign travel, military deployments and global force management activities" through May 11, according to a statement from DoD.

Exceptions to the declaration will be made on a case-by-case basis, the statement said.

More than 5,500 U.S. Northern Command military personnel are involved in the response to the pandemic currently, providing aid and medical assets, according to a statement from DOD.

The scope of our response is unprecedented, Air Force Gen. Terrence J. OShaughnessy said in the statement. And were prepared to respond even more as needed.

Related Content:
NEW YORK, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- SitusAMC, the leading provider of services and technology supporting the real estate finance industry, today announced that The Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) has made a strategic investment in the firm. PSP Investments joins Stone Point Capital, who remains the largest shareholder in SitusAMC. Additional shares are held by SitusAMC's management team.

"We are thrilled to partner with PSP Investments as we look to transform the real estate finance industry," said Michael Franco, CEO of SitusAMC. "Having long-term capital partners such as PSP Investments and Stone Point Capital will be a driving force for our company through market cycles as we continue to help our clients identify and capture opportunities across the entire lifecycle of their commercial and residential real estate activity."

"SitusAMC has a bold vision for their industry, supported by a proven leadership team, a strong operational foundation, and world-class services and technology offerings. We look forward to supporting the team, alongside Stone Point, in its next phase of growth," said Martin Longchamps, Managing Director, Private Equity, PSP Investments.

Chuck Davis, CEO of Stone Point Capital, added, "We are pleased to be partnering with PSP Investments and look forward to working alongside them to support the long-term growth and development of SitusAMC."

About SitusAMC

SitusAMC (www.situsamc.com) is the leading independent provider of advisory, strategic outsourcing, talent and technology solutions to the commercial and residential real estate finance industry. The firm helps clients realize opportunities in their real estate businesses through industry-leading services and innovative technologies that drive operational efficiency, increase business effectiveness, and improve market agility across the entire lifecycle of their global real estate activity.

About PSP Investments

The Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) is one of Canada's largest pension investment managers with $168 billion of net assets as of March 31, 2019. It manages a diversified global portfolio composed of investments in public financial markets, private equity, real estate, infrastructure, natural resources and private debt. Established in 1999, PSP Investments manages net contributions to the pension funds of the federal Public Service, the Canadian Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Reserve Force. Headquartered in Ottawa, PSP Investments has its principal business office in Montreal and offices in New York and London. For more information, visit investpsp.com or follow PSP Investments on Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Stone Point Capital

Stone Point Capital is a financial services-focused private equity firm based in Greenwich, CT. The firm has raised and managed eight private equity funds  the Trident Funds  with aggregate committed capital of more than $25 billion. Stone Point targets investments in companies in the global financial services industry and related sectors. For more information, please visit www.stonepoint.com.

For more information, please visit http://www.situsamc.com or contact Andy Garrett (Managing Director, Global Head of Marketing) at [email protected].

SOURCE SitusAMC

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Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) has achieved a compliance rate 93 per cent regarding the disclosure of the annual financial statements 2019 of its listed public joint stock companies and private listed companies within the deadline of 90 days from the end of the financial period annual.



Sixty out of 64, local and foreign, public listed companies disclosed their annual financial statements for 2019 within the 90 days period given.



Four out of 5 private listed companies disclosed their annual financial statements for 2019 within the 90 days period given.



The combined net profit of all public listed companies as of December 31, 2019 has shown an increase of 1.23 per cent in comparison to the same period in 2018. The highest recorded increase was in the Energy Sector with an increase of 42.83 per cent followed by the Insurance sector with an increase of 36.54 per cent.  TradeArabia News Service
The coronavirus pandemic has stopped most services, including the hospitality industry, in many parts of the world. However, Swiss hotel brand Le Bijou is taking advantage of the ongoing outbreak too by offering what they call quarantine apartments.

While Switzerland has taken social distancing measures similar to many other countries, the government has not stopped hotels from operating. In this situation, Le Bijou has made apartments available ranging from $800-$2,000 a night.

Guests can also avail of coronavirus tests for the price of $500 along with twice-daily nurse visits for $1,800 or a full-time nurse at $4,800 a day.

The service was initiated when Alexander Hubner, CEO of Le Bijou, noticed more reservations being made for two weeks and longer on account of the virus. Many guests said their stays were being extended for quarantine purposes.

We are a family-run SME trying to survive and save jobs for around 60 people, without filing for a government bailout, a spokesman of the hotel said.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

The spokesman also mentioned that the hotel has no common areas, so guests will only come into contact with anyone else if requested by them.

The hotel is also offering free stays for many healthcare workers who are working overtime, fighting the virus.

The spokesman also said the hotel can provide safe and comfortable accommodations for those seeking it away from home and for local healthcare workers who need a place to rest free-of-charge, and hence did not make sense to shut down.

When Rene Frey, CEO of travel guide publisher Rough Guides, left London for his home in Switzerland during the lockdown, he criticized the company stating that it was irresponsible, unethical and commercially wrong for the hotel to be operating during the pandemic.

When Frey criticized the $500 charge for the tests, the spokesman said there are any guests in the hotel that are not from the country and cannot avail of the countrys compulsory health care insurance. The charge also includes the cost of certified, personal health-care providers who will administer the COVID-19 test.
AUSTIN, Texas, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- During this uncertain time of pandemic and economic downturn, many financial institutions are struggling to keep all aspects of their operations strong. Many BSA/AML and compliance professionals are tasked with instituting business continuity plans while receiving no relief from their normal regulatory compliance duties and deadlines.

Abrigo, a leading provider of compliance software, has announced that its Suspicious Activity Monitoring Services (SAMS) is now available on a new subscription basis. SAMS provides valuable resources for a financial institution's BSA team while their responsibilities have shifted to include business continuity, and moving staff to work from home, along with the added stress of watching the pandemic unfold. FinCEN has not provided deadline relief for suspicious activity monitoring and reporting meaning the regulatory expectation is for business to go on as usual and to remain alert to illicit financial activity.

Abrigo has positioned its team of BSA experts to become an extension of an institution's BSA and compliance staff in the event of staff shortages caused by COVID-19. The SAMS offering provides BSA staff augmentation to assist institutions during this difficult time in a variety of ways, including:

Alert and/or case investigation

Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) preparation and review

Enhanced Due Diligence  higher risk customer periodic reviews

Quality control

The new subscription service allows financial institutions to subscribe to short- or long-term services to support meeting regulatory deadlines during this pandemic. Financial Institutions are already working with Abrigo's Advisory Services as their staff augmentation partner. Capital Bank, N.A.,'s Davreen Dixon, JD, CAMS, said, "Working with Abrigo's Advisory Services team gives me time to focus on other projects that strengthen our program. We have confidence in knowing the [suspicious activity] alerts are being worked in a timely and thorough manner."

"BSA officers have an important job to do protecting the integrity of our financial system and that doesn't stop during a pandemic," said Abrigo President Jay Blandford. "Our Advisory Services team can help financial institutions' BSA departments remain compliant and keep their programs strong as their daily tasks increase to keep the business moving."

Central Bank engaged with Abrigo to work daily alerts prior to the pandemic. "An unexpected benefit was that we hada new and fresh perspective, resulting in two different cases being opened for further investigation," said Amy Dossat, Central Bank Senior Vice President. "Utilizing Abrigo as a resource during [analyst leave] was extremely worthwhile, and I would recommend this service to other banks."

The Abrigo team has successfully worked remotely for institutions for over 10 years by using secure virtual private network (VPN) connectivity and would continue this distanced work environment during the pandemic, following social distance guidelines set forth by the CDC.

Financial institutions must continue to detect and report illicit activity regardless of other distractions that are occurring around the globe. As the pandemic potentially escalates money laundering, human trafficking, and fraud, it is more important than ever for institutions to stay on top of suspicious activity and regulations. Starting a partnership with Abrigo will assist in keeping BSA professionals from losing ground during this difficult time and give peace of mind in the event the pandemic lasts longer than anticipated or if there is a COVID-19 resurgence in the future. With a partnership with Abrigo's Advisory Services, institutions can position themselves to come out the other side of this pandemic with a stronger BSA program.

To learn more about Abrigo's SAMS subscription and how to keep your financial institution in compliance, visit abrigo.com. For more information and resources regarding navigating the coronavirus, visit Abrigo's Coronavirus News and Resources page.

About Abrigo

Abrigo is a leading technology provider of compliance, credit risk, lending, and asset/liability management solutions that community financial institutions use to manage risk and drive growth. Our software automates key processes  from anti-money laundering to asset/liability management to fraud detection to lending solutions  empowering our customers by addressing their Enterprise Risk Management needs. Visit abrigo.com to learn more. Follow Abrigo on social media using @weareabrigo.

SOURCE Abrigo

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Leading Global ICT Company, Huawei has donated two fully installed ultramodern Video Conference Facility to Ghanas Ministry of Health to aid them in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The gesture is part of a series of donations being undertaken by Huawei to support affected countries as part of the Companys corporate social responsibility in these critical times.



"As a localized company operating in Ghana for over 19 years, we feel it is our obligation as a part of Ghana and as a party of concern to support Ghana's Government in protecting the lives and health of the citizenry. In this fight, ICT remains a powerful tool, and that is where our strengths lay. Said Tommy Zhouwei, Managing Director at Huawei Ghana.



Through the donation of our ultramodern Video Conferencing facility, we hope that the Ministry of Health and Ghana Health Service, can communicate with colleagues from other jurisdictions and even locally to share ideas and support each other in putting an end to this critical situation." He added.



Receiving the donation on behalf of the Ministry of Health, the sector Minister, Hon. Kwaku Agyeman Manu lauded Huawei for the gesture he said: Ghana is very grateful for the donation from Huawei and as sector minister, I thank Huawei on behalf of Government of Ghana.



Speaking on the significance of the donation, Hon. Agyeman Manu noted that the Video Conference facility will enable the ministry and other key institutions to network while allowing them to talk to people remotely without physical gatherings. He said, We can now talk to places like Ga East where some of the patients are and places like Korle-Bu and Kumasi without anybody visiting a great way to effectively practice social distancing.



The Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, H.E. Mr. Shi Ting Wang, during his remarks, spoke highly of Ghanas efforts to flatten the epidemic and highly commended Huawei Ghana for its strong sense of social responsibility. He said that the donated facilities, to the Ministry of Health and the Greater Accra Regional Hospital, are of great importance at this critical time. Because they will not only help to reduce physical contact between the Ministry and hospital but also connecting the Ghanaian authorities and medical workers with those in China and the rest of the world.



One of the two donated Video Conference facilities would be stationed at the Ministry of Health while the other would be at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital. The Video Conference facilities will aid real-time monitoring of the situation while ensuring the rapid dissemination of information, ideas, and help. The facility would also make possible remote meetings between the Ministry and other institutions from across the globe. Remote meetings are also essential in ensuring social distancing a major practice in controlling the spread of the highly contagious COVID-19 disease.



During the event, all parties present advised the general public to adhere to all measures put in place by the government to control the spread of the disease while admonishing everyone to Stay at Home and practice enhanced personal hygiene and Social Distancing.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Only limited services will be available from the Companies Registration Office (CRO) as a result of disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, Government officials have said.

The closure of the CRO's public office and its announcement earlier this week that it was not in a position to process submissions or deal with queries caused alarm among lawyers representing commercial interests.

The move prompted an urgent letter to Business Minister Heather Humphreys from Law Society president Michele O'Boyle on Tuesday warning it was essential a level of service be maintained.

She said there could be personal and criminal consequences for company directors if they proceeded with transactions without the ability to comply with filing obligations. Ms O'Boyle also warned that if the closure led to an inability to conduct closing searches then many organisations, including some providing essential services, would be stopped from completing transactions.

The minister has yet to respond to the society.

But in a statement to the Irish Independent, the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation sought to allay some of the concerns prompted by the closure of the office.

The statement said that due to the restrictions put in place by the Government the CRO was only able to offer "limited services" to the public.

The department said the services which will remain available include company incorporations and receipt of charges. It said the company search facility operated by the CRO website will also remain operational.

The statement said the Registrar of Companies had decided all annual returns completed and filed between March 18 and June 30 would be treated as having been filed on time. The department also said the CRO's online filing system CORE remains in operation and a full range of online submissions can be filed.

"The completed signature pages can be forwarded to the office where they will be dealt with when the office is fully up and running again," it said.

In her letter, Ms O'Boyle said the closure of the office had "caused a lot of concern in the solicitors' profession and amongst our clients as ongoing commercial activity does require some level of function by the CRO".

She said examples included the need for CRO services to enable new company incorporations to be processed and for statutory time periods for filings to be observed.

"Good examples being the filing of C1 forms for creation of security by companies and the filing of summary approval declarations and resolutions," said Ms O'Boyle.

"If this can't be done then security can be unenforceable and there could be personal and criminal consequences for directors and officers if they proceed with transactions without the ability to comply with filing obligations."
A prominent Manhattan federal judge who presided over years of high-profile trials, including the trial of the terrorists who carried out the 1993 bombings of the World Trade Centers, has died aged 87 of Covid-19.

In his almost 40 years as a judge, Kevin Thomas Duffy, who died on Wednesday at a hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut, also presided over cases involving robberies, mob bosses and key social issues during a time of great change and turmoil in the U.S.

P. Kevin Castel, a longtime friend and colleague of Duffy, told the New York Times that the cause of his death was Covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. He died in Greenwich where he lived.

A court sketch of Judge Kevin Thomas Duffy in 1996. Duffy presided over cases in Manhattan for over 40 years, and sadly passed away aged 87 after contracting the coronavirus

Duffy became well known for his colorful and even controversial manner in the courtroom, often showing independent and defiant characteristics in the way he conducted court proceedings.

When one of the six men who were convicted of the 1993 bombing in the World Trade Center underground parking lot maintained his innocence, Judge Duffy called him an 'out and out liar' according to the Times, saying 'the others were low, you're even lower.' The bomb killed six people.

The most high-profile case Judge Duffy presided was that of the 1993 parking garage bombing of the World Trade Centers. Here, emergency service vehicles gather outside

The bombs detonated under the Twin Towers caused extensive damage and killed six people. Six men were convicted for the act of terror

When the man convicted of directing the bombing, Ramzi Ahmed Yousef, said that the attack was retaliation for, and the only viable response to, American foreign policies towards Palestinian and Muslim people, Judge Duffy read passages from the Quran to the him and the courtroom.

The passages, he said, showed 'your God is not Allah. Death was truly your God, your master, your one and only religion.' Mr Yousef was sentenced to life in prison plus 240 years. His co-conspirators also received life sentences with additional years.

Rami Yousef, the 'mastermind' behind the bombings, was sentenced to life plus 240 years by Judge Duffy, who told him 'your God is not Allah. Death was truly your God'

Members of the NYC emergency services sift through the rubble in the World Trade Center parking garage which was bombed in 1993

Judge Duffy presided over a number of other high profile cases. One also involved Mr Yousef, who in addition to the 1993 bombing plotted to detonate bombs on planes over the Pacific Ocean.

Another was one of the 1983 Brinks robbery and murder trials that convicted people involved in a 1981 attempted robbery of an armored truck in Rockland County, N.Y. and three murders related to the case.

Judge Duffy also presided over one of the 1983 Brinks Robbery cases. In 1981, members of the Black Liberation Army and the Weather Underground robbed an armored truck and killed three people in a shootout with the police

Judge Duffy was due to preside over the trial of mob boss Paul Castellano, but Castellano was assassinated outside of a steakhouse before the trial began

Another infamous trial Judge Duffy presided over was the trial of Paul Castellano, head of the Gambino crime family. Castellano was assassinated outside a steakhouse before the trail could begin.

Judge Duffy also oversaw a case in the 1970s over New York City's air quality, and whether the city should enforce an air pollution reduction plan.

In 1993, her oversaw a trial over whether the sponsor of the city's St. Patrick's Day parade, the Roman Catholic fraternal order, had a constitutional right prevent the gay and lesbian group from marching. Judge Duffy ruled that it did.

Reportedly, he had an informal style. Before the 1993 trial of the terrorists who bombed the World Trade Center, he told jurors that none of the trial participants would be using a word longer than 'delicatessen', saying legal matters should be expressed in a way everyone can understand.

Judge Duffy becomes one of the 5,139 people to have died from the coronavirus in the United States, with Wednesday 1 April seeing the highest number so far with 1,047 deaths.

Manhattan is currently under lockdown to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Here, Times Square can be seen almost totally empty as people remain inside and practice social distancing
"This loss cuts us deeply," said New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell, when word reached her that renowned modern jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis Jr., mentor of a generation of musicians and patriarch of one of the musical citys great musical families, had died on Wednesday.

"He was the prototype of what we mean when we talk about New Orleans jazz, the mayor said in a statement. The love and the prayers of all of our people go out to his family, and to all of those whose lives he touched.

The 85-year-old Crescent City icon had been hospitalized with pneumonia and other symptoms in recent days. Though he was tested for the coronavirus, it is unknown if the never-before-seen illness that has precipitated a pandemic was responsible for his death.

Legendary New Orleans jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis has died Ellis Marsalis Jr., the renowned New Orleans jazz pianist, composer and educator, has died, the City of New Orleans announced Wednesday. Marsa

My heart is with his family, my city, and all who grieve his loss, wrote former New Orleans Mayor Marc H. Morial via email Wednesday. New Orleans lost part of its soul today. There are few musicians on Earth who have been as influential as Ellis Marsalis. He was a genius, a master, an innovator and a musical evangelist. Jazz is the language of New Orleans, and he was our chief linguist.

Morial, who is current president of the National Urban League, said he mourned Marsalis as a friend, as an admirer, and as a New Orleanian.

He will be counted among the great icons who were swept away by the tide of this disease, Morial said, assuming the coronavirus caused Marsaliss death.

+5 End of an era: Pianist Ellis Marsalis retires from his 30-year gig at Snug Harbor Longtime Snug Harbor booking agent Jason Patterson was on vacation in Costa Rica late last year when he got a call from pianist Ellis Marsalis

Among Marsaliss many gifts to the world of jazz are his musician sons Wynton, Branford, Delfeayo and Jason, who will carry his torch into the future.

My dad was a giant of a musician and teacher, but an even greater father, wrote saxophonist Branford Marsalis, who captured a national following as he led The Tonight Show band and toured with Sting. He poured everything he had into making us the best of what we could be.

In a Wednesday evening email, Branford quoted his friend, Harvard Law Professor David Wilkins, who has texted this note about Elliss cultural importance:

We can all marvel at the sheer audacity of a man who believed he could teach his black boys to be excellent in a world that denied that very possibility, and then watch them go on to redefine what excellence means for all time.

Trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, artistic director of jazz at New York's Lincoln Center and America's most prominent jazz spokesman, admired his father for always embracing reality.

Wynton Marsalis included a touching statement about his fathers death on his Facebook page.

I havent cried because the pain is so deep, he wrote. My daddy was a humble man with a lyrical sound that captured the spirit of place--New Orleans, the Crescent City, The Big Easy, the Curve. He was a stone-cold believer without extravagant tastes.

Like many parents, he sacrificed for us and made so much possible. Not only material things, but things of substance and beauty like the ability to hear complicated music and to read books; to see and to contemplate art; to be philosophical and kind, but to also understand that a time and place may require a pugilistic-minded expression of ignorance.

His example for all of us who were his students (a big extended family from everywhere), Wynton continued, showed us to be patient and to want to learn and to respect teaching and thinking and to embrace the joy of seriousness.

During his years with the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, Xavier University and the University of New Orleans, Ellis Marsalis taught and tutored a galaxy of future jazz stars, including Terence Blanchard, Irvin Mayfield, Jesse Davis, Charlie Dennard, Victor Goines, Donald Harrison, Marlon Jordan and Paul Longstreth.

I wouldn't be who I am without him, wrote one of Marsaliss most successful students, Harry Connick Jr. in a Facebook post. I'll miss him with all my heart.

Among the countless lessons Ellis Marsalis taught me, the celebrated pianist and entertainer wrote, the most important was the process of discovery. He already knew everything I was trying to learn; but he always made me figure things out for myself. He was a grand master educator, an inimitable pianist, a caring mentor and a dear friend. My prayers are with the Marsalis family today. I love you so much, Mr. Marsalis.

It would be typical for a second-line parade to swell in the streets in honor of this grand old man of music, but coronavirus social distancing will make that impossible in the near future. At the Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro on Frenchmen Street, where Ellis Marsalis had been scheduled to play with his son Jason on March 27.

Stay with us here for more updates.
Photo: The Canadian Press Workers unload a cargo plane at Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens, Tuesday, March 31, 2020. Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and other states scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP Photo-Thanassis Stavrakis

Scores of countries have moved to restrict the export of face masks, gloves and other medical supplies critical for front-line workers in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving Canada and others scrambling to source products that now have higher price tags.

Sixty-eight countries  Canada is not among them  have curbed exports of personal protective equipment or medicine, according to Simon Evenett, a professor of international trade at Switzerland's University of St. Gallen.

He called the policies "inhumane" and a potential "death sentence" for some of the world's most vulnerable patients.

"It means theyre going to go without. And you dont want to think about what going without a medical ventilator means when youre seriously ill with COVID-19," said Evenett, who runs the Global Trade Alert nonprofit, which tracks protectionism.

"Countries which use (the restrictions) are essentially grabbing a small number of supplies for the moment and denying sick people in other countries the possibility of treatment," he said, highlighting France and India as hoarders. "If you think that this is going to have a happy legacy for international relations, think again."

On Tuesday, China responded to complaints from Europe about ineffective coronavirus test kits by tightening standards around certification of medical goods for export.

The decision seeks to clamp down on defective products, but could have the effect of further slashing supply from a country that produces half of the world's personal protective equipment  also known as PPE.

Omar Allam, who heads an Ottawa-based global trade consultancy, said the aim of the crackdown is to bolster China's reputation, but it effectively severs Canadian wholesalers from some reputable Chinese manufacturers.

"You could have a reliable provider with a great track record, but if they dont have the required medical certificate, it could take them up to a year to get this," said Allam, who is working pro bono to connect the Canadian government with foreign suppliers.

This is a major blow to countries like the U.S. and Canada."

Officials across the country this week warned that equipment shortfalls are placing health-care workers and vulnerable Canadians at growing risk of exposure to the virus.

A lack of supply and surging demand has sent prices soaring for goods from gowns to ventilators.

"One government had placed an order for 200 million masks from China. And what this did overnight to the price of masks was to treble them," Evenett said.

Air cargo rates have also shot up as airlines park planes  which often carry freight as well as passenger luggage  amid plummeting travel demand.

Air freight fares have tripled and quadrupled," Allam said. "You may have a supplier that will sell you masks at a buck 20 each. But when youre spending $80,000 to $90,00 in UPS charges, thats a lot of money."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised Wednesday that federal health authorities will not cut any corners when it comes to making sure masks provided by China meet the necessary standards.

The comments followed an announcement from the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa that the country is sending 30,000 medical masks along with thousands of gowns, gloves and goggles to Canada.

The shipment was announced amid reports that the Dutch government is recalling around 600,000 defective masks that were recently shipped from China. Spain has also raised concerns about Chinese-made COVID-19 testing kits that were faulty.

On Tuesday night, China's Ministry of Commerce announced that PPE  which includes COVID-19 test kits, face masks, ventilators and infrared thermometers  can only be exported if its manufacturers show certification by a national registry and documented proof that it meets the import country's standards. The exports will be checked at customs in China to confirm the requisite paperwork, according to the government release

At the height of the crisis there, Beijing sought to buy virtually all of the countrys medical supplies and withhold exports, Evenett said.

"Now the government is letting selected Chinese medical suppliers ship abroad. But because it's a pretty ad hoc and non-transparent system, its pretty much tantamount to an informal export ban," said Evenett.

"This is the worst type of short-term thinking," he said.
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Linkedin Ardila Syakriah (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 12:03 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f1d46a 1 National #COVID19,COVID-19,COVID-19-in-Indonesia,#coronavirus,coronavirus,hospitals,#hospital,healthcare,#healthcare Free

As the COVID-19 pandemic grows, non-coronavirus patients are worried about getting sidelined, while fearing that visiting hospitals might expose them to the highly contagious disease.

In December last year, 24-year-old freelance TVC producer Gilang Prabu was diagnosed with grade two brain tumor. It took him months on the waiting list of two cancer hospitals in Jakarta to start chemotherapy in early March, in addition to separate and more frequent general and blood check-ups.

Unfortunately for him, early March also marked the announcement of the countrys first two confirmed COVID-19 cases, although experts believe local transmissions occurred way earlier.

The outbreak has escalated rapidly since then, with the country recording more than 1,500 cases and 136 deaths.

Gilang and many others with underlying medical conditions are deemed the most at risk if infected by the virus as it could lead to complications requiring intensive care.

There is no data available to the public on the preexisting illnesses most frequently found in deceased COVID-19 patients in Indonesia. But various findings by health authorities abroad, like in cases in China, find that coronavirus patients with underlying conditions such as cardiovascular disease have higher fatality rates.

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Preventions morbidity and mortality report published on March 31, meanwhile, shows that 78 percent of ICU patients with COVID-19 in the US had at least one of underlying health problem -- diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic lung disease, long-term kidney disease and a weakened immune system.

"I'm terribly afraid of going out because my immune system is in a very bad shape. If I get infected, I will certainly not survive," Gilang told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.

But it is almost impossible for him to suspend his treatment as chances are high for his cancer to develop into advanced stage three.

Many hospitals in Indonesia have enforced health screenings for visitors and limited the number of visitors to ensure physical distancing. The Health Ministry has also suggested that those with mild symptoms self-isolate instead of seeking hospital treatment to avoid exhausting the country's healthcare system.

Some experts believe Indonesia's hospitals, unevenly spread across the country, with most in Java, are not prepared for the outbreak. Data collected by the World Bank shows that in 2015, the country only had 1.2 hospital beds per 1,000 people and four doctors per 10,000 people in 2017.

Health Ministry data, cited in modeling by the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) and the University of Indonesia's (UI) public health experts, shows that there are 276,458 hospital beds in the country, 40,829 of which are owned by the 132 COVID-19 referral hospitals.

As of March, there are 1,063 ICUs with isolation facilities, 157 isolation rooms with ventilators, 1,477 isolation wards, 4,155 oxygen tubes, 8,158 ventilators and 2,032 emergency rooms with isolation capability.

Read also: Bappenas, UI modeling shows grim projection of COVID-19 spread in Indonesia

Gilang said booking a bed in a ward at regional hospitals had always been difficult, and following the outbreak, reserving a bed in a ward and booking an appointment with specialist doctors at private hospitals had also become harder as people grew worried about their health.

"Everyone may be cautious about COVID-19, but there are millions of other people with illnesses as dangerous [as COVID-19]. They are as deserving of hospital treatment [as COVID-19 patients] because they also want to continue on living, or at least to extend their life expectancy," he said. "There are millions of us."

Indonesia has seen a growing prevalence of noninfectious chronic illnesses, according to the latest report of the five-yearly Basic Health Research (Riskesdas). The prevalence of cancer increased to 1.8 percent in 2018 from 1.4 percent in 2013, diabetes to 8.5 percent from 6.9 percent, stroke to 10.9 percent from 7 percent and chronic kidney disease to 8.5 percent from 6.9.

Dina Maharani, 24, who takes her 62-year-old father to undergo hemodialysis twice a week at Soedono General Hospital in Madiun, East Java, is worried that her father might contract the virus at the hospital -- now a COVID-19 referral hospital and currently treating nine positive patients, mostly from neighboring regions.

She said she was now pinning her hopes on the government to impose restrictions on the upcoming Idul Fitri exodus, which will see many people returning to their hometowns, prompting fears that the virus might spread further to smaller regions such as Madiun and take a toll on their limited healthcare systems.

"My father's hospital can still handle its patients [...] but God forbid, when Madiun starts seeing more cases later, the hospital will have to be selective [...] Patients like my father have to be prioritized as well as they can't live without hemodialysis," Dina said.

Public health expert at the Padjajaran University, Panji Hadisoemarto, said ensuring that non-COVID-19 patients could still receive their treatment was a "very important issue that doesn't earn enough attention".

He said that apart from applying triage to separate patients of infectious and non-infectious diseases, flattening the curve of COVID-19 infections must be done so as to not overwhelm the healthcare system and disrupt services.

"This doesn't necessarily mean that [all] COVID-19 should be prioritized, but there can be many people who will be infected by COVID-19, some of whom will need various degrees of hospital care. COVID-19 patients will take up hospitals' capacity," he said.

The Health Ministry's disease control and prevention director general, Achmad Yurianto, who is also the government's spokesperson for COVID-19 affairs, said that some hospitals, such as Jakarta's Sulianti Saroso Infectious Diseases Hospital and Persahabatan General Hospital, have been appointed to treat COVID-19 cases only. The two hospitals are among the 132 COVID-19 referral hospitals nationwide.

While the former athletes village in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, which has been turned into an emergency hospital to treat COVID-19 cases, has a capacity of 3,000 people and has so far been filled with some 300 people, according to Yurianto.

Some of the referral hospitals can still treat non-COVID-19 patients, while there are also hospitals, like the state-run Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital (RSCM), which currently do not accept COVID-19 patients at all, he said.

He, however, did not provide the exact number of hospitals treating COVID-19 patients nor comment on whether COVID-19 cases had overrun hospitals' capacity.

The number of COVID-19 cases needing hospital care could exceed hospitals' capacity by April -- in this case 50 percent of the beds at the 132 referral hospitals and 50 percent of the beds at class A and B hospitals -- without high degree of intervention that include mass testing and mandatory physical distancing, according to the Bappenas-UI modeling.

Read also: Vigilance key to avoid healthcare battle on two fronts

The outbreak has not only put a strain on hospitals but also demotivated people from donating blood. Indonesia has seen a decline in blood donors by 20 to 50 percent, while demand for blood persists, particularly for illnesses such as hemophilia, thalassemia and dengue fever, said Lilis Wijaya of the Indonesian Red Cross (PMI).

" The PMI is calling people to donate their blood. There's nothing to be afraid of because we routinely disinfect our facilities, use sterile tools and conduct health screening on every donor while providing hand sanitizer in our rooms," she said.
If you hear a bunch of sirens and see a long line of firetrucks and police cars, it may not be an emergency, but a very important birthday.

Fire companies and police departments across the Lehigh Valley region are looking to bring some joy to kids celebrating their birthdays amid the coronavirus shutdown by holding parades past the honorees homes.

The twins were given a parade today for their 9th birthdays courtesy of the township. It was quite the surprise for all of us (and our neighbors). During this time, these folks (as well as our medical professionals) are the real heroes in our community. Posted by Jeff Warren on Sunday, March 29, 2020

Officials say they are being overwhelmed by requests as soon as they post about the new drive-by service.

The Hanover Township Volunteer Fire Company in Northampton County posted about it on Sunday, and have done six so far, with 21 more scheduled, said fire Chief Scott Milham.

Milham said he has been inundated with requests, including some from outside their coverage area, which they cannot do.

This is overwhelming, Milham said. Its a bright spot for the community, and for the volunteers. It truly is a privilege to be able to do this for our community. ... Ecstatic. We are all ecstatic."

Saturday night, Milham saw a Facebook post of a police departments parade and thought, This is a pretty cool idea, he said.

The next morning, he spoke with his deputy fire chief and assist chief about doing it, and they were absolutely on board. Then they spoke to township manager, since the township owns the trucks. The township backed the idea and then Colonial Regional Police Department joined the caravan.

It just kind of snowballed from there, Milham said.

The closest thing to the parades the fire department did before was visits from Santa Claus and the kids are even happier for this than Santa Claus, he said.

For a firefighting team that usually sees people on their worst days, from a house in flames to car crashes, Milham has been blown away by the joy the parades bring, for the kids and the drivers.

This is one of greatest moments of my firefighting career, said Milham, who has been a firefighter for almost 40 years, 20 of those with Hanover Township.

#stayhome Thanks to Maria in Hanover Twp for sending us this video from this past weekend. We were happy to partner with Hanover Township Volunteer Fire Company, Northampton County PA to bring some birthday joy for kids in our community with a parade. We also visited Traditions of Hanover, The Atria of Bethlehem and Sterling Heights senior living centers too! During this time of staying home and limiting public contact, we understand it can take a toll on kids. If you have a child who would like to have a special drive by parade suprise, reach out to the fire chief at Hanover Twp. Volunteer Fire Company to set something up. Posted by Colonial Regional Police Department on Wednesday, April 1, 2020

From the four fire companies and single ambulance corps in North Whitehall Township in Lehigh County, to the Blairstown Township Police Department and fire companies in Warren County, emergency personnel are starting birthday parades across the country.

I really am glad to see it spreading. These poor kids. I feel really bad for them, Milham said.

Blairstown police are partnering with the office of emergency management, Blairstown Hose Co. No. 1 and Blairstown Ambulance Corps. for their parades. The more lights and sirens, the better.

Blairstown police posted on Tuesday about offering the parades, and by Wednesday afternoon had three dozen responses, police Chief Scott Johnsen said.

We had an overwhelming response, which is wonderful, he added.

The new plan is to do the parades every Thursday for the birthdays that fall on that week, so the first Blairstown parades will be April 2.

Otherwise, it seems like wed be out every single night, the chief said. The poor kids cant have birthday parties. (The parades) are just something a little extra than a family sitting around and having a birthday cake. ... Were really looking forward to doing this for people."

***Update- Due to a overwhelming response we will be doing the birthday celebrations every Thursday evening to celebrate... Posted by Blairstown Police Department on Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Hanover Township is trying to get out and create joy by doing the parades in bunches. Theres only the driver in each vehicle, limiting exposure hazards.

Milham usually leads the parade, since I know where were going, he said.

The first parade was for a pair of twin girls turning 9, and they got to see every one of the firetrucks, plus Colonial Regional police cruisers and an ambulance.

They were literal jumping and down. Even their mom was jumping out and down, he said.

Its a rough time for the volunteer fire departments that depend on fundraising. For Hanover Township, its EMS calls are way down, Milham said, but they still have a paid crew, and have had to purchase protective equipment and disinfectant to be able to respond to calls amid the coronavirus.

It has hit us hard, he said.

Now is usually the time they send out a fundraising letter, and they plan to do so soon with new information about the pandemic. They also accept donations on their web page here.

In North Whitehall Township, the Laurys Station Volunteer Fire Company, Neffs Volunteer Fire Company, Schnecksville Fire Department and the Tri-Clover Volunteer Fire Company, and Northern Valley EMS are hitting the parades routes together.

The first parade was planned for Wednesday night, said Steve Reimert, the safety officer with Neffs. The trucks planned to drive by two or three homes.

Since they posted about doing the parades, the Lehigh County groups received eight requests in less than 24 hours.

The goal of all of our organizations is to help benefit our community. Part of that is keeping our community in good spirits, Reimert said. Its low impact on our side, and hopefully has a large impact on children and their families."

So far weve been really blown away by the response, he added. We just want everyone to stay home, safe safe, keep washing their hands and not touching their faces.

Seeking children within Knowlton Township that are having a birthday soon. We know you can not have a birthday party... Posted by Knowlton Twp. Fire and Rescue Company #1 - Station 41 on Wednesday, April 1, 2020

The six member agencies of the North Whitehall Township Emergency Services Organization have banded together to try to... Posted by North Whitehall Township Emergency Management on Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. If theres anything about this story that needs attention, please email her. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
When Oil was discovered in Nigeria in 1956 at Oloibiri in the Niger Delta after half a century of exploration by Shell-BP, and the nation joined the ranks of oil producers in 1958 when its first oil field came on stream producing 5,100 bpd., it was, however, not the first victory in the discovery of natural resources in Nigeria.

Prior to this development, there were documented evidence of discoveries of; coal in Enugu, South Eastern Nigeria, and Tin in Jos, the present day Plateau state. Yet, the discovery of crude oil actually paved the way for the manifestation of sterling wealth that has defined the nations economic strength.

In view of the above, and true to predictions, the Federal Government in its quest to consolidate its ownership of oil in Niger Delta and to control the same, enacted the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Act, thereby establishing and authorizing the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to engage in all commercial activities relating to the petroleum industry and to enforce all regulatory measures relating to the general control of the petroleum inspectorate department. This marked the beginning of trouble in the region.

It did not end here.

Going by reports, to ensure total resources control in the region, the FG went ahead to enact laws that will ensure that compensation accrues to oil-mineral producing regions or states based upon derivation principles.

For example, in 1964, the Phillipson commision recommended a 50% derivation fund for the regions. The Ralmans Commision later increased the federal governments share to 20%. In 1969, General Yakubu Gowons administration promulgated the petroleum Decree No. 51, placing petroleum resources under the federal government and then subsequently approved a 30% derivation fund for oil producing regions. In a stark policy reversal in 1974, Gowon abolished the derivation fund, marking the end of a common distributive pool and ushering in the era of central collection and allocation of revenue to the states.

In the same style, it was also documented that when derivation was re-introduced, it was reduced to 25% in 1977, and in 1981 under Alhaji Shehu Shagari, it became 1.5%. General Ibrahim Babangida increased it to 3%. During its 1994  1995 sessions, the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) adopted a 13% derivation that General Abdusalam Abubakar subsequently included in the 1999 constitution.

While this argument about the correctness or otherwise of the 13% derivation rages, it is important to underline that two major factors have not only cast a long dark shadow on the efforts to improve the well being and economic development of the region, but plagued the peace initiatives by major stakeholders.

First, is the negation by the government that when men are not allowed to offer their sentiment on a matter which may involve the most serious and alarming consequences on them, the freedom of speech may be considered taken away, and dumb and silent they are led, like sheep to be slaughtered. The FGs reluctance to approach the challenges in the region from the human rights perspective forms the crux of the problem.

As we know, a programme is said to be development based when it factors in, and allows the people affected by the development activity to participate in ways capable of transforming their social and economic conditions rather than using them as instruments to legitimize predetermined goals and priorities.

Secondly, as AL Gore, a Former Vice President of the United State of America once noted; our policies and over dependence on fossil fuel-especially crude oil-illustrate what can happen to a great nation when reason is replaced by the influence of wealth and power.

Infact, most Nigerians have tended naturally to believe that the fierce war between ethnic and social forces over the ownership and control of oil resources in the Niger Delta are direct result of vivid display of explored-deceptions, secrecy, and the politics of fear in governments energy and environmental policies.

We face a choice about nation building. But without overlooking the contributions made by stakeholders in widening the scope of the struggle, for us to truly achieve and emancipate the region, it is important to take hope from the role of two important instruments-the social media and the Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs).

Regardless of what others may say, these key instruments have made Nigerians and of course the global community consistently mindful of the misery and poverty that the generality of the Niger Deltans have endured for almost sixty years after Independence-as well as their huge expectations from the government and the masses.

The above role did not come to me as a total surprise as NGOs have not only remained in the struggle but, proved to understand the true meaning and objective of sustainable partnership, as contained in the 2030 sustainable development agenda- a United Nation initiative and successor programme to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)- with a collection of 17 global goals formulated among other aims to promote and cater for people, peace, planet, and poverty. And has at its centre; partnership and collaboration, ecosystem thinking, co-creation and alignment of various intervention efforts by the public and private sectors and civil society.

Take as an example, it is worth remembering that the African Commission decision that found the then military administration culpable of glaring environmental injustice meted to the people of Ogoni land and other Niger Delta communities was initiated by a Non Governmental Organization.

It was the Social and Economic Rights Action Center (SERAC) in close collaboration with the New York-based Centre for Economic and Social Rights(CESR) that filed a communication (Social and Economic Rights Action Center (SERAC) Vs Nigeria) with suit Number 155/96 before the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights against the Federal Military Government of Nigeria asserting that the wild spread contamination of soil, water and air, the destruction of homes and the climate of terror visited upon the Ogoni communities constituted a violation of their rights to health, a healthy environment, housing, and food.

As a response to the communication, the Commission in October 2001, gave a well-considered rule finding the Federal Republic of Nigeria in violations of 2, 4, 14, 16, 18(1), 21 and 24 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR), and therefore recommended a total clean up of the polluted Ogoni and other adjourning communities in addition to taking preventive remedial and compensatory measures to improve economic and social outcomes for the Ogoni community.

Till this day, while the non compliance to that particlar directive by the Federal Government has remained a serious puzzle to students of political history, the Commissions decision have emerged a reference point/case study for all students of law across the globe.

Also, in communicating the Niger Delta challenge, social media has proved to be not just another platform for disseminating information that can be controlled at will. Rather, it has remained a platform for pursuing the truth, and the decentralized creation and distribution of ideas.

Certainly, what Niger Delta activists are achieving via social media has consolidated the position conversed by Weiai (Wayne) Xu and Gregory D Saxton, that globally, social media has become a positive force that can enhance, among other things, communication, stakeholder engagement, knowledge acquisition, awareness building, volunteer management, accountability, advocacy, relationship building activities and promotes community foundations, whose main goal is to address community problems.

Indeed, they have utilized social medias networking features to match make community members, build listening post, gain critical knowledge of their community-and, increasingly fostered a community that is built less on geographic boundaries than on a sense of belonging, social media provide a diverse and transcendent public dialogue.

Despite these milestones, the challenges in the region will continue until the FG recognizes the fact that it has a responsibility to lighten the burden of the people, alleviate their poverty by providing jobs for the youths, houses, secure homes, water, good roads and creating efficient infrastructures.

Jerome-Mario Utomi( [email protected] ), is a Lagos-based Media Consultant
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Linkedin Dewi Savitri Reni and Syarifah Reihana Fakhry (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Thu, April 2, 2020 09:00 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f0ed78 3 Opinion COVID-19,business,economics Free

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant economic disruptions. Governments, in an effort to check the spread of the virus, have implemented policies that have disrupted business operations globally.



In Jakarta, the government has declared a state of emergency and urged businesses to close their offices or at the very least reduce the number of employees working in the office.



This will likely, if it has not already, cause contracts and transactions to be delayed or canceled. This article discusses the repercussions of COVID-19 on contracts in Indonesia, the concept and implementation of force majeure clauses, and the ability of defaulting parties to avoid liability.



What is force majeure?



Force majeure clauses are contractual clauses that alter parties obligations and/or liabilities under a contract in the event that an extraordinary event or circumstance beyond their control prevents one or more of

the parties from fulfilling those obligations.



If the contract provides a detailed force majeure clause, the terms of that clause will generally prevail. A well-drafted force majeure clause would usually include:



 A clear description of what matters constitute a force majeure event. In order to accommodate the impact of COVID-19, wording such as pandemic or outbreak should be included.



 The consequences of the occurrence of a force majeure event. For example, will it delay the object of the agreement, or terminate it, and who will be liable for any costs incurred as a result of the force majeure.



 Procedures to be taken upon the occurrence of a force majeure event.



However, regardless of whether a contract contains such a clause, force majeure can still be applied by reason of law. In light of COVID-19, a companys nonperformance may still be excused if it can successfully argue in court that COVID-19 is a force majeure event and is able to prove that there is a direct causal link between the pandemic and its nonperformance.



One may certainly argue that the pandemic is an unexpected event that could neither have been anticipated nor avoided. And it can certainly be regarded as an impediment to business operations worldwide.



Nonetheless, it may be difficult to use COVID-19 to claim force majeure in the absence of government policies such as travel restrictions or lockdowns that have created impediments to business operations, because it would be difficult to determine at what point exactly COVID-19 could be categorized as a force majeure event.



For example, if the government enacted a citywide lockdown and ordered companies to halt business operations, and during the lockdown a business failed to perform its contractual obligations, it is clear that COVID-19 could be categorized as a force majeure event during such period.



The party claiming force majeure will want to show that any failure to perform its contractual obligations was beyond its control and that it could not have otherwise prevented or mitigated the damage from such failure.



We would suggest parties seeking to invoke force majeure for nonperformance take reasonable steps to mitigate the foreseeable damages brought about by the nonperformance, to strengthen its case in legal proceedings.



In this regard, companies should ensure that all the impacts of COVID-19, as well as the companies actions in response to such impacts, are documented. These records may be crucial to support the claim that the company took steps to mitigate the damages in the event of nonperformance.



We also encourage all businesses looking to invoke force majeure to show that they are still acting in good faith by complying with all the other requirements of the contract.



There is no doubt the COVID-19 pandemic has presented unprecedented challenges and impediments to businesses in conducting their normal operations. It is imperative that businesses enact policies and measures to protect themselves during this time. We suggest several measures companies can take in this situation.



 Review all business contracts and identify what events are regulated as force majeure, the remedies provided in the event of force majeure, as well as the requirements to invoke force majeure if operations are disrupted by the effects of COVID-19.



 Include wording or provisions on infectious disease/pandemic in new contracts and amend existing contracts if possible.



 Identify and assess the consequences of the non-performance of all valid contracts.



 Ensure that all reasonable steps are taken to avoid nonperformance or to mitigate the damages brought about by the nonperformance.



 Assemble and retain all documentation pertaining to the impact of COVID-19 on operations and the measures taken by the company in response to such impact.



 Continually engage and communicate with workers regarding updates on the pandemic.



 Create a policy for the foreseeable future (for example, a work from home policy in the event of a lockdown) and provide adequate training for workers

in an effort to prevent business operations from being severely impeded.



 Check insurance arrangements, including whether the business is covered in the event of nonperformance as a result of a pandemic.

______

Dewi Savitri Reni is a partner and Syarifah Reihana Fakhry is an associate at the Indonesian corporate law firm SSEK Legal Consultants. The views expressed here are their own and do not constitute legal advice.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the official stance of The Jakarta Post.
By Jan Strupczewski

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The EU executive proposed on Wednesday a wage-subsidy scheme to encourage employers to cut workers' hours rather than their jobs amid the coronavirus epidemic, a plan that could be worth 100 billion euros in borrowing guaranteed by all EU countries.

The proposal might find favour in Italy, Spain, France and other countries which last week demanded a common debt instrument issued by an EU institution to fight the economic downturn.

Faced with strong opposition from Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and Austria, which oppose joint debt issuance, EU leaders asked their finance ministers to come up with workable proposals by next week.

European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said the short work week initiative, modelled on an the successful German Kurzarbeit scheme, "is intended to help Italy, Spain and all other countries that have been hard hit".

"Companies are paying salaries to their employees, even if, right now, they are not making money. Europe is now coming to their support," she said.

"If ... companies run out of work because of a temporary external shock like corona, they should not lay off their workers."

Von der Leyen did not give financing details, which are only to be released on Thursday, but a senior EU official said the size of the plan could be 100 billion euros.

"The EU would borrow against guarantees given by member states. It is about ensuring that all EU countries can have it and ease pressure on workers," the official said.

Under the German scheme, the government pays part of a worker's wages whose hours are shortened during a slowdown. This preserves jobs and spending power so that recovery from a slowdown is faster and easier.

Other options under consideration are a credit line from the euro zone's bailout fund, more lending from the European Investment Bank and the use of the bloc's joint long-term budget either directly or for guarantees for leveraged borrowing.

Story continues

The commission has already relaxed curbs on state aid and is allowing states to spend freely to shield their economies.

National EU envoys debating the package on Wednesday said the 27 leaders should only meet again once the ministers have found common ground.

"We don't want to see a repetition of heated discussions," one senior EU diplomat told the closed-door meeting, according to diplomatic sources briefed on it.

EU unity has already been tested by the epidemic, with governments squabbling over medical equipment and emergency checks on what are normally Europe's open internal borders.

The next long-term EU budget, which member states have yet to agree on, starts in 2021 and runs until 2027. The commission is working on a coronavirus update of an earlier draft, which would be worth just above 1% of the bloc's Gross National Income, or some 1 trillion euros ($1.09 trillion).

Given the uncertainty over how deep the disease-induced economic slump would be, the EU ambassadors on Wednesday considered fleshing out a shorter, emergency budget for a year or two instead.

($1 = 0.9154 euros)

(Additional reporting by Francesco Guarascio and Gabriela Baczynska; editing by John Stonestreet and Nick Macfie)
A major flood control structure on the Mississippi River may have to soon be opened up to ease pressure on New Orleans levees, federal authorities said on March 31.

The river is expected to crest above 17 feet (5.2 meters) at a key New Orleans gauge as early as April 3, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said in a news release.

That would likely lead to the opening of a structure that diverts water through the Bonnet Carre Spillway. It would be the first time the structure has been used three years in a row to keep the river from damaging New Orleans levees.

The spillway was created to limit the rivers rush past New Orleans, keeping it below 1.25 million cubic feet (35,400 cubic meters) per second. But opening the spillway has environmental effects, sending river water and the pollutants it carries into brackish Lake Pontchartrain north of New Orleans and the Mississippi Sound, dropping their normal salinity levels.

Two extended openings of the structure last year were blamed by Mississippi authorities for feeding toxic algae blooms and killing oysters, dolphins and other sea life. The U.S. Commerce Department declared an economic disaster in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama because of extreme flooding events in the Gulf of Mexico.

A federal lawsuit filed in Mississippi in December by several cities, counties and groups accuses the corps and commission of violating federal law by opening the spillway more frequently. They say the defendants hurt wildlife and localities by opening it for prolonged periods of time without considering the consequences.

Joe Spraggins, who heads the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, told The Sun Herald in Biloxi, Mississippi, that he hopes the Bonnet Carre will be opened for fewer days this year. He said damage would be less if the spillway could be closed by the end of April. He expects problems if the freshwater flow continues as the sound grows warmer.

The Corps said the announcement was the result of an unexpectedly high forecast for the rivers crest. The statement stressed that the forecast could change.

Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Louisiana Mississippi
A 65-year-old Muslim man from Mumbai's suburb Malad, who died of coronavirus infection, was cremated after the trustees of a cemetery denied permission to bury his body there, his family members alleged on Thursday

Mumbai: A 65-year-old Muslim man from Mumbai's suburb Malad, who died of coronavirus infection, was cremated after the trustees of a cemetery denied permission to bury his body there, his family members alleged on Thursday.

The incident took place on Wednesday.

The patient, a resident of Collector Compound in Malwani, died at a civic-run hospital in Jogeshwari East early on Wednesday.

One of the family members of the deceased alleged that when his body was taken to Malad Malwadni Kabrastan, its trustees denied burial "as he was coronavirus positive".

"This was despite the local civic authorities giving permission for the burial at 4 am," he said.

The local police and a politician then tried to intervene and urged the trustees to allow the burial, but the latter did not budge, the family member said.

Thereafter, some social workers intervened and requested a nearby Hindu crematorium to cremate the body. As they agreed to do so, the man was finally cremated at 10 am.

Talking to PTI, Maharashtra minister and Malwani MLA, Aslam Shaikh, said, "As per the government guidelines, Muslim COVID-19 victims should be buried at a cemetery, which is closest to the place where the patient died."

"But in this case, the family of the deceased took his body directly to Malad Malwani Kabrastan without informing anyone, including trustees of the cemetery, and then demanded his burial, he said.

"Strict action should be taken against the civic staffs, who brought the body to the cemetery despite knowing the guidelines," he said, adding that a day before this incident, another coronavirus victim had been buried at that cemetery.

The son of the deceased said, "After my father was declared dead at the hospital no one came to help me. I kept sitting beside the body outside the hospital for more than three hours."

"We wanted to bury his body at the Malad-Malwani Kabrastan. But when we reached there, the trustees of the cemetery refused to allow the burial saying he was a COVID-19 patient," he said.

"After the intervention by the police and other authorities, the body was cremated at a nearby Hindu shamshan bhoomi (crematorium)," he added.

Local Samajwadi Party corporator Rukhsana Siddique said, "When the civic staffers know that as per the circular, a COVID-19 victim should be buried at a nearby cemetery, then why died they took the body to Malad (West) although he died at a hospital in Jogeshwari (East)?"

The corporator, however, expressed shock over the denial of the burial of the body at the cemetery.
Meal distribution schedule

Free meals for Baraboo School District residents who are 18 and under are distributed from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday-Friday starting this week at:

Baraboo High School, 1201 Draper St.

Al Behrman Elementary School, 400 Mulberry St., Baraboo

Starting Monday, the following six locations will be added for meal distribution at the listed times:
Pacific Gas and Electric Company residential customers will receive the California Climate Credit on their bills during the April billing cycle.

The credit totals $62.91 for PG&E residential customers receiving both natural gas and electric service. For natural gas-only residential customers the credit will be $27.18, and for electric-only residential customers the credit will be $35.73.

This credit is especially timely given that many residential customers under stay-at-home orders may be using more energy than usual, which could increase their energy bills.

During the COVID-19 public health crisis, we know that many of our customers may face uncertainty and financial instability due to school and childcare closures, job loss and other economic impacts. We want customers to be aware that the semi-annual California Climate Credit will help reduce their energy costs this month, said Laurie Giammona, PG&E senior vice president and chief customer officer.

California requires power plants, natural gas providers and other large industries that emit greenhouse gases to buy carbon pollution permits from auctions managed by the California Air Resources Board. The California Climate Credit is customers share of the payments from the states program. The California Public Utilities Commission oversees the program. The states investor-owned utilities and Community Choice Aggregators administer the credits to customers.

Editors Note: Because of the health implications of the COVID-19 virus, this article is being made available free to subscribers and non-subscribers alike. If youd like to join us in supporting the mission of local journalism, please visit napavalleyregister.com/members/join/.
Help India!

Dr. Ram Puniyani

The World today (March 2020) is gripped with the pandemic of Corona Virus. While it began from China, currently it has gripped various countries; India is also facing the problem of mammoth proportions. Many steps are being taken, and many more are need of the hour. Apart from other things, what will make the battle against this threat to global-Indian health more difficult is the parallel promotion of faith based practices by the ruling dispensation and its myriad associates for whom, ancient Indian practices had all ingredients to deal with the human calamities. Two disturbing examples need to be deliberated to understand the intensity of the blind practices, which have become running undercurrent of our social life in recent times. It is not too long ago that the actions of faith based political ideology led to the murders of the likes of Dr. Narendra Dabholkar, Goving Pansare and M.M. Kalburgi. They were fighting against the practitioners and promoters of blind faith. These sections have got encouragement with the rise of sectarian nationalism.

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On 22nd March Sunday 2020, the Prime minster had given a call for day long Janata curfew and to come to balconies to clap, to beat the thalis, utensils to appreciate the work being done by the health professionals. While the gesture to thank the work of health professional was well called for, it took another turn at places. Many processions were organized with people coming together, violating the physical distancing norms. They were blowing conch, beating utensils and doing clapping etc. The reason for this was not far to seek. The Maharashtra BJP leader Shaina N.C. in her tweet, while appreciating the PM for this call of making noise said that this making sounds will kill the bacteria/viruses. As per her, this highly re-tweeted statement drew from Puranas, state that beating of shells, blowing of conch kills bacteria and viruses. Whatsapp messages were also flooding the social media with similar messages.

The second disturbing thing was the actions of Swami Chakrapani Maharaj, who had organized Gomutra (Cow Urine) Party, where cow urine was distributed and many consumed it with the understanding that this will help prevent/cure the Corona virus. Another BJP leader also organized similar program, in which one of the person drinking cow urine fell sick. Not to be left behind another BJP worthy, the MLA from Assam, Suman Haripriya elaborated the virtues of Cow dung.

It is not surprising that most of the Gomutra, Cow dung promotions came from those associated with the BJP ideology. Cow Urine has been in news more during last couple of decades since the BJP led NDA came to power in 1998. One of the close associates of Mr. Modi Shankar Bhai Vegad from Gujarat claims that that cow urine is the secret of his being healthy despite being 76 years old. The peak of such claims comes with Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, current BJP MP from Bhopal and an accused in Malegaon terror blast, who claimed that her breast cancer got cured due to this cow urine. Mercifully her treating surgeon told us the truth that he had performed three surgeries on her for her ailment.

How do we believe or reject the claims of cow urine being the magic potion treating every conceivable disorder? While this question has been looming in the air, the ruling Government is allotting huge funds for so called research on Cow Urine, Panchgavya (a mixture of cow dung, Cow urine, milk, curd and ghee) etc. The central research agencies are calling for research on cow products, including the specificities of Indian cow!

In medical science the introduction of a medicine are backed up by biochemical studies, pre clinical trials, (Double blind trials with placebos) and post introduction evaluations. In case of these cow products what is guiding these actions is pure faith, manufactured through various processes. As far as cow urine is concerned we know that like the urine of other animals, its a combination of discarded substances from the body. It has over 90% water; it has Urea, creatinine, sulphates, phosphates etc. There are no clinical studies to back up the claims. It is purely from ideological perspective that some elements are imposing-propagating the worth of cow urine.

It is part of the whole project of Hindu nationalism, which wants to impose the ancient values of birth based hierarchy of caste and gender on the society. On parallels track it wants to state that ancient India had already achieved the acme of achievements in all areas of science and technology, be it Pushpak Viman, plastic surgery, bio technology, television and internet. This is part of the overall political agenda where in the name of Golden past faith based understandings are being presented with reverence. It is the attempt to adorn the superiority of Hindu traditional values. In matters of cow, on one hand the cow-beef campaign led to the phenomenon of lynchings and on the other the cow products are being promoted. This promotion has also led to the commercial exploitation of cow urine in different products of Baba Ramdevs Patanjali products and others.

The very concept of fighting the pandemic of the proportion of Corona does require massive efforts on the part of the Government and the society. In India the rising impact of Hindu Nationalism, being spearhead by RSS has spread the understandings which are totally against science and reason. RSS to pursue its agenda has set up Vigyan Bharati, which puts forwards the extracts from Puranas etc. as science. Further to this in Nagpur a Go Vigyan Anusandhan Kendra has also been established to propagate these understandings which are neither logical nor can stand the scrutiny of scientific methods.

The propagation of such things will retard the process of progress and is already posing obstacles to dealing with the pandemic as irrational things have been drilled into the understanding of the section of society. The ruling authorities have to come forward and undo these detrimental practices.
A Nigerian man reported to have searched for a job for six good years before eventually securing one this year has sadly died in an autocrash just day away from receiving his first salary.

According to reports, Sylvanus Okpanachi graduated from the university in 2013 but remained jobless since that time till recently when he got employed.

However, unfortunately, even before he would receive his first salary on Monday, October 22, he had died in a road accident on Sunday, October 20.

A friend who saw him last Friday, two days before his death, shared the story. He told of their last encounter and the last words Mr Okpanachi said to him.

Read the full narration below:
The Department of Health has confirmed chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Tony Holohan has returned to work after a brief illness.

"The CMO is back at his desk," Elizabeth Canavan, assistant Secretary-General said at today's daily briefing on Government measures in response to Covid-19.
Following the war, he graduated from the University of Colorado and worked as a chemical engineer for several oil and chemical companies. He retired from Inland Steel as chief lubrication engineer in 1985. Bill and Olga built a house in Munster in 1957 and resided there until 2014.

William never retired from doing the things he loved: spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren. He loved educating his family about their Carpatho-Rusyn heritage and made several trips to Europe and Slovakia to meet the relatives of his parents. Later in life he spoke of his adventures during the war. At the age of 77, he learned to use the internet so he could stay in touch with friends and family. He loved being physically active and continued going to the Purdue Calumet gym and later the Jeffersonville YMCA. He stayed physically active until a month before he died.

Bill and Olga loved the Indiana Dunes and were early members of Save the Dunes when recruited by their friend Sylvia Troy.
Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story on the alleged links between the country's powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda. Sheikh was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

Karachi: A Pakistani court on Thursday overturned the death sentence of British-born top al-Qaeda leader Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was convicted in the abduction and murder of US journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002.

Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story on the alleged links between the country's powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda.

Sheikh was arrested from Lahore in February 2002 and sentenced to death five months later by an anti-terrorism court.

The incident came three years after Sheikh, along with Jaish-e-Mohammad chief Masood Azhar and Mushtaq Ahmed Zargar, was released by India in 1999 and given safe passage to Afghanistan in exchange for the nearly 150 passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines Flight 814.

On Thursday, the Sindh High Court commuted the death sentence of Sheikh, 46, to seven years in prison. Sheikh has been in jail for the past 18 years.

A two-judge bench headed by Justice Mohammad Karim Khan Agha also acquitted the three others - Fahad Naseem, Salman Saqib, and Sheikh Adil- serving life sentences in the case, the Dawn newspaper reported.

The bench announced the verdict on the appeals filed by the four convicts 18 years ago.

It also dismissed an appeal of the state seeking enhancement of life term of the three co-accused, the paper said.

According to the report, Sheikh's seven-year prison will be counted from the time served in jail.

While arguing the case, the lawyers for the appellants submitted that the prosecution had miserably failed to prove its case against their clients beyond any reasonable doubt and prosecution witnesses were mostly policemen, whose testimonies could not be relied upon.

They had further contended that Naseem and Adil's confessions before a judicial magistrate were defective and not voluntary.

They also argued that the recovery of the laptop from Naseem was shown to have been made on 11 February 2002 while computer expert Ronald Joseph had deposed that he was given the computer for verification on 4 February and he examined the laptop for six days.

Deputy Prosecutor General Saleem Akhtar had supported the trial court's verdict and submitted that the prosecution had proved its case against the appellants beyond a shadow of doubt and had requested the court to dismiss the appeals, the report said.

According to a report in The Express Tribune, in 2014, an anti-terrorism court had acquitted Qari Hashim, a co-accused in the case due to a lack of evidence. The same year, Sheikh allegedly attempted suicide in his prison cell by hanging himself with a cloth from the ventilator.

In January 2011, a report released by the Pearl Project at Georgetown University following an investigation into his death revealed that the wrong men were convicted for Pearl's murder.

In February 2016, the Pakistan Army arrested more than 100 militants and foiled a jailbreak attempt by al-Qaeda terrorists to free Sheikh and other leaders of the terror group.

Thursday's verdict came more than a month after the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force warned Pakistan that stern action will be taken against it if the country fails to check the flow of money to terror groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) among others.

The FATF, which supervises the effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing, last year placed Pakistan on its 'Grey List' of countries for failure to curb funneling of funds to terror groups like LeT and JeM.

If not removed off the list by April end, Pakistan may move to a blacklist of countries that face severe economic sanctions, such as Iran.
RICHMOND (BCN)

In preparation for a massive surge in novel coronavirus cases, Contra Costa County is converting a massive event venue on the Richmond waterfront into a medical station.

County officials are working with the California National Guard and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Division of Strategic National Stockpile to convert the Craneway Pavilion by the third week of April -- which is when the virus is expected to peak in the Bay Area.

Beds and medical supplies provided by the federal government are being trucked in by the National Guard in order to create a 250-bed temporary medical facility that can care for the expected surge in COVID-19 patients, according to county officials.

"Dedicated county physicians, nurses and other professional staff will provide vital medical care in this historic building to help prevent our local hospitals from becoming overburdened by an expected surge in patients," said Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia in a news release announcing the conversion.

The medical station is intended for an overflow of COVID-19 patients who don't need ICU-level care in the event that local hospitals are unable to accommodate a surge in cases.

In addition, the county is setting up other sites to care for patients outside of hospitals and is planning to use hotels for homeless residents.

The Craneway Pavilion was built as a Ford auto assembly plant in 1937 and was used to build Jeeps, tanks and other military vehicles during World War II. It is part of the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historical Park.

"The Craneway played an essential part in winning World War II. Today it is being repurposed to fight another global war," said Richmond Mayor Tom Butt. "This facility will help not only our local communities but contribute to the overall effort to contain COVID-19."

Other local governments around the state and nation are also setting up new temporary medical facilities to cope with the pandemic, including San Mateo County, which now has 250 hospital beds in the County Event Center.

As of Thursday morning, Contra Costa County had 250 COVID-19 cases and 3 deaths while the state had 9,944 cases and 213 deaths.

On Tuesday, the county and several other Bay Area governments extended their stay-at-home orders through May 3 to try to limit the spread of the virus in the region.

The extension includes the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara, as well as the city of Berkeley.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
(Photo : ISS/NASA ) NASA: New York Gets the Chance to See International Space Station on Skies Tomorrow Night! Here's How (Photo : ISS/NASA ) NASA: New York Gets the Chance to See International Space Station on Skies Tomorrow Night! Here's How (Photo : Screenshot from: NASA Spot The Station Website ) NASA: New York Gets the Chance to See International Space Station on Skies Tomorrow Night! Here's How

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) International Space Station (ISS) may visit you starting tomorrow until the next few days. If you're located in New York, for example, here some good news for you: Beginning on the evening of April 3, at around 9:14 P.M., New Yorkers will get the chance to see a glimpse of the ISS for as long as four minutes. Here's what you should know:

NASA Spot the Station gives you up to 6 minutes to see ISS right above!

According to the NASA's Spot the Station feature on their website, the ISS will have a limited time period to greet New Yorkers on the evening of April 3. It's not every day that one gets the chance to see the ISS pass right above you, so New Yorkers must seize this opportunity to go outside or just near their windows to see the massive space structure fly by. With most cities on lockdown, there will be less light from surrounding buildings or vehicles that will make your viewing easier.

The space station orbits around Earth at least 16 times a day. This means that every day there could be multiple chances for its appearance. On earth, the station will be 255 miles above you. You can still it above you at night especially on days like today where everyone is in lockdown and there are less distractions that could impede visibility.

On the other hand, if you're not located in New York or any nearby state, you can still get the chance to spot the ISS. Here's what you should do: Visit the NASA Spot the Station website. There you can track where the station is currently located in space.

Type your current city and hit the search bar. Look for the blue pins surrounding the map. The blue pins indicate that the ISS is expected to be seen above the location. The ISS is visible to the naked eye for as as long as six minutes depending where on the surface of the planet you're located.

What does it look like from Earth?

Once you have the schedule of the ISS pass-by in your area, what are the things you must look for?

According to CNBC, ISS is like a star that doesn't flicker. It is fast-moving with speeds of up to 17,500 miles per hour. However, chances of taking an image or looking at it directly are still possible.

The station currently houses two American astronauts, Jessica Meir and Andrew Morgan, as well as one Russian cosmonaut Oleg Skripochka.

Make sure to wave hello to them when the ISS passes by right above you!

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- The largest lockdown in history is not, to put it mildly, going as planned. Within a few days of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announcing on national television that the country was being shut down for three weeks, hundreds of thousands took to the countrys highways, marching long distances back to their home towns and villages. Others thronged bus stationsthe trains are not runninghoping for a bus back home. At least 22 people have reportedly died in the mass migration, exhausted and hungry.

The point of Indias lockdown, as elsewhere, is to prevent transmission of the novel coronavirus. But, if anything, this vast movement of people likely means the virus will find its way to the poorer rural parts of India where it could do the most damage. Theres certainly little social distancing in evidence in the photos of thousands of people jostling each other waiting for buses.

All this couldand shouldhave been avoided. There was no need for the government in Delhi not to prepare citizens for what a lockdown would entail. Nor was the government itself anywhere near prepared for what the crisis would ask of its own resources.

It can make no excuses for this failure. Given how minimal quarantining and testing has been, its been obvious for weeks now that some kind of Wuhan-style shutdown was inevitable in the worlds second-biggest country. And yet the government seems to have worked harder on its own public-relations battle than on figuring out how the lockdown would affect Indias poorest people.

This reflects something deeply callous about the Indian state. The government should have recognized that those who earn a daily wage, who might not be able to make rent or even eat, would need to leave cities for their homes in the countryside. Part of the reason it didnt is that these people have always been invisible to the Indian state. Successive governments have sought to set up welfare systems targeting farmers, or workers in the formal factory sector, or rural women. And, when this administrations relief package was announced, it was precisely those groups who received aid.

Story continues

Yet those who have taken to Indias highways are the urban poor and recent migrants, who receive very little welfare because they made the mistake of moving away from the villages where they vote and receive their food ration. By relying in this crisis on the same welfare system that pretends they dont exist, the government left them with no other option but to pack up and leave.

Officials probably didnt want to get adventurous about their relief package and push out more money, quickly, through the channels that already exist. But, as I argued last week, any such shutdown requires the government to move beyond its comfort zone and do things it hasnt before. At the very least, Modi himself should have had words of reassurance for those most at risk when he announced the shutdown. Part of the Modi mystique is that he himself emerged from relative poverty, making his governments blindness to the poor at this moment that much more depressing.

The scenes that played out after the lockdownpolicemen beating up grocery shoppers and deliverymen, exhausted 90-year-old ladies walking 400 kilometers, migrants being hosed down by a chlorine solutionhave exposed the cruelty that too often infects Indias dysfunctional state machinery. This is awful at any time but its particularly dangerous now, when the lockdowns success as a public health measure depends upon public cooperation and trust in the government.

This deafness to the needs of its own citizens is, in fact, part of why the Indian state struggles to respond to emergencies. Yes, India is a democracy and its leaders are accountable to citizens. But the state itself does not always behave like a democracy should. Democracies do well when every level of the state machinery works to anticipate what people need. Here in India we have authoritarian instincts combined with democratic liberties. It makes for an ineffective combinationand one that is particularly ill-suited to fighting a pandemic or minimizing human suffering.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners.

Mihir Sharma is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He was a columnist for the Indian Express and the Business Standard, and he is the author of Restart: The Last Chance for the Indian Economy.

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion

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Pedestrians wear face masks to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Wednesday, April 1, 2020, in Pyongyang, North Korea.

North Korea has ordered residents to wear face masks in public to combat the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, but a scarcity of masks is forcing some to make their own merely to comply with the orders, posing the risk that hastily made masks will not stop the pathogen, a health expert told RFA.

Pyongyang has yet to report a single confirmed case of the virus within the country, but the government has been taking extensive preventative measures, leading experts to believe that the virus is already there.

The U.S.-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) do not currently recommend that healthy people wear masks or respirators in public to protect themselves from COVID-19. But masks have been a widespread response in Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea, where it is common for those stricken with colds or the flu to wear the facial barriers to protect others.

With supply shortages in North Korea, residents are making their own masks from home, which can be effective if made of the proper materials.

But most are being hastily made so that people can nominally comply with government orders, enabling them to go outside without being harassed by authorities.

A resident of Ryanggang province told RFAs Korean Service that the mask order has been in place since mid-March.

In the middle this month, the party committee here in Ryanggang province asked each factory, company and neighborhood watch unit to give the instruction to wear masks in our daily lives, said the source.

They stressed that the preventative measures against the coronavirus must be carried out. The rules even say children must stay more than five meters from doorways unless they are wearing masks, so people were scrambling to look for masks, the source added.

But with the sudden order creating a demand greater than supply, many North Koreans were unable to procure masks, and were forced to adopt creative solutions to satisfy the government order.

Most residents, because they were unable to find a proper mask, are simply making their own masks at home, the source said.

They cut out pieces of cloth, making something that looks like a mask, to deceive people into thinking they are wearing proper masks, the source added.

A healthcare provider who fled North Korea and currently resides in the South told RFA Monday that homemade masks, when made improperly, offer very little in the way of preventing the spread of viruses.

When made out of cloth, the fabric itself has not been sterilized, the former refugee said.

I think [these masks] are only perfunctory because [the people] have no choice but to make their own just to follow the states coercion. They are hardly effective.

The first source said that the homemade cloth masks are widely used as people try to comply with the governments orders.

They sell [proper] masks in the local markets but the price of a single Chinese mask is equivalent to that of a few kilograms of rice. Who can afford to buy that? said the first source.

Another source, a resident of North Hamgyong province told RFA Monday that similar rules were in effect there as well.

More and more people are using cloth to make masks because the quarantine center is strongly mandating that they wear masks [in public], said the North Hamgyong resident.

The people complain that they cant afford to buy masks, saying that if they had enough money to buy them, they would spend their money on more food instead, the North Hamgyong resident added.

Stories in the region are spreading that restrictions imposed because of the coronavirus will be lifted in 20 days, according to the North Hamgyong resident.

People believe that if they can endure for the next 20 days, they wont be harassed if they go outside without a mask anymore, so they are just trying to get by with their homemade cloth masks.

A second former North Korean refugee in South Korea who worked in the healthcare industry said that homemade masks lack antiviral filters that can be found in medical grade masks.

What the people there are making is not completely ineffective, but theres a huge difference between masks with these filters and those without, he said.

Airborne droplets [expelled by a cough or sneeze] may have virus particles in them, so the government must produce and provide masks, he added.

They shouldnt be working on nuclear weapons. They should be providing masks.

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams on Wednesday said he asked the CDC to review its stance on public masks, saying that new evidence suggests they might be effective in stopping asymptomatic carriers of the coronavirus from spreading it. He reiterated that the N95 grade masks should be reserved for medical professionals, though.

Medical experts in the U.S. have advised that the making of masks at home might be helpful if they have multiple layers. The New York Times Tuesday published step-by-step instructions on how to make a proper mask for personal use.

Reported by Jieun Kim for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Sometimes trades take days or even weeks to come together. That was not the case for Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane when he was able to pull off a trade with the Minnesota Vikings for Stefon Diggs.

In an hour-plus media call, Beane broke down how the trade came together pretty quickly.

Yeah, so, it was that Monday the negotiating period started around noon, Beane said when asked about making initial contact with the Vikings. "Late afternoon, I dont know exactly the time, it was 4:00 or 4:30, maybe 5:00 somewhere in there, we reached out as we do all the times we hear rumors. You know, some of the same rumors we heard at the trade deadline last season on some guys.

"I think it was pretty open that we were snooping around mid-season to make a trade for another receiver, but we couldnt find a deal that worked for us. Stefon was one we looked into at that point along with some other guys, Minnesota was not willing to part with him at that point.

But we checked back in, it didnt seem like a definitive, 100% no, they just said listen were not shopping him, we just agreed to a contract a little over a year ago. So we talked to them and they just said well listen but its got to be something because we need to replace this guy and hes our No. 1 receiver.

At that point, Beane acknowledged that the team was talking with free-agent wide receivers. It was recently revealed by Emmanuel Sanders that he was considering joining the Bills before the Diggs trade was completed. Beane eventually circled back to the Vikings and within 20 to 30 minutes, the two sides were able to agree to a deal.

So we did that, we were talking to other receivers and agents and working through there. Looking to see what was available and what our options were. And then at the end of the night, I had told Minnesota that we would circle back and they were starting to get a little antsy because they were starting to get some pressure and there were some other teams involved. So we worked on it probably around 9:45 or so and 20 or 30 minutes later we got it knocked out.

After not being able to acquire Diggs at the trade deadline last season, Beane was able to get a deal done within hours during his second attempt. As for parting with his first-round pick to get Diggs, Beane acknowledged that he views the talented wide receiver as the Bills No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft.

It is one of those things where I view it, Thats our first-round pick  The way Im viewing it with the draft capital that we moved to acquire him is that we moved up, lets just say, four spots. We traded up there and we got him and we know the player. Its just a more proven thing right now. And, again, what were dealing with did weigh into that. I know this guy knows ball, will be able to understand the verbiage once he learns our system quicker than (a draft pick). A lot of the stuff in college is all signaled in. A lot of these guys arent in huddles. So, the biggest transition for these receivers, beyond the routes, the physical stuff, is just hearing these long play calls in the huddle and processing it in their head, from as little as ,Do I go left? Do I go right? Am I on the ball? Am I off the ball? Now Ive got to start reading what coverage theyre in to know what route Ive got to do, whether Ive got to convert. All those things, the mental part is so hard. And thats why I think so many receivers, we talk about it all the time, probably one of the higher bust rates across the league. I think its more mental than physical.

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Several Indian startups, like Acko, Droom, Exotel, and MakeMyTrip have started to cut jobs as the coronavirus pandemic has dented their financial prospects. In some cases, these companies have asked their employees to take pay cuts to keep their businesses running.

Online insurance firm Acko has laid off around 50 employees, according to a report by the Economic Times. A majority of laid-off staff was employed in Acko's customer service, operation sales, and marketing segments. Acko founder Varun Dua said that businesses impacted by the pandemic are not going to recover soon. He added that the leadership team has taken voluntary salary cuts between 50 per cent and 70 per cent cut.

Online travel firms like MakeMyTrip, Cleartrip and hospitality firms Fab Hotels have also laid off numerous employees amid the lockdown. Last month, MakeMyTrip founder Deep Kalra had said that pay cut would happen across top and managerial levels of the company. MakeMyTrip (MMT) Limited and subsidiaries - Goibibo and redBus also slashed salary of their employees. Travel player ixigo has also announced salary cut across all levels. On the other hand, US-based travel form Fareportal has dismissed 500 people in India.

Also read: Coronavirus impact: MakeMyTrip, Goibibo, redBus employees face salary cut, fear of job loss

Another startup Exotel has put a salary cap at Rs 40,000 for the next two months. To show appreciation to employees the company is offering compensation in the form of ESOPs, Extol CEO Shivakumar Ganesan added.

In March, startups like Bounce and Drivezy fired staff members to stay afloat. Bike rental startup Bounce is planning for 20 to 60 per cent pay cut to run its business amid the crisis. Bounce witnessed a 10 to 15 per cent drop in ridership. The company had laid off employees in December 2019 due to the economic slowdown.

Droom, a used car online marketplace, has said that it will be cutting 15 per cent salary in April. However, it denied layoffs.

A majority of the startups have said that they were gauging the situation and will take measures after the lockdown.

Also read: Zoom, Houseparty under scrutiny for privacy violations

Also read: Coronavirus crisis: Reliance seeks 10 Air India charter flights for medical supplies from China
The US Coast Guard has ordered foreign passenger vessels with sick passengers to steer clear of US ports and prepare to care for patients on board their vessels for an indefinite period of time, or seek help from other countries.

In a marine safety information bulletin published on 29 March, the United States Coast Guard stated that emergency evacuations from such vessels are putting a strain on local medical resources

This is necessary as shore-side medical facilities may reach full capacity and lose the ability to accept and effectively treat additional critically-ill patients, the letter read.

The rules apply to any vessel carrying more than 50 people and were signed off by Coast Guard Rear Admiral EC Jones, whose Coast Guard district includes Florida, Puerto Rico, Georgia and South Carolina.

The release used Miami as an example of a port they said was becoming overwhelmed due to the coronavirus pandemic and would no longer be able to accept critically ill patients from offshore.

Medical facilities in the Port of Miami, for example, are no longer accepting MEDEVAC patients due to limited hospital capacity and it is expected that neighbouring counties will follow suit, the letter said

Foreign-flagged vessels include those registered in the Bahamas, Panama and other countries, but which are owned by US cruise companies.

The release singles these out directly, writing foreign-flagged vessels that loiter beyond US territorial seas, particularly those registered to The Bahamas, that require a MEDEVAC to a shoreside facility should seek flag state support prior to seeking support from the limited facilities in the US

The memo now orders those ships to seek medical care in the countries where they are registered, rather than rely on US medical services.

While the cruise ship industry is still under a 30-day lockdown preventing all trips from the US from 14 March, many ships still remain at sea from before the suspension.

The Miami Herald, which first reported the document, also said that 17 ships are lined up at Port Miami and Port Everglades, and more than a dozen others miles offshore.

The move comes as Florida's state governor Ron DeSantis pushed back on requests to allow more than 1,000 people to disembark from the Zaandam, where almost 200 passengers have suspected Covid-19 symptoms and four people have died.

If cruise ships wish to evacuate a sick passenger for treatment at the ports they must consult with the Coast Guard which will consider if a transfer is necessary and if enough medical resources are available to accommodate the passenger.

The cruise line will be completely responsible for providing the entire process of treatment from a private ambulance to the hospital bed.

The new requirements laid out by the memo are said to be effective immediately.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 2

By Nargiz Sadikhova  Trend:

Small and medium business (SME) will be exempt from paying taxes in Kazakhstan till Oct. 1, 2020, Kazakhstans Minister of National Economy Ruslan Dalenov said, Trend reports with reference to the press office of Kazakhstans prime minister.

Dalenov made the statement during conference call of Kazakhstans government held on Apr. 2, during which he reported on the updated macroeconomic forecast for 2020 as part of the socio-economic development forecast for 2020-2024.

He said that based on the adjusted macroeconomic forecast, the forecast of the parameters of the republican budget for 2020 has been reconsidered.

Revenues of the republican budget excluding transfers in 2020 are estimated at 6.4 trillion tenge ($14.3 billion), which is 1.6 trillion tenge ($3.7 billion) less than the approved plan.

Dalenov added that the main decline is expected in terms of VAT, ETP for crude oil and revenues for the use of natural resources.

A property tax exemption has been established before the end of the year for large shopping facilities, shopping centers, cinemas, theaters, exhibitions and catering facilities, a hotel, hostels, and tourist activities. Individual entrepreneurs working in accordance with the generally established taxation procedure are exempted from individual income tax till the end of this year.

In order to support countrys agro-industrial complex, agricultural producers were exempt from paying land tax on agricultural land until the end of the year.

The import of agro-industrial goods is also exempted from VAT till the end of the year. At the same time, the VAT rate was reduced from 12 percent to 8 percent on socially significant food products for the period from Mar. 30 to Oct. 1, 2020.

Small and medium-sized businesses will be exempt from paying taxes and making social payments till Oct. 1, 2020 (individual income tax, social tax, compulsory pension contributions, contributions and deductions for compulsory health insurance and social contributions).

This measure covers sectors of tourism, catering, hotel business, as well as large retail facilities, shopping centers, cinemas, theaters, exhibitions and sports and fitness facilities, trade entities, with the exception of the food stores and drugstores, transportation services, consulting services and information technology.

A delay has been introduced for SMEs on the payment of all taxes and mandatory payments to the budget and social contributions till Jun. 1, 2020 (income tax, social tax, social and medical insurance for employees).

In addition, over the period of the state of emergency, tax audits and mandatory collection of tax, customs and social debt were suspended.

Dalenov also noted that in order to cover the expected shortfalls in budget revenues and to finance the anti-crisis package of measures, the guaranteed transfer from Kazakhstans National Fund will be increased by 2 trillion tenge ($4.6 billion) to 4.7 trillion tenge (10.4 trillion) in 2020.

Overall, the republican budget expenditures are projected at 14.2 trillion tenge ($31.8 billion) which is 1.3 trillion tenge ($3.02 billion) more compared to the previously approved amount.

The budget deficit is planned at 3.5 percent of GDP with an increase by 840.7 billion tenge ($1.8 billion). The level of non-oil deficit will be 10.8 percent of GDP.

---

Follow the author on twitter: @nargiz_sadikh
EDITOR'S NOTE: Because of concerns regarding the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), many community activities and events have been canceled or postponed. Below is a list of events the Lake County Star has confirmed are canceled. However, please check with your club or organization to confirm status of events. If any listing is inaccurate, or to submit a cancellation, please call Tim Rath (231) 592-8386 or email trath@pioneergroup.com. or cathie.crew@pioneergroup.com.

 Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has issued a stay-at-home order for all nonessential activities and services through April 13.

 All K-12 schools: All activities and classes canceled through April 13.

 All District Health Department #10 and Central Michigan District Health Department buildings are closed to the public through April 13.

 Ferris State University: Campus closed, including residence halls, apartments and suites on campus. Commencement canceled. Remote learning will continue through June 1.

Lake County:

 Hunter Safety Field Day that was scheduled for April 4 in Baldwin has been postponed.

 Lake County Trial Court in Baldwin is closed to the general public, except for essential functions involving health, safety and constitutional rights. Access to courtrooms and other spaces is limited to 10 people, including staff.

 As per Lake County Administrator Tobi Lake, all Lake County Committee meetings have been postponed until further notice, and the courthouse is closed to the public with only essential staff remaining to conduct necessary business.

 The Village of Baldwin offices are closed to the public, and all village council meetings are canceled until further notice. For information call 231-745-3587.

 The Lake County community Foundation Baked Potato Supper, scheduled for April 25, has been canceled.

 The Lake County 2020 Blessing of the Bikes, scheduled for May 15-17, has been canceled.

Osceola County:

 The Osceola County general buildings are closed to the public, with only essential staff remaining on duty, until further notice.

 The Reed City city offices are closed to the public. For information call 231-832-2245.

 Reed City Library is closed until April 13.

 The Evart city offices are closed to the public. For information call 231-734-2181.

 The Evart Library and Museum is closed until further notice.

 Osceola County COA: All congregate meal site meals canceled for three weeks. Home delivery of meals and pick up available upon request.

 The Evart Chamber of Commerce annual Egg Drop, scheduled for April 11, has been canceled.

 The Reed City Chamber Business After Hours event, scheduled for April 22, has been canceled.

 The Osceola County Community Foundation annual auction, scheduled for May 1, has been postponed.
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], Apr 2 (ANI): Telangana has reported 30 new coronavirus positive cases along with 3 deaths taking the total number of deaths in the state to 9, state Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said on Wednesday.



"Some persons out of those who went to Nizamuddin Markaz and their family members were infected with the coronavirus in Telangana. In Wednesday's tests, 30 people were found infected with the virus. Two persons in Gandhi Hospital and one person in Yashoda Hospital died of COVID-19 on Wednesday," Telangana CMO said in a release.

"The death toll from the coronavirus has soared to nine in Telangana. Of the 30 people diagnosed with the virus on Wednesday, the three dead have also been found to have gone to Markaz. The six who died in the past are also the ones who went to Markaz," the CMO added.

Telangana government has decided to conduct an examination for all those who have gone to Markaz.

"Since the coronavirus is becoming dangerous for those who have travelled to Markaz, the government suggests that they should be tested every week. The government will make every effort to save the lives of people who are infected with the virus. The government wants everybody who goes to Markaz to undergo tests because this is for the benefit of them and their families," the government said.

Chief Minister KC Rao urged the people to be successful in locking down the coronavirus. If people cooperate for a few more days, the spread of the virus in the state of Telangana can be stopped, he said.

The Chief Minister further said that the security of medical staff providing medical care to coronavirus victims is of utmost importance to the government. It has been revealed that PPE kits, N95 masks, hydroxychloroquine tablets and azithromycin tablets are needed for medical personnel.

Chief Minister Rao also met Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan on Wednesday evening. The issues discussed were the coronavirus outbreak and lockdown implementation in the state. (ANI)


An illegal brothel that caused a traffic jam in a Victorian street has been slapped with a fine for not complying with COVID-19 rules.

In the past 24 hours, Victoria Police has issued 13 fines for breaching rules designed to stop the spread of coronavirus, including to the Geelong brothel and an escort.

Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton said the illegal operation came to police attention as the street was so busy.

An illegal brothel that caused a traffic jam in a Victorian street has been slapped with a fine for not complying with COVID-19 rules (file picture)

'It astounds me. We were called there to this brothel because the street was that busy, at one stage it became a traffic jam,' he told reporters on Thursday.

'That is absolutely insane in this current environment where we're saying restrict access.'

While the operator allegedly said they didn't know about the restrictions on non-essential businesses, Mr Patton said the excuse of ignorance wouldn't cut it.

'It is just so reckless, it is just ridiculous,' he said.

Both the business and the escort were fined, Mr Patton said, adding people drinking on the street and driving around have also been penalised.

It comes after an adult massage parlour in Frankston, a female employee and a male customer were all fined on Tuesday after officers from the sex industry coordination unit 'observed non-essential services being undertaken'.

Police Commissioner Graham Ashton said several brothels have been caught operating illegally.

'They obviously make calls and customers seem to be going in,' he told ABC Radio Melbourne.

'It's just not an essential service and the risk of contamination is huge.'

Police can issue on-the-spot fines of $1652 for individuals and $9913 for businesses not complying with the restrictions.

More than 1000 compliance checks were carried out across the state on Wednesday, bringing the total to 10,292 since March 21.

Twenty-three people have been fined.

'It is not holiday time, its time to bunker down and comply with what the instructions of the chief health officer are,' Mr Patton said.

'We can urge the community ... but we also have a big stick and that is in those infringement notices and we will use that and continue to do so.'

Officers who would normally be doing community engagement are instead joining the compliance team.
One set of parents who got the email said their 13-year-old daughter was extremely stressed going into the test and even more stressed coming out of it. They didnt want to risk her feeling devastated twice, so for now theyre just telling her she didnt get an offer at a selective enrollment school, and planning to tell her later on if she does, which is why they didnt want to be named.
ISTANBUL - Turkey's economy has reported the first impact of the coronavirus pandemic. In the month of March, Ankara's exports fell 17.8% compared to the same month last year while imports grew 3.1% on an annual basis, hindering efforts made by the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the trade balance. After the relative economic recovery registered in recent months, the Turkish lira also registered a strong drop compared to the main international currencies. The impact on tourism has also been serious. Tourism is a key sector of the Turkish economy and is destined to grind to a halt after registering last year a record - over 50 million visitors from abroad.



At the moment, Turkey has blocked all flights to and from foreign destinations and strongly limited the movement between cities in the country.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Thursday ordered strict enforcement of the lockdown in the state, saying those who don't fall in line should be sternly dealt with.

Rawat issued the orders immediately after participating in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's videoconferencing with chief ministers over the coronavirus outbreak.

"You must ensure strict implementation of the lockdown. Action should be taken under the Disaster Management Act against anyone who violates the Centre's guidelines," Rawat said at a meeting with senior officials soon after his interaction with the PM.

Maximum awareness should be created among people about the coronavirus outbreak, he said.

People should be inspired to wear masks and all personnel engaged in fighting coronavirus should be properly trained, the chief minister said.

People should also be told about the Ayush ministry guidelines on increasing immunity to diseases, he said.

Social distancing should be maintained at all costs and officials should ensure that the banks are not overcrowded by beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Gharib Kalyan package who may come to withdraw their money, Rawat said.

Special care should be taken of senior citizens living in old age homes or staying alone, he said.

Medicine and medical equipment firms should face no hurdle in their operations.A plan should be kept ready on how to utilise the services of the NCC, NSS and other volunteers as per the requirements, Rawat said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
HOUSTON, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- BBVA USA today launched a new brand campaign focused on encouraging customers to stay home and stay safe by conducting their banking transactions using the bank's phone and digital channels.

The campaign, which is underscored in social media channels by using the hashtag #IStayAtHome, is the local iteration of the bank's global campaign. Over the last several weeks as the global pandemic has unfolded, the bank has been focused on ramping up operations so that customers are able to conduct needed transactions in a safe and secure way and in their own homes.

"BBVA's first priority during the global COVID-19 pandemic has been the health and safety of our employees, clients and communities, followed immediately by focusing on how we can maintain operational continuity so that our clients' financial needs are fully supported," BBVA USA Head of Business Development Jose Luis Elechiguerra said. "Every move we've made has been with these priorities in mind, and this new campaign serves to underscore both of them."

BBVA has been paying close attention to the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), which indicate the safest form of action for the general public is to stay home to avoid transmission or exposure, even as the bank is labeled an essential business, or one that the public relies on to conduct day-to-day life.

In keeping with its priorities to keep employees, clients and communities safe, but avoid business interruption, the bank has taken a series of measures, including encouraging its clients to make frequent use of its digital channels, especially its award-winning mobile app.

The bank also announced nearly two weeks ago that it would move to drive-thru service in most of its locations, while some branches without drive-thrus or in close proximity to branches with active drive-thrus would be closed. Five percent of branches are operating with limited lobby hours three days a week. These are branches without a drive-thru and are located more than 10 miles from the next closest BBVA location. All branches are closed on Saturdays until further notice.

Elechiguerra said, "The move to operating via drive-thrus for most of our branches enabled us to keep more than 90 percent of our branches open and providing services, while also taking the necessary precautions to keep our employees and clients safe and healthy."

In keeping with its focus on helping customers with their financial needs, the bank has also provided assistance to customers negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic , including special loan products, refunds and fee waivers, and deferred and extension payments on certain products and services.

Information on all the measures BBVA USA has been taking to help clients stay home and avoid transmission or exposure can be found at the bank's special COVID-19 landing page .

"It's really quite simple," said BBVA USA Chief Marketing Officer Enrique Cornish. "The message we want to send to our customers with this new campaign - and all the moves we've made - is that we are here to help, we are with you, and we are available for your banking needs, but let us use our robust digital offerings to help so we can do our best to keep you safe and healthy as we do our part to resolve this situation together."

The bank's new brand campaign will appear in broadcast, radio and social media. To see the campaign's :30 spot, click here .

Additional news updates can be found via Twitter and Instagram .

For more financial information about BBVA in the U.S., visit bbvausa.investorroom.com .

For more BBVA news visit, www.bbva.com and the U.S. Newsroom .

About BBVA

BBVA Group

BBVA (NYSE: BBVA) is a customer-centric global financial services group founded in 1857. The Group has a strong leadership position in the Spanish market, is the largest financial institution in Mexico, it has leading franchises in South America and the Sunbelt Region of the United States. It is also the leading shareholder in Turkey's Garanti BBVA. Its purpose is to bring the age of opportunities to everyone, based on our customers' real needs: provide the best solutions, helping them make the best financial decisions, through an easy and convenient experience. The institution rests in solid values: Customer comes first, we think big and we are one team. Its responsible banking model aspires to achieve a more inclusive and sustainable society.

BBVA USA

In the U.S., BBVA is a Sunbelt-based financial institution that operates 641 branches, including 330 in Texas, 89 in Alabama, 63 in Arizona, 61 in California, 44 in Florida, 37 in Colorado and 17 in New Mexico. The bank ranks among the top 25 largest U.S. commercial banks based on deposit market share and ranks among the largest banks in Alabama (2nd), Texas (4th) and Arizona (6th). In the U.S., BBVA has been recognized as one of the leading small business lenders by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and ranked 8th nationally in terms of dollar volume of SBA loans originated in fiscal year 2018.

SOURCE BBVA USA

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Campus News

Medical students journey inspires UB community

Farzana Ali is interested in a career in diagnostic radiology, using her medical and biomedical engineering backgrounds to focus on designing templates for brain images. Photo: Sandra Kicman



By DIRK HOFFMAN

I came here to be of service and to contribute as much as I can, but in the process I got so much more in return. I got so much love and care from the entire UB community, and that has been very fulfilling for me.  Farzana Ali, Class of 2020 Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Farzana Ali learned many important skills throughout her four years as a medical student in the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. But to the many people who came in contact with her along the way, it was she who was teaching valuable lessons  in patience and perseverance. Ali first dreamed of becoming a doctor as a child growing up in Bangladesh and later started on the path as an undergraduate student at Stony Brook University after her family immigrated to the United States in 2002. But the journey took a tragic turn three years later when a drunk driver struck her familys vehicle and Ali suffered a spinal cord injury. Her sister and aunt were killed. I had some doubts right after my spinal cord injury, but in my heart I knew I still wanted to be a doctor, she says. But the questions I had were about if it would actually be possible for a person with such a high level of injury to fulfill the requirements of becoming a doctor. Her focus was on recovering and getting integrated back into the community, but she knew a long road lay ahead. When I left the hospital, I had to go to subacute care in a nursing home, and I was a quadriplegic in a motorized wheelchair, Ali says. I needed extensive support for my daily activities, but that actually motivated me to work harder to get out of there. I thought that even if I could not go home, I would just go back to school and resume my education and live on campus. I was so dependent on others, I wanted to be more independent, and I saw education as a way to get back to my normal life.

Charles M. Severin and Farzana Ali formed a bond from the moment they met during her medical school admissions interview in 2016. Photo: Sandra Kicman

Interview process creates immediate bonds

One of Alis first contacts at the Jacobs School when she interviewed for admission in 2016 was Charles M. Severin, former associate dean of medical education and admissions. From the beginning, he made an attempt to make a connection with me and the family members of mine that were present, she says. It made me feel at home. It just set the tone for a wonderful day and made me not be nervous despite being in a new environment. During the interview process, which she describes as very open and honest, Ali says a retired faculty member showed interest in her other skills and the languages she had learned  she speaks five fluently  rather than focusing on her disability. When I met with Dr. Severin, his primary focus was what a student like me might need to succeed in an environment like UB, she says. It was such a unique experience after coming from so many other interviews. It just stood out to me, what I could expect from the UB community. Based on her application and interview, Severin says the admissions committee saw a woman who had the brain and heart of a physician. Between her academic performance and MCAT score, she convinced everyone that she could handle the volume of information presented in our modules and pass her licensing examinations, he says. This told us she had the brain of a physician. After reading the essay she wrote in her application and reviewing her life experiences, Severin says the committee was convinced she would display empathy with patients and earn their trust. It was equally important that we determine she had the heart of a physician, he says. Furthermore, we saw a woman with an unwavering commitment to becoming a physician. In spite of what happened to her, she had a very positive attitude that we hoped her classmates would witness.

Strong work ethic

David A. Milling, senior associate dean for student and academic affairs, recalls conversations he had with Severin after Ali was admitted. He says they focused on making sure the school put in place all of the necessary steps to provide accommodations in both the clinical and preclinical tracks that she would be engaged in. Just in terms of laying the groundwork, meeting with course coordinators and looking at access issues at the various hospitals, making sure that connectivity for things such as her iPad were in place, he says. We had to make sure her personal aides were certified and HIPAA compliant in the hospitals and had the appropriate authority and access to accompany her, Milling adds. All of those things had to be in place to ensure that she was successful. Milling says Ali met any challenges head-on with a relentless work ethic. She is tenacious, he says. Her quiet self-confidence is just remarkable in terms of how she carries herself and shows everyone through her intellectual ability that she is willing to put in the work to do what it takes to be the best physician that she can be.

Powering through the obstacles

Severin says his interactions with Ali were eye-opening in many respects. I can honestly say that I have learned over these past four years that if an individual has a goal they truly want to achieve, absolutely nothing will stop them from accomplishing this goal, he says. During final examinations in several of her clerkships, Ali was required to examine standardized patients in the Jacobs Schools Margaret L. Wendt Foundation Clinical Competency Center, subsequently record what she observed and ultimately diagnose their medical conditions. On some of those occasions, acting as an intermediary, Severin helped Ali examine the patient. Because of her physical disability, she needed Severin to hold the diaphragm of a stethoscope to a patients chest so that she could hear their heart and lungs, or she asked Severin to palpate/percuss an abdomen to determine if any organs were enlarged. That was my only role. She was the one that ultimately assessed the patients medical condition, Severin says. All I did was  for a moment  become her hands. She had the more difficult task of assessing the medical condition and subsequently determining a treatment plan. To actually see someone with Alis limitations successfully accomplish this was amazing to me. Time after time, I saw her drive to succeed. She taught me to never prejudge or underestimate what an individual can accomplish, Severin adds.

University resources play key roles

For her part, Ali says the entire UB community has been very supportive of her during her four years of medical school. It was more than I expected from a medical school, she says. I came here to be of service and to contribute as much as I can, but in the process I got so much more in return. I got so much love and care from the entire UB community, and that has been very fulfilling for me. Severin points out that one of the Jacobs Schools primary missions is to foster a cooperative atmosphere. The actions of everyone these past four years is an example of this mindset. After Farzana was accepted to our school, we wanted to ensure that she would receive the same education as the other students in her class, he says. Furthermore, we wanted her to know that she received the same education. Every module leader, clerkship director, faculty and staff member anticipated potential problems due to her disability and made adjustments without compromising her education, Severin says. Everyone at the school accepted the challenge of doing their part to ensure she would receive a quality medical education. Several other UB offices played a major role in providing accommodations for Ali during her time in Buffalo  including Accessibility Resources, Facilities Planning and Design, Campus Living, and Parking and Transportation Services. I have always felt that everyone at this university wanted Farzana to succeed. I think they all deserve some credit in her success, Severin says.

Shamsun Ali accompanied her daughter to Buffalo to help her navigate the demands of being a medical school student. Photo: Sandra Kicman

Mothers love provides strength

Another essential component in Alis journey to becoming a graduating member of the Jacobs Schools Class of 2020 is her mother, Shamsun. She suffered severe brain and leg injuries in the 2005 car accident that injured Ali, but she eventually made remarkable recoveries. She is very determined and hardworking, which I think contributed to her recovery process, and that also encouraged me to work harder, Ali says. Shamsun Ali was working as a quality control officer at an electrical engineering firm on Long Island, but after Farzana was accepted into the Jacobs School, she retired from the position to move to Buffalo with her daughter. I am truly grateful for that because she loved her job, and it was a great sacrifice on her part, Farzana Ali says. She has been constantly present in not only my personal care needs, but also when I needed things done to be ready for school. Every evening we go over the things that need to be set up for my next day at school. Milling says he considers Ali a true trailblazer at the Jacobs School. In my opinion, she is a role model in terms of her work ethic, her professionalism and her can do attitude, he says. She knows what she wants and is always willing to stretch the limits on what she can do. She has taught us all important lessons throughout her time here.

Interest in AI use in diagnostic radiology
By Imani Moise

NEW YORK, April 2 (Reuters) - U.S. borrowers seeking a reprieve from mortgage, auto or credit card payments because of coronavirus hardships are not getting the help they expected from big banks that promised assistance in recent weeks.

JPMorgan Chase & Co, Bank of America Corp, Wells Fargo & Co and Citigroup Inc are among lenders that announced programs to help customers whose income has suddenly dropped because of illness, layoffs or government-imposed business closures stemming from the pandemic.

But fine print can prevent customers from getting assistance, borrowers and bank sources said.

For instance, lenders offering 90-day forbearance on mortgage payments are limited in how they can structure help for customers whose loans are owned by investors.

Mortgage-bond holders are still requiring monthly payments even if borrowers do not pay. Banks have been willing to foot the bill for a few months, but will ultimately need cooperation from investors.

Some customers are finding they are expected to write a big check as soon as the grace period ends, rather than having missed payments tacked onto the end of the loan.

Demetria Favors, a Wells Fargo & Co borrower in Arlington, Texas, asked the bank for help after her partner's income declined because of coronavirus.

Favors told Reuters she waited three hours to speak to a customer-service representative, who said she could skip payments for 90 days without late fees. But she would need to get up-to-date by June 23rd or face penalties and a knock on her credit report.

"If you don't have your mortgage payment on April 1, why in the world would you have $6,000 on June 23rd?" said Favors.

Wells Fargo is offering three-month payment suspensions to any mortgage borrower who requests it. But what happens afterward depends on who owns the loan and the customer's particular issues, a bank spokesman said.

Favors' frustrations echo problems described by several borrowers who have tried to tap assistance promoted by U.S. banks.

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Some had the impression they were eligible, only to discover they were not. Others found assistance came with a catch, like balloon payments at the end of a forbearance period.

Bank sources said they are trying to help customers, but that economic problems caused by the epidemic are too widespread and severe for the industry to allow everyone to stop paying bills indefinitely.

Nearly 10 million Americans have already filed jobless claims. Economists expect the unemployment rate eventually to spike as high as 20% and U.S. economic output to fall as much as 34% before the country can get back to normal.

Bank announcements about customer assistance were meant to be a quick Band-Aid for a rapidly escalating crisis, industry sources say. While there may be more substantive solutions ahead as banks "negotiate" with investors and government agencies, bank sources say are hopeful they can come to a solution before the 90-day grace period is over.

That is cold comfort for people like Todd Ruddick, who had to close his Chicago restaurant last month due to coronavirus restrictions.

Ruddick sought a waiver on his personal credit-card payments from Citigroup Inc after reading about assistance the bank announced on March 6.

After he waited on hold for a few hours, a representative told Ruddick the only way to avoid a late fee would be to close the account, which would result in the bank sending it to collections. He decided skipping the payment and accepting the late fee was a better option.

"My restaurant's going to open, hopefully, sometime in May," he said. "What I need is a little assistance to get me from here to there."

However, Citigroup said the COVID-19 relief programs were mainly for depositors, such as fee waivers for early withdrawals from certificates of deposit, not for credit-card borrowers like Ruddick. (Reporting by Imani Moise; Editing by Lauren Tara LaCapra and Dan Grebler)
LOS ANGELES  On Friday Dr. Deborah Birx, the U.S. coronavirus response coordinator, praised California and Washington state for their social distancing efforts, claiming that they may have already slowed the spread of the virus and should serve as models for the rest of the nation.

We really do appreciate the work of the citizens of California and Washington state, because we do see that their curve is different, Birx said at the daily White House briefing. Their curve is different from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut  and we really believe that the work that every citizen is doing in those states is making a difference.

Nationally, the numbers have been devastating. More than 273,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases across the United States, with a staggering 100,000 in New York alone. A death toll  roughly 7,000 at last count  that has already doubled 9/11s. And grim new estimates from the Trump administration that predict the deadly pathogen could eventually kill between 100,000 and 240,000 Americans  assuming the U.S. does everything right.

Yet in recent days, a few bright spots have started to flicker amid the statistical gloom. They come from various sources: internet-connected thermometers; smartphone GPS data; a study by private researchers in Bellevue, Wash.; state-by-state projections from the University of Washington; reports from hospitals in the San Francisco Bay Area.

All of this new information points to the same hopeful, if tentative, conclusion. In areas of America that caught the coronavirus early in its trajectory  and quickly implemented the sort of strict, sweeping social distancing measures recommended by public health officials  the curve may be starting to bend. The virus may be starting to spread more slowly. Staying home may be starting to work.

And as Birx has been telling the public all week, the two states to watch are Washington and California. For now, only 8 percent of COVID-19 tests there are coming back positive  compared to 35 percent in New York and New Jersey, 26 percent in Louisiana and 15 percent in Michigan, Connecticut, Indiana, Georgia and Illinois.

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California and Washington reacted very early to this, Birx told reporters Tuesday. Washington state, early, about two weeks before New York or New Jersey ... California, a week before New York or New Jersey, really talked to their communities and decided to mitigate before they started seeing this number of cases. And now we know that makes a big difference.

The first known COVID-19 case in the U.S. was identified near Seattle, and it was there that the virus claimed 37 of its first 50 U.S. victims. After discovering in late February that residents with no known exposure or history of foreign travel were becoming infected, officials began to urge social distancing. Within a week, people were starting to work from home and seniors were being encouraged to stay indoors. On March 11, Gov. Jay Inslee banned large events in three Seattle-area counties and the citys public schools announced they would close.

Five days later, the Bay Area stunned the nation when health officers in six counties jointly ordered residents to shelter in place. Eleven other California counties soon joined the order, and on March 19 it was expanded statewide by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee. (Rich Pedroncelli/Pool via AP, Amanda Snyder/The Seattle Times/Pool via AP)

In contrast, it took New York state until March 22 to implement a similar order. Playgrounds in New York City didnt close until Wednesday.

People should go out and continue to live life, should go out to restaurants, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said on March 11.

A new social distancing scoreboard by New York technology company Unacast suggests that people are now following these shelter-in-place orders. Using smartphone GPS data to compare how far residents of every U.S. county travel each day, the scorecard awards New York, California and Washington high grades for cutting average mobility by more than 40 percent since the start of the outbreak. In fact, mobility has declined by more in Manhattan (72 percent) than in San Francisco (65 percent), Seattle (56 percent) or Los Angeles (46 percent).

But timing is everything during a pandemic, and it appears the virus had already spread widely in the nations largest, most densely populated city before the lockdown. Kinsa Health, which produces internet-connected thermometers, has been compiling and analyzing up to 162,000 daily temperature readings since COVID-19 struck the U.S., as the New York Times recently reported, adapting its software to detect spikes of atypical fever that do not correlate with historical flu patterns and are likely attributable to the coronavirus.

According to Kinsas national map, overall fevers have fallen or held steady in every county in the country over the last week  a sign that stay-at-home measures, which now cover more than 250 million Americans, are having an effect. Yet in both Manhattan and Brooklyn, the level of atypical illness over the last month registered as high, likely because so many people were already infected (and infectious) prior to social distancing. Meanwhile, the level of atypical illness was either low or mild in the Bay Area. Around Seattle, the level was either mild or moderate. And in Los Angeles, Kinsa lists the cumulative level of atypical illness as none.

Patients wait for a COVID-19 test at Elmhurst Hospital Center, in Queens, N.Y., on March 25. (John Minchillo/AP)

Since 2018, Kinsas predictions have routinely been two to three weeks ahead of those of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which relies on data from doctor office visits instead. Kinsas listing doesnt mean no one in L.A. has COVID-19; according to the latest numbers from the Los Angeles Times, L.A. County has logged more than 3,000 cases and 50 deaths so far, and both of those numbers will continue to grow. But because theres a lag between the time someone catches the virus and starts showing up in the data  it can take up to two weeks to experience symptoms, up to 10 more days before hospitalization is required and another two or three weeks before the case resolves, with either recovery or death  a lower level of atypical illness in a region that started sheltering in place several weeks ago suggests there may be fewer pre-social-distancing cases lurking in the pipeline. It also suggests that when the peak does arrive, it will likely be lower than New Yorks.

This hypothesis may be starting to bear out. Preliminary statistical models provided to public officials in Washington state by the Institute for Disease Modeling, a private research group in Bellevue, suggest that the spread of the virus has slowed in the Seattle area in recent days. One month ago, each infected person was spreading the virus to an average of 2.7 other people; now that number appears to have been cut roughly in half, to 1.4.

Meanwhile, the number of new cases diagnosed today in San Francisco is about two-thirds of what it was four or five days ago, which means the slope of the increase is lower than it was, which, to me, is reasonably good evidence of some flattening of the curve, Dr. Bob Wachter, a professor and chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, told the New York Times on Tuesday. If this thing was expanding in the way epidemics do when theyre not being mitigated or addressed, the growth [would be] exponential.

As a result, the death toll has been doubling every seven or eight days in Washington and every four or five days in California  far slower than in New York, where its been doubling every two or three days. (Deaths are not a perfect measure of the viruss spread. But theyre a far better way to compare places than confirmed cases, which reflect different levels of testing throughout the country.)

Barriers block the beach area in Redondo Beach, Calif., after Los Angeles County ordered parks, trails and beaches closed on March 28. (Patrick T. Fallon/Reuters)

Cases will continue to rise in California and Washington, and the death toll will continue to climb. Things will get worse before they get better. But the situation on the West Coast will likely not be as bad as it would have otherwise been  or as bad as it still could be elsewhere. According to new projections, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington estimates that as many as 177,000 Americans may die from COVID-19 by August (again, if the country does everything right). Yet the same model says that only 11,000 of those deaths would occur in California, Americas most populous state, and that only 2,500 of them would occur in Washington (the site of Americas first outbreak). New York, by comparison, is on track to suffer 22,000 coronavirus deaths  twice as many as California and nearly 10 times as many as Washington.

Assuming its model is correct, the IHME also projects that neither California nor Washington is likely to exceed its hospital resource capacity. New York, by contrast, has already exceeded it, and is likely to continue to need many more hospital beds, intensive care beds and ventilators than it had before the pandemic.

Theres an indication that maybe all the sheltering in place and doing that early helped bend the curve here, and it might not be as bad, Eric Holdeman, the former director of King County (Seattle) disaster management, recently explained. And maybe we can avoid what New York is going to experience in the next 10 days to two weeks, which is going to look like Italy and look like Spain.

The takeaway for the rest of the country is clear: Move fast, act decisively and dont let up. (Government models released Wednesday showed that as many as 5,000 Californians could die per week if restrictions are relaxed too soon.) Several large states, including Texas, Georgia, Florida and Pennsylvania, had yet to issue statewide shelter-in-place orders as recently as Tuesday  even though deaths are doubling faster there than in California. The death tolls in Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey and Louisiana are rising at similarly rapid rates.

In some places  such as the emerging hot spots of Detroit, Chicago, Miami, Atlanta and New Orleans  it may be too late to prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed. Everywhere else should heed the lesson of California and Washington.

If you wait till you see it, Birx said Tuesday, its too late.

This story has augmented reality! Tap the video above to see how it looks and download the Yahoo News app to launch the full experience. Augmented reality is currently available to iPhone users (iPhone 8 and later) with the latest version of iOS.

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Click here for the latest coronavirus news and updates. According to experts, people over 60 and those who are immunocompromised continue to be the most at risk. If you have questions, please reference the CDC and WHOs resource guides.

Read more:
Social Security recipients will not have to file a tax return to receive a stimulus check, the Treasury Department announced Wednesday.

The Washington Post reports that the Internal Revenue Service originally said to qualify for a payment, you would need to file some sort of tax return.

FURLOUGHS: These companies have furloughed or laid off Houston and Texas workers due to virus

"The IRS will use the information on the Form SSA-1099 and Form RRB-1099 to generate $1,200 Economic Impact Payments to Social Security recipients who did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019," the Treasury Department said in a press release.

The reversal comes after lawmakers urged the Treasury Department to send Social Security recipients their payments automatically, according to CNN.

"Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return need to take no action, and will receive their payment directly to their bank account," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?: A timeline of the coronavirus pandemic

President Trump signed the historic $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package last month in hopes of curbing the economic impact of COVID-19.

Individuals who do not receive their Social Security beneficiaries through direct deposit, will receive a check, the Treasury Department said in its press release.
Beginning in the fifteenth century, key structures converged to create a space at court for the royal mistress. The first was an idea of gender already in place: that while women were legally inferior to men, they were mens equals in competence. Because of their legal subordinacy, queens were considered to be the safest regents for their husbands, and, subsequently, the royal mistress was the surest counterpoint to the royal favorite. Second, the Renaissance was a period during which people began to experience space as theatrical. This shift to a theatrical world opened up new ways of imagining political guile, which came to be positively associated with the royal mistress. Still, the role had to be activated by an intelligent, charismatic woman associated with a king who sought women as advisors. The fascinating particulars of each case are covered in the chapters of this book.

Introduction

What Was It About France?

Frederick the Great, discussing the ruinous propensity of German princelings to imitate Louis XIV in book 10 of his 1740 Antimachiavel, put the French royal mistress on a par with the Versailles court and the French army in the list of outrageously expensive items that the princelings coveted. There is not a cadet of a cadet line, he scoffed, who does not imagine himself as a sort of Louis XIV: he builds his Versailles, he has his mistresses, he leads his army. Christoph Wieland, writing three decades later, accords the royal mistress a similar role. The enthralling Alabanda, who keeps the eyes of King Azor averted from the misery of his people, can only be a comment on the extraordinary position of the French royal mistress in her setting of unimaginable opulence. What was evident to these German eyes remains so: whether one found the French royal mistress fabulous or appalling, she was a constituent element of the kings grandeur. No one today would underestimate the importance of her splendor for bolstering the monarchy. But in addition to her visual role, she was a politician. True, not every royal mistress wielded clout. Contemporaries such as the Duke of Luynes distinguished between real and temporary holders of the role. Even if the rumor that Madame de Pompadour was installed at Versailles was true, she was only a fling [passade], not a mistress, Luynes asserted, incorrectly, as it happens. However, the most powerful mistresses rivaled the kings closest advisers in terms of influence.

This study explores the sociogenesis and development of the position in France, examining the careers of nine of its most significant holders: Agnes Sorel, Anne de Pisseleu dHeilly, Diane de Poitiers, Gabrielle dEstrees, Francoise Louise de La Baume Le Blanc, Francoise Athenais de

Rochechouart de Mortemart, Francoise dAubign., Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson, and Jeanne Becu. Although kings had always had extraconjugal sexual partnerssome of them powerful, such as Alice Perrers or Jane Shoreonly in France did the royal mistress become a tradition, a quasi-institutionalized political position, generally accepted if always vaguely scandalous. And yet the position has been studied only in popular narrative histories intended to titillate. Other powerful female roles central to royal family life, such as the queen, the queens entourage, and the female regent, an unofficial role once considered somewhat illegitimate, have received serious attention in recent years, as have individual mistresses.6 However, the important and enduring position of French royal mistress per se has not been explored.

The studys point of departure is a simple question: What was it about France? We would like to be very specific about our approach to this question. The creation of the role could be examined from any number of valid and enlightening perspectives. For example, it could be approached through a psychoanalytic lens, to hypothesize about the hidden emotional reasons why the role emerged when it did. Or it could be examined within the context of the Querelle des femmes, that long-term debate over the merits and faults of women, which corresponds, chronologically, to the appearance of the powerful royal mistress in France. However, given our own critical inclinations, we have opted to examine the intellectual, emotional, and physical environment that made emergence of the role possible.

We take as the basis of our analysis Fernand Braudels three-part schema of history, which differentiates long- from medium-term structures and both of these from short-term events, and, in this introduction, we initiate the study by applying the schema to the period between 1450 and 1540. AgnesSorel, often considered to be the first significant French royal mistress, died in 1450; around 1540 Anne de Pisseleu dHeilly, the Duchess of .tampes (15081580), begins to appear in ambassador reports as a central figure in court politics. As we will see in chapter 1, although indirect evidence attests to Agn.ss political influence, it was not widely recognized during her own time. In contrast, no one doubted Anne de Pisseleus power. Between these two dates, then, something occurs that makes it possible for the kings mistress to be taken seriously as a political adviser. We trace the convergence of structures and events in France during the period in question that allowed this to happen, first exploring a long-term structure that was a precondition for the position, a particular idea of gender already in place by the period that we are exploring. Conditio sine qua non for the royal mistress, this notion of gender also formed the basis for female regency, and, because this notion of gender is articulated in treatises on female regency, we start by examining how this slightly earlier and more familiar role was conceptualized. But if the same assumptions about gender support both roles, the royal mistress does not derive from the female regent. Rather, the royal mistress is a female version of the royal mignon, a medium-term structure originating in the mid-fifteenth century. Therefore we turn next to the mignons, or favorites, groups of young men associated directly with the king, who eventually admitted women among their numberalthough only one at a time. But under what circumstances was this role opened to women? To conclude our discussion of the convergence of structures that permitted the development of the royal mistress, we examine the position in the context of another long-term structure, the widely discussed theatricalization of the royal court under Francois I (b. 1494, r. 151547), which produced an environment within which women took part in a vital system of communications through which messages [were] transmitted, channels opened up; they investigate[d] possibilities through talking to the right people, before men, by now confident of success, [made] more direct overtures.

The role of powerful royal mistress became imaginable with the intersection of these structures. Still, it had to be activated by an intelligent and charismatic woman associated with a king willing to be advised by women. In other words, the positions realization depended on what Braudel describes as particular events layered on top of the structures that we examine in this introduction. These events form the content of the following chapters in which we examine the individual careers.

A Particular Idea of Gender

Although queens had earlier served as regents, under Isabeau of Bavaria (13711435) and Anne of France (14611522) a genuine preference for female regents took hold. Ordinances promulgated by the mad king Charles VI (b.1368, r. 13801422) on behalf of Queen Isabeau reveal the logic behind this preference. Fearing that he would die prematurely after his earliest psychotic breakdowns in 1392 and 1393, the king settled what would happen in the case of his death, awarding regency of the realm (government, guard and defense) to his brother, Louis of Orleans (13721407), and guardianship of the young king to his queen, Isabeau, aided by his uncles. But Louiss primacy led to rivalry with the royal uncles, each side accusing the other of wanting to usurp the throne. Hoping to lessen the possibility of civil war, Charles VI abolished regency altogether in an ordinance of 1403, stipulating instead that in the event of the kings death, his heir would succeed immediately, whatever his age. Minus a regent, the queen mother, as guardian, would hold the reins of power, although her minor son officially ruled. The advantage of this scenario was that unlike a male regentsay, the minor kings paternal unclethe queen would prioritize not her own career but the welfare of her son. As Charles VIs ordinance asserts, a mother has a greater and more tender love for her children, and, with a soft and caring heart, she takes care of and nourishes them more lovingly than any other person, no matter how closely related.

But maternal instinct was not the only basis for female preference. Here we need to consider the conception of gender underwriting the preferencethat is, a long-established assumption that women were legally inferior to men but politically as capable as them. A number of conceptions of gender coexisted in late medieval and early modern France. However, this paradoxical one was particularly significant in shaping the experience of sexual difference among the nobility and therefore in supporting female regency. The conception undergirded feudal law, which allowed women to wield authority in the absence of a husband, son, or brother, but only under such circumstances.14 Political theoretician Christine de Pizan (13651431) gives the first self-conscious articulation of the principle, foregrounding the natural differences between men and women while insisting that women could perform as well as men in all things. As she recounts in her Livre de la mutacion de fortune of 1402, when her husband died she took over his role, metamorphosing into a man. True, women were excluded from certain positions by Gods viceroy Nature, Christine admits. Her father had hoped to pass his precious stones of astrological and medical knowledge on to a son. But Christine was a girl, resembling her father in all things: manner, body, and face. Only her sexe was different, and, for this reason, she could not inherit her fathers riches, although she could have done the job. Or, as a treatise on natural law of 1601 asserts, female modesty and the virtue particular to the sex, not any intellectual disadvantage, render reigning or commanding souverainement inappropriate for

women.

This idea that women were fit for all jobs but legally restricted from taking on certain ones except when there was no man to do it was common across Europe. What was unique about France, however, was the visions instantiation in the so-called Salic Law, which was elaborated over the course of the fifteenth century. True, the Salic Law excluded women from succession to the throne under any circumstances. But it implicitly allowed them to govern as regents. Indeed, by making them legally incompetent to succeed and therefore unable to usurp the throne, it created a tendency to favor them as regents. In this way, it gave a legal basis to the assumption that the queen mother was the safest choice for regentset out in Charles VIs regency ordinancesand further enhanced the advantage that she already enjoyed by virtue of her presumed maternal instinct. That the Salic Law was understood in this way is clear from seventeenth-century regency treatises. Pierre Dupuy (15821651) sets out what we might call the safety argument in his Traite des regences et des majorites des rois de France, first printed in 1655: The principal reasons for this choice [of queen as regent] are based on . . . the natural affection of a mother for her children and [the fact] that there can be no suspicion of any danger for the princes committed to their care. He then references the Salic Law, writing that women, by virtue of their sex, are less capable of invading the State [Estat] of their children than any other person for the reasons that by the law of the State [Estat], they are excluded from the royalty; that it is impossible to imagine that it would even enter their minds to try to achieve such a thing; that they cannot be helped by anyone at all, not possessing this basic requirement; that they cannot act on their own, but [only] through others, in all the principal acts of their administration and particularly in acts of war and affairs of great resolve.19 Robert Luyt in 1652 states the point still more forcefully: Queens have normally been preferred in this choice to all Princes of the Blood and other lords, religious or secular, for the same reason, that we do not need to fear that they would usurp the crown, because they are precluded from doing so by the fundamental Law of this monarchy.

The Salic Law, then, paradoxically created an opportunity for female authority. But it created a very particular conception of authority, forcing female regency to be imagined as a sort of open secret in which the kinga childreigns, although it is in fact his mother who does the work. As Lucien B.ly observes, a very young prince such as Charles IX did not manage European affairs. In reality, the Guises and, especially, regent Catherine de M.dicis wrote the letters carried by French envoys, signed by the young monarch. And yet Dupuys treatise insists, as we saw above, that female regents could not act on their own. Scholarship on female regency such as Katherine Crawfords Perilous Performances describes how the queen mother performed her maternity to cover her governing. We will return to this notion of the open secret.

Another aspect of the paradox is central to how female governance was imagined, although it is never explicitly stated in regency treatises. Although Christine de Pizan precedes the heyday of the Salic Law, she voices, as we have seen, the principle on which it was founded. We noted that for Christine a powerful woman was always a substitute, like Christine herself metamorphosing into a man. Equally important here, however, she also constructed female power as the necessary supplement to male power. In the Livre de la cite des dames of 1405, Christine describes gender differences as complementary. God wanted men and women to serve him differently, and to help each other and give each other mutual aid, each according to his manner, explains the allegorical character Reason, and he thus created the two sexes to be of different natures, as necessary to the accomplishment of the tasks. In her Livre des trois vertus, Christine explains that men are reactive because they are hot, whereas women are moist, cold, and peaceful, and therefore integral to maintaining order. When war threatens the kingdom, writes Christine, the princess is the means of peace and harmony. She works to avoid war because of the trouble that can arise from it. She explains to warring lords that if they would like to make amends or make suitable reparations, she would happily make an effort to try to find a way to pacify her husband. But Christine saves her clearest formulation of female power as the necessary supplement to the male version for her final known work, the Ditie de Jehanne dArc, which, proclaiming the recent victories of the French over the English, recalls that Charles VII (b. 1403, r. 142261) would not have prevailed had it not been for Joan of Arc: And you Charles, King of France, seventh of that noble name, who have been involved in such a great war before things turned out at all well for you, now, thanks be to God, see your honour exalted by the Maid who has laid low your enemies beneath your standard.25 Joan was required for Charless victory.

If the Salic Law was at times bolstered by misogynistic arguments, the principle of female exclusion was imaginable without recourse to such arguments, simply on legal grounds, common notions about maternal instinct and female modesty, and the traditional view of men and women as complementary, equally necessary, components of a whole (the absent or minor king could not rule without his mother). We return now to the official royal mistress, whose role was based on the same assumptions about gender. As Francoise Autrand has noted with reference to the fifteenth century, In the western Christian model, power has a feminine side (face).26 True, for most great lords, this feminine aspect of their authority was represented by their wives. The queen of France undoubtedly played a crucial role in the configuration of royal power, representing mercy in the eyes of the public. However, with few exceptions, she was foreign, inevitably raising suspicions of prior loyalty and, among courtiers, the need for another, more secure way to access the king. In contrast with the queen, the royal mistress was always French and utterly devoted to the king.

Excerpt ends here.
Paramedics in New York City have been told to stop taking certain patients in cardiac arrest to hospitals already swamped with coronavirus cases.

The Regional Emergency Medical Services Council of New York has told medics to leave heart attack sufferers who cannot be revived at the scene with immediate effect.

One anonymous EMT told The New York Post: 'They're trying to do what they can with the people who have the most likely chance of being saved.'

The coronavirus outbreak has already pushed the city's ambulance service close to the breaking point, with 20 per cent of its workers already out sick.

Those in cardiac arrest would normally be taken to hospital.

But a source told The Post: 'If you can't get revived on scene, that's it. They're going to work on you, but if they can't get a pulse back, they won't transport you.'

EMTs load a bed into an ambulance outside the Brookdale Hospital Medical Center. in Brooklyn. Paramedics in New York City have been told to stop taking certain patients in cardiac arrest to hospitals already swamped with coronavirus cases

The letter sent to emergency workers instructs them to try and resuscitate patients as usual.

But adds: 'No adult non-traumatic or blunt traumatic cardiac arrest is to be transported to a hospital with manual or mechanical compression in progress without either return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) or a direct order from a medical control physician unless there is imminent physical danger to the EMS provider on the scene.'

It adds: 'In the event a resuscitation is terminated, and the body is in public view, the body can be left in the custody of the NYPD.'

Health officials used forklifts to help lift dead bodies onto a refrigerated truck outside New York's Brooklyn Hospital Center this week and hospitals have been using bed sheets to wrap bodies because they no longer have body bags.

The Pentagon is ordering 100,000 body bags as experts predict the coronavirus will claim the lives of more than 200,000 Americans.

The US death toll, which stands at 5,647, has now surpassed the number of deaths reported in China (3,309) where the outbreak first emerged back in December.

Some 20 per cent of the 4,500 ambulance workers - EMTs, paramedics and supervisors - are out sick, said Dr. Lewis Marshall, board chairman of the New York City Regional Emergency Medical Services Council in an interview last week.

Most of them are out of action because they either have the virus or have been exposed to it, he added.

EMS lieutenant Vincent Variale, who also heads a supervisors' union, said, 'We've broken every call volume record we've ever seen before.'

At times in recent days, up to 400 calls at a time deemed less serious had simply been left on hold, Variale said.

A medical worker prepares to reenter a COVID-19 testing tent set up outside Elmhurst Hospital Center in New York. The Regional Emergency Medical Services Council of New York has told medics to leave heart attack sufferers who cannot be revived at the scene

The number of EMS personnel out sick is increasing and may soon reach 30 per cent, multiple EMS officials said, which would lead to a serious decline in ambulance services.

The city's ambulance service is part of the New York City Fire Department. Two workers told Reuters that ambulance personnel who remain on the job are working 16 or 17-hour days.

'We don't even have time to go to the bathroom,' said one emergency medical technician in Harlem while running to meet a call.

Variale predicted dire consequences if calls for help continue to soar and the number of emergency personnel continues to drop from illness. 'If this continues we fully expect to have bodies on the street,' he said.
Alfred Hitchcock may seem like an odd choice for this column, which purports to recommend entry points for movie genres you dont get or directors who seem difficult. Hitchcock, by contrast, could easily be considered the most famous director who ever lived. His run from 1958 to 1963 alone  Vertigo, North by Northwest, Psycho, The Birds  consists exclusively of films that almost everyone knows.

Yet Hitchcock made more than 50 features, and watching and returning to them is a lifelong pursuit. Most of his films are available to stream in some form or other.

One of Hitchcocks most daring experiments, Rope (1948), is a great gateway movie because, by breaking certain rules, it teaches you a lot about how films are made.

Rope: Rent or buy it on Amazon, FandangoNow, iTunes and YouTube.

Movies arent supposed to be shot on single sets (although Hitchcock made five that mostly were). Movies are supposed to have cuts, and this one  to a large extent  preserves the illusion of being shot in a single take (although the cuts that are visible are crucial to the films impact). And aside from the opening credits, Rope is set entirely within a New York apartment, which makes it, along with Hitchcocks Rear Window (1954), a movie of the moment.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Health Minister Yaakov Litzman gesture as they deliver statements during a visit to the Health Ministry national hotline, in Kiryat Malachi, Israel, on March 1, 2020. (Reuters/Amir Cohen/File Photo)

Israels Health Minister Diagnosed with COVID-19

Israels health minister and his wife were diagnosed with coronavirus and are in isolation following guidelines, the health ministry said on Thursday.

Yaakov Litzman, 71, an ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has appeared regularly alongside the premier to provide updates on the spread of the pandemic and new measures to combat it.

But Litzman has scaled back public appearances in recent weeks and the ministrys director-general has held daily briefings instead.

Litzman and his wife feel well, the ministry said in a statement.

(An) epidemiological investigation will be carried out, and isolation requests will be sent to those who have come into contact with (him) and his wife in the past two weeks.

The Israeli daily Haaretz reported that Israels Mossad spy agency chief, Yossi Cohen, and the head of the National Security Council, Meir Ben Shabbat, were required to self-quarantine because of their contacts with Litzman.

Netanyahu tested negative for the virus on Monday after a parliamentary aide was confirmed to have it. The premier, 70, was in self-isolation until late on Wednesday, but it was not immediately clear if he had any contact with Litzman.

Israel has reported at least 25 deaths and more than 6,000 infections. Tight curbs have largely confined Israelis to their homes, forcing businesses to close and causing unemployment to skyrocket to more than 24 percent.

Litzman heads an ultra-Orthodox Jewish party, and has appealed to his community to obey health ministry curbs after some rabbis and members cast doubt on the virus risk and chafed against stay-at-home orders.

Netanyahu announced new curbs on Wednesday to deter movement around Bnai Brak, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish town that has suffered a disproportionately large outbreak.

The public now has to listen to the health ministry, Litzman said in an interview published on Tuesday in the Yedioth Ahronot newspaper.

I proposed to the prime minister and interior minister today to put Bnei Brak on lockdown, he added. The situation there is horrible. Every day we stall, we put lives at risk.

Rami Ayyub and Dan Williams

Epoch Times staff contributed to this report
Currently, there are limited data on the impact of pre-existing liver disease and the course of SARS-CoV-2 infection, with many open questions.

However, patients with advanced liver disease and recipients of liver transplants represent vulnerable groups and are likely to be at an increased risk of infection and/or a severe course of COVID-19. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic is placing an increasing burden on healthcare systems across the world, which could negatively impact the care of patients with chronic liver diseases who require ongoing medical attention.

To promote the best possible care in these challenging circumstances, this Position Paper provides recommendations for clinicians treating patients with chronic liver diseases.

Recommendations include: promoting telemedicine in the outpatient setting, prioritizing outpatient contacts, and avoiding nosocomial dissemination of the virus to patients and healthcare providers while maintaining standard care for patients who require immediate medical attention. Additionally, the paper includes a flowchart on prioritizing patient care in patients with chronic liver disease.

While the threat COVID-19 poses to our populations is clear, it remains vital to maintain appropriate care for patients with chronic liver disease. Clinicians will need to identify ways to prioritize their care even when healthcare resources are limited. EASL has therefore published this joint Position Paper to help support clinicians facing these difficult challenges." Prof. Phil Newsome, Secretary General of the European Association for the Study of Liver Disease (EASL) and Director of the Centre for Liver and Gastrointestinal Research & Professor of Hepatology at the University of Birmingham, UK

The paper provides recommendations on the use of outpatient care, ways to reduce direct exposure to COVID-19, and advice on managing patients with compensated/decompensated liver disease, with hepatocellular carcinoma, and following liver transplantation. It also includes advice on liver-related diagnostic procedures (including endoscopy, ultrasound, and liver biopsy), on the collaboration with local healthcare providers and primary care physicians, and on inpatient care and treatments currently being suggested.

"These recommendations address the specific concerns of patients with liver disease and are meant to provide additional guidance for their care. It is important to stress that all general recommendations and guidelines with regards to prevention, diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 from local authorities must be adhered to," said Prof. Thomas Berg, Vice-Secretary General of EASL and Head of the Section of Hepatology Acting Director of the Clinic of Gastroenterology, University Hospital Leipzig, Germany.

"This joint Position Paper is a major EASL-ESCMID collaborative effort on management of liver disease during the COVID-19 pandemic strengthening links between our societies," said co-author and ESCMID Fellow Prof. Mario Mondelli, Professor of Infectious Diseases, University of Pavia, Clinical Lead, Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Italy.

"Technical solutions are available to enable remote physician-patient interactions, which can be helpful during the pandemic. Health authorities should be urged to equip hospitals with such systems. This is not only to support COVID-19 patients in quarantine at home, but also to care for and guide patients needing to be protected from a potentially harmful infection in the hospital setting," commented lead author Dr Tobias Boettler, Department of Medicine II, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Germany.
Senator Martha McSally on Thursday called on the director of the World Health Organization to step down, saying the organization covered up the extent of the spread of the coronavirus, which originated in China.

The Arizona Republican called WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus a communist and accused him of helping China conceal its underreporting of coronavirus case numbers.

Ive never trusted a communist, McSally said in an interview with Fox Business.

I think Dr. Tedros needs to step down, she continued. We need to take some action to address this issue. Its just irresponsible, its unconscionable what they have done here while we have people dying across the globe.

The senator condemned China itself for failing to acknowledge and curb the virus before it spilled over Chinas borders and spread to the rest of the world.

Their cover-up of this virus that originated with them, has caused unnecessary deaths around America and around the world. The WHO needs to stop covering for them, McSally said, adding that as restitution, any U.S. debts to China should be forgiven, as a minimum.

The senators criticism comes days after another GOP senator, Rick Scott of Florida, called for a congressional investigation into the WHO and questioned whether the organization should continue to be funded since it engaged in helping Communist China cover up the seriousness of the virus.

We know Communist China is lying about how many cases and deaths they have, what they knew and when they knew it  and the WHO never bothered to investigate further, Scott said. Their inaction cost lives.

The WHO also willfully parroted propaganda from Chinas Communist Party, Scott charged.

During an interview with Radio Television Hong Kong, WHO assistant director-general Dr. Bruce Aylward appeared to dodge a question about whether the WHO will reconsider granting membership to Taiwan, which China claims as a territory. Taiwan, which has reported just slightly more than 300 cases of the infection and only two deaths, has been widely praised for its containment of the coronavirus.

Story continues

The senior WHO advisor responded that he could not hear the question, and when the interviewer offered to repeat it he interjected, no, thats okay, lets move to another one then. Later, he appeared to hang up when asked about Taiwans response to the pandemic, and afterwards said they had already talked about China, which has done quite a good job.

I wanted to find a slightly longer version of the RTHK interview (more context) with the WHOs Dr. Bruce Aylward who basically froze when asked about Taiwan then started babbling about China then fled. And commend @yvonne_tg for sticking to the question. HT @BonnieGlaser: pic.twitter.com/2cc3hViiij  Melissa Chan (@melissakchan) March 28, 2020

The U.S. intelligence community concluded in a classified report obtained by Bloomberg News that China deliberately provided incomplete public numbers for coronavirus cases and deaths resulting from the infection. In December, local and national officials issued a gag order to labs in Wuhan after scientists there identified a new viral pneumonia, ordering them to halt tests, destroy samples, and conceal the news.

The U.S. now has nearly 240,000 cases of the coronavirus around the country, and more than 5,000 have died. Worldwide, more than 50,000 people have died from the respiratory illness.

More from National Review
COVID-19 relief package checks will start to arrive in many Americans bank accounts within two weeks, but paper checks may not come until later this summer.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, speaking at a White House news briefing Thursday evening, said the IRS within two weeks would directly deposit the $1,200-plus checks to Americans whove filed tax returns in 2018 or 2019 and opted for electronic refunds.

But CNN, citing a Democratic House memo, reported Thursday that it could take up to 20 weeks for the IRS to issue all the paper checks for Americans whose banking information the IRS does not already have on file.

Mnuchin pushed back against that timeline and said ideally, the IRS wont have to issue as many paper checks as it may have in the past.

When Obama sent out these checks it took months and months and months," Mnuchin said. I am assuring the American public, if we have your information, youll get it in two weeks."

For those on Social Security, the IRS will use Social Security information on file and checks will come very quickly after that, he said.

The Treasury Department will soon set up a web portal," Mnuchin added, allowing people to provide their banking information to allow for direct electronic payments.

We want to put money directly into their accounts, he said.

CNN reported that the IRS will initially make about 60 million payments starting the week of April 13. The week of May 4, the IRS will begin issuing paper checks.

All single taxpayers earning up to $75,000 will receive $1,200. For each qualifying child, a single taxpayer will receive $500.

Employed, unemployed and self-employed taxpayers can qualify, so long as you filed your taxes in 2018 or 2019. Those who typically do not file tax returns based on their income are also eligible, but should file their 2019 returns. The IRS provides a host of options for filing tax returns for free.

Married taxpayers filing jointly and earning up to $150,000 will receive $2,400, with qualifying children adding $500 each to the total.

The checks decrease incrementally, at 5%, or $5 for every additional $100 in income, above the thresholds. The decreases begin at $75,000 for single filers; $112,500 for heads of household and $150,000 for married couples filing jointly.

The checks phase out entirely for single taxpayers who earn $99,000 and have no children, $146,000 for head of household filers with one child, and $198,000 for married couples with no children. For a typical family of four, the stimulus check is phased out entirely for those with incomes exceeding $218,000.

Read more on the checks here.

Related Content:
Many would agree that these are testing times, with the outbreak of Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) and the lockdown in place in India to prevent its spread.

Recently, a doctor in Telangana was attacked by a man after hearing the news of his brother's death due to COVID-19. Rishi Kapoor urged his followers on Twitter to not indulge in violence at this point in time.

In a tweet, Rishi wrote, "An appeal to all brothers and sisters from all social status and faiths. Please don't resort to violence,stone throwing or lynching. Doctors,Nurses,Medics, Policemen etc..are endangering their lives to save you. We have to win this Coronavirus war together. Please. Jai Hind!" (sic).

An appeal  to all brothers and sisters from all social status and faiths. Please dont resort to violence,stone throwing or lynching. Doctors,Nurses,Medics, Policemen etc..are endangering their lives to save you. We have to win this Coronavirus war together. Please. Jai Hind!  Rishi Kapoor (@chintskap) April 2, 2020

A doctor at Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad was attacked on Wednesday evening by a man who tested positive for COVID-19. The man attacked him upon hearing news that his brother had passed away due to the virus.

Similar to this incident, locals of Tatpatti Bakhal, Indore attacked health care workers when they arrived to the area to screen people for Coronavirus.

Rishi Kapoor has actively been tweeting about the Coronavirus crisis and the lockdown in place to prevent its spread in India. Some time back he had suggested that the nation declare a state of emergency in order to prevent matters from escalating. He also expressed concern for Pakistan citizens amidst the outbreak, hoping that the Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan would take appropriate measures. He also stressed that this one's ego and enmity cannot come in this matter as we are facing this crisis as humanity.

ALSO READ: Rishi Kapoor Expresses Concern For Pakistan Citizens Amidst Coronavirus Scare

ALSO READ: Rishi Kapoor Urges Government To Open Licenced Liquor Shops Amid Coronavirus Lockdown


Man's ancient ancestors had an ape-like brain structure but human-like brain growth, according to new research. (PA)

Man's ancient ancestors had an ape-like brain structure but human-like brain growth, according to new research.

The claim is based on an analysis of eight skulls belonging to Australopithecus afarensis, the species to which the famous human ancestor 'Lucy' belongs.

Researchers consider the "mosaic" of ape and human features to be "a hallmark of evolution".

Lead author Philipp Gunz, a biological anthropologist at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, said: "Our data shows that Australopithecus afarensis had a more ape-like brain that nevertheless developed over a longer period of time, similar to modern humans."

An international team of scientists, which included researchers from the Natural History Museum in London and University College London, used state-of-the-art scanning technology to examine the three-million-year-old skulls, collected from archaeological sites Dikika and Hadar in Ethiopia.

The findings were published in the Science Advances journal.
A doctor wears a mask as he walks outside Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan during the outbreak of the CCP virus in New York City, New York on April 1, 2020. (Brendan Mcdermid/Reuters)

New York Will Run Out of Ventilators Soon, Cuomo Warns, as Hospitalizations Spike

New York is slated to run out of ventilators in less than a week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a press conference on Thursday.

Fears of ventilator shortages have prompted officials to order hospitals to cancel all elective surgeries, recommend the use of anesthesia machines as ventilators, convert BiPAP machines into ventilators, and advise a splitting method that features a single ventilator serving two patients.

Its not easy, its not ideal, but its better than nothing, Cuomo told reporters in Albany. We have six days of ventilators in our stockpile at the current burn rate.

Patients can spend weeks on ventilators and the longer theyre on ventilators, the more likely theyll die. Patients with COVID-19, the disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus, are on ventilators for an average of 11 to 21 days, according to data from New York. The average time for patients without the disease is three to four days.

The federal government has in recent weeks sent 4,400 ventilators to New York and may not be in a position to send the number needed by states across the nation, Cuomo said. A number of companies have started producing ventilators, including General Motors and Ford. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has over 10,000 ventilators that it will distribute that states that need them, according to information released earlier Thursday.

New York has over 11,000 ventilators from those already in hospitals, those that were in its stockpile, or those that were already on hand, and is working on buying more.

Ventilators are machines that help lungs work. Theyre typically used during recovery from some surgeries, for people suffering from serious conditions like a brain injury or lung disease, and for babies with premature lung development. The machines pump oxygen into a persons body while removing carbon dioxide. Most require electricity while some can function on battery power.

A ventilator is seen at the New York City Emergency Management Warehouse, where 400 ventilators arrived and before being shipped out for distribution, due to concerns over the rapid spread of the CCP virus in the Brooklyn borough of New York City on March 24, 2020. (Caitlin Ochs/Reuters)

Members of the medical staff listen as Montefiore Medical Center nurses call for N95 masks and other critical PPE to handle the CCp virus pandemic in New York on April 1, 2020. (Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images)

Hospitalizations Spike

The number of confirmed cases in New York increased to 92,831, an increase of 8,669, while hospitalizations rose to 13,833, a spike of 1,607 from the day prior.

Three hundred and seventy-four new patients entered intensive care as those in ICUs in New York rose to 3,396.

The number of dead from COVID-19 rose to 2,372, up by 432 over 24 hours. In New York City, 1,374 of the deaths took place, with an estimated 9,775 patients hospitalized.

New York state has the highest number of cases and the most deaths in the United States. It has nearly half of the deaths in the entire nation.

Nearly 52,000 of the cases are in New York City, while surrounding counties, including Westchester, Nassau, and Suffolk counties have seen larger increases in recent days. Nassau and Suffolk authorities both reported over 1,000 new cases overnight.

Officials continued shifting the projected peak of cases after initially saying it would arrive in early to mid-April. Models now show it will arrive between seven and 30 days from now, Cuomo said, though state officials believe its closer to the shorter end of the range.

The models are done by outside groups and analyzed by state officials.

The projected number of hospital beds that the state may require at the peak shifted down, from as many 140,000 to between 70,000 and 110,000.

The state has 53,000 beds at the moment, with just 36,000 of them in the downstate area, where most of the cases are.
No one now living knows who Alice Smith was.

She may have been a Midwestern farm girl, as she claimed, lured to California by the siren song of opportunity. She might have been a few women whose collective stories were combined for a single narrative. Or maybe she didnt exist at all.

But in 1913, there was no doubt about one thing: She was the most famous woman in San Francisco.

That summer, the San Francisco Bulletin began publishing a series of remarkable essays from a woman using the pen name Alice Smith. Not yet 30, shed been working in brothels since she was a teenager, and her first-person account of sex work in California sent shockwaves through the state. By the time her "A Voice from the Underworld" series ended, the Bulletin had received over 4,000 letters to the editor, many from women in similar situations.

Alices stories are reprinted in "Alice: Memoirs of a Barbary Coast Prostitute," a read that feels as fresh today as it did in 1913 (which, depending on your point of view, is perhaps an indictment of how little some aspects of society have changed).

"Cant people understand that they are all responsible for each other, in lots of ways?" she wrote. " Its none of my business to preach; but I have seen what harm has been done by such little things as that. Every girl that is locked out at night, or that is made to feel she isnt wanted at home, is just that much nearer the brothel  nearer than people suppose."

Perhaps the most illuminating thing about Alices narrative is her exploration of the slow path into prostitution. There is no one big moment, just a series of small setbacks that ultimately changed her life.

The first happened in elementary school. Around age 10, Alices vision took a turn for the worse. She, like so many children before and since, could no longer see the chalkboard. But too poor to afford glasses, Alice started struggling in school. By 11, she dropped out, ending her formal education.

For a time, she worked in restaurants or as a maid, but her small Midwest hometown paid only about $2 per week. When she was 16, she learned her older sister Emma, who had just moved to Oakland, was making $25 a month. "I never knew girls got so much pay anywhere in the world," Alice marveled.

So she packed up her bags and hopped on a train heading west. She dreamed of making a fortune, so much shed be able to send most of her paycheck back to her grandparents every month. But she was in for a surprise when she arrived in Oakland in the early 1900s.

"Maybe its a lot back there," Emma told her disappointed sister, "but it costs more out here just to live."

Alice, now 17 years old, worked two jobs to survive. Every day, she worked from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. For months, her aunt hired her as a cleaner, but when Alice asked for payment, she was berated, called ungrateful and given $3 for two months of work. Her grandmother soon after kicked her out of the house. The ordeal broke Alice. It was "as if I had cut loose from one of my last holds on the world," she wrote.

She moved in with 35-year-old Henry Marsh, an Oakland cigar salesman who, to teenage Alice, seemed like the most worldly, complicated man shed ever met. Although he initially promised her a room of her own, when she arrived with her things, he told her that room was no longer available. If she wanted to stay, she would have to stay in his bedroom.

Desperate and homeless, Alice agreed to Henrys terms. "I took the very last step; it was so easy to do," she wrote. She had sex with Henry that night. In the morning, he said he would marry her. He said other things, too: that she wasnt making enough money as a cleaner so she should sell her body instead.

"I dont see whats the difference, kid. Youve gone the whole way already with me," he said. "If youre that far along, why not with others?"

Henry found clients through his cigar shop, and hed send them upstairs to proposition Alice. Her first john paid her $10; she had been making $6 per week as a washerwoman.

"Evidently a prostitute was one who sold herself for money," Alice rationalized. "Well, I wondered, was there anybody in the world, according to that, who didnt sell herself or himself for money?"

She worked out of her home for a year before discovering she was pregnant. Alice was tormented. She repeated many of the common stereotypes of the early 1900s; that the children of unwed mothers had astronomically high rates of suicide and even higher rates of incarceration.

"If that child was ever born alive, I would surely some day have him reproach me for being the most selfish creature alive  a woman who went ahead and brought a child into the world, knowing perfectly well that the childs life could never be anything but a burden to him and to everybody else," Alice wrote.

When she told Henry she was pregnant, he dismissively told her she should move into a whorehouse where the girls could tell her how to get an abortion. Alice did just that. For the second time in her short life, she packed up all of her worldly belongings and jumped on a train.

She went to an unnamed mountain town. For a while, she worked as a waitress but, like so many other women who left sex work at that time, she found the job unstable, the bosses cruel, and the pay not enough to live on. Alice moved on to the town brothel, a pretty democratic place with black and white women. She made $2 per client; on a good night, she had up to 14 johns. After a few months work, she finally had enough to pay for an abortion.

"I came out of that trial changed in many ways.  That was where I started to quit judging others," she wrote. "Today I havent it in me to feel real hard toward anyone for anything they do."

After this installment of "A Voice From the Underworld" ran, the Bulletin was flooded with similar stories from Bay Area women of all walks of life.

One woman wrote of how, at 17, she was impregnated by her boyfriend. When she told him the news, he "laughed in my face, and told me he never had any intention of marrying me." Bereft of familial support, she was taken in by a San Francisco washerwoman.

"After I had been there a short time, some of the good Christian women came to her and told her if she kept me they would quit coming to her house," the letter reads, "and Mrs. W. told them if that was Christianity, she didnt want to be a Christian."

Another woman wrote in to thank Alice for saving her from a life of suffering. After reading the piece, the woman asked her fiance whether he would still marry her if he learned she wasnt a virgin. Absolutely not, he replied. But he then admitted that he frequented brothels, and that he expected she would still marry him. The woman broke off their engagement.

Life, unfortunately for Alice, became only harder after her first abortion. She began to suffer debilitating health problems. By abortion number four, her hands shook uncontrollably. She was only 23 years old.

OpenSFHistory / wnp37.02933.jpg

She resolved it was time to leave sex work for good. She found work at a brothel on San Franciscos Commercial Street. It didnt have the convivial atmosphere of her previous place of employment, partly because the girls didnt live in the house together. They rented nightly space from the madam, leading to cut-throat competition for johns. It was like living in a zoo, Alice said.

"I dont know whether animals have speech; but if they have, they dont use it as men do," she wrote. "And animals dont have prostitution. It took men to achieve that."

For a year, she swore off alcohol, leisure activities and new clothes. She saved every penny she made and, by the end of that year, she had $400 in the bank (almost $10,000 in todays money).

With her earnings, she and her sister Emma began a sort of proto-Airbnb business. They rented a few flats, furnished them nicely and then sublet them. It took nearly all of her cash to get the business off the ground, but things looked promising. With her life finally on track, she went to the Bulletin office to inquire if theyd be interested in writing her story. They were.

Today, no one knows who Alice Smith was  or if she was. The Bulletin admitted that it wrote the stories using a ghostwriter, understandable given Alices supposed lack of education. But, as the editors of "Alice: Memoirs of a Barbary Coast Prostitute" observed, its very possible "Alice" was really an amalgamation of stories from several women. The least generous reading is that the Bulletin made the whole thing up, not uncommon for tabloids at the time.

But who Alice was almost doesnt matter. The outpouring of letters to the editor  the Bulletin published nearly 300 of them  corroborated her accounts. Many, like Alice, protested a society that provided few employment opportunities for women, but vilified them for taking on whatever work kept them alive.

"The worst prostitutes this world knows are of the male gender, and in the main are found in editorial chairs and in pulpits misnamed Christian, defending a system of society which they know is rotten  a system which makes a decent living, especially for women, very difficult," one reader wrote.

"Why do you speak of us as belonging to the underworld? Who, then, constitutes the upper world?" added another. "Is it the men who come to visit us? And why are they in any respect above us? Is the woman who marries for money or for social station any better than we are? Does she not sell herself as we do?"

Alice gained such acclaim that when famed activist Emma Goldman came to San Francisco in July 1913, she spoke extensively about the series and praised the citys struggling working women.

Alice was in the audience, the Bulletin reported, smiling as Goldman told her story.

"I want to say this to the girls who are still in the underworld  dont give up," Alice once wrote. "Dont lose heart. But dont allow yourself to go along, year by year, in the hope that some man will marry you and take you out. That idea is a pitiful lie. There may be a few exceptional cases; but for ninety-nine out of every hundred theres only one person who will ever take you out of it, and thats yourself."

"I am under thirty," she added, "and I am sure that there is much happiness left in life."

Katie Dowd is a senior digital editor with SFGATE. Email her: katie.dowd@sfgate.com
On March 26, 2020, U.S. District Court Judge Mary McElroy sitting in the District of Rhode Island issued a decision granting summary judgment in favor of a restaurant group, India House, Inc., and its employee Santosh Shanbhag. Santosh Shanbhag was granted H-1B status in a specialty occupation after being previously denied by USCIS. Leveraging support from its Providence office, attorneys for Green & Spiegel, based in Philadelphia, litigated the case on behalf of India House and Mr. Shanbhag.

Mr. Shanbhag sought specialty occupation classification as a General and Operations Manager for India House, Inc. After a 2018 denial by USCIS and a 2019 denial on appeal by the Administrative Appeals Office, the parties sued USCIS and sought relief in federal court pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act.

Stephen Antwine, who leads the Federal Litigation Practice at Green & Spiegel, and argued the case, hopes the decision will encourage further litigation in H-1B cases. USCIS decisions are subject to federal court review, and it is an avenue for relief that is often overlooked, according to Antwine. Although Green & Spiegel did not file the original H-1B petitions, Antwine said, We felt that the evidence presented in the administrative record formed a strong basis to challenge the initial denial in federal court.

District Judge McElroy granted summary judgment for India House, Inc. after briefing and oral argument. Most importantly, the Court concluded that Hospitality Management was a specialty occupation for the purposes of H-1B classification. Judge McElroy determined that Mr. Shanbhags educational background, including a degree in hospitality management from Johnson & Wales University, made him eminently qualified for the position of General Operations Manager of the restaurant group. She ruled that hospitality management was not a general degree, and based the decision on the course of study in which Mr. Shanbhag had engaged, including food, food safety, food service, food culture, and franchising.

Moreover, the Court saw through the mischaracterization of the business entity itself by USCIS which labeled it simply a restaurant started in 1987. In fact, the evidence clearly established that it was a restaurant group consisting of four restaurants and an expansive catering company. Judge McElroy concluded that the governments approval of two prior H-1B petitions was instructive, and held that the government could not justify its arbitrary denial for a more senior position. In making the decision, she referenced increasing denial rates for H-1B cases, despite no changes in the actual law or any underlying applicable policy memoranda.

Jonathan Grode, Green & Spiegels U.S. Practice Director, lauded the decision of the Court: This decision shows that the USCIS cannot arbitrarily dictate adjudication standards based on the whims of the federal administration. We applaud the Court for its concise and well-reasoned decision as well as swift action through summary judgment. The litigation team at Green and Spiegel went above and beyond for our client and I am proud of this tremendous team effort.

Case Citation: India House, Inc. v. McAleenan, et. al, 1:19CV00296, (D.R.I 2020).

ABOUT: Green and Spiegel, LLC is a law firm specializing in North American immigration law. The U.S. headquarters is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with additional offices in Colorado, Ohio, and Rhode Island. From large corporate employee transfers to difficult family sponsorships and humanitarian applications for permanent residence, Green and Spiegel can help. With top legal minds in corporate employee transfers, removal/deportation, immigrant investment, family immigration, immigration compliance, and resolving inadmissibility issues, the professionals at Green and Spiegel have been recognized as industry leaders.
The Australian sharemarket is poised to open sharply higher as Wall Street shrug off dismal job figures to jump higher on President Trump's claim that a Saudi Arabia-Russia oil done is close. At 7.50am AEDT, futures are pointing to a gain of 114 points, or 2.2 per cent, at the open.

1. Market action heats up: Defying perhaps the recent trend in markets, market action didnt necessarily bind around the one theme. Moves were relatively large, with the very tight correlations between markets diminishing, somewhat, for now.

On balance, it was a positive day for risk-taking. The US VIX fell, in the realms of 7 per cent, to trade at around the 52-mark. Stocks climbed in Europe and the US; while government bond prices pulled back slightly.

Wall Street moved higher on Thursday. Credit:AP

2. Trump rocks oil: The bombshell news last night came in the oil markets. Crude prices spiked in excess of 20 per cent in US trade. The move came after US President Trump announced via Twitter that hed been in talks with both Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman, whod spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the US President stating he expect(s) & hope(s) that they will be cutting back approximately 10 Million Barrels per day of oil supply into the market.
A staff member at a leading cancer centre has tested positive for coronavirus, sparking fears vulnerable patients may have been exposed to the disease.

Ten other staff members who came into contact with the staff member at Melbourne's Peter Maccallum Cancer Centre have been ordered to self-isolate for 14 days.

Cancer sufferers are vulnerable to coronavirus because their immune systems are severely weakened by tumours and aggressive bursts of treatment.

There are growing concerns for frontline staff as more than 80 healthcare workers in Victoria have now been infected with the virus (Pictured: A nurse explaining how to out a mask in toi a man entering a hospital)

Health Minister Jenny Mikakos has vowed to spend $100 million on millions of masks, gowns and gloves to ensure healthcare workers have adequate protection (pictured: A woman putting a mask on as she enters a hospital)

The hospital said it had adjusted staff rosters to cover any absences.

'Our primary focus remains the health and wellbeing of our patients and staff,' the centre said in a statement on Thursday.

'We are working closely with the departments of Health and Human Services to rigorously follow all relevant protocols to reduce any possible risk of further infection.'

There are growing concerns for frontline staff as more than 80 healthcare workers in Victoria have tested positive for the virus since the outbreak.

Authorities believe they contracted the illness in the community rather than at work.

The development comes as Victoria expands its COVID-19 testing criteria, ahead of an expected peak in the infection curve in June.

Police officers, child protection workers, homelessness support workers and paid or unpaid workers in health care, residential care and disability care are now being encouraged to get tested if they develop symptoms.

Immunosuppressed patients admitted to hospital and patients in high-risk settings such as military operating settings, boarding schools, prisons and correctional settings are also being told to get tested if they get sick.

About 10 workers at Melbourne's Peter Maccallum Cancer Centre have been placed into isolation as a precaution

State Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said Victoria has boosted its testing capacity by expanding screening clinics and testing laboratories.

'This means we can test more Victorians than ever and well above the previous key target groups, the majority of which were travellers - a diminishing group,' she said.

The number of confirmed cases in Victoria rose on Thursday to 1036, after the death of a woman in her 70s lifted the national death toll to 22.

In Victoria, 36 people are hospitalised with the virus, with six in intensive care.

There are currently about 450 intensive care beds in Victoria.

A new $1.3 billion package is set to create about 4000 more to help hospitals cope when the number of infected people peaks.

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

About $1.2 billion will go towards equipment and resources, while $65 million will be spent on capital works and workforce training.

The money will also pay for more protective equipment, including 551 million gloves, 100 million masks and 14.5 million gowns.

The cash comes after the state government reached an in-principle agreement with Victoria's major private hospitals, effectively providing access to an extra 9000 beds.

The federal government on Tuesday announced that more than 34,000 private hospital beds will be available during the pandemic.

As of April 1, non-urgent elective surgery has been suspended across Australia.

On Tuesday, it was confirmed four babies, three under 12 months old and the fourth a year old, had been infected.

Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said all the children were in isolation at home, recovering with their families.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted the Peter Maccallum Cancer Centre for comment.
Our strategic partnership with RentTrack will open the doors for our customers to offer their residents a credit-building advantage, said Chris Walton, vice president, payments product management, RealPage. In doing so, RealPage customers will have a competitive advantage in the tight real estate

RentTrack, a property technology data company focused on giving renters the credit they deserve for paying their rent, announces today a strategic partnership to offer rent reporting to renters across the U.S. in collaboration with RealPage, a leading global provider of software and data analytics to the real estate industry.

The new partnership seamlessly integrates RentTracks Rent Reporting solution with RealPage OneSite, giving property managers the opportunity to offer a unique amenity to their residents, building their credit with rental payments.

Reporting rental payments  which is often the largest monthly expense for renters  offers tenants an incentive for paying on time so they can build their credit, Matt Briggs, chief executive officer, RentTrack. Our partnership with RealPage furthers our mission to make rental agreements the norm on every renters credit report.

RentTrack transformed the credit-reporting industry by adding rental agreements as a trusted tradeline  or account  on credit reports so renters can build credit for making on-time rent payments. In recent surveys with TransUnion, seven in 10 renters reported that they would be more likely to make on-time rent payments if property managers reported rent payments to the credit bureaus, but only about 17 percent of property managers offer rent reporting to renters.

Our strategic partnership with RentTrack will open the doors for our customers to offer their residents a credit-building advantage, said Chris Walton, vice president, payments product management, RealPage. In doing so, RealPage customers will have a competitive advantage in the tight real estate market around the country.

RealPage client, Campus Advantage has already seen success. Were passionate about student success and RentTrack is making a big difference for our residents, said Dan Oltersdorf, chief learning officer, Campus Advantage. Within a few months, it has enabled our residents to increase their credit scores by an average of 57 points.

In addition to having their rent reported to the major credit bureaus, RentTrack subscribers can also track their credit scores and see personalized credit insights. RentTrack also offers an option to residents to report past payment history for up to 24 months on their current lease for a deeper tradeline.

For more information, please visit https://www.renttrack.com/realpage/.

About RentTrack

RentTrack is a property technology data company that pioneered the reporting of rent and utility payments to give renters the credit they deserve for paying their largest monthly expenditures. RentTrack is the leading provider of alternative data to the major credit bureaus and continues to focus on reporting alternative consumer data that levels the credit playing field. For more information, visit http://www.renttrack.com

About RealPage

RealPage provides a technology platform that enables real estate owners and managers to change how people experience and use rental space. Clients use the platform to gain transparency in asset performance, leverage data insights and monetize space to create incremental yields. Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Richardson, Texas, RealPage currently serves over 18 million units worldwide from offices in North America, Europe and Asia. For more information about RealPage, please visit https://www.RealPage.com.

Visit our social media sites here;

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/renttrack/

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/rent-track

Twitter - https://twitter.com/RentTrack

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/renttrack/
Florida will allow two cruise ships impacted by a coronavirus outbreak to disembark most of their 2,500 passengers after Holland America Line ships struck a deal with local and federal officials following a contentious battle.

Governor Ron DeSantis faced intense pressure to allow the vessels to dock as numerous fatalities were reported and sick passengers were quarantined to their cabins, many of them lacking windows and medical resources.

Holland Americas president Orlando Ashford penned a desperate plea to state officials in a local Florida newspaper earlier this week, writing: The COVID-19 situation is one of the most urgent tests of our common humanity. To slam the door in the face of these people betrays our deepest human values."

Local Democratic officials meanwhile blasted the governors response to the stranded vessels, after Mr DeSantis told Fox News: We cannot afford to have people who are not even Floridians dumped into South Florida using up those valuable resources.

Donna Shall (DFL) described the opposition as immoral in an interview with CNN, adding: Look, the British, the Germans, no one in the world is turning away Americans if they have coronavirus in their countries. We have to admit them.

The governor was also encouraged to admit the cruise ships from federal officials, as well as Dr Anthony Fauci, who serves on the White House coronavirus response task force. The infectious disease expert told CBS News it was absolutely necessary for Mr DeSantis to provide the vessels entry into Florida, adding that the US had an obligation to help the sick passengers.

Donald Trump even reportedly stepped in and implored Florida to allow the ships entry.

At least 97 passengers and 136 crew members were exhibiting flu-like symptoms after four people died on one of the ships, according to the cruise liner.

Recommended Cruise ships facing deadly coronavirus outbreaks beg Florida for entry

The cruise company coordinated immediate critical care for those patients with a local health system in southern Florida, CNN reported.

"We are going to be willing to accept Floridians on board," Mr DeSantis told reporters on Thursday. "My understanding is most of the passengers are foreign nationals."

Holland America celebrated the announcement in a statement on Thursday while calling for compassions during the pandemic.

"We appreciate the support of President Trump in resolving the humanitarian plight of our guests," the statement read. "Holland America Line calls for compassion and reason in the review and approval of our disembarkation plan by Florida officials."
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Market Insights

Market Research Future predicted that the Global Dehydrated Fruits & Vegetables Market to reach USD 38.06 during the forecast period at a CAGR of 7.95%.

Worldwide consumption of dehydrated fruits and vegetables continues to grow due to changing lifestyles and consumer buying habits. At the same time, greater efforts to develop longer life solutions without the use of harmful preservatives also ensure the popularity of dehydrated fruits and vegetables. Dehydration of fruits and vegetables improves their shelf life, which also positively affects retail profit margins as deterioration decreases. Dehydration generally retains most of the nutritional and other properties of fruits and vegetables, owing to which they are popular with health-conscious consumers.

The development of the Dehydrated Fruits and Vegetables Market Revenue is related to several factors. Around the globe, the consumption of functional drinks such as nutraceuticals has increased rapidly in recent years. Growing health problems and consumer lifestyle changes are the most important factors related to the development of functional beverages in advanced and emerging economies. In addition, the rising demand for fruit powder should have a positive impact on the overall development of the dehydrated fruit and vegetable market. At present, superfruit juices are becoming increasingly popular among consumers. Demand and consumption of superfruits have increased due to diseases such as diabetes, obesity, allergies, and other chronic diseases that have increased knowingly in recent years and therefore have played a vital role in raising consumer health awareness. In addition, the growing use of superfruit powders as an ingredient in beverages, food, and pharmaceuticals drives market growth.

Key players

Most companies operating in this market are focused on increasing their activities in all geographic areas, research, and development capabilities, and spending heavily to deliver products with enhanced functionality. Some of the key players influencing the growth of DMH Ingredients, FutureCeuticals, Inc., Kanegrade Limited, Saipro Biotech Private Limited, Activz LLC, Baobab Foods, NutraDry, Paradise Fruits Solutions Gmbh & Co., LLC, Milne MicroDehydrated, Herbafood Ingredients GmbH. Major players in the dehydrated fruit and vegetable market have implemented strategies such as partnership, geographic expansion, new product development, acquisitions and product promotion to strengthen their business portfolio.

Recent Updates

The Kansas Department of Agriculture has been honoured with a prize of $373,525.24 via the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. Funds for the program are presented by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service to increase growth prospects for specialty crops. According to the USDA, specialty crops are defined as fruits, tree nuts, vegetables, nursery crops, dried fruits, horticulture, and including floriculture. KDA has appointed other inheritors to use the funds further.

Get More Professional and Technical Industry Insights @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/dehydrated-fruits-vegetables-market-5516

Market Segmentation

The dehydrated fruits and vegetables market are bifurcated based on type and shape.

The type segment consists of fruits and vegetables. Based on the species, the fruit segment is anticipated to take the lead in the forecast period from 2018 to 2023. The fruits are then segregated into apples, apricots, pineapples, bananas, cherries, among others. The fruits are expected to produce apricots with an increase in growth rate of 8.06%.

In addition, the vegetables segment is also segmented into such as tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, garlic, and many others.

Moreover, the global Dehydrated Fruits & Vegetables is also classified based on its form into powders, pellets, and others.

Regional Outlook

Geographically, North America might sustain its control over the forecast period. The North American region is anticipated to reach a valuation of $12.32 Billion over 2023 and grow with a CAGR of 7.69% over the forecast period, 2018-2023. The development of the North America region is likely driven by several factors, including the growth of technological advancement in the North American dehydrated fruit and vegetable market. In addition, the existence of major manufacturers in North America should be one of the most important factors for market growth.

However, it is also estimated that the Asia Pacific region will grow at a rapid pace over the forecast period.

Read more details at: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/infographics

Read more details at: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/videos
Indonesia has released some 18,000 inmates in a desperate bid to stop coronavirus from rampaging through its notoriously overcrowded prison system, authorities said Thursday.

The mass release comes days after the Southeast Asian nation said it would free more than 30,000 inmates to take pressure off prisons and jails beset by unsanitary conditions and long at risk of infectious diseases.

The UN has called on countries to release vulnerable inmates, with Afghanistan last week announcing it would set free some 10,000 prisoners.

"Our target is to release 30,000 inmates in total, but it could end up being more," said Rika Aprianti, a spokeswoman for the Corrections Directorate General.

"This is part of the plan to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in prisons."



She offered few details, but a government release order included juvenile offenders and adult prisoners who had served at least two-thirds of their sentences.

Prisoners were advised to self quarantine at home after release.

Among them was Firdaus, a fishermen jailed in 2017 on Sulawesi island for stealing a gold ring.

"I was scared of being infected in prison, not to mention that the guards come and go so we don't know who they've had contact with," said the 33-year-old, who was set for release in November.

But his relief was tempered by the thought of others still inside. "I'm not that happy because I left my friends behind," he said.

Indonesia's creaking prison system has just 522 institutions for some 270,000 inmates. It suffers from regular jailbreaks and criticism for its often deplorable conditions.

Amnesty International welcomed the release, but called on the government to make sure "prisoners of conscience" and older inmates with health problems were set free.

"They're vulnerable to COVID-19 and, in the name of humanity, they must be released," said Amnesty Indonesia Executive Director Usman Hamid.

"Conditions including a lack of access to clean water and severe overcrowding will be exacerbated by the outbreak.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A man has admitted plotting to attack the White House.

Hasher Jallal Taheb, 23, of Cumming, Georgia, had been the subject of an undercover investigation by FBI Atlanta's Joint Terrorism Task Force for more than a year.

The investigation was launched following a tip from someone in the community in 2018 who was concerned that Taheb had become radicalised and was making plans to travel abroad.

Taheb was arrested in January 2019 when he arrived to buy explosives from undercover FBI agents, authorities said.

Taheb has pleaded guilty to plotting to attack the White House / Getty Images

On Wednesday, he pleaded guilty to attempting to destroy, by fire or an explosive, a building owned by or leased to the United States, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia said in a statement.

John Demers, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, said Mr Taheb "planned to conduct a terrorist attack on the White House as part of what he claimed was his obligation to engage in jihad".

During undercover meetings, he produced sketches of the White House and described the types of weapons and explosives he wished to use in the attacks, including semi-automatic weapons, improvised explosive devices, an anti-tank weapon, and hand grenades, authorities said.

Taheb's targets included the White House, Statue of Liberty, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, and a synagogue.

Taheb wanted to die in the attack, an FBI agent said in statement at the time of his arrest.

Sentencing has been scheduled for June 23.
By Peter Fournier

Bay City News

SAN JOSE (BCN)

Approximately 15 people have been displaced following a fire in San Jose's Horace Mann neighborhood early Thursday morning, according to fire officials.

The two-alarm blaze was first reported at 11:43 p.m. Wednesday at a home in the 200 block of 7th Street, San Jose Fire Department Public Information Manager Erica Ray said.

The fire started in an RV next to a home, spread to the structure at that address and charred a neighboring home, according to Ray.

Firefighters at the scene got the fire under control at about 12:20 a.m. Approximately 15 people, including 3 children, were displaced from the two homes. The American Red Cross has been dispatched to assist them, per Ray.

At least one resident was transported to a hospital for treatment of injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
WILMINGTON, N.C., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- CastleBranch, a compliance management and infectious disease screening company serving over 30,000 businesses and public entities, as well as millions of individuals nationwide, has developed a solution to help Fortune 5,000 companies and large municipalities safely get their people back to work, get our economy back on track, and get organizations ready for the next wave of COVID-19.

COVID-19 forced thousands of cities and companies to close their businesses or move staff to remote work, all but grinding our national economy to a halt. As many organizations wait for the "all clear" to return to business, Dr. Anthony Fauci, a leading member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, warns a second wave of COVID-19 is likely.

"It will be inevitable," said Dr. Fauci at a March 25 White House press conference. "We really need to be prepared for another cycle."

Many organizations lack the process and technology to screen their employees for COVID-19 symptoms before they return to work. Lacking the tools to protect themselves, organizations face the possibility of an employee returning to work with COVID-19, which could lead to the potential spread of the disease and another costly, forced closure.

"COVID-19 has changed the way we think and act," said Brett Martin, CEO of CastleBranch. "Now more than ever, it's important that organizations have a way to safely and responsibly bring their employees back to work and prepare for the next wave of the disease."

To respond, CastleBranch pulled together from a team of over 400 individuals to find a solution that mitigated the risk of COVID-19 and helped large organizations get back to work and ready for the next wave. And in a time of national crisis, the company produced.

"We've taken extraordinary steps under extraordinary circumstances to produce extraordinary results," said Martin. "We built a COVID-19 solution with healthcare in mind  one of the most complex industries in the world  and made it available to every person and organization in the country."

The result, CB COVID-19 Compliance, follows CDC guidelines and was built in conjunction with Dr. George Astrakianakis, former Director of Disease Prevention of the Occupational Health and Safety Agency for Healthcare and international expert on pandemic infectious disease policy. The managed service application enables organizations to screen for common COVID-19 symptoms, including a fever. Participants are asked to provide twice-daily temperature readouts for 14 days prior to returning to work. It also gathers information on an individual's travel and exposure to COVID-19, as well as provides educational training on preventing the spread of infectious diseases. All in, this creates a technological airlock around an individual to ensure they're healthy and safe before they return.

CB COVID-19 Compliance is built upon CastleBranch's existing enterprise-level solution, CB Bridges, which spent six years in development, four years in the market, and has the proven ability to support millions of users. The platform is designed to remain compliant with all relevant regulations governing the collection and usage of private data, including FERPA, FCRA, CCPA and more.

"When the time is right, we'll need to reopen our businesses and get our economy back on track. We'll make sure it's safe for organizations to reopen by screening their employees for COVID-19 symptoms today so they can join in the fight tomorrow," said Martin.

About CastleBranch:

Located in Wilmington, N.C., CastleBranch is a compliance management and infectious disease screening company serving over 17,700 healthcare programs, 30,000 businesses and public entities, and 1 million students nationwide. CastleBranch has 20+ years of experience, employs over 400 team members and has a long track record of providing innovative solutions for complex problems.

To learn more about how CastleBranch can help, visit discover.castlebranch.com/covid-19-resources/ or call or email us at 888.723.4263 ext. 1066, [email protected]

SOURCE CastleBranch

Related Links

http://www.castlebranch.com


Tiny Andorra has ordered enough antibody tests to screen the whole population nearly twice over, it has emerged.

The Pyrenees micro-state with a population of 77,000 has placed an order for 150,000 of the coronavirus tests from South Korea, local media says.

Health minister Joan Martinez Benazet says the tests are 'absolutely reliable' and will arrive via Spain in the next two weeks.

Once they do, Andorran health authorities plan to test the entire population to see if their body has developed immunity to Covid-19.

Andorra hopes to test its entire population for antibodies using 150,000 tests it has ordered from South Korea (file photo, a medical worker examines patients' swabs in a lab)

Health authorities around the world hope that antibody tests will signpost a way out of the global lockdown, because people who are confirmed to be immune could be exempted from quarantine rules.

'We want to test the whole population for coronavirus antibodies within a few weeks,' the Andorran health minister said.

'That way we'll see how high the infection rate in the population really is and what measures we need to take so we can restart public life.'

The tests have been ordered from a trusted company in South Korea where widespread testing has already been carried out, the Andorran minister says.

Andorra has confirmed 428 cases and 15 deaths, and borders Spain which is suffering one of the world's worst outbreaks.

Like Spain and its other neighbour France, Andorra has also shut down non-essential shops and told people to stay at home to contain the epidemic.

The principality has also drafted in 39 doctors and nurses from Cuba after 60 medical workers in Andorra had to go into isolation over virus fears.

The 12 doctors and 27 nurses arrived in Andorra by bus after flying into Madrid at the weekend.

Andorra and Italy are the only European states to have accepted help from Cuba, whose global medical missions are viewed critically by Washington.

In the UK, health secretary Matt Hancock says 3.5million antibody tests are on the way but the government has come under pressure over its testing policy.

The latest Public Health England figures show that fewer than 10,000 of the current tests are being carried out per day, compared to 70,000 per day in Germany.

There have also been demands for more testing for healthcare staff after it emerged that around one in four of the workforce are off sick or self-isolating.

Downing Street has pointed the finger at a lack of chemical 'reagents', but the Chemical Industries Association says they are still being manufactured and supplied to the NHS.

UK officials also say they are working with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test in Britain.

Andorra has drafted in 39 medical workers from Cuba - some of whom are seen on a bus heading for the principality after they arrived at Madrid airport

Most coronavirus tests that are currently in use can only reveal who is infected at the moment, meaning that many cases are missed.

The UK government advises people with mild symptoms to isolate at home, meaning they are never added to the official tally.

However, antibody tests can show who has been infected in the past and has developed immunity as a result.

It is hoped that the tests would allow a gradual end to the lockdowns which are currently forcing billions of people to stay at home. A vaccine for the new coronavirus is expected to be months away at least.

A German health official has also suggested that medics who are found to be immune would not need as much protective gear, helping supplies.

Germany hopes to undertake random samples starting in the next few weeks to see how many people have been infected without realising it.

'Those people are positive for antibodies and, we can assume, immune, and contribute to the 60 or 70 percent of people who need to be immunised or infected before the pandemic will come to a standstill,' top virologist Christian Drosten said in an NDR podcast.
There are four times more deaths in Italy than in our country

The global statistics of fatal cases caused by COVID-19 is currently around 5%, which is just under five thousand cases per day. This was announced by Deputy Minister of Health and Chief State Sanitary Doctor of Ukraine Viktor Lyashko during a briefing, which was broadcasted by 112 Ukraine TV channel.

He also said that around 4884 people died from the coronavirus every day.

"If we look at the number of fatal cases in Ukraine, we have 2.5%. For comparison, Italy reports 11%, and Spain - 9%," Lyashko said.

As we reported earlier, 804 cases of coronavirus infection have been registered in Ukraine.

"According to the Public Health Center, as of 10:00 am, on April 2, there were 804 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ukraine, 20 of which were lethal, 13 patients recovered. Over the last 24 hours, 135 new cases have been recorded," the message reads.

However, the data from the temporarily occupied territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk regions and the city of Sevastopol are not available.
Chinese tech giant Huawei is still using American components for its flagship smartphone the P40, despite a ban put in place by the Trump administration in 2019.

The company's latest release, the P40, features three American made components--specifically three distinct chips used in the phone's radio frequency front-end module made by Qualcomm, Qorvo, and Skyworks.

Radio frequency front-end modules connect a phone's cellular and data antennae to receivers that help translate the signals into data that usable by the phone's operating system.

Huawei's P40 (pictured above) features 5G network connectivity, a 6.58-inch OLED screen, and ultra-durable 'nanotech ceramic back' made from highly compressed ceramic beads

The P40 was released on March 26 and is Huawei's signature smartphone model, featuring a 5G service, a 6.58-inch OLED screen, and an ultradurable 'nanotech ceramic back' made from highly compressed ceramic beads.

The American components were discovered by the Financial Times, who commissioned the tech company XYZone to perform a teardown on the product.

The Trump administration initially banned American tech companies from providing Huawei with components in May of 2019, following trade tensions with China and accusations that Huawei was using its devices to spy on Americans.

US manufacturers can still get around the ban but they have to apply for a 'temporary general license' from the US Commerce Department, which an anonymous source claimed had been done in Qualcomm's case.

Perhaps the biggest consequence of the ban so far has been that Huawei can no longer license Google's Android operating system for its phones and has instead had to develop its own costly operating system, called HarmonyOS.

The Trump administration first instituted a ban on all US companies doing business with Huawei in May 2019, after accusing the tech giant of using its devices to spy on Americans, part of the ongoing escalation of trade tension between China and the US

To see how the P40's internal components compared to Huawei's earlier phone models, the FT also commissioned a tear down of the company's 2019 flagship phone, the P30.

That revealed a same group of three American chips in the RF front-end module, as well as two additional components from American manufacturers, including RAM from Micron and a communication and radio frequency chip from Qorvo--both of which are no longer used in the P40.

When approached for comment, a Huawei representative said, 'all the product materials are obtained legally from our global partners, and we insist on working with our partners to provide consumers with high quality products and services.'
Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyans April 13-15 official visit to the Netherlands has been postponed. This is what Press Secretary of the Prime Minister Mane Gevorgyan told Armenpress in response to a question about the visit of the Prime Minister of Armenia to the Netherlands and the decision adopted by the government during its session today. By the decision, AMD 6,000,000 will be allocated from the reserve fund to prepare and transfer the duplicate of the cross-stone of Atom Verakatsu to the Netherlands.

The amount will be used to pay for the work that has already been done to prepare the duplicate of the cross-stone of Atom Verakatsu. The decision was adopted in order to pay for the work that has already been done. The duplicate was going to be placed at Peace Palace in The Hague during the Prime Ministers visit. We hope the coronavirus pandemic ends soon and the duplicate of the cross-stone will be placed during the official visit of the Prime Minister to the Netherlands, Mane Gevorgyan stated.

Cross-stone to be placed during Armenia PMs visit to the Netherlands
Sagar (Madhya Pradesh) [India], Apr 2 (ANI): As many as 24 persons, who returned to Sagar and had participated in Tablighi Jamaat at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi, have been placed under isolation here.



They were admitted to the TB Hospital and their samples have been sent for tests.

Earlier, 110 people in Tamil Nadu and 43 in Andhra Pradesh who had attended the gathering have tested positive for coronavirus. Six attendees from Telangana have also died due to the deadly virus.

Several state governments are tracing and identifying all those who attended the

Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi's Nizamuddin. A large number of people in different states have already been placed under quarantine as a precautionary measure.

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday said that there are 1,834 coronavirus positive cases in India, including 1,649 active cases, 144 cured/discharged/migrated people and 41 deaths. (ANI)


IRVING, Texas  Police in the Dallas suburb of Irving fatally shot a man who was wielding a shotgun after they say he blasted his way into a closed convenience store Thursday, according to the police department.

An employee hiding in a washroom at a 7-Eleven reported that a man was shooting out the stores glass doors shortly after 1 a.m., according to a statement from the Irving Police Department. Officers arrived to find a man emerging from the business.

An officer ordered the man to drop the shotgun, but he didnt. The officer then shot the suspect dead, police said.

Police identified the man as Joseph Zahaczewski, 69, of Irving.
Paris, France (PANA) - France on Wednesday welcomed the launch of the new European Union (EU) military operation off Libya, dubbed Irini (from the Greek word "peace"), the objective of which is to implement the United Nations arms embargo
The number of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) infections in the national capital jumped on Thursday by 141  the biggest single-day increase yet  with nearly 92% (129) of them linked to the Tablighi Jamaat, a religious group that is now feared to be driving the outbreak in the country despite an unprecedented lockdown that has forced people to stay indoors for three weeks.

The number of fatalities rose by two  both of these patients had also been to the Nizamuddin building  and the countrys overall number of confirmed cases rose 2,520, also soaring by a record number over Wednesdays figure of 2006.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

The national surge, too, was largely driven by Tablighi Jamaat-linked infections from states such as Tamil Nadu, where all 75 new infections reported the same origin. In all, about 9,000 members linked to the gathering in Delhi have been quarantined or are being sought out to be isolated after they attended events at the Delhi building that is believed to have turned into a hotbed of the infection this month.

The home ministry along with states and Union territories launched a massive effort and about 9,000 Tablighi Jamaat workers and their primary contacts were identified and quarantined. Among these, 1,306 people are foreigners, said Punya Salila Srivastava, joint secretary in the Union home ministry, during a daily briefing on Thursday.

Also Read: Nizamuddin markaz trail widens; coronavirus cases in India hit 2,000

Srivastava said that 2,346 people were evacuated from Tablighi Jamaats six-storey complex in Nizamuddin since March 29. Of these, 250 were foreigners and 1,804 people were shifted to different quarantine centres, while 334 positive cases were hospitalised, the official said.

Earlier in the day, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the number of cases linked to the Tablighi Jamaat could shoot up since the government has decided to test all of the 2,346 people linked to the building.

The government has begun action at several levels against the missionary group, booking its leader Maulana Mohammad Saad under sections that punish offences that could lead to the worsening of an epidemic and for criminal conspiracy.

Union home minister Amit Shah said on Thursday the government has blacklisted 960 foreigners for their involvement in activities with the group while they were in India on tourist visas. Their visas have also been cancelled.

The home minister added that the state director generals of police and Delhi Police commissioner have been directed to take necessary legal action against the overseas Tablighi Jamaat members as they violated the provisions of Foreigners Act, 1946 and Disaster Management Act, 2005.

On Thursday, the Delhi Police mailed 24 questions to the groups head, the first step in launching its formal investigation. The questions are related to the gathering of over 2,000 people at the six-storey building and Saads alleged violation of the orders that prohibited an assembly of large groups of people.

Saads counsel, Fuzail Ayyubi, said, We are preparing a reply. There are about two dozen questions. The maulana is not absconding. He is in self-quarantine, as advised by doctors.

Ayyubi also said that Saad has released an audio message urging all his followers to comply with the lockdown directions and be safe.

In a minute-long video released on social media groups, Saad asked his followers to remain indoors and also cooperate with the government.

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ATHENS, Greece, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Diana Shipping Inc. (DSX), (the Company), a global shipping company specializing in the ownership of dry bulk vessels, today announced that, through a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, it has entered into a time charter contract with Cargill International S.A., Geneva, for one of its Post-Panamax dry bulk vessels, the m/v Alcmene, for a period of about thirteen (13) months to maximum fifteen (15) months. The gross charter rate is US$4,000 per day for the first sixty (60) days of the charter period and US$8,500 per day for the balance period of the time charter, in each case minus a 4.75% commission paid to third parties. The charter commenced earlier today.



The Alcmene is a 93,193 dwt Post-Panamax dry bulk vessel built in 2010.

This employment is anticipated to generate approximately US$2.92 million of gross revenue for the minimum scheduled period of the time charter.

Diana Shipping Inc.s fleet currently consists of 41 dry bulk vessels (4 Newcastlemax, 13 Capesize, 5 Post-Panamax, 5 Kamsarmax and 14 Panamax). As of today, the combined carrying capacity of the Companys fleet is approximately 5.1 million dwt with a weighted average age of 9.54 years. A table describing the current Diana Shipping Inc. fleet can be found on the Companys website, www.dianashippinginc.com. Information contained on the Companys website does not constitute a part of this press release.

About the Company

Diana Shipping Inc. is a global provider of shipping transportation services through its ownership of dry bulk vessels. The Companys vessels are employed primarily on medium to long-term time charters and transport a range of dry bulk cargoes, including such commodities as iron ore, coal, grain and other materials along worldwide shipping routes.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts.

Story continues

The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words believe, anticipate, intends, estimate, forecast, project, plan, potential, may, should, expect, pending and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, Company managements examination of historical operating trends, data contained in the Companys records and other data available from third parties. Although the Company believes that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies that are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond the Companys control, the Company cannot assure you that it will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections.

In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in the Companys view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand for dry bulk shipping capacity, changes in the Companys operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for the Companys vessels, availability of financing and refinancing, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents or political events, vessel breakdowns and instances of off-hires and other factors. Please see the Companys filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a more complete discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Corporate Contact:

Ioannis Zafirakis

Director, Interim Chief Financial Officer,

Chief Strategy Officer, Treasurer and Secretary

Telephone: + 30-210-9470-100

Email: izafirakis@dianashippinginc.com

Website: www.dianashippinginc.com



Investor and Media Relations:

Edward Nebb

Comm-Counsellors, LLC

Telephone: + 1-203-972-8350

Email: enebb@optonline.net




By Jung Min-ho







Eastar Jet, a Korean budget airline, plans to lay off 750 employees due to financial difficulties from the COVID-19 pandemic.





According to industry sources Thursday, the company plans to lay off 45 percent of its 1,680 workers  to 930  to keep the business afloat amid the crisis.





The company is also in talks to reduce its fleet by 10 planes to 13.





"The plan has not been finalized," a company official was quoted by Yonhap, a local news agency, as saying. "We are still in talks over the size of layoffs and severance pay."





Many people in the airline industry fear that this will only be the beginning of more job cuts, with the pandemic showing no signs of abating.





Last month, Eastar Jet decided to suspend all domestic and international flights to minimize operating losses.


When a doctor at one of New York Citys top hospitals arrived for work on Tuesday night, she found the following items in the bag of protective equipment that she received: a mask, an eye shield  and, in place of the usual medical gown, a plastic white-and-navy New York Yankees poncho, the kind available for purchase on rainy game days.

Outraged, the doctor, an obstetrician-gynecologist resident at the hospital, part of Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, took a picture of the poncho and posted it on Twitter. Im a physician at a hospital in NYC and THIS IS THE PPE I WAS JUST HANDED for my shift, she wrote, using the acronym for personal protective equipment.

The post was retweeted tens of thousands of times, emerging as a viral illustration of the equipment shortages that have plagued hospitals during the coronavirus pandemic.

From Seattle to Miami, but especially in New York City, the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis in the United States, workers have said they do not have enough gear to protect themselves from the virus as they treat patients. Doctors and nurses have had to reuse equipment or use trash bags and scarves for protection.
By Trend

Azerbaijani citizens must not leave their homes without urgent necessity, Yagut Garayeva, head of the department of the Management Union of Medical Territorial Units in Azerbaijan (TABIB), said.

Garayeva made the remark in Baku during a briefing held by the Operational Headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers on April 2, Trend reports.

The head of the department said that this restriction is obligatory and is aimed at preventing the aggravation of the situation due to the threat of coronavirus.

"Up till now, the tests of the individuals who arrived in Azerbaijan from abroad were positive, they have been infected with coronavirus, Garayeva said. However, now cases of infection are being detected within the country. Therefore, we must stay at indoors. Our goal is to protect citizens from the virus. Therefore, we try to prevent people from violating the quarantine regime conditions."

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their homes, apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence.

To this end, all kinds of operations, except for the vital work and services, have been suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Harvey Nichols teams up with Patron to launch Anejo Tequila

Harvey Nichols has teamed up with Patron to create its own Anejo Tequila.

The bottle, which is exclusive to Harvey Nichols, is the first single cask Patron to be made available in the UK.

Patron launched its single barrel programme in 2014, allowing close friends and partners an opportunity to create their own Tequila.

Harvey Nichols travelled to Hacienda Patron in Jalisco and tasted through a variety of Tequilas. The retailer selected the richest Anejom, which was to become its Barrel Select after a few additional months of ageing.

The 100% Blue Weber Agave Tequila was distilled in January 2017 and filled into a single Allier oak barrel. Allier is a forest located between Sancerre and Burgundy in France where the oak trees grow straight up, rather than outwards, resulting in a wonderfully tight grain to the wood. When coopered into barrels, the tightness of the grain is said to add finesse and spice to anything matured inside.

The Tequila was matured for 33 months, which is 20 months longer than required by law to be called an Anejo, and almost long enough to be called an Extra Anejo. It was then filled into just 366 limited-edition bottles.

Nick Bell, Spirits Buyer at Harvey Nichols, said: It was an incredible experience to be able to fly to Mexico with Patron and select our own Tequila. We spent a day in the distillery trying all the different styles to find the one we liked the most. Once we found it, we decided in order to make it really special we would mature the liquid in a single Allier oak barrel for 33 months. By doing this, we produced a Tequila like no other and cant wait for our customers to try it.

Matthew Sykes, senior director of Global Marketing for Patron Tequila, said: Were so excited to see the first single cask Patron expression from our Barrel Select program available in the UK, go into the off-trade with Harvey Nichols. We launched Barrel Select in 2014 allowing friends of the brand to get their own one-of-a-kind tequila, aged in our barrel room at our home, Hacienda Patron in Jalisco, Mexico. Now, Harvey Nichols customers will be able to buy this unique Anejo tequila from Harvey Nichols online.

Patron Harvey Nichols Barrel Select Anejo Tequila is available to buy online, with a recommended price of 85.

Related articles:
SALEM, Ore.  Gov. Kate Brown issued a commercial eviction ban on Wednesday.

The ban prevents businesses from being evicted over the next 90 days for nonpayment due to the impact of coronavirus.

"During this unprecedented public health crisis, too many Oregonians have found themselves with no way to pay the monthly rent for their homes and businesses," said Brown. "These are difficult times. This order will help Oregon small businesses stay in their locations without the threat of eviction."

The executive order also strengthens a previous ban on residential evictions, preventing landlords from charging late fees during the moratorium.
State-run companies and banks are



going the extra mile to ensure safety of its staff in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, including measures like work- from-home arrangement and providing vital medical kits, officials said.

Kolkata-based diversified PSU Balmer Lawrie has asked a section of its employees to work from home, while those coming to the workplace are screened at the entrance and they regularly use hand sanitisers.

"The workplace is being cleaned all the time... and constant awareness programmes are held at the plant levels by the head of safety and environment," a spokesperson of Balmer Lawrie told PTI.

The employees of the company have contributed one day's salary in addition to Rs 1 crore from the CSR kitty to the PM Cares Fund, she said.

State-owned UCO Bank said its employees are provided with masks and sanitisers, and advised to maintain social distancing from customers.

"The cashier, whose jobs are very risky, are given gloves for distributing cash," MD and CEO A K Goel said.

The lender has contributed Rs 3.95 crore to the PM Cares Fund, he said.

An Indian Oil Corporation official said the company has procured medical insurance for 3.23 crore pump attendants, delivery boys and drivers of LPG and petroleum, oil & lubricants (POL) at a cost of Rs 22.68 crore for one year.

The sum assured is Rs one lakh per family of four, which is in addition to the ex-gratia amount of Rs five lakh in case of death of any LPG delivery boy, showroom staff or mechanic due to COVID-19, the company said.

IOC has pledged to contribute Rs 225 crore to the PM Cares Fund and two days' salary of employees.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Three Members of Parliament (MPs) of the Assin Area have at separate ceremonies donated large quantities of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to the Ghana Health Service (GHS) as part of their aggressive drive to prevent the spread of the deadly (COVID-19) pandemic.



The MPs are Ms Abena Durowaa Mensah, Assin North, Mr Kennedy Ohene Agyapong, Assin Central and Reverend John Ntim Fordjour, Assin South.



The medical supplies including hand sanitizers, hand gloves, nose mask, Veronica buckets, boxes of tissue papers, hospital beds among others were presented to the GHS in each district.



The interventions were geared towards giving strong boost to health facilities and the public to effectively reduce the spread of the novel COVID-19.



At a short presentation, Mr Agyapong said he was inspired by the singular need to protect health officials and the public to prevent the devastation caused by COVID-19.



The Assin Central Legislator cautioned against the Ghanaian attitude of disregard for laws, institutions, systems and structures, and noted that "such careless habits" could thwart efforts to control the disease.



Buttressing his observations, he cautioned that the current practice where commercial vehicle drivers still loaded more than the required passengers and called for a must stop to it.



He advised people infected with the disease to avoid the use of public transport, isolate themselves from their relatives, and the communities to avoid the situation where more persons would be infected.



He urged those who were ill to call the Ministry of Health dedicated lines or the National Ambulance Service for assistance and urged the citizenry not to shun or stigmatise family members who were living with the disease, but show them love and care.



At Bereku, the Assin North Legislator, Ms Mensah after presenting the items, schooled scores of market women and the public on the need to adhere to Government directives to drastically defeat the pandemic.



She expressed the hope that the items presented will help in protecting the staff of the Hospital as they go about their work.



"We appreciate the danger that comes with contracting the diseases especially those at the frontline in defending the populace against the disease and we must all support you to be able to protect us," the MP said as she called for ceaseless support to the GHS.



Rev Fordjour for his part pledged to ensure that the items benefitted all the 24 Community based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) compounds, the two holding centres at Manso and Nyamasi Ahenkro as well as the Presby Health Centre, a private health facility.



Of equal significant was the donation of PPEs to two traditional paramountcy - Assin Atendansu and Apemanim and some key institutions, market centres.



Madam Elizabeth Adwoa Wood of the Assin South District of the GHS, thanked the MP and other philanthropists for supporting the health service delivery in the area.



She advised the public to wash hands frequently using soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub, cover mouth and nose with a flexed elbow or tissue, when coughing or sneezing, and throw away the tissue into a closed bin.



They should avoid close contact with anyone who had cold or flu-like symptoms and visit the nearest hospital if they had fever, cough or had difficulty in breathing.





Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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TDT | Manama

Nurses are an essential pillar of the health sector, given their noble efforts and dedication to serving Bahrains citizens and residents. This was asserted yesterday by Health Minister Faeqa bint Said Al Saleh as she made field visits to various healthcare sites accompanied by Ministry of Health undersecretary Dr Waleed Khalifa Al Manea and assistant undersecretaries.

Minister Al Saleh paid tribute to all nursing staffs, especially for their commendable contributions in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, which are in line with the directives of the Governments Executive Committee, chaired by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister.

She stressed that they are at the forefront of the battle and that they put the health and safety of everyone as their top priority. Nurses have their clear imprints in the development and modernisation witnessed by Bahrains health sector, she added, and noted that they are doing their utmost to ensure the comfort of patients while carrying out their humanitarian duties professionally and around the clock.

The Health Minister extend her thanks and appreciation to all nursing teams, in particular marking the World Health Day, which is to be observed worldwide on April 7 under the theme, Support Nurses and Midwives.

On his part, Al Manea saluted the nursing staff and noted that the designation of 2020 as the nursing year has highlighted their dedicated efforts amidst the global outbreak of COVID-19.

As part of the field visits, the Health Minister made stops at the COVID-19 examination centres at the Bahrain International Airport, Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre, and at the Accident and Emergency Department at Salmaniya Medical Complex.

The Health Minister, undersecretary and assistant undersecretaries expressed their sincerest thanks and appreciation to all medical professionals, affirming their full support for their tremendous efforts in serving the Kingdoms people.
It very much feels like you are a general in this war, in this moment. So what is a typical day like for you? Starting at what I can only assume is some ungodly hour of the morning.

Youre right. We are in a war.

You get up, theres a lot of people who need information, which is the reason Im talking to you right now. There are journalists, there are congressmen, there are governors, there are legislators, there are people in the federal government that constantly need briefing.

I also am running a very large institute thats responsible for making the vaccines and for developing the drugs. So I come in for a couple of hours, get things on the right track here, and then I spend more than half the day at the White House with various meetings. Im with the vice president for hours at a time. I see the president himself at least an hour a day and maybe more. And then I go back home and I have a thousand things to do.

And then youre lucky if you get to bed before midnight and then you get up at 4 or 5 in the morning.

What are some of your biggest focuses now?

My biggest concern is that we now have a 30-day extension of the guideline mitigation. And weve got to get the American people to really appreciate that.

We should be prepared to adequately address the inevitable rebound that you will see once you start pulling back on the restrictions and the mitigations.

I had a very interesting conversation just this morning with colleagues from literally all over the world on the weekly telephone conference call that the W.H.O. sponsors. And it was interesting to me that some of the most cogent concerns of people from different countries, I mean all over  European, African, Australian, Canadian  was that we need to make sure we keep our eye on the balance of, if youre too stringent in things like lockdowns and keeping people under wraps for a long period of time, you may have the unintended consequence of triggering, from an economic and societal standpoint, such a disruption that you get things like poverty and health issues unrelated to the coronavirus.

Thats it for this briefing. See you next time.  Melina

Thank you

To Melissa Clark for the recipe and Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for rest of the break from the news. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.

 Besides The Daily, with Dr. Anthony Fauci, were listening to the Modern Love podcast. This week it features the voices of readers from around the world, talking about how the coronavirus has affected their relationships.

 Heres our Mini Crossword, and a clue: Subtle insult (three letters). You can find all our puzzles here.

 Jenna Wortham, a writer for The Times Magazine who co-hosts our Still Processing podcast, spoke to Vanity Fair about her working-from-home routine.
(Bloomberg) --

Amazon.com Inc.s firing of a walkout organizer has spurred criticism and calls for reinstatement by the largest labor groups in the U.S.

Labor leaders and dozens of New York state and city elected officials urged Amazon to reinstate Chris Smalls, the leader of a walkout Monday over health and safety conditions at the companys Staten Island, New York warehouse. Smalls was fired after the protest, in which workers asked Amazon to close the facility for cleaning after cases of Covid-19 were confirmed within its ranks. Amazon said Smalls was dismissed for violating a company-ordered quarantine after coming into contact with someone infected with the disease. Smalls said he was fired for his activism.

We write to you today shocked at reports that Amazon warehouses are not practicing the protocols necessary to protect the well-being of your workers and of the public, said the letter, addressed to Amazon Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos and other executives, and signed by the leaders of the AFL-CIO, United Food & Commercial Workers International Union and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, among others. Amazon didnt immediately comment on the letter. The unions also called for independent monitors to investigate whether Amazon facilities adhered to guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for social distancing during the pandemic.

As coronavirus cases pop up in Amazons 800,000-strong workforce, some employees in warehouses across the country have expressed concerns about the companys commitment to their safety. Workers at sites in Chicago and near Detroit walked off the job after the Staten Island protest. Amazon has said it ramped up cleaning in its facilities and is sending home, with pay, people diagnosed with Covid-19 and those who they came into close contact with. It has also temporarily boosted wages and overtime payments, and said employees can take unpaid time off without penalty through the end of April.

Story continues

The firing of Smalls had already drawn responses from other New York officials. On Monday, New York State Attorney General Letitia James said her office is considering all legal options in response to the termination, which she called immoral and inhumane, and is urging the National Labor Relations Board to investigate. On Tuesday, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said he had ordered the citys Commission on Human Rights to investigate Amazon immediately to determine if Smalls was retaliated against.

The AFL-CIO is the main U.S. labor federation, with 55 unions that together represent 12.5 million people. The letter is also signed by presidents of five of the largest U.S. unions, including the Teamsters and the Service Employees International Union. Those two unions, which arent part of the AFL-CIO, together represent about 3 million more workers. The document is a sign of union leaders increasing focus on Amazon as a key target and reflects greater cooperation within the labor movement as they take on the behemoth firm.

Amazon and labor groups have a frosty relationship. The retailer has managed to avoid organized labor in its ranks in the U.S., even as it grew into the countrys second-largest private employer in the U.S. A similar group of unions in February asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Amazons market power.

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Amid the novel coronavirus pandemic that has hit the world, studies are underway to find out its origin and transmission. However, many studies say that COVID-19 may eventually be traced back to bats.

After the virus broke out, Chinese researchers took samples from patients in Wuhan, the central city of 11 million people where the pandemic began in December 2019. They compared the genetic sequence of COVID-19 and found a 96 percent match with a coronavirus found in horseshoe bats in southwest China, NPR reported citing a study published in Nature.

Even the World Health Organization (WHO) has not ruled out this possibility that the pandemic originated from bats.

Coronavirus LIVE updates

Bats are mammals that have forelimbs adapted as wings; as such, they are the only mammals that are naturally capable of sustained flight.

COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine  one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show

So, why do so many viruses originate from bats?

Bats are said to be the perfect hosts for a lot of disease-causing viruses, which seem more likely to spread to people. According to the NPR report, there are more than 130 different kinds of viruses found in bats.

The reason why these viruses infect human beings is their lot of contact with bats. There are billions of bats and more than 1,300 different species living on every continent except Antarctica, the report suggested.

According to Rebekah Kading, who researches emerging infectious pathogens at Colorado State University, lots of viruses are found in bats because there are a lot of bats out there. They live in huge, crowded colonies together. Bats share living spaces in groups consisting of millions at time. The viruses can pass easily between them through close contact with one another, the report said.

Also, they have long lifespans relative to their size and can live for more than 30 years. This gives them a long time to be persistently infected with the virus and shed it into the environment, Kading was quoted as saying.

Now, the question is how these viruses transmit from bats to human beings. These viruses are shed through urine, feces and saliva of bats, said the report. For instance, outbreaks of Nipah virus in Bangladesh have been linked with date palm sap collected from trees that bats had licked or urinated on.

But, why are these lethal viruses not deadly for the bats?

Scientists theorise that it has something to do with their ability to fly. Bats are the world's only flying mammal. When they fly, their body temperature spikes to over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, said the report, adding that their heart rate can surge to more than 1,000 beats per minute.

For most land mammals, these are signals that would trigger death, but bats have developed special immune systems to deal with the stress of flying, the report stated quoting Linfa Wang, who studies bat viruses at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore.

Bodies of bats make molecules, which help repair cell damage. Also, their systems do not overreact to infections, which keeps them unaffected from the many viruses they carry, explained Wang.

This also signals that it is not always the virus itself but the body's response to the virus that can make human beings sick, Wang added.

What can be done to prevent future outbreaks of bat viruses?

It looks difficult to create vaccines and drugs for all the emerging viruses from bats. However, something that can be done is to identify factors that are making bats come into contact with humans and domestic animals and do something about it.
South Korean ambassador Shin Bong-kil has said that aggressive testing, tracing people infected by the virus and quarantining them is key to preventing the spread of Covid-19. In an interview with HT, he also said the Indian government must take speedy steps after the end of the current lockdown to assist Korean companies that have heavily invested in the country to resume normal operations.

Why has South Koreas 3Ts (test, trace and treat) and civic participation policy been so successful?

The Korean governments Covid-19 control strategy consists of robust testing to identify confirmed cases, tracing their contacts to prevent further spread, and treating those infected at the earliest possible stage. It is also centred on actively engaging the public to participate in social distancing and other preventive measures.

So we can say that robust diagnostic testing capability lies at the core of our control strategy for the Covid-19 epidemic.

With our current diagnostic testing capacity of up to 15,000 tests per day, we have performed a total of over 400,000 tests so far and continue to test at near-full capacity.

I think in the present situation where no Covid-19 vaccine is available, identifying, isolating the contagion and treating in the early stage can be the only viable method of fighting this invisible enemy.

What is current status of the spread of Covid-19 in South Korea?

The situation has been stabilised. The number of newly confirmed cases per day has been showing steady decline. Now, it fluctuates around the level of 100 per day. Patients who have fully recovered surpass that of the newly confirmed cases. Despite the encouraging trend, we continue to remain vigilant.

Can the 3T policy be applied in India?

In Indias case, the lockdown of the entire nation was a necessary step considering Indias sheer size and demographic. However, in order to prevent mass spread of the virus, it is important to identify those at high risk, carry out aggressive testing, then trace those infected with the virus and quarantine them.

For example, Korea at the initial stage faced a mass outbreak due to a gathering of a religious congregation in one of its provinces. The Korean government acquired the list of all members of the religious organisation and aggressively proceeded to test and quarantine them. We were thus successful in controlling the spread of the virus at an early stage.

How can India and South Korea collaborate to counter Covid-19?

The Korean government is prepared to fully share all information and insight garnered in our ongoing fight against Covid-19 with India. President Moon Jae-in and Prime Minister Modi exchanged ideas through the virtual G20 Summit. We will partake in coordinated global responses, extend support to multilateral efforts and do our utmost to meet demands in other countries for medical equipment and supplies subject to our domestic needs and production capacity.

In the long term, Korea and India, both advanced in the IT industry and the bio and pharmaceutical industry, can cooperate on R&D in the fight against virus-related diseases.

What has been the impact on business of Korean companies and what steps can India take to address their concerns?

As you are well aware, Korean companies such as Samsung, LG, Hyundai and Kia closed their plants due to the lockdown directive of the Indian government. Well aligned with the Make in India policy, our companies have invested heavily in the country and a complete shutdown incurs massive losses for them.

I truly hope the shutdown situation is alleviated and India overcomes its Covid-19 crisis as soon as possible. Often, crisis leads to chance. India must not lose the opportunity to emerge as a world top manufacturing hub.

Once the shutdown is lifted, new personnel will have to be dispatched for handling new equipment and installing new facilities. I hope the authorities expedite visas for engineers from Korea who wish to enter India.

What is South Korea doing to evacuate its nationals, including stranded tourists?

Korean residents in India have been strictly following social distancing directives of the authorities and closely watching developments.

On the first weekend in April, we are preparing a special Korean Air flight to send Korean residents and tourists in India who desire to return to Korea. Further evacuation will be dependent on the future pandemic situation and the status of the shutdown, which is currently imposed till April 15.

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Robust absentee and early in-person voting throughout Kenosha County is keeping municipal clerks busy leading up to Election Day Tuesday, which will have a much different atmosphere under guidelines established as a result of the COVID-19 health emergency.

As of Thursday morning, the number of absentee ballot applications made by Kenosha County voters reached 26,501, according to data compiled by the Wisconsin Elections Commission. Of that, 26,305 had reportedly been sent out, and 9,606 were reportedly returned.

More than 14,000 ballots issued

Notably, more than 14,000 absentee ballots have been issued in the city of Kenosha, City Clerk Deb Salas said. Of that, 5,000 have returned. Additionally, 78 in-person absentee ballots have been cast.

In comparison, 4,241 total absentee ballots were issued in the April 2016 spring election and presidential preference primary.

Statewide, the number of applications made was at 1,119,438, the number sent stood at 1,097,439 and the number received as reported by the commission was 473,417.

In comparison, 819,316 absentee ballots were cast statewide in the November 2016 presidential election.

Deadline and mail concerns

The deadline for registered voters to request an absentee ballot be mailed to them was 5 p.m. Thursday. It is unclear if delays in mail delivery will prevent ballots from arriving at the respective municipalities by the time polls close Tuesday.

Kenosha County Clerk Regi Bachochin said she has received many calls and emails about the time it is taking for people to receive their absentee ballots.

With such a high influx in requests it seems to have been taking longer than the usual week, Bachochin said. I believe the mail is taking a bit longer than usual. All the clerks are working as diligently as they can to get these out to the voters.

Meagan Wolfe, Wisconsins chief elections official, said if someone has requested an absentee ballot via mail but it did not arrive or they did not return it, that person can still decide to vote at the polls on Election Day.

Many municipalities are also setting up secure drop boxes and drive-up lanes for dropping off absentee ballots.

Bachochin recommends delivering absentee ballots to one of the white drop boxes outside of the municipal building on Eighth Avenue, near the west visitor parking lot and near the west entrance.

All municipalities taking precautions

Clerks throughout the county said they will take precautions recommended by the WEC on Tuesday to protect the public.

Plexiglass barriers will be placed between workers and voters, with enough space underneath to provide ballots and allow voters to sign the poll book or complete a voter registration application, Salas said of what to expect. A police officer will be stationed at each polling place. Voters will be instructed to stand in line six feet apart and will be allowed into the polling place in small groups, no larger than 10.

In additional to polling workers, clerks said they have solicited college students to help clean and sanitize on Election Day.

Workers will maintain regular housekeeping practices, including routine cleaning and disinfecting of pens, surfaces, voting equipment and other elements of the work environment, Salas said. Handwashing stations will be available outside of the polling location.

Town of Brighton Clerk Linda Perona is personally sewing masks and lining them with hepa filter fabric from new vacuum cleaner bags for poll workers to use, and her husband built sneeze guards that will be clamped to tables.

There, she has had 287 requests for absentee ballots, about 40 of which were from in-person early voters.

We average 30 absentee ballots for this particular election normally, Perona said.

Only 2 electors will be allowed into the Town Hall at a time on Election Day, and polling booths will be cleaned after each set of voters.

While it may be a bit more time consuming, a safe voting procedure for electors and officials is of the utmost importance.

she said if voters need to register, printing and pre-filling an EB-131 (registration) form at home will expedite the process at the polls.

Around the county

Other clerks outside the city of Kenosha report the following:

Pleasant Prairie

As of Thursday morning, the village had issued 4,500 absentee ballots and had received 2,363.

I had to consolidated five polling locations to one polling location due to staffing issues, Village Clerk Jane Snell said. The Election Day polling location will be Village Hall-Auditorium (south entrance), 9915 39th Ave.

She said she has enough poll workers to operate this one location.

We will be limiting the number of voters into the polling location to five at a time, Snell said. Poll workers will be sanitizing after each group.The polling location will be equipped with a hand sanitizer station at the entrance/exit, (disinfectant) wipes and spray. Poll workers will be wearing personal protection equipment (mask and gloves).

Salem Lakes

Chief Election Officer Mike Ulstrup said, as of Thursday, the village received 1,800 requests to mail out absentee ballots and has had 600 early, in-person voters.

Usually, we would see 2,000 early voters at such an election and 500 mailed-out ballots, Ullstrup said.

The village will staff all three polling locations at statute-minimum levels.

The voter lines will be very long and slow-moving since the six-foot social distancing directive will be enforced, Ullstrup said.

To manage the health safety and staffing risks, Public Works and Clerks office employees and department heads will handle non-election inspector duties that go unfilled by volunteers.

The election workers are reaching out to friends and family to see if they are willing to help out, Ullstrup said. Several residents have volunteered.

The Public Works Department has built several see-through barriers to separate the workers from the voters; all election workers will be required to wear masks and gloves; surfaces will be regularly sanitized throughout the day; there will be 1,100 pens for voters to use and take with them if they choose; and voter lines will be marked with tape strips six feet apart from each other.

Bristol

In Bristol, the number of ballots cast early, in-person outnumbers the absentee ballots returned so far. There have been 452 absentee ballots received, and 990 have already voted in person.

Clerk Amy Klemko said the village did have to eliminate a polling location because the church is closed.

Hand sanitizer will be available for voters before and after voting. All surfaces will be regularly sanitized, six-foot distancing will be required, and a plexiglass barrier will separate poll workers and voters.

We are taking every precaution possible, Klemko said.

Paddock Lake

Clerk Michelle Shramek said a total of 466 absentee ballots have been received in the village, and 85 residents have voted early in person.

This compares to 90 absentee ballots and 973 regular ballots cast in April 2016.

We will only be able to allow four voters in the building at a time, Shramek said. We will be asking each voter as they enter the building if they have any symptoms. No kids will be allowed to wait in line with their parents.

Twin Lakes

Clerk Julie Harms reports, as of Thursday morning, 850 early, in-person ballots have been cast, and 350 absentee ballots had been received.

Pandemic versus non-pandemic, obviously theres been an increase, Harms said. We are seeing more than 50 percent increase (in absentee voting).
US forces withdraw from strategic airbase in Iraq's Anbar, to officially hand it over next week

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 4:39 PM

An Iraqi security source says a group of American troops, who are part of the US-led military coalition purportedly formed to fight the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group, has pulled out of a strategic airbase in Iraq's western province of Anbar and moved to another military site in the country.

The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arabic-language al-Maalomah news agency that the troops withdrew from al-Taqaddum Airbase, which lies at Habbaniyah district and approximately 74 kilometers (45 miles) west of the capital Baghdad, and moved to Ain al-Assad Air Base in the same Iraqi province.

Separately, Spokesman for the Iraqi Joint Operations Command (JOC), Major General Tahseen al-Khafaji, told the Arabic service of Russia's Sputnik news agency that Iraqi government will officially assume the full responsibility of al-Taqaddum Airbase during a handover ceremony next week.

On Monday, the media office of the JOC said in a statement that the US-led military alliance had handed over another base in the country's northern Nineveh province to the Ministry of Defense.

"As a result of fruitful dialogues between the Iraqi government and the international alliance, a site occupied by the International Alliance Mission and within a camp under the Nineveh Operations Command was returned to Iraqi forces after the coalition forces withdrew from it," the statement read.

It added, "The move came in accordance with the coalition's commitment to return the sites it has been occupying within the Iraqi military bases and camps."

The development came only a day after US-led coalition forces withdrew from K1 Air Base, which lies 15 kilometers (9 miles) northwest of Kirkuk, and submitted it to Iraqi forces during a ceremony.

Iraqi lawmakers unanimously approved a bill on January 5, demanding the withdrawal of all foreign military forces led by the United States from the country following the assassination of Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani, the commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, along with Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy head of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU)  better known by the Arabic name Hashd al-Sha'abi, and their companions in a US airstrike authorized by President Donald Trump near Baghdad International Airport two days earlier.

Later on January 9, Adel Abdul-Mahdi, the former Iraqi prime minister, called on the United States to dispatch a delegation to Baghdad tasked with formulating a mechanism for the move.

According to a statement released by his office at the time, Abdul-Mahdi "requested that delegates be sent to Iraq to set the mechanisms to implement the parliament's decision for the secure withdrawal of (foreign) forces from Iraq" in a phone call with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The 78-year-old politician said Iraq rejects any violation of its sovereignty, particularly the US military's violation of Iraqi airspace in the assassination airstrike.

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Guam to quarantine US forces in hotel rooms amid covid-19 spread

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 01 April 2020 5:37 PM

The US island territory of Guam says it will provide American forces onboard an aircraft carrier battling a covid-19 outbreak with hotel rooms to quarantine as Washington scrambles with the coronavirus pandemic.

Rear Admiral John Menoni, commander of the Navy's Joint Region Marianas, made the announcement at a news conference Wednesday.

"The plan at this time is to remove as many people off the USS Teddy Roosevelt as we can, understanding that we have to leave a certain amount of folks on board to do normal watchstanding duties to keep the ship running," he said.

Disembarking the crew is essential in combating the spread of the virus, the commanding officer of the Roosevelt, Captain Brett Crozie suggested in a letter, pleading for permission to offload a majority of the more than 4,000-person crew.

"We are not at war. Sailors do not need to die," Crozier wrote. "If we do not act now, we are failing to properly take care of our most trusted asset  our sailors," Crozie said.

According to Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero, the Navy can move sailors who have tested negative for the virus to hotel rooms.

"We have an interest in protecting our community and stopping the spread of covid-19 just as much as the military has an obligation to return the USS Roosevelt to the open ocean to protect Guam and the region," Guerrero said. "I know there will be a small chorus of cynics who will oppose this decision but now is not the time for 'us versus them.'"

Menoni also vowed that the Navy would make efforts to protect the people of Guam.

"We'd like to start this as soon as we can, however we're not going to start it without a good process and procedures in place to protect the people of Guam," he said.

The announcement came amid fears of the fast-spreading virus across the United States.

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Already, in the first quarter of the year, the number of infections is four times higher than last year.

Just like the rest of the world, Bangladesh is fighting COVID-19 too. Similar to India, the fear there is that if the pandemic gains a footing in the country, the results could spell disaster. At last count, 56 cases had been reported in the country and 6 of them have lost their lives.

As the community braces for a potential outbreak, there is another big worry on the horizon as well. Dengue, the insect-borne viral disease that causes severe flu-like symptoms, appears to be on the ascent in the country. Already, in the first quarter of the year, the number of infections is four times higher than last year. About 271 cases have been reported compared to 73 in the same time period last year.

This confirms a disturbing trend; the 101,334 cases and 179 deaths last year were the highest since 2000. Further, the virus peaked during Eid last year, which is the travel season. The fear is that the virus will spread throughout the country - transmitted by all those who travel - and cause even more damage this year.

Dividing resources between COVID-19 and dengue

Representatives from Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) told the Dhaka Tribune that the health department has designated health workers to specifically look after and contain COVID-19 cases. However, health workers previously in charge of dengue containment will continue with their jobs which include disinfecting public spaces and spreading awareness about the disease.

What is dengue fever and what are its symptoms?

Dengue is a mosquito-borne viral disease that affects between 50-100 million people globally every year. Once bitten by an infected insect (the species is called Aedes aegypti), the virus incubates for 4-10 days before symptoms appear. Symptoms include severe headache, nausea, pain in the joints and rashes. An infected human can transmit the disease to others via the mosquito - an Aedes Aegypti becomes infected when it bites an infected person and spread the virus when it bites another person.

Recovery from the disease means lifelong immunity to the particular virus strain; however there are four types of viruses that cause dengue, and getting infected by one provides only partial immunity from the others. In fact, getting reinfected by a different dengue virus increases the likelihood of severe dengue, which is more likely to be lethal. There may be a drop in body temperature and more severe symptoms such as bleeding gums, rapid breathing, blood vomit and fatigue might show up.

There is currently no treatment for dengue; hospitalization for severe cases involves symptom management and fluid replacement.

How can it be prevented?

To prevent transmission, vector control is focussed on. Since the mosquitoes breed in water, the WHO recommends regularly cleaning and draining sources of still water in the house; open water containers, tyres and puddles should be consistently cleaned and not allowed to hold water for too long. Further, clothes that cover the body are also recommended, along with insect repellents. In places where the disease is widespread, health officials recommend insecticide-treated bed nets as well.

Maintaining clean surroundings is, therefore, the greatest weapon against dengue as of now.

For more information, read our article on Dengue.

Health articles in Firstpost are written by myUpchar.com, Indias first and biggest resource for verified medical information. At myUpchar, researchers and journalists work with doctors to bring you information on all things health.
'There are 36 foreign tourists from China, Italy, USA, Vietnam, South Korea, Thailand and other countries.'

M I Khan reports.

*IMAGE: A Buddhist devotee from Thailand offers prayers at the Mahabodhi temple in Bodh Gaya. Photograph: PTI Photo

Amid the controversy over the violation of coronavirus guidelines by the Tablighi Jamaat's Markaz in Nizamuddin West, Delhi, foreign nationals have been spotted in Bihar's Bodh Gaya.

The town where Gautama Buddha attained enlightenment 2,500 years ago is located 110 km from the state capital Patna. It attracts lakhs of foreign tourists and devotees every year including the Dalai Lama, who visits every January.

Contrary to the state police claim of enforcing a complete lockdown, foreign Buddhist monks and tourists are still seen on the streets of Bodh Gaya.

"They are staying in nearly two dozen foreign Buddhist monasteries here," an official of Bodh Gaya's tourism department says, speaking on condition of anonymity.

*IMAGE: A Thai devotee seeks blessings of Buddhist monks at the Mahabodhi temple. Photograph: PTI Photo

Sources claim around 150 foreign tourists are currently in Bodh Gaya; most were unable to leave after Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi's sudden announcement of a national lockdown on March 24.

On Tuesday, March 31, the Bihar government declared a ban on the entry of outsiders during the ongoing lockdown.

Bodh Gaya Station House Officer Mohan Prasad Singh says first information reports have been lodged against five guest house owners for not informing the local police about the presence of foreign tourists.

"At present, there are 36 foreign tourists from China, Italy, USA, Vietnam, South Korea, Thailand and other countries staying in these guesthouses," says Singh, adding that they have been asked to quarantine themselves until the lockdown ends.

Bodh Gaya, Singh says, has a deserted look as hotels, restaurants, shops and markets remain shut. "Only a few Buddhist devotees, who are maintaining social distancing, are visiting the Bodh Gaya temple for daily prayers," says the police officer.

IMAGE: The Buddha statue in Both Gaya. Photograph: Kind courtesy Andrew Moore/Wikimedia Commons

Bodh Gaya resident Suresh Kumar Yadav says the lockdown is a big blow to thousands of people who depend on the tourists for their livelihood.

"Our troubles began in February itself as the tourist numbers reduced by 50 per cent, compared to the same period last year. In the first few weeks of March, hardly 10 to 20 per cent tourists visited Bodh Gaya. Now, the number is zero. I don't know what I can do to survive."

Yadav earns a living supplying milk to hotels, monasteries and guesthouses where the foreign tourists stay.

Raju Kumar, a tourist guide who also owns a shop near the Mahabodhi temple, says most of the tourists who were set to visit Bodh Gaya in March, April and May cancelled their bookings and there is no hope of them visiting this year. "We will be left with no source of livelihood," he says mournfully.

*Kindly note the images have been posted only for representational purposes.
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Brussels, Belgium  Fri, April 3, 2020 01:08 648 7f440ff09e92db75a02bbad206f5848b 2 World Hungary,Viktor-Orban,European-Commission,European-Union,EuropeanCouncil Free

Thirteen European center-right parties called Thursday for their political group to expel Hungary's ruling Fidesz party after its leader Prime Minister Viktor Orban assumed emergency powers.

Orban insists he must rule by decree in order to tackle the spread of the coronavirus epidemic. But many, including some of his allies in the European Peoples Party (EPP), say his power grab has gone too far.

The Scandinavian, Greek, Belgian, Lithuanian Czech and Slovak conservatives who signed Thursday's statement calling for Fidesz to be kicked out of the EPP do not represent a majority of the group.

But their letter strengthens the hand of its addressee, party chairman Donald Tusk, the former Polish leader and president of the European Council, who is pushing the EPP to distance itself from Orban.

The signatories call on the EU executive, the European Commission, to "address the situation in Hungary forcefully" and brand Orban's move a "violation of the founding principles of liberal democracy and European values".

Shortly before the parties' letter was made public, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said she was "particularly concerned" about Hungary and promised to monitor the situation.

And 13 EU members, including heavyweights France and Germany, without explicitly naming Hungary, warned Wednesday against "violations of the principles of rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights".

The EPP is the biggest single voting bloc in the European Parliament and the party of both von der Leyen and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel.

But it is not in itself a majority, and some EPP parties have wanted to keep Orban's Hungarian MEPs on board in the center-right grouping to avoid them siding with eurosceptic populists.

Germany's ruling CDU party was not among the group of parties that issued the joint call for Fidesz's expulsion, and Orban has been lobbying its leader, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, to back him over Tusk.

The letter was signed, however, by the leaders of 13 conservative or-right parties, including two serving prime ministers; Kyriakos Mitsotakis of Greece and Erna Solberg of Norway.
Unfortunately for some shareholders, the Bar Harbor Bankshares (NYSEMKT:BHB) share price has dived 30% in the last thirty days. That drop has capped off a tough year for shareholders, with the share price down 44% in that time.

Assuming nothing else has changed, a lower share price makes a stock more attractive to potential buyers. In the long term, share prices tend to follow earnings per share, but in the short term prices bounce around in response to short term factors (which are not always obvious). So, on certain occasions, long term focussed investors try to take advantage of pessimistic expectations to buy shares at a better price. Perhaps the simplest way to get a read on investors' expectations of a business is to look at its Price to Earnings Ratio (PE Ratio). A high P/E implies that investors have high expectations of what a company can achieve compared to a company with a low P/E ratio.

See our latest analysis for Bar Harbor Bankshares

How Does Bar Harbor Bankshares's P/E Ratio Compare To Its Peers?

We can tell from its P/E ratio of 10.15 that there is some investor optimism about Bar Harbor Bankshares. The image below shows that Bar Harbor Bankshares has a higher P/E than the average (8.8) P/E for companies in the banks industry.

AMEX:BHB Price Estimation Relative to Market April 2nd 2020

Its relatively high P/E ratio indicates that Bar Harbor Bankshares shareholders think it will perform better than other companies in its industry classification. The market is optimistic about the future, but that doesn't guarantee future growth. So investors should always consider the P/E ratio alongside other factors, such as whether company directors have been buying shares.

How Growth Rates Impact P/E Ratios

Companies that shrink earnings per share quickly will rapidly decrease the 'E' in the equation. Therefore, even if you pay a low multiple of earnings now, that multiple will become higher in the future. A higher P/E should indicate the stock is expensive relative to others -- and that may encourage shareholders to sell.

Story continues

Bar Harbor Bankshares saw earnings per share decrease by 32% last year. And it has shrunk its earnings per share by 2.4% per year over the last five years. This might lead to muted expectations.

A Limitation: P/E Ratios Ignore Debt and Cash In The Bank

One drawback of using a P/E ratio is that it considers market capitalization, but not the balance sheet. That means it doesn't take debt or cash into account. In theory, a company can lower its future P/E ratio by using cash or debt to invest in growth.

Such spending might be good or bad, overall, but the key point here is that you need to look at debt to understand the P/E ratio in context.

How Does Bar Harbor Bankshares's Debt Impact Its P/E Ratio?

Bar Harbor Bankshares's net debt is considerable, at 185% of its market cap. If you want to compare its P/E ratio to other companies, you must keep in mind that these debt levels would usually warrant a relatively low P/E.

The Verdict On Bar Harbor Bankshares's P/E Ratio

Bar Harbor Bankshares's P/E is 10.2 which is below average (12.9) in the US market. The P/E reflects market pessimism that probably arises from the lack of recent EPS growth, paired with significant leverage. Given Bar Harbor Bankshares's P/E ratio has declined from 14.6 to 10.2 in the last month, we know for sure that the market is less confident about the business today, than it was back then. For those who don't like to trade against momentum, that could be a warning sign, but a contrarian investor might want to take a closer look.

Investors have an opportunity when market expectations about a stock are wrong. If the reality for a company is not as bad as the P/E ratio indicates, then the share price should increase as the market realizes this. We don't have analyst forecasts, but shareholders might want to examine this detailed historical graph of earnings, revenue and cash flow.

You might be able to find a better buy than Bar Harbor Bankshares. If you want a selection of possible winners, check out this free list of interesting companies that trade on a P/E below 20 (but have proven they can grow earnings).

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned.



We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Thank you for reading.
More than 400 high street dentists in Northern Ireland have volunteered to run emergency dental clinics during lockdown - over four times the number requested.

The Health and Social Care Board (HSCB) had sought 100 dentist volunteers, but over 400 offered to help, the British Dental Association Northern Ireland said.

The BDA said it understands that five emergency dental clinics will be opened across Northern Ireland, with the first due to be opened in Belfast yesterday.

Dental leaders said the emergency system is needed because all dental practices have had to close their doors to patients, while all routine dentistry has been suspended.

The BDA has advised patients in pain to phone their dental practice who will assess or triage them, and will do their best to provide help, as far as possible, using one of the "three As" - advice, analgesia or antibiotics.

The BDA said it hopes that these measures will be enough for most routine cases.

If urgent treatment is absolutely necessary, however, patients will be advised to attend the closest emergency clinic when these are established. Treatments at these centres will be largely limited to extractions or draining abscesses.

Richard Graham, chair of the BDA's NI General Dental Practice Committee, said: "This is a very stressful time for everyone, dental teams included, so we are very proud of colleagues who are in the forefront of finding a solution for people in dental pain.

"Routine check-ups are off the menu for now, and we want to ensure every patient has access to advice, pain relief and emergency care when they need it."
Industry groups and climate change experts are calling on the government to use the economic recovery effort after the disruption from the global coronavirus pandemic to generate jobs and economic growth by rolling out low-emissions technologies.

On Wednesday the UK government announced it had postponed the United Nations climate change conference which it was set to host in Glasgow in November. It is expected to be reconvened some time next year.

Emissions reduction action like solar panel installation could help recover from the economic downturn of the coronavirus. Credit:Bradley Kanaris

Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor said the federal government remains "committed to the Paris Agreement" and the Morrison government has previously promised to release a long-term emission reduction strategy ahead of the UN talks, backed with an "investment roadmap" to guide government expenditure on emissions reduction technologies.

Anna Skarbek, chief executive of the ClimateWorks policy advisory body with Monash University, said the actions needed to achieve our climate commitments are compatible with economic stimulus to recover from the pandemic.
Ko Nay Myo Lin, the editor-in-chief of Voice of Myanmar (VOM), was arrested on March 30 for breaching the Counter Terrorism Law after publishing an interview with the spokesperson of the Arakan Army (AA). The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is disappointed by the arrest and urges the authorities to drop the legal case against the journalist.

Voice of Myanmar (VOM) editor-in-chief Nay Myo Lin is escorted from his home by police to court in Mandalay on March 31, 2020. Credit: Zaw Zaw/AFP

On the evening of Monday, March 30, officers from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and local police arrested Nay Myo Lin in his home in Mandalay, Myanmars second largest city. Nay Myo Lin then appeared in Thanmyathazi Township Court on Tuesday, March 31.

Nay Myo Lin, formerly from BBC's Burmese-language news service, is facing life in prison following the publication of the interview conducted by VOMs reporter Khine Linn San with Khine Thukha, spokesman for the AA, an ethnic armed group which is fighting Myanmars military in the Rakhine State.

On March 23, 2020, the government declared the AA and its political arm, the United League of Arakan, as unlawful associations, accusing the groups of disrupting the rule of law and the stability to the nation.

In the interview, AAs Khine Thukha answered the question on groups response to the new declaration and its impact on the peace process. He said AA will not accept the governments ruling that the group is unlawful as AA is supported by the ethnic Rakhine people. The conflict between AA and military soldiers has continued since November 1988, causing the displacement of thousands of villagers in the Rakhine and Chin states.

Ma Zarni Mann, the wife of Nay Myo Lin, who is also working as a journalist in the independent local news outlet The Irrawaddy, said the officers also seized Nay Myo Lins laptop. She condemns the arrest and the use of repressive laws while Myanmar is facing the health crisis due to the spread of Covid-19.

IFJ said: The arrest of the Nay Myo Lin shows that the Myanmar government has failed to take into account calls from various media freedom groups to protect journalists safety andfreedom of the press. IFJ urges the authorities to drop the case against Nay Myo Lin as the VOM was conducting a legitimate interview in response to a recently introduced ruling.
The U.S. Navy removed more sailors Wednesday from the nuclear aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt docked in Guam amid a coronavirus outbreak, and officials said about a quarter of the crew had been tested for COVID-19.

Of nearly 1,300 who have been screened for the disease, 93 tested positive, Navy officials said Wednesday, but about half the tests have not been returned. About 1,000 sailors, or 20%, had been removed from the ship, Navy officials said. In the next 48 hours, they said, they hope to pull a total of 2,700 crew members off the ship.

In Washington, lawmakers pressed the Navy for answers on the situation  and warned that more outbreaks could quickly spiral out of control without proper preparedness.

Navy officials divulged the numbers from the outbreak at a news conference Wednesday, the first detailed data to come from the deteriorating situation since the ships captain took the unusual step of writing Navy command pleading for immediate assistance to an exploding coronavirus outbreak. The letter from Capt. Brett Crozier, a Santa Rosa native, obtained exclusively by The Chronicle, has sent waves through the military community and garnered praise from sailors and their families concerned about their welfare on a warship where its not possible to socially distance.

Due to a lack of quarantine facilities on the base that would sufficiently isolate the sailors, top Navy officials Wednesday said they worked with the governor of Guam to find about 3,000 rooms, mostly at local hotels.

We continue to work with the government of Guam and a local community to find additional spaces for these sailors to stay, particularly in hotel rooms, said Adm. Michael Gilday, chief of Naval Operations. So our goal is to get a clean ship, right. We need about 1,000 people or so on that ship to keep those critical functions running.

Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero held a news conference late Wednesday where she announced that she has agreed to allow Roosevelt sailors into the island in exchange for COVID-19 personal protective gear from the Department of Defense.

I know my decision to allow the restricted housing of sailors who have tested negative for COVID-19 off base has left a few of you uneasy, she said. This decision was not made in haste ... I must reiterate that only sailors who have tested negative for COVID-19 will be allowed to stay in the vacant Guam hotel rooms under restricted access.

Rear Admiral John Menoni said within 12 to 24 hours the first group of sailors who have tested negative and have no symptoms would be moved to the commercial housing outside the base for a 14-day quarantine. The hotel operation will be run entirely by the military along with security to keep the sailors inside their rooms.

The island of Guam, with a population of over 160,000 people, has seen 77 positive coronavirus cases and three deaths.

The governor said medical staff will check the quarantined sailors twice a day for symptoms, such as a fever, and any new positive cases would be transferred to military hospitals.

Crozier, in his blunt letter to Navy command Monday, asked for just 10% of his 4,865 sailors, or about 500 crew, to remain on board to monitor the ships two nuclear reactors, weapons and aircraft and to maintain mission readiness. He wanted the rest of the crew off the ship, otherwise he warned the virus would continue to rapidly spread and sailors could lose their lives.

However, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said he did not think that 10% was enough, and they would need to leave about 1,000 sailors on board. The crew isolating in Guam would stay for 14 days, get tested for COVID-19 and, if healthy, replace those on the ship, who would then do their own quarantine.

Modly said a little more than half of the 1,273 tests administered to Roosevelt sailors have been returned. Ninety-three tested positive  seven showing no signs of illness and the others with mild symptoms  and 593 tested negative. Almost 700 tests had not been returned yet, and more than 3,500 sailors had yet to be tested.

A sailor told The Chronicle tests were being sent to a South Korea lab.

At the news conference, Modly provided the most detailed timeline yet of events since the carrier docked in Vietnam last month.

After the first two positive cases were identified and flown out to a Guam hospital last week, the secretary said the ship identified and quarantined all those suspected of being in close contacts with the pair. When they docked, all infected sailors were moved off the ship and isolated, and the crew continued to track contacts, quarantine and monitor to find potential cases.

The captain said in his letter  and sailors have told The Chronicle  it is impossible to quarantine and isolate crew on the ship and even in the group quarantines ashore.

On Sunday, the captain and medical team expressed concerns about the pace of isolations and lack of proper space off the ship, Modly said.

Let me emphasize that this is exactly what we want our commanding officers, our medical teams to do, Modly said. We need a lot of transparency in this process, and we want that information to flow up through the chain of command.

He said his chief of staff had been in communication with the captain prior to The Chronicle exposing the letter and publishing it in full. Gilday called it a communications breakdown.

The Navy, with its tight and cramped quarters aboard warships, presents a particular vulnerability to the spread of coronavirus. But Modly said the Roosevelt is the only one of 94 ships deployed that has an active case.

Some of the other ships that we have that have some active cases on it are in port, not deployed ships, he said. And those numbers are all in the single digits. We dont have any large outbreaks on any of the other ships that we have right now.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

The Navy has begun to cancel some port visits, exercises and trainings out of precaution, the officials said.

Meanwhile, more than two dozen Democratic members of the House wrote a letter to the Navy secretary and chief of Naval operations on Wednesday lamenting that it took reporting like The Chronicles to get the Navy to begin rotating sailors off the Roosevelt. The group  which included Reps. John Garamendi of Walnut Grove (Sacramento County), Jared Huffman of San Rafael, Navy Reserves veteran Jimmy Panetta of Carmel Valley and Jackie Speier of San Mateo  demanded information on how the Navy would prevent similar incidents.

Shipboard life, with limited space for social distancing or quarantine, presents unique challenges that exacerbate the infection rate of this virus, the group wrote. Unfortunately, we are concerned that current guidance from the Department of Defense has allowed for inconsistent response to the spread of the virus on our ships and submarines. With further spread of the virus expected in the coming weeks, it is critical that the Navy, like our states and communities across the nation, take additional steps now to prepare.

In the Senate, Virginia Democrats Mark Warner and Tim Kaine sent a similar letter Wednesday with detailed questions about the services preparedness for further outbreaks, including how many coronavirus tests the Navy has and whether it possesses enough barge space to house crew members for vessels that need decontamination.

In a Facebook Live with constituents Wednesday, Huffman said two sailors from his district are aboard the Roosevelt and he and others are pressing the Pentagon to be more forthcoming with information.

What youre hearing about in the media is one aircraft carrier, but we have 70 naval vessels under way around the world, and it is very foreseeable and almost certain that were going to have COVID-19 outbreaks in many of these ships, Huffman said. So we have got to be far more proactive.

Speier chairs the House Subcommittee on Military Personnel and has requested to speak directly with Capt. Crozier. The Pentagon has yet to comply with that request, her office said.

Speier spoke with U.S. Pacific Fleet Adm. John Aquilino on Tuesday and was concerned the military was more focused on protocol than fully responding to the pandemic.

Im very concerned about the entire population of service members  they all are in close quarters, Speier told The Chronicle on Wednesday. Its a powder keg. If we dont get this right, we are going to have dead service people.

Members of the House Armed Services Committee held a call with the Department of Defense on Wednesday, as well, but details about what was discussed were not immediately available.

San Francisco Chronicle staff writer Joe Garofoli contributed to this report.

Matthias Gafni and Tal Kopan are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: matthias.gafni@

sfchronicle.com, Tal.Kopan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mgafni, @TalKopan
Police probing a double murder in south London have arrested a woman and five men in their 40s and 50s.

The victims - a man, 59, and a 56-year-old woman - were found with multiple stab wounds in a flat above an office In Dorset Road, Stockwell, at around 4pm yesterday.

Despite the efforts of paramedics both were pronounced dead at the scene.

At least some of the six suspects and two victims are from 'the South American community,' police have confirmed.

The victim's next of kin have been informed and officers are not seeking any more suspects.

Detective Chief Inspector Richard Leonard, who is leading the investigation, said:

'I understand that this is an extremely shocking incident for the residents of this area and the wider community.

The scene at The Bridge Estate on Dorset Road in Stockwell, south London. Six people have been arrested on suspicion of murder

Forensics scour the scene in Stockwell today looking for evidence after a man and woman were stabbed to death

Officers at the scene of the coronavirus lockdown Lambeth double murder. Two in protective suits, with a bucket of detergent and cleansing materials and a mop on the pavement

'Please be assured that my team are working very hard to understand the circumstance of this terrible event.

'The investigation is at a very early stage, but we currently believe that many of those caught up in the tragic incident are from South American communities.

'We are appealing directly to those communities in and around the local area for any assistance they can give us and will be working closely with our partners and other agencies to reach potential witnesses.

'If there is anybody with any information that could help our investigation please do get in contact, my officers are standing by to take your call and you will be fully supported.'

A cordon remains in place outside the second storey maisonette while forensic investigators examine the scene.

Police and paramedics were called to Dorset Road in Stockwell at 4pm today after concerns were raised for the welfare of a man (Pictured: Police at the scene)

Two tents have been set up in a small elevated children's playground next to the property.

The 'extremely shocking incident' comes on the ninth day of Britain's unprecedented lockdown to slow the spread of the deadly coronavirus.

A spokesman for the London Ambulance Service said it dispatched London's Air Ambulance alongside several paramedic teams.

'We were called at 4:18pm today to reports of an incident in Dorset Road, Stockwell in SW8,' a statement said.

'We dispatched a number of resources to the scene: a paramedic team leader, an advanced paramedic practitioner, an incident response officer, a medic in a response car and two ambulance crews.

'We also dispatched London's Air Ambulance. Sadly, despite our efforts, two people were pronounced dead at the scene.'

A man, 44, and a woman, 56, were found inside a home with 'multiple stab injuries' in the 'extremely shocking incident' and later died at the scene

Councillor Mohammad Seedat, of Lambeth Council, said 'colleagues tried to save the lives' of those involved, but were ultimately 'unsuccessful'

Councillor Mohammad Seedat, of Lambeth Council, said 'colleagues tried to save the lives' of those involved, but were ultimately 'unsuccessful'.

He wrote on Twitter: 'We are working with @LambethMPS to ascertain circumstances of two people murdered in the Stockwell area of Lambeth.

'COVID19 unfortunately bringing out the worst behaviours of humanity as well as the best. Stay indoors, stay safe.'

The 'extremely shocking' double stabbing adds to a string of killings which have taken place across Britain since the nationwide coronavirus lockdown began.

Tomas Macionis, 35, was stabbed to death in Walthamstow, north east London, on Tuesday.

A man, aged in his 20s, was arrested on suspicion of murder and tonight remained in police custody.

The bodies of four people and a dead dog were last week found at a house in Sussex and a man was charged with killing his wife in South Wales.

An NHS nurse was also stabbed to death in the street in South Yorkshire and three have died in an apparent murder-suicide in Hertfordshire.
SEATTLE and JOHNSON CITY, Tenn., April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- LabConnect today announced the relocation of its official headquarters from Seattle, WA, to Johnson City, TN. In collaboration with the State of Tennessee, Northeast Tennessee Regional Economic Partnership (NeTREP), and Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), LabConnect will further invest to support the company's significant growth.

"LabConnect is unique in the market and integral to the development of important new drugs. Johnson City, TN is an ideal community to support our steep growth in the US and Internationally and we are excited to expand our facility, where we currently have 200 employees", said Tom Sellig, LabConnect's Chief Executive Officer. "The area offers benefits of local universities for recruitment, a lower cost of living with a high quality of life, and a hard-working, loyal workforce. Tennessee officials have been very welcoming, and we anticipate a great relationship going forward as we scale the organization."

LabConnect, a leading provider of clinical services plans to invest in continued infrastructure improvements, expanding LabConnect's clinical kit building capability, doubling its biorepository capacity, and other modifications to the Johnson City facility. The company is projecting significant job growth and expects to double the number of employees over the next few years. LabConnect's partnership with these Tennessee organizations will position the company as a top employer of the region while creating exciting career growth opportunities.

Founded 18 years ago, LabConnect has become a leader in providing laboratory services for clinical trials all around the world. The company is pleased to have chosen Tennessee as its official location while continuing to maintain a global network of sites, sponsors, and resources.

For more information, visit www.labconnect.com.

About LabConnect

Connect with LabConnectthe preeminent provider of central laboratory support services for analytically and logistically complex studies such as immuno-oncology, cell and gene therapies, and rare & orphan diseases. We offer unique and innovative services that have been specifically designed to meet the exacting demands of today's clinical trials. Our worldwide scope of services includes routine and specialized testing, real-time sample tracking, data integration, biorepository, sample processing and specialized functional outsourcing. Leading the evolution in central laboratory services since 2002, our services are customized to fit the unique needs of your trial. Get connected by requesting a proposal at www.labconnect.com or via email at [email protected] .

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Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness continues ruling the Netflix charts  and for good reason. The seven-part docuseries features a unique cast unlike any other. Most of the nation remains focused on all things Joe Exotic and his longtime rival, Carole Baskin, but Doc Antle slipped into the background. Here are a few things about Antle that dedicated Tiger King fans need to know.

Is Mahamayavi Bhagavan Antle his real name?

Doc Antle  Tiger King | Netflix

Theres a lot to unpack in Tiger King. With Oklahoma zookeeper, Joe Exotic, behind bars serving a 22-year sentence for a murder-for-hire plot against Baskin (and wildlife violations), Doc Mahamayavi Bhagavan Antle continues running his exotic zoo, T.I.G.E.R.S. in South Carolina.

Antles portrayal in the Netflix series didnt sit well with him. Fans obsessed with the bizarre true-life stories have a lot of questions. For instance, is Antles name real?

The origin of Doc Antles name is a complicated one. He was born in Arizona in 1960 and Mahamayavi Bhagavan was the Hindu name given to him at birth from his mother who nurtured an interest in Eastern philosophy, as told via Rolling Stone in 2015.

Another 2001 article in Nashville Scene revealed even more. When Antle moved to Southern California, he went by the name Kevin, because kids had difficulty pronouncing his unusual name

Is Antle an actual doctor?

Some fans want to know how Antle earned the name Doc and if hes a legitimate doctor in the medical field. As told in the docuseries, hes a doctor of mystical science.

The details have more to do with what and where Antle studied to get that moniker, according to multiple outlets. After dropping out of high school, Doc studied abroad in China. Antle earned a doctoral degree in Chinese Medicine after years in the field.

How did Antle get involved with tiger training?

According to Screen Rant, Antle raised his first tiger cub in 1982. It all came about by way of an Exxon ad-campaign. Exxon reportedly approached Antle. He was to come up with a presentation for the Annual Exxon Convention in 1982.

What came of that presentation a year later was Exxons newest campaign, Put a Tiger in Your Tank. Antle and Exxon began a six-year relationship and Antles name became world renown.

Antles Rare Species Fund teamed up with the U.S. Post Office

Aside from the 5-acre safari in Myrtle Beach, South Caroline, Antle started the Rare Species Fund (RSF), which aims to support global wildlife. In 2011, RSF partnered with the U.S. Postal Service for the Save Vanishing Species Stamp.

The stamp, according to World Wildlife Fund, featured a tiger cub and proceeds were allocated to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which dispersed funds to various conservation organizations.

His only marriage ended 25 years ago

According to a recent interview with Hits Fifi, Antles one and only marriage ended 25 years ago. His wife  the mother of his two children  died in a car accident.

I am a guy that does date. I live alone in my house, he said, referring to the three women who worked alongside him. I have a few girlfriends now and they certainly know about each other, but I am by no means married to anybody or have a harem like they are suggesting.

Antle has faced his own backlash over the years

With the information shown in Tiger King, Antle cleared the air on Theo Vons podcast, The Truth Of It All.

They asked me every question in the world, he said of the docuseries. 99% of them had nothing to do with anything that was going to become Tiger King, they just pick and choose pieces.

He added, No tiger babies are ever going to be euthanized or pushed out of the way, theyre incredibly special to us.

Previous backlash over the years include fines from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) hit Antle with a fine for violating the Animal Welfare Act for holding public petting events of cubs after poor barriers and boundaries were discovered, Screen Rant noted.

Tiger King told of a 2019 raid of Antles compound to get to the bottom of the death of three of the lions. Antle released a statement to ABC 15 News.

We have the three lions theyre fabulous little babies that are here with us. Many of our guests this summer all hugged them and met them and those lions are permanent residents here at the preserve. The lions are part of an ongoing investigation the state is working on and they wanted us to try and help them look at the trail of where the lions had come from and any ideas or evidence we had about what the lions lives had been before they moved here to Myrtle Beach Safari. ABC 15 News

Antle vehemently denies accusations against his character as portrayed in Tiger King. As posted to his Instagram, he calls the docuseries a quasi-fictional drama, more focused on shock value and titillation than fact.

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness is available on Netflix now.
World Health Organization Says Global COVID-19 Infection Rate to Top 1 Mln in Coming Days

Sputnik News

17:46 GMT 01.04.2020(updated 19:03 GMT 01.04.2020)

Over 905,000 cases of the new coronavirus have been reported in 180 countries and regions worldwide, with over 45,000 people succumbing to virus-related complications, and 190,000+ others seeing a complete recovery.

COVID-19 continues to spread and the world will reach 1 million plus cases in the coming days, World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has said.

"Over the past five weeks, we have witnessed a near exponential growth in the number of new COVID19 cases, reaching almost every country, territory and area. The number of deaths has more than doubled in the past week. In the coming days we will reach 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases, and 50,000 deaths," the official said in a briefing Wednesday.

"I am deeply concerned about the rapid escalation and global spread of infection," Tedros noted, saying that the WHO realizes "that COVID-19 could have serious social, economic and political consequences" for regions including Africa, Central and South America.

"Many countries are asking people to stay at home and shutting down population movement, which can help to limit transmission of the virus, but can have unintended consequences for the poorest and most vulnerable people," he explained. He added that governments must put social welfare measures in place "to ensure vulnerable people have food and other life essentials during this crisis."

Tedros praised India's efforts, including a $24 billion package of free food rations for 800 million people, cash transfers to 204 million poor women, and free cooking gas for 80 million households over the next three months.

Tedros also urged the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to provide debt relief to developing countries to prevent economic collapse and enable authorities to provide basic care for their citizens.

According to the WHO chief, his organization remains committed to providing the latest health guidelines on COVID-19, with updates made regularly as more information is made available. This included guidelines on the use of medical masks, which he said was a WHO recommendation "for people who are sick and those caring for them," but only "when combined with other protective measures."

Biggest Global Test Since World War II

Emerging in Wuhan, China in late 2019, the COVID-19 outbreak has gone on to effect every region and virtually every country in the world, posing a threat not only to public health, but to economic and social stability as well.

On Wednesday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the new coronavirus pandemic as the worst danger to global peace since the Second World War, saying that the economic fallout from the virus "will bring a recession that probably has no parallel in the recent past." This, he warned, would increase the danger of "enhanced instability, enhanced unrest, and enhanced conflict" worldwide.

 Sputnik

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Matt Hancock has promised 100,000 daily coronavirus tests in England by the end of April, declaring we will prevail amid mounting public criticism of delays.

Announcing a five-point plan to dramatically step up testing from the current 10,000 a day, the health secretary told a 10 Downing Street press conference: That is the goal and I am determined that we will get there.

But his promise fell well short of the 250,000 tests pledged by prime minister Boris Johnson two weeks ago.

And Labour demanded clarity over how many of the 100,000 would be antibody checks showing that people have had the disease and recovered, and how many will be the crucial antigen tests identifying those currently infected.

Despite figures showing the largest daily increase in coronavirus deaths  569  NHS England medical director Stephen Powis said there were reasons to be hopeful that strong public observance of social distancing measures was beginning to rein in the outbreak.

However, he signalled that he is expecting the three-week lockdown announced by the prime minister to be extended when it comes up for review next week, saying: There are reasons to be hopeful, but reasons not to be complacent, and reasons to continue to comply with these measures.

When it comes to the three weeks that were announced for these initial measures, that will simply not be the end of it. The virus will still be here and we will still need to work out how we deal with it.

Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Show all 12 1 /12 Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Agnetha Septimus, Matthew Septimus, and children Ezra and Nora Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Husband and wife filmmakers, Claire Ince and Ancil McKain pose for a portrait for the series by Shutterstock Staff Photographer, Stephen Lovekin, shot around the Ditmas Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Khadijah Silver and son Eliot Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Anna Beth Rousakis and daughter Mary Rousakis Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Mike Pergola and Denise Pergola with children Henry, Jack, and Will Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Artist Shirley Fuerst Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Jean Davis and Danny Rosenthal, with children Simone, Naomi, and Leah Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Robert E Clark Jr Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Lisa Draho and Josh Zuckerman, with children Ruby and Ava Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Professor and activist Dr Kristin Lawler Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Tom Smith and Laura Ross, with daughters Caroline, Elizabeth, and Abigail Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock Words at the window: Social isolation and the Coronavirus Callie Lovekin and Lucas Lovekin Stephen Lovekin/REX/Shutterstock

Mr Hancock initially said that his 100,000 target  for England only  covered all kinds of tests, with 25,000 antigen swab tests to be conducted on patients and frontline NHS staff in Public Health England and NHS labs, and others for key workers carried out in commercial facilities. But he later suggested that he believes he can meet the target even if none of the nine antibody tests being analysed by Public Health England proves accurate enough for use.

And he gave a firm commitment that all NHS staff needing an antigen test will have it by the end of the month.

Mr Powis revealed that 8 per cent of the health services 1.3 million staff  around 104,000 people  are at home after they or a household member displayed coronavirus symptoms, many of whom could return to work if tested.

Labour demanded clarity on the health secretarys plans and called for the appointment of a minister for testing to push it through.

Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth questioned whether enough trained staff were available to hit the target, adding: A commitment to 100,000 tests a day by the end of the month is welcome but of course its not the 250,000 Boris Johnson promised.

If the government really want to scale up testing we need a clear and effective route into government and PHEs testing community for suppliers. There has been too much confusion over what chemicals and reagents are needed or available. We need a testing minister to grip supplies and procurement.

Appearing in public for the first time after seven days of self-isolation with the Covid-19 infection, Mr Hancock said he would level with the public about the missed targets so far, pointing to a lack of a homegrown testing industry like Germanys and a shortage of chemicals and swabs.

And, in an appeal to the private sector to throw its weight behind the drive to defeat coronavirus, he said: Im calling on the life sciences industry, the universities and the NHS and Public Health England to unite together to meet that goal.

The health secretary defended receiving a test himself, saying they were offered to anyone in senior decision-making roles.

He sought to ease fears of a gathering crisis, as the UK death toll reached 2,921, saying the NHS still had 1,800 spare critical care beds, with one in four beds in London unoccupied.

Ministers have been on the back foot over record levels of staff absence from hard-pressed hospital wards  still only 5,000 with symptoms have been tested.

Mr Hancock set out the five prongs of his new plan, to be led by Public Health England director of health improvement Professor John Newton:

* Expand swab testing in NHS laboratories and hospitals to test 25,000 key critical workers a day by mid to late April.

* Introduce new swab testing by companies, including Amazon and Boots, with NHS staff and families offered them first.

* Introduce fingerprick blood tests to find out if someone has had the virus and now has immunity, enabling many to return to work.

* Conduct surveillance testing to learn more about the spread of the disease and help develop new tests and treatments.

* Build a mass-testing capacity at a completely new scale.

He confirmed that the government is planning to issue immunity certificates to individuals who test positive for coronavirus antibodies, indicating that they are immune.

Mr Hancock said: I return from illness more determined than ever to fight this disease. We will bring together the best minds, we will bring together the best science that this country has to offer, and we will work with our friends and allies from around the world as we do so.

We are in the midst of a war against an invisible enemy. And it is a war in which all of humanity is on the same side.

And history has shown that when the world unites against a common foe, then we will prevail.
Goa Health Minister Vishwajit Rane



on Thursday said 48 suspected COVID-19 patients in the state have tested negative for the infection.

So far, five people have tested positive for coronavirus in the coastal state.

"Swab samples of 48 suspected patients were sent to National Institute of Virology in Pune earlier this week," the minister told PTI.

All reports have come out negative, he added.

Five positive patients, who are undergoing treatment at a special COVID-19 facility, are in stable condition, Rane confirmed.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Today marks 27 years since the day of the occupation of Kalbajar by Armenia.



Launching a large-scale military operation on March 27 in 1993, the Armenian armed forces occupied Kalbajar on April 2.



As a result, 511 people were killed in Kalbajar, which has a territory of 1,936 square meters. As many as 321 people were captured and went missing. Fifty-five soldiers were killed during the fights, while 132 settlements were captured by the Armenian Armed forces.



Armenian occupiers destroyed more than 500 industrial, construction, catering and retail facilities, 97 schools and 76 health facilities. Kalbajar districts 53,340 residents became IDPs.



After the occupation of Kelbajar, Resolution 822 was adopted at a meeting of the UN Security Council on the unconditional withdrawal of Armenian armed forces from Kalbajar and other occupied regions of Azerbaijan.
The United States Democratic National Committee (DNC) has postponed its nominating convention from July to August over the coronavirus pandemic, DNC officials said on Thursday.

The convention will be held on August 17 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, about a week before the Republican Partys convention.

In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds so we can best position our party for a safe and successful convention, DNC CEO Joe Solmonese said in a statement.

The announcement came just days after former vice president and likely nominee Joe Biden called for the convention to be moved due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The coronavirus crisis has upended the 2020 election cycle, with more than a dozen states postponing primaries and campaigns moving online.

Questions surrounding the conventions have forced Democrats and Republicans to re-examine what the election might look like amid the global pandemic.

Biden, who was vice president under President Barack Obama, currently leads the Democratic nominating contest against his rival, Bernie Sanders, a US senator from Vermont.

Republicans plan to gather from August 24 to 27 in Charlotte, North Carolina, for their nominating convention.

More than 217,000 people in the US have been infected with the novel coronavirus and more than 5,000 people have died due to the respiratory disease.

New York has been hardest hit, with officials warning the peak may come in a week to 30 days. But cities and towns elsewhere in the US are bracing for their own surges in cases.

White House medical experts have forecast that even if Americans hunker down in their homes to slow the spread of COVID-19, some 100,000 to 240,000 people could die from the disease.
Laptops and credit cards at the ready, Farfetch has launched a huge new season sale. Starting from today and for a limited time only, the online luxury fashion platform Farfetch is taking up to 25 per cent off selected Spring Summer 2020 items.

Due to the recent quarantine impact on luxury retail in Europe, Farfetch is launching the sale to support their boutique partners all around the world.

Not only is this an amazing opportunity to support your most-loved fashion brands but it's also your chance to get your hands on some of the most sought after in-season luxury items at incredible prices.

From designer handbags to sunglasses, shoes to dresses, this is the perfect time to inject you wardrobe with some new season steals.

Chloe Small Faye Shoulder Bag, 782 (was 882)

The Faye bag is undoubtedly one of the most coveted handbag styles in the Chloe bag family.

New for spring/summer 2020, this Chloe small Faye shoulder bag in a gorgeous dusky red colour one of the best new season IT bags. And with ten per cent off on Farfetch, now is the perfect time to treat yourself.

Featuring gold-tone hardware, a square body, a chain and leather strap, a fold-over top, an embossed logo to the front and a ring detail to the front, it is top of our wish list.

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Rixo Sonja Floral Print Midi Dress, 236 (was 280)

British label Rixo has become the fashion industry's go-to for vintage-inspired womenswear.

The laid-back brand's cool prints and beautiful silhouettes are perfect for elevating any outing to a special occasion. If you're looking for dress to see you through all events from date night to weddings, then Rixo should be on your hit list.

We adore this red Sonja floral print midi dress. Featuring an elegant v-neck, long seventies-inspired flowing sleeves, fitted waist and flattering mid-length, this is a beautiful dress that will complement almost any shape.

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Jimmy Choo Love 85mm Crocodile-Effect Pumps, 367 (was 525)

A pair of new season Jimmy Choo's at 25 per cent off? Race you to the check out.

These blush pink leather Love 85mm pumps are the perfect colour to put a spring in your step. Featuring a classic pointed toe, a mid high stiletto heel, an embossed crocodile effect and a branded insole, these are sure to take pride of place in your wardrobe.

Also available in yellow, khaki and red, it will be hard to pick just one pair.

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Frame Le Sylvie High-rise Jeans, 206 (was 275)

Founded in Los Angeles but inspired by 1970's French icons, Frame create flattering denim jeans that bring an elevated air to relaxed everyday wear.

A great pair of jeans are worth the investment. Finding a pair that fit you perfectly is rare, but thanks to Frame it's an achievable sartorial feat.

These high-rise slim-fit Le Sylvie Frame jeans hug all the right places. Featuring a high rise, a five pocket design, faded effect and a cropped length, these will stand the test of time.

Buy now from Farfetch

Ganni Leaf Print Wrap Blouse, 126 (was 167)

Copenhagen-based brand Ganni is much loved for its relaxed and effortlessly pretty approach to design.

Avoiding seasonal trends and instead opting for bold colours and fun patterns, Ganni is a great investment for those that love a bohemian aesthetic.

We are certain you'll get a lot of love and wear out of this Ganni leaf print wrap blouse. The elegant wrap front tie and elasticated sleeves are just some of the thoughtful design touches that make this one of the most flattering tops we've found.





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Veja Low Top Lace-Up Sneakers, 86 (was 115)

Veja's designs have been spotted on everyone from Meghan Markle to Katie Holmes, and now you too can get a slice of the action - and for 25 per cent off.

These low-top, lace-up sneakers feature a perforated design with the signature contrast logo on the side. We love the classic navy and red colour of this model, yet there are plenty of other colourways to choose from on Farfetch.

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Joseph Lima Belted Robe Coat, 678 (was 904)

Crafted with the best quality materials and elegant silhouettes, it isn't hard to see why Joseph is one of Kate Middelton's most loved fashion brands.

If you love Kate Middleton's style or are looking for a timelessly chic coat to last and suit any occasion, then the Joseph Lima belted robe coat is worth a look.

Now reduced by 25 per cent on Farfetch, this is the perfect time to invest. Made from a rosewater pink wool-cashmere blend, this cosy number is enhanced by a self-tie belt that cinches in your waist. Irresistibly soft and perennially chic, this is a wonderful investment.





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Even as the Karnataka



government is continuing with its declared stand against opening of Talapady border with Kerala in the wake of coronavirus outbreak, Mangaluru city Corporation on Thursday came out with an order restricting people and vehicles from the neighbouring state.

In the order, the Mangaluru Corporation Commissioner (MCC) Ajith Kumar Hegde said it is the duty of the corporation to take steps to keep the residents of the city safe and protect them from the spread of coronavirus.

As the virus is spreading through the movement of people and by coming in contact with people who are afflicted, it becomes necessary to restrict the movement of vehicles and people from Kerala within the MCC limits, he said.

Hence, under section 58(22) of the KMC Act which deals with 'prevention and checking the spread of dangerous diseases,' the MCC commissioner is required to invoke emergency powers under Section 64 of the KMC Act of 1976 to contain the spread of the coronavirus outbreak, he said.

The MCC commissioner also banned vehicles carrying afflicted people, those who came in contact with Covid-19 patients or those who are suspected to be suffering from any such contagious diseases from entering the city. The order has been issued after considering the report by MCC health officer, he said.

He also pointed out that the order of the state government on March 23, has already stated that the borders with Kerala will be closed for patients from Kerala also in the wake of the rapid spread of coronavirus there.

Exercising powers under Section 2 of the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1898 and enabling provisions of the Disaster Management Act 2005, the Karnataka government ordered for imposing border restrictions over movement of patients across the border for treatment or diagnosis. This order also requires different cities in Karnataka to impose territorial jurisdiction to enforce the order without any alterations.

The DK district health officer Ramachandra Bayari has also sent a letter to private hospitals in the city not to admit patients from neighbouring Kasaragod district of Kerala.

Karnataka on Thursday moved the Supreme Court against Kerala High Court's direction to the Centre to take steps to open the border at Talapady between Dakshina Kannada and Kasaragod districts for medical emergencies and transport of essential goods.

Meanwhile, with eight new positive cases Thursday, the number of Covid-19 patients in the bordering Kasaragod district rose to 129, of which one person has already recovered.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Editor's Note: With so much market volatility, stay on top of daily news! Get caught up in minutes with our speedy summary of today's must-read news and expert opinions. Sign up here!

(Kitco News) - Gold and silver prices are trading sharply up in early U.S. trading Thursday and moved to fresh session highs after the U.S. government reported a huge increase of 6.6 million in jobless claims in the latest reporting week. June gold futures were last up $30.70 an ounce at $1,621.80. May Comex silver prices were last up $0.626 at $14.61 an ounce.

The big U.S. data point this week will not be Fridays monthly employment report (usually the most important data point of the month) but instead Thursday mornings weekly jobless claims report. The 6.6 million rise was about double the expected gain of just over 3 million, after rising 3.2 million last week. The weekly claims report further confirms U.S. economy has been severely crippled by the coronavirus outbreak.

Global stock markets were mixed in overnight trading. U.S. stock indexes are pointed toward higher openings when the New York day session begins, following Wednesdays sharp losses.

The important outside markets today see Nymex crude oil prices sharply higher and trading around $22.25 a barrel, on short covering and perceived bargain hunting after hitting an 18-year low of $19.27 a barrel Monday. The rally in oil prices today is helping to lift the U.S. stock indexes early on. There are ideas the U.S., Russia and Saudi Arabia may be close to agreement on a deal to halt the Saudi-Russia oil-price war. President Trump said he is hopeful an agreement between Saudi Arabia and Russia will be reached soon. There are more than a few oil market watchers that are skeptical the Russians and Saudis will come to any significant agreement to reduce their oil output levels. Both major oil-producing countries hate the U.S. shale oil industry and are very likely enjoying watching U.S. oil companies suffer. Reports also said China will be buying crude oil for its strategic petroleum reserve. China reportedly at present has over 1 billion barrels of empty oil storage capacity, at the same time the U.S. has very little to none.

The U.S. dollar index is slightly down early this morning but the bulls are having a good week, overall. When the going gets really, really tough it appears global traders and investors still seek out the greenback. The 10-year U.S. Treasury note yield is trading around 0.59% Thursday morning, after trading above 1.0% last week. Declining U.S. Treasury yields recently are a sign that U.S. bond traders (arguably the smartest traders in the world) expect more serious markets/economic turmoil on the horizon, including suggesting that most markets have not yet fully priced in the eventual global economic toll the coronavirus sickness will exact.

U.S. economic data due for release Thursday includes the weekly jobless claims report, the Challenger job-cuts report, the ISM New York report on business, and manufacturers shipments and inventories.

Technically, the gold bulls still have the overall near-term technical advantage. Bulls next upside price objective is to produce a close in June futures above solid resistance at $1,650.00. Bears' next near-term downside price objective is pushing futures prices below solid technical support at this weeks low of $1,576.00. First resistance is seen at the overnight high of $1,623.90 and then at $1,635.00. First support is seen at $1,600.00 and then at todays low of $1,595.20. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 6.0

May silver futures bears still have the overall near-term technical advantage. Silver bulls' next upside price objective is closing prices above solid technical resistance at $15.00 an ounce. The next downside price breakout objective for the bears is closing prices below solid support at $13.00. First resistance is seen at this weeks high of $14.71 and then at $15.00. Next support is seen at this weeks low of $13.895 and then at $13.50. Wyckoff's Market Rating: 4.5.
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Health workers wait at the external screening area of the Burgos Hospital set up in order to separate patients with suspected CCP virus symptoms from the rest of the patients ahead of their admission in Burgos in northern Spain on April 2, 2020. (Cesar Manso/AFP via Getty Images)

Over 4,000 Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients Discharged From Hospitals in Spain

More than 4,000 COVID-19 patients were discharged from hospitals over the previous 24 hours, Spanish authorities said on Thursday.

Described as cured by officials, the number of those discharged reached 26,743.

COVID-19 is the new disease caused by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus, which emerged in China last year.

Spain, one of the hardest-hit countries in the world, also recorded nearly 1,000 deaths overnight, taking the countrys death toll to 10,003.

Spains mortality rate from the CCP virus rose to 9 percent. Most countries have seen rates of 3 percent or lower.

Official mortality rates dont count a number of patients who show no symptoms or mild symptoms, according to health experts.

The number of confirmed infections rose by over 8,000 to 110,238 while the number of those in intensive care units increased slightly to 6,092.

A cleaner wearing protective gear disinfects public areas in the village of Bueu, northwestern Spain, on April 2, 2020. (Miguel Riopa/AFP via Getty Images)

The daily increase in infections in percentage terms has been slowing gradually since March 25, when reported cases rose by just over 20 percent. The increase on Thursday was 8 percent.

Spanish officials said Wednesday that the peak of the virus had arrived.

The central issue is no longer whether weve reached the peak or not, it seems like we are there, health emergency chief Fernando Simon, who was himself diagnosed with the virus this week, told a briefing.

The key issue is to make sure that the national health system is capable of guaranteeing adequate coverage of all our patients and treatment, he said.

Health Minister Salvador Illa sounded a similar theme while speaking to parliament on Thursday.

Theres light at the end of the tunnel, he said. A glimpse of hope: the curve has stabilized. We have reached  the peak of the curve and we have started the slowdown phase.

Spain announced a lockdown on March 14 and tightened the measures last week, forbidding employees deemed nonessential from working.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Republican Dan Sullivan calls on Riyadh to end price war, reminding its ally of US role in defending the kingdom.

The strategic relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia may change if Riyadh does not end its oil price war with Russia, a leading US senator from oil-rich Alaska state has warned.

The Saudis have really brought in a supply shock at exactly the wrong time, Republican Senator Dan Sullivan told the CNBC network on Wednesday.

These kind of crises really make it clear  who your friends are and who arent your friends.

Sullivan told CNBC a group of US senators has written to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) and held a conference call with the Saudi ambassador to Washington.

All of the senators who were on that letter, on that conference call with the ambassador, have been strong supporters of the US-Saudi relationship, Sullivan said. That is going to change if the Saudis dont start playing a more constructive role with regard to energy markets.

Sullivan said he reminded the Saudi ambassador of the USs role in defending the kingdom.

We have been there for you  First Gulf War, Saddam Hussein is getting ready to roll through your country. It wasnt the Saudi military that stopped him  It was the First Marine Division, 82nd Airborne. Americans died in that war, Sullivan said he told her.

Saudi-Russia price war

The US politicians remarks came as the US hoped to intervene to end the Saudi-Russia oil price war.

Last month, a three-year supply pact between the Saudi-led Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies led by Russia fell apart after Moscow refused to support Riyadhs plan for deeper production cuts to offset dwindling demand resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.

As Saudi Arabia and Russia started to flood the market with oil following the collapse of the deal, prices fell by roughly two-thirds  an 18-year low  due to poor demand and the global spread of the pandemic.

Saudi Arabia, the worlds biggest crude exporter, on Wednesday ramped up the price war, boosting crude oil supply to a record 18.8 million barrels on a single day despite pressure from Washington.

On Thursday, crude oil futures jumped 10 percent after US President Donald Trump said he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to reach a deal soon to end their oil price war.

The collapse in prices has threatened the once-booming US drilling industry with bankruptcies and significant layoffs, and Washington has scrambled for ways to protect the sector.

Wrong behaviour

Another Republican Senator Ted Cruz, who represents the leading oil-producing state of Texas, also participated in the conference call with the Saudi ambassador.

That behavior is wrong, and I think it is taking advantage of a country that is a friend, Cruz is reported to have told the ambassador.

Recently, the US legislators have taken a tougher approach towards Riyadh, showing the kinds of legislative threats facing the kingdom if it does not respond to the administration.

A bill introduced last month by Sullivan and fellow Republican Kevin Cramer would remove US troops from the kingdom and relocate them. Though the bill is unlikely to get the votes to reach Trumps desk, it sent a signal to Saudis de facto leader, Prince Mohammed.

Meanwhile, Trump is expected to discuss a range of options with oil executives to help the industry, including the possibility of tariffs on oil imports from Saudi Arabia, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Major drillers expected to participate in the initial meeting on Friday include Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp, Occidental Petroleum Corp, and Continental Resources, according to the newspaper.
Asha workers engaged to conduct



coronavirus survery in certain minority dominated areas here were allegedly manhandled on Thursday, prompting the Karnataka government to issue a stern warning to the offenders.

The Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) workers along with health officials were conducting a door-to-door survey in the minority dominated areas in view of the virus spreading through those who returned to the state after attending a religious congregation in Delhi.

A peeved Asha worker, Krishnaveni in a video message which had gone viral alleged that a group of health workers who had gone to Hegde Nagar in the city were 'gheraoed' by some residents, their mobile phones snatched and all of them abused.

With tears welling up in her eyes, Krishnaveni said she has been carrying out the survey for the past 10 days to spread awareness, gather information and educate people on ways to deal with COVID-19.

"When we visited Sadiq Layout in Saraipalya (Hegde Nagar), a man enquired me. We said we are here to gather information about the coronavirus.

Immediately, he asked us to leave the place and said no information would be provided..," she said.

Soon people started yelling at the health workers' team and asked them to leave.

"They snatched our bags and mobile phones. They did not let us make a phone call. I have been working for the past five years but never ever faced a situation like this.

They are not even disclosing whether they have any symptoms," Krishnaveni added.

Condemning the incident, Health Minister B Sriramulu shared the video in his Twitter handle and said, "The doctors, nurses and health workers who toil day and night are like Gods. Respect them. Will not sit idle if they are attacked. Beware!"



Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister C N Ashwath Narayan visited Krishnaveni's residence and enquired about her health.

Karnataka Minister for Woman and Child Welfare, Shashikala Jolle too condemned the incident, saying the state government will not tolerate any such indiscipline.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Coleman Community Fire Department has come to the rescue -- and not in its standard way of battling blazes and providing emergency medical responses.

The 23 members of the volunteer fire fighting team reached into their own pockets to help some of the community's most vulnerable citizens.

The firefighters took up a personal collection and donated enough money to a Coleman business mainstay, Leah's Korner Kafe, that the restaurant is providing at least 175 meals, free of charge, to individuals and families that may be struggling to put food on the table during this crisis.

Coleman Fire Chief William Cozat said one of his firefighters came up with the idea to help some people in their small, tight-knit community that may be less fortunate and are experiencing serious hardship.

"We didn't do it for the recognition and there isn't any taxpayer money involved," Cozat said. "I think it's been well-received. We didn't place any qualifications that people have to meet to get a meal. We just want to help those most in need."

Cozat said his department wanted to respond to Michigan's "Stay at Home" order because it complicates things for some people "who were already in a tough situation and maybe couldn't get out before and had to rely on someone else. We're trying to address that."

Korner Kafe owner Leah Fogle is experiencing anguish of her own as she battles to keep a business alive that she's been a part for 18 years, the last eight as owner. She's had to lay off eight of her employees. There currently are just two people manning the business, which is determined to stay open.

The nearby Senior Center is temporarily closed and with it its Meals on Wheels Program, though that organization announced all recipients have enough supplies on hand to last for at least the near future.

"This has hit us really hard, but the elderly need us," she said. "I have an older customer who takes care of her husband with multiple health issues. At the end of the day she's exhausted. There are a lot of people that are in need and what the fire department here is doing is awesome."

The free meal is a Sloppy Joe and French Fries. Monday was the first day the free meal was available and Fogle handed out nine of them. Leah's Korner Kafe provided the donated meals from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesday and plans to again on Thursday, from 3 to 5 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday, from 10 to 2 p.m. to conclude the relief effort.

"I have a limit of 175 meals and if I haven't reached my limit after the weekend, we might do it Monday," she said. "There is a possibility of further donations coming in."

Fogle is open for business for takeout (full menu) seven days a week. Customers phone in orders and their food is delivered curbside when they arrive to pick it up.

"No one comes into the store," she said.

During the lockdown, weekends, usually the eatery's busiest time, have slowed to a crawl.

"It doesn't even make sense to stay open," she said, her voice cracking with emotion. "We're doing okay, but 85% of my business is sit-down."

Social media is being used by the Midland Business Alliance and other business-boosting agencies to promote establishments that remain open, reminding consumers to purchase locally. It's part of a multi-pronged approach to help businesses and employees that have been rocked by this economic tsunami.

Korner Kafe is using its Facebook page to advertise daily specials and to let struggling residents know when they can pick up a free Sloppy Joe and Fry. One restaurant offering has generated quite a bit of buzz for over three years. Certainly when customers look at the Kozy Kafe's menu and see a burger named after our president, reaction is going to be swift -- one way or another. In Coleman, it's been a big hit.

"We introduced the Trump Burger when he was elected president," Fogle said. "It's built like a wall and has two different patties, one a 1/3 pound all beef patty, the other a 1/3 pound chorizo patty on 3 slices of Texas Toast. It's become quite popular. Our first two orders yesterday were for Trump burgers."

The Trump Burger, a Leah's Korner Kafe original, costs $12.49 and is "so big that it has to be skewered so we can cut it," Fogle noted.

On the menu item's description, the last line reads: "Making America Great Again, One Trump Burger at a Time."

If Fogle is concerned about making such a political statement, she's not letting on.

"I know what I can and can't do with my regular customers," she said. "They know I have a sense of humor and we go back and forth all the time."

When Fogle first put the unique item on her menu, "We had customers coming in and taking pictures of it and posting it on Facebook. One customer emailed it to Fox News, though nothing came of that. The response has been overwhelmingly positive."

She did have an out-of-town guest, an aunt of a regular customer who was none too pleased to see a burger named after President Trump on the menu. The visiting aunt wanted to know if Fogle would have done the same if Hillary Clinton had won the presidential election.

"I told the aunt, yes, but she didn't like what I would have named it," Fogle said. "She left the restaurant but my customer thanked me for it because he said his aunt never stopped talking and he could now finally enjoy some quiet time."

She's hopeful that her restaurant, with the support of so many regular customers and a community spirit embodied by its hard-working fire department, will survive these difficult times.

"I'm praying I do. I am so grateful to the members of our fire department for choosing me to partner with on this free food giveaway," she said.

"They are a great group and we're fortunate to have them here."

For additional information on the fire department-sponsored free meal or other current curbside service options, phone Leah's Korner Kafe at 989-465-6711.
Calls are mounting for Washington to ease sanctions on Iran as it seeks IMF help to fund coronavirus medical response.

The war against the coronavirus pandemic is literally a life and death fight for nations. But Iran is waging it with an economy badly crippled by United States sanctions that have Tehran bereft of financial resources to mount an effective public health response.

Mahsa is a 28-year-old nurse in Mazandaran, a northern province in Iran that has been hard hit by the virus.

Ventilators are very crucial for treatment of COVID-19 patients, but officials tell us that because of the sanctions, they have not been able to order enough of them from abroad, she told Al Jazeera. Medical goods are supposed to increase in accordance with the number of admitted patients, but these goods are very hard to find these days.

More than 3,000 people in Iran have lost their lives to COVID-19, and the number of confirmed cases in the country has surpassed 47,500, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Mahsa, who asked Al Jazeera to withhold her surname, described the harrowing conditions facing front-line health workers.

There have been times that we had to order masks or gowns from Tehran ourselves. Our staff at the labs who are conducting the tests are supposed to be working with N95 masks, but they are working with the simple three-layer masks instead. There have been shifts in which I had to be exposed to infected patients without having the protective gown. This is exactly why a number of our colleagues have died in recent weeks, she said.

Dozens of health workers across Iran have lost their lives to COVID-19, according to the countrys health ministry. And it pins the blame on Washington.

Everyone knows that the United States, through its abusive and unilateral acts against humanity and inhumane measures against the people of Iran [sanctions], has led to these events, said health ministry spokesman Kianush Jahanpur, IRNA news agency reported.

But many also fault Irans leadership for acting too slowly to contain the virus.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been a particularly vocal critic, tweeting last month: The Iranian regime ignored repeated warnings from its own health officials, adding that throughout February, Irans Mahan Air continued to fly at least 55 times between Tehran and China.

On Sunday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani described such charges as political war, and said that he had to weigh efforts to contain COVID-19 against the blow it would deliver to the countrys already ravaged economy.

Ventilators are very crucial for treatment of COVID-19 patients, but officials tell us that because of the sanctions they have not been able to order enough of them from abroad. Mahsa, front-line health worker, Iran

Turning to the IMF

Since the administration of US President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal with world powers in 2018, Iran has been relentlessly punished with successive rounds of US economic sanctions that have starved the country of its main source of revenue  oil sales  and isolated it from the global financial system.

Though humanitarian goods such as medicines are technically exempt from US sanctions  a caveat often reiterated by Trump administration officials  a report by Human Rights Watch in October found that broad restrictions on financial transactions, coupled with aggressive rhetoric from US officials, have drastically constrained the ability of Iranian entities to finance humanitarian imports, including vital medicines and medical equipment.

On Tuesday, the German foreign ministry confirmedthat Iran had received medical supplies in the first transaction under the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX) special-purpose vehicle set up by nuclear-deal signatories the United Kingdom, France and Germany to bypass US sanctions.

Qatar, Kuwait, Japan, China and the European Union have also either sent medical supplies to Iran or pledged to do so.

The dire conditions facing Iran were underscored last month, when the government took the unusual step of requesting $5bn in emergency funding from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help combat the pandemic. The request marked the first time since 1960 that Tehran has sought assistance from the international lender.

While the amount is too small to completely address the needs of the country right now, it reflects Irans openness at this critical time to international aid from one of the leading US-backed international financial institutions, Sina Toossi, a senior research analyst at the National Iranian American Council in Washington, DC told Al Jazeera.

While the EU has said it will support Irans request for help from the IMF, the US is the Funds largest shareholder, which effectively gives Washington veto power over any lending decisions.

My understanding is that the US is obliged to vote against it because Iran is on the State Departments list of terrorism sponsors and US legislation requires that the US oppose lending from international bodies to such states, Barbara Slavin, director of the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council in Washington, told Al Jazeera.

But there could be a loophole, says Slavin.

If the other important members of the IMF board such as China vote in favour [of lending to Iran], the US might not be able to block the loan, she said. This would be an important confidence-building measure and obviously very helpful to Iran in these difficult circumstances.

If Barbara

, the US might not be able to block the loan.]

International outcry to ease sanctions

Last week, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, urged countries to ease sanctions against nations such as Iran to enable medical systems to fight the pandemic and curb its spread.

At this crucial time, both for global public health reasons, and to support the rights and lives of millions of people in these countries, sectoral sanctions should be eased or suspended, she said.

Beyond the difficulties of paying for medical supplies, analysts say Irans fragile economy also undermines containment efforts because the financially-strapped population cannot afford not to work.

Enforcing needed quarantine measures necessitates shutting down large parts of the economy, denying an already struggling population sources of income, said Toossi. In this case, as we see unfolding in other countries, the government will have to distribute aid and direct cash payments to meet the subsistence needs of the people.

Washington has faced withering criticism for continuing to target Irans economy with sanctions even after Tehran confirmed the first two cases of coronavirus in the country on February 19.

But on Tuesday, Pompeo appeared to soften that hard line. When asked if the US might reevaluate its position on easing sanctions on Iran, Pompeo told reporters, We evaluate all of our policies constantly, so the answer is  would we ever rethink?  Of course.

But Slavin does not see a policy change in the cards. Secretary of State Pompeo continues to insist that the US is willing to provide humanitarian assistance to Iran, although he has yet to provide details, she noted. It is hard for me to envision a change in the US position, no matter how counterproductive it has turned out to be.

For front-line health worker Mahsa, who puts her own life at risk to save the lives of her fellow citizens, the memory of the human toll of the crisis, and Washingtons intransigence, will linger long after the crisis has passed.

We will get over these hard days in the end, but we wont forget how US officials imposed a direct war against ordinary people by their sanctions, she said.
Scholastic and other childrens publishers have also made more of their materials available for teachers and parents to use for free. Earlier this month, Scholastic relaxed restrictions for use of its books to allow teachers and authors to read them aloud online for the remainder of the current school year. It also put together a free website for teachers and parents called Scholastic Learn at Home, which includes reading, writing and reflection assignments for school-age kids.
The new penalties were among updates made to the Infectious Diseases Act (IDA), which were published in the Government Gazette on Wednesday (1 April) night. (PHOTO: Getty Images)

SINGAPORE  Employers who do not allow their staff to work from home where possible will now face a jail term of up to six months, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

Workers who show symptoms of COVID-19  such as a cough, runny nose or fever  and still show up at work will face the same penalties. The penalties also apply to employers who compel staff members displaying symptoms to attend work as well as those who allow symptomatic staff to enter the workplace.

These new punishments were among updates made to the Infectious Diseases Act (IDA), which were published in the Government Gazette on Wednesday (1 April) night. The move comes as part of efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in Singapore.

Other amendments to the IDA include requiring employers to provide the appropriate facilities to allow all their staff to work from home unless it is not reasonably practicable to do so.

For those who still have to be present in a workplace, employers must also  as far as possible  take the following steps:

Ensure workers are split among two or groups to avoid or minimise physical interaction among workers

Stagger arrival and departure times for staff

Ensure there is a safe distance of at least 1 metre between any two workers within the workplace

Put in place safe distancing measures for areas of the workplace where people may congregate, such as pantries or waiting areas

Employers are also to cancel or postpone any activity that involves in-person interactions between workers, employers or other individuals. Exceptions to this ruling apply to activities critical to a business operations, as well as those involving vocational or professional training, or lessons by an educational institution.

Employers are also obligated to communicate all the latest measures to their workers and any other individuals that may come into contact with their workplace.

Occupiers of workplaces must also take the following steps:

Allow for natural ventilation of the workplace during working hours

Take the temperature of every person entering the workplace, as well as obtain and keep the contact details of each individual to facilitate contact tracing

Provide every employee who is found to be symptomatic with a face mask and require the person to leave the workplace immediately, or isolate the person

Story continues

Workers who are feeling unwell or show symptoms of COVID-19 must report immediately to their employers. All staff must also comply with measures set out by their employers in accordance with the new regulations.

The same penalties  a jail term of up to six months and a possible fine of up to $10,000  apply to those convicted of breaching any of the above regulations, which will stay in force from Thursday to 30 April.

At a multi-ministry taskforce press conference on Tuesday, Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said that the government would be amending legislation to penalise companies that do not allow their workers to telecommute where possible.

In the speech, she highlighted that only 40 per cent of companies within the central business district had implemented telecommuting despite the governments recommendations to do so.

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Related story:

COVID-19: Singapore to penalise firms that don't implement telecommuting where possible
Kroger Co. has announced it will introduce a 'hero bonus' as a thank you to all of its employees working on the coronavirus frontline.

The nation's biggest independent grocer said staff in their stores, as well as those working as part of the supply chain, in manufacturing, and in pharmacies and call centers will get an additional $2 a hour.

Tim Massa, Kroger's chief people officer, said: 'Over these past few weeks, our associates from across the country have shown us the true meaning of the word hero. You have been nothing short of extraordinary.'

Amazon, Whole Foods, GE and Instacart workers have all threatened to revolt over unsafe working conditions amid the spread of coronavirus.

As millions of people stay at home in the United States and non-essential businesses are shuttered to slow the spread of the virus, grocery stores and pharmacies are staying open.

Now Kroger, which owns more than 2,700 stores, says those frontline workers will earn extra pay for their shifts between March 29 and April 18.

Kroger, which owns more than 2,700 stores, says frontline workers will earn an extra $2 per hours for their shifts between March 29 and April 18

They have already given full-time workers $300 and part-time workers $150 as part of a one off bonus to say thank you for their efforts.

Rodney McMullen, Krogers chairman and CEO, said: 'Our associates have displayed the true actions of a hero, working tirelessly on the front lines to ensure everyone has access to affordable, fresh food and essentials during this national emergency.

'The Hero Bonus is just one more way we continue to convey our thanks and gratitude not only to our existing associates but also to the more than 30,000 new hires who have joined in the past two weeks and those who will soon join the Kroger Family of Companies.'

Amazon worker stage walkouts in Michigan and New York

Staff at an Amazon warehouse in Michigan staged a walkout Wednesday days after their colleagues in New York also protested against coronavirus working conditions.

Workers at the plant in Romulus are said to gone on strike at midday, The Verge reports. Employee Tonya Ramsay said: 'I get were essential, but our lives are essential as well.'

Those working at the facility say management has been slow in telling them of the three positive cases at the site. They also say better cleaning and more space between workers is needed.

Amazon workers at Amazon's Staten Island warehouse strike in demand that the facility be shut down and cleaned after one staffer tested positive for the coronavirus on March 30

Employee Tonya Ramsay, right, holds a sign outside the Amazon DTW1 fulfillment center in Romulus, Mich., Wednesday. Employees and family members are protesting in response to what they say is the company's failure to protect the health of its employees

An Amazon spokesman told DailyMail.com: 'Of the over 4,000 employees at our Romulus, MI fulfillment center, less than 15 people, participated in todays demonstration. Our employees are heroes fighting for their communities and helping people get critical items they need in this crisis.'

Workers from at least 19 warehouses across the US have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Whole Foods workers vow more strike action

Unemployment in the United States hit a record high Thurday. Ten million Americans are now jobless after a record 6.6million new claims were filed in one week - after 3.3million last week.

One in three Americans report someone living in their household has lost their job or been forced to take a pay cut.

UNIONS AND WORKERS TAKING ACTION ACROSS U.S. AS CORONAVIRUS CASES RISE The United Auto Workers union Nurses demanding more personal protective equipment The Association of Flight Attendants union Whole Foods workers GE appliances workers Amazon in New York, Michigan Instacart workers Source: Axios Advertisement

Whole Foods workers staged a 'sickout' Tuesday. Its organizers vowed to continue strike action after staging the 'successful' nationwide protest, warning 'this is only the beginning'.

In a statement Tuesday evening they pledged: 'We will be following this sickout with further action.'

They also slammed Jeff Bezos and his corporate staff for 'dismissing our actions while working from the safety of their homes'.

Whole Foods had on Tuesday called workers who staged a 'sick out' protest at working conditions 'disappointing' while their 'heroic colleagues showed up to provide essential services' during the corona virus outbreak.

'Surely our lives are more important than dishwashers': Workers at GE appliances walk out in Kentucky

At GE appliances in Kentucky workers staged a protest over the company's handling of the coronavirus crisis.

Union President Dean Driskell said Wednesday: 'I will be exploring the possibility of taking a park wide strike vote in light of the company's unwillingness to respond to this crisis.'

'Surely our lives are more important than dishwashers', he added.

Instacart contractors have also confirmed they will strike 'until their demands are met'.

Amazon to deploy masks and temperature checks for workers by next week Amazon plans to roll out temperature checks and face masks for staff at all its U.S. and European warehouses plus Whole Foods stores by early next week. The company, which has reported virus cases among warehouse staff and faced several demonstrations, said it would start testing hundreds of thousands of employees a day for fevers. It told Reuters it would use no-contact forehead thermometers at site entrances and send anyone registering more than 100.4 Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) home. All locations will have surgical masks available by early next week, after millions were ordered weeks ago, according to Amazon. Particle-blocking N95 masks it has ordered will instead be donated to medical workers or sold at cost to government and healthcare organizations, it said. The company will also use machine-learning software to monitor building cameras and determine whether employees are staying at safe distances during their shifts, or whether they are often huddled too close together. Advertisement

Demands include hazard pay, expanding coronavirus sick pay and changing the default tip to 10 per cent.

New deaths in the US rose by 1,047 to 5,139 by the end of Wednesday and new infections surged by 26,866 to 216,553.

The Pentagon is ordering 100,000 body bags as experts predict the coronavirus will claim the lives of more than 200,000 Americans.

The US death toll has now surpassed the number of deaths reported in China (3,309) where the outbreak first emerged back in December.

A new poll released Wednesday shows that 28 per cent of Americans have already lost wages as a result of the pandemic. A further 16 percent have been laid off or furloughed from work, the Grinnell College poll shows.

Whole Workers, an independent group say there is a lack of adequate compensation and protections from the coronavirus.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Tuesday he had ordered the city's human rights commissioner to investigate the dismissal of a worker at a Bezos owned Amazon.com warehouse who had participated in a walkout.

The company said Thursday it would be carrying out temperature checks and handing out face masks for those working in their warehouses and Whole Foods by next week.

Ten million Americans are now jobless amid coronavirus pandemic after record 6.6million new unemployment claims are filed in one week - after 3.3million last week

The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits last week has shot to a record 6.6 million - as layoffs increased amid the coronavirus pandemic and more states enforced stay-at-home orders.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose to 6.65 million in the latest week from the 3.3 million the previous week, according to new figures released by the Department of Labor on Thursday.

It means that 10 million Americans have filed for unemployment in the two weeks that the coronavirus started rapidly spreading across the country.

The new figures account for claims made in the week ending March 28.

People wait in line for help with unemployment benefits at the One-Stop Career Center in Las Vegas. More than 6.6 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week of March 23, far exceeding a record high set just last week, a sign that layoffs are accelerating in the midst of the coronavirus

The 6.6 million figure is much higher than the previous record of 3.3 million reported for the week ending March 21.

The new figures account for the week in which states like New York shuttered non-essential businesses and enforced stay-at-home orders.

More than 80 percent of Americans are now under some form of lockdown - up from less than 50 percent just a few weeks ago.

Some of last week's jobless claims could be delayed filings from the previous week when state offices that handle unemployment benefits were overwhelmed by a surge of online and telephone claims.

There is anecdotal evidence that people who have tried to file claims online have not been able to with some forced to wait five hours to log onto the website and others calling hundreds of times just to get through.

Numerous state unemployment agencies have struggled to keep up with the flood of applications for jobless benefits.

New York's Labor Department is asking people to file on different days depending on their last names, for example: Monday is reserved for those last names that start with A through F.

The government's weekly report, the most timely data on the economy's health, offered the clearest evidence yet that the longest employment boom in US history likely ended in March.

Before the virus hit, unemployment in the US was at its lowest in 60 years and the economy was stronger than it had ever been.

The surging layoffs have led many economists to envision as many as 20 million lost jobs by the end of April.

Many employers are continuing to slash their payrolls to try to stay afloat during the pandemic because their revenue has collapsed, especially at restaurants, hotels, gyms, movie theaters and other venues that depend on face-to-face interaction.

Stay-at-home orders, imposed by most US states, have intensified pressure on businesses, most of which face rent, loans and other bills that must be paid.
From time to time, a truly divine listing lands on the market.

Among the latest is this former church in Wilkinson, IN, a 35-minute drive from Indianapolis.

Not only is the place a bargainon the market for $229,000its also never been a residence. This means a buyer can customize the structure as desired. Listed with Don Whitesell of Carpenter Realtors, the property hit the market last fall for $239,200.

Built in 1911, it been used for decades for church services, then later a day care center and a fellowship hall popular for wedding receptions and banquets.

Nobodys had to take showers there, says Whitesell. It doesnt have a shower or a bathtub, just three half-baths that are handicapped accessible.

But what it does have is a commercial-size kitchen, perfect for someone who has a baking business. It's also great for someone who loves to entertain (an entire book club could meet in the kitchen!), has a large family, or wants to rent it out for special events.

Exterior realtor.com

Stained-glass windows realtor.com

Entry realtor.com

Fellowship hall realtor.com

Kitchen realtor.com

One of the half-baths realtor.com

Yes, a new owner will need to make some plumbing changes and carve out some new bedrooms, but the gorgeous bones of a historic church provide a superb canvas. Plus, there are the features particular to a former church.

It still has the stained-glass windows and historical aspects, says Whitesell.

Arched windows provide character, the hardwood floors are original, and lighting fixtures are all intact. The roof, electrical, plumbing, and HVAC systems have all been updated since 2007. The kitchen and fellowship hall were added in the 1970s.

The 7,269-square-foot property sits on 2 acres, and theres parking space for 80 cars.

__________

Watch: One of S.F.'s Famed 'Painted Ladies' Is for Sale, but It'll Need More Than a Touch-Up

__________

Ive had a lot of people want to see it because they went to the day care when they were little, says the agent, who actually hosted his wedding in the building 15 years ago.

Whitesell thinks the buyer will be a business owner, perhaps a budding entrepreneur in the fitness or beauty industry.

The best use could be a place where they do aerobics, he says. Theres enough rooms there where they could have tanning beds, a beauty salon, and a place to do nails.

French doors realtor.com

Hallway realtor.com

Sitting room realtor.com

Exterior realtor.com

The post Truly Divine! Your Personal Sanctuary Awaits at This $229K Indiana Church appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com.
The Ghaziabad health authorities have so far quarantined 156 people who had come to the district after attending a religious congregation held by the Tablighi Jamaat in New Delhi last month, an official said on Thursday.

Now, police and Health Department teams are tracing those who came in their contact after their arrival in Ghaziabad, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) N K Gupta said.

The official said 90 people have been quarantined at Sunder Deep Collage, 56 at Surya Hospital in Murad Nagar and five each at the MMG Government Hospital and the combined hospital in Sanjay Nagar.

Gupta said till now 452 people have completed their mandatory 28-day quarantine period while 1,443 have been isolated in their homes.

Eight people have been found infected with coronavirus in the district so far.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Silver Looks Bearish Short to Medium Term

Technical analyst Clive Maund charts silver and explains why he is bearish in the short to medium term.

Whichever way you cut it, silver's chart looks bearish for the short to medium term, but against this we must set its rapidly improving COT structure and the mega-bullish silver to gold ratio (by all past standards).

Silver's 7-month chart is a rather grim picture. On it we see that key support failed this month, leading to a dramatic plunge to new lows, and this support has now become resistance. In addition we see that moving averages have swung into bearish alignment, with a bearish "death cross" having occurred about a week ago. The relief rally of the past week or so in sympathy with the relief rally in the broad stock market fueled by Fed intervention, that we predicted and played via leveraged silver ETFs and Calls, is therefore thought to be petering out and set to be followed by another probably steep selloff, congruent with another decline in the broad stock market, and a potentially heavy decline in the precious metals sector.

This month's dramatic failure of key support at the lows was a hammer blow to investors in the sector and it's easy to see why on the latest 11-year chart for silver. This support failure crashed multi-year lows dating back to early 2016, and aborted the potential giant Double Bottom pattern  it is precisely the sort of development that would lead silver bugs to give up in disgust and disgorge their holdings in despair to Smart Money waiting patiently to scoop them up at rock bottom prices.

For as we can see on the latest silver COT chart, the faithful are giving up in droves and heading for the hills  with the Large Specs' holdings ebbing away steadily. With the shorter-term charts for silver pointing to further losses dead ahead, we can expect to see considerable further improvement in this COT structure which will finally set the stage for the expected humongous silver bull market.

Why humongous?  here's why: the silver to gold ratio has dropped to a record low by a wide margin this month, and is way below lows that in the past have been the precursor to major sector bull markets. This is why, after the stock market crash phase is done, and maybe even a little before, silver is expected to reverse to the upside in a spectacular manner and take off like a rocket, and there is a precedent for this behavior, for this is what happened near to the bottom of the 2008 market crash. The difference this time is that the situation is much more extreme and the upside potential much greater than it was back then. So we will be keeping a very close eye on silver going forward.

The conclusion is that silver looks set to drop hard over a short to medium-term time horizon with the broad stock market but in the larger scheme of things it is setting up for a massive and probably spectacular bull market that is likely to commence with a screaming rally when the time is right that will probably blow straight through the failed support, now resistance, shown on our 7-month chart . This should not come as a surprise when you consider what is set to be done  and is already being done - to fiat currencies going forward.

Clive Maund has been president of www.clivemaund.com, a successful resource sector website, since its inception in 2003. He has 30 years' experience in technical analysis and has worked for banks, commodity brokers and stockbrokers in the City of London. He holds a Diploma in Technical Analysis from the UK Society of Technical Analysts.

Disclosure:

1) Statements and opinions expressed are the opinions of Clive Maund and not of Streetwise Reports or its officers. Clive Maund is wholly responsible for the validity of the statements. Streetwise Reports was not involved in the content preparation. Clive Maund was not paid by Streetwise Reports LLC for this article. Streetwise Reports was not paid by the author to publish or syndicate this article.

2) This article does not constitute investment advice. Each reader is encouraged to consult with his or her individual financial professional and any action a reader takes as a result of information presented here is his or her own responsibility. By opening this page, each reader accepts and agrees to Streetwise Reports' terms of use and full legal disclaimer. This article is not a solicitation for investment. Streetwise Reports does not render general or specific investment advice and the information on Streetwise Reports should not be considered a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Streetwise Reports does not endorse or recommend the business, products, services or securities of any company mentioned on Streetwise Reports.

3) From time to time, Streetwise Reports LLC and its directors, officers, employees or members of their families, as well as persons interviewed for articles and interviews on the site, may have a long or short position in securities mentioned. Directors, officers, employees or members of their immediate families are prohibited from making purchases and/or sales of those securities in the open market or otherwise from the time of the interview or the decision to write an article until three business days after the publication of the interview or article. The foregoing prohibition does not apply to articles that in substance only restate previously published company releases.

Charts and graphics provided by the author.

CliveMaund.com Disclosure:

The above represents the opinion and analysis of Mr Maund, based on data available to him, at the time of writing. Mr. Maund's opinions are his own, and are not a recommendation or an offer to buy or sell securities. Mr. Maund is an independent analyst who receives no compensation of any kind from any groups, individuals or corporations mentioned in his reports. As trading and investing in any financial markets may involve serious risk of loss, Mr. Maund recommends that you consult with a qualified investment advisor, one licensed by appropriate regulatory agencies in your legal jurisdiction and do your own due diligence and research when making any kind of a transaction with financial ramifications. Although a qualified and experienced stock market analyst, Clive Maund is not a Registered Securities Advisor. Therefore Mr. Maund's opinions on the market and stocks can only be construed as a solicitation to buy and sell securities when they are subject to the prior approval and endorsement of a Registered Securities Advisor operating in accordance with the appropriate regulations in your area of jurisdiction.

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Lucknow, April 2 : The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) will now help the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in checking the spread of coronavirus.

The two organizations and their volunteers will also help in providing help to the poor. RSS workers have already been distributing food packets to migrant labourers since the past few days.

According to RSS Awadh Prant Sah-Karyawah Prashant Bhatia, workers have been asked to fan out across the country and coordinate with authorities.

"RSS has asked all the in-charges of various states to work in coordination with district authorities. Our functionaries are coordinating with corporators and village heads to assess the situation," he said.

The RSS has also started distribution of food packets to migrants coming to Uttar Pradesh.

The RSS has set up two relief camps in Lucknow -- one at Saraswati Vidya Mandir in Aliganj and in a guest house near Buddheshwar crossing.

Camps are also being started in other parts of the country.

Vidya Bharti, an RSS affiliate, has set up isolation camps.

National joint general secretary of Vidya Bharti, Yatindra Sharma, said a 10-bed isolation camp has been set up in Madhav auditorium in Nirala Nagar in Lucknow.

VHP national working president Alok Kumar said the outfit will also distribute food packages among the poor.

"We will provide food that can stay for about a week. The 'Matrishakti' and 'Durga Vahini', the two wings of VHP, will provide masks to people. We will also arrange for cows and stray cattle," he said.

The VHP and RSS workers will be working in coordination with authorities in each district in order to prevent overlapping and ensure that help reaches out to the poorest of the poor.
Banking services will remain available to meet the transaction demands of businesses and individuals, according to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV).

Transactions being conducted at Vietcombank in Hanoi. (Photo: vietcombank)

Following a directive from the Prime Minister to apply social distancing nationwide for 15 days starting April 1 to contain the spread of the coronavirus, banking is one of the few sectors that will be allowed to remain open.

Deputy Governor of the central bank Dao Minh Tu said the SBV on March 31 instructed its units and commercial banks to allow non-essential staff to work from home.

The banking sector serves businesses and people with essential demands for cash and payments. That's why we have allocated staff to meet their demands, Tu said.

He said the cash supply and payment systems would be maintained at normal levels. Commercial banks have been instructed to ensure necessary transaction activities such as deposits, withdrawals, transfers, online banking and ATMs operate normally over the next 15 days.

A Vietcombank official said customers would continue to enjoy high-quality services at all its branches nationwide at this time.

We encourage customers to use 24-hour online services to avoid the risk of spreading COVID-19, he added./.VNS

Banks slash fees for interbank fund transfers Thirty-seven commercial banks have confirmed the reduction of fees for fast interbank fund transfers following the move of the National Payment Corporation of Vietnam (NAPAS) to halve the switching fees for local banks from Wednesday.
This article was produced by Globetrotter, a project of the Independent Media Institute.



by Vijay Prasad











On March 25, the foreign ministers of the G7 states failed to release a statement. The United Statesthe president of the G7 at this timehad the responsibility for drafting the statement, which was seen to be unacceptable by several other members. In the draft, the United States used the phrase Wuhan Virus and asserted that the global pandemic was the responsibility of the Chinese government. Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump had used the phrase Chinese Virus (which he said he would stop using) and a member of his staff was reportedly heard using the slur Kung Flu. On Fox News, anchor Jesse Watters explained in his unfiltered racist way why [the virus] started in China. Because they have these markets where they eat raw bats and snakes. Violent attacks against Asians in the United States has spiked as a consequence of the stigma driven by the Trump administration.

Quite correctly, the World Health Organizations Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for solidarity, not stigma in a speech given on February 14, long before the virus had hit Europe or North America. Ghebreyesus knew that there would be a temptation to blame China for the virus, in fact, to use the virus as a weapon to attack China in the most repulsive way. His slogan solidarity, not stigmawas intended to sharply demarcate an internationalist and humanist response to the global pandemic from a narrow bigoted and unscientific response to the virus.





Origins





SARS-CoV-2, which is the official name for the virus, developed in the way many viruses develop: through the transmission between animals and humans. There is as yet no firm consensus about where this virus developed; one suggestion is that it developed in the west end of the Hunan Wholesale Sea Food Market in Wuhan, in Chinas Hubei province, where wild animals are sold. A central issue is the expansion of agriculture into forests and hinterlands, where humans have a greater chance to interact with new pathogens, such as SARS-CoV-2. But this is not the only such virus, even though it is undoubtedly the most dangerous to humans. In the recent period, we have seen a range of panzootic avian flu such as H1N1, H5Nx, H5N2 and H5N6. Even though H5N2 was known to have originated in the United States, it was not known as the American virus and no-one sought to stigmatize the United States for it. The scientific name was used to describe these viruses, which are not the responsibility of this or that nation; the arrival of these viruses raises the more fundamental question of human encroachment into forests and the balance between human civilization (agriculture and cities) and the wilds.





The naming of a virus is a controversial matter. In 1832, cholera advanced from British India toward Europe. It was called Asiatic Cholera. The French felt that since they were democratic, they would not succumb to a disease of authoritarianism; France was ravaged by cholera, which was as much about the bacteria as it is about the state of hygiene inside Europe and North America. (When cholera struck the United States in 1848, the Public Bathing Movement was born.)





The Spanish Flu was only named after Spain because it came during World War I when journalism in most belligerent countries was censored. The media in Spain, not being in the war, widely reported the flu, and so that pandemic took the name of the country. In fact, evidence showed that the Spanish Flu began in the United States, in a military base in Kansas where the chickens transmitted the virus to soldiers. It would then travel to British India, where 60 percent of the casualties of that pandemic took place. It was never named the American Flu and no Indian government has ever sought to recover costs from the United States because of the animal-to-human transmission that happened there.





China and the Coronavirus





In an important article published in the medical journal The Lancet, Professor Chaolin Huang wrote, The symptom onset date of the first patient [of SARS-CoV-2] identified was December 1, 2019. Initially, there was widespread confusion about the nature of the virus, and whether it could be transmitted from human to human. It was assumed that the virus was one of the known viruses and that it was mainly transmitted from animals to humans.





Dr. Zhang Jixian, director of the Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine of Hubei Province Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, was one of the first doctors to sound the alarm about the novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak. On December 26, Dr. Zhang saw an elderly couple who had high fever and a coughsymptoms that characterize the flu. Further examination ruled out influenza A and B, mycoplasma, chlamydia, adenovirus and SARS. A CT scan of their son showed that something had partially filled the interior of his lungs. That same day, another patienta seller from the seafood marketpresented the same symptoms. Dr. Zhang reported the four patients to Chinas Center for Disease Control and Prevention of the Jianghan District of Wuhan. Over the next two days, Dr. Zhang and her colleagues saw three more patients with the same symptoms who had visited the seafood market. On December 29, the Hubei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention sent experts to investigate the seven patients at the hospital. On February 6, Hubei Province recognized the valuable work done by Dr. Zhang and her team in the fight to identify and reveal the virus. There was no attempt to suppress her work.





Two other doctorsDr. Li Wenliang (an ophthalmologist from Wuhan Central Hospital) and Ai Fen (chief of the department of emergency treatment at Wuhan Central Hospital)played a significant role in trying to break through the confusion to bring clarity toward the new virus. In the first days, when everything seemed fuzzy, they were reprimanded by the authorities for spreading fake news. Dr. Li died of the coronavirus on February 7. Major medical and government institutionsthe National Health Commission, the Health Commission of Hubei Province, the Chinese Medical Doctor Association and the Wuhan government expressed their public condolences to his family. On March 19, the Wuhan Public Security Bureau admitted that it inappropriately reprimanded Dr. Li, and it chastised its officers. Dr. Ai Fen was also told to stop spreading fake news, but in February she received an apology and was later felicitated by Wuhan Broadcasting and Television Station.





The provincial authorities knew about the new virus by December 29. The next day, they informed Chinas Center for Disease Control, and the following day, on December 31, China informed the World Health Organization (WHO), a month after the first mysterious infection was reported in Wuhan. The virus was identified by January 3; a week later, China shared the genetic sequence of the new coronavirus with WHO. It is because China released the DNA that immediate scientific work took place across the planet to find a vaccine; there are now 43 vaccine candidates, four in very early testing.





Chinas National Health Commission assembled a team of experts from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences; they conducted a series of experiments on the virus samples. On January 8, they confirmed that the novel coronavirus was indeed the source of the outbreak. The first death from the virus was reported on 11 January. On January 14, the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission said that there was still no evidence of human-to-human transmission, but they could not say with certainty that limited human-to-human transmission was impossible.





A week later, on January 20, Dr. Zhong Nanshan said that the novel coronavirus could be spread from human to human (Dr. Zhong, a member of the Communist Party of China, is a famous respiratory expert and a leading person in the fight against SARS in China). Some medical workers were infected by the virus. That day Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang instructed all levels of government to pay attention to the spread of the virus; the National Health Commission and other official bodies were told to begin emergency response measures. Wuhan went into full lockdown on January 23, three days after human-to-human transmission of this virus was established. The next day, Hubei province activated its Level-1 alert. On January 25, Premier Li assembled a coordinating group. He visited Wuhan two days later.





It is unclear if China could have done anything different as it faced an unknown virus. A WHO team that visited China from February 16 to 24 praised the government and the Chinese people in its report for doing their utmost to stem the spread of the virus; thousands of doctors and medical personnel arrived in Wuhan, two new hospitals were built for those infected by the virus, and various civic bodies went into action to assist families under lockdown. What the Chinese authorities did to stem the rise of the infectionsas a major new study showswas to put those infected in hospitals and those who had been in touch with them into quarantine. This targeted policy was able to identify those who had been in the chain of infection and thereby break the chain.





The World and China





The Indian state of Keralas Health Minister K. K. Shailaja followed the rise of the cases in Wuhan and began emergency measures in this state of 35 million people in India. She did not wait. What China was doing taught Shailaja and her team how to respond. They were able to contain the virus in this part of India.





The United States was informed about the severity of the problem early. On New Years Day, the Chinese Center for Disease Control officials called Dr. Robert Redfield, head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, while he was on vacation. What he heard rattled him, wrote the New York Times. Dr. George F. Gao, the head of the Chinese CDC, spoke to Redfield days later, and Dr. Gao burst into tears during the conversation. This warning was not taken seriously. A month later, on January 30, U.S. President Donald Trump took a very cavalier position. We think its going to have a good ending for us, he said of the coronavirus. That I can assure you. He did not declare a national emergency till March 13, by which time the virus had begun to spread in the United States.





Others around the world were as cavalier. They were like the French politicians of 1832 who felt that France would not be affected by Asiatic cholera. There was no such thing as Asiatic cholera in 1832, but only cholera that would harm people with poor hygienic systems. In the same way, there is no such thing as a Chinese virus; there is only the SARS-CoV-2. The Chinese people showed us the way to confront this virus, but only after some trial and error on their part. It is time to learn that lesson now. As the WHO says, test, test, test, and then carefully calibrate lockdowns, isolations, and quarantine. Chinese doctors who developed expertise in fighting the virus are now in Iran, Italy, and elsewhere, bringing the spirit of internationalism and collaboration with them.





On March 4, Dr. Bruce Aylward, who led the WHO team to China, was interviewed by the New York Times. When asked about the Chinese response to the virus, he said, Theyre mobilized, like in a war, and its fear of the virus that was driving them. They really saw themselves on the frontlines of protecting the rest of China. And of the world.





(This is the first part of a three-part series, which will be fully available here.)




MBABANE - Shock and disappointment in Mbabane and Piggs Peak!

This best describes what the COVID-19 Regional Task Team came across during random inspections in some shops in the region. The team paid surprise visits to various shops, salons, border gates and towns to establish if businesspeople and members of the public were complying with the regulations of the recently introduced partial lockdown. According to Khulani Mamba, who heads the Compliance and Protection Unit, the inspection started last Tuesday in northern Hhohho. He said their findings were to the effect that Piggs Peak had high foot traffic during the day despite that they had been ordered to remain at home to observe the partial lockdown.

Spreading

Mamba said the public was found in numbers, something he said might result in them spreading the coronavirus. Mamba said the team noted that the high number of people might have been caused by the temporary ban of public transport during the day. Public transport has been temporarily banned after 9am and allowed to operate again from 3pm. He said the team visited the Matsamo Border Post where they discovered that people who wanted to cross to South Africa were turned back. Mamba said the team gathered that some people opted for the informal crossing points once they were turned back. We will engage members of the Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force concerning the use of informal crossing points, he said. Upon their arrival in Mbabane yesterday, the team discovered that some shop owners were not using the sanitisers with 70 per cent alcohol as a means of minimising the spread of the coronavirus on customers entering the shop.

Sanitiser

At SaveMor Supermarket, Patel Shoyeb honestly told the team that they refill the containers that had the sanitiser which was used at the entrance. Shoyeb told the team that he was not sure whether the sanitiser was approved by the World Health Organisation.


Since suffering a traumatic brain injury five years ago, Eliot Loshak, 87, has been unable to get out of bed on his own. His eyesight is heavily damaged, and he needs help from the staff at his Manhattan nursing home just to call his only daughter, Pam.

With the coronavirus now spreading through the nursing home, Pam Loshak fears for her ailing father  and for the staff members at the Mary Manning Walsh Home, who don't have enough personal protective equipment to slow transmission of the disease, despite their hands-on care for those most vulnerable to the virus.

ArchCare, which runs the facility and four other nursing homes in the New York area, has been forced to outfit staff members in rain ponchos and beautician gowns to stretch their dwindling supply of protective gear, according to Scott LaRue, president and CEO of the company, which is affiliated with the Archdiocese of New York. Employees are given one N95 mask  meant to be single-use  to last an entire week.

"I don't feel safe," an aide at one ArchCare facility said, declining to be named for fear of retaliation.

More than 200 of ArchCare's 1,700 nursing home residents are infected with the coronavirus, and more than 20 have died, LaRue said. At least 10 staff members are also infected, with one in the hospital on a ventilator.

The risks are so serious that LaRue is advising family members to pull residents out if feasible. "If you have the ability to take your loved one home, and that's possible, I would encourage you to do so," he said. "There will be better isolation and better limited contact in a home than there would be in a nursing home."

LaRue says just a few families have done so, as the medical and personal needs of most residents are too complex to handle at home.

The ArchCare aide said that staff members are only being given one disposable gown for their entire shift, even if it becomes soiled, and they must constantly circulate between residents who are infected and those who are not.

Story continues

"How do you expect to use the same gown? We are cleaning them, wiping their mouths, there's stuff on us," the aide said. "I feel like I'm spreading the virus."

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

While one area of the nursing home where she works had once been designated for infected residents, there are now so many who are sick that they are mixed in throughout the entire facility, the aide added.

Pam Loshak, 42, a publicist who lives in Harlem, is painfully aware of the risks her father faces if he stays at his nursing home, but she doesn't know where else he could go. Eliot Loshak needs a motorized lift and two people just to move him to a chair, and he frequently suffers from health problems that require expert attention.

"I live alone in an apartment  there's just no way I could give him the care he needs," Pam Loshak said.

She is grateful to the nursing home staff for carefully tending to her father, but is pained to think of what could happen as the virus spreads. Her father already has respiratory problems because fluid builds up in his lungs while he's bedridden, she explained. If her father gets infected, she fears, "he would die for sure."

'It is impossible for us to stop the spread'

Over the past week, coronavirus infections at nursing homes have skyrocketed: More than 400 long-term care facilities around the United States now have infected residents, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  a 172 percent increase in a single week. In New York state, one in four nursing homes have cases of the virus; 1,228 residents have tested positive and 224 have died, according to a spokeswoman for the state health department.

But nursing homes have been unable to get enough protective gear and tests, in part because overwhelmed hospitals are getting the supplies first, industry executives and groups say.

"We seem to be a second-tier priority," said Stephen Hanse, president and CEO of the NYS Health Facilities Association-NYS Center for Assisted Living, which represents long-term care facilities.

That has made it harder for nursing homes to slow the transmission of the coronavirus among staff members and elderly residents. Those over the age of 70 and with underlying health conditions are significantly more likely to die from the virus.

In Washington state, which reported the first coronavirus cases in the U.S., 35 people died after an outbreak at the Life Care Center of Kirkland, a skilled nursing facility. A CDC report found that a lack of personal protective equipment and staff members who continued to work while sick helped fuel the deadly outbreak, which quickly spread to other nursing homes in the area.

In recent days, similar cases have exploded across the country. At one facility in Stafford, Connecticut, three residents have died and at least six employees are now infected, with staff reporting a lack of protective gear and limited testing. At two nursing homes in southwest Pennsylvania, infections are mounting among both residents and staff, who say they don't have enough masks to protect themselves. In Louisiana, where 13 residents have died in a single nursing home, one 130-bed nursing home reported having no personal protective gear at all.

"We're in a situation where it is impossible for us to stop the spread of the virus," LaRue said. "They say this is our highest-risk population  the one we have to protect the most  and they're not giving us what we need to do that."

Employees are trying their best to keep scarce equipment clean and to limit visits to the rooms of different patients, the ArchCare aide said. But it is impossible to avoid hands-on contact while assisting residents with eating, bathing, toileting and other basic tasks, in addition to the medical care they regularly receive from staff doctors and nurses. One supervisor suggested that staff members use garbage bags to protect their gowns, the aide said.

Protective gear is especially critical in nursing homes since many residents have physical limitations or dementia that prevent them from being able to cover their mouths when they cough, or from wearing a mask themselves.

Download the TODAY app for the latest coverage on the coronavirus outbreak.

"Nursing homes and all long-term care providers desperately need PPE," the American Health Care Association, which represents nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, said in a statement Monday.

Last week, ArchCare executives made an urgent plea to New York City for 28,000 gowns and 28,000 face shields to protect their nurses, aides and other employees.

The city's emergency management department sent less than 1,000 of each  not even a full day's supply for ArchCare's five facilities, LaRue said.

When asked about the shortages facing New York City nursing homes, a spokesman for the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene said officials are "working furiously" to supply them with protective equipment.

"These facilities will get weekly supplies of personal protective equipment based on need, as well as emergency orders should the need arise," the spokesman, Michael Lanza, said. The state health department said it was "communicating regularly with nursing home providers and industry leads" about their needs for protective gear.

Last week, New York state officials and a local hospital association helped ArchCare track down 4,000 gowns and 4,000 face shields, but that doesn't come close to meeting the need, LaRue said.

Supplies have been scarce on all levels of government: Many states, including New York, have only received a fraction of the personal protective equipment and other critically needed supplies that they have requested from the federal government's stockpile, prompting growing calls for President Donald Trump to use a wartime law to broadly coordinate production and distribution.

The Trump administration, however, has narrowly limited its use of the law and continues to tell states to buy the supplies themselves from private vendors. But the massive demand for masks, gowns, face shields and other equipment has created chaos as states, hospitals, nursing homes and other facilities are all competing to purchase the same critically needed supplies.

On Monday, ArchCare finally found a vendor who agreed to sell $237,000 worth of face shields and hazmat suits, shipped from China within a week, according to an invoice provided by the company.

But the deal fell through at the last minute after ArchCare discovered that a bank account set up to receive the funds was "opened with fraudulent documentation," according to a company email.

ArchCare and other nursing homes are now appealing to private donors to help fill the need.

"Everyone we serve has the right to the same resources, and their life is just as valuable as anybody else's," LaRue said.

A widespread problem

Nursing homes are also facing a lack of testing, which makes it even harder for them to contain the virus. While more private labs have begun offering coronavirus tests, testing at nursing homes remains highly limited because of a shortage of swabs and other components needed to conduct the tests, as well as restrictive state guidelines.

On March 21, New York State issued an advisory stating that any nursing home residents or health workers in the New York City area with symptoms of acute respiratory illness "should be presumed to be COVID-19," and that testing for those residents "is no longer necessary."

That has made it impossible to identify and isolate all the residents who are infected from those who are not, LaRue said. "If I had my druthers, I'd do widespread testing, and I would test every employee."

ArchCare struggled last week to find just 30 tests from a private lab, which quickly ran out.

The problem is widespread, according to the American Health Care Association: "We have heard from many providers about residents and staff getting declined when trying to be tested. This is extremely worrisome."

Highland Care Center, a nursing home in Queens that is not owned by ArchCare, had a resident hospitalized with the coronavirus last week. Other residents are also showing symptoms, which the facility reported to the city health department, but they still haven't been tested, the facility's administrator, Don Morris, said. "We don't know if they are coming to test."

A 'frightening' lack of communication

As the virus overtakes nursing homes across the country, many families feel helpless and increasingly cut off from their loved ones.

To protect residents from outside infection, New York and many other states have banned visitors from nursing homes. Updates from the management may be limited and sporadic: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services requires nursing homes to notify family members if their relative has a confirmed coronavirus infection, but not if others in the facility have tested positive.

External oversight is also limited: The federal government has temporarily suspended routine health and safety inspections to focus on high-risk facilities, and state ombudsmen are also currently barred from visiting nursing homes and most assisted living facilities.

At ArchCare's Mary Manning Walsh, families were notified Monday that staff-assisted videoconferencing with residents would be suspended for safety reasons, and they were asked to limit calls to the facility. "I ask for your patience in knowing that if someone is not getting back to you immediately, they are directly treating our community," Michael Monahan, the facility's director, wrote.

In an email accompanying the notice, Carlotta Gladding, a member of the residents council, urged families to be patient as staff members are "doing their utmost best to provide safe care for your loved ones."

Carlotta Gladding and her 105-year-old-aunt. (Courtesy of Carlotta Gladding)

But Gladding, whose 105-year-old aunt is at the facility, acknowledges how difficult it has been for families to be cut off from residents as the virus has spread.

"It's nerve-wracking and frustrating and frightening, especially since you may have no communication with your loved one," she said.

Pam Loshak has limited her own phone calls to spare the staff and last spoke with her father in mid-March, when visitors were first banned. She told him to try and cover his mouth if he had to cough, but she knew even that would be tough, given his weak muscles and limited motor control. She tried to be as reassuring as possible, and let him know she was OK.

"Just sit tight," she told him.
A 52-year-old man died of coronavirus in Vadodara early Thursday morning, taking the COVID-19 toll in Gujarat to seven, an official said.

The man was admitted to Sir Sayajirao General (SSG) Hospital in Vadodara on March 19 after he fell ill on return from Sri Lanka. He later tested positive for coronavirus, principal secretary (health) Jayanti Ravi told reporters in Gandhinagar.

There are 87 coronavirus cases in the state so far. No new case has been reported in last 12 hours, she said.

Out of these patients, seven have died and seven discharged after recovery. The remaining 73 are still undergoing treatment, the official said.

Till date, 31 cases have been reported from Ahmedabad, followed by Surat-12, Rajkot-10, Vadodara-nine, Bhavnagar-six, Porbandar-three, Gir Somnath-two, and Kutch, Mehsana and Panchmahal-one each.

While 33 patients have foreign travel history, eight have history of travelling to other states and 46 are cases of local transmission, said Ravi.

Out of the total 1,789 people tested so far in Gujarat for coronavirus, 1,693 were found negative, 87 positive, and results of nine are pending, she said.

Over 18,800 people are still quarantined in the state.

The official said there is no scarcity of personal protection equipment and N95 masks in the state.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- We thought it was your typical St. Patricks Day at home, until we found out our 4-year-old son had developed pneumonia.

He had to be tested for the coronavirus, and we had to self-quarantine.

Our biggest fear as parents was now a reality. So many thoughts and worries flooded our minds: What do we do? Are they going to take him from us for quarantine? Does our 7-month-old daughter have it? Do his grandparents, who live upstairs, have it? Does his aunt, who has Down syndrome and also lives upstairs, have it? How do we work? How do we homeschool? How do we keep up? How do we pay our bills?

Wait . . . do we have it?

My life is dedicated to my family, and to giving back and serving the community. I am the senior advertising director for the Staten Island Advance/ SILive, I am on the board of directors for the Chamber of Commerce, and the SIEDC, along with many other organizations.

Danny Finn Ryan getting some fresh air in our backyard during the self-quarantine. (Ryan Family photo)

In advertising, a great deal of my job involves getting people to go out and do things in the community; this is obviously a difficult task at the moment, so my efforts, for now, will go towards trying to help businesses survive this pandemic.

Every morning, my wife and I wake up hoping this surreal reality was just a dream. In fact, its quite the opposite.

Its very strange to sit on our porch for some fresh air and see people walk by, make eye contact, and then notice the fear and uneasiness in their eyes; its almost as if they believe theyre going to catch COVID-19 just by looking at us.

Work was difficult this week: Working remotely, trying to be present for my wife, who is homeschooling our sick son, and trying to care for our 7-month-old daughter. The stress and anxiety of trying to speculate about possible outcomes was overwhelming. This is our new reality, and we have to adapt.

*** CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CORONAVIRUS IN NEW YORK ***

WAITING . . . JUST WAITING

This has become more difficult every day. Wait and wondering. I have buried myself in work. My wife feels helpless about our sons meltdowns, because he has already been more or less quarantined for the past 24 days (we kept him home because of a cold before all this started), and I feel Iike Im going to have a meltdown myself.

So what do we do? After seven days the doctor has yet to receive the results of our sons test. Luckily, our son is sounding much better and has not had a fever for two days. Still, the waiting was torture.

We have tried to stay positive by doing fun things with the kids. The Rainbows Over Staten Facebook group is great. We have started exchanging pen pal letters to some friends kids from afar. We are getting in as much exercise as possible, all while trying to balance our kids needs. And my wife has been putting together a very fun curriculum.

Virtual play dates have become a thing. Its some real life Black Mirror stuff. FaceTiming with our sons friends so that hes able to play while having the human interaction of his peers is something we never thought would be the norm. It has been weird, to say the least, and so very different.

We took these pictures on St. Patricks day, which was the day Finn was tested. Being Irish Americans is something that we always celebrate, good times and bad. We just tried to have some normalcy when we had so many unknowns. (Ryan Family photo)

FINALLY, A CALL

Day Eight and still no results from the doctor. We are now being told to self-quarantine for 14 days because we live in the city and have been to Manhattan recently for a show.

On Day Nine, we finally receive a call from the doctor. Negative! Hes negative! My wife and I can finally breathe. For now.

I have been encouraged by the humanity and care of the people of this island. I have been on calls nonstop to provide resources to keep businesses open. I have been collaborating to help local businesses help other local businesses. Its great to see how our island comes together in times of need.

Also, I have been very impressed by our local newsroom. Their dedication to keeping the Island informed is incredible. They have worked around the clock to keep our local information current. They are going above and beyond to be a resource to our community.

I am truly proud to be part of this Advance/SILive family.

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Job seekers line up to apply during "Amazon Jobs Day" at a fulfillment center in Fall River, Massachusetts, in August 2017.

Brian Snyder/Reuters

Amazon hosted large events like new hire orientations and job fairs while the coronavirus was spreading across the US, according to Bloomberg.

At one event, as many as 70 attendees were reportedly crowded into one room. One man who raised concerns told Bloomberg he was ridiculed by an Amazon manager.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises keeping distance between yourself and others and canceling all gatherings of more than 50 people.

Amazon is hiring 100,000 delivery and warehouse workers to meet an uptick in demand amid the pandemic.

Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Amazon recently hosted job fairs and new hire orientations, even as the coronavirus was spreading rapidly across the US.

According to a new report from Bloomberg's Spencer Soper and Matt Day, the ecommerce giant hosted large gatherings of new or potential employees as recently as March, sometimes packing as many as 70 people into one crowded room.

One man who attended an orientation event told Bloomberg he raised concerns about the amount of people gathered to an Amazon manager, who "made jokes and told me to leave if I was unhappy."

Others told Bloomberg they attended crowded hiring events in Oregon and Wisconsin, while another person said they noticed precautions in place at an event in Ohio  there, she told Bloomberg, she was asked to return on a different day when it was less crowded.

"These situations occurred two weeks ago and we've since moved all new hire events and orientations to virtual platforms," Lindsay Campbell, a spokesperson for Amazon, told Business Insider in a statement. "Any situation in which teams don't follow social distancing guidelines are immediately investigated."

As the virus spreads across the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has advised putting distance between yourself and others. In mid-March, the CDC issued new guidelines advising the cancelation of large events or gatherings of more than 50 people in order to curb the spread of the virus.

Story continues

While Oregon, Wisconsin, and Ohio, where Amazon events took place, have all issued statewide stay-at-home orders, Amazon has positioned itself as an "essential" business, meaning it can continue operating as other businesses shut their doors and people stay at home. The company is currently hiring for warehouse and delivery positions, and says its plans to hire 100,000 workers to help with the increase in demand amid the coronavirus outbreak.

On Monday, workers at Amazon's fulfillment center in New York City went on strike, protesting Amazon's health and safety policies. The workers demanded that Amazon shut down the warehouse for extra cleaning after another worker tested positive for coronavirus, and asked that the company offer paid time off for workers while it did so.

Later on Monday, Amazon fired the organizer of the strike, Chris Smalls, saying he violated social-distancing guidelines after the company asked him to stay home on paid sick leave.

Workers in Chicago also walked out on Monday night, and workers at a fulfillment center in Detroit are planning a walkout on Wednesday.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Aerial photo taken on April 1, 2020 shows the construction site of the Ban Ladhan Mekong River Super Major Bridge located some 230 km north of the capital Vientiane, Laos. The Ban Ladhan Mekong River Super Major Bridge on Wednesday achieved its main section closure over the Mekong River, and thus, both the cross-Mekong bridges along the railway have completed its major engineering work. (CREC-8/Handout via Xinhua)

VIENTIANE, July 28 (Xinhua) -- The Ban Ladhan Mekong River Super Major Bridge on Wednesday achieved its main section closure over the Mekong River, and thus, both the cross-Mekong bridges along the railway have completed its major engineering work.

According to the Laos-China Railway (LCRC), a joint venture in charge of the construction and the operation of the railway, the Ban Ladhan Bridge is located some 230 km north of the capital Vientiane. With 1,652 meters in length, it has a total of 45 spans connecting two platforms and 44 piers.

All the main piers, with the highest up to 52 meters, are located in the middle of the Mekong River along the China-Laos Railway.

To ensure the smooth construction of the Ban Ladhan Bridge, the Chinese engineering company, the China Railway No. 8 Engineering Group (CREC-8), has been actively working with the communities and local governments since mid-February due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Chinese company and government have assured all the returnees had been isolated at home for 14 days before leaving for Kunming, capital of China's Yunnan Province, and then to Laos. After arriving in Laos, the returnees again were quarantined for another 14 days before resuming their posts.

The other cross-Mekong River China-Laos railway bridge completed its main section closure on July 28, 2019, seven months ahead of the targeted timetable.

As the first overseas route connecting China's railway system using Chinese technology and equipment, the China-Laos Railway is a major project in implementing the Belt and Road Initiative.

The ground-breaking ceremony of the railway was held in December 2015. The 414-km China-Laos railway, expected to be operational in December 2021, links the Mohan-Boten border gate in northern Laos and Vientiane.
Through a public statement released at the end of February, the Public Safety Minister of Canada Bill Blair confirmed that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had been providing Meghan Markle and Prince Harry security since their arrival in the country. They were doing this since November 2019.

Blair said that the couple was International Protected Persons. They are entitled to Canada's protection. However, it not ends.

Reactions from the Public

Blair's statement had resulted in negative reactions from the public. This had lead to Meghan and Harry being asked for the refund of the money spent on their security. It was the money of taxpayers.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation's (CTF) federal director Aaron Wudrick stated that he has got a significant number of people who are upset because they had paid for anything.

They believed that the taxpayers of Canada should be reimbursed for the taxes they used to pay for the couple's security up to this point.

Mr. Wudrick was the inspiration for the petition. They are demand Mr. Trudeau to refrain from paying for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's security.

Check these out:

The Petition

The petition had reached more than 100,000 signatures in just a few days. Many Canadian citizens had expressed their anger on paying for the extravagant lifestyle of wealthy royals.

Mr. Wudrick felt uneasy about how the government had been trying to conceal the truth that the government was paying for the security costs of the couple. It was believed that the security costs spent on the couple are millions of pounds.

Conversation with the Queen

It was reported in January that the Canadian Prime Minister had conversed with the Queen. The report revealed that the Canadian government promised to shoulder the security expenses of the couple.

Mr. Trudeau did not confirm nor deny those reports.

The US Will Not Use the Public's Money for the Couple's Security Costs

President Donald Trump of the United States of America had publicly announced that the public funds of the country will not be used to pay for the security costs of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry while they are in the US.

In a social media post, specifically on Twitter, President Trump stated that he is a friend and admirer of the Queen and the United Kingdom. However, now that the couple had left their country to stay in the United States, Trump said that they must privately pay for their security protection.

The spokesperson of the couple confirmed that security arrangements were already done.

The couple was reported to have found residence in Los Angeles.

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's decision to move to California had been made for a long time, says an article. One reason for this assumption is that this is where the couple's new team of Hollywood agents, business managers, and PRs are based.
New Delhi: Around 50 members of medical staff, including doctors, nurses, and paramedics, across the country have tested positive for Coronavirus, said a Health Ministry official on Thursday (April 2), while addressing media.

"328 new cases of COVID-19 and 12 deaths have been reported since Wednesday, thus taking the total number of confirmed cases to 1,965 and the number of deaths to 50 in the country," said Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

Around 50 members of medical staff (including doctors, nurses and paramedics) across the country have tested positive for Coronavirus: Health Ministry official pic.twitter.com/O1d67GbspL  ANI (@ANI) April 2, 2020

According to Lav Aggarwal, 151 persons have recovered from COVID-19 so far, adding "The good news amidst the increase in the number of coronavirus cases is that 151 persons have recovered from COVID-19 in the country."

He added, "There are limited cases of doctors on duty testing COVID-19 positive. It is important to follow preventive measures at hospitals."

Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said, "Cases have increased from tomorrow. Till now, there are 219 patients of coronavirus in Delhi. This includes 51 people who came from abroad and were infected before they came here. 108 cases are from the Markaz. 29 cases are family members of foreign returnees. Four people have died so far including two who were evacuated from the Markaz."

Addressing a press conference, Kejriwal said "Out of 219, there are only 208 patients as six were discharged, one was migrated and four death. One patient is on the ventilator and five are on oxygen support. 202 patients are stable. Coronavirus has not started to spread in Delhi. Those who were brought out of the Markaz are serious."

Kejriwal said that 2,943 people have been quarantined by the government in Delhi and 31, 307 have been asked to be in home-quarantine, adding "Out of 2,346 people brought from the Markaz Nizamuddin, 1,810 persons quarantined and 536 people admitted to city hospitals. Tests of all 2,346 persons are being done. Due to this, it is possible that the number of COVID19 cases in the city might rise in the coming days."

Delhi's Health Department also stated that a jump in the COVID-19 patients in the capital and is preparing to deal with the situation. A Health Department official told IANS that there are thousands of people in quarantine and the government has to make preparations considering them potential positive cases.

The official said, "The situation is under control. The preparations have to be done in advance. We cannot make arrangements after patient tests positive."
(Bloomberg) -- Oil soared after U.S. President Trump said Saudi Arabia and Russia would make major output cuts, though the producers havent yet confirmed they will be making curbs.

Uncertainty swirled over even the volume of cuts that Trump touted: while he said they could be 10 million to as much as 15 million barrels, he didnt specify if that reduction would be per day. The U.S. president tweeted that the nations would pump less after he spoke to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.

Trumps comments immediately triggered skepticism, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying Russian President Vladimir Putin hasnt spoken to the Saudi Crown Prince and hasnt agreed to cut oil production to boost prices.

The Middle East kingdom also didnt confirm the cuts, but called for an urgent meeting of the OPEC+ producer alliance to reach a fair deal that would restore balance in oil markets, state-run Saudi Press Agency reported. Any curbs by the group would be conditional on other countries joining, according to a delegate.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate oil prices jumped by as much as 35% and global benchmark Brent crude by as much as 47%, before paring some of those gains.

The 10, 15 million barrel a day cut is just not going to happen. On top of that, Russia has older oil wells, so they cant restart in the same way that Saudi Arabia can, said Tariq Zahir, a fund manager at Tyche Capital Advisors.

If Trump meant 10 million barrels per day, that would equal both Moscow and Riyadh curbing nearly 45% of their production in what would prove an unprecedented move.

If collective action does remove that much from the market, that would be the equivalent of about 10% of world demand prior to the impact of coronavirus crisis.

That may not be enough to stop the pain thats rippled across the energy industry as demand craters with the coronavirus outbreak shutting down economies around the world, according to Ben Luckock, co-head of oil trading at Trafigura. The trading house raised its consumption-loss estimate to around 35 million barrels a day.

We have no hope of production cuts matching the demand destruction, he told Bloomberg, adding that by the middle to late April, oil will have come out of the ground and will struggle to find a home.

Oils move comes after prices were already climbing following Chinas instruction to government agencies to start buying cheap crude for its strategic reserves.

The Trump administration will also rent space in the U.S. emergency oil reserve to domestic producers that are struggling to find places to store excess barrels.

Despite the U.S. presidents optimism, Saudi Arabia hasnt appeared to relent on its bid to flood the market yet, saying on Wednesday it was pumping at a record and had this week loaded almost 19 million barrels of oil in a single day. Meanwhile, Russia has said its not satisfied with the oil price.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. also doesnt see a bright outlook. In a note earlier this week, it said any conceivable oil production cut by the U.S., OPEC+ and Canada would still fall well short of its estimated 26 million barrels a day of demand loss and only provide fleeting support to inland crude prices.

Meanwhile, the physical crude market continues to show deepening signs of strain.

Dated Brent, the benchmark for two-thirds of the worlds physical supply, was assessed at $15.135 on Wednesday, the lowest since at least 1999. Crude has slipped below $10 in some areas including Canada and shale regions in the U.S., Belarus wants to buy Russian oil for $4, while some grades have posted negative prices.

As supply balloons, there are growing signs that the world is running out of places to store the glut.

2020 Bloomberg L.P.
The alert order came on March 24. By the next morning, Fort Campbell, Kentucky, soldiers were boarding a C-130 Hercules aircraft like deploying combat troops.

The Army's 531st Hospital Center was headed to New York, where health professionals are struggling to contain the highest number of novel coronavirus cases and deaths in America.

The unit's 300 doctors, including anesthesiologists and other medical specialists, had been preparing for weeks for this mission, and it showed, Maj. Gen. Brian Winski, commander of the 101st Airborne Division and Fort Campbell, told Military.com.

"That was a really impressive timeline, so we were alerted to get them going [that] Tuesday; we had their first advanced elements in a C-130 the next morning and on the ground in New York Wednesday afternoon," Winski said. "And the remaining 275 deployed ... less than 48 hours from when we knew they were needed."

Related: After Rapid Preparations, Navy Hospital Ship Now Days from Arrival in NYC

The deployment of the 531st was part of the active-duty Army's first wave of response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has so far resulted in about 5,100 deaths in the U.S. -- more than 2,200 of those in New York, according to published figures.

"This is the [active] Army's part in the nation's effort in this COVID-19 crisis," Winski said. "It's just a visible signal that the U.S. military, and the U.S. Army specifically, is there to relieve pressure on the New York medical system."

The active Army also deployed the 9th Hospital Center from Fort Hood, Texas, to New York and the 627th Hospital Center from Fort Carson, Colorado, to Washington state to assist the 62nd Medical Brigade, 47th Combat Support Hospital and the 520th Medical Company (Area Support) from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.

The Navy has deployed the hospital ship Comfort to New York and its sister vessel Mercy to Los Angeles to aid in the COVID-19 response.

More than 17,000 Air and Army National Guard troops have been mobilized to assist in the crisis, according to a recent National Guard Bureau news release.

The 531st is part of the 44th Medical brigade at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, but is permanently based at Campbell. The unit recently conducted a training exercise that honed its ability to deploy on short notice, Winski said.

"We were able to do an emergency deployment readiness exercise about two months ago, where we deployed them on pretty short notice to the Sierra Army Depot in Northern California, and that exercise really paid off with this deployment ... in terms of our ability to get them out the door quick for this one," he said.

The 531st set up operations, along with other units, in the Javits Center, a cavernous convention center in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, to create a 1,000-bed hospital, Winski said.

"They are up and running now," he said. "What they are going to do is ... they are going to be taking non-COVID-19 victims, so think car-accident victims [or] somebody comes into an emergency room with a possible heart attack or conditions like that. They are relieving the New York hospitals of that caseload so the New York hospitals can focus on COVID-19 treatment."

The 531st deployed with all of its tents and other expeditionary equipment, so the unit is prepared to deploy to other COVID-19 hot spots if required, Winski said.

"If this passes through New York and they are required somewhere else that doesn't have something like the Javits Center, they have their complete tentage, [heating, ventilation and air-conditioning] system, power-generation -- all of that -- if they are required to set up somewhere else in an expeditionary mode," he said.

Winski's voice swelled with pride as he described the moments he spent with the medical unit before they left for New York.

"Their crest says 'To Preserve Life,' and we talked about that a little as we sent them off, because that is exactly what they are going to New York to do -- preserve life for our fellow New York citizens," he said.

-- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.

Read More: 'Tens of Thousands' of Guard Personnel to Be Called Up in Coronavirus Response
A police officer stands outside of Mount Sinai Hospital amid the CCP virus pandemic in New York City on April 1, 2020. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

US Naval War Colleges 2019 Pandemic War Game Eerily Anticipates 2020s Real-World CCP Virus

A September 2019 war game by the U.S. Naval War College produced 16 findings that shed important light on how President Donald Trumps administration and other officials are responding to the CCP virus crisis.

Called Urban Outbreak 2019, the war game convened 50 experts, each with at least 10 years of humanitarian response experience, for two days to respond to a lethal disease outbreak in a city of 21 million people, according to a summary published April 1 by the institution, which is based in Newport, Rhode Island.

While these findings are in no way definitive or complete, they are a sampling of relevant guidance based on research, gaming, and expert opinion. It is our hope that these 16 findings will contribute to improving civilian and military effectiveness in humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations, the college said in the summary.

The summarys first finding focused on the importance of authorities taking action as early as possible in a pandemic scenario.

Early actions and planning are exponentially more important than reactive measures once the disease is widespread, the summary said. Clarity, speed, and repetition are essential for changes within a population and are most effectively achieved before other factors start making decisions for them.

Trumps most controversial action regarding the CCP virus was his Jan. 31 order barring travel into the U.S. by persons who were recently in China. The CCP virus originated in Wuhan, China, a metropolis with a population of 11 million residents.

When Trump announced the travel ban, there were only about 100 confirmed cases of the virus in 21 countries outside of China, including seven in the United States. Some 8.5 million people traveled between the U.S. and China in 2018, according to The New York Times, citing U.S. government data.

Democratic leaders, notably including former Vice President Joe Biden, who is currently favored to be the partys 2020 presidential nominee, condemned Trumps travel ban for weeks after it was announced.

Neither should we panic or fall back on xenophobia, Biden said in a widely publicized March 12 speech. Labeling COVID-19 a foreign virus does not displace accountability for the misjudgments that have been taken thus far by the Trump administration. Let me be crystal clear: The coronavirus does not have a political affiliation.

Another of the college war games findings focused on the importance of mobilizing private sector companies to play leading roles in the national response to a pandemic.

Private sector organizations are an absolutely essential and uniquely nimble component of any large-scale response, the war game summary states, citing as an example the tangible and innovative approaches of the owner of an unnamed logistics company involved in getting needed supplies delivered quickly.

He had no interest in using overland shipping options due to security concerns and poor road infrastructure, and instead sought to ferry all goods on waterways by employing a public/private partnership with the local transit authority. With this strategy, he was able to divide up most of the population centers and reach them without military support, air assets, or many changes to his existing business model, the summary said.

Trump has made encouraging private manufacturing companies to convert to making needed supplies such as ventilators and protective face masks central to his administrations response to the CCP virus.

As with his January travel ban, however, Trump has been severely criticized for some aspects of his effort. He was blasted earlier this week, for example, for highlighting the work of MyPillow founder and Chief Executive Officer Mike Lindell.

After Trump allowed Lindell to speak during a White House press briefing, announcing that his company will make up to 50,000 face masks daily, CNNs Jim Acosta called it a PR stunt.

Another finding from the war game could give New York Mayor Bill de Blasio and officials in other cities second thoughts about releasing inmates from jail to prevent the virus from spreading.

Some changes may be characterized as normal coping mechanisms, but flagrant criminal activity must be actively pursued to reinforce social norms. The black market will inevitably become a critical factor as market pressures increase risk, reward, and opportunity, the summary says.

Crime will also increase given the same factors, but including economic desperation and an opportunistic testing of authorities control. Drug use, alcoholism, and domestic abuse will noticeably increase. Every action by authorities may have magnified implications for individuals, families, and communities.

Contact Mark Tapscott at Mark.Tapscott@epochtimes.nyc
BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 2

Trend:

Police guards will monitor the movements of every citizen through electronic devices in Azerbaijan, Aziz Bagishev, Deputy Chairman of the Main Public Security department said in an interview with Azerbaijan Public Television and Radio Broadcasting Agency (ITV), Trend reports on Apr. 2.

The deputy chairman said that the citizen, leaving the house, will have to explain the reason for going out by calling or sending a message to a certain number.

The structure to which this information will be sent, will redirect it to the police. Having stopped a citizen on the street, the police will already know whether this person is allowed to leave the house or not. A citizen will even have to inform about going to the pharmacy or market. This work has already been completed, and the public will be informed soon, Bagishev said.

As part of the government measures to prevent the wide spread of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) in Azerbaijan, people are required to stay in their houses and apartments, permanent or temporary places of residence. Other kinds of operation, except for the vital work and services, will be suspended from 00:00 on March 31, 2020 through 00:00 on April 20, 2020.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  The Medical City in Pasig said Thursday there is no truth to reports the hospital was stormed by authorities to confiscate its remaining sets of personal protective equipment.

"There are news circulating that a raid of PPEs occurred in our premises on the evening of April 1. We deny this and encourage everyone to be careful in spreading unverified information," it said in its Facebook page.

Reports circulated on Wednesday night that authorities are conducting a raid to gather all stocks of PPE and other medical supplies for COVID-19 response, claiming these are being repackaged by the national government for distribution to other medical facilities.

These unverified posts came after President Rodrigo Duterte signed an administrative order for all health-related donations to the national government or the Department of Health to be coursed through the Office of Civil Defense.

However, according to the order, direct donations to other departments, bureaus, offices, state colleges or universities, government-owned and controlled corporations or government hospitals or medical facilities need not be consolidated by the OCD.

National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council-OCD spokesman Mark Timbal denied the raid allegations.

"May kumalat po na fake news that some hospitals were raided by government to confiscate their supplies and equipment para ipamigay sa ibang hospitals. OCD has been gathering resources through procurement and donations. What we have pooled are distributed," he said in a message to reporters.

[Translation: There is fake news that the government is raiding some hospitals to confiscate their supplies to give to other hospitals. OCD has been gathering resources through procurement and donations. What we have pooled are distributed.]

False information about COVID-19 has been spreading rapidly online, leading authorities to crack down on some of its alleged perpetrators. Under the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act, those who create or spread misinformation about the health crisis will be slapped with a two-month jail sentence or a fine of 10,000 to 1 million.
Californias Early Experiment With Affordable Housing for Teachers

LOS ANGELESCalifornias big cities are the worst in the nation for teachers being unable to afford housing in their school districts.

Many of them say the long commutes erode their quality of life and eat away the time they could dedicate to their students. A lot of times, Im tired or I just dont have the energy  to put into everything, David Davenport, a French teacher in the Bay Area, told The Epoch Times.

He commutes 90 minutes each way daily, because living closer to the school would pretty much [nix] my whole check. I cant afford that because it doesnt leave me anything for food or a car or anything.

In an emerging statewide trend, voters in four districts are deciding whether to build affordable housing for teachers by increasing local property taxes.

These measures were on the March 3 ballot, and although mail-in votes are still being counted in some districts, its clear the results have been close overall.

In Soledad Unified School District, a teacher housing measure has failed; it fell only 1.4 percent short of the needed 55 percent approval.

In Patterson Joint Unified, a similar measure has effectively been defeatedwith only 34 percent approval now the votes still being counted are not going to pass it.

In Chula Vista, a measure is poised to pass with 55.4 percent approval, though votes are still being counted.

In East Side Union, its anybodys guess. A measure there currently has 52 percent approval.

This years results may determine the strength of the trend, and whether it has the momentum to spread.

Where Rent Costs 108% of a Teachers Salary

San Francisco is the worst city in the nation for the share of a teachers salary spent on rent or mortgage. Mid-career teachers there spend about 67 percent of their income on housing, according to an Aug. 2019 study by Zillow Research.

Its worse for teachers just starting in the profession. In San Jose, which is a close second for the worst city, the median rent consumes about 108 percent of a typical starting teachers salary.

Commuter traffic moves across the western span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge on July 1, 2013. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

San Joses East Side Union is the one district where a teacher housing measure, Measure J, is still up in the air.

Mark Hinkle, president of the Silicon Valley Taxpayers Association, is against it.

The educational system is supposed to teach kids how to learn and theyre not doing a terribly good job at that. So why would we add to their responsibility being landlords? Hinkle told The Epoch Times.

I can see all sorts of landlord-related issues coming up that, frankly, the school district is not equipped to handle, he added. He thinks the district should give teachers a pay raise instead. [That way, teachers] can choose to rent or buy or share an apartment or townhouse. Why would you want to be a landlord?

One of the benefits of being a landlord, according to the district, is revenue from rent. Even though the units would be rented below market value, the district expects the apartment complex to generate about $1 million to $2 million in revenue.

The offer of housing has enticed some teachers to work for school districts, helping with the struggle to attract and retain teachers.

One of the reasons Davenport took a job with the Jefferson Union High School District in the Bay Area was because they were working on employee housing.

So [I was] hoping that in like a year or two the apartments will hopefully [be close to] what Im paying right now, he said. Davenport, 49, has been teaching for 20 years and currently spends about half of his net income on rent living more than 50 miles from his school.

Being able to live in the community where he teaches will make a huge difference for him and his students, he said. Currently, hes unable to attend many school events and participate in various programs.

Its important to have the teacher be part of the community, he said. My big goal is to live over here and be closer. I care about my students and the community that theyre a part of. To be able to afford housing and be here  would bring a lot of joy, I think, to my life. And I know I would do a better job.

The Pilot Project

Feb. 5 was a big day for Davenport. He and his colleagues, armed with shovels, broke ground on Jefferson Union High School Districts first building dedicated to affordable teacher housing. The four-story development will provide 120 units to teachers and staff members.

David Davenport (3rd R), a French teacher at Jefferson High School in the Bay Area, helps break ground on a new teacher housing project near the school, on Feb. 5, 2020. (Courtesy of David Davenport)

Although similar teacher housing initiatives have been popping up all over the United States in recent years, Jefferson Union is the first to use funding exclusively from a bond passed by local taxpayers, according to EdSource.

The four March ballot measures followed suit, and the trend may continue, depending on how successful this pilot project is.

The bond measure in Jefferson Union passed by only a narrow margin in 2018; it needed 55 percent approval to pass and it got 55.8 percent.

Nationally, teachers are cost burdened as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The median rent in the United States takes 46.8 percent of a starting teachers salary, and 35.6 percent of a mid-career teachers salary, according to Zillow. Meanwhile, people who spend over 30 percent of their pay on housing are considered cost burdened.

In 2017, a homeless math teacher in San Francisco named Etoria Cheeks made headlines, raising awareness of the heightened problem in California. Cheekss case prompted then-Mayor Ed Lee to dedicate $40 million in city funds to a teachers residence. That project is expected to be completed late 2022.

In January, the San Francisco Unified School District approved a resolution setting the goal of building at least 550 units of affordable educator housing by 2030.

But as for the four March ballot measures that ask voters to tax themselves to pay for such unitsthat may be a different kettle of fish.

Tax Fatigue and Priorities

Measure E, defeated in Soledad Unified School District in Monterey County, would have cost local taxpayers $30 for every $100,000 of assessed property value, for $11.5 million total.

Measure N, effectively defeated in Patterson Union in Stanislaus County, would have cost taxpayers $40 for every $100,000, for $32.5 million total.

Measure M, poised to pass in Chula Vista in San Diego County, would have cost taxpayers $30 for every $100,000, for $65 million total.

Measure J, which is still too close to call in East Side Union in Santa Clara County, would cost taxpayers $30 per $100,000, for $60 million total.

An editorial by the Mercury News Editorial Board suggested East Side Union residents have already paid too much in property tax toward other bonds. School construction bonds in that district have totaled $1.1 billion in the past 20 years.

Theres a limit to how much property owners should be asked to pay in taxes, it reads.

Objections in other places have revolved around the details, such as the precise location for the housing.

For example, when San Jose Unified School District considered teacher housing in 2018, the plan was to relocate two schools and build the housing on those properties. A group of residents started a petition on Change.org to protest the schools relocation.

When Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian floated the idea of building teacher apartments on county-owned land in 2018, some questioned whether teacher housing was a higher priority than affordable housing for other people.

An editorial by the Palo Alto Weekly editorial board titled Caution on Teacher Housing, stated at the time: Wed like to see clear evidence of  why teacher housing should be a higher priority than other subsidized housing when considering the re-purposing of limited public property.

Uncertainties

In Jefferson Union, where Davenport is hoping to move in when the teacher housing project is completed in 2022, some details remain unclear.

The part that most people have questions about is how theyll determine who gets to live there, right? Davenport said. Because we dont know 100 percent until it actually happens what the demand will be. Demand might exceed the number of units, he said.

April Hawkins, director of communications and staff housing for the district, told The Epoch Times there is currently an interest list of teachers who want the housing. Were going to be doing a lottery system down the road and were still working out all the details of that, she said.

Hawkins said the housing is sorely needed. A number of teachers and faculty members are taking on two jobs or making these really ridiculous commutes, so thats really going to free up their time to be able to focus on their students, she said.

We hear so many stories about it. I cant say every teacher, but most of the teachers that  I work with are feeling the strain of that. I mean, everybody feels the strain of the housing problem in the Bay Area, even management.
Stratford station. Photo: Mark Williamson

WEST Midlands Railway  the operator of the direct services between Stratford and Birmingham  will begin a new timetable from next week while keeping to the rail industrys commitment to operate regular services during the coronavirus crisis.

Passenger numbers are continuing to fall and increased numbers of rail staff are self-isolating, so the operator  along with sister company London Northwestern Railway - has announced further changes will take effect from Monday, 6th April.

The latest timetable has been designed to keep as many services running as possible if part of the network has to close due to the increased impact of Covid-19.

West Midlands Railway's managing director Julian Edwards said: The rail industry is facing our biggest challenge in peacetime. We are working together to operate a regular service for our key workers and those making only the most essential journeys.

With increased numbers of rail workers entering self-isolation due to coronavirus and a big drop in passenger numbers, now is the right time to make further changes to our service. As the government has made clear, people should only use the train for essential journeys.

I would like to pay special tribute to our front-line staff, including drivers, conductors, dispatchers, station teams, engineers, cleaners and those in our control centres. Their hard work and dedication to keeping the trains running are helping key workers save lives.

The new timetable, which will be available to view at www.wmr.uk/coronavirus from tomorrow, Friday, has been built in chunks to reduce the length of journeys taken by an individual train.

The frequency of trains has been reduced on some routes.

Some routes will no longer receive a West Midlands Railway service, including:
Gardai believe young criminals were being paid hundreds of euro to steal a car and use it to divert officers attention from other crimes

Crime gangs are paying youngsters up to 500 each to drive cars around the city and divert garda resources.

In recent weeks, officers have dealt with a number of significant pursuits in which more than 20 garda vehicles have been deployed in each incident to stop the reckless drivers.

Three different groups have been involved in the chases, with at least one crew being paid to intentionally cause mayhem.

Gardai believe that a group of young criminals were paid hundreds of euro each to steal a car and drive the vehicle across north Dublin recently to divert officers' attention away from more serious crime.

Distracted

"There is still a serious amount of drugs being moved around," a source said.

"One chase on the northside distracted so many units recently.

"The intelligence suggests that they were paid 500 each by gangs moving drugs to keep the northside occupied and they did it very well.

"It's an age old tactic but is being used more frequently with less people on the streets at the moment.

"Garda operations into the city's big players are continuing despite this unprecedented situation and there have been significant seizures," the source added.

In one chase last week, dozens of gardai, including armed units and the Air Support Unit, were deployed for a single chase which resulted in a number of arrests.

A west Dublin group of young men has also been involved, while investigations have also been continuing into a separate gang suspected of being heavily involved in car thefts and joyriding in recent weeks.

It can be revealed that a key member of that gang was yesterday arrested by gardai for a range of offences.

The 18-year-old thug is suspected of stealing up to 20 cars in a fortnight and has been arrested several times by gardai.

Two weeks ago he was released from garda custody but is suspected of stealing a number of cars in the Ashbourne and Dunshaughlin areas of Meath.

Last week, in a separate incident, he caused thousands of euro worth of damage during a chase which the brazen thugs also recorded on video.

He was wanted for questioning by separate gardai and was arrested yesterday afternoon by officers.

"This guy was wanted by a number of different units, including Blanchardstown and Ballymun," the source said.

"He has been flat out in the last month and is being quizzed over a chase last week as well as a number of other offences."

Mock

The teenager and his gang - which is based in Ballymun as well as Blanchardstown - have been targeting Japanese imported cars such as Toyota, Mitsubishi and Honda models, which do not have particularly rigid security systems and have been stolen without access to the key fobs.

In one of the thefts which took place in Ashbourne last month, a Honda car owned by a garda's wife was taken from outside her home.

"This fella is completely out of control. After being arrested he even took to social media to mock gardai and boast about his criminal activities," a source previously said.

"He is no criminal mastermind but his activities are causing huge concern for gardai and a special operation is being planned to take him down."
02.04.2020 LISTEN

Dr. Rashid Pelpuo, a respected Ghanaian legislator and a former minister of State has, in a tweet, lauded Ghana's Kuchoko Legend and radio Reggae icon, Blakk Rasta over his highly "impressive" Coronavirus single, Caro Caro released some three days ago.

In the said tweet Wednesday, the lawmaker, representing Wa in the Upper-West region of Ghana, thanked the "famous" artiste for his impressive song against the insidious Coronavirus which, in his opinion, is unique, a masterpiece and inspirationally spiritual.

All over the world, everything has come to a standstill with the onset of COVID-19 caused by the devastating virus, Corona.

Religious bodies have held prayers for relief while scientists and doctors leave no stone unturned in order to deal with the deadly Coronavirus worldwide. Musicians have also made loads of music about the plague as if to say, music heals.

One Coronavirus song that stands out amongst the lot across the world is Caro Caro [a Coronavirus lament] by Ghana's Kuchoko legend, Blakk Rasta.

Released on Monday, the song has already gone viral like the virus itself as almost all radio stations in the country grace the airwaves with its infectious African melodies flying on the wings of Reggae music.

The song has a chorus that is pulsatingly melodious with a sweet hook to boot. Long after you have heard it, it keeps ringing in your memory.

Blakk Rasta has hit the right chord and, it will not be surprising if this song continues to be the masses' favourite long after the Coronavirus is gone.
The World Bank on Thursday announced that it will give India $1 billion in emergency funds to combat the deadly coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. The Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank approved a first set of emergency support operations for developing countries around the world, using a dedicated, fast-track facility for COVID-19 response.

India, the third-largest economy in Asia, will receive $1 billion to support better screening for the virus, contact tracing and laboratory diagnostics; pay for personal protective equipment; and set up new isolation wards for those infected, said the official release of the World Bank.

It has approved an initial $1.9 billion in emergency funds for coronavirus response operations in 25 countries and said it was moving quickly on projects in 40 others. In addition, the World Bank said it was working to redeploy resources in existing World Bank-financed projects worth up to $1.7 billion. The Bank has said it is prepared to spend up to $160 billion over the next 15 months to combat the pandemic.

The funds approved included $200 million for Pakistan, $100 million for Afghanistan and $82.6 million for Ethiopia, the Bank said. The Bank said it was also helping countries obtain urgently needed medical supplies by asking suppliers on behalf of governments.
Google has just released its second dot update for a developer preview on Android 11. This time around its Android 11 Developer Preview 2.1, and as expected, it does bring a lot of bug fixes.

Its not common for Google to release an update for the Developer preview in the middle of two previews. Especially given the fact that this is still an alpha build, and not even a beta just yet. But this is now the second time that Google has done this with Android 11 previews. that shows you that there are still plenty of issues that need to be fixed in Android 11. And that it is nowhere near ready for primetime.

These are all of the bug fixes that are fixed in Android 11 Developer Preview 2.1

These are the bug fixes that Google listed in the changelog for this update to developer preview 2:

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Fixed an issue where a crash would occur when long pressing to select an element within the recent apps overview.

Fixed an issue where the status bar could crash in the background if its components werent all initialized yet.

Fixed an issue where too many WindowTokens were created by SystemUI causing jankiness and dropped frames when navigating and scrolling apps.

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Fixed an issue where the Wear OS app could crash when trying to pair a Wear OS device.

Fixed an issue where the Settings app could crash after tapping the search bar in the app.

The update should start rolling out soon

The Android 11 Developer Preview 2.1 update should start rolling out in the next few hours. Typically these updates to developer previews do roll out pretty quickly. And thats mostly because the update is very critical.

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Those of you that are on the developer preview should be able to jump into the settings. Then tap on About Phone, and then Check for System Update.

Dont expect to see any new features coming in this version of Android 11. This is solely a bug fixing update. And that means that its not going to be a huge update. Likely under 100MB in size. And we can still expect for Google to roll out the third developer preview in a few weeks  later this month. Which should hopefully be the last developer preview before it opens up the Android Beta Program. Normally Google does that at Google I/O with the third or fourth beta. But since Google I/O is canceled this year, its tough to say when that might actually happen.
Former Vice President Joe Biden, the overwhelming favorite to become the Democratic presidential nominee, came out in favor of humanitarian sanctions relief for Iran to help the embattled country cope with the coronavirus pandemic.

There are already humanitarian exceptions in place for sanctions, but in practice, most governments and organizations are too concerned about running afoul of US sanctions to offer assistance, Biden said in a statement. As a result, our sanctions are limiting Irans access to medical supplies and needed equipment. The [Donald Trump] administration should take immediate steps to address this problem and streamline channels for banking and public health assistance from other countries in response to the health emergency in Iran.

Why it matters: Bidens statement comes after his one remaining primary opponent, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., called for even broader Iran sanctions relief amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Sanders joined Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and 31 other Democratic lawmakers in a letter to the Trump administration this week urging the president to undo the crippling sanctions he has implemented since withdrawing from the nuclear deal.

Sanders and his colleagues urged Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to relieve sanctions on major sectors of the Iranian economy, including those impacting civilian industries, Irans banking sector and exports of oil, adding that the relief should last for at least as long as health experts believe the crisis will continue.

For now, Biden is only calling for humanitarian exemptions to Trumps current sanctions regime such as broad license to pharmaceutical and medical device companies and creating a dedicated channel for international banks, transportation companies, insurers and other service firms to help Iranians access life-saving medical treatment. He also called for new sanctions guidelines and letters for international aid organizations to reassure them that they will not run afoul of US sanctions for supplying humanitarian relief to Iran.

Looking more closely at Bidens statement, some of the things he mentioned, such as licenses, are already in place, said Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. A general license is how the Treasury Department helped work with the Swiss to approve a humanitarian channel that touches even the Central Bank of Iran.

Whats next: Iran has rejected the Trump administrations offer to provide direct assistance to fight the coronavirus, instead calling for sanctions relief. But Biden argued that the offer is insufficient if not backed by concrete steps to ensure the United States is not exacerbating this growing humanitarian crisis. In the meantime, the pandemic continues to be devastating for both the United States and Iran, which have the first- and seventh-most cases in the world, respectively.

Know more: Sanctions aside, the United States has also exchanged fire with Iran-backed proxies in Iraq in recent months following the assassination of Quds Force commander Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani. Bryant Harris details how Soleimanis replacement, Brig. Gen. Esmail Ghaani, recently traveled to Baghdad, shortly before Trump issued a stern warning to Iran.
Experts have said that up to 50% people infected with coronavirus are unlikely to feel any discomfort or symptoms of the disease while it may prove fatal for elderly people and for those suffering from other serious ailments like diabetes, hypertension, respiratory problems and heart diseases to name a few.

It is widely believed that a healthy person with a strong immune system stands a better chance to survive the disease than most, however, there is no concrete scientific evidence so far that establishes a direct link between a persons immune system and coronavirus.

While the government has started online information dissemination campaign to counter myths and fake news related to Covid-19 and its treatment, it is at the same time, also encouraging people to adopt healthy lifestyle habits that may boost a persons immunity, making them less prone to illnesses.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, referred to these tips and said he had been following some of these for ages now. Here are the tips to stay healthy as released by the Ayush ministry and recommended by a panel of Ayurveda and Yoga experts. It must be made clear at the outset that none of these can either be considered to be a vaccine or medicine against coronavirus.

General Measures

1. Drink warm water throughout the day even during summers

2. Daily practice of Yogasana, Pranayama (breathing exercises) and meditation for at least 30 minutes

3. Use of spices like Haldi (Turmeric), Jeera (Cumin), Dhaniya (Coriander) and Lahsun (Garlic) are recommended for cooking.

II Tips to boost Immunity as per Ayurveda

1. Take Chyavanprash 10gm in the morning. Diabetics should take sugar-free Chyavanprash.

2. Drink herbal tea and or decoction, also known as Kadha, made from Tulsi (Basil leaves), Dalchini (Cinnamon), Kalimirch (Black pepper), Shunthi (Dry Ginger) and Munakka (Raisin) - once or twice a day. Jaggery and or fresh lemon juice could be added to this preparation to suit ones taste.

3. Golden Milk- Half teaspoon Haldi (turmeric) powder in 150 ml hot milk - once or twice a day.

III Ayurvedic procedures for detoxification and sinus care

1. Nasal application - Apply sesame oil or coconut oil or ghee in both the nostrils in the morning and evening. This is also called Pratimarsh Nyasya in Ayurveda.

2. Oil pulling therapy- Take 1 table spoon sesame or coconut oil in the mouth. Do not drink, swish in the mouth for 2 to 3 minutes and spit it off followed by a warm-water rinse. This can be done once or twice a day.

IV During dry cough / sore throat

1. Steam inhalation with fresh Pudina (Mint) leaves or Ajwain (Caraway seeds) should be practiced once in a day.

2. Lavang (Clove) powder mixed with jiggery or honey can be taken 2-3 times a day in case of cough or throat irritation.

These measures generally treat normal dry cough and sore throat. However, it is best to consult doctors if these symptoms persist. The above measures can be followed to the extent possible as per an individuals convenience.These measures are recommended by following eminent Vaidyas from across the country as they may possibly boost an individuals immunity against infections.

1. Padma Shri Vaidya P R Krishnakumar, Coimbatore

2. Padma Bhushan Vaidya Devendra Triguna, Delhi

3. Vaidya P M Varier, Kottakkal

4. Vaidya Jayant Devpujari, Nagpur

5. Vaidya Vinay Velankar, Thane

6. Vaidya B S Prasad, Belgaum

7. Padma Shri Vaidya Gurdeep Singh, Jamnagar

8. Acharya Balkrishna ji, Haridwar

9. Vaidya M S Baghel, Jaipur

10. Vaidya R B Dwivedi, Hardoi UP

11. Vaidya K N Dwivedi, Varanasi

The ministry describes Ayurveda as the science of life which propagates the gifts of nature in maintaining healthy and happy living. It says that Ayurvedas extensive knowledge base on preventive care derives from the concepts of Dinacharya - daily regimes and Ritucharya - seasonal regimes to maintain a healthy life. It is a plant-based science. The simplicity of awareness about oneself and the harmony each individual can achieve by uplifting and maintaining his or her immunity is emphasized across Ayurvedas classical scriptures.
The use of face masks in Asia during the coronavirus outbreak has been far more widespread than in the West, where governments have urged people to reserve supplies for frontline medical staff, so have they helped limit infections? Experts agree that the ordinary surgical masks commonly worn in parts of Asia during cold and hayfever seasons are not a foolproof way to prevent coronavirus infection. But people infected with the virus are advised to wear them to stop the spread to others, and there is evidence that transmission can happen before a person knows they are sick. That has bolstered the argument of mask supporters who believe they can help limit the outbreak. In parts of Asia, mask-wearing has been a key response to the outbreak, with Japan's government announcing Wednesday each household would get two reusable cloth versions, and Hong Kongers not only wearing them but sending them to relatives abroad. Keiji Fukuda, director and clinical professor at the University of Hong Kong's School of Public Health, said people in the city see wearing a mask "as a way that the individual is trying to protect both the larger society as well as the self". "But where I grew up, in the US, wearing masks is seen by some, if not many, as a personal infringement - an unwanted imposed obligation," he told AFP. The use of masks in parts of Asia with relatively low numbers of infections and deaths from the virus, including Japan and Hong Kong, has led some to theorise mask-wearing is making the difference. But experts are sceptical. Ben Cowling, a professor at the University of Hong Kong's School of Public Health, instead credits a range of public health measures implemented in these countries. These include "identifying cases and isolating them, tracing and quarantining their contacts, and also implementing social distancing in the community," he told AFP. - False sense of security - And Fukuda too cautioned against thinking of mask-wearing "as a magic X-factor". "Some places like Singapore have generally done very well without strongly emphasising masks," he noted. He attributes the smaller outbreaks to measures including contact tracing, good coordination, social distancing "and a general public that has been quite worried from the start and willing to work with health authorities". "It's the entire package that is important." The World Health Organization's position remains that mask-wearing for the general public is not advised, emphasising a global shortage of masks and the desperate need to route available supplies to frontline health workers. And some experts warn mask-wearing can backfire, even where supplies are plentiful. "Masks may give people a false sense of security," said Simon Clarke, an associate professor of cellular microbiology at the University of Reading. - Better than nothing? - Advocating mask usage, he fears, could also embolden people who are reluctant to adhere to social distancing measures. "I can envisage a situation where people who are infected and therefore shedding virus, think their mask gives them licence to go out to public places or to work," he told AFP. "We all know people who think nothing of bringing colds into work to share with everyone -- it will be the same for coronavirus." Despite the lack of strong evidence, there are signs that officials in the West are moving towards encouraging mask use. Austria and Slovenia among others have already mandated their use, and top US scientist Anthony Fauci said this week that when supply is stable, mask-wearing recommendations may be broadened to help prevent infected people from spreading the virus. "One of the best ways to do that is with a mask," he told CNN. Cowling said additional research was needed to guide policy on what kinds of masks were useful and how they should be utilised, but that increased mask usage might be worthwhile. "I think countries are looking at every possible measure to slow down transmission, so that even if a measure like face masks could only reduce transmission by a small amount, it might still be worth doing."
This is a file photo showing Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.'s Quantum-class cruise ship, the Anthem of the Sea, as it sits moored at the Cape Liberty Cruise Port in Bayonne, Oct. 6, 2015.

Royal Caribbean has fully drawn down two of its revolving credit lines as the struggling cruise industry scrambles to stay in business while the coronavirus pandemic leaves ships empty and moored at docks across the world, the company said in a new securities filing.

The company tapped $3.48 billion in backup financing between two revolving lines held by Nordea Bank and Scotiabank, Royal Caribbean said Thursday in a filing.

The drawdown is another example of how Royal, along with peers Carnival Corp. and Norwegian Cruise, have sought cash infusions to remain solvent after the industry announced a suspension of operations due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Shares of Royal Caribbean rose by more than 4% in morning trading before finishing the day down more than 3%. The stock has fallen about 80% since Jan. 1.

Royal Caribbean had previously announced steps to bolster its finances. On March 23, the company said it entered into a $2.2 billion loan agreement with a consortium of lenders. At the time, the company said it had $3.6 billion of liquidity, including undrawn revolving credit lines.

The company had roughly $11 billion in total debt as of Dec. 31 that included $165 million drawn on its revolving credit lines, it disclosed in its end-of-year financial results.

"This is a period of unprecedented disruption for the cruise industry," Royal CFO Jason T. Liberty said in a statement on March 23. "We continue to take decisive actions to protect the company's financial and liquidity positions as they enable us to keep focused on our guests, our crew and our long-term plans."

On Wednesday, Royal announced that its CEO Richard Fain will forego his base salary through September 30, 2020. Other executives will take a 25% hit to their salaries through the same period, the company said.

Royal's competitor Carnival Corp. on Tuesday announced it's issuing $1.25 billion in stock and raising $4.75 billion in fresh debt. However, on Wednesday, the company announced it was reducing the size of its stock offering to just $500 million at $8 per share, which is lower than the price the company's shares closed at on Wednesday.

Carnival also announced Tuesday it is suspending the payment of dividends to shareholders, a move which Royal has not yet taken.

On March 13, the Cruise Lines International Association, of which Royal is a member, announced a 30-day suspension of North American operations amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Last week, Royal said it expects operations to resume on May 12, and not until July 1 in parts of North America.

It remains unclear if the major cruise companies will be left out of the bailout fund included in the $2 trillion stimulus package passed last week.
Twelve more patients recovered from COVID-19 on Thursday, according to the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, bringing the total number of patients given the all-clear in Viet Nam to 75.

Among them are 11 people treated at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases and one patient (patient 73) who was treated at the Department of Infectious Diseases within Thanh Mien District health center in Hai Duong Province.

According to the information from the Central Tropical Hospital, the recovered patients are numbers 20, 63, 76, 78, 107, 129, 131, 132, 138, 179 and number 198  a member of staff from the Truong Sinh company which provides none medical services to Bach Mai Hospital in Ha Noi.

The recovered patients in full are:

Patient 20 (from Ba inh District, Ha Noi) was admitted to the hospital on March 7. Two tests were performed on March 28 and 31, both negative.

Patient 63 (Vietnamese), admitted to the hospital on March 17. Two tests were performed on March 29 and April 1, both negative.

Patient 76, French, admitted to the hospital on March 18; Two tests were performed on March 27 and 31, both negative.

Patient 78, admitted to the hospital on March 18. Two tests were performed on March 27 and 30, both negative.

Patient 107, admitted to the hospital on March 21, Two tests were performed on March 27 and 30, both negative.

Patient 129, admitted to the hospital on March 23. Two tests were performed on March 29 and April 1, both negative.

Patient 131, admitted to the hospital on March 23. Three tests were performed on March 26, 29 and April 1, both negative.

Patient 132, admitted to the hospital on March 26, Two tests were performed on March 29 and April 1, both negative.

Patient 138, admitted to the hospital on March 23, two tests were performed on March 29 and April 1, both negative.

Patient 179, admitted to the hospital on March 28, two tests were performed on March 28 and 31, both negative.

Patient 198, admitted to the hospital on March 28, two tests were performed on March 28 and 31, both negative.

Earlier on Thursday, an 11-year-old boy was also declared free of the virus.

The health status of four COVID-19 patients in a serious condition who are being treated at the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases has also improved. They have tested negative for the virus for three times.

Doctors at the hospital of Tropical Diseases have been treating 80 patients with COVD-19, including 72 Vietnamese, two British, four French, one Mexican and one Danish.

Viet Nams 73rd COVID-19 patient, who returned to Viet Nam from the UK on March 15, was given the all-clear on Thursday morning.  Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Health

Vietnams 73rd COVID-19 patient, a 11-year-old male who returned to Vietnam from the UK on March 15, was given the all-clear on Thursday morning.

The 11-year-old British male was hospitalised at the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Thanh Mien District of the northern province of Hai Duong on March 15. He was on the flight numbered VN0054 returning to the country from the UK, arriving in Ha Noi on March 9. Four days later, he had his sample taken by Hai Duong CDC and was quarantined. On March 18, his sample was taken again and showed a positive result.

During treatment, the patient had tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 once on March 24 and a second time on March 28. He currently is in a stable condition, with no cough or fever. He will continue to be isolated and monitored for the next 14 days.

Deputy Head of the Treatment Subcommittee of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control Luong Ngoc Khue said that there was good news in treating patients with COVID- 19.

Over the past days, the Centre for Management, Administration, Support for Diagnosis and Treatment of People with COVID-19 has invited leading professors to consult with frontline hospitals on patient treatment, especially those with serious illnesses. We also have daily updated about the situation of cases and provided timely guidance, advice and support to hospitals with difficulties in treating COVID-19 patients, said Khue.

As of 7.45am today the world has reported 935,193 confirmed cases of the coronavirus COVID-19 and a death toll of 47,192, according to the Ministry of Health.

British patient No 57 tests negative for COVID-19

A quarantine site at a hospital in central Viet Nam. A British COVID-19 patient tested negative for the first time at Quang Nam Province's Nui Thanh central general hospital.

British COVID-19 patient No 57, who was receiving treatment at the general hospital in Nui Thanh District, tested negative with SARS-CoV-2 for the first time since March 16.

Deputy director of the provincial health department, Mai Van Muoi, confirmed the test result on Wednesday, saying the male patient, 66, had a sample taken on March 28 after 12 days of treatment at the hospital.

He said the patient is in good health, with no cough or fever and breathing trouble. X-Ray results revealed an improvement in his lungs since the first day of treatment at the hospital.

The patient would leave the hospital if he receives a second negative test and was without fever on three consecutive days, he added.

According to a report released on Wednesday, the province took 907 medical samples, of which 651 were from foreigners, and 754 samples tested negative for COVID-19. More than 1,100 people out of 1,455 had finished 14-day quarantine.

All people coming to Quang Nam from COVID-19-affected localities will be taken to mass quarantine sites, and they have to pay 50 per cent of meal costs and 100 per cent of the test fee, the province said in a meeting on Wednesday.  VNS
With private companies' coronavirus testing coming online, the Trump administration promised the shortage of test kits would rapidly disappear.

That may be the case, as more than 100,000 Americans are now being tested in the US each day.

But just because more people are 'getting tested' - having their noses swabbed for sample collection - doesn't mean more are finding out their results.

According to an investigation conducted by The Atlantic, companies like Quest Diagnostics that jumped at the chance to make and push out hundreds of thousands of COVID-19 are now facing their own backlogs.

And Americans waiting for up to a week for results are suffering the consequences, while companies rake in revenue from selling diagnostic kits.

Quest Diagnostics has helped expand the number of test kits for coronavirus available in New York - but now it may face backlogs like those seen at CDC labs early in the pandemic

President Trump (right) has praised private sector companies like Quest and LabCorp (whose CEO, Adam Schecter is pictured with Trump) for expanding testing in the US

As testing has expanded, the number of Americans diagnosed with coronavirus has surged past 200,000

As of Wednesday April 1, more than one million Americans had been tested for coronavirus, according to data-tracking site 1point3 acres.

However, there may be a disparity between test samples collected and test results returned.

Quest Diagnostics, among the largest such companies in the US, brought its testing online on March 9.

As of March 23, it was testing at 12 labs across 12 labs across the country and expected to be able to process 30,000 tests a day.

No matter how many tests the company distributes, however, its processing capacity is limited by the number of labs running its platform.

'Although we are rapidly expanding testing capacity, demand for testing is growing faster, and we cannot accommodate everyone who wants testing and meet tight turnaround time expectations,' Quest wrote in a statement.

'To help address this issue, we are working with healthcare systems to prioritize testing for in-hospital patients and symptomatic hospital healthcare workers.

'Hospitals and healthcare systems can submit specimens from these patients to us with a high priority designation. As a result, these specimens will be expedited within our standard first in, first out testing process. We are already notifying health systems of ways to submit specimens under these conditions.'

But The Atlantic's report suggests that the delays go beyond prioritizing testing for certain patients.

Dr Dina Greene, head of a regional Kaiser Permanente lab in Washington State told the Atlantic that her lab was approached by Quest and tried out its tests.

The company promised they could turn around test results within 24 to 48 hours.

But Dr Greene's experience suggests they vastly over-estimated their own capacity.

'We quickly realized it was a no-go and we needed to stick with UW,' where she is an associate professor and where her lab had previously been sending their test kits for analysis.

And the longer patients have to wait - even, and especially, the prioritized hospitalized ones - the greater the likelihood that they will unwittingly expose others, including health care providers.

LabCorp's machines are also now running coronavirus diagnostics, but its unclear if it faces similar lags in delivering test results

Even Senator Rand Paul waited six days for his test results (although it's unclear whether they were run by a private or public lab), and faced criticism for exposing others before he was diagnosed with coronavirus.

President Trump has repeatedly praised the private sector as heroes of the testing crisis, but their own bottlenecks may just create a second one, as people rush to get these tests and find that their hospitals haven't had time yet to set them up, or the labs meant to run these tests are overloaded or unequipped to do so.

Quest says that that will change in the near future.

'There was a tremendous demand because we only had the one laboratory [in San Juan Capistrano] for about a week or more, and all the demand was being funneled into that laboratory,' Wendy Bost a company spokesperson, told The Atlantic.

Now the company is supposedly running tests at 12 labs.

'The average turnaround time nationally is four to five days, from the time where we collect the specimen to when we report the results out,' Bost said.

'However, there have been cases that have been several days longer than that.'

Now, the concern is that Quest - and potentially other labs - will not disclose their backlog of samples waiting to be tested.

'It may be that Quest has mountains and mountains of specimens they can't get to,' an clinical lab director told The Atlantic under anonymity.

'If so, they should tell someone.'
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

Free on YouTube

(PG)

Grade: A-

The indomitable Francie Dolan, 11 going on 21, walks up to the librarian and presents her with a book called The Anatomy of Melancholy.

Are you sure you want to read this? asks the librarian, eyebrow raised.

Yes, I want to know everything in the world, says Francie.

Francie would seem to have no right to dream. Her mom can barely keep food on the table, and her dad, who affectionately calls her Prima Donna, is a dreamer who drinks too much and seldom works. He sings at bars, when hes not drinking at bars.

But Francie stares at the best school in the region and says, Oh, I want to go there.

During the day Francie sits on the fire escape outside the window and reads books. At night she writes stories, encouraged by her English teacher who tells her to write about what you know, and then edit with your imagination. Shes a little woman Louisa May Alcott would have loved.

Mom has lost faith in her alcoholic husband, who is more burden than beau. But Francie loves him, despite his tragic life. And dad dearly loves Francie. He encourages her to reach for the stars.

One day dad and daughter are looking out the window of their apartment. The big tree that grows in front of their Brooklyn flat is being cut down. Francie is distraught. Its the tree she loved, where birds sang.

Theyve killed it! she says melodramatically. They have no right to do that.

Dont worry Prima Donna, says her pop. That tree pushed that cement right out of the way and grew up. And it will grow back again.

Francie is, of course, the tree that grew up in Brooklyn.

Francie will indeed push through the cement and triumph against all odds, ending up at the University of Michigan at the end of the book.

Elia Kazans 1945 A Tree Grew Up in Brooklyn, adapting Betty Smiths 1943 novel, wont be an easy watch for todays kids. Its in black and white, its sentimental and corny at times  and reflects the 1940s culture. I still think theyll like it, girls especially.

Kazan directed films that won nine acting Oscars over 31 years. Kazan won Best Director twice, for On the Waterfront and Gentlemans Agreement. Kazans legacy is tainted by his testimony before the House Un-American Activities committee in 1952.

Francie, as portrayed by 14-year-old Peggy Ann Garner, is a powerful role model for young ladies. Garner won an honorary Oscar recognizing her work as an exceptional juvenile actress. James Dunn, who played the father, won the Best Actor Oscar.

We live in the age of girl power, including stories about Wonder Woman and Katniss Everdeen, but stories of young girls who set out to conquer the world have been around a long time. Both National Velvet and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn saluted the power of little girls to chase big dreams. Both actresses, Elizabeth Taylor and Peggy Ann Garner, won Oscars for their portrayals of these little ladies dreaming big.

The central tragedy in Tree is the alcoholic father and the tension in the family from his addiction. Katie, the struggling mom and wife, is trying to honor her marriage vows of death til us part, but shes sliding toward depression and anger because she is the sole income and sole contributor to the family. Her relationship with daughter Francie is fracturing as Francie slides toward Dad in the crisis.

That crisis deepens when Dad dies, and Francie blames her mom for not supporting her dad more.

How long should a wife stay with a non-contributing husband? Whats best for Francie?

And, at the heart, how does Francie manage to keep her spirit alive through all this? She is, indeed, a tree growing through cement. Shes the strongest one in the family, by far.

Lets say goodbye by suggesting that the kids in our lives read Betty Smiths book. It was outrageously popular, and features some lovely writing about a precocious girl we cant help but love. Heres a passage that opens the tale to entice your young friends to curl up on their fire escape and read, read, read.

Francie is admiring the tree that grows outside her Brooklyn window.

Thats where the tree of Heaven flourished. Thats the kind of tree it was. It loved poor people.

Its umbrellas curled over, around and under her third-floor fire-escape. An eleven-year-old girl sitting on this fire-escape could imagine that she was living in a tree. That's what Francie imagined every Saturday afternoon in summer.

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It's no secret college tuition is skyrocketing and leading to crippling debt for students across the country. Now more than ever, college-bound students are searching for schools that will offer degrees that give them promising futures with healthy salaries and less debt.

A new study from eCommerce platform Volusion ranks the top public colleges where graduates earn the most money. Aspiring University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M - College Station students will be happy to find that the two schools are ranked high in the new study.

ON HOUSTONCHRONICLE.COM: Is it worth it?: College grads strapped with greater debt, lower incomes

UT Austin is ranked No. 8 and Texas A&M is ranked No. 4 on Volusion's list of large public schools of graduates with the highest median earnings.

UT grads earn a median annual salary of $46,000 after graduation and leave with a median debt of $18,118. Students pay an average of $10,398 for in-state tuition and fees while out-of-state students pay an average of $36,744 in tuition and fees. The highest-paying degree offered at the school is chemical engineering, which typically leads to a starting salary of about $78,400, according to the study.

Texas A&M grads earn a median salary of $48,600 and leave with a median debt of $15,000. In-state students shell out $11,234 for tuition and fees while out-of-state students pay more than double: $36,606. The highest-paying degree is petroleum engineering, which leads to an average starting salary of $81,800.

The study also ranked midsize and small schools that offer the highest starting salaries. The University of Houston Clear Lake ranks No. 12 among top midsize schools, with an average starting salary of $44,500, while the University of Texas at Dallas ranks No. 14 with an average salary of $44,000. The University of Texas at the Permian Basin ranks No. 14 among the top small universities, with grads earning an average starting salary of $40,700.

TEXAS SCHOOLS: How much debt college students graduated with in 2018

Overall, the study found that graduates with the highest starting salaries have degrees in disciplines related to engineering, computer science, business, and nursing.

Volusion analyzed data from the U.S. Department of Education from more than 500 public colleges to create the rankings. Schools were ranked based on median earnings of undergraduate students six years after starting school and grouped by undergraduate enrollment, per the study. Large schools were considered to have more than 20,000 students; midsize schools were considered to have 5,000 to 20,000 students; and small schools were considered to have 1,000 to 5,000 students.

>>>Click through the photos above for a look at the Texas schools that made the ranking...

Rebecca Hennes covers community news. Read her on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, houstonchronicle.com. | rebecca.hennes@chron.com
21 fresh cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Andhra Pradesh on Thursday, taking the tally of people infected with the lethal virus to 132.

"21 more COVID-19 cases reported in Andhra Pradesh, taking the total number of positive cases in the state to 132," said Arja Srikanth, State Nodal Officer.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday said that 70 of the 87 coronavirus positive patients in the state attended the Tablighi Jamaat event at Delhi's Nizamuddin area."A congregation took place in Delhi, in which many foreign delegates have participated. People from our state also have gone to that congregation and many of them got infected by this virus. Out of 87 coronavirus positive cases reported in our state till Wednesday, 70 of them were among those who attended that congregation at Delhi," Reddy said.

He appealed the private medical colleges, private doctors, IMA members and private nurses, to be involved in these services.

The total number of coronavirus cases in India climbed to 1965 on Thursday after 131 people confirmed positive in the past 12 hours, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.At present, there are 1764 COVID-19 active cases in the country and 50 people have died due to the lethal infection.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Independent has launched an appeal to help those going hungry because of the coronavirus crisis. Help The Hungry aims to highlight how you can help in your area, with money, food donations or volunteering. The campaign has been backed by politicians including Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, and Jess Phillips, the Labour MP who recently ran for party leader.

Gemma Chan and Dominic Cooper have delivered 80 meals to NHS staff on the frontlines of the coronavirus outbreak.

On Wednesday, Chan shared photographs of herself and Cooper on Instagram, showing the couple in the car with boxes full of meals provided by the charity Cook 19.

The food was donated to staff at Charing Cross Hospital in central London.

The actor also shared a photograph of the staff surrounded by the boxes with their thumbs up, thanking the couple.

Chan captioned the post: 80 meals delivered to the incredible NHS staff at Charing Cross Hospital on behalf of @donate_cook_19.

Were so grateful for everything youre doing. If you know an NHS worker in London in need of support please email donatecook19@gmail.com or dm @donate_cook_19.

If youre able, please also consider making a donation via the website (link in bio).

Chan concluded her post by reassuring followers that the meals had been prepared according to social distancing guidelines as advised by an NHS doctor.

Hers and Coopers donations come after it was revealed that Lizzo had also sent food to hospital workers.

Earlier this week, the musician sent meals to a number of hospitals across the US, including ones in Minnesota and Louisiana.

Recommended How to support our campaign

She sent several hospitals food that were hit really hard for staff working around the clock, her publicist told The Seattle Times.

She is planning to send food to more hospitals as well.
ABI Research whitepaper identifies the short-and long-term impacts the global pandemic will have on Industrial, Collaborative, and Commercial Robotics

OYSTER BAY, New York, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Coronavirus outbreak has highlighted use cases for mobile robotics to successfully disinfect, monitor, surveille, and handle and deliver materials. These proven use cases will propel the overall mobile robotics market to US$23 billion by 2021, states global tech market advisory firm, ABI Research.

"Crises shift perceptions on what is possible regarding investment and transformative action on the part of both private and government actors. By the time the COVID-19 pandemic has passed, robots will be mainstreamed across a range of applications and markets," says Rian Whitton, Senior Analyst at ABI Research.

The virus has been a good opportunity for companies to display robots for public applications. One of the more popular has been deploying mobile unmanned platforms with Ultraviolet (UV) light to disinfect facilities. Danish company UVD Robots is reaping the benefits of this opportunity and is scaling up deployments of robots to disinfect hospitals. U.S.-based Germ Falcon is offering a similar UV disinfection solution for aircraft, while Chinese TMiRob is deploying disinfection robots in Wuhan. "Automating disinfection is a key part of maintaining health and safety and could be one of the major bright spots in the response to COVID-19," Whitton points out.

Drones have also been deployed to enforce curfews and surveil areas for security purposes. This represents a big opportunity for aerospace and drone companies to increase sales to government agencies. ABI Research expects the small drone delivery market to reach US$414 million by 2021 and US$10.4 billion by 2030.

In the short term, to enforce quarantine mandates, governments will need to increase their security apparatuses, as well as the productivity of their medical agencies. Robots will be key to achieving that through disinfection, monitoring, and surveillance. Furthermore, the shutting down of households and even ships represents a chance for robot delivery companies (for both land and air) to display their worth. The drone delivery market could take its experience with transporting supplies in the developing world and scale up their operations in the most affected countries.

Long-term, COVID-19 is leading to a significant reassessment of the global manufacturing supply chain. America's dependence on Chinese imports for basic equipment and medicines is becoming a contentious issue, and government representatives are already interpreting the crisis as a chance to revitalize the campaign to reshore more manufacturing capacity to the domestic market. If this translates into more significant measures by governments to diversify or reshore the manufacturing of key goods, this could bode very well for the robotics industry, as such changes would require big increases in CAPEX and productivity improvements within developed countries.

COVID-19 represents a disaster for robotics vendors building solutions for developed markets in manufacturing, industry, and the supply chain. But for vendors targeting markets closer to government, such as health, security, and defense, it represents a big opportunity. Whitton recommends that "industrial players develop customized solutions for non-manufacturing use cases or look to build comprehensive solutions for enabling a scale-up in medical supply manufacturing. For mobile robotics vendors and software companies targeting more nascent markets, this represents a big chance to highlight the importance of robotics for dealing with national emergencies, as well as mitigating the economic shock."

For a clearer picture of the current and future ramifications of COVID-19 across technologies and verticals, including Industrial, Collaborative and Commercial Robotics, download the whitepaper Taking Stock of COVID-19: The Short- and Long-Term Ramifications on Technology and End Markets.

About ABI Research

ABI Research provides strategic guidance to visionaries, delivering actionable intelligence on the transformative technologies that are dramatically reshaping industries, economies, and workforces across the world. ABI Research's global team of analysts publish groundbreaking studies often years ahead of other technology advisory firms, empowering our clients to stay ahead of their markets and their competitors.

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For more information about ABI Research's services, contact us at +1.516.624.2500 in the Americas, +44.203.326.0140 in Europe, +65.6592.0290 in Asia-Pacific or visit www.abiresearch.com.

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FLINT, MI-- The community is banding together and providing thousands of meals to local heroes, hospital employees working long hours amid a global pandemic.

Joshua Spencer, owner of Cafe Rhema in Flint, started a fund to provide meals to hospital workers after a pastor from the Freedom Center Church in Fenton brought the need to his attention.

There was a nurse ... who said things were getting bad at the hospital and its been very difficult to find food, Spencer said. Nurses and doctors are working very long shifts. The hospital cafeterias are closed and theyre having trouble finding restaurants that are able to deliver food.

After the Freedom Center offered to buy the hospital lunch, Spencer decided to make the effort public by creating a GoFundMe. The fund received more than $10,000 in donations its first day online.

The community has raised $30,000 of its $50,000 --the amount needed to provide meals until the shelter in place is lifted. Spencer said its awesome seeing the community come together in a time of crisis.

The response from the community shows how caring our community is even though its a tough time for everyone across the board. Its awesome to see the community band together to support our local heroes at the hospitals. Its been encouraging in a time of unknown, Spencer said.

The outpouring of support for the hospital workers has been wonderful, said Jordan Brown who directs volunteer services at Hurley.

Its truly wonderful how the outpouring of support has translated into the most creative donations to put a smile on the faces of our staff. The catered meals donated to all three shifts have kept our staff in every department happy, Brown said.

A number of churches have sponsored entire meals for hospitals, Spencer said. Some churches have donated what they can and provided volunteers to distribute the food.

Small businesses in Flint have also contributed what they can despite facing harsh financial times, Spencer said. At Cafe Rhema, management and owners have removed themselves from the payroll to keep their employees paid.

It shows the community will fight to come together and be involved in any way that they can. Whether they have the financial ability or not, people will come together and say we want to help however we can, Spencer said.

The fund will continue so long as the need is still there, Spencer said. So far, meals have been provided every day to hospital workers at Hurley, Genesys and McLaren Flint.

As we continue to bring in more funding, well continue to provide lunches to hospital employees as much as we can. We will extend it to wherever the need is," Spencer said. Its a very simple thing that goes a long way for the people who are working very long hours."

So far, 1,000 meals have been catered and there is enough funding for 3,500 meals to be provided. People interested in supporting the fund can visit its GoFundMe page.

People interested in donating anything from cards, flowers or chocolates can reach out to Brown with Hurley for more information.

Read more here:

Complete coverage at mlive.com/coronavirus

How you can donate medical supplies to mid-Michigan hospitals

Eastern Michigan food bank multiplies services as unemployed population rises
(TNS)  Getting 60,000 laptops into the hands of needy high school students around the state of Connecticut was likened Wednesday to filling Yankee Stadium with students and making each one of them walked out with a computer.Only the students arent in the stands, but scattered across 33 school districts  and it is a middle of a coronavirus pandemic where a safe distribution trumps connectivity, East Hartford Schools Superintendent Nate Quesnell said on WednesdayThis would be a logistical challenge in a perfect environment, added Guilford Schools Superintendent Paul Freeman, Quesnells co-chair on a Learn from Home Task Force put together by Gov. Ned Lamont.The last few weeks and the weeks that lie ahead are the opposite of a perfect environment, Freeman said.Freeman and Quesnell, during a conference call with education reporters, said their goal is to bridge the digital divide for students who live in homes without computer access at a time when all students have become distance learners.With schools closed, many districts are now using computers to deliver course material. Some have lent students computers that normally remain in school. That is not universally possible in some districts, such as Bridgeport where there is not currently a computer for every student.Some 42 percent of the states 500,000 public school students live in alliance districts that will get first crack at the free computers. Its estimated about 50,000 are in high school.How many do not have computers or the Internet at home is unknown.The task force and state Department of Education hope to learn that information by Friday, when school superintendents complete an application for the free computers. The governing board of the Partnership for Connecticut, a public-private partnership, agreed on March 23 to allocate money for the laptops. The estimated $40 million cost is to be split between the state and the Greenwich-based Dalio Philanthropies led by Barbara and Ray Dalio.Even working at warp speed, the co-chairs say computers wont hit school districts until late April or early May . Some may not get the hardware until June.There arent 60,000 computers sitting in a warehouse, Quesnell said. It will take time.Distribution will likely come in waves.The task force, which also includes schools superintendents from New Haven, Waterbury, Middletown and Winchester, has been meeting virtually since March 23, shortly after the Partnership for Connecticut announced they would fund the purchase of 60,000 laptops.They are looking to Dell and HP, and hope to get a good deal given the bulk purchase  perhaps $350 a unit.It promises to give some districts a one computer per student ratio theyve never before enjoyed.For now, charter schools, most of which exist in alliance districts, are not eligible for the program, officials said.In addition to the laptops, districts are getting packets of books for elementary and middle school students from Scholastic  a gift from Indra and Raj Nooyi, of the Pepsi Corporation. The 185,000 books and activity guides will be bundled by grade level and distributed to schools based on the number that alliance districts tell them are needed.Families can keep the books. The computers will be owned by school districts.It will be up to districts to decided whether students can keep the equipment over the summer. A lot may depend on how long schools remain closed this spring.This is the first step, Freeman said.Nick Simmons, Lamonts coordinator of strategic initiatives, said the governors office is working on phase two of the initiative which is making sure the computers can be connected to the internet.It is estimated that as many as 12 percent of households dont have the internet.
Most entrepreneurs think of patent trolls as parasites who obtain questionable patents to extort money from legitimate businesses. The trolls call themselves "patent-assertion entities" that help innovators get paid for their ideas. Whatever your definition, trolls haven't gone away, despite being reined in by the Supreme Court.

Omaha, Nebraska-based startup MyVitalz provides remote patient monitoring via Bluetooth devices and a cellular hub. In September 2016, founder Justus Decher got a letter from My Health accusing MyVitalz of violating U.S. Patent 6612985B2, "Method and System for Monitoring and Treating a Patient." The patent seemed to cover the entire concept of telehealth. He then got a demand for payment.

Decher didn't cave. Instead, he did some research. "I was amazed that all these companies were making agreements with My Health," he says. But some were fighting. My Health made him an offer: $25,000. "This was a licensing fee to cover a period of time," Decher says. "It wasn't going to be a one-time thing."

Fortunately, he discovered that the patent had been invalidated with the Supreme Court's 2014 ruling in Alice Corporation v. CLS Bank. "It sounds corny, but my first name is pronounced justice. I'd done nothing wrong," he adds.

333,350 Number of patents awarded by the U.S. in 2019, a new record. Source: IFI Claims Patent Services $0.5 million Median amount of settlements made to patent-assertion entities (a.k.a. trolls) for lawsuits that got to trial, from 2014 to 2017. The average was about $1.5 million. Source: RPX 3,555 Total defendants added to patent campaigns in 2019, an increase of 4.5 percent, according to RPX, a patent risk-mitigation company.

The Alice decision disqualifies patents that are too abstract. But even with Alice in place, patent-assertion entities are filing more than 1,000 suits a year, according to Joe Mullin, policy analyst at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. If you receive a threatening letter from--or are sued by--a troll, here are some things to keep in mind.

1. Respond only through an attorney.

Demand letters can come with a deadline attached, which could prompt you to answer quickly. But trolls sometimes send out a mass mailing of threats, and then focus their attention on the companies that respond, explains attorney Rachael Lamkin, founder of Lamkin IP Defense and an expert on fighting patent trolls.

And remember, just getting a letter threatening a lawsuit doesn't mean one will actually be filed. There are plenty of patent-assertion entities that regularly file lawsuits, but many others send such letters and rarely sue. You need to find out which you're dealing with.

It could be a legitimate inventor, says Gene Quinn, a patent attorney and founder of IPWatchdog.com. "Not everyone who's trying to license a patent is a scammer," he says. Either way, respond only through an attorney. If you try to reason with your opponent, whatever you say will likely be used against you.

2. Do your research. Lots of it.

Start by entering the patent number into a search engine to get some basic information. Lamkin also recommends a service called Docket Navigator, which is priced starting at $79 a month and will tell you a patent's legal history. "If you see it's been litigated 100 times and they all settled early, that suggests it's a nuisance suit," she says. "If they're suing big companies and the litigation has gone on for years, then you're looking at a higher settlement."

3. Don't be in a rush to settle.

Paying a settlement quickly could lead to more demands. V. Sattui Winery in Napa Valley got a letter from a law firm for Landmark Technology, which claims its patents give it licensing rights over "processing business and financial transactions between entities from remote sites"--in a word, e-commerce. Landmark demanded V. Sattui pay $65,000 for a license. V. Sattui president and co-owner Tom Davies sought help from a San Francisco patent attorney, who told him that Landmark would settle for $25,000 or less. Davies nearly agreed, but then he talked to Lamkin. "I found out this patent claim had been asserted 90 times against different companies," he says, including CVS Caremark, Casio, and eBay.

Davies decided to fight and Lamkin filed a motion for a declaratory judgment and may seek legal fees. Davies will likely spend more than the $25,000 a settlement would have cost. "I'm OK with that," he says, "because if no one stands up and fights, it's just going to continue."

How to Choose an IP Attorney

Legal fees can kill your business, win or lose. In 2011, David Bloom, now a general manager at Sterling Talent Solutions, founded Ordrx, an open platform for restaurant ordering backed by Techstars and Google Ventures. A lawsuit was filed against Ordrx in 2012 by Ameranth, a hospitality technology company that had patent claims regarding online menu generation and a connected information and management system. Ameranth also sued Hyatt, Expedia, and Domino's Pizza, among others.

"It was basically a patent on the use of the internet for moving information and taking orders," Bloom says. (A federal appeals court invalidated most of Ameranth's patent claims in November. The company is taking it to the Supreme Court.) Ameranth wanted ongoing licensing payments, which Ordrx couldn't afford. "Every time I needed clarification, it cost me lawyer time," he says. With fees mounting, Bloom closed Ordrx. Ameranth president Keith McNally says Bloom infringed on his firm's patents and was offered generous settlement terms, and that his lawsuit is not the cause of Ordrx's failure.

Rachael Lamkin of Lamkin IP Defense says you can limit your exposure by asking these questions to any lawyer you are considering to represent you.

1. What is your analysis of this case and your strategy to win it? The strategy should be specific to your case, and not a generic approach. And the initial consultation should be free of charge.

2. What is the best way to end this case quickly? And how much will it cost if we achieve that quick resolution?
Domestic violence victims are reporting abuse cases at a higher rate in the Houston region since COVID-19 stay-at-home orders took effect in area counties last month, advocates and law enforcement officials say.

Theres been a significant increase in the number of domestic violence hotline calls and requests for emergency housing since social isolation became Houstons new normal in early March, shelters in the region are reporting.

The number of domestic violence calls for service to the Houston Police Department increased by 6 percent this month compared to last, Chief Art Acevedo said.

Some will die not from the COVID-19 virus, but instead at the hands of an intimate partner and domestic violence, said Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez in a statement Tuesday. Life as we know it, has come to a halt, but domestic violence has not. It will only escalate as people shelter in place, lose jobs and deal with mounting stress. That, of course, is no excuse. That is a huge recipe for some very bad things to happen.

In Harris County, the Houston Area Womens Center, which works with a network of nearby shelters, reported an unusually high number of calls  175  on Saturday and Sunday, half of which were requests for shelter. The centers capacity is capped at 120.

More Information See More Collapse

Two people have been killed because of suspected domestic violence in Harris County since the stay-at-home order was implemented. A Channelview man was fatally shot and stabbed by his wife Thursday night, according to the Harris County Sheriffs Office. On Tuesday, a northeast Harris County woman was shot to death by her husband while their three children were inside the home, Gonzalez said.

Major disruptions of regular routines escalate the occurrence and severity of domestic violence, said Linda Phan, policy director for the Texas Council on Family Violence. (Its) the same outcome our agencies are reporting across Texas as the COVID-19 crisis continues and perpetrators use the pandemic as a weapon of control to reinforce isolation from family and friends.

Aid to Victims of Domestic Abuse, which provides free legal and counseling services to survivors in the greater Houston region, reports it experienced an uptick in calls since the stay-at-home order took effect. The Montgomery County District Attorneys office said there was a 35 percent increase in the number of domestic violence-related cases filed last month compared to the same time period in 2019.

While national data on domestic violence since the pandemic began is not yet available, agencies across the nation have anecdotally said they are also seeing an increase in calls.

In China, where the novel coronavirus originated, domestic violence incidents have reportedly tripled since the country enforced its lock-down.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Emergency domestic violence shelters struggle to meet growing need in Houston

Houston and Texas already had a fatal domestic violence problem before the new coronavirus began to spread.

Between 2008 and 2018, men killed 1,470 women in Texas with whom they had romantic relationships, including 340 in Harris County.

Advocates anticipated a spike in violence during the COVID-19 pandemic, because they were aware of the relationship between domestic violence and natural disasters, in part because of what they witnessed after Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Studies of natural disasters around the world support the theory that stress increases the number of family assaults.

These emergencies do not create the dynamic of domestic violence, but they do exacerbate an environment in which domestic violence can occur, Phan said. Whether its a weather calamity or folks needing to shelter-in-place with their abusers, disasters make things much more difficult for survivors.

Data from 2018 indicates there was a 64 percent increase in domestic partner killings in Texas counties impacted by the hurricane. The spike contributed to a record number of domestic partner killings in Texas in 2018, the culmination of a decade-long trend in which such deaths increased annually.

On HoustonChronicle.com: 'Isolation compounds violence': Abuse victims more at risk during coronavirus quarantines

The hurricane exacerbated the existing factors  delayed justice in overburdened court systems, failed protection and a lack of access to safety on-demand, among others  that typically put victims at risk of injury or death by their partners.

As Texas advocates work quickly to prepare their networks for an increased need for services, the lessons learned in the months following Harvey are being utilized as a framework for their response to the COVID-19 spike.

This is a state of emergency, said Phan. Its a different kind of emergency, but the trends are comparable.

Delayed justice

Just as many hearings were postponed after Harvey caused courthouses to flood and lose power, advocates say the new precautions courts are taking to slow the spread of coronavirus are backlogging the progress of family violence cases.

Many court systems this month have moved to telecommunication hearings, have delayed jury trials or are taking measures to practice social distancing, like limiting the number of people allowed in courtrooms.

Though necessary during the outbreak, court proceedings held over the phone or via a webcam raise serious privacy concerns, said Phan.

Privacy is a cornerstone of survivor safety, she said. Because of the open courts provision in the Texas code, a lot of these hearings will be (posted online). Anyone could watch these hearings online and we are nervous about it.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Immediate Senate funding critical for Houston domestic violence survivors

Officials at the Texas Office of Court Administration and the states Supreme Court are working to build additional safety measures in light of COVID-19, said Phan. At the moment, Texas local jurisdictions are all handling the new challenges in different ways, she added.

Were looking to our past experiences to figure out how to move forward, said Echo Hutson, a prosecutor for the Montgomery County District Attorneys Office. Unlike after Harvey, the courts are not completely shut down and are still working.

Hutson said her office is calling each domestic violence victim in Montgomery County to check-in with them and connect them with resources, as it usually does.

We want to make sure victims arent getting pushed to the side, said Hutson. They are vulnerable and in a position where access to resources is limited. Calling and asking if anyone can help can be a lifeline.

Failed protection

Advocates have previously taken issue with the states bond system, which they say regularly releases abusers with a documented history of violence and puts victims at a higher risk of being killed. Lax sentences for domestic violence convictions also dont help to deter recidivism, some say.

Every case needs a thorough risk-assessment, said Phan. Every case has nuances when it comes to survivors safety.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Judges, others call for closing immigration courts over coronavirus

Protective orders in Texas had previously lacked the teeth many advocates said were necessary.

The year following Harvey, 23 of the intimate partner femicides in Texas were committed by men with prior interactions with the criminal justice system related to domestic violence. Of those men, six were out on bond, parole or released supervision at the time of the slayings authorities say they committed. Four had prior felony domestic violence convictions.

Now, advocates say they fear getting protective orders during the pandemic will be more difficult than it was before.

Survivors already face obstacles in reporting their abuse, and added complications to the court process may deter them for coming forward, said Phan.

Were worried if theres not appropriate guidance at this point, there might be a chilling effect on applications for protective orders, she said.

Prevention efforts

Texas nonprofit shelters and advocacy groups are still in operation during the pandemic.

If youre worried about someone and youre not sure how to help, call a hotline and ask, Hutson said. People who can help set up a lifeline and feel like they can do something to help this person.

Emergencies like the spread of COVID-91 highlight pre-existing cracks in the system that place victims in danger, according to Phan, and the need for more support for advocacy organizations.

I hope it will make people realize the need to be prepared for disasters before they happen, she said. We dont want to wait until the next calamity to address the issues that were already present before the pandemic and hurricane.

hannah.dellinger@chron.com
Venezuela's opposition claimed Thursday that two members of leader Juan Guaido's team were arrested on the same day that he was due to appear before prosecutors investigating an alleged "attempted coup d'etat" and "magnicide." Demostenes Quijada and Maury Carrero were arrested at their homes on Thursday morning by military intelligence agents, Guaido's office said in a statement. "With this new assault by the dictatorship, there are now 10 members" of Guaido's team "that have been detained by security forces. Five of them in the last 72 hours," Guaido's office said on Twitter. Neither the government of President Nicolas Maduro, nor police or military authorities have confirmed the arrests. Around 30 officers "dressed in black, masked and with heavy weapons" took part in the operation to arrest Quijada, said Guaido's human rights representative, Humberto Prado, who accused the agents of "ransacking the home and arbitrarily confiscating" two family vehicles. A similar operation was conducted against Carrero, opposition lawmaker Delsa Solorzano said. The arrests happened on the same day Guaido had been called to appear before the public prosecutor. The subpoena, according to Attorney General Tarek William Saab, is based on an alleged seizure of firearms in Colombia that were due to be sent to Venezuela as part of a plot to assassinate Maduro and other high-ranking officials. Guaido was apparently implicated in the alleged plot by Cliver Alcala, a retired military leader who was close to late former president Hugo Chavez but fell out with his successor Maduro. Last week, Alcala turned himself over to Colombian authorities after he was one of more than a dozen present and former top Venezuelan officials -- including Maduro -- accused by the US of drug-trafficking. Washington had offered a reward for information leading to Alcala's capture, as well as those of the other figures the US accused. Alcala had been living in Colombia since falling out with Maduro. Guaido has ruled out appearing before Saab. "There's no point given he doesn't even have a position" of authority, Guaido told Miami-based online EVTV channel. Last year, Guaido declared himself acting president in a challenge to Maduro's authority and that of his regime. Guaido has been recognized as such by more than 50 countries, including Colombia, the US and much of the EU. Guaido doesn't recognize Maduro as president or other top officials such as Saab. The US, which on Wednesday launched an anti-drugs operation in the Caribbean, has warned Maduro's regime against arresting Guaido.
Instead of doing the regular April Fools' Day gimmick, Google has decided that it would not be doing this usual gimmick and instead, the company has chosen to celebrate the life of Dame Jean Macnamara who is a tireless polio researcher.

Instead of the company's homepage being a fun way to celebrate April Fools' Day or another usual gimmick, Google Doodle has decided to honor the polio doctor. This celebrates the 121st birthday of Dame Jean Macnamara.

Who exactly is Dame Jean Macnamara

On this very day way back 1899, Annie Jean Macnamara (who would later on be given the formal title "Dame") was born all the way in Victoria, Australia. Macnamara then graduated medical school when she was 23 years old and then joined the Royal Children's Hospital one year later. Macnamara then arrived just before the polio outbreak happened.

Read Also: Zoom is Compromised! Could Google Hangouts Meets Be Better?

Macnamara was able to witness firsthand the devastating effects of the poliovirus on children which then inspired her to put in significant work in order to find a vaccine for this polio! Her discovery was even more fruitful as she discovered that there was more than just one strain of this virus.

The efforts put in by Jean Macnamara had made a direct impact to the development of the very first polio vaccine in 1955 which ultimately earned her the esteemed award of Dame Commander of the royal Order of the British Empire.

The Google Doodle of Dame Jean Macnamara

The doodle in itself shows Dame Jean Macnamara working directly amongst children in order to give them hope that one day, they would be able to walk without crutches! The two sides of the mirror were used to symbolize the before and after scenario.

Thomas Campi was the artist behind this doodle of Dame Jean Macnamara and he shared in an article with 9TO5Google just how he felt as an artist to have Google itself commission a piece from him. Thomas Campi was first in disbelief when he received the email in a thorough explanation he gave.

Read Also: The Potato Microsoft Teams Mishap: Hilarious Boss Can't Get Rid of Her Filter During a Video Meeting!

How did Thomas Campi feel about his artwork being commissioned?

"Honestly, my first reaction was, 'Google's people asking me to work for them? I need to check this email and names to be sure it's all real!'" which was then followed up with him explaining that he has personally been seeing Google Doodles for quite a long time and that he thought that it would be a cool project to make.

"All the images I've seen so far are just wonderful. Now I can be part of this, and it's a nice feeling for an artist." Were the words used by Thomas Campi to express just how honored he felt to have his artwork commissioned by none other than Google Doodle itself!

Despite April Fools' Day, Google Doodle has decided to share a little light by honoring the life of Dame Jean Macnamara.
Boris Johnson's push to ramp up coronavirus testing is already falling behind schedule, even as the British prime minister called it the key to getting through the crisis.

Johnson told Parliament on March 18 he had set a target of 25,000 tests a day, which the Health Department said would be achieved within four weeks. But progress has been complicated by supply chain issues and global competition for vital chemicals, the government says, and the 25,000-a-day goal is now unlikely to be reached until the end of the month, according to a person familiar with the matter.

In addition to the public health implications of not being able to accurately track the spread of the disease, there's considerable political risk for Johnson from any further delays after he personally took responsibility for ramping up testing rates this week. Several major newspapers used Thursday's front pages to criticize the government's handling of the crisis.

Much of the focus has been on why the U.K. lags behind neighboring countries, in particular Germany, which conducts more than 50,000 tests a day. The U.K. currently has the capacity to process 12,750 daily, but has yet to fully utilize it.

Johnson's spokesman, James Slack, told reporters 10,412 tests were carried out on Tuesday, the latest data available, and accepted the U.K. hasn't been doing enough.

But according to two people familiar with the matter, comparing the two countries is unrealistic given the comparative advantage Germany has in pharmaceutical production and biotechnology. The country's federalized health system also means it has more laboratories and has more established capacity than the U.K. for manufacturing both ventilators and testing kits, one of the people said.

According to the most recent data from the World Health Organization, Germany also outspends the U.K. on health care by more than $750 per person, and has almost three times as many acute care beds per capita.

U.K. Health Minister Nadine Dorries pushed back on the Germany comparison in a series of tweets on Thursday.

"The answer could be that Germany has a number of small, niche life science companies/labs which source and assemble the complex group of chemical reagents used in the antibody tests," she wrote. Dorries also appeared to criticize the media's focus on testing, saying "it won't cut the number of deaths, it won't make people feel better or stop them catching coronavirus."

Yet in a video message late Wednesday, Johnson appeared to acknowledge the severity of the issue -- as well as the political reality that unfavorable comparisons with other nations are unlikely to go away unless capacity is increased.

He promised to "massively ramp-up" testing, which he described as "the way through" and "how we unlock the coronavirus puzzle."

The lack of testing capacity is having an immediate impact on the state-run National Health Service's capacity to cope with the outbreak because front-line workers with symptoms -- or living in households with other people showing them -- are self-isolating to avoid the risk of infecting their patients.

More than 2,800 tests on front-line NHS staff have been completed at drive-in test sites, Slack said on Thursday, and a "significant" number in hospital and Public Health England laboratories. There are about 1.3 million employees in the NHS.

The government is working with private companies, universities and other laboratories to boost capacity, Slack said.

Johnson, who Slack said continues to show mild symptoms of the Covid-19 virus, is also under fire over the decision to halt widespread testing in March. Instead, the government chose to limit tests to patients who were taken to hospital showing likely symptoms.

Health officials and some of his advisers have since indicated the decision was based on a lack of capacity as the disease spread in greater numbers.

But the policy also reflected the pursuit of so-called herd immunity, which Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance said at the time would need 60% of the U.K. population to catch the disease to work.

The strategy was abandoned when scientific modeling made clear the NHS didn't have enough critical care beds to cope with the outbreak. The government has since said it now sees widespread testing as the key to getting through the pandemic, including ending a nationwide lockdown.

"This is how we will defeat it in the end," Johnson said.
Federal and state officials in Alabama are joining forces to uncover, investigate, prosecute and dismantle any fraud related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

U. S. Attorney Jay E. Town for the Northern District of Alabama, U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin for the Middle District of Alabama, U.S. Attorney Richard W. Moore for the Southern District of Alabama, and Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall are targeting not only fraud, but price gouging, or scarce material hoarding, according to a joint announcement made Thursday.

While the crisis has brought out the very best in most Americans, there are those unfortunate exceptions among us that the rule of law will deal with, Town said. There is no daylight between Alabamas three United States Attorneys and the Alabamas Attorney General. We will not allow a public health crisis become a public safety crisis.

Unfortunately, criminals have never seen a crisis that they couldnt find a way to exploit, Franklin said. They will use any tragedy or crisis to take advantage of those who are most vulnerable and in need of assistance. I would remind everyone to remain vigilant and always verify offers or claims before making any decision with regard to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is critical that our citizens be aware that various frauds are being attempted during this coronavirus pandemic, Moore said. I encourage everyone to read the list of potential scams below and be prepared to exercise common sense caution if you are contacted by anyone pitching anything resembling one of these scenarios.

Marshall said they are closely watching for any criminal who preys on residents during this time of crisis. Whether through scams targeting a victims confidential information or price gouging the public, those who seek to exploit the vulnerable during this time of emergency are on our radar.

Some examples of coronavirus and COVID-19 scams include:

 Treatment scams: Scammers are offering to sell fake cures, vaccines, and advice on unproven treatments for COVID-19.

 Hoarding and Price Gouging scams: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has designated certain health and medical resources necessary to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic as scarce, including respirator masks, ventilators, and other medical protective equipment. These designated materials are subject to the hoarding prevention measures that trigger both criminal and civil remedies.

 Supply scams: Scammers are creating fake shops, websites, social media accounts, and email addresses claiming to sell medical supplies currently in high demand, such as surgical masks. When consumers attempt to purchase supplies through these channels, fraudsters pocket the money and never provide the promised supplies.

 Provider scams: Scammers are also contacting people by phone and email, pretending to be doctors and hospitals that have treated a friend or relative for COVID-19, and demanding payment for that treatment.

 Charity scams: Scammers are soliciting donations for individuals, groups, and areas affected by COVID-19.

 Phishing scams: Scammers posing as national and global health authorities, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), are sending phishing emails designed to trick recipients into downloading malware or providing personal identifying and financial information.

 App scams: Scammers are also creating and manipulating mobile apps designed to track the spread of COVID-19 to insert malware that will compromise users devices and personal information.

 Investment scams: Scammers are offering online promotions on various platforms, including social media, claiming that the products or services of publicly traded companies can prevent, detect, or cure COVID-19, and that the stock of these companies will dramatically increase in value as a result. These promotions are often styled as "research reports," make predictions of a specific "target price," and relate to microcap stocks, or low-priced stocks issued by the smallest of companies with limited publicly available information.

Check Scams: Scammers are contacting people over email and are telling them that their check, as part of the stimulus package responding to COVID-19, is already waiting for them and that all they need to do is to provide personal information, such as bank account numbers and Social Security Numbers, which are the key pieces of information needed to perpetrate identity theft.

Anyone who believes they have been a target or victim of a scam or fraud, or who has knowledge of any hoarding or price-gouging of critical medical supplies, is asked to report it to:

 National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or via email at www.disaster@leo.gov

 Consumer Interest Division of the Alabama Attorney Generals Office using the online form available at https://www.alabamaag.gov/consumercomplaint, or by calling 1-800-392-5658
Over 2,000 delegates, including from Indonesia and Malaysia, attended the congregation from 1-15 March in the Nizamuddin area in New Delhi (PTI)

Shravasti (UP): An FIR has been registered against nine clerics who returned from the Tablighi Jamaat's congregation in New Delhi's Nizamuddin last month and were hiding in a madrassa on the Nepal border, police said on Thursday.

They have been booked under IPC Sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease).

"Police found nine maulanas, residents of Amroha, in a madrassa in the Jamunaha locality of the Malhipur area where they were hiding on Wednesday. They arrived here on March 13 and stayed in a mosque too,"SP Anup Kumar said.

They neither informed the administration about their presence nor volunteered for the medial examination, the SP said, adding that they have been quarantined in the madarssa itself.
RADNOR, PA / ACCESSWIRE / April 2, 2020 / The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP reminds investors that a securities fraud class action lawsuit has been filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida against Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NCLH) ("Norwegian") on behalf of those who purchased or otherwise acquired Norwegian publicly traded securities between February 20, 2020 and March 12, 2020, inclusive (the "Class Period").

Important Deadline: Investors who purchased or otherwise acquired Norwegian securities during the Class Period may, no later than May 11, 2020 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. For additional information or to learn how to participate in this litigation please click https://www.ktmc.com/norwegian-cruise-line-holdings-securities-class-action?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=norwegian%20cruise.

According to the complaint, Norwegian is a global cruise company which operates the Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands. On August 1, 2017, Norwegian updated its Code of Ethical Business Conduct, which is posted on its website. The Code of Ethical Business Conduct, available throughout the Class Period, discussed health and safety standards, stating in relevant part that its environmental, health and safety "programs are designed to ensure the preservation of the environment, and safety and security of [Norwegian]'s guests, team members and vendors." In December of 2019, a novel coronavirus strain, COVID-19, was detected in the city of Wuhan in Hubei province, China. Since then, the virus has spread to numerous countries. The spread of COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the cruise industry, with reports of canceled trips and half-empty ships.

The Class Period commences on February 20, 2020, when Norwegian filed a Form 8-K with the SEC. Attached to the Form 8-K was a press release reporting on Norwegian's financial results for the quarter and full year ended December 31, 2019. In that press release, the defendants discussed positive outlooks for Norwegian in spite of the COVID-19.

Story continues

On March 11, 2020, the Miami New Times reported in an article "Leaked Emails: Norwegian Pressures Sales Team to Mislead Potential Customers About Coronavirus" that leaked emails from a Norwegian employee showed that Norwegian directed its sales staff to lie to customers regarding COVID-19. Further, the Miami New Times article revealed the financial impact the COVID-19 outbreak was causing on Norwegian and its employees. Following this news, Norwegian's share price fell $5.47 per share, or approximately 26.7%, to close at $15.03 per share on March 11, 2020.

The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Norwegian was employing sales tactics of providing customers with unproven and/or blatantly false statements about COVID-19 to entice customers to purchase cruises, thus endangering the lives of both their customers and crew members; and (2) as a result, the defendants' statements regarding Norwegian's business and operations were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times.

If you wish to discuss this securities fraud class action lawsuit or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests with respect to this litigation, please contact Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check (James Maro, Jr., Esq. or Adrienne Bell, Esq.) at (844) 877-9500 (toll free) or (610) 667-7706, or via e-mail at info@ktmc.com .

Norwegian investors may, no later than May 11, 2020 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, or other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed as a lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check prosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country involving securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duties and other violations of state and federal law. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has recovered billions of dollars on behalf of institutional and individual investors from the United States and around the world. The firm represents investors, consumers and whistleblowers (private citizens who report fraudulent practices against the government and share in the recovery of government dollars). The complaint in this action was not filed by Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check. For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, please visit www.ktmc.com.

CONTACT:

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

James Maro, Jr., Esq.

Adrienne Bell, Esq.

280 King of Prussia Road

Radnor, PA 19087

(844) 877-9500 (toll free)

(610) 667-7706

info@ktmc.com

SOURCE: Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP





View source version on accesswire.com:

https://www.accesswire.com/583680/INVESTOR-ALERT-KESSLER-TOPAZ-MELTZER-CHECK-LLP-REMINDS-NORWEGIAN-CRUISE-LINE-HOLDINGS-LTD-INVESTORS-OF-CLASS-ACTION-LAWSUIT




Australia has announced that families will be provided free childcare for six months as part of a bid to keep businesses operating through the coronavirus pandemic, as data on new infections supported early signs of flattening the curve.

The childcare centre subsidy adds to a growing list of support packages worth some A$200 billion (98bn) as the government attempts to hibernate the Australian economy, to be reawakened when the crisis has passed.

We will demonstrate to the world here in Australia how such societies can deal with these sort of challenges our way, the Australian way, Mr Morrison said during a televised press conference. So stay positive, Australia. Stay connected, stay strong. We will get through this together.

Mr Morrison and state officials have introduced unprecedented restrictions on public movement to stop the spread of the virus and said that data on new infections continued to show those efforts were paying off.

Australia has reported around 5,200 infections and 25 deaths, with daily increases in new cases dropping to single digits from between 25 per cent and 30 per cent two weeks ago.

Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Show all 13 1 /13 Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Ringwood, Hampshire With flights grounded around the world due to the coronavirus outbreak, photographers have been able to capture stunning images of star trails - the streaks of light left by stars as the earth rotates - without the usual interruption caused by air traffic. Nick Lucas/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Miserden, Gloucestershire Using long exposure times, the shifting positions of the stars relative to Earth's rotation can be captured to create a striking orbital effect. Brian Johns/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Highams Park, London One photographer who has been taking advantage the quiet of skies, Jawad Saleem, said: I've travelled up and down the country in search of elusive clear skies. Isolation and lockdown meant I had to be creative in capturing my favourite subject. Jawad Saleem/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Ramshaw Rocks, Staffordshire Ben Lockett, a student from Staffordshire, also noted how the new social conditions assisted him greatly in capturing pictures during his daily exercise slot. Ben Lockett/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Shropshire I usually end up spending a lot of time removing light trails caused by passing aircraft, but I only had one plane to remove from these images, instead of the usual 20-30! Andrew Fusek Peters/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Hampshire Photographer Andrew Whyte described the process of getting his shots despite the restrictions to travel imposed by the government. Andrew Whyte/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Hampshire On Friday night I continued to observe the lockdown and didnt even cross the threshold of my front door, he said. Andrew Whyte/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Coaly Peak, Gloucestershire One photographer who has been taking advantage the quiet of skies, Jawad Saleem, said: I've travelled up and down the country in search of elusive clear skies. Isolation and lockdown meant I had to be creative in capturing my favourite subject. Brian Johns/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Shropshire At a time when thered usually be a steady passage of friends and couples on their way home from the pub or taxis dropping off partygoers, I saw a single person out for a walk and no cars at all. Nick Jackson/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Hampshire - Before lockdown Light trails through the sky from air traffic can cause a major visual distraction in star trail images. Removing these trails is a time-consuming task so its a real bonus to not have to do it. Andrew Whyte/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Leicestershire Mark Humpage/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Shropshire Nick Jackson/SWNS Grounding of flights allows stunning photos of star trails Portishead, North Somerset Jon Mills/SWNS

The curve is beginning to flatten, Greg Hunt, the health minister, said. It isn't sustained yet, it hasn't been consolidated, but those early, important signs are absolutely critical.

Mr Morrison said on Thursday the country's testing rate was now more than 1,000 tests per 100,000 people, or 1 per cent of the population.

We are the first country to the best of our knowledge that has been able to exceed that mark, Mr Morrison said.

Childcare centres have lost significant business in recent weeks as thousands of people shifted to working at home, or were made redundant.

Mr Morrison said the subsidy would keep about 13,000 childcare centres open by paying them A$1.6 billion over the next three months. The full subsidies will last for six months, when they will be reviewed.

Keeping the centres open would also allow critical workers from medical professionals to cleaners and food deliverers to continue to work, Mr Morrison said.

Australia has ordered the closure of restaurants, cafes, bars, movie theatres and instructed people to stay inside unless they are shopping for food or taking their daily exercise as it tries to contain the Covid-19 outbreak.

The restrictions are expected to push the country's A$2 trillion economy into its first recession in almost three decades and lift unemployment to double figures.

Reuters
WASHINGTON  Peter T. Gaynor, the federal governments top emergency manager, was about to go on television last week to announce that he would use wartime production powers to ensure the manufacture of about 60,000 desperately needed coronavirus test kits.

With minutes until the camera went live, though, he still had to let the White House know. The person he hurriedly called: Jared Kushner, the presidents son-in-law and senior adviser, who endorsed an announcement that surprised many officials. Among those unaware that Mr. Kushner had agreed to the use of the special powers? President Trump.

At one of the most perilous moments in modern American history, Mr. Kushner is trying in a disjointed White House to marshal the forces of government for the war his father-in-law says he is waging. A real estate developer with none of the medical expertise of a public health official nor the mobilization experience of a general, Mr. Kushner has nonetheless become a key player in the response to the pandemic.

Because of his unique status, he has made himself the point of contact for many agency officials who know that he can force action and issue decisions without going to the president. But while Mr. Kushner and his allies say that he has brought more order to the process, the governments response remains fragmented and behind the curve.
[April 02, 2020] Shareholder Alert: Robbins LLP Announces Tupperware Brands Corporation (TUP) Sued for Misleading Shareholders

Shareholder rights law firm Robbins LLP announces that a purchaser of Tupperware Brands Corporation (NYSE: TUP) filed a class action complaint against the Company for alleged violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 between January 30, 2019 and February 24, 2020. Tupperware operates as a direct-to-consumer marketer of various products across a range of brands and categories in various regions. If you suffered a loss as a result of Tupperware's misconduct, click here. Tupperware Brands Corporation (TUP) Accused of Misleading Shareholders According to the complaint, on February 26, 2019, Tupperware filed its annual report on Form 10-K for fiscal year 2018, concluding that "the Company's internal control over financial reporting was effecive as of the end of the period covered by the report." Tupperware continued to attest to the accuracy of its financial reporting in later quarterly 2019 reports and repeatedly assured that there had been no changes in its internal controls. Despite these statements, on February 24, 2020, Tupperware announced that it would be unable to file its annual report for fiscal year ended December 28, 2019, revealing that it was "conducting an investigation primarily into accounting for accounts payable and accrued liabilities at its Fuller Mexico beauty business." The Company disclosed that total impairments for Fuller Mexico are expected to be approximately $31 million. Tupperware also stated "the Company is forecasting a need for relief concerning its existing leverage its $650 million credit agreement to avoid a potential acceleration of debt, which could have a material adverse impact on the Company." On this news, Tupperware's stock price plummeted 45.6% to close at $3.11.



Tupperware Brands Corporation (TUP) Shareholders Have Legal Options Contact us to learn more:

Leo Kandinov

(800) 350-6003

[email protected]

Shareholder Information Form

Robbins LLP is a nationally recognized leader in shareholder rights law. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in shareholder derivative and securities class action lawsuits, and has helped its clients realize more than $1 billion of value for themselves and the companies in which they have invested. Click here to receive free alerts from Stock Watch when companies engage in wrongdoing. Attorney Advertising. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005862/en/

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A king dies, another is crowned, a friend is executed, a battle won against monumental odds and the enemy's daughter married off. Game of Thrones? No, Shakespeare's Henry V. Just as compelling, it's also better written, and, if you get sucked into Shakespeare, you can binge-watch for hundreds of hours.

One of the best is freely available on YouTube: Orson Welles' skin-crawling 1948 production of Macbeth, in which Dunsinane is all clotted rocks, crags and chasms, rather than a castle. Welles fearlessly reshaped the text, while thickening the play's dark spirit, so the witches are wraiths that would trouble the dreams of a saint. He plays Macbeth himself, amid gloomy, portentous lighting, barely showing half of anyone's face. Jeanette Nolan is a sensational Lady Macbeth: implying much that's left unsaid, and sensuously whispering sweet treasons in her husband's ear. With the dialogue recorded in advance, the shoot took only 23 days, and the pace is as frantic as any thriller  almost too fast to catch the verse.

Orson Welles in his skin-crawling 1948 production of Macbeth.

By contrast Justin Kurzel's 2015 Macbeth, starring Michael Fassbender, has too much murmuring. Yet Fassbender can sometimes rattle your bones even more than Welles, as when he rasps, "O, full of scorpions is my mind." Marion Cotillard is a supreme Lady M, her screen-time cunningly inflated by Kurzel.

When Laurence Olivier starred in his 1948 Hamlet, being 15 years too old for the role was barely noteworthy: Eileen Herlie, as his mother, was 13 years his junior! Talk about adding a certain frisson. Nonetheless the production is brilliant at its best, partly thanks to the exquisite cinematography. Sometimes, however, Olivier can sound more like a trumpet in William Walton's high-stakes score than a ruminating prince: a Hamlet who can fly into such passions would surely be more precipitate.
[April 02, 2020] Epsilor's 6T Military Lithium Batteries Outperform in Bullet Penetration and Thermal Runaway Tests

BEIT SHEMESH, Israel, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Epsilor's line of Lithium 6T NATO batteries performed successfully in a series of bullet penetration tests, meeting US Army requirements and Israeli Defense Forces combat scenarios. In a series of tests performed from December 2019 to March 2020, Epsilor's 6T batteries achieved the following results: A lithium-ion LFP 6T battery packed in a metal container did not disintegrate or explode, and did not release particles after being penetrated by a 7.62mm armor-piercing incendiary bullet. In addition, a scaled-down 6T LFP battery that was exposed to an external temperature of 500C entered a thermal runaway. The battery did not disintegrate and did not release particles containing the thermal runaway effect.





Lithium-ion NCA and LFP 6T batteries installed in external fireproof cases within a vehicle battery compartment were not damaged and continued operating after an adjacent battery was penetrated by a 7.62mm armor-piercing incendiary bullet. The tests were performed to address the operational requirements of the US army Ground Vehicle Systems Center (GVSC) MIL-PRF-32565B and the IDF demand for operational continuity of a combat vehicle when the battery compartment experiences a direct hit by enemy fire. "The outstanding results demonstrate that 6T lithium batteries can be safely used onboard military vehicles in battle, ensuring crew safety and mission continuity," said Epsilor president Ronen Badichi. "This series of tests has been addressing the main cause for hesitation among military and industry users, prior to wide-scale implementation of lithium batteries in armored vehicles." In order to ensure superior theral performance, two main configurations will be offered:



Batteries installed within crew compartments  A lithium LFP 6T battery assembled in a metal container, incorporating directional pressure relief. This battery is designed to relieve the pressure generated inside a burning battery, while ensuring no articles are released from the battery and that no heat or gas is directed or released towards the crew. When installed on armored vehicles, such pressure relief is directed towards external parts of the vehicle or a manifold, enabling safe release of pressure and gas to the open air outside the vehicle.



Following the new series of tests reported by Epsilor, the company also asserts that its 6T battery design proved to be sufficient withstanding a 7.62mm bullet penetration or exposure to external temperature of 500C.







 A lithium LFP 6T battery assembled in a metal container, incorporating directional pressure relief. This battery is designed to relieve the pressure generated inside a burning battery, while ensuring no articles are released from the battery and that no heat or gas is directed or released towards the crew. When installed on armored vehicles, such pressure relief is directed towards external parts of the vehicle or a manifold, enabling safe release of pressure and gas to the open air outside the vehicle. Following the new series of tests reported by Epsilor, the company also asserts that its 6T battery design proved to be sufficient withstanding a 7.62mm bullet penetration or exposure to external temperature of 500C. Batteries installed outside crew compartments  When higher energy is required on-board and the vehicle facilitates an external battery compartment that is not directly exposed to the crew, Epsilor recommends to use its high energy density Lithium NCA 6T batteries. In addition, the use of fireproof composite cases can contain both thermal and kinetic impacts of a thermal runaway of this high energy battery ensuring mission continuity by preventing propagation of heat and fire to adjacent batteries. Also in this case, the battery has been tested in a scenario of bullet penetration. About Epsilor Epsilor is a globally recognized developer and manufacturer of custom and standard batteries, chargers and mobile power management systems for the defense, medical, aerospace, industrial, IOT and marine markets. The company offers a wide variety of electro-chemistries, smart electronics and sophisticated battery management systems (BMS). The company's products have won several international awards for their innovation and smart operational approach. Epsilor is part of the US-based Arotech Corporation. To learn more, visit Epsilor at www.epsilor.com or follow Epsilor on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. Legal Notice Except for the historical information herein, the matters discussed in this release include forward-looking statements, as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and are subject to various risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to vary materially. Contact Person

Felix Frisch

VP Marketing and Sales

Epsilor Electric Fuel Ltd.

+972-54-8811043

[email protected] View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/epsilors-6t-military-lithium-batteries-outperform-in-bullet-penetration-and-thermal-runaway-tests-301034139.html SOURCE Epsilor

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The FTSE 100 closed up 0.47 per cent or 25.65 points at 5,480.22 and the pound was at $1.24 against the dollar.

But traders are haunted by the rising US coronavirus death toll, and braced for more signs of economic pain in the world's largest economy.

British Airways is suspending around 36,000 staff due to the coronavirus. The airline has reached a broad deal with the Unite union that will include the suspension of 80 per cent of its cabin crew, ground staff, engineers and head office workers.

Boeing is set to offer buyout and early retirement packages to employees, two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in a bid to mitigate the financial fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, has announced that it will cancel its dividend and cut capital expenditure by 400million to save money. It has also postponed the sale of its stake in Spirit Energy until energy markets stabilise.








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In the last days, more and more scientists and researchers have raised their voices claiming that coronavirus and the new 5G technology could be related (watch video above).

This time, a renowned American physician, Dr Thomas Cowan, allegedly affirmed that the virus is just a reaction of the human organism to the waves generated by 5G devices.

According to a report published on South African news site IOL, Mr Cowan says every time a fundamentally new electrical technology is introduced, we see a pandemic.

A biological shock wave occurs, because our organism does not know what to do with the stressful new situation. Many people die and the rest survive, but with an excited biology," Cowan said, quoted by IOL. This happened in 1918 with the Spanish flu, which occurred with the worldwide introduction of radio traffic, he added.

The physician agrees with the late Austrian philosopher and anthroposophist Rudolf Steiner, who said in 1918, about the Spanish Flu: viruses have nothing to do with it. Viruses are reactions of the poisoned cell that, in defence against the poison itself, secretes the viruses to allow the cell to survive. Viruses are therefore waste products of the human cells and therefore do nothing themselves.

According to IOL, one version of 5G, called millimetre wave, runs on very high-frequency radio waves. That has reignited worries that the 5G radio waves  emanating from land and in space  could produce harmful radiation, causing brain cancer, reduced fertility, headaches and other illnesses, the article states.

Along these lines, many organisations and activists have also expressed concern about 5G technology. "More than 4 000 people have signed a petition on www.change.org to stop 5G rollout in Cape Town, South Africa, and while we're at it, the world, the report mentions. Hout Bay local Angie Curtis has also organised a Facebook group opposed to 5G technology, it continues.

Draw your own conclusions

For more information: https://www.iol.co.za/capetimes/news/watch-debate-raging-on-link-between-5g-technology-coronavirus-pandemic-45124913
Mumbai, April 2 : Amid the coronavirus pandemic, actress Karisma Kapoor has revealed that she along with her children, Samaira and Kiaan, will be extending financial support to the PM-CARES Fund and Maharashtra CM's Relief Fund.

The actress took to Instagram on Thursday to share the update, while urging her fans and followers to pitch in as every small bit will help the government fight the coronavirus outbreak.

"Every life matters, which is why my children Samaira and Kiaan and I pledge our support to the PM CARES Fund and The Chief Minister's Relief Fund (Maharashtra). A small contribution can go a long way. Do your bit... for our country, for humanity," read an image posted by the actress.

"We donated , please donate too.. a small contribution can help so many lives.. #indiafightscorona #jaihind," she wrote as a caption to the image.

The "Dil To Pagal Hai" actor, however, didn't reveal the amount of donation.

With the donation, Karisma has joined her sister Kareena Kapoor Khan -- who along with her husband Saif Ali Khan and son Taimur Ali Khan pledged her support to the PM Cares Fund and Maharashtra CM's Relief Fund.

Other celebrities including Akshay Kumar, Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, and Vicky Kaushal, have extended support to the PM Cares Fund as well.
Police have launched a murder investigation following the death of a man and a woman in Lambeth (Kirsty OConnor/PA Wire)

Six people have been arrested on suspicion of murder following the deaths of a man and a woman in Lambeth, south London.

Metropolitan Police were called just after 4pm on Wednesday to Dorset Road to concerns for the welfare of a man.

Officers and London Ambulance Service attended and two people were found inside the address with multiple stab injuries.

A 44-year-old-man and a 56-year-old woman were pronounced dead at the scene.

Police said inquiries are ongoing to trace their next of kin.

Detectives from the Mets specialist crime command south launched a murder investigation and arrested six people on suspicion of murder.

Police said they have all been taken into custody.

Detective Chief Inspector Richard Leonard, who is leading the investigation, said: I understand that this is an extremely shocking incident for the residents of this area and the wider community.

The investigation is at a very early stage but my team and I are working hard to establish the full circumstances that led up to this tragic incident.

If anybody has any information that could help our investigation please do get in contact.

Any witnesses or anyone with information should call police on 101, or the incident room on 020 8345 3775, quoting reference CAD4286/01April.

To remain anonymous, contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
More than half a million Irish people are signing on the live register and over 300,000 of these are people who are being paid some form of Covid-19 pandemic unemployment benefit by the state, according to the latest CSO figures.

The Central Statistics Office figures show that the unadjusted Live Register total stands at 205,209 for March 2020. Alongside this 283,037 people were in receipt of the coronavirus Pandemic Unemployment Payment. A further 25,104 persons benefitted from the Temporary COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme.

The CSO says a range of measures have been introduced by the Government in relation to providing income support for those whose employment has been affected due to the Covid-19 pandemic in Ireland. The available schemes are being administered by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection (DEASP) and the Revenue Commissioners.

Edel Flannery, Senior Statistician, CSO explains the approach taken today with regard to the publication of todays Live Register and COVID-19 payments:

The majority of those whose income from employment has been affected due to COVID-19 are currently being facilitated through the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment which is administered by the DEASP, while a smaller cohort are currently being facilitated through the Revenue Temporary COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme," he said.

The Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Regina Doherty emphasised that the publication of todays Live Register figures were a stark reminder of how much has changed in the space of a few weeks and the scale of the employment challenge posed by the Covid-19 emergency.

This it is perhaps the most unique Live Register data ever published by the CSO and reflects both the huge shock to the labour market arising from the public health measures to address the Covid pandemic and the statistical challenge faced by the CSO to accurately measure unemployment in these circumstances.

When the last Live Register figures were published, in February, we recorded a further fall in the numbers and we were still talking about being technically at full employment. The COVID emergency has completely up-ended that narrative. The crucial challenge for the Government is that we dont let what is a temporary health emergency become a permanent economic crisis.

The measures we have introduced  at breakneck speed  such as the COVID Unemployment Payment, an enhanced illness benefit scheme, the extension of the fuel allowance grant and the wage subsidy scheme are providing immediate relief and have shown that this country can rise to significant challenges, that its people can, and do, support each other in times of need.

First and foremost, this is a health emergency and our highest priority has to be the protection of public health and human life, preventing the spread of the virus and working to mitigate its impact on our people. However, the income supports we have introduced are crucial to alleviate the financial hardship that so many now face and will also play an important role in sustaining incomes and positioning the economy for what we hope will be a fast recovery.

In particular, I would like to commend those employers who have availed of the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme. Maintaining the link between employer and employee will be crucial for when we come out the other side of this, to reboot businesses as soon as possible so that people can start going back to work quickly, she said.

The Minister stated that her Department is continuing to process more claims from income support arising from the temporary lay-offs from employment that are arising from the further public health measures announced last Friday. She assured people who are being temporarily laid off that her Department is dealing with these income support claims and putting them into payment as quickly as possible.

The Minister also pointed out that her Department has today published an updated information notice for employers and employees, including Frequently Asked Questions and Answers (FAQs) and it is available here.

This document provides basic information in respect of the income supports now available from the Department together with answers to the most commonly asked questions.
WOOD RIVER  The number of Madison County residents testing positive for coronavirus rose by 50 percent between Tuesday and Wednesday as state officials said the coming weeks will become more and more difficult as numbers escalate.

Madison Countys cases count jumped from 18 to 27, with no deaths reported, according to the Madison County Health Department. The departments figures differ slightly from the Illinois Department of Public Health which lists 25 cases in the county.

Local health department data states the patients include 12 women and 15 men from their 30s to 70s; their locations were not released. County officials say there are 89 tests pending.

At Gov. J.B. Pritzkers Wednesday briefing, IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said the number of cases statewide has grown by 986 to 6,980. Deaths increased by 42, up to 141.

St. Clair County had reported 53 cases and two deaths as of Wednesday, according to state figures. No cases have been reported in Macoupin, Greene, Jersey and Calhoun counties.

As of about 1 p.m. Wednesday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 186,101 cases in the U.S, and 3,603 deaths. Current projections have the pandemic peaking in the U.S. by mid-to-late April. The White House coronavirus task force on Tuesday projected 100,000 to 240,000 deaths from the virus  as well as potentially millions of infected people  even with stay-at-home and social distancing protocols.

Ezike said the coming weeks will become more difficult, but told people not to be discouraged. She continued to emphasize the need for social distancing, good hygiene and continued cleaning of surfaces that people come in contact with.

These are the courageous acts that will save lives and stop this epidemic, she said. We will see an end to this pandemic, and I thank you for your steadfastness.

On its Facebook page, the Madison County Health Department shared graphics showing the effects of social distancing in St. Louis and Philadelphia during the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic. St. Louis saw a gradual rise in cases October-December 1918, peaking at about 50 deaths per 100,000. In Philadelphia, the number over several weeks rose to about 250 deaths per 100,000.

Since social distancing was enacted right after the first cases were reported, St. Louis helped to keep the spread down, the post stated.

The department is also touting a shop safe campaign encouraging people to shop online and use delivery or pick up. They also encourage families to have just one person shop, with one cart, while others stay home.

Pritzker on Tuesday said about 1,100 former or out-of-state healthcare workers have responded to the states call for volunteers. The state has created an emergency alert system for healthcare workers at www.illinoishelps.net. Illinois also is working on ways to allow fourth-year medical students and nursing students help with the pandemic.

He also spoke of the Arts for Illinois collaboration between the state, Chicago and philanthropists to aid nonprofit art agencies and individual artists. Located online at www.artsforillinois.org, the group provides a platform for musical performances, theater and art displays.

Pritzker also joined a number of governors seeking a special enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. He said Illinois has about 800,000 uninsured residents and 500,000 could sign up for the ACA tomorrow if the federal government would open up.

He said those unemployed because of COVID-19 can enroll for health care because it is a qualifying life event.

For information about COVID-19 visit www.madisonchd.org, www.coronavirus.illinois.gov, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus, and the Madison County Health Department, Madison County Government and Madison County EMA social media sites.

For more about COVID-19 and resources available, visit the Madison County Health Departments coronavirus page at www.co.madison.il.us/departments/health/corona_virus.php, call the IDPH hotline at 800-889-3931 or email dph.sick@illinois.gov.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 16:48:05|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- China will continue deepening international cooperation on responding to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the National Health Commission (NHC) said Thursday.

China will support the Group of 20 (G20) to enhance information sharing, policy coordination and active cooperation, prepare for the G20 health ministers' meeting and cooperate on medicine and vaccine development, said Li Mingzhu, an official with the NHC, at a press conference.

China will also join hands with relevant parties to stop the disease from transmitting across borders and help countries with weak public health systems improve their response capabilities, Li said.

Further efforts will be made to intensify the building of health emergency networks through regional cooperation mechanisms between China and Japan, the Republic of Korea, and countries in Southeast Asia and Central and East Europe, Li said.

"Our experts have made exchanges with their counterparts in over 100 countries and regions through more than 40 video conferences to share China's experience in fighting COVID-19," Li said.

Recently, the Chinese government has donated 20 million U.S. dollars to the World Health Organization (WHO) to support it in carrying out international cooperation in fighting the pandemic.

China supports the WHO to play a leading role in the global fight against the disease, Li added.
New Delhi, April 2 : Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will be contributing to the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) Fund that has been formed for combating the coronavirus pandemic. The announcement was made in a joint statement released by co-owner and Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan's group of companies with the other entities also making a slew of other contributions.

"Kolkata Knight Riders, the IPL franchise co-owned by Gauri Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Juhi Chawla Mehta and Jay Mehta has committed to contributing to the PM Cares Fund," the statement said.

KKR also tweeted copies of the statement saying: "Whilst we stay safe at home,many r working for our safety & fending for themselves. Here's our little contribution to ensure their health & well being!Separate but together,we will overcome (sic)!" "This crisis is not going to pass in a hurry, it will take its time and its toll on all of us. It will also show us that there isn't really a choice between looking out for ourselves and looking out for one another. There's nothing more obvious in the spread of this pandemic, than the fact that each one of us is inextricably connected to each other, without any distinction," said Shah Rukh in the statement.

"As a nation, and as a people, it is our duty to give it all we've got. I am going to try my best and I know each one of you will do so too. Only together we will be able to fight through these difficult and unimaginable days. Together, we will overcome." The 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) was initially scheduled to start on March 29. However, the outbreak of coronavirus in India led to the start date being shifted to April 15 which is also now under a cloud of uncertainty due to the three-week lockdown that has been put up in the country to fight against the pandemic that has killed over 50 people in India and nearly 50,000 worldwide.
A Pittsburgh-area pastor says he will hold an outdoor 'like Woodstock Easter service to protest coronavirus social-distancing guidelines.

Evangelist Jonathan Shuttlesworth of Revival Today ministry has protested the arrest of Rodney Howard-Browne in Florida for holding worship services and violating county orders to limit gatherings and stay at home because of the coronavirus pandemic.

In a video posted on March 30, Shuttlesworth said, If they are arresting preachers now for having church then I am going to start dressing like an outlaw so I look good for my mugshot.

Shuttlesworth referred to Howard-Browne as, my best friend, possibly my only friend in the whole world.

According to Fox29News, Shuttlesworth said, Were gonna hold an outdoor Easter blowout service. Not online. A national gathering. You come from all over, like Woodstock. And were gonna gather and lift up Jesus Christ.

On March 31, Shuttlesworth, on his Check the News program on YouTube talked about the Easter service he is planning. Shuttlesworth said he is seeking a property where he can hold an outdoor event for a large number of people and will announce the location at a later date.

We are going to have a huge Easter service so stay tuned. It has to be somebody that owns private property that can hold a lot of people, he said.

Shuttlesworth mentioned being in central Pa. in 2011 for a worship service that he said was held at Haars Drive-In in Dillsburg. Shuttlesworth said that 2011 event was planned for Celebration Community Church but was moved outside because of the number of people attending.

That was actually the breakthrough of my ministry, he said.

There is no indication that the Easter event could be held at Haars.

Shuttlesworth said he also is conferring with security and lawyers.

Shuttlesworth said that government orders to not hold in-person church services are a violation of the First Amendment.

KDKA post a story about the plans, which Lt. Gov. John Fetterman reacted to on Twitter.

Yinz stay in thy haus, Jagoff. https://t.co/kzLSfQJva5  John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) April 1, 2020

Right-wing evangelist Jonathan Shuttlesworth, a close friend of Rodney Howard-Browne, says he intends to hold a large Woodstock-like Christian gathering in defiance of stay-at-home orders. pic.twitter.com/sn5Pvt1NA5  Right Wing Watch (@RightWingWatch) March 31, 2020

MORE CORONAVIRUS NEWS ON PENNLIVE
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday filed a case to probe the March 25 terror attack on a gurudwara in Kabul, Afghanistan, in which 27 Sikhs including an Indian citizen were killed by four gunmen. It is the first time that an Indian agency has decided to investigate a terror attack on foreign soil in which an Indian citizen fell victim.

The NIA has registered its case under criminal conspiracy and terror charges. An NIA official, who didnt wish to be named, said: We will first seek all the documents from Afghanistan authorities through official channels to see what kind of evidence they have collected so far. A team will later visit Kabul.

Tian Singh, a resident of Greater Kailash Part-I in Delhi, was among the 27 Sikhs killed in the attack, which took place when there were 150 worshippers in the Gurudwara.

The Narendra Modi government last year amended the NIA Act, empowering the agency to investigate terror activities against Indians and Indian interests abroad apart from cyber crimes and human trafficking. The amended law came into force on August 2, 2019.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has such powers and an FBI team had even travelled to India to investigate the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in 2008 in which six American citizens were among the more than 160 killed.

The Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) had claimed responsibility for the Kabul terror attack, saying it was staged to avenge alleged atrocities on Muslims in Kashmir.

Initial investigations have revealed that one of the attackers in the Kabul attack was Muhsin alias Abu Khalid al-Hindi, a resident of Keralas Kasargod district, who had left India around five-six years ago. Others who left Kerala to join Islamic State are also under the scanner.

Indian officials suspect that a few others from Kasargod who left India in 2016 to join the Islamic State, including a man known simply as Sajid, is also behind the Kabul attack. A large number of ISKP members are said to be from India including those who travelled to Afghanistan from Keralas Palakkad and Kasargod.

Indian agencies are not ruling out the role of Pakistans spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in helping Mushin, who was killed by Afghan security forces, and others involved in the attack as there are reports that he first joined the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba and later switched to the Islamic State.

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A trio of factories in Michigan prisons that normally make prisoner clothing have switched to making masks and other personal protective equipment to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

The goal is to make roughly 150,000 cloth masks, so every employee and inmate in Michigan's prisons can have three masks of their own, Michigan Department of Corrections spokesman Chris Gautz said.

Staff will be required to wear masks at all times at the prisons and inmates must wear them whenever out of their cell, Gautz said. Production of masks ramped up last week, and inmates are making 7,000 to 10,000 per day.

"We want to be proactive and help slow the spread," Gautz said. "And stop it from spreading to facilities where we don't have it."

Nine of the 29 state prison facilities have at least one positive case of the virus, totaling 158 inmates. As of Wednesday, 25 MDOC staff have tested positive, including one death.

The prisons making the masks are Chippewa Correctional Facility in the Upper Peninsula, Carson City Correctional Facility and Ionia Correctional Facility. More than 40,000 masks were made by Monday, Gautz said.

""RGC/ DWH Health Care HEROES at Work! Thank you for the job you do every Day and Night!" - We couldn't have said it better ourselves A/Warden Yokom! Thank you #TeamMDOC for ALL you do. #ThursdayMotivation pic.twitter.com/1YXOyBTE85  MichiganDOC (@MichiganDOC) April 2, 2020

They're also making gowns and full-bodied suits for staff to use. The optical lab inside Adrian's prison is also changing production  going from making eyeglasses for prisoners to making 1,000 pieces of protective eyewear for staff.

MDOC has purchased N95 masks for staff to use on inmates who have the virus, Gautz said.

"You see all the bad news on TV and some people just kind of feel helpless," Gautz said. "The staff that are involved in this as well as the prisoners just feel an immense sense of pride that they're able to do something about this."

MDOC hasn't had requests to make masks for others, but Gautz said it's a potential option. Prisoner-made materials can't be sold publicly  they're limited by law to only selling to government agencies and nonprofits since inmates are paid below minimum wage, Gautz said.

Prisoner clothing is always in need, however, so Gautz said at least some production on that will need to restart soon.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus.

Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible.

Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

Read more Michigan coronavirus coverage here

First Michigan prison employee dies from coronavirus, 24 others test positive

Whitmer orders all Michigan schools to remain closed through academic year as coronavirus cases surge

Detroit among first cities nationwide to get 15-minute coronavirus test kits

Coronavirus crisis in pictures: How people in Jackson and Ann Arbor are battling the outbreak

Menards says their bleach prices are reasonable after being accused of price gouging by Michigan Attorney General
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:42:16|Editor: Yurou

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COLOMBO, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) made an appeal to Sri Lankans around the world on Thursday to deposit foreign currency in the domestic banking system to support the government's battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Quoting Governor of the CBSL, W.D. Lakshman and Secretary to the Treasury S.R. Attygalle, a statement said Sri Lankans around the world, well-wishers, and charitable organizations were requested to deposit foreign currency in licensed commercial banks and specialized financial institutions in the country.

"Your foreign currency deposits in Sri Lankan banking system at this difficult stage would be of immense help to authorities to tide over the present crisis," it said.

The government has made assurances that foreign currency remittances would not be met with any regulatory hindrances including exchange control regulations and taxes for three months starting April 2. It has also guaranteed the future convertibility of deposits and protections under banking secrecy provisions.

"Such remittances would go a long way to promote people's welfare during the current period of still spreading COVID-19, and economic revival in the immediate aftermath," the statement said.

Sri Lanka is currently under curfew amid a COVID-19 outbreak that has seen 148 confirmed cases and three deaths so far.
Do you distinguish between commercial and literary fiction? Wheres that line, for you?

I prefer commercial fiction because it usually lacks angst-filled navel gazing.

How do you organize your books?

This question made me laugh. Nothing in my life is organized, especially not my books. I have three large bookcases crammed with the nonfiction I use for research. In the hallway between my bedroom and office are five knee-high stacks of more history books that for now have no home. Hoping to purchase at least two more bookcases sometime during this lifetime.

What book might people be surprised to find on your shelves?

Most surprising book on my shelves might be Deadly Doses: A Writers Guide to Poisons.

Whats the best book youve ever received as a gift?

The Black Man: His Antecedents, His Genius, and His Achievements, written by William W. Brown in 1863. Id been looking for it for years. Id given up hope when a reader noticed it was back in print and sent me a copy in the mail.

What kind of reader were you as a child? Which childhood books and authors stick with you most?

I was a voracious reader. I read newspapers, cereal boxes, every book in my local library, my dads college biology books  anything I could put my little eyeballs on was fair game. The author that stands out for me as a young reader: Beverly Cleary.

How have your reading tastes changed over time?

Im still reading as much and as widely as I can, so that hasnt changed. What has changed is being able to enjoy works by authors of color. There were very few when I was growing up in the late 1950s and early 60s.

Do books serve a moral function, in your view? How so?

I believe they do. Books can entertain, educate and inspire readers to be more. They can allow us to share the experiences of people from different cultures and places, and open the world to children like myself whod never been more than a few miles from the east side of Detroit. I always say the best gift you can give any child is a library card.
Bhopal/Morena : , April 2 (IANS) Madhya Pradesh corona positive cases hit the 100 mark on Thursday with Morena joining the affected towns with two positive cases on Thursday evening.

Out of the total 100 coronavirus cases in the state, 75 have been reported from Indore, eight from Jabalpur, six from Ujjain, four from Bhopal, two each in Morena, Shivpuri and Gwalior and one from Khargone, health department official said.

Eight patients have, so far, died in the state, including three from Indore, two from Ujjain andone from Khargone, the official added.

Earlier on Thursday morning, 12 new patients were found in Indore. They include an 80-year-old woman and three from a family whose nine members earlier tested positive for coronavirus, an official of the Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial college in Indore said.

Most patients in Indore have no travel history and contracted infection locally. Health authorities have so far ruled out the pandemic entering community transmission phase in Indore.

Two latest cases of Thursday evening -- a 45-year old man and his 43-year old wife -- found positive for COVID-19 in Morena on. The man, who returned to Morena from Dubai last month, hid his travel history.

Morena District Collector Priyanka Das said, "Two residents of ward-47, who were quarantined two days back in the hospital have been found positive in the test reports received today (Thursday) evening. The test report said both the COVID-19 patients were the asymptomatic but tested positive. They are under treatment." She said 26 persons who came into contact with them were also quarantined separately.
Leader and flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has urged Ghanaians to practically adhere to the outlined precautionary measures to prevent the novel Coronavirus from spreading.



He said citizens must abide by the states directives to stay at home as much as possible in order to slow the spread of the virus and also prevent those who have the disease from infecting others.



The two largest cities in the countryAccra and Kumasi are on partial lockdown for 14 days, following the escalating confirmed cases since Ghana recorded its first 2 cases in March 12, 2020.



A joint military and police force have been charged to ensure that citizens adhere to the lockdown as stated by President Akufo-Addo, but not without brutalities on recalcitrant citizens.



Mr Mahama, who has admonished the security personnel to be firm but fair to all citizens, pleaded with Ghanaians to observe the lockdown religiously.



My advice to all my fellow citizens, whether your area is affected by the restrictions or not, is to please #StayHome as far as practicable. This will help you to avoid getting infected and also prevent you from infecting others if you have the disease, the former president said.



Also, let us continue to regularly wash our hands with soap and under running water.



Advising his party faithful and Leaders to extend helping hands to underprivileged citizens, Mr Mahama said, As we have all noticed, COVID-19 does not discriminate between the rich and the poor. Every one of us is at risk.



During this period, however, the poor are suffering disproportionately from the effects of social distancing and the lockdown. We need to do more, as a people, to alleviate the suffering of this disadvantaged and vulnerable group, he added as he commended NDCs Parliamentary Candidate for the Madina Constituency, Lawyer Francis Xavier Sosu, for reaching out with relief items to homeless persons in his area.



Below is his statement



This is the third day of the expected 14-day partial lockdown announced by the President in some areas of the country, under the Imposition of Restrictions Act 1012 of 2020.



Following this announcement, we have encouraged citizens to abide by the directives to stay at home as much as possible in order to slow the spread of the virus and give the relevant authorities enough space and time to mount a robust response to the pandemic.



We have noted some excesses involving brutalization of the civilian population by some service personnel and I urge the various Service Commanders to urgently brief the men to be firm but fair in the execution of the directives.



My advice to all my fellow citizens, whether your area is affected by the restrictions or not, is to please #StayHome as far as practicable. This will help you to avoid getting infected and also prevent you from infecting others if you have the disease. Also, let us continue to regularly wash our hands with soap and under running water.



As we have all noticed, COVID-19 does not discriminate between the rich and the poor. Every one of us is at risk. During this period, however, the poor are suffering disproportionately from the effects of social distancing and the lockdown. We need to do more, as a people, to alleviate the suffering of this disadvantaged and vulnerable group.



I acknowledge and also commend the contributions of the many who are helping to mitigate the plight of fellow citizens during these times by making donations to health facilities and also to the poor and vulnerable.



I wish to commend, especially, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Members of Parliament, our Parliamentary Candidates and other executive members for responding positively to my call to step out and show compassion and charity to their constituents during this bleak period in our history.



I have particularly noted a video of PC Lawyer Francis Xavier Sosu who is seen personally, serving some homeless residents of Madina with bread and porridge (koko). I want to encourage us all, and all other MPs and Candidates to show compassion and fellow-feeling to our people at this time.



Despite the shortage of essential medical supplies we are managing to procure some PPEs and other supplies, which we shall shortly commence distribution to the Tamale Teaching Hospital and other Regional facilities currently known to have registered cases of COVID-19.



I urge all to do more. As the Medical Director at the Ridge Hospital (GARH) said to me when I presented PPEs and other items to them on Sunday, like Oliver Twist, we ask for more.



Please let us all do more!









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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2020 presidential candidates Senator Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, left, and former Vice President Joe Biden arrive on stage ahead of the Democratic presidential debate in Charleston, South Carolina, U.S., on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020. Alice Keeney | Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Democratic National Convention, which was set for July, has been delayed until August as the coronavirus continues to spread. "In our current climate of uncertainty, we believe the smartest approach is to take additional time to monitor how this situation unfolds so we can best position our party for a safe and successful convention," said DNC Convention Committee CEO Joe Solmonese in a press release. "I have always believed that American innovation and ingenuity shine brightest during our darkest days, and for that reason, I'm confident our convention planning team and our partners will find a way to deliver a convention in Milwaukee this summer that places our Democratic nominee on the path to victory in November," he said. The convention will now be held "the week of August 17," according to the release, and convention organizers expect it to provide "more time to determine the most appropriate structure for this historic event." The Republican National Convention is scheduled to take place between Aug. 24 and Aug. 27.

The decision to postpone the convention comes amid pressure from former Vice President Joe Biden, the front-runner in the 2020 Democratic election, who on Tuesday said that he wouldn't be surprised if the convention were delayed because of the outbreak. An MSNBC reporter asked if Biden could imagine the convention being held in July as originally planned. "It's hard to envision that," the former vice president said in response to the question. "We ought to be able  we were able to do it in the middle of the Civil War all the way through to World War II  have Democratic and Republican conventions and primaries and elections and still have public safety. And we're able to do both. But the fact is it may have to be different." The decision also comes as more than a dozen states and U.S. territories have adjusted their own presidential primaries, with some opting for a mail-in system to replace in-person voting and others delaying the primaries entirely. Already, the coronavirus pandemic has changed the way both Biden and Democratic rival Sen. Bernie Sanders get their message out to voters. Both campaigns no longer do in-person events or rallies and have been relying on digital outreach to connect with voters. Biden maintains a commanding lead over Sanders, having secured victories in most of the completed primaries. In March, Sanders was mulling his options, his campaign said in an email, but he has since given no indication he is ready to drop his bid. Biden was the clear winner at the last nominating contests, which were held on March 17. As the coronavirus continues to ravage the country, other national politicians have suggested that the outbreak could alter the way Americans vote.
Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte today threatened to order troops to shoot protesters after a rally in response to Covid-19 restrictions in Manila.

The leader was speaking after 21 people were arrested yesterday for staging a rally without permit in Quezon City.

They claimed that they were demanding food aid and assistance from the government during the Covid-19 lockdown, which has caused unemployment in the area.

In the video of the disturbance, soldiers and police were seen taking people in handcuffs and running after those who were fleeing from the scene

A handout photo made available by the Presidential Photographers Division (PPD) shows Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaking during a nationwide address inside Malacanang presidential palace in Manila, Philippines, on Monday. Today President Duterte warned that troops could be ordered to shoot people protesting against the government during the coronavirus lockdown

The group demonstrated and occupied a portion of the Epifanio delos Santos Avenue in Queon City, which is a few meters away from the protester's neighbourhood in Sitio San Roque.

Hardline president Duterte - best known for tough action on drug dealers - blamed 'leftists' for trying to destabilise the government.

He said: 'I'm addressing the Left. Your violations, slamming the distribution [of food], remember you in the Left, you are not the government. And you know that. You are not the government and you cannot be part of what we are planning for the nation.

A police officer (left) guards a checkpoint at the border between Rizal province and Marikina City, Metro Manila, Philippines today. In a late night broadcast yesterday, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte warned against intimidating and challenging the government, and ordered police and military to 'shoot dead' troublemakers who will endanger the lives of security forces

A police officer guards a checkpoint at the border between Rizal province and Marikina City, Metro Manila, Philippines today

Homeless people, who are unable to feed themselves and unable to work because of government lockdown measures, occupy tents as they observe social distancing in a gymnasium converted into a homeless shelter yesterday in Manila, Philippines

'You know, we are ready for you. Violence, shooting, killing, I will not hesitate [to order] my soldiers to shoot you. I will not hesitate to order the police to arrest and detain you.

'Now, if you are detained you will have to look for your own food.

'I will give the food to good people who are in need, instead of giving it to foolish people like you who start trouble.'

The Quezon City local government said in a statement that their relief efforts are continuous to help out those whose livelihood were affected by the lockdown.
The Cambodian government recently announced a measure to assist workers employed in the tourism sector which is severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Waitresses at a restaurant in Phnom Penh, Cambodia (Photo: Khmer Times)

In a statement, it said the government will pay 20 percent of the workers minimum wages, adding that the financial measure will apply to those who are suspended from their jobs at hotels, guesthouses, restaurants and travel agencies.

Payments will be made to employees in the tourism sector with links to the National Social Security Fund.

The workers are required to attend a short training course by the Tourism Ministry.

In addition, the Cambodian government will provide tax exemptions to businesses in the tourism sector in the cities of Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Sihanoukville, Kep, Kampot, Bavet and Poipet until May.

Chenda Clais, president of the Cambodian Hotel Association, said about 650,000 people were employed as hotel staffers, cooks, drivers, tour guides and travel agents but the number has since dwindled after some businesses suspended operation.

The World Bank has predicted Cambodias real economic growth will slow to around 2.5 percent this year mainly because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the Industry Ministry of Thailand announced that one million free washable face masks will be sent via post to households in Bangkok on April 8 as part of the government's strategy to stem a shortage of masks.

Industry Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit was quoted by local media on April 2 as saying that the Thai government will ship 2.5 million masks every 15 days, with the goal of distributing 10 million masks in total.

According to the Interior Ministry, Bangkok capital city is home to 3.05 million households, housing 5.6 million people in 50 districts. There will be 1 piece of face mask per person, Suriya said.

The remaining 4.4 million masks will be distributed to neighbouring provinces, as well as southern provinces like Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani.

Also on April 2, Indonesian President Joko Widodo said the government is considering starting a new national holiday to prevent the annual mass exodus usually occurring at the end of the Muslim fasting month Ramadan amid concerns over the spread of COVID-19.

At a cabinet meeting, he said that measures could be put in place during the new holiday such as making tourist attractions free to help calm the people.

Nearly 90 percent of Indonesians are Muslim. During the Eid al-Fitr festival at the end of Ramadan, they usually return to their home villages or towns. Ramadan this year falls over April and May./.VNA
On a day several more states, including Florida, told most of their residents to stay at home, the number of US coronavirus cases skyrocketed past 200,000 on Wednesday.

The news comes while debate revs up on whether all Americans should be wearing a mask.

As of Wednesday afternoon, more than 210,000 people in the United States have been infected, and at least 4,703 have died. The number of fatality reports again reached a new daily high, with more than 900 reported.

One of the deaths was a 6-week old in Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont said.

More data showing people without symptoms are fueling the spread has top US officials rethinking whether the general public should be wearing masks. But the World Health Organization, while it says it is reviewing its advice, tells people there is no need to keep your mouth covered if you are not a patient or health worker.

A quarter of people in US who are sick have no symptoms

Concerning new data from Iceland shows 50% of those who tested positive said they were asymptomatic.

In the US, an estimated 25% of coronavirus carriers have no symptoms, said the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

'Information that we have pretty much confirmed now is that a significant number of individuals that are infected actually remain asymptomatic. That may be as many as 25%,' CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield told NPR.

To prevent further spread, the top infectious disease expert in the US says health officials are reconsidering guidance on face masks.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said he would 'lean towards' recommending that the general public wear face masks 'if we do not have the problem of taking away masks from the health care workers who need them.'

'We're not there yet, but I think we're close to coming to some determination,' Fauci said.

If federal officials recommend widespread use of face masks, it would be a stark reversal from recommendations by the World Health Organization and the CDC, who have said face masks should be worn only by health care workers, those who are sick, and those who are taking care of someone sick.

The organization is 'continuing to study the evidence' about whether the general public should use masks during the coronavirus pandemic, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said during a media briefing in Geneva, Switzerland, on Wednesday.

The WHO recommends the masks for sick people and caregivers, he said.

'This is still a very new virus, and we are learning all the time. As the pandemic evolves, so does the evidence, and so does our advice,' he said.

US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams had consistently recommended the public not wear masks, saying they can cause more harm than good.

But this week, new information about asymptomatic spread could change public guidelines, Adams said.

A major argument against the widespread use of masks is that health care workers don't have enough.

'We have a massive global shortage,' Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO health emergencies program, said. 'Right now, the people most at risk from this virus are frontline health workers who are exposed to the virus every second of every day. The thought of them not having masks is horrific.'

In many cities, doctors and nurses are falling sick with or dying from coronavirus. This is doubly tragic because fewer health care workers are able to take care of the public.

So some people are making their own masks. JOANN Fabrics and Craft Stores released a video tutorial on how to make face masks.

Evidence shows social distancing helps

Nearly 90% of the US population now lives in areas that have stay-at-home orders, according to a CNN count based on various state, county and city orders.

Some say that's not enough and are calling for a national shelter-in-place order, especially because the deadly virus is twice as contagious as the flu.

Florida, with 21 million residents and a large senior citizen population, joined the list Wednesday. Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order directing seniors and people with underlying medical conditions to stay home. All Floridians must limit their movements, he wrote. The order takes effect early Friday.

Governors in Georgia and Mississippi also issued orders Wednesday.

While 12 states have not issued stay-at-home mandates, President Donald Trump said he doesn't think a national order is necessary.

'States are different and I understand that the governor of Florida, great governor, Ron DeSantis, issued one today and that's good, that's great. But there are some states that are different. There are some states that don't have much of a problem,' Trump said at a news conference on the US coronavirus response.

Health officials say social distancing efforts seem to be paying off, including in Washington state's King County -- the country's first coronavirus epicenter.

'We are looking at reductions in person-to-person contact that have progressively improved and have led us to a point where we are making a very positive impact,' said Dr. Jeff Duchin, the public health officer for Seattle and King County.

In hard-hit New York, a CNN analysis shows the day-to-day average of case increases in the past week was 17% -- a major decrease from 58% for the previous seven-day period.

And a large-scale study found that early interventions, such as social distancing and severe restrictions on people's movement, have already saved tens of thousands of lives across Europe.

Scientists at imperial College London studied interventions in 11 European countries and concluded that they 'have together had a substantial impact on transmission.'

The researchers estimate as of March 31, 'interventions across all 11 countries will have averted 59,000 deaths.'

You asked, we answered: Your top coronavirus questions

Equipment still in short supply

The calls for help with vital equipment for treating patients continue. One hospital CEO even went to Twitter on Wednesday to ask Tesla head Elon Musk whether he could supply ventilators.

'We are down to one critical care ventilator,' the message from the account of Mark Geller said about Montefiore Nyack Hospital.

Hospital spokeswoman Lauren Malone told CNN in an email that Geller 'decided it was worth sending a message' to the Tesla head.

'We have not heard back from Mr. Musk, but perhaps we will be lucky enough to receive ventilators,' Malone said.

The hospital was able to obtain 10 ventilators from another source, Malone said.

CNN has reached out to Tesla for comment.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis said the state has been talking to factory owners from China and other countries, trying to buy equipment.

'We know that not having gotten nearly enough from the federal government, we have really taken it upon ourselves as a state to engage in the purchasing of medical equipment,' he said.

Polis said the state doesn't have the hospital beds, ICU units, ventilators and personal protection equipment to treat all potential patients. He said they have ordered some supplies, but, for instance, need to make sure the masks they bought aren't counterfeits.

Why worry about coronavirus when the flu has killed more people?

CORRECTION: This story has been updated with the correct percentage of Americans under a stay-at-home order.
By Nichola Groom

April 2 (Reuters) - A U.S. government agency has delayed issuing a permit for the Gemini solar power project in Nevada, one of the countrys largest proposed solar farms, over concerns about its impact on a historic region traversed by settlers of the American West.

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management missed its target to decide on the so-called Section 106 permit governing the projects historic impact by the end of March, after overshooting a previous deadline in December.

BLM spokeswoman Kirsten Cannon told Reuters this week the bureau can no longer give a timeframe for a decision but said it was working expeditiously to finish the work.

A draft agreement between BLM and the Nevada State Historic Preservation Office, viewed by Reuters, said the $1 billion project covering 7,100 acres of federal land outside Las Vegas would have a visual impact on a historic railroad camp on the Moapa River Indian Reservation. It would also have an impact on old travel and trade routes, including the Old Spanish National Historic Trail used by settlers in the 1830s to 1860s.

Nevada utility NV Energy, a subsidiary of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc, said it still hopes to complete the project on time in 2023, providing 690 megawatts for around 400,000 homes.

"The Gemini Solar project is a large, important part of our future renewable portfolio and we look forward to their successful on-time completion," said NV Energy spokeswoman Kristen Saibini.

The projects California-based developer, Arevia Power, said it too was hopeful regulators would act quickly. It suggested the coronavirus pandemic may have pushed the permit decision down the governments list of priorities.

"In the current circumstances impacting federal government priorities, it would be prudent not to speculate," Arevia Managing Partner Ricardo Graf said in an emailed statement.

Graf added that he did not expect the delay to impact the project's ability to qualify for a critical federal tax credit for solar energy projects that is stepping down annually.

Many infrastructure projects are facing construction and supply chain delays due to the coronavirus pandemic. About a third of the nation's planned utility-scale solar capacity could be slowed by the crisis, according to a report by energy research firm Wood Mackenzie published this week. (Reporting by Nichola Groom Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)
Michelle Naranjo knows exactly what her father would say if he were here now:

Reach out to your neighbor. Love one another. Take care of each other during this scary time.

Many will know Frank Naranjo as so much more than the first person in Lincoln County who died of the novel coronavirus disease that is burning across the globe like wildfire.

They will know him as a selfless man, an urban cowboy who had strong faith and everyones Grandpa Frank.

Frank Naranjo of North Platte died Monday at the age of 92. He was holding hands with Bertha, his wife of over 72 years, who was also hospitalized with COVID-19.

Even as the Naranjos children struggled with not being able to see their parents, Michelle and her brother, Daniel Naranjo, took comfort knowing that their parents were together and expressed gratitude toward the health care workers who cared for them.
A local rum company is making a spirited effort to adapt to the business environment amid the COVID-19 pandemic: using their distillery to produce alcohol-based hand sanitizer. The company wants to provide the sought-after hygiene solution at an affordable price after many stores have increased the price of the product. In normal times, the six-year-old company Samai Distillery produces rum for the local and international markets. Exports go to France, Spain, and Singapore. But when the Coronavirus-pandemic hit the country and alcohol sales dropped abruptly in March, the company turned to hand sanitizer. Although they continue to also distill rum, their first 10-liter batch of hand sanitizer went on sale at the end of last month.

Co-founder Daniel Pacheco, 35, told VOA Khmer at his warehouse that his company had now started using some of the alcohol from the distilling process to also produce hand sanitizer. Seeing the situation of the virus in Cambodia and around the world, we saw that there is a lot of need for hand sanitizer, he said. So we saw the opportunity to contribute to the community in Cambodia that has helped us so much over the years and has been very supportive of us. We saw this as an opportunity to give back a little bit.

The prices of masks and hand sanitizers in Cambodia have skyrocketed to more than double their initial price after the outbreak of the virus. Before the pandemic, a 500ml of hand-gel was sold for around $7, now it often goes for $14. A 30ml-bottle hand-gel for $2 is not uncommon. And while Samais hand-sanitizer were at $3.50 for 120ml still more expensive than what a regular sanitizer would have cost before the crisis  a fact Pacheco attributed to the costs of bottles, labeling, and the manual filling of the containers  the company also offers refill-option of $1 per 100ml. COVID-19  the disease caused by the virus  originated in Chinas Wuhan province late last year. Since its outbreak, it has killed at least 47,500 people and infected more than 940,000, according to John Hopkins University. As of the beginning of April, Cambodia reported 110 cases in the country. To help prevent and contain the virus, the World Health Organisation has repeatedly appealed to the public to regularly clean their hands, and not to touch their faces. It also advises people to stick to social and physical distancing.

Antoine Callet, 25, an operation manager at Samai Distillery , said that they produced three kinds of alcohol during the distilling process. The head  lighter alcohol mixed with acid  comes out first. The heart  pure ethanol that is used for making rum  comes second. And last come out the tails; a heavy alcohol hat is used in the next round of distillation. These heads are maybe between 80 [to] 85 percent alcohol. But they dont taste good, so we dont use it for rum, he said. While they usually used the head to clean their equipment, they now realized they could use them to produce hand sanitizer, Callet said. Dozens of business in Phnom Penh have been suspended to constrain COVID-19s spread. Samai Distillery itself temporarily closed their bar that normally opens to the public on Thursdays.

To produce sanitizer would also help them to keep their business running by paying for their staff to keep working at the distillery, his colleague Pacheco said. For us, it is a small project that we are starting. The idea here is not to make money: Its actually to produce something at an affordable price. We see that a lot of people are increasing the prices as demand grows, and we think that thats bad given the situation, Pacheco told VOA. Workers seem to have found enjoyment in the companys added layer of spirits. Phal Keammouy, 25, has worked for the company for four years now. I am happy that [we produce hand sanitizer] because people need them now. All people like me or like yourself need alcohol sanitizer that kills the virus and that you could bring it along with you when you go out or before you eat, she said.
The use of face masks in Asia during the coronavirus outbreak has been far more widespread than in the West, where governments have urged people to reserve supplies for frontline medical staff, so have they helped limit infections? Experts agree that the ordinary surgical masks commonly worn in parts of Asia during cold and hayfever seasons are not a foolproof way to prevent coronavirus infection. But people infected with the virus are advised to wear them to stop the spread to others, and there is evidence that transmission can happen before a person knows they are sick. That has bolstered the argument of mask supporters who believe they can help limit the outbreak. In parts of Asia, mask-wearing has been a key response to the outbreak, with Japan's government announcing Wednesday each household would get two reusable cloth versions, and Hong Kongers not only wearing them but sending them to relatives abroad. Keiji Fukuda, director and clinical professor at the University of Hong Kong's School of Public Health, said people in the city see wearing a mask "as a way that the individual is trying to protect both the larger society as well as the self". "But where I grew up, in the US, wearing masks is seen by some, if not many, as a personal infringement -? an unwanted imposed obligation," he told AFP. The use of masks in parts of Asia with relatively low numbers of infections and deaths from the virus, including Japan and Hong Kong, has led some to theorise mask-wearing is making the difference. But experts are sceptical. Ben Cowling, a professor at the University of Hong Kong's School of Public Health, instead credits a range of public health measures implemented in these countries. These include "identifying cases and isolating them, tracing and quarantining their contacts, and also implementing social distancing in the community," he told AFP. - False sense of security - And Fukuda too cautioned against thinking of mask-wearing "as a magic X-factor". "Some places like Singapore have generally done very well without strongly emphasising masks," he noted. He attributes the smaller outbreaks to measures including contact tracing, good coordination, social distancing "and a general public that has been quite worried from the start and willing to work with health authorities". "It's the entire package that is important." The World Health Organization's position remains that mask-wearing for the general public is not advised, emphasising a global shortage of masks and the desperate need to route available supplies to frontline health workers. And some experts warn mask-wearing can backfire, even where supplies are plentiful. "Masks may give people a false sense of security," said Simon Clarke, an associate professor of cellular microbiology at the University of Reading. - Better than nothing? - Advocating mask usage, he fears, could also embolden people who are reluctant to adhere to social distancing measures. "I can envisage a situation where people who are infected and therefore shedding virus, think their mask gives them licence to go out to public places or to work," he told AFP. "We all know people who think nothing of bringing colds into work to share with everyone -- it will be the same for coronavirus." Despite the lack of strong evidence, there are signs that officials in the West are moving towards encouraging mask use. Austria and Slovenia among others have already mandated their use, and top US scientist Anthony Fauci said this week that when supply is stable, mask-wearing recommendations may be broadened to help prevent infected people from spreading the virus. "One of the best ways to do that is with a mask," he told CNN. Cowling said additional research was needed to guide policy on what kinds of masks were useful and how they should be utilised, but that increased mask usage might be worthwhile. "I think countries are looking at every possible measure to slow down transmission, so that even if a measure like face masks could only reduce transmission by a small amount, it might still be worth doing." In parts of Asia, mask-wearing has been a key response to the outbreak Main types of popular protective masks used as the number of infected cases of 2019 novel coronavirus continues to rise. A pregnant woman wearing a face mask as a precautionary measure walks past a street mural in Hong Kong The World Health Organization's position remains that mask-wearing for the general public is not advised, emphasising a global shortage of masks and the desperate need to route available supplies to frontline health workers Despite the lack of strong evidence, there are signs that officials in the West are moving towards encouraging mask use
 Flash

UN agencies are continuing to help countries cope with the COVID-19 pandemic amid a stern warning by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) that the global economy could shrink by 1 percent this year.



The DESA said in a report that country lockdowns in Europe and North America have hit the service, hospitality and transportation sectors very hard. Collectively they account for more than a quarter of all jobs in those economies.

The report said the restrictions' effect will soon spill over to developing countries and could also lead to a significant contraction of global manufacturing and a disruption of global supply chains.

The DESA said that as the pandemic worsens, economic anxiety and inequality will increase even in high-income countries.

The world economy contracted by 1.7 percent during the global financial crisis, according to the DESA.

UN agencies are continuing to help countries contain the virus and limit its social-economic impact. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said it has provided 78.8 million U.S. dollars in responses to the pandemic. It includes 75 million dollars from the UN's Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), with the rest coming from country-based, pooled funds.

Programs in 15 countries have been supported through these funds and additional countries are being identified under the global CERF allocation of 60 million dollars -- one of the largest ever made. It is being used to kick-start the 2-billion-dollar COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan appeal.

So far, according to the OCHA, close to 374 million dollars in donor funds have been made available for the global plan.

The UN Human Rights Office, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have issued an appeal to governments on refugee health.

The joint statement calls on governments to ensure equal access to health services for refugees, migrants and stateless people. The statement also said they should be fully included in national responses to COVID-19, including prevention, treatment and testing.

Migrants and refugees are disproportionately vulnerable to exclusion, stigma and discrimination, particularly when they are undocumented, the statement said.

The UNHCR has laid out a series of measures that are being taken in its field operations to help respond to the virus.

The agency warned that, although the number of reported and confirmed cases of infection among refugees remains low, over 80 percent of the world's refugee population and nearly all the internally displaced people live in low- to middle-income countries. Many of the countries have weaker health, water and sanitation systems and need urgent support.

The UN Human Rights Agency already has tailored programs in Brazil, Jordan, Mexico, Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burkina Faso, Bangladesh and Greece.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it is sending a batch of equipment to more than 40 countries to help them use nuclear-derived technology to rapidly detect COVID-19.

Dozens of labs in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean will receive diagnostic equipment to speed up national testing, which is crucial in containing the outbreak, the agency said. They will also receive bio-safety supplies, such as personal protection equipment and lab cabinets for the safe analysis of collected samples.

Deliveries of equipment to the growing number of countries seeking assistance are expected in the coming weeks, the IAEA said.

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said it is concerned about the impact of the pandemic on the quantity and quality of weather observations and forecasts, as well as atmospheric and climate monitoring.

The WMO said large parts of the observing system are either partly or fully automated and are expected to continue without significant degradation for several weeks. But, if the pandemic lasts more than a few weeks, the WMO said that the missing repair, maintenance and supply work and missing redeployments will become of increasing concern.

The WMO said some parts of the observing system are already being impacted. Most notably, the significant decrease in air traffic has had an impact as commercial airliners contribute to the Aircraft Meteorological Data Relay program.

The program relies on sensors on planes, as well as computers and communications systems to collect, process, format and transmit weather observations to ground stations via satellite or radio links.

In Libya, the OCHA said eight cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed. The ongoing clashes and restrictive measures in the country due to the pandemic are hampering humanitarian access.

Humanitarian agencies have found themselves unable to dispatch trucks to deliver assistance over long distances because of curfews. Many programs, including those in the 2020 Libya Humanitarian Response Plan, are either being suspended, delayed or reduced.

The OCHA has also warned that Libya is at high risk of the virus spreading, given its levels of insecurity, weak health system and high numbers of migrants, refugees as well as internally displaced persons.

The UN team in Nigeria has mobilized 2 million dollars to procure essential medical supplies, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The UN is supporting the Economic Community of West Africa to procure 1 million test kits.

"We are also helping to mitigate the social and economic consequences of COVID-19 on Nigeria and are working with the World Bank and key donors to support the government and the people," Dujarric said.

Eduardo Stein, joint UNHCR-IOM special representative for Venezuelan refugees and migrants, said the current global public health emergency has compounded an already desperate situation for many refugees and migrants from Venezuela and their hosts.

Funding to support them is urgently needed, he said, adding that the world organization is working with national and local authorities to address the new challenges brought by COVID-19 and is delivering basic support to Venezuelan refugees and migrants.
Chris Nugent, 66, of Bull Valley, said he usually earns up to $1,000 a week as an Uber driver, but hasnt been able to work for weeks because of the pandemic. He said he kept getting rejected on the states online system, and wasnt able to get through to a human being until his wife got her unemployment benefits and gave him the direct phone number to a state employee.
The Grand Ducal Fire and Rescue Corps participated in the transfer of four coronavirus patients from a Thionville hospital.

Once again the Grand Duchy showed solidarity, as Prime Minister Xavier Bettel sanctioned the transfer of four French intensive care patients to Luxembourg hospitals on Wednesday 1 April.

Luxembourg's emergency services assisted in the medical evacuation from Thionville . Two ambulances, each carrying five paramedics, firefighters and resuscitators, were used for this operation.

The convoy was able to make two round trips, transporting the patients to two Luxembourg hospitals for treatment.

The evacuation was carried out without impact on national operational coverage, according to the CGDIS.

Below are some pictures of the transfer operation, taken by Moselle firefighters:
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will advise all Americans to wear cloth masks or other face coverings if they go out in public but President Donald Trump said the new guidelines will not be mandatory.

But the policy marks a profound change in messaging as both the CDC and World Health Organization previously said people don't need to wear masks unless they are sick.

The new guidance has not been officially announced but it is in the works, according to multiple reports, which comes as more than 1 million people globally have been infected with the coronavirus.

President Trump confirmed it was on the way.

'I think they're going to be coming out with the regulations on that,' he said Thursday at his daily White House coronavirus briefing.

'I don't think it will be mandatory because some people don't want to do that, but if people wanted to wear them, they can. People wanted to use scarves, which they have that many people have of them, they can. In many cases, the scarf is better, it's thicker. Depending on the material, it's thicker. But they couldn't do that if they want. The recommendation is coming out and we'll see what that recommendation is but I will say this, they can pretty much decide for themselves right now,' he said.

Vice President Mike Pence noted it would be coming out 'in the days ahead.'

Donald Trump's administration is encouraging all Americans to wear cloth masks or other face coverings if they go out in public

The CDC will urge people to wear cloth masks and not surgical masks, which are desperately needed by health care workers

Health officials believe wearing masks would reduce the risk of people not showing symptoms from spreading the virus.

Dr. Deborah Birx, who coordinates the day-to-day administration response to the virus, cautioned people should not consider masks as a guarantee of protection.

'We don't want people to feel like I'm wearing a mask, I am protected, and I'm protecting others. You may be protecting others, but don't get a false sense of security that that mask is protecting you exclusively from getting infected because they were other ways that you can get infected because the number of asymptomatic and mild cases that are out there,' she said at the White House briefing.

She advised people to continue social distancing practices and to wash their hands.

The new guidance will make it clear that N95 surgical masks should be saved for health care workers and others on the front lines, who have been in dire need of them.

Simple cloth masks - or scarves or bandannas - will be the recommendation for when people go to the grocery store, for a walk or are outside.

'In light of these new data, along with evidence of widespread transmission in communities across the country, CDC recommends the community use of cloth masks as an additional public health measure people can take to prevent the spread of virus to those around them,' according to a copy of the guidance obtained by The Washington Post.

While people wearing masks are common in Asian countries - especially in large cities where air quality is poor - it would be a stark sight on the streets of America.

A leading member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and former Harvard School of Public Health dean, Dr Harvey Fineberg, told CNN that while surgical masks should be reserved for health care workers, he himself is going to be wearing a bandanna or other face covering.

Dr Anthony Fauci, a White House coronavirus task force member and leading infectious disease expert had said that the subject of having Americans cover their faces in public is a 'very active discussion' among the committee.

Research remains mixed on whether surgical masks work as well as N95 respirators and whether cloth face coverings do much at all to prevent infection, but Dr Fauci noted that they might be protective, and certainly wont do harm - as long as medical workers have enough.

More Americans may need to cover their faces as experts warn breathing and talking may spread coronavirus

'From what I've seen...I think that if we do not have the problem of taking away masks from healthcare workers who need them, I would lean towards it because I think that it - I mean, what - what harm can it do if you have enough masks?' Dr Fauci told CNN.

Like most respiratory illnesses, coronavirus is spread in tiny droplets of moisture that carry virus particles.

The CDC warns that are expelled when sick people cough or sneeze.

However, talking can send the droplets into the air too, Dr Fineberg told CNN. Even the breathe of a person with coronavirus could be dangerous.

Dr Harvey Fineberg said he's going to start wearing a mask in public (left). Dr Anthony Fauci (right) said that US officials are having 'very active discussions' about telling Americans to wear face coverings in public

'While the current [coronavirus] specific research is limited, the results of available studies are consistent with aerosolization of virus from normal breathing,' Dr Fineberg said.

The NAS letter to the White House noted research conducted in a Chinese hospital that found the virus can sent into the air and linger there when health care workers take of their protective gear and possibly as result of cleaning jostling the particles free, or even of movements.

Americans are now advised to stay more than six feet apart from one another to slow the spread of coronavirus, but studies from the University of Nebraska and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) found that the virus can travel much further.

'If you generate an aerosol of the virus with no circulation in a room, it's conceivable that if you walk through later, you could inhale the virus,' Dr Fineberg said.

'But if you're outside, the breeze will likely disperse it.'

Dr Fineberg said he himself will begin wearing a mask in public as a precaution against contracting the virus, especially in relatively closed spaces like grocery stores.

'I'm not going to wear a surgical mask, because clinicians need those,' said Dr Fineberg, who is former dean of the Harvard School of Public Health.

'But I have a nice western-style bandana I might wear. Or I have a balaclava. I have some pretty nice options.'

Reports have emerged that the CDC - and the White House, as Dr Fauci disclosed - are considering
Its always sad when someone seems determined to live a life of substance abuse and self-destruction, repeatedly putting him or herself  and others  in harms way. Thats especially true when the person has immense talent and could be a positive role model and source of community pride.

Our latest example? Jon Bones Jones of Albuquerque, the professional mixed martial artist and reigning UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Jones, 32, was arrested last week after two Albuquerque police officers heard a gunshot near Third and Central. When they arrived, they saw two unknown homeless subjects and a black Jeep, parked and idling with Jones in the drivers seat.

According to a criminal complaint, Jones told officers he didnt know anything about the gunshot. A loaded handgun was found in the Jeep; the caliber matched a spent round found outside the vehicle.

A DWI officer called to the scene said Jones had bloodshot, watery eyes and a strong odor of alcohol. He admitted to driving and said he intended to drive again. Jones performed poorly on field sobriety tests and was arrested on suspicion of aggravated DWI, negligent use of a weapon, possession of an open container (a bottle of mezcal) and no proof of insurance. (He also had a green leafy substance on his shirt and pants consistent with marijuana.)

This took place during Gov. Michelle Lujan Grishams coronavirus stay-at-home order. This being Albuquerque, he was booked into jail and released, despite the gun.

Anyone can make a mistake? Indeed. But Bones, who defended his title with a unanimous decision in February over Dominick Reyes, is a serial offender.

In 2012 he was arrested on suspicion of DWI after crashing his Bentley into a telephone pole in New York. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor DWI and avoided jail.

In 2015 after a major UFC win he ran a red light in Albuquerque, broadsided a car driven by a pregnant woman and fled. UFC suspended him temporarily and stripped him of his title. He pleaded guilty to a fourth-degree felony of leaving the scene, and as part of the deal his conviction was to be removed if he completed required conditions. Judge Charles Brown gave him probation and required him to talk to school kids about the risks of screwing up. We dont know if the kids learned any lessons, but we know Jones didnt.

In January 2016 he was pulled over near Alameda and Louisiana for doing 75 mph in a 35 mph zone. No license or registration. He said he thought a passport was enough. Two months later, he was cited for drag racing late at night on Central  a charge he denied while cursing the police officer who pulled him over. He was sentenced to undergo anger management counseling.

In 2019 he was charged with slapping a waitress at a strip club. He wanted a table dance, and the woman told him it was against policy. According to a criminal summons, he pulled her onto his lap and later put her in a rear naked choke hold. Ultimately, incredibly, the champ was allowed to plead guilty to disorderly conduct.

Jones also was suspended in 2018 by the United States Anti-Doping Agency for use of a banned substance.

And Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to drunken driving. Once again, it appears he is getting off easy. He will spend four days in the Community Custody Program, wearing a GPS monitor. He will also spend a year on supervised probation.

Jones is a phenomenal athlete. A dominant figure in a popular sport, he makes a lot of money. Various celebrity websites estimate his net worth at a minimum of $10 million.

But we can only hope Albuquerque has had enough of his act  and that his next transgression will result in the punishment it deserves. Jones is a danger to others and doing far too much damage to the young people who look up to him. The UFC should strip him of his title and ban him from the sport.

This editorial first appeared in the Albuquerque Journal. It was written by members of the editorial board and is unsigned as it represents the opinion of the newspaper rather than the writers.
Dr Len O'Hagan CBE has been appointed to chair the board of Northern Ireland Water (NIW) for a second term.

The appointment of Dr O'Hagan was announced by Infrastructure Minister Nichola Mallon.

Mrs Mallon welcomed the appointment.

She said: "I'm pleased to announce the appointment of Len O'Hagan to this important post.

"I am confident that with Len's knowledge of the issues facing NI Water, he will continue to make a valuable contribution to the work of the board in his role of chair."

NI Water is responsible for the delivery of water and sewerage services across Northern Ireland. Its board provides independent judgment on a wide range of issues, including strategy, performance, governance and executive appointments.

The appointment is effective from April 1 for a period of up to four years.

Dr O'Hagan is also a director of Belfast Telegraph publisher INM.

He was recently appointed Pro-Chancellor and member of senate for Queen's University Belfast, having previously studied economics at Queen's.

Dr O'Hagan is chair of the All-Island Congenital Heart Disease Network, a director of the College of Anaesthesiologists and a fellow of the Institute of Directors.

His former appointments include chair of Belfast Harbour Commissioners, chair of the Metropolitan Arts Centre, chief executive of the Royal College of Physicians and a director of the Ireland-US Council.

Dr O'Hagan has also held senior roles in international companies such as Smurfit, Fitzwilton and Reed International and holds directorships in a number of private companies.

In 2013, Dr O'Hagan was awarded an honorary doctorate by Queen's for exceptional services to business and commerce.

The NI Water board currently comprises the chair, five non-executive members and four executive members.
Many of Michigans education leaders are applauding Gov. Gretchen Whitmers decision to keep K-12 schools closed to students for the remainder of the 2019-20 academic year in an effort to reduce the spread of coronavirus.

Several school associations, legislators and education non-profit organizations shared their support Thursday, April 2, after Whitmers latest executive order.

In a joint statement, the Michigan Association of Superintendents & Administrators, the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators, the Michigan Association of School Boards, and the Michigan Association of Secondary School Principals said Whitmers decision was difficult but necessary during the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This will be difficult for our students, parents, communities, educators, and families, but we must put the health and safety of Michigan students and families first, the statement reads. Together we can ensure that this will not be lost time.

The groups said Whitmer did not make the decision to end in-person instruction lightly, but with the advice of national and local medical professionals. Thursdays executive order provides schools with the guidance needed to move forward and make plans to go down an uncharted path."

As associations, we stand ready to provide resources and support for our members, reads the statement. We have confidence that each district will find ways to support students and advance learning despite any challenges. While we continue to practice social distancing, no educator or student will be left in isolation.

Thursdays executive order extended the closure of Michigan K-12 schools through the end of the school year, which typically ends in June. The Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators and the Michigan Council of Charter School Authorizers are developing resources for teachers to offer online learning.

The move is an effort to further slow the spread of COVID-19, the infectious respiratory disease that had killed 337 people and infected 9,334 people in Michigan as of Wednesday, April 1.

Other groups that offered their support Thursday included the Michigan Education Association, Michigan Council of Charter School Authorizers, the School Finance Research Collaborative, the Tri-County Alliance for Public Education, and the non-profit organization Michigan Virtual.

Michigan Sen. Dayna Polehanki, D-Livonia, also offered words of support to the governor. The Democratic vice chair of the Senate Education Committee and a former teacher said Whitmer was right to suspend face-to-face instruction, so that schools and families can solidify plans for continuity of learning away from the classroom.

Michigan House Democratic Leader Christine Greig, D-Farmington Hills, said parents, students and teachers need certainty and stability. She said the executive order provides clear parameters that educators can use to plan for the rest of the school year and beyond.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clarklake, said the Senate Republican Caucus worked closely with the governors team to provide input on the plan for continued student learning.

School buildings are closed, but education will continue as schools embrace new learning formats, he said in a prepared statement. "Teachers and staff have done a tremendous job providing continuous learning to students over the past couple weeks and we know that effort can continue. Teachers and families partnering together, will provide Michigan students with distance learning opportunities for the balance of the school year.

The Michigan Association of Nonpublic Schools (MANS), which represents more than 400 faith-based schools across the state, said the great majority of its members will continue to offer virtual learning through the remainder of the school year.

MANS Executive Director Brian Broderick offered a statement of appreciation toward the governor and her staff for their leadership and efforts to keep Michigan residents safe and healthy.

(Whitmers) job has grown exponentially, and we know she cares deeply about Michigans students, Broderick said in a prepared statement. "Similarly, MANS looks forward to a continued partnership with its public school colleagues during this difficult time.

In addition to supporting Whitmers executive order, the School Finance Research Collaboratives project director, Robert McCann, said lawmakers need to step up and provide badly needed funding immediately. He also called for a fix to Michigans broken funding formula to ensure schools have the flexibility they need going forward.

The collaborative is a group of business leaders and education experts throughout Michigan who want to see a change in how Michigan schools are funded.

CORONAVIRUS PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home ( door handles, faucets, countertops ) and when you go into places like stores.

More on MLive:

Whitmer orders all Michigan schools to remain closed through academic year as coronavirus cases surge

This does not mean our kids will stop learning, Whitmer says after extending school closures due to coronavirus

Michigans chief medical executive: strongly consider wearing masks in public during coronavirus pandemic

Thursday, April 2: Latest developments on coronavirus in Michigan
ROTTERDAM  A man who told people in a local Walmart that he had coronavirus and then coughed on them was charged Tuesday with a felony count of making a terroristic threat, police said.

Marvin Herring, 24, of Brooklyn was also charged with misdemeanor menacing and sent to the Schenectady County jail until he can be arraigned Wednesday.
The Palghar district



administration in Maharashtra has urged people not to abandon their pet animals over fear of contracting the coronavirus infection.

Despite the government's appeal, several people have abandoned their pets in open in Palghar. As a result, the pets have got mixed with the stray animals and several of them have been starving, District Deputy Commissioner of Animal Husbandry Dr Prashant Kamble said.

He dismissed as baseless the belief of some people that domesticated animals spread the coronavirus infection.

"It is not spread through them. These animals left on roads have no food, water and shelter and they are starving to death," he said.

Kamble urged social organisations and animal activists to provide food and water to these animals.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Trump said on Wednesday he is considering a plan to halt flights to coronavirus hot zones in the United States as he struggles to contain a pandemic that is projected to kill at least 100,000 people.

'We're certainly looking at it, but once you do that you really are clamping down an industry that is desperately needed,' Trump told a White House news briefing.

The president suggested he wouldn't shut down all domestic flights as he feared the move could permanently damage the airlines.

President Trump said the 'federal government' is looking at banning some air travel, but said he'd want to limit killing flights between coronavirus hotspots

President Trump suggested he was worried about damaging American airlines longterm but killing all domestic air travel. He made a similar statement about train travel

Trump called it a 'very big decision,' which would impact 'the future of our country.'

'I am looking at hotspots. I am looking where flights are going into hotspots. Some of those flights I didn't like from the beginning,' Trump told reporters.

'But closing up every single flight on every single airline, that's a very, very rough decisions,' he said.

The president then reiterated he'd prefer a limited cancellation.

'But we are thinking of hotspots where you're going from spot to spot, both hot.'

The president was also asked by Reuters about train travel.

Trains are a major way Americans get in and out of New York City, the current epicenter of the pandemic.

Trump said his thinking on train travel was similar.

'We have trains going back and forth and people don't think of trains, but we do a lot of transportation business,' Trump said, worrying about the economic impact of shutting down railways.

So far, Trump has only limited international travel from non-Americans and non-residents.

He banned entry into the United States from the impacted parts of China and later from Europe, where the coronavirus spread.
What can all of us do to keep this pleasant?

Kevin: Ive been thinking about this a lot. I think the answer is we need to contribute more. In normal times, we  and I include myself  are much more passive about using the internet. Theres some research that shows were happier when we use social media actively rather than passively scrolling.

The more good people use social media, the less the bad people are able to commandeer the megaphone. Now, its not only the opportunists who are getting amplified  its also doctors, nurses, epidemiologists and people organizing face mask drives.

But doctors wont keep posting forever. And does the world really need Instagram photos of my boring oatmeal breakfast?

Kevin: Yes, be boring! Living through a pandemic is terrifying. We should all be legally required to post photos of our boring breakfasts. Its what people used to knock Instagram for  Oh, its just people posting their avocado toast. But honestly, that sounds amazing right now  an all-avocado-toast social network!

Thats it for this briefing. See you next time.  Isabella

Thank you

Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh provided the break from the news. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.

 Were listening to The Daily. Our latest episode is about the race to create a coronavirus vaccine.

 Heres todays Mini Crossword puzzle, and a clue: subtle insult (three letters). You can find all our puzzles here.

 Maggie Haberman, a White House correspondent for The Times, will go inside the Trump administrations response to the coronavirus crisis on a call today at 11 a.m. Eastern (4 p.m. in London) with our DealBook team. Register for the call here.
Although many Laredoans immediately condemned the idea, starting Thursday they will have to wear something that covers their nose and mouth if they enter any building that is not their house, such as H-E-B, gas stations and even their place of work.

READ MORE: City of Laredo, Webb Co. confirm third COVID-related death

Mayor Pete Saenz said Wednesday at a virtual press briefing that they are still working out a couple kinks of this mandate, which was ordered by City Council at their Tuesday night virtual meeting; For instance, if broadcast journalists will have to wear masks while on air, or if customers at the bank should approach a teller with a mask on.

People that enter their lobbies with a mask obviously present an awkward, delicate situation, especially at a financial institution, Saenz said. So were trying to go through those scenarios and see if we can carve out some common sense approaches to it.

On Facebook, hundreds of Laredo residents expressed indignation about being forced by the city to purchase a mask, especially since they are so hard to come by right now.

However City Council never mandated that people wear masks specifically  people can wear a bandana, a scarf or even a spare piece of fabric as long as it covers their nose and mouth.

In fact at a noon press briefing on Wednesday, City Manager Robert Eads begged that people not seek out N95 masks in order to comply with this order. Those masks should be reserved for doctors, nurses and other health care workers, he said.

All were doing is asking and requiring the public to cover themselves, cover their mouths and noses, Eads said.

For weeks doctors and entities such as the World Health Organization have said that it is unnecessary for healthy people to wear masks in public during the COVID-19 pandemic. However because so many people who become infected with the virus never show symptoms, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now considering advising everyone to wear masks.

The idea of getting a much more broad communitywide use of masks outside of the health care setting is under very active discussion at the task force, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNN. The CDC group is looking at that very carefully.

Laredo appears to be one of the first cities to adopt this kind of regulation. Health officials in Riverside County, California, west of Los Angeles, have recommended people cover their noses and mouths while in public.

However, this is a recommendation; the City of Laredo is ordering that people take this precaution, or else face a fine of up to $1,000.

The mandate goes into effect April 1 and lasts until April 30. Likewise City Council has enacted a curfew for all residents from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. People can only be out during these hours if they are working or need essentials at that moment. Council also voted to extend the Stay at Home Work Safe order that has closed many local businesses and banned all public and private gatherings unless deemed essential.

More public spaces are closing as this virus continues to spread locally. On Wednesday the Webb County District Clerks Office and Tax Assessor Collectors Office both announced they have closed to the public for the time being.

READ MORE: Laredo residents who enter a building that is not their home must cover their nose, mouth

The District Clerks Office is still reachable by phone and email. All transactions at the tax office must now be made online, by drop box, phone or mail. Only checks and money orders will be accepted by drop box or mail.

Julia Wallace may be reached at 956-728-2543 or jwallace@lmtonline.com
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 23:35:28|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese authorities Thursday demanded further strengthening epidemic control efforts along its land border to prevent the importation of COVID-19 infections.

The demand was made at a meeting of the leading group of China's COVID-19 epidemic response, which was chaired by Premier Li Keqiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

Noting the rapid spread of the pandemic overseas, the meeting urged authorities of border provinces and regions to improve their prevention and control plans in light of the local situation.

The meeting also called for cutting unnecessary cross-border travel and stressed cooperation with neighboring countries in epidemic prevention.

The meeting underscored the need to step up the management of asymptomatic infections and release daily and timely information.

Epidemiological surveys on asymptomatic infections should be conducted in places including Hubei Province and its capital city of Wuhan, and the reports should be made public to provide more scientific support for epidemic control, said the meeting.

The meeting also called for coordinated efforts for epidemic control and economic and social development.

Whilst implementing safety measures, the full restoration of work and living order should be promoted in low-risk areas, according to the meeting.

Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and deputy head of the leading group, attended the meeting.
Bank of Ireland has automatically increased the limit on contactless cards to 50.

The Bank has also waived contactless fees during the Covid-19 crisis.

Last month banks in Ireland agreed to increase the limit from 30.

Yesterday, AIB was heavily criticised for charging fees on the accounts of people who have lost their jobs during the coronavirus crisis.

Sinn Feins Pearse Doherty called for the majority State-owned bank to cancel fees charged and refund the customers who have been laid off.

The party's finance spokesman said that many saw fees of up to 100 charged from their account.

Mr Doherty described it as a disgrace and has written to Finance Minister Pascal Donohoe and the Central Bank.

He said: This payment will be needed for workers to pay their bills and feed their families.

It is disgraceful to learn that AIB, instead of providing relief to these customers, have on the same day decided to charge quarterly fees to many of these customers who have just lost their jobs," he said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2)  Residents and workers in Luzon are now required to wear surgical masks or similar covers when they leave their homes, Inter-agency Task Force spokesperson Karlo Nograles said on Thursday.

He said everyone covered by the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine are required to wear surgical masks, do-it-yourself masks, handkerchiefs, or improvised cloth that covers the nose and mouth at all times to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus.

"Kung kailangan po nating lumabas ng bahay, kailangan po mag-mask. Kahit improvised ito o panyo, basta po may pangtakip tayo ng bibig at ilong," he said in a media briefing.

Nograles said this order will last until the end of Luzon quarantine, which is on April 13.

The coronavirus disease is spread through small droplets from the nose or mouth when people infected with the virus cough or sneeze.

The World Health Organization on Monday stood by its recommendation to not wear masks if you are not sick or not caring for someone who is sick.

The country has recorded 2,311 patients with the viral disease, with 96 dead. Only 50 have recovered so far.
Kendall Jenner has a theory about Kendall Jenner's recent hostility toward her family.

In a sneak peek at Thursday's episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, the 24-year-old model suggested her big sister's split from the husband of her children, Scott Disick, was to blame.

'I think that situation might have mentally f***ed her,' guessed the reality TV star.

Armchair psychology: Kendall Jenner [R] has a theory about Kendall Jenner's [L] recent hostility toward her family

The teaser began with Khloe telling Kendall how she tried to mend things after the sisters had a heated verbal altercation.

'I sent Kourt the nicest text,' she said, before reading aloud from her phone: 'A million percent we need to have a conversation. If not today, it can be any day, but we cant let this continue and sweep it under the rug like we typically do.'

The Good American founder continued reading: 'Youre someone who I love and respect and I want you to always feel good when you are around me, she continues reading. I would like for this to be a conversation where BOTH  in capital letters  sides get to be heard. I dont want to feel like this is a one-sided relationship. Whatever we can do where the communication improves, I will do that.'

'Nine hours later, she sent me a video of the private plane she was on,' Khloe revealed to her little sister.

Making an effort: The teaser began with Khloe telling Kendall how she tried to mend things after the sisters had a heated verbal altercation

The cause? When Scott Disick, the father of Kourtney's three kids, sons Mason, ten, and Reign, five, and daughter Penelope, seven, entered the room to sit with them, Jenner dug a little deeper

That was when Kendall laid out her own theories about Kourtney.

'I dont thing she is extremely self-aware,' said the catwalk stunner. 'She cant sit back and be like, "Alright, I was wrong," or like, "Alright f***, I f***ed up." She cant do that.'

When Scott Disick, the father of Kourtney's three kids, sons Mason, ten, and Reign, five, and daughter Penelope, seven, entered the room to sit with them, Jenner dug a little deeper.

'I know how this happened. Honestly, I think starting with their breakup,' she said, referring to the couple's 2015 split.

Despite Scott's clear denial, Kendall continued, 'Im just saying, I think that situation might have mentally f***ed her. And I dont think she dealt with it.'

Not buying it: Despite Scott's clear denial, Kendall continued, 'Im just saying, I think that situation might have mentally f***ed her. And I dont think she dealt with it'

Tea spilled: 'I dont thing she is extremely self-aware,' said the catwalk stunner of her older sister. 'She cant sit back and be like, "Alright, I was wrong," or like, "Alright f***, I f***ed up." She cant do that'

Kourtney does appear to be struggling very hard on this season of Keeping Up With The Kardashians.

After the 40-year-old got into a physical fight with 39-year-old sister Kim Kardashian last week, she was seen crumbling during a teaser for Thursday's new episode.

The ex-partner of Scott Disick broke down in tears during a talk with Khloe Kardashian where Kim sits off to the side looking peeved.

Tears: Kourtney Kardashian is struggling very hard on this season of Keeping Up With The Kardashians. In a preview for Thursday's new episode, she breaks down in tears

Khloe, seen in a black headband with big hoop earrings and a blue plaid shirt, begins, 'If I don't give you what you want, you blow up and you're like, "Oh, you're stupid" or "You're disloyal."'

Kourtney, who wears a red, white and black plaid shirt, wants examples of this. When did I ever say you're stupid?'

Khloe gets annoyed: 'I don't have the date and the time, but I know for a fact-'

Mad at Kourt: Khloe, seen in a black headband with big hoop earrings and a blue plaid shirt, begins, 'If I don't give you what you want, you blow up and you're like, "Oh, you're stupid" or "You're disloyal"'

Huh? Kourtney, who wears a red, white and black plaid shirt, wants examples of this. When did I ever say you're stupid?' Khloe gets annoyed: 'I don't have the date and the time, but I know for a fact---'

Kourtney interrupts. 'This isn't also gonna get us anywhere,' says Kourtney.

Khloe points out Kourtney is interrupting.

But Kourtney doesn't stop and she looks mad and says they are there to be 'helpful' and won't 'make things better.'

The tone between the two is not positive and does not seem to be constructive.

Kim, who has on a grey tank top, say, 'Maybe it would be productive for Khloe.'

Sobbing: Kourtney is now breaking down in tears: 'Stop being such a f***ing b**ch. Why would I want to talk to you?' The Poosh founder wipes her tears away with her sleeve

Khloe then carefully spells it out: 'It's not fair thar you get what you want and other people can't get a f***ing sincered apology.'

Now the tears start welling up in Kourtney's eyes.

'You hurt my feelings,' Khloe continues.

Kourtney is now breaking down in tears: 'Stop being such a f***ing b**ch. Why would I want to talk to you?'

Team Khloe: Kim, who has on a grey tank top, say, 'Maybe it would be productive for Khloe'

The Poosh founder wipes her tears away with her sleeve.

The Good American designer counters: 'Why am I being a b**ch? Because I am being honest with my words and saying, 'Why is ourt relationship so one-sided?'

Kourtney has tears streaming down her face when she gets up from the sofa and takes off.

Kim then pipes up, 'Kourtney don't leave please.'

Aftermath: Kim and Kourtney dealt with the fall out from the intense physical fight which rocked last week's season premiere of Keeping Up With The Kardashians

This comes after Kim was seen tending to bloody scratch marks on her back as she and her sister dealt with the fall out from their shocking physical fight from last week's season premiere of Keeping Up With The Kardashians.

The drama hit a fever pitch during last week's episode, where the eldest two siblings got into a brawl after Kim questioned the mother-of-three's work ethic.

It seemed that was the final straw for Kourtney, who held back tears are she told Kim, Khloe and Kendall working on the family reality show is 'torture' and she feels like she's 'stuck in a f***ing trap.'

Ouch: In the clip, bloody scratch marks appeared on Kim's back and shoulders

Kim seemed surprisingly calm as she sat on the bed and listened to Kourtney talk.

'Do you think I want to come into this negative environment with you guys every f***ing day?' a clearly overwhelmed Kourtney said. 'Like, it's torture.'

Khloe seemed confused though, wondering: 'But, how did we even get on this? I thought we were talking about Kendall.'

The question only upset the Poosh founder more.

She threw her hands up and began to yell over Khloe, saying: ''Oh my god. We've moved on. We're done! That conversation's done.

Unbearable: It seemed that was the final straw for Kourtney, who held back tears are she told Kim, Khloe and Kendall working on the family reality show is 'torture'

Poker face: Kim seemed surprisingly calm as she sat on the bed and listened to Kourtney talk

Toxic environment: 'Do you think I want to come into this negative environment with you guys every f***ing day?' a clearly overwhelmed Kourtney said. 'Like, it's torture'

'Because every day, it's your f***ing attitude and your f***ing attitude!' she went on, pointing at the Skims founder and Good American CEO. 'Every day.'

Patience exhausted, Kim and Khloe both tell Kourtney she was welcome to leave.

Trying to make a point about how the show brings out the worst in everyone, Kourtney told Khloe: 'When I don't see you at filming, we are completely fine when we're not in this environment.'

But instead of listen to her sister, Kim was adamant about Kourtney leaving.

'Actually, you should go,' Kim said, stressing her point by clapping her hands.

Kourtney then went low, telling her sister: 'I don't want to be around your fat a**' as she walked out the door.

'Shut the f*** up,' she told Khloe. 'I'm stuck in this f***ing trap.'

The door's right there: Instead of listen to her sister, Kim was adamant about Kourtney leaving

Rude: Kourtney then went low, telling her sister: 'I don't want to be around your fat a**' as she walked out the door

Different strokes: Kourtney offered more insight during her confessional, telling the cameras 'I don't understand why there's all of this judgement about the way that we each want to live our lives'

Kourtney offered more insight during her confessional, telling the cameras she was upset at the way her sisters were judging how she 'want[s] to live' her 'life.'

'I don't understand why there's all of this judgement about the way that we each want to live our lives.

'We should be accepted for what we each want to do and it's not a positive environment for me want to be in environment every day when I feel like they're so critical of me,' she went on.

'Every day that I'm coming in, I'm like "Why am I choosing to be in this environment?"' the ex of Scott Disick added. 'I think I just reached my point of not being able to tolerate it anymore.'

Her sisters seemed utterly shaken by the experience, sitting silently before Khloe asked how things escalated so quickly.

Shocked: Her sisters seemed utterly shaken by the experience, sitting silently before Khloe asked how things escalated so quickly

Out of control: 'Why would you get so mad?' the mom of toddler True Thompson said. 'I don't understand. That's crazy to me'

Tension: Khloe continued in her own confessional, saying: 'I think Kim and I both are really surprised as to how things escalated so quickly... We know there's been friction recently, but I don't think any of us knew it was this bad and heavy'

Painful: As the scene wrapped, Kendall climbed over to dab the blood off of Kim's back and arm

'Why would you get so mad?' the mom of toddler True Thompson said. 'I don't understand. That's crazy to me.'

Khloe continued in her own confessional, saying: 'I think Kim and I both are really surprised as to how things escalated so quickly. We don't know where all of this has come from. We know there's been friction recently, but I don't think any of us knew it was this bad and heavy. It's really surprising that it's gone this far.'

As the scene wrapped, Kendall climbed over to dab the blood off of Kim's back and arm.

It seems that this fight may have been Kourtney's breaking point. The reality star confirmed that she was stepping back from the wildly successful reality show last November, devastating fans.

In her statement at the time, the mum-of-three wrote: 'I just decided to spend more time as a mum and put more of my energy there...But I'm not saying goodbye. But I think you'll have to see more of it on the new season, season 18. It isn't airing yet, but it's being filmed. Currently, in this room.'

Keeping Up With The Kardashians airs Thursday nights on E!
By Trend

The Azerbaijani state will render support to 292,400 taxpayers, Trend reports on April 1.

This is reflected in the program developed in line with the order of President Ilham Aliyev on a series of measures to reduce the negative impact of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and the sharp fluctuations caused by it to the global energy and equity markets, the economy of Azerbaijan, macroeconomic stability, employment issues in the country and business entities.

According to the program, 248,500 entrepreneurs who receive state support are individual entrepreneurs. They have 53,700 employees. In addition, 43,900 micro-entrepreneurs who provide employment for 57,000 people are expected to be also supported.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Some airline passengers are taking advantage of cheap flights during the coronavirus outbreak to earn air miles and improve their loyalty programme status, according to an industry insider.

Airlines have slashed prices to account for a fall in demand over the past few weeks, as most of the US faces stay-at-home orders. Some airfares dropped by as much as 70 percent in the first weeks of March, and the value of total tickets sold by booking agents is down by around 80 percent.

Health officials have advised against all but essential travel to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, but some passengers are using those cheap fares to bump up their frequent flyer status, according to a flight attendant with a major US airline.

Most airlines have different levels [for frequent flyers] which give you different perks. Some people are trying to up their level. They are doing turnarounds, the attendant said, referring to the practice of flying to a destination only to return immediately on the same flight.

Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Show all 11 1 /11 Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Ben Gurion International airport, Israel Reuters Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Daxing International Airport, Beijing AFP via Getty Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Taoyuan International Airport, Taiwan EPA Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam AFP via Getty Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Haneda Airport, Tokyo Reuters Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Changsha Huanghua International Airport, China Reuters Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Shanghai Pudong Airport in Shanghai, China EPA Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Daxing International Airport, Beijing AFP via Getty Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Haneda Airport, Tokyo Reuters Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Shanghai Pudong Airport in Shanghai, China EPA Airports empty as Coronavirus affects aviation industry Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam AFP via Getty

The attendant, who asked to remain anonymous because they were not authorised to speak to the media, said that most planes are flying at a vastly reduced capacity  some with only a handful of passengers aboard. they added that it was clear not everyone was following the official advice to only travel for essential purposes.

Many people have observed the essential travel rule, but there are careless people out there buying the cheap tickets. One person just wanted their kid to have their first flight, they said.

The airlines are offering $49 tickets in some places. Some people are just going on vacation.

Ben Mutzabaugh, senior aviation editor at The Points Guy, an outlet that advises consumers on how to maximise airline points and miles, has called on enthusiasts to stay home.

I have not heard of anyone specifically doing that since the government issued new guidance on travel here in the US. But we certainly are advising against that, he said.

"This is a serious medical situation and our advice mirrors what government health officials are saying. Everyone should stay at home right now.

American Airlines CEO Doug Parker said earlier this week that those flying today are doing so for important reasons.

They're medical professionals getting to where they're most needed, family members getting to their loved ones or where they feel most safe, elected officials getting to their constituents and back to govern, he said.

Donald Trump on Wednesday raised the prospect of halting domestic flights in order to slow the spread of the virus.

Were certainly looking at it, but once you do that you really are clamping down on an industry that is desperately needed, Mr Trump said in response to a question about restricting domestic air travel.

As part of the US senates $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package, the airline industry will receive some $50bn in bailout funds. Half of that money will be given in direct grants in return for airlines agreeing to not put employees on involuntary furloughs, the rest will be available for loan guarantees.

A spokesperson for American Airlines said the company encourages all of its customers to follow guidelines laid out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

That CDC website says the public body "does not generally issue advisories or restrictions for travel within the United States. However, cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been reported in all states, and some areas are experiencing community spread of the disease."

"Crowded travel settings, like airports, may increase chances of getting COVID-19, if there are other travellers with coronavirus infection," it adds.
/ -- With the current lockdown to contain the coronavirus outbreak in India, the routine process of going to one's nearest doctor for a consultation has become impossible. Hence, while sitting at home, if one feels unwell, there is both a sense of helplessness in getting expert medical help and a fear of having contracted COVID-19. To address these concerns, while at the same time helping to minimize the burden of the coronavirus pandemic on the Indian healthcare system, Pristyn Care has set up an end-to-end ecosystem of tele-medicine and COVID-19 testing.

The health-tech company has established a control room for addressing any query related to COIVID-19 through the dedicated helpline number - 801-000-2266. The control room functions as per protocols of WHO and the Ministry of Health to profile high-risk segments of the population. The company has also launched tele-medicine through online consultations to address generic queries of cough, cold, fever, aches and pains, etc. and prescribe suitable treatment through online prescriptions. Post initial consultations, the patients can be assisted in getting diagnostic tests done and also be redirected, if required, to in-house specialists across ENT, Gynaecology, Urology, Vascular and General Surgery.

These online consultations will help people seek advice from experts without having to travel, thereby reducing the risks of exposure and spread. Telemedicine will act as a safety valve for India's strained healthcare system, thereby increasing the citizen's safety and bolstering the workforce to screen many more patients than in face-to-face encounters.

Pristyn Care has also partnered with over 50 laboratories across Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune, Chennai and Hyderabad to conduct COVID-19 detection tests, authorized by the Government of India and The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). The test can be booked on the website or on call post an online doctor consultation. Patients can provide samples at their nearest lab or certified phlebotomists can collect them from the patients' homes. The report will be made available to the patients within 24-48 hours of the sample collection. This capability will act as the first line of defense, helping curb overcrowding at hospitals and clinics.

Launching the new business capability, Harsimarbir Singh, Co-founder, Pristyn Care said, "Since people are unable to visit doctors, they resort to either self-diagnosing their symptoms or self-medicating, both of which can be detrimental to their health. We must inculcate the habit of consulting specialists for health issues. From online consultation to getting tested to providing hospitalisation if required, we at Pristyn Care have developed a full stack of healthcare services to serve patients. So, anybody can call our helplines and reach out to our internal team of doctors for consultation."



About Pristyn Care:



Pristyn Care has over 80 clinics and 350 partner hospitals across 17 cities (7 Tier-1 and 10 Tier-2 cities), with General Physicians and Surgeons who have expertise across General Surgery (Laser and Laparoscopic specialists), Vascular surgeries, ENT, Gynaecology, and Urology. The healthcare company has successfully treated over 30,000 patients till date.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Major companies operating in Saudi Arabia's oil and gas, renewable energy, electricity and petrochemicals have contributed SR525 million ($139.46 million) to the Health Endowment Fund to combat the novel Coronavirus pandemic.

Saudi Arabia's Minister of Health and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Health Endowment Fund, Dr Tawfiq Al-Rabiah, thanked and appreciated the companies for their contribution in support of the national health efforts.

The Health Endowment Fund is a legal entity established by a decision of the Cabinet and aims to enhance the role of society in supporting government efforts in health development.
President Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during the daily briefing on the CCP virus, in the Brady Briefing Room at the White House on April 1, 2020, in Washington. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump Doubts Chinas Official COVID-19 Numbers

President Donald Trump cast doubt on the Beijing regimes official numbers of COVID-19 infections and deaths inside China, while responding to questions during an April 1 CCP virus task force briefing.

Trump was asked whether he had received an intelligence report concluding that Beijing concealed the true extent of the outbreak, as reported by Bloomberg, which cited three anonymous U.S. officials.

We have not received that, Trump responded, referring to the classified report. But their numbers seem to be a little bit on the light side. And Im being nice when I say that, relative to what we witnessed and what was reported.

He was also asked if he had addressed the numbers in his recent conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. While the president said hes in constant communication with Xi, he said they havent really discussed the numbers.

As to whether or not their numbers are accurate, Im not an accountant from China, Trump added.

Internal government documents obtained by The Epoch Times have highlighted how the Chinese regime purposefully underreported cases of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus and censored discussions of the outbreak, helping to fuel the spread of the disease.

At the same briefing, national security adviser Robert OBrien also said to reporters that no official data coming from China can be verified.

Unfortunately, we are just not in a position to confirm any of the numbers that are coming out of China, he said. Theres no way to confirm any of those numbers.

U.S. officials, including Trump, have in recent times become more vocal in addressing Chinas mishandling of the CCP virus. The United States has also been a target of an increasingly aggressive propaganda campaign by Beijing.

Although the narratives pushed by the CCP can change quickly, the goals are the same: to deflect responsibility over its botched handling of the CCP virus and to portray an image that it has successfully contained the outbreak.

At a March 17 briefing, Trump said: China was putting out information which was false, that our military gave this [virus] to them. That was false, and rather than having an argument, I have to call it where it came from. It did come from China.

Dr. Deborah Birx, the response coordinator of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, suggested at a March 31 briefing that the United States response was slowed by flawed data from China.

When you looked at the China data originally  you start thinking of this more like SARS [severe acute respiratory syndrome] than you do a global pandemic, she said.

The medical community interpreted the Chinese data as, this was serious, but smaller than anyone expected, Birx said. Because, probably  we were missing a significant amount of the data.

Meanwhile, in Europe, scientific advisers warned the United Kingdoms prime minister that Chinas official statistics on the CCP virus could be downplayed by a factor of 15 to 40 times and that Downing Street believes Beijing is attempting to exploit the pandemic for economic gain, reported by The Mail on March 28.

A China insider told The Epoch Times in January that public health authorities were attempting to cover up the severity of the virus by limiting the number of diagnosis kits sent to Wuhan hospitals.

The Epoch Times has also documented stories of some Chinese citizensincluding whistleblower doctors, citizen journalists, scholars, and business peoplewho have been silenced by the regime for exposing the truth.

And in an April 2 Twitter thread on China, former national security adviser John Bolton, wrote that Chinas falsehoods and concealment of data about coronavirus are dangerous to America and the whole world.

Untold numbers of people have died needlessly because of the authoritarian Beijing regimes conduct, Bolton wrote on Twitter. The global economy has suffered a catastrophic setback that might have been substantially mitigated had China just been honest.
New virus-triggered infectious diseases have sprung up frequently in recent times, with around 40 such diseases appearing since the late 1950s. Wild animals displaced from their habitats due to large-scale environmental destruction and overcrowded urban areas pose a rising threat to human beings.

Out of the Wild

The world has been swept several times in recent years by viruses, humanitys natural predator, resulting in many deaths. Examples include various Avian influenza strains, particularly the H5N1 subtype whose first human transmission was confirmed in 1997; SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome, first recognized in 2003; and Ebola virus disease, notably in 201416.

The primary cause of the outbreak of infectious diseases has been the destruction of the natural environment by human beings, explains Ishi Hiroyuki, a 79-year-old environmental journalist and author of Kansensho no sekaishi (A World History of Infectious Diseases).

Human beings have long laid waste to forests and other parts of the natural environment in search of natural resources. Wild animals that had lived away from human beings have lost their habitats and sources of food, driving them into human-inhabited areas. The former clear line between humanity and the wild has been blurred, resulting in increased contact between wildlife and domesticated animals like livestock and petsand the transmission of previously unknown viruses.

From 1976 to 2019, there were over 30 outbreaks of the Ebola virus in West Africa. This highly infectious disease causes deaths from the hemorrhaging of blood throughout a patients body. Ebola is one of the most powerful infectious diseases, and even dead patients remain contagious for a certain period of time. The animal that transmitted the disease is the flying fox, a fruit bat with a 1-meter wingspan living deep in the rainforest.

Outbreaks of Ebola have occurred immediately after large areas of the forests in Africa were destroyed. One example is Gabon, where gold mines and other sites were developed in a rush to exploit the nations rich underground resources, explains Ishi.

Ishi Hiroyuki

Environmental journalist and scientist. After a stint on the Asahi Shimbun editorial board, served as a senior consultant to the United Nations Environment Program in Nairobi and Bangkok. Other positions include professorships at the University of Tokyo and Hokkaido University and Japanese ambassador to Zambia. His works include Chikyu kankyo hokoku (Global Environmental Report) and Watashi no chikyu henrekiKankyo hakai no genba o motomete (My World Travels in Search of Environmental Destruction). Author of the Nippon.com series Remarkable Recovery: The Modern History of Japans Environment.

From Animals to People

As the consumption of meat expands worldwide, livestock are increasing in number. This has increased points of contact between human and animal populations, expanding infectious diseases and generating new types of illnesses. Beef, pork, poultry, and other meat sources are being mass produced to meet the demand for that increased meat consumption, but Ishi notes that this has had an unexpected chain of consequences.

From 1998 into the following year, over 100 people in Malaysian Borneo died of a disease whose symptoms included high fever and headaches. The military was sent to the area of the disease to cull the villagers pigs, which were thought to be transmitting the disease.

Pigs were being raised on Borneo, deep in the forests, to meet Singaporean demand for imported Malaysian pork. This was the result of a ban on domestic pig farms in the small island nation of Singapore in response to protests about the foul odors generated by such farms. The pigs raised in Borneo were infected by a virus spread by the urine of fruit bats inhabiting that area, and the diseasea new type of Nipah virus infectionwas then transmitted to human beings. It later spread to India and other parts of Asia, resulting in around 10 separate outbreaks.

Animal populations do not have to be raised as food to pose a threat to people. Wetlands that serve as wintering areas for migrating birds have been gradually disappearing in recent years. This has influenced the ferocity of avian flu. Ishi notes that overcrowding of birds in wintering areas has significantly raised the possibilities for transmission of viruses by ducks.

The majority of new infectious diseases like COVID-19 are transmitted by animals. One is tempted to view this as a counterattack by humanitys natural predator in response to the way we have continued to take the natural environment lightly.

Overcrowded and Unsanitary: The Urban Threat



The English physician John Snow, who clarified that contaminated drinking water was the source of cholera. (From the collection of the United States National Library of Medicine)

Populations around the world are increasingly concentrated in urban areas. Overcrowded city living conditions can cause spikes in infectious diseases. Beginning in the latter half of the eighteenth century, the population in England became highly concentrated in cities as a result of the industrial revolution. As more workers from the countryside flowed into these industrial centers, urban functions like housing, water systems, and garbage removal could not keep pace with the rapid change, leading to the emergence of slums. Unsanitary, overcrowded living conditions spread infectious diseases, Ishi points out.

Cholera broke out in England in 1831, spreading throughout the country and claiming the lives of around 140,000 people. At the time, raw sewage flowed into the Thames River, which was the source for the citys untreated drinking water. In 1854 the physician John Snow investigated areas with large outbreaks of cholera and found that many of those who contracted the disease were drinking water from wells that had been similarly contaminated.

Clarifying that cholera was transmitted by drinking water overturned the prevalent view that it was an airborne disease. Dr. Snow became known as the father of epidemiology, a new field of study that led to improvements in water and sewage systems.

Confined Spaces Breed Mass Infection

The example of slave ships first made people aware of just how easily viruses can spread when people are in cramped quarters, Ishi explains. He notes that during voyages from West Africa to the Americas, around 30% to 50% of the slaves on board would die of disease before reaching the destination. Viruses easily infect one person after another when people are concentrated in a small area.

This problem of mass infection arose on the Diamond Princess cruise ship during this years outbreak of COVID-19. Ishi describes what happened on board: Around 3,700 passengers were on the ship, making it a highly concentrated living environment. On top of that, many on board were elderlya cohort more likely to be infectedcreating the optimal conditions for the virus. Outbreaks of infectious diseases often occur on cruise ships. According to a report by the US-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 110 cases of mass infections aboard cruise ships worldwide over the past decade. Even the most luxurious ship can be attacked without mercy by a virus.





Chinas Heavy Responsibility

In his aforementioned book, written six years ago, Ishi pointed out that China bears a major responsibility for the outbreak of infectious diseases. He accurately predicted a future pandemic of the sort we are experiencing now. Under a heading titled, China Could Be a Nest of Infectious Diseases, he noted that the masses of tourists during the Chinese New Year, traveling within and outside the country, could spread infections. China, with a population of nearly 1.4 billion, still faces many serious public sanitation problems outside of its main urban areas.

Ishi also offers harsh criticism of Chinese development on the African continent. area of concern is Chinas business expansion in West Africa, another part of the world also lagging behind in terms of public sanitation. Huge numbers of Chinese workers have been dispatched to the area for resource-extraction projects that have hastened deforestation.

As already noted, Africa is the source of Ebola, one of the most lethal infectious diseases of recent times. One shudders to think what might happen if the Ebola virus were brought back to China.

(Originally published in Japanese. Banner photo: Burial workers wearing protective gear carrying the body of a victim of Ebola in Beni, Congo, on July 14, 2019.  Jerome Delay/AP Photo/Aflo.)
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A Stapleton man who snatched an NYPD-issued taser from a detective and pointed it at him inside the 120th Precinct stationhouse last year has dug himself into an even deeper hole with the law.

Andrew Lawrence, 23, of Broad Street, bit one cops hand and grabbed and shoved another officer in Richmond University Medical Center on Friday after he was brought there following a drug arrest, two criminal complaints allege.

The defendant was busted for allegedly selling illegal narcotics on six separate occasions to undercover cops between the end of February and the end of March, according to one of the complaints and a law enforcement source.

Lawrence was free on his own recognizance then after pleading guilty in January in state Supreme Court, St. George, to felony and misdemeanor weapon possession charges stemming from an unrelated arrest last May 26.

While in a holding cell at the 120th Precinct after that arrest, Lawrence grabbed a taser from an Emergency Service Unit (ESU) detective and pointed it at the cop placing him in risk of serious physical injury, according to police and a criminal complaint.

Lawrence waved the taser erratically before eventually discarding it, said cops.

Police recovered the weapon.

Video of the incident was posted online.

The incident that precipitated Lawrences arrest occurred earlier that day on Roe Street near Castleton Avenue in West Brighton, said authorities.

Late that morning, cops saw Lawrence inside a silver Hyundai Sonata with three doors open. Lawrence allegedly was reclined in the front passenger seat surrounded by broken glass.

Officers recovered a screwdriver, considered a burglars tool, from the front passenger seat, the complaint said.

The defendant was living in Port Richmond at the time, said police.

Lawrence pleaded guilty to the weapon charges in state Supreme Court, St. George, on Jan. 22 to resolve his case.

In exchange, he was told he must undergo intensive outpatient treatment and toxicological screenings for about a year under the supervision of the CRAN (Community Re-entry Assistance Network) program.

CRAN is an alternative to incarceration program which provides case management and other services for individuals with mental illness or substance-abuse issues who have criminal cases and are re-entering society.

Under his agreement, the felony conviction would be vacated, and Lawrence would be sentenced to three years probation on the misdemeanor if he completed treatment.

Should he fail to do so, Lawrence was told he faces up to 42 months to seven years in prison on the felony conviction.

His latest arrest on Friday may jeopardize that deal.

LATEST ARREST

Lawrence was admitted to the hospital as an emotionally disturbed person after his drug bust, said police.

While in custody inside Richmond University in West Brighton, the defendant bit one officer on the right hand, said a complaint.

He also grabbed another cops left arm and pushed that officer into a chair, injuring him, the complaint said.

Lawrence was charged with six felony counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance with respect to the narcotics arrest.

Hes also accused of two counts each of felony and misdemeanor assault for the incident at the hospital.

The defendant was arraigned in Criminal Court, and those cases were adjourned to April 30. His Supreme Court case was adjourned to May 11.

He is being held in lieu of $65,000 bail for all three cases.

Defense lawyer Samantha Smalls declined comment.
A Central Texas city has reversed its position that a local store selling CBD oil and vaping products did not qualify as an essential business under restrictions intended to keep the COVID-19 virus from spreading.

In an email sent Tuesday afternoon, the City of Beverly Hills, a small municipality surrounded by Waco, told Fattys Smoke Shop it could reopen so long as its clerks followed social distancing best practices.

Beverly Hills police had issued Fattys a citation last week after officers disagreed with owner Jesse Singhs argument that customers use CBD oil to treat various medical ailments so his shop qualifies as an essential health care business. Despite the ticket, which could bring a fine up to $1,000, Singh remained open, only to have police return and forcibly close the store two days later.

In response to a letter from Fattys lawyer, however, the city changed its mind. Referencing McLennan County Judge Scott Feltons March 23 emergency order, City Secretary Angel Nevarez wrote, After review of the Order that is in place Fattys may remain open, however, there will have to be a curbside service. Only workers should be in the store.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

Nevarez did not respond to a phone message and email seeking additional comment.

The flipflop highlights the difficulty in reconciling competing economic and public safety interests in the countrys response to the novel coronavirus, as officials trying to limit social contact to slow its spread bump up against businesses desperate to stay afloat.

The decisions have not been immune from at least the appearance of politicking. After firearms-rights advocates protested the determination of several jurisdictions that gun shops were non-essential, Attorney General Ken Paxton last week issued an opinion that in Texas they are. Paxton also has ordered the states abortion clinics closed, saying their medical equipment and personnel need to be directed to the COVID response.

Different jurisdictions have made varying determinations on whether stores selling CBD oil may stay open as essential health care providers. Among major cities and counties, apparently only Travis County and Austin have orders that specifically identify the shops as non-essential and thus they must remain closed. Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins made the same determination via Twitter.

FOR THE LATEST: Interactive maps, charts show spread of coronavirus in Texas

The CBD back-and-forth in Beverly Hills comes as Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday issued a new order that attempts to further clarify what businesses may remain open and which must stay closed. It identified 17 categories of essential services as defined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, as well as religious services in houses of worship.

The only businesses it prohibits by name, however, are hair salons, gyms, massage establishments, tattoo and piercing studios, and dine-in restaurants. Business owners who arent clear if their companies qualify as an essential service may submit their plea to the Texas Department of Emergency Management.

Seth Christensen, a spokesman for the agency, said a panel will consider the requests and make a determination as quickly as possible and post it on the agencys website for public reference. Were looking for, if they dont qualify, why they should be open now? he said.

Christensen said most of the questions so far have been easily answered, with some of the businesses clearly qualifying as essential, while others - hair salons, primarily, he said - being reminded that they are non-essential under the order.

He added that the emergency management agency had been asked about CBD shops and would make a statewide determination soon.

In the meantime, Craig Greening, one of Singhs lawyers, said he plans to contest Fattys citation in court.
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Published April 2, 2020

The novel coronavirus has changed operations at universities around the world.

In transitioning all courses and services for students to online formats, the University of Louisiana recognizes that this significant disruption is challenging for students. To help maintain academic success, the university has new grading options for students in the ULM COVID-19 Academic Guidelines Spring 2020.

Since these circumstances are beyond students control, ULM has instituted new withdrawal W dates (May 1 for full spring 2020 semester and May 4 for second eight-week term), a new incomplete I date (course completion by Dec. 10), and a new temporary pass/fail grading option for courses, allowing students the flexibility to handle their unique circumstances.

At ULM, decisions are made with the best interests of students in mind. We listened to student feedback and concerns about remote learning. Based on their needs, we made some changes to course completion requirements for the spring 2020 semester. Students have these new options to help maintain their academic success, said President Nick J. Bruno, Ph.D.

The pass/fail option allows students to decide on an individual course basis if they want to receive a grade of P or F instead of a letter grade of A, B, C, D, or F.

Students have until May 14, 2020, to decide on the pass/fail grading option after receiving their final grades.

This allows them to make a better-informed decision on the impact this grading policy will have on their college transcript, Bruno said.

The last day for students to drop a course is extended to May 1, 2020.

Unfortunately, not every student is in an environment that is conducive to learning after this transition, said Alberto Ruiz, Ed.D., Vice President for Academic Affairs. ULM and Academic Affairs will do everything possible to provide students with resources and options to help them during this unprecedented time.

For more information on ULM and the response to COVID-19, visit ulm.edu/coronavirus.
President Trump has compared the coronavirus to a war. If so, there is no doubt about the soldiers on the front line, working valiantly and selflessly against the odds: the health care professionals who are putting their own well-being, and that of their loved ones, at risk as they work to save others. They deserve better  much better  than to be facing shortages of personal protective equipment.

They also deserve to have the support of all Americans by requiring everyone to shelter in place to contain the spread. Outrageously, as our editorial noted, some governors are stubbornly refusing to issue such orders.

Perhaps Americans should be grateful that a president who at first downplayed the emerging crisis now appreciates its gravity. On Tuesday, Trump suggested that the fatalities could range from 100,000 to 240,000. Brace yourselves. This is going to be a long, difficult, tragic fight.

What else were saying in editorials

Wrong direction on fuel standards: Several carmakers want to cut a deal with Sacramento to work within this states fuel efficiency goals, a bargain that irks the White House. California and other states, meanwhile, have sued the administration to preserve their right to craft their own regulations.

Californias vulnerability: The states stockpiles and other pandemic preparations appear to have fallen victim to austerity measures Gov. Jerry Brown imposed in the wake of the Great Recession to help close a $26 billion budget deficit.

Guest opinions

Beauty in a pandemic: We are all riding on that long, slow train and its anyones guess how bad its going to get. But amid the intense anxiety, many of us are finding that the view out the train window can be strangely beautiful, writes Zoe FitzGerald Carter.

Effects on mental health: It will tax our health care system, our economy and our communities. Undoubtedly, the virus, its aftermath and our mitigation techniques will also tax our individual and collective mental health.

Family togetherness: I look at them with horror, thinking, Have I ever really known these people? I have to face the grim reality that they dont do well in emergency situations.

Learn the Bern: No one has felt the brunt of economic inequality and crises like Latinos. It is no wonder that so many corralled around a self-described socialist, Sen. Bernie Sanders. Other politicians can learn from his success in reaching this emerging demographic group, writes Elisa Batista.

Letter of the Week

Theres something about being cooped up at home that brings out the poet in us. Weve been receiving a number of great submissions, including this one from Pauline Crowther Scott:

We all felt and lamented the loss 

our city was losing her feminine slant

her nurturing, her charming looks and vanity.

In a moment of weakness she let down her guard and macho techxicity took over, grabbing her by the throat strangling the quaintness and how-it-always-wasness that mixture of familiarity and surprise around every corner.

Masculinity looming large and threatening, the construction guys the hard hats the blueprints and plans, the concrete and steel Change and more change and relentless change until

Until this happened

Now, she slumbers behind shutters  businesses boarded up, deserted streets her people imprisoned, jobless, hopeless in the path of a deadly virus.

Her heart is slowing, the blood barely trickling to the extremities.

And yet nature flourishes, birds return, coyotes bask in the quiet city trees bloom fresh blossoms, green buds burst into life.

Our city is waiting, waiting for rebirth, waiting to emerge from lockdown waiting to rise again from the fire.

In her soul she hears an awakening

a pumping of the blood of compassion

the essential fluid of life

She will return, my city of quirks and contradictions She will return to comfort us before too long She will come back and release us from our silent cries

She will forgive us our trespasses.

And please check out our other letters of the day responding to this and other matters. You can send us a letter via this form.

Where to follow us

We have a Twitter channel, Opinion Central (@sfc_opinions). Please add it to your stream. Youll catch our editorials and opinion pieces, as well as our drive-by comments on assorted subjects in the news. Follow me on Twitter: @JohnDiazChron

Just a reminder

The Chronicles editorials represent the collective judgment of our Editorial Board, which includes the publisher as well as the writers and editors from the opinion team. Our editors and reporters on the news side are not involved in those decisions (including election endorsements). They are charged with reporting fairly and objectively without regard to our editorial positions. It is one of the core values here at Fifth and Mission streets.

Opinion Central is a thrice-weekly newsletter from John Diaz, The Chronicles editorial page editor, and the rest of the Editorial Board. Follow along on Twitter: @sfc_opinions
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore.  Oregon Institute of Technology (OIT) says that a staff member at the Klamath Falls location has tested positive for COVID-19, just a day after a confirmed positive case at the school's Portland-Metro campus.

"Oregon Tech learned on April 1 and today, April 2, of the first positive COVID-19 cases for two employees, one at the Portland-Metro Campus in Wilsonville and one in Klamath Falls," administrators said.

The first positive COVID-19 cases for two employees, one at the Portland-Metro Campus and one in Klamath Falls have been reported. Because of social distancing measures in place, they have not been on campus since March 13 and March 9, respectively. Both are quarantined at home.  Oregon Tech (@OregonTech) April 2, 2020

The Klamath Falls employee has not been on campus since March 9, OIT said, while the Wilsonville employee has been off-campus since March 13. Both staff members have been quarantined at home and are "doing well."

As testing for Coronavirus becomes more commonplace and accessible, I expect that we will see an increase in positive cases throughout all of Oregon, said Oregon Tech president, Dr. Nagi Naganathan. Our thoughts are with this employee, and we wish speedy healing for anyone who has contracted the virus. We will continue to advise social distancing and stay at home precautions to our campus community.

Oregon Tech said it would be working with public health officials in both Klamath and Clackamas counties for the standard case investigations. Any further matters will be led by those health agencies.

RELATED: Klamath County announces one new confirmed case of COVID-19

"If you are directly contacted by the Public Health Division, it does not necessarily mean that you have contracted COVID-19," OIT said. "It may simply mean that you could have interacted with the patient at some point within the last two weeks, and may be at risk for developing symptoms."

Oregon Tech wants students contacted by a public health authority to call the school's Integrated Student Health Center (ISHC) at 541-885-1800 to let them know. The school said that the ISHC would be available for counseling by phone or video to support students.

"If you are an employee and are contacted, you are not required to inform Oregon Tech that you have been contacted by the Public Health Division, but can call ISHC to notify them, as well, if you choose," OIT said.

Anyone who thinks they have been exposed to COVID-19 and has symptoms is asked to stay home, avoid close contact with others, and contact your health care provider, Integrated Student Health Center, or an emergency medical care provider.

The last positive case of coronavirus announced by Klamath County Public Health was on March 30. It's unknown at this time whether the OIT case represents a new case in the county or if it was already accounted for by public health officials.

In response to COVID-19 and the state mandates for universities, OIT extended Spring Break through April 5. Course work will be delivered remotely to students when they "return" on Monday.
The city of Boston has established a fund to help small businesses recover from the devastating impacts of the novel coronavirus.

Boston Mayor Marty Walsh announced the creation of the fund on Thursday. It will be overseen by the citys Office of Economic Development, and will quickly and strategically disburse grants to local businesses" in manner that lets them remain debt-free.

We are committed to helping Bostons small businesses during this unprecedented time by providing strategic, accessible and critical financial resources to help them stay afloat and pay employees, Walsh said, in a statement. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and the lifeblood of our neighborhoods."

An initial $2 million in funds available to small businesses when the project kicks off. The fund will begin accepting applications on April 6.

On Thursday, Walsh also announced that the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center would be turned into a field hospital to support COVID-19 patients.

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For that reason, she recommended being mindful of your alcohol use. Pay attention to when youre drinking, why youre drinking and how much youre drinking. When one or two drinks in the evening turns into drinking during the workday, or having so many drinks at night that youre not well rested, you will wake up with a hangover and you become emotionally dysregulated.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 20:31:47|Editor: huaxia

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Aerial photo taken on Aug. 28, 2019 shows a view of a poverty-relief relocation site in Silin Township of Tiandong County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, a key region in China's anti-poverty efforts, has entailed identifying and set up files for about 710,000 people relocated from inhospitable areas during the 13th Five-year Plan period (2016-2020) as a key battle against poverty. The relocation program has been completed by the end of last year. Moving a large number of people out of environmentally-vulnerable mountainous regions helps achieve the dual objectives of winning the anti-poverty campaign and restoring the ecological environment. While lifting people out of poverty was the first step, efforts are also made to ensure that the relocated residents can settle down, have jobs and lead better lives. (Xinhua/Cao Yiming)
Thailands controversial king has been self-isolating in a luxury hotel in the Alpine resort town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen with his entourage.

King Maha Vajiralongkorn, also known as Rama X, is said to have booked out the entire Grand Hotel Sonnenbichl after the four-star hotel received special permission from the district council to accommodate his party.

The 67-year-old kings entourage included a harem of 20 concubines and numerous servants, reported German tabloid Bild. It is unclear if his four wives are living in the hotel with the rest of the group.



Guesthouses and hotels in the region were ordered to close due to the coronavirus crisis, but a spokesperson for the local district council said the Grand Hotel Sonnenbichl was an exception because the guests are a single, homogenous group of people with no fluctuation.

However, 119 members of the entourage had been reportedly sent back to Thailand on suspicions they contracted the highly contagious respiratory disease.

News of Vajiralongkorns apparent self-isolation in a luxury location was met with anger by tens of thousands of Thai people, who risked breaking the countrys lese-majeste laws by criticising him online.

Under the laws, anyone who insults or criticises the monarchy could be imprisoned for up to 15 years.

But a Thai hashtag which translated to Why do we need a king? appeared 1.2 million times on Twitter within 24 hours after an activist claimed Vijaralongkorn was travelling on holiday in Germany while the outbreak continued to spread across Thailand.

The Thai Ministry of Public Health announced on Saturday 109 new cases in the country, bringing the total number of infections to 1,245.

Follow Us on Facebook  @LadunLiadi; Instagram  @LadunLiadi; Twitter  @LadunLiadi; Youtube  @LadunLiadiTV for updates
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that will launch the Crew Dragon spacecraft, with NASA astronauts aboard, on Demo-2, the company's second demonstration flight and first crewed flight to the International Space Station.

If you've been suffering from worm withdrawal, relief is finally in sight.

NASA 's famous "worm" logo, which was retired in 1992, is roaring back to help celebrate the return of orbital human spaceflight to American shores. The iconic, very 1970s red-text emblem has been stenciled on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that will launch the Demo-2 test flight , agency officials announced today (April 2).

Demo-2, which is scheduled to lift off in mid- to late May, will send NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to and from the International Space Station (ISS) aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule . It will be the first crewed orbital trip to depart from the United States since the retirement of NASA's space shuttle fleet in 2011. (That drought doesn't extend to suborbital space, however; Virgin Galactic launched crewed suborbital test missions from California in December 2018 and February 2019.)

Related: NASA re-embraces retro 'worm' logo for new merchandise

The worm is back! When the @SpaceX Falcon 9 lifts off carrying @NASA_Astronauts aboard #CrewDragon, it will sport the iconic symbol to mark the return of human spaceflight on American rockets from American soil. More: https://t.co/jQQv5ZcTY0 #TheWormIsBack pic.twitter.com/9Ltk1nMa8jApril 2, 2020 See more

If Demo-2 goes well, SpaceX will be clear to start flying operational crewed missions to and from the ISS for NASA. Elon Musk's company holds a $2.6 billion contract with the space agency to complete six such missions with Crew Dragon and the Falcon 9.

Boeing has a similar contract with NASA's Commercial Crew program, which the aerospace giant plans to fulfill using a capsule called CST-100 Starliner . But it's unclear when Starliner will be ready to fly astronauts; the Boeing capsule failed to rendezvous with the ISS as planned during the uncrewed Orbital Flight Test (OFT) mission this past December, and analysis of data from that mission revealed several serious software issues that need to be addressed. (SpaceX aced its version of OFT in March 2019.)

NASA's first logo was the famous "meatball"  a blue, star-speckled circle pierced by a red chevron, along with the agency's name encircled by an orbiting spacecraft. But it was tough to print this complex symbol using 1970s technology, NASA officials said, so the sleek and simple worm, created by Richard Danne, came onto the scene in 1975.

The NASA "meatball" logo. (Image credit: NASA)

The worm and the meatball coexisted for 17 years, until the worm was buried in the early 1990s. But agency officials have now decided that there's room for both icons once again. There's "a good chance" that the worm will be featured in multiple ways on Demo-2 and in the future, NASA officials wrote in a statement today .

"The agency is still assessing how and where it will be used, exactly," they wrote in the statement. "It seems the worm logo wasnt really retired. It was just resting up for the next chapter of space exploration. And dont worry: the meatball will remain NASAs primary symbol."

Mike Wall is the author of " Out There " (Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate ), a book about the search for alien life. Follow him on Twitter @michaeldwall . Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or Facebook .
New Delhi: Maharashtra has witnessed a rise in coronavirus COVID-19 positive cases in the last 24 hours. As many as 81 people were found to be infected with the deadly virus on Thursday (April 2) taking the tally to 416, with the death toll rising to 19 in the state.

With 57 cases, Mumbai city is on the top as far as the number of fresh cases is concerned in Maharashtra, which is leading the nation-wide coronavirus tally among states. Three people died of COVID-19 in the financial capital in the last 24 hours.

Out of the 81 new coronavirus cases, Mumbai city accounted for 57 people who have tested positive, Health official told PTI, adding "Figures of other cities are: Ahmednagar (9), Pune (6), Thane (5), Pimpri-Chinchwad (3) and Buldhana (1)."

The official further said that 42 people have been discharged so far from hospitals in the state after recovering from the infection.

Meanwhile, the number of container zones in Mumbai has now increased by 21, taking the total numbers to 212. It was 191 on Thursday. The containment zone is that area where coronavirus positive cases are found. Traffic is also restricted in that zone.

The city`s worst nightmare came true when at least two COVID-19 cases were reported from Dharavi - the biggest slum of Asia and the world`s most congested district - in central Mumbai.

While a 53-year old man with no history of foreign travel has reportedly succumbed to a government hospital late on Wednesday, a 51-year old civic sanitation employee was found positive today.

The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) took prompt action and sealed off the entire building No. 9 in Punjabi Camp, Sion-Koliwada area amidst howls of protests and abuses.

The state government has now opened around 3,500 temporary camps for housing migrant labourers across the state where they are getting food, accommodation, and other basic needs till the lockdown period is over.

Early on Thursday, the police has detained around 325 migrants who attempted to sneak out of Maharashtra in container trucks to Rajasthan.
An English language high school teacher in the northern province of Phu Tho has been employing a borderless classroom model to connect her students with their international peers via Skype.

Teacher Ha Anh Phuong invites an Indian teacher to her English Language class, offering students the chance to speak English naturally.  Photo provided by Ha Anh Phuong

29-year-old Ha Anh Phuong from Huong Can High School encourages her students to sign up for international development projects or spend time writing letters in English to their friends, reading English newspapers and watching English programmes on TV.

From a remote mountainous area in the north of Viet Nam, her students, most of whom are from ethnic minority groups, are confident communicating in English.

They get the chance to talk with native English speakers which helps to improve their language skills and boosts their confidence.

Phuong said that she and her students had travelled to over 30 countries without a visa.

Thanks to the borderless classroom model, her students English proficiency has improved significantly. They get connected with their peers around the world, accessing modern education models and learning more about different cultures.

Phuongs teaching innovations have earned her a place in the top 50 outstanding finalists for the 2020 Global Teacher Prize, selected from over 12,000 nominations and applications from 140 countries around the world.

The Global Teacher Prize has a prize of US$1 million, and is presented annually to an exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession.

The Varkey Foundation established the prize in 2014 to recognise and celebrate the impact that teachers have around the world- not only on their students but also on the communities around them.

Last year, Vietnamese teacher Tran Thi Thuy from uc Hop High School in the northern province of Hung Yen was also on the shortlist for inspiring rural students to learn English.

Making a difference

Born in Yen Lap, a poor mountainous district in Phu Tho, Phuong understands the disadvantages rural students usually face when studying foreign languages.

They have few chances to speak English with foreigners, and the students are shy and lack intercultural knowledge.

Phuong said that she was inspired to become a teacher after seeing a film in which the teacher worked in a remote mountainous area like her hometown.

In the film, the teacher visited local families who lived along dangerous mountain paths to persuade parents to send their children to school rather than let them stay at home.

In her youth, Phuong dreamed of becoming an English teacher after she fell in love with the language in secondary school.

Graduating from high school, Phuong attended Ha Noi University  a famous institution specialising in foreign language studies.

After getting her masters degree in English, Phuong realised her dream of becoming an English teacher, and even refused a job offer to work in a management position with an attractive salary at a Pakistani company.

She chose to go back to her hometown, teaching at a local high school.

Every student needs and deserves a good education, Phuong said, adding that she wanted to bring better education to children in her hometown.

To tackle long-lasting problems that rural students usually meet learning English, Phuong found technology assistants.

She employed the borderless classroom model to connect her students to international peers via Skype.

Some of her innovations have significantly improved students' results, which can be clearly seen in their national exams. Last school year, all her students who were previously low-achieving in the English language passed the final exam.

Some might be sceptical about the results as English is not a strength of students in Viet Nams rural areas. In the past, students in remote disadvantaged areas even took alternative subjects like history or geography instead of English in their high school graduation exams.

Principal of Huong Can High School Phan Trong uc said that Phuong was a young enthusiast.

She is full of ideas, he said.

Ha Thu Lan, an 11th grader, said that Phuongs English lessons were engaging because students can talk to and learn from their peers in the US, India or South Africa.

We learn much from them and we can practise listening, reading and writing in English effectively, she said.

Well known as the 4.0 innovative teacher in Viet Nam, Phuong has now taught students online from four continents - Africa, Europe, Asia, and America.

She is an active member of an educational Microsoft community that gathers global teachers to design lessons and engage in weekly professional development.

Last year, during the international project Say No to plastic straws, Phuong instructed her students to respond and was named among the top 150 most outstanding project in a teaching contest organised by the Ministry of Education and Training and Microsoft.

During the project presentation, Phuong's students met their peers from four continents to present Vietnamese bamboo straws and talk about the production process.

Thanks to Skype, I can connect my class with other teachers around the world, Phuong said.

English is a living language, so I think it is very important to create a creative environment for students to learn, Phuong said.

I see the confidence and excitement of students in my borderless classroom, and I believe they will become global citizens, Phuong said.

Thanks to the assistance of IT, borderless education has become much easier.

As a young teacher, I need to keep enriching my knowledge and teaching experiences, she said, adding that she wanted to design lessons with IT applications, and instruct her students in international projects that go in line with the United Nations sustainable development goals.

I also plan to launch a free English teaching channel on Youtube, she said.  VNS

Foreign teachers at language schools lose jobs amid COVID-19 crisis Because of the epidemic, many international examinations have been postponed, and all foreign language centers have closed.
The Pakistani Army will oversee the coordination between the federal and provincial governments to tackle the coronavirus pandemic as the number of cases in the country showed an upward trend despite various efforts to contain the disease that has infected over 2,200 people.

The Army on Wednesday announced that Commander of Army's Air Defence Command, Lt Gen Hamood Uz Zaman Khan, has been appointed as the convener of the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC).

The NCOC would act as the implementation arm of the National Core Committee (NCC), the government's lead agency in the anti-COVID-19 campaign, chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan and represented by all provinces, Gilgit-Baltistian and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC), formed to take unanimous decision on all issues related to the coronavirus, has become operational.

One of NCOC's key functions is to ensure effective coordination between federal and provincial governments to deal with the pandemic, the Dawn reported.

The NCOC is serving as a nucleus for one-window operation to synergise and articulate the national effort against COVID-19, optimise informed decision making and ensure implementation of decisions of the National Security Committee (NSC) and the National Coordination Committee (NCC), the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan government has announced a social protection package to provide monetary help to 12 million poor families in the country.

Prime Minister Imran Khan's Special Assistant on Poverty Alleviation Sania Nishtar on Wednesday said that the government is making efforts to reach out to the vulnerable and marginalised people during the time of crisis.

The government is also working to provide cash to poor families on an emergency basis.

Emergency cash initiative in response to COVID-19, the largest-ever social protection initiative in the history of Pakistan. 12 million families (72 million individuals) will receive Rs 12,000 each. Total cost Rs 144 Billion (USD 18.8 billion), she said.

The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Pakistan reached 2,291 with 76 new cases diagnosed in the last 24 hours and 5 patients died during this period.

The Ministry of National Health Services in the last updates showed that the number of patients in Punjab was 845, Sindh 843, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) 276, Balochistan, 169, Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), 187, Islamabad, 62 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir 9 cases.

So far 31 people have died of the deadly disease and 107 recovered, while 9 are in critical condition.

Meanwhile, Pakistan researchers were making efforts to understand the virus and a team led by Dow University of Health Sciences Vice Chancellor Professor Mohammad Saeed Quraishy reported that the genetic make-up of the novel coronavirus may alter in a locally-transmitted case.

According to a media report, the researcher while examining the DNA structure of the virus contracted locally by a young boy observed that the sequencing had slight mutations from the one that originated in Wuhan.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Italy's death toll from the COVID-19 virus is far higher than reported 'because the country cannot spare resources to test every dead body', a report has claimed.

Italy first emerged as the European epicentre of the virus before rocketing to become the country with the most deaths from infection globally. Their death toll currently stands at 13,155, dwarfing the 3,318 recorded in China, where the outbreak began.

A nursing home in Coccaglio, close to Milan, reported that 24 residents died during March, none of whom were tested for the coronavirus, the Wall Street Journal reported, claiming the same situation was true in another care facility in a nearby town called Lodi.

Funeral service workers transport a coffin of a victim of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) during a ceremony in the southern town of Cisternino, Italy on Monday

Medical staff of a mobile unit take samples from a woman to test for Covid-19, at the Santa Maria della Pieta' hospital complex, in Rome yesterday

A man wearing a makeshift protective mask walks during the emergency blockade of the Coronavirus Covid-19 in Rome, Italy today

The publication analysed deaths in Lombardy, one of the areas hardest-hit by the disease, and found they are not isolated. Many citizens who die from COVID-19 do not make it to hospital to be tested, the WSJ reported.

This means the human toll from the virus is likely to be much more devastating than originally thought.

Older people in hard-to-reach locations and those unable to access treatment due to the health-care crisis are particularly at risk to becoming an uncounted victim of the virus.

'There are many more dead than are officially declared. But this is not a j'accuse [an accusation].

People died and they were never tested because time and resources are limited,' Eugenio Fossati, deputy mayor of Coccaglio, told the WSJ of deaths caused by the virus.

According to interviews with local officials, doctors and funeral-service providers, the people most in contact with the dead, the analysis predicts that around two of the main virus hotspots in the country, Bergamo and Brescia, the death toll is at least double what has been recorded since February.

Medical personel and patients at a newly set up intensive care unit for the treatment of Coronavirus Covid-19 in the physiotherapy assistance gym of the Poliambilanza hospital in Brescia, Italy yesterday

Carabinieri officers, wearing protective suits, pull a coffin last week in Ponte San Pietro, near Bergamo, Northern Italy. The Italian Army has been brought in to ferry coffins out of Bergamo and its province, amongst Italy's most plagued towns, as its morgue and its crematorium struggle to cope with the surging coronavirus death toll

In Coccaglio, which has 8,700 residents, just 85 people died. Since the outbreak in late February, 56 have died, with only 12 of the people known as dying of coronavirus.

Italy's approach to counting those infected has been similar to many countries across the globe, testing citizens who show symptoms of the virus.

Experts believe that the 111,000 recorded by Italy is undercounted and put the true number between hundreds of thousands and six million.

In Bergamo, which has been decimated by the virus, 125 deaths were recorded during March last year. For the same month in 2020, deaths rocketed to 553, with just 201 linked to the virus.

Specialists of the Russian Defense Ministry's radiation, chemical and biological protection troops pictured while disinfecting the area by the Cardinal Giorgio Gusmini senior care center on Tuesday

Two Carabinieri officers, wearing protective suits, stand inside a warehouse used to stock coffins in Ponte San Pietro, near Bergamo, Northern Italy last week

The 352 deaths for the period are almost double the amount recorded last year.

'Other countries that have the good fortune to be seven to 14 days behind us have to use that time to erect defenses,' Giorgio Gori, Bergamo's mayor, told WSJ.

'We were first, and we weren't prepared. Any leaders looking at us and not reacting vigorously will have a lot to answer for.'

Doctors and officials claim the numbers recorded often dwarf the average monthly death toll, with some regions matching the amount of deaths usually recorded over six months.

Covid patients arrive from hospitals to the Hotel Cristal Palace. Coronavirus outbreak, Bergamo, Italy yesterday

A family doctor based in Brescia, Eleonora Colombi, said that people who die outside hospitals, waiting for treatment, are not normally tested for the virus.

'Normally you don't have so many people all dying at the same time,' she said.

She added that the elderly and cancer patients are now dying at home because ambulances won't come out if you are 94 years old due to a long waiting list.

In certain areas, the lockdown has prevented officials from posting death notices, a tradition that is maintained in certain towns, leaving people unaware of who's dying, and others unable to reach out and provide support for those in mourning.

Three days ago, the number of new coronavirus cases in Italy were the lowest in nearly a fortnight, suggesting the country's social distancing measures are working.

The World Health Organisation said the country's epidemic should start to stabilise as Italy announced the lockdown will last until at least mid-April.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said any easing of containment measures would be done incrementally to ensure Italy did not give up gains it had made.

Health Minister Roberto Speranza later announced 'all containment measures would be extended at least until Easter' on April 12.

Civil Protection Service Chief Angelo Borrelli said Wednesday: 'We saw 1,590 people recover in the past 24 hours. This is the highest number of recoveries recorded since the start of the pandemic.'

Italy has registered more deaths than anywhere else in the world and accounts for more than a third of all global fatalities from the virus.
Sunnybrook research lead to the early implementation of a hospital-based COVID-19 test.



Sunnybrook team of Dr. Mubareka and Dr. Robert Kozak and team of close collaborators isolated the agent responsible for the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19.

QuestCap to receive a 3.5% Royalty from commercialization of research

Acclaimed Stanford Immunology professor Dr. Lawrence Steinman joins advisory board

Senior Public Health Policy Leader Mike McCarthy joins advisory board

TORONTO, April 02, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

QuestCap Inc. (QuestCap or the Company) (CSE: QSC; OTCMKTS: COPRF; FRA: 34C1) is pleased to announce an investment of $1 million in the Sunnybrook Research Institutes COVID-19 research. With these funds, Sunnybrook will establish the Sunnybrook Translational Research Group for Emerging and Respiratory Viruses (SERV) and QuestCap will receive a 3.5% royalty on any revenues earned by Sunnybrook from the commercialization of any of the research done by SERV.



Led by infectious diseases physician and microbiologist Dr. Samira Mubareka, SERVs work will focus on three crucial streams of research: vaccines and therapeutics, virus biology and transmission prevention. Dedicated investment in SERV means Dr. Mubareka and her team will be able to accelerate the pace of further research into COVID-19 at a crucial time.

Dr. Lawrence Steinman and Mike McCarthy Appointed as Advisors

QuestCap is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Lawrence Steinman and Mike McCarthy to the board of advisors. Dr. Lawrence Steinman is Professor of Neurology, Neurological Sciences and Pediatrics at Stanford University and Chair of the Stanford Program in Immunology from 2001 to 2011.

Mike McCarthy has more than 14 years of experience with the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and 24 years in health policy and delivery. He was appointed Senior Policy Advisor to the Progressive Conservative Minister of Health of Ontario, advising on physician, nursing and primary care, public health, laboratories, OHIP, organ transplant, HIV and blood issues. In 2003, he provided strategic support and counsel to the government of Ontario during the SARS outbreak.

Story continues

Lawrence Steinman stated that, The Sunnybrook technology will be a key tool for the development of both powerful and safe vaccines against COVID-19, and for the development of point of care and even home diagnostics to test whether one is immune to the COVID-19 virus. Those who are immune can return to work and can provide safe and needed duties to the community. It would be especially important to know if you are a health care worker, grocer or delivery person whether or not you have immunity. You could then be safe and carry on as a SuperWomen or SuperMan in these times, knowing you are immune! Mike McCarthy adds I look forward to advising QuestCap in its visionary efforts to bring innovative testing and vaccine technologies to Canada and the world to combat COVID-19.

The Company has granted 500,000 stock options to Mr. Steinman pursuant to the Companys stock option plan. The stock options shall vest in four equal instalments every three months such that all stock options fully vest by the date that falls 12 months from the date of grant and may be exercised at a price of $0.305 per common share for a period of five years from the date of grant. This grant of options is subject to the approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange.

Sunnybrook Translational Research Group

Sunnybrook has been at the global forefront of the COVID-19 pandemic since the first Canadian case was identified, both clinically and on the research front. Dr. Mubareka, along with clinical microbiologist Dr. Robert Kozak and a team of close collaborators, has led Sunnybrooks research response efforts since the earliest days of the pandemic. Their work has been globally significant, leading to early implementation of a hospital-based COVID-19 test. Most crucially, on March 10, 2020, their team isolated the agent responsible for the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19. The isolated virus is helping researchers in Canada and elsewhere to develop better diagnostic testing, treatments and vaccines, and gain a better understanding of the viruss biology, evolution and clinical shedding.

This is extremely time-sensitive research, says Dr. Mubareka. As a scientist on the frontlines, I have seen the devastation this virus can cause. We all feel the effects of physical distancing as our lives are fundamentally changed. This is why support from our community is so important right now. The more we understand how this virus behaves, the better we can limit its spread as we race to find a treatment or vaccine. This investment will be put to work immediately toward our human and operational funding needs to rapidly accelerate research into COVID-19.

Now is the time to dedicate as many resources as possible to stopping the spread of this highly contagious virus, explains Dr. Andy Smith, Sunnybrooks President and CEO. On behalf of Sunnybrook, I would like to extend my deepest thanks to QuestCap for stepping up with this inspiring investment. Your support will have a direct impact on the lives of countless people in our communities, across Canada and around the world.

With these crucial tools in hand, QuestCap saw an opportunity to give this research a major boost at a critical juncture. As countries grapple with the effects of COVID-19, there has been a collective global effort to help minimize the impacts of this deadly virus, says Stan Bharti, Co-Chairman of QuestCap. QuestCap, through its investment platform, is looking to do its part by providing a critical investment to help fund the vital research being conducted by Dr. Mubareka, Dr. Kozak and their teams.

The investment to Sunnybrook will help researchers in Canada and across the world develop better diagnostic testing, treatments and vaccines, and gain a better understanding of SARS-CoV-2 biology, evolution and clinical shedding for the development of commercial applications (Commercial Applications). As consideration for its investment, QuestCap will receive a 3.5% royalty on any revenue earned by Sunnybrook from the any Commercial Applications resulting from the research conducted by SERV.

At a time of global uncertainty as COVID-19 continues to devastate people, families and entire countries, the urgency of research has never been greater, says Dr. Kullervo Hynynen, Vice President of Research & Innovation at Sunnybrook. Yet, often times, there simply isnt enough funding for research. I am deeply grateful to QuestCap for this clear statement on supporting the power of research to save and change lives.

About the Research

SERV is a three-pronged COVID-19 research response program, consisting of the following critically important areas of focus:

1. Virus biology (genomics): Identifying the genetic sequence of a virus is an essential step for identifying key targets for treatments and vaccines. It also tells the story of origin and its relation to other viruses. This approach provides precision genomic data, which will be essential for outbreak investigation. Funds for SERV allow Sunnybrook scientists to turn around whole genome viral sequences at the site of care: Sunnybrook.

2. Vaccines and therapeutics: Our ability to identify and isolate the virus that causes COVID-19, based on samples from infected patients, allows us to collaborate on antiviral research and conduct our own vaccine and transmission work. With SERV, Sunnybrook will share our findings about the virus within the Canadian research and diagnostic community, thereby driving further innovative solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic.

3. Transmission prevention: As part of a World Health Organizations effort to evaluate risk to health-care workers of providing certain support measures, such as high-flow oxygen use, Sunnybrook is building a simulation space for live virus experiments using mannequins with funds for SERV. This is important because protecting care providers is key to preventing the spread of the virus within hospitals.

About Lawrence Steinman

Steinman is Professor of Neurology, Neurological Sciences and Pediatrics at Stanford University and Chair of the Stanford Program in Immunology from 2001 to 2011. His research focuses on antigen specific tolerance in autoimmune disease and in gene therapy for degenerative neurologic diseases. He has elucidated what provokes relapses and remissions in multiple sclerosis (MS). He is taking forward a pivotal clinical trial with antigen specific tolerization therapy for type 1 diabetes. He serves as attending neurologist at Stanfords Lucille Packard Childrens Hospital. Steinman is an elected member of the US National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine.

Steinman was senior author on the 1992 Nature article that led to the drug Tysabri, approved for MS and Crohns disease. Tysabri has been taken by over 200,000 individuals with MS.

Dr. Steinman graduated from Dartmouth College, Magna Cum Laude in Physics. His MD is from Harvard Medical School. He was a post-doctoral fellow in chemical immunology fellow at the Weizmann Institute of Science. After neurology residency he remained on the faculty in 1980. He has received numerous honors, including the John M. Dystel Prize in 2004, the Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award from the NINDS twice, the Charcot Prize in MS research, and the Cerami Prize in Translational Medicine. Steinman is a member of both the National Academy of Sciences, and the National Academy of Medicine.

Dr. Steinman co-founded several biotech companies, including Neurocrine, Atreca, 180 Therapeutics, and Tolerion. He was a Director of Centocor from 1988 until its sale to Johnson and Johnson.

About Mike McCarthy

Mike is widely recognized across Canada as a stellar health care advocate and system expert. As a volunteer Vice-President of the Canadian Hemophilia Society, Mike was the national spokesperson for Canadians infected by blood tainted with Hepatitis C. His tireless efforts resulted in a landmark $2 billion settlement with the federal government in 2006, and the Queens Golden Jubilee Award presented by the Governor General of Canada.

Presently Mike is a Principal at Grosso McCarthy and provides counsel to clients in both the not-for-profit and for-profit sectors. He helps clients navigate provincial, federal and international governments  at the levels of the civil service and elected officials. Mike has also been on the front lines of health care, working for 18 years as a psychiatric nurse.

As a principal with Grosso McCarthy, Mike builds on more than 14 years of experience with the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and 24 years in health policy and delivery. He was appointed Senior Policy Advisor to the Progressive Conservative Minister of Health of Ontario, advising on physician, nursing and primary care, public health, laboratories, OHIP, organ transplant, HIV and blood issues.

In 2003, he provided strategic support and counsel to the government of Ontario during the SARS outbreak.

About QuestCap

QuestCap is an investment company that seeks to enhance shareholder value over the long term by opportunistically making various investments that may include, without limitation, the acquisition of equity, debt or other securities of publicly traded or private companies or other entities, financing in exchange for pre-determined royalties or distributions and the acquisition of all or part of one or more businesses, portfolios or other assets.

For additional information, please contact:

G Scott Moore

Co-Chairman

smoore@forbesmanhattan.com

1-416-861-5903

Media contact:

Wynn Theriault

Thirty Dash Communications

34 King St East #400

Toronto M5C 2X8

416.710.3370

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Information

This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the investment with SERV; the grant of options; and Sunnybrook and the appointment of advisory board members. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved". Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of the Company, as the case may be, to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

NEITHER THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER HAS REVIEWED OR ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.
Statewide Survey Shows Serious Impacts, Deep Concern for Coronavirus

Nearly one-third of Wyomingites say they or immediate family members have been laid off or lost their jobs due to the novel coronavirus COVID-19, according to a new survey by the University of Wyomings Wyoming Survey and Analysis Center (WYSAC).

And, more than half of the states residents or their immediate family members have seen reductions in work hours or pay because of the pandemic, with nearly three-quarters expressing deep concern about the impact of coronavirus on the economy.

The survey, conducted Monday, is the first of multiple surveys WYSAC plans to measure public opinion on a number of topics related to COVID-19. A total of 465 people participated in the weighted survey representing all Wyoming counties, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.

Here are some of the survey findings:

-- 31.9 percent of respondents said they or immediate family members had been laid off or lost their jobs.

-- 56.3 percent said they or immediate family members had seen a reduction in work hours or pay.

-- 71.4 percent were very concerned about the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, with 22.7 percent somewhat concerned. Only 5.7 percent were not concerned.

-- 75 percent were concerned about the impact of the coronavirus on their personal finances, with 24.9 percent not concerned.

-- 89.8 percent said theyve changed their daily routines because of the outbreak, with over 80 percent of those saying theyre eating out less; avoiding physical contact with others; washing their hands more frequently; not attending public gatherings; and spending more time at home.

-- About 66 percent said they think the worst is yet to come.

Regarding policies enacted to slow the spread of the virus, more than 80 percent supported the closure of schools, day care centers and restaurants, along with limitations on public gatherings. More than half -- 54.4 percent -- would support a state-level shelter-in-place order, with 22.3 percent opposed and 23.3 percent uncertain.

If a vaccine becomes available for COVID-19, 80.2 percent said they would be likely to seek the vaccine.

The survey also asked for perspectives on the way local, state and national leaders are handling the virus response. Results from those questions include:

-- 62.2 percent approve and 34.3 percent disapprove of President Donald Trumps performance on the issue, with 55.7 percent saying they trust the information about COVID-19 they hear from him and 44.3 percent saying they dont.

-- 81.9 percent approve and 14.1 percent disapprove of Gov. Mark Gordons handling of the situation, with 86.9 percent saying they trust the information he provides and 13.2 percent saying they dont.

-- 78.4 percent approve and 15.9 percent disapprove of the way local government and health officials are handling the outbreak, with 85.7 percent say they trust the information they hear from those sources and 14.3 percent saying they dont.

-- 47.6 percent say they approve of the way Congress is handling the pandemic, with 45.5 percent disapproving.

When it comes to the U.S. and Wyoming health care systems ability to handle the response to the pandemic, close to 51 percent said they have confidence in that ability, and about 30 percent said they dont, with about 19.5 percent unsure.

Finally, asked if they think COVID-19 is a real threat or blown out of proportion, 63.8 percent said its a real threat; 24.2 percent said its blown out of proportion; and 12 percent were unsure.

To see the survey methodology and complete results, go to WYSACs website at https://wysac.uwyo.edu/wysac.
US President Donald Trump will meet with U.S. oil executives to discuss possible financial assistance for the industry and tariffs on oil imports from Saudi Arabia, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Saudi Arabia is currently bent on flooding the already saturated oil markets with even more oil after the production cut talks with OPEC and Russia fell through. Saudi Arabia is now producing more than 12 million barrels per day, according to Reuters sources, even though oil demand has dropped off a cliff in recent weeks.

The meeting will take place on Friday at the White House, and will include executives from Chevron, Exxon, and Occidental Petroleum, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The U.S. Shale industry has fallen on hard times, caught between the oversupply and the drop off in demand, and the low gasoline prices are a lousy consolation prize to the Administration that has touted Americas growing energy independence.

U.S. lawmakers have expressed growing concern for the U.S. oil industry, urging the President to levy tariffs on OPECs oil. The Texas Railroad Commission has even thrown out the idea of its own production cuts to producers in the state.

The idea of a tariff has been proposed by Senators Roger Wicker and Jim Inhofe, who cited national security as a reason to slap tariffs on foreign oil.

The talks about the tariff come after the United States said it might join oil production talks between Russia and Saudi Arabia. According to President Trump, Saudi Arabia and Russia were discussing the issue. Trump also said that he had separate conversations with Russias President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

WTI has been trading around $20 over the last week.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
02.04.2020 LISTEN

The Minister for Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has said President Akufo-Addo was not tested for Coronavirus when he returned from Norway.

Mr Oppong Nkrumah on The Point of View on Citi TV explained that although rumours of the President testing positive for the virus were rife, the President was not tested because the government was strictly observing the World Health Organisation (WHO) guideline of 14-day mandatory observation.

The Minister was however quick to add that the President was recently tested as part of government's enhanced testing process which was recently introduced.

He was not tested when he came back from Norway. A day before his birthday, that was when this enhanced testing programme started. Remember that the WHO guidelines that we were working with was the 14-day observation and we were not even doing enhanced testing at the time. At first, what we were doing was just observation. We were not doing this aggressive testing. As we have started, that is how come the President and his close associates have been tested and we will probably do it on a regular basis because they come into contact with various actors, Mr. Oppong Nkrumah clarified.

Rumours

President Akufo-Addo returned from Norway in the last week of February 2020, as part of an official visit to the Scandinavian country.

According to a statement from the presidency, the President was accompanied by the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Shirley Ayorkor Botchway, MP; Minister for Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, MP; and officials of the Presidency and Foreign Ministry on that trip.

When he returned, there were calls for him President Akufo-Addo, immediate family test negative for COVID-19.

In the latest development, the president's personal physician, Dr. Patrina Takyi-Ankrah, who spoke at a press briefing organised by the Ministry of Information on Wednesday said Akufo-Addo tested negative for COVID-19.

She said other top government officials including the Minister of Health, have also taken the test and have all tested negative.

On the day before the President's birthday, we tested him and the First Lady and his daughters and all the staff of this household and I am happy to announce that all the tests came back negative, she said.

Some news portals earlier in March reported that President Nana Akufo-Addo and the Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo Maafo had tested positive for Coronavirus.

The publications were based on a statement by a social commentator, Kelvin Ebo Taylor who said in a televised broadcast that a source at the seat of government, the Jubilee House had indicated that the President had tested positive for the virus.

But Dr. Takyi Ankrah said close family relations of the President have also been tested and in all 99 staff at the Presidency have all been tested and have been confirmed negative.

She said the tests were done based on a policy that all top officials and frontline workers dealing with issues regarding COVID-19 in the country be screened themselves.

A day after his birthday, we continued to test the people in his secretariat including myself because we tend to deal with him on these bases and as I speak now, a total of 99 people have been tested and the results have come back negative. We are continuing the process and as and when we complete, we are hoping that everybody will test negative, she added.

--citinewsroom
Its time for me to begin extracting notes from certain Islam-related books in order to move forward with a substantial and much-delayed writing project of mine. I begin with Gilles Kepel, Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam, translated by Anthony F. Roberts (Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press, Harvard University Press, 2002). At the time of writing, Gilles Kepel was Professor of Middle East Studies at the Institute for Political Studies in Paris.

I start with an insightful passage about the late leader of al-Qaida:

As icon or symbol, bin Laden and his companions have been at pains to construct an image of themselves modeled on the Prophet Mohammed and his followers. Mohammed was forced to flee idolatrous Mecca in 622 and settle in Medina, where for eight years he carried out daring raids on his enemies before returning in triumph to Mecca in 630. Like the Prophet, bin Laden fled hypocritical Saudi Arabia in a kind of latter-day Hegira, coming eventually to the arid mountains of Afghanistan, from which he carried on his holy war under the guidance of Allah. (In his October [2001] message, instead of taking credit for the attack, bin Laden presented it as a miracle, the will of God: America has been struck in one of its vital organs by Allah the All-Powerful.)

The desire to identify his group of comrades with the earliest Muslims, with the companions of the Prophet and their successors  whose example is very much alive in the heart of anyone brought up in an Islamic culture  was further strengthened by the disproportionate, heroic dimension of the war, waged by a small group of fighters against the two greatest empires in the world. Just as the early Muslim horsemen annihilated the Sassanid [Persian] empire, so the jihadists, as they saw it, had brought down the Soviet empire by defeating the Red Army in Afghanistan. Likewise, just as the first caliphs hurled back the Byzantine [or eastern Roman] empire, conquering all its southern and eastern provinces from Syria to North Africa, so todays activists have set off an earthquake that they expect will rock the foundations of the empire of America. (16-17)

This is also, I think, an insightful observation:

The Afghan jihad against the Soviets became the great cause with which Islamists worldwide identified, moderates and radicals alike. In the minds of many Arabs, jihad supplanted the Palestinian cause and symbolized the shift from nationalism to Islamism. (8)
Whether peering into a distant past, or a near future, books featuring pandemics have long had a place in the canon. Discussing the longtime fascination with "fables of contagion" in the New Yorker, Jill Lepore wrote that reading itself is, in many ways, an infection. "Every story of epidemic," she writes, "is a story of illiteracy, language made powerless, man made brute.... But, then, the existence of books, no matter how grim the tale, is itself a sign, evidence that humanity endures, in the very contagion of reading." We're inclined to agree.

So what literary contagions have remained with us? Here are 13 of our favorites.

A Beginning at the End Mike Chen. Mira, $26.99 (400p) ISBN 978-0-7783-0934-5 The rebuild after a plague is the focus of this novel, which follows three San Franciscans trying to put the pieces back together after a disease known as MGS has taken out over half the population. The three acquaintancesa single dad, a former pop star, and a consultant who helps people cope with the tragedyare put together by chance, but begin to bond as various threats surface. Chen's novel is a more hopeful take on end of the world that "manages to imbue the apocalypse with heart, hope, and humanity."

California Edan Lepucki. Little, Brown, $26 (400p) ISBN 978-0-316-25081-8 In Lepucki's 2014 debut, a couple flees a crumbling Los Angeles to start life over in the woods. Struggling to survive, Cal and Frida are thrown another curve when Frida realizes she's pregnant. Finding solace in another group of survivors, the couple quickly become unnerved by the encampment, where, among other red flags, there are no children and a fearsome leader. We said the suspenseful tale builds "to an explosive climax that few readers will see coming."

The Dog Stars Peter Heller. Knopf, $24.95 (336p) ISBN 978-0-307-95994-2 A pandemic has killed almost everyone on earth and Hig, his dog and a well-armed misanthropic geezer are living at an abandoned airfield in Colorado, muddling through their days, reminiscing, and fighting off occasional bands of marauders. Hig is convinced there's still some semblance of the former civilized world out there to discover and routinely takes his pooch up in an old prop plane to patrol the surrounding mountains and valleys. What is different and most appealing about this literary take on the end of the world is its lack of cynicism. Yes, it has has all the tension, excitement and dread of your typical dystopian yarn, but it is also tempered with just the right amount of hope.

The Dreamers Karen Thompson Walker. Random House, $27 (320p) ISBN 978-0-8129-9416-2 The sophomore novel from Walker (who made a splash with her 2012 debut The Age of Miracles) opens with a college freshman coming down with what she assumes to be the flu. It, of course, isn't. Instead it's a bizarre ailment that causes its victims to fall into a deep sleep from which they cannot be awoken. As the disease spreads, quarantines follow. With strong characters and a twisty plot, the novel, we said, is "skillful, complex, and thoroughly satisfying."

The End of October Lawrence Wright. Knopf, $27.95 (400p) ISBN 978-0-525-65865-8 This thriller, which releases next month, follows a World Health Organization doctor who begins sounding the alarm about an impending pandemic after an Indonesian refugee camp is decimated by a seemingly new disease. Pulitzer Prize-winner Wright has been getting lots of buzz for this novel, which we called a "timely literary page-turner."

In a Perfect World Laura Kasischke. Harper Perennial, $13.99 (309p) ISBN 978-0-06-176611-4 Phoenix flu is the pandemic afoot in this novel from the poet and novelist Kasischke. A flight attendant accepts a marriage proposal from a pilot and widower, believing she's found a way out of the uncertainty and danger presented by the country's spreading infection. When her fiance is unexpectedly held overseas, though, the heroine must come together with her stepchildren to form an instant family. We called the novel "startling," noting that it features a "fictional world where terror, beauty and chaos walk hand in hand."

A Journal of the Plague Year Daniel Defoe. Dover Publications, ISBN 978-0-486-41919-0

One of the original pandemic novels, at least in Western literature, is Defoe's 1722 survivor's account of the bubonic plague. Published roughly 60 years after the so-called Black Death ravaged England, and thought to be based on the diary of Defoe's uncle, the book follows a Londoner named H.F. who witnesses the horror and devastation wrought by the epidemic. Thought by many to be nonfiction when it was published, the novel is an ideal option for those looking to see the template for pandemic literature.

A Prayer for the Dying Stewart O'Nan. Henry Holt & Company, $22 (195p) ISBN 978-0-8050-6147-5 The first thing to like about Stewart O'Nan's slim, gruesome novel is that its hero wears three hatshe's the local sheriff, undertaker and priest in the town of Friendship, Wisc. That combo becomes a particularly tough role when the outpost is consumed by a brutal epidemic that is killing the locals in shocking fashion. Part-Western, part horror story, this post-Civil War tale, like too much of O'Nan's work, is an underrated gem.

Severance Ling Ma. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, $26 (304p) ISBN 978-0-374-26159-7 The apocalypse usually brings dread. Not in Ma's amusing debut, where a plague infecting the world is wreaking a debilitating onslaught of nostalgia. Shen Fever, which becomes known as a "disease of remembering," causes its victims to repeat their old routines in a zombie-like fashion. For Candace Chen, who lives in Manhattan and works at a local publisher in charge of its Bible-printing operation, the pandemic's spread forces her to begin thinking about her future--should she pursue her artistic dreams, or hold on to her steady, corporate job? We said this "clever and dextrous" work cleverly uses the "walking dead conceit to reflect on what constitutes the good life."

A Song for a New Day Sarah Pinsker. Berkley, $16 trade paper (384p) ISBN 978-1-984802-58-3 Pinsker's novel is set in a post-pandemic U.S. where large gatherings are banned and the only way to experience live music is virtually. Kinda like now. But scrappy groups of musicians and fans get together in secret, in warehouses and basements and barns, bonding and building community. Reading the book now is a little unsettling since were in the before and the during, but it gives hope for what might come after.

Station Eleven Emily St. John Mandel. Knopf, $24.95 (352p) ISBN 978-0-385-35330-4 This beautiful, and eerily prescient, novel opens as a flu pandemic has decimated much of the human population. Twenty years later, a small troupe of Shakespearean actors and musicians travels about the Great Lakes region, performing for remote communities of shell-shocked survivors, doing their best to keep art and culture alive in a post-apocalyptic world. It's a powerful read during the current crisis.

Wilder Girls Rory Power. Delacorte, $18.99 (368p) ISBN 978-0-525-64558-0 In what we called an "incisive debut" a group of young women are under lockdown at their Maine boarding school after a pandemic, known as "the Tox," has wrought havoc. The girls16-year-old best friends Hetty, Byatt, and Reeseare now the only remaining students at the Raxter School for Girls, trying to survive on diminishing amounts of food as they wait for a cure on their coastal island. Touted as a "feminist Lord of the Flies" by its publisher, this lauded YA novel is even more resonant now, than when it came out last summer.

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War Max Brooks. Crown, $24.95 (342p) ISBN 978-0-307-34660-5 This bestseller-turned-blockbuster film is set after a zombie plague has decimated the global population. It's a compilation of as-told-to accounts from various survivors from around the world. (In a now-eerie-twist, one of the accounts is from a Chinese doctor who is among the first to encounter the contagion, just as his government is trying to suppress information about the outbreak.) Calling the book "surprisingly hard to put down," we said its "subtle, and not so subtle, jabs at various contemporary politicians and policies are an added bonus."

Rachel Deahl, Ed Nawotka, Carolyn Juris, Drucilla Shultz, and Claire Kirch contributed to this article.
A man has shot himself and his girlfriend after losing his job over the coronavirus pandemic in an attempted murder-suicide, police have said.

Roderick Bliss IV, 38, shot his girlfriend in the back before turning the gun on himself at a Pennsylvania home on Monday afternoon.

Wilson Police officers responded to a call on 54 North 17th Street in Wilson Borough where a 43-year-old woman said she had been shot by her longtime boyfriend.

Bliss was found unresponsive and not breathing with a semi-automatic pistol near his body.



The woman had a gunshot wound to her back.

She told police that days prior to the shooting, Bliss had become increasingly upset about the pandemic and about losing his job.

Minutes before the shooting, the woman said Bliss went into the basement and came outside on the porch with the handgun.

She told officers that Bliss said to her, I already talked to God and I have to do this.

When she ran from the home, Bliss fired at her four times, striking her once in the back.

He then shot and killed himself, police said in a news release.

Northampton County Coroner Zach Lysek arrived on scene and later ruled Blisss death a suicide.

The victim was taken to St. Lukes Hospital where she underwent surgery.

She is currently in the intensive care unit and is expected to survive, police Chief Chris Meehan said.

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HILLSDALE, MI  Rather than lend a hand during the novel coronavirus pandemic, Hillsdale College lent thousands of gloves to the many hands working at Hillsdale Hospital.

The school donated more than 12,000 latex gloves and enough supply to make 20 gallons of hand sanitizer, a news release states.

This is a challenging time for our local Hillsdale healthcare community, Chris VanOrman, Hillsdale College provost, said in the release. Our college community looked for ways to support Hillsdale Hospital and others as they work to fight this deadly disease.

Additionally, Hillsdale College has also lent the hospital its fleet vans and housing to help efforts, Emily Davis, Hillsdale College media relations manager, said.

Hillsdale Hospital has not yet used its supply of gloves or sanitizer but has asked the community to donate items so it can remain prepared.

We are grateful for these critical supplies and are encouraged to see donations like this from our community, Jeremiah Hodshire, Hillsdale Hospital chief operating officer, said in the release.

With Hillsdale College canceling in-person classes through at least April 20 due to COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, the science department wont need the supplies it donated, officials said.

Gloves are obviously out of stock right now, and it is difficult to say when well be able to get more, Matthew Young, the schools dean of natural sciences, said. The far more pressing concern is making sure healthcare workers have what they need.
US President Donald Trump's administration revealed on Tuesday a recommendation to end the Venezuela sanctions in exchange for the establishment of the so-called "power-sharing transitional government" composed the Socialist Party of President Nicolas Maduro, and the opposition members.

With South America squeezed by low prices of oil worldwide, a spreading COVID-19 pandemic, and a pressure campaign in the US economy, Washington lifted its approach targeted at endorsing new elections to put an end to the political disaster there.

Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State, officially announced the "Democratic Transition Framework" of the administration for Venezuela, which provides a "sequenced exit path" for the first time from the tough sanctions of US, which include the vital oil segment, if there is cooperation from Marudo and his followers.

However, it will be a difficult task to attract the Venezuela President onto a political settlement path. This official holds onto power in spite of the US initiatives' escalation to remove him. More so, he did not demonstrate any sign of the willingness of serious negotiation as an end to his governance.

READ: Voter Registration at Risk Due to Coronavirus Pandemic

Maduro's Staying Power

The initiative took place less than a week after the Trump administration took a more confrontational tactic, accusing Maduro, as well as the more than a dozen other present and former top officials of Venezuela on chargers of "narco-terrorism."

These were accusations the highest Venezuelan official dismissed as racist and false. Some US officials privately said, Maduro's staying power has turned the main frustration for President Trump. More so, the state leader has retained the military's support, as well as Cuba, Russia and China's.

Moreover, the US administration according to reports, hopes that the energy dispute between Saudi Arabia and Russia has helped in the drip of oil price, which is the main financial lifeline of Maduro, and the growing threat of COVID-19, will help make him and his loyal supporters more flexible.

Elliott Abrams, the US Special Representative for Venezuela told Reuters News Agency, that the regime is currently "under heavier pressure than it has ever been," He added that perhaps, this particular pressure could result in a serious dialogue within the administration.

READ NEXT: US Navy Ships To Move In On Venezuela Following Counter-Narcotics Operations

The Proposal

The proposal of the US, which, according to Abrams, was approved by President Trump, is calling for Maduro to step down, and for the National Assembly which is controlled by the oppositions, to vote for an "inclusive transitional" administration which the majority can accept.

Meanwhile, the state council would rule until it runs the elections, which according to Pompeo, the US hoped could take place in six months to one year.

READ MORE: Cliver Alcala Charged Over Alleged "Narco Terrorist Conspiracy"

Nevertheless, in what seems to be moderating the tone towards the President, said Abrams, the original plan did not call for Maduro to be obliged or mandated into exile and even recommended that he could "theoretically run" for the elections.

Maduro's administration did not comment on or respond to the proposal of the US right away. More so, the President has also previously accused the United States of backing the attempts of the opposition to plot a "coup."
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to reach a deal in the next few days on oil production to end a price war that has 'ravaged' the oil industry worldwide

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to reach a deal in the next few days on oil production to end a price war that has "ravaged" the oil industry worldwide.

"I think that they will work it out over the next few days. ... Both know what they have to do," Trump told a White House news conference, without elaborating on the reasons for his confidence.

"Worldwide, the oil industry has been ravaged," Trump said, pointing to a flooded oil market as the fight for market share between Saudi Arabia and Russia has sent prices to 18-year lows.

Trump said he wanted to bring the oil industry "back to where it was."

"I think I know what to do to solve it. We dont want to lose our great oil companies  Id rather not do that," the president said without elaborating.

"I think that Russia and Saudi Arabia at some point are going to make a deal, in the not-too-distant future, because its very bad for Russia, its very bad for Saudi Arabia," he said, adding he had separate "great" conversations

with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent days.

(Reporting by Jeff Mason; Writing by Mohammad Zargham; Editing by Sandra Maler and Peter Cooney)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
The 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan for Zimbabwe was launched today, targeting 5.6 million people with food assistance and support in the areas of health, water-sanitation-hygiene, education, protection, nutrition, shelter, and camp coordination and management. The plan requests for a total of US$715 million from international community.





The Humanitarian Response Plan was signed by the Minister of Local Government, Public Works, and National Housing, Honorable July Moyo and the UN Resident Coordinator, Ms. Maria Ribeiro in the presence of His Excellency President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Government Ministers, WHO and WFP representatives and the media.





The launch of the Humanitarian Response Plan takes place in the context of the COVID-19 Virus Pandemic at a time when there are almost one million infections in the world. In Africa 41 countries had reported a total of 3,664 confirmed cases and 86 deaths. To date, the Ministry of Health and Child Care in Zimbabwe reported eight confirmed COVID-19 cases including one death, as well as 233 suspected cases of COVID-19 who tested negative.





The Humanitarian Response Plan will play a key role in mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and protecting those most vulnerable in communities in Zimbabwe.





Following the declaration of COVID-19 as a national disaster by President Emmerson Mnangagwa on 19 March 2020, efforts have been scaled up to further contain the spread. The United Nations in Zimbabwe have added immediate complementary interventions to the Humanitarian Response Plan for 2020, in support of the Zimbabwe COVID-19 Preparedness and Response plan.





The Zimbabwe Humanitarian Response Plan addresses the increasing vulnerabilities of an estimated seven million people who need multi-sectoral humanitarian support. Food insecurity remains the major concern with over 4.3 million people  or 46% of the rural population  requiring continued assistance.





Since 2019, Zimbabwe has experienced multiple climate and economic related shocks impacting the lives of many in both rural and urban communities. Today the COVID-19 Pandemic is the latest shock impacting on the wellbeing and livelihoods of Zimbabweans.





Those hardest hit have been forced to resort to negative coping mechanisms, with particularly dangerous consequences for women and girls who are simply striving to survive. Urban vulnerability has also been on the increase due to persistent economic shock, leaving some 2.2 million people food insecure according to the latest urban Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee assessment.Those hardest hit have been forced to resort to negative coping mechanisms, with particularly dangerous consequences for women and girls who are simply striving to survive.





The Humanitarian Response Plan prioritizes life-saving and life-sustaining support targeting the people most in need, including residual humanitarian needs of Cyclone Idai-affected communities and on-going support to refugees.





The response plan for Zimbabwe will be implemented in collaboration with 47 operational partners through cluster approach, in which, of the total USD 715m required: approximately 60% or USD422m planned for food security; USD 63m for health; USD 61m to water, sanitation and hygiene; USD 42m to education; USD 21m to protection; USD 18m to nutrition; USD 10m to shelter, and USD 950,000 to camp coordination and management.
New Delhi: The number of coronavirus deaths globally topped 50,200 on Thursday as the pandemic continues to ravage the United States and Europe, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

The virus claimed thousands more lives in its relentless march across the globe, with Spain and Britain seeing the highest number of daily deaths yet, despite measures putting more than half of the planet on some form of lockdown.

Reported cases of the COVID-19 respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus were approaching one million, with the most cases in the US, followed by Italy and Spain.

World Health Organization (WHO) head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there had been a "near exponential growth" in new cases and that the number of infected would hit a million within days.

According to the university's Coronavirus Resource Center, the most deaths have been reported from Italy so far, with 13,915. Spain has reported 10,003 fatalities, ahead of France with 4,032, and China, the epicentre of the virus, with 3,199.

India so far has reported 53 fatalities.

The crisis has put enormous strain on national health care systems and on nurses, doctors and other medical staff working in the most difficult of circumstances.

The number of infections around the world currently stands at 9,81,221, with a bulk of them being reported from the US and Europe. US has reported 2,26,374 confirmed cases so far, Italy 1,15,242, Spain 1,10,238, China 82,432 and Germany 81,728.

Over two lakh people have so far managed to beat the infection, with the most recoveries reported from China, Spain and Germany.

Cases soar in Spain, France

Spain's death toll from the coronavirus rose above 10,000 on Thursday after a record 950 people died overnight, but health officials saw a glimmer of hope with the epidemic slowing in terms of proportional daily increases in infections and deaths.

Spain has the world's second-highest death toll after Italy, but Thursday's one-day toll was the highest for any country since the start of the epidemic.

The number of registered coronavirus cases rose about 8% from Wednesday to 1,10,238, said the ministry. The total deaths rose by just over 10%, about the same rate as the previous day.

However, the daily increase in infections in percentage terms has been slowing gradually since March 25, when reported cases rose by just over 20%.

"There's light at the end of the tunnel," Health Minister Salvador Illa told parliament. "A glimpse of hope: the curve has stabilised. We have reached ... the peak of the curve and we have started the slowdown phase."

Spain has been in a lockdown since March 14, allowing residents to leave their homes only for essential trips. This week it tightened the measures, with only employees in key sectors permitted to travel to and from work.

Meanwhile, France on Thursday reported 471 more deaths in hospital from COVID-19. These figures include only those who died in hospital and not those who died at home or in old people's homes.

(With inputs from agencies)
[April 02, 2020] Global Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) Markets, 2020 - Rising Need to Manage Energy Consumption Across a Growing Data Centers

DUBLIN, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Data Center Infrastructure Management (DCIM) Market - Growth, Trends, and Forecast (2020-2025)" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The global data center infrastructure management market was valued at USD 1,707 million in 2019, and it is expected to reach a value of USD 6,688.5 million by 2025, registering a CAGR of 25.8% over the forecast period, 2019-2025.



The need to manage limited space and high rack densities, in order to reduce IT system downtime, has been driving the data center infrastructure management (DCIM) market's growth, in the past few years.



According to AFCOM estimates, the current rack density is valued at 16.9 kW in data centers. According to a study conducted by the Data Centers Association (AFCOM), close to 67% reported an increase in rack density in the past three years. Moreover, the study highlights that with an average power density of about 7 kilowatts per rack, most data centers face challenges in managing their IT workloads with traditional air-cooling methods.



Factors driving the rack density include the growth of cloud computing, Big Data, and AI. It is highly essential to manage IT since more equipment is fit into the data center space. Such facts indicate the need for solutions such as DCIM.



The increasing demand for the cloud and data traffic moving from and within the data centers are expected to bolster the market's growth over the forecast period. According to Cisco Systems, the cloud data center IP traffic is expected to reach 19,509 exabytes per year by 2021, as compared to 1,046 exabytes per year of traditional data center traffic.



Vendors in the market are focusing on expanding their product portfolio by concentrating on increased power consumption capacities and lower space requirements. For instance, in January 2019, nVent Schroff GmbH introduced its SCHROFF RackPower Intelligent Power Distribution Unit (PDU) platform for networking and data center infrastructure, primarily for customization, in order to address unique customer requirements and easy configuration with no minimum quantity restrictions.



Key Market Trends



Large Data Centers Expected to Hold a Major Share Data in the current time is being considered as the foundation of the emerging economy. Almost all the enterprises across the world are using much more data than what they did before and may probably consume even more data in the future. This rapidly increasing generation of data has to be stored and accessed from somewhere, which is the primary reason for the growth of large data centers, which is driving the market, as these large data centers are needed to run efficiently and managed properly.

Some of the key drivers that are drectly influencing the growth of these large data centers are cloud computing, software platforms, social media, and content delivery. Social media has evolved to be a powerful tool with over 2.28 billion users, worldwide, generating volumes of data in the form of blogs, tweets, updates, images, and videos.

According to Cisco Systems, the global IP data traffic increased from 96,054 petabytes per month in 2016 to 150,910 petabytes per month in 2018, and this is anticipated to reach 278,108 petabytes per month by 2021.

The growing need for data centers and cloud resources from both the consumer service and business perspective has led to the development of large-scale public cloud data centers, called hyperscale data centers. According to Cisco, hyperscale data centers are expected to increase by more than 60% by 2021, as compared to 2016.



Asia-Pacific to Execute Significant Growth Rate Asia-Pacific is expected to hold a significant share and register the highest growth rate during the forecast period. This is due to various factors, such as rapid growth in the number of data centers in the region supplemented with the government's initiatives mandating the deployment of data centers in the region.

is expected to hold a significant share and register the highest growth rate during the forecast period. This is due to various factors, such as rapid growth in the number of data centers in the region supplemented with the government's initiatives mandating the deployment of data centers in the region. The growing adoption of cloud services among SMEs is high in the region, as the adoption of IoT devices among various industries is increasing, which is further estimated to raise the workloads on the existing data center infrastructure. Hence, growth in these industries may thrive in the market for data center infrastructure management solutions.

In August 2019 , Oracle opened a new Generation 2 Cloud data center in Sydney , which is specifically designed to accelerate the transformation to the cloud. The data center is equipped with several advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning-integrated security, and automated analytics.

, Oracle opened a new Generation 2 Cloud data center in , which is specifically designed to accelerate the transformation to the cloud. The data center is equipped with several advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence, machine learning-integrated security, and automated analytics. Also, in April 2019 , Hitachi Vantara introduced its Hitachi Virtual Storage Platform G130, for the Asia Pacific (APAC) market. It is an extension of the hybrid-flash VSP G series systems that supports smaller data center modernization initiatives, with minimal costs for SMEs. Competitive Landscape





The competitive rivalry in the data center infrastructure management market is high owing to the presence of some major players such as IBM, Siemens, Schneider electric amongst others. Their ability to continually innovate their offerings has allowed them to gain a competitive advantage over other players. Through strategic partnerships, research & development, and mergers & acquisition they have been able to gain a stronger foothold in the market. February 2020 - Eaton announced its plan to acquire Power Distribution Inc. (PDI), a supplier of power monitoring equipment and services, critical power distribution solutions, static switching for data centers, and industrial and commercial services. This acquisition will enable Eaton to leverage its existing power offerings and help it better serve the data center customers.

- Eaton announced its plan to acquire Power Distribution Inc. (PDI), a supplier of power monitoring equipment and services, critical power distribution solutions, static switching for data centers, and industrial and commercial services. This acquisition will enable Eaton to leverage its existing power offerings and help it better serve the data center customers. October 2019 - Schneider Electric announced new data center solutions focused on the hybrid IT world with the introduction of EcoStruxure Data Center Solutions. It provides one-stop solutions for power, cooling, racks, and management to support the deployment of distributed IT networks in all environments ranging from small edge applications to hyper-scale cloud data centers. Key Topics Covered



1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Study Assumptions and Market Definition

1.2 Scope of the Study



2 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY



3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY



4 MARKET INSIGHTS

4.1 Market Overview

4.2 Industry Attractiveness - Porter's Five Force Analysis

4.2.1 Bargaining Power of Suppliers

4.2.2 Bargaining Power of Buyers/Consumers

4.2.3 Threat of New Entrants

4.2.4 Threat of Substitute Products

4.2.5 Intensity of Competitive Rivalry



5 MARKET DYNAMICS

5.1 Market Drivers

5.1.1 Rising Need to Manage Energy Consumption across Datacenters

5.1.2 Increase in the Number of Datacenters

5.2 Market Challenges

5.2.1 Need for Heightened Security for Physical and Network Infrastructures



6 MARKET SEGMENTATION

6.1 By Data Center Type

6.1.1 Small- and Medium-sized Data Centers

6.1.2 Large Data Centers

6.1.3 Enterprise Data Centers

6.2 By Deployment Type

6.2.1 On-Premise

6.2.2 Colocation

6.3 Geography

6.3.1 North America

6.3.2 Europe

6.3.3 Asia-Pacific

6.3.4 Rest of the World



7 KEY VENDOR PROFILES

7.1 Vertiv Holdings

7.2 Schneider Electric SE

7.3 Johnson Controls International PLC

7.4 Eaton Corporation PLC

7.5 IBM Corporation

7.6 Siemens AG

7.7 ABB Ltd

7.8 FNT GmbH

7.9 Nlyte Software Inc.

7.10 Itracs Corporation Inc. (CommScope Inc)



8 INVESTMENT ANALYSIS



9 FUTURE OF THE MARKET



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/sr0dyw Research and Markets also offers Custom Research services providing focused, comprehensive and tailored research. Media Contact: Research and Markets

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Renowned Private legal practitioner, Hon. Inusah Fuseini has expressed doubt about the success of an invitation issued from the Office of the Special Prosecutor, Mr. Martin Amidu to four non-resident Ghanaians to assist in investigations into the infamous Airbus SE scandal.



A public notice by the OSP said the individuals identified by acronym in the Statement of Facts and accepted as findings of fact in a judgement of the UK Crown Court are to assist in the investigation of corruption and corruption-related offences in the purchase of the Aircraft.



The OSP notice read: "SAMUEL ADAM FOSTER a. k. a. SAMUEL ADAM MAHAMA a UK/Ghanaian citizen, and the three other UK nationals: PHILIP SEAN MIDDLEMISS, LEANNE SARAH DAVIS and SARAH FURNEAUX are hereby invited to assist the Office of the Special Prosecutor in the on-going investigation of bribery and corruption involving in excess of 3,596,523.00 Euros and 1,665,000.00 Euros respectively, and collaborating with Ghanaian public Officers to use their public office for private profit or benefit in the purchase of three (3) C-295 aircraft by the Government of Ghana from Airbus SE".



Reacting on Okay FMs Ade Akye Abia Morning Show, the Member of Parliament for Tamale Central Constituency described the invitation by one of the country's longest-serving Deputy Attorney-Generals as much ado about nothing.



First of all, I am a bit confused because Martin Amidu is an astute lawyer in this country but he also knows that our criminal jurisdiction is territorial and so if someone commits a crime, it should be done in the country and if the person is outside, we cannot go beyond the borders to arrest the person. We dont have that power. Martin Amidu himself knows that he does not have that power to arrest or invite anybody to assist in investigations into the Airbus scandal unless he invokes a mutual legal assistance regime between Ghana and United Kingdom, he argued.



He explained Mr Amidu's action cannot be considered as an act of mutual legal assistance, since under such regime, the Special Prosecutor is not permitted to announce their names in the dailies.



The mutual legal assistance scheme, if you invoke it, then you dont announce it. You only deal with the United Kingdoms government and its Attorney-General office, especially the one that takes care of their constitution to discuss what you are doing in Ghana and how the issue comes under mutual legal assistance scheme, he explained, adding that "inviting those four people to travel to Ghana, sleep in a hotel and assist him" in an investigation is unheard off; insisting that his "action has no precedence" especially in a criminal investigation of this nature.



In Ghana, our law says that everyone has his/her civic responsibility to assist in the prevention of a commission of a crime and so it is up to you and me in Ghana to do that...it is not up to Ghanaians to ensure that a crime is not committed in Britain and neither does it depend on a British national to ensure that a crime is not committed in Ghana, he opined.



He made it clear that even if there had been an element of criminality in the Airbus scandal, the crime may have been committed in the United Kingdom.



"....but i want to Martin Amidu the benefit of doubt...maybe he knows something that I don't know regarding the people he has invited to assist in getting to the bottom of the Airbus scandal," he added.

Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com









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Featured Video
A stalker shouted death threats at a BBC Radio 6 DJ and racially abused his wife, a court heard.

Sarah Jane Rook, 43, allegedly screamed You will die at Gilles Peterson, 55, as he left BBC Broadcasting House in Portland Place in central London.

In addition she is also accused of making racially aggravated threats to Mr Petersons wife, calling her a Hiroshima bitch and attending her workplace.

Sarah Jane Rook, 43, allegedly screamed You will die at Gilles Peterson, 55, as he left BBC Broadcasting House in Portland Place in central London

Two days after the alleged life threats at Mr Peterson, Rook stood outside the record label owners north London home in Stoke Newington shouting c**t, it was said.

She allegedly turned up at the couples house posing as a charity worker and attacked the music producers car with a pole in the month-long campaign, Thames Magistrates Court heard.

Rook, who appeared in court via video link from HMP Bronzefield is charged with stalking Mr Peterson, and also harassing the Radio 6 DJ and his wife, Atsuko, 53, between February 15 and and March 16 at their home Stoke Newington, and making threats and going to their workplace.

Rook is charged with stalking Mr Peterson while subject to bail conditions of being in an area she was not supposed to be in and is also accused of racially abusing a police officer who arrested her.

Peterson (above) and his wife were also allegedly subject to harassment at their home

Mr Peterson is currently best known for his BBC Radio 6 weekend slots covering a wide range of genres, including soul, hip-hop, house, Afro, Latin and jazz,

Rook, of Surbiton, Surrey, who describes herself as a freelance journalist, denies stalking, harassment and two counts of religious aggravated harassment.

She has been remanded in custody ahead of a summary trial to be heard by magistrates on May 19.
DEFENCE Force units have deployed in Cork to assist healthcare workers battling at hospitals to deal with the Covid-19 crisis.

Army units from Collins Barracks in Cork are now assisting hospital staff to make best use of acute medical treatment space for virus cases and to ensure maximum efficiency for social distancing of both patients and staff.

The deployment follows the use of Defence Forces ambulances to supplement healthcare resources earlier this week.

Last week, the Naval Service patrol ship LE Eithne was berthed on Cork's upper quays to act as a support base for onshore Covid-19 testing.

Navy ships have also deployed to Dublin and Galway to support the national effort against the coronavirus. Now, the Defence Forces have provided special support for the Mercy University Hospital (MUH).

With Cork University Hospital (CUH), MUH is one of the designated centres in the south to deal with virus cases.

"MUH is engaging with the Defence Forces for logistical support as part of its Covid-19 prepardness plan," a hospital spokesperson said.

"This is in line with HSE protocols and allows MUH to maximise site capability."

"The support includes the use of marquees in close proximity to the hospital that will provide the necessary physical distancing space for staff and ED patient flow.

Under the plan, the Army erected tents will allow for out-of-hospital checking of both patients and staff. This could extend to precautionary temperature checks.

Cork and the south has been the focus of Ireland's second greatest concentration of Covid-19 case clusters outside of the greater Dublin area.
OTTAWA - Andrew Scheer billed the Conservative party for his kids' private Catholic school, private security, an extra housekeeper, his minivan and clothes for his family, a party review of the outgoing leader's spending has concluded.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/4/2020 (648 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Leader of the Opposition Andrew Scheer speaks during a news conference on the COVID-19 virus in Ottawa, Tuesday March 24, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - Andrew Scheer billed the Conservative party for his kids' private Catholic school, private security, an extra housekeeper, his minivan and clothes for his family, a party review of the outgoing leader's spending has concluded.

The audit found his expenses  including $18,000 per year in private school tuition fees  were properly recorded by the Conservative party but not shared in an itemized way with the powerful group overseeing the party's finances, known as the Conservative Fund.

Party spokesman Cory Hann confirmed the audit was complete and had been reviewed by the party's national council.

"The party's audit found no red flags in the party's accounting system and noted that all the expenses that were paid out were documented fully," Hann said in an email Thursday.

He also said the Conservative Fund considers the matter closed.

The audit had been ordered last fall.

Questions about how Scheer had been using party money began to surface at the same time as senior Conservatives were publicly calling for him to resign. They cited his failure to knock the Liberals out of power in the 2019 campaign and his perceived inability to do so in the next campaign.

Just as Scheer was announcing he'd step aside as soon as his replacement was chosen, it became public that party money had been used to pay for his children's private school tuition.

While the party immediately said the move was above board, in the background a battle was raging between Scheer and the fund. Former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper was on the board at the time.

The party allocates a budget to the leader meant to cover political expenses that wouldn't be paid by the House of Commons but are part of the job, and also to potentially defray some of the leader's general expenses.

But the specifics of Scheer's expenses were not known by the fund and once details of the tuition payments were leaked, Harper and others were furious.

Harper's own children went to public school. There are also publicly funded Catholic schools in Ottawa.

The ensuing fracas saw the fund push the party's executive director  who had authorized the spending  out of his job and demand a line-by-line review.

As leader of the Opposition, Scheer made about $264,000 a year. That was before the automatic salary increase that took effect Wednesday, but he is promising to donate the difference to charity. He also receives a $2,000 car allowance.

He and his family live rent-free in the official Opposition leader's residence, Stornoway, although they continue to maintain a home in Regina.

The money for schooling covered the difference between the cost of a private Catholic school in Regina and in Ottawa, amounting to $18,000 in total a year for Scheer's four school-age kids.

Hann confirmed the Scheers expensed clothing, a housekeeper and money for school to the party. Other details, including the minivan, security and the amount spent on tuition came from a senior Conservative source familiar with the audit who was granted anonymity by The Canadian Press because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.

Hann said the clothing the Scheer family expensed was used for campaign appearances and other party events.

The minivan made appearances in some of the party's advertising and was often cited by Scheer as proof of his "average Canadian" background compared to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. It was used mainly to get the family around Ottawa.

A spokesperson for Scheer said he had nothing to add to the disclosure of the details of the audit.

Scheer has refused to discuss it in the past, saying only that it was an internal party matter and details would be made public in due course.

The review took place as part of the party's overall accounting of its 2019 election campaign spending. Part of that was determining why Scheer's office expenses came in at $500,000 over their normal budget.

The review concluded that his office had taken on pre-election expenses that should have been run through the party itself.

The leadership contest to replace Scheer was to conclude June 27, but is now on hold in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Though the spending controversy had largely faded from public view, it still simmered in the background for Conservatives.

The money Scheer used came directly from donors, many of whom receive a tax credit.

Fundraisers were told repeatedly that unless the party was more transparent with how it spent its money, donors wouldn't give a dime.

The party is currently mired in debate about whether and how they can fundraise in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, and getting the Scheer expenses issue off the table was seen as one less barrier to raising funds.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 2, 2020.
Mobile money has three main characteristics. First, the service is available to customers without bank accounts (the unbanked). Second, the service can include any form of mobile payments (including retail payments and bill payments, among others), domestic or international transfers, and accounts can be accessed by phone. Third, mobile money can be transferred through transaction points that are mobile agents such as bank branches, retailers, and shops.

Mobile money services mainly consist of various types of transactions including peer-to-peer money transfers, bill payments, government payments, retail payments, and allowing for deposits or withdrawals at the agent location. These mobile money services offer numerous benefits such as reducing transaction costs, improving financial inclusion (especially for the unbanked), increasing convenience and speed for consumers, creating opportunities for employment and investment for businesses, and improving the transparency of transactions (and thus contributing to money laundering and corruption reduction.

The formal financial system has excluded many people from access, limiting the scope of such financial services. With mobile money, however, financial transactions can be performed securely, efficiently, and affordably  and customers are able to access their accounts easily and carry out financial transactions flexibly. Besides, mobile money service providers may offer job prospects and reduce the unemployment rate, thus stimulating economic growth. According to ICT News, mobile money may boost Vietnams economic growth by 0.5 percentage points.

Despite the importance of mobile money, there still exist possible risks concerning this service, mainly related to potential fraud. The most common types of fraud associated with mobile money include identity theft, fake currency deposits, scams (mobile insurance scams, promotional scams, and so on), and phishing, exacerbated by the abundant use of SIM cards. However, these illegal activities can be prevented through the implementation of regulations to minimise and manage risks while still progressing towards business objectives.

The regulations should be centred around verifying customer identity, monitoring of transactions, raising awareness concerning fraud, and involving law enforcement when necessary. Second, customer money may suffer losses due to abuse by mobile money providers. Third, there also exist distribution risks which are related to third parties as agents which may not have sufficient capacity, expertise, or even capital. Finally, customer privacy and cybersecurity could be another risk which needs to be minimised.

Global mobile money potential

Currently, mobile money is being increasingly used worldwide due to its accessibility and convenience, with approximately one billion mobile payment users worldwide in 2020, 38.4 per cent of whom use smartphones. By 2023, there could be 1.3 billion mobile payment users with 42.2 per cent having smartphones, growing at about 8.4 per cent per year (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Number of users of mobile payments and smartphones in the world

Vietnam's mobile money potential

In Vietnam, mobile money is still considered a relatively new service, but shows great potential for future development. First, Vietnam is still a cash-based society, with the proportion of cash in circulation to GDP quite high (18.9 per cent in 2018) compared to regional peers (Figure 2). Under the plan on non-cash payments in Vietnam in 2016-2020 approved by the Prime Minister, the ratio of cash in circulation would be reduced from 12 per cent in 2016 to below 10 per cent by the end of 2020.

Figure 2: Cash in circulation in Vietnam and peers (per cent of GDP 2018)

Second, according to the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), 63 per cent of Vietnamese adults possess a bank account (this ratio in Vietnam as indicated by the World Bank was only 40 per cent at the end of 2017), yet in 2019, the number of phone subscribers have reached 129.5 million, with 55 per cent owning smartphones in 2019  figures on par with Malaysia, and higher than Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, according to E-Marketer.

The growth rate of internet users has also increased significantly over the past years, from 5 per cent of the adult population in 2005 to 70 per cent in 2019 (according to Internetworldstats.com). This presents a desirable opportunity for mobile money services to develop in Vietnam.

Furthermore, the infrastructure required to deploy mobile money in Vietnam has been improving. At the moment, VNPT and Viettel have been granted licenses by the SBV to carry out such services. The national personal database has also been built for issuing personal identification numbers to the people and (somebody is also adopting e-KYC (electronic Know-Your-Customers) soon.

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Vietnamese government has required the SBV to expedite research and the use of mobile money to reduce cash transactions.

However, there remain several obstacles regarding the implementation of mobile money services in Vietnam. The potential risks are basically similar to those indicated above. In addition, it will take time for people to give up cash. An adequate database and cybersecurity are also big concerns. A legal framework is now being built but it might very well be a long time in coming, given the service is quite new in Vietnam. Finally, these services may be used for gambling or money laundering purposes if appropriate regulations are not in place.

In consideration of the risks and obstacles, I would like to offer some recommendations to aid the development of mobile money in Vietnam. First, there needs to be a detailed roadmap and deployment plan, as mobile money is relatively new to Vietnam with many uncertainties. This plan needs to clarify the scope and objectives of the project, timeline of implementation, means of co-operation among various stakeholders, and responsibilities of related parties and authorities.

Second, there is an urgent need for a legal system governing these services which covers key aspects, such as creating a fair playing field between banks and non-bank providers, protecting customers monies, ensuring transparency and cybersecurity, and preventing and minimising money laundering and gambling, while at the same time ensuring adequate capacity on the side of service providers, outlining selection criteria for agents, and clarifying supervision mechanisms.

Third, the infrastructure and technology need to be consolidated in areas of concern, including things like 4G and 5G, to ensure the service delivery to customers to be satisfactory. The national personal database also needs to be completed and updated, and an ecosystem be created for stakeholders benefits.

Fourth, the human element is essential in the growth of mobile money services. At service providers (especially non-bank units), there needs to be a panel of experts and staff with intensive training; extensive training programmes should also be offered to current and potential employees considering the constant exposure to larger cash flows. Customers should be given adequate information and educated on use and risk management, especially those who live in remote areas and have little experience with cashless payments. In this case, mobile financial education could be applied. There should be some incentives to promote cashless transactions and increase its accessibility to the wider population as was done in Thailand.

Finally, adequate regulation and supervision of service providers and agents should be conducted to ensure a smooth, convenient and safe process.

In conclusion, mobile money is an emerging trend and holds great potential for development in Vietnam. Given the COVID-19 pandemic, it is time for Vietnam to get the service started. A detailed plan for implementation should be compiled and trust needs to be built and preserved, as keys to success.
A 65-year-old Muslim man from



suburban Malad here, who died of coronavirus infection, was cremated after the trustees of a cemetery denied permission to bury his body there, his family members alleged on Thursday.

The incident took place on Wednesday.

The patient, a resident of Collector Compound in Malwani, died at a civic-run hospital in Jogeshwari East early on Wednesday.

One of the family members of the deceased alleged that when his body was taken to Malad Malwadni Kabrastan, its trustees denied burial "as he was coronvirus positive".

"This was despite the local civic authorities giving permission for the burial at 4 am," he said.

The local police and a politician then tried to intervene and urged the trustees to allow the burial, but the latter did not budge, the family member said.

Thereafter, some social workers intervened and requested a nearby Hindu crematorium to cremate the body. As they agreed to do so, the man was finally cremated at 10 am.

Talking to PTI, Maharashtra minister and Malwani MLA, Aslam Shaikh, said, "As per the government guidelines, Muslim COVID-19 victims should be buried at a cemetery, which is closest to the place where the patient died."



"But in this case, the family of the deceased took his body directly to Malad Malwani Kabrastan without informing anyone, including trustees of the cemetery, and then demanded his burial, he said.

"Strict action should be taken against the civic staffs, who brought the body to the cemetery despite knowing the guidelines," he said, adding that a day before this incident, another coronavirus victim had been buried at that cemetery.

The son of the deceased said, "After my father was declared dead at the hospital no one came to help me. I kept sitting beside the body outside the hospital for more than three hours."



"We wanted to bury his body at the Malad-Malwani Kabrastan. But when we reached there, the trustees of the cemetery refused to allow the burial saying he was a COVID-19 patient," he said.

"After the intervention by the police and other authorities, the body was cremated at a nearby Hindu shamshan bhoomi (crematorium)," he added.

Local Samajwadi Party corporator Rukhsana Siddique said, "When the civic staffers know that as per the circular, a COVID-19 victim should be buried at a nearby cemetery, then why died they took the body to Malad (West) although he died at a hospital in Jogeshwari (East)?"



The corporator, however, expressed shock over the denial of burial of the body at the cemetery.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
business H-1B visas: India tops list of registrants, says USCIS After India, China is the second largest beneficiary at 13.2 percent.
China reported 35 new imported cases of the novel coronavirus while the death toll from the COVID1-9 infections increased to 3,318 after six more fatalities were confirmed on Wednesday from the virus hit Hubei province, health officials said on Thursday.

China's National Health Commission (NHC) in its daily report also said 37 new asymptomatic cases of the coronavirus were reported on Wednesday from the Hubei province.

It said 35 new imported cases were reported on the same day bringing the total number of cases with the infection from abroad to 841. While no locally transmitted cases of the virus were reported from the COVID-19 epicentre Hubei Province and its capital Wuhan.

However, six persons died in the province of the disease on Wednesday.

The province also confirmed 37 asymptomatic COVID-19 patients bringing the total to 721, all of whom had been put under medical observation. Since Wednesday, China began releasing the data of the asymptomatic cases which numbered more than 1,300 following public concern.

Asymptomatic coronavirus cases are those who are tested positive but do not show any symptoms with potential to cause sporadic clusters of infections.

The NHC said all the people with asymptomatic cases would be put into compulsory 14-day quarantine.

In Hubei province, 1,132 patients are still being treated in various hospitals for the COVID-19 of which 280 are still in severe condition and 120 others in critical condition.

Hubei has so far reported 67,802 confirmed COVID-19 cases in total, including 50,007 in Wuhan, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

READ | Virus Data: Whats Known And Not Known About Chinas Numbers

As of Wednesday, a total of 81,589 confirmed cases of the COVID-19 have been reported on the mainland, and 3,318 people had died of the disease.

Meanwhile, China has begun airlifting its citizens stranded abroad through chartered flights.

China has arranged nine special flights, three from Italy and six from Iran, to bring 1,466 Chinese citizens home between March 4 and 26, Lyu Erxue, deputy head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) said.

From Iran alone, the special flights flew back 976 Chinese citizens, most of whom were Chinese students, he said, noting that the fourth such flight taking off from Italy is scheduled to bring back 180 Chinese citizens to the eastern Chinese city of Wenzhou.

Another plane departed from Shanghai for London on Thursday morning to bring back 180 overseas Chinese students home, the first such flight orchestrated for Chinese citizens in the United Kingdom, according to Lyu.

For Chinese citizens who remained abroad, 116 tonnes of health supplies have been delivered to the Chinese embassies and consulates in seven countries, including Italy, the United States, France and the United Kingdom as of Wednesday, with the rest of the 300-tonne supplies bound for 12 countries to be delivered before April 10, according to Lyu.

To minimise the risk of the imported cases, the CAAC said it sought to keep international flights per week under 134, including necessary ones to carry Chinese studying or living abroad back home.

The CAAC said it so far has organised 178 planes to send 100 medical experts and workers, as well as more than 2,635 tonnes of supplies to 40 countries worldwide to help fight the pandemic.

READ | China's Successor As UNSC Chair Takes Immediate Remedial Steps; Plans Coronavirus Meeting

READ | 'China, The Originator Of Virus, Now Supplies Ventilators And Masks': New York Governor
TDT | Manama

Bahrain had exported BD- 196million-worth of products during February of this year. This was revealed in the months foreign trade report issued by the Information and eGovernment Authority (iGA), which encompassed data on the balance of trade, imports, exports (national origin) and re-exports.

The value of exports of national origin increased by 11 per cent to BD196million during February 2020, compared to BD177million for the same month last year.

The top 10 countries in terms of the value of exports purchased from Bahrain accounted for 85 per cent of the total value, with the remaining countries accounting for 15 per cent. Saudi Arabia ranked first amongst the countries receiving Bahraini exports of national origin, importing BD57million from Bahrain.

Meanwhile, the UAE was second with BD28million and Oman third with BD- 19million. Agglomerated Iron and Concentrates were the top products exported during February with BD29million.

Bridges and bridges-sections were second with a value of BD16million, and Aluminum wire not Alloyed third with BD15million. The total value of re-exports increased by six per cent to reach BD75million during February of this year, compared to BD71million for the same month in 2019.

The top 10 countries accounted for 90 per cent of the re-exported value, while the remaining countries accounted for 10 per cent. The UAE ranked first with BD23million, Saudi was second with BD17million, and the USA came third with BD8million.

Gold ingots emerged as the top product re-exported from Bahrain with BD15million. Four-wheel-drive vehicles came second with BD8million, and parts for aeroplanes came third with BD7million.

The value of imports increased by 13 per cent, reaching BD394million during February of 2020 compared to BD350million for the same month the previous year. The top 10 countries accounted for 68 per cent of the value of imports, with the remaining countries accounting for 32 per cent.

According to the report, China ranked first when it came to imports to Bahrain, with a total of BD57million. Brazil was second with BD38million and Saudi third with BD30million.

Aluminium oxide was the top product imported into Bahrain with a total value of BD31 million, while non-agglomerated iron ores and concentrates was second with BD24million.

Four-wheel-drive vehicles were third with BD15 million The trade balance, difference between exports and imports, the value of the deficit of the trade balance reached BD123 million during February of 2020 versus BD102 million for the same month of the previous year, with an increase of 21 per cent.
All eyes have been on Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex for the past few months as they transitioned out of their roles as senior working royals in favor of an independent life. There were so many questions surrounding Megxit, such as whether or not Meghan and Harry would retain their royal titles, would they ever go back to being working royals, and where they would live.

Meghan and Prince Harry have moved around quite a lot since their May 2018 wedding. At first, they were living on the grounds of Kensington Palace in a small residence known as Nottingham Cottage. It was from there that the couple moved to Windsor, taking up residence at a massive, 10-bedroom home called Frogmore Cottage.

After Megxit was announced, they left for Vancouver Island in Canada, and just recently, they settled into their new home in Los Angeles, California. They seem happy that they are now able to live the life that they wanted, so why is their move to California leaving royal fans questioning their Megxit motive?

Why did Meghan and Prince Harry make an unexpected royal exit?

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle | Yui Mok/WPA Pool/Getty Images

There are so many people who would jump at the chance to experience life as a member of the royal family, so why did Meghan and Prince Harry choose to leave? Well, they were constantly facing backlash in the tabloids, and it got to be way too much for them.

Meghan and Prince Harry have always been pretty firm about wanting a quiet life, and as senior members of the royal family, they just werent able to experience that. According to Forbes, they found life as royals to be anything but fair, and after considering their options, they felt that stepping down was the best thing to do.

Moving thousands of miles away to Los Angeles

California wasnt Meghan and Prince Harrys first stop after leaving the United Kingdom. They spent a few months in Canada on Vancouver Island, enjoying the quiet time with each other and baby Archie.

Foreign Policy reports that it was originally thought that the couple would be splitting their time between Canada and England, and there was even speculation as well as controversy over who would be footing their security bill if they resided in Vancouver. However, Meghan and Prince Harry were soon said to be considering a move to California.

Just recently, they settled down in Los Angeles, which is where Meghan grew up. We can only imagine that they are excited about being in a completely new environment, close to Meghans mom, Doria Ragland, and far away from the spotlight of London.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markles Los Angeles move has royal fans questioning their Megxit motive

One of the main reasons for Meghan and Prince Harry decided to resign from their positions was because they wanted privacy. So, why is their Los Angeles move causing fans to question their motive for Megxit? Well, their choice of location just doesnt make sense to some fans.

The couple was adamant about getting out from under the microscope of being royals, and now, they have moved to a place where things have the potential to be even worse than they were in England. Los Angeles is a prime place for celebrities and especially photographers, so many people are wondering just how Meghan and Prince Harry are going to get the privacy they allegedly want.

Los Angeles just doesnt seem like a logical choice for a place to live a quiet life. It is; however, a great city to thrive as a celebrity and build a brand based on celebrity Klout. As such, many fans are questioning the true motive behind their royal exit.
MEXICO CITY, April 1 (Reuters) - Mexico's financial system stability council said on Wednesday that it will continue to monitor financial markets and the Mexican economy to adopt, if necessary, measures that strengthen the financial system and safeguard its ability to function.

The council, which groups the finance minister, central bank governor, head of the banking commission, among others, said the coronavirus pandemic is the biggest challenge the global financial system has faced since the 2008-2009 crisis. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito and Ana Isabel Martinez; Editing by David Alire Garcia)
A combination of Garda seizures and restrictions on movement as a result of the coronavirus have led to a virtual lull in the tit-for-tat retaliatory attacks in the deadly Drogheda feud.

More than 40 seizures of drugs, mainly cocaine, in the Garda's Louth division in the past couple of months have dealt a heavy financial blow to the feuding gangs.

The confiscated hauls are worth an average of 3,000 to 5,000 each at street prices and the gangs are left footing the bill after paying their suppliers overseas.

Their financial woes were worsened by the seizure of a substantial four-figure sum of cash following a Garda operation last month.

The gangsters are also experiencing difficulties in collecting outstanding debts from their customers as the general restrictions on public movement have left them more open to surveillance by Garda units.

"The cash collectors no longer have the cover provided by busy roads," an investigating officer said last night.

"We know who most of the main collectors are and the vehicles they use and it has become easier to track their movements when they try to become mobile.

"They have been exploiting youngsters to make many of the collections but when the debtors can't or won't pay, the gang members have to come out themselves to put the pressure on," he added.

This shortage of cash is also hampering their ability to procure new weapons that cannot be linked forensically to other shootings, to carry out hits on their rivals. The thugs are continuing to maintain limited targeting of their rivals, as was evidenced last week by an attempt to attack an associate of feud murder victim Keane Mulready-Woods at his home.

The associate, who is in his mid-20s, is alleged to owe a five-figure drugs debt, and is also a target because of his links to the teenager, who was abducted and murdered last January.

His body was dismembered in Drogheda and his remains then found at a series of locations in Dublin.

He became the latest victim of the feud, which has so far claimed three lives and involves criminals with connections in counties Louth, Meath and Dublin.

Gardai suspected the killers intended to dump his remains at the homes of the main players of the gang with which he was involved.

They believe that plan was aborted after unconnected Garda activity in the Coolock area "spooked" the thugs, who hurriedly disposed of the remains in their possession.

Many of the main players, particularly those either involved in the planning or execution of previous attacks, are now said to be "offside".

Garda intelligence suggests some of the key gangsters are outside the country after becoming trapped by the restrictions on travel imposed by the authorities following the outbreak of the virus in Europe. Some are understood to be lying low in Spain after flying there to make contact with their overseas suppliers and arrange a new consignment of drugs for distribution here.

"It was relatively easy in the past for these guys to leave their homes on this side of the Border, travel to Northern Ireland and catch a flight to mainland Europe," an investigator said.

"But now they are grounded and, in the case of some of them, it looks like they are going to be stuck overseas for a while," he said.

The whereabouts of one of the key players, who is regarded as a "gun for hire", is not known although there are several theories about his current location.

Although the supply of drugs is never too far away from the origins of any gangland feud, the origins of this dispute are largely personal and it has escalated since a shooting left one of the gang leaders badly injured.

With most of his main rivals currently "missing", this gang leader has become pre-occupied in recent weeks with internal strife within his group that has even caused problems within his extended family.
Three weeks ago, he canceled the vacation and started waiting for his money. It didnt come. Oceania just informed me that its decided to prioritize refunds, Garvey, a retired lawyer from Chicago, told me shortly after he got the bad news. Since our cruise was not scheduled until September, it would take up to 99 days to get the refund.
Fianna Fail MEP Billy Kelleher has welcomed the decision of the European Commission to approve a 200 million Irish Government scheme to support the economy and jobs during the Covid-19 crisis.

Kelleher was speaking following the granting of an exemption under State Aid rules that will allow the Irish government support companies that will lose at least 15% of their turnover by means of repayable advances.

The scheme will apply to Irish companies employing 10 or more employees in Ireland in certain manufacturing or internationally traded sectors.

This is a common sense decision by the EU Commission. While in general the EU seeks to avoid national governments funding businesses to maintain a level playing field, there is scope during crises such as the current Covid-19 one for such support to be allowed.

The ultimate goal for all of us is to maintain jobs and protect the economy. At a time like this, we do need direct intervention in the economy.

These strong measures taken now will ensure that the Irish economy comes out of this crisis in the best possible shape with as many people in employment as possible.

I hope to see more requests from the Irish government to the Commission for State Aid exemptions. The Commission has committed to making decisions as quickly as possible. This request was made on March 26th and approved by March 30th. The EU is ready and willing to assist Ireland and other member states to project jobs, concluded Kelleher.
President Muhammadu Buhari has condoled with the government and people of Kaduna State over the death of Emir of Jere, Saad Usman, at the age of 70.

Mr Buhari, in a condolence message issued by his spokesman, Femi Adesina, in Abuja on Thursday, urged the people to find solace in the good works of the deceased.

The president commiserated with family members, friends and associates of the traditional ruler, who served the country extensively as a public servant, including working as Secretary to the Government of Kaduna State.

READ ALSO:

He prayed that the almighty God would receive the soul of the departed, and comfort the family he left behind.

(NAN)
New Delhi: The Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting called over the Covid-19 crisis in the country reflected the changed times. The meeting was virtual and done through video-conferencing to maintain social distancing. The mood at the CWC was mixed; critical of the governments measures yet urging support as India deals with the pandemic.

Congress chief Sonia Gandhi was the first to speak and demanded a minimum relief programme. Close to 90% of our fellow Indians toiling in the unorganised sector are extremely vulnerable. The economic consequences of the pandemic threatens to destroy their livelihood. We owe them our full and constructive support, she said.

I urge the Central Govt to prepare and publish a common minimum relief program. This is vital and will help alleviate several of the concerns that currently afflict our people: Congress President Smt. Sonia Gandhi at the CWC meeting. pic.twitter.com/APIWytOMPX Congress (@INCIndia) April 2, 2020

While former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh said all parties and the Congress are united in fighting the coronavirus epidemic, the government came in for criticism from Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Badra who raised concerns over the way the lockdown was announced. They said it was haphazard, arbitrary and done without adequate preparations.

Rahul Gandhi accused the prime minister of burying his head in the sand, saying he had been raising the issue of Indias preparedness since the outbreak in China.

At the Congress CWC meeting today I emphasised the urgent need to devise an India specific strategy to combat the #COVID19Pandemic & for Congress workers & leaders to help soften the blow by assisting the poor & the most vulnerable sections of our society in every possible way. Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) April 2, 2020

Former finance minister P Chidambaram raised the issue of the economic impact, saying the economy was bound to be hit but the situation has worsened given the way the government has responded.

Its a catch-22 situation for the Congress. Given the circumstances, it cannot be seen as opposing the Centre. In fact, sources say some Congress chief ministers like Captain Amarinder Singh and Bhupesh Baghel expressed the view that now is not the time to oppose. But as the main opposition party, it is tough for the Congress top brass to stay quiet.


















Brains do not fossilize, but as the brain grows, the tissues surrounding its outer layer leave an imprint in the bony braincase. The Dikika childs endocranial imprint reveals an ape-like brain organization, and no features derived towards humans.



Credit:  Philipp Gunz, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0



A key difference between apes and humans involves the organization of the brains parietal and occipital lobes. In all ape brains, a well-defined lunate sulcus approximates the anterior boundary of the primary visual cortex of the occipital lobes, explains co-author Dean Falk from Florida State University, a specialist in interpreting endocranial imprints. Some have previously argued that structural changes of the brain resulted in a more backwards (human-like) placement of the lunate sulcus on endocasts of australopiths, and eventually to the disappearance of a clear endocranial impression in humans. Hypothetically, such brain reorganization in australopiths could have been linked to behaviors that were more complex than those of their great ape relatives (e.g., tool manufacture, mentalizing, and vocal communication). Unfortunately, the lunate sulcus typically does not reproduce well on endocasts, so there is unresolved controversy about its position in australopiths.



The exceptionally well preserved endocast of the Dikika child has an unambiguous impression of a lunate sulcus in an ape-like position. Likewise, the computed tomographic scans reveal a previously undetected impression of an ape-like lunate sulcus in a well-known fossil of an adult Australopithecus individual from Hadar (A.L. 162-28). Contrary to previous claims, the researchers did not find evidence for brain reorganization in any Australopithecus afarensis endocast that preserves detailed sulcal impressions.

Virtual dental histology



In infants, synchrotron computed tomographic scans of the dentition make it possible to determine an individuals age at death by counting dental growth lines. Similar to the growth rings of a tree, virtual sections of a tooth reveal incremental growth lines reflecting the bodys internal rhythm. Studying the fossilized teeth of the Dikika infant, the teams dental experts Paul Tafforeau (ESRF), Adeline Le Cabec (ESRF/Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology), and Tanya Smith (Griffith University) calculated an age at death of 861 days (2.4 years).



After seven years of work, we finally had all the puzzle pieces to study the evolution of brain growth, says lead author Philipp Gunz: The age at death of the Dikika child and its endocranial volume, the endocranial volumes of the best-preserved adult Australopithecus afarensis fossils, and comparative data of more than 1600 modern humans and chimpanzees.

Protracted brain growth



The pace of dental development of the Dikika infant was broadly comparable to that of chimpanzees and therefore faster than in modern humans. However, given that the brains of Australopithecus afarensis adults were roughly 20 percent larger than those of chimpanzees, the Dikika childs small endocranial volume suggests a prolonged period of brain development relative to chimpanzees. Even a conservative comparison of the Dikika infant to small-statured and small-brained adults like Lucy, suggests that brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis was protracted as in humans today, explains Simon Neubauer.



Our data show that Australopithecus afarensis had an ape-like brain organization, but suggest that these brains developed over a longer period of time than in chimpanzees, concludes Philipp Gunz. Among primates in general, different rates of growth and maturation are associated with different infant-care strategies, suggesting that the extended period of brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis may have been linked to a long dependence on caregivers. Alternatively, slow brain growth could also primarily represent a way to spread the energetic requirements of dependent offspring over many years in environments where food is not abundant. In either case the protracted brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis provided a basis for subsequent evolution of the brain and social behavior in hominins, and was likely critical for the evolution of a long period of childhood learning.





Contacts and sources:

Dr. Philipp Gunz, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig

Sandra Jacob, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig









Publication: Australopithecus afarensis endocasts suggest ape-like brain organization and prolonged brain growth Philipp Gunz, Simon Neubauer, Dean Falk, Paul Tafforeau, Adeline Le Cabec, Tanya M. Smith, William H. Kimbel, Fred Spoor, Zeresenay Alemseged

Science Advances, 1 April 2020, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaz4729









Differences in brain organizationBrains do not fossilize, but as the brain grows, the tissues surrounding its outer layer leave an imprint in the bony braincase. The Dikika childs endocranial imprint reveals an ape-like brain organization, and no features derived towards humans.Credit:  Philipp Gunz, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0A key difference between apes and humans involves the organization of the brains parietal and occipital lobes. In all ape brains, a well-defined lunate sulcus approximates the anterior boundary of the primary visual cortex of the occipital lobes, explains co-author Dean Falk from Florida State University, a specialist in interpreting endocranial imprints. Some have previously argued that structural changes of the brain resulted in a more backwards (human-like) placement of the lunate sulcus on endocasts of australopiths, and eventually to the disappearance of a clear endocranial impression in humans. Hypothetically, such brain reorganization in australopiths could have been linked to behaviors that were more complex than those of their great ape relatives (e.g., tool manufacture, mentalizing, and vocal communication). Unfortunately, the lunate sulcus typically does not reproduce well on endocasts, so there is unresolved controversy about its position in australopiths.The exceptionally well preserved endocast of the Dikika child has an unambiguous impression of a lunate sulcus in an ape-like position. Likewise, the computed tomographic scans reveal a previously undetected impression of an ape-like lunate sulcus in a well-known fossil of an adult Australopithecus individual from Hadar (A.L. 162-28). Contrary to previous claims, the researchers did not find evidence for brain reorganization in any Australopithecus afarensis endocast that preserves detailed sulcal impressions.Virtual dental histologyIn infants, synchrotron computed tomographic scans of the dentition make it possible to determine an individuals age at death by counting dental growth lines. Similar to the growth rings of a tree, virtual sections of a tooth reveal incremental growth lines reflecting the bodys internal rhythm. Studying the fossilized teeth of the Dikika infant, the teams dental experts Paul Tafforeau (ESRF), Adeline Le Cabec (ESRF/Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology), and Tanya Smith (Griffith University) calculated an age at death of 861 days (2.4 years).After seven years of work, we finally had all the puzzle pieces to study the evolution of brain growth, says lead author Philipp Gunz: The age at death of the Dikika child and its endocranial volume, the endocranial volumes of the best-preserved adult Australopithecus afarensis fossils, and comparative data of more than 1600 modern humans and chimpanzees.Protracted brain growthThe pace of dental development of the Dikika infant was broadly comparable to that of chimpanzees and therefore faster than in modern humans. However, given that the brains of Australopithecus afarensis adults were roughly 20 percent larger than those of chimpanzees, the Dikika childs small endocranial volume suggests a prolonged period of brain development relative to chimpanzees. Even a conservative comparison of the Dikika infant to small-statured and small-brained adults like Lucy, suggests that brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis was protracted as in humans today, explains Simon Neubauer.Our data show that Australopithecus afarensis had an ape-like brain organization, but suggest that these brains developed over a longer period of time than in chimpanzees, concludes Philipp Gunz. Among primates in general, different rates of growth and maturation are associated with different infant-care strategies, suggesting that the extended period of brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis may have been linked to a long dependence on caregivers. Alternatively, slow brain growth could also primarily represent a way to spread the energetic requirements of dependent offspring over many years in environments where food is not abundant. In either case the protracted brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis provided a basis for subsequent evolution of the brain and social behavior in hominins, and was likely critical for the evolution of a long period of childhood learning.Contacts and sources:Dr. Philipp Gunz, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, LeipzigSandra Jacob, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, LeipzigPublication: Australopithecus afarensis endocasts suggest ape-like brain organization and prolonged brain growth Philipp Gunz, Simon Neubauer, Dean Falk, Paul Tafforeau, Adeline Le Cabec, Tanya M. Smith, William H. Kimbel, Fred Spoor, Zeresenay AlemsegedScience Advances, 1 April 2020, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aaz4729

Three million year old brain imprints show that Australopithecus afarensis infants may have had a long dependence on caregiversA new study led by paleoanthropologists Philipp Gunz and Simon Neubauer from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, reveals that Lucys species Australopithecus afarensis had an ape-like brain. However, the protracted brain growth suggests that  as is the case in humans  infants may have had a long dependence on caregivers.Brain imprints in fossil skulls of the species Australopithecus afarensis (famous for Lucy, and the Dikika child from Ethiopia pictured here in frontal and lateral view) shed new light on the evolution of brain growth and organizationCredit:  Philipp Gunz, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0The species Australopithecus afarensis inhabited East Africa more than three million years ago, and occupies a key position in the hominin family tree, as it is widely accepted to be ancestral to all later hominins, including the human lineage. Lucy and her kind provide important evidence about early hominin behavior. They walked upright, had brains that were around 20 percent larger than those of chimpanzees, may have used sharp stone tools, explains senior author Zeresenay Alemseged from the University of Chicago, who directs the Dikika field project in Ethiopia, where the skeleton of an Australopithecus child was found in the year 2000. Our new results show how their brains developed, and how they were organized, adds Alemseged.To study brain growth and organization in Australopithecus afarensis the researchers scanned the fossil cranium of the Dikika child using synchrotron microtomography at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble, France. With the help of this state-of the-art technology researchers can reveal the age at death with a precision of a few weeks.In addition, seven other well-preserved fossil crania, from the Ethiopian Hadar site, were scanned using high-resolution conventional tomography. Several years of painstaking fossil reconstruction, and counting of dental growth lines, yielded an exceptionally preserved brain imprint of the Dikika child, a precise age at death, new endocranial volume estimates, and previously undetected endocranial features of well-known Australopithecus fossils.These data shed new light on two questions that have been controversial: Is there evidence for human-like brain reorganization in Australopithecus afarensis? Was the pattern of brain growth in A. afarensis more similar to that of chimpanzees or that of humans?Extended childhoodBrain imprints (shown in white) in fossil skulls of the species Australopithecus afarensis shed new light on the evolution of brain growth and organization. Several years of painstaking fossil reconstruction, and counting of dental growth lines, yielded an exceptionally preserved brain imprint of the Dikika child, and a precise age at death.Credit:  Philipp Gunz, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0Contrary to previous claims, the endocranial imprints of Australopithecus afarensis reveal an ape-like brain organization, and no features derived towards humans. However, a comparison of infant and adult endocranial volumes nevertheless indicates more human-like protracted brain growth in Australopithecus afarensis, likely critical for the evolution of a long period of childhood learning in hominins.The brains of modern humans are not only much larger than those of our closest living ape relatives, they are also organized differently, and take longer to grow and mature. For example, compared with chimpanzees, modern human infants learn longer at the expense of being entirely dependent on parental care for longer periods of time. Together, these characteristics are important for human cognition and social behavior, but their evolutionary origins remain unclear. Brains do not fossilize, but as the brain grows and expands before and after birth, the tissues surrounding its outer layer leave an imprint in the bony braincase. Based on these endocasts the researchers could measure endocranial volume, and infer key aspects of brain organization from impressions of brain convolutions in the skull.
Two persons attacked a



magistrates vehicle and injured his driver in Assams Bajali district when the officer was enforcing the lockdown in a market on Thursday, police said.

The two who pelted the magistrates vehicle with stones injuring the driver were arrested. The vehicle was also damaged.

The incident occurred when the magistrate was closing down shops at the market in Bhabanipur area, which were open during the lockdown imposed to contain the COVID-19 outbreak, police said.

Security personnel reached the area and intensified patrolling.

The total number of coronavirus cases in Assam is 16 so far.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In the wake of the growing coronavirus pandemic, UH professor Dr. Seamus Curran developed a viable solution to a pressing problem. When Curran first heard about the critical shortage of N95 masks, he wanted to help.

"To be absolutely frank with you, I was horrified when I first heard these calls about doctors and nurses in very unsafe situations," he said.

Curran is now waiting for FDA approval of an innovative waterproofing solution he created for the N95 masks.

STAY POSITIVE: 15 pieces of good news to come out coronavirus pandemic

"Standard masks are somewhat porous, and especially if they get wet, they can allow the virus to penetrate," Curran said. "The virus requires the medium of water. Water is the conduit, the roadway. So if doesn't have a road, it has nowhere to go."

Curran is well-renowned for his work in nanotechnology using a hydrophobic coating to improve the protection of surgical masks to prevent the transmission of the virus. He first launched a nanotechnology business in 2013.

His company, Integricote, based at the UH Technology Bridge, has created manufacturing sealers for masonry, wood and concrete. Since 2011, Curran has also worked with nanotech coatings for fabrics. He's now implementing this technology to provide more protection against SARS and COVID-19.

FEVER HE COULDN'T SHAKE: Houston ER nurse lacking proper protection is now fighting for his life

N95 masks are the gold standard, able to filter very small particles and offering better protection than standard surgical masks, Curran said. But they are hard to manufacture, and global demand is for tens of millions of masks.

Curran has strived to undertake research that specifically provides solutions for societal problems.

We were seeing the virus spread around the world, and thinking about what we could do, he said. I hate playing defense. I wanted to do something.

He purchased masks approximately six weeks ago and started experimenting with the technology. We can make them impervious to water, he said. The solution can improve protection.

Curran's strongest motivator is to simply help those healthcare workers on the frontlines.

"I'm just trying to help those care workers, because they're the ones fighting the fight," Curran said, and added he has begun talking with investors and manufacturers to potentially ramp up manufacturing capacity.

We're waiting for mask producers to come to us, and we'll try this out," he said. Curran said he's confident that if the mask producers come forward, FDA approval will come quickly.

alison.medley@chron.com
art Photo/iStock(NEW YORK) -- As Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti Wednesday recommended citizens to wear face coverings while in public amid coronavirus, medical professionals are weighing in about the benefits of wearing them.



At this point, there really seems to be no question that everybody should be wearing a mask to protect themselves and more importantly, to protect their community, Jeremy Howard, research scientist at the University of San Francisco said. When youre talking bits of saliva come out of your mouth, you dont even see them.



While the use of masks becomes the new normal and medical professionals like Howard recommend to use them while in public, the reality is that it is almost impossible to find just one to purchase.



But experts say that you can still protect your face with other types of face covers even if they are non-medical grade. In fact, its what officials like Garcetti emphasized.



Do not take N-95 masks, said Garcetti during a presser in Los Angeles Wednesday evening. They are reserved for front line workers.



You are not doing surgery at home or during your shopping. So you dont need these masks, said Howard. They are harder to fit. They are less comfortable.



Instead, a piece of fabric made with cotton or an old sheet would work just fine. Howard also recommended a bandana or a scarf -- any material that will allow you to breathe while wearing it. A plus is if the material is able to stop liquid.

Here are some tutorials to make a face cover:



For the proficient sewer, a basic pattern involves two layers of fabric, three folds and elastic to go around the ears. You can either use a sewing machine or hand sew the face cover together -- it might just take a little longer. Deaconess Hospital provides instructions on how to make a face covers with ties on their website.

Another tutorial shows that you can forgo sewing by cutting up an old t-shirt together and tying the ends together.

Or if you are in a pinch and sewing is not your thing, a simple bandana with two hair ties works perfectly.

Copyright  2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
[April 02, 2020] Texas Oncology Expands Telemedicine Services

Texas Oncology announced today a major expansion of its telemedicine services to allow patients to schedule virtual visits with more than 400 physicians and 150 advanced practice providers throughout the statewide cancer care practice. Through this expanded approach, launched earlier this month, Texas Oncology is conducting more than 500 telemedicine visits per day on average, using technology to continue to provide high quality cancer care to patients from their homes. The telemedicine expansion is critical to safeguarding cancer patients currently in Texas Oncology's care. The practice sees more than 55,000 new cancer patients each year. Texas Center for Proton Therapy, Texas Breast Specialists and Texas Urology Specialists, which are part of Texas Oncology, also are participating in the telemedicine initiative. Telemedicine allows patients to meet with their physician and care teams, when clinically appropriate, without an in-person visit to the clinic. While some patients will continue to need to come to our locations for treatment, lab work, and other essential care, telemedicine is a safe alternative for many new patient consultations, follow-up visits, survivorship consultations, and other important appointments that help keep patient care on track. "Expanding the telemedicine capability that we launched at Texas Oncology five years ago enables our patients to access their physicians from their mobile phones or home computers - without having to come to one of our locations. Robust adoption of this technology is an essential component of our overall approach to continuing vital, timely care, while protecting the safety of our patients and our staff during the COVID-19 health crisis," said Debra Patt, M.D., MPH, MBA, executive vice president, public policy and strategic initiatives at Texas Oncology. Telemedicine services help physicians actively follow patient progress and consult with new patients while reducing the number of people inside ractice locations, and thereby reducing risk of exposure to illness. Patients currently in treatment will continue to come to their Texas Oncology locations for therapy that requires observation by clinicians.



Through a video conferencing app that patients can easily download, physicians and care team members see patients, share files, review imaging and laboratory data, and engage with patients and their families. The virtual patient experience is similar to an office visit. "Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, care for cancer patients cannot be delayed. We are open and seeing patients across Texas. We accelerated the expansion of telemedicine to meet the urgent need to continue treating patients - safely," said Steven Paulson, M.D., president and chairman of the board for Texas Oncology. "With telemedicine, patients have access to needed care while limiting interactions with others, which helps us protect patients who are in our clinics or at home, as well as our staff. It is just one way we can continue to provide high quality cancer care while supporting social distancing."

Texas Oncology is following Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines in every aspect of its response to COVID-19, which includes: Rescheduling non-urgent appointments;

Limiting visitors* and not allowing children to accompany patients;

Pre-screening patients by phone prior to appointments;

Screening patients and caregivers for symptoms at the entrances to our locations. For more information regarding telemedicine, visit TexasOncology.com/Telemedicine. To find out if your case is appropriate for Texas Oncology's telemedicine capability, contact your Texas Oncology location for more information. About Texas Oncology Texas Oncology is an independent private practice with more than 490 physicians and 210 locations across the state. Meeting the oncology needs of Texans for more than 35 years, the practice includes Texas Center for Proton Therapy, Texas Breast Specialists, Texas Oncology Surgical Specialists, and Texas Center for Interventional Surgery. As a lead participant in US Oncology Research, Texas Oncology played a role in the development of more than 90 FDA-approved therapies, about one-third of all cancer therapies approved to date. For more information, visit www.TexasOncology.com. *Austin area locations have instituted a no visitor policy. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200402005532/en/

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A further 569 UK hospital patients diagnosed with coronavirus have died, marking the biggest daily spike in deaths so far.

A total of 2,921 people who tested positive for Covid-19 have died while in care, according to Department of Health figures.

The numbers were correct as of 5pm on Wednesday.

The toll was at 2,352 the day before and the latest increase surpasses yesterday's day-on-day rise of 563, which had then been the largest 24-hour rise.

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Fresh figures also state 163,194 people have been tested in the UK, as of 9am today, 33,718 of which have returned positive results.

A week ago today, March 26, that number was 11,658.

Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures 1 /81 Coronavirus hits the UK - In pictures A deserted Westminster Bridge PA A man wearing a face mask or covering due to the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past customers sat outside a restaurant AFP via Getty Images Boris Johnson addresses the nation on the Coronavirus lockdown Andrew Parsons Runners pass cardboard cutouts of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William during the London Marathon in London AP An empty escalator at Charing Coss London Underground tube station Jeremy Selwyn Electronic bilboards displays a message warning people to stay home in Sheffield PA A sign is displayed in the window of a student accommodation building following the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Mancheste Reuters People take part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions, in Londo AP People sing and dance in Leicester Square on the eve on the 10PM curfew Reuters Hearts painted by a team of artists from Upfest are seen in the grass at Queen Square, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bristol Reuters Graffiti reads 'good luck and stay safe', as the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases grow around the world, under a bridge in London Reuters A sign is pictured in Soho, amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London Reuters Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures, during a coronavirus briefing in Downing Street, London AP A person runs past posters with a message of hope, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues in Manchester REUTERS Riot police face protesters who took part in a 'We Do Not Consent' rally at Trafalgar Square, organised by Stop New Normal, to protest against coronavirus restrictions in London AP An image of The Queen eith quotes from her broadcast to the UK and the Commonwealth in relation to the Coronavirus epidemic are displayed on lights in London's Piccadilly Circus PA Military vehicles cross Westminster Bridge after members of the 101 Logistic Brigade delivered a consignment of medical masks to St Thomas' hospital Getty Images Durdle Door in Dorset Reuters Captain Tom Moore via Reuters Mia, aged 8, and Jack, aged 5, take part in "PE with Joe" a daily live workout with Joe Wicks on Youtube to help kids stay fit who have to stay indoors due to the Coronavirus outbreak PA An NHS worker reacts at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital during the Clap for our Carers campaign in support of the NHS Reuters Goats which have taken over the deserted streets of Llandudno @AndrewStuart via PA Tobias Weller PA Novikov restaurant in London with its shutters pulled down while the restaurant is closed London Landscapes: Hyde Park and the Serpentine, central London. Matt Writtle A newspaper vendor in Manchester city centre giving away free toilet rolls with every paper bought as shops run low on supplies due to fears over the spread of the coronavirus PA Theo Clay looks out of his window next to his hand-drawn picture of a rainbow in Liverpool, as the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continue Reuters A young man cuts another man's hair on top of a closed hairdresser in Oxford Reuters General view of the new NHS Nightingale Hospital, built to fight against the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in London via Reuters Jason Baird is seen dressed as Spiderman during his daily exercise to cheer up local children in Stockport, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues Reuters A woman wearing a face mask walks past Buckingham Palace Getty Images A man holds mobile phone displaying a text message alert sent by the government warning that new rules are in force across the UK and people must stay at home PA Medical staff on the Covid-19 ward at the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, in Wales, as the health services continue their response to the coronavirus outbreak. PA Prime Minister Boris Johnson taking part in a virtual Cabinet meeting with his top team of ministers PA A shopper walks past empty shelves in a Lidl store on in Wallington. After spates of "panic buying" cleared supermarket shelves of items like toilet paper and cleaning products, stores across the UK have introduced limits on purchases during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some have also created special time slots for the elderly and other shoppers vulnerable to the new coronavirus. Getty Images People on a busy tube train in London at rush hour PA Mia, aged 8 and her brother Jack, aged 5 from Essex, continue their school work at home, after being sent home due to the coronavirus PA Children are painting 'Chase the rainbows' artwork and springing up in windows across the country Reuters Social distancing in Primrose Hill Jeremy Selwyn A general view of a locked gate at Anfield, Liverpool as The Premier League has been suspended PA Homeless people in London AFP via Getty Images A piece of art by the artist, known as the Rebel Bear has appeared on a wall on Bank Street in Glasgow. The new addition to Glasgow's street art is capturing the global Coronavirus crisis. The piece features a woman and a man pulling back to give each other a kiss PA The Queen leaves Buckingham Palace, London, for Windsor Castle to socially distance herself amid the coronavirus pandemic PA A general view on Grey street, Newcastle as coronavirus cases grow around the world Reuters Matt Raw, a British national who returned from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, leaves quaratine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside PA Britain's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty (L) and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance look on as British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures as he speaks during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) news conference inside 10 Downing Street Reuters The ticket-validation terminals at the tram stop on Edinburgh's Princes Street are cleaned following the coronavirus outbreak. PA Locked school gates at Rockcliffe First School in Whitley Bay, Tyne and Wear PA A sign at a Sainsbury's supermarket informs customers that limits have been set on a small number of products as the number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases grow around the world Reuters Jawad Javed delivers coronavirus protection kits that he and his wife have put together to the vulnerable people of their community of Stenhousemuir, between Glasgow and Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images A sign advertising a book titled "How Will We Survive On Earth?" Getty Images A man who appears to be homeless sleeping wearing a mask today in Victoria Jeremy Selwyn A pedestrian walks past graffiti that reads "Diseases are in the City" in Edinburgh AFP via Getty Images Staff from The Lyric Theatre, London inform patrons, as it shuts its doors PA A quiet looking George IV Bridge in Edinburgh PA A quieter than usual British Museum Getty Images A racegoer attends Cheltenham in a fashionable face mask SplashNews.com A commuter wears a face mask at London Bridge Station Jeremy Selwyn A empty restaurant in the Bull Ring Shopping Centre Getty Images A deserted Trafalgar Square in London PA Passengers determined to avoid the coronavirus before leaving the UK arrive at Gatwick Airport Getty Images

The tallies are not a representation of people currently infected with the virus but are a rolling number of every confirmed case since the start of the outbreak.

There are also fears the true toll could be far higher, as thousands of cases may not have been formally diagnosed. Some people may also have the virus but be asymptomatic.

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Meanwhile, as pressure mounts for more tests to be carried out, Public Health England said 10,657 were conducted yesterday in England.

The country currently has capacity to carry out 12,799 per day.

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Health Secretary Matt Hancock vowed to up the number of screenings being carried out, while Number 10 said work was ongoing with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test.

This would show whether people have had the virus.

Such a test would enable people to get back to work quickly. Some experts speculate this type of testing is the quickest way out of the current lockdown, which the nation is currently in the second week of.

The Prime Ministers spokesman said: We are working as quickly as we can on that and as soon as a test is approved then we will announce it publicly.

Listen to today's episode of The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast

The lockdown is set to continue for a third week at which point it will be reviewed.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 17:47:01|Editor: huaxia

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SHIJIAZHUANG, April 2 (Xinhua) -- For many people, home is always sweet home. But for Zhang Shulan, home used to be a stinky place that she just wanted to run away from.

Zhang is a resident of Yezhuang Village in the city of Handan, north China's Hebei Province. Her house was in the lower end of the village, and polluted water with a strong foul odor ran right in front of her house.

"The village's communal dry toilet was less than 100 meters away from my house, and there was also a garbage dump in the vicinity," she said.

Toilets in the Chinese countryside have earned a nasty reputation, with some little more than ramshackle shelters surrounded by bunches of cornstalk and others just open pits next to pigsties.

"I felt horrible whenever I opened my door," she said. "The smell was simply disgusting!"

To shelter the family from the "daily attacks of odor," Zhang's family took a variety of measures.

"We basically rebuilt the houses," Zhang said. "We even added an extra tile of colored steel to the rooftop for cover."

But the measures went nowhere.

"It was still really smelly," she said. "We could not take it anymore."

Driven away by the choking environment, the family of seven used all their earnings and applied for loans to buy a house in the city, shying away from the farming life they once knew.

"We crammed into a house with just three rooms and a hall," she said. "We just felt terrible, because we built five spacious houses in the village and an attic, but we were forced away by the stinky water."

Zhang's house is in a mining area in Handan. The area has 157 villages, and each year, the villages discharge close to three million tonnes of water polluted by domestic sewage. Before 2019, less than 10 percent of the area's wastewater was collected for treatment. Local water treatment facilities only collected wastewater from more than 10 villages and downtown districts, and the rest just flowed into streets and alleyways before evaporating or went into rovers and pools. Pollution was heavy.

"We started treating the polluted water in the mining area in 2019," said local official Zhang Qingqiang.

Authorities started to include the villages into a unified network of pollution treatment. In addition to water-treating plants, they also resorted to "biological treatment pools," which purify the water before releasing it for irrigation in fields and forests.

So far, all villages in the mining area have been covered by the network, and almost all rural families there have switched to flush toilets instead of dry toilets.

This also means that the environment in Zhang's village is completely changed.

"In late 2019, the village official called and told me that the village was connecting to a wastewater treatment network," Zhang said. "He asked if I would like to install flush toilets in my houses."

Zhang returned to the village and found that the stinky water around her house was already gone. Replacing the smelly water were flowers, grass, a new pavilion and a winding corridor.

"It looked like a picture," she said. "I thought maybe it was time to get back."

Zhang returned the call to the official and asked how to get connected to the network.

"All of my family will come back," she said.

The coronavirus outbreak disrupted the construction of the water-treating facilities for a while, but as the epidemic ebbed, workers are resuming work again.

"People used to throw wastewater outside their houses, and stinky water flowed on the streets," said Zhang Qingqiang. "But now it is an entirely different picture, and farmers' level of happiness has greatly improved."
EUGENE, Ore. -- After requesting Social Security recipients fill out a 'simple tax return' in order to receive stimulus money, the Treasury reversed its decision late Wednesday, requiring no action on the part of recipients in order to receive a check.

KEZI 9 News reported the Treasury's initial decision before Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin released a statement Wednesday evening reading, Social Security recipients who are not typically required to file a tax return do not need to take an action, and will receive their payment directly to their bank account.

According to the IRS, information on already existing SSA-1099 and RRB-1099 Forms will be used to generate stimulus payments. These forms are mailed to social security recipients every January, showing the amount of benefits that were received in the previous year.

.@SocialSecurity recipients dont need to file a tax return to receive Economic Impact Payments. Recipients will receive these payments as a direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their benefits. Learn more here: https://t.co/czJSWcjAlt  Steven Mnuchin (@stevenmnuchin1) April 2, 2020

In the wake of Washington, D.C.'s historic $2 trillion stimulus bill, single taxpayers who make less than $75,000 will get $1,200. Married couples will receive $2,400, with $500 for each qualifying child.

According to officials, the stimulus money will begin going out in as early as three weeks. Those who included direct deposit information in their 2018 or 2019 tax returns will automatically have the money deposited in their accounts while others will receive checks.

Retiree Jessie Olivas told KEZI 9 News that the stimulus money will be an enormous help for many of those on Social Security, though some need it more than others.

"I am retired. I'm doing OK, and if we get this money, I'm glad that we are, I'm hoping that the people who really need it right now (get it first)," he said.

Meanwhile, many college students and other adult dependents will not be receiving any stimulus money whatsoever. If the student was claimed as a dependent on their family's tax return, they are ineligible.

Students under the age of 24 are considered dependents if their parents pay for at least half of their expenses.

University of Oregon students told KEZI 9 News that many are at financial risk as service jobs, internships and post-graduation careers seem less certain.

"Times are tough with everything that's going on," said Junior Ryan Harmon. "I am worried that I could lose my job. It could be really clutch if I got this. Just helping with paying rent and groceries."

Though stimulus money may not be available to students, federal student loan payments have been paused until Sept. 30, including principal and interest.
One of the tragic dates in the history of the Azerbaijani people is March 1918, when the Bolsheviks and the militants of the Dashnaktsutyun party, on a far-fetched pretext, organized mass killings of Muslims in Baku and other Azerbaijani cities and villages. The killings on ethnic and religious grounds lasted about a week and forced the Musavat party, against which the Bolsheviks were waging a political struggle, to accept their ultimatum, that is, in essence, to give up power. March 31 is celebrated in Azerbaijan as the Day of Genocide of Azerbaijanis. The Vestnik Kavkaza talked about the causes and consequences of the March events of 1918 with the famous historian, researcher of the history of the Caucasus Georgy Mamulia.

- Georgy Guramovich, first of all, what is known about the causes of the massacres of the Azerbaijani population in March 1918?

- About these reasons, as well as about the events themselves, not so little is known, because a certain amount of evidence has been preserved, and not only in the Azerbaijani, but also in foreign archives. One of the first documents in chronological respect that I met was the report of an Austro-Hungarian officer, Lieutenant Desiderius Brandtner, who visited Baku with a secret mission in early May, that is, exactly one month after the end of these events. He describes these events in some detail, and his data mainly agree with the data of Azerbaijani sources. The number of victims is indicated objectively (12 thousand people). Brandtner emphasizes that the pretext for the killings was the desire of the Baku Council, the coalition of Bolsheviks and Dashnaks who ruled in Baku at that time, to disarm a small detachment of former officers of the Wild Division, that is, those Azerbaijani officers who arrived in Baku after the dissolution of the Wild Division and should have to form an Azerbaijani army.

Of course, the disarmament of several dozen officers of the former Wild Division was only an excuse, since the true purpose of the Baksovet was to seize and monopolize power in Baku and, accordingly, throughout Azerbaijan. We know that on March 3 the Brest-Litovsk Treaty was concluded. Turkish troops were rapidly approaching the Caucasus. The German command showed no less interest in the region. It was possible that the Turks could come to the aid of the Azerbaijanis in their quest to create an independent state. To prevent this, the Bolsheviks entered into a direct alliance with the Dashnaks and literally a few weeks after the Brest-Litovsk Treaty organized a massacre in Baku.

Thus, at this time there was a temporary bond between the Bolsheviks and Dashnaks on an anti-Azerbaijani and anti-Muslim basis. Both those and others did not want to allow the Caucasus and its industrial center of Baku to leave the control of the central Bolshevik authorities. It must be remembered that at that time more than 90% of the oil in the territories of the former Russian Empire was produced by the oil producing enterprises of Baku, and the Bolsheviks in no way could afford to lose control of this city. There is direct evidence of this in the correspondence of the Baksovet with the central Bolshevik authorities.

For this reason, the Armenian military units, which are rightly called Dashnak in the Bolshevik documents (there were very few Russian units in Baku) and which were often accidentally in the city at that time, were accepted into the Red Army. In general, the alliance of the Bolsheviks with the Dashnaks was directed against three factors: 1) the existence of the Azerbaijani population in Baku, 2) the independence of Azerbaijan and 3) the whole Caucasus. Let me remind you that at that time there was a real possibility of creating a united independent South Caucasian state. Due to the defeat in the First World War, the Russian Empire had already broken up, the armies of the countries of the Fourth Union entered the Caucasus, in particular Germany and Turkey, which, despite the rather serious disagreements between them, generally sought to contribute to the independence of the peoples of the South Caucasus in the hope, first of all, take advantage of the regions richest natural resources. And this, especially the loss of the Baku oil fields, the Bolsheviks could not allow.

- In addition to Baku, what other cities and lands suffered from the attacks of the Bolsheviks and Dashnaks?

- The Azerbaijani population was attacked not only in Baku, since the Bolsheviks and Dashnaks wanted to establish their power both in Azerbaijan and throughout the South Caucasus. Having seized power in Baku, the Baksovet decided to seize Tiflis, the administrative center of Transcaucasia, where the creation of an independent Transcaucasian Federal Democratic Republic was proclaimed on April 22. In the summer of 1918, already after the declaration of state independence of Azerbaijan in Tiflis on May 28, the Red Army of the Baksovet, consisting mainly of Dashnak military units, organized a campaign against Tiflis. The Baksovets army advanced quite deeply, right up to Kurdamir. On the way, the Dashnak units that were part of it organized mass pogroms of Muslim villages, killing their inhabitants. Incidentally, Russian commanders of the Baksovet army reported this in their reports, complaining about Dashnak officers and soldiers who use Bolshevism to settle ethnic accounts with Azerbaijanis. In their reports, they emphasized that it was for this reason that the Azerbaijani population offered them such stubborn resistance. That is, in this case, the behavior of the Dashnaks in the Azerbaijani provinces already acted against them.

In the battles near Kurdamir on July 7-10, the Red Army was stopped, since by that time a Caucasian Islamic army had already been formed in the Ganja region under the leadership of Turkish General Nuri Pasha, which also included Azerbaijani units. As a result, the Baksovets army was stopped, and then thrown back to Baku. The fact that Bolshevism was only a convenient pretext for the Dashnaks for the realization of their goals is also shown by the fact that it was the Dashnak units that played one of the decisive roles in the overthrow of the Baku Commune in mid-August 1918 and the coming to power of the Socialist-Revolutionary government of the Central Caspian dictatorship.

Thus, in order to settle their own accounts with the Muslim population in 1918, the Dashnaks showed complete ideological unscrupulousness and omnivorousness. At first, they sought to take advantage of the alliance with the Russian Bolsheviks, and then, when it became clear that the central Bolshevik authorities were not able to help them keep Baku, they relied on the Socialist Revolutionary government of the Central Caspian dictatorship, relying on military support from the British. It should be noted that, in the final analysis, the Armenian people suffered from such behavior. Instead of thinking about creating a single South Caucasian state, the only guarantee of gaining and preserving independence by all the peoples of Transcaucasia, in which, by the way, they could play an important role, the Dashnaks did everything to antagonize the Azerbaijani population, while at the same time opposing themselves not only Muslim Azerbaijanis, but also Christian Georgians. The March events are the most obvious result of the unprincipled and suicidal policy of the Dashnaks for the Armenian people to try to solve their problems at the expense of their neighbors, relying on whatever external force they like.

- How were the massacres stopped?

- Initially, Azerbaijanis resisted, but the forces were too unequal. Only a handful of former officers and servicemen of the Wild Division, as well as Musavat party volunteers who did not have combat experience (during the tsarist period, Azerbaijanis were not subject to military draft) who were in Dashnak battalions in Baku with solid military experience of the First World War organized and armed. Do not forget that the Bolshevik-Dashnak alliance supported the Caspian Navy, whose artillery bombarded the Muslim quarters of Baku, destroying buildings and people.

The killings stopped only due to the fact that Musavat, realizing the futility of continuing resistance, sent parliamentarians and agreed that the armed clashes would be stopped and its supporters lay down their arms. Thus, the Bolsheviks and Dashnaks temporarily achieved their goal and monopolized power in Baku. Previously, members of other parties, including representatives of the Muslim population of the city, entered the Baksovet, after the March events of 1918, only Bolsheviks and Dashnaks remained in it.

- Did the organizers and perpetrators of these killings bear any responsibility?

- Not everyone. Some of those responsible for these crimes were subsequently detained and suffered appropriate punishment, but most of the Dashnak leaders were able to escape. Many evacuated along with the British to the port of Anzeli on the Iranian coast of the Caspian Sea after the liberation of Baku on September 15, 1918.

- What problems could the Dashnaks have with the Azerbaijanis if they had nothing to do with the events of 1915 in Turkey?

- There were several illusory reasons. Firstly, the traditional policy of the tsarist government, which opposed Armenians to Muslims. Especially during the First Russian Revolution of 1905-1907, when the tsarist government resorted to the divide and conquer tactics, artificially setting these peoples against each other. Secondly, unfortunately, the religious factor also played a very important role in these events. Instead of thinking in state terms, the Dashnaks believed that since Azerbaijanis are Muslims of Turkic origin, they should be treated as hostilely as Turks. And this despite the fact that the objective interests of the Armenian people strongly dictated to their leaders the need to have good relations with their neighbors, resolving all issues on the basis of mutual compromises within the framework of a single South Caucasus. This opinion was shared by all Western representatives who visited the Caucasus in 1918-1921.

Reflecting on the March tragedy from a historical perspective, we can say that, having committed this crime, the Dashnaks rendered a great service to the central Bolshevik authorities of Russia, thereby undermining the foundation of the possibility of creating a single South Caucasian state. To a large extent, precisely because of this factor, the Transcaucasian Democratic Federal Republic, as we have already noted, proclaimed on April 22, 1918, was formed too late. By that time, that is, after the March events, the contradictions were already too strong for Armenia and Azerbaijan to be a single state. Often, historians do not take into account the fact that Bolshevism in Baku itself was possible only if it was supported by the battalions, which were at that time in this city, infiltrated by Dashnak propaganda. The historian should not talk about what did not happen, but today it is obvious that if there werent the March events of 1918, the prospect of creating a single federal state in the South Caucasus would be more than possible.

In 1918-1921, all foreign observers - German, Turkish, British, French, Italian and so on - agreed that the South Caucasus had only one chance to maintain independence from the Bolsheviks - the creation of a single South Caucasian state. This was well understood in Tiflis and in Baku, but, unfortunately, they did not understand and did not want to understand in Yerevan. Dashnak territorial claims against Azerbaijan and Georgia poisoned the atmosphere throughout the entire period of independence of the Caucasian states. It was the refusal of Yerevan from a constructive approach, first of all, to its own state building that was one of the greatest tragedies of that time in the South Caucasus.
An Amazon executive attempted to discredit a Staten Island warehouse worker who was fired after he organized a walkout this week, according to a leaked memo obtained by Vice.

The memo includes notes from a daily meeting held by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and the company's top executives. It's unclear when the meeting took place.

During the meeting, Amazon SVP and General Counsel David Zapolsky advised the company to make Christian Smalls, the fired Staten Island worker, the face of warehouse workers' growing calls for greater workplace protections amid the coronavirus outbreak, Vice reported.

Zapolsky said Smalls was "not smart or articulate" and said Amazon should focus on highlighting to the press how "the organizer's conduct was immoral, unacceptable, and arguably illegal," according to Vice.

Smalls said he was fired for organizing the strike, but Amazon said it fired Smalls because he violated social distancing rules after being told to go under quarantine for working near someone who tested positive for the coronavirus.

Amazon did not confirm what was said in the meeting, but a spokesman provided CNBC a statement attributed to Zapolsky.

"My comments were personal and emotional," Zapolsky's statement said. "I was frustrated and upset that an Amazon employee would endanger the health and safety of other Amazonians by repeatedly returning to the premises after having been warned to quarantine himself after exposure to virus COVID-19. I let my emotions draft my words and get the better of me."

In a statement, Smalls said Zapolsky's comments show Amazon "seems to be more interested in managing its image" instead of protecting "workers and the communities in which they work."

"Amazon wants to make this about me, but whether Jeff Bezos likes it or not, this is about Amazon workers - and their families - everywhere," Smalls said. "There are thousands of scared workers waiting for a real plan from Amazon so that its facilities do not become epicenters of the crisis. More and more positive cases are turning up every day ... while they may have fired me, they can't stop all of us from fighting for the protections we need."

Athena, a nonprofit advocacy group that represents Amazon workers, argued that the memo illustrated that the company is "trying to fix the PR problem instead of the public health problem."

"This insight into top Amazon thinking fails to inspire confidence," Athena Director Dania Rajendra said in a statement. "Amazon top brass chose tired, racist insinuations and snarky tweets. A better choice would be to make a plan that takes worker and public health seriously."

Amazon faced criticism from legislators, union leaders and warehouse workers about a lack of protective measures for employees who continue to come to work amid the coronavirus outbreak. On Wednesday, workers at a Romulus, Michigan, facility walked out, while workers at a Staten Island, New York, facility staged a protest on Monday.

Amazon's top spokesperson, Jay Carney, and Dave Clark, who runs Amazon's retail operations, disputed Smalls' firing and the impact of the walkouts in a number of tweets this week. In a tweet on Monday, Clark said: "Today's 'strike' headlines are dramatically exaggerated. Of over 5k employees at our Staten Island site, 15 people participated (<0.5%)."

In a separate tweet on Tuesday, Clark told Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., that claims that Smalls was fired for organizing the protest were "misinformed."

@davehclark: You have been misinformed again Sen. Sanders. Mr. Smalls purposely violated social distancing rules multiple times and on 3/28 was put on Paid 14-days of quarantine due to COVID exposure. 3/30 he returned to the site. Knowingly putting our team at risk is unacceptable.

Carney, who served as press secretary under President Barack Obama, also called out critics of the company's response to workers' demands in a tweet on Wednesday:

@JayCarney: I wonder if folks on Twitter who respond to facts and ideas they don't like with ad hominem vitriol ever pause to wonder why they're not very good at winning people over to their point of view.

Clark published a separate blog post on Thursday in which he downplayed how many workers participated in this week's walkouts, saying they "occurred at a very small number of sites and represent a few hundred employees out of hundreds of thousands." He added that while Amazon respects workers' efforts to speak out and protest, "these rights do not provide blanket immunity against bad actions," referring to Smalls' decision to visit the Staten Island facility while in quarantine.

"This is not about any one individual. When anyone on our team at any level purposely puts the health of others at risk, we will take swift, decisive action without concern about external reaction," Clark said. "We did not, and have not ever, terminated an associate for speaking out on their working conditions, but we will act swiftly with individuals who purposely put others at risk."

The company has touted other safety measures and benefits it has implemented at warehouses in recent weeks, such as increased cleaning and paid leave for employees who are under quarantine after being exposed to someone with the coronavirus.

Amazon employees at multiple facilities who spoke to CNBC argued that the company's efforts aren't enough to keep them safe. They say uneven safety precautions at facilities across the country have sown feelings of distrust between workers and their managers. Workers say they've become worried that managers aren't being honest about whether employees are sick with the virus, so that they can keep the facilities open.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 18:57:20|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said Thursday that it is a "high-probability event" that the country will see a bumper grain harvest in 2020 as ample reserves and stable agricultural production ensure self-sufficiency amid the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

"China has seen a pretty long streak of bumper years, with inventories and reserves abundant and grain price consistently stable," MOC official Wang Bin told a news conference when answering a question regarding domestic concerns over food shortage fueled by bans on food exports by major producers around the world.

China, the world's top food producer and consumer saw its grain output reach a record high of 664 million tonnes last year, the 16th bumper year in a row, he said.

"By the end of last year, the country had inventories of more than 280 million tonnes of wheat, corn and rice, which will enable complete self-sufficiency as the average annual consumption of grain hovers above 200 million tonnes," he said. "The international market's impact on the country's grain supply is minimal."

The country's grain imports are mainly fodder grains such as soybeans, with imported rice and wheat accounting for only 1 percent and 2 percent of the total domestic consumption, respectively, Wang said.

"Even zero imports will not lead to a shortage of grain supply in China," he said. "Consumers do not need to worry about the shortage or price spike of grains. They do not need to buy in bulk or hoard food at home."

Rice is a staple food in China, whose total grain output consists of three parts -- early rice, summer grain, and autumn production. Autumn grain crops, which include corn and middle- and late-season rice, account for the bulk of the grain production.

An analysis by the country's agriculture ministry points to greater early rice acreage and yield, a bumper summer grain harvest, and well-planned purchases of autumn grain this year, all signs of a generally sound trend of the country's grain production this year, Wang said.

"Wholesale and retail markets around the country have sufficient supply of rice, flour and edible oil, and the prices remain stable," Wang said. "Grain production and processing enterprises are resuming production with sound progress, and the sector's production capacity is sufficient."

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted multiple countries to throttle the outflow of grains. Kyrgyzstan, for example, imposed a temporary ban on the export of certain types of food products and essential goods over COVID-19 concerns. The ban list includes wheat, flour, vegetable oil and rice.

"Export bans by some countries were imposed mainly to prioritize domestic food needs, and we do not expect the majority of food exporters to follow suit," Wang said.

China has already taken multi-pronged measures to ensure stable spring farming. A special guideline on coordinating the novel coronavirus control measures with spring farming preparation was issued in early March to ensure the country's agricultural production.

All provincial-level regions should keep their sown areas and grain output stable, on par with that registered last year, and efforts will be made to fully implement support policies such as the minimum purchase price for rice and wheat to motivate farmers to secure a bumper harvest, said the guideline issued by the leading group of the Communist Party of China Central Committee on the prevention and control of the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The Agricultural Development Bank of China, an agricultural policy bank, said in late March that it had provided 22.67 billion yuan (about 3.19 billion U.S. dollars) in loans to support spring farming, with 6.92 billion yuan going to support agricultural means of production such as seeds, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, and agricultural science and technology.
An overzealous medical officer in Bihar



ended up being suspended for floating the idea that the fight against coronavirus pandemic be ramped up by roping in quacks.

The Bihar health department in its suspension order Wednesday, rapped Ashesh Kumar, the civil surgeon of Siwan district, for issuing a circular to the effect on March 25 last, screenshots of which had gone viral on the social media.

In the notification, whereby Kumar has been suspended with immediate effect and attached to the office of a special secretary here, the official has been pulled up for undermining the state governments efforts by calling for roping in "jhola chhaap doctors" (quacks) which was "against medical protocol".

The notification also rebuked the official for acting "without seeking permission or bothering to inform" his higher ups about the move and pointed towards the "criticism" the department faced when the bizarre circular went viral on the social media.

Prominent among those who had trained their guns at the Nitish Kumar government over the episode was the Chief Ministers arch rival Lalu Prasad.

Currently at a hospital in Ranchi where he is serving sentences in fodder scam cases, Prasad had recently shared a screenshot of the circular with a trademark one-liner "jholachhap doctor, corona and Bihar equals to double engine sarkaar" a snide reference to the BJP sharing power in the state and ruling the Centre.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Already in the USA, two cases have been brought against companies in recent weeks accusing them of issuing misleading statements about COVID-19, and their plans to mitigate its effects, in order to bolster share prices. Class action suits are expected to follow elsewhere too  with the UK, Australia and Canada among the regions likely to see action taken.

An uptick in litigation targeting directors and officers across industry sectors is one likely, and unwelcome, consequence, James Whitaker, partner at law firm Mayer Brown, told Reuters.

Typically, D&O policies have been used to pay executives defence costs and penalties awarded by courts  with the global market providing around US$600 million to US$700 million in cover. However, with award levels increasing already, the coronavirus outbreak is likely to heap further pressure on the market because whereas the likes of event cancellation cover and business interruption would typically exclude pandemics, D&O coverage offers a method to recoup costs.

The pressure on insurers will be significant, while the legal costs...will also be huge, AFL Insurance Brokers chairman Toby Esser told the newswire.

As such, it has been suggested that insurers are looking at ways they can avoid these claims going forward.

We are starting to see insurers looking at the potential for specific COVID-19 exclusions going forward, said Beth Thurston, head of management liability, UK & Ireland, in conversation with Reuters.

The newswire went on to quote Clyde & Co speculating that D&O policies may, in the future, exclude claims relating to illnesses and bodily injuries, with another broker suggesting that insurers want to have a very broad exclusion of anything related to coronavirus.

As industry professionals, wed love to hear your reaction to this story. Is the insurance sector right to look at protecting itself in this way? Leave a comment below with your thoughts.
Esri, the global leader in mapping and location intelligence, today announced they will provide a COVID-19 Response Package for Ministries of Health and Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) partners which will enable these organizations to have access to Esris geospatial platform and tools that can be used for reporting and analysis of cases and deaths, public health and response activities at the national level, in addition to managing testing sites, community activities and impact, and much more at the local level.

The intent of our partnership with WHO is about providing technology and capacity building to all the national and local Ministries of Health. Having integrated geospatial data and analytics is important to a comprehensive and dynamic response to the rapidly changing situation related to COVID-19. This is particularly true in low resource countries, said Jack Dangermond, Esri founder and president.

This contribution to the global COVID-19 response will support the digital transformation of global health information systems through mapping and analytics technology. Esris geospatial software helps organizations understand complex and vast amounts of data by placing it in a geographic context with sophisticated analysis capabilities such as artificial intelligence (AI).

While our company has always supported the efforts of governments and NGOs when facing crises, the COVID-19 pandemic is different and requires a rapid and global response, said Dangermond. Our work with WHO is about helping MoHs around the world in equipping and assisting communities with our technology. We strongly believe these efforts will help combat its spread.

If you are a Ministry of Health or a GOARN partner, visit go.esri.com/coronavirus and request your COVID-19 Response Package.

About Esri

Esri, the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, location intelligence, and mapping, offers the most powerful geospatial cloud available, to help customers unlock the full potential of data to improve operational and business results. Founded in 1969, Esri software is deployed in more than 350,000 organizations including 90 of the Fortune 100 companies, all 50 state governments, more than half of all counties (large and small), and 87 of the Forbes Top 100 Colleges in the U.S., as well as all 15 Executive Departments of the U.S. Government and dozens of independent agencies. With its pioneering commitment to geospatial information technology, Esri engineers the most advanced solutions for digital transformation, the Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics. Visit us at esri.com.

Copyright  2020 Esri. All rights reserved. Esri, the Esri globe logo, The Science of Where, esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of Esri in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products or services mentioned herein may be trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of their respective mark owners.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200401005757/en/
BANGALORE, India, April 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The global Infection Control market size was USD 16720 million in 2019 and is forecast to hit USD 21690 million by the end of 2026, with a CAGR of 3.7 percent in 2021-2026.

Growth in the demand for infection control can be primarily attributed to factors such as the high incidence of hospital-acquired infections; increased number of surgical procedures; increased geriatric population and increased occurrence of chronic diseases; increased emphasis on food sterilization and disinfection and technical developments in sterilization equipment. The recent covid-19 pandemic has given a huge boost to this market.

This study focuses on future projections, prospects for growth, key markets, and key players for the infection control market. The study aims to present the progress of infection control in North America, Europe, China, Japan, Southeast Asia, India, and Central & South America.

Get Free Sample: https://reports.valuates.com/request/sample/QYRE-Othe-4J212/infection-control-market-size

TRENDS INFLUENCING THE INFECTION CONTROL MARKET SIZE

The growing number of government policy programs to ensure the prevention of high-degree infections is expected to be a major factor that can increase the infection control market size. Government bodies are increasingly active in issuing recommendations to encourage awareness of infection control initiatives that are expected to lead to market growth over the forecast period.

During the forecast period, the sterilization products and services segment is expected to dominate the demand for infection control. Stringent sterilization regulations and widespread use of sterilizers in various applications such as medical device sterilization, food & beverage sterilization, pharmaceutical sterilization, and sterilization in the life sciences industry is expected to increase the infection control market size.

A rise in the number of surgical procedures coupled with the growing incidence of nosocomial infections would fuel the growth of demand for the infection control market during the forecast period.

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REGION WISE INFECTION CONTROL MARKET SHARE ANALYSIS

In the forecast period, North America is expected to dominate the market for infection control. Growth in this market is driven primarily by the growing demand for healthcare services (because of the expected rise in the geriatric population over the coming years and the resulting rise in the prevalence of chronic diseases) and the need for infection control to reduce the incidence of Healthcare Associated infections (HAIs) and the cost of HAIs.

is expected to dominate the market for infection control. Growth in this market is driven primarily by the growing demand for healthcare services (because of the expected rise in the geriatric population over the coming years and the resulting rise in the prevalence of chronic diseases) and the need for infection control to reduce the incidence of Healthcare Associated infections (HAIs) and the cost of HAIs. The Asia Pacific market is expected to show the fastest CAGR over the forecast period due to the rising involvement of outsourcing organizations, increasing healthcare spending, and unparalleled growth of healthcare quality & infrastructure across the region.

INFECTION CONTROL MARKET SEGMENTATION

Infection Control Market segments by Regions/Countries, this report covers

North America

Europe

China

Japan

Southeast Asia

India

Central & South America

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Infection Control Market segments by Type:

Disinfection Products

Sterilization Products and Services.

Infection Control Market segments by Application:

Hospitals & Clinics

Life Sciences Industry

Medical Device Companies

Pharmaceutical Companies

Food Industry

Other.

The key companies covered in this study:

STERIS

Getinge

Ecolab

3M

Advanced Sterilization Products

Cantel Medical

Sotera Health

MMM Group

Matachana

Belimed AG

Halyard Health

Metrex Research

Reckitt Benckiser

Pal International

Others.

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VIEW SIMILAR REPORTS:

Infection Prevention Market Report

Infection Prevention Market size was estimated at USD 98.4 billion in 2019 and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 7.2% throughout the forecast period 2019-2026.

The demand for infection prevention is evaluated, and information on the market size is given for regions (countries). The study includes market size and the Product and Application segment forecast for the period 2015-2026 in terms of sales and revenues.

The Infection Prevention Market report focuses on the volume and value of infection prevention at global, national, and enterprise levels. This study reflects the overall size of the Infection Prevention market from a global perspective by evaluating historical data and future prospects. This report focuses on many main regions in the region: North America, Europe, China, and Japan, etc.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Othe-0H220/infection-prevention-market

Disinfection Robots Market Report

Disinfection Robots Market size was estimated at USD 110 million in 2019 and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 25.8% throughout the forecast period 2019-2026.

Disinfection is a method of purifying the environment from bacteria by using chemicals and other forms of radiation. Bacteria are the main cause of the infection that can lead to a person developing a major or minor infection. The robot for disinfection can be used in different locations, such as hospitals, research institutes, and other places used for health-related patient care or drug production.

The Disinfection Robots Market report incorporates analyses of various factors that increase the growth of the market. It constitutes patterns, constraints, and drivers that either positively or negatively impact the market.

View Full Report: https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Othe-1C258/disinfection-robots-market

Hospital Infection Therapeutics Market Report

Hospital Infection Therapeutics Market size will rise from USD 4,150.10 million in 2018 to USD 6,932.90 million by 2025, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.60 percent.

The market for Hospital Infection Therapeutics is highly competitive and features the involvement of a large number of international and regional players on the market. Some of the major players dominating the Hospital Infection Therapeutics Market include Actavis Plc, Bayer AG, Bristol Myers Squibb Company, Johnson & Johnson Services Inc., and Sanof.

The study offers in-depth insights into demand estimates, industry dynamics, and micro and macro indicators. This report also offers insights into the factors that drive and inhibit the demand of the Hospital Infection Therapeutics Market.

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Another 569 coronavirus deaths were declared in the UK today, meaning Britain's death toll has quadrupled in six days with 2,921 confirmed victims of the deadly infection.

The rise makes today the worst day so far in the outbreak - which has crippled Britain since it began spreading on British soil in February. It is the third day in a row that a new one-day high in deaths has been recorded.

A further 4,244 people were diagnosed with the life-threatening infection in the past 24 hours, pushing the total number of positive tests to 33,718 - but officials are clueless about the true size of the outbreak.

The figures provide a glimmer of hope that the unprecedented lockdown may be working because it the number of new cases was down from 4,324 yesterday, while the daily death count jumped by just six.

Figures show the UK's COVID-19 death toll - which leading scientists warned could have topped 500,000 without drastic Government action - was just 759 last Friday.

It came as Health Secretary Matt Hancock emerged from self-isolation tonight to announce a U-turn on the testing fiasco, saying he wants to use independent labs so everyone can get swabbed.

He admitted the UK won't be testing 100,000 people a day until the end of the month and revealed some antibody tests he was being urged to buy had failed trials - with one missing three out of four cases.

In other developments to the escalating UK crisis today:

Chancellor Rishi Sunak will order banks to hand over loans to struggling firms with one million businesses teetering on the brink of collapse;

Fifty-five per cent of Britons believe Boris Johnson imposed the coronavirus lockdown 'too late' while more than a third do not think current restrictions go far enough, according to an exclusive poll for MailOnline;

Bungling police used 'wrong law' to fine Britain's first conviction for breaching lockdown 800 when the 41-year-old refused to say why she was at Newcastle Station;

The Prime Minister is preparing to overrule control-freak health chiefs who wanted to take control of all testing to get a grip on Number 10's testing shambles;

Business groups say firms have 'furloughed' half of their staff with concerns the government's bailout will need to be massively bigger than thought;

Overdraft customers will be able to request zero-interest buffers of up to 500 over three months to help ease the financial impact of coronavirus, under new proposals from the City regulator;

The ONS has revealed costs of cough and cold medication have risen by nearly 11 per cent over the last fortnight, amid fears of profiteering;

A member of the public is lifted into the back of an ambulance by paramedics in Euston, London. The capital remains at the centre of the UK's COVID-19 epidemic

The number of new daily cases of the coronavirus remained relatively stable through the last five days of March. Not pictured on this graph, however, are the 4,324 new cases declared yesterday and 4,244 today - both record highs

NHS staff were today finally being swabbed for coronavirus at a drive-through facility in Chessington, with queues of cars being waved through by a security guard in hi-vis jacket

And the NHS has announced more victims in four days this week (1,693) than in every other day of the outbreak combined up until Sunday, March 29 (1,228).

The true scale of the outbreak is not shown by the Department of Health's statistics, which cut off at 5pm the day before they are announced.

Because of this, some of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland's statistics will be taken into tomorrow's overall count for the UK.

Combined, each country's individual death tolls for the day - England (561), Scotland (66), Wales (19) and Northern Ireland (6) - add up to 652.

This takes the real total to 2,977, and individual numbers of positive tests put the patient count at 39,215.

GOVERNMENT WILL OUTSOURCE WORK TO 'LITTLE SHIP' LABS TO SCALE UP COVID-19 TESTING Boris Johnson is preparing to overrule control-freak health chiefs today amid warnings 'time is running out' to scale up coronavirus testing. Health Secretary Matt Hancock has finally signalled a U-turn on the screening regime, after weeks of insisting on all checks being carried out centrally. Instead he has issued a plea for the wider science industry to boost capacity - with Sir Paul Nurse, chief executive of the Francis Crick Institute, saying the government must summon the Dunkirk spirit and let 'small ship' labs in universities, private companies and research institutes help out. The previous approach was meant to ensure checks are conducted properly, but the 10,000 per day level achieved so far contrasts sharply with the decentralised tactics deployed successfully in countries like Germany, which is capable of up to 93,000 tests per day. The UK can currently only manage 12,000. Only around 2,800 NHS staff have been tested at drive-through 'swab stations' despite fears tens of thousands are off work unnecessarily. But the Government said many more had been tested at labs elsewhere. Tests to diagnose people who currently have the virus are viewed as critical for keeping health workers on the frontline, and tracking the outbreak could allow lockdowns to be co-ordinated in 'hotspots'. But experts say screening for people who have already had the disease - antibody testing - will be the biggest breakthrough in getting the country back on its feet. In a video released from his self-isolation in Downing Street last night, Boris Johnson admitted mass testing was the solution to the 'puzzle'. 'This is how we will defeat it in the end,' he said. The Francis Crick institute today announced it has started testing NHS staff from University College London Hospitals and aims to ramp up to 500 per day by next week and expand to other hospitals in the capital. Other smaller laboratories say they have volunteered to help with testing, too, among them the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology at Oxford University and Systems Biology Laboratory in Abingdon, which is testing local GP staff already. Cancer Research UK said it is also providing equipment and expert staff to help with testing. However, there is already a blame game under way within government over the failure to scale up the testing regime - with the PHE insisting it has 'played our part'. Advertisement

Experts have stressed that fast rising numbers of infections and deaths do not mean that the UK's lockdown isn't working.

It is expected to take at least a fortnight to see any impact on official statistics because of how long it takes the virus to make people ill and then for them to recover or die.

People dying in intensive care yesterday, for example, are likely to have caught the virus two, three or even more weeks ago - before the Stay Home campaign began.

If testing rates remain the same, the first thing to drop will be the number of new infections as fewer people become ill in the first place.

After that, the number of people being admitted to hospital will fall, according to cancer doctor Professor Karol Sikora, and then, finally, the number of people dying will come down, too.

The process of catching the infection to dying can take two to three weeks or longer for each patient who succumbs to the illness.

Professor Keith Neal, infectious diseases expert at the University of Nottingham, said: 'These figures are much in line with expectations.

'There is continuing evidence that the social distancing measure put in place on the 16th and then 23rd of March could be having an effect in slowing the rate of increase of new infections.

'The current social distancing needs to be maintained and it is also a reminder that not only the old and those with underlying conditions can get severe disease.'

NHS England said its own patients who died were between 22 and 100 years old.

44 of them were otherwise healthy, with the youngest patient with no underlying conditions being just 25. A 100-year-old victim also did not have any other illnesses.

One factor which could change the UK's statistics in the coming days and weeks is the pressure the Government is coming under to test more people.

Public Health England, which is managing all COVID-19 testing across around 48 laboratories, tested 7,771 people for the coronavirus yesterday - a total 10,657 tests.

But critics are calling on authorities to ramp this up significantly and routinely test all NHS staff and then move on to testing the public and not just hospital patients.

Drive-through screening stations have been set up for NHS workers only in London and have so far tested around 2,800 medical staff.

Ambulance workers are seen outside the NHS Nightingale Hospital in East London - the hospital has been built inside a conference centre to handle up to 4,000 extra coronavirus patients when hospitals get overloaded

Construction workers are seen constructing a morgue the size of two football pitches to cope with people who die at the new NHS Nightingale hospital in London

Containers are delivered to Manchester Central Convention Complex, where contractors are building another temporary hospital cope with overflows of coronavirus patients

The number of coronavirus tests being done in the UK has been rising but only to around 10,000 per day

CAMBRIDGE TEST '98.7% ACCURATE WITHIN 90 MINUTES' TO BE USED BY NHS Scientists have developed a coronavirus testing machine that can produce results in less than 90 minutes and is being rolled out at NHS hospitals in the city and across the UK. The company Diagnostics for the Real World, founded at Cambridge University, has invented the portable Samba II machines and had them approved by Public Health England. Ten of them are being used at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge this week before they are put to use nationwide. The scientists say the machine is 98.7 per cent accurate. CEO Helen Lee said: 'The Samba machine can be placed literally anywhere and operated by anyone with minimum training.' Nasal and throat swabs must be collected from patients then put into the machines which will scan them for tiny traces of genetic material (RNA) from the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus. Current tests which work in the same way can take 24 hours or more. Advertisement

The Government is being slammed for letting Public Health England try to run testing for the whole country in-house and not pulling in resources from private research institutes, university labs or more than 40 hospital labs.

The Francis Crick Institute, one of the country's leading science labs, in London, has stepped up by beginning testing staff from the local Imperial College London Hospitals NHS Trust.

It said it will be able to manage 500 tests per day by next week and wants to scale up to 2,000 a day for healthcare professionals so they can continue to work.

Its CEO, Sir Paul Nurse, said the Government was 'running out of time' to get a grip on the widespread testing that the World Health Organization has urged nations to do.

The WHO says every person suspected to be COVID-19 positive should be tested, and their close contacts should also be tested so the virus's spread can be monitored.

Sir Paul said on BBC Radio 4 this morning that there were many labs even in the public sector - but outside PHE - that could be used.

Referring to the famous Second World War evacuation of UK forces from the French coast, he said: 'A metaphor here is Dunkirk, to be honest. We are a lot of little boats and the little boats can be effective.

'The government has put some bigger boats - destroyers - in place.

'That is a bit more cumbersome to get working and we wish them all the luck to do that. But we little boats can contribute as well.'

Sir Paul said the smaller labs were 'more agile' to deal with global shortages of reagents.

'We can make pipelines of reagents and chemicals,' he said. 'We can move faster to deal with issues. Of course we have supply chain problems but we can reduce them by being small and agile.'

In response to heavy criticism that it wasn't doing enough, the Government has again pledged to test more people.

Downing Street said Health Secretary Matt Hancock would be setting out plans for a 'significant increase' amid criticism the UK has been lagging behind other countries.

The Health Secretary is out of self-isolation today after catching COVID-19 himself in a mini outbreak in Westminster which also struck Prime Minister Boris Johnson, chief medical adviser Professor Chris Whitty, Imperial College London scientist Professor Neil Ferguson and Dominic Cummings, the PM's chief adviser.

The Prime Ministers official spokesman said the Government had finally reached its target of 10,000 tests a day, with 10,412 carried out on Tuesday in NHS and Public Health England (PHE) laboratories across the UK.

Estimates from Imperial College London show 15 per cent of Spain's population may already have been infected with the coronavirus. Graph shows Imperial College's estimated infection rates (yellow bar) contrasted with each nations' current death rates - how many of those officially diagnosed can be expected to die (red bar)

UK'S CORONAVIRUS DEATH TOLL 24% HIGHER WHEN NON-HOSPITAL VICTIMS INCLUDED The true death toll of the coronavirus outbreak in the UK could be 24 per cent higher than NHS figures show, according to statistics released earlier this week. Patients who had COVID-19 mentioned on their death certificates numbered 210 in England and Wales up to March 20, the Office for National Statistics revealed. This was 24 per cent higher than the 170 deaths recorded by NHS England and Public Health Wales during the same time frame. If the ratio has stayed true since that time, the true current number of fatalities could be around 3,622 instead of the official 2,921. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has launched a new data series adding in the numbers of people who have died with or after having COVID-19 in the community, including those who died in care homes or their own houses. Coronavirus was not necessarily the cause of death for every one of the patients, but was believed to have been a factor. The data does not include Scotland or Northern Ireland - up to March 20, eight people had died in the those countries (six in Scotland, two in Northern Ireland), suggesting the true figure could have been 10. Advertisement

The spokesman said the total number of NHS staff to be tested at drive-through facilities had now risen to 2,800, although 'significant numbers' had also been tested at NHS and PHE labs.

He said that they were working on a number of measures which would enable 'hundreds of thousands' of tests to be carried out each day.

'We acknowledge that more needs to be done in relation to testing,' the spokesman said in a briefing. 'We need to be testing more people and we need to be making progress very quickly.'

Testing NHS staff is vital because it could allow thousands of staff, who are self-isolating because they or their family members have shown symptoms, to return to work if they are virus-free.

The Prime Ministers spokesman said that following complaints of shortages, the NHS had developed a new specification for the swabs used to carry out the tests which had been validated and shared with potential manufacturers.

'We think that provides us with a way forward to complete hundreds of thousands of tests,' he said.

Following the opening of a large-scale testing laboratory in Milton Keynes this week, the spokesman said two more would be opening next week in Cheshire and Glasgow to cover the north of England and Scotland.

At the same time, the Government was working with nine potential suppliers on developing an antibody test which would show whether people have had the virus in the past, and is seen as key to lifting the lockdown.

However the spokesman said that it was essential that they were accurate- the Government had reportedly been offered tests which had not met the required levels of accuracy and would not have been safe to use.

NHS doctors brought out of retirement, mothers, teachers and a child: The heartbreaking reality of Britain's coronavirus death toll

With the UK's coronavirus epidemic claiming the lives of dozens and now hundreds of people every day, fast-rising statistics and numbers can cloud the human tragedy behind the virus's spread.

But the almost 3,000 people who are confirmed to have died already include a 13-year-old boy, a doctor who came out of retirement to help the NHS, a famous comedian, a mother in her 40s, and a retired teacher and nursery worker.

Dr Alfa Saadu, 68, Welwyn Garden City

Dr Alfa Saadu, 68, died yesterday morning after fighting the coronavirus for two weeks

Alfa Saadu, 68, had been back at work at Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, having retired in 2016 after a 40-year career in the NHS.

He was one of thousands who responded to the NHS's plea for former staff to return to the frontlines to help hospitals cope with the coronavirus workload.

Dr Saadu, a married father-of-two originally from Nigeria, had been working at the hospital in Welwyn Garden City for two weeks before he contracted the virus and died, succumbing to the illness on March 31.

His son Dani told HuffPost UK: 'He was a very passionate man, who cared about saving people. As soon you spoke to him about medicine his face would light up.

'He worked for the NHS for nearly 40 years in different hospitals across London. He loved to lecture people in the world of medicine  he did so in the UK and Africa.'

Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab, 13, Brixton

Ismail Abdulwahab died at King's College Hospital in London (pictured). His family chose not to release his photograph

Ismail Mohamed Abdulwahab became the UK's youngest coronavirus victim when he died on Monday, March 30 at King's College Hospital in London.

He did not have any other health conditions but died after developing severe COVID-19. Family friends said his parents moved to the UK from Somalia.

In a statement released yesterday, Ismail's family said: 'We are heartbroken as a family due to the devastation caused by the coronavirus as it becomes too real for us as a family and community.

'Ismail was a loving son, brother, nephew to our family and a friend to many people who knew him. His smile was heart-warming and he was always gentle and kind.'

Caroline Saunby, 48, Middlesbrough

Caroline Saunby, 48, died on Sunday

Caroline Saunby, a mother of young twin boys, died after collapsing at home and being taken to James Cook University hospital in Middlesbrough by air ambulance.

The family of the 48-year-old said her symptoms worsened and Caroline soon struggled to breathe before later losing her battle with the infection.

Mrs Saunby, who passed away on Sunday after showing signs of the illness last Thursday, leaves behind her two twin sons Joseph and Elliot and grieving husband Vic.

It is believed Ms Saunby, who had no prior health problems, noticed discomfort and she fell ill on Thursday with suspected tonsillitis after developing a sore throat.

Linda Tuppen, 66, Manchester

Linda Tuppen was found dead on Saturday

Linda Tuppen, from Greater Manchester, died in her sleep last Saturday, five days after she began to feel unwell with coronavirus symptoms.

She became ill with a chest infection on March 23, the day the Prime Minister imposed a lockdown, and her symptoms escalated to pain in her sinuses, causing her to stay in bed all day the following Thursday and Friday.

Her son, a software engineer, was so concerned for his mother he called 111. But Linda, a much-loved former teacher and nursery nurse, refused to speak to them and said she just wanted to sleep.

Tragically, he went to check on her the next morning and found that she had passed away. Rob, 28, who has a 23-year-old brother, said: 'It's devastating, we lost our father in 2008, so we're pretty much on our own now.'

Eddie Large, 78, Bristol

Little and Large were last seen together in February 2019 on a celebrity special of BBC quiz show Pointless

Eddie Large, one half of the famous comedy double act Little and Large, died at the age of 78 after contracting coronavirus in hospital while being treated for heart failure in hospital in Bristol, his family revealed today.

The Glasgow-born comedian, whose real name was Edward Hugh McGinnis, was known for his partnership with Syd Little which spanned five decades after winning Opportunity Knocks in 1971.

Today, Mr Little described the news as 'devastating', adding: 'He had been ill for a while but when it happens, it hits you. We were together 60 years. It wasn't like having a partner. We were friends.'

Eddie, a lifelong Manchester City fan who lived with his wife Patsy in Portishead, near Bristol, died alone in hospital because of a ban on visitors during the current crisis with his son Ryan saying 'his heart was sadly not strong enough to fight' coronavirus. He had a heart transplant in 2003.

His agent Peter Mansfield said today: 'His family were very sad not to be able to be in the same room as him, touching him, in the last week because of coronavirus. They were only able to speak on the phone which was obviously very sad for them. But they wanted to say thank you to the NHS which was fantastic throughout.'

Amged El-Hawrani, 55, Leicester

Dr El-Hawrani was primarily an ear, nose and throat consultant and surgeon but before he became unwell, he had also been volunteering in A&E

Amged El-Hawrani became the UK's first front-line hospital doctor to die from coronavirus.

The 'dedicated' consulant, who was an ear, nose and throat specialist at Queen's Hospital in Burton, was known for being 'extremely hard-working' and deeply committed to his patients.

He died on March 28 at the Glenfield Hospital in Leicester  the first UK death of a full-time hospital doctor from the virus since the crisis began.

Dr El-Hawrani was primarily an ear, nose and throat consultant and surgeon but before he became unwell, he had also been volunteering in A&E.

His family said they were devastated but 'immensely proud', and staff at his hospital said they were 'desperately saddened'.
State Bank of India has postponed the SBI clerk main examination 2020 due to the coronavirus disease outbreak in the country. The examination was scheduled to be conducted on April 19.

In a notification issued on Wednesday, SBI said, In view of the situation prevailing on account of threat of Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the online main exam has been postponed. The fresh date for declaration of preliminary exam result and conduct of main exam will be announced later, on Banks website.

The bank has advised the candidates to visit the official website of SBI regularly to check the latest update about the examination.

The online registration for the exam began on January 3 and ended on January 26.

The main exam will have sections on general/ financial awareness, general English, quantitative aptitude, reasoning ability and computer aptitude. The exam will have 190 questions carrying 200 marks and candidates will have 2 hours and 40 minutes to answer them. Students will get separate timing for different sections.

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The Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao recently revealed that the government is taking all measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus. He added that it should be combined effort from the public with the government as people also should cooperate. The CM also held a review meeting at Pragathi Bhavan on Wednesday discussing coronavirus spread in the State and the treatment given to the patients and implementation of the lockdown. Medical and Health Minister Sri Etela Rajender, Chief Secretary Sri Somesh Kumar, DGP Sri Mahender Reddy, Principal Secretary (Health) Ms. Shanti Kumari, Principal Secretary Sri Ramakrishna Rao, Health University Vice-Chancellor Sri Karunakar Reddy and others attended also attended this review meet.

Talking about the current updates, on Wednesday, 30 new positive cases have been reported with three deaths in Telangana. Further in the meeting, the officials also discussed about the main reason for the increasing number of cases. It was found out that the virus is mainly spreading from those who attended the Nizamuddin Markaz and their their family members as per the medical reports. In all 30 new cases have been reported, out of which two are from Gandhi Hospital, one from Yashoda Hospital have lost their lives.

With this, the death toll due to coronavirus has reached 9 in the State. Initially, the transmission of the virus was from those who came from abroad and spread it in the community. Out of the whole crowd, many are recovering while many are also discharged from the hospital. But the positive cases for the past few days are all those who went to Markaz. Hence the Telangana government has decided to conduct tests to all those who went to Markaz and their family members.

Also Read: Coronavirus outbreak: PM Modi to hold video conferencing with Chief Ministers on Thursday

The government is urging those who went to Markaz, their family members and those who came in contact with them to undergo tests. Since the virus is spreading through those who went to Markaz, they all should undergo tests without failure. CM KCR has urged the people to make the lockdown aimed at preventing the Virus a success. If people extended support for a few more days, COVID-19 spread in the Telangana State can be curbed. The CM said the government is giving top priority to the medical staff protection who are providing treatment to the coronavirus patients. The CM said the government is making arrangments for the supply of PPE Kits, N 95 Masks, Hydroxychloroquine tables, and Azithromycin tablets.

Also Read: Coronavirus outbreak: Mumbais Dharavi reports first case, India count at 1,649

Medical kits to conduct tests are also made available. The CM said all the measures are taken to provide treatment of the patients, protection of the medical staff and measures to prevent the spread are taken by the government. The CM also met Governor Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan and explained to her about the spread of coronavirus and the measures taken by the government during these crises. Since the CM had a video conference with the PM and Governor with the President on Thursday, the CM discussed the matter with the Governor.

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The National Commission for Women has received over 250 complaints since the country-wide lockdown was imposed to control the spread of coronavirus out of which 69 were cases of domestic violence, which it said has been increasing since then.

IMAGE: Women maintaining safe distance collect ration from a government depot during the nationwide complete lockdown imposed in the wake of coronavirus pandemic in Beawar, Rajasthan. Photograph: PTI Photo

Since the lockdown was imposed, a total of 257 complaints related to various offences against women were received, out of which 69 complaints are related to domestic violence, the data released by the NCW showed.

NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma said the number of cases of domestic violence must be much higher but the women are scared to complain due to constant presence of their abuser at home.

She said from March 24 till April 1, the NCW has received 69 domestic violence complaints and it is increasing by the day.

"Women are not approaching the police because they think that if they take her husband away, the in-laws would be torturing her. Because of the lockdown, women are not able to reach out to the police. They don't even want to go to the police because they are afraid that once their husband comes out of the police station, he will again torture her and she can't even move out.

"Earlier women could go to their parents place but now they are unable to reach. The NCW is in touch with these complainants," she said.

Women rights activists said they have also received numerous complaints of domestic violence from women since the enforcement of the lockdown.

Rights activist Kavita Krishnan, also the secretary of the All India Progressive Women's Association, said vulnerable women could have moved to safer places if the government had given some warning of the lockdown.

"All the women (domestic violence victims) who contacted me said had they known (about the lockdown), they would have tried to get out earlier and be somewhere safer," she said.

"The only thing to do is help and rescue domestic violence survivors. Their situation is worse now in the lockdown," Krishnan added.

According to Vani Subramanian, a member of the women's group Saheli Trust, "captivity anyway drives people crazy and abusive situations only make it worse".

Ranjana Kumari, the director of the Centre for Social Research, said everyone was at home due to the lockdown and women were not getting the courage to contact for help. "It is not a good situation for women," Kumari said.
The federal government knew COVID-19 was coming. It had weeks, if not several months, to prepare.

That's why news of a conversation between frustrated governors and President Donald J. Trump was disturbing. Keep in mind it was Trump who predicted that the cases of coronavirus would soon be zero after the number hit 15, and it was Trump who wanted the nation reopened fully by Easter.

The governors voiced concerns that the federal government is not providing enough testing and supplies, and Trump said he had not heard anything about the shortages, when, in fact, Vice President Mike Pence, who is heading up the response team, had governors reportedly upset for the same issues several days ago. There was simply no excuse for the inaction.

We point this out not as a swipe toward Trump, who has rightly pushed his administration to get relief directly into the hands of Americans. His administration came up with what appears to be a very good relief plan and he signed it immediately after Congress had acted. The stock market and the economy appears to have responded positively. It's not like everything the federal government has done is bad.

Yet, our concern is twofold. First, we share Montana Gov. Steve Bullock's worry that there will not be enough testing for the coronavirus.

Secondly, we worry that the federal government has not done enough to relax rules for crisis production of essential equipment. For example, we worry that local makers of products ranging from breathing masks to hand sanitizer still may have too many loopholes to go through and too many restrictions so that all companies that can be repurposed to help move swiftly and safely through this unprecedented time can be utilized.

Any crisis has the ability to expose shortcomings and weak links in our supply and distribution systems. We hope that this causes our federal government and Congress to consider ways to make it easier for products to get to the market while also putting very well defined parameters on when such measures can be used. In other words, we need to have a set of standards and rules for normal times, and we also need to a set of rules for emergencies.

Just as essential, we need clear definitions that won't allow the rules to be exploited. For example, we need more personal protective gear and we need incentives for companies to manufacture those items. But, smaller, local companies which could convert to manufacturing them may be facing too many hurdles, and may not be able to go through the loopholes to help ease the crisis.

Let's be clear: That's not necessarily Congress' fault. We are experiencing a pandemic that hasn't happened in nearly a century, and we haven't been in a war that's challenged the nation domestically in nearly 80 years.

This means it's a good time to reevaluate our preparedness as a nation, and how much flexibility we have in times of crisis.

We share Bullock's concern about testing. We know that local and state officials are doing everything they can to contact trace the pattern of residents who test positive for COVID-19. However, if there's not enough testing  which is a reality as Bullock mentioned  we will be unable to understand how the disease is moving through Montana and the chance of limiting it becomes nearly impossible.

Bullock used real numbers to prove his point in the call with Trump. He mentioned that the state is going through around 400 tests per day currently. That number continues to grow. However, Montana's capacity is around 500, which means that it is close to exceeding that, and the state has seen a limited number of tests, and orders for the coronavirus test canceled. In other words, Bullock said Montana is just a day's worth of tests away from falling behind. And, falling behind could mean that medical officials will be flying blindly, and it means possible exposure for residents and medical professionals.

We saw a great example of bipartisan negotiation last week when Congress came together to pass the historically large relief bill. Now, Congress needs to act again to clear any remaining production hurdles and ensure that healthcare infrastructure has enough testing by whatever means necessary.

The Billings Gazette

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The Congress on Thursday came down heavily on the government accusing it of low coronavirus testing, with party president Sonia Gandhi alleging that its "unplanned" implementation of countrywide lockdown caused "chaos and pain" to millions of migrant workers.

Blaming the government for not giving any thought to the deteriorating economic situation, the party demanded setting up of a task force of world experts for measures to revive the economy.

The demands were made after a four-hour meeting of the party's highest decision making body, where top Congress leaders deliberated on the situation due to the coronavirus lockdown.

The CWC resolved that the government has "miserably failed to provide adequate livelihood support to the poor" as its financial action plan was "miserly, hopelessly inadequate and left out several vulnerable sections".

It also suggested that the government come out with 'financial action plan 2' to help those affected due to the lockdown.

Though the BJP accused the Congress of playing politics at a time when India was facing an epidemic, the opposition party brushed aside the criticism saying it is highlighting shortcomings in the system as a constructive opposition.

Sonia Gandhi criticised the government for its "unplanned" implementation of the lockdown and causing hardships to the poor.

"The 21-day national lockdown may have been necessary but the unplanned manner in which it has been implemented has caused chaos and pain in the lives of millions of migrant workers all over India," she said.

On containment and treatment of COVID-19, the CWC resolution said, "The government has erred in adopting a strategy of limited testing. A lockdown or any other kind of restriction is futile unless it is accompanied by extensive testing."



"The flawed strategy must be revised and testing must be scaled up urgently," it said.

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh said the Congress stands as one with the nation to take on the challenge of the pandemic.

Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi criticised the Centre for its alleged lack of assistance to the poor especially migrant workers.

"No country in the world has attempted a lockdown with huge migrant labour without arranging for their stay, food and ration and pushing them back home," party chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said quoting Rahul Gandhi.

"India needs to prepare for the economic devastation," Rahul tweeted.

Urging the Congress to act as a watchdog, he said, "We need to ensure that the most vulnerable and poor are protected comprehensively. Also, let's take the message that we need to take special care of our senior citizens and elders."



AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra claimed Uttar Pradesh had faced the "maximum burnt" of "heart-rending" scenes of migrant labour returning home.

"People are now being quarantined in inhuman conditions and sprayed with insecticides," she said,.

Former finance minister P Chidambaram said the government had not fully understood the "enormity" of the crisis.

"Dear @amitshah ji, to quote @narendramodi, criticism is the essence of democracy. @incIndia has only the national interest in mind -which means the interests of those Indian nationals your Govt overlooked in its #LockdownWithoutPlan &its inadequate financial package," party leader Shashi Tharoor tweeted.

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Choudhary and senior leaders AK Antony, Ahmed Patel and Mallikarjun Kharge, were among those who addressed the CWC meet through video conferencing.

Sonia Gandhi said COVID does not differentiate between political ideology, religion, caste or gender, noting that the choices people make will have a direct impact on their families, neighbour, communities and the nation.

The country is in the midst of an unprecedented health and humanitarian crisis that has caused "untold suffering" across the world but also "reaffirmed the bonds of brotherhood" that unite humanity, she said.

The CWC alleged the government had not given any serious thought to the deteriorating economic situation in the country and it had erred in adopting the policy of limited testing for COVID-19.

It called for ensuring maintenance of supply of goods and services so that people can access their daily household need items and also urged the government to take steps to re-start the engines of economic growth.

The committee also called for making adequate and comprehensive preparations for immediate harvesting and procurement of wheat and other rabi crops at minimum support price.

"The CWC demands that the government should immediately appoint an Economic Task Force consisting of world renowned economists to suggest an emergency plan within one week; a short to medium term plan within one month; and a medium to long term plan within three months in order to protect and revive the economy," said the CWC statement read out by AICC general secretary KC Venugopal.

The Congress also called for cutting GST rates for a period of three months on goods of mass consumption, mandatorily postponing tax payment deadlines and EMI dates to June 30 and beyond.

Earlier during the meeting four Congress chief ministers, Amarinder Singh Bhupesh Baghel Ashok Gehlot and V Narayanasamy listed measures on steps being taken to contain the virus, but called for central assistance due to inadequate financial resources as Centre was not releasing state's share in GST.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dubai, April 2 : A UAE-based Indian cleaner has been jailed in Dubai after he was found guilty of stealing as many as 86 expensive watches, worth over 8.3 million dirhams ($2 million), it was reported.

The Dubai Court of First Instance heard on Wednesday that the 26-year-old Indian defendant continued to steal watches by throwing them in the bin and later collecting them when he took the garbage outside the shops, Gulf News reported.

On December 2019, a salesman in a shop came across a 30,000 dirhams watch inside a white box in the garbage bin. He delivered it to the 51-year-old Iraqi owner who thought someone had accidently thrown it away.

"First, I didn't take the matter seriously but another salesman spoke to my partner who checked surveillance cameras. Footage showed the defendant stealing the watch, putting it in the box and throwing it in the bin," Gulf News quoted the Iraqi businessman as saying in records.

The defendant confessed to them that he stole two watches in the past worth 520,000 dirhams and sold them to a Pakistani man for 20,000 dirhams.

According to Dubai Public prosecution, the court also ordered that the defendant be deported after serving his jail term.

Two Pakistani defendants, aged 25 and 44, who are still at large, were charged with possessing stolen items.

They were also sentenced to one year in jail.
On Monday at about 6:30pm, the Azerbaijani armed forces fired multiple shots from their outposts in the direction of Baghanis community of Armenias Tavush Province.

The roofs and windows of the houses of 7 residents of Baghanis, as well as the door of the entrance to the school cafeteria were damaged by these shots.

Different caliber bullets were fired at the scenes.

The Investigative Committee of Armenia has opened a criminal case into this incident.

An investigation is underway.
Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, and Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin, will hold virtual events on Thursday to provide information about the novel coronavirus crisis to their constituents.

At 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Swalwell will host a Facebook Live question-and-answer session with Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, chief of the division of pediatric infectious diseases at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

"These uncertain times call for new ways to get information out to the public and I am thrilled Dr. Maldonado will be joining me for what will undoubtedly be another informative, useful conversation on COVID-19 and what 15th congressional district residents need to know," Swalwell said in a statement on Wednesday.

Swalwell's office said participants are encouraged to submit questions before the event. People can participate in the event at www.facebook.com/CongressmanEricSwalwell.

Lee said she will host a tele-town hall meeting from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday to share resources available to her constituents during the COVID-19 crisis and to update them on the work she's doing in Congress to mitigate the effects of the ongoing pandemic.

Among the speakers scheduled for the event are Dr. Erica Pan, Alameda County's public health officer, Julie Clowes of the U.S. Small Business Administration and Leah Simon-Weisberg of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment.

People can access the tele-town hall by calling (866) 757-0660. No access code is required.

Copyright  2020 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
The Kremlin on Thursday denied President Vladimir Putin spoke to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after US President Donald Trump made the claim on Twitter, and oil prices rocketed.

"No, there was no conversation," Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Interfax agency, adding that "so far" there were no plans for such talks, after Trump said the Saudi crown prince had spoken to Putin and he expected them to agree on a cut in oil production.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Exciting Adventures of Princess EllavieveE: The Tale of Her Parents: a wonderful adventure inspired by real life events and creative imagination that displays the unconditional love of the Father. The Exciting Adventures of Princess EllavieveE: The Tale of Her Parents is the creation of published author Aaron Douthitt, a passionate preacher and pastor who is always excited about teaching and preaching the Scriptures, and this overflows into everything he does. He is the senior pastor of Bridge Baptist Church located in Masontown, Pennsylvania.

Douthitt writes, Take your children with you on a journey that they will never forget through the exciting adventures of Princess EllavieveE! They will hear and learn of the Great King who rules over all creation. This book is based on the true events of a pastors daughter. Pastor Aaron Douthitt of The Bridge wants to call out the princess in his little girl, Ellavieve. Your children are guaranteed to find this story exciting and adventurous, as they too, alongside Princess EllavieveE, discover the glory of God and the Creators call to a life of extraordinary mission. For Pastor Aaron and his family that mission is church planting. With a foundation of true events and a whole lot of fun imagination, you can take your children by the hand and teach them of the unfailing love of the Great King! Princess EllavieveE mirrors children around the world, who all by the grace of God have the incredible opportunity to shine so very brightly in the face of whatever darkness comes their way in this world. Whether you have a daughter or a son, or both, they will all equally enjoy this tale! They will encounter a king, a queen, a coming princess, and a dragon to slay. Pastor Aaron has committed to leave a legacy behind for his children, and that legacy is for Jesus Christ, the Great King who rules over all creation.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Aaron Douthitts new book uncovers a beautiful reminder to the young hearts of their ability to defeat whatever troubles that could come.

View a synopsis of The Exciting Adventures of Princess EllavieveE: The Tale of Her Parents on YouTube.

Consumers can purchaseThe Exciting Adventures of Princess EllavieveE: The Tale of Her Parents at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about The Exciting Adventures of Princess EllavieveE: The Tale of Her Parents, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 20:33:55|Editor: xuxin

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ADDIS ABABA, April 2 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on the African continent has reached 221 as confirmed positive cases surpassed 6,213, the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) revealed on Thursday.

The Africa CDC, a specialized agency of the 55-member African Union (AU), in its latest situation update issued on Thursday said the cases were spread across 49 African countries.

The continental disease control and prevention agency also disclosed that the highly COVID-19 affected countries include South Africa with 1,380 confirmed cases, Algeria with 716 confirmed cases as well as Egypt with 779 confirmed cases.

The Africa CDC also disclosed that some 469 people who have been infected with the COVID-19 have recovered across the continent as of the stated period.

Amid the rapid spread of the virus across the African continent, figures from the Africa CDC also show that more than 427 new confirmed COVID-19 cases have been reported across the continent since the center's recent report on Wednesday.

The death toll increased from 196 to 221 as of the stated period, according to the Africa CDC.

The African Union, through Africa CDC, has already activated its Emergency Operations Center and its Incident Management System (IMS) for the COVID-19 outbreak on January 27.

The Africa CDC had also developed its third Incident Action Plan that covers the period from March 16 to April 15.
The chief executive of the Health Service Executive has said officials are working hard to resolve a shortage of testing materials for Covid-19.

Paul Reid appealed to the public to bear with us as the HSE tries to address the worldwide issue.

In a short time we have scaled up on, testing centres, testing kits, contact tracers, nbr of Labs, hospital beds, ICU, ventilators, PPE, staff.

Our current major issue is "reagents" for labs. A worldwide shortage. We are working hard to fix this. Bear with us @HSELive #COVID19  Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) April 1, 2020

He was speaking after it emerged that Ireland is falling short of the target number of tests being carried out each day.

In a tweet he said: In a short time we have scaled up on, testing centres, testing kits, contact tracers, nbr of Labs, hospital beds, ICU, ventilators, PPE, staff.

Our current major issue is reagents for labs.

(PA Graphics)

On Wednesday it was confirmed there had been 14 more deaths and 212 new cases of Covid-19 in the Republic.

Eighty-five people have died since the outbreak began here.

On Thursday the head of the Department of Public Health and Epidemiology at the Royal College of Surgeons said that increasing contact tracing of people with symptoms would work more effectively than waiting for test results.

Professor Ruairi Brugha told RTEs Morning Ireland: Instead of having delays of up to 10 days, we can move in when people have symptoms and start contact tracing at that point.
Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 20:27:59|Editor: xuxin

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NAIROBI, April 2 (Xinhua) -- Kenya's Judiciary said Thursday it has released some 4,800 prisoners who are serving sentences for petty offences to help contain the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country.

David Maraga, Chief Justice, said the prisoners who were serving jail terms of less than six months have been released by the High Court in the last two weeks after review of their files.

"New inmates are being isolated to reduce the risk of infection and movement of inmates has been highly restricted. Prison visits have been suspended, including visits to the staff quarters. Prison labour has also been reduced to a bare minimum," Maraga said in a statement issued on Thursday in Nairobi.

He said the move to isolate the inmates is in strict adherence to the safety measures put in place by the health ministry on coronavirus as regards to social distancing and hygiene standards.

The chief justice said the decision was also informed by the need to decongest Kenyan prisons in light of the coronavirus outbreak in the country.

"The justice sector actors will embrace technology and plans are underway to enable inmates to participate in virtual trials as the prisoners are no longer being produced in open court," said Maraga.

Kenya has so far confirmed 81 COVID-19 cases, three recoveries and one death amid stringent measures, including a night curfew and ban on international flights, to help contain the spread of the virus.
Los Angeles, April 2 : Hollywood star Kristen Bell says people told her she wasn't "pretty enough" at the start of her career, which made her think if she would make it as an actress in the industry.

"I remember early on, getting feedback, that I wasn't enough in either category. I would get feedback from an audition: 'Well, you're not pretty enough to play the pretty girl, but you're not quirky enough or weird enough to play the weird girl'," Bell told Vanity Fair in an interview for their YouTube channel, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

The "Frozen 2" actress tried her best not to let the criticism get to her.

"I was like, 'Okay, does that just mean I can't be an actor? What does that mean.' That's what I was getting feedback on, on every audition," she said.

Bell is ecstatic to see the industry beginning to change now, as she praised the inclusion of "dimensional" roles that don't just stick to one type.

"I think as I've grown older, those boxes have changed ... and (have) almost gone away. It's this huge grey area now of all these beautiful stories you can tell ... that have dimensional people that don't have to be one thing.

"It's not the '80s where you have to have the popular girl and then the nerd who gets the guy. It's not that anymore and I'm really grateful for that. It opens up a lot of opportunities for everyone to play and pretend, which is the most fun part."
As the federal government considers whether everyday, healthy citizens should wear masks in public as the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the nation, many store operators are now giving employees the option to wear protective gear on the job.

The guidance so far from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization has been that only people caring for someone with COVID-19 or those showing symptoms of possible coronavirus infection should wear masks, but experts have differed on that issue, pointing to other countries where masks seem to have been a key factor in limiting spread of the infection.

The CDC has wavered because of ongoing concerns about a shortage of N95 respirators  which filter out 95 percent of airborne particles  for health care workers. The general public has been advised to find alternatives, including homemade options.

I would never tell somebody not to (wear a homemade mask), but I dont think wed put out a recommendation that everybody mask, New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judith Persichelli said during a press conference Thursday.

Gov. Phil Murphy advised that social distancing is what works best and cautioned that anyone wearing a homemade mask might have a false sense of security. But, he acknowledged that many retail workers, particularly those in grocery stores, have asked for them.

Some workers on the retail front lines during the pandemic have anonymously reported bosses prohibiting them from wearing masks. Even some hospital workers described similar bans for anyone not working directly with coronavirus patients.

Just as hospitals have relented, the business world is slowly doing the same.

Walmart led the way for retailers this week when it announced it would provide masks to any employees who want them and begin taking the temperatures of all employees when they arrive for work.

Wearing a mask could both protect the user and reduce that chance of others being infected by that person, explained Dr. David Cennimo, an infectious disease specialist who teaches at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark.

As more data become available, we are learning that some people have COVID-19 without symptoms despite having virus in their secretions," Cennimo said. They could be the source of infections in others without knowing they were even infected. A mask may help break that transmission.

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES: Live map tracker | Businesses that are open | Homepage

While protective masks could decrease your chances of inhaling respiratory droplets through the nose or mouth, leading to infection, its not an absolute guarantee of protection for a few reasons, Cennimo noted.

A users eyes remain exposed, creating a wide-open path for transmission.

This is why we have face shields in the hospital, Cennimo said. I don't think they would be practical for most people.

Another concern is that most people arent accustomed to wearing a mask and will be tempted to fiddle with it, increasing their risk of infection.

Given the pros and cons, however, I think it is reasonable to allow masks in the stores, Cennimo said.

As for temperature checks for store employees, Cennimo doesnt see them as useful or practical, since an asymptomatic patient carrying the virus may not have a high temperature and because the act of taking the workers temperature could lead to exposure for the person administering the check.

Heres a look at what several store operators in New Jersey are doing when it comes to personal protective gear for employees.

Acme

Associates are allowed to wear gloves and masks if they choose, and the company ensures employees are able to wash their hands at least once each hour.

Lidl

The company is allowing workers to wear masks and gloves during their shifts and is working to secure this protective equipment for its store and warehouse employees. We are already providing gloves to all employees, and are constantly cleaning and sanitizing our stores during this time, a spokesman reported Thursday.

QuickChek

The company reported that employees may wear gloves, but didnt say masks were allowed in a statement issued Thursday. At this time, the Centers for Disease Control does not recommend the routine use of wearing a face mask as protection from respiratory illness if you are not sick. Best practices are healthy hygiene habits including proper hand-washing, refraining from touching your face, and maintaining social distancing, a spokesman said. The company has not responded to a question about whether employees were prohibited from wearing masks.

7-Eleven

The company has ordered and is shipping masks, gloves, hand sanitizer and Plexiglass shields to all of its stores, an official confirmed Thursday.

Stop & Shop

While citing CDC guidance on masks, the company is allowing employees to wear them, a spokeswoman said. For associates who have medical conditions and a doctors recommendation that a mask will help to keep them safe, we are happy to make accommodations for their wellbeing, she said. For associates who wish to wear a mask for other personal reasons, we permit them to at their request as a personal precaution.

The company also makes gloves, disinfecting wipes and hand-sanitizer available to employees.

Target

The company plans to supply masks and gloves for frontline employees, a spokesman reported Thursday afternoon. Target also plans to monitor store traffic and limit the number of shoppers in the store if needed.

Wawa

Associates always wear gloves in the food service section of its stores, a spokeswoman noted, and are permitted to wear them in all other areas, too. Employees are also allowed to wear masks.

"Wawa is preparing to make masks available in its stores, as supplies permit, for associates who would feel more comfortable wearing them, she said. Until masks are delivered to our stores, associates may wear personal masks in the interim.

Whole Foods

Any employee wishing to wear a mask is allowed to do so, the company announced. Whole Foods employees staged a national sick-out strike on Tuesday to demanded stronger safety measures amid the outbreak.

Wegmans

The company announced Thursday afternoon that it will allow employees to wear masks. We have always operated under the premise that we can only achieve our goals if we first meet the needs of our people, a spokeswoman said in a statement. As a result, we have come to the decision that while not currently recommended by the CDC, any employee who feels more comfortable wearing a mask while working may do so.

A man walks next to a friend while wearing a mask in Liberty State Park Saturday afternoon. Jersey City, New Jersey, during the Coronavirus pamdemic. Saturday, March 14, 2020. Jersey City, N.J. USA (Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media) Aristide Economopoulos | NJ Advance Media

Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattGraySJT. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
(Alliance News) - Active Energy Group PLC on Tuesday said it has agreed to take total control and ownership of the saw mill and saw log export activities at its industrial site in Lumberton, North Carolina.

At present, the biomass based renewable energy company's Lumberton activities operate through a joint venture with partner Renewable Logistics Systems LLC. However, under the acquisition agreement, Active Energy is to take control of the joint venture before consolidating all Lumberton activities via subsidiary Active Energy Renewable Power LLC.

Active Energy will pay USD350,000 to Renewable Logistics Systems via the issue of 64.9 million new shares.

Shares in Active Energy were up 3.7% at 0.42 pence in London on Thursday.

In addition, all of the former joint venture arrangements between the two companies are to be cancelled. This includes a long-term lease agreement and rental agreement. Active Energy said the seal will result in "a simplified corporate structure".

Roger Richardson Junior, currently a director and shareholder if Renewable Logistics Systems, will become chief operating officer of Active Energy Renewable Power.

Active Energy Chief Executive Michael Rowan said: "I am delighted to announce this value accretive transaction. [Active Energy] will become the 100% owner and operator of the existing sawmill and saw log export activities at Lumberton. The initial joint venture with [Renewable Logistics Systems] was an important milestone and with their invaluable assistance, operations have commenced at Lumberton.

"These existing operations are already generating revenues for AEG and with the team, headed by Roger Richardson Junior, we believe this transaction will provide a solid foundation for the group's future growth at Lumberton. The Transaction will further complement our existing CoalSwitch and black pellet fuel business activities, generating additional customer access and greater market presence in North Carolina to ensure AEG benefits from low cost feedstock within the region."

By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
NORRISTOWN  The Montgomery County Commissioners officially authorized an emergency declaration during a meeting Thursday morning amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Commissioners Chairwoman Valerie Arkoosh said the announcement, through the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Services Code, would declare the existence of a disaster emergency in Montgomery County.

It allows the countys Department of Public Safety and Office of Public Health to coordinate response efforts to take all appropriate action needed to alleviate the effects of this disaster, to aid in the respiration of essential public services and to take any other emergency response action deemed necessary to respond to this disaster emergency, Arkoosh read from the resolution.

The countys elected leaders signed the order early last month, according to county Solicitor Josh Stein, but this action essentially formalized it.

This will also allow us to submit for reimbursement of costs when all is said and done, Stein said.

Additionally, the Montgomery County Commissioners unanimously agreed to allow Chief Operating Officer Lee Soltysiak to apply for financial assistance through the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. The federal legislation allocates grants to counties from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, according to the resolution.

This is the resolution formalizing further the commissioners ability to submit for reimbursement  which will allow certain expenses that the county incurs during this declared emergency to be reimbursed, hopefully when all is said and done, Stein said.

Increased safety protocols to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus have impacted several areas in the county. At the direction of Gov. Wolf, school closures extended, nonessential businesses closed and the previously scheduled primary election changed.

Senate Bill 422 moved the election from April 28 to June 2 because of the pandemic, according to a statement from Gov. Wolfs office.

Delaying this years primary election as several other states have done is in the best interests of voters, poll workers and county election officials, Wolf said in a March 27 statement.

Commissioner Ken Lawrence Jr. commented on the election change during Thursday mornings meeting, thanking the governor and other legislators for their swift action.

However, he still urged voters to submit their ballots by mail.

Were encouraging everyone in Montgomery County to use this option, Lawrence said.

For more information, visit www.votespa.com.

Any Montgomery County residents who previously registered to vote, but are no longer at their assigned address should call the Office of Voter Services at 610-278-3275 for further assistance.

Lawrence also took a moment to acknowledge the countys social workers during Social Work Appreciation Month.

Theyve used their creativity during this time of physical distancing to solve problems and remain in touch with children, families and seniors to serve their clients in combat isolation, Lawrence said. They respond to the call of public service sometimes with minimal resources, yet they do so with empathy and compassion. And they continue to ensure the physical, emotional and financial safety and welfare of Montgomery County residents during this pandemic.

For more information about COVID-19 resources in Montgomery County, visit montcopa.org/covid-19.
Until a fortnight ago, it's unlikely many British workers had ever encountered the term 'furloughed', but now it is a concept that has been thrust into the spotlight by the coronavirus crisis.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has unveiled a series of measures to cover the wages of millions of people suddenly left without work and prevent businesses going bankrupt due to the coronavirus crisis - and furloughing staff lays at the heart of it.

The so-called coronavirus job retention scheme enables businesses to continue paying part of their employees' salary who would otherwise have been laid off because of the crisis.

Sunak said the Government will cover 80 per cent of salaries up to a ceiling of 2,500 a month - equivalent to the UK average wage of 30,000 a year.

Going home: easyJet just one among the many companies announcing a two-month furlough for its cabin crew who can't work after the company grounded all of its flights

The scheme, open to all firms with employees, will be up and running by the end of April and backdated to March 1.

But in order to access it, businesses will have to 'furlough' their employees who they can no longer afford to pay - and workers need to agree to this.

This term, until now more or less unknown in the UK, is suddenly popping up everywhere, with easyJet just one among the many companies announcing a two-month furlough for its cabin crew who can't work after the company grounded all of its flights.

Here we explain what furlough means and what it entails for workers and businesses.

What does it mean to be 'furloughed'?

Essentially, if you're being furloughed by your employer, it means you're being sent home, but will still receive 80 per cent of your salary by the Government, up to a maximum of 2,500 a month.

This Government job retention scheme is only for employed people, it does not apply if you are self-employed.

However, you first need to agree to be put on furlough by your employer, who can then apply for the money to the Government. You cannot apply for it yourself.

Your employer can choose to pay the remaining 20 per cent of your wages, although it is not obliged to do so.

If you earn more than 2,500 a month, your employer can choose to 'top up' your salary, but again it is not forced to do so.

You will still continue to pay income tax and national insurance contributions while on furlough.

The Government advice says: 'If you and your employer both agree, your employer might be able to keep you on the payroll if theyre unable to operate or have no work for you to do because of coronavirus. This is known as being "on furlough".'

'This has made me research my options and cut back on spending' Amy Hull is a Learning and Development Executive and has been furloughed, which has led to her having to take a mortgage holiday and cut back. She said: 'I was told last week that I had the option of furlough or redundancy. 'I was told I was being placed on furlough until the Government ends the scheme, or the firm asks me to come back to work, or I leave. 'This has made me research my options and cut back on unnecessary spending, such as buying new clothes. Fortunately, with the furlough cap being 80 per cent coverage of salary up to 2,500 a month, my company is covering the 80 per cent of what I earn above 2,500, so I am on 80 per cent of my full pay. 'I have applied - and been accepted - for a mortgage holiday and I have also cancelled subscriptions to BT Sport and Sky Sports while there is no live sport on TV. I have also been doing online courses for personal development and have applied to do some volunteering work for the NHS.'

Can I be furloughed if I'm on a zero-hour contract?

Yes. Also if you're on a flexible contract or are employed by an agency.

If you are on a zero-hour contract, which means you don't necessarily earn the same amount each month, your employer should give you the 80 per cent of your average monthly salary since you started working.

That also applies to workers who have been employed for less than a year.

If you've worked for your employer for a year or more, you should receive 80 per cent of your average monthly salary, or 80 per cent of what you earned in the same month during the previous year - whichever is highest.

If you started work only in February, your employer will pro-rata your earnings from that month. But if you've started working on 28 February or after, you are not eligible.

If you have been made redundant after February 28, or even if you left a job after that date, you could be reemployed under furlough if your employer is willing to do so. Otherwise you will have to claim unemployment.

Is furloughing workers the best way to save jobs? The concept of asking workers to go on furlough lies at the heart of the governments coronavirus jobs rescue scheme  as it seeks to stall firms making people redundant and offers to pay 80 per cent of their wages up to 2,500 a month. But is picking up the wage bills of big businesses a wise move, will it help save jobs and is the price worth paying because the cost of not doing it is worse? On this podcast, Simon Lambert, Lee Boyce and Georgie Frost discuss what it means to be furloughed and whether the emergency plan can work. Press play above or listen (and please subscribe if you like the podcast) at Apple Podcasts, Acast, Spotify and Audioboom or visit our This is Money Podcast page.

Gatwick's North Terminal has shut with the South Terminal operating from 2pm and 10pm to cut costs, meaning most of the airport's 2,500 staff will be furloughed this week

Can I be furloughed if I'm sick?

If you're fallen ill and in the meantime your employer has had to shut down, you should first get statutory sick pay first, but can be furloughed after this.

Those who are self-isolating because of coronavirus can also be placed on furlough.

People who are 'shielding' and are vulnerable to potential severe illness caused by the coronavirus, can also be placed on furlough.

At the moment, employees can be furloughed from a minimum of three weeks up to three months, although the Government may look to extend that if needed.

'I won't be able to save any money for the next few months' James Mooney is a medical claims assessor at a medical insurance company based in Surrey. He was furloughed this week which means he's had to put a hold on saving to buy his first home. He said: 'I was furloughed on Monday but we were told last week some changes were going to be made in response to the coronavirus situation so it wasnt that much of a surprise. 'Essentially half the team has been furloughed while the other half, who have been employed the longest, will continue working from home. 'I currently rent a flat with my girlfriend while we save up to buy our own place. Fortunately she is still working full time but with my 20 per cent pay cut, we can just about pay for the rent, bills and food. 'Were going to have to hold off buying new furniture and I wont be able to save any money for the next few months. I havent done all the maths but looking at it quickly I think we should be fine.'

Which businesses can apply?

Any company with employees can apply, including charities, recruitment agencies and public authorities.

However, the Government does not expect many public sector organisations to apply, as 'the majority of public sector employees are continuing to provide essential public services or contribute to the response to the coronavirus outbreak'.

Organisations who are receiving public funding specifically to provide services necessary to respond to the coronavirus outbreak are not expected to furlough staff.

Employers can furlough staff for a minimum of three weeks and are allowed to rotate employees on furlough.

HMRC chief executive Jim Harra said: 'If you have a workforce say of a hundred people and you need to furlough 50 but youve got work for 50, then you can rotate who is furloughed provided each employees furlough period lasts for at least three weeks, the employer would be able to claim the grant under this scheme.'

In order to access the scheme, businesses need to change the status of their employees to furlough workers and submit the information to HMRC.

HMRC are currently working to set up a system for reimbursing companies.

Id like to think I will go back eventually Primary school teaching assistant Dawn Harrison from Hertfordshire was furloughed on 30 March, ten days after Boris Johnson announced schools would be closing in response to the coronavirus pandemic. She said: 'I'd never heard the term furlough before but after everything that's happened and then with schools closing for everyone but the children of key workers, I knew it was coming for me. 'I received an email on the morning of 30 March telling all staff at the primary school that furloughing was the next step and those who would be sent home would be called. 'I received the call later that day. The headmaster was very compassionate and reassuring and I know it wouldn't have been a nice call to have to make. 'I'm ok with the situation for the time being and am trying to remain positive but that may change if we're in the same situation in June. 'I am fortunate that this hasn't had much of a financial impact yet but I am concerned about what may happen to my husband, who works in the airline industry. Id like to think I will return as the schools will have to eventually go back. If being furloughed will save the school and my job, then itll be worth it.

I have been furloughed, can I go and find a temporary job to earn extra money elsewhere?

You can do other work to earn extra money while furloughed but you should check with your employer first.

There may be something in your contract that says you cannot do this, or that you have to officially ask if you can and they could say no. If you are struggling financially, make sure that you mention this in your request.

The official Government line is that if your existing employment contract allows then you are free to seek another job while on furlough and your 80 per cent furlough pay will not be affected.

Obviously, if your employer is topping up your furlough pay, then asking if you can do work elsewhere to earn extra money is a tricky issue.
The US Navy on April 1 said that it is evacuating personnel from USS Theodore Roosevelt after numerous sailors tested positive for coronavirus. Acting Navy Secretary Thomas B. Modly in a statement informed that the nuclear-powered warship has 93 positive cases on it, with 86 of those service members exhibiting symptoms and seven having no symptoms. According to the statement, 593 have tested negative on the ship out of the 1,300 that have been tested so far and some of the results are yet to come.

Read: Taiwan Announces $35 Bn COVID-19 Stimulus Package, Says Will Donate 10 Mn Masks

According to the Acting Secretary, the US Navy has already evacuated 1,000 personnel and expects to have about 2,700 of them off the ship. Additional space in Guam was sought immediately, and progress is being made, Modly reportedly said. As per reports, prior to the deployment of the ship the World Health Organisation (WHO) had identified fewer than 20 COVID-19 cases. The Navy has accelerated testing and is deep-cleaning all the spaces on the ship, the statement read.

Read: Chinese Man Builds Pod With Air Purification System To Protect Infant From COVID-19

"We are providing the commanding officer what he has requested, and we are doing our best to accelerate the pace wherever we can. Like the rest of the country and the world, we are learning more about stopping the spread of this virus each day," the acting secretary said in a statement.

Read: COVID-19: Donald Trump Asked To Suspend H-1B Visa Programme Amid Crisis

Coronavirus outbreak

COVID-19 has claimed more than 47,000 lives across the world and has infected over 9,37,000 people globally since it first broke out in December 2019. China was the most affected country until last week before Italy and Spain surpassed it to record the most number of deaths anywhere in the world due to COVID-19. The United States and France are on the verge of overtaking China in terms of the number of deaths recorded in these countries. The virus is believed to have originated from a seafood market in China's Wuhan city, the epicentre of the disease, where animals were reportedly being traded illegally.

Read: UP: Newborns Named 'Lockdown' And 'Corona' Amid Pandemic Crisis

(Image Credit: US Defense/Webpage)
Tax Dollars at Work

What has the police and mental health millage accomplished so far-and what else will it do?

by James Leonard

Published in April, 2020

County officials feared their eight-year, 1-mill tax, meant to support police and mental health services, might be too big and complicated to pass. But in November 2017, 64 percent of voters said yes.



The new tax--$100 annually for each $100,000 of a home's taxable value--raised a bit more than $16 million in the first year. Community Mental Health got $6 million, and the sheriff's office got $6.1 million.



Sheriff Jerry Clayton used $2.5 million of his share to pay the deputies who provide police services under contract to school districts and local governments, including the city of Dexter and the townships of Dexter, Lodi, Scio, and Webster. Clayton--who came up with the idea of the millage--then froze the governments' cost per deputy at $160,650 for two years, with increases of 1.5 percent in the third and fourth years of the current contract.



No municipality used the savings to hire more deputies, and none of the townships that chose to rely instead on the Michigan State Police has come on board with the sheriff's department. But Clayton says he's "happy with the outcome." After years of tensions over rising costs, the contracting communities are "not complaining. I'll take silence as approval."



And at least one voice is positive: "The Sheriff's office has been very helpful and proactive in finding ways to help keep our [police service] cost increases reasonable and predictable," emails Dexter mayor Shawn Keough. "We appreciate that very much."



The remaining $3.9 million raised by the millage was returned to communities with their own police forces to spend as they wished. After much debate, Ann Arbor's city council dedicated its share to affordable housing, climate action, and pedestrian safety. Pittsfield and Saline both committed theirs to public safety.



Pittsfield hasn't spent much of it yet, but Saline "was able to obtain a full time detective/investigator position and backfill the officer opening with a new police officer," emails chief Jerrod Hart. "Basically, we added 1 sworn position

...continued below...

to the ranks."New detective/investigator Mike King came to Saline after working as a county sheriff's deputy and Stockbridge's police chief. In terms of crime, he says, Saline sees "the same type of things that you would have at a bigger department, [just] not as frequent." He recently worked on an "identity theft investigation [that] involved somewhere over $50,000. And the gentleman also had purchased a Mercedes-Benz and put the young lady's name on it."But he also understands that police work isn't just detective work. What he calls "the mental health stuff" is also "extremely important--if you can [address] it from where the problem is beginning."That's the goal of new millage-funded mental health clinics in Dexter, Chelsea, and Manchester. Chelsea mayor Melissa Johnson emails that a CARES team is on hand "every Friday at the St. Joseph Mercy Hospital behavioral health outpatient facility in the Clock Tower complex on Main Street." They also appear weekly in the St. Joe's facility in Dexter in the strip mall on Dexter Ann Arbor Rd. and in the Manchester Village offices below the library.Clinics are also in Whitmore Lake twice weekly--mostly in the schools. "We've definitely seen a lot more younger people," says Shannon Ellis, the day-to-day operations supervisor for Community Mental Health's new CARES team. The name represents "crisis, access, resources, engagement, and support"--because, as program administrator Lisa Gentz explains, "the whole heart of the program is to try to get people immediate access to care.""Most of the people CARES sees have anxiety and depression," Ellis says, though sometimes "we'll see people who are having a psychotic break, [and] you have to help them with something right now!"Ellis stresses that the clinics are "absolutely" free. That makes it much easier for people to ask for help--and should save CMH money in the long run. "These people, if they didn't get access to care, would potentially need higher levels of care," Gentz explains. "They would end up requiring hospitalization or getting sicker."---CARES is the first of three major initiatives funded with the millage's mental health money. It rolled out last March, and through January had handled 4,294 cases. "Most people are being referred through providers in the community who are aware of the CARES team," Gentz emails, "or through family members who know about the services.""We've got a big team," Ellis says: a psychiatrist, a nurse practitioner, two case managers, seven mental health professionals, and six peer-support specialists--"folks who have lived experience" with mental illness, she explains. They're particularly useful, because new clients "instantly have trust with the peer supports."CARES team members are permanently stationed at Community Mental Health clinics in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. And they'll staff the millage's second major initiative: "a crisis assessment center" opening in March in Ypsilanti.It's all part of Clayton's vision."[T]hroughout the last couple of decades, state government has made decisions that has resulted in a reduction in support" for people with mental illness, he emails. "One example is the closing of many of the state mental health facilities without replacing those services with strategic investment in other community based support services. As it stands today, there isn't nearly enough of the required resources at the local level, providing the kind of service needed by people in the community. Some of those people end up in the criminal justice system. They end up in the worst place, considering their condition; jail."The crisis assessment center will provide an alternative: a place where people can be triaged and stabilized for up to a day. "We will be able to serve up to five individuals" at a time, says CMH director Trish Cortes. "It's a really great way to avoid having to go to the emergency room or for law enforcement to be able to divert from jails."Initially folks will be referred there by the CARES team, but eventually they will also be brought in by local police, sheriff's deputies, and Huron Valley Ambulance. The hope is that after being stabilized many of them will be able to return home instead of being locked up."We have people that're being arrested and put in jail [that] don't pose a risk," Clayton says. He hopes that what he calls "law-enforcement-assisted deflection" will steer them "right to [mental health] services. We've hired a project program coordinator, Marlene Radzik, who was the [police service] commander here." Because Radzik was retired, Clayton says, "I can hire her for a lot less money."The Saline Police Department is ready: Chief Hart says Detective King "has the autonomy to divert cases [from the jail] per a diversion agreement with Washtenaw County Community Mental Health."---The third millage-funded initiative, a dedicated mental health unit in the jail, is still in the planning stages. "The challenge with that is hiring enough corrections officers," Clayton says. "We've already set aside money for the unit manager [and] for the part-time mental health specialists." He hopes to have it open by the end of the year.But even with $6 million more annually, Clayton is "concerned about the mental health budget. They can't manage what they don't get from the state. The big challenge is the state's disinvestment in CMH."Shifts in how state mental health funding is allocated blew a $10 million hole in Washtenaw CMH's budget last year. Successful lobbying in Lansing restored half the deficit, but the county still had to kick in $3.1 million.The county can't afford to do that every year. "If some of the projections come true," Clayton warns, "the county's going to have to tighten their belt."If the state keeps squeezing community mental health, will the new services survive? "I sincerely hope so," Clayton, "but I don't know for sure." [Originally published in April, 2020.]
Victoria and David Beckham have officially closed a months-long deal to purchase a penthouse in One Thousand Museum, a new Zaha Hadiddesigned tower in Miami. Though its as yet unclear what the Beckhams ended up paying for the full-floor home, the asking price was set at $20 million and several outlets report that the couple shelled out close to $24 million for the 10,335-square-foot condo.

With the launch of Inter Miami CF, David and his team are spending significant amounts of time in Miami. One Thousand Museum is a very special building, and we are excited to join the community there, a spokesperson for the star athlete said in a release, according to Mansion Global. The penthouse comprises five bedrooms and six-and-a-half bathrooms, with stunning views of the city and water courtesy of floor-to-ceiling windows. The building features futuristic, open living spaces with high ceilings, custom lighting courtesy of German industrial and interior designer Uli Petzold, and entirely integrated sound, security, and video systems. Kitchens in the luxurious units feature quartz countertops and custom Italian cabinetry.

Courtesy of One Thousand Museum

See the video.

A particularly unique aspect of the homes, the Beckhams included, is their adherence to the curves of the towers sculptural exoskeleton, which makes for often irregularly shaped common living spaces and bedrooms. Oversized terraces give residents a chance to soak in the warm Miami air while lounging or dining, and a sky lounge situated on the top two floors of the 62-floor skyscraper boasts communal dining spaces as well. An aquatic center offers up an indoor lap pool while the building also contains a wellness center and spa. The rooftop features a private helipad for residents on the go. In addition to their new Miami home, the Beckhams also have homes throughout the world, including two in the U.K.: one in London and one in the Cotswolds.

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
The economic devastation wrought by the pandemic continues as we see from the news this morning that another 6.6 million Americans filed unemployment compensation claims last week. For those keeping score at home, that brings the two-week total to about 10 million due to the self-imposed economic shutdown. In the spirit of inquiry and concern, and subject to correction, I have put my head together with that of our friend Brian Sullivan to compile the following notes and queries in the form of bullet points. I trust there is no harm in asking:

 New York has 10 times more Wuhan virus cases per capita than the rest of the country. If banning travel from China made sense, why doesnt it make sense to restrict the interstate travel of New Yorkers in some fashion?

 The elderly and those with underlying health issues are most at risk of dying from Wuhan virus. Why dont we find ways to isolate and protect them without shutting the entire country down?

 The United States has reported 14 deaths per million of population. Italy and Spain have reported over 200 deaths per million. France, England, and Germany have reported an average of 35 deaths per million. Critics claim Trumps response is costing American lives. If relatively fewer Americans have died than every other major European country, what is the basis for the critics charge?

 Governor Cuomo said New York would start enrolling patients in clinical trials to test hydroxychloroquine last week, but the trials are described as not yet recruiting on the ClinicalTrials.gov site? Why are these trials delayed? (Note: Brian adds: There is typically a long lag time from the time you post a trial on ClinicalTrials.gov to the time it is activated and ready to enroll patientsmy concern is about whether NY and the feds can get out of the way so the regulatory and logistical burdens that hamper rapid activation and then enrollment are eliminated.)

 On January 21 the first case of Wuhan virus was confirmed. Ten days later, after Trump promulgated his order limiting travel from China, critics condemned the step as unnecessary and xenophobic. Are these critics still of the same opinion? (Note: Thank The Senator who saw the coronavirus coming.)

 The model Minnesota government officials used to justify our current shutdown policies projected that 1.5 percent, or 74,000, of all Minnesotans could die from the Wuhan virus. If these modelers used these same assumptions to estimate deaths in the United States, their model would project 5,000,000 Americans deaths. This is roughly 3 times more deaths per capita than died from the Spanish flu in 1918-19. Do Minnesota government officials think the Wuhan virus is possibly 3x more deadly than the Spanish flu? What model are they using?

NOTE: I should have made Kevin Roches proviso explicit: Be careful with comparing per capita death rates now. Time from onset of disease to death can average over three weeks, so if we are just on the front end of a surge in cases, and other countries are further along, it isnt an apples to apples comparison.I would still think, however, that our per capita death rates may end up being much lower than that of other countries. Im with Victor Davis Hanson: Humility, not certaintymuch less accusation and panicshould be the order of the day.
The US Department of Defense has successfully tested a demonstrator hypersonic missile in a flight experiment conducted from a range in Hawaii.

The US Navy and Army jointly executed the launch of the common hypersonic glide body (C-HGB), which flew at hypersonic speed to a designated impact point during March. The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) monitored and gathered tracking data from the flight experiment to inform its development of systems designed to defend against adversary hypersonic weapons.

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Information from this and future experiments will be used by the US Department of Defense (DoD) to further develop its hypersonic technology.

This test builds on the success we had with Flight Experiment 1 in October 2017, in which our C-HGB achieved sustained hypersonic glide at our target distances, said Vice Adm. Johnny Wolfe, director of the US Navys Strategic Systems Programs, the lead design body for the C-HGB.

In this test we put additional stresses on the system and it was able to handle them all. Today we validated our design and are now ready to move to the next phase towards fielding a hypersonic strike capability.

According to the DoD, hypersonic weapons, capable of flying at speeds greater than five times the speed of sound (Mach 5), are highly maneuverable and operate at varying altitudes. This provides the warfighter with an ability to strike targets hundreds and even thousands of miles away, in a matter of minutes, to defeat a wide range of high-value targets.

Delivering hypersonic weapons is one of the DoDs highest technical research priorities currently.

This test was a critical step in rapidly delivering operational hypersonic capabilities to our warfighters in support of the National Defense Strategy, said US. Army LTG L. Neil Thurgood, director of hypersonics, directed energy, space and rapid acquisition, from the US Army. We successfully executed a mission consistent with how we can apply this capability in the future. The joint team did a tremendous job in executing this test, and we will continue to move aggressively to get prototypes to the field.

The C-HGB will comprise the weapons conventional warhead, guidance system, cabling, and thermal protection shield. The US Navy and Army are working with industry to develop the C-HGB with Navy as the lead designer, and the Army as the lead for production. Each service will use the C-HGB, while developing individual weapon systems and launchers tailored for launch from sea or land.

Hypersonic systems deliver transformational warfighting capability, said Mike White, assistant director, Hypersonics, OUSD Research and Engineering (Modernization). The glide body tested today is now ready for transition to Army and Navy weapon system development efforts and is one of several applications of hypersonic technology underway across the Department. These capabilities help ensure that our warfighters will maintain the battlefield dominance necessary to deter, and if necessary, defeat any future adversary.
A deputy working at the Bexar County jail has tested positive for COVID-19, officials said Thursday.

The case appears to be a result of community spread, according to a Bexar County Sheriff's Office spokesperson.

The deputy, a 12-year veteran who oversees inmates at the Adult Detention Center, was asymptomatic while at work on Sunday. On Monday, the deputy reported feeling sick with symptoms consistent with nasal allergies.

The individual abided by the county jail's coronavirus mitigation efforts, officials said, which include using hand sanitizer and temperature checks prior to entering in the building.

The deputy's temperature was taken again at the end of shift on Tuesday. There was no indication of a fever either time, officials said.

The deputy sought medical attention Tuesday at University Hospital and tested positive for pneumonia. The individual was also tested for COVID-19 after developing a fever, then released from the hospital.

Later that day, the deputy sought additional treatment at Baptist Medical Center downtown. The individual was tested once more for COVID-19, then released.

The deputy received positive test results for COVID-19 on Wednesday from University Hospital. The deputy will remain on leave until the conditions have fully subsided, officials said.

The deputy did not have any contact with the public prior to being placed on administrative leave, officials said. The individual's normal job duties include overseeing a cell where inmates are housed.

Officials said the inmates the deputy oversaw are believe to be at low-risk of contracting the virus because barriers like cell doors limit face-to-face interaction. The inmates will be kept in place and monitored for 14 days. The unit where the deputy worked will be sanitized.

No inmates at the jail have the virus, officials said Thursday. The Texas Commission on Jail Standards was notified of the deputy testing positive.

The deputies who were in close contact with this deputy have been placed on leave. They are currently not displaying any COVID-19 symptoms, officials said.

Safety measures at the jail include deputies working separately within high-risk living units and wearing N95 masks. Arrestees booked into the jail will wear surgical masks for 14 days, while inmates extradited from other counties will be isolated from general population for the same time period.
Activists from Greenpeace, Solutions for Our Climate, and Gyeongnam Korean Federation for Environmental Movements (KFEM), hold a press conference at KDB headquarters, Wednesday, Seoul, to stop the financial support to Doosan Heavy & Construction. /Courtesy of Greenpeace



By Bahk Eun-ji



Greenpeace is criticizing the Korea Development Bank (KDB) for 1 trillion won ($810 million) in emergency loans it recently extended to Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction amid the COVID-19 outbreak here.



The group held a press conference in front of the KDB building in Seoul with a number of environmental organizations including Solutions for Our Climate and Gyeongnam Korean Federation for Environmental Movements (KFEM), arguing that the loan from the KDB and the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Exim Bank) to Doosan Heavy Industries supports a company that derives nearly 80 percent of its sales from coal-fired power plant construction. Coal power plants are one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions.



According to Greenpeace, Doosan Heavy's financial crisis was due to the loss of coal power's competitiveness and the company's failure to follow market trends. Investments in coal power globally have fallen by 80 percent over the past decade, according to data from the International Energy Agency.



The drastic drop in demand for new coal-fired power plant construction, including a substantial decrease in overseas plant projects, has caused Doosan Heavy's revenues to collapse, resulting in the total market value of the company to fall below 1 trillion won. The organization pointed out that if the company does not change to focus on renewable energy, which has market growth potential, the company will dig itself into deeper financial trouble.



"We are very concerned that this financing for Doosan Heavy will serve as support for overseas coal power projects such as the Jawa 9 and 10 in Indonesia. Bailout loans should be used to directly support small business owners that are suffering difficulties as a result of the COVID-19 situation," said Mari Chang, climate and energy campaigner at Greenpeace.



She also said the support for Doosan Heavy conflicts with the ruling party's Green New Deal pledge for the National Assembly general elections on April 15. Despite requests from public financial institutions to participate in the loan, the failure of private financial institutions to get involved shows how the market evaluates Doosan Heavy, the organization added.



"Any financial support to Doosan Heavy, including the 1 trillion won loan, must be premised on the end of its coal power business," said Joojin Kim, attorney and managing director of Solutions for Our Climate, an environmental group that participated in the press conference with Greenpeace.


Source: Xinhua| 2020-04-02 10:34:07|Editor: huaxia

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MADRID, April 2 (Xinhua) -- It is not the the moment for prejudices, accusations and politicizing the COVID-19 as it devours lives around the world, said Xulio Rios, the Director of the Observatory of Chinese Politics in Spain in a recent interview.

Spain is one of the epicenters of the outbreak in Europe. The Ministry of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Services said on Wednesday that 102,136 cases have been reported with 9,053 deaths.

"It is time for us to work together and in this sense counting on the help of China is a guarantee," said Rios.

China has sent aid to Spain and the Spanish government is also purchasing vital sanitary equipment from the Asian country as part of its efforts to halt the spread of the virus.

Rios said that urgently needed supplies had arrived and are arriving in Spain from China by air and also by the railway link between Yiwu, one of China's manufacturing centers, and Madrid.

These supplies are vital for the Spanish health service workers to combat the coronavirus in dangerous conditions, said the expert.

"Spain values the efforts of the Chinese authorities and of thousands of people, thousands of kilometers away, who are working 24 hours a day to produce the material we need to save lives," said Rios.

"Even before the adoption of drastic measures, we saw the Chinese community in Spain distributing face masks to public service workers," said Rios.

He added that is it important to listen to the advice and recommendations of China.

China's early containment of the virus also places the country in a key position, said Rios, adding that China's manufacturing power is vital to save lives in Europe.

"The priority now is to not endanger international cooperation," he said, calling for efforts to deepen the trust among the world's countries and adopt a rational attitude.

International cooperation is crucial to be able to react in an effective manner to a challenge that knows no borders, said Rios.
Radio broadcaster Alan Jones has slammed strict new social distancing laws as undemocratic and un-Australian.

The recent New South Wales health order tackles the spread of COVID-19 by stopping people from going outside without good reason and enforcing severe penalties.

Speaking on 2GB, Mr Jones argued that the coronavirus measures were too harsh.

The health order dictated that there were now only 16 'reasonable excuses' for a person to leave their home.

These included exercise, shopping for essentials, seeking medical care, providing care or travelling to work.

Any person found breaching these rules could face six months in jail or a fine of up to $11,000.

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Radio broadcaster Alan Jones (pictured) slammed new social distancing regulations in NSW

The new health order banned all non-essential activities and presented 16 'reasonable excuses' for leaving the house. Pictured: NSW Police questioned a woman in a park

Poll Are Australia's coronavirus lockdown laws going too far? Yes No Are Australia's coronavirus lockdown laws going too far? Yes 9 votes

No 14 votes Now share your opinion





'Coronavirus can't be allowed to destroy democracy,' he said.

Mr Jones said that he disagreed with the way the measures were implemented.

'The rules were implemented via regulation in NSW, not legislation, which means they were not debated in parliament and they were not subject to possibly sensible amendments,' he said.

Mr Jones also argued that the strict measures were confusing and unfair.

'This order in NSW, by a Liberal government, should never have been gazetted. It's badly thought out, it's undemocratic, it's hopelessly un-Australian, it treats us as if we're all either completely stupid or servants of the state,' Mr Jones said.

Aussies who break the new rules could face six months in jail or be fined up to $11,000. Pictured: NSW Police spoke with an international traveller arriving to Australia

CORONAVIRUS CASES IN AUSTRALIA: 27,244 Victoria: 20,269 New South Wales: 4,273 Queensland: 1,161 Western Australia: 692 South Australia: 473 Tasmania: 230 Australian Capital Territory: 113 Northern Territory: 33 TOTAL CASES: 27,244 ESTIMATED ACTIVE CASES: 269 DEATHS: 897 Updated: 5.31 PM, 11 October, 2020 Source: Australian Government Department of Health Advertisement

Gatherings of more than two people, apart from immediate family, are also banned in NSW as are all non-essential activities.

NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller said the new social isolation rules would last for 90 days and hopefully not longer.

'It is 90 days. People will have gotten the message by then, hopefully,' he said on Thursday.

'We won't be talking about the powers, we'll be talking about what does it look like coming out of this.'

The number of confirmed COVID-19 infections in NSW has reached 2,298.

The state's death toll sits at 10 - almost half of the country's tally of 23 deaths.

Positive coronavirus cases across Australia have risen to 5,103.
TIPPECANOE COUNTY, Ind. (WLFI)The Greater Lafayette Chinese community is giving to those who are combating COVID-19.

They donated 300 medical gowns to both Franciscan Health and IU health. Organizers said it's a gesture of gratitude from the community, thanking those who are on the frontlines of this pandemic.

Coordinator Jia Li said the biggest way people can help medical workers is by following their advice.

"Everybody can do by staying home, protect themselves and hard workers," said Li. " We are stronger together."

The donations were organized when members heard the hospitals were running low on certain supplies amidst the growing number of patients.
Congressional Black Caucus Focuses on Economic Recovery of African Americans in COVID-19 Crisis

The coronavirus health crisis that hit America in the middle of March has compelled Governors to shut down states, requested citizens to stay in their homes and moved Congress to pass an unprecedented stimulus of over two trillion dollars.

As the COVID-19 crisis hit its peak, the Congressional Black Caucus began to fight to support the needs of Black families, seniors, workers, businesses, and communities. On March 20, the CBC submitted an extensive 11-page proposal to House and Senate leadership with recommendations to support the recovery of Black America.

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The first draft of the COVID-19 Senate stimulus bill focused money to bailout large corporations and the top one percent. But after days of negotiation that included President Trump big footing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, the legislation was changed to focus more on the needs of main street Americans.

Those priorities included a higher direct payment to individuals from $600 to $1200. Another change was an additional $500 child tax credit per child and a moratorium on foreclosures and evictions. Black Caucus members also added $447 million for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Several other provisions asked by members of the Congressional Black Caucus were an expansion of unemployment benefits to $600 per week in addition to the base max eligible for unemployment insurance, $15.5 billion in additional funding for SNAP, a temporary moratorium of 6 months for federal student loans and funding the Minority Business Development Agency $10 million to make grants to minority-owned businesses.

There is also a provision adding $1 billion for the Community Services Block Grant and $750 million for Head Start and $4 billion in homeless assistance grants.

The U.S. House is expected to pass the Senate bill on March 27. Other stimulus legislation is expected in the future but Congress is also expected to take much of April off because of days added to the Easter recess in the wake of the COVID crisis.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent journalist for NNPA and the host of the podcast BURKEFILE. She is also a political strategist as Principal of Win Digital Media LLC. She may be contacted at [email protected] and on twitter at @LVBurke
The government may borrow about Rs 40,000 crore to compensate cash-strapped states for their revenue shortfall under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, and push its departments and public sector firms to clear their vendors dues , to rescue them from an acute liquidity crunch caused by the 21-day coronavirus lockdown, three officials aware of the developments said. Apart from states, government departments also owe money to companies across sectors for products bought, services rendered, or such things as subsidies.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

In a meeting with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi though video conference on Thursday, several state chief ministers demanded that the Centre pay their GST compensation, immediately release the wages of workers enrolled under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) and sought help in Coronavirus relief efforts. The government is considering their proposals, the three officials said.

The cabinet secretariat and the department of expenditure are continuously monitoring the situation so that the states do not face a funding crunch in fighting the coronavirus pandemic and companies, particularly micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME), receive their dues in time to tide over the crisis, the officials said on condition of anonymity.

Several states have cited a funding crunch and announced salary cuts for their employees for March.Industry, particularly the MSME sector, has asked for the speedy release of outstanding payments by government agencies.

The expenditure secretary has told all ministries and CPSEs (central public sector enterprises) not to sit on vendors money and clear their dues expeditiously, one of the officials with direct knowledge of the matter said.

An official in the West Bengal government said the Centre must pay the entire compensation amount due to the states at this crucial juncture to meet their Covid-19 expenses. Punjab has asked for the release of Rs 6,752.83 crore in GST arrears immediately; the payment has been pending since October , 2019.

A recent report on Covid-19 prepared by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) also asked the Centre provide liquidity to states by increasing the overdraft facility available to them from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and pay pending GST compensation immediately.

Also Read: Hoarding, transport snags choke supply of essentials

According to the Union government officials mentioned above, the total compensation payout ito the states n 2019-20 is expected to be over Rs 1.20 lakh crore while total collection from GST compensation cess was less than Rs 80,000 crore. The government will put up a proposal to the GST Council to borrow from the market to pay compensation to states, the second official said.

The GST law assures the states a 14% increase in their revenue for five years and the Centre is committed to meeting any shortfall in revenue through the cess levied on luxury goods and sin products such as liquor, cigarettes and other tobacco products.

Most of the states asked the Centre to relax their borrowing limits,and demanded an additional grant in the aftermath of Covid-19 and advance wage payments to MGNREGS workers. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar requested the Union government to consider raising the fiscal deficit limit for the state to tide over the emergency. A similar demand also came from the Punjab and Rajasthan governments. The states current fiscal deficit limit stands at 3 % of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP).

West Bengal has demanded a grant of Rs 25,000 crore to fight the Coronavirus disease pandemic, besides kits to fight the virus, such as face masks, gloves, sanitizers and protective suits for medical staff. It also demanded that the Centre release Rs 36,000 crore under different accounts that had not been released earlier.

...to uphold the spirit of cooperative federalism, we need this minimum help from the central government to cope with the unprecedented impasse at this hour to fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, chief minister Mamata Banerjee wrote to the Prime Minister on Wednesday. She did not take part in the video conference with PM Modi on Thursday.

Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray sought the release of GST compensation worth Rs 16,000 crore. The state government also sought help with procurement and manufacturing of personal protective equipment (PPE) kits and N-95 masks, a government statement said.

Punjab also demanded payment of 15 days unemployment allowance per month for three months to mitigate rural distress on account of the national lockdown, suggesting a 90:10 centre-state sharing for these. It asked for a special insurance package for fronline workers such as the police and sanitary workers.

Rajasthan demanded Rs 1 lakh crore from the Centre to fight Covid-19. In a statement after the video conference with the PM, Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot said he had requested for a relief package and asked for an enhancement of the states borrowing limit.

Gehlot requested an inter-state supply chain protocol for essential items, medicines and medical equipment, advance payment of wages to registered and active MNREGS workers and demanded cancellation of payment of interest to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and other central financial institutions. Some CMs including Thackeray also demanded immediate distribution of Coronavirus safety equipment and testing kits.

Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik did not present any wish-list in the video conference with PM Modi, but he wrote to him earlier this week demanding unemployment allowance to 3.61 million active MGNREGS workers in the state for the lockdown period of 21 days. He requested the Centre to allow the state government to utilise Rs 380.39 crore from the MNREGS fund to provide the unemployment allowance for 21 days.

Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel in a letter to PM Modi on Wednesday demanded the allocation of a special relief package for labourers under MGNREGS. He also requested a support of Rs 750 per month to all Jan-Dhan account holders for the next three months. Under a relief package announced last week, the government will pay Rs 500 a month for three months to women who hold Jan Dhan accounts.

The Union government has also received industry requests to release payments that are due to private sector units.

According to an industry estimate, the outstanding payments to companies run into lakhs of crores. The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) estimated payments owed by state distribution companies to power generation units at Rs 90,000 crore. In the delayed payments monitoring portal MSME Samadhaan, only 14% of the Rs 3,774.36 crore (against 11,619 claims) filed by MSMEs have been settled so far, it said.

Assocham president Niranjan Hiranandani said the payment delays had created a massive liquidity crunch in two ways: One, government is taking over all the cheap borrowing in the system (though inadequate), and two, they do not release cash flow to vendors  so the liquidity crisis has exacerbated. MSMEs struggle to cover the financial shortfall created by delayed payments, owing to the high cost of borrowing and this often creates viability issues.
The mayor of Los Angeles, Eric Garcetti, urged everyone in the city to wear masks in a bid to curb the spread of the virus. California's governor, however, does not think the idea should apply statewide.

Los Angeles has seen a dramatic surge of cases on Wednesday as health officials reported more than 500 new COVID-19 cases and 11 new coronavirus deaths. These figures now bring the city's number of infected patients to 3,518 and the death toll to 65.

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health revealed nine of the 11 deceased victims had pre-existing medical conditions and belonged in the high-risk age group. The other two victims were between 18 to 65 years of age.

The local health department also said the virus has begun spreading through the homeless populace as five homeless people tested positive for the new coronavirus.

Mayor Eric Garcetti decided to no longer wait for advice from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on mask-wearing. He urged the city's 4 million residents to wear non-medical face coverings such as a bandana or a piece of fabric when performing essential tasks like grocery shopping.

During the news conference, Garcetti emphasized the need to stay at home to prevent the virus from spreading any further.

He also said medical-grade masks, especially surgical masks and N95 respirators, should be reserved for the use of health care workers and first responders who are now battling against coronavirus and the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) supply.

Get up-to-date with the latest COVID-19 news:

California has seen a drastic increase in cases as authorities recorded 1,000 new cases in 24 hours, raising the state's confirmed cases past 9,500. Healthcare facilities in California continue to operate despite a dwindling supply of PPEs and medical equipment.

California Governor Gavin Newsom reminded the state's residents to continue observing self-quarantine measures, proper hand-washing, and maintaining a safe distance from other people. These efforts will help in alleviating some pressure on the country's already-strained healthcare system.

He also said the local government is focusing on acquiring thousands of hospital beds as researchers projected 66,000 beds will be needed to serve an expected deluge of patients when COVID-19 reaches its peak.

The state government announced its plan to repurpose a state-owned property in Costa Mesa to help relieve the stress COVID-19 is imposing on regional hospitals.

Repurposing the center aims to provide more space for hospital beds, which, in turn, could allow more patients to be treated by healthcare providers.

The state's medical personnel will be deployed to the makeshift center where they will attend to patients determined by local medical providers as needing low to medium levels of care. This move will free up space at traditional hospitals for patients in need of serious medical attention.

The facility is expected to hold at least 1,100 hospital beds and will be available for use this month.
Edmonton, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - April 2, 2020) - Grizzly Discoveries Inc. (TSXV: GZD) (FSE: G6H) (OTCQB: GZDIF) ("Grizzly" or the "Company") is supportive of the roles and initiatives of industry and governments to protect the health and safety of all Canadians. The Company recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic crisis is dynamic and is monitoring the situation to determine the impacts that COVID-19 may have upon its 2020 exploration efforts. At present, the Company does not see a significant impact to its 2020 planned exploration programs in southern British Columbia as exploration can be conducted in any season within the guidelines recommended by the Chief Inspector of Mines for British Columbia with respect to the COVID-19 pandemic and the operation of mines and exploration programs.

Brian Testo, CEO commented, "We are continuously monitoring the progress of COVID-19 developments and will act accordingly for the health and safety of all stakeholders. With gold and palladium prices near 8 year highs, we saw strong interest in our projects at the PDAC, and we intend to take advantage of the current favourable precious metal prices and continue to raise capital to advance exploration efforts at our road accessible projects in southern British Columbia."

All of the Company's mineral claims in southeastern British Columbia will now be in good standing to at least December 31st, 2021. The British Columbia Ministry of Mines has provided a grace period for conducting required exploration on all mineral claims in the Province coming due in the next 12 months. The Company has over 150,000 acres in the Greenwood area and close to 6,000 acres in the Roosville area of British Columbia, a proven and prolific mining jurisdiction of Canada.

Grizzly 2020 Exploration Plans - Ket 28 Prospect

Grizzly has recently received drilling permits for high priority drill targets at the Ket 28 prospect, located within the Rock Creek claim group of the Greenwood Project, at which historic drilling in 1994 intersected high grade gold yielding 52.19 g/t gold over 3.35 meters (m) core length. Follow-up drilling by Grizzly in 2009 and 2010 at the Ket 28 provided more anomalous gold intersections, yielding 2.77 g/t gold over 11 m core length and 8.75 g/t gold over 3 m with a higher grade zone of 11.90 g/t gold over 2 m core length. The Company is currently planning a 2020 exploration program, that will focus on the Ket 28 prospect where the gold mineralization is open along strike and to depth and requires further drill testing. Grizzly is planning a 15 to 20 hole drill program that will target the mineralized zone in the central portion of the Ket 28 prospect, with the intention of expanding the currently defined gold zone and developing a maiden mineral resource estimate. The initial Ket 28 drill program is expected to cost approximately $350,000 to $500,000 and is subject to financing.

Grizzly 2020 Exploration Plans - Sappho Au Ag Pt Pd Cu Prospect

The 2010 drill results from the Sappho Prospect yielded coincident gold, silver, and platinum (Pt) group elements ("PGE"), including palladium (Pd), along with copper (Cu) in a number of drill holes. Results point to a copper porphyry style mineralization and locally skarn model with assay results yielding a wide anomalous interval of 0.28% CuEq over 93.5 m core length including a higher grade zone of 0.38 % CuEq over 63.5 m core length. Three well documented surface copper occurrences in the northeastern portion of the alkaline intrusive complex yielded numerous high grade selective rock grab sample results including up to 8.28% Cu, 27.1 g/t Pt, 298 g/t Ag, 2.2 g/t Au and 2.57 g/t Pd. All three occurrences yielded multi gram Pt and Pd values. Prior drilling has also yielded multi gram narrow core length intersections of Au, Pt and Pd associated with Cu. Fieldwork is being planned for 2020 in order to re-evaluate the prospect subject to financing.

Grizzly 2020 Regional Exploration Plans

Prior exploration results by the Company and Kinross over the last few years generated several new showings along with numerous precious metal anomalies (>100 ppb Au +/- Ag, As, Sb, Cu etc.) in soils. The new discovery targets require geological follow-up to develop new prospective drill targets. The Company is planning additional reconnaissance exploration at multiple target areas subject to financing.

Grizzly 2020 Exploration Plans - Robocop Co Cu Ag Prospect

The Company is preparing a planned helicopter magnetic and conductivity survey to isolate drill targets over the Robocop claims. The Robocop Prospect hosts significant historic cobalt-copper-silver in soil anomalies. Historic drilling during the 1990's and early 2000's has yielded grades of up to 0.18% cobalt, 0.28% copper, 4.1 parts per million (ppm) silver over 1 m core length and 0.134% Co, 1.19% Cu and 33.8 ppm Ag over 1.23 m core length for individual core samples. The Co-Cu-Ag mineralization is hosted in Sheppard Formation and is classified as Proterozoic sediment hosted mineralization. The Company believes that significant potential exists to expand the known extent of the known mineralization on the Property and further exploration is warranted.

ABOUT GRIZZLY DISCOVERIES INC.

Grizzly is a diversified Canadian mineral exploration company with its primary listing on the TSX Venture Exchange with 67.1 million shares issued, focused on developing its precious and base metals properties in southeastern British Columbia. The Company holds, or has an interest in, over 156,000 acres of precious-base metal properties in British Columbia, Canada.

The technical content of this news release and the Company's technical disclosure has been reviewed and approved by Michael B. Dufresne, M. Sc., P. Geol., P.Geo., who is the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

On behalf of the Board,

Grizzly Discoveries Inc.

Brian Testo

President

(780) 693-2242

For further information, please visit our website at www.grizzlydiscoveries.com or contact:

Jim Greig

Corporate Development

Tel: 778-788-2745

Toll Free: 1-866-503-3377

Email: jgreig@grizzlydiscoveries.com

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.



Caution concerning forward-looking information

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. This information and statements address future activities, events, plans, developments and projections. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. Such forward-looking information and statements are frequently identified by words such as "may," "will," "should," "anticipate," "plan," "expect," "believe," "estimate," "intend" and similar terminology, and reflect assumptions, estimates, opinions and analysis made by management of Grizzly in light of its experience, current conditions, expectations of future developments and other factors which it believes to be reasonable and relevant. Forward-looking information and statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause Grizzly's actual results, performance and achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking information and statements and accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed thereon.

Risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to vary include but are not limited to the availability of financing; fluctuations in commodity prices; changes to and compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including environmental laws and obtaining requisite permits; political, economic and other risks; as well as other risks and uncertainties which are more fully described in our annual and quarterly Management's Discussion and Analysis and in other filings made by us with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and available at www.sedar.com. Grizzly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information or statements except as may be required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/54070
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 2) - The city government of Manila now makes it punishable to discriminate against persons with coronavirus disease, those suspected with infection, and all health workers.

City Ordinance No. 8624 or the Anti COVID-19 Discrimination Ordinance of 2020 prohibits any form of harassment or discrimination against the above-mentioned persons as well as government forces in the frontlines.

The ordinance was created following reports of people being evicted from their houses or rejected from establishments out of fear that they could infect others. Some social media posts went as far as spreading names of individuals who are allegedly infected with coronavirus.

Under the ordinance, people who will make false utterance, humiliate, harass, discriminate, and refuse to provide assistance to COVID-19 patients, those who are under monitoring and investigation, recovered patients, and frontline workers will be penalized.

Penalties include a fine of P5,000 or imprisonment of up to six months, or both.

President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday also ordered the police and military to watch out for anyone who will harass health workers. This came after a hospital personnel in Tacurong City, Sultan Kudarat was allegedly attacked by strangers by throwing bleach at his face.
In just three months following their announcement that they wanted to step away from the British royal family, things have changed a great deal for Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. The couple have completed their final royal duties, shuttered their Instagram and website, and they are now living in a compound in Los Angeles where they are self-isolating and practicing social distancing.

The move to LA has stunned royal fans across the globe, with many fans consumed as to why the Sussexes would leave the royal stage to simply be propped up in the Hollywood limelight. However, one royal expert believes that this was always the end game for the duke and duchess.

They were always heading to L.A. That was the master plan, Katie Nicholl, Vanity Fairs royal correspondent explained. I think with North America shutting down because of COVID, they decided to move to California sooner. Meghan wants to be near her mum [who lives in Los Angeles], which is understandable at this time, and they clearly have projects in the pipeline and wanted to get to L.A. as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, many people dont think LA will provide the quiet life the Sussexes are hoping for. In fact, many royal experts believe the duo might eventually return to the royal fold.

Prince Harry would always be welcomed back to the British royal family

Though he is no longer a senior working royal, the Duke of Sussex has retained his role title and his place in line for the throne. If he does ever want to return to the U.K. and The Firm, he would be warmly welcomed.

The love this country has for him has never stopped, royal photographer Arthur Edwards explained to The Sun. As far as the nation is concerned he is still their number one member of the Royal Family.

In fact, amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and Prince Charles diagnosis, the prince did consider returning to the U.K. However, it would have been irresponsible. With the royals in isolation, there isnt much they can do, although I suspect Harry will probably be feeling far from home right now, Nicholl said. They wont want to take any risks by traveling, and their priority is to keep Archie settled and in a routine. I think they will come to the U.K. when it is safer to do so.

Meghan Markle would not be welcomed back to the British royal family

Though she tried her best, its clear that royal life is not for the Duchess of Sussex, and her presence upended life as the royals knew it. While the royal family themselves embraced her, the British public, with their racist and sexist rhetoric refused.

It was clear in her body language, very real, very emotional, very vulnerable, ABCs royal expert Omid Scobie said of the duchess appearance at Commonwealth Day.

It would take a lot for the Sussexes to return to the royal family

Its clear from the 12-month review that Queen Elizabeth II has put in place amid Megxit, that shes not convinced the Sussexes will be able to make it as private citizens.

The royal family would certainly welcome them back with open arms, Marlene Koenig, a royal expert told Insider. But the media would be without mercy. I would expect comments about tails between their legs.

At this point, it seems highly unlikely the Sussexes would ever return to royal life, but as tensions have eased between them and the royal family. Anything could happen.
Vegetable farmer Jagdish Kumar cultivates cabbage and cauliflower on his farm inTheog, in Himachal Pradeshs Shimla district . The crop is ready for harvest, but Kumar has a problem:there are no farm workers around in the village.

Even if I myself harvest the produce, there is no way I can send it to the market [for lack of transport]. It will rot in fields, I have no option, Kumar said.

In neighbouring Punjabs Ludhiana, Sukhwinder Singh, who grows cauliflower and peas, is confronting the same problem.We have a large amount of vegetables waiting to be moved out of our fields. We need to remove them to prepare the fields for the upcoming kharif (monsoon crop) season but there is no labour, Singh said.

Down south, in Karnatakas Koppal, grape farmer Sharanabasappa Hiregoudar is heartbroken -- he is letting a bountiful harvest of seedless grapes on his seven-acre plot rot on the vines. In previous years, he has sold them at Rs 23-25 a kg; this year, he was offered Rs 2-3.

Click here for the complete coverage of the Covid-19 pandemic

The plight of Kumar, Sigh and Hiregudar illustrates a larger problem confronting India -- a disruption of the agricultural supply chain -- in the aftermath of the nationwide, three-week lockdown that took effect on March 25 as part of an attempt to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

The lockdown prompted an exodus of migrant workers back home to Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha and West Bengal from the farming states of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, depriving farmers of labour to harvest their crops. Transport too has been disrupted because of strict enforcement of the lockdown by the police although essential services are exempt from the restrictions.

Also Read:Government may borrow Rs 40k crore as cash-strapped states seek funds

In many states such as Karnataka, Assam and West Bengal, there have been reports of farmers dumping their vegetables and milk because of the absence of buyers and a dip in the prices of fruits and vegetables.

In Haryanas Yamunanagar district, farmer Sushil Kumar of Radaur village sold cauliflower for Rs 10 per kg on Wednesday compared to Rs 24-27 per kg before the lockdown came into effect.

Minister of state for animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries Sanjeev Kumar Balyan admitted to problems in these sectors, adding that the central government has already issued an advisory allowing the transportation of all farm and dairy products.

We have also asked cooperatives to purchase more milk from farmers. Already, the collection has increased by 8% since the lockdown started, he said.

Also Read: Lockdown in India was early, far-sighted and courageous: WHO envoy

States governments have been asked to operate wholesale markets to ensure supplies across India even as Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh have deferred procurement of rabi (winter) crops. Uttarakhand has allowed harvest because wheat is ripening in the terai belt bordering Uttar Pradesh. Karnataka has asked its horticultural co-operative to open more centres.

In Uttar Pradesh, farmers have not able to sell their produce since March 22, the day of the Janata Curfew, said two of them, Satendra Pal of Malihabad and Aslam Khan of Dubagga. Similar reports came in from Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Rajasthan.

A food industry representative, who requested anonymity, said factories engaged in processing and producing packaged foods were running at half their capacity primarily because of a shortfall in the supplies of raw materials. He said input provisions were running at a fifth of the normal supplies. A major dip in supplies from farmers has disrupted the entire chain from markets to wholesale buyers to factories, this person said.

According to the agriculture ministrys website, agmarknet.gov.in, which monitors daily arrivals and sales at various wholesale markets, the arrivals after the lockdown have dipped by up to 70%. For instance, at the Azadpur market in New Delhi, 132,000 tonnes of cabbage arrived on March 1; this fell to 19,500 tonnes on March 31.

Similarly, cauliflower arrivals in Mumbais wholesale markets totalled 145,000 tonnes on March 1. On March 31, just 17,200 tonnes arrived. In states with poorer road connectivity such as West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha, the arrival of several vegetables was in single digits in tonnes, a fall of 80% since March 1.

Narender Thakur, a vegetable merchant in Shimlas fruit and vegetable wholesale market, said that everyday arrivals at the market had dipped by around 50% since the nationwide lockdown took effect.

Dairies

While vegetable farmers are struggling to sell their produce, milk producers in states that do not have a strong cooperative network of collection centres and milk processing units, such as the one that exists in Gujarat, are in dire straits.

Ajit Singh, a dairy owner in Uttar Pradeshs Gosaiganj, said the demand for milk has declined because sweet shops were closed. I use to sell milk for Rs 50 per litre but now I am not getting even Rs 25-30 per litre. I am left with no option but to throw unsold milk, he said.

In Karnataka, unverified videos emerged of people purportedly dumping 1,500 litres of milk into a drain and a river in Belgavi. Similar videos were put up on social media from West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Sixty per cent of the milk produced in Bengal every day is used by confectioners, but with eateries, most of the milk is going waste. One of the main reasons behind this crisis is that retail outlets are either closed because of the lockdown or operating only for limited hours, said Bhaskar Nandy, managing director of Bhagirathi Milk Cooperative Society in West Bengals Murshidabad district.

Ranjit Singh, procurement manager at the Haryana Dairy Development Cooperative Federation (HDDCF), known as VITA, said, There is no demand; we are able to sell only 5,000 litres per day against 20,000 litres before the lockdown. Even we dont have enough containers to keep the remaining 95,000 litres of milk we procure daily as there is no demand for milk products like khoya, cheese, curd and kheer.

In Jorabat area of Assams Kamrup district, dairies have piled up heavy losses in the past eight days. They are seeking the state governments intervention to save the livelihoods of hundreds of families associated with dairy work every day.

Poultry

Sandeep Punia, a farmer in Ambalas Nagla village, said poultry farmers were selling broiler chicken at Rs 20 per kg whereas the rearing cost is Rs 80 and were also losing money on the sale of eggs.

Atul Sonkar, president of the Chandigarh Meat Market Welfare Association, said the it was the worst of times for the business and if the pandemic continues to rage, the industry would be dead. In some places such as Mohali in Punjab and Panchkula in Haryana, poultry owners have started home delivery of chicken and eggs.

Balyan said the government was talking stock of the situation on a daily basis.

We have also issued an advisory to the states to ensure that meat and poultry items are included in the list of essential commodities that should be exempt from the lockdown, he said.

(With inputs from state bureaus)
WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI - Acts of generosity can come from a variety avenues: government officials, business owners, nonprofits or just a regular person helping out their neighbor.

During Michigans coronavirus shutdowns, dozens of stories have emerged that offer folks in Washtenaw County and the surrounding area hope in a time of uncertainty.

City council members thanking health care workers. Hardware stores donating personal protective equipment to hospitals. Churches offering drive-thru confessions. The list of ways people are dealing with self-isolation and social distancing grows by the day.

Here are five more things that give us hope amid coronavirus crisis in Washtenaw County.

If you have a story of a business, organization or person creatively dealing with social distancing and home isolation, or are going above and beyond to help others, please email Samuel Dodge at sdodge@mlive.com.

5 things that give us hope amid the coronavirus pandemic in Washtenaw County

5 more things that give us hope amid the coronavirus outbreak in Washtenaw County

Ann Arbor City Council Member Kathy Griswold, D-2nd Ward, poses for a portrait at a crosswalk on North Maple Road on Thursday, Jan. 10, 2019 in Ann Arbor. Griswold is campaigning for better lighting at crosswalks throughout the city. (Ben Allan Smith | MLive.com)Photos by Ben Allan Smith

Ann Arbor City Council Member promoting effort to thank health care workers

City Council Member Kathy Griswold, D-2nd Ward, is helping promote a local womans effort to place signs around Ann Arbor thanking essential workers and health care providers.

Ann Arbor resident Susan Schmidt printed 250 signs last week that read Thank You Healthcare Workers! In a matter of days, the signs have quickly spread throughout Ann Arbor, planted in yards and other places, including many in the Old West Side neighborhood where Schmidt lives.

Ann Arbor woman gets amazing response to yard signs thanking health care workers

Griswold posted three different variations of Schmidts design on Facebook for people to print and post themselves. More yard signs will be available for safe distribution sometime late next week to attach the images to signs, Griswold wrote in the post.

The response Ive gotten from community members, especially health care workers, has been amazing, Schmidt said. Health care workers in particular have been really moved by the community support.

Andrew Stines unloads boxes of medical supplies that are being donated to UM Hospitals at the North Campus Research Complex on Saturday, March 21, 2020. UM Hospitals are asking for donations of medical supplies amid the coronavirus outbreak. Supplies needed include disposable face masks, hand sanitizer, disposable gloves, among others.Jenna Kieser

Hardware store in Ann Arbor donated excess masks to Michigan Medicine, St. Joseph Mercy, other hospitals

Armando and Ita Reyes, the married co-owners of Carpenter Bros Hardware & Rental, 2753 Plymouth Road in Ann Arbor, realized two weeks ago that they had a stocked inventory of a valuable asset: N95 masks.

Their supply included 150 of the masks needed throughout Michigan and the country. They also had 500 latex shoe covers, 100 packages of gloves, five respirators and 18 decontamination Tyvek suits. Two weeks later, their supply is no more, as the Reyes donated it all to southeastern Michigan hospitals.

Two weeks ago, we held back on the items we were going to put out on the floor expecting that theyd be a high need for health workers, said Ita Reyes. I let my husband know about (various hospital supply drives), so we started donating our supply.

The store provided supplies to the University of Michigan Health System, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor, Beaumont Health and Henry Ford Allegiance in Wyandotte.

I know there are place that are actually selling (this stuff), Reyes said, but were just giving it out. U-M is literally calling stores all over, thats how big the need is. We just decided that whatever we had was needed out there.

Reyes also owns and operates Ita Yoga Studio, which is holding online classes at discounted prices during the state COVID-19 shutdown to promote social distancing. You can find the hardware store at Carpenterbroshardware.com and the studio at Itayogastudio.com.

11 Local launches free food pantry on porch of River Street home in Ypsilanti

Ypsilanti community porch pantry urges residents to take freely, give cheerfully during coronavirus crisis

At a time when social distancing has limited contact between neighbors, DReal Graham is still looking to build community with a simple message: Take freely, give cheerfully.

Those are the words on a sign welcoming neighbors to visit the front porch at 315 N. River St. in Ypsilantis Depot Town, where Graham and local realtor Tyler Weston have teamed up to provide easy access to a variety of nonperishable food items and other household essentials.

The community-sponsored U-Access Community Pantry is the work of Ypsi Local, which Graham and Weston started on March 17. Since then, Graham has worked to keep items the community has deemed essential in stock.

From canned fruits and vegetables, to boxes of pasta and oatmeal, to baby wipes, diapers and even an occasional package of toilet paper, items are flying off the shelves at a time when making a trip to the grocery store might be more difficult than usual for some.

Im overjoyed when I return to the pantry and food items are off the porch, Graham said in between restocking shelves Tuesday, March 31.

Drive-thru confession at Ann Arbor Catholic church

St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, 2250 E. Stadium Blvd. in Ann Arbor, is offering drive-thru" confessions from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, April 2. The sacrament will be available again from 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 4.

One commenter joked that the seal of confession, or the requisite confidentiality kept by priests once a parish member tells them their sins, may be an issue now that priests and member must be six feet apart for social distancing.

To learn more about this service or to help St. Francis stay afloat during a tenuous time financially for many organizations, visit stfrancisa2.com.

Brighton nonprofit donates funds to people in crisis, PPE to medical clinics

Fund a Life, a Brighton-based nonprofit, partnered with local investment agency Executive Wealth Management to donate thousands of dollars to organizations assisting people severely affected by the COVID-19 crisis.

The partners donated $4,000 each to Bountiful Harvest of Brighton and The Torch & Torch 180 in Fowlerville. Both organizations will use the funding to fill food gaps for community members in need throughout Livingston County, according to a press release.

We feel that it is dire times right now and we really need to make sure all hands-on deck. Make sure we are helping everyone out and get through the crisis we are going through. said Michael Chechel, managing director at EWM, in the release.

Bountiful Harvest will work to supply meals, including delivery service to seniors, vets and more. In addition, the organization will provide school kids with a weeks worth of breakfast and lunch. Food pickup is also available at 290 E. Grand River Ave. in Brighton.

The Torch & Torch 180, located at 131 Mill St. in Fowlerville, is providing a similar service, including free food, grocery and hot meal delivery to the community.

For more information on how to support Fund a Life, Executive Wealth Management, Bountiful Harvest or The Torch & Torch 180, call 810-229-6446.

They are need of a lot of volunteers and a lot of help, anybody if you can give donations of money, food, your time, whatever you can do," said Mark Howell, leader of Fund a Life, in the release.

Howell also said in an email that his organization acquired 3,000 PPE masks which will be donated to Woodland Cancer Center, as well as Michigan Medicine hospitals in the area.

PREVENTION TIPS

In addition to washing hands regularly and not touching your face, officials recommend practicing social distancing, assuming anyone may be carrying the virus. Health officials say you should be staying at least 6 feet away from others and working from home, if possible. Carry hand sanitizer with you, and use disinfecting wipes or disinfecting spray cleaners on frequently-touched surfaces in your home (door handles, faucets, countertops) and when you go into places like stores.

Complete coverage of the coronavirus outbreak in Michigan here.

Read more from the 5 things that give us hope series:

Ann Arbor caterer donating thousands of meals: 5 more things that give us hope amid coronavirus

350 meals delivered to families in need: 5 more things that give us hope amid coronavirus crisis

Free toilet paper with an oil change: Another 5 things that give us hope amid coronavirus crisis

5 things that give us hope amid the coronavirus pandemic in Washtenaw County

5 more things that give us hope amid the coronavirus outbreak in Washtenaw County

An extra 5 things that give us hope amid coronavirus crisis in Washtenaw County

Another 5 things that give us hope amid coronavirus crisis in Washtenaw, Livingston counties
Campaign posters. Yonhap



Official campaigning for the April 15 parliamentary elections kicked off Thursday amid expectations that the assessment of the government's response to the coronavirus pandemic will be a major issue.



The 13-day campaign period will last until the eve of the polls, according to the National Election Commission.



Up for grabs will be 253 directly elected seats and 47 proportional representation slots as voters will be allowed to cast two ballots  for a candidate and a political party.



The upcoming polls will be seen as a barometer of voter sentiment ahead of the presidential election in 2022. President Moon Jae-in took office in May 2017.



Political parties plan to campaign in a calm manner amid the COVID-19 outbreak that has resulted in nearly 10,000 infections in South Korea.



The virus outbreak has not only halted conventional electioneering but also taken away voters' attention from political parties' election pledges and candidates.






Many of the six million Americans filing unemployment claims amid the COVID-19 pandemic last week might wonder: am I still eligible for the checks and benefits promised in the $2.2 million relief package?

Nearly every American taxpayer  and unemployed workers or Social Security beneficiaries who dont earn enough to pay taxes  are eligible to receive checks from the IRS.

If you already filed your 2018 or 2019 tax return and opted for direct deposit, your check is already in the works and could arrive in your bank account within three weeks no matter your employment status, according to the U.S. Treasury Department. If you havent filed your taxes, the IRS advises filing your 2019 return as soon as possible; free filing options are on the IRS website, and the agency said it would soon provide an online tool for Americans to give updated banking information to receive checks quicker than regular mail.

Americans, whether theyre part of the workforce or not, will receive $1,200 if they earned less than $75,000. Those with children under 17 will receive an additional $500 for each child. Married taxpayers filing jointly and earning up to $150,000 will receive $2,400 and also benefit from the $500 extra for each kid.

Theres no minimum amount of income required, so if you didnt earn enough to meet the Internal Revenue Services requirement to file taxes  $12,200 if youre under 65  youre still eligible and should file your 2019 tax return by July 15.

What employment benefits are available?

Those who apply for unemployment benefits will receive whatever amount states typically provide for unemployment, plus a $600 per week add-on. Gig workers, such as Uber drivers, freelancers and those who do not have full-or part-time employment, will eventually be covered by the package.

The U.S. Department of Labor advises people to check with their states unemployment insurance program, but notes that "federal law permits significant flexibility for states to amend their laws to provide unemployment insurance benefits in multiple scenarios related to COVID-19, such as when a restaurant or businesses temporarily shuts down; an individual is quarantined; or an individual leaves employment due to risk of exposure or infection, or to care for a family member.

The Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance has released a host of updated information regarding how to file in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak. The quickest way to file is on the unemployment insurance online portal.

The DUA on Monday said it is awaiting federal guidance regarding application requirements, business rules, eligibility requirements, exceptions and technical requirements before self-employed workers and others who typically arent eligible can apply for benefits. More information will be posted on the website in the coming days.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed by President Donald Trump last week, established a $349 billion Paycheck Protection Program thats meant to provide financial relief to millions of small businesses that need assistance making payroll to stay afloat.

Department of Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said the program will begin Friday with lenders, banks and credit unions having the ability to approve a loan on the same day.

Will the relief package benefits be enough?

Lawmakers and Trump administration officials have all said a fourth relief package is likely.

On Wednesday, Massachusetts lawmakers in a conference call with reporters made clear that a fourth package was already in the works, likely with further extensions of unemployment benefits and future checks to Americans stuck at home.

Rep. Richard Neal touted the CARES Acts one-time infusion of cash to help lower- and middle-income families and individuals get on with the day-to-day necessities of their lives amid the pandemic. But he said lawmakers are already discussing further check payments to Americans.

It will likely be revisited again as we get to May, Neal said, adding that unemployment benefits would be extended as well.

Related Content:
A woman has posted a video of herself confronting workers who were laying fibre optic cables in East London and labelling them killers, over a conspiracy theory claiming that 5G caused the global coronavirus pandemic.

In the video, the amicable workers calmly tell the woman they are laying fibre optic cables for the upcoming 5G network.

But they are left bemused when the unknown woman appears to tell them that the 5G fibre is the reason behind the coronavirus outbreak.

A woman records herself approaching two workers in the street who are laying 5G fibre optic cables

The two men turn around bemused as the woman hurls false claims at them about the impact of 5G

The woman says: 'You know when they turn this on, it's going to kill everyone. That's why they're building the hospitals.

'We're all going to be in hospital on breathing apparatus. It's because of this wire here', before she dubs it 'a kill switch!'

At one point in the video, the woman bombards the workers, saying that they will be responsible for the death of their families.

She rants: 'How do you feel? Do you have children? Do you have parents? How do you feel? When they turn that switch on, you can say "Bye Bye Mama"

'Are you content to continue doing that job? Are you paid enough to kill her?'

Social media has been rife with conspiracies regarding the coronavirus pandemic, however one of the most enduring conspiracy theories centre around 5G.

The unidentified woman continues to barrage the workers with theories of 5G being linked to the global outbreak of coronavirus

Some theorists believe that 5G is the root of the global coronavirus outbreak and that it negatively impacts immune systems, despite the claim being debunked by fact-checking organisations in January.

A viral post widely shared on Facebook, which claimed that 5G was rolled out of Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the early outbreak, now carries a warning that it has been debunked by independent fact-checking charity 'Full Fact'.

Last month, 5G was found to be safe by the radiation watchdog stating that there was no scientific evidence that the technology posed a threat to human health.

Furthermore, 'Full Fact' found no evidence that Wuhan was the first city to receive 5G coverage, instead pointing out it was one of several Chinese cities where early 5G trials took place.

One of the workers continue to be bombarded with questions and statements about the supposed effect of the cables by the conspiracy theorist

According to the HuffPost, Dr. Georges C. Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association, said: 'COVID-19 is caused by a virus that came through a natural animal source and has no relation to 5G or any radiation linked to technology.'

The bizarre incident took place on Troon Street in Limehouse, East London. The identity of the woman who filmed the footage is unknown.

However the viral clip surfaced online earlier today and has been widely shared on social media, with many online users condemning the woman and her claims.
Update: The state continues to provide updates and guidance on what specific functions are exempt from the shutdown. Read our latest story for the most up-to-date information on landscapers and horticulture:

Landscaping gray area: You can get your lawn mowed during NYs coronavirus shutdown

After being allowed to remain open, many New York landscapers and horticulture businesses must now close under the states shutdown order to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

As of Thursday morning, NYs Department of Agriculture and Markets updated its website to say horticulture businesses would be considered non-essential going forward. That revoked earlier guidance, from March 24, stating landscapers could continue to operate with some limitations.

When Gov. Andrew Cuomo two weeks ago ordered most businesses to close or have employees work from home, dozens of landscapers wrote to syracuse.com asking how the law applied to them.

Landscaping and horticulture sometimes involve farming, maintenance and construction -- all industries that were initially exempted by the state order. And the work is often solitary: one person on a job who doesnt have much interaction with anyone.

But since the governors initial order, the guidance has changed. More than 2,300 people in New York state have died from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. New York has ordered most construction to a halt, and state officials are urging everyone to stay home and avoid social contact except when its necessary.

Over the last few days, officials from Ag & Markets said they were re-evaluating the previous guidance provided which allowed landscapers to continue their work.

According to the departments website, horticulture is now designated as non-essential except for nurseries or greenhouses that sell food-producing plants.

Other exemptions can be made for landscaping for maintenance and for pest control purposes, the department notes. It directs anyone with questions back to the states general guidance for businesses.

Have a question about your industry? Contact Reporter Julie McMahon: Email | Twitter | 315-412-1992

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